It's just lazy recruiting. There are a ton of athletes who are given a ton of rope because of the perception of how good they are, vs. how they actually play.

ha! These guys know what they are doing.

We need defense line help. big bodies is my guess.

It's happening. I'm loving what the coaching staff is doing. Excellent work. I've said for years, a ton of California kids want to stay in California, most didn't know Davis was even an option, but the more we are on tv, more winning, more exposure, and Davis can become a power.

Well done!!! Spring ball is going to be fantastic!

My point is simply, recruiting means evaluation of talent. This means coaches need to see players where they are regardless of where they attend school. California has the largest JUCO program in the country with over 66 football programs and over 5000 football players. It is a gold mine of talent that should be tapped until exhaustion. It's not a weakness at all, its a strength. And if the Vandy QB's lawsuit that is currently underway in the courts rule JUCO time does not count against the eligibility clock, then you are getting a 4 year player with 2 years of experience.

Don't fall for the "star" system that has been corrupted by money. Most of the stars are now bought...its all about marketing now....get the kid a NIL deal at the highest someone will pay...is he any good? Who knows but get the bag....that is paying for the "brand." We saw this with Jayden Rashada who came out of high school with a bang...hype machine went crazy...Miami, Florida, Georgia...all were interested...but when the kid got to the field it became pretty obvious the kid wasn't a 5 star. He couldn't even make it a SACST and was benched there too. So be careful with chasing end of the bench talent on brand teams.

JUCO is a fantastic route for kids to play in cfb. What is wrong with a JUCO? If we took your advice, do you know how many great football players you would miss? OJ Simpson, Aaron Rogers, Larry Allen, are just a couple names that pop out in my head of great JUCO players who went on to be great players.

Stop falling in love with the "brand".

Thank Doc!

Hey guys, just got tickets for me and the wife. Question, is there going to be food there? Planning the event and trying to figure out if I should take the Mrs to dinner as well.

thanks,

-g

I 100% agree. Moving to WSU is a bad move in my opinion. He just left one of the best QB developers in the league to maybe play in D1. I wish him well, but bad move long term.

No.

Agree with you. Do I think its possible? Yes. Do I think its probable? No. Why? Because of the same mindset you mentioned. I'm not sure what the future holds, but the current protectory isn't good.

We will see. I think we have the right coach and whoever gets the nod next fall I'm pretty confident we will be ok. I wish Caden well and hope he finds the home he is looking for (I'll be honest I knew he was gone months ago after talking with his mom), but I think the next great QB is already on the team.

The old days of doing football are over. You have to rethink the entire model.

Excellent post, TrainingRm67. You actually laid out the exact reasons why a California Conference may be the best—and perhaps only—path forward for sustaining college football in California.

The so-called “power” conferences are bleeding money. They’re relying almost entirely on TV revenue to stay afloat in the next media deal, yet the economic and technological landscape has fundamentally changed. Traditional television—the NBC, CBS, ABC, and even ESPN model many of us grew up with—is dying. The next generation simply doesn’t engage with those platforms. Streaming has already replaced them. YouTube, Amazon Prime, Apple, Google, and similar companies are now the real distribution channels.

So what happens in 2030 when the current TV deals expire? Do we really believe that same level of money will still exist? I don’t. I think the endgame is a semi-pro super league made up exclusively of blue-blood programs—Notre Dame, Florida, Ohio State, and the like. That leaves schools such as Stanford, Cal, UCLA, San Diego State, Fresno State, and others on the outside looking in.

When that happens, schools will face a few options:

Scramble to rebuild old conferences with new members.

Drop down to the FCS level.

Eliminate football altogether.

Or rethink conference alignment with geography playing a much bigger role.

This is where a California Conference makes the most sense.

California has the population—nearly 40 million people, the largest in the country.
California has the economic power—the largest GDP in the U.S. and the fourth largest economy in the world.
California is the global center of technology and media.
California also has a deep and diverse education system, from junior colleges to the CSU and UC systems, along with strong private institutions.

The only real reason college football hasn’t reached the same level here as in other regions is simple: culturally, we haven’t cared as much. The biggest football programs in the state—Stanford, Cal, UCLA, USC—are elite academic institutions that relatively few Californians actually attend. Compare that to a place like Ohio State, where a large portion of the state’s population attends and passionately supports the flagship university. As a result, local investment and emotional buy-in in California has been lukewarm.

If you doubt that community support exists here, go watch a Cal State Fullerton baseball game. That program is a national powerhouse and draws strong local support—proof that Californians will invest when they feel connected.

Now imagine a California Conference where UC Davis plays at Stanford, San Diego State, San Jose State, Cal Poly, UCLA, and Sacramento State. Travel costs drop dramatically. Trips are shorter. But more importantly, real local rivalries form. Communities become invested. The state’s massive population gets engaged. That drives business, media interest, and long-term investment.

Finally, leverage what California does better than anyone else: technology and entertainment. Silicon Valley is here. Hollywood is here. Google was born here. Create a California Conference YouTube channel. Use Hollywood-level storytelling and marketing to promote the league. Make playing a California school a national event. Keep California talent home and build something unique.

If college football is going to survive in this state, it won’t be by chasing a dying national model. It will be by embracing what California already is—and building a conference that reflects it

Cal and Stanford are not better then UC Davis. Sure they have a longer history, but if you compare all 3 schools today, what exactly are they better at? Reputation? Ok. But what about a history of college football elitism? They don't have much of a history. They have had some season with good players, but overall they are not better than Davis.

One of the hardest things to do in this country is to prevent "that could never happen" attitude that is prevalent in American culture. A new conference is bigger then just football.

You make a great point about schools dropping football because it was too expensive to maintain. That is correct, that WAS the problem in those days. However, that was before the internet, before CFB became a business, things have changed.

Cal and Stanford are on a geographical island. They are academic elite but have to play football in an east coast conference. That is sustainable? Nah.

Building a California Conference would create a new industry that self funds our schools and creates jobs for California. It will take a radical shift in how we view college sports in California. Of course, if you think the current situation is optimal, do nothing. Seems to be par for the course lately in California.

I disagree on UCLA and USC. I've pretty connected to both programs and what I'm hearing is there is already and exhaustion factor taking place. People who have never traveled for work really don't understand the wear and tear constant travel does to people. Now you are adding school, relationships. etc. and it becomes obvious its too far and too much money and effort.

I think USC and UCLA come a back to the west coast in either a renewed PAC or a California Conference. It's just cheaper, makes more sense geographically, and secures academic opportunities for our California kids.

I'm not opposed with creating football programs at UC Merced, UC San Diego, etc.

If I told you Caden Pinnick was going to be our starter next year, you wouldn't have known who I was talking about. Eason is one of the highest recruits to ever sign with Davis. He is a legacy. We are lucky that we have a QB coach in our HC and this is a huge impact on whoever is starting for Davis. This is why I'm not worried about the QB situation at all.

I'm more interested in the shoring up the defense.

so?

Eason. That’s my pick.