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WVU Aide Pushing His Players On the Field and Pushing Himself Off It

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6 months ago

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MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – How many marathon runners are currently working on major college football staffs? 

That unlikely question is more apt to pop up on The Onion than it is Phil Steele’s 2025 College Football Preview, which about to hit newsstands any day now, according to my X feed. 

Well, there’s at least one marathoner for sure, and he’s working for coach Rich Rodriguez at West Virginia University.

Ryan Nehlen and familyAssistant wide receivers coach Ryan Nehlen recently competed in the Buffalo Marathon, and get this, he ran a time fast enough to qualify for next year’s Boston Marathon.

The 130th Boston Marathon will take place on Monday, April 20, 2026, and Nehlen believes he might be able to fit that into his busy football schedule.

The qualifying window for the 2026 race opened on Sept. 1, 2024, and it closes this fall in mid-September. According to the Boston Marathon website, runners can submit their qualifying times for race approval prior to the formal registration period.

Nehlen needed to cover the 26.2-mile distance in less than three hours to earn a qualifying time for the Boston Marathon. He said his time this year was a 20-minute improvement over his previous best clocking.

“The Boston Marathon basically has 30,000 slots, and it depends on the year,” Nehlen said last week. “Some years, not all those people will qualify and other years there might be a little bit more than 30,000 who qualify, and they have to make the time a little tougher, but I should be okay because I got the time by about four minutes.”

Since his days playing for coaches Bill Stewart and Dana Holgorsen at West Virginia University, the former receiver has always kept himself in great shape at the various places he’s worked during his climb up the coaching ladder.

Those stops included stints at Marshall, Glenville State, Akron, Michigan, West Virginia, McNeese State and now back to West Virginia when he rejoined Neal Brown’s staff in 2024 as a senior offensive assistant/pass game specialist.

When Rodriguez took over for Brown last December, he kept Nehlen on board and reassigned him to wide receivers, where he works with Ryan Garrett and Logan Bradley.

Back in 2020, during his first stint on Brown’s staff as an analyst, Nehlen said he really began taking running seriously when COVID shut down the country.

“Everything was shut down, and I kind of just got into running, went online and registered for (a marathon) and ran it,” he shrugged. “When you research it, sub-three hours is really a standard that a lot of (recreational) marathoners try to achieve.”

Nehlen said running was born out of a desire to maintain a healthy lifestyle and to remain competitive in some manner or form.

“I’ve always wanted to stay in shape ever since I played here,” he explained. “Between (WVU strength and conditioning coach) Mike Joseph, Darl Bauer, Kevin McCadam and Bryan Fitzpatrick, all of them are doing great now. Darl is head strength coach at Troy; Bryan is the head guy at Navy and Kevin is at Houston. Those guys instilled a work ethic in me, and I kept it going.

“I’m done with football, but I still miss the actual physical part of it and running is obviously a physical component,” Nehlen continued. “I can compete with myself or other people, and I can get better as I age. As you get older, you really can get better at it.”

As a college football player, Nehlen endured the wear and tear of a four-year playing career but not necessarily the wear and tear of a lifelong runner, so his knees and joints have remained relatively unscathed.

He’s also got outstanding upper body and core strength because of his years preparing for grueling college football seasons, which can be helpful in running. It’s just not very common to see 200-pounders out there running marathons.

“I’m a bigger runner, but me having a good strength foundation with lifting all those years has made my legs, knees and tendons strong,” he noted. “For the most part, I’ve been able to stay away from the nicks that can happen to longtime runners.”

Nehlen, the son of WVU equipment manager Danny and Janie Nehlen and the grandson of Hall of Fame Mountaineer coach Don Nehlen, said distance running can be therapeutic. He doesn’t wear headphones when he’s out running the streets early in the morning before activity begins in the Milan Puskar Center.

His preferred course takes him from the Puskar Center parking lot up and around the WVU Law School and over to the Engineering Building on the Evansdale campus. He continues to the WVU Coliseum complex where he makes the loop and continues through Suncrest back to the Puskar Center. 

He estimates the length of the course he runs is about six miles, which he does daily.

“I just get out there in the mornings and try and avoid all the potholes as much as I can,” he laughed.

Nehlen admits it will become a challenge remaining in peak shape during football season. In the meantime, he said this summer he is focusing on speed training. His University High friend Matt Schiffbauer was an NCAA qualifier at Marshall and has been giving Nehlen some helpful pointers on distance running.

