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  • Four-star USC commit plans official visit to Auburn

    Four-star USC commit plans official visit to Auburn

    It is no secret that Auburn is pursuing 2025 five-star quarterback and USC commit Julian Lewis. However, he is far from the only Trojan commit that Auburn has in its sights.

    Isaiah Gibson, a four-star EDGE from Warner Robins, Georgia, has been a USC commit since March but is not ready to shut down his recruitment. He has planned several official visits this summer, with Auburn getting the nod for June 10.

    Gibson tells Chad Simmons of On3 that he is still firmly committed to USC ahead of his official visits but he will allow five SEC programs to sway him. He also says that his relationships with defensive line back Josh Aldridge and head coach Hugh Freeze are keeping Auburn in the running.

    “Coach Aldridge came from Liberty to Auburn. At first he coached inside linebackers, and he switched to d-line. I had a relationship with him when he coached inside linebackers, so it just carried on to him being a defensive ends coach,” Gibson said in an interview with On3. “I also have a good relationship with coach Freeze. The motiviation that he gives his players — that’s why I feel like Auburn will be really good this year. When I went to Auburn. . . you could tell the whole defensive side of the team had a lot of energy.”

    Georgia will get Gibson’s first official visit on May 31, followed by South Carolina (June 7), Auburn (June 10), and Florida (June 14), Ohio State (June 18), and Oklahoma (June 21).

    Story originally appeared on Auburn Wire

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  • Why ex-49ers GM McCloughan is impressed by draft pick Cowing

    Why ex-49ers GM McCloughan is impressed by draft pick Cowing

    Why ex-49ers GM McCloughan is impressed by draft pick Cowing originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

    The 49ers addressed their wide receiver need twice in the 2024 NFL Draft, selecting Florida star Ricky Pearsall at No. 31 in the first round and Arizona standout Jacob Cowing with the No. 135 pick in the fourth round.

    While much of the attention, rightfully so, is on Pearsall and what he brings to the 49ers, former San Francisco general manager Scot McCloughan spoke to The Athletic’s Matt Barrows about why he likes Cowing so much.

    “Damn good football player,” McCloughan told Barrows. “He’s quick, fast. He’s instinctive, he’s competitive. He scored a lot of touchdowns, too, and can get down the field and go. He’s cool. He’s really, really cool.”

    As NBC Sports Bay Area’s Matt Maiocco wrote shortly after the 49ers drafted Cowing, the 5-foot-8, 168-pound receiver has a chance to become San Francisco’s primary return man and could be used in multi-receiver formations in Kyle Shanahan’s offense.

    The slender Cowing ran a 4.38 40-yard dash at the NFL Scouting Combine, showing off his incredible speed.

    The 49ers will get their first look at Cowing’s speed when he reports to Santa Clara on Thursday, May 9 for rookie minicamp, with the first practice scheduled for the following day.

    McCloughan expects Cowing to turn heads when he steps on the practice field in the coming weeks.

    “He’ll tear up rookie minicamp, seven-on-seven, all that stuff,” McCloughan told Barrows. “You’ll be like, ‘Wow!’ you wait and see. He’ll blow your mind. He’s fast and quick. He’s like a little bolt of lightning — gone!”

    If McCloughan is right about Cowing, the 49ers will be very happy with the pick.

    Download and follow the 49ers Talk Podcast

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  • Biggest question facing each team following 2024 NFL Draft: Do Steelers start Justin Fields or Russell Wilson?

    Biggest question facing each team following 2024 NFL Draft: Do Steelers start Justin Fields or Russell Wilson?

    With the NFL Draft coming to a close last week, the last major pillar of offseason roster building has concluded. That means the players who currently make up the rosters across the league are roughly going to be the ones who we see in Week 1. Over the last few months between free agency and the draft, clubs have been able to address key needs, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t still some major questions as we enter the down period on the NFL calendar. 

    Below, we’re going to comb through each team in the league and identify one major question that still looms over every franchise. These questions can range from a more macro view down to specific battles on the depth chart. 

    How quickly can Kyler Murray and Marvin Harrison Jr. build chemistry?

    The Arizona Cardinals needed a blue-chip pass catcher this offseason and secured one by drafting Marvin Harrison Jr. with the No. 4 pick in the draft. The Ohio State product is lauded as a possible second coming of Larry Fitzgerald, but if the Cardinals are going to have any hope of competing for a playoff spot in 2024 he’ll need to get out to a hot start. With that in mind, the chemistry between Harrison and his new quarterback, Kyler Murray, is the key area of focus throughout the summer. If they can get on the same page before Week 1, it could set the stage for an eye-popping rookie season for the wideout. 

