Tag: Southeastern Conference

Twitter reacts as SEC cancels G-Day, all SEC spring scrimmages

The SEC announced that it will be cancelling all spring scrimmages, including Georgia football’s G-Day

Amid concerns regarding COVID-19, the Southeastern Conference has canceled play for all remaining winter and spring sports.

This includes out-of conference contests, SEC championship tournaments, and each school’s spring football scrimmage. No football program will host a pro day for its NFL prospects.

For college football fans, they kept their fingers crossed in hopes that spring games would be played as scheduled. However, we all knew that was a long shot.

At the end of the day, it’s just a scrimmage. But for the players, fans and coaches, oftentimes it’s much more than that.

For some fans, spring games are the only Georgia games they can attend in person, given the free admission into the event.

For the coaches, the spring scrimmage is not terribly instrumental in determining depth charts as they have multiple scrimmages throughout the offseason. But what they will be missing out on is an opportunity to get big-time recruits on campus and show them a good time. On the bright side, it’s an even playing field across the conference seeing as how all spring games have been called off.

And for a large number of the players, this was going to be their final G-Day, an event that many of them look forward to. It’s also a chance for the freshmen to begin making a name for themselves among the DawgNation. That will have to wait until fall.

With the SEC confirming what we had all suspected for the last week, Georgia fans took to Twitter to express their sadness over the situation.

 

SEC cancels all remaining competitions, includes spring football games

Conference commissioner Greg Sankey made the necessary decision. It just makes everything else seem even worse somehow.

Amid concerns regarding COVID-19, the Southeastern Conference has canceled play for all remaining winter and spring sports.

This includes out-of conference contests, SEC championship tournaments, and each school’s spring football scrimmage. No football program will host a pro day for its NFL prospects.

Conference commissioner Greg Sankey made the necessary decision. It just makes everything else seem even worse somehow.

“This is a difficult day for all of us, and I am especially disappointed for our student athletes. The health and well-being of our entire conference community is an ongoing priority for the SEC as we continue to monitor developments and information about the COVID-19 virus.”

As per the SEC’s official statement:

“Team and individual practices, meetings and other organized gatherings, whether required or voluntary, remain suspended through at least April 15.”

For more into how the global health pandemic affects the world of college sports:

Georgia football produces positive video amid coronavirus pandemic

Finebaum: NCAA president Emmert’s handling of cancellations “inexcusable”

Coronavirus forces NCAA to make big decisions regarding eligibility, recruiting

SEC cancels its men’s basketball tournament due to coronavirus

NCAA grants spring season athletes an extra year of eligibility

Will Georgia football cancel G-Day due to coronavirus?

Georgia football Pro Day postponed amid coronavirus outbreak

College football attendance down again in 2019. What’s the problem?

FBS attendance decreased again in 2019, continuing a now six-year trend.

FBS attendance decreased again in 2019, continuing a now six-year trend. The top division of college football experienced its lowest ticket sales since 1996, according to CBS Sports.

It’s the eighth time in nine years that fan attendance has dropped.

In the past decade, the sports media landscape has evolved at a breakneck pace. High-definition highlights are posted on social media mere seconds after each play’s conclusion. Top tier collegiate athletic conferences now have their own television networks available their regional cable packages.

TV ratings for college football broadcasts are increasing. So are ticket prices.

If you’re a graduate of the University of Georgia who lives in New York City, you can pay for a premium cable package to include the non-regional SEC Network, or, ya know, go to one of the bars aligned with the UGA Alumni Association.

If you’re a Penn State alumnus who lives in San Diego, you can fork over a little extra money every fall toward the Big Ten Network and catch all the games not shown on FOX Sports affiliates.

Are you a Texas Longhorn in Atlanta? Or in Omaha? Possibly Honolulu?Your team has an entire television channel provided by ESPN. Until last month, you could even download it on a PlayStation.

It turns out that a small viewing fee, not matter the medium, may be more alluring to fans as opposed to a multi-hour flight, expensive admission, expensive lodging, and a second voyage back.

Given so many viewing options, fans seem more willing to host their tailgates (no matter how elaborate) from the comfort of home.

How did the SEC change?

