Daily Notes and Thoughts on College Football Every Day in 2026

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February 15th:

  • Looks like Sacramento State will be joining the MAC this season as the presidents of that conference have voted to allow the move. Of course the money that the schools is paying ($18 million) helps.

  • The Hornets become another team that has no historical past with any of their new conference opponents. Since they were an independent team up until this point, they will have to figure out what to do with their eight opponents currently on the schedule.

  • While waiting for a ruling on Trinidad Chambliss, I forgot about Joey Aguilar’s request for an additional year of eligibility. His request, like Trinidad’s, is going through the state court and not federal, so we can probably expect a verdict that will allow Aguilar to play another year for the Volunteers.

  • I’m about halfway through the Pac-12’s schedule for next year. Quite a few solid non-conference games have been added to my list of games to follow: Boise State vs. Memphis, Boise State vs. Western Michigan, San Diego State vs. James Madison and San Diego State vs. Toledo. And it was good to see that Fresno State and San Jose State will continue their rivalry with a game this year and in future years.

  • Texas State will be playing six teams for the first time this fall. The only Pac-12 team that the Bobcats have played previously - Utah State back in 2012, a game they lost 38-7. Their first Pac-12 game will be on the road against San Diego State on Oct. 3rd.

  • At least the Bobcats will be playing four non-conference games in their home state of Texas. Those games: Texas (9/5), UTSA (9/12), North Texas (9/19) and UIW (9/26).

February 14th:

  • Seems like critics are sparing no one in the Trinidad Chambliss story - the NCAA, Chambliss, and even the judge (an Ole Miss grad)

  • Read last night that Sacramento State might be joining the MAC. The money that the schools would get from the Hornets would be nice, but I don’t like the alignment. Maybe Northern Illinois could return to the MAC and then have Sacramento State join the Mountain West.

  • Over the last couple of years I have made comments and/or references about TJ Finley and his seven schools in the last seven years, and this morning I read a story about him on The Athletic website. Nice to hear his story and understand things from his perspective.

  • The season begins for Colorado State on Sept. 5 when the Rams host Wyoming and they play for the Bronze Boot. It will be the earliest Border War Game played in its 127-year history - and for only the 7th year since 1905 will the teams not be in the same conference!

  • When Boise State opens their season on the road against Oregon on Sept 5th it will be the fifth game against the Ducks in program history, with the Broncos boasting a 3-1 all-time mark.

February 13th:

  • Trinidad Chambliss might just be putting on an Ole Miss uniform this fall - according to a judge in Mississippi. Going through his story, I don’t see any reason that he shouldn’t be able to play - so I’m happy for him and the school.

  • Unfortunately Mississippi State and Texas Tech canceled their home-and-home series because I was looking forward to the Leach Bowl. As tough as it is to see these games ended before they start, I still prefer the 9-game conference schedules!

  • This cancellation must have been for flexibility because the two teams will need to schedule Power 4 opponents. Texas Tech can always look to their former SWC rivals for games, while Mississippi State’s most played non-conference opponents are Group of Six teams - Tulane, Memphis, Louisiana Tech and Southern Miss. Maybe the Bulldogs will schedule Georgia Tech or NC State or Houston…

  • I can’t believe that Malachi Toney was only 17 when he put up these numbers last year for Miami (FL): 109 catches, 1,211 receiving yards and 10 TDs. What will he do when he turns 18?

  • Jimmy Donaldson (MrBeast), an East Carolina dropout, has discussed the possibility of donating $100 million to the school in hopes of making the Pirates a national championship winner. Maybe I need to become an influencer…

February 12th:

  • It has been a very rough year when it comes to Maryland basketball, so I am going to enjoy the Terps win over Iowa for a while today. They have now won back-to-back games for the first time since November! Ugh.

  • Working through the Pioneer League so that I can get to the newly released Pac-12 schedules which came out last night. In my morning stupor (2:30am), I couldn’t figure out why the league was playing only seven conference games with a flex week at the end of the season - then I remembered that they have only eight teams this year.

  • I do like their 9/5 schedule! Two big non-conference rivalries (Washington State at Washington and Wyoming at Colorado State) and three other games that include Oregon (Boise State), USC (Fresno State) and Texas (Texas State).

  • I’m trying hard to be positive about this new Pac-12!

  • Good for SMU that they get to play their big non-conference games (Oklahoma - 2027 and LSU - 2029) at AT&T Stadium. With their campus stadium having a capacity of just over 33k, this is a great opportunity for the Mustangs to get some national coverage.

  • I like that North Dakota State is petitioning for immediate CFB playoff and bowl access! If they are good enough to get in the playoff discussion (bowl eligibility should be easy!) - then let them have at it!

February 11th:

  • First thing this morning, I updated the coaching changes for FCS, Division II and Division III. Will have to create the FBS list sometime soon…

  • Should be doing more with Head Coaches since I am almost done going through all the teams that have posted their 2026 schedules. Unless a Group of Six conference publishes their schedule, I should start work this weekend on updating my Coaching Info spreadsheet (their all-time records).

  • I also updated the FBS Conferences: 2026 Alignment blog/list on a break from work. Hadn’t done it since 2024, so it’s good to get it refreshed. Now I need to do the FCS - and create a blog/list for Divisions II and III.

  • The Bison’s MVFC schedule that I had filled in on my Games to Follow spreadsheet has now been chopped. My admit that I cringed when I replaced a date with “not scheduled” when it came to games with North Dakota and South Dakota State.

  • Forgot to mention yesterday that I pulled together and then posted a 2026 FCS Composite Preseason Top 25 list. Currently it is from two sources (very good sources!), and I will continue to update it as more publications and websites come out with their predictions. I love seeing Rhode Island(!) near the top!

  • One last thing today - I have started organizing my Games to Follow spreadsheet by breaking it up by conference (and non-conference) on a word document. Hoping it helps me in sharing notes and thoughts about games that will be fun to watch and read about this fall…

February 10th:

  • Starting off this morning talking about Kansas basketball. Last night the Jayhawks knocked off Arizona for their 3rd win over a ranked team in the last four games. It was the eighth straight win for Kansas in losing to West Virginia in Morgantown a month ago. Next up: #5th ranked Iowa State in Ames.

  • Bobby Hauck’s retirement ended as he was hired by Illinois to be their defensive coordinator. Maybe he will enjoy this role a bit more than being a head coach.

  • I was going through the MVFC schedule coming up with a list of games to follow, but the North Dakota State announcement I will have to put that on hold until the conference figures out its schedule. Previously the teams played eight out of the nine other members - so it seems to make sense that everyone gets to play everyone with just some quick adjustments.

  • Sad to see Haynes King leave Georgia Tech - but he’s not the only one moving on as the Yellow Jackets will need to replace 16 starters. I like the addition of Justice Haynes from Michigan, but I fear that GT will fall in the standings in 2026.

  • I didn’t realize that Ohio quarterback Parker Navarro, who was the best qb left in the transfer portal, was seeking a 7th season of eligibility. Unfortunately his waiver was denied a few days ago, so he will look to turn pro.

  • Of the 48 FCS National Championships, 29 have been won by programs that have now moved up to the FBS - led by North Dakota State (10), Georgia Southern (6) and Appalachian State (3).

  • How long will it be before we see a non-conference rivalry between Boise State and North Dakota State?

  • Last year, USC got off to a tremendous start with their 2026 recruiting class. So far his year, the Trojans have only one commitment. Meanwhile, the top teams for the 2027 recruiting cycle thus far: Oklahoma, Texas A&M and Ohio State.

February 9th:

  • It became official yesterday afternoon - North Dakota State is moving up to the FBS by becoming a member of the new Mountain West. Unfortunately the Bison will not be eligible for the conference championship game or postseason play, including the College Football Playoff or bowl games, until 2028 while undergoing the two-year transition.

  • Feeling very torn about this move. The program is certainly ready for this level and they will succeed and I really like how it will open up the FCS - much like it was this year in the playoff. On the downside, the Bison leave behind three historic series with North Dakota, South Dakota State and South Dakota. Looking at NDSU’s series history page(s), they have had very few matchups with Mountain West teams.

  • What would have made this announcement better - if South Dakota State had moved up with the Bison!

  • A bit ago South Carolina canceled their future home-and-home series with Virginia Tech. Today it was reported that the Gamecocks were canceling their future series with NC State. I could live with the first cancellation, but the second one really stinks because of their past history.

  • Someone commented on FBSchedules that the ACC stands for American Continent Conference. Gave me a good chuckle…

February 8th:

  • After some great matchups this weekend between St. John’s and UConn, Villanova and Georgetown, and lastly Duke and UNC - my thought today is sit back and enjoy college basketball for the next two months!

