College category, Page 52
Newberry: A tribute to the trailblazers of college football
ATLANTA — When racial protests rocked the nation last summer, the College Football Hall of Fame became a target of the anger. The glass facade that looks out over Centennial Olympic Park was shattered. The gift shop was vandalized. The final toll was a quarter-million dollars in damage. Fortunately, nothing...
Best of the best: AP ranks the top Games of the Century
The mere idea of trying to rank the greatest “games of the century” doesn’t make sense, which makes it perfect for college football. The national champion, after all, for decades was determined by educated guess, which meant there could be multiple games deemed once-in-lifetime events played within a span of...
No. 11 Penn State rolls past Ball State as nearly 106,000 watchVideo
STATE COLLEGE — Sean Clifford completed 21 of 29 passes for 230 yards, ran for a touchdown and threw for another to lead No. 11 Penn State over Ball State, 44-13, on Saturday. Running back Noah Cain added a rushing touchdown and wide receiver Jahan Dotson added another, linebacker Jesse...
Sun Belt Conference sees opportunity as AAC looks into rebuildingVideo
The American Athletic Conference, a league born from the fall of Big East football eight years ago, is in rebuilding mode again. This time, it could find some competition in the market from the Sun Belt when it starts courting new members. Central Florida, Cincinnati and Houston, three of the...
Big 12 welcomes BYU, Central Florida, Cincinnati and Houston
With Oklahoma and Texas on the way out, the Big 12 announced Friday that it has invited BYU, Central Florida, Cincinnati and Houston to join the Power Five conference and said it has not ruled out further expansion in the future. The eight continuing members of the Big 12 unanimously...
Georgia jumps to No. 2 behind Tide in AP Top 25; Penn State climbs to No. 11
Georgia jumped three spots to No. 2 behind Alabama in The Associated Press Top 25 released Tuesday, giving the Southeastern Conference the top two teams in the country for the 30th time in the 85-year history of the college football poll. It is the second time in the past three...
After shaky opener, No. 9 Notre Dame gets short week to prepare for ToledoVideo
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Coach Brian Kelly knows his No. 9 Fighting Irish need to improve in several areas. A difficult season opener on the road was all the proof he needed. Notre Dame blew an 18-point lead at Florida State on Sunday night before regrouping to win 41-38 in...
Anxiety abounds in Big 12 towns with eventual Oklahoma, Texas departuresVideo
AMES, Iowa — Sipping a beer with friends on a weekday afternoon at Wallaby’s Bar and Grille, Chris Clough explained life as an Iowa State fan. “You have to know that you’re going to see so many painful years and you just have to get over it,” he said, “and...
Virginia Tech rattles Sam Howell, beats No. 10 North Carolina to open seasonVideo
BLACKSBURG, Va. — Braxton Burmeister ran for a touchdown and threw for another, and Virginia Tech made Sam Howell look pedestrian in a 17-10 victory over No. 10 North Carolina on Friday night in the opener for both teams. Burmeister scored on a 4-yard run and found James Mitchell for...
Michigan State names Alan Haller as new athletic director
LANSING, Mich. — Michigan State named football alumnus and deputy athletic director Alan Haller as its 20th athletic director on Wednesday. Haller served as deputy athletic director since 2019, having been with the athletic department since 2010. He was a lieutenant for the university police department for 13 years. Haller...
Big Ten wastes no time getting down to business with openers
There will be no easing into the season for most Big Ten teams. Four conference games — and good ones, too — are on the schedule in Week 1. A fifth was played in Week Zero. The usual games against Group of Five or FCS opponents will come just a...
No. 12 Wisconsin expects to show off offense vs. No. 19 Penn StateVideo
MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin has plenty of reasons to believe its offense will bounce back from its ineffective 2020 performance. Quarterback Graham Mertz has more pass-catching targets now that Danny Davis and Kendric Pryor are healthy. Coach Paul Chryst is calling plays again. Chez Mellusi has arrived from Clemson to...
Column: Another earthquake leaves college football teetering
The Southeastern Conference is getting bigger and, somehow, even stronger. Three other major conferences have formed an alliance, whatever that means. And the Big 12 is dead man walking. After a period of relative stability, college football heads into a new season wobbling from the aftershocks of another major earthquake....
