By Sarah Lounsbury | @saraahlounsbury Sports Capital Journalism Program LOS ANGELES – On the biggest stage of the college football season, the Georgia Bulldogs demonstrated emphatically on Monday night that hard work mixed with great talent and skill can pay off in the form of a repeat national championship. All the conditioning and weight-lifting sessions, …

(Editor’s Note, Writing for the Associated Press Sports Editors website, Sports Capital Journalism Program graduate student Meghan Rominger describes the Keynote Luncheon conversation with the co-chairs of the NCAA Division I Transformation Committee, Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey and Ohio University athletic director Julie Cromer.) NCAA Transformation Committee focuses on improving student-athlete experiences and opportunities

By Mike Harley | @mhar3481 MINNEAPOLIS — South Carolina senior guard Destanni Henderson saved her best game of the season for last, leading the Gamecocks to their second national championship in program history, defeating perennial power Connecticut 64-49 on Sunday night. Henderson scored a career-high 26 points while shooting 9-for-20 from the field, and 3-for-6 …

By Meghan Rominger Sports Capital Journalism Program MINNEAPOLIS — Before she carried the national championship trophy to the makeshift stage at center court, South Carolina head coach Dawn Staley made a pit stop. She wanted the South Carolina pep band members to pass it around and take pictures with it first. Across the court, Gamecocks superstar …

By Meghan Rominger Sports Capital Journalism Program MINNEAPOLIS — An impassioned Dawn Staley welcomed her players into the timeout huddle, galvanizing them with screams and high fives. The Gamecocks had a nine-point lead, but the win wasn’t yet secured – they were only up 11-2 with five minutes left in the first quarter. But it was …

By Meghan Rominger Sports Capital Journalism Program MINNEAPOLIS – In the past decade, perhaps no other women’s college basketball teams have been as successful as the University of South Carolina and the University of Louisville. The Gamecocks and Cardinals have collected wins, tournament berths and postseason accolades at an unprecedented pace, with head coaches Dawn …

By Meghan Rominger | @MeghanRominger Sports Capital Journalism Program INDIANAPOLIS — As a high school quarterback dreaming of one day making it big, Georgia’s Stetson Bennett IV was aware of his strengths, the areas of his game that needed improvement, and the weaknesses that scouts and teams couldn’t easily overlook. On the shorter side for …

By Zach Powell | @ZiggidyZach_ Sports Capital Journalism Program INDIANAPOLIS – Three days of discussions among members of the College Football Playoff management committee concluded on Monday without any consensus on how an expansion of the four-team field could be executed. More than six months after a 12-team field was proposed, ten conference commissioners plus …

By Jordan Morey | @JordanAMorey Sports Capital Journalism Program INDIANAPOLIS — As the Heisman Trophy winner’s pass sailed down the left sideline, Georgia coach Kirby Smart experienced Déjà Vu. Smart wasn’t taken back to the bludgeoning the Bulldogs received in the Southeastern Conference Championship game against Alabama last month. Nor did he go back to …

Editor’s Note: Four students from the Sports Capital Journalism Program at IUPUI are covering the College Football Playoff National Championship. Here are their predictions for the 2022 game: Coaching edge? Saban over Smart.  Quarterback edge? Young over Bennett.  Mental/Confidence edge? Alabama, for its win over Georgia last month in the SEC Championship game along with …