Larry Brown Sports

Michigan and Notre Dame have played each other in football 40 times, including every season since 2002. But that rivalry was set to be put on hiatus in 2018-2019 as the Irish scheduled games with the ACC. However, what wasn’t expected was that the Irish would also cancel the scheduled games between the two for 2015-2017. Michigan coach Brady Hoke thinks Notre Dame is “chickening out” of facing the Wolverines in those games.

“We are fortunate to have unbelievable rivalry games at Michigan. The Notre Dame game, that rivalry, which they’re chickening out of,” Hoke said Monday during the West Michigan Sports Commission Annual Luncheon, via MLive.com.

“They’re still gonna play Michigan State, they’re gonna play Purdue, but they don’t want to play Michigan,” Hoke continued. “I don’t know how they made that decision … I really do … But anyway, that’s a great national rivalry game. It’s a great game.”

College football fans have become used to seeing the Irish and Wolverines play every fall. Michigan has gone 6-5 against Notre Dame since 2002, including 38-0 wins in 2003 and 2007. The teams will still meet for the next two seasons, so you can believe that the Irish will remember Hokes comments when they play. Notre Dame defensive tackle Louis Nix III has already taken note of the remark:

Chickened out? #MeatChicken will taste delicious Sept 7th. #GoIrish

— lOUIS NIX III (@1IrishChocolate) May 14, 2013

This is going to be an exciting one. It also must be kept in mind that Michigan reportedly asked Notre Dame to stop the series in 2018-2019 first.

Helmet smack to Dr. Saturday

Johnny Manziel’s dream offseason continued this weekend. The Texas A&M quarterback and Heisman Trophy winner tweeted on Saturday to say that he was at Pebble Beach playing golf with his family.

Manziel has not been shy about sharing all the amazing things he has done. He tweets pictures when he’s at big-time NBA or MLB games, and he’s gone on vacations to Mexico, New Orleans, and Toronto in recent months. The lavish lifestyle has led to many people questioning how he is able to afford all the luxuries despite being a college student. Others have wondered how he even has time to be a student with all the fun things he seems to be doing.

Manziel responded to some of the criticism he heard over Twitter after tweeting about his golfing exploits:

RT“@joebro26: @jmanziel2 seems like your putting a lot of work into football these days douchebag” here working with my QB coach AND golfing

— Johnny Manziel (@JManziel2) May 11, 2013

Okay now that everybody ripped me for playing some golf with the family..how’s everyone’s day going? Done with finals and enjoying summer?

— Johnny Manziel (@JManziel2) May 11, 2013

Credit to Manziel for breaking 80 at Pebble — he said he birdied 18 to shoot a 79. How about that? He’s pretty good at two sports.

Photo credit: Twitter/Johnny Manziel

Nick Saban does not have time for Bob Stoops’ anti-SEC remarks. He made that clear when speaking with reporters on Thursday, though he did say it in a nice way.

First, let’s start with Stoops’ comments. During a caravan stop in Tulsa, the Oklahoma coach defended the Big 12 and said all the hype surrounding the SEC was “propaganda.”

“It depends on who you want to listen to,” Stoops told the Tulsa World when asked about the gap between conferences. “Listen, they’ve had the best team in college football, meaning they’ve won the national championship. That doesn’t mean everything else is always the best.

“So you’re listening to a lot of propaganda that gets fed out to you. You’re more than smart enough to figure it out. Again, you can look at the top two, three, four, five, six teams, and you can look at the bottom six, seven, eight, whatever they are. How well are they all doing?”

Saban wasn’t about to let those comments bother him. In fact, he says he did not even hear about them.

“I didn’t even know he said it, so you’re going to have to tell me what he said,” Saban said, via AL.com. “I’ve got more important things to do than sit around and read what Bob Stoops has to say about anything. But I like Bob Stoops, and I respect him as a coach, but I’m really trying to manage our business.”

Saban said he respects the Big 12 and what Oklahoma does, but he did defend his conference.

“Well, we don’t play everybody in the Big 12 or whatever it is, so I really don’t know much about their league,” Saban said. “We have a lot of respect for what they do at Oklahoma, and I really don’t think that people that don’t play in our league really don’t understand the quality of our league from top to bottom.

“I think there’s probably a lot of animosity out there because of the success that we have in our league, but I think that kind of goes with the territory. I understand that. But we certainly respect the great program that they have at Oklahoma and the other good programs that they have in the Big 12.”

I used to firmly be in the “SEC is overhyped” camp and I would complain about an East Coast bias. I thought the Pac-10 was disrespected in conversations. But the truth is the SEC is the best conference in college football. It’s undeniable. They have the most money, the best players, the best resources, the best coaches, and it shows on the field.

You can see his comments around the 3:30 mark.

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College campuses across the country will be sending students home for the summer over the next couple of weeks, which must be a great source of anxiety for coaches. The less time players spend with their teams, the more opportunities they have to get into trouble and out of shape. Texas Tech football coach Kliff Kingsbury is aware of that and is trying to stay ahead of the curve.

