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Indianapolis Star
4 hours ago
- Business
- Indianapolis Star
'Get the industry fixed': Why Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti wants 'regulation, rules'
BORDEN — Indiana football coach Curt Cignetti is eager for some clarity from the governing bodies of college athletics. He anticipates the House v. NCAA settlement to move forward in the coming weeks, but told reporters Wednesday during an appearance at the athletic department's annual booster dinner at Huber's Orchard that the coming revenue-sharing framework and NIL clearinghouse won't solve all the issues plaguing collegiate athletics. "We need regulation, we need rules, so that we all can plan and do what we are hired to do cause right now there's just a lot of uncertainty," Cignetti said. "How many (transfer) portal windows are there going to be? When are they going to be? And I could go on and on. We got to get the industry fixed, the game is great. We got to get the industry fixed." The final approval of the settlement won't do much to impact IU football's day-to-day operations. Much of the Power Four was already operating under the proposed revenue-sharing framework back when the portal opened in December. "There was a lot of front-loading of NIL deals, people trying to make transactions before the rev-share did pass because of the NIL Go will go into effect immediately," Cignetti said. "That created a bit of a different world and some anxiety, a little more anxiety than normal." Cignetti is more concerned about the lack of clarity on the other major topics impacting collegiate athletics, including the transfer portal and eligibility rules. He circled back to the topic when he talked about IU's 2026 signing class. The class currently features nine verbal commitments — Cignetti hinted that there's more to come — but he's still not sure how many players the Hoosiers will take thanks to the lack of overall clarity with the portal windows. "If I just knew when the portal date would be, and what the portal pool would look like, I could figure out whether we are taking 20 or 17 high school guys relative to what our team needs look like next year," Cignetti said. "Right now it's hard to plan cause we can't get any answers." Insider: How 'Operation Bigfoot' brought Hoosier the bison back to life. Why IU finds value in mascot Twelve teams? Sixteen teams? How many automatic bids should each conference get? Should their be automatic bids at all? The discussion about the format for the College Football Playoff in coming years has taken center stage at the SEC Meetings this week in Destin, Florida, with commissioner Greg Sankey along with the conference's athletic directors and coaches all weighing in. Cignetti wasn't interested in adding his voice to the growing chorus of opinions on how things should be structured. "I've been part of all the different formats, DII and FCS, at the end of the day there's one team standing whether you start with 64 or eight — there's going to be one standing at the end, no matter what the number is, somebody is going to feel bad that they got left out," Cignetti said with a smirk. "That's just the way it works, you can't make everyone happy." Also in Borden: Will Luke Goode, Anthony Leal play for IU basketball next season? Where eligibility stands The closest Cignetti got to weighing in was admitting he likes the tweaks the committee made for next year that include removing the automatic byes for conference champions and goes to a straight seeding format. "The straight seeding is a good thing, would have been nice to have that last year and had a home game, 12 and a half point favorite," Cignetti said. "We were still in control of our own destiny and didn't get the job done. If you pinned me down, I'd probably have an opinion, but it's not worth stating."
