Tag: winners and losers

Florida named a loser at NFL draft declaration deadline by 247Sports

Several Florida players are headed to the NFL this offseason, and that puts Billy Napier and the Gators in a tough spot.

Monday was the deadline for players to declare for the 2023 NFL draft, and 247Sports wasted little time declaring the Florida Gators as one of the primary losers of the cycle.

Losing quarterback [autotag]Anthony Richardson[/autotag] was “potentially unavoidable,” but that doesn’t even consider the losses of First Team All-American right guard [autotag]O’Cyrus Torrence[/autotag], starting left tackle [autotag]Richard Gouraige[/autotag] and leading receiver [autotag]Justin Shorter[/autotag]. Gouraige and Torrence anchored an elite line for the Gators in 2022, and Shorter was a consistent threat and veteran presence on the team.

Richardson’s departure hurts the most, though. He had several years of college eligibility left, and most scouts agree he could have used another year to hone his talents. Still, money talks, and Florida’s recent NIL struggles suggest that they couldn’t compete with the numbers linked to a potential first-round pick.

On defense, Florida is losing another underclassman that could have benefitted from one more year in the SEC, defensive lineman [autotag]Gervon Dexter Sr[/autotag]. Much like Richardson, there’s a lack of consistency on tape for Dexter and it will hurt him in the draft process. Replacing an explosive talent like him isn’t easy either. A former five-star recruit, Dexter leaves Florida with the feeling of what could have been.

The other major loss on defense is linebacker [autotag]Ventrell Miller[/autotag], who is often described as the heart and soul of the team. Losing him in 2021 was disastrous for Florida and the team looked lost without him on the field against USF this season. Someone is going to have to step up and take over Miller’s role in 2023.

The Gators are also losing both starting safeties to the draft, [autotag]Rashad Torrence II[/autotag] and [autotag]Trey Dean III[/autotag]. With [autotag]Tre’Vez Johnson[/autotag] transferring to Missouri, Florida will need to replace three starting defensive backs next year.

Billy Napier will work with the pieces he has, and it’s hard to blame college players for taking their shot at the pros, but it’s undeniable that Florida is in a much worse spot than it was just a few months ago, at least from a depth standpoint. The transfer portal will have to provide some answers here, but Napier might let his first recruiting class get some early playing time as well.

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Winners and losers from day one of the early signing period

Here is a look at the winners and losers of the first day of the early signing period. 

College football’s early signing period kicked off Wednesday as the majority of the top players in the class of 2023 signed their letters of intent.

The day featured lots of exciting headlines, such as five-star flips, tight recruiting battles wrapping up and shocking commitments. Some teams added critical pieces to their recruiting classes while others missed out on sought-after prospects.

Three blue bloods sit atop the recruiting rankings as Alabama leads the pack, with Georgia and Texas following. Nick Saban looks to be headed to another No. 1 class as the Alabama head coach.

The Longhorns ended the afternoon with a big head-to-head recruiting win over rival Oklahoma for EDGE Tausili Akana. The marks back to back weeks Texas snagged an elite linebacker over a rival school.

Oregon made a significant splash by adding two five-stars, safety Peyton Bowden and EDGE Matayo Uiagalelei. In addition, the Ducks flipped four-star quarterback Austin Novosad from Baylor and cornerback Daylen Austin from LSU.

Here is a look at the winners and losers of the first day of the early signing period.

Winners and losers from an off-the-wall rivalry week in college football

The regular season is already at an end as we react to an action-packed rivalry week.

I simply refuse to believe the 2022 college football regular season is already behind us. It feels like just yesterday we were reacting to the handful of Week 0 appetizer contests!

Luckily, this year’s rivalry week was a good one. It was headlined by yet another massive rendition of The Game between Michigan and Ohio State with Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff stakes on the line.

Elsewhere, we got more clarity in the CFP race as No. 1 Georgia and No. 4 TCU capped off perfect regular seasons while USC got one step closer to finding itself in the final four. Clemson saw its nation-leading home winning streak come to a close on Saturday, opening the door for non-champion Buckeyes or Alabama team to sneak in with a bit of chaos.

A lot could still change depending on the results from next weekend’s championship games, but for the last time in the regular season, here are the winners and losers from a wild weekend of college football.

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Week 12 Winners and Losers: Tennessee’s collapse highlights a nearly Earth-shattering weekend of college football

We came very close to seeing a major shakeup in the College Football Playoff race on Saturday.

We were so close.

Week 12 very nearly became the most consequential in a season that has featured some absolutely wild weekends. One team in the top five lost in Tennessee — which was demolished by Spencer Rattler and South Carolina — and three more almost suffered the same fate.

Both Michigan and Ohio State were on the ropes against Illinois and Maryland, respectively, and needed comebacks to stay undefeated. TCU, meanwhile, pulled out perhaps its most improbable victory of the season to remain perfect.

Still, considering how much of a snooze-fest the weekend before rivalry week often becomes, it’s hard to complain about the product we received on Saturday. Here are the winners and losers from Week 12 with a focus on College Football Playoff implications as we prepare for the final week of the regular season.