  • Now for a couple of SEC football notes:

  • Alabama will meet with LSU for the 64th consecutive season when the Tide travels to Baton Rouge where UA is 30-10-2 in 42 previous matchups. The Tide has won six of the last seven games on the Bayou, including two shutouts and three victories by three-plus scores.

  • Arkansas’ trip to Vanderbilt will be the first for the Razorbacks since 2011 and mark just the 11th meeting all time between the two programs. Despite joining the SEC in 1992, the Hogs and the Commodores have played just seven times since that time, with only three coming in Nashville.

  • When Georgia and Oklahoma meet on Sept. 26th, it will only be the second meeting between the two teams. The first matchup: The Bulldogs knocked the Sooners out of the College Football Playoff at The Rose Bowl with a 54-48 overtime victory during the 2017 season.

  • Lane Kiffin and the LSU Tigers will hit the road to Oxford in Week 3 of the 2026 season in what will be the former Ole Miss Rebels head coach's first return to Vaught-Hemingway Stadium since Kiffin departed Oxford to accept the Tigers head coach position.

  • Oklahoma will travel to Dallas to meet Texas on Oct. 10 at the State Fair of Texas. OU, which will be the designated home team in the matchup, has won 11 of its last 17 meetings against the Longhorns and is 30-23-3 in the series since 1970.

February 7th:

  • I got a quick realization this morning that working on my site for the next two weeks, or even through March will be tough with the Winter Olympics starting in full today, followed by the High School Basketball Tournaments, and on top of that, key NCAA Basketball games for the next few weeks. Exciting times!

  • Another SWAC team, Mississippi Valley State, announced their 2026 schedule yesterday - which includes a game with Delta State, which gives us another FCS-Division II matchup.

  • Speaking of Delta State, they announced their new head coach yesterday. David Dean, who has head coaching experience in the Gulf South Conference, will replace Todd Cooley on the Statesmen’s sideline. Dean was the head coach at both Valdosta State and West Georgia.

  • Another FCS-Division II game that got announced yesterday: Winston-Salem State at Norfolk State.

  • And a future FBS-FCS matchup from two teams in Virginia: Hampton at Virginia. A first-ever matchup between the two teams.

February 6th:

  • Going back to my notes and thoughts from a year ago - I found a quick bullet about Mark Henry’s son, Jacob, made the Oklahoma roster as a walk-on. One year later I report that he did not see any action for the Sooners last fall.

  • I was going to start my Division II notes this morning, but work got in the way - and then I noticed that this blog is still titled “Daily Notes and Thoughts”, so for today I can throw out some Division II news.

  • One thing I did accomplish this morning was that I created a separate list for Division III players moving up to Division I since the number has grown quite a bit this year. There are also an awful lot of Division II players going to Division I, it just made sense to break them apart.

  • I also started to provide details about the players (the ones I added today) transferring so that my readers can see their stats.

  • The NCAA released the final Division II football attendance figures for the 2025 season just before Christmas, and for the 14th consecutive year Grand Valley State led the nation in Division II attendance. Lubbers Stadium, with a seating capacity of 10,440, hosted 68,612 fans for an average of 11,435 per game. The seven remaining schools in the GLIAC, which includes Ferris State, posted an attendance average of 2,190. 

  • I mention the note above because yesterday I came upon the Lakers schedule for 2026. In it are three strong non-conference games, which means that after writing this note, I will be updating the Top Division II Non-Conference Games, with what games I know about for 2026.

February 5th:

  • Who would have thought that the Ohio State vs. Indiana game on Oct. 17th of this year is already being called the Big Ten Game of the Year? It was only last year in the Big Ten Championship that the Hoosiers ended a 30-game losing streak to the Buckeyes. By the way, this year’s matchup will be the 100th game played in this series!

  • The following week, Indiana gets a crack at Michigan on the road. The Hoosiers beat the defending champion in 2024, but before that game they had lost 27 of 28 to the Wolverines. Indiana still hasn’t won in Ann Arbor since 1967.

  • Dayton Raiola, Dylan’s brother, will also play for the Oregon Ducks next year - but not as a quarterback. He will be lining up as a tight end for his new team.

  • Ohio State at USC, October 31st. Can’t wait! These teams have battled seven times in the Rose Bowl (USC leads 4-3) and once in the Cotton Bowl (Ohio State won), and this year’s game should have two of the nation’s best quarterbacks in USC’s Jayden Maiava and Ohio State’s Julian Sayin. The Trojans lead the all-time series 13-10-1.

  • Back to October 17th for a moment, because we might not want to look past Northwestern at Michigan State! New Michigan State coach Pat Fitzgerald is the Wildcat’s greatest football figure, as both an All-American player and the program’s winningest coach, while current Northwestern starting quarterback Aidan Chiles will make his return to East Lansing.

February 4th:

  • Want to start writing my Daily Notes and Thoughts for Divisions II and III - but there isn’t a lot out there right now for me to ponder since I am working on posted schedules, and there is really nothing out there yet for these divisions.

  • Looking at transfer numbers - Oklahoma State lost 63 scholarship players from their 2025 team, but they gained 53 for 2026. Can a team with that much turnover pull it together next season?

  • I’ve been reading that some folks are feeling that Cal will have a good season in 2026. A lot of positivity around their new head coach Tosh Lupoi and the transfer class they brought in - though they did lose a half-dozen starters because of the coaching change.

  • Tennessee will carry a streak of 27 consecutive home sellouts into the 2026 campaign. In 2025, the Vols drew a combined 713,405 fans in Neyland Stadium for the second straight year, which ranked fourth in the FBS and second in the SEC. UT's average attendance of 101,915 was sixth in the nation and third in the conference.

  • Speaking of Neyland Stadium, on 9/26 the Longhorns will make their first trip to Neyland Stadium. In a series that dates back to 1951, Texas and Tennessee will play each other for the fourth time overall and first time since the 1969 Cotton Bowl. Texas holds the all-time series advantage, 2-1, with all three of the prior meetings between the teams taking place at the Cotton Bowl.

  • It was announced on Tuesday that the Northwestern Wildcats will host the Penn State Nittany Lions in the inaugural football game at the new Ryan Field on Friday, Oct. 2nd. Northwestern’s first two home games of the 2026 season, which are both against non-conference opponents, will be played at Northwestern Medicine Field at Martin Stadium. The new Ryan Field, scheduled for completion in mid-September, will have a maximum capacity of 35,000. This represents a reduction of over 12,000 seats from the previous capacity of 47,130.

  • On Sept. 5th, the Buckeyes will take a trip to Austin, Texas to face the Texas Longhorns. Ohio State last played at Texas in 2006, when the No. 1 Buckeyes defeated the No. 2 Longhorns, 24-7.

February 3rd:

  • For the first time in its three seasons in the SEC, Oklahoma will open conference play on the road. The Sooners will play at Georgia on Sept. 26 in only the second meeting between the programs (first on a college campus).

  • South Carolina will travel to Fayetteville, Ark. for just the second time since 2013 when they tangle with the Arkansas Razorbacks on Nov. 14. The Gamecocks have won three of the last four games with the Hogs, but Arkansas clings to a 14-10 advantage in the all-time series.

  • The Houston-Utah matchup on October 24th, which could be a game between ranked teams, is the Cougars' second scheduled game against a team ranked in the final AP Poll of the 2025 season and will be Houston's first trip to Salt Lake City since 1977.

  • In a Halloween matchup where Iowa State might replace Oklahoma State in the cellar of the Big 12, the former Big 8 opponents will meet for the 60th time (the Cowboys leads the all-time series 34-22-3).

  • Miami (FL) travels to face Clemson in Memorial Stadium on October 3rd this year. The Tigers will have traveled to Cal the week prior, so the Hurricanes catch a break going into the game. The all-time series between the two teams is tied 7-7.

  • UNC’s opponents in 2026 had a combined 103-55 (.652) mark last season, including 10 teams that played in a bowl game, nine teams that won eight games or more and three teams that won at least 10 games.

  • USC opens Big Ten Conference play on the road at Rutgers on Sept. 19.  The Trojans are 1-0 against the Scarlett Knights, last defeating them 42-20 in the Coliseum in 2024. This will be USC's first trip to Piscataway, N. J. and SHI Stadium. 

