Tag: NCAA football

Where Clemson ranks in Athlon Sports college football way-too-early Top 25 for 2024

Here is a look at where Athlon Sports ranks Clemson football in their way-too-early Top 25 rankings.

Dabo Swinney and the Clemson football program had a solid 2023, but the team and fans did expect more out of the Tigers this past season. 

Ending their season with a 38-35 wild Gator Bowl win over Kentucky is a great end; finishing 9-4 with a 4-4 record in the ACC falls short for many. With the 2023 season behind us, the team, fans, and media move on to the 2024 season and what Clemson could look like next season. 

Clemson has the talent to be great in 2024, but a lot of development and hard work will be needed for this team to return to being a true competitor. Athlon Sports recently released their college football way-too-early Top 25 for 2024, with Clemson right in the hunt as their No.13 ranked team.

With Florida State losing a big chunk of talent from the ACC Championship team from ’23, coach Dabo Swinney’s Tigers are likely to open ’24 as the favorite to win the conference. After averaging only 23.6 points a contest in ACC play, Swinney hopes another offseason for quarterback Cade Klubnik under coordinator Garrett Riley will help to elevate the entire production of this group. Helping to ease the pressure on a developing offense is another standout defense in Death Valley. Linemen Peter Woods and TJ Parker and linebackers Wade Woodaz and Barrett Carter headline the top returners next season.

The Tigers are their highest-ranked team in the ACC, followed by Florida State (17), Louisville (23), NC State (25), Miami (26), Virginia Tech (28), and SMU (29). A lot of fringe top 25 teams in the ACC as the conference looks to compete with the SEC, BIG 12, and BIG 10.

Clemson should return to top-dog status in the ACC next season, but whether they’ll compete for the big one is up in the air.

NCAA Football Video Game Returns: Notre Dame Players We Missed Out On

Which Notre Dame player would have been the best to play with?

College football has its own cult-like following that makes it truly unique compared to any other American sport.  Even in that group there are sub-groups that are even that much more passionate.

One of those groups includes anyone who was ever a fan of the NCAA Football video game by EA Sports.

Personally, I can’t begin to estimate the total hours spent as a high school student in my parents house playing that game, the amount of hours I invested in it during college, or the hours I spent in my early-20’s with it.

However, it went away after the NCAA Football ’13 edition, meaning we’ve gone a full decade (2014-2023 seasons) now without the game.

So which players in that time did we especially miss playing with if we would have been playing as Notre Dame?

Here are the 11 we missed out in video game form the most.

Mafah named a top individual performer from bowl season by the NCAA

The NCAA has once again recognized Phil Mafah for his excellent bowl performance in the Gator Bowl.

For the second time since his electric Gator Bowl performance, Phil Mafah is being recognized by the NCAA for his showing. 

It was a record-breaking day for Mafah, who took 11 carries for 71 yards and four touchdowns. The four-touchdown performance broke two records: the Gator Bowl touchdown record and Clemson’s bowl game record. Mafah’s performance in this Gator Bowl was a special way for the Tigers’ stud running back to end his 2023 season.

The NCAA recently released an article taking note of the top individual performances during college football’s bowl season, which included Mafah. Here is what they had to say about the stud running back.

Clemson running back Phil Mafah ran for 74 yards and four touchdowns on 11 carries, filling in for the injured Will Shipley in Clemson’s 38-35 Gator Bowl win over Kentucky. Three of Mafah’s touchdowns came in the fourth quarter in a back-and-forth contest and his four touchdowns tied a Gator Bowl record.

After a strong performance, fans anxiously await news on whether Mafah will return to Clemson for another season or depart for the NFL.

Report: Texas A&M linebacker Jurrientè Davis enters transfer portal for third time

Texas A&M graduate student linebacker Jurrientè Davis has reportedly recorded a hat trick by entering the NCAA Transfer Portal for the third time in his career.

Texas A&M graduate student linebacker Jurrientè Davis has reportedly recorded a hat trick by entering the NCAA Transfer Portal for the third time in his career.

