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Houston Cougars running back Charles Sims is reportedly leaving the program just ahead of his senior season.  

Rob Sellers of CougarsDen.com broke the news on Wednesday:

The 6'1", 213-pound Sims enjoyed a stellar campaign for the Cougars in 2012, running for 851 yards on six yards per carry for 11 touchdowns, while also catching 37 passes for 373 yards and three more scores.

This comes after Sims announced he would return for his final year back in January.

Prior to this past season, Sims was on the preseason Maxwell Award watch list, an accolade that is given to college football's most outstanding player. That hype was justified by his breakout sophomore campaign in which Sims received first-team All-Conference USA honors.

A big reason he didn't receive the same distinction yet again was due to his health, as Sims missed three full games and the second half of three others with injuries (h/t UHCougars.com).

Since Sims has redshirted and already graduated from Houston, he can catch on with another program as a transfer immediately without sitting out a full season, as is typical protocol.

That is what current Seattle Seahawks QB Russell Wilson did in transferring from North Carolina State to Wisconsin in 2011, and he attended graduate school in Madison.

Circumstances are different for Sims in this instance, and it is still a mystery as to precisely why he left Houston. The key is that he's eligible for one more collegiate season, and wherever he lands, he should find a way to see the field

Sims projects well to the NFL because of his size and versatility to catch the ball out of the backfield. Even as a freshman in an offense triggered by Case Keenum, that was evident, as Sims registered 70 receptions for 759 yards.

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Kansas football announced Wednesday evening that the team has landed wide receiver Nick Harwell. According to the KU athletics website, "Harwell has signed a grant in aid to join the KU football program in August."

The Jayhawks have a receiving core with limited talent in Andrew Turzilli, Justin McCay and Josh Ford. The Jayhawks went all of last season without a touchdown pass to a wide receiver.

Now, Kansas has a little bit more fire power and a big target for quarterback Jake Heaps to throw to.

Kansas head coach Charlie Weis was pleased with Heaps' four-touchdown spring game earlier this offseason. Now, Weis is really looking forward to coaching this offense.

Under Weis' guidance, the Jayhawks offense should see some improvement. With the addition of Harwell, the returning Jayhawks have a better understanding of how Weis wants to run the offense.

Heaps also spent one year watching quarterback Dayne Crist in Kansas, giving him a better idea of the offense by spectating in games and participating in practice.

The Jayhawks still have a lot of room for improvement, but picking up Harwell can help the program turn a corner and move into the right direction. Kansas won two games in 2011 and just one game last season in Weis' first year. The Jayhawks are currently riding a 21-game conference losing streak, with their last conference win coming against Colorado on Nov. 6, 2010.

Harwell, who played for Miami (Ohio), was the NCAA's second-leading receiver two years ago with nearly 130 receiving yards per game. He finished his sophomore year with 97 catches for 1,425 yards and nine touchdowns.

Despite missing three games last season, Harwell placed 13th in the NCAA in receptions per game and 14th in receiving yards per game.

 

Follow @Farzin21

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Seven years.

That is how long the Southeastern Conference has dominated college football.

Alabama has won three of the last four BCS titles. How long will this onslaught last?

That depends on two things—the head coach and the NCAA.

College football is cyclical. But winning programs that incurred a coaching change or NCAA sanctions—sometimes both—saw their dynasties end.  

Alabama, Nebraska and Oklahoma were three of the most dominant teams in the 1970s. They won a combined seven national titles.

Alabama head coach Bear Bryant won six national titles before retiring in 1982. Alabama won another title in 1992 under Gene Stallings but would then go on a 17-year drought. The school faced three major NCAA investigations from 1995 to 2009 and was slapped with postseason bans and vacated victories. 

Oklahoma faced the wrath of the NCAA in 1988. Head coach Barry Switzer left the program in 1989 because of notorious scandals that occurred during his watch. The NCAA sanctioned the Sooners with postseason and television bans and scholarship reductions.

Nebraska coach Tom Osborne (1973-97) never coached a team that finished with less than nine wins in one season. His teams won two national titles in 1994-95 and shared a title with Michigan in 1997. Since Osborne retired, five Nebraska teams have finished the season unranked by the AP and only three finished in the AP's final Top 10.  

The Miami Hurricanes stormed through the 80s as one of the more fearsome teams in the country. They won three national titles in that decade. Nobody could stop the Hurricanes...except for the NCAA. Miami was rocked by scandals including the infamous Pell Grant scandal. In 1995 the NCAA hammered Miami with a postseason ban and stripped its scholarships for the next three years. 

USC won two championships in 2003-04 but its 2004 BCS Championship was vacated due to NCAA sanctions. In addition to vacated victories, USC was placed on a two-year postseason ban and stripped of 30 scholarships over three years. USC head coach Pete Carroll left for the Seattle Seahawks at the end of the 2009 season. Since Carroll's departure, USC's record is 32-19.