  • Washington will open their season with four September home games, beginning with the annual Apple Cup game vs. Washington State on Sept. 5. I’m still trying to get used to this matchup as a September game and not a late November game…

February 2nd:

  • Mentioned in my FCS notes, I combed through all the Big Ten schedules last night. Leaves me waiting for the Group of Six schedules on this level…

  • Starting with the UNC vs. TCU game in Ireland and ending with the Army vs. Navy game in East Rutherford, NJ, I currently have 302 games listed that I will be following this fall. With any luck I might get to 500 games to follow when all the FBS schedules come in this winter.

  • I was looking at an article in Athlon Sports about 2027 prospect John Meredith, where he states that Alabama and Texas A&M are currently his two top choices. In the article, the author said that both teams had breakthrough seasons in 2025 and are both looking to turn short-term success into sustained dominance. Seems appropriate to say about A&M, but not Alabama. Even though the Tide made the playoff this year, most fans of the program would say that they have had two straight down years…

  • The Maryland at Purdue game on November 7th could be the game of the year in the Big Ten as the Terps and Boilermakers have a combined 2-34 Big Ten record the last two seasons.

  • On the other hand, since Oregon joined the Big Ten two seasons ago, they have lost only three games in that time - and all three were to either Ohio State (they split their two games in 2024) and Indiana (Hoosiers won both matchups in 2025).

  • LSU will get to host both Texas A&M and Alabama in Tiger Stadium this fall for the first time since the Aggies joined the SEC in 2014. The last time Texas A&M and Alabama were both on the home schedule came in 1994 when the Aggies were members of the Southwest Conference.

  • The start of November is a tough one for Missouri. The Tigers open the month of November by welcoming Texas to Columbia for this first time since the 2011 season, and the next week, Missouri travels to Athens, Georgia for a showdown with defending SEC Champion Bulldogs.

  • BYU’s first road game in 2026 will come on September 19th at Colorado State in Fort Collins, Colorado. Dating back to 1922 when their series began, these two teams have played together in four conferences: Mountain States, Rocky Mountain, WAC and the Mountain West.

February 1st:

  • Just learned this morning that the CFB playoff spot guaranteed to a Group of 6 conference team is not required to go to a league champion going forward. Guess it also came as a surprise to some Group of 6 folks too.

  • Sad to see that South Carolina and Virginia Tech canceled their future home-and-home series that was to take place in 2034 and 2035. A victim of nine-game league schedules.

  • With Darian Mensah jumping to Miami (FL) late in the transfer process, it leaves Duke in a very difficult spot regarding their quarterback situation. Former San Jose State starting quarterback Walker Eget is in line to replace Mensah, but he still needs a waiver to be eligible to play next season.

  • Kalen DeBoer will be on the hotseat this fall. It is now his roster, and there’s a concern that he didn’t do enough with incoming transfers to improve the Tide.

  • Purdue is expected to bring up the Big Ten rear again in 2026. The last time the Boilermakers won a Big Ten game? Nov. 25, 2023 against Indiana.

  • 2026 will mark the 37th consecutive season Nebraska has played on Black Friday, including 16 consecutive matchups with Iowa on the Day after Thanksgiving. The Huskers own a 20-16 record on Black Friday since 1990.

  • Florida State will play three Friday games for the first time since 1955 and play four non-Saturday games in the regular season for the first time in program history. The good news - The Seminoles are 2-0 all-time against the Gators on Friday, with wins in 1979 and 2022.

  • Georgia Tech is making its first trip to the state of California since the 2005 Emerald Bowl (vs. Utah at San Francisco’s AT&T Park) and will visit the Golden State for the first time in the regular season since it played at Southern California on Oct. 25, 1969.

January 31st:

  • In another edition of, "The Holy War," the Eagles will travel to South Bend for the first time since 2022 - their fourth matchup at Notre Dame (Nov. 14) in the last 15 years. After winning six straight over the Irish from 2001 thru 2008, BC has lost the last ten games in the series.

  • Cal will face UCLA for the first time since 2023 and for the first time as opponents in separate conferences. 2026 will be the 95th meeting between the two programs with Cal winning the last meeting 33-7, but the Bruins lead the all-time series 58-35-1.

  • Clemson and LSU faced one another at neutral sites in postseason play four times before the two sets of Tigers met in Clemson in the 2025 season opener for their first regular season, on-campus meeting in series history. This season, Clemson will make its first trip to Baton Rouge on Saturday, Sept. 5, marking Clemson’s first time opening a season in an SEC venue since opening its 2016 national championship season with a 19-13 win at Auburn.

  • The Tigers enter the 2026 season having not lost to the same team in back-to-back years since 2014 - the final year of a three-game series winning streak by Florida State over Dabo . Clemson can keep that streak alive with wins in 2026 against LSU, Georgia Tech and Duke programs that defeated Clemson in 2025.

  • Maryland closes the 2026 regular season Nov. 28 against Penn State at SECU Stadium. The matchup will mark the 49th all-time meeting between the programs, which was played for 11 consecutive seasons (Nittany Lions won nine of those 11 games) prior to last year after the Terps joined the Big Ten.

  • Michigan and Minnesota will battle for the Little Brown Jug, the oldest trophy game in college football, for the 100th time at Huntington Bank Stadium (Oct. 3). The Wolverines hold a 74-23-2 record in the 99 previous games contested for the coveted jug.

  • The Gophers open Big Ten play on September 26 at Washington. This will be Minnesota's ninth overall trip to Seattle, but the first since 1976. The Maroon and Gold previously played road games at Washington in 1936, 1941, 1948, 1950, 1952, 1956, 1958 and 1976. 

  • Meanwhile, the defending Big Ten champions (and National champions) will begin their conference title defense at home against Northwestern. The last time the two teams met (10/5/24) Indiana entered the matchup with a national ranking in the AP and Coaches Poll for the first time since Week 1 of the 2021 season. The Hoosiers haven’t left the rankings since…

January 30th:

  • This morning I wrapped up going through all the schedules for the ACC teams. These expanded leagues definitely take more time combing through. Now I can dig into the Big Ten!

  • Week 7 (10/17) is really shaping up to be a great week for games: TCU at Baylor, Penn State at Michigan, Florida State at Miami (FL), North Carolina at Duke, Utah at Colorado, Alabama at Tennessee, Notre Dame at BYU, Kansas at Kansas State, Arizona State at Texas Tech, Ohio State at Indiana, Florida at Texas and Auburn at Georgia…a great mix of rivalry games and key conference games. Wow!

  • Having Navy be a part of a conference is exciting, but the downfall - because of their non-conference commitments to Air Force and Notre Dame, it leaves so many of their historical series out in the cold.

  • I have been gathering schedule release notes from each school, if they have published something on their websites - and because the quality of information varies (by a lot!), I have questioned why I included some of the notes because some provide next to nothing, in terms of usefulness for me. It took me until I got to Wake Forest’s schedule release to finally say in my document, “Not worth copying”.

  • When visiting Virginia’s website, I noticed that Herman Moore, their former star wide receiver, was voted into the College Football Hall of Fame. As I saw it, I thought that he had played for the Cavaliers when I was at Maryland - but he was there from 1988-1990. Guess I have lost track of time these last forty years…

  • Was surprised to find that Indiana leads their all-time series with Nebraska (11-9-3) on the strength of going 9-0-1 against the Cornhuskers from 1941 through 1959.

  • Iowa is currently one of four teams in FBS to have won at least eight games in each of the last 10 completed seasons. The others: Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State.

  • Nelson Peterson Jr., younger brother (way younger!) of NFL great Adrian Peterson, has signed his National Letter of Intent to play quarterback for Texas Southern. Peterson had offers from Texas Tech, UTSA, UTEP, Utah State, and Wake Forest - as well as others.

  • Some 2026 Recruit Team Rankings: Top Class (USC), Most Commits (West Virginia - 48), Most 5-Star Recruits (Alabama, Oregon, and Notre Dame - 4 each), Top Group of Six Classes (Boise State, Appalachian State, UNLV and Temple)

  • All quiet on the Transfer front today…

January 29th:

  • Topped 4k visitors for the month of January yesterday, something that hadn’t been done since November 2024 (4,910 visits that month) - so needless to say, I am thrilled with how things have started out this year!

  • Added a couple of new commitments for former Ivy League players this morning -which brings the total of Ivy Leaguers playing at new schools in 2026 to just over 30 at this time. The latest commitment - Vasean Washington (OT) from Dartmouth will be wearing Scarlet and Red next year in Columbus…

  • I love it when small school teams and players get a shoutout on ESPN. It looks like Tyren Montgomery, a wide receiver from John Carroll, is making quite an impression at the Senior Bowl workouts. Might be working himself into the draft…

  • Montgomery is one of four non-FBS players on the Senior Bowl roster this year. The others: Charles Demmings (CB from Stephen F. Austin), Cole Payton (QB from North Dakota State) and Delby Lemieux (OL from Dartmouth). So far, it sounds like Payton is the best quarterback so far this week.

