Houston – Four true freshmen on the travel roster: running back Daniel Spencer and receiver Mark Roberts on offense and defensive lineman Joey Mbu and linebacker Derrick Mathews on defense.  Because the running back position is crowded, Spencer has been lining up at receiver…Houston senior quarterback Case Keenum was pegged as a third-team All-American at quarterback by Rivals.com…The Cougars officially announced today that it will be playing a home-and-home with BYU in 2013 (Houston) and 2014 (Provo)…DB Damian Payne, a Houston native, has transferred in from Utah.

Rice – LT Jake Hicks has returned to practice this week after missing time with a leg injury…Despite signing a minor-league baseball contract with the Toronto Blue Jays, tight end Luke Wilson still has his two years of football eligibility in tact…Even though Driphus Jackson is getting reps with the second-team offense, Nick Fanuzzi remains the backup to Taylor McHargue.

SMU – Coach Jones had the following to say to the school newspaper: “Darius Johnson and Cole Beasley had really good camps. Our defensive line has had really good camp as well. Torlan Pittman is getting back fired up the way he was. The defensive line has really stood out to me…”

Tulane – Running back Orleans Darkwa, who is going through hamstring and toe injuries, could miss the season opener…Shane Delery got tangled up in some shoving and lost his temper, getting ejected from practice toward the end when a play carried on past the whistle during Thursday’s practice…6’6, 308 lb right tackle Eric Jones won a team diving contest…True freshman linebacker Matthew Bailey is looking like he is going to start at linebacker…

Tulsa – Tulsa and Fresno State have agreed to a home-and-home football series, it was announced on Thursday.
Fresno State will play at Tulsa on Sept. 29, 2012. The two-game contract will conclude in 2014, when the Golden Hurricane visits Fresno…Sophomore Stetson Burnett is dueling junior Brian DeShane for the starting right guard position in a battle that could go right up until kickoff of the OU game…Quarterback Shavodrick Beaver has decided to transfer from the program.

UTEP – Wide receiver Cliff Tucker returns to football for the first time since starring for Chapin High five years ago. He’s certainly shown he can contribute right away, but for the most immediate impact, the names to watch are junior college transfer Mike Edwards and redshirt freshman Jordan Leslie…Guards Jerel Watkins (sprained ankle) and James Robinson (sprained knee) are still out, and while coach Mike Price said their injuries aren’t season threatening, he did raise the possibility they could miss the opener…

East Carolina – East Carolina’s 6-foot-8 receiver Justin Jones injured his knee and could be out for an extended period of time…True freshman wide receiver Danny Webster will make his big splash playing in place of senior Michael Bowman, who will serve a one-game suspension for the Pirates’ Sept. 3 season opener against the Gamecocks because of an off-the-field incident this summer. On the other side, redshirt freshman Justin Hardy will try to fill the big shoes of Jones…Junior transfer defensive end John Lattimore will miss the entire 2011 season because of a right lower leg injury suffered during practice last Friday. He will have two years of eligibility remaining when he is expected to be cleared to return next spring or summer.

Marshall– Joe Johnson, a defensive back who arrived last summer with some hype, was dismissed from the team on Thursday for a violation of team rules…Marshall officially welcomed defensive back Cedric Walker to the football program on Tuesday.  Marshall is the third school he has been associated with, after committing to Temple last winter and signing with Florida International…After utilizing 12 true freshmen last season in head coach Doc Holliday’s maiden voyage, the Herd is likely to not redshirt as many as 17 frosh in 2011.  They are: quarterback Rakeem Cato, tight end Eric Frohnapfel, wide receivers Tommy Shuler and Craig Wilkins, running back Remi Watson, right guard Sebastian Johansson, strong safety D.J. Hunter, middle linebacker Jermaine Holmes, safety Evan McKelvey, linebackers Deon Meadows, Cortez Carter and Armonze Daniel, cornerbacks Keith Baxter and Corie Wilson, linemen Jarquez Samuel and Damien Moody, and safety Raheem Waiters…Cato might be the starting quarterback.

Memphis – Sophomore Andy Summerlin has been named the team’s starter…Jerrell Rhodes has been impressing coaches and looks ready for a breakout season.

Southern Miss – Starting left guard Caleb Thomas returned to the lineup on Friday after missing several practices, including last Saturday’s scrimmage, with an undisclosed injury…The Golden Eagles feature four backs capable of being impact players this year – Kendrick Hardy, Desmond Johnson, Jamal Woodyard and Jeremy Hester…Senior defensive tackle Terrance Pope enjoyed his first day back on Thursday to playing full-contact after missing 12 days following arthroscopic knee surgery, but Woodyard sat out with an ankle injury.

UAB – Defensive tackle Elliott Henigan and running back Pat Shed are sidelined for now because of unspecified injuries. Henigan is slated to be out for 3-4 weeks and Shed is out for 2-3 weeks…UAB sophomore Caleb Lester has worked his way onto the first team at safety.

UCF – According to Coach O’Leary, multiple freshmen have stepped up and are poised to play this year…Jeff Godfrey has the starting quarterback job and has shown a lot of poise this camp.  He’s really gotten better…O’Leary talked about his social media policy as well.  “I have two coaches who monitor Twitter, etc.  We will embarrass the person if they need to be.  I ask them though ‘Why do you need Facebook or Twitter to make friends?'”