NCAA Football News

You only have to look at Notre Dame's starting tight ends the past two years, Tyler Eifert and Kyle Rudolph, to know that the Fighting Irish are no strangers to standout players at the position.

That's why it wasn't a surprise that Notre Dame pursued 4-star tight end Durham Smythe this year, despite having three juniors and two other 2013 recruits at the position.

Now that the Fighting Irish have landed Smythe, it's only going to make them better moving forward.

Notre Dame not only has juniors Troy Niklas, Ben Koyack and Alex Welch at tight end, it also landed 4-star recruit Mike Heuerman and 3-star recruit Jacob Matuska in 2013. But while it may seem the Fighting Irish are overloaded at tight end, this only makes the team deeper and more talented at the position.

Niklas and Koyack, 4-star recruits in 2011, both spent the most time with Notre Dame's second team in 2012 while Eifert locked down the starting spot. Alex Welch, a 4-star recruit in 2010, suffered a torn ACL and missed the 2012 campaign, but could legitimately enter the mix in 2013.

Combined with Heuerman and Matuska, there will be plenty of players trying to show they are capable of succeeding Eifert.

There's nothing like a little competition to motivate players to work their tails off in the offseason. On top of that, incorporating these players into multiple tight-end sets will give starting quarterback Everett Golson more options in the passing game and only aid his development under center.

Notre Dame may not have another Tyler Eifert or Kyle Randolph in 2013, but the depth at the position figures to be an asset for the football team. The hardest part will be determining who gets the most reps and finding a way to blend the talented tight ends into the mix.

If anything, the Fighting Irish have some youngsters to develop until it's their time to shine, whether it be in 2013 or down the road.

What are your thoughts?

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For many high school football players, it comes down to the wire. The recruits have completed their campus visits, and the coaches have finalized their pitches, but we still don't know where everyone is going. National Signing Day is February 6, just over a week away, but there are still some top recruits that have yet to make their decisions.  

This is a look at the top running backs still available from this year's class and speculation on what hats they will be wearing when they announce their decisions.

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Just when you thought that recruiting couldn’t become more hectic, it did. Over the weekend, current Ohio State commit and 4-star linebacker prospect Trey Johnson took an official visit to Tennessee.  

This news came as shocking to most who follow the Buckeyes, as Johnson had previously committed to Ohio State at the Under Armour All American game.  

However, late Monday night, Johnson’s high school coach confirmed that he is all Buckeye and will sign with Ohio State next week, according to Eleven Warriors.

Trey Johnson's coach confirms that his star player will sign with #OhioState following #Tennessee visit

With Ohio State still chasing other recruits such as Dontre Wilson, James Clark, and Vonn Bell, Johnson’s visit put a little worry into the Buckeyes. If this statement holds true, Ohio State will be able to breathe a sigh of relief. 

Though none of the prospects listed above have pulled the trigger for Ohio State, sometimes the best pickups are the players who are already committed. This is exactly the case with Trey Johnson.

Johnson will be able to compete for playing time right away next season as the Buckeyes return only one starter at linebacker. The linebacker from Lawrenceville, Ga., possesses a high knowledge for the game, and that could give him an edge when fall camp rolls around. For now, Buckeye Nation can rest easy as Trey Johnson seems back to being a Buckeye. 

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Don’t hate the player, hate the game.

This tired, overworked expression fits when it comes to recruiting. It applies when we examine how coaches will freely recruit players who have already committed, and it more than fits when we examine the players and their role in making national signing day the spectacle it has become.

Long gone are the days where a signed piece of paper—aka the National Letter of Intent—was the story.

This process of choosing a college and making it official with a signature is still the end game, but it’s how we get there that generates buzz. Some like the scene, others would much rather do without the hoopla, fireworks and (hopefully) live animals. I cannot stress this enough; live animals, which can be mascot-related or simply just random live animals, should be required. 

Regardless of where you stand on recruits making the most of their moment, know this: The players, who are indeed taking their decision-making to another level, are doing so because they have a forum and stage that encourages it. We are all to blame—if you’re indeed unhappy with this trend—for what it has become.

In 2013, each high school senior isn’t just selecting where he’ll be attending college for the next three to four years. He’s doing do so by skydiving out of an airplane with an entire marching band, zeroing in on one of three targets below. Each gargantuan platform is surrounded by fire and accompanied with a logo of one of the three schools he is considering. Once he touches down with an entire nation of recruiting zombies watching on live television, then it’ll be official.

Unless…the player touches down, smiles and quickly jetpacks over to another target as one final “gotcha,” which seems very possible. Then perhaps it will truly be official.

Or…the player has a sudden, unplanned change of heart after the stunt while positioning his letter of intent in the fax machine, which he only learned existed seven minutes before someone showed him how to turn it on. Once that signature is in, then it will be officially official. Don’t even ask about transfers.