    Will the Cousins/Penix saga ruin their season?

    The biggest shocker from the 2024 NFL Draft came with the Atlanta Falcons drafting Michael Penix Jr. with the No. 8 pick after they had just given Kirk Cousins a monster contract in free agency. Cousins was said to be blindsided by the pick and it begs the question if this situation devolves into something that could turn their season sideways, especially if Cousins (who is coming off a torn Achilles) doesn’t get off to the strongest start. 

    Can the offensive line hold up?

    Baltimore’s…

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  • College football transfer portal grades: Texas, FSU get ‘A+’ but LSU finishes with ‘C+’ after window closes

    College football transfer portal grades: Texas, FSU get ‘A+’ but LSU finishes with ‘C+’ after window closes

    Getty Images

    The spring college football transfer portal window has closed, and now it’s time to evaluate how the game’s most notable programs fared. We’ve already taken a look at things like winners and losers, top-10 classes and best fits. This piece is more of a grab-bag of how a selection of 12 household programs — 12 being the operative number this year with the expanded College Football Playoff — graded out. 

    There is a mathematic calculation of the 2024 Transfer Rankings at 247Sports (where Ole Miss and Texas A&M are Nos. 1 and 2). We are taking into account whether the team filled its needs, got a good bang for its NIL buck, and how it managed its roster when constructing these grades. 

    Spring transfer portal grades

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  • With the First Pick: Biggest questions for all 32 NFL teams, plus ranking the AFC after 2024 draft

    With the First Pick: Biggest questions for all 32 NFL teams, plus ranking the AFC after 2024 draft

    We’ve reached the first Friday after the NFL Draft, which is always a bit bittersweet, but there’s still plenty of post-draft analysis to get to here on my last day as the author of this daily newsletter.

    As I felt last year, I had an absolute blast writing this every day. And, frankly, I think it got me more amped for the draft, which I previously did not think was possible. Hopefully you enjoyed my month-long stint as the NFL Draft stand-in for John Breech as NFL newsletter czar here at CBS Sports. Until next year … thank you! 

    There’s still time to sign up for the Pick Six newsletter. Tell your buddies, too. All you have to do is click here and then share this link with them.

    1. Biggest questions for all 32 teams 

    Getty Images

    Tyler Sullivan wrote a critical piece after the draft — what is now the biggest, most striking question for the entire NFL. Like what happens with the Michael Penix Jr./Kirk Cousins saga? Can the Ravens offensive line hold up? Can Bryce Young take a step forward in Year 2? And here’s what Tyler’s wondering about the Packers after Jordan Love’s amazing ascension late in the 2023 campaign: “Can Jordan Love keep up his second-half play from last season?”

    “The Packers have somehow threaded the QB needle once again as Jordan Love proved to be a legit starting quarterback for them in their first season post-Aaron Rodgers. Love had Green Bay on the brink of an NFC Championship appearance and was fantastic down the stretch of the regular season. In his final eight regular-season games, Love completed 70% of his passes and had a 112.7 passer rating to go along with 18 passing touchdowns and just one interception. If that’s who he is, Love is an MVP candidate.”

    Man, with Williams in Chicago, J.J. McCarthy in Minnesota, the Lions coming…

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  • Wisconsin football secures commitment from versatile Minnesota athlete Luke Emmerich

    Wisconsin football secures commitment from versatile Minnesota athlete Luke Emmerich

    MADISON – When he met with reporters minutes after Wisconsin’s final practice of the spring on Thursday, Luke Fickell noted UW’s late finish will have his assistants playing catch-up on the recruiting trail.

    “Everybody else has probably been on the road for a week-and-a-half but that’s OK,” he said. “We’ve got a little thing here the next couple days but then our coaches will be on the road recruiting.”

    The late start didn’t hurt Fickell and his coaches in their pursuit of Luke Emmerich, who gave UW an oral commitment for the 2025 class several hours after the conclusion of the final practice.

    Emmerich, 6-foot-1 and 195 pounds, missed his junior season because of injury but played wide receiver, quarterback and defensive back as a sophomore.

    He was timed at 10.69 seconds in the 100-meter dash earlier this spring.

