Tramel's ScissorTales: Why college football's regular season needs an extreme makeover

Every year at Big 12 Media Days, Matthew Sign, chief executive officer of the National Football Foundation, takes the stage to plug his organization. And every year, Sign promotes college football by touting it as having the greatest regular season in sports.

It’s not a revolutionary take. People for decades have been saying the same thing. They tout the great rivalries and the fandom and the drama that develops every Saturday.

It’s a compelling argument.

It’s just not true.

It’s not even close to the truth.

It might be the ultimate opposite of the truth. College football might have the worst regular season in sports.

College football doesn’t produce compelling playoff races. The same small group of teams keep making and dominating the playoff every year. The 2022 College Football Playoff race already seems down to one slot available, with Alabama, Ohio State and Georgia virtually ushered in already.

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And sure, college football gives us great games every week. But it also gives us exponentially more awful games every week. One-sided matchups; blowouts; games determined before they begin.

Even the fabulous showdowns usually disappoint. Ohio State hosts Notre Dame on Saturday, and you’d be hard-pressed to produce a better brand than Buckeyes-Fighting Irish. Both are elite programs. Both have been wildly successful in recent years.

And Ohio State is a 17½-point favorite. If the Fighting Irish stays within 14 points, we’ll consider it a fine day’s work.

Meanwhile, the sport is cursed by administrators who have sliced off the meat and kept the fat.

Some glorious rivalries no longer are played, and some are on the chopping block. Bedlam might die so OU can play South Carolina. Brigham Young-Utah is suspended so the Utes can play San Diego State. West Virginia-Pittsburgh goes cold for 11 years so Pitt can schedule New Hampshire.

College football’s opening week has arrived, and we all celebrate it, though our games are not that riveting – Central Michigan at OSU, Texas-El Paso at OU.

It could be worse. The 65 teams that make up the Power Five Conferences are involved in 53 games in Week 1. Only 11 of the 53 match Power Five opponents. Eighteen of the games are against Division I-AA foes, which makes them no better and in some ways worse than NFL exhibitions.

It’s the same general ratio throughout September. Scheduling has been dumbed-down to the extent that a good game startles us, like a bug crawling across drying paint.

In October, when conference play is in full swing, sure, college football is great. But give most programs a chance to squirm out of real competition, and they will take it.

OU football: What to know about the Oklahoma Sooners' 2022 schedule, roster and more

Conference realignment has the future non-conference schedules of OU and OSU a little unknown. Will Bedlam survive? Will some of the scheduled marquee games survive (OU-Michigan, OSU-Alabama, etc.)? Heck, with the Sooners headed to the Southeastern Conference and the Big 12 eventually expanding to at least 12 schools, we don’t even know how many league games OU and OSU will be playing in coming years.

Brent Venables at least talks a good game, saying he wants the Sooners to play a solid schedule.

“Whoever they put in front of us,” he says of his preference. “Every once a while they might ask me my opinion. But at the end of the day, they're gonna do what they want to do.

“This is Oklahoma, you know? Playing on the biggest stage in the biggest games is what this place has been used to. Having worked here for 13 years, I have a very clear vision for what Joe Castiglione’s philosophy is in regards to playing a marquee non-conference. And something that also is going to put people in the stands from a non-conference standpoint.”

OU at least in 2022 isn’t playing a Division I-AA opponent. OSU is, Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Sept. 17, and that will be dreadful. We’ll see if UTEP or Kent State in Norman is much better.

Venables said he’s in “full support” of whatever Castiglione decides. "I've had some sitdowns with Joe, and then moving forward, there's things that are here in the next few years that’ll be in our future. But I love big games.”

Venables spent 10 years as defensive coordinator at Clemson, and the Tigers traditionally opened with a marquee game or at least an ACC game.

Georgia Tech, Georgia, Wake Forest, Auburn. But Clemson also had its share of Furman/Wofford/Kent State openers.

