Football

1/20/2025 |  Notre Dame’s Marcus Freeman seeks breakthrough for Black coaches on a historic day in America (Associated Press (AP)) ATLANTA (AP) — Notre Dame football coach Marcus Freeman felt more comfortable talking about the national championship his players have a chance to win Monday night than the history attached to it if they pull it off.
Still, it’s hard to ignore the connections between Freeman’s fate — he is trying to become the first African American coach to capture a college title at the highest level in America’s favorite sport — and all that’s happening in the U.S. on the day of the big game.

1/20/2025 |  National championship game on tap as Notre Dame and Ohio State close a long, strange football season (Associated Press (AP)) ATLANTA (AP) — The curtain comes down Monday night on the longest, strangest college football season anyone has ever seen. About the only thing that feels normal about it are the teams playing for the title: Ohio State and Notre Dame.

1/20/2025 |  Any College Football Playoff tweaks for 2025 won’t be hashed out until later this year (Associated Press (AP)) ATLANTA (AP) — Any adjustments to the College Football Playoff for next season, including a potential tweak in the way byes are awarded, would have to take place later this year, probably in the spring, the leaders of the playoff said Sunday.
Conference commissioners and school presidents who operate the playoff met on the eve of the Ohio State-Notre Dame title game to discuss issues related to this season’s kickoff of the 12-team playoff, and how to transition to the next TV contract, which begins in 2026.

1/20/2025 |  CFP Notebook: Freeman and Day say fiery pregame speeches unnecessary when playing for championship (Associated Press (AP)) ATLANTA (AP) — As far as coaches Marcus Freeman of Notre Dame and Ryan Day of Ohio State are concerned, those dramatic pregame speeches that inspire a football team to victory are the stuff of Hollywood.
Both said Sunday they have nothing special planned for their final words in the locker room before kickoff of the College Football Playoff championship game Monday night.
The message to their players will be to keep doing what they’ve been doing, because that’s what got them here.

1/20/2025 |  Sun Belt Fines Depleted Marshall for Opting Out of Bowl Game (Athletic Business) The Sun Belt Conference announced Friday it fined Marshall $100,000 for opting out of the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl last month even though the Thundering Herd's roster had been depleted to 41 players after as many as 36 players entered the transfer portal.