We aren’t even to fall camps yet, but 2025 has already generated plenty of polarizing storylines. None may be as gripping as the transfer portal. While the bags of money that were historically exchanged under the cover of night are now proudly displayed for all to see, NIL monies are part of the transfer portal biography. The interesting thing about the transfer portal as it relates to Air Force, it’s really nothing new. Teams have been benefiting from players transferring out of the Military Academies long before “The Portal” was a thing.

As the landscape of college football is shifting quickly, the effects of player transfers have long been a reality for Troy Calhoun and company. While there is a preponderance of long-term benefits that come with attending a Military Academy, life as a Cadet is not for everyone. And for years, even if conforming to military life wasn’t an issue for a cadet, once they excelled on the field, the lure of a program with no military service commitment strings attached could always rear their prospect.

For those who may not know, a player can depart the United States Air Force Academy for another institution with little to no financial or military responsibility if they do so prior to their Junior season. For context, that could be three years of development when you consider players that spend their first year at the Prep school. That’s a lot of investment and development of an individual from an elite coaching staff. And these are circumstances Air Force, Army and Navy have had to navigate long before the transfer portal. The transfer portal has only amplified this challenge.

So, what do the new changes with the transfer portal mean for Air Force? A slightly smaller window for which players to seek new opportunities, or tampering attempts to lure players away perhaps. Not a great deal of change overall. In terms of the transfer portal, the Falcons are what financial institutions would deem “savers”. The reason being, they only contribute to the account, they are never making withdrawals. That is the exact relationship between the Military Academies and the transfer portals. Yes, technically student’s and athletes can come to Air Force after being at another school if they choose. But to do so, they reset their academic clock because transfer credits don’t apply. This is more than an anomaly scenario.

In this most recent cycle, the Falcons did lose some talent. Two very promising defensive players in Lincoln Tuioti-Mariner (Southern Utah) and David Santiago (Michigan State) figured to be impact players on the 2025 team. There even saw an offensive line departure Tyler Lawrence go to Mountain West rivals, New Mexico. Here again, this is nothing new for Air Force.

It’s not all woe-is-me for the Birds though. Air Force is very particular about the athletes they recruit. The academic and military rigors demand a certain kind of person, and the system Troy Calhoun and staff have leaned on has proven reliable. So, while departures do occur, the program or “system” they have in Colorado Springs has been constructed with such attrition considered. And despite a 5-7 down year, this is why Air Force has been able to sustain a high level of success with consistency above many of their counterparts, including their Military brethren out East.

In case you’re wondering, since Troy Calhoun took over as the head coach at Air Force in 2007, they’ve had 13 winning seasons. Army and Navy have 16 winning seasons combined over that period. In that same time, there are only five active coaches in all of college football who have won more games, and none of them are in the group of five. If you want to throw in retirees like Nick Saban and Chris Peterson, Troy still ranks top 10.

No quick fixes to attrition through the portal. No bags of NIL money to attract players. Just winning football. Simply put, Troy Calhoun can coach. He’s assembled an incredible coaching staff. Between OC Mike Thiessen, DC Brian Knorr, and O-Line coach Steede Lobotzke, you’re hard-pressed to find a stronger trio at what they do. And that has a lot to do with the United States Air Force Academy’s ability to navigate the changes with enduring success. The byproduct is a culture of graduating officers and winning football. A lot of both.

Phil Steele, one of the top experts in college football, has reinforced what many Syracuse fans already knew: the Orange’s 2025 schedule is brutal, brutal, brutal.

Steele, per this On3 article and also via philsteele.com, notes that in the 2025 season, Syracuse football has the toughest schedule in the Atlantic Coast Conference. Recruiting service and media outlet 247Sports also recently echoed that sentiment.

Awesome.

It makes sense, though. Just look at the Orange’s four ACC road games. The ‘Cuse is traveling to Clemson, SMU, Georgia Tech and Miami. Clemson won the ACC title in 2024 and is likely the favorite to repeat in 2025.

SMU made the 12-team College Football Playoff a season ago. As did Clemson. I think that Miami will contend for the No. 2 spot in the ACC this coming term. Georgia Tech, led by quarterback Haynes King, should be sneaky good.

Syracuse football’s home ACC calendar is more manageable. It includes Duke, Pittsburgh, North Carolina and Boston College. If the Orange wants to come close to mirroring its record from 2024, the ‘Cuse has to go at least 3-1, if not 4-0, at the JMA Wireless Dome.

Phil Steele also grades Syracuse football’s 2025 schedule on a national scale.

