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Does it seem like there's more parity in CFB this year?

chipdouglas

Hall Of Fame
Mar 16, 2005
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This is the first year it doesn't seem like there is one unbeatable team. Also good representation in the Top 10 instead of just SEC only: 4x SEC teams, 3x P12 (!!!), 2x B10, 1x B12
  • Georgia is probably the class of CFB, but Missouri/Kent State showed they will look past teams. They're also clearly worse on defense. IMO probably 3-4 teams that can beat them with the right bounces
  • tOSU is maybe a team that could beat Georgia, but they too are sleepwalking right now. Any given Saturday
  • I'll never believe in Michigan - they're like UW in 2016: regular season champs who fall into the playoff woodchipper of teams that are actually good
  • Nobody believes in TCU
  • Alabama is basically not a factor, and neither is Clemson
  • Unless they're playing Georgia or a team that can dominate man coverage, Tennessee could be unstoppable. Unfortunately, a couple teams CAN play man
  • Everyone else looks really fallible: USC bows to Utah, LSU with ugly losses, Oregon gets stomped out by Georgia, UCLA are you kidding me?
Honestly can't remember a year like this where you couldn't see that some combination of Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia or Clemson were on a collision course for the playoffs...
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The regular season matters much more when only 4 teams make the playoff. With the expanded playoff, Bama would still be in contention. I watched almost all of Bama-LSU. Best game of the year so far, IMO.

I hope the super duper smarty pants guys got the expanded playoff right. Devaluing the large inventory of regular season games, for hopefully more cash on the playoff is not certain to payoff.
 
I think there are still some top teams that are above others. Ive noticed there are a lot of teams hovering around 500.

I would be interested to see how the portal and the new flow of kids from one program to another effects coaching and development. I understand that kids wanna play. There is no reason to stand on the sideline and watch years of your eligibility go by. But one of the things that helps teams hovering around 500 get better is kids growing into the scheme and program. If college football is now gonna be a turnstile of kids, I expect the quality of play to get worse.
 
It will be interesting to see what happens this off season. The offense only loses 3 players, that contribute, through graduation, Bell, Stephens and Ferrel. On defense there will be holes to fill, several on the D Line, Heneley, and 3-4 DBs that contribute. Also do Jackson and Stone leave early? I think they are better off playing another year, but we shall see. The next question is, do we lose any of the 2 deeps to the portal? This is the biggest concern, who knows, but you have to keep recruiting your existing roster. The one thing about High School recruiting these days as always have to recruit people that fit your system, but unlike years past, when the recruit went somewhere else, you can now say, if it doesn't work out keep us in mind in the future. I think some of the better kids you get through the portal might be some that you just missed on, a year or two ago, that aren't real happy where they are, so having a positive relationship during the recruiting process win or lose, is critical to keeping that door open, which is new. Then you of course you use the portal to fill immediate holes, the free agent market so to speak. I see a lot of emphasis on the defensive side here, provided we keep the offense together. If they cap the roster to a smaller number like Biggs and others have suggested it will bring more parity. Less spots per team always spreads the talent around. However I do think the roster cap is a ways off, simply because the NCAA moves slowly with any changes, other than targeting, which has gotten out of hand.
 
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It will be interesting to see what happens this off season. The offense only loses 3 players, that contribute, through graduation, Bell, Stephens and Ferrel. On defense there will be holes to fill, several on the D Line, Heneley, and 3-4 DBs that contribute. Also do Jackson and Stone leave early? I think they are better off playing another year, but we shall see. The next question is, do we lose any of the 2 deeps to the portal? This is the biggest concern, who knows, but you have to keep recruiting your existing roster. The one thing about High School recruiting these days as always have to recruit people that fit your system, but unlike years past, when the recruit went somewhere else, you can now say, if it doesn't work out keep us in mind in the future. I think some of the better kids you get through the portal might be some that you just missed on, a year or two ago, that aren't real happy where they are, so having a positive relationship during the recruiting process win or lose, is critical to keeping that door open, which is new. Then you of course you use the portal to fill immediate holes, the free agent market so to speak. I see a lot of emphasis on the defensive side here, provided we keep the offense together. If they cap the roster to a smaller number like Biggs and others have suggested it will bring more parity. Less spots per team always spreads the talent around. However I do think the roster cap is a ways off, simply because the NCAA moves slowly with any changes, other than targeting, which has gotten out of hand.

If it were me, I wouldnt worry about kids leaving. If they believe somewhere else is better, best of luck! There is no shortage of talent. There is a shortage of evaluation, prospecting and salesmanship.

I would be fine if WSU/Dickert just told kids outright that there will be 0 effort by the university to help or provide NIL $. If you land a deal on your own, great. But we aren’t getting involved.

I would be fine if Dickert took 25 HS kids and filled out with JC kids. Ignore the portal altogether.

Ask yourself, can WSU recruit HS, recruit JC, recruit the portal, recruit the current roster and find NIL deals for kids all at once?

