Tag: The Athletic

Gators News: August 14, 2020

College football—and collegiate athletics—tries to find its footing heading into fall while the novel coronavirus pandemic rages on. 

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We are finally nearing the end of a tumultuous week, to say the least, as college football — and collegiate athletics as a whole — tries to find its footing heading into fall while the novel coronavirus pandemic rages on.

Presumably, the biggest issue currently being worked out is the health and safety of athletics participants, as well as the university student bodies as a whole. Josh Kendall over at The Athletic scolds the Southeastern Conference for the silence of its medical advisors while USA TODAY Sports’ Dan Wolken suggests that college football programs need to get comfortable with transparency or risk losing credibility. The long-story-short version is that there is a credibility problem that is not just going to go away.

Speaking of silence, prestigious academic schools Duke and Notre Dame have been conspicuously quiet thus far in the process as football presses on. And at fell ACC school Florida State, there appears to be some trouble brewing below the surface as well.

On Thursday, the NCAA Division I Council announced that all fall sports championships have been postponed due to COVID-19. Make note that this does not affect football postseason play, as those are conducted under the supervision of a different governing body. Additionally, the council also recommended eligibility relief for athletes who lose seasons due to COVID-19 pandemic, which “the Council members are working to create additional flexibility for college athletes whose seasons have been negatively impacted by the pandemic,” said Council chair M. Grace Calhoun, athletic director at the University of Pennsylvania.

Finally, Paul Myerberg wonders as spring college football becomes the focus for some conferences if it can possibly work. It is one of many pressing questions facing the sports world as we enter the middle of August.

Around the Swamp

It’s great to be a Florida Gator!

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The Athletic complimentary of the Florida Gators’ latest work on football recruiting trail

Florida’s upcoming class now stands at 24 members. Marshall, the lone five-star, is the highest-rated of the group, followed by Tyreak Sapp.

Releasing his latest “This week in recruiting” article on August 12 (subscription required), The Athletic’s Ari Wasserman praised the recent work of head coach Dan Mullen and the rest of his Florida Gators coaching staff on the recruiting trail.

“This week, Mullen enjoyed perhaps his best two days on the recruiting trail as Florida’s head coach,” he began.

“Mullen went into South Florida and landed teammates from Miami (Fla.) Palmetto who both rank in the top-100 nationally: (five-star cornerback Jason Marshall) and four-star safety Corey Collier, the No. 83 overall player. Florida’s class jumped to No. 6 nationally with the two commitments.

“We could make this a discussion about how Miami, which is recruiting quite well this season, missed on two local players who could have vaulted its class into the top-three in the nation. Remember, the Hurricanes have two five-star prospects from Miami committed, including defensive tackle Leonard Taylor, who also plays at Palmetto. The Hurricanes had a chance to do something truly remarkable.

“But you have to give credit to Florida for recruiting these two Palmetto stars. Even though they are much closer to Miami’s campus, they are still in-state prospects for the Gators.”

Florida’s upcoming class now stands at 24 members. Marshall, the lone five-star, is the highest-rated of the group, followed by Collier and Fort Lauderdale four-star defensive end Tyreak Sapp.

A name to watch to join this group is Bradenton four-star defensive end Tunmise Adeleye, who decommitted from Ryan Day’s Ohio State Buckeyes on August 11.

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Playing his first three seasons at Katy (Texas) High School, Tunmise plans to suit up for IMG Academy, one of the nation’s premier talent-producing programs, as a senior.

Florida first extended him an offer on January 29, 2019 and have twice secured his presence on campus, first on February 1 for a Junior Day and again on March 7 for an unofficial visit.

Defensive line coach David Turner and defensive coordinator Todd Grantham have been leading the charge on his recruitment.

On the offensive side of the football, Ocala wide receiver Trevonte Rucker and Loganville, Georgia quarterback Carlos Del Rio-Wilson and wideout Daejon Reynolds lead the way, with another receiver, Jacksonville’s Marcus Burke, not far behind.

As Wasserman mentioned, this collection of pledges now ranks No. 6 in America, per the 247Sports Composite, trailing only Ohio State, Nick Saban’s Alabama Crimson Tide, Dabo Swinney’s Clemson Tigers, Mario Cristobal’s Oregon Ducks, and Jeremy Pruitt’s Tennessee Volunteers.

