The Southeastern Conference will once again be absent from the national championship stage. ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith believes the issue runs far deeper than a single postseason loss.

Following Ole Miss’ defeat to Miami in the College Football Playoff semifinals, Smith delivered a pointed critique of the SEC on First Take, arguing that the conference’s long-held dominance has eroded in the modern NIL and transfer portal era. The loss marked the third consecutive season the SEC will miss the national title game, an unthinkable outcome just a few years ago.

“They ain’t feeling you anymore,” Smith stated. “When you look at the absence of depth, why? Because players are choosing to go elsewhere. It ain’t just the second-stringers anymore. You got some all-world players saying, ‘We don’t have to be in the SEC anymore the way that we used to.’”

Smith pointed to the growing national parity as evidence that the SEC’s grip on elite talent has loosened. With players now empowered by NIL opportunities and immediate eligibility via the transfer portal, Smith argued that the conference no longer holds the same gravitational pull it once did.

“We’ll go to the Big Ten, we’ll go to the Big 12, we’ll go to the ACC,” Smith stated. “You see some of these cats in Miami, how are they looking? Think about that for a second here.”

Beyond roster movement, Smith also questioned whether the SEC still boasts the same sideline advantage it once did. He specifically referenced the transition at Alabama, where Kalen DeBoer replaced Nick Saban, calling the shift a clear inflection point.

“He’s a good coach,” Smith said of DeBoer. “He just ain’t in the same class as Nick Saban. So, there’s a precipitous drop off there.”

Moreover, Smith argued the landscape began changing when Georgia won back-to-back national titles, exposing a widening gap between the league’s elite and the rest of the conference. From there, he rattled off programs he believes no longer resemble their former selves, including Auburn, Arkansas, Florida and LSU.

“This ain’t the days of Urban Meyer,” Smith explained. “They don’t have Tim Tebow in Florida. They don’t look the same.”

While acknowledging that the SEC remains powerful, Smith concluded that its mystique has faded. Where the league once featured five or six national title-caliber programs, he now sees a conference filled with teams that look increasingly beatable.

“There’s some mediocrity within the SEC Conference,” Smith concluded. “The allure is gone. They’re a powerful conference, but the allure that they once had has been eviscerated. Period.”

As the College Football Playoff moves forward without an SEC team competing for the title once again, Smith’s comments underscore a growing national conversation. Whether college football’s most dominant league is still setting the standard, or simply chasing it.

A transfer portal spiraling out of control prompted the new regulatory body for college sports to issue a memo to athletic directors Friday night saying it has “serious concerns” about some of the multimillion-dollar contracts being offered to players.

The “reminder” from the College Sports Commission came out about an hour before kickoff of the semifinal between Indiana and Oregon in a College Football Playoff that has shared headlines with news of players signing seven-figure deals to move or, in some cases, stay where they are.

The CSC reminded the ADs that, according to the rules, third-party deals to use players’ name, image and likeness “are evaluated at the time of entry in NIL Go, not before, and each deal is evaluated on its own merits.”

“Without prejudging any particular deal, the CSC has serious concerns about some of the deal terms being contemplated and the consequences of those deals for the parties involved,” the memo said.

Under terms of the House settlement that dictated the rules for NIL payments, schools can share revenue with their players directly from a pool of $20.5 million. Third-party deals, often arranged by businesses created to back the schools, are being used as workarounds this so-called salary cap.

The CSC, through its NIL Go portal, is supposed to evaluate those deals to make sure they are for a valid business purpose and fall within a fair range of compensation for the services being provided.

The CSC did not list examples of unapproved contracts, but college football has seen its share of seven-figure deals luring players to new schools since the transfer portal opened on Jan. 2.

One high-profile case involved Washington quarterback Demond Williams Jr., who initially sought to enter the transfer portal and turn his back on a reported deal worth $4 million with the Huskies. Legal threats ensued and Williams changed course and stayed at Washington.

“Making promises of third-party NIL money now and figuring out how to honor those promises later leaves student-athletes vulnerable to deals not being cleared, promises not being able to be kept, and eligibility being placed at risk,” the CSC letter said.

The commission listed two rules about contracts it evaluates, some of which have been termed “agency agreement” or “services agreement” in what look like attempts to bypass the rules.

—”The label on the contract does not change the analysis; if an entity is agreeing to pay a student-athlete for their NIL, the agreement must be reported to NIL Go within the reporting deadline.”

—”An NIL agreement or payment with an associated entity or individual … must include direct activation of the student-athlete’s NIL rights.” This is a reference to the practice of “warehousing” NIL rights by paying first, then deciding how to use them later.

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A prominent college quarterback faced a difficult reality check during a lopsided College Football Playoff semifinal defeat on Friday night.

The signal-caller struggled with turnovers and the pace of play throughout the contest while his team fell well short of reaching the national championship stage. The performance raised immediate questions about whether the young passer is truly prepared to make the jump to the professional ranks.

The Ringer’s Todd McShay offered a blunt assessment of the prospect’s readiness following the game. The analyst argued that the quarterback lacks the requisite experience to succeed immediately in the NFL and pointed to the low number of career starts as a major red flag. McShay emphasized that rushing the development process often leads to failure for talented but raw players.

McShay suggested that history provides a clear warning for quarterbacks who enter the draft without enough collegiate repetitions. He believes the player would benefit significantly from returning to school to accumulate more game action. The analyst relied on data and trends to support his claim that the passer is not yet equipped to handle the complexities of the next level.

