Tag: The Athletic

Kyle Pitts the top tight end in 2021 class, per The Athletic

Florida Gators tight end Pitts is expected by many to be one of the top tight ends in the country in 2020 and The Athletic agrees.

UF tight end Kyle Pitts is garnering himself quite a bit of offseason attention. Coming off a stellar sophomore season in which he made 54 catches for 649 yards and five touchdowns, Pitts is expected by many to be one of the top tight ends in the country in 2020.

In an article from The Athletic comparing the nation’s top draft-eligible tight ends, Pitts was ranked in the No. 1 spot. He was praised for his “freak athleticism,” as his agility is comparable to that of a smaller receiver. He was also praised for his route-running, which was on full display in his matchup with LSU corner Derek Stingley Jr., in which he won most of his battles.

However, The Athletic also said he needs to improve on his finishing skills to solidify himself as the top tight end prospect. Pitts drops one of every eight catchable passes, a rate that needs to improve for quarterback Kyle Trask‘s top target. The No. 2 tight end in the class, Penn State’s Pat Freiermuth, drops one of every 16 catchable passes.

Still, Pitts was deemed to have first-round potential and was compared to longtime NFL tight end Jared Cook. If he can work on his consistency and blocking, he has all the physical tools to have a dominant season in 2020.

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Andrew Berry already getting respect from agents in anonymous polling from The Athletic

Andrew Berry already getting respect from agents in anonymous polling from The Athletic

We have yet to see his first product take the field yet, but new Browns GM Andrew Berry is already garnering considerable respect among some of the most important judges of his job performance: agents.

Berry fared quite well in a survey of anonymous NFL agents conducted by Ben Standig of The Athletic. The survey covered a wide range of NFL topics, but perception and evaluation of the front offices was a key point. And in that realm, Berry is impressing early.

Berry’s moves helped the Browns collect the third-most votes for the NFL team having the best offseason. The Buccaneers and Dolphins were the only teams ranked above Cleveland, and it’s tied directly to Berry.

“I think (first-year general manager) Andrew Berry is a great mind. On a personal level, I like him. We have great conversations. I just think the way he deals with people, his football knowledge,” Standig quotes one agent.

Berry also got the third-most votes for the most trustworthy GM. That’s a remarkable showing of respect and integrity for Berry just months into his job.

A second FCS conference announces a cancellation of its fall athletic competition

After July 8’s news of the Ivy League cancelling its fall athletic competition, a second FCS conference has followed suit and it is the…

After July 8’s news of the Ivy League cancelling its fall athletic competition, a second FCS conference has followed suit and it is the Patriot League.

The conference is the first that participates in the FCS playoffs to shut down their football season and is the next piece in a continuing long line of news pointing towards an abridged, postponed or even completely cancelled fall college football season.

Nicole Auerbach, a senior college football writer for The Athletic, continued to describe the difference between how the Ivy League and Patriot League went about altering their athletic calendar.

And if all of that wasn’t enough, the ACC also announced today that it is postponing its virtual ACC Football Kickoff media event until further notice.

A few weeks ago many signs pointed towards college football starting on time and with a normal schedule.

Now, after two second division conferences announced a cancellation of their fall athletic seasons and several Power Five conferences moved to a conference-only schedule, that season is looking more and more in question.

Report: JUCO football will move to a spring season

Max Olson of The Athletic reported today that the National Junior College Athletic Association is expected to announce Monday that…

Max Olson of The Athletic reported today that the National Junior College Athletic Association is expected to announce Monday that it will be moving its football season to the spring.

The news comes after conferences including the Big Ten and Pac-12 announcing conference-only schedules for the fall season and the Ivy League cancelling their falls seasons entirely.

Though there is still time before the season is scheduled to kick off in early September, there are now more and more indications of the season being pushed back or not being able to happen at all.

You may remember before March Madness when the Ivy League cancelled their conference tournament days before other conferences were forced to do the same.

If that trend means anything, the likelihood of college football being cancelled this fall seems to be increasing every time news breaks about schedule changes and cancellations.

