By Franz Beard
A few thoughts to jump start your Friday morning:
COPELAND IN THE TRANSFER PORTAL
I wish I could sound terribly disappointed by Jacob Copeland’s choice to put his name in the NCAA transfer portal, but I’m not. Just like I’m not all that terribly concerned that Khris Bogle, Gerald Mincey, Lloyd Summerall III and Dante Zanders have put their names in the portal. While I think some of them may reconsider once they’ve had a chance to sit down and talk things over with Billy Napier and the new position coaches he’s bringing in, it’s not necessary that they return.
In this respect, I’m completely on board with Billy Napier. I want players who want to be Gators. I’m not all that certain the every single player on the 2021 roster was 100 percent committed to being a Gator. I’ve heard stories. We’ve all heard stories. Since I was not in the locker room regularly or at practice every single day, I can’t be sure if even one of these stories is true but I can judge what I saw on the playing field. I saw players who didn’t go hard every play and, in some cases, went through the motions. Guys who do that aren’t committed to anything or anyone but themselves. If they aren’t committed to their teammates, then they really aren’t all that interested in being Gators so good riddance if they go.
I’d rather have a roster of former 3-stars who are willing to give everything they have to being the best Gators they can be than some who came here with all the high school accolades who have never shown me that they are 100 percent committed.
I’ve seen Jacob Copeland’s talent. When he’s motivated he can be very, very good. I’ve also seen Jacob Copeland drop way too many passes, whiff on far too many blocks and run lazy routes that get absolutely zero separation. If he wants to come back to Florida fully dedicated to maxing out his potential, then I’m all for Copeland coming back if returning is what he wants to do but I’m not so certain he wants to.
If doesn’t wish to come back committed to Florida, then I wish him well at his new landing spot and hope that whoever his coach is can do what no Florida coach could ever do, which is to motivate him.
Jamar Chaney to UF as an analyst: Jamar Chaney, who played linebacker for Dan Mullen at Mississippi State and worked for Mullen in the personnel department at Florida in 2019, is returning to UF as an analyst for Billy Napier. Chaney has spent the last two years as an analyst on Mike Leach’s Mississippi State staff.
OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC
Alabama: As a prelude to Saturday night’s Heisman Trophy ceremony, Bryce Young won the Maxwell Award and the Davey O’Brien Award. Linebacker Will Anderson won the Bronko Nagurski Award. Anderson finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting ... Anderson and offensive tackle Evan Neal were named to the Walter Camp All-America first team. Wide receiver Jameson Williams and Young were named to the second team ... Starting corner Josh Jobe has had surgery on his foot and will the College Football Playoff.
Arkansas: Running back Josh Oglesby is transferring to Stephen F. Austin, which will be leaving D1AA for Conference USA.
Auburn: Zak Hill, who was thought to be a leading candidate for the vacant offensive coordinator job, has decided to remain at Arizona State ... Starting center Nick Brahms has had a knee procedure that will keep him out of Auburn’s Birmingham Bowl game with No. 20 Houston on December 28.
Georgia: Defensive tackle Jordan Davis won the Outland and Bednarik Awards. Davis finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy voting. Linebacker Nakobe Dean won the Butkus Award ... Davis and Dean were named to the Walter Camp All-America first team while offensive tackle Jamaree Salyer was named to the second team.
Kentucky: Offensive lineman Darian Kinnard was named to the Walter Camp All-America first team … Defensive end Isaiah Gibson, a redshirt freshman, has entered the transfer portal. He’s the sixth player to announce his intentions to transfer out.
LSU: Running backs coach Kevin Faulk, one of the all-time great players in LSU history, will not be retained by Brian Kelly … Nebraska sent its entire coaching staff to Baton Rouge to entice quarterback Myles Brennan into a transfer commitment ... Linebacker Damone Clark was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … LSU will be paying Frank Wilson $900,000 a year. He has a three-year deal ... Wide receiver Deion Smith, who caught two touchdown passes in six games, is in the transfer portal as is defensive end Landon Jackson.
Mississippi State: Redshirt junior linebacker Aaron Brule is transferring to Michigan State. Brule had 142 tackles and eight sacks in his MSU career.
Missouri: Running back Tyler Badie was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … Defensive back Akalyeb Evans, who transferred to Mizzou from Tulsa in 2021, has declared for the NFL. He had 28 tackles and six pass deflections for Mizzou in 2021.
Ole Miss: Lane Kiffin’s new contract starts at $7.25 million per year and escalates by $100,000 a year. There is also a $150,000 bonus for each SEC win above five each year … QB Matt Corral finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting ... Defensive end Sam Williams was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team.
South Carolina: Defensive back Jaylan Foster was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … If South Carolina wins its Duke’s Mayo Bowl game against North Carolina, one of its players could get a $5,000 NIL endorsement deal as the “Duke’s Mayo Bowl Ambassador.”
