Latest news with #IncarnateWord
NBC Sports
21-05-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward signs his rookie contract
The Titans signed quarterback Cam Ward to his rookie contract, the team announced Wednesday. Ward, the No. 1 overall pick, becomes the seventh player from the team's nine-player draft class to sign with the team. The Titans previously reached deals with safety Kevin Winston Jr. (3rd round), tight end Gunnar Helm (fourth round), receiver Elic Ayomanor (4th round), guard Jackson Slater (5th round), cornerback Marcus Harris (6th round) and running back Kalel Mullings (6th round). Outside linebacker Oluwafemi Oladejo (second round) and receiver Chimere Dike (fourth round) are the team's only remaining unsigned draft picks. Ward is participating in the team's offseason program after taking part in the team's rookie minicamp earlier this month. He takes over in Tennessee after playing 57 college games at Incarnate Word (2020-21), Washington State (2022-23) and the University of Miami (2024). Last season at Miami, Ward was named first-team All-American and was a Heisman finalist after throwing for 4,313 yards and 39 touchdowns. He led the Hurricanes to their first 10-win season since 2017.
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
2025 NFL Draft: From Wing-T to No. 1 overall pick, history says Cam Ward shouldn't be here
DENTON, Texas — When he was Texas Tech's offensive coordinator, Eric Morris recruited Patrick Mahomes. Morris had coached Baker Mayfield, Case Keenum and Davis Webb, too, before taking FCS Incarnate Word's top job. So when the ball was "just ripping" off the hand of an unidentified teenager at Incarnate Word's 2019 football camp, Morris didn't ignore the unexpected caliber of talent. 'Hey, who is this kid?' Morris asked his then-quarterbacks coach Mack Leftwich. Leftwich responded: 'I got no clue.' Morris tracked down Ward's name and highlighted it on the attendance sheet he'd received. He paid a little closer attention to the prospect cycling through lower-body mechanic drills and staff-requested throws, from comebacks to out routes. After camp's end, Morris and Leftwich returned to their offices to review tape. What they found was curious. Over Ward's junior year, this midlevel school located 57 miles southwest from Houston ran the ball three times as often as it passed. Ward's 2019 senior season, Columbia High ran four times as often as it passed. In an era of spread offenses and pass-happy attacks fueled by 7 on 7's growing popularity, the strategy baffled college recruiters. 'There was about four or five Division I coaches that came to West Columbia to see him throw,' Ward's father, Calvin, told Yahoo Sports. 'But they were like …'We like him, but it's not matching the tape.' 'You knew he could play. But would somebody give him a chance?' Six years and four schools later, the NFL is ready to give it. The Tennessee Titans selected Ward with the first overall pick of the 2025 NFL Draft on Thursday. Every first overall pick is by definition a statistical anomaly. But even among that rare crop of talent, Ward's journey from a high school offense featuring three running backs to the top college passer this past season is unlike any of his peers. Ward started two seasons at San Antonio-based Incarnate Word; two at Washington State; and then one Heisman finalist-worthy finale at Miami en route to this stage. The so-confident-he's-just-shy-of-cocky Ward figured: 'All I needed was a chance to play in a quarterback-driven system.' Quarterbacks who believe that typically do not successfully rise from a run-heavy offense to a Heisman-finalist passer. 'If he was still at Incarnate Word, no one would have a f***ing first-round grade on that guy,' one AFC evaluator told Yahoo Sports. '... I'll give him more credit because he found a way to win in a brand new environment.' History says Ward's inexperience as a passer in high school should have stunted him. But the winding road that reality sparked may mean Ward instead has had a chance to develop more methodically than the long history of first-round quarterbacks thrust into starting positions before they're ready to succeed. 'It's an interesting football history,' an AFC general manager told Yahoo Sports, 'that actually puts him in a pretty good spot to be successful.' Cam Ward's journey to the pros included collegiate stops at Incarnate Word, Washington State and Miami. (Todd Rosenberg via Getty Images) Why Cam Ward barely threw the ball in high school Railing against Columbia's decision to de-emphasize its star quarterback is easy. It also doesn't reflect the quantitative reality that shows: Columbia scored 35.8 points per game a year after scoring 19.7 as the team passed less. The school won nine games after triumphing in just five a year prior. So even as Calvin and Patrice Ward bemoaned their son's inability to flash, Cam asked them to stay out of it. Patrice, who coached Columbia girls basketball then, approached football head coach Brent Maschek with, well, feedback. Why wasn't the team maximizing her son's potential? 