Tag: Texas

49ers solve biggest roster flaw in ESPN mock draft

The 49ers address the offensive line in the latest mock draft from ESPN.

While the stretch run and playoff push of the season is looming in the NFL, the college football schedule is entering the final two weeks before conference championships, bowl season and the highly-anticipated 12-team playoff.

As the college football season heats up, the final handful of weeks will display some of the top prospects in the upcoming 2025 NFL Draft class for the final time.

In the latest NFL mock draft from ESPN draft analyst Matt Miller, the San Francisco 49ers addressed their offensive line in the first round. With the No. 16 overall pick in the 2024 edition of the NFL draft, Miller penned Texas Longhorns offensive tackle Cameron Williams.

According to Miller, Williams’ game is still “raw,” but he could be a “long-term fix” for the 49ers offensive line on the right side alongside breakout young guard Dominick Puni.

Via ESPN:

He’s a first-year starter, and his game is still raw, but he shows considerable potential. The 6-foot-5, 335-pounder has drawn comparisons to 2024 first-rounder Amarius Mims in terms of his strength and agility, with one NFC South area scout telling me that Williams has a chance to be the first OT drafted if he declares. The 49ers could plug him next to guard Dominick Puni, their third-round pick in 2024, and form an incredibly young and strong right side of the line.

Read Miller’s full mock draft here via ESPN. 

The former three-star recruit is listed at 6-foot-5, 335 lbs. Williams plays on the opposite side of the Longhorns’ line as fellow top offensive tackle prospect Kelvin Banks.

According to Pro Football Focus, Williams has earned a 72.0 offensive grade this season with a 79.3 pass-blocking grade and a 76.2 run-blocking grade. Williams earned his best grade during Texas’ contest against Vanderbilt with an 81.1 grade.

Williams will suit up for Texas against Kentucky on Saturday at 12:30 p.m. PT.

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Texas Longhorns Hold Steady at No. 3 in AP Poll

The Texas Longhorns remain at No. 3 in Week 13’s AP Poll

The No. 3 Texas Longhorns (9-1) continued their strong 2024 SEC campaign with a 20-10 victory over the Arkansas Razorbacks in Week 12, extending their winning streak while showcasing a dominant first-half defense. The Longhorns remained in the No. 3 spot in Sunday’s Associated Press Poll, behind that of unanimous and undefeated No. 1 Oregon and No. 2 Ohio State (9-1)

The Longhorns, who have now shut out their last three opponents in the first half, set a defensive milestone not seen since the 2019 season. Their stifling efforts held Arkansas scoreless through the first two quarters, building on a streak that has fueled their surge into College Football Playoff contention. The Longhorns limited the Razorbacks to just 231 yards of total offense and one touchdown, improving to 9-1 overall and 5-1 in SEC play. The Longhorns remain at-top of the Southeastern Conference standings and are in a favorable spot for an SEC Championship and CFP spot.

Offensively, Texas relied on balanced play-calling and key performances from their backfield and receiving corps to secure the win. Despite a late push by Arkansas, the Longhorns maintained control to secure their ninth victory of the season. Texas still has two games left on it’s schedule, Kentucky and Texas A&M. A win-out by Texas will almost certainly solidify their SEC Championship spot, and a total win-out, with or without an SEC Championship win, solidifies their CFP bid.

Texas faces Kentucky at home on Saturday, with kickoff scheduled for 3:30 p.m. ET. The game will air on ABC and ESPN+.

A legendary Saints quarterback reached out to Darren Rizzi after Falcons win

A legendary Saints QB congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not ‘the big dog’ himself:

A legendary former New Orleans Saints quarterback congratulated Darren Rizzi on beating the Falcons, but he initially thought it was Archie Manning’s famous grandson, not Archie himself, texting him on Monday. Rizzi shared the story and his family’s surprising connection with the Mannings when reflecting on his first career win as an NFL head coach.

Plenty of well-wishers reached out after Rizzi ended the Saints’ seven-game losing streak, but he says the message he received from the elder Manning stands out most.

