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DUCE ROBINSON EARNED his first college football scholarship offer before he even knew how to buckle shoulder pads.

Never having played tackle football, he attended a 7-on-7 tournament prior to his freshman year at Pinnacle (Arizona) High School. Despite his inexperience, his natural ability and massive size (6-foot-4, 200 pounds as a 14-year-old) gave Arizona State coaches all they needed to see to give him an opportunity to play football at the next level.

At that time, Robinson already had a scholarship offer to play baseball at perennial power Arizona.

In the four years since, Robinson has grown to 6-foot-6, 235 pounds and has seen his offer list expand at a similar clip. Not only is he the No. 1 tight end in the class of 2023, he’s a top-100 MLB draft prospect with the potential of earning a seven-figure bonus in July’s draft. He’s only the fifth person to ever play in the Under Armour All-America Game in both football and baseball.

Add it all up and Robinson is the most intriguing college football recruit in the country. He committed to USC last week but has been compared to Aaron Judge by an MLB bench coach. Of course, USC’s football coach, Lincoln Riley, was at Oklahoma when Kyler Murray was a top-10 MLB draft pick but played another season with the Sooners and emerged as a Heisman winner and top overall NFL pick en route to a nine-figure contract with the Arizona Cardinals.

For Robinson, playing two sports is all he has ever known. Beyond Deion Sanders and Bo Jackson proving two-sport stardom is possible, there’s a comp that hits much closer to home. His dad, Dominic, played wide receiver at Florida State under Bobby Bowden starting in 2001 and also balanced baseball under legendary coach Mike Martin. It’s a big reason why Duce Robinson isn’t ready to answer the “Football or baseball?” question just yet.

“He was my inspiration, and you always hear stories about what your parents did, especially when you’re young,” Robinson said. “But when you’re a young kid playing catch, running routes or swinging a bat with him, you hear the stories and think, ‘I could do that and I could do that better than him.’ So my goal since I can remember was to follow in his footsteps and hopefully be better than he was.”

As a result, the question that emerged with that initial 7-on-7 tourney continues to persist for Robinson. Football or baseball? MLB draft or two-sport collegiate stardom? Judge or Murray?

AS THE NO. 40 football recruit in the country, Robinson has a rare combination of size, speed and an ability to reel in passes that make him a matchup nightmare on any level. Over the past two seasons, he had 144 receptions for 2,586 yards and 22 touchdowns. He broke Pinnacle’s single-season records for catches (84) and receiving yards (1,614) in 2022.

He landed offers from some of the top programs in the game — back-to-back national champion Georgia, Texas, Alabama and Oregon among them — but on March 30 committed to USC to play under one of the best offensive minds in the country in Riley.

The two of them had built a connection dating back to when Riley was Oklahoma’s coach. Not only did Robinson feel comfortable with him, his staff and the Trojans’ offense, but he knew Riley had been in this situation before with a player who wanted to pursue both football and baseball.

“He had Kyler Murray and it was recently,” Robinson said. “Coach Riley has done this before with a guy at a super high level and he’s all-in on it. He knows what works, what doesn’t work and it was probably harder to balance it with a quarterback, because it’s such a unique position.”

Murray was the first player to play in the Under Armour All-America Game in both baseball and football in 2014. Since then, four other people have accomplished the feat: Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver A.J. Brown, Kansas City Chiefs receiver Jerrion Ealy, Samford outfielder Maurice Hampton Jr. and Robinson.

Robinson plans on arriving at USC in June, moving in, participating in summer workouts and preparing for his freshman season.

A few years ago, he and his mother met Murray on a recruiting visit at Oklahoma. They sat down with the first person to be a first-round pick in both the MLB and NFL drafts for 20 to 30 minutes, talking about what it was like to play both sports. And how attainable it was with a coach like Riley.

ROBINSON’S FAMILY HAS heard of him being compared to New York Yankees outfielder Giancarlo Stanton, who signed professionally out of high school in 2007. Texas Rangers bench coach Donnie Ecker, who has worked with and mentored Robinson over the past few years, compared him to another former MVP.

“Aaron Judge is maybe the only other guy we can comp to have the efficiency of Duce’s bat path and his plate discipline,” Ecker said. “And to know that he’s just a baby when it comes to what he’s going to grow into. I think Aaron Judge is the closest comp I have at this age.”

ESPN baseball analyst Kiley McDaniel has Robinson, listed as an outfielder, as the No. 84 draft prospect this summer. He is described as still being raw, but scouts believe his rare physical tools, which can’t be taught, will help him succeed in the sport.

Whether Robinson is chosen in the first round, fifth round or much later in the MLB draft depends on a variety of factors — how he performs this spring, what his contract demands are, whether teams believe he wants to go to college and more. Robinson’s options and the draft’s financial slotting system make projecting his status with any certainty this early extremely difficult.

He wants to prove to MLB scouts that his potential is worth allocating a high draft pick. Major league teams want him to get reps on the baseball field at their level, and Robinson plans on continuing his already stringent workout regimen, practicing his technique, participating in the MLB combine and working out with teams privately.

Most baseball players selected in the draft will spend three to five years in a minor league system, climbing the ranks to hopefully one day make The Show.

“We’re just trying to get ready for the draft right now. We’re ready for everything and hopefully I get drafted highly,” Robinson said. “And then the goal from there would be to play college football and hopefully be able to sign a professional baseball contract so I could play both that way.”

While it isn’t likely, there is a scenario in which no MLB team selects him in the draft, or he could be a late selection. If that situation plays out, the family believes they have the leverage because of Robinson’s commitment to USC. Playing three years of football and baseball for the Trojans could set him up for success for the future if he can continue to develop his talents.

THE NCAA ALLOWS student-athletes to play college football after being drafted by a major league organization. If he signs a contract with a professional baseball team, he won’t have college eligibility in baseball, which is fine with Robinson as long as he has his shot at an MLB contract.

