Tag: Laura Rutledge

SEC Nation is coming to Oxford for Texas A&M vs. Ole Miss

SEC Nation is coming to Oxford (MS) for Texas A&M’s pivotal road test vs. Ole Miss on Saturday, Nov. 5th.

Texas A&M’s (5-3, 3-2 SEC) Week 10 road test vs. the 11th-ranked Ole Miss Rebels (7-1, 4-1 SEC) is by far the Aggies’ most critical game remaining on the schedule, outside of the season finale road trip vs. LSU, of course.

While revenge is a dish best served cold, Rebels head coach Lane Kiffin is less strategic when it comes to facing Jimbo Fisher, who, after hiring former Ole Miss defensive coordinator D.J. Durkin to the same position two seasons ago may still harbor some anger, but after the display he put on after defeating the Aggies in Kyle Field last season, this Aggies squad, specifically the defense, is out for some revenge of their own.

Returning to the win column after downing the visiting South Carolina Gamecocks, Texas A&M is just one win away from bowl eligibility. Still, the main goal is to win the next 3 out of four or win out.

Due to the importance of the matchup, SEC Nation, including host Laura Rutledge, along with analysts Tim Tebow, Paul Finebaum, Roman Harper, and Jordan Rodgers, will return to The Grove in Oxford (MS). At the same time, the show is set to begin at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday, Nov. 4, as the Marty & McGee show will air a couple of hours beforehand before the 11:00 a.m. kickoff.

Ole Miss, of course, defeated Texas A&M 35-28 last season, spoiling then-freshman quarterback Conner Weigman’s four-touchdown performance, while Rebels star running back Quinshon Judkins ran for 205 yards in a memorable back-and-forth contest. With the new SEC format in 2024, this will be the final meeting between both programs until at least 2025.

Texas A&M will now travel to Oxford (MS) to face the Ole Miss Rebels on Saturday, Nov. 5, where the game will again air on ESPN at 11:00 a.m. CT.

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ESPN’s Laura Rutledge believes Texas A&M’s matchup vs. Tennessee will determine the season

The ESPN and SEC Network analyst believes Saturday’s matchup against the Vols will determine how the Aggies close out their season.

One prominent ESPN and SEC analyst isn’t ready to give up hope on Texas A&M’s season. If anything, they believe the Maroon and White can still make some noise.

While appearing on the Up to the SECond College Football Show, Laura Rutledge of ESPN and SEC Network added her perspective on A&M’s 2023 season. While acknowledging last week’s tough loss, Rutledge aptly noted that the outcome this weekend could very much serve as a barometer for the remainder of the season:

“This is sort of the game now, with that’s happened for both these teams, but maybe even more for A&M, where you sort of figure out what the rest of the season is going to be.”

Part of Rutledge’s belief in the Aggies finishing strong is that the SEC West continues to be a wide-open race, even after A&M fell to No. 11 Alabama:

“I still think that the SEC West is going to potentially end up being, this cannibalistic situation, and you never know what can happen. A&M’s chances to certainly make the postseason, and potentially go to the playoff, those may be diminished. I do think that they can still contend and they can still finish the season strong.”

A College Football Playoff appearance may be wishful thinking, but it’s not to say the Aggies can’t close out the season strong and make it a success. A&M is tied for third in the SEC West, with important matchups against Ole Miss and No. 22 LSU still on the horizon.

The talent of the Aggies has been on display all season, and they’ve managed to stay within the race for the division despite playing, essentially, with a backup quarterback. Despite some mismanagement in the playcalling and a less-than-ideal showing from their secondary, A&M managed to fall to the Crimson Tide by just six points.

Aggies fans expect excellence, as they should, but it doesn’t mean last week’s defeat was season-ending. As Rutledge illustrated, there is plenty of football left to be played, but it’s up to A&M if they want to close out on a strong note or the alternative.

Texas A&M will kick off against No. 19 Tennessee from inside Neyland Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 14, at 2:30 p.m. CT, and the game will air on CBS.

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Bell has all the respect for KJ and Rocket; so does Rutledge

KJ Jefferson and Rocket Sanders command the respect of Western Carolina coach Kerwin Bell. And Laura Rutledge had some nice things to say about them as well.

Western Carolina coach Kerwin Bell knows what’s in store for his Catamounts on Saturday afternoon in Little Rock.

A heavy dose of quarterback KJ Jefferson and running back Raheim ‘Rocket’ Sanders, to be exact.

“Can we get him (KJ) on the ground when he makes those runs? Can we cage him in the pocket and make sure we make him a pocket passer?” Bell said. “And don’t give him those explosive runs out of the pocket. And then also the same thing with Rocket, can we get him on the ground? They’re going to get their yards, but let’s don’t give them the easy 60-yard runs that are easy touchdowns.

“Let’s make them earn it. And if we can do that and tackle well like I said earlier, I’ll be very pleased, and I think we’ll be in the game.”

SEC Network and NFL Live host Laura Rutledge, who is a Florida alum just like Bell is a former Gator quarterback, was also highly complimentary of the Jefferson-Sanders combination during her Monday speaking engagement at the Little Rock Touchdown Club.

Rutledge, who had been off the air for the last three plus months on maternity leave, returned to her NFL Live hosting duties on Tuesday.

ESPN announces commentators for Broncos’ game vs. Jaguars in London

The Broncos’ game against the Jaguars will stream exclusively on ESPN+ in Week 8.

ESPN announced earlier this week that Steve Levy (play-by-play), Louis Riddick (analyst), Dan Orlovsky (analyst) and Laura Rutledge (sideline reporter) will call the game between the Denver Broncos and Jacksonville Jaguars in London this season.

