From UNC Athletics...

DALLAS, Texas - Kaimon Rucker has been named to the 2024 Bronko Nagurski Trophy Watch List, the Football Writers Association of America announced this afternoon.

Entering the 2024 season, Rucker has been recognized as a preseason All-American by both the Walter Camp Football Foundation and Phil Steele and is a nominee for the prestigious Allstate AFCA Good Works Team.

Rucker, a 2023 All-ACC Second Team and 2023 AP All-ACC Second Team selection, returns to the Tar Heels after starting all 13 games last season and leading the team with 15 TFL, 8.5 sacks and 12 QB pressures.

Last season, he earned Walter Camp National Player of the Week and ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week honors for his efforts against South Carolina when he tallied eight tackles, two sacks and 5.5 TFL against the Gamecocks. In 2023, Rucker was named the ACC Defensive Lineman of the Week twice.

The FWAA and the Charlotte Touchdown Club will announce finalists for the 2024 trophy on Nov. 20 and the winner will be unveiled Dec. 9 at the Bronko Nagurski Awards Banquet in Charlotte, N.C.

The FWAA All-America Committee, after voting input from the association’s full membership, selects a 26-man All-America Team and eventually the Nagurski Trophy finalists. The Bronko Nagurski Trophy winner will be chosen from the five finalists named in November. Committee members, by individual ballot, select the winner they regard as the best defensive player in college football.

The FWAA has chosen a National Defensive Player of the Year since 1993. In 1995, the FWAA named the award in honor of the legendary two-way player from the University of Minnesota. Nagurski dominated college football, then became a star for professional football’s Chicago Bears in the 1930s. Bronislaw "Bronko" Nagurski is a charter member of both the College Football and Pro Football Halls of Fame.

From the ACC...​

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (theACC.com) – The Atlantic Coast Conference has announced its championship dates, sites and tournament formats for the 2024-25 academic year. Featuring 18 schools for the upcoming year with the addition of Cal, SMU and Stanford, the ACC sponsors 28 sports, with 15 women and 13 men. No Power 4 conference sponsors more than 28 sports or 15 women’s sports.

“The upcoming year shapes up as an exciting one for our schools, our student-athletes and their incredible fan bases,” said ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips, Ph.D. “We are extremely excited to welcome our new schools in Cal, SMU and Stanford, and show off our tremendous championship experience for our student-athletes, coaches and fans. We again have a terrific mix of on-campus sites and professional venues, including our football championship and men’s basketball tournament in Charlotte.”

As previously announced, the 20th annual ACC Football Championship Game returns to Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina, for the 14th time in 15 years on Saturday, Dec. 7.

Greensboro Coliseum plays host to the Ally ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament for the 25th time in 26 years March 5-9, and the ACC Men’s Basketball Tournament heads to Spectrum Center in Charlotte, North Carolina, from March 11-15. The men’s tournament returns to Queen City for the 14th time overall and the first time since 2019.

The first ACC Championships of the 2024-25 academic calendar will be held on Nov. 1, as NC State welcomes Men’s and Women’s Cross Country to Cary, North Carolina.

Twenty-seven men’s and women’s Olympic sports championships are scheduled, with volleyball determining its champion based on regular-season results.

With the addition of Cal, SMU and Stanford, several tournament formats have been altered for 2024-25:

• Field hockey: now an eight-team bracket format
• Men’s soccer: now a 15-team bracket format, with the semifinals and finals at WakeMed Soccer Park in Cary, North Carolina
• Women’s Lacrosse: now an eight-team bracket format, with all games being played at American Legion Memorial Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina
• Softball: now a 12-team, single-elimination bracket format

The complete ACC Championships schedule and tournament formats for 2024-25 are listed below.

M/W Cross Country – Nov. 1, 2024
Host: NC State University
WakeMed Soccer Park (Cary, N.C.)

Ally ACC Women’s Soccer – Nov. 3, 7 & 10, 2024
First Round: Campus Sites
Semifinals and Final: WakeMed Soccer Park (Cary, N.C.)
Tournament Format: Six teams (top two teams receive a first-round bye)

Field Hockey – Nov. 5, 6 & 8, 2024
Host: Wake Forest University
Tournament Format: Eight-team bracket

Men’s Soccer – Nov. 6, 10, 14 & 17, 2024
First Round and Quarterfinals: Campus Sites
Semifinals and Final: WakeMed Soccer Park (Cary, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 15-team bracket (No. 1 seed receives a first-round bye; seeds 2-8 host first-round games; No. 1 seed and top remaining seeds in each bracket host quarterfinal games)

Football – Dec. 7, 2024
Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)

M/W Swimming & Diving – Feb. 18-22, 2025
Greensboro Aquatic Center (Greensboro, N.C.)