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
NBA Draft withdrawals: Florida is the big winner, while Duke is on the losing end
Condolences to any NBA franchise hoping to unearth an overlooked gem late in next month's NBA Draft. This year's second round appears to be historically barren as a result of the skyrocketing NIL market across college basketball. Advertisement In the pre-NIL era, college basketball's top underclassmen routinely entered the NBA Draft even if they were projected to slip to the second round or go unselected. They earned more money chasing an NBA two-way contract or an overseas payday than they could returning to a college model where the only payouts came under the table. The calculus began to change in 2021 when a series of court rulings forced the NCAA to allow athletes to benefit financially from their name, image, and likeness without fear of penalty. Now underclassmen who are fringe NBA prospects are returning to college in record numbers because they can earn as much as $3 to $4 million per year playing for deep-pocketed college programs. Texas Tech's JT Toppin, Florida's Thomas Haugh, UConn's Alex Karaban, Duke's Isaiah Evans and Purdue's Braden Smith and Trey Kaufman-Renn were among the prominent college stars who did not even test the waters this spring. Only 106 players entered the 2025 NBA Draft as early entry candidates , the league announced last month. That's the lowest number of early entrants since 2015, down from a peak of 353 in 2021. Advertisement Many of those 106 early-entry candidates did not remain in the NBA draft — even some who had a chance to be selected as high as in the 20-45 range. Michigan's Yaxel Lendeborg pulled out on the eve of Wednesday's 11:59 p.m. ET deadline. So did Houston's Milos Uzan and Florida's Alex Condon . Days earlier, Boogie Fland and Darrion Williams did the same. Others truly took their decisions down to the wire. On Wednesday afternoon, promising Auburn point guard Tahaad Pettiford revealed he'd return to school, as did Kentucky's Otega Oweh and San Diego State's Miles Byrd. Arkansas' Adou Thiero, reigning Big East player of the year RJ Luis and ex-Florida State star Jamir Watkins chose to stay in the draft. The flood of returning talent to college basketball reflects how much money top-tier programs are willing to spend to try to build the best possible rosters. The Field of 68's Jeff Goodman reported last month that as many as 15 teams will have $10 million rosters next season. Those in the NIL space who have spoken to Yahoo Sports say that it will take up to $6-8 million just to be competitive in a power conference. For as long as that kind of money remains available, the sport of college basketball will always be a big winner at the NBA Draft withdrawal deadline. Fringe NBA prospects are staying in college longer than they have in at least a decade or two, maybe longer. Advertisement Which stay-or-go decisions were the most impactful this season? Below is a long list of college programs who got stronger and a few programs who lost key players they may struggle to replace. Defending national champion Florida gets a huge boost with both Alex Condon (21) and Rueben Chinyelu choosing to return to Gainesville next season. () (Jamie Squire via Getty Images) WINNERS 1. FLORIDA Don't count out Florida as a potential repeat national champion. The Gators project as no worse than a preseason top-five team next fall thanks to a wildly successful offseason so far. It starts in the frontcourt where Florida returns all four players who were part of the rotation during last season's NCAA tournament. In late April, versatile forward Thomas Haugh opted to bypass the NBA Draft and return to school. He'll see more playing time at small forward next season with frontcourt stalwarts Alex Condon and Rueben Chinyelu withdrawing from the draft over the past week and reserve center Micah Handlogten also coming back. Advertisement All four of last season's top perimeter players are moving on, but Florida went on a shopping spree via the transfer portal to help replace some of that lost firepower. Princeton transfer Xaivian Lee averaged 16.9 points and 5.5 assists last season. Arkansas transfer Boogie Fland is a former five-star recruit who might have gone in the second round of this year's NBA Draft had he not pulled his name out last week. 2. HOUSTON Houston received unexpected good news on Tuesday when point guard Milos Uzan announced that he was withdrawing from the NBA Draft and returning for his senior year. The potential preseason No. 1 Cougars had been bracing for Uzan's departure, adding talented freshman Kingston Flemings and proven veteran Pop Isaacs via the transfer portal. While Isaacs ultimately chose to transfer to Texas A&M once Uzan decided to return, that's a tradeoff Houston should welcome. Uzan averaged 11.4 points and 4.3 assists in his first year in Kelvin Sampson's system, helping lead the Cougars within two points of a national title. He should be even better next season, surrounded by returning standouts Emanuel Sharp and Joseph Tugler, as well as one of the nation's best freshman classes. Advertisement 'One of the reasons why Baylor was so good the year they won the national championship, they had a lot of transfers who stayed and came back their second year,' Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said Tuesday. 