Jon Joseph

Greg? https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/acc-24-team-college-football-playoff-expansion/?ftag=SNL-04-10aaa0b&ET_CID=550333&ET_RID=52482716

Right back at ya, Sark! The photo of the Ole Miss AD was taken after tailgating in The Grove from 9 AM until heading to the game at 7 PM. BTW, Keith, Dabo thinks you suck cider through a straw, and your football program ain't Golding. On3Ole Miss AD Keith Carter responds to Steve Sarkisian's vi....

Thanks, Gat. I believe there are a few grudge match games down in Dixie, South Bend, Stillwater, and Bloomington this season. 9/19/26 - Lane's first LSU SEC game has Lane and his Tigers heading to Oxford town. The game will kick off at 7:30 Eastern, giving the folks in The Grove plenty of time to imbibe more than a hot toddy or two. Back, way back, in the 1960's, I watched the National Guard being deployed in Oxford. But if deployed to Faulkner-Town again this year, will it be to protect or arrest Lame Kitten? Possibly to arrest him for his own protection? When he returned to Tennessee as Ole Miss's coach, among other things, folks tossed batteries at Kiffin. On 9/19, an artillery battery could be directed toward Kiff. Charlie Weis, Jr. will not be calling this game on the sidelines. He may be in Baton Rouge calling the game on Zoom. Steve Sarkisian recognizes that the Ole Miss Rebels moniker has been set aside. In a recent article in USA Today, Sark referred to Ole Miss as the Basket Weavers. A lower institution of learning where a major in Basket Weaving is a student-athlete's best friend. Fortunately for Sark, he will not have to brave the slings and arrows of Basket Weaver fans in Oxford. On 10/24/26, Ole Miss visits the Longhorns in Austin. Ole Miss jefe Pete Golding and his troop of Mensa Mississippians will be fired up to tear down the Golden Archie. Back to Lane. Last season on the way to a title, er, pink slip, Brian Kelly won the Battle of Death Valleys in Clemson, South Carolina. On September 5th at 7:30 Eastern, there will be a Death Valley rematch in Red Stick. This is Lane's opening LSU game that will be played in front of the Gov of Louisiana and thousands of other reasonable, forgiving Tigers fans. And the first game of Dabo Swinney's hoped-for redemption season after having more players drafted in 2026, nine, than games won in 2025, seven. 10/17/26, sees the Florida Gators under a new coach straight out of the G5 (now the G6, thank you, Beavis), hoping to chomp Bevo in Austin. Sark blames the PO committee, with good cause, for showing his Horns the PO bench in 2025, but it was an upset loss in The Swamp that was the unkindest, self-inflicted, PO cut of all. On 11/7/26, the Miami Hurricanes travel to South Bend with Baby J at wide receiver, and TD J looking down, not in forgiveness, but praying for payback. How would you feel if you had to spend January in South Bend instead of Orlando? 10/17/26, The Ohio State University at Indiana. Think you might be testy if a team you were 82-11-5 against a group of Hosers, er, Hoosiers, that Rose up (😁) to end a 12-game winning streak and knock the capital T out of The. 9/12/26 - Our Beloved Ducks at Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma. After you give the Mullet a haircut and demolish his team on his way out the door, 69-3, Stillwater hatred runs deep. The Cowboys are 52-12 in Boone Pickens Stadium, and behind a relocated cast of Mean Green characters, including a QB who threw for the most yards in CFB in 2025 and 34 TDs, will be looking to pick a fight with OBD; a fight in front of 60,000-plus crazed fans. Can Mean Green morph into Mean Orange? Thanks, Gat, for the terrific post. It feels so good to diss Kiff. On 9/26, here's hoping your Gators will Swamp Lane.

Thank you, Charles. Among this season's grudge match games, don't miss Miami at Notre Dame on 11/7, the same day the Ducks visit Ohio State. The Notre Dame schedule shows the Miami game kicking off at 7:30 PM Eastern, which means the Ducks vs. Bucks game is likely to be a High Noon kickoff on Fox. 🤬 Miami against Notre Dame will be the only game between these two Blue Chip Roster teams featuring an opponent with a Blue Chip Roster. And the game could determine which of the two has a 1st-round PO bye. Hopefully, in 2026, the CFB PO committee will pay more than lip service attention to the strength of schedule. Beat Boise!

Thank you, NJ. Here's more on Dan's historic promotions. EssentiallySportsDan Lanning Makes History With Front-Office Move That’s N...Dan Lanning quietly made college football history at Oregon with a front-office move that has never been seen before at any Power 4 program.

