Caleb Downs transfers to OSU.
- Thread starter hardbop
- Start date
First true freshman to lead Bama in tackles. Former 5 star recruit in 2023, #1 safety and #11 player overall.
They probably also will get that offensive tackle from Bama who is in the portal.
Unfortunately, they maybe the best team in the country next season, defensively. Downs with 9 other starters, YIKES!
It's a whole new CF game now. NIL rules and, unfortunately, it will be schools like OSU and Oregon (Nike) going forward. I was just over on the O-Zone and they're all donating to one of OSU's NIL funds - The Foundation. Saw a similar thing on one of the Georgia boards a couple of weeks ago. Some of those obsessed schools refuse to be outdone.
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That's a big part of it. Rumor is, our NIL package was on par (and even slightly better) than Georgia's. The Michigan loss has energized our NIL efforts pretty significantly.
But Downs is very close with the OSU staff and was an OSU lean for much of his recruitment coming out of HS. When he committed to Bama, it was one of the most crushing recruiting losses in recent memory for us.
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It's Franklin's job to get NIL money. We're 100% paying the same game. We're just failing.
I think a PSU fan started this thread. I do occasionally comment on OSU-related stuff, though.
We've had great conversations with PSU fans over on Eleven Warriors. There are a few that chime in pretty regularly on PSU-related topics and offer some good perspectives.
Honest question for you all on the NIL......what's the obstacle? Is your AD not on board? Lack of booster interest? Has Franklin taken a hard stance one way or the other?
College football has been ruined and now it will really start to lose interest with many since its all about money now with the NIL and portal - might as well just watch the NFL its the same thing.
Why? I've read that PSU has the LARGEST dues paying alumni group in the world - larger than both Michigan and OSU. Am I wrong? What is stopping PSU from keeping up with the others? And please, no "we do things the right way" BS that I read on many CF sites (especially Notre Dame's)
“Doing things the right way” has been reduced to an excuse for not being as good as the other teams. When was the last time a program has received any credit for “doing things the right way?” Then compare it to the credit the team receives for winning a national championship.
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Not sure what this means but I use the 247 Transfer ratings which are pretty much in line with the others. Needless to say, Alabama is getting killed
It's always been "all about money"
Most people that watch college football also watch the NFL
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Merely opinion here, but although PSU has thus huge alumni base, im not sure the community is the type to shell out mega bucks for football players. I'm not disparaging schools that do, it's just not the ethos of ex students at the school to reach into their pocket and pay for student athletes. I get it, you got a lot of extra money and you live in Alabama or georgia(lower cos of living) you have no problem supporting the football team financially, it just isn't the mindset of a lot of penn state fans. Maybe it still ties to the now antiquated concept of "success with honor" I just dont know. I have maintained that if you want to be one of the top 30 programs in the country, part of the super conference, you need to go all in financially. Penn state seems to take half measures, we certainly pay our coach a lot, but continue to lag behind in other initiatives. I sort of wonder is penn state isn't better off, in the future, in a 2nd tier of football that is more aligned with the student athlete mantra from 20-30 years ago. I've seen very little indication we can be better than really competitive but not quite there with the true big boys now.
I’m glad you are such an expert on the viewing habits of everyone - goes along with your exlertise of everything in general at least in your mind.
Has zero to do with Alabama. Just showing that Winston graded out higher than Downs last year. And no I'm not saying he is better than Downs and that Downs isn't an elite player. It's just perspective.Not sure what this means but I use the 247 Transfer ratings which are pretty much in line with the others. Needless to say, Alabama is getting killed
You don't believe that "most" people that watch college football watch the NFL? If so that might be the dumbest thing ever thought here. Actually you don't believe that you just want to bitch.
I think the amount of money Ohio State is shelling out has reached unprecedented levels. I guess it is a matter of priorities and culture between PSU and OSU. I guess PSU just does not have as many boosters that are that fanatical about donating their money to the football program. It probably also has to do with how much the head coach and AD are trying to drum up every cent they can. It probably is just going to get even more ridiculous at OSU now with the AD from Texas A&M in the fold who obviously is willing to throw all kinds of money around to win at football.