  • While working my way through Duke’s schedule, their home-and-home series with TCU beginning in 2028 caught my eye - especially since the Horned Frogs are wrapping up their series with UNC this year. The agreement between TCU and Duke was announced way back in December 2017! Gary Patterson and David Cutcliffe were the head coaches at the time - and both left in 2021.

  • When the Big Ten schedule was released, it was pointed out that Indiana would face Ohio State and Michigan in back-to-back weeks. The Hoosiers aren’t the only team facing that daunting task - Iowa has the same problem. I think the Hawkeyes can one-up Indiana in that they travel to Washington the next week, whereas the Hoosiers get to host Minnesota.

  • The Turkey Day Classic between Alabama State and Tuskegee has now been extended through 2026! The Hornets and Golden Tigers first met in 1901 and have played 105 games overall. In their most recent matchup in 2025, the Hornets defeated the Golden Tigers 44-13, but the Tigers still lead the overall series, 61-41-3.

  • Just noticed that the Florida at Florida State game this year was moved to Black Friday! Another great matchup on one of my favorite days for college football…

January 28th:

  • Going through my opened tabs on Google from left to right this morning - here are today’s notes and thoughts…

  • Yesterday someone mentioned after the Big Ten schedule was rolled out that USC is the only team in the league that needs to schedule a game for the upcoming season. Rumor has it that it would be Stanford in Week Zero, but the Cardinal already have a Week Zero matchup scheduled with Hawaii - so unless that game is canceled, the Trojans matchup won’t be with Stanford.

  • So now we have all of the Power Four schedules for 2026, which leaves the Group of Six conferences to release their schedules - which will happen throughout February if I recall past years. Looking at the FCS, the MEAC, NEC, and SWAC still need to announce their conference schedules, while the Ivy League and MVFC have their conference games out there - they are just waiting for some of their members to fill out their out-of-conference schedule.

  • Trying to get used to the fact that MEAC teams will have more non-conference games than conference games since there are only six teams in the league.

  • Haven’t looked at 2026 Recruiting information for quite a while, but today I couldn’t help but notice that two of the four 5-star quarterbacks are going to Houston (Keisean Henderson) and Vanderbilt (Jared Curtis). Both stayed home, but how long will it take for Miami (FL) or LSU or other big schools to throw so much NIL money at them that they transfer?

  • Didn’t take long after a settlement was reached with Duke for Darian Mensah to announce that he will be playing for Miami (FL) next year. Making it worse for the Blue Devils - top receiver Cooper Barkate will also be joining the Hurricanes. Originally with Harvard, Barkate had 72 receptions this year for 1,106 yards and 7 receiving touchdowns.

  • To my surprise, the East-West Shrine game was played last night! Must admit, I missed that…Former UMaine QB, Joe Fagnano, got in some snaps in the game, leading the West (why West???) to victory with a last minute game-winning touchdown. Looks like, at worst he will get an invite to somebody’s camp this summer.

  • Players are withdrawing from the transfer portal - I just hope that they have a spot to return to…

  • Lastly, I have seen two Division II schools (Albany State and Bowie State) release their 2026 schedules. A lot more to go…

January 27th:

  • The big transfer portal news today - Duke reached a settlement with quarterback Darian Mensah that will allow him to transfer. Mensah transferred to Duke from Tulane and led the Blue Devils to their first ACC title since 1962.

  • Sticking with the ACC for a moment - I’m not sure why it takes two hours of tv time to release a conference schedule. Will the Big Ten do it up bigger later today?

  • It’s a day of “Top 100” as ESPN contributor Bill Connelly put together college football’s top 100 games of the 2025 season. I always enjoy finding out which games he includes from the smaller divisions. And, though it came out yesterday, I read this morning what the 100 most-watched games of the 2025 season were when I visited footballscoop.com

  • While on footballscoop.com, I also read that Wyoming’s Jay Sawvel gave up some of his salary the last two years to retain key members of his staff. I hope the Cowboys win the Mountain West next season!

  • Two days ago, Bevo XV celebrated his 11th birthday! Happy Belated Birthday Big Guy!

  • Workouts for the Senior Bowl begin today! Looking forward to the storylines that come out this week from this great event…

  • Yesterday I posted a Composite Way-Too-Early Top 25 for next fall. Used eight different sources. I could add more as they come out - but not sure I want to…lol

January 26th:

  • Now that Curt Cignetti and his team got to enjoy celebrating the CFB title in Bloomington, in a winter storm, it is back to business for him - as the Hoosiers are the defending Big Ten champions and the defending national champions.

  • D’Anton Lynn leaving USC is a big win for Penn State. Now the Trojans have hired Gary Patterson, the former head coach of TCU to replace him. Time will tell if this is the right decision.

  • LSU will hit the road to play Tennessee on Nov. 21. The Tigers last played in Knoxville in 2017 when LSU recorded a 30-10 win over the Vols.

  • Mizzou travels to former Big 12 foe and longtime rival Kansas on September 12. The Tigers and Jayhawks played for the first time in 14 years in 2025 with the Tigers coming away with a 42-31 victory at Faurot Field. The 2026 game in Lawrence will be Missouri's first visit to David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium since the 2005 season.  

  • Oklahoma begins the month of November at Florida on Nov. 7 in the first regular season matchup between the programs. The Sooners defeated the Gators 55-20 in the 2020 Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium in the schools' last meeting.

  • Three of BYU's 2026 opponents finished the past season ranked in The Associated Press Top 25 with Notre Dame at No. 10, Utah at No. 14 and TCU at No. 25, while Arizona received votes just outside the poll.

  • The Buffs will head to Stillwater for the first time since 2009 and will be looking for their first win there since 2005.  CU beat up on the Cowboys 52-0 in the regular season finale in 2024 behind 438 yards and 5 TDs from Shedeur Sanders

  • Houston begins Big 12 action at Texas Tech in Week 3 on Sept. 19, one of two games against Texas opponents and one of two games against teams ranked in the final AP Poll. The Cougars conclude the regular season for the second consecutive season against Baylor, with the 2026 finale being played in TDECU Stadium on Nov. 28.

January 25th:

  • Two days ago, Craig Haubert wrote a piece on ESPN ranking the top portal classes. At the top was LSU, but questions about their offensive line remained - until later that night the Tigers received a commitment from Jordan Seaton, the fourth overall player in ESPN’s transfer rankings.

  • UConn announced their incoming class, which includes 49 incoming transfers. Of that number, 18 are from Toledo - which isn’t surprising since Jason Candle left Toledo to coach the Huskies at the end of the 2025 season. Most of the former Rocket players though look like role players.

  • Last night I finished combing through the Big 12 schedule, which brings the number of conference schedules I have finished up to six - four being FCS conferences. Up next: Patriot League

  • In 2026, Alabama is set to close its home-and-home series with Florida State on Sept. 19. The Tide owns a perfect 2-0 mark at home against the Seminoles with the 2026 trip being FSU's first to Tuscaloosa since 1974.

  • The Battle for the Golden Boot returns to its regular season finale position on the schedule on Nov. 28. Arkansas and LSU battled on the final weekend of the regular season from 1992 when the Hogs joined the SEC through the 2013 season.

  • For the first time since 1995, Georgia will face Florida somewhere other than Jacksonville, Fla.  The Bulldogs will line up against the Gators in the Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta while Everbank Stadium is being renovated for the next two seasons.  The 2027 matchup will be in Tampa, Fla.

  • Arizona State will get tested early in 2026, as they will hit the road early to take on 2025 College Football Playoff competitor Texas A&M at Kyle Field on Sept. 12. From there, the Sun Devils will trek directly to London to square off with Kansas at Wembley Stadium on Sept. 19 in what will represent the Big 12 conference opener for both programs.

  • The Bears of Baylor will open their season on Sept. 5th with a game vs. Auburn in Atlanta. After an Auburn 38-24 win to open the 2025 season, the series is 2-2-1, with Auburn winning the only neutral-site meeting in the 1954 Gator Bowl. 

January 24th:

  • The other day, the announcement came out that Delaware and Penn State mutually canceled their matchup in 2027 which allowed the Nittany Lions to schedule UMaine! That’s wicked exciting for the Black Bears!

