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Diehard Sports Network welcomes Jags Jungle, coverage of South Alabama athletics
Publisher Doug Konkel and his South Alabama fan community join growing hyperlocal college sports media network
Jaguar defense getting aggressive under Todd Orlando
Todd Orlando brings an aggressive defensive identity to South Alabama after three seasons turning around South Florida's defense.
Applewhite on Week 1: Davenport will start, defense has embraced new system
South Alabama head coach Major Applewhite addressed the media ahead of Saturday's home opener against Southeastern Louisiana.
The Pac-12's Texas Bet
Memphis made a national statement in Vegas. The Tigers have made them before.
Charles Huff’s rebuilt roster beat UNLV 27-21 in a road opener. The schedule ahead will test whether this time is different.
Diehard G6 Top 25 — Week 0 results
Memphis jumped five spots to No. 6 after beating UNLV in Vegas. North Dakota State rose to No. 7 after routing Jacksonville State in its FBS opener.
Back When: UAB led Urban Meyer’s Ohio State at the Horseshoe
The Blazers open this week at Illinois — only the third Big Ten road trip in program history. The second, in 2012, silenced 105,000 in Columbus.
There was a moment. Then there wasn't.
Jax State was right there in Fargo. A 4th-down stop and a two-minute collapse before halftime changed everything.
The Bison are coming, and the Mountain West better be ready
NDSU dominated Jacksonville State 33-7 in its FBS debut. No program has ever made this jump more prepared.
Judge grants TRO allowing UAB's KyeRon Lindsay-Martin to return after eligibility lawsuit against NCAA
Birmingham Circuit Judge Monica Agee granted a temporary restraining order Friday, allowing the UAB forward to return to the roster for the 2026-27 season. The NCAA could appeal.
Blazers 2026 Schedule Confidence Rankings
We rank every game on UAB's 2026 schedule from most confident in a UAB win to least.
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Around the Network
Introducing the G6 Diehard Newsletter
Group of 6 news from across the country, delivered straight to your inbox. First edition launches Monday, Aug. 31.
Kennedy on interim AD role, what he wants in UAB's next athletic director
UAB's men's basketball coach and interim AD made his first public comments Friday since taking the dual role on Aug. 18.
What Illinois coaches said about UAB in Friday's press conference
Bielema, Lunney and Hauck all discussed the Blazers ahead of Thursday's opener in Champaign.
The Really Big Preview: Jacksonville State at North Dakota State
The most dominant FCS program in history makes its FBS debut against the team that wrote the blueprint for a successful transition. Week Zero. The Fargodome. National television. This is the best game nobody is talking about.
The Search, epilogue: the dream list
Seven parts. Dozens of names. Now: who would we put on the short list?
Jax State is not going to Fargo to play a supporting role
Jacksonville State brings 50 lettermen and seven defensive starters to North Dakota State for a nationally televised Week Zero opener. The Gamecocks are not interested in which program CBS chooses to celebrate.
South Alabama's season-opening opponent takes the field this week
Southeastern Louisiana plays Thursday — a rare chance for Jaguar fans to scout a formidable Week 1 foe
Troy moved first. Now comes the hard part.
Troy Bank & Trust becomes the first all-sport, all-coaches jersey patch partner in the Group of Six. The deal raises questions every G6 AD needs to answer.
The G6 money map: Who's actually making money off their brand?
We took the FY25 licensing and sponsorship numbers, regrouped them by 2026 conference memberships and looked at it through a G6 lens. The money tells the story realignment won't.
The Search, Part 7: The outside-the-box hire
What happens when you stop looking inside the AD pipeline and start matching the job to the skill set it actually requires.
Jax State opens 2026 at NDSU — and the Bison aren’t your typical FBS newcomer
Kickoff: Saturday, 4:30 p.m. CT, CBS Sports Network. North Dakota State brings 10 national championships to the FBS. Here’s where the Gamecocks stand heading in.
South Alabama Jaguars: 2026 defense preview — position by position
Todd Orlando and a near-complete staff overhaul bring a new defensive identity to a unit that was last in the Sun Belt in red zone defense and generated one sack per game.
Jacksonville State Gamecocks: 2026 defense preview — position by position
Seven starters return from a defense that finished second in CUSA in takeaways. The defensive line is the question mark.
The Search, Part 6: The builders
Nine athletic directors outside the Power 4 with track records of building — fundraising, facilities and conference championships.
Something is happening at UAB
Fan day and a dominant scrimmage revealed what box scores cannot capture — a program finding its identity under Alex Mortensen.
The Search, Part 5: The basketball background
These ADs have done everything — conference championships, record fundraising, national recognition. The one thing they haven’t done is football.
