The Ohio State All Star team

[creamery]

First, they must be shelling a ton of money to get these top transfer portal guys. The most in the country?

Second, there has to be at least one and maybe two defections from the Qb room. Too much talent in one room

Third, it will be interesting to see how the young QBs develop if they start - that’s not always a given as PSU saw this year. And if one of them doesn’t start, they may be gone

Fourth, it will be interesting to see if Day can gel all of this into a championship team - not always easy as history has proven

Guess I’d be excited if I was an osu fan but a lot of questions. On the other hand I like what Franklin did in the portal and most importantly recruiting wise. Still may need a big time receiver but generally happy with what we have. That’s admittedly a ‘glass half full’ perspective …

 

[Yanks49]

Hate what NIL is doing. Highest bidder get best players.

 

[LMTLION]

I had a lot of optimism, and most of it evaporated last month when the portal opened. Until we are willing and able to buy a championship team, we will be capped at 10 or 11 wins. The amount of money flowing in places like Columbus, Eugene, and Tallahassee is disgusting. Some may want to use Michigan as an example to build without top recruiting and portal classes, but that program was built on at least two years of cheating and lies.

 

[TheWizardofCamelot]

Every year it seems a school or two shells out more than anyone else during portal season - A&M, Miami, Michigan State, USC, etc. Not only portal acquisitions but coaching additions as well.

Has it worked out for any of those schools? I don't think it's a tried and true method, and a lot of these schools then have major fall-out afterwards because checks don't cash, culture issues, poor coaching.

As individually talented and experienced as OSU seems to be, they still haven't fixed their most glaring weaknesses from last season - mediocre to poor OL line play, mediocre QB, and Ryan Day teams are traditionally soft. We give Franklin hell, but what's Ryan Day's record vs top ten teams? Can he finally win the big one this year?

Not saying this isn't the most talented/favorite to win the BIG next season, but I don't think any differently of them than I did after the conclusion of this past season.

 

[bcspsu]

I had a lot of optimism, and most of it evaporated last month when the portal opened. Until we are willing and able to buy a championship team, we will be capped at 10 or 11 wins. The amount of money flowing in places like Columbus, Eugene, and Tallahassee is disgusting. Some may want to use Michigan as an example to build without top recruiting and portal classes, but that program was built on at least two years of cheating and lies.

Despite having some of the most talented individual players in the sport in the last two seasons, OSU's win total has been capped at 11 too.

Also, there's very little way that a school in Central PA is going to be able to compete with a school in the largest city in Ohio which is also the State Capitol regarding NIL, because there just are so many more commercial and business opporunities in the latter than in the former. Therefore, PSU better use the Michigan model under Harbaugh, sans whatever underhanded things he may have done.

 

[PSUPride1]

Hate what NIL is doing. Highest bidder get best players.

Yep. College football is a joke.

 

[LandoComando]

First, they must be shelling a ton of money to get these top transfer portal guys. The most in the country?

Second, there has to be at least one and maybe two defections from the Qb room. Too much talent in one room

Third, it will be interesting to see how the young QBs develop if they start - that’s not always a given as PSU saw this year. And if one of them doesn’t start, they may be gone

Fourth, it will be interesting to see if Day can gel all of this into a championship team - not always easy as history has proven

Guess I’d be excited if I was an osu fan but a lot of questions. On the other hand I like what Franklin did in the portal and most importantly recruiting wise. Still may need a big time receiver but generally happy with what we have. That’s admittedly a ‘glass half full’ perspective …

Franklin hasn't done nearly enough in the portal if we're being honest. There's still gaps that haven't been filled.
I understand the perspective of hating the portal and preferring to develop our own guys but the portal is a vital part of the game now. It has to be used how other top programs are.

 

[LandoComando]

Despite having some of the most talented individual players in the sport in the last two seasons, OSU's win total has been capped at 11 too.

