Tag: College Football News

Sexual Abuse Investigations At Michigan. What’s Happening, What Questions Need To Be Asked

By Crowley Sullivan Tad Deluca wants to be heard, and he wants to help. “I’m here today to speak up again to let the University of Michigan know that I will not be ignored again.” Tad Deluca, former @UMich wrestler with allegations of Dr. Robert …

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By Crowley Sullivan

Tad Deluca wants to be heard, and he wants to help.

A wrestler at the University of Michigan in the 1970s, Deluca alleged back in 1975 that he was improperly touched and abused by then-University of Michigan physician Dr. Robert E. Anderson during an examination for an injured elbow.

At the time, Deluca sent a letter to then-wrestling coach Bill Johannesen to describe the allegations, his letter was later read by then-Athletic Director Don Canham, and soon was no longer on the wrestling team and had his scholarship taken away.

 

Deluca sent another letter to Michigan Athletic Director Warde Manuel in 2018 describing his allegations. His claims were investigated, and others had come forward to make similar claims, but the case stalled mostly because Anderson was no longer alive.

Last week, Deluca and his attorneys came forward with a press conference to speak out on the situation at a news conference to not only try to bring the allegations back to light, but to try to prevent further abuses.

Since then, more than 100 allegations and complaints have been filed against Anderson, and now Michigan is having a press conference for some of the alleged victims to speak out.

A story spanning well over four decades, who are the people involved in the story, and what questions will the University of Michigan need to answer?

Dr. Robert Anderson

  • Dr. Robert Anderson served as a physician at the University of Michigan from 1968-2003.
  • In 1979, Anderson moved from his job as the school’s Director of Health Services to the University of Michigan athletic department where he, among other duties, served as the physician for the football program until 2003. He passed away in 2008.

University of Michigan

  • Following Deluca’s most recent statement, Manuel stated, “I want to urge any former student athlete with information they are willing to share confidentially to come forward,” and the school created a hotline for former athletes to file complaints. Since then over 100 complaints have been registered from former wrestlers, football players, and other athletes.
  • From UM President Mark Schlissel, “On behalf of the university, to anyone who was harmed by Dr. Anderson, I apologize.”

Don Canham

  • Don Canham served as athletic director at the University of Michigan from 1968-1988. He passed away in 2005.
  • From 1947 to 1968, he served as the school’s head track coach. His teams won 11 Big Ten Conference championships, seven indoor and four outdoor.
  • Michigan’s swimming, diving, and water polo teams compete in the Donald B. Canham Natatorium, named for Canham upon his retirement in 1988.

Bo Schembechler

  • Bo Schembechler served as the head football coach under Don Canham from 1969-1989.
  • Upon Canham’s retirement from the University of Michigan in 1988, Schembechler took over as the university’s athletic director, serving one year as both the head football coach and athletic director.

Gary Moeller

  • Gary Moeller, one of Schembechler’s longtime assistants, took over as head football coach at the University of Michigan upon Schembechler’s 1989 retirement from coaching. Moeller was the athletic director for one year.
  • Moeller ran the football program until he resigned in 1995 following an incident at a restaurant.

Lloyd Carr

  • Lloyd Carr, a longtime assistant to both Schembechler and Moeller, took over as head coach prior to the 1995 football season.

Jim Harbaugh

  • Current University of Michigan head football coach, Jim Harbaugh, played quarterback for Michigan from 1982-1986.

Allegations of clearing University of Michigan athletes from the Vietnam War Draft

Member of University of Michigan 1997 football team comes forward

  • A former football player, who was a member of the 1997 National Championship team, has alleged that the doctor sexually abused him during his time at the university.

Member of University of Michigan hockey team comes forward

  • A former University of Michigan hockey player who went on to play in the NHL has now alleged that the doctor sexually abused him during his time as a hockey player at Michigan.

