How do you get somebody’s attention? Well, one way to get a college basketball player’s attention is by taking away their NIL money, like Memphis Tigers head coach Penny Hardaway did with junior forward Aaron Bradshaw.

“Aaron Bradshaw has played for some great coaching staffs, but they haven’t figured out how to motivate him, so Penny Hardaway found a way to motivate Aaron Bradshaw. He started taking his NIL money away,” it was revealed on the broadcast of the Tigers’ Wednesday night loss to the Vanderbilt Commodores. 

“He said, ‘I fined him for showing up late. I fined him for violating our dress code. Three grand here, three grand there. Guess who started to show up early? Guess who started to put the effort in?’ … He [Hardaway] takes that fine money and puts it back in the bucket and has some guys further down the roster reaping the cash benefit of those fines.”

Message received.

Memphis is the third stop for Bradshaw in his collegiate career, with the former five-star recruit spending his freshman season at Kentucky (2023-24) and sophomore season at Ohio State (2024-25). Through nine games this season, six of which he has started, Bradshaw is averaging a career-high 7.1 points and 2.9 rebounds in 15.4 minutes per game, while shooting 50.0% from the field.

Hardaway, who starred at Memphis for two seasons as a player (1991-92, 1992-93), is in his eighth season as the Tigers’ head coach, with Memphis a combined 166-74 under him since the 2018-19 season, highlighted by two American Tournament titles and three NCAA Tournament appearances. However, Memphis is off to a 4-6 start this season, with three of its six losses being against ranked opponents in Purdue, Louisville and Vanderbilt.

Maybe if Hardaway takes away the entire team’s NIL dough, Memphis will run the table in conference play?

MORE COLLEGE HOOPS: Last Night in College Basketball: No. 13 Vanderbilt Passed OT Test vs. Memphis

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Joel Klatt has had it with college football’s latest social media phenomenon.

In the wake of USC quarterback Jayden Maiava’s re-signing announcement, racking up nearly five million impressions on X, Fox’s lead college football analyst didn’t hold back his frustration with what’s become a growing trend across the sport.

Jayden Maiava has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/jLI0S6hPKh

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 16, 2025

“I can’t with the re-signing of players, I’m sorry,” Klatt said.

“I can’t with the re-signing of players, I’m sorry.”@joelklatt shares his thoughts on the issues in college football, specifically surrounding “re-signing” and player representation. Do you agree? pic.twitter.com/lCFw3FfMUW

— FOX College Football (@CFBONFOX) December 17, 2025

USC’s social media account posted Maiava’s re-signing announcement on Dec. 16, followed by a flurry of similar posts for other Trojans players. Tobias Raymond, Chasen Johnson, Romero Ison, Jahkeem Stewart, and Kendarius Reddick all got the graphic treatment announcing they were staying with the program.

Tobias Raymond has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/OYAWhIup4Y

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 17, 2025

Chasen Johnson has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/J56Jb7ZpD9

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 17, 2025

Romero Ison has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/pA11LlvOAx

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 17, 2025

Jahkeem Stewart has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/nr76iwVxRj

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 17, 2025

Kendarius Reddick has re-signed with the USC Trojans. pic.twitter.com/dc88qAVLsu

— USC Football ✌️ (@uscfb) December 17, 2025

But for Klatt, these announcements feel fundamentally different from how free agency works in professional sports.

“I started seeing some of these announcements on social media, guys would text me these announcements, and this is going to sound like I’m picking on guys,” Klatt said. “This is not their fault, but like Malik Washington, Waymond Jordan, LaNorris Sellers, there’s all these stories about like, ‘Oh, they’re re-signing. They’re working on a deal to stay.’ And I’m like, I don’t want to hear that. I don’t want to see it. You mean, wait, was he about to leave?”

Joel Klatt isn’t blaming the players. But in the NFL, fans know when a guy is a free agent and can walk. So when he re-signs, it makes sense. In college, a player is already on the team, already getting NIL money, and then announces he’s re-signing? It just makes fans wonder what they missed.

“This is so different than in the National Football League when your favorite team has a player that you love that you know is a free agent, and then they re-sign him, and you’re like, ‘Nice!’” Klatt contiuned. “That feels a lot different than like I’m a fan of a college team and I just think that this player who’s committed to this school, who’s at this school, who has more eligibility left, and is making a large sum of money through NIL, and then all of a sudden he’s like, ‘I’m re-signing.’ It’s like, ‘I didn’t know you thought about leaving.’”

But Klatt’s real issue isn’t the social media pageantry. It’s what’s happening behind the scenes.