Of the Power Five conferences, the Southeastern Conference experienced the largest decline from 2018 to 2019. Cumulative attendance for all fourteen teams dropped 1.7 percentage points. It was the SEC’s lowest average attendance since 2000.

However, the conference still dwarfed the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, and Pac-12 in overall conference attendance, exceeding runner up Big Ten by 7,658 fans per game.

That might have something to do with college football nearly approaching a religious status in the southeast, but it probably has something to do with the fact that half of the continent’s ten largest (non-racing) sports venues belong the SEC schools.

How did the other four conferences change?

Only one P5 conference saw an increase in attendance. The Big 12 increased by .1% and came in at third in total attendance behind the SEC and Big Ten.

The Big 10, second-best in average attendance, regressed 0.5% from 2018 to 2019, its lowest since 1993.

The ACC dropped 1.2% over the span. It was the conference’s most dismal attendance record in 20 years.

The Pac-12 rides the P5 caboose, dipping .8 in fan presence to achieve its lowest mark since 1978.

What else causes lower attendance?

Time is money, and making a pilgrimage to your team’s Mecca costs both.

First of all, I acknowledge this is anecdotal:

I have friends who attended SEC schools in the central time zone. For folks living on eastern standard time, noon kickoffs are already miserable if over an hour’s worth of travel is necessary.

For all of the SEC West, those early kickoffs are at 11:00 a.m. My friends at Alabama, Auburn, Mississippi State, and Arkansas did not particularly care for them.

I sat in classes with former Georgia players who mentioned their hatred of those early warm ups. I lived with members of the Redcoat Marching Band who lamented arising at 4:30 on a Saturday morning just to be able to find parking at the intramural fields for pre-game rehearsal.

Now, if you will, imagine being an LSU graduate who lives in Houston, Texas. Alabama is visiting Death Valley, but it’s a 2:30 p.m. local kickoff broadcast nationally as CBS’s SEC Game of the Week. Your journey to Baton Rouge will last four hours without traffic (totally impossible as I-10 is miserable at all hours of all days).

Would you rather?

1. Leave work early on Friday to check into an overpriced and ostensibly overbooked hotel?

2. Leave town before 7:00 a.m. to fight traffic and ensure your arrival before kickoff?

3. Stay at home, watch your alma mater host your most hated rival in high definition, and spend a quarter of the money you saved to secure culinary and alcoholic provisions for your favorite people?

What can be improved?

Our planet’s population has more than tripled since the first live televised American football contests (both college and professional) in 1939.

Proportionately, there are more existing graduates and related fans of these “football schools” than existed prior to the broadcasts. Thus there are far more dedicated fanatics for each home team than any one stadium could possibly accommodate.

An alumni base growing steadily will increase demand over limited stadium seats.

Whether through stadium expansion, discounted hot dog prices, or the permission of much-awaited beer sales, your local state college wants you at their stadium on Saturdays.

There’s enough space for you if you have at least $500 to spend.

Prospects for Jags fans to watch: Florida CB CJ Henderson

One player I have seen mocked to Jacksonville, time and time again, is Florida’s CJ Henderson. Could the Jaguars add a talented corner?

The Jacksonville Jaguars are in desperate need for help on both sides of the ball. With free agency looming, much of the roster will be up in the air, including veterans Marcell Dareus, A.J. Bouye, Andrew Norwell, and Calais Campbell.  While I don’t expect the team to release all of those players, there will be some cap casualties and we likely won’t know what the team will really look like until March.

One of the positions that has been mocked to Jacksonville frequently in mock drafts all over the internet is the cornerback position. While I do not think the need at corner is as great as the national media seems to think, the corner class is very strong and I do feel like there is a real chance the Jags could snag a talented corner in the draft at some point.

With the uncertainty of Tre Herndon’s talent level and Bouye aging with a high cap number, Jacksonville would be smart to at least take a peek at one of the strongest and deepest positions in the class. For this reason, many draft pundits have mocked Florida corner CJ Henderson to the Jags.

Henderson has been one of the draft’s biggest names for quite some time now. His natural coverage ability, fluid hips, and ball skills have vaulted him into the first round in many mock drafts circling the internet. In terms of pure coverage ability, Henderson is among the draft’s best.