University of Michigan Athletic Directors during the tenure of Dr. Robert E. Anderson

1988-1990 – Bo Schembechler (passed away in 2006)

1991-1993 – Jack Weidenbach (passed away in 2016)

1993-1997 – Joe Roberson (passed away in 2020)

1997-2000 – Thomas Goss (alive)

2000-2010 – Bill Martin (alive)

Press conference questions for the University of Michigan

  • Why did Canham transfer Anderson to the football program in 1979?
  • When was the first time a student athlete at the University of Michigan made allegations of sexual abuse and/or assault against Anderson?
  • Are there records of allegations against Anderson during the head coaching tenures of Schembechler, Moeller and Carr? Will Moeller and Carr be available for questions?
  • Are there records of allegations against Anderson during the athletic director tenures of Weidenbach, Roberson, Goss, Martin and Schembechler?
  • If there are, are there any records that indicate that any of athletic directors were aware of the allegations? Will Goss and Weidenbach be available for questions?
  • Does Harbaugh have any sort of an official statement?

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5 Coaches Who’ll Be Much Better In Year Two: 20 For 2020 College Football Topics, No. 15

20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 15: The five second year head coaches who should have a much stronger Year Two.

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20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 15: The five second year head coaches who should have a much stronger Year Two.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

Well that didn’t go so well.

25 college football head coaches are going into their second seasons at the helm, and now is where the production is supposed to start to kick in.

There’s usually a reason as head coach is taking over a program, and most of the time it’s because the last guy got canned. So there’s a grace period because of all the work there is to do, but there’s usually not enough of one.

Even so, Year Two is when the turnarounds are supposed to come. Unfortunately, unlike our piece last season on the 5 Instant Impact New Head Coaches – which turned out to be close to the pin – the 5 Year Two Coaches Who’ll Be Much, Much Better really, really didn’t work.

And why?

Chad Morris at Arkansas … oops. Willie Taggart at Florida State … dropped too soon, but fired. And it goes on from there, so this time around these five have to be right.

Which five got through a slew of first year problems and are about to blow up?

The five coaches about to make the biggest instant impact in their second seasons are …

5. Tom Arth, Akron

There’s nowhere to go but up.

Win one game, and it’s already going to be an improved season. Win three, and it’ll be a huge step forward. Go bowling, and Tom Arth is your coach of the year.

Akron was easily the worst team in college football last season.

It was the only team that failed to win a game. It was dead last in the nation in total offense, couldn’t generate a lick of production on the defensive front, and it got worse as the year went on scoring six points or fewer in five of the last seven games.

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But to give Arth a little bit of credit, he had plenty of work to do after taking over a team team that closed out 2018 on a five-game losing streak.

The 38-year-old worked his way through D-III John Carroll – his alma mater, which he took to three D-III playoff appearances – before taking on the Chattanooga gig. He went 9-13 with the Mocs, but that was enough to get him the Akron job.

So what are things possibly going to be better in Year Two? Experience has to count for something.

With the season slipping away, Akron went young to get the time logged in. Now, if all goes according to plan, ten starters will be back on O, six should return on D, and there’s hope to get off to a hot start with Youngstown State, New Mexico State, Clemson …

Starting 2-0 is a possibility, with home games against UMass and Bowling Green to potentially crank up a few wins.

0-12 to 4-8?

NEXT: The adjustment continues …

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5 Instant Impact New Head Coaches: 20 For 2020 College Football Topics, No. 16

The five new head coaches who’ll rock right away this season. 20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 16

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20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 16: The five new head coaches who’ll rock right away this season.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

24 college football teams are starting the season with a new full-time head coach.

It’s an interesting group with 12 first time FBS head men, a few retreads getting another shot (Brady Hoke at San Diego State and Karl Dorrell at Colorado), and a few brand-name upgrades (Mike Leach at Mississippi State and Steve Addazio at Colorado State).

Which five might just turn around their respective programs right away?

Who doesn’t make this list? Coaches inheriting heaters (Shawn Clark at Appalachian State and Ryan Silverfield at Memphis) and coaches who aren’t likely to make the team better than it was last year (Dave Aranda at Baylor and Willie Taggart at Florida Atlantic).

We did a decent job with last year’s 5 Instant Impact New Head Coaches, and these five have a whole lot to live up to in their new gigs.

The five new coaches about to make the biggest instant impact are …

5. Danny Gonzalez, New Mexico

It’s been a rough run for New Mexico football.

Rocky Long was able to make the program a regular on the bowl circuit with five post-season appearances in six years in the 2000s, and then came one bad year in 2008. That was it for Long, the program was stale, it couldn’t make that next step, and …

Long made San Diego State a Mountain West powerhouse.