'The second year is an opportunity to take a big step because June, July and August will be different for a guy in his second year versus a guy in his first year.' Michigan is celebrating landing Yaxel Lendeborg in the transfer portal from UAB. (AP Photo/Gareth Patterson) (ASSOCIATED PRESS) 3. MICHIGAN The most coveted player in Michigan's transfer portal haul is officially on his way to Ann Arbor. Yaxel Lendeborg, the former UAB star forward who led the Blazers in every major statistical category last season, withdrew from the NBA Draft on Monday after previously announcing he would join the Wolverines if he opted to return to college. Advertisement Lendeborg averaged 17.7 points, 11.4 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.7 steals and 1.8 blocks at UAB last season and is viewed as a potential replacement for NBA-bound Danny Wolf. The hope for Lendeborg is that the 6-foot-9 forward can play alongside transfer big men Aday Mara and Morez Johnson much like Wolf and 7-footer Vlad Goldin did last season. Had Lendeborg received a first-round guarantee from an NBA team, he might have opted to stay in this year's draft. He instead returns to college as the centerpiece of a Michigan team that has Final Four potential if it can overcome concerns about inadequate outside shooting. 4. AUBURN Auburn will return one of the standouts from last season's juggernaut team that won the SEC regular-season title and advanced to the Final Four. The Tigers are bringing back point guard Tahaad Pettiford, who averaged 11.6 points per game last season as the program's sixth man. Advertisement While concerns about Pettiford's size and ability to hold up defensively prevented him from securing a first-round guarantee this draft cycle, he has a chance to establish himself as a 2026 first-round selection. The 6-foot sophomore will be the centerpiece of a reloaded Auburn team brimming with elite transfers and incoming freshmen. Auburn coach Bruce Pearl was certainly happy to have Pettiford and Serbian big man Filip Jovic back in the fold. 5. TEXAS A&M The biggest beneficiary of Uzan's return to Houston might not have been the Cougars. Uzan's decision paved the way for Texas A&M to scoop up a combo guard who has shown the ability to score in bunches. Advertisement On the same day Uzan announced his intent to return to Houston, Pop Isaacs backed out of his previous commitment to the Cougars and transferred instead to Texas A&M. Isaacs will have the ball in his hands at Texas A&M, whereas he would have played off-ball alongside Uzan had he stuck with Houston. 'Texas A&M needed a point guard,' Houston coach Kelvin Sampson said Tuesday. 'Pop's a very, very talented kid. I was looking forward to working with him but with Milos coming back changed some things. I think it worked out for everybody, which, to me, is the perfect scenario.' Isaacs averaged 15 points per game two seasons ago as a sophomore at Texas Tech. He was on his way to an even bigger season at Creighton last year, scoring 27 against Kansas, 25 against Texas A&M and 18 against San Diego State before a hip injury ended his season after just eight games. 6. KENTUCKY Otega Oweh came through for Kentucky at the buzzer on Wednesday as he did so many times during his debut season in Lexington. The 6-4 all-SEC guard took himself out of the NBA Draft hours before Wednesday's midnight deadline for prospects to withdraw. Advertisement In many ways, Oweh was the quintessential example of a player with incentive to return to college in the NIL era. Despite a strong showing at the combine, he would have been lucky to be selected had he remained in the draft, yet he provides invaluable scoring punch to a Kentucky team that needs his star power. Last season, Oweh averaged a team-best 16.2 points per game while adding 4.7 rebounds, 1.7 assists and 1.6 steals. He scored more than 20 points eight times in February and March, including a pair of game winners against his former team Oklahoma. Next season, he'll anchor a transfer-laden Kentucky team that has a chance to contend in the SEC and crack the preseason top 10. 7. SAN DIEGO STATE San Diego State already appeared to be the class of the Mountain West next season. Now the Aztecs will be an even bigger favorite to return to the NCAA tournament and perhaps do some damage there. Advertisement Hours before Wednesday night's draft withdrawal deadline, Miles Byrd announced he is coming back to San Diego State. 