'Cameron finally said, 'Mama — just please don't say anything else,'' Patrice Ward told Yahoo Sports. Calvin was careful not to treat Maschek as Columbia parents sometimes treated Patrice. 'My wife coached for a long time…so I'm very familiar with the parent and coach interaction,' Calvin said. 'I never wanted to be one of those type of parents.' Cam stayed at Columbia, and the run game continued. In Columbia's version of the Wing-T, the basketball-gifted quarterback played point guard rather than shooting guard. Misdirection and play action aimed to scramble defenses that needed to respect Cam's arm even as he far more often handed it off. Cam began under center, Calvin says, and rolled either right or left. Upon rolling, he'd almost always hand the ball off to one of his three on-field running backs who was running the opposite direction. When he threw, he'd keep most passes on the same side of the field as his rollout. Outwitting was as important as outplaying. 'A quarterback is nothing but a magician in the Wing-T offense,' Calvin Ward said he told Cam. 'While you're doing it, work on your play fakes. Make it hard for the defense.' Columbia's offense was, successfully, hard on defenses. It was also hard on college recruiters. Two or three throws, Leftwich says, wowed Incarnate Word staff like Ward's live workout did. There was the fake handoff followed by a rollout that Ward capped with a deep completion of 70 or so yards. A couple improvisational moments and a lone game Ward's junior year featuring more shotgun and layered concepts. The throwing motion seemed smooth and the passing natural, thanks in part to Ward's work with private quarterbacks coach Steve Van Meter. The sample size was still jarring. 'It was really not a normal recruiting process,' Morris, now FBS North Texas' head coach, told Yahoo Sports. 'Most offenses, especially in Texas, they're going to be in the spread at least some and you're going to be able to see some similarities to what you're going to do schematically. 'There was just nothing schematically [similar] about it.' And yet, Morris knew his recruiting ceiling as Incarnate Word's head coach differed from what he once could have offered on Texas Tech's coaching staff. If Ward was a two-year developmental project who eventually succeeded the quarterback in place, that'd be a win. What happened instead? 'In the span of three months, he went from never having played in the spread before to beating out a guy who was a returning starter and a freshman All-American,' Leftwich said. 'So to say he picked it up pretty quick would be an understatement.' On road to top pick, Ward's third school was the charm The more Ward rose, the more he believed he could do what his recruiting profile said he shouldn't be able to. Improve from handing off every run-pass option in early fall practices to mask the play operation he didn't yet understand to checking out of plays by the COVID-delayed spring season? Check. Upset No. 19-ranked McNeese State on the road in his first college start? Check. Average 47 pass attempts per game in two Incarnate Word seasons after his 10.9-per-game senior year in high school? Check. Ward threw 65 times in one freshman game – 'he probably deserved to throw it 70,' Morris laughs – and surpassed 600 yards in a contest by 2021 fall. Across two seasons (and under 12 months), Ward passed for 6,908 yards and 71 touchdowns. Patrice and Calvin say their son would've been happy finishing out his career at the FCS school that gave Cam a chance. But when the coach who led the charge on that chance left to become Washington State's offensive coordinator, Ward joined Morris in the Pacific Northwest where they could together install the Air Raid concepts that Morris and staff adapted to a more tight end-heavy roster. Ward stayed a second season even after Morris left for North Texas, and then declared for the draft. Ward's cousin Quandre Diggs, a three-time Pro Bowl NFL safety, questioned the decision. 'You not going to go first round, so they're going to look at you as a project,' Diggs says he told Ward last year. 