College football is already a full-time job for athletes trying to manage their schedules, classes, workouts and team obligations. Adding in the commitment of being a professional athlete in another sport is a challenge Robinson welcomes.

“The first couple years in the minor leagues, they’re super flexible with those guys, where the major leagues it usually leaks into football season a little bit,” Robinson said. “But, baseball would be in the summer and then football is during the fall. So, the plan right now is to continue to play football for as long as possible and baseball for as long as possible.”

Robinson’s mother, Mary Beth, swam competitively at Florida. Dominic was a highly touted prospect coming out of high school in the same recruiting class as Matt Leinart and Larry Fitzgerald. He was a two-sport athlete, playing both football and baseball his freshman year. Under Bowden, he moved from defensive back to wide receiver, where he recorded 680 receiving yards and two touchdowns from 2002 to ’04. Once his college career was over, he signed with the then-St. Louis Rams after the 2005 NFL draft.

Robinson says he believes he, too, can play both sports for as long as his body is willing to let him. He doesn’t foresee needing to decide between the two as long as someone will let him play both at the highest levels.

Dominic remembers the pressure he felt when he was going through the recruiting process, playing football at the highest level and balancing baseball as well. He said he hasn’t put any pressure on his son to recreate his own career, encouraging him to experience everything for himself, make his own decisions and forge his own path.

“He’s super driven, he’s goal-oriented and his goal was to be a professional sports player,” Dominic said. “Going to college for a sport was one of the steps on that path, but he knows what it takes to get to what his ultimate goal is.”

AT AN EARLY age, Duce stood a head above his peers and was among the fastest kids, whether it was at recess or on a field. Dominic said jokingly that his son had biceps before he could even walk.

The Robinsons lived in Dallas, but Dominic worked as an assistant football coach at the University of West Georgia, so he would travel to and from Texas, which meant he would begrudgingly miss some important events for Duce and his younger brother, Dyson.

One moment that especially stuck out in Dominic’s mind was when 5-year-old Duce told him he made the McKinney Little League All-Star team, which was composted mostly of 7-year-olds. Dominic broke down in tears not just because he wasn’t present for the accomplishment, but because he knew at that moment his son was special.

“We were certainly not expecting him to become one of the best athletes in the country, but we knew that he had that level of engagement,” the father said.

Dominic worked in college athletics for most of Duce’s childhood. The family moved to Des Moines, Iowa, when he took an assistant coaching job at Drake University in 2014. He left college athletics to start 3D Performance, a training facility and program that works with athletes at all levels in baseball, then moved the family to Phoenix in 2016.

There is where Dominic met then-Arizona baseball coach Jay Johnson. Johnson had offered scholarships to a few of Dominic’s other 3D players, but watching Duce’s skills and size as an eighth-grade outfielder playing alongside high school upperclassmen convinced him to offer Duce his first scholarship.

Dominic built a connection with Ecker, the Rangers’ bench coach, through mutual connections five years ago. Ecker, 37, has since become a big brother of sorts to Duce, working with his on-field mechanics and guiding him through the mental side of the game. Despite being around major league players his whole life, he says Duce already thinks and works like a major leaguer.

“I’m around 18-to-35-year-old baseball players every day, and I’m working with Duce at 7:30 p.m. in Surprise, Arizona, in a cage when it’s raining outside,” Ecker said. “After he’s had school, weights, he drove an hour to get there and I look in his eyes. I just know this person is different and he’s not someone I’m going to bet against.”

Johnson wasn’t the only coach to be wowed by Duce’s abilities. Upon seeing Duce at the 7-on-7 tournament for the first time, Dana Zupke, who has been Pinnacle High School’s football coach for the past 18 seasons, knew a player of his caliber wouldn’t come around every year.

Still, despite Duce’s natural talent, not every aspect of football came easy to him. He had some shortcomings early on in his career — even learning to catch the ball took time. It was Duce’s work ethic and attention to detail that stood out to him.

In Zupke’s eyes, there was one driving force.

“What keeps coming up is, ‘My dad played both in college and I want to be like my dad.’ That’s what I hear probably more than anything,” Zupke said. “There’s ambition there and I know he wants to play both professionally. But I think it really comes down to his sense of family and identity, and I think he wants to emulate somebody that he admires and respects the most probably in this world, which is Dominic.”

IN SOME WAYS, the next few months will be familiar for Robinson — at least when it comes to his regimen: training, sprinting, lifting, batting practice four to five times a week and continuing to develop his fundamentals.

Balancing both sports, which he has done the past few years, has come naturally. Knowing his father played both sports normalized it for him. It’s what he grew up with and all he’s known. He’s watched film and studied Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders, both of whom reached stardom in the NFL and MLB.

“Deion was incredible at both sports, but Bo Jackson was the offensive guy,” Robinson said. “He was an outfielder, as well, so I’ve always looked up to him a little more than Deion. But, obviously, Deion is a super big inspiration as well.”

Robinson says he believes he can make it to both the NFL and MLB and wants to try for as long as coaches and organizations will let him. The NFL doesn’t allow athletes to enter the draft until they’re three years removed from high school, which gives him his timeline for football, but his MLB path will largely depend on his development in the minor leagues.

His path in both sports could also be impacted by the results of the MLB draft. If he’s selected in the first few rounds, would the bonus money be enough to get him to choose baseball over football? Would an MLB organization try to convince him to stick with baseball and spurn college? Does he end up being a two-sport collegiate athlete with his dream of the pros still in front of him?

The next few months can determine how the next few years will play out and how quickly he reaches his goals. He can’t predict everything that’ll happen, how long he’ll have to grind it out in the minors, or what his NFL draft stock could look like in 2026 or 2027.

Right now, Robinson is focused only on the present and what’s in front of him. As his summer of change approaches, as he prepares to take his skills to two new levels, Dominic can’t help but think about that little boy telling his father he made his all-star team.