At some point, for some schools, you have to sell playing time, Power 5 and game film for the NFL. If you have kids sticking their hands out all over the nation for deals, is that kid really focused on football? Or are they focused on social media deals?
 
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If it were me, I wouldnt worry about kids leaving. If they believe somewhere else is better, best of luck! There is no shortage of talent. There is a shortage of evaluation, prospecting and salesmanship.

I would be fine if WSU/Dickert just told kids outright that there will be 0 effort by the university to help or provide NIL $. If you land a deal on your own, great. But we aren’t getting involved.

I would be fine if Dickert took 25 HS kids and filled out with JC kids. Ignore the portal altogether.

Ask yourself, can WSU recruit HS, recruit JC, recruit the portal, recruit the current roster and find NIL deals for kids all at once?

At some point, for some schools, you have to sell playing time, Power 5 and game film for the NFL. If you have kids sticking their hands out all over the nation for deals, is that kid really focused on football? Or are they focused on social media deals?
I would agree on the NIL issues, you have to sell your strength, extra money is not a WSU strength, yes you will need some from time to time, but it is not a solution for everything So the emphasis has to be on relationships with the players, the support they get while they are here, from simply things like housing to meals, to help in obtaining their degree, to development as a player, to power 5, to exposure to NFL, if people are comfortable where they are, and enjoy the people they work with, and are appreciated, they typically don't leave. If you think jumping for money is better for you, see ya, it maybe in the short run, but usually isn't in the long run.
 
Texas A&M bought the #1 recruiting class in 2022 for over 4mil in NIL deals. They are 3-6.

I believe they’ve had a ton of injuries. Also, they are still frosh. When they are juniors and seniors and 3-6, then I’d be concerned.
 
Chip, my short answer to your question is "Yes, definitely". It is also yet another proof statement to the inexact nature of talent evaluation and the weakness of the "stars" system.
 
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If it were me, I wouldnt worry about kids leaving. If they believe somewhere else is better, best of luck! There is no shortage of talent. There is a shortage of evaluation, prospecting and salesmanship.

I would be fine if WSU/Dickert just told kids outright that there will be 0 effort by the university to help or provide NIL $. If you land a deal on your own, great. But we aren’t getting involved.

I would be fine if Dickert took 25 HS kids and filled out with JC kids. Ignore the portal altogether.

Ask yourself, can WSU recruit HS, recruit JC, recruit the portal, recruit the current roster and find NIL deals for kids all at once?

At some point, for some schools, you have to sell playing time, Power 5 and game film for the NFL. If you have kids sticking their hands out all over the nation for deals, is that kid really focused on football? Or are they focused on social media deals?
It makes sense to use the portal like the free agent wire. Look to see if there's someone you need and who's a good fit. Don't try to use it to land a star player. Stars who hit the portal are most likely looking for a bigger, better deal, and there's little point in wasting time on kids we're never going to land. Sell the opportunity for early playing time, but don't rely on it to find instant starters.

WSU isn't likely to put together big, competitive NIL packages that will attract the top flight players. So...don't try. And if you're not trying to make those competitive packages, it's better to step back almost entirely. Maybe maintain a list of donors/sponsors who are willing to talk to kids, and make the introductions. Stay out of the details.

WSU coaches have to put in extra effort in recruiting both HS and JC. Extra effort into deeper evaluation. Extra effort into coaching them up. Extra effort into retention - especially in the NIL/portal world. There's not enough hours left in the day for them to also put extra effort into portal and NIL. They can't ignore it completely, but for the most part, they need to stay focused mostly on the players who want to play, not the ones who want to get paid.
 
It makes sense to use the portal like the free agent wire. Look to see if there's someone you need and who's a good fit. Don't try to use it to land a star player. Stars who hit the portal are most likely looking for a bigger, better deal, and there's little point in wasting time on kids we're never going to land. Sell the opportunity for early playing time, but don't rely on it to find instant starters.

WSU isn't likely to put together big, competitive NIL packages that will attract the top flight players. So...don't try. And if you're not trying to make those competitive packages, it's better to step back almost entirely. Maybe maintain a list of donors/sponsors who are willing to talk to kids, and make the introductions. Stay out of the details.

WSU coaches have to put in extra effort in recruiting both HS and JC. Extra effort into deeper evaluation. Extra effort into coaching them up. Extra effort into retention - especially in the NIL/portal world. There's not enough hours left in the day for them to also put extra effort into portal and NIL. They can't ignore it completely, but for the most part, they need to stay focused mostly on the players who want to play, not the ones who want to get paid.

At some point you have to pick what you’re gonna be and be it. If it’s a bidding war for an established portal player, will WSU win?

If you’re pursuing kids that haven’t played a down for 2 years of their college career, how relevant is their HS film?

Keep the HS kids coming in. 1 for all 22 starting spots, fill in as needed with JC kids. Get on down the road.

Im hopeful the “open 85” comes thru. You could see some schools graduate 18 seniors, lose another 12 to the portal and only get 25 kids to replace 30. How many years in a row can you do that before the roster is just depleted to the point you can’t beat anyone?