In just nine games in 2019, Henderson was able to deflect 11 balls, a career high for him. While he lacked production in 2019 when it came to interceptions, the gator corner was able to make plays on the ball whenever given the chance.

Here is just another example of Henderson breaking up a pass as he beautifully covers a vertical route against Louisiana State’s star receiver Justin Jefferson.

While quarterback Joe Burrow wasn’t the same Heisman winner we’ve come to know presently at the time of this video, this is still a tremendous job by Henderson to run stride-for-stride with Jefferson, who has hurt many team’s vertically up the sideline.

Henderson uses his size (6-foot-1, 202 pounds) and length to extend his reach and has incredible speed and quickness to go along with that length. The problems with Henderson arise when it comes to his willingness to tackle and proficiency at it.

Many scouts have been critical of Henderson’s effort when it comes to tackling. When it comes to Jacksonville this could be a deal breaker. Jacksonville has had issues of their own tackling, and I’m not sure Henderson would be the one to help that problem. However, Henderson remains a very good player, a team just will have to acknowledge his tackling faults.

For all we know, Henderson could still improve. While he is not getting ready to lay big hit on a receiver, I did find a clip of Henderson running down Deebo Samuel the entire length of the field, marking a true effort play by the gator corner.

For any team, Jacksonville especially, it is important to understand a player’s strengths and weaknesses in order to decide if that player is both right for their organization, and if they do select him, it’s key to keep that player away from situations that hurt the team. I. think Henderson is a top shelf cover corner in the draft and likely goes in the Top-50 picks. For Jacksonville, or any team, Henderson will immediately help sure of the back end of your defense with sticky coverage and game-changing ball skills.

Prospects for Jags fans to watch: Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa

While Tagovailoa has certainly been great at the collegiate level, will it carry over to the NFL, and is he someone the Jaguars will target?

A player that needs no introduction; Alabama’s Tua Tagovailoa has been exceptional ever since he stepped onto the field in the National Championship game against Georgia of 2018. The Hawaiian native has been College Football’s best quarterback and helped to create one of the best offense’s in history.

While Tagovailoa has certainly been exceptional at the collegiate level, will it carry over to the NFL, and is he someone the Jacksonville Jaguars will target?

I’ll start with everyone’s big concern about Tagovailoa: injuries. The Alabama quarterback has suffered numerous lower leg injuries and just recently had a season-ending hip injury against the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

The numerous injuries and their relative severity certainly have some scouts weary of the national championship quarterback. Even Tagovailoa himself has said “I don’t think I’d be the same again.” He himself is worried about his most recent injury and how it will affect his abilities going forward. His doctors, however, do expect the southpaw signal caller to make a full recovery, giving hope to his future professional career.

It also helps Tagovailoa that none of his injuries seem to be connected. If he was suffering repeated injuries to his body that were connected, I’d be much more concerned about his long term health. However, it seems that these are all independent, freak injuries.

At 230 pounds, Tagovailoa has a solid build for a quarterback. Standing at 6-foot-1 as well, there really is no NFL comparison in terms of size. When healthy though, what does this left-handed gunslinger bring to the table as an NFL quarterback?

I’ll start with his best trait, and it is the best I have ever scouted, Tua’s touch. Tagovailoa’s ability to throw touch passes is as impressive as you will ever see in the scouting business. He is a magician at his craft and it’s a thing of beauty to watch.

You can NOT throw this ball any better. Tagovailoa throws this ball 40-yards in the air and the ball placement is just perfect. He glides the ball over the underneath defender and hits his receiver in stride. Also, pay attention to the pocket movement skills as he slides to his left, giving himself extra time to hit his receiver.

The Crimson Tide passer also has some of the best improvisational skills you will see, reminiscent of Russell Wilson and Baker Mayfield. His work in the pocket and ability to alter his arm slot makes him even more dangerous as a passer.

Below you can see Tagovailoa drop his arm in order to get a ball around a defender who is right in his face, completing a nice touchdown pass. There are shades of Patrick Mahomes here.

Certainly a crafty play by the young signal-caller.

