But depending on how you answered to the Saturdays is for the Boys post, maybe it’s just another Saturday next week.
College football starts next weekend.
That is, pending any outstanding injunctions or litigation that may stop it.
One thing I’ve learned this offseason…anything is possible.
What happens when the blowhard of one program with the softest schedule in college sports talks crap about the other program with the softest schedule in sports? The geniuses are unleashed.
It’s one of those moments, isn’t it?
Glorious.
EE had an idea for some of the contributors here to explain their rationale in the Preseason Mumme Poll, including how and why we voted. Fun fact – we have no clear formula or consistent rationale. You know, we could likely find ourselves on the CFP Committee for that fact alone. So, without further ado, here’s an explanation from your GTPR “experts”.
JP:
#1 Notre Dame, the rest in negotiable – In the modern era, I have to look at who has the easiest pathway coupled with the most NIL money. Notre Dame is a money machine. Freeman, as much as I hate to admit it, is a good coach. If Notre Dame doesn’t make it out of their schedule undefeated, he should be fired. But honestly, he can use each game as a live scrimmage that counts towards the CFP. I’d run the same base plays all season, use each week to study the defensive reaction, run them against different defensive looks, and save the “wrinkles” until the CFP. That’s dangerous territory – win out, and they all expect you to hoist the trophy. Lose, and WTF are you doing?
#2/3 – Indiana, for the same reasons as above, or you could say Ohio State has the same.
#4 – Georgia – This is Kirby’s high water mark. If you invest your NIL dollars in seniors and defense, it needs to show, in a very dominating way. They need to be the Junkyard Dawgs on steroids. If there’s not a series of scoreless games, Kirby might bust a gasket. We have the defensive returners to do this, but this will also be a testament to Mike Bobo, who has an embarrassment of riches on offense with tight ends, a great offensive line, and a solid backfield of rubbing backs and quarterbacks to get it done on the backs of a great defense. Fall short, and people start questioning Smart’s strategy. Kirby seems oddly calm this year, and that should scare the hell out of everyone else. But the SEC is the SEC. I still stand by the idea that it’s the toughest interconference competition and anything goes.
#5-#10 – One other B1G team (probably Oregon), Three SEC teams (likely Ole Miss, Texas and TAMU), and an ACC team (Miami). Take your pick.
EE:
My approach:
For the preseason poll, I focused my ballot on the teams I believe have the roster, schedule or coaching to be the last team standing in January.
My ballot (not a ranking):
Miami – excellent roster with a QB who could push the Hurricanes over the top. Issue … Mario Cristobal.
Indiana – until someone (anyone) shows they can beat them, Cignetti has found a formula that works. Issue … the Covid seniors are gone now.
Ohio State – one of the 3-5 best rosters in the sport and a coach who seems to have found something. Issue … can Julian Sayin find another gear?
Oregon – some say Dante Moore is likely to be 1, 1 in this April’s draft and the talent around him is excellent. Issue … can Dan Lanning get out of his own way consistently?
Notre Dame – the schedule is very kind to the Irish with a great roster to go along with it. Issue … the schedule especially if Miami beats them soundly in South Bend.
Georgia – the talent along the lines of scrimmage may make the Dawgs the most physical team in the sport. Issue … can the offense find the explosiveness that will be needed to win it all?
Texas – the best roster money can buy with a head coach who is feeling the heat to do something with it (sound familiar, OSU 2024). Issue … is there the culture to withstand the SEC wars?
Dawglicious:
In the spirit of the relative worthlessness of preseason polls, I filled mine out with a touch of “let’s give a shout out to some schools, my personal feelings on who should even be included, and dadgummit, downright pettiness on my part. To wit: I voted for all three service academies, voted for zero Group of 6 programs, and left Indiana off entirely out of spite. I promise this will not be my modus operandi the rest of the season (and has not been in the past).
Otis Day:
I don’t have a clue who has what. With all the transfers nowadays, I can’t keep up with who is where and I don’t give a damn about anybody but UGA so, the only news I follow is about the Dawgs. That said, I just went with who I feel would be in a 4 team playoff (as it still should be). In no particular order: UGA, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Oregon.