Per Steele, if we’re talking about nationally speaking, the Orange’s 2025 slate is No. 5 overall.

Awesome.

Again, I get it. On top of the ‘Cuse ACC calendar, the team’s non-conference schedule is pretty darn enticing – and challenging. The Orange has September home affairs with UConn and Colgate, and Syracuse football should win both of these.

But its other two non-conference encounters are against Tennessee, in Atlanta, to open the 2025 season, as well as a late November trip to Notre Dame. The Volunteers made the most recent CFP, while the Fighting Irish got to the national championship game, losing to Ohio State.

It’s no wonder that when Steele recently projected the ACC’s order of finish in 2025, he placed Syracuse football at No. 12 in a league that has 17 members in football.

Let’s keep in mind that preseason prognostications are just that – preseason prognostications. In 2024, as Fran Brown made his head-coaching debut on the Hill, the Orange was projected to finish No. 12 in the ACC. The ‘Cuse would end up in a tie for the fourth spot.

I can’t wait for Syracuse football to get going.

CLEMSON — It all started in an empty parking lot in Florence, South Carolina on October 16, 1931.

After falling to The Citadel at old Florence Memorial Stadium, Clemson head coach Jess Neely, in his first year, Captain Frank Jervey and a couple of others met in a car outside the stadium to discuss ways Clemson could help its football program get back on track.

The meeting got the ball rolling towards the establishment of the IPTAY Foundation, which formally began on August 20, 1934. IPTAY, which stood for “I Pay Ten A Year” was the nation’s first scholarship fundraising organization.

Almost 100 years later, IPTAY is still out in front when it comes to helping Clemson Athletics compete at the highest level. But it does not just pay scholarships anymore.

With new NIL legislation in place, plus with the House Settlement now in activation mode, IPTAY is once again the main financial arm that is going to help the Tigers compete in this new revenue-sharing-NIL world of college athletics.

“We are going to try and meet you and be really transparent and communitive because in the last four years we have been in this NIL collective era,” Clemson athletic director Graham Neff said recently on the Mickey Plyler Show on The Roar 105.5 FM. “IPTAY and Clemson have worked a lot with our 110 Society, which is our collective. We have been encouraging dollars there, but we are going to transition the 110 Society to sun set or digest into Clemson and IPTAY.”

How can fans support Clemson Athletics? How can fans give to NIL?

“Now it is really going to be going back to IPTAY,” Neff said. “Our scholarship dollars are increasing significantly. We’re going to be really communitive with our commercial NIL.”

In other words, if someone wants to give to NIL, they can do it through IPTAY. If a small or medium size business owner wants to help with NIL at Clemson, they can now go through IPTAY.

Like it did nearly 94 years ago in that small parking lot outside Florence Memorial Stadium, IPTAY is ushering Clemson Athletics into the future, so the Tigers can continue to compete at the highest level.

Texas Tech landed the No. 1 rated offensive tackle in the country in Felix Ojo, who announced his commitment Friday, on July Fourth, which also happens to be his birthday. The 6-foot-6, 275-pound offensive lineman out of Mansfield (TX) Lake Ridge chose the Red Raiders over reported offers from Alabama, Arizona State, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Boston College, California, Colorado, Duke, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Houston, Kansas, Kansas State, LSU, Memphis, Michigan, Mississippi State, Missouri, Nebraska, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Purdue, SMU, Stanford, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M, Texas State, UCLA, USC, Utah, Vanderbilt and Washington. 

The five-star recruit is rated as the No. 5 overall player in the nation, No. 1 offensive tackle in the country, the No. 2 overall prospect in Texas for the 2026 class according to 247Sports. The 247Sports Composite, an average of the major recruiting rankings services, rates Ojo about the same as a five-star recruit, the No. 7 overall prospect in the country, the No. 2 offensive tackle in the nation and the No. 1 overall player in the Lone Star State.

Simply put, if Ojo’s commitment holds and he signs with the Red Raiders, he’ll supplant Micah Hudson as the highest rated recruit to sign with Texas Tech in the modern college football era, and most likely, in the program’s entire history. 

Ojo recently released a top four without Texas Tech in it, but the Red Raiders made a late push and secured Ojo’s commitment. Texas Tech has been on fire this week, picking up commitments from Composite four-star safety Donovan Webb on Wednesday, Composite four-star running back Ashton Rowden on Thursday and now Ojo today.

The five-star recruit took an official visit to Raiderland back in April, which helped the cause. Inside the Red Raiders caught up with Ojo following the visit.

