Category: College Football

ATLANTA — Jack Sawyer remembers exactly where he was the afternoon of Tuesday, Dec. 3.

He’ll never forget it. Neither will Josh Fryar. Emeka Ebuka too. And Jeremiah Smith.

In fact, the entire Ohio State football team — more than 100 players — gathered in the team room on that Tuesday for an emotionally charged, sometimes heated, three-hour affair where grievances were aired, blame was accepted and tears were shed.

“I recall it being one of the toughest days of my football life,” said Fryar, a fifth-year senior offensive tackle. “You saw every raw emotion from every single player.”

Almost all of them talked, at least a couple from each position group. The only coach in the room, Ryan Day, talked too.

Still reeling over a home loss as 21-point underdogs to rival Michigan just three days before, Day weeped at times, described his missteps and actually accepted some of the blame: “I messed up,” he told players, Fryar said.

“Guys got stuff off their chest,” Sawyer said. “As competitors, guys were mad about a bunch of different things. We talked it out like grown men. We knew we had to come together and go chase this thing. And here we are, a month and a half later, playing for a national championship.”

Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes had a long, hard conversation after their loss to Michigan on Nov. 30. (Ben Jackson/Getty Images)

That they are. The Buckeyes arrived in Atlanta on Friday and attended the game’s annual media day on Saturday morning near the Mercedes-Benz Stadium, all of them in their white CFP sweatsuits.

The Buckeyes’ march here, so predictable at the start of the season, seemed so implausible just six weeks ago. Despite having perhaps the richest roster payroll in college football ($20 million), Ohio State stumbled across a slew of games in the regular season: the defense got…

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The inaugural 12-team field is down to two and the 2025 College Football Playoff National Championship game is set for Monday, Jan. 20 between the No. 8 Ohio State Buckeyes (13-2) and No. 7 Notre Dame (14-1). Ohio State breezed past Tennessee and Oregon in the CFP bracket before grinding out a 28-14 win over Texas in the semifinals thanks in large part to defensive end Jack Sawyer’s late 83-yard fumble return for a touchdown. Notre Dame has leaned on its steady defense and some timely plays on offense to get past Indiana, Georgia and Penn State to advance to the national title game. Notre Dame starting offensive tackle Anthonie Knapp (ankle) and defensive lineman Rylie Mills (knee) have both been ruled out. Notre Dame receiver Beaux Collins (calf) is questionable. 

Kickoff from Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta is set for 7:30 p.m. ET. The Buckeyes are 8.5-point favorites according to the latest Ohio State vs. Notre Dame odds via SportsLine consensus, while the over/under for total points scored is 46.5. Notre Dame vs. Ohio State props include total touchdowns in the game (over/under 5.5) and first quarter winner (Ohio State favored at -215). Before making any Notre Dame vs. Ohio State picks, check out the college football predictions from the SportsLine Projection Model.

The model simulates every FBS game 10,000 times. Since its inception, it has generated a betting profit of well over $2,000 for $100 players on its top-rated college spread football picks. It went 43-36 on top-rated college football picks in the 2024 season, and was a profitable 27-16 combined on money-line and over/under picks. It also called seven of the eight outright winners in the College Football Playoff bracket thus far. Anyone following at sportsbooks and…

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Jan. 17—ATHENS — The Concord University Athletic Department has announced the hiring of Cody Edwards as the school’s next head football coach, Concord Co-Athletic Directors Luke Duffy and Tesla Southcott announced Thursday morning.

Edwards comes to Concord as the program’s 22nd head coach after a stint as the linebackers’ coach and special teams’ coordinator at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina.

Edwards spent the last three seasons at WCU where he was first the linebackers’ coach during the 2021, 2022 and 2023 seasons before coordinating the Catamounts’ special teams in 2024 in addition to his positional coaching on defense.

“I am ecstatic and honored to be the Head Football Coach at Concord University,” Edwards said. “This is an incredible opportunity, and I can’t wait to start working alongside the student-athletes, faculty, staff, and alumni to build something truly special in Athens!”

The 2024 WCU special teams were among the best in the Division I FCS level of football. The Catamounts had three special teams’ touchdowns, was one of 24 teams in FCS to block at least two kicks, had a top-25 punt return game and finished first in the Southern Conference in made field goals. Working alongside WCU defensive coordinator Jerry Odom, Edwards helped produce a top-20 defense at the FCS level. Western Carolina finished top 25 in interceptions (21), total takeaways (26) and tackles for loss (79).

