Football Fridays: Fall Camp and Coaches' Poll

Football Fridays

Happy Friday, folks. If you've stepped outside recently, chances are you've smelled the overpowering aroma of burning rubber. Luckily, that smell is (probably) not your local Vin Diesel impersonator racing through the streets, but rather the melting of football cleats and turf pellets as fall camps have kicked off across the country. After months of agonized waiting following the Super Bowl (ngl... didn't even watch this year🤷), we're only a couple of weeks away from this year's first college football game between Nebraska and Northwestern in... *checks notes*... Ireland!

With that being said, the college game we all know and love is changing drastically right before our eyes. Never before has the sport seen so much disruption in such a short period of time. In the past two years, it has been hit with a global pandemic, a loosening of player transfer rules, the legalization of player payment for name, image, likeness (NIL), and the complete abandonment of geographical considerations with regards to conference affiliation. On a side note, can't wait for those big games between private equity firm-sponsored Caleb Williams and the USC Trojans and their dreaded conference rivals, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights (located a mere 2784 miles away... 41 hours 49 minute drive for those of you who are afraid of heights)!

As this is my first football post, I'll go ahead and reveal my own biases. I'm a hardcore A&M fan. I bleed maroon, reject the idea that NIL had anything to do with our recruiting class (lol), and think female cheerleaders are overrated anyways. With that being said, I will do my absolute best to keep my own affinity for the school out of my writings, but feel free to hold me accountable and call out any pillow talk you see slip its way through. Also, horns down.

While I admit that I've yet to go through and create my own Top 25 for the upcoming season, I have taken a peak at the recently released Amway Coaches Poll. While not too detailed, a few key takeaways:

• Coaches are betting big on Bama's revenge tour. The Tide sit at number one and received 54(!) of the 66 total first place nods.

• Speaking of first place votes, teams receiving them ended up ranking 1, 2, 3, and... 18. That's right. Someone picked Texas to finish number one. Looking at you, Stan Drayton.

• After winning it all last year, voters are expecting a complete fall from grace for Georgia (/s), falling all the way to 3 (one behind THE Ohio State and one ahead of Clemson).

• Only 3 of the top 10 teams (A&M @ 7) and 6 of the top 25 represent the SEC... SEC bias, my ass.

• Voters have faith in the new regimes for a few of the biggest brands in the sport. Notre Dame opens at 5, Oklahoma sits at 9, Oregon slots in at 12, SoCal ranks 15 (note the order of those last two...👀), and Miami is 17. No love for the swamp folks down in the Bayou or the Glades.

• There will be three top 25 matchups for week 1 (the Potato Bowl+ is a week 0 game). tOSU hosts Notre Dame, the Ducks travel to nEuTrAl Atlanta to play Georgia, and Cinci heads to Arkansas to learn a lesson from Sam Pittman.

Questionably-cast first place votes aside, most things check out. Again, I have yet to make my own rankings, but I do not think I will personally be as high on Notre Dame, Miami, or Ole Miss. I also think Utah, Arkansas, and Purdue (NR) all have the chance to move up significantly.

Stepping back from rankings, I have thoughts on pretty much every major storyline which has and is affecting college football. Next week, being the Econ nerd I am, I am planning on breaking down the economics of conference realignment and what the financial ramifications might be. After that, there are a variety of topics I could cover, from playoff expansion to NIL to transfer portal to my personal guilty pleasure, recruiting. Eventually, much of my own meta analysis will have to be replaced by actual Saturday recaps, though, so if there is a specific topic which you'd like me to discuss, feel free to shoot me an email, and I will see what I can do to slot it in.

Until then, make sure to check out my last email breaking down a crypto transaction compliance startup, connect with me on social media, and start warming up your arm so you can prove to everyone at the tailgate that your team would have won the state championship back in '82 if Coach had put you in.

Cheers to another day,

Trey