CBS Sports looks at things post-spring down Dixie way - https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/sec-overreactions-spring-2026-season-alabama-lsu-cfp/

It's fun to diss Ole Miss -👌👍😍 Sark, don't go to Oxford for a kiss. https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/48751879/texas-steve-sarkisian-rips-ole-miss-academic-standards

OK, he's part of the problem, but it's not a problem Steve Sarkisian created. I posted this article under Steven A's post about Nebraska players losing their appeal of the College Sports Commission rejection of NIL transactions. Thank you, Steven. Sark's take is a more holistic view of the CFB mess from the coach of the program with the most profitable athletic department, a coach at a school with top drawer academics. Steve doesn't think much of the academics at Ole Miss. Do the Rebels have a basket-weaving major? Then again, in his final season of eligibility at USC, Matt Leinart's sole class was Ballroom Dancing. Sark is spot on in so many respects. Including why join a settlement agreement when you did not plan to follow its terms? One point with which I wholly agree, the College Football Playoff Committee promised to pay rapt attention to a team's strength of schedule; they lied. Let the venting begin: https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/sec/2026/05/12/texas-football-steve-sarkisian-rips-cfp-selection-committee-ncaa-ole-miss-rules-24-team-playoff/90033796007/?utm_source=usatoday-sports-strada&utm_

I'm made as Hades, and I'm going to bend over and take it up the tailpipe! Sark, full of sound and fury, signifying ??? If you're part of the problem, can you be part of the solution? https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/ncaaf/sec/2026/05/12/texas-football-steve-sarkisian-rips-cfp-selection-committee-ncaa-ole-miss-rules-24-team-playoff/90033796007/?utm_source=usatoday-sports-strada&utm_medium=email&utm_campai

It was the worst of times. It was the best of times. Oregon Ducks On SIBest and Worst Case Scenarios for Oregon, Dan Lanning Nex...The Oregon Ducks enter the 2026 college football as one of the favorites to win the national championship. Here are the best and worst cases scenarios for coach

Week 2 - Fox High Noon for the Sooners at Michigan 🤬. Millions more football fans will watch Ohio State at Texas in Week 2 on ABC at Prime Time - Maize n BrewKickoff time announced for Michigan Football vs OklahomaJUST IN: Michigan vs Oklahoma kickoff time has been announced.

Thank you, Charles, for another terrific editing job. I think it is appropriate to find another article of mine perfectly positioned as a missing link. 😁 Great news about 'dressed up and somewhere to go' articles being available on The Forum. From time to time, I will most likely darken your editing door. You can run, but you can't 🦆🦆🦆. On January 1, 2027, the Rose Bowl will host a 2nd-round quarterfinal playoff game featuring the Big Ten champ. This season, we'll witness a Big Ten Run for the Roses, likely to be determined by a photo finish. (I'm sorry, Gonzaga, but the opponent will not be this season's Pac-12 champ 🙃.) Speaking of the Pac-12, Beat Boise!

There's battle lines being drawn, And nobody's right if everybody's wrong. 🤑

CBS Sports post-spring B1G reactions - take the over 😁 https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/big-ten-overreactions-spring-indiana-west-coast-cfp/

Didn't I tell you to Stop Talking about me! 🤬

Thanks, NJ, for another terrific post. Lloyd's take will make the folks in Austin happy, but ... Lloyd is taking a shallow look at the 2026 schedule with no in-depth analysis. CBS rates Oregon's 2026 schedule the 11th most difficult in the nation, so it's not for the faint-hearted. But strength-of-schedule has to be balanced out by a team's strength-of-roster and coaching. For an opposing POV, 247 Sports' Ducks Territory has OBD going 11-1, with the only loss on the road at Ohio State. Other than Lloyd's, few, if any, projections have Oregon losing more than two games in 2026. Oregon's finishing stretch in November is as difficult as any team's in the nation, no doubt. But setting this aside for the moment, what does November have to do with the first eight games? Oregon will have a significant roster advantage in every game it plays in September and October except for the game in LA vs. USC. Yes, SC has upped its recruiting and NIL game, but it still has the same head coach who has floundered in the more difficult Big Ten conference. A conference where he has more than just the Texas Longhorns to compete against. Unlike Riley, OBD has been a B1G road warrior under Dan Lanning. Games at North Texas West, a/k/a Oklahoma State, and Illinois, with the Illini coming off a bye week, will not be easy but will, IMO, be victories. Returning to November and a four-game finishing stretch of an eight-game grind, the second time B1G HQ has handed OBD 8 without a break in three years, begs the following questions. Where will OBD be on the injury front? Is there enough depth to handle this gauntlet? What will the weather be in Columbus and East Lansing in November? But the opposition has to answer the same questions. Ohio State's schedule before the Oregon game is taxing to say the least, and even with its recruiting chops, can Ohio State replace all of the studs on defense who left for the NFL? (And no-showed vs. Miami.) Is the Michigan QB the real deal? Even if he has greatly improved, who is he going to throw the ball to? Michigan plays four games straight before visiting Autzen, including back-to-back games vs. Indiana and Penn State. Why does Michigan State have to be better? The roster is no better than last season. ESPN ranks Michigan State last in the Big Ten in off-season improvement. In the same category, OBD is ranked second behind Indiana. UW will be a challenge, but I like Oregon's chances in Autzen. And UW will be traveling to Eugene, coming off a home game vs Indiana. Will UW be fired up or beat down? Ohio State? On 10/31, the week before traveling to Ohio State, OBD plays Northwestern in Eugene. On 10/31, Ohio State plays USC in LA. Both teams will be making a three-time zone trip back east, with Ohio State playing back-to-back B1G-time opponents. So, yeah, it's low-hanging clickbait that's warranted without a deeper dive into the schedule and without a look at the quality of Oregon's 2026 roster. With 18 new starters in 2025, Dan Lanning took Oregon to an 11-1 regular season finish. What's Dan going to do with a veteran roster? With the help of the football gods keeping the injury bugs away, I see 10-2 as the floor for the 2026 team, with 12-0 as the ceiling. The opening game. Boise's SP+ is the top in the G6, No. 39, 6.8 index - OBD is ranked 2nd, 28.3 index, by SP+ behind No. 1 Ohio State. Oregon will be a double-digit favorite in the home opener. Beat Boise!

