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Tag: College Football

  • Oregon and No. 4 Texas Tech square off in the Orange Bowl

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    No. 4 Texas Tech (12-1) vs. Oregon (12-1), Jan. 1 at 12 p.m. EST.

    BetMGM College Football Odds Opening Line: Oregon by 1.5. Against the spread: Oregon 6-6, Texas Tech 12-1.

    How to watch: ESPN

    Key stats

    Oregon Offense

    Overall: 468.9 yards per game (11th in FBS)

    Passing: 251.8 yards per game (45th)

    Rushing: 217.1 yards per game (13th)

    Scoring: 39.2 points per game (9th)

    Oregon Defense

    Overall: 271.4 yards per game (8th in FBS)

    Passing: 158.1 yards per game (6th)

    Rushing: 113.3 yards per game (24th)

    Scoring: 16.3 points per game (10th)

    Texas Tech Offense

    Overall: 480.3 yards per game (5th in FBS)

    Passing: 289.4 yards per game (11th)

    Rushing: 190.9 yards per game (26th)

    Scoring: 42.5 points per game (2nd)

    Texas Tech Defense

    Overall: 254.5 yards per game (3rd in FBS)

    Passing: 186 yards per game (24th)

    Rushing: 68.5 yards per game (1st)

    Scoring: 10.9 points per game (3rd)

    Both teams perform well on third down. Oregon ranks 14th in the FBS, converting 48.4% of the time. Texas Tech ranks 6th, converting 51%.

    Texas Tech leads the FBS with a +17 turnover margin.

    Oregon is 122nd in FBS in red zone defense, allowing opponents to score on 90% of trips. Texas Tech’s red zone offense ranks 47th, scoring on 87.7% of red zone opportunities.

    Team leaders

    Oregon

    Passing: Dante Moore, 3,046 yards, 28 TDs, 8 INTs, 72.4 completion percentage

    Rushing: Noah Whittington, 798 yards on 116 carries, 6 TDs

    Receiving: Malik Benson, 645 yards on 36 catches, 6 TDs

    Texas Tech

    Passing: Behren Morton, 2,643 yards, 22 TDs, 4 INTs, 67 completion percentage

    Rushing: Cameron Dickey, 1,097 yards on 198 carries, 14 TDs

    Receiving: Caleb Douglas, 845 yards on 55 catches, 7 TDs

    Last game

    Oregon beat James Madison 51-34 on Saturday, Dec. 20. Moore led Oregon with 313 yards on 19-of-27 passing (70.4%) for four touchdowns and two interceptions. He also carried the ball one time for 5 yards and one rushing touchdown. Jordon Davison had 90 rushing yards on 10 carries. Benson put up 119 yards on five catches with two touchdowns.

    Texas Tech won 34-7 over BYU on Saturday, Dec. 6. Morton threw for 215 yards on 20-of-33 attempts (60.6%) with two touchdowns and no interceptions. J’Koby Williams carried the ball 15 times for 80 yards, adding one reception for -2 yards. Reginald Virgil recorded 86 yards on eight catches.

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  • No. 2 Georgia and Ole Miss match up in the Sugar Bowl

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    Ole Miss (12-1) vs. No. 2 Georgia (12-1), Jan. 1 at 8 p.m. EST.

    BetMGM College Football Odds Opening Line: Georgia by 7. Against the spread: Georgia 6-7, Ole Miss 8-5.

    How to watch: ESPN

    Key stats

    Georgia Offense

    Overall: 406.5 yards per game (46th in FBS)

    Passing: 219.9 yards per game (76th)

    Rushing: 186.6 yards per game (30th)

    Scoring: 31.9 points per game (33rd)

    Georgia Defense

    Overall: 284.5 yards per game (12th in FBS)

    Passing: 205.3 yards per game (48th)

    Rushing: 79.2 yards per game (4th)

    Scoring: 15.9 points per game (9th)

    Ole Miss Offense

    Overall: 498 yards per game (2nd in FBS)

    Passing: 312.4 yards per game (3rd)

    Rushing: 185.6 yards per game (33rd)

    Scoring: 37.5 points per game (10th)

    Ole Miss Defense

    Overall: 339.8 yards per game (40th in FBS)

    Passing: 192.1 yards per game (29th)

    Rushing: 147.8 yards per game (66th)

    Scoring: 19.3 points per game (22nd)

    Ole Miss is 64th in FBS in red zone offense, scoring on 84.7% of trips. Georgia’s red zone defense ranks 7th at 71%.

    Ole Miss is 76th in the FBS with an average time of possession of 29:38, compared to Georgia’s 3rd-ranked average of 33:59.

    Team leaders

    Georgia

    Passing: Gunner Stockton, 2,686 yards, 23 TDs, 5 INTs, 70.6 completion percentage

    Rushing: Nate Frazier, 861 yards on 158 carries, 6 TDs

    Receiving: Zachariah Branch, 744 yards on 73 catches, 5 TDs

    Ole Miss

    Passing: Trinidad Chambliss, 3,298 yards, 19 TDs, 3 INTs, 66.6 completion percentage

    Rushing: Kewan Lacy, 1,366 yards on 273 carries, 21 TDs

    Receiving: Harrison Wallace III, 738 yards on 48 catches, 3 TDs

    Last game

    Georgia defeated Alabama 28-7 on Saturday, Dec. 6. Stockton passed for 156 yards on 20-of-26 attempts (76.9%) with three touchdowns and no interceptions. He also carried the ball 13 times for 39 yards. Frazier carried the ball 13 times for 52 yards and scored one touchdown, adding two receptions for eight yards. Branch recorded 53 yards on five catches with one touchdown.

    Ole Miss defeated Tulane 41-10 on Saturday, Dec. 20. Chambliss led Ole Miss with 282 yards on 23-of-29 passing (79.3%) for one touchdown and no interceptions. He also carried the ball six times for 36 yards and two rushing touchdowns. Lacy carried the ball 15 times for 87 yards and scored one touchdown, adding one reception for seven yards. Deuce Alexander had seven receptions for 87 yards.

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  • USF QB Byrum Brown hits the transfer portal

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    TAMPA, Fla. – The University of South Florida’s do-it-all quarterback Byrum Brown won’t return for a senior season.

    According to multiple reports Monday, Brown is expected to enter the transfer portal. No specific destination has been released, though Auburn may likely be in the mix.

    Former USF coach Alex Golesh took over the Tigers program last month.

    Brown, 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds, led the Bulls to a 9-3 regular season and a program-first landing in the college football playoff bracket during the season. A late-season loss to Navy ultimately knocked the Bulls from the CFP.

    USF lost to Old Dominion in the Cure Bowl, in which Brown did not play.

    Brown led the nation in total offense per game in 2025, averaging 347 yards of total offense per game. Also, he threw for 3,158 yards and ran for more than 1,000, becoming just the 12th FBS player to reach those numbers in a single season.

    Brown ends his USF career with 7,690 passing yards and 61 touchdowns and 2,265 rushing yards and another 31 scores on the ground.

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    Spectrum News Staff

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  • 50 Cent’s ‘Many Men’ electrifies Oklahoma crowd, and Sooners score two plays later

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    Oklahoma got a temporary boost from 50 Cent

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  • Keeler: Deion Sanders isn’t enough. CU Buffs football needs a sugar daddy for Christmas.

