College Football Every Day - Thoughts on Daily News

/

12/31:

  • Glad to see Purdue win the Music City bowl yesterday, and get their 9th win of the season, but I feel bad for Tennessee regarding their last play. I can see why the official “stopped” play because of forward progress, but the ball lcrossed the goal-line before he actually blew the whistle. No matter what, the Vols had a successful season!

  • The Mayo Bowl concluded a disappointing season for UNC, but the game had some highlights: Nice Uniform combo between the teams, Shane Beamer’s mayo bath (not sure his father would have done it), and the bit with Mike Golic, Jr. and Anish Shroff dipping an oreo into mayo and eating it.

  • I’m happy that the Sun bowl didn’t get canceled, but after Miami pulled out of the game, I would have rather have SMU in their home state playing Washington State today than Central Michigan.

  • My three degrees of separation tonight from Michigan State quarterback Payton Thorne: Deb and I will be visiting Paul and Bev Krohn tonight. Paul was the head coach and athletic director at Elmhurst University - a Division III school out in Illinois. Paul tried to hire Jeff Thorne away from North Central, but Jeff stayed and eventually succeeded his father to become head coach of the Cardinals. Thorne and his team would win the Division III National Championship in 2019. And his son, Payton, is currently the starting quarterback for Michigan State.

12/30:

  • Nice to see the Terps handle the depleted Hokies yesterday afternoon! Might be a different story when they start a four-game series in 2016. Also, 2021 was Maryland’s first winning season since 2014, their first bowl win (East Carolina) since 2010, and their first bowl win over a Power 5 program (Purdue) in fifteen years!

  • With Clemson’s win over Iowa State, Dabo Swinney picked up his 150th win, while Bob Stoops got his first win in five years - and his 191st overall. I wouldn’t mind seeing him return to the coaching ranks and top 200 career wins!

  • When North Carolina meets South Carolina shortly, this will be their first-ever postseason matchup! The two teams have shared conference membership twice - in the Southern Conference (1922-52) and the ACC (1953-70), and the Tar Heels lead the all-time series 35-19-4.

  • Have to admit, I am surprised that both Tennessee and Purdue made bowl games this year, so it should be a fun game to watch. If th eVols win, it will be their 30th bowl win in 54 tries.

12/29:

  • A little more than a hour until Maryland takes on Virginia Tech in the Pinstripe Bowl. Optimism at the beginning of the season will turn into disappointment if the Terps can’t beat the Hokies today. VT has had transfers, opt outs, and injuries - so Maryland should take advantage of the lack of experience on the Hokie sideline.

  • Had to amend my Female Mascots piece this afternoon after watching the Houston vs. Auburn bowl game yesterday. On the Cougar sideline I saw two mascots!

  • Nice to see Air Force beat Louisville yesterday - and it was the passing game that made the difference! Maybe it is just me,but I have enjoyed all the bowl games so far for one reason or another.

  • Felt bad for the Wolfpack when UCLA had to postpone their game. NC State had a chance for a 10-win season for just the second time in school history.

  • Preseason polls indicated that we could have seen Iowa State play Clemson - but in a far different scenario than today’ Cheez-It Bowl!

12/15:

  • Next couple of days will be interesting because national signing day is here - and we will see how many kids keep their commitment with all of the recent coaching changes. Biggest surprise of the day is Deion Sanders getting No. 2 overall prospect Travis Hunter flipped from his alma mater.

  • The Bowl season begins on Friday, but lets not forget that the FCS Semifinal between No. 3 seed James Madison and No. 2 seed North Dakota State will be on ESPN2 on Friday night. Since making their first of twelve straight FCS playoff appearances in 2010, the Bison have a 30-1 record inside the Fargodome. The only team to beat them: James Madison in the same semifinal round in 2016.

  • Also on Friday night, North Central, the 2019 Champion, will defend their title against the 2018 winner Mary Hardin-Baylor. UMHB head coach Pete Fredenburg has compiled a 230-29 record in 24 seasons as the only head coach in the history of the school, while North Central’s 24-game winning streak is curently the longest in all divisions of college football.

12/11:

  • At this point, 25 FBS teams will have new coaches for the 2022 season. Two teams are still looking to find their man - and Oregon filling their position could possibly create a couple more openings before the new year.

  • Clemson experienced a down year for them, but the month of December has not been kind to them whatsoever. Dabo will report to a new AD (or does the AD report to Dabo? lol) and he will have to overhaul his coaching staff after losing both Coordinators. The recruiting class could also take a hit with these changes. We’ll see how good Dabo is now…

  • One last thought about coaching changes…Spence Rattler entered the transfer portal after he had been benched in favor of Caleb Williams by Lincoln Riley starting with the Texas game. If Rattler ends up with UCLA (provided Chip Kelly is still the Bruin HC), he will be motivated to stick it to Riley - especially if Williams moves to the Trojans.

  • Have to say that I wasn’t surprised to see James Madison take care of business against Montana last night…

12/10:

  • Written daily thoughts have been few and far between recently, but the game seems to be on my mind every waking hour. In fact I have started getting some of my documents turned over into 2022 - mostly coaching changes, rivalry games, and even some scheduling, but before a complete change of the calendar…

  • Tonight, Montana visits James Madison in a postseason showdown between two of the best teams in FCS football in the 21st century. A look at the numbers tells a tale of evenly matched programs heading into tonight’s contest - stiff defenses that rank among the nation's best and big-play making ability on the offensive side of the ball. Here’s to hoping that the Griz win on the road!

  • Tomorrow, Divsions II and III will have their semifinal games. Perhaps the biggest story to me will be - can the Shepherd Rams win in the final seconds for the third straight game? I’m pretty sure that the Ferris State Bulldogs will not be so obliging.

  • Lastly, and most importantly, the GREATEST rivalry in ALL of sports is being played today at 3:00 pm. My loyalty usually leans towards the Black Knights, even though I have visited the Naval Academy many times, but for today’s game I will say this for my Dad (I love you!)…Go Navy, Beat Army!

12/4:

  • Championship Weekend isn’t as exciting as Rivalry Week, but it’s obviously crucial to those who want to make the 2021 CFB Playoff. Throw in coaching changes, transfer portal entries, bowl invitations, and lower division playoff games - and it has to be one of the busiest weeks of the season.

  • Congratulations to the Utah Utes for winning the Pac-12 Championship for the first time with their 38-10 win over Oregon. Their opponent in the Rose Bowl will either be Ohio State or Iowa - either of which will be a great matchup.

  • Kudos as well to UTSA for winning their first-ever Conference Championship! The next challenge will be to get their first-ever bowl win. Maybe they will get thechance to face BYU in the Independence Bowl.

  • Nice to see different teams in the Championship Games - that don’t include Oklahoma, Clemson, or Ohio State! My favorite matchup is Michigan vs. Iowas, but how can you not love Alabama vs. Georgia? Pitt vs. Wake Forest will also be a fun game to follow.

  • Big difference in attendance numbers in last night’s FCS Playoff games: Just over 5k watched Villanova get by Holy Cross, while 24k saw Montana beat Eastern Washington.

11/13:

  • My eyes will be on Division III games this afternoon, but I can’t lose sight of some key division/conference (and even playoff) games in the FBS: Oklahoma at Baylor, Michigan at Penn State, Minnesota at Iowa, UAB at Marshall, Texas A&M at Ole Miss, NC State at Wake Forest (not Clemson), and two Mountain West games: Nevada at San Diego State and Utah State at San Jose State.

  • I mentioned Minnesota at Iowa, so I can’t help but talk about the trophy at stake as well! The Floyd of Rosedale is a bronze statue of a pig honoring an actual pig. The original animal was the price of a bet on the 1935 game between Minnesota Governor Floyd Olson and Iowa Governor Clyde Herring. The pig, a prize hog, hailed from Rosedale, Iowa. The Golden Gophers won the real pig in a 13-6 decision, ultimately finishing the season 8-0 and capturing the second of their three consecutive national titles. (Info courtesy of FBSchedules)

  • A couple of interesting FBS/FCS matchups this week that have garnered my attention: UMass at Maine - two former Yankee Conference teams that played every year from 1958 thru 2011 - a period of 54 years. The Minutemen lead the all-time series 41-18-1, but the Black Bears have won 4 of the last 6 meetings. And Bucknell at Army - Have played only six times (three since 1927), but met for the first time in 1900, with Army winning that game 18-10. The Bison have yet to beat the Black Knights - and they won’t do it this year as well.

11/12:

  • The game last night between North Carolina and Pitt was a solid matchup of future NFL quarterbacks as well as two of the finest uniforms around. The weather wasn’t good at the end, but it was an overtime game with a great result for the Panthers. Excited to see if Pitt can now hit ten wins this year as they haven’t topped eight wins since going 10-3 in 2009.

  • The second most-played FCS rivalry turns 143, with Yale leading 78-54-10, but, perhaps more importantly, first place in the Ivy League is on the line (Dartmouth also is 4-1). Yale QB Nolan Grooms has won his first three career starts, accounting for 1,076 yards of total offense and nine TDs with a 185.4 pass efficiency rating. Princeton’s Collin Eaddy rushed for a career-best 266 yards in a 2018 win over the Bulldogs.

  • Sad to think that Divisions II and III are wrapping up their regular seasons tomorrow. But their playoffs are exciting to follow! Just looking at Division III, there will be thirty trophies being handed out, eleven playoff bids will be decided via conference wins - and another five at-large bids that depend on Saturday’s games. Lastly, and perhaps most impressive, there will be four matchups (Williams/Amherst, Bowdoin/Colby, Monmouth/Knox, and Hampden-Sydney/Randolph-Macon) where opponents are meeting for the 125th or more times.

  • Quick uniform thoughts: Michigan State choosing their neon jersey for the Maryland game will be awful when the two teams’ uniforms are put together! I like the military-inspired uniforms - especially ULM using the Curtiss P-40 Warhawk as an inspiration for their threads and helmet. UCF is using the sixth different helmet design this year! And lastly, Marshall is using their helmets as a memorial to the 75 people who died in the 1970 plane crash. It’s beautiful!!!

11/11:

  • Last night wrapped up the 2nd of four weeks of MACtion this month - though this week was the only “fully” scheduled one with all teams playing either Tuesday or Wednesday. A couple of highlights: Northern Illinois got a last-second field goal (right down the middle!) to beat Ball State, and the best moment was seeing the kicker, John Richardson, run straight to the Cardinal sideline looking for the Bronze Stalk Trophy. Meanwhile, Chippewa running back Lew Nichols III had another impressive stat line: 215 rushing yards and four touchdowns. And with Kent State losing to Central Michigan, it sets up an end-of-season battle between the Golden Flashes and Miami (Ohio) for the East Division.

  • The Huskies last-second win was their eighth game this year that has come down to one possession. Of those, NIU has won six of them - so they sit atop the MAC West Division with a record of 7-3. On the flip side, Toledo has been in four one-possession games, and they are 0-4 in those games, so they sit at 5-5 for the season. As far as I know, the two teams with the worst luck this year in close games: Nebraska (0-6) and UNLV (0-5)

  • Two teams more teams from the MAC became bowl-eligible with wins this week: Central Michigan and Western Michigan. That makes 51 teams now eligible to play, with a total of 82 needed to fill all the bowls. Thus far ten teams are no longer able to become bowl eligible due to their win totals and the number of games remaining in their schedules: Arizona, Arkansas State, FIU, Kansas, New Mexico State, Southern Miss, Tulane, UConn, UMass, UNLV.

11/9:

  • Tonight begins Oscar Rodriguez, Jr’s audition for the Akron head coaching job. He is highly respected within the program, and he is the seventh active Hispanic/Latino head coach in NCAA Division I. He joins the Dave Aranda (Baylor), Marcus Arroyo (UNLV), Andy Avalos (Boise State), Mario Cristobal (Oregon), Manny Diaz (Miami) and Danny Gonzales (New Mexico). Most impressive - the 37-year old is a two-time cancer survivor, who was given a 7% to 15% chance of surviving seven years ago. Good Luck to the Zips tonight!

  • Sophomore quarterback Cameron Ward led UIW to an epic 55-52 win over sixth-ranked Southeastern Louisiana this past Saturday. Ward set school records with 610 passing yards and seven touchdown passes and his final TD pass was a 24-yard game-winner to Robert Ferrel with 25 seconds left. The game also featured reigning Walter Payton Award winner Cole Kelley, who threw for 647 yards.

  • Besides Arizona and UNLV ending long losing streaks - here are a some other streaks that ended this week: Kent State ended a 10-game losing streak to Northern Illinois, Eastern Michigan ended Toledo’s 10-straight home winning streak against the Eagles, Purdue ended an 8-game losing streak to Michigan State, and Texas A&M finally beat Auburn at home on their fifth attempt.

  • Streaks that have continued: Michigan has won 21-straight home games over Indiana, Penn State has won 14-straight games at Maryland, Kansas State has won 13-straight games over Kansas, and Stanford has never beaten Utah at home (0-5).

11/8:

  • I read this morning that someone covering college football wrote that there will be no winless teams in college football this season. That comment comes after Arizona ended their 20-game losing streak against a depleted Cal team, and UNLV finally pulled off a win after losing five one possession games this year. By my count this morning, I see 24 winless college football teams - thirteen of them being in Division III, and that division is finishing up their regular season next weekend. So…yes, there will be some winless teams in college football this season.

  • Just updated my Longest Tenured FBS Coaches blog for the eighth time this fall after UMass fired Walt Bell after he lost to former FCS rival Rhode Island on Saturday - his 23rd career loss in 25 games. By the looks of the Minutemen’s remaining schedule (UMaine, Army and New Mexico State), his replacement, Alex Miller, could match Bell’s win total by the end of the season. While talking about firings, a couple of coordinators were told to hit the road in Washington and Florida. How long before the head coaches follow?

  • And while I have talked about firings, two schools have hired new coaches for 2022 already: Clay Helton was fired earlier this year at USC, but he has already been picked up off the scrap heap as he will now be the Georgia Southern head coach in 2022. And reports this morning are indicating that Texas Tech has hired their new coach for the next year. Joey McGuire had been hired away from Baylor after three years of being the Bears’ associate head coach. This will be McGuire’s first head coaching gig in college, but he has won three Texas state championships in Texas. Maybe the Red Raiders have found the second coming of Jeff Traylor.

11/6:

  • Working on Saturdays is a killer when we have Army vs. Air Force kicking off at this moment in Texas. This season marks the 50th year of Commander-in-Chief's trophy competition, where the trophy goes annually to the winning academy with the best record in the round-robin competition. Earlier this year, on 9/11, the Falcons opened the series with a 23-3 win at Navy. Air Force can win a record 21st trophy title, their first since 2016, with a win over Army this week. If the Falcons win it, each Academy would have a title in the last three years. An Army win this week would put the Black Knights in the driver's seat to win its second straight and fourth in the last five years. I can’t stand that I am missing this!

  • Last night there were three very interesting games - all for different reasons. Utah is now firmly in the driver’s seat for the Pac-12 South title after their big win over Stanford. Tavion Thomas followed up his 160 yards and four scores against the Bruins with 177 yards on twenty carries and four more touchdowns. Phil Jurkovec returned to lead Boston College over Virginia Tech, in a game that wasn’t very pretty. It gives the Eagles their first ACC win of the year, and lights a hot fire under Justin Fuente. And last, but not least, Dartmouth’s win over Princeton last night opened up the door for them to get their 20th Ivy League title. If they take care of business, as they should, against Cornell and Brown - and get help from either Yale or Penn, the title will be theirs outright.

  • You can tell November is here when looking at matchups. Here are my choices for viewing (if I were home!): Army vs. Air Force and Wake Forest at UNC early, Michigan State at Purdue and Auburn at Texas A&M in the afternoon. And in the evening: Tennessee at Kentucky and Oregon at Washington. Following at length: Liberty at Ole Miss, Kansas State at Kansas, Navy at Notre Dame, Penn State at Maryland, Colorado State at Wyoming, Texas at Iowa State, Boise State at Fresno State.

  • Just over two hours ago, James Madison has announced that they will be making a move up to the FBS and join the Sun Belt Conference. A win for both I will say! The Dukes are the third FCS team announcing that they are moving up - as they join Sam Houston and Jacksonville State, who are both joining CUSA. How about North Dakota State and Eastern Washington joining the Mountain West?

11/5:

  • Looking forward to seeing the 100th game between Dartmouth and Princeton tonight. The Big Green needs to beat the Tigers at home to remain in the race for the coveted Ivy League championship. Meanwhile, Princeton is undefeated for the third straight time in this matchup - while Dartmouth has lost only once in 2021. Under the lights in Hanover will be lively spot tonight!

  • Three quarterbacks I am looking forward to watching tomorrow: Sam Howell will be facing Wake Forest - a team that gave up 179 passing yards to Army. Howell has fallen of the Heisman watch, but Demon Deacon head coach Dave Clawson is convinced that Sam is playing better this year than last. Bo Nix travels with his Tiger teammates to College Station to face the Aggies. Nix has had an up and down career, and it would go a long way for this talented qb to beat A&M. It wasn’t long ago that he was benched in favor of TJ Finley when the Tigers trailed Georgia State. And lastly, Malik Wills will have a chance to throw against a SEC team when Liberty goes to play in Oxford. A lot of eyes and probably a lot of money will be riding on his performance against the Rebels.

  • The Cascade Clash between Washington and Oregon is rough and bitter. Two quotes are adding gas to the fire for this year’s game: Jimmy Lake, Husky Head Coach, says “Our battles are really the schools we go against, that have academic prowess like the University of Washington -- Notre Dame, Stanford, USC. We go with a lot of battles, toe to toe, all the way to the end, with those schools," U-Dub head coach Jimmy Lake said on recruiting against Oregon. "So I think that’s made up and pumped up in [the media’s] world. In our world, we battle more academically prowess teams.” Oregon’s Presidents replies, “UW is a wonderful school with a great football history. I have great respect and affection for its president, its academic and football program and its former exceptional football coach, coach Petersen," added Oregon president Michael Schill. "I look forward to our team meeting theirs on the gridiron this Saturday.” Put that headgear on a bit tighter tomorrow…and tune in at 7:30 on ABC…

11/4:

  • MACtion has kicked off November football with some exciting games - as four out of the five matchups were one possession games. The fifth was a solid rivalry game between Central Michigan and Western Michigan (92nd meeting), where the Chippewas ended a three-game losing streak to the Broncos to claim the Victory Cannon. Running back Lew Nichols III topped 1,000 yards for the season with 163 yards gained last night, and Kalil Pimpleton scored three touchdowns (2 punt returns, one receiving) in a five-minute period of the 2nd quarter.

  • With wins already this week, both Kent State and Eastern Michigan inched closer to being bowl eligible in 2021. The Golden Flashes won their first bowl in 2019, and are looking for their fourth FBS Bowl bid in fifty years. The first coach to take them bowling was Don James in 1972, and of course James is most famous for his time as the head coach of the Washington Huskies. Meanwhile, Chris Creighton is looking to lead the Eagles to their fourth FBS bowl game in six years - after not having been to one since 1971.

  • Looks like it’s all MAC today in my written thoughts, as I saw that Tom Arth was fired as the Akron Zips coach this morning. On Tuesday, Akron fell to 2-7 on the season after their loss to Ball State, making Arth 3-24 as coach of the Zips. No big surprise. He is the third coach this week (1 FCS coach) after Gary Patterson stepped down at TCU (deserving of more space - probably a Rant and Rave blog) and Donald Hill-Eley was fired as Alabama State head coach after his team lost to Alabama A&M in the Magic City Classic this past Saturday for the fourth straight season.

11/1:

  • A couple of interesting notes regarding this week’s AP Top 25 poll: Wake Forest is ranked in the Top 10 for the first-time ever, the last Power 5 team to do so. The Demon Deacons also improved to 8-0 for the first time in their program history. And with that last second win over SMU with a kickoff return for a touchdown, Houston becomes the 45th different team to appear in the poll. Wonder if it will get to 50 by year-end.

  • After Kenneth Walker’s performance against the Wolverines, how could he not be considered the Heisman Trophy favorite?

  • Weber State’s Rashid Shaheed set the FCS career record with his seventh kickoff return for a touchdown, scoring on a 98-yarder in the Wildcats’ 40-17 victory at Idaho State. His second kickoff return score this season broke his tie with Hampton’s Jerome Mathis, who had six TD returns from 2001-04 (including five in his final season).

  • Division II Tenth-ranked Harding (Arkansas) rushed for a school-record 685 yards and 10 touchdowns in a 73-14 victory over Northwestern Oklahoma on Saturday. It was the most rushing yards ever in a GAC game and the most in a Division II game since Colorado Mesa rushed for 708 yards against New Mexico Highlands in 2016. The Bison had three freshmen all rush form more than 100 yards.

  • There are many “unofficial” playoff berths clinched across all divisions, but as far as I know, there is one official playoff berth spoken for - Cortland clinched the Liberty League in Division III with their victory this weekend over Alfred.

  • One other Division III tidbit…Central (Iowa) quarterback Blaine Hawkins tossed six touchdown passes in the first half - his fifth straight game with six or more touchdowns. He has 39 touchdown passes for the year to lead Division III.

10/30:

  • In last night’s action, Nevada beat UNLV to claim the 545-pound Freemont Cannon trophy for the 2nd straight year. The Wolf Pack will now look forward to games against San Jose State, San Diego State and Air Force. Tulsa’s tough year continued as they dropped a home game to the Midshipmen, 20-17. It was the Golden Hurricanes 6th one-possession game of the year in which they have won 3 of them. Meanwhile, in Friday Night Ivy League action Princeton remains undefeated as they beat Cornell in New York, 34-16.

  • Some of the luster for today’s Big Ten games was taken away with Penn State’s loss to Illinois last week, but there is still plenty at stake. The only way that the Michigan/Michigan State game could get any bigger was if it was played at Ann Arbor in front of 105k fans instead of “only” 75k in East Lansing. The Spartans have taken nine of the last thirteen matchups - including the “trouble with the snap” game six years ago. And don’t sleep on the Iowa at Wisconsin game. The Badgers could still find their way to the Big Ten Championship game, while Iowa has to rebound (from their loss to Purdue two weeks ago) on the road at Camp Randall Stadium - not an easy task.

  • Quite a few critical games in the FCS for either one or both teams. In the Ivy League, Dartmouth at Harvard and Columbia at Yale are matchups where all teams involved have one league loss. The winners of today’s games will still be in the title picture, while the losers will take on a spoiler role. While in the MVFC, both North Dakota and Missouri State are trying to keep their playoff hopes alive, while Northern Iowa would like nothing more than to pad their resume with a big win over highly-ranked Southern Illinois. And lastly, the Pioneer League has a matchup of the leagues only undefeated teams - Davidson at Morehead State. The Wildcats are the defending champions, and have already beaten San Diego, while the Eagles are looking to stay on track for their first-ever playoff berth.

10/29:

  • Good games last night - especially the Coastal Carolina game against Troy, who has given the Chanticleers a scare the last three years. And, not only were East Carolina’s uniforms nice, but the Pirate’s win over the Bulls could get them to a bowl for the first time since the 2014 season.

  • I enjoyed the article written by Christopher Kamrani about BYU on The Athletic website. Former fullback Kalani Sitake has done a solid job with the Cougars, and hopefully he will lead them to the Big 12 - provided someone doesn’t poach him. This weekend, he and his team will welcome home Bronco Mendenhall, who had a sold run in Provo. Should be a fun game to watch.

  • While putting together my list of Games to Follow for the teams outside the FBS, I noticed that it had quite a list of Eastern teams. When it came down to my last entrant, I pushed aside my preference for the UMaine/Rhode Island game so that I could include the Illinois State/Western Illinois game. Now this game doesn’t have any relevance for the playoffs or conference title, but it’s an in-state rivalry that started in the 19th century, and has been played more than 100 times. Hard to not include that…

  • Quite a list of uniforms I like this weekend: UNLV (tonight), TCU, Rice, Syracuse, and Missouri. Also good to see the traditional home uniforms of West Virginia and Florida.

10/27:

  • No surprise to see Southern Miss joining the Sun Belt Conference. Could be the start of a big week for the conference, because they might be adding three more schools when all is said and done - Marshall, Old Dominion (has now officially signed), and James Madison. The Golden Eagles were the last charter member of CUSA, dating back to 1995. We could be seeing the end of that conference unless they persuade independents to join and FCS teams to move up.

  • Arkansas State, a team that has had quite a bit of success in the Sun Belt, has struggled defensively so far in 2021. There have been three 99-yard touchdowns the last three weeks, and the Red Wolves have given up to of them. In fact, Arkansas State has allowed eight plays of 70 or more yards this season. Lastly, when trailing Louisiana by only one point in the fourth quarter, the defense couldn’t get off the field for the final 10:30 minutes of the game. Not good at all.

  • Sticking with the Sun Belt on this Wednesday, Appalachian State wide receiver Thomas Hennigan started for the 58th time in his career - a FBS record. He also tied the school record for catches at 208, another record he will set this weekend at home against the ULM Warhawks.

10/26:

  • It seems like I am updating the Longest Tenured FBS Coaches document too often this year. Yesterday Texas Tech has dismissed Matt Wells, who has led the Red Raiders to a 5-3 start, three years after hiring him away from Utah State. I am sure that they have their eyes set on a couple of good candidates that know the state well: Sonny Dykes and Jeff Traylor. With what he has built in Dallas with the resources available, I hope Dykes stays put. As for Traylor, everything I have read about him is great, and I would think that he would make the Red Raiders a real threat in the new Big 12.

  • A nice article on ESPN.com regarding the reranking of the 2019 recruiting class. No big surprise to see Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux still ranked at the top - he is a stud. Of course not every big recruit pans out - case in point, only four of the original top 10 recruits are ranked now in the top 25. The biggest surprise to all: Breece Hall - who was unranked, was only the Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year last year. Other big jumpers (can’t call them over achievers) - USC WR Drake London, Alabama WR John Metchie III, Michigan State RB Kenneth Walker III.

  • No matter how you look at the stats of the Wake Forest - Army game, you can’t help but be amazed. The two I’m most impressed with: Seventy Wake Forest points on just 52 snaps, covering 17:17 and Army throwing for 179 yards on 10-of-13 completions. A couple of other neat stats: Ohio State scored on 18 consecutive first-half drives (16 touchdowns), not including end-of-half possessions, over a period of four games. And Oregon running back Travis Dye scoring four rushing touchdowns on four consecutive carries. For the game, Dye gained 35 yards on fourteen carries.

10/25:

  • I’m thinking that I will have to go to BTN+ to watch the Wisconsin at Purdue game. Badger running backs Chez Mellusi and Braelon Allen combined for almost 300 yards rushing and three touchdowns. Allen, a true freshman, is just 17-years-old after reclassifying to become eligible to play in Madison this year. Even more remarkable - he was a linebacker up until this spring. Thunder and lightning for the Badgers.

  • Terry Bowden has done a super job at ULM thus far in 2021! Coming off a winless season, the Warhawks hired Bowden - and across the board people gave it a thumbs down. After a win over favored South Alabama, ULM has a 4-3 record, and could possibly qualify for a bowl bid. On the flipside, Justin Fuente’s Hokies blew a late lead at home and let Syracuse escape with a victory. That drops VT’s record to 3-4 this year, and 22-22 since 2018 (Fuente’s recruiting - not Frank Beamer’s). The hot seat is very hot in Blacksburg.

  • What a race in the Southern Conference (one of my favorites outside of the Ivy and Patriot Leagues) of the FCS! Four teams have one league loss: East Tennessee State, Mercer, Chattanooga, and my favorite - VMI. Quite a change from previous years where we would see Wofford and Furman fight for the lead. Looking at the remaining schedule, ETSU has the best path to a title, but fifteen of the Bucs’ last sixteen conference games have been decided by one possession!

10/23:

  • With their win over Colorado State last night, Utah State controls their destiny in the Mountain Division of the Mountain West Conference as the Aggies have now beaten the Rams and Air Force - the other one loss teams in the division. Not sure how Boise State is currently in fourth place…

  • Big showdown in Princeton today between the Tigers and Harvard. With Dartmouth losing last night to Columbia (at home!!!), the Ivy League rivals are the last unbeaten teams in the conference. Not only are they the oldest rivals playing today (first game played in 1877), but I am pretty sure that they have played the most as well (112 prior meetings). Worth a watch at 1:00pm on ESPN+

  • Speaking of the Lions win over Dartmouth last night, I can’t get too upset because Columbia is having a very good season, and the win should pretty much ensure them of a winning season, as they are now 5-1. Since the Ivy League was formed in 1956, the Lions have had only seven winning seasons - with two of them in the last three years. I just wish that their big win didn’t come at the expense of the Big Green!

10/22:

  • Long time away since my last entries. After last night’s game between Louisiana and Arkansas State, and Wednesday’s game between Coastal Carolina and Appalachian State, I have to again mention the Sun Belt. Very exciting, fast-paced, and competitive games. I never would have thought that this conference would be so fun to watch!

  • The Ivy League is well represented in FCS Top 25 polls. The Stats poll has Princeton at #22 and Dartmouth at #25 - in thanks to their respective victories over Monmouth and UNH. While the Coaches Poll has Princeton at #17 and Harvard at #16 - and Dartmouth is just outside the Top 25. Things will get serious the next two Saturdays when the Crimson first visit Princeton and then next weekend they host Dartmouth.

  • Some streaks that teams are looking forward to extend this weekend: (5) Ohio State has won 25-straight over Indiana (last loss in 1988), (3) Oklahoma has won 16-straight over Kansas (last loss in 1997), Wisconsin has won 14-straight over (25) Purdue (last loss in 2003), and (4) Alabama has won 14-straight over Tennessee (last loss in 2006). When looking at this list - it’s more like the Boilermakers are looking to snap their losing skid against the Badgers so that they remain ranked.

10/16:

  • Great action last night on all levels - except Division II which didn’t play a game. Oregon held off Cal with a last second goal line stand to keep their playoff hopes alive, while the San Diego State/San Jose State game went to double overtime before the Aztecs prevailed. In FCS action, Montana State might have ended Weber State’s playoff hopes with a defensive 13-7 win, while Cornell picked up their first victory of the year by beating their Central New York rival Colgate. Lastly, Muhlenberg held the highest scoring team in the nation to six points in their 21-6 win over Johns Hopkins - which allowed Susquehanna to take over first place on their own after defeating Gettysburg easily, 47-7.

  • I might be a bit less windy than the last note as I talk about sharp uniforms expected for today’s games - though I must say that Oregon’s unis last night were sharp! Starting with the Big 12 - not sure I am a huge fan of the throwback Kansas uniforms, but I do like the angry Jayhawk on the shoulder pad, while Baylor’s Sailor Bear helmets are really cool! In the SEC, Missouri has their helmet finally right - and if A&M wears their white hats, this will be a great combo, In throwbacks, Montana and Washington are awesome looking, while Columbia’s 1961 throwback isn’t too bad and worth a look, especially since Penn has replicated a bit of their campus, the “Locust Walk”, on the top of their helmets for today. Perhaps the best uniform/helmet combination will be the Iowa and Purdue game - especially since the Boilermakers are going with their best helmet! And lastly, Washington State put out perhaps the best twitter video I have seen yet when they revealed their Family Weekend uniforms. It was so damn cute, I couldn’t help but smile and laugh!

  • Turning my attention back to the Penn at Columbia game today…This will be the 100th meeting between the two schools in a series that dates back to 1878. If the Lions win, it will be the program’s 400th all-time victory (against 682 losses and 43 ties). And Al Bagnoli, who previously served as the head coach at Penn for 23 seasons (1992-2014), won his 260th career games last week against Central Connecticut State - his alma mater. He is currently the winningest active coach at the FCS level. These little tidbits are why I love this game so much!

10/15:

  • I am very much looking forward to tonight’s battle between two Central New York rivals - Colgate at Cornell. Both teams will be looking for momentum heading into their conference games, as well as their 50th win in the series - as the series is tied after 101 games, 49-49-3. Problem for the Bears…they last won on a Friday back in 1892…

  • Last night, South Alabama easily beat Georgia Southern behind Jake Bentley’s team record 5 touchdowns accounted for (three passing and two rushing). The Jaguars are now 4-2 behind first year head coach Kane Wommack - and those two losses were by a total of four points. With three winnable games ahead of them, the Jags might make a run at their third-ever bowl game. They are 0-2 in the postseason, and haven’t played in a bowl game since 2016.

  • Army is currently second in the FBS in Rushing offense, averaging 318.2 yards-per-game. Last week, Wisconsin relied on Chez Mellusi’s speed and freshman Braelon Allen’s strength to gain 391 rushing yards against Illinois. On the other side of the ball, the Badgers give up 41.4 YPG rushing to lead the FBS, while Army is third with 54.0 YPG. I think that the Badgers will overpower the Black Knights, but the triple option could give Wisconsin some trouble.

10/14:

  • Being a fan of the Centennial Conference, it’s exciting to see the three top teams (along with Gettysburg) in action on Friday night! 11th-ranked Johns Hopkins, who will be visiting 22nd-ranked Muhlenberg) is the top scoring team in the nation in all NCAA divisions. The Blue Jays are averaging 59.8 ppg. In the other divisions: Pitt (FBS) - 52.4, Eastern Washington (FCS) - 51.2, and Ferris State (Div. II) - 50.2.

  • Minnesota and North Dakota have agreed to a two-game series with the games being played in 2028 and 2030. I like seeing this matchup because they first met on the gridiron in 1900 and have played 20 times overall - with the Gophers winning all the games. Unfortunately for the Fighting Sioux/Hawks, they have been outscored by a margin of 30 points in these games, but most of the matchups were from 1898 to 1927..

  • Read a piece about Georgia Southern’s Adrian Peterson yesterday reminding me of his accomplishment that may never be touched. Peterson had 48 straight 100-yard games - though the NCAA recognizes the streak only as 36 regular-season games. His career totals, when including the postseason numbers - 9,161 rushing yards and 114 rushing touchdowns. To compare, Archie Griffin holds the FBS record for consecutive games with 100+ yards: 31. And Memphis’ DeAngelo Williams has the FBS record for most career games with more than 100 yards: 34.

10/13:

  • Kind of surprised that there really wasn’t much mentioned on ESPN’s website regarding last night’s game - I had to go to the “Scores” section to find out how it the game played out. Was surprised again to find out how easily Louisiana handled Appalachian State. The Ragin’ Cajuns have now quietly won five straight after a season-opening loss to Texas.

  • Currently, there a five active coaches with at least one national title ring. Four are secure in their job situation - while one finds himself on the hot seat. The five coaches: Nick Saban, Dabo Swinney, Jimbo Fisher, Ed Orgeron - and the one I forgot about…Mack Brown.

  • The reason for the Orgeron hot seat… last year ended a Tiger streak of twenty straight seasons with a winning record, where they didn’t win fewer than eight games during that streak. Now it’s likely that they will have 2-straight non-winning seasons.

  • Speaking of winning seasons, the Sooners currently have the longest active streak for FBS schools at 21 seasons - and soon to be 22. The longest active streak for all divisions: Linfield (Division III) at 64 years - a streak that got started in 1956!

10/12:

  • Despite some outcomes that weren’t too favorable to my palate, I am still coming off my high from Saturday’s games! For me, it all started with watching some ESPN+ games: Akron at Bowling Green, Colgate at Brown, Bucknell at Lafayette, and Yale at Dartmouth. Then after some chores in the garden, I got to finish the Penn State at Iowa game. It was great watching the fans storm the field - much like Kentucky fans the week before. And what about the game of the year so far at the Cotton Bowl! I wish that the Longhorns had won - but what a game in a great rivalry!

  • A&M ended Alabama’s streak of 100 straight wins over non-ranked teams and Saban lost his first-game ever against a former assistant, but does anyone believe that the Crimson Tide won’t be in the CFB playoff? The bigger question has to be whether Lincoln Riley can hold things together in Norman after the benching of Spencer Rattler and the comeback effort of Caleb Williams? This will be a fun development to follow for the next few weeks. And are CFB fans ready for the return of the Buckeyes?

  • It’s only Tuesday - and we can already get a little fix for our love of college football. The Sun Belt is giving us a fun game to watch tonight - Appalachian State at Louisiana. The Ragin’ Cajuns haven’t lived up to expectations this year, but would anyone be surprised if they beat the Mountaineers? On the other hand, App. State is going to be a handful down - even in the Bayou State.

10/9:

  • A few days late I admit, but I just watched Oregon State’s game-winning field goal as time expired against Washington. Nice to see the Beaver fans storming the field! Now with Stanford’s loss last night to Arizona State - does that mean that the rivalry game known as the “Civil War” decide the Pac-12 North Division title?

  • Three trophies will be handed out today: The Golden Hat, which was once a Bronze Hat, will go to the Texas/Oklahoma winner, The Saddle Trophy (this is the second Saddle Trophy as the original went missing in 1970) will go to the TCU/Texas Tech winner, and lastly SMU and Navy will vie for the Gansz Trophy - so named after highly respected special teams coach Frank Gansz.

  • And, here are three FCS games that deserve mentioning in my eyes: Lafayette at Bucknell - these Patriot League teams meeting for the 99th time, first played in 1883, and have played each other every year since 1945 (76 straight years). Furman at Wofford - these two teams claim that their series is truly the “Deep South’s Oldest Football Rivalry” as they first met in 1889 - while Georgia/Auburn didn’t play until 1892. North Dakota at South Dakota - this will be the 98th all-time meeting between these teams that dates back to their first contest in 1903. The Sitting Bull Trophy was awarded to the winner starting in 1953, and the inspiration behind it was the dispute over which state was home to the final resting place of the famed chief. Unfortunately the trophy was retired in 2000.

