Sam Khan Jr.

Not quite put it on but I ran a March Madness bracket pool amongst my friends when I was in high school and one of my teachers participated (and remained part of it in the years after I graduated).

Transfer portal confidential: Best classes, underwhelming teams, favorite QBs and more (Gift Article) Several staffers were not impressed with Florida's work. Almost everyone praised Texas Tech. QB Sam Leavitt received mixed reviews.

Who had the best transfer portal classes? Which teams underwhelmed? What transfer quarterbacks did teams like the best?

We asked more than a dozen CFB front office staffers for their thoughts in @theathletic.com's Transfer Portal Confidential.

Free link to read: nyti.ms/4r4GEcr

NCAA proposes penalties to deter teams from circumventing transfer portal in the spring The proposed legislation calls for a head coach to be suspended for six games if his school adds a non-portal player in the spring.

With no spring transfer portal window, some have predicted a wave of transfer movement with players unenrolling and showing up elsewhere, without using the portal.

The latest NCAA proposal aims to prevent that with major penalties, including head coach suspensions. Details: nyti.ms/3OCs7au

Inside Texas A&M’s roster-building strategy: A conversation with Aggies GM Derek Miller (Gift Article) What have been the keys to A&M's roster retention? How much did the breakthrough 2025 season help in the portal?

The NFL Combine is this week and Texas A&M has 13 players there — a school-record and most of any school this draft cycle.

I caught up with Aggies GM Derek Miller to discuss that, A&M’s roster retention, portal strategy and more.

Gift link @theathletic.com: nyti.ms/46oNGkZ

College football had 34 head coaching changes. Here are 10 lessons from a bizarre carousel (Gift Article) What coaches, agents, athletic directors and search firms are taking away from one of the busiest college football coach carousels ever.

College football had 34 head coaching changes. Here are 10 lessons from a bizarre carousel.

Good analysis here from @chrisvannini.com and @davidubben.bsky.social on the most recent coaching cycle @theathletic.com: www.nytimes.com/athletic/706...

Kentucky and Will Stein made waves with their transfer class, per @skhanjr.bsky.social

🎧📺 Full episode: linktr.ee/bunchformation

🎙 New Bunch Formation

Winners, losers and gossip from the transfer portal with @skhanjr.bsky.social

Indiana isn't backing down, OK State knew the assignment, Kentucky surprised people, Lane closed hard, UCF found a QB + a lot more.

🎧📺 Listen/Watch: linktr.ee/bunchformation

LSU becomes first major target of College Sports Commission investigation

NEWS: The College Sports Commission has opened an investigation into LSU over potential unreported NIL deal(s). The Tigers are the first known program under an inquiry from the new enforcement body.
www.nytimes.com/athletic/701...

SOURCE: Duke QB Darian Mensah and Duke WR Cooper Barkate both have committed to Miami after visiting UM today.

except we haven’t seen video or screenshots or heard audio. Clemson and Dabo may have that — based on how specific he was, it’s a safe bet that they do! — but until we see it or the NCAA (or CSC) confirms such evidence, it is an accusation.

Clemson’s Dabo Swinney accuses Ole Miss of ‘blatant tampering’ with transfer Luke Ferrelli Swinney’s rant was rare in that he openly accused another coach, publicly and by name, of tampering with his players.

In an hourlong address, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney goes scorched earth, accuses Ole Miss and coach Pete Golding of tampering and laments the state of CFB.

Context and details from Swinney's timeline of the Luke Ferrelli saga @theathletic.com: nyti.ms/49XDlgN

If we're talking 2026, I would definitely have SMU above Baylor.

Baylor lost a ton and SMU returns its QB and had a better portal class, IMO.

TCU, it's close. I could see a coin flip between SMU/TCU.

I'd like to think Shannon Dawson was listening when I suggested this 😁

CALEB WILLIAMS YOU GOTTA BE KIDDING ME!!!!

!!!!!

hook and ladder in the NFL Playoffs. turn me up!

what a DIME by Bo Nix 😮‍💨

oh no doubt. When you acquired the player the way you did, don’t be surprised when he pulls the same thing on you.

no worries, glad it’s working now!

fwiw, on twitter, when it opens a preview of the URL, you can click on it and it will give you an option to “open in browser” which actually takes me straight to the app

just sharing that in case it becomes a mechanism that can be tried here when troubleshooting

hmm, what happens when you click on the link? because when i click on athletic links here, it does take me to the app.

i feel like you know me well enough to know that’s not how i feel about G5 players getting swiped.

also different circumstances here. I don’t recall Mensah being under a multi-year contract at Tulane or declaring publicly that he’d return. He also left early in the portal window, not the last day.

Indiana has crashed the party — is the Hoosiers’ roster build replicable? The 2025 Hoosiers have proven that you don't need a roster stocked with former blue-chippers to be elite in college football.

Indiana has crashed the party with a roster build that's unlike any of a modern national champion. Is it replicable?

I took a deep dive into how the Hoosiers constructed their current roster in an attempt to find out: nyti.ms/4jQSpl4

thanks!

Darian Mensah’s last-second exit from Duke follows trend set by college football leaders Why should players be held to a different standard than college football's leaders?

Darian Mensah’s 11th-hour portal move is the latest example of college football’s broken structure.

But he's just following the example set for him by college sports leaders, who follow the $, look out for themselves and cry for rules only to break 'em.

My column @theathletic.com: nyti.ms/4qnivyj

Dante Moore returning to Oregon in 2026 instead of declaring for the NFL Draft.

Ducks signed Dylan Raiola in the transfer portal earlier this week. Pretty well-stocked QB room in Eugene.

And Ty Simpson's decision to declare is looking even better now with Moore off the board.

Alabama QB Ty Simpson remains committed to NFL Draft despite 7-figure transfer offers Webb declined to get into specifics but said that Simpson cherished playing at Alabama and didn't want to play elsewhere.

Alabama QB Ty Simpson rebuffed mid-seven figure transfer offers that “quickly looked like we could maybe even approach eight figures,” according to his agent.

Simpson is set on going to the NFL and didn't want to play college ball elsewhere.

Story @theathletic.com 👉 nyti.ms/45b524g

Each member of our college football staff @theathletic.com picked their favorite games of the 2025 CFB season: www.nytimes.com/athletic/696...

To me, there was only one choice 👇

Lane Kiffin finally has his QB for 2026.

Arizona State transfer Sam Leavitt, the top uncommitted QB in the transfer portal, is expected to sign with LSU, a source confirmed to @brucefeldmancfb.bsky.social

Story at @theathletic.com: nyti.ms/4sTLcov

Nebraska transfer QB Dylan Raiola is headed to Oregon.

One of the top uncommitted QBs remaining in the portal is now off the board. Story at @theathletic.com: nyti.ms/45aitBn

First Cam Coleman, now Hollywood Smothers.

Texas flips Smothers — previously committed to Alabama — to load up at RB and pair with Raleek Brown. What a day for the Longhorns in the portal. nyti.ms/3NgyY8X