Who Dat?
By: Colin Lacy
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Although the New Orleans Saints haven’t finished worse than a tie for second in the NFC South since 2016, the last 3 years haven’t been to the standards of the “fleur-de-lis”.
With a pair of 9-8 finishes in 2021 and 2023 sandwiched between a 7-10 debut season for Head Coach Dennis Allen in 2022, Saints fans have been looking to find the answer to get back to the offense they’re accustomed to with a run of four consecutive division championships from 2014-2020.
After a 2022 season where quarterback play left much to be desired, Saints fans were hopeful last season with the signing of veteran quarterback Derek Carr, but it did not pan out like the savior of the offense that Saints fans had hoped for.
Carr turned in a season with 3,878 passing yards, which turned out to be the fourth lowest in his eleven-year career (ten previous with the Raiders), and the lowest total in a season where he played more than 15 games (17 in 2023).
Although the yards were a low point in the career totals for Carr, he did throw 25 TDs, which were the most Carr had thrown since 2020 with the Las Vegas Raiders.
The biggest question mark I think leading into 2024 for New Orleans is can Carr be “the guy” for the Saints, or do the reigns get handed off to the next in line.
Entering 2024, one of the biggest question marks is going to be “what does the offense look like this year?” Everyone across the league knows and has heard thru minicamp and OTAs that it will be different under first year Offensive Coordinator Klink Kubiak.
Kubiak takes over his 4th ream in the past four years after serving as the OC for the Vikings in 2021, Pass Game Coordinator & QBs coach in 2022 for the Denver Broncos, and with San Francisco in 2023 as Pass Game Coordinator under Kyle Shannahan, but early indications from pre-season work between Kubiak and Carr seems to be positive coming out of the Saints practice facility.
One eye-brow raiser from Saints early pre-season work has been the selected workload of a few different players because of contract negotiations. Most notably, Alvin Kamara has attended most walkthrough portions of practice, but when full practice that is open to media comes around, Kamara heads inside.
Kamara’s deal expires after the 2025 season, but the way the deal is structured, none of the 2025 money is guaranteed. All indications say that Kamara intends on continuing with the Saints and would like to get a new deal done before kickoff of the 2024 season to extend the current deal.
One thing that raises concerns of the Saints is a couple of key injuries on the offensive side that are expected to be key targets for Derek Carr.
Tight End Juwan Johnson looked to be a big part of the success of the Saints in training camp last year, but it didn’t pan out how anyone in the black and gold had hoped, with just 368 yards on 37 catches for the year.
While Kubiak had hoped to get Johnson more involved in the offense, at least for the first part of the season, Johnson will be rehabbing from a foot surgery. While the timetable for the Johnson return is unclear, the tight end for New Orleans to start will be some combination of their Swiss-Army knife Taysom Hill and former LSU Tiger Foster Moreau.
The other key injury is also unclear, but standout playmaking receiver Chris Olave suffered a shoulder injury in his off-season weight room work that has kept him in a non-contact jersey in pre-season work.
Early indications don’t seem to have Olave missing much if any time, but how much does it affect what he’s able to do?
At the end of the day, this Saints team is a HUGE swing team depending on how the offense clicks (or doesn’t), especially in an NFC South that has struggled as a whole the past few seasons.
Realistically I could see the Saints winning the South with as many as 11 or 12 wins, but I could also see this team struggling in year one under a new offensive coordinator while 5th Round pick Spencer Rattler matures into hopefully the QB of the Saints future.
Buc-ing Their Own Trend
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers surprised many fans last year by winning a playoff game after most expected them to be bottom-feeders.
Can they keep out of the bottom this season?
For the Bucs, their nightmare situation involves Baker Mayfield regressing from a solid first year with the team.
Mayfield’s comeback season was the biggest reason why the Buccaneers made the playoffs. He ended the year with a career-high 4,044 passing yards, finishing third-place in Comeback Player of the Year votes.
Mayfield could regress from this past year. For any QB1 there’s no promise that they’ll get better, but at least now the 29-year-old double rookie has a whole season with the Bucs under his belt. There is great opportunity for further improvement. Mayfield may build, improve, and lead the team to yet another NFC South title.
