Category: College Football

Ohio State’s defense will look much different in the upcoming season than the unit that helped the program reach the College Football Playoff quarterfinal.

With a young offense, the Buckeyes relied on the defense to earn 12 wins in the regular season and make the Big Ten championship.

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Defensive tackles Kayden McDonald and Tywone Malone are headed to the 2026 NFL Draft. Defensive linemen Maxwell Roy, Eric Mensah and Jarquez Carter left via the transfer portal.

The Buckeyes received a big boost for the defensive line when they added James Smith from Alabama in the transfer portal.

Pete Nakos of On3 thinks Smith will be an “impact player” for Ohio State in 2026.

“With All-American Kayden McDonald off to the NFL, the Buckeyes knew they needed to address the defensive tackle position,” Nakos wrote. “They went out and landed Alabama transfer defensive lineman James Smith, a former five-star recruit who emerged as a starter in 2025 for the Crimson Tide.

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“Smith finished with 28 tackles, 6.5 tackles for loss and 2.5 sacks to go along with two quarterback hurries and one pass breakup this past season.”

Alabama defensive coordinator Kane Wommack offered some praise for the defensive tackle during last season but thought Smith needed to become a more consistent athlete.

“James flashes,” Wommack said, via On3. “He’s a very athletic player. He does some really good things. Needs to become more consistent.

“A number of our guys are the same way, I’m not necessarily singling him out, but there were some plays he particularly left out on the field, a number of our guys left out on the field, and so that’s exciting from a number of ways, because he very productive on a number of plays.”

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Wommack thought Smith and other players left some opportunities on the field during the season and…

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Former Tennessee running back Khalifa Keith committed to Alabama, according to On3.

The 6-foot-1, 235-pound running back played for the Vols from 2023-24. He appeared in 16 games at Tennessee and recorded 124 rushing yards, one rushing touchdown, one reception and eight receiving yards.

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Keith appeared in four games in 2024. He totaled 100 rushing yards and scored one touchdown on 21 attempts, while also recording one reception for eight yards.

In 12 games during the 2023 season as a freshman, Keith totaled 24 rushing yards on 11 attempts. He was also named to the 2024 Fall SEC Academic Honor Roll.

Keith transferred to Appalachian State in 2025. In six games for the Mountaineers, the former Vol recorded eight rushing yards on three attempts.

Keith is from Parker High School in Birmingham, Alabama.

Tennessee will host Alabama on Oct. 17 at Neyland Stadium. The Vols have won the last two games against Alabama at Neyland Stadium in 2022 and 2024.

Khalifa Keith

More: Photos of Tennessee’s win against Alabama in 2024

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This article originally appeared on Vols Wire: Former Tennessee running back transfers to Alabama

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Nau’Jour Grainger, also known as rapper Toosii, has a different understanding of his opportunity to play for Syracuse football ahead of the 2026 season. Weeks after committing to the Orange as part of Fran Brown’s incoming recruiting class, Grainger said this week he has stepped away from the program after comments involving a “walk-on” opportunity from the Syracuse coach.

“No coach, that ain’t what happened,” Toosii said on TikTok. “I told you I wasn’t coming there no more, and you feel like you wanted to break the news first before I told people what school I was going to. (Brown) is a bozo for that.”

Born in Syracuse, Grainger moved to North Carolina as a teenager and began his music career. In 2020, his single “Love Cycle” went platinum, and his single “Poetic Pain” reached gold certification. In 2023, Grainger really flew up the charts when his single “Favorite Song” went viral on TikTok and reached double platinum certification.

In high school, Grainger played wide receiver and returned kicks for Rolesville (N.C.) High. At 25 years old, the plan was for Grainger to play wideout next season.

Brown said this month in reference to his 2026 roster that the plan was for Toosii to get an opportunity as a walk-on. Syracuse signed 18 transfers this cycle, including three pass-catchers.

“He’s still thinking about it … I’m not really sure if that will happen because we’re getting more and more players on the football team,” Brown said earlier this month.

Toosii disputes Brown’s take.

“That was never the conversation,” Toosii said. “The conversation was, ‘Y’all paying for my school.’ That’s what it was. If you lie, I’ve got receipts.”

Since announcing his return to football in August and his decision to step away from his music…

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The Georgia Bulldogs recently paid a visit to four-star running back recruit Andrew Beard, who is a member of the class of 2027. Beard is a local recruit for the Bulldogs and is a key target for coach Kirby Smart in the rising senior class.

The talented running back plays high school football for Prince Avenue Christian School in Bogart, Georgia, which is the same high school former Georgia quarterback Brock Vandagriff played at. Bogart is only about a 25 minute drive from Athens.

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The 5-foot-9, 200-pound running back attended the Georgia-Alabama game during the fall. Beard is the Peach State’s top running back in his recruiting class.

