Tag: SMU football

Georgia football makes top-nine for one of Louisiana’s top prospects

Wednesday, 2021 3-star linebacker Andrew Jones of LA released a list of his top nine schools on Twitter.

Wednesday, 2021 3-star linebacker Andrew Jones took to Twitter to announce his final nine schools.

Georgia, SMU, Houston, Florida State, Texas Tech, Ole Miss, Louisville, Mississippi State and Memphis all made the cut for the Louisiana native.

The 6-foot-1 210 pound recruit plays for John Ehret High School in Marrero, Louisiana and was offered by the Bulldogs on April 15th.

247Sports has Jones ranked as the nation’s No. 710 overall prospect and as the No. 19 player in Louisiana.

As a junior, Jones recorded 137 tackles, 42 TFL, 1.5 sacks, 2 FF and 2 INTs.

Although Georgia is warming up, according to the 247Sports Crystal Ball, all five votes say Florida State is the team to beat.

247Sports wrote:

 “Huge production as a junior. Closes fast in pursuit and with a purpose. Shows impressive close-quarters explosiveness. Can uncoil without gathering. Pad-popper. Pursues well to perimeter and redirects well in run game.”

What jersey number is Emmanuel Sanders going to wear with the Saints?

Each of the jersey numbers that wide receiver Emmanuel Sanders has worn in college and the NFL have been claimed by his Saints teammates.

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Forget everything else that will factor in to whether Emmanuel Sanders will succeed as a member of the New Orleans Saints. It doesn’t really matter that he’s upgrading from the likes of Joe Flacco and Case Keenum at quarterback to Drew Brees, the most-accurate passer of all time. It’s not like having Michael Thomas, Jared Cook, and Alvin Kamara on the field at the same time will create favorable looks in coverage. The fact of the matter is that Sanders must choose a great jersey number if he’s going to thrive with his new team. Everyone knows this.

Jokes aside: the two-time Pro Bowler figures to be a big part of the offense this year, and his charismatic persona should endear him to fans right away. We should see more than a few Sanders jerseys inside the Mercedes-Benz Superdome and around Champions Square this season. With the Saints front office quieting down a bit on the free agency front since agreeing to terms with Sanders on a two-year contract, we can take a few minutes to ponder which number he’ll be wearing in the fall.

Sanders has worn three numbers in the NFL: No. 10, No. 17 (which he also chose in college at SMU), and No. 88. Each of those numbers are currently designated for a player under contract for 2020, with wide receivers Tre’Quan Smith in No. 10 and Emmanuel Butler in No. 17; defensive lineman Mitchell Loewen converted to tight end last season and chose No. 88 (ironically because No. 89, his college number, belonged to tight end Josh Hill), though Loewen is still listed as No. 70 on the Saints website.

NFL rules stipulate that wide receivers may wear numbers between Nos. 10 and 19 as well as Nos. 80 through 89. Veteran players often work out deals with new teammates who own the number they wish to wear, but those agreements don’t always come to fruition. Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady and wide receiver Chris Godwin are figuring this out now, as luck would have it. But let’s assume none of those three Saints players agree to let Sanders have their number. What are his options?

Per the official Saints roster, Sanders is eligible for Nos. 12, 18, 19, 82, and 83. Of that bunch, No. 18 would make the most sense because it’s an amalgamation of two that he’s worn in the past (Nos. 10 and 88), and is close to his usual preference (No. 17). But he can certainly try to convince one of his new teammates to swap out.

As for other Saints free agent pickups:

  • Safety Malcolm Jenkins has not chosen a number yet, but he wore No. 27 in his first five years in New Orleans and it’s available after being last worn by running back Dwayne Washington (currently an unrestricted free agent).
  • Fullback Michael Burton wore No. 46 last summer with the Saints and immediately chose it again, which is a power move that you love to see.
  • Wide receiver Tommylee Lewis quietly returned to the Saints on a reserve/future contract earlier this offseason and will wear No. 15, with his previous choices of Nos. 11 and 87 taken by returns specialist Deonte Harris and tight end Jared Cook, respectively.

That about wraps it up. One storyline to keep an eye out for is whether free safety Marcus Williams will switch back to No. 20, which he wore in college. It was unavailable when the Saints drafted him (thanks to cornerback Ken Crawley) and is currently worn by cornerback Janoris Jenkins, but maybe “Jackrabbit” would be willing to cut a deal with his rising-star teammate. Both players are entering the final years of their contracts, for what it’s worth, and maybe use the extra boost to their mojo that comes with a switch.

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The Race To A New Year’s Six Bowl Game: AAC Games This Week Could Shake Things Up

Where do the AAC contenders fare along with Boise State in terms for the Cotton Bowl?

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The Race To A New Year’s Six Bowl Game: Big AAC Games This Week Could Shake Things Up

Boise State needs the AAC’s help to move up.

Contact/Follow @JeremyMauss & @MWCwire

Games to watch.

The latest College Football Playoff polls are out and the order of the Group of Five teams did not change with only a two-team gap now between Boise State and the current leaders which are Cincinnati which is No. 17 and Memphis sitting at 18.

The two teams in between No. 21 Boise State are Texas and Iowa but that could easily change as Iowa takes on a top 10 Minnesota team and Texas goes to Iowa State and the Longhorns have not been extremely reliable each week despite a few good wins.

