N/A
Coastal Carolina quarterback Grayson McCall announced on Monday that he is entering the transfer portal.
The three-time defending Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year award winner will be expected to catch the eye of prominent football programs looking to bolster the quarterback position.
McCall, 21, earned his first Player of the Year award after throwing for 2,488 yards, 26 touchdowns and just three interceptions in 2020. He followed that up with nearly identical stats last year (2,873 yards, 27 touchdowns and three picks) before throwing for 2,633 yards, 24 touchdowns and two picks in 2022.
For his career, he's completed an impressive 70.4 percent of his passes. He's also rushed for 1,053 yards and 16 touchdowns at Coastal Carolina.
Suffice to say, he's going to be a major target in the transfer portal:
McCall's former head coach, Jamey Chadwell, agreed to take over as Liberty's head coach on Dec. 4. There will be some speculation, naturally, that McCall might consider following him there.
But the young quarterback might be looking for a higher-profile program to help bolster his NFL draft stock. As Max Olson of The Athletic reported:
"If McCall isn't looking to team up with Chadwell at Liberty, he's going to have a long list of suitors. We know this because McCall was getting approached by Power 5 schools last offseason even though he wasn't in the transfer portal. Notre Dame, Florida, UCLA, Kentucky, Wisconsin, NC State and Missouri are among the many schools believed to be hunting for transfer quarterbacks right now. McCall should get calls from a bunch of them."
Indeed he should. McCall's decision is major news for both this offseason's transfer portal and potentially for the 2024 NFL draft.
Appalachian State is carving out a niche as the most exciting team in college football this season based on how its first three games have ended.
Saturday was the latest chapter in the Mountaineers' story, as Christan Horn caught a 53-yard Hail Mary as time expired to earn a 32-28 win over Troy.
Appalachian State's first three games of the season have been decided by a combined total of nine points. Each of the three games have played out in distinctly different fashion.
It lost the season opener to North Carolina 63-61. The game saw both teams combine for 62 points in the fourth quarter, including 40 by the Mountaineers. They had a chance to tie the score with nine seconds left in regulation, but Chase Brice was stopped short of the goal line on a two-point conversion attempt.
Last week was a defensive slugfest between Appalachian State and Texas A&M. Head coach Shawn Clark's team held on for a 17-14 win by holding the ball for more than 41 minutes and a missed field goal by Caden Davis with 3:43 remaining in the fourth quarter.
Saturday was one of the biggest days in the history of Appalachian State football. ESPN sent its College GameDay crew to Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, North Carolina. The home team gave its fans and a national television audience something to remember with a dramatic finish.
The Mountaineers started this season unranked, but they were among the teams that received votes in the Associated Press Top 25 and Coaches Poll this week. After a win over Troy, they could find themselves in the new rankings that will be released Sunday.
After a season-opening win against Sam Houston State last weekend, the No. 6 Texas A&M Aggies were upset by the unranked Appalachian State Mountaineers 17-14 on Saturday at Kyle Field in College Station.
Texas A&M was previously 10-0 against non-Power 5 schools in Jimbo Fisher's tenure.
It marked the second upset victory by a Sun Belt Conference team on Saturday after Marshall defeated No. 8 Notre Dame 26-21 in South Bend, Indiana, earlier in the afternoon.
Saturday's win is also App State's second-ever win against an AP Top 10-ranked team and the first in 15 years. The Mountaineers previously defeated the No. 5 Michigan Wolverines back in 2007.
The Aggies and Mountaineers were tied 7-7 entering halftime. Appalachian State running back Ahmani Marshall posted the first touchdown of the afternoon on a four-yard run in the second quarter.
However, Texas A&M quickly responded when running back Devon Achane rushed for a 26-yard score on the next drive to tie the game at seven a piece.
App State took a 14-7 lead in the third quarter when quarterback Chase Brice connected with Henry Pearson for a nine-yard score. But, once again, Texas A&M responded quickly when Achane returned a kickoff 95 yards for a touchdown.
Appalachian State's Michael Hughes responded with a 29-yard field goal to give the Mountaineers a 17-14 lead, and when Texas A&M's Caden Davis tried to respond with a 47-yard field goal, he missed, which sealed the win for App State.
Aggies quarterback Haynes King completed 13 of 20 passes for 97 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions in the loss. He also rushed for 23 yards on eight carries.
Achane led A&M running backs with 66 rushing yards and a score, while Evan Stewart led receivers with five catches for 48 yards. Achane also had two kick returns for 120 yards and a touchdown.
Brice, the Mountaineers signal-caller, completed 15 of 30 passes for 134 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed for 10 yards.
Camerun Peoples led App State running backs with 19 carries for 112 yards, while Dashaun Davis led receivers with four catches for 39 yards.
Texas A&M managed just nine first downs compared to App State's 22. The Aggies also racked up seven penalties for 58 yards and had two fumbles, which factored into the loss.
