Cotton Bowl Notebook: ‘I don’t know what world you’re living in, man’

The Dallas Sound Machine

Earlier this summer, the NCAA passed a resolution that would allow for in-helmet communications between players and coaches for bowl games that were not part of the College Football Playoffs.

The move to communication devices has been a hot topic thanks to Michigan’s cheating scandal that has rocked the college football world and called into question the legitimacy of the Wolverines’ success the past three seasons.

In order for the technology to be used in the bowl games, however, both teams have to agree with it. As for Ohio State head coach Ryan Day and Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz, they both decided that December has enough issues without adding another wrinkle into the mix.

“We spoke about this, had a discussion about it,” Day explained at Thursday’s joint press conference with the two coaches. “And I think we both agree — I don’t want to speak for you, Eli, but down the road, it makes a lot of sense. To try to manage a game without having done it all season, we felt like, it is probably something we want to have a spring practice and a preseason to work through. The consequence is a new variable.”

Drinkwitz, who has spent the past month finalizing signing day, dealing with the new realities of the transfer portal window, and also bowl prep agreed that now was not a good time to add even more ingredients to this dish.

“December has got enough challenges for us to try to figure out how to communicate on the sideline,” he said. “And to get the communication in was something that didn’t make a lot of sense for us. Coach Day and I have a good working relationship and made a call and decided that made the most sense for us.”

Every Game Will Still Matter

This is the last year of the four-team College Football Playoffs. It began 10 years ago, and depending on who you ask, it has either been the best thing to ever happen to college football or the worst thing.

And next year when the playoffs expand to 12 games, it’s going to get even better. Or worse.

But it’s definitely going to get bigger.

There will more room for error for teams, as the new CFP will feature multiple two-loss teams, and perhaps even teams with three losses or more. That has created some thought that the regular season games won’t matter as much as they do now.

That theory was brought up to Eli Drinkwitz and Ryan Day on Thursday, and as coaches tend to do about most things, they both bristled at the thought.

“I don’t know what world you’re living in, man. College football, every game is everything. And I don’t think that’s ever going to change,” Drinkwitz said. “Everybody expects to win. The players expect to win, the fanbases expect to win, and the coaches expect to win. So I don’t think you’ll sense anything really different.

“I think the margins, especially after what happened to a couple of teams not making the playoffs this year — yeah, there’s going to be some teams that can get in with maybe 10 or 11 wins. But there’s still going to be the ‘which game did you lose’ and ‘how did you perform’ and all that different stuff that are going to be variables. So I really don’t think the pressure will change any, in my opinion.”

The new 12-team playoff will feature first-round byes for the top four conference champs, which Day believes will still make each game just as important as it’s always been.

“I think the four teams that get a bye will be significant, so I think that will be important because of the length of number of games that are going to be coming,” he said. “Our focus is on finishing the season now. But when you do look ahead, I think it’s going to important to be playing your best football down the stretch.

“When you look at teams who wins in the NFL playoffs, they’ll go through stretches where they will lose two or three in a row. But if they got hot down the stretch, they’ll end up winning the Super Bowl. I think the first thing is it’s going to be important to try to get the vibe. But the second thing is you’ve got to be playing your best football down the stretch. The healthier team will be critical.”

Mr. Smith Goes To Retirement

Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith will be officially retiring on June 30, 2024. It will essentially mark his 20th year at the university, as he took over in 2005.

Smith has seen four head football coaches in his time at Ohio State, which is pretty remarkable considering the Buckeyes had just four head coaches over the prior 54 years before Smith’s arrival.

Smith is the only athletic director that current OSU head coach Ryan Day has ever known as a Buckeye, and Smith’s impact on Day and the university is not lost on the Ohio State head coach.

“Where do I start? I tried to get a collection together so he can go four more years. But he and [Smith’s wife] Sheila have decided they’re going to stay strong,” Day said to laughter. “I’ve said publicly before, what he’s meant to so many people, the impact he’s made on so many people. Ohio State has over a thousand athletes year in and year out, 36 sports. It’s a tremendous job and he’s done it with grace, success on and off the field.

“But the impact he’s made on people is really — when it’s all said and done, that’s what this is all about. The reason you get into coaching, the reason you become an AD is to have an impact on people. He’s done that. He’s done that to me and my family. The opportunity he gave me as a first-time head coach and to believe in me and support he’s shown and his guidance over the years, he’s been tremendous. I don’t know all the ADs that have come before, but he’s one of the best of all time.”

The Burden Of Proof

Missouri wide receiver Luther Burden has been one of the most productive pass catchers in the nation this year. A First-Team All-SEC selection in 2023, Burden caught 83 passes for 1,197 yards and eight touchdowns.

As a high school prospect, Burden was a 5-star recruit out of East St. Louis, Illinois who could have gone anywhere in the nation — including Ohio State. The Buckeyes offered Burden in high school and he was very interested in OSU, but he opted to stay closer to home and sign with Missouri.

“I mean, I was listening to them when I first got the offer because my boy Jameson [Williams] was up there,” Burden said. “I was keeping in touch with him. But I mean, they just got like a whole lot of talent in the room. It’s not like I’m scared but I just felt like I didn’t have to go there to achieve what I want to achieve.”

Burden’s impact for the Tigers has been immense, but his impact on the program will go beyond what he does on the field.

“It’s going to be hard to measure as of right now,” Missouri head coach Eli Drinkwitz said of Burden’s impact. “But I will say two years ago we were a 6-6 program that, for me, frankly, had a lot of talk but not a lot of results. And for Luther to choose to come to the University of Missouri when he had some other opportunities, and then for us — not only for our program to back it up but for the state of Missouri to back it up through NIL and other opportunities to market Luther, I think it’s created a place where other players know, ‘Hey, I can go there, create my own brand and value for myself at the University of Missouri. I don’t have to go somewhere else outside of the state.’

Missouri has already seen immediate returns from Burden’s precedent.

“It resulted this year with Williams Nwaneri, who was consensus No. 1 D-lineman,” Drinkwitz said. “I shouldn’t say ‘consensus.’ In one of the six rankings, he was No. 1 in the country. But to choose to play here, we’ve had other players in the portal choose to come back. And I don’t think that would have happened had Luther not chosen to come here.”

2024 Starts Now?

Quarterback Kyle McCord started every regular season game for the Buckeyes this year, but having now transferred to Syracuse, the job on Friday will fall to redshirt freshman Devin Brown.

Brown’s first career start will come against Missouri in the Cotton Bowl, and while it’s a great opportunity for him to help finish this season the right way for the Buckeyes, it’s also an opportunity for him to show that he can handle the job next year as well.

“Well, I know that everybody in this game has got an opportunity to build some momentum for next year,” OSU head coach Ryan Day said. “And Devin’s exactly in that situation. This is exactly what he wanted. He wanted this opportunity, and so he’s taken it and run the last few weeks. And I think the guys on the team feel it. They feel his presence out there. So what a great opportunity for him to do that.”

As to what this will actually mean for the quarterback job next year, that remains to be seen. A competition will still happen spring ball and fall camp, but this is going to be an opportunity that Brown doesn’t want to waste.

“Once the season is over, we’ll kind of figure out where we’re at with everything,” Day said. “But as of right now, I mean, he’s our quarterback and we’re moving forward. This is a great opportunity for him to go build more confidence with the guys around him as we head into next season.”

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