Sportz' College Football Super League

I have said for years that college football just needs to rip the Band-Aid off and form a new Super League that governs itself. No more SEC, Big Ten or ACC conferences. No "Power" or "Group Of" designations. Just break off and form a new, powerful, super league that not only creates outstanding matchups for itself and becomes a powerful media partner, but leaves alone the rest of college athletics so we can stop with the bastardizing of the college conference landscape.

College football has caused a lot of problems for conferences and schools in their non-football sports. Changing that would be another article, so let's just stick to this new football format.

HOW DID YOU COME TO DO THIS? 

To do this, understand that right now we have a Power 4 conference setup in football, plus Notre Dame. That means there are currently 68 power schools that exist right now. I wanted my format to be just 56 schools, but I decided to be cautious and include 64 schools in my new Super League. That would involve creating eight divisions filled with eight schools. 

-I attempted to create the divisions using historic conference ties as best as I could. Of course that is impossible with some conferences having more than eight members for a long time. But I did keep an eye on keeping current conference schools together.

-I only used the power schools. That means I left out Oregon State and Washington State. While they were in the Power 5 just two years ago, their future lies with the new Pac-12 being a Group of 6 conference, so I didn't include them.

-If you've done the math, you will understand that four current Power 4 schools will have to be let go. This was the hardest thing to do, which is why I didn't pare the league down to 56 schools. The four schools that didn't make the list? Cincinnati, UCF, Rutgers and Wake Forest. Cincinnati and UCF are newcomers to the power ranks, so they were a bit easier to leave out. Rutgers was difficult because they are the birthplace of college football, but they are kind of a power program just because of geography and no other reason. Wake Forest makes me the most sad. Unlike the other three schools, they've been part of a power conference for decades and decades. They've also been pretty good at times. But the small school nestled in North Carolina was the last team out. I'm sorry. 

WHAT WOULD THE DIVISIONS LOOK LIKE? 

So here are my eight divisions.



EASTERN DIVISION: Boston College, Maryland, Notre Dame, Penn State, Pittsburgh, Syracuse, Virginia Tech, West Virginia

This is the most unorthodox-ed division. It is sort of made up of scraps from the other leagues, but there is a purpose. For the most part, these are the eastern-most schools and all (but Maryland and Penn State) were once in the Big East conference (Notre Dame was for non-football). I put Notre Dame in here because they do associate as being an eastern program. They like playing a game each year in the New York area and they've had a nice Catholic rivalry with Boston College. Plus, shoving them into the traditional ACC (which they are aligned with now) or the traditional Big Ten would've caused more problems than it was worth. I did make the controversial move of bringing Penn State over as well. Penn State wanted to form an eastern conference before joining the Big Ten in the early 1990s. They are joined with geographic neighbors like Pitt, Maryland and West Virginia. Plus they give Notre Dame a great rival as a power program in this division. 

So Notre Dame and Penn State are the heavyweights here, with Pitt and Boston College with rich histories. Virginia Tech and West Virginia have the ability to make some noise. 

ATLANTIC: Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Georgia Tech, Miami, NC State, North Carolina, Virginia

The Atlantic Division is essentially the traditional old ACC, but cutting back a lot of the Big East influence of the 2000s. One difference is that Miami, who joined in 2004, sticks. Aside from leaving Wake Forest out of this entire thing, the toughest decision was leaving Virginia Tech out. Unless I was going to leave Duke out of the mix (and that was a strong consideration), the Hokies made the least sense of staying in this division. They did have ties to a lot of the programs in the Eastern Division, so it really was a no-brainer. Having said all of that, this division seems pretty standard.  

As a football league, its like what the ACC truly wanted when they went all in on football 20 years ago. They have Clemson, Florida State and Miami as their traditional powers, while NC State, Virginia, North Carolina and Georgia Tech fully capable of making a run in certain years. 



SOUTHEAST: Alabama, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, South Carolina, Tennessee, Vanderbilt

Here is the part where things got a tad interesting -- how to break up the SEC. The SEC was a 10-team conference for a long time before adding two teams in the 1990s, and then ballooning to 16 teams today. In theory, breaking the SEC into two-eight team divisions seemed like an easy task ... and it should be. But remember that the SEC expanded west, so adding Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas and Texas A&M means that an even split meant that some traditional western SEC schools would now be in the east. So, hello Alabama schools! Alabama and Auburn make the move to this Southeast Division to go alongside the traditional six SEC East schools. The good: it gives us that Alabama-Georgia boost everyone wants while keeping some great rivalries like Bama-Tennessee and Auburn-Georgia going. The bad: breaking those two schools away from LSU. Losing Alabama-LSU is a tough pill to swallow, but there are ways to keep that rivalry going, even if it would now be a non-division game. Plus, the realignment over the past 20 years has broken up so many rivalries that I cannot let something like this bring the division down.

SOUTHERN: Arkansas, LSU, Ole Miss, Miss State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Texas A&M

The Southern Division is the SEC West without the Alabama schools, but it adds in Oklahoma and Texas to take their place. Plus, there is a twist. Missouri is now moved into another division altogether (more on that in a bit) so it opens up the ability to reunite Oklahoma and Oklahoma State. Bedlam is back, baby! Again, It sucks to have to split LSU and the two Mississippi schools up from their longtime SEC brethren, but that's what happens when you make these types of decisions. 

Football? Well LSU, Texas and Oklahoma are long time great programs with A&M right behind them. There really isn't a bad team here, historically speaking. 

GREAT LAKES: Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Ohio State, Purdue, Wisconsin

Just like the SEC, I had a tough time breaking up the Big Ten. Probably a tougher time than you'd think. These eight are part of the "ten" in the Big Ten. Remember that I have already moved Penn State to the Eastern Division, which means the western most schools got bumped into a more midwestern division. Also, Northwestern was on the cut list had I only made a 56 team league, making some of the decisions a bit easier. It is difficult to keep Wisconsin here and move Minnesota away, but ... again ... something has to give.

This will be a lot like the old Big Ten with Michigan and Ohio State fighting for dominance. Can any of the other schools challenge them? All have at one time or another been able to be relevant in the Big Ten, so there is potential. 



MIDWEST:  Iowa, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Louisville, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska 

The Midwest Division merges the two western most traditional Big Ten schools with some of the mid-plains Big 12 schools. It just made sense. So Iowa and Minnesota come to a division with Iowa State, Kansas and Kansas State. Former Big 12 schools Missouri (SEC) and Nebraska (Big Ten) also come into the mix. The sorta outlier here is Louisville. They really don't fit anywhere perfectly. They aren't as geographically in tune here, but they shoving them into the Great Lakes division didn't make sense either. But Louisville was recently in the Big East and now in the Atlantic Coast Conference, so making geographic sense isn't something the Cardinals care about. They could form a nice rivalry with Missouri, I guess. 

Football? This is wide open. We all know how those Big 12 schools battle it out every year, and now they have Iowa, Minnesota and welcome back Mizzou and Nebraska. Louisville has been a wildcard in any division they've played in, so this is likely the NFC South of the college football divisions. 

CENTRAL: Baylor, BYU, Colorado, Houston, SMU, TCU, Texas Tech, Utah

The Central Division is made up of the hodgepodge of Big 12 schools that is mainly Texas and mountain based. Baylor, Houston, SMU, TCU and Texas Tech used to run together in the old Southwest Conference, so a Texas tussle would be fun again. All but SMU (ACC) currently play in the Big 12, so it works. BYU, Colorado and Utah all have joined the league over the last couple of seasons so there is some familiarity. 

Football should be fine. BYU has had its moments ... as has Utah. TCU was in the national title game a few years ago. Baylor and Colorado have produced Heisman trophy winners this century while Texas Tech gave us Patrick Mahomes. SMU won the ACC's regular season title last season and Houston ... well ... it's Houston. 

PACIFIC: Arizona, Arizona State, Cal, Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Washington

This was by far the easiest division to create, though a bit heartbreaking. The Pacific Division is made up of the 8 power schools that made up the old Pac-10 conference. Leaving Washington State and Oregon State out was tough, but they were left behind for a reason and aren't considered power programs anymore. If, for some reason, there was a bump to, say, 70 schools in this thing with 10-team divisions then I can see those two coming back. 

Football? Hey, it's the Pac-10 band back together. 

WHAT'S THE REGULAR SEASON SUPPOSED TO BE?

As you can tell, every team will play the other teams in their division. ALL of them. So they will have seven division games. Here's a big change, however -- your total win-loss record determines who the division champion is. There is no more "conference record" like we have now. Just like the divisional record is only used for tiebreakers in the NFL, that's really the only use for it here. Since everyone in the division will play each other once, the head-to-head will be the main tiebreaker. Of course, if there are more than two teams with the same total record, the division record factors in. 

The schedule would be 13 games long with one bye week nestled in for everybody in the middle of the season. For this explanation, let's use the 2025 calendar. The season can start in late August (Saturday August 23rd with Week 1. Week 14 ... the final week ... would take place on November 22nd. 