And let’s not turn this into a marquee-opener question. The question is not playing UTEP or Central Michigan or Furman in an opener. It’s playing UTEP or Central Michigan or Furman at all.

The best regular season in sport would not include Kent State coming to Norman or Arkansas-Pine Bluff coming to Stillwater.

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The List: College Football Playoff questions

The College Football Playoff’s board of managers – 11 university presidents or chancellors, representing the 10 Division I-A conferences and Notre Dame – will digitally meet Friday to discuss accelerating playoff expansion as early as the 2024 season.

Here are five questions concerning the process.

1. Why now, after the same body rejected playoff expansion a few months ago?

College football administrators know they were hoodwinked by the Big Ten, which led a coalition (including the Pac-12 and ACC) that voted against expansion.

The Big Ten protest clearly was at the behest of Fox, which was negotiating with the Big Ten for a huge television contract that would include Southern Cal and UCLA jumping from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten. And Fox wanted to pump the brakes on ESPN getting exclusive access to the playoff.

The ACC and Pac-12 now know they were double-crossed by Big Ten commissioner Kevin Warren, and everyone realizes they are leaving approximately $450 million on the table if they keep the playoff at four teams per year.

2. Who are the relevant presidents on the board?

The SEC is represented by Mississippi State president Mark Keenum, who has been a forward thinker in athletic matters. The Big 12 is represented by West Virginia president Gordon Gee, who has presided at a variety of institutions (including Ohio State) and has a good sense of the athletic landscape. The Big Ten is represented by Ohio State president Kristina Johnson. The Buckeyes, with athletic director Gene Smith, have been at the forefront of Big Ten decision-making.

3. If the decision is made to expand, will the board of managers rubber-stamp the proposed 12-team playoff that had much momentum until the Big Ten squashed it?

Unlikely. Change requires a unanimous vote. SEC commissioner Greg Sankey was part of the subcommittee that produced the 12-team format, which included six automatic qualifier spots for conference champions.

That format was quite a compromise for the SEC. The SEC figures to get more playoff teams if there are no automatic qualifiers. Sankey was quite miffed at the objectors a few months ago.

Now they all want the expanded playoff, and Sankey can squash it, knowing his conference is doing fine, just fine, with the four-team format. Sankey holds the power this time.

Seems unlikely that the plan with six automatic qualifiers will survive.

A 16-team playoff could be considered.

4. How do the television networks factor in?

ESPN holds the playoff contract through the 2025 season. Seems unlikely that ESPN would compromise on giving up exclusivity in 2024 and 2025.

The network battle is at the core of all the contention. The SEC has become aligned with ESPN, the Big Ten with Fox.

Going forward, the best thing for college football would be multiple networks investing heavily in college football, and one of their major incentives would be inclusion in the playoff.

But one of the few things that could make ESPN give up a piece of the 2024 and 2025 playoffs would be future considerations.

ESPN and Fox have cooperated extensively on a variety of issues over the years. Even to the point where this week it was reported they agreed to open early negotiations with the Big 12.

But make no mistake. ESPN and Fox are rivals of the highest order in modern college football.

5. Do the mid-major conferences hold any power?

For this smidgen of time, yes.

The Mountain West, Mid-American, Conference USA, Sun Belt and American conferences do hold some power in these discussions.

Any of them could torpedo playoff expansion for 2024 and 2025.

After 2025, their power will be limited. But this interesting confluence gives them veto power. Any of the minor leagues could squash that $450 million payday.

What does that mean? Maybe the mid-majors can use that to get automatic-qualifying assurances in the future.

The six AQ plan guaranteed at least one mid-major among the 12 playoff participants every year. American commissioner Mike Aresco has politicked for every league getting an automatic berth in a 16-team playoff. Good luck with that.

But the little guys finally hold some power. I would use it.

Tramel:Expedited TV negotiations should help Big 12 in battle with Pac-12

National Pregame: Marcus Freeman faces 0-2 start

Notre Dame coach Marcus Freeman seems like a home-run hire. Promoted from defensive coordinator after Brian Kelly absconded to Louisiana State last December, Notre Dame fans rallied around Freeman in similar fashion to OU’s embracement of Brent Venables.