“He was really close to qualifying for the Olympics, and he actually lives in the Boston area now,” Nehlen said.

Nehlen indicated his plan is to continue running marathons and see how much he can improve.

“I’m going to push my limits,” he said. “I definitely think there is room for improvement. I am still new to it and I’m still getting better. The nice thing about it is I can get better as I get older.”

Of course, coaching football pays the bills, and that remains his No. 1 priority.

“I’m a football coach, and that is my main focus, along with my family (which includes wife Micah and their daughters Penelope and Stella),” he said. “(Marathoning) is kind of my next love.”

Nehlen believes the coaching profession sometimes gets a bad rap for not always promoting healthy lifestyles.

“I’m an example of being a football coach and still choosing to live a healthy lifestyle and being in shape,” he pointed out. “In my opinion, the better shape I’m in the more energy I’m going to have to coach my players. If you lead by example, they are going to look at that and say, ‘Man, my coach is working his butt off, and I’m going to work my butt off as well.'”

Once Nehlen knows for sure that he’s qualified for the Boston Marathon, he will then begin the planning process and his training schedule to correspond with his coaching responsibilities. Fortunately, Nehlen said the spring practice calendar Rodriguez established last year should fit in nicely with the Boston Marathon.

“If we work off the same schedule as last year, we’ll be done with spring ball in early April, so it should work out for me to get up there,” he said.

When Nehlen prepared to run the Buffalo Marathon, he said he averaged about 55 miles per week. 

It’s not a race you can run in its entirety while preparing for it.

“I just try and shut it off as much as I can, miles one through 13 or 14, and then between miles 14 and 20, you’ve got to lock in a little bit because that’s when it’s going to start getting tough,” Nehlen said. “Those last miles are all about finishing and having some grit and a hard-edge about yourself.”

A “hard-edge” about yourself?

That sounds awful familiar, doesn’t it?

 



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NIL

Memphis HC Penny Hardaway: I ‘Fined’ Aaron Bradshaw NIL Money to Motivate Him

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48 minutes ago

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December 19, 2025

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How do you get somebody’s attention? Well, one way to get a college basketball player’s attention is by taking away their NIL money, like Memphis Tigers head coach Penny Hardaway did with junior forward Aaron Bradshaw.

“Aaron Bradshaw has played for some great coaching staffs, but they haven’t figured out how to motivate him, so Penny Hardaway found a way to motivate Aaron Bradshaw. He started taking his NIL money away,” it was revealed on the broadcast of the Tigers’ Wednesday night loss to the Vanderbilt Commodores. 

“He said, ‘I fined him for showing up late. I fined him for violating our dress code. Three grand here, three grand there. Guess who started to show up early? Guess who started to put the effort in?’ … He [Hardaway] takes that fine money and puts it back in the bucket and has some guys further down the roster reaping the cash benefit of those fines.”

Message received.

Memphis is the third stop for Bradshaw in his collegiate career, with the former five-star recruit spending his freshman season at Kentucky (2023-24) and sophomore season at Ohio State (2024-25). Through nine games this season, six of which he has started, Bradshaw is averaging a career-high 7.1 points and 2.9 rebounds in 15.4 minutes per game, while shooting 50.0% from the field.

Hardaway, who starred at Memphis for two seasons as a player (1991-92, 1992-93), is in his eighth season as the Tigers’ head coach, with Memphis a combined 166-74 under him since the 2018-19 season, highlighted by two American Tournament titles and three NCAA Tournament appearances. However, Memphis is off to a 4-6 start this season, with three of its six losses being against ranked opponents in Purdue, Louisville and Vanderbilt.

Maybe if Hardaway takes away the entire team’s NIL dough, Memphis will run the table in conference play?

MORE COLLEGE HOOPS: Last Night in College Basketball: No. 13 Vanderbilt Passed OT Test vs. Memphis

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Joel Klatt can’t stand NIL re-signing announcements

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2 hours ago

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December 19, 2025

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Texas Tech Linked to $2.4 Million College Football Transfer Quarterback

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3 hours ago

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December 19, 2025

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The Texas Tech Red Raiders defeated the BYU Cougars 34-7 in the Big 12 Championship Game. It secured them the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. They’ll play either the No. 12 seed James Madison Dukes or No. 5 seed Oregon Ducks in the Orange Bowl.

