MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Former University of Alabama quarterback AJ McCarron announced Wednesday that he is ending his campaign for lieutenant governor of Alabama to pursue a sports-related opportunity.

McCarron did not disclose the details of the new position but said “football is calling my name once again.” The announcement comes two months after McCarron announced his bid for office.

“My football position will require the same 100% focus, commitment, and attention that I was prepared to give to the office of lieutenant governor, so it is time to end my campaign,” McCarron said.

McCarron, who led the Crimson Tide to back-to-back championships and played for the Cincinnati Bengals in the NFL, announced in October that he was running in the Republican primary for lieutenant governor.

McCarron had leaned into the fact that he was a first-time candidate. In the statement ending his campaign, McCarron said, “it is time for political newcomers and conservative outsider candidates” to get involved.

Records from the Alabama secretary of state’s office indicated that McCarron first registered to vote in Alabama in October, days before announcing his candidacy.

McCarron did not rule out a future bid for office. “I may return to the political playing field once my career on the football field has truly run its course,” he said.

McCarron was the Crimson Tide’s starting quarterback and led the team to national championship wins in the 2012 and 2013 seasons. He was a runner-up for the Heisman Trophy and went on to play for the Bengals and other NFL teams.

He had been the latest figure looking to channel sports fame into a political win. Former Auburn University football coach Tommy Tuberville was elected to the U.S. Senate in 2020 and is now running for governor of Alabama. Former Auburn basketball coach Bruce Pearl had flirted with the idea of running for Senate, but decided against it.

The Alabama primaries are May 19.

Boston College linebacker Bryce Steele, who overcame several bouts with cancer to continue playing football, was one of three winners of college football’s Comeback Player of the Year Award announced Wednesday.

Also honored were Liberty defensive back Christian Bodnar, who resumed his career this season after recovering from brain inflammation caused by his immune system’s overreaction to a prior infection, and South Florida quarterback Byrum Brown, who broke his leg in 2024 and returned to lead the nation in total offense this season.

Since 2018, the Comeback Player of the Year Award has recognized college football players for overcoming injury, illness or other circumstances. The award is voted on by Associated Press Top 25 voters and sports information directors from around the country. The players will honored at the Fiesta Bowl on Jan. 8 in Glendale, Arizona.

Steele, a fifth-year senior from Raleigh, North Carolina, was diagnosed with cancer in 2019. Boston College continued to recruit him even though he didn’t play his junior season in high school. He underwent surgery and radiation and, despite dealing with recurrences in 2021 and 2022, was able to emerge as a promising player for the Eagles.

In 2023, a routine scan revealed cancer spreading across the lining of his chest wall. It was recommended he undergo a career-ending surgery, but he instead chose to go through aggressive chemotherapy. The treatment resulted in only minimal improvement, and he underwent a 15-hour surgery in October 2023, losing part of his diaphragm and spending weeks relearning to walk and breathe.

He resumed training in late 2023 and eventually was able to return to practice and for the final four games in 2024. Steele played in nine games this season, starting two, and made 16 tackles, recovered a fumble, broke up a pass and had a quarterback hurry.

Bodnar, a redshirt sophomore from Brandon, Florida, fell ill in the middle of the 2024 season with post-infectious encephalitis. The condition causes the immune system to go into overdrive while reacting to a routine illness and attack the central nervous system. Brain swelling left him unable to walk, and he was hospitalized for a week. He wasn’t medically cleared until January. He regained his starting job this season, started all 12 games and made 44 tackles.

Brown, a senior from Raleigh, North Carolina, had his breakout 2024 season ended by a broken leg. He missed the last eight games and went through a rehabilitation process that had him spending six hours a day working to restore strength and mobility.

He returned this season to lead the Bulls to wins over ranked opponents Boise State and Florida on the way to a 9-3 record. His 347.2 yards per game in total offense and 42 touchdowns responsible for (28 passing, 14 rushing) lead the nation.

Jeremiyah Love, the star Notre Dame running back and Heisman Trophy finalist, made it official Tuesday night and declared for the 2026 NFL draft.

Love made the announcement on social media, thanking his family, Fighting Irish coaches and teammates, among others, and saying he “could not have picked a better place for me to grow into the man I am today.”

Love is widely expected to be the top running back selected in next year’s draft.

The 6-foot, 214-pounder is projected to go No. 3 in Mel Kiper Jr.’s latest Big Board for ESPN, and Field Yates has him going 14th to the Kansas City Chiefs in his latest mock draft.

Love scored 21 all-purpose touchdowns in 2025, passing Jerome Bettis (1991) for the most in a season in Notre Dame history. The junior also ended the regular season fourth nationally with 1,372 rushing yards and third with 18 rushing touchdowns, averaging 6.89 yards per carry.

He finished third in Heisman voting behind winner Fernando Mendoza, the quarterback of No. 1 Indiana, and Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia. And he was Notre Dame’s first winner of the Doak Walker Award, given to the top running back in college football.

Love’s junior season already has ended because Notre Dame (10-2) didn’t make the College Football Playoff and opted against playing in a bowl.

As a sophomore, Love rushed for 1,125 yards and 17 touchdowns on 163 carries, helping Notre Dame reach the CFP championship game, which it lost 34-23 to Ohio State. He had 28 catches for 237 yards and two touchdowns that season.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.