Official 2022 College Football Thread

[Edward64]

Hog oriented article but brings up the question, what if, in the realigned SEC, there isn't 3 permanent opponents but just 1.

si.com

It seems that the difference between a single permanent opponent and three permanent opponents is a matter of how big the number is at the front of a bunch of zeroes on the television check. If the money isn't right, everyone's going to pair up and Arkansas is going to get left looking like the new kid in class who moved to a new school in early February.

The biggie rivalries will happen, leaving out

For those playing along at home, that leaves Arkansas, Missouri, South Carolina and Vanderbilt without a partner. Everyone can probably see where this is going, but let's talk this out.

Yeah, I think I'd like 3. I want Texas for sure.

[GrantDawg]

I seems like Arkansas would get one of Oklahoma or Texas, along with Missouri and Tennessee. Georgia has to keep Florida and Auburn. South Carolina makes sense as the third, but so does Tennessee. I will miss playing Tennessee yearly, because that has been a bigger rival than South Carolina.


edit: Thinking about that, no. Arkansas shares a border with Tennessee, but Florida-Tennessee has been a major rivalry. Tennessee will end up Vandy, Kentucky Florida. Giving Arkansas maybe Kentucky? I have seen lists that have the third as South Carolina, but that seem crazy. But then again as that list had suggests, who else is the Gamecocks regional rivals except Georgia? Maybe we can just kick the Gamecocks out and pick up someone like Oklahoma State?

[Edward64]

Good news for the Hogs. We need all the help we can get for the secondary

Jaheim Singletary was a 5-star cornerback in Georgia’s elite 2022 recruiting class. He appeared in 3 games for Georgia in 2022, but didn’t record any stats.

After the Bulldogs won the national title, though, Singletary decided to explore his transfer options ahead of the 2023 season.

[Edward64]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

I seems like Arkansas would get one of Oklahoma or Texas, along with Missouri and Tennessee. Georgia has to keep Florida and Auburn. South Carolina makes sense as the third, but so does Tennessee. I will miss playing Tennessee yearly, because that has been a bigger rival than South Carolina.


edit: Thinking about that, no. Arkansas shares a border with Tennessee, but Florida-Tennessee has been a major rivalry. Tennessee will end up Vandy, Kentucky Florida. Giving Arkansas maybe Kentucky? I have seen lists that have the third as South Carolina, but that seem crazy. But then again as that list had suggests, who else is the Gamecocks regional rivals except Georgia? Maybe we can just kick the Gamecocks out and pick up someone like Oklahoma State?

I don't remember Oklahoma much when the Hogs were in the SWC. It was more Texas. But yeah, it would be fun to start something with Oklahoma.

Tennessee has never been much of a rivalry for us in the SEC. Missouri is starting to become one (or SEC is trying to make it one).

I remember LSU games being more intense and both MS team.

Texas for sure. LSU or Ole Miss. Then Oklahoma, Missouri etc.

I wish they would announce already what the plans are!

[Edward64]

Hogs got a couple nice 2024 commits this past week.

Really no idea how good they are but there was a time when we had a hard time landing 4-stars. We are set for QB1 but he's gone after next season, so looking forward to seeing some of the others get some experience.

Pass defense is where we need the most help.

Montgomery (Ala.) St. James Class of 2024 four-star quarterback KJ Jackson has committed to Arkansas.

Jackson, 6-3, 215, is the fifth commitment for the Class of 2024 and second this weekend for the Razorbacks. Jackson chose Arkansas over North Carolina after pulling in offers from schools in several different conferences.

As a junior, Jackson completed 132 of 205 passes for 2,813 yards, 42 touchdowns and seven interceptions. Jackson also rushed 77 times for 171 yards and six touchdowns. In two years, Jackson has completed 219 of 336 yards for 4,805 yards, 70 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Jackson has rushed 142 times for 310 yards and 13 touchdowns.

On Saturday, Batesville (Miss.) South Panola four-star athlete Julius “JuJu” Pope, 6-2, 195, committed to the Hogs. Pope and Jackson join Leeds (Ala.) four-star edge Kavion Henderson, 6-3, 250; Ocean Springs (Miss.) St. Martin four-star athlete Noreel White, 6-0, 170; and Memphis (Tenn.) University School three-star defensive lineman Dion Stutts, 6-3, 265, as committed to the Razorbacks.

