Morning Wrap: Ohio State Down Alabama in Sugar Bowl

((ht: espn.com))

There was little question at the end of the so-called "SEC Era". Especially when the SEC's best went down to the best of the Big 10.

Ohio State used the feet of Ezekiel Elliot and the arm of freshman Cardale Jones to run away from the much-hyped Crimson Tide 42-35 late Thursday night.

As expected, the game went down to the wire with the Buckeyes taking the lead late in the 4th quarter on an 85 yard TD run by Elliot. Elliot finished with 230 yards rushing and 2 TD's on the night. His score put tOSU up 42-28.

Bama did come back. Blake Sims hit Amari Cooper with 1:59 left in the game closing the gap to 7, but it would be as close as the Tide would get. 

Nick Saban's team did get the ball back with well under a minute left in the game. Sims threw a hail mary pass into the end zone at the buzzer, but it was picked off. Game over.

Ohio State moves on to face Oregon in the National Championship game on Jan. 12th in Dallas. It should be one heck of a game.

Stop Me If You Have Heard This Before...Melvin Gordon Is A Beast, Malzahn's Year Three Is Huge...

If anyone has seen erven the least bit of Big 10/12 Football this season, you have noticed the tailback for Wisconsin and his prowess running the football. The Outback Bowl was no different- 34 carries for a bowl-record 251 yards and three scores...

Even if, on one of his touchdown runs, he absolutely decided to latch on to Jermaine Whitehead's face mask with his own hands and yank him into the endzone with him for the final ten yards of the run... all that on a 4th and 1 from midfield
((HT: ESPN))


It was one of many penalties not called on the day by the officiating crew- on both sides- but the bottom line was that Auburn still cannot stop anyone with great regularity defensively.

Here's the wrap from our friends at WISC-TV in Madison


But, Will Muschamp has already rubbed off on the guys who played in a 13th game this season. There were some signs that the fundamentals of tackling on defense- especially by the linebacking corps- have returned. There was some wrapping up of running backs on tackles at the ankles. The tackling-optional approach of the pursuit of the past was less than before.

The pass rush still is non-existent, save a handful of plays late in the game when Badgers QB Joel Stave had to sit in the pocket and look to his left for a prospective receiver when the whole building knew he wasn't doing anything else. And the speed that Wisconsin used on jet sweeps showed another weakness of the Tigers- getting off blocks, chasing running backs to the edge, and getting there first for a tackle as opposed to the idea of being a step behind and giving up 12 yards a look.

Which happened consistently New Year's Day- and all 2014 season long, really...

Wisconsin, under returning interim coach Barry Alvarez, was one dimensional under Gordon and Corey Clement. They ran the ball behind an offensive line that averages, tackle to tackle, 325.8 pounds. But, when the other team can't stop you- as Auburn found on several occasions on their own this year when they were winning games- there is no reason to deviate from the plays that give you a win. And if you get out of town healthy and in a hurry, why do anything different...???

54 carries for 400 net yards on the day for Wisconsin... 521 yards total

"We knew it was coming and it still worked," Auburn cornerback Trovon Reed told Al.com's Brandon Marcello. "I will say that is a selfish act on our end for not paying attention to detail, but if we could take it back, we'd fix it."

And they need to...

Defensively, if the 7 recruits listed as either signed from the JUCO ranks or "hard commits" all lock in, the spring should be interesting:

Darrell Williams (LB) from Hoover, Jordan Colbert (S) from Griffin (GA), Richard McBryde (LB) from Charles Henderson (Troy, AL), and LB's Elijah Sullivan (Tucker, GA) and Montavious Atkinson (Langston Hughes- Fairburn, GA) have been high school-dominant. So, it will be interesting to see how their talents translate to the next level.

And we all know that Will Muschamp will work on conditioning, tackling, and pass rush starting...

Right...

Now...

Year Three will be an important one to see how the new attitudes will translate in a Nintendo-scoring world...