Also, there's very little way that a school in Central PA is going to be able to compete with a school in the largest city in Ohio which is also the State Capitol regarding NIL, because there just are so many more commercial and business opporunities in the latter than in the former. Therefore, PSU better use the Michigan model under Harbaugh, sans whatever underhanded things he may have done.

Yet they beat us both times....
Penn State can absolutely come up with money. Pretending we don't have alumni in cities with a large Penn State fan base (Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, DC, Baltimore, etc) isn't accurate.
We need to start spending even if we don't like the concept of NIL

 

[LemonEars]

College football is following the major league baseball model -- no limit on player income. All the other pro sports use the salary cap model to give small market teams a chance to compete. If we want any semblance of parity then the NCAA should have a NIL cap.

 

[BBHorn86]

Despite having some of the most talented individual players in the sport in the last two seasons, OSU's win total has been capped at 11 too.

Also, there's very little way that a school in Central PA is going to be able to compete with a school in the largest city in Ohio which is also the State Capitol regarding NIL, because there just are so many more commercial and business opporunities in the latter than in the former. Therefore, PSU better use the Michigan model under Harbaugh, sans whatever underhanded things he may have done.

Great point! And even Michigan is not totally apples-to-apples because of Ann Arbor's proximity to the Detroit MSA and the commercial opportunities there. PSU's closest "major" city is Harrisburg.

 

[LandoComando]

College football is following the major league baseball model -- no limit on player income. All the other pro sports use the salary cap model to give small market teams a chance to compete. If we want any semblance of parity then the NCAA should have a NIL cap.

When has FBS ever had parity? College football has always been the haves vs the have nots where teams like Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Indiana, etc might have everything fall right and they have a great season once in a while but those teams were always around for the big boys to beat up so they get their pay day. How is this different?

 

[LandoComando]

Great point! And even Michigan is not totally apples-to-apples because of Ann Arbor's proximity to the Detroit MSA and the commercial opportunities there. PSU's closest "major" city is Harrisburg.

Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are both "close" and are stacked with alumni.

 

[lowhandicapper]

You have to play the game that's being played if you want to compete.....In anything. Like it or not, the game has changed, you adapt or run the risk of fading away. You don't have to like it, the game is bigger than some disgruntled fans and will always persevere such a sentiment.

It's up to the administrators of the game to align it properly, but will they? Are they in on it too?
Condaleeza Rice getting a cushy board position with no real knowledge or experience with the game.

Saquon Barkey hasn't played for Penn State in seven years, yet Dick's, Champs, Family Clothesline, Fanatics, Student Bookstore, etc all still making money of his name, image and likeness today. If NIL didn't matter I supposed the number 61 jersey would be just as popular as 26 or 11 or 31. I can pickup a Barkley PSU shirt from Dick's curbside in less than 2 hours, I just checked. Hell, it even has his name printed on it.

I have a solution, take the money from the school's athletic department revenues instead of from a collective of donors trying to buy the best team ever. Wasn't that intent in the first place?.?.? The schools are making so much money that they should share it? Well, unfortunately, that's not exactly how they set it up.

What's fair, you tell me?

 

[BBHorn86]

Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are both "close" and are stacked with alumni.

Yes but 2.5 minimum hour drives - not like being right there. One major reason men's basketball never gels. Too far from population centers for mid-week games.

 

[NC2017]

First, they must be shelling a ton of money to get these top transfer portal guys. The most in the country?

Second, there has to be at least one and maybe two defections from the Qb room. Too much talent in one room

Third, it will be interesting to see how the young QBs develop if they start - that’s not always a given as PSU saw this year. And if one of them doesn’t start, they may be gone

Fourth, it will be interesting to see if Day can gel all of this into a championship team - not always easy as history has proven

Guess I’d be excited if I was an osu fan but a lot of questions. On the other hand I like what Franklin did in the portal and most importantly recruiting wise. Still may need a big time receiver but generally happy with what we have. That’s admittedly a ‘glass half full’ perspective …

I admit I had NIL completely wrong. It's a disaster and will ruin CFB as we know it. I have always turned away from congressional oversight, but with this they need to do something quickly.

