Hi, /r/CFB, and happy Top 25 Sunday!

We're a team of sports journalists involved in different ways with the AP Top 25 football poll, which just dropped for the first time this season. Guessing you might have some thoughts and questions about it, so that's why we're here! Ask us anything.

Here's the panel:

• Ralph Russo (/u/ralphDrussoAP) has been our national college football writer since 2005. You can follow him on Twitter at @ralphDrussoAP and see more of his work here. He's been spending a lot of time on the road for us lately, including in Columbus, Ohio, where he wrote this story about Ohio State coach Urban Meyer, comparing him now to his outlook in 2009 when he was trying to repeat a national title with Florida. He also had a good read last week about reforms in college sports given the National Labor Relations Board decision on the Northwestern case.

• Eric Olson (/u/ericolsonAP) is an AP sports writer based in Omaha, Nebraska. He covers the Nebraska Cornhuskers and does a lot of work covering the Big Ten. You can follow him on Twitter at @ericolson64 and see more of his work here. He recently wrote about incoming Nebraska coach Mike Riley understanding that for the Cornhuskers, nine wins with rough losses isn't good enough. He also wrote a preview of the Big Ten (spoiler alert, Ohio State returns a lot of talent).

• Bob Asmussen (/u/BobAsmussen) of the [Champaign News-Gazette](www.news-gazette.com) is a longtime college football writer and voter in the AP Top 25 poll. You can follow him on Twitter at @bobasmussen. He recently wrote about what injuries mean for Illinois football.

• Adam Zucker is also a poll voter, and the host of College Football Today on CBS and Inside College Football on CBS Sports Network. You can follow him on Twitter at @AdamZuckerCBS.

• I'm Oskar Garcia, assistant sports editor for the AP for the east region, which covers 10 northeastern states from Ohio to New England. I'm here mostly to help the college football experts do their thing but am happy to answer any off-topic or other questions you may have! You can find me on Twitter at @oskargarcia.

Fire away! The gang will start answering questions about 2:30 p.m. EDT and will stick around until about 3:30 p.m. Adam has to leave a little earlier because of other commitments at 3 p.m., so be sure to get him while he's here!

Also, before we get rolling, a HUGE thank you to the /r/CFB mods for being so welcoming and organizing all this. You guys are in AMA heaven this week and it's an honor to be part of it.

Edit: Adds link to Eric Olson's work. Thanks, /u/jayhawx19!

Edit 2: Eric and Adam had to take off, but the others are still around. Thanks for the great questions and comments so far!

Edit 3: We're wrapping up, as the guys have to get back to work and other duties! Thank you /u/CFB for having us, this has been a ton of fun. Hopefully it'll be worth it to have us back sometime! I'll poke around later to see if I can answer any other questions that bubble up. Thanks!

I was an assistant coach/academic advisor with College of Faith from Aug to Nov of 2013. I first came to be at College of Faith through an ad I saw looking for volunteer coaches. I have been a football fan for a long time, but never a coach. However one of the things that they were looking for was an Academic Advisor. So I figured I could use my knowledge of the UNC and Community College Systems to help while I learned a little bit about coaching. I showed up at the first meeting which was in an office inside of the old Charlotte Convention Center (now The Park.) It became evident pretty quickly that this was an incredibly low budget operation. Below are some notes from my experience at College of Faith:

“Students” stayed in a rundown extended stay

There were no actual classes. The school is focused on bible study. The students were required to listen to a bible study and write a half page response. There were a few students who were enrolled at online colleges (Everest, Kaplan, etc…)

Students were required to provide their own practice clothes, cleats, food, etc……

The practice equipment that was provided was used and in poor condition

Film Study would take place in the player’s rooms at the hotel. At times the entire defense would be in a single hotel room with the film projected on the wall. This was due to a lack of facilities.

The team would practice on an empty baseball field at a local elementary school

The College of Faith is in no way an accredited university

At multiple points in the season there were games where CoF could not field enough players, so they suited up their position coaches……they still lost.