Ed Orgeron’s LSU Tigers, Clay Helton’s USC Trojans, and Jim Harbaugh’s Michigan Wolverines round out the top-10.

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Southeastern Conference planning to move forward with football season

It’s clear the league believes its efforts to delay the start and create safety protocols are enough to continue moving toward a fall season

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College football is splitting into factions.

On one side, the Big Ten and Pac-12 have canceled the fall 2020 sports season. On the other, the SEC, ACC and Big 12 are all moving toward the start of a football season this fall. The latter two voted Tuesday to continue with preparations for the season, and the former, which proactively delayed the start of the season until Sep. 26 to allow for increased flexibility, is content to wait out the next month and see how the situation changes, according to a report from Andy Staples of The Athletic.

Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork told Staples that delaying the season bought the league time, and the SEC advisory committee hasn’t given administrators new information that would indicate the 10-game conference schedule is untenable.

“We announced our football opponents on Friday, and all of the sudden the conversation changed over the weekend,” Bjork said. “But we’ve been presented no new data that says that we need to change our course right now. We bought ourselves time for a reason. We delayed the start of practice for a reason. We’ve got the right protocols. We have our testing protocols outline from last Thursday. We have a pathway. And we’re not to the finish line yet. But we can see it and we just need more patience. That’s my perspective. I believe that’s my colleagues’ perspective, and that’s how we’re pushing forward right now.”

South Carolina athletic director Ray Tanner said that other conferences choosing to postpone their seasons doesn’t directly affect how the SEC decides to proceed.

“I know we would love all the A5s to be playing. Obviously, the last two days it has been going in that direction. They hit a little pause button yesterday. That’s a decision they felt they needed to make, and now they are going to probably look toward the spring. I think spring is a challenge personally. It’s not impossible, but I think it’s very difficult to go in that direction. That’s just something they are looking at. We are approaching it from a different standpoint at this time. It could be something that we address, but it’s not where we are looking right now.”

One potential reason why the SEC appears to be stubborn when it comes to planning for the season to happen on time is political pressure. Unlike in a conference such as the Pac-12, university presidents and board members must contend with state legislators who want to see a season happen. On Tuesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis gave a press conference at Florida State alongside President John Thrasher and multiple players in support of playing a season this fall.

Such pressure has led to SEC administrators waiting to make any consequential decisions when it comes to the 2020 season.

The mantra within the SEC since the start of the pandemic has been that the league would wait as long as possible to make drastic decisions. Tuesday reinforced that. “We have used the same playbook the whole time,” Bjork said. “That is, let’s be patient. Let’s continue to gather information. If there are new data points that need to be entered into the equation, then we do that. We’ve got a medical advisory task force that that meets very frequently. And if they present new information to us that causes us to change or pivot or pause, then we listen to that.”

There’s also the question of what happens if, for one reason or another, the Big 12 and ACC decide to split from the SEC and join the other leagues in postponing the season. Speaking on the Dan Patrick Show Tuesday, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said that while the league could play alone, it probably wouldn’t be the best decision.

“I don’t think that’s the right direction, really,” Sankey told Patrick. “Could we? Certainly. There’s a difference between ‘Can you do something’ and ‘Should you do something’ in life. And so we’re actually set up with our schedule, with our own health protocols. We could, if if that was the circumstance, operate on our own. I’m not sure that’s the wisest direction. But, you know, a lot of interesting things have happened since March in college sports.”

One thing that could potentially put a damper on any plans the SEC has this fall are new reports showing a link between COVID-19 and a rare heart condition called myocarditis which, left untreated, can be fatal. People can develop myocarditis as a result of viral infections such as the flu or common cold, and fear over the long term effects of the condition were cited by both the Big Ten and Pac-12 in their decisions to cancel the fall season. It has been reported that at least five Big Ten players have been found to have myocarditis, as well as players in other conferences.

Bjork said this is why players will undergo a cardiac evaluation as part of the safety protocol, similar to the one they undergo when they first arrive on campus.

