Tag: The Athletic

Texas A&M football ranks top 15 in The Athletic’s data-driven preseason rankings

The Athletic’s Austin Mock crunched the numbers to project this year’s preseason top 25 college football rankings, and Texas A&M clocked in high on the list.

Why should fans wait for college football’s preseason top 25 rankings in mere months when we can crunch the numbers and have them in June?

The Athletic’s Austin Mock leveraged his advanced statistical models and simulations to project this year’s preseason top 25 rankings. It’s imperative to note that these aren’t like the rankings you’ll see from the AP or coaches poll.

As Mock mentions in the piece, these data-driven rankings are compiled using these parameters:

“My model takes in play-by-play data from every game but also factors in returning production, recruiting rankings, and transfers. For now, it relies on projections, but as the season starts, those games will become a more important factor in the formula.”

After crunching the numbers, Texas A&M clocked in at No. 15 in Mock’s preseason rankings. That puts them ahead of SEC counterparts Ole Miss (16th), Auburn (20th), Missouri (22nd), and Kentucky (25th). Only Georgia (1st), Alabama (2nd), LSU (6th), and Tennessee (7th) ranked above the Maroon and White.

Here’s what the Mock had to say regarding the Aggie’s No. 15 ranking:

“Admittedly, I don’t love having Texas A&M this high but they’re going to have one of the better defenses in college football and that’s going to raise your floor in my model. Yes, the 5-7 record in 2022 doesn’t give you much confidence but they did manage to go 2-5 in one-score games. I don’t think they’re likely to win a lot of games because of how tough the SEC is but 7-8 wins on their schedule is a team that’s firmly among the 20 of the best in the country.”

A&M’s defensive potential speaks for itself after ranking top 25 in points allowed last season, and the offense should take a massive leap with Bobby Petrino bringing some much-needed creativity and ingenuity to the playbook.

Mock’s point about the gauntlet that is the SEC schedule is warranted, but it’s essential to add some context there as well.

A&M does go on the road to play LSU, but they’re coming off a 2022 season finale upset over the Tigers, so they’ve proven up to the challenge against Brian Kelly’s unit. Ole Miss at The Vaught will be formidable, and yet Lane Kiffin’s squad managed to squeak by with just a three-point win over the Aggies last season, which coincided with Conner Weigman’s second career game (28-44, 338 yards, four touchdowns, 0 interceptions).

And yes, the Crimson Tide are as tough as they come but don’t forget that they need to come to Kyle Field for this year’s bout, which has proven to be among the college football’s most raucous environments, and a location liable for big upsets.

Casual fans may scoff at these ranks, but Aggies fans know that the Maroon and White have the talent and capability to justify the data with wins on the gridiron.

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

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Tyler Lockett talks about improving the atrocious Seahawks screen game

Offensively things have been even worse.

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The screen game has not been kind to the Seahawks in recent years on either side of the ball. Defensively, Seattle has been consistently gashed by screen plays ever since linebacker K.J. Wright was allowed to leave. Offensively things have been even worse, as they’ve produced the singular worst screen attack in the league.

They have struggled with both Russell Wilson and Geno Smith throwing and a host of different receivers and running backs trying their luck to no avail. They don’t need to be on Kansas City’s level, but improving even marginally in this part of the game will help open up other things. At least that’s what the team’s most-consistent producer on this side of the ball thinks.

That would be wide receiver Tyler Lockett, who was asked about it at mandatory minicamp last week by Mike Dugar at the Athletic. Here’s what he had to say…

“I think we were last in the screen game… If we can be able to get that down to at least 20, it does wonders. The biggest thing is for us just knowing how to be able to be better at it. How to know how to catch it, how to be able to get upfield, trusting that the line is going to be there. Everybody being able to do their part. If we can get better at that, then it makes the offensive game better, it makes the run game better, the explosive game better, the short game better. But if we don’t have the screen game, then we’ve kind of become limited.”

If they can’t figure it out in 2023, then offensive coordinator Shane Waldron might have to be put on hot-seat watch.

More Seahawks Wire stories

100 photos from the Seahawks offseason program

Initial 53-man roster projection after minicamp

The 15 biggest cap hits for Seattle in 2023

Power rankings for all 32 NFL head coaches

The Athletic’s expert predictions for the 2023 College World Series

Here’s who The Athletic thinks will win this year’s College World Series.