[Ksyrup]

Breaking: For the first time since 1968 clocks will no longer stop on first down in NCAA games. PROP approves rules changes for all except — surprisingly — Division III, which pushed back. https://t.co/fcTBTaw42u

— Dennis Dodd (@dennisdoddcbs) April 21, 2023

[miami_fan]

I will definitely forget the new rules and post something wondering why the clock is still running during the season.

[Solecismic]

Unless this is coupled with genuine commercial reform, the networks will fill in the reduced number of natural breaks with even longer commercial breaks. That's the price of conferences competing with each other for the craziest new contract.

There will be so many commercials to encourage betting on college games that the casinos will be able to run special commercials reminding professional athletes not to do it in team facilities.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

Unless this is coupled with genuine commercial reform, the networks will fill in the reduced number of natural breaks with even longer commercial breaks. That's the price of conferences competing with each other for the craziest new contract.

There will be so many commercials to encourage betting on college games that the casinos will be able to run special commercials reminding professional athletes not to do it in team facilities.

I still go to all of the WVU home games, but I’m getting close to bowing out because of stuff like this. The percentage of gameplay to time spent traveling to/from and then sitting through breaks makes it less and less worthwhile. When I figure in the cost of tickets and concessions, I could be buying a new, giant TV for less in cost and enjoy it on my couch without all the downtime.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Rumors seem to suggest that Notre Dame QB Tyler Buchner could end up at ... Alabama.

I know the Tide QBs were underwhelming in the spring game but if they're down to considering a guy who has yet to record a 60% completion rate in a game with significant playing time things must be even worse than they seem.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

That's the price of conferences competing with each other for the craziest new contract.

To coin a phrase, "He who pays the gold makes the rules".

Fans don't seem to realize, or at least most remain in denial, about the reality that sports have been sold to the networks and that butts in seats are increasingly irrelevant. It's a TV product first and foremost, in-person product is well down the list.

[JPhillips]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

To coin a phrase, "He who pays the gold makes the rules".

Fans don't seem to realize, or at least most remain in denial, about the reality that sports have been sold to the networks and that butts in seats are increasingly irrelevant. It's a TV product first and foremost, in-person product is well down the list.

This is the issue for MLB. The amount of shared money coming in makes it possible to have an empty stadium and still turn a profit if payroll is low enough. In fact, the easiest way for a lot of teams to make money is to not try.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

To coin a phrase, "He who pays the gold makes the rules".

Fans don't seem to realize, or at least most remain in denial, about the reality that sports have been sold to the networks and that butts in seats are increasingly irrelevant. It's a TV product first and foremost, in-person product is well down the list.

I am very aware that it is a TV product first. It is why I don't see myself paying to go most major sporting events again if I actually care about watching the sport. The question I think all sports leagues have to answer is if the in-person product becomes unwatchable for people in the stadium/arena, does that affect the experience for the people watching at home? I would have said that it would have no effect at all but then Covid happened. The majority of TV viewers hated the empty/limited fan stadium sporting events experience IIRC.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by miami_fan

The majority of TV viewers hated the empty/limited fan stadium sporting events experience IIRC.

We still seem to be a distance away from getting to the true empty arena experience, there's still millions willing to go endure.

Until that stops, neither will the increasing foolishness.

[cuervo72]

You know, after a few games of the simulated crowd noise on NFL broadcasts I hardly knew it was there. I don't know if I care about actual crowds, just as long as there is some background noise. At least with football. Baseball is so quiet most of the time that I don't know if I really care.

I generally don't care about going to live games and will gladly stay at home. But that's me, I am a lazy homebody. Exception was for Purdue stuff where the boy was going to be playing with the band. I'll tell you though, when you're wet and it's overcast and in the 30s those media timeouts are INTERMINABLE. Probably different if you're just sitting outside on a nice warm night.

[GrantDawg]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Rumors seem to suggest that Notre Dame QB Tyler Buchner could end up at ... Alabama.