While the Bucs do face some of the best teams in the NFL (Kansas City Chiefs, San Francisco 49ers, and Baltimore Ravens), they still have the 27th-easiest schedule based on 2023 game records.
Granted, much of this stems from playing in the NFC South, but there is still plenty of possibility for the Bucs to end the 2024 season with a winning record and even another NFC South title.
The Buccaneers might not have made the splashy headline moves like the Atlanta Falcons in the offseason, but this Tampa Bay team will once again be quite formidable on both sides of the football.
The Buccaneers could very well win the NFC South, making the playoffs for the 5th consecutive season.
However, there is a big difference between just making the playoffs and winning 2 or 3 postseason games to get to the big game.
Tampa Bay has a team capable of securing one of the 7 playoff spots in the NFC, likely be winning the division again. And it proved if there is a home playoff game in Tampa, it’s a tough place for an opponent to play.
Week 1: vs Commanders (W)
Week 2: at Detroit Lions (L)
Week 3: vs. Denver Broncos (W)
Week 4: vs. Philadelphia Eagles (W)
Week 5: at Atlanta Falcons (L)
Week 6: at New Orleans Saints (L)
Week 7: vs. Baltimore Ravens (L)
Week 8: vs. Atlanta Falcons (W)
Week 9: at Kansas City Chiefs (L)
Week 10: vs. San Franciso 49ers (L)
Week 12: at New York Giants (W)
Week 13: at Carolina Panthers (W)
Week 14: vs. Las Vegas Raiders (W)
Week 15: at Los Angeles Chargers (L)
Week 16: at Dallas Cowboys (L)
Week 17: vs. Carolina Panthers (W)
Week 18: vs. New Orleans Saints (W)
Nine wins would represent another year hot seat talk for Todd Bowles and the Bucs, who finished 8-9 and 9-8 in the previous two seasons respectively.
While the Falcons might end up as NFC South champions thanks to upgrades at quarterback and head coach, Tampa Bay will be in the hunt.
Omaha!
By: Charlie Moon
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Well, well, well….Ya know all those heated arguments with your buddies about the SEC vs. ACC?
And we all know, depending on which sport you’re talking about, usually there’s a dominant conference. But just like the parent that will rationalize their kid cheating on a test and somehow blame the teacher, conference fans will swear up and down their conference is the best.
‘My team beat this team and they lost to them and they beat that other team… blah, blah, blah.”
Go ahead. Laugh. You know that’s you!
Even plausible arguments like bowl games, rivalry games and RPI, can be a bit tedious and all have reasons why they might not be the best way to gauge conference supremacy. But make no mistake, for the next week or so, Omaha will be the setting for probably the closest thing we’ll ever get to a proper gauge.
For the first time in the history of the NCAA College World Series, all eight teams are from two conferences and you guessed it. That would be the ACC and SEC.
Here’s my CWS outlook.
Best Offense – UVA Cavaliers-While the #1 Vols have hit the most HRs per game (2.6), it’s Virginia with the upper hand. The Cavs make their 3rd trip in 4 years to Omaha, but they bring a much more potent line-up.
They lead the country in scoring with 9.4 runs per game, but are #17 in HRs. What does that tell you? They string a lot of hits together. They lead the country with 121 occurrences of over 2 consecutive hits.
This bodes well for Charles Schwab Park, a bigger park than the college band boxes. It happens every year. The power teams struggle because of relying on the long ball. A final nugget – only one starter batting under .300 – Harrison Didiwick at .297.
Best Pitching – UNC Tarheels-Although Tennessee enters with the best team ERA (3.83), I’m rolling with the Heels. They’re team ERA (4.22) is #15, but is misleading because their home field, Boshamer Stadium, is one of the smallest stadiums in the country.
They also boast arguably the best bullpen in the country. The bullpens can simply maketeam becauseollege baseball team because starters only go 4-6 innings.
Best Player – Jack Caglianone-You’d have to be either brain dead or living under a rock, not to agree with this one. Why? The man plays both ways – Ohtani, Jr. .411, 33 HRs, 68 RBIs at the plate. 5-2, 4.11 ERA on the bump.