Historical trends suggest Dante Moore needs more time at Oregon

Todd McShay specifically identified Oregon Ducks quarterback Dante Moore as the player who needs to return to school during his The McShay Report podcast. McShay used a long list of successful quarterbacks to illustrate the value of collegiate experience. He noted that players like Bo Nix and Jayden Daniels benefited immensely from staying in school longer.

“Bo Nix: 60+ starts. 50+starts are: Cam Ward, Jayden Daniels. 40+: Baker, Purdy, Penix, Herbert, Hurts, Dart,” McShay stated. “30+: Cousins, Geno, Goff, Daniel Jones, Trevor, Stafford, Lamar, Dak, Caleb, Love.”

McShay contrasted this list with Moore, who has made only 20 starts. He argued that the few quarterbacks who succeeded with fewer starts are rare outliers.

“The two guys that are sub-30 but still had 25 or 29, in Mahomes and Josh Allen respectively, are superhuman,” McShay explained. “And Mahomes sat a year with Alex Smith, teaching him in the quarterback room, and Andy Reid, one of the great developers. Everyone seems to forget Josh Allen really struggled as a rookie.”

The analyst pointed to specific struggles Moore had during the 56-22 loss to Indiana. He highlighted how the speed of the game seemed to affect the sophomore’s processing.

“I’m looking at Dante Moore in his 20th start, and he looks like a guy, and yeah, the running back on the RPO shouldn’t have hit his elbow to throw,” McShay observed. “But the strip sack and several other plays. I’m watching the quarterback. Yes, there were, your receivers are covered up, but we got to speed up that clock, man. I don’t think Dante Moore’s ready.”

McShay warned that ignoring historical trends often results in drafting busts. He listed several quarterbacks who struggled after entering the league with questions about their readiness.

“Knowing the history, and knowing all the problems, and knowing the Trubiskys and the Haskins and the Mark Sanchezes and the Anthony Richardsons,” McShay said. “Hearing that list I just gave you, and watching him then tonight, are you comfortable taking him at one overall?”

The analyst concluded that one more season would put Moore in a much safer category for NFL evaluators.

“He can come back next year, play 12, 13, 15 more games. And now he’s in the range we’re talking about with Stafford, Lamar, Dak, Caleb, Love,” McShay said. “I feel a lot more comfortable then.”

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Fernando Mendoza rejected Miami’s NIL payday — now he’s one win from a national title originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

Fernando Mendoza bet on himself last winter by turning down a richer NIL payday at Miami in favor of a chance he believed would better define his future. One win from a national championship, the wager is nearly complete at Indiana

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Fernando Mendoza has led one of the most remarkable seasons in college football history. The Indiana Hoosiers won their first Big Ten title since 1967 and Mendoza earned the school’s first Heisman Trophy.

The California transfer has thrown for 3,349 yards, 41 touchdowns and six interceptions, transforming Indiana into the No. 1 team entering the College Football Playoff. They haven’t let up off the gas since.

The decision almost never happened. According to former agent Ben Dogra, Mendoza turned down a more lucrative NIL offer from the Miami Hurricanes, his hometown school. He said Indiana’s deal paid roughly $2.3 million, while Miami’s offer exceeded $3 million, a difference that led the Hurricanes to pursue Carson Beck instead.

Mendoza prioritized development over a homecoming or money. At Indiana, he joined coach Curt Cignetti’s system to play alongside his brother, Alberto, and believed he had a clearer path to becoming an NFL quarterback.

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“That’s coaching,” Dogra said. “He thought he’d have a better chance to grow and get ready for the next level.”

Mendoza’s plan worked. He has surged up draft boards and is now viewed as the No. 1 overall pick. One more win would turn a calculated gamble into a championship legacy as the Hoosiers chase history.

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Alabama officially has a quarterback competition for 2026.

Austin Mack and Keelon Russell have both re-signed for another season with the Crimson Tide, Alabama’s NIL collective announced Friday.

Mack is heading into his fourth season of college football and fourth working under coach Kalen DeBoer. Meanwhile, Russell is set to enter his second season with Alabama.

The two will compete to replace Ty Simpson as Alabama’s starting quarterback. Simpson announced Wednesday he will enter the NFL Draft.

The re-signings are noteworthy because teams across college football are searching for quarterbacks, and it’s no secret quarterback-needy teams find ways to make known to quarterbacks through third parties what their opportunities might be if they enter the transfer portal.

But Alabama managed to secure both Mack and Russell, indicating both are willing to compete for the starting job.

What was a given not even half a decade ago is no longer a foregone conclusion. Roster retention is just as important, if not more important, than roster additions in this era of revenue sharing, NIL and paying players directly.

Mack is the lone quarterback of the two who has played significant snaps so far. When Simpson left the Rose Bowl early in the second half with a cracked rib, Mack replaced him and finished out the game. He completed 11 of 16 passes for 103 yards.

Over four games of action in 2025, primarily as Simpson’s backup, Mack completed 24 of 32 passes for 228 yards, two touchdowns and one rushing touchdown.

Russell was the third quarterback on the depth chart during his freshman season, completing 11 of 15 passes for 143 yards and two touchdowns. Russell is a former five-star quarterback, ranked as the No. 2 quarterback and No. 2 prospect in the 2025 recruiting class, per 247Sports.