The State of College Football: LSU, Notre Dame and OU Have Their Guy
This week was one of the craziest I can remember in college football and the craziness doesn’t stop now. LSU and Notre Dame both filled their vacancies but Oklahoma hasn’t (yet) and Miami could be joining the party.
Weekly Awards
Offensive Player of the Week: Bryce Young, Alabama: 26/44, 421 yards, 4 TDs (1 rushing)
Defensive Player of the Week: Devin Lloyd, Utah: 7 tackles, 1 INT, 1 TD
Freshman of the Week: Brock Bowers, Georgia: 10 catches 139 yards, 1 TD
Coach of the Week: Nick Saban, Alabama
$100 Handshakes
Quarterback
Kenny Pickett, Pitt: 20/33, 253 yards, 3 Total TDs (1 rushing)
Running Back
Sincere McCormick, UTSA: 36 carries, 204 yards, 3 TDs
Jerome Ford, Cincinnati: 18 carries, 187 yards, 3 TDs
Receiver
Jordan Addison, Pitt: 8 catches, 126 yards
Jameson Williams, Alabama: 7 catches, 184 yards, 2 TDs
Tight End
Brock Bowers, Georgia: 10 catches 139 yards, 1 TD
Offensive Line
Michigan: 211 yards, 4 TDs
Defensive Line/EDGE
Will Anderson Jr., Alabama: 6 tackles, 1 sack, 2 TFLs
Linebacker
Malcolm Rodriguez, Oklahoma State: 12 tackles, 1.5 TFLs
Defensive Back
Jordan Battle, Alabama: 6 tackles, 1 INT, 1 TD
Jalen Pitre, Baylor: 7 tackles, 2 TFLs
Where I Was Right / Where I Was Wrong
Right: Quinn Ewers to the transfer portal
The only thing better than winning is being right and a lot of us called this one as soon as Quinn Ewers committed to Ohio State. Ewers is an elite recruit, according to 247Sports Composite, and the best recruit since Vince Young - but the quarterback room at Ohio State was* loaded when he committed to the Buckeyes. With CJ Stroud becoming a Heisman Trophy candidate the job at Ohio State just isn’t going to be open next year. Ewers will now be going back to his home state of Texas where he has already met with Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian, and is set to meet with TCU, Texas Tech and Texas A&M. I think it’s safe to say Ewers misses Texas. Now attention turns to where will be going and who will be coming with him.
*Ohio State quarterbacks Quinn Ewers and Jack Miller have already entered the portal. Five-star freshman Kyle McCord could also enter the portal.
Wrong: Michigan football
I’ve waited all year for the Michigan hype to die and it hasn’t. Hats off to Jim Harbaugh - or whoever made him make the coaching changes he did. The Wolverines have an exciting team that is peaking at the right time. Their game against Georgia will be a very fun matchup to watch.
Final Thoughts
—Heisman Watch
Coming into this weekend the Heisman race was still pretty wide open. Aidan Hutchinson and Will Anderson Jr. were making a serious run at the award but Alabama quarterback Bryce Young slammed the door shut on Saturday with an amazing performance over a historically great Georgia defense. Some of the plays and throws Young made will not only win him the Heisman but will have NFL teams considering their draft strategy at the quarterback position in 2022 and 2023.
My Heisman Ballot:
1. Bryce Young, QB, Alabama
2. Aidan Hutchinson, DE, Michigan
3. CJ Stroud, QB, Ohio State
4. Will Anderson Jr., OLB, Alabama
—Brian Kelly to LSU
This has been one hell of a week! Wait, has it really only been a week? Brian Kelly was hired away from Notre Dame to be the new head football coach at LSU and Kelly went viral for his introduction at LSU. LSU fans should save the receipts on people laughing at Brian Kelly though because the Tiger fans will have the last laugh. I think Kelly is a great hire at LSU and is just what the program needs to turn things around. It might not be a sexy hire but it was a good one.
—Marcus Freeman Stays at Notre Dame
Speaking of home run hires, look at the way the Notre Dame fans, players and coaches rallied around the hiring of Marcus Freeman. The push to keep Freeman was so strong that Notre Dame named Freeman the head coach in the same week Kelly left. One thing I question about the Freeman hire is the fact Freeman doesn’t have head coaching experience - but neither did Dabo Swinney, Lincoln Riley or Ryan Day when they were hired. It's going to be hard to not root for Freeman and Notre Dame.
Rumors
—Mario Cristobal to Miami
This has been a crazy story to track and even though they’re just rumors right now (Sunday night) I think this is something that could happen. Sources say that Cristobal has an agreement in place to become the next head football coach at Miami - which is not out of the ordinary - but Miami still has an active head coach in Manny Diaz. Say what you want about Cristobal or Diaz but the way Miami has handled this has been terrible. Stringing along Diaz like this and working on contract negotiations with Cristobal will remind us all of our worst past relationships.
I do think there is real interest from Cristobal to Miami. While Miami may not have the facilities, support or players that Oregon does, it’s hard to say no to coming home. Cristobal will have a tough decision on his hands over the next 24-48 hours.
—Brent Venables to Oklahoma
The next not so quiet rumor is Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables to Oklahoma. Venables has been one of the highest paid coordinators in college football history and has patiently waited for a head coaching opportunity. At 50 years old Venables does not have head coaching experience but did coach at Oklahoma from 1999-2011, as well as time with Bob Stoops at Kansas State before their time together at OU. Venables seems like a Stoops guy - which makes him an OU guy too.
—Coaches getting raises
Three coaches made great moves by staying where they were. Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss; James Franklin, Penn State; Mel Tucker, Michigan State all got BIG raises after hearing and seeing their names all over the rumor mill. Now, all three programs feel like they have their guy to continue to build what they started. We’ll see how long they stay - I’m looking at you Lane Kiffin.
Games to Watch
Army vs Navy, 2:00 pm CT, CBS