Just saw that ESPN draft predictor nonsense and it just reminds me how far we've strayed from real football. All these kids are just prepping for their combine numbers. Nobody is talking about the beauty of a well-executed option play anymore. That was football. You had to read the defense, make a deicsion in a split second, and trust the guy next to you. It built character and toughness.
I think about our 1988 team with Mike Gundy at quarterback. That was a team that understood assignment football. The triple option wasn't about flash, it was about discipline and wearing a defense down for four quarters. You didn't need a five-star athlete at every skill position, you needed smart, tough kids who knew their job. That's how you built a program that could punch above its weight.
Now it's all about these spread offenses with a million transfers who've never played together. How do you install an option package with 50 new faces? You can't. There's no continuity, no trust. The portal and NIL have created a mercenary culture where complex, team-oriented football is dying. They'd rather have a quarterback throw 50 times a game into coverage than grind out a 12-play drive where every player touches the ball. It's a shame.