\n\u201cI didn\u2019t want to jinx it, so I put one in my bag,\u201d McLaughlin said. \u201cWe were up big at halftime, so I went in and slipped it in my overalls, and I broke it out of it. I wasn\u2019t gonna smoke it. I was just gonna chew on it.\u201d<\/p>\n
But then McLaughlin noticed there was a nearby flame from a space heater on the sideline during the December game in Columbus, Ohio.<\/p>\n
\u201cPut in front of that,\u201d he continued. \u201cHad a good time. I didn\u2019t expect them to put it on TV, but that was really funny. We had a good time with it. My teammates thought it was funny.\u201d<\/p>\n
That included some of McLaughlin\u2019s former Alabama teammates, too.<\/p>\n
\u201cA few of them reached out and they were laughing about it,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was just cool to see the reaction like the Alabama fans. I spent four years there and enjoyed my time there. I\u2019m an Alabama guy, I\u2019m also a Buckeyes guy. So it was fun.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The playoff seeding is likely to change for next season. As usual, money is the hangup. <\/p>\n\n<\/aside>\n\nCommissioners of the Big 12 and Mountain West \u2014 the chief benefactors of the bye rule this year \u2014 as well as the ACC say they are open to discussing the matter, but expressed skepticism in making changes so soon into this version of the expanded playoff.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m open to a healthy discussion on the topic,\u201d Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark told Yahoo Sports. \u201cI certainly have a point of view that will be expressed in the room, but I do not have the appetite to give up any financial reward that comes with a bye.\u201d<\/p>\n
There is a sizable financial incentive tethered to those receiving a first-round bye: $8 million. Teams advancing to the playoff each receive $4 million. Those playing in quarterfinals \u2014 the four first-round winners and the four top seeds \u2014 receive another $4 million.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The SEC and Big Ten won\u2019t continue to willingly share forever. <\/p>\n
Last, we got another transfer portal bombshell this weekend. Apparently DB Xavier Lucas had signed a two-year NIL agreement with Wisconsin out of high school. One year into that agreement, he decided he wanted to transfer to Miami. Wisconsin refused to enter him into the portal, so he disenrolled and announced through his attorney that he is headed to Miami anyway. The attorney correctly cites that NIL agreements cannot bind a player to a particular school under NCAA rules<\/a>, even though explicit pay for play is happening all over the country. Wisconsin is directing most of the ire toward Miami, accusing the \u2018Canes of tampering. <\/p>\n\n<\/aside>\n\nWisconsin said in its statement: \u201cBadger student-athletes who have signed these agreements expect Wisconsin Athletics to honor the terms. In turn, Wisconsin Athletics relies on the student-athlete representations in signing these agreements that they will do the same. A request to enter the transfer portal after entering into such an agreement is inconsistent with the representations and mutual understanding of the agreement and explains the reason for not processing a transfer portal request under these circumstances.\u201d<\/p>\n
The Big Ten, in a statement released soon after Wisconsin\u2019s, said it is \u201ccritical that agreed-to obligations be respected, honored and enforced.\u201d The league also said that the situation highlights the need for \u201csubstantive governance reform\u201d in college athletics.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese actions [by Miami] undermine the efforts of its own conference as the ACC continues its collaboration with the other A4 conferences in developing a sustainable framework for college sports,\u201d the Big Ten said in its statement.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
The worst part of all of this? The NCAA has now acknowledged that the transfer portal means absolutely nothing. <\/p>\n
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