 

[lowhandicapper]

Pittsburgh and Philadelphia are both "close" and are stacked with alumni.

I know this is thrown around a lot, the proximity to major metro areas from State College, but I live in Pittsburgh and can barely get a PSU football game on AM radio, it comes through on WPIT 730 but its sketchy at best. Almost no print coverage and commentary by local sports sources....Token general recap articles to give an update at most. That's hardly a desire for Penn State's top brand in the area. Cleveland and Cincy are about the same distance from Columbus and they have multiple outlets in those cities dedicated to full coverage and commentary of OSU football....Huge difference. There is little to no talk about Penn State anything on any sports radio or nightly TV talk in this city. Businesses in Pittsburgh know that no PSU player is gonna move the meter as a spokesperson or brand champion in this area, so no, Pittsburgh isn't all that viable in an NIL regard for PSU. Ted, what's his name probably slid more cash to Terrell Pryor 15 years ago than any PSU athlete has gotten via legitimate NIL deals. The only way a PSU player is getting a major endorsement from a Pittsburgh business is if the owner is a PSU football nut and just wants to contribute.

 

[NoBareFeet]

Franklin hasn't done nearly enough in the portal if we're being honest. There's still gaps that haven't been filled.
I understand the perspective of hating the portal and preferring to develop our own guys but the portal is a vital part of the game now. It has to be used how other top programs are.

"Other programs use cheap, underhanded tactics and bring in hired guns that will never see the inside of a classroom, so we have to do it too!"

No thanks.

 

[bcspsu]

I know this is thrown around a lot, the proximity to major metro areas from State College, but I live in Pittsburgh and can barely get a PSU football game on AM radio, it comes through on WPIT 730 but its sketchy at best. Almost no print coverage and commentary by local sports sources....Token general recap articles to give an update at most. That's hardly a desire for Penn State's top brand in the area. Cleveland and Cincy are about the same distance from Columbus and they have multiple outlets in those cities dedicated to full coverage and commentary of OSU football....Huge difference. There is little to no talk about Penn State anything on any sports radio or nightly TV talk in this city. Businesses in Pittsburgh know that no PSU player is gonna move the meter as a spokesperson or brand champion in this area, so no, Pittsburgh isn't all that viable in an NIL regard for PSU. Ted, what's his name probably slid more cash to Terrell Pryor 15 years ago than any PSU athlete has gotten via legitimate NIL deals. The only way a PSU player is getting a major endorsement from a Pittsburgh business is if the owner is a PSU football nut and just wants to contribute.

I live in Pittsburgh, and I've never even seen a Pitt player doing a commercial on Pittsburgh media let alone a PSU player, not that they've really had any players worthy of that since NIL became a factor. Although college sports have more interest in Pittsburgh than many American cities, it still is a pro town, and I'm sure that you can say the same thing about Philly. OSU is Columbus' de facto pro football team, so there is a major difference. OSU just is in a very favorable position regarding NIL, but that isn't anything new and, even with all of their advantages, they haven't played in the Championship game since the 2014 season. Also, it's very predicatable that this gravy train is going to come crashing down sooner rather than later; it's just an untenable situation, and the people who are giving out all of this cash are going to pull back when they realize that it's money very unwisely spent. I can tell you that I'm as huge a PSU fan as there is, and there is no way that I would pay somebody else's kid to play a sport in college, even if I were Elon Musk.

 

[LandoComando]

Yes but 2.5 minimum hour drives - not like being right there. One major reason men's basketball never gels. Too far from population centers for mid-week games.

So, I agree--it's tough to city kids from the cities or travel for games during the week. But if we're talking about doing commercials like the one Fleming did then it's a benefit to Penn State.

 

[LandoComando]

"Other programs use cheap, underhanded tactics and bring in hired guns that will never see the inside of a classroom, so we have to do it too!"

