Cover 3 College Football Podcast: "Final & Future College Football Rankings, YOUR Mailbag Questions & more!"

Date: January 22, 2026
Hosts: Chip Patterson, Tom Fornelli, Bud Elliott
Episode Theme:
A closeout on the 2025-26 college football season with deep dives into the final polls (AP and coaches), evaluation of end-of-year rankings, “way too early” Top 25s for next season, and a robust mailbag led by listener questions, focusing on legacy, predictions, and collegiate roster-build strategies.

Main Episode Overview

The podcast wraps up the 2025-26 college football campaign with analysis and debate over final polls, coaches’ ballots, and the always-popular “way too early” 2026 rankings. The hosts also dissect team-building philosophies, the changing value of recruiting elite high school talent versus heavy transfer portal reliance, and field a series of detailed mailbag questions about Indiana’s surprise title run, NIL, the transfer portal, and much more.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Final Polls & Coaches’ Ballots (02:00–10:45)

• Indiana’s National Championship Season: Unanimous #1 placement in the coaches poll for Indiana, led by coach Kurt Signetti.
• Coaches’ Ballot Anomalies:
  • Miami ranked #2 by most, but Air Force’s Troy Calhoun only put them at #5.
  • Fran Brown put 9-5 Duke at #14, creating confusion.
  • Service Academy coaches, e.g., Brian Newberry, had controversial low rankings for Alabama.
  • “We always talk about… coaches poll, they just have the SIDs do it… But your name’s on it.” — Chip Patterson (05:34)
• Performance vs. Resume Debate:
  • Miami’s run to the championship game is valued for the strength of their late-season wins.
  • Bud Elliott: “If you’re gonna have Miami at 2, you are heavily weighting the wins…” (06:47)
  • Fornelli notes Miami only 7th in his own performance-based ratings (06:28).
• AP Poll Review:
  • Indiana #1, Miami #2, Ole Miss #3, Oregon #4, Ohio State #5.
  • Ole Miss jumps due to playoff performance, AP seen as “too reactionary to the playoff”—Tom Fornelli (08:55).
• SEC Unseated:
  • “No SEC team in the top six for the first time ever.” – Bud Elliott (09:29)

2. Way Too Early 2026 Rankings (12:00–23:40)

• Brandon Marcello’s CBS Top 25:
  • Ohio State #1, Texas #2, Georgia #3, Oregon #4, Notre Dame #5.
  • Bud: “Not a Marcel Reed believer… Aggies lose pretty good bit on O-line.” (13:20)
  • Michigan’s floor/depth keeps them in top 15 but not elite. “QB’s too good, coaching’s too good, floor’s too high for me…” — Chip (13:50)
• Notable Differences:
  • Disagreement on BYU, Ole Miss, South Carolina’s prognoses.
  • “If someone wants to drive an Oklahoma State hype train… they could be a surprise team at 9-3.” — Chip (15:46)
  • Penn State’s favorable schedule may inflate win total, but team strength is questionable (16:22).
  • Tom: 2026 will be his “heel turn” year—he’s in on playoff expansion, Chip is out on USC (17:07).
• Coaching Carousel Impact:
  • Gary Patterson likely to become USC’s DC: “I’m not guaranteeing it’s going to hit” — Bud (18:17)
• Top National Contenders Debate:
  • Oregon, Ohio State, Texas, Notre Dame, Georgia seen as the number one pool (20:56).
  • Georgia's defense and WR room major question marks (21:45–22:04).
  • Indiana, as champs, see skepticism about whether they can reload, and QB Josh Hoover is unproven (25:18–25:47).
• Roster Analysis & Portal Impact:
  • Major players: Oregon (Dante Moore), Ohio State (Julian Sayin), Notre Dame (CJ Carr), Texas (Arch Manning).

3. Mailbag — Indiana’s Blueprint & Blue-Chip Ratio (29:41–34:58)

• Listener Q: Did Indiana break the “blue chip ratio” with age and continuity, or is there a secret sauce?
  • Bud: “There are more avenues to winning it now. You need a lot less talent to win the national title.” (30:19–31:50)
  • Tom: “You can’t measure heart, you can’t measure grit…” (32:02)
  • Chip: The “secret sauce” is schedule alignment and development windows: “It’s about your group, everybody being on the same development schedule…” (32:45)
• Replicability:
  • There’s consensus that age, continuity, and a “window” were crucial, but it may not be replicable.
  • Having a #1 draft pick QB is a common trait among outlier champs (34:47).

