Jon Joseph

From On3 Brett McMurphy ($ wall) at the SEC meetings in Florida: "SEC coaches say they were misled about nine-game schedule and 16-team playoff." Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz - 'We were told the Big Ten would vote to expand the playoff to 16 teams.' BETMGM - Only Georgia and Texas are projected to win nine or more games in 2026. As reported yesterday by On3, a majority of SEC ADs want a 24-team PO. The Georgia Prez is opposed to 24, but if the PO had gone to 24-teams in 2013-14, Georgia would have been in the field 10 times, other SEC teams besides Alabama, not so many. In this case, the tail could wag the Dawgs.

ND, your view is not cynical, and concern about what a 24-team PO would do to the CFB regular season is shared by many. The Athletic ($ wall) posted an article yesterday where they asked lower division coaches what effect playoffs with large fields have on the regular season. Of course, millions of fans are not tuning in weekly to watch these teams play ball. FCS has a 24-team field. D2 30 teams. D3 40 teams. None of the coaches interviewed said that they sat players during the regular season over playing in the PO concerns. All of the coaches interviewed said that every game is important for seeding purposes, especially with all games played on campus before the champ game. The coaches noted that the strength of the schedule is the key factor when the NCAA PO committees create and seed the field. All of the coaches said they schedule competitive OOC games for this reason. The FCS coaches noted that if your team is in the PO year after year, like North Dakota State, it can take the players a longer time to recover. But for the most part, their players are not three years and then off to the NFL. Based on the 2025 season's final AP Poll, this would have been a 24-team field. The 1st- and 2nd-round games would be played on campus. The eight teams with first-round byes would only sit out a week to ten days. No rematches would be allowed in the 1st round. The season would begin a week earlier and end two weeks earlier. No conference champ games is a sticking point for the SEC, but as Steve Sarkisian noted yesterday, flex-scheduling would allow for a conference champ game to be played the last week of the regular season, without the wear and tear of a 13th game on two teams likely in the playoff field. 1. Indiana vs. 17 Iowa at 16 UVA 2. Miami vs. 18 Tulane at 15 Vanderbilt 3. Ole Miss vs. 19 JMU at 14 Utah 4. Oregon vs. 20 USC at 13 Oklahoma 5. Ohio State vs. 21 Michigan at 12 Texas 6. Georgia vs. 22 Houston at 11 BYU 7. Texas Tech vs. 24 North Texas at 10 Notre Dame (to avoid a repeat of the Navy game, N. TX. and Navy switch 1st-round opponents.) 8. Texas A&M vs. 23 Navy at 9 Alabama. As we have in the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd rounds (SIGH) with a 12-team PO field, there will be blowouts. Of course. But in the above scenario, Texas isn't punished for losing a game in Columbus. 2-loss BYU is in the field along with Notre Dame. 4-loss Iowa is in the field, but Iowa lost close games to good teams and defeated 2-loss Vandy in its bowl game, and ACC conference runner-up UVA is in the field. I'm tuning in to watch USC at Oklahoma with the winner playing Oregon in Autzen Stadium. UGA vs. BYU would be a terrific intersectional game, and UGA would play a game 'Tween the Hedges after a short break instead of playing a team coming off a victory in the Sugar Bowl. Four G6 teams make the field. I think JMU would have given Utah all it could handle. I'm tuning in to watch the Midshipmen march into Bryant-Denny before playing a game in Tuscaloosa. A 24-team PO would lift all of CFB financially. If CFB cannot sell its additional game inventory to media companies, where does it go for much-needed cash? 24-teams is the best chance to save the ACC and B12 and prevent or at least slow the coming of CFB NFL-Lite. Why is Tony Petitti opposed to a 16-team field? Using the final 2025 PO committee rankings, the Big Ten had three teams in the field, the SEC five. If the field had been 16-teams, the Big Ten would have had three teams in the field, the SEC seven. 3-loss Bama made the field even though suffering a conference champ game beatdown at the paws of your Dawgs. 2-loss Utah suffered its second loss in the B12 champ game and did not get in. No one outside of the SEC trusts a PO Committee that does its business in the dark. I repeat, you are not being cynical. Your POV is shared by many CFB fans. I can only say that at 79 years of age, I have heard that expanding the PO field would ruin the regular season for many sports. It hasn't happened. Best of fortune to the Dawgs in 2026.