So we have 7 conference games that will be played pretty much like we see it now. The schedule makers (yes, the Super League office will create the schedule and not the schools themselves) will fill out the rest of what the schedule looks like. There will be some sense made to keep some regional matchups intact with this division change (like Florida-LSU, Ohio State-Penn State, Florida-Florida State, Clemson-South Carolina, etc). and then four other non-division games. I'm sure the Super League would love to see different regions face off against each other, so we will see Michigan play Georgia, USC play Texas, and Notre Dame-BYU. Gone are cupcake games against FCS schools and Group of 5 opponents. If you want to play one of them, then schedule a preseason game against them. Every game will be power vs power. 

I'd like to see every team play six home games and six road games with at least one game at a neutral site. College football is such a great thing to see with neutral sites. Whether those are rivalry games like Texas-Oklahoma in Dallas or Georgia-Florida in Jacksonville ... we can also schedule some non-conference games like we currently have. 

Look back at how great Week 1 of this current college football season was with great top 10 showdowns. And then how crappy Week 2 was with big schools rolling up cupcakes. That's gone. Sure, there will be some duds mixed in (just like the NFL) but at least they are power opponents. 

SHOW ME AN EXAMPLE OF A SCHEDULE

Okay. Let's use Florida State as an example (* denotes division game). 

W1 at Duke*

W2 Mississippi State

W3 Wisconsin (Atlanta)

W4 at Clemson*

W5 at Virginia*

W6 Miami*

W7 North Carolina*

W8 BYE WEEK

W9 at NC State*

W10 at Maryland

W11 Iowa
W12 at Utah

W13 Georgia Tech*
W14 Florida

If you notice, there isn't a non-conference season that leads into a conference season like we're accustomed to. The schedule has division games mixed in just like we have in the NFL. There are 7 division games that will flip each year to where the game is played. I'd like that the "rivalry game" would coincide with this scheduling so that we have four home and four road games between your division and rival opponent. We continue the Florida State-Florida rivalry like always as one of the six non-division games. In this scenario, the Seminoles will host Florida, Mississippi State and Iowa while traveling to Maryland and Utah. They also play Wisconsin at a neutral site. Their bye week is in Week 8.

That means they will play 13 power teams and no cupcakes. No games against MAC foes like Kent State. No games against FCS teams like East Texas A&M. What I'd like to be the norm is scheduling games against teams like that for the preseason. 

Notice that Florida State travels to different parts of the country. This example has them in Utah. The next year they could go to a Pacific or Midwest school. 

WHAT DOES THE POSTSEASON LOOK LIKE?

First off: there are no more conference championship games. It already looks like college football right now will be trending away from that. It's a money grab, but adding more playoff rounds would fill that gap immediately. 

That's why the 24-team format that the Big Ten is currently floating around makes sense here. Is that too many? Well, it means that 37.5% of the Super League gets into the postseason. For reference, 43.7% of the NFL's teams reach the playoffs. So having a five-round playoff is doable.

The eight division champions are guaranteed a spot in the playoff, along with 16 at-large teams. Here's another twist: Unlike the NFL, we will continue to have rankings and a selection committee to determine who those at-large teams are. I know, I know! I wanted this to look a lot like how a professional league looks, but having that one nugget of the college system still feels right. With so much range in what schedules look like, it seems appropriate to keep this part of the tradition. 

Seeding will be based on those rankings. So the top eight ranked teams will get first round byes, while seeds 9 thru 24 will begin the first round of the playoffs. Those games will be played on campus over a two day period. Four games on Friday and four more on Saturday. I wouldn't be against having two games on Friday night and six games that overlap on Saturday (something like how the NCAA Tournament is). You could have Friday games at 6pm ET and 9:30pm ET (provided a west coast team was hosting a game) and then Saturday games at noon ET, 3:30pm ET, 7pm ET and 10:30pm ET ... with two games mixed in at 5pm ET and 8:30pm ET. 

Now, remember we are using the 2025 calendar for this exercise and that I had the final week of the regular season on November 22nd ... the week before Thanksgiving. That gives us a great treat to have college football playoff games on all day Friday and Saturday since most people would be off to watch them. 

The second round would see the top eight seeds hosting the winners of those games in a bracket-style format (no re-seeding). That round could be scheduled just like the first round with games on Friday and Saturday. That would be December 5th and 6th.

The quarterfinals would be the following week (December 12th and 13th). Now, I would prefer to have these games played on campus at the higher seeded team's home -- but I'm not against using a rotating "bowl" format like the CFP is currently using. I just think this round should be on campus. You can have one game on Friday night at 8pm ET and Saturday games at noon ET, 4pm ET and 8pm ET. 

The semifinals could be made to be at neutral sites. No more bowls, but bid out sites. Kind of like the NCAA Tournament's regionals are at four different sites, this could be held in two places ... like what we do now. Those games would be played on Saturday December 20th. The national championship game is also neutral ... and it can be played on New Year's Day. 

Of course there is the little issue of finals week, but now you are only disrupting a few schools and not the 80+ schools playing in bowls like you do right now. Having the title game on New Year's Day is a great way to honor a piece of tradition while also moving out of the way before the NFL playoffs start. 

ANY OTHER NOTES?

Yes. College football's new Super League would have its own commissioner. Just like the NFL. And instead of dealing with several conference commissioners, that new commissioner governs over the schools themselves. Rules are more unified, as are the punishments. I'm sure there will be a point where the players unionize, which will bring on collective bargaining and further oversight.

There will also be the way you watch college football on television. Instead of SEC games on ESPN and Notre Dame on NBC and Big Ten games on FOX ... we have full blown rights sold just like the NFL does. As you are aware, the NFL has Sunday packages for CBS and FOX, Sunday Night Football package for NBC, Monday Night Football package for ESPN/ABC, Thursday Night Football package for Amazon Prime, and several offshoots for other streamers like Netflix and YouTube. You all know that broadcast rights have led us to the point where the Pac-12 broke up to catch Big Ten money and to find survival rooms in the Big 12 and ACC. It's why we have 18-team conferences now. So imagine what the consolidation of this inventory could do.

With 64 schools -- or 32 games on non-bye weeks -- this Super League has twice the inventory that the NFL does. While it may be difficult to go against the NFL on Thursdays, there is still a lucrative package to be sold for that date. Fridays would also pull a nice number. And we could have an NFL-style setup on Saturdays, where NBC, ESPN/ABC, FOX and CBS all have games going simultaneously all day long. There is no "Saturday Night Football" on just one network ... and games don't stop at 11pm. But one network may pay more money for the top choice of games that Saturday while the others slot in a tier system. The money then is shared (just like the NFL) among all schools and not just the ones in the SEC or Big Ten. The Dallas Cowboys' share of broadcast rights is the same as the Jacksonville Jaguars. So will Ohio State and Pitt. 

Sportz 2025 NFL Predictions

Another year, another chance to me to look great -- and foolish.  So here are my picks for the 2025 NFL season.

NFC EAST: 1-Eagles*, 2-Commanders, 3-Cowboys, 4-Giants

Philadelphia will break the two decade trend of no repeat champions in the NFC East. They are the most put together team in the league and I believe they win this division pretty handily. I honestly had Dallas finishing second in this division, but that changed once Micah Parsons was traded away. The Cowboys are flawed, but they are a good team with a healthy Dak Prescott. I think the Commanders come back down to earth just a bit. Last year was the perfect wave of 4th down conversions, miracle comebacks, backup QBs and coming from nowhere to surprise everyone. Yes, they are on the right path to win big ... just not this year. The Giants are building the right way. They have a great defensive line and I think Jaxon Dart is the guy to take the franchise back to the postseason one day.

NFC SOUTH: 1-Buccaneers*, 2-Falcons, 3-Panthers, 4-Saints

Tampa is the clear favorite of this division and a sleeper team to go far in the playoffs. I do like Atlanta to take the next step. Remember that they beat the Bucs twice last year, but had far too many letdowns late in games that cost them a playoff spot. I think that gets fixed this season. Carolina is building up, and New Orleans is tearing down. Bryce Young will continue to improve while the QB room with the Saints is a mess right now. 

NFC NORTH: 1-Packers*, 2-Lions*, 3-Vikings*, 4-Bears

I think the Parsons trade vaults Green Bay to the North title. Their losses last year were to the Eagles, Vikings 2x and Lions 2x (plus a throw away finale against Da Bears), so this is a team that needs better QB play from Jordan Love and now has a defense that can stuff opponents. I do think losing both coordinators will bring Detroit back to the field a bit. But that's still a damn good squad, I just think the margins won't be as solid and a couple games don't go their way. Minnesota, to me, is a wild card. That's a loaded roster, but they are running out "rookie" J.J McCarthy as their starter. He could be that guy, but I'm not sure its right off the bat. As for Chicago, I think they make a jump but not move ahead of a brutal NFC North.

