Player Notes

CHAMPAIGN — There are three players fighting for one job: starting quarterback at Illinois.In 22 days, Luke Altmyer, John Paddock or Donovan Leary will take the first snap against Toledo at Memorial Stadium. Third-year coach Bret Bielema said he plans to make the decision known — at least within the team — two weeks before the Sept. 2 opener.So the deadline is approaching. Two of them aren’t going ...

4-5 minutes 8/10/2023Following a two-year stint as the offensive coordinator of the Denver Broncos, Pat Shurmur took the 2022 season off and focused on family.“The last 25 years of coaching, it really goes unsaid, but we’re not always around,” he said Thursday. “So it gave me a year to be around and I was really thankful for that.”When an opportunity arose this summer to get back into football and ...

2-3 minutes 8/10/2023Sean Dawkins, a former All-American wide receiver at Cal who played nine seasons in the NFL, has died. Dawkins, who gained national attention while starring at Homestead High of Cupertino, was 52.A Cal Athletics spokesman on Thursday confirmed Dawkins’ death. No details about Dawkins’ death were available.Dawkins was a speedy, 6-foot-4 receiver who was a major offensive force on ...

Aug. 10, 2023, 5:55 p.m. | Updated: 7:35 p.m.Wake appeared in 46 games and made 17 starts at BYU.BYU tight end and fullback Masen Wake is leaving the program, he announced on Thursday.After four seasons at BYU, Wake is retiring from football just weeks before the team’s season opener on Sept. 2.“I’ve created friendships and memories that will last a lifetime,” Wake wrote on social media. “I am humbled ...

By Matt Cohen |Now in the second week of preseason practices, Auburn’s quarterback competition has revealed the anticipated final three of Michigan State transfer Payton Thorne, sophomore Robby Ashford and redshirt freshman Holden Geriner.They’ve been throwing to a constantly rotating wide receiver room and Camden Brown, who as only a sophomore is suddenly one of the most experienced receivers on Auburn’s ...

Adding talent in the secondary through the transfer portal was a huge focus for the Arkansas football team this offseason, but one of the new arrivals is leaving after one full week of fall camp.A team spokesman confirmed Thursday night that AJ Brathwaite is no longer with the Razorbacks. The departure was first reported by Best of Arkansas Sports.Western Kentucky Hilltoppers defensive back A.J. Brathwaite ...

Arizona State was delivered a major blow when the NCAA announced local wideout Jake Smith was denied eligibility and will not play for the Sun Devils this season.Smith has been attending his third school (Texas and USC) since 2019. He played the 2019-20 seasons at Texas but was declared a medical non-counter at USC due to a foot injury in 2021 and did not play a snap for the Trojans.The medical non-counter ...

By Creg StephensonThere is as much uncertainty around the quarterback position at Alabama this preseason as there has been in a half-decade or more.Whether the Crimson Tide’s starter this year is Jalen Milroe, Ty Simpson or Tyler Buchner, he will enter the season as a largely unproven commodity. It hasn’t always been that way, of course, as the Crimson Tide has had a number of high-profile and star-quality ...

By Matt StahlIt’s been a big week for Alabama football’s 2024 recruiting class. With three flips announcing their commitments to the Crimson Tide, the success has come at the expense of Georgia, Tennessee and Florida State.Four-star wideout Amari Jefferson started the party Saturday. He switched to the Tide after previously committing to Tennessee baseball.On Tuesday, four-star safety Peyton Woodyard ...

LARAMIE — University of Wyoming running back Dawaiian McNeely, who was the projected starter for the Cowboys, will miss the entire season after tearing his ACL during practice Wednesday, coach Craig Bohl said Friday morning.McNeely left Wednesday's practice with the injury and was immediately ordered an MRI. The test revealed the torn ACL, ending his season before it even began."He'll be done for the ...