Help Notre Dame safety Brandon Joseph win the Lott Trophy player of the week

Brandon Joseph, Lott Trophy player of the week sounds good

When [autotag]Brandon Joseph[/autotag] transferred from Northwestern, it was viewed as a massive win for the Notre Dame secondary. So far he’s had an up-and-down season, but it seems like the bye week helped Joseph a lot.

After not registering a tackle against North Carolina, the former All-American was all over the place against BYU. Joseph tallied six tackles and was instrumental in holding Cougar quarterback [autotag]Jaren Hall[/autotag] to just 120 yards on the night and a very pedestrian quarterback rating of just 54.7. That effort caught the eyes of the Lott Trophy, who annual awards the best safety in the country, and Joseph is up for week six honors.

Help him out and click on the link, to vote for Joseph to win the week 6 honors from the Lott Trophy.

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Let’s get wild week 6: Statistical predictions for Notre Dame vs. BYU

Who fills up the stat sheet for the Irish this week?

The Irish are finally back and have now traveled to Las Vegas to play host to BYU in Allegiant Stadium. Their home away from home isn’t the most ideal city, but as we will see by their uniforms, and hopefully the crowd, the Irish will in fact be the home squad. With that they should have a solid evening on the field and here a a few statistical guesses as to how that will unfold.

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Tale of the Tape: Starting Quarterbacks – Drew Pyne vs. Jaren Hall

Another lopsided QB matchup.

Once again, Notre Dame enters a game finding itself outmatched in the quarterback department. To [autotag]Drew Pyne[/autotag]’s credit, he slowly is starting to get more comfortable as the Irish’s main quarterback going forward this season. While he isn’t exactly turning heads, it would be shortsighted not to give him credit for the Irish winning the past two games. You can’t win without your quarterback, and Pyne is proving that he’s up to the challenge.

The Irish’s defense will face Cougars quarterback Jaren Hall. The Cougars have had a fine season to this point, and Hall’s numbers at this point in the season show why. Not only does he pick up plenty of yardage, but he backs that up with plenty of touchdown passes. The question is whether the Cougars’ defense will give him support, and that question has not been so easily answered so far, which gives many Cougars fans cause for concern.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Geoffrey on Twitter: @gfclark89

Instant reaction: This is the Dan Lanning Oregon Duck program

Oregon was running on all cylinders on both sides of the ball as the Ducks rolled over BYU 41-20.

Oregon Ducks football head coach Dan Lanning was brought in to bring in skilled players and a tough line on both sides of the ball.

Those traits were fully on display Saturday afternoon as the Ducks bullied No. 12 BYU for a big 41-20 win over the Cougars in front of 54,463 fans inside Autzen Stadium.

BYU came to Eugene riding a high as they were coming off an upset of Baylor, but the Ducks’ offensive line pushed the Cougars back nearly all day. Oregon rushed for 212 yards and quarterback Bo Nix accounted for three rushing touchdowns and two through the air.

The defense held BYU to 366 yards total yards with the majority of those yards coming when the game was out of hand and Cougar quarterback Jaren Hall was left looking for open receivers.

He may still be looking for someone to be open. Cornerback Christian Gonzalez locked down whatever receiver he was matched up with.

The Oregon defensive line dominated, making it nearly impossible for the Cougars to muster up any kind of run game. BYU was held to just 61 yards on 24 carries or 2.5 yards per attempt.

It was everything Lanning and his staff could have asked for and then some. The first-year coach wanted more explosive plays and his wish was granted. Oregon’s first offensive play was a 26-yard pass play to Kris Hutson and it just rolled from there.

If the Ducks play that well the rest of the way, the 2022 season could be a special one after all.

SKOL Search: quarterbacks shine late night

This past week, quarterbacks ruled the college football world especially in the late night slot

Week two of college football is in the books and it was a wild one.

Things were chaotic across the board as we saw three teams in the top 12 lose on Saturday.