  • Lastly, I have to mention that there is a new trophy being awarded today! The winner of the Campbell/Gardner-Webb football game will be given the NC East/West BBQ Trophy, and the losers will have to buy a BBQ feast for the winners. It’s nice to see this new trophy game getting some coverage on ESPN!

10/8:

  • I believe that I have said this once already, but I am liking the Sun Belt Conference. It has been building some depth, and there are a good four or five quality teams - with Coastal Carolina, Appalachian State, and Louisiana standing out. Looking forward to next Tuesday’s Appalachian State at Louisiana game, and then the following week, Coastal Carolina visits the Mountaineers on Wednesday night.

  • Tonight’s game against the Sun Devils could go a long way in determining where Stanford is headed for the rest of the year. A win in Tempe, and the Cardinals will find themselves in the thick of the Pac-12 North Division lead. A loss could possibly set them back and maybe bring about a .500 season. Big game for both teams actually.

  • FCS games I will be trying to watch tomorrow: Yale and Dartmouth - probably my favorite Ivy League game of all - even more than Yale/Harvard. Villanova at James Madison - funny thing about this game - this is the Dukes third straight game against a ranked team whose nickname is Wildcats. Sticking with the CAA - Delaware at Rhode Island as the Rams are still undefeated and are led by a former Maryland quarterback (Kasim Hill). Southern Illinois at South Dakota State - this barely beats out the UNI/North Dakota State game, but I’m thinking that the Salukis might pull this out because the Jackrabbits are getting hit hard with the injury bug. And lastly. SE Louisiana at Nicholls - as the two qbs (Cole Kelley and Lindsey Scott) are going to produce some serious offensive numbers.

  • Uniforms I love this week: Florida’s throwback, Missouri and their block M helmets, and Utah’s throwback whites. I should even mention Troy’s throwbacks (more Sun Belt!). Two special shout outs regarding unis…Nevada honoring Breast Cancer Awareness month with pink lettering on their helmets, while Northwest Missouri State (Div. II) is using their helmets to honor the 13 military members killed in the bombing at Kabul Airport in Afghanistan. Their names will be on the bottom collar of the helmets.

10/7:

  • Two days ago I quickly mentioned UMass playing UConn this weekend. What I like about the Minuteman’s schedule this year is that they will be playing three former Yankee Conference rivals starting with the Huskies. UConn is their oldest opponent of the three, as the series started in 1897 - while they have played the Rams 86 times, winning 48 of those meetings. And you can’t sleep on the Black Bears series because UMass played UMaine for 54-straight seasons from 1958 through 2011.

  • Have got to give some love to Kentucky and Pitt’s quarterback Kenny Pickett. Big news that the Wildcats beat the Gators at home for the first time in 35 years after being so close the last couple of times. After losing 31-straight years to Florida, Kentucky has split the last four with the Gators. So happy the crowd poured out on the field to celebrate - it was well worth the fine! Meanwhile, Kenny Pickett is trying to lead Pitt to the ACC championship as a super senior. So far in five games, Pickett has thrown 19 touchdown passes against only one interception. Seems funny to me that he is hardly mentioned as a Heisman candidate.

  • Stats from last weekend’s games that I found very interesting: Georgia’s defense has allowed one touchdown through five games, Stanford is 5-1 against top-three teams since its 2007 upset of No. 1 USC, Jim Harbaugh won as an underdog for the first time at Michigan, LSU quarterback Max Johnson passed for 122 yards on a single drive, and there was a one-point safety in an NAIA game.

10/5:

  • Three FBS head coaches are looking for their first win with their current team: Marcus Arroyo (UNLV), Jedd Fisch (Arizona), and Lou Spanos (UConn). Fisch is the only one who has a career win, as he lead UCLA to a win as an interim coach back in the 2017 season. Arroyo, unfortunately, is 0-11 over two years.

  • Speaking of Lou Spanos and UConn, it looks like they are the first team eliminated from the bowl picture. The Huskies are 0-6, and have six games left, but one of them is against an FCS opponent - Yale. I don’t see any bowl choosing a sub-.500 Husky team. Funny thing - UConn can eliminate UMass from bowl consideration with a win this weekend over the Minutemen.

10/4:

  • Bijan Robinson should be near the top of Heisman candidates - even before his game against TCU. Against the Horned Frogs he had a career-high 35 carries that got him 216 yards and two touchdowns. When the Longhorns had to run out the clock, everyone knew that Robinson was going to get the touches, and he still couldn’t be stopped.

  • Ed Orgeron must be feeling the heat regarding his position as head coach of LSU. After the Tigers won the National Championship in 2019, they went 5-5 last year to end their streak of 21-straight winning seasons. Now in 2021, they are 3-2 after a home loss to Auburn, and they still have to play Kentucky, Florida, and the SEC West, except for Mississippi State and Auburn. A losing season is not out of the question - and it might cost Orgeron his job.

  • And while on the topic of head coaches, how about the job Jonathan Smith is doing at Oregon State! After the Beavers’ win over Washington, everyone in the Pac-12 North Division is looking up at them. The race is far from over since it’s a marathon and not a sprint, but Smith and his team have got to feel good about their chances.

10/2:

  • After leading the Hawkeyes 7-3 after the first quarter, I’m not sure how the Terps gave up 41 unanswered points in the 2nd and 3rd quarters! And, I’m not sure what Taulia was thinking with some of his throws. I was hoping the Terps would be Soarin’ last night - but they crashed and burned.

  • While I am on the topic of ugly…Bowdoin football. JB Wells was fired at the end of the 2018 season after compiling a 3-31 record over four years. The Polar Bears then hired BJ Hammer from Allegheny - but he has fared worse if possible, going 0-11 in just over two years. Today they play the William Ephs in Brunswick - and they might be the best team in the NESCAC this year. Looks like Bowdoin will lose its 13th straight, and their 36th out of 37 games.

  • Great games today! The noon time slot might be the best: Arkansas at Georgia, Michigan at Wisconsin and Texas at TCU. Three under the radar games for me to watch/follow: Louisville at Wake Forest, Auburn at LSU, and Arizona State at UCLA. And the Aggies…will they bounce back and get back to winning with their game against Mississippi State? And will K-State make it three-straight over the Sooners? October is starting off red-hot!

10/1:

  • After an exciting finish to last night’s game between Virginia and Miami (do you think the Hurricanes are missing big brother Jose Borregales?), I am watching two games closely tonight: Iowa at Maryland is a surprising clash between unbeaten teams. The winner will be feeling great, while the loser shouldn’t be ashamed. The other game for me to checkout is the Dartmouth at Penn matchup. So good to have the Ivy League playing again!

  • Five FCS games to keep an eye on tomorrow: Harvard at Holy Cross, VMI at the Citadel, North Dakota State at North Dakota, James Madison at New Hampshire and Montana at Eastern Washington. These should be truly special games.

  • Appalachian State put out a great video on twitter revealing their uniform combo for this weekend’s game against Georgia State. The outfit is sharp and the view is beautiful! Other uniforms I like this week: Stanford’s throwback, Boise State’s throwback (orange!). I like Missouri’s uniform matchup with Tennessee this week, but I wish that they would use a throwback helmet!

9/30:

  • Two interesting games tonight: Virginia leads the country in passing yards per game with 430.5, while Miami has allowed 983 yards through the air in its first four games, second most in the ACC. And the Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Prairie View A&M are two of the top contenders for the SWAC West Division. In their last meeting this spring, the Golden Lions came out on top 36-31.

  • I love how the SMU-TCU rivalry is moving towards becoming more nasty, as it’s already filled with animosity (can’t use the word hatred). This last game, which was the 100th meeting between the two teams, had trash talk, hurt feelings, accusations, and a flag planting. And after this latest Mustang win, a new SMU billboard sprung up on I-30 in Fort Worth! How many days until these schools meet in 2022?

  • There have been quite a few surprise teams so far in 2021, but how about those Sparties? After their overtime win against Nebraska, the Spartans sit at 4-0, with road wins over Northwestern and Miami. Michigan State will be tested through October, but three of their last five games starting at the end of October are against ranked teams: Michigan, at Ohio State, and Penn State.

  • And speaking of Michigan State, Wake Forest transfer Kenneth Walker III is having a spectacular season so far. He leads all FBS running backs in rushing yards with 554 (368 of them after contact!) and has five touchdowns. Other top running backs in September: Zach Charbonnet at UCLA (7.83 yards per carry) and UTSA junior Sincere McCormick - who is approaching 3,000 career rushing yards (2,902).

9/29:

  • Division III stat I love: In just the first half last week, Central quarterback Blaine Hawkins had school records for passing yards (424) and passing touchdowns (7) as Central rolled to a 84-16 win over Simpson. The Dutch streaked to a 56-3 halftime lead with Hawkins behind center, remarkably needing just 7:26 of possession time in the game's first 30 minutes to score eight touchdowns. Hawkins completed 22 of 24 passes.

  • The biggest head scratcher for me last weekend: Bowling Green beating Minnesota, 14-10, and it was on the road! A 31-point underdog, and losers of ten straight to FBS opponents, the Falcons had no business winning - especially with a fifth-year quarterback the caliber of Tanner Morgan starting for the Gophers!

  • Didn’t see this as a ranked vs ranked game, but both Baylor and Oklahoma State had a very nice September. The Bears were efficient on offense and their defense made some key plays to upset Iowa State, and the Cowboys have won on the blue turf at Boise State, and then beat a good Kansas State team - even though the Wildcats were missing quarterback Skylar Thompson.

9/28:

  • I neglected St. Thomas yesterday. Stepping up from Division III this year, the Tommies got their first win over a Pioneer League opponent, as they defeated Butler very easily at home, 36-0. This weekend, St. Thomas will play their first Pioneer League road game, as they travel to California to play San Diego - who has surprisingly struggled thus far in 2021.

  • Lafayette is probably known for their rivalry with Lehigh, but when they played the Penn Quakers this past Saturday, they were playing their second oldest opponent. The Leopards first played the Quakers on 11/25/1882 - just over two weeks after having played Rutgers in their very first game. Unfortunately Lafayette and Rutgers haven’t played since 1975 - after having played almost every year since 1917.

  • On the way to a Southern Conference title last year, VMI lost record-breaking quarterback Reece Udinski to a knee injury mid-season, but didn’t miss a beat with Seth Morgan taking his place. This fall, Morgan went down at Cornell with a hit to his helmet, but the Keydets kept marching on with freshman quarterback Collin Ironside. I would say that this program has done a great job at recruiting this very important position.

9/27:

  • I have to start off this morning talking about UTSA! Coming back from a 21-0 first quarter deficit against Memphis and winning on a 42-yard walk-off field goal to end the Tigers’ 17-game winning streak at Liberty Bowl Stadium - very impressive! Not sure how the 4-0 Roadrunners are not in the AP Top 25!

  • Impressive Part Two: Arkansas. The Longhorns loss to the Razorbacks doesn’t look nearly as bad after Arkansas took down the Aggies. What a coaching staff between Sam Pittman, Kendal Briles and Barry Odom. A brutal schedule ahead or an injury to quarterback K.J Jefferson might derail the season, but Arkansas is certainly on the right track to success!

  • The long layoff hasn’t hurt the Princeton Tigers. After a 63-0 rout of Stetson, the Tigers have posted back-to-back shutouts to start the season for the first time in over 55 years. It’s not going to be easy with the likes of Yale, Harvard, and Dartmouth on their tail, but Princeton seems to be the early favorite for the Ivy League title.

  • Lastly, big win for Oregon State at USC. The Beavers first win in Los Angeles since 1960 - so this is the first time I have seen it happen in my lifetime. Running for 322 yards against the Trojans is a big reason the Beavers ended a 24-game losing streak at the Coliseum.

9/25:

  • LONG time since my last entry! Been away on a vacation - but ready to jump right back into the saddle again on game day!

  • I am officially impressed with Wake Forest and what they have accomplished thus far in 2021, and am pleased with Syracuse and what they have done - especially that win last night over Liberty, which was no small feat.

  • Brian Kelly is one win away from becoming Notre Dame’s all-time winningest coach. It could happen today at Soldier Field with ex-Badger Jack Coan as quarterback. Also - the Irish haven’t lost a game in Chicago, as they are 10-0-2 at Soldier Field since it opened.

  • Perhaps more impressive - Alabama is looking for its 100th straight win over an unranked opponent when they take on Southern Miss today. The previous record of 72 games was shared between Miami and Florida. This streak started back in 2007 when the Crimson Tide beat Colorado in the Independence Bowl.

9/13:

  • In the only Top 25 FCS matchup, Missouri State got a nice win over Central Arkansas. Meeting for the the third time in two years, these teams battled it out in the fourth quarter - there were four lead changes and five touchdowns in the final 3:17!

  • A lot of ugly fans in Florida, Texas, California - and probably Ohio after Saturday’s games. The head coach feeling the most heat is Clay Helton - which is no surprise. Getting easily beat at home by a subpar Stanford team is not good, especially when the team is sloppy. Could be an ugly year at USC no matter the Helton outcome.

  • Dan Mullen got his 100th career victory on Saturday and Bobby Hauck got his 100th win a Montana’s head coach, and 114th all-time win (coached at UNLV for five years).

  • Navy Offensive Coordinator Ivin Jasper was fired after Navy’s 23-3 loss to Air Force. At one point, Ken Niumatalolo had suggested that Jasper would succeed him as head coach. Jasper, who was in his 14th season as Navy’s offensive coordinator, has been with Niumatalolo since they played together at Hawaii in the 1990s.

9/11:

  • Logan Bonner has been a key transfer for the Utah State so far this year. After leading the Aggies to a win in Pullman over Washington State, Bonner threw for almost 400 yards and four touchdowns last night against the Fighting Hawks of North Dakota. Utah State could be a problem team for any Mountain West contender.

  • Speaking of transfer quarterbacks, folks might want to tune in to watch Bailey Zappe and his Western Kentucky teammates go up against Army. Will be an entertaining game between the wide open Hilltopper offense and the Army option attack. Game starts at 11:30am on CBSSN.

  • If I were to pick a game to watch at the 12:00, 3:30, and 7:00 start up times, the games would be: Oregon at Ohio State, Air Force at Navy, and Texas at Arkansas. And if my eyes were to wander I would grab the remote and see Pitt at Tennessee, Iowa at Iowa State and NC State at Mississippi State. Again - there are a whole bunch of games to keep one busy…

9/10:

  • A lot of teams will honor the memory of 9/11 tomorrow, but Rutgers will be wearing special uniforms to honor the 37 Rutgers alumni killed n 9/11/01. Uni-Watch.com has a nice little piece someone posted from twitter on their site - very touching.

  • The Big 12 has officially welcomed BYU, Houston, UCF, and Cincinnati to the conference. There might not be any “big” names in the conference anymore, but it’s sure going to be exciting to see the different championship contenders from year-to-year.

  • Three games are being played in Division III tonight to go with the four FBS matchups. I’m thinking that I will stream Western New England at Westfield State. It will be the 33rd edition of the Presidents' Cup – the annual trophy game between the two schools. The Golden Bears outscored the Owls 56-35 in 2019 at Alumni Field, the last time these two teams met, and WNE has won 9 of the last 10 meetings to take the series lead 18-14.

9/8:

  • This Saturday, College GameDay will be in Ames for Iowa at Iowa State - which promises to be a great game between to rivals. But I am disappointed that the crew won’t be in Annapolis for the Air Force at Navy game. Seemed like a given being that Saturday is the 20th anniversary of 9/11.

  • Last week, Kansas ended a 13-game losing streak with a 17-14 win over FCS foe South Dakota. This weekend, the Jayhawks travel to Conway, South Carolina to take on 17th ranked Coastal Carolina. The Chanticleers, who are hosting a Power 5 opponent for the first time, are 2-7 against Power 5 teams all-time, with both wins coming at the expense of the Jayhawks.

  • A Friday night matchup got a bit more interesting after week 1 results. North Dakota easily beat Idaho State on the road, while Utah State pulled an upset over Washington State in Pullman. The Fighting Hawks (still want to say Fighting Sioux), are the defending Missouri Valley Football Conference champions, while the Aggies may have gotten a big boost with new head coach Blake Anderson, and his former quarterback at Arkansas State Logan Bonner. One of these teams will be very happy to be 2-0 after this key matchup for both teams!

9/7:

  • No surprise that after the first week of action, we are hearing about season-ending injuries. One that perhaps hurts most of all is Minnesota losing senior star running back Mohamed Ibrahim. Even with injuries throughout his Gopher career, Ibrahim still gained over 3,000 (3,003 to be exact) yards.

  • I haven’t seen it on the NCAA Statistics website, and it might be because of an oversight, but a couple of different sources have mentioned that Fordham’s senior linebacker Ryan Greenhagen recorded 31 total tackles against Nebraska on Saturday. It has been reported that it is a NCAA Division I record, but upon a bit of research - it looks like a NCAA record because Divisions II and III have their tackle records as 30.

  • And for crazy stats, Presbyterian has to be mentioned again because they attempted 10 onside kicks against NAIA opponent St. Andrews. They recovered only one in their 84-43 win, and I can’t help but wonder if this would be a sound strategy against their FCS opponents…

9/6:

  • Have to start with McKenzie Milton. Even though Jordan Travis was named as the starting quarterback for the Seminoles, what an inspiration Milton was when he got on the field almost three years after a very serious knee injury. Here’s to hoping that he sees a bunch of playing time this year for FSU!

  • A lot has been written about the success that the FCS has had against the FBS in Week 1, culminating in Montana beating Washington for the first time in more than one hundred years, but there were a couple of Group of Five wins that should get some love: Charlotte beating Duke 31-28, UTSA taking down Illinois 37-30, Northern Illinois sneaking by Georgia Tech 22-21, Utah State comeback against Washington State 26-23, and Nevada winning at Cal 22-17.

  • Two performances that caught my eye this weekend - and both were in the FCS: Jaleel McLaughlin, former Notre Dame College now Youngstown State running back, rushed for 242 yards and two touchdowns on 29 carries and Ren Hefley, former Wolverine now Blue Hose quarterback, threw ten touchdown passes in almost three quarters of work. No matter the competition - that is an impressive number!

  • Hate to say it, but Kansas fans should be ashamed of themselves. Tearing down goal posts can be a very exciting part of a game - but to do it after getting by South Dakota? Really??

9/4:

  • College football is getting ready to open the floodgates in regards to games played in just over a hour, but the sidelines at Maine Maritime Academy up in Castine will remain quiet this fall. The school is waiting for a program evaluation report from an outside consultant before deciding the final fate of the Mariner football program. MMA has been a part of campus life since 1946.

  • Already we have seen three FCS teams beating FBS teams (Eastern Washington over UNLV, UC Davis beating Tulsa, and South Dakota State clubbing Colorado State), and a Division II team (Southern Connecticut) beating their in-state rival, Central Connecticut State.

  • Thursday night I watched the first Division III game of the year: Defiance at Capital. The Crusaders got Brian Foos his first win as head coach of the team - and it was Capital’s first win since November 10th, 2018. And a victory of sorts for Defiance as they scored for the first-time ever against the Crusaders. Their scoreless streak ended after almost 15 quarters - but it was over a period of 98 years…

9/2:

  • Even though last night’s game between UAB and Jacksonville State was not close, I have no issues whatsoever with these games. In-state schools, both had won their conferences last year, and the head coaches had connections to each other. I like to see games like this scheduled. And - Tyler Johnston III seems to have had a career game when looking at his stats.

  • A nice read from Dave Wilson and Harry Lyles, Jr. on ESPN regarding what to watch for in this weekend’s games. No doubt - there are a lot of great games to get into the next FIVE days! One could also see the debut of two mascots - the next Ralphie (only 500lbs) and Reveille X. And I will have to be on the lookout for SMU’s 6-8, 232 lb. kicker on Saturday night against North Texas!

  • Division III is in action starting tonight - and by the end of the year they will have played probably close to 1,200 games! Defiance, with an enrollment of less than 500, will visit Capital to get the division going at 6:00 tonight. This will be their first meeting since 1942 (Capital won 33-0), and Defiance is still looking for their first points against the Crusaders. The first two meetings, in 1923 and 1929, ended in a scoreless tie.

9/1:

  • I have to admit that I had forgotten how many great games there will be this weekend until I read through the schedule again! And to get ready for the season, I highly suggest Bill Connelly’s “How to get the most fun out of the 2021 college football season” - as I was really enjoying it even before getting to the end and seeing his plug for the lower divisions!

  • When Bill Clark and John Grass square off tonight on the sidelines it will be a reunion for the two head coaches. Grass and Clark go way back, graduating from Jacksonville State together in 1990 and coaching with and against each other over long and decorated high school careers. Also, when Clark got the head coach position at Jacksonville State in 2013, he hired Grass as his offensive coordinator.

  • Yesterday, Georgetown called off their game with Marist because they experienced some COVID-19 cases during training camp. So, out of an abundance of concern for well-being of their student-athletes, they will prepare for their next game on Sept. 11th against Delaware State.

  • Really excited to see Richmond and VMI agreeing to a three-game football series beginning in 2025. They have met 90 times on the gridiron in a series that dates back to 1893 with the Spiders having won the past 12 meetings against the Keydets to now lead the overall series 45-40-5.

8/30:

  • Didn’t have a chance to tune in to any game until the third quarter of the Hawaii at UCLA game. Was disappointed in the sparse crowd at the Rose Bowl. And I didn’t get to see Zach Charbonnet in action, but he made a big impression in his first game with the Bruins.

  • Two other head coaches that had the hot seat turned up on them after their teams’ first game of the year: Randy Edsall saw his Huskies get beat 45-0 in Fresno and Doug Martin had his Aggies get embarrassed by rival UTEP 30-3 at home, dropping his record to 23-65.

  • Indiana State couldn’t complain with their performance against rival Eastern Illinois after having not played since November 2019. They forced three turnovers, including a 75-yard interception return for a touchdown, while not surrendering the ball to the Panthers. Couldn’t ask for more than that…

8/29:

  • I would have to say that after yesterday, Scott Frost is on the hottest of hot seats. Continuous mistakes and mental breakdowns are not acceptable - especially at a program such as Nebraska.

  • A good win for Illinois, but a tough break for them at the quarterback position with Brandon Peters going down with an apparent shoulder injury. If the injury is significant, it won’t help the Illini climb the standings in 2021.

  • Who would have thought that the first points of the season would come on a safety? And on special teams. And, on a play where a punt was fielded at the goal line, and as the player was being tackled in the end zone, he threw the ball out of bounds. Very strange.

8/28:

  • Three hours until kickoff! I think it’s great having a Power 5 conference game starting off the 2021 season! I can’t help but think about how this game between Nebraska and Illinois is going to shape both teams’ seasons. Scott Frost will really need this win - and probably convincingly, while Bret Bielema will want to start his career at Illinois with a big win.

  • I also look forward to Hawaii at UCLA - simply because it is in the Rose Bowl and the Bruins uniforms will be looking sharp! And both Eastern Illinois and Indiana State are expected to finish near or at the bottom of their respective conferences, but it’s a good rivalry game to follow no matter the standings!

  • Yesterday it was announced that North Carolina will host Florida A&M next year in Week Zero. Funny thing - as I went to add it to my 2022 Week Zero schedule, the game was already there! Ahead of the game on this one I guess…

  • Even though we are hoping that it’s back to business as usual in college football, there has been a game already canceled (St. Francis at St. Thomas), and Hawaii won’t have fans at their home games this fall.

8/27:

  • Week Zero is tomorrow and I have one more game to quickly talk about: North American Stallions at Louisiana College Wildcats in a NAIA matchup.

  • The Wildcats are returning to the NAIA this year after having been a part of the American Southwest Conference in Division III. They will be joining the Sooner Athletic Conference.

  • Last year during the pandemic, the North American Stallions, out of Houston, Texas, were able to play some games during their inaugural season. But this will really be their first go around the block.

  • The Stallions are expected to join the NAIA in the very near future, so they could find themselves a conference opponent of the Wildcats if they join the Sooner Athletic Conference as well.

8/26:

  • HBCU rivals Central State University and Kentucky State University will begin their 2021 football seasons this Saturday in the first “Classic for Columbus” at Ohio Stadium - home of the Buckeyes.

  • The rivalry between the two teams dates back to 1947 with CSU leading the series 36-23-1, although KSU won the last meeting 34-28 in 2019.

  • This will be the first of two meetings this year between the teams - the other game will be played on November 6th, and it will be a conference game.

  • John L. Smith, former head coach for Michigan State and Louisville, was Kentucky State’s head coach from 2016 thru 2018.

8/25:

  • The MEAC-SWAC Challenge between North Carolina Central and Alcorn State will not only be televised on ESPN Saturday evening, but they will be the host of College GameDay - which is starting the 35th season!

  • Both coaches, Trei Oliver (NC Central) and Fred McNair (Alcorn State) are coaching at their alma maters. And Fred McNair is the older brother of former Brave and NFL quarterback Steve McNair.

  • Alcorn State leads the series 5-0, but the last game between these two teams was played forty five years ago, as the games were played between 1970 and 1976.

  • The two teams opted out of last season, so they have not played a game since November 2019, and because of that there will be a bit of rust on each sideline.

8/24:

  • Probably for the rest of the week, I will give daily thoughts on specific teams that are playing in Week Zero in 4 days! Hopefully I can do it for one team in each division - though I don’t think that there is a Division III game being played this weekend. Today is Illinois…

  • Memorial Stadium was built in 1923 as a memorial to Illinois men and women who gave their lives for their country during World War I. Their names appear on 200 columns that support the east and west sides of the stadium. In 1986, the stadium was nominated among 62 other sites – including Soldier Field, Wrigley Field, the Rose Bowl and Yale Bowl – to become a national historic landmark.

  • This weekend, the 2001 title team will be honored at the game and members of the team will sign autographs in Grange Grove pregame.

  • Quarterback Brandon Peters has led Illinois to a 7-7 record when he starts and is available into the fourth quarter during his two seasons at Illinois. When Peters does not start or has been unable to play into the fourth quarter, Illinois is 1-6.

  • From 2006-12 Bret Bielema was the head coach at Wisconsin, where he led the Badgers to three Big Ten championships (2010-12), six consecutive bowl games and a 68-24 record (.739). Bielema then spent five seasons as head coach at Arkansas from 2013-17. After inheriting a depleted roster and enduring a difficult first season, he led the Razorbacks to three consecutive bowl games.

  • This is Illinois 125th season in the Big Ten.

8/23:

  • I didn’t realize similar Frank Solich’s situation at Nebraska was to Earle Bruce’s at Ohio State. Both had been recruited as fullbacks - but Bruce’s career was ended by a torn meniscus before he could play a down for the Buckeyes. Each followed a legend - Bruce replaced Woody Hayes and Solich took over for Tom Osborne. And both were fired even though they averaged nine wins per year. Seems to me like the administrations at Ohio State and Nebraska made a mistake.

  • Carnegie Mellon head football coach Rich Lackner has announced that he will retire following the 2021 season. This season marks Lackner’s 36th year at the helm of the Tartans, his 43rd as a coach at his alma mater and 47th on campus. He is one of 16 active head coaches among all divisions with 200 career victories, and he is third among active Division III head coaches in total career wins. He became the 34th coach ever to win all 200 games at the same institution, and just the 11th to do so at the Division III level.

  • Since the theme today seems to be coaches, and my brother and his wife are celebrating their 40th anniversary out near Mount Rushmore - how about I give my Mount Rushmore of all-time head coaches? There are many worthy candidates, but four came to mind pretty quickly: Pop Warner, Bear Bryant, Bobby Bowden and Nick Saban. Can’t find fault with any of them, but I’m sure that someone would tell me that another coach or two belongs with the best.

8/20:

  • Took a moment to get through a couple of chapters of Herbstreit’s new book. Didn’t take long to realize that things weren’t handed to Kirk on a golden platter, and that he certainly didn’t have the best home life while growing up. And starting the book talking about the birth of his premature twin sons was a punch in the gut. I say soak it all up Kirk - because you have earned and deserve every special moment that comes your way!

  • Some interesting developments for SEC East rivals Tennessee and Kentucky recently. Six Wildcats are being charged with burglary based on a March incident at a party, and one of their quarterbacks has entered the transfer portal - and already has found a new home. Meanwhile the Vols lost one quarterback back in June due to their second off-field incident this year, and now another is leaving. Brian Maurer, who was getting fewer reps in camp, is planning on entering the transfer portal, leaving Tennessee with three scholarship quarterbacks in 2021.

  • The one-season partnership between the ASUN and Western Athletic Conference will be interesting as they will go their own ways after 2021. Defending FCS champion Sam Houston will have to hold off stiff challenges from both Jacksonville State and Central Arkansas - who are both ranked in the FCS Preseason Top 25 (actually in the Top 15). Throw in a game Eastern Kentucky team, some former Southland rivals (Abilene Christian and Stephen F. Austin), and a couple of FCS newcomers, and the results might bring a surprise or two.

8/19:

  • Looking at the recent set of games getting scheduled, no real eye brow raisers - but I have enjoyed seeing what has transpired. Primarily former conference members getting right back at it (McNeese vs. Lamar, Kennesaw State vs. Charleston Southern and Murray State vs. Jacksonville State), along with Houston scheduling Sam Houston and Missouri State visiting Missouri for only the third time in 111 years in 2033.

  • Sticking with scheduling for another moment, yesterday West Virginia and Ohio have scheduled a three-game series beginning in 2025. They first met in 1897 in Athens (in fact the Bobcats hosted the first two games), but the Mountaineers haven’t played at Ohio since losing there in 1949, 17-7. West Virginia has won the last four meetings with the Bobcats, all in Morgantown, and leads the series 13-4.

  • Saw a piece on the Athletic about teams that draw the largest viewers. No surprise to see Alabama, Ohio State and Michigan at the top, nor was it a surprise to see Michigan-Ohio State, LSU-Alabama or Auburn-Alabama as the most watched matchups. What did surprise me was not seeing one Army-Navy game in the most watched games from 2015-2019. And outside of Oklahoma and Clemson, the teams that had the most games with 4 million or more viewers were all from the Big Ten and SEC.

  • Lastly - I have to throw this out there…Nebraska is getting investigated for possible violations, so no matter the verdict, the Cornhuskers should make out okay, if not great, because they should get out from under their ridiculous buyout clause for Scott Frost.

8/18:

  • As I stepped out the door to walk the dog yesterday afternoon, I was excited to see a package from Amazon. Not wanting to cut the walk short for Griffin, I patiently waited for him as he kept his nose to the ground throughout our wandering. After taking care of his stomach, I ripped open the box and instantly read the inside flap and the quotes on the back. It was hard putting it down last night, so Herbie’s “Out of the Pocket” is a must for all college football fans.

  • The first Thursday of college football has 28 Division I games if I counted correctly. Problem is - there are even more games that night between Divisions II and III. Counting higher is a challenge for me - but I got up to near fifty. It’s going to be one busy night!

  • A FCS non-conference game I love, Colgate-Cornell, has now been moved to a Friday night, and it can be seen on ESPN+. The teams first met on the gridiron in 1896 and have squared off a total of 101 times. In their most recent matchup in 2019, the Raiders defeated the Big Red 21-20 to even the series at 49-49-3.

8/17:

  • Found myself reading Kirk Herbstreit’s book excerpt again on ESPN this morning. Makes me realize that I should watch College GameDay more intently this year - especially the picks. Someone, somewhere will have to design and put up a Lee Corso statue. Not sure where it should go because he has touched so many places, but Lee deserves it.

  • The AP Top 25 preseason poll was released yesterday, and to no one’s surprise, Alabama was at the top. Three things I liked seeing: The Crimson Tide got a majority of first-place votes, but votes for the top team were spread out among five different teams. Nice to see Iowa State and Cincinnati ranked 7th and 8th. And perhaps best of all - two Sun Belt teams are ranked, which is amazing to me. Teams just outside the Top 25: Oklahoma State and Ole Miss.

  • There is a great story in the Orlando Sentinel (which I believe has a top-notch sports section) about Steve Spurrier’s new Gridiron Grille restaurant in Gainesville. Whether or not you like the old ball coach - this place is quite impressive!

  • Quick moment on schedules - as I hope to have a bit more on it tomorrow - but it looks like two more games for Week Zero in less than two weeks. One of them a Division II matchup taking place in Columbus, OH and the other is I believe a NAIA matchup with newcomer, the North American Stallions taking on Louisiana College - a school that just dropped to NAIA.

8/16:

  • I can’t believe that it has been almost a week since my last entry - but because of commitments, I had to step away for a bit. Perhaps it has re-charged my battery. Nah - that will never be needed because my love for the game is very, very, strong. I must admit I have followed a story or two about people that have taken a part in making the game the way that it is today.

  • Bobby Bowden. Not sure I need to say anymore. But what an outpouring of love for a great coach, who was an even better man. I don’t think I will ever get tired of hearing stories about this very special person. He might even get his own statue inside the pearly gates.

  • Because I can never get enough Lee Corso stories, I was very excited to see that Kirk Herbstreit has written a book that is going on sale tomorrow. Of course - I couldn’t wait, I had to pre-order, Reading the excerpt on ESPN made me laugh, made me cry, and then laugh again many times over. I love listening to Kirk, so I look forward to the book. College GameDay won’t be the same again.

8/10:

  • The Preseason Coaches Poll is out, and there are no surprises with the Top Five. What is surprising is that Alabama received 63 of 65 votes for first place - while Oklahoma got the other two. In another bit of bad news for teams hoping to get to the top - three of the four top teams will have a new starting quarterback.

  • Today I read a piece on the Athletic about planning weddings in the fall - and how it can cause issues for the wedding party and the wedding guests. Thirty-two years ago, my wife and I got married on October 14th, and I have to confess - I never even thought of the college games played on that day. Of course that would never happen again. And if I am invited to a fall wedding, my eyes will be glued to either my phone or a television, but not during the wedding ceremony.

  • Looking back at 10/14/89 again in regards to college football: The three top teams on that day were Notre Dame, Miami, and Colorado. There were two Top-25 matchups: (1) Notre Dame at (17) Air Force and (5) Michigan at (21) Michigan State. Best game of the week: Texas vs. Oklahoma. And since Conference realignment has been a big topic the last week or two - back in 1989 we still had the Big 8 and SWC…

8/9:

  • Wonderful articles all over the web regarding Bobby Bowden. They remind you of the remarkable coach and person has was - on and off the field.

  • Bruce Feldman has a great piece on the Athletic - 2021 College Football Freaks List. It will elicit a lot of wows and holy craps. lol

  • Lastly, I enjoyed reading the FCS Top 25 on the Analyst website. No surprise about the teams at the top - but I was shocked that North Dakota State didn’t get one vote for the top spot. Also, nice to see VMI in the rankings again….

8/8:

  • It was announced this morning that Bobby Bowden has passed away from Pancreatic Cancer. A great man who was a great coach. I can’t begin to write about what he meant to the game or his contributions to the sport.

  • As I read on ESPN about what Coach Bowden wanted to do as the head coach of West Virginia for Marshall after their tragic plane crash in 1970, it got me to thinking that someone needs to get the West Virginia-Marshall game going again. The series got started in 1911, and was played every year from 2006 thru 2012, but those were the last games. Not sure why the two Division I teams from West Virginia can’t get together…

8/7:

  • When Hawaii and Wyoming reunited in the Mountain West Conference in 2012, they had to do it with a new Paniolo Trophy. The original trophy had gone missing in the late 90s while in the possession of the Cowboys - perhaps it was sent to a repair shop to get fixed, and lost from there. Seems to me that the trophy doesn’t have too much meaning to one team in this rivalry…

  • Houston and Rice are about five miles apart, so they are perfect cross-town rivals. Despite being so close, the teams didn’t play until 1971, and are meeting for only the 43rd time on September 11th - a game that can be seen on CBSSN. The claim to fame for the series - the 1995 matchup was the very last football game played in the SWC.

8/6:

  • In today’s news, there is a reminder that some things (not a lot) are more important than college football. It was just announced that Terry Bowden has left his new team (ULM) to be with his ailing father. Family trumps everything, and spending every moment that you can with aging or ailing parents is something that you will never regret! I know.

  • Just like D’Eriq King, Indiana quarterback Michael Penix, Jr. is on track to start against the Hawkeyes. He has been rehabbing a torn ACL in his right knee, an injury that happened in November. This is great news for Hoosier fans, who are hoping to see a repeat of last year!

  • I can’t believe that I just remembered this evening that I have a subscription to BTN+ that I got last year, along with Flo Football - which carries CAA football. Something I discovered is that you can go back to 2015 and re-watch every Big Ten game that’s been played since then! I have found myself checking out Indiana/Purdue games - and I particularly liked listening to Tom Allen in the locker room before the 2019 game. Unfortunately, the network doesn’t go back to 2011 - the last time Michigan beat Ohio State. :(

8/5:

  • A new project has been on my plate for a while, which has left me short of time to prepare something exciting about rivalries and/or trophy games. But my love of the game has helped keep my sanity during these crazy times. Every day I am looking at numerous websites looking for any nugget of news that will make me smile or even tear up - which has happened on more than one occasion. And of course I am on this website every day looking at the number of people who have taken the time to check out something that I have posted on this site the last five years.