“I got a lot, my favorite one so far is from Archie Manning,” Rizzi grinned. “Archie reached out. And little side story to that, my son Christian who is at the University of Texas, he and Arch are good friends. When I glanced at my phone I thought it was Arch. And then I realized, ‘Oh no, this is from the big dog, this is Archie.’ And so we had a nice correspondence. I really, really appreciated that, that was pretty cool. He was the one who started it all, right?”

Christian Rizzi is a deep snapper for the Longhorns, which isn’t much of a surprise given his father’s history coaching special teams. But their family has crossed paths with the Mannings before, and at times competed in high school football games.

“His grandsons and my sons played against each other, so that was pretty cool,” Rizzi continued.  “I’ve talked to Archie before here at practice and everything. That was pretty nice, a pretty neat text to get.”

It sounds like Manning will be watching when Rizzi leads the Saints into their next game with the Cleveland Browns. Getting out of a 3-7 skid is no small task, but that’s exactly what Rizzi must do to salvage this season. Who knows? Maybe the Saints will be in position to draft the younger Manning in a year or two once he turns pro.

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How to watch Texas vs Florida today: Time, TV channel for Week 11

It’s Texas vs Florida in Week 11 of the 2024 college football season. Here’s how to watch, including time, channel, TV schedule and streaming info.

The final bye week of the regular season is over. The Texas Longhorns know where they stand in the college football playoff rankings. There are four regular season games to go. If Texas can win them all, they’ll be in the SEC title game. It is time to go back to work.

First up is the Florida Gators. Florida has had an odd and disappointing season so far. Two of the best games the Gators played, against Tennessee and Georgia, they lost. UF opened the season against rival Miami, who the Gators haven’t played in five years, with a blowout 41-17 loss.

After beating up on lowly Samford, the Gators hosted Texas A&M in what many felt was a program defining game. Florida lost 33-20. Coach Billy Napier’s seat got very hot.

The Gators won a couple games over Mississippi State and UCF before heading to rival Tennessee. Florida played well, but lost again. The Gators were actually an underdog at home against Kentucky. But Florida crushed the Wildcats 48-20.

Against rival Georgia, the Gators were ahead 13-6 at the half, but gave up 28 Bulldogs points in the second half to lose 34-20.

Now the Gators up and down roller coaster season heads to Austin.

What channel is Texas vs Florida game on today? Time, TV schedule

TV Channel: ABC

Start time: 11 AM CT

The announcing team for Florida’s visit to Austin will be Joe Tessitore on play-by-play and former Florida Gator and NFL quarterback Jesse Palmer as the color analyst, with Katie George as the sideline reporter.

Where to watch Texas vs Florida on livestream

Streaming: ESPN+

[afflinkbutton text=”Watch Texas vs Florida live on ESPN+” link=”https://go.web.plus.espn.com/Vmrv2O”]

Texas vs Florida predictions, picks, odds:

All College Football Odds via BetMGM:

  • Point spread: Texas -21.5 -110 / Florida +21.5 -110
  • Money line: -2500 / +1100
  • Over-under: 47.5 -115

Even though the Gators have looked better over the past couple weeks, with close losses to Tennessee and Georgia, Florida looks undermanned against Texas. UT will be too much for Florida to contain playing at DKR in Austin. After two weeks off, look for the Longhorns to roll again like the start of the season.

Prediction: Texas 38, Florida 13

[gambcom-standard rankid=”4141″ ]

Texas schedule 2024

Record: 7-1

  • Aug 31: vs Colorado St. (W, 52-0)
  • Sep 7: at Michigan (W, 31-12)
  • Sep 14: vs. UTSA (W, 56-7)
  • Sept 21: vs. UL Monroe (W, 51-3)
  • Sep 28: vs. Mississippi State (W, 35-13)
  • Oct 13: vs. Oklahoma (W, 34-3)
  • Oct 19: vs. Georgia (L, 30-15)
  • Oct 26: at Vanderbilt (W, 27-24)
  • Nov. 9: vs. Florida
  • Nov. 18: at Arkansas
  • Nov. 23: vs. Kentucky
  • Nov. 30: at Texas A&M

