NIL
'Bulldog Bread' NIL collective saw donation boost after Fresno State football transfers
“How do we increase that number? I’ve had joking and serious conversations with some of my friends, like, I pay a month for Hulu. I could probably give a month to Fresno State.”Privately-operated collectives are not required to state exactly how much money they raise. Opendorse arrived at these numbers “based on a blend of […]


“How do we increase that number? I’ve had joking and serious conversations with some of my friends, like, I pay a month for Hulu. I could probably give a month to Fresno State.”Privately-operated collectives are not required to state exactly how much money they raise. Opendorse arrived at these numbers “based on a blend of dollars committed for the 2024-25 academic year and anonymized transactions by Opendorse partner and non-Opendorse partner collectives facilitated or disclosed through Opendorse between July 1, 2021, and June 7, 2024.”FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — The departure of 15 Fresno State football players through the transfer portal sparked donors of the NIL (Name, Image and Likeness) collective “Bulldog Bread” to take action.”It’s difficult because… money plays a factor in some of those [transfer] decisions. But a lot of the times, it’s the scale these guys are playing on, where maybe these guys want to play in a bigger conference, a bigger stage, or they want a little bit more than whatever they feel is not being offered here, whatever that could be, fill in the blank. Sometimes it’s personal reasons. Sometimes, the guys are wanting to be closer to home.””We’re across multiple seven figures definitely as far as what we’re [raising],” McMaryion said. “I think our No. 1 goal going into 2025 is, how do we increase our community involvement? Currently, I believe we have 42 people – a couple businesses and corporations – that are giving on a monthly basis. I know we have more than 42 fans of Fresno State.One of his goals this year is to get more casual Bulldog fans to donate.
With NIL collectives more important than ever before, the Dinuba native is getting creative with new ways to generate money so Fresno State can keep and recruit its players. Bulldog Bread is raising funds in the millions, and according to a report by N.I.L marketplace Opendorse, that is around the predicted average budget for a Group of 5 university, .4 million. “We definitely had a handful of donors reaching out to me personally,” said Marcus McMaryion, manager of the collective, “and saying, ‘Hey, we want to not only give our original contribution, but we want to [increase] it to make sure that we’re not in this position.’
That’s still far behind the average budget for Power 4 collectives: .9 million.A former Fresno State quarterback who led the program to a Mountain West championship in 2018, McMaryion is hard at work directing Bulldog Bread into the new year.
NIL
High school football will never be the same in era of transfers, NIL money
When Charles Dickens began his 1859 novel “A Tale of Two Cities” with the legendary line, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” who knew that it would aptly describe the state of amateur football in 2025? From college athletics to high school athletics, if you’re a parent, coach, athlete […]

When Charles Dickens began his 1859 novel “A Tale of Two Cities” with the legendary line, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,” who knew that it would aptly describe the state of amateur football in 2025?
From college athletics to high school athletics, if you’re a parent, coach, athlete or fan, you have plenty of stories to tell. Take notes, because there’s so much material you’ll be able to write a book, launch a podcast or participate in court cases still to be decided.
Advertisement
“It’s all crazy,” said future Hall of Fame football coach Matt Logan of Corona Centennial.
Football isn’t in a crisis but it is in a black hole with stakeholders seeking an escape path.
With final rules still not adopted in how name, image and likeness is supposed to work and college programs not only paying their own athletes but high school recruits, too, everyone is adjusting on the fly. Parents trying to navigate the changes are hiring agents, who are showing up to high school camps trying to find clients. There’s the college transfer portal and something similar in high school that saw more than 17,000 students switch schools in California last year.
Until NIL rules are figured out, it’s roll your eyes and don’t be surprised at anything.
Advertisement
Read more: High school football transfers tracker: Which top players are switching schools?
Some elite high school players have been reclassifying their graduation years to take advantage of money opportunities. And that’s after parents held them back entering high school to be bigger, stronger and faster as a 16-year-old freshman.
It’s all legal and even logical but the changing landscape is riddled with pros and cons and bad actors.
One big concern in high school sports is that parents might be too focused on scholarships for their kids and earning NIL money while forgetting the real reason people play sports — for the love of the game.
Advertisement
“For me, the whole value in sports has been degenerated,” Logan said. “You don’t play sports to get a scholarship. You play to learn how to lead, how to take orders, how to be a good teammate, how to work together. This could be the only chance to have fun, play with their friends, have a great experience.”
There have been football scandals in recent years — twice at Narbonne High, which had City Section championships taken away in 2019 and 2024 for using ineligible players. Now the football community is focused on what the Southern Section intends to do this fall about Bishop Montgomery, which supposedly has numerous transfer students (some from Narbonne) and is so confident the players will be declared eligible that a trip to Hawaii and a nonleague game against powerful Mater Dei have been scheduled.
Every week, coaches have to decide how to deal with players and parents who have little patience and many options. It’s a balancing act, and for the elite of the elite, coaches can’t even count on juniors returning as seniors because of opportunities to skip ahead to college.
“I understand why they are doing it. They have my full support,” said Sierra Canyon coach Jon Ellinghouse, who’s losing star defensive lineman Richard Wesley to Oregon a year early after he reclassified to the class of 2026.
Advertisement
Ellinghouse is embracing the idea his job is to “put them into positions to have life-changing opportunities.”
There are many different paths to success and failure. Remember how LaVar Ball didn’t care that his youngest son, LaMelo, was 13 years old playing summer basketball as a freshman for Chino Hills. He threw him in against older players and the rest is history. He averaged 25.2 points this season for the Charlotte Hornets as a 23-year-old in his fifth NBA season.
There are others who were 19-year-old seniors in high school, stopped developing, kept switching schools and will probably blame their coaches for not making the pros when the truth is it’s difficult to become a professional athlete.
It is the best of times with all kinds of money to be given out for being a good athlete. It is the worst of times because many of the treasured lessons from playing amateur sports no longer receive priority treatment. What happened to the importance of getting a college degree?
Advertisement
It will take someone with magical ideas to return a balance to the amateur sports world.
Sign up for the L.A. Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
NIL
Oklahoma’s Brent Venables, Auburn’s Hugh Freeze among coaches who can significantly boost ranking in 2025
We here at CBS Sports recently released our ranking of all 68 coaches at the Power Four level, from 68 all the way down to No. 1. Naturally, the top 25 — and especially the top 10 — tends to dominate conversation and consternation among fans that believe their coach is too low, or another […]