No thanks.

We already do that

 

[lowhandicapper]

"Other programs use cheap, underhanded tactics and bring in hired guns that will never see the inside of a classroom, so we have to do it too!"

No thanks.

Yeah, that's not what really happens.
1.6% of college football players make the pro's.
What is a hired gun? Is Malik McClain a hired gun? Johnny Dixon? Mitch Tinsley? These are just kids trying to sort out their best opportunity, not their fault.
Most college football teams are loaded with a bunch of kids who are going to be working for an accounting firm or pharmaceutical company or going to grad school a few years from now. There are small handful of teams that have a higher percentage of "hired guns" but its an insignificant amount to be concerned about.
No matter what the rules are, there are always gonna be shady programs. SMU, Oklahoma, Miami, Baylor come to mind in years past. There are always going to be teams that push the rules to brink. Just like tax accountants push the rules to brink, or lobbyists.

 

[lowhandicapper]

OSU is Columbus' de facto pro football team, so there is a major difference.

Yes but even in major pro cities (Cincy & Cleveland) 2 hours away, OSU gets full coverage from the media outlets in those cities. That is not remotely the case in Pittsburgh.
Giant Eagle would rather give a 3rd line Penguin an endorsement deal than Micah Parsons in full star mode at Penn State.
I'm pretty sure Marvin Harrison Jr. would be a bigger draw in Cleveland than the 12th man on the Cavaliers.

 

[bcspsu]

You have to play the game that's being played if you want to compete.....In anything. Like it or not, the game has changed, you adapt or run the risk of fading away. You don't have to like it, the game is bigger than some disgruntled fans and will always persevere such a sentiment.

It's up to the administrators of the game to align it properly, but will they? Are they in on it too?
Condaleeza Rice getting a cushy board position with no real knowledge or experience with the game.

Saquon Barkey hasn't played for Penn State in seven years, yet Dick's, Champs, Family Clothesline, Fanatics, Student Bookstore, etc all still making money of his name, image and likeness today. If NIL didn't matter I supposed the number 61 jersey would be just as popular as 26 or 11 or 31. I can pickup a Barkley PSU shirt from Dick's curbside in less than 2 hours, I just checked. Hell, it even has his name printed on it.

I have a solution, take the money from the school's athletic department revenues instead of from a collective of donors trying to buy the best team ever. Wasn't that intent in the first place?.?.? The schools are making so much money that they should share it? Well, unfortunately, that's not exactly how they set it up.

What's fair, you tell me?

I was in the Dick's at the Robinson Mall in the West Hills of Pittsburgh on Saturday, and they are selling PSU replica jersey t shirts both with Barkley's and Parson's name and number on them.

 

[bcspsu]

Yes but even in major pro cities (Cincy & Cleveland) 2 hours away, OSU gets full coverage from the media outlets in those cities. That is not remotely the case in Pittsburgh.
Giant Eagle would rather give a 3rd line Penguin and endorsement deal than Micah Parsons in full star mode at Penn State.
I'm pretty sure Marvin Harrison Jr. would be a bigger draw in Cleveland than the 12th man on the Cavaliers.

Well, for whatever reason, there just is more support for OSU in Ohio than for PSU in PA, and that especially goes for the media.

PSU used to have a very substantial media presence in Pittsburgh, as both the Press and P-G had specific beat writers to cover the program, their games were on KDKA, and talk show hosts, especially Stan Savran, would have guests on to talk about the program on a regular basis. I always thought that PSU received much more media covereage than in Philly media. However, the Press went out of business, and the P-G basically has become an electronic paper, although they still have articles about PSU, and even basketball. I'm just happy that I still can listen to the football and basketball games on a local station, although I do admit that the signal isn't strong.

The problem with the Pittsburgh sports media is that it has become so myopic with Steelers coverage that it just overtakes coverage of everything else, and it just has gotten worse in recent years; The Fan basically talks about that team 24-7 from July through April. Unfortunately, Stan Savran passed away last spring, and he was one of the few Pittsburgh sports media who would have regular segments to talk about different things like PSU football and even World Cup soccer.

