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Seminoles’ rise boosted by transfers

Seminoles’ rise boosted by transfers

19/03/2024, USA, Multi Sports, USA Publications, Article # 31686887

By Bob Ferrante

Orlando Sentinel Correspondent

TALLAHASSEE — There are college football programs around the nation taking more transfers than Florida State. But few can claim a success rate quite like that of Mike Norvell and the Seminoles’ staff the last few years.

FSU had 11 selections to the 2023 All-ACC team who transferred in after Norvell took over, a group that doesn’t include quarterback Jordan Travis. While there will annually be a debate over who is the portal king, and really anyone from Ole Miss’ Lane Kiffin to Colorado’s Deion Sanders to Louisville’s Jeff Brohm and even former FSU offensive coordinator Kenny Dillingham at Arizona State can stake a claim.

But Norvell has always stated that recruiting the portal and high school ranks is all about “fit.” FSU has found the right fit of production, leadership and personality that have translated to 23 wins the last two seasons.

“It’s about being right,” Norvell said. “There’s plenty of people that have taken more transfers. People point to ours because ours are good. They do a great job when they get here. They make impacts.”

FSU’s coaching staff will get a first-hand look at the transfers and what impact they could have in 2024 when spring practice opens on Tuesday. It’s the first of 15 practices leading up to the spring showcase on April 20 inside a Doak Campbell Stadium that, perhaps fittingly, is also going through a massive renovation.

There’s perhaps no bigger transfer than quarterback DJ Uiagalelei, whom Norvell says has fit right in with Brock Glenn and incoming freshmen Luke Kromenhoek and Trever Jackson, an Orlando native. But the impact of transfers could also be reflected at nearly every position group on offense and defense.

While the narrative with transfers is that they often come and go after one year, Jared Verse was a two-year transfer who is set to be an NFL first-round draft pick. Defensive tackle Fabien Lovett and defensive back Jarrian Jones just spent four years at FSU following a transfer from Mississippi State.

And FSU has retained a number of multi-year transfers who will be major parts of the 2024 roster, including tight end Kyle Morlock, offensive linemen Jeremiah Byers and Keiondre Jones, defensive tackle Darrell Jackson, defensive backs Greedy Vance and Fentrell Cypress, linebacker Justin Cryer and tailback Caziah Holmes of Cocoa.

Norvell called it a “new age of college athletics with change and transition.” As the Seminoles have won incrementally more games in each of his prior four years, they have also been able to manage the portal better and better. With wins comes the attraction of FSU’s coaches and roadmap for player development as well as helping them develop for the NFL.

FSU loses Verse as well as Lovett and Braden Fiske on the defensive front. But their development and success is why FSU was able to land some of the top defensive ends in the portal in Marvin Jones Jr. (Georgia), Sione Lolohea (Oregon State) and Tomiwa Durojaiye (West Virginia) as well as defensive tackle Grady Kelly (Colorado State).

“We’re not going to say that we’re better than anyone else,” defensive coordinator Adam Fuller said. “We’ve taken a lot transfers and high school kids. But tell me the ones that haven’t worked out. The trust is that. Right? … We’re not better evaluators than everybody in the country. I’m not saying we are. But I’m saying we’re really good at it — for what fits here.”



https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2024/03/18/seminoles-rise-boosted-by-transfers/
Dolphins restructure running back Jeff Wilson Jr.’s contract to lower 2024 cap hit

Dolphins restructure running back Jeff Wilson Jr.’s contract to lower 2024 cap hit

19/03/2024, USA, Multi Sports, USA Publications, Article # 31686888

Miami Dolphins running back Jeff Wilson Jr. agreed to a contract restructure Monday that cuts into his 2024 cap hit to the team.

The adjustment lowers Wilson’s cap number from $3.67 million to $2,375,500, according to a league source.

It essentially assures Wilson’s return to the Dolphins for the 2024 season as he was previously a candidate to be released for savings toward the salary cap.

Wilson’s base salary was lowered from $2.6 million to $1,125,000, but he added $400,000 guaranteed, plus workout and roster bonuses and incentives.

The 28-year-old power runner signed a two-year, $6 million contract as a free agent last offseason, but in his first season on the deal, he only carried 41 times for 188 rushing yards without a touchdown, adding 14 receptions for 85 yards.

In the 2023 offseason, Wilson was coming off his best season. Acquired by the Dolphins in a midseason trade, he had 860 rushing yards and six total touchdowns in time split between Miami and San Francisco.