Here’s what Olson had to say about JUCO football and its decision to move to a spring season:

The National Junior College Athletic Association is expected to announce Monday that it will move to a spring football season, two head coaches told The Athletic. Teams would play up to eight games with preseason practices beginning on March 1 and the regular season beginning at the end of March and extending through the end of May.

NJCAA president and CEO Dr. Christopher Parker and the NJCAA’s presidential advisory council announced their recommendation to move the majority of its sports to spring seasons on Thursday. The NJCAA board of regents will meet Monday to determine the official plan. Parker confirmed to The Athletic that an eight-game spring football schedule is “the direction it would be heading in.”

“We would like to play football this fall,” Parker said. “But I think from a national perspective, moving it is probably the right decision holistically.”

The recruiting impact of this news aside, there seems to be higher and higher chance each day that there will be no Wisconsin football this fall let alone none all year.

How this may affect the NFL draft, player eligibility and the NFL dreams of players around the country is an issue far-off in the distance. But if the NJCAA is logistically able to play a spring season it would not be surprising if FBS conferences followed suit and found a way to play the 2020-21 season.

The Athletic is reporting that Juco football will move to the spring

The Athletic is reporting that the NJCAA is close to moving football to the spring. They would be the first league to do so.

In the ever-changing COVID-19 situation there have been reports of leagues cancelling football like the Ivy League. The Big Ten and PAC 12 conferences have decided to cancel all non-conference games. We await the announcements from the ACC, Big 12 and SEC to follow suit. At least that is the current expectation.

What about the Junior College circuit? How are they handling fall sports, specifically football? According to Max Olson of the Athletic, Juco football will be played in the spring*.

*Story requires paid subscription

The National Junior College Athletic Association is expected to announce Monday that it will move to a spring football season, two head coaches told The Athletic. Teams would play up to eight games with preseason practices beginning on March 1 and the regular season beginning at the end of March and extending through the end of May.

The NJCAA is the first college league to move their football season to the spring officially.

“We would like to play football this fall,” Parker said. “But I think from a national perspective, moving it is probably the right decision holistically.”

This is unfamiliar territory on the college recruiting front. As Max Olson mentions in his article, schools will have to make decisions on players they won’t even play this upcoming year. Almost a blind decision for major universities. The Longhorns are no strangers to Juco recruiting but this will be new for all parties involved.

Tyler Junior College head coach Thomas Rocco mentioned trying to have a few scrimmages in the fall. That would put some of these players on film and help the major colleges make decisions.

The Athletic lists Florida’s Kyle Trask among best 2021 draft-eligible quarterbacks

The highest-ranked senior to appear on the list, Florida’s Kyle Trask slotted in at No. 4 noting his mental approach as his strongest asset.

Headlined by LSU Tiger Joe Burrow, the reigning Heisman Trophy winner, and followed closely by Alabama standout Tua Tagovailoa and Oregon Duck Justin Herbert, three quarterbacks were selected in the first six picks of the 2020 National Football League Draft.

The Athletic’s Dave Brugler peeked ahead at the likely chart-topping names in the 2021 class, releasing his rankings of the five best draft-eligible signal-callers on July 9 (subscription required).

For each prospect, Brugler identified their best trait, as well as an area they must improve.

Not surprisingly, Clemson Tigers junior Trevor Lawrence occupied the No. 1 spot on his list. Viewed as a future top pick since he claimed the starting job from Kelly Bryant in 2018, Lawrence’s athletic arm talent was noted as his best trait, while Brugler said he would like to see the Cartersville (Georgia) product improve his placement consistency.

Underclassmen made up the No. 2 & 3 spots, as well, in the form of North Dakota State Bison redshirt sophomore Trey Lance and Ohio State Buckeyes junior Justin Fields, respectively.

The highest-ranked senior to appear on the list, Florida’s Kyle Trask slotted in at No. 4. Noting his mental approach as his strongest asset, here is what Brugler had to say about the positives in Trask’s game.

“The first takeaway from Trask’s tape is his mental grasp of the position. He understands timing, trajectory and touch while reading the entire field and working his progressions. Trask’s ability to win with his mind is impressive, but it is even more encouraging when considering his relative inexperience (last season was his first as a full-time starter since his freshman year of high school).”