NFC WEST: 1-Rams*, 2-Niners*, 3-Cardinals, 4-Seahawks

Man, I'm taking the chance that Matthew Stafford will be healthy enough to pull the Rams to the top of the division. If his back is still an issue, San Francisco could have enough to get back into the playoffs. Arizona is my dark horse team -- their defense is elite and if Kyler Murray can have a consistent season (plus Marvin Harrison making a leap) then this could be a dangerous squad this season. Seattle isn't bad, they just aren't good enough to do damage this season. I'm not sold on Sam Darnold as a long term solution. 

AFC EAST: 1-Bills*, 2-Jets, 3-Patriots, 4-Dolphins

Buffalo runs this division, and we all know why. From there, how will the other three shake out? I actually think the Jets will crawl up to the second spot. I'm not a Justin Fields guy, but Aaron Glenn should be able to bring order to a franchise that has been chaotic for the last several seasons. There is talent on this roster, and Glenn should be able to extract most of it. The Patriots are the franchise on the rise, but I just don't think the roster is ready to contend for a playoff spot. I'm in the camp that the Dolphins are going to implode this season. I like Mike McDaniel, but this just has the look of a franchise that is crashing out. 

AFC SOUTH: 1-Texans*, 2-Jaguars, 3-Colts, 4-Titans

Ugh. Houston is the class of this bunch, but that's not saying a lot. The Colts are a mess; the Titans are in Year 1 of their rebuild; which makes the Jags as the biggest enigma in the division. Can Liam Coen get Trevor Lawrence back on track? Jacksonville went all in trading up for Travis Hunter so you'd think they believe they can make a run right now. I'm not so sure about that. 

AFC NORTH: 1-Ravens*, 2-Bengals*, 3-Steelers, 4-Browns

The question in Baltimore is if they can finally get past the Bills and Chiefs in the playoffs. This is a great roster with an improved defense and one of the best QBs in the league. Cincinnati also has one of the best QBs, and two paid receivers, but the defense is still a mess. Having said that, they nearly reached the playoffs last season with some weirdly bad luck that I think turns around this year. The Steelers will be 9-8 and just miss the playoffs. What that means for the future of Mike Tomlin? They'd be fools to let him go, but that could be the case. I don't think the Browns are a bad team, but the quarterback situation is a bit of a mess. 

AFC WEST: 1-Chiefs*, 2-Broncos*, 3-Chargers*, 4-Raiders

This could be the best division in football. The Chiefs are the Chiefs, even if they were blown out in the Super Bowl. The Broncos defense is elite, and if Bo Nix can make the next step then this could be a dangerous team come the postseason. Jim Harbaugh typically shows results in Year 2, so let's see what we have in store with Justin Herbert and that offense. And then there is Las Vegas. Pete Carroll will be much more competitive -- and much more competent -- with Ashton Jeanty the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year. They are still behind everyone in a fantastically interesting AFC West that features four elite coaches (Carroll, Andy Reid, Sean Payton, Jim Harbaugh).

MY SURPRISE TEAM:  ARIZONA

I think the Cardinals could be what the Commanders were last year -- a team no one took seriously that suddenly catches fire. They have an elite defense that can keep them in games and if Kyler Murray can channel his talent for an entire season (and not just over the first half) then they could contend in the NFC West. 

MY DISAPPOINTMENT TEAM: WASHINGTON

I had Washington as 3rd in the NFC East, but then the Cowboys traded off Micah Parsons. Look, they are on the right path and will be a contender in the NFC East for years to come, but this year they take a big step back. They are one of the oldest rosters in the league despite having a young QB. The defense still isn't very good. Their running back room is meh at best. There are skill guys at receiver and a rebuild offensive line, but they rely too much on Daniels' running. Plus last year was a tidal wave of great things meshing together -- favorable schedule, ridiculous 4th down conversion rate, memorable comebacks, and a lot of backup QBs. Commanders take a step back and miss the playoffs. 

SO WHO WINS THE SUPER BOWL?

I have Eagles over Ravens. I know I should stamp the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, but I think the Ravens will finally have the kind of postseason run they've been waiting on since Lamar Jackson came into the league. The Chiefs may have a slip-up, whether it is due to injuries, bad luck or just get beaten by the Ravens or Bills. Baltimore reps the AFC. The Eagles are the most complete team in the league. They've been to two Super Bowls in the last three years and Jalen Hurts has outperformed Patrick Mahomes in both of them. While their defensive depth took a hit this offseason, every other NFC contender has questions surrounding them that Philly just doesn't have. Barring anything happening to Hurts or Saquon Barkley, they should muscle their way back to the big game. There, they will be able to contain Jackson and flex their offensive muscle to a 31-20 win. 

College Football Playoff Will Go To Straight Seeding -- And I Hate It

 The powers that be in College Football have decided to have their playoff be straight seeded. I've been pretty vocal that I'm not a fan of that idea. 

If you remember, last season (also the first season) of the new format saw five conference champions guaranteed a spot in the 12-team playoff, with the four byes being awarded to the four top ranked conference champs. People were cool with that until the ACC decided to lay a turd in football, the Mountain West champion was better, and the Big 12 champion wasn't really a good team. What we got was this:

1-Oregon, 2-Georgia, 3-Boise State, 4-Arizona State with byes.
Clemson at Texas, SMU at Penn State, Indiana at Notre Dame and Tennessee at Ohio State were our first round matchups. 

If you remember, the first round saw dominant wins by the home teams, then the second round saw all four teams with a bye lose. We ended up with 7-seed Notre Dame and 8-seed Ohio State in the national championship game. 

So this new format would have changed things to:

1-Oregon, 2-Georgia, 3-Texas, 4-Penn State would get the byes with the first round matchups being Clemson at Notre Dame, Arizona State at Ohio State, SMU at Tennessee and Boise State at Indiana.

So here is why I don't like the change.

FIRST ROUND GETS WORSE

Last year, all of the first round games were blowouts despite "better" teams playing in them. Sure, we've swapped out Texas and Penn State for Boise State and Arizona State (which bumped Tennessee and Indiana to host status) but the games aren't better. They aren't better on paper, they aren't better for the bettors, and they aren't better for television. You've made those games worse.

The trade off is that the second round (the quarterfinals) is much better. If we advance the home teams, we'd get Notre Dame-Penn State, Ohio State-Texas, Tennessee-Georgia and Indiana-Oregon. Those would seem to be better games than what we actually got ... kinda. Texas-Boise State wasn't that bad, but Penn State-Boise State was. Yet, we also got Oregon-Ohio State in the Rose Bowl and Georgia-Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl. Those two are fantastic matchups that we traded in for Indiana-Oregon? 

Also, notice we got Notre Dame-Penn State and Ohio State-Texas in the quarterfinals. Those were the exact same matchups we ended up with in the semifinals last year. 

OHIO STATE WON IT ALL ANYWAY

People were upset that Ohio State dropped and Oregon ended up having to play them in the quarterfinals. So? Even if you felt Ohio State was the second best team in the nation, they were the fourth place team in the Big Ten standings and didn't play in the Big Ten championship game. As good as they were on paper ... and as good as they were in the 2024-2025 playoff ... they deserved their seeding. 

And they ended up dominating Tennessee, Oregon, Texas and Notre Dame to win the title. Under the new format, they may have faced Arizona State, Texas, Georgia and Oregon to win the national championship. They played two of those teams anyway and could've possibly played a third if Tennessee beats Georgia in the quarterfinals. The change is the order of who they played. 

Sure, that may be just a coincidence that hit this year, but it seems more like shuffling the deck than really making anything really more fair. Of course Oregon fans would disagree to this, but we may have had a more entertaining tournament the old way.

CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS ARE DEEMED POINTLESS

This has been a huge sticking point for me. In the old format, conference championship games were a huge deal. Winning one -- especially the SEC and Big Ten -- guaranteed a bye. Even the ACC got two teams in, with their champion receiving a bye. The new systems de-incentivizes them and actually makes them pointless.

For example: Oregon faced Penn State in the Big Ten title game. Oregon, in the new format, would've locked in a bye no matter what happened in that game, so the Ducks would have been better served to just sit all their important guys. Why risk and injury that ... oh ... I don't know ... Georgia suffered trying to win their conference title game? So if you feel you have a bye locked in, just quit the conference championship game. It isn't worth it. And that, right there, sucks for college football and a huge tradition of the spot. 

Yeah, winning one still matters to teams like Boise State, Clemson or Arizona State who only got in due to winning it. But in the SEC and Big Ten where those are special showdowns? It is dumb. 

DOES THIS REALLY EVEN MATTER ANYWAY?

And why change? After this season, the playoff likely expands to 16-teams for the 2026-2027 season and then there are no byes to worry about. Everything I laid out will be happening then, but it's more organic that way (though could you see four champs guaranteed home games??)

