Shane Shoemaker Articles - Page 3

Though it didn’t always look certain, the No. 2 Georgia Bulldogs were able to win the SEC Championship and earn a first-round bye as one of the four highest ranked conference champions to play in this year’s Sugar Bowl. The Bulldogs (11-2) will now play No. 5 Notre Dame (12-1) in a quarterfinal matchup of […]

Notre Dame capitalized on their third College Football Playoff appearance, defeating Indiana 27-17 in the first round. The Fighting Irish kicked off the new 12-team playoff format in style, hosting the very first home playoff game in a snowy South Bend. Now, they’re headed to a much more comfortable setting—at least weather-wise—as they travel to […]

It was clear that Tennessee was severely outmatched in nearly every facet against Ohio State in the first round of the College Football Playoff. It seemed obvious after the lopsided defeat that changes needed to be made, where dipping into transfer portal could fix to narrow the talent gap, should the Vols face similar competition […]

Week 17’s Sunday Night Football matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and Washington Commanders has become a crucial game in the NFC playoff picture. So much so that the NFL flexed that game to Sunday night. The Falcons (8-7) have clawed their way back into first place in the NFC South, while the Commanders (10-5) remain […]

It wasn’t exactly a holly jolly Christmas for the Pittsburgh Steelers, who suffered a humbling 29-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs on a day traditionally better for giving than receiving. Unfortunately for the Steelers (10-6), they gave the Chiefs (15-1) the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs. […]

Texas football didn’t secure the SEC Championship as many had hoped or expected they would, earning a first-round bye, but the Longhorns are still alive and advancing in the College Football Playoff. The No. 3 Longhorns took care of business in the first round, defeating ACC Champion No. 16 Clemson in Austin. Awaiting Texas in […]

The Kansas City Chiefs (14-1) have already secured a spot in the AFC playoffs, clinching their ninth consecutive AFC West title weeks ago. With only one loss on the season, Kansas City continues to dominate. But their work isn’t done yet. The Chiefs still need to clinch the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC […]

There are still two weeks left in the NFL regular season, and Year 1 under Jim Harbaugh is going almost exactly as planned for the Los Angeles Chargers. At 9-6, the Chargers are having their best season since 2022, when they finished 10-7 and made their last postseason appearance. Although they’ve significantly improved from their […]

The Los Angeles Rams solidified their hold on the NFC West after Week 16 with a win over the New York Jets, maintaining the top spot in a division that has been in constant flux all season. With the regular season winding down, the Rams appear to have taken control at just the right time. […]

The Atlanta Falcons have put themselves back in control of the NFC South. After enduring a rough patch with four consecutive losses and nearly tripping over themselves in a close win against the struggling Las Vegas Raiders, they have now regained some stability with two straight victories. But their return to the top of the […]

With two weeks remaining in the regular season, the NFC playoff picture is beginning to take shape, but much remains unsettled. Only two teams, the Detroit Lions and the Philadelphia Eagles, have clinched playoff spots, leaving the other five seeds up for grabs. It’s shaping up to be a thrilling race that could come down […]

The Atlanta Falcons turned heads during the NFL Draft in April with one of the most surprising selections in recent memory. It wasn’t necessarily the player, quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who raised eyebrows—he was considered a first-round talent by many—but rather the context surrounding the No. 8 overall pick. Penix was projected to be drafted […]

No. 6 Ohio State is headed to the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff, where they’ll face No. 1 Oregon in the Rose Bowl this weekend. The Buckeyes are coming off one of their most dominant performances of the season, defeating No. 7 Tennessee 42-17 in a convincing home playoff victory. Before the game, Ohio […]

After three weeks of home games, the Minnesota Vikings hit the road in Week 16, traveling to the Pacific Northwest to face the Seattle Seahawks. Though the Vikings (12-2) have already clinched a spot in the NFC playoff picture, the battle for the NFC North remains alive, as they aim to overtake the Detroit Lions. […]

The Atlanta Falcons are back at home in Week 16, where they’ll be hosting the New York Giants. Just days before the matchup, things took a twist, as there will be a new starting quarterback for the Falcons. After weeks of struggling and emphasizing he had faith in Kirk Cousins, Falcons coach Raheem Morris had […]

Notre Dame and Indiana have the distinct honor of kicking off the first-ever College Football Playoff first-round matchup on Friday night. The No. 7 Fighting Irish will host the No. 10 Hoosiers in South Bend, in what’s shaping up to be a cold and possibly snowy evening. The Irish (11-1) missed out on a first-round […]

For those who managed to stomach the game, the Atlanta Falcons delivered yet another lackluster showing on Monday Night Football in Week 15. At least it ended with a victory over the Las Vegas Raiders. It almost wasn’t, though. The Falcons squeaked out a 15-9 win, scoring just one touchdown, along with a safety and […]

With just a couple of weeks remaining in the regular season, it looked bleak for the Clemson Tigers to make the College Football Playoff. Yet here they are, making their return—albeit in the new 12-team format—for the first time since 2020. That was thanks to a late-season push and an ACC Championship Game victory over […]

For the first time on one of their home turfs, Tennessee and Ohio State will meet this Saturday in a first-round College Football Playoff matchup. The No. 9-seeded Volunteers will head into “The Horseshoe” to take on the No. 8-seeded Buckeyes, marking only the second meeting in history between these two storied programs. Out of […]