The first pitch of the 2023 College World Series comes on Friday afternoon in Omaha, Nebraska, where the Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the No. 1 overall seed and favorite to win the College World Series. However, there are still seven other teams vying for the national title which should make for an exciting week of college baseball action.

Ahead of the opening game, The Athletic’s Andrew DeWitt assembled a roundtable of his publishing peers to pick who will win the trophy this season. The list of colleagues consists of Mitch Light, Brody Miller, Grace Raynor, Joe Rexrode, Mitch Sherman, Daniel Shirley, Eric Single and Kennington Smith. Of the eight respondents, five picked Wake Forest to win it all while the other three chose the LSU Tigers.

The Florida Gators get started on Friday night against the Virginia Cavaliers, with the first pitch scheduled for 7 p.m. EDT and the broadcast set for ESPN.

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Where does Dillon Gabriel land in The Athletic’s quarterback tier rankings?

Where did Dillon Gabriel land in The Athletic’s tier rankings of college quarterbacks heading into 2023?

It’s the offseason and another list has been put out by The Athletic (subscription required), this time involving Sooners quarterback Dillon Gabriel.

This list puts the top quarterbacks in tiers instead of just ranking them.

To no one’s surprise, former Sooner and current USC Trojan Caleb Williams is in a tier by himself after winning last season’s Heisman trophy.

Tier 2 features two quarterbacks: North Carolina’s Drake Maye and Washington’s Michael Penix Jr. Both are coming off great seasons.

Tier 3 has eight quarterbacks. They are LSU’s Jayden Daniels, UTSA’s Frank Harris, Arkansas’ KJ Jefferson, Coastal Carolina’s Grayson McCall, Oregon’s Bo Nix, Tulane’s Michael Pratt and Kentucky’s Devin Leary.

Tier 4 is where we find Gabriel. He’s joined by Notre Dame’s Sam Hartman, Wisconsin’s Tanner Mordecai, Utah’s Cam Rising, Kansas’ Jalon Daniels, Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa and Florida State’s Jordan Travis.

The breakdown of Gabriel couldn’t have been better. Bruce Feldman said, “Gabriel is underrated. He’s gifted. Year 2 with his teammates will make a big difference for OU.”

I couldn’t have worded that any better. Gabriel caught a lot of flak last year simply for not being Caleb Williams, Baker Mayfield, Jalen Hurts or Kyler Murray.

Not many are. Let’s face it, Sooner fans have been spoiled and have grown to expect that level of play. Gabriel isn’t that and will never be that, but he’s more than capable of winning games.

He’s a lot better than people give him credit for and he was far from the problem last season.

Could he have been better? Absolutely. Were there throws he needs to make? Yes. That doesn’t mean he’s a bad quarterback. He’s a very good quarterback and after what happened in 2021 with a certain someone leaving and taking the star QB with him, Oklahoma fans should feel lucky to have him.

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Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Jaron on Twitter @JaronSpor.

The Athletic names Thunder as best-positioned team to trade for a star

“If the Thunder wanted to go in on a star… who can beat general manager Sam Presti’s hand?”

In the NBA cycle, star players asking out and demanding trades is a common phenomenon.

It seems that annually at least a couple of multi-time All-Stars request trades from their current teams in the ever-changing league.

With the offseason upon us, it feels only a matter of time before the next big name asks out. When that happens, teams with valuable draft capital usually get first dibs to acquire elite talent.

In a recent article, The Athletic named the Oklahoma City Thunder as the best-positioned team to trade for a star in the immediate future. It only makes sense. They own the most draft capital in the league with a long list of first-round draft picks in the 2020s. The only untradeable asset listed was Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is coming off a career season in which he was named to the All-NBA first team.

“It’s wild how well-positioned the Thunder are to trade for a star. They have a whole roster of attractive young players. Sure, Gilgeous-Alexander is off-limits, but Josh Giddey, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren are still there as potential headliners to any deal. They have all of their future first-round picks, plus eight more from other teams, including two unprotected Clippers picks — not to mention swap rights with the Rockets or Clippers in 2025. If the Thunder wanted to go in on a star — though there is no indication they are in that place — who can beat general manager Sam Presti’s hand?”

The Thunder own $30 million in cap space this offseason, which among the most in the league. This means they could easily absorb most salaries in hypothetical trades.

