Man, you have the scoop on staff moves. Same source?

Here's a great off-season topic: Aggie legend and the gutsiest play caller in the history of modern college football (see 2007 Fiesta Bowl if you're too young to remember. Arguably the best two minutes of playcalling in my lifetime) Chris Petersen named to the 2026 College Football Hall of Fame class! Way to go Coach Pete!

https://themw.com/news/2026/01/14/chris-petersen-selected-for-college-football-hall-of-fame/

Let's see... $500-750k and a house, or even a nice condo, in the Pullman area with incentives based on my performance. And maybe a truck with 4WD. With a gunrack.

I don't know how you quantitate the value of the UC Davis degree. All your points are very valid.

I am with you 100% on having an in-house guy over a portal transfer. Especially on the Offensive Line and at that position. The staff must feel confident with our homegrown Tackles if they aren't offering portal/grad transfers. Good sign!

Transfer Portal period ends January 16. We may get word at that time.
JC Transfers and late high school Signing Day is February 4th. We will definitely have this thing pieced together by February 5th.

I think the Psyche replacement and the Left Tackle replacement are the key pieces that warrant immediate, grad transfer/portal types. TE and RB have one proven guy each with young depth behind them, but it says something to the state of readiness of those back-ups if we have portal offers at those positions. Nickel/Safety the same thing. Look at what offers are out there and that will tell you what the coaches are thinking of the young guys coming up.

Since we're in off-season opining mode, let's discuss the merits of smallish RBs vs. the "big back". A big back is typically seen as slower, but more powerful, with a greater ability to run through arm tackles in short yardage situations. In my opinion, that is a nice luxury to have. "Big backs" that jumped out to me were Victor Dawson (#5, 5'11" 220) from Illinois State and Davis from Montana State (#32, 5'10" 210). A program needs to be in the portal to find those guys, and you have to be willing to pay. Dawson was from Cincinnati while Davis came from Wisconsin. They come with a price tag. And, in retrospect, was either one of them any more valuable than the small backs from UC Davis? Different offensive roles, certainly. Fisher gets most of his carries on 1st down and run down situations. 14 carries per game is his average, 2 catches per game. 16 touches. Dawson was a volume rusher who got stronger as the game progressed and dictated. Good zone runner. Davis was more of a change-up guy to compliment the QB run threat. While a 3rd and 4th down situational back would be a luxury, for what the Aggies offense asks of its tailback, I would argue (not sure who I'm arguing with) that the team is better served spending money elsewhere. Like Defensive End and Left Tackle. This is no knock on Fish; in fact, he is the perfect RB for Plough's offense in my opinion. Great in space in the screen/passing game, outstanding on the outside runs and gap schemes, willing pass blocker (sometimes gets run over, but he ain't scared). I love his game. Dynamic, home run hitter who can take it to the house on any carry. I hold my breath when he has the ball. When I watched Dawson and Davis, that was not the case. What I'm getting at is that a big back is not necessarily the best fit for the Aggie offense. As we learned, there aren't enough carries to go around and keep guys happy. An "RB by committee" or an elite RB with capable back-ups is just fine.

Finally, something happened today... According to his X post (@BoogieSylvester), the Aggies have offered Weber State RS FR Running Back Chauncey Sylvester. Hails from St. John Bosco in SoCal. 305 yards on 60 carries and 4 TD last season. I like the sound of a Tailback called "Boogie"

Spot on. Everything you posted there is true.

Stars do not equate to "want to". Everyone that ever played on a football team has seen a seemingly athletic or talented teammate quit the team early for a myriad of reasons (they got exposed as being over-hyped, they realized they weren't good enough, they were burned out, they were homesick, they missed their girlfriend, etc.). And plenty of them are asked to not return after the season (hence the reason for 10,000+ in the portal before it opens every year). It is an awful business these days and it is not for everyone.

I like to see the commitment by the admin to addressing an issue by essentially adding another coaching position since Chapatte is staying. He did a nice job with the TE group given the early injuries.