Meanwhile, Mike Locksley had a miserable run, Bob Davie went to two bowls in eight years – going 8-28 in his final three seasons – and it’s up to new head man Danny Gonzalez to try reviving his alma mater.

Getting Long to help the cause is terrific, too.

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Long returns to Albuquerque as the Lobo’s defensive coordinator under the 44-year-old former defensive back/punter/jack-of-all-trades, but they both have a whole lot of work to do.

You’re not going to have New Mexico football to push around anymore … eventually.

The team will need the positive injury-luck on offense it hasn’t had over the last few seasons, it needs to improve on the nation’s worst pass defenses, and it has to be a whole lot better than the second-worst overall D in America.

He’s bringing a nastiness to the defense, a no-excuses attitude, and he’s bringing a whole lot of talent.

And he’s bringing back Rocky Long, too.

There might not be a Mountain West title right away, but with Idaho State, New Mexico State and UMass on the slate, beating last year’s win total shouldn’t be a problem.

With this coaching staff, New Mexico might just win more than five games, not just five weeks of off-season practices.

NEXT: Oh this will be fun …

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20 For 2020 College Football Topics, No. 17: Letdown Game For Every Power Five Team

20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 17: The letdown or sandwich game for every Power Five team.

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20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 17: The letdown or sandwich game for every Power Five team.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

They’re the games that all fans blow off, but all coaching staffs lose sleep over.

For the most part, they’re supposed to be sure-thing wins, but they’re the ones that don’t always get the full and undivided attention of the supposedly superior team.

They’re the letdown games, or they’re the sandwiches – the games in between the two supposedly more important, bigger battles.

On each Power Five team’s slate, there’s at least one game that will be a moment to mail it in, but it could also be time to worry a bit.

More often than not there’s not a problem – they’re the easier games for a reason. However …

You’ve been warned.

ACC ATLANTIC

Boston College Eagles

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Holy Cross, Oct. 31
Game Before: at Virginia Tech
Game After: at NC State

Of course Boston College is going to roll past the Crusaders – it had better. With Clemson, Louisville and at Virginia Tech before, and road games at NC State and Florida State after, this is the only relative breather.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Clemson Tigers

Letdown/Sandwich Game: The Citadel, Nov. 14
Game Before: at Notre Dame
Game After: at Wake Forest

Here’s the problem – there aren’t enough tough games on the slate for this loaded team to make anything a true letdown game, but dealing with the Citadel option offense will be annoying coming off the showdown in South Bend.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Florida State Seminoles

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Pitt, Oct. 31
Game Before: at Louisville
Game After: at Miami

This is when the Noles are in the dog days of the season. They’ll have to deal with the likely shootout against Louisville on the road, and the showdown against Miami – the pivotal moment in the 2019 season for the program – is coming up. They have to take care of home against the Panthers.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Louisville Cardinals

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Wake Forest, Nov. 14
Game Before: at Virginia
Game After: at Notre Dame

UofL can’t take anyone lightly quite yet, but this should be a stronger Year Two under Scott Satterfield. It’ll have a fun few weeks including a date at Virginia before hosting Wake Forest, but one eye will likely be on the late-season showdown on the trip to South Bend.
– Full Schedule Analysis

NC State Wolfpack

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Duke, Oct. 10
Game Before: Florida State
Game After: at Clemson

Considering the Wolfpack start the season at Louisville, the pressure could be on in October. The Florida State game is a must after getting rocked in last year’s showdown, and going to Clemson is a likely loss. There can’t be a misfire against Duke.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Syracuse Orange

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Liberty, Oct. 17
Game Before: Louisville
Game After: at Clemson

There weren’t too many problems in last year’s opener at Liberty with a 24-0 win, but this time around it’s coming off a key first half game against Louisville followed by a week off. The Orange might be looking past the Flames with the trip to Clemson to follow.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Wake Forest Demon Deacons

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Villanova, Sept. 19
Game Before: Appalachian State
Game After: Notre Dame (in Charlotte)

Be very, very, very careful with this. A whole lot will be made out of the battle with a loaded Appalachian State team the week before, and the battle with Notre Dame in Charlotte is right after. This is a prime moment for what should be a strong Villanova team to come up with something big.
– Full Schedule Analysis

