CFB DeptHITS: Thursday, March 20
The DeptHITS are designed to get you up to speed on the news you'll need/want to know around the world of college football.
Today, we’ll hit some of the big news around college football, including portal news and notes, player statuses, coaching changes, and even some early spring camp notes on quarterback battles and other on-field updates. Exciting. Let’s go!
Note: [ the number in brackets is our CFBDepth player rating, out of 20 ]
|||||| THE HITS
Texas A&M ::: WR Micah Hudson [13.6], the 5-star receiver recruit for Texas Tech last season, entered the portal after not finding the playing time right away in Lubbock. He enrolled at Texas A&M and since left workouts early in his tenure there. Word has now leaked that he is no longer officially with the program. A return to Texas Tech is not being ruled out.
Bowling Green ::: QB Justin Lamson [13.1] is re-entering the portal after originally signing with Bowing Green from Stanford. He would be in the running for the starting job, but after Scot Loeffler exited the program and committed to FCS Montana State. Lamson wants to play football and this is his best opportunity to do so.
South Carolina ::: WR Nyck Harbor [12.3] is reportedly ditching his track and field participation and going 'all-in' on football. He went to South Carolina with Olympic aspirations and put those on hold. He was the Gamecocks most targeted wide receiver, but there is more to be unlocked from this former five-star recruit.
North Carolina State ::: Backup OL Patrick Matan [9.8] is entering the portal as a grad transfer, looking for a place to get on the field. Matan played just 12 snaps at right tackle in 2024.
Louisville ::: EDGE Demon Clowney [12.9] is re-entering the portal after getting a look at Louisville and moving on again. He spent the 2024 season at Charlotte and prior to was at Ole Miss. The last name should ring a bell as he is the cousin of the great Jadeveon Clowney.
North Carolina ::: The Tar Heels have landed former Penn State EDGE Smith Vilbert [12.4] in the portal. Vilbert will play his final season in Chapel Hill after returning to the Nittany Lions in 2024, playing a role in the rotation that ended in 12 tackles, 1.5 sacks, and two forced fumbles (one recovered). He is the third notable defensive line pickup for Bill Belichick and company from the portal.
Princeton ::: CB Jalen Newman [10.2] is hitting the portal as a grad transfer. He has played over 1,400 career snaps at the FCS level and he grades out as a rotational player at a group of five school.
Colorado State ::: WR Louis Brown IV [12.4] was supposed to return to the Rams after a San Diego State stop in 2024. However, an off-field incident is said to be why he is no longer with the program. He logged 38 catches for 620 yards and three scores for the Aztecs. We will track his whereabouts as he has the potential to be an impact player wherever he lands, assuming this incident doesn't keep him from joining a roster in 2025.
Wisconsin ::: WR Trech Kekahuna [13.7] suffered an injury in Wisconsin spring camp that will keep him out for the remainder. The hope is that it is not serious and that he'll be back in time for summer workouts. Kekahuna caught 25 passes in '24 and is expected to become the primary slot receiver for the Badgers in '25.
Louisiana Tech ::: RB Marquis Crosby [12.7] is leaving the Bulldogs and lessening the depth at the running back spot in Ruston. He was a part of a three-way committee there a season ago and has racked up 241 carries over his time there. He burst on the scene in 2022 with a 183 carry, 918 yard and nine touchdown performance before he was injured before missing the 2023 season after one, 20-yard carry.
South Alabama ::: QB Gio Lopez [15.7] suffered an injury late in the season and missed the Jags' bowl game. The good news is that he's back on the field and ready to roll in spring practices and to lead this offense again in 2025.
Campbell ::: Another FCS portal entry to watch is WR Sincere Brown [12.0]. He is a former USF Bull and now looks to level back up after a season that saw him grab 61 passes for over 1,028 yards and 12 scores for the Camels.
Tennessee State ::: More Tigers players are hitting the portal following Eddie George's departure for Bowling Green. They include his son, DL Eriq George [9.1], WR Bryant Williams [9.7] and DB Jalen McClendon [10.8] are all looking for new homes for 2025. George is said to already have an offer from Appalachian State.
|||||| QUICK HITS
Michigan top quarterback recruit Bryce Underwood [14.0] has a chance to play right away under center for the Wolverines. The super-recruit was flipped from LSU, and the door is open for him to beat out Fresno State transfer Mikey Keene. The quote from head coach Sherrone Moore, “If he’s ready to go, he’ll play.” That’s a big ‘if,’ but it’s certainly worth noting.