As for the area the Manvel, Texas export needs to improve, Brugler pointed to his tendency to attempt low-percentage passes.

“Trask has impressive tape considering his inexperience, but his lack of on-field reps also shows at times, especially when it comes to low-percentage throws.

“While he isn’t careless with the football, he can be overconfident at times, forcing throws into heavy coverage. Trask has good-but-not-great velocity on his throws, which also lowers his margin for error. Entering his final college season, scouts want to see Trask eliminate those low-percentage throws.”

Rounding out the top-five was Texas Longhorns senior Sam Ehlinger, a player who has served as a starter since his freshman year in Austin.

Throwing for 2,941 yards, 25 touchdowns and just seven interceptions while guiding the Gators to an 8-2 record in his starts a year ago, Trask is aiming to become the program’s first quarterback to be selected in the NFL Draft since Tim Tebow was chosen by the Denver Broncos at No. 25 in 2010.

Tentatively, Trask and Florida are slated to begin their 2020 campaign at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on September 5 against the Eastern Washington Eagles. As we have seen with the Big Ten (B1G) announcing a conference-only schedule on July 9, there is a possibility — perhaps a strong possibility — this will change.

Southeastern Conference (SEC) athletic directors are scheduled to meet with the league’s commissioner, Greg Sankey, in Birmingham, Alabama on July 13 to discuss their options for the upcoming season, with a decision and a formal announcement expected later in the month.

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Big Ten opts for conference-only football schedule this coming fall

The decision by the Big Ten is expected to create a domino effect throughout the college football landscape as others are assured to follow.

The Big Ten athletic conference announced on Thursday that its member schools will play a conference-only schedule for the upcoming 2020 football season.

Word of the decision leaked earlier in the day when The Athletic’s college football senior writer Nicole Auerbach revealed the news on Twitter. USA TODAY Sports later corroborated the report with multiple people who have intimate knowledge of the decision.

The full press release from the conference is included below.

We are facing uncertain and unprecedented times, and the health, safety and wellness of our student-athletes, coaches, game officials, and others associated with our sports programs and campuses remain our number one priority.

To that end, the Big Ten Conference announced today that if the Conference is able to participate in fall sports (men’s and women’s cross country, field hockey, football, men’s and women’s soccer, and women’s volleyball) based on medical advice, it will move to Conference-only schedules in those sports. Details for these sports will be released at a later date, while decisions on sports not listed above will continue to be evaluated. By limiting competition to other Big Ten institutions, the Conference will have the greatest flexibility to adjust its own operations throughout the season and make quick decisions in real-time based on the most current evolving medical advice and the fluid nature of the pandemic.

This decision was made following many thoughtful conversations over several months between the Big Ten Council of Presidents and Chancellors, Directors of Athletics, Conference Office staff, and medical experts including the Big Ten Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Big Ten Sports Medicine Committee.

In addition, the Conference announced that summer athletic activities will continue to be voluntary in all sports currently permitted to engage in such activities. Furthermore, Big Ten student-athletes who choose not to participate in intercollegiate athletics at any time during the summer and/or the 2020-21 academic year due to concerns about COVID-19 will continue to have their scholarship honored by their institution and will remain in good standing with their team.

While Big Ten member institutions continue to rely on the most up-to-date medical information to establish the best protocols for voluntary workouts on their campuses, in compliance with local and state regulations, the Conference is working with the Big Ten Task Force for Emerging Infectious Diseases and the Big Ten Sports Medicine Committee to finalize Conference-wide protocols.

As we continue to focus on how to play this season in a safe and responsible way, based on the best advice of medical experts, we are also prepared not to play in order to ensure the health, safety and wellness of our student-athletes should the circumstances so dictate.

The absence of non-conference opponents on a Power Five league schedule could have a big impact on smaller programs that rely on “guarantee games” at major schools for a big part of the athletic budget. It is unclear whether those contracts would call for a penalty payment.

The decision by the Big Ten is expected to create a domino effect throughout the college football landscape, as other conferences are almost assured to follow in the conference’s footsteps. The first league expected to follow suit is the Pac-12, which Auerbach reported in a later tweet is expected to move to a conference-only schedule in the coming days. Stadium Network college football insider Brett McMurphy also reported that the ACC is also strongly considering the change.