As things were last week, one of the biggest takeaways were the quarterbacks, especially the ones that kicked off after 9pm central time.

Here are five noteworthy performances from Saturday that Vikings fans need to know.

Know the Opponent: An efficient offensive scheme and huge O-line pave the way for BYU

BYU brings a huge offensive line, a good quarterback, and an efficient offense into Autzen Stadium on Saturday.

The BYU Cougars offense isn’t going to jump off the page with big highlights. They’re not likely going to throw many bombs or try to trick a defense with fancy formations.

What they will do, however, is get first downs and go at their own pace and before you know it, they have plenty of points on the board.

BYU features a huge offensive line, perhaps the best line the Cougars have ever had. They’re led by 6-foot-8, 305-pounder Blake Freeland, who is definitely a future first-round NFL draft pick. Usually, a man of Freeland’s size wouldn’t have anyone that can look him in the eye. but in Provo, Utah, that’s not the case.

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The offensive line also features 6-foot-6, 305-pounder Clark Barrington and a name familiar to Oregon fans, Kingsley Suamataia, a 6-foot-6, 325-pounder who was a Duck last season before transferring to BYU. He was the top offensive lineman recruit in the country in 2020.

With protection like that, it makes it a lot easier for quarterback Jaren Hall to distribute the ball where he wants. He was a very accurate passer in 2021, throwing for 2,583 yards and 20 touchdowns with five interceptions. He also completed 64 percent of his passes.

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“Over time, they’ve been one of the most explosive offensive as far as getting the ball down the field,” Dan Lanning said when asked about BYU on Monday. “They really stretch the field. (Jaren) Hall does a great job of distributing the ball, he throws a good ball and understands their offense, but also has the ability to run so he presents some good challenges with his ability to scramble. But I’d say he’s a quarterback that looks to throw it and keeps his eyes downfield.”

Whether or not he has some of his favorite receivers available for this game is still in doubt. BYU went into the Baylor game without two of their leading receivers in Puka Nacua and Gunner Romney. Nacua missed last week with a sprained ankle and Romney hasn’t seen action this year due to what is being described as a lower leg injury.

It didn’t seem to hurt the Cougars all that much as Hall threw for 261 yards in the 26-20 double-overtime win over the once No. 9 Bears.

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Know the Opponent: An efficient offensive scheme and huge O-line pave the way for BYU

BYU brings a huge offensive line, a good quarterback, and an efficient offense into Autzen Stadium on Saturday.

The BYU Cougars offense isn’t going to jump off the page with big highlights. They’re not likely going to throw many bombs or try to trick a defense with fancy formations.

What they will do, however, is get first downs and go at their own pace and before you know it, they have plenty of points on the board.

BYU features a huge offensive line, perhaps the best line the Cougars have ever had. They’re led by 6-foot-8, 305-pounder Blake Freeland, who is definitely a future first-round NFL draft pick. Usually, a man of Freeland’s size wouldn’t have anyone that can look him in the eye. but in Provo, Utah, that’s not the case.

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The offensive line also features 6-foot-6, 305-pounder Clark Barrington and a name familiar to Oregon fans, Kingsley Suamataia, a 6-foot-6, 325-pounder who was a Duck last season before transferring to BYU. He was the top offensive lineman recruit in the country in 2020.

With protection like that, it makes it a lot easier for quarterback Jaren Hall to distribute the ball where he wants. He was a very accurate passer in 2021, throwing for 2,583 yards and 20 touchdowns with five interceptions. He also completed 64 percent of his passes.

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“Over time, they’ve been one of the most explosive offensive as far as getting the ball down the field,” Dan Lanning said when asked about BYU on Monday. “They really stretch the field. (Jaren) Hall does a great job of distributing the ball, he throws a good ball and understands their offense, but also has the ability to run so he presents some good challenges with his ability to scramble. But I’d say he’s a quarterback that looks to throw it and keeps his eyes downfield.”

