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Two Texas Players Included in Self-Reported Sports Gambling Violation

David Eckert of the Austin American-Statesman reported yesterday that five members of the Texas Athletic Department, including two members of the Texas Football Team have self-reported for sports gambling during the back half of 2024.

The wagers were reportedly made on daily fantasy site PrizePicks, a daily fantasy site which is legal in the state of Texas. The five individuals combined to stake a total of $14,885.76 on PrizePicks. Daily fantasy sports remain illegal under the rules of the NCAA as players and personnel may not gamble on sports (at the collegiate or professional level) in which the association has a championship.

The identity of the two players is not known, but one player is no longer with the program anyways, and the other player was reportedly made ineligible and then later reinstated after he paid the total of any of his winnings back to charity.

Oregon Will Hold Spring Game in 2025

Oregon Coach Dan Lanning shared with The Oregonian‘s James Crepea that the Ducks are going to host a traditional spring game in a few weeks.

“I think it’s the best way for us to get better. For me, it’s the right way to cap off the spring. As long as I’m here, we’ll be doing spring games.”

This is in stark contrast to plenty of other programs, like Nebraska, Texas, etc. who have all cancelled, or deeply modified, their spring game plans.

Big 12 Commissioner Against Auto-Bids: “Don’t Want An Artificial Championship”

Big 12 Commissioner Brett Yormark shared at the Big 12 Men’s Basketball Tournament that he does not want automatic qualifiers included in the CFP, especially not a system in which certain conferences are guaranteed more spots than another conference.

“Recently, in Dallas, we met as a management committee and we’ve been vetting out lots of different possibilities. The emphasis of that particular meeting was really about looking back at this season, which was incredible. … As we think about beyond, the one guiding principle for me, and I think for the room, is what’s in the best interest of college football? … As it relates to the AQs, and I’ve been on the record saying this, I don’t want an artificial championship. I want people to earn their way in. I don’t want it being predetermined. That being said, I’m open to discussion. I want to weigh the pros and cons of lots of different scenarios. Then, as a collective group, make a decision on what’s right for college football.”

Tennessee QB Coach on QB Nico Iamaleava Asserting Himself as Leader of Vols Offense

Tennessee QB Coach Joey Halzle shared of an example of QB Nico Iamaleava showing growth as the leader of the Volunteers offense in spring practice in which he didn’t like something he saw, so he called his teammates over and addressed the event.

“If he tried to start going rah rah right now, it wouldn’t hurt. Because that’s just not him, and he doesn’t do that. But what he did, like he did it today, he didn’t like something he saw, he called the guys up and said, ‘hey,’ he addressed it right now and we moved on. Like he’s not gonna ever just start screaming and, like, throw stuff. That’s not him. But what he will do is step up and see something that he doesn’t think is right and he stepped in front of the group and addressed it in the way that fit him. It was assertive but it wasn’t anything that wasn’t him.”

Iamaleava shared, “I think I’d rather not discuss what we did as a team. What happens out there stays out there on the field.”

Iamaleava is heading into his redshirt sophomore season and is trying to help lead the Vols back to the CFP after getting there in 2024.

3-Star WR Jude Hall Decommits from Duke

3-star WR Jude Hall decommitted from Duke yesterday after originally committing to the Blue Devils back in December.

Hall shared with 247Sports that he’s hearing from the following schools the most: Florida State, Florida, North Carolina, Wake Forest, Boston College, App State, and Charlotte.

He has no visits planned for the above listed schools, but it will be interesting to see if Hall’s visit schedule starts to fill up with some of those programs.

Hall ranks 586th nationally and 88th at the WR position according to the On3 industry composite.

On On3’s team rankings, Hall’s decommitment has not processed yet, but with Hall included, the Blue Devils were ranked 37th nationally and 8th in the ACC. Without Hall, Duke is down to 3 commitments for the 2026 class.

3-Star LB Wassie Lugolobi Flips from Washington to Stanford

3-star LB Wassie Lugolobi flipped his commitment from Washington to Stanford yesterday.

Lugolobi shared that he sees Stanford as “truly a special place, with its unique mixture of education and football. … It’s an opportunity you can’t say no to.”

Lugolobi ranks 625th nationally and 51st at the LB position according to the On3 industry composite.

For Stanford, this is the 3rd commitment of the 2026 class, a class which currently ranks 49th nationally and 12th in the ACC. For Washington, the Huskies are down to 6 commitments in the 2026 class, a class which ranks 42nd nationally and 14th in the Big Ten.

5-Star TE Kendre Harrison Shuts Down Recruitment, Is Locked In To Oregon

5-star TE Kendre Harrison committed to Oregon back on November 30th, but yesterday he shared with On3’s Hayes Fawcett that his recruitment is now shut down and he is locked in with Miami.

Harrison chose Oregon over North Carolina, Florida State, Miami, Tennessee, Penn State, and other offers.

“I’m still getting recruited by schools here and there, but I’ not really one of those guys that decommits. I know I’m 100% locked in with Oregon, and that ain’t nothing gonna change my decision.”

Harrison ranks as high as 8th nationally (ESPN) and is the top-rated TE on 3 of the 4 recruiting sites. The On3 industry composite ranks him 16th nationally and 1st at the TE position for the 2026 class.

For Oregon, Harrison is the top commitment the Ducks have for a class which has 7 Blue Chip commitments and 9 total commitments. The 2026 class currently ranks 2nd nationally and in the Big Ten, behind only USC.

2027 4-Star CB Kenton Dopson Commits to Miami

2027 4-star CB Kenton Dopson committed to Miami yesterday over offers from Georgia, Florida, Florida State, Syracuse, Louisville, and more than 30 other programs.

“I have visited Miami a lot and they always made me feel at home. They have always been up there for me. The coaches are great, the energy is good and it is close to home. Coach Cristobal is bringing back the old-school Miami. They have a great history and they know how to develop players. I like the staff a lot and how they love to compete. … This is my hometown team. It is a school I know a lot about.”

Dopson does not have a rating from On3, 247, or ESPN, but Rivals rates Dopson as a 4-star, ranking him 15th nationally and 3rd at the CB position. It will be interesting to see where he ranks as more players in the 2027 class get added to the rankings.

This is Miami’s 2nd commitment for the 2027 class, as Dopson joins WR Ah’mari Stevens as ‘Canes commits.

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