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    Omarion Miller finished Julian Lewis’ passes the way Meg Ryan finished Billy Crystal’s sentences in “When Harry Met Sally.”

    Alas, there won’t be a happy ending. Or a sequel.

    Miller — the CU Buffs’ leading receiver in 2025 — announced Wednesday that he was entering the transfer portal. And apparently Tawfiq Byard will have whatever Miller’s having. The Buffs safety, CU’s best defensive player this past fall despite playing much of it with just one working hand, also plans to transfer out of BoCo next month.

    Pain is a process. The gut says, “If we can go 3-9 with you, we can go 3-9 without you, dude.”

    The head says something else. Something along the lines of, “Man, Deion Sanders could really, really use a sugar daddy this Christmas.”

    Remember when the Buffs hired Coach Prime and finally got out ahead of the college football curve?

    That lasted about 16 to 18 months.

    Celebrity coaches are out.

    Celebrity investors are in.

    Texas Tech, per YahooSports.com, raised about $49 million for student-athletes from July 2024 to July 2025. A new Red Raiders donor group, called the Athletic Donor Circle, had already pledged roughly $35 million as of early November.

    Last week, Utah became the first Power 4 athletic department to formally partner with a private equity firm. ESPN.com reports that Otro Capital out of New York is ready to pump $400 million into the Utes.

    Texas Tech bought the best team on the planet, went 12-1, won the Big 12 title and earned a bye in the College Football Playoff. Utah posted a 10-2 record and beat the Buffs 53-7 in late October.

    CU athletics, meanwhile, is reportedly staring at a potential $27 million deficit for the 2025-2026 fiscal year, according to multiple outlets. Thank players and Prime, primarily.

    Sanders’ salary went up by nearly $5 million for 2025 after his new extension kicked in. The House vs. NCAA settlement required CU to share revenues with student-athletes starting this past July 1, with a cap of $20.5 million for this fiscal cycle. Yet it’s hard to imagine good players such as Miller and Byard taking pay cuts at their next ports of call, isn’t it?

    Buffs officials saw the train coming years ago, even as the bills keep piling up. Which is why the indoor practice facility is now sponsored by Mountain States Ford Stores. And why artificial turf was installed at Folsom Field — so the stadium could be utilized more often as a host to revenue-driving events outside the athletic calendar.

    Concerts and uniform sponsorships — UNLV will reportedly collect about $2.2 million annually over the next five years from Acesso Biologics, its new “Official Jersey Patch Partner” — will only cover so much. The student-athlete revenue sharing pool is expected to increase by 4% next year. Sanders is slated to make $11 million in 2027, $11 million in 2028 and $12 million in 2029.

    The Buffs can’t play at the same poker tables as the Red Raiders and Utes — or retain star players — without a serious influx of cash. Utah is pointing the way now. Not CU.

    College football is so broken. The system? The system — and by that, we mean greedy college presidents and the corporate suits they propped up as conference commissioners — for too long took advantage of student-athletes as a pool of indentured labor, as entertainment contractors on the cheap. A free market for talent was overdue. But the pendulum has swung so hard the other way that roster retention is the stuff of satire now.

    Bowls? Bowls are nothing more than three-hour infomercials for some random chamber of commerce or provincial company you’ve never heard of; exhibitions propped up by Disney stiffs to eat up programming blocks over the holidays. When Iowa State and Kansas State would sooner eat a million bucks in league fines than join in, that ship’s sailed. (Not you, Pop-Tarts Bowl. You’re weirdly perfect. And perfectly weird.)

    Fans? Fans are caught in the crossfire, casualties in the battle of dollars over sense. Ticket prices and point-of-entry fees will skyrocket. Pay-per-view will become more the norm than the exception. Universities will pass the cost to the consumer.

    The Buffs vow that they won’t cut sports — and with only 13 non-football options offered, they don’t have much room on that front to cut, anyway. They’ve vowed that they won’t lop student-athlete services, although outgoing athletic director Rick George laid off two track coaches last spring.

    Something’s gotta give. Of course, if Coach Prime wanted to help retain student-athletes, he could donate half of his $10 million salary to the revenue-sharing pool. That’s not happening.

    In an effort to slow the chaos, FBS scholarships could require a minimum of two years of service at your initial college of choice coming out of high school. But that’s not happening, either.

    As of early Friday morning, at least 11 CU players had expressed interest in transferring out. Among the Big 12 programs that didn’t change coaches (Kansas State, Iowa State, Oklahoma State), only West Virginia had seen more defections (19) as of mid-December than the Buffs.

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    Sean Keeler

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  • Bill Belichick’s Carolina Train Wreck

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    In November, the fact that Carolina beat Stanford was overshadowed by a nugget, in the Post, that a beef between Hudson and one of Belichick’s daughters-in-law, Jen, had reached a point where Jen had screamed at Jordon in Bill’s office, calling her “batshit crazy” and accusing her of “fucking twisting” Bill’s brain. Shortly thereafter, Belichick was seen attending an adult-cheerleading event where Hudson, wearing a high pony and a red scrunchie, was competing. A photo of him sitting in the audience, looking miserable, went viral.

    WRAL was now reporting that nearly twenty per cent of U.N.C’s players had been ticketed for reckless driving or speeding, and that a “significant” number of them were Belichick’s recruits. One, Thad Dixon, a star transfer who had played under Belichick’s son Steve at the University of Washington, was cited for doing ninety-three in a fifty zone. At a presser, Belichick wearily said, “We’ve addressed it.”

    Generations of reporters have learned that it is nearly impossible to extract personal insight from Belichick. His memoir, “The Art of Winning,” which was published in May, reads like somebody made him write a term paper about leadership. The monotony of his curmudgeonly gray flame and supposed aversion to distraction is part of why Belichick scholars went on alert when he uncharacteristically surfaced on social media, with Hudson, playing mermaid angler and yoga daddy. What, I wondered, would Belichick’s best-known biographer, the late David Halberstam, have made of all this?

    Halberstam edited the Harvard Crimson and distinguished himself young, at the Times, by winning the 1964 Pulitzer Prize in International Reporting for coverage of the Vietnam War. He went on to publish nearly two dozen books on politics, civil rights, and professional sports—Bill Walton and the Portland Trail Blazers; the Yankees–Red Sox rivalry. In 2005, the Patriots were in the midst of a historic run, having won three of the last four Super Bowls. A friend of Belichick called Halberstam to suggest him as a new book subject.

    Both Halberstam and Belichick owned property on Nantucket, but had never met. Halberstam invited Belichick and his then-wife, Debby, whom Belichick had known since high school, over to dinner. As it turned out, Belichick wasn’t sold on the idea of a book, though he did admire Halberstam’s work, especially “The Best and the Brightest,” about Vietnam. According to Halberstam, Belichick agreed only after the project was framed in terms of lineage and learning.