Over the last three years, WCU sported a record of 20-14—the best run for Catamount football in 30 years—and knocked off five nationally-ranked teams at the FCS level.

“My vision for Concord Football is rooted in a commitment to excellence, both on and off the field. We will strive to create a program that not only wins, but develops student-athletes into leaders, hard workers and disciplined…

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The deadline for underclassmen to declare for the NFL 2025 Draft was midnight on Jan. 16 (so Jan. 15 being the last date). There is a caveat this year, though. With a later-than-ever College Football Playoff on Jan. 20, those players will have five extra days after the game to declare (Jan. 24). That means Ohio State and Notre Dame will be waiting on decisions from their draft-eligible stars. 

Meanwhile, a who’s who of the best teams in college football had a wide variance in weeks. Some feel like they’re running it back. Others project to have wide-open two-deeps. Here’s a quick look at winners and losers as it pertains to the NFL Draft declaration deadline. 

Winner: Penn State

Penn State loses some talented players defensively, including edge Abdul Carter, cornerback Jalen Kimber, linebacker Kobe King and safety Kevin Winston. However, the Nittany Lions return key offensive weapons. While they will need to replace production at wide receiver and the all-time tight end Tyler Warren, quarterback Drew Allar and running backs Kaytron Allen and Nicholas Singleton are coming back. That core should put Penn State in good shape to contend in the Big Ten again in 2025.

Defensive linemen Dani Dennis-Sutton and Zane Durant, both coming off breakout seasons, are also returning, which should help ease the loss of a game-wrecker like Carter. Allar needs to continue his development, but Penn State’s two-headed rushing attack looks strong, bolstered by the return of multiple offensive linemen who finished the season well, including…

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Editor’s Note: This article first appeared on Rivals.com, the leader in college football and basketball recruiting coverage. Be the first to know and follow your teams by signing up here.

Class of 2026 four-star safety Jireh Edwards has revealed his top-five schools list to Rivals.com on Wednesday.

Edwards is not only one of the top safety prospects in the 2026 class, he is also one of the highest-ranked recruits in the nation. He ranks as the No. 2 player at his position, the No. 2 recruit in the state of Maryland and the No. 16 overall prospects in the Rivals250.

The Saint Frances Academy (Baltimore, Maryland) standout is coming of a recent appearance at the Under Armour Next All-America Game in Florida. Rivals national analysts John Garcia and Greg Smith noted that Edwards has a “legitimate nose for the football,” while observing Edwards throughout the week of practice.

The 6-foot-2, 192-pound Edwards has received nearly 30 scholarship offers throughout his recruitment and has his choice of many of the elite college football programs around the country, but he has now narrowed down his list.

Below is the list of five schools that Edwards is now focusing his attention on moving forward.

Jireh Edwards’ top-five:

-Auburn

-Georgia

-Oregon

-Tennessee

-Texas A&M

A pair of visits upcoming:

Edwards tell Rivals.com he will visit Auburn on Jan. 24 and Georgia on Feb. 1.

Auburn is in Edwards’ top-five, and he has multiple Saint Frances teammates who are signed or committed there in 2025 four-star cornerback Blake Woodby, 2025 four-star linebacker Bryce Deas, 2025 three-star defensive tackle Darrion Smith and 2026 three-star defensive back Wayne Henry.

Georgia also made Edwards’ top-five. He is looking forward to getting to Athens and spending time with head coach Kirby Smart and the Bulldogs’ staff.

While he does not currently…

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Carson Beck entered the 2024 college football season with a sterling professional outlook. Many mock drafts pegged Beck as the first quarterback taken off the board within the first five picks of the first round in 2025. 

But an up-and-down year at Georgia, underscored by an SEC-high 12 interceptions and a UCL injury in the SEC Championship Game that required surgery to repair, caused Beck’s stock plummet. CBS Sports ranked Beck as its No. 55 overall prospect, and some scouts thought he was a Day 3 pick. 

That’s the difference a so-so year makes, even if Beck still threw for 3,485 yards and 28 touchdowns, both top five among SEC quarterbacks. 