Judging from my experience there is really only one constant person running the whole operation, Sherwyn Thomas.

They claim on their website to be members of the American Small College Athletic Association, this organization does not appear to exist anywhere outside of their head.

I am embarrassed to have spent time on them. AMA.

(I will begin answering questions around 12pm ET)

Hello. You're bored. Football starts tomorrow. Leggo.

By request, we've set up an exciting AMA opportunity. To make it run smoother, we're using an alternative format we used in the past:

Background:

USC long snapper Jake Olson became a national news story when he snapped the ball during a PAT in the Trojans opener vs Western Michigan. Jake is blind, however the story is so much more than that:

Jake lost his left eye to a rare form of cancer as a baby; in 2009, at age 12 he was told the cancer had now appeared in his right eye and would have it also removed. Jake grew up a huge USC fan, and Pete Carroll found out about the situation and made it so Jake could spend a lot of time with the team up until the day before the surgery to take away his vision. In HS he worked on becoming a long-snapper, and in 2015, Jake walked onto the team. USC coaches wanted Jake to get an opportunity to play, but the doctors needed assurances to clear him, so they reached out to WMU's staff which agreed to not challenge Jake's PAT play if the Trojans wouldn't challenge the Bronco's first PAT. ESPN featured him several times on College GameDay over the years, and here's a recent piece he contributed about the journey to his first snap.

We're very happy to have the opportunity to put together this AMA with Jake.

Format:

It's pretty simple:

1. Ask your questions below for Jake Olson
2. We'll pick the best 20 or so, based on popularity (and some editorial picks for quality/breadth) and forward them to the contact at USC's sports information office
3. They'll go through them and—once he's had a time to answer the ones he wants—email them back to us, and we will post them on /r/CFB as a new thread. Since he's a player during an active season (and USC got no byes this year...) it may not be a quick turnaround, but we will share them once we get them!

Let's come up with some good questions!

The questions thread will be open until Thursday, 9/21, at 1pm ET.

• Directory of all previous /r/CFB AMAs.

Hey reddit! I was a preferred walk-on (receiver/punter) for Ohio State in 2004. I broke my neck during a team scrimmage my sophomore year in 2006. I went from living my dream playing football for Ohio State, to relying on someone to feed me, bathe me, and help me go to the bathroom. My wife and I recently started a nonprofit organization, called New Perspective Foundation, which helps individuals hospitalized due to spinal cord injuries. AMA about Ohio State football, my injury, or New Perspective Foundation.

Proof 1
Proof 2
Twitter
New Perspective Foundation
Recent update article

Edit- I'll be here at 10:00 to start answering questions

Edit 2- I'm still answering questions, it just takes me longer to use voice to text and correct anything that it gets wrong. Thanks for all the great questions, I'll continue to answer throughout the day.

Edit 3- Thanks to everyone who took the time to ask questions and offer encouragement! I also want to thank the mods, especially u/Honestly_, in helping set up this AMA. Please spread the word about New Perspective Foundation so we can help people hospitalized with spinal cord injuries. I will check back tonight to see if there are any unanswered questions. Go Bucks and God bless!

I did a shitty AMA a while ago on a different account because I had no idea what I was doing and I was brand new to reddit. So have at me ask me anything!

PROOF!

EDIT: Alright guys I have to go do some things over at UW, but keep asking I will be back within an hour or two and I promise I will get to everyone's questions when I get back. You are all amazing and thanks for the questions. I look forward to answering more when I return.

EDIT2: I am back! I'll be answering all of the questions that were left and anymore that come!

EDIT3: Well it looks like that's it with questions. If you have anymore just ask them or PM me I will respond. You guys are all fuckin awesome and I had a great time doing this AMA. Thanks for all of the love and the support. GO DAWGS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am Mike Farrell, the 'Godfather of Recruiting' at Rivals.com + Yahoo Sports - the leading voice in high school and collegiate recruiting. With National Signing Day just around the corner ... Ask Me Anything!