I think our profile is definitely ascending, you're seeing guys on the NFL/CFL radar, and the reputation of the program as a frontline option is outstanding. I doubt that our staff gives a rip about the number of stars, but I think it's a byproduct of recruiting a higher caliber of player (and being willing to compete with and lose players to the Mountain West, for example) and setting the standard. You are seeing Offensive and Defensive Linemen, for example, that are of very specific measurable categories, at least with the ones who are playing and likely scholarship dudes.

That's wild. Those freaks are usually taking their measuring steps and making sure all the stars are aligned and gauging the wind and geometry

Where did you see the change of ST coordinator?

Three stars are the norm for a kid with the measurables, especially from bigger/well-known high school programs. If you look around, the vast majority of FCS/low-level FBS kids are "3-Star" kids. It is more a means of differentiating between that level of football and the D-2/D-3/NAIA types.

Axel has the height/weight, he was the starter at a reputable SoCal football program, and probably performed well at the camps during his junior spring and senior summer. That is more than enough to earn your 3-Star rating. Injury, I assume, cut his senior season short. I don't know what his other offers were, but based on what I explained, that's an easy 3-Star rating.

We'd have to check the film, but did the holder and kicker also join the sugar huddle, or was it just the protection? If it included the kicker and holder, then I agree 100% on revisiting that. If not, then moot point if the holder and kicker were separate.

Several things about transfers and recruiting:

-JUCO football is not what it was when I was growing up. Back in the 80s/90s it was often looked at as a bunch of bandits and mercenaries. While JC football still has the element of guys out to get theirs, it has become a much more viable option for HS prospects with the advent of the transfer portal. You will see a rise in the quality of play as well as the caliber of student coming from JCs soon. It has already happened to some degree. Kids that want to play college football but aren't being recruited by the FBS programs are turning that direction more and more.

-Grad transfers vs. Transfer portal dwellers. Grad transfers have played for four seasons and graduated and are looking for a place to play their final year(s) while enrolled in grad school. Most transfer portal guys are either the top 5-10% types who will get paid, while the rest were CUT by the FBS program. Truth.

-Grad school is typically more expensive than undergrad, correct? Therefore, they cost more to recruit. I also found it interesting that we signed a few guys from out of state as that tuition (and the associated scholarships) costs more. Anyone know how that works for football? The international scholarships in other sports is a very good point and would be interesting to know more about.

-"Star" ratings. Most recruitable players for FCS and lower FBS automatically are awarded 3-star status automatically. I would venture that very few of our recent signees are not 3-stars. I also know that attendance at certain camps run by certain recruiting companies equate to the higher likelihood of gaining another star. Or the prospect hits certain universal metrics (measurables, testing results, speed, etc.) at the camp and is awarded a star or at least the possibility of another star in a subscription write-up. It's a screwed up process of evaluation, but it is what it is.

The team down south with commitments from the Lehigh RB (who UCD offered) and a Fresno St. DB. Also a LB from Boise State and a few JUCO guys. New HC leveraging some recruiting relationship from his time in Fresno and Westwood. Going to be transfer central. Easier to get transfers admitted there than it is HS kids. Sac State south?

That made me spit my coffee onto the computer screen!!! Sac State has become the Lincoln of "FBS Independents"

Sounds like Tosh is going to run the football!

Yup. One from the portal + the young guys coming up to be the #3/#4 TEs and we have some versatility. Would also like to see the Fullback position utilized at times... can be a shorter TE (6'1"-6'2" type) or even a Linebacker. Put that QB under Center, sub out the Slot for a Fullback, talk dirty to me baby!

The fact that a kid even used punctuation in text/social media has to mean something. His measurables are nearly identical to Simpson's as far as height/weight.

Agree 100% on the shape of college football and how gross it is.

Jackson was a horse in high school. I remember seeing him in a TV game, outstanding player. Our RB room is solid behind Fish. Aside from the young Jackson, you have Acia who took meaningful carries and Walsh who saw time on special teams duty. Going to be interesting to see if the portal offer to the one Running Back pans out.

Ellison simply needs to look at how Plough utilizes the TE position and the season Simpson had. He also has Rhode Island and Tennessee Tech offers. I saw URI in person, no real Tight End presence. Offensive scheme matters, Cyrus. Choose Davis!