'Back to work,' Byrd, a redshirt junior and projected second-round pick, posted to Instagram. Byrd's return means San Diego State will bring back six key rotation pieces from last year's NCAA tournament team, including 7-foot NBA prospect and Mountain West newcomer of the year Magoon Gwath. Also part of the fold is 2024-25 preseason all-conference guard Reese Waters, who missed the entire season with a foot injury. Drake Powell will not return to North Carolina next season. () (Patrick McDermott via Getty Images) LOSERS 1. NORTH CAROLINA Drake Powell was arguably the most important potential returner for North Carolina. The bouncy 6-foot-6 guard averaged a modest 7.4 points and 3.4 rebounds as a freshman, but he boasted the talent to blossom into a lethal perimeter scorer and lockdown defender as a sophomore. Advertisement It was bad enough for North Carolina that Powell told ESPN at the NBA Draft Combine that the 'door's closed' on a return to Chapel Hill. Powell elevated himself into a potential late first-round pick by measuring prototypical wing size, 6-foot-5 barefoot with a 7-foot wingspan and a 37-inch standing vertical jump. What was worse was the perhaps unintentional parting shot he took at North Carolina on the way out the door. When asked why he was ready to jump to the NBA, Powell said , "I feel like I'm the same two-way player that was coming into college. Obviously I don't think I got to showcase that at UNC, but the potential is still there.' Those comments won't help Hubert Davis recruit future NBA prospects, especially since Powell is not the only decorated recruit who didn't reach his potential with the Tar Heels. Ian Jackson transferred to St. John's this spring after his stock sank during his lone season in Chapel Hill. Elliot Cadeau transferred to Michigan last month after spending two underwhelming seasons with North Carolina. 2. SCHOOLS STILL SEEKING AN IMPACT TRANSFER Schools hoping to make a late splash in the transfer portal are running out of options. Two of the best remaining transfers came off the board on Wednesday when RJ Luis and Jamir Watkins both announced they intended to remain in the NBA draft. Advertisement Luis, the reigning Big East player of the year, averaged 18.2 points and 7.2 rebounds, leading St. John's to a sweep of the Big East regular-season and tournament titles. Watkins, a 6-foot-7 forward, earned second-team All-ACC honors this past season at Florida State after averaging 18.4 points and 5.7 rebounds. North Carolina, Kansas, Ole Miss, Villanova and Georgetown were among the teams pursuing Luis, ESPN's Jonathan Givony reported. It's unclear which programs were targeting Watkins, but Pittsburgh reportedly was among those who initially reached out. 3. DUKE Duke coach Jon Scheyer made a slight miscalculation this spring when identifying potential targets in the transfer portal: He zeroed in on a prospect who was too good. Advertisement Cedric Coward began his career at Division III Willamette, spent two seasons at Eastern Washington and then followed David Riley to Washington State. The long-armed, explosive 6-foot-6 wing was averaging 17.7 points and shooting 40% from behind the arc for the Cougars before a shoulder injury halted his season after just six games. There appeared to be a real chance Coward might play alongside the Boozer twins at Duke when he committed to the Blue Devils earlier this spring while also keeping his name in the NBA Draft. Then Coward measured a condor-like 7-foot-2-inch wingspan at the NBA Draft Combine, unleashed a 38.5-inch max vertical leap and ranked as one of the most consistent shooters in drills. The question after that was no longer whether Coward would be a first-round pick. It became how high in the first round could he rise? As so often is the case for Duke, reinforcements are on the way. Scheyer responded by nabbing Dame Sarr, a heralded 6-foot-8 wing from Italy, and by persuading five-star forward Sebastian Wilkins to not only pick the Blue Devils but also reclassify from Class of 2026 to 2025.
Yahoo
5 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Wisconsin basketball star guard announces final NBA draft decision
Wisconsin basketball star guard John Blackwell is withdrawing from the 2025 NBA draft and returning to college, Jon Rothstein reported on Wednesday. The significant news falls on the deadline day for early-entry NCAA players to withdraw from the draft, just 28 days before the event itself. Advertisement Blackwell will return to the Badgers after a moderately quiet pre-draft process. The rising junior guard was not invited to the NBA combine or the G League Elite Camp, signaling a projection several steps below the draft's two rounds. The draft process, specifically private workouts and pro days, likely gave Blackwell specific areas for improvement entering the upcoming college season, to then bolster his draft status for 2026. The 6-foot-4 guard averaged 31.2 minutes, 15.8 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game, while shooting 45% from the field and 32% from 3-point range, as a sophomore last season, earning an All-Big Ten honorable mention selection. He was the team's clear No. 2 option behind All-American wing John Tonje. With Tonje gone to the NBA, Blackwell is in line to claim that lead role this season. The Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, native headlines a projected Wisconsin starting lineup that also includes transfers Nick Boyd, Austin Rapp and Andrew Rohde, as well as rising junior forward Nolan Winter. If the notable transfer additions click, that starting group has the potential to be among the best in the Big Ten. Advertisement While signs pointed toward Blackwell's return for the last several weeks, the official news is a major boost to Wisconsin basketball's chances next season. Contact/Follow @TheBadgersWire on X (formerly Twitter) and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Wisconsin Badgers news, notes and opinion This article originally appeared on Badgers Wire: Wisconsin basketball guard John Blackwell withdraws from NBA draft
