Tag: college footbal

Notre Dame-LSU bowl game dreams over?

No Freeman vs. Kelly after all?

Notre Dame and LSU both saw their seasons come to an end a week ago as many projected the two to meet in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa.  However, despite the two not playing this weekend, outcomes elsewhere may have put an end to the dream of a Marcus Freeman vs. Brian Kelly showdown in a bowl game.

According to Brett McMurphy of Action Network, it would appear Notre Dame going to the ReliaQuest Bowl at all is done.  Here is what the longtime college football reporter had to say Saturday night:

If not the ReliaQuest Bowl then the most likely option for Notre Dame would appear to be the Pop Tarts Bowl in Orlando.  There they would face a Big 12 opponent.

Stay tuned for an eventful morning and afternoon.

Steve Sarkisian snubbed for Big 12 Head Coach of the Year

Mike Gundy was given the Big 12 Coach of the Year award.

The Big 12 Conference announced on Wednesday that Oklahoma State head coach Mike Gundy won the Chuck Neinas Coach of the Year award. Continue reading “Steve Sarkisian snubbed for Big 12 Head Coach of the Year”

Florida football gets a boost, still outside US LBM Coaches Poll top 25

The Gators made some modest gains in this week’s US LBM Coaches Poll.

It was a game that went down to the wire, ending with Florida football emerging victoriously from the dust inside Williams-Brice Stadium against the South Carolina Gamecocks on Saturday, 41-39. Many expected it to be a close one and the two teams did not disappoint the fans.

The win was a big one for Billy Napier and Co. as it puts the program just one victory away from clinching a .500 regular-season record, while also easing some of the criticism many have had for the second-year skipper. However, the ‘Cocks were not exactly a top opponent which is why the triumph has not moved the needle much in the eyes of the national media.

All that said, the Orange and Blue saw a 27-vote improvement over last week’s US LBM Coaches Poll following the Week 7 win, now holding 29 votes and essentially ranked No. 28 in the nation. Florida is still outside the top 25 but is within striking distance if it can corral a couple more wins.

The Georgia Bulldogs remain ranked No. 1 and the Alabama Crimson Tide was the only other SEC team to make the top 10, tied at No. 8 with the Texas Longhorns — an improvement of two spots from last week. The Ole Miss Rebels (No. 12), Tennessee Volunteers (No. 15), LSU Tigers (No. 19) and Missouri Tigers (No. 20) round out the rest of the conference teams in the top 25.

The Kentucky Wildcats, who were previously ranked No. 23, dropped from the top 25 and received just nine votes.

The Gators have a bye this week ahead of the biggest game on the schedule against the Bulldogs. The World’s Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party will take place at TIAA Bank Field in Jacksonville, Florida, on Oct. 28, with a kickoff time of 3:30 p.m. EDT set. The game will be broadcast on CBS Sports.

The entire US LBM Coaches Poll after Week 7 is listed below.

Rank Team Record Points Change
1 Georgia 7-0 1,590 (58) –
2 Michigan 7-0 1,516 (4) –
3 Ohio State 6-0 1,429 (2) –
4 Florida State 6-0 1,390 –
5 Washington 6-0 1,325 +1
6 Penn State 6-0 1,302 -3
7 Oklahoma 6-0 1,260 (1) –
8 (tie) Texas 5-1 1,078 +3
8 (tie) Alabama 6-1 1,078 +2
10 North Carolina 6-0 1,038 +2
11 Oregon 5-1 989 -3
12 Ole Miss 5-1 849 +1
13 Oregon State 6-1 809 +1
14 Utah 5-1 704 +2
15 Tennessee 5-1 663 +2
16 USC 6-1 606 -7
17 Duke 5-1 590 +1
18 Notre Dame 6-2 572 +3
19 LSU 5-2 482 +1
20 Missouri 6-1 368 +5
21 Louisville 6-1 309 -6
22 Air Force 6-0 196 +6
23 Iowa 6-1 192 +6
24 Tulane 5-1 112 +11
25 UCLA 4-2 70 -3

Schools Dropped Out

No. 19 Washington State Cougars; No. 23 Kentucky Wildcats; No. 24 Kansas Jayhawks.

Others Receiving Votes

James Madison 67; Clemson 54; Florida 29; Fresno State 21; Washington State 20; Arizona 13; Wyoming 12; Oklahoma State 12; Miami (FL) 12; Maryland 11; Kentucky 9; Liberty 5; Kansas State 5; UNLV 4; Texas A&M 4; West Virginia 3; Memphis 1; Kansas 1.

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Rave reviews about Quinn Ewers’ offseason continue to roll in

Quinn Ewers is all in on 2023.

