AUSTIN, Texas — What a difference a year can make. Last year at this time, Keelon Russell was just a name on recruiting radars, but he’s established himself as one of the top players in the country following a second straight 6A-I championship and a strong spring on the camp and 7-on-7 circuit. After winning 247Sports’ Alpha Dog honors two weeks ago at Under Armour Dallas, Russell showed up to Elite 11 in Austin and earned an invitation to the finals in California.
At 6-foot-3, 175 pounds, Russell is ranked as the No. 7 quarterback in the country and No. 11 overall prospect in Texas, according to 247Sports. Russell was excited to earn the invitation, and he enjoyed testing his skills up against other top passers in attendance.
Greetings again from Spokane Arena. We’re about an hour away from Alabama-Grand Canyon in round two of the NCAA tournament.
Here are the details
The usual College Football Playoff contenders are out front ahead of the 2024 season per Circa Las Vegas sportsbook’s latest national championship odds, but with mass roster changes this spring across the sport, noticeable changes are here, too.
Opening prices for favorites and the nation’s most talented rosters earlier this spring were not all that surprising, but in the latest update, Michigan saw a significant downgrade since Jim Harbaugh’s departure to the NFL and last season’s runner-up, Washington, is not in the top 12.
The expanded playoff is designed to increase the stakes in college football’s postseason, attract additional viewers and add more parity to the national title picture. Under the new format, the six highest-ranked conference champions will receive automatic bids. The field is then filled out with the six highest-ranked teams remaining. The highest four seeds receive opening-round byes.