But, as mentioned by Mike Vorkunov, the Thunder traditionally don’t go big star hunting and prefer to draft and develop their talent. With OKC’s young core continuing to grow, it’s unlikely it acquires an established star this summer.

The full article can be read here.

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Is The Athletics’ Sam Khan Jr. right that nine wins is enough for Jimbo Fisher in 2023?

Sam Khan Jr. has answered the question many of us will ponder this offseason: Are nine wins in 2023 enough for Jimbo Fisher?

The Jimbo Fisher era at Texas A&M has reached its boiling point for a large portion of the Aggie fan base, and rightfully so, after the 5-7 (2-6 SEC) 2022 season has left many wondering what the future holds for the Maroon and White going forward.

However, after years of stagnant and borderline selfish coaching decisions, specifically Fisher’s lack of play-calling ingenuity, longtime offensive coordinator Darrell Dickey was relieved of his duty, leading to the hiring of longtime Power 5 head coach Bobby Petrino, who comes with a fair amount of personal baggage, though his offensive acumen outweighs any potential negative repercussions.

Texas A&M’s roster, aside from several depth-related issues, is loaded from top to bottom, as their strengths lie in the trenches on offense and defense, the starting wide receiver group led by returning do-it-all weapon Ainias Smith and future superstar Evan Stewart with undoubtedly provide sophomore quarterback Conner Weigman plenty of explosiveness in the passing game as he enters his first full season as the starting signal caller.

So, a 12-0 finish combined with their first appearance in the College Football Playoff is set in stone. Of course, I’m kidding, but in all seriousness, what record will the Aggies need to finish with next season for Fisher’s future with the program to stay intact?  In a question-and-answer segment for the Athletic, Sam Khan Jr. believes that a 9-3 finish in 2023 is essentially the bare minimum for Fisher per this future in College Station.

I would argue that A&M needs to have at least a 9-3 regular season for Fisher to restore some of the faith lost from last year’s debacle. Eight wins would obviously be an improvement from last year’s 5-7 showing, but I suspect an 8-4 record would be met with lukewarm enthusiasm, unless one of those eight comes against Alabama. I don’t think 8-4 endangers Fisher’s job, especially considering the hefty buyout.

Khan and I are in complete agreement regarding the record needed for baseline improvement to be met, and as I’ve stated multiple times since the start of the offseason, 8-4 may keep Fisher employed going into 2024, but unless two of those eight victories come against Alabama, LSU, and both Mississippi programs, Fisher’s popularity with the even fairest of Aggie fans will continue to dwindle.

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

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Report: Big 12 eyeing UConn for potential expansion

It appears the Big 12 is still on the lookout for new members.

The Big 12 Conference has been aggressive in adding members after the news of Texas and Oklahoma joining the SEC.

New commissioner Brett Yormark wasted no time in bringing in BYU, Cincinnati, Houston and UCF to the league ahead of the 2023 season. It appears the Big 12 is still on the lookout for new members.

The Athletic reports the Big 12 has an interest in UConn as a potential addition.

UConn would provide the Big 12 with a more prominent footprint on the east coast. The Huskies are a powerhouse in both men’s and women’s basketball, which could help submit the Big 12 as the top basketball league in the nation.

The main question relies on if UConn is a strong enough football program for the Big 12 to pull the trigger. UConn has struggled on the football filed over the past decade and would weaken the overall depth of the conference.

Contact/Follow us @LonghornsWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Texas news, notes and opinions.

The Athletic looks at who’s in, who’s out for Florida at QB

Here’s what The Athletic thinks about Florida football’s quarterback situation.

Florida football has a steep hill to climb in 2023 coming off its second-straight losing season after swapping out Dan Mullen for Billy Napier at head coach. Making matters worse, the Gators had one of the best quarterbacks available in the 2023 NFL draft and were still unable to maximize his potential en route to a sub-.500 finish.

Compounding the problem is the lack of incoming talent under center to take over for standout QB Anthony Richardson. The onus of the burden has fallen on the shoulders of a pair of transfers — Jack Miller III (Ohio State Buckeyes) and Graham Mertz (Wisconsin Badgers). Neither looked impressive during the program’s annual Orange and Blue game intrasquad scrimmage, both lacking distance and timing on their throws.

