I for sure have been concerned about all the players abandoning the ship, but what if they were talked to about not doing their jobs. What if they were given the option of either putting in the work or finding a new home. Could we have been wrong in some cases thinking the player was looking for more $ rather than putting the work in. Some players, as you know, don’t live up to their billing. OSU is one of the premier colleges for education and sports. I think when the players were recruited out of HS, they jumped at the chance to be a Buckeye. Now, the players see how difficult it is to live up to the expectations that is required to be a Buckeye. This is just a different take on what we have witnessed so far with the transfer portal. I what to find out how 11W members feel about this.

OK, time’s up. After 30 or so years, it’s time to end the Idiots’ Picnic, time to go home, time to remove the rehearsed-then-parroted nonsense from sports telecasts. 

First one that must go is transfer portal. That’s a crock. Those are, in fact, mostly NIL price-tagged signings of college athletes without academic credentials. They are free agents, too many without the ability to read or write functional English. 

In 2012, Ohio State QB Cardale Jones presaged the NIL scene when he tweeted, “Why should we have to go to class if we came here to play FOOTBALL, we ain’t come to play SCHOOL, classes are POINTLESS.” 

That sad, shameful and nationally ridiculed message is now the daily reality! 

And then there were two. The 2026 college football season has led to this: No. 1 Indiana and No. 10 Miami will meet in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game to decide the best team in the country. 

In most years, the Hurricanes would be seen as an overwhelming favorite against Indiana. But Miami has gone on an underdog run of its own after making the playoff as the last at-large team. 

Indiana, meanwhile, has bowled over opposing teams en route to a 15-0 record. The Hoosiers are 2025’s hegemon and it appears as if they aren’t going away anytime soon. 

They handled their semifinal game against Oregon with ease, downing the Ducks 56-22. Miami, meanwhile, triumphed over Ole Miss in a 31-27 thriller that ranks as one of the best postseason games of the CFP era. 

Those semifinal games, of course, provided plenty of material to overreact to as the 2025 season nears its conclusion. 

Indiana is the best team of the CFP era 

Yes, better than 2019 LSU. The Hoosiers may not have as much elite NFL talent — though quarterback Fernando Mendoza is a shoe-in to go first overall in the 2026 draft — and the offense isn’t quite as explosive, but they are a more complete team. 

Indiana’s +473 point differential ranks first among schools in the playoff era (hat tip to my CBS Sports colleague Tom Fornelli). The Hoosiers have bludgeoned opposing teams by an average of 31.5 points per contest. Their last three wins against blue bloods Ohio State and Alabama and new blood Oregon have come by a combined score of 107-35. 

Curt Cignetti’s squad has won all but one of its games against ranked opponents by at least 10 points. And Indiana is doing this in the Big Ten, one of the nation’s premier conferences.  

The Hoosiers are also on the precipice of becoming the first college football program to ever go 16-0. Of course, they have the benefit of playing in the expanded playoff years, but an undefeated season in the modern era of college football, when parity is at an all-time high thanks to NIL, seems like an accomplishment that won’t be easily repeated. 

After all, only four NFL teams have ever completed undefeated seasons and it only happened once after the league went to a 16-game schedule. 

Indiana vs. Miami: Early preview, odds, picks as Hoosiers will meet Hurricanes in CFP National Championship

Chip Patterson

Miami’s discipline issues will doom it against Indiana

Miami was, somehow, able to overcome itself in the Fiesta Bowl against Ole Miss. The Hurricanes committed 10 penalties for a total of 74 yards, including a targeting foul that resulted in the ejection of cornerback Xavier Lucas. They dropped four potential interceptions. 

Those fouls allowed Ole Miss to hang around and even take the lead at certain points. Ultimately, the Rebels made a few crucial mistakes of their own — and were pitiful on third down — which allowed the Hurricanes to outlast Ole Miss. 

That won’t do against the well-oiled Indiana machine. The Hoosiers rank third nationally with just 3.57 penalties per game. They’re smart, they’re disciplined and — as was seen with D’Angelo Ponds’ pick six to open Indiana’s semifinal win over Oregon — they will pounce all over any mistakes the opponent makes. 

Ultimately, discipline will make the difference in a battle between two teams that stack up fairly well otherwise. 

Oregon is in trouble 

You’ve certainly heard of a clutch gene if you’re a fan of sports. Oregon coach Dan Lanning has the opposite. 

In their last three playoff games against Power Four opponents, the Ducks have been outscored 97-66. That includes a 23-0 romp against Big 12 champion Texas Tech this season. 

Talent isn’t the issue with Oregon. The Phil Knight money certainly helps, but the Ducks have always recruited at a high clip. Coach Dan Lanning has done a good job at the high school level and in the portal. 

But there’s plenty of reason to be concerned about the path that Oregon is walking with Lanning, especially given the recent postseason results. This will be a big offseason for him. 

The Ducks are set to lose both of their bright young coordinators. Will Stein is headed to coach Kentucky while Tosh Lupoi will lead former Pac-12 foe California. 

It is a good sign for a program’s health when assistants get head coaching jobs, and it’s a testament to what Lanning has built at the young age of 39. The next few months will be a huge test of his ability to keep the ship steady. 

