Category: College Football

MIRAMAR BEACH, Fla. — The good news for college football coaches, athletics directors and university presidents, among others? The topic of scheduling − whether to play eight or nine conference games each year − has finally taken a backseat at SEC spring meetings.

The bad news? A new and perhaps even more polarizing issue has arisen.

The NCAA, SEC, Big Ten, Big 12, ACC and Pac-12 all recently voted in favor of a settlement in the House v. NCAA case. In abbreviated terms, the settlement is set to result in the NCAA paying former athletes about $2.8 billion in back damages, according to the USA TODAY Network. It also sets the groundwork for schools to directly pay athletes moving forward as a term of the settlement stipulates that schools will share with them in revenue.

“I think that’s what we’re here for, right? To try to figure that out,” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said Tuesday at the first day of the 2024 SEC Spring Meetings. “There’s a lot of speculation and a lot of narratives out there that are loose, that may not be true. We’re here to figure that out.”

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Added Alabama coach Kalen DeBoer: “I think it’s just getting all the information. We hear things, you read things. I know that it’s still in process right now, so trying to understand where it’s really at and having that communication where we’re all in a room together and really hearing the facts. Trying to separate what is real and what isn’t real, I think that’s where it starts.”

With athletes set to get a slice of the revenue − at least $20 million to start, per the USA TODAY Network − athletic departments are expected to take cost-cutting measurements to afford the new expense. An idea…

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DESTIN, Fla. — A relaxed-looking Billy Napier said he was “comfortable with (his) actions” in his first public comments on the blockbuster Jaden Rashada lawsuit. Rashada accused the Florida coach of fraud, among other allegations, stemming back to a failed $13.85 million name, image and likeness deal.

“I think it’s important for everybody to understand that I can’t comment due to the litigation,” Napier said at SEC spring meetings. “But I do have confidence in our legal team. I am comfortable with my actions. And I’m thankful for the university’s support. We’re gonna keep it at that and kind of let the process take its course.”

The Florida coach said he first found out he was one of three listed defendants — along with top Gators booster Hugh Hathcock and former Florida staffer Marcus Castro-Waker — through media reports. Rashada’s legal team, led by well-known Houston lawyer Rusty Hardin, filed the lawsuit in federal court last Tuesday, arguing that the trio fraudulently induced Rashada, then a highly regarded high school quarterback prospect, to attend Florida with no intention of following through on a $13.85 million deal. 

Specifically, the lawsuit claims “fraudulent misrepresentation and inducement, aiding and abetting fraud, civil conspiracy to commit fraud, negligent misrepresentation, tortious interference with a business relationship or contract and aiding and abetting tortious interference.” 

Napier was asked how he’d address the situation with recruits and concerns that Florida didn’t live up to mark with its promises. 

“This narrative has been out there for a long time,” Napier said. “I think we got that question two years ago or a year-and-a-half ago, and I don’t necessarily think it slowed us down, to some degree….

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It is not uncommon for Notre Dame athletes to play two sports, and on Monday was a perfect example of that as football and lacrosse star Jordan Faison helped the Irish win a National Title.

Luminary names like Jeff Samardzija and Cole Kmet played football and baseball, and Notre Dame’s newest football commit could follow in their paths. Indianapolis cornerback Mark Zackery verballed to the Irish on Saturday, but not many know that he could potentially play basketball at the next level as well.

It has been reported by Notre Dame Hoops Recruits that Zackery and basketball head coach Micah Schrewsberry have been in communication about playing on the hardwood as well.

MBB: Mark Zackery is also the PG on his high school hoops team. Been talking with @Coach_Shrews about playing both at ND. Read elsewhere he had a hoops offer from Butler. https://t.co/hPQo3rMSNE

— 🏀Notre Dame Hoops Recruits (@NDHoopsRecruits) May 25, 2024

It remains to be seen if Zackery will actually play both in South Bend, but it does tell us how great of an athlete he is.

Contact/Follow us @IrishWireND on X (Formerly Twitter), and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Notre Dame news, notes, and opinions.

Follow Mike on X: @MikeFChen

Story originally appeared on Fighting Irish Wire

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USATSI

A former Penn State team doctor alleges that coach James Franklin attempted to interfere with medical decisions involving players on the team, according to testimony obtained by John Luciew of PennLive.com. 

Dr. Pete Seidenberg, the primary care doctor for Penn State’s football team in 2014, claimed during a civil trial against Franklin and the school that he was pushed by Franklin and athletic director Sandy Barbour to medically disqualify a player who attempted suicide in order to free up a scholarship. The unidentified player was in short-term psychiatric care. 

“I perceived that as his attempt to influence medical decisions,” Seidenberg said. 

Seidenberg added that he declined to give into the pressure from Franklin and Barbour. He included other instances in which he thought Franklin overstepped in trying to get his way on medical decisions, involving both himself and former director of athletic medicine Dr. Scott Lynch. The lawsuit was filed by Lynch, who alleges his unwillingness to go along with Franklin’s desires played a key role in his termination in March 2019. 

Seidenberg no longer works at Penn State and practices medicine outside of Pennsylvania. 

Lynch filed the lawsuit months after his dismissal and revised the complaint in 2021. Franklin himself was removed as a defendant in 2020 due to statute of limitations, so the lawsuit is directed at Penn State’s Milton S. Hershey Medical Center and Dr. Kevin Black, who gave his dismissal. 