“This will be a busy summer and it will start to get real when he reports to his school in June,” Dominic said. “He’ll do that while also preparing to become a major league baseball player. That’s a childhood dream and it’s just something that … I can’t believe that he’s doing it.

“How cool is that?”

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Best of Week 12: Georgia returns to form, Oregon escapes and Travis Hunter takes control of the Heisman race

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7 hours ago

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November 17, 2024

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Best of Week 12: Georgia returns to form, Oregon escapes and Travis Hunter takes control of the Heisman race

  • David Hale, ESPN Staff WriterNov 17, 2024, 01:49 AM ET

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    • College football reporter.
    • Joined ESPN in 2012.
    • Graduate of the University of Delaware.

Georgia entered Week 12 in an unusual place. Coming off an emphatic loss to Ole Miss, the Bulldogs were scuffling, looking for answers, and if the season had ended on Tuesday with the College Football Playoff committee’s most recent rankings, they’d have been on the outside looking in.

We had become accustomed to Georgia’s dominance at all turns. The close games were more a product of boredom than any actual defect, and the losses, rare as they were, were offered as little more than tribute to Nick Saban, the man who had sent Kirby Smart to lead Georgia to the promised land.

But in 2024, even amid the wins, things have just felt … off.

There has been the familiar parade of players landing in legal hot water away from the field. There has been the rising frustration with offensive coordinator Mike Bobo. There’s the gut-wrenching losses to bitter rivals that seem destined to doom the Bulldogs to second-class status. If this were pro wrestling, the first notes of “Jesus, Take the Wheel” would begin playing and Mark Richt would emerge from the tunnel, revealing he had been in charge all along.

On Saturday, however, we got our reminder that this isn’t the Georgia of old, even if it’s not quite the Georgia of 2021 and 2022 either. In a game that felt almost algorithmically engineered to prove the Dawgs had addressed each of their most blatant faults, Carson Beck and crew devoured Tennessee 31-17 and reasserted dominion over college football — if not officially in the standings, then certainly in the hearts and minds of every team that might have the misfortune of drawing the Dawgs in the playoff.

Beck, who had thrown 12 interceptions in his past six games, was nearly flawless Saturday. He threw for 346 yards and totaled three touchdowns, but more importantly, he looked supremely confident with each fastball he delivered downfield.

The offensive line, which handed out party favors to Ole Miss pass rushers en route to he backfield last week, held its own against one of the most ferocious defensive fronts in the country. Beck wasn’t sacked, and Tennessee managed just two tackles for loss in the game.

The ground game, scrambling for answers and without injured starter Trevor Etienne, turned to Nate Frazier and, in so many critical moments, Beck to provide the spark. They delivered a pair of rushing touchdowns as proof of life for a backfield that had so often looked dormant.

So it is, too, that Georgia has life in the crowded SEC.

Certainly SEC fans are too modest to say it, but the fact its, the league is pretty good this year. We entered Week 12 with a logjam of teams with a loss or two or three, but a résumé warranting real playoff consideration. The depth of talent threatened to overwhelm the conference, however, with the committee inserting four Big Ten teams in the top five and leaving Saban to lament to Pat McAfee that the committee can’t “just look at the record,” echoing Greg Sankey’s long-held belief that wins are an overrated metric compared to things such as revenue, attendance or prevalence of cowbells.

But Saturday proved to be something of a palette cleanser for the SEC — like the white bread that comes with Dreamland ribs. While a handful of teams took a mental health day — Alabama, Auburn, Texas A&M and Kentucky all played lower-tier competition and won by a combined 154 points — the rest of the slate helped clarify something akin to a pecking order.

In Gainesville, the Billy Napier redemption tour continued, with DJ Lagway and Elijhah Badger leading the Florida charge on a 27-16 win over LSU. After the game, Napier celebrated the Gators’ fifth win of the season by calling human resources at Zaxby’s and letting them know he won’t be able to start on Dec. 1 as previously promised, now needing just a win over either Ole Miss or (more likely) Florida State to secure a bowl.

LSU, meanwhile, is effectively cooked in the chase for the playoff after the loss, and it’s possible Brian Kelly’s anger management classes are no longer covered by his insurance.

After the game, Kelly lambasted the team asking of his players, “Do you want to fight or not?” It was not immediately clear if he meant in LSU’s remaining games or in the parking lot out back as soon as his press conference was over. Either way, things are bleak in Baton Rouge. It’s sad to see a situation where everyone felt like faaaamily devolve into something completely inauthentic.

If LSU is tumbling in the SEC standings, however, Saturday was South Carolina‘s time to shine against Missouri.

LaNorris Sellers threw for 353 yards and five touchdowns and continued to treat pass rushers like softballs bouncing off a fungo.

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Highlight: South Carolina wins fourth-quarter thriller behind Sellers’ heroics

No. 23 Missouri comes roaring back in the final frame only to be stomped out by LaNorris Sellers as the No. 21 Gamecocks escape with a 34-30 victory.

What started as a defensive tussle ended with four touchdowns — two by each offense — in the game’s final 9:12. The Gamecocks took a 27-22 lead with 5:04 to play on Sellers’ fourth TD pass of the game, only to see Brady Cook and Luther Burden III hook up on a gorgeous 37-yard bomb to regain the lead with just over a minute to go.

But South Carolina had an answer, marching 70 yards on six plays in just 47 seconds, culminating with a 15-yard touchdown run by Raheim “Rocket” Sanders to secure the win. That Shane Beamer didn’t celebrate by head-butting a player still wearing his helmet really shows how far he has come as a coach this season.

