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California high school quarterback prospect Cole Leinart, the son of former USC star and Heisman Trophy winner Matt Leinart, committed to SMU on Wednesday.

Leinart, a 6-foot-3 right-hander, is a junior at California’s Redondo Union High School. Not currently rated by ESPN, he held several Power 4 offers and picked the Mustangs over Colorado, Arizona and Utah to become the second member of coach Rhett Lashlee’s 2026 class.

“The culture they’re building at SMU — I just want to be a part of it,” Leinart told ESPN. “I love the coaching staff. They’re literally like family now. I just want to be part of what they have there.”

Leinart’s commitment landed Wednesday, nearly 19 years since his father closed a legendary playing career at USC.

Matt Leinart was a three-time All-American with the Trojans from 2001 to 2005, carrying a record of 37-2 across three seasons as a starter during which USC won back-to-back national titles (2003 and 2004). Leinart set 16 program records over the course of his college career and became the Trojans’ sixth Heisman Trophy winner in 2004. He went on to spend six seasons in the NFL with the Arizona Cardinals, Houston Texans and Oakland Raiders.

The younger Leinart now joins cornerback Victor Lincoln (Lancaster, Texas) as the second prospect committed to SMU in 2026. In the 2025 cycle, the Mustangs hold a quarterback pledge from four-star dual-threat passer Ty Hawkins, who flipped from TCU in July. Hawkins is one of three ESPN 300 prospects committed to SMU’s 2025 class, which sits at No. 28 in the latest team rankings for the cycle.

Leinart began his high school career at California power Mater Dei High School before transferring to Newport Harbor last fall. Leinart then transferred to Redondo Union prior to his junior season this fall, and he made his debut on Sept. 27 after being sidelined for four games due to California Interscholastic Federation transfer rules. Leinart and Redondo Union will open the 2024 postseason this week against California’s Aquinas High School.

SMU was the first program to seriously pursue Leinart when the Mustangs offered him a scholarship under former coach Sonny Dykes prior to Leinart’s freshman year of high school. Dykes moved on to TCU shortly thereafter, but Leinart remained in touch with the Mustangs and soon developed a close relationship with Lashlee, SMU’s third-year coach.

Leinart’s commitment to the Mustangs comes days after he visited SMU and attended the team’s 48-25 win over Pitt on Saturday.

“They’ve been No. 1 for a long time, and then I got out to a game this past weekend,” Leinart said. “It was awesome to see. The offense is open. The defense is lights out. And it’s just a fun team. The whole vibe is just awesome. I’m happy to be a part of it.”

For Leinart, who initially followed in his father’s footsteps at Mater Dei, college football represents an opportunity to continue a family legacy in the sport.

“Everyone sees the last name, but they don’t really see the work that my parents put in for me to get to this place,” Leinart said. “This isn’t just me. This is everything. I get to carry the tradition and play football, and I think they’re happy for me.”

SMU (8-1) was selected at No. 13 in the first rankings released by the College Football Playoff selection committee Tuesday. The Mustangs are off in Week 11 ahead of a visit from Boston College on Nov. 16.

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Auburn’s Simmons faces domestic assault charge

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Auburn's Simmons faces domestic assault charge

Auburn wide receiver Malcolm Simmons, an expected starter this season, was arrested Wednesday on a charge of domestic assault with strangulation or suffocation, according to Lee County (Alabama) Sheriff’s Office records.

Simmons was booked into Lee County Jail at 7:20 p.m. ET. His bond was set at $20,000.

An Auburn spokesperson said in a statement, “We are aware of the situation, are gathering the facts, and will address the situation.”

As a freshman last season, Simmons was second on the team with 40 receptions, including three going for touchdowns. He also returned a punt for a score.

He is one of the players Hugh Freeze mentioned at SEC media days earlier this week, when the Auburn coach said he thinks this can be his best receiving corps since he was at Ole Miss.

Simmons is the second Auburn player to be arrested this month. Linebacker D.J. Barber was dismissed from the team last week while facing multiple drug charges, including trafficking marijuana.

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Court reverses decision on Badgers’ Fourqurean

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Court reverses decision on Badgers' Fourqurean

MADISON, Wis. — The status of Wisconsin cornerback Nyzier Fourqurean for this season is now unclear after a federal appeals court overturned a preliminary injunction that had granted him another year of NCAA eligibility.

In a 2-1 decision rendered Wednesday, Seventh Circuit judges reversed the ruling by a lower court, after the NCAA appealed.

Fourqurean, a fifth-year senior, had argued that his first two college seasons at Division II Grand Valley State should not count toward his eligibility.

Vanderbilt quarterback Diego Pavia is expected to play again after winning his court case last year on the grounds that his two seasons at a junior college do not count. The NCAA is appealing that decision but granted a blanket waiver that will allow Pavia and other athletes who played at non-NCAA Division I schools prior to enrollment an extra year of eligibility if they were going to exhaust their eligibility this year.

The path forward for Fourqurean, a projected starter, is less clear with Wisconsin’s season opener against Miami (Ohio) on Aug. 28 just over six weeks away. Messages sent to attorneys listed as his representatives in court documents, as well as spokespeople for Wisconsin football, were not immediately returned.