Reports: UGA Offensive Coordinator Mike Bobo to get Colorado State Job

((ht: ajc.com))

Well it appears University of Georgia football fans will have to find another offensive coordinator to whine about.

According to reports in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution and the Denver Post, UGA Offensive Coordinator Mike Bobo is going to be announced as the new head coach at Colorado State on Tuesday.

More from AJC.com RIGHT HERE

The Denver Post story is RIGHT HERE

The Coloradan newspaper in Ft. Collins is reporting it's a done deal RIGHT HERE

We should note the Rams are waiting until Tuesday according to several reports as to not interfere with Monday nights Broncos/Bengals game in Denver.

Bobo would replace new Florida head coach Jim McElwain, who left Ft. Collins to take the Gators job just a couple of weeks ago.

Bobo is respected by most in the College Football business as one of the nations best coordinators. His Bulldog offenses have been among the top in country for several years.

However, he leaves Athens with mixed reviews among the ignorant Georgia faithful who too often blamed losses or play calls they did not agree with on him. We would add not all fans--but a vocal group of them. Those fans will come to find out Bobo was a little better than the TV bound pseudo coaches think he is.

We've gotten to interview coach Bobo several times, he's truly one of the nice guys in the game. He also is very smart and commands respect from his players.  We wish Coach Bobo the best in Colorado, we have no doubt he will be successful. And who knows, once he gets some head coaching experience under his belt, he might find his way back some time in the near future. We wish him the best.

Morning Wrap: Texas A and M Blows Up Kyle Field

Let the renovations begin.

Texas A and M took the big step in renovating their football stadium Sunday morning by imploding a large chunk of the west end seats.

The school has already kicked off the $450 million renovation of Kyle Field which will increase the capacity to over 102,000 seats.

In addition, the new west side of the stadium will include a "Hall of Champions", premium seating and suites and upgraded TV facilities.

All that and it's expected to be done in time for the beginning of the 2015 season.

Good luck, that's a pretty tight timeline.

Here's video of the implosion from the Aggies their ownselves...

#KyleField has taken the next step in becoming the premier football venue in all of college football #12thMan

A video posted by Aggie Athletics (@12thman) on Dec 12, 2014 at 6:01am PST

Morning Wrap: Les Miles: "I'm Not Leaving for Michigan"

We were pretty sure that Les Miles wasn't leaving LSU to go to Michigan this time after what he went through back in 2007. And with all the success he's had at LSU.

But it didn't stop people from asking--or at least raising the question.

Miles put a stop to it all Monday evening after reports began circulating the Wolverines reached out to him about the job.

The 61-year old Miles has won 103 games in 10 seasons in Baton Rouge and at this point there's no good reason for him to leave.

Michigan has not found a coach yet and speculation is they are waiting on San Francisco 49ers coach Jim Harbaugh to leave his current job. There are few "big name" coaches out there and even fewer that would take the Wolverines job, once considered a plum, now just considered a fading program trying to relive past glory.

But this story is always a good excuse to roll out one of our favorite Les quotes of all time (there are many). It took place after ESPN had reported he would take the Michigan job in 2007. Which was not true.

And because we can say that we had to scramble that morning to cover this press conference, which took place the afternoon before the SEC Championship game. We left, like many others, laughing.

Suspect In Jakell Mitchell Murder Could Get Probation Revoked

((HT: AL.com/WBRC-TV))

The suspect in the murder of Auburn football player Jakell Mitchell may have his probation revoked over a previous charge.

Markale Hart Hart was arrested on first-degree burglary and first-degree theft charges in September of 2010. He pled guilty to the lesser charge of second-degree burglary on May 3, 2012.

As part of the plea deal, Hart's six-year jail sentence was split, and he was allowed to only serve 6 months in jail followed by 3 years of probation.

With his arrest in the Mitchell case, a motion was filed the county of that crime to revoke his probation.