Florida schedule 2024

Record: 4-4

  • Aug 31: vs Miami (L, 41-17)
  • Sep 7: vs. Samford (W, 45-7)
  • Sep 14: vs. Texas A&M (L, 33-20)
  • Sept 21: at Mississippi State (W, 45-28)
  • Oct 5: vs. UCF (W, 24-13)
  • Oct 12: at Tennessee (L, 23-17)
  • Oct 19: vs. Kentucky (W, 48-20)
  • Nov. 2: vs. Georgia (L, 34-20)
  • Nov. 9: at Texas
  • Nov 16: vs. LSU
  • Nov. 23: vs. Ole Miss
  • Nov. 30: at Florida State

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Notre Dame listed as No. 2 seed in first ESPN women’s bracketology

Hopefully, that can become a No. 1 seed.

Notre Dame got its season off to a proper start Monday with a blowout win over Mercyhurst. This occurred on the eve of ESPN women’s bracketologist Charlie Creme releasing his first bracketology of the season.

Given that the Irish are starting the season as the sixth-ranked team in the country, it should come as no surprise that they’re a No. 2 seed in this initial bracketology. While there surely are a few paths that could make them a No. 1 seed, one in particular would allow them to put their fate in their own hands.

In a separate story, Creme notes that the Irish play both USC and UConn this season. All three of them play each other this season, and one team going 2-0 against the other would lock in a No. 1 seed assuming there aren’t any losses to inferior opponents during the season. Creme also notes that the Irish must beat Texas to get that seed if they lose to both the Trojans and Huskies.

We have four months of this, people. Time to buckle up.

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Notre Dame, Texas reportedly agree to two games starting in 2028

Mark your calendars!

Notre Dame and Texas are two of the biggest brands in college football. They don’t play each other very much though, and that’s a shame. While it’s true that the opportunities to play each other are limited because of other obligations, it doesn’t make the reality any easier to take.

However, Bobby Burton of On Texas Football is reporting that the Irish and Longhorns have agreed to a two-game series in 2028 and 2029. While the report doesn’t say so, this series most definitely will be a home-and-home.

The Irish lead the all-time series with a 9-3 record. They split a home-and-home with the Longhorns in their two most recent meetings in 2015 and 2016. Before that, the Irish swept a home-and-home in 1995 and 1996.

2029 in particular will have a difficult schedule for the Irish as they also are scheduled to begin a home-and-home with Alabama that season. They obviously feel they’re up to the challenge though, so we’ll see how much it pays off.

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Three Notre Dame players among ESPN’s top 25 in women’s basketball

The Irish have serious talent. No doubt about it.

Notre Dame is expected to contend for a national championship this season. That’s not by accident. There are many talented players on the Irish, and at least one prominent sports media outlet recognizes that, not that others don’t.

ESPN has released its preseason list of the top 25 players in women’s basketball. The Irish were one of seven teams to have more than one player on the list. In all, three Irish players were afforded the honor.

Unsurprisingly, [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag] ranks the highest among her teammates at third. Even without having played last season, [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] still made the list, clocking in at 13th. [autotag]Sonia Citron[/autotag] is right behind her at 14th.

To make things even more exciting, the Irish will face every player this season who is ranked alongside Hidalgo in the top five of this list. Those players are JuJu Watkins, the top-ranked player, alongside USC teammate Kiki Iriafen, Paige Bueckers of UConn and Madison Booker of Texas, which also clocked Rori Harmon in at ninth.

There indeed are some fun times in store for the Irish this season.

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Notre Dame’s Hannah Hidalgo named preseason AP All-American

The Irish truly have one of the best players in the country.

Anyone following women’s basketball knows about Notre Dame sophomore guard [autotag]Hannah Hidalgo[/autotag]. She tore up the landscape as a freshman and even was named a finalist for national player of the year. She is the primary reason the Irish are expected to contend for the Final Four this season, though a returning [autotag]Olivia Miles[/autotag] isn’t far behind.