The NCAA released a statement after Wednesday’s ruling, noting it “will continue to work together to provide unparalleled opportunities for student-athletes and future generations.”

“The member-approved rules, including years of eligibility, are designed to help ensure competition is safe and fair — aligning collegiate academic and athletic careers to provide high-level opportunities and benefits to hundreds of thousands of student-athletes,” the NCAA said. “We are thankful the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals today reversed the district court’s decision.”

Fourqurean testified during a U.S. District Court hearing in February that he would make “hundreds of thousands of dollars” in name, image and likeness compensation if he were to play this season. After judge William Conley granted him the preliminary injunction, Fourqurean pulled out of NFL draft consideration and took part in spring practices.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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‘Starving’: Bama ready for DeBoer revenge tour

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'Starving': Bama ready for DeBoer revenge tour

ATLANTA — As Alabama looks to improve upon last season’s 9-4 record in its second season under head coach Kalen DeBoer, those within the program are well aware of the lofty expectations but say they enter this season with a greater sense of comfort surrounding the program’s future under DeBoer.

“I feel like especially last year, it is hard, man,” Alabama linebacker Deontae Lawson told ESPN on Wednesday at SEC media days. “You’re coming from Coach Saban to Coach DeBoer, everyone — everyone — is going to have something to say. Everyone wants to know, ‘How’s the new coach?’ or ‘What’s the difference?’ or something like that. But yeah man, we were all for Coach DeBoer. I remember he walked in — the first day he walked in — we all sat up in our chairs ready to go. And from that day we all been on the DeBoer train, probably more now than ever.”

Last year, Alabama lost four games and finished outside the Associated Press Top 10 for the first time since 2007. It was the third time in 11 seasons the Tide missed the playoff, this time finishing No. 11 in the selection committee’s final ranking but getting bumped from the 12-team field to make room for three-loss ACC champion Clemson.

While preseason favorite Texas has garnered the most spotlight here at the College Football Hall of Fame, where media days are being held, there’s a quiet confidence brewing at Alabama.

“We’re starving,” Lawson said. “We’re not hungry, we’re like starving. And that’s different. That’s different. … Just to see no one transfer out of here when the time came, man, it just shows you that we got guys that’s willing to do what they have to do to make us the most successful team that we can be. I’m just super excited. I know the guys are ready, and we go at it with each other every day, and I’m sure we all can’t wait until we see a different color jersey even though we haven’t even got into camp yet.”

DeBoer said he’s spending less time building the culture of the program and more time breaking down what happened in the four losses last year, and how they’ll operate when certain situations happen.

“That’s where we have to be better,” he said. “because we fell short, five- six- seven-point losses. It’s one play here, one play there that might have changed the outlook of the game.

“In some cases, it wasn’t something anyone was doing wrong, it was just, ‘Man, be better,'” he said. “It’s not on the players, it’s not on the coaches, it’s just reps. Repetitions. Just do more together, more time together helps you feel more comfortable.”

Even with a new quarterback and a familiar face in first-year offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb, who was with DeBoer at Washington, DeBoer said his gut feeling about this year’s team is simply having a better sense of who it is.

“You still don’t know Week 1 exactly what it’s going to look like, right?” he said. “… I know what I’ve got with these guys. It doesn’t guarantee you anything, but it gives you optimism, a lot of excitement, and continue to keep it honed in and headed in the right direction all together.”

DeBoer has said that if the season started today, Simpson would be the starter, but he continued to stress that he will be tracking all of the quarterbacks’ throws at practices, and watching their poise and leadership. Simpson, the most experienced of the bunch, completed 58% of his passes for 381 yards in three seasons at Alabama. Austin Mack was with DeBoer at Washington before following him to Alabama, where he went 2-for-3 for 39 yards and a touchdown in his lone appearance last season. Incoming freshman Keelon Russell was the No. 2 overall recruit in this year’s ESPN 300 and was the 2024 Gatorade High School Football Player of the Year.

DeBoer said Simpson doesn’t want to let anyone down — almost to a fault — and wants to make sure the young quarterback knows that, “if you’ve given everything you have, you’re not letting us down because he didn’t convert a third down, or didn’t have a drive that ended in a touchdown. … you don’t have to live in that, the fear of failure.”

“When you’re not experienced … sometimes you feel like, ‘Man, I want to go make that play,’ and it isn’t the right calculated risk to take,” DeBoer said, “… or things happen a little faster because you don’t have enough of those reps, but he’s done a great job. He’s working hard to make sure he’s taking care of the football, leading us. He’s obviously a great teammate.”

Alabama offensive lineman Kadyn Proctor said he’s confident in the pass protection “for whoever’s back there” at quarterback. He, too, said he’s confident in DeBoer, whom he said shares some of the same qualities as former legendary coach Nick Saban.

“I knew that our athletic director wasn’t just going to choose anybody to have this position,” Proctor said, “and if coach DeBoer being there is the right fit, then I’m behind it.”

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