While Texas Tech strives for its first national championship in program history, it’s never too early to look into the future. The Red Raiders will face several major changes after the 2025 season, including from quarterback, Behren Morton. He’s using his final year of eligibility, while ESPN’s Matt Miller gives him a fifth-round grade in the 2026 NFL Draft.

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The transfer portal doesn’t officially open until Jan. 2, but On3 reports that over 800 players are already set to enter. With Morton set to leave, Texas Tech could find his replacement in the portal.

Texas Tech Red Raiders head coach Joey McGuire.James Snook-Imagn Images

Texas Tech Red Raiders head coach Joey McGuire.James Snook-Imagn Images

In an article, On3’s Pete Nakos, links the Red Raiders to Cincinnati Bearcats transfer quarterback Brendan Sorsby.

“Viewed as one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the transfer portal, Texas Tech is the school to watch early on for Brendan Sorsby,” Nakos wrote. “He’s also expected to evaluate the NFL draft, and Indiana and Tennessee are other schools to know.”

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This season, Sorsby has completed 207 of 336 passes for 2,800 yards, 27 touchdowns, five interceptions and a 155.1 passer rating. He’s also rushed for 580 yards and nine touchdowns on 100 carries.

Sorsby is going to be highly sought after, with Rivals placing him as the third-ranked player in the transfer portal. His On3 NIL valuation of $2.4 million is tied for the 10th-highest in college football.

However, that may not be a problem for Texas Tech, which had the top-ranked transfer portal class in 2025. After bringing in 21 players, the Red Raiders had an adjusted NIL value of $7.6 million.

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As the official transfer portal period approaches, Texas Tech’s quarterback situation will be one to watch. With Morton playing his final year of eligibility, the Red Raiders could already be exploring other options.

The Red Raiders will play in the Orange Bowl at noon ET Jan. 1 on ESPN and the ESPN app.

Related: Texas A&M QB Marcel Reed Shares NIL Update Before College Football Playoff

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Dec 18, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.



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Anonymous coach names biggest fraud in the College Football Playoff

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3 hours ago

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December 19, 2025

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There’s always plenty of argument about who belongs and doesn’t belong in the College Football Playoff, and that was certainly the case this season, especially given the debates around that final spot coming between Notre Dame and Miami.

But looking over the 2025 bracket, it’s one of the most recognizable SEC programs that is getting the biggest criticism from those in the coaching business.

Asked to name the biggest fraud in this year’s College Football Playoff, it wasn’t one of the Group of Five teams that got the most attention, but none other than Ole Miss, which made the field on the back of a historic season.

Ole Miss, a fraud?

That’s according to one FBS coach, who doesn’t believe the Rebels have a good case.

“They’ve had so many distractions with Lane Kiffin leaving, and Oklahoma is probably their only good win this year,” an unnamed Group of Five head coach said of the Rebels heading into the College Football Playoff, according to The Athletic.

Whoever it was who said it, he apparently wasn’t alone. Far from it.

Taking a vote from more than two dozen anonymous coaches heading into the playoff, the publication found that to be, if not a consensus opinion, then something like it.

Ole Miss won out among the various playoff teams with 29 percent of respondents saying it was the most fraudulent team in the College Football Playoff this season.

A wild year for Ole Miss

Picking on the Rebels for not being playoff-worthy sounds counter-intuitive, given the unprecedentedly good season they’ve had on the field.

For the first time ever, Ole Miss completed an 11-win regular season and qualified for its first College Football Playoff berth.

Then came the drama. The head coach who brought them that success became the biggest name in what emerged as college football’s most hectic coaching carousel.

Lane Kiffin was named as the leading target for two other SEC programs and ultimately departed the Rebels for conference rival LSU after winning the Egg Bowl game.

Coach highlights Rebels’ schedule

The concern around Ole Miss’ perceived quality of schedule doesn’t seem like a concern at first glance.

It played three teams that made the College Football Playoff, beating both Oklahoma and Tulane, and losing a closely-fought matchup on the road against SEC champion Georgia.

Otherwise, the Rebels beat lesser SEC opponents like Kentucky, South Carolina, Florida, and Arkansas.

The win against then-No. 4 LSU doesn’t look as good as it did at the time, given the Tigers’ fall from grace that led to Brian Kelly’s ouster.

