If the chaos is the new normal

[GoSU96]

The tournament this year is saying it’s a good thing.

Final four of IU, Miss, Miami, and Oregon. So nice that the usual suspects aren’t in it.

The funnel is bigger and talent is spreading out .

 

[23Zone]

We are basically going to have almost an entirely new team next year so maybe we can be the new Indiana lol.

 

[anomander]

It is refreshing not to see the usual suspects, but i don’t think it’s necessarily spreading out. The B10/SEC will continue to further distance themselves, and schools like Miami who have cash to throw around and were highly successful at multiple points will re-emerge. The money difference between B10/SEC vs field is only increasing. Indiana’s roster salary is up there with the others. They paid the top portal QB last year millions.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

It is refreshing to not see the usual suspects, but i don’t think it’s necessarily spreading out. The B10/SEC will continue to further distance themselves, and schools like Miami who have cash to throw around and were highly successful at multiple point will re-emerge. The money difference between B10/SEC vs field is only increasing. Indiana’s roster salary is up there with the others. They paid the top portal QB last year millions.

Mendoza wasn't the top portal QB.

 

[CuseFan]

Basically every team going forward has a chance to win it all, as they get 20-30% new faces every year

 

[Cusefan0307]

It is refreshing to not see the usual suspects, but i don’t think it’s necessarily spreading out. The B10/SEC will continue to further distance themselves, and schools like Miami who have cash to throw around and were highly successful at multiple point will re-emerge. The money difference between B10/SEC vs field is only increasing. Indiana’s roster salary is up there with the others. They paid the top portal QB last year millions.

Politics have ruined the ability for a true playoff where the best teams are picked. Oklahoma and Alabama didn't deserve to be there at all. The Big 12 deserved much more respect than they received, but the SEC/ESPN drives the bus and no one wants to see Utah in over Oklahoma or Alabama. Notre Dame was better than both of those schools too.

 

[Nicknack]

Yeah, and now moving forward, Notre Dame gets a guaranteed seat in the CFP if they're top 12. I hate them. Instead of being pressured to join a conference, others lay down to them which just enables their belief that they are god's team.

 

[Reyes39]

Mendoza wasn't the top portal QB.

That was Salter and be got benched...twice I believe.

 

[UnknownOrange]

Yeah, and now moving forward, Notre Dame gets a guaranteed seat in the CFP if they're top 12. I hate them. Instead of being pressured to join a conference, others lay down to them which just enables their belief that they are god's team.

We and every other school would do the same thing if we could

But i agree. Hate em even more now lol

 

[Atlcuse44]

The tournament this year is saying it’s a good thing.

Final four of IU, Miss, Miami, and Oregon. So nice that the usual suspects aren’t in it.

The funnel is bigger and talent is spreading out .

Living in Dawg country, I was pulling for UGA. While I was bummed they lost, I do like the fact that we have new blood in the final four. Ole Miss is a good story since their scumbag coach left.

 

[anomander]

Mendoza wasn't the top portal QB.

I should have said one of the top QB’s. He was the 4th rated QB, and 22nd player overall out of thousands of portal entries.

His known NIL deal was $2.6M mainly from adidas, and school collective. He also had several other deals that are not be counted in that total, including sponsorships with brands like keurig, Dr. Pepper, Royal Canine, Epic games, and Axia time.

He’s was also looked at as a future top NFL prospect when he was with Cal. That was a huge haul for them.

 

[anomander]

That was Salter and be got benched...twice I believe.

Salter wasn’t anywhere near being a top portal QB. He was just considering coming here at one point. He was at Collins level.

 

[texascpa]

Imagine if we were still using the 4-team BCS ranking - Georgia, OSU and Texas Tech would be in the semifinals. So grateful for the 12 team, playoff.

 

[richmondcuse03]

Salter wasn’t anywhere near being a top portal QB. He was just considering coming here at one point. He was at Collins level.

We also passed on Salter because he showed up smoking weed on his recruiting visit. It’s a lot easier to recruit a top guy when you have a clear opening. If we weren’t trying to convince Kyle to stay we could have probably gotten someone else. Or perhaps Steve would have transferred earlier and we would have gotten a better backup.

We’re being more assertive this time with our needs.

 

[OttoinGrotto]

I should have said one of the top QB’s. He was the 4th rated QB, and 22nd player overall out of thousands of portal entries.

His known NIL deal was $2.6M mainly from adidas, and school collective. He also had several other deals that are not be counted in that total, including sponsored by brands like keurig, Dr. Pepper, Royal Canine, Epic games, and Axia time.

He’s was also looked at as a future top NFL prospect when he was with Cal. That was a huge haul for them.

I was at the Cal game. I remember thinking Mendoza was solid but didn't realize he was considered to be that good.

The Cal fans were super cool btw. One group of guys told me Mendoza played his worst game of the season against us.

 

[anomander]

I was at the Cal game. I remember thinking Mendoza was solid but didn't realize he was considered to be that good.

The Cal fans were super cool btw. One group of guys told me Mendoza played his worst game of the season against us.