Hart is in jail waiting on a $500,000 bail and is waiting for a date on the hearing itself.

Here was the arrest of Hill over the weekend


Hart's family is asking for a lower bail figure because of financial hardship. The judge that read the charges declared him indigent during his appearance. Hart's family did not appear at the same hearing because they claim to have received death threats.

Arrest Made in Shooting Death of Auburn Football Player

The Auburn University football team is still mourning the early Saturday morning shooting death of redshirt freshman tight end Jakell Mitchell.

But they can take solace in the fact police have made an arrest in the wake of Mitchell's death.

Auburn police arrested 22-year old Markele Hart of Camp Hill, Alabama Sunday afternoon just 25 minutes away from Campus in Dadeville.

After spending the morning hours gathering evidence at The Tiger Lodge Apartments, it didn't take long for detectives to track Hart, the only person arrested in the shooting incident. Hart is being held in the Lee County jail under a $150,000 bond.

We wrote about the death of Mitchell earlier on Sunday, but to summarize: The 19-year old Freshman  Tight End prospect was sitting out the 2014 season. He was a highly recruited local kid who played high school football in nearby Opelika.

The shooting incident happened around 12:25 a.m Sunday morning at the Tiger Lodge, location of a shooting in the summer of 2012 that claimed the life of 2 former Auburn players.

WSFA-TV in Montgomery, Alabama has more:

ICYMI: Auburn Lands Will Muschamp as Defensive Coordinator

Oh boy, this is going to make things a bit more interesting in 2015.

Auburn University hired a new defensive coordinator Friday night. The guy they hired made his reputation as one of the best d-coordinators in the business.

And he was recently fired as head coach at the University of Florida.

Will Muschamp did not come cheaply, but we are guessing Auburn fans are perfectly okay with that as the wake up Saturday morning.

Reports say the former Texas and LSU defensive coordinator and disciple of Nick Saban reportedly nabbed a deal that will pay him somewhere in the $1.6 to $1.8 million a year range, making him the new gold standard for college coordinators. He joins the staff of Coach Gus Malzahn immediately.

And raising the absurdity bar for the cost of college coaches.

But Muschamp will be worth it to the folks on the Plains if he can help a sagging defense that has been the Tigers achilles heel the past several seasons. If the defense improves enough to take down Alabama and get Auburn to the College Football playoff, well, then in their minds, the cost will be worth it.

Muschamp will meet the crazed, assembled masses Saturday in what is sure to be a well attended press conference.

Will Muschamp Heading To South Carolina? That's News To The Head Ball Coach

South Carolina's Scout website Gamecock Pride is citing an unofficial source confirming that Will
Muschamp will be hired as the Gamecocks new defensive coordinator.

"No, I haven't hired Will," South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier told The State newspaper. "I haven't really talked to anybody about additions (to staff)."

Lorenzo Ward remains South Carolina's defensive coordinator.

Reportedly Muschamp has offers for open defensive coordinator positions at either Auburn or Texas A&M.

Should he choose Muschamp won't be unemployed very long.

It appears that Ward won't be unemployed soon either.  Spurrier told The State he has no plans of making any staff changes.

“All our coaches are out recruiting. All of our coaches are under contract,” he said. “Some of them may get a job somewhere else, you never know, and we’ll go from there. We are probably pretty flexible right now a little bit on the staff, but I believe that almost all of our guys will be back.”

The coaching carousel continues to spin.

Carousel Notes: Details on Jim McElwain to Florida Deal

((ht: various))

So, now that the University of Florida negotiated new head coach Jim McElwain's way out of Colorado State, the question is what did it take for that to happen.

The Gators obviously were balking at the $7.5 million buyout, which held up things after their contingent visited McElwain early in the week at his Fort Collins home.