 

Florida won two BCS titles in 2006 and 2008 but it hasn't played in a BCS Championship since then-head coach Urban Meyer left in 2010.

LSU won its first BCS title under then-head coach Nick Saban in 2003. Saban left for the NFL's Miami Dolphins on Christmas day 2004.  Head coach Les Miles won the school's second BCS title in 2007 but he did that with Saban's senior class—he has not won a BCS title with his own players.

If it is not a coaching change that affects a team's momentum, it is the NCAA's imposing heavy hand. The more a coach wins, the more every school or NFL team wants him. He heads the short list of every athletic director or NFL general manager.

Winning also has another downside. The more a team wins, the more high profile it becomes. More eyes are watching, including those in Indianapolis where the NCAA is headquartered.

So far, Alabama is the team to beat in the foreseeable future. Alabama is no longer on NCAA probation but it still is within that five-year repeat offender window.

If the Tide stay clean and Nick Saban continues to coach at Tuscaloosa, Alabama should keep rolling.

Saban will be 62 years old this October. He's already dabbled in the NFL. Unless the most powerful man in sports is offered an absurd amount of money to coach somewhere else, he's staying put.

The only way we can predict how long Alabama will continue to dominate is to predict how long Saban will be at Alabama. It's that easy.

We're predicting Saban retires after having won his seventh title at Alabama. Saban currently has four BCS titles but one of those belongs to LSU. To catch Bryant, he needs three more. To be the all-time leader, he needs four.

We're giving him five years to win four, just like an NCAA student-athlete scholarship.

Piece of cake.

 

Note—National champions were determined by using the criteria of an AP, UPI, USAT or BCS title.  

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Ohio State isn't the most talented team in the nation.

In fact, you could make a case that the Buckeyes aren't even in the top five when it comes to talent on paper, what with the departures of defensive linemen Johnathan Hankins and John Simon, outside linebacker Etienne Sabino, tight end Jake Stoneburner and fullback Zach Boren.

Why are the Buckeyes considered national title contenders?

No, not just because of dual-threat sensation Braxton Miller.

Because Urban Meyer is the head coach.

We all know what Meyer is capable of. He not only won two national championships with Florida, he also lifted Ohio State to a perfect 12-0 record in his first year as Buckeyes coach last season.

This year, the task will be even more difficult than last season. To be a true national contender, the Buckeyes will need some freshmen to step up.

Sure, these aren't just any freshmen. Safety Vonn Bell was a 5-star recruit, according to 247Sports.com's composite rankings. Four-star recruits such as cornerback Eli Apple, defensive end Joey Bosa and playmakers Jalin Marshall and Dontre Wilson figure to make an impact in their first years.

But they are still freshmen.

Particularly in the cases of Marshall and Wilson, Meyer will have to use his magic touch to get the most out of his young talent.

Marshall and Wilson are ideal athletes for Meyer to work with. Given their speed, elusiveness and playmaking ability, they could fit wonderfully into Meyer's spread offense. Memories of Percy Harvin at Florida instantly sprout up in the spring.

A coach's job is to make the most out of his talent. Ohio State's youngsters have great potential, but Meyer will need to put them in the right situations to succeed, like he's done with countless players before, including Miller.

The expectations are extremely high for the Buckeyes in 2013-14. Whether they meet these expectations will depend on how well Meyer can mold his young talent into a cohesive unit.

Of course, Meyer has never shied away from great expectations before.

 

Read more College Football news on BleacherReport.com

If you believe the latest rumors surrounding Notre Dame Football and its prized recruit, 5-star defensive tackle Eddie Vanderdoes, there's a chance the young man won't be taking his talents to South Bend. 

According to Lou Somogyi of 247Sports.com, there are rumors that Vanderdoes "might not be enrolling" at Notre Dame. Furthermore, he is reportedly favoring UCLA:

A groundswell of Internet message board speculation that exploded on Monday has indicated that Vanderdoes might not be enrolling with the 24-man Fighting Irish class for summer school and workouts that begin Monday, June 17.

Reportedly, the Bruins now seem to be the favorite for Vanderdoes. Messages left by Blueandgold.com to Vanderdoes and his family to confirm or deny the rumors went unanswered, and Notre Dame has not issued any public statements either.

Some of the stuff that was being talked about on the Internet message boards had to do with potential character concerns and/or bad grades, but Mike Davidson of the Sacramento Bee—a man who's been working closely with Vanderdoes and his family—refuted those claims:

Vanderdoes' coaches continued to rave about his upstanding character on Monday, and his father Eddie Vanderdoes on Monday night texted of his son, "One thing I can tell you is grades or eligibility is not and has never been an issue."

