The early signing period is here and in just three years it has become THE signing period for college football teams. Most FBS teams will have their classes full before Christmas. Barton Simmons, scouting director for 247 Sports, joins AP’s Ralph Russo to run down what teams are cleaning up and what teams have work to do. Of course, the usual suspects are pulling in most of the five-star prospects. But it looks like an especially good year for Clemson. What’s going on in Texas with the Longho...

The bowl matchups are set. A marathon football feast that lasts from December to early January includes 40 games of varying quality needs an extra-long podcast to preview it all. Matt Brown, college football editor at The Athletic -- and an AP poll voter -- joins Ralph Russo on the AP Top 25 College Football Podcast’s bowl preview show. Brown and Russo hit on every game but the playoffs. (There will be plenty of time for that later.) This week, they give you a nugget on all those other games,...

Championship weekend is upon us, but that’s only a portion of all that is going on in college football this week. The coaching carousel has cranked up and the Heisman race will be settled as well. USA Today national college football writer Paul Myerberg joins AP’s Ralph Russo for an extra long edition of the AP Top 25 College Football Podcast to discuss why coaching searches are set up to fail, the legacy of Chris Petersen and why his surprising resignation was not so surprising. And which j...

Are rivalries as important as they used to be in college football? With so much focus on the College Football Playoff and the sport's becoming more national, AP’s Ralph Russo worries that it’s taking away from the intensity of regional rivalries. Stephen Godfrey of the Banner Society joins the AP Top 25 College Football Podcast to talk about the state of rivalries and some of his favorite rivalry games. Plus: how perspective has gone out the window for many college football fans.

The College Football Playoff race took a turn when Alabama lost star quarterback Tua Tagovailoa to a season-ending injury last weekend. How does losing the Heisman contender effect the selection committee’s view of the Crimson Tide? And what was his legacy at Alabama?What are the most complicated scenarios that could play out over the next month? And could a difficult choice for the committee that includes leaving out two well-qualified conference champions be a catalyst to start work on play...

There has been a Power Five coach fired each of the last two weeks. To get you ready for college football’s silly season, Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports and The Athletic joins AP’s Ralph Russo to discuss the open jobs, the jobs that might come open and the coaches who could be on the move from South Carolina to Southern California.

There is a lot going on in college football. Willie Taggart is out at Florida State and it seems like a forgone conclusion that Clay Helton will be out at USC soon. Which is a better job and who might fill them? Paul Myerberg of USA Today joins AP’s Ralph Russo to discuss the start of the coaching carousel.Plus, It is a huge weekend of games with No. 1 LSU and No. 2 Alabama playing. We’ll preview that and Penn State at Minnesota, another battle of unbeatens.Also, the first College Football Pl...

A week before the first College Football Playoff rankings come out, there is a new No. 1 in the AP poll and one of the closest votes ever. Brett McMurphy of Stadium, and an AP poll voter, joins Ralph Russo to talk about how he selects No. 1 and what the playoff selection committee might do next week. Most of the top teams are off this weekend, so the resumes are pretty much locked in between now and then. McMurphy and Russo discuss the Group of Five race for a New Year’s Six bid and why they ...

Alabama star Tua Tagovailoa is recovering from an ankle injury. Will he be healthy in time for the Crimson Tide’s showdown with No. 2 LSU on November 9? USA Today national college football writer George Schroeder joins AP’s Ralph Russo to talk about the potential impact Tua’s injury could have on the College Football Playoff selection process and the Heisman Trophy race.Also, USA Today’s excellent coaches’ salary database is out. George and Ralph discuss a market that no long seems to be acti...

Clemson is down to No. 3 in the latest AP College football poll after starting the season No. 1. The Tigers have been passed by both Alabama and LSU since they had a close call against North Carolina. David Hale of ESPN thinks Clemson has earned the benefit of the doubt similar to what Alabama gets from pollsters. Hale argues the underlying numbers show Clemson’s performance really hasn’t dropped off much at all this year. Plus, trying to make sense of the Atlantic Coast Conference beyond Cle...