LOL.
Gee, I hope this doesn’t mess up the CFP expansion talks.
Welcome to the real world, Commissioner Kliavkoff. “Real world” being the Big Ten, the SEC and then everybody else after them.
Daily Archives: June 30, 2022
“We didn’t come to paint.”®
Look who’s coming back to Arky…
I’m sure the greetings will be warm.
Happy birthday, NIL
July 1 marks the one-year anniversary of the NIL era in college sports.
Shot.
“It’s an absolute mess and a train wreck, and the kids are going to be the ones who suffer in the end,” Clemson Tigers coach Dabo Swinney told ESPN’s Chris Low in April.
Chaser.
Nijel Pack, a former Kansas State hoops star, secured All-Big 12 first-team honors last season after averaging 17.4 PPG and connecting on 44% of his 3-point attempts. He entered the transfer portal after KSU coach Bruce Weber resigned following 10 seasons at the school.
ESPN reported that Pack received an NIL package that includes $800,000 over two years and a car, via billionaire John Ruiz, following his transfer to Miami.
“I had a couple of NIL deals at Kansas State,” Pack told ESPN. “They were very small things. Didn’t require too much effort and work. It was obviously the first year of NIL, so everybody didn’t know what to do, how to do it.”
Pack is also dealing with a component of NIL that is usually a concern only for professional athletes: the public disclosure of their earnings.
“Some [deals], like mine, have been released to the public,” Pack said. “Obviously, it’s shocking how much student-athletes can benefit off this. I think [NIL is] something that should have been out there for a while. College basketball is basically a job. … And if we’re going to play and be able to do these things, I think we should be able to benefit off of it.”
But Pack also said the idea that every player with an NIL deal is going to run to the nearest car dealership is misguided. He said he plans to make wise choices with his money.
“It’s a blessing for sure,” he said. “I have parents that are really smart and invest their money. … I’m not going to be the flashiest person just because I have the money. I want to be able to use the money to make more money in the future. … I just feel like I’m only going to grow and use it to be more successful down the line. Save it, invest instead of going to spend and spend and spend.”
Damn, son, didn’t you hear what Dabo said?
Filed under It's Just Bidness
Today, in play fakes
I’ve never seen a quarterback execute this better.
Edwards did a great job of selling it, too. I, like everyone else in the stadium that day, was totally fooled.
Filed under Georgia Football, Strategery And Mechanics
Sometimes you’re up, sometimes you’re down
LOL, somebody at one of the Auburn message boards asked how their recruiting was going and got this in response: “Last in recruiting, but a commanding lead in excuses.”
That led me to wonder — how many SEC fan bases are genuinely miserable right now? And how many are genuinely excited about their prospects? Auburn and Florida would seem to be in the former camp, for sure. I’d think Arkansas, South Carolina and Tennessee are in the latter. Probably Texas A&M, too, now that I consider it.
Alabama, Georgia and Vanderbilt strike me as being outside those two categories. ‘Bama folks are jaded, we’re still basking in the glow of a natty, while feeling pretty solid about the program’s footing, and Vandy fans are too numb to have any feelings at all.
What say you?
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UPDATE:
Filed under SEC Football
Today, in doing it for the kids
Pearls of wisdom from Coach O:
“First of all the game is changing. And if you want to have success, you better change,” Orgeron said. “Number one, you’ve got to find a way to compete at the highest level. And now it’s different, it’s a different lay of the land. But, my own personal opinion, they don’t care about it but I will say it anyway: They have to govern it. There’s got to be something, and I think the players would appreciate it.
“The players that get way too much money in the beginning may not be as hungry, and maybe not in the end get all that he needs to get. So, I think the players will learn to appreciate it, that you’ve got to earn things. I’m not against them getting money, but I think there needs to be some kind of governing.”
… Orgeron said that he’s always been in favor of graduate transfers, but expressed hesitation about the effects the transfer portal and immediate eligibility have had on the sport.
“It’s like free agency—it’s moving too fast,” Orgeron said. “For me, I was all for the graduate transfer portal. I think once you’ve graduated, hey, you’ve got a shot, go take another shot. It was good for Joe, thank God we had him for two years. But I think this transferring, hopping from school to school, especially within the conference and within your division is a little tough. You wear one uniform, the next day you’re wearing your rival’s.”
No doubt that sounds more profound in the original Orgeron-ese, but, still, it’s a beautiful encapsulation of the “fine for me, but not for thee” mindset that passes for wisdom among a certain set of college head coaches. It’s for the best, right? After all, the players would appreciate it.
TFW an analogy ages well
This little bit of insight will never, ever grow stale.
Miami: From a Bulldog perspective, if you looked at the state of Florida as though it were Afghanistan (and I do), the Gators, obviously, are the Taliban, while Miami is whatever warlord is running things in the Northeast. The Hurricanes don’t occupy anything remotely resembling moral high ground, but they are useful. As with Alabama, a healthy Miami helps Georgia; in Da U’s case, it’s because the ‘Canes recruit against the Gators in the Sunshine State’s hottest hotbeds for high school talent, although they don’t play the Gators that often.
Fifteen years old and it still bangs when you read stuff like this ($$):
Also, you have to recognize that Miami is going to be a tough competitor for most of the recruits Florida is chasing. Mario Cristobal is one of the best recruiting head coaches in the sport, with or without NIL, so we have to acknowledge that this isn’t a one-time issue. Remember, McClain took an official visit to Miami over the weekend before releasing a top three that consists of Florida, Alabama and the Hurricanes. Cristobal is no joke.
Is Rashada choosing Miami a major red flag for Florida? I’m not sure if I’m willing to go that far just yet. There are still six months before signing day and perception can change in a hurry. But if Napier finishes his first full cycle as Florida’s head coach with a Mullen-like class — regardless of where you’d put the blame — I’d be worried about Florida’s long-term viability as a powerhouse recruiting outfit.
Yeah, that would be a real shame.
Filed under Gators, Gators..., Recruiting
“I was just speaking from the heart …”
At this point, the only thing I can figure is that Mike Griffith is sexually aroused by the thought of Georgia moving the Cocktail Party out of Jacksonville. It seems like he’s got a post on the subject every week. The latest version brings in that noted expert on Georgia football, Jeremy Pruitt.
“Pruitt, like Smart, has a uniquely qualified perspective to understand the Georgia program’s strengths and weaknesses…”
Whoa, hoss. “Pruitt, like Smart”? But I digress.
“I do know that just from a recruiting standpoint if I’m one of the top players in the country …. (Florida) is going to be a game that’s going to draw some of the best players in the country,” Pruitt said of the Georgia-Florida rivalry.
“These prospects are going to choose the games and decide what game do I want to go see Georgia play? What game do I want to see Alabama, maybe Clemson, LSU, whoever?”
Yes, that’s exactly how the recruiting game is being played these days. Championships, facilities, ability to develop players, NIL — all of that takes a back seat to seeing the team Georgia is playing on a given Saturday.
Griffith notes that Pruitt is taking a year off from coaching after leaving the New York Giants. I’m beginning to understand why.
Filed under Georgia Football, Recruiting
Get The Picture 