 He also has no idea whether or not the young man has changed his mind about Notre Dame, per his Twitter account:

With all this speculation, it's important to realize that Vanderdoes may still be intending to attend Notre Dame this summer. That said, should he make the decision to go elsewhere, it would could mean trouble for the Fighting Irish in the next couple of years.

Louis Nix and Stephon Tuitt—the team's two top defensive linemen—will both likely head to the NFL after this season. 

Vanderdoes, at 6'2" and 310 pounds, is an incredibly strong young man and would be perfectly suited to replace Nix in the middle of Brian Kelly's 3-4 scheme. Should he decide to go elsewhere, however, Kelly doesn't have another player coming up that could possibly impact his defense like Vanderdoes.

The only other player who could potentially play the nose right now, if you look at current players and incoming freshmen, is sophomore Sheldon Day, who measures in at 6'5" and 299 pounds.

Incoming freshmen Jacob Matuska and Isaac Rochell are both 260 pounds or lighter and better suited to play on the edge as pass-rushers (or at best as 3-4 defensive ends). Sheldon Day, at 6'2" and 286 pounds, projects as a pure 3-4 defensive end. 

Should Vanderdoes decide to take his talents elsewhere, Kelly and the Notre Dame defense could really struggle in 2014 against the run. 

Perhaps one solution might be to convert to a 4-3 defensive scheme that would be better a better fit for the team's roster, but that's not likely a move Kelly would be willing to make for the long-term success of the program. 

This story isn't going away any time soon.

If Vanderdoes and his family continue to keep Notre Dame, its fans and the media in the dark about their intentions, then speculation and rumors will only continue to gain momentum. 

 

Follow me on Twitter @JesseReed78 

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This fall the Pac-12 is loaded with talent and looking for titles. Each team has a fresh start, but not all are title contenders. Some just want to make the postseason.

This is a look at the best and worst that the fall will have to offer for each Pac-12 team.

The national title aspirations return for Oregon and Stanford, while USC would be happy with a shot at the Pac-12 title. Can Mike MacIntyre turnaround the Colorado program in year one?

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This fall the Pac-12 is loaded with talent and looking for titles. Each team has a fresh start, but not all are title contenders. Some just want to make the postseason...

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247Sports' No. 1 recruit for the class of 2015 attends the same high school President Barack Obama graduated from.

There are three quarterbacks who received 5-star rankings, and all three are pro-style quarterbacks from the state of California. One of those quarterbacks, Josh Rosen, runs a 4.55-second 40-yard dash (247Sports) and already has offers from Michigan, Tennessee and Vanderbilt, among others.

This is a quick snapshot of what we can look forward to from this 2015 class, and thanks to the newly released Top247 for 2015, we can start breaking it down.

Over the next months and years there will be much discussion and analysis of these 247 recruits. Offers will be made, momentum will be gained and lost. Commitments and decommitments are givens, and before all is said and done, we'll definitely see a few surprises.

Overall, though, the world of college football recruiting is all about the future, and this class projects to be exceptionally bright.

Here's a look at the new Top247 and the major talking points you want to know about:

 

No. 1 Recruit: Canton Kaumatule

Kaumatule of Honolulu, Hawaii (Panahou School) is a strong-side defensive end recruit who's already 6'6.5'', 275 pounds. He has the size and length of a dominant end recruit already, and he could end up getting bigger. He's still just a sophomore in high school, but his savvy will continue to build.

He already has a good combination of strength, speed and technique, but all three of those attributes will improve during his junior and senior years of high school. If he keeps hitting the weight room and working on his fundamentals, Kaumatule could be a truly elite recruit.

As of right now, he only has offers from Hawaii, UCLA and Utah, but that will change fast.

Note: Check out our preliminary analysis and thoughts on the No. 1 recruit. All scouting done via tape study of film provided on his 247Sports profile page.

 

16 initial 5-star recruits 

Not surprisingly, the power group in the early goings of this class is the defensive line. Out of the 16 5-star recruits, eight of them are defensive linemen. There are four offensive linemen and three quarterbacks.

The quarterbacks are Ricky Town, the aforementioned Rosen and Kevin Dillman.

George Campbell is the lone wideout who received a 5-star rating, and he checks in at 6'3'', 184 pounds.

 

Commitments

Bleacher Report's assistant college football editor, Eric Bowman, took the time to tally the amount of commitments in the initial top247. He posted his findings on Twitter: 

Those commitments are:

Shameik Blackshear, 5-star WDE, committed to South Carolina

Mekhi Brown, 5-star SDE, committed to Alabama

Kevin Toliver II, 4-star CB, committed to LSU

Derwin James, 4-star S, committed to Florida State

Desherrius Flowers, 4-star RB, committed to Alabama

Deionte Thompson, 4-star S, committed to Alabama

Chad President, 4-star WR, committed to Baylor

Donovan Sheffield, 4-star CB, committed to Vanderbilt

Jordan Davis, 4-star TE, committed to Florida State

Christian Owens, 4-star WR, committed to Georgia

Avery Anderson, 4-star ATH, committed to Arizona State

(Note: Avery Anderson has since been left off the list.)