Sportz' NCAA Tournament Recap - First Round, Day 1

 

Just a quick recap of what I saw in my Sportz Room -- filled with TVs that I can watch all games going on at the same time.

GAME OF THE DAY: Michigan vs UC San Diego. This wasn't the best day for nail-biting games, but the Michigan-UCSD game eventually turned into one. The Wolverines jumped out to a 10-0 lead and held a 15 point advantage early in the second half. But the Tritons went on a 17-3 run to cut the lead to a single point. Michigan went on their own run to build up some breathing room before San Diego came storming back to actually take the lead with just over two minutes remaining. Michigan scored the final five points of the game and held on to the win.  Arkansas-Kansas was the most fun game of the day. 

UPSET OF THE DAY: McNeese State vs Clemson.  McNeese State isn't your typical mid-major. Head coach Will Wade once was the head coach at LSU and will be the head coach at NC State once this season is over and he could be taking some of the Cowboys with him. It isn't that they beat Clemson -- they demolished them. Clemson was never in this game until a frantic run at the end of the game made it kind of close. 

CONFERENCE OF THE DAY: Big Ten. The Big Ten went 4-0 today, with Michigan, Purdue, Wisconsin and UCLA all advancing to the second round. Purdue and UCLA were trendy upset picks but both held off any thought that their seasons would be done.

CONFERENCE WITH A BAD DAY: ACC. The ACC had a bad day. With only four teams getting into the tournament, much of the focus was on Duke as a title favorite and North Carolina as a controversial addition. The key to the narrative of the conference was going to be what Louisville and Clemson did this month ... and they disappointed. Louisville got ran out of the gym by Creighton in their home state. And as I've mentioned, Clemson fell down huge to McNeese State before their comeback ran out of time. Now the ACC is reliant on its two powers to save the day once again.

DUD OF THE DAY: UCLA vs Utah State. This game was a popular upset pick, but the Bruins just mauled the Aggies and this one never got a chance to happen. UCLA's 72-47 win was one of the most impressive of the tournament.

DOMINANT PERFORMANCE OF THE DAY: Houston vs SIUE. Top seeds cooking a No. 16 seed isn't really newsworthy, but there's been a lot of strays that have headed Houston's way so far. They are routinely mentioned as the weakest of the No. 1 seeds and people aren't convinced that they actually have a championship level offense. But the Cougars ripped SIUE (the pre-tournament little guy everyone was rooting for) and made a statement that they should be feared. Gonzaga's win over Georgia was also eye-opening.

UNDERLYING STORYLINE OF THE DAY: Big schools had a day. The Big Ten, Big East and Big 12 had a near perfect day. Texas Tech, Houston, St John's, Wisconsin, Purdue, Michigan, BYU, UCLA and Creighton all won their games with only Kansas losing. With the SEC's power (they watched Texas, Missouri and Georgia already go down) and the ACC's weakness being conference stories of this tournament, the other big leagues seemed to have been left in the dust. 

My Take On Hubert Davis' Future At UNC

 

Obviously ... as a North Carolina fan ... I am not happy at the state of the men's basketball program. Right now the Tar Heels are 16-11 and are more than likely going to miss the NCAA Tournament once again. That would be the second time in three years UNC will miss the Big Dance, which is epically bad for a program of this stature. That hasn't happened since the 2002 and 2003 tournaments which saw Matt Doherty get fired. 

Head coach Hubert Davis has been a mixed bag. Some of it is on him, and some of it is on university, and some of it is on the fact that he got his start college athletics during a volatile time. The facts are that Davis is 94-42 in four seasons as head coach (as of February 20th), with a 7-2 record in NCAA tournament games. He may miss the tournament for the second time in those four seasons, but in the seasons he reached the tournament was a No. 1 seed once and reached the national championship game in the other. He has hit on some great transfers (Brady Manek, Harrison Ingram) and has missed on others (Pete Nance, Cade Tyson). He has done a fine job in recruiting high school kids, but has struggled to land key transfer portal targets (which may have more to do with UNC's lack of aggressiveness with NIL). He's won the ACC's Coach of the Year award, but many have questioned his ability to use his rosters properly and his coaching philosophies. 

It's hard to figure out if Hubert really is the right guy for the job. When the team has struggled like it has this season, there are calls to remove him and go in a different direction. 

On one hand, he's the nicest guy you will ever meet, bleeds Carolina blue, and had a decent NBA career despite not being a big time prospect coming out of high school. Recruits and their parents love him and the family atmosphere he continues at UNC. He's highly competitive and passionate about his players and the university. On the other, this is the third season the Heels have lost at least 10 games in his four years as head coach. This roster is the most imbalanced it has been in ages. It wasn't as if didn't try to land the best bigs in the portal ... he just couldn't close the deal (again, that may be a bit on the NIL side of things). 

The 2023 season was a disaster and an embarrassing moment in Carolina hoops history. The core of the team that nearly won the national championship was ranked No. 1 in the preseason, yet infighting and ugly play took the Heels out of the NCAA tournament -- becoming the first preseason No. 1 team to miss the tournament in the modern era. He followed that up with an ACC regular season championship last year and a No. 1 seed in the tournament. The Heels fell short to Alabama in the Sweet 16, but if felt that Hubert righted the ship. That the stink from 2023 season seemed to go away with a team fans adored; R.J. Davis was the ACC Player of the Year, Armando Bacot set program records, Harrison Ingram's smile and Swiss Army knife play electrified fans and the team looked like it was back as an elite program.

That's all gone away this year. Again, the roster lacks bigs which has thrown the team and fans' expectations way out of whack. It could be argued that the five best players on this team are all guards or wings (R.J. Davis, Elliott Cadeau, Ian Jackson, Drake Powell, Seth Trimble). Jackson and Powell could be one-and-done freshman, but the transfer portal has been a nightmare. Hubert missed out on several high profile bigs who had UNC on their short lists, plus their primary catch (Tyson) has been a dud. Ven-Allen Lubin has been okay, he's not a traditional center and third year big man Jalen Washington hasn't taken as big of a jump as they needed. What you have is a perimeter oriented team who has no post presence, no shot blockers, and not the rebounding studs they've typically been.  If you are going to be a guard dominated team, you can't turn the ball over the way this team does and you need to be a less streaky shooting squad. This team lacks any room for error and is extremely limited to what it can do.

That brings us to Hubert. 

What is wrong with him? Is he unable to coach? He was the Coach of the Year last season and was able to adapt his team in 2022 to make a late season run to the title game. He certainly can recruit high school talent -- I mentioned that Jackson and Powell could be first round picks this year and elite prospect Caleb Wilson is coming next season. There's more than enough talent ... even with this flawed roster ... to miss another NCAA tournament.

As I said, I'm not happy with where we are at. But I will say this: if Hubert Davis actually does go out and get a GM for the basketball program (he said they'd hire one soon) then I do believe he deserves at least one more season to see this through. While it is commendable for Hubert to lean into the Carolina Family and the way the program has successfully operated for decades, he also must realize that those things don't lock down recruits anymore. The fact that Bill Belichick is now the head coach of the football team should bring the university and other athletic programs to the realization that you have to pay to play at an elite level now. Programs are built like professional organizations now and that having financial opportunities to lure talent to your team is the way you do business. Again, Hubert has done okay with acquiring some talent, but you need a guy running your operations while you coach your team. 

I would like to see how that would look like. I think Hubert deserves that chance to show us. I'm all for that, but that also means I want to see results. 

Adam Silver Apparently Will Do Anything To The NBA, But What We Actually Want

I love the NBA. I should say that I really loved the NBA. Right now I really like the NBA. I'm grew up in the 1980s where Magic's Lakers, Larry's Celtics and the Bad Boy Pistons reigned supreme. The 1990s is known as the Michael Jordan Bulls decade, but is also seen as the era where scoring dipped way down and every game had the look of a physical fight. Rules changed and the 2000s was a bit of a hybrid from both eras.

The NBA's product right now is under attack. While I am not the old guy yelling at the clouds that this version of basketball is unwatchable, I do understand why people feel this way. The long time fans in my age group are turned off and the casual fans aren't turned on enough to pay attention. While it's easy to point to the style of play as the reason (and I will do some pointing that way), it is actually several reasons that are converging.

So when NBA Commissioner Adam Silver goes on the Dan Patrick Show and says that one of the things he's in favor of is having less basketball, it sticks a dagger in my heart. Not just because I don't like the idea, but that the commissioner of the sport won't address the problem that seems to be on everyone's mind. 

Let me start with what Mr. Silver said: he lobbed the idea of making quarters 10 minutes instead of the current ... and always ... 12 minutes. He said that all other levels of basketball are 10 minute quarters: FIBA, WNBA, women's college and the men's is a 40 minute game. He also said that it would allow NBA games ... as he described as a "TV show" ... to be in a neat two hour window for his broadcast partners.