    Much of what we know about Belichick appeared first in that book, “The Education of a Coach.” Belichick’s paternal grandparents immigrated to the U.S. from what is now Croatia. His mother, Jeannette, was a languages scholar of English descent; she learned Croatian to communicate with the relatives of her husband, Steve. The family worked in “the coal mines of western Pennsylvania, the steel mills of eastern Ohio,” Halberstam once told PBS. Steve “got out and made it because he was a very good, albeit relatively small, high school running back, and that got him to Case Western Reserve in Cleveland, and a coach picked up on him and understood that he was rough, crusty, but smart as could be, hardworking, and that everything you asked him to do, he would do, and more. And the values of that home—of nothing to be wasted, of maximizing your talents—he passed on to his son in a much more affluent America.”

    Bill was born in 1952, in Nashville, where his father briefly worked as an assistant football coach at Vanderbilt University, and he grew up in Annapolis, Maryland, where Steve spent thirty-three years scouting for the Navy’s team, a job that he was able to hold for so long, in a profession marked by turnover, because the Naval Academy gave him tenure as a P.E. instructor. Father took son to work; the future Hall of Famer quarterback Roger Staubach tossed the kid passes. Belichick was a small child when he began absorbing the art of breaking down game film. He played football and lacrosse at Annapolis High School, where he met Debby, who captained the cheerleaders. After graduating, he spent a year at Phillips Academy, in Andover, Massachusetts, to improve his grades and his college prospects. Playing center on the football team, he met Ernie Adams, a brainy senior from Brookline, Massachusetts, who played guard and was a fan of “Football Scouting Methods,” a book, published in 1962, that Steve had dictated to Jeannette with a level of density and detail that only other football obsessives could love.

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    Paige Williams

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  • NC State cruises by Memphis 31-7 in Gasparilla Bowl

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    TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — CJ Bailey threw for 221 yards and two touchdowns, and scored another on the ground as NC State took down Memphis 31-7 in the Gasparilla Bowl on Friday.

    The Wolfpack concluded their season at 8-5 (4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference) and won a bowl game for the first time since the 2017 Sun Bowl.

    Jayden “Duke” Scott racked up 108 rushing yards to pace the NC State offense. Wesley Grimes led with 48 receiving yards and a score on three catches and six targets.

    NC State struck first on their opening drive as Bailey scampered for a 14-yard rush. The Wolfpack scored on all but two of their first-half drives to take a 31-7 lead into halftime.

    Grimes hauled in a 31-yard touchdown, Teddy Hoffman took his only catch for a 40-yard score, and Will Wilson tacked on a 1-yard rushing touchdown before time expired in the first half.

    The Tigers (8-5, 4-4 American Conference) got on the board with Jamari Hawkins’ 28-yard reception. Hawkins had four catches for 32 yards.

    NC State is 18-18-1 in bowl games and made its sixth straight appearance. Memphis is 9-9 in bowl games, winning four straight from 2020-2024. The Tigers are one of seven FBS programs with an active streak of 12 or more straight bowl invitations.

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    Associated Press

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  • USF falls short of 10-win season in Cure Bowl

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    ORLANDO, Fla. (AP) — Redshirt freshman quarterback Quinn Henicle rushed for 107 yards and two touchdowns to help Old Dominion beat South Florida 24-10 and win the StaffDNA Cure Bowl at Camping World Stadium on Wednesday.

    Henicle carried 24 times for Old Dominion (10-3) and clinched the victory with a 51-yard touchdown run on a third-down play with 2:32 remaining. He also completed 11 of 25 passes for 127 yards.

    Devin Roche finished with 100 yards on 19 rushes as the Monarchs piled up 255 yards on the ground.

    South Florida (9-4) jumped in front on Nico Gramatica’s 28-yard field goal before Henicle scored on a 6-yard run with 42 seconds left to put Old Dominion up 7-3 after one quarter.

    Gaston Moore threw a 31-yard touchdown pass to Jeremiah Koger midway through the second to give the Bulls a 10-7 lead at halftime.

    Jerome Carter picked off Moore on South Florida’s first possession of the third quarter and returned it 26 yards to the the Bulls’ 25-yard line. Trequan Jones turned a third-and-7 rush into a 22-yard touchdown and the Monarchs took a 14-10 lead. Nathaniel Eichner added a 24-yard field goal for a seven-point advantage heading to the fourth quarter.

    USF punter Chase Leon threw an interception on a fake punt and the Monarchs took over at their own 28 after they were flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct on the play. Henicle scored three plays later to set the final margin.

    Moore completed 20 of 28 passes for 236 yards. He threw two of the Bulls’ four interceptions. Christian Neptune had 10 catches for 102 yards.

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    Associated Press

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  • USF, Old Dominion set to meet Wednesday in Cure Bowl

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    ORLANDO, Fla. – The University of South Florida will face Old Dominion Wednesday in Orlando in the StaffDNA Cure Bowl.

    Kickoff is at 5 p.m., and the game will be televised on ESPN.

    What You Need To Know

    • CURE BOWL: USF vs. Old Dominion

    • Kickoff is at 5 p.m. Wednesday at Camping World Stadium in Orlando. ESPN TV 

    • USF quarterback Byrum Brown, just the 12th player in FBS history to post a 3,000-yard passing and 1,000-yard rushing season, will not play in the game. Sixth-year quarterback Gaston Moore will start

    USF (9-3; 6-2 American) will look to capture a third consecutive bowl win for just the second time in program history when it takes on Old Dominion (9-3; 6-2 Sun Belt).

    The Bulls also seek to post a 10-win season for just the third time in program history and the first since going 10-2 in 2017.

    Interim USF Coach Kevin Patrick, leading the team until new coach Brian Hartline and Ohio State finish their playoff run, said the Bulls remain focused heading into their bowl game.

    “We’re working hard and our players are really excited to be playing in this bowl game,’’ said Patrick to gousfbulls.com. “All of these guys — particularly the 30 seniors that we have — have so much pride and love for this program. For a lot of them, it will most likely be their last time going on the field of battle. The heart and soul they’ve poured into this program, the love they have for each other and the respect they have for this game, I don’t think I’ve seen it to that level in the long coaching career I’ve had. I can’t commend these guys enough.’’

     

    USF’s Byrum Brown will not play in the game, meaning sixth-year quarterback Gaston Moore will get the starting nod. The Bulls’ offense enters the postseason ranked No. 2 nationally, posting 501.7 yards per game and No. 4 in scoring at 43 points per game. The Bulls posted a program-record five games scoring 50 points or more in the regular season and seven scoring 48 or more.

     

    Meanwhile, the Monarchs won their final five games to close out the regular season and received votes in the USA Today Coaches Poll. They bring the No. 7-ranked rushing offense (236.9 ypg), No. 16-ranked total offense (460.8 ypg) and No. 20-ranked scoring defense (19.3 ppg) into the Cure Bowl.

    The game will mark USF’s first meeting against ODU.

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    Spectrum News Staff

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  • Big Ten puts 10 on AP All-America first team, led by 4 from Ohio State

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    Four players from Ohio State are among 10 first-team picks from the Big Ten on The Associated Press All-America team released Monday, a group headed by repeat selection Caleb Downs of the Buckeyes and AP Player of the Year Fernando Mendoza of Indiana.

    What You Need To Know

    • The AP has named an All-America team every year since 1925

    • Downs, the Big Ten defensive player of the year, has made the first team each of his two seasons at Ohio State 

    • Mendoza, who won the Heisman Trophy over the weekend, led the top-ranked Hoosiers to a 13-0 record and the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff

    The AP has named an All-America team every year since 1925, and Notre Dame’s two first-team picks this season increased its all-time lead to 87.