“Anytime a student-athlete arrives on campus, we we do a cardiac workup,” Bjork said. “And then, in order to return to any voluntary activity for any student-athlete — not just football, any student-athlete — they have to have the same cardiac workup. They’ve obviously got the COVID tests and then any positive cases, they have to have the same cardiac workup before they could return. So we’re taking every precaution that is a best practice at this point.”

It’s still unclear if given mass cancellations, the SEC will change its plans regarding the fall 2020 season. But for now, it’s clear the league believes its efforts to delay the season and create substantive safety protocols are enough to continue moving toward a fall season.

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Southeastern Conference planning to move forward with football season

It’s clear the league believes its efforts to delay the start and create safety protocols are enough to continue moving toward a fall season

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College football is splitting into factions.

On one side, the Big Ten and Pac-12 have canceled the fall 2020 sports season. On the other, the SEC, ACC and Big 12 are all moving toward the start of a football season this fall. The latter two voted Tuesday to continue with preparations for the season, and the former, which proactively delayed the start of the season until Sep. 26 to allow for increased flexibility, is content to wait out the next month and see how the situation changes, according to a report from Andy Staples of The Athletic.

Texas A&M athletic director Ross Bjork told Staples that delaying the season bought the league time, and the SEC advisory committee hasn’t given administrators new information that would indicate the 10-game conference schedule is untenable.

“We announced our football opponents on Friday, and all of the sudden the conversation changed over the weekend,” Bjork said. “But we’ve been presented no new data that says that we need to change our course right now. We bought ourselves time for a reason. We delayed the start of practice for a reason. We’ve got the right protocols. We have our testing protocols outline from last Thursday. We have a pathway. And we’re not to the finish line yet. But we can see it and we just need more patience. That’s my perspective. I believe that’s my colleagues’ perspective, and that’s how we’re pushing forward right now.”

South Carolina athletic director Ray Tanner said that other conferences choosing to postpone their seasons doesn’t directly affect how the SEC decides to proceed.

“I know we would love all the A5s to be playing. Obviously, the last two days it has been going in that direction. They hit a little pause button yesterday. That’s a decision they felt they needed to make, and now they are going to probably look toward the spring. I think spring is a challenge personally. It’s not impossible, but I think it’s very difficult to go in that direction. That’s just something they are looking at. We are approaching it from a different standpoint at this time. It could be something that we address, but it’s not where we are looking right now.”

One potential reason why the SEC appears to be stubborn when it comes to planning for the season to happen on time is political pressure. Unlike in a conference such as the Pac-12, university presidents and board members must contend with state legislators who want to see a season happen. On Tuesday, Gov. Ron DeSantis gave a press conference at Florida State alongside President John Thrasher and multiple players in support of playing a season this fall.

Such pressure has led to SEC administrators waiting to make any consequential decisions when it comes to the 2020 season.

The mantra within the SEC since the start of the pandemic has been that the league would wait as long as possible to make drastic decisions. Tuesday reinforced that. “We have used the same playbook the whole time,” Bjork said. “That is, let’s be patient. Let’s continue to gather information. If there are new data points that need to be entered into the equation, then we do that. We’ve got a medical advisory task force that that meets very frequently. And if they present new information to us that causes us to change or pivot or pause, then we listen to that.”

There’s also the question of what happens if, for one reason or another, the Big 12 and ACC decide to split from the SEC and join the other leagues in postponing the season. Speaking on the Dan Patrick Show Tuesday, SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said that while the league could play alone, it probably wouldn’t be the best decision.

“I don’t think that’s the right direction, really,” Sankey told Patrick. “Could we? Certainly. There’s a difference between ‘Can you do something’ and ‘Should you do something’ in life. And so we’re actually set up with our schedule, with our own health protocols. We could, if if that was the circumstance, operate on our own. I’m not sure that’s the wisest direction. But, you know, a lot of interesting things have happened since March in college sports.”

One thing that could potentially put a damper on any plans the SEC has this fall are new reports showing a link between COVID-19 and a rare heart condition called myocarditis which, left untreated, can be fatal. People can develop myocarditis as a result of viral infections such as the flu or common cold, and fear over the long term effects of the condition were cited by both the Big Ten and Pac-12 in their decisions to cancel the fall season. It has been reported that at least five Big Ten players have been found to have myocarditis, as well as players in other conferences.