There was no universe in which an 11-1 Ole Miss was being left out of the College Football Playoff. Whether it truly belongs will be decided on the field, which can be said for any team in the bracket.

But the Rebels weren’t alone

Not far behind in the fraud poll were two surprising names. Big 12 champion Texas Tech and SEC runner-up Alabama were both decried as playoff frauds with 17 percent of the vote each.

Texas Tech being included is truly puzzling, given the quality of its defense, but those asked expressed concern for the offense, in particular quarterback Behren Morton.

In second place was “no answer,” as 21 percent of those asked didn’t provide any hints as to who they thought were frauds.

Group of Five selection James Madison received 8 percent of the vote as a perceived fraud, while Oregon and Oklahoma each got 4 percent.

Alabama not getting respect

One defensive coordinator from the SEC and a defensive assistant from the Big Ten took issue with the Crimson Tide being included among the dozen playoff teams this year.

“Alabama should have, like, five losses this year. They shouldn’t be there,” the SEC defensive coordinator said.

And the Big Ten coach added: “I’ve watched them. They’re not that good this year. I didn’t see enough from them to get this chance.”

(Athletic)

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P.J. Fleck reveals Gophers’ mindset and strategy in NIL contract negotiations

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4 hours ago

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December 18, 2025

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There are hundreds of conversations happening behind closed doors of college football programs across the country right now. Between player-contract negotiations, coaching staff turnover and transfer portal decisions, the sport has transformed into the wild west.

Minnesota has already seen 13 of its own players announce their intentions to enter the transfer portal when it officially opens next month. They’ve also had notable players such as Drake Lindsey, Jalen Smith and Maverick Baranowski reveal their plans to return next season.

“I don’t think anything in elementary education taught you how to negotiate contracts in college. Even as you look at the past of you being a head football coach, everything you’ve gained experience on — and then you get into this world of new college athletics — and unless you’re a head coach that backs away and says, ‘Hey, I am just gonna coach football.’ You have to be so in line with your chief of staff, your GM, director of player personnel… You have to talk more than you ever have, and have meetings more than you ever had,” P.J. Fleck said.

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Minnesota has seen notable players like Bucky Irving, Phillip Daniels, and Athan Kaliakmanis enter the transfer portal over the years, but it’s routinely among the best programs in the country at retaining players. For example, past and present Gophers stars Justin Walley, Tyler Nubin, and Darius Taylor have turned down more lucrative offers to stay at Minnesota.

“It’s just a new era of college athletics, and we’ve embraced it. I think Gerrit Chernoff and his staff do an amazing job. Our retention rate, as of right now, is really, really high. Everybody does it on their own time frame. That’s one thing I’ve learned,” Fleck said.

“Everybody has representation. Everybody has their own view of not necessarily what they’re worth, and what they want to be able to get out of that, and what they value, and you respect that.”

Many fans and traditionalists are frustrated by what college sports have become, but it’s the new reality. It’s essentially one-year contracts for every player on your team, and they’re able to re-negotiate every offseason, with no salary cap or clear market. Fleck has historically had boundaries with the amount of information he shares about the inner workings of his Gophers’ program, but he shared a legitimate inside look on Wednesday.

The Gophers are currently in the stage of the offseason where they’re re-recruiting the entire roster. We likely won’t know the details or specifics of the contracts, but it was interesting to hear Fleck peel back the curtain.

Gophers news, rumors and analysis





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Tulane rides wave of economic impact into college football postseason

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5 hours ago

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December 18, 2025

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KEY TAKEAWAYS:

  • Tulane’s playoff appearance is generating millions in donations, NIL funding and local business revenue
  • Athletic donations jumped 373% year over year, totaling $1.68 million in just over a month
  • NIL collectives raised more than $1.1 million following the conference championship
  • Uptown retailers report record merchandise sales tied to Green Wave success

After being the first Louisiana university (sorry, LSU fans) to qualify for the college football playoffs, Tulane University, its athletic program, NIL organizations, and surrounding Uptown New Orleans businesses are seeing a multi-million dollar economic impact. From surging athletic donations to increasing merchandise sales, the Green Wave’s success on the field is translating into a massive green influx off of it.