 

Of course, Alabama is leading the way so far, and overall, the SEC has a dominant head start on the class of 2015. 

 

Initial Thoughts

It's nice to see three quarterbacks receiving early 5-stars, especially with the lack of star power at the position in the current 2014 class. There will be a lot of hype surrounding the three quarterback recruits, and their commitments will eventually be big news.

There is a very notable lack of defensive backs at the top of the class. In fact, the first true defensive back to appear in the rankings, 4-star safety Kerryon Johnson, doesn't appear until No. 31 overall.

Finally, the defensive line group looks stellar as well, and Kaumatule, in particular, has superstar potential once he gains more experience—in the weight room, film room and on the field.

 

Read more College Football news on BleacherReport.com

Clemson continues its impressive start to the 2014 recruiting class. Running back Adam Choice is the latest to give the Tigers his verbal commitment.

Kipp Adams and William Wilkerson of ESPN reported the news (paid link).

"I committed to Clemson," Choice said. "I felt like I felt when I went up there. Like I belonged."

Choice also had offers from Tennessee, Texas and Georgia, among others, but many believed it was going to come down to Auburn and Clemson. It looks like the Clemson Tigers got the big end of the stick on this one.

A 4-star prospect according to 247Sports, Choice will fit right in Chad Morris' system. He is a big back at 5'9", 210 pounds and can be difficult to wrap up.

Keith Niebuhr of 247Sports describes him perfectly:

Choice will play running back once he arrives on campus, but he spent a lot of time in high school running the wildcat as a quarterback. He broke tackles with ease, handed out stiff-arms like they were free lunches and had no problem finding the end zone. According to the report, Choice rushed for 1,600 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns as a sophomore.

He was a productive baseball player in high school as well. It looks like Clemson has hit another home run.

Clemson now has seven early commitments for the 2014 class, including five 4-star players. Out of the seven players, six of them play offense, which is bad news for the rest of the ACC. The Clemson coaching staff has been putting in work lately, as this is the third commitment this month along with cornerback C.J. Fuller and tight end Milan Richard.

Read more College Football news on BleacherReport.com

Brady Hoke is entering his third season as the head coach of the Michigan Wolverines. Fans have witnessed both sides of the fence his first two seasons, as a BCS bowl game was clinched in 2011 and a subpar 8-5 record was reached last season.

What is in store this time?

Michigan does return the fewest starters in the Big Ten with 12, but there are plenty of backups that picked up valuable experience. And while expectations are never low for Wolverines fans, there comes a point during the offseason where everybody has to put together a list of reasonable goals.

The Wolverines have a few.

 

A More Balanced Offense

Last season, Michigan was a running machine but lacked in the passing game. Michigan struggled at times to move the football and put points on the board, as it finished ranked 41st in rushing yards and 97th in passing yardage.

A lot of this had to do with the quarterback issues of an unhealthy Denard Robinson and throwing Devin Gardner into the lion's den.

You can expect a more balanced unit and an offense that can move the football effectively this season. Gardner is a more complete quarterback than Robinson was, which allows the Wolverines to operate like a balanced offense.

Gardner isn't so quick to run and doesn't give up on throwing the football. He also appears to be a lot more accurate than the former Michigan quarterback. Instead of designing a playbook that leaned more to a quarterback taking off, Gardner will be asked to make the throws and play the role of a traditional quarterback. The new pro-style offense will fit this team nicely.

The running back depth is also looking good with Fitzgerald Toussaint, Justice Hayes, Drake Johnson and Derrick Green.

Questions with the interior of the offensive line remain, but the overall pieces of this offense are solid enough for this unit to take many steps forward.

 

Another Great Defense

Defense is what Michigan has relied on over the last two seasons and it will look to continue its high level of play under defensive coordinator Greg Mattison. But with the injury to linebacker Jake Ryan and a defensive line that has a hard time generating a pass rush, there are concerns about this unit possibly heading in the wrong direction.

Don't even think about it.

The loss of Ryan will hurt, but a combination of Cameron Gordon and Brennan Beyer should be good enough to get the job done until he returns.

You also have to like the potential up front of Chris Wormley, Matt Godin and freshman Taco Charlton. Those are all athletic and young guys who should add a little spice to the pass rush.

The secondary also looks good on paper with Courtney Avery and Ramon Taylor. Getting Blake Countess back will be absolutely huge as well.

Michigan was tied with Boise State last year for the fifth-best pass defense in the country. Although it may be asking a bit much to repeat that result, throwing on the Wolverines won't be easy.

