COLLEGE FOOTBALL roundup

AP PLAYER OF THE YEAR

Mayfield 4th Sooners QB to win award

NEW YORK

Baker Mayfield is The Associated Press college football Player of the Year, becoming the fourth Oklahoma quarterback to win the award since it was established in 1998.

Mayfield, the Heisman Trophy favorite, easily outpointed Stanford running back Bryce Love, who came in second. Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson, the other finalist and last year’s Heisman winner, was third.

Mayfield received 51 first-place votes from the 56 AP college football poll voters who submitted player of the year ballots, and a total of 157 points. Love (83 points) and Jackson (39 points) each received two first-place votes and Penn State running Saquon Barkley received a first-place vote and came in fourth.

Mayfield, Love and Jackson are also the finalists for the Heisman, which will be handed out Saturday night in New York.

Mayfield is a former walk-on who has led the No. 2 Sooners to the College Football Playoff, where they will play No. 3 Georgia in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1. Mayfield leads the nation in passer efficiency rating and has thrown for 4,340 yards and 41 touchdowns.

He joins Josh Heupel (2000), Jason White (2003) and Sam Bradford (2008) as previous winners from Oklahoma.

TENNESSEE

Alabama’s Pruitt hired to coach Volunteers

KNOXVILLE, TENN.

Tennessee has hired Alabama defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt as its head coach, capping a tumultuous search that cost an athletic director his job as the Volunteers attempt to recover from one of their most disappointing seasons.

Pruitt’s hiring comes six days after former Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer was named athletic director and put in charge of the coaching search. Fulmer took over for John Currie, who was suspended just eight months into the job as Tennessee investigates whether it can fire him for cause.

Pruitt replaces Butch Jones, who was fired Nov. 12 after going 34-27 overall and 14-24 in Southeastern Conference competition in five seasons. Tennessee went 4-8 this season and set a school record for losses.

OREGON STATE

Mike Riley returning as an assistant coach

CORVALLIS, ORE.

Mike Riley is returning to Oregon State.

The former Beavers coach was named an assistant on new coach Jonathan Smith’s staff on Thursday.

Most recently head coach at Nebraska, Riley was coach at Oregon State twice, from 1997-98 and 2003-14. He will serve as an assistant head coach with a “to-be-determined” position assignment under Smith.

Smith, a former Beavers’ quarterback, was a graduate assistant at Oregon State under Riley in 2003.

Over 14 total seasons at Oregon State, Riley had a 93-80 record and wins in six of eight bowl games. Riley grew up in Corvallis, and his father Bud was an assistant at Oregon State.

Also joining Smith’s staff are assistants Jim Michalczik, Brian Lindgren, Jake Cookus, and Mike McDonald.

Associated Press