According to reports, here's what it took to pry the man to Gainesville:

---$3 million, paid out over the next 6 years
---$2 million from McElwain himself
---$2 million (approx) for a game in Gainesville sometime in the next 5 years

According to GatorZone.com, McElwain will get $3.5 million per year to coach the Gators. Response thus far has been overwhelmingly positive in most circles and we agree, he's the best coach they could have found for THAT job.

Florida Athletic Director Jeremy Foley released a statement via the Football Team Twitter page:

Statement from athletics director Jeremy Foley on the hire: pic.twitter.com/PIZhJWQlEC
— GatorZone Football (@GatorZoneFB) December 4, 2014

The school also said McElwain's introductory press conference would likely take place on Saturday.

Breathe easy Gator fans, you did well. The bizarre courtship aside, this was the guy that you should be happy you got. There wasn't anything better out there. You were not going to get a "Big Name" guy. That guy doesn't exist. You got the best available.

Deal with it.

Morning Wrap: McElwain Still at Colorado State for Now--(Update: Deal Done)

UPDATE 10:15 a.m:

Per Chris Low of ESPN.com (@clowespn)--

The buyout issues have been resolved, and Florida is expected to announce Jim McElwain as its coach later today.
— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) December 4, 2014

OSG Sports will have more on this story as the day and details progress...

--------------------------------------------

From Earlier this morning:

And the coaching carousel gets a bit more intense this Thursday morning as perhaps the most public rider on it continues to wait for his opportunity.

Throughout the day on Wednesday, we, along with media in Fort Collins, Colorado and all over the state of Florida kept tabs on Twitter, fully anticipating the Florida Gators announcing they were hiring Colorado State head coach Jim McElwain.

That has yet to happen.

It still and probably will happen at some point, but it appears both sides have hit a bit of an impasse. The impasse--the $7.5 million buyout in McElwain's deal that Florida cannot afford to pay and CSU to this point is unwilling to lower.

The Gators are already on the hook for Will Muschamp and his staff's buyouts. They don't want to pay that, plus the buyout plus the $3-4 million it will cost to hire McElwain.

And we don't blame them for that.

But for some reason, it appears Gators AD Jeremy Foley has already gone all-in on this. Granted, he will likely get his man at some point. But he doesn't have him yet.

Reports say Florida has registered a website for McElwain and there's still lots of speculating that he will appear on Sunday or Monday after the SEC Championship game, which is what we think and have said all along will happen.

But until then, the game...and the carousel continues.

In the meantime, KUSA-TV in Denver spent time talking to the man who hired McElwain at CSU, former AD Jack Graham:

Bielema Back To The Big Ten? Could Be Headed To Nebraska? (UPDATED)

UPDATE AT BOTTOM OF STORY

Football Scoop.com is citing sources that Nebraska athletic director Shawn Eihorst has Arkansas

head coach Bret Bielema in his cross hairs and wants the Boss Hog to move north to Lincoln, Nebraska to coach the Cornhuskers.

Getty Images

Bielema and Eihorst have a relationship dating back to their Wisconsin days.  Eihorst wore many hats in the Badger athletic department from 2006 - 2011 moving up the latter as Deputy A.D. under Barry Alvarez.

Of course Bielema was the head coach of the Badgers.

The current Razorback head coach was asked about his commitment to Arkansas during a teleconference with local reporters.

“I took this opportunity without anybody knowing about it or hearing about it. … I’m not one of those coaches that gets my name involved or anything like that. When I started talking to Arkansas, I told them, ‘If my name comes out in a way other than my own release, then I’m going to be out of this conversation.' It’s just how I’ve always operated. … I can't tell you how excited I am for next year. Obviously, my commitment to Arkansas is long-term."

Should the two parties reach an agreement then Nebraska would have to pony up $2.5 million to buy out Bielema's contract.

Would Bielema bolt Arkansas to return to the Big Ten Conference?  Nebraska would seem to be a great fit for his system.

You have to ask why would he make that move to leave an Arkansas program that has some momentum.  