    Downs, the Big Ten defensive player of the year, has made the first team each of his two seasons at Ohio State after landing on the second team as a freshman at Alabama in 2023. He is one of 12 players on the 27-man first team who did not start their careers at their current school. Downs is joined on the first team by fellow Buckeyes Jeremiah Smith, Kayden McDonald and Arvell Reese.

    Mendoza, who won the Heisman Trophy over the weekend, led the top-ranked Hoosiers to a 13-0 record and the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff after transferring from California. He has thrown a nation-leading 33 touchdown passes and is the catalyst of one of the most productive offenses in the country.

    A total of 18 schools are represented on the first team, including seven of the 12 in the CFP.

    Iowa has had at least one first-team player seven straight years and in 10 of the last 12. This is the fourth year in a row Miami, Notre Dame and Ohio State have had at least one.

    Punter Cole Maynard gave Western Kentucky its first-ever first-team pick. Defensive lineman Landon Robinson is Navy’s first since 1975 and kicker Kansei Matsuzawa is Hawaii’s first since 1986.

    First-team All-Americans (by conference)

    Big Ten — 10

    SEC — 6

    Big 12 — 3

    ACC — 1

    Independent — 3

    Conference USA — 2

    American — 1

    Mountain West — 1

    ___

    The AP All-America team was selected by a panel of 52 college Top 25 poll voters.

    First-team offense

    Wide receiver —Makai Lemon, Southern California, junior, 5-11, 195, Los Angeles.

    Wide receiver — Jeremiah Smith, Ohio State, sophomore, 6-3, 223, Miami Gardens, Florida.

    Wide receiver — Skylar Bell, UConn, senior, 6-0, 185, New York, N.Y.

    Tackle — Francis Mauigoa, Miami, junior, 6-6, 335,Ili’ili, American Samoa.

    Tackle — Spencer Fano, Utah, junior, 6-6, 308, Spanish Fork, Utah.

    Guard — Emmanuel Pregnon, Oregon, senior, 6-5, 318, Denver.

    Guard — Beau Stephens, Iowa, senior, 6-5, 315, Blue Springs, Missouri.

    Center — Logan Jones, Iowa, graduate, 6-3, 202, Council Bluffs, Iowa.

    Tight end — Eli Stowers, Vanderbilt, graduate, 6-4, 235, Denton, Texas.

    Quarterback — Fernando Mendoza, Indiana, junior, 6-5, 225, Miami.

    Running back — Jeremiyah Love, Notre Dame, junior, 6-0, 214, St. Louis.

    Running back — Ahmad Hardy, Missouri, sophomore, 5-10, 210, Oma, Mississippi.

    Kicker — Kansei Matsuzawa, Hawaii, senior, 6-2, 200, Tokyo.

    All-purpose — KC Concepcion, Texas A&M, junior, 5-11, 190, Charlotte, North Carolina.

    First-team defense

    Edge rusher — David Bailey, Texas Tech, senior, 6-3, 250, Irvine, California.

    Edge rusher — Cashius Howell, Texas A&M, senior, 6-2, 248, Kansas City, Missouri.

    Interior lineman — Kayden McDonald, Ohio State, junior, 6-3, 326, Suwanee, Georgia.

    Interior lineman — Landon Robinson, Navy, senior, 6-0, 287, Fairlawn, Ohio.

    Linebacker — Jacob Rodriguez, Texas Tech, senior, 6-1, 235, Wichita Falls, Texas.

    Linebacker — Arvell Reese, Ohio State, junior, 6-4, 243, Cleveland.

    Linebacker — CJ Allen, Georgia, junior, 6-1, 235, Barnesville, Georgia.

    Cornerback — Leonard Moore, Notre Dame, sophomore, 6-2, 195, Round Rock, Texas.

    Cornerback — Mansoor Delane, LSU, senior, 6-0, 190, Silver Spring, Maryland.

    Safety — Caleb Downs, Ohio State, junior, 6-0, 205, Hoschton, Georgia.

    Safety — Bishop Fitzgerald, Southern California, senior, 5-11, 205, Woodbridge, Virginia.

    Defensive back — Jakari Foster, Louisiana Tech, senior, 6-0, 211, Piedmont, Alabama.

    Punter — Cole Maynard, Western Kentucky, senior, 6-1, 180, Mooresville, North Carolina.

    Second-team offense

    Wide receiver — Carnell Tate, Ohio State, junior, 6-3, 195, Chicago.

    Wide receiver — Malachi Toney, Miami, freshman, 5-11, 188, Liberty City, Florida.

    Wide receiver — Danny Scudero, San Jose State, sophomore, 5-9, 174, San Jose, California.

    Tackle — Kadyn Proctor, Alabama, junior, 6-7, 366, Des Moines, Iowa.

    Tackle — Carter Smith, Indiana, junior, 6-5, 313, Powell, Ohio.

    Guard — Olaivavega Ioane, Penn State, junior, 6-4, 323, Graham, Washington.

    Guard — Ar’maj Reed-Adams, Texas A&M, graduate, 6-5, 325, Dallas.

    Center – Jake Slaughter, Florida, senior, 6-4, 303, Sparr, Florida.

    Tight end — Kenyon Sadiq, Oregon, junior, 6-3, 245, Idaho Falls, Idaho.

    Quarterback — Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt, graduate, 6-0, 207, Albuquerque, New Mexico.

    Running back — Emmett Johnson, Nebraska, junior, 5-11, 200, Minneapolis.

    Running back — Kewan Lacy, Mississippi, sophomore, 5-11, 210, Dallas.

    Kicker — Tate Sandell, Oklahoma, junior, 5-9, 182, Port Neches, Texas.

    All-purpose — Wayne Knight, James Madison, junior, 5-7, 190, Smyrna, Delaware.

    Second-team defense

    Edge rusher — Rueben Bain Jr., Miami, junior, 6-3, 270, Miami.

    Edge rusher — John Henry Daley, Utah, sophomore, 6-4, 255, Alpine, Utah.

    Interior lineman — A.J. Holmes Jr., Texas Tech, junior, 6-3, 300, Houston.

    Interior lineman — Peter Woods, Clemson, junior, 6-3, 310, Alabaster, Alabama.

    Linebacker — Sonny Syles, Ohio State, senior, 6-5, 243, Pickerington, Ohio.

    Linebacker — Anthony Hill Jr., Texas, junior, 6-3, 238, Denton, Texas.

    Linebacker — Red Murdock, Buffalo, graduate, 6-1, 240, Petersburg, Virginia.

    Cornerback — D’Angelo Ponds, Indiana, junior, 5-9, 173, Miami.

    Cornerback — Chris Johnson, San Diego State, senior, 6-0, 195, Eastvale, California.

    Safety — Dillon Thieneman, Oregon, junior, 6-0, 205, Westfield, Indiana.

    Safety — Louis Moore, Indiana, senior, 5-11, 200, Mesquite, Texas.

    Defensive back — Hezekiah Masses, California, senior, 6-1, 185, Deerfield Beach, Florida.