We here at CBS Sports recently released our ranking of all 68 coaches at the Power Four level, from 68 all the way down to No. 1. Naturally, the top 25 — and especially the top 10 — tends to dominate conversation and consternation among fans that believe their coach is too low, or another team’s coach is too high.
But for those that like to look beyond, it’s a fascinating exercise to debate which coaches will move the most between this year’s rankings and the 2026 crop. Every year, plenty of coaches make a rapid ascent or take a precipitous fall in these rankings, based largely on performance in the season prior.
For instance, Colorado’s Deion Sanders leapt a whopping 28 spots from No. 61 all the way to No. 33 after winning nine regular season games with the Buffaloes last season. Then there’s Arizona State’s Kenny Dillingham, who jumped 46 spots to No. 18 after guiding the Sun Devils to a Big 12 title.
Ranking the top 25 Power Four college football coaches entering the 2025 season
Tom Fornelli

So, in light of the rankings release, it felt appropriate to take a look at the Power Four coaches that can boost their stock the most during the 2025 season.
2024 rank: 36 | 2025 rank: 23
Bielema bounced back from a disappointing 2023 to deliver Illinois its first 10-win campaign in 23 years last season. The Fighting Illini return a litany of key players from that squad and, as such, have real College Football Playoff upside entering the 2025 campaign. Quarterback Luke Altmyer is back as one of the Big Ten’s best signal callers, though Illinois has to overhaul its wide receiver room this offseason. The defense is anchored by standouts like edge rusher Gabe Jacas, a potential first-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, and defensive back Miles Scott. Illinois also has a very manageable schedule — it only plays two teams that finished 2024 with a winning record in conference play — that lends itself to at least 10 wins, which might just be sufficient for an at-large College Football Playoff bid.
2024 rank: 67 | 2025 rank: 46
Brown blew all reasonable expectations out of the water in his first season at Syracuse. The rookie head coach led the Orange to their first 10-win season since 2018, and just their third 10-win campaign since the turn of the century, while beating three ranked teams along the way. Now all eyes are on what Brown’s Syracuse does an encore. Gone are quarterback Kyle McCord, who was selected in the sixth round of the 2025 NFL Draft, and leading receivers Jackson Meeks (NFL) and Trebor Pena (transferred to Penn State). Syracuse will turn to either LSU transfer Rickie Collins or Notre Dame transfer Steve Angeli to take over at quarterback. The Orange definitely have major questions, but Brown’s upside as a coach is undeniable.
2025 college football coach rankings: Deion Sanders, Bill Belichick headline Power Four coaches ranked 68-26
Tom Fornelli