Sorry, but that's as tone deaf as I've ever heard from him. No fan is complaining that 48 minutes is too long for an NBA game. In fact, games are about 2:15 on average, so shaving 15 minutes of TV time doesn't seem to be a nice payoff for such a drastic change that would skew historical records. That 2:15 game length has been pretty consistent for decades, so we aren't dealing with the issues that Major League Baseball or college football has had recently. It also is telling that your product has become so bad that giving your fans less of it seems to be on the table. 

Fans are whining because:

-Load management is an insult to fans. Fans who have to show up to their jobs every day to afford expensive tickets to an NBA game only to see their favorite players take a vacation day.

-The new CBA crushes player movement, which the league has actually enjoyed promoting. It's done itself a disservice. The NBA trade deadline and free agency period were so much fun because player movement really is a game changer in this league and the NBA actually loved having that keep them in the sports chatter. But the CBA punishes teams who try to build great rosters and we instead see less excitement.

-Stars are unknowns. There are two reasons for this: the NBA Draft has turned into a bunch of no-names being thrust into a league they aren't ready for. In the 1980s or 1990s, the college players being drafted were certified stars before putting on an NBA jersey. Sure, we do get a Zion Williamson or Victor Wembenyama come into the league, but these guys are relatively unknows to the casual fan. On one hand, that speaks to the success of basketball's development internationally, but it's bad for business. The second reason is the best player on the planet, Nikola Jokic, doesn't want to be a star. He isn't Jordan or Kobe or LeBron. 

-Flopping. Jalen Brunson is so talented, but it pains me to watch him play. All the head snapping, shoving and tripping, frankly, pisses me off. Instead of just playing the game, he plays to the refs. 

-All these extended reviews for out of bounds plays, timing issues, and flagrant fouls. 

-And the big one: fans aren't big on teams chucking up 50 threes a game. 

I used to think of myself as someone who didn't mind the game changing because that's just what happens. Players are bigger, faster, stronger and more skilled then ever. But the players are a bit lazier as well. My son plays in a U13 league and my daughter is on the dance team for her high school so I get to watch a lot of prep hoops right now. And there is a lot of really bad basketball being played out there. The high school games I watch, no one seems to know how to make an entry pass into the post, no one seems to understand that you are allowed to shoot midrange shots, and players seem to rather shoot fade away step backs than attack the paint. I couldn't count how many times I've watched five guys dribble and pass the ball around the three point line while no one bothers to get inside the paint. 

The sad thing is that we've all just accepted it. Now we the fans, but we the basketball community. My son's U13 league all plays like that, the high school teams play like that, college basketball plays like that, and the NBA plays like that. Every single player in the NBA has a green light to launch a three ... so every player does. Even if they aren't good at it. 

You may look at me and say stop yelling at the clouds, but here is where the problem gets us: every team plays the exact same way and there is no difference watching any game in the league anymore. 

Magic's Lakers were known for their Showtime antics. Fast breaks and slick passing. Larry's Celtics were the fundamental team who set screens, split double teams in the post and made the right play. The Bad Boy Pistons were known for their tough, physical defense. At the same time, you had the run-and-gun Nuggets, the Run TMC Warriors, the dunk-tastic Sixers, and this rising force of Michael Jordan on the Bulls. 

That's all gone now. Every game looks exactly the same. The league has become saturated and stale. Sure, teams have different stars that do different things but you're pretty much just watching the same thing. The champion Celtics and the basement dwelling Wizards run pretty much the same game plan, it's just Boston has more talented players. 

Shaving eight minutes off the game doesn't make our problem with the NBA go away. The game will still look the same, just less of it. Players will still load manage, there will be 48 threes jacked up instead of 50, floppers will still flop, and we will still see players twirl their fingers in the air whenever they think there is a call that didn't go their way. 

Silver's previous ideas have been meh to me. I really don't care about these In-Season Tournament games. Just because I turn the game on and see that bright colorful floor doesn't mean I think to myself "wow, I better watch this game because it's so important". He tried to lay down the law by creating a minimum games played rule to be eligible for post season awards. None of the players seem to care one bit about that. His attempt to fix the broken All-Star weekend doesn't motivate me at all. 

Baseball has famously made drastic changes to fix their on-field problems. Games were going on way too long and there was so much dead time that they were losing casual fans. The pitch clock has cut down all that waste of stepping out of the batter's box and fixing all your gear between pitches, plus the bigger bases has helped bring base stealing back in vogue. Now teams are manufacturing runs like they did 30 years ago instead of just waiting for someone to hit a home run. Putting the DH in the National League has slowed down pitching changes and allows for a better offensive player to be up instead of an awkward pitcher. Even the highly controversial "ghost runner" in extra innings is designed to keep games moving along. 

The NBA is doing none of that. Their ideas are colorful courts, insignificant trophies, asking "pretty please" for the stars to play more, and taxing organizations for trying to build star loaded teams. Now it is to dumb down the biggest and greatest league in basketball to conform to what other leagues are doing. 

Bills, Ravens, Bengals Fans May Not See Their Teams Reach Their Potential

Championships matter, especially when it comes to the legacies of athletes. Dan Marino is looked at a certain way because he never won a Super Bowl. Shaquille O'Neal constantly chides Charles Barkley -- in fact, it is his go-to move when they get in an argument -- that Sir Charles doesn't own a ring. Eli Manning is likely getting into the Hall of Fame because he has two Super Bowl titles. It is the ultimate trump card for discussing sports history.

Which could be a problem for NFL fans in Buffalo, Baltimore, Cincinnati and 12 other AFC cities. There is a good chance their first ballot Hall of Fame quarterbacks will end their career with zero Super Bowl titles. 

Right now, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are hogging up all the hardware. In less than two week, the Chiefs will play the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowl LIX -- their fifth Super Bowl appearance in six seasons. No franchise has come close to that kind of dominance in such a period of time. The Patriots from 2014 to 2018 went four times in five years. The 1990-1993 Buffalo Bills went four times in a row (still a record) but won none of those Super Bowls and hadn't been there before or since. These Chiefs are doing this while going through several versions of itself, with the main constants being Mahomes, Andy Reid and Travis Kelce. 

As long as Mahomes is playing, it seems that the Chiefs will always be in the conversation. Andy Reid is 66, so there's no telling how long he intends to coach. He doesn't look like someone on the cusp of retiring, but you never know. Kelce will turn 36 during next season, so he's clearly in his last few years of football. But Mahomes holds the key.

And therein lies the problem for everyone else in the AFC: When will we get a turn?

This could be the golden age of quarterbacks in the AFC. At this moment, you have Mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow in that conference -- four insanely great QBs. There's also CJ Stroud, Justin Herbert and upstarts Bo Nix and Drake Maye. You'd think that Allen, Lamar and Burrow will eventually get their chance at pulling down a ring, but that's not necessarily true. In fact, it is unlikely. 

For one, the Chiefs will have to tail off. If we're being honest, these last two seasons have been the time to catch Kansas City napping. I mean, last year's receiving corps was a season long joke and they still won the Super Bowl. This season watched KC snatch several wins in the final moments of games, and they kept winning them. If the Chiefs do slip up one of these years, it opens the door for the other great quarterbacks to go get their ring.

But that door opened by the Chiefs losing doesn't mean everyone else gets to eat. Each season only gets one Super Bowl champion. If the Chiefs aren't there, only Lamar, Allen or Burrow could get there. Just like in 2021 when the Bengals finally broke through by beating the Chiefs in the AFC title game, it was just Cincinnati. Allen and Jackson were stuffed. If Allen makes it, Burrow and Lamar Jackson didn't. 

That's the reality of the AFC right now. Someone will not win their franchise a Super Bowl. Someone will be their generation's Dan Marino. 

Marino spent the 1980s and 1990s in an AFC with John Elway and Jim Kelly. From 1986 to 1993, Elway or Kelly went to 7 of 8 Super Bowls (Boomer Esiason's Bengals went in 1988). Ironically, they didn't win any of those seven Super Bowls ... but NFC quarterbacks named Phil Simms, Doug Williams, Jeff Hostetler, Mark Rypien, Joe Montana (twice) and Troy Aikman (twice) did. Marino did get there in 1984 but never got back. Warren Moon never got there. Neither did Bernie Kosar. 

Joe Burrow is sort of Marino already. Burrow, like Marino, reached the Super Bowl in his second season in the NFL. He hasn't been back, and with Mahomes seemingly stacking Super Bowl apperances while Lamar Jackson is stacking MVPs and Josh Allen is left watching his seasons end a bit too early, there's no guarantee that Burrow will get back. That's still better than either Jackson or Allen, who just want a taste. 

In the NBA, one of the legendary things about Michael Jordan's career is that he kept guys like Karl Malone, Patrick Ewing, Charles Barkley and others from winning their championships. In the 1990s, he stunted the entire Eastern Conference from getting to a Finals. That's what Mahomes is doing right now in the AFC. The Chiefs won't get to every Super Bowl during Mahomes time there, but the few times he slips up will be a massive opportunity that only one of those Hall of Fame quarterbacks will be able to maximize. That was Burrow in 2021. Who will it be if and when it happens again?

