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I’m back! Thanks to Manny Navarro for taking over last week. Today, we’re talking SEC rivalries, car dealerships and bowl schedules. But first, have you ever heard of a ninth-year senior?

Still in College?

The first ninth-year senior

College football rosters just keep getting older! The NCAA’s decision to grant players an extra year of eligibility due to the COVID-altered 2020 season opened the door for players to extend their college careers longer than we’ve seen before. That’s one reason why the fourth annual “Wait, They’re Still Playing College Football?” Team by Stewart Mandel and Max Olson is such a well-aged edition.

Seven players on this year’s roster have played at three different schools throughout their careers (read here about what it’s like to split those loyalties). This roster also includes six players whose first season of college football was in 2018.

But no player has been in college longer than Miami TE Cam McCormick. Playing his first season of college football in 2016, McCormick is our first-known ninth-year senior. To put this into perspective, McCormick has been in college as long as Kirby Smart has been the head coach at Georgia (shoutout to commenter Brian S. for the comparison) and was in the same recruiting class as Nick Bosa, who was drafted five years ago. McCormick spent seven seasons at Oregon — with injuries derailing four of those — before transferring to Miami and earning a starting role last season. And yes, he has a master’s degree.

But McCormick isn’t the oldest player on our roster. The 31-year-old Jordan Noyes is entering his fifth season. Noyes walked on at Utah in 2020 and spent three seasons with the Utes before transferring to Colorado State last season. The married father of three is from Kent, England and will turn 32 in August. He played American football, soccer, rugby and competed in gymnastics in England.

Utah QB Cam Rising, Oregon QB Dillon Gabriel and Alabama S Malachi Moore also made the 2024 roster. Read about the rest of the veterans here.

Full Rides

Evolving bonds between college athletes and car dealers

For as long as anyone can remember, the car dealer has been an explicit or implicit part of the college athletics process — no really, in the 1933 movie “College Coach,” a coach and player were already negotiating car offers. So, if you’ve ever wondered why you’ve always seen so many student-athletes posting photos with their new rides, look no further than Chris Kamrani and Brian Hamilton’s feature story today.

Local car dealerships have long been behind the scenes in the whispered inducements coaches or boosters promised talented young players. But when name, image and likeness legislation passed in 2021, it opened the floodgates for these deals to be made publicly. Student-athletes from football to men’s and women’s basketball to volleyball are making NIL deals with local dealerships, securing car leases in exchange for marketing — most often on social media.

What’s the return on investment with these deals? Arizona State alum Parker Jones — now the GM at the Jones Auto Centers in Phoenix — estimates his dealerships have sold at least 20 cars tied to his partnerships with Sun Devil football players. You can read the full story here.

SEC’s Best Rivalry

Your votes are in

In last Thursday’s newsletter, you voted on the rivalry situation in the SEC. With Oklahoma and Texas coming aboard, is there a new top feud?

The Red River Rivalry may be new to the conference, but voters already suspect it will be one of the league’s very best. I’m surprised to see such a large dropoff after Alabama–Auburn (36.2 percent of votes) and Texas-Oklahoma (27.6 percent of votes) in the top two spots. It’s clear the Iron Bowl and Red River are the overwhelming fan favorites … so mark your calendars for:

• Oct. 12, 2024: Texas at Oklahoma
• Nov. 30, 2024: Auburn at Alabama

Speaking of schedules …

Bowl Schedules!

Why Dec. 28 is the ultimate bowl day

The 2024 postseason will take on an entirely new look with the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff. First-round games will be played on campus sites on Dec. 20 and 21, one full month before the national championship on Jan. 20.

So what does this mean for the rest of bowl season? Here are a few takeaways from the 2024 bowl schedule.

• The 2023 fan-favorite Pop-Tarts Bowl will be played on Dec. 28 in Orlando, Fla. at 3:30 p.m. It’ll be one of eight bowl games on this day — making that the busiest day of bowl season. I suspect the Arizona Bowl — played at 4:30 p.m. this day and officially named the “Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl presented by Gin and Juice by Dre and Snoop” — will give the Pop-Tarts Bowl a run for its money on the fun-o-meter.
• Dec. 14 is another CFB-full day to mark on your calendar, ranging from the HBCU national championship to an early FBS bowl, plus non-FBS playoffs. A quick schedule for now (times in ET): Celebration Bowl at Noon, Army-Navy at 2 p.m., Heisman ceremony at 8 p.m. and Camellia Bowl at 9 p.m.
• Four non-CFP bowl games will be played after the new year. Those are the Gator (Jan. 2), First Responder (Jan. 3), Duke’s Mayo (Jan. 3) and Bahamas (Jan. 4) bowls, while the Holiday has yet to be announced.

Quick Snaps

Wisconsin returns 81.8 percent of its production at defensive back which is why Badgers writer Jesse Temple ranked it as the strongest position on Luke Fickell’s 2024 roster. Where does Tyler Van Dyke and the quarterback group rank? Read more here. 

Which Iowa freshmen could make an impact in their first seasons? Scott Dochterman breaks down the 21-player incoming class position-by-position today.

You can buy tickets to every college football game here.

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(Photo of Cam McCormick: Alie Skowronski / Miami Herald / Tribune News Service via Getty Images)