West Virginia QB Grier to sit out bowl, prep for draft

New Mexico State hosts recruits, has six verbal commitments

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. — West Virginia quarterback Will Grier won’t play for the 15th-ranked Mountaineers in the Camping World Bowl against No. 17 Syracuse, instead focusing on preparation for the NFL draft.

Grier announced his decision Saturday in a statement released by West Virginia.

The senior joins about a dozen highprofile college players who already have announced they will skip their team’s bowl games. The list includes Houston defensive tackle Ed Oliver, LSU cornerback Greedy Williams, Arizona State receiver N’Keal Harry and Michigan defensive tackle Rashan Gary. On Friday, West Virginia senior offensive tackle Yodny Cajuste announced he would not play in the bowl game.

Grier was a Heisman contender this season and a finalist for the Maxwell Award as player of the year. He averaged 351 yards passing and threw 37 touchdown passes.

NEW MEXICO STATE: The Aggies hosted 14 more players on campus for official visits this weekend. Six were high school players, eight from junior colleges. Among them, David Clayton is a 6-foot-3 star receiver from Grapevine, Texas with offers from Colorado State, Hawaii and Abilene Christian.

Division 1 teams can sign players early from Dec. 19-21 prior to the regular signing period in February.

NMSU has six verbal commitments, including Tony Nicholson, who received his release from Baylor in September and is listed at 5-10 and 190 pounds. He had 277 yards in 2017 on 31 receptions. He said he would graduate from Baylor on Saturday and will enroll at NMSU next semester.

“New Mexico State seemed family oriented,” said Nicholson, who was receiving interest from Tulsa and Texas San Antonio. “The coaches knew what they wanted and what they would do with my skill level.”

NMSU has verbal commitments also from Peoria High School (Ariz.) running back Juwaun Price, El Paso Chapin defensive lineman Lama Lavea, West Ranch High (Santa Clarita, Calif.) quarterback Weston Eget and Crowley County High (Texas) defensive back Ronnie Sanders.

AUBURN: Freshman running back Asa Martin says he plans to transfer.

Martin announced his plans Saturday on Twitter but didn’t indicate any possible destinations. The former Alabama Mr. Football says signing with Auburn “was the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Martin carried only 13 times for 57 yards this season. He played in five games, one too many to qualify for a redshirt year. But in two of those games, the four-star recruit didn’t log a carry, and in a third, he ran the ball only once.

The 5-foot-11, 209-pound Martin ran for 2,228 yards and 33 touchdowns as a high school senior.

Auburn quarterback Jarrett Stidham already announced plans to skip his senior season and enter the NFL draft.

ALABAMA: Daxton Hill, the No. 1 safety prospect in the 2019 class from Booker T. Washington High in Tulsa, Okla., announced his decommitment from Michigan and simultaneous pledge to the Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday night.

OHIO STATE: Brian Hartline has been promoted to permanent receivers coach. The former Buckeyes player and NFL veteran was made interim coach when Zach Smith was fired in July because of domestic abuse allegations.

FCS PLAYOFFS: In Fargo, N.D., Easton Stick threw for three touchdowns, Bruce Anderson ran for 124 yards with a touchdown and top-seeded North Dakota State advanced to the FCS semifinals for the eighth straight year with a 35-0 win over eighth-seeded Colgate on Saturday.

The defending national champions, who have won 19 in a row, are home against league rival South Dakota State, the fifthseed, next weekend.

■ In Kennesaw, Ga., Taryn Christion threw for one touchdown and ran for another — the clincher with 2:22 to play — and South Dakota State held off fourth-seeded Kennesaw State 27-17.

■ In Ogden, Utah, Chris Ferguson threw for two touchdowns, Ramon Jefferson ran for a late fourth-quarter score and the Maine defense stymied second-seeded Weber State 23-18 Friday night to reach the semifinals for the first time.

■ In Cheney, Wash., Eric Barriere accounted for four touchdowns and Sam McPherson scored on a 35-yard run with 26 seconds left to lift third-seeded Eastern Washington to a 34-29 win over sixthseeded UC Davis and will host Maine next weekend.

DIVISION II: Valdosta State (13-0) and Ferris State (15-0) won semifinals Saturday and meet for the national championship this coming Saturday in McKinney, Texas.