'You don't necessarily take advantage of it at that time, then you'll be back [at] scout-team quarterback and you'll be making the same amount of money if you went to [college] and got the NIL money for a year.' Ward kept his eligibility open during his 12-day declaration. Transfer offers 'were coming left and right,' Patrice said. 'The phones were blowing up.' Ward answered Miami's call — after placing his own call to Diggs. 'Man, what you said, just kind of keep coming up in my head,' Diggs remembers Ward telling him. 'I think I'm going to go back to school.' At Miami, Ward threw for an FBS-best 39 touchdowns to seven interceptions after Washington State campaigns with 23 and 25 touchdowns, respectively. His 4,313 passing yards trailed only Syracuse's Kyle McCord. Ward became the first Miami player to win ACC Player of the Year, and he grew in his pocket comfort, understanding of protections and decision-making. When he pulled his name from the draft last year, Ward said he wanted to solidify himself as a Day 1 pick. At his pro day last month in Miami, he yelled toward the top-selecting Titans during his workout: 'I'm solidifying it.' 'They finally got to see me throw in person,' Ward said. 'That should be all they need to see.' As Wing-T to NFL journey reaches final chapter, Titans and Ward will seek balance As the Titans' leadership trio held a media conference Tuesday, they said what they hadn't wanted to say in prior weeks and months: Teams seeking a trade can stop calling. 'We've come to a consensus,' first-year general manager Mike Borgonzi said. 'The entire organization is [opting] to stay at the pick and I guess you'll find out Thursday night who we pick.' It would have been surprising if the Titans surprised. Tennessee is a quarterback-needy organization with a head coach in Brian Callahan who helped the Cincinnati Bengals go from drafting Joe Burrow first overall in 2020 to representing the AFC in the Super Bowl a year later. Callahan is eager to balance onboarding a rookie with good technique habits without completely overriding the backyard play-making instincts. 'There's an efficiency part that matters, but when it's time to put the cape on and go be Superman, a lot of guys can make big plays in big moments,' Callahan said. 'You want the quarterback to feel comfortable when it's time to make those type of plays or take those types of risks or make a tight window throw. That they have the green light and the confidence from us that it's OK to do.' Ward's inner circle believes striking that balance will be one of the biggest keys to his success in the NFL. They joke that he's still operating from a passing and big-play scarcity mindset with which the Wing-T scarred him. But why shed the chip on his shoulder when he can instead channel it? 'Don't always be the reason you win,' Diggs cautions. 'Be part of the reason you win.' Cam Ward is at the head of this QB NFL Draft class. (Dustin Markland via Getty Images) Sean Brophy, who coached Ward at Incarnate Word and Washington State, described the situational awareness NFL play requires. 'The more you move up in football, the less often you have to be truly special as a quarterback,' Brophy told Yahoo Sports. 'It becomes more of facilitating and putting the ball in play. 'In high school, you're maybe special 10 times a game. In college, it's five. And in the NFL, it's two to three.' Morris thinks back to the Super Bowl MVP he coached and hopes Ward can find the play-calling support that Mahomes has in Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid. No one's equating Ward and Mahomes' current NFL readiness, but Morris understands why the two players he coached draw comparisons in their arm angles and off-script plays as well as their calmness when a pocket is collapsing. Would Ward have gone first overall last year? Unlikely. Talent evaluators from two NFC teams and two AFC teams all told Yahoo Sports they graded Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels more favorably than Ward. One NFC team favored Ward over Drake Maye, while the other three said Ward's grade would rank fourth in last year's class. That doesn't mean his NFL career will pan out less favorably. Daniels was picked second and outplayed the first overall pick Williams last season; and sixth-picked quarterback Bo Nix's success continues to leave evaluators wondering. NFL executives and those close to Ward believe the constant adaptation he's already navigated will help his NFL path. Maschek, the coach who stuck to the Wing-T with Ward on the field, believes his zero-star quarterback is still better off for it. 'A lot of times you see these five-star recruits, they get everything early on,' Maschek told Yahoo Sports. 'It put a little chip on Cam's shoulder and it made him what he is today.'