So here’s where things stand amid the rubble of another Saturday in the SEC: Texas and Texas A&M are atop the standings at 5-1, but they’ll play each other in Week 14. Georgia, Tennessee, Ole Miss and Alabama all have two losses, but each have secured a win versus at least one of the other tied teams, leaving their fate to the SEC’s arcane tie-breaker policies which involve opponent records, scoring differentials and a pie-eating contest between Lane Kiffin and Josh Heupel. And, of course, there’s still South Carolina, looming on the fringes of the playoff debate at 7-3.

The case for the SEC’s supremacy is clear. With seven teams playing such high-level football, all losses come with an asterisk and all wins feel epic. In that case, Georgia’s two losses and occasionally confounding struggles will pale in comparison to the immense talent on the roster, and this win over Tennessee will be Exhibit A for why the road to the national championship still runs through Athens.

But the path toward the SEC’s demise is also clear: Either the committee fails to reward depth or, more likely, in a fit of rage, Kelly uses a flamethrower he bought on the dark web to burn the entire conference to the ground.

Jump to:
Ducks hold off Badgers | Hunter’s Heisman case
Big 12 drama | Klubnik delivers late
USC finds a spark | Irish roll
Tulane capsizes Navy | Lobos rally | Week 12 trends
Heisman five | Under the radar

Ducks D plays big

The College Football Playoff committee is going to have to take a hard look at Wisconsin this week. With a three-point loss to No. 1 Oregon, the Badgers now have a top-five résumé.

More importantly, the committee won’t have to select a new No. 1, as Oregon’s defense came up big in a grueling 16-13 win.

Dillon Gabriel finished with 218 passing yards and an interception, just the second time in 60 career starts that he threw a pick without also throwing a touchdown. Instead, the Ducks relied on tailback Jordan James to lead a second-half comeback after falling behind 13-6. James finished with 25 carries for 121 yards and a game-tying TD with 13:14 to go in the fourth quarter.

It was Matayo Uiagalelei who sealed the win, however. Wisconsin got the ball at its own 17 with 1:26 to play, but Jamaree Caldwell tipped a Braedyn Locke pass, and Uiagalelei caught the carom for the game-sealing INT. (Note to Florida State fans: It is possible for the words “Uiagalelei” and “interception” to appear in a sentence not involving a brutal loss.)

The win keeps Oregon undefeated and headed toward a Big Ten title game berth, but it’s not without some red flags. Wisconsin held the Ducks to just 354 total yards — a week after Oregon mustered just 363 against Maryland. That’s the first time Oregon has had back-to-back games with fewer than 400 yards of offense since 2020.

On the other hand, winning games while accumulating a frustratingly limited number of yards and relying on a power run game and a stout defense suggests Oregon has acclimated nicely into the Big Ten’s way of life.

Hunter states Heisman case

Colorado is still coming, according to Deion Sanders, but according to the Big 12 standings, the Buffaloes are already there.

Coach Prime lamented a less-than-exceptional performance by his Buffs in a 49-24 win over Utah, and yet there’s little other than platitudes in the aftermath. Colorado is tied for No. 1 in the Big 12, and if it wins out against Kansas and Oklahoma State, a date in the conference title game is assured.

Shedeur Sanders struggled early against the Utes’ defense, but he ultimately finished with 340 yards passing and three touchdowns in Colorado’s usual demoralizing fashion.

Meanwhile, after a season-ending injury to Brandon Rose, Utah turned to Isaac Wilson, who is actually just an AI-generated representation of what a Utah QB might be after feeding Rose, Nate Johnson, Bryson Barnes, Charlie Brewer and Jake Bentley into the algorithm. The important takeaway here, however, is he’s not Cam Rising, so of course, Utah struggled. Wilson lost a fumble and threw three interceptions in the game, including one to Travis Hunter, who struck a Heisman pose afterward.

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1:12

Travis Hunter stakes Heisman claim after great plays on both sides of ball

Colorado’s Travis Hunter makes a nice interception off a deflection in the first quarter, followed by an incredible first-down catch in the second quarter vs. Utah.

Hunter caught five passes for 55 yards, and after Coach Prime checked the rule book and learned his team was also allowed to run the ball, Hunter got a carry that also went for a 5-yard touchdown. On the downside, Hunter did allow his first TD of the season in coverage, a 40-yard dart to Dorian Singer in the third quarter.

With the win, Colorado moves to 8-2 — just the second eight-win season for the program in the past 20 years, making it likely other teams will attempt to copy Sanders’ program-building blueprint of bringing in a whole bunch of transfers, at least one of whom is the best player in the country.

BYU falls, Sun Devils rise

BYU’s perfect season came to an end with a tackle at the 6-yard line on fourth down against Kansas, and thanks to Utah AD Mark Harlan, no one at Big 12 headquarters buzzed down to the officials to have them throw a random flag for excessive playing of “Carry On My Wayward Son.”

Kansas walked off with a 17-13 win after recovering a muffed punt deep in BYU territory that the Jayhawks turned into the game-winning touchdown. BYU still had a chance to win, driving into the red zone but coming up empty on four tries inside the Kansas 15.

Devin Neal became the first player in Kansas history with 4,000 career rushing yards, racking up 52 yards and two TDs in the win Saturday.

Meanwhile, Arizona State remains alive to be the Big 12’s Cinderella team, shocking Kansas State 24-14 behind a three-touchdown performance from QB Sam Leavitt.

Sun Devils’ head coach Kenny Dillingham’s reputation as a QB whisperer is going strong with Leavitt. After Dillingham helped shape Jordan Travis and resurrect Bo Nix, Leavitt has blossomed after transferring from Michigan State and has Arizona State riding high at 7-2.

The Sun Devils take on BYU next week, with the winner gaining the inside track on a trip to the Big 12 title game. BYU would clinch with a win and a loss by either Colorado or Iowa State, who toppled Cincinnati 34-17 behind a pair of Rocco Becht touchdowns.