Maybe one of these guys end up in the NFC at some point. If Burrow, Jackson or Allen went to the NFC they would immediately be the best quarterback in that conference. I mean, who is it now? Jalen Hurts? Jared Goff? Jayden Daniels? Dak Prescott? Brock Purdy? In the Mahomes era, the NFC has sent to the Super Bowl: Hurts twice, Purdy, Matthew Stafford (who should be retiring in the near future), Tom Brady (who has retired) and Jimmy Garoppolo. Sam Darnold reached the Pro Bowl in the NFC but Mahomes didn't make it in the AFC. That's how tough the competition is over there. 

That's how tough it is to reach you ultimate goals. 

Looking Back At My NFL Predictions

 Well, one of my preseason picks to reach the Super Bowl actually did. The Philadelphia Eagles will be in New Orleans for Super Bowl LIX, but it won't be the Baltimore Ravens they'll be playing. They'll see the Kansas City Chiefs, who will be in their fifth Super Bowl in six years. 

But how well did I do with my other picks?  Let's see. 

AFC DIVISION WINNERS

I got three of the four winners correctly, but I whiffed on picking the Bengals to win the North. I figured Cincinnati would be the most stable team in that divisions, as the Steelers got a new quarterback(s) and the Ravens lost a lot on defense. I figured the Ravens would take a step back from winning the division, but could make a postseason run. 

I also missed on my wildcard teams. I had the Ravens in, but missed on the Dolphins and Browns.  BOY did I miss on those two. For the most part, outside of the North I did pretty well in terms of division standings -- nailing the East and West. 

NFC DIVISION WINNERS

The West was my horror show in the NFC. I had the Eagles and Lions right but missed on the Falcons in the South. The West was awful. I had the 49ers repeating as division champs but injuries derailed their entire season. Seattle did better than I thought they would. I also picked the Vikings last in the North and the Cowboys getting a wildcard berth. Ugh. 

I only got four of the seven playoff teams, with me missing out on the Buccaneers, Commanders and Vikings. (I had the Cowboys, Falcons and 49ers). 

Championship Game Predictions

There are just four teams remaining. Two of them I picked against last week. The Eagles will host the surprising Commanders while the Bills travel to Kansas City to try to knock off the Chiefs.

COMMANDERS AT EAGLES: The two division rivals split their first two meeting, with each home team victorious. The first game was a rather low scoring contest that saw the Eagles take the lead in the second half and surge to a win. The second game saw Jalen Hurts knocked out of the game with a concussion and Jayden Daniels orchestrating a great comeback to win arguably their biggest regular season game of the year. So what does that mean for the third matchup?  I think Philadelphia will learn from their mistakes of the second game. I don't see them blitzing Daniels much and trying to make him beat their coverage. I said during their regular season meetings that Saquon Barkley has always gone off against the Commanders ... and he did so in each game. I expect the same here. Barkley goes off and Hurts does just enough to give the Eagles a double-digit win.  Philly.

BILLS AT CHIEFS: This Chiefs team isn't as dominant as their 15-2 record indicates. They just find ways to win games. This is Josh Allen at his greatest and if there was a good time to knock off the Chiefs, it seems to be now. Buffalo won their regular season matchup ... but that isn't news. Buffalo has actually dominated the Chiefs during the regular season over the last few years, but can't get over the hump in the playoffs. I think that stands here. I do think the Bills could win this game, but Kansas City simply doesn't lose in the postseasons. Their three playoff losses in the Mahomes era were to Tom Brady in the AFC title game (they were an offsides away from winning that), Tom Brady in the Super Bowl (Chiefs offensive line was decimated) and the Joe Burrow-led Bengals in the 2021 AFC Championship game on a last second field goal. They make enough plays to win these games. I have zero good reasons they win other than that. They just win.

Chiefs-Eagles Super Bowl for the second time in three years. 

Commanders Have Me Feeling Like I'm 16 Again

This year, 2025, is a big year for me. In July I will turn 50 years old. Ugh. But right now, I'm feeling like I'm 16 again. 

The Washington Commanders will be playing in the NFC Championship against the Philadelphia Eagles this Sunday. This is the first time the Washington franchise has played in this game since January 1992, when the then-Redskins beat the Detroit Lions to reach Super Bowl XXVI. I was 16 years old on that day and that NFC Championship didn't feel like the surprise event that the one in 2025 does.

The 1991 Redskins went 14-2 and had a lethal offense and a physical defense that dominated that season. After blowing out the Falcons and Lions, the Redskins pounded the Bills to win their third Super Bowl in 10 years. That franchise was elite then. Joe Gibbs was a Hall of Fame coach and Jack Kent Cooke was a solid owner. The 1980s was filled with great football -- the dynasty San Francisco 49ers, those '85 Bears, the Bill Parcells/Bill Belichick Giants and the team from the nation's capital.

That's how it was being a Redskins fan back then. Great teams in a great stadium. 

I had no idea it would all go away so quickly and for so long. A little over a year after that Super Bowl title, Gibbs retired after a 9-7 season in 1992. Jack Kent Cooke would build a new stadium in nearby Landover, Maryland but died in 1997 before it opened. His will had instructions for the team to be sold, which businessman Daniel Snyder did in 1999. I don't have to remind you how bad Snyder's tenure was -- but I will. Just six winning seasons, six playoff appearances and two playoff wins in his 24 years at the helm. His last playoff win came in January 2006. That doesn't even touch on the dysfunction he cultivated in the organization.

That all ended in 2023 when a group lead by Josh Harris bought the now-Commanders from Snyder (who was essentially forced out). Harris spent the 2023 season assessing the franchise before making big moves last offseason. His main move was bringing in Adam Peters as the general manager of the team and ... get this ... let Peters do his job. Snyder meddled with his football people, but Harris enables his people to do the job as they seem fit. That led to Dan Quinn being hired as the new head coach and a near total overhaul of the roster. Of course, the most notable move was drafting LSU's Jayden Daniels with the No. 2 overall pick.

I won't go into what all happened this season, but where we are at now. The Commanders have won two road playoff games this season -- which matches the postseason wins during the Snyder era. The Commanders went 12-5 during the regular season, which is the franchise's most wins since that 1991 Super Bowl championship team. For Redskins/Commanders fans that have suffered for over 30 years waiting for this team to get back to mattering ... this season has been such a joy. 

January 1992. 

I was a high school junior. George H.W. Bush was the president. Michael Jackson's "Black or White" was the No. 1 song. 

In sports, the Minnesota Twins were the World Series champions. Michael Jordan was trying to win his second NBA title. Magic Johnson ... who is now a minority owner of the Commanders ... had just retired from the NBA after contracting HIV. The Dream Team hadn't played a game yet. Duke's Christian Laettner would hit the shot to beat Kentucky two months later. 

Look at the NFL in January 1992. There were no Carolina Panthers, Jacksonville Jaguars, Baltimore Ravens or Houston Texans. There also weren't any Tennessee Titans -- as they were the Houston Oilers. The Phoenix Cardinals were in the NFC East. The Seattle Seahawks were in the AFC. The Raiders were in Los Angeles and the Chargers were in San Diego. Of the 27 stadiums of that year, only six are being used today. 

Dan Quinn was a lineman at Salisbury University. 

It's been a long time and after suffering through the Daniel Snyder era or dysfunction and promises squashed, it now feels like Washington is on a path that won't be screwed up by incompetence. 

I don't think we will beat the Eagles on Sunday. That doesn't mean I don't think we can.  Still, it doesn't feel like this is a aberration that will end when I wake up.

Raise hail!

What Happened To Previous Super Bowl Three-Peat Attempts?

The NFL has had three-peats before. The Green Bay Packers won three straight NFL championships from 1929 to 1931, and then again from 1965 to 1967. Of course, only the last two of those were in the Super Bowl, which no one has ever won three consecutive times. That is unless the Kansas City Chiefs end up doing it by beating the Buffalo Bills next Sunday and then either the Philadelphia Eagles or Washington Commanders on February 9th in New Orleans. 

So how close have the other teams come to making a three-peat? 

1968 GREEN BAY PACKERS

Vince Lombardi retired as the Packers head coach a few weeks after winning Super Bowl II to become the team's general manager. Phil Bengston took over an aging Green Bay team and his style was in stark contrast to Lombardi's. Despite having four of their first five games at Lambeau Field, the Packers got off to a 2-3 start and hovered around the .500 mark before finishing 6-7-1. They missed the playoffs for the first time in nine years. Lombardi would leave for the Washington Redskins following the season.  