Bjork said this is why players will undergo a cardiac evaluation as part of the safety protocol, similar to the one they undergo when they first arrive on campus.

“Anytime a student-athlete arrives on campus, we we do a cardiac workup,” Bjork said. “And then, in order to return to any voluntary activity for any student-athlete — not just football, any student-athlete — they have to have the same cardiac workup. They’ve obviously got the COVID tests and then any positive cases, they have to have the same cardiac workup before they could return. So we’re taking every precaution that is a best practice at this point.”

It’s still unclear if given mass cancellations, the SEC will change its plans regarding the fall 2020 season. But for now, it’s clear the league believes its efforts to delay the season and create substantive safety protocols are enough to continue moving toward a fall season.

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The Athletic proposes a Lions LB for Eagles CB trade

The Athletic’s Sheil Kapadia recently proposed the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles making a training camp trade, swapping back-seven defenders.

The Athletic’s Sheil Kapadia recently proposed the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles making a training camp trade, swapping back-seven defenders (paid).

Kapadia’s proposal: Even swap of Lions linebacker Jalen Reeves-Maybin for Eagles cornerback Sidney Jones.

For Reeves-Maybin, this would be an opportunity to shift back to a 43 scheme (the Eagles defensive coordinator is former-Lions coach Jim Schwartz and they run his 43 Wide-9 scheme) which would highlight his strengths. His speed to the football and instincts would offer him more opportunities to find the field on defense in this scheme, either in subpackage MIKE work or as an every-down WILL.

For the Lions, adding Jones would reunite him with new Lions defensive coordinator Cory Undlin (who was the Eagles defensive backs coach during Jones’ entire NFL career) and would give the Lions youth, depth, and familiarity on the outside.

Desmond Trufant, Jeff Okudah, and Justin Coleman are expected to start and Amani Oruwariye looks primed to be the third option on the outside but adding Jones — a former second-round pick out of Washington — would give the Lions another option familiar with Undlin’s approach to playing in the secondary.

At linebacker, the Lions can afford to lose some depth with Reggie Ragland now in the mix but they would surely feel the loss on special teams. Working in their favor is the heavy investment the Lions made on special teams this offseason, but losing arguably their best non-kicking special teamer would hurt.

Erik’s take

Typically I am opposed to trade proposal suggested by writers who cover the league instead of a specific team, but Kapadia is a former Eagles beat writer and I think he makes a strong case that would benefit both teams.

Losing Reeves-Maybin’s special teams’ contributions would hurt for sure, but he is firmly on the bubble this training camp. While the upside of Jones — who could temporarily step up if Trufant or Okudah struggle to adjust to the Lions’ scheme — would offer the Lions insurance and the most important position in this defensive scheme.

Is Jones an upgrade over Mike Ford/Darryl Roberts?

Can Reggie Ragland replace Reeves-Maybin on defense?

Can Miles Killebrew replace Reeves-Maybin on special teams?

If the answer yes to those questions, this is a trade the Lions would probably entertain — and I wouldn’t blame them.

Bills defense still among NFL’s best in The Athletic’s rankings

The Athletic ranks Buffalo Bills, NFL defenses.

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The Buffalo Bills defense continues to remain amongst the strongest units in the NFL heading into the 2020 regular season, according to The Athletic.

But no longer the best of the best.

Ranking the top defensive units in the league, The Athletic slotted the Bills as a top-10 unit, landing Buffalo at No. 8 overall. Despite another strong year in 2019, the Bills did interestingly slip from the sixth-best ranking a year ago. It appears there’s a few teams The Athletic felt very high on in terms of their improvements, which dropped the Bills and a few other teams.

First, here’s The Athletic’s explanation on Buffalo’s defense:

They had some things fall their way last season. The Bills faced the second-easiest slate of offenses and had the third-best injury luck of any defense. But this is a well-coached unit, and it’s obvious that the players know what Sean McDermott and defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier want from them. Tre’Davious White is one of the top corners in the league, so if he opts out, the Bills would drop out of the top-10 here. But they have a solid safety pairing with Micah Hyde and Jordan Poyer, and five of the six defensive backs who played at least 200 snaps last year are back. Buffalo has had some turnover in the front-seven and could really benefit from a young player like defensive tackle Ed Oliver or linebacker Tremaine Edmunds taking a step forward. But overall this group is positioned to once again be strong.

