Latest news with #GeorgiaSouthern
USA Today
17-07-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
Nebraska linebacker ranked as one of the Big Ten's best
Nebraska football linebacker Marques Watson-Trent was named one of the top-graded linebackers in the Big Ten, according to Pro Football Focus. Trent comes to Nebraska after putting together a productive three years at Georgia Southern. He was the 2024 Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Year and recorded three seasons of 100-plus tackles. The 2024 season was just another instance of his production. He tallied 120 tackles, 7.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, four forced fumbles, and one pass breakup. This was similar to his production overall. At Georgia Southern, he recorded 365 tackles, 26 tackles for loss, six sacks, two interceptions, and six forced fumbles. Pro Football Focus had him with an 80.9 grade. This was second to Oregon's Bryce Boettcher. It will be fascinating to see what he will be able to do in the Huskers' defense. There is no doubt that he is an explosive defender and a consistent playmaker. Contact/Follow us @CornhuskersWire on X (formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Nebraska news, notes, and opinions.
Miami Herald
15-07-2025
- Sport
- Miami Herald
SS Georgia: QB Stockton, Smart lead Bulldogs through unfamiliar youth movement
Georgia coach Kirby Smart transitions from one of his most experienced rosters to a full-blown youth movement as he begins Year 10 with the Bulldogs. "Our team is going to be comprised of 54 percent first- and second-year players. Very big change for us," Smart said at SEC Media Days in Atlanta on Tuesday. From Smart's vantage point, he has new names and faces, but the same standard and belief he brought to the Bulldogs from Alabama a decade ago. He said the program mantra in recruiting and the "strained" landscape of college football has been prioritizing relationships "over transactions." That could mean finding an all-in freshman who fits the program over replacing a first-round pick with a high-dollar transfer. It also gives Smart an unfamiliar baseline, going from "one of the most veteran teams I've been a part of" to the 2025 version where follow the leader might be a bit more literal than previous seasons. "What do you get with that? You get youthful exuberance. We've had practices that have been spirited," Smart said. "We had a great spring practice that we talked about the words fire, passion and energy. I think the biggest thing that separates college football teams today is complacency among players versus fire, passion and energy among players. So we've tried to highlight those traits as much as possible with our players. "Our players need to bring juice and energy each and every day. If they don't, they'll be confronted by the players that do. And if the players continue to do that, we'll have a successful season and a successful football team." Smart is starting the season with a new QB1, albeit a familiar one, in Gunner Stockton. The quarterback jumped into the fray in the SEC Championship when Carson Beck was injured and then started the Sugar Bowl, a 23-10 loss to Notre Dame. Already this offseason Smart has defended Stockton's potential with talk show host Paul Finebaum while taking multiple opportunities to remind his QB where he needs to be by the final Saturday in August. Smart said he learned all he needed to know about Stockton being ready by watching him prepare. The line coaches commonly share about preparing like the starter is Stockton's modus operandi since he arrived in Athens. "Gunner is a kid that leads from the front. Gunner is a winner," Smart said. "He comes from an athletic family background, his dad played at Georgia Southern, and he's the kind of kid you want at the front of the line, and he leads from the front. So I appreciate what Gunner does. He's going to be a big part of our program this year in leadership and doing that with the offensive players. He's already begun to do that in his leadership groups that he runs right now." His sophomore quarterback is the embodiment of what Smart said the Bulldogs are trying to build around and a message to players and opponents of the complacency Georgia hopes to avoid. "You can say what you want, but there's people more in college football today, especially in the SEC, that are comfortable with where they are," Smart said, listing examples from his coaching past from Julio Jones and Mark Ingram at Alabama to Georgia pupils such as linebackers Roquan Smith and Nolan Smith. "(Thinking) 'This is a pretty good life. I'm earning 200K a year. I'm very comfortable.' "You don't reach your goals being comfortable. You don't attain great success -- none of those people I mentioned before were ever comfortable. They were aiming at something. They had a goal. They wanted to go achieve it. --Field Level Media Field Level Media 2025 - All Rights Reserved
Yahoo
20-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
GSU students try farm life in Ireland, studying farmer mental health
