Player Notes

Dan Lanning said there would be “a lot” coming next for the Oregon Ducks.“So sit back and watch,” Lanning said Monday afternoon.The next part of the “bold vision” for Oregon athletics that UO athletic director Rob Mullens cited to the school’s board of trustees while presenting Lanning’s contract last week was set on Friday. The Ducks are bound for the Big Ten.“I think our players are really excited ...

After the University of Oregon's Board of Trustees on Friday unanimously approved the Ducks' historic move to the Big Ten and their departure from the Pac-12 after this season, big questions stood out about what the news means for teams across Oregon athletics.Washington was also approved as a new member of the Big Ten, and the pair of schools will join USC and UCLA in bolting from the over century-old ...

STILLWATER — Though none of them could recall the name of the establishment, Oklahoma State receivers Blaine Green, Jaden Bray and Rashod Owens were in agreement that the restaurant they visited just outside San Diego produced the best Italian food any of them had ever eaten.Owens took it a step farther.“That was one of the best food places I’ve ever tasted in my life,” he said, his eyes lighting up. ...

NORMAN — Coming out of high school, Brenen Thompson thought he wanted the big-city life.The idea of living in a thriving community with plenty to do excited the four-star wide receiver from Spearman, a town in north Texas with a population of about 3,100 people.Thompson got his wish in 2021 when he committed to Texas. But after getting his big-city experience in Austin for one year, the small-town ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Five-star safety KJ Bolden chose the Florida State Seminoles on Saturday night, as Ohio State suffered a tough loss on the recruiting trail.Bolden is the seventh-ranked player in the country, per 247Sports’ composite rankings, and the No. 1 safety in the nation. He’s also the second-ranked player in the talent-rich state of Georgia.The secondary target visited Ohio State on June 16, ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- For the second straight year Ohio State found itself neck deep into a battle for a highly rated safety with a great chance of winning.And for the second-straight year, it’s come up short by finishing second. It’s a storyline that has continued to plague the Buckeyes during the Ryan Day era, especially over the past few cycles.In 2022 it lost out on both Zion Branch and Xavier Nwankpa, ...

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Evan Pryor at first did not realize the significance when he executed a wheel route, took a hit and bounced back up in Ohio State football’s second preseason practice.Running backs coach Tony Alford explained it to the third-year back in the next huddle. About 50 weeks earlier, Pryor attempted essentially the same play in a preseason practice. That day, he ruptured the patellar tendon ...

SOUTH BEND — Elevating a sixth-year quarterback in his first year on campus into a key role within the hierarchy of the Notre Dame football team wasn’t going to be a snap-your-fingers situation.It didn’t matter how many yards or touchdowns he’d thrown for at his previous place, it was going to take time for 24-year-old Sam Hartman to feel at home.It took the back half of winter, when Hartman arrived ...

The message to New Mexico football’s offense throughout their first three days of fall camp?Simply put: Start fast. Finish strong.“We’ve started fast a couple of times,” offensive coordinator Bryant Vincent said on Saturday. “We’ve gotta put the second part of it together — where we can finish strong. Games are won in the fourth quarter, and we haven’t gotten to that point yet.”The Journal was there ...

The Big Ten’s addition of Washington and Oregon on Friday brought Nebraska coach Matt Rhule back to a conversation he once had with Trent Green. The former quarterback and current NFL analyst for CBS told Rhule he lives in Kansas City because of the amount of travel his job requires. It’s more convenient to live in the middle of the country than on either coast.Therein lies the advantage Rhule thinks ...