Dr Hilarius Moderator No. 1 Share Posted September 21, 2023 Is it a coincidence that FBS is reaching parity almost immediately after these improvements? I think the portal is a bigger influence, but when paired with NIL, student-athletes are empowered to serve themselves. They can make decisions that are right for themselves and achieve more. Wyoming better than Bama?? It’s not a whackadoodle question this year. EIGHT Pac teams in the top 25? Not a joke. Maybe talent is going where it _wants_ to go instead of where it _has_ to go and, therefore, performing better? (Or on a more conspiratorial note, maybe some of the blue bloods were offering NIL-equivalent deals on the D-L.) Anyway, correlation is not causation, but coincidence becomes pattern, which becomes reason. And the parity is way more fun to watch! 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steven A Moderator No. 2 Share Posted September 21, 2023 On 9/21/2023 at 3:26 PM, Dr Hilarius said: (Or on a more conspiratorial note, maybe some of the blue bloods were offering NIL-equivalent deals on the D-L.) Ya think! 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
EzDucksIt No. 3 Share Posted September 21, 2023 AH, that is a Good Question. Yet, I also believe that recruits or athletes want some control of their exposure before their collegiate career is over. Sadly, many a recruit with talent are forced to sit behind talent that "picked up" a scheme or had more skills. For some players, the Portal has provided opportunities, while others have been buried. On the last, I believe M Pittman, made a poor choice. While for T Shough, it has worked out well for him. NIL from my perspective, helps many of the non Scholarship Players with the expenses of college life that used to be a burden for some. For those on Scholarship, they can leverage it to help family, removing some of the mental burdens due to finances. Marketing oneself is an investment in their TALENT, being rewarded by being Proactive to Accomplishments made. Bryce Boettcher is a perfect example of a Walk On Athlete that has been successful in Two Sports. He is a Great Representative of the Ducks Football and Baseball Programs. What NIL and the Portal has done for Colorado, Oregon State, Washington State and even the Oregon and Washington Programs has been Program Changing in my view. While Oregon has added depth on Offense, they have revamped their Defense this year through the Portal and NIL. While Other Programs have elevated their programs to Compete with others within their Conferences. As Schools succeed, NIL, the Portal will become great tools. To fill holes, increase depth, provide leadership and create competition between programs in the future. 3 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrJacksPlaidPants Moderator No. 4 Share Posted September 21, 2023 You didn’t need to be a blue blood to do NIL back in the day. 1 1 1 Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Fischer Administrator No. 5 Share Posted September 22, 2023 Certainly NIL has changed things for the top teams, but for the majority of those teams who lose the players--they may not agree. I believe the biggest factor in the success of the current Pac-12 are the great coaching hires. NIL will not make a great coach, but a coach like Lanning makes NIL work for him by going out and recruiting tons of portal players to create depth like I've never seen at Oregon before. I don't think NIL would have helped Clay Helton at USC, but Lincoln Riley has made the most of it. NIL has not changed the fortunes much at Oregon State, but Jonathan Smith has. And I don't know if Justin Wilcox can even spell NIL... 1 1 Mr. FishDuck Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
1Ducker1 No. 6 Share Posted September 22, 2023 On 9/21/2023 at 4:56 PM, DrJacksPlaidPants said: You didn’t need to be a blue blood to do NIL back in the day. Hmm--Reminds me of a PAC school down in LA Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Joseph No. 7 Share Posted September 22, 2023 The Pac-12 2023 - The Conference of QBs AZ - Jayden de Laura - WSU ASU - Drew Pyne - Notre Dame Cal - Sam Jackson -TCU/ Ben Finley - NC State CU - Sanders - Jax State UW - Penix - Indiana WSU - Cam Ward - Incarnate Word OR ST - DJU - Clemson OREGON - Bo Nix - Auburn USC - Caleb Williams - Oklahoma Utah - Rising - Texas UCLA - Colin Schlee - Kent State (Of course, Dante Moore, sigh, is now the starter.) This is just a sampling of the impact transfers have had. Charles is spot on. The coaching is far better. Schools have opened the wallet and DeBoer at UW and Dickert at WSU appear to be very good hires. And Deion? Viewership for CU is up 820% from 2022. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