Thanks again, Charles, for the superb editing job, and thank you, Mr. Smith, for all you do for the Forum and the kind comment. Like everything in life, it is what it is, but where would Notre Dame finish if the Irish played Ohio State or Georgia's schedule? Possibly back on the postseason sideline; this time not by choice. Beat Boise! (SP+ 39, and the highest-ranked G6 team.)

Oh, my! One less day to prepare for a White Out. 😁😍🤣 And here I thought that the nag's name was 'Traveler?' Whine On! https://trojanswire.usatoday.com/story/sports/college/trojans/football/2026/05/10/usc-disadvantage-against-penn-state-fox-schedule/90019940007/?utm_source=smg-trojanswire-strada&utm_medium=email&utm

Late November in Michigan, what could go wrong? 🤪 Oregon Ducks On SIOregon Football Schedule Update Sets Up Potential Trap GameOn Friday, the Oregon Ducks Football program announced the date change of two games during their 2026 season, and the change might've set up a potential trap ga%

FWIW, my B1G Rip Van Winkle team in 2026 is a team that has long been in hibernation, but this Westwood Bruin has the schedule to awaken in 2025. No, I'm not calling a PO appearance for UCLA after bringing in a coach from James Madison; that would be the Hoosiers on steroids. But I think Bob Chesney with a QB, Nico Iamaleava, who took Tennessee to the 2024 PO, will make some B1G noise. Get by a challenging opener at Cal in Week 1, and UCLA has three games remaining against teams ranked in the preseason top 25: Oregon and Michigan on the road, and USC at home. G6 San Diego State and Nevada in LA are odds-on wins. UCLA plays four B1G teams that did not win 6 games in 2025: Purdue, Maryland, Wisconsin, and Michigan State, and plays 2025 bowl winners Minnesota and Illinois in LA. One of the best preseason bets on the board is UCLA over 5.5 wins. My betting buddies and I have a bet down on over 5.5. UCLA is at Oregon on 11/24, coming off a bye after a game at Maryland, with OBD coming off a bye after a game at USC. I see UCLA finishing no worse than 8-4, with a shot at 10-2 and a spot in the PO, like a 2024 Indiana team coached by another guy who moved up from JMU. Can a Bruin be a dark horse?

America's Team? What a dream. Oregon Ducks On SIOregon Ducks Could Be College Football’s Version Of Ameri...The Dallas Cowboys became “America’s Team” by thinking bigger than football. Bigger than Texas. Bigger than regional fandom. As the NFL expanded internationally