 

[rrdd2021]

Well, for whatever reason, there just is more support for OSU in Ohio than for PSU in PA, and that especially goes for the media.

I read awhile back that LSU and especially OSU have the best in-state support among all colleges. It's hard - but not impossible - for opposing schools to pull recruits out of those states that OSU and LSU make a top priority and go after hard. LSU used to really be tough - in this area - before Alabama and Georgia rose to the top of CF.

OSU still gets 85 to 90% of the Ohio kids that they offer early - maybe in their sophomore or junior years of HS. The main school that is a thorn in OSU's side (although not a huge one) is Notre Dame who will occasionally pull a kid from an Ohio Catholic HS. There were a couple of Ohio OL that spurned OSU and went to ND around 5 or 6 years ago that made headlines - Eichenberg and Kramer that OSU went after hard from the beginning.

If you look around at all of the major CF states - CA, Florida, Texas, Georgia, Louisiana, Alabama, PA, Michigan, Ohio etc.... - none of the headliner schools control their states like OSU does in Ohio. Georgia is getting close. OSU really doesn't have any competition in OHIO and that's a huge advantage and it's been that way forever.

 

[lowhandicapper]

Stan Savran passed away last spring, and he was one of the few Pittsburgh sports media who would have regular segments to talk about different things like PSU football and even World Cup soccer.

Stan and Guy, love the show!

Tom Bradley had kept a lot of the Pittsburgh media connected back in the day, but even then, at it's height, the program was at a weak spot in the early 2000's and the interest was still just lukewarm. If PSU was a national title contender year after year at that point that might have swung the pendulum in that early era where sports commentary was growing at very fast rate, but they weren't. They were struggling through 3 of 4 losing seasons. That didn't help.

I delivered the Post Gazette in the morning before school and the Press after school for about 2-3 years as a kid. It did have more PSU coverage back then but still nothing to write home about.

 

[LemonEars]

When has FBS ever had parity? College football has always been the haves vs the have nots where teams like Northwestern, Vanderbilt, Indiana, etc might have everything fall right and they have a great season once in a while but those teams were always around for the big boys to beat up so they get their pay day. How is this different?

It is different because the disparity will become even more extreme. In the past maybe once every 20 years a bottom feeder like pitt could have a 9-3 record and go to a decent bowl and maybe even finish in the top 20. With NIL money, teams like pitt will never ever attract the type of players or coaches needed to have a decent season. Teams like the pitters are doomed to 2 - 10 type seasons every single year unless they drastically alter their schedules so that the have nots only play each other .

 

[LandoComando]

It is different because the disparity will become even more extreme. In the past maybe once every 20 years a bottom feeder like pitt could have a 9-3 record and go to a decent bowl and maybe even finish in the top 20. With NIL money, teams like pitt will never ever attract the type of players or coaches needed to have a decent season. Teams like the pitters are doomed to 2 - 10 type seasons every single year unless they drastically alter their schedules so that the have nots only play each other .

I think that's an exaggeration. I don't see it being much different than before. Maybe this causes FBS to split into 2 or 3 levels which would be phenomenal

 

[bcspsu]

Stan and Guy, love the show!

Tom Bradley had kept a lot of the Pittsburgh media connected back in the day, but even then, at it's height, the program was at a weak spot in the early 2000's and the interest was still just lukewarm. If PSU was a national title contender year after year at that point that might have swung the pendulum in that early era where sports commentary was growing at very fast rate, but they weren't. They were struggling through 3 of 4 losing seasons. That didn't help.

I delivered the Post Gazette in the morning before school and the Press after school for about 2-3 years as a kid. It did have more PSU coverage back then but still nothing to write home about.