Hugh Freeze, Auburn
2024 rank: 33 | 2025 rank: 47
Freeze almost has to move up, right? Not that it’s a guarantee, but more in the sense that, if the Tigers don’t see some serious improvement, Freeze could be on the way out. As the rankings indicate, he’s certainly been trending in the wrong direction. Going back to his last season at Ole Miss, he’s 7-17 in SEC games. Auburn missed out on a bowl last season after barely making it to the postseason in Freeze’s debut year on The Plains. He’s done a good job upgrading Auburn’s talent level, and he may have found the answer at quarterback in former five-star prospect and Oklahoma transfer Jackson Arnold. Arnold has plenty of weapons to throw it to, an experienced offensive line to play behind and a defense across the ball that should keep opposing scores low. The pieces are there for Freeze to have a respectable year. He just has to deliver.
2024 rank: 54 | 2025 rank: 30
It hasn’t taken too long for Key to pick up the pieces left by former Georgia Tech coach Geoff Collins. Last season, the Yellow Jackets opened the year by downing a top-10 Florida State team (though that win aged like milk), crushed No. 4 Miami’s CFP hopes in November and then took Georgia to eight overtimes in the regular season finale after taking a lead deep into the fourth quarter. The Yellow Jackets have 14 wins over the past two seasons and have finished no worse than fourth in the ACC. They bring back veteran quarterback Haynes King and one of the nation’s best running backs in Jamal Haynes. Tech could shake the ACC up in 2025, and Key may make his way into the vaunted top-25 of our coach rankings.
CBS Sports coach rankings: Numbers reveal conference biases, polarizing names and our 2025 Hater of the Year
Tom Fornelli

2024 rank: 44 | 2025 rank: 48
Few preseason darlings have generated as much buzz as Texas Tech. Landing the No. 2 class in 247Sports’ Team Transfer Rankings, with more four-star transfers signed than any other program, probably has something to do with it. It’s clear that the Red Raiders are all-in on the NIL era of college athletics. Now they’re primed to take advantage of a perennially wide-open Big 12 race. Winning the conference and qualifying for the playoff could mean McGuire takes a Dillingham-esque ascent in next year’s coach rankings.
Sherrone Moore, Michigan
2024 rank: 52 | 2025 rank: 58
Michigan’s 2024 season was a lot better than the 8-5 record may indicate. The Wolverines beat a top-15 USC team and closed the year with wins against Ohio State (the eventual national champs) and Alabama. Three of those five losses came against College Football Playoff teams. Of course, Jim Harbaugh reset the expectations at Michigan, but realistic minds knew that the Wolverines would take some step back in 2024 given what they lost off of their national title-winning squad. Now Moore has two hand-picked quarterbacks in Fresno State transfer Mikey Keene and five-star freshman Bryce Underwood, the No. 1 prospect in the class of 2025. It seems like a question of when, and not if, Underwood takes over Michigan’s offense. If he lives up to the hype, the Wolverines could push for the Big Ten once again.
Brent Venables, Oklahoma
2024 rank: 34 | 2025 rank: 52
Venables’ Sooners did not take the SEC transition well. Sure, they pulled off a gigantic upset against Alabama, but they were outscored by an average of 15 points in their other four games against ranked conference opponents and then capped the whole campaign with a loss against Navy in the Armed Forces Bowl. So, in an effort to ensure Oklahoma doesn’t fall too far behind, Venables made sweeping changes in the offseason. He’ll handle defensive play-calling duties while handing the offensive coordinator role to Ben Arbuckle, who engineered some of the nation’s most effective passing offenses at Western Kentucky and Washington State. Arbuckle’s Wazzu QB, John Mateer, followed him to Norman. Oklahoma also signed five wide receiver transfers to bolster a position decimated by injuries and portal departures. As long as the offensive line takes a big leap, the rest of Oklahoma’s offense should follow, and that would mean improvement for the Sooners.
NIL
Vanderbilt will play Ole Miss for SEC Tournament Championship
The SEC Tournament in Hoover doesn’t get the same buzz as the SEC Tournament in Nashville but it often still delivers the hits. The best week in college baseball will come to an end at the Hoover Met on Sunday. We will get an unexpected champion. No. 4 seed Vanderbilt will face No. 7 seed […]