  • The other day I met and talked to a new neighbor, who I found out was a head coach and athletic director at Elmhurst College - a small college in Illinois. As we got deeper into his time there, he talked about hiring a coach who brought the team to the Division III playoffs for the first time in 32 years! That coach….Tim Lester - the current coach of Western Michigan. Before finishing my walk with the dog, I turned to Paul and said “Elmhurst plays in the CCIW right?” And he nodded. Then I said, “And their nickname is the Blue Jays?”. He nodded again and smiled. I hope it is the first of many conversations we have - both about football and about life!

8/4:

  • Second straight day off rivalries - not good, but short amount of time. When I was done yesterday, I noticed that I went with four things instead of three - just got carried away typing. Didn’t mention it yesterday, but I loved seeing Tom VanHaaren picking Handsome Dan over Uga as his favorite live mascot. Great choice I thought!

  • Kind of an “off the radar” home-and-home series that was announced the other day: North Texas and Texas State. The Mean Green and the Bobcats first met on the gridiron in 1915 and have squared off a total of 39 times (29 times before 1950). North Texas has won three consecutive games in the series, most recently in 1994 in San Marcos, and currently leads the overall series 30-7-2.

  • Gettysburg revealed their 2021 football schedule more than a month ago, and if I haven’t mentioned it yet, I am ashamed of myself. Their schedule has three trophy games (Dickinson College - Little Brown Bucket, Muhlenberg College - Old Tin Cup, and Franklin & Marshall - The Lincoln Trophy), and a rivalry game with McDaniel College that goes back 130 years. Even their scrimmage with Shenandoah University in Winchester, VA is exciting because of its part in the Civil War.

8/3:

  • Off of rivalries again today (sorry!) because of limited time - so I will try to touch on three things quickly. Starting with Nick Saban’s new contract! If all goes according to plan, Saban will be the first head coach in college football history to earn $10 million or more a year. Also - if he stays the length of his contract (which I don’t think is likely), Saban will probably reach 350 NCAA recognized wins - which will be good for fifth all-time in all of college football behind Bobby Bowden. I am betting on him reaching 10 National Championships before he’s done though!

  • Quinn Ewers enrolling at Ohio State this year has gotten a lot of press. He may redshirt, but don’t be surprised if he is pushing the other Buckeye quarterbacks (C.J. Stroud, Jack Miller, and Kyle McCord) for some playing time this fall. Ryan Day is going to have his hands full with his quarterback room - as he might lose one or two sooner than later. A big test for this upcoming coach.

  • Speaking of quarterback depth - LSU is suddenly hurting at this key position. Myles Brennan has undergone surgery for a serious arm injury and will be lost for the 2021 season. T.J. Finley’s transfer to Auburn could hurt in more ways than one now.

  • ESPN’s piece on College Football’s best traditions, mascots, rivalries, and more was a fantastic piece. Hearing ESPN writers talk about what they love most gave me goosebumps thinking about the game! Realignment is coming, but it’s nothing new because it has happened for over 100 years, and the game continues to grow. Some rivalries and tradition might be lost, but we will see the rebirth of a couple and maybe the start of another one or two. The important thing to remember is that there are over 600 college football programs across three divisions, and many, many rivalries and traditions that won’t be affected by this change! Sit back and either read or watch the games this fall with nothing but pure joy in your heart and a blood-curdling scream for your significant other (or neighbors) to hear when your team either wins or loses…

8/2:

  • East Carolina - NC State: The first game between these teams wasn’t until 1970, but they played annually through 1987. When the Pirate fans tore down the goal posts at Carter-Finley Stadium after their 32-14 victory that year, NC State ended the rivalry because ECU and their fans had been guilty of minor vandalism before this incident. Eventually the state legislature got involved, so now the teams meet every 2-3 years.

  • Florida - Florida State: This rivalry was at its pinnacle in the 1990s, but the seeds for this in-state battle began decades before their first game in 1958. Florida State College in Tallahassee first played football in the early 1900s, and was considered the best team in the state, but the school was turned into an all-women’s college. So that was the end of football at FSC for the time being. The head coach, Jack Forsythe, moved on to become the head coach of the new program at the University of the State of Florida, and several of his former players followed him to Gainesville. Eventually, Florida State would become coed in 1947, and the two schools clashed for the first time in 1958.

8/1:

  • Colorado State - Wyoming: Three big things to point out about The Border War: 1) The series dates back to 1893. 2) The traveling trophy is a bronzed combat boot worn in Vietnam by CSU ROTC instructor Dan Romero. 3) Each year leading up to the game, the game ball is carried 65 miles from the visiting school to the home team by the two ROTC detachments from each school.

  • UConn - Rhode Island: The Ramnapping Trophy was created in 1935 - a year after UConn students kidnapped Rhode Island’s Ram mascot. This incident was referred to as “ramnapping” by both schools at the time. The Huskies have won the trophy forty-one times, while the Rams have claimed the trophy twenty-five times. There are no games scheduled between the two schools currently.

  • Duke - North Carolina: Another Victory Bell rivalry game. Football is overshadowed by basketball in this rivalry, but these neighboring schools have had a football rivalry that dates back to 1888. The trophy became a part of the rivalry in 1948, and the tradition had been that the winning team got to spray paint their school colors on the bell’s platform - until the victor one year painted their rivals’ locker room.

7/31:

  • Clemson - South Carolina: One of the great in-state rivalries, this Battle for the Palmetto State began in 1896, and had been played every year since 1909 until last year. The string of playing 111 straight years (2nd longest streak in the FBS - behind Minnesota/Wisconsin), is now off the books as a “current streak”. This is one game that I look forward to seeing again in 2021! The Tigers have won six straight, and lead the all-time series with the Gamecocks 71-42-4.

  • Clemson - NC State: A Tiger rivalry that shouldn’t be overlooked. The first game played between these two schools was in 1899, and the series is important enough that the ACC protected it when the conference expanded to 12 schools and two divisions. The Textile Bowl is led by the Tigers, who have won fifteen of the last sixteen matchups, 59-28-1.

  • Colorado - Utah: The name of this rivalry is enough to get this game mentioned in my blog: Rumble in the Rockies. The two teams first met in 1903, and were league rivals in the Mountain States Athletic Conference, until the Buffs left for the Big Eight in 1948. Between the two programs, they won a combined 27 conference championships. Unfortunately the rivalry was discontinued in 1962 for the better part of four decades, until both teams became conference rivals again in the Pac-12. After four straight Ute victories, the series is now knotted 32-32-3.

7/30:

  • Because it is so late today (no time to play until now), I will skip the rivalry pieces, and talk about today’s big and not surprising news. Oklahoma and Texas were officially welcomed to join the SEC in 2025 (though I think it will be sooner), so the latest round of realignment begins. I am hoping that realignment is kept to a minimum, and maybe the remaining Big 12 teams get welcomed into the AAC. I know that there will be discussions about the Pac-12 or Big Ten taking a couple of teams, but frankly I hope they don’t. And if the Big 12 teams go to the AAC - maybe the Power 4 conferences could have a champion, and the Group of Five conferences have one as well. This will keep rivalries pretty much intact, except for the Bedlam Rivalry between OU and Oklahoma State. One can hope that they figure a way to keep the game going though - and if they don’t, there will be more than an offset with the return of Texas vs. A&M, the Longhorns vs. Arkansas, OU vs. Missouri and the possibility of OU vs. Arkansas developing into a good rivalry. For me, the less change the better so that we don’t have a major disruption of rivalries and traditions…

7/29:

  • UCLA - USC (Part Two): This rivalry is worth a couple of different entries. Originally mounted atop a Southern Pacific freight train, the 295-pound brass bell came to symbolize the rivalry — after a bit of chicanery. The UCLA Alumni Association had donated the bell to UCLA in 1939, and Bruin cheerleaders marked each UCLA point with a resounding clang. After two seasons, some USC fans had enough of the ringing so some members of a USC fraternity stole the bell and kept it hidden for more than a year. UCLA students retaliated by painting Tommy Trojan blue, and USC students struck back by burning their school’s initials into a lawn on UCLA’s campus. The USC president threatened to cancel the annual football game if any more mischief occurred. Then, in 1942, the student body presidents reached a deal: The winner of the football game would keep the bell for the rest of the year. Since that 1942 showdown — a 14-7 UCLA win — students from the victorious school have sandblasted and painted the bell’s carriage cardinal (43 times) or blue (32 times).

  • Cincinnati - Louisville: Although both schools are known more for an intense basketball rivalry, the University of Louisville and University of Cincinnati have a football rivalry that has stretched the span of three conferences. Since the first game in October 1929, a traveling trophy, known as the Keg of Nails, has been awarded to the winning team and it signifies that the winning team is “tough as nails.” Unfortunately the original keg was misplaced during construction at the University of Louisville, so the present trophy is a replica. After the Cardinals moved on to the ACC, the series became dormant because their are no games currently scheduled between the schools.

  • Cincinnati - Pitt: The River City rivalry will resume briefly with a home-and-home series in 2023, 2024, where the winner will bring home the Paddlewheel Trophy. This trophy was created to honor the historic tradition of paddlewheel boats traveling between the two cities along the Ohio River. Pitt leads the all-time series, that got started in 1921, 8-4, but the Bearcats have won four of the last five meetings dating back to 2008.

7/28:

  • Cal - Stanford: The Stanford Axe was originally associated with the Stanford baseball team, and was stolen by Cal students in 1899 and kept on the Berkeley campus for thirty-one years! In 1930, Stanford students, known as the “Immortal 21”, stole the Axe back - and three years later it became the trophy of the Big Game. This year’s meeting will be the 125th version of the West Coast “Big Game” with Stanford leading the all-time series 65-48-11.

  • Fresno State - Cal Poly: For the first time in almost a decade, these former rivals will meet this year and next. The teams played almost every year after World War II, and introduced the Victory Bell as a trophy around 1956. Unfortunately, continual thefts were the cause of the trophy being retired twenty years later, and the rivalry itself came to a halt once the Bulldogs moved up the the FBS. Fresno State leads the all-time series 32-9-2, and they have won seven straight since their last loss in 1979.

  • UCLA - USC: Speaking of Victory Bells, the one in this rivalry might be one of the most recognized trophies in all of college football, but it is also the least seen. The bell is only on display for the first three quarters of the game, and on the Monday following the game when it is delivered to the winning team. All other times of the year it is in a warehouse or in a vault - depending on which school possesses the prized trophy.

7/27:

  • Bowling Green - Toledo: The Falcons’ first football game was against Toledo in 1919, but after a 63-0 Rocket win in 1935 triggered an on-field brawl and fan riot, the series was suspended for 13 years. When the teams resumed play in 1948, the story goes that players from the two teams smoked a six-foot peace pipe at halftime of the annual basketball game, and the Peace Pipe trophy was born. Apparently that spirit didn't last long, as the 1951 game brought about another brawl involving both teams and at least 100 fans. Toledo has won 10 of the last 11 meetings to take the all-time series lead 41-40-4

  • BYU - Utah: There is a dispute as to when this “Holy War” (another one!) actually began. Utah begins the rivalry in 1896, while the Cougars don’t recognize any meetings before 1922 because they were known as Brigham Young Academy. Early in the rivalry, the Utes considered Colorado a bigger rival because BYU had won only eight of the first fifty-three meetings. Currently, the Utes have won nine straight to extend their series lead to 59-31-4.

  • BYU - Utah State: The Aggies haven’t always been the little brother in this matchup because they won thirty of the first fifty matchups. This rivalry turned around when legendary Cougar coach, LaVell Edwards (a Utah State graduate) in 1972 and in their 27 meetings from 1972 thru 2000, BYU went 21-6. The Cougars have pretty much been in control of the series since then, as they lead the all-time series 49-37-3.

7/26:

  • Baylor - TCU: Like the Baylor/A&M series, this rivalry also got its start in 1899. These schools are two of the most prominent religious schools in Texas, so this game is one of many dubbed the “Holy War.” What’s most interesting about this evenly matched rivalry is the fact that TCU was located in Waco before relocating to Fort Worth in 1910, so for almost a dozen years it was a city rivalry. The Horned Frogs have won five of the last six meetings to take a 56-53-7 series lead.

  • Boise State - Idaho: This series has been a FCS rivalry and a FBS rivalry - and hopefully it gets reignited as a FBS-FCS rivalry. What’s funny was that in 1971 Idaho wondered if Boise State would ever become a legitimate rival since the Broncos had recently been a junior college. Ironically, it was Boise State who canceled the yearly series after winning a dozen games in a row by increasingly larger margins. The Broncos lead the all-time series 22-17-1

  • Boston College - Holy Cross: Another series titled the “Holy War”, this game was considered at one time to be one of the most intense rivalries in New England. Separated by 36 miles, these teams first met in 1896, and played almost every year for 75 years - but the series fizzled as the Crusaders declined as a New England football power. Scheduled to play in 2023, the Eagles lead the all-time series 49-31-3.

7/25:

  • I have to revise my next few entries regarding rivalry games by a smidgen. Instead of just writing about what I have recently learned about these great games, my tidbits will now have include what I find interesting - or even head scratching about trophy and named rivalry games.

  • Ball State - Northern Illinois: It took 67 years to establish a trophy in this rivalry. The series got started in 1941, but didn’t pick up steam until both teams were in the MAC from 1975-1986. Then the Huskies left the MAC for a time before returning in 1997, and finally a trophy (Bronze Stalk Trophy) was introduced in 2008. NIU leads the all-time series 24-22-2, but the Cardinals have won two straight.

  • Baylor - Texas A&M: I’m not sure that a rivalry that hasn’t been played in ten years deserves to be a part of this, but I’m making an exception to this one - and probably many others in the next few days. These teams first met in 1899, and played almost every year until the Aggies left for the SEC. It is believed that the rivalry got its beginnings because A&M was an all-male college until 1911 and Baylor (90 miles away in Waco) happened to be the closest school at that time to admit women. The Aggies lead the all-time series 68-31-9, but currently there are no games scheduled between these two old rivals.

7/24:

  • We are now five weeks away from Nebraska visiting Illinois and the rest of the Week Zero schedule to get the 2021 season started. With that being said, I hope to fill this blog for the next few days with things that I have learned this month about certain rivalry games and trophies - starting with the FBS alphabetically.

  • Arkansas State - ULM: The Trail of Tears Classic stems from the fact that both teams were formerly nicknamed Indians. The rivalry name continues even though ULM are now known as the Warhawks and Arkansas State are now Red Wolves. Arkansas State has won eleven straight and leads the series, that got started in 1959, 28-14.

  • Auburn - LSU: A couple of things about the Tiger Bowl that are new to me. I was surprised that these two schools had played only twenty-four times from 1901-1987. And LSU’s 7-6 win in 1988 was the game that the Tiger Stadium crowd registered as an earthquake. The Tigers of LSU lead the all-time series that began in 1901, 31-23-1.

7/23:

  • I can see where Dabo is coming from regarding his desire to shorten the season. I have loved 12 game seasons, but I can also get into a ten game schedule - provided that there are nine conference games and a Power 5 matchup as the tenth game. This hurts the Group of Five and FCS teams, but Swinney’s idea of playing them in the spring intrigues me.

  • This morning I was reading a piece about how the author would rather have Notre Dame play Michigan State than Purdue. The Spartans versus the Fighting Irish is a good matchup on just mascots alone, but I lean on the in-state Boilermaker matchup a bit more even if it’s a bit less competitive. What’s funny is that Michigan wasn’t even mentioned, and that’s a game that qualifies for prime time. All three of these Big Ten teams are perfect opponents for Notre Dame, and they deserve to show up on the Irish’s schedule more often than ACC teams…

  • Way behind my reading on theAthletic website because of the furor caused by Oklahoma and Texas. So far that I had to click on the “show more” button to see where I left off. The more I visit the site, the more I enjoy the content as the authors of the blogs are obviously very knowledgeable and experts on their topics.

7/22:

  • Miami quarterback D’Eriq King feels like is able to go full speed in fall practice, while three Demon Deacons, two who are key starters, saw their season go down the drain - which isn’t good for both players and team. This will hurt Wake’s depth.

  • The Athletic is loaded with pieces to read. I chose a blog about the MAC, where a dozen of players were asked questions ranging from favorite stadiums to toughest player they have faced to who they predict to win - without choosing their own team. The most interesting part was talking about mid-week games. Almost all liked the TV exposure, but some mentioned that they miss the weekend crowds, and others struggle with classwork. I enjoyed it very much.

  • Sad to see that 1,100 players are still active in the transfer portal that haven’t found a home for 2021. Looks to me like a majority of these kids didn’t think things through this year.

  • Lastly, the biggest news - OU and Texas has contacted the SEC about membership, which has angered Texas A&M. As nice as it would be to see Texas renew hostilities with both A&M and Arkansas, I would like to see the Sooners and Longhorns in the Pac-12 South Division - and move Utah to the North. Then the Big 12 could bring in Houston and SMU - as well as maybe BYU and Boise State.

7/21:

  • A good read at collegefootballnews.com about potential Group of Five wins over Power 5 teams. The part that didn’t make sense to me, and it could be just my perspective on the piece, is how any win by a Group of Five team would be considered an upset. I can see that with expected close games between Nevada at Kansas State, Louisiana at Texas - and even Oklahoma State at Boise State. But if Cincinnati beats Indiana, and Coastal Carolina beats Kansas for the third time - those aren’t upsets. Neither would be a UCF win over Louisville.

  • I’m not surprised that Bryce Young is going to make a lot of money via endorsements. I am surprised at how much already! This is great news for him and it’s great news for Alabama in terms of what potential recruits could earn while playing for the Crimson Tide. My hope though is that it doesn’t cause a division in the locker room - wouldn’t wish that on any team (except maybe the Buckeyes - LOL). Time will tell about NIL…

  • Interesting to see that two ACC teams (Clemson and UNC) are supposedly against playoff expansion. I wonder if we will hear more about that - either from coaches or from the players. The more I noodle it, the more I like the idea of the college football playoff being more inclusive. You don’t hear from anyone that March Madness is too big - though I’m not big on the play-in games.

  • Must mention that Eastern Michigan announcing new opponents isn’t very exciting, but seeing that they will play Michigan State in 2026 gets my attention. Why you ask? Because the Eagles and Spartans played their first game against each other in 1898.

7/20:

  • I really enjoyed reading Adam Rittenberg’s piece on Nebraska football at ESPN.com yesterday. Hard to believe that it has been a decade since the Cornhuskers joined the Big Ten. It was also a reminder of how great a coach Tom Osborne was in Lincoln - as he had a record of 255-49-3 over 25 seasons. I for one, hope that Nebraska finds its way back to national prominence in the next few years.

  • I love the announcements of newly scheduled games/series on FBSchedules.com, but I have to admit that this past week was pretty weak. Seeing Fresno State add Southern, NC State reschedule their visit to Troy - and last but not least Tennessee playing Syracuse (though they are traditional football teams) in 2025 just hasn’t cut it for me. Hopefully the next seven days break more mouth watering games…

  • Seeing the mention of Joe Tiller’s name today made me realize how good of a coach he was - not only at Purdue but also at Wyoming. While the head coach of the Cowboys, he led his teams to a .500 or better record from 1993 thru 1996. In 1997, he moved on to West Lafayette to take over the reins of the Boilermakers. Prior to Tiller’s arrival, Purdue had only one winning season in sixteen years from 1981 thru 1996. In Joe’s twelve years at the helm, Purdue had nine winning seasons and ten bowl invites. That’s pretty damn impressive.

7/19:

  • As the Fall 2021 season fast approaches (40 days?), I can’t wait for the return of Ivy League and NESCAC football! They won’t kickoff for another 61 days if my calculations are correct, but the extra wait will be worth it. Being that the conferences didn’t play in 2020, it’s going to make this season even harder to figure out than previous years. That’s okay though - there’s something about the unknown that makes things a bit more exciting.

  • Hard to believe that 27 FCS programs didn’t play last year. Of course eight were teams from the Ivy League, but each conference had from one to three teams not play. This fall will have 12 FCS football programs - including newcomer St. Thomas. The Tommies will be an interesting team to follow since they are making the jump from Division III.

  • Surprising to see Penn State and Notre Dame at the top (only behind the Buckeyes) in the 2022 Recruiting Rankings without the help of a five-star prospect. Both teams have been successful in securing a lot of 4-star commitments - which allows them to stay ahead of LSU, OU, and Alabama. For the time being…

7/18:

  • It took me until this evening to read Adam Wittenberg’s piece on ESPN.com where he ranked all 130 FBS head coaches based on their playing days. My guess was that Pat Fitzgerald would be the man at the top, but I forgot about the NFL career that Jim Harbaugh had with the Bears and the Colts. I couldn’t help but laugh when I read that Jedd Fisch hadn’t played football, but instead was an all-state tennis player.

  • No surprise that Malachi Nelson made a commitment to OU today. Can’t blame the California kid for his decision - Lincoln Riley has a great record with quarterbacks.

  • With Lane Kiffin at the helm, Ole Miss is going to be a serious contender for Arch Manning. My only concern with that…will Kiffin still be at Ole Miss in 2023? Saban will still be at Alabama and Swinney will still be at Clemson…

7/17:

  • Today looks at three interesting games that will be played on Thursday, Sept. 2nd.

  • Appalachian State vs. East Carolina (Charlotte): Mountaineers leads the overall series 19-12, but the Pirates have won last six games. These schools played 23 times from 1948 thru 1979, but this is only their third meeting since 1979.

  • UC Davis at Tulsa: First-ever meeting. UC Davis was originally scheduled to open the season against USC, but the Trojans canceled the contest to keep their record intact of never having played a FCS team.

  • Tennessee Tech at Samford: The Bulldogs of Samford lead this tight series that started in 1934, 12-11. Their last two meetings have been shootouts - in 2019 the Golden Eagles won 59-58 in double OT and in 2007, Samford won 59-52.

7/16:

  • Former UMaine quarterback Chris Ferguson, who helped take the Black Bears to the FCS semifinals a few seasons ago, has transferred again. He played a season sparingly at Liberty and now will play for Towson. They play in Maine’s conference but unfortunately the Black Bears and Tigers won’t meet this fall. I was worried that Ferguson would be stuck in the portal with no place to play - so this is great news.

  • Charlotte offensive lineman Ty'Kieast Crawford has called the Hogs for a second time, pledging himself to the Razorbacks out of the transfer portal. Crawford committed to Arkansas and Chad Morris in April of 2019 but the commitment did not last. The tackle decommitted from Arkansas after the Hogs' lost to Kentucky on the road, a couple weeks before Morris was fired during the 2019 season. Maybe the second time will work while playing for Sam Pittman.

  • And one more interesting transfer story…Tight End Daniel Imatorbhebhe is a seventh-year senior, who has transferred from Illinois to Kansas State this fall. In 2015, Imatorbhebhe signed with Florida and spent one spring with them before moving on to USC. That is four different Power 5 Conferences that Daniel has been a part of…..must be the first time it has ever happened.

7/15:

  • With the city of San Diego’s not-so-good history of getting new stadiums built, it’s nice to see that San Diego State’s new Aztec Stadium is progressing as planned. The stadium will be a part of the University’s Mission Valley campus. This is as exciting as when fellow Mountain West member, Colorado State built an on-campus stadium in Fort Collins a short while ago.

  • In fifteen years, Nick Saban has won almost 90% of his games as head coach of Alabama. His Crimson Tide teams have lost two conference games in a season only twice since 2010. The following years, Alabama won the National Championship. Excluding his time in the NFL, he has built winners at each of his collegiate stops, and I’m convinced that he could eventually have winners at any of the FBS schools - including UMess. He might already have the title “Greatest College football Coach”.

  • With NIL now in college football - the question has been raised as to whether or not we will see names appear on the jerseys of Notre Dame, Penn State, and USC. for tradition sake, I hope not, but it might be required to stay/get competitive.

  • Maybe in the not-so-distant future I will write a little something about Frank Solich, but that will have to wait after I just read two fantastic pieces about him posted on theathlectic.com. These pieces make you realize why we love the game and the people of college football!

7/14:

  • Sad to see this morning that Frank Solich has stepped down as head coach of the Ohio Bobcats for health reasons. I was just thinking a couple of weeks ago that he might make it to 200 career wins. Solich has been in coaching for 55 years, and retires with a career record of 173-101 (115 of the wins with Ohio - the most in MAC history).

  • Yesterday I spoke about Arch Manning setting up a visit with Ole Miss. Today I was reading that Malachi Nelson, another 5-star quarterback in the 2023 class, has released is Top 7 schools list. The California native has listed USC as one of the seven, but recruiting experts believe that he is headed to Oklahoma. We will find out this Sunday, July 18th…

  • Skimmed through PFF’s ranking of all 130 FBS quarterbacks, but I’m not sure I am in agreement. I will probably copy and paste it to a Word document and track it throughout the year. Who knows - I might be eating crow. A piece I enjoyed more this morning - CBS Sports ranking all 130 head coaches in regards to being on the Hot Seat. I think that they nailed it.

  • Only six more Saturdays without college football…

7/13:

  • Better late than never…East Tennessee Jared Folks is the first person to get an eighth year of eligibility. Folks started at Temple in 2014 and his collegiate career will wrap up this fall with the Buccaneers.

  • Another website to keep an eye on for the next few weeks, and perhaps months…PFF. The latest piece on the website is their attempt to rank all 130 FBS starting quarterbacks.

  • Herosports.com is running a daily piece on the best returning players in the FCS by position. so far they have done running backs and linebackers. I believe that tomorrow will be returning quarterbacks.

  • I see that Arch Manning has now scheduled an official visit to Ole Miss. I have to admit that I follow him closely because of his grandfather, Archie, who was one of my favorite NFL players when he was quarterback for the Saints.

7/12:

  • Looks like the first preseason media poll is in - and it’s for the Big 12. No surprise that Oklahoma is at the top, with the Cyclones nipping at their heels. These two top teams are followed by Texas, Oklahoma State and TCU - who are clumped together. The next tier is West Virginia and Kansas State, with the remaining teams being Baylor, Texas Tech - and of course Kansas.

  • I’m a little late mentioning it, but I’m thrilled that former Navy team captain Cameron Kinley will be allowed to pursue his NFL career. The Secretary of Defense has reversed course, so Kinley can now attend training camp with the defending Super Bowl champions - Tampa Bay. A wrong has been righted!

  • An interesting connection in the Northern Colorado - Colorado game scheduled on Friday, September 3rd. Buffalo head coach Karl Dorrell was the Denver Bronco wide receiver coach from 2000-2002, a time when Northern Colorado head coach Ed Mc Caffrey was wrapping up his career as a wide receiver

7/11:

  • Found myself reading a bunch of pieces on collegefootballnews.com - particularly their predictions for every game by team. Also looks like they have a pretty good countdown to the season for the next couple of weeks called 21 for 2021 Preview Topics. Will be a site to keep an eye on for the next few months.

  • Saw today that the “Battle for Greater Baltimore” has been extended through the 2027 season. This rivalry between Towson and Morgan State doesn’t resonate with FBS fans - or even the casual FCS fans, but it’s a game that has always held my attention. The reason or reasons being that the city has always meant something to me since I went to school at Maryland, and my roommate’s sister attended Towson - a few years back. LOL

  • And sticking with the FCS for a moment…yesterday I talked about gathering series information for each game to be played this year in the division. The reason for this is so that I can give the division a bit of attention that it deserves with a weekly Games to Follow - much like I do for the FBS. Unfortunately, when trying to put together games for Week 2, I am struggling to find just 6 to 8 games that are more meaningful than the others - and just maybe a more thorough review of series records might just do the trick for me.

7/10:

  • I wish that there was a database like mcubed.net for FCS series record. This database gives me so much information about FBS opponents that will be meeting on the gridiron, that having the same for FCS teams would save me so much time. In the meantime if I want to put together a FCS Games to Follow each week, I need to create my own temporary database be visiting each school’s website and cross my fingers that they have a decent history on their opponents.

  • Looking at my Longest Tenured FBS and FCS coaches, I am thinking that it might need to be expanded. Like to include all the coaches. Might take some time, and with turnover the way it is - it’s going to require continuous maintenance. Will be worth it though I think…

  • Read a piece my Bruce Feldman about quarterback Nate Johnson - who committed to Utah last month. Makes me nervous for USC and UCLA. Hopefully teams will continue to recruit him, and as he develops his skills, I hope that someone (UCLA or Michigan?) is able to flip him because I don’t want Kyle Whittingham to develop him into a dangerous weapon.. LOL

7/9:

  • Another transfer has landed in Kentucky. Dare Rosenthal, who started some games at left tackle for LSU, has decided that he would like to join the Wildcats. He joins an impressive list of transfers to Lexington this year - the others being quarterback Will Levis, wide receiver Wan’Dale Robinson and linebacker Jacquez Jones (Ole Miss).

  • Colorado announced some additional games that they have scheduled. The Buffs will face former Big Eight opponent Oklahoma State for a home-and-home series in the distant future (2036 and 2037). They will also face SMU for the first time in another home-and-home series in 2030 and 2031. I do look forward to this matchup. And finally, Wyoming will cross the border and visit Folsom Field in 2025. This was a fairly regular matchup up through the 40s, but has been played only a handful of times since then - the most recent game being in 2009. I would like to see this game scheduled a bit more often…

  • Hard to imagine stat that I saw: North Carolina A&T running back Jah-Maine Martin has scored 32 touchdowns in his career - all rushing I believe. Martin’s average yardage on these scores…32.3 yards. Crazy. Guess he would have to be considered a game-changer or game-breaker…

7/8:

  • Seeing the Ivy League schools announce their team schedules and TV schedule is getting me very excited for the return of Ivies this fall. Add in the NESCAC and Centennial Conferences from Division III, and I can barely contain myself. Having football last fall and this spring was nice, but I did miss some of my favorite teams.

  • A quick moment about two SEC schools and their recruiting. Eliah Drinkwitz has done a great job with Mizzou and it’s showing in his recruiting. Not only does he have a firm grip on the St. Louis area, but he has received commitments from 4-star recruits in Georgia, Texas, and Nebraska. Meanwhile, Vanderbilt has picked up six commitments last week and now they have 15 recruits for 2022 from eight different states. If the Commodores keep this up, we might see a solid program playing in Nashville.

  • Provided place-kicker Ethan Ratke from James Madison stays healthy in 2021, he will set the FCS record for career field goals and for total points by a kicker. Ratke has made 72 field goals in his four years and has scored 392 points, so he should easily exceed the current records of 75 field goals and 407 points held by former Montana and NFL kicker Dan Carpenter.

7/7:

  • Three FBS coaches will turn 70 this year: Nick Saban, Mack Brown, and Butch Davis. They will join Frank Solich (76!) who is the oldest and only coach in the FBS that is currently over 70. Solich has taken Ohio to five straight bowl games and owns a 49-32 (.605) record after turning 70. Not sure why he was fired by Nebraska after a nine-win season and a record of 58-19 in six seasons as the Cornhuskers coach.

  • Yesterday I talked about Tony Testa stepping down as head coach less than 60 days before the 2021 season was to begin. Here are some FBS coaches who left or were forced to leave in July from prior seasons: Butch Davis - UNC (July 27th, 2011), Tim Beckman - Illinois (August 28th, 2015), Hugh Freeze - Ole Miss (July 20th, 2017) and Bobby Johnson - Vanderbilt (July 14th, 2010).

  • A couple of big wins for teams yesterday. Penn State held off Notre Dame to get running back Nicholas Singleton - the top rated recruit in the Nittany Lions 3rd ranked class nationally in 2022. Most importantly, Penn State protected their border and kept Singleton home. And SMU got another victory when former Oregon linebacker Isaac Slade-Matautia announced that he would play for the Mustangs this year. Slade-Matautia was tied for the team lead in tackles last year with 45.

7/6:

  • With Texas five-star offensive lineman Kelvin Banks committing to Oregon, Mario Cristobal is proving that he is near the top when it comes to recruiting. The Ducks are getting recruits from key states (California and Texas) with Cristobal behind the controls, so it might not be very long before Oregon is a fixture in the playoffs - before it expands. The Trojans are fortunate to have the playoffs expanding…

  • Penn State might be the benefactors of Ohio State getting Quinn Ewers out of Texas. With the Buckeyes pursuing the top talent around the country, the Nittany Lions crossed the border into Ohio to pluck Drew Allar, a four-star prospect. Allar showed his talent off at the Elite 11 camp last week. He might have something to prove to the Buckeyes down the road.

  • It’s less than 60 days until their first game, but Division II West Virginia Wesleyan is in need of a new head coach. Yesterday Tony Testa resigned as the head coach of the Bobcats to pursue another opportunity. Since becoming the head coach of his alma mater in 2019, Testa compiled a 1-12 record.

7/5:

  • For a while yesterday, I was updating my Week 1 schedule for the weekday games. The list of games has now grown to 25 games - of which almost 2/3 of them will be played on Thursday. But don’t ignore Wednesday’s game between UAB and Jacksonville State, or the solid matchups on Friday.

  • Sad to see that Terry Donahue passed away yesterday. I remember him as being so young on the sideline for the Bruins. I knew that he was the winningest coach for UCLA with 151 wins, but I didn’t realize that he has the most Pac-12 wins in history at 98! Lastly, I also didn’t know that he was the first person in Rose Bowl history to play, be an assistant coach and be a head coach. Impressive resume.

  • In recruiting yesterday, the rich got richer, but it was awesome to see SMU get 4-star wide receiver Jordan Hudson. What makes it even sweeter is that at one point he was committed to Oklahoma. Sonny Dykes is doing a super job of getting players to come to Dallas. And he might not be done yet because they have 4-star safety Chase Biddle, Hudson’s high school teammate, in their sights.

7/4:

  • Nice to see that Yale and Brown announced their schedules for the upcoming season. FBSchedules had pictures of the Yale Bowl and Brown Stadium - kind of a where I’ve been and where I need to go. I think that a pilgrimage to Providence should be in the works for me sooner rather than later, as I need to visit Brown.

  • Scary to see that Quinn Ewers recruiting ranking is the highest in two decades - even higher than Trevor Lawrence. He is the first quarterback to achieve a perfect 1.000 rating since Vince Young in 2002. Fortunately it’s an algorithm - but it predicted Young, Lawrence and Justin Fields pretty well…

  • Jim Harbough can be excited about the changes he made to his coaching staff, but I’m not sure it will be enough to change the product on the field this year. A couple of mediocre recruiting class recently won’t get them to the top. Key words to national championship aspirations: Talent evaluation and development.

  • The deadline for entering the transfer portal and be eligible to play this fall has come and gone. In the SEC, three players entered the last few days - not including Dare Rosenthal out of LSU. Darel Middleton, who is leaving Tennessee, was a force on defense for the Vols, and his leaving is strictly because of a new coaching staff. Alabama linebacker King Mwikuta could be a force for someone, but he was just buried on the depth chart, while Missouri LB Gerald Nathan is just wanting to play more after limited action in 2018 and 2019 (took 2020 off).

7/3:

  • The Washington Huskies announced that they have scheduled some non-conference games, the biggest being a visit from Michigan in 2028. The Huskies were scheduled to host the Wolverines last season, but the game was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, Washington and Michigan State will play a home-and-home series in 2022 and 2023 that was previously scheduled to played during the 2028 and 2031 seasons.

  • Saw someone’s thoughts and predictions about the twelve FBS teams in Texas. No surprise that Texas A&M was considered the top team in the group as they are a playoff hopeful this year. Seeing TCU ahead of Texas was interesting, but they are returning a ton of talent and Max Duggan is a solid quarterback - and the Horned Frogs seem to have the Longhorns number currently. Lastly, seeing SMU ahead of former SWC members Baylor, Texas Tech, and even Houston made me smile. Go Ponies!

  • Chad Pennington’s son Cole has given his commitment to Marshall - his father’s alma mater. The elder Pennington still holds Marshall's single-season record for most passing touchdowns with 42. Chad is also the school's all-time passing yards leader with 14,098 yards and is second all-time in career passing touchdowns with 123.

  • FCS champion Sam Houston has opted to play 10 games this fall instead of the usual eleven. The Bearkats will also have two weeks prep and rest before taking on their toughest opponents - Central Arkansas and Jacksonville State. Shouldn’t be difficult for them to defend their title this season.


7/2:

  • Though I couldn’t find an official announcement anywhere yesterday, i believe that the FCS grew from thirteen conferences to fourteen this year (WAC-ASUN), and thirteen teams change conferences or leave their independent status behind. This year’s movers: Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman to the SWAC, North Carolina A&T to the Big South, St. Thomas from Division III to the Pioneer Football League and the following to WAC-ASUN: Central Arkansas, Jacksonville State, Eastern Kentucky, Sam Houston, Abilene Christian, Lamar, Stephen F. Austin, Dixie State and Tarleton State. Phew!

  • A couple things about the WAC: It was a FBS Conference for fifty years from 1962 to 2012. New Mexico won the first WAC Championship, Utah State won the last, but BYU won the most: 18. In fact, they won or shared eleven straight from 1974 thru 1985. The Aztecs of San Diego State dethroned them.

  • Ball State announced yesterday that they are giving head coach Mike Neu a new five-year contract that runs through 2025. Last year, Neu led the Cardinals to their first MAC title since 1996. Ironically, Neu was the starting quarterback of that 1996 team. Mike has made steady progress since being hired - but will he be able to sustain it? Time will tell…

7/1:

  • Quick hits today starting with Barry Alvarez retiring yesterday. A great article about him here:

    https://madison.com/wsj/sports/college/football/the-legend-of-barry-alvarez-started-where-he-s-from-on-his-final-day-as/article_96a20ae5-898a-56ff-a56c-383c28afc2d4.html

  • Four days ago, USA today posted a piece on the toughest (best??) non-conference schedules for the 64 Power Five teams. A good read!

