Jon Joseph

Before Monday night's champ game, a reiteration of changes to the playoff format, all of which have been expressed on the OBD Forum. None of which are likely to be adopted before 2026 with the G5, the Pac-Whatever, and Notre Dame having veto power. Four easy fixes to make the 12-team College Football Playoff even better in the future WWW.SPORTINGNEWS.COM The 12-team playoff has been a success, but a few tweaks can make it even better. And with ESPN owning the post-season, we may not see two home games before 2032. Go Bucks! Go Chipper. Win the Day!

Saturday Tradition: 3 Reasons Ohio State Should be Confident and 3 Concerns. 3 reasons Ohio State should be optimistic and concerned about the national title game SATURDAYTRADITION.COM Ohio State is the clear favorite in Monday night's national title game, but everything is on the line, so the Buckeyes have reason to be optimistic and concerned going into the game. Concerned over Marcus Freeman on the other sideline? Really? 2024 Strength of Schedule For All 134 FBS College Football Teams After Week 14 COLLEGEFOOTBALLNETWORK.COM We've updated our college football strength of schedule for the 2024 season after Week 14. Check out who has the easiest and toughest roads ahead! Hats off to Marcus Freeman, but IMO, he is getting far too much love. In 2024, Notre Dame was ranked 57th in Strength of Schedule, and Ohio State was 23rd. Notre Dame played four G5 teams. No Power Conference team played more than three. Notre Dame blew out ranked Army and Navy teams that many four and even five-loss P4 teams would have defeated. Notre Dame, with a far better roster, opened at home against Indiana, played Georgia without the Dawgs' starting quarterback on the field, and was getting stuffed by Penn State before Abdul Carter left the game. And defeating James Franklin in a big-time game is the norm, not the exception. Freeman is the same guy who in 2023 had 10 defenders on the field when Ohio State scored the winning points in South Bend. The 2024 Ohio State roster is superior to its 2023 roster by a lot. I think the game might be close through the third quarter but Ohio State will win and cover. GO BUCKEYES! B1G back-to-back titles will be so sweet. 👍👌😍

Addicted to Quack's Review of OBD's 2025 Baseball Roster. Duck Baseball 2025 Roster Outlook WWW.ADDICTEDTOQUACK.COM A look at key losses and returners for the Diamond Ducks

The 'Prime Effect' at CU. New Colorado financial report shows 'Prime Effect' and challenges if Deion Sanders leaves WWW.USATODAY.COM New Colorado financial report shows details of the "Coach Prime Effect" but also challenges, especially if Deion Sanders leaves.

Indiana made the playoffs this season and lost a 1st round game played in Indiana in South Bend. Indiana surrendered a 98-yard rush TD to ND and ND has not been able to run the ball since. If Ohio State shuts down the Domers run game as I expect, it will take Ohio State turning the ball over and a repeat of the nine penalties vs. Texas called on tOSU in the Cotton Bowl for Notre Dame to have a chance of winning. Watch for Caleb Downs coming down from safety and blowing up Riley Leonard. Hats off to Marcus Freeman making it to the title game in his 3rd season at Notre Dame. (He beat Dan to the PO champ game punch.) Freeman is the first person of color to be a head coach in a college championship game. Monday night's game will be refereed by an 'All-Star Group' of SEC refs. A group that has not worked a game together this season. I hope these guys will not be as flag-happy as the refs in the Cotton Bowl.

'Championship Saturday' Makes Sense Especially if the Power Two Have Three Automatic Playoff Qualifiers. Do conference title games still matter? Expanded playoff already diminishing worth of extra data point - CBSSports.com WWW.CBSSPORTS.COM Ohio State did not play for a Big Ten championship and Notre Dame is an independent, but they square off for a national title anyway Go Championship Saturday in all P4 and G5/6 conferences and the Playoff could start one week earlier. Have all teams play on what is now Week 0 and start two weeks earlier in the period. This would place the first two rounds in the time frame in which the NFL is not allowed to play games on the same dates as college teams.

😄 But this does make sense with OBD and PSU the two PO teams the Hoosiers play in 2025. Congratulations Hoosiers on manning up out-of-conference in 2025. Old Dominion Monarchs, Kennesaw State Owls, and the Indiana State Sycamores (without Larry Bird. 🤮)

In answer to your question Dennis, Do Title Games Still Matter? How About NO! Especially for the Power 2 where teams tied at the top will all make the PO field. Do conference title games still matter? Expanded playoff already diminishing worth of extra data point - CBSSports.com WWW.CBSSPORTS.COM Ohio State did not play for a Big Ten championship and Notre Dame is an independent, but they square off for a national title anyway

They felt the draft in Athens and Austin. Not so much in Happy Valley. 2025 NFL Draft early entrant winners & losers: Penn State retains key weapons as Texas, Georgia get gutted - CBSSports.com WWW.CBSSPORTS.COM Sending players off early to the NFL Draft is great for program health, but it is painful when it happens in droves.

