Happy Gump Day! We’re going to focus on College Football today, despite there being little news out there. Why? Because previews are starting to roll out, as we find ourselves just 95 days from the 2025 season kickoff.

But first, the man who rescued Alabama football and retired as the greatest of all-time, has added more hardware to a trophy case that can fill up a medium-size McMansion in East Mobile at this point.

That’s Emmy award-winning Coach Nick Saban, thank you very much. Imagine being an “emerging talent” in your 70s and bagging an Emmy in your first year? The dude has superhuman work ethic.

We kind of knew this was coming too, because after saving LSU and Alabama football, he also saved the venerable College Gameday broadcast — its rating shot up 25% once Saint Nick grabbed the mic. And though I don’t personally care for McAffee, the interplay of meathead-meets-old-timer has been a ratings bonanza, and is the most unlikely and successful buddy cop show we’ve seen in a while.

And what did the GOAT say about his Emmy nomination? Classic Saban:

“Must have been not a good year for people in the Emmys.”

He also weighed in on playoff expansion: Pandora’s box has been opened, may as well invite a few more to the party.

“Back in the years I was never for expanding the playoff because I thought bowl games were really important to the history and tradition of college football,” Saban said. “Now that we have expanded the playoff, now the bowl games have taken a less significant role. I think expanding the playoff and having as many teams involved as we can —without playing too many games for the players. I think that’s a little bit of a concern — is probably a good thing.”

Now, time for some footbaw.

We begin with genuinely the worst playoff bracket prediction I’ve ever seen:

Please note, for this to happen, Alabama would have to lose to LSU on its home field in the regular season, then lose to LSU in Bryant Denny West. Or Georgia being a mid-seed, and then losing to tissue-soft Oregon. Or that an Illinois team with a catastrophe of a defense will somehow survive the Buckeyes, USC, a trip to Seattle, a trip to Madison, and an Indiana offense in Bloomington that can drop points in a hurry — and do all it to finish third or fourth in the Big 10. Or that the Big 10 will even have four teams for that matter.

We could go on, but the more you look at it, the more impressively terrible it is.

Just a second to toot our own horn here. Roll ‘Bama Roll: The Champagne of ‘Bama Blogs since 2006, has been ranked third among the most influential Tuscaloosa sites, just behind UA Athletics and the Tuscaloosa News. And that’s pretty damned cool. So, thanks for being here with us, guys, and making it your own.

ESPN takes a stab at their Preseason story lines to watch. Of course, Alabama is going to be on there.

3. DeBoer at Alabama, Year 2: …Replacing Nick Saban at Alabama was always going to be a unique conundrum because it’s completely unfair to expect anyone to replace the greatest college football coach of all time. The coach who came after Saban was going to be measured against him. That’s just how this works. While that dynamic is probably unfair, that doesn’t make DeBoer’s task any easier…

I still don’t think most of the CFB media grasp the profound hole KDB found himself in last February. We should recap it though:

• He had to replace the greatest coach of all time
• OSU tampering with the roster before Saban even left, taking Alabama’s most important defender with them
• Lost almost half the class to the initial portal period and a second transfer window after the coaching change
• Did not have the benefit of signing additional help following that second transfer window
• Had to re-recruit the entire roster and get them to buy-in, at least to stay
• Implement two new schemes, and retool much of the program from the ground-up
• Try and establish recruiting ties 2500 miles away from KDB’s head coaching experience at Fresno and Washington
• Bring in almost an entirely new staff
• Hired an offensive coordinator who accepted the job, backed out late, and then left ‘Bama scrambling for a replacement
• Inherited a team rife with prima donna who too often prioritized self over team, and had been allowed to create a culture of entitlement
• Inherited two mediocre lines, and a running back corps that has sadly proven to be JAGs
• Incorporating freshmen and transfers all over the roster.
• And, when all that was done, the games had to be played, and the Tide had the second-toughest schedule in the SEC and the 7th hardest overall.

