NEIL CORNRICH & NC SPORTS: MANAGING THE CAREERS OF PROFESSIONALS IN THE SPORTS INDUSTRY

SEARCH NEILCORNRICH.COM

Monday, January 27, 2025

Ryan Day Names One of the 'Brightest Minds' in College Football at National Championship Celebration

 




Grant Bricker

Jan 26, 2025 3:49 PM EST

 

Ryan Day and the Ohio State Buckeyes celebrated their 34-23 national championship win against Notre Dame on Sunday at Ohio Stadium. 

While giving his speech, Day shouted out an assistant coach after a remarkable season. Day praised safeties coach Matt Guerrieri, calling the assistant one of the "brightest minds" in college football.

"One of the brightest minds in college football, and I'm telling you, a star in the making," Day said. "Our safeties coach, Matt Guerrieri."

Guerrieri worked with defensive backs like Caleb Downs, Lathan Ransom and Denzel Burke. Downs was a Consensus All-American, Ransom was a semifinalist for the Thorpe Award, and Burke was Third-Team All-Big Ten.





























https://x.com/AdamKing10TV/status/1883591554964783197

Downs accounted for 82 total tackles, eight TFLs and two interceptions in 2024. Ransom had 76 total tackles, nine TFLs, one sack and one interception, while Burke had 48 total tackles, three TFLs and two interceptions this season.

Guerrieri has had multiple assistant coaching roles in his career, including stints with Indiana (2023) and Duke (2012-21). Guerrieri was a defensive senior analyst for Ohio State in 2022.

 











Ohio State Buckeyes safeties coach Matt Guerrieri.

Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

 

Ohio State's secondary was one of the best in the country this season. The Buckeyes allowed the third-fewest passing yards per game (167). The only programs that ranked higher than Ohio State in that metric were Washington (116.5) and Iowa State (165.6).

That secondary is one of the reasons the Buckeyes entered the final week of the regular season ranked No. 2 in the country. But Ohio State lost to archrival Michigan for the fourth season in a row, falling 13-10 to the Wolverines. Ohio State then got hot at the right time for the College Football Playoff.

The Buckeyes beat Tennessee (42-17), Oregon (41-21) and Texas (28-14) to reach the national title game.

Unfortunately for Guerrieri, he will lose some top talent in the Ohio State secondary. Ransom and Burke have declared for the 2025 NFL Draft, and Downs has not announced his plans for next season yet. 

 


Wednesday, January 22, 2025

Former Wisconsin running back Montee Ball will be inducted into College Football Hall of Fame

 




Mark Stewart

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel










MADISON – A lot of great running backs have come through the Wisconsin football program.

Twelve years after he played his last down for the Badgers, Montee Ball continues to separate himself from the pack.

Wednesday the former UW star was announced as part of the College Football Hall of Fame’s 2025 class. The induction ceremony will be Dec. 9 in Las Vegas.

He will be the 13th Wisconsin player or coach to receive induction.


Ball finished his UW career as the NCAA record holder for career touchdowns (83) and career rushing touchdowns (77). He ranks second in program history in rushing yards to Ron Dayne with 5,140 yards.

Also, Ball still holds the distinction as the only player to run for 100 yards in three straight Rose Bowls.

Ball, who was a second-round draft pick of the Denver Broncos and played two NFL seasons, responded to the honor on social media.

“This is such an honor,” he wrote on X. “Thank you so much to all the voters, the committee, Badgers fans, my family, my teammates, UW football, Thomas Hammock and all that helped me along the journey. Thank you thank you thank you” 

Monday, January 13, 2025

Patriots hire Mike Vrabel as 16th head coach in franchise history

 















Mike Reiss, ESPN Staff Writer

Jan 12, 2025, 10:23 AM ET

 

FOXBOROUGH, Mass. -- Mike Vrabel has returned to the New England Patriots, who hired the former longtime player to become their new head coach.

 

The Patriots did not disclose terms, but sources told ESPN's Adam Schefter that Vrabel and New England agreed to a multiyear contract. The team confirmed the hiring Sunday morning, announcing Vrabel as the 16th head coach in franchise history.

Vrabel played linebacker for the Patriots from 2001 to 2008 and was an integral member of three Super Bowl championship teams. He served as Tennessee Titans coach from 2018 to 2023, posting a 54-45 regular-season record and 2-3 mark in the playoffs, which included a trip to the AFC Championship Game in 2019.

 

Vrabel, the Associated Press NFL Coach of the Year in 2021, replaces Jerod Mayo, who was fired Jan. 5 after posting a 4-13 record in his one season as Patriots coach. The Patriots will formally introduce Vrabel during a noon ET news conference Monday at Gillette Stadium.

The Patriots also interviewed Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich and former Houston Texans offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton for the opening.

 

While Vrabel is identified most as a Patriot from his playing career that also included time with the Pittsburgh Steelers (1997-2000) and Kansas City Chiefs (2009-10), he has never served in New England as a coach. His coaching career began in 2011 working with linebackers at Ohio State, his alma mater.

 

Vrabel spent three seasons at Ohio State then four with the Texans before his six-year stint as Titans head coach that ended when he was fired after consecutive losing seasons. In 2024, he was a coaching and personnel consultant for the Cleveland Browns.

 

Vrabel, 49, was inducted into the Patriots Hall of Fame in 2023 and shared his affinity for the franchise and owner Robert Kraft that day, saying, "This is a special place with great leadership, great fans, great direction and great coaching. ... It's not like this everywhere."

He noted that day that it was only the fifth time he had returned to New England since being traded to Kansas City in 2009 and shared fond memories of his life there, including he and his wife, Jen, raising two sons, Tyler and Carter, in their early years.

As a player in New England, Vrabel was credited by coach Bill Belichick for his fundamentals, commitment to team success, toughness, leadership, situational awareness and intelligence, among other things. Vrabel's Titans teams mostly reflected that, with his command of game management -- which include many things learned from Belichick -- among the areas that impressed Kraft, according to a team source.

One example came in the Titans' 20-13 road playoff win over the Patriots on Jan. 4, 2020, when Vrabel took advantage of a loophole in the rulebook that allowed him to burn 1:49 off the clock in the fourth quarter without running a play -- helping keep quarterback Tom Brady off the field.

In his Patriots Hall of Fame speech in 2023, Vrabel said what he experienced in the locker room as a player in New England remains the standard of what he hopes to achieve as a coach.

"We held each other accountable, because there was trust, there was an understanding, a respect that you could say things that needed to be said to each other," he said. "Every day that's what I'm trying to recreate wherever I coach. I don't know if we'll get it, but every day I'm going to try because nothing was more important than the team."


Popular Posts