Latest news with #Cinderella-style
Fox Sports
30-06-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
2025 College Football Playoff Predictions: Teams Capable of Making First Appearance
Right now, and perhaps for many decades to come, there is no better example of a fairytale, Cinderella-style run to the College Football Playoff than what Indiana accomplished last fall under first-year head coach Curt Cignetti. Consider the circumstances surrounding Indiana's program ahead of the 2024 campaign: The Hoosiers owned the most losses of any program in FBS history; they hadn't won more than eight games in a season since before the Apollo 11 moon landing; they'd finished fourth place or worse in their own division — back when the Big Ten had such stratification — 12 times in the span of 13 years from 2011-23; they'd just hired a new coach in Cignetti, formerly of James Madison, who had never overseen a team in the power conferences; they bid farewell to more than three dozen players in the transfer portal; they were picked 16th in the preseason Big Ten poll. And yet, on Dec. 8, following a breathtaking regular season that began with 10 consecutive wins and finished with a school-record 11 victories overall, there stood the upstart Hoosiers firmly clutching an at-large berth in the College Football Playoff. To anyone even vaguely familiar with the general trajectory of Indiana football — a team that always plays second fiddle to the school's basketball program — everything about the preceding sentence would have seemed ludicrous until it inexplicably happened before our eyes. The same 12-team format that facilitated Indiana's inclusion last December now engenders similar flickers of hope among countless schools and fan bases entering a new campaign. Any team that retained key veterans or made shrew additions in the transfer portal — shoot, any team that brought in a new head coach — will begin to dream of matching the Hoosiers' incredible success, even if that program has never dared to dream before. So with that in mind, here are 10 teams capable of reaching the College Football Playoff for the first time in 2025: * Recruiting rankings and historical data courtesy of Head coach: Mario Cristobal, fourth year (22-16 at Miami) Last season: 10-3 overall, 6-2 ACC Returning starters: 3 offense, 4 defense Recruiting class: No. 14 overall, No. 1 ACC Transfer portal: No. 3 overall, No. 1 ACC Strength of schedule: 41st So much about Miami's viability as a legitimate College Football Playoff contender hinges on the health of quarterback Carson Beck, a splashy transfer from Georgia. Beck underwent elbow surgery in late December to repair the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) injury he suffered during the first half of last year's SEC Championship game. Coupled with some uneven performances throughout the season — Beck's interception total doubled from six in 2023 to 12 in 2024 — the injury prompted Beck to reconsider his NFL future and enter the transfer portal, where he was viewed as the highest-rated quarterback in the cycle until former Tennessee standout Nico Iamaleava joined earlier this spring. Beck reportedly accepted an NIL package from Miami worth north of $4 million for the upcoming season, a figure that has already elevated the expectations around him to stratospheric levels. He left Georgia with a 24-3 record as the Bulldogs' starter over the last two seasons, one of which included a trip to the College Football Playoff, and his career statistics include nearly 8,000 passing yards alongside 58 touchdowns and 20 interceptions. Beck represents the crown jewel of Cristobal's effort to reload with one of the strongest transfer classes in the country after deflating late-season losses to Georgia Tech and Syracuse cost the Hurricanes, who started 9-0 in 2024, a spot in last year's playoff. A rebuilt secondary includes four newcomers who were rated among the top 100 overall transfers in former Wisconsin cornerback Xavier Lucas (No. 20 transfer, No. 1 CB); former Jacksonville State safety Zechariah Poyser (No. 57 transfer, No. 2 S); former Washington State cornerback Ethan O'Connor (No. 81 transfer, No. 10 CB) and former Michigan State cornerback Charles Brantley (No. 96 transfer, No. 12 CB). Their primary goal will be helping first-year defensive coordinator Corey Hetherman, another expensive addition from Minnesota, solidify a unit that finished tied for 68th in scoring last season (25.3 points per game) and only held three conference opponents below 30 points. Back-to-back games against Florida (Sept. 20) and Florida State (Oct. 4) should help clarify the state's balance of power in a year when all three programs will expect to contend for the College Football Playoff. Head coach: Shane Beamer, fifth year (29-22 at South Carolina) Last season: 9-4 overall, 5-3 SEC Returning starters: 5 offense, 4 defense Recruiting class: No. 18 overall, No. 11 SEC Transfer portal: No. 15 overall, No. 8 SEC Strength of schedule: 13th There is a direct correlation between the surging optimism at South Carolina, a program that has finished better than third in the SEC East just once over the last decade, and the rapid emergence of quarterback LaNorris Sellers as one of the most exciting players in the country. At this time last summer, Sellers, then a largely unknown redshirt freshman, had only played 21 collegiate snaps and had yet to make his first start. He arrived at South Carolina as a modestly recruited four-star prospect — the Gamecocks were the only SEC program to offer him a scholarship — and it was difficult to predict how his dual-threat approach would translate after Sellers threw for 2,948 yards and 45 touchdowns while also rushing for 1,338 yards and 17 scores as a senior in high school. Few would have expected Sellers, a South Carolina native, to morph into the SEC's Freshman of the Year by leading the Gamecocks to an impressive 9-4 record, including six straight wins to end the regular season. He completed 65.6% of his passes while throwing for 2,534 yards and 18 touchdowns, in addition to finishing as the team's second-leading rusher with 166 carries for 674 yards and seven scores. Fast-forward to the present and Sellers, a 6-foot-3, 240-pound wrecking ball, is being discussed as both a potential Heisman Trophy candidate and a possible first-round pick in next year's draft ahead of the most anticipated South Carolina season in quite some time. He's the unquestioned linchpin for a roster that continues to improve under Beamer, the son of legendary former Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer, thanks to the coaching staff's tireless player acquisition efforts. The Gamecocks' high school classes have improved from 80th nationally during Beamer's first cycle to a string of four consecutive top-25 classes from 2022 through the present. And in the transfer portal, where South Carolina cracked the top 15 nationally for the first time in three years, Beamer added several potential plug-and-play starters in former Utah State tailback Rahsul Faison (No. 49 transfer, No. 2 RB), former NC State cornerback Brandon Cisse (No. 80 transfer, No. 9 CB) and former Texas A&M defensive tackle Gabriel Brownlow-Dindy (No. 165 transfer, No. 22 DL). But a brutal back half of the schedule includes games against LSU, Oklahoma, Alabama, Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Clemson in a seven-week stretch. Head coach: Bret Bielema, fifth year (28-22 at Illinois) Last season: 10-3 overall, 6-3 Big Ten Returning starters: 9 offense, 7 defense Recruiting class: No. 46 overall, No. 13 Big Ten Transfer portal: No. 42 overall, No. 13 Big Ten Strength of