Thinking back i’m almost positive he did. I have seen a couple NFL scouts say he is over rated, but he’s pretty much a lock to go in the top 5, and possibly #1.

 

[Chip]

The Cal fans were super cool btw. One group of guys told me Mendoza played his worst game of the season against us.

If you look at his game log from last year, this tracks.

Fernando Mendoza 2024 Stats per Game - NCAAF - ESPN

The 2024 NCAAF season stats per game for Fernando Mendoza of the Indiana Hoosiers on ESPN. Includes full stats, per opponent, for regular and postseason.

www.espn.com

 

[Reyes39]

Salter wasn’t anywhere near being a top portal QB. He was just considering coming here at one point. He was at Collins level.

Yeah I'm wrong. I looked at the list again from last year. I think I rated him higher in my head bc of the Deion factor.

 

[sufandu]

Imagine if we were still using the 4-team BCS ranking - Georgia, OSU and Texas Tech would be in the semifinals. So grateful for the 12 team, playoff.

Makes you wonder how things may have worked out had it been a bigger playoff sooner or had we had a real playoff during the BCS era. Remember when an undefeated Auburn was left out or when Miami was left out in 2000 because of an early loss even though they looked like the best team in the country by the end of the year?

 

[Cusefan95]

Yeah, and now moving forward, Notre Dame gets a guaranteed seat in the CFP if they're top 12. I hate them. Instead of being pressured to join a conference, others lay down to them which just enables their belief that they are god's team.

Eh. I've been critical of how Notre Dame played their hand after the selection this year - but the deal they have now is wildly overplayed by their haters. Realistically if they were top 10 they were guaranteed to be in, now its top 12...so what. Its not like there can't be some game playing to knock them down to #13 somewhat similar to what we saw this year.

I'm not sure how they are going to be legally pressured to join a conference - I've said Notre Dame has got a great deal with the ACC that they like to undersell - but its also not a situation the ACC can do better than either. If the ACC demands they join fully or get out - I think Notre Dame would leave, put non-football sports back in the Big East and take their chance at scheduling 12 games a year instead of 6 like they do now. What has 0.0% chance of happening is Notre Dame football in the ACC. Feel free to propose a way that anyone can "pressure" Notre Dame to join a conference that isn't illegal (like - join a conference or you can't be in the playoff that would get tossed out as illegal which is why it won't happen) because any suggestions I've seen are bat-crap crazy nonsense.

At some point the ACC-Notre Dame deal will implode because its a marriage of convenience nobody really likes - but it won't happen anytime soon.

 

[Cusefan95]

I'm hoping Ole Miss loses their offensive coaching staff due to the need to focus on the LSU transfer portal and Ole Miss gets blown out by Miami. I don't know how you fix it - but losing your coaching staff before a semifinal game looks so Mickey Mouse shambolic that they'll need to figure out some way to never let it happen again.

Or its possible that nobody cares about the integrity of the games and this is all a naked money grab so nothing will change. I'm not sure which way this goes.

 

[SUinNWE]

Makes you wonder how things may have worked out had it been a bigger playoff sooner or had we had a real playoff during the BCS era. Remember when an undefeated Auburn was left out or when Miami was left out in 2000 because of an early loss even though they looked like the best team in the country by the end of the year?

Everything done in college football is by design. I know you can't have a series to determine who's best so it's all about image and marketing. Can't interrupt the cash cow for the blue bloods.

Remember when they put Boise State against TCU in the fiesta bowl, when they were both non-power five schools 2010? I was so annoyed because I wanted to see how they would do against the big boys.

ESPN glazing the SEC all year, when it's clear that the conference isn't significantly better than all the other conferences.

I thought it was a pretty bad look when Alabama lost to FSU early in the year and then they got absolutely dominated by Georgia in the conference championship. But you can't punish someone for making the conference championship.

Watching Alabama getting spanked by IU was so vindicating.

 

[powdersmack]

 

[Nicknack]

Eh. I've been critical of how Notre Dame played their hand after the selection this year - but the deal they have now is wildly overplayed by their haters. Realistically if they were top 10 they were guaranteed to be in, now its top 12...so what. Its not like there can't be some game playing to knock them down to #13 somewhat similar to what we saw this year.

I'm not sure how they are going to be legally pressured to join a conference - I've said Notre Dame has got a great deal with the ACC that they like to undersell - but its also not a situation the ACC can do better than either.

Because no other team has a guarantee so why should they? Of course they aren't going to be legally pressured to join a conference but with these kind of deals, that no other team is afforded, allows them to continue doing what they want independently. I hope teams like USC and others stop scheduling them - there's no need for them. Then, ND might have to run the table to warrant a top 12 ranking.

 

[Scooch]

Makes you wonder how things may have worked out had it been a bigger playoff sooner or had we had a real playoff during the BCS era. Remember when an undefeated Auburn was left out or when Miami was left out in 2000 because of an early loss even though they looked like the best team in the country by the end of the year?

I've always thought that once they expanded the playoff we'd end up seeing a lot of 2 and 3 loss teams win the title.

The undefeated/1-loss criteria was always simplistic and silly. There were always 2-3 loss teams that were better but played a tougher schedule or took longer to come together during the season.