The Cyclones (5-2) remain alive, too, along with Colorado (6-1) as the Big 12 works to adopt a full ACC coastal approach to this season.

Klubnik delivers late win

Pitt hosted Clemson on Saturday in a game that figured to settle any debate over who was the third-best team in the ACC, which is like RC Cola and Shasta getting into a slap fight over cola rankings.

The results often looked like two teams who didn’t exactly warrant their space on the playoff periphery, too.

Indeed, Pitt followed up that defensive series with one of the most mind-numbing offensive stretches possible. The officials missed a clear false start on second-and-goal, but Pitt was stuffed. Pitt called a timeout to avoid a delay of game, then was flagged for an illegal formation, then was flagged for a delay of game, then topped the whole thing off with a penalty for a false start before ultimately kicking a field goal.

Could those four points Pitt left on the field have helped?

The Panthers actually erased a 17-7 deficit in the fourth quarter to take a 20-17 lead, but on a second-and-3, Clemson QB Cade Klubnik took a QB sneak up the middle and scrambled virtually untouched for 50 yards and a score. Pitt’s last-gasp drive stalled at the Tigers’ 26, and Clemson held on for a 24-20 win that was marked by abysmal O-line play, missed opportunities and some astonishingly questionable officiating.

Afterward, Pitt coach Pat Narduzzi summed up the game by utilizing all seven of George Carlin’s words you can’t say on TV and also making up several new ones.

USC finds a spark

After climbing to No. 11 in the AP poll in September, USC entered Week 12 losers of five of its past seven, with all five losses coming by a touchdown or less.

After opening the season 5-1, Nebraska entered Week 12 losers of three straight, two by a touchdown or less.

USC made a QB change, giving UNLV transfer Jayden Maiava the start. Nebraska made a change at offensive playcaller, with Dana Holgorsen emerging from his basement to see daylight for the first time in 11 months and recoiling in horror.

Both teams were in desperate straits, and they met at the Coliseum on Saturday to chase something approaching credibility like two pigeons fighting for half a discarded baloney sandwich.

The game didn’t disappoint.

USC led 14-7, Nebraska charged back to take a 17-14 lead, USC scored to jump ahead by a point, then found the end zone again on a 2-yard Maiava TD run with 2:45 to play.

The game was in Holgorsen’s hands from there.

After being fired despite what he had called “an impossible buyout” at Houston last year, Holgorsen had largely disappeared from the public eye, focusing instead on the finer things in life. But Saturday was like the montage scene in any ’80s movie where the down-and-out character resolves to get his life together, showers, shaves and puts on a new suit, emerging like a conquering hero. Only Holgorsen didn’t shower or shave and may have been wearing a Nebraska hoodie that Mike Riley left in a desk drawer 10 years ago after splilling some spaghetti on it.

But there was still a little Holgo magic left, and Dylan Raiola and the Huskers marched to the USC 14 with 5 seconds to play and a chance to tie the game.

But we know how this story ends. It always ends this way for the Huskers.

USC prevailed 28-20. Nebraska has now lost 38 one-possession games since the start of the 2017 season — 10 more than any other Power 4 school. After getting to win No. 5 in each of the past two seasons, it has subsequently lost a combined eight straight, seven of them by one-possession.

Dante’s ninth circle of hell is called “treachery.” Then there are like 14 more he didn’t write about, one of which involves being really into downloading bootleg Nickelback live shows, and then you finally reach something approaching where Nebraska fans are at right now.

Leonard, Irish roll

In 2014, Notre Dame and the ACC entered into a scheduling agreement in which the Irish promised five matchups per year against the conference in exchange for a home for their non-football programs. Since then, Notre Dame has effectively been Biff from “Back to the Future” to the ACC’s McFly family. They roll into the house unannounced, raid the fridge and eat Wake Forest’s leftover chicken and then take Georgia Tech’s car without asking.

And so it was that the Irish throttled Virginia 35-14 on Saturday behind Riley Leonard‘s three touchdown throws. Jeremiyah Love ran for 137 and the defense picked off Anthony Colandrea three times. Notre Dame finishes 5-0 against the ACC, the sixth time in 11 years the Irish have gone undefeated against the conference in the regular season. Overall, Notre Dame is 50-9 in the regular season against the ACC since 2014, including a 9-0 record as a full member in 2020, and somewhere Jack Swarbrick is inviting his buddies to crash at John Swofford’s beach house for the entire summer again.

The rigging was set, the masts were raised, ye old Navy set sail for a win. But before it had reached shore, the Green Wave climbed all aboard, and plundered its gold and its gin.

Yo ho, yo ho, to the league championship game they go.

If Tulane ain’t the best on all seven seas, certainly it’s tops on at least five. And before it was done, it had won 35 to none, keeping their playoff hopes still alive.

Yo ho, yo ho, to the league championship game they go.

He threw for two scores and ran for one more, Darian Mensah did everything right. The corners and pass blockers, put Navy in Davy Jones locker, now the Wave turn attention to the Army Black Knights.

Yo ho, yo ho, to the league championship game they go.

The steely men of fair Tulane, a right fine crew be they. They fight and they tussle, they’re all brawn and muscle, and they’ll earn their way back to the SEC one day.

Yo ho, yo ho, to the league championship game they go.

Lobos rally for win

A month into the season, Bronco Mendenhall’s New Mexico team was 0-4 and appeared destined for a lost season amid a massive rebuild that included turning over more than half the scholarship roster this past offseason.

After Week 12, the Lobos are 5-6, and just secured their first win over a ranked foe in 21 years, toppling No. 18 Washington State 38-35.

New Mexico’s Devon Dampier and Wazzu’s John Mateer put on an absolute clinic at QB throughout the game.

Mateer accounted for 443 yards and five touchdowns, including a 37-yard bullet to Kyle Williams that gave Washington State a four-point lead with 3:12 to play. Dampier answered with 366 yards and three touchdowns of his own, including a 1-yard scamper with 21 seconds to play that secured the biggest win for New Mexico since toppling a ranked Utah team in 2003.