The carousel keeps spinning

Chris Low of ESPN.com spoke to Bielema Wednesday afternoon.

Talked to Bret Bielema and he said he's not going to Nebraska and that he's all Hog.
— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) December 3, 2014

Bielema has worked too hard to get the Hogs' program to a point where they can compete in the West to bolt now.
— Chris Low (@ClowESPN) December 3, 2014

Morning Wrap: Florida Makes Full On Blitz for Jim McElwain

((ht: coloradoan.com))

So, there's now no question who the University of Florida is targeting for their vacant head coaching job.

The Gators definitely want Colorado State coach Jim McElwain to come back to the SEC. And in case you were wondering how serious the courtship is....check out this photo of Gator AD Jeremy Foley at McElwain's home:

UF AD Jeremy Foley at the home of CSU Rams head coach Jim McElwain presumably discussing #Gators job @TFrei #Gators pic.twitter.com/tLc6IjXKSP
— John Leyba (@Presto89) December 3, 2014

Yes, it was taken at McElwain's home in Fort Collins, Colorado about an hour north of Denver where the Denver media and quite a few others spent their Tuesday night.

According to the Coloradoan Newspaper, the negotiating currently ongoing with Florida AD Jeremy Foley may involve McElwain's "Buyout" clause.

The paper says while the buyout as written in the coach's contract stands at $7.5 million, which is enough to scare most anyone off, it's not likely a school such as UF would actually have to pay that amount to hire McElwain away.

The buyout is apparently negotiable depending on the school that comes courting.

Read more from the Coloradoan.com RIGHT HERE

Our guess is this deal gets done by the end of the week. The Florida contingent has not exactly gone out of their way to hide their interest nor has McElwain.

Arguably, he's the best potential hire the Gators could make. A guy familiar with the SEC and from the Nick Saban coaching tree who has had success as a head coach.

Yes, Florida is a high pressure job and a major overhaul is needed. But the resources to do that are already in place.

Expect an announcement by Monday.

Though we could be wrong....

Video Of Gurley Signing Now Public

((HT: ESPN/McMurphy))

Brett McMurphy and Andy Staples caught up with the sports memorabilia collector that caused all the grief in and around Todd Gurley's ineligibility with the University of Georgia.

Bryan Allen says he didn't mean it and hates all the grief the incident caused:

"I can't change any of that stuff -- any of those emails, me talking to the school, how it was handled -- I can't change any of that," Bryan Allen said in his first interview since Gurley was suspended for four games after admitting he accepted money for autographs. "If I could, I would.

"Because I never wanted to screw over Gurley. I never wanted to screw over their fans or anything like that. That was never my intention. I wish I had never even gone down there. It's not worth it."

Here's the video of the signing


It's a whole bunch of inches where Allen apologizes for everything short of kidnapping the Lindbergh baby...

Good read and a lot mf mea culpas...

Morning Wrap: Hugh Freeze Agrees To Ole Miss Contract Extension

((ht: espn.com))

If you are asking yourself why are we posting a story on a college football coach getting a contract extension, then you aren't paying attention to the Coaching Carousel season.

Ole Miss Coach Hugh Freeze got his extension Tuesday morning. Complete with a pay bump--up to $4 million a year per reports.

And it's newsworthy because several blogs/outlets reported that he was the leader for the University of Florida open coaching job.

Those reports were obviously incorrect.

Freeze has gotten results each year with the Rebels, this year the team has been in the Top 10 most of the season and just beat arch rival Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl, knocking the Bulldogs out of playoff contention.

Freeze announced the contract on Twitter:

Very blessed to be at THE University of Miss & work for and with great people and fans! REBELNATION, say it with me, I AM AN OLE MISS REBEL
— Hugh Freeze (@CoachHughFreeze) December 2, 2014

His boss, Athletic Director Ross Bjork confirmed it:

Proud that we have @CoachHughFreeze leading our program & young men for a long time to come. Agreement is in place & future is bright!
— Ross Bjork (@RossBjorkAD) December 2, 2014

2014 Iron Bowl: The Shopping Version

((ht: saturdaydownsouth.com))

This is pretty funny. We've never heard of it, so we're going to share because we always appreciate a good joke.

