Roundup: WSU OL Cody O'Connell is a 1st team SI preseason All-American

Washington State offensive lineman Cody O’Connell is on Sports Illustrated’s preseason All-American first team. Other Pac-12ers who on the first team are linebackers Cameron Smith (USC) and Azeem Victor (Washington) and punter Mitch Wishnowsky (Utah).

Cal is looking for a new athletic director after school announced Tuesday Mike Williams will step down down in May 2018 after his contract expires.

Brian Howell lets us know that Colorado football announced a future series with Northwestern, taking place in 2026 (Evanston, Ill.) and 2027 (Boulder). Who knows how these teams will be in a decade, but you can’t fault these schools for scheduling a challenging non-conference opponent.

Read Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Doug Baldwin’s thoughts on sitting during the national anthem, as his teammate Michael Bennett will be doing so before games. The former Cardinal standout makes some very good points -- why aren’t we upset about drunk fans yelling during the anthem but some of us get so bent out of shape that a guy dares to make a peaceful protest by kneeling or sitting?

Jeff Metcalfe reports that Arizona State Vice President for Athletics Ray Anderson will receive a contract extension soon (details still need to be worked out). Anderson is going into his fourth full year as ASU AD.

Peep this projected Oregon football depth chart after two weeks of fall camp, courtesy of The Oregonian/OregonLive.

Sean Meagher of The Oregonian/OregonLive tells us that Oregon State football is now in game prep mode, as there was a scout team out there at practice Tuesday.

Zach Helfand of the Los Angeles Times spends this article discussing the USC backup quarterback situation. We all know Sam Darnold is the truth, but what happens if he goes down?

Jarreau Brown of SeattlePI.com looks at some important position battles for Washington football. He likes Chico McClatcher to take over John Ross’ role as play-making receiver, for starters.

Lynn Worthy focuses this article on the Utah wide receivers, who should be more prominent in new offensive coordinator Troy Taylor’s scheme. The Utes haven’t had a 1,000-yard receiver in a season since Dres Anderson in 2013.

Thuc Nhi Nguyen of the Los Angeles Daily News writes about the specialists on the UCLA football team (punters, kickers, long-snappers, etc.). The Bruins are going to need more out of this group in 2017.

Zack Rosenblatt features Arizona safety Jarrius Wallace, mentioning his intelligence and “killer instinct.” Wallace didn’t play last year as a true freshman but expect him to contribute in 2017.