I have been very critical of Franklin and his inability to win big games. That criticism holds for the past seasons including this past season. Moving forward if we continue to see this flagrant buying of the top players or buying them off to not go to the NFL in order to create these super stacked teams comprised of all 1st and 2nd round draft picks then there is nothing you can do to compete with that on the field no matter who your coach is.
I agree that it makes you think that at some point if the future is what OSU is doing or what Oregon is doing and the only way to compete is have a battleship full of cash at the ready to buy every high 4 and 5 star player then should Penn State be competing with them? I don't agree with this inane NIL model of paying these college kids exorbitant amounts of money to play a supposed non professional sport.
FBS has always been "uncompetitive"--there's a top tier and everyone else is irrelevant. You're not mad about that. You're angry because now you think it impacts us.
Yeah but all the big talkers and power boys running college football like Sankey and the other big conference commissioners and this playoff committee aren't doing jack sh## to reign it in or create any kind of rules. The NCAA is useless. So you are left with random OSU fan Ed who struck it rich doing god knows what and now has barrels of cash that he funnels to OSU football.
There has to be some kind of limit on these programs that can and will spend whatever it takes to buy a championship.
Eh, we focus our money on retention and getting key portal guys who are proven FBS successes. Not to say we won't splurge for a key recruit or two, but we have lost a ton of high-level recruitments to Miami, Texas, FSU, and others based on NIL. Miami especially -- they flipped 5* DT Justin Scott, beat us for a few DL prospects, flipped our top-100 RB, etc. They offered those kids amounts that we weren't able or willing to match.
Jeremiah Smith was apparently the big exception. We wrote a big check to keep him from flipping to Miami, but otherwise, we've surrendered a bunch of kids because we don't pay a ton in NIL for recruits.
This past month has showed the value of saving our money for retention and portal additions. But while we're emerging as a top-tier NIL player, I would wager that we've spent less on NIL than at least a handful of other programs.
You are still spending more money than all but a few other select programs and more than Penn State and any other B10 program. Don't undersell it. You are buying players from other schools and paying your own star players whatever it takes to keep them. You are desperate to beat Michigan, clearly. Not saying it is illegal but just admit it, OSU is one of the big time money players in this game. The fact that Egbuka, Henderson, Tuamalou, all return and you get the Ole Miss RB and the Bama safety. And I wouldn't be surprised if the Bama OT goes there. You would have also spent whatever it takes on a QB but the KSU guy probably didn't cost that much. You guys are spending whatever it takes and the point is if this continues unregulated then the sport which already teeters on being uncompetitive will become a joke.
I’m just one person but I’m a hardcore PSU fan and I don’t ever plan to donate to NIL because I just don’t agree with it. I’m totally fine with players getting paid for their image and likeness but it should be based on their actual commercial value and not just “pay to play” to go to a specific school. I think that is just fundamentally opposite the principles of college football.
I realize not being willing to put up NIL money makes me part of the “problem” for PSU competitiveness but I don’t care. I’d rather lose with principle than sell out. I actually appreciate that (seemingly) a large number of the PSU fan base does not seem to ascribe to a win at all costs philosophy that involves buying players. So be it.
It is more now because they are supplementing their recruiting with paying for the 5 stars they can get from the portal and paying out their a#$ to retain guys who are NFL ready. You add that to their HS recruiting and you start creating competition issues because there is no regulation on money they are spending.
Yes, PSU has to figure out a way to beat them but it is getting to the point where the talent levels are not comparable and then aspiring to beat them on the field starts to become unrealistic. I am not saying we have hit that point yet but getting close when you look at OSU's 2024 roster. Our hope is their QB situation is not much of an upgrade and they still have an inconsistent OLine.
Don't know how much OSU has shelled out but it still pales in comparison to TAMU, Texas and Miami.
Yep, if they are behind some others it is not by much. They are buying their way to beat Michigan and then get a NC. How funny it would be if they do all this then lose to Michigan again. Not a Michigan fan at all but that would be pure gold. Especially crapping the bed at home in Columbus. Day would need Secret Service protection.
Don't know about them "buying" their way as they already out recruit everybody else in the conference by a good margin. I just think Michigan is the best at developing their players.
Every program cam do what they're doing. Some are choosing not to. That's on everyone else not them. 2M is nothing with the donors we should have.
What they are doing beyond high school recruiting is flat out buying players in the portal and paying their current star players to stay even though they are NFL ready.