The SEC Tournament in Hoover doesn’t get the same buzz as the SEC Tournament in Nashville but it often still delivers the hits. The best week in college baseball will come to an end at the Hoover Met on Sunday. We will get an unexpected champion.
No. 4 seed Vanderbilt will face No. 7 seed Ole Miss for the conference crown on Sunday afternoon. Let’s ride.
After completing a sweep of Kentucky in their home finale in Nashville, Vanderbilt beat Oklahoma 6-1 to move to the semifinals and crushed archrival Tennessee (10-0) by run rule on Saturday to move to the championship game. Tim Corbin appears to have another national title contender on the West End. Vandy will play for the program’s third conference title in the last six years (removing the COVID-19 season) on Sunday. Corbin has an argument for having the best program in the SEC for the last decade.
Mike Bianco also may have an argument.
After finishing 16-14 in SEC play, Ole Miss earned the No. 7 seed in the SEC Tournament and has quickly marched to the championship round. The Rebels beat Florida 3-1 on Wednesday to advance to the quarterfinals. Ole Miss then upset No. 2 seed Arkansas before knocking off No. 3 seed LSU. Ole Miss has gotten excellent pitching all weekend as this team has given up only three runs through three games. The Rebs will attempt to keep it rolling on Sunday as this program looks to capture its third SEC Tournament crown.
Mike Elko and Tim Corbin each own national championship rings. Now the two legendary head coaches will go head-to-head for an SEC title on Sunday in Hoover. The college baseball postseason remains undefeated. Let’s crown a champion before moving to the selection show on Sunday where Kentucky is expected to be very much on the bubble.
NIL
Field Of 64 Predictions, How To Watch
The Men’s College World Series is here! The NCAA selection show is Monday morning at 9 a.m. PT. How to watch and predictions for the field of 64 reveal the No. 4 Oregon Ducks (42-14) as potential hosts of a regional, despite being upset by the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Big Ten baseball tournament. Many […]

The Men’s College World Series is here! The NCAA selection show is Monday morning at 9 a.m. PT. How to watch and predictions for the field of 64 reveal the No. 4 Oregon Ducks (42-14) as potential hosts of a regional, despite being upset by the Nebraska Cornhuskers in the Big Ten baseball tournament.
Many conference champions will be crowned on Sunday, so expect more changes but as of now, Oregon has dropped from No. 12 to No. 18 in the RPI following a 1-1 week in Omaha.
The tournament bracket will be announced during the selection show at 9 a.m. PT on Monday, May 26 on ESPN2 or ESPNU.
Top-seeded Oregon had its 11-game winning streak snapped in the final game of pool play, losing to Nebraska 7-3 on Saturday morning. Nebraska was the No. 8 seed in the conference tournament, and the Cornhuskers advanced to face the Ducks after a walk-off win in extra innings over the Michigan State Spartans.
Originally scheduled for Friday night, the game between Oregon and Nebraska was postponed due to inclement weather.
D1Baseball revealed new projections after play on Saturday. The good news is, the Ducks were predicted to host a regional at PK Park in Eugene, with Arizona, Virginia and Fresno State as opponents. Oregon is a predicted No. 8 national seed.
Mark your calendars! Here is the 2025 NCAA DI baseball tournament schedule:
Selection show: Monday, May 26 at 9 a.m. PT on ESPN2 or ESPNU
Regionals: Friday-Monday, May 30-June 2
Super Regionals: Friday-Monday, June 6-9
First day of MCWS games: Starts Friday, June 13
MCWS finals: Saturday – Sunday/Monday, June 21-22/23
MORE: Why New College Football Playoff Seeding Format Bothers Oregon Ducks Fans
MORE: Miami Hurricanes’ NIL For 5-Star Recruit Jackson Cantwell Under Fire By College Football Analyst
MORE: Cleveland Browns To Trade Quarterback: Dillon Gabriel, Shedeur Sanders, Joe Flacco?
Led by coach Mark Wasikowski, the Ducks were the No. 1 seed in the Big Ten Tournament after winning a share of the conference’s regular season title. Wasikowski was also named the Big Ten Coach of the Year, but the Ducks are looking to add some more hardware to the trophy case.
After the early loss in the Big Ten Tournament, Wasikowski took much of the blame.
“Well obviously I didn’t do a good enough job of getting them reset and ready to go for today,” Coach Wasikowski said May 24. “One team showed up and they were ready to play and one team showed up and didn’t look as ready to play as the other team and that was us. That’s on me.”
The Ducks will need to bounce back after an uncharacteristic loss to the Cornhuskers for a chance to get back to Omaha. Oregon fell behind early on Saturday morning vs. Nebraska and struggled to produce offense against Nebraska’s pitching. Nebraska scored two runs in the first and added an unearned run in the second inning to take a 3-0 lead. Oregon committed a season-high four errors, three coming in the first five innings with two leading to runs.
Here is D1Baseball’s projected field of 64 on May 24.
NIL
Former Georgia QB raises red flags over Carson Beck’s maturity
In the offseason, Miami made one of the biggest moves in college football by securing former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck for a reported $4 million NIL deal. Beck, a Jacksonville native and former four-star recruit, brings a ton of experience to the Hurricanes as they aim to build upon their 10-3 season. Beck’s decision to […]