STATESBORO, Ga. (WSAV) — A group of Georgia Southern honors students got back from a trip to Ireland, to study issues facing farmers. Students told WSAV their 6-week stint on the green island was much more than a vacation. 'You get to know people and you realize that it's not. Not everything is exactly what you think it was,' said student Maddox Powers. 'I think that's something that's very important for everyone to experience.' Steve Engel, dean of the Honors College at GSU said, 'It exposes students to a new culture. It gets them out of their comfort zone, and they grow even more in that kind of context.' Engel said their Honors Global Scholars Program gets over 300 applicants every year, but only 20 freshmen are chosen. They studied issues related to the mental health of farmers in Ireland. 'There's family farms over there, but they also face similar challenges,' said Amy Potter, the director of the Honors Global Scholars Program. They said regulations, extreme weather, soil quality and work-life balance contribute to high levels of depression in Irish farmers and those here at home. 'Nobody looks for farming as a career choice,' said Powers. 'It's a sacrifice.' Students made friends with some Wexford locals during their time, and they presented their studies to politicians and the Irish Farmers Association. 'These are just these high impact practices that we're really proud of that this this program showcases,' said Potter. Engel said, 'These are students of all different majors who really want to explore global topics and understand the global connection between their major field and their future.' Students said their visit encouraged them to explore different ways they might be able to use their degree. 'It opens up different possibilities that you didn't think about in your job field at first,' said Olivia Lott, a rising sophomore at GSU. Powers said, 'There's so much more that you can do, and there's so much more that you can dream about and want to do.' Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
This week marks 10 years since 5 Georgia Southern nursing students were killed in I-16 crash
This week marks 10 years since five Georgia Southern University nursing students were killed in a fiery crash. The deadly crash happened on April 22, 2015 along Interstate 16 outside of Savannah. A group of seven young women were headed to their final clinical training when a tractor-trailer driver crashed into the back of their two cars. [DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks] Five of the nursing students died: Emily Clark, a junior from Powder Springs, Morgan Bass, a junior from Leesburg, Abbie Deloach, a junior from Savannah, McKay Pittman, a junior from Alpharetta, and Caitlyn Baggett, a junior from Millen. The other two victims survived. In 2016, the truck driver and trucking company involved in the crash were indicted on vehicular homicide charges. The driver, John Wayne Johnson, pleaded guilty to nine criminal charges and was sentenced to five years in prison. Total Transportation of Mississippi, his employer, agreed to pay $78 million to settle civil lawsuits after the crash. Georgia Southern University released the following statement on Tuesday. 'As we mark the tenth anniversary of the accident that claimed the lives of five Georgia Southern University nursing students — Caitlyn Baggett, Morgan Bass, Emily Clark, Abbie DeLoach and Catherine 'McKay' Pittman — we pause to reflect on the lasting impact they made on Eagle Nation. Over the past decade, their lives have inspired meaningful change, including efforts to improve highway safety and support nursing education through scholarships and memorials in their name. These young women were dedicated to serving others and we continue to honor their lives not just in memory, but in the way we live, learn and lead." PREVIOUS STORIES: April 22, 2015: 5 Georgia Southern students killed, 2 injured in crash April 27, 2015: Troopers interview truck driver in deadly crash with GSU students April 21, 2016: Settlement reached in wrongful deaths of Georgia Southern nursing students July 14, 2016: Truck driver sentenced for crash that killed 5 nursing students January 18, 2017: Truck driver who caused crash that killed nursing students weeps in court January 19, 2017: Survivor of crash that killed nursing students gives emotional testimony January 20, 2017: Jury awards $15M to student hurt in wreck November 11, 2023: Family of Ga. nursing student among 5 killed in crash opens tutoring boutique in her honor [SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Chipola's Kanija Daniel named Player of the Year
MARIANNA, Fla. (WMBB) – Chipola College's Kanija Daniel was named NJCAA Women's basketball Player Of The Year. The 5-foot-10 sophomore and Georgia Southern transfer lit up the court this past season at Chipola College, becoming the 12th Chipola basketball player and fifth in program history to be named an NJCAA First Team All-American. Daniel led the team with 628 points, outscoring the second-highest scorer by an impressive 279 points. She also ranked 11th in the nation, averaging more than 19 points per game. This national honor adds to an already decorated season, as Daniel was previously named the FCSAA/Region 8 MVP, FCSAA Player of the Year, All-FCSAA Division I First Team, Panhandle Conference Player of the Year and All-Panhandle Conference First Team. With Daniel at the helm, the Lady Indians finished with a 31-4 record and earned the No. 1 seed in the 2024–25 NJCAA Women's Basketball National Tournament. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