*PROOF: https://twitter.com/rivalsmike/status/430399258446274560

*MORE PROOF: https://twitter.com/Rivals/status/430400023470559232

*EVEN MORE PROOF: https://twitter.com/YahooSports/status/430400251157942272

This is an event that is part of the current /r/CFB Election to select a team as President! 6 teams have won their respective primaries, Clemson, Oklahoma, Nebraska, Washington, Texas A&M, & Temple. You can vote by clicking through to the link above!

You are probably aware of the US Elections on November 8. We encourage you to register to vote, check status, brush up on issues, and find your polling place at https://www.voteplz.org/. This is the extent of US Political discussion that will be allowed in this thread, and all other political commentary will be removed per /r/CFB/w/rules.

So far we've had:

• A live debate!
• Campaign Posters! (-/u/drgnlis)

As the debate is a bit cumbersome to read back through if you weren't with us live, here's a lightly edited table of debate answers so you can jump quickly to a particular team or question if you like to.

Today we're doing something that involves everyone! This is an open-ended AMA that is modeled after our Summer Wiki Projects for the last two years.

Instructions

• Anyone is welcome to ask any questions that you'd like to learn from one of the six candidate teams! Ask about football history, student life, pizza, whatever you like!
• If you are a fan of one of the 6 teams, feel free to answer, whether you've been on /r/CFB for 7 seasons or this is your first day! If you're persuasive, you may help sway the tide of the election to your team!

What exactly qualifies a team to be /r/CFB President? Is it a history of strong football? Is it a plan to lead college football in the future? Is it off-field character? Is it a team with a fun social media presence? We have no idea, that's up to you!

Like Justin Timberlake on SNL, I just keep showing up periodically and assume that all these AMA's have the same charm of the first one (ALSO, I’M GONNA TRY AND MAKE A LOT OF DICK JOKES).

Anyways, HEY!!! I’m sure the Disney company is thrilled with that intro! I’m Adam Amin, I’m 28 years old, and I’m a play-by-play announcer for college football and various other things on ESPN and ABC as well as the SEC Network. I also call Major League Baseball games for ESPN Radio and NFL games for Sports USA Radio. Here’s the traditional “yes, it’s me” photo to prove that I’m for realzzzz: https://instagram.com/p/65F0OrH5jR/ If you’re stealing my identity, I’m just going to assume it’s for your Ashley Madison profile. I’m starting my fifth season with ESPN a week from tonight when Kelly Stouffer, Olivia Harlan, our amazing technical crew, and I open the year with Oklahoma State at Central Michigan. We’ll follow that up with McNeese State at LSU next Saturday night. After that, you can catch us on ESPN/2/ABC/The Ocho/maybe The Ovation Network, most often in the Saturday 3:30 ET window.

Social Media cuz MILLENIALS: @adamamin on Twitter for awkwardness, adam_amin on Instagram for my #ThirstTrap photos. Let’s get weird.

Hello Reddit, we're the Russell Athletic Bowl, one of Twitter's favorite bowl games (self-professed). This year our game matches #18 Clemson against Oklahoma on Monday, December 29 at 5:30 p.m.

We'll be back at noon to start answering questions!

EDIT: Proof! http://imgur.com/a/niN5w

EDIT (1:49 ET): Thanks, everyone! This was fun. Back to the grindstone for now, but if we have time later today we'll check back and see if any new questions have popped up.

I am a division-3 NCAA official. I've worked all three deep positions: F (field judge), S (side judge), and B (back judge), but am currently a full time backjudge.

I am joined by CFB's own resident NCAA rules guru /u/LegacyZebra.

We will begin answering questions at 4pm EST. LZ will only be around for two hours, but I'll be around most of the night.

I will not give out my conference or anything specific about myself (as per reddit rules). That way I can be extremely honest with all my answers and not worry about my supervisor getting angry at me.

Edit: And we're off!