Wilson (6 feet, 210 pounds) has ties to Dolphins coach Mike McDaniel from back with the 49ers when McDaniel was both run-game coordinator and then offensive coordinator as Wilson first made it with San Francisco as an undrafted player in 2018.

Miami essentially returns its running back corps in 2024. Rookie phenom De’Von Achane is back for a second season, and veteran Raheem Mostert is also under contract coming off a career year. The team already re-signed fellow running back Salvon Ahmed, and Chris Brooks enters a second professional season after making the Dolphins roster as an undrafted rookie in 2023.

Wilson’s top highlight with Miami last season was a defining moment in the team’s last win. He plunged for a late first-down conversion on third-and-2 against the Dallas Cowboys on Dec. 24 that allowed Miami to run down the clock so kicker Jason Sanders’ game-winning field could come as time expired.



https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2024/03/18/dolphins-restructure-running-back-jeff-wilson-jr-s-contract-to-lower-2024-cap-hit/
50th Players Championship delivers needed greatness for PGA Tour

50th Players Championship delivers needed greatness for PGA Tour

19/03/2024, USA, Multi Sports, USA Publications, Article # 31686889

PONTE VEDRA BEACH — The week of the 50th Players Championship began with a flap but ended with a flourish.

Scottie Scheffler’s dramatic and historic 1-shot come-from-behind win was the show-stopping performance the PGA Tour needed on its biggest stage.

Scheffler’s relentless execution and closing ability drew Tiger Woods comparisons as he maintained his stranglehold on world No. 1 at the expense of the reigning U.S. Open champion (Wyndham Clark), British Open champ (Brian Harman) and Olympic gold medalist (Xander Schauffele).

Yet Scheffler didn’t have the opportunity to chase down, defeat and demoralize all of golf’s top players.

Scottie Scheffler hits his tee shot on the 14th hole during his closing 8-under 64 during the final round of The Players Championship March 17 in Ponte Vedra Beach. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)
Scottie Scheffler hits his tee shot on the 14th hole during his closing 8-under 64 during the final round of The Players Championship on Sunday in Ponte Vedra Beach. (AP Photo/Marta Lavandier)

LIV Golf continued to intrude at TPC Sawgrass, even if the absence of world No. 2 Jon Rahm, five-time major champion Brooks Koepka and five former Players champions, including 2022 winner Cam Smith, took nothing away from Scheffler’s transcendent performance. 

During his annual address Tuesday, commissioner Jay Monahan highlighted the Tour’s multi-billion dollar agreement with the Strategic Sports Group, aimed to combat the Saudi-funded rival league. Reporter queries followed, as did player reaction.

Schauffele said Monahan had “a long way to go to gain the trust of the membership,” potentially setting the stage for an uncomfortable champion’s ceremony when Schauffele held the 54-hole lead.

PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan looks on during the trophy ceremony after the final round of The Players Championship March 17 at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan looks on during the trophy ceremony after the final round of The Players Championship  at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)

Scheffler, not known to share public opinions, blamed LIV defectors for less buzz about the Tour’s showcase event.

“If the fans are upset, then look at the guys that left,” he said.

But by the time Scheffler hoisted the trophy Sunday evening, golf was in a better place.

The world’s No. 1 player matched the lowest final-round score by a winner with an 8-under-par 64 to erase a 5-shot deficit, equaling the tournament’s biggest comeback during 41 years at TPC Sawgrass.

The 27-year-old summoned his best stuff after three days of battling a neck injury and watching three players ranked inside the top 10 leave him behind.

But on the Players’ golden anniversary, forces came together to produce a final round as riveting and emotionally exhausting as any in tournament history.

‘Today was another battle, hard-fought week,” the understated Scheffler said. “A lot of guys played some really good golf this week.”

Wyndham Clark reacts after missing a tying birdie putt on the 18th green during the final round of The Players Championship March 17 at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Wyndham Clark reacts after missing a tying birdie putt on the 18th green during the final round of The Players Championship on Sunday at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Harman, Schauffele and then Clark had a chance to tie Scheffler with a birdie on the par-4 18th hole. Clark’s ball even fell halfway into the cup before horse-shoeing out to end his bid in agonizing fashion, especially given he held a 4-shot lead after 36 holes.

Each would have been a worthy world-class winner.

In golf, though, dominance generates mass appeal like few sports.

Coming off a 5-shot win during the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Orlando’s Bay Hill, Scheffler fit the bill. He led the Players field in strokes gained tee-to-green and off-the-tee, along with driving accuracy at TPC Sawgrass. He tied for third in greens in regulation.