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
2025 NFL Draft: QB Cam Ward taken 1st overall by Titans, who are striving to be relevant again
When Cam Ward became the first overall pick in the NFL Draft, people watching might have realized it has been weeks since he got any attention. When a quarterback is the no-doubt No. 1 pick, as Ward has been for practically the entire offseason, it's usually a big story. Not with Ward, who received maybe 1 percent of the headlines generated by Shedeur Sanders, and even Jaxson Dart. Maybe that's because of Ward's anonymous start to his college career at Incarnate Word, or the general consensus that this quarterback class isn't very good as a whole. The Tennessee Titans are to blame too, and that's a reason they drafted Ward to start the NFL Draft on Thursday night. The Titans aren't one of the NFL's marquee teams, and they really fall off the radar when they're bad. The Titans have lost double-digit games in each of the past three seasons and bottomed out at 3-14 last season. There might be excitement in Nashville about a fresh start with Ward, but it won't generate much buzz across the NFL landscape. For the Titans to be relevant again they need to be good, and now that pressure is on Ward's shoulders. And funny enough, the spotlight wasn't on Ward for even a minute when he was picked first overall. Everyone's attention shifted to the Jacksonville Jaguars' mega-trade with the Cleveland Browns for the second pick to select cornerback/receiver Travis Hunter, which was reported as Ward was being announced as the top pick. It's OK. Ward is used to being overlooked, going all the way back to high school. Incarnate Word has produced two NFL players, according to Pro Football Reference. Running back Jacob Kibodi played one game for the Cleveland Browns last season. He had five carries for 24 yards in the season finale. Tight end Cole Wick got 11 games for the 2016 Detroit Lions and 2018 San Francisco 49ers. He caught two passes for 18 yards. That's it. Not even a full season combined among all of its football alumni. Incarnate Word is a solid FCS program, having won four conference championships since the 2018 season. It started playing football in 2009 so we shouldn't expect many more than two NFL players from there. But it's still a surprising origin story for the No. 1 pick of the NFL Draft. The reason Ward started at a smaller college was that he didn't get many chances to show off his passing talents in high school. He ran the Wing-T offense during high school in the small town of West Columbia, Texas. He didn't have one FBS scholarship offer coming out of high school. For Ward, it doesn't matter where he started. Ward finished his career with an NCAA Division I record 158 touchdown passes at Incarnate Word, Washington State and a final season at Miami, and is third all-time with 18,189 passing yards. It's true that this QB class isn't as good as last year's or even close, but Ward clearly separated himself. The Titans were strangely secretive about a pick that everyone knew was coming for months, but actions speak. Tennessee's entire offseason was built around drafting Ward with the first pick; there was no indication that the Titans were considering any other option. Ward is deserving of being the first pick and the start of Tennessee's way back from being the worst team in the NFL last season. He is a natural playmaker with a good arm and plus athleticism. His college production was off the charts. He has valuable experience coming in, after playing at three different colleges. There's a lot to like about him as a prospect. Many other players got way more attention leading up to this draft, but Ward has the ability to make everyone take notice of him and the Titans once the season starts. "What I can bring to a franchise, no other player can bring that," Ward said at the NFL scouting combine. There has been criticism of the Titans in recent seasons, from their disjointed decisions at general manager and coach, to the roster building that left them with a team that won three games. But the same things were said about the Houston Texans two years ago, and the Washington Commanders last year. Then they each made a franchise changing pick at quarterback. Those two teams were afterthoughts before C.J. Stroud and Jayden Daniels came aboard. When the NFL releases its schedule this offseason, both of those teams will be all over the prime-time slate. Washington will probably get the maximum amount of appearances. You don't hear much about those franchises being dysfunctional anymore. Ward isn't guaranteed to be Stroud, Daniels or even Bo Nix or Michael Penix Jr., but that's the Titans' dream. They passed on the two players seen as generational prospects, Travis Hunter and Abdul Carter, to take Ward. It's a leap of faith. But the right quarterback can turn around a franchise in a way a defensive end or even a unique receiver/cornerback can not. The Titans' rebuild is now relying heavily on Ward. If they're right, they'll have no problem generating conversation for the next few years to come.
