Power Conference commissioners met once again Saturday to discuss the future of the College Football Playoff, Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger reported. A “compromise” for the Big 12 and ACC regarding a 16-team model was part of the discussion.

Saturday’s meeting is the second time the commissioners gathered to talk about potential CFP expansion in the last 10 days. ESPN’s Pete Thamel noted Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti appeared virtually since he’s in California for the conference’s upcoming spring meetings.

The proposed 16-team bracket would include four automatic bids for each of the SEC and Big Ten, according to Dellenger. The ACC and Big 12 would get two spots each, while the Group of 6 would get one. There would also be three at-large spots.

In addition, as Dellenger previously reported, “inner-league play-in games” could also be in the cards at the end of the year. That would put the third-place team in a conference against the sixth-place team, as well as the fourth-place team against fifth-place.

ESPN’s Pete Thamel also reported the focus is on a 16-team College Football Playoff, which would begin in 2026. That’s when the current agreement with ESPN ends, although an extension will also kick in at the end of the deal.

“I would say that 16 is becoming more preferred,” a source told Thamel. “It seems like 16 may be the preferred number, but there’s no format decision.”

While no decisions have been made, Mississippi State athletics director Zac Selmon strongly supported the idea of play-in games for the CFP. He pointed out the addition of more meaningful games to the schedule as a reason he’d be in favor of the move.

“There’s been a lot of just intriguing conversations,” Selmon told Peter Burns. “We just had some meetings in Birmingham this week. It’s always great to be with our colleagues. Commissioner [Greg] Sankey’s just a visionary in the industry. I think exciting competition is exciting competition, and I’ve always been a fan for access, but also for the fan bases, more play-ins. You look at what the NBA has done and other leagues – having hope, having excitement late in the season – I love the concepts of just having more opportunities and also having some more things on the line. The level of competition in our league, and you think about the physical toll that games take on somebody’s body.

“Now, the mental toll that this league puts on your body … I think it helps for the student-athlete mindset, too, of having more things to play for late in the season. Coaches are great at motivating and keeping guys connected, but I think having more things like this is a really good concept for the student-athletes. Having more access, more meaningful games, more games with a lot of things on the line, I think it’s a great thing for college football.”

Not every College Football Playoff run is created equal. Some teams have to claw their way through brutal schedules, dodging top-10 matchups week after week just to get a shot. But then, there are a few lucky programs that… well, let’s just say the path is a little smoother.

The teams we’re about to talk about? They’ve got it made.

That’s not to say they aren’t talented — they are. In fact, they’d all be Playoff contenders no matter what. But when you look at how their 2025 schedules stack up, it’s clear they’ve been dealt a very favorable hand. Short of a complete meltdown, it’s hard to see these teams not being in the thick of the CFP picture when the time comes. Basically, it’d take a disaster for them to miss it.

Let’s take a look at the teams with the easiest rides to the College Football Playoff this season.

Penn State Nittany Lions

Penn State has scheduled three automatic wins to start the season with Nevada, FIU, and Villanova. They will then get a bye week — as if it’s needed after that stretch — before hosting Oregon. That essentially means they get an entire month to prepare for Oregon and work out the kinks on their team before their Big Ten run begins.

Though at UCLA and at Iowa aren’t easy games, but they’re certainly manageable, meaning that Penn State should be 7-0 or at worst 6-1 heading into November. They get a bye before going on the road against Ohio State and then they’ll close out the season win Indiana, at Michigan State, Nebraska, and at Rutgers. Could an upset happen along the way? Sure. But, this feels like a schedule that has Penn State set up to be 11-1 and, at worst 10-2.

If the Nittany Lions are 10-2 — regardless of if they win the Big Ten or not — they’re getting into the playoff. So, you might as well go ahead and count them in the College Football Playoff.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish

Notre Dame gets a nice draw with its five ACC games, with the only one that will give them any trouble coming at the beginning when they travel to Miami, which will still be breaking in a new defensive scheme and Carson Beck at quarterback.