schedule: 44th Illinois will likely be among the trendiest picks to reach the College Football Playoff after head coach Bret Bielema guided the Illini to their first 10-win season since 2001 and retained 16 starters for another push this fall. A four-game winning streak to end the year — capped by an impressive victory over red-hot South Carolina in the Citrus Bowl — helped Illinois assemble its highest-rated transfer class of the portal era. The most important collection of newcomers is along the defensive front, where Illinois lost three starters from its 2024 roster. Bielema added three likely starters in former Wisconsin defensive lineman James Thompson Jr. (No. 87 transfer, No. 12 DL), former Florida State defensive lineman Tomiwa Durojaiye (No. 278 transfer, No. 38 DL) and former Wisconsin edge rusher Leon Lowery Jr. (No. 325 transfer, No. 36 edge) to solidify a unit that jumped from 96th in scoring (29.4 points per game) during defensive coordinator Aaron Henry's debut season in 2023 to 31st in scoring last season (21.7 points per game). That Illinois returns all five starters in the secondary, plus standout edge rusher Gabe Jacas, a third-team All-Big Ten selection, means the defense should be formidable again this fall. Still, much of the excitement surrounding Illinois is linked to a glut of key returners on offense. Atop that list is quarterback Luke Altmyer, the former Ole Miss transfer now entering his third year under offensive coordinator Barry Lunney Jr. and his third year as the Illini's starter — a rarity in modern college football. The success Altmyer enjoyed last fall while throwing for 2,717 yards and 22 touchdowns with only six interceptions made him a popular name amid speculation about potential transfers, especially after Tennessee said goodbye to starting quarterback Nico Iamaleava. But Altmyer remained firm with Illinois and should be among the best quarterbacks in the Big Ten. He will be protected by an offensive line that returns all five starters and complemented by a running back tandem of Aidan Laughery and Kaden Feagin that combined for 895 yards and seven touchdowns in reserve roles behind starter Josh McCray (117 carries, 609 yards, 10 TDs), who subsequently transferred to Georgia. The concern is at wide receiver, where top targets Pat Bryant (984 yards, 10 TDs) and Zakhari Franklin (652 yards, four TDs) both departed for the NFL. The return of former Murray State tight end Cole Rusk, a highly coveted transfer who missed all of last season with a knee injury, should provide a lift. Head coach: Billy Napier, 4th year (19-19 at Florida) Last season: 8-5 overall, 4-4 SEC Returning starters: 6 offense, 7 defense Recruiting class: No. 7 overall, No. 4 SEC Transfer portal: No. 116 overall, No. 16 SEC Strength of schedule: 1st What a difference half a year can make. An overtime defeat to then-No. 8 Tennessee last October changed the trajectory of Florida's program under embattled head coach Billy Napier, who, at that point, had lost more games than he'd won across three-plus seasons. Having slumped to a 3-3 record to begin the 2024 campaign, including a blowout loss to rival Miami, it was widely assumed that Napier would be fired less than halfway through his seven-year contract. But a season-ending knee injury to starting quarterback Graham Mertz prompted Napier to insert five-star freshman DJ Lagway, the No. 2 signal-caller in the cycle and the second-best quarterback recruit in program history behind Brock Berlin in 2000. The canon-armed Lagway helped catalyze an impressive second half in which Florida won five of its final seven games, headlined by a pair of ranked victories over then-No. 22 LSU and then-No. 9 Ole Miss, and stormed into the offseason on an emotional high, preserving Napier's job for at least one more year. Lagway, who completed 115 of 192 passes (59.9%) for 1,915 yards with 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions, earned Freshman All-American honors from a host of media outlets to ignite conversation about the heights he might reach in 2025. The Gators' late-season revitalization aided Napier in assembling the No. 7 recruiting class in the country, which was Florida's highest finish since it ranked third under former coach Will Muschamp in 2013. Napier's group included four of the state's top nine prospects in wide receiver Vernell Brown III (No. 30 overall, No. 6 WR), wide receiver Dallas Wilson (No. 35 overall, No. 8 WR), safety Drake Stubbs (No. 54 overall, No. 4 S) and cornerback Ben Hanks III (No. 59 overall, No. 8 CB) to anchor a class featuring nine top-150 recruits overall. Those newcomers should blend nicely with an existing depth chart that returns four starters along the offensive line and four starters in the secondary. The problem, however, is an exceedingly brutal schedule that might be too difficult for Lagway & Co. to handle, even if they build on last year's success. An SEC slate that includes games against LSU (away), Texas (home), Texas A&M (away), Georgia (neutral), Ole Miss (away) and Tennessee (home) is supplemented by traditional rivalry games against Miami (away) and Florida State (home) that will both be tricky. It's hard to say if the Gators are more likely to reach the College Football Playoff or hover around .500 in the rugged SEC. Head coach: Matt Campbell, 10th year (64-51 at Iowa State) Last season: 11-3 overall, 7-2 Big 12 Returning starters: 6 offense, 4 defense Recruiting class: No. 55 overall, No. 13 Big 12 Transfer portal: No. 61 overall, No. 15 Big 12 Strength of schedule: 59th Despite an unsightly performance in last year's Big 12 Championship game — Iowa State was pummeled, 45-19, by Arizona State — the Cyclones still enjoyed what was arguably the best campaign in program history. Never before had an Iowa State team reached double-digit victories, which head coach Matt Campbell's group accomplished before November expired. The Cyclones were included in the final AP Poll, checking in at No. 15, for just the third time since 1976. And when four Iowa State players were selected in this spring's NFL Draft, including three in the first three rounds, that matched a number the Cyclones have equaled on several occasions but haven't exceeded since 1975. Given that Campbell and both coordinators, Taylor Mouser (offense) and Jon Heacock (defense), are returning for another run this fall, the excitement over another potential Big 12 title chase is real. The last time Iowa State won a conference championship of any kind was in 1912, when the Cyclones finished as co-champions of the Missouri Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Association. Any chance of replicating or exceeding last year's success likely hinges on the performance of veteran quarterback Rocco Becht, who is entering his third season as the Cyclones' starter. Becht was named Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year in 2023 after completing 62.9% of his passes and throwing for 3,120 yards with 23 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He bettered those numbers last fall by throwing for 3,505 yards and 25 touchdowns while also chipping in 318 rushing yards and eight scores, ultimately earning honorable mention All-Big 12 recognition from the league's coaches. The primary question surrounding Iowa State's offense is whether the Cyclones can replace star wideouts Jaylin Noel (80 catches, 1,194 yards, eight TDs) and Jayden Higgins (87 catches, 1,183 yards, nine TDs), both of whom were drafted by the Houston Texans in the first three rounds. Iowa State added former East Carolina wideout Chase Sowell (No. 30 transfer, No. 7 WR) and former UCF wideout Xavier Townsend (No. 553 