The legitimacy of the Heisman Trophy is called into question on a fairly regular basis so no one should be shocked that this year is no different. The Heisman Committee chose Colorado cornerback/wide receiver Travis Hunter for this year’s honor in what was the closest vote since 2009.
Just behind Hunter was Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty. Jeanty also won the Nissan fan vote, getting more support than Hunter by the people. Think of all this is the popular vote and the electoral college if you need yet another political reference.
Jeanty’s season was historic. He finished with 344 carries for 2,497 rushing yards and 29 rushing touchdowns. He carried Boise State to the College Football Playoff and will be the top running back off the board in the 2025 NFL draft.
This is not to take anything away from Hunter’s season which was excellent. However, it’s hard to see the fan vote and having watched every game these two played and not conclude Jeanty was the most outstanding player in the country of the guys on the ballot. Hunter and the entire Colorado program have been media darlings all season so it makes sense the college football awards would be their final opportunity to promote them and their program.
Subpar field conditions may impact the Steelers’ Week 11 matchup against the Ravens, adding uncertainty to this AFC North rivalry.
As if there couldn’t be more uncertainty surrounding the 7-2 Steelers’ matchup against the formidable 7-3 Ravens, subpar field conditions at Acrisure Stadium may add an additional layer of intrigue to the meeting between these AFC North rivals.
Less than 24 hours before the Pittsburgh Steelers take on the Baltimore Ravens in Week 11, the Pittsburgh Panthers hosted the Clemson Tigers in an ACC CFB matchup at Acrisure.
While fans of the Steel City are treated to watching their city’s CFB and NFL teams play this weekend, the Pittsburgh Steelers aren’t as fortunate.
When the Pittsburgh Panthers have played at Acrisure just before the Steelers, the field conditions from the game have significantly deteriorated.
One of the most recent examples was in 2022 when the Panthers hosted Georgia Tech on October 1. Weather conditions and the worn-down field made the Steelers’ Week 4 playing conditions against the New York Jets less than ideal, ultimately costing Pittsburgh the game, 24-20.
Could a similar issue present itself in Week 11? Fans would be disappointed if poor field conditions cost the Steelers a chance at furthering their lead in the AFC North divisional race over the Ravens.
With Georgia football not playing this week, here are some matchups that can impact the Bulldogs
The Georgia Bulldogs are enjoying a much-deserved bye week after an amazing 30-15 win over the Texas Longhorns, but for those of you still looking to watch some college football, have no fear. There are still some games this week that have massive implications for Georgia Bulldogs football, whether that’s for the SEC championship or the College Football Playoff as a whole.
Nelson Chenault-Imagn Images
No. 8 LSU Tigers vs. No. 14 Texas A&M Aggies
The Tigers are one of the dark-horse SEC teams potentially competing for the championship. Despite being ranked lower than Tennessee, Texas, and, of course, Georgia, the Tigers could potentially usurp a few of these teams with a win against Texas A&M. There’s also a lot on the line for the Aggies. They’re on the fringes of playoff contention, but a win against LSU could bring them in the top ten and into a playoff spot.
LSU and Texas A&M are the last remaining teams undefeated in SEC conference play.
These two teams duke it out in the primetime slot; 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
No. 5 Texas Longhorns vs. No. 25 Vanderbilt Commodores
This game hasn’t gotten nearly the amount of press as the LSU-Texas A&M game, but Georgia fans should absolutely tune into this SEC matchup too. Texas has looked unstoppable against most opponents (besides Georgia), but if you believe in lightning striking twice, this game is for you. Alabama looked like the top team in the nation after defeating Georgia, but the Alabama fans’ hopes were deflated with a loss to Vandy.
Could it happen again? You can see it at 4:15 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
Photo by Butch Dill/Getty Images
No. 21 Missouri Tigers vs. No. 15 Alabama Crimson Tide
Speaking of the Alabama Crimson Tide, they play for what is essentially their postseason lives against the Missouri Tigers. After the loss to Tennessee last week, they’re in do-or-die territory.
Very few teams with three losses are ranked in the top 12 to end the year, and with division winners, it would make things even harder for Bama if they lose this home game to Missouri. This one will be on at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC.