They get Texas A&M and Boise State at home, but there’s a decent chance that the Fighting Irish may not face a ranked team outside of the month of September, and they may not face more than two — Texas A&M and Miami to start the season — for the entire year.

Even presumably with a freshman in CJ Carr taking over at quarterback, Notre Dame has a very favorable path to the CFP, assuming they can simply split those first two, and if they win both, the Fighting Irish may be the country’s best chance at going a perfect 12-0, even with the experience they’re having to replace.

Oregon Ducks

Just like Notre Dame, there’s a solid chance that Oregon will not face more than 2-3 ranked opponents in 2025. As a matter of fact, there’s a chance that the Ducks will only play one ranked team the entire season.

Oregon will have the road game against Penn State, which will be a tough out. Even if the Ducks lose that one, though, they’re set up to run the table the rest of the way. They have a bye week after Penn State and then they’ll play Indiana, at Rutgers, Wisconsin, at Iowa, Minnesota, USC, and at Washington. Could Indiana, USC, Iowa, or Washington provide a little bit of a test for them? Absolutely. But, the Ducks will be heavily-favored in all those matchups, regardless.

At this point, we’d only point to Indiana as a ranked team heading into 2025 — and there’s a chance that Iowa or USC could sneak in — so to say that Oregon got a favorable draw would be an understatement.

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Miami Dolphins rookie quarterback Quinn Ewers offered advice to aspiring college football players during this week’s NFLPA Rookie Premiere, emphasizing the importance of consistency and presence amid the pressures of recruiting and the ever-evolving landscape of NIL deals.

Ewers, a former Texas Longhorns standout and the No. 1 overall recruit in the Class of 2021, spoke with On3 about his journey and the lessons he hopes to impart to the next generation of athletes.

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“Just be present, especially if you’re in high school and you’re not receiving as many offers or whatever it is-coaches aren’t recognizing you as much,” Ewers said. “Just remain present and continue to be consistent. As long as you stay consistent, you’re going to end up where you want to be, at the end of the day. That’s just how it goes.”

Ewers, who began his collegiate career at Ohio State before transferring to Texas, acknowledged his own privileged position as a highly recruited player. “I was lucky enough to be a highly recruited guy, but I just tried to stay as consistent as I could as long as I could, which, at the end of the day, helped me a ton,” he said. “That’s all it is about-remaining present and taking care of business and letting all the other stuff fall in line, because it will if you really put the work in.”

His message comes at a time when young athletes face unprecedented opportunities and distractions, from social media attention to lucrative NIL deals. Ewers’ advice to “take care of business” and trust the process is a reminder of the fundamentals that underpin long-term success.

After leading Texas to back-to-back College Football Playoff appearances, Ewers chose to enter the 2025 NFL Draft, forgoing his final season of eligibility and a reported $8 million in potential NIL earnings. Despite sliding to the seventh round, he signed with the Dolphins and is expected to make his professional debut in the preseason. The four-year deal Ewers accepted will reportedly be worth $4.3 million. For Ewers, the next step is clear: stay present, work hard, and let the results speak for themselves.

This article originally appeared on Longhorns Wire: Quinn Ewers shares best advice for next generation of college recruits

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The No. 24 Oklahoma State softball team lost in eight innings to No. 4 national seed Arkansas, 6-5, at Bogle Park Saturday.  
 
The Cowgirls dropped to 34-19, while the Razorbacks improved to 42-12. With the loss, OSU faces an elimination game against either Indiana or Saint Louis later this evening, with the winner advancing to tomorrow’s regional final against the Hogs. 
 
The Cowgirls held a 3-1 lead after four innings and a 5-1 lead after five, but the Razorbacks scored one in the sixth, three in the seventh and one in the eighth to win. 
 
OSU opened the scoring in the third inning when Amanda Hasler singled in Megan Delgadillo, but Arkansas tied the game in the bottom of the third with an RBI single.  
 
Oklahoma State took a two-run lead in the fourth thanks to an RBI triple from Tia Warsop and a double from Rachael Hathoot which brought Warsop home.  
 
