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Hello. Happy Friday. No “Odyssey” spoilers. Do not tell USC how the Trojan War went for the Trojans. Let’s get to it.
Gross: Big political donation, conveniently timed
Does it really feel like this college soccer offseason’s information cycle has bounced between Texas Tech, Playoff enlargement, Lane Kiffin and the standard thrum of NCAA enterprise, with no subject ever actually going away?
The discourse dial spins again to Texas Tech, with what ought to be by far the biggest scandal of the entire Brendan Sorsby story, however certainly gained’t be:
“One day before the office of Texas attorney general Ken Paxton released a letter threatening legal action against the Big 12 conference if it moved to sanction Texas Tech over Sorsby’s eligibility saga, Texas Tech board of regents chair and billionaire booster Cody Campbell donated $274,300 in support of Paxton’s U.S. Senate campaign.”
When I stated in Tuesday’s newsletter that college soccer is a metaphor for the way the remainder of the world works, I didn’t anticipate to get an even starker instance days later. However, this article’s place on Campbell has by no means felt extra vindicated.
A month in the past, Paxton issuing threats in support of Campbell’s team was bizarre. In coldly political phrases: Paxton’s in a tight Senate race, so wouldn’t he fairly search the help of the positive majority of Texans who opposed Sorsby’s eligibility?
Well, will we now see a possible inspiration for Paxton taking that threat? Gosh, I really feel like we’d.
“Campbell made prior donations to Paxton’s Senate campaign dating back to 2025 and to Paxton in his capacity as attorney general,” notes our story on information first reported by the Texas Tribune. “The June 10 donation to Paxton’s Senate campaign represents Campbell’s largest one-time amount given toward a state-level politician dating back to 2016.”
Anyway, Tech might not have any wholesome veteran quarterbacks for Week 1, whereas Paxton’s actual property portfolio has expanded regardless of each his Senate marketing campaign and his divorce. The recreation is the sport.
And as a result of metaphors by no means cease arriving, Tech renamed its stadium after an AI data-center company at this time.
Quick Snaps
⏰ One of ESPN’s most outstanding NFL Draft analysts is recovering from a horrific damage. At the identical time, he’s being investigated for years of allegedly exploiting each charity donors and fantasy soccer gamers, typically intertwined. So much going on here.
- Totally completely different draft factor: In this period, a “best underclassman” list is further enjoyable … as a result of these guys may stick round for 2027. Hey! Look! An upside of modernity!
🐯 “The only thing we demand excellence of in Louisiana is Mardi Gras and college football.” OK, I do know what you imply, however that appears somewhat off. Why LSU actually is unique among top-tier CFB jobs.
🎤 From this week’s ACC media days:
- After final yr’s goofy setup put 7-5 Duke within the convention title recreation over 10-2 Miami, the league has new tiebreakers that also account for something even goofier: ACC groups enjoying completely different numbers of convention video games. This will go nice.
- “Everybody compares us to (our 2015-2019 teams). They say that but don’t have perspective.” Dabo Swinney makes points, although his 2020s rosters have been constructed as if it’s nonetheless … 2015-2019.
- Two issues. First, SMU is within the ACC. Modernity nonetheless has its points. Second, SMU is allowed to give money to whoever it wants now. “If people knew the numbers in (head coach Rhett Lashlee’s) deal, they would be shocked.”
- James Franklin stated he thinks his Hokies “won the offseason.” He, too, makes points. However, that is me, advising him to not say issues like that:
📰 Other information:
Athletic Department: Your college’s favourite missed sport?
In college sports, a method to deal with a humiliating loss is to assert, “Ehh, we’re really more of a ____ school.” Oh, you crude normies assume this sport issues? This isn’t our factor anyway, as a result of our factor is superior.
Still, there’s little question that completely different sports matter very in a different way, relying on which campus we’re speaking about.
In that gentle, our Joe Rexrode boldly tried to record the definitive sport for each Power 4 school. Mostly soccer, yeah, however plenty of basketball and different sports.
The resolution by Joe that jumped out at me:
“Indiana: Men’s basketball. It’s in the blood. Curt Cignetti just delivered a football national championship to Indiana, perhaps the most amazing story in college sports history. But how many IU fans would trade it for a basketball title? Or even a general return to the national relevance that has eluded the program for more than two decades? Most of them.”
There’s a well-liked film named after residents of the state, and it’s a film about basketball. For these of us sufficiently old to recollect Indiana’s final males’s hoops title look a quarter-century in the past, it’d make sense for this to nonetheless be a basketball college.
But truthfully, and this nonetheless feels wild to say … I believe Indiana has been completely football-pilled. At least its youthful generations. Just like that. Poof. (Cignetti’s a greater story than “Hoosiers” anyway.)
Spinoff query: Which non-football/basketball/diamond sport is your college’s particular curiosity? I already know the outstanding specialties like Nebraska volleyball, Georgia gymnastics and Virginia swimming. Gimme the niche stuff. If your college is secretly means right into a smaller sport, let me know at [email protected].
And now for a variety from Stewart Mandel’s new mailbag:
Mandel’s Mailbag
Penn State, Clemson and LSU all had preseason nationwide championship hype final yr. They all went 7-6, and two of them fired their coaches. Which staff(s) do you assume this might occur to this yr? — Tyler F.
I do know that’s going to occur to some groups once more this yr, however they’re more durable to determine. Though all these groups had been ranked extremely within the preseason primarily based on their personnel, there was nonetheless trigger for skepticism given their coaches. James Franklin couldn’t beat top-10 teams, Dabo Swinney’s program had been backsliding and Brian Kelly had underdelivered at LSU up to that point.
Looking on the Vegas preseason nationwide title favorites, I’ve full confidence within the coaches at Ohio State (Ryan Day), Notre Dame (Marcus Freeman), Oregon (Dan Lanning), Georgia (Kirby Smart) and Indiana (Curt Cignetti).
The just one in that higher tier that gives me pause is Texas below Steve Sarkisian. Last yr’s preseason No. 1 went 10-3 however misplaced to a 4-8 Florida staff and wanted additional time to outlive 5-7 Kentucky and 5-8 Mississippi State.
I do consider this yr’s staff is rather more formidable on paper. Arch Manning has a full yr as a starter below his belt (although I nonetheless assume expectations are too excessive), and Sark upgraded his supporting solid in an enormous means with The Athletic’s No. 3 portal class. But the Horns will not be with out questions. Everyone assumes defensive coordinator Will Muschamp will are available in and discipline a classic Will Muschamp protection, however he hasn’t referred to as performs in six years.
Long story quick, if you happen to instructed me Texas would find yourself being this yr’s Penn State, I’d be lower than shocked.
Any of the others might fall flat too, however for various causes. Even then, it will in all probability be extra of a 10-3 disappointment than a 7-6 catastrophe.
More mailbag here. Back to Jason.
Stew additionally places Georgia on potential flop watch. For the next motive, I believe that’s shrewd: No matter what anybody says over the following six months, Kirby Smart will declare no person believed in his Dawgs. Why not give him the tiniest little bit of precise disbelief to work with, for the primary time in like a decade?
I typed that whereas sitting within the library on his campus. Life’s like that.
Now for a number of weekend hyperlinks concerning the different soccer, since you’ve been clicking these at the least as continuously because the CFB ones:
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