  • A flurry of schedules came out yesterday on FBSchedules. From Alabama A&M’s schedule, we got another Division II-FCS matchup, as the Bulldogs will play Miles on 9/5, and Butler’s announced schedule included a Division III team, the Franklin Grizzlies, who are 30 minutes down the road from Butler.

  • Albany and Princeton also has a home-and-home series scheduled for this year and next. I’m usually a fan of non-conference games that the Ivy members sign up for, but this one got a ho-hum from me.

  • Going through Cincinnati’s future non-conference opponents, I couldn’t help but notice their upcoming series with Boise State in 2028 and 2029. The two teams originally signed the contract back in 2013 to have the games played in 2019 and 2020, but because of four amendments to the contract the games have been pushed out to the current dates. Wonder if it will change again?

  • As I go through schedules by conference, I have been gathering the notes that the schools release. It amazes me how different those notes can be! Some schools just regurgitate the schedule with just words added, while others provide a lot of detail and notes about their opponent…

  • From Colorado’s schedule release, I learned that they are making their first trip to Evanston, IL in 75 years when they play Northwestern on September 19th - and will be playing the Wildcats for the first time in 48 years! Because of the timing of the game, CU will be one of the first opponents to face the Wildcats in their renovated stadium, Ryan Field, which has been closed since 2023 while being rebuilt. 

  • On the transfer front, players are continuing to find new homes - or withdraw from the portal. Was pleased with myself for keeping up with the changes, but I saw that there is more information added to websites that track all the movement going on - which is a pain for me because I might miss something.

  • Ivy League transfers - there are more than 25 players now from the league moving on to other schools after using up their eligibility from the conference…

January 23rd:

  • The playoff for next year will remain as a 12-team field, with a couple of changes which favor Notre Dame (a lock if it finishes in the top 12) and Power 4 conference champions will be guaranteed spots in the field. After this year’s tournament, I would like to see the Group of Six have their own playoff. If it had happened this year, we would have seen Notre Dame and BYU in the field - which could have caused even more chaos in the playoff.

  • ESPN has a 2026 projected bracket on their website. There are certainly a couple of surprises in there - Oklahoma State and Hawaii, and a surprise champion (Notre Dame). They also have Notre Dame and USC meeting in the playoff, which I love! I can accept this bracket - especially if it keeps the championship out of the SEC again, unless Vanderbilt has a surprising run…

  • I saw that Luke Fickell’s Top 25 ballot was revealed. Somehow he left Georgia and Vanderbilt out of his top 25…

  • The portal continues to slow down, but I am still finding names out there from the lower divisions moving up to Division I - getting them off school websites as they announce their transfer signings.

  • I thought there would be a big splash today with Malachi Toney entering his name with possible destinations of Oregon or Ohio State, but it looks like Miami is handing him another NIL deal from what I read this afternoon.

  • Notre Dame announced their 2026 schedule today. It stings that I don’t see USC on the list of teams. At least Michigan State is back on the schedule (Megaphone Trophy on the line!), and there is always the Navy and Purdue games for tradition…

January 22nd:

  • Worked through the Southern Conference schedule last night so that I could work on the Big 12 today. Nice to get back to the FBS games for a bit - though I look forward to doing the Patriot League schedule which will be this weekend…

  • A good chunk of time today was spent gathering together eight different Way-Too-Early Top 25 lists for next fall and blending them together so that I can have a picture as to how things might look like at the beginning of the season.

  • Two things stood out to me: Alabama is being placed in most lists as a team that will probably finish in the bottom half of the Top 25 - behind five other SEC teams and Clemson was mentioned in only one list. Could they surprise people next fall?

  • This list I have put together, which I plan to post, will definitely help me when I pour through the schedules to see what I should add to the Games to Follow spreadsheet. For example, Iowa State wasn’t mentioned on anyone’s list, while Houston appears on a lot of peoples’ radar - so I will be looking at the Cougars’ schedule more intently than the Cyclones’ schedule.

  • Princewill Umanmielen is leaving the Rebels to go play for Lane Kiffin at LSU next year. I’m really looking forward to LSU’s game in Oxford on September 19th!

  • Former Hurricane backup quarterback, Emory Williams, found a home with East Carolina, which I hope works out for both player and school. The Pirates lost last year’s starting quarterback Katin Houser to Illinois.

  • Miami (FL) did gain a solid edge rusher in Damon Wilson II - the former Georgia Bulldog and Missouri Tiger. A smart business decision by Wilson since the Hurricanes crank out their share of NFL-quality defensive linemen.

  • The highest ranked player without a commitment at this juncture: Five-star OT Jordan Seaton, former Colorado Buffalo.

January 21st:

  • Watched the championship game yesterday afternoon on demand, and I still can’t believe that Indiana is the national champion! The first new champion since the Florida Gators in 1996 - 29 years ago!

  • Alberto Mendoza was in the transfer portal on Tuesday, and was committed to Georgia Tech on Wednesday. Guess they had a deal in place. The Hurricanes backup QB, Emory Williams, also entered the portal, but he hasn’t found a new home yet.

  • One of the most interesting commitments I have seen in the last couple of days: Dylan Edwards going from Kansas State to Kansas. The talented running back has had injury issues the last couple of seasons, so maybe switching his allegiance in the Sunflower Showdown rivalry will change his luck.

  • More than a week ago, Iowa landed South Dakota running back L.J. Phillips Jr. - the FCS rushing leader in 2025. He rushed for 1,920 yards on 295 carries, and ran for 19 touchdowns thus earning a first-team All-American position. But you won’t find him in my list of “top” running backs moving up from the FCS in this year’s transfer portal - because of his “recruiting” number. Seems to me that he has outperformed the number recruiters gave him…

  • In 2026, the college football season doesn’t begin on Saturday, August 29th with North Carolina vs. TCU in Ireland, because the FCS (and even Division II?) season will begin with a few games on Thursday, August 27th. Two games to follow that evening - Central Arkansas vs. UT Martin and Eastern Illinois vs. Murry State.

  • The Big 12 came out with their conference schedule today, while the ACC will release their odd schedule on Monday. The Big Ten will follow, and deliver their much anticipated matchups on Tuesday!

  • It was announced today that the Central Michigan-Eastern Michigan rivalry game will be played at Ford Field for the next two years. The 2026 matchup between Chippewas and the Eagles will be the 104th overall meeting between the two schools. The series began in 1902 and Central Michigan currently owns a big advantage in the matchup, 65-32-6.

  • Another MAC school got some mention today because Marshall announced that they have signed a four-game series with a former MAC opponent - Toledo. The Rockets won the most recent contest in 2003, 24-17, and currently lead the overall series, 22-18-1. Unfortunately, this series won’t begin until 2030.

January 20th:

  • I have worn an Indiana t-shirt for a few years now because Deb’s father went there as a graduate student (and I found it at Marden’s for a great discount!), so will I be accused of jumping on the bandwagon when I start wearing it again this spring?

  • All morning I have watched clips and interviews from last night. I am absolutely thrilled for the team and its fanbase! They all deserve to bask in the glory of their great 2025 football season! A big congratulations to all Hoosiers!

  • How great is it that former James Madison players had significant roles with this championship team? Sometimes you can just throw away recruiting rankings! Desire, instincts and heart can overcome so much…

  • And what a story Fernando Mendoza is - going from not getting a walk-on tryout from his hometown Hurricanes to winning the Heisman Trophy and getting a ring for leading the Hoosiers to a national championship! His love for his mother tops it all though!

  • Didn’t know until I read it this morning that Mendoza’s dad played high school football with Mario Cristobal…

  • Curt Cignetti got his first national championship as a head coach! Each stop on each level (starting with Division II), his teams have been perennial playoff participants and contenders - getting to the FCS Championship one year with James Madison. No doubt this is - and probably will be his greatest accomplishment, though I am convinced he will keep the Hoosier’s competitive as long as he coaches in Bloomington.

  • Wasn’t thrilled to see Miami RB Mark Fletcher throwing punches (more like jabs) at Indiana’s Tyrique Tucker after the game (did Tucker taunt???), but felt much better after seeing Fletcher and Mendoza having a postgame moment that lasted close to 30 seconds with a lot of smiles and hugs.

  • A tough ending for Carson Beck, who won two national championships at Georgia (as a backup). Had a chance for his third (as a captain this time), but a wayward throw (prone to them) finished the Canes.

  • I agree with Stewart Mandel when he says that Indiana winning the title is the most remarkable story in the modern history of college football (I keep finding stories and highlights - which I have done all day), but I won’t go as far as he does when he revises it to the most remarkable story in modern sports history.