Cadillac shifts gears at Auburn and the Pac-12 flames out: Winners and losers from Week 11 of the college football season

We’re getting down to crunch time as CFP and conference stakes are becoming clear.

The regular season continues to wind toward a close, and we only have two more weeks of play before conference championship weekend. Several of those matchups are already set in stone — namely the SEC and ACC Championships, which were clinched on Saturday — but others will come down to the wire over the last couple of weeks.

Compared to a Week 10 that was filled with high-profile matchups, Week 11 didn’t do too much to impact the national picture, though we did see one top-10 team go down in No. 6 Oregon. With the Ducks’ loss, the Pac-12’s playoff hopes likely evaporated (more on that later).

Regardless, we only have a few more of these Saturdays left, so it’s important to appreciate them while we can. As always, here are the winners and losers from a November weekend of college football action.

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Week 10 Winners and Losers: Pivotal SEC duels shake up College Football Playoff race

Brian Kelly may have something to say to y’all.

We knew going into Week 10 that we would leave it with a lot more clarity regarding both the conference and College Football Playoff races.

An action-packed slate of games, headlined by a pair of top-10 SEC showdowns, didn’t disappoint. Tennessee’s perfect start to the season and SEC title hopes came to an unceremonious end in Athens, Georgia, on Saturday night with a loss to the Bulldogs, but another conference upstart managed to pull a major upset.

LSU stunned Alabama in Baton Rouge with a 32-31 win in overtime thanks to a gutsy two-point conversion call from first-year coach Brian Kelly, all but eliminating the Crimson Tide from SEC West and CFP contention in the process. Now, Kelly’s team has the inside track in the division and ostensibly remains a factor in the playoff discussion.

Elsewhere, Clemson was dominated in South Bend by Notre Dame, snapping the Tigers’ FBS-best 14-game winning streak.

There was certainly a lot to make sense of this weekend, but we’re going to give it a go. Here are the winners and losers from Week 10.

Tennessee rolls again, Auburn fires Bryan Harsin and whatever that was in Charlottesville: Winners and losers from Week 9 of the college football season

Which is spookier: Tennessee’s offense or Bryan Harsin’s buyout?

We have been absolutely spoiled over the past few weeks of the 2022 college football season. By comparison, Week 9 felt a bit ho-hum.

The biggest games of the day proved to be a bit disappointing. Two top-five teams in Georgia and Ohio State struggled briefly in division showdowns before pulling away, though we did see two top-10 teams go down as No. 9 Oklahoma State and No. 10 Wake Forest were absolutely obliterated in upset losses.

The Bryan Harsin saga at Auburn also finally came to an end as the school pulled the plug on the second-year coach’s tenure just 21 games in.

As we prepare to enter the final month of the regular season, here are the winners and losers from Week 9.

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College Football Winners and Losers: Several undefeated teams perfect no more after Week 8

Three undefeated teams saw their winning streaks end in Week 8.

The absolute chaos that characterized Week 7 of the college football season is unlikely to be topped in 2022, but Week 8 served as a worthy follow-up.

Once again, we saw some major shakeups at the top of the sport. Three Power Five teams that entered the weekend undefeated now have a blemish on their resumes. With only six teams remaining unbeaten heading into Week 9 and the initial College Football Playoff rankings a week away from being released, the postseason picture continues to get clearer.

As we always do at the conclusion of a weekend chock-full of college football action, let’s take a look at the winners and losers from Week 8.

Week 7 Winners and Losers: Rocky Top Triumph headlines a pivotal college football Saturday

They say the cigar smoke is still wafting out of Neyland Stadium.

Once or twice a season (if we’re lucky), this sport rewards us with an absolute gem of a Saturday: Wall-to-wall chaos, major upsets, the whole nine yards.

Week 7 was one of those special ones.

It included what was hands down the game of the season so far — and isn’t likely to be topped — as Tennessee stunned Alabama for its first win in the series since Nick Saban took over in 2007. The fans stormed the field at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville as the Vols announced their return to the top tier of the sport.

That was just one of several instant classics from the best weekend of football we’ve been treated to so far this season. Now that the dust has settled, here are the winners and losers from Week 7.

Interim coaches shine, nepotism doesn’t: Winners and losers from Week 6 of the college football season

What’s going on in Iowa continues to be embarrassing for college football.

Aside from the opening weekend, Week 6 delivered some of the most high-profile action we’ve seen all year, including three games between ranked opponents.

That didn’t result in a ton of chaos, unfortunately. The top 10 of the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, for instance, remains unchanged entering Week 7. But that doesn’t mean it was devoid of excitement.

There were entire day was packed with great games throughout the morning, afternoon and evening blocks. As someone who tries to watch as many games as humanly possible on Saturdays, it was honestly a bit stressful.

Let’s try to make sense of all the action as we’ve now reached the halfway point of the regular season. Here are the winners and losers from Week 6 of the college football season.