“I don’t think that this is good for players, either, I really don’t. And let me tell you why: these contracts can be binding, and they can be loose, but it all depends on how they’re negotiated because there’s not a formality to the process,” Klatt explained. “So, the schools can kind of do whatever they want to do. They’re making their own rules, and then there’s some representation out there that is representing college players, and they want to play by their own rules.”

The lack of regulation in college athlete representation is a real problem. Unlike NFL players who are represented by NFLPA-certified agents, college athletes can hire essentially anyone to negotiate their NIL deals. There’s no registration requirement, no oversight, no baseline standard.

And according to Klatt, some of these representatives have no idea what they’re doing.

“And some of the representatives, by the way, are not very sophisticated. Guess why? Because they’re not representing a client that’s part of an association or a union, so they don’t have to register,” he added. “So the players can hire whomever. It can be like Uncle Eddie. We don’t know who these representatives are. That’s not to say that all of them are bad, but there are some that certainly don’t know what they’re doing. So, there are players because of that, that are signing contracts that they don’t even really know what they’re signing.”

Despite all his complaints about NIL representation and re-signing announcements, Joel Klatt still believes in college football.

“I remain very optimistic about our sport,” Klatt said. “I really do. I think college football’s in a great spot. I think that it can get better, but that doesn’t mean I’m blind to the problems.”

But his optimism won’t stop the re-signing trend. Schools will keep celebrating players who decide to stay, and fans will keep wondering if they were ever really thinking about leaving. It’s just part of college football now.

The Texas Tech Red Raiders defeated the BYU Cougars 34-7 in the Big 12 Championship Game. It secured them the No. 4 seed and a first-round bye in the College Football Playoff. They’ll play either the No. 12 seed James Madison Dukes or No. 5 seed Oregon Ducks in the Orange Bowl.

While Texas Tech strives for its first national championship in program history, it’s never too early to look into the future. The Red Raiders will face several major changes after the 2025 season, including from quarterback, Behren Morton. He’s using his final year of eligibility, while ESPN’s Matt Miller gives him a fifth-round grade in the 2026 NFL Draft.

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The transfer portal doesn’t officially open until Jan. 2, but On3 reports that over 800 players are already set to enter. With Morton set to leave, Texas Tech could find his replacement in the portal.

In an article, On3’s Pete Nakos, links the Red Raiders to Cincinnati Bearcats transfer quarterback Brendan Sorsby.

“Viewed as one of the most experienced quarterbacks in the transfer portal, Texas Tech is the school to watch early on for Brendan Sorsby,” Nakos wrote. “He’s also expected to evaluate the NFL draft, and Indiana and Tennessee are other schools to know.”

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This season, Sorsby has completed 207 of 336 passes for 2,800 yards, 27 touchdowns, five interceptions and a 155.1 passer rating. He’s also rushed for 580 yards and nine touchdowns on 100 carries.

Sorsby is going to be highly sought after, with Rivals placing him as the third-ranked player in the transfer portal. His On3 NIL valuation of $2.4 million is tied for the 10th-highest in college football.

However, that may not be a problem for Texas Tech, which had the top-ranked transfer portal class in 2025. After bringing in 21 players, the Red Raiders had an adjusted NIL value of $7.6 million.

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As the official transfer portal period approaches, Texas Tech’s quarterback situation will be one to watch. With Morton playing his final year of eligibility, the Red Raiders could already be exploring other options.

The Red Raiders will play in the Orange Bowl at noon ET Jan. 1 on ESPN and the ESPN app.

Related: Texas A&M QB Marcel Reed Shares NIL Update Before College Football Playoff

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports on Dec 18, 2025, where it first appeared in the College Football section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

There’s always plenty of argument about who belongs and doesn’t belong in the College Football Playoff, and that was certainly the case this season, especially given the debates around that final spot coming between Notre Dame and Miami.

But looking over the 2025 bracket, it’s one of the most recognizable SEC programs that is getting the biggest criticism from those in the coaching business.

Asked to name the biggest fraud in this year’s College Football Playoff, it wasn’t one of the Group of Five teams that got the most attention, but none other than Ole Miss, which made the field on the back of a historic season.

Ole Miss, a fraud?

That’s according to one FBS coach, who doesn’t believe the Rebels have a good case.

“They’ve had so many distractions with Lane Kiffin leaving, and Oklahoma is probably their only good win this year,” an unnamed Group of Five head coach said of the Rebels heading into the College Football Playoff, according to The Athletic.

Whoever it was who said it, he apparently wasn’t alone. Far from it.