  • That’s it for the 2025 college football season - tomorrow is the day that we start talking about the 2026 college football season again! After all, if my math is right, it is only 219 days until next season begins…

January 19th:

  • After 142 days, the 2025 college football season will wrap up with tonight’s championship game. On August 23rd when the season began, I certainly wouldn’t have believed that Indiana and Miami (FL) would be the last two teams standing.

  • It will be a long offseason if the Hurricanes win…

  • Before 2025, Indiana only had three bowl/postseason wins - they can equal that total in one season with a win tonight!

  • Maybe I’m wrong, but it seems to me that winning this game will mean so much more to Indiana. Miami (FL) has had a great run through the playoff, and can prove tonight that the U is back, but the Hoosiers, up until this season, have had the most-ever losses for a FBS team and a win this evening would make them a dominant 16-0 team - which will lead to discussions about whether or not they are the GOAT…

  • Unfortunately, bedtime will arrive before the opening kickoff, but if I am tossing and turning, I will be getting updates via my phone…

January 18th:

  • Now that the transfer portal is closed, I spent some time this morning updating the top players from Group of Six teams and FCS. Not much changed in the Group of Six document, but the top FCS players did have quite a bit of turnover.

  • I also created two new blogs/lists - breaking down top Group of Six and FCS players by position. Will have to give credit to Mel Kiper for giving me the idea, as he does it for NFL Draft prospects.

  • Didn’t realize how much talent East Carolina lost, especially on the offensive side, until I worked on the Group of Six list. Other teams lost a lot as well (North Texas, USF, and James Madison), but they all had coaching changes - the Pirates didn’t.

January 17th:

  • Indiana has played great football the last two year, but I still can’t get my head around the fact that the Hoosiers will be playing for the National Championship in two days..

  • Being that this is pretty much a home game for the Hurricanes, what will it say if the majority of people in the stands are wearing red?

  • So far 63 underclassmen (still waiting for Indiana and Miami players) have declared for the NFL Draft. Pretty much in line with last year, and a bit higher than 2024.

  • Was very surprised to see Darian Mensah enter the portal yesterday! Hate the thought of him playing for Miami (FL) next year…

  • Around 1,000 Division I players are still looking for a home.

  • When Parker Navarro (Ohio) entered the portal yesterday, he became the highest rated quarterback available. Navarro was a two-year starter who has thrown for over 5,000 yards with 30 touchdowns thrown and another 27 via the run.

  • After throwing for 60 touchdowns in two years at Albany (a school record), Reese Poffenbarger has thrown for zero touchdowns the last two years while playing for Miami (FL) and North Texas. He will try to get the magic back in 2026 while playing for the Akron Zips.

  • And now Malachi Nelson is moving on to Syracuse after a less than stellar season at UTEP. The former five star quarterback played six games for the Miners, threw for 1,163 yards with eight touchdowns and nine interceptions.

  • When are we going to get more FBS conferences announcing their schedules for the upcoming season? 8 FCS conferences have provided their schedules…

January 16th:

  • Today is the last day that players can enter the portal - the exception being those players who are participating the the National Championship game on Monday.

  • Some movement yesterday, but it has certainly slowed down the last couple of days. It won’t be long before I check out school websites to see their “official” announcements as to who they will be bringing in for the 2026 season.

  • Usually quarterbacks catch my eye in the portal, but this morning it was those who play the Edge position. Ole Miss lost two key players at the position, most notably Prinewill Umanmielen, but then did get a commitment from Jordan Renaud - who played at Alabama. And then Florida State got great news when Darryll and Mandell Desir withdrew their names from the portal.

  • Texas continues to bring in the talent, as they go Melvin Siani (OT) from Wake Forest. That is the sixth 4-star player, to go with a 5-star player, who will be bringing their A-game to Austin next fall.

  • My one quarterback comment (so far) today - the highest ranked quarterback currently still available: Bryson Beaver out of Oregon. He entered yesterday after Dante Moore announced that he was returning to the Ducks…

  • Another FCS conference (Pioneer Football League) released their 2026 football schedule. Hate to say it, but it’s not a very exciting to go through - but it did allow me to add two more Division II-FCS matchups, both involving Dayton.

  • Was very happy to see the Mississippi State at Ole Miss game moved to Black Friday! I wonder if it will be played at noon this year, or if it will be moved to primetime? My guess at this point is that it will be a 12:00pm kickoff because the Texas-Texas A&M will be more suited (playoff implications) to the night time slot.

  • My second quarterback comment today regarding the transfer portal…I had to find out from “The Daily Pennsylvanian” that Laim O’Brien, who was QB1 for the Penn Quakers had transferred to Cincinnati. He will more than likely be the Bearcats backup.

January 15th:

  • Four of the top 8 NFL prospects are from Ohio State after Sonny Styles announced that he will be joining the NFL draft. A steady stream of talent comes out of Columbus every year.

  • Meanwhile Dante Moore is officially returning to Oregon. I’m not a big fan of the Ducks, but I like this decision. This move impacts at least one quarterback on the team, as Bryson Beaver has announced that he will be entering the transfer portal. The bigger question - what about Dylan Raiola?

  • It was confirmed yesterday that the LA Bowl will no longer be played after five years. The last game was played on 12/15 - Washington’s surprisingly easy 38-10 win over Boise State.

  • Yesterday wasn’t a very busy day in the transfer portal - didn’t take me very long to scroll through it and update my lists.

  • A couple of notable quarterbacks announced their decisions though - Ethan Grunkemeyer will follow James Franklin to Virginia Tech, and Husan Longstreet, former USC recruit, gave his soul to Lane Kiffin at LSU.

  • One very interesting transfer that I saw yesterday - Susquehanna’s (D3) quarterback, Josh Ehrlich, moved on to UNC-Pembroke (D2) for next season. He threw for over 2,800 yards and 32 touchdowns - with only two interceptions. Ehrlich also ran for 800 yards and 7 touchdowns on the ground.

  • With transfers slowing down, I can spend a bit more time on looking at 2026 schedules that have been released. Quite a few FCS conferences have come out with their schedules, but the only FBS conference to set theirs - the SEC.

  • I try to always find something interesting about most scheduled games, but I can’t come up with anything for the UTEP-Oregon State game on 9/26/26 other than it’s being played in a great stadium - the Sun Bowl. There, I did find something…

  • A new Week Zero game has just been announced: Memphis at UNLV. I like this matchup!

  • Added the first Division III players I have found that are transferring up to Division I. Two of the players are a LS/K combo that were high school teammates that played at Curry College last year. They will now play for the UMaine Black Bears.

January 14th:

  • TJ Finley has found his seventh school in seven years, as he committed to UIW yesterday. Off the top of my head: LSU, Auburn, Texas State, Western Kentucky, Georgia State, UIW…and…Tulane. Had to look up the last one! Never played for the Green Wave.

  • I’m interested in Eli Holstein moving on from Pitt and joining Virginia. He had a solid 2024 season, but was replaced by freshman Mason Heintschel (love the name!) in 2025. Hope this move works out for Eli…

  • Yesterday it was announced that Jackson State added Tennessee State to their schedule for the next two years. The Tigers of Tennessee State have won has won 30 of the 55 games contested between the schools, but Jackson State won the most recent outing, a 16-3 decision at the 2022 Southern Heritage Classic at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis. The series dates back 75 years.

  • Another great addition to the FCS non-conference schedule that was recently reported: UT Martin at Austin Peay on September 26th. These former OVC rivals have met 71 times since 1930, with the Skyhawks leading the all-time series 41-27-2.

  • Last scheduling note for the day…James Madison will head out to California on September 19th to face San Diego State - a very solid Group of Six matchup!

January 13th:

  • ESPN’s “Our favorite bowl game moments: Mascots, mayhem and more” piece sums up the bowl season perfectly from beginning to end. Fun going through it and re-reading it.

  • Just after talking about Ohio State and their number of outgoing transfers (32 at this point), they nabbed a couple of 4-star defensive linemen from Alabama. The Buckeyes have a total of five 4-star players coming in next fall. See...nothing to worry about…

  • Kentucky is quietly doing well in the portal, as they have got commitments from four 4-star players. Coming home after his most recent stint as the offensive coordinator of the Oregon Ducks, Will Stein is doing well for himself.

  • So far, Georgia State has 27 incoming transfers for next fall. Eleven of them are former Division II players and I believe they have one Division III player - but have to confirm that one.

  • Am thinking that I should add another FCS transfer blog - the top five FCS transfers by position…

January 12th:

  • Looking forward to the transfer portal closing in four days - could use some quiet on that front though it will still take a while to gather details on players that are moving, especially the Division II folks.