I know the Tide QBs were underwhelming in the spring game but if they're down to considering a guy who has yet to record a 60% completion rate in a game with significant playing time things must be even worse than they seem.

I have heard some talk of panic among the Bama faithful. Haven't really look into it. I did see one Bama fan on You-tube saying he is afraid Carson Beck might be the elite QB that Kirby has never had.

[Solecismic]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

To coin a phrase, "He who pays the gold makes the rules".

Fans don't seem to realize, or at least most remain in denial, about the reality that sports have been sold to the networks and that butts in seats are increasingly irrelevant. It's a TV product first and foremost, in-person product is well down the list.

I don't think that's true with major college football. You can spitball with the numbers from 100,000 Michigan fans 7-8 times a year, plus luxury boxes, plus seat licenses, plus what that experience does to generate donations from the major boosters.

But that's not necessarily affected by longer commercial breaks. For younger people, it was a push to have increased cell-tower coverage within the stadium. That was a big deal for a while. They're used to constant interruptions and have the attention spans of small woodland creatures, so they're OK if they're even inclined to go anyway.

It's really whether the football cart can continue to push the entire broadcast television paradigm. You hear speculation these days that if football leaves the broadcast networks, the entire television advertising market collapses. Already, you have these ubiquitous rerun networks going 24/7 on a handful of old products, the same 5-10 commercials running in almost every commercial break. It can't cost much to run those ads. But even those channels are disappearing in favor of the QVC model - real-time broadcast is rapidly shrinking as a viable commodity. The Decades channel tried higher quality and producing an independent content show on its own - they just failed and rebranded after losing a few more stations (it's now Catchy Comedy, no more drama shows).

At what point does the model simply break because rights cost too much to make up for with increased ads? The NFL realized they had passed the advertising saturation barrier more than a decade ago, but college keeps on going with lower ratings because there are several products to buy. Now, though, they're faced with consolidation because the Big Ten and the SEC have broken through, captured more of the market. There's talk of the Pac-12 going streaming-only. It feels like there's about to be major change and it's going to be difficult to work that out without having people who want a product pay for that product. In that case, the entire commercial interruption model will need adjustment.

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Solecismic

I don't think that's true with major college football. You can spitball with the numbers from 100,000 Michigan fans 7-8 times a year, plus luxury boxes, plus seat licenses, plus what that experience does to generate donations from the major boosters.

But that's not necessarily affected by longer commercial breaks. For younger people, it was a push to have increased cell-tower coverage within the stadium. That was a big deal for a while. They're used to constant interruptions and have the attention spans of small woodland creatures, so they're OK if they're even inclined to go anyway.

It's really whether the football cart can continue to push the entire broadcast television paradigm. You hear speculation these days that if football leaves the broadcast networks, the entire television advertising market collapses. Already, you have these ubiquitous rerun networks going 24/7 on a handful of old products, the same 5-10 commercials running in almost every commercial break. It can't cost much to run those ads. But even those channels are disappearing in favor of the QVC model - real-time broadcast is rapidly shrinking as a viable commodity. The Decades channel tried higher quality and producing an independent content show on its own - they just failed and rebranded after losing a few more stations (it's now Catchy Comedy, no more drama shows).

At what point does the model simply break because rights cost too much to make up for with increased ads? The NFL realized they had passed the advertising saturation barrier more than a decade ago, but college keeps on going with lower ratings because there are several products to buy. Now, though, they're faced with consolidation because the Big Ten and the SEC have broken through, captured more of the market. There's talk of the Pac-12 going streaming-only. It feels like there's about to be major change and it's going to be difficult to work that out without having people who want a product pay for that product. In that case, the entire commercial interruption model will need adjustment.

Yeah, the cell phone signal issue showed up big in just about every declining attendance study I saw/heard mentioned.

The NCAA's own data release, dated 2019, showed the "FBS Autonomy Schools" revenue as 35% media rights, 23% donor contributions/endowments, 19% Ticket Sales, 9% Royalties & Licensing

I believe we can separate catering to the luxury box contributor segment of the crowd versus (relatively speaking) Joe Q. Public in the stands with the unwashed masses.

