COLLEGE FOOTBALL

COLLEGE FOOTBALL

News and notes

Kentucky: Coach Mark Stoops says the NCAA has denied hardship waiver requests by linebacker Courtney Love and tight end Greg Hart to play this season for the Wildcats after transferring from Nebraska. Stoops said after Monday’s practice that the school is appealing the NCAA’s decision on Love, who arrived in Lexington in January. Love and Hart had hoped to become eligible this fall, but appear likely to sit out per transfer rules unless the ruling is reversed. Love, a 6-foot-2, 245-pound Cardinal Mooney High graduate, was expected to help a Wildcats defense that lacks depth at outside linebacker. He made six tackles in 12 games last season as a redshirt freshman with the Cornhuskers.

Florida State: Florida State running back Dalvin Cook was found not guilty on Monday of punching a woman in the face outside a bar in June after she engaged in a shouting match with him and his teammates. It took the seven-member jury only about 20 minutes to deliver its verdict after a one-day trial that included the testimony of the alleged victim, one of her friends and several of Cook’s teammates. Cook had been charged with misdemeanor battery. “I’m just thankful and blessed that the truth came out,” said Cook, who had been indefinitely suspended after being charged in the June 23 incident. “It’s time to go to work — back to the field. I’ve been working, but now it’s time to get at it.”

Oklahoma: No. 19 Oklahoma has named Baker Mayfield the starting quarterback over last year’s starter, Trevor Knight. Coach Bob Stoops made the announcement Monday. “It’s been a very tight battle among those three guys,” Stoops said in a statement. “Baker, Trevor and Cody have all made substantial progress, and I feel we can win with any of them.” Mayfield sat out last season after transferring from Texas Tech. As a freshman walk-on at Tech in 2013, he passed for 2,315 yards and 12 touchdowns in eight games and was named Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year. At Oklahoma, Mayfield will run new offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley’s Air Raid offense, the same system he ran at Tech. Riley, the former East Carolina offensive coordinator, knew about Mayfield before he took the job at Oklahoma.

Kansas: Montell Cozart will be under center for new Kansas coach David Beaty when the Jayhawks begin their season Sept. 5 against South Dakota State. Beaty announced Monday that the junior had won the competition for starting quarterback. Beaty said, “He is a very bright, hard-working, smart dude. He’s what you want. I love the dude that he is. Our team loves him.” Cozart started three games as a freshman in 2013 and the first five games last season before Michael Cummings took over. But when Cummings sustained a season-ending left knee injury in the spring game, it appeared the job would be Cozart’s to lose.

Arizona State: Assistant coach Bo Graham has resigned from his father’s staff due to personal reasons, less than two weeks before the Sun Devils’ first game. Graham was entering his third season as running backs coach and fourth overall under Todd Graham. Bo Graham spent his first season in Tempe as the on-campus recruiting coordinator. He previously worked as the head graduate assistant and wide receivers coach at Pittsburgh in 2011 with his father. He also served as running backs coach at Tulsa from 2007-08.

Texas A&M: Kyle Allen has been picked to start at quarterback for Texas A&M in its opening game against No. 15 Arizona State. The sophomore Allen was competing against heralded freshman Kyler Murray for the starting job. Aggies coach Kevin Sumlin announced Allen would get the nod when A&M opens the season Sept. 5 against the Sun Devils in Houston. Allen played in nine games last season for Texas A&M as a freshman and started the final five. He passed for 1,322 yards and 16 touchdowns with seven interceptions. In Texas A&M’s Liberty Bowl victory against West Virginia, Allen passed for a season-best 294 yards and four touchdowns.

SEC: Southeastern Conference teams will hold Prostate Cancer Awareness Games throughout September on all 14 member campuses to honor former Commissioner Mike Slive. Slive, 75, retired earlier this year after 13 years leading the SEC. He battled prostate cancer through his career. The home team at each game will wear a helmet decal that has a blue ribbon with Slive written in gold letters on it over an SEC logo. In addition to wearing helmet stickers, schools will conduct other activities such as video board announcements, prostate cancer screenings, recognition of prostate cancer survivors, game program ads and stories, production of public service announcements and social media outreach. The first Prostate Cancer Awareness Game will be Western Kentucky at Vanderbilt on the opening Thursday of the FBS season.

Associated Press