Evidently the Bills defense drops here because of something that’s out of their control. Buffalo can only play the hand they’re dealt and even if that’s an easier slate by comparison, it’s nothing their defense can control. But in that same sense, the Bills do play the fifth-hardest schedule in 2020, so Buffalo will have a chance to “prove-it” (again) in 2020.

In the rest of The Athletic’s rankings, the Chargers made a massive jump, from No. 21 to second. The Saints also leap from outside the top-10 (11th) to fourth. Such huge improvements from teams even knocked down a few other top defenses in the league from a year ago. The 49ers slid from second to sixth while the Patriots, previously ranked the No. 1 unit last season, is even behind the Bills at No. 9. Then again, opt outs were taken into consideration here and no one hard harsher ones than New England (Dont’a Hightower, Patrick Chung).

In terms of the rest of the AFC East, the Bills and Patriots are far-and-away the stronger, overall units. The Dolphins and Jets land at No. 27 and 29, respectively.

The lone team slotted ahead of the prior mentioned No. 2 Chargers is the Ravens.

 

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Bills offense moves up in The Athletic’s ranking

Here’s where The Athletic ranks the Buffalo Bills’ offense heading into 2020.

While the Buffalo Bills have plenty to still prove on offense during the 2020 NFL season, on paper, they’ve done enough to at least improve a bit in one outlet’s rankings.

The Athletic put every offense in the NFL head-to-head as we approach the regular season. In that, the Bills slotted in at the No. 17 spot. As compared to a year ago, it’s a bit of an improvement. Prior to last season Buffalo landed at the No. 21 spot. One can imagine some surprisingly good performances on the field a year ago helped the Bills improve, and of course, there’s the Stefon Diggs addition.

But here’s The Athletic’s latest thoughts on the Bills offense, which also includes one big possible prediction for a running back:

GM Brandon Beane has done an excellent job of positioning Josh Allen to succeed. The Bills return all five offensive linemen, and Stefon Diggs is their only new projected starter. He’ll team up with John Brown, Cole Beasley and Dawson Knox. Play-caller Brian Daboll has done a nice job of designing a QB-inclusive run game, and Devin Singletary has the potential to lead the league in rushing yards. Ultimately, though, Allen needs to improve his accuracy (35th in completion percentage above expectation) and cut down on his fumbles (14 last season) for the Bills’ offense to make a big leap.

By comparison, The Athletic is not expecting much pretty offense from the AFC East. At No. 17, the Bills have the highest-ranked group in the division in the outlet’s rantings, as Patriots are in the 23 spot and the Dolphins and Jets bring up the rear at 31 and 30, respectively.

In terms of the Bills, what else can you say? This is the year we’re going to find out if Allen can cut it, for better or for worse. It’s hard to pick another young quarterback in a better position thank him to succeed. But enough of Allen, how about the Singletary prediction? Leading the league in yards? We’ll sign up for that, certainly.

 

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Locked on Longhorns Podcast: Top 25, NFL Draft chat with Dane Brugler

SiriusXM host Ari Temkin joins to discuss the coaches poll. Plus an interview with Dane Brulger of the Athletic about the NFL Draft.

The newest edition of the Locked on Longhorns Podcast features host of the Big 12 Radio show on SiriusXM, Ari Temkin. The main topic of discussion in the shows first segment includes the newest Amway Coaches Poll. Where did Texas rank? It is too low or too high? Plus which team in the top five should be lower in the initial preseason poll. Ari discusses why he is excited about the coordinator hires for Texas.

The Athletic’s Dane Brugler joins in the second segment to discuss his thoughts on senior quarterback Sam Ehlinger. He gives some background on why he chose Ehlinger as one of his top five quarterbacks for the upcoming draft class. How high is the celing for Sam and what he highest grade he has heard. Samuel Cosmi and Derek Kerstetter were really good in 2019, where does Brugler see those players in terms of draft stock.

Defensively there are two players at this point on the draft radar. What does Joseph Ossai need to do to become a top 50 prospect in the 2021 NFL Draft if he decides to declare following his junior season. Does Caden Sterns need a monster season to get back into the conversation at safety if he declares? We also find out Dane Brugler’s thoughts on the subject of Sam Ehlinger vs Brock Purdy. Who is the better quarterback?