I mentioned this yesterday and feel like continuing it today. For a moment, I was thinking that this has been the hardest offseason of blogging to date, but for a few reasons I’ve noticed, and I hope those of you who scour the internet have noticed it, too:
So, you have to put together the pieces by yourself, meaning what comes out on the field is anyone’s guess. We know the potential starters, and maybe a few surprises. Yahoo. The days of Phil Steele’s guidance and preseason magazines are gone. Your guess is as good as theirs. For giggles, I decided to fantasize if I could be one of them (the social media football pundits), then I realized I’d have to ESPN myself, and here’s the image I got that plays with the modern day college football prognosticator:
It’s like I’m looking at my son if he was crossbred with Theo Von and Pat McAfee. Shudder. Also, if that’s me, someone is grooming me to not have ear hair and nose hair. I’m almost offended.
Anyway, if you think I’m joking, take a look at this take, from someone who gets paid really good money to make stupid takes like this:
CBS must not have a research department, but they also employ Danny Kanell, so there’s that. How many times and how often do we have to hear that Texas is back, Texas owns the SEC, Everything’s Bigger in Texas, yadda yadda just to watch them faceplant in the biggest game of the year?
Ohhhhh Aaaaachie! He used a foul word! What a badass and, man, Texas is gonna be hell on wheels! I put the category in the Mumme Poll of “For all the resources and money thrown at them, that’s the best they could do? (Falling short of high expectations)” in there precisely for Sarkisian, who, for all intents and purposes, should be canned for doing less with more.
Kudos to Kirby for reserving NIL for upperclassmen, it’s almost as if he should join Saban in retirement in driving NIL regulation to keep it out of the high schools and recruiting and reserve it for results on the field. If you asked me for my opinion on reform, I’m fine with the open market, but keep it for sophomores or redshirt freshmen and above. Do something to prove your worth beyond beating the hell out of Our Sister of Mercy’s JV squad and social media bravado. If you come in as a freshman and earn playing time and play at a high level, the open market is yours. Good on you, and a guy like Kirby is your friend and mentor, not your paycheck. He’ll make sure you make eight figures in the NFL, which will make the NIL days look like chump change.
As it should be.
Until we get to that level of sensibility, we have what we have. It’s a shitshow, and there’s no better way to describe it.
That being said, lay forth your opinions and know, no matter who retorts, that your opinion holds as much gold value as anyone else’s because it’s 2026, this is the state of College Football, and the comments section is really where the true knowledge is at.
Pads are clapping and helmets are cracking as we speak. Our long slow offseason of discontent is about to conclude, and ball will be on our TVs or itineraries in less than a month. Hell, I’m so eager I actually considered buying the $20 ticket packages they advertised for Tech versus Colorado. I’m that hard up for football, even as shitty as some of the noise had become. And I like hot dogs and Coke. Sounds like a fine idea.
Note: relax, I didn’t but any Tech tickets. Yet.
It’s almost here, Refugees. Rejoice. And have away in the comments.
Go Dawgs!
I responded to one of the comments from earlier about the timing of the Mumme Poll. As Dawg in Austin pointed out, it used to come out later in the season and EE mentioned it didn’t come out until the CFP Committee released them. True, and in the spirit of it I could’ve kept it that way, but let’s not forget that the offseason is for pundits and “professionals” to make their expert prognostications, so why the hell not us?
Case in point, let’s reflect on Josh Pate’s 2025 Preseason SEC QB rankings:
Expert. Chef’s Kiss. I mean, on paper, DJ Lagway was the man. Sellers had incredible upside. Austin Simmons looked like he was the second coming of Bryce Young when he stepped in and shredded the Georgia defense in Oxford when Jaxson Dart left early in the game.
Half of the list now has a new head coach. Four of the QBs have left and moved on to other programs.
Now, one could say “that’s parity”. College football is delightfully unpredictable now, no? That’s how NIL and the Transfer Portal have “leveled the playing field”. Let’s think back to how much has changed in just the short life cycle of this sister companion blog since the Senator’s passing:
Who knew? More importantly…who the hell knows?
I say all this to say that we might as well rank the teams as we see fit and maybe we have the insight that everyone is missing. Can you crystal ball it? Heck no…the only thing that is guaranteed is that someone or something will screw the whole thing up and give us something that no one saw coming, and the CFP Committee will piss off everyone outside of the B1G.
Who knows, by November, we might be realizing that we all slept on and overlooked the new power coach in college football, revitalizing a program and turning it into a new CFP powerhouse.
It’s 2026. Anything can happen…so please, vote away in the Mumme Poll!