Tennessee: Former Tennessee defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox, now the head coach at California, has interviewed for the Oregon HBC job.
Texas A&M: Defensive tackle DeMarvin Leal was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … Former Aggie HBC Kevin Sumlin has been contacted about becoming the head coach at HBCU Prairie View A&M. Prairie View’s former head coach submitted his resignation and is expected to become the new HBC at Southern University in Baton Rouge.
FOOTBALL IN THE MINOR LEAGUES
Miami: Billionaire John Ruiz has indicated an interest in building a new stadium for the Hurricanes either on campus or nearby. Hard Rock Stadium, where the Hurricanes play their home games, is a 45-minute drive from the Coral Gables campus.
Oregon: Chip Kelly is very much the favorite to return to Oregon as the head coach. He has a $9 million buyout to leave UCLA, but since Miami had to pay a $9 million buyout to Oregon to hire Mario Cristobal, it’s not going to be difficult for Kelly to leave UCLA if returning to Oregon is what he wants to do.
Virginia: Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott has a contract offer and until noon today to decide if he wants to be Virginia’s HBC. Meanwhile, Virginia has also interviewed Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis.
Florida State: Randy Shannon, the former Miami head coach and UF interim head coach/defensive coordinator, is being promoted from analyst to an on-the-field role as a defensive assistant … Louisville athletic director Vince Tyra turned down an offer to become the AD at FSU so FSU turned to former Central Michigan AD Michael Alford, who has been the head of Seminole Boosters the last couple of years.
Clemson: Associate AD Graham Neff has been elevated to the AD job now that Dan Radakovich has taken the job at Miami.
Nevada: Oregon inside linebackers coach Ken Wilson is expected to be named the new head coach at Nevada to replace Jay Norvell, who left earlier in the week to become the new HBC at Colorado State.
Oklahoma: Former Florida strength and conditioning coach Jerry Schmidt has departed Texas A&M to take over the strength and conditioning position for Brent Venables at Oklahoma.
Texas Tech: Former Oregon defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter is the new defensive coordinator at Texas Tech. Also joining the Texas Tech staff is former Texas A&M and Boise State defensive coordinator Marcel Yates.
NCAA: The fake slide by Pitt QB Kenny Pickett that broke up the ACC Championship Game with Wake Forest, has been outlawed by the NCAA. That sure makes Wake Forest feel better, I’m sure.
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The holdup for an expanded College Football Playoff is being caused by a pair of rookie commissioners. ACC commissioner Jim Phillips wants an 8-team playoff with all five power conference champions guaranteed to get in. Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff is playing the part of wishy-washy, claiming he’ll support an 8-team or 12-team model. That’s decisiveness for you!
Meanwhile the other eight conference commissioners and Notre Dame favor a 12-team model although there is some variance such as a guarantee the five power conference champs will get in or the working group proposal from the summer of the top six conference champs plus six at large.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby and Notre Dame are completely against an 8-team model. The Pac-12 and ACC commissioners think the SEC and Notre Dame are propping up Bowlsby with the promise to keep the Big 12 as a power conference in exchange for letting Texas and Oklahoma out of their Big 12 obligations so they can join the SEC. It is entirely possible that ESPN will negotiate a deal with the expanded Big 12 and perhaps throw in some incentive cash to pay buyouts to the American Athletic Conference in exchange for cutting ties with Texas and Oklahoma.
What seems to go right over the top of the heads of Phillips and Kliavkoff no matter how the playoff expands, the Southeastern Conference will be the richest conference in the country. The new contract with ESPN that kicks in after the 2023 football season guarantees that the SEC will have more revenue than any other conference. When Texas and Oklahoma join the league it could mean another $15-17 million per year to each SEC school. So, from $63 million a year to $80 million a year is possible.
Meanwhile the ACC and Pac-12 are bottom feeders. The ACC is locked into a contract (currently less than $33 million) that ESPN won’t re-negotiate until 2036 and the Pac-12 won’t have a media rights contract (currently a bit more than $33 million) after 2024 and none of the networks are in a hurry to negotiate a new deal, not even with Lincoln Riley as the head coach at Southern California. Even Kliavkoff says his league is “stuck” with its current media rights deal.
At some point, you would think that Phillips and Kliavkoff, and to a lesser extent Big Ten commish Kevin Warren, would cave in favor of getting a new playoff deal on the table since it could mean as much as $80-100 million a year to their leagues. But, that would make sense and if there is one thing we’re learning about these three commissioners, if it makes sense the probably won’t understand it.
