Random Thoughts: all college football

SCOTT TRUXELL/independent editor

This week’s installment of Random Thoughts is strictly about college football – Kyle McCord, Devin Brown, the transfer portal, coaching changes, the College Football Playoff and next year.

Kyle McCord

I have to admit, Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord’s entry into the transfer portal was a surprise to many. It also makes no sense at all.

Name one place where he’s going to get better coaching than Ohio State. Name one place where he’ll be surrounded by elite talent. His numbers weren’t bad at all this year but compared to his predecessors, C.J. Stroud and Justin Fields, I suppose it’s fair to say they paled in comparison.

I’m not going to pretend I know what, if anything, was said between McCord and head coach Ryan Day but in some ways, it’s a head scratcher.

Devin Brown

It would appear Devin Brown will be the starter in the Cotton Bowl vs. Missouri. Maybe we’ll see some of freshman Lincoln Kleinholz as well.

Here’s my take on Brown and keep in mind, this is just my opinion – he wasn’t very impressive at all. He’s obviously much more mobile than McCord but at best, he was inconsistent throwing the football. Remember the quarterback competition in the spring and training camp? It seemed like Day was trying to give Brown every chance to win the job but he couldn’t do it. That’s a little troubling.

Transfer portal

Again, just a personal opinion, but I really don’t like how the transfer portal works. I have no problem with student-athletes being able to transfer due to a coaching change. Personally, I think it’s weird when a player graduates and goes to a different school to play another year or two, but I suppose the graduate transfer part of it is okay. No one has a problem if a player needs to transfer closer to home due to a family situation. That should be a no brainer.

This free for all approach isn’t good for anyone though and the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. Players like Kyle McCord will land somewhere but a significant number of them won’t find a new home.

Coaching changes

While I’m grumbling, there needs to be some rules about filling coaching vacancies. If a school wants to fire a coach in-season (again, kind of weird unless there are extenuating circumstances) that’s fine, but there should be a timeline like the NFL uses to interview and hire coaches. No more of this in-season tampering (that’s what it amounts too), no coaches jumping ship before the season is over. I know, people will say it has to be this way because of recruiting. No it doesn’t – a simple tweak to the rules will take care of that.

College Football Playoff

Do I think Florida St. got the shaft? In some ways, yes. After all, the Seminoles did go 13-0 and win the ACC. One could easily argue that Florida St.’s schedule was stronger than Michigan. Would they have been the weakest of the four teams had they gotten in? Probably, but hey, upsets happen.

Had Auburn not blown the Iron Bowl against Alabama, we wouldn’t be having this conversation. I don’t like the idea that an SEC team “has” to be in the playoff. However, did the committee get it right? Probably. The frustrating part is the rules seem to change every year. It’s like trying to hit a moving target. Perhaps it will change in 2024.

Next year

12 teams will make the college football playoff next year. It’s a strange number but that’s it. How much does anyone want to be that No. 13, 14 and 15 will complain about getting left out of the playoff?

As always, if you have thoughts or comments, feel free to email me at sports@thevwindependent.com.