Being the quarterback at the University of Texas comes with some of the largest expectations in college football, especially when you consider that the once dominant program is on a quest to return to that form.

The Longhorns’ current signal caller Quinn Ewers may have the biggest expectations of any Texas quarterback dating back to Colt McCoy. The former five-star recruit and No. 1 overall recruit took an odd path to Austin after skipping his senior year of high school to enroll at Ohio State. Ewers opted to transfer to Texas after one season in Columbus.

His first season at Texas started with a bang as Ewers looked like a generational talent for the first quarter against Alabama, but injury and accuracy issues plagued him the rest of the season.

He finished the year with a little over 2,000 yards passing 15 touchdowns to six picks, and had many people wondering if Texas should turn back to Hudson Card. There became so much speculation of whether or not he’d remain the starter that people around the country pondered the thought of incoming five-star Arch Manning overtaking him for the starting job.

However, that didn’t happen as Ewers has appeared to have a different mindset heading into his second season as a Longhorn. There were overreactions to him cutting his mullet as people viewed that as him becoming an adult, but more important reports and rumors have indicated that he has changed how he attacks being the quarterback at Texas.

In a recent tweet by Oranegbloods’ Anwar Richardson, it was revealed that Ewers is continuing to improve upon himself  this offseason gaining more muscle.

Based on reports like this and what we saw from Ewers in the spring game where he looked more confident and consistent than any other time in a Texas uniform, the Longhorns may finally have their guy at quarterback after years of misses. 

Sunday Hash: Chowing down on Florida’s big road win at Texas A&M

Pat Dooley serves up a tasty morning-after brunch to nosh on, featuring the sweet flavor of victory over the Aggies.

It’s not going to get Florida into the College Football Playoff rankings or any real rankings for that matter.

And we may be putting too much into Florida going on the road and winning against a flu-ridden team that was forced to go back to its original starting quarterback because the new starter was out with a concussion.

But it did seem kind of special to see Gator fans and players celebrating a road SEC win Saturday.

Forget about bowl eligibility (which requires another win), this seemed like a team that took another step forward after shuffling through a difficult first two-thirds of its schedule.

What does this mean for these 5-4 (2-4 SEC) Gators? Let’s talk optimistically (for once) about it in Pat Dooley’s Sunday Hash.

WATCH: The best plays from Texas’ Orange-White spring game

Texas’ spring game had many notable highlights.

Texas hosted their annual Orange-White spring game over the weekend, and attendees were treated to big plays from several stars. Continue reading “WATCH: The best plays from Texas’ Orange-White spring game”

Irish in the NFL: Sheldon Day to the Colts

Former Notre Dame defensive lineman and member of the 2019 NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers, Sheldon Day, is headed home as he’s inked a one-year deal with his hometown Indianapolis Colts.

Former Notre Dame star and four-year NFL veteran Sheldon Day has a new home as the defensive lineman signed a deal with the Indianapolis Colts on Wednesday.  The defensive lineman finds his third NFL franchise having previously spent time in Jacksonville before going to San Francisco in mid-2017 and eventually playing on their NFC Championship team last year.

Day rejoins defensive line-mate DeForest Buckner who he played alongside in San Francisco and who the Colts traded a first round pick for last week.

In his four NFL seasons Day has six career sacks and 53 tackles, 14 of which were recorded for a loss.

Day returns home as he grew up in Indianapolis and attended Warren Central High School and was the runner up in the 2011 voting for the state’s Mr. Football award.  In Indianapolis he will rejoin his former Notre Dame teammate Quenton Nelson who will be entering his third NFL season in 2020.  The two played together at Notre Dame in both the 2014 and 2015 seasons.

Day’s deal with the Colts is said to be for one year with the financial terms not yet being announced.

If you have a couple minutes – enjoy Sheldon Day ripping up the track during his time at Notre Dame:

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_M5BhEHYefA&w=560&h=315]

Notre Dame Offers Star ’21 Illinois Athlete

Notre Dame offered three/four-star athlete Sam Jackson of Naperville, IL a scholarship on Wednesday.

Notre Dame has offered a 2021 athlete from the state of Illinois as Sam Jackson is the latest prospect to get a scholarship offer from Brian Kelly and the Fighting Irish staff.  Jackson made the offer public knowledge on his Twitter profile Wednesday morning.

Jackson is listed at 5-7 and 170 pounds and plays quarterback at Naperville Central in Naperville, Illinois but is being recruited as an “athlete” by most schools.  Maybe a gadget guy who can occasionally be a threat to throw?

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Jackson was a one-time commitment to PJ Fleck and Minnesota but announced he was re-opening his recruitment in January.  Most of the Big Ten aside from Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State have offered scholarships while Missouri, Oregon and Virginia Tech are some of the bigger names nationally to have offered.