A few thoughts to jump start your Friday morning:
COPELAND IN THE TRANSFER PORTAL
I wish I could sound terribly disappointed by Jacob Copeland’s choice to put his name in the NCAA transfer portal, but I’m not. Just like I’m not all that terribly concerned that Khris Bogle, Gerald Mincey, Lloyd Summerall III and Dante Zanders have put their names in the portal. While I think some of them may reconsider once they’ve had a chance to sit down and talk things over with Billy Napier and the new position coaches he’s bringing in, it’s not necessary that they return.
In this respect, I’m completely on board with Billy Napier. I want players who want to be Gators. I’m not all that certain the every single player on the 2021 roster was 100 percent committed to being a Gator. I’ve heard stories. We’ve all heard stories. Since I was not in the locker room regularly or at practice every single day, I can’t be sure if even one of these stories is true but I can judge what I saw on the playing field. I saw players who didn’t go hard every play and, in some cases, went through the motions. Guys who do that aren’t committed to anything or anyone but themselves. If they aren’t committed to their teammates, then they really aren’t all that interested in being Gators so good riddance if they go.
I’d rather have a roster of former 3-stars who are willing to give everything they have to being the best Gators they can be than some who came here with all the high school accolades who have never shown me that they are 100 percent committed.
I’ve seen Jacob Copeland’s talent. When he’s motivated he can be very, very good. I’ve also seen Jacob Copeland drop way too many passes, whiff on far too many blocks and run lazy routes that get absolutely zero separation. If he wants to come back to Florida fully dedicated to maxing out his potential, then I’m all for Copeland coming back if returning is what he wants to do but I’m not so certain he wants to.
If doesn’t wish to come back committed to Florida, then I wish him well at his new landing spot and hope that whoever his coach is can do what no Florida coach could ever do, which is to motivate him.
Jamar Chaney to UF as an analyst: Jamar Chaney, who played linebacker for Dan Mullen at Mississippi State and worked for Mullen in the personnel department at Florida in 2019, is returning to UF as an analyst for Billy Napier. Chaney has spent the last two years as an analyst on Mike Leach’s Mississippi State staff.
OVER, UNDER, AROUND AND THROUGH THE SEC
Alabama: As a prelude to Saturday night’s Heisman Trophy ceremony, Bryce Young won the Maxwell Award and the Davey O’Brien Award. Linebacker Will Anderson won the Bronko Nagurski Award. Anderson finished fifth in the Heisman Trophy voting ... Anderson and offensive tackle Evan Neal were named to the Walter Camp All-America first team. Wide receiver Jameson Williams and Young were named to the second team ... Starting corner Josh Jobe has had surgery on his foot and will the College Football Playoff.
Arkansas: Running back Josh Oglesby is transferring to Stephen F. Austin, which will be leaving D1AA for Conference USA.
Auburn: Zak Hill, who was thought to be a leading candidate for the vacant offensive coordinator job, has decided to remain at Arizona State ... Starting center Nick Brahms has had a knee procedure that will keep him out of Auburn’s Birmingham Bowl game with No. 20 Houston on December 28.
Georgia: Defensive tackle Jordan Davis won the Outland and Bednarik Awards. Davis finished ninth in the Heisman Trophy voting. Linebacker Nakobe Dean won the Butkus Award ... Davis and Dean were named to the Walter Camp All-America first team while offensive tackle Jamaree Salyer was named to the second team.
Kentucky: Offensive lineman Darian Kinnard was named to the Walter Camp All-America first team … Defensive end Isaiah Gibson, a redshirt freshman, has entered the transfer portal. He’s the sixth player to announce his intentions to transfer out.
LSU: Running backs coach Kevin Faulk, one of the all-time great players in LSU history, will not be retained by Brian Kelly … Nebraska sent its entire coaching staff to Baton Rouge to entice quarterback Myles Brennan into a transfer commitment ... Linebacker Damone Clark was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … LSU will be paying Frank Wilson $900,000 a year. He has a three-year deal ... Wide receiver Deion Smith, who caught two touchdown passes in six games, is in the transfer portal as is defensive end Landon Jackson.
Mississippi State: Redshirt junior linebacker Aaron Brule is transferring to Michigan State. Brule had 142 tackles and eight sacks in his MSU career.
Missouri: Running back Tyler Badie was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … Defensive back Akalyeb Evans, who transferred to Mizzou from Tulsa in 2021, has declared for the NFL. He had 28 tackles and six pass deflections for Mizzou in 2021.
Ole Miss: Lane Kiffin’s new contract starts at $7.25 million per year and escalates by $100,000 a year. There is also a $150,000 bonus for each SEC win above five each year … QB Matt Corral finished seventh in the Heisman Trophy voting ... Defensive end Sam Williams was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team.
South Carolina: Defensive back Jaylan Foster was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … If South Carolina wins its Duke’s Mayo Bowl game against North Carolina, one of its players could get a $5,000 NIL endorsement deal as the “Duke’s Mayo Bowl Ambassador.”