“Since last week, we’ve taken in about 1,000 orders on the website, sold over 2,000 hoodies and 1,000 shirts, and a lot of the playoff merchandise,” said David Cariello, owner of the Campus Connection, an off-campus Tulane merchandise retailer on Broadway Street. Cariello has worked there since college and has owned Campus Connection since 2008. “This is unlike anything I have ever seen. Halfway through December, we are already at where we would be in a really good month, and by the end of the month, we may be at three times our typical monthly revenue.”
Cariello added that Campus Connection still has Tulane playoff merchandise available for fans interested in purchasing swag before Saturday’s game.

The American Conference champion Tulane Green Wave will travel to Ole Miss on Saturday to play in the first round of the college football playoffs. The game is scheduled for 2:30 p.m., and the winner will take on Georgia on Jan. 1, 2026, at the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans.


Ole Miss athletic officials are projecting a $74 million economic impact in Oxford for the playoff game, but, at home, in New Orleans, the institution and surrounding business community also are witnessing a financial windfall that administrators and shop owners describe as “unprecedented and magical.”

Tulane University Director of Athletics David Harris announced that between Nov. 12 and Dec. 16, the department received $1.68 million in donations from 519 donors. The figures represent a staggering 373 percent increase in dollar amount and an 83 percent rise in the number of donors compared to the same period last year.

Sam Scelfo, owner of the iconic Gambino’s Bakery in Metairie, has donated to Tulane University since 1973 and recalls his first donation of $100. For 52 years, Scelfo has consistently donated to the university and the athletics program.

“It’s magical what Tulane football has done this season. This college football playoff run is not just good for the university; it’s beneficial to the city as a whole, and it kind of mirrors the energy of New Orleans when the Saints are successful,” said Scelfo, who will attend Saturday’s game. “Even my LSU friends have called this past week to congratulate me. This season will breed success across the entire university – national recognition of the athletics program and university, more investment dollars, donations, applications – it’s just a win, win, win across the board.”

The financial impact extends into the modern frontier of college sports: Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). Michael Arata, co-founder of the Fear The Wave Collective, reports the collective has raised over $1.1 million in NIL donations since the conference championship game. Arata can recall the early days of the Fear the Wave Collective in 2021 when he and co-founder Jimmy Ordeneaux set a goal of raising $10,000 in one year.


Fear The Wave fundraises to enhance accessibility for selected Tulane student-athletes to NIL deals, empowering them to gain financial and business exposure while maintaining their commitment to academics and sports. ‍

“It’s such an unprecedented time for everyone involved in Tulane University and Tulane athletics. It’s been so busy but so much fun as well,” said Arata, who projects that Fear The Wave Collective will almost double its NIL fundraising amount in 2025 compared to 2024. “It would have taken us several months to raise the kind of money we just did in one week. We went from asking people to help maintain where we are to getting incoming calls of people wanting to do more to continue to support a program that has grown so much over recent years.”

Sumrall arrived at Tulane in 2024 and coached the team to a 9-5 record and an appearance in the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl. This season, Tulane finished 11-2 and won the American Conference championship with a 34-21 win over North Texas in front of a sold-out Yulman Stadium.

Sumrall has announced that he will be the new head coach of the Florida Gators next season, but he has been allowed to coach Tulane through its playoff run. In the last week, Sumrall and his family announced a $100,000 contribution to the Green Wave Talent Fund, the university’s primary NIL fund and a Tulane athletics initiative to expand NIL opportunities for Tulane student-athletes across football, men’s and women’s basketball, and baseball.

“Jon’s donation shows the type of character he has, to help position Tulane for success after his departure. He is investing in the future of the program he helped build and in the lives of the kids he has changed,” Scelfo said. “His family’s donation definitely stimulated more donors to jump on board and also invest in the future of Tulane.”

For example, Arata said a Tulane family donated $500,000 to Fear The Wave Collective and then added $100,000 more after seeing Sumrall’s announcement. His donation also encouraged another donator to send a significant amount, and more donations have continued to come in since Tuesday’s news.

“We feel like we are just getting started, and this momentum over the last month can be self-sustaining and powerful going into the future,” Arata said. “We hope this sets the stage for building a program that is a permanent fixture on the national stage. Tulane was in the first Sugar Bowl, so why not play in the next one? Can you imagine the energy of the city and economic impact the Sugar Bowl will have if Tulane plays Georgia on New Year’s Day?”



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