Samwise College Football Newsletter
Friday, May 29, 2026
UCLA QB Karson Gordon Enters Transfer Portal via Track & Field Window
UCLA redshirt sophomore quarterback Karson Gordon has entered the transfer portal — but through the track and field window, not football’s. The portal window opened May 28 and runs through June 26. Gordon, a 6-foot-1 dual-threat QB clocked at 4.28 in the forty and a triple jump champion, was moved to wide receiver after Nico Iamaleava transferred to UCLA in April 2025. Gordon still plans to play college football. He originally came to UCLA as a 3-star dual-threat QB from Episcopal High School in Missouri City, Texas. His unique track eligibility opens doors other portal prospects don’t have.
Sources: On3
Big 12 Coaches Unanimously Support 24-Team CFP Expansion
All 16 Big 12 coaches voted unanimously to expand the College Football Playoff to 24 teams at the conference’s spring meetings in Frisco, Texas. WVU head coach Rich Rodriguez confirmed the vote. The Big 12, ranked second in CFP strength of conference for 2025, would have placed five teams in a 24-team bracket — versus just one (Texas Tech) under the current 12-team format. A December 1 deadline looms for an expansion decision. The SEC remains uncommitted; Commissioner Greg Sankey prefers a 16-team field. With momentum building, the Big 12’s unified stance adds pressure on other conferences to act.
Sources: Front Office Sports
Bipartisan Senate Bill Would Impose First Federal Rules on College Athletics
A bipartisan Senate bill aims to impose federal guardrails on college athletics. The Protect College Sports Act — sponsored by Sens. Cruz (R-TX), Cantwell (D-WA), Schmitt (R-MO), and Coons (D-DE) — would allow one free transfer (sit-out required on a second), establish a 5-year eligibility window, create an agent registry with a 5% fee cap, ban in-season coaching changes (the “Lane Kiffin Rule”), close third-party NIL loopholes, and prohibit an SEC–Big Ten super league. It would also require free local broadcasts. Sen. Schmitt: “Congress is the only entity on the planet that can give antitrust exemption to the NCAA.”
Sources: The Daily Signal
SEC Spring Meetings End Without Solutions on NIL, CFP Expansion, or Breakaway
The SEC’s annual spring meetings in Destin wrapped without concrete solutions. The College Sports Commission’s CEO Bryan Seeley warned that many NIL deals schools offered violate House settlement rules — “a lot of those NIL deals will not get cleared.” Georgia coach Kirby Smart openly endorsed a breakaway if shared rules can’t be enforced: “if we can’t find rules that everybody plays by, then we should play on our own.” Florida AD Scott Stricklin countered that a breakaway could be “draconian.” CFP expansion was pushed to the fall. Power conferences expressed cautious optimism about the pending Protect College Sports Act.
Sources: Front Office Sports
Sankey Claims SEC Is “Strongest Football League by Far” Despite Three Straight Big Ten Titles
SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey doubled down on the conference’s football supremacy at a May 28 press conference in Destin: “If you look at the entirety of our league, we are by far the most competitive, the strongest football league by far.” But the record tells a different story. The Big Ten has won three consecutive national championships — Michigan (2023-24), Ohio State (2024-25), and Indiana (2025-26) — and went 4-0 against the SEC in CFP matchups, including Indiana’s 38-3 demolition of Alabama in the semifinals. Sankey called that Big Ten dominance “a pretty narrow band,” a characterization that raised eyebrows across the sport.
Sources: Eleven Warriors
Final AP Top 10 — 2025-26
Last season’s final poll
1. Indiana (16-0) 🏆
2. Miami (13-2)
3. Ole Miss (12-1)
4. Oregon (12-2)
5. Ohio State (12-2)
6. Georgia (11-2)
7. Texas Tech (11-2)
8. Texas A&M (10-3)
9. Alabama (10-3)
10. Notre Dame (10-3)
Off-Season Tracker
Transfer Portal
Portal window open: May 28 – Jun 26
UCLA QB Karson Gordon (track window)
Season in Review
CFP Champion: Indiana 27-21 over Miami
Big Ten: 3 straight national titles
Big Ten: 4-0 vs. SEC in CFP
CFP Expansion
Decision deadline: December 1, 2026
Big 12: unanimous for 24 teams
SEC: uncommitted (Sankey prefers 16)
Curated by JD · samwise.agency
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