CFB DeptHITS: Saturday, March 8
We know there are many Saturdays between now and actual games taking place, but in the mean time, keep up with everything you need to know with the HITS all off-season.
We are starting to see more impactful names who are either entering the portal (as graduates or Bowling Green players) or planning to do so in the spring portal window, which opens on April 16th. We will continue to hear more of these names as we roll through spring practices that are also opening up throughout the country. Though spring games themselves are being canceled at a high rate, we will get more news out of spring camps — including some player availability news for spring practices. The coaching carousel won’t stop for a while, so we’ll continue to keep you up on that news as well.
Note: [ the number that you see in brackets is our CFBDepth.com player rating, out of 20 ']
|||||| THE HITS
The HITS are the most impactful news to depth charts and/or on-field performance, as we see it…
Baylor ::: RB Richard Reese [14.2] has announced he will enter the transfer portal when the spring portal window opens. He was the Big 12 offensive player of the year back in 2022, when he ran for 972 yards and 14 scores. He has since struggled to find as many carries -- just 124 in the past two seasons. He is also one of the best kick returners in the country.
Florida ::: QB DJ Lagway [13.3] will be very limited in spring as he underwent off-season surgery on his shoulder. This should not be a concern at this point, however, if it lingers into the summer, we should be monitoring the situation. Lagway is the starter and future at the quarterback position for the Gators.
Oklahoma ::: Word is that RB Jovantae Barnes [13.7] is going to sit out spring ball. He is likely still suffering from lingering effects of an ankle injury that slowed and eventually ended his 2024 season. This is not much of a surprise, he'll continue to rehab and prepare to take back his role atop this depth chart.
Massachusetts ::: RB CJ Hester [13.1] will enter the portal in the spring window. He made a name for himself later in the season. He came to UMass from Western Michigan and by our count, he has two years of eligibility remaining.
Northwestern ::: The Wildcats get former Minnesota OL Martes Lewis [11.6] from the portal. He started the '24 season as the starting right tackle and moved to right guard for a short time before falling out of the rotation on the line. He'll get another shot in Evanston.
Arkansas State ::: The Red Wolves got some disturbing news as DT Ian Jeffries [10.7] unveiled his plans to enter the portal come the spring window. As a freshman, he burst on the scene, earning a starter role in the second half and putting up some solid numbers. He is surely looking to level up.
Washington State ::: As expected, QB Zevi Eckhaus [14.0] is getting the first-team reps at Cougars camp. He started the bowl game and threw for 363 yards and three scores against Syracuse. When head coach Jake Dickert took the Wake Forest job, he flirted with the portal, but ultimately decided to stay and is certainly the front-runner to take over full-time in Pullman.
Louisville ::: USC transfer QB Miller Moss [15.5] is getting first-team reps early in spring camp for the Cardinals. He is fully expected to take on this role, replacing Tyler Shough in Jeff Brohm's offense.
|||||| QUICK HITS
Quick hits include more news and notes, less impactful coaching hires and other tidbits, and suggested further reading material…
Oregon head coach Dan Lanning has received a contract extension that puts him close to the $11 Million/year mark in salary and now runs through 2030.
Former LSU and NFL star defensive tackle Kyle Williams is returning to Baton Rouge to become the Tigers’ new defensive line coach. He spent the past four years as defensive coordinator at Ruston High School in Louisiana.
Chapel Fowler gave us an update from Clemson camp as six Tigers were announced as sitting out spring ball, including RB Jay Haynes.
Notre Dame redshirt freshman CJ Carr is reportedly fully recovered from injury and is a full-go as he begins his battle for the starting quarterback job for the Irish.
Former Baylor star wide receiver Corey Coleman is headed to a former rival, TCU, to become their wide receivers coach.
Chuck Martin at Miami (OH) has returned Johnny Aylward to serve as special teams coordinator. Aylward spent last season as the wide receivers coach at FCS Merrimack. He was previously a graduate assistant in Oxford and spent a season as a GA at Notre Dame.
Martin also announced the promotion of Zane Ries to safeties coach after serving as a graduate assistant in 2024.
Northern Illinois hires Marian University (JUCO) associate head coach and defensive coordinator Justin Robinson as their new defensive tackles coach.
|||||| STATE OF THE CHART UPDATE SERIES
In case you haven’t noticed (or seen), we are putting out ‘off-season’ point-in-time updates for each school to get you caught up on what happened in 2024 and where things stand at this point. This includes a look ahead at the 2025 schedule, any coaching movement and a check-in at each position group. This will lead into the release of our official State of the Chart™ digital magazine this summer. It will have literally EVERYTHING you’d need to know (and, some extra) for all 136 teams heading into 2025. For more information and to get on the mailing list, head over to our site or click this banner »
Here are the posts we’ve finished thus far:
2/1: Alabama Crimson Tide
2/3: Georgia Bulldogs
2/4: LSU Tigers
2/5: Auburn Tigers
2/6: Arkansas Razorbacks
2/7: Florida Gators
2/8: Ole Miss Rebels
2/10: Tennessee Volunteers
2/11: Missouri Tigers
2/12: Texas A&M Aggies
2/13: Oklahoma Sooners
2/14: Texas Longhorns
2/15: South Carolina Gamecocks
2/16: Vanderbilt Commodores
2/17: Mississippi State Bulldogs
2/18: Kentucky Wildcats
Big Ten Conference
2/19: Ohio State Buckeyes
2/20: Michigan Wolverines
2/21: Penn State Nittany Lions
2/22: Indiana Hoosiers
2/23: Wisconsin Badgers
2/24: Northwestern Wildcats
2/25: Oregon Ducks
2/26: Nebraska Cornhuskers
2/27: Minnesota Golden Gophers
2/28: Iowa Hawkeyes
3/1: Michigan State Spartans
3/2: Maryland Terrapins
3/3: Purdue Boilermakers
3/4: Rutgers Scarlet Knights
3/5: Illinois Fighting Illini
3/6: Washington Huskies
3/7: USC Trojans
Later today, we’ll release the UCLA Bruins SOTC update…
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