Just as important, Caglianone is clutch in their biggest games on the mound and was a big part of their runner-up finish last year.
Darkhorse – NC State-Yeah, I know. Why not Florida? Barely .500 on the season and just upset the Oklahoma St Regional and the #6 Clemson, all on the road. The Wolfpack boasts the #1 bullpen (Baseball America) in America.
And they’ve been the hottest offensive team in the land over the last 6 games. It’s that bullpen that’s been their mainstay and will keep them in any game.
My Winner – Kentucky Wildcats-I see the Heels out of Bracket 1 and the Kentucky Wildcats out of Bracket 2 facing off for the national title.
None of the above included talk of Kentucky, so why the Cats? Remember what I said about Charles Schwab Park? The power of teams like Tennessee, Texas A&M, and others gets neutralized in this park.
Similar to Wrigley Field, though, the wind can really be a factor. Remember the Oregon State Beavers, that just “small-balled” their way to titles in 2006, 2007 and 2018? This is that Kentucky team.
Just A little Short
By: Michael Spiers
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It has been a magical season in Wes Johnson’s first year as the Georgia Bulldog’s skipper.
His Georgia squad has shown all of the attributes required to succeed in the modern era of big-time college baseball; grit, toughness and heart.
After managing to clear every previous obstacle and overcoming the adversity that inevitably arises, the Dawgs’ season came to an end.
The Athens Super Regional of the NCAA baseball tournament culminated in a decisive Game 3 between No. 7 UGA and the No. 10 North Carolina State Wolfpack, held at Foley Field with a College World Series berth on the line.
This series had seen both teams dominate at different times, leading to the final, winner-take-all clash.
In Game 1, NC State’s offense exploded with an 11-run second inning, which set the stage for an 18-1 blowout over the Bulldogs. Georgia responded strongly in Game 2, taking an early lead and cruising to an 11-2 victory, evening the series and building anticipation for the finale.
In the winner-take-all Game 3, the drama was palpable. Georgia struck first with a two-run homer by Tre Phelps in the second inning, but NC State quickly responded.
The Wolfpack took the lead for good in the fourth inning after scoring three runs, including on a critical wild pitch that allowed Matt Heavner to score. Alec Makarewicz added to the lead with an RBI single, and NC State maintained control until the end.
Georgia attempted a comeback, scoring another run in the sixth to narrow the gap to 5-3, but NC State’s Eli Serrano III extended the lead with a home run in the seventh.
Serrano also made a crucial defensive play, robbing Georgia of a potential rally by making a leaping catch at the center-field wall in the same inning. The Bulldogs struggled to keep pace; despite scoring in the ninth inning with Charlie Condon’s nation-leading 37th home run, they couldn’t close the gap.
NC State’s offensive firepower was showcased throughout, with standout performances from Serrano, who went 3-for-4, and Makarewicz, who contributed three RBIs.
NC State’s Derrick Smith was instrumental in closing out the game, earning his eighth save of the season by retiring Phelps twice during critical moments.
The 8-5 victory sent NC State to the College World Series for the fourth time in the program’s history and capped a strong finish to their season, marked by 18 wins in their last 23 games.
They joined ACC counterparts Florida State, Virginia, and North Carolina in Omaha, tying the record for most ACC teams in a single year in the College World Series.
Meanwhile, Georgia, which had hoped to secure their seventh trip to the College World Series, saw their season end with a 43-17 record.
Despite the loss, Georgia’s season under first-year head coach Wes Johnson showed promise. The Bulldogs’ ability to force a decisive third game in the Super Regional highlighted their resilience and potential, setting a positive outlook for the future of their baseball program.
Ultimately, NC State’s balanced attack and timely defensive plays proved too much for Georgia, securing the final spot in the College World Series and capping a thrilling Super Regional showdown.
The Wolfpack advanced to face Kentucky in their opening game of the series in Omaha, carrying forward their late-season momentum and solidifying their status as one of the top teams in collegiate baseball this year.
North Avenue Buzz
By: Kenneth Harrison
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Georgia Tech is a great academic institution that has also been known for having strong athletic programs.
They are a program that has multiple national championships on their resume in football and they have played in several bowl games.