  • A listing of Southland Conference games to be televised on ESPN+ was published by FBSchedules.com yesterday. Watching two talented quarterbacks (Cole Kelley - SE Louisiana and Cameron Ward - UIW) is a must - especially when they go up against one another on November 6th.

  • Last week Michigan landed four-star quarterback Jayden Denegal in their 2022 class. This follows the Wolverines getting J.J. McCarthy last year - so now they should be set at this position for the next few years. One small detail remains…they need to be developed into stars…

  • Two to three days ago Illinois’ depth took a hit as six players it the transfer portal in a 24 hour period. Will this hurt the program or has Bret Bielema recruited well enough since being hired to not feel the pain of this mass exodus?

6/30:

  • Starting with Transfer Portal news…two recent additions to the pool is good news for whoever lands them. Dare Rosenthal, who is 6’7’ and 325 lbs., started five games for LSU last year at left tackle. He was also suspended for two games - and is a rulebreaker. If he were to play up to his ability, Rosenthal would be an early-round draft pick. Baylor might be the lucky duck to receive his services. And linebacker Isaac Slade-Matautia is leaving Oregon after starting every game for them the last two years. In that time he had 107 tackles, 10 TFLs and 16 pass breakups. Seems like a stud to me - and McKenzie Milton (a fellow Hawaiian) has been rumored to be recruiting Slade-Matautia to FSU.

  • Three tough FCS schedules this fall: Dixie State, Northern Iowa, and LIU. In only their second season in FCS, Dixie State’s opponents had a combined .714 winning percentage, and seven of them qualified for the playoffs (Sacramento State and Montana in 2019). Northern Iowa has perhaps the toughest road schedule: Iowa State, Sacramento State, North Dakota State, South Dakota State, Illinois State and Missouri State. While LIU, entering their third season in the FCS (14 games played), is taking on three straight FBS opponents - the most in the FCS.

  • Sticking with FCS, something I haven’t seen on this level in regards to scheduling happened yesterday. Northern Arizona and Southern Utah announced a 12-game football series that is to start in 2028 and run through 2039. The two teams are both current members of the Big Sky Conference and compete annually in a matchup dubbed the Grand Canyon Rivalry, but the Thunderbirds are leaving the Big Sky for the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) beginning with the 2022 season. So there will be seven year gap in the rivalry because the Lumberjacks have filled their non-conference schedule thru 2027, but once it gets restarted the trophy will again be exchanged annually for years to come.

6/29:

  • To win a national championship, a team must be able to recruit the top talent in their own state, as well as getting top recruits from other regions of the country. Then they must be able to develop that talent and survive the rigors and speed bumps of the season. Teams that are there: Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Oklahoma. Teams getting there: Georgia, Oregon, and Texas A&M. The Tigers at LSU are kind of a tweener between these two groups. USC is accumulating talent from California as well as the East Coast (Georgia), but do they have the coaching staff to develop these players? Penn State has owned Pennsylvania - but are Maryland and Rutgers fighting them off in their respective states? And are the Nittany Lion coaches getting the most out of their talent on the field? In a short time we will see if these teams are able to be mentioned the groups above - or will they need to undergo changes in the coaching staff…

  • I am looking forward to seeing if Clark Lea can do at Vanderbilt what Pat Fitzgerald has done at Northwestern. The two schools are very similar both in terms of academics and in their football history - though the Wildcats have had sustained success since Fitzgerald was hired. Will Lea be able to find rough athletes and turn them into gems? I hope so!

  • I can’t believe that an article at theanalyst.com was out eight days before I read it, but the piece on Taylor Heinicke’s game for Old Dominion against UNH in 2012 was a fantastic read. An amazing performance in an amazing game. Heinicke still holds the FCS record for most passing yards in a quarter (293), in a half (480) and in a game (730). Taylor is currently under contract with the Washington Football Team (how I wanted to write Redskins!).

6/28:

  • Late entries - so I might be a bit brief….247sports had a piece on the dangerous teams of 2021. I really liked their selections, and completely agree: TCU, Washington, Ole Miss and LSU. I would add to the list Miami because of their QB - if he’s healthy. And if Michigan beats the Huskies in Week 2, you might have to add the Wolverines Each of these teams are capable of damaging playoff hopes of higher-ranked teams.

  • After leading the LIU Pioneers/Sharks for more than twenty years, Bryan Collins has retired as the coach of the Sharks after just one year full year in the FCS. Collins was tabbed as LIU's head coach in 1998, became the program's all-time winningest leader and for a while he was the school's athletics director. His teams posted 16 winning seasons and captured seven conference championships prior to the school's leap to the D-1 level. A big loss to the program.

6/27:

  • After starting at Wake Forest with back-to-back 3-9 seasons, Dave Clawson has led Wake Forest to five straight bowls games for the first time in school history. From 2016 thru 2019, the Demon Deacons were 30-22, and probably would have continued that trend if not for the pandemic last year. To punctuate Clawson as a successful and talented head coach - he led Bowling Green to a MAC Title back in 2013.

  • As for Justin Fuente, things started off nicely for him in Blacksburg as he went 19-8 in his first two seasons. Since then he’s 19-18, and many players have been leaving the team, so the Hokies are bordering on mediocrity - which won’t be acceptable to the fans or the school. This year they get the Tar Heels straight out of the gates at Lane Stadium - where Carolina has won only twice since 2004. For Fuente, I believe that this crucial ACC clash is a possible do-or-die game for him to continue as the Hokie coach beyond 2021.

  • Have to give Kent State a little loving. In a period of forty-one years, the Golden Flashes had three winning seasons, they have had back-to-back winning seasons. With the league’s top quarterback (Dustin Crum) and most potent offense, Kent State might win the MAC Championship for the first time since 1972!

6/26:

  • Bill Moos, the athletic director for Nebraska announced his retirement - one year before his contract was up, so it has caught some by surprise. He started the job in 2017 and in that time has had to hire a football coach, a basketball coach and a baseball coach. With Moos leaving, it puts his best hire (Scott Frost) on an even hotter seat.

  • When I saw the headline Illinois’ Mt. Rushmore on Mike Farrell’s Three-Point Stace, I couldn’t wait to see his selections - as I wondered where Dick Butkas would land. Unfortunately, Farrell’s cut-off was 1980. So…my Illinois’ Mt. Rushmore: Red Grange, Dick Butkas, George Halas and Ray Nitschke. Simeon Rice would be the alternate.

  • Couple quick thoughts on recruiting…nice to see Boston College and Rutgers ranked in the Top Ten of the 2022 Recruiting Rankings. The last 2021 recruit, J.T. Tuimoloau will choose the Buckeyes I believe after canceling his visit to Alabama. And Arch Manning (2023) is going to be a Clemson Tiger I believe.

6/25:

  • I haven’t read a lot of pieces on the NIL issue, but this morning I was reading Mike Farrell’s Three-Point Stance on Rivals.com and his points got me to thinking: More sitting out of games by players, coaches losing a bit of control to the players (NBA?), jealousy in the locker room, even more transfers. I am all for NIL compensation for players, but it could have a harmful effect to the game.

  • For a majority of years between 1983 and 2003, the Miami Hurricanes were a threat to win the National Championship. Since 2004 though, they have not had a season with less than three losses and they are still looking for their first ACC title. Now they are a dark horse candidate for a playoff spot in 2021. Can they prove the oddsmakers wrong and defeat the defending national champions in the spotlight of Atlanta on September 4th? History doesn’t favor the Hurricanes though as they lost to Clemson and North Carolina last year by a combined 61 points.

  • So far Stetson, out of the Pioneer Football League, is the last (or maybe we should say latest) to complete their Fall 2021 football schedule. The Hatters announced that they will play the Warner Royals on September 4th. In their most recent matchup in 2016, the Hatters defeated the Royals 30-15 to extend their unbeaten record in the series to 3-0. Warner is a NAIA team who plays in the Mid-South Conference, along with the Ave Maria Gyrenes (love the name!) - another Stetson opponent in 2021.

  • https://247sports.com/Article/College-football-transfer-portal-numbers-2021-166942564/ (great article on the danger of entering the transfer portal)

6/24:

  • I was reading this morning that the Holiday Bowl will be played at Petco field this year - the home of the San Diego Padres. One of the more enjoyable bowls for me, I have always associated it with BYU, as they played in eleven of the first sixteen games from 1978 to 1993. The biggest being the 1984 game against Michigan that gave them the disputed National Championship that year In 2021, the game will feature an ACC team versus the Pac-12.

  • One FCS vs. FBS matchup where we might see the smaller division winning is the Yale at Connecticut matchup on October 16th. The Huskies, who didn’t play in 2020, have lost 21 of their last 25 games, while the Bulldogs were 9-1 in 2019 and shared the Ivy League championship with Dartmouth. However, in their most recent meeting in 1998, UConn traveled to New Haven, Conn., and defeated Yale, 63.21.

  • Yesterday, Lehigh released their 2021 football schedule that culminates on November 20th with the 157th edition of The Rivalry with Lafayette. In addition to their conference schedule against their patriot League foes, the Mountain Hawks will play two CAA teams (Villanova and Richmond) and three Ivy League members (Penn, Princeton and Yale). Looking closer at their Ivy League opponents, Lehigh has played both the Quakers and Tigers 61 times, while they have lined up against Yale only 25 times. But when one looks closely at the history, all three series started between 1885 and 1890 - with Penn being the oldest of these. A bit of history there between these opponents.

6/23:

  • Louisiana head coach Billy Napier, former wide receivers coach under Nick Saban, will be the first Sun Belt coach to earn $2 million a year - double what he earned in 2020. His contract also includes a $900,000 budget increase for his assistant coaches and staff, from $2.87 million to $3.77 million. This is the third time in three years as the Ragin’ Cajun head coach that Napier's contract has been amended during his tenure at UL.

  • Minnesota athletics announced Tuesday morning that the Golden Gophers plan to operate at full capacity for all sporting events in the 2021-22 year, which includes a prime-time Big Ten football game Sept. 2 against Ohio State. This is great news for P.J. Fleck and his team. Maybe a sellout crowd, combined with national tv on a Thursday night, will be enough for the Golden Gophers to win their third game against the Buckeyes in fifty-two years.

  • On September 4th, Rice and Arkansas will play for the first time since the Razorbacks left the Southwest Conference to join the SEC after the 1991 season. These teams had met every year from 1930 through 1991 - a period of 62 years. Arkansas leads the series 35-29-3, but they have won 27 of 33 since 1959.

6/22:

  • Very quick today as I need to work on the content of this site…but there are four (now five) things I have seen today/recently that require a read…

  • https://herosports.com/fcs-football-likely-fbs-wins-2021-bzbz/

  • https://athlonsports.com/college-football/athlon-sports-2021-preseason-fcs-all-america-team

  • https://247sports.com/LongFormArticle/After-flurry-of-commits-a-look-at-the-top-recruiting-classes-in-2022-166796998/#1659938_1

  • https://theathletic.com/2666162/2021/06/22/staples-florida-ad-scott-stricklins-scheduling-manifesto-would-make-college-football-better-will-people-listen/

  • Almost forgot this…https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/ranking-the-2021-college-football-quarterbacks-in-tiers-from-heisman-contenders-to-up-and-comers/

6/21:

  • Summer has arrived, so we are now less than seventy days away from the first college football game kicking off - which according to my calculations is 1,635.5 hours away at the time of this writing. Crowds, tailgating, halftime shows, and the overall pageantry will again be back in its full glory…and I CAN’T wait!

  • Mike Farrell on Rivals.com listed his top 20 FBS coaches, with his top five being no surprise: Nick Saban, Dabo Swinney, Jimbo Fisher, Lincoln Riley, and Brian Kelly. Just on the outside is Ryan Day, who I feel will crack this list very shortly - though it’s tough to predict who he will displace. The question I have with Mike’s rankings: Why isn’t Pat Fitzgerald in the top 10? His case is that Fitzgerald is not a great recruiter, but he gets the most out of his talent and almost always exceeds expectations.

  • I really enjoyed the piece on Greg Coleman and the newest inductees to the Black College Football Hall of Fame on ESPN.com. The list of new members was quite impressive: Winston Hill (New York Jets), Coy Bacon (Rams/Chargers/Redskins), Greg Coleman (Vikings), Jimmie Giles (Bucs), Roynell Young (Eagles) and Coach Willard Bailey. Seeing the accomplishments Coach Bailey certainly caught my attention. He has the most college football wins in the history of Virginia college football, but more importantly Bailey is the only coach in history to be a tenured professor at three universities simultaneously: St. Paul’s College, Virginia Union, and Norfolk State. Wow!

6/20:

  • I really like where the playoff is going, especially if the six best conference champions and then the best six teams remaining is agreed upon by the committee. The Pac-12 has been used as an example, as they would have missed last year’s playoff if there were twelve teams, but 2020 should have an asterisk because of the pandemic. Working out the details about how to incorporate the bowl games will be a big challenge - especially the biggest one of all, the Rose Bowl.

  • The height of the Clemson-Georgia rivalry in my eyes was from 1977 thru 1987 when nine of the eleven meetings were decided by seven points or less. The biggest game of that era was in 1982, when the defending national champion Tigers (ranked 11th!) took on the 7th-ranked Bulldogs on Labor Day. Georgia had won the 1980 national championship, so it was a meeting of the last two champions. But when these teams kickoff the season in Charlotte on September 4th, this game will be the biggest game they have played. For the first time, these schools will play each other while ranked in the top 5, and to top it all off - there are serious playoff implications for both the winner and the loser. Bring it on!

  • Hopefully I will be updating my longest tenured FBS head coaches to include all 130 head coaches, but will I be updating it again with a new coach for Arizona State? Allegations don’t look good for the Sun Devils an Herm Edwards, which is too bad because they were building something solid in Tempe. Will that effort all be for naught? And, if so, how soon will it take for players to jump off this potential sinking ship?

6/19:

  • Betting lines for regular season win totals are now on ESPN (from Caesars Notebook by William Hill). They are predicting eight teams to have ten or more wins: Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Georgia, North Carolina, Coastal Carolina, and Cincinnati. On the flip side, these teams are projected to get 1.5 wins: Bowling Green, UNLV, Kansas, UMass, ULM. In the middle - twelve teams are predicted to have 6 wins, including Maryland.

  • Quarterback Nate Johnson has just committed to Utah. This recruit isn’t a huge get by any means, as 247sports composite ratings have him ranked as the 51st quarterback in the class of 2022, but the piece that caught my attention - the Utes beat out Michigan (his other top choice). Kind of tells me what recruits are thinking about the Wolverines at this point in time…

6/18:

  • Each decade has had certain teams dominate. Perhaps it’s because of the College Football Playoff that makes it more unpalatable for fans who follow teams outside the inner circle. Playoff expansion will help these fans a little bit - but I have to tell you, it probably won’t help in the long run. Take a look at the major players right now: Alabama, Clemson, Oho State and Oklahoma. They all have one thing in common - and it’s not just 5-star recruits getting them to the top: Great head coaches and coaching staff. They bring the talent in - and more importantly they develop it. Oregon, Georgia, and Florida may crash the party because they have really good coaches - but Michigan, USC, Texas and Florida State, you coaching staffs need to step it up because there is no excuse for you to be where you are now……outside in the cold.

  • Glad to see another game added for Week Zero in 2022 - Wyoming at Illinois. What a great spotlight Week Zeroes are for teams! Earlier I felt bad for the Illinois vs. Nebraska getting moved from Ireland to Champaign, IL - but now that I think about it, how wonderful for the Fighting Illini! They will now get to host the first college football game and the first “full capacity” game in twenty months. What a way for Bret Bielema to start his coaching career at Illinois.

  • Two charter members of the WAC in 1962, Arizona and BYU will face off in Las Vegas for the second time (2008 Las Vegas Bowl) on September 4th this year. This will be the fifth time in the last sixteen years that they have kicked off the season against each other. The Wildcats lead the all-time series 12-11-1 but the Cougars have won three of the last four. The two have a home-and-home series scheduled for 2026/27.

6/17:

  • It’s not looking too good for Arizona State as they are being investigated by the NCAA for recruiting violations. It appears high school prospects were taking on-campus recruiting trips to ASU. Screenshots, receipts, pictures and emails related to numerous potential violations within Arizona State’s football program, were provided to the Sun Devils athletic department. One of the photos includes head coach Herm Edwards with a recruit. Not good.

  • Yesterday it was announced that CBS Sports Network will now televise all of Army’s home games at Michie Stadium through 2028. In addition, the Black Knights two games against Air Force and Navy will be televised on CBS. I think it’s great that Army gets this type of coverage!

  • One of the more interesting neutral site games this year is Houston vs. Texas Tech. The game is being played at NRG Stadium in Houston - a mere seven miles from the Cougars’ home stadium. These schools shared membership in the old Southwest Conference from 1976 (when the Cougars joined) until the league disbanded in 1996. They’ve met four times since, and the Red Raiders have won the last three. Houston leads the all-time series 18-13-1.

6/16:

  • Spending some time on the Athletic website…it was interesting to read that Ohio State would be the only team to qualify for a twelve-team field the first seven years of the playoff - a streak I am sure that they will continue for a few years. The expansion will be good for Penn State, Georgia - and maybe eventually Michigan, USC and Texas, but they have a ways to go before getting there.

  • I was also reading how there is a call to have ESPN GameDay be a little less focused on expected playoff teams and bring more attention to other games to keep all fanbases tuned in to the show. I love the concept, because what is best about being a fan of this wonderful sport and keeps me focused on the sport 365 days a year is the attempt find a story or tidbit on every game being played no matter the level or importance.

  • Speaking of bringing attention to a game……Appalachian State vs. East Carolina in Charlotte on the first Thursday of the season - September 2nd. This will be the 32nd meeting between the two teams since the series started in 1932, but only the third meeting since 1979. The peak of the series was from 1948 thru 1979 when they met 23 times. Lastly, the Mountaineers lead the series 19-12, but the Pirates have won the last six games.

6/15:

  • The Arch Manning tour continued this past weekend in Texas as he visited both SMU and the Longhorns. Both went well - though I would be surprised if either of them make the final cut. I’m not sure if Arch will break the family SEC tradition (Alabama over hometown LSU?), but if he does, it seems like Clemson might steal him away.

  • 247 sports came out with the ten most hostile environments for visiting teams this fall. The SEC had the most hostile (Tiger Stadium at LSU) and three of the top four (Kyle Field at College Station and Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville) The Big Ten got some stadiums listed as well - with Beaver Stadium coming in number two (Ohio Stadium and Camp Randall the other two). And the longest name for a stadium made it at #10 - Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium in Norman, OK.

  • In transfer news…Luke McCaffrey has found already found his new home, as he tries to become the starting quarterback for the Rice Owls. Ole Miss leading tackler (linebacker Jacquez Jones) will now play for Kentucky. Coveted cornerback Akayleb Evans, who is leaving what was a strong Tulsa unit, will now be in the SEC playing for Missouri. And, Michigan grabbed a big wide receiver when Daylen Baldwin (Jackson State) announced his intention to play for the Wolverines.

6/14:

  • I have been waiting many months for the NESCAC football schedule for this fall to be posted - and when I visited the site today it was there. A huge smile appeared on my face as I realized that yes, there would be a Fall 2021 season! To make things even better - Bowdoin will have five home games, but I’m guessing that they won’t be favored in one of them. That’s alright, I just want to get back to Whittier Field!

  • A bonus to the Fall 2021 season at Bowdoin - it will be the 50th season of NESCAC football. On the official site, the conference has posted pictures from the past fifty years. Both uniforms and the fields have improved and been upgraded, but the game remains the same. These photos made me realize how much I really missed the season last year.

  • Sticking with 50 - ESPN has a piece out today talking about the top 50 receivers from the last 50 years. A very impressive list - but I must admit, I scrolled through it pretty quickly because I wanted to get to the #1 receiver. No surprise that it was Randy Moss. There was also one player that I got to see play in person while at Maryland: Michael Irvin (1985 in Baltimore).

6/13:

  • As one who loves trophy and named rivalry games, I have to say that Week 2 (9/11) has its fair share of these games. The first week has only three of them (two are FCS), but the following week has twelve between the two divisions. Headlining them all is Air Force at Navy on the 20th anniversary of 9/11 for the first leg of the Commander-In-Chief’s Trophy.

  • A Week Zero game that should not be overlooked: Alcorn State at North Carolina A&T. Two HBCU programs that have had a lot of recent success, as well as two teams that have a lot to prove this fall after taking the 2020 season off. The Aggies are playing in a new conference (Big South), while the Braves will probably have a chip on their shoulder after the way they were treated by the SWAC this spring.

  • Have to say, I wasn’t sure why Luke McCaffrey transferred to Louisville because the Cardinals had veteran quarterback Malik Cunningham returning behind center this fall. I guess that Luke figured out that he wasn’t going to start after spring practice, so he is packing up his bags once again. Kind of sad.

6/12:

  • Three quick notes regarding football news out of the northwest: 1) Eastern Washington football will not be cut for budget purposes, so the red carpet at Roos Field will continue to be used. 2) Oregon State announced that they will host Montana State in 2022 at Providence Park in Portland. It will be the first meeting between the schools, which is surprising since the Beavers have played Montana 16 times. 3) Lastly, other news for the Beavers - ex-Colorado quarterback Sam Noyer has declared his intention to play in Corvallis this year. Noyer is from Beaverton, Oregon.

  • Chris Hummer on 247sports.com has run 12 team playoff scenarios from 2014 thru 2020. What’s interesting is the Big Ten would have received more bids than the SEC. Also, the Pac-12 was the only Power 5 Conference to be excluded in any of the playoffs, courtesy of Oregon upsetting USC in 2020. Lastly, for Group of Five conferences, the AAC had five bids (with four different teams), which surprised me, as I thought Boise State would have made playoff more than once. A nice read!

6/11:

  • Can’t help but find a lot of articles today about the proposal put forward by the CFB playoff working group. A lot of different perspectives, thoughts and opinions. It wasn’t long ago that I was a proponent of an eight team playoff, but I have grown to like the twelve team model - especially if the first round of games is held on campus. Three things that I wonder about this current proposal: Notre Dame is unable to get a first round bye - so will this be amended (ranked 4th or higher), or will it push them to join a conference. How will the kids hold up playing more games (up to 17). And lastly, how detrimental will it be to the bowl system overall - and will it make New Year’s bowls better.

  • Yesterday, fbschedules.com reported some good news. The Big Sky Conference reached a deal with ESPN where all their games will be streamed on ESPN+, but two games will also be televised on ESPNU. It will be fun to follow the Big Sky via ESPN+. The website also had a piece on FBS head coaches that will play their alma mater this year. The number is fifteen, but what I like most is that three of them were also a head coach at one time for their alma mater: Bill Clark (UAB/Jacksonville State), Karl Dorrell (Colorado/UCLA), and Willie Taggart (Florida Atlantic/Western Kentucky).

  • Putting together my Week 1 Games to Follow piece (under Best Games 2021), it made me realize how special the start of the season (not taking anything away from Week Zero) will be starting on Wednesday with UAB vs. Jacksonville State in Montgomery, AL. There should be five ranked vs. ranked games headlined by Clemson vs. Georgia, but two will be conference matchups (Indiana at Iowa and Penn State at Wisconsin). In addition you have Miami (Ohio) playing Cincinnati for the 125th time, two great first-ever meetings (Boise State/UCF, LSU/UCLA - beautiful setting and sharp uniforms) - and lets not forget about a big Group of Five/Power 5 matchup in Austin! And, I haven’t yet brought up defending champ Alabama going up against Miami. Throw in Stanford vs. K-State and West Virginia at Maryland - and you have an exciting week!

6/10:

  • Read a Group of Five mailbag this morning on theathletic.com, and enjoyed each question and answer. Got me even more excited about the Mountain West and how open the race will be for the conference championship. The top teams (Boise State, Nevada, San Jose State, and Wyoming) are all bringing back a ton of experience - plus Hawaii and Air Force should be solid. I am also looking forward to the MACtion in November! Not the best Group of Five conference, but each year it seems like almost all the teams can win the conference. After all, ten different teams have played in the MAC title game the last six years.

  • Interesting to read the rivals.com Sting Factor for recruits decommitting - which is happening with official visits now taking place again. Georgia has had two significant recruits back out (Deyon Bouie and Keithian “Bear” Alexander), and Florida State has now felt the effect as local product Gabriel Harris has backed off his pledge. The Bulldogs’ recruits are now looking at all the options after both visited College Station - another SEC threat to Athens. As for Harris, the “sting” for the Seminoles is the possibility of losing someone in their own backyard - which is an indication that the product on the field is less than desirable.

  • Alabama has been busy with their scheduling of future opponents this week. They slightly rescheduled their home-and-home series with Notre Dame to fit in Oklahoma State in 2028 and 2029. The Crimson Tide then booked a home-and-home series with Boston College - where they come to Chestnut Hill in ten years. Might be worth checking out that game in person, though Nick Saban’s tenure will probably be done…

6/9:

  • More than thirty years ago, I was watching some great ACC basketball games from the student section of Cole Field House. Visiting it years later when the facility was no longer in use still brought chills as I recalled the brilliance of Len Bias. Now it’s called the Jones-Hill House, named after Billy Jones and Darryl Hill who were the first two black men to integrate football and basketball at the school, and it’s the new home of Maryland football. The price tag of this conversion: $149 million. It’s quite impressive - and I can only hope that it attracts major recruits to the school so the Terps can compete in the Big Ten.

  • Hero Sports writer Sam Herder took a crack at predicting each FCS conference champion for the upcoming season. Hard to argue with his choices, but I’m not sure that Princeton will win the Ivy League - and I like his choice of VMI in the Southern Conference, but I’m thinking that they won’t repeat this fall. All kinds of changes with the addition of the one year merger of the WAC and Atlantic Sun (strong teams), and North Carolina A&T to the Big South. What might be the most interesting conference to follow is the SWAC. Alcorn State’s return (revenge tour?), another year of Deion at Jackson State, and the addition of Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman. It’s going to be a fun season!

  • Glad to see that the canceled 2020 Notre Dame-Wisconsin game has been rescheduled for the 2026 season. The teams meet this year on Saturday, September 25th at Soldier Field in Chicago. It will be strange to see Wisconsin as the host in Chicago, while Notre Dame will be the home team at Lambeau Field. The Fighting Irish and the Badgers have met 16 times, with Notre Dame leading the series 8-6-2 - but they haven’t played since 1964.

6/8:

  • Alabama extended Nick Saban’s contract through the 2028 season. Seems like this will be the final contract and final destination for Saban, as he talks about how much he loves the school and area. If he makes it through the contract, Saban might end his college coaching career with close to 350 wins - which is good for fifth all-time. The most pressing question - can he get to ten National Championships? Doesn’t seem unreasonable.

  • It looks like this month is going to be big in regards to 2022 recruiting. As kids get out and visit schools, I think that we will see kids that have committed, reconsidering their choices and perhaps going elsewhere. And probably the rich will keep getting richer. The sooner the CFB playoff gets expanded the better since recruits understandably want to go where they have a chance to compete for a national championship.

  • Spent some time on theathletic.com website reading a couple of recent entries - both have ties to the old Southwest Conference. The first piece I read talked about the quarterback situation at Texas, Texas A&M, and SMU - teams that lost their starting quarterback. The Aggies might be turning to freshman Haynes King, while the other schools like their freshman, but might go with more experience at the position to start the year. The other article of interest talked about Arkansas, and how it would be better for the fans if the Razorbacks were in the Big 12. Better rivalries (hatred with the Longhorns), reasonable road trips to games, and likely more wins. Can we unwind things a bit and bring back the SWC and Big Eight?

6/7:

  • It’s not official yet, but Stetson will shortly announce that they have hired Brian Young, a former longtime assistant coach for the Hatters, to replace Roger Hughes - who left coaching to become president at his alma mater, Doane University. This should bring an end to the coaching carousel of 2020-2021 for all of Division I. It all started on Labor Day of last year when Jay Hopson left Southern Miss and has continued for the last nine months with Kansas and Stetson finding their new coaches.

  • While it took the head coaching ranks nine months to finish before the start of the 2021 season, there is still one 2021 recruit that hasn’t made a decision as to where he will play this fall. Ironically, it is the year’s No. 1 recruit J.T. Tuimoloau. He had his first official visit at Washington a couple of days ago (45 months after their offer), and will continue with USC, Ohio State, Oregon and lastly Alabama. The Buckeyes have been the leader for his services right along - but the certainty of it has dropped a bit. Can Saban steal him - or do the Ducks have what it takes to keep him in the Northwest?

  • Jumping into 2023 - Arch Manning just completed his visit to Clemson. Shockingly, the Tigers offered a scholarship to him. LOL Manning came away very impressed, especially with players’ graduation rate, desire of players wanting to stay and play - as well as coming back to coach. I am sure that he will be wowed by other schools in the coming visits, but Clemson has just made it more difficult for those schools.

6/6:

  • Another website that I am finding myself drawn to a lot the last few days…Rivals.com. A comparable source to 247sports.com for the latest on recruiting and transfers. There must now be at least one dozen (baker’s dozen?) sites that I keep my eye on each day. lol

  • After the Southland was raided by the WAC (Abilene Christian, Central Arkansas, Lamar, Sam Houston, and Stephen F. Austin), it looks like they might be looking at some SWAC teams. Teams that make geographic sense: Prairie View A&M, Texas Southern, Southern and Grambling State. Since the SWAC now has twelve teams, they could afford to lose a couple of teams, but I hope that Grambling State and Southern stay and develop strong rivalries with Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman.

  • On Friday I finished updating my spreadsheet that gives All-Time Team records for all teams, all divisions. When I first started this spreadsheet, I would take the all-time records listed on each team’s website - if they published it. Over time, I have found myself digging through records kept by the NCAA, so to make sure I have an apple-to-apple comparison whenever with using NCAA records, I have decided to use their All-Time Records by Team. A lot of data I can use in the coming months…

6/5:

  • With bedtime hour approaching fast tonight - one entry, and two words: Dump Truck. Cain Madden, the grad-transfer guard, who was a one-time walk on, from Marshall with the illustrative nickname, is expected to choose Notre Dame to play his final collegiate season in 2021. How exciting for him to end his college career playing at South Bend! I remember seeing him for the first time against Eastern Kentucky last fall, and I knew he was good, but moving on to the Irish in 2021 is special. Is the NFL next in 2022?

6/4:

  • Caught a glimpse of projected wins for FBS teams this fall from DraftKings. Eight teams are predicted to win ten or more games: Alabama (11.5), Clemson (11.5), Ohio State (11), Oklahoma (11), Georgia (10.5), North Carolina (10), Cincinnati (10), and Coastal Carolina (10). Am surprised to see North Carolina on this list, and would expect Louisiana to be on the list. The Power 5 teams with the least amount of wins projected: Kansas (1), Arizona (2.5), Syracuse (3) and Vanderbilt (3).

  • With Ohio State expected to win eleven games, people must not be very optimistic about the Wolverines beating the Buckeyes in Ann Arbor on November 27th. That will make Jim Tressel very happy. When speaking at a charity event in Youngstown, OH, Tressel expressed his desire to see the Buckeyes take over the series lead against their rivals from the state up north. With the way the series has been going these last few years, he might get his wish by 2028.

  • In the “Never Too Early” category, I have already looked ahead to the Week Zero schedule in 2022. Going out just a bit further, I came across some very exciting games for the first couple of weeks that fall: Notre Dame at Ohio State (9/3), Oregon vs. Georgia in Atlanta (9/3), and Alabama at Texas (9/10). Might have to start posting the schedule for 2022 (at least September) on this site…

6/3:

  • I have been working on my Week 1 schedule making adjustments to games that have moved forward to either Thursday or Friday, as well as starting to give brief details about each FBS game (FCS later). In the three weeks since posting my last schedule, it appears as though nine games have changed dates - so we now have 25 games during the week, with one of them being on Wednesday.

  • With the move of Michigan State at Northwestern to Friday night, it provides a solid doubleheader on ESPN that night with two crucial conference games for the teams involved. First off you have UNC visiting Virginia Tech at Lane Stadium. The Tar Heels will be trying to establish themselves as a Top Ten team, while Justin Fuente will try to cool down his hot seat. Then we move on to Michigan State at Northwestern. The Spartans are predicted to finish near the bottom of their division, but a win in Evanston over the rebuilding Wildcats would go a long way in helping their season.

  • The passing of Frank Navarro initially caught my attention because the article mentioned that he was a former Ivy League head coach. Digging deeper there were a few more finds that I found very interesting. Navarro went to Maryland and was an offensive lineman on the Terps 1952 Sugar Bowl team. He also cut his teeth in head coach at Williams College (1963), eventually leading the Ephs to an unbeaten season in 1967. And Navarro was a head coach at two Ivy League schools - Columbia and Princeton. Lastly - the thing that I find most interesting is that I would have been a fourteen-year-old kid in the stands behind Princeton’s bench at Memorial Stadium in Hanover NH when he brought the Tigers to Dartmouth in September 1979.

6/2:

  • St. Thomas, the FCS newcomer from Division III, has published their first FCS schedule for the upcoming fall season. In addition to their Pioneer Football League opponents, the Tommies have three non-conference games scheduled: Northern Iowa, Michigan Tech (Div. II) and St. Francis (IL), a NAIA team. Was curious about the Fighting Saints - so I visited their website. The football program started in 1986, and their all-time record is 152-219 - but they have three wins over PFL teams (2 vs. Drake, 1 vs. Valparaiso).

  • Boy, did things change quickly in one day (or should I say - 17 minutes) regarding the national championship picture. Folks were high on the Bulldogs to begin with, but now it seems to many that it’s national championship or bust for Smart at Georgia. Two big commitments yesterday from the transfer portal (Arik Gilbert and Derion Kendrick), and the game against Clemson is now going to be crucial for the group in Athens! Not only are these solid, if not great, players, but they (along with former West Virginia safety Tykee Smith) have filled the gaps in Georgia’s roster. The CFB playoff in 2021 is starting on September 4th this year.

  • Seeing the recent exodus of Buffalo players (7 now?) heading west to Kansas this week has made for some interesting reads. First off - this is a significant hit to the Bulls as they try to hold off Miami (Ohio) in the MAC East this fall. There is no mention of the players on Buffalo’s website, but I’m thinking that they were expected to play significant time this season. At best, this is a big hit to their depth. As for Kansas, these players are just what the Jayhawks needed in terms of building back their depth, after all they have lost 26 players to the transfer portal this year! It also speaks volumes about the impact that Lance Leipold has had on his players - a culture that they would love to re-establish in Lawrence. Lastly, what a great opportunity for these kids to play at a Power 5 school, and compete against Oklahoma, Texas, Iowa State, and in-state rival Kansas State! I feel for the Bulls, but I am happier for the Jayhawks and these kids making the move.

6/1:

  • A bittersweet day, as today’s entry will not be college football related. First off I want to express my joy in spending a long weekend with all my immediate family - I enjoyed every minute of my time with them. Secondly, today would have been my Dad’s 91st birthday. Happy Birthday Dad - you are greatly missed! And lastly, congratulations to the Terp’s lacrosse team, who were on the wrong side of a one-goal game. It kept them from having a perfect season - but it was a special season nonetheless.

  • I arrived home yesterday to find two college football preview magazines at my door: Lindy’s and Athlon sports. Always hard for me to find a place to start, as I am not a person who starts with page one in these magazines. I will pick them up probably a hundred times in the next few months and still not see the entire magazine.

  • Today marks the day when potential recruits can make on campus visits. This is going to change the game for both coach and player. I am thinking that we are going to see some commitments flipped by coaches, who again can show their facilities - and there will also be kids who will benefit as coaches get to see them in person and put them thru drills. I see the contenders getting richer with recruiting getting back to normal.

  • Ball State is coming off a very successful season - one in which the Cardinals claimed their first conference championship since 1996, their first bowl win and their first ranked finish at No. 23 in the final AP poll. For a team that accomplished so much - there are even higher expectations this year, and their major goal is to retain the MAC title. With a target on their back for the first time in a long time, it will take more to win the conference again. But, they are returning 20 of 22 starters (ten on both sides of the ball), and a ton of experience as they have 16 returning seniors out of the 22 who were given the option of an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA because of the pandemic. It’s not going to be easy though - just like for San Jose State in the Mountain West. In fact, Athlon has predicted that they will lose 3 conference games and finishing second behind Toledo in the MAC West. Head coach Mike Neu will earn his money this year - and perhaps a new home in 2022…

5/31:

  • While working on schedules last night, I came across one heck of a first-time matchup: Boise State at UCF. This game between the two top Group of Five teams in the CFP era, is more like a Power Five matchup. This game can be seen on Thursday, September 2nd, at 7:00 on ESPN. A must see game!

  • Another game that I find intriguing is the Syracuse at Ohio game on Saturday, September 4th. This will be their first meeting in 100 years - as they last met in 1921. In their first two meetings, the Orange outscored the Bobcats 111-0 - so Ohio will be looking to score their first points against Syracuse. And, this was supposed to be a one game series, but it was amended to a home-and-home series that will conclude in the Carrier Dome in 2024.

  • Four days ago, Matt Brown wrote a piece on theathletic.com ranking what he thinks are the Top 25 Saturdays in college football since the start of the AP poll in 1936. He chose October 15, 2005 - the day of the Bush Push. On that day, ten games involving ranked teams were decided by single digits, and nine ranked teams lost. Hard to argue with that choice - but in my eyes almost every single Saturday in college football is special and unique…

5/30:

  • Have to hand it to future Buckeye quarterback Quinn Ewers, when he answered the question as to why all the high-rated prospects out of Texas were leaving the state. He candidly said that it was because Texas hasn’t competed for a national championship in years. In fact - no Texas team has sniffed the playoffs since 2014. Steve Sarkisian will have to change this trend for Texas schools if he wants the top talent to stay and commit to the Longhorns.