Despite that, Alabama was 8-2 in late November, and tracking for a bid in the playoffs. I still maintain that it’s not that ‘Bama finished 9-4 that bothered people, it’s to whom and how those losses occurred: two games especially. If Alabama beats Vandy or Alabama finishes on a high note against a depleted Michigan team, there’s not nearly the pressure on DeBoer this season. He had to have one of those, preferably both. Still, 9-4 with ‘Bama’s back against the wall, and all of the structural woes he inherited, was a good job under the circumstances. And this is functionally Year One in my books.

College Football News is a site I don’t hit up much in the season. But during the offseason, Fuitak does a great job meticulously previewing every college football team in D1, as well as the FCS.

We’ll look at two today: Vanderbilt and Auburn.

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For a program with just 54 winning seasons in 121 years, 2024 was magical. Vanderbilt went to a bowl game and won it.

The season opened up with a win over Virginia Tech from the ACC, and ended it with a win over the ACC’s Georgia Tech. It beat Alabama for the first time since 1984. It had its first winning season since 2013. It was super-fun thanks to the wonderful Diego Pavia taking over at quarterback. All of that is what Commodore fans will remember.

We’re grading on a curve here. Going 6-6 in the regular season gets SEC coaches fired, but for Vanderbilt, it wasn’t just about the record. It pushed Texas hard in a 27-24 loss, and it showed up big in tough road defeats to Missouri and LSU.

No, Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea will never accept any sort of a moral victory, and Pavia sure as shoot won’t, but for all the positives last year, there was a loss to a 3-9 Georgia State, and Alabama was the only regular season victory over a team that finished with a winning record.

This year’s version is loaded with experience, it’s better than the 2024 team, and it might just find enough magic again to keep it all going.

Even if that means another 6-6 regular season.

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Let’s start with this. Auburn will have a winning season, and it’ll go to a bowl game, and things will finally trend upwards again. While that might seem like a low bar, after four years without a winning season and no more than six wins since going 9-4 in 2019, being back to potentially normal matters.

Going to Baylor to start the season isn’t a layup, but Ball State, South Alabama, and Mercer will be a base of three wins. It won’t be easy, but Auburn has to beat Kentucky, win at Vanderbilt, and then come up with an upset somewhere.

LOL

Anyway, hit up CFN if you need your college football fix. Best offseason site for previews, IMO.

ESPN was not alone in starting to make predictions for the 2025 campaign: 247 National got in on the prognostications:

Kalen DeBoer would not be able to remove the stench of a season-opening loss to Florida State upon his return to Tuscaloosa if the Crimson Tide fail. Considering last year’s disappointing finish, Alabama is a marked program. Most are anticipate a rebound. Mike Norvell has another portal-infused roster with the Seminoles and after the faceplant in 2024, would love to get off on the right foot against a national brand. However, this is arguably Florida State’s second-toughest game of the year outside of a road trip to Clemson in November.

CBS Sports also has begun their Hawt Takes, and unsurprisingly SEC Hater Emeritus Danny Kannell thinks the SEC is mid.

Danny Kanell: The SEC champion will have a 9-3 regular season record

The SEC continues to increase its overall talent with nearly every transfer portal window, as even the best recruiting programs out of high school have been shopping for additions at positions of need. And while that has boosted the overall talent level of the conference it has also increased the parity and lessened the chances of seeing one team dominate the conference the way that Nick Saban’s Alabama program did throughout a good portion of the 2010s. Danny is doubting the strength of the conference with this prediction as much as the potential for more chaos, as the top teams have quarterback questions and the ability to separate from the pack has become more difficult in the modern era.

I genuinely don’t understand how Panhandle Uncle Rico keeps getting jobs. Schedules as much as talent determine the conference standings. He might not know that, cutting his teeth in the poverty ACC. But Georgia has a much easier path ahead of them this year, and Texas is once again pampered. If the SEC winner has more than two regular season losses, I will crawl to Tallahassee and smooch his fetid chocolate starfish in contrition.

