COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF

Alabama coach Nick Saban called out Texas A&M, saying the school was “buying” players with name, image and likeness deals.

College football and men’s basketball players on scholarship in one of the major conferences can expect to soon earn a minimum of $50,000 each year he plays because of the influx of cash from booster collectives brokering name, image and likeness deals.

The commissioners of the Southeastern Conference and the Pac-12 are scheduled to meet with lawmakers in Washington They will lobby for federal legislation to regulate name, image and likeness compensation to athletes.

Nielsen is being acquired for $16 billion, including debt, about a week after the media measurement company rejected a smaller offer.

The National College Players Association says NCAA Division I schools are violating the civil rights of Black basketball and major college football players by prohibiting compensation.

The College Football Playoff is set to stick with a four-team format through the 2025 season.

Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner Jim Phillips says now is not the time for College Football Playoff expansion.

ESPN broadcaster Greg McElroy questioned the effort of Alabama tight end Jahleel Billingsley after losing to Georgia in the CFP national championship.

This was a nice gesture by the Alabama coach.

Georgia is No. 1 in the final Associated Press college football poll of the season after winning its second national title by beating Alabama.

Alabama had plenty of chances in the College Football Playoff championship Monday — but rarely turned those opportunities into touchdowns.

With Jameson Williams and John Metchie III sidelined by injuries, Bryce Young had his Heisman Trophy-winning season effectively ended by a last-minute pick six in the College Football Playoff championship game.

Georgia won its long-awaited national championship the way it dominated during an undefeated regular season — by relying on its defense.

The Holiday Bowl has become the fifth postseason college football game to be canceled.

The biggest game week in Cincinnati history has arrived.

If a team is unavailable to play in College Football Playoff semifinals because of COVID-19 issues, the game will be forfeited and the available team will advance to the championship game.

Cincinnati is the first outsider to make the College Football Playoff and Alabama is the standard bearer.

Notre Dame will face Oklahoma State in the Fiesta Bowl in a matchup of two teams that just missed the College Football Playoff.

Big 12 Commissioner Bob Bowlsby says expanding the College Football Playoff as soon as the 2024 season is "in some jeopardy" if an agreement on a new format cannot be reached soon.

The latest meeting on expanding the College Football Playoff has wrapped up in Dallas without any announcement.

Cincinnati has moved into position to make the College Football Playoff, climbing a spot to fourth behind Georgia, Ohio State and Alabama.

American Athletic Conference Commissioner Mike Aresco says he will oppose a College Football Playoff expansion model gives automatic access only to Power Five conference champions.

Now it's time to talk about Jim Harbaugh. There has not been much discussion about college football's most scrutinized coach as Michigan ran out to a 7-0 start. With Harbaugh, the failures are all that seem to matter.

Attending a major sporting event can be overwhelming: You might have to fly or embark on a road trip just to get there, depending on the location of course, and consider your accommodations and where you’ll stay, eat and how you’ll get around.

The college sports leaders who run the College Football Playoff have about four months to come to an agreement on a new format if expansion is to be implemented for the 2024 season.

North Carolina State forced D.

A plan to expand the College Football Playoff has stalled.

The preseason AP Top 25 college football is out and Alabama will pick up where it left off as No. 1 in the country.

Alabama is No. 1 in The Associated Press Top 25 preseason college football poll for fourth time in the past six seasons.

Big 12 coaches say they like the proposal to expand the College Football Playoff to 12 teams.

Home games or bowl games.

The 11 university presidents and chancellors who oversee the College Football Playoff have authorized the continued evaluation of a proposed 12-team playoff.

College Football Playoff expansion took another step forward this week.

Officials in charge of the College Football Playoff have opened two days of meetings in suburban Chicago.

There is a plan in place to expand the College Football Playoff from four teams to 12.

A new College Football Playoff with triple the number of teams involved could bring in three times as much money to the conferences and schools that share the wealth.

The College Football Playoff is considering an expansion from four to 12 teams.

A big two has emerged within the Power Five.

Miami-Dade County Public Schools (M-DCPS), the College Football Playoff (CFP) Foundation and the 2021 College Football Playoff National Championship Game (CFPNCG) Host Committee recently unveiled a new media center at Redland Middle School, complete with virtual reality (VR) equipment, roaming desks, a robotics section, a new Promethean board and more than a dozen computer stations. Redland Middle is one of 16 Miami-Dade public middle schools having its media centers transformed into technology-rich innovation spaces over the next two years. All the partners will continue to unveil new projects at different schools throughout the year. Eighth-grader Gregory Worcester, who gave greetings on behalf of students at the ceremony, was thrilled with the results of the renovation. “When you come in here, it looks like it’s part of a new fancy tech high school.”A robotic section is part of the features of Redland Middle’s new Innovation Space.