transfer, No. 106 WR), but neither player has come close to reaching 1,000 yards in a single season. A tricky schedule by Big 12 standards will test the Cyclones immediately with a high-profile opener against Kansas State in Dublin, Ireland, and a rivalry game against Iowa two weeks later. Head coach: Joey McGuire, 4th year (23-16 at Texas Tech) Last season: 8-5 overall, 6-3 Big 12 Returning starters: 4 offense, 3 defense Recruiting class: No. 48 overall, No. 8 Big 12 Transfer portal: No. 2 overall, No. 1 Big 12 Strength of schedule: 69th No team swung for the fences quite like Texas Tech this past offseason. Fueled by billionaire donor Cody Campbell, an oil magnate who doubles as both the chairman of Texas Tech's board of regents and the founder of its NIL collective, The Matador Club, the Red Raiders spent more than $10 million upgrading their roster via the transfer portal in hopes of forcing their way into college football's elite tier. The end result was a 21-player haul that included 13 four-star prospects — more than any other school in the country — and the No. 2 overall portal class behind LSU. The group includes seven players rated among the top 65 available transfers in former Stanford edge rusher David Bailey (No. 12 transfer, No. 3 edge), former North Carolina offensive tackle Howard Sampson (No. 14 transfer, No. 3 OT), former Georgia Tech edge rusher Romello Height (No. 27 transfer, No. 5 edge), former Illinois State offensive tackle Hunter Zambrano (No. 39 transfer, No. 5 IOL), former Miami (Ohio) offensive tackle Will Jados (No. 53 transfer, No. 7 OT), former UCF defensive tackle Lee Hunter (No. 62 transfer, No. 9 DL) and former Texas A&M wide receiver Micah Hudson (No. 64 transfer, No. 15 WR), who began his career at Texas Tech and has now rejoined the program. The Red Raiders also just opened the new Womble Football Center, which cost more than $240 million to build, a state-of-the-art practice facility on par with any other in the country. Texas Tech's overhaul expanded to the coaching staff as well. Offensive coordinator Zach Kittley left to become the head coach at Florida Atlantic, while defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter was fired in early December. They've been replaced by former Texas State offensive coordinator Mark Leftwich and former Houston defensive coordinator Shiel Wood, respectively, with three new position coaches also joining the fray. And while there will be droves of new faces on both sides of the ball — among coaches and players alike — the biggest need for improvement is on defense, where Texas Tech finished 127th overall (460.2 yards per game) and 122nd in scoring (34.8 points per game) last fall. The only Big 12 team below them in both categories was Oklahoma State, which failed to win a single conference game. This year's defense is expected to include at least a half-dozen transfer starters, though it will still be anchored by veteran linebacker Jacob Rodriguez, the team's only first-team All-Big 12 selection from 2024. The first real test for the new-look Red Raiders comes Sept. 20 at Utah. Head coach: Jeff Brohm, 3rd year (19-8 at Louisville) Last season: 9-4 overall, 5-3 ACC Returning starters: 4 offense, 3 defense Recruiting class: No. 68 overall, No. 16 ACC Transfer portal: No. 31 overall, No. 5 ACC Strength of schedule: 36th Before Jeff Brohm became the head coach at Louisville, his alma mater, ahead of the 2023 season, he did exemplary work in guiding Purdue to an appearance in the Big Ten Championship game, a feat that seems even more remarkable given what's happened to the program since his departure. One reason for Brohm's success was his development of quarterback Aidan O'Connell, a former walk-on with the Boilermakers, into a fourth-round pick by the Las Vegas Raiders. His unique ability to mentor quarterbacks followed Brohm to Louisville, where he transformed journeyman Jack Plummer, whose career actually began at Purdue, into a viable undrafted free agent with the Carolina Panthers. Brohm did the same with former Oregon and Texas Tech transfer Tyler Shough, who seemed to emerge from nowhere and throw for 3,195 yards with 23 touchdowns and six interceptions during his only season at Louisville. Such production was enough to convince the New Orleans Saints that Shough was worth a second-round pick in this year's draft, enhancing Brohm's reputation even further. Brohm's next challenge is salvaging the career of former USC quarterback Miller Moss, the No. 142 overall transfer and No. 10 signal-caller in the portal. An in-state recruit, Moss waited his turn with the Trojans behind Heisman Trophy winner and eventual top overall pick Caleb Williams before finally winning the starting job last fall. He mixed brilliant moments with untimely interceptions in an uneven blend that prompted head coach Lincoln Riley to bench Moss late in the season, effectively preempting the transfer decision. Now, Moss will be the unquestioned No. 1 for a team that believes it can reach the College Football Playoff. He'll be aided by an excellent running back duo in Isaac Brown (165 carries, 1,173 yards, 11 TDs) and Duke Watson (67 carries, 597 yards, seven TDs) that helped the Cardinals finish 33rd nationally and third in the ACC in rushing yards per game last season. There are legitimate concerns on defense, however, with Louisville needing to replace eight starters from a unit that ranked outside the top 50 in both scoring (24.1 points per game) and yards (368.7 yards per game), even with a pair of middle-round draft picks in edge rusher Ashton Gillotte (No. 66 overall) and cornerback Quincy Riley (No. 131 overall). Still, a friendly opening stretch on the schedule could see the Cardinals enjoy a 5-0 start entering their game at Miami on Oct. 17. Head coach: Chris Klieman, 7th year (48-28 at Kansas State) Last season: 9-4 overall, 5-4 Big 12 Returning starters: 6 offense, 5 defense Recruiting class: No. 35 overall, No. 2 Big 12 Transfer portal: No. 56 overall, No. 14 Big 12 Strength of schedule: 64th Many expected Kansas State to break through this barrier last fall when the Wildcats were picked to finish second in the Big 12 preseason poll — they fell one first-place vote short of Utah for the top spot — and rocketed toward a 7-1 start that saw them reach No. 16 in the AP Poll following a 45-18 pummeling of West Virginia. The Wildcats had one of the nation's most exciting young quarterbacks in dual-threat sophomore Avery Johnson, who finished the year with more than 2,700 passing yards, more than 600 rushing yards and 32 total touchdowns. The team's rushing defense would rank among the best in the Big 12 at 118.7 yards per game, trailing only Arizona State, the league's eventual College Football Playoff entrant. But Kansas State suffered three backbreaking defeats in the final month of the season to Houston (five points), Arizona State (10 points) and Iowa State (eight points) that dropped head coach Chris Klieman's team from contention for both a spot in the Big 12 title game and the playoff as a whole. A crumbling ending to the once-promising season left the Wildcats to face unranked Rutgers in the Rate Bowl, a game they ultimately won. The preseason outlook for Kansas State in 2025 should be similar to the hype it enjoyed last season, with this year's version of the Wildcats mentioned alongside Arizona State, Texas Tech and BYU in the Big 12's highest tier. Having lost leading rusher DJ Giddens to the NFL, where he was a fifth-round pick by the Indianapolis Colts, the Wildcats will turn to former Colorado running back Dylan Edwards as the primary runner alongside Johnson, whose ability to stay healthy might