Jon Joseph

2 SEC big dogs and the 2nd may be Oklahoma?

Not sure bout the merit of scheduling this way. Come tomorrow when the new AP Poll is released, in 2024 Oregon will play #2 Michigan on the road, and #3 Ohio State at home. Do not bite off more than you can chew. Play Stanford or Cal OOC. Traditional rivalries and more games in the essential recruiting state of California. Do not play more than P4 opponents. And do not play G5 teams on the road. Ohio State does not go on the road to play MAC teams.

TT had won 26 home openers in a row before the loss to the Ducks. That was a great comeback in hostile territory Behind its backup QB, Texas Tech easily defeated Baylor in Waco today. This is still a team that could finish in the top 25. The win at TT is a far better win than UW's win at MI State.

Yes, in regard to Bama and UGA, but where are the other great Ds? LSU pulled it out today at Mizzou but it again played Swiss cheese D. And the Kentucky D today was MIA.

It will be UGA, Michigan, and Ohio State 1,2, and 3 after Week 6. And with 2Ls, the Domers can kiss the playoff goodbye. Heartbreaker, right?

Hats off to Louisville. First Domer loss to an ACC team after 30 straight wins. And for SOS purposes, hats off to Texas Tech for a decisive win at Baylor. Miami has taken the lead back. It's early in both games but 2 ranked Pac-12 teams are behind.

WAZZU goes down vs. a tough Bruins D. UCLA wins in Corvallis and without playing Oregon and UW it could sneak into the champ game. Although I see no way UCLA will score enough points to defeat USC. Bama prevails in College Station. Bama now leads the SEC W and is still in line for a possible playoff berth. How far will Texas drop? If UGA and Michigan TCB tonight, it will likely be 1 UGA. 2. Michigan. 3. Ohio State. This means that to date, Oregon will be playing the #2 and #3 teams in the country in 2024.

Hats off to Oklahoma, you're OK! Heisman-worthy game by OK QB Dillon Gabriel. Ewers started off slowly but also played well. The 'experts' had UT winning both LOS. Didn't happen.

Spot on, Charles. The Athletic, especially with the Ducks headed to the more covered by the site B1G, is worth the subscription. The schedulers in the B1G 'get it.' Not only with preserving rivalries but also leaving plenty of opportunities for B1G heavyweight games. To wit - Oregon in 2024 plays Ohio State, at Michigan, and at Wisconsin. GULP! Plus Michigan State, old foe Washington, and many other B1G teams with lots of history, including the histories of historic players. Do subscribe to The Athletic, it's worth it. And, if you cannot access the B1G Network, find a way to do so. Prior to the Ducks making the move to the B1G, the BTN provided better coverage of Ducks sports than was ever the case on the Pac-12 Network. Millions and millions more people watch the BTM than watch Larry's Lost Network. Puddles is flying to the correct nest, the B1G nest.

Thank you, Charles, for this very informative take. A ton of experience that will and will possibly move on. Including Bo, a guy with the most starts at QB in CFB. But today we have the Portal. I expect with DL's expertise at portal picking and with Division Street coming with NIL money that many of the open spots will be filled by guys with playing experience. It will also help in 2024 that the Ducks play 8 games in the friendly confines of Autzen and that Oregon will have 4 OOC games before B1G play starts including B1G games vs. Ohio State and games at Michigan and Wisconsin. It has been a great 5 twelfths of the season so far but next Saturday the rubber starts to meet the road. The next 7 games will be as tough a row to hoe, plus the champ game if the Ducks get there, as for any team in CFB.

Texas Tech. In the season's first 'real' game, the Ducks ended TT's 26-opening home game winning streak. And came back in a hostile road environment to do so. And this with the new OC. OL coach, and other newbies that DL hired. Kirby Smart early on made a bunch of not-so-smart in-game decisions. DL is learning on the job, as we all had to do with most of us, unlike DL, doing so outside of the public eye. In-game decision-making is critical. But from the get-go, DL has handled the other critical part of the job, recruiting from HS and the portal. After a few faux pas, and despite Joey Harrington (a great Duck) and friends' concerns, Mullens made a terrific hire. If I had been judged my first year on the job in the manner that some judged DL, I'd have been in the unemployment line.