I think I can keep my Chapstick in my pocket though; neither of those are going to happen.

How mad is OSU at having to play the Fox Big Noon game vs. Texas? The (ahem) esteemed lawmakers of the Buckeye State apparently have decided it’s their job to prevent noon kickoffs for all state schools.

No, that’s not a joke.

A bill has been introduced in the legislature to prohibit Ohio State and other state schools from playing most of its home games before 3:30 p.m. Under the terms of the proposal by Rep. Tex Fischer (R), games including at least one state school and games including top-10 teams would be prohibited from starting earlier than the mid-afternoon. With one exception.

“Division (B) of this section does not apply if an earlier start time of a college football game between two teams is a college football tradition,” the bill states. “For this purpose, a ‘college football tradition’ is a start time of a game between the teams of two institutions whose football teams have competed against each other at least fifty times and the start time has been the same for at least ninety-five per cent of those games.”

We have the democracy we deserve — we voted for every single one of these buffoons speedrunning their way to Idiocracy.

I would, however, like to direct the esteemed Assemblymen of Ohio to something called the United States Constitution, specifically Section 1, Article 10, Clause 3 (known as the the Contract Clause.) You sit in in law school, hungover and half-assing your way through the “lesser” provisions, and wait your whole life to see a Contract Clause case in the wild. Then — BAM! — Ohio serves one up for you. G’bless, gentlemen.

(No, we’re not talking about NIL today or the NCAA. It’s an important story, but I refuse to deal with this any more…or at least on this Gump Day).

The other day I made a comment similar to one Saban made regarding Ty Simpson: It’s both a rare trait, but a welcome one, to see perserverance in players now. Some guys have to season in the broth a bit longer. Mac Jones was one such player, so was Mal Moore. Nick Saban sees the same in semi-incumbent QB Ty Simpson:

“Ty was an outstanding high school player, no doubt. He’s a fine young man,” Saban said. “I think his example is a true example of development. He matured for two years, and now he’s getting an opportunity, and his experiences will help him be successful.”

Simpson was a 5-star quarterback and top-25 prospect in the 2022 recruiting class as a high school recruit. He redshirted his true freshman season behind starting quarterback Bryce Young and served as the primary backup during Saban’s final season in 2023 behind Jalen Milroe.

Despite losing the job to Milroe in 2023, Simpson didn’t enter the transfer portal and stuck around as the backup again in 2024. He’s now entering his fourth year in the Crimson Tide program, is the most experienced quarterback in the room, and seems to be in line to take over the starting job this coming fall.

And, finally, I leave you with a moment of levity.

He cracked the code.

Have a great one, Roll Tide.

Privacy Manager

In Zakai Zeigler’s lawsuit against the NCAA, the former Tennessee Basketball star seeks the same five years of eligibility and the same NIL opportunities that other student-athletes have been and are taking advantage of.

“He seeks to compete in the fifth year of his five-year eligibility window while pursuing a graduate degree,” the complaint stated. “But he finds himself arbitrarily barred from doing so by an NCAA rule that limits athletes to participating in only four seasons of intercollegiate competition within the five-year window”. 

Zeigler is being represented by Litson PLLC and Garza Law Firm. The complaint was filed Tuesday in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee, requesting a preliminary injunction to allow Zeigler to compete next season while pursuing graduate studies.

The suit also argues that being unable to play a fifth season also denies Zeigler the chance to “compete or earn NIL compensation during his fifth year — the most lucrative year of the eligibility window for the vast majority of athletes.”

Zeigler’s lawyers projected a fifth season to be worth between $2 million and $4 million based on analysis from Spyre Sports Group, the NIL collective the University of Tennessee works with.

“This valuation reflects the market value of an upperclassman with a proven performance record and high visibility,” the complaint stated, “especially in a high-profile conference like the SEC.”