In the offseason, Miami made one of the biggest moves in college football by securing former Georgia quarterback Carson Beck for a reported $4 million NIL deal. Beck, a Jacksonville native and former four-star recruit, brings a ton of experience to the Hurricanes as they aim to build upon their 10-3 season.
Beck’s decision to transfer to Miami came after a notable tenure at Georgia, where he compiled a 24–3 record as a starter and threw for 7,912 yards and 58 touchdowns over his career. His 2024 season was cut short due to a UCL injury sustained during the SEC Championship game, leading him to reconsider his initial declaration for the NFL Draft and instead opt for another season to help his draft stock. The overall feeling around Beck was that while he had his good moments, there were too many question marks — 12 interceptions last season — for him to go to the NFL.
While Beck is looking to follow the path of No. 1 overall pick, and former one-year Miami transfer QB Cam Ward in 2025, concerns have been raised regarding his maturity and off-field conduct. Former Georgia quarterback Aaron Murray highlighted potential red flags in an interview with On3’s The Hard Count. He cited instances of locker room disconnect and distractions stemming from social media activity and personal relationships. Murray emphasized the importance of focus and leadership from the QB, especially given Beck’s role as a high-profile transfer and the expectations coming from a substantial NIL deal.
Beck was involved in public breakup and also had cars stolen from his home in the spring. Murray’s concerns are valid but as the summer passes, the stories around Beck will become more football-related and the outside noise should fade.
Despite the off-field discussions, Beck has shown promising signs in his recovery from injury. Reports indicate that he has resumed throwing and is actively participating in team activities. Miami appears to be well-positioned for a run at an ACC Championship and a potential College Football Playoff berth.
NIL
College basketball analysts’ take on the ACC is extremely bad news for Virginia Tech
The 2024-25 men’s basketball season was a very rough one for Virginia Tech and veteran coach Mike Young. After a mass exodus in the transfer portal out of Blacksburg last spring, the Hokies went 13-19 and were bounced in the first round of the ACC Tournament by first-year member California. Young vowed that Virginia Tech […]

The 2024-25 men’s basketball season was a very rough one for Virginia Tech and veteran coach Mike Young. After a mass exodus in the transfer portal out of Blacksburg last spring, the Hokies went 13-19 and were bounced in the first round of the ACC Tournament by first-year member California.
Young vowed that Virginia Tech would be better next season as a bigger NIL package is going to help and he has added some key players from the transfer portal and some incoming freshmen. The problem for Young and the Hokies is that the conference is getting better, mainly the teams that were around them in the standings this past season.
The ACC has got a whole lot better since the end of the season
When it comes to the ACC, Duke is always going to be Duke, while North Carolina, Louisville, and Clemson were NCAA Tournament teams this year. Wake Forest has been knocking on the door, but three schools, Virginia, North Carolina State, and Miami were schools which the Hokies went a combined 4-1 against this past season, have got a whole lot better with new coaches.
Like every other school, all three of those programs lost key players to either graduation or the transfer portal, but the new coaches have done over the rosters and that is not good for Virginia Tech. Looking to take a ginat step next season and try and get back into the NCAA Tournament, the road in the ACC alone is getting a lot tougher.
Will Wade at NC State, Ryan Odom at Virginia, and Jai Lucas at Miami have quickly upgraded their rosters since being hired. Look, it’s no secret that the ACC has been a punch line across the country when it comes to men’s basketball and you could make the case that there’s really nowhere to go but up, and now it appears that it is going up and that might not be good news for Young and Virginia Tech.
-
High School Sports2 weeks ago
Web exclusive
-
Sports2 weeks ago
Princeton University
-
Sports2 weeks ago
2025 NCAA softball bracket: Women’s College World Series scores, schedule
-
Motorsports2 weeks ago
Bowman Gray is the site of NASCAR’S “Advance Auto Parts Night at the Races” this Saturday
-
NIL3 weeks ago
Patty Gasso confirms Sophia Bordi will not finish season with Oklahoma softball
-
NIL3 weeks ago
2025 Big Ten Softball Tournament Bracket: Updated matchups, scores, schedule
-
Motorsports3 weeks ago
MOTORSPORTS: Three local track set to open this week | Sports
-
Motorsports3 weeks ago
$1.5 Billion Legal Powerhouse Announces Multi-Year NASCAR Deal With Kyle Busch
-
Sports2 weeks ago
USA Volleyball Announces 2025 Women’s VNL Roster
-
Sports2 weeks ago
A fight to save beach volleyball and Utah athletics’ ‘disheartening’ answer