These surprises and televised memorable moments have helped morph national signing day—along with the long, unpredictable road that leads up to it—from a cult-like 24-hour stretch for the junkies to a national holiday (or “sick day”) for adults around the country. And while the example stunt has not been attempted (yet), the ridiculous nature of this day is being pushed further as interest grows.

After all, we watched former Georgia running back Isaiah Crowell lift a small bulldog puppy up in the sky to announce he would take his talents to Athens. Crowell has since taken his talents elsewhere, but the moment will remain etched upon our memories forever.

More recently, we saw Landon Collins commit to Alabama on live television—which actually came shortly before national signing day—while his mother sat beside him bewildered with an LSU tone and frown. This wasn’t scripted like many others, that’s for certain, but instead the result of a family disagreement caught on camera.

Even more recently, how about on Monday, 3-star Florida linebacker Keith Kelsey picked Louisville as his school of choice in the fall. Before he did, however, he gave Kentucky fans plenty of ammunition for future booing.

Recruits are given a stage, television time and a forum to be unpredictable. Each recruit's decision is a culmination of thousands of letters and hours spent mulling over the future—an incredibly stressful period for an 18-year-old being pulled in every which direction.

Some choose to spend this moment taking advantage of the cameras and the coverage. Others, like 2013 5-star defensive end Carl Lawson, will instead call the school and send in their LOI without making much of a sound. It all depends on the player and the situation. 

Companies like ESPN are spending millions of dollars on their national signing day television coverage, hoping for fewer Carl Lawsons and more drama, more indecisive moments, more props, more hats, more cheers, more boos and, hopefully, more live animals.

After all, where’s the excitement in one of the nation’s premier talents simply faxing in decision without the cameras in front. Well, perhaps the Fax Girls will be there to spice up an uneventful commitment.

It’s a combination of things that have added to the circus, and the recruits have certainly played a role. The coverage (raises hand) has been just as if not more influential, however, and the environment has really molded a new era.

Is this a good? Is it bad?

This depends in large part on who you are. For some, a hat ceremony is already too much. For others, they would pay good money to watch coaches of opposing teams battle in a ring for a player’s commitment while the recruit watches in anticipation.

While I do enjoy a good show and see no harm in a little fun, it does worry me a bit to see where it’s headed. It’s a lot to ask of an 18-year-old on the biggest day of his life, and you have to wonder what’s next. Not just for the players, or recruiting’s biggest day, but recruiting in general. 

Regardless of our differing stances, this peculiar side to a booming business is not set to subside. Cameras will become more frequent, commitments will become more extravagant and national signing day is likely only scratching the surface of what it will become. 

Sure, they’re they ones with the hats, but we’re the ones just dying to talk about it, driving them to take it further. In some cases, we'll do the work for them. 

While the players will receive both praise and criticism for their actions on their biggest stage, we’ve all played a part in bringing it to another level. For better or worse, or better yet, whichever includes more live animals.

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Things couldn’t get much better for Johnny Manziel.

After unexpectedly snatching up the starting quarterback job at Texas A&M, “Johnny Football” rose to celebrity status while leading the perennially underachieving Aggies to national prominence. Concluding the season with a 41-13 trouncing of former Big 12 brother Oklahoma, he mesmerized the nation—slashing school and conference records, beating No. 1 Alabama and eventually winning the Heisman Trophy.

Oh yeah, and that was all as a freshman.

Of course, the question now is, “Where does Johnny Football go from here?” He’s achieved more in his first year than most college players do in their whole careers. Amassing 4,600 yards of total offense in 2012, he surpassed Cam Newton’s SEC record.

He also topped Archie Manning’s 43-year old conference record (shared by Rohan Davey) for most yards of total offense in a game, twice, with 557 against Arkansas and 576 against Louisiana Tech.

With Manziel at the helm, Texas A&M could be in position for a BCS bowl appearance next season. Heck, the Aggies might even have a shot at an SEC title.

However, the other side to the coin is that if Manziel continues to impress, he may not stay in college long enough to make good on those dreams. While the gridiron wizard still has three years of eligibility left, he can declare for the draft as early as spring 2014, and he would do so with good reason.

The NFL is filled with more mobile quarterbacks than ever before, with breakout rookies Russell Wilson and Robert Griffin III both making cases for the 2012 Rookie of the Year award—not to mention athletic second-year players Cam Newton and Colin Kaepernick, who are making noise in the league. Kaepernick, of course, will be leading his team in the Super Bowl this Sunday.

And while some of Manziel’s success might be credited to his involvement in head coach Kevin Sumlin’s offense, according to ESPN’s draft expert Mel Kiper Jr., “Manziel isn’t just a product, he’s a prospect.”

In Kiper’s November breakdown of the 2012 Heisman candidates, he showered the QB with compliments:

I think Manziel has potential to be a first-round pick, and more than a Sumlin creation… In terms of the scouting profile, Manziel’s strengths are his accuracy and ball placement, pocket awareness and maneuverability and command of the system.”