I didn't mean to imply that tickets are completely irrelevant yet, but their importance is declining as the TV dollars dwarf them.

[GrantDawg]

Meanwhile, in Colorado....37 players have entered the Player Portal, leaving only 11 returning scholarship players. Deion is betting on being able to completely rebuild the team through transfers.

[Ksyrup]

I think the real number is closing in on 60 since he took over. I believe it's just over 40 since April 15.

[bob]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Rumors seem to suggest that Notre Dame QB Tyler Buchner could end up at ... Alabama.

I know the Tide QBs were underwhelming in the spring game but if they're down to considering a guy who has yet to record a 60% completion rate in a game with significant playing time things must be even worse than they seem.

I'm convinced that Notre Dame figured out that they only way they can beat Alabama is infiltrating and destroying them from inside.

[Edward64]

Okay, I know it's a ways off but saw this on the forum. The Hogs have to give him a shot right?

Darren McFadden was one of the best running backs in college football during the mid-2000s. Now, his son is looking to make his mark.

A high school football player who is coming off his freshman season, announced on twitter that he will visit Illinois. The running back and linebacker still has three years until he graduates from William Taft High School in Chicago in 2026, but he seems ready to take college visits, starting with a local Big Ten program.

No idea how really good he is but as a HS freshman he's 6-0 and 200-210lbs. What the heck do they feed these kids nowadays?

[RainMaker]

I'm feeling so old with these kids of famous players now going to college.

Kennedy Urlacher has committed to Notre Dame.

The 3⭐️ safety is the son of Brian Urlacher.

��: @Hayesfawcett3 pic.twitter.com/Wl4UXyVjeo

— Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) May 1, 2023

[Edward64]

Guess it's official now on Texas & Oklahoma. Welcome to the SEC!

Haven't seen a date when the permanent rivals will be announced.

Oklahoma and Texas have taken their final steps toward leaving the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference.

Oklahoma's Board of Regents on Friday approved the necessary contractual agreements with both conferences to make the switch. This comes after Texas' Board of Regents this week also allowed UT president Jay Hartzell to sign agreements to move the Longhorns to the SEC.

The schools will join their new league on July 1, 2024.

[Edward64]

The rich get richer. Congrats Dawgs.

Dylan Raiola is a 5-star quarterback and the top player in the country for the 2024 recruiting class. He was previously committed to Ohio State before reopening his recruitment in December.

Since reopening his recruitment, Raiola has been trending back and forth between USC’s program under Lincoln Riley and Kirby Smart’s Georgia program. In the end, it was the Bulldogs that pulled in the elite QB.

[bob]

Given that Stetson Bennett still somehow doesn't have an undergrad degree, I'm sure they will somehow find him more eligibility and he'll beat this guy out for the starting job.

[GrantDawg]

Betson Stennett. He will be a remarkably old looking freshman walkon.

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[Swaggs]

Looks like discord in the ACC: Florida State, Clemson among seven ACC schools examining grant of rights agreement, per reports - CBSSports.com

From what I gather, it sounds like Florida State, Clemson, UNC, NC State, Miami, Virginia Tech, and UVA are examining the grant of rights and looking at either uneven revenue sharing or figuring out a way to disband the conference. Uneven revenue sharing has historically been a death knell for conferences that appease their heavyweights right before the conference comes unglued (see Miami with the Big East and Texas with the Big 12) and the tricky thing about getting out of the grant of rights, that is said to be 'airtight,' is that the schools would be looking to screw over their television partner(s) (ESPN, in this case) and then hope that they can get a better TV contract.

Some of these schools have been sitting comfortably for a a long time and seem to be in denial about what the Big Ten and SEC have been doing. I think UNC and UVA seem like they would fit into the Big Ten really well, possibly with Oregon and Washington, but I don't necessarily see homes for both Florida schools or Clemson due to redundant markets in the SEC. I could see NC State and VA Tech in the SEC, if UNC and UVA go to the Big Ten, but I don't think that would be a slam dunk either. If I am BC or Wake Forest or maybe Syracuse, I am not sleeping real well at night these days.