Per 247Sports national college football reporters Chris Hummer & Matt Zenitz, Davis entered the portal on Tuesday afternoon. After playing only three games for the Aggies, he took a redshirt season in 2023 and maintains one year of eligibility remaining.

Davis tallied four tackles for Texas A&M in a 52-10 season-opening win against New Mexico on Sept. 2. He played the following week at Miami but did not make an impact on the stat sheet. The well-traveled linebacker added two tackles during a 47-3 win against the University of Louisiana at Monroe on Sept. 16.


JD is 6-foot-1 and 235 pounds and graduated from Dudley High School in Greensboro, N.C. He began his career at Hutchinson Community College, transferred to Middle Tennesee in 2021 and played for coach Deion “Prime Time” Sanders at Jackson State in 2022.

Contact/Follow us @AggiesWire on X and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas A&M news, notes and opinions. Follow Shaun on Twitter: @Shaun_Holkko.

Notre Dame Fans Want To Believe: Is It Justified This Time?

There is certainly hype – is it more real this time around?

2023 ended strongly for the Notre Dame football program.

A blowout bowl game win, a great offensive coordinator hire and successful runs in the portal and the early signing period have brightened Irish moods. The program really does feel like they are trending up.

The issue is Notre Dame fans feel like they’ve been here before. Living on hope and future promises never kept. Many are asking why they should consider this time will end any differently. The answer to me is simple. The program is being built differently than at any other time in the last 30 years.

Let’s examine the different ways this is the case in more detail.

Mafah recognized by NCAA for Gator Bowl performance

Phil Mafah was dominant in the Tigers’ Gator Bowl win over Kentucky.

Clemson’s Phil Mafah received recognition from the NCAA for his record-breaking performance in the Tigers’ 38-35 come-from-behind victory over Kentucky in Friday’s TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. 

In their 2023-24 list of top individual performances during college football’s bowl season, the NCAA’s official website made special note of Mafah’s heroics. 

The star tailback rushed for a Gator Bowl record four touchdowns and 74 yards on 11 carries in Clemson’s victory. Three of Mafeh’s touchdowns came in the fourth quarter, including the game-winning score with just 17 seconds remaining. 

In the final period, which began with the Tigers trailing 21-10, Mafeh ran for touchdowns of 1 yard, 29 yards, and 3 yards, respectively, in Clemson’s 28-point fourth quarter offensive explosion. 

Mafah also had a 1-yard touchdown run in the second quarter that marked Clemson’s first touchdown of the afternoon. 

Before Mafah’s performance, Virginia Tech’s Lee Suggs was the most recent of six players that had shared the record for most touchdown runs in a single Gator Bowl performance with three. Suggs’ three scores came in Virginia Tech’s 2001 Gator Bowl victory over Clemson.

Notre Dame Football: 2024 New Year Resolutions

A few resolutions for Notre Dame football in 2024

Notre Dame football is ushering in the new year riding a wave of momentum. They had a very successful early signing day, hired Mike Denbrock away from LSU, and blew out Oregon St. to close out the season. Notre Dame is trending up for 2024.

With the turn of the calendar top of mind and progress for the football program always there as well, let’s have some fun and go over 5 New Year Resolutions for Notre Dame Football to make for 2024. It feels like the program is close to “turning a corner”.

Are they?

What else needs to change before the Irish can be considered “elite”?

2023 Sun Bowl: End Of A Beginning for Notre Dame

There is still a game to play to finish up 2023!

In an odd twist of football fate, Notre Dame’s last few weeks have had more excitement than the last couple of weeks that featured actual games. All of the transfers, all of the opt-outs, and of course, the Mike Denbrock news. It’s been a lot to take in and process. But one thing is for sure, Irish fans are excited about the future.

But the Sun Bowl isn’t in the future, it’s in the present. Notre Dame and Marcus Freeman really want to notch win number 10 heading into what seems to be an ultra-bright future with the roster turning over to the plus side and a staff that breeds confidence on not one, but both sides of the ball. In a way, this game is the end of the beginning of the Marcus Freeman era. And Irish fans feel like they are really going to like what comes next.

Let’s talk about three keys to an Irish victory.