Brent Key had his first full season as head coach for the Yellow Jackets last year. Key took over after the 2022 season and he went 4 – 4. He looked like he might find success and he delivered.
Tech went 7–6 overall and 5–3 in the ACC in 2023. On the surface that does not sound impressive, because it’s just one game over .500. This was their first bowl appearance since 2018, which was Paul Johnson’s final season.
They started the season 2 – 3 with an embarrassing home loss to Bowling Green. The highlights of their season were two upsets over North Carolina and Miami, both were ranked 17th at the time of the game.
They played in the Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa, Florida and they beat UCF 30-17. Now the question is can they build on that in 2024?
The transfer portal is huge in college football and unfortunately, the Yellow Jackets are dealing with that. They had 32 players enter the portal ahead of the 2024 season.
Some of the key players leaving are corner back KJ Wallace (UCLA), defensive lineman D’Quan Douse (Michigan State), corner back Kenan Johnson (Utah), defensive end Kyle Kennard (South Carolina), quarterback Zach Wilson (Georgia State), wide receiver Juju Lewis (FIU) and defensive end Malcolm Pugh (Louisiana Tech).
They also acquired players in the transfer portal. They added a few more from the spring. Tight end Josh Beetham (Michigan), safety Jayden Davis (Cincinnati), defensive lineman Thomas Gore (Miami), defensive end Romello Height (USC), cornerback Zachary Tobe (Illinois), linebacker E.J. Lightsey (Georgia), corner back Warren Burrell (Tennessee), defensive lineman Ayobami Tifase (Florida State) and defensive lineman Jordan van den Berg (Penn State).
The Yellow Jackets ranked 120th in total defense last season out of 130 FBS teams. It’s good to see them addressing that side of the ball because they were awful.
Quarterback Haynes King transferred in from Texas A&M. He passed for 2,842 yards, 27 touchdowns and he rushed for 737 yards and 10 TD’s. He did lead the ACC with interceptions so he will need to improve his decision making and cut down on his turnovers. He is one of the best quarterbacks in the conference.
Georgia Tech has a total of 17 starters returning, which is tied for 7th with Cal. They have eight on offense and seven on defense.
That includes most of their offensive line, leading rusher Jamal Haynes and top-two receivers Malik Rutherford and Eric Singleton Jr. Haynes rushed for 931 yards, 7 scores and averaged 6 yards per carry. He had 1,129 all-purpose yards. I think he could have a breakout year in 2024.
The season opens August 24th against Florida State in Dublin, Ireland. FSU will be favored to win this game.
The other games where they will be underdogs are against Notre Dame at Mercedes Benz Stadium and at Georgia.
The games I expect them to win are Georgia State, Syracuse, VMI and Duke.
The other games that are too close to call are Louisville, North Carolina, Virginia Tech, Miami and NC State.
I think they are capable of winning six games again, if they stay healthy.
As of now their 2025 recruiting class is ranked 22nd in the country and that could improve with another good season.
NIL Sunshine
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
NIL is coming to the Sunshine State for high school athletes.
The Florida High School Athletic Association Board of Directors passed sweeping bylaw changes earlier in the month to allow name, image and likeness activities for its student-athletes without forfeiting the ability to play high school sports.
The new policy passed unanimously after about 45 minutes of additional debate, including an argument from a coach in opposition of the new bylaw. The measure takes effect in time for the 2024-25 high school season.
With the change, 36 local athletic associations now allow student-athletes to participate in NIL deals on the high school level. The South Dakota High School Activities Association could become the 37th to permit NIL activities for high school players when the results of a membership vote become public in the coming days.
There’s been a significant shift over the past year in how high school administrators view NIL and it’s now acceptable in a majority of states from coast-to-coast. Florida is now officially part of the change.
The Sunshine State is a perennial producer of top high school athletes across multiple sports markets. Florida’s 2025 class has four five-star prospects in football alone – including the nation’s No. 1 linebacker in Solomon Thomas – and there are 56 players ranked four stars or higher. Florida’s 2025 class in basketball features two five-stars, including Five-Star Plus+ standout Cameron Boozer.