At best, the 2020 season will be a shadow of the sport that brings college communities together every fall. However, the most likely outcome at this point is that fans will be lucky if any sports are played at all.

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Bills’ New Era Field ranked in bottom-half of NFL stadiums

New Era Field, home of the Buffalo Bills, in bottom-half of The Athletic’s NFL stadium rankings.

New Era Field, the Ralph, Rich Stadium, whichever you prefer, has long been the sacred ground for Bills Mafia.

Few fans of the Buffalo Bills would ever call it anything but the best game-day experience in NFL. Sure, most can recognize it’s not a modern-day mammoth of a stadium, but there’s something about it. The tailgating, the energy, it’s hard to replicate.

But apparently such circumstances were not held in very high-regard by some writers at The Athletic. Ranking NFL stadiums from first-to-worst overall, the Bills landed at No. 24 overall out of the current 31 venues in the league.

Perhaps the halftime spread of food or post-game chicken wings weren’t up to spat for these folks, but maybe we can level in one way with this crew: It’s hard to get the full experience in a press box. What brings Bills Mafia together? The tailgate outside the game, plus the unrelenting love for their team. Won’t be finding those things when your No.1 concern is (understandably) a deadline.

Despite some older and similar homes such as the Packers’ Lambeau Field and the Chiefs’ Arrowhead Stadium finishing at fourth and fifth, respectively, the Bills’ home didn’t receive the same love. Overall, the Vikings’ home, U.S. Bank Stadium, edged out the Seahawks’ CenturyLink Field for the top spot.

 

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The Athletic writers rank Seahawks CenturyLink Field 2nd-best in NFL

NFL writers for the Athletic have voted and ranked the Seattle Seahawks’ CenturyLink Field as the second-best stadium in the league.

Seattle Seahawks fans know one thing for certain, their team plays in one of the greatest stadiums in the National Football League.

Writers for the media outlet, The Athletic, seem to agree, ranking CenturyLink Field as the second-best venue in the NFL, behind only Minnesota’s U.S. Bank Stadium.

“This stadium tied for the most top-five votes but fell one first-place vote short in the tiebreaker,” Jon Machot notes in his post. “Ten NFL stadiums have opened since CenturyLink, but it competes well with all of them. It doesn’t have a roof, but it gets as loud, if not louder, than any of the stadiums that do.”

The 31 writers, all who cover the NFL, took a look at the top five and bottom five stadiums around the league taking into account a number of factors in determining the best of the best.

Whether Seahawks fans will get a chance to prove CenturyLink Field can live up to its ranking this season remains to be seen in light of the rising number of COVID-19 cases around the nation.

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Notre Dame Named 11th-Most Dominant Program of Past 50 Years

A story from The Athletic has sought to determine college football’s 25 most dominant programs over the past 50 years.

A story from The Athletic has sought to determine college football’s 25 most dominant programs over the past 50 years. Rankings in 23 categories were averaged together to construct the list. All 65 Power Five teams, plus BYU, were eligible for consideration. When the list was completed, Notre Dame made the cut at 11th with a dominance score of 7.26 (Alabama, which topped the list, had a dominance score of minus 6.22).

In the past half-century, Notre Dame has three national championships, a .689 winning percentage and an average national rank of 10.26. Over the previous 50 years, the Irish earned eight national titles and the country’s best winning percentage at .760. If this list had been constructed for the 1920-1969 era using the same criteria, it’s likely Notre Dame would be at the top.

Alas, the past quarter-century hasn’t seen many dominant Irish teams. The 2012 and 2018 teams came close to national titles, but they were anomalies among seasons that either disappointed or featured losses in big games that could have pushed the program over the top had they turned out differently. The Notre Dame entry on this list concludes by saying that the Irish remain prestigious and capable of being great, but the true glory days continue to become more distant over time.

It’s hard to disagree with the ranking. While we should be grateful that the Irish are as relevant as ever, they aren’t the intimidating force they were when our parents and grandparents were growing up. If we’re lucky, the next 50 years of college football will be kinder to Notre Dame.