09/02/10- Tevin Jackson, Fr, Texas, 6-2, 230 Texas freshman linebacker Tevin Jackson is ineligible to play and can’t enroll in school because he has not yet been cleared by the NCAA. The university said in a statement Thursday that an issue with Jackson’s high school transcript has kept him from being ruled eligible. University officials “will continue to pursue getting the issue resolved in order for Jackson to enroll.” But if the situation isn’t resolved quickly, he’ll be unable to enroll this semester and won’t be eligible to play for the Longhorns. The 6-foot-2, 230 Jackson, from Garland, was an All-State at linebacker in 2009. - AP Sports
09/02/10- Jamari Lattimore, rSr, Middle Tennessee State, 6-2, 225 SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Perhaps this is one reason why coach Rick Stockstill seems so grumpy when assessing his team. The Blue Raiders lost five starters and replacing them won't be easy. The front seven was hit particularly hard, losing four starters. Stopping the run will be one issue. Putting pressure on the quarterback will be another. There will be some growing pains along the way, especially early in the season. And don't forget the offense likely won't be as potent without quarterback Dwight Dasher so it will be even more important for the defense to play well. PLAYERS TO WATCH: DE Jamari Lattimore - One of the few returning players on the front seven, he made second-team all-conference last season. He started every game, recorded 5.5 sacks and recovered three fumbles.
09/02/10- Aaron Brown, rJr, Hawaii, 6-1, 208 Linebacker Aaron Brown missed nearly all of the preseason practices with a sprained ankle but returned about a week before the opener.
09/02/10- Shaq Wilson, Jr, South Carolina, 5-10, 226 Junior LB Shaq Wilson, who led the team in tackles in 2009, continues to be hampered by a hamstring injury that has forced him out of most of spring practice. That has put his availability for the Southern Miss encounter in doubt. "He might play a few plays," said Spurrier. "If he's not 100 percent we won't play him. He hasn't practiced all year."
09/02/10- Marty Patterson, Sr, Gardner-Webb, 6-2, 225 Gardner-Webb football coach Steve Patton was joking a month ago when he warned Big South preseason defensive player of the year Marty Patterson to be careful as there had seemed to be some sort of jinx on former Bulldogs after earning that honor. Unfortunately for the team, that curious trend continues. "Sure enough, Marty Patterson has a hip socket [issue] that he was born with, and he's going to have to have surgery and miss the whole year," Patton said Tuesday on the Big South coaches teleconference. Patterson, a senior linebacker who led the Big South with 110 total tackles last season, told Patton several days into preseason camp that he had felt a pop in his hip. The injury was not sustained during contact drills, and the coaching staff didn't know what to make of it. After seeing a specialist in Charlotte, N.C., it was determined that Patterson had a labrum tear in his hip caused by an irregular structure of his hip socket, Patton explained. "When the gentlemen said if he didn't have surgery, he could [need] a hip replacement before he was 30, [that] obviously got our attention," Patton said. - Ryan Young, The Sun News
09/02/10- Danny Trevathan, Jr, Kentucky, 6-1, 228 BREAKOUT STAR: LB Danny Trevathan - The Wildcats have received excellent linebacker play the past few seasons and Trevathan, a junior, appears primed to become one of the better linebackers in the SEC. Trevathan, who plays on the weak side, was second on the team with 82 tackles last season despite playing part of the season with a broken wrist. Trevathan is counted on to be the Wildcats' defensive leader after the loss of four key senior defenders.
09/02/10- Jordan Futch, Jr, Miami, 6-2, 235 LB Jordan Futch, who was showing some promising signs before injuring a knee in last year's game against Florida A&M, isn't expected to play in the opener.
09/02/10- Sean Spence, Jr, Miami, 6-0, 212 PLAYERS TO WATCH: LB Sean Spence - Injuries cost him three games last season but he finished strong. Heading into his junior year, Spence needs to have a big year if the defense is to live up to expectations.
09/02/10- Brandon Heath, rSr, Louisville, 6-1, 215 SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: This is where Cardinals fans may have to look at their programs to figure out who the starters are. Louisville is very inexperienced here, especially in the linebacker corps and the secondary, but coach Charlie Strong made his reputation as a defensive coordinator at Florida. Whoever the starting 11 wind up being, this unit should be better than the naysayers suggest. PLAYERS TO WATCH: LB Brandon Heath was one of Charlie Strong's early projects, and by all accounts the fifth-year senior turned over a new leaf during the offseason. He should start at linebacker, and will be counted on to stabilize a relatively inexperienced defense.