Tennessee: Former Tennessee defensive coordinator Justin Wilcox, now the head coach at California, has interviewed for the Oregon HBC job.
Texas A&M: Defensive tackle DeMarvin Leal was named to the Walter Camp All-America second team … Former Aggie HBC Kevin Sumlin has been contacted about becoming the head coach at HBCU Prairie View A&M. Prairie View’s former head coach submitted his resignation and is expected to become the new HBC at Southern University in Baton Rouge.
FOOTBALL IN THE MINOR LEAGUES
Miami: Billionaire John Ruiz has indicated an interest in building a new stadium for the Hurricanes either on campus or nearby. Hard Rock Stadium, where the Hurricanes play their home games, is a 45-minute drive from the Coral Gables campus.
Oregon: Chip Kelly is very much the favorite to return to Oregon as the head coach. He has a $9 million buyout to leave UCLA, but since Miami had to pay a $9 million buyout to Oregon to hire Mario Cristobal, it’s not going to be difficult for Kelly to leave UCLA if returning to Oregon is what he wants to do.
Virginia: Clemson offensive coordinator Tony Elliott has a contract offer and until noon today to decide if he wants to be Virginia’s HBC. Meanwhile, Virginia has also interviewed Michigan offensive coordinator Josh Gattis.
Florida State: Randy Shannon, the former Miami head coach and UF interim head coach/defensive coordinator, is being promoted from analyst to an on-the-field role as a defensive assistant … Louisville athletic director Vince Tyra turned down an offer to become the AD at FSU so FSU turned to former Central Michigan AD Michael Alford, who has been the head of Seminole Boosters the last couple of years.
Clemson: Associate AD Graham Neff has been elevated to the AD job now that Dan Radakovich has taken the job at Miami.
Nevada: Oregon inside linebackers coach Ken Wilson is expected to be named the new head coach at Nevada to replace Jay Norvell, who left earlier in the week to become the new HBC at Colorado State.
Oklahoma: Former Florida strength and conditioning coach Jerry Schmidt has departed Texas A&M to take over the strength and conditioning position for Brent Venables at Oklahoma.
Texas Tech: Former Oregon defensive coordinator Tim DeRuyter is the new defensive coordinator at Texas Tech. Also joining the Texas Tech staff is former Texas A&M and Boise State defensive coordinator Marcel Yates.
NCAA: The fake slide by Pitt QB Kenny Pickett that broke up the ACC Championship Game with Wake Forest, has been outlawed by the NCAA. That sure makes Wake Forest feel better, I’m sure.
ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: The holdup for an expanded College Football Playoff is being caused by a pair of rookie commissioners. ACC commissioner Jim Phillips wants an 8-team playoff with all five power conference champions guaranteed to get in. Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff is playing the part of wishy-washy, claiming he’ll support an 8-team or 12-team model. That’s decisiveness for you!
Meanwhile the other eight conference commissioners and Notre Dame favor a 12-team model although there is some variance such as a guarantee the five power conference champs will get in or the working group proposal from the summer of the top six conference champs plus six at large.
SEC commissioner Greg Sankey, Big 12 commissioner Bob Bowlsby and Notre Dame are completely against an 8-team model. The Pac-12 and ACC commissioners think the SEC and Notre Dame are propping up Bowlsby with the promise to keep the Big 12 as a power conference in exchange for letting Texas and Oklahoma out of their Big 12 obligations so they can join the SEC. It is entirely possible that ESPN will negotiate a deal with the expanded Big 12 and perhaps throw in some incentive cash to pay buyouts to the American Athletic Conference in exchange for cutting ties with Texas and Oklahoma.
What seems to go right over the top of the heads of Phillips and Kliavkoff no matter how the playoff expands, the Southeastern Conference will be the richest conference in the country. The new contract with ESPN that kicks in after the 2023 football season guarantees that the SEC will have more revenue than any other conference. When Texas and Oklahoma join the league it could mean another $15-17 million per year to each SEC school. So, from $63 million a year to $80 million a year is possible.
Meanwhile the ACC and Pac-12 are bottom feeders. The ACC is locked into a contract (currently less than $33 million) that ESPN won’t re-negotiate until 2036 and the Pac-12 won’t have a media rights contract (currently a bit more than $33 million) after 2024 and none of the networks are in a hurry to negotiate a new deal, not even with Lincoln Riley as the head coach at Southern California. Even Kliavkoff says his league is “stuck” with its current media rights deal.
At some point, you would think that Phillips and Kliavkoff, and to a lesser extent Big Ten commish Kevin Warren, would cave in favor of getting a new playoff deal on the table since it could mean as much as $80-100 million a year to their leagues. But, that would make sense and if there is one thing we’re learning about these three commissioners, if it makes sense the probably won’t understand it.