“The visit went great overall and my favorite part was seeing the facilities and touring campus,” Ojo said. “The training room and how top tier it is (was my favorite part), and I talked with Blanchard, both McGuire’s and they made it known I was a priority and felt confident they could take me and make me into a first-round pick.”

247Sports national recruiting analyst Gabe Brooks provided the following projection of Ojo’s potential at the next level and beyond:

“Tall offensive tackle prospect who’s very young for his recruiting class with a July DOB. Verified at 6-foot-6, 272 pounds post-junior season with adequate length numbers in arm (33 5/8) and wingspan (81 1/2). Owns a lean, athletic look and plays with impressive functional athleticism and movement ability. Live evaluation during 2025 Navy Army All-American Bowl revealed a consistent mean streak in pads. Stood out physically, athletically, and in field demeanor despite being among the youngest competitors in the event. Hand placement/technique have improved from sophomore to junior year, along with ability to stand up to POA strength. Gets good extension and uses length to his advantage. Still developing consistent pop; can be grabby, but looks to finish with authority. Plays upright at times and can show more frequent bend ability. Will continue to bulk given immense frame potential. Bolsters athletic profile with discus reps. Capacities for strength and power are high given excellent physical tools and relative youth. Looks like one of the top OT prospects in the 2026 class with potential to become a multi-year high-major tackle with ample pro potential.”

Ojo is the 18th pledge of Texas Tech’s 2026 class joining quarterback Stephen Cannon, running back Ashton Rowden, receiver Imari Jehiel, offensive linemen Jacob Crow and Jerald Mays, three-star edges Tieson Ejiawoko and Demarcus Marks, three-star defensive linemen Ayden Johnson and Krush Johnson, three-star linebackers Cord Nolan and Kaegan Ash, plus three-star defensive backs Donovan Webb, S’Vioarean Martin, Aaron Bradshaw, Noah Lewis, Luke Bell and Maddox Quiller. Texas Tech’s class ranks 23rd nationally, and tops in the Big 12. With the commitments of Webb, Rowden and Ojo this week Texas Tech has jumped 26 spots in 247Sports’ national recruiting rankings. The Red Raiders signed the No. 48 high school and No. 2 transfer groups for an overall national ranking of No. 22 in 2025. 

Caitlin Clark has missed the Indiana Fever’s last four games due to a groin injury. However, the Fever haven’t let Clark’s absence slow them down. The Fever are on a three-game win streak, and recently added to their momentum by defeating the Minnesota Lynx 74-59 in the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup Championship.

While some analysts are excited to see how much further the Fever will improve when Clark returns, others don’t believe the team’s recent success without Clark is a coincidence. On Friday, ESPN analyst Carolyn Peck claimed the Fever are “more dangerous” without Clark on the court.

“Indiana is even more dangerous when Caitlin Clark doesn’t play,” Peck said. “Because she’s a ball-dominant guard. The ball is in her hands a lot, so you know what you need to try to take away. But when you look at Indiana now, they’ve got so many weapons.

“… When you have a point guard like Kelsey Mitchell, and Aari McDonald making plays on the perimeter, and a post like Aliyah Boston, I’m gonna tell you: Indiana, they are a threat. And it’s specifically on the defensive end. Stephanie [White’ is so pleased with the intensity that they’re bringing defensively with their length, their switches. They’ve wreaked havoc on their last two opponents.”

Despite the Fever’s recent success, the team is 5-4 when Clark is healthy this season and 5-4 when she’s unavailable. Thus, there’s been no change in the win-loss record with Caitlin Clark sidelined due to injury.

This reality can be interpreted in two ways: The Fever are just as good without Clark on the court, or the Fever aren’t better off without Clark. Evidently, Peck belongs to the former camp.

In fairness, Clark has struggled to find a rhythm this season due to her injuries. The 2024 WNBA All-Star’s efficiency is particularly suffering. Clark is only shooting 39.7% from the field and 29.5% from beyond the arc this season, compared to her 41.7% and 34.4% splits last season.

Nonetheless, the former Iowa standout is still averaging 18.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 8.9 assists per game this season. With that said, Peck isn’t the only one who isn’t sold on Clark’s talents.

Earlier this week, Caitlin Clark’s fellow WNBA players voted her as just the ninth-best guard in the league. The WNBA All-Star votes are comprised of three groups: fans, media and current players.

Although Clark didn’t receive the utmost respect from other WNBA players, she was No. 1 in the fan vote and No. 3 in the media vote. In turn, she will be a captain in the All-Star Game.