At 230 pounds Tagovailoa is far from immobile. In fact, his mobility comes in to play often when watching him. This play below is just something to be admired by all football fans. Tagovailoa has early pressure and side steps a free rusher, before rolling out right, quickly finding an open receiver for a big gain. This is a staple of Tagovailoa’s game. A deadly accurate ballerina with NFL aspirations.

I’ve harped on his ability to create plays off-script enough, but I just felt that  it was my duty to show the audience just one more play from Tagovailoa. I have no idea how Tagovailoa makes this play below, but this is as “Russell Wilson-esque” as you will find at the college level.

I would try to break this play down for you, but I think the beauty is just in watching Tagovailoa being himself. He is an incredible college quarterback, and if he can stay healthy, he could be a star in the NFL.

The Jaguars are in a bit of a predicament revolving around the quarterback position. Rookie Gardner Minshew II has played solid football, but Nick Foles is likely stuck on the roster with his $88 million deal signed in March. If the Jaguars decide to move on from the front office and coaching staff, the new general manager could look at a new franchise quarterback and there are few as good as Tagovailoa. If he is there when the Jaguars are on the clock, it would be tough to pass on such a phenomenal player.

Jags pair Alabama teammates Tua Tagovailoa and Henry Ruggs III in new mock draft

The Jags land one of college football’s top connections in a new mock draft by The Draft Network.

The Jacksonville Jaguars fanbase went from being excited about the 2019 season because of the addition of quarterback Nick Foles (well, some of them) to wanting it to end due to his poor play. Now, the Jags are in a position to undergo sweeping changes — and rightfully so, which points to a reset.

Many draft pundits will keep this in mind with their mocks for the remainder of the season and beyond, which means there will be some quarterbacks mocked to Jacksonville early despite Foles’ contract and the potential of Gardner Minshew II. A prime example is the mock draft that Jonah Tuls recently compiled at The Draft Network, which has the Jags taking Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa and his teammate in receiver Henry Ruggs III.

8. Jaguars, Tua Tagovailoa, QB, Alabama

Tagovailoa goes to Duval. Before you rule this out as too far-fetched, professional teams still have no idea what Tagovailoa’s medical reports look like; and I would be willing to bet there is a decent chance he is going to be off some boards. If Tagovailoa ends up falling and has to take a redshirt year in 2020, the Jacksonville Jaguars make the most sense as a landing spot. They are financially tied to Nick Foles, and he can serve as the bridge quarterback for Tagovailoa. This would give him all the time he needs for recovery without rushing a comeback.

20. Jaguars, Henry Ruggs III, WR, Alabama

Regardless of the Jaguars drafting a quarterback early, this offense needs playmakers. Henry Ruggs might be the fastest player in the draft, but I don’t think people realize how good of a wide receiver he is. His finishing consistency at the catch point is among the best in this class, and he is far too underrated as a route runner. Pairing the likes of Ruggs with Tua in the first round would be a dream for fans in Jacksonville.

Of course, as mentioned there are a lot of things that need to be cleared up with the first being Tua’s decision to declare in 2020. There is also his injury situation (hip) and each team’s medical staff understanding the severity of it. The Jags must also find out what they have in Gardner Minshew II this month.

However, as we pointed out in a mock draft analysis from October, the next front office (if there is a change) will have no ties to any of the quarterbacks on the roster, and if they fall in love with a specific quarterback prospect, they should go ahead and get their guy.

Statistically, Tua is a player who has improved in terms of accuracy over his career, garnering completion percentages of 63.6 (2017), 69.0 (2018) and 71.4 (2019) while at Alabama. The pundits at The Draft Network also like his pocket presence and throwing ability on all three levels.

Ruggs is a player our own Daniel Griffis has previewed in the past. At 6-foot-0, 190 pounds, Ruggs has elite 4.2-4.3 speed, has excellent body control and is an issue to bring down in the open field. With DJ Chark Jr. continuing to develop into a No. 1 receiver, Ruggs could be a solid No. 2 in time for the Jags and add speed to what is already one of the fastest receiving corps in football.

Recapping an eventful college football Sunday in the SEC

Recapping an eventful college football Sunday in the Southeastern Conference

After Georgia defeated Georgia Tech on Saturday to advance its playoff hopes another week, the college football world began to take a turn.