Whether or not he has some of his favorite receivers available for this game is still in doubt. BYU went into the Baylor game without two of their leading receivers in Puka Nacua and Gunner Romney. Nacua missed last week with a sprained ankle and Romney hasn’t seen action this year due to what is being described as a lower leg injury.

It didn’t seem to hurt the Cougars all that much as Hall threw for 261 yards in the 26-20 double-overtime win over the once No. 9 Bears.

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Lions 2023 NFL draft prospect watch for CFB Week 2

2023 NFL draft prospects to watch in CFB Week 2 with an eye for the Detroit Lions

College football enters its second full weekend of games on the Saturday before the NFL slate kicks off in full for Week 1. The Detroit Lions will have scouts out at college games around the country evaluating players who could interest them in the 2023 NFL draft.

Here are some of the players to know and watch from a Lions scouting perspective. The list features two games where Detroit is confirmed to be sending scouting staff on Saturday.

Saints pick BYU quarterback Jaren Hall in pre-preseason 2023 mock draft

Saints add BYU quarterback Jaren Hall in pre-preseason 2023 mock draft, adding another name to our college football watch list:

Will quarterback be a position of need for the New Orleans Saints next year? Maybe. There’s a lot of pressure on Jameis Winston to play at a high level and get them back to the playoffs, and his short-term contract with the team keeps the door open for change should he fall short of expectations. If Winston flops, odds are slim that the Saints will find a future at quarterback on their roster between Andy Dalton (who is here on a one-year rental), Ian Book (who hasn’t inspired much confidence), and Taysom Hill (who is attending meetings in the tight ends room these days).

One name to remember is BYU quarterback Jaren Hall, who was linked to the Saints in a recent two-round 2023 mock draft from Luke Easterling over at Draft Wire. Hall, listed at 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, has performed well on a small sample sizer as a passer (completing 220 of 342 career pass attempts for 3,003 yards, with 21 touchdown passes against 5 interceptions) and brings some mobility as a runner (with 95 carries for 450 rushing yards and 6 touchdown runs), but he’s missed a lot of time with injuries. He was limited to 7 games in 2019, missed the 2020 season with a medical redshirt, and was held out of BYU’s bowl game with an ankle injury in 2021. A smaller frame and an injury history aren’t a great combo.

Still, we’ve seen more undersized quarterbacks stand out in the NFL than in the past — largely thanks to the Hall of Fame-worthy career that Drew Brees accomplished in a Saints uniform. High-profile passers who don’t meet conventional weigh-in prototypes like Russell Wilson and Kyler Murray are helming Super Bowl contenders. If Hall can stay healthy this season and meet his potential, he could be in the conversation to be drafted quickly in 2023.

He’s off to a good start. Hall was recently named to the Davey O’Brien Award watch list, which is given to the nation’s best quarterback — previous winners include past No. 1 NFL draft picks Jameis Winston (2013), Joe Burrow (2019), and Peyton Manning (1997). Winning that recognition wouldn’t guarantee pro success, but it’s still interesting to see Hall in the mix at this early stage.

But what’s most clear is that there isn’t much consensus about which position New Orleans could be targeting in the 2023 draft, which makes sense given there’s an entire season to play out before the Saints start to evaluate that problem themselves. So let’s add Hall to our own draft watch list, along with other players who have been linked to New Orleans in never-too-early mock drafts like Ole Miss running back Zach Evans and South Carolina defensive tackle Zacch Pickens.

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2023 NFL draft film room: BYU QB Jaren Hall

See for yourself what makes BYU’s Jaren Hall one of the top quarterback prospects in the 2023 NFL draft

It’s never too early to look ahead to the next group of top prospects, so if you’re looking to get a head start on the 2023 NFL draft class, we’ve got you covered.

What makes BYU’s Jaren Hall one of next year’s top quarterback prospects?

Watch the tape and see for yourself: