DeptHITS: Saturday, August 16
One week away from live football kicking off in Dublin, Ireland. It's been a long road to this point but we are almost there! Camps are ramping down and we have what you need to know, right here.
Photo: MANDATORY CREDIT GREG SWIERCZ / USA TODAY NETWORK
Just think. One week from today, we’ll be preparing to watch a live college football game kicking off in Dublin, Ireland. And, it will be a good one with Big XII foes Iowa State and Kansas State doing battle to get off to a good start in 2025. We’ve almost made it through a wild and crazy off-season with tons of player movement, landscape changes and off-field lawsuits and legislation. But, when the dust settles, we will play a full season of college football. Exciting.
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Okay, no more plugs — let’s get to the HITS:
Kansas State ::: Thanks to Kellis Robinett for responding to our inquiry on RB Gabe Ervin Jr.'s absence from the official roster. He clarified that Ervin medically retired from the game (quietly) a while ago.
That impacts depth for the Wildcats, but they are well-positioned at running back to handle it. Here is a look at that running back room as it stands, one week from their opener in Ireland:
More K-State news: Word from Wildcats' camp is that PK Luis Rodriguez [9.1] is the favorite to win the starting kicker job. He comes in from the JUCO level where he hit 21-of-25 field goal attempts back in 2023. Returning kicker Leyton Simmering [9.5] has fallen behind in the battle to replace Chris Tennant here.
Wisconsin ::: Updates from Badger camp from Badger Blitz (On3) include a few nagging injuries to CB Ricardo Hallman [14.3], RB Dilin Jones [13.4] and TE Jackson Acker [12.4]. They also mentioned that TE Grant Stec [10.9] took first-team snaps at tight end with Tucker Ashcraft [9.9] sidelined. Still no mention of Missouri State transfer Lance Mason [14.2], who we thought would have a role there. He joined on after Tanner Koziol, the coveted Ball State transfer, made his way out after joining for spring ball.
USC ::: Trojans WR Makai Lemon [16.6] dealt with a hamstring issue in the spring. He has put that behind him, and word from national reporter Pete Nakos (On3) is that he's impressing in camp. He's healthy and primed for a huge season.
“The Trojans will scrimmage on Friday, and one of the top headlines out of training camp has been Makai Lemon. The former four-star recruit has developed into one of the top receivers in the country and will be a return specialist this fall. “He’s so good,” a source inside the building said.”
Here is a look at our seasonal projection for Lemon:
Washington ::: Great news out of Huskies camp as top WR Denzel Boston [15.3] is back to practice in full. He has recovered from an injury that clouded his outlook much of the offseason, and he is primed for a big season if he can stay upright. He is the key to unlock that offense's full potential. While we are doing the projections thing:
Washington State ::: LB Keith Brown [11.2] was expected to contribute a lot to this Cougars’ defense in 2025. He suffered a season-ending injury in fall camp and will miss the entire season. This is a blow to the second level of this defense.
UCLA ::: We knew WR Rico Flores [12.9] was still working back from an injury, but Tracy McDonald (247Sports) informed us that he's still seven weeks away from his clearance date. That puts him in mid-October before he's able to return. We have him slotted in as the anticipated No. 1 receiver for the Bruins and Nico Iamaleava. Meanwhile, Kwazi Gilmer [12.8] continues to develop a rapport with the new quarterback and should take on that ‘go-to’ role to start the season.
In other news, the Bruins have landed an offensive line reinforcement late as Tautai Lio (Tio) Marks [11.2] joins from Tulsa. He can play center or either guard spot and may end up starting along the way.
Florida State ::: DB Conrad Hussey [10.9] has been dismissed from the Seminoles after a physical altercation with a coach. He was a fringe rotation player in the secondary after he signed as a four-star recruit back in 2023, but many around the program say this is an addition by subtraction type of situation.
Wyoming ::: In a wide-open wide receiver room for the Cowboys, a relative unknown named Bricen Brantley [8.1] has been making waves in camp. The '23 walk-on was reported to have made two explosive plays in the recent scrimmage, as reported by Cody Tucker at 7220sports.com. He is given a slight ratings bump and moves up in the rotation.
Notre Dame ::: The quarterback battle has taken a slight turn, with Kenny Minchey [11.7] now leading CJ Carr [13.0] as camp rolls on. Before we overreact to this 'news', we need to realize that there is still time for Carr to regain that confidence. By all accounts, Carr is the future here and should get every opportunity to start in '25. We are going to keep Carr in the top spot for now.