Zakai Zeigler lawsuit argues against redshirt system in college athletics

Zeigler, who was not invited to the NBA Draft Combine or the NBA’s G League Elite Camp earlier this month, starred at Tennessee over the last four seasons, quickly becoming the face of the program. He averaged 11.3 points, 5.4 assists, 2.6 rebounds and 1.8 steals in 29.3 minutes per game over 118 career games at Tennessee.

The complaint points out that Zeigler would be eligible for a fifth season had he sat out during a redshirt season earlier in his Tennessee career. But redshirt decisions are made by coaches, not players:

“Through the redshirt system, NCAA institutions — not athletes — largely control who gets access to the fifth year of eligibility, strategically ‘banking’ eligibility for some athletes while denying it to others, without consideration, based purely on institutional preference and benefit. But, because Zeigler participated in athletics for four consecutive years, the NCAA bars him from representing his school in interscholastic competition in the fifth year of the competition window—and thereby excludes him from the market for NIL compensation.

“All NCAA athletes should be eligible to compete and earn NIL compensation during each year of the five-year window—not just those selected to redshirt. By prohibiting fifth-year competition for most athletes, including Zeigler, the NCAA eliminates the most experienced, productive, and highest-paid group of players from the labor pool, creating a substantial anticompetitive effect that furthers no academic purpose. And as a result, the market output—the product viewed by consumers—is harmed.”

Zakai Zeigler’s senior season: 13.6 points, 7.4 assists, 2.9 rebounds, 1.9 steals per game

Zeigler had a career year last season, averaging 13.6 points, 7.4 assists, 2.9 rebounds and 1.9 steals in 34.2 minutes per game while leading Tennessee to a second straight trip to the Elite Eight. 

During the season he became Tennessee’s all-time assists leader (747), single-season assists leader (257), the SEC’s single-season assists record holder and the first player in SEC history with 1,550 points, 700 assists, 350 rebounds and 250 steals. 

Zeigler’s class is the first after the COVID pandemic to not automatically get a fifth year of eligibility. Student-athletes affected by the pandemic — players that began their careers as far back as 2016 — were given fifth years. 

“To be clear,” the complaint read, “Zeigler does not challenge the overall five-year window, but rather the arbitrary four-year competition limitation within it. Indeed, permitting NCAA athletes like Zeigler to compete while pursuing graduate degrees in their fifth year of eligibility would further the NCAA’s purported academic mission far more effectively than other widely accepted NCAA practices like redshirting.

“Zeigler files this lawsuit to seek relief so that the NCAA be enjoined from enforcing the Four-Seasons Rule against him and permitting him to compete during the 2025-2026 basketball season while pursuing a graduate degree.”

After a dominant 6-1 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 7 of the second round, the Florida Panthers’ offense kept rolling into the Eastern Conference Finals.

Florida crushed the Carolina Hurricanes 5-2 in Game 1 on Tuesday, handing the Canes their first loss on home ice so far this postseason.

The Panthers took an early 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Carter Verhaeghe and Aaron Ekblad, but Sebastian Aho gave Carolina a first-period goal to keep things from getting too out of hand.

From there, it was all Florida.

A.J. Greer made it 3-1 early in the second period, and Sam Bennett and Eetu Luostarinen each added a goal in the third period, leaving the Hurricanes with a four-goal deficit and little time to mount a comeback.

Carolina added a power play goal in the final minutes, but it was too little, too late.

After the win, fans praised the Panthers for setting the tone with a dominant Game 1.

The Hurricanes are looking to avoid a repeat of the 2023 conference finals when they lost to the Panthers in just four games, but the first game of the series suggests Florida is going to have its way against Carolina.

The series is far from over, but the Canes need to make some major adjustments before Game 2.

ARLINGTON, Texas – The West Virginia University baseball team opens the 2025 Phillips 66 Big 12 Championship on Thursday against Cincinnati. First pitch from Globe Life Field is set for 1:30 p.m. ET.