be the team's biggest barometer for long-term success. Edwards averaged an eye-catching 7.4 yards per carry on 74 attempts last season to finish as Kansas State's third-leading rusher and now steps into a larger role. The biggest question is at wide receiver, where veteran Jayce Brown (47 catches, 823 yards, five TDs) is the only returner with noteworthy production from 2024. Klieman added several new receivers via the transfer portal in former Boston College wideout Jerand Bradley (No. 619 transfer, No. 113 WR), former New Mexico wideout Caleb Medford (No. 756 transfer, No. 141 WR) and former Purdue wideout Jaron Tibbs (No. 1,038 transfer, No. 177 WR), but none of those players exceeded 400 yards last season. Kansas State's schedule begins with a difficult opener against Iowa State in Dublin, Ireland, and includes another tricky non-conference game against Army on Sept. 6 before settling into Big 12 play. Head coach: Kirk Ferentz, 27th year (204-124 at Iowa) Last season: 8-5 overall, 6-3 Big Ten Returning starters: 5 offense, 5 defense Recruiting class: No. 39 overall, No. 11 Big Ten Transfer portal: No. 60 overall, No. 17 Big Ten Strength of schedule: 32nd For reasons that were partially cynical, Iowa's offense spent a considerable chunk of last season beneath the national microscope following an embarrassing sequence of events that placed the program's 2023 campaign among the most unforgettable in recent memory. It was during that year when former offensive coordinator Brian Ferentz, the son of head coach Kirk Ferentz, oversaw a truly heinous unit that finished 133rd out of 133 FBS teams in total offense (234.6 yards per game), 132nd in scoring offense (15.4 points per game) and 130th in passing (118.6 yards per game) ahead of Navy, Army and Air Force — three teams who intentionally limit their number of pass attempts. Brian Ferentz was unceremoniously informed by interim athletic director Beth Goetz of his impending firing a month before the season ended, though he was allowed to coach the remainder of the year. Kirk Ferentz eventually tabbed former Western Michigan head coach Tim Lester, who was previously the quarterbacks coach at Purdue and the offensive coordinator at Syracuse, as the replacement for 2024 and beyond. Year 1 under Lester saw the Hawkeyes improve to 72nd in scoring offense (27.7 points per game) and t-117th in total offense (328.8 yards per game) despite shoddy quarterback play from Cade McNamara and Brendan Sullivan, neither of whom are still with the program. The second phase of Iowa's attempted offensive revamp includes two noteworthy additions ahead of the 2025 campaign. First is quarterback Mark Gronowski, an accomplished transfer from South Dakota State and the No. 10 signal-caller in this year's portal cycle. Gronowski tied the FCS record for wins by a quarterback with his 49-6 mark across four seasons. He won the Walter Payton Award given to the most outstanding offensive player at the FCS level in 2023 and guided South Dakota State to a pair of national championships. His dual-threat ability produced 93 career passing touchdowns and 37 career rushing scores with the Jackrabbits. The second key addition is senior offensive analyst Warren Ruggiero, who spent the last 11 years as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach at Wake Forest, a program that finished among the top 20 nationally in scoring for three straight seasons from 2020-22. Ruggiero, Lester and Gronowski will form the Hawkeyes' offensive brain trust this fall. They'll need to provide some ballast for an inexperienced defense that lost a handful of starters to graduation and the NFL. Head coach: Brian Newberry, 3rd year (15-10 overall) Last season: 10-3 overall, 6-3 AAC Returning starters: 8 offense, 3 defense Recruiting class: No. 132 overall, No. 13 AAC Transfer portal: N/A Strength of schedule: 87th This list wouldn't be complete without at least one team from beyond the power conferences, and Navy fits the bill given everything the Midshipmen are returning from a team that won 10 games for the first time since finishing 11-2 in 2019. The addition of first-year offensive coordinator Drew Cronic, who was previously the head coach at Mercer (2020-23) and Lenoir-Rhyne (2018-19), catalyzed an explosive unit that ranked 39th in scoring at 31.3 points per game and sixth in rushing at 247.5 yards per game. The only teams in the country to amass more 50-yard gains than Navy (13) — which matched Ohio State in that category — were Boise State (16) and the quartet of Louisville, Miami (Ohio), Ole Miss and UTSA (14 each). A triumphant 21-20 win over Oklahoma in the Armed Forces Bowl capped an exemplary campaign for second-year head coach Brian Newberry, who was previously the team's defensive coordinator and safeties coach from 2019-22. Eight starters from last season's high-powered offense return in 2025, headlined by dual-threat quarterback Blake Horvath, now a senior. Horvath threw for 1,353 yards and 13 touchdowns last season while also finishing as the team's leading rusher with 1,254 yards and 17 touchdowns on 176 carries. His primary backfield partners, Alex Tecza (124 carries, 568 yards, eight TDs), Eli Heidenreich (65 carries, 444 yards, three TDs; 39 catches, 671 yards, 6 TDs) and Brandon Chatman (48 carries, 250 yards, three TDs; 18 catches, 257 yards, 4 TDs) are also back for another campaign. It's worth noting, however, that Navy's exciting collection of skill players will be working behind a retooled offensive line that must replace both starting tackles and one starting guard. A soft strength of schedule in the American Athletic Conference remains arguably the biggest impediment to the Midshipmen's hopes of reaching the College Football Playoff. The early November showdown at Notre Dame will likely be their only game against a ranked opponent, which makes Navy's margin for error throughout the rest of the season exceedingly slim. Michael Cohen covers college football and college basketball for FOX Sports. Follow him at @Michael_Cohen13. Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily . FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience College Football recommended Get more from College Football Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
Time Out Dubai
03-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out Dubai
Out early, home early: Dubai's best nights out which end at 9pm
This one goes out to the early bedders (or risers), the busy bees and all the rest. Dubai's nightlife is some of the best in the world and it's not a question that you have to experience it. But there are some of us who value a good sleep above all else, some who are up at the crack of dawn for the kiddos or some who just like to do things Cinderella-style and are always home before midnight. If you like this: 23 fun things to do at night in Dubai, no matter your budget So if you want a cracking evening out in Dubai where you can still be walking through the front door at around 9pm, then this is for you. Early nights out in Dubai Catch an early show at the Jass Lounge Credit: Jass Lounge A dedicated jazz bar in Dubai's DIFC, Jass Lounge is ideal for cosy vibes, with a top line-up of smooth jazz acts taking to the stage. With moody lighting, furnishings in navy and gold and only a handful of tables, it's a prime spot for music-lovers and night owls. Shows start later during the week, but on a Friday and Saturday the first live music show will begin at 7.30pm, meaning you can experience the magic and still leave at 9pm after a mixed drink or two. Open Sun-Thu 8pm-2am; Fri-Sat 6pm-3am .Gate Village 2, DIFC, (050 912 4242). Cool off at LOOKUP (Credit: LookUp) The rooftop pool and bar is now offering night swimming every night of the week, so spend an evening floating and staring up at the Burj Khalifa from 6pm (nice and early). Not only is the pass only Dhs150, but it's also fully redeemable, so you can order some poolside bites and a cold glass of something to go with it. Dhs150 (fully redeemable). Daily 6pm-10pm. La Ville Hotel and Suites City Walk, (04 403 3111). Dig into Prime68's early bird dinner Credit: Prime 68 Make your way to Prime68 and enjoy a carnivorous three-course dinner for Dhs245 per person and feast on creamy truffle gnocchi, steak tartare or French onion soup with melty gruyère. Not only is this a bargain dinner, but it's only available from 5.30pm-6.30pm, meaning you'll be able to enjoy your courses and a glass of grape before getting home in time for a 9pm cuppa. Dhs245 . Daily 5.30pm-6.30pm. JW Marriott Marquis Dubai, (04 414 3000). Feast at Salmontini's all-you-can-eat sushi deal Credit: Le Bistro by Salmontini This deal literally ends at 9pm on the dot, making it your official signal to put down those chopsticks and head on home. The OG Dubai restaurant serves up all-you-can-eat sushi meal for Dhs159, on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 3pm to 9pm. You can choose from all the classic nigiri, sashimi and makimono rolls plus salted and spicy edamame to start. Dhs159. Fri-Sun 3pm-9pm. Salmontini Le Bistro, DIFC (04 388 2468). Shake it off at the Gallery 7/40 evening brunch (Credit: Gallery 7/40) Ok ok, so this doesn't finish at 9pm — but it is a Friday night and you can be tucked up in bed by 10.30pm if you're punctual. But considering you're getting three hours or free-flowing drinks, plate smashing and chicken souvlaki, it seems like it might just be worth that extra hour. Crowned the best evening party brunch of the year, Gallery 7/40 puts on quite the show, so expect lots of dancing and napkin-waving during this cracking evening. Dhs45 (soft beverages), Dhs445 (house beverages), Dhs545 (sparkling). Fri, 7pm-10pm. The Club, Palm West Beach, Palm Jumeirah, (04 580 3714). Sip a sundowner at Bar Du Port Credit: Bar du Port Enjoy the terrace in the cooler months, or in the summer grab a seat at the air-conditioned bar with gorgeous views out over Dubai Harbour. Running from 4-7pm between Sunday to Friday, you can enjoy discounted drinks while the sun sets, including glasses of grape for Dhs30 or select house beverages from Dhs20. The offer finishes at 7pm, so it's a perfect one for the early birds. Sun-Fri 4pm-7pm. Dubai Harbour, (04 332 4868). Watch La Perle live (Credit: La Perle Dragone) The only permanent show in Dubai, you can catch an early 6.30pm show to catch all the action on certain nights of the week. The performance will leave you unsure where to look as the stage floods with water in one direction, and the cast show off some incredible stunts in the other. Once you've watched all the flips, tricks and stunts, you can be on the way home shortly after 8pm. From Dhs269. Show timings vary. Al Habtoor City, (04 437 0001). Looking for things to do in Dubai? Exploring Dubai? Here are 10 incredible things to do that are (almost) free Explore like a local without breaking the bank 23 fun things to do at night in Dubai, no matter your budget The best evening activities in the city for every price point 8 blingy things to do in Dubai if you want to show off We get it, you've got some showing off to do
Buzz Feed
27-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Buzz Feed
21 Tacky, Shameful Weddings People Can't Believe They Wasted Time And Money To Attend
We recently had members of the BuzzFeed Community tell us about the tackiest things they've ever witnessed while attending a wedding, and oooooof, it's not pretty. Here's what people shared: 1. "I was asked to be in a wedding where the only other person standing up was the groom's sister. We each made our dresses out of fake suede. The groom's sister decided to dye her hair blonde the night before the wedding and used straight bleach, so her hair looked like straw. She also didn't find shoes to match her dress, so she wore pink fuzzy socks down the aisle. Women started loading fried chicken directly from the buffet into their large purses at the reception. It was a bizarre experience!" —Anonymous 2. "I once attended a wedding where the bride's mother invited an old friend of the bride to perform during the reception against the bride's wishes. He sang an original song about how special his relationship with the bride was, and mocked the groom. It was so obvious this man considered the bride the one who got away, and now he was sharing it with the entire wedding. It was received in dead silence, except the bride's delighted mother." —Anonymous 3. "This was a work colleague's wedding (when I was in the service). The groom called his bride 'the base bicycle' because 'everyone rode her.' I left. They divorced. Come to think of it, the four military weddings I attended: all divorced." — charmingtrout668 4. "I was a bridesmaid for a new friend (it should've been a red flag that I got asked in the first place). She became a total nightmare and shit-talked everyone (including her parents, who paid for her wedding dress). Complaints and shit-talking were nonstop at the bachelorette, bridal shower, and the night before the wedding. I didn't get a thank you for anything…and all the bridesmaids had to pay for their hair, dress, and makeup. We also had to come into town two days before the ceremony because that's when the rehearsal was (the groom's parents offered to pay, and she told everyone how nice it was that they finally contributed). After the wedding, they went on their honeymoon, and still no thank you text or card (and I included a gift at the wedding to cover my plate cost). All I got was tagged in the wedding photos. Never spoke to her again." —Anonymous 5. "My aunt was getting married to her second husband. She decided to do it at Disney World, as that was where they met. Cute right? No. It was at a lake near Cinderella's castle, and there were several alligators sunbathing. My aunt wore a Cinderella-style dress, and her husband wore a prince outfit. Their first dance was to 'You've Got a Friend in Me' sung by my uncle, who really can't sing. I loved it when I was 5, but now I realize how tacky it was." —Anonymous 6. "My own wedding. I didn't want to get married, but my parents insisted because I was pregnant. I even went so far as to ask someone else to pretend he was the dad. Anyhow, my now ex made me make his ex-girlfriend my matron of honor because her husband was his best man. My then-husband and my matron of honor made out at our reception in front of everyone and the cameras. The whole thing was about everyone else. None of it was about him loving me or me loving him. I still married him, had two children with him, and survived seven years with him for our children's and families' sake. Don't ever get married just because you are pregnant." —Anonymous 7. "We received an online invitation from a younger relative with whom we aren't close. She was getting married in another state, and we hadn't seen or heard from her in years, nor had we met her fiancé. It was in an outdoor setting in Wisconsin in November, and the reception was in a barn. While COVID restrictions were starting to be lifted, people were still required to be vaccinated for most events, and social distancing was still a big deal. I asked if they required everyone to be vaccinated, and neither the bride nor the groom was vaccinated nor believed in vaccines, masks, or social distancing. The invitation was odd and included an FAQ list. One thing was made crystal clear. 