Bill Connelly is a sportswriter and analyst at ESPN who covers college football. He attended college at the University of Missouri and still lives in Columbia, Missouri, today. Early in his career, Connelly started out as a sports blogger writing for Football Outsiders. In 2011, he began writing fulltime with SB Nation. Finally, Connelly was brought on by ESPN in ...

No. 2 VSU (9-1, 6-1 GSC) suffered their first loss of the season, falling to No. 3 West Florida (9-1, 6-1 GSC) 61-42 in Pensacola, Florida. It was the regular season finale for both teams. VSU was put behind early and often. For the second consecutive week, VSU was shutout 7-0 in the first quarter. West Florida added a field ...

The No. 2 Blazers (9-0, 6-0 GSC) overcame a slow start and pulled away from the North Greenville Crusaders (4-6, 1-5 GSC) in the second half to win 31-21 on homecoming weekend. The win puts VSU in prime position to secure a first-round bye in the Division II playoffs. VSU currently holds the top spot in Super Region Two. The ...

No. 2 VSU continued its undefeated season, steamrolling Mississippi College 41-14 on the road. The ground game was electric, as junior running back Seth McGill, junior quarterback Ivory Durham, redshirt junior running back Jamar Thompkins, redshirt freshman running back James Chaney and redshirt freshman running back Isaiah Flowers combined for a total of 379 yards and five touchdowns. VSU received ...

In a week filled with chaos across the top 10, No. 3 VSU (6-0, 4-0 GSC) rallied from an early deficit to defeat No. 10 West Alabama (6-1, 3-1 GSC) 42-17 in a battle of unbeatens. In the wake of the raucous week, which saw seven of the top 10 teams lose including both top two teams, VSU moved up ...

No. 4 VSU (5-0) rolls to another victory, shutting out Delta State (2-4) 55-0 in the Pink Out game. The win sets up a top ten showdown with West Alabama (6-0) in Livingston that will take place on Oct. 16. VSU got the scoring started on the opening kickoff on a trick play. Redshirt junior Jamar Thompkins received the kickoff ...

The No. 3 Blazers (4-0) used a strong second half push to surge past Shorter (2-3) 49-13 on family weekend to remain undefeated. It was the ninth all-time meeting between VSU and Shorter, with VSU winning all eight previous matchups. It was also the conference opener for VSU, who is looking to win their third consecutive Gulf South Conference title. ...

What do sports teams who are—or used to be—named after Apaches, Braves, Indians, Mohawks, Redmen, Warriors, etc. have in common? People who love to manufacture stories and narratives that accuse others of being hateful find them very offensive. I’ll tell you what: I could not care any less about what a football team chooses to call itself, barring that they ...

After a two-hour weather delay, No. 3 Valdosta State returned to Bazemore-Hyder Stadium to claim a 21-3 victory over Albany State. The VSU defense was dominant with four forced turnovers and did not let up all game, only giving up three points and 65 passing yards. Albany State quarterback Dionte Bonneau was sacked five times. The VSU offense achieved 354 ...

No. 6 VSU conquered Virginia Union 51-7 on the road with 559 yards of total offense and seven touchdowns. Quarterback Ivory Durham passed for 252 yards, while he and running backs Seth Mcgill and Jamar Thompkins combined for 307 rushing yards. The VSU defense finished with another dominant performance. Gulf South Conference Defensive Player of the Week Mondrell Jefferson was ...