American Press
04-05-2025
- Sport
- American Press
Fontenot delivers in Cowgirl win
Nyjah Fontenot is greeted by teammates after delivering winning hit Saturday. (McNeese Athletics photo) The Cowgirls are making walk-off wins a habit. Top-seeded McNeese was pushed to the brink for the second time in the Lake Charles bracket, winning only with one final swing. Nyjah Fontenot's sharp single up the middle scored pinch-runner Rylee Eyster from second with two out in the bottom of the seventh Saturday to give McNeese a 4-3 victory over Incarnate Word. The win was the Cowgirls' third straight walk-off win in postseason play at Joe Miller Ballpark, dating back to the championship game of 2022. Fontenot's winner came after the Cardinal (28-20) had rallied from three runs down to tie the game at 3-3. 'That was a really good softball game,' said McNeese head coach James Landreneau. 'We bounced back from them tying it and regained the momentum. It's a big win.' The victory sends the top-seeded Cowgirls (39-18) into the title game on Sunday at 1 p.m. They will face the Saturday night's matchup winner between No. 4 UIW and No. 5 Lamar. McNeese will have to win once on Sunday to host the best-of-3 championship series against No. 2 seed Southeastern starting Thursday. An Arkansas transfer, Fontenot ensured McNeese stayed in the winner's bracket. 'I had an idea of what I wanted to do,' said Fontenot. 'I didn't want to overdo it, so I just put a good swing on it.' The rally started with a one-out pinch-hit single from Gwinn Hall. Eyster ran for Hall, and one out later was on second, after Kassidy Chance singled to leave, setting up Fontenot. 'Nyjah was able to come up with that big hit for us,' said Landreneau. 'We just keep working and trying to make something happen.' Senior Reese Reyna had another big tournament game. The shortstop went 3-for-3 and scored two runs. She has four straight hits in this tournament. 'Just playing one pitch at a time,' said Reyna. 'We trust everybody in our lineup. You just have to do it when you get your shot.' Rylie Bouvier drove in a pair of runs on a sacrifice fly and double as McNeese took a 3-0 lead after four innings. But a two-run homer by Prisias Quintero, her first of the season, cut the McNeese lead to 3-2 in the sixth. In the seventh, the Cardinals tied the game with a run without a hit, scoring on a groundout to second to tie the game. McNeese freshman Maddie Taylor started, was replaced for two-thirds of an inning by Ryann Schexnayder, and returned to get the win and improve to 17-7. The Pitcher of the Year finished her 6⅓ innings of work, allowing just one run on five hits, striking out five and walking three. The victory was McNeese's 44th straight over the last three years at home against Southland opponents and 16th in their last 17 games overall. 'I thought Maddie pitched a really good game,' said Landreneau. 'When I took her out, we told her to stay in the game, we might bring her back. That's not always easy, but she did it.' The game was originally scheduled for Friday night; however, the heavy rains washed things back to Saturday and into Sunday.
NBC Sports
30-04-2025
- Sport
- NBC Sports
Tyler Lockett: "Definitely excited" to do my part for Cam Ward
Titans quarterback Cam Ward was joined in the team's draft class by two wide receivers, but he will also have an experienced hand to rely on during his rookie season. Tyler Lockett's signing became official this week and the longtime Seahawk told reporters in Tennessee that he's very familiar with his new teammate. Lockett's former Seahawks teammate Quandre Diggs is Ward's cousin, so he's had eyes on Ward since the quarterback started his college days at Incarnate Word and he paid even closer attention once Ward moved closer to Seattle by transferring to Washington State. Lockett said he's 'definitely excited' by the chance to be 'able to team up with him and do my part' to help the first overall pick. The 10-year vet added that he's looking forward to playing a leadership role overall. 'No matter how great I play, no matter what type of plays that I make, people are still going to have their opinions of whether I still have it, or don't,' Lockett said, via the team's website. 'I understand the politics of the game, I understand sometimes there are so many things you need as a receiver to work out just for you to be able to get the ball. But there is so much more that people don't see that teams require and that teams need, which is the leadership role, or that selfless character, or different stuff like that. Sometimes it's not about stats, but it's about how you build each other up. So, for me, I sacrificed a lot of stuff last year for the better of the team, and I just believe that is what you want to do in order to be able to try and help the team be at its best.' If all goes according to plan for the Titans, Lockett will be a plus for the team as both a receiver and a leader.
