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I was going to say that this might be a good sign, but there’s no way Sadiq isn’t entering the NFL draft.

This only represents roster investment. I think the equation should the cost of coaches.

Next year, let's make it 4.

Dan Lanning has always "over recruited" areas of need. Remember when he recruited 11 edge rushers after his first year... KNOWING they would not all stay. He just knew that he needed QUALITY at the position NOW and was willing to recruit 11 to hopefully find 3 or 4. Everyone else would transfer out. It does not bother me at all that guys in the 2 deep are transferring out because we are keeping all the starters along the D-line. If those guys would have moved on, the #2s would be the starters (with maybe a portal or 2) and the redshirt sophomores and and juniors (next year) would make up the new #2's. The difference with the D-line staying is that we will have NFL ready starters and the #2s that we would have next year anyway. We can only develop guys as much as they themselves put into it. After 3 years (redshirt, frosh, sophomore), they will either be well prepared to step into at least the 2 deep, or they will be well prepared to transfer and add value to the team they transfer to. I think that's a win-win for everyone. There is no limit to the HS kids you can sign... and no limit to the portal either. There is only a limit on the roster size. We can lose 30+ students a year, if needed.

This is why I’m pumping the brakes on the “Always a Duck” stuff.

How my nostalgic heart years for the PAC- 8 days... before those newbies arrived.

I wondered that too. The announcers called him "Hooks", so I don't know if was nickname or something. It was only on the one jersey that I saw

No. but with a healthy VA or a Justin Herbert or Masoli--YES.

Yep, they claim that we broke the Conference up for money, and then proceed to steal 300 million from the departing 10 teams. They claim that Oregon effectively broke the prior conference up, and yet they proceed to destroy the Mountain West… You can’t make this delusion up!

Although the one exception to "assemble a great team for this year and worry about next year, next year" seems to be at the QB position. There the approach seems to be, "recruit/pay the next starting QB this year with the understanding that he will get his opportunity NEXT year."

Fiddling around with Google Gemini for 2 minutes resulted in the following: To determine the ROI (Return on Investment) for the current 2025–26 season, we calculate the Cost Per Win ($CPW$). This metric reveals which programs are "buying" wins at a premium and which are finding elite value through coaching and development. In the current landscape, the average Power 4 roster spend is approximately $26 million (comprised of the $20.5M revenue-sharing cap + collective NIL). 2025-26 Efficiency Rankings (Success to Dollar Ratio)Rank School 2025 Wins Est. Roster Spend Cost Per Win ROI Status 1 Indiana 15 $21.1M $1.40M Legendary 2 James Madison 12 $4.5M $0.37M G5 Elite 3 Texas Tech 12 $28.0M $2.33M High Efficiency 4 Army 12 $0.0M* $0.00M Pure Value 5 Ole Miss 13 $31.0M $2.38M Portal Value 6 Oregon 13 $35.0M $2.69M Premium Value 7 Georgia 12 $33.5M $2.79M Premium Value 8 Ohio State 12 $35.0M $2.91M Market Price 9 Texas A&M 11 $34.3M $3.11M Market Price 10 Florida State 2 $22.0M $11.0M Deep Deficit *Service academies do not participate in revenue sharing or standard NIL collectives. Key ROI Insights for 2025-261. The "Indiana Anomaly"Indiana is the definitive ROI champion of 2025. By spending roughly $21M (just barely above the base revenue-sharing floor) and achieving a 15-0 record, their cost-per-win is nearly half that of the traditional "Blue Bloods." This confirms that Coaching Quality ($C_q$) can act as a 2x multiplier on NIL Dollars ($N_{val}$). 2. The Efficiency Floor: $2.5M - $3.0MFor elite Power 4 programs, the current "market rate" for a win is approximately $2.7 million. Oregon and Ohio State are essentially paying for "certainty." While their total spend is the highest in the country, they are achieving the maximum number of wins allowed by the schedule, keeping their ROI healthy. 3. The "Portal Power" EffectTexas Tech and Ole Miss represent the best use of the Transfer Portal ($T_p$). Instead of spending $30M+ on a balanced 85-man roster, they targeted specific high-value starters (the "mercenary model"), allowing them to compete with $100M+ brands like Texas and Georgia at a discount. 4. The ROI DisasterFlorida State represents the highest "Negative ROI" in the country. With an estimated roster spend of over $20M and only 2 wins, each victory cost the program $11 million. This serves as a warning in the NIL era: spending money on talent without cultural alignment or coaching stability results in catastrophic financial waste. The "Value" EquationIf we look at the Success Score vs. Actual Cost, the 2025 season has proven that: Would you like me to generate a "Value Map" image comparing these top teams' spending against their final win totals?

We are in an outstanding position! Every fan forum in the country is trying to figure out how their team is going to take the next step next year. Even Indiana needs to figure out how to retain their momentum. For OBD, the next step is for Dan Lanning and the team to finally win "a big game". In our position, it's the national championship (since we only lose to national champions). A Big Game(TM) for most other schools may be beating Florida St., Texas Tech, Washington St., or even Oregon. That's why we're here. To help Dan Lanning and co. figure it out. Without us, they'd be spiraling into another USC.

That's spot on, Charles. It's a totally different game nowadays. But it can't sustainable, can it? It's got to be much tougher for these players too (formerly student athletes), not knowing where you are going to end up year after year. But then again, the big carrot is definitely there. It's really a wild wild west where only the fittest survive and advance!

Big Ten regular season leaders last two years: OBD 17-1 Indiana 17-1 tOSU 16-2 Not bad considering the BIG is about to win it's third straight title by three different teams.

Why does the back of his jersey sometimes say "King" instead of "Hooks"?

New OT from Yale.

This makes it seem so. I also saw a post from an insider that stated Dan Lanning almost kicked Tosh to the curb after the JMU game for recruiting guys to Cal.

I hope he's healthy and not injury-prone.

I find that putting on my red shoes and clicking my heels together while saying, "Happy Place, Happy Place, Happy Place," can help.

You know, that doesn’t suck! Fifteen, (15) Big-10 teams would LOVE to have that two-year conference record. Heck, wouldn’t about 120 FBS teams love to have that two-year record in their conference? (Even Beavis!)

I have a question for everyone to ponder. Assuming Whittington or Davison was healthy, does this team beat Indiana (both games) with Bo Nix at QB?

Yeah, the whole stars thing. Those are based on what the players did in high school, right? And it's a giant leap from high school to college, just as it's a giant leap from college to the pros.

Even though the Ducks last two football seasons ended with abrupt resounding THUDS, the overall performance and records of the 2024 and 2025 seasons is remarkable. Go Ducks.