Ex-Georgia QB JT Daniels transferring to West Virginia

Associated PressApr 13, 2022, 3:31 PM EDT

Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — Former Georgia quarterback JT Daniels is transferring to West Virginia.

Daniels made the announcement on Instagram following a weekend visit to West Virginia’s campus. Daniels also had visited Missouri and Oregon State in recent weeks. He is wrapping up undergraduate classes at Georgia and would be a graduate transfer for the Mountaineers.

Shortly after Daniels’ announcement, West Virginia offensive coordinator Graham Harrell posted a short video on Twitter from a recent practice in which he yells, “Let’s go!” Harrell held the same position at Southern California when Daniels played there before transferring to Georgia for the 2020 season.

In two seasons at Georgia, Daniels completed 69% of his passes for 1,953 yards and 17 touchdowns with five interceptions. He went 7-0 as a starter.

West Virginia’s quarterback position opened up after two-year starter Jarret Doege announced in December that he was entering the transfer portal. The Mountaineers have three quarterbacks competing in spring practice: Garrett Greene, who threw for 147 yards and was the team’s third-leading rusher with 297 yards last season; freshman Nicco Marchiol, who enrolled at WVU in January, and redshirt freshman Will Crowder.

West Virginia will have all five starters back on the offensive line but lost leading rusher Leddie Brown to the NFL draft and saw several wide receivers enter the transfer portal in the offseason. West Virginia’s offense ranked near the bottom of the Big 12 last season.

Daniels played at Southern California in 2018 and missed nearly the entire 2019 season with a knee injury. Harrell was the Trojans’ offense coordinator from 2019-21 and was hired at West Virginia in January.

Daniels transferred to Georgia in 2020 but his injury kept him off the field until late in the season, when he started the final four games. He opened the 2021 season as the Bulldogs’ starter but was hampered by various injuries. Daniels played in only five games last year and was replaced by Stetson Bennett, who led the Bulldogs to the national championship.

West Virginia opens the 2022 season Sept. 1 at Pittsburgh, which also has another former Southern Cal quarterback on its roster, three-year starter Kedon Slovis.

Vick, Fitzgerald and Suggs among stars on College Football Hall of Fame ballot for 1st time

Associated PressJun 5, 2023, 9:04 PM EDT

RVR Photos-USA TODAY Sports

Michael Vick, Larry Fitzgerald and Terrell Suggs are among the college football stars who will be considered for induction to the Hall of Fame for the first time this year.

The National Football Foundation released Monday a list of 78 players and nine coaches from major college football who are on the Hall of Fame ballot. There also are 101 players and 32 coaches from lower divisions of college football up for consideration.

Vick, who led Virginia Tech to the BCS championship game against Florida State as a redshirt freshman in 1999, is among the most notable players appearing on the ballot in his first year of eligibility.

Vick finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting in 1999. He played one season of college football before being drafted No. 1 overall by the Atlanta Falcons in 2001. Vick’s professional career was interrupted when he served 21 months in prison for his involvement in dog fighting.

Fitzgerald was the Heisman runner-up in 2003 to Oklahoma quarterback Jason White. He scored 34 touchdowns in just two seasons at Pitt.

Suggs led the nation in sacks with 24 in 2002 for Arizona State.

The 2024 Hall of Fame class will be chosen by the National Football Foundation’s Honors Court and announced in January. Induction into the Atlanta-based hall is the following December.

Alabama freshman DB Mitchell says he wasn’t sure he’d get to play again after arrest

Associated PressJun 5, 2023, 8:59 PM EDT

Mickey Welsh / Advertiser / USA TODAY NETWORK

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – Alabama defensive back Tony Mitchell said he feared his football career was over after his arrest on a drug charge.

The Crimson Tide freshman said in a video posted Sunday on social media that he knew “something much bigger could have happened.”

A judge in Holmes County, Florida, sentenced Mitchell to three years of probation with a fine and community service on May 24 after Mitchell pleaded guilty to a charge of possession of more than 20 grams of cannabis.

“I didn’t know if I’d be able to play football again, but I continued to work out and stay close with the Lord and those who love me unconditionally,” Mitchell said. “During those times, it helped me to keep my mind off it. But when I was by myself looking at social media, what everybody had to say about it, it just felt like it happened again.

“I didn’t sleep at night.”

He was suspended from the Alabama team following the arrest, but Mitchell’s father, Tony Sr., posted on Facebook last week that the defensive back had been reinstated. An Alabama spokesman declined to comment on Mitchell’s status.

Tony Mitchell Sr. shared his son’s video on Facebook, saying it was filmed during a talk to youth.

“I was doing things I knew I shouldn’t to try to fit in,” the younger Mitchell said, “but not everybody’s your friend.”

Mitchell, who is from Alabaster, Alabama, was a four-star prospect and the 15th-rated safety in the 247Composite rankings.

He had been charged in March with possession of a controlled substance with intent to sell after a traffic stop when authorities said he drove over 141 mph (227 kph) while trying to evade deputies in the Florida Panhandle. A deputy had spotted Mitchell’s black Dodge Challenger traveling 78 mph (125 kph) in a 55 mph (88 kph) zone on a rural highway north of Bonifay.

He also received 100 hours of community service and paid a fine of $1,560.

Mitchell and a passenger were both charged with possession of marijuana with the intent to sell or deliver, according to a Holmes County Sheriff’s Office arrest report. The other man also was charged with carrying a concealed gun without a permit.