Category: College Football

The days in Jacksonville started the same for Cam Ward: throwing sessions from 8 to 10 a.m., a short break, then a lifting session until early afternoon. No classes, no distractions — just focused prep for the 2024 NFL Draft, surrounded by other like-minded future pros at a training academy. He was ready for the NFL. 

Except, he couldn’t shake one thought.

“I just thought there was more out there for me in college,” Ward told CBS Sports.

Fifteen months later, Ward’s draft prep is finally complete — the Tennessee Titans made Ward the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft on Thursday night. 

Ward only stayed in the 2024 draft cycle for 13 days before pulling out to transfer to Miami, a decision that led to the Hurricanes’ first 10-win season since 2017 and launched Ward from fringe Day 2 prospect to the first player off the board Thursday night. 

Those 13 days—and the uncertain weeks around them—reshaped the 2024 college football season and rewrote the 2025 draft. This is the behind-the-scenes story of what happened during a two-week diversion in Ward’s path from zero-star recruit to No. 1 overall pick.

“I think coming back changed his career in a way I couldn’t put into words,” Miami offensive coordinator Shannon Dawson said.

When I reported in December of 2023 that Ward was entering the transfer portal after his junior season at Washington State, it came with a caveat: “He’s expected to keep his options open in terms of the NFL Draft.”

He did, indeed.

Ward’s family had gathered feedback about entering the draft following the 2022 season, which was Ward’s debut at Washington State after transferring in from FCS Incarnate Word. It was a strong consideration then, with the league placing a Day 3 grade on him, but Ward…

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Oklahoma quarterback Cole Gonzales will not serve as the backup to Sooners’ starting quarterback John Mateer next season, leaving sophomore Michael Hawkins Jr. as the top reserve.

That’s because Gonzales, who committed to Oklahoma out of the transfer portal at Christmas, has re-entered the transfer portal, according to reports. A two-time Walter Payton Award finalist, Gonzales did not win the starting job during spring ball as Washington State transfer John Mateer handled things in his first spring in Norman.

Gonzales was a sought-after recruit in the portal for a former FCS player. The Walter Payton Award is the FCS equivalent of the Heisman Trophy at that level. Gonzales was leading all of NCAA football, including FBS, in passing last year through eight games before missing the final four games of the regular season with an injury.

Mateer won the job, as expected, during spring camp. Mateer threw for almost 3,200 yards with 29 touchdowns against seven interceptions with the Cougars last year. He also ran for 826 yards and 15 scores. With Gonzales having just one season of eligibility remaining, his entry into the portal Thursday was not unexpected.

Hawkins played in seven games last year as the primary backup to Jackson Arnold, who transferred to Auburn in December. His best individual game came after Arnold entered the portal in the Armed Forces Bowl. Against Navy, Hawkins completed 28 of 43 passes for 247 yards with two touchdowns. Hawkins came up big in the Sooners win over Auburn, running for a long touchdown and hitting wide receiver J.J. Hester for a big play to get Oklahoma back in the game.

With Gonzales on his way out the door, here’s a look at the quarterback depth chart for the Oklahoma Sooners.

StarterJohn MateerBackupMichael Hawkins Jr.QB3Jett Niu

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Judge Claudia Wilken of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California issued a key deadline for the House v. NCAA case on Wednesday. Wilken gave the defendants 14 days to reach an agreement on the gradual implementation of roster sizes or risk outright rejection of the landmark settlement. 

Wilken wants to see current athletes “grandfathered in” and allowed to remain on rosters until their eligibility expires. This would enable schools to temporarily exceed new roster limits, which include unlimited scholarships. Hard cuts would likely leave nearly 5,000 athletes without spots on rosters across the NCAA’s 43 sponsored sports.

Wilken first expressed concerns over roster limits when she granted the case preliminary approval on April 7. NCAA attorney Rakesh Kilaru opposed the idea, though he agreed to work with the plaintiff’s attorneys on a solution.