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ACC COASTAL

Duke Blue Devils

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Wake Forest, Oct. 3
Game Before: at Pitt
Game After: at NC State

The Blue Devils should be able to roll through the first part of the schedule, but the ACC season opens up at Pitt, and then comes the date against the Demon Deacons. There likely won’t be a lack of focus after losing 39-27 last year, but a trip to NC State is up next before dealing with North Carolina and Notre Dame.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Virginia, Oct. 17
Game Before: at Virginia Tech
Game After: at Pitt

It doesn’t get much more sandwichey than playing between Clemson and UCF – Georgia Tech gets Gardner-Webb – but the Virginia game is even more interesting. It’s a home date between two road games on the front end against North Carolina and Virginia Tech and two right after against Pitt and Syracuse.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Miami Hurricanes

Letdown/Sandwich Game: at Georgia Tech, Nov. 21
Game Before: at Virginia Tech
Game After: Duke

Throw this in the letdown category, even though the Canes lost 28-21 to Georgia Tech last year. It comes right after a run of at Virginia, Florida State and at Virginia Tech, and it’s late in the year before closing out with Duke. The Canes can’t lose focus.
– Full Schedule Analysis

North Carolina Tar Heels

Letdown/Sandwich Game: James Madison, Sept. 19
Game Before: Auburn (in Atlanta)
Game After: Georgia Tech

Oh sure, North Carolina types will say all of the right things about playing one of the stars of the FCS, but it’ll be too hard to take the lower-level team seriously after dealing with UCF and Auburn, and with the ACC season against Georgia Tech starting the week after.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Pitt Panthers

Letdown/Sandwich Game: Georgia Tech, Oct. 24
Game Before: Notre Dame
Game After: at Florida State

The Panthers struggled to get by Georgia Tech last year, but they did it. Now they have to get up for them right after dealing with Notre Dame the week before and with a trip to Florida State to follow. After this, the ACC season kicks in full force.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Virginia Cavaliers

Letdown/Sandwich Game: (tie) VMI Sept. 12, UConn Sept 19
Game Before: Georgia (in Atlanta)
Game After: at Clemson

A little creative license here – call this a double-decker sandwich. No, Virginia won’t lose to VMI or UConn, but it can be forgiven for not bringing the full intensity with the season opener in Atlanta to deal with Georgia and with the ACC opener at Clemson lurking.
– Full Schedule Analysis

Virginia Tech Hokies

Letdown/Sandwich Game: at Duke, Nov. 21
Game Before: Miami
Game After: Virginia

Okay, okay, Virginia Tech isn’t going to overlook Duke after getting obliterated 45-10 last year, but it’s a late-season battle in the final road game of the season. The Miami game the week before should be a big deal in the Coastal race, and then comes Virginia. After losing last year, the Hokies will be a wee bit focused on taking back the rivalry.
– Full Schedule Analysis

NEXT: Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC

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Georgia football QB Jamie Newman keeps moving up in Heisman odds

Georgia football QB Jamie Newman moves up in 2020 Heisman odds.

Georgia was in need of a quarterback and the graduate transfer from Wake Forest was a hot commodity when he made his decision to depart the Demon Deacons and take his talents to Athens. As if replacing three-year starter Jake Fromm isn’t difficult enough, Jamie Newman will be challenged to implement a new, more RPO- oriented attack and add some swagger to the UGA offense.

The Las Vegas oddsmakers, who are more right than wrong, believe he made the right decision in choosing the Bulldogs.

According to William Hill Superbook, Newman’s odds for securing the Heisman have moved to 10/1, now third behind Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields (7/2) and Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence (4/1).  In early February, Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook had Newman at 12/1 odds and just after his transfer announcement, Newman was listed at 16/1 odds.

Newman was one of the top graduate transfers on the market. Miami, Oregon, Maryland and Washington, among others were seeking the services of the North Carolina native.

According to Pro Football Focus, Newman is the nation’s third-highest graded returning quarterback, behind only Fields and Lawrence.  He started all 13 games last season and led Wake to an 8-5 record. He completed 220 of 361 passes (60.9 percent) for 2,868 yards, 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He rushed for 574 yards and six touchdowns on 180 carries.

