HDuck

Jon Wilner, San Jose Mercury Only a handful of athletic departments across the country generate an operating surplus without relying on any support from central campus. In the Pac-12, there is just one: Oregon, which produced a $3.8 million profit in 2023. But coming, the 10 outbound schools in the Pac-12 agreed to have $6.5 million per campus withheld from their conference distributions in order to support Washington State and Oregon State. What’s more, Comcast is withholding $72 million in payments ($6 million per school) as a result of the Pac-12 Networks overpayment scandal discovered in the fall of 2022. Also, every major college athletic department from Berkeley to Boston will experience additional financial pressures in coming years if, as many expect, college athletes are deemed employees by the court system and entitled to direct compensation. Wilner's column https://archive.ph/CO13v

Playing Ole Miss at Ole Miss is a much different fan experience than in a bowl game, or potentially hosting in an expanded Playoff. Perhaps there is a different list for places you would like to visit? For a lot of people, Wisconsin was on that list until the home-and-home with the Badgers was accomplished. Visiting Tuscaloosa is not real high for me.

My view of this topic is less about opponent and more about venue, history, neighborhood and whether the Ducks have visited in the last 30 years or so. Ole Miss Clemson Florida State Navy As a result, Alabama is not real high on my list. Here is an article that is more in line with my criteria. UPDATED Ranking College Football Stadiums: 108 Down | Road to CFB ROADTOCFB.COM Ranking college football stadiums isn't easy. I've been to 108 of the 131 stadiums (133 in 2023 with the addition of Sam Houston State and Jacksonville State) thus far and this list took me a ton of time...

The whole pre-draft weeks and weeks is a chess match among teams. They rumor monger, and feed TV pundits false info to try to disguise their intent and buffalo the other NFL teams. Some teams don't show up for college pro-days on certain athletes so they don't "appear" interested to other NFL scouts. If they have an early second round pick, then get pundits to talk down the assessment of a guy they hope will still be available to them. The teams try to analyze what other teams will do with picks in a risk maneuver to hope a guy slides. "If I talk down Penix, I can take a DL early and hope Penix is still available." Pundits are up/down on their assessments of Penix and Nix. Largely because their "sources" are feeding them a line of b.s. trying to position themselves to get their best 1st and 2nd picks. The teams are really only interested in the best outcomes for themselves based on their own needs. If player A goes No. 10 and player B goes No. 20 it doesn't mean A is 10 picks better. It means those two teams had different needs based upon their current rosters and trades they expect to make. The pundits have to fill airtime. So, they regurgitate the lines they are being fed by teams, and don't want to appear out of sync with counterparts. Thus, Penix is injury prone and Nix can't throw long. The WNBA has it right. Keep the "analysis period" short between the season and the draft. These days every freakin football play is on tape. They all have contact with college coaching staffs for a player's team, and with the opponent staffs the player has faced. If you are an NFL team, would you rather watch those tapes, or whether a guy can run a cone drill?

Followup to Charles - when Beavis goes on a rant trying to equate the Pac-12 Apple offer possibility to what Oregon will receive as an initial reduced Big Ten media share, minus higher travel expenses, they not only overlook the higher CFP and basketball tournament Big Ten shares, but also the financials that come from higher home ticket sales, concessions, etc. And, that doesn't touch the greater publicity from several linear network appearances vs streaming. Note yesterday's news release on football ticket sales... SIDEARM Integrations GODUCKS.COM Excitement for the upcoming Oregon football season is at an all-time high, as reflected by renewal rates and requests for season tickets.

Good luck to the kid. Given the overall circumstances, it is understandable. Would likely be more palatable for Beavis fans if he ends up near home in Texas rather than some place like Miami. It was tough seeing Travis Dye leave for a final year at USC. But, it was near his family.

Don't be surprised if Martinez ends up at Miami. Miami football potential option for Oregon State transfer RB Damien Martinez CANESWARNING.COM The Miami football team is one of the potential programs for Oregon State transfer running back Damien Martinez per Brad Crawford of 247Sports.

He played in high school about 40 miles from TCU. Seems like a lot of these transfer guys....though maybe primarily the ones with just a year left....want to "go home." There would be a lot of options for him within a pretty short radius of his home. Oklahoma, Tex A&M, etc. Though, it will likely come down to "offers." One of the rumors is Miami which needs to add a RB. That would spawn a whole new Beavis meltdown if "secret overtures from Cristobal" would hit the message boards. But, the guy is a legit RB and there will probably be a lot of interest.

David, I thought the "we don't pay players" was an obvious reference to fanspeak - not actually anything to do with what is allowed. "We" make our guys go to class. "We" only offer scholarships to real students. "We"...etc, etc.

I'm confused. I thought "we don't pay players?" https://www.on3.com/transfer-portal/news/report-oregon-state-rb-damien-martinez-turned-down-400k-in-nil-money-to-transfer/

This is a 60-min interview to wade through, but he is very impressive in his "football knowledge" during the Q&A..

The "draft" is often misunderstood by some fans. It is really driven by a team's individual needs. Do they need an O-lineman more than a QB? If so, that is how they will draft even if the QB taken one or two picks in order later is "ranked" higher. Likewise, QB to QB. Penix could be taken higher than Nix, or Nix higher than Penix. Does that mean one is demonstrably better than the other? Not really - it just means the current roster of the team has an existing QB pool that one of those two guys was deemed a better fit into the mix. When a QB slides like Brett Favre, Drew Brees, Derek Carr, Boomer Esiason and so on it doesn't mean their potential was unrecognized. That draft, many teams had position needs that were a higher priority. So, the 1-2-3-4-etc. draft order doesn't really mean they are the 1-2-3-4 "best" players.