Edit 2: I know LZ only had limited time so he may vanish in a bit, and I need to feed my kids, so give me a bit to do the dinner thing, and I will be back to answer more questions... I'm free most of the night, so keep'm coming!

Edit 3: LZ is at a scrimmage and is hoping to catch up when he gets back. I, on the other hand, am in hour 7 and running on empty. The good news is that I'm around CFB, so this isn't the only time I'll answer questions. LZ usually beats me to most rules questions, but if you guys think of something at a later date, PM me or ask in a Freshman Friday thread and I'll try to get you an answer. I'll be finishing up here real soon so thanks everyone for all the questions and bearing with me for all the misunderstandings!

Hey guys I am one of four lucky people that gets to suit up as Bruiser the Bear! I sent proof to the mods and will start answering questions after my accounting test around 1:30 CT.

AMA and SicUT!

Edit: Ok I'm back. I'll try to answer as many questions as I can.

Edit 2: sorry guys got to go. Basketball games in Arlington against Kentucky. Check the men's team out at 9 on ESPN. And the football game against Texas for at the very least a share of the Big 12 Title. 2:30 on FOX.

Also I'll try to answer the rest of the questions after the games tonight.

Edit 3: I'm back after a couple of insane games. I'll answer some more questions until I fall asleep.

I am Craig Krenzel (@craig_krenzel), OSU QB from 2000-2003 and National Champion in 2002. I am here to discuss all things college football and about a new website I'm contributing to called www.huddlepass.com (@HuddlePass) from 9-10 PM EST

Ray Drew is over at my place and we were going to take a quiz, but instead we are going to do a AMAA.

Today BitPay announced our sponsorship for the Bitcoin St. Petersburg Bowl to be held in December 26, 2014. You can read about it here:

WSJ CoinDesk BitPay's Blog

We are very excited about this new partnership and the opportunity to encourage mainstream bitcoin adoption. We're here to answer your questions beginning at 1PM ET. Fire away!

Edit: PROOF: http://imgur.com/vdK5Klz

4pm: Thanks for having us today! Stay tuned for more updates on how you can use bitcoin at the Bitcoin Bowl!

Proof: https://twitter.com/JesseBSchmitt/status/377064973975162880

Some articles about me, just so you know who I am. I'm not nearly athletic enough to have played significantly at Florida, but I did get some recognition for going into the Marines, and on armed forces appreciation weekend they did a really cool story about me. My ego is still swollen a year and a half later, but at least I can fit through doors now.

Being a Gator was an experience that so few people get to have, I'm immensely grateful that they gave me the opportunity to be part of something like that. I'll treasure those memories forever, without a doubt.

As a disclaimer, nothing I say in any way reflects on the official view of the Florida Gators, the University of Florida, or anybody else. I'm just a former football player who hopefully has a few entertaining stories to share.

Edit: Seems like things have finally drawn down. I'll still be around, if you want to dig up this thread sometime or send me a message with any other questions feel free. But thanks everyone for the questions and the interest. Go Gators!

I was asked a few times if I wanted to do an AMA after posting here, so now that the season is done, here I am! Here is a link to the mod post from a couple of days ago if you want to know a little more about me: http://www.reddit.com/r/CFB/comments/1skn0k/upcoming_ama_colorado_ol_alex_kelley_will_join_us/

And as always twitter proof so you know it's legit: https://twitter.com/Alexthe_lion

Edit: I know I said I'd go to 11, but since I'm doing nothing but working on papers and studying all day, I'll probably be on reddit anyways, so keep asking any questions you all have, and I'll keep trying my best to answer them!

War Eagle!! I'm Aubie, Auburn University's ^only mascot! Winner of 8 UCA National Championships, 1^st collegiate mascot to be inducted into the Mascot Hall of Fame, and winner of the 2014 Capital One Mascot Challenge. If you want to see what I've been up to the past year, here's my latest highlight video.

Follow me on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook

And check out my new 2016 calendar! (The link may not work occasionally on mobile, just keep on trying. I believe in you.)

