PAGE 12 June 2022
Jacksonville State Football Names Rod Smith Offensive Coordinator
The National Football Foundation (NFF) & College Hall of Fame has announced the candidates for the 2023 ballot for induction into the College Football Hall of Fame, including 80 players and nine coaches from the Football Bowl Subdivision and 96 players and 33 coaches from the divisional ranks. “It’s an enormous honor to just be on the College Football Hall of Fame ballot considering more than 5.54 million people have played college football and only 1,056 players have been inducted,” said NFF President & CEO Steve Hatchell. “The Hall’s requirement of being a First- Team All-American creates a much smaller pool of about 1,500 individuals who are even eligible. Being in today’s elite group means an individual is truly among the greatest to have ever played the game, and we look forward to announcing the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class early next year.” The ballot has been sent to the more than 12,000 NFF members and current Hall of Famers whose votes will be tabulated and submitted to the NFF’s Honors Court, which will deliberate and select the class. The Honors Court, chaired by NFF Board Member and College Football Hall of Famer Archie Griffin from Ohio State, includes an elite and geographically diverse pool of athletic administrators, Hall of Famers and members of the media. “Having a ballot and a voice in the selection of the College Football Hall of Fame inductees is one of the most cherished NFF member benefits,” said NFF Chairman Archie Manning, a 1989 Hall of Fame inductee from Mississippi. “There is no group more knowledgeable or passionate about college football than our membership, and the tradition of the ballot helps us engage them in the lofty responsibility of selecting those who have reached the pinnacle of achievement in our sport.” The announcement of the 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be made in early 2023, with specific details to be announced in the future. The 2023 College Football Hall of Fame Class will be officially inducted during the 65th NFF Annual Awards Dinner on Dec. 5, 2023, and permanently immortalized at the Chick-fil-A College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta. They will also be honored at their respective schools with an NFF Hall of Fame On-Campus Salute, presented by Fidelity Investments, during the 2023 season. 2023 FBS PLAYER CANDIDATES Flozell Adams: Michigan State - Offensive Tackle Aaron Beasley: West Virginia - Defensive Back Eric Berry: University of Tennessee - Defensive Michael Bishop: Kansas State - Quarterback Justin Blackmon: Oklahoma State - Wide Receiver Jeff Bregel: USC - Offensive Guard Larry Burton: Purdue - Split End Reggie Bush: USC - Running Back Rocky Calmus: Oklahoma - Linebacker Gregg Carr, Auburn University - Linebacker Mark Carrier: USC - Defensive Back Ki-Jana Carter: Penn State - Running Back Russell Carter: SMU - Defensive Back Matt Cavanaugh: Pittsburgh - Quarterback Dallas Clark: Iowa - Tight End Tim Couch: Kentucky - Quarterback Brad Culpepper: Florida - Defensive Tackle Ken Dorsey: University of Miami (FL) - Quarterback D.J. Dozier: Penn State - Running Back Vaughn Dunbar: Indiana - Running Back Warrick Dunn: Florida State - Running Back Dwight Freeney: Syracuse - Defensive End Robert Gallery: Iowa - Offensive Tackle Joe Garten: Colorado - Offensive Guard Willie Gault: University of Tennessee - Wide Receiver Marvin Harrison: Syracuse -Kick Returner/Wide Receiver Garrison Hearst: University of Georgia - Running Back Josh Heupel: Oklahoma - Quarterback Craig Heyward: Pittsburgh - Running Back Steve Hutchinson: Michigan - Offensive Lineman Bradie James: LSU - Linebacker LaMichael James: Oregon - Running Back Sebastian Janikowski: Florida State - Placekicker Toby Gerhart: Stanford - Running Back Tony Gonzalez: California - Tight End Dan Hampton: Arkansas - Defensive Tackle Kevin Hardy: Illinois - Linebacker Jacksonville State head football coach Rich Rodriguez has announced the hiring of longtime coach Rod Smith as his new offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Smith returns to the sidelines with Rodriguez, who he played for in college and has worked with at four previous stops. He brings over 25 years of coaching experience to JSU, over 20 of those years at the FBS level, and has coached in 11 bowl games. He played quarterback for Rodriguez at Glenville State from 1993-96 before starting his coaching career in 1997. Smith would later work for Rodriguez as the quarterbacks coach at West Virginia in 2007, the quarterbacks coach at Michigan from 2008-10 and as the co-offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Arizona from 2012-17. From Arizona, he went to Illinois and was the Illini's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach from 2018- 2020 and served as their acting head coach at the end of that 2020 campaign. His was an analyst at Virginia in 2021 and comes to the Gamecocks from Penn State, where has most recently served as an analyst. While at Illinois, Smith led the Illini to the 2019 RedBox Bowl, their first in five seasons, after leading an impressive turnaround with the offense in his first season at
Ryan Leaf: Washington State - Quarterback John Lee: UCLA - Placekicker Ray Lewis: University of Miami (FL) - Linebacker Todd Lyght: Notre Dame - Defensive Back Marshawn Lynch: California - Running Back Jeremy Maclin: Missouri - Wide Receiver/Returner Terance Mathis: New Mexico - Wide Receiver Chris McIntosh: Wisconsin - Offensive Lineman Bryant McKinnie: Miami (FL) - Offensive Tackle Heath Miller: Virginia - Tight End Corey Moore: Virginia Tech - Defensive Lineman Herman Moore: Virginia - Wide Receiver Kellen Moore: Boise State - Quarterback Dan Neil: University of Texas - Offensive Lineman Haloti Ngata: Oregon - Defensive Tackle Ken Norton Jr.: UCLA - Linebacker Julius Peppers: North Carolina - Defensive End Paul Posluszny: Penn State - Linebacker Antwaan Randle El: Indiana - Quarterback Errict Rhett: University of Florida - Running Back Chris Samuels: University of Alabama - Offensive Tackle Larry Seivers: University of Tennessee - Wide Receiver Dewey Selmon: Oklahoma - Defensive Lineman Alex Smith: Utah - Quarterback Justin Smith: Missouri - Defensive Lineman Kevin Smith: Texas A&M - Cornerback Michael Stonebreaker: Notre Dame - Linebacker Taylor Stubblefield: Purdue - Wide Receiver Tim Tebow: University of Florida - Quarterback Troy Vincent: Wisconsin - Defensive Back Chris Ward: Ohio State - Offensive Tackle Peter Warrick: Florida State - Wide Receiver Eric Weddle: Utah - Defensive Back DeAngelo Williams: Memphis - Running Back Luis Zendejas: Arizona State - Placekicker Simeon Rice: Illinois - Linebacker Ron Rivera: California - Linebacker Matt Russell: Colorado - Linebacker 2023 DIVISIONAL CANDIDATES Ashley Ambrose: Mississippi Valley St. - Defensive Back Archie Amerson: Northern Arizona - Running Back Rick Bealer: Lycoming (PA) - Defensive Back Rennie Benn: Lehigh - Wide Receiver Bill Borchert: Mount Union (OH) - Quarterback John Bothe: Augustana (IL) - Center Carl Boyd: Northern Iowa - Running Back Vincent Brown: Mississippi Valley State - Linebacker Joe Campbell: Middle Tennessee State - Running Back William Campbell: Western Colorado - Defensive Back Vin Carioscia: Franklin & Marshall (PA) - Offensive Tackle Bruce Collie: Texas (Arlington) - Offensive Tackle Tom Collins: Indianapolis (IN) - Defensive Back Ray Condren: Gettysburg (PA) - Running Back Mark Cotney: Cameron (OK) - Defensive Back Case deBruijn: Idaho State - Punter Parnell Dickinson: Mississippi Valley State - Quarterback Roger Carr: Louisiana Tech - Wide Receiver Peter Catan: Eastern Illinois - Defensive End Steve Cockerham: Akron - Linebacker William Dillon: Virginia Union - Free Safety Al Dorenkamp: Central (IA) - Linebacker John Dorsey: Connecticut - Linebacker Chuck Downey: Stony Brook - Safety Matt Dunigan: Louisiana Tech - Quarterback Tom Ehrhardt: Rhode Island - Quarterback Keith Elias: Princeton - Running Back Curtis Eller: Villanova - Linebacker Blake Elliott: Saint John’s (MN) - Wide Receiver Richard Erenberg: Colgate - Running Back Jahri Evans: Bloomsburg (PA) - Offensive Lineman John Fitzgerald: Central Oklahoma - Offensive Guard Bernard Ford: Central Florida - Wide Receiver Duane Fritz: Chadron State (NE) - Punter Rick Fry: Occidental (CA) - End Bob Gaddis: Mississippi Valley State - Wide Receiver Chris George: Glenville State (WV) - Wide Receiver Don Greco: Western Illinois - Offensive Guard Don Griffin: Middle Tennessee State - Safety Ron Hausauer: Jamestown (ND) - Offensive Guard Pat Hauser: Cal State Northridge - Offensive Tackle Bobby Hedrick: Elon - Running Back Chris Hegg: Truman State (MO) - Quarterback Bob Heller: Wesleyan (CT) - Center Billy Hess: West Chester (PA) - Wide Receiver Lynn Hieber: Indiana (PA) - Quarterback Rene Ingoglia: Massachusetts - Running Back Louis Jackson: Cal Poly S.L.O. - Running Back UI in 2018. That 2018 team made the biggest improvement in the nation in rushing, averaging over 137 yards more per game than the year before in 2017. The Illini averaged 243 yards rushing per game in 2018, second in the Big Ten. While with Rodriguez at Arizona, Smith helped establish one of the nation's best offenses and set several single-game and single-season records. In 2017, the Wildcats averaged over 41 points per game (5th nationally), 309 rushing yards, 180 passing yards and 489 total yards (12th nationally). While with Rodriguez at Michigan and West Virginia, he helped develop two of the top quarterbacks to ever hold the reigns in Rodriguez' offense. Denard Robinson was the 2010 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year after Pat White won his second-straight Big East Offensive Player of the Year Award in 2017. Smith, a 1997 graduate of Glenville State, was an All- American and team captain for Rodriguez. The Franklin, W.Va., native would later earn his master's degree from Urbana University in Ohio in 2000. With the addition of Smith to the JSU coaching staff, Mike DiAngelo will coach the tight ends and inside receivers.
Auburn Football Auburn's TJ Finley attempts a pass in the 2021 Birmingham Bowl against Houston. The Tigers will open the 2022 season with two straight home games at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Auburn kicks off the new year against Mercer on Sept. 3 at 6 p.m. The Tigers will host San Jose State on Sept. 10 at 6:30 p.m. Auburn's first away game is at Penn State on Sept. 17 at 2:30 p.m. Photo by Brandon K. Pierce, The Sports Ledger
2023 College Football Hall of Fame Candidates Terron Jackson: Missouri Southern State - Offensive Tackle John Jurkovic: Eastern Illinois - Defensive End Ed Kelley: Hampden (Sydney, VA) - Defensive End