  • Five days ago when talking briefly about FCS title contenders for 2021, it was mentioned that South Dakota State looks like they lost their two top quarterbacks for Fall season with knee injuries. Barring transfers and other injuries, the Jackrabbits are stacked at all the other positions - so they will be contenders no matter their quarterback situation. Luckily, a few days ago they landed a potential starting quarterback via the transfer portal. Chris Oladokun, a graduate transfer from Samford, has announced that he will be joining the Jackrabbits. In 2019, in which he started 8 games, Oladokun accounted for 26 touchdowns (18 passing and 8 rushing). Thing are looking up again for South Dakota State’s run for a title in ‘21.

  • This fall there are 117 FBS vs. FCS games, and Hero Sports has gathered payouts being paid to the FCS teams for just over half the games. Currently, Youngstown State is the highest paid team as they are receiving $725k from Michigan State, while Portland State is only getting $200k from Hawaii. Fortunately, the Vikings are playing a second FBS team (Washington State), so they are expecting $525k from the Cougars for visiting Martin Stadium in Pullman, WA..

5/29:

  • The recently released television schedule has adjusted the schedules for some teams - especially on Thursday and Friday of the first week - so I have to get out there and make some changes to what schedules I have posted. Shouldn’t be too painful though…

  • I was noticing that the 125th edition of the Miami (Ohio) - Cincinnati rivalry game will be on ESPN+ on September 4th - which thrilled me. The Redhawks will field a very respectable squad, and compete with Buffalo for the MAC East crown, but I see the Bearcats winning their 15th-straight in the series to tie things up overall 59-59-7.

  • The winner of the above mentioned rivalry game gets the Victory Bell - one of nine bells awarded between FBS teams. I went back and looked at the FBSchedules article detailing each of the different bell trophies, which is a very good read - in fact I have probably gone back and read it/referenced it at least five times already. Sadly as I scanned the different games, I noticed that only four of the nine will be played this year, and TWO of them (Georgia Tech - Vanderbilt and Nebraska - Missouri) have no future games scheduled. Not right!

5/28:

  • I have a feeling that I will be making quite a few entries in the coming days (maybe weeks or months - lol) talking about the television schedule for the upcoming season. This entry is regarding the Nebraska at Oklahoma game being played on 9/18. The Sooners AD expressed disappointment that the game will be broadcast at 12:00 on Fox (11:00 am local time). Frankly, as a fan, I like the noon start a lot better than primetime.

  • On another tv scheduling note, it has been confirmed that Nebraska at Illinois will be the first game on the Fall 2021 season, as they will kickoff the season at 1:00 on Fox. And before that game concludes, one can begin to view Hawaii at UCLA at 3:30 on ESPN. Watching a Big Ten matchup, and seeing the Bruins in Pasadena at the Rose Bowl is a great Week Zero!

  • And not to get too far ahead, but here are some of the matchups for Week Zero in 2022: Vanderbilt at Hawaii, Austin Peay at Western Kentucky, Duquesne at Florida State, and Nevada at New Mexico State.

5/27:

  • Two days ago it was announced that the Illinois-Maryland was moved to Friday, Sept. 17th, and yesterday we found out that the Iowa-Maryland matchup got bumped up to Friday, Oct. 1st. Nice to know that I will get to enjoy the Terps on a couple of Friday nights.

  • A lot of television announcements made today by both conferences and networks. Nice to see that Fox will cover some Mountain West games - and not just having the conference on CBS Sports Network. Also good to see that CBS will carry all of the Army/Air Force/Navy games. And we also learned that ESPN as a network will carry 300 games in three weeks - that’s a lot of coverage!

  • Lastly tonight, Adam Rittenberg of ESPN wrote an article worth reading as he compared which coaching job in college football is better: Oklahoma or Texas. As I said, an article worth going through because of the information you learn about both programs, but the end result is no surprise: OU.

5/26:

  • Looking forward to a few days break from my every day work to sit back and assess where things need to go with this site for the next few months. I have no doubt that there will be a tasty beverage or two that will help guide me in any decisions or directions that I might go - and I only hope that it’s not the wrong way.

  • Glad to see that North Dakota State has gotten another chance to play at Autzen Stadium after their 2020 game against Oregon got canceled. In another couple of scheduling tidbits: UCF and Florida Atlantic have signed up for another home-and-home series after just completing one in 2019. The Owls are still looking for their first win over the Knights. And FCS rivals North Carolina A&T and NC Central take their hatred for each other to Charlotte in 2022 and 2027. That will be great for both programs.

  • Great article out there by Andrea Adelson regarding the upcoming roster management issues facing college football programs for the next couple of years with the NCAA granting an extra year of eligibility. And with all the players in the transfer portal, the high school kids are going to suffer because coaches will want “established” players. What burns my butt is the thought that coaches are out there convincing players to transfer to their program. The rich will only get richer as the Group of Five teams and FCS teams now become the minor leagues for the Power Five schools.

5/25:

  • The quarterback situation at Auburn has gotten a lot more interesting as former LSU quarterback TJ Finley has announced that he will be playing for the Tigers of a different stripe this fall. Finley, who started five games for LSU, will compete with junior Bo Nix - who has been a two-year starter. Add into the mix true freshman Dematrius Davis, and new coach Bryan Harsin will have some fun this fall.

  • Hero Sports, which might be my new go-to website for FCS info, listed their ten favorite FCS teams to win the title - with Sam Houston leading the way as they are returning their key parts, including Jequez Ezzard, which surprised me. The Jackrabbits are next, but that worries me a bit because freshman quarterback Mark Gronowski appears to have torn an ACL in this spring’s title game. To make matters worse, his backup, J’Bore Gibbs, also suffered a knee injury and appears to be out of action this fall as well. My guess: North Dakota State.

  • Bryan Harsin, new to the Power Five coaching ranks, has been ranked by CBS Sports as being the 27th best Power Five coach out of 65 coaches - a pretty impressive feat without having coached a game for Auburn. But the most impressive thing I saw in this list was Kansas hire Lance Leipold being ranked 35th out of 65 - ahead of in-state rival Chris Klieman at Kansas State as well as new Texas coach Steve Sarkisian. How things actually transpire over the course of the season will be very interesting.

5/24:

  • I can’t help but mention Maryland’s 14-13 OT win over Notre Dame in lacrosse yesterday. This propels the Terps into the final four, as they join three ACC teams: Virginia, North Carolina, and their next opponent Duke. Four great programs for lacrosse!

  • The first Thursday just got a little better as the Temple at Rutgers game got moved up to the 2nd of September. These teams first met on the gridiron in 1948 in Piscataway and have played 35 times overall. The Scarlet Knights have won four consecutive games in the series, including a 23-20 victory at home in 2013, which was their most recent matchup. Rutgers currently leads the overall series 20-15.

5/23:

  • The first college football rivalry trophy/trophies for the Fall 2021 season will be handed out on August 28th. The rivalry is dubbed the “The Battle of I-10” and has two traveling prizes: (1). The Silver Spade – an old prospector’s shovel from an abandoned mine introduced in 1947 and upgraded to the current version in 1955 and (2). The Brass Spittoon (officially the Mayor’s Cup), which debuted in 1982 after a collaboration by the mayors of El Paso and Las Cruces.

  • Speaking of the Aggies, they are scheduled to play for four straight years in Week Zero - starting this year against the Miners. Next year they will go against Nevada, followed by UMass and perennial Week Zero team - Hawaii (who is scheduled for week zero games currently through 2026).

  • This morning I came across an article that talked about the seven best first-time meetings coming up this fall. One that I hadn’t thought about is the Liberty at Ole Miss game - which feature two very interesting coaches, with the added feature being that Hugh Freeze coached the Rebels for five years before resigning. Add in two quarterbacks (Matt Corral and Malik Willis), who should get some Heisman votes and this should be a very exciting game.

5/22:

  • Another day, another bunch of quality readings on the upcoming college football season - this time on the cbssports website. This site has more than I can mention in a few brief words, so it will suffice for me to just say “go to the site and enjoy the many articles”. Out of the three sites mentioned the last few days - I spent the most time on this site.

  • For a while now there has been a discussion about expanding the FBS playoffs. Ironically, I came across some information that I printed from the NCAA Record Book - and it detailed the expansion of the FCS playoffs, which also started at four teams in 1978. In 1981, it jumped to eight teams, but that format lasted for one year, before the playoffs expanded to 12 teams. By 1986, the playoff field included sixteen teams, and this figure lasted for I believe 24 years. In 2010, it was 20 teams, until finally reaching the current 24 teams in 2014. Here’s to hoping that the FBS gets to 12 teams…

  • A couple of future schedule additions that I have to mention. It’s twelve years out, but Ohio State and Oregon have agreed to a home-and-home series in 2032 and 2033. I also say that the Buckeyes will pay the Ducks $3.5 million since last year’s game in Eugene was postponed. South Carolina also announced that they have scheduled two FCS opponents: South Carolina State and Wofford. In regards to the Wofford game, the Gamecocks and Terriers first met on the gridiron in 1895 and have played a total of 24 contests. In their most recent contest in 2017, the Gamecocks defeated the Terriers 31-10 and now lead the series 20-4.

5/21:

  • As another summer approaches - it’s time to again rummage through my college t-shirts and see how many I have and if they are an accurate representation of the teams I like and the schools that loved ones have attended. Each time I do a count, it will probably be different, but today I am settling on 25 different t-shirts. My biggest representation is the Big Ten - with six different schools. Maryland leads the way of course, but i will admit that my Wisconsin t-shirt with a mean Bucky the Badger is my favorite. The next addition to my collection will have to be a Brown t-shirt, not because of the beautiful design and colors (lol), but because my dad attended Brown University (he was there while Joe Paterno was at the school).

  • There must be something about being 100 days away from the start of college football next fall. Yesterday I was reading some great stuff on the ESPN website, and today I was busy reading some very interesting pieces at 247sports.com. Today I was scoping out the 100 top transfers and the top 100 impactful freshmen. Nice reading!

  • In another bit of scoping around, I was reading about Scott Frost and how long his leash will be the next couple of years. What surprised me the most though was seeing that Nebraska hasn’t qualified for a bowl game since 2016! We are talking the Cornhuskers here - a team that always seemed to be in a New Year’s bowl for a period of twenty years from 1979 through 1999. They also played in a NCAA-record 35 straight bowl games from 1969 to 2003. Currently, 112 FBS teams have played in a bowl since Nebraska’s last appearance!

5/20:

  • So much to read on ESPN today regarding college football - which is 100 days away! I won’t even try to summarize the great stuff that one will thoroughly enjoy - just trust me when I say that you should set aside 15-20 minutes to pour over the articles/blogs.

  • I unintentionally (or to be truthful it was intentional) looked ahead to see how many games were to be played in Week Zero of 2022 after it was announced that Northwestern and Nebraska would play in Dublin, Ireland on August 27th, 2022. Here are the games in addition to Nebraska/Northwestern: Vanderbilt at Hawaii, Nevada at New Mexico State, Austin Peay at Western Kentucky and Duquesne at Florida State. I am sure there will be another added - especially a FCS matchup.

5/19:

  • I haven spent part of my morning combing over the first six weeks of the Fall 2021 FCS schedules, and there have been a few additions, both conference and non-conference, in the last few weeks. And, not all teams or conferences have announced their complete schedule yet. I should learn to wait for all games to be visible before putting together my schedule, but I just can’t help myself to jump in early. But I am waiting for all Division II and III teams to post before doing anything with all those games.

  • Yesterday ABC and ESPN posted some of the prime time games for the first three weeks of the season. No surprises to me…Week 1 will be Georgia vs. Clemson, while the Alabama-Miami game will be at 3:30. Week 2 will feature Arkansas/Texas and Washington/Michigan at night while Oregon/Ohio State will be on Fox at noon. And week 3 will feature Auburn at Penn State at night. GREAT games!!!

  • Colgate is searching for a new head coach after Dan Hunt resigned on Monday. Hunt had continued building on the success of Dick Biddle - who is the winningest coach in Colgate’s history, by having a 40-31 record (27-9 conference record) while winning three Patriot League championships. This will be a big loss to the Raider team. Stan Dakosty, who has been the associate head coach, was named the interim head coach.

5/18:

  • No one can argue that Sam Houston is just a paper champion. Behind a gutty quarterback (Eric Schmid) and a dynamic receiver (Jequez Ezzard), the Bearkats had a perfect 10-0 record - and a FCS Title. Perhaps what defines them most - Sam Houston went 7-0 against nationally ranked teams this year, including North Dakota State, James Madison, and South Dakota State in a fifteen day span!

  • A couple of nice scheduling announcements yesterday that I read: the 2022 Notre Dame - Navy game will be played in Baltimore. It will be the first time they have played at M&T Bank Stadium since 2008, and the 23rd game played there overall, Go Navy! Also, North Carolina and South Carolina announced a home-and-home series in 2028 and 2029. The two teams are scheduled to meet in 2023 for the 59th time - the Tar Heels lead the series 35-19-4.

5/17:

  • ESPN Staff Writer Dave Wilson called the end of yesterday’s FCS Championship game a classic - and I have to agree with him. Add in that K. C. Keeler took sole possession of most victories in FCS playoff history (24) along with being the only coach to win FCS Championships at two schools - and you have a great game. We can only hope now that the kids are able to bounce back from a short offseason.

  • A couple of years ago, FBS coaches voted on the most difficult stadium for visiting teams: Tiger Stadium at LSU got 31 votes - nineteen more votes that the next closest venue, Memorial Stadium at Clemson. Husky Stadium at Washington was third (9 votes), Beaver Stadium was fourth (8 votes) and Kyle Stadium at Texas A&M rounded out the top five (7 votes). I am most surprised that Autzen Stadium wasn’t on the list…

  • Jumping ahead a season, these three teams are easily ahead in the 2022 Recruiting Rankings: Georgia, Ohio State and LSU. The Irish are comfortable in the fourth spot, while the Sooners and Nittany Lions are battling it out for the 5th and 6th spots. Rounding out the top ten: Texas A&M, Texas, Florida State and RUTGERS! Just outside…the Wildcats of Kentucky.

5/16:

  • The long and winding road of a college football season has ended with a very exciting FCS Championship game won by a Sam Houston touchdown with sixteen seconds left in the game. Unfortunately for the Jackrabbits, starting quarterback Mark Gronowski was knocked out of the game in the first quarter. South Dakota State fought their way back from 17-7 fourth quarter deficit to take the lead 21-17 with a little more than five minutes to go, but the ensuring Bearkat drive won K. C. Keeler his second FCS Championship. I’m not sure if either team deserved to lose this one!

  • And it’s not taking me long to look ahead to the Fall 2021 season that begins on August 28th. It’s only 104 days away (less than fifteen weeks) if my math is correct. And if my hunch is correct, he first game of the season will be Nebraska at Ilinois. The game was scheduled to be played at Aviva Stadium in Dublin, Ireland, but the game will now be played at Illinois’ Memorial Stadium in Champaign. These teams last met during the 2020 season at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln, Neb. where the Fighting Illini defeated the Cornhuskers 41-23. Bring on the new season with fans back in the stands!

5/15:

  • On Sunday, a first-time FCS champion will be crowned for the first time since North Dakota State won their first of eight titles in the 2011 season. After Appalachian State won the last of their three straight titles in 2007, there were three other first time winners before the Bison in 2011: Richmond (2008), Villanova (2009), and Eastern Washington (2010). This will be the Jackrabbits first championship game in any division and Sam Houston is hoping that the third time is a charm.

  • Another great storyline about the FCS Championship participants is the head coaches. South Dakota State head coach John Stieglmeier has a career record of 166-105 with the Jackrabbits since 1997, and his hoping for his first championship to go with with conference titles. While K. C. Keeler was voted by an ESPN panel as one of the 150 best all-time head coaches in college football. Since 1993, Keeler has won 233 games at three different schools (Rowan, Delaware, and Sam Houston). Two great coaches that are both well-liked in the profession.

  • Can’t help but mention that the story of the masseuse and Ohio State gave me a good chuckle. Won’t go any further with it except to say it gives a different rub to the game I love.

5/14:

  • No offense to the NFL games, but football got a lot more exciting when it was announced that the Egg Bowl between Ole Miss and Mississippi State will be played on Thanksgiving night for the next two years. Although I have always preferred the Texas-Texas A&M game after a big helping of turkey, the Egg Bowl game is also pretty special. These two teams from Mississippi have met 117 times in a series that goes back to 1901, with the Rebels leading the series 63-47-6.

  • Recently I read an article about the MEAC looking to add schools to their conference - which is no surprise since they have lost four teams in the last few years. It appears as though the targets are Virginia State and Kentucky State - both currently in Division II. I believe that both schools have done feasibility studies, but are concerned that they would have to raise both athletic fees and enrollment. In reality, the MEAC could be in trouble.

  • I was excited to see that lsufootball.net has put out the “TV Schedule” for the upcoming season. Not many official tv listings though outside of Notre Dame’s NBC schedule - but FOX already has announced that they will air Oregon at Ohio State at noon on September 11th. Could be the site of College Gameday - though maybe the better site on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centers would be at Annapolis for the Air Force at Navy game.

5/13:

  • Slow to get entries in today - but better late than never…One of the top 2023 recruits is setting up his visits. Arch Manning, who is from New Orleans, has already seen LSU and Ole Miss - but there are going to be a lot more schools for him to visit. Two of the most interesting that I have seen: SMU and Duke. Not sure what chance they have, but it might bring other recruits to these schools. The big question…who will he sign with? In-state LSU? Schools with family connections - Ole Miss and Tennessee? And if he blazes his own trail - will Alabama, Texas, or Georgia win? Time will tell…

  • In-state foes Colorado State and Northern Colorado have announced that they will play in 2025 in addition to already announced 2024. The two schools were previously scheduled to meet in Fort Collins on Sept. 19, 2020, but the game was canceled due to the pandemic. These schools first met in 1893 and the two teams have met a total of 22 times. In their most recent matchup in 2016, Colorado State defeated Northern Colorado 47-21 to extend their overall lead in the series to 20-0-1.

  • Speaking of in-state opponents, I was going through Butler’s recently announced Fall 2021 schedule, and I noticed that they were going to play Division III DePauw Tigers. The teams first met in 1884, and played eight times between 1884 and 1895. They last met in 1979, after having played every year since 1955, with Butler winning 24-14 to take a 45-14-3 series lead.

5/12:

  • Former Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan is one of five FBS quarterbacks to throw for 5,000 or more yards and 50 touchdowns in a single season. The others: David Klingler, Houston (1990), B. J. Symons, Texas Tech (2003), Derek Carr, Fresno State (2013), and Joe Burrow, LSU (2019).

  • I was very happy to see that Army and Notre Dame have agreed to play in 2024 in what will probably be a neutral-site meeting (Yankee Stadium?). This game would be played 100 years after these teams met at the Polo Grounds in New York. Even though the series has been one-sided (Irish have won 15 straight and lead the overall series 39-8-4), the fact that they played on an annual basis from 1913 to 1947 gives this matchup an aura of nostalgia.

  • While on the topic of scheduling, I have been noticing that for the last couple of months, some of the games that were canceled last year are being rescheduled out into the future. By my count, I have seen seven of these games, with new dates ranging from 2022 (Eastern Washington at Florida) to 2032 (Michigan State at BYU). Both Michigan State (Toledo in 2026) and Coastal Carolina (Duquesne - 2023, South Carolina - 2025) have managed to get two games back on their docket.

5/11:

  • I realized this morning that it’s already time for 2021 College Football Preview magazines - of which I will be purchasing four. Tonight I will order the available Athlon preview, and will sign up to get the Lindy’s (ships June 1st) and Phil Steele’s (late June shipping) previews. At this point in time, I don’t know when Street & Smith’s preview will be ready to go. I got a shock when looking at Phil Steele’s asking price: $19.95

  • Last night, Lindsey Wilson (KY) won the NAIA National Championship at Eddie G, Robinson Stadium in Grambling, LA. The Blue Raiders beat Northwestern (IA) easily, 45-13 to complete their undefeated season (11-0). A little over a decade ago, LWC announced that football would return to its campus for the first time since 1935, and they hired Chris Oliver as the first head coach. With this win Oliver accomplished the goal he set when taking the position.

5/10:

  • Have to talk Sam Houston for a moment. The Bearkats have dispatched a tough Monmouth team, the defending champion Bison, and the Dukes - who lost to ND State in Frisco last year. One more win and they have their first FCS Championship. Another win for K.C. Keeler, and he will have the most-ever FCS playoff wins and he will be the first FCS head coach with championships with two different teams. And how about Jequez Ezzard? The graduate transfer, who averaged over 30 yards per catch, had a 69-yard catch-and-run for a TD, and then an 80-yard punt return for a TD less than two minutes apart. Turned the game around for the Bearkats.

  • Two days ago I mentioned that Buffalo hired a new head coach. I also admitted to not knowing the coach (I even got his name spelled wrong). Well - ESPN’s Adam Rittenberg gives the hiring a B+, and believes that with the right assistants, and Linguist’s skill at recruiting, the Bulls might have a future star. Guess I will learn to spell Maurice’s name very soon.

  • Stetson head coach Roger Hughes is stepping down to pursue a new challenge outside of football, as he is the new president of Doane University - his alma mater. Hughes built the Hatters up from scratch, as they were out of football for fifty-seven years. He steps away with a 31-50 mark, but he led the program to an 8-2 mark in 2018 and a 7-4 record in 2019. Prior to Stetson, Hughes was the head coach at Princeton from 2000 thru 2009 -winning an Ivy League Championship in 2006.

5/9:

  • The two teams are set for the FCS Championship next week in Frisco, TX: South Dakota State and Sam Houston. The two top seeds advanced in different ways over their opponents as the Jack Rabbits dominated Delaware from the beginning in their 33-3 win while the Bearkats scored 28 points in just over five minutes in the second half to overcome a 24-3 halftime deficit. The confounding stat of the day for me: The Blue Hens were outgained 354 to 216, but they held the ball for fourteen more minutes.

  • Alabama got their second great find in the transfer portal yesterday when linebacker Henry To’o To’o announced his intention to play for the Crimson Tide. To’o To’o, who was the leading tackler for the Volunteers last year, has two years of eligibility left. This follows last week’s announcement of wide receiver Jameson Williams joining Alabama’s inexperienced receiving corps from Ohio State.

  • With To’o To’o moving on officially, this continues the turnover of Tennessee’s roster from last year. The Volunteers have now had twenty two players transfer to other programs since December - and there are a couple other players still in the transfer portal. New head coach Josh Heupel has also used the transfer portal to good effect - especially at the quarterback position.

5/8:

  • Didn’t take long for Buffalo to find their new head coach. About a week after Lance Leipold left the Bulls to become the new football coach in Lawrence, Buffalo announced that they have hired Maurice Linguist - Michigan’s co-defensive coordinator. I must admit - I’ve never heard of Linguist, who coached the Bulls defensive backs in 2012 and 2013. What i found most interesting about this hiring is that former UMaine head coach and current Minnesota co-defensive coordinator Joe Harasymiak was the other finalist.

  • Earlier I had talked about the FCS Freshman of the Year and FCS Head Coach of the Year, but I had failed to mention (until now) the Scholar-Athlete Award winner. This important award went to North Carolina Central defensive end Jessie Malit - student who has learned as much outside the classroom as in it. The award is named after Doris Robinson - the late retired teacher and wife of Eddie Robinson.

5/7:

  • A potentially great game on October 9th between Alabama and Texas A&M in College Station has just gotten a bit spicier. Jimbo Fisher, who worked under Nick Saban at LSU from 2000-2004, claimed that “We’re going to beat his ass when he’s there, don’t worry”. The Aggie players have also made comment - so they certainly have this game circled on their calendars. Pretty bold considering that Saban is 22-0 against his former assistants. And of course Nick couldn’t help but respond by trolling Fisher’s claim by saying “In golf?” This is going to be good!

  • Looking at the FCS Semifinals this weekend, it seems pretty obvious that the best four teams of this spring are playing on Saturday. And both games will be very competitive as I have seen predictions of each team advancing to Frisco for the championship game. As for me - I am torn. A CAA championship game would be very nice, but seeing the Jackrabbits make it to the finals would be good. I can also see a great case for Sam Houston to advance as K.C. Keeler tries to become the first coach to lead two different schools to the FCS championship - and the Bearkat leading rusher Ramon Jefferson is a former UMaine Black Bear. Fun games for me no matter the outcomes!

  • The latest hiring has grabbed some headlines. Presbyterian, from the FCS Pioneer League, has announced Kevin Kelley as the successor to Tommy Spangler, who was fired as the Blue Hose coach after his team went 4-3 this spring. Kelley has been very successful as the high school coach at Pulaski Academy in Arkansas where he has won nine state titles in eighteen years. Kevin is known as the “coach who never punts” and he always does onside kicks. Bill Belichick thinks that Coach Kelley is probably the top high school coach in the country. Pretty high praise! The Blue Hose could be fun to watch this fall.

5/6:

  • Great post on FBSchedules that looks at the shortest road trips for this upcoming season. Of the ten listed, they are all under 45 miles, and three of them are about 12 miles or less. And of course they are all good rivalries - some heated no doubt. The post says that there are eight traveling trophies (technically nine because UTEP and New Mexico State have two), but I was thinking nine (Safeway Bowl) - come to find out I was incorrect.

  • Yesterday I mentioned how names were being tossed around for the 2022 NFL Draft. Well, as I was visiting theathletic.com, I found a mock draft of the first round - so I couldn’t help but give it a look. The first five picks were straightforward and made perfect sense, and when I got to the 6th pick it made me pause and think. Malik Willis, Liberty’s quarterback, who had a very solid 2020, is expected to take the next step and move himself right up into the big money. Bruce Feldman recently did a nice piece on the quarterback, and it’s perfectly reasonable to think that Willis can get himself to this spot - or even higher if there is a rush on qbs.

  • No surprise to see a LSU quarterback hitting the transfer portal after the spring game - and again no surprise to see that it was TJ Finley. As a freshman Finley started five games for the Tigers after Myles Brennan was lost with an injury after three games. TJ was 2-3 in those five games, and was replaced by another freshman, Max Johnson, for the last two games. Johnson led LSU to wins over Florida and Ole Miss. Finley has a lot of talent, so it would be too bad if he is buried in the depth chart at Baton Rouge - so I think it’s great that he looking for greener pastures.

5/5:

  • Sadly, I have no good scheduling news today - so I will move on to transfer updates. Alabama landed Ohio State wide receiver transfer Jameson Williams, who will add some experience to a talented but unproven receiving group at Tuscaloosa. And, Tennessee is getting linebacker Juwan Mitchell - who was the Longhorns leading tackler in 2020. Top transfers still available: Henry To’ To’o - Linebacker (Ohio State?), Derion Kendrick - DB (Dismissed from Clemson - and then arrested), and Arik Gilbert - Tight End (returning to LSU?).

  • Didn’t take very long after the 2021 NFL Draft for folks to start looking ahead to the 2022 draft. Of course the primary discussion is about the quarterback position, but two other players to keep in mind will be Oregon’s Kayvon Thibodeaux and LSU’s Derek Stingley Jr. For quarterbacks, you have Spencer Rattler, Sam Howell, and JT Daniels - while it will be worth keeping an eye on Phil Jurkovec at BC, Brock Purdy at Iowa State, and Carson Strong at Nevada. Throw in Tyler Shough, Kedon Slovis, and Matt Corral - and you have a potentially a very strong group coming out.

  • As the FCS playoffs continue, the FCS is handing out awards for the season. So far, the Freshman of the Year (Jerry Rice Award) and the Coach of the Year (Eddie Robinson Award) have been presented. UIW’s quarterback Cameron Ward got the Jerry Rice Award on Monday as he led the FCS with 24 TD passes against only four interceptions, and he surpassed 300 passing yards in every game. And yesterday, VMI’s Scott Wachenheim was selected to receive the Eddie Robinson Award. After going 6-38 in his first four seasons, the Keydets went 6-2 this year, as they captured its first conference championship since 1977 and earned their first FCS national ranking and playoff bid. Great choices I think!

5/4:

  • Yesterday five teams announced their fall 2021 schedule (Youngstown State, Tennessee Tech, Prairie View A&M, and Valparaiso), while Nebraska added Fordham to their schedule on September 4th. This all came about because their game with Illinois on Week Zero was moved from Ireland to Champaign, IL - so the Cornhuskers wanted to play a home game on Week 1 since they didn’t need a week off to rest from traveling across the Atlantic.

  • The best scheduling news of the day though goes to Wisconsin and Utah, who scheduled a home-and-home series for 2028 and 2033. The Badgers will host the Utes at Camp Randall Stadium for the first game, then Wisconsin will travel to Rice-Eccles Stadium in 2033 for the first time. These schools have met three times before, with the last meeting coming in the 1996 Copper Bowl, a 28-21 Badger win.

  • Shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that Lance Leipold is intending to take seven assistants with him to Kansas. Of those seven assistants, four of them were on Leipold’s staff at UW-Whitewater. One of these assistants is Rob Ianello, who ironically is the current interim head coach at Buffalo, but he has previously worked in Lawrence as the wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator when Charlie Weis was head coach in 2012-13. Something else to keep in mind is…what about Buffalo? It’s so late in the coaching cycle - so what kind of staff can they put together with only four months to go until the first game of 2021?

5/3:

  • Now that the draft is over, there has been a rush of undrafted free agent signings. I have seen (courtesy of cbssports.com) signings range from 16 players (Atlanta Falcons) to no one (New England Patriots). There are quite a few players that one would recognize, especially quarterbacks (Jamie Newman, Feleipe Franks, and Shane Beuchele). Specialty positions are drafted rarely, so I checked out where Jose Borregales (Miami/FIU kicker) ended up. Lucky guy got signed by Tampa Bay.

  • The Steelers signed undrafted free agent Shakur Brown, who played cornerback for Michigan State. I bring Brown up for two reasons: First, many thought that Shakur would be drafted in either the 4th or 5th round - so this could be a great deal for Pittsburgh. Secondly - Brown was the best hope for a Spartan to be drafted, so when his name was not called, it ended Michigan State’s run of 80 straight drafts of having at least one player selected. No surprise that a Michigan assistant was out trolling their little brother…

  • It looks like Marshall Faulk will not be following Deion Sanders and Eddie George into the FCS coaching ranks - at least not at Southern. The Jaguars announced that Jason Rollins will be their next head coach. Rollins just finished his 25th year of coaching, and he has just been hired for his first head coaching job - despite not interviewing for the position. As appears to be their policy, Southern has hired him as the interim head coach, which will be removed one way or another after Rollins’ first year.

5/2;

  • At this point, folks are talking about how Alabama and Ohio State had ten players drafted, and the Crimson Tide had eight of their ten picked in the first two rounds. What I like the most is that all divisions had players drafted. I thought that the FCS would have more than five drafted, but getting two from both Division II and Division III is great.

  • This spring season just wasn’t very nice to the Bison. Before today, ND State had three special streaks snapped (consecutive wins, consecutive wins at home, and consecutive conference titles), but today’s loss is probably the most painful for them, as their loss to Sam Houston ended their streak of three FCS championships. In a couple of weeks we will see who wins their title.

  • Two days ago Kansas announced that they hired Lance Leipold to be their next head coach. I really like Jayhawks selection - I think that Leipold will start to bring the program back. I still can’t get over his record at Wisconsin - Whitewater: 109-6 and six Division III championships. What I am most curious about - who will succeed him at Buffalo, and will they continue to build on Leipold’s success there.

5/1:

  • Cutting it close, but getting something in before bedtime. I found myself humbled today, when I finally figured out (by looking at my phone for scores) that the FCS playoff games are tomorrow instead of today. Not sure how I messed that up! lol

  • By having the playoffs tomorrow, it allowed the SWAC to have their championship game without any competition except for the remaining round of the NFL Draft. A very good game between Alabama A&M and Arkansas Pine-Bluff that saw the A&M Bulldogs come out on top 40-33 for their first SWAC title since 2011.

  • Last night i was looking over the results of the NFL Draft’s first round from the early entry perspective. Of the 32 picks, 24 of them were players who entered the draft early. As the other rounds are announced, one can expect a lower number of underclassmen to be picked because overall they should be about 30%-35% of the overall selections.

4/30:

  • Was making a run to pick up some Thai takeout, and turned my head to see a high school lacrosse game taking place in the rain. The best part - no masks on the players and fans in the stands! Brought a great big smile to my face for both the players and parents. It also got me looking forward to the fall when football stadiums will be near, if not at, capacity.

  • A couple of tidbits from yesterday’s first round of the NFL Draft: Alabama tied Miami’s record of six players chosen in the first round. The Crimson Tide should end have ten or more players drafted overall when all is said and done - but they won’t match LSU’s record of 14 players drafted last year. And Trey Lance is the third FCS player drafted in the top 3 since the FBS/FCS split in 1978. The others: Carson Wentz in 2016 and Steve McNair in 1995.

  • Can’t forget about FCS Playoffs tomorrow. Half the teams left are from the Missouri Valley - and after tomorrow’s game - it might be the same (2 of 4 remaining teams). The only question - will we have two CAA teams (James Madison and Delaware) or will Jacksonville State and/or North Dakota not let that happen? No matter what - there are some solid teams left in the playoffs!

4/29:

  • It’s on! Tonight the NFL Draft gets going. Exciting stuff. No surprise as to who will be the first pick - or even the second. How high though will the other top quarterbacks go? Will we see five quarterbacks picked in six selections - or will it be eight - or even fifteen? Something I will be watching - how many teams can pass on Penei Sewell? His stardom might be even more assured than Trevor Lawrence!

  • How about the Seminoles landing AJ Duffy? This is a very positive step forward for Mike Norvell and the Florida State team! It’s been a while since FSU landed such a top quarterback prospect. And speaking of Sunshine State quarterbacks, former Miami quarterback N’Kosi Perry has announced that he will play for Florida Atlantic in 2021.

  • Nice to see that former Terp head coach Ralph Friedgen got some recent recognition. The Athletic (a website I should probably open my wallet for) ranked Friedgen as the 4th best hire in the ACC since 1992 - behind only Dabo Swinney, Jimbo Fisher and David Cutcliffe. With the success that Ralph experienced and how he brought the Terps out of a dark era - he ranks up there with Jerry Claiborne and Bobby Ross as Maryland football coaches.

4/28:

  • First there was Deion Sanders at Jackson State, then Eddie George got hired at Tennessee State a short time ago. Now Marshall Faulk is being considered for the new opening at Southern. Born and raised in New Orleans, Faulk would be a great candidate for the Jaguars, but he will have some competition from Alabama A&M head coach Connell Maynor, who has been successful at each stop of his career.

  • Marist announcing their 2021 schedule caught my eye. Head coach Jim Parady has a modest record (142-152-1), but he has been a part of the Red Fox program for three decades, thus making him the longest tenured head coach at the FCS level. Parady has also seen the program transition from Division III to its current membership in the Pioneer Football League. Lastly - he attended UMaine and played quarterback for the Black Bears in the early 80s.

  • It’s still a few years away, but yesterday it was published that Tennessee and West Virginia will play in Charlotte, NC in 2028. These teams have played once before in 2018, and like this game, it was played in Charlotte and the attendance for the game was just south of 67k. Two very good Power 5 programs in a great venue makes this a game to follow in eight years.

4/27:

  • I like overtime games in college football - until they reach five or more periods, so I was quite pleased when the rules committee changed how overtime will be played starting this fall. Going for a two-point conversion starting with the second overtime period is the right thing to do for fans, television (got to squeeze games in), and more importantly for the athletes themselves. I’m not sure if a lot of injuries occur during overtime, but there can be no doubt that players are more susceptible to injury the longer a came goes.

  • Former Southwest Conference rivals have been busy in the transfer portal this week. Texas has added two linebackers, Ben Davis from Alabama and more importantly Devin Richardson from New Mexico State - while Arkansas is adding depth to their defensive line with the addition of Markell Utsey from Missouri and John Ridgeway (highly coveted by others!) from Illinois State. I am looking forward to these two great programs getting it on this year in week 2 (9/11)!

  • Western Carolina looks like it is filling its head coaching vacancy with Kerwin Bell. I remember Bell playing quarterback for the Gators back in the mid-80s, but Kerwin has certainly done well in the coaching ranks. Bell won a championship as the head coach of Division II Valdosta State in 2018, but before that he coached the Jacksonville Dolphins (FCS - Pioneer League) to seven winning seasons from 2007 thru 2015 - which is impressive when you consider that the program had one winning season before his arrival.

4/26:

  • Only three days to go until the NFL Draft - which is a fun time for both college and pro football fans. Shockingly I had forgotten about it because of the FCS spring season, but last night I found myself studying up on it as I went through the list of early entry players. I know one person who will be glued to the screen from beginning to end - so I hope that he has planned out his bathroom breaks appropriately…

  • As Draft Day approaches, there are questions as to when Justin Fields will hear his name - especially with the recent news that he has epilepsy. This kid has a great arm, and no one can question how competitive he is - especially after taking a shot to his ribs in the CFB playoff this year. If I were wanting a quarterback, I wouldn’t pass on Justin - and if he does fall in the draft, the team grabbing him will get a steal because Fields is the second-best quarterback in this year’s NFL Draft.