A few Ducks are still balling in the Playoffs. 😧 How to watch former Oregon Ducks in 2025 NFL divisional round DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM A handful of former Oregon Ducks will be taking the field in the divisional round of the 2025 NFL playoffs this weekend.

A Ducks Wire Take on OBD Future NFL Draft Picks. Oregon Ducks’ featured heavily in ESPN 2026 NFL Draft preview DUCKSWIRE.USATODAY.COM The Oregon Ducks have a handful of players named among the top 2026 NFL Draft prospects at their respective positions.

Spot On! Monday is the 16th game for tOSU and the Domers. Would have been 17 for Texas and Penn State. Heck of a Format🤓.

Here's the story from AP. Title IX memo throws wrench in plans for schools to pay NIL money directly to athletes APNEWS.COM The U.S. Department of Education says plans for colleges to pay athletes directly for their name, image and likeness deals would run afoul of Title IX. Timing? On Monday, there's a new sheriff in town. Hmmm?

The Future's So Bright 😍 Oregon Ducks Recruiting And Transfer Portal Classes Dominating Rankings WWW.YARDBARKER.COM EUGENE- The Oregon Ducks have succeeded in securing a roster full of talent and potential for the upcoming season. The Ducks boast one of the top classes in the nation, both freshmen and... If Dante is as good as 'reported' by Tez and others and looking at the 2025 schedule I see OBD again playing a 13th game in Indianapolis. A good thing? Maybe not for one more season with the current PO format. But I'll happily take bagging back-to-back B1G titles. In 2026 with a 14-team field, only two teams will bye and these two will likely open at home in the 2nd round. 16 teams of course would have every team playing in the 1st round at home and the 2nd round will also likely be a home game. LOL at the Cotton Bowl executive who argued in favor of bowls being playoff sites because "most of the people who attended the Penn State vs. SMU game in Happy Valley had to travel to the game."🤪 Kansas City and Detroit this weekend are not playing in Pasadena. 😁

Doctor Jacks, good call; however, the Domers receive revenue from their broadcast deal with NBC every season that is not shared and ND gets a piece of the ACC media money. Notre Dame played four G5 opponents this season and two true road games. It's 'Independence' is a $CAM. ND plays ice hockey in the B1G and every other sport in the ACC, including lacrosse; ND won the NCAA lacrosse championship in 2024.

Great post. I am posting the article on Gabe's NFL chances here because it notes that Gabe had the longest run in the 2024 season, 54 yards. Oregon Ducks' Dillon Gabriel Slighted By 2025 NFL Draft Projection? WWW.YARDBARKER.COM It’s officially NFL Draft season. There’s still one college football game left to be played, but the evaluations and projections are in full swing. The Senior Bowl and East-West Shrine Bowl are just a... How often has an OBD QB had the longest run in a given season?

Design by Ralphie? The Buffs will not open with seven games at home. CU does open with three games in Boulder, but the dates have not been set for the four remaining home games. Seven home games and five away games are par for the course for the B1G and the B12, which play nine conference games. Eight home games are often played in the ACC and the SEC. Notre Dame played TWO true road games in 2024. It's not unusual for teams to open with three home games. Ohio State opened with three games in Columbus and will do the same in 2025 before being Idle in Week 4 and tripping to Seattle in Week 5.

Is Prime Closer to Making a Boulder (😁) Move to the Cowboys? Deion Sanders-Cowboys rumors gain more steam with bombshell report WWW.YARDBARKER.COM The Dallas Cowboys hiring Deion Sanders as their next head coach no longer seems inconceivable.