Being the starting quarterback at the University of Georgia always comes with high expectations and takes an extremely talented, confident and bright athlete to handle the pressure. Jamie Newman checks off all the boxes. Dawg fans will have their first opportunity to check out Newman and the 2020 Bulldogs during G-Day, scheduled for 2:00pm on Saturday, April 18. The game will be game carried live on the SEC Network.

20 For 2020 College Football Topics, No. 18: Teams That Will Take A Wee Step Back

20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 18: The five teams that will take a step back after a great 2019.

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20 for 2020 College Football Topics, No. 18: The five teams that will take a step back after a great 2019.

– Contact/Follow @ColFootballNews & @PeteFiutak

The sequel is almost never as good as the original.

For five key teams, trying to recreate what happened in 2019 is going to be next to impossible.

It doesn’t matter how good you are. If you’re coming off a huge season, you probably won’t get the same breaks, the right timing with the schedule, or that magical blend that made the previous campaign so special.

The five teams on this list aren’t going to be bad. On the contrary, most should be massive factors in their respective division and conference races.

However, just one extra loss could be enough for each of these five to take a wee step back.

Going from the lowest-ranked team in the 2019 final rankings to the highest …

5. Virginia Cavaliers

2020 FInal Ranking
AP NR (29), Coaches 25
Final Record: 9-5

What Made 2019 Special? 

Bronco Mendenhall did it.

He took an okay program that was happy just to get to a bowl game on a regular basis, and he turned it into the Coastal Division champion that got to take its cut at the ACC Championship.

So what that Virginia got blown out by Clemson? So what that it lost to Florida in the Orange Bowl? It was a blast of a season with a win over Virginia Tech for the first time since 2003, a great finishing kick to take the vision, and again, it all finished up with a trip to the ACC title game and the Orange Bowl.

Why 2020 Will Be A Bit Worse: Returning Talent

Virginia is good enough now where it can rebuild a bit and not worry too much about falling off the map. However, you don’t get better by losing a heart-and-soul quarterback like Bryce Perkins.

Bryce Hall was a special corner, the receiving corps drops some key parts, and Jordan Mack was a killer in the middle of the linebacking corps, but a whole lot of strong players are back.

If all goes to plan, as many as nine starters on the offensive side are back and seven should return on D. Throw in the developed depth, and how is Virginia going to be any worse?

Lose four regular season games after dropping three last year.

Why 2020 Will Be A Bit Worse: Schedule 
– 2020 Virginia Football Schedule Analysis

Virginia might have been tough and good, and there’s no dogging that win over Virginia Tech, but it also did a little bit of bum-slaying in a miserable year for the ACC.

It didn’t have to play Clemson until the ACC Championship, and while it got past Pitt and North Carolina, it also had wins over William & Mary, Duke, Georgia Tech, Liberty, and a mediocre Florida State team.

The ACC Coastal is notoriously flaky.

This time around, Virginia has to go to Virginia Tech and Clemson. Miami is going to be better – at least, it should be – Louisville, Pitt and North Carolina are going to be dangerous, and in non-conference play, opening up against Georgia isn’t great.

But the schedule isn’t all that bad. This should be another strong Virginia team that but go 8-4 instead of 9-3, and it’ll be a wee step back.

NEXT: After coming so close to the mountain top, Part 1 …

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Colorado Reportedly To Hire Karl Dorrell As Head Coach. Can The Buffs Start Winning Again?

Colorado appears to have found its man. It’s being reported that Karl Dorrell will be the next head coach. What does it mean?

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Colorado appears to have found its man. It’s being reported that Karl Dorrell will be the next head coach. What does it mean?

Karl Dorrell? Uhhhhhhh, okay.

The base desperately wanted Colorado to somehow lure away former star running back and current Kansas City Chief offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy to be the head man, but it didn’t work out. Instead …

Colorado appears to have wanted a head coach with NFL experience at some level, but unlike previous hire Mel Tucker – who bolted after one year at the gig for Michigan State – we’ve seen what Karl Dorrell could do as a head coach.

It was whatever, but now it’s clean slate time for Colorado football as well as its new head coach.

The former UCLA head man is being hired away from his job as the Miami Dolphins’ receivers coach to take over a Colorado program that has a whole lot of potential, but needs a jump-start.

