PHIDARIAN MATHIS

Commanders' defense starts inside with defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Daron Payne

Neither Jonathan Allen nor Daron Payne is considered by pundits among the most elite defensive linemen in the NFL.

Georgia defenders no longer strangers as they strut into NFL

The Georgia Bulldogs are well-represented at the NFL scouting combine after winning their first national championship in over four decades.

In the SEC, defense reigns again with Georgia, Bama on top

Alabama coach Nick Saban and Georgia’s Kirby Smart continue to make their ability to field elite defenses a big part of their formula for maintaining consistently elite programs in the Southeastern Conference.

SEC defenses flexing after 2020 championship game fireworks

Some Southeastern Conference defenses are flexing their muscles after 2020 being a defensive coordinator’s nightmare.

Alabama to meet Notre Dame in relocated CFP semifinal game

4 Notre Dame in the College Football Playoff semifinal originally scheduled to serve as the 107th Rose Bowl, the playoff committee announced Sunday. “Our guys recognize what they’ll need to do relative to the mental preparation of playing a great football team in Alabama. But instead of a week amid the pomp and pageantry of the Rose Bowl, the teams will spend their semifinal week in Arlington, Texas. Oregon State beat Duke in Durham, North Carolina, in that version of the Rose Bowl. The festive week of genteel celebrations around the Rose Bowl game had already been mostly canceled.