My hope is that WVU might get reunited with some of their traditional rivals when everything shakes out.

[bob]

Can the whole conference realignment shit just shake out already? I just want to move forward to whatever its going to be and then decide if its worth me paying attention or not.

I did laugh at this though:

https://twitter.com/RedditCFB/status...7Ctwgr%5Etweet

[Solecismic]

Until they figure out that football belongs in its own league, apart from all the other sports, it's going to be tough. Lawyers are going to make billions.

[stevew]

Stetson Bennet didn’t graduate? Seems impossible

[GrantDawg]

I don't think Stetson is as bright as people thought he was.

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[Ksyrup]

Looks can be deceiving and he could be a genius, but the starting point is "semi-athletic Screech" so...

[Edward64]

Looks like next week is when SEC will make some big decisions. I hope permanent opponents will be part of it.

I rather have the 9 vs 8 for the 3 vs 1 permanent rivals. But supposedly the 8 game schedule is gaining momentum.

The Southeastern Conference spring meetings convene Tuesday in Destin, Florida. Three days of school presidents, athletic directors and coaches discussing and deciding a variety of issues.

Including this. Whether the SEC, for OU and Texas, will be as entertaining and competitive as it’s billed to be. Or not.

The SEC is expected to decide on a scheduling format, eight conference games or nine, and with that, keeping the scheduling requirement of at least one non-conference game against a Power Five opponent, if the league goes from eight to nine games.

[Edward64]

8 game format for 2024. Not sure why they just decided on 1 year. Full schedule on Jun 14.

The Southeastern Conference has established a scheduling format for the 2024 football season as it continues to finalize a long-term strategy as a 16-team conference, it was announced Thursday.

In the one-year schedule, SEC teams will play eight conference games plus one required opponent from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 or major independent during the 2024 season when the University of Oklahoma and the University of Texas join the league.

Not sure how I like without divisions though.

In addition, the SEC will eliminate divisional standings beginning in 2024. The SEC Championship Game will feature the two top teams in the Conference standings at the end of the regular season. The single-standings format will allow every school to play every other school a minimum of two times in a four-year period, regardless of whether the SEC utilizes an 8-game or 9-game format for future Conference competition.

[GrantDawg]

Sankey said they had already put in work on the schedule changes for 2025- but they didn't have time for major changes in 2024 due to the lack of time they have had since it was official Texas and Oklohoma was joining that soon.
The actual reason is because they haven't squeezed more money out of ESPN for a 9 game schedule.

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[JonInMiddleGA]

The single-standings format will allow every school to play every other school a minimum of two times in a four-year period

So we'll lose classic rivalries like Georgia-Auburn and Alabama-Tennessee in order to insure that both get to play (picking on one example, there are others) fucking Missouri. Golly, I know THAT'S a priority for both fan bases.

Nobody fan outside the state of Missouri gives two shits about the Tigers being IN the SEC much less about playing them ... that happened in the first place due to greed, now the rivalry games die to the same cause.

[GrantDawg]

I was told by a reporter who talked to Sankey that Georgia-Auburn will likely continue. So will Alabama-Tennessee. We will see.

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[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by GrantDawg

I was told by a reporter who talked to Sankey that Georgia-Auburn will likely continue. So will Alabama-Tennessee. We will see.

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So you give up Georgia-Florida and UT-Vandy instead. (could explain why the negotiations with Jacksonville were so low key)

Ditching the divisions is fucking stupid but so was adding Mizzou and A&M, much less the latest acquisitions.

"It just means more" is a cute slogan ... but seems silly once you kill the real reasons it HAS meant more to the fan base.

[Ghost Econ]

They should just keep divisions but call them conferences. They could call one the Southeastern Conference and the other the Southwestern Conference.

[Lathum]

So the times were announced for the Huskies first three games. One game is on PAC 12 which isn't on Direct TV and a monster of an early season matchup between UW and Michigan state will be streamed exclusively on Peacock. Are you fucking kidding me?

[HomerSimpson98]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

So you give up Georgia-Florida and UT-Vandy instead. (could explain why the negotiations with Jacksonville were so low key)

Ditching the divisions is fucking stupid but so was adding Mizzou and A&M, much less the latest acquisitions.