The biggest knock Kiper gives is Manziel’s size (6’1”, 200 pounds). “He’ll be dinged on height, but he’s no shorter than Drew Brees, who could be a good comparison at some point.”

Obviously, Mr. Football’s athleticism can’t be denied, but he’d be smart to start tweaking his game in preparation for the physicality that awaits him at the next level.

Take Washington’s RG III for example.

At 6’2”, weighing 217 pounds, Griffin is much less suited to be taking on NFL hits than 6’5”, 245-pound Cam Newton. However, the dazzling runner continued to take on big hits, many coming on designed QB running plays.

There was a toll for Griffin’s heavy hit count, as a frightening blow from the Baltimore Ravens’ Haloti Ngata resulted in Griffin’s sprained LCL. That injury would come back to haunt the Redskins in their first playoff game, as Griffin tore both his ACL and LCL in a 14-24 losing effort against the Seattle Seahawks. 

Somebody Manziel might do well to observe is Seattle’s 5’11”, 206-pound Wilson. Wilson, who modeled much of his game after Brees, played all 16 games this season.

While Wilson still used his fleet feet to extend plays, his strategy centered around creating time for his receivers to get open, rather than racking up tons of rushing yardage. When Wilson did decide to run, his tendency was to slide in front of defenders, rather than barrel forward in Tim Tebow-like fashion.

There’s no doubting that Johnny Manziel has the talent to take his career as far as he wants. However, if he wants to last, he’ll have to become more like Wilson, and less like RG III.

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As the BCS comes to an end in 2013, so too ends what's become a huge part of the BCS era:

BCS busting.

These are the teams that have the best chance of making one final run at a BCS berth before the college football postseason changes forever. Some of these teams have produced some of the best BCS bowls in history, such as Boise State's thrilling win over Oklahoma.

Others, like NIU's big loss to Florida State, have been complete duds.

So, what five teams have a chance to bust the BCS one last time? Read on.

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As we near National Signing Day on Feb. 6, several high-profile recruits ranked in the ESPNU 150 have committed in January.

That includes athletes on both sides of the ball, ranging from defensive ends to running backs.

Here's a look at the top five commits of January 2013.

5. Derrick Green, RB, Michigan

Ranked No. 38 overall by ESPN, Green is a physical, downhill runner, who almost always falls forward and can push the pile, racking up yardage after contact.

At 6'0", 215 pounds, the Virginia native has the frame and strength to be an asset for Brady Hoke's pro-style offense in 2013. He's very decisive with the pigskin, and he runs with the kind of no-nonsense attitude Hoke will love.

Green is arguably Michigan's most important recruit of 2013, given his ability and how he fits in with the program.

4. Tim Williams, DE, Alabama

The No. 36 recruit according to ESPN, defensive end Tim Williams has the strength, burst and explosiveness to be a nightmare for opposing offensive linemen.

But Williams' appeal goes beyond his physical abilities. He's also very good at recognizing blocking schemes, and he takes direct, decisive angles to the ball. Combined with his motor, it's somewhat of a perfect storm.

The Louisiana native does need to add some bulk, and developing his pass-rush skills will make him a more complete player. But he's already an excellent run-defender, which should serve him well in the rough-and-tough SEC.

3. Elijah Daniel, DE, Ole Miss

The No. 34 overall recruit according to ESPN, Daniel has the size and length to hold up well in the SEC.

The Indiana native shows surprising quickness and athleticism for a 249-pounder, with the ability to bend around blocks. He's not a speed-rusher, per se, but he does have the ability to side step opposing linemen to get into the backfield.

He'll need to develop his technique to be a major player in the SEC, but he has the physical tools and motor to be an impact player in due time.

2. Max Redfield, S, Notre Dame

The Fighting Irish scored a touchdown when Redfield committed to them on Jan. 4.

The No. 23 recruit in the class, Redfield has the size and athleticism to step in right away for Notre Dame with Zeke Motta headed to the NFL. His speed, combined with his explosiveness, translates well to the next level.

Redfield's physical attributes, as well as his awareness and hands (he played receiver at Mission Viejo High School), could make him a hard-hitting ball hawk for Brian Kelly's defense.

After the season Notre Dame had on the defensive side of the ball, Redfield stands to continue the tradition of playing hard-nosed football at South Bend.

1. Laquon Treadwell, WR, Ole Miss

The No. 19 recruit in the class and the No. 1 receiver, Laquon Treadwell should have no trouble transitioning to college ball in the SEC.

The Illinois native is a graceful, explosive wideout with the ball skills and ability after the catch to weave his way through defenses in the coming years. Considering his measurements (6'3", 195 pounds), he plays with much more fluidity than you would expect.

With a natural feel for the game, deceptive speed and incredible leaping ability, it won't be long before Laquon Treadwell makes his mark on college football's landscape.

His last name isn't "Treadwell" for nothing.

What are your thoughts?

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