New Mexico now needs only a Week 14 win over Hawai’i to secure bowl eligibility.

Mateer, meanwhile, will remain college football’s most interesting man. This was his fourth game with four passing TDs and one rushing score of the season — the most by any QB since 2018, all while also doing battle with the Joker to keep the citizens of Gotham safe.

Week 12 vibe shifts

Each week, the Top 25 endures major shake-ups that transform the college football landscape. But there are more subtle changes every Saturday, too, and we capture those here.

Trending down: Noon kickoffs

Ohio State fans are frustrated with so many noon kickoffs this year, noting that only farmers and nerds wake up before 11 a.m. As it turned out Saturday, it was Northwestern who was still asleep at kickoff.

Northwestern somehow held the ball for 32 minutes but managed just 251 yards, spending most of its time on offense working out the details of this year’s team Secret Santa program. Thankfully, the game was played at Wrigley Field, and the Cubs’ bullpen coughed up 31 points in the middle quarters, with Carnell Tate starring. He hauled in four catches for 52 yards and two touchdowns.

Northwestern is the sixth opponent this season Ohio State has held to single digits. Only Oregon has topped 20 against the Buckeyes.

Trending up: Narrow Texas wins

Quinn Ewers tossed two touchdown passes — including a 1-yarder with 9:05 to play that effectively sealed a 20-10 win over Arkansas — but he averaged just 5.5 yards per pass, and the Horns had just 315 yards of total offense, their second-lowest production in a game, trailing only the loss to Georgia.

Texas has now played three bowl-eligible teams this season, and the results have been pretty meh. The Horns were stampeded by Georgia, escaped Vanderbilt by 3 and now struggled offensively against Arkansas in a 10-point win.

The answer here is clear: more Arch Manning. Play him at receiver. Have him provide pre-drive inspiration by reenacting famous motivational scenes from movies such as “Braveheart” or “Weekend at Bernie’s,” have him challenge Bevo to a foot race at halftime. Whatever it takes to get more Arch on the field, Texas needs to make it happen.

Trending up: ACC irony

SMU held off Boston College 38-28 to move to 6-0 in ACC play, all but assuring the Mustangs of a trip to the ACC championship game in their first season in the league. Kevin Jennings threw for 298 yards and three touchdowns, and Brashard Smith ran for 120 yards and a score.

It’s worth noting as SMU moves toward a conference title game appearance, that the only reason it’s in the ACC is because NC State changed its vote to approve expansion last year. NC State, in its 72nd season in the ACC, has never played in the ACC championship game, though it has heard it’s not that great anyway. Plus, it had plans, like catching up on the new season of “Only Murders in the Building.” And maybe a Home Depot trip. And it’s just nice to have a staycation after a busy football season. Really, don’t worry about NC State. It’s doing just fine, and it definitely didn’t just DoorDash six pints of Jeni’s ice cream.

Trending up: The smell at the Brown residence

LeQuint Allen ran for 109 yards and two touchdowns, Kyle McCord threw for 323 yards and a score, and both will be getting a nice gift basket from Fran Brown’s wife this week after they lifted Syracuse to a 33-25 win over Cal.

Brown will presumably wait to shower until the team returns to Syracuse, so everyone on the plane can still enjoy the smell of victory.

On the flip side, Cal lost its fifth one-possession game of the season — one that would’ve had the Bears bowl eligible — and Cal coach Justin Wilcox decided he’s boycotting cutting his toe nails, he’ll be blasting Smash Mouth’s “I’m a Believer” cover on repeat at practice and he won’t be throwing away that old tuna sandwich that has been in the office refrigerator until the Bears get win No. 6. Honestly, he had forgotten about the sandwich weeks ago, so this was really just a convenient excuse.

Trending down: Hot seats

Florida already announced Billy Napier would be back next year, and after Saturday’s 49-35 win over West Virginia, Baylor decided Dave Aranda will also be back for 2024.

If Sam Pittman survives at Arkansas, too, it’ll be a remarkable turn for coaches who entered the season on the hottest of seats, and will allow boosters to use all that money typically reserved for buyouts on something more useful, such as building a water slide on the moon.

Aranda now has Baylor set for a bowl game, too, after winning four straight. Baylor’s offense, in particular, has been a revelation, topping 38 in each of the past four.

Meanwhile at Auburn, boosters have scheduled a meeting at their secret hideout behind the Jimmy John’s, and are just going type in Bobby Petrino’s cell number but won’t press send until at least halftime of the Iron Bowl.

Trending up: Big man TDs

Southern demolished Arkansas-Pine Bluff 31-9 on Saturday, and senior defensive tackle Willie Miles delivered a play for the ages in the process.

Miles, who according to Southern’s media guide checks in at 5-foot-9 and a gentlemanly 350 pounds, picked up a loose ball after a DJ Stevenson fumble, and set his sights on the end zone. A Golden Lions lineman appeared to have him corralled at the 5, but Miles had ice water in his veins. He pulled loose from the tackle attempt, spun, gathered his balance, and sprinted for the end zone — running through the back and around to the sideline where his teammate wisely opted against lifting him into the air “Dirty Dancing” style.

This was a fitting highlight in what was Miles’ final home game at Southern.

Trending up: Air mail

At the Utah High School state championships Saturday, a fight for the football happened after a football was dropped from a helicopter hovering over the field.

Though in the long run it did not actually replace the coin toss, it should be implemented as such immediately at all levels of football. However, some schools may not have easy access to a helicopter, so we would also accept wrestling a bear for possession of the football, a wing-eating contest, a breakdancing competition, a series of “Yo Mama” jokes or, if absolutely necessary and only for Ivy League games, a race to see which team can solve the equation from “Good Will Hunting” first.