Mountaineer fans can watch the games on ESPN+, listen on Mountaineer Sports Network, and can follow along with live stats at WVUsports.com.

 

As the Big 12 regular-season champions, the Mountaineers earned the top seed in this year’s field while the Bearcats are the No. 8 seed and are coming off an opening round 6-5 win over No. 9 Cincinnati on Wednesday.

 

The Mountaineers enter championship play with a 40-13 overall record and finished with a 19-9 Big 12 play. The Bearcats are 32-23 overall and were 16-14 in conference play.
 
Junior catcher Logan Sauve and redshirt senior Griffin Kirn were both named to the All-Big 12 First Team while senior outfielder Kyle West and graduate pitcher Jack Kartsonas earned spots on the second team. Gavin Kelly was named to the All-Freshman team while four others – senior Jace Rinehart, junior Sam White, sophomore Chase Meyer, and senior Reese Bassinger – earned honorable mention status.
 
West and White both lead the Mountaineers with a .352 batting average with West leading the way with nine home runs. Rinehart is tops on the team with 50 RBI and leads the Big 12 with 20 doubles.
 
West Virginia is looking for its first Big 12 Tournament championship and sixth overall tournament title.
 
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
 

North Carolina is making major changes to ensure that new coach Bill Belichick succeeds in his role with the football program — according to his predecessor, Mack Brown, at least. 

Brown said during a recent interview on SiriusXM Sports Radio that North Carolina has overhauled its approach to name, image and likeness (NIL) deals and its rigorous academic standards to aid Belichick in his transition. 

“As far as North Carolina and Bill Belichick, he’s arguably the best coach ever,” Brown said. “They’ve committed money to it, they’ve helped him with academics, they’ve lowered those standards some. So there’s absolutely no reason they shouldn’t be successful.”   

Brown claims that he did not have the same resources. His second stint with the Tar Heels began in 2019 on the cusp of the NCAA’s sweeping NIL and transfer portal reforms. He went 15-10, with consecutive bowl appearances, in 2019 and 2020. 

But in 2021, the first season after the NCAA allowed athletes to profit off of their NIL, Brown’s Tar Heels fell to 6-7. 

“We always built programs on fit, and in our last couple years there, we were having to get parents with money,” Brown said. “We were trying to get kids over a 3.0 (GPA) because that’s who we could get. We signed 26 players at North Carolina our next-to-last year — high school players — and didn’t pay them a penny. I felt guilty.” 

In spite of North Carolina’s financial woes, the Tar Heels rebounded with a nine-win season and an appearance in the ACC Championship Game — the high watermark of Brown’s second tenure — and produced a respectable eight wins in 2023. 

Through it all, the Tar Heels still struggled to pay their top stars. Brown said that running back Omarion Hampton, a two-time CBS Sports All-American and a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, turned down offers over $1 million to transfer and stayed with UNC through 2024 for $300,000. 

“I told him he should leave because it was just crazy as you were looking at those things.” Brown said.    

North Carolina gradually lost ground in the ACC, and in 2024 fell back to 6-6 with a paltry 3-5 showing in conference play. As a result, North Carolina decided to move on from Brown. 

“It was time for me — North Carolina didn’t have NIL money,” Brown said. “I said we’re kind of a slow bleed. We weren’t able to recruit the top kids like we were when we first got there. So it was time for them and it was time for me, so it was kind of like a divorce. Everybody was ready.” 

North Carolina’s administration replaced the 73-year-old Brown with 73-year-old Belichick, who comes to Chapel Hill with eight Super Bowl rings as an assistant and head coach at the NFL level. Though this is Belichick’s first go around as an on-field collegiate coach, it hasn’t taken him long to adjust to recruiting. 

He quickly went about overhauling North Carolina’s roster in his image with a robust 40-transfer signing class during the 2025 cycle. The Tar Heels also inked 29 high school prospects that will be freshmen this season. 

“You’ve got a chance to succeed at the highest level and I expect them to do that and I’m proud for them.” Brown said.