The NCAA and the five power conferences — the defendants in the case — released a statement shortly after Wilken’s new deadline.

“We are closely reviewing Judge Wilken’s order,” the statement read. “Our focus continues to be on securing approval of this significant agreement, which aims to create more opportunities than ever before for student-athletes while fostering much-needed stability and fairness in college sports.”

Under the settlement, football rosters will shrink to 105 players, resulting in many schools cutting 20 or more players. Some have already begun that process, well before the settlement’s approval.

The $2.8 billion settlement would allow schools to directly pay players millions of dollars starting July 1. Each school’s revenue-sharing formula would be capped at $20.5 million, with the pool increasing 4% each year during the 10-year agreement….

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The Georgia Bulldogs missed out on Syracuse Orange transfer defensive lineman Maraad Watson. Georgia lost out to SEC foe Texas Longhorns, who landed a commitment from Watson.

Texas and Georgia have competed for top defensive line recruits several times recently with the Longhorns winning the recruiting battle for Watson and five-star defensive lineman Justus Terry.

Miami Hurricanes defensive lineman Joshua Horton transferred to the Georgia Bulldogs, but Georgia was still hoping to land Watson. The Bulldogs were among the four contenders for Syracuse defensive tackle Maraad Watson, according to Hayes Fawcett. Ohio State, and Tennessee were the other contenders to land Watson.

Watson was a four-star prospect from the class of 2024 when he committed to Syracuse. In his freshman season, Watson earned 30 tackles, one pass deflected, and one sack. Despite being a freshman, Watson started and made a significant impact.

Georgia could use more help on the defensive line. The Bulldogs are losing projected first-round draft pick edge rushers Mykel Williams and Jalon Walker. UGA is also losing defensive tackles Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, Nazir Stackhouse, and Warren Brinson to the 2025 NFL draft.

Watson is the No. 56 ranked player in the transfer portal. He is ranked as a four-star transfer and was the top available transfer.

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BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — It’s the first day of college football’s spring transfer portal window, players are jumping in left and right, and Indiana coach Curt Cignetti is anxious.

Coming off an 11-2 2024 season that included a College Football Playoff berth, life is pretty good in Bloomington. The university and its supporters are committed to investing in Indiana football, ensuring it can be more than just a one-hit wonder. With the fiery Cignetti’s unrelenting pursuit of success and the player and coaching talent returning, Indiana will have a real chance at making the College Football Playoff again in 2025. 

But Cignetti is still uneasy — and for good reason. Tampering is rampant in college football, and around every corner, a possible enemy lurks trying to poach one of Cignetti’s players. In what was supposed to be a relatively quiet portal period, it has instead been super-charged with football programs making a last grasp at adding as much talent as possible before a likely NCAA v. House settlement that paves the way for revenue sharing.

“This is an unprecedented couple days, weeks, where everybody’s waiting on this rev share, and the five or six out there that have unlimited NIL resources, it’s kind of scary for everybody else,” Cignetti told CBS Sports. “I think our little pot of gold is pretty nice, but we’re not at $40 million. Or $30 million. Or even $25 million.”

A year ago, Ohio State made national headlines when athletic director Ross Bjork said the football program spent $20 million on its eventual national championship-winning roster, but multiple industry sources with knowledge of the market told CBS Sports the top spending programs in 2024 paid upwards of $30 million. 

Is Cignetti saying the top of the market is…

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UCLA (and former Appalachian State) quarterback Joey Aguilar plans to enter the transfer portal and sign with Tennessee, 247Sports confirms. It’s the latest domino to fall as a result of the Nico Iamaleava saga. Iamaleava, the top prospect in 247Sports’ transfer rankings, signed with the Bruins on Easter Sunday. 

Aguilar is an experienced starter with proven production at the Group of Five level, and if there’s one school that makes too much sense, it’s Tennessee, Iamaleava’s old team. 