'Will there be booze? DUH!!! Cash bar!' Between the cost of travel, hotel, rental car, the possibility of it sleeting, having to pay for our drinks, and being a COVID disaster, I sent our regrets." —Anonymous 8. "My own wedding was the tackiest I have ever attended. I had planned an outdoor wedding at a local venue next to a river. My in-laws notified us they couldn't attend (as they were out of state), so we decided on a private ceremony. A friend offered his huge barn-sized garage for us to use. The weekend before, I was to visit my best friend with my daughter for a girls' weekend. The dress I was supposed to pick up was suddenly no longer available, so we had one day to find something. Then I got a ticket driving back home. The day of the wedding, the strap on my shoe broke, so we had to go into town to buy another." "My friend had insisted that she would do my hair. After getting my makeup on and her 'fixing' my hair, I put on my dress, looked in the mirror, and wanted to cry. The dress was horrible. It was so thin, it was nearly see-through, and it looked like a cheap summer dress, which it was because that was all we could find. My hair looked like a clown's. My friend had made huge hair flowers on my head that looked more like Droopy Dog ears. Then, my groom called me to say I was running late, and I had 20 minutes to get there. I frantically tore at the flower petals in my hair as my friend raced us to the location. I found out later that I did not find all the hair petals, so there are pictures of me with wild loops of hair sticking out of the back and sides of my head. My mother, daughter, and stepdad were the only family to show. Two coworkers came, as did a couple of neighbors. When we were taking pictures, I found out I accidentally put the ring on his right hand instead of his left. He stopped dancing halfway through our wedding song because 'his back hurt' and then got so drunk that I went to bed by myself that night. Yeah, we are divorced now." — abourque 9. "I attended my husband's cousin's wedding last summer, which was a tacky mess. The ceremony was outside at a nice venue, but it was so hot, the bugs were ridiculous, and there were not enough chairs for the garden ceremony, so some people had to stand through the nuptials. After the ceremony, the cocktail hour was a disaster. Everything the bride and groom selected was cheese-based. Fully dressed in my beautiful gown, I had to choose between cheese pizza and oily macaroni and cheese. Then the reception rolled around and was equally chaotic as the ceremony. There was not enough seating for the number of people invited!" "The wedding planner had to pull tables and chairs from another ballroom to accommodate the over 50 people stranded outside, whom they hadn't accounted for. Needless to say, I didn't have a seat, so I left and had a great meal on the way home. It's tacky to invite people to a wedding, accept their gift, and not actually make provisions for them to attend the wedding." —Anonymous 10. "The wedding of my partner's sister and her husband. She already had three children by two fathers and was pregnant with her groom's baby. The groom's father told one of the bridesmaids that he wished she were the one marrying his son. The couple got married on the first anniversary of their first date. I personally didn't touch the salads, as they had been sitting in the hall all day in January (which is high summer here)." —Anonymous 11. "A college friend and her fiancé were trying to save money for their wedding. The ceremony was originally supposed to be outdoors. The groom and bride were supposed to stand in a gazebo, and the only decoration was an arch that the bride had made herself. The guests were supposed to stand for the ceremony; no chairs were planned. The ceremony got rained out, and everything was moved indoors to a small room. Again, no chairs or decorations. The reception dinner consisted of sandwiches and salad made by the family and served by the groom's students (he was a teacher), and I don't think he paid them. The cake was cupcakes that the bride's sister made. The alcohol consisted of one four-liter tetra box of wine, some beer, and liquor pilfered from her sister's stash at her parents' house, which was possibly years old. And the bride got upset that someone she invited to the wedding who didn't attend ONLY gave her $50." —Anonymous 12. "I went to a wedding about 28 years ago for an acquaintance of my partner. They had hired a professional emcee for the event, and she turned up with her husband and two children in tow and insisted they participate in the wedding breakfast despite the fact that they had not been invited and catered for. She still also expected payment for her services! Another thing I recall from that day was a kid of about 10 helping themselves to wine off the table (completely unsupervised) and getting absolutely hammered!" — fuggletim 13. "I was a bridesmaid for a high school friend's wedding. She had complained that no one could curl her hair the way she liked, so when I told her I wanted to try (I was a beauty school dropout and knew tricks), she agreed. I managed to give her the head of curls she wanted, and she was so excited that she asked me to do her hair for the wedding. I agreed, and on the morning of the wedding, she demanded that I curl the flower girl's hair, then asked me to do the hair of another bridesmaid who showed up late. I agreed again." "By the time I did my friend's (the bride's) hair, she was freaking out that her fiancé wasn't returning her calls. He was getting ready with his dad and groomsmen. And during her fit, she turned her head and burned her neck on my curling iron. She threw an even bigger fit, and I had to use my makeup to cover the burn on her neck. By the time I finished, I had maybe five minutes to put on my own dress and didn't have time to do my hair. By that point, I was so done." — awfulhouse65 14. "The bride insisted on getting married outside in the rain, even though the option for an indoor ceremony was beautiful. The venue had no microphone, coverings, or umbrellas. No one was prepared or dressed to be asked to sit outside. Everyone sat in the cold rain, straining to hear the ceremony. Then, we had to sit through the reception wet. Guests in wheelchairs who couldn't go in the rain had a faraway view from a window with no sound at all." —Anonymous 15. "About 25 years ago, my husband's cousin invited us to his son's wedding. They lived in Utah, and so we flew out there. The wedding was held in a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints venue, so restrictions were in place. We dressed in our Sunday best, and upon arrival, we discovered that we missed the dress code memo. The families and guests were very casually dressed! As there was no alcohol involved, my husband and his cousins snuck out to one of their vans for a nip or two, which was discovered by one of the children in attendance, and announced inside. The reception was in the venue's basement, which was warm, and the food was being placed on the table as we arrived. We were all hungry, but speeches were first. When we finally got ready to eat, I saw that we had a couple of crackers, melty Jell-O with fruit, a cupcake, and some Cheez Whiz. Within one hour, it was over and we all went to eat!" —Anonymous 16. "I had just moved to the city and was invited to a coworker's wedding. I paired up with another coworker as my escort, who drove us to the reception venue in the middle of nowhere. It was a huge family gathering, and everyone brought traditional dishes. The booze flowed freely. It was 10 p.m., and still no food had come