S PORTS L EDGER Read Free Online at www.TheSportsLedger.com The Bryce Young Wins 2021 Heisman Trophy
Section B - Page 1
December 2021
The top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide will face off with the No. 4 Cincinnati Bearcats in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Friday, Dec. 31, 2021 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX. The Crimson Tide and Bearcats will meet for the sixth time in the history of the series that dates back to 1908. Alabama has won all five previous meetings, the last of which was played on Nov. 17, 1990 (45-7). The winner of the Semifinal between Alabama and Cincinnati will meet the winner of the contest between the No. 2 Michigan Wolverines and the No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs, who will play in the CFP Semifinal Game at the Capital One Orange Bowl at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla, on Friday, Dec. 31, 2021. The 2022 CFP National Championship Game is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 10 at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis. Overall, a record thirteen Southeastern Conference football teams will be competing in bowl games this year. In addition to Alabama's game against Cincinnati in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl, No. 3 Georgia will play No. 2 Michigan in the other CFP semifinal at the Capital One Orange Bowl. Both CFP semifinal games will be played on December 31. In another New Year’s Six Game, Ole Miss will be the SEC’s representative in the Allstate Sugar Bowl on January 1, facing Big 12 opponent Baylor. The New Years Day VRBO Citrus Bowl at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, FL will feature Kentucky against Iowa. This marks the eighth year the Conference has assigned league schools to an “SEC Bowl Pool” that includes six postseason games. Tennessee will play Purdue in the TransPerfect Music City Bowl, Arkansas will play Penn State in the Outback Bowl, Texas A&M will play Wake Forest in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl, LSU will play Houston in the TaxAct Texas Bowl, Mississippi State will play Texas Tech in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, and South Carolina will play North Carolina in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl. Following the SEC Bowl Pool, the TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl chose Auburn to face Houston, the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa selected Florida to play UCF and the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl in Fort Worth chose Missouri to play Army. Nine Big Ten Schools Headed to Bowl Games Nine Big Ten schools have been selected for bowl competition on Sunday. These games are highlighted by invitations to College Football Playoff bowls for Michigan, Michigan State and Ohio State. The Wolverines were ranked No. 2 by the College Football Playoff selection committee and will face No. 3 Georgia in the Capital One Orange Bowl on Dec. 31 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla. Michigan becomes the third Big Ten team to advance to the College Football Playoff semifinals, joining Michigan State and Ohio State. No. 6 Ohio State will face No. 11 Utah in the Rose Bowl Game presented by Capital One Venture X. The game will be played at Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif., at 5 p.m. ET on Jan. 1, 2022. Ohio State will make its 16th trip to the Rose Bowl. The Buckeyes last competed in the Rose Bowl following the 2018 season when they defeated Washington 28-23. No. 10 Michigan State earned a spot in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl and will play No. 12 Pittsburgh. The Peach Bowl will be played on Dec. 30 at 7 p.m. ET at Mercedes- Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga. Michigan State will appear in the Peach Bowl for the first time in program history. For more information and more details about the college football bowl season, see the inside of this issue. Thirteen SEC Teams To Play In Bowl Games
University of Alabama sophomore quarterback Bryce Young is the recipient of the 87th Heisman Memorial Trophy. His accomplishment marks the second straight year that a Crimson Tide football player has captured college football’s most prestigious award, as DeVonta Smith won the 2020 trophy. It also marks the fifth time a school has had players win back-to-back Heisman honors Young made history at the evening award show, becoming the first Crimson Tide quarterback to garner the highest individual honor in collegiate sports and the fourth Crimson Tide player overall. He joins former Tide recipients Smith (2020), Derrick Henry (2015) and Mark Ingram (2009). “I’d like to thank my teammates, my offensive line for protecting me, allowing me to win an award like this,” Young said. “My receivers and running backs, defense for getting me the ball back, everyone on the team. You know, whenever you can win an award like this, it goes as an individual award, but it’s a team award because I couldn’t do it without any of those guys.” The Crimson Tide's signal caller is just the fifth sophomore to haul in the distinguished prize, sharing that record with Sam Bradford, Lamar Jackson, Mark Ingram and Tim Tebow. Young tallied 684 first-place votes, the 10th most all- time, and 2,311 total points. He surpassed defensive end Aidan Hutchinson of Michigan (954), quarterback Kenny Picket of Pittsburgh (631) and quarterback C.J. Stroud of Ohio State (399). Crimson Tide linebacker Will Anderson Jr. finished fifth in the final standings (325).
Photo Courtesy of Alabama Athletics
Alabama's Bryce Young
Rich Rodriguez named Jax State Head Coach
By Brandon K. Pierce The Sports Ledger The Jacksonville State football program, along with the entire university, continues to provide students with the best possible college experience both in education and in athletics. This commitment to excellence, specifically on the gridiron, was bolstered by the University's recent hire of Rich Rodriguez as the program's 28th head football coach. "I'm so excited to be here," said Rodriguez during the his introductory press conference at JSU. Jacksonville State is Rodriguez's fourth FBS head coaching job. He has previously been at the helm of football programs in West Virginia, Michigan and Arizona. He led WVU to three 10-win seasons and was named the Pac-12 Coach of the Year in 2014
after leading the Arizona Wildcats to their first 10- win season in over 15 years. Rodriguez has a 163- 119-2 overall record as a head coach and he has been named conference coach of the year five times in three different leagues. He begins his career at the helm of the Gamecocks ranked 16th among all active Division I head coaches in career wins and eighth among active FCS football coaches. "Our goal is to bring the best student athletes we can to Jacksonville State and to develop them better than anybody in the county," said Ridriguez of the plan for himself and his assistant coaches at JSU. "Those are two main goals and that will never change," he said. "If we can do that we will have success, we'll win championships, we'll go to bowl games, and everybody will be happy."
Welcome to Jacksonville State Rich Rodriguez was recently introduced as the new head football coach at Jacksonville State. Joining him on stage at the University's welcoming press conference were (L-R) JSU President Dr. Don C. Killingsworth, Jr., Rodriguez, JSU Board of Trustee Randy Jones, and Jax State Director of Athletics Greg Seitz. Photo by Brandon K. Pierce, The Sports Ledger
JSU Wins Sudler Trophy The Jacksonville State University Marching Southerners have been notified by the John Phillip Sousa Foundation that the band has won the 2022 Sudler Trophy. This award is given to one college marching band every two years and it's a prestigious award that is equivalent to winning the Heisman Trophy. JSU is reportedly the smallest University to ever win the honor. Photo by Brandon K. Pierce | The Sports Ledger
2021 SEC CHAMPIONS The University of Alabama football program celebrates after defeating SEC rival Georgia 41-24 in the 2021 SEC Championship. The win was the Crimson Tide's 29th SEC Championship. Both program's finished the year as one of the top four teams in the country and both still have a chance to play for this year's National Championship. Photo Courtesy of SEC Athletics
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