    Punter — Brett Thorson, Georgia, senior, 6-2, 235, Melbourne, Australia.

    Third-team offense

    Wide receiver — Eric McAlister, TCU, senior, 6-3, 205, Azie, Texas.

    Wide receiver — Chris Brazzell II, Tennessee, junior, 6-5, 200, Midland, Texas.

    Wide receiver — Jordyn Tyson, Arizona State, junior, 6-2, 200, Allen, Texas.

    Tackle — Keagen Trost, Missouri, graduate, 6-4, 316, Kankakee, Illinois.

    Tackle — Brian Parker II, Duke, junior, 6-5, 305, Cincinnati.

    Guard — Keylan Rutledge, Georgia Tech, senior, 6-4, 330, Royston, Georgia.

    Guard — Evan Tengesdahl, Cincinnati, sophomore, 6-3, 320, Dayton, Ohio.

    Center — Iapani Laloulu, Oregon, junior, 6-2, 329, Honolulu.

    Tight end — Michael Trigg, Baylor, senior, 6-4, 240, Tampa, Florida.

    Quarterback — Julian Sayin, Ohio State, redshirt freshman, 6-1, 208, Carlsbad, California.

    Running back — Cam Cook, Jacksonville State, junior, 5-11, 200, Round Rock, Texas.

    Running back — Kaytron Allen, Penn State, senior, 5-11, 219, Norfolk, Virginia.

    Kicker — Aidan Birr, Georgia Tech, junior, 6-1, 205, Kennedale, Texas.

    All-purpose — Jadarian Price, Notre Dame, junior, 5-11, 210, Denison, Texas.

    Third-team defense

    Edge rusher — Caden Curry, Ohio State, senior, 6-3, 260, Greenwood, Indiana.

    Edge rusher — Nadame Tucker, Western Michigan, senior, 6-3, 250, New York.

    Interior lineman — Tyrique Tucker, Indiana, junior, 6-0, 302, Norfolk, Virginia.

    Interior lineman — Lee Hunter, Texas Tech, senior, 6-4, 330, Mobile, Alabama.

    Linebacker — Aiden Fisher, Indiana, senior, 6-1, 231, Fredericksburg, Virginia.

    Linebacker — Caden Fordham, North Carolina State, graduate, 6-1, 230, Ponte Vedra, Florida.

    Linebacker — Owen Long, Colorado State, sophomore, 6-2, 230, Whittier, California.

    Cornerback — Avieon Terrell, Clemson, junior, 5-11, 180, Atlanta.

    Cornerback — Treydan Stukes, Arizona, senior, 6-2, 200, Litchfield Park, Arizona.

    Safety — Michael Taaffe, Texas, senior, 6-0, 189, Austin, Texas.

    Safety — Emmanuel McNeil-Warren, Toledo, senior, 6-2, 202, Tampa, Florida.

    Defensive back — Bray Hubbard, Alabama, junior, 6-2, 213, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.

    Punter — Ryan Eckley, Michigan State, junior, 6-2, 207, Lithia, Florida.

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  • Gators’ quarterback Lagway says he’s entering transfer portal

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    FLORIDA — University of Florida quarterback DJ Lagway is leaving the program and entering the transfer portal, he announced Monday on his Instagram account.

    That means the Gators will enter next season with a new starting quarterback and a new head coach.

    In his post, Lagway thanked his family, teammates, coaching staff, Florida’s athletic trainers and other members of the university community for their support.

    “I am truly grateful for the opportunity to have been part of such an incredible program here at the University of Florida,” Lagway said in his post.

    Florida hired Jon Sumrall from Tulane as head coach late last month to replace Billy Napier, who they fired midseason.

    Lagway spent two seasons at Florida, the highest profile recruit of Napier’s coaching stint at Florida.

    In Lagway’s 24 regular-season games as the Gators’ quarterback, Florida went 12-13 and in 2024 went to the Gasparilla Bowl, where Florida defeated Tulane and he was named MVP. He completed 328 of 529 pass attempts for 4,179 yards, 28 touchdown passes, and he threw 23 interceptions. He also carried the football 122 times for 237 yards and one touchdown.

    This past season, the oft-injured Lagway completed 63% of his passes this season for 2,264 yards, with 16 touchdowns and 14 interceptions. He also ran for 136 yards and a score. He missed most of the offseason program while recovering from core-muscle surgery, a sore throwing arm and a strained calf. He also missed time in 2024 with a hamstring injury.

    He looked like a potential star as a freshman at Florida, going 6-1 as a starter. But he seemed out of sorts as a sophomore — evidenced by sloppy mechanics and a clear lack of confidence in the pocket.

    Lagway also was due to make more than $3 million in 2026 at Florida and made millions already through name, image and likeness deals with Gatorade, Jordan Brand, Mercedes-Benz, Lamborghini Orlando, T-Mobile, Beats by Dre, Chipotle and others.

    After Lagway made the announcement, newly hired LSU coach Lane Kiffin retweeted a link to a news story about Lagway announcing his decision. When Florida sought a replacement for Napier, it reportedly showed strong interest in hiring Kiffin before he accepted an offer for the Tigers’ job.

    The transfer portal opens Jan. 2.

    The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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  • RECAP – Playoffs: Villanova’s Magical Playoff Run Continues Over Tarleton State, 26-21 – Philadelphia Sports Nation

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    Credit: Villanova Football-Twitter/X

    If the Eagles needed another shining example of an incredible playoff push, then they might want to spend some time looking at the Wildcats’ weekly push through the FCS Playoffs with another upset.

    Villanova vs. Tarelton State came down to three key plays, two of them made by Villanova freshmen. With two minutes left in the game , Tarleton State had a 4th and 6 on the Villanova 11-yard line. Quarterback Victor Gebalis found Quentin West in the back of the end zone, but Villanova defensive back Damill Bostic, Jr. got just enough of West to prevent him from dragging his foot inbounds. The play was initially called a touchdown on the field, but was then overturned by review.

    Credit: Villanova Football-Twitter/X

    On the ensuing possession, it initially appeared that Ja’briel Mace had lost the football — but Villanova retained possession.

    On that very same offensive possession on 3rd down , the Wildcats faked a run and then threw a pass out to Braden Reed, who sealed the 26–21 Wildcats win with a diving first down.

    Villanova would have to fight back into the game after falling down 14–0. Braden Reed got the Wildcats on the board with a twenty-seven-yard pass in the second quarter. After Gebalis found West for a fifteen-yard strike in the 3rd quarter to go up 21–12 , Nova completely unleashed its offense and locked down defensively for the rest of the game. Mace then broke a 47-yard run in the third to cut the lead to 21–19. Nova Quarterback Pat McQuaide then found Reed for an eleven-yard score to put the Wildcats in front 26–21. Bostic Jr.’s athletic play assisted in turning back the Texans’ last scoring opportunity.

    Villanova would finish the game with 426 total yards. Mace had one hundred fifty-one yards rushing.

    The Wildcats’ next contest will be the FSC Playoff Semi-Final next weekend against Illinois State at Villanova Stadium.

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  • Former Michigan coach Sherrone Moore charged with stalking, home invasion

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    Appearing remotely from a county jail in a white jumpsuit, former University of Michigan football coach Sherrone Moore was charged with stalking and illegally entering the home of the woman he was allegedly romantically involved with. Jericka Duncan has the latest.