Fisher's team will look to get back on track next weekend against Mario Cristobal and No. 15 Miami.
Marshall University has filed a lawsuit against Conference USA in an effort to make its move to the Sun Belt Conference this summer.
According to ESPN's Heather Dinich, the suit was filed Tuesday through the Cabell County Circuit Court in Huntington, West Virginia, and Marshall's goal is to sever ties with Conference USA so it can play in the Sun Belt during the 2022 football season.
A Marshall athletics spokesperson released the following statement to ESPN as well:
"For more than two months, Marshall University has attempted to reach a resolution with Conference USA regarding our decision not to participate in the league after this academic year; however, no progress has been made. The action we brought yesterday is the beginning of litigation intended to protect our rights, help us reach an agreement in a timely manner and clear the way for our shift in conference affiliation. We look forward to a successful resolution of this matter and a bright future with the Sun Belt Conference."
Marshall, Old Dominion and Southern Miss all announced in June that they were leaving C-USA for the Sun Belt, but Conference USA still included all three teams in the 2022 football schedule it released this month.
Per Dinich, Conference USA filed a demand for arbitration this month, noting that in the league bylaws, a school must give the conference 14 months' notice before leaving.
Marshall claimed in its lawsuit that it informed C-USA it would be withdrawing from the conference on Nov. 1, Jan. 12 and Jan. 20. Marshall noted that it said specifically it would withdraw from Conference USA on July 1.
Additionally, Marshall said in the lawsuit that when it joined Conference USA, the league bylaws weren't attached to the agreement, and they didn't include mandatory arbitration in an instance of leaving the conference.
Marshall has played in Conference USA since 2005, following stints in the Mid-American Conference and Southern Conference. Marshall also played as an independent from 1970-76.
The Thundering Herd have been largely successful since joining C-USA, going 115-97 with 10 bowl appearances and one conference title.
Marshall won double-digit games in three consecutive seasons from 2013-15, and it has finished with a winning record in each of the past five seasons, including a 7-6 mark in 2021, which was the first season under head coach Charles Huff.
When the move to the Sun Belt becomes official for Marshall, Old Dominion and Southern Miss, they will join conference stalwarts such as Arkansas State, Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, Louisiana and Troy.
Western Kentucky scored a 59-38 victory over Appalachian State in the 2021 Boca Raton Bowl on Saturday at FAU Stadium in Florida.
A shootout was expected between the Hilltoppers and Mountaineers, who combined to average 77.6 points per game during the regular season, and the offenses delivered in a game that featured 1,246 total yards and 13 touchdowns.
WKU quarterback Bailey Zappe stole the spotlight with 422 passing yards and six touchdowns en route to setting the new NCAA FBS single-season records in both categories. He finishes the 2021 season with 5,967 yards and 62 scores through the air.
Zappe captured the yards record in the second quarter:
And the touchdown mark in the third quarter:
Here's a look at some of the bowl game's other standout performers:
The sides traded scores at a rapid rate until it was 24-24 late in the second quarter.
Western Kentucky seized control with a 21-0 run spanning from late in the second quarter until midway through the third. An 86-yard touchdown run by Whittington shortly after halftime really helped turn the tide in favor of the Hilltoppers.
Appalachian State couldn't keep pace as its offense sputtered in the second half.
WKU, which started the season 1-4, finished the campaign by winning eight of its last nine games to post a 9-5 record. The Hilltoppers also improved their bowl record to 5-2 since 2014.
Zappe is a name to watch as the 2022 NFL draft moves closer. What he lacks in size (6'1''), he makes up for with arm talent, specifically his throwing accuracy, and the ability to command a fast-paced passing attack. He could be a developmental middle-round pick in April.
Meanwhile, Appalachian State wrapped up its season at 10-4 following back-to-back losses in the Sun Belt Championship Game and the bowl game. It's also the team's first bowl loss since moving to the FBS level in 2014 after six straight wins.
The Mountaineers have still won at least nine games in seven consecutive years while emerging as one of the nation's premier Group of Five programs.
Florida confirmed Sunday that it has hired Louisiana-Lafayette's Billy Napier as its next head football coach.
Ross Dellenger of Sports Illustrated first reported the hire.
Napier has a 39-12 record across four seasons at Louisiana, leading the Ragin' Cajuns to a 11-1 record so far in 2021. The team is set to compete in the Sun Belt Championship Game on Saturday at home against Appalachian State.
After taking over a squad that went 5-7 in 2017, Napier led Louisiana to a 7-7 record and a bowl appearance in his first season as a head coach. The squad then went 11-3 in 2019, the first season with double-digit wins in school history.
The Ragin' Cajuns have now accomplished the feat in three straight years, including the 10-1 mark in 2020 that ended with a win in the First Responder Bowl.
