Melifonwu Sticks With Syracuse, Despite Late Michigan Offer

With his mother at his side, Grafton star Ifeatu Melifonwu made it official, signing with Syracuse Wednesday.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Even late interest from one of football's most recognizable coaches, and an offer to play for one of the NCAA's most prestigious programs didn't sway Grafton's Ifeatu Melifonwu.

The star athlete, who helped lead Grafton to the MIAA Division 3 state championship game at Gillette Stadium in December, officially signed with Syracuse, the school he committed to last summer, during a ceremony in the school library Wednesday.

Melifonwu's destination was one of the state's biggest questions heading into National Signing Day, as Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh personally attended one of Melifonwu's basketball games earlier this month, and the Wolverines formally extended a scholarship offer last Friday, just as Melifonwu was leaving Ann Arbor for a final trip to Syracuse.

Two Central Mass Seans Prepare for Major College Football

Shepherd Hill's Sean McKeon (86) and St. John's (Shrewsbury)'s Sean Ragan (77) will each take their games to college football's highest level next season.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

On the eve of National Signing Day, a pair of Seans from the Heart of the Commonwealth each have plans to play college football at the major-conference level next season.

Sean McKeon, an athletic tight end and defensive end, has already begun his journey. The former Shepherd Hill star enrolled mid-year at the University of Michigan, and is currently getting settled academically and athletically in Ann Arbor.

"So far it's been a great experience," McKeon said of his time on campus so far. "It was a little rough getting used to my class schedule and workouts, but once I got settled in everything was fine. Class is a lot of work, but there is a lot of academic support here for me. The workouts are hard but, obviously, that's expected at one of the best football schools in the country."

Sean Ragan, a versatile and bruising offensive lineman, will officially end his recruitment tomorrow when he signs his National Letter of Intent to play football for Boston College.

Postgame Blog: St. John's Pulls Away from Shepherd Hill

St. John's lineman Sean Ragan (77), a Boston College commit, had a day-long battle with Shepherd Hill tight end/defensive end Sean McKeon (86), who will head west to play for Jim Harbaugh at Michigan next year.

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Here is your quick reminder that this blog is not a complete recap of St. John's (Shrewsbury)'s 19-8 win over Shepherd Hill. If you'd like a full story, along with some highlights and video interviews with several Pioneer stars, head over to ESPN Boston High Schools.

That being said, let's get to a few of my takeaways from the Pioneers' big win in this battle of perennial Central Mass powers.

Is the Big Ten "Back?"

By Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

As someone who attended a Big Ten university, I can tell you that most Big Ten fans have an almost mythic reverence for what the conference "used to be."

There is this collective thought that, once upon a time, the Big Ten was by far the best conference in college football. That Ohio State and Michigan played each other ranked in the Top-5 every year, that every other school in the conference filled out the Top-25, and that the national champion surely came from America's Holy Land on an annual basis.

Basically, Big Ten fans remember a time when the Big Ten was the SEC of 2006-2012. It's similar to the way Fox News viewers remember the America of their childhood.

Week 14 College Football Primer (With Picks): Rivalry Week!

This year's Iron Bowl will be hard-pressed to match last year's Kick-Six, but a playoff spot is still on the line for Alabama.

Ed. Note- Editor Joe Parello went a perfect 6-0 with his picks last week. There's no real reason to put that here at the top, he (I) just wanted to brag. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

 By Andy Dougherty (@AndyDougherty10) with a cameo by Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

The last weekend of college football’s regular season features a number of rivalry games with significant implications. Arizona and Mississippi will host two of the biggest intra-state rivalry games in their histories. But an even bigger rivalry will be renewed in Alabama.

Game of the Week

Alabama has waited all year for this one. No. 15 Auburn visits Tuscaloosa to take on the top ranked Crimson Tide in the Iron Bowl. Last year in a 28-28 game, Alabama lined up for a game-winning field goal only to see it returned the other way for an Auburn touchdown as time expired. That result propelled Auburn to the national championship game and relegated Alabama to the Sugar Bowl, which the Tide lost to Oklahoma.

Things have changed this year. Alabama has been the nation’s best team while Auburn has struggled in recent weeks. The Tigers showed some of last year’s magic in close wins over Kansas State, South Carolina and Ole Miss, but they faltered in a game they should have won against unranked Texas A&M before getting blown out by Georgia.

Auburn can still be dangerous with Nick Marshall under center, but Alabama has much more to play for. It will be exciting to see how much of a fight Auburn can put up with nothing to lose.

Football Weekend Roundup: Good, Bad, and Ugly

 By Jeremy Conlin (@jeremy_conlin) and Joe Parello (@HerewegoJoe)

Every week, editors Jeremy Conlin and Joe Parello bring you the good, the bad and the ugly from the pro and college football weekend that was.

The Good

Oregon

They picked up the most impressive win of the college football weekend and looked rather convincing doing it, especially in the second half. People might knock it because it was against a Big Ten team (more on them later), but Michigan State will, in all likelihood, blow through the rest of their schedule undefeated and be a good bet to be the No. 4 seed in the playoff (my assumption is that a one-loss Big Ten team would get the nod over a one-loss Big XII team, and I don't see Oklahoma or Baylor running the table).

They're better known for their speed all over the field, but it was their defensive line that really made the difference in the game. After being unable to get off the field on third down for most of the first half, the Oregon front four stepped up in the second half and got consistent pressure on Connor Cook, which spurred a 28-0 run to end the game.

Oregon moved up to No. 2 in the AP Poll, and now holds the second-most first-place votes in the Coaches' Poll (although they're still only in fourth, behind Alabama and Oklahoma). It would probably take a loss from one of the teams above them for the Ducks to leapfrog anyone, but both Alabama certainly has a tougher schedule ahead of them - Oregon has clear sailing until October 11, when they play at UCLA, and their only other real test comes at home - they host Stanford November 1. Meanwhile, Alabama has to play four currently ranked teams, two on the road (at No. 14 Ole Miss and at No. 10 LSU) and two at home (vs. No. 7 Texas A&M and vs. No. 5 Auburn). With so many good teams, it seems unlikely that any team in the SEC will run the table, which would mean any even one-loss team from the Pac-12 would probably make the playoff. Right now, all signs point to Oregon.

-JC

Long and Suite Preview: The Big Ten/Notre Dame

Few quarterbacks will have more on their plate in 2013 than Nebraska's Taylor Martinez.

By Joe Parello  @HerewegoJoe

The Big Ten is done expanding for now, but everyone knows the conference has always coveted Notre Dame.

And why not. The Irish are a bona-fide national brand situated squarely in the conference's geographic footprint, and they already have rivalries with Big Ten schools Michigan, Michigan State and Purdue, along with several historic encounters with Penn State and Ohio State under their belt.

The Irish almost make too much sense in the Big Ten.