Tag: national title

Wisconsin football has numerous connections to Ohio State vs. Notre Dame national title game

Wisconsin football has numerous connections to Ohio State vs. Notre Dame national title

The Wisconsin Badgers will sit idle on Monday night as Ohio State and Notre Dame meet for the national title.

Wisconsin finished the 2024 season at 5-7, missing a bowl game for the first time since 2001. It was the program’s first season since 1996 without spending a single week ranked in the AP Poll.

Related: Significant takeaways from Wisconsin cornerback Xavier Lucas leaving for Miami

Head coach Luke Fickell made significant changes to his coaching staff after the 2024 season concluded. He hired Kansas’ Jeff Grimes to fill the vacant offensive coordinator position, moved Kenny Guiton to quarterbacks coach and promoted Jack Cooper to safeties coach, among other moves. That was followed by a busy winter transfer cycle, highlighted by a top-down overhaul of the quarterback room.

While we await spring practice and an early glimpse at what 2025 has in store, it’s worth noting Wisconsin’s connections to the Ohio State vs. Notre Dame matchup in the final game of the 2024 season.

We’ve already outlined Luke Fickell’s numerous connections on the Notre Dame coaching staff. In summary, the Fighting Irish are led by nearly his entire support staff from his time at Cincinnati. But there are several additional Wisconsin football program and in-state connections to note.

Here is a full look at those connections, organized by team:

Ohio State Buckeyes

Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day leads warm ups prior to the College Football Playoff quarterfinal against the Oregon Ducks at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif. on Jan. 1, 2025. Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch-USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Players: 

  • Starting center Carson Hinzman (Four-star class of 2022 recruit. Hammond, Wisconsin native. Chose the Buckeyes over the Badgers)

Hinzman is the only Wisconsin connection on the Ohio State roster. The Badgers, on the other hand, have several former Buckeyes on the team and the coaching staff. Luke Fickell (head coach), Kenny Guiton (quarterbacks) and Tuf Borland (assistant) all played at Ohio State, as did incoming transfer WR Jayden Ballard.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Dec 20, 2024; Notre Dame, Indiana, USA; Notre Dame Fighting Irish head coach Marcus Freeman during the third quarter against the Indiana Hoosiers at Notre Dame Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Cashore-Imagn Images

Players:

  • Starting left guard Billy Schrauth (Four-star class of 2022 recruit. Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin native. Chose the Fighting Irish over the Badgers)

Coaches:

  • Head coach Marcus Freeman (Luke Fickell’s defensive coordinator at Cincinnati from 2017-20)
  • Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock (Fickell’s offensive coordinator at Cincinnati from 2017-21)
  • Quarterbacks coach Gino Guidugli (Fickell’s quarterbacks coach at Cincinnati from 2018-22, offensive coordinator in 2022)
  • Mike Brown (Fickell’s wide receivers coach at Cincinnati from 2019-22, at Wisconsin in 2023)
  • Joe Rudolph (Played at Wisconsin from 1991-94. Was Wisconsin’s tight ends coach from 2008-11, offensive coordinator from 2015-21)

Schrauth and Hinzman are the two notable in-state recruits who left for the Fighting Irish and Buckeyes, respectively. Both have excelled in starting roles this season.

Notre Dame’s staff, as noted, is littered with Fickell’s former assistants. Rudolph is also a significant connection — he was Paul Chryst’s offensive coordinator for nearly his entire head coaching tenure at both Pittsburgh and Wisconsin.

Notre Dame and Ohio State are set for a 7:30 p.m. ET, 6:30 p.m. CT kickoff. The game will be broadcast on ESPN.

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Purdue basketball can break the Big Ten’s horrid streak in national title games

The Big Ten has a terrible record in national championship games since 2002:

The Big Ten’s Purdue Boilermakers will play in the NCAA Tournament national championship Monday night against the UConn Huskies — the No. 1 overall seed and defending national champion.

UConn is looking for history. Florida was the last team to repeat as national champions back in 2006-2007, plus the Huskies are looking for a second consecutive tournament run with every win being by double-digits.

Related: Evaluating the Big Ten’s next targets for conference expansion

Purdue, on the other hand, is looking to reverse the Big Ten’s recent horrid performance in the title game. The conference has sent members to 13 of the last 25 Final Fours and seven of the last 21 title games. It does not have a national championship in that span, somehow, despite being arguably the nation’s best basketball conference.