Prior to his time as a head coach, the 42-year-old gained experience at some of the top programs in the country, including as an offensive coordinator at Clemson and receivers coach at Alabama. The former Furman quarterback also served as offensive coordinator at Arizona State in 2017.
The Tennessee native fill the vacancy left by Dan Mullen, who was fired last Sunday after a 5-6 start to the season.
Mullen produced a 34-15 record across four seasons at Florida, earning wins in the Orange Bowl and Peach Bowl before reaching the SEC Championship Game last season. A slow start to 2021 ended his tenure, showing the high expectations for this program.
Napier will be expected to get the Gators back to national-title contention in a hurry.
The Coastal Carolina Chanticleers celebrated their 35-21 win over the Texas State Bobcats in hilarious fashion...with an eating contest against legendary competitive eater Joey Chestnut.
Unsurprisingly, Chestnut took down the competition, but the Chanticleers can't be too upset, as they moved to 9-2 on the season with Saturday's win over the Bobcats.
Chestnut, a 14-time Nathan's Hot Dog Eating Contest champion, is currently ranked first in the world by Major League Eating, so it's no surprise he had an easy time beating some college football players.
It's also interesting that they decided to have a pizza-eating competition, as Chestnut recently placed second in the Fat Boy's Pizza eating competition near LSU. He ate four-and-a-half two-foot slices in 10 minutes.
James Madison University accepted an invitation to join the Sun Belt Conference, a move that'll be completed no later than July 1, 2023.
The Dukes are a member of the Colonial Athletic Association and field an FCS football program, which will transition to the FBS level in the Sun Belt.
JMU athletic director Jeff Bourne released a statement about the decision:
The Sun Belt Conference presents the right opportunity at the right time for James Madison Athletics. Our department has achieved at a tremendously high level over the last seven years and even further throughout our entire history. We have demonstrated an increased ability to succeed at the national level, and this move to the Sun Belt further enhances that to an even greater degree as we move forward. JMU is committed to providing the best student-athlete experience in the nation, and this move ensures that our focus resides on our student-athletes and balancing their competitive and off-the-field success.
James Madison's impending arrival increases the Sun Belt's projected size to 16 as part of the nationwide collegiate sports realignment jump-started by Oklahoma and Texas announcing their plans to leave the Big 12 for the SEC in July.
The Sun Belt's 12 current members—Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Coastal Carolina, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Arkansas Little Rock, Louisiana Lafayette, Louisiana Monroe, South Alabama, Texas State, Troy and UT Arlington—will be joined by JMU, Marshall, Old Dominion and Southern Mississippi by 2023. In football, the conference will move from 10 to 14 teams.
Sun Belt commissioner Keith Gill commented on the Dukes' arrival:
We are thrilled to welcome James Madison University to the Sun Belt Conference. This move brings another strong brand and passionate fanbase into the Sun Belt and elevates the Dukes' storied football program to the highest level of NCAA competition. I am grateful to JMU president Jonathan Alger and athletics director Jeff Bourne for their leadership during this process and look forward to working closely with them moving forward.
The CAA is a Division I conference in most sports, so it'll be a lateral transition for most of the men's and women's programs at James Madison, which is located in Virginia, and an elevation for the football program.
JMU football has reached the FCS National Championship Game in three of the past five years, highlighted by a national title in 2016.
The Dukes own a 7-1 record this season, and the announcement of their future move to the Sun Belt comes as part of homecoming weekend. They'll face Campbell at 3:30 p.m. ET on Saturday.
In all, James Madison is home to 18 varsity sports programs that will join the Sun Belt.
Georgia Southern nose tackle Gavin Adcock was suspended indefinitely after chugging a beer atop a moving team bus prior to Saturday's 28-20 loss to Louisiana.
Adcock also released a statement and apologized for his "foolish actions":
The redshirt senior had one tackle against Louisiana.
The reverberations from Adcock's stunt extended beyond his suspension.
Georgia Southern fired head coach Chad Lunsford after falling to 1-3. Addressing the move Monday, athletic director Jared Benko said the administration did consider the video of Adcock when making a final decision about Lunsford.
Benko told the Savannah Morning News' Nathan Dominitz he undertook a "comprehensive evaluation" of Lunsford and the football program after taking over as AD in March 2020.
"If you look at how we started the year, 1-3 is not the start anybody wanted," he said. "You're looking at everything from what the result was, how the guys played. You're looking at overall team camaraderie. You're looking at everything in totality."
In addition to his suspension, Benko said Adcock is also subject to discipline as a student of Georgia Southern.
After redshirting the 2017 season, the Watkinsville, Georgia, native made 23 appearances over the past three years.
Georgia Southern is back in action Saturday against Arkansas State. The Eagles have eight games remaining in the regular season, and they're facing an uphill battle to earn their fourth straight bid to a postseason bowl.