There’s only one problem with Freeman. He’s staring down an 0-2 record.

Freeman’s first assignment was preparing the Irish for the Fiesta Bowl, where OSU pinned a 37-35 defeat on Notre Dame. Now Freeman’s 2022 Irish open the season at Ohio State, which appears loaded.

Adding to the intrigue? Freeman is an Ohio State graduate, having played for Jim Tressel with the Buckeyes from 2004-08.

“I’ve coached in a game as a head coach, so it’s not new,” Freeman said. “But again, your emotions, you spend time wondering what you have to do to make sure the team’s prepared. And that’s where my focus has been.”

Notre Dame reportedly has been recruiting well under Freeman, and the Irish obviously are back from their doldrums of a couple of decades ago. Notre Dame has made the two-team or four-team playoff thrice in the last 10 years.

Kelly gets the credit for that recent success. Now it’s Freeman’s turn.

His debut game wasn’t great – the Irish led the Cowboys 28-7, but Spencer Sanders ignited a spirited comeback that produced one of the best wins in OSU history. Now Freeman’s next assignment is a game in Ohio Stadium.

“Again, I’m pretty, right now, emotionless about going back to Ohio State,” Freeman said. “But more, the emotions you have is like, ‘Man, we get to go play a great team.’ You get to go play in a great hostile environment. And that’s to me where the emotions (are). Like any competitor, you get those butterflies, you get that excitement about going into a place like that and going to compete against a great program like Ohio State. And so that to me is the focus. But how do you make sure that you can keep it contained and focus on the things that matter? And that’s the preparation.”

Ohio State is a 17½-point favorite. Soon enough, the highly-favored Marcus Freeman might have to prepare for an 0-2 record as a head coach.

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Coach on the hot seat: Dino Babers

Dino Babers’ Syracuse building project seemed on path after the 2017 season. The Orange, 4-8 in each of his first two years, went 10-3 and whacked West Virginia in the Camping World Bowl.

But since then, Syracuse is 11-24, including 5-21 in the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Syracuse football has been falling for a generation. It’s a long way from Paul Pasqualoni (107-59-1 from 1991-2004) and Dick MacPherson (66-46-4 from 1981-1990), much less the great Ben Schwartzwalder (153-91-3 from 1949-73).

College football geography has changed, and Syracuse now is far removed from the high school talent needed to win big. The Orange is in a conference with the likes of Clemson, Miami and Florida State, who are surrounded by ballplayers.

Still, Syracuse expects to win in football, and Babers hasn’t been doing that. His ties to Art Briles and Baylor (2008-11; Babers coached Baylor wide receivers during Robert Griffin III’s Heisman Trophy season) figured to trigger an offensive explosion.

And Babers’ teams at Eastern Illinois and Bowling Green did well, going a combined 37-16 from 2012-15. But it hasn’t been working at Syracuse.

The Orange hosts Louisville on Saturday night. The Cardinals haven’t been tearing up the ACC, either, but are 4½-point favorites. A Louisville victory could start the process for someone else to take over the tough job at Syracuse.

Upset special: Florida State over LSU

Florida State long has been considered an SEC-type program stuck in the ACC.

That was true when the Seminoles were winning big under Bobby Bowden, doing in some ways what Alabama does now. It’s also true now that the Seminoles are SEC-like in their dysfunction.

But one of Florida State’s brothers in dysfunction is Louisiana State.

FSU lost a national championship-winning coach in Jimbo Fisher to an historically-inferior program, Texas A&M, then fired Willie Taggart after two years. Now the Seminoles’ Mike Norvell is on the hot seat, too, after a 9-13 record.

LSU has fired two national championship-winning coaches in the last six years, Ed Orgeron and Les Miles, and has turned to Brian Kelly, late of Notre Dame, as its latest savior.