Also, what happens when big NIL schools realize they don’t have to use a scholarship on their NIL kids? When A&M realizes they can get their best 25 on NIL, have them pay their own way, then land 25 more on scholarship…. it’s over for the rest of college football. The teams with means will soak up 50 kids per class and leave everyone else with the portal or FCS kids.
 
At some point you have to pick what you’re gonna be and be it. If it’s a bidding war for an established portal player, will WSU win?

If you’re pursuing kids that haven’t played a down for 2 years of their college career, how relevant is their HS film?

Keep the HS kids coming in. 1 for all 22 starting spots, fill in as needed with JC kids. Get on down the road.

Im hopeful the “open 85” comes thru. You could see some schools graduate 18 seniors, lose another 12 to the portal and only get 25 kids to replace 30. How many years in a row can you do that before the roster is just depleted to the point you can’t beat anyone?

Also, what happens when big NIL schools realize they don’t have to use a scholarship on their NIL kids? When A&M realizes they can get their best 25 on NIL, have them pay their own way, then land 25 more on scholarship…. it’s over for the rest of college football. The teams with means will soak up 50 kids per class and leave everyone else with the portal or FCS kids.
Paul Finebaum said Alabama will not be as dominate in future cause Saban and his belief and lack of use of NIL. It will be interesting to see. Apparently Bama just lost a verbal to USC. Hmmm.
 
Paul Finebaum said Alabama will not be as dominate in future cause Saban and his belief and lack of use of NIL. It will be interesting to see. Apparently Bama just lost a verbal to USC. Hmmm.

If you want 4 and 5 star kids you are gonna pay them. The end.

The idea that the best talent isn’t going to leverage it into a pay day isn’t reality. That goes for current rosters too.

Saban either gets on board or he will lose games he never dreamed of losing. Or maybe he complains and gets rules changed to his liking?

Again, cut the rosters to max 70. Let’s find out who can coach football, not just stockpile 4-5 star kids and out talent teams.
 
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Paul Finebaum said Alabama will not be as dominate in future cause Saban and his belief and lack of use of NIL. It will be interesting to see. Apparently Bama just lost a verbal to USC. Hmmm.
Until he changes his mind.

Kind of like when up tempo was the greatest threat to humanity in the history of history. Then Saban changed the offense.
 
At some point you have to pick what you’re gonna be and be it. If it’s a bidding war for an established portal player, will WSU win?

If you’re pursuing kids that haven’t played a down for 2 years of their college career, how relevant is their HS film?

Keep the HS kids coming in. 1 for all 22 starting spots, fill in as needed with JC kids. Get on down the road.

Im hopeful the “open 85” comes thru. You could see some schools graduate 18 seniors, lose another 12 to the portal and only get 25 kids to replace 30. How many years in a row can you do that before the roster is just depleted to the point you can’t beat anyone?

Also, what happens when big NIL schools realize they don’t have to use a scholarship on their NIL kids? When A&M realizes they can get their best 25 on NIL, have them pay their own way, then land 25 more on scholarship…. it’s over for the rest of college football. The teams with means will soak up 50 kids per class and leave everyone else with the portal or FCS kids.
Agreed. Except that 85 is probably too many.

To get around the second issue, the NCAA could create a rule mandating who gets scholarships. Anyone on the 2-deep, anyone who starts more than 5 games…some sort of standard that ensures the kids getting on the field aren’t shadow scholarships funded by NIL. Not quite sure how you get past that, but the new changes have opened that door. It’s feasible now (again) for some schools to arrange for the entire roster to get paid, and let USC & Alabama stockpile & pay talent just to keep them from going to other teams.
 
Agreed. Except that 85 is probably too many.

To get around the second issue, the NCAA could create a rule mandating who gets scholarships. Anyone on the 2-deep, anyone who starts more than 5 games…some sort of standard that ensures the kids getting on the field aren’t shadow scholarships funded by NIL. Not quite sure how you get past that, but the new changes have opened that door. It’s feasible now (again) for some schools to arrange for the entire roster to get paid, and let USC & Alabama stockpile & pay talent just to keep them from going to other teams.

Your idea is for the NCAA, who has already punted on rules and enforcing them, to now add them and enforce them. Sorry, ain't happening.

Cut the roster to 70 kids max, including walk ons. Let’s see what happens then.
 
Your idea is for the NCAA, who has already punted on rules and enforcing them, to now add them and enforce them. Sorry, ain't happening.

Cut the roster to 70 kids max, including walk ons. Let’s see what happens then.
That's true...but they're the only body who can possibly make those rules. Including a 70 man roster limit.
 
That's true...but they're the only body who can possibly make those rules. Including a 70 man roster limit.

It would have to be a vote. The teams with means sure as hell aren’t gonna want it. They want their cake and eat it too. It would have to be the teams without means that group together and make it happen.

Is there a tipping point? If so, what is it?
 
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