Bill Clark on UAB AD job: 'I would definitely entertain it'
The former UAB football coach made his first public comments about the athletic director vacancy on The Coach Bill Clark Show.
The Search, Part 4: The Birmingham connections
Real people, real resumes and real connections to Birmingham — the talent pool a search committee would be looking at.
The Search, Part 3: The obvious names
The candidates UAB fans are already discussing — who they are, what’s realistic and what isn’t.
The Search, Part 2: The profile
How AD searches actually work, what the Ingram hire tells us about UAB's candidate pool and why the names fans want aren't always the names that make sense.
The Search, Part 1: The job
What UAB's next athletic director is inheriting, why this job is better than fans think and what qualities the right candidate needs to unlock it.
Back When: Rodregis Brooks left on a stretcher. He came back wearing his mom’s jersey.
One of the legendary performances in UAB football history would have set the internet on fire. In 1999, it was only worth a phone interview on ESPN radio.
Ty Mims wears No. 0 and has 96 career catches. UAB needs both.
UAB’s top two receivers from 2025 are gone. The Bay Minette native is the most experienced option in a room that is competing through injuries in fall camp.
Nigel Tate didn’t play football until he was 16. A stranger in a hospital changed that.
The UAB defensive tackle spent four years at Boston College, tore his Achilles before playing a snap for the Blazers and is making the most of his final year of eligibility under Todd Grantham.
UAB’s pass rush produced 18 sacks last season. It had 8.5 in one scrimmage.
In Saturday’s first scrimmage, five defenders combined for 8.5 sacks and the defensive line showed something UAB hasn’t had in years — a pass rush that wins with four.
Blazer Nation is ready to rally. Andy Kennedy seems to know it.
We tracked the social media response to the UAB leadership change across X, Reddit and Facebook. What the data shows about Ingram’s departure — and Kennedy’s arrival — tells you a lot about where Blazer Nation wants to go.
Mark Ingram is out at UAB. What happens next matters more.
After 11 years and a 99% fan disapproval rating, the Blazers’ athletic director is gone. Andy Kennedy steps in as interim. The real test is the hire that follows.
South Alabama Jaguars: 2026 offense preview — position by position
Major Applewhite takes back the play-calling duties he held as offensive coordinator from 2021-23, with a mandate to make the Jaguars more balanced and more aggressive on offense.
Jacksonville State Gamecocks: 2026 offense preview — position by position
Charles Kelly’s Gamecocks must replace the FBS rushing leader, three starting offensive linemen and their every-down tight end — with a first-year offensive coordinator calling the plays and a dual-threat quarterback who is the most important player on the roster.
UAB Blazers: 2026 defense preview — position by position
UAB’s defense was the program’s identity under Bill Clark — two conference titles in four seasons, a unit that hit hard and made offenses earn every yard. Then Clark stepped down, the decline set in and the bottom fell out under Trent Dilfer. Todd Grantham is here to rebuild it from scratch.
UAB Blazers: 2026 offense preview — position by position
Alex Mortensen has the headset, a rebuilt roster and an offensive identity rooted in nine years at Alabama. Whether this team can run the ball, protect the quarterback and stay out of its own way will determine if Year 1 is the start of a turnaround in Birmingham.
Back When: The Night UAB Walked Into Jordan-Hare
Ranked dead last in the country, the Blazers walked into Auburn's stadium for their Division I-A debut on Aug. 31, 1996. They were supposed to be a punchline. They left with something no preseason ranking could give them.
The Starting 22
22 founding members per school. Pay for one year, you’re in for life.
What Charles Kelly had to say at Jax State Football Media Day
The second-year head coach laid out five priorities for training camp, named newcomers who have impressed, broke down position battles across the roster and shared what 50 years of fall camps have taught him about starting from scratch.
What Tim Pernetti had to say at the American Kickoff
The American Conference commissioner covered the Protect College Sports Act, the conference’s commercial growth, playoff expansion and why 51% of FBS schools deserve a seat at the table.
What Major Applewhite had to say at Sun Belt Media Days
The South Alabama head coach talked about his new coaching staff, quarterback Bishop Davenport's development, regional rivalries and what has to change for the Jaguars to win more games.
What Gerad Parker had to say at Sun Belt Media Days
The third-year Troy head coach talked about what makes Troy different, the "Troy Wi-Fi" mentality, his quarterback room, an offensive line overhaul and the pressure of being picked to win the West.
What Alex Mortensen had to say at American Media Days
The first-year UAB head coach covered his vision for the program, the quarterback room, new defensive coordinator Todd Grantham and what it means to be demanding in the portal era.
Back When: UAB earns its first win in I-A
Ranked dead last in Division I-A, the Blazers went to Legion Field, ran for 317 yards without their starting tailback and gave Gene Bartow a reason to smile.
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