Agent Confidential

The latest LSU eligibility fight is about more than two players.

It’s another example of the bigger problem facing college football: Who is actually in charge?

I joined the GameTime crew to talk Lane Kiffin, LSU, the NCAA, the courts and why college football cannot continue operating one restraining order and one injunction at a time.

Plus: Lane being Lane, the “players council” explanation, and why the chaos isn’t going away until the sport solves its governance problem.

The first edition of What Mattered This Weekend.

Not a game recap. Mike Chaudron looks at what the weekend told us about the bigger picture in college football: Lane Kiffin and Dabo Swinney representing two very different approaches to the modern game, the Michigan-Western Michigan controversy and the need for centralized governance, the chaos of Auburn-Baylor, and why college football's opening weekend could use more games that actually matter.

Agent Confidential — The Insider's Guide to College Football.

Somebody new needs to start making travel arrangements.

The Buyout Island passenger list has changed after another Saturday of college football. We’ve got a newcomer, some familiar faces, and a couple of coaches getting awfully close to having their tickets punched.

Five coaches. One island.

Welcome aboard Air Sexton.

Twenty programs. One No. 1.

Texas tops the Agent Confidential Top 20.

The Longhorns combine one of the most valuable brands in college athletics with enormous financial resources, powerful donors, NIL strength, institutional commitment and championship expectations.

Add Steve Sarkisian and a program willing to use every advantage available to it, and the Forty Acres are built for the new business of college football.

Texas is No. 1.

The Ohio State checks in at No. 2 in the Agent Confidential Top 20.

The Buckeyes have virtually everything required to thrive in modern college football: an enormous brand, deep resources, powerful donor support and a willingness to invest at the highest level.

And at Ohio State, the expectation isn't simply to compete.

It's to win championships.

Only one program remains.

Texas A&M has almost everything a college football program could want: enormous resources, passionate donors, elite facilities, a massive fan base and the willingness to spend.

The Aggies don’t lack money. They don’t lack ambition. And they certainly don’t lack expectations.

The pieces are in place.

Now comes the part Aggieland has been waiting for: turning all of those resources into championships.

Texas A&M checks in at No. 3 in the Agent Confidential Top 20.

A special SEC edition of the Buyout Island Index, followed by my full conversation with GameTime on WJOX.

Lane Kiffin. NFL players attempting to return to college football. Tony Petitti vs. Greg Sankey. Kirby Smart. The SEC. And the governance problem that continues to hang over the sport.

College football has plenty of people with power.

But who’s actually in charge?

Agent Confidential — Explaining the Business of College Football.

No conference. A national television deal. A massive alumni base. And expectations that never really change.

Notre Dame doesn’t operate like everyone else in college football — because it doesn’t have to.

The Fighting Irish check in at #4 in the Agent Confidential Top 20, ranking the programs best positioned in the business of college football.

Three to go.

#NotreDame #FightingIrish #CollegeFootball #CFB #AgentConfidential

Few programs have ever made being cool as much a part of their brand as Miami.

The swagger. 

South Beach. 

Catholics vs Convicts. 

And a history filled with some of the biggest personalities in college football.

But here’s why Miami is back in my Top Five: the money is matching the swagger again.

Miami has an aggressive and committed donor base, they’ve embraced NIL, and they’re willing to spend what it takes to compete for players.

And don’t underestimate the value of South Florida. Some of the best football talent in America is right outside their front door.

The question at Miami was never whether the brand could matter again.

It was whether they were willing to invest enough to make it matter.

Right now, the answer looks like yes.

The U checks in at number five in the Agent Confidential Top 20.

Tomorrow, number four.

Georgia checks in at No. 6 in the Agent Confidential Top 20.

Elite recruiting. Serious resources. Championship expectations. And one of the strongest football operations in the country under Kirby Smart.

Georgia has everything required to compete at the very top of college football.

So how are the Bulldogs only No. 6?

Because this isn't a ranking of who has the best football team today.

It's about who is best positioned for the business of college football.

#GeorgiaFootball #GoDawgs #KirbySmart #CollegeFootball #AgentConfidential #SEC