Taking a vote from more than two dozen anonymous coaches heading into the playoff, the publication found that to be, if not a consensus opinion, then something like it.

Ole Miss won out among the various playoff teams with 29 percent of respondents saying it was the most fraudulent team in the College Football Playoff this season.

A wild year for Ole Miss

Picking on the Rebels for not being playoff-worthy sounds counter-intuitive, given the unprecedentedly good season they’ve had on the field.

For the first time ever, Ole Miss completed an 11-win regular season and qualified for its first College Football Playoff berth.

Then came the drama. The head coach who brought them that success became the biggest name in what emerged as college football’s most hectic coaching carousel.

Lane Kiffin was named as the leading target for two other SEC programs and ultimately departed the Rebels for conference rival LSU after winning the Egg Bowl game.

Coach highlights Rebels’ schedule

The concern around Ole Miss’ perceived quality of schedule doesn’t seem like a concern at first glance.

It played three teams that made the College Football Playoff, beating both Oklahoma and Tulane, and losing a closely-fought matchup on the road against SEC champion Georgia.

Otherwise, the Rebels beat lesser SEC opponents like Kentucky, South Carolina, Florida, and Arkansas.

The win against then-No. 4 LSU doesn’t look as good as it did at the time, given the Tigers’ fall from grace that led to Brian Kelly’s ouster.

There was no universe in which an 11-1 Ole Miss was being left out of the College Football Playoff. Whether it truly belongs will be decided on the field, which can be said for any team in the bracket.

But the Rebels weren’t alone

Not far behind in the fraud poll were two surprising names. Big 12 champion Texas Tech and SEC runner-up Alabama were both decried as playoff frauds with 17 percent of the vote each.

Texas Tech being included is truly puzzling, given the quality of its defense, but those asked expressed concern for the offense, in particular quarterback Behren Morton.

In second place was “no answer,” as 21 percent of those asked didn’t provide any hints as to who they thought were frauds.

Group of Five selection James Madison received 8 percent of the vote as a perceived fraud, while Oregon and Oklahoma each got 4 percent.

Alabama not getting respect

One defensive coordinator from the SEC and a defensive assistant from the Big Ten took issue with the Crimson Tide being included among the dozen playoff teams this year.

“Alabama should have, like, five losses this year. They shouldn’t be there,” the SEC defensive coordinator said.

And the Big Ten coach added: “I’ve watched them. They’re not that good this year. I didn’t see enough from them to get this chance.”

(Athletic)

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There are hundreds of conversations happening behind closed doors of college football programs across the country right now. Between player-contract negotiations, coaching staff turnover and transfer portal decisions, the sport has transformed into the wild west.

Minnesota has already seen 13 of its own players announce their intentions to enter the transfer portal when it officially opens next month. They’ve also had notable players such as Drake Lindsey, Jalen Smith and Maverick Baranowski reveal their plans to return next season.

“I don’t think anything in elementary education taught you how to negotiate contracts in college. Even as you look at the past of you being a head football coach, everything you’ve gained experience on — and then you get into this world of new college athletics — and unless you’re a head coach that backs away and says, ‘Hey, I am just gonna coach football.’ You have to be so in line with your chief of staff, your GM, director of player personnel… You have to talk more than you ever have, and have meetings more than you ever had,” P.J. Fleck said.

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Minnesota has seen notable players like Bucky Irving, Phillip Daniels, and Athan Kaliakmanis enter the transfer portal over the years, but it’s routinely among the best programs in the country at retaining players. For example, past and present Gophers stars Justin Walley, Tyler Nubin, and Darius Taylor have turned down more lucrative offers to stay at Minnesota.

“It’s just a new era of college athletics, and we’ve embraced it. I think Gerrit Chernoff and his staff do an amazing job. Our retention rate, as of right now, is really, really high. Everybody does it on their own time frame. That’s one thing I’ve learned,” Fleck said.

“Everybody has representation. Everybody has their own view of not necessarily what they’re worth, and what they want to be able to get out of that, and what they value, and you respect that.”

Many fans and traditionalists are frustrated by what college sports have become, but it’s the new reality. It’s essentially one-year contracts for every player on your team, and they’re able to re-negotiate every offseason, with no salary cap or clear market. Fleck has historically had boundaries with the amount of information he shares about the inner workings of his Gophers’ program, but he shared a legitimate inside look on Wednesday.

The Gophers are currently in the stage of the offseason where they’re re-recruiting the entire roster. We likely won’t know the details or specifics of the contracts, but it was interesting to hear Fleck peel back the curtain.

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