Michigan should once again have a quality defense which ranks among the best in the Big Ten.

 

8 Victories

Expectations are obviously higher in Ann Arbor, but remember that we are discussing reasonable goals. Michigan should have no problem winning eight games, but anything beyond that is questionable.

Notre Dame is on the schedule, a trip to Penn State, Nebraska, Ohio State and then a road game in East Lansing. All of these games could result in a loss—the Wolverines weren't given many breaks schedule-wise.

There are also questions surrounding the team that need to be answered before anybody can be comfortable picking a BCS bowl trip.

Will the offensive line hold up replacing three starters? Can Gardner perform at a high level for an entire season? Will Ryan be missed more than we originally thought?

A reasonable goal is the same amount of victories the program finished with last year.

 

Follow @Randy_Chambers

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What do you do with a true freshman 5-star quarterback who is competing with two more experienced players at his position? Do you start him, redshirt him or lock him in as a reserve?

Those are the options facing USC head coach Lane Kiffin as he spends his summer mulling over which of his three quarterbacks will start this fall.

Is it redshirt sophomore Cody Kessler, who has patiently waited his turn behind Matt Barkley? Is it redshirt sophomore Max Wittek, who was thrust into the starting role against Notre Dame and Georgia Tech after Barkley went down with an injury against UCLA?

Or is it highly coveted 2013 recruit Max Browne, who had a great spring camp? 

Kiffin's decision is critical for several reasons. His job security may depend on making the right choice. It's most likely Rose Bowl or bust for Kiffin.

Redshirting Browne could backfire if Kessler or Wittek were to get hurt. Who would be left as the reserve? Starting Browne could cause Wittek and Kessler to take their talents somewhere else after this season. Both would have two years of eligibility to offer an FBS school. 

This decision by Kiffin isn't just about who deserves it the most. Politics play into this.

Browne could follow Barkley's footsteps and be the next four-year starter at USC. But Kessler and Wittek likely won't stick around if that were to happen. That's why Browne won't be named the starting quarterback. Maybe they all will.

Could this be a quarterback-by-committee approach for USC? It's not out of the question. Having all three quarterbacks start during the season would probably squelch any transfers. Most fans don't like the committee approach because it implies that no one separated himself from the others as a leader.

But USC is still under an NCAA-imposed 10-scholarship reduction and in survival mode for one more year. It has to preserve its thin roster. And its future quarterbacks.

Browne is the future. At USC's spring game press conference, Kiffin noted one negative of Browne's performance: "The rookie taking a couple of sacks." More from FOXSports West's Rahshaun Haylock:

Browne completed 7 of 11 passes for 80 yards, a touchdown and an interception. Browne also took a couple of sacks, which Kiffin said was one of the few negatives on the day. 

“It’s hard to learn to throw the ball away,” Kiffin said of Browne.

Browne is 6'5", 215 pounds and will have to add bulk to his 18-year-old body this summer. He stands tall in the pocket, has a strong arm and is accurate. He is a traditional dropback passer.

With Browne at QB, USC's offense would look similar to 2002's under then-quarterback Carson Palmer. Palmer was not very athletic when flushed out of the pocket. Imagine a scarecrow running for his life with anchors attached to his feet.

Palmer, like Browne, is 6' 5" and had a height advantage that allowed him to see the play develop. He didn't try to scramble under pressure. He threw the ball away. Under Palmer, USC ran a pro-style offense. Run the ball and wait for the passing game to open up.

If Browne is named the starter, expect to see the same. He's not athletic when flushed out—he needs to throw the ball away when the pocket collapses.

Having talented veteran receivers Nelson Agholor, Victor Blackwell and Marqise Lee at his disposal makes the passing game more of a viable option.

Browne could be expected to throw a lot of short passes to build his confidence early in the season. Think West Coast offense. But after two or three games, expect an air show. Browne is a huge downfield threat and Kiffin won't ask him to dink-pass his way down the field. 

USC fans want to forget the misery of 2012. The porous defense. The vanilla play-calling. The stuttering offense. 

Browne could re-energize the Trojan fans with his arm, or the future of USC football could be relegated to the sidelines with a clipboard in his hands. 

We'll find out in 99 days. 

Read more College Football news on BleacherReport.com

What do you do with a true freshman 5-star quarterback who is competing with two more experienced players at his position? Do you start him, redshirt him or lock him in as a reserve? ...

Read the full article on Bleacher Report...

The University of Oregon has known about the NCAA's allegations toward its football program for nearly six months...

Read the full article on Bleacher Report...

Canton Kaumatule, newly minted 5-star defensive end, is just a rising junior, but he already checks in at nearly 6'7'', 275 pounds. At that size, he has immense potential as a college football recruit.

So much potential, in fact, that the experts at 247Sports have named him the No. 1 recruit in the newly  released Top247 for 2015.