The SEC going solo? Yahoo's Dan Wolken says, 'Good luck, yuck, yuck.' Yes, we did hear the same from the Big Ten. But the Big Ten is a coast-to-coast operation with a huge number of living alums, and is No. 1 in media and other revenue. https://sports.yahoo.com/college-football/article/why-going-solo-would-lead-to-the-death-of-the-sec-174839907.html

It will be a new and improved group of Cowboys that OBD plays Week 2 in Stillwater, Oklahoma. The Cowboys open at Tulsa, so the Oregon game is the home opener in a rowdy T. Boone Pickens Stadium. The Athletic recently ranked CFB's Top 100 2026 transfers. No. 5-ranked QB Drew Mestermaker followed his coach, Eric Morris, from North Texas State to Oklahoma State. In 2026, Mestermaker led the FBS in passing, throwing for over 4800 yards, 30 TDs, 9 Interceptions, and completed 74.8% of his throws. He also rushed for six TDs. Not bad for a walk-on who didn't start for his high school team. No. 10 ranked RB Caleb Hawkins rushed for over 1400 yards and 25 TDs, and caught 32 passes for 370 yards and 4 more TDs. These two were part of the nation's 2nd leading offense and will be joined by six other North Texas starters on the OK State O. With the opener against Boise, Oregon's first two games will not be easy wins. https://collegefootballnews.com/college-football/oklahoma-state-football-preview-2026

College Football News Preseason Preview of Oklahoma State - It's not the Mullet's Cowboys anymore. https://collegefootballnews.com/college-football/oklahoma-state-football-preview-2026

CBS Sports Post-Spring B1G Thoughts - https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/big-ten-post-spring-intel-breakout-players-qb-battles/

Thanks, H. There is no way the B1G and the SEC will agree to market football and men's basketball with the ACC, B12, and G6. The Power 2 down the road could agree to go to market with one another. Cue the antitrust lawyers.

YES! Baylor series cancelled 😍- replaced by a home game vs. Coastal Carolina, giving OBD seven home games in 2027, instead of going Waco. 🤪 Oregon Ducks On SIOregon Reschedules Future Game With New Pac-12 OpponentA lot of moving parts for the Oregon Ducks and their non-conference schedules down the road to wrap up the 2020s and begin the 2030s. The Utah State Aggies of

Five B1G Big Ten Games in September of 2026 - Five Big Ten games that will shape the College Football Playoff race by the end of September BEAT BOISE! (BTW - the game won by OBD was on green turf in Autzen, not on blue turf. SMH 🤬)

10 Must-See 2026 CFB Games include OBD at Ohio State on 11/7, of course 👌👍😁 10 must-see games on 2026 college football schedule, including Oregon vs. Ohio State

The bipartisan Bill co-authored by Ted Cruz and Maria Cantwell that would provide antitrust protection for college athletic enforcement has a decent chance of passing and being signed into law by the president. But not without debate and objection, of course. Among other relief provided by the Bill would be a one-time limit on players transferring for any or no reason, except for being allowed to transfer when a coach moves on. The Bill would also prevent tampering with a coach, as happened with LSU and Lane Kiffin last season, before the season ends. [The photo below is of 'How are you Fixed for Blades' Ted Cruz, not Grandpa Munster. Someone, please, tell Ted to find a new tailor. 😁] AP NewsKey Sens. Cruz, Cantwell look to break college sports log...The senators trying to fix college sports will introduce a bipartisan bill designed to break a congressional logjam that would regulate payments to players, limit them to one “free” transfer over thei

A tip of the hat to the Mustache and Pirate Mike Leach (RIP) - AP NewsVeteran QB Gardner Minshew emerges as starting option for...Veteran quarterback Gardner Minshew has had an opportunistic streak over a seven-year NFL career. He's taken advantage of injuries and other circumstances to make 47 career starts for five different t