  • I like Sam Leavitt, but I wish that he had chosen another destination. The only worse place for him to land would have been Miami (FL).

  • I’m surprised that Dylan Raiola has committed himself to the Ducks with Dante Moore still in the fold - at this time. There is talk that he could/would redshirt if Moore were to return Eugene, but would anyone be surprised if he backtracks on his decision rather than wait a year to play?

  • For the record - Dante Moore should return to the Ducks next year.

  • The Buckeyes have had quite few players enter the portal, but nobody needs to be concerned, as they have great depth and will reload either with recruiting or with transfers. Texas had the same thing happen, and then they hit the portal hard and got some solid players!

  • Was working through the CAA team schedules for next year this afternoon. Looking at Sacred Heart, Bryant, Campbell, Elon and Hampton is not the same as looking at the schedules for Villanova, Richmond, William & Mary, Delaware and James Madison!

  • Nice to see that Arkansas State added Central Arkansas to their schedule in 2027! They first met on the gridiron in 1916 and have squared off 28 times. Their most recent meeting came in 2024, when the Red Wolves edged the Bears 34–31 in Jonesboro, a result that evened the all‑time series at 13‑13‑2.

January 11th:

  • Just finished going through the transfer portal actions from yesterday. I have now found 73 Division II players moving up to Division I, but 0 from Division III. Five of the players moving up will be playing for SEC teams and four will be playing for Big 10 teams.

  • There are also 22 New England players from FCS teams moving up to the FBS in 2026. UMaine and UNH lead the way so far with five players each heading to bigger schools, and eight players from the Ivy League have committed to the top division.

  • Of interest - quarterback Gio Lopez, who transferred to UNC from South Alabama last spring to play for Bill Belichick has left the Tar Heels and will play for conference rival Wake Forest next fall.

  • The lowest rated quarterback that’s available in the transfer portal: Anthony Wolter, Nevada. He has not made an appearance on the field for the Wolfpack in his two years there.

  • Added a new blog this morning: Division II Teams with the Most All-Time Wins. Just 25 more to create…lol

  • Also, I just added a list of the best FCS non-conference games being played in 2026. It will be updated since I still have a good number of schedules to look at and get into my Games to Follow spreadsheet.

January 10th:

  • How did the Hoosiers do that to Oregon? Especially since this was their second meeting of the year and the Ducks had been on a roll since that game. Indiana has come a long way these last two years!

  • One of my first memories of Indiana football was their 1979 game against Michigan. Anthony Carter scored on a game winning 45-yard touchdown catch for a 27-21 as time expired, and all I could think of before that play (and I remember this vividly), Michigan can’t lose to the lowly Hoosiers.

  • Today’s big transfer news, five-star edge rusher Chaz Coleman has transferred from Penn State to the Tennessee Volunteers, bolstering a defense that is undergoing major upgrades under new coordinator Jim Knowles - the Nittany Lion defensive coordinator last year.

  • I’m shocked that Clemson has already signed 8 players out of the transfer portal!

  • Forgot to mention that yesterday I started to add some detail to the Top Division II players in the Transfer Portal. With any luck I will be able to do it with a lot of blogs this year.

  • Down to one game left in the 2025 College Football season…

January 9th:

  • Hope the matchup tonight between Indiana and Oregon is as good as the game last night! The Ducks certainly have the talent advantage based on recruiting stats, but the Hoosiers are the better team until they lose…

  • Even though that was pass interference in the end zone on the last play when a Hurricane defender pulled down the Ole Miss receiver, if it were called, I’m not sure the result would have changed.

  • The combined records of Miami’s three playoff opponents (Texas A&M, Ohio State and Ole Miss) before they played the Hurricanes: 36-3

  • The NCAA has denied Trinidad Chambliss a sixth-year of eligibility, which would end his college career. The decision comes after a verbal denial in December but Ole Miss can still appeal the decision.

  • In other quarterback news, UW qb Demond Williams Jr. has reversed course and removed himself from the transfer portal and ex-Gator qb DJ Lagway has found a new home in Waco, TX playing for the Baylor Bears.

  • Looking towards the NFL Draft this spring, Ohio State has had a fourth player, DT Kayden McDonald, declare for the draft - and all four are expected to be First Round selections. The others before him: WR Carnell Tate, Safety Caleb Downs and LB Arvell Reese. Buckeye fans shouldn’t worry though - they will have no trouble reloading!

  • One of the best transfer stories I have ever heard…when Arizona State reached out to RB Marquis Gillis, the Delaware State RB transfer didn't ask for money. He didn't ask for anything else, either. Instead, he made an offer. "I'll sleep in the airport just to get a chance to meet with you." Now, he's a Sun Devil.

  • Two teams that have felt the bite of the transfer portal due to their coaches being hired away: Iowa State and North Texas. The Cyclones have lost 52 scholarship players, including 17 starters and the Mean Green, after winning a school-record 12 games, have seen 37 scholarship players leave - 14 of them started at least 4 games.

  • I just added the Temple-Toledo game on 9/19/2026 to my Games to Follow spreadsheet. Should be one of the better Group of Six non-conference games this year!

  • When it was announced that UMass will be hosting Stonehill on 9/19 this fall, I was thinking that the Minutemen will have an excellent chance to end their 16-game losing streak. But they should end it the prior week when they host the Pioneers of Sacred Heart.

January 8th:

  • In going through the Transfer Portal this morning, I didn’t know if it was a good thing or not that I recognize all the teams’ emblems from Division I teams through a good chunk of Division II teams.

  • Created a new blog: Most All-Time Games Played - Division I teams. I had forgotten until pulling it together that Penn has played the most games, I was thinking that it was Rutgers - though they have played the most games for a FBS team.

  • Almost forgot that there’s a playoff game being played tonight. I’m still sticking with a final game matchup prediction of Miami (FL) and Oregon, though I would love to see Ole Miss stick to Kiffin by winning it all! Actually, I can’t think of a bad matchup with any of the possible combinations…

  • Must say that I am surprised that Jackson Arnold transferring from Auburn to UNLV doesn’t seem like Top Headline material to me. His career thus far has been quite underwhelming.

  • Nineteen of the Top 25 Group of Six players in the portal have already found a new home, including the 3 North Texas players (Drew Mestemaker, Caleb Hawkins, and Wyatt Young), who are all headed to Oklahoma State

January 7th:

  • One week into a new year with this site and I am very excited with the results so far in 2026! I will admit that last year I had my doubts as to where things were headed, but with some serious thinking last fall, I feel like I put together a serious game plan to improve things for both myself and my readers. And so far it is showing in the results. Still - there’s a long way to go, but my faith has been restored.

  • My transfer tab has seen tremendous gains, partly due to the timing of having things ready for when the portal opened, and partly due to developing new blogs. Now I just need to add details about the players…

  • Nebraska bounced back from their loss of Kenny Minchey, with getting Anthony Colandrea, former UVA and UNLV QB, the following day. He threw for 3,459 yards last year at UNLV and won Mountain West Player of the year by accounting for a combined 33 touchdowns - 23 passing and 10 rushing.

  • Early results in the portal - Texas Tech is loading up again defensively (Mateen Ibirogba, Jojo Johnson, and Austin Romaine, as well as landing top QB Brendan Sorsby from Cincinnati) while Indiana is getting some offensive weapons: QB Josh Hoover, WR Nick Marsh, and RB Turbo Richard.

  • Recently, Washington quarterback Demond Williams, Jr. re-signed with the Huskies for 2026. Last night, he announced that he was entering the transfer portal with a do-not-contact tag. Back in 2022, Williams initially committed to Ole Miss - and Lane Kiffin. I smell something foul…

  • With their loss to Illinois on 11/29, Northwestern passed Indiana (for the time being) for the most losses (716) by a FBS program. A win over Central Michigan gives the Wildcats a chance to share the most losses with the Hoosiers going into the 2026, unless Indiana wins the National Championship.

  • The first SEC conference game of 2026: Alabama at Kentucky on September 12th. Not a very exciting matchup (The Tide has won 39 of 42 matchups), but there are some great non-conference games involving the conference (Ohio State at Texas, Oklahoma at Michigan, Missouri at Kansas, Arizona State at Texas A&M, and Tennessee at Georgia Tech).

  • The first trophy game of 2026: Arkansas State will visit Memphis on September 5th to start a four-game home-and-home series that will run from 2026 to 2029. The Red Wolves have played the Tigers more than any opponent in school history, and this contest will mark the 63rd all-time meeting between the two schools since 1914. Memphis leads the all-time series 33-24-5 and has won the last five contests in the series. Oh - and the trophy is a Paint Bucket.