Funny. Regular season marquee games are becoming more and more expensive, with the current ticket prices for Ohio State at Texas looking more and more like Argentina versus Spain in the recent World Cup.
This, despite the fact that we now have an expanded College Football Playoff, which makes said marquee game less significant in the grand scheme of things. Lose to Oklahoma in Athens, we still have good chances to make the CFP field. Lose twice…depending on who the loss is to, and if your name happens to rhyme with Motor Lame, you still have a chance.
Then there’s this:
The only person rumored to be opposed: Greg Sankey.
Now is it for the purity of the game? For the conference? Oh, hell no, you know better. It could be because of the draw we still get from the SECCG and the revenue generated from matchups in December like Georgia versus Alabama or Texas or Ole Miss or whoever.
But, apparently, the only cog in the wheel of expansion to December Madness is ole Greg himself.
Frankly, for all the crap I give him, and for whatever his purposes may be, I say…give ’em hell Greg.
We’re all counting on you.
Not really, but there’s always hope.
Curt Cignetti, college football blowhard.
Notre Dame’s scheduled home-and-home football series with Indiana has been canceled at Indiana’s request, according to reporting from The Athletic’s Pete Sampson and Sports Illustrated’s Pat Forde. The two schools announced the agreement on April 19, 2021, with Indiana set to visit Notre Dame Stadium on Aug. 31, 2030, and the Irish scheduled to play in Bloomington on Sept. 27, 2031.
The reporting surfaced on Aug. 3, the same day Notre Dame officially announced a renewed four-game rivalry series with USC running from 2030 through 2033. The opener of that series falls on Aug. 31, 2030, the date Indiana had held for nine years.
Under the terms of the 2021 contract, per Sports Illustrated, the canceling party owes $250,000 when the game is called off more than two years out, $500,000 with one to two years’ notice, and $1 million inside a year of kickoff. At more than four years from the 2030 date, the lowest tier applies.
This should come as no surprise to anyone, especially given that Cignetti proudly boasted about making his schedule easier with lighter OOC opponents.
Now, of course, Cignetti likes to point out that the B1G is already tough enough, so why stress yourself with a quality OOC opponent. Sure, let’s go to the stats, Curt:
Sure, there’s four B1G teams in there and four SEC teams. Seems even right…well, let’s look at the inverse of this:
From Chris Low, here’s the worst records against Top 25 teams in the past five years:
Colorado 0-16
Maryland 0-15
Rutgers 0-15
Cal 0-14
NW 0-14
Va. Tech 0-12
Virginia 0-11
Houston 0-10
Vanderbilt 1-18
W. Va. 1-17
Nebraska 1-16
Wisconsin 1-15
Iowa 1-13
SMU 1-9
Auburn 2-20
Purdue 2-19
Michigan St. 2-18
Arkansas 2-17
Yeah…that’s 8 B1G teams…8 of which post a worse record in the past five years than *checks notes* Arkansas.
The five in bold italics are on Indiana’s mighty B1G schedule this year…their other four? USC, Ohio State, Michigan, and Washington, all of which were in the Top 20 of the best records, although one could argue Michigan and Washington are shells of their programs from two years ago…so basically you have what amounts to a two game schedule, you brag about the power of your conference, and then cancel an out of conference series with Notre Dame.
Yes, he won and has the right to talk. Yes, he has bragging rights. Never thought I’d say it, but when the day comes where I have more respect for Just for Men, it’s a dark day indeed.
And for all those saying they can’t wait for the redemption day for CC, I don’t see it coming anytime soon with a schedule like this.
Curt Cignetti, master of the 25 year olds playing a three game schedule, has something to say.
Wow, per the B1G, a notable game for Indiana, of all twelve they have to play is, wait, what?
Jesus Christ.
Anyway, the only people who have the SEC on their mind maybe more than the SeC itself seems to be the B1G.
You’ve won three in a row. Let it go, Elsa.
And do you think an SEC coach would like to have the Hoovers’ schedule for the upcoming season? Let’s take a look at this formidable gauntlet of a schedule:
vs N Texas
vs Howard
vs WKU
vs Northwestern
at Rutgers
at Nebraska
vs Ohio St
at Michigan
vs Minnesota
vs USC
at Washington
vs Purdue
Whining might be appropriate for anyone who wants to not really play their starters until the 7th week of the season.