Seriously? OBD plays Ohio State in Columbus, probably a 9 AM body-clock kickoff, returns to Eugene to play Michigan, and then travels to East Lansing, Michigan, for a short-week game that happens to be the eighth straight game without a break. No other Big Ten team has a November like OBD. This is probably the most difficult schedule in CFB this November. 11 AM kick off in Stillwater means one less drunk Cowboy in the stands. 10:30 PM Eastern kick off for the game vs the Vikings. Will any sober person on the Right Coast be tuning in to BTN to watch this "contest"?

If you can't join the Ducks, why not play the champ game in Providence Park in Goose Hollow? I'm reasonably certain that this game would be a Miss-State. 😊

Houston will also be a Texas Two-Step beatdown. Houston will probably be ranked in the AP preseason poll. What's Beavis being paid to travel to Houston in a body bag? The B12 stiffed us, so let's open the season with two games against 2 of the best teams in the B12.🤪 Sorsby? Meh. The Gatorade Person could QB TT, and the Red Raiders easily win the game. On September 17, 2033, Texas Tech is scheduled to visit Autzen. If Cody Campbell is still drilling and NILing, this should be a tough P4 (if the P4 still exists) out-of-conference opponent. Of course, in 2033, OBD and TT could be in the same conference in NFL Lite.

Because the Pac-12 has but eigth football playing member states, the 12th game is flex scheduled but will be a repeat of a conference game played earlier in the season. They broke up the MW for this?

Baseball Takes - Beavis? Not OBD? https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/other/2026-ncaa-baseball-tournament-regional-picks-predictions-as-college-world-series-pursuit-begins/ar-AA24co8j?ocid=msedgdhphdr&cvid=6a17b75faa10447b9d02cbc39194301

With my tech expertise, sign me up for more tech frustration.🤪

I'm tellin' you, I get no respect! As reported on the Big Ten Network, the conference hosting three regionals is a record. Head West, Old Man? 😁 Oregon Ducks On SIOregon Baseball Disrespected in College World Series OddsThe Oregon Ducks (40-16) have interesting odds to win the College World Series, especially compared to their in-state rival and potential opponent, the Oregon S

No surprise. The NCAA stiff-arms Sorsby. Now, here comes the backup judge. Unlike the judge in Mississippi, who is an Ole Miss booster and gave Ole Miss QB Chambliss another season of eligibility, the 1st judge in Texas, who graduated from Texas Tech (undergraduate and law school) and is a TT booster, recused himself. Where's Roy Bean when you need him? AP NewsNCAA denies Texas Tech QB Brendan Sorsby's petition for e...Texas Tech announced the NCAA has denied the school’s petition to have Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby’s eligibility reinstated after he acknowledged wagering on sports, including on his own tea

Good call on Boise. 1-3 vs the Broncos, and it could have been 0-4. Never, ever, never schedule Boise State. Boise is preparing to play its Super Bowl on 9/5/2026. Will Oregon match the intensity of the highest-ranked G6 team playing a game that could be critical to its playoff hopes? Until the PO moves to 24 teams, I see no reason to play a P4 opponent OOC. Indiana played three cupcakes at home in 2024 and 2025 and is doing the same this season. You must play at least seven home games in a season, preferably eight. There is no connection between Oregon and Oklahoma State and Baylor. Why is OBD playing road games in Stillwater, OK, and Waco, Texas? (Because of Rob's service on the PO committee in Grapevine?) In today's CFB, these games do not affect recruiting. Go to 24, and I believe we will see an annual B1G/ SEC football challenge and be well compensated for playing these games. A Power 2 head-to-head could bring in enough money for Sankey and ESPN to drop the concern about not playing a champ game, a game that many of his coaches do not want to play. OBD receives no additional media revenue for playing in Stillwater and Waco, and it's a lose-lose proposition for the Ducks. Win? Well, Oregon is supposed to win? Lose? There goes the 12-team PO mulligan. 2026, Michigan and UW at home, and USC, Illinois, and Ohio State on the road, give the schedule all the strength that's needed. Why go to Stillwater instead of playing an 8th home game? In 2027, Iowa, Ohio State, and Penn State visit Eugene. Oregon plays five Big Ten games on the road: Maryland, Michigan, Nebraska, UCLA, and UW. Six home games on the schedule, why Waco? The games you remember are played in November, not September. I certainly understand and, of course, respect your POV, but before tripping to USC in Week 4, I'd like to see Autzen resemble a cupcake factory, Portland State, and taking a page from the Hoosiers book, followed by No. Texas (zero starters back, OBD is playing them in Stillwater) and Western, not Will's, Kentucky. Indiana is 3-0 before hosting Northwestern and traveling to Rutgers, and three home games bring a lot of money to Bloomington. Home games versus Ohio State and USC, and road games at Michigan and UW, give the Hoosiers schedule more than enough difficulty. However: Beat Boise!