Prince Avenue Christian junior RB Andrew Beard, one of our top 20 area football players, poses for a portrait

The Prince Avenue standout is ranked as the No. 63 player in the nation, per 247Sports. He’s the No. 6 prospect in Georgia and the No. 4 running back in the country.

Georgia running backs coach Josh Crawford recently visited the elite running back prospect. The Bulldogs will look to host Beard on a visit soon.

Georgia visits with Andrew Beard

Follow UGA Wire on Instagram or Threads for more college football coverage!

This article originally appeared on UGA Wire: Georgia football visits 4-star RB recruit Andrew Beard

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In modern college football, coaches have less time than ever to prove they are the man for the job. The pressures for instant success have only heightened with the introduction of the transfer portal, and examples like Curt Cignetti winning a national championship in Year 2 have led many to believe that turnaround jobs should take less time than ever. So after three years on the job, schools should have a good feel for a program’s direction. 

The 2022-23 coaching carousel did not provide the landscape-shifting changes of other cycles, but it has produced plenty of hires who have already had their judgements rendered. Of the 24 FBS hires made in the cycle, a third of them never even got to Week 1 of Year 3. Seven coaches were fired after Year 2 — five of them for performance and two for off-field related issues — while former UNLV coach Barry Odom did such a good job with the Rebels he was hired away by Purdue to replace one of those coaches (Ryan Walters), who was fired after just two seasons. 

But for the 16 coaches from the cycle who made it to at least Game 1 of the 2025 season, now is the time to render judgements and grades. The standard for these grades will shift depending on job and situation, but mostly focuses on how much high-level success has been achieved in three years and how each team has performed against its peers. And while we have grades for all 16, not all of them are going to make it to Year 4 at their current post. Among this group we have three coaches who were fired during the 2025 cycle and two others who were hired away to other jobs.  

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Jarran Reed represents a side of Alabama football that often gets overlooked in a world obsessed with stars and splash plays: longevity.

Toughness that lasts.

Consistency that wins.

His journey to Tuscaloosa and then to the Super Bowl is a powerful reminder that Alabama doesn’t just produce headline names, it produces professionals who survive, adapt, and thrive at the highest level.

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At Alabama, Reed was the backbone of the defensive front. He wasn’t the guy chasing attention or highlights. He was the one doing the hard work in the trenches… taking on double teams, controlling gaps, and freeing up teammates to make plays.

That kind of impact doesn’t always show up in box scores, but it shows up on film, in wins, and in championships. Reed played with a physical edge that defined Alabama football during his time in Tuscaloosa.

He understood leverage.

He understood discipline.

And most importantly, he understood sacrifice.

That brand of selfless football isn’t accidental. It’s taught. It’s demanded. And at Alabama, it’s perfected. Reed bought into the standard when he transferred from East Mississippi Community College to Tuscaloosa. He showed up by doing his job snap after snap, play after play, regardless of recognition. That mindset is exactly why Alabama defensive linemen have translated so seamlessly to the NFL over the years.

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The league has rewarded Reed for that approach.

Year after year, he has carved out a career built on reliability, toughness, and trust.

Coaches value players like Reed because they know exactly what they’re getting every Sunday. He understands assignments. He studies film. He plays with discipline and intent. Those traits don’t fade with time, they age well. And they’re the same traits Alabama has instilled in its players for decades.

Now, Reed is headed…

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New Auburn football coach Alex Golesh said there are no differences in SEC recruiting compared to his previous Group of Five stop, South Florida, when you consider transfer portal tampering shenanigans.

“(Tampering’s) been going on for a really long time, this portal era amplified it in every imaginable way,” Golesh said. “There eventually needs to be guardrails on this thing. I think we all want to know the rules in which you can operate in … the truth is, right now, there aren’t any, so you operate ethically with what you feel like is right.

“Is it right to call a kid that’s on somebody else’s roster to go get them? It’s not. I think in a lot of way, what goes around comes around. I’m a strong believer in the football gods finding you at some point. Generally, they’ll find you at the end of a game or on fourth-and-1. You’ve got to do things the right way.”

Auburn’s transfer class ranks 13th nationally per 247Sports with 39 signees, including 13 of his former players from USF. Quarterback Byrum Brown is the biggest splash, rated as the ninth-best quarterback after throwing for 3,158 yards and 28 touchdowns along with 1,008 yards rushing and 14 scores.

Clemson coach Dabo Swinney recently ripped the Band-Aid off by after exposing conversations Ole Miss and Rebels coach Pete Golding engaged in with LLuke Ferrelli.

Duke and former Blue Devils quarterback Darian Mensah reached a settlement in their saga, which included the university trying to block his intention of entering the portal en route to signing with Miami.

There was the Demond Williams situation, too, after the Washington quarterback signed with the Huskies for the 2026 season before attempting to get out of that executed agreement and land elsewhere.

Rules…

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