It’s against that backdrop that Beck made the increasingly common decision to return to school for another year. It won’t be with Georgia, though. Beck entered the transfer portal, where he instantly became the top prospect in 247Sports’ Transfer Rankings but just as quickly committed to Miami.

NFL-caliber quarterbacks returning for another year in college isn’t a new concept. Tennessee legend Peyton Manning, famously, returned for his senior season in 1997 despite being projected as the top overall pick in that year’s draft; he still went No. 1 in 1998. 

USC quarterback Matt Barkley, a projected first-round selection in the 2012 NFL Draft, actually hurt his stock some by instead returning for another year with the Trojans. He was still picked in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft and went on to have a decade-long career as a backup. There are worse fates. 

The transfer portal has entirely changed that dynamic. Now, not only can quarterbacks return for another year, they can do so with — in some cases — a much-needed change of scenery. For a lot of players, it’s a prime opportunity to…

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Wisconsin football extended an offer to class of 2026 quarterback Bowe Bentley on Tuesday.

The offer was sent on the same day that three-star quarterback Jarin Mock decommitted from the program, a move that returned the position to a top need in the cycle.

Related: Tracking Wisconsin football’s transfer portal offers, visits and commitments

247Sports ranks Bentley as the No. 180 player in the class, No. 11 quarterback and No. 28 recruit from his home state of Texas. Wisconsin is one of the top programs currently in pursuit of the Celina, Texas native. His other top offers include Boston College, California, Cincinnati, Duke, Georgia Tech, Texas Tech and Tulane.

Wisconsin is looking to continue a strong stretch of recruiting the position since the firing of former offensive coordinator Phil Longo in November. As the Badgers hired new coordinator Jeff Grimes, they also added top-ranked QB Carter Smith to its class of 2025 and landed commitments from highly-coveted transfers Danny O’Neil and Billy Edwards Jr.

A potential commitment from Bentley would continue a top-down overhaul of the position since Longo’s departure.

#AGTG After a great conversation with @CoachGuiton, I am blessed to receive an offer from Wisconsin!! @Nathaneelliott1 @DamianDevon @RecruitCelinaFB @dctf @247recruiting @Rivals @On3sports @BadgerFootball pic.twitter.com/qyg1oh0kxl

— Bowe Bentley (@bowebentley) January 14, 2025

Mock’s departure from the room coinciding with the offer to Bentley shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. Every Longo quarterback commit or signee now plays elsewhere, that once Mock pledges elsewhere. Tyler Van Dyke transferred to SMU, Braedyn Locke transferred to Arizona, Mabrey Mettauer transferred to Sam Houston State and 2025 signee Landyn Locke walked back his NLI and flipped to Sam Houston State. Those final two both followed Longo to his new program.

In-state interior offensive lineman Benjamin Novak is Wisconsin’s only commitment in the class of 2026. Bentley should be one of the program’s many pursuits at the…

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Penn State running backs Nick Singleton and Kaytron Allen will turn down a chance at the 2025 NFL Draft and return to the Nittany Lions for their final seasons of eligibility. Both players are considered serious draft prospects and potential future NFL starters, but with their return, the Nittany Lions will have a strong argument for college football’s best running back combo in 2025. 

“We still have goals we want to reach as a team and I want to be alongside my teammates as we reach those goals,” Singleton wrote in a statement posted to X. “I am scheduled to graduate this fall and will earn a degree from Penn State University, which has always been a goal for me.” 

Singleton was rated the No. 1 running back and a five-star recruit in the Class of 2022 out of Reading, Pennsylvania. He cleared 1,000 yards rushing twice in three seasons and rushed for 2,912 yards, posted 768 yards receiving and scored 40 total touchdowns. 

Allen committed to Penn State in the same recruiting class as a four-star recruit out of IMG Academy. He emerged as a steady rock running the ball and posted his first 1,000-yard rushing season as a junior. Allen was exceptional in his final four games, rushing for 410 yards on 6.7 yards per carry. 

“I have learned so much about football and life from being a part of this elite organization that coach [James] Franklin leads,” Allen wrote on X. “Throughout my life, my family and support system has been critical in helping me in my football journey. Through discussions with them, my coaches and teammates, it’s clear that we still have a lot more to accomplish as a team at Penn State.” 

Penn State is set to return the vast majority of its offensive production from a national semifinalist team. Quarterback Drew Allar…

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