Have any 3 teams, even in the vaunted SEC, ever faced an end-of-regular-season finish like OREGON, UW, and USC have coming up? OREGON - at 7 UW, 13 Wazzu, at 18 Utah, Cal, 9 USC, at ASU, 15 Oregon State Washington - 8 OREGON. ASU, at Stanford, at 9 USC, 18 Utah, at 15 Oregon State, 13 Wazzu USC - Arizona, at 10 Notre Dame, 18 Utah, at Cal, 7 UW, at 8 OREGON, UCLA (and then SIGH, SC plays against BYE the week before the conference champ game.) And this conference is going away? Miss - management to the Nth degree. How could They have messed This up?

Worst 4-letter word in the Dictionary? "WORK!" Misread? No. I could have done a much better job of expressing myself. Always love to read your comments.

My friend. I have zero problems with your excellent take. But as always and at every level, it mostly comes down to the Jimmies and the Joes. This is the point I was trying to make regarding Bill B sans Tom Brady. I have no quibble whatsoever with the other guys you noted being excellent football coaches. I do not that Pete C at USC had a decided roster advantage but rarely went undefeated in the Pac-10. And in the BCS days, he was often screwed over due to the conference's image when he had a 1L team. As far as I am concerned, you had nothing to 'clean up.' And I hope I did not come across as being churlish in my reply to your spot-on comment.

Log, CFB is now a mecca for gambling. Coach Whit is playing footsie with Rising's knee. Based upon no uniform injury reporting in CFB as we have in the NFL, why not? Rising should sit this season out. And depending on where his people tell him he fits in the 2024 draft, he should come back and play a season in the B12 before going to the draft in 2025. Utah will be an immediate champion contender in the B12, especially with OK and TX gone. Odds on IMO to make the 12-team playoff. And this season's litany of injuries should not repeat itself in 2024. Utah is a better program than any of the 2023 B12 newbies and as good as any of the remaining teams. I would hate to see Rising come back too soon. But as Charles notes, he may be back for the SC, UW, and Oregon games. Goodness knows this Utah O needs a jump start. But IMO, Rising should not be putting millions of dollars on the line even though he now has a cherry new truck. [And teams used to go on probation for guys being given sweet rides? Shedeur Sanders is tooling around Boulder in a Maybach! But that's only a $200K car.]

To date: Ducks #4 in sacks. UW comes in at #124. UW best have a James Bond-like spy up there in Seattle. When you get guys out of the portal like Penix and Nix (and Williams, Ward, Rising, and DJU) it's easier to be brilliant. How is the Supposed GOAT, Bill Belichick, doing without The GOAT, Tom Brady?

For What It's Worth, DL has it going on like Mr. Soul. Nowadays (next Saturday) Penix Can't Even S(l)ing. UW, Go and Say Goodbye to that undefeated record. Ducks, On the Way Home from Seattle, Puddles possibly may be flying, like a Bluebird, to a Natty. (Unfortunately, I'll be here all week.) Thanks Darren for a blast from the past.

I'm trying not to go Taylor Swifty sycophant, but always appreciate your takes Charles, and it's great to have these kinds of quality late-in-the-week articles pop up on OBD. Keep Them Comin' On!

In 2023 to date, 8 CFB games have drawn 7M or more viewers. Colorado has played in 5 of these games! The stadium in Tempe is sold out for CU's Saturday visit to ASU. But with the broadcast on Larry's, 'We Ain't Easy to Find' Network, hopefully, a million or so fans will tune in. Thank goodness Puddles is flying this coop. Since the announcement that Oregon is headed to the B1G, the B1G 10 Network has given Oregon far more coverage than it ever received on the P12N. The P12N was one of the B1Gger mistakes in Pac-12 'leaderships' litany of tragic business decisions. SAYONARA!