And this is not holy crap funny, but chuckling all the way through it funny.

A pair of comedians has put together a YouTube page called "SEC Shorts". And the "Shorts" are a series of parody video that have a little fun with the manic obsessiveness of SEC football fans.

They are pretty funny and for the most part--spot on.

The latest video: The 2014 Iron Bowl Shopping Show--where you can see items fresh from Saturday nights game.

Enjoy:

Morning Wrap: LSU Beats Texas A and M on Apparent No-Call

The Texas A and M Aggies are not happy this day after Thanksgiving.

The are mad because they feel a no-call by the referee's cost them the game Thursday night vs. LSU.

Driving down the field with less than 2 minutes left in the game, the Aggies lined up to pass, when it appeared that LSU's nose tackle may have jumped---albeit barely--offsides.

The whistle did not blow, but Aggie QB Kyle Allen did what he thought was the right thing and continued the play, throwing a wounded duck of a pass that was picked off by a Tigers Defensive Back.

Quite honestly, LSU should have won the game easily. They dominated time of possession, holding the ball for over 41 minutes. 

Fabulous freshman Leonard Fournette ran for 146 yards and an amazing TD, where he ran over an A and M safety like he wasn't there.

The win moves LSU to 8-4 on the season, 4-4 in the SEC West. A and M drops to 7-5, 3-5 in the SEC West.

Both teams will be playing in Bowl games this December.

Your highlights from ESPN:

Fournette=Herschel, But Only Once...

((HT: Michael TBL's Vine))

All Leonard Fournette did was remind some of us at OSG HQ of Bill Bates with this move tonight against Texas A&M


Our previous evidence


NO, WE ARE NOT COMPARING THE TWO!!!

NEVERNEVERNEVER!!!

Just with the feracity of the move...nothing more...

Rivarly Week Primer: Mississippi St With Epic Egg Bowl Hype Video

((ht: hailstate))

This may be the best of the bunch.

The production team at Mississippi State has been outstanding this season, producing some quality work. Often mixing old footage with new and utilizing a good mix of music and natural sound.

And this video is no exception, it's tremendous.

HailState provides the pre game hype video for this years Egg Bowl. At least from the Bulldogs side. The game is being played in Oxford at Ole Miss, so this may...or may not show during the game.

So we'll show you here. Well done guys...

FBI Investigating Threat To The Grove

((HT: University of Mississippi))

Here's the note from the school in its entirety:

A handwritten note threatening damage to trees and shrubs in the Grove at the University of Mississippi and signed "Hail State/Go to Hell TSUN" was turned over to the Jackson office of the FBI today (Nov. 26) by UM Police Chief Calvin Sellers.

The note, which arrived on campus late Tuesday (Nov. 25), said:

"What's going to happen to ya'll on the field Saturday Aint nothing compared to what's going to happen on your beautiful campus. You won't be one of the most pretty campus's Next year. A lot of shrubs and trees are going to die; especially in the grove. Can't stop us" (signed) "Hail State Go to Hell TSUN."

Law enforcement authorities are taking the threat seriously and are encouraging fans to report suspicious behavior, Sellers said. In addition, he said, law enforcement resources have been added to address fan safety inside and outside the stadium.

"This longtime football rivalry has separated families and friends for generations, but while it's spirited, our attention has been focused mostly on the football field," Sellers said. "We encourage everyone to remember that this is a game, after all, not a time for hate. We are hopeful that passions have not escalated to the point that someone is prepared to do damage to a landmark for which all Mississippians take great pride."

Just what the Ess-E-Cee needs on another rivalry weekend...

Another round of this...
((HT: Paul Finebaum Radio Network))


It's under investigation...