Thanks, Mike, for a terrific look at the top of the Big Ten in 2026. No, you are not too critical. Can Oregon win tough road games at USC, Illinois, and Ohio State? Can Oregon survive playing eight straight without a break? Can Oregon survive and thrive in a November that has OBD at Ohio State, home vs. Michigan, a Friday night game at Michigan State, and home vs. UW? As you ask above, is Hoover the guy to replace a Heisman Trophy-winning QB? Can Julian Sayin keep his pose when frustrated, as will likely be the case in Week 2 in Austin, Texas? Indiana and Miami provided the game plan; you punch Ohio State in the mouth. No one enjoyed the Buckeyes last two games more than RIP, Lou Holtz. After the top three, come Michigan, USC, Penn State, and UW with the best odds to win the title. USC, Penn State, UW, and Indiana do not play a P4 opponent out of conference, or an away game out of conference. None of their G6 opponents is as good as Boise State. With the game in Stillwater, OK., Oklahoma State, and behind new coach Eric Morris and QB Mestermaker, the Cowboys team will be much improved from the team Oregon destroyed in 2025. Contender Penn State misses both Oregon and Ohio State and plays SC at home. Road games at Michigan and UW present the biggest challenge to Matt Campbell. After the dysfunction in 2025, will Kyle Whittingham have Michigan back to playing championship football? Is QB Bryce Underwood the real deal, or just a large-bodied QB with limited throwing skills and a group of WRs not close in talent to Ohio State, OBD, Indiana, and USC? Like Ohio State, can USC, under Gary Patterson's coaching of the defense, be tough and gritty enough? SC will score points, but can it stop the better opponents from scoring more? According to UW coach Jedd Fisch, the Huskies now have players on both lines of scrimmage big and tough enough to compete in the B1G. If Hoover delivers at Indiana, none of the quarterbacks playing for the six contenders are a weak link. Heisman finalist Sayin returns for the Buckeyes, and OBD's Dante Moore is projected to be the first or second player drafted in 2027. The Big Ten is a tough conference, getting tougher. The only lay-up game on Oregon's schedule is the Week 3 game vs. Portland State on Friday night, 9/18, the week before playing SC in LA. A likely 4-0 USC plays a likely 4-0 UW at home on Saturday, 9/19. This gives OBD one more day to prepare for the trip to Trojan territory, which helps to balance out the disadvantage OBD faces in playing at Michigan State on a Friday night. FanDuel's 2026 win totals are 10.5 for Indiana and Oregon. 9.5 for Ohio State and Penn State. 8.5 for Michigan and USC. Has FanDuel made the right call? Will it be OBD vs Indiana in Indianapolis on December 5th for the B1G title? I repeat, you are not being too critical, Mike. As to the B1G team that wins it all? Sorry, but I'm ducking (😁🦆) this question until the end of Fall camp. Thanks again for the great post. As Charles and I have discussed, article-length posts will be welcome on the Forum. This post is a heck of a good start. 👍👌😍 Beat Boise!

Below is what a 24-team PO field would have been in 2025. I don't see how the expanded field would ruin the regular season. I believe it would enhance the regular season as more teams battle for PO invites. https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/college-football-playoff-expansion-24-team-bracket-2025-season/

So, after playing Ohio State in Columbus, followed by Michigan in Eugene, the Ducks return to the Eastern time zone and play Michigan State on a short week. WTFox! And, BTW, the game in East Lansing will be the Ducks' 7th in a row without a break, and on 11/20, playing on a Friday night, it's odds on that the temperature will be below freezing with an excellent chance of snow. No team in November of 2026 will play a more difficult schedule than Oregon. Brute, meet AL.

Thanks, Mike. As the draft showed, there is still a lot of talent in Dixie. But will the SEC dominate the draft once eligible players on NIL-influenced rosters enter the draft? In 2026, if all draft-eligible Oregon players entered the draft, that's six more draft picks for the B1G, at least. Other players, like the USC QB Maiava, would have come out if they were not receiving income from revenue sharing and NIL deals. It's a very small sample size, but what about coaching in today's Big Ten compared to the SEC? Total 2024-25 and 2025-26 PO records by conference: Big 12 0-2/ ACC 3-3 SEC - 5-8 with Kirby Smart 0-2 in the Sugar Bowl, A&M and Oklahoma 0-1 with home losses. Alabama 1-1, with a win at Oklahoma and the worst loss in the Tide's postseason history coming against Indiana in the Rose Bowl. Big Ten - 11-5 with Ryan Day 4-1 and a championship, Curt Cignetti 3-1 and a championship, James Franklin at Penn State 2-1, and Oregon's Dan Lanning 2-2, with the 2-losses coming against champion Ohio State and champion Indiana. Bowl game victories have also turned in the direction of the middle of the Big Ten. According to the SEC's screwed-over PO teams, South Carolina, Alabama, and Vanderbilt lost bowl games to B1G teams, and last season, Illinois defeated Tennessee in Nashville. The new coaches at Florida, Auburn, and Arkansas are from the G6. Kentucky and Mississippi's new head coaches have no regular-season head coaching experience. Lane Kiffin flipped to LSU. Michigan State's Pat Fitzgerald, Michigan's Kyle Whittingham, and Penn State's Matt Campbell have, respectively, the most wins at Northwestern, Utah, and Iowa State. In 16 seasons, UCLA's Bob Chesney went 132-52 (.717), took JMU to the playoffs, and to date, UCLA is ranked 4th in 2027 recruiting. I'd also add that Tony Petitti and his 24-team PO proposal are no longer being ridiculed. The ACC, B12, and Notre Dame want to go to 24 teams; the SEC is the only holdout. We made it to the airport, caught the last plane out, as we taxied down the runway, I could hear those Beavers shout ...🤬 😁😍🤣