1974 MIAMI DOLPHINS

The Dolphins had a magical two year run where they'd go 32-2 and won consecutive Super Bowls. The Dolphins slipped a bit in 1974, going 11-3, but won the AFC East. Miami would have to play at the Oakland Raiders in the first round of the playoffs, and lost in the "Sea of Hands" game. Ken Stabler threw an 8-yard touchdown pass while falling down to Clarence Davis, who fought three Dolphins for the possession of the football. Miami would miss the playoffs the next two seasons and wouldn't get back to the Super Bowl until 1982.

1976 PITTSBURGH STEELERS

This is one of those times where the team was dominant enough to win it all, just came up short in the playoffs. The 1976 Steelers averaged under 10 points given up per game -- still a franchise record. They shut out five teams -- a Super Bowl era record -- including three straight games in the middle of the season. They forced 46 turnovers in a 14 game season. What did the Steelers in was their offense in the postseason. Both of their 1,000 yard running backs -- Rocky Bleier and Franco Harris -- got hurt in the Steelers' first round win over the Baltimore Colts. Both were out in the AFC Championship game against the rival Oakland Raiders, who took advantage by winning 24-7. Obviously this was a blip in the Steelers' dynasty. Because ...

1980 PITTSBURGH STEELERS 

After not winning the Super Bowl in 1976 and 1977, the Steelers would win consecutive titles in 1978 and 1979. The 1980 version just got old, especially on defense. The vaunted Steel Curtain fell from the second best defense to 15th overall and the offense, while still good, was turnover prone. They lost three of their final five games of the season (including an ugly 6-0 loss to the Oilers in the Astrodome), knocking them out of the playoff hunt for the first time since 1971. This was the end of the 1970s Steelers dynasty. 

1990 SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS

This is one of the more interesting misses at a three-peat. These Niners were a juggernaut, winning Super Bowls in 1981, 1984, 1988 and 1989. In 1990, they went 10-0 before losing to the Los Angeles Rams in the game prior to their showdown with the New York Giants. They won their hyped up Monday Night Football matchup with the Giants, but the two would meet again in the NFC Championship. In that game, Joe Montana was violently hit by Leonard Marshall and suffered broken ribs, a broken hand, and a bruised sternum. He'd miss the rest of the game and nearly the next two years. Steve Young came on and the Niners tried to run out the clock, but a fumble by Roger Craig was recovered by Lawrence Taylor, giving the Giants a chance. New York moved down the field and kicked a field goal as time expired to win the game, 15-13. The three-peat was denied and while the 49ers would win a Super Bowl again in 1994, the dynasty pivoted. Had San Francisco won this game, Montana likely wouldn't have been able to start in the Super Bowl. 

1994 DALLAS COWBOYS

With the Niners dynasty (kind of) over, the Dallas Cowboys emerged as the next power in the NFL. Owner Jerry Jones and head coach Jimmy Johnson used deft trades and draft picks to build an absolute power house that blew through Super Bowl XXVII and XXVIII (both over the Buffalo Bills). However, an offseason argument broke up the Jones-Johnson partnership and the hiring of Oklahoma Sooners legend Barry Switzer to take over. On the surface, the Cowboys didn't miss a beat. They went 12-4 and won the NFC East yet again, but injuries bothered Troy Aikman, Emmitt Smith and others. They went into San Francisco for the NFC Championship and fell behind early, only the scratch back and lose, 38-28. Dallas would sign cornerback Deion Sanders away from San Francisco and win the next year's Super Bowl, winning three titles in four years. 

1999 DENVER BRONCOS

This one is fairly easy: John Elway retired. After winning consecutive Super Bowls over the Packers and Falcons, Elway called it quits after a brilliant 16-year career. Mike Shanahan and the Broncos looked to Brian Griese as their new quarterback as they would lean on running back Terrell Davis, however an 0-4 start to the season (which Davis suffered a season-ending injury) cratered any hopes at a three-peat. Denver went 6-10 on the season and missed the playoffs. 

2005 NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS

Like the earlier Cowboys, these era of the Patriots win three Super Bowls in a four year period. The difference is that the Patriots won their last two consecutively. As the theme of this piece goes, injuries played a key role in stopping a three-peat. Tedy Bruschi suffered a stroke in the offseason and Rodney Harrison (who suffered a season ending injury in Week 3) was one of several defensive players who missed time that season. The Patriots also lost coordinators Charlie Weis (Notre Dame) and Romeo Crennel (Browns) to head coaching jobs elsewhere. New England got off to a 4-4 start before winning six of their next seven and starting to look like a contender again. But five turnovers in an ugly loss to the Broncos in Denver ended their playoff run. It was the first playoff loss in the Brady/Belichick era, and the Patriots wouldn't win a Super Bowl again for ten years.

Division Round Predictions

In the Wildcard Round, I went 4-2 ... incorrectly picking the Chargers and Buccaneers to win. There's four more games this weekend and a chance for four more wins for me. So here's how I see it:

TEXANS AT CHIEFS: I'm not the "you can't pick against Patrick Mahomes" guy because not every GOAT wins every game. Still, with the offensive injury issues that the Texans have right now -- mainly to Joe Mixon -- I just don't think Houston has enough. If they bring the defensive pressure they did against Justin Herbert then they have a chance to stay in the game. But no Mixon means it will be tough to keep the ball out of Mahomes hands. Give me the Chiefs.

COMMANDERS AT LIONS: Washington is several steps ahead of their plan, but their season ends here (full disclosure: I'm a Commanders fan and hope I am wrong). The Commanders have done well to mask their weakness this season on defense, but I don't think they can slow down this Lions team that has been stewing over their playoff loss to the 49ers in last year's NFC title game. Too much Detroit.

RAMS AT EAGLES: This is the trendy upset pick. I just think the Eagles defense can dent the Rams offensive attack and there's enough Saquon Barkley to keep LA at bay. Philly is a tough place to play and the Rams organization is going through a lot. Jalen Hurts makes just enough plays to set up the Lions-Eagles NFC championship game we've been waiting for.

RAVENS AT BILLS: There's a lot of hype about this game ... and maybe it's unwarranted. These two, plus the Chiefs, have been the class of the AFC this season and these two QBs have been the best players in the league. But it's going to come down to James Cook vs Derrick Henry. Cook has been fantastic over the last 15 months, but I think Henry came to Baltimore for this. Winning these kinds of games. This should be a fantastic game, but I have Baltimore winning. 

Wildcard Round Predictions

Wildcard weekend is almost here!!  So who do I have winning the six games we will feast on?

CHARGERS AT TEXANS: Texans have really slogged through the regular season, losing 5 of their last 9 games. Aside from an impressive win over the Bills in Week 4, they haven't beaten a playoff team this year.  I really can't shake that 31-2 loss to the Ravens on Christmas. The Chargers have also only beaten one playoff team this season -- the Broncos twice. But this seems like the more consistent team in a better head space right now. I have the Chargers winning this one. 

STEELERS AT RAVENS: Anyone who has paid attention to Pittsburgh has seen their offense at their worst, scoring just 57 points (14.3 ppg) in their four game losing streak. Three weeks ago the Ravens spanked the Steelers in Baltimore and I see this game going the same way. Ravens win. 

BRONCOS AT BILLS: This has become the trendy upset pick and I can see why. Denver's defense is the perfect kind of defense to go up against this Josh Allen offense. They get to the quarterback and they have a shut down corner that forces the quarterback to work his other receivers. I get it. I still think Buffalo wins this game and sets up a showdown with the Ravens. 

PACKERS AT EAGLES: A rematch from the Week 1 Brazil game that the Packers almost won. Love is banged up and I feel that Philly is the most complete team in the NFL. The Eagles make mistakes that could be their demise in these playoffs, but I feel they are destined to face the Lions in the NFC championship game. Eagles fly to a comfortable win. 

COMMANDERS AT BUCCANEERS: Note that I am a Commanders fan, so it's hard for me to pick against Washington. But I will. This has been a fantastic season for the Commanders and the future is extremely bright. But Tampa is better right now. They can run the ball (Washington struggles at that) and I feel Mike Evans is going to have a major game. However, I'd love to see these two quarterbacks who have been so clutch all season long have chances to will their teams to win. I just think the Buccaneers eek this one out. 

VIKINGS AT RAMS: This should be great. Two explosive offenses and two of the young great offensive minds at head coach. I'm so torn on this. I trust the Rams more ... especially now that they are healthy. But Minnesota has been so good this entire season. The key is if the Rams defense can force Sam Darnold to look chaotic like the Lions did last Sunday. Minnesota's defense is much better at home than on the road so I'm going with the Rams. 

Sportz' 2025 Predictions

I know I won't be right on all of these, but I'll talk smack about the few I'm right about. Here we go:

*Celtics repeat. Unfortunately. I just think this roster is too good in comparison to the rest of the field that they will end up hanging their 19th banner. I really like to see them face the Oklahoma City Thunder in the Finals, but I think Boston's experience in that moment pulls them through. 