The game will be exclusively streamed on ESPN+ on Sunday, Oct. 30 in Week 8. The Broncos-Jags showdown is scheduled to begin at 7:30 a.m. MT to accommodate a European audience at Wembley Stadium.

It will mark the first time an NFL game has ever been broadcast exclusively on ESPN+, but Levy will be a familiar commentator for fans in Denver. Levy previously called Broncos preseason games with Brian Griese, who left ESPN in March to become the Miami Dolphins’ new quarterbacks coach.

In addition to Denver-Jacksonsille game, Levy, Riddick, Orlovsky and Rutledge will also serve as commentators when ESPN has Monday Night Football doubleheaders in Weeks 2 and 18 this season.

The Broncos will open the season on MNF against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 1. Troy Aikman and Joe Buck will call that game for ESPN.

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Commentary team announced for Jags’ international matchup vs. Broncos

Steve Levy (play-by-play), Louis Riddick and Dan Orlovsky (analysts), and Laura Rutledge (reporter) have been assigned to the Jags’ Week 8 game in London on ESPN+.

The date and details for the Jacksonville Jaguars’ international game against the Denver Broncos was announced in early May as the teams will battle on Sunday, Oct. 31, which takes place during Week 8’s series of games. We also learned that the game would be televised on ESPN+, the first-ever NFL game aired on the streaming network.

Now, the details for the commentary team have come out, and ESPN will have Steve Levy (play-by-play), Louis Riddick and Dan Orlovsky (analysts), and Laura Rutledge (reporter) assigned to the international battle.

Of course, ESPN’s primary primetime team (a.k.a. the Monday Night Football crew) will consist of Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, who previously worked together calling games for FOX. They will join Lisa Salters, who will continue to handle sideline reporting duties, in the process.

Riddick and Levy aren’t foreign to calling games in the booth for ESPN, as both called their Monday Night Football games the past two seasons. Orlovsky also has experience in the booth, calling college football games for ESPN since 2018. Rutledge has reported during NFL games in the past on occasions and worked her first NFL game in 2018.

As for the Jags, they have a 4-4 record in their games in the United Kingdom. They will enter their Week 8 game against Denver with a record of .500 (7-7) when looking at their all-time series.

ESPN sets relaunch of ‘NFL Live’ with Laura Rutledge, Keyshawn Johnson, Dan Orlovsky

NFL Live on ESPN will be hosted by Laura Rutledge and feature former NFL players Keyshawn Johnson and Dan Orlovsky.

ESPN announced Tuesday one of its flagship shows, “NFL Live” will have a new cast when it relaunches in August.

The host of the year-round news and information show will be Laura Rutledge. She will be joined by a daily roster, as the release puts its, of analysts Marcus Spears, Dan Orlovsky, Keyshawn Johnson and Mina Kimes, who move into a new NFL analyst role.

NFL analyst Ryan Clark will join NFL Live on Fridays. In addition, ESPN NFL reporters, insiders and news-breakers Jeff Darlington, Dan Graziano, Kimberley A. Martin, Chris Mortensen, Louis Riddick, Dianna Russini, Adam Schefter, Field Yates and others will continue to contribute to the weekday show.

“The kickoff of the 2020 NFL season presents an exciting opportunity to reimagine NFL Live with a new commentator team that brings a wealth of football intelligence and a built in chemistry,” said Seth Markman, ESPN vice president, production. “Laura, Marcus, Dan, Mina and Keyshawn have all excelled in their respective roles across ESPN platforms – and have already worked closely together. The daily conversations they will have about the NFL is something we hope fans will really learn from and enjoy.”

Rutledge spoke highly of her teammates.

“Mina, Marcus, Dan and Keyshawn are all exceptionally talented and a whole lot of fun, and I can’t wait to work with them,” said Rutledge, who becomes just the third NFL Live host since the show debuted in 2003. “We are committed to bringing fans the best NFL coverage. This is a dream come true for me.”

In addition to Rutledge, NFL Live will now feature a consistent panel of analysts throughout the week.

Johnson has also been ticketed to be one of the hosts of a new morning show on ESPN Radio.

Some of the former members of the show’s lineup were Wendi Nix, Tedy Bruschi, Tim Hasselbeck, Darren Woodson, Jeff Saturday, and Damien Woody.

Justin Fields will win the Heisman says ESPN’s Laura Rutledge

ESPN’s Laura Rutledge believes that Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields will take home the Heisman Trophy in 2020.

We’re still a couple of months away from the start of the college football season — or so we optimistically hope. With the increasing move towards football activities like Ohio State welcome football players to campus, and the NCAA’s D1 Council voting to allow voluntary workouts, things are starting to go in the right direction.

So of course, many media outlets and preview magazines are providing predictions on almost everything when it comes to the 2020 season. One of the biggest of those is what player will take home the most revered individual award in all of American sport, the Heisman Trophy.

Generally, two players have been listed as preseason favorites to take home the bronze statue. Any list seems to begin and almost end with Ohio State quarterback Justin Fields and Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence.

Most have given the nod to Lawrence just slightly over Fields, but there’s one ESPN analyst that is putting her eggs in the scarlet and gray basket of the OSU signal-caller.

Laura Rutledge, who even has some pretty significant ties to the SEC, has picked Fields to win the Heisman while appearing on “Get Up” Wednesday morning. Listen and watch as to why she believes he’ll take it home in the video shared by “Get Up’s” official Twitter profile below.

 

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