Sure, there was the Iron Bowl, which virtually eliminated Alabama from playoff contention, but that was an afterthought by Sunday afternoon.

The Sunday after the final day of the college football regular season began to work its magic, or terror, depending on who you are.

Arkansas’ Chad Morris was already fired weeks ago, but Sunday brought the end to the Barry Odom and Matt Luke era’s in the conference, at least for now.

 

Though both firings make sense, they didn’t go as easily as the athletic departments had initially planned. Odom, dealing with a program on probation from the postseason for 2019, kept every returning player on the roster last spring. Meanwhile, Luke guided the Rebels through a couple probation years of their own, to what seemed like a bright future with John Rhys Plumlee at quarterback.

Neither coach ever pulled any massive upsets or got their teams into the Top 15, but a case could be made on retaining them for a few more seasons. However, this is the current age of college football, where change is to be expected.

If you thought we were done, you’re in for an even bigger twist. Remember Feleipe Franks and Jake Bentley, the quarterbacks many picked to upset Georgia in 2018? Well, they’re gone too.

Franks, the uber-confident three-year Florida starter, took to Instagram to announce he intended to transfer out of Gainesville or enter the NFL Draft. As for Bentley, it’s on to a new path as well, after having an almost identical storyline to Franks’ in 2019.

Both quarterbacks suffered unfortunate season-ending injuries at the beginning of the season and saw their jobs get taken by once unproven backups in Kyle Trask and Ryan Hilinski.

The future in Athens seems much more clear, with Fromm returning for his senior year and Smart coaching another season on the sidelines almost a sure thing.

Of course, we have no confirmation that Fromm will return, but it seems very likely at the moment.

As of right now, this is where we’re at. However, it wouldn’t be a shock if South Carolina’s Will Muschamp gets sent packing in the next couple of days, though several minor changes have already been made in Columbia.

Stay tuned to UGA Wire throughout the week as we bring you the latest on the changes coming to the SEC.

George Pickens to miss first half of SEC Championship Game

Georgia freshman WR George Pickens will be suspended for the first half of next week’s SEC Championship Game against LSU in Atlanta. 

Following a less-than-civil confrontation in today’s beating of the Bees, Georgia freshman wide receiver George Pickens will be suspended for the first half of next week’s SEC Championship Game against Louisiana State in Atlanta.

Kirby Smart confirmed the suspension in his post-game press conference following a 45-point win at Georgia Tech.

Jim Coley’s offense will already be without the injured Lawrence Cager, who leads the team with 476 receiving yards in 2019.

Pickens is only 19 yards behind with one fewer reception (32) and one more touchdown (5) than Cager.

The freshman out of Hoover, Alabama was previously suspended for the first half of today’s game against Georgia Tech for a “team matter” upon which Kirby Smart would not elaborate.

Missing two of the biggest deep threats on the roster, the Bulldogs offense will need to get creative in the first half of the looming conference championship.

Josh Allen currently second in fan votes for AFC at DE position

While Josh Allen may not be getting the respect he deserves in the Defensive Rookie of the Year conversation, he’s been a hit on the Pro Bowl ballot. In fact, the Jacksonville Jaguars revealed that the rookie is currently second in terms of total …

While Josh Allen may not be getting the respect he deserves in the Defensive Rookie of the Year conversation, he’s been a hit on the Pro Bowl ballot. In fact, the Jacksonville Jaguars revealed that the rookie is currently second in terms of total fan votes for the AFC at the defensive end position.

Allen’s success on the Pro Bowl ballot comes after the rookie has put together a solid rookie campaign, accumulating 27 tackles, nine tackles for loss and eight sacks. Despite just having four starts to his name, his eight sacks are good for the most on the Jags’ roster, which is saying a lot as he plays alongside Calais Campbell and Yannick Ngakoue. That figure is also good for the most of any rookie, even Nick Bosa who is the favorite to win Defensive Rookie of the Year and has twice as many starts.

Allen was a player the Jags weren’t expecting to be available for the No. 7 overall pick in April’s draft, so when he fell to them it was an easy decision. With the team planning to get him even more involved, it’s possible he’ll continue to garner the support of Pro Bowl voters as his increased snaps could lead to more production.