*Kansas City Chiefs won't three-peat. It hasn't been done in the Super Bowl era and hasn't been done since the Packers in the 1960s (the only other time it happened was the Packers from 1929 to 1931). As I write this, they are 15-1 but that doesn't mean much. In the Super Bowl era, teams that has won at least 15 regular season games have only won the Super Bowl twice in seven opportunities ... and that was the 1984 Niners and 1985 Bears. I just don't think this Chiefs team is as good as Patrick Mahomes' previous three title teams and I think the Bills and Ravens are more equipped to knock them off. Of course, I could very well be wrong.

*UConn won't repeat either. The other notable team looking for a threepeat are the UConn Huskies basketball team. They've been so dominant the last two NCAA tournaments but I don't think this year's team is as polished as the previous two. The NCAA tournament is just so random as it is that all it takes is an off night to get knocked off. 

*An SEC team will win the NCAA tournament. Just a feeling, but I think one of the SEC teams wins their first tournament since Kentucky did in 2012. I can't tell which one it will be, but the Alabama-Auburn rivalry looks to be a nice start. Kentucky could do it. So could Tennessee. Maybe Florida.

*An SEC team will NOT win the College Football Playoff. This one I may not truly believe, but I'm going with it. The Big Ten has three legitimate contenders to the title and two of the Final Four could be from there. I feel the Oregon-Ohio State winner will end up winning the championship. I loved Georgia, but I'm very hesitant with Carson Beck out for the season. 

*Warriors miss the playoffs again. They'll probably get into the play-in, but this isn't a playoff team. Right now they are 10th in the standings and the teams ahead of them (Wolves, Suns, Clippers) are more likely to get better than Golden State is. The Spurs are also right there behind them, and while I don't think much of San Antonio in the grand scheme of things, they could catch fire and sneak past the Warriors. If they make a big trade and land Jimmy Butler, well that could change things. 

*Golden Knights win Stanley Cup. Just a feeling. 

*Mets miss the playoffs. Just a feeling.

*Travis Hunter won't be the NFL's No. 1 overall pick, but should be. Everyone is desperate for their franchise quarterback that they'll reach for hope instead of drafting the best player available. The Giants would most likely draft a QB with the top pick. The Patriots won't, but could feasibly trade out of a top two spot to get more picks to fill out their roster. The Jaguars are the only other team likely picking at the top that wouldn't use that pick on a QB if either Shadeur Sanders or Cam Ward were available. I'd tell all of them to draft Hunter and deal with finding a QB later. Hunter is both a culture changing person but an elite and special talent. 

*Caitlyn Clark will get the Indiana Fever to the WNBA playoffs. Self explanatory. 

*NBA announces they will be officially expanding. Signs point to Seattle and Las Vegas getting those teams. That announcement may not happen in 2025, but that's what I think eventually happens. The Minnesota Timberwolves will move to the Eastern Conference. If they keep the current six divisions, the Wolves join the Central Division, Seattle to the Pacific Division and Seattle to the Northwest Division. 

*MLB gets closer to their expansion, but doesn't. MLB has some issues this coming season. Two of their franchises will be playing in minor league ballparks. The Tampa Bay Rays will be playing in Tampa's minor league park after hurricanes made Tropicana Field unplayable, while the Oakland Athletics will leave Oakland to play in a minor league park in Sacramento (their name will just be the Athletics this year) before moving to Las Vegas by the end of the decade. While this is a problem, the A's relocation drama ... ending? ... means that the league can look at adding two or four more franchises. Unlike the NBA, there is no shoo-in candidates since several are very attractive. Nashville, Montreal, Salt Lake City, Charlotte, Portland and others are on the list. 

*Streaming becomes a more important part of sports broadcasting. While fans may complain about it, they are going to have to get used to it. The NFL has already done a lot with streaming with Amazon, Peacock, ESPN+ and Netflix while the NBA enters its new broadcast agreement next fall where streaming is a major partner. The fall of regional sports networks will make streaming options more attractive to leagues like the NBA, NHL and MLB. While people may not be used to it, they should enjoy these options. If you really think about it, we have more access to sports than we have ever had before and that's a good thing. If you refuse to pay for six or more streaming services to watch all the games, I get it. But you're still watching more games a week than you did 10 years ago and exponentially more than you did 20 or 30 years ago. Netflix's broadcast of the Paul-Tyson fight was ridiculed, but they did a much better job on their Christmas Day telecast. Netflix wants in on sports, so expect more and more games online. 

*NFL will add an 18th game. Having said what I did about streaming, the next foray for the NFL is to reach more into streaming and more into international games. Those things will compel the NFL to try to work with the player's union to add that 18th game on the schedule. That WILL NOT happen for the 2025 season, but it will be worked on extensively this year. The NFL will want to sell an international package of games to one service -- which likely will be a streaming service. Think the Thursday Night schedule for Amazon, except it will be international games for, say, Netflix. That doesn't short the other broadcast partners and gives an influx of money to both the teams and the players. If the NFL can figure out how to throw in a second bye (it happened in the 1990s, but wasn't well received) then it gives the league even more weight on the sports schedule. The NFL now has no issue stepping on other sports' toes (right NBA on Christmas?) so the NFL could start the week before Labor Day (sorry, college football) and end the regular season the second week of January. That pushes the playoffs forward a week and puts the Super Bowl around President's Day weekend. Having that second bye means there is more opportunity to have international games since there is more built it rest weeks. We could see a situation where there is a new 9am Eastern Time window for an international game most weeks. With England and Germany already in the bag and Spain in the future, there is interest in hosting these games. Add in Brazil and back to Mexico City and there are plenty of places wanting to host NFL games. Have a 10 or 14 game package and sell that to Netflix? Look for that on the horizon. 

*New ESPN streaming hub will change the game. One of the changes going on in the streaming world is how networks are streamlining their properties into their streaming service. In the non-sports world, you are seeing companies slash their networks and just integrate them into their streaming format. ESPN is essentially doing the same but creating their streaming service all encompassing. As you likely know, ESPN+ alone doesn't give you events on the linear ESPN networks -- you still must have a subscription through cable or satellite for ESPN. The new format will have all of ESPN's content on one place, which is attractive to people who just have cable for ESPN. That's a big hit for those cord companies, and could be the trend that goes into other networks. I mean, you are already seeing hubs on all these services already. 

*NCAA tournament will expand to 76 teams. Again, that won't happen for the 2025 tournament, but it will be voted in this year. There is a want to expand the tournament some, but nothing to big. Adding eight teams means the First Four gets expanded out to eight games. Here's how it goes: There will be four games on Tuesday and four games on Wednesday. Four of those games will be two 16 seeds facing off where the winners will be the 16-seeds to face the No. 1 seeds in the "real" bracket. There is a bit of a trick to this since with the pods that we can't just split those games to two on each day. Then we have four games of 12-seeds (or 11-seeds, if that's how it lands) that are not automatic qualifiers. Have all of that in Dayton for both days -- a day session of two games and a night session of two games for each day. Or, if you want, add a second site that is kind of centrally located. Maybe Nashville? Kansas City? Or maybe another Dayton-type city like Greensboro, Birmingham, Tulsa or Arlington, Texas? 

*NBA makes some rule change on three point shot. This may be less likely, but Adam Silver clearly has an issue with how his game is perceived.  He wasn't too shy about his disdain for the way the All Star Game looks and is quickly looking for a fix. He started the NBA Cup to make the early part of the season (read: the schedule that coincides with the NFL) attractive to viewers. So with a lot of people turned off by the NBA's current style of gunning threes, look for Silver to at least float some ideas out there to make the game ... more attractive. The idea I like is ditching the corner three -- having the three point arc extend out to the free throw line extended. Who knows if Silver is willing to do something that drastic immediately, but that could be a discussion that gets tried out in the G-League for a few years before the NBA actually implements it. But expect those discussions to get serious. 

*NBA's broadcasting free agency. Remember that TNT's time as an NBA broadcast partner ends after this season. That means that there will be a free agency of sorts for TNT's talent to ESPN, Amazon and NBC. Ian Eagle has already agreed to go to Amazon. Kevin Harlan will be a huge free agent, though he already does work for CBS for the NFL and the NCAA tournament (as part of the Discovery-CBS agreement). There is a lot of talent that will be leaving TNT, and while NBC and Amazon are starting from scratch, expect ESPN to really look at adding some of it as well. While Mike Breen is a legend, their top broadcast team has been a mess since they broke off Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson (expect them to show up on one of those other networks). Tim Legler has been really good and may be the guy going forward, you still have to do your due diligence. 

*Tom Brady stops/slows his broadcasting career. The amount of money owed to him is outrageous, so this is a serious take, but Tom Brady may decide to be more involved in his ownership of the Las Vegas Raiders than into his broadcasting. If that's true, he may back off his FOX broadcasting commitments. That could mean he does less games, does only games close to his home, or just stops doing it altogether. He's not been great at the job, but he has shown moments where he drops key knowledge on the audience ... especially in clutch moments.