Update on the ‘final four’ for North Alabama transfer CB Ashaad Williams [12.3] — he’s down to Ole Miss, Arkansas, Kansas, and Purdue.
Trent Dilfer is losing his executive director of football operations to the NFL. The Super Bowl Champion Eagles have hired Cole Peterson. He was the youngest personnel director a few years ago at Youngstown State. His rise through the ranks continues.
Pittsburgh has given their innovative offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach, Kade Bell, a three-year extension and raise. He led the Panther’s offense after a successful run at FCS Western Carolina from 2021-23.
Lance Taylor and Western Michigan have found their replacement for offensive line coach Trevor Mendelson, who is headed to the NFL. Joe Pawlak was the offensive line coach at FCS Montana last year and a former player at Northern Illinois. His coaching resume includes three seasons as a graduate assistant at Iowa and a five-year stint at FCS North Dakota.
Division II Ferris State DB Jacarvis Alexandre is moving to FBS-level football and has visits set up with Western Michigan, Jacksonville State, and Arkansas State throughout March/April. He is highly regarded and has one season of eligibility remaining.
Eddie George is making some big changes to his first Bowling Green coaching staff. It includes the following:
Not retaining co-OC/QB coach Max Warner. He had been calling plays for the Falcons under Loeffler for the past three seasons.
Not retaining recently hired WR coach David Cooney, who came to Loeffler’s staff from Miami (FL) just three weeks ago. Cooney is now looking for a job again.
|||||| SUGGESTED FURTHER READING
On3’s Pete Nakos provides the latest intel on the quarterback situations at Alabama, Oklahoma and more. Here are some teasers (please check out the full article):
Alabama: Former Washington quarterback Austin Mack is a serious contender and it appears this is a 45/45 shot for Mack and returning Ty Simpson. The other 10 goes to true freshman 5-star Keelon Russell, who would be a long shot, but still in the mix.
Colorado: Super-transfer Kaidon Salter from Liberty has to be the front-runner in this battle to succeed Shedeur Sanders, right? He’s the veteran, but the door is not closed on 5-star recruit Julian Lewis, who came to Colorado with the hopes of starting right away.
Other updates include injury notes on Carson Beck (Miami), Ohio State, Oklahoma, Georgia and Florida.
LSU Tigers camp is in full swing, and Glen West at Geaux247 gets us some notes that are featured around some portal additions quickly running with the 1’s. That includes a pair of Florida transfers, with Jack Pyburn playing on the edge of the defensive line and Ja’Keem Jackson as one of the starting corners. Top portal pick-up, safety Tamarcus Cooley (NC State) is also starting at one of the safety spots. Read the full article here »
If you are a fan of the EA Sports College Football series, you may be interested to know that the players’ payment for inclusion has been raised from $600 to $1,500 for the 2026 version. The game was a massive hit in it’s return to game consoles. Read more from The Athletic’s Chris Vannini »
Not good news out of Stanford as head coach Troy Taylor has been accused of ‘bullying and belittling’ female staffers. This often marks the beginning of the end for any coach. Read more from On3 »
|||||| STATE OF THE CHART™ UPDATES
We are doing team-by-team updates on the state of each depth chart as it stands in the ‘off-season’ — we’ve made it through ___ squads thus far. You can get all caught up by clicking the links below to each individual in-depth update article.
Programming note here is that we’re taking a little ‘Spring break’ from these team-by-team updates until Monday, May 24. We need to get some important backend work done on the depth charts themselves and need to free up some time. With the NCAA Tournament(s) going on, we thought this would be the proper time to do this. Enjoy the basketball and we’ll be back after it next week.
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Southeastern Conference (SEC)
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
3/8: UCLA Bruins
Big 12 Conference
3/9: TCU Horned Frogs
3/10: Baylor Bears
3/11: Oklahoma State Cowboys
3/12: Kansas State Wildcats
3/13: West Virginia Mountaineers
3/14: Iowa State Cyclones
3/15: Texas Tech Red Raiders
3/16: Kansas Jayhawks
3/17: BYU Cougars
3/18: Cincinnati Bearcats
3/19: UCF Knights