  • One person who will hear his name announced at the NFL Draft - in 2022, will be Iowa State’s tight end Charlie Kolar. Not sure if he should enter the draft this year, Kolar resorted to a coin flip - something that his parents taught him when he was younger. Though the flip didn’t entirely choose his future for him, it certainly helped Charlie with his decision-making process. The 6-foot-6, 257-pound All-America tight end had 44 catches for seven touchdowns in 2020, and one can’t help but think that those numbers will improve in 2021.

4/25:

  • Michigan’s loss is Texas’ gain as Xavier Worthy has announced his commitment to the Longhorns after asking the Wolverines for his release. The wide receiver was Michigan’s second-highest-ranked signee in 2021, and was ranked as the 61st prospect overall by 247 sports.

  • Southern Illinois proved that they belong in the playoffs, while Missouri State showed that their record this spring might have been a bit deceiving. The Salukis went on the road to face Weber State, and pulled off the win after falling behind 14-0 in the first quarter. Meanwhile, the Bears couldn’t take advantage of the Fighting Hawks, who hadn’t played in 35 days. North Dakota recorded eight sacks on defense, and scored on an interception return and blocked punt in their easy 44-10 win.

  • Congratulation to Westminster for winning their first PAC championship with their 27-20 win over Washington & Jefferson on Friday night. And kudos as well out to Tiffin who won their second GMAC championship. The Dragons wrapped up their spring 6-0, and beat their nemesis Findlay for the second straight year (only 3 wins in 29 games over the Oilers).

4/24:

  • Recruiting this week started in Kentucky and ended in LSU. Jacoby Mathews, a 5-star prospect, selected the Tigers from over thirty offers, including his finalists Clemson, Florida, Texas, USC and Arizona State. Mathews is the 30th overall prospect and the 2nd-ranked safety, who also plays quarterback for his high school team. LSU now has commitments from 3 five-star players and thirteen overall.

  • Not only do the FCS playoffs start today, but there are also about 20 FBS spring games. Unless you have a good sports package (which I no longer have), one will be out of luck in regards to watching these games. I will spend my day outside - but my phone will be by my side so that I can get updates online.

  • Today’s Division II game to follow: Findlay at Tiffin. Last year the Dragons got their first win over Findlay since 1993 – and only their second in 28 games. A Tiffin (4-0) win today gives them the outright G-MAC title, while a Findlay (4-1) win will give them a share of the title with Ohio Dominican – if the Panthers beat Hillsdale.

4/23:

  • I was a month late, but I finally got the Eastern Illinois at Indiana State game added to this fall’s Week Zero schedule. Originally it was to be played in Week 1, but with the departures of Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State from the Ohio Valley schedule, the Panthers were challenged to schedule teams during their open dates. The NCAA granted their request to move this game forward so that Eastern Illinois could schedule South Carolina in Week 1.

  • The Division III spring season is wrapping up - but it’s going out with a good game tonight. Westminster will host Washington & Jefferson for the PAC Championship. The Titans are going after their first PAC title, while the Presidents own a conference best 26 titles. W&J leads this series, that began in 1894, 36-5 - but the Titans have won three of the last four meetings. Lastly, since 2014, all but one game have been decided by a touchdown or less. Should be a good one!

  • FBSchedules has provided another fun piece to read. Amy Daughters takes a look at the nine FBS rivalry games that have bells as a trophy. A great read for those who love rivalry games - particularly with trophies on the line. Two things that stood out to me: the Georgia Tech-Vanderbilt trophy story and my missing the Nebraska-Missouri game. The Tigers are doing a better job of scheduling former Big Eight opponents in their non-conference schedule - but they wouldn’t be able to schedule the Cornhuskers for a home-and-home series until 2033-2034! :(

4/22:

  • North Dakota State has lost three very impressive streaks this spring, but the Bison are the three-time defending FCS Champions and they boast a very impressive FCS playoff record. The Bison are playing in their eleventh straight playoff, and over the past ten years they have compiled a 36-2 playoff record and have won eight of the last nine FCS titles. In four weeks (or maybe less) we will know if North Dakota State can continue this playoff domination.

  • Yesterday Norfolk State announced that they have hired Dawson Odums to be their next head coach. Odums comes to the Spartans after being the head coach at Southern University for the last nine years. In his last five seasons with the Jaguars, Odums compiled a 29-6 SWAC record and his overall record at Southern was 63-35 with one SWAC championship. A great catch for Norfolk State, and a big loss for Southern University.

  • In other coaching news, it was surprising to hear that Presbyterian is headed in a different direction regarding their head coach after a fairly successful spring season. The Blue Hose announced that Tommy Spangler will not be returning as head coach after two decades with the program - including two stints as the head coach. With this development, it is no surprise though that VMI head coach Scott Wachenheim is being discussed as a successor. Wachenheim is also considered a candidate for the head coach opening at Western Carolina.

4/21:

  • Nice to see Kentucky beat out the likes of Alabama, Clemson, and Ohio State for OT Kiyaunta Goodwin. Even though the Wildcats offered him a scholarship when he was in seventh grade, Goodwin says that even if Kentucky was his last offer, he would have picked Kentucky because of the relationships he has developed with the coaching staff. Goodwin says that he will still take his official visits - so one can only hope that he doesn’t get swayed by the other teams listed above.

  • Took a quick glance today at the transfer portal - specifically the quarterback position. Three things popped out to me: 1) There are still 50 quarterbacks that don’t have a home for the 2021 season - including former UMaine quarterback Chris Ferguson. 2) If MacKenzie Milton can stay healthy, both he and the Seminoles will be the big winners in this year’s transfer portal. 3) Three other potential big winners: Tanner Mordecai and SMU, Ryan Hilinski and Northwestern, + Bailey Zappe and Western Kentucky.

  • Yesterday, Fordham announced their 2022 and 2023 schedules. Since they are a member of the Patriot League, the Rams need to find five non-conference games a year. As I went through their schedule, I was impressed that they have scheduled in-state and cross-border (Monmouth - NJ) schools, but I miss their Liberty Cup game against Columbia. Digging a bit - I found that the Lions stopped scheduling the Rams because Fordham offers scholarships and get two or three games under their belts before the Ivy League gets playing. After seeing that, I hope that the Lions grow some and get the Rams back on their schedule!

4/20:

  • Two days ago, Matt Howe wrote a blog on 247sports.com about what he thinks are the 25 best FBS football helmets. Not everyone has the same taste or opinion as to what makes one helmet better than another, but taking the time to seriously think about it deserves credit for the effort. With that said here is my five-minute “Favorite Helmets by Region”: East - Pitt, Penn State, and Army (traditional). South - North Carolina, Georgia, LSU. Midwest - Michigan, Iowa, Purdue (traditional). Southwest - Texas, Oklahoma, Texas A&M (white version). West: UCLA, USC, Colorado (traditional). I look forward to hearing haters for not including Ohio State, Notre Dame, or Alabama…

  • The Irish and Hoosiers announced a two-game series yesterday that will start in 2030. It’s a home-and-home series between these two Indiana schools that will start in South Bend and wrap up in 2031 in Bloomington. This is a series that started in 1898, but has been played only once since 1958. If Hoosier coach Tom Allen is still coaching at IU, his will be good for both universities and for the state!

  • Three different quarterback stories from the last few days: It looks like Bryce Young is ready to start this fall for the Crimson Tide. In the Big Ten, the Buckeyes will continue their quarterback competition the fall. There have been no college snaps for any of them - but if I know the Buckeyes, it won’t matter. And going from the Big Ten (Michigan) to the SEC (Tennessee) will be transfer quarterback Joe Milton. This will give the Vols two transfer quarterbacks - the other being Hendon Hooker from Virginia Tech.

4/19:

  • Yesterday morning teams that will be taking part in the FCS playoffs were announced on ESPNU. Really were no surprises, but I was still a bit surprised at how deep the selection group went in the Missouri Valley. We knew that the three Dakota teams were in, but to include both Southern Illinois and Missouri State was a bit of a shocker. I was thinking that Richmond or Kennesaw State would get more consideration. No matter what - these teams that were selected will be fun to watch.

  • Alabama A&M dominated the Magic City Classic, beating their main rival Alabama State 38-14. With this win, the Bulldogs wrapped up the SWAC East Division for the first time since 2011, and they will play Arkansas-Pine Bluff, who they beat in 2006 for their only SWAC Championship. We now know who is playing for the title, but the site is still to be determined (possibly decided by tiebreakers).

  • Have to mention that on Saturday, Division III Lake Forest recorded four safeties in their 21-14 win over Illinois State. Even though there is no record for the most safeties in a game, the Foresters are almost sure of holding the unofficial record. I say that because the record for safeties in a season in Division III is five (done by Widener in 2014).

4/18:

  • In just a few moments the FCS Playoff qualifiers will be announced. One team that is usually a part of this field will not be included - the San Diego Toreros. Yesterday, the Toreros lost to Valparaiso for the first time in 15 years, giving them two Pioneer losses - which made Davidson the outright winner of the conference. While San Diego was denied their seventh-straight PFL title, the Davidson Wildcats earned the outright title, and their first-ever FCS playoff bid

  • This spring has not been kind to streaks. Not only did San Diego have two long streaks ended, but North Dakota State saw three big streaks stopped…Earlier this year the Bison saw their long winning streak ended by Southern Illinois, and yesterday South Dakota State ended two more significant streaks. North Dakota State saw their bid for a tenth straight Missouri Valley title ended because of their loss to the Jackrabbits. And since the game was played in the Fargodome, SD State also ended the Bisons school-record 32-game home winning streak. All will be forgotten if the Bison win the FCS Championship again.

  • I know that I have talked about VMI a lot in this Daily News piece - but I have to do it again. All could have been lost when their record-breaking quarterback went down with an ACL injury, but their depth showed through with Seth Morgan taking over the reins. In the team’s biggest game in years, Morgan was 25 of 34 for 328 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Keydets to their first Southern Conference championship since 1977, and their first-ever FCS playoff bid!

4/17:

  • Enjoyed the Carnegie Mellon/Westminster game last night - though I figured it was the Titans game after the Tartans missed two extra points while getting back into the game in the third quarter. Now I can look forward to another PAC matchup next weekend between Westminster and Washington & Jefferson.

  • Another FCS game that can get lost in the shuffle of games that will impact FCS playoff berths: Grambling State vs. Southern - the 72nd game between the teams and the 47th Bayou Classic (tied at 23). The Bayou Classic with the Battle of the Bands shouldn’t be missed no matter the teams’ records whenever it’s on TV.

  • Teams that i would like to see come out as winners today: VMI over The Citadel, South Dakota State over North Dakota State, SE Louisiana over Southern Illinois, Davidson over Stetson, Richmond over James Madison, Delaware over Villanova (sorry Eric), Alabama A&M over Alabama State, Grambling State over Southern (torn on this), Samford over Mercer (in case VMI loses), and Bucknell over Holy Cross (only because it would give the Bison their first playoff bid).

4/16:

  • Last night’s game between two evenly matched teams is a perfect example of how turnovers can dictate an outcome. Truman State turned four Missouri S&T miscues into 24 points as they beat the Miners 46-27. Missouri S&T outgained the Bulldogs, 416 yards to 307, but Truman State had three touchdown drives of 19 yards or less in the fourth quarter.

  • Three Division III games to stream tonight - all from the Presidents’ Athletic Conference: Grove City at Geneva (Geneva leads the series that began in 1893 47-39-7), Bethany at Washington & Jefferson (97th meeting since 1896 with the Presidents having won 36 of the last 37 meetings), and Carnegie Mellon at Westminster College (The Titans lead the series 20-18-1, but Carnegie Mellon won last year’s matchup in Pittsburgh, 20-14). If I were to pick one out these three, I would go with the Titan/Tartans matchup. It has the least amount of history, but it is a very competitive series between two solid programs.

  • A lot of classic games this weekend - and a lot of playoff berths on the line as well in these games. An off-the-radar game that very few people are gong to look past is the game between SE Louisiana and Southern Illinois that was just scheduled ten days ago. Because the Missouri Valley is loaded with playoff contenders (three bids - and probably not a fourth), the Salukis probably won’t get a bid no matter the outcome, but they can certainly eliminate the Lions from postseason consideration - making this a game worth watching.

4/15:

  • Bryant-Denny Stadium now has a life-sized statue of an elephant named in front of it on a street corner. Tuska is a 7-ton bronze statue that looks skyward with trunk raised high - and at his highest, he stands at 19 feet, 1 inch. The cost of the move from a yacht club: $415k.

  • This weekend, VMI will win the Southern Conference’s automatic bid to the playoffs for the first time with either a win over rival The Citadel or a Mercer loss to Samford. In their way - Bulldog quarterback Jaylan Adams, who won the Southern Conference offensive player of the week without completing a pass. The Citadel’s option attack could be a problem for the Keydets.

  • Two weeks ago I watched Truman State defeat Southwest Baptist, 38-20. Tonight the Bulldogs play their oldest and biggest rivals - Missouri S&T Miners. The series dates back to 1909 with Truman State leading the all-time series 53-25-4, but these teams have split the last six meetings - and the last two games have been decided by a total of three points. A worthwhile watch tonight!

4/14:

  • Glad to see yesterday that Colorado and Colorado State have announced six new games to go along with two previously scheduled matchups. Though I would prefer seeing this as a annual game, eight games over the next eighteen years is tolerable. And I think it’s great that the Buffs are scheduling former Big Eight opponents.

  • My hat is off to Bobby Petrino and what he has been able to accomplish at Missouri State in his first year - a share of the Missouri Valley title. It is the Bears’ first conference title in thirty years, when they played in the Gateway Football Conference. With any luck, they will get an at-large playoff bid this upcoming weekend. Their only FCS playoff win came in 1989 against….the UMaine Black Bears.

  • Late with this tidbit, but I have got to mention Presbyterian linebacker Colby Campbell (love the name - and his hair). This past Saturday, Campbell had 25 tackles (3 TFLs) and a forced fumble. This hasn’t been a one-time affair though because he holds the Big South record for tackles in a season (150) - a year where he had 10 games with at least ten tackles. Colby is a senior who I hope comes back to play next fall.

4/13:

  • FCS teams that haven’t had their conference schedules released for this upcoming fall are starting to fill out their one or two openings. At this point in time most of these newly scheduled games will be against Division II or NAIA opponents.

  • ESPN had a piece today on their (I guess it is theirs…) preseason FPI (Football Power Index) for Fall 2021. If I get myself organized at the kitchen table, I will have to take a look at it and compare it to Bill Connelly’s SP+ rankings (of which he put out his Sun Belt East preview). A couple of things I noticed right off in the FPI: Iowa State is ranked fourth and has an almost 10% chance of winning the national championship. And Louisiana is ranked 69th, and could be looking at a record of 7-5. Not sure that’s right…lol

  • After averaging 416 yards rushing per game against their first two opponents, I was looking forward to Martin Luther’s upcoming game this Friday against the Northwestern (MN) Eagles. Unfortunately it has been canceled.

4/12:

  • Two more playoff teams were decided yesterday: Jacksonville State and Sacred Heart. The Gamecocks had a good balance on offense, while their run defense was again superior, as they held the Racers to only 26 yards on the ground. Meanwhile, Sacred Heart squandered a two touchdown lead in the fourth quarter, to only win it in overtime on the road with a 29-yard touchdown pass. During regulation that rode the legs of Julius Chestnut, who gained 173 yards on 25 carries.

  • The hiring of Deion Sanders by Jackson State is now a model followed at Tennessee State, as the Tigers have already announced the hiring of Eddie George, a Nashville resident, despite ending their season yesterday. With the names being tossed around, George might be hiring himself quite a staff. And back to Sanders for a moment, he and his team suffered their third straight loss on Saturday. The get a gimme this week - a forfeit from Alcorn State.

  • Going all Ohio Valley Conference today…a shoutout to Tennessee Tech for winning the Sgt. York Trophy - a quadrangular football series between the four Tennessee schools that play in the OVC. Even though the Golden Eagles lost to UT Martin yesterday, 40-7, Tennessee Tech won a tiebreaker with UT Martin since they had gone the most seasons without winning the trophy. Tennessee Tech last won the trophy in 2009, and they ended Austin Peay’s streak of winning the trophy at three.

4/11:

  • Even though the polls and Big Sky standings reflect Weber State as the best (and conference champ) team out west, I can’t help but think that Eastern Washington is truly the top team. Since opening up with an impressive win over Idaho State on the road, the Wildcats limped through the rest of the season as they didn’t beat anyone by more than five points - including a rematch at home against the Bengals at home yesterday. The Eagles seem to be the best hope in the playoff field for the Eagles.

  • Other playoff clinchers include Monmouth, who surprisingly defeated Kennesaw State very easily, 42-17, and Sam Houston, who beat McNeese State, 27-13, while UIW lost to Northwestern State , 49-47. Without playing, VMI’s playoff hopes improved with Mercer beating East Tennessee State - so the Keydets just need to beat their rivals, The Citadel, to advance to the FCS playoff for the first time.

  • Quick notes regarding Division III action yesterday: Hanover easily defeated Franklin to retain the Victory Bell for the third straight year. Martin Luther racked up 491 yards rushing in an easy 44-14 win over Minnesota-Morris. And, Lake Forest sophomore, A.J. Jackson had an 81-yard punt return for a touchdown - his fifth touchdown via punt or kickoff return in eleven career games.

4/10:

  • As sad as I am to see this morning that the great Richmond/William & Mary rivalry game was canceled yesterday, I am thrilled that the CAA has arranged for the Spiders to meet James Madison next week. The winner of this game will be a legitimate conference champion - though the Blue Hens might have something to say about it if they beat Villanova next week.

  • Two games worth following today, even though there is no playoff implication for any of the participants, are Lehigh at Lafayette and Fordham at The Citadel. The Mountain Hawks have scored only six points this year, when teams have played 155 times before, it is a classic no matter the teams’ records. Meanwhile The Citadel and Furman are playing for the 100th time. This game is the Southern Conference’s oldest and most contested series. The series started in 1913, and has been played every year since 1946.

  • Proof that stats don’t tell the entire picture. Otterbein’s quarterback Bryce Hall threw for almost 300 yards against Capital - but 260 of the yards were in the first half. The Cardinals ended up stomping their rivals, the Capital Crusaders, 47-10.

4/9:

  • Have to start with a viewer’s guide to tonight’s Division III games. Kind of feel like I have gone through a bit of withdrawal being that we have had mid-week games for the last few weeks. Tonight’s matchups should help make up for that because there will be some good tilts. Westminster at Grove City might be the best game of all since GC has won the last two games by a combined five points, and these teams have met 101 times since 1892. Another great game should be Otterbein at Capital. Even though they didn’t get started on their series until 1923, these cross-town rivals (separated by 15 miles) have played 94 times, and Otterbein holds a slight 46-45-3 lead in the series. Two other games worth checking out: Muskingum at Marietta and Ohio Northern at Heidelberg.

  • After this weekend’s action, we will know three teams that will be playoff-bound. Tomorrow Kennesaw State will visit Monmouth for the Big South title. The Hawks only loss at home in their last 19 games was against the Owls in 2018. Even though Monmouth is on their third starting quarterback, it should be an exciting matchup. On Sunday, we will learn about two other playoff clinchers. Murray State has been a surprise all season long under first-year coach Dean Hood, but Jacksonville State has won six straight and 15 of 17 all-time against the Racers. Will Jacksonville State be leaving the Ohio Valley as the conference’s champion? The Northeast Conference’s berth will come down to Duquesne and Sacred Heart - a rematch from week one (Duquesne won 30-27 at home). Sacred Heart running back Julius Chestnut will be someone to watch, as he leads the FCS in rushing yards per game.

4/8:

  • In the CAA, both UNH and Rhode Island ended their spring seasons the last couple of days. It was a long spring for the Wildcats because with all the protocols in place, they were only able to play one game. As for the Rams, what looked like a promising season ended quickly because of multiple positive COVID-19 tests. This also impacted UMaine and Stony Brook, who saw their seasons end because of this - unless they find other opponents. Sadly this means that I won’t get to see either UMaine vs. Rhode Island or UMaine against UNH.

  • The Patriot League yesterday announced that their championship game will be Holy Cross versus Bucknell on the 17th of this month. We already knew the Bison would be playing for the title, but the Crusaders were added when Colgate couldn’t answer the bell for their game with Holy Cross this weekend because of positive tests. So, that is two conference title games set - with the other being the Northeast Conference this weekend. Not sure I am a big fan of teams playing for conference titles with only two or three games played.

4/7:

  • Unfortunately, it looks like Wesley has played its final game. When purchased by their bigger neighbor Delaware State, the prognosis was not good - and then the hammer fell on the program this past February. Even though the Wolverines didn’t play their first game until 1986, the team accomplished so much in 35 years. After three seasons, Wesley’s record was 1-25, but when all was said and done, the Wolverines had a record of 274-108-1. Thirty-one straight years without a losing record. Fifteen playoff appearances, six times reaching the semifinals. They won ten or more games on twelve different occasions. With an enrollment of just over 1,100 - one can say that no team has accomplished so much with so little. I’m so glad that I watched some of their final game last week against Christopher Newport.

  • Last year, San Jose State went 7-1, and won their first Mountain West title. They are returning all but two of their starters - but the loss of receivers Tre Walker and Bailey Gaither, who combined for 86 catches and 1,352 yards, will be felt. What’s will be fun to watch this year is that they could be even better this year - but not repeat in their division. The MWC West may well be the most competitive division in the FBS, as Nevada, Fresno State, and San Diego State, as well as San Jose State could all win the division - with at least two losses.

  • While gathering notes and going over the Week 3 schedule for next fall, the Arkansas State at Washington game caught my eye. I say this because what a great opportunity it is for the Red Wolves to play at Husky Stadium - which sits on the bank of Union Bay and overlooks the Cascade Mountains - including Mount Rainier. Digging further into Arkansas State’s schedule, I found out these future venues: Ohio Stadium in Columbus, Memorial Stadium in Norman, OK, the “Big House” in Ann Arbor, and Kyle Field, on the campus of Texas A&M. The Red Wolves have also recently played at Georgia, at K-State, at Alabama, and at Nebraska. Impressive scheduling and a great recruiting tool I’d say.

4/6:

  • It appears as though Kansas will be announcing their new athletic director sometime in the next couple of days (Travis Goff from Northwestern?), so the next Jayhawk head coach might not be far behind. The leader for this position appears to be Willie Fritz, while Jeff Monken and Lance Leipold are still in the running. Fritz seems to be the logical choice, as he is a Kansas native, and he has led Tulane to three-straight bowl games - this is after the program had three in 31 years before Fritz’s arrival. Willie has also been the head coach at Central Missouri, so he has had experience recruiting in that key area. Selfishly I hope that Fritz is the next Jayhawk coach, because I prefer to keep Jeff Monken right where he is at West Point.

  • The transfer portal has been quiet recently, but that might change soon as spring practice wraps up and players know where they stand on the depth chart. The slowness in the portal didn’t stop USC from picking up some key depth at the wide receiver position. Tahj Washington, who played at Memphis in 2020, has joined the Trojans with immediate eligibility. Last fall for the Tigers, Washington caught 43 passes for 743 yards and six touchdowns. A nice pick up for the Trojans.

  • This past Saturday, Davidson ended San Diego’s 39-game conference winning streak, leaving the Toreros tied with Duquesne for the longest conference winning streak in FCS history. Other teams with significant conference winning streaks: Jacksonville State (36 games), Eastern Kentucky (26 games), Appalachian State (26 games), Grambling State (26 games) and Montana (25 games). One team that is not included on this list even though they have had two significant winning streaks - North Dakota State.

4/5:

  • Austin Peay has been playing better of late (freshman quarterback Draylen Ellis maturing) as they have defeated ranked teams (Jacksonville State and Murray State) in back-to-back games for the first time, but Jacksonville State’s win over Eastern Illinois eliminated the Govs from repeating as OVC champions. The Peay still have a chance to get an at-large playoff bid if they beat Eastern Illinois next week and the Ohio Valley receives multiple bids.

  • Two teams are getting closer to their first-ever playoff bids. Bucknell has played its way into the Patriot League Championship game with wins over Lafayette and Lehigh. I am thinking that the team that will get in their way is defending champ Holy Cross, who is 2-0 and with a win over Fordham, whose best record can be 2-1. The other team looking for their first playoff game is Davidson. The Wildcats ended San Diego’s 39-game conference winning streak this past Saturday, and if they beat Stetson on April 17th, Davidson will find themselves in the postseason.

  • The Big South title will be decided next Saturday between Kennesaw State and Monmouth. Big Surprise there! Since 2017, these teams have combined to go 33-3 in conference play - each loss was against each other (the Hawks winning for the first time in 2019). The loser will still be in contention for an at-large playoff bid.

4/4:

  • On some Saturdays, it seems like all the teams you want to really win end up on the losing side - and I had one of those this week. UMaine and VMI both went down, as well as a couple others, so when I saw the end results I had a certain four-letter word slip out. Luckily, I was the only one in the house - besides the dog.

  • The FCS committee is going to have a hard time selecting the 16 team playoff this year. I have been reading that they have James Madison as the top seed - but with all the cancellations on the Dukes schedule I’m not sure that it’s justified. I have no doubt that in a regular season they would be a top seed, but it seems to me that this spring Richmond or Delaware seem more deserving at this juncture.

  • One Division III note today - but two things regarding the Bridgewater-Shenandoah Saturday matchup in the ODAC. First off, these two rivals met for the third time this season - one non-conference game, a conference matchup, and then a game to determine 5th place in the ODAC this spring. Playing twice in a season is rare - but three times seems unheard of, at least to me. The second thing worth mentioning is that Bridgewater head coach Michael Clark retired after the game. Clark, had coached for 26 years and had a career record of 167-103-1. The most impressive thing to me in his career, besides being the winningest coach in ODAC history - he had 10 Division III playoff wins, which is more than all the other ODAC schools COMBINED!

4/3:

  • College football in the spring might not be for everyone, but I have to admit that after the fall we had, this is just what I needed. I say this because it gives me a chance to follow some of the lower divisions teams which is hard to do when everyone is playing in the fall. Just last night I found myself watching Wesley (next to last game ever) at Christopher Newport, William Patterson at Montclair State, and Marietta at Mount Union. Games that normally don’t stick out or get lost in the shuffle during normal times.

  • Today will find me tuning into a bunch of different games in between time in our gardens. Because of it being local and the CAA, Villanova at UMaine will get the most attention today. And there is no doubt that I will be looking into Bucknell at Lehigh as well as Colgate at Fordham since I am a big fan of the Patriot League. The Big Sky has some fun games: Weber State at Southern Utah, Eastern Washington at UC Davis, and Idaho at Idaho State - each of these games will impact the Big Sky winner. Lastly, I will see how the Keydets do today versus East Tennessee State.

  • To do all my work on this website, I have been given our breakfast nook to spread out all of what I need. Unfortunately when gazing at it - it’s not to pretty. Surrounding my laptop are bills, tax forms, spreadsheets and word documents printed for research as well as numerous books, magazines, and post its. And I love it! Not sure that Deb is a big fan though….LOL

4/2:

  • One coach reached a milestone in wins last night while another got within one win of another: Rich Lackner got his 225th win in Carnegie Mellon’s 51-0 win over Waynesburg. Lackner has coached the Tartans for 35 seasons. Meanwhile, K. C. Keeler got his 149th win as a FCS coach. Keeler had won 86 games at Delaware and now has 63 wins as the head coach at Sam Houston. Including his time at Division III Rowan (the Profs), K. C. has now won a total of 237 games.

  • I realized this morning that I should have mentioned last night’s game between Washington & Jefferson and Geneva. The game wasn’t on my radar last night initially, but I realized my error when I saw this morning that the teams first met in 1891 - 120 years ago. The Presidents won last night 20-6, to take a 47-19-2 series lead.

  • A couple of games that I am following tonight: William Patterson at Montclair State - This will be the 50th meeting between the two local rivals, who are separated by nine miles along Route 46 in New Jersey. Montclair State has dominated the series winning 45 of the previous 49 meetings with one tie mixed in. Marietta at Mount Union - This is the 59th meeting between the teams with Mount Union holding a 49-8-1 lead in a series dating back to 1933. The teams have met every year since 1981 and Mount Union has won all 39 of those meetings. In 2019, the Purple Raiders out-gained the Pioneers 699-229 in a 69-7 win in Marietta.

4/1:

  • While out walking the dog the other day, I couldn’t help but notice a Colorado Buffalo camp chair on a sun porch and after rounding a corner there was a car with a USF sticker on its rear window. It got me to thinking that I would confuse fans of certain schools because I have close to twenty college t-shirts that I wear. The Big Ten is my biggest representation, but the ones I cherish the most don’t have football teams. I proudly wear Quinnipiac and MECA t-shirts because of my daughters. Of course I also enjoy my Wisconsin t-shirt that my daughter bought for me when she was in Madison - it has a mean-ass Bucky the Badger.

  • Albany has opted out of their final two football games because of too many injuries this spring. A very tough decision I am sure, but the right one if the head of athletics thinks it’s best for the kids and the program. Another stinker is that this week’s games between South Dakota State and North Dakota State as well as Lafayette and Lehigh have been postponed. Fortunately both have been rescheduled for later this month.

  • I’ll be following a game from each division this evening: FCS - Sam Houston at Northwestern State: This could be the last game between these teams, unless they schedule each other in a non-conference game since the Bearkats are joining the WAC this fall. It has been a competitive series since it began in 1929, as it is currently tied at 21 wins apiece. Sam Houston has dominated recently, but the Demons did win last year’s game, 31-28. Division II - Truman State at Southwest Baptist: These two teams have met annually since 1988 with the only hiatus being 2008-2009. The Bulldogs of Truman State have won twelve of the last thirteen meetings, including last’s win 52-7, and now lead the series 27-4. Division - Carnegie Mellon at Waynesburg: In a series that began back in 1907, this will be only the sixth time these teams have met since Rich Lackner started coaching the Tartans 34-years ago. The Tartans lead the series versus Waynesburg 13-5-1.

3/31:

  • Just after Maryland transfer Reece Udinski was diagnosed with a torn ACL that requires surgery, the Terps found out that their highest-rated recruit , Terrance Lewis, will have surgery as well to repair his ACL. Lewis, a linebacker from Miami, suffered the tear during his high school career, but he kept playing not knowing the seriousness of the injury. It was discovered by Maryland’s doctors in an examination.

  • It’s been a learning day for me. I heard on MPR this morning that former Notre Dame head coach Knute Rockne died in a plane crash 80 years ago today. He died at the age of 43. These things I did not know. I also learned that he was born in Norway - and they have a bronze statue of him in Voss. What I do know - Rockne made the Notre Dame Fighting Irish what they are today, and one only wonders how many wins he would have achieved if he were able to coach until he was ready to retire.

  • My second learning…while looking up the distance between West Point and Marist (future FCS opponent just announced), I decided to bring up a satellite picture of the U.S. Military Academy. As I locked in on Michie Stadium, I found out that the body of water that you see from the stadium on television is a reservoir (Lusk Reservoir), and not the Hudson River - which I had always assumed.

3/30:

  • Two more FCS teams have now opted out of their remaining spring seasons. Cal Poly couldn’t meet the minimum requirements to compete this week against Northern Arizona, so that combined with seniors opting out for a full fall season has left the Mustangs with no other choice but to end things this spring. Chattanooga followed with the same announcement later on Monday. due to similar situations. Unfortunately for the Mocs, they were in contention for a playoff spot.

  • Sources have reported that VMI starting quarterback Reece Udinski has suffered a torn ACL and will require season-ending surgery. This is unfortunate news for both player and team. Just yesterday, VMI climbed the rankings, making it up to tenth place. The Keydets will now lean on Seth Morgan to lead them the rest of the way this spring. Meanwhile, time will tell if Reece is able to suit up for Maryland this fall.

  • I know that March Madness is still in full swing, and the Road to Wrestlemania is building, but I have to say that there was a college football game played last night. In less than a week, Alfred got their revenge against Utica, as they defeated the Pioneers 17-10 on Senior Day for the Saxons. Alfred stood tall on defense at the one-yard line as time expired to end their two-game season on a winning note.

3/29:

  • It has been a spring of mixed results for Scotty Walden and the Austin Peay Governors, as they have lost two close games in the Sgt. York Trophy series, but yesterday that got a big win on the road against the 7th-ranked Jacksonville State Gamecocks. They can get some great momentum going into next fall if they beat Murray State next week and Eastern Illinois to end the spring season.

  • Speaking of Murray State - Dean Hood (former Eastern Kentucky head coach) has exceeded expectations for the Racers this year as they are sitting in first place in the OVC. And they are in control of their own destiny with upcoming games against Austin Peay and Jacksonville State.

  • Other coaches who are certainly exceeding my expectations this year: Dan Hawkins at UC Davis - after a tough second year (5-7), the Aggies are 3-1 this year with their only loss being to the 3rd-ranked Weber State Wildcats. This upcoming weekend they host Eastern Washington - which will be a big game in regards to the Big Sky title picture. The other coach doing exceptionally well this year is Bobby Petrino at Missouri State. The Bears only loss in the MVFC this spring was to North Dakota State, and with games remaining against North Dakota and Youngstown State - the playoffs can’t be ruled out for Missouri State.

3/28:

  • Without their starting quarterback, and two other skill starters, VMI was still able to pull off a win at Wofford for the first-time ever, and their first win over the Terriers since 2002. Redshirt freshman quarterback Seth Morgan threw four touchdown passes in the second half, and was 25 of 34 for 375 yards for the game. Morgan also ran for 76 yards. To pull off the win while missing three key starters on offense shows that the Keydets have some depth in their program.

  • Surprisingly Weber State needed a Hail Mary as time expired to beat Northern Arizona. The Lumberjacks had just taken the lead, 23-22, with just 17 seconds left in the game after a fourteen play, 95-yard drive after recovering a Wildcat fumble. One has to wonder how this one play will affect both teams for the rest of the season.

  • Monmouth opened their season with an easy win over Charleston Southern - their fourth straight win over the Buccaneers. Since it looks like the Hawks are going to have their fourth straight strong season in the Big South, I had to pay a visit to their team website. What I found out was that head coach Kevin Callahan has been the man for the entire existence of Monmouth football - 27 years. Since 1992, Callahan has been on the sideline for every Hawk game, and Monmouth’s victory yesterday gave him win number 164.

3/27:

  • Last night, Westminster took on Geneva College in what the school’s consider “The Game”. For a while the Golden Tornadoes looked like they were going to give the Titans a battle in the 123rd game between the two schools. But Westminster score four touchdowns in the last 3:21 of the first half to brake open a close game. Sophomore linebacker Ian Barr forced three fumbles - all in the first half.

  • This afternoon, Hampden-Sydney will host Randolph-Macon for the 125th game between the teams, and they too consider this matchup as “The Game”. It is also known as the Oldest Small School Rivalry in the South since they first met on the gridiron in 1893. Both teams come into the game 3-0, so this matchup will have a little extra on the line - the ODC Championship. This will be a game worth watching!

  • A lot of eyes will be on James Madison today as the top-ranked team will return to action after being on the sidelines for three weeks. The last time they played, Elon gave them a scare, and the Dukes opponent, William & Mary, just last week beat that same Phoenix by three touchdowns. JMU hasn’t had trouble with the Tribe in their last four meetings, but this game in Williamsburg could be different…

3/26:

  • Tough news for Georgia, as their team leader in touchdown receptions went down with an ACL tear during practice on Wednesday. George Pickens will have surgery and he is expected to make a full recovery as there was no other damage to the knee. The usual recovery timeline would say that he is lost for the season, but Kirby Smart is not buying that at this moment.

  • Carnegie Mellon head coach Rich Lackner was denied his 225th victory as the Tartans lost to Grove City last evening, 24-14. He had a chance to tie Bethel head coach Steve Johnson - who currently has 225 wins. It’s a pretty impressive feat to get this many wins. A head coach would have to average 7 wins a season for 32 years. Obviously, there aren’t many coaches that reach this level.

  • I have mentioned UIW quarterback Cameron Ward once, if not twice, in this Daily News piece - and the chances are that I will do it again. The Cardinals though have another weapon in their backfield - running back Kevin Brown. So far in three games, Brown has not averaged fewer than 11 yards per carry, and he has had at least ten carries in all three games. Currently his overall line is 36 carries for 503 yards (14-yard average). These two are why UIW has averaged almost 50 points per game so far this spring.

3/25:

  • Interesting to read that Oklahoma is holding up Chandler Morris’ transfer to TCU. It appears as though OU and Sooner head coach Lincoln Riley are against immediate eligibility within the conference. Since the NCAA is allowing all athletes that transfer to play without sitting out a year, it only seems right to let Morris play at TCU this year. It wasn’t that long ago that Baker Mayfield left Texas Tech for the Sooners, and after a year of sitting out, became the starting quarterback at Oklahoma. I’m not sure if these two situations are really different.

  • Another freshman quarterback that I will have to follow: Josh Taylor, who plays for Division III Mount St. Joseph. Last week, he accounted for seven touchdowns as he led the Lions to a 56-19 win over previously undefeated Franklin. Taylor was efficient as a passer, 17 of 26 for 167 yards and two touchdowns - but devastating on the ground as he ran for 225 yards and five touchdowns. This week Taylor goes up against Defiance, who has given up an average of 41 points a game.

  • Tonight Carnegie Mellon hosts Grove City in Division III action. These teams are meeting for the 60th time, and the series dates back to 1908. The Tartans have won their last three season openers, but Grove City has won the last two games against Carnegie Mellon, including last year’s 29-26 double overtime victory at home. Tartan head coach Rich Lackner, who is in his 35th season at the helm, is looking for career win number 225 this evening.

