Former Penn State OL John Urschel among 3 new members of College Football Playoff committee
Former Penn State All-American John Urschel, the retired offensive linemen who’s pursuing a mathematics Ph.D. from MIT, will serve as a member of the College Football Playoff selection committee for the next three years, according to CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock.
Urschel was among the new three appointments as decided on by the CFP Management Committee, which announced the new members Wednesday. The others include Wyoming Athletic Director Tom Burman and Colorado Athletic Director Rick George.
The trio will replace Frank Beamer, Chris Howard and Rob Mullens, whose three-year terms on the 13-member committee expired.
“I’m beyond excited to be a part of the #CFBPlayoff Selection Committee,” Urschel wrote on Twitter. “College football is such an amazing thing, and has given me so much. Looking forward to giving back and continuing to be a part of college football in any way I can!”
Said Hancock, via written statement: “Tom, Rick and John each bring an exciting breadth of experiences and expertise to the committee. All three will continue the CFP tradition of committee members with high integrity and passion for the sport of college football.”
The College Football Playoff selection committee decides the top-25 rankings and assigns the top four to the semifinal sites. The Nittany Lions have come close the last four seasons, earning the No. 5 spot in 2016, but have yet to crack the playoff.
Still, Urschel isn’t meant to impact Penn State’s chances. Like past members, whenever the program he is associated with is discussed, he is required to recuse himself and not be an active part of said discussion.
He is Penn State’s first representative, and he is the fifth representative from the Big Ten. Past conference members include Wisconsin AD Barry Alvarez, former Nebraska coach/AD Tom Osborne and Ohio State AD Gene Smith. Former Michigan coach Lloyd Carr was also tabbed as a member, until health issues prevented him from carrying out his term in 2016.
Iowa AD Gary Barta is the only other current member from the Big Ten. He was announced Wednesday as the committee’s chairperson, replacing Mullens, whose term was up.
Urschel has one of the more intriguing resumes on the selection committee. The Canadian-born lineman played at Penn State from 2009-2013, earning two all-conference selections and an All-American nod in 2013. He was the winner of the “academic Heisman,” the William V. Campbell Trophy, and became a fifth-round draft pick of the Baltimore Ravens, where he became a starter until abruptly retiring in 2017 — once the prevalence of CTE in the NFL became harder to ignore.
Maybe more notably, off the field, Urschel has made an even bigger name for himself. He has published at least a half-dozen peer-reviewed mathematics papers, and he was named in 2017 to Forbes “30 under 30” list of outstanding young scientists. He is also an advanced stats columnist for The Players’ Tribune.
He is 28 years old, making him the youngest member of the committee by at least 20 years.
This story was originally published January 22, 2020 at 1:48 PM.