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NFL executives, coaches rank Chargers QB Tyrod Taylor heading into 2020 season

Chargers quarterback Tyrod Taylor is near the bottom in the league.

The Athletic’s Mike Sando released his annual NFL veteran quarterback tier rankings based on voting from 50 coaches and executives in the league.

Per Sando, coaches and evaluators placed each quarterback in one of five tiers, from best (Tier 1) to worst (Tier 5).

Once ballots were collected, results were averaged to create a ranking. The unanimous Tier 1 choices averaged 1.00, while the lowest-rated player averaged 4.30. Quarterbacks fell into the tiers in which they received the most votes.

Chargers QB Tyrod Taylor was placed in Tier 4, alongside Raiders’ Marcus Mariota, Dolphins’ Ryan Fitzpatrick, Broncos’ Drew Lock, Jaguars’ Gardner Minshew, Bears’ Mitch Trubisky, Redskins’ Dwayne Haskins, Patriots’ Jarrett Stidham and Panthers’ Kyle Allen.

A Tier 4 quarterback is described as an unproven player with some upside or a veteran who is ultimately best suited as a backup.

Taylor, the 30-year old signal-caller, is slated to take over as Los Angeles’ starter after Philip Rivers had the duties of doing so for the past 14 seasons.

While Taylor may not be as superior as Rivers in a handful of categories, there are a couple of things he does better, which are limiting turnovers and having the ability to win with his legs.

“Tyrod is not going to turn the ball over, but he is not going to throw it and he does not throw it (downfield) inside the numbers, the hash, because he can’t see,” a defensive coordinator said. “His intelligence and the way he can run the ball will keep him in games, but he is not going to beat you with his arm.”

Taylor gets scrutinized because a lot because he has been unable to find a stable starting job the past few seasons. But when he was a starter with the Bills – which was also under coach Anthony Lynn for a couple of seasons – he played well.

In both 2015 and 2016 when Taylor and Lynn were on Buffalo’s squad, the 30-year old threw for over 3,000 yards and 37 combined touchdowns as opposed to just 12 interceptions. On top of that, Taylor rushed for 1,148 yards and 10 touchdowns on 199 carries in both those seasons combined.

“He smoked us in Buffalo a few years ago,” a defensive coach said. “We couldn’t tackle him. I think he’s a legit starter. They are not going to be super shitty with him in there.

It’s Taylor’s job to lose. He will likely stay under center as long as he’s leading the team to wins. If the Chargers start to fall off the wagon, then rookie Justin Herbert will take the reins. The longer Taylor starts, the more Herbert will be able to develop.

Florida Gators 1979 football squad was among the worst in recent history

In a list from The Athletic ranking the 25 least dominant teams over the last 50 years, UF’s 0-10-1 team was ranked No. 25.

For the better part of the last three decades, Florida has been at the forefront of the college football world. Aside from a brief dip in the early 2000’s and a bigger decline during most of the 2010s, the Gators have been one of the preeminent programs in the nation.

But if you go back prior to Steve Spurrier’s hiring taking the team to another level, the school saw many seasons of frustration, none more so than in 1979. In a list from The Athletic ranking the 25 least dominant teams over the last 50 years, UF’s 0-10-1 team from coach Charlie Pell’s first season was ranked No. 25.

It was the worst season in program history in terms of total losses. Aside from a 7-7 tie against Georgia Tech, Florida lost every game, including blowout losses at the hands of Kentucky (31-3) and Alabama (40-0). Six of its 10 losses came by double-digit points with an average point differential of 14.5.

The Gators were in the bottom 10 in offense, averaging just 9.6 points per game. Defensively, they didn’t fare much better, sitting outside the top 100 allowing 24.1 points per game. In 11 games, the team turned the ball over an astounding 34 times.

Pell went on to achieve success over the next five years at Florida before his coaching legacy was tarnished by NCAA violations, and he was fired after the school received sanctions.

Though the team saw some recent struggles prior to the hiring of coach Dan Mullen in 2018, Gators fans can rejoice at the fact that the days of winless seasons appear to be a thing of the distant past.

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