What to look for this week is a pair of AAC games, plus one non-conference title that could allow Boise State to make a move. The Broncos face New Mexico and a win is expected.

AAC Games To Watch

No. 23 Navy at No. 16 Notre Dame, 2:30 p.m. ET, TV: NBC (Irish -7.5)

This is a big game because if the Naval Academy can defeat Notre Dame then that will be the best win among any Group of Five team and push Navy up the rankings ahead of Boise State and in the cluster of Memphis and Cincinnati.

The only problem for the Middies is that they still need Memphis to lose to have a chance at the conference title in the AAC. Remember, a conference championship is required to earn the New Year’s Six spot from the Group of Five. Also, a Navy win keeps my dream chaos scenario alive of the Army vs. Navy game the week after championship Saturday to have meaning and delay the final College Football Playoff polls.

No. 18 Memphis at Houston, 3:30 p.m. ET, TV: ESPN2 (Tigers +10.5)

Don’t be fooled by the 3-6 Houston Cougars. They will at the very least put a scare into this Memphis team. The Cougars lost by only three points to SMU at home and hung sort of close with Cincy and lost by 15.

Being a road game makes it a bit tougher for Memphis, but their offense will probably be too much for Houston. Look for this game to crush the over which is set at 69.5 as the Tigers defense is not the type that will just shut down opponents.

No. 17 Cincinnati at South Florida, 7 p.m. ET, TV: CBS Sports Network (Cincinnati +14)

This is the least likely of an upset and the Bearcats should role into Raymond James Stadium and cruise to victory over the Bulls. The big games for Cincinnati come the following weeks when they take on both Temple and Memphis.

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Odds Of Winning Out

The importance of winning out and winning a conference title can not be understated, so we will use ESPN’s FPI for a closer look at the chances of teams going unscathed.

  • Boise State: 45.2 percent chance to win out, 74.5 percent to win its conference.
  • Appalachian State: 23.4 percent chance to win out, 33.5 percent to win its conference.
  • Cincinnati: 23.3 percent chance to win out, 63.7 percent to win its conference.
  • SMU: 14.4 percent chance to win out, eight percent to win its conference.
  • Memphis: 10.7 percent chance to win out, 16.6 percent to win its conference.
  • Navy: Two percent chance to win out, 10.2 percent to win its conference.

End Of Season Projected Rankings

Remember these rankings are not based on who is wherein a given week but rather where a one-loss team would fit in the pecking order. Since App State is back in the top 25 they need to be considered and reappear this week.

1. One-loss Cincinnati – This is pretty clear as the Bearcats are the highest-rated team and they play Memphis which would basically knock the Tigers out of consideration. However, a rematch with Memphis the following week would be interesting. (Next week we can look at wild scenarios)

Remaining Games: at USF, Temple, at Memphis

2. One-loss Memphis – In reality, Memphis and Cincinnati should be tied for the top spot. The Tigers play the Bearcats on the final week of the regular season and would then vault to the highest-rated Group of Five team. However, winning back-to-back games against one team is tough. Trust us, we went through that two seasons ago when Boise State and Fresno State played consecutively.

Remaining Games: at Houston, at USF, Cincinnati

3. One-loss Navy – Navy has the schedule with Notre Dame this week and wins there will put them in the conversation rankings-wise and maybe even make them the highest-ranked team in the Group of Five.

Even if they defeat Notre Dame, Navy has the problem of not even playing for its own conference title as Memphis owns the tie-breaker. Navy would need to have the Tigers lose to get back in the race.

Remaining Games: at Notre Dame, SMU, at Houston, Army

4. One-loss Boise State – The Broncos have the best odds to win out and win the Mountain West so that is a huge advantage compared to the other AAC teams. The only problem is the schedule does not allow for opportunities to move up on that merit alone. The Broncos need a two-loss AAC champ or a one-loss SMU champ who might be too far in the rankings to surpass Boise State, maybe.

All the Broncos can do is focus on winning and hope a team falters above them.

Remaining Games: New Mexico, at Utah State, at Colorado State

5. One-loss SMU – This one is interesting. The Mustangs dropped from the rankings and were essentially replaced with Appalachian State who defeated South Carolina. The Mustangs are a good team but its lack of defense caught up with them vs. Memphis.

SMU needs the Tigers to lose a game to move above them in the AAC standings, then SMU still has Navy to play in two weeks and it is on the road. That is a must-win game as well to stay atop of the AAC West.

The Mustangs late SOS could boost them ahead of Boise State and take the bid if both are league champs. SMU would play at least one ranked team down the stretch, maybe two if Navy upsets Notre Dame. If the Mustangs were to beat a top 20 Navy and Cincinnati teams would that be enough to jump them over a likely top 20 Boise State team?

Remaining Games: at Navy, Tulane

6. Two-loss Cincinnati – With the Bearcats having a cushy lead in its division they have a small margin of error. If they lose to Memphis but then turnaround and beat them in the AAC title game then there could be a scenario where they are the representative. The Bearcats more than likely would drop behind a one-loss Boise State heading into championship Saturday but what happens if they beat a top 15 Memphis team, would the committee jump them ahead of the Broncos?

7. One-loss Appalachian State – Beating South Carolina and re-entering the rankings is good and gives this team a shot. Unfortunately, they will need a lot of help with Boise State earning another loss and a two-loss AAC champ that is not Memphis or Cincinnati. Even a one-loss SMU champ likely would jump them and earn that Cotton Bowl bid.

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