"It just means more" is a cute slogan ... but seems silly once you kill the real reasons it HAS meant more to the fan base.

Hey now - adding us (aTm) was brilliant. Mizzou was the question mark (not sure what they bring). Bringing in Texas and OU is fucking stupid.

[cuervo72]

Originally Posted by Lathum

So the times were announced for the Huskies first three games. One game is on PAC 12 which isn't on Direct TV and a monster of an early season matchup between UW and Michigan state will be streamed exclusively on Peacock. Are you fucking kidding me?

I guess this is a bit of an old guy rant, but all these streaming options remind me of the line from Seinfeld where Jerry and George are trying to sell the pilot to Russel Dalrymple. "Well why am I watching it?" "Because it's on TV."

A lot of shit -- including games -- I end up watching because it's on TV. You put UW and Michigan State on Peacock and fuck if I'm going to search it out (or even know it's there). I'm just going to watch whatever is on ABC/ESPN/CBS.

[GrantDawg]

Jon, no that was not what he was saying. He said Sankey suggested they are going to keep primary rivals and the major secondary rivals as much as possible in the 2024 season. This is just dealing with that season not what happens beyond. My guess is they will extort more money out of ESPN and have a 9 game conference schedule with primary and secondary rivals heading forward if possible.

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[Vegas Vic]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Ditching the divisions is fucking stupid but so was adding Mizzou and A&M, much less the latest acquisitions.

I would counter with the current conference schedule with divisions where some teams only play each other once every seven years is fucking stupid. Better to try and preserve some of the historic rivalries while ensuring that every team plays every other team home and away at least once during a player's college career.

[Solecismic]

It would be nice to get this transition phase over with so the rest of the college sports universe can get back to a conference alignment.

Meanwhile, the "portal" apparently has almost 3,000 players this year, and only about half of them are going in or out of Colorado.

With 16 schools, widely different schedules and this poorly-thought-out "playoff" structure and no more divisions, it's going to be better to finish third in a conference than second, which will often come down to tie-breakers.

Who's going to tell the top-five UCLA softball team they have to spend an April weekend flying for hours, then huddled in East Lansing, waiting out the freezing drizzle to get three run-rule mercy games out of the way?

With all that money and no realistic way to have a March-Madness style mass playoff, major college football is not in a good place right now. But the alternative would mean divorcing from television contracts approaching $100 million per year, per school. It's too bad the Buggles aren't around any more. We need a new song to describe this.

[bob]

Originally Posted by Lathum

So the times were announced for the Huskies first three games. One game is on PAC 12 which isn't on Direct TV and a monster of an early season matchup between UW and Michigan state will be streamed exclusively on Peacock. Are you fucking kidding me?

You can get a year of streaming for $20

[JonInMiddleGA]

Originally Posted by Vegas Vic

I would counter with the current conference schedule with divisions where some teams only play each other once every seven years is fucking stupid. Better to try and preserve some of the historic rivalries while ensuring that every team plays every other team home and away at least once during a player's college career.

Nobody. Gives. A. Shit. about some of those missing teams.

A&M doesn't care if they play South Cackalackey.
Nobody in the east gives the slightest fuck if they ever play Missouri.

The expansion(s) pad pockets but they diminish the core fan experience with each and every round.

[RainMaker]

When a conference gets that big, it's essentially a league. You can't go by the old way of everyone has to play each other an equal number of times.


I think you're better off making the divisions and having those teams only play the teams in those divisions. That seems like the approach and that game every 7 years can be seen the same way an out-of-conference game is seen. Heck, I would only count divisional games in determining who plays for the conference title so there is no crying about unbalanced schedules.



Personally, I think all conferences should be 10 teams, maybe 12 tops. You get to play everyone every year and the conferences take on their own style. But I feel I'm in the minority these days as everyone seems to want these gigantic conferences with no soul.

[Vegas Vic]

Originally Posted by JonInMiddleGA

Nobody. Gives. A. Shit.

Years later, Georgia finally gets to play Texas A&M in football