Trending up: Classy coaches

A week ago, Kennesaw State fired its only coach in program history, Brian Bohannon. First, the school said he resigned. He denied it, and the school relented.

If he’s angry at his former employer though, he’s sure not taking it out on his players.

Kennesaw State played one of its better games in Bohannon’s absence on the sideline, falling to Sam Houston 23-17 in overtime. But what’ll be remembered by most Owls fans is their former coach making a classy gesture in the aftermath of a brutal week. Either that or his moving van has been stuck in traffic on I-75 since Monday.

Heisman five

It’s really a three-man race for the Heisman now, unless you want to count offensive Travis Hunter and defensive Travis Hunter as separate players, in which case he’s going to need to buy another suit for the ceremony.

1. Colorado WR/CB Travis Hunter

Hunter Week 12 touchdown count: 1 scored, 1 allowed.

He should be ashamed of himself, giving up a touchdown like that. It’s the type of performance that would get one of Deion Sanders’ kids docked three spots on his child ranking list.

2. Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty

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Ashton Jeanty seals Boise State’s win with 3rd TD of the night

Ashton Jeanty is the first player to record 26 rushing touchdowns in his first 10 games of a season since Ricky Williams in 1998.

Boise State fell behind San José State 14-0 before somebody remembered to wake Jeanty up and tell him to go smash things. He finished the Broncos’ 42-21 win with 32 carries for 159 yards and three touchdowns, putting Jeanty now just 107 rushing yards shy of 2,000 on the season. Jeanty has also eclipsed 30 carries in five straight games, just the third player of the playoff era to do so.

3. Miami QB Cam Ward

The Hurricanes were off Saturday, giving Ward more time to stew over the loss to Georgia Tech. He has called Brent Key’s house 23 times already this week to ask if his refrigerator is running.

4. Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel

Any chance of Gabriel making a real run at the Heisman probably evaporated Saturday in Madison, as he failed to throw a touchdown pass and the Ducks’ offense struggled. Only a home game against Washington and the Big Ten title game remain before voting commences. The good news is, after 23 seasons of college football, Gabriel will still be a favorite to take home a lifetime achievement award.

5. Penn State TE Tyler Warren

In Saturday’s 49-10 win over Purdue, Warren had eight catches for 127 yards and a touchdown and three carries for 63 yards and a score. All season, he has been Penn State’s do-it-all guy, so long as “all” doesn’t also include beating Ohio State. He’s the first Big Ten non-QB to account for at least 10 touchdowns in a season — at least one each passing, rushing and receiving — since 2017, when another Nittany Lion, Saquon Barkley, did it.

Under-the-radar play of the week

Liberty‘s kicker was pretty, pretty … pretty good in overtime of Saturday’s 35-34 win over UMass.

Normally, UMass is an easy win, but this one seemed destined to go down like a dry scone. UMass jumped out to a 20-7 halftime lead, with the majority of Liberty’s offense coming from pity points. Losing to UMass, of course, is one of the most humiliating things a man can experience along with trying on pants.

But the Flames pulled the old chat-and-cut in the second half, tying the game at 28 with 3:49 to play and forcing overtime. UMass scored first in OT, but kicker Jacob Lurie, who we assume doesn’t respect wood, missed his PAT try. Liberty then matched the touchdown and sent Colin Karhu in to win the game with the extra point — and to stare down the legend, Larry David.

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Liberty hits winning extra point despite Larry David scoreboard distraction

Quinton Cooley rushes in for a 5-yard Liberty touchdown and hit the winning extra point despite a Larry David distraction on the videoboard.

From there, the scoreboard flickered to the actual final score — 35-34 Liberty — which feels offensive. They could’ve at least lied to UMass. A lie is a gesture, it’s a courtesy, it’s a little respect. This was very disrespectful.

Under-the-radar game of the week

Louisville technically joined the ACC in 2014, but it wasn’t until Saturday that the Cardinals truly hit the type of rock bottom misery the ACC foists upon all who approach it.

Louisville, which figured to win easily since it has many Cardinals, whereas Stanford is just one Cardinal, cruised early and led by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter. But Stanford scored on a 25-yard touchdown pass with 45 seconds left to tie the game at 35, forced a Louisville turnover on downs after the Cards ran seven plays in just 35 seconds and Stanford got the ball back with 10 seconds to play at its own 45. That should’ve meant overtime, but Louisville committed an unsportsmanlike penalty, setting up Stanford for a 57-yard field goal try. Quincy Riley then was flagged for being offsides, shaving another 5 yards off the kick, and Emmet Kenney delivered from 52 yards out for the win.

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Emmet Kenney’s 52-yard FG gives Stanford the upset over Louisville

Emmet Kenney’s kick is true as his 52-yard field goal seals an upset victory for Stanford over Louisville.

With one minute to play in the game, ESPN gave Louisville a 90% win probability. With 15 seconds left it was still a coin flip. And with no time left on the clock, it was a full-on #goacc for the ages.

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Beck, Georgia rebound with pivotal win over Vols

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10 hours ago

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November 17, 2024

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Beck, Georgia rebound with pivotal win over Vols

  • ESPN News Services

Nov 16, 2024, 11:53 PM ET

ATHENS, Ga. — On a raucous Saturday night between the hedges, Carson Beck once again looked like a quarterback who could lead Georgia to another national title.

Showing off his arm and his legs, Beck silenced his critics by throwing for two touchdowns and running for another, leading the No. 12 Bulldogs to a 31-17 victory over No. 7 Tennessee that gave a huge boost to their College Football Playoff hopes.

Georgia (8-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference) bounced back from a 28-10 loss at Ole Miss that left the Bulldogs just outside the provisional 12-team postseason field.

Now, they are positioned for a likely playoff berth — and a shot at winning their third national championship in four years — if they can close out the regular season with wins over UMass and Georgia Tech.