As preparations are made for the title game on Monday night, here is the Big Ten’s history in the title game since 2000:

Best Michigan Wolverines 2023 National Championship gear: How to buy UM championship apparel

Celebrate Michigan’s National Championship with all the new gear from Nike, Fanatics, BreakingT and more:

Hail to the victors!

For the first time in the College Football Playoff era, Michigan Football are your national champions, defeating No. 2 Washington 34-13.

The Wolverines completed their undefeated season with a dominant defensive display, holding No. 2 Washington to a season low 13 points.

Michigan scored two touchdowns in the first quarter, and though Washington closed the gap for a while, the Wolverines never relinquished the lead.

Michigan fans, it’s officially time to celebrate. Luckily, Wolverines Wire has got the perfect way to commemorate this national championship.

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The list below features all the best Michigan National Championship apparel  including hats, t-shirts, hoodies and more.

Celebrate Michigan’s perfect season with new swag from Nike, Jordan, Fanatics, and BreakingT.

USA TODAY Bowl Projections heading into Championship weekend

USA TODAY Sports releases final bowl predictions before conference championship weekend

With the regular season officially complete and only Championship weekend left, it is time to begin looking ahead to bowl season and potential match ups. This is the final season of the four team playoff before it expands to 12, so this will be the last bowl season the way we’ve always known it.

As for the Crimson Tide, their bowl future is still very much up in the air as they take on the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship Game this weekend. A win over the Bulldogs will put Alabama in the midst of the Playoff conversation, but even with a win there is no guarantee a top four spot will belong to the Tide. The Crimson Tide could still find themselves stuck behind Michigan, Florida State, Washington and Texas in the final rankings even with a win in the SECCG. If the Tide were to miss out on the Playoffs they will still absolutely get a New Year’s Six bowl, it’s the potential match ups that could be less intriguing.

USA TODAY Sports released their final bowl projections ahead of Championship weekend and they don’t expect Alabama to be competing for a national title in 2023. They predict that the Crimson Tide will square off against Tulane in the Peach Bowl on Dec. 30. USA TODAY expects Georgia, Michigan, Florida State and Oregon to be the four Playoff teams this year.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Top 10 betting odds for 2023 national championship includes Alabama

10 college football teams with the best odds to win the 2023 national championship

We are roughly halfway through the 2023 college football season, and it still feels as if this year’s national championship could belong to anyone. The Georgia Bulldogs looked the best they have all year against Kentucky this past Saturday, Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State all have playoff aspirations, and the PAC-12 has probably been the best conference in the entire country but don’t for one second think the Tide are out of the race.

At 5-1 on the year, Nick Saban’s Alabama Crimson Tide squad is very much alive in the playoff hunt. Tennessee and LSU both travel to Bryant-Denny later in the year with Alabama still set to visit Kentucky and Auburn, the season is far from over. However, a path to the playoffs is beginning to look much clearer by the day. Win out, win the SEC and the Alabama Crimson Tide will be among the final four teams playing in January.

Despite dropping an early season game against Texas, the Tide have looked much better in the week’s following and sneakily have top-10 odds to win this year’s national championship.

Alabama’s 2023 schedule ranks among top 25 most difficult

All seven SEC West teams ranked in the Top 25 hardest CFB schedules

Competing in the SEC is a daunting task every single year, especially with some of the high-level coaches in the conference. Whether it be Brian Kelly, Nick Saban, Kirby Smart, or Jimbo Fisher, no week is a guaranteed victory. The conference has ascended to new heights since the inception of the College Football Playoffs, with six of the nine championships belonging to the SEC.

The Georgia Bulldogs have gone back-to-back and are one title away from officially being a dynasty, but the Crimson Tide are still the big dogs in the yard. In the 2022 national championship game, it appeared as if the Tide were set to win their seventh ring under legendary head coach Nick Saban. Unfortunately, John Metchie missed the game due to an injury and Jameson Williams tore his ACL on a non-contact play in the first half, essentially depleting the Tide receiving unit and leading the Bulldogs to their first ring since 1980.

For the Alabama faithful, it is imperative that the Tide get back to the top of the mountain in 2023 despite some major changes in the program including both coordinators. The Tide missed out on the playoffs last season, and the road to get back to them isn’t much easier this season with On3 ranking Alabama’s schedule as the 18th toughest in the country. In fact, all seven teams from the SEC West and 12 of the 14 in the conference make the list. The only two who don’t are Georgia and Vanderbilt.

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Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Alabama softball earns the No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament

Crimson Tide softball set to host a regional final starting this Friday

The Alabama softball program is once again set to host an NCAA regional this Friday. The Crimson Tide enter the tournament as the No. 5 overall seed and will host Central Arkansas, Middle Tennessee and LIU.