Patrick Surtain II and Mac Jones had the spotlight at Alabama's Pro Day, Tuesday, March 23, 2021. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara, File)DeVonta Smith was there for quarterback Mac Jones once again, this time it was at Alabama's latest pro day. “He didn't have to do that,” Jones told the SEC Network, which aired the pro day. '”Jones showcased his arm strength a week after participating in the Crimson Tide's first pro day. “Mac was just on me like, ‘Bro, come catch, come catch, come catch,’” Smith told the network.

There is no timetable in place for the next release of a college football game, the company said. “We’ve heard from the millions of passionate fans requesting the return of college football video games,” EA Sports executive vice president and general manage Cam Weber said in a statement. “We love the energy, tradition and pageantry of college football and I am beyond thrilled to say we are back in development." The NCAA Football video game did not identify players by name, but the game simulated teams and players as they played in real life. The video game was part of a broad legal challenge and a judge ruled the NCAA had been inappropriately using the names, images and likenesses of college athletes.

The Alabama wide receiver is the first player at his position to pick up that honor since Desmond Howard at Michigan. On Wednesday, head coach Brian Flores was interviewed at the Senior Bowl. But it’s good to meet him, spend time with him and find out what kind of person he is. The football character, the toughness, the competitiveness, he’s a very good player.”If the Dolphins draft Smith, it would be a reunion with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. During Tagovailoa’s freshman year, he threw the game-winning pass in the National Championship game, it was caught by Smith.

Those 128 players, plus three more who inquired about their draft status but didn't need special eligibility, were on the NFL's official list released Friday as available to be drafted after giving up their remaining college eligibility. The 30 players with college eligibility remaining after completing their degree requirements had to notify the NFL of their intentions for the draft. As for those 98 players granted special eligibility without yet finishing their degrees, that was one fewer than last year and the lowest total since 95 in 2017. Players less than four years removed from high school who have not completed a degree need to be granted special entry to the draft by the NFL. Southern California has the most players leaving early for NFL draft eligibility with six.

Dr. Scott Harris, the head of the Alabama Department of Public Health, said he expected more cases of COVID-19 to result from the street party. “It’s disappointing to see people not paying attention to the guidance that we try to give to keep them safe. Students and workers also are required to complete online training about reducing the risk of spreading the illness. More than 5,500 people have died in Alabama from the illness caused by the coronavirus, and about 408,000 have tested positive. People lined up to get into the bars an hour before kickoff despite the warnings, The Tuscaloosa News reported.

(AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)MIAMI GARDENS, Fla. – Alabama finished the season No. 1 in the AP Top 25 for the 12th time, extending its record by completing the program’s first perfect season since 2009. With 12 AP titles overall — Paul “Bear” Bryant was coach for five and Gene Stallings for one — Alabama has four more than Notre Dame, in second place with eight. The Big 12 finished with a perfect record in five bowl games. ___Follow Ralph D. Russo at https://twitter.com/ralphDrussoAP and listen at https://westwoodonepodcasts.com/pods/ap-top-25-college-football-podcast/___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-football-poll and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25___This story has been updated to correct the number of national titles for Alabama to 12, not.

From start to finish, the specter of COVID-19 loomed large over the 2020 college football season and the national championship game was no exception. Along with masks for almost everyone except the players, there were lots of empty seats — around 50,000 — for the College Football Playoff showdown. Fittingly, the championship game took place at a COVID-19 vaccination and testing site. It was a made-for-TV season that ends with an asterisk, and college football now looks toward the 2021 season, which question marks of its own. ___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25

Ohio State is back for the first time since winning the inaugural title in the CFP era. After the SEC champion Crimson Tide rolled past Notre Dame 31-14 in a Rose Bowl played deep in the heart of Texas, the No. 3 Buckeyes of the Big Ten beat Clemson 49-28 in the other CFP semifinal at the Sugar Bowl on Friday night. The Tigers were trying, like Alabama, to get to the title game for the fifth time in the seven seasons of the four-team playoff. Alabama was the top seed in the first four-team playoff, but Ohio State beat the Tide 42-35 in the semifinal Sugar Bowl.

The College Football Playoff semifinal game scheduled for January 1 is being moved from the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California, to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, the Pasadena Tournament of Roses announced Saturday night. The decision was made due to rising COVID-19 cases in Southern California, according to College Football Playoff executive director Bill Hancock. "We are very grateful to Rose Bowl officials and the City of Pasadena," Hancock said in a statement. The College Football Playoff selection committee announced Sunday that Notre Dame would be playing in the game despite a loss on Saturday, facing off against Alabama. "Why can't it be the Rose Bowl in Las Vegas or can it be the Rose Bowl in another town?"