Plus, Florida is home to top high school athletes in women’s sports. The state is a haven for standouts in non-revenue sports, such as golf, soccer and lacrosse. The changes mean recruits in Florida and high school athletes in Florida can participate in NIL brand deals without fear of missing playing time.
In many ways, the new Florida High School Athletic Association NIL bylaw mirrors what is now acceptable for other high schoolers nationwide.
The new bylaws state that student-athletes and their parents/guardians must negotiate any NIL activities independent of their school, school district or the FHSAA.
Student-athletes will be prohibited from monetizing their NIL with the use of their school’s uniform, equipment, logo, name, proprietary patents, products and/or copyrights associated with an FHSAA member school and/or school district, either in public, print or social media platforms. Student-athletes are also encouraged to seek legal counsel and tax advice when considering NIL activities.
Interestingly, the FHSAA does include a line in its new bylaws that says a student-athlete could impact their amateur status by hiring a registered agent to manage his/her athletic career – other than for the purpose of advising on NIL-related matters.
The new rules aim to protect against recruiting. High-school-oriented collectives are focused on retaining talent locally at the high school level. This was of significant concern for high school coaches and athletic directors in Florida leading up to the change.
Florida is one of the most progressive states when it comes to NIL at the collegiate level. On July 1, 2001, college athletes in Florida became eligible to profit off their name, image and likeness under a bill signed into law by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
But up until recently, there has been some pushback from administrators and coaches about allowing it at the high school level.
Others have realized the threat of losing talent to other states (ones where NIL is allowed) as the biggest reason Florida is now allowing it.
The End of The Road
By: Charlie Moon
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Drinking my coffee, visiting family in Birmingham, AL, one song seems fit: “….I’ve been through the desert on a horse with no name… uh uh huh, ahh ahhhh…”
I’m confident that in 1972, when Dewey Bunnell, of the band America, penned the group’s 1-hit wonder, he had no idea some overweight bald dude was going to tie his lyrics to Birmingham Southern College baseball in 2024.
I first heard of this story a couple weeks ago while heading home from work and thought of that song immediately.
Birmingham Southern College played Salve Regina University (Newport, RI) (Friday, May 31), on the very last day Birmingham Southern College was known as an active institution of higher learning. That’s right. The Panthers of Birmingham Southern competed for a national title, when the name on their jersey is a thing of the past.
Hence…. “Goin through the desert on a horse”.
Bunnell once said he wrote the song as a metaphor of being free, independent of societal constraints.
One thing is for sure. The Panthers are free. On March 27, head coach Jan Weisberg met with the team in their clubhouse after an 8-5 road win at LaGrange, GA.
Team leader Drake Laroche (son of former Atlanta Brave Adam Laroche) said, “We had no idea what coach wanted to say. It was a big win for us. After a rough stretch, we lost our way. But something clicked that night. The chemistry finally brewed. We thought coach wanted to ignite that flame a little.”
Sadly, no. Coach Weisberg informed the team that Birmingham Southern College, a state-chartered Methodist school since its founding in 1856, was closing its doors.
Laroche says there were a few tears at first, but then they just sat around for about 2 hours, with questions…and answers.
“We didn’t know at first, if we were gonna be able to finish the season. If not, could we enter the transfer portal? Did we have to go home? Were we still gonna get meals on the road?”
Weisberg calmed everyone’s fears.
Laroche said: “Oh, it popped off. We got jacked up….like something out of a movie. We knew there was just one thing left to do – win a natty.”
There have been hundreds of times an NCAA school has finished their season, knowing their program had been shut down as of that season’s completion. Birmingham’s own UAB, after all, shut down its program just before the Blazers played in a 2014 bowl game. Of course, the Blazers wouldn’t go away.
And so have the Panthers. After beating the nation’s #2 Denison University, in the Regionals, they began the Division 3 College World Series.
And they’ll did it in style!
The team began a GoFundMe. Until their wins against Denison, it only had about $10,000. Suddenly, it ballooned to over $200,000.
The team was able to fly a private charter to Eastlake, OH. They’re stayed in a 5-star hotel and had all their meals catered.
Birmingham Southern alumni from all over the world flocked to Eastlake. It turned into a Panther Party at the Division III World Series.