Pac-12 won’t expand for now despite interest from schools that want to join
LOS ANGELES — The Pac-12 will not expand its membership for now, the conference announced Thursday in a statement. “Following consultation with our presidents, chancellors and athletic directors, the Pac-12 Conference has made the decision to not pursue expansion of our membership at this time,” the statement said. “This decision...
Loyola Chicago basketball pioneer Jerry Harkness dies at 81Video
Jerry Harkness was inspired by Jackie Robinson to take up the game of basketball. He ended up becoming a civil rights trailblazer in his own right. Following a path paved by Major League Baseball’s first Black player, Harkness led Loyola Chicago to a barrier-breaking national championship in basketball in 1963...
Big Ten teams forfeit if unable to play because of covid-19
ROSEMONT, Ill. — The Big Ten is the latest Power Five conference to announce that a team must forfeit if it doesn’t have enough players available for a league game because of covid-19. The Big Ten said Monday the team that forfeits will be assessed a loss in the conference...
Iowa State, Notre Dame highlight AP preseason All-Americans
Notre Dame and Iowa State each had three players selected to The Associated Press preseason All-America team, led by Fighting Irish defensive back Kyle Hamilton and Cyclones running back Breece Hall. The preseason All-America team was released Monday, five days before the first games of the season kickoff. Penn State...
Big 12 faces difficult realignment questions as ACC, Big Ten and Pac-12 talk alliance
Big 12 leaders seemed to react with stunned silence when news broke over the weekend that the ACC, Big Ten and Pac-12 were having talks about a potential alliance between their conferences. That makes sense. There wasn’t much for them to say. Well, nothing positive, anyway. Oklahoma and Texas are...
BYU’s name, image, likeness deal could test limits of competitive advantageVideo
A deal BYU has made available to its football players could test how much allowing athletes to be compensated by outside companies for name, image and likeness can be used as a competitive advantage. Earlier this week, BYU announced Built Brands — a Utah-based company that makes protein snacks —...
Baylor infractions decision comes amid scrutiny of NCAA roleVideo
The NCAA infractions committee’s decision against punishing Baylor for its mishandling of sexual assault allegations in a sprawling scandal involving football players was jarring — even to the committee. Joel Maturi, the chief hearing officer and a member of the committee for eight years, said the case was troubling for...
Pac-12: Covid-19 issues can result in forfeits this seasonVideo
SAN FRANCISCO — Pac-12 teams that cannot play because of covid-19 issues will likely be forced to forfeit games this season. The conference announced Thursday it is reinstituting its forfeiture policy after it modified its rules last season because of the pandemic. Last season, a game that could not be...
New coordinator puts aggressive plan for Notre Dame defense in placeVideo
SOUTH BEND, Ind. — Marcus Freeman believes the best thing he can do as Notre Dame’s new defensive coordinator is to get out of the way of his players. “This is theirs. They built this. I’m the new guy,” said the 35-year-old Freeman, who seven months ago was picked by...
Knocking off Ohio State goal for rest of Big TenVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — There aren’t many revelations to be learned about Ohio State’s recent dominance in the Big Ten. But say the school’s name to Indiana senior wide receiver Ty Fryfogle and he smiles with anticipation. “I’m ready to beat ‘em,” Fryfogle said during Friday’s media days session at Lucas Oil...
Potential Texas, Oklahoma move to SEC could tip realignment dominosVideo
INDIANAPOLIS — Barry Alvarez lived through the tidal wave of conference realignment that swept over college sports in the early 2010s as Wisconsin’s athletic director, watching the Big Ten grow to 14 teams from the Midwest to the East Coast. Another round of shuffling could be on the horizon, with...
Texas coach Steve Sarkisian: No magic trick to make Longhorns contenders againVideo
ARLINGTON — Texas fans want more than top 10 rankings and bowl victories. They would like to win some Big 12 titles and be in contention for national championships. While the Longhorns still are the last Big 12 team to win a national title, that was long ago — the...