Bill Kollar: Montana State - Defensive End Garry Kuhlman: Delaware - Offensive Tackle Sean Landeta: Towson - Punter Jeff Loots, Southwest Minnesota State - Quarterback Al Lucas: Troy - Defensive Lineman Vince Mazza: Ashland (OH) - Punter Steve McAdoo: Middle Tennessee St. - Offensive Lineman Gary McCauley: Clarion (PA) - Tight End Fran McDermott: St. Mary’s (CA) - Defensive Back Bill McGovern: Holy Cross - Defensive Back Tony Miles: NW Missouri St. - All-Purpose/Wide Receiver Carl Morris: Harvard - Wide Receiver Robert Morris: Georgetown - Defensive End Kenneth Murawski: Carnegie Mellon (PA) - Linebacker Timmy Newsome: Winston-Salem State - Running Back Ed O’Brien: Central Florida - Placekicker Randy Page: Central Oklahoma - Quarterback Martin Peterson: Pennsylvania - Offensive Tackle Charlie Pierce: Central Florida - Punter/Placekicker Dave Pomante: Whitworth (WA) - Defensive Lineman Tyrone Poole: Fort Valley State (GA) - Defensive Back Gerry Quinlivan: Buffalo - Linebacker Michael Renna: Delaware - Defensive End David Rhodes: Central Florida - Wide Receiver Neil Ringers: Ohio Wesleyan - Defensive End Kirk Roach: Western Carolina - Placekicker Bobby Saiz: Adams State (CO) - Quarterback Jeff Schebler: Wisconsin (Whitewater) - Placekicker Terry Schmidt: Ball State - Defensive Back Joe Skladany: Lafayette - Linebacker Ed Smith: Bethel (KS) - Wide Receiver Paul Smith: Gettysburg (PA) - Return Specialist Chris Parker: Marshall - Running Back Alonzo Patterson: Wagner - Running Back Ted Petersen: Eastern Illinois - Center Tom Stenglein: Colgate - Wide Receiver Freddie Thomas: Troy - Defensive Back Markus Thomas: Eastern Kentucky - Tailback Brad Tokar: Westminster (PA) - Running Back Jay Wessler: Illinois College - Running Back Brian Westbrook: Villanova - Running Back Tim Whelan: Tufts (MA) - Running Back Mike Wiggins: Iowa Wesleyan - Punter Jerry Woods: Northern Michigan - Defensive Back John Zanieski: Yale - Middle Guard 2023 COACHING CANDIDATES • Larry Blakeney - Troy University (1991-2014) - He is the All-time winningest coach in Sun Belt Conference history. • Jim Carlen - West Virginia (1966-69), Texas Tech (1970-74), and South Carolina (1975-81) - He led teams to eight bowl games and 13 winning seasons in 16 years as head coach. • Pete Cawthon Sr. - Austin (Texas) College (1923-27), and Texas Tech (1930-40) - He led Texas Tech to four Border Conference titles in 11 seasons at the helm. • Larry Coker - University of Miami (2001-06) and UTSA (2011-15) - He posted a 60-15 record at Miami, including an astounding 35-3 record in his first three seasons and he led the Canes to consecutive BCS Championship Games. • Ralph Friedgen - Maryland (2001-10) - He is a two- time ACC Coach of the Year and the only ACC coach to win the conference title in his inaugural season (2001). • Paul Johnson - Georgia Southern (1997-01), Navy (2002-07), and Georgia Tech (2008-18) - He Led Georgia Southern to two national championships and five SoCon titles, losing only 10 games. He also led Navy to 5 straight Commander-in-Chief’s trophies. • Mark Richt - University of Georgia (2001-15), and University of Miami (2016-18) - He ranks first all-time at UGA with a 74% career winning percentage, ranking second to Hall of Famer Vince Dooley in wins (145). • Darryl Rogers - Cal State East Bay (1965), Fresno State (1966-72), San Jose State (1973-75), Michigan State (1976-79), and Arizona State (1980-84) - He led Fresno State to two bowl games, achieved an unprecedented national ranking at San Jose State and was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year in 1977. • Frank Solich - Nebraska (1998-03), and Ohio (2005- 20) He guided the Huskers to an 11-2 record and appearance in the BCS championship game at the Rose Bowl (2001 season). He is a two-time Big 12 Coach of the Year and the winningest coach in MAC history (115 wins).
Derrick Johnson: Texas - Linebacker Levon Kirkland: Clemson - Linebacker Luke Kuechly: Boston College - Linebacker Antonio Langham: Alabama - Defensive Back James Laurinaitis: Ohio State - Linebacker
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