No. 20 Illinois Fighting Illini vs. No. 1 Oregon Ducks
There’s only one team that stands in the way of the Georgia Bulldogs reaching the top of the US LBM Coaches Poll: the Oregon Ducks. They sealed this position so far with a win over the Ohio State Buckeyes and an undefeated record, but they play another ranked team in the Fighting Illini. Former Georgia defensive coordinator Dan Lanning will host Illinois in a game with massive Big Ten and, of course, CFB playoff applications.
The Horns Down gesture is coming to the SEC… unless it’s a direct taunt at Texas players.
SEC coordinator of football officials John McDaid shed some very important light on the fate of the “Horns Down” celebration with Texas now in the conference.
The “Horns Down” has become the most famous way opponents celebrate against Texas. Of course, Texas fans abhor it and want it flagged in any instance. The Big 12 went so far as to designate the act an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. But Texas isn’t in the Big 12 anymore.
McDaid said at this week’s SEC Media Days that context is key when calling any potential “Horns Down” penalty. He pretty clearly hinted that it would not be called a foul if opposing players simply threw down the gesture to celebrate and didn’t do it to directly taunt Texas players.
To McDaid, the act would have to be offensive to the senses to be flagged, which the “Horns Down” in a common sense view is clearly not unless you’re a Texas fan.
“If you took that act out of a football stadium and did it in a shopping mall or a grocery store, would it offend the senses to a majority of the reasonable people in the area, right?” McDaid said, via CBS Austin sports director Bob Ballou. “That signal would not, right? You might have some people that share that signal with you if you did that at a grocery store or at a shopping mall, depending where you are.”
Horns Down will not be a penalty in the SEC.
"If you took that act out of a football stadium and did it in a shopping mall or a grocery store – would it offend the senses to a majority of the reasonable people in the area? That signal would not. You might have some people that… pic.twitter.com/JHCHM44D8U
As Texas prepares for life in the SEC, McDaid outlined a world where the Longhorns are just going to have to get used to the Horns Down gestures unless they’re aimed directly at them.
Opposing players seem to have the green light to Horns Down at their leisure as long as it’s not done as a direct taunt.
Enter Detroit Mumford, which just hired the former Michigan staffer as its defensive coordinator.
“I got the most hated man in college football right now, Connor Stalions,” Mumford head coach William McMichael told The Detroit News. “He’s my defensive coordinator.”
The only way this news would be shocking is if Stalions was coaching a high school in Ohio. His celebrity is too big (relatively) and being able to connect your prep team to Jim Harbaugh’s 2023 national title winners is too much to pass up for some.
“What happens in the NCAA, at that level, really has nothing to do with high school or Mumford,” McMichael told The Athletic. “It wasn’t a publicity stunt. (Stalions) loves football so much, he didn’t really want to be away from it.”
The coach added that the defense he hopes to deploy “mirrors” what Michigan ran under Harbaugh, and Stalions “knows it like the back of his hand.”
College fans had a lot of thoughts.
Wonder if Connor Stalions can borrow the shirt from Axel Foley on game days 😂 pic.twitter.com/POqt9DdFU7
It is, admittedly, a weird time in the college football calendar.
We’re deep in the middle of nothingness, awaiting August’s start of training camp. But in the modern era it’s not like these teams can afford to just go dark. No days off, and all. So when one of those parasitic aggregator accounts on Twitter posted that Tulane had the cheapest beer prices in college football, the Green Wave decided to join in on the joke while making one more push for fans to buy season tickets.
It also gave berth to a perfect meme format on an otherwise dull Friday in sports as schools squabbled with each other. And like many college squabbles, this one starts with alcohol and spirals out of control from there.
— Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns® Football (@RaginCajunsFB) June 20, 2024
I will say, a $2 Natty Light in college is not bad at all. You have to remember these college kids (mostly) have no taste so they might as well be buying from the expensive/non-cooler section of their local alcohol store before you begin judging.
The Rajun’ Cajuns also went above and beyond Tulane by actually, ya know, listing out their beer price. That’s just Journalism 101. Show, don’t tell.
But the graphic’s format quickly departed the state of Louisiana and went national with tremendous results.
Yeah, the Cougars ended this one. In the meantime, if all the other schools involved want to have a low-priced-beer-off, we will happily stand on the sidelines shouting “let them fight”.
It’s an instrumental version of ‘Neck’, because this is a family game, after all.
Last week a group of college football reporters were invited to EA Sports offices in Orlando, Florida and given the opportunity to test drive the much-anticipated College Football 25.