3/24:

  • For a while yesterday, I thought it was November because of a college football game being played on Tuesday (MACtion). Utica beat Alfred for the third straight time at home, but the Saxons will get the Pioneers in Alfred this upcoming Monday. I’m looking forward to the rematch - as it must be the fastest turnaround for two teams to play again, though it might happen in conference championship games.

  • Was reading this morning Bill Connelly’s latest offseason conference preview based on his SP+ rankings. I hope that his predictions become reality because I would like nothing better than have the Mountain West’s Mountain Division come down to Wyoming and Boise State. I also hope that Blake Anderson gets Utah State up and running again - it’s a better division when the Aggies are competitive.

  • I’m surprised that it took me until today to see the new Top 25 from Stats FCS. Interesting to see that five different teams got first place votes, and that the Bison are now nipping at the Dukes heels. I just hope that James Madison gets back to playing! Speaking of a CAA team, I was happy to see that the Rhode Island Rams got rewarded for beating two Top 25 teams on the road. Now they are at home for three straight games - but they have a long road ahead of them because their opponents are: Delaware, UNH, and UMaine.

3/23:

  • A quick shoutout to Maryland for what I think was a successful year on the basketball court. A team that saw a lot of turnover from last year played hard and hung with a tough Big Ten - and they won a NCAA tournament game. Well done Terps!

  • On Saturday there was a solid game played between Div. II newcomer Frostburg State and Notre Dame College - a program that had just finished their tenth year in 2019. These teams have met only twice, but I see a budding rivalry that has the promise to be very competitive in the Mountain East.

  • In Division III this weekend, Illinois Wesleyan played at Millikin. These teams were playing for the 113th time, with Millikin holding a slim edge in the overall series 54-51-7, but the Titans of IW had won ten straight and thirteen of the last fifteen matchups. The Big Blue won on this day though to end their 10-game losing streak to the Titans. Not to be outdone in history, I was watching Kalamazoo at Olivet on Sunday. It was the 116th meeting between these teams from Michigan since 1892 - and Olivet won for the 8th straight time over the Hornets to tie up the all-time series at 57-57-2.

  • Hardcore fans of the game can watch Alfred at Utica online tonight - two Division III teams from the Empire 8 conference. The series began in 2001 (Utica’s inaugural season) and has been played every year since. Alfred won the first eleven contests, but the two teams have split the last eight meetings - with the new team having earned wins the last two seasons.

3/22:

  • Illinois State is the first team to opt out of playing their remaining games. The Redbirds, who were 1-3, had four games remaining and were getting thin on their depth along the defensive line. Since they weren’t getting anywhere this spring, who can blame them for the decision to protect their players and get ready for this fall. I am sure that since the precedence has been set, you will see other teams doing the same thing.

  • The Keydets won a thrilling game in overtime, completing a two-point conversion to end the game after the first overtime possession. VMI scored two touchdowns in the final five minutes of the game to tie things up - but they missed the PAT on the second touchdown, which would have given them a lead. Fortunately, they were able to pull off the comeback in the extra quarter. They now need to win one of their remaining three regular season games to secure a winning record for the first time in 40 years!

  • San Diego won their 39th straight Pioneer game to tie Duquesne FCS record for most consecutive conference wins. The Dukes won 39 straight Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference games from 1999 to 2006. No matter the conference - it’s a significant accomplishment!

3/21:

  • I have to start off with saying how nice it was to see the Terps beat UConn last night to get themselves to the Round of 32. I was satisfied just to see them make the big dance, so this is a bonus! What if they now beat Alabama?

  • UMaine got themselves another solid victory - with this one being on the road. Joe Fagnano and Andre Miller connected for three touchdowns for the second straight game. So nice to see Miller having this success - especially since he is from Old Town.

  • Guess I shouldn’t be surprised that the old guards (North Dakota State and South Dakota State) of the Missouri Valley Football Conference put down the new kids at the top of the standings (North Dakota and Southern Illinois). In two weeks, the Jackrabbits and Bison will meet potentially with a conference title and playoff spot on the line.

  • After a week off, UIW and Cameron Ward were back in action against Southeast Louisiana. And I must say I was looking forward to seeing what numbers the Cardinals quarterback would put up against the Lions. The freshman qb did not disappoint as he threw for six touchdowns and rushed for another. I would say that he had a solid game…

3/20:

  • John Carroll gave Mount Union a good game for almost the first two quarters, but the Purple Raiders outscored the Blue Streaks 38-6 in the final 2.5 quarters to put the game away. Making his second start, Braxton Plunk threw seven touchdown passes to lead Mount Union to a 52-27 win.

  • Ohio Wesleyan and Dennison met for the 112th time since 1891 last night - and the it was exciting right down to the end of the game. Big Red kicker, Pat Kramer kicked a 28-yard field goal with 27 seconds to lead Dennison to a 38-37 win over the Battling Bishops. Kramer tied the schools all-time record for field goals made with his 25th successful field goal.

  • North Dakota State had their 39-game winning streak ended earlier this Spring by Southern Illinois. This week, three streaks could be in jeopardy with a loss to their big rivals, the North Dakota Fighting Hawks. The Bison have won 31 straight games at the Fargodome, and are trying to win their 10th straight Missouri Valley Football Conference title. And if the lose these streaks, the Bison might not get a chance to defend the FCS Championship for the third straight year. If the Fighting Hawks can’t drive the stake into the Bison’s heart today, North Dakota State might just keep all these streaks alive right through the spring season. The 113th meeting of these big rivals has the makings of a classic!

3/19:

  • Today is probably the toughest test in regards to my love and dedication to college football every day! March Madness is the one event that can distract me (well - Biathlon events can too) from digging and researching into interesting tidbits about this favorite sport of mine.

  • Wheeling wasn’t very kind last night to the newest member of the Mountain East Conference. The Cardinals jumped to a 20-0 in the first quarter and didn’t look back against Alderson Broaddus, winning 34-6. This is Wheeling’s second win as a program, and both wins have come in their last three games. Will have to keep an eye on their upward progress over the next year or two.

  • Since I am talking about Wheeling, I have recently come to the conclusion that new programs can be just as enjoyable to watch and follow as teams that have been around for over 100 years. Of course they don’t have the traditions and rivalry/trophy games of their older brothers - but it takes so much skill and effort to build up a program from scratch. So from this point forward, more space will be dedicated to these new teams…

3/18:

  • Got some enjoyment today reading ESPN’s 64-team playoff bracket. Ole Miss, Liberty and Utah got some love as they made it to the Sweet Sixteen - and then Iowa State got some serious kudos by making it to the Final Four - and giving Alabama all they could handle.

  • A second FCS offensive coordinator is leaving their team shorthanded during the spring season. Grambling State’s Mark Orlando has decided to step down, so the Tigers will have a new coordinator for their game this weekend against Arkansas Pine-Bluff. Orlando has had more than four decades of coaching experience.

  • One college game tonight - and it is for the serious fan. Wheeling vs. Alderson Broaddus. A Division II matchup out of the Mountain East. Wheeling is in their second year with one win under their belt, against Concord in the last game of 2019. The Cardinals almost won their 2nd game last week as they gave a battle to Frostburg State, losing only 27-20.

3/17:

  • Last night I noticed that another game got moved to Week Zero this fall. The FCS matchup between Eastern Illinois and Indiana State will now be played on Saturday, August 28th in Terre Haute, IN. This schedule change allowed the Panthers to be flexible with adding non-conference games since two teams are leaving the Ohio Valley next fall. It is actually a nice rivalry game that will be fun to watch in August.

  • James Madison is having trouble with COVID - which could be a problem to their championship hopes. Two games have already been postponed, and their hope is to return to the field on March 27th when they are scheduled to play William & Mary in Williamsburg. The next week they are due to play at Richmond - and the Spiders are playing very well so far this year.

  • Looks like I have some research to do. Last week, Duquesne beat Bryant 17-0 to give head coach Jerry Schmitt his 100th win with the Dukes. With that win, Schmitt joins eight other active coaches in the FCS with at least 100 wins at their schools. I now have to find out who the others are - as only Tim Murphy (Harvard) and Mark Farley (Northern Iowa) come to mind at this moment.

3/16:

  • A couple good reads on ESPN’s website: Teams that will benefit from the return of super seniors - where the biggest winners should be Iowa State and Louisiana. I also think that Utah will be giving both USC and Arizona State some trouble this fall. And the second piece is where Bill Connelly continues his preview - this week it is the MAC West. Connelly’s numbers make it look like a wide open race - with the only possible down team being Northern Illinois.

  • This week’s FCS rankings are out for one’s perusal. Two things I like the most: North Dakota achieving its highest-ever FCS ranking at #2, as they get ready to butt heads with their biggest rival, #4 North Dakota State. And, VMI is ranked for the first time since moving into the FCS division in 1982. From a distance I have followed the Keydets, because of their history as a military school and because of their cool uniforms, and I can’t help but smile at the success that they are experiencing now.

  • Looking quickly at Division II, Notre Dame College scored 70 points against West Liberty - 63 of them in the first 29 minutes of the game. Mickey Mental, a longtime assistant that was elevated to head coach in December 2019, made a spectacular debut in getting his first win.

3/15:

  • I am already looking forward to next week’s North Dakota at North Dakota State game. Going to be a big one at the Fargodome! No trophy on the line anymore between these two old rivals - but the inside track to a conference title and subsequent playoff berth is certainly on the line.

  • Regarding 2022 recruiting, Alabama has gotten a commitment from Emmanual Henderson, the top running back in the class. This gives the Crimson Tide the 14th ranked class up to this point - but expect them to climb up to the top before the class is finalized.

  • Two key quarterbacks are looking good so far in their attempt to be ready for action this fall. McKenzie Milton is feeling confident after his few practices, while D’Eriq King is making such good progress that head coach Manny Diaz might try to slow him down. This is all good news - but I hope that they remain a bit cautious because they are attempting to come back from serious knee injuries - especially Milton.

3/14:

  • Nice to see the Patriot League in action yesterday. I made sure to check out the Holy Cross/Lehigh and Colgate/Lafayette games - thought I must admit that most of my time was on the Albany/UMaine game. Nice to see the Black Bears bounce back with a nice offensive effort. Maybe Delaware is a bit better than originally thought - as they took apart Stony Brook pretty easily this week.

  • Nicholls looked awfully good the first two weeks of their season, then they barely squeaked by Northwestern State last Saturday. Yesterday they were thrashed by Sam Houston, losing to the Bearkats 71-17! Two weeks ago, Sam Houston quarterback Eric Schmid as named the Southland Offensive Player of the Week, as he accounted for 516 total yard (428 passing). Schmid followed up that strong performance with six touchdown passes against the Colonels!

  • College Basketball has some conference final tournament games today - but don’t forget that there will be eight FCS games (NEC and Ohio Valley) as well as three Division III games. Best games to watch: Jacksonville State at UT Martin and Austin Peay at Southeast Missouri State.

3/13:

  • Have to start off by saying that I can’t believe that Nebraska was actually looking for an eighth home game next fall as opposed to playing at Oklahoma. They were saying that it was due to economic issues brought on from the pandemic. Fortunately the storied rivalry will go on as planned on September 18th - which is 1,000 times better than the Huskers facing a MAC team at memorial Stadium.

  • North Dakota, who has risen up the poll very quickly, will be playing on the road for the first time this year. The next three weeks will be a real test for the Fighting Hawks as they are playing away from the Alerus Center - where they have won ten straight. On the road, they have lost seven of eight.

  • Braxton Plunk, starting his first game as quarterback of Mount Union, three six touchdown passes against Muskingum last night. So the beat rolls on for the Purple Raiders. Next Friday’s game against John Carroll will be fun to watch.

3/12:

  • On Monday, the Mountain East Conference (Division II) made adjustments to the first week of their football schedule because of COVID-19 protocols. That is when Frostburg State and Wheeling found out that they would play each other on Thursday night. The Bobcats won last night, 27-20, so Frostburg State won their 10th game as a Division II program - as they won nine games in 2019.

  • A nice piece on the highest paid coordinators in college football from last year to this year at Footballscoop.com. There is no doubt that the best of the best are certainly getting paid well now. Funny to see that three of the top four paid coordinators from 2020 are no longer in their jobs - with only one becoming a head coach.

  • An anxious team this week: Wofford. The Terriers have won three straight Southern Conference titles, and have made four straight postseason appearances, but they have already lost one conference game, and now they visit Samford. The Bulldogs have been bullies over Wofford as they have five straight wins over the Terriers. Another loss will probably end Wofford’s hopes of another title and postseason appearance.

3/11:

  • I have to start off with Kansas. Sorry to say this, but I laughed when I saw that Jayhawk athletic director Jeff Long stepped down as Les Miles was ousted. Guess it didn’t pay to hire a friend…

  • Couldn’t help but notice Lafayette releasing their 2023 schedule. If the Patriot League has put together the conference schedule out that far, why haven’t other Patriot League members even released their 2021 schedule yet? On a similar but different note, Lafayette and Temple will play in 2022. I like this because they haven’t played each other since 1965, and they are only 60 miles apart as the crow flies.

  • One game being played tonight, a Division II game involving Frostburg State - who recently moved up from Division III, and nine games still scheduled between Divisions II and III for Friday - with one of the teams being Division III powerhouse Mount Union.

3/10:

  • Happy to see Tom Allen got a new deal as head coach of Indiana. Must admit - never thought I would see a Hoosier football coach make almost $5 million per year! Allen’s teams have continued to improve with each passing year, and the culture appears to be first-rate, but is winning sustainable at this university? We’ll find out in the next 2-3 years.

  • Not sure what I think of Jim McElwain filling his wide receivers coaching position with a coach that is working in-season at Northwestern State. Can’t say that I blame Alvin Slaughter for accepting the offer, but to leave the Demons shorthanded doesn’t seem right to me.

  • Some superlatives from last week’s Division III games that include each phase of the game: For offense, Franklin’s freshman quarterback Dane Andrews was 24-for-33 passing for 463 yards and five touchdowns. Defensively, another freshman had a big game. Bluffton cornerback Montez Archer, Jr. picked off three passes and returned a fumble 65 yards for a touchdown. Lastly, Whitworth’s special teams effort has to be mentioned. Despite Puget Sound having advantages in yards gained (322 - 258), first downs (17 - 12), time of possession (38:16 - 21:44) and fewer turnovers (2 - 3), the Pirates won the game 30-12. Whitworth dominated on special teams - blocking a field goal and an extra point (which was returned for a two-point conversion), while pinning the Loggers back at their own 3-yard line with a punt, that set up an 11-yard interception for a touchdown. In addition, a bad punt snap by the Loggers set up a short field, and finally, Puget Sound’s average starting field position on five kickoff returns: the 11-yard line.

3/9:

  • No surprise to hear that Les Miles and KU came to an agreement to move on from one another. I certainly don’t envy the next coach (might be worse than entering Tennessee’s situation), but wouldn’t mind seeing Willie Fritz (Tulane) given the opportunity to turn the Jayhawk’s fortune around - or Nevada’s Jay Norvell. I saw a rumor about Jeff Monken - but I hope that he stays (selfishly said) at West Point!

  • It’s not as exciting as seeing Army’s independent schedule announced, but Navy released their 2024 non-conference schedule. Any fan of the game can name three of the four non-conference games, but seeing who the fourth team is always fun - as I hope the school has old ties to the Midshipmen. In 2024, Navy will take on Bucknell, who they first met in 1898. The teams have played 14 times, but this will be their first meeting since 1925!

3/8:

  • Regarding Les Miles, I believe that Kansas had been provided and reviewed the allegations and findings of Miles’ behaviors at LSU. Unfortunately for the Jayhawks, Miles is 3-18 in his first two seasons at Kansas, and he was signed to a five-year contract. By putting him on administrative leave while they conduct a full review of what “really” happened at LSU looks like the ideal way of getting out of this albatross of a contract. In reality - it might cost them more in the long run…

  • A tradition for almost 90 years is returning this fall, the Turkey Day Classic - which got started in 1924. Alabama State and Tuskegee, who have played over 100 times in a series that began in 1901 have agreed to once again play on Thanksgiving Day - for the first time since 2012. I miss the Texas/Texas A&M on Thursday night, but this works for me!

  • Reece Udinski Update: The Keydet quarterback (graduate transfer to Maryland this fall) set VMI team records for Completions, Attempts, and Touchdown Passes this past weekend against Western Carolina. In the next game or two he should add Passing Yards to his list of records…

3/7:

  • Exciting games so far this week in FCS as 14 of the 25 games were one-possession games, including three overtime games, a goal-line stand, and a late second field goal. This spring football isn’t bad! I even found myself purchasing a subscription to FloSports just so i can watch the CAA games.

  • One game that wasn’t close was the Delaware-UMaine contest. The Blue Hens completely dominated the Black Bears in all phases of the game - right from the opening kickoff. I hope that this isn’t a trend for UMaine, and it’s more from a lack of decent practice time before the start of the season.

  • yesterday saw the end of two streaks: Jackson State ended Grambling State’s 16-game home winning streak that started back in 2015, and VMI ended their 17-game losing streak to Western Carolina (dating back to 1992) emphatically by defeating the Catamounts 30-7.

3/6:

  • Exciting game last night between Albany and UNH in Sean McDonnell’s return to the sideline. The coach’s return was spoiled by sophomore quarterback Jeff Undercuffer, who threw for three touchdowns. Not much of a surprise because he threw for 41 touchdowns last year.

  • Three trophies will be lifted at the end of day today: The NSU Trophy (Nicholls vs. Northwestern State), The Durley-Nicks Trophy (Prairie View A&M vs. Texas Southern), and the biggest rivalry (except for Lehigh/Lafayette), will battle for The Capital Cup (William & Mary vs. Richmond).

  • Yesterday the Mountain West released the Fall 2021 schedule - the last FBS conference to do so. The September conference games in September were added to the schedules I posted on this site (only four games - two each in weeks 3 and 4.

3/5:

  • Last night’s game between North Dakota and South Dakota probably wasn’t the most exciting game to the casual fan, but for those who like to follow the Fighting Hawks - those fans must be pretty pleased this morning. Almost 500 yards of offense, time of possession was over 35 minutes, zero penalties, and solid, if not great, play from the veteran offensive line, redshirt freshman quarterback, and sophomore running back. Next week North Dakota plays their first road game against Western Illinois - so hopefully there won’t be a letdown.

  • Four games to follow tonight. A very solid CAA matchup between Albany and UNH. One must have a subscription to Flo Sports to be able to watch the game. A subscription I am tempted to get because of all the fun teams to watch in that conference - including UMaine! The game I will stream, spouse permitting, will be Bridgewater College at Randolph-Macon - the last two winners of the ODAC, and probably the deciding game of this year’s title. As a bonus, this will be the 81st game in the series that dates back to 1926.

  • A couple of interesting two-sport tidbits. Kaden Martin, the son of former Vol quarterback Tee Martin, committed to Miami a couple of days ago. Martin committed to the baseball program - but would like to play football. Problem - if he plays a down, he would count towards the football team’s scholarship count. Will be interesting to see if Manny Diaz is willing to do that. Also, Division III athlete Ashton Barton is playing both football and baseball this spring for Pacific Lutheran. What is already a tough assignment, being a two-sport athlete, but Barton is able to burn the candle at both ends as he has started at linebacker for the Lutes in both games this year, and he has been the starting catcher for three of the four games for the baseball team. Very impressive!

3/4:

  • Great contest to watch on ESPN+ this evening: South Dakota at North Dakota. A lot to like: 1) Both teams are ranked 2) A former trophy game (Sitting Bull trophy that was retired) 3) This will be their 98th meeting 4) The Coyotes are trying to snap a 13-game losing streak in Grand Forks 5) And both teams return their entire offensive lines - so there is a lot of experience in the trenches. Sit back and enjoy this one!

  • On Friday night it will be awfully nice to see longtime UNH head coach Sean McDonnell return to the sideline against Albany. McDonnell took a medical leave a week before the 2019 season due to bladder cancer. Entering his 21st season, McDonnell has a 154-95 career record into this spring season.

  • Some coaching changes in the last couple of days: Norfolk State (FCS) head coach Latrell Scott is leaving after six seasons as head coach of the Spartans to join the staff of East Carolina. Eastern New Mexico (Division II) head coach Kelley Lee is stepping down after four years at the helm (21-12 and led the Greyhounds to the program’s first ever Division II bowl win) to become the athletic coordinator and head football coach at a high school in Texas. And lastly, Greg Ruffin was fired as the Edward Waters (NAIA) head coach after losing 53-0 to Deion Sanders and Jackson State a couple of weeks ago. That loss was his 18th in 23 games with the program.

3/3:

  • Finally the Pac-12 has released their Fall 2021 schedule - but not before the Sun Belt, which sent their planned games out on Monday. That leaves on FBS conference not reporting in - the Mountain West. The most interesting non-conference games for the Sun Belt are Louisiana at Texas and Appalachian State vs. East Carolina in Charlotte. Over in the Pac-12, they have some doozy non-conference games: Oregon at Ohio State, LSU at UCLA, Washington at Michigan and USC at Notre Dame.

  • With most of the conference schedules released (in Division I), I have started to update and add weekly schedules to the website. I will also be adding the Best of the Best games in the next weeks to start building up the excitement for August 28th (Week 0).

  • Alabama A&M had their game with Mississippi Valley State canceled on Monday, and South Carolina State was informed that Howard would not be allowed by the District of Columbia to travel to South Carolina this weekend - so both teams were without an opponent. Until they got together and scheduled each other for this Saturday. Might be the quickest scheduling of a game ever!.

3/2:

  • A couple of transfer notes to start: After a month of being part of the Florida Gator football team, tight end Arik Gilbert has announced that he is re-entering the transfer portal. An immense talent, but you have to wonder at this point where his head is at. If it’s true that he is homesick - maybe he ends up back in Georgia, perhaps playing for the Bulldogs. And former Texas Tech quarterback Alan Bowman has thrown his hat into the mix to be the Wolverine quarterback. Bowman brings three years of experience with him as a graduate transfer, so he is immediately eligible to compete with Cade McNamara and incoming freshman J.J. McCarthy.

  • Very nice to see ESPN re-sign Rece Davis as the host of GameDay - a chair he will now occupy through 2024. My favorite host will always be Chris Fowler, but I have to say that Davis has been more than adequate as a replacement. But no matter who is the host - as long as Lee Corso and Kirk Herbstreit are a part of the show, it will be a great show to watch.

  • For the first time since the final 2017 FCS poll, there is a new #1 team after the Bison lost last Saturday to Southern Illinois. What’s funny is that the team is James Madison - and they held the top spot in the poll the prior fourteen weeks before the Bison. Therefore, there hasn’t been another team other than James Madison or North Dakota State to be on top of the FCS mountain since Sam Houston (the team recently dropped the State part of their name) was #1 the last week of the regular season in 2016.

3/1:

  • Since today is March 1st, today’s thoughts will be about firsts from some of Saturday’s football games. Starting with two Division II programs playing football games for the first time in over seventy years. In this historic matchup, Erskine defeated Barton 30-28, with each team scoring fourteen points in the fourth quarter. In defeat, Barton’s freshman quarterback Tyler Flippen caught a touchdown pass on the game’s first play, and later added a touchdown pass and a touchdown run.

  • 469 days after claiming a victory in their last Division II game, Dixie State began their Division I era with a win on the road against No. 22 Tarleton State - who just last week won their first Division I game. In their win, the Trailblazers gained 445 yards of total offense while their defense forced five Texan turnovers. Next week Dixie State will take on New Mexico State - so they might get their first win over a FBS team.

  • In his first game as a head coach, Tre Lamb saw his Bulldogs come back from a 17-0 1st quarter deficit to defeat #24 Elon 42-20. Gardner-Webb finished the day with 369 yards of total offense - 202 yards rushing and 167 yards passing. Lamb might not have to wait long for his second win because the Bulldogs take on Presbyterian next Saturday.

  • Bonus First: Bobby Petrino got his 120th win as a collegiate head coach - but got his first win at Missouri State and his first win as a FCS coach.

2/28:

  • South Dakota went on the road to face Illinois State, and the Coyotes came out with a win after forcing the Redbirds into seven turnovers. This was the sixth time in six years that South Dakota has beaten a top-10 team. I’m thinking they will get a chance to repeat this feat when the Coyotes visit North Dakota on Thursday night.

  • Its only been one game, and they didn’t face their toughest opponent, but Weber State looks like they should be one of the favorites to win the FCS championship. It was known that the Wildcat defense would be very solid, but the offense was a bit inconsistent last year, and they have a new quarterback starting this season. Well, true freshman quarterback Bronson Barron was only 17 for 27 passing, for 312 yards and four touchdowns against Idaho State. Beware of the Wildcats if Barron continues playing at this level.

  • Last week Nicholls beat Division II opponent Lincoln by the score of 87-3. Yesterday, the Colonels, behind quarterback Lindsey Scott, Jr., beat Lamar 55-0. Scott, playing for his fourth team, accounted for six touchdowns (3 passing and 3 rushing) in three quarters of play. Meanwhile, the defense limited the Cardinals to 91 yards and only six first downs. ‘m going out on the limb with this - I think Nicholls is going to be tough to beat. Lol

2/27:

  • The longest winning streak in FCS history (39 games) came to an end when North Dakota State lost to Southern Illinois today, 38-14. Oklahoma’s Division I record 47-game winning streak is safe for at least another 2.5 years, as Alabama currently has the longest winning streak - 14 games. They are the only college football program across all divisions with a double digit winning streak.

  • With the Bison losing, it opens up the Missouri Valley for a new leader - which was quickly grabbed by their biggest rival - North Dakota. The Fighting Hawks, who defeated Southern Illinois last week, upset 3rd-ranked South Dakota State, 28-17. They host South Dakota next week, but then go on the road for thee straight games after their matchup with the Coyotes. We’ll see how good they are after that tough stretch.

  • I was thrilled to see VMI beat Furman today, though the win was in doubt late in the fourth quarter until a Paladin fumble deep in Keydet territory. I look forward to watching VMI all spring long with Reece Udinski as their quarterback - before he transfers to Maryland this fall.

2/26:

  • I was going to go all FCS again today with my thoughts but they got displaced with a trophy game, a new commitment, and some released Fall 2021 schedules. Starting with the last of these, the Mid-American Conference has published their Fall 2021 schedule. Their non-conference schedule is not impressive at all, but what I like best is their November scheduling of Tuesday and Wednesday games. Lets make college football a five day sport!

  • Clemson was thinking that they had a five-star quarterback in their pocket for their 2022 recruiting class, but Nick Saban and the Crimson Tide made a late push and got Ty Simpson to sing on the dotted line. What’s funny is that Simpson was going to sign with Tennessee until Jeremy Pruitt got fired. So the Vols loss (big loss when adding in all the transfers), would have been a big win for the Tigers, until Alabama swooped in.

  • Lastly, there is a new trophy game in the Big Ten. Northwestern and Michigan got together and established the first trophy game named for an African American in FBS history. Dr. George Jewett played for and starred for both teams between 1890 and 1894 - and he was the first African American football player in the Big Ten. The first trophy presentation will be on October 23rd when these teams next meet on the gridiron. There are many (including myself) who think that it’s about time…

2/25:

  • FCS Football will dominate today’s thoughts…..with the first thought being how nice it is that we will be able to follow more than twenty games on just Saturday - as opposed to just seven last week. There is also a Friday night game, as well as the OVC playing on Sunday.

  • Is it that the Achilles heel of the North Dakota State Bison this spring will be their running back depth. They have lost two running backs to the transfer portal (one on Tuesday) and another to an ACL tear - which leaves them with five healthy running backs for the rest of their Spring 2021 schedule. The Bison could be vulnerable if they have to become one-dimensional.

  • Lastly, the two new FCS football conferences this fall, the ASUN and WAC, have come agreed to a scheduling alliance that may allow them to send a team to the FCS Playoffs - provided it gets NCAA approval. The 2021 ASUN-WAC Challenge will include the following playoff eligible teams (Dixie State and Tarleton State are not eligible yet): Sam Houston State, Stephen F. Austin, Central Arkansas, Abilene Christian, Lamar, Eastern Kentucky, Jacksonville State.

2/24:

  • Football Scoop has posted their annual longest tenured FBS coaches as of this moment. I think that there is an interesting Rant and Rave to come (I hope!) regarding overall tenure among these coaches, but a couple of things I noticed right off: Funny to see Gus Malzahn with the shortest tenure at his current school (UCF) while having continuous years of coaching when including Arkansas State and Auburn. And if I am right, 62 coaches (almost 48%) have been in their current position for two years or less.

  • I enjoyed seeing Bill Connelly’s mega offseason preview of Conference USA East yesterday on ESPN. His metrics make sense, but anyone who watches the game knows that there is usual one or more unknowns before each and every game that can influence the outcome - two of the biggest being emotions and injuries. It would be fun to save each of his previews and review them again during the season and after the season to see how the projections came out.

  • Probably more than once (lol) I have talked about how I am already enjoying this Spring 2021 football season. I do admit though that their is a downside as well. With all the practice and games to come in 2021 (with little downtime), this could, and probably will, take its toll physically as well as mentally on the kids. Injuries happen, but for North Dakota State running back Seth Wilson (son of Stanley Wilson - of Cincinnati Bengal fame), a torn ACL against Youngstown State will make him miss the rest of the Spring season, and more than likely the entire Fall season.

2/23:

  • In late January, Red Raider quarterback Alan Bowman announced that he was leaving Texas Tech after three years and sixteen starts. After a good freshman year, Bowman struggled a bit with injuries and he ends his time at Lubbock with over 5,200 passing yards, 33 touchdowns and 17 interceptions. Yesterday the Red Raiders got a commitment from former Oregon quarterback Tyler Shough - a comparable signal caller to Bowman.

  • The second McCaffrey brother, Luke, announced his new location yesterday as well - when he confirmed that he will be heading to Louisville. McCaffrey played in seven of eight games for the Cornhuskers in his redshirt freshman year, but felt he needed a change after lasting for two starts before being replaced by the original starter Adrian Martinez.

  • After defeating New Mexico State last week for their first Division I win, Tarleton State will now host future WAC foe Dixie State. The Trailblazers will be playing their first Division i game, and they hope to pick up their first Division I win over the Texans.

2/22:

  • Must be honest - I’m not sure how i feel about North Dakota State approaching Oklahoma’s all-time winning streak for a Division I school. Time will tell though. As the Bison get closer and closer, my true feelings will come out.

  • I have to say that I am already liking this Spring 2021 season. Probably more than most. One of the things I like most is that the FCS is not in the shadow of their big brother. And as more conferences start playing - the better the game selection and better quality of play.

2/21:

  • Deion Sanders got his first win as head coach of Jackson State. No big surprise since the Tigers were playing Edward Waters - an NAIA opponent. The first big test should be the first weekend of March when they visit Grambling State. I have to admit that I am looking forward to following the team this spring and fall - especially since they led the FCS in average attendance in 2019 (almost 35k per game).

  • North Dakota State was allowing 50% capacity at the Fargodome in their game against Youngstown State. Pretty straight forward win for them - running their winning streak to 39 straight games. Winning all their conference games and 1st round playoff game would give them the Division I record (currently 47 games by Oklahoma).

  • Still early, but it could be an embarrassing loss for New Mexico State if Tarleton State hangs on to their lead. On the other hand, it would be a big win for Tarleton State - it would be their first win as a Division I team (they came awfully close last week against McNeese) and it would be over a FBS team.

2/20:

  • How about those Jackrabbits winning on the road last night against Northern Iowa with a freshman quarterback?

  • A great way for the Fighting Hawks to start their venture into the Missouri Valley Conference. Of course, Southern Illinois helped them out a lot by turning the ball over five times.

  • How about the condition of Wofford’s field for their game against Mercer? Not bad for a natural grass field in late February!

2/19:

  • The weather has messed with a lot of games this weekend, but the best game of the week is still being played - South Dakota State and Northern Iowa will lock horns tonight. Always a very spirited battle, this one will be even more crucial because the loser will face an uphill battle for a playoff spot even if they are two of the best teams in the FCS right now.

  • Interesting situation at Michigan with quarterback Joe Milton entering the transfer portal yesterday. He was the starter to open the season in 2020, but after a couple of subpar performances, Milton was replaced by Cade McNamara - who wasn’t much better. Milton’s departure leaves McNamara and highly touted recruit J.J. McCarthy as the Wolverines only quarterbacks on the roster. Might be an opportunity for someone to move in from the transfer portal.

  • Originally my last comment was going to be about Texas and their current success with their 2022 recruiting class, but I have changed my mind after seeing the Weber State head coach Jay Hill has received an extension that the Wildcats hope will keep him in the state of Utah until 2025. In his first year back in 2014, Hill’s Wildcats went 2-10, but in the last five years Weber State has gone 45-19 - including three seasons in the top five nationally. Why Utah State didn’t pursue him for their opening astounds me.

2/18:

  • Today the American Athletic Conference was the second Group of Five conference and the sixth conference overall to announce their Fall 2021 schedule. Non-Conference matchups that I look forward to the most this year: Cincinnati at Notre Dame, Boise State at UCF, SMU at TCU, Mississippi State at Memphis, and of course Navy at Notre Dame. Not to crap on the Pac-12, but where the hell is their Fall 2021 schedule? Well - we’re waiting! (Caddyshack reference)

  • Have to admit, I like the released schedules of Chattanooga and Northern Iowa. Not only do they play in tough conferences, but they schedule a FBS Power 5 opponent and two quality non-conference teams. Can’t help but admire their scheduling.

  • The SWAC is playing hardball with Alcorn State after the Braves opted out of the Spring 2021 season last week! The conference was unable to come up with a new schedule that would work for the remaining teams, so they announced that Alcorn State would forfeit each of the games that they were supposed to play. In addition, if I am reading things correctly, the Braves will be scheduled with two more road games that would have previously been home games this fall.

2/17:

  • I feel bad for all those affected by the winter weather this past week and this upcoming weekend, but it’s causing me pain as well with all these postponed “Spring 2021” football games. Last week, three Division III games were postponed/cancelled, and this week the number of lost games is five - as well as one FCS game (Illinois State at Missouri State. Luckily, the pandemic has yet to cancel a game this spring.

  • The continuing Coronavirus Pandemic has already impacted one game in the upcoming season this fall. Just announced, the Nebraska-Illinois game will be relocated from Dublin, Ireland to Champaign, Illinois. It will still be played on the previously announced date, August 28th - which is Week Zero in the 2021 season.

  • For the second time in just over a month, Miami quarterback N’Kosi Perry has entered the transfer portal. Perry served as the backup to D’Eriq King this past fall, but he went 6-3 as a starter during the 2018 and 2019 seasons. One thing I can’t help but think about…is there a home for all the quarterbacks currently in the portal this year with the extended eligibility offered for all athletes in 2021?

2/16:

  • St. Thomas is preparing to play in the Pioneer League this fall after being asked to leave the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference because of the perceived athletic advantages in numerous sports. They are certainly not hiding from competition because they have announced non-conference matchups with Northern Iowa (2021 and 2024), South Dakota (2023), and North Dakota (2026). I am betting that they will be giving San Diego some serious competition in the PCL real soon.

  • Sticking with Division III for a moment, Delaware State, which acquired Wesley (successful Division III football team) back in July, has announced that they will be ending the school’s athletic programs at the conclusion of the Spring 2021 season. In recent years, the Wolverines have probably been the most successful division III football team on the East Coast. Over the last twenty years, they have been to the national semifinals six times from 2005 to 2014, and the Wolverines won at least one playoff game for 13 consecutive years.

  • A few days ago, the Longhorns got a key commitment to their 2022 class when Maalik Murphy, the No'. 2-ranked quarterback and 16th overall prospect, expressed his desire to play for new head coach Steve Sarkisian. This should take a lot of the sting out of Quinn Ewers (No. 1 overall recruit) switching his commitment from the Longhorns to the Buckeyes.

2/15:

  • Maryland has brought back Brian Stewart as defensive coordinator. Stewart, who coached cornerbacks at Baylor last year, was the Terps defensive coordinator from 2012 through 2014 - when Mike Locksley was the team’s offensive coordinator. This will be a big year for Locksley, as he has brought in talented kids through recruiting and has two new coordinators. A test of his coaching skills now.

  • Glad to see Gus Malzahn get hired at UCF because he deserves to be coaching a team this year. He was fired in December after eight seasons at Auburn where his overall record was 68-35, including 39-27 in SEC play. The best part - Malzahn will still receive his entire buyout from Auburn (almost $22 million - of which half was paid in December) despite being hired by UCF.

  • Can’t help but like Wyoming scheduling another game with Northern Colorado. The Bears, who will be visiting Laramie in 2022, will receive $400k for their next visit in 2026. These teams first met in 1895, and played 25 times between then and 1949. In fact, the game in 1949 didn’t go well for Northern Colorado as they lost to the Cowboys 103-0! No wonder they didn’t play each other for another 64 years…

2/14:

  • Cody Orgeron, son of LSU head coach Ed Orgeron, accounted for five touchdowns in leading McNeese over Tarleton State, 40-37 in double overtime. A good start to the season for the Cowboys, who are looking to extend their consecutive winning seasons streak to sixteen - the most currently in the FCS.

  • Next Saturday, Tarleton State is taking on New Mexico State in El Paso, Texas. The Aggies are the only FBS team to participate in the spring season (three games) and the are playing all their games in El Paso due to COVID restrictions in New Mexico.