Ole Miss is bigger than Lane Kiffin

It was time to stop talking about Kiffin’s move to LSU once the playoff began, but the two will always be intrinsically linked given the time that Kiffin had in Oxford and the messy nature in which he departed. While Kiffin deserves his flowers for elevating the standard at Ole Miss, it’s clear that the Rebels have outgrown the need for him. 

His departure didn’t do the program any favors or anything like that. Pete Golding has shown, in short order, that he can at least maintain the level of success that Kiffin established — if not exceed it. Golding, after all, has more playoff wins than Kiffin at this point, and he’s only been a head coach for three games. 

Kiffin was certainly hoping that he’d be able to drag some of Ole Miss’ top stars with him, but his decision instead galvanized the Rebels. Top running back Kewan Lacy, top linebacker Suntarine Perkins and edge rusher Princewill Umanmielen, along with a bevy of other key players, have already committed to returning. 

On top of that, Ole Miss is off to an incredible start in the transfer portal. The Rebels currently sit seventh in 247Sports’ Team Transfer Rankings. They’re one of just two schools in the top 10 with less than 10 commits thus far and their average prospect grade of 89.22 is first among top-15 transfer classes. 

Four of Ole Miss’ nine transfer additions hold at least a four-star ranking. That includes LSU transfer Carius Curne, the No. 1 offensive tackle in the transfer portal, who spurned Kiffin for the Rebels. 

The National Championship Game is set! Andy Staples, Ross Dellenger and Steven Godfrey look ahead to the final matchup of the season by reacting to both semifinal matchups. They first talk about Indiana’s dominating performance over Oregon. Will the Hoosiers’ execution and talent win them a national title? How does Indiana stack up with the historically dominant national champions of the past? Then, they discuss the much more exciting semifinal matchup that saw Miami come out on top. How can Miami upset Indiana? What kind of advantage will playing in their home stadium create for the Hurricanes? Plus, will Oregon ever win a national championship?

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Then, the guys look at some things happening off of the field in the college football world. After their loss to Miami, Ole Miss found out that Trinidad Chambliss’ request for another year of eligibility has been denied by the NCAA. However, this is not the end of the story as Chambliss will now sue the NCAA for damages spawning from the money he would make in NIL with that additional season. The guys discuss if Chambliss’ has a chance in this case, or if there is another motive behind the lawsuit.

Finally, the guys look at the madness of the transfer portal. First, they discuss the Demond Williams drama. After trying to enter the transfer portal, and Washington refusing to enter his name due his signed contract, Williams has now returned to the Huskies. Andy, Ross and Godfrey discuss what all happened in Seattle. Then, they look at the College Sports Commission’s investigation into how schools are writing NIL contracts. How will these contracts continue to evolve over time?

Get ready for the Natty with College Football Enquirer.

0:00:00 – Indiana dominates Oregon

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14:37 – Miami advances over Ole Miss

24:51 – Will Oregon ever win a Natty?

29:46 – Trinidad Chambliss’ fight for a 6th year

40:49 – Demond Williams drama

52:12 – College Sports Commission investigation

Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at yahoosports.tv

Missouri finished the 2025 campaign as an interesting mix of promise and turnover under sixth-year head coach Eli Drinkwitz.

The Tigers posted an 8–4 regular-season record, going 4–4 in SEC play, and leaned heavily on a dominant run game led by sophomore running back Ahmad Hardy, who finished with 1,649 rushing yards (second most in college football) and 16 touchdowns on 256 carries (6.4 yards per carry).

However, the quarterback position quickly became a central offseason storyline when starter Beau Pribula re-entered the transfer portal.

On3’s Pete Nakos has tracked Pribula’s early January visit cycle, which included stops at Virginia Tech and Georgia Tech, followed by a visit to Washington as the Huskies navigated uncertainty surrounding Demond Williams.

On Friday, Nakos also reported that Pribula is expected to visit Tennessee, adding another SEC program to his growing list of suitors.

Pribula began his college career at Penn State, where he redshirted and served as a backup from 2022–24 before transferring to Missouri for the 2025 season.

In 2025, he completed 182 of 270 passes (67.4%) for 1,941 yards, 11 passing touchdowns, and nine interceptions across 10 games, while adding 297 rushing yards and six rushing scores on 95 carries, making him one of the more intriguing dual-threat quarterbacks available with both Big Ten and SEC experience.

That experience, paired with his production, has also made Pribula one of the more marketable players in the portal, with an NIL valuation reported in the neighborhood of $1.8 million as he navigates a crowded quarterback market this offseason.

A Central York (PA) product, Pribula was a three-star high school prospect and the No. 27 quarterback in the 2022 class per 247Sports, signing with Penn State over more than a dozen offers, including Nebraska, Northwestern, Rutgers, and Syracuse.

All four programs Pribula has been linked to make sense for different reasons.

Virginia Tech stands out as a logical reunion target, as James Franklin’s staff has been actively pursuing quarterbacks and has prior Penn State ties to Pribula, while Georgia Tech is looking to replace the expiring Haynes King era after losing depth when backup Aaron Philo transferred to Florida.

Washington, meanwhile, has hosted multiple quarterback visitors amid uncertainty surrounding Williams, as the Huskies look to stabilize the position within a program that offers Power-4 exposure and strong NIL opportunities.

At Tennessee, Josh Heupel’s offense has historically prioritized mobile playmakers, and ongoing quarterback turnover makes a veteran option like Pribula appealing, particularly with senior starter Joey Aguilar expected to move on.

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