4. Avoiding Regression & Portal vs. HS Recruiting (37:50–43:55)

• Indiana vs. Florida State:
  • How can Indiana avoid Florida State’s transfer-heavy regression?
  • Bud: “Stay true to who you are… don’t chase bounce backs from Bama/Georgia who couldn’t get on the field.” (38:41)
  • High school recruiting may improve but philosophy probably stays similar.
  • Fit and evaluation of “floor vs. ceiling” are key; Indiana masters scheme fit over chasing raw talent (41:13–42:13).
  • Tom is skeptical of any coachspeak: “I don’t believe anything Kurt Signetti says [at a] press conference…” (42:13)

5. The Transfer Portal, NIL & Roster Builds (47:29–59:10)

• Are Elite HS Recruits Squeezed Out?
  • General consensus: Not really; elite HS prospects (especially OL/DL) will still find homes (47:54–49:05).
  • “High school offensive linemen, the really good ones, are tremendous investments.” — Bud (48:47)
  • Quarterbacks and WRs with true 5-star distinction will still play early for top programs (49:57).
• Way-too-early true freshman QB influence:
  • Jared Curtis at Vanderbilt pegged as most likely immediate impact guy; timing and fit matter (50:53).
• Schedule and Preseason Analysis:
  • Hosts parse Big 12/SEC schedule quirks and Texas Tech’s unexpectedly favorable path (53:41–55:16).

6. NIL, Portal, and Fan Perception (56:24–60:09)

• Are NIL and the Portal Problems, Will We Ever See More Rules?
  • Bud: “Which rules are not being enforced?” and points out that schools, not NIL or the portal, are truly responsible for chaos (56:33–58:24).
  • Tom: “Can we just stop calling it NIL? Can we just say money?” (57:12)
  • Chip: “The schools… have the power to make the changes but are more than happy to tell fans someone else is the problem.” (58:18)
  • The hosts lampoon administrative finger-pointing (“The NCAA is an association of schools…you are blaming yourself by blaming the NCAA,” — Chip, 58:53), pointing out cycles of blame and lack of accountability.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Miami’s Ranking:
  • “If you’re gonna have Miami at 2, you are heavily weighting the wins and de-weighting the losses a little bit.” — Bud Elliott (06:47)
• On Indiana’s Secret Formula:
  • “You can’t measure heart, you can’t measure grit, you can’t measure want-to. And Indiana just led the world in art, grit, and want-to. And they also had the number one pick at quarterback.” — Tom Fornelli (31:50)
• On NIL and Transfer Portal:
  • “Can we just stop calling it NIL? Can we just say money?” — Tom Fornelli (57:12)
• Blue-Chip Ratio Discussion:
  • “You need a lot less talent to win the national title now. I’m gonna have to totally reconsider some of this blue-chip ratio stuff.” — Bud Elliott (31:24)
• On Coaching Carousel Moves:
  • “If Gary Patterson is Lincoln Riley’s defensive coordinator, does that change your thoughts on the Trojans?” — Chip Patterson (17:43)
  • “I’m not guaranteeing that it’s going to hit.” — Bud Elliott (18:17)

Important Timestamps

• 02:00–10:45 — Postseason poll breakdown and reactions
• 12:00–23:40 — Early 2026 Top 25 and contender debate
• 29:41–34:58 — Indiana's blueprint and blue-chip ratio discussion
• 37:50–43:55 — Avoiding regression; Portal vs. HS recruiting
• 47:29–59:10 — Mailbag: HS recruits vs. Portal, schedule impacts, NIL/portal as perceived “problems”
• 56:24–60:09 — The real “problem” in CFB: portal, NIL, or institutional responsibility?

Tone & Style Notes

• The episode features lively debate, sharp humor, and a confident, slightly skeptical tone.
• Insightful, inside-baseball commentary mixed with accessibility for less-obsessed fans, especially around shifting roster-building strategies and rules.
• Regular jabs at media narratives, poll voting inconsistencies, and administrative blame-passing.

For Listeners Who Missed the Episode

If you missed the show, this episode is packed with smart debates on the year’s final rankings, the quickly changing transfer/NIL-driven roster landscape, and what factors really drive surprise championship runs like Indiana’s. The hosts break down what matters for future success, why college football’s top tier is more open than ever, which teams to eye in (way too early) 2026, why the portal isn't destroying high school recruiting just yet, and how you should really interpret all the hand-wringing about NIL and the transfer market.

For full poll breakdowns, philosophical arguments about the future of team-building, and a no-nonsense look at what matters in college football right now, this Cover 3 episode is a must-listen!