The Cowgirls added two more in the fifth inning with an RBI double from Hasler and an RBI groundout from Karli Godwin to score pinch runner Macy Graf.  
 
Arkansas’ Atalyia Rijo cut the deficit to three with a solo home run in the sixth, and the Razorbacks plated three more runs in the seventh to send the contest into extra innings.  
 
Oklahoma State failed to get a base runner on in the eighth, setting the stage for Arkansas to win it on a bases-loaded single up the middle from Courtney Day. 
 
Ruby Meylan took the loss for OSU to dip to 21-9 on the year. Arkansas’ Payton Burnham improved to 15-2 with the win. 
 
Offensive standouts for OSU included Hasler (3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs), Delgadillo (three runs scored) and Hathoot (1-for-4 with a double and an RBI.)  
 
For season-long coverage of Oklahoma State Softball, visit okstate.com and follow @CowgirlSB on X and @osusoftball on Instagram. For tickets, visit okstate.com/tickets  
or call 877-ALL-4-OSU. 
 
  1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8   R H E 
Oklahoma State 0 0 1 2 2 0 0 0   5 7 1 
Arkansas 0 0 1 0 0 1 3 1   6 11 0 
 
WP: P. Burnham (15-2); LP: R. Meylan (21-9); SV: None 
HR: OSU – None 
HR: UA – Rijo (6) 
Duration: 2:56; Attendance: 3,041  

Top five-star recruit Jackson Cantwell recently announced his college football commitment to the Miami Hurricanes, and his reported NIL deal is under the spotlight.

Cantwell chose the Hurricanes over the Georgia Bulldogs, and one of the reasons was said to be a landmark NIL package for the high school offensive tackle, reportedly upwards of $2 million per year.

It led to Bulldogs head coach Kirby Smart sharing his recruiting philosophy while licking the wounds of losing out on Cantwell, declaring that he doesn’t want to be in a landscape where a freshman recruit comes on campus making more than a senior.

Although Cantwell has stated that the name, image, and likeness deal was not the primary reason for his commitment to Miami football, as reported by the Springfield News-Leader, the value of his deal remains a central topic of debate among college football personnel.

Chris Hummer of 247Sports (subscription required) sought the opinions of Power Four personnel and coaching staff on the Hurricane’s NIL strategy of spending top dollars on star targets, including quarterbacks Cam Ward and Carson Beck.

Those moves were made in an unrestricted NIL era that is set to change upon approval of the House settlement.

The revenue-sharing structure will have a cap, and that’s what’s causing pause among personnel in the sport regarding Cantwell’s NIL deal.

“If it’s coming out of the rev share, there’s no [expletive] way,” the same SEC director of player personnel said. “That’s a quarterback or a starting left tackle. Cantwell is going to start his career and be at best a quality starter. Not a great one. Not an elite one.”

Cantwell’s NIL lawyer, Darren Heitner, told 247Sports that it’s fair to assume that payment won’t come until he enrolls, which would seem to be in the revenue-sharing era.

The details are not public, and some wonder if the deal could be under the “old rules” of NIL if signed before the settlement’s July 1 effective date.

Regardless of whether it falls under cap compliance or not, the deal is sparking more debates around positional value and the fact that much of the salary cap is being spent on a high school offensive lineman who has yet to take a college snap.

The majority answered no, with an ACC director of player personnel giving a bit more open-minded perspective.

“Yeah, but you can only have one of them,” they said. “You have to invest up front, and that’s what the market is around.”

Of course schools want premier left tackles, but the cap will require more thoughtful divvying of resources.

Despite acknowledging the positional value, the majority of those surveyed contend that they would be better off allocating their resources elsewhere, particularly at the quarterback position.

Some, ultimately, shared Smart’s philosophy on not wanting to pay that much to an incoming freshman. In Cantwell’s case, he’d stand to make more than 95% of the roster.

The position is intricately linked with the starting quarterback. In going all out to land Beck in the transfer portal, the move might be of value if Cantwell can make the jump to starter.

If he hits, no one will be looking back on this move with much criticism at all.