Dennis Dodd offers perspective on college football's biggest storylines

CBS Sports national college football writer Dennis Dodd joined TexAgs Radio to give us his thoughts on all the big storylines surrounding the sport. Dodd gives a timeline for Texas and Oklahoma joining the SEC, discusses an expanded playoff and the transfer portal.

 Key notes from Dennis Dodd interview

• I think that Texas A&M's loss of all the transfers wasn't that surprising. It was in the process when I was there in December. They've got some guys as well. Georgia currently rules the world. This isn't just an A&M problem. It's also an Alabama problem and an LSU problem. Georgia is that far ahead of everyone else. Still, onward and upward for A&M. I think they will be better. The Bobby Petrino thing is interesting, and they opened themselves up to some ridicule. Still, will Jimbo Fisher be looking over his shoulder, or will he let Bobby call the plays?
   
• Getting Ainias Smith back would be huge for the offense. He can stretch the defense. He can do anything and add a new addition to the offense. With whatever quarterback is back there, Smith would give them a sense of comfort. He'd be one of the best offensive players in the country if he comes back.
   
• As time goes on for Texas and Oklahoma, the situation becomes clearer. They will be a point where those schools will have to stay for a little longer, but they're off on their own right now. They've hired an SEC advisor to help them get through the contracts. In a sense, you have to make FOX whole as well. I saw that 14 of the top 15 Big 12 broadcasts involved Texas or Oklahoma or both. That would be hard for them to make up. They'd have to get a series of non-conference games that involved Texas and Oklahoma playing non-conference games while in the SEC at Big 12 venues. I'm not sure that could happen.
   
• They left an opening in the playoff model for a move to 16 teams sooner rather than later. You would have two games on two different days. With 16 teams, you'd have everyone playing in the same availability without byes. With eight games, you might have to spread them out across three days. I think the scheduling would have to go head-to-head with the NFL at some point. Where and when do you play those games? The opening is still there. You'd get down to eight teams after just one week, and it wouldn't be hard to move to 16. With 12 teams, they haven't put a price on it yet, but I think it will be around $1.6 billion.
   
• Coaches have been recruiting over you, and the portal is just a different form of it. Jaxson Dart, the starter at Ole Miss, looks over his shoulder, and Walker Howard and Spencer Sanders have come in. Lane Kiffin is creating competition. Dart is out of options because he has already used his one-time transfer. On the surface, I think Kiffin is just trying to make his team better and create competition. It's up to Dart to get better, and he was OK last year. I was kind of underwhelmed with him. Maybe Kiffin was as well and is sending a message to him.
   
• Spencer Sanders had a really good year at Oklahoma State. He cut down on the turnovers. I don't think a job at Ole Miss is being handed to him by any means. He has to cut down on the turnovers and be a leader. I don't it's a given that he'll be a starter. I really think Kiffin is trying to create competition and try to send a message to Dart. I do not think Sanders went there with any kind of guarantee.
   
• Apparently, Jim Harbaugh bought a hamburger for recruits on campus during COVID. Harbaugh is a stubborn guy. There is an issue at Michigan with the AD, and is name is Warde Manuel. For whatever reason, the AD and Harbaugh do not get along. It was the AD that cut his salary in half. Harbaugh agreed to it, and then he went to the playoff two years in a row. We'd all expect something for Harbaugh, and maybe he's holding Manuel's feet to the fire. He's one of the best coaches in the country, and he's a quirky guy. There are only five guys in the Power 5 that have taken their team to back-to-back conference titles and back-to-back playoffs. He's in that group.
   
• I do think TCU could flirt with the playoffs year in and year out. The run exposed what they need to do. They need to get better on the defensive line. They got run over by Georgia. TCU is part of the reason the Big 12 got a bigger TV contract because media companies thought TCU, Oklahoma State and Baylor could be competitive on a national scale. Who are going to be those teams in the new Big 12 that will compete on a national scale? BYU, UCF and Cincinnati have made runs. Who will be the dominant teams?
   
• I don't foresee any meaningful changes to the transfer portal. The NCAA has its head buried in the sand and keeps waiting for Congress. It will continue to be more back and forth. There has been a cry for Congress intervention, and Congress has shown no interest in doing so. There was an interesting development recently that could compensate players. If the NCAA ignores this, it's just another instance of 'as Rome burns. I think the market forces will apply to college football. The market forces will apply, and in two or three years, we won't be talking about it just like we don't talk about "cost of attendance" anymore. That's essentially pay-for-play.