Jumbo Package: Alabama commit Tyler Ras forgoes Cubbies cash to pitch for Alabama

Nick Saban’s got jokes, y’all.

While it’s being reported as a joke, and there may have been some chuckles here and there, I kind of doubt he said that in jest. The best way to change the college game is to change what the high school and football camp folks are doing.

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While we don’t know the locations of the three new bowls, yesterday the NCAA approved the conferences eligible for them. The SEC and ACC will now have 11 bowl tie-ins. That may be about the right number, if you’re including every .500 team. Last year, for instance, ten teams were placed in bowls. Six-and-six Ole Miss could have been 11, but for that whole systemic cheating thing.

Using bowl eligibility data from the past four seasons, the oversight committee approved “the appropriate number” of bowl contracts for every league, as well as for independents Army West Point and BYU.

The SEC and Pac-12 are among the leagues adding to their tie-in agreements for the next cycle, which will begin after the 2020 regular season and goes through the 2025-26 bowl season.

The SEC and ACC will have the most agreements with 11 each, followed by the Big Ten (9), Pac-12 (8), Big 12 (7), American Athletic Conference (7) and Conference USA (7).

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One of the buried sentences in yesterday’s transfer compromise was a sop to the Power Five conferences, where the NCAA stipulates “conferences ... still can make rules that are more restrictive than the national rule.” Still, others like Saban were unhappy before. West Virginia’s Dana Holgorsen was a bit rougher around the edges describing its effects.

“I think one rule is good (four-game redshirt)...and the other is horrible...I think this thing’s going to be the wild, wild west and kids are going to transfer the first time they get upset. And that happens quite often.”

Recruiting has now become a 24/7/365 phenomenon though. Coaches will be in the position of actively re-recruiting their own guys from game-to-game and year-to-year. Holgo’s point also ties into one Saban has made as well: What will the effect of this legislation be on player discipline?

For now, I’m withholding judgment on the sweep of the rule. But, it doesn’t take a seer to predict a disciplinary problem resulting in a transfer to Runner-Up U, allegations of tampering from rival boosters and coaches, or an uptick in player hi jinx that go unpunished. And, in fact, I think we‘ll see all three of those mature, plus some unforeseen effects, this season. The countdown to October 15 Shenanigans has begun.

/Europe keyboard riff

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Alabama baseball coach Brad Bohannon is considered among the best in the business. Landing New Jersey ace Tyler Ras was a coup. It was a tossup on whether Baseball could keep him at the Capstone after being a Cubs draft selection. So, seeing him suit up in crimson, following the draft, may actually have been the stronger recruiting move.

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Bleacher Report has a great analysis of some overlooked benefits of the four-game redshirt legislation passed yesterday. Lots of solid quotes and a good bit to think about in here.

Thanks to this updated rule, redshirt-eligible players will have a clear reason to compete in practice during the entire season.

As much as we would like to suggest every athlete is motivated by the grind, that’s simply not the truth. Now, players can work toward a goal of seeing the field—even if that’s only a few times. And it’s especially meaningful for those on bowl-eligible teams.

After all, the value of additional practices prior to a postseason game are already well-documented.

”These 13 or 15 practices can’t be bought,” Vanderbilt coach Derek Mason said in 2016, per Steve Megargee of the Associated Press (h/t the Spokesman-Review). “They have to be earned. And with that, it gives you an extra spring ball.”

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Avery Johnson would know better than we would, and he thinks Collin Sexton’s transition to the NBA will be “lights out.” The sense among our editorial staff is that Sexton may turn out to be a great pro, but he will need some polish and will go through some growing pains as he develops into a true NBA point guard.

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You wanna’ know fierce? 5’9” Nick Saban’s intra-coaching staff pickup basketball games.

Jimbo Fisher has been bodied-up by his fellow West Virginia tyrant, and it’s hilarious.

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Butch Jones may be gone, but Tennessee is still talking about becoming Life Champions, one win at a time.

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Have a good day, and Roll Tide