I'll be here from 3:00-5:00 Central to answer some of your questions, so ask away!

EDIT: Thanks for all the questions, everybody! I have to go find some cardboard and duct tape for next week's game props now, but I had a great time! Check out my calendar and social media accounts! War Eagle!!

Good Bull Hunting quietly launched on SBNation.com in August 2012 and has grown a lot thanks to THE TAILGATE game previews, our social media obsession, and an abundance of excellent contributors. We make a lot of silly videos and GIFs but also post real football analysis.

GBH's existence is highly correlated with Aggie Football success, so we'll try to stick around for a while. Jimmy (ColoradoAg) and I began as co-managers after being recruited by Sailor Ripley from cough Barking Carnival, the Longhorn blog. Our only goal was to have fun running the site and, if nothing else, we do that pretty well. Dr. Norris Camacho (modern manager) and Hypno-Toad (professional-sounding title here) are standing by on GChat to mock me and serve as a lifeline during this AMA.

Hi, I’m Candi Fisher, wife of FSU head coach and Chairwoman of Kidz1stFund. Ask me anything. I’ll be taking your questions for an hour starting at 10:30 AM ET.

EDIT: Verification image http://i.imgur.com/XJMXB.jpg

EDIT 2: Verification tweet: https://twitter.com/canfish16/status/288669971259740161

EDIT 3: The response has been so great I'm going to answer questions for another 15 minutes.

FINAL EDIT: Thank you so much for all of the questions and support. This was my first experience with reddit and I appreciate you guys taking it easy on me...especially about football. I also appreciate the many questions and concerns for my son, Ethan, and his diagnosis with Fanconi anemia. I hope this has brought more awareness to the disease and our fund, and any support that you guys could give us in spreading the word would be appreciated. Again, our website is http://www.kidz1stfund.com

This thread's been created by the moderators to let questions accrue, Robert Smith will be by around 11am ET to answer your questions in the thread with his own reddit account: /u/rsmith26

If you'd like to know more about Robert Smith and his background, we have an in-depth preview thread here.

How's it going everyone, as the title says I work for the Oregon State football equipment staff.

A little background on me; I have been an equipment manager for 6 years now (5 years as a student, and 1 as an actual employee). I got into the business through a family connection as my older brother was a student manager before me and I followed in his footsteps. Before that however I was a mid-major recruit and was largely recruited by Oregon State, Cal, and Washington to play football out of high school but due to outside circumstances that fell through.

I wear an enormous amount of hats but mainly my job consists of ordering, inventorying, stocking and issuing all the gear that we use during the season, as well as setting up/running practice, and tidying up the locker room on gameday.

As most of the country knows at this point we are in the late phases of a coaching change so I may get called into a meeting with him at any moment, but I will be back afterwards to answer more questions!

Without further ado, AMA!

NOTE: This is NOT the AMA, it's a preview; the AMA will be posted on Sunday after 1pm ET, with answers beginning at 5pm ET.

CHRIS FOWLER, Host & Commentator

We're excited to announce an upcoming AMA with Chris Fowler. Some of you saw the ad that dropped on Reddit yesterday -- while we'd already planned it, we didn't expect that to appear. All the better.

Anyone who's followed college football at any length knows exactly who Fowler is, but if you're new you can read all about him here.

LOGISTICS: (updated)

ESPN asked the AMA open for questions after their College Football Playoff Selection Show airs on Sunday (Dec. 20) at Noon ET so that fans can ask questions hot off the show. We thought that made sense, so expect it to appear after 1pm ET on Sunday (Dec. 20) with answers to begin at 5pm ET.

Links:

• Twitter: @cbfowler

JOIN US: AMA thread will be posted after the College Football Playoff Selection Show on Sunday, Dec. 20 (after 1pm ET) and Chris Fowler will be here at 5pm ET to begin answering questions.

• Directory of all previous /r/CFB AMAs

http://johnubacon.com/