The resulting feedback won’t do anything to tamp down the hype. In fact, if it’s at all possible to get more excited about the game, thesereviews will certainly do the trick.
Among the more fascinating details revealed by The Athletic’s Chris Vannini are which songs made it into the game. Amazingly, the controversial LSU anthem “Neck” — a cover of Dem Franchize Boys’ “Talkin’ Out Da Side of Ya Neck” — will reportedly be getting an instrumental version. Fans can feel free to sing the very NSFW lyrics at home.
Unfortunately, some tracks that have become ingrained in college football culture didn’t make the cut. Vannini noted the rights to Metallica’s “Enter Sandman” were too expensive, so Virginia Tech players in the game instead take the field to generic rock song. Wisconsin fans will be similarly disappointed to not hear “Jump Around” at Camp Randall Stadium:
The first team I pulled up was Virginia Tech because I wanted to experience the Hokies’ “Enter Sandman” entrance. Unfortunately, “Enter Sandman” is not in the game — licensing Metallica songs is really expensive. It has been replaced by a generic rock theme that sounds somewhat familiar. So that was a disappointment. (“Jump Around” is also not played in games at Camp Randall Stadium, for similar reasons.) But the feeling quickly dissipated when I began playing the actual game.
…
While “Enter Sandman” is not in the game, “Zombie Nation,” “Sandstorm,” “Tsunami” and “Mo Bamba” are. We see the Army Corps of Cadets jump up and down for “Tsunami” before kickoff, something the TV broadcast rarely shows. Beaver Stadium plays “Zombie Nation” after Penn State touchdowns. Every school has unique fan chants, as EA acquired thousands of assets from schools and in many cases had staff members replicate the cheers for recording. The studio also recorded 41 real game crowds over the last two years, from big to small programs. And yes, I saw sheet music for an instrumental version of “Neck.”
The more details about this game that continue to come out, the more we can’t wait to play it.
In ESPN’s latest way-too-early Top 25 college football rankings, Alabama slides significantly in the wrong direction.
Since losing to Michigan in the Rose Bowl College Football Playoff semifinal, the Alabama football program has gone through a lot.
Nick Saban retired. The transfer portal produced some key departures. A few 2024 commits signed elsewhere. As a result, ESPN has grown wary of the Crimson Tide.
Though there have been plenty of negatives, it is important to remember there has also been plenty of positive news. New head coach Kalen DeBoer is a proven winner. He has hired a strong staff. There have been some impressive pickups via the transfer portal and the recruiting trail.
ESPN’s original way-too-early Top 25 for the 2024 college football season had Alabama ranked No. 4, but that is no longer the case. In the latest rankings, the Crimson Tide have fallen to No. 9, which makes DeBoer’s team the fifth-highest-ranked SEC team.
No sense in complaining about a top-10 ranking, but being fifth in the conference the Tide just won last season is interesting.
Marco Schlabach of ESPN writes,
“Alabama’s transition under former Washington coach Kalen DeBoer has already been rocky, with Downs and highly regarded quarterback Julian Sayin transferring to Ohio State, Bond and tight end Amari Niblack jumping to Texas, offensive tackle Kadyn Proctor returning home to Iowa and several players leaving for the NFL. Then, making matters worse, offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb and offensive line coach Scott Huff took jobs with the Seattle Seahawks last week. Saban’s dynasty wasn’t built with Tinkertoys, so the Crimson Tide will be fine in the long run.”
The Crimson Tide’s 2024 season, and the DeBoer era, begins on Aug. 31 in Tuscaloosa against Western Kentucky. We don’t know where Alabama will be ranked to start the season. Neither do we know what to expect from this team. The standard, however, is to compete for the conference title and a national championship.
Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama football as the 2024 offseason progresses.
Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow AJ Spurr on X @SpurrFM.
It’s National Signing Day! Let’s feel old about it together
It’s National Signing Day in college football which means it’s once again time to argue about recruiting classes and last-minute flips.
For those of us of a, shall we say, certain age, it’s also a day to feel very, very old as the talented sons of NFL players we grew up watching choose where they will go to college.
These are the names you’ll hear next fall that jolt you out of your seat when you see them make a play that looks just like their old man.
Only in this case we are the ones who have aged significantly.
Here are a few sons of former NFL greats you should get ready to watch for at least the next few years.