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  • Sherrone Moore Arraigned on Felony Charges After Michigan Firing

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    Moore was arraigned today on felony charges after prosecutors said he entered the home of a woman who worked for him and with whom he had a personal relationship, allegedly making disturbing and threatening statements

    The now former University of Michigan head football coach Sherrone Moore was charged Friday with three criminal offenses -including a felony home invasion count- just hours after being fired amid allegations of an inappropriate relationship with a staff member, authorities said.

    Moore, 39, faces a third-degree home invasion felony and two misdemeanor counts of stalking in a domestic relationship and breaking and entering, according to court records. Prosecutors allege that Wednesday evening, he unlawfully entered the home of a woman with whom he had an intimate relationship after she ended their relationship earlier in the week. And again, just hours after Moore was fired by the Wolverines for having an inappropriate relationship with the woman, who reportedly worked for him directly.

    Pittsfield Township police responded to a call from the woman, who told dispatchers that a man had been stalking her for months and was attacking her in her home, according to the criminal complaint. The woman had ended the relationship, and prosecutors said Moore continued to contact her with unwanted calls and messages. A prosecutor said today in Ann Arbor District Court, that Moore pulled knives from the woman’s kitchen drawer and made threatening statements.

    Washtenaw County Prosecutor Kati Rezmierski revealed shocking statements allegedly made by the defendant to the woman while inside her home

    “I’m going to kill myself, I’m going to make you watch. My blood is on your hands,” Rezmierski relayed to the judge. Moore was arrested and booked into the Washtenaw County Jail, where he remained until his arraignment today. In court, he appeared virtually wearing a white jumpsuit and was ordered to post a $25,000 surety bond with conditions that include GPS monitoring, avoiding contact with the victim and continued mental health treatment. His attorney insisted he was not a threat to the public and has no criminal record.

    After the internal investigation found that Moore was involved with a staffer, a violation of school policy, the remainder of his contract was voided. Moore served as Michigan’s head coach for two seasons, leading the Wolverines to a 9-3 record in 2025. He had been promoted to the position in 2024 following the departure of Jim Harbaugh. Associate head coach Biff Poggi has been named interim coach for the team’s upcoming bowl game. Moore’s next hearing is in January of 2026.

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    Lauren Conlin

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  • Sherrone Moore jailed as police investigate situation that led to the fired Michigan coach’s arrest

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    ANN ARBOR, Mich. (AP) — Sherrone Moore was being held in jail Thursday while police investigate the situation that led to his arrest hours after the once-promising coach was fired at Michigan for what the school said was an inappropriate relationship with a staff member.

    Authorities have yet to release details on Moore’s arrest, other than to say he has been held since Wednesday night in the Washtenaw County Jail and remains under investigation.

    Pittsfield Township police had issued a statement that said officers were called to investigate an alleged assault and took a person into custody, without mentioning anyone by name. The statement, however, was released in response to media inquiries about Moore.

    The police department updated its statement in the morning to say the suspect is scheduled for arraignment on Friday.

    Moore, 39, was fired by Michigan, college football’s winningest program that has been mired in scandal, after the school verified evidence of his relationship with the staffer.

    Athletic director Warde Manuel said the behavior “constitutes a clear violation of university policy.”

    The announcement did not include details of the alleged relationship. Moore, who is married with three young daughters, did not return a message from The Associated Press seeking comment.

    His departure ends an up-and-down, two-year tenure that saw the Wolverines take a step back on the field after winning the national championship in January 2024 and getting punished by the NCAA for a sign-stealing scandal.

    Michigan head coach Sherrone Moore celebrates with kicker Dominic Zvada (96) after an extra-point kick during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Maryland, Saturday, Nov. 22, 2025, in College Park, Md. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)

    He led the 18th-ranked Wolverines to a 9-3 record this year after going 8-5 in his debut season.

    Moore signed a five-year contract with a base annual salary of $5.5 million last year. According to the terms of his deal, the university will not have to buy out the remaining years of his contract because he was fired for cause.

    His firing leaves Michigan suddenly looking for a third coach in four years, shortly after a busy cycle that included Lane Kiffin leaving playoff-bound Mississippi for LSU.

    Moore, the team’s former offensive coordinator, was promoted to lead the Wolverines after they won the national title. He succeeded Jim Harbaugh, who returned to the NFL to lead the Los Angeles Chargers.

    Michigan is set to play No. 14 Texas on Dec. 31 in the Citrus Bowl. Biff Poggi, who filled in for Moore when he was suspended earlier this season in relation to the Harbaugh-era sign-stealing scandal, will serve as interim coach. Moore was suspended for two games as part of self-imposed sanctions for NCAA violations related to the scandal.

    The NCAA added a third game to the suspension, which would have kept Moore off the sideline for next year’s opener against Western Michigan.

    Moore previously deleted an entire 52-message text thread with former staffer Connor Stalions, who was at the center of the team’s sign-stealing operation. The texts were later recovered and shared with the NCAA.

    Just a few years ago, Moore was Harbaugh’s top assistant and regarded as a rising star.

    Moore, who is from Derby, Kansas, didn’t start playing football until his junior year of high school. He played for Butler County Community College in Kansas and as an offensive lineman for coach Bob Stoops at Oklahoma during the 2006 and 2007 seasons.

    His coaching career began as a graduate assistant at Louisville before moving on to Central Michigan, where he caught Harbaugh’s attention. Harbaugh hired him in 2018 as tight ends coach.

    Moore was promoted to offensive line coach and co-offensive coordinator in 2021, when the Wolverines bounced back from a 2-4, pandemic-shortened season and began a three-year run of excellence that culminated in the school’s first national title in 26 years.

    He worked his way up within the Wolverines’ staff and filled in as interim coach for four games during the 2023 championship season while Harbaugh served two suspensions for potential NCAA rules violations.

    Moore also served a one-game suspension during that year related to a recruiting infractions NCAA case.

    Earlier in the 2023 season, Michigan State fired coach Mel Tucker for cause after he engaged in what he described as consensual phone sex with an activist and rape survivor. In 2012, Arkansas fired coach Bobby Petrino due to a sordid scandal that involved a motorcycle crash, an affair with a woman who worked for him and being untruthful to his bosses.

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    Associated Press Writer Ed White contributed.

    ___

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  • Colorado recruit Ben Gula eager to compete for spot on Buffs’ O-line

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    Colorado football recruit Ben Gula, from Cypress Bay (Florida) High School, during a recruiting visit to the Boulder, Colorado, campus. (Photo courtesy of Ben Gula)

    Offensive line might be the toughest position in college football to earn a starting job as a true freshman.

    Ben Gula isn’t worried about history, though. He’s coming to Colorado next month with confidence.

    “I definitely think year one, I’ll be a contributor,” said Gula, who signed with CU last week. He is set to graduate from Cypress Bay (Florida) High School and enroll at CU in January.

    Since freshmen became eligible in 1972, only 16 have made starts at CU on the offensive line. Only three of those were centers, but all three of those have been recent. Van Wells was the first true freshman to start games at center for CU, in 2022 (six starts), while Hank Zilinskas made two starts in 2023 and Cash Cleveland made four starts in 2024.

