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James Madison pass-rusher Jalen Green will miss the rest of the season after suffering a significant knee injury in Saturday’s win over Georgia State, the school announced Monday. Green leads the nation in both sacks and tackles for loss.

JMU coach Curt Cignetti said it was a non-contact injury suffered when Green pivoted to chase the QB on a scramble play in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s game.

The injury will require surgery, the school said.

Through nine games, Green has 15.5 sacks and 21 tackles for loss, along with seven QB hurries, an interception (returned for a touchdown) and two forced fumbles. He needed just five more sacks to break Elvis Dumervil’s FBS record.

“We’ve got a couple other guys in the mix who could see increased playing time,” Cignetti said. “Amar Thomas at defensive end and Mychal McMullin at defensive tackle. We’ll be 2-deep plus on the defensive line. We’ll figure it out. We’ve got some flexibility. But you can’t replace a guy like Jalen. He had probably more production as a pass-rusher than anybody in the country this season.”

Green had already set the Sun Belt Conference single-season record for sacks and was one sack shy of the program’s all-time record. JMU joined the Sun Belt last season after moving up from the FCS level. He also set the school record with five sacks in a game on Oct. 19 vs. Marshall.

“Everybody feels really bad for him,” Cignetti said. “He was having a tremendous season, had a chance to break the sack record: 15 and a half sacks, 21 TFLs, he put a lot into this season. The silver lining would be he attracted the NFL scouts’ attention, which I know is his goal, to play in the league. He’s had a lot of interest in the NFL the last few weeks.”

A Baltimore native, Green is a redshirt senior, WHO also missed the entirety of the 2020-21 season with an injury, but Cignetti said Monday that Green is not eligible for a medical hardship waiver and will not be able to return next season.

“He’s disappointed, but he’s a mature guy,” Cignetti said. “He’s got dreams of playing in the NFL. He’s got to have that surgery and go through the rehabilitation process and get ready for his opportunity.”

Cignetti said Green had “a lot of interest from the NFL in the last few weeks”

JMU is 9-0 on the season, but because it is in an NCAA-required transition year from FCS, it is not eligible for the Sun Belt championship game or any postseason appearances and will not be ranked by the College Football Playoff committee. The Dukes are 21st in the CFP rankings. They’ll face off against UConn at home on Saturday.

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Auburn’s Freeze diagnosed with prostate cancer

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Auburn's Freeze diagnosed with prostate cancer

Auburn football coach Hugh Freeze was recently diagnosed with prostate cancer and is expected to make a full recovery after doctors detected the disease in its early stages, the school announced Friday.

Freeze, 55, will continue coaching the Tigers while receiving treatment, Auburn officials said in a statement.

“Recently, Coach Freeze was diagnosed with an early form of prostate cancer,” the statement said. “Thankfully, it was detected early and his doctors have advised that it is very treatable and curable. He will continue his normal coaching duties and responsibilities, and with forthcoming proper treatment, is expected to make a full recovery.

“Coach Freeze is incredibly appreciative of our medical professionals and has asked that we use his experience as a reminder of the importance of prioritizing and scheduling annual health screenings.”

The Tigers are scheduled to start spring practice March 25.

Freeze’s teams went 11-14 (5-11 SEC) in his first two seasons, including a 5-7 campaign in 2024. With the additions of transfer quarterback Jackson Arnold (Oklahoma), wide receivers Eric Singleton Jr. (Georgia Tech) and Horatio Fields (Wake Forest), offensive tackle Xavier Chaplin (Virginia Tech), and others, the Tigers are expected to be much improved this coming season.

At Liberty, Freeze coached from a hospital bed set up in the coaches’ box during the Flames’ 24-0 loss to Syracuse in his debut on Aug. 31, 2019. Freeze was recovering from surgery for a herniated disk in his back and a staph infection.

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Bowling Green’s Loeffler takes QB job with Eagles

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Bowling Green's Loeffler takes QB job with Eagles

Bowling Green coach Scot Loeffler is leaving the school after six seasons to become quarterbacks coach of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Loeffler, 50, went 27-41 at Bowling Green but led the Falcons to bowl appearances in each of the past three seasons, posting a 16-10 record in MAC play during the span.

He will replace Doug Nussmeier, who left the Eagles with Kellen Moore to become the New Orleans Saints‘ offensive coordinator. Loeffler will work under new Eagles offensive coordinator Kevin Patullo, who had been the team’s passing game coordinator and associate head coach.

“Scot has been dedicated to not only BGSU Football, but to all our student-athletes and BGSU Athletics, as well as our Falcon Marching Band and spirit programs,” university president Rodney Rogers said in a statement. “He cares deeply about player development and student success, and we wish him all the best as he continues his coaching career in the NFL with the Super Bowl-winning Philadelphia Eagles.”

Loeffler returns to the NFL for the first time since 2008, when he coached quarterbacks for the Detroit Lions. A former Michigan quarterback, Loeffler coached QBs at his alma mater from 2002 to 2007 and also with Central Michigan and Florida. He first became an offensive coordinator with Temple in 2011 and made coordinator stops with Auburn, Virginia Tech and Boston College before landing his first head-coaching opportunity at Bowling Green.

The coaching change means Bowling Green players now have a 30-day window to enter the NCAA transfer portal. The Falcons had already lost three All-MAC performers to the portal in December in running back Terion Stewart (Virginia Tech), offensive tackle Alex Wollschlaeger (Kentucky) and linebacker Joseph Sipp Jr. (Kansas). Bowling Green also is losing record-setting tight end Harold Fannin Jr. to the NFL draft.

Athletic director Derek van der Merwe will lead the search for Loeffler’s replacement. In a statement, Van der Merwe praised Loeffler for building “a very successful program in a challenging climate in collegiate sports.

“I am looking forward to this process of finding the next great leader for our program who embraces what it means to be a Falcon,” Van der Merwe added.

ESPN’s Max Olson contributed to this report.

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Texas raises ticket prices as player costs go up

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Texas raises ticket prices as player costs go up

AUSTIN, Texas — Texas will be raising football season ticket prices by $13 per game next season as the program, already one of the richest in the nation, tries to meet rising costs.

Athletic director Chris Del Conte announced the price increase this week in his annual campus town hall, where he detailed the program’s expected finances upon final approval of a landmark $2.8 billion lawsuit settlement that lays the foundation for players to receive money directly from their schools.

Texas will have nearly $30 million in new costs and about 200 new scholarships across all sports, Del Conte said. The ticket price increase will help cover some of that.

The increased scholarships will cost about $9.2 million, and the school plans to pay $20.5 million annually to its athletes.

“We plan to get to the full limit,” Del Conte said. “We’re doing that because we want to maintain Texas as the best athletic department in the country.”

Texas was the only program to qualify for the College Football Playoff each of the past two seasons. The Longhorns lost in the semifinals both years.

Texas reported $332 million in operating revenue and $325 million operating expenses in the 2024 fiscal year, the first time a top-division public school had topped the $300 million mark in both categories, according to USA Today.

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