The rare time he made a mistake, his brilliant short game saved him. A putter change prior to the API seems to have filled the one hole in his game.

Even when Scheffler struggled before winning at Bay Hill, he recorded 14 top-10s in 19 starts between wins.

Scottie Scheffler of the United States speaks to reporters after winning The Players Championship March 17 at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)
Scottie Scheffler of the United States speaks to reporters after winning The Players Championship at TPC Sawgrass in Ponte Vedra Beach. (Photo by Jared C. Tilton/Getty Images)

Now with consecutive wins for the first time since his dominant spring in 2022, tougher tests await.

The April 11-14 Masters will feature 2023 winner Rahm, Koepka and three-time champion Phil Mickelson, who tied for second in 2023, along with 2018 winner Patrick Reed, who tied for fourth. Augusta National Golf Club also is unlikely to yield the low scoring encouraged by soft conditions at TPC Sawgrass.

Either way, 2022 Masters champion Scheffler will be the man to beat. But even if he fails, he helped the PGA Tour deliver a major win Sunday.

Edgar Thompson can be reached at egthompson@orlandosentinel.com.



https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2024/03/18/players-championship-scottie-scheffler-jay-monahan-pga-tour-wyndham-clark-brian-haraman-xander-schauffele/
Magic can secure postseason spot with win Tuesday vs. Hornets

Magic can secure postseason spot with win Tuesday vs. Hornets

19/03/2024, USA, Multi Sports, USA Publications, Article # 31686890

Winners of three in a row, the Magic have a chance to clinch a non-losing season for the first time since 2018-19 on Tuesday night against the Hornets at Kia Center.

A home victory would mark Orlando‘s 41st of the season, securing at least a .500 record with 13 contests remaining.

Although the Magic have their eyes set on much more under third-year coach Jamahl Mosley with less than a month before the playoffs begin, securing a non-losing record would check off another box in the rebuilding process for the organization.

The Magic finished below .500 each of the past four years but have improved their win total each season under Mosley.

Speaking of the postseason, a win on Tuesday would also clinch, at worst, Orlando’s spot in the NBA Play-In Tournament. That’s because the 11th-seeded Nets are unable to earn 41 wins this season after dropping Sunday’s game to the Spurs.

Beede’s Breakdown: How Magic adjusted against Raptors to sweep season series

The Nos. 7-10 seeds in each conference compete in the Play-In for the Nos. 7 and 8 spots in the playoffs.

Orlando missed the Play-In last year despite a surge in wins during the second half of the season. The group was the last team in the East to be mathematically eliminated from Play-In contention.

This year, the Magic have been ahead of schedule throughout most of the season. No better example is their current record.

Mosley’s squad enters the Charlotte game at 40-28. At this point last season, the Magic were 28-40.

Of course, Orlando can avoid the Play-In completely by finishing in top 6 in the East to clinch a first-round playoff berth.

Entering Monday’s games, the Magic sat fifth in the conference, just half a game behind the fourth-seeded Knicks (40-27) and two full games ahead of the sixth-seeded Pacers (38-30).

According to ESPN’s Basketball Power Index, Orlando has a 88.7% chance of finishing inside the top 6 and a 73.3% chance to win the Southeast Division.

The Magic have won just one division title (2019) since 2010.

While Orlando’s goals are in sight, its upcoming schedule after the Hornets only gets tougher.

Although all four games will be played at home (where the Magic are 23-9 this season), the next four opponents (Pelicans, Kings, Warriors and Clippers) hold above-.500 records. Orlando is 15-22 against teams with a winning record this year.

Three of those four teams also sit inside the top 6 in the West; Golden State is ninth.

Fortunately for Orlando, the team is healthy at the right time.

Forward Jonathan Isaac (who sat Sunday’s game vs. Toronto due to left knee injury maintenance) is set to be available for the Magic against the Hornets (17-51).

While Orlando has no players listed on its injury report, the same can’t be said for Charlotte.

Former Magic coach Steve Clifford won’t have guard LaMelo Ball (right ankle tendinopathy), guard Seth Curry (right ankle sprain), forward Cody Martin (left ankle sprain), guard Bryce McGowens (right knee strain) and center Mark Williams (low back injury recovery) against Orlando.

Jason Beede can be reached at jbeede@orlandosentinel.com



https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2024/03/18/orlando-magic-charlotte-hornets-nba-playoffs-jamahl-mosley/
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