Paul Johnson interview on Wreck talk

I would argue that college football, as it stands currently, is nothing like the NFL. College football has no salary cap, no player acquisition process with enforceable rules, no contracts that provide roster stability and the HC has to fundraise to make payroll.

Hence the desire of many college coaches to make the jump to the NFL, regardless of position.

With the chaos of college football, free-for-all that is high school football in many places and the shenanigans that youth football can bring, the NFL may be the purest form of football we have right now.

I don’t know if I would consider roster management the definition of pure football. But it is the level apparently with the most cohesive roster management program.

I am not really sure what "supposed to" means relative to this. Are certain humans ordained to be football players at certain locations?

I think one could make an argument that in some ways, college football is pure in this regard, as now athletes can choose to attend say University of Southern Mississippi for their freshman year, transfer to Memphis their Jr. Year, and then pursue graduate work at Florida, just like any other student. Obviously the purity might dwindle a bit if one examines the actual nature of their academic efforts...

Players you're "supposed to" have/getting players within the rules:

In HS: kids in your attendance zone not kids from all over who were recruited 
Youth: kids in the vicinity of your area, not kids from different areas/states coming together to form an all-star team
College: kids you recruited from HS/portal without using NIL as an inducement 

NFL: sign/draft players in collectively-bargained periods with everyone generally playing by the same rules

I don't think that anyone is suggesting that it will die.

But, as soon as fans think it is more minor league football than it is college football, it won't bring in the same money or have the same enthusiasm.


AND as soon as the NFL realizes this and decides to play on SATURDAYS and Sundays... Uh oh

But here is the difference- English soccer is a professional sports endeavor. “College” football is not. I believe there will be unintended and unforeseen consequences of 30 schools having a pro sports team affiliated with their university, while other schools dont.

Just like boxing is still the most popular sport in the country right?

I do not blame college players from taking NIL deals and that never really bothers me. A lot of this could have been prevented though if tv money contracts and coaches contracts didn't get as high that they are now so that is really who should be blamed IMO.

The moving around of players from one to another though really throws me off though. I understand I can be a little blurry visioned since I coach in an area of small schools where families move back at a high rate and is kind of expected to have kids and bring them through the public schools sports programs. This to me though is what pure sport is about though is the bonding of teammates to better one another to achieve a goal you had as a kid together and really why it attracted a lot of fans to begin with. When you take all of that away people start to lose the interest that drove them to the sport.

Alright I will stop with my old man rant as a 31 year old and realize I am probably way out of touch with the rest of the way people see it.

I don't blame players taking NIL deals either. My problem was when major college players were screaming that they were broke to the point where they could not even get a pizza at night and was starving cause they couldn't get jobs.... I literally laughed out loud when they would cry about this. 

Theres a hundred thousand people sitting in multiple stadiums each weekend watching games

you're telling me they will all suddenly stop watching because their team a) gets more better players going to the nfl and b) plays more games against better teams (no more vandy, no more East North West State FCS)?

I find that hard to believe

I think most of this talk is older dudes who don't like it, the old "get off my lawn" approach

for every old guy who says "they do get paid, they get a scholarship" there's young fans saying "why is 'bama playing delaware state in week 9?"


and there's always going to be rich guys willing to pay to make sure their team is hte best

salary cap and free agency didn't kill the NFL, it probably made it better... lot of old dudes thought it was gonna die though when those ideas were floated.

Maybe they're fans of Vandy.

I do think/worry I am being the grumpy old man here and have said so previously.

My number one point is that when people start to view this as minor league or G league instead of college football, things will change. I don't think people are there right now, but I think they very well could in 5-10 years.

And if the NFL somehow gets to broadcast on Saturdays, it will never recover.



As I stated previously, the new 12 team playoff could not have come at a better time.

The television numbers don't support that but... I guess only time will tell.

College Basketball has been dealing with "One and Done" for years, now NIL and transfer portal, and people are still watching, especially the Big Dance.

I'll keep watching CFB just like NFL. Why? Players come, players go. Always have, always will.

I don't pay any attention to recruiting, transfers, free agents, etc.

I root for the team-jersey (am not a gambler or fantasy player).