You see Oregon stacking five star kids like they are collecting trading cards and Notre Dame sitting at number four in the recruiting rankings and I just shake my head. Back in the 90s we built this program on kids from Wisconsin who grew up wanting to be Badgers. Ron Dayne was a New Jersey kid sure but he committed and stayed. No portal. No NIL bidding war. Just hard work and a fullback clearing the road.
Now we are heading to South Bend this fall and the whole sport has been turned upside down by money and realignment. You think Notre Dame fans care about the old Big Ten rivalries we used to have with Minnesota and Iowa? They are worried about keeping up with the SEC and the new super conferences. The game I fell in love with at Camp Randall in the 80s is gone. We used to beat people with power football and a defense that hit you in the mouth. Now it is all about who has the biggest checkbook and the flashiest recruiting class.
I will take a kid from Waukesha who wants to be here over some five star mercenary any day of the week and twice on Saturday. But that is not how the sport works anymore and it makes me sick.