The College Football Hall of Fame recently announced its 2016 inductee class. While many college football fans know the names of Derrick Brooks, Rod Woodson, Mike Utley and Randall Cunningham, not everyone knows the name of Bill Royce.
Well, you should… and now you can.
As I continue to bring coverage to you from Salem, Virginia on tonight’s Stagg Bowl, I bring you my latest feature at NCAA.com.
Tonight, the Mount Union Purple Raiders face off against St. Thomas for DIII supremacy. The Stagg Bowl kickoff — slated for 7 PM on ESPNU — features the nation’s two best offenses as MU and STU both have averaged over 50 points a game this season.
Both teams have done it behind balance. In particular, St. Thomas boasts the fifth best total offense (529.4 yards per game) behind the perfect blend of passing (271.4 yards a game) and rushing (258.1).
Jordan Roberts — the Tommies star running back — has been the epitome of that balance.
Keep reading to learn more about Jordan Roberts amazing journey
Dunton has been filling in the past two mornings, helping out with the early thoughts of the day. That’s because I am off covering one of my favorite events of the year: The Stagg Bowl.
The Florida Southern Moccasins are the reigning DII Men’s basketball champions, however they entered this season unlike many reigning champs ever have.
Their head coach for nearly the past decade — a man who went 218-72 — moved on to a new school. All five starters — whom were responsible for four conference titles and a trip to the finals last year — are also gone. The Mocs could easily have fallen from glory.
But they refuse to go away that easily. New head coach Michael Donnelly simply won’t let them. They began their season with exhibitions against the Duke Blue Devils and Syracuse Orange and continue to mature and grow against tough competition.
To get back to the top with a new coaching staff and practically new team will be quite the challenge. But these Mocs wouldn’t have it any other way.
Click the link below to read my weekly feature from NCAA — DII taking an inside look at the reigning champs start to the 2015-2016 season.
The Carson-Newman Eagles Women’s Soccer program was once a force to be reckoned with in Division II. They had been to back-to-back Final Fours just a decade ago, but after their last playoff appearance in 2009, the program has been struggling.
Richard Moodie, a former CNU soccer player himself, was named the Men’s Soccer coach five years ago. A year later, he agreed to take on the Women’s program as well. While he took the Men to the National Championship game in 2013, he quietly and patiently began to rebuild the Eagles Women’s team.
The first three years were a struggle, as they combined to win a total of 12 games. Entering 2015, they were expected to finish 9th in the South Atlantic Conference. Tomorrow, they play their first Championship postseason match since 2009, coming off an unbelievable 18-2 season, sweeping both the SAC regular season and tournament titles. Unbelievable to everyone but themselves of course.
My latest piece at NCAA.com tells their magical story:
Carson-Newman Eagles soaring to new heights
For those of you that follow along, you know that I started writing with NCAA.com last season right in time for the fall championships. Well, it’s getting closer to that time of year again. The fall championships are around the corner and that means that the games are that much more important and the players show that much more moxie down the home stretch.
Out in South Dakota, Northern State University is putting together a dream season on the Women’s Volleyball court. 21-0. Quite the accomplishment, that even is more impressive when you take into account that FIVE teams from their conference are in the Top Ten in the Nation.
I got to sit down with Head Coach Brent Aldridge and their senior setter Drew Smith and talk about this magical season. These are the interviews I love most, so I thought I would share it with the Wayniac Nation in my morning thoughts. Take a read, I’ve attached the link right below.
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