Bob Stoops Says State Of College Football Is 'Not Very Good,' NCAA Has To Embrace Pro Model
College football looks a whole lot different now than it did when Bob Stoops roamed the sidelines at Oklahoma. And he's not sure that's a good thing.
Appearing on 92.3 The Fan’s Afternoon Drive on Wednesday, Stoops discussed the state of college football in the modern era of the transfer portal and million-dollar NIL deals.
"It’s not very good. I don’t think it’s very good for anybody," Stoops said. "Is it sustainable? In my eyes, it’s not."
(Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images)
Stoops is hardly the first person to express this complaint. Several collegiate coaches — perhaps most vocally, Nick Saban — have complained about the difficulties of running a program when players are entirely motivated by money. As such, Stoops believes college football has to forego its current NCAA setup and instead operate more like the NFL does.
"It’s a pro model right now with college football. It’s a pro model. So the NCAA isn’t governing it," Stoops said. "We need to have a commissioner. We gotta have salary caps on what you can spend. You’ve gotta have contracts, on and on. I don’t see how you cannot if it’s going to continue this way."
A College Football Hall of Famer, Stoops was the Oklahoma Sooners' head coach from 1999 until 2016.
College Days Are Over For Bob Stoops
Not that Stoops has to worry about pesky NIL deals. In fact, since making the switch to coaching professional players, there are a lot of things the 63-year-old doesn't have to worry about anymore.
"There’s no babysitting. I don’t have to go to an academic meeting. I don’t have to call Johnny’s parents because Johnny won't go to class or Johnny won’t go to study hall. I don’t have to go to a recruiting meeting," Stoops said. "So it’s just football. It makes it kind of fun and easy."
(Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images)
Stoops is set to begin his second season as head coach of the UFL's Arlington Renegades. The UFL is the result of a merger between the USFL and the XFL. And he's excited for the opportunity to be involved in spring football.
"We’ve had many players have opportunities to go into the NFL from these leagues, and a lot of them made it, some haven’t," Stoops said. "The bottom line, we’re a platform for them to show they could still play. The NFL is actually excited about what we’re doing. They get to evaluate all these guys."
The UFL will play a 10-week season, culminating in a championship game on June 16. The season kicks off Saturday, March 30 at 1p on FOX, when Stoops' Renegades (last year's XFL champs) take on the 2023 USFL champion Birmingham Stallions.