Kaumatule is from Honolulu, Hawaii, and attends Punahou School. Gerry Hamilton of 247Sports reports that Panuahou is the same school that has produced President Barack Obama and former Notre Dame linebacker Manti Te'o.

Talk about a legacy of high expectations.

As it stands, Kaumatule only has offers from Utah, UCLA and Hawaii, but according to Hamilton's report, recruiting doesn't seem like much of a priority yet for the new 5-star:

I don’t even worry about recruiting stuff yet. My dad keeps up with most of it, but I haven’t even worried about it since I’m just a sophomore. I know for sure I’m going to the Stanford camp in June. I don’t know of anything else yet because I’m going to summer school to graduate early. I think my first choice is Stanford because my brother Luke. I would like to play with him again, and in college this time. I think second would be Washington. I like places that are green and remind me of Hawaii. I’m going to say Hawaii would be third right now. Close to home is very important to me. Hawaii is very important to me.

For comparison's sake, here's how Kaumatule stacks up physically against past No. 1 recruits at the defensive end position. 

Robert Nkemdiche, the No. 1 recruit in 2013,  is 6'4'', 285 pounds, and Jadaveon Clowney, the No. 1 recruit in 2011,  was 6'5'', 255 pounds. Da'Shawn Hand, 2014's No. 1 strong-side defensive end, is 6'5'', 247 pounds.

As you can see, Kaumatule has similar physical attributes.

As a defensive end, length is everything. At 6'7'' he'll be able to combat even the biggest offensive tackles at the college level. His length will help him engage blockers and create separation, and because of that, he'll have an easier time fighting to keep his outside arm free in an effort to set the edge as a run-defender. Kaumatule will also be able to establish leverage and use his arms as a pass-rusher.

He's a raw athlete with tremendous size and long arms. He plays with good bend in his knees, explosion and has the quickness to come down the line of scrimmage and make a play. He projects to be strong against the run, but he also has the speed to be effective as a pass-rusher.

The sky is truly the limit for Kaumatule, and he's deserving of the No. 1 ranking in 2015.

 

Note: Preliminary scouting and analysis of Kaumatule done via tape study of highlights provided on his 247Sports profile page.

Read more College Football news on BleacherReport.com

In the race to stay relevant in college football, two BCS conference coaches have ended up looking like schmucks—and they were outclassed by a coach from the MAC.

In recent weeks, Florida wide receivers coach and recruiting coordinator Joker Phillips and Georgia Tech offensive graduate assistant Preston Pehrson have taken to their computers to garner some attention from recruits.

I would say one was more embarrassing than the other, but they’re both equally pitiful.

Phillips, who is in his first year at UF after being relieved of his post as the head coach of Kentucky, decided to show off his Photoshop…uh…skills.

It started off as just a typical recruiting pitch, with Phillips featuring a star NFL receiver whom he coached; in this case it was Buffalo Bills wideout Stevie Johnson. He tweeted a picture of Johnson and introduced his now infamous hashtag “#ComePlayWRForTheJoker.”

Then the whole “Joker” thing went to Joker’s head and two days later he tweeted a doctored image of The Joker—the villain from the blockbuster Batman film, The Dark Knight—wearing Florida blue and orange.

From there, his tweets only became more disturbing. Later on came an even creepier Joker throwback tweet to the character’s Jack Nicholson days.

His tweets hit an all-time low on April 15, when he tweeted an image with just a bunch of random clowns.

Because everyone loves clowns, right?

Apparently not. About a month after that creepy clown tweet, the Gators actually had a 4-star wide receiver, Ryeshene Bronson, decommit (Via 247Sports.com).

While Joker was losing recruits and becoming the laughing stock of college football—no pun intended—Georgia Tech’s Pehrson decided that he wanted to publicly humiliate himself in the name of recruiting too.

So the GT graduate assistant decided to join in on an internet fad that honestly should have died out months ago right along with the Harlem Shake: memes.

Pehrson came up with his own hashtag as well, “#TheMigration” designed to lure in players from the north to migrate south and join the Yellow Jackets.

According to Ken Sugiura of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the new theme is a part of the team’s effort to attract recruits from areas other than the South, particularly in the Washington D.C. area (via AJC.com).

With that in mind, I do approve of one of Pehrson’s memes—a depiction of Omar from The Wire, an HBO crime series set in nearby Baltimore. Although, I doubt that will help GT pull in the next Tavon Austin (a Baltimore native), especially if he scrolls through the rest of Pehrson’s tweeted images.

Pehrson tweeted dozens of these recycled images, from Dos Equis’ “Most interesting man in the world” to Mortal Kombat.

And as if the simple memes weren’t enough, Pehrson had to further show off his web prowess by responding to the “haters” of The Migration with a special meme saying “Haters Gonna Hate!”