M/W Fencing – Feb. 22-23, 2025
Host: University of North Carolina

M/W Indoor Track & Field – TBD
TBD

Ally ACC Women’s Basketball – March 5-9, 2025
Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 15-team bracket (Seeds 5-8 receive first-round bye; Seeds 1-4 receive double-bye)

Wrestling – March 9, 2025
Host: Duke University

Men’s Basketball – March 11-15, 2025
Spectrum Center (Charlotte, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 15-team bracket (Seeds 5-8 receive first-round bye; Seeds 1-4 receive double-bye)

Gymnastics – March 22, 2025
Greensboro Coliseum (Greensboro, N.C.)
Championship Format: 6-teams qualify (Seeds 5-6 compete in the first session; Seeds 1-4 compete in the second session)

M/W Tennis – April 15-20, 2025
Cary Tennis Park (Cary, N.C.)

Women’s Golf – April 16-19, 2025
Sedgefield Country Club (Greensboro, N.C.)

Men’s Golf – April 24-28, 2025
The Club at Olde Stone (Bowling Green, Ky.)

Women’s Lacrosse – April 23, 25 & 27, 2025
American Legion Memorial Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)
Tournament Format: Eight-team bracket

Men’s Lacrosse – May 2 & 4, 2025
American Legion Memorial Stadium (Charlotte, N.C.)
Tournament Format: Four-team bracket

Softball – May 7-10, 2025
Host: Boston College
Tournament Format: 12-team bracket (Single elimination; top four seeds receive a first-round bye)

M/W Outdoor Track & Field – May 15-17, 2025
Host: Wake Forest University

Rowing – May 16-17, 2025
Host: Clemson University

Baseball – May 20-25, 2025
Durham Bulls Athletic Park (Durham, N.C.)
Tournament Format: 12-team pool-play format (Top team from each pool advances to Saturday semifinals for single elimination bracket play)

The voice on the Olympic and Paralympic committee for collegiate athletes is a Tar Heel, and he was in Paris for the 2024 Olympic Games. Bubba Cunningham is not only the director of athletics at UNC, he also has a seat on the US Olympic and Paralympic Committee Board of Directors. "We're here to support the Olympians and work with our staff." (MSN.com)

Mack Hollins is a barefoot NFL Tarzan and the Buffalo Bills love him​

Mack Hollins signed a one-year contract with the Buffalo Bills. Fans hope he'll take his shoes off and stay awhile. He's gotten off on the right foot. Hollins walks on the field - and everywhere else he goes - barefoot at training camp. His cutoff fringe shirt and long curly locks flap in the wind. He eats with his hands, not utensils. Hollins is an NFL Tarzan. (Rochester Democrat & Chronicle)

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Omarion Hampton, a 2023 All-American, has been named to the 2024 Maxwell Award Watch List the selection committee announced Monday.

Last season, Hampton compiled 1,504 yards on 253 carries and 15 touchdowns, while adding 29 receptions for 222 yards and a touchdown through the air. The Clayton, N.C. native finished last season leading the Atlantic Coast Conference in rushing attempts (253), rushing yards (1,504), rushing touchdowns (15), rushing attempts per game (19.46) and rushing yards per game (115.4).

Additionally, Hampton’s rushing yards (1,504) and rushing yards per game (115.69) from a season ago ranked fifth nationally.

Semifinalists for the Maxwell Award will be announced November 12, 2024, while the three finalists for the Maxwell Award will be unveiled November 26, 2024. The winners of the 88th Maxwell Award will be announced as part of the ESPN Home Depot College Football Awards Show held on December 12, 2024. The formal presentations of the Maxwell Award will be made at the Maxwell Football Club Awards on Friday March 14, 2024 at the College Football Hall of Fame in Atlanta, Georgia.

The Maxwell Award is a member of the National College Football Awards Association (NCFAA), which encompasses college football’s most prestigious awards. The NCFAA’s 25 awards have honored more than 900 recipients since 1935. This season, 12 NCFAA awards will honor national players of the week each Tuesday.

The Maxwell Football Club was founded in 1935 and is the oldest football organization of its kind in America. The Club recognizes excellence in performance at the high school, collegiate and professional levels of the game. The Maxwell Club is also deeply involved and fully vested in the community through programs to promote academic excellence, community volunteerism, and leadership. High school student-athletes around the country have an opportunity to participate in MFC Showcase events, free of charge, through the generosity of our corporate partners, Ivy Rehab, SAFR, the ETC Foundation and the Run Around Inc.