"It's really about doing every little thing right to get some incremental gains that only help against athletes who have similar raw ability. " That's it in a nutshell. Incremental gain for incremental advantage. From understanding, training and repetition.

As Jon's post points out, the S. Carolina depth this season has been a key factor in the second half of games. No surprise. It impacts football, men's basketball, almost all sports to a degree. Up to this game, Iowa had been able to "run the floor" and wear down opponents. S. Carolina was able to substitute fresh legs in and out, so it was Iowa who ran out of gas late.

Speed training has been more common in soccer. A lot of it has to do with body posture. Does the training have impact? Think about two evenly matched players - one a wide receiver and one a DB - what if the WR's speed training allows him to have a shoulder in front of the DB as an incoming pass arrives? Or, zig zag speed training to quickly change direction? A lot of it is improving on natural speed with agility speed. Though, posture such as leaning forward rather than running upright can improve "speed." As can higher knee action. Arm action can improve speed. How much of the surface of the foot touches can change speed. Aerobic training. Muscle relaxation. Repeating drills enough that it becomes more natural. I presume body posture can also impact the speed with which a linebacker pursues? Can a ball carrier hit a hole faster based on width of steps? And, so on. A lot of this stuff is in very short time increments, but like the micro-speed to get shoulder position vs a DB, it can be impactful.

Softball coach Mike White was happy until he wasn't. The Texas money offer brought out the unhappiness. Just say'in....

On a "positive note" for Beavis, Vegas currently has The Great Rueck as no better than No. 6 in the odds as replacement for Tennessee women's coach.

There is no plan. Beavis just keeps looking for ways to feel sorry for itself, and reinforcement of that by local media. https://archive.ph/XNT6J

My opinion....I do think any of these realignment scenarios ....Stanford to ACC, Washington to B1G, etc....that happened at a "discount" should have some incentive clauses just as in coaches contracts. For example, if any of them play in a conference title game during the "discount period" maybe they should be allocated a "full share" for that season. Or, the reduction period shaved off by one year. The TV ratings would be more subjective, but for example, if a Penix led season created media for the B1G, then adjust for that. I recognize the "discount" only applies to the regular media share, and doesn't apply to CFP shares, NCAA Tournament shares, but a six-year period seems too long. I understand the B1G had precedent with Nebraska, Maryland and Rutgers but they chose to ignore it for UCLA.

Meant to add, though lengthy and potentially cumbersome, the Big12 approach is preferable to some beauty contest with AP or Coaches or CFP Committee's early rankings being the deciding factor.

I don't believe the B1G has announced their tie-breaker rules yet. Jon, based on Big12 rules, in your scenario the two teams tied at 8-1 would be compared. If they did not play each other, then their W-L record against the 4th place team is compared if the 4th place team was a common opponent, and then the 5th place common team, and then....until a W-L difference is evident. In your scenario, if Michigan was the fourth place team, then Oregon would get the nod. There are additional rules if that first step doesn't result in a decision. For the Big12, open this link and scroll down. Latest Big 12 standings with tiebreaker rules, remaining schedule, more DKNETWORK.DRAFTKINGS.COM Here’s how the Big 12 looks as of now, and which games will matter to determine the conference champion in Arlington, TX.

April 2: Arizona President Bobby Robbins announces he’ll step down effective at the end of his contract. He was at forefront of the Pac-12’s survival attempts and spearheaded the recent hiring of AD Desiree Reed-Francois from Missouri. Me...other "sources" indicate that OSU/WSU contend the Announcement means Robbins must now immediately refrain from any formal role at Arizona and will no longer be able to vote regarding the lunch venue for Pac12 meetings. That his salary will cease immediately, and any contracted income must be sent to Corvallis and Pullman. The two are seeking an expedited court decision in the appropriate venue Colfax, Washington, where apparently Robbins bought fuel once while traveling to a game in Pullman. University of Arizona President Robbins announces his current contract will be his last at UArizona | Arizona Board of Regents WWW.AZREGENTS.EDU University of Arizona President Robert C. Robbins informed the Arizona Board of Regents today that he will step down at the end of his current contract, or before, when his successor is ready to lead.

In its most simple terms it is this, Oregon State and Washington State claim the actions of the Pac-12 and Commissioner George Kliavkoff in response to members announcing their intent to leave the conference in 2024 show those departing schools relinquished their rights to decide the long-term future of the league and forfeit the “goodies.” And, would no longer have voting rights. All ten of the escapees announced they would leave August 1, 2024 at the end of many current Pac12 agreements. The receiving conferences all announced the new members would join August 2, 2024. The “court” felt the parties indicating their effective date was irrelevant. That, the action was triggered on the date it was announced. Period, end of sentence. As Charles says, this flies in the face of the programs continuing to operate in the Pac12 and provide conference championship activities in which OSU and WSU participated and acknowledged those other programs were 2024 champions. In retrospect, the escapees should have all been bastards and announced their departures August 1, 2024. Rumors would have proliferated. Columnists would have run out of ink. OSU and WSU partisans would have stomped and cried over the obvious mean spiritedness. So, in effect for giving notice, OSU/WSU have become the Pig-2 in Charles terms, and he is correct.

"Another OD...Seems to be a lot of names floating around this one..." Well, how many of those names float if the salary is similar to the $400K that Oregon just signed Locklyn? That didn't last long. If Oregon is willing to pay up, it should have been thinking about it in February when they signed Locklyn to an extension.