College Football News and Notes: Football Community Mourns Great Players Lost

Former Stanford Athlete Dies Suddenly

Zach Hoffpauir, who played baseball and football for the Cardinal, passed away at the age of 26. Hoffpauir was set to be the coach of the safeties for the University of Northern Colorado. He was an all-conference safety and played two seasons of minor league baseball for the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The University announced that Hoffpauir died in his sleep. Hoffpauir had a history with concussions and his brain is being donated to research, according to his father.

First Black Football Player For Mississippi Passes Away

Robert Williams Jr., the first black player ever at Ole Miss, passed away at the age of 65. Williams Jr. also played for the Buffalo Bills at defensive end.

He was also the first black player ever to be named an All-American. Williams was a first-team All-SEC three times and set a school record with 18 sacks in a season.

Tagaviola Transfers From Alabama.

Taulia Tagaviola, Tua’s brother, who was a backup for the Crimson Tide this season, has transferred to Maryland. Tagaviola played in five games, completing 9 of his 12 passes for 100 yards and a touchdown.

He will play for Mike Locksley, Maryland’s head coach, who was the offensive coordinator for Tua during the 2018 season. Taulia should get a crack at the starting job for the Terrapins if he is granted a waiver.

Former Georgia Tech Quarterback and Coach Dies

Pepper Rodgers, who starred on Georgia Tech’s 1952 national championship team, died at 88. Rodgers also coached the Yellow Jackets from 1974-79.

Notre Dame Plans To Open Campus for Fall Semester

Notre Dame became one of the first schools to announce they will open the season for the fall semester. The Fighting Irish, who play independently in college football, may have a hard time scheduling this year.

Notre Dame is scheduled to play Navy in Ireland to open the season. There is no realistic chance of that game happening in Ireland, so it will be moved to the States, presumably if a football season occurs. They are scheduled to close the season on November 28th against USC, but it is looking more and more likely that the PAC-12 will only play a conference season this year.

While the press release didn’t mention any sports, this is a good sign if you were hoping for Fighting Irish games this fall. Notre Dame has to be coming up with a lot of alternatives for their schedule should the bigger conferences play a conference-only season in 2020.

San Diego State Plans on Playing Football

While the California State University board announced they will be conducting classes online for the fall semester of 2020, San Diego State says they plan on playing football. San Diego State, Fresno State, and San Jose State all play in FBS and fall under the California State University system.

All three schools compete in the Mountain West Conference. Whether or not the conference allows sports to be played while schools are not allowing on-campus learning is another story altogether.

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