Well, Coach Pehrson, you can chalk me up as another “hater” if you’d like. And if you want to tweet me a meme, I’m right here.

Personally, I’m more into what Ron English is doing up at Eastern Michigan in the Mid-American Conference.

Without the enormous budget or fan base of Florida or Georgia Tech, English is facing even more issues than any big-time program.

English is looking to make some improvements to the facilities at EMU. And by facilities, I actually mean the bathrooms (Via Ralph Russo, Associated Press | h/t DetroitNews.com).

But rather than rolling out a three-ring internet circus like Pehrson and Phillips, English is showing that he’s willing to take action himself to generate the $60,000 his program needs.

English has offered a skydiving trip to anyone who donates $5,000 to the Eagles. The catch is, English and a few EMU assistants will be skydiving as well.

As English told Russo, with its revenue nowhere near that of a BCS program, EMU has to be a little bit more resourceful than the competition:

In the Mid-American Conference, because of our following, the size of our stadiums and TV contracts, you have to be creative in terms of finding ways to raise money to help fund your programs.

But rather than go gimmicky like Pehrson and Phillips, English comes across as a coach that is willing to do anything for his players and his program—even if that means jumping out of an airplane.

As a recruit and especially as a current player, I’d be shaking my head in embarrassment at the lame tricks of Pehrson and Phillips at GT and UF.

This BCS duo may have thought they were keeping up with the times and being "cool" by taking to the internet to recruit.

However, they actually only highlighted their disconnect with the younger generation. No matter how old they actually are, they come across looking like a couple of guys going through a midlife crisis.

All they need now is a drop top red Corvette and a black leather jacket.

On the other hand, English is staying true to himself and showing that he doesn't have to make memes and take up Photoshop to lead a program.

As a player or a recruit, I'd be proud to suit up for English, no matter what our bathrooms looked like.

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Marqise Lee is the best wide receiver in college football and it's not even close. Never mind all of the individual awards and the records he continues to break, Lee is a special player who has a bright future once he finishes school (or leaves early, of course).

Lee is a game-changer and widely considered the top NFL prospect at his position. But what makes him stand out when there are so many great receivers? How is there such a wide gap between Lee and the rest of the pack?

The USC receiver does a lot of things correctly, but there are two things that truly put him in a class of his own.

 

Plays Bigger Than He Is 

Lee looks like he is 6'4" when out there on the football field. The truth is that he is small receiver at 6'0" according to his USC bio, while ESPN lists him at 6'1".

Whatever height you want to go with, Lee is considered small by NFL standards and many scouts are going to have a hard time imagining him as a true No. 1 option on the outside. Lee seems like he is the perfect fit to play on the inside just off of his size alone.

The tricky part is that Lee doesn't play like a small receiver.

That size is a little difficult to believe. It is a lot like speed with football players. Some guys don't produce a blazing 40-yard dash time, but seem a lot faster once they put the pads on. That's Lee when it comes to size. He is small on the field, but anybody that has tried to cover him would tell you otherwise.

Lee high points the ball better than any receiver in the country. He finds the ball and is able to time his jump to perfection. This has more to do with a natural feel than anything, as some players just know when to go up and get it. Here you see Lee against a Syracuse corner, who is stuck on an island trying to cover the best receiver in the country.

Not only does Lee jump a little bit after the corner does, he jumps what seems to be about a good foot higher than the defensive back. Being able to time his jump exactly gives Lee a huge advantage over whoever is covering him. While he may be smaller than a lot of the corners and safeties out there, his leaping ability and timing is fabulous.

The ability to jump through the stadium gives Lee the advantage in jump balls and makes him tougher to cover.

 

Elite Athleticism 

Players such as De'Anthony Thomas and Sammy Watkins will come up when discussing athleticism and speed, but the same things that make those two players great, makes Lee great as well. He may not be as fast as the Black Mamba and Watkins may have a slight advantage with his elusiveness, but Lee's athleticism is elite in its own right.

Most defenses choose to play off Lee and give him at least a five-yard cushion because of his terrific straight line speed. He is so quick off the line that he is able to beat press coverage and get by the corner, making the safety's job extremely difficult.

The problem is that Lee is a nightmare once he catches the ball. If you want to play off him, you better have reliable tacklers who are able to keep the USC receiver in front of them. This wasn't the case against Arizona, as Lee was able to break free on a dig route. All of those defenders chasing him grabbed air and were forced to watch him trot into the end zone.

Lee has top notch straight line speed and his long strides allow him to hit another gear in just a few steps. He accelerates so effortlessly and can create separation in the matter of seconds. Lee has no problem beating defenses over the top and often outruns both the corner and the safety, who both probably thought they were in perfect position to make a play on the ball.

Asking a defensive back to cover Lee in man coverage is absolute suicide and even using two players has proven to be difficult. You have to take the correct angles and be a wonderfully disciplined player to limit the star receiver.