    Emmerich visited UW last month. He reportedly held offers from Minnesota, Michigan State, Nebraska, Iowa State and incoming Big Ten members USC and Washington and several other programs.

    UW has 10 known commitments for its 2025 class.

    More: Reasons for hope and concern as the Badgers finish spring practice

    This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Wisconsin football secures commitment from Luke Emmerich

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  • 18 of 32 first-round picks from 2021 had their fifth-year options picked up

    18 of 32 first-round picks from 2021 had their fifth-year options picked up

    Most of the first-round picks in the 2021 NFL draft have played well enough that their teams have chosen to exercise their fifth-year options.

    Of the 32 first-round picks, 18 had their fifth-year options picked up. That’s an increase over last year, when only 12 first-round picks from the 2020 NFL draft had their fifth-year options picked up.

    Of the 14 2021 first-round picks who didn’t have their options picked up, 12 had their options declined, and two (Alex Leatherwod and Rashod Bateman) weren’t eligible for fifth year options.

    Perhaps most notable is that four of the five quarterbacks drafted in the first round in 2021 — Zach Wilson, Trey Lance, Justin Fields and Mac Jones — had their options declined. Only Trevor Lawrence had his option picked up.

    Here’s the full list of 2021 first-round picks with their fifth-year option salaries. Players whose options were picked up are in bold:

    1. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence, Jaguars — $25.664 million
    2. Quarterback Zach Wilson, Broncos (via trade from Jets) — $22.408 million
    3. Quarterback Trey Lance, Cowboys (via trade from 49ers) — $22.408 million
    4. Tight end Kyle Pitts, Falcons — $10.878 million
    5. Wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase, Bengals — $21.816 million
    6. Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle, Dolphins — $15.591 million
    7. Offensive lineman Penei Sewell, Lions — $19.04 million (Also agreed to a long-term contract)
    8. Cornerback Jaycee Horn, Panthers — $12.472 million
    9. Cornerback Pat Surtain II, Broncos — $19.802 million
    10. Wide receiver DeVonta Smith, Eagles — $15.591 million (Also agreed to a long-term contract)
    11. Quarterback Justin Fields, Bears — $25.664 million
    12. Linebacker Micah Parsons, Cowboys — $24.007 million
    13. Offensive lineman Rashawn Slater, Chargers — $19.04 million
    14. Offensive lineman Alijah Vera-Tucker, Jets — $15.313 million
    15. Quarterback Mac Jones, Patriots — $25.664 million
    16. Linebacker Zaven Collins, Cardinals — $13.251 million
    17. Offensive lineman Alex Leatherwood, Raiders…

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  • Why Big Ten is poised for strong showing in 2025 NFL Draft, Iowa may have easy answer to QB conundrum

    Why Big Ten is poised for strong showing in 2025 NFL Draft, Iowa may have easy answer to QB conundrum

    Last week’s NFL Draft was a bit light on Big Ten talent; the conference finished third behind the SEC (59) and Pac-12 (43) with 42 selections throughout the weekend. This, of course, takes into account last season’s conference construction where USC, UCLA, Oregon and Washington — schools joining the Big Ten in 2024 — were still Pac-12 members. 

    Perhaps more glaring was the lack of Big Ten players selected in the first round. Only Ohio State’s Marvin Harrison Jr. and Michigan’s J.J. McCarthy were selected within the top-10 picks, while only four Big Ten players were picked on Thursday overall (Penn State’s Olu Fashanu at 11 and Chop Robinson at 21).

    When broken down by team, Michigan led the nation with a school-record 13 draft choices, but Penn State was the only other Big Ten school of the 15 to have at least five players chosen. This is a good thing. In reality, it’s a sign of the talent returning to the conference and the those joining it this summer.

    Ohio State only had four players chosen this year (the same number as Illinois and Iowa), not because the Buckeyes didn’t have NFL talent, rather because they kept most of it. Washington, Oregon and USC combined to have 25 players selected, including five first-round picks (one of UCLA’s two players chosen was a first-round pick as well). 

    Then there’s Michigan. The Wolverines had 13 players from last year’s championship team selected, but you could argue they have better players returning who will be drafted earlier next season. To the chagrin of Texas fans who spent the last month telling me they’d be leaving for Austin, Kenneth Grant and Mason Graham remain in maize and blue, as does Will Johnson. All three could be first-round choices next season.

    We recently compiled the…

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