Alabama punt returner DeVonta Smith (6) returns a punt for a touchdown against Arkansas during the first half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Dec. 12, 2020, in Fayetteville, Ark. (AP Photo/Michael Woods)Alabama, Notre Dame, Clemson and Ohio State will enter championship weekend in position to make the College Football Playoff with very little drama. Ohio State (5-0) is fourth going into the Big Ten title game against Northwestern, and Texas A&M is on deck at No. The unbeaten Bearcats host Tulsa, which is 23rd, in the American Athletic Conference title game. "We continue to work with the College Football Playoff and local health officials to provide the safest possible environment at our game.”___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and http:www.twitter.com/AP_Top25

Ohio State (4-0) had to cancel its game at Illinois last week because of a spike in COVID-19 cases in the program. HERBSTREIT APOLOGYESPN's Kirk Herbstreit caused a commotion with some of his analysis regarding Ohio State, Michigan and teams using COVID-19 as an excuse to not play. The Wolverines (2-4) are scheduled to host Maryland this week and play at Ohio State on Dec. 12. “I still think Michigan waves the white flag, potentially avoids playing Ohio State next week,” Herbstreit said. the former Ohio State quarterback said.

POLL POINTSWhen it comes to winning games against ranked teams, Alabama coach Nick Saban is the best ever. Even before beating Georgia, Saban held the record for most victories against AP top-five teams (now 25) and top-10 teams (now 42). The average number of games played in a college football season is also longer now than ever before. The conference has had three of its teams ranked at one point or another. 23 North Carolina State is ranked for the first time since 2018.

The conference commissioners who manage the College Football Playoff decided to stick with a four-team format during this pandemic-altered season after the Pac-12 made a request to consider expansion. Conferences are not playing the same number of games, are starting play at different times and there are no interconference matchups between Power Five leagues. Hancock added any decision on expansion would need the approval of the CFP’s presidential oversight committee after a recommendation by commissioners. The Southeastern Conference, Atlantic Coast Conference and Big 12 are already up and running among the Power Five leagues. AAC Commissioner Mike Aresco is the one member of the management committee who has publicly suggested playoff expansion in the past.

The College Football Playoff unveiled a revised schedule Monday for its weekly rankings, with the first set pushed back two weeks to Nov. 17 and the final list now on tap for Dec. 20. Hancock said the CFP selection committee still plans to rank its top 25 teams each week, but nothing isnt open for tweaking if necessary. The six conferences have announced their intention to play, so the committee just established its meeting scheduled to be prepared, Hancock said. This is another way we're planning for a College Football Playoff to happen with a championship in Miami.The Atlantic Coast Conference, Big 12, Southeastern Conference, American Athletic Conference, Conference USA and Sun Belt are move toward playing in the fall. The playoff management committee, which consists of the 10 FBS conference commissioners and Notre Dame's athletic director, met last week, Hancock said.

FILE - In this Jan. 13, 2020, file photo, LSU wide receiver Justin Jefferson (2) is tackled by Clemson during the first half of an NCAA College Football Playoff national championship game in New Orleans. The NCAA's latest guidance for playing college sports during the COVID-19 pandemic recommends testing players once a week within 72 hours of competition. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)The NCAA football oversight committee is asking the associations Board of Governors to avoid making a decision later this week on whether to conduct fall championships as college sports tries to find a path to play through the pandemic. The board could decide to call off NCAA championship events in fall sports such as soccer, womens volleyball and lower-division football. The NCAA has no authority to postpone or cancel specific seasons, a decision that would be up to individual schools or their conferences.

LSU fans celebrate at Varsity Theatre, in Baton Rouge, La., after LSU defeated Clemson 42-25 in the NCAA College Football Playoff championship game, Monday, Jan. 13, 2020. (AP Photo/Brett Duke)NEW ORLEANS, LA – LSU coach Ed Orgeron is already thinking about what comes next for his national champions. Biltenikoff Award winner Ja'Marr Chase, who finished with a College Football Playoff record eight receptions for 218 yards and two touchdowns, is just a sophomore. For now, Orgeron wants his coaches, players and fans to celebrate LSU's first national championship in 12 years. “But it's a recruiting weekend this weekend, we'll start recruiting and get on to next year.”___More AP college football: https://apnews.com/APTop25CollegeFootballPoll and https://apnews.com/Collegefootball and https://twitter.com/AP_Top25