Search OBD's D statistics in 2024. Not top drawer but the OBD D was there for three wins over PO teams. Boise, Penn State, and Ohio State. UGA was the only other team with three wins, Tennessee and Texas twice, against PO teams. In addition to the stats, Tosh is a heck of a recruiter. I turn to Charles, Mike West, and others more knowledgeable when it comes to the Xs and the Os and not just the Jimmies and the Joes. Is there a schematic problem? Dan had horses in Athens that he although rigorously trying, has lassoed to come to Eugene. Is the defense Dan and Tosh are trying to implement a viable work in progress or one that is outside the scope of athletes OBD can recruit? I am not qualified to submit an answer to my question. As noted above, I don't know and it is probably stupid but should the design of D be easier to recruit to and coach up? Should a top-drawer DB recruit from the JC ranks who is 6'4" tall have been used more often? Especially against Jeremiah Smith? Notre Dame plays more man-on-man pass D than any team in FBS. Will this D work against the vaunted tOSU receivers? Texas plays a zone-oriented D and it worked in the Cotton Bowl. I come back to 13-0 and B1G conference champion in OBD's virgin B1G voyage. I'm not certain that too much needs to be changed. Go Bucks, Neuter Notre Dame.

Harp Hearlds Danno. Oregon Ducks' Marcus Harper Reveals Strong Football Team Chemistry Starts With Dan Lanning WWW.YARDBARKER.COM The Oregon Ducks' promising 2024-25 football season came to an abrupt end in a loss to the Ohio State Buckeyes in the College Football Playoff Quarterfinals at the Rose Bowl.

Thank you, David, for another insightful take. Excellent article but there were some mitigating factors in 2024, most of which you noted. The O line lost its anchor in J-P-J, a PFF NFL All-Rookie team member. Guard was a weak position coming into the season and injuries affected the guard play. Replace the Idaho stats with the Portland State (Rob, you want Big Sky, look up I5 and not elsewhere!) stats and the Ducks performance on O in 2024 improves. There was a 64-point plus swing between Portland and Idaho, 5.3 points over 12 games. Do the stats you used for 2024 cover 12, 13, or 14 games? How many possessions did OBD have on O in 2023 compared to 2024? With the new timing rules in 2024, most teams ran fewer plays than in 2023. Nix was and is a better QB than Gabe. Bo, as you so noted, had a far more settled O-line to play behind, and the height advantage over Gabe allowed Bo to see downfield as plays developed. I don't have this stat but it would be interesting to compare the sacks and hurries in 2023 compared to 2024. Spot on regarding Franklin vs. Stewart's production. Fergie was out due to surgery and Tez missed most of the Michigan game and was not back in full before the conference champ game. As you noted, Herbert disappeared in 2024 but also as you noted Sadiq, when given the chance to play came through. (Why was he not on the field and in the game plan more often? I don't want to be unfair but Kenyon appears to have Bowers-type ability.) Man, I don't mean to whine after winning 13 games and a conference title but I do want to see some of the highly touted WR recruits step up from the start. Shouldn't 5* and highly rated 4* WRs be able to ball out from the get-go? "If you're good enough you're old enough?" Is OBD muffing WR evaluations? Was there a conscious effort in 2024 to throttle back after getting significant leads noting that OBD had to play eight games in a row without a break and might have to play 17 games to play for the title Monday night? Enough nits picked. Dink and dunk appear to be Stein's bread and butter. I agree that the offense this season did not perform like the O in Stein's first season and Bo's second season with the team. How could you not agree with the presentation you made; really good stuff. 2025 will likely see Dante Moore at the helm, a drop-back passer not as elusive as Bo or Gabe, not the same run threat. Not that Stein is a big run the QB play-caller but it will be interesting to see how Dante is used, and whether the RBs including the transfer from Tulane, match the play of JJ, and how long it takes the O-Line with two new starting tackles to get in synch. Thanks again, David. We 'only' have to wait until August 30, 2025, before the 15-1 🤔Montana State Bobcats pay a visit to Autzen. [Rob: PORT-LAND-STATE!]

Wedding Planners?

A 2025 Way Too Early Ranking By The Sporting News. Championship-seeking Ohio State leads Big Ten in way-too-early 247 Sports 2025 college football rankings WWW.SPORTINGNEWS.COM Ohio State coach Ryan Day has his hands full next season, regardless of how the national title game against Notre Dame plays out. TSN predicts a 2025 Battle of the Os. PSU, which hosts OREGON and plays at Ohio State, is projected to be No. 3 in the B1G.

OBD Looking Good in 2025. Defending Big Ten college football champion Oregon has high expectations in way-too-early 247 Sports rankings WWW.SPORTINGNEWS.COM With Oregon coach Dan Lanning staying put coaching college football for the foreseeable future, the Ducks attempt to repeat as Big Ten champions next fall.

OBD leading the field in 2026 in combined recruiting portal picking. 😍 https://athlonsports.com/college/oregon-ducks/oregon-football-boasts-top-incoming-high-school-and-transfer-class-in-the-nation