Guy Junker was a PA media member who graduated from PSU who didn't feel a need to criticize PSU about every little matter. Unfortunately, he's now retired from the media, and is the PA announcer for the Pirates.

 

[lowhandicapper]

Guy Junker was a PA media member who graduated from PSU who didn't feel a need to criticize PSU about every little matter. Unfortunately, he's now retired from the media, and is the PA announcer for the Pirates.

Chris Mueller is a PSU grad and takes every limited opportunity available to criticize PSU. If and when they even mention them for a minute or two.

 

[bcspsu]

Chris Mueller is a PSU grad and takes every limited opportunity available to criticize PSU. If and when they even mention them for a minute or two.

You're absolutely correct. He went there in the early 2000s in the dark years; he often talks about how he attended the 6-4 Iowa game. I know that he always was a Pitt fan, which I can accept because I graduated from Pitt Law, but never have liked Pitt sports except for the hoops team when Sam Clancy played for them.

 

[crm114psu]

I know this is thrown around a lot, the proximity to major metro areas from State College, but I live in Pittsburgh and can barely get a PSU football game on AM radio, it comes through on WPIT 730 but its sketchy at best. Almost no print coverage and commentary by local sports sources....Token general recap articles to give an update at most. That's hardly a desire for Penn State's top brand in the area. Cleveland and Cincy are about the same distance from Columbus and they have multiple outlets in those cities dedicated to full coverage and commentary of OSU football....Huge difference. There is little to no talk about Penn State anything on any sports radio or nightly TV talk in this city. Businesses in Pittsburgh know that no PSU player is gonna move the meter as a spokesperson or brand champion in this area, so no, Pittsburgh isn't all that viable in an NIL regard for PSU. Ted, what's his name probably slid more cash to Terrell Pryor 15 years ago than any PSU athlete has gotten via legitimate NIL deals. The only way a PSU player is getting a major endorsement from a Pittsburgh business is if the owner is a PSU football nut and just wants to contribute.

If you have internet you have clear static-free radio. Don't know why this is so difficult a concept to grasp.

 

[lowhandicapper]

If you have internet you have clear static-free radio. Don't know why this is so difficult a concept to grasp.

It's not difficult to grasp.
It's not like I'm listening from home if and when that happens. It'd be nice to turn the radio on and listen to the game with reasonable clarity when you've got to be at your kids baseball of basketball practice or whatever running around you have to do doing a game however inconvenient that is. If you have to run somewhere for 15 minutes. I shouldn't have to pay $30 for XM to listen to a major college football game in area with the second most alumni in the metropolitan area. I shouldn't have to link up my phone bluetooth to my car sound system to listen to to Penn State game 2 hours from Beaver Stadium.
I listen to pregame on my PC, then watch on TV.
I don't have to do that to listen to a Pitt football or basketball game. Its right there clear as day on FM 93.7.

Save the internet crap.

 

[LMTLION]

It's not difficult to grasp.
It's not like I'm listening from home if and when that happens. It'd be nice to turn the radio on and listen to the game with reasonable clarity when you've got to be at your kids baseball of basketball practice or whatever running around you have to do doing a game however inconvenient that is. If you have to run somewhere for 15 minutes. I shouldn't have to pay $30 for XM to listen to a major college football game in area with the second most alumni in the metropolitan area. I shouldn't have to link up my phone bluetooth to my car sound system to listen to to Penn State game 2 hours from Beaver Stadium.
I listen to pregame on my PC, then watch on TV.
I don't have to do that to listen to a Pitt football or basketball game. Its right there clear as day on FM 93.7.

Save the internet crap.

Not arguing with you (I like radio too), but the “internet crap” is becoming the primary media delivery system for literally everything. I think iHeart radio is free.

 

[lowhandicapper]

Not arguing with you (I like radio too), but the “internet crap” is becoming the primary media delivery system for literally everything. I think iHeart radio is free.