Texas Tech offensive lineman Alfredo Morales tweeted the photo you see above on Tuesday, which shows a letter Kingsbury sent to all of his players before they went home for break.

“Also we advise you to be active over break as you will need to be ready to work once June rolls around,” the note read. “Sitting at the house playing COD/2K13/Madden against 12 year olds online doesn’t suffice as ‘activity’ even if you claim to ‘wreck shop.’”

Awesome. As a 33-year-old coach, Kingsbury can certainly relate to his players. He knows how 20-somethings act, considering he just was one about four years ago. I’d rather have a coach who tells me not to play video games than one who sends out creepy recruiting messages like this, but that’s just my personal preference. Score one for Kliff.

H/T Crystal Ball Run

Matthew Thomas, one of Florida State’s top recruits from the class of 2013, does not want to play for the Seminoles. The country’s No. 2 linebacker according to Rivals.com said on Monday that he is seeking his release from Florida State so he can sign with either Georgia or USC. In fact, he says he never really wanted to go to FSU to begin with.

“I’ve told (the coaches) it’s nothing personal,” Thomas said, via The Miami Herald. “I just didn’t make the decision I really wanted to on Signing Day. What happened was I wasn’t sure who I wanted to sign with. I had issues with different schools. But when I told my mom I didn’t want to sign with anybody and wait and give it a few days she said I couldn’t do that. She said, ‘FSU is a good school – pick them. It’s close to home.’ I wasn’t agreeing with it. But I felt like I was being disrespectful to her if I didn’t sign. So I made her happy.”

Thomas also added that he felt pressure to sign with FSU since he had already verbally committed to the school and his official decision was being aired live on ESPN. He says both of his parents are now supporting his efforts to be released from FSU, but the coaches are planning to visit him at his home in South Florida to try to convince him to stay.

“If I tried to go to a school in FSU’s conference I would have to sit out a couple years,” he explained. “But that’s not what I want to do. I’ve been in Miami all my life. Georgia needs linebackers. It’s a big program. I have family in Georgia. USC, growing up I never thought I would have an opportunity that big. I just want to go have fun and play football.”

Recruits make decisions they regret because of their parents all the time. Very few take it as far as this player’s mother did, but we hear stories like this quite often. Thomas is just a kid who hasn’t even begun his college career yet. If he thinks going to a different school would be best for his future, it should not be too late for him to do so.

Helmet smack to Dr. Saturday

Johnny Manziel was the best quarterback in college football and the best player in the nation last year at Texas A&M, or so his Heisman Trophy says. Manziel became the first freshman ever to take home to coveted Heisman, which has everyone excited about what the future could hold for Johnny Football. According to one NFL.com scout, it may not be much when it comes time for him to play professionally.

Before you freak out about the phenomenal season Manziel had in 2012 and how he is only 20 years old, give Bucky Brooks’ full assessment a chance. Brooks believes Manziel currently projects to be a “marginal pro.” How is that possible for someone who did what he did for the Aggies last season? It has a lot to do with the difference between college football and the NFL.

Brooks, who mentioned multiple times how Manziel is one of the most electric players he has ever seen, focused on four areas — athleticism, arm talent, pocket presence and clutch factor. He cited Manziel’s ability to improvise and scramble as reasons he presents a nightmare scenario for opposing defensive coordinators, but a lot of that stuff may not work at the NFL level.

Manziel is an exceptional athlete, which we can see based on his running ability, but he makes a ton of plays outside the pocket. When teams force Manziel to remain inside the pocket, he is less effective. In losses to Florida and LSU last season, Manziel was forced to throw more and run less. The fact that he is more effective outside the pocket will be a concern for NFL teams, considering how much bigger and faster defensive lineman and linebackers are at the next level.

Again, Manziel is an incredible playmaker. He could easily build his arm strength and become a better pocket passer over the next two or three seasons, which would send his draft stock higher than it already is. That being said, we have seen plenty of quarterbacks dominate the college game and not be able to get it done at the pro level. Time will tell if Manziel will be another one of those guys.

And no, this has nothing to do with controversial pictures like this.

Five-star linebacker recruit Reuben Foster may have officially committed to Alabama back in February when he dressed as Nick Saban on signing day, but he is keeping his famous Auburn tattoo. Rather than going through the expensive and painful process of having it removed, Foster has had some additional work done to turn the ink into a tribute to his cousin Ladarious Phillips.

Here’s a closer look at what Reuben Foster’s Auburn tattoo has become: a tribute to a fallen family member. twitter.com/AlexS_ESPN/sta…

— Alex Scarborough (@AlexS_ESPN) May 1, 2013

Phillips, a former Auburn fullback, was shot and killed last year a month after Foster changed his commitment from Alabama to Auburn and got a tattoo on his right forearm to prove it. Foster says one of the reasons he wanted to play for the Tigers was so he could play with his cousin. He later flipped back to Alabama but insisted he would be keeping the tattoo. Here’s what it used to look like.

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