    Gula is hoping to join that group, and he knows there’s a spot open with this year’s starting center, Zarian McGill, graduating. He also knows it won’t be easy to win the job.

    “If it’s not in it for me, which I believe it is, I still want to contribute to the guy in front of me, the guy behind me,” he said. “I just want to make everybody better because at the end of the day, I’m a football player at the University of Colorado, not just an individual.”

    The 6-foot-5, 285-pound Gula was a four-year starter at Cypress Bay, starting 41 games overall and allowing just one sack in over 1,500 pass protection snaps. Mainly a left tackle, Gula has played all over the line and said CU projects him as a center.

    “(I’ve been working on) footwork, pad level, just everything I can to ready myself,” he said. “I’m going to have some great coaching this spring here. … I’ve definitely done my best to be as explosive and ready as I can.”

    A basketball player through much of his youth, Gula realized during his freshman year of high school that football could provide a better path to the future. Gula earned a start on varsity in the second game of his freshman year and took off from there.

    “(Coaches) just kind of told me if I put some weight on, I’d be a real force to be reckoned with,” he said. “Ever since then, I’ve just done everything I can to be the best player I can.”

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    Brian Howell

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  • Indiana grabs top seed in College Football Playoff. Alabama and Miami make it, Notre Dame left out

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    Nobody paying attention over the past 24 months would be surprised to see Indiana leading the way into this year’s College Football Playoff.

    But anyone paying attention over the last 24 hours knew the only sure thing beyond the Hoosiers was that the playoff selection committee was destined to get picked apart when it released the pairings for this season’s 12-team bracket on Sunday.

    Most of that second-guessing came from Notre Dame, which was passed over in favor of Alabama and Miami for two of the bracket’s bubble spots. The Fighting Irish dropped two notches in the CFP rankings over the last two weeks, to No. 11, despite a 10-game winning streak, winning their finale by 29 points and simply sitting on the couch Saturday.

    “There is no explanation that could possibly be given to explain the outcome,” Irish athletic director Pete Bevacqua told Yahoo Sports, hours after the bracket was revealed and Notre Dame said it would skip bowl season altogether. “We feel like the playoff was stolen from our student-athletes.”

    Notre Dame’s loss was Alabama’s gain. The Crimson Tide didn’t move an inch the CFP rankings despite a 28-7 loss to No. 3 Georgia that looked worse than that.

    No. 10 Miami didn’t play, either, but the Hurricanes’ 27-24 win over Notre Dame in Week 1 played a role once the teams were grouped right next to each other after BYU lost its game on Saturday and dropped one spot.

    “Everyone can spin the metrics in favor of the team or teams they support,” committee chairman Hunter Yurachek said. “You’re always going to have controversy. That’s why we debated for so long, 9, 10 and 11, into the early-morning hours, and woke up at sunrise to do the same thing — make sure we got it right.”

    The committee’s other key decision was choosing James Madison over Duke for the final spot. The selection left the Atlantic Coast Conference champion out of the mix, but didn’t fully exclude the ACC because Miami made it.

    The rest of the field includes No. 2 seed Ohio State, No. 3 Georgia and No. 4 Texas Tech, all of which joined Indiana in getting first-round byes.

    The Hoosiers moved up to No. 1 with their 13-10 win over the Buckeyes on Saturday — their first Big Ten title since 1967 — and the teams’ 1-2 positioning sets up a possible rematch in the national title game Jan. 19.

    Then it was No. 5 seed Oregon, followed by Mississippi, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Alabama, Miami, American champion Tulane and James Madison of the Sun Belt.

    The playoffs start Dec. 19 with No. 9 Alabama at No. 8 Oklahoma. On Dec. 20, it’s No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 11 Tulane at No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 12 James Madison at No. 5 Oregon.

    The winners move to the quarterfinals, which will feature Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Eve, then Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl, Indiana in the Rose Bowl and Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1.

    A costly miss for Notre Dame

    It was a particularly costly and painful snub for the Fighting Irish.

    They lost their first two games of the season — one to Miami, the other to Texas A&M — by a combined four points. They did not play a tough schedule the rest of the way; it was ranked 44th, compared to sixth for Alabama but 45th for Miami. But the Irish won all those games easily.

    It also hurts the pocketbook. Where conferences split $4 million for each team they place into the first round, Notre Dame — as an independent — would have banked the full amount for itself.

    Yurachek said the committee had not previously considered Miami’s Aug. 31 win over Notre Dame because there were always other teams in the mix, namely Alabama and BYU. But when BYU lost, the Irish and Hurricanes ended up right next to each other, which made that Miami win more important. Yurachek directed the committee to go back and rewatch it.

    “Really, how Miami’s defense dominated Notre Dame’s running game, where for the rest of the season, their running game dominated most of the teams they played,” Yurachek said when asked what the committee saw in that game.

    Alabama back in after snub last year

    Alabama (10-3) is in despite three losses. Those who believe the Tide deserve it will look at these factors:

    — An eight-game winning streak after a shocking 14-point, season-opening loss to Florida State that included a 24-21 victory at Georgia for a season split while, for instance, BYU lost both its games against Texas Tech.

    — Ignoring the above, there was the “you can’t lose ground for playing in the title game” argument. Last year, Alabama had three losses and was passed over for SMU, which was coming off a loss in the ACC title game. Using the same logic, someone other than the Tide needed to go this time.

    Duke’s argument falls on deaf ears

    Duke tried to make a compelling argument that its seven wins over Power Four teams, including the victory over Virginia in the ACC title game, made it more deserving than James Madison for that fifth and final automatic spot for conference champs.

    But the Blue Devils had five losses. And Virginia was ranked four (now nine) spots lower than Miami, the ACC’s best team by many measurements.

    James Madison’s playoff game against a mega-team from a mega-conference — Oregon — will suss out whether teams like that should be playing for the title.

    History, however, might look back on Duke’s win if league title games are ever eliminated from the schedule due to their growing irrelevance. Other than eliminating BYU (but not Alabama) and flip-flopping Indiana and Ohio State, this year’s set of games in the Power Four meant next to nothing.

    ___

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  • USF introduces Brian Hartline as new coach

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    TAMPA, Fla. – The University of South Florida introduced Brian Hartline as its seventh coach in program history on Monday.

    Hartline made his way to Tampa this weekend amid Ohio State’s preparation for its College Football Playoff run. 

    What You Need To Know

    • USF introduced Brian Hartline as its new head football coach Monday

    • Hartline, 39, comes to USF from Ohio, were he has been the Buckeyes’ WR coach and offensive coordinator. He will take over fully at USF once the Ohio State plyaoff run concludes

    • More on Brian Hartline and USF football

    “We want to build on this impressive foundation. Things have been going really well here,” Hartline said during his introductory news conference. “We’re not here to change things, we’re here to enhance.

    “Time is now for USF football and we can’t wait to get started.”

    The Bulls new coach will balance beginning his Bulls’ tenure with duties as the Buckeye’s offensive coordinator through the college postseason.

     

    USF CEO of Athletics Rob Higgins, making his first major hire in his relatively new role, said Hartline will bring grit and passion in replacing former coach Alex Golesh, who left USF last week to accept the coaching job at Auburn.