I'm happy the Civil War is back. But, there is no way that this should not be a 3 for 1, at least, in favor of the Ducks. Oregon State's most-watched game will be vs. Oregon. OBD on the other hand?

B1G Women's Teams - Northwestern 14 - North Carolina 11 - NW wins women's lacrosse championship. UCLA and Nebraska softball teams advance to the softball World Series. USC plays Arkansas in a Women's Golf Final 4 semifinal match. Eastern Michigan 😁plays Stanford. Eastern Michigan winning it all would be as crazy as a basketball school like Indiana winning a college football championship. 🤪

Tennessee coach Josh Heupel has come out in favor of 24. Here's a take from Texas A&M coach Mike Elko. (I have yet to see a plan from those who abhor 24 that would raise close to the same money.) 'A lot' of people in college football could be headed to bankruptcy

After the recent Big Ten meetings concluded, Tony Petitti doubled down on a 24-team playoff (PO) field. The Big Ten noted that if college football (CFB) had a 24-team field beginning in 2014, the year the field expanded to four teams and OBD played for a title, 80 programs would have made the PO. The Athletic (NY Times $ site) broke down how many appearances the 80 programs would have qualified for. Leading CFB with 12 appearances - Alabama and Ohio State. That's a PO 12 appearances in 12 seasons. (I know. You're shocked, right? 😁) 22 G6 teams would have qualified for at least one PO appearance. The ACC, B12, and Notre Dame support expanding the field to 24. The SEC is the lone holdout, but SEC commissioner Greg Sankey admits that his conference is a house divided between a 16-team or a 24-team field. For example, the president of the University of Georgia wants no more than 16 teams. Not surprising, as UGA would have made 10 PO appearances. Every SEC team would have qualified for a 24-team PO. However, with one appearance, the presidents, athletic directors, and coaches of Arkansas and Vanderbilt have a different perspective than that of Georgia. A decision on whether to expand the field from 12 to 24, the Big Ten will not agree to a lesser number of teams, has to be made by December 1, 2026. The B1G 10 teams by PO appearances: 12 - Ohio State / 8 - Michigan, and Oregon / 7 - Penn State, and USC / 6 - Iowa (the same number as Texas, Ole Miss, and Oklahoma State) / 5 - Washington / 4 - Michigan State, Northwestern, and Wisconsin / 3 - Indiana (and Boise State) / 2 - UCLA / 1 - Illinois, and Minnesota. A B1G Zip, Zero, Nada, Nudge - Rutgers, Maryland, Purdue, and Nebraska 🤪. (With Nebraska, Matt Ruhle is 0-9 vs. the Top 25, 2-25 in his career.) How long can Sankey, on behalf of ESPN, and not on behalf of many of his member programs, especially the programs most in need of additional PO revenue, hold out? Sankey also aggressively supports playing a conference champ game that many SEC coaches, including Lane Kiffin, don't want to play. If the NCAA managed an FBS PO instead of a media company hosting a bowl extravaganza, the field would have been at 24 in 2014.