That song we began our coffee cup talk with? It closes with: “After nine days, I Iet the horse run free, cause the desert had turned to sea.” The idea being…everybody can run free now.
Well, one thing is for sure, the Panthers all run free. I imagine one major difference. They won’t be constrained by a single thing.
Birmingham Southern’s run ended in the round of 8 double elimination. The Panthers lost to Wisconsin-Whitewater 11-10 to end their magical run.
“When the game got tight, I wasn’t worried about winning or losing,” he said. “I wanted one more night to be able to hang out with everyone. I think the ride we had the last three weeks is better than winning a national championship.”
A New Home
By: Colin Lacy
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
We’ve documented so many changes to the GHSA and how the 2024-25 athletic year will look. Between the elimination of the 7A classification, which forced region realignment, and the fact of private GHSA schools in 3A and lower playing for a separate state title, the latest change for the upcoming year was announced late last week from the GHSA Offices.
At least for the 2024 football season, the GHSA State playoffs will have a built in off-week prior to the semifinal matchups giving the teams that are still playing the week of Thanksgiving off.
While “practicing on Thanksgiving” had been a badge of honor for some teams, meaning that you’re one of the few teams still playing at that point of the year now that week will be free for everyone.
While the casual fan of both high school football and college football in the state of Georgia will be spared from making the choice between a high school semifinal matchup, and “Good Ol Fashion Hate,” there are more reasons behind the shift in the schedule.
Allegedly purely coincidentally, the Georgia vs Georgia Tech matchup on the gridiron was announced last week as well to be taking place on ABC on Black Friday, but the GHSA office says that it is just that, purely coincidence.
GHSA executive director Robin Hines said that the shift in the schedule will give players and staff of teams still alive in the postseason to “have a normal Thanksgiving for a change.”
With the built in off-week in the schedule, the GHSA Football State Championships will now take place December 16-18 inside Mercades-Benz Stadium in Atlanta.
The location is another key factor in why the change occurs for the coming year. Because of a Leap Year…Yes, I said a Leap Year affects the schedule…the SEC Football Championship Game will be held in Mercades-Benz Stadium on December 7th which would have been in the middle of the originally scheduled GHSA Championships forcing the GHSA to find a new home.
All in all, as much as folks will also benefit from being able to watch the Georgia-Georgia Tech game on Black Friday, and as much as nay-sayers want to point to the college game dictating the GHSA schedule, it gets deeper than that.
While, yes, ONE college game does affect the schedule, it’s not the Georgia-Georgia Tech game that falls on the now bye-week for the high schoolers.
The majority of the decision comes to keeping the GHSA from having to find a new home for the GHSA State Championships which I can get on board with. The Championships should always be at “the Benz,” and this keeps the games where they belong.
Shaky Knees
By: Robert Craft
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
Baseball is a metaphor for life, one of its most enduring lessons is that the universe gives not one whit for our collective desires; it will mete out blessings and hardships as it sees fit.
Last year, Ronald Acuña Jr. became the first player to hit 40+ home runs and steal 70+ bases in the same season, winning NL MVP for his efforts. It was a truly remarkable and historic season, one that fans of the Braves and the MLB will never forget.
In the first two months of the season, the Braves lost Spencer Strider, the 2023 MLB wins and strikeouts leader, with season-ending elbow surgery after two starts.
The Braves also lost Acuña, the first player to have as many as 40 homers and 70 stolen bases in a season, to an ACL tear. Acuña finished with 41 and 73 in 2023, while batting .337 with an NL-best 1.012 OPS.
Even with his early struggles this season, he still had a solid .351 OBP and was a threat every time he was at the plate and made opposing pitchers uneasy from the first pitch.
Leading off the first inning, he had a .333 average with an .857 OPS, and leading off any inning he hit .356 with a .420 OBP and .886 OPS. Not up to his lofty standards, but still the majors’ ninth-best average when leading off innings. A year ago, Acuña hit .384 with 18 homers and a 1.134 OPS leading off innings.
2023 was a triumphant return to form for Acuña after he tore his right ACL in July 2021. He returned to action in late April of 2022, but it took time to regain his mojo, posting a career-low 2.6 bWAR upon his return. (Not counting the shortened 2020 season.)