LSU and Florida State have a lot of issues, but sometimes it boils down to quarterbacking.

Tallahassee once was a haven for star quarterbacks. No more. But senior Jordan Travis is a veteran who has played a bunch.

LSU, aside from the great Joe Burrow, has not been stellar at the most important position in sport. Kelly’s first LSU team likely will start Arizona State transfer Jayden Daniels.

LSU and Florida State play Sunday night in New Orleans. The Tigers are 3½-point favorites, but let’s go with Florida State in the upset.

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Ranking the top 10 games

1. Oregon vs. Georgia in Atlanta, 2:30 p.m. Saturday, ABC: Mario Cristobal reportedly anguished over leaving the Ducks for Miami, in part because he thought Oregon was set up for a great team in 2022.

2. Notre Dame at Ohio State, 6:30 p.m. Saturday, ESPN: South Bend, Indiana, and Columbus, Ohio, are 253 miles apart in the upper Midwest, and each sports one of the grandest college football traditions in the land. But Notre Dame and Ohio State have spent the better part of a century avoiding each other. This is just the seventh meeting all-time, and just the fifth since 1936. Ohio State has won all four games since the 1930s – in 1995, 1996, 2006 and 2016.

3. Utah at Florida, 6 p.m. Saturday, ESPN: Funny the evolution of college football. Almost two decades ago, Urban Meyer left Utah to take the Florida job. Now the programs are virtual equals competitively, though the Gators’ financial future is much more secure.

4. West Virginia at Pittsburgh, 6 p.m. Thursday, ESPN: The Backyard Brawl is a showdown of former Southern Cal quarterbacks. J.T. Daniel was a freshman star at USC before eventually moving on to Georgia and now West Virginia. Kedon Slovis, now at Pitt, has been the Trojan QB most of the past three years, with 58 touchdown passes and 24 interceptions.

5. Florida State vs. LSU in New Orleans, 6:30 p.m. Sunday, ABC: The Seminoles have had four straight losing seasons. The Tigers are 11-14 since winning the 2019 national championship.

6. Cincinnati at Arkansas, 2:30 p.m. Saturday, ESPN: A program that is joining the Big 12 against a school that should have joined the Big Eight 40 years ago.

7. North Carolina at Appalachian State, 11 a.m. Saturday, ESPNU: The Mountaineers’ last three games against ACC opponents? A 25-23 loss to Miami last season, a 34-31 win over North Carolina in 2019 and a 20-19 loss to Wake Forest in 2017.

8. Penn State at Purdue, 7 p.m. Thursday, Fox: The last two seasons, the Nittany Lions are 11-11. The Boilermakers are 11-8.

9. Houston at Texas-San Antonio, 2:30 p.m., CBS Sports Network: The Cougars’ final season as a mid-major opens against a program that has made a mid-major splash.

10. Army at Coastal Carolina, 6 p.m. Saturday, ESPN Plus: The Black Knights are 52-25 the previous six seasons, their best stretch since the Red Blaik glory days of 70 years ago.

Tramel:Brace yourself for the MAC, which provides college football with stability, upsets

NFL predictions: Can Buffalo finally win a Super Bowl?

The National Football League kicks off next week, with a Thursday night showdown of Buffalo playing at the Los Angeles Rams.

What’s the chances Bills-Rams could be a Super Bowl preview? Strong.

But I’m going with a different Super Bowl matchup. Here are my NFL predictions:

NFC East

1. Eagles 10-7

2. Cowboys 10-7

3. Commanders 7-10

4. Giants 4-13

Offensive line injuries could derail another Dallas season. Meanwhile, Philadelphia and Jalen Hurts look in position to grab the flag.

NFC North

1. Packers 12-5

2. Vikings 8-9

3. Bears 6-11

4. Lions 5-12

The Packers’ consistency is laudable. Heck, everyone in this division is consistent. Consistently good, consistently bad or consistently mediocre.