The Associated Press realizes how special Hidalgo is and has named her to its preseason All-American Team. She is part of the first trio of sophomores to be named to this team alongside JuJu Watkins of USC and Madison Booker of Texas. Paige Bueckers of UConn and Watkins teammate Kiki Iriafen round out the team.

Hidalgo already has been named the ACC Preseason Player of the Year for this season. She led the country with 4.6 steals a game last season and was sixth nationally with 22.6 points a game. It would be shocking for her not to build upon that this season:

Congratulations to all five players who were selected for this honor.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes and opinions.

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Where the New Orleans Saints were scouting 2025 draft prospects this week

Where were the New Orleans Saints scouting 2025 draft prospects this week? Their scouts were spotted at a couple of high-profile matchups:

Where were the New Orleans Saints scouting during this week’s college football games? Their scouting department is spread out nationwide catching  games and filling out reports on 2025 NFL draft prospects, but we only know where they are when it’s reported. This week’s news had them at several high-profile matchups.

Per the St. Louis Post-Dispatch’s Eli Hoff, the Saints were one of six teams scouting Mizzou’s game with Auburn. It’s at least the second time this season they were watching Missouri live, and the school’s best prospect is wide receiver Luther Burden III, a likely top-10 pick in the 2025 draft class. The 5-foot-11, 208-pound wideout totaled 6 receptions for 49 yards against Auburn and is up to 168 catches, 2,034 yards, and 19 touchdowns in his career. He’s also gained 209 rushing yards and scored four times on just 30 carries as a runner.

But that’s not all. The Saints joined half the league in scouting all of the early-round prospects competing in Texas-Georgia on Saturday night, a game the Bulldogs won handily. Quarterbacks Carson Beck and Quinn Ewers have both also earned top-10 buzz, but they took a step back against the future NFL players on each other’s defenses. Beck was intercepted three times and Ewers was briefly benched in favor of Arch Manning after throwing an interception and taking several sacks.

This may not be the year to look for a quarterback early on. The Saints need help at multiple positions, and it could be worth taking the best player available if they hold onto their position with a top-10 pick. We’re waiting for the rest of Week 7’s games to resolve, but Sunday morning’s Jacksonville Jaguars win put the Saints at No. 6 overall.

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Georgia beats No. 1 Texas in dominant 30-15 victory

Down goes No. 1! Georgia football proved a point at Texas

The Georgia Bulldogs opened a 23-0 first half lead on the road over the Texas Longhorns. Georgia came out motivated after the media doubted the Bulldogs all week.

Outside linebacker Jalon Walker fueled Georgia’s first half with three sacks and seven total tackles. The Georgia defense forced three first half turnovers to set up the Georgia offense. Cornerback Daylen Everette forced two of Georgia’s first half turnovers. UGA running back Trevor Etienne scored a pair of first half rushing touchdowns.

However, Georgia quarterback Carson Beck had a pair of first half interceptions and the UGA offense settled for a few field goals.

In the second half, Georgia’s defense continued to pour it on the Texas offense. The Longhorns showed some signs of life with a touchdown and two-point conversion after a Georgia squib kick and a few Georgia penalties helped set the table for Texas.

Georgia controlled the line of scrimmage all game. The Bulldogs recorded a season-high seven sacks and flustered Texas quarterback Quinn Ewers. The UGA defense forced four turnovers.

The momentum appeared to shift in Texas’ favor after the Longhorns’ controversial interception. Texas scored a few plays later to cut Georgia’s lead to 23-15. However, Carson Beck and Georgia responded with a touchdown drive on the next possession.

Georgia outrushed Texas 108-29. Running back Trevor Etienne had all three of Georgia’s touchdowns.

“Nobody gave us a chance,” said Kirby Smart after the game. Everyone on “College GameDay” picked Texas to beat Georgia. “Our intent was to eat.”

Georgia is no 6-1 and 4-1 in SEC play. The Bulldogs have a bye week before playing Florida on Nov. 2.