Franklin has been at Penn State since 2014 with an 88-39 overall record. In 2023, he signed a 10-year…

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Nick Lucero/Rivals.com

There is a mountain of big news heading into the busy month of June around the country. The East region is no exception. Rivals national recruiting analyst Adam Friedman has the latest in this edition of the rumor mill.

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Iheanacho’s recruitment is still in the early stages but some teams have already made a strong impression. Georgia, Penn State, Tennessee, Alabama and Texas are just some of the teams that have caught his eye thus far.

Iheanacho has lots of time to do his research and get to know the coaches at these schools but he’s already built a good relationship with Penn State offensive line coach Phil Trautwein, Alabama offensive line coach Chris Kapilovic and Oregon offensive line coach A’lique Terry.

There will be plenty of visits ahead for Iheanacho but one school he’d like to see in the near future is Tennessee.

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Georgia hosted Gilchrist for an unofficial visit earlier this month and he really enjoyed the environment in Athens. He got to spend time with the coaches and liked getting to know them more. The Bulldogs are just one of his final seven schools along with Alabama, South Carolina, Maryland, Virginia, Virginia Tech and Penn State.

Gilchrist has official visits to South Carolina and Maryland set up right now and he loves both schools because the coaching staffs have been completely up front with him throughout the recruiting process.

Gilchrist did admit South…

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Six months ago, Gerry Cardinale stood outside a conference room at the swank Aria Resort and Casino in Las Vegas having already blown away of roomful of attendees during the annual Sports Business Journal Collegiate Athletic Forum.

During his remarks, the RedBird Capital founder and CEO expanded on his private equity firm partnering with LeBron James to bring an NBA expansion team to Las Vegas. As if that wasn’t eyebrow-raising enough, he added that private equity was ready to jump into the college sports landscape cleats first. He specifically pointed to college football being tremendously undervalued. 

In terms of total revenue compared to the NFL, college football was earning five times less. In terms of media rights revenue, 10 times less.

“We should close that gap,” Cardinale insisted.  

That was a bit shocking to hear from a financial wizard. Or, perhaps it shouldn’t have been. Last August, RedBird Capital led an acquisition of soccer giant AC Milan for $1.3 billion. It already has a stake in the Pittsburgh Penguins and Boston Red Sox. 

There were reasons the college gap existed. Schools and athletes were constricted by NCAA rules. Athletic departments were business capitalistic enterprises overseen by a non-profit NCAA. Oil and water get along better. 

But with the House v. NCAA settlement on Thursday, the infiltration of private financing into college sports became all but official as the NCAA and the Power Five conferences came to the landmark agreement. The $2.8 billion settlement has opened the door to that influence. 

The proof was being laid out that day following Cardinale’s presentation. He was asked by a New York Times reporter, hypothetically, how much would Michigan football be worth as an investment by his…

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Isaiah Deloatch is more than just a highly-ranked athlete and a standout sprinter. Turns out that the Rutgers football commit is also a pretty good punter.

So get ready to push aside Adam Korsak in the annals of Rutgers football lore. Deloatch is the next great punter for the Scarlet Knights.

(OK, just having some fun here. Korsak is the greatest of all time around Rutgers, but Deloatch is one impressive athlete…and it is Memorial Day weekend…relax…unclench your bowels…it is OK…this is just fun).

A 6-foot-1, 210-pound linebacker from Hillside (Durham, North Carolina), Deloatch committed to Rutgers from an offer list that included Coastal Carolina, Duke, Indiana, James Madison, Liberty and Syracuse. He is ranked the No. 15 recruit in North Carolina in the 2025 recruiting class.

His high school spring game was canceled due to inclement weather, but Deloatch still managed to show off his punting during pre-game:

That’s a nice 40-yard punt with great hangtime and some nice placement right inside the five-yard line.

Earlier this month  at the Under Armour Next Football Camp in North Carolina, Deloatch received a very strong write-up from 247Sports:

“Listed at 6-foot-1 and 210-pounds, Deloatch has recorded multiple sub-11.00 100 meter dash times as a junior, displaying the type of speed that’s rare to come by at the linebacker position. A straight line mover with the ability to close space quickly, the Rutgers commit also showed off some ability in pass coverage accounting for one of Jaylen McGill’s sole blemishes during 1 v. 1 period. Although it’s only May, Deloatch is a heck of a win out of the Tar Heel State for Greg Schiano’s program.”

Story originally appeared on Rutgers Wire

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🏀 Good morning to everyone, but especially to …

THE BOSTON CELTICS

This was the game Celtics fans were worried about, and for good reason. Boston — a wonderful, powerful basketball machine — had lost three straight Game 2s, seemingly always finding a way to cast some doubt on its excellence.

Not this time. After trailing early, the Celtics ripped off a 20-0 run to take the lead from the Pacers, ultimately cruising to a 126-110 Game 2 win two days after a miraculous Game 1 victory.

Jaylen Brown tied a playoff career-high with 40 points, and it’s clear Indiana doesn’t have a good option to slow him down. Then again, when Brown is at the peak of his powers, no one does. He attacked relentlessly (11 free throws), finished strong at the rim and nailed four 3-pointers. Add in 23 each from Jayson Tatum and Derrick White and 14 points (on 6-for-7 shooting) and 10…

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