The NFC playoff picture is becoming much clearer with Week 15 now in the books. One of the biggest surprises is the Los Angeles Rams, a team once thought to be out of contention, now taking over the NFC West division, after their low-scoring win over the San Francisco 49ers. Their resurgence has vaulted them […]

For three weeks, the Seattle Seahawks (8-6) were sitting atop the NFC West, having defeated the San Francisco 49ers—winners of the last two division titles—and the Arizona Cardinals in back-to-back weeks. They followed that success with wins over the New York Jets and a second victory against the Cardinals. Then came their Week 15 matchup […]

Week 15 in the NFL helped make the AFC playoff picture a little clearer. Some teams, like the No. 2-seeded Pittsburgh Steelers, secured a playoff spot without even picking up a win. In a battle for Pennsylvania, the Steelers traveled to Philadelphia for a showdown between the top seeds in each conference. However, it was […]

There hasn’t been a better team in college football this season than the Oregon Ducks. Their perfect 9-0 record speaks for itself, along with their No. 1 ranking in the College Football Playoff, which has remained unchanged since the initial rankings were released back in Week 10. In a season where perfection was rare and […]

A few seasons ago, if someone had asked whether the Clemson Tigers would be part of the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff, the answer would have been a resounding “absolutely.” However, recent seasons have painted a much less certain picture for Clemson football. Until this year, Clemson hadn’t made the College Football Playoff since 2020, […]

If you told North Carolina football fans a few months ago that Bill Belichick would be their next head coach, they’d probably have laughed in your face. No fortune teller or bold sports predictor could have possibly envisioned arguably the greatest NFL head coach in league history making the jump to college football—let alone to […]

The Atlanta Falcons are back on Monday Night Football in Week 15 as they hit the road to take on the Las Vegas Raiders. This marks Atlanta’s fourth primetime game of the season and their second Monday Night Football appearance, the first being a thrilling 22-21 win over the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 2. With […]

If you’re Florida State, the clock striking midnight on January 1 will symbolize something much-needed—a chance to start over. For head coach Mike Norvell, however, the New Year’s resolutions began weeks ago as he started reshaping his staff while bidding farewell to one of the worst seasons in Seminoles history. Florida State wrapped up the […]

As many expected, the Texas Longhorns are back in the College Football Playoff for the second consecutive year. Last season, Texas reached the four-team playoff, and this year, in the new 12-team format, they enter as the fifth seed, hosting a first-round home game against 12th-seeded Clemson (10-3). The Longhorns had hoped to secure a […]

This isn’t an alternate universe—the news is real. Bill Belichick is officially the head coach of the North Carolina Tar Heels football team. And no matter how many times it’s said or written, it’s a headline that will feel surreal for quite some time. UNC agreed to a three-year deal with the 72-year-old NFL legend, […]

If it wasn’t obvious that the Aaron Rodgers experiment had failed, it probably was after the New York Jets took their 10th loss of the season in Week 14 to rival Miami Dolphins in overtime. And that was with Rodgers having one of his better performances of the season, throwing for 339 yards and one […]

It was supposed to be a much different season for the Atlanta Falcons. Yet, after 13 games, they find themselves in the exact same position as last year: sitting at 6-7 and in the midst of a division battle in the lowly NFC South. The Falcons team that won five of six games and swept […]

Whether teams are ready for it or not, the transfer portal is officially open for business. Players now have until Dec. 28 to enter their names. One team that’s likely to see plenty of action, both in additions and subtractions, is the Miami Hurricanes. Since Mario Cristobal took over in 2022, the Miami (FL) football […]

The Kansas City Chiefs continued their dominance in the AFC playoff picture with a Week 14 win over the Los Angeles Chargers—and it was in typical Chiefs fashion. A doink off the upright made the difference in Kansas City’s victory, showcasing the kind of spell this team has over the rest of the league. It […]

The NFC playoff picture is starting to take shape after Week 14, and one team in particular is feeling good about how things turned out: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who now hold sole possession of the NFC South. For weeks, the Atlanta Falcons controlled the division and occupied the No. 4 seed in the NFC. […]

The 2024 college football regular season has come and gone in the blink of an eye, and now it’s time for the postseason. This year’s bowl season promises to be different, thanks to the debut of the 12-team College Football Playoff. Of course, that also means it’s time for bowl predictions. The New Year’s Six […]

Well, it certainly wasn’t what everyone wanted, but not everyone was going to be pleased. The final 2024 College Football Playoff rankings were revealed on Sunday during Selection Day, where the 12-team field was officially announced. For the most part, the field appeared set after last weekend’s penultimate rankings. However, conference championship weekend on Saturday […]

It goes without saying that the Atlanta Falcons are in desperate need of a win. Equally important, Kirk Cousins is in dire need of a bounce-back performance. Week 14 offers him a unique opportunity to do just that against his former team, the Minnesota Vikings. The Falcons (6-6) are currently riding a three-game losing streak […]

It’s not often that you see a rematch in the same season in college football, but that’s exactly what the No. 5 Georgia Bulldogs and No. 2 Texas Longhorns are gearing up for in the SEC Championship. These two powerhouses first met back in October in one of the most highly anticipated games of the […]

SMU football finds itself in a place that few expected at the start of the season. The No. 8 Mustangs (11-1) are one win away from claiming their first-ever ACC Championship in their inaugural season in the conference. For some, SMU is a story of triumph and redemption—a program that was once on the verge […]