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Big second quarter propels No. 6 Washington to halftime lead over Arizona State

By Bryan FischerNov 19, 2016, 9:10 PM EDT

Looking to rebound from their first loss of the season, Washington didn’t exactly jump out to a hot start on Saturday night. Still, the Huskies did what they needed to do in the second quarter against an overmatched Arizona State squad and ended up with a 24-0 lead at halftime.

Quarterback Jake Browning struggled a bit, getting picked off in the first quarter after a ball was deflected off his receiver’s hands for a tip drill interception. He threw another right to a defender in the second quarter for an apparent pick-six, but that play was negated by a flag. His defense bailed him out with an incredible interception from cornerback Kevin King in end zone on the ensuing drive.

Luckily Browning was able to make up for his second mistake, dumping it off and letting Chico McClatcher do most of the work on a 75-yard screen play for the first touchdown of the game. Dante Pettis hauled in a second score on a crisp 46-yarder after blowing by the Sun Devils’ secondary and Lavon Coleman punched it in from a yard out for another.

As bad as the Washington offense looked at times though, it had nothing on Arizona State’s performance that included six punts, two turnovers and just 48 yards in the first two quarters.

The Huskies do get the ball back to start the second half and you can bet Chris Petersen and company will be looking to put some more distance between themselves and the Sun Devils as they try to get some style points for the College Football Playoff Selection Committee.

Two Vanderbilt players shot in incident involving stolen phone

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By John TaylorJun 27, 2017, 4:55 PM EDT

While that’s a serious-sounding headline, it could’ve been a lot worse for a pair of Vanderbilt football players.

According to WSMV-TV, O’montae “Tae” Daley and Frank Coppet were shot outside of a Nashville Target store Monday night. The former, a true freshman defensive back, was shot in the leg while the latter, a redshirt freshman defensive back, was shot in the arm. Both of the injuries are considered non-critical.

The shooting occurred after a third Commodore football player, wide receiver Donaven Tennyson (pictured), had his phone stolen in an earlier incident and, along with the other two, concocted what was described by police as “an ill-conceived plan to recover a stolen cellphone.”

From the television station’s report:

Police said the incident leading up to the shooting happened on Monday when… Tennyson met up with someone to try to sell his cellphone. Tennyson’s cellphone was stolen during the meeting in the parking lot of the Chili’s on West End.

Tennyson told police he noticed his stolen phone was listed online, which is when he reportedly made a fake profile and arranged a meeting with the seller at Target.

The 19-year-old brought two friends with him, 18-year-olds O’montae Daley and Frank Coppet. The trio brought a pellet pistol with them.

Coppet reportedly got out of their car with the pellet gun, which is when two people in a gray Buick sedan opened fire.

In addition to getting shot, one of the victim’s had his car stolen by the alleged shooters for good measure. Police are still searching for the alleged assailants, and haven’t yet released a description.

The school has yet to publicly comment on the shooting.

Last season as a true freshman, Tennyson played in eight games for the Commodores, while Coppet took a redshirt his first season with the program. Daley was a three-star member of Vandy’s 2017 recruiting class coming out of high school in Georgia. He signed early and participated in spring practice this year.

Committee launched to formulate plans for college football’s 150th birthday

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By John TaylorJun 27, 2017, 3:33 PM EDT

On Nov. 6, 1869, Princeton and Rutgers squared off in the first-ever college football game. Nearly 148 years later, the powers-that-be in the sport are in the beginning stages of commemorating the momentous event.

The National Football Foundation announced in a press release that “[a] group of college football leaders announced plans today to launch a nationwide celebration to commemorate the game’s 150th anniversary.” The group will be headed by Kevin Weiberg, longtime college athletics administrator and former Big 12 Conference commissioner.

There are a baker’s dozen other individuals who will be involved in planning the festivities as part of the committee, including the two current athletic directors of the teams involved in the sport’s first game.

Todd Berry, executive director, American Football Coaches Association
Ari Fleischer, president, Ari Fleischer Communications
Bill Hancock, executive director, College Football Playoff
Steve Hatchell, president & chief executive officer, National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame
Pat Hobbs, director of athletics, Rutgers University
Chris Howard, president, Robert Morris University
Mike Kern, associate commissioner, Missouri Valley Football Conference/FCS Managing Director
Oliver Luck, executive vice president of regulatory affairs and strategic partnerships, NCAA
Mollie Marcoux Samaan, athletics director, Princeton University
Larry Scott, commissioner, Pac-12 Conference
Jon Steinbrecher, commissioner, Mid-American Conference
Bob Vecchione, executive director, National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics
Wright Waters, executive director, Football Bowl Association

“This is a very exciting moment for fans of college football,” Weiberg said in a statement. “Across the country, college football is a deeply ingrained part of life for millions and millions of people. While it’s too soon to know our exact plans, we want to put something together that is big and special, something fans can be proud of. We will work closely with leaders from all divisions of college football to build a national celebration for fans to enjoy.

“No one could have imagined that since the first football game was played on November 6, 1869 that college football would grow to become one of America’s greatest traditions, beloved by tens of millions of fans every year,” said Scott. “At all divisions of play, college football is special and we intend to launch a nationwide celebration to mark the anniversary.”

Ex-Alabama WR T. Simmons officially a WVU Mountaineer, too

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By John TaylorJun 27, 2017, 12:21 PM EDT

In the post below this, we noted that Jovani Haskins is officially a member of the West Virginia football program. T.J. Simmons can say the same as well.

After Simmons announced it via social media over this past weekend, WVU has confirmed that the wide receiver has signed a grant-in-aid for the 2017-18 academic year and will continue his collegiate playing career with the Mountaineers. That continuation won’t happen immediately as, after sitting out the 2017 season to satisfy NCAA transfer bylaws, Simmons will have three years of eligibility remaining with the Mountaineers.

Simmons had decided last week to transfer out of the Alabama football program.

A three-star member of the Crimson Tide’s 2016 recruiting class, Simmons was rated as the No. 58 receiver in the country and the No. 9 player at any position in the state of Alabama.

As a true freshman, Simmons played in 12 games, mainly on special teams. In this year’s annual spring game, the 6-2, 201-pound receiver caught six passes for 82 yards and a touchdown for the Crimson Tide.

WVU makes addition of ex-Miami TE Jovani Haskins official

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By John TaylorJun 27, 2017, 9:11 AM EDT

One down, one to go.

Over the weekend, both former Miami tight end Jovani Haskins (HERE) and ex-Alabama wide receiver T.J. Simmons (HERE) indicated on social media that they would be transferring and continuing their collegiate playing careers at West Virginia. Monday, WVU confirmed that the former has signed his grant-in-aid for the 2017-18 academic year.

Haskins will have to sit out the 2017 season to satisfy NCAA transfer rules. Beginning with the 2018 season, he’ll have three years of eligibility remaining.

A three-star member of the Hurricanes’ 2016 recruiting class, the 6-4, 245-pound Haskins was rated as the No. 18 tight end in the country and the No. 10 player at any position in the state of New Jersey. He took a redshirt as a true freshman.

Earlier this month, Haskins opted to transfer from The U in order to “get a fresh start somewhere else.”

Haskins is the third Power Five player to officially transfer to the Mountaineers this offseason, joining former Syracuse defensive back Corey Winfield (HERE) and ex-Miami quarterback Jack Allison (HERE).