“Our kids showed resiliency. I’m proud of them,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. “A week ago, we were dead and gone. People had written us off.”

Tennessee (8-2, 5-2) could have moved a big step closer to a berth in the SEC championship game, but the Vols’ postseason prospects are now a whole lot murkier after what had all the makings of a playoff elimination game.

In the midst of a disappointing season, Beck came up huge for the Bulldogs when they needed him most, guiding them to a 29th straight home victory in an FBS-leading streak that dates to 2019.

“He gets judged on outcomes and stats, but we don’t judge based on that,” Smart said. “We judge internally on what gives us the best chance to win. He’s got poise, he’s got composure. He gets us in the right play over and over again.”

Beck connected on a pair of touchdown passes to tight end Oscar Delp in the first half and scrambled for the go-ahead score in the third quarter, darting 10 yards to the end zone for his first rushing TD of the season.

Georgia sealed the victory with a 92-yard drive — its longest of the season — in the closing minutes. Freshman Nate Frazier finished it off with a 2-yard touchdown run with 2:26 remaining.

Beck, who had thrown 12 interceptions in the previous six games, didn’t have any picks against the Volunteers. He completed 25 of 40 passes for 347 yards.

With quarterback Nico Iamaleava cleared to play after going through concussion protocol, Tennessee jumped to a 10-0 lead on Miles Kitselman’s 1-yard dive and Max Gilbert’s 52-yard field goal, dampening the mood of more than 93,000 at Sanford Stadium.

But the Bulldogs, after a sluggish start that has become their trademark, grabbed the lead as Beck connected with Delp on similar-looking scoring passes of 19 and 4 yards in the back of the end zone.

Dylan Sampson put the Vols back in front with his 21st rushing touchdown of the season, a 27-yard scamper through a huge hole right up the middle.

But Beck guided the Bulldogs into position for Peyton Woodring’s 36-yard field goal with 5 seconds remaining in the half, sending the teams to the locker room tied at 17.

Beck’s runs The Georgia quarterback isn’t known as much of a runner, but he posted a career-high 32 yards on three carries — all of them huge plays for the Bulldogs.

A 14-yard run set up his first touchdown pass to Delp, an 8-yard run on third down extended the drive that led to Woodring’s field goal near the end of the first half, and the touchdown run came on third-and-7 from the 10.

“He’s a good athlete,” Smart said. “He can make plays with his feet.”

The takeaway

Tennessee: The Vols defense had not allowed more than 19 points all season, but they couldn’t contain the Beck-led offense. Georgia piled up 453 yards and 24 first downs while converting eight of 13 third-down opportunities. Tennessee just doesn’t have an answer for the Bulldogs, who have dominated the series with eight straight victories – all of them by margins of at least two touchdowns.

Georgia: The Bulldogs played without top running back Travis Etienne, who was sidelined by a rib issue, and the offense took another blow when receiver Dillon Bell went out with an ankle injury sustained on a hit along the sideline late in the first half. But Frazier, the first true freshman to start at tailback for the Bulldogs since 2014, rushed for 68 yard and London Humphreys stepped up to make three huge catches for 63 yards. Big kudos, as well, to the offensive line, which did not give up a sack after Beck was dumped five times the previous week by Ole Miss.

Up next

Tennessee: The Vols return home next Saturday to take on UTEP before wrapping up the regular season with a short trip to Nashville to face Vanderbilt on Nov. 30.

Georgia: With their SEC schedule complete, the Bulldogs close out the regular season with two non-conference games at home. UMass (2-8) shouldn’t present much of a problem next Saturday.

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Jeanty bolsters Heisman case, sets school record

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November 17, 2024

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Jeanty bolsters Heisman case, sets school record

  • Kyle Bonagura, ESPN Staff WriterNov 17, 2024, 12:31 AM ET

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    • Covers college football.
    • Joined ESPN in 2014.
    • Attended Washington State University.

SAN JOSE, Calif. — Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty bolstered his Heisman Trophy résumé Saturday night by breaking the single-season school rushing record in a 42-21 win against San José State.

Jeanty rushed for 159 yards on 32 carries with three touchdowns to up his season total to 1,893 yards through 10 games. He broke the school record set by Jay Ajayi, who ran for 1,823 yards in 14 games in 2014.

“He’s the best football player in the country,” Boise State coach Spencer Danielson said. “He is also a big-time leader and an elite human being.”

The win guaranteed the Broncos, ranked No. 13 in the College Football Playoff rankings, a spot in the Mountain West championship game, which means Jeanty is on pace to rush for over 2,400 yards by the time the Heisman Trophy ballots must be submitted. With a bowl game or an appearance in the playoff, Jeanty could challenge Barry Sanders’ single-season FBS rushing record of 2,628 yards set in 1988.

“It means a lot,” Jeanty said of the school record. “All the past running backs are great and amazing, but to keep the legacy going, the tradition of great running backs at Boise State, I think is a big deal to me.”

Things did not start well for the Broncos and Jeanty against San José State. He was limited to 19 yards on his first nine carries as Boise State fell behind 14-0. But after the Spartans failed to convert on fourth-and-goal to go up 21-0, the Broncos started to find their way.

Jeanty keyed a strong drive to finish the half, which he capped with a 2-yard score to tie the game with 38 seconds before halftime.

“[The challenge] every week is wearing the defense down,” Jeanty said. “We got 8-men boxes, 9-man boxes, so not as many big runs, but over the course of the game, if we’re able to grind them down, get ’em tired, those big runs will come.”

That’s what happened against SJSU. In the second half, Jeanty had runs of 36, 12, 13 and 11 yards, and the Spartans couldn’t keep pace, despite 446 yards passing from quarterback Walker Eget.

Boise State (9-1, 6-0 MW) travels to Wyoming next week before ending the regular season at home against Oregon State on Nov. 29.

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