NFC South

1. Buccaneers 11-6

2. Saints 8-9

3. Panthers 7-10

4. Falcons 4-13

Protecting Tom Brady won’t be easy, with the Buccaneer offensive line in disarray. But the Saints have Jameis Winston at quarterback, which never engenders optimism. Carolina and Atlanta are rebuilding.

NFC West

1. Rams 12-5

2. 49ers 10-7

3. Cardinals 9-8

4. Seahawks 4-13

The Rams remain loaded. Maybe not for long, but for now. Meanwhile, San Francisco has a championship-caliber roster, but without a championship-caliber quarterback. Trey Lance isn’t likely to have a breakout season.

AFC East

1. Bills 14-3

2. Patriots 9-8

3. Dolphins 7-10

4. Jetropolitans 5-12

Buffalo is the NFL’s biggest divisional favorite. But the demise of New England is greatly overstated. Miami remains mediocre.

AFC North

1. Ravens 11-6

2. Steelers 10-7

3. Bengals 9-8

4. Browns 8-9

Baltimore is ever present. Pittsburgh doesn’t fall far going from quarterback Ben Roethlisberger to Mitch Trubisky. Cincinnati has a rough schedule. Cleveland, well, you know all about Cleveland.

AFC South

1. Colts 11-6

2. Titans 10-7

3. Jaguars 6-11

4. Texans 4-13

Indianapolis has the division’s best roster, and Matt Ryan gives the Colts a quality quarterback. Can Tennessee recover from recent playoff disasters? Maybe. Jacksonville remains in witness protection but is getting better.

AFC West

1. Chiefs 12-5

2. Chargers 11-6

3. Raiders 9-8

4. Broncos 9-8

What a division. Derek Carr is the worst quarterback in the AFC West. Denver is the worst team. Both are quite quality. But Kansas City remains the premium franchise in the AFC.

Playoffs

First round

NFC

7-Arizona at 2-Los Angeles: Rams

5-San Francisco at 4-Philadelphia: 49ers

6-Dallas at 3-Tampa Bay: Buccaneers

AFC

7-Tennessee at 2-Kansas City: Chiefs

5-Los Angeles at 4-Indianapolis: Chargers

6-Pittsburgh at 3-Baltimore: Ravens

Conference semifinals

49ers at Packers: Green Bay

Buccaneers at Rams: Los Angeles

Chargers at Bills: Buffalo

Ravens at Chiefs: Chiefs

Conference finals

Rams at Packers: Green Bay

Chiefs at Bills: Buffalo

Super Bowl

Buffalo over Green Bay

Tramel's ScissorTales:Will Jeff Lebby's up-tempo offense hurt OU football's defense?

Mailbag: Faded powers

On the Sports Animal the other day, we engaged in a discussion about which four faded powers could do the most for college football if they returned to glory.

And a reader/listener offered a great answer.

John: “I’m surprised you didn’t respond: Army, Navy.”

Tramel: Wonderful idea. I didn’t have very good answers, because I didn’t have a very good attitude.

The kind of traditional powers we were talking about – Nebraska, Florida State, Miami, Penn State, whoever – don't get much sympathy from me. I like college football when newcomers arise.

That’s why 2022 was a breath of fresh air. Cincinnati made the playoff. Utah, OSU and Baylor had big-time seasons. We need more Iowas, fewer Penn States. More Kentuckys, fewer Alabamas. More Stanfords, fewer USCs.

I didn’t think about Army and Navy, but that would be a rousing development for college football.

It’s not happening, of course. Nebraska and Miami might return to glory. But Army and Navy are not going to crack the top five of the polls. It’s a different sport than 1949, when the world was young.

But that’s OK. They still give us great thrills and remind us of what college football once was.

Berry Tramel: Berry can be reached at 405-760-8080 or at btramel@oklahoman.com. He can be heard Monday through Friday from 4:40-5:20 p.m. on The Sports Animal radio network, including FM-98.1. Support his work and that of other Oklahoman journalists by purchasing a digital subscription today. 

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OU football: Brent Venables open to strong nonconference schedules