     

    “Brian Hartline was our clear-cut first choice to lead our football program into the most exciting era in program history, and I am so fired up to have him leading the Bulls,” Higgins said. “A relentless recruiter, outstanding developer of talent and a gritty competitor, he comes from a championship background and is obsessed with instilling championship excellence in his players and teams.

    “He is ready to lead our program to the next level.”

    Hartline, 39, said he was excited for the opportunity at USF and emphasized his past connections with the Bay area, Central Florida and South Florida as a NFL player and college recruiter. He added that the location and his history in the region makes USF a good fit. 

    “Our culture will be built on relentless effort. Built on it,” Hartline said. “Effort is a choice and we know that. Our program will be disciplined and accountable. Every detail will matter.”

    HARTLINE AT OHIO STATE

    As offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach, Hartline has led the 2025 Ohio State offense to rank No. 13 in the nation in scoring (37.0 ppg), No. 24 in total offense (438.5 ypg) and No. 24 in passing (267.0 ypg) with Heisman Trophy candidate Julian Sayin posting 3,065 passing yards and 30 touchdowns and Biletnikoff Trophy finalist Jeremiah Smith posting 55 catches for 725 yards and nine touchdowns. Pro Football Focus has Ohio State as the highest graded offense in the nation at the end of the 2025 regular season.

    Serving as co-offensive coordinator/wide receivers coach in 2024, Hartline led the Buckeye offense to rank No. 14 nationally in scoring (35.7 ppg) and No. 3 in pass efficiency (171.55) with quarterback Will Howard ranking No. 6 in passing yards (4,010) and No. 4 in passing touchdowns (35) and Smith standing No. 4 in receiving yards (1,315) and No. 2 in receiving touchdowns (15) nationally.

    A major part of Ohio State’s recruiting success, Hartline has helped the Buckeyes’ current 2026 signing class rank No. 5 in the nation according to 247Sports. Ohio State has ranked among the top five recruiting classes in the nation in each of the last seven seasons. He was named 247Sports national recruiter of the year in 2020.  

     

    WHAT’S NEXT FOR USF

    The Bulls will face Old Dominion Dec. 17 in the Care Bowl in Orlando. USF Defensive Line Coach Kevin Patrick will guide the squad as the interim coach during the bowl week.

    USF will be looking to post a 10-win season for just the third time in program history and the first since going 10-2 in 2017. 

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    Spectrum News Staff

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  • Indiana no. 1 in CFP. Alabama and Miami in, Notre Dame out

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    Nobody paying attention over the past 24 months would be surprised to see Indiana leading the way into this year’s College Football Playoff.

    But anyone paying attention over the last 24 hours knew the only sure thing beyond the Hoosiers was that the playoff selection committee was destined to get picked apart when it released the pairings for this season’s 12-team bracket on Sunday.

    What You Need To Know

    • Indiana earns top seed in CFP 

    • Alabama and Miami included in playoffs, Notre Dame out 

    • First round games begin on campuses, Friday, Dec. 19 
    • Bracket, matchups below

    Most of that second-guessing came from Notre Dame, which was passed over in favor of Alabama and Miami for two of the bracket’s bubble spots. The Fighting Irish dropped two notches in the CFP rankings over the last two weeks, to No. 11, despite a 10-game winning streak, winning their finale by 29 points and simply sitting on the couch Saturday.

    “There is no explanation that could possibly be given to explain the outcome,” Irish athletic director Pete Bevacqua told Yahoo Sports, hours after the bracket was revealed and Notre Dame said it would skip bowl season altogether. “We feel like the playoff was stolen from our student-athletes.”

    Notre Dame’s loss was Alabama’s gain. The Crimson Tide didn’t move an inch the CFP rankings despite a 28-7 loss to No. 3 Georgia that looked worse than that.

    No. 10 Miami didn’t play, either, but the Hurricanes’ 27-24 win over Notre Dame in Week 1 played a role once the teams were grouped right next to each other after BYU lost its game on Saturday and dropped one spot.

    “Everyone can spin the metrics in favor of the team or teams they support,” committee chairman Hunter Yurachek said. “You’re always going to have controversy. That’s why we debated for so long, 9, 10 and 11, into the early-morning hours, and woke up at sunrise to do the same thing — make sure we got it right.”

    The committee’s other key decision was choosing James Madison over Duke for the final spot. The selection left the Atlantic Coast Conference champion out of the mix, but didn’t fully exclude the ACC because Miami made it. 

    REST OF THE BRACKET 

    The rest of the field includes No. 2 seed Ohio State, No. 3 Georgia and No. 4 Texas Tech, all of which joined Indiana in getting first-round byes.

    The Hoosiers moved up to No. 1 with their 13-10 win over the Buckeyes on Saturday — their first Big Ten title since 1967 — and the teams’ 1-2 positioning sets up a possible rematch in the national title game Jan. 19.

    Then it was No. 5 seed Oregon, followed by Mississippi, Texas A&M, Oklahoma, Alabama, Miami, American champion Tulane and James Madison of the Sun Belt.

    The playoffs start Dec. 19 with No. 9 Alabama at No. 8 Oklahoma. On Dec. 20, it’s No. 10 Miami at No. 7 Texas A&M, No. 11 Tulane at No. 6 Ole Miss and No. 12 James Madison at No. 5 Oregon.

    The winners move to the quarterfinals, which will feature Ohio State in the Cotton Bowl on New Year’s Eve, then Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl, Indiana in the Rose Bowl and Georgia in the Sugar Bowl on Jan. 1.

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  • RECAP – Playoffs: A Philly Football Upset; Villanova Beats Lehigh in a Defensive Battle, 14-7 – Philadelphia Sports Nation

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    Credit: Villanova Football-Twitter/X

    When it came to Lehigh vs. Villanova on Saturday at Goodman Stadium in the second round of the NCAA FCS Championship ,  one team with a Philly connection had to lose.

    Lehigh had opened the scoring early in the third quarter. Villanova then tied the game with a one-yard plunge by Ja’briel Mace. 

    Credit: Villanova Football-Twitter/X

    After a scoreless first half and a 7–7 deadlock through the 3rd quarter , Villanova would take the lead with a 28-yard connection between Pat McQuaide and Braden Reed with just over three minutes left in the contest. On the very next possession, Villanova’s defense came up big again, stopping a Lehigh drive when Obinna Nwobodo stripped Mountain Hawks Quarterback Hayden Johnson to preserve the upset of #5 Lehigh.

    Last weekend — Villanova (10–2), hosting historic Harvard (9–2) at home, completely dominated the first round of the FCS Championship Playoffs — with the Wildcats going up 31–0 before Harvard got onto the board.

    In the season finale against Scared Heart on Saturday, that included a mesmerizing performance on the ground from Ja’briel Mace, including 165 yards and two scores on nine carries, including an 80-yard scamper and a receiving touchdown in the 34–10 win. A week before, in an overtime win against Stony Brook with David Avit out due to a knee injury , Isaiah Ragland ran the ball for nearly 100 yards.

    Next up for the Wildcats — a trip to Tarleton State for the next round of the NCAA FCS Championship.

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    Michael Thomas Leibrandt

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