Dorrell seemed like the right hire at the right time for UCLA in 2003. The former Bruin wideout was a rising coaching prospect with time logged in after various Pac-12/Pac-10 schools – including Colorado for two different stints as the receivers coach – and it’s not like he was awful.

He led UCLA to five bowl appearances in five years, finished with a 35-27 record, and he even looked like he was about to make something special happen after building things up to a big 10-2 third year. Along the way, his 2006 team shocked a loaded USC squad 13-9.

But the program wanted more, Dorrell was fired in 2007, and he bounced around the NFL as a key assistant and spent a year as the Vanderbilt offensive coordinator.

And now he gets another shot.

It really is possible to win in Boulder.

After three straight 5-7 seasons, Colorado football has been the master of teasing everyone to think something big could get started, and then … pffffffft. The air keeps coming out of the balloon.

Even when it went to the Pac-12 Championship in 2016, that was a bit of an aberration – the schedule wasn’t anything great and the South tripped over itself. But a ten-win season is a ten-win season, especially when it’s the only winning campaign since 2005.

Good luck, Coach Dorrell.

It’s been over 15 years since Colorado was a superpower – in the Big 12. But in the Pac-12, it’s had one winning season in nine years, and a whole generation of fans have no idea what happened back in 1989 and 1990 – by the way, there was a tie in 1990 along with a split national championship; that’s how long ago it’s been since the program was a killer.

Fortunately for Dorrell and the Buffs, the South is gettable right now.

It’s just not happening so far at UCLA under Chip Kelly and Arizona under Kevin Sumlin, USC is in limbo, Utah is fine to a point, and Arizona State is fine, but whatever.

Dorrell has to ramp up the offense. He has to come up with a style of football that can at least start winning again, and then hope things fall into place and the South continues to struggle.

Was this the home run hire that’s going to freak out the rest of the Pac-12? Nah, but win eight games in Boulder on a regular basis, and build the thing up over the next three years, and Dorrell can make the program his.

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Georgia football: Expectations for QB Jamie Newman keep growing

Georgia football is expecting big things for new QB Jamie Newman.

The graduate transfer from Wake Forest was a hot commodity when he made his decision to depart the Demon Deacons and take his talents to Athens. As if replacing three-year starter Jake Fromm isn’t difficult enough, Newman will be challenged to implement a new, more RPO- oriented attack and add some swagger to the UGA offense.

The Las Vegas oddsmakers, who are more right than wrong, believe he made the right decision in choosing the Bulldogs.

Westgate Las Vegas SuperBook now has Newman at 12/1 odds to win the Heisman Trophy. Just after his transfer announcement, Newman was listed as 16/1 odds, tied for sixth-best. He is now tied for third with Texas quarterback Sam Ehlinger and Oklahoma quarterback Spencer Rattler. Westgate still has former Georgia and current Ohio State QB Justin Fields and Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence (Cartersville, GA) as the favorites at 4/1.

Newman was one of the top graduate transfers on the market. Miami, Oregon, Maryland and Washington, among others were seeking the services of the North Carolina native.

According to Pro Football Focus, Newman is the nation’s third-highest graded returning quarterback, behind only Fields and Lawrence.  He started all 13 games last season and led Wake to an 8-5 record. He completed 220 of 361 passes (60.9 percent) for 2,868 yards, 26 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He rushed for 574 yards and six touchdowns on 180 carries.

Being the starting quarterback at the University of Georgia always comes with high expectations and takes an extremely talented, confident and bright athlete to handle the pressure. Jamie Newman checks off all the boxes.

What Was the Biggest Takeaway from the 2019 College Football Season?

But what did we learn about college football in 2019 that will apply in 2020 and beyond?

The 2019 season has come and gone and when we look back on it we’ll remember various things:

Nationally it was the Joe Burrow and LSU show as the Tigers reworked their entire offense in one off-season and came back with the best offense the game has ever seen.

For Notre Dame it was a year that saw 11 wins and a dominating bowl victory but it’s obvious the bar has been raised for the program after the lack of excitement from the fan base that would have killed for a season like this just a decade ago.

But what did we learn about college football in 2019 that will apply in 2020 and beyond?

Myself and Pete Fiutak of College Football News recorded our latest episode of the College Football News Podcast mid-week and discussed exactly that.