out. The ovens couldn't cope. Then the bride and groom got into it, to the point she locked herself in his sports car and proceeded to rev the engine, rock the car, and eventually blow the transmission. I want to return to my quarters, but my 'date' insisted he could fix this. I rode back to the city with total strangers…still unfed. They divorced." — charmingtrout668 17. "My cousin got married to his on-again, off-again fiancé in her parents' backyard in what was basically a mud pit because of all the rain we'd had that week in front of a falling-down building with a blue tarp over the front to 'make it look better.' The bride's father walked out in pajama pants and a robe, the bride's dress was tacky as hell, and no one wanted to be there. They were together for four years after that and split up three times in between. It's finally stuck this time, we think." —Anonymous 18. "We went to my husband's cousin's wedding. We were curious as to why all the seats on the bride's side had names taped on them. The groom's mother explained that they had to ensure certain people didn't sit near each other to avoid a riot. The bride's father wore his new overalls and a plaid shirt. We knew it would be an interesting wedding when we pulled into the parking lot, and it was full of pickups complete with gun racks and rifles." —Anonymous 19. "Several years ago, I attended a wedding by myself. The groom was the son of one of my husband's coworkers. My husband had gotten very ill and asked me to please attend. So I went by myself. My husband's coworker makes a nice living and has no financial problems. The wedding was at a gorgeous resort in the foothills. Being an outdoor 5 p.m. wedding, I expected some dinner or food to be served, as it was requested that I RSVP for the reception to follow. It was a smaller wedding — maybe 50 people. I thought to myself that the bride and groom went with 'quality over quantity.' After the vows, guests were ushered inside the resort to a smaller room next to the larger ballrooms. There were six tables with four chairs each, and a bowl of M&M's on each table." "The wedding cake and a large lemonade dispenser were on the buffet table. I was mortified and kept thinking, 'My husband isn't going to believe this.' The bride and groom arrived at the reception, cut the cake, smashed cake in each other's faces, and then started opening presents. I just left. It was the tackiest wedding I've been to, and I won't forget it." —Anonymous 20. "I was invited to a wedding by a relative who had champagne taste but a Budweiser budget. I was asked to help pay for her wedding dress, and I had no problem with that since I did help raise her. Imagine my surprise when I ended up footing the entire cost of the dress, and on the day of the wedding, I was asked to sit in the third row with friends of the family! I was livid! Then two days later, they talked about divorcing (thankfully, they are still I have only heard from her a handful of times since the wedding, and it's been almost a year. If it's not my actual child, I will NOT volunteer my services again!" —Anonymous 21. Finally: "I was invited to the wedding of a friend's daughter. My friend was super rich and from another country, which is culturally very different from America. I knew this friend's family, and they were all super nice. However, I learned quickly that weddings are very different in different cultures. I was not rich by any means and had been told the bride and groom did not want gifts except for gift cards or cash. I thought that was a little tacky, but I'd oblige if that's what they wanted. I got a gift card for $250 (which was a lot of money for me back then) and put it in a fancy wedding gift card envelope. The wedding was at a huge fancy hotel in Los Angeles. I dressed and drove the three hours to get there, then spent another hour finding parking and walking around to find the big room they were getting married in." "I was about 15 minutes early. Before you were allowed to enter the big room they had rented, there was a long table out front where several people were sitting and 'accepting' the cash and gift cards each person brought as gifts. They each had a book where they wrote who gave a gift and how much money it was for. They asked me to give them the wedding card with the gift card inside. Then the gentleman (I have no idea who he was) ripped open the pretty card and took out the gift card to see how much money it was. He wrote my name and how much money it was for in the book. He looked at me and said loudly, 'Don't you have more to give?' I was confused, then I realized he expected me to give him more money. I said, 'That is my gift.' He just grumbled under his breath about cheap Americans. Honestly, I was shocked and hurt, as this was a lot for me. There were no directional signs on where to go, so I asked which room the wedding was in. With disdain, he said, 'Fourth door down on your right. I went in, and the room was full of people walking around, chatting, and drinking. I guess it was the waiting room? It wasn't decorated — just a normal bar-type area. I saw someone I knew and asked what was going on. She told me she had just discovered that the wedding would go on for six to eight hours and would be moved from room to room as the wedding progressed in 'stages.' She asked me if I had given my gift card to the rude people outside. I told her I did, but they seemed to feel it wasn't enough and called me a rude American. She said the same thing happened to her. We were in this bar area for over an hour with nowhere to sit, and the air conditioning wasn't working. Our dresses started getting sticky, our hair was limp, and our makeup was sweating off. This was Los Angeles in the summertime, and over 100 people were already there. I found out there were going to be 400 guests. I thought this odd, as that many people would never fit in this room. Apparently, Americans were sent into the bar area (oh, by the way, I don't drink), and people of the other culture went into another room for a religious ceremony without us. I thought I was going to faint. It was so hot. Finally, I told my friend I had a three-hour drive home and could not take this heat, and no one had greeted or spoken to us. I was not going to wait around another seven hours. I said that if anyone asked about me (which I doubted they would), she could just tell them I came, gave my gift, and wanted to stay but could not take the heat. She decided she would just leave, too. We walked out together. No one missed us. When people asked about the wedding, I just said it was wonderful and the bride was beautiful, even though I had never seen her. Oh, by the way, I never got a thank you for my gift card." —Anonymous
The Guardian
19-03-2025
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
Snow White review – Disney's exhaustingly awful reboot axes the prince and makes the dwarves mo-cap