I should be able to turn on AM or FM 2 hours from Penn State's campus in a major metropolitan area and receive a football broadcast with reasonable clarity for a team that is considered a college football blue blood and finishes in the top 10 regularly.
It's a clear signal of how weak the brand is in the broader market. Not one decent radio station is willing to give up repeats of mediocre music to broadcast a football game that draws more people to it's epicenter than all but two cities in the commonwealth. These facts are hard to ignore.

 

[lowhandicapper]

I should be able to turn on AM or FM 2 hours from Penn State's campus in a major metropolitan area and receive a football broadcast with reasonable clarity for a team that is considered a college football blue blood and finishes in the top 10 regularly.
It's a clear signal of how weak the brand is in the broader market. Not one decent radio station is willing to give up repeats of mediocre music to broadcast a football game that draws more people to it's epicenter than all but two cities in the commonwealth. These facts are hard to ignore.

I think to double down on this sentiment, it's kind of amazing that no radio stations are really willing to go all in on broadcasting Penn State football games in a (small) major market like Pittsburgh that is so close to State College and has so many alumni. The reason I say this is that Penn State often has many of the top 10 or 20 or 30 highest rated games on national television in the entire country, how does that not translate? I think the Ohio State game was a top 5 viewed game in the country.
How can a small brand radio station in Pittsburgh not want to be a part of the Deitz and Watson Tailgate show? Seems better than hearing about how Kenny Chesney views life for 3 hours or so 12ish times a year.

 

[bcspsu]

I think to double down on this sentiment, it's kind of amazing that no radio stations are really willing to go all in on broadcasting Penn State football games in a (small) major market like Pittsburgh that is so close to State College and has so many alumni. The reason I say this is that Penn State often has many of the top 10 or 20 or 30 highest rated games on national television in the entire country, how does that not translate? I think the Ohio State game was a top 5 viewed game in the country.
How can a small brand radio station in Pittsburgh not want to be a part of the Deitz and Watson Tailgate show? Seems better than hearing about how Kenny Chesney views life for 3 hours or so 12ish times a year.

You're right. Maybe the change in the media rights will fix this. Unfortunately, KDKA no longer is an option because that station and The Fan are brother-sister stations, and The Fan broadcasts Pitt games. Also, the only other AM sports station in Pittsburgh is 970, and their signal isn't strong.

If I were PSU, I'd try to get on Pittsburgh FM station like 105.9, which broadcasts the Penguins games, or WDVE, which broadcasts the Steelers games.

 

[PSUSignore]

College football is following the major league baseball model -- no limit on player income. All the other pro sports use the salary cap model to give small market teams a chance to compete. If we want any semblance of parity then the NCAA should have a NIL cap.

It's even worse than MLB. No cap, and unrestricted free agency for every player, every season.

 

[Ian]

Doesn't O$U always have an all star team? They will still be lacking at QB compared to Fields, Barrett, Stroud, Jones, etc...

 

[sdwcpa]

I live in Pittsburgh, and I've never even seen a Pitt player doing a commercial on Pittsburgh media let alone a PSU player, not that they've really had any players worthy of that since NIL became a factor. Although college sports have more interest in Pittsburgh than many American cities, it still is a pro town, and I'm sure that you can say the same thing about Philly. OSU is Columbus' de facto pro football team, so there is a major difference. OSU just is in a very favorable position regarding NIL, but that isn't anything new and, even with all of their advantages, they haven't played in the Championship game since the 2014 season. Also, it's very predicatable that this gravy train is going to come crashing down sooner rather than later; it's just an untenable situation, and the people who are giving out all of this cash are going to pull back when they realize that it's money very unwisely spent. I can tell you that I'm as huge a PSU fan as there is, and there is no way that I would pay somebody else's kid to play a sport in college, even if I were Elon Musk.

Actually they did play in the NC game in 2020. Got beat pretty badly by what arguably was Sabin’s best team ever.
They also came within a missed FG and a terrible reversal of a targeting call that knocked MHJ out of the game from playing in and almost certainly winning the NC game in 2022