Calgary Herald
6 hours ago
- Sport
- Calgary Herald
Defensive linemen in Calgary Stampeders camp: 'Game-wreckers' wanted
Article content 'And then on the edges, you've got to be a full-time player … but you've got to be able to stop the run and then get after the quarterback.' Article content With 18 d-line hopefuls still in camp Wednesday, Dickenson and his staff have plenty of talent — and options — on hand. Article content Beyond Orimolade on the edge, returnee Clarence Hicks has been a standout during camp. As have fellow Americans Cedric Wilcots II and Shaun Peterson Jr., who earned two QB sacks in last Saturday's 31-4 pre-season victory over the visiting Edmonton Elks at McMahon. Article content Of the big American fellas inside, returnee Josiah Coatney, fourth-year CFLer Miles Brown and Jaylon Hutchings — who signed with the Stamps last October — are all turning heads. Article content Article content Then there's the Canadians in the mix — returnees Kail Dava, Kelon Thomas, Ryan Leder, Justin Sambu and Anthony Federico, 2024 draft-picks George Idoko and Jason Janvier-Messier and 2025 draftee — and Calgarian — Max von Muehldorfer. Article content Article content 'I think we have a lot of talent,' added Orimolade. 'I think there's a lot of guys that are still like budding, but I think number one, I think we're going to defend the run really well, and that's going to put us in a lot of opportunities to give guys behind the sticks. It makes it easier for d-line to get to the quarterback.' Article content The ending Article content So far, it stacks up as Orimolade, Brown, Hutchings and Hicks from edge to edge. Article content But with so many talents in the mix and Dickenson declaring jobs up for grabs, that could change overnight. Article content Plus Canadians starting on the d-line amounts to being ratio-breakers. Article content No matter, though … just as long as whoever's got those gigs are game-wreckers. Article content 'It's a hungrier group,' added Orimolade, when asked about the difference between the Stamps before he left and this year's edition. 'When you've had bad seasons, no one wants that taste in their mouth. They wanted the season to be over just because of all the losing, and it starts to weigh on you mentally. Article content Article content 'But now it's like everyone has the drive to be better this year. That's a big change. That was kind of missing. You get kind of complacent, and now you have the rejuvenation. It's good.' Article content Short yardage Article content The Stampeders have released American WR Ishmael Hyman, who appeared in five regular-season games for the Red and White in 2024 and made 18 catches for 220 yards and one touchdown … The Stamps signed global K Jordan Noyes, a native of Gravesend, England, who recently concluded his NCAA career with the Colorado State Rams. In two seasons with the Rams, he converted 29-of-39 field-goal attempts and added 62 converts for a total of 149 points. He also averaged 64.6 yards on 16 kickoffs. In a 2024 game at Nevada, Noyes connected on a 60-yard field goal. Noyes started his NCAA career with 30 games over three seasons with the Utah Utes. He was 8-of-12 on field goals for the Utes, a perfect 45-for-45 on converts and accounted for 79 points. He averaged 61.9 yards on 145 kickoffs … The Stamps placed rookie American FB Ryan Jones on the retired list after he underwent surgery for a broken leg suffered during the Red and White pre-season victory over the host BC Lions on Vancouver Island on Victoria Day … Stamps training camp continues Thursday at McMahon (9:15 a.m.). Article content
Fox News
8 hours ago
- Business
- Fox News
LSU HC Brian Kelly on SEC scheduling: 'We want to play Big Ten schools'
Nothing less than the future of college sports is being hashed out this week in conference rooms spread throughout a sprawling seaside resort in Florida. These are the Southeastern Conference's annual spring meetings — a gathering of school presidents, athletic directors and coaches. It might be argued that the 2025 affair carries more weight than it ever has. Among the topics are the future of the College Football Playoff, the SEC's own schedule, the transfer portal and the NCAA itself. All are influenced by the fate of a multibillion-dollar lawsuit settlement that hovers over almost every corner of college athletics. As a reminder of what's at stake, a handful of football coaches detailed the uncertainties they faced with the start of practice closing in, one of which is still not knowing