Auburn ::: Add Auburn to the list of 'walking wounded' at the receiver position in fall camp. Their top four options, including Cam Coleman [13.5], Eric Singleton Jr. [14.4], Malcolm Simmons [14.5], and Perry Thompson [13.0] are all nursing ailments that have them limited. None are considered long-term at this point. The Tigers are well-equipped to handle the loss of one, but not multiple receivers. QB Jackson Arnold dealt with a serious injury problem for his wide receivers at Oklahoma last year. We are starting to think, maybe it’s him?
Texas State ::: An evolving starting quarterback situation is unfolding in San Marcos. According to Michael Adams from the Austin Sports Journal, it appears that relative unknown Brad Jackson [10.5] will emerge from the four-man race. That would mean he beat out Pitt transfer Nate Yarnell [14.8], SMU transfer Keldric Luster [10.5] and Auburn transfer Holden Geriner [11.1]. If true, it would be a bit ot a shocker, but GJ Kinne knows what he wants in his quarterback for this offense.
Florida ::: Now we are getting news of injuries on the Gators defensive side of the ball as starting DT Caleb Banks [14.4] is in a boot after sustaining a lower leg injury. The exact severity is not immediately known. This injury trend in Gainesville needs to reverse quickly as the Gators prepare to face the second-most demanding schedule in all of college football, according to our SOS+ numbers.
Tulane ::: Former Iowa Hawkeye QB Brendan Sullivan [11.5] is engaged in a battle to win the Tulane job, but sustained a lower leg injury on a goal-line drill. He stayed in the practice and looked OK, but was pulled afterwards and did not return. He will miss at least a week in a key portion of the calendar to impress and win this job. That moves Jake Retzlaff [14.5] even higher up the list to take full advantage. We do project the former BYU Cougar is destined to be the starter in NOLA this year.
Oh, that reminds us! We just did a primer on all 136 quarterback situations in case you missed those the past couple of days…check them out:
UTEP ::: The Miners will be without two expected contributors as WR Jaden Smith [11.7] re-tore his ACL and will miss the season. He was expected to be in the mix as a starter, having torn his ACL in week four last season. Tough break. Perhaps even more impactful is the loss of their top LB Nate Dyman [13.4], who is also out with injuries after several surgeries this offseason. Source: Sam Guzman
Virginia Tech ::: The top two backs for the Hokies were mentioned in the injury updates from Brent Pry. Terion Stewart [14.7] tweaked something in practice and was forced out. Braydon Bennett [14.7] sustained a knee bruise. Given Stewart's injury history from his time at Bowling Green, this could be something to monitor. That opens the door for a rising former Division 2 transfer, Marcellous Hawkins [10.5], to show what he can do. He will be a part of the rotation regardless of the injuries around him.
San Diego State ::: The Aztecs named former Michigan QB Jayden Denegal [11.7] as their starting quarterback. While that was expected, we can also plan to see backup Bert Emanuel Jr. [12.5] get on the field in running situations, playing the role of the wildcat. How much of that is worked in, we'll have to see, but Sean Lewis likes having options in his offense.
Purdue ::: Ryan Browne [13.1] has taken the lead in the quarterback race, according to beat writer Sam King (@samueltking). He was the expected 'guy' heading into spring and has done nothing to derail that thought. Arkansas transfer Malachi Singleton [14.2] is falling a bit behind, but nothing is officially set in stone at this point.
South Carolina ::: In the latest depth chart projections from the Big Spur (247Sports), true freshman OL Shedrick Sarratt Jr. [11.6] is starting at left guard. There has been a lot of hype for the big four-star recruit. We have bumped his player rating slightly.
West Virginia ::: The Mountaineers have an 'eligibility problem' as they have removed RB Jaylan Knighton [13.1] from the official roster, indicating he is not going to be granted a waiver to play in '25. Meanwhile, four more impact players, including backup RB Tye Edwards [12.8], DL Jimmori Robinson [15.3] and S Justin Harrington [13.4], all awaiting word on their waiver requests.
That’s our show for today. Thank you for following along. Stay tuned for more updates as camps are winding down and regular preparations begin. Tons of news coming our way. We’ll be releasing another updated version of the Magazine (v5) on Monday. Please help spread the word — it fuels our work!