If that timeline is the career roadmap, then we may not see Acuña in peak form again until 2026. He will miss the remainder of this season.
Needless to say, Acuña’s absence is a huge blow to the Braves, who are currently chasing the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East. Of course, it was a big blow when Atlanta lost him in 2021 — and they went and won the World Series.
Which likely brings us to-gulp- 2026 for the next potential glimpse of Acuña at an MVP level. He will be 28 that year, still in his baseball prime.
If he stays relatively healthy from that point forward, he can still fulfill his Hall of Fame potential. But who can predict how this all might play out, especially now that he has twice suffered these freakish knee injuries?
Acuña is still just 26 years old. He’s been through this injury and rehab before, and there’s little doubt that he’ll be back to electrifying the baseball diamond soon enough.
The results of that work were not fully apparent when he returned in late April 2022, and did not become truly evident until ’23.
Acuña undoubtedly will adopt the same mindset again, knowing what steps he must take, literally and figuratively, to return to MVP form.
That will not make his rehabilitation any less lonely or frustrating. The last thing Ronald Acuña Jr. wanted was to go through this again. Forgive him if he wants to scream.
Man, what a huge bummer.
Its Good To Be First
By: Jeff Doke
TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services
It’s good to be first. Jaylin Simpson has known that feeling several times already in his young life.
As a student athlete at Frederica Academy, he saw several firsts. Playing QB, he led the football team to its first AAA championship in the program’s eighth year of existence.
When it was all said and done, he wound up with 27 career TD passes and 17 rushing TDs in his time “Under the Oaks”.
On the defensive side of the ball, Simpson notched 13 INTs and 138 total tackles, garnering All Region and All State laurels for his efforts.
Off the gridiron, he secured two state championships in Track & Field, bringing further glory to the green and white.
After graduation, he became one of the first Frederica alums to play football in the Power 5 conferences when he and teammate Jashawn Sheffield went to the SEC and became Auburn Tigers.
In his five years On The Plains, the numbers kept adding up. He racked up 118 total tackles and seven career interceptions – including an absolute beauty against Carson Beck and the Georgia Bulldogs in 2023. He was named to the 1st Team All SEC squad by the Associated Press, was a Jim Thorpe Award semi-finalist, and played in the Reese’s Senior Bowl.
Not bad for a kid from Brunswick, GA who was told he was spoiling his chances for greatness by going to a private school campus of around 400 total students in the K-12 years.
The next logical step would of course be fulfilling the dream of playing in the NFL.
Of course, there were doubters and naysayers as there have always been, but Jaylin knew he had what it takes.
At the 2024 NFL Combine in Indianapolis, Simpson posted an impressive 39.5 vertical leap and a speedy 4.45 second 40-yard dash. At the combine, his brother and UCF Assistant Director of Player Personnel Alex Mathis told him “this town suits you.”
How prophetic that would turn out to be, as there was another first on the horizon.
On the third day of the 2024 NFL draft, Jaylin was selected 164th overall by the Indianapolis Colts, thus making him the first Frederica Knight to be drafted in the NFL.
“I’m just ready to get to work and continue to show why I feel like I was one of the best in this draft. I’ve got to prove still, so I’m just ready to get to work in Indy,” Simpson said during a colts.com interview.
And work he will. It’s what he’s done his entire playing career, bringing what he refers to as his “Plankton mentality” to the big leagues.
That term might sound familiar to fans of the long-running animated series “SpongeBob SquarePants,” but a lot of people get it wrong much to the chagrin of Simpson.
“People get it confused and it makes me mad. They say, ‘oh he never got the formula,’ but it’s not about that,” he explained in an interview with AL.com.
“It’s about every time you turn on an episode, he’s trying again. It doesn’t matter how many times he gets knocked down, he’s gonna keep trying. That’s all that matters. He’ll do anything to get what he wants and what I want is a win, so I’m gonna do what I can.”
Plankton mentality has gotten him this far, and now the Frederica faithful get to watch one of their own playing on Sundays. Sounds like wins all around from my point of view.