In this episode you’ll hear us discuss the LSU offensive overhaul, how the transfer portal improved college football in 2019 and how the importance of elite quarterbacks at the collegiate level has changed in recent years, a conversation that very-much applies to Notre Dame’s wishes for 2020.

Take a listen above or subscribe to the CFN Podcast on Apple now!

Georgia football LB selected for FWAA Freshman All-American Team

Georgia football had a linebacker named to the FWAA Freshman All-American Team

No doubt Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs have been pulling in major talent from across the country and the Peach State during the past four years. Redshirt freshman Azeez Ojulari from Marietta, GA became the latest Dawg recognized for his talent and hard work as he was named to the FWAA Freshman All-American Team.

The 6’3″, 240-pound Ojulari had a breakout season for Georgia. The outside linebacker recorded 34 QB pressures, 36 tackles and 5.5 sacks this season. He had five tackles in the Sugar Bowl victory including a third-quarter QB sack and forcced fumble. Ojulari started 13 of 14 games for the SEC’s total defense, scoring defense and rushing defense leader.

Ojulari earned the respect of his teammates by becoming the first freshman player in the Kirby Smart era to be named a team captain. He is the 13th Bulldog to be selected for the team in the award’s 19 years.

Following the trend of colleges recruiting nationally, 18 of the 32 freshman honored played high school football out-of-state from their respective college. Georgia State offensive lineman Travis Glover from Vienna, GA, a former non-rated prep, was the only other Peach State prep to make the team. Following is a list of all the award winners:

2019 FWAA Freshman All-American Team

Quarterbacks

Sam Howell – North Carolina, 6-2  225  Indian Trail, NC

Kedon Slovis – USC, 6-2  200  Scottsdale, AZ

Running backs

Javian Hawkins – Louisville, 5-9  182  Titusville, FL

Sincere McCormick – Texas-San Antonio, 5-9  200  Converse, TX

Receivers

David Bell – Purdue, 6-2  210  Indianapolis, IN

C.J. Johnson – East Carolina, 6-2  229  Greenville, NC

Dante Wright – Colorado State, 5-10  165  Navarre, FL

Offensive Linemen

Evan Neal – Alabama, 6-7  360  Okeechobee, FL

O’Cyrus Torrence – Louisiana, 6-5  342  Greensburg, LA

Ikem Ekwonu – NC State, 6-4  308  Charlotte, NC

Sean Rhyan – UCLA, 6-4  323  Ladera Ranch, CA

Nick Rosi – Toledo, 6-4  290  Powell, OH

Travis Glover – Georgia State, 6-6  330  Vienna, GA

Defensive Linemen

Gregory Rousseau – Miami, 6-6  251  Coconut Creek, FL

George Karlaftis – Purdue, 6-4  265  West Lafayette, IN

Solomon Byrd – Wyoming, 6-4  243  Palmdale, CA

Kayvon Thibodeaux – Oregon, 6-5  242  South Central Los Angeles, CA

Linebackers

Devin Richardson – New Mexico State, 6-3  233  Klein, TX

Omar Speights – Oregon State, 6-1  233  Philadelphia, PA

Azeez Ojulari – Georgia, 6-3, 240 Marietta, GA

Shane Lee – Alabama, 6-0  246  Burtonsville, MD

Defensive Backs

Ar’Darius Washington – TCU, 5-8  175  Shreveport, LA

Derek Stingley Jr. – LSU, 6-1  190  Baton Rouge, LA

Kyle Hamilton – Notre Dame, 6-4  210  Atlanta, GA

Verone McKinley III – Oregon, 5-10  192  Carrollton, TX

Ahmad Gardner – Cincinnati, 6-2  185  Detroit, MI

Tykee Smith – West Virginia, 5-10  184  Philadelphia, PA

Punter

Austin McNamara – Texas Tech, 6-4  175  Gilbert, AZ

Kicker

Gabe Brkic – Oklahoma, 6-2  175  Chardon, OH

Kick returner

Joshua Youngblood – Kansas State, 5-10  180  Tampa, FL

Punt returner

Kyle Philips – UCLA, 5-11  181  San Marcos, CA

All-Purpose

Kenneth Gainwell – Memphis, 5-11  183  Yazoo City, MS

Player of the Year

Kenneth Gainwell, Memphis