09/02/10- Danny Trevathan, Jr, Kentucky, 6-1, 228 PLAYERS TO WATCH: WLB Danny Trevathan - The Wildcats are revamping on defense after losing a quartet of top-notch defenders in tackle Corey Peters, cornerback Trevard Lindley, and linebackers Micah Johnson and Sam Maxwell. Trevathan is the most productive returning defender and is also counted on to be the defensive leader.
09/02/10- Jonas Mouton, rSr, Michigan, 6-2, 228 PLAYERS TO WATCH: LB Jonas Mouton - The fifth-year senior from Los Angeles has been named to the watch list for the Butkus Award. Last season, Mouton started all 11 games at weakside linebacker and finished fourth on the team with 66 tackles. He needs to be the leader on that side of the ball.
09/02/10- Greg Lloyd, rSr, Connecticut, 6-1, 235 SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: This should be a very solid front seven, particularly with Greg Lloyd making an unexpectedly quick recovery from his offseason knee surgery. The big question mark here is in the secondary, which was the weak link a year ago and had an up-and-down performance in the practices leading up to this week's game. PLAYERS TO WATCH: MLB Greg Lloyd suffered an ugly knee injury a year ago, and the early conventional wisdom was that he would redshirt. However, his rehab has gone much faster than expected, and he will start the season opener.
09/02/10- J.T. Thomas, rSr, West Virginia, 6-2, 230 LB J.T. Thomas, a senior, missed a good deal of camp with a neck injury. Coaches said it was only precautionary to keep out of live drills and he is expected to play against Coastal Carolina.
09/02/10- Kenny Rowe, Sr, Oregon, 6-2, 232 SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: Oregon likely has the fastest unit in the Pac-10, led up front by undersized end Kenny Rowe, who led the Pac-10 in sacks last season with 11.5. One of the big competitions of camp came at the cornerback position opposite standout Talmadge Jackson III. The winner was junior Anthony Gildon, whom coach Chip Kelly called the most consistent and the one who best covered the deep pass.
09/01/10- Steve Paskorz, rJr, Notre Dame, 6-2, 245 LB Steve Paskorz, who moved from fullback in the spring (Brian Kelly's offense doesn't have a fullback position), suffered a knee injury in practice last week and will be out three weeks. He was expected to at least help on special teams.
09/01/10- Mark Herzlich, rSr, Boston College, 6-4, 248 PLAYERS TO WATCH: LB Mark Herzlich - There was no guarantee he would be ready for the opener, but this special story had returned to practice at the start of preparation for the opener. "We're keeping our fingers crossed," Spaziani said of Herzlich, whose comeback from a battle with cancer was slowed by a stress fracture to his right foot. He had a rod implanted in his left leg after his treatment to beat Ewing's sarcoma.
09/01/10- Mychal Sisson, rJr, Colorado State, 5-11, 209 SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: A very talented linebacking corps is the strength of the defense. The defensive-end spots are a bit thin and young, with a pair of sophomores starting, but a couple of senior tackles in the middle help out. There is some experience in the secondary as well. But the defense will go as far as the linebackers take it, in particular outside linebackers Ricky Brewer and Mychal Sisson. The Rams need those two to be playmakers all season.
09/01/10- Ricky Brewer, rSr, Colorado State, 6-0, 212 KEYS TO SUCCESS: There is a lot of talent returning on defense. Ricky Brewer returns after missing all of last season because of a suspension to bolster a strong and deep group of linebackers. The line has some experience and talent back, although the rotation still needs to be figured out. The secondary has three starters back. While the offense comes together with a brand new line and likely a freshman quarterback, the defense will have to keep the team in games.
09/01/10- Mark Herzlich, rSr, Boston College, 6-4, 248 LB Mark Herzlich was hoping to continue his comeback from cancer by playing in the opener, after returning in practice the Saturday before the opener. "The worst-case scenario is that he doesn't do anything (in his first practice). The best case is that he's running around, we start practicing him a little bit -- we've got to worry about him pulling a muscle and things like that - and then he dresses and does something in the opener," said coach Frank Spaziani. "That's the best-case scenario. But he's not going to play 70 plays."