That title is a description of the page on which new Hollywood ideas get written. Here is a pointless new live-action musical version of the Snow White myth, a kind of un-Wicked approach to the story and a merch-enabling money machine. Where other movies are playfully reimagining the backstories of famous villains, this one plays it straight, but with carefully curated revisionist tweaks. These are all too obviously agonising and backlash-second-guessing, but knowing that at some basic level the brand identity has to be kept pristine. This is particularly evident in the costume design, with which the wicked witch gets a pointy dark crown and skull-hugging black balaclava and Snow White is lumbered with a supermarket-retail tweenie outfit with puffy-sleeved shoulders. Those otherwise estimable performers Rachel Zegler and Gal Gadot are now forced to go through the motions, and they give the dullest performances of their lives. Traditionally, the heroine's name refers to her skin, with lips red as blood and hair dark as ebony; now it refers to the snowstorm that accompanied her birth. Zegler's Snow White had loving parents in the King and Queen but after her mother's death her father becomes infatuated with a witchy new noblewoman at court; Gadot's lips are at all times seductively and contemptuously pursed. But later the King simply vanishes from the story and the script ties itself into a few pretzels explaining what is supposed to have happened to him and when. The stepmom-witch keeps Snow White in Cinderella-style serfdom below stairs where the poor child wanly sympathises with the population's poverty. As Snow White grows up, the magic mirror breaks the bad news about a change in the prettiness-ranking; Snow White is then forced to flee to the forest and stay there once the huntsman has lied to the witch about killing her. And then she meets her seven new best friends … There are some changes: the hero is no longer a prince, but a more democratic citizen who leads a Robin Hood type insurgency from the forest against the witch's tyranny with SW joining in on a Maid Marian basis. But he still gets to do the controversial non-consent kiss once our heroine has gone into her picturesque coma. But the dwarves? Will this film make them look sort of like everyone else, like the Munchkins in Wicked? No. This Snow White feebly makes them mo-cap animated figures, but it also – heartsinkingly – duplicates their presence by giving the prince his own gang of seven live-action bandits, in which people with dwarfism are represented. This fudged, pseudo-progressive approach is so tiring you'll want to put your head in your hands. Admittedly, the basic story has a strangeness of its own. The wicked queen tries to kill Snow White by getting the huntsman to stab her, and then tries again by feeding her a poisoned apple which has an, erm, antidote in the form of a true love's kiss … and then leaving the corpse in the company of people who love her? Weird. This new Snow White has one or two nice musical moments, but it's basically in the unhappy tradition of revisionist-lite reboots Mirror Mirror and Snow White and the Huntsman with Julia Roberts and Charlize Theron respectively as the witch – and the equally ropey prequel The Huntsman: Winter's War. Hollywood could in theory reinvent Snow White with some passion; instead, the only decent revival has been Pablo Berger's surrealist Blancanieves from 2013. This feels like a very hard day's work in the IP diamond mine. Snow White is out on 20 March in Australia and on 21 March in the UK and US.
New York Times
14-02-2025
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Barbie Hsu, Taiwanese Actress and Star of ‘Meteor Garden,' Dies at 48
Barbie Hsu, a Taiwanese actress, television host and pop star who catapulted to Pan-Asian popularity in 2001 as the star of the Cinderella-style teenage drama 'Meteor Garden,' died on Feb. 2 in Tokyo. She was 48. Her death was announced to TVBS News in Taiwan by her sister Dee Hsu, who said the cause was complications of the flu. The family had been vacationing in Japan. In 'Meteor Garden,' an adaptation of the Japanese manga 'Boys Over Flowers,' Ms. Hsu played Dong Shan Cai, a naïve yet headstrong student from a poor family who is terrorized by a group of four handsome boys who call themselves F4 after she enrolls in the elite private school they attend. She reluctantly enters high society when F4's leader, Dao Ming Si (played by Jerry Yan), falls for her. With her expressive eyes and elfin features, Ms. Hsu was a natural for the role, and she exploded in popularity across swaths of Asia, where she was known by the nickname Big S. Fans were particularly drawn to her character's relatable and resilient nature. 'I am like a blade of grass,' she said in one episode. 'No matter how many times you cut me down, I will grow back and live again.' The four male stars used the series' influence to promote their boy band, also called F4 — for 'Flower Four' — making 'Meteor Garden' an early example of the genre known as idol drama, formulaic but addictive love stories featuring pop stars. Ms. Hsu's character became the genre's classic protagonist. As Mei Ting Li, a professor of media studies at the Chinese University of Hong Kong who specializes in fandom and popular culture, wrote in an email, the show 'became the archetype of Chinese-language TV drama that allowed the cross-media celebrity business.' The series' popularity led to later shows adapted from the same source material, including a 2018 Chinese drama of the same name and the hugely successful 'Boys Over Flowers' (2009). Its popularity spread as far as the Philippines, where it became one of the country's highest-rated shows, inspiring a quasi-religious fervor among young people that became known as 'Meteor fever.' Filipino men adopted the floppy hair and dress of their favorite characters, and the stars were mobbed when they visited the country. During one visit, in 2003, the media conglomerate ABS-CBN, which aired 'Meteor Garden,' used decoy actors in wigs to distract the paparazzi, and some 100 policemen were deployed to manage unruly crowds. Hsi-yuan Hsu was born on Oct. 6, 1976, in Taipei, Taiwan, to Huang Chun-Mei and Hsu Chien. The household was tumultuous: Her mother separated from her father over his gambling. Barbie's mother supported her and her two sisters by working as a real estate broker. In 1994, Ms. Hsu and her younger sister, Dee, enrolled in the Hwa Kang Arts School in Taipei, where they befriended a group of classmates nicknamed the Seven Fairies, including the actresses and singers Mavis Fan, Pace Wu and Aya Liu. While at Hwa Kang, the Hsu sisters began performing as a pop duo known as S.O.S., or Sisters of Shu; their 1995 bubblegum pop song 'Ten Minutes of Love' became a breakout hit. They later changed their name to A.S.O.S., for All Sisters of Shu, and co-hosted variety shows like 'Guess,' from 1996 to 2000, and '100% Entertainment,' from 1998 to 2005. Ms. Hsu leveraged her 'Meteor Garden' fame to promote two best-selling beauty guides, published in 2004 and 2007, that encouraged readers to try red wine facials to prevent aging and Rogaine to thicken their eyebrows. In 2008, she branched out into Chinese-language cinema by playing a woman kidnapped by a gang of Interpol agents in 'Connected,' a remake of the 2004 Hollywood thriller 'Cellular.' In 2010, she played a sadistic young woman who murdered her fiancé and his parents on her wedding night in the martial arts film 'Reign of Assassins,' starring Michelle Yeoh. Ms. Hsu withdrew from acting in 2011, but her tumultuous relationship with the Chinese businessman Wang Xiaofei, whom she married in 2010, kept her in the spotlight; they divorced in 2021. Her survivors include a son, Hsi-Lin, and a daughter, Hsi-Yueh, as well as her second husband, Koo Jun-yup, a South Korean singer known as DJ Koo, whom she married in 2022. Ms. Hsu experienced a host of health issues, including heart disease and epilepsy, as well as a near-fatal seizure during the birth of her son. Her death sent ripples of grief across Asia and trended on Weibo, the Chinese social media platform. The South China Morning Post reported that many of her bereaved fans turned to the Chinese artificial intelligence start-up DeepSeek to construct farewell letters mimicking her writing style. Many of these letters noted her signature phrase: 'Live beautifully.'