It was a rather fortunate draw for the Tide, especially after losing star pitcher Montana Fouts to an injury during the SEC Tournament. The extent of Fouts’ injury is unknow; Alabama head coach, Patrick Murphy said there is no update on her condition.

The Tide were knocked out of the SEC Tournament by their bitter rivals, the Tennessee Volunteers. The Vols beat South Carolina for the SEC tournament title and head into postseason play with an outstanding record of 44-8. As for Murphy’s squad, it enters the tournament 40-18 overall and 14-10 in the SEC.

Alabama is ready to make a postseason run, but if it wants to make a run at the national title it will have to go through No. 4 seeded Tennessee, which is 3-1 against Alabama this season. Murphy has one national title during his tenure with the Tide (2012), and a second would look really pretty in the trophy case.

The defending champion Oklahoma Sooners enter the tournament as an overwhelming favorite having gone 51-1 this year. UCLA (52-5) also poises a massive threat in the No. 2 spot .

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Alabama softball as the NCAA Tournament gets underway.

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Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

LSU head coach Brian Kelly: ‘I love beatin’ Alabama’

LSU head coach, Brian Kelly, doubles down that LSU is the team to beat in the SEC West

Brian Kelly is entering his second year with the LSU football program and the job has certainly found a new level of confidence in him. Last week, Kelly claimed that the Tigers are the team to beat in the SEC West, this week he shared with his boosters how much he loves beating Alabama.

Now, it’s important to keep in mind that Kelly is now 1-2 against Nick Saban in his career. The first meeting between Saban and Kelly came in the 2013 National Title game where Alabama ran wild on Notre Dame for a 42-14 win. The two sides then met again seven years later in the College Football Playoff semi-final Rose Bowl game where Alabama was once again dominant by a score of 31-14, but the game was never as close as the score may have even indicated.

However, Kelly and the Tigers got the best of Alabama in 2022 in an overtime instant classic. Kelly has been more than happy to share how thrilled he has been about that game all off season ad he chimed in on it again this week saying verbatim, “I love beatin’ Alabama.”

I wouldn’t recommend you get used to that feeling, Coach Kelly, as I’m sure your words have been echoed up and down the halls of the Alabama facilities. Alabama and LSU are set to meet on Nov. 4 this year in Bryant-Denny Stadium, and I promise you that Coach Saban wants this one bad. It is eerily similar to everything Ed Orgeron said about Alabama after winning in Tuscaloosa in 2019 and eventually winning the CFP Title that year. When the two sides finally met again in 2020, Alabama went ballistic, winning 55-17. After all these years, I don’t understand why people continue to fuel Saban’s fire.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to monitor Alabama football all off season.

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Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

WATCH: Nick Saban throws out the first pitch at Alabama baseball game

Nick Saban throws out first pitch ahead of Alabama baseball’s showdown with Samford

Alabama head football coach, Nick Saban, is most well known for winning seven national titles and being the greatest college football coach of all time. However, people are now asking if he could have been the greatest pitcher in MLB history after delivering an absolute strike ahead of Alabama’s baseball game against in-state foe Samford.

Saban is a known fan of the New York Yankees and seems like he has picked up a pitch or two over the years.

Crimson Tide baseball did their part as they walked away victorious on the night by a score of 13-6. Alabama travels to Baton Rouge this weekend for a series with the No. 1 LSU Tigers.

Roll Tide Wire will continue to follow Nick Saban’s potential baseball career

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Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Updated national championship odds entering the Elite Eight

Texas and UCONN are national title favorites.

Just eight teams remain in the hunt for a national title heading into Saturday. For the first time in the history of the NCAA Tournament, zero No. 1 seeds have advanced past the Sweet 16.

Top-seeded Alabama fell to San Diego State 71-64 in the upset of the weekend. The Aztecs held Alabama star Brandon Miller to just nine points in the win.

Fellow No. 1 seed Houston lost to Miami just a couple hours later as the final one seed domino to fall. Miami’s outside shooting was too much for Houston’s normally stingy defense to handle.

Texas is now the highest ranked team remaining in the tournament after dismantling Xavier. The Longhorns join Kansas State in representing the Big 12 in the Elite Eight.

Other intriguing storylines included Creighton ending Princeton’s cinderella story, Gonzaga hitting a late t
hree-pointer to beat UCLA and FAU upsetting Tennessee.

Here is a complete look at the updated national title odds entering the Elite Eight according to BetMGM.

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