Interesting take on UW to date. Washington Football: 5 numbers that have defined the Huskies’ 5-0 start SATURDAYOUTWEST.COM Washington is 5-0 at the bye. Here are numbers that have defined the unbeaten start to the year. UW D is not getting to the opponent's QB. This could mean a long day for the UW D with Bo Nix coming to town. In 2024, OREGON is #4 in sacks. UW is #124. Sacks allowed, both teams have surrendered only 3 sacks to date.

To wit: How NIL, transfer portal have surprisingly brought some much-needed talent parity to college football - CBSSports.com WWW.CBSSPORTS.COM Sure, the game still has its behemoths, but the riches are being spread out

If the SEC doesn't man up, Mississippi State plays W, Michigan on Saturday, and plays 4 OOC and 8, not 9, conference games, then I fervently hope, especially coming off of this season, that the Playoff Committee will ding the SEC, and the ACC, for playing only 8 conference games. Yes, I am aware that Florida plays FSU every season, UGA plays Georgia Tech, South Carolina plays Clemson, and Kentucky plays Louisville, but USC plays 9 plus Notre Dame, Oregon plays 9, and another P4 opponent. BTW, using the latest AP Poll and adjusting for 2024 conference realignment, come 2024, 6 B1G teams would be in the 12-team field, MI, OH ST, Penn ST, UW, Oregon, and USC, and the SEC would have two teams in, Georgia and Texas. Post-realignment, I don't believe that the SEC CFB hegemony will ipso facto carry-on. NIL and the Portal are leveling the playing field. Recruiting-wise, the Pac-4 in the B1G will receive far more coverage and national exposure than when in the Pac-12 and 'covered' by Larry's Loser Network. Prime tells us that he isn't hard to find. The Pac-4 will no longer be hard to find.

Good points. All 18 B1G schools will play one another 3 times in the next 5 seasons and every team will visit the opposing team once at least. This could not have happened if the Pac-4 were permanent opponents of one another. And while the Oregon vs. USC is a good rivalry, no doubt, it is a rivalry that was limited by Pac-12 divisions and the California Scheduling Agreement. Oregon has played Cal quite a few times more since the addition of CU and Utah than it has played UCLA and USC. Fox, CBS, NBC/Peacock, want to see more games with Oregan and USC playing Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State. Guess the group with the greatest influence on the schedule.

Yet, CFB seems to have more parity in 2023 than at any time in the last decade+. The Portal, and NIL, have a lot to do with this. Without NIL, Bo would have left for the NFL at the end of 2022. Restrictions on player movement like we see in the NFL will not happen before the arrival of a CFB Players union. Given the choice of a top high school recruit or a player who has already played college football, why would you not opt for the portal player? (No OL recruit that DL recruited in 2023 could match the play of Cornelius at OT this season. And Cornelius moved up from the FCS.) Now, the NCAA has eliminated the 25 new player cap in a given year. A rule change that will enable more playoff picking akin to what we have witnessed from Prime Time. Yes, there is a bargained-for and agreed-upon with the union salary cap in the NFL. (See union comment above for a team salary cap being enforceable in CFB.) There is no NIL cap in the NFL. The players, as do college athletes today, own their NIL. If you do want more control of player transfers and a cap on what a school can spend on a player in portal 'free agency,' then you better be ready for official NFL Lite with a reduced number of schools playing big-time CFB, an HS draft, and all of the other indicia that goes with being a professional league.

Hickey: Winners, losers and takeaways from the B1G football schedule format release SATURDAYTRADITION.COM Fitting 18 teams into a 9-game schedule is a dizzying process. Saturday Tradition's Alex Hickey makes sense of the Big Ten's new format.