  • Another FBS-FCS matchup I like (Arizona vs. Northern Arizona) has been scheduled for ten meetings between 2021 and 2036. Unfortunately, the Lumberjacks haven’t beaten the Wildcats since 1932 - the second game of the series.

2/13:

  • Four Division III games (Texas area) have been postponed due to tough driving conditions from severe weather.

  • Two firsts for Tarleton State today when they play McNeese: The Texans are playing their first game as a Division I team and they are hosting a Division I team at Memorial Stadium for the first time.

2/12:

  • Yesterday the Big 12 released their Fall 2021 schedule. No surprises for conference games because every one plays each other, but there are some good non-conference games. My favorites: Iowa at Iowa State, Nebraska at Oklahoma, Texas at Arkansas and Virginia Tech at West Virginia. Not sure how you could exclude Oklahoma State at Boise State or Stanford at Kansas State though. That leaves the Pac-12 as the only Power 5 conference not to release their weekly conference schedule - though we already know what the matchups are.

  • Also yesterday, the MEAC announced that they are skipping the Spring 2021 season after more teams wanted to back out of the season. Delaware State, Howard, and South Carolina State have indicated though that they would like to play some games this spring.

  • Valparaiso has announced that they will change their Crusader nickname after almost 80 years. A newspaper of the KKK is titled “The Crusader”, and Valparaiso does not want to be connected in any way to that. Meanwhile, Dixie State is in the process of changing their entire university’s name in order to disassociate from the Old South.

2/11:

  • Kentucky has been busy in the transfer pool after a season where their offense was sluggish. A year ago they signed quarterback Joey Gatewood from Auburn, and now they have announced the addition of another big, athletic quarterback in Will Levis from Penn State. They also grabbed a wide receiver from Michigan State, Tre’Von Morgan, who will bring size (6’6”) to the receiving corp and be an excellent complement (in name and in skill) to earlier signee Wan’Dale Robinson from Nebraska.

  • I don’t think that I can think of a team that needs Spring 2021 football more than McNeese - who play this Saturday against FCS newcomer Tarleton State. Two major hurricanes out of the Gulf Coast did $200 million worth of damage McNeese State University in Lake Charles - with most of that cost being to athletic facilities. After a long of fall and winter of trying to piece things back together, getting on the field again will be good for the Cowboys.

2/10:

  • The CAA has released their Fall 2021 schedule. A lot of good non-conference games - but the one’s I like best: Delaware at Rutgers, James Madison at Weber State, Rhode Island at UMass and UMaine at UMass.

  • Northwestern will host Purdue at Wrigley Field this fall. It will be the Wildcats first game at the ballpark since losing to Illinois 48-27 back in 2010.

  • LSU came out winners yesterday and today as they got a commitment from four-star wide receiver Brian Thomas, Jr for 2021. This announcement now gives them the 3rd best recruiting class for the upcoming season. And former Clemson linebacker Mike Jones has decided to change stripes and move to Baton Rouge as a graduate transfer - so he is eligible to play right away.

2/9:

  • I really enjoyed looking at Bill Connelly’s ranking of all 130 FBS teams for Fall 2021 (on ESPN’s website) using his SP+ metrics. It will certainly be adjusted between now and September because of transfers and injuries, but what a great tool to see what teams over achieve and which ones under achieve.

  • Looked at Army’s Fall 2021 that was just officially released. Besides the obvious great matchups with Air Force and Navy, I love it that they are visiting Wisconsin to play a game at Camp Randall Stadium - which was built on the ground of a Civil War training camp.

  • Even though it’s a long way out there, I really like the home-and-home series between Florida and Notre Dame that will be played in 2031 and 2032. In there only previous meeting, the Fighting Irish beat the Gators on January 1, 1992 in the Sugar Bowl.

2/8:

  • Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell has agreed to a three-year extension that will hopefully keep him in Ames through 2028. Campbell, who has won three of the last four Big 12 Coach of the Year awards, also secured $3 million in raises for his staff over the next three years. His buyout clause hasn’t been released yet, but I am sure that it will be a pretty hefty price to pay for someone who wants him as their next head coach.

  • I was saddened to read that Maryland linebacker Chance Campbell is transferring to Ole Miss for the 2021 season. He will be graduating this May, so he will be eligible to play for the Rebels this fall. Campbell averaged eleven tackles per game this past year.

  • North Dakota State has announced that they will play host to UMaine in 2023. What would be even better is if they played a home-and-home series so that I could see the Bison up in Orono.

2/7:

  • For many today, the Super Bowl is front and center. For the few who prefer some college football thoughts over the big game, I have one quick entry on this day. Yesterday, there were eight Division III games. At 3:00pm, while doing taxes with my daughter, I put the Pacific Lutheran at Puget Sound game on the laptop. Progress on the taxes slowed as I got into the game - even after I cut the sound. I quickly learned that it didn’t matter that this game (or for that matter the other games) was being played in February - and it was obvious from the start that the kids were thrilled to be out there, and not just practicing against their teammates. Spring 2021 football for the next three plus months is going to be just exciting as this past fall season.

2/6:

  • Most all college football fans won’t care about this, but I like the addition of Howard to Maryland’s Fall 2021 schedule. Not because the Terps have won the two previous matchups by a combined score of 131-13, but because the two schools are less than eight miles apart. Those are the type of FBS vs. FCS matchups that I like.

  • After seeing the Sooners add 3rd ranked running back Raleek Brown to their 2022 recruiting class, I couldn’t help but take a look at the early rankings. It’s no surprise that the Buckeyes are currently at the top with ten commits (3 five-stars), but near the top is Penn State and Boston College is ranked eleventh. In their usual position at the start of the new year’s recruitment, Alabama is currently ranked 31st with two commits. Won’t be long though before they start climbing the ranks and start nipping at the Buckeyes’ heels.

  • In 2021, one FBS program did not sign a single high school recruit. Texas State has made their living off the transfer portal, having signed eleven players (including UMaine OL Liam Dobson). Must be a win now atmosphere as they are bringing in players that have some playing experience already.

2/5:

  • Coaching news that I have found interesting the last couple of days: Will Muschamp, former head coach at both South Carolina and Florida, has joined his former teammate, Kirby Smart, at Georgia as an analyst. He will coach the Bulldog coaches per Smart. And Clemson offensive coordinator, Tony Elliott, will be making $2 million per year come July 1st. The Tigers defensive coordinator, Brent Venables, is the highest-paid assistant in college football at $2.4 million per year.

  • The Patriot League has just released their Spring 2021 football schedule. The biggest news here - Lehigh will visit Lafayette and play the Leopards for the 156th time on April 3rd.

  • Hawaii is expecting to lose $400k a year in football for probably the next three years instead of getting close to $5 million in revenue. The Rainbow Warriors are no longer able to play at Aloha Stadium because it’s being demolished and being replaced with a new stadium sometime in 2022-2023. In the meantime, Hawaii will have to host games at their practice facility.

2/4:

  • After a second straight successful recruiting year, Maryland is beginning to build up there talent - especially on defense this year. 2021 will be a test for Mike Locksley - will he make the most of his talent or will they underachieve like two other teams in their conference (Michigan and Nebraska).

  • A lot is being made of Alabama’s all-time best FBS recruiting class this year, but a FCS team also raised the bar in their division in 2021. My first thought - North Dakota State. I was wrong. My second thought - James Madison. Wrong again. I forgot about Primetime in Jackson State. The Tiger’s class ranks 85th nationally - which is ahead of 45 FBS teams and 43 spots ahead of the next-closest FCS program - Northern Arizona.

  • Three postings regarding scheduling next year and later years that got my attention: UMass announcing their 2021 schedule that includes Boston College, UConn, UMaine and Rhode Island. BYU and Utah State extending out their in-state rivalry through 2026 (they have played 89 times). And Charleston Southern and The Citadel adding another home-and-home series to their inner-city rivalry which is good for the schools and for the city of Charleston.

2/3:

  • Today is National Signing Day for 2021, and even though 75% of the recruits have signed it should still be exciting for some as there are still solid prospects out there and we are likely to see some flips as well.

  • I feel neglectful that I haven’t mentioned a certain transfer up to this point. Just over a week ago former Saint Francis quarterback transfer Jason Brown announced his intention to play for South Carolina this upcoming fall. This FCS All-American, who threw for almost 2,000 yards and 20 touchdowns (against only 3 interceptions) in his last six games, said it was an easy choice to play for the Gamecocks because South Carolina also made an offer to his top receiver at Saint Francis (and good friend), EJ Jenkins. Of his 39 receptions in 2019, 13 of them were for touchdowns.

  • One last thing on transfers today…Ex-Wolverines quarterback Dylan McCaffrey will transfer to Northern Colorado, where he will have a chance to play for his father, Ed McCaffrey. He is eligible immediately and has two years of eligibility to use to help his dad win his first game as the Bear’s head coach.

2/2:

  • The FCS starts their Spring 2021 season officially on February 13th, with McNeese taking on newcomer Tarleton State, but some Division III teams will starting playing this Saturday - the 6th. There will be eight games in total from three different conferences - with more teams and games to come as the season gets going.

  • I am hoping that I can remember to give more of a write up in the near future about two new programs playing their first game against each other on February 27th. The new Division II teams are Erskine and Barton.

  • Georgia Southern and Ole Miss have announced that they will be playing each other in Oxford in 2030. The two teams will also be meeting in 2024. I must admit that I have a hard time getting my head wrapped around the thought that the Eagles will receive $3.4 million for visiting Oxford for these two games.

2/1:

  • Eighteen days away from a fantastic FCS matchup. On Friday, February 19th, Northern Iowa will host South Dakota State in what is expected to be a matchup between Top-5 teams. What makes it even better - it is a key conference game that could be the difference between making the playoff or staying home. Hope it is televised.

  • LSU’s loss is Florida’s gain. It looks like the Gators found a tight end in Arik Gilbert, the 6th-ranked prospect in 2020, to replace Kyle Pitts. Florida is looking better and better thanks to the transfer portal.

  • On ESPN’s website, Bill Connelly has used his unique (and I think impressive) metrics to determine a team’s returning production. In 2020, Louisiana had a very successful season, and according to Bill they are returning 95% of their production. That will help them in their road games against Texas and Liberty. Other teams with lots of production returning: UCLA, Miami and Iowa State. Since I love the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy series, I had to check out each of the service academies returning production…

1/31:

  • The more I think about it, the more I like the LSU at UCLA game scheduled on September 4th. Two teams with great uniforms that have a lot to prove in probably the best venue for a college football game.

  • Speaking of venues, the Senior Bowl was played in a new stadium (same city) for the first time since 1951. The game moved from Ladd-Peebles after 70 years to Hancock Whitney Stadium, on the campus of South Alabama. Even though there is less seating (25k vs. 40k), this new site will be a modern upgrade to help move this special event forward.

  • Three names that I was very happy for this week at the Senior bowl (besides Quinn Meinerz): Cade Johnson (WR, south Dakota State), D’Wayne Eskridge (WR, Western Michigan), and Cameron Sample (DL, Tulane).

1/30:

  • This isn’t new news, but I have to bring up Oklahoma and the transfer portal. Earlier this week the Sooners added their third player from Tennessee this offseason. Eric Gray, the Vols leading rusher and second leading receiver, announced that he would head to OU and play for the Sooners next fall. This team from the Big 12 seems is making a big push to return to the playoff next year.

1/29:

  • Got to start off with mentioning Quinn Meinerz. An offensive lineman from Division III UW-Whitewater, Quinn was invited to participate in the Senior Bowl. Referred as a “mountain man” by some because of his appearance (hair down to shoulders and jersey worn up to the middle of his stomach, Meinerz’s play has gotten a lot of attention. Of course it’s hard not to notice a 6-foot-3-inch, 320-pound offensive lineman, but his draft stock has climbed and he will be fun to watch this weekend.

  • On the coach side of things, not often do you see this…Brent Dearmon, the offensive coordinator of Kansas under Les Miles, is leaving the Jayhawks to become the offensive coordinator at Middle Tennessee. A parallel move from a Power 5 program to a Group 5 team is very rare - if done at all. But it is Kansas that he is leaving…

  • Both McCaffrey brothers (Backdraft?) are in the transfer portal. Dylan is leaving Michigan after opting out of the 2020 season - though it might have been his best opportunity for playing time. He has thrown only 35 career passes - but three were for touchdowns. His younger brother, Luke, got two starts at Nebraska this year - but he is more of an athlete than a passer. He seems to be giving up in Lincoln too soon, but maybe he is better off elsewhere - and maybe as a receiver or running back.

1/28:

  • I know that the SEC, ACC and CUSA have all released their conference schedules for Fall 2021, but what I want to mention today is the home-and-home series that Boise State and Memphis have announced - even though it doesn’t commence until 2030. This will be their first-ever meeting and will involve two of the best Group of Five programs. But I can’t help but think in ten years time, this could be a conference game - if the Broncos jump to the AAC. If so, that would leave an opening in the Mountain West for someone like…North Dakota State - a team that could certainly duplicate the Broncos success.

  • Being hired by his former boss to take over the Volunteers, Josh Heupel will be challenged like he has never been before. His team will probably be facing significant sanctions from the NCAA, and Heupel will also have to win over the fans, who still believe that Tennessee is a destinations for elite coaches only. Josh has had good success as head coach of UCF, and he is a good, safe choice for Danny White - but with what’s in front of him, Heupel might not find the success at old Rocky Top.

  • Lastly, I have to mention Northwestern giving Pat Fitzgerald a new 10-year contract through 2030. A former linebacker for the Wildcats, Fitzgerald is the winningest coach in team history, had led his team to ten bowl appearances, and was named National Coach of the Year in 2020. His success and this extension - I love it!

1/27:

  • In scheduling news, the SEC will be putting out its Fall 2021 football schedule at 2:00pm today, and the ACC will publish theirs tomorrow. For Power 5 conferences, that will leave the Pac-12 and Big 12 as the only ones not submitting their conference schedules yet.

  • Maryland is losing their defensive coordinator to the NFL. Jon Hoke, who was hired by Mike Locksley in 2019, will be accepting a position with the Atlanta Falcons as their defensive backs coach. The Terps will now have two new coordinators as Dan Enos was hired earlier to become the new offensive coordinator for Locksley.

  • Keaontay Ingram has announced that he will be transferring to USC in 2021. Ingram, who dealt with nagging injuries throughout this past fall, lost his starting job to freshman sensation Bijan Robinson. Ingram has rushed for over 1,800 yards in the past three seasons, so he will be a great addition to the Trojan’s backfield that ranked last in the Pac-12 in rushing yards per game in 2020.

1/26:

  • Two games that have gotten a lot more interesting since the 2020 season ended: Cal at Oregon in 2021 (Tim DeRuyter was hired away from Cal to become the new defensive coordinator at Oregon, and Cal turned around and hired Keith Heyward to be their co-defensive coordinator, who also happens to be an Oregon State graduate. The second game: Alabama at Texas on Sept. 10th 2022 (Nick Saban has never lost to a former assistant who has gone on to become a head coach and he will probably be extra motivated since Sarkisan has poached his staff a bit heading into 2021)

  • A couple of other interesting tidbits from the world of coaching: After Gary Andersen was fired by Utah State, he walked away from the $2.7 million that the Aggies owed him. This is the second time he has done that because he left $12.6 million on the table after Oregon State no longer required his services. Meanwhile, Akron head coach Tom Arth has issued a statement that he will remain as the coach of the Zips - so he is not bolting to San Diego to join recently hired head coach Brandon Staley, who had served under Arth at John Carroll.

  • It appears as though Eastern Kentucky and Jacksonville State will be leaving the Ohio Valley Conference to join the Atlantic Sun. The FCS picture is getting a bit cloudy for a few conferences this fall, as we have seen five teams leave the Southland, the WAC starting up football again, joining the A-Sun as new conferences in this football division. The Big South is also impacted because Kennesaw State and North Alabama play football in that conference, but they are part of the Atlantic Sun in other sports. It remains to be seen if and when conferences redo the schedules for the upcoming season.

1/25:

  • Oregon has been one of the best teams, if not the best, in the Pac-12 when looking at the last dozen years, but I am beginning to fear the Ducks even more with their recent hire of Tim DeRuyter as their defensive coordinator. DeRuyter, who helped turn around Cal’s defense, replaces Andy Avalos, who took the head coaching position at Boise State. Combining Tim with Joe Moorhead (the offensive coordinator), and strong recruiting makes the Ducks a threat to the playoff sooner than later.

  • And another strong candidate for the playoff in 2021 continues to rebuild their offensive line through the transfer portal. Oklahoma announced that they have snagged OL Robert Congel, who has decided to leave Arizona. Congel’s flexibility on the line, particularly his ability to play center, will be key for the Sooners.

  • The loss of Lance LeGendre, who was a four-star quarterback recruit, after just two years at Maryland has gotten easier with yesterday’s announcement of Reece Udinski coming to College Park. I hope that LeGendre finds success playing for Louisiana - which is very close to Lance’s hometown (New Orleans).

1/24:

  • Great news for me as a Maryland fan to see VMI quarterback Reece Udinski announcing his commitment to the Terps as a graduate transfer for the upcoming fall season. I do feel bad though for the Keydets, who were an improving team thanks to Udinski.

1/23:

  • We are a little less than a month away from the Spring 2021 schedule starting for FCS football. Unfortunately more teams are dropping out - the last couple of days Marist, North Carolina Central, and Northern Colorado have now decided against playing this spring. That leaves 97 teams out of 127 participating at this point, with only two conferences having all their members play - Southern Conference and the SWAC.

  • Not only is Montana State bowing out of the spring season, but they have now lost their head coach and defensive coordinator to other positions. Head coach Jeff Choate is leaving the Bobcats to coach Linebackers at Texas, while defensive coordinator Kane Ioane will be the co-defensive coordinator and safeties coach at Boise State. This is good news for their rival Montana.

1/22:

  • There has probably not been a more challenging or trying year than 2020 for college football as there were reduced schedules as well as cancellations and lost rivalry games - both conference and non-conference. But the game was played, and as you can see from ESPN’s piece on the 50 best games of the year, there were some exciting and thrilling games played - even without crowds, usual traditions and pageantry.

  • Whether it is with players or with coaches, Alabama continues to reload and thrive while Nick Saban is the man in charge. Saban has now hired Bill O’Brien as his new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. It’s probably a good thing for the rest of the teams that the Crimson Tide head coach is almost 70 - as he can’t coach forever. Or can he?

  • It amazes me that one prospect can get three schools on probation. Because of recruiting violations over Sav’ell Smalls, who played high school football in Seattle, Notre Dame is now on violation. The Fighting Irish join Florida and Texas A&M, who had their penalties previously announced. Kind of funny that Small stayed home and signed with Washington…

1/21:

  • I think that I have found the one positive to Doc Holliday being let go at Marshall, and that is Brad Lambert being hired as a co-defensive coordinator at Purdue. Lambert was a candidate for the head coach position at Marshall, before it went to Charles Huff, and he was the head coach at Charlotte from their first game through 2018. I hope that he can do for the Boilermakers what he did for the Thundering Herd.

  • Tennessee players continue to hit the transfer portal, continuing a trend since December. Fourteen players have entered (though two have or will have removed their names), and these players accounted for 190 starts for the Volunteers. A lot of skill and experience is leaving Knoxville.

  • To me, Hampton has the ideal non-conference schedule for a FCS team. They will play two former rivals (trophy and named rivalry games) from the MEAC (Norfolk State and Howard) - of which the Spartans are only across the James River from the Pirates. Hampton will also play Old Dominion, which is also located in Norfolk - so they are only 15 miles away. And lastly, the Pirates will host Division II Virginia Union from Richmond, VA - an opponent that Hampton has played 83 times since 1906. Kudos to the school for their scheduling!

1/20:

  • Two days ago was the deadline for underclassmen to decide if they would make themselves eligible for the 2021 NFL Draft. I am hoping to dissect the list and put together some thoughts - some good and some bad, regarding the choices and what to expect for these individuals, as well as the teams they leave behind.

  • Northwestern was looking for a replacement for Peyton Ramsey, who did a good job directing the Wildcat offense - at least good enough to make them a formidable team because of their strong defense. It looks like they have found their man. Ryan Hilinski announced yesterday that he would be joining the Wildcats. After starting eleven games as a freshman for South Carolina in 2019, he appeared in only two games this past year. Looks like a win-win for both.

  • I was surprised but not shocked to find that the Kansas Jayhawks have won only five of their last 89 conference games in the last ten years. That is a 5.6% win percentage against those you face year-after-year. Les Miles should get another year or two to try and make some progress at the school - but he hasn’t had much success the last two years.

1/19:

  • One day after all FBS teams had head coaches, Tennessee fired Jeremy Pruitt and his entire recruiting staff. I guess that handing out money in McDonald bags is frowned upon at Rocky Top. Also gone is Philip Fulmer since all of this happened on his watch as the athletic director.

  • After being in the transfer portal for less than a week, former Tennessee OL Wanya Morris has announced that he will be joining the Sooners in Norman. He will certainly soften the blow of Adrian Ealy (2nd-team All-Big 12) leaving early for the NFL.

  • Three Big Sky teams announced on Friday that they will play a “modified” schedule (2 non-conference games?) this spring, instead of the six-game conference schedule put out by the conference. Montana, Montana State, and Portland State are the teams concerned about the health and well-being of their student athletes. They join fellow conference member Sacramento State, who won’t play any games this spring.

1/18:

  • With Marshall hiring Charles Huff, that means all openings for a head coach at the FBS level have been filled - though you might still see an opening or two in the near future. Huff has recently gained coaching experience under Nick Saban at Alabama, and he is highly regarded as a recruiter. Under Doc Holliday, Marshall has been one of the top Group of Five teams, and I hope that the Thundering Herd’s success continues under Charles Huff.

  • Coaching changes bring about transfers and de-commitments. One that I will be following is Clay Millen, a quarterback who is back on the market after the recent coaching change in Arizona. Millen, who might be headed to Colorado, is the son of former NFL quarterback Hugh Millen and the younger brother of Oregon quarterback Cale Millen. Clay doesn’t have a lot of starting experience as he backed up his brother for two years but in his junior year he threw for over 3,000 yards and 34 touchdowns with only one interception. Here’s to hoping that he becomes a Buff.

1/17:

  • One of the best stories this year for me was the success of Indiana, who came within one game of winning the Big Ten East Division. Now they will carry high expectations into 2021 (Top 10?) with almost twenty starters expecting to return. But it might be difficult to repeat this year’s success because Michael Penix, Jr. will be returning from an ACL tear, and Ken Wommack, their defensive coordinator, has left to become the head coach at South Alabama. The Hoosiers will also have a tough Cincinnati team to play, as well as road games at Iowa and Penn State.

  • More than two years ago McKenzie Milton suffered a severe knee injury against rival USF. In that time Dillon Gabriel has become firmly entrenched as the UCF quarterback, so Milton realized that if he was going to return to the field, he would have to transfer. His landing spot: Florida State. The Seminoles used four different quarterbacks in 2020, so if Milton can remain healthy, he should bring stability (and a lot of leadership) to the position for at least a year. Here’s to hoping that Milton can stay healthy on the field next year and maybe get a chance to play in the NFL in the future..

1/16:

  • Looks like there will be conference realignment happening in the FCS sooner than later. First off, the Western Athletic Conference is restarting football, and they have added Southern Utah from the Big Sky, and they grabbed four schools from the Southland: Sam Houston State, Abilene Christian, Stephen F. Austin and Lamar. Already in the WAC are football independents Dixie State and Tarleton State (two programs that recently moved up from Division II). The Southland was impacted again when Central Arkansas joined the Atlantic Sun. This conference would like to add football, and they have North Alabama, Kennesaw State , and Stetson in other sports. Rumors are they are after Jacksonville State and Eastern Kentucky, as well as another program. What will this all mean for the Southland and Big South? Would they merge? Also, New Mexico State is part of the WAC in other sports - would they drop a level like Idaho?

1/15:

  • In a great bit of scheduling news, SMU and TCU have agreed to extend their series through 2024. Their 2021 game will be the 100th meeting between the teams in a series that began in 1915. Hopefully in a couple of years it is extended again, and that there are no interruptions.

  • While on scheduling, another new series got my attention. The other day New Mexico State and UTSA agreed upon a four-game home-and-home series. This works well in my book because it’s four games, close proximity (border states) to each other, and comparable talent levels - though the Roadrunners seem to be pulling ahead a bit.

1/14:

  • Things look pretty rocky in Knoxville early in 2021. Former five-star tackle Wanya Morris, a prized recruit in 2019, is believed to have entered his name into the transfer portal. If so, he will be the tenth Volunteer player to enter the portal since December 1st. With the way the season ended and with the program under investigation - neither Jeremy Pruitt or the Tennessee program is in good shape.

  • Falling between the cracks is the announcement that Indiana State has opted out of the 2021 spring football season. They made their decision after consulting with doctors, health officials, training, and strength and conditioning personnel. It appears that the program based their decision more on the safety of the student-athletes playing a minimum of 19 games in nine months than the pandemic. Saint Francis, out of the Northeast Conference, decided not to participate in the rescheduled spring season as well a week ago.

1/13:

  • USA Today sports re-ranked teams from 1 to 127. The bottom seven shouldn’t be too much of a surprise because they were all winless: Louisiana-Monroe, Bowling Green, UMass, Kansas, Northern Illinois, and UNLV. The other winless teams, who played a game, were Vanderbilt and Arizona.

  • The same site even handed out grade, and I must admit that I was pleasantly surprised to see that Maryland was given a B! They had the second highest grade for a losing team - only Rutgers was higher with a B+ (deserved I believe).

  • ULM’s new head coach, Terry Bowden, has hired Rich Rodriguez as his associate head coach and offensive coordinator. I kind of got a chuckle when I saw that he had led the Arizona Wildcats to five bowl games in six years and still got fired. The Wildcats haven’t returned to a bowl game since, and his successor is now unemployed.

  • Cincinnati had a memorable season, even though they felt short and felt slighted by the playoff committee. They are returning key pieces and will be the highest rated Group of Five team to start the 2021 season, but this year they can control their destination a bit more. This fall’s schedule includes road games at Notre Dame and Indiana - so if the Bearcats go undefeated this year that might be enough for a playoff berth.

1/12:

  • Today’s thoughts can only be about Alabama after the Crimson Tide won their 13th National Championship since the poll era began in 1936. Team with the next most championships: Notre Dame with 8.

  • Nick Saban tied Bear Bryant for most National Championships while coach of the Crimson Tide, but he got his seventh overall (LSU 2003) to pass Bryant for most overall.

  • And DeVonta Smith showed why he was deserving of the Heisman Trophy with his performance in the first half!

  • I feel bad for the Buckeyes though, who weren’t able to play with their full roster. Adding salt to the wound - losing Trey Salmon after one carry of two yards.

1/11:

  • Not long until the National Championship game! It is going to be a GREAT one I believe - one where the Buckeyes are going to give Alabama all they want and then some. No surprise if Ohio State pulls it off….

  • Great 2021 College Football Hall of Fame class! Those that I remember most from their playing/coaching career: Dan Morgan (Miami), C.J. Spiller (Clemson), Darren Sproles (Kansas State), Carson Palmer (USC), and Bob Stoops (Oklahoma).

  • This happened a couple of days ago, but it certainly caught my attention…Josh Blankenship, who coached at Division II Adams State, has stepped down so that he could coach high school football at Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. What makes this more intriguing is that his dad, Bill Blankenship, is a legendary high school coach, and the father-son relationship will be tested when they become opponents.

1/10:

  • After the flurry of coaching firings and seeing the openings getting filled, I felt good about Matt Campbell staying at Iowa State. I forgot about NFL job offers. And when there was potential talks, I figured that the Cyclones were going to lose a special coach. Well - that’s not going to happen in 2021! Now it looks like Iowa State will be serious contenders again for their first Big 12 championship.

1/9:

  • A very rough day for the Hudson family, but I have committed myself in 2021 to make an entry every day, so here is my attempt for the day - though it might be weak….

  • Boise State has hired their coach for 2021, going with Oregon defensive coordinator Andy Avalos - though he was the Broncos DC from 2016 thru 2018. A couple of things that I find interesting with the hire: 1) Avalos is the fourth consecutive Bronco head coach to be hired who has previously been an assistant coach at Boise State, and 2) He is the first hire for the Broncos with a decidedly defensive background in almost thirty years.

  • The Volunteers have seen their future (or is it fortune?) change at quarterback in the last couple of days. Off-and-on starter Jarrett Guarantano has transferred to Washington State and J. T. Shrout has also left (joining Colorado), while the Vols reeled in former Virginia Tech quarterback Hendon Hooker. His ability as a dual-threat (almost 3,000 yards passing and over 1,000 yards rushing the last two years) could be just what’s needed in Knoxville.

  • To continue with the Hokies, they have just signed on to play South Carolina in the 2025 Chick-fil-A Kickoff game. The Gamecocks have won the last two meetings in 1990 and 1991, and they lead the overall series, that began in 1905, 11-7-2.

1/8:

  • Took me a while to get to this, but three days ago Adam Rittenberg (Senior Writer for ESPN) put out a piece on Heisman hopefuls for 2021. He listed 17 candidates, but mentioned that the last two winners didn’t appear on his lists in 2019 or 2020. Three things that I liked: seeing quarterbacks that really haven’t seen the field extensively (especially the Buckeye QB to be named), two teammates from Iowa State (yes - the Cyclones!), and Grayson McCall, the Chanticleer quarterback that had an exceptional freshman season.

  • Also from ESPN, there were some staff members that were asked about the current playoff system and suggested changes. My two cents…have two separate playoffs, one for the Power 5 (and Notre Dame) and one for the Group of Five (and include independents). For the Power 5, have a six team playoff (top two teams get a bye) so that it includes all conference champions and one at-large bid (Notre Dame included). For the Group of Five, have it be a four team playoff, and select the best teams/highest ranked. This year’s teams could have been Cincinnati, BYU, Liberty and Coastal Carolina.

1/7:

  • Seems like we are seeing a lot of comings and goings - especially in the quarterback position. In the last couple of days Trevor Lawrence and Ian Book have declared their intentions to enter the NFL Draft. Meanwhile Georgia QB JT Daniels has announced that he will stay in school for another year. A smart decision I believe since he wants to add to his resume after coming back from a knee injury.

  • While on quarterbacks, it is never a surprise to see a lot of them in the transfer portal, especially since they want to play and not hold a clipboard. If I were a college coach I would be a bit skeptical if you see someone there for a second time. Three names that come to mind this year: Jake Bentley (from Utah to South Alabama), Austin Kendall (leaving West Virginia) and Bailey Hockman (leaving NC State).

  • Head coaches are busy forming their staffs for 2021. Two that got my attention the last couple of days: Bryan Harsin at Auburn and Dave Aranda at Baylor. Harsin is looking to poach Mike Bobo from South Carolina, while also hiring Derek Mason - formerly the head coach at Vanderbilt. While Aranda, one day after hiring Ryan Pough (former offensive coordinator at Troy) to coach the Bear’s offensive line, announced the following day that Pough would not be joining his staff. No reason given at this time - but it bears watching (so to speak).

1/6:

  • Congratulations to DeVonta Smith for winning the Heisman Trophy - which I had completely forgotten was being awarded last night. He is just the seventh player to win the award to have not played either quarterback or running back, and Smith is the first receiver to take home the prize since Desmond Howard in 1991. What I found impressive was seeing three Crimson Tide players in the top five.

  • Until I did some research, I didn’t realize how rare it is in the FBS for two coaches to meet with both having won 250 or more games. The first time it happened was in 2000 when Bobby Bowden and the Seminoles played LaVell Edwards and the BYU Cougars. Bowden was a part such a meeting again when the Seminoles played the Nittany Lions and Joe Paterno in 2006. This time though it was a matchup of coaches who had both won 300 or more games. It didn’t happen again until this year - and it occurred twice. The first was with Brian Kelly and Mack Brown on opposite sidelines and the second was Brian Kelly again, but this time against Nick Saban.

  • And another thing I had forgotten until I did some digging around seeing if Joe Paterno and Frank Beamer had met after both had won 250 games - Penn State and Virginia Tech have shockingly never met on the gridiron! It was supposed to happen this year, which I now remember, but it was canceled because of COVID-19. Now they won’t meet until 2025.

1/5:

  • One thing that made me a bit sad about Ohio State ending Clemson’s season, was that Travis Etienne came up 48 yards short of 5,000 rushing yards for his career and 143 yards short of 7,000 all purpose yards. He would have been only the 13th person to reach that all purpose milestone.

  • When Florida A&M released their fall 2021 schedule, I got all excited because I saw Jackson State as their first game of the season. I thought how great it was that Deion Sanders would start his coaching career against a quality opponent in the Rattlers, and do it on a Sunday in Miami. I then realized that the Tigers are playing this spring, and their first game is against Edward Waters - a NAIA team…

  • With Ian Book almost certainly leaving South Bend, it looked like the Irish would have a quarterback starting next fall that lacked game experience. That quickly changed when former Wisconsin starting quarterback Jack Coan announced that he was transferring to Notre Dame after entering the transfer portal just a few days before Christmas. Instantly the Irish have a qb that started 18 games for the Badgers in 2018 and 2019.

1/4:

  • Sad to see that Doc Holliday is not returning to Marshall after eleven seasons. Knowing that his contract was running out and that there was no discussion of an extension, it seemed inevitable, but not sure why. After all, he received Conference USA Coach of the Year honors this year.

  • Glad we don’t have to wait until 2027 to see Alabama and Ohio State get it on! Doesn’t seem right that two of the best FBS programs, who have combined to win 1,859 games (Buckeyes - 931, Crimson Tide = 928) and have together claimed 25 National Titles, have met only 4 times prior.

  • A couple of weeks ago, quarterback Bailey Zappe (Houston Baptist) caught my attention by entering the transfer portal. I liked it because it meant that he was going to take another year at the collegiate level before attempting the NFL. Just after Christmas, I saw that he was moving on to Western Kentucky to join his former offensive coordinator and quarterback coach, Zach Kittley. Bailey brings with him the Sterns brothers (Jerreth and Josh), two receivers that should ease is transition even more. Can’t wait to see him in 2021!

1/3:

  • Kudos to Matt Campbell and the Iowa State Cyclones - a “five-star culture”. What a joy to see and follow this year! I am hoping that ISU is able to keep their coach for another year in hopes that he can take them to the next level and capture their first conference title since 1912!

  • I’m not a fan of many Oregon uniform combinations, but what they wore in the Fiesta Bowl was nice. If they had an “O” on their helmets instead of wings, it would have been their best look! Their yellow with the Cyclone black looked awesome…

  • Northwestern has had a great run the last few years with Pat Fitzgerald as their head coach (10 bowls in 12 years), but now could be the best time for him to move on… i.e. Chicago Bear head coach? I would be sad to see him leave Evanston, but the opportunity now might not get any better…

1/2:

  • A gutsy performance by Buckeye quarterback Justin Field, who threw four touchdown passes (six in total) after taking a nasty hit to the ribs by Clemson linebacker James Skalski. There is no doubt that he is feeling it today, but after the OSU win last night, I don’t think he cares.

  • Georgia lost a great placekicker, Rodrigo Blankenship, last year but it looks like they have an adequate replacement in Jack Podlesny. He only drilled a 53-yard field goal at the end of the Bulldogs game against Cincinnati in the Peach Bowl. What a thrilling end to the game for Jack and the Bulldogs, but I must admit I felt bad for the Bearcats, who had a great year and went toe-to-toe with Georgia.

  • Was shocked, but not surprised (if that’s possible) that Tom Herman was fired today as the head coach of the Longhorns - especially after they couldn’t get Urban Meyer. Texas is now setting their sight on Steve Sarkisian, but is going to make a difference? I’m sure he has learned a lot from Nick Saban, and he calls a mean offensive game, but is he what the Longhorns needs? That will be answered in the next three or four years.

  • USC has taken another hit as two more key starters have declared their intentions to make themselves available for the upcoming NFL draft. Marlon Tuipulotu (defensive lineman) and Olaijah Griffin (cornerback) will join Talanoa Hufanga (safety) and Alijah Vera-Tucker (offensive lineman) in exiting Los Angeles early.

1/1:

  • The Good: Congratulations to Ball State for winning their first bowl game after seven previous attempts. The Cardinals, who showed improvement the last two years, really blossomed this year by winning the MAC title and beating a solid San Jose State team. A great season for Ball State!

  • The Bad: Can’t help but revisit the Cotton Bowl game for a moment after listening to a talk show beat up on Dan Mullen and his excuses this morning on my way to work. Hate to say it Dan, but your team gave Oklahoma motivation, and the Sooners made you pay for it. By the way, surprisingly that was Lincoln Riley’s first bowl win in four tries.

  • Now the Ugly: What the hell were Tulsa and Mississippi State thinking? There is no need for that crap in this sport. An unnamed Bulldog player was bragging in the locker room about kicking a Tulsa player in the head. Looking closely at the video - I am thinking that things escalated because of Mike Leach’s team. It looked like punches were first thrown by two Bulldogs (one not even in uniform!), a kick to the head by another Bulldog, and lastly a pig pile on one Golden Hurricane player. Tulsa isn’t innocent by any means though, and I hope that the teams and conferences come down hard for this behavior.

  • Would it be best for college football to see wins by Ohio State and Notre Dame today? I know that they are scheduled to meet on September 3rd, 2022 - but how about January 11th of this year? Two of the greatest football programs playing for the National Championship. Might not get any better than that…