The Athletic’s staff writer Grace Raynor recently surveyed the Southeastern Conference’s ongoing quarterback carousel, including the merry-go-round spinning about in Gainesville. Here is what she has to offer on Florida’s situation under center.

The Gators have their quarterback of the future already committed in five-star 2024 prospect DJ Lagway, but the interim doesn’t feel as promising. Fans weren’t thrilled when former Wisconsin quarterback Graham Mertz transferred in after completing just 57.3 percent of his passes in 2022. He’s got more experience, though, than redshirt sophomore Jack Miller, who transferred in last season from Ohio State. Miller suffered a thumb injury and did not make his Florida debut until a lopsided 30-3 Las Vegas Bowl loss to Oregon State after starter Anthony Richardson opted out ahead of the NFL Draft.

Redshirt freshman Max Brown, also on the baseball team, is the third quarterback on scholarship. Brown, the Oklahoma District 3-3A MVP as a high school senior, did not play as a redshirt in 2022. One player not on the roster: four-star 2023 QB Jaden Rashada, who had a falling out with a Florida collective and ended up at Arizona State.

The Gators open up their 2023 schedule on the road against the Utah Utes on Aug. 31, with the start time still to be determined.

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One question The Athletic would ask Florida’s Billy Napier

Trust the process? That’s the question for Florida’s Billy Napier.

Florida football head coach Billy Napier heads into his second season on the sidelines of the Swamp following a disappointing debut with the Orange and Blue in 2022. His opening campaign saw the Gators post their second-straight losing season — the first time that has happened since the late 1970s — following Dan Mullen’s disgraced exit from Gainesville.

Napier has a steep hill to climb — even possibly a Sisyphean task — to bring pride back to Ben Hill Griffin Stadium as the program’s rivals continue to evolve with the sport. The Athletic staff writer Andy Staples recently submitted one question he would ask the Florida skipper, free of coach speak and composed of pure, distilled truth.

Here is what Staples would ask.

Is this Nick Saban’s process or the Philadelphia 76ers’ process?

Napier’s fans — of which there are many in the coaching community — claim that other than Kirby Smart, Napier is the best at reproducing Saban’s detail-oriented, process-over-results thinking in terms of roster- and team-building. But before his second season, Saban signed the greatest recruiting class of all time. That 2008 Alabama team then went 12-2. In Smart’s second season, he won the SEC, and Georgia made it to the national title game. Nothing like that is going to happen in Napier’s second season. — Staples

The Gators open up their 2023 schedule on the road against the Utah Utes on Aug. 31, with the start time still to be determined.

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The Athletic places former Aggies Safety Antonio Johnson on their 2023 NFL ‘All-Draft Pick Team’

Former Texas A&M safety Antonio Johnson, drafted in the 5th-round by the Jacksonville Jaguars has made the Athletics ‘All-Draft Pick Team’

During the 2023 NFL Draft, there was a remarkable story surrounding the former Texas A&M safety Antonio Johnson. Despite being considered a second or third-round pick by many draft experts, he unexpectedly fell. He was ultimately selected by the Jacksonville Jaguars in the fifth round as the 160th overall pick. The Athletic deemed the Jaguars as brilliant for selecting the versatile player from East St. Louis, Ilinois.

In an article by writers Diante Lee and Nick Baumgardner, both combined their favorite picks during the Draft at every position, selecting 22 players that will make some impact as soon as the 2023 NFL season. Coming in last but not at all least, Johnson, alongside former Alabama safety Jordan Battle, is very close to being a perfect fit with the Jaguars.

The Jaguars needed depth and a future contingency for Rayshawn Jenkins as he approaches his age-30 season. Johnson is a good fit.

His game is a throwback to the strong-safety archetype of old: a true thumper in run support and a good tackler. Defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell can use more dependable players around the second level, and Johnson fits well in a defense that can blitz from all angles and likes to play zone. There won’t be instant gratification, but I trust that Jacksonville will be happy to have Johnson grow into a future role.

Lee and Baumgarder noted Johnson’s deficiencies without stating them in a specific fashion, as his overall lack of off-the-chart athleticism and “old school” play style as a player who thrives close to the line of scrimmage most likely scared several teams away. Yet, his overall fit with defensive coordinator Mike Caldwell is all that matters from a scheme perspective.

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

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