Indeed, the Vols and Bruins are reportedly initiating an unintentional and unprecedented quarterback “trade,” given that Iamaleava departed Knoxville for Los Angeles after his public name, image and likeness “contract negotiations” fell apart. That put the Vols in a position where they have been actively seeking a new starter via the transfer portal. 

Aguilar may have just fallen in their lap. 

Tennessee’s staff is almost certainly familiar with Aguilar, given that he spent two seasons as the starting quarterback at nearby Appalachian State. In that span, Aguilar won 14 games and threw for 6,760 yards and 56 touchdowns. He was the 2023 Sun Belt Newcomer of the Year after transferring in from Diablo Valley College. 

On paper, he’s the perfect target for a quarterback-needy team, and few programs now need a quarterback more than Tennessee. However, there are some concerns with Aguilar. His 2024 efforts were a disappointment in comparison to his breakout 2023 showing at Appalachian State. His completion percentage dropped from 63.7% in 2023 to 55.9% last season; he failed to complete at least 60% of his passes in eight out of 11 games, which might not mesh well with a Tennessee offense that relies on rhythm to maintain its pace. 

He also had 14…

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We heard the chatter and watched the nods to freshman wide receiver Jeremiah Smith when fall camp rolled around last season, but I don’t think any of us were ready for what we’d see from the generational talent once 2024 began. Not only was Smith as advertised, but he was better than what we heard.

It’s hard for a freshman to burst on the scene and make that kind of impact, especially at a position that has a steep learning curve with route trees, designated adjustments to coverages, and physicality at the point of attack against bigger, stronger, and more mature defenders. None of that really mattered to Smith because he had a work ethic and body that was made for college ball straight out of the box. Heck, it might be made for the NFL if he were allowed to do so.

It was a dizzying year for the freshman phenom with so many highlight-reel catches and moments that we almost forget about the bushel of amazing plays he made during a memorable 12-team College Football Playoff national championship run. With big games against the likes of Tennessee, Oregon, Notre Dame, and more, you can crank up the highlight machine and watch it over and over.

And now, thanks to the Big Ten Football “X” account, you can do just that. The social media account shared some of Smith’s best moments in the Scarlet and Gray last year, and we could watch it on repeat. You might want to as well. Take a look for yourself and then pick your jaw up off the floor.

And to think that we still have two more years to watch this man-child do his thing on a football field in the Scarlet and Gray. It’s scary to think just how good Smith will be after some more development in the program, but we are all here to see how it all plays out.

Contact/Follow us @BuckeyesWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Ohio…

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Tennessee transfer quarterback Nico Iamaleava has signed with UCLA, the school announced on Sunday. Iamaleava’s transfer decision ends a significant couple of weeks for 247Sports’ top-ranked player in the portal. Tennessee moved on from the Southern California native ahead of its April 13 spring game and the opening of the spring portal window, ending a high-stakes standoff over NIL contract negotiations. 

Iamaleava also confirmed his commitment to the Bruins in a post on Instagram. 

“My journey at UT has come to an end,” Iamaleava wrote. “This decision was incredibly difficult, and truthfully, not something I expected to make this soon. But I trust God’s timing, and I believe He’s leading me where I need to be. Even though this chapter is ending, a new chapter has begun and I am committed to UCLA!”

Iamaleava sought a new deal from Tennessee worth $4 million annually, nearly double his original reported deal, per ESPN’s Chris Low. Iamaleava’s lucrative first deal represented a high-water mark in the early NIL era in college athletics, and his standoff over more money was a somewhat fitting, if not ironic, way for the two sides to part ways. 

UCLA’s basketball program added former New Mexico star Donovan Dent last month, and Iamaleava’s addition marks the latest high-profile transfer portal prospect the school has landed in as many weeks. The price tag to land Dent — one of college basketball’s most coveted transfers — was around $3 million, sources told CBS Sports’ Isaac Trotter.

Iamaleava threw for 2,616 yards and 19 touchdowns during the 2024 campaign. He helped Tennessee reach the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff in his first season as a full-time starter last fall after spending the 2023 season as a backup to Joe…

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