Tag: All-American

Cassius Winston Ranks No. 5 on Andy Katz’s Top 10 All-American Candidates

MSU basketball Guard Cassius Winston is number five on Andy Katz’s top 10 All-American candidate list. Read more details here.

[jwplayer ofLF0moh]

Michigan State basketball Guard Cassius Winston ranks no. 5 on Andy Katz Top 10 All-American. Quite a week for Winston who was also named First-Team All-Big Ten for the second straight year. He was also named a Second-Team All-American by NBC Sports. This year, Winston averaged 18.6 points on 45% shooting from the floor along with 2.5 rebounds and 5.9 assists.

Note, Luka Garza tops this list at number one. Winston and Garza are the only other Big Ten players on this list. Cassius is such a dynamic player on the court and a kind-hearted person off of the court. Watching Winston receive praise after this difficult year is certainly heartwarming.

The Big Ten tournament kicks off tomorrow and continues all throughout the weekend. Michigan State plays a TBD opponent this upcoming Friday at 6:30 P.M. Stay with us on SpartansWire for plenty of Big Ten Tournament coverage.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1363]

Michigan State F Xavier Tillman Sr. named Third-Team All-American by NBC Sports

Michigan State big man Xavier Tillman Sr. was named a Third-Team All-American by NBC Sports on Tuesday.

[jwplayer 2yR6zTsh]

The past year of Xavier Tillman Sr.’s life must have been surreal. Tillman got married last May and had his second child during the 2019-20 basketball season, and still managed to have one of the best seasons in the country outside of that. Tillman has already been named a Second Team Academic All-American and the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year. On Tuesday, he was named a Third-Team All-American by NBC Sports.

From NBC Sports’ Rob Dauster:

“The most underrated player in college basketball. The stats speak for themselves. What doesn’t necessarily show up in these stats is just how good of a defender he is. He can take away any five in the country. He’s also just a terrific passer and decision-maker when forced into 4-on-3 situations after teams double Cassius Winston in ball-screens. He’s one of those guys that makes things just run more smoothly whenever he is on the floor, and he will get the proper credit for that here.”

You can’t really argue with any of that. Cassius Winston was also recognized by NBC Sports, being named a Second-Team All-American.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Notre Dame’s Kyle Hamilton Named FWAA Freshman All-American

Hamilton saw the playing field starting in Week One at Louisville and made an instant impact.

It was known fairly early on that Kyle Hamilton was going to be different for Notre Dame, in that they haven’t had an impact freshman defender quite like him in a while.

On Monday it was announced that Hamilton was named to the 2019-FWAA Shaun Alexander Freshman All-American Team.

Hamilton saw the playing field starting in Week One at Louisville and made an instant impact. He finished his freshman campaign with four interceptions, having returned one for a touchdown and 41 tackles, 27 of which were solo. He was also credited with six passes defended.

Quarterback Kedon Solvis of USC, running back Javian Hawkins of Louisville and linebacker Azeez Ojulari of Georgia were the three Notre Dame opponents from 2019 to also make the squad.

First year head coach Ryan Day of Ohio State was selected as the first-year head coach for the squad.

Vince Young talks at All-American Bowl Combine

Vince Young talked to all of the participants in the All-American Bowl game. Playing in the game himself, he was the MVP of the 2002 game.

After the first session of the 2020 All-American Bowl game, Vince Young took the time to talk to all of the participants in the game. Playing in the game himself in 2002, Young was the game MVP out of high school, leading the West team to a 26-6 victory.

Young is not the only former Longhorn in attendance, as Fozzy Whitaker, Aaron Williams, and Jaxon Shipley are coaching in the bowl game. There are even current Texas signees who will be playing with one another for the very first time.

The Longhorns will have four players participating in the game on Saturday night, with two on offense and two on defense. Offensively, five-star running back Bijan Robinson and four-star tackle Andrej Karic will play together for the first time, while four-star linebacker Prince Dorbah and four-star safety Xavion Alford will line up on the other side of the ball.

All four will be playing on the West team, led by Head Coach Steve Coury out of the state of Oregon. You can catch the game at Noon CST tomorrow on NBC.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Watch: Chris Tyree Takes Second Place in Under Armour Fastest Man Competition

You don’t win football games by lining up and running 40 yards straight ahead time after time but in a competition this is promising for a player who has plenty of film that shows he’s more than just a sprinter in shoulder pads.

If you’ve heard Brian Kelly in recent days he’s mentioned he believes Notre Dame can take another step still in terms of their recruiting.  He pretty much has stated that they’re in a really good place but can still take it a step further.

One place where they improved recruiting this most recent class was at the running back position where they were able to sign Chris Tyree of Chester, Virginia, the highest rated running back to choose Notre Dame during Kelly’s tenure.

Tyree is participating in the Under Armour All-American Game this Thursday in Orlando where he was selected to be a game captain.

In preparation for Thursday’s event practices have been taking place in Orlando as day two (Monday, 12/30) brought about the annual fastest man competition.

Tyree didn’t disappoint, finishing second by a nose to Arian Smith, a future Georgia Bulldog.