January 6th:

  • Kudos to Montana State for staying on track and winning the FCS title after losing their first two games of the season to Oregon and South Dakota State. Their first national championship since 1984 and their fourth overall as a program.

  • Quite the season for the Bobcats as they also beat their chief rival Montana twice this year! Lastly - the uniforms that they wore last night are my favorites…

  • Illinois State, did suffer a heartbreaking loss, but what a run they had this postseason! No one expected them to get out of the first round - well, at least I didn’t expect it.

  • This was the first overtime game in FCS Championship game history and the announced attendance was 24,105 - the largest crowd since 1996 and the seventh biggest in title game history.

  • The first quick note on the transfer portal - Nebraska thought they had their quarterback when Kenny Minchey from Notre Dame committed to them, but he flipped yesterday to Kentucky. Quite a blow to the Cornhuskers, especially since it was the Wildcats delivering the blow!

  • How about Drew Mestemaker - a walk-on 12 months ago, he will now earn $3.75M this year and next. Wow!

January 5th:

  • Congratulations to the UW-River Falls Falcons for winning the Division III national championship last night! North Central was playing in its sixth consecutive D-III national title game and the Falcons had 19 consecutive losing seasons entering 2021 and this was the school’s first playoff appearance since 1996!

  • Falcon’s quarterback Kaleb Blaha completed 27 of 41 passes for 291 yards and a touchdown, and ran for 128 yards and two touchdowns, giving him a total of 6,189 individual yards on the season. In the third quarter, he broke Joe Burrow’s NCAA record of 6,039 yards, which the quarterback set during LSU’s 2019 national championship season.

  • Defense was the key to the Falcon’s win though as they forced three key turnovers - two of them in the red-zone.

  • Tonight, Illinois State takes on Montana State for the FCS national championship!

  • Montana State is in the championship game for the fourth time, having claimed one title in 1984 with a 19-6 victory over Louisiana Tech in Charleston, South Carolina while Illinois State fell 29-27 to NDSU to cap the 2014 season in its only previous appearance.

  • ISU is the first unseeded finalist since Youngstown State in 2016, but the first in the eight FCS playoffs to have 16 seeded teams (1995-2000, 2024-present) and they are the first team to win four road games on the way to the championship game.

  • The Bobcats are hoping to finally breakthrough and win the championship under coach Brent Vigen after being the national runner-up in 2021 and ’24.

  • The Transfer Portal is running fast and furious - so I hope to provide some details I have found very soon…tomorrow I hope!

January 4th:

  • Tonight (on ESPN!), UW-River Falls will take on the defending Division III champion North Central for the 2025 Division III National Championship! The Falcons average 564.1 yards of offense per game and 85 offensive snaps per game, the most of any team in any division of NCAA football, while the Cardinals have the No. 1 scoring offense in Division III at 49.4 points per game and they are playing in their sixth straight title game. Don’t miss it!

  • Didn’t take long for former North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker to follow his head coach and sign with Oklahoma State. Smart move keeping a good thing going.

  • Speaking of a good signing for both player and team - Lincoln Kienholz leaving the Buckeyes for Louisville and playing for Jeff Brohm will be exciting to follow. Kienholz didn’t have a chance behind Julian Sayin, so here’s his opportunity to spread his wings under a great coach for quarterbacks.

  • I also saw that DJ Lagway was visiting Florida State. Not sure I am sold on that for the Seminoles - Lagway has a lot of talent, but I’m not sure he can reach his potential.

  • When Miami (FL) and Ole Miss play on Thursday, it will be their first meeting in 75 years! The Rebels won the first two matchups in 1936 and 1940, but the Hurricanes took the 1951 game. Old news though.

  • Meanwhile, Indiana and Oregon are meeting for the second time this season. The Hoosiers came out on top during the regular season, but the Ducks have been playing on a different level since that loss.

  • All four head coaches left in the playoffs have ties to Nick Saban. Lanning was a graduate assistant for the Crimson Tide in 2015, and Cignetti coached receivers under Saban from 2007-10. Former UO head coach Mario Cristobal coached the offensive line under Saban at Alabama from 2013-16 and Ole Miss is led by former Alabama defensive coordinator Pete Golding.

  • Yesterday I updated my list of 2026 Top FBS Non-Conference Games. It is up to 38 games, so I probably should find a couple more to get to 40…

January 3rd:

  • Feeling good as to how things are going thus far on the site in 2026! Spent this morning updating the blogs regarding the transfer portal - and then added the Top Division II players in the portal.

  • I have also plugged in the SEC games scheduled for next season into my Games to Follow spreadsheet. Will now move on to some conferences in the FCS - which will include the recently released Patriot League games.

  • I will write more about the Patriot League in my FCS notes soon (Monday?), but I have to say now that the recent team additions is making it a top conference.

  • Congratulations to Navy for winning their 11th game last night against a shorthanded Cincinnati team. A win is still a win, and it’s the third time the Midshipmen have won 11 games in their history.

  • It was also their 759th all-time win (759-605-57) - the most wins for a Group of Six team!

  • Congratulations also to quarterback Blake Horvath! He is the 1st Navy quarterback in school history to have 1,000 yards passing and 1,000 yards rushing in back-to-back seasons. Horvath is also the 1st player to do it in the FBS since both Lamar Jackson (Louisville) and Quinton Flowers (USF) did it in 2016 and 2017.

  • Seems strange to not have any of the remaining games being played on Saturday…

January 2nd:

  • So much happening in the first two days of 2026!

  • I know that the Peach Bowl and Fiesta Bowl are being played next week, but to me the true bowl season wraps up today. The best of today’s bowl games is being played last - the Holiday Bowl with Arizona taking on SMU.

  • Only one out of the three playoff games yesterday was close - but all three were full of surprises! Oregon’s defense was magnificent! Indiana embarrassed Alabama! And what a strong, accurate leg Lucas Carneiro has - the Ole Miss kicker would have been good from 60+ yards on his field goals!

  • I’m thinking Miami - Oregon for the national championship, though I would much rather have Indiana and Ole Miss!

  • According to ESPN, more than 1,000 FBS and FCS players were in the transfer portal by 12:08am! Guess I will have to update my lists of top players in the portal tomorrow…

  • 247sports seems pretty sure that five top quarterbacks already have made up their minds: Byrum Brown (USF to Auburn), Rocco Becht (Iowa State to Penn State), Josh Hoover (TCU to Indiana), Kenny Minchey (Notre Dame to Nebraska), and Aaron Philo (Georgia Tech to Florida).

  • Georgia State didn’t have a great season, but I’m surprised that 29 players have entered the portal because their coaching staff is stable. Something must not be right with the program…

January 1st:

  • Someone I know well did not get the New Year’s present that he was hoping for last night. Seeing the Miami (FL) - Ohio State result this morning surprised me. Michigan is a physical team, but when the Buckeyes went up against Indiana and Miami (FL) they got punched in the mouth.

  • Jumping ahead a few days…how about a Miami - Oregon matchup for the National Championship?

  • As Indiana prepares to meet Alabama for the first time, lets think about this - the Hoosiers won their third-ever Big Ten Championship (1967, 1945) and first out-right title since 1945 and today’s game marks Indiana's first appearance in the Rose Bowl Game since 1968!

  • The Crimson Tide made its inaugural appearance in Pasadena on Jan. 1, 1926, when the Tide downed the heavily favored Washington Huskies by a score of 20-19 to claim the program's first national championship.

  • Texas Tech's dominance this season has placed the Red Raiders in a rare category in college football history. The Red Raiders are only the fifth team in the Associated Press era (since 1936) to record 12 or more wins by 20-plus points in a season, joining the likes of Nebraska (1971), Florida State (2013), Alabama (2018) and Clemson (2018).

  • The Ducks lead the nation with 91 plays of 20-plus yards this season; Texas Tech is second with 90.

  • This will be the eighth ranked meeting between Ole Miss and Georgia, with UGA leading such games 5-2 …and it’s the third meeting all-time with both teams in the top-10. Lastly, this will be the 50th meeting all-time between the Rebels and Bulldogs (UGA leads 34-14-1), but the two teams are meeting in the postseason for the first time.

  • Meant to mention yesterday that Iowa fans travel well!

  • And I am not sad that USC lost to TCU because I think Riley is a crybaby, and I’m mad at the sports department for making it too challenging and difficult to continue the Notre Dame series. Shame on all of them!

  • How about Tulsa renting a 5-bedroom house with a pool and mini golf (seven holes in the backyard) as their HQ during the transfer portal timeframe?