Of course, easier said than done.

Along with Lee's sure hands, crisp route running and ability to make plays after the catch, it is his superb athleticism and ability to high point the football that makes him special.

Note: All screenshots were pulled from YouTube video uploaded by user MockingNFLDraft.

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Marqise Lee is the best wide receiver in college football and it's not even close. Never mind all of the individual awards and the records he continues to break, Lee is a special ...

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Duke really wants defensive end Harrison Phillips of the 2014 recruiting class. The Blue Devils are known for making a splash in the basketball recruiting world, but Phillips has piqued the coaching staff's interest like none other.

The 3-star defensive player (according to the 247Sports composite rankings) came home one day and found that Duke had sent him 115 letters (h/t Lost Lettermen and College Spun). Yes, all of the letters were at one time.

If you are one of those people who need pictures for proof, Phillips took to his Twitter account to show just how desperate the Blue Devils are.

Looks like the Phillips family will be eating dinner in the living room for now on.

Sending an insane amount of letters has become the new trend in college football recruiting. Stanton Tuitt recently received 102 letters from the Tennessee Volunteers, while Drew Barker had his mailbox nearly explode due to 115 hand-written letters from the Kentucky Wildcats. Oh, and in case you are wondering, Barker did commit to the program that begged for his talents.

But things have been taken to a whole new level with Phillips. Not only did he rack up 114 more letters than he should have, but he now knows what he would look like if he were to be selected in the NFL draft.

Once again, Phillips tweeted a Photoshopped picture which is supposed to be him being drafted by an NFL team.

For the record, Duke has produced 95 NFL players, four of which are still active and three eventually were inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Phillips has plenty of other offers, including Kansas State, Northern Illinois and Ohio, among others. Unfortunately, you can't see any of them, because Duke has buried the rest of the schools with its latest recruiting strategy.

Call it insane if you'd like. If it works, it's all that matters.

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CBS Sports will begin its 13th consecutive season of covering SEC football with a bang.

To kick things off, how does the Alabama-Texas A&M game sound?

According to SEC Digital Network, CBS Sports has picked up the highly anticipated matchup, which will be played on Saturday, Sept. 14 at 3:30 p.m. ET. It is arguably the most talked-about game of the 2013 season, as it will have SEC Championship and BCS implications.

After Johnny Manziel and company found a way to top the Crimson Tide in Tuscaloosa last season, handing eventual national champion Alabama its only defeat, the rematch in College Station, Texas, should be something special.

There will be storylines by the truckloads leading up to the big game between SEC West rivals and could turn out to be the most watched game of the season if it lives up to the hype.

The rest of the CBS schedule includes 16 games during the network’s 13-week season. Some of the other games include Florida-Georgia on November 2, Arkansas-LSU on November 29 and the SEC Championship Game on December 7.

There will also be an SEC doubleheader on October 19 and November 9. The two-game event in October could feature South Carolina at Tennessee and Florida at Missouri, while the November games are certain to include the LSU at Alabama meeting.

With the SEC looking like the conference to beat once again, CBS will continue to be the network that you want to focus on if you are a fan of championship-level football. There will be plenty of competitive matchups with national championship implications on the line most weeks.

Still, none is bigger and more exciting than Round 2 between the Aggies and Crimson Tide.

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The bowl season brings a lot of mixed emotions to the table. It marks the end of the college football season, but it also produces 35 games in 17 days for our viewing pleasure.

For the college football fan, it is the best way to celebrate the holidays and ring in the New Year. The Football Bowl Association built excitement today by releasing the 2013-14 bowl schedule.

The season will kick off with the Gildan New Mexico Bowl on December 21, with three games to follow the same day.

There will be only three days from December 21 to January 6 where a bowl game won't be on television.

The VIZIO BCS National Championship game is set for Monday, January 6 with the Rose Bowl hosting the game this year.

BCS competition will begin on January 1 with the Rose Bowl Game Presented by VIZIO kicking things off. The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl follows on New Year’s Day, the Allstate Sugar Bowl is set for January 2 and the Discover Orange Bowl will be played on January 3.

The AT&T Cotton Bowl will also be played on January 3. The Cotton Bowl is notable for its presence as a member of the playoff rotation in the new playoff system.

Love them or hate them, the bowls are great for the game and the economies that they impact. According to the schedule release, 28 communities host bowl games, with 7,000 student-athletes and two million fans being impacted.

Bowls have been an important part of the college football landscape and its rich history. It is a full lineup, but if the audience wasn’t there, the games wouldn’t be either.

Soak this piece of history in, as this will be the final bowl schedule release of the BCS era. 

There is no better way to spend the holidays than watching the bowl games unfold. Now you can plan your parties and travels thanks to the FBA.

 

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