You don’t win football games by lining up and running 40 yards straight ahead time after time but in a competition this is promising for a player who has plenty of film that shows he’s more than just a sprinter in shoulder pads.

Rivals Recruiting Director Mike Farrell went as far to call Tyree an immediate impact for Notre Dame.

Practices continue Tuesday before Thursday’s game at the same venue Notre Dame just got done beating Iowa State in.

Three Badgers named to Associated Press All-American teams

The AP announced its All-American teams, and Wisconsin is well-represented with Zack Baun, Tyler Biadasz and Jonathan Taylor all included.

Wisconsin is well-represented on the Associated Press All-American teams that were released on Monday, joining Georgia and Kentucky as the only schools to land multiple players on the first team.

To the surprise of no one, Jonathan Taylor earned a spot as one of the two first-team running backs for the second year in a row. He was the only player to repeat as a first-team selection this season.

It’s safe to say Taylor has not disappointed throughout what most expect to be his final season in Madison. He leads the Big Ten in both rushing yards and touchdowns and ranks second nationally in both categories, and was named the Ameche-Dayne Big Ten Running Back of the Year for the second year in a row. He was also just awarded the Doak Walker Award for the second consecutive season at last week’s College Football Awards.

Taylor is a special talent, but the offensive linemen who have blasted running lanes open for him over the last three years have been critical to his success as well and deserve their fair share of the recognition. This is especially true of Tyler Biadasz, who has been one of the nation’s top centers from the moment he seized the starting role as a redshirt freshman in 2017.

Biadasz has turned in his best season yet as a junior, earning consensus first-team All-Big Ten honors for the second straight year and winning the Rimington Trophy as the best center in college football. The Amherst, Wis. native can now add “First Team All-American” to his resume as well.

Taylor and Biadasz have been unsurprisingly fantastic for the Badgers this season, but arguably the biggest storyline of the year for Wisconsin has been the emergence of Zack Baun into one of the nation’s top linebackers and, as of today, a Second Team All-American.

Plenty of Badger fans expected to see some progress from Baun this season, but few anticipated him to turn into a full-fledged star. This, of course, is exactly what he has become: Baun’s team-high 12.5 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss are both good for No. 2 in the conference and No. 7 in the nation. In addition to earning AP All-American honors, he was a consensus First Team All-Big Ten selection and a finalist for the Butkus Award.

While Taylor and Biadasz were already held in high regard by professional scouts leading into the season, Baun was flying considerably under the radar. That’s no longer the case, as his breakout senior season has likely made him a great deal of money: he is now widely considered a likely mid-round selection (at worst) in this spring’s NFL draft and will have the chance to improve his stock even further at the Senior Bowl in January.

Notre Dame Football: Kyle Hamilton Named Freshman All-American (Again)

Despite getting credited with only one start this season Hamilton finished the year with four interceptions while one was returned for a touchdown.  He was responsible for six more pass breakups and 39 tackles on the year.

The awards piled up quickly this season for Kyle Hamilton.  So many in fact that I think we can lose the idea of him being a “future star” because even in a very experienced and good defensive backfield, he’s more than just a freshman who got snaps.  He was an extremely trust-worthy play-maker his freshman year who simply didn’t allow big plays when thrown at.

He is already a star.

As a result The Athletic named Hamilton to their Freshman All-American Team on Friday.

Despite getting credited with only one start this season Hamilton finished the year with four interceptions while one was returned for a touchdown.  He was responsible for six more pass breakups and 39 tackles on the year.

As Brady Quinn said earlier this year, enjoy Kyle Hamilton while you can Irish fans because it appears he’ll be more than ready for the NFL two years from now.

Pro Football Focus also named Hamilton to their freshman All-American Team last week.

Oklahoma’s CeeDee Lamb, Creed Humphrey named All-Americans by The Athletic

CeeDee Lamb and Creed Humphrey continue to show why Lincoln Riley and Bill Bedenbaugh are one of the best coaching duos in the country.

CeeDee Lamb and Creed Humphrey continue to show why Lincoln Riley and Bill Bedenbaugh are one of the best coaching duos in the country.

CeeDee Lamb, already being named a first-team All-American by Sports Illustrated was named first-team All-American by The Athletic as well.

Lamb’s prolific season is being well recognized as he is widely considered one of the best, if not the best wide receiver in college football.

Creed Humphrey, the anchor of the Sooners’ offensive line made second-team All-American. Becoming the leader of the line after Oklahoma had the other four linemen graduate or leave early for the NFL, Humphrey settled into his role nicely, despite having a third different quarterback in as many seasons.

Oklahoma did not have any defensive members make the list as Parnell Motley showed up late to the party and Kenneth Murray slowed his roll towards the end of the regular season. However, two Big 12 defenders made the teams; Baylor defensive end James Lynch (first-team) and Texas Tech linebacker Jordyn Brooks (second-team).

Oklahoma and LSU face off in the College Football Playoff semifinal on Dec. 28 at 3:00p.m. CT on ESPN.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]