how many players they'll be able to suit up for the upcoming season. "It's challenging when you're trying to figure out what you can do for football camp on July 30th, when we really don't have much of a resolution of what that's going to look like," Texas A&M coach Mike Elko said. One person who knows precisely what he wants to see on his team's schedule is LSU head coach Brian Kelly, who told Yahoo Sports that the Tigers "want to play Big Ten schools." LSU went 1-1 against Big Ten competition last season, losing to USC in Week 1 and beating UCLA in Week 4. LSU is a combined 3-1 against the Big Ten under Kelly (2022-present). Some of the topics being discussed this week and the SEC's role in sorting them out: The SEC and Big Ten will decide whether to expand the CFP from 12 to 14 or 16 teams, and will ultimately have the final say on how many automatic bids they and other conferences will receive. Among the proposals is one in which those two conferences would receive four automatic bid, and another that allots one automatic bid to five conferences and 11 at-large slots. "The best system with 16 should be the 16 best," said Ole Miss coach Lane Kiffin, a critic of the system last year when his team was left out of the first 12-team field. "I don't know exactly how that's figured out" The Big 12 and Atlantic Coast conferences, which are the other two members of the Power Four, will be able to offer their input — but that's all it is — along with the rest of the smaller conferences who are involved in the CFP structure. Asked about the relationship with his fellow commissioners, the SEC's Greg Sankey relayed a recent conversation he had with one of his predecessors, Roy Kramer, who had his share of contentious arguments with leaders of other conferences. "He said, 'We'd walk out of some of those rooms, and we weren't going to talk to each other for a year. We hated each other, but we always figured a way out,'" Sankey said. "I take great comfort in that. And I take the responsibility to figure that out." At stake is not only what the six seasons starting in 2026 will look like, but — if the SEC and Big Ten create an unrepairable rift with the other Power Four leagues — what college football might become once ESPN's $7.8 billion contract to televise the games ends after the 2031 season. The SEC's decision on whether to add a ninth league game and a possible shift from a conference title game to a series of "play-in" games for newly created automatic qualifying spots are also related to the CFP's next format. If only there weren't that little problem of the "student" in "student-athlete," some of the decisions about the transfer portal would be so much simpler. Because schools try to sync the timing of the window when players can leave one school for another with the academic calendar, football finds itself having to choose between a window that opens during the playoff — around the time the spring semester kicks off — or one that opens in the spring and predates the fall semester. The playoff option might be more convenient for some coaches, who could build their roster and do offseason workouts with those players from January through the spring. But that could lead to a repeat of some of the awkward moves from last season, with players on teams contending for a title leaving for better offers. "It's really hard to be playing in a championship setting and have to be dealing with that," Georgia coach Kirby Smart said. "When I brought that up as a complaint or a problem, it was told to me, 'There's no crying from a yacht.'" Ultimately, members of the American Football Coaches Association agreed that January is the way to go. The NCAA will ultimately make this decision, likely with heavy input from the new entity being formed by the Power Four conferences that will run key aspects of college sports. Most people at these meetings agree that the SEC isn't looking to break away from the NCAA completely. Then again, Sankey said, "I've shared with the decision-making working group [at the NCAA] that I have people in my room asking, 'Why are we still in the NCAA?'" This has lent urgency to the proposals being considered for even more autonomy for the Power Four, who are looking to streamline decision-making and put the most important topics — finances, litigation and infractions not related to the settlement — in their hands. The current proposal for a slimmed-down board of directors would give the four biggest conferences enough voting power to total 65% of the vote even if the other nine board members all disagreed. It does not give the Power Four enough voting power to pass a measure if one of the four dissents. That might not be enough. "I think 68% is a number that's been on our mind, because you can't just have someone walk away at that level among four and everything stops," Sankey said of a formula that would give three of four conferences the voting power to pass legislation. "We need to talk through those things in depth." Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account, and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily!
