Tag: Freshman All-American

Caden Sterns: ‘Worked way too hard for the season to be cancelled’

Texas Longhorns junior safety Caden Sterns went to Twitter to have his voice heard. He feels like he worked too hard for this.

Much like many of the fans are expressing on social media with the reports of a cancelled season, the players are just as upset. Much like Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence, other players are taking to Twitter to get their voice heard. Players much like Lawrence feel as if they would be better off on campus around their team than at home. One reason was that often times these athletes are in better situations than home. Football is their way to escape a world and they are given a better opportunity.

One Texas Longhorn has made his voice known. Caden Sterns is no stranger to letting his voice be heard. He took to Twitter shortly after Lawrence to let his frustrations be known.

Caden joined his teammates on Friday in the first day of fall camp as they tried to get ready for the upcoming season. Under new defensive coordinator Chris Ash there was much to be optimistic about. Ash’s defense was going to focus on pressure and taking the ball away. Sterns was pretty good at taking the ball from offenses in his freshman season. It is a craft he was working on early in camp.

After a down year in 2019, Sterns seemed poised to become the ballhawk he was in 2018. He was named Freshman All-American for his efforts and led the team in interceptions that year with four. It is unclear at this moment whether or not the Big 12 Conference and Bob Bowlsby will follow the lead of the Big Ten.

All we know is the players want to do what they do best, play the game they love.

Countdown to Texas football: Best to wear No. 55

In returning to the countdown to kickoff series, Longhorns Wire remembers the best wear number 55 Connor Williams.

We are 55 days away from the scheduled kickoff of the 2020 college football season. Despite the Big Ten and PAC 12 announcing conference only schedules, the Big 12 remains with a full slate of games for most of their teams. The Longhorns still have South Florida, Louisiana State and Texas-El Paso on the schedule. In continuing the kickoff series, Longhorns Wire looks at the best to wear number 55. Currently Willie Tyler wears the number. He redshirted his sophomore year in 2019 after transferring from Iowa Western Community College.

Connor Williams, Offensive Tackle (2015-17)

JKevin Jairaj-USA TODAY Sports

Connor Williams played three season for the Texas Longhorns before entering into the 2018 NFL Draft and forfeiting his remaining eligibility. He played and started 28 games during that time. He would start every game at left tackle as a freshman. He would earn Freshman All-American honors from three publications for his play.

In his sophomore season, Williams would be even better. He would start 11 games at left tackle for Texas. He earned consensus first team All-American honors. He became only the fourth sophomore in Longhorns history to earn that honor. The others were Earl Thomas, Hub Bechtol and Russell Erxleben.

As a junior in 2017, Williams found himself on the Maxwell Trophy, Outland Trophy and the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award watchlists in the preseason. He would be listed on the pre-season All-American team as well as All-Big 12. He would only start five games that year due to injuries. He would declare for the 2018 NFL Draft.

The Dallas area native would get to stay home when the Dallas Cowboys selected him in the second round. In two years for the Cowboys, Williams played in 24 games, starting 21. He would be named starter at left guard his rookie year. In his second season, Connor would start 11 games and missed time due to arthroscopic knee surgery. Upon his return he would tear his ACL and be placed on the injured reserve.

Heading into 2020, Williams will once again have to battle for a starting spot with another Connor coming off injury. Williams and McGovern are both vying for starting roles at either center or left guard.

Accomplishments:

  • 2015 Freshman All-American
  • 2016 Consensus All-American
  • 2016 First-team All-Big 12
  • 2018 NFL Draft second round selection
  • 2017 Outland Trophy Semifinalist

Notre Dame’s Jack Brannigan Named Freshman All-American

Although Notre Dame was limited to only 13 games during the 2020 season, that was enough for Jack Brannigan to show he’s arrived.

Although Notre Dame was limited to only 13 games during the 2020 season, that was enough for Jack Brannigan to show he’s arrived. The Orland Park, Illinois, native is one of three multi-position players to be named a 2020 Freshman All-American by Collegiate Baseball. He’s the first Notre Dame player to earn this honor since Matt Vierling, now a Philadelphia Phillies prospect, in 2016.

Brannigan was one of three players to start every game for the Irish, the others being Zach Prajzner and Niko Kavades. He hit .255, had three doubles, one triple and home run apiece and drove in 11 runs. He also stole three bases. As a relief pitcher in four games, he had a 1.93 ERA and earned his first win March 7 against North Carolina.

There’s no telling how much more success Brannigan would have had if COVID-19 hadn’t stopped the season. Still, all signs point to him having a nice career for the Irish. He’ll be back, and we’ll be watching.

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.

Notre Dame Football: Kyle Hamilton Named Freshman All-American

It didn’t take long at all for Kyle Hamilton to make his presence known at Notre Dame this year as fall camp was pretty much just a daily breakdown of how many interceptions the freshman from Atlanta had that particular afternoon.

It didn’t take long at all for Kyle Hamilton to make his presence known at Notre Dame this year as fall camp was pretty much just a daily breakdown of how many interceptions the freshman from Atlanta had that particular afternoon.

It didn’t take long for him to make an impact on the gamefield either, getting substancial playing time as a true-freshman in the opener against Louisville before returning his first career college interception for a touchdown a week later against New Mexico.

The season would see him pull down four interceptions in total and have pretty much an entire defensive gameplan built around him in October’s win over USC.

On Friday Pro Football Focus named their Freshman All-American Team and named Hamilton their first-team safety.

Notre Dame landed the best coverage safety in the entire 2019 recruiting class. Hamilton recorded a near-elite 89.7 coverage grade in his true freshman season, allowing just seven passes to be completed on 22 targets. Those seven went for 74 yards and no touchdowns. However, the Fighting Irish safety stole possession four times by way of interceptions, and he forced another five pass breakups for a passer rating of 3.0 when targeted, best among all defenders in the nation with at least 15 targets.

– Pro Football Focus 12/6/2019

High praise for a star in the making at Notre Dame.