09/01/10- Mark Herzlich, rSr, Boston College, 6-4, 248 SCOUTING THE DEFENSE: If Mark Herzlich completes a successful comeback from his battle with cancer, you'd be hard-pressed to find a better linebacking group in the country than the one working at Chestnut Hill. Herzlich would team with Luke Kuechly and Mike Morrissey. And look for Kevin Pierre-Louis to contribute. He's listed as a starter for the opener. Overall, the defense should be strong, even though there was a manpower problem at the tackle spot as the Eagles broke camp with Damik Scafe still not back after back surgery.
09/01/10- Mark Herzlich, rSr, Boston College, 6-4, 248 BC coach Frank Spaziani acknowledged that there was more than football involved in Herzlich's comeback, but he said he will try to make decisions on how much to play the star linebacker based on the circumstances in the game. "We want to keep all of the players happy - within the framework of the team," Spaziani said. "Mark is a special case, but he knows better than anybody that the team comes first." Spaziani said he didn't think Herzlich would play a full game, but otherwise the coach couldn't predict how Herzlich's body would respond to its first action since the 2008 Music City Bowl. But at least the problem this time is conditioning; Herzlich said he did virtually no running for four months. "I don't know what he's definitely doing," Spaziani said Wednesday. "He's definitely practicing today. I'm not to Saturday yet." Herzlich's father has accumulated 75 tickets for the game, and his high school coaches will be also be there. The school will also include children who have survived cancer in a pregame ceremony. Herzlich said he is proud of the work he has done to raise money for cancer research, and to serve as a role model for others who are facing a frightening diagnosis. But he is also eager to be thought of once again as a star football player who was a Butkus Award finalist in 2008 after leading the Eagles with 81 tackles in 2008 and intercepted six passes - the most in the nation for a linebacker. "Some people don't think of me as a football player at all," Herzlich said. "But I don't ever want either of those things to go away." - AP Sports
09/01/10- Dorian Bell, rFr, Ohio State, 6-1, 225 The expanded Big Ten will place Ohio State and Michigan into different divisions. The conference announced its divisional breakdown Wednesday night, though neither division has been named. Michigan, Nebraska, Iowa, Michigan State, Minnesota and Northwestern will make up one division when the league grows to 12 teams in 2011. Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin, Illinois, Purdue and Indiana are in the other. Commissioner Jim Delany said creating divisions with competitive equality was the top priority and No. 2 was maintaining a cross-division rivalry game. Big Ten teams will play eight conference games the next two seasons, but that could increase in the future. "The athletic directors have the intention of exploring a ninth conference game in 2015," Delany said. Ohio State and Michigan will play each other every year on the last day of the Big Ten season, and could conceivably play each other twice in one season. Because they are in different divisions, the Buckeyes and Wolverines could play in the new Big Ten championship game. "I'm very pleased that we came out of this with protected rivalries that will go on permanently with Ohio State and Michigan State," Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon told the Associated Press. "We'll play Ohio State in the last game of the regular season, following a tradition that has lasted for decades. And if we both earn the right, we can play the Buckeyes again in the Big Ten championship game." The first Big Ten Championship Game will be played in Indianapolis at Lucas Oil Stadium, the home of the NFL's Colts. - AP Sports
09/01/10- Richard Samuel, Jr, Georgia, 6-1, 232 LB Richard Samuel will be out week 1 due to a leg injury.
09/01/10- Dain Taylor, Sr, Drake, 6-2, 245 Drake University plans to face an all-star team from Mexico in Tanzania next year in what the school says will be the first American football game ever played in Africa. The school announced Wednesday that the Bulldogs, who compete in the Football Championship Subdivision, will play on May 21 in Moshi, Tanzania, in the inaugural Global Kilimanjaro Bowl. Players from each team will hold a football clinic for local children. They'll also stay after the game for community service projects, including work on an orphanage, and to hike Mount Kilimanjaro. Drake coach Chris Creighton says the trip will meet his dream of bringing American football to a place that's never experienced it before. Drake officials didn't specify the cost of the trip but say they were accepting donations to help cover expenses. - AP Sports
09/01/10- Dex Jones, rSo, Western Michigan, 6-0, 249 PLAYERS TO WATCH: LB Dex Jones - The Broncos expect much from Jones, a transfer from the University of Wisconsin. He is expected to give them much needed help in rushing the quarterback. He can play outside linebacker or with his hand in the ground as a defensive end.
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