The hot button topic of late has been the SEC’s daunting conference scheduling, and it has people between the hot takes of “it’s too grueling for teams to survive” to “the SEC is weak but will still have multiple playoff teams, anyway”.
Your X post text here
— Brad Powers (@BradPowers7) July 29, 2026
As a reminder of whatever side of the debate you’re on, it’s a self-inflicted wound. While Sankey will stand tall on the idea that “we did something the B1G was unwilling to do themselves”, it still makes for a ridiculous decision that one can only wonder if it really was for guaranteeing playoff spots or if it was for money.
Well, of course it was for money. No one wants to watch Georgia versus Tennessee State in a crowded TV market, but more people will tune in for Georgia-Vandy and Georgia-Oklahoma, for sure.
What is hurting worse than anything else is that a move made to make the league’s scheduling look tougher is actually having the inverse effect – people are landing on the idea that the SEC is actually a weak conference, and keeping more games in house prevents debacles like Alabama-Florida State last year from exposing a media bias (bwah-ha-ha on that one) and the SEC for what it really is.
In truth, it’s hard to see where the turn on SEC football will abate. Winning it all would help, but short of Texas and Georgia, who are the SEC teams who could make a legitimate run? And, yes, you could say the same of two other conferences (BigXII, seriously, you don’t stand a chance), but when it comes down to Notre Dame, Georgia, Texas, Miami, Ohio State, Oregon, and Indiana (depending on who is playing for them this year), the talk is all talk and we really have no relevant reason to have the CFP given it’s the same teams in the mix each year.
Win it all, and all the talk is just that. Keep bowing out in the early rounds, and Sankey’s decision seems more questionable by the day.
Warde Manuel, take a bow.
Allow me to give you the summary of the firm’s findings:
What were the principal findings of the culture review?
The culture review found that the Department of Athletics has many significant strengths, including a strong commitment to student-athlete success, competitive excellence, and academic achievement that includes a 96% student-athlete graduation rate. In addition, staff members spoke highly of the department’s workplace culture and 87% of employees who departed the University said they would recommend working there.
At the same time, the culture review identified three overarching areas for improvement:
- Leadership accountability: Ensuring leadership at all levels consistently follows through when misconduct is identified.
- Organizational structure: Addressing weaknesses in investigations, human resources, compliance, and oversight.
- Reporting culture: Reducing barriers to reporting concerns and fostering an environment where employees and student-athletes feel comfortable raising issues.
Did the investigation or culture review find that misconduct was widespread throughout Michigan Athletics?
No. Neither the investigation nor the culture review found that misconduct was widespread throughout the department. The culture review found that weaknesses in accountability, organizational structure, oversight, and reporting created conditions in which misconduct was not always addressed consistently, promptly, or in accordance with University expectations.
What did the culture review find regarding Athletic Department leadership and accountability?
The culture review found that department leadership consistently communicated the importance of integrity, compliance, and accountability. The culture review also identified opportunities to strengthen accountability by ensuring misconduct is addressed promptly, consistently, and in accordance with University expectations.
What did the culture review find regarding reporting concerns?
The culture review found that some employees and student-athletes were reluctant to report concerns and that the Athletic Department can address this by strengthening reporting processes, protecting individuals who raise concerns, and reinforcing a culture that encourages speaking up.
What did the culture review find regarding oversight of the football program?
The culture review found that the football program’s prominence and organizational structure created unique oversight challenges. As the Department’s most visible program with the largest roster, coaching staff, and support organization, football requires particularly strong oversight and accountability. The culture review concluded that existing oversight mechanisms were not sufficiently effective and recommended strengthening leadership oversight, clarifying responsibilities, enhancing reporting relationships and improving compliance processes.
What did the investigation conclude regarding Sherrone Moore?
The University terminated former Head Football Coach Sherrone Moore on Dec. 10, 2025, after establishing the fact of his undisclosed workplace relationship with a direct report, which violated University policy. Outside investigators did not identify any current University employee with direct, contemporaneous evidence of the relationship.
What did the culture review conclude regarding Athletic Director Warde Manuel?
The culture review found that Warde Manuel demonstrated important leadership strengths, particularly his commitment to student-athletes. At the same time, it identified failures to quickly and effectively act on allegations of wrongdoing by Athletic Department employees.
So, just like that, even though they seem to find that Warde “demonstrated important leadership strengths…”…
Don’t let the door hit ya where the good Lord split ya.