No Father's Son

[Caesar]

Smart of her not to follow him. He’ll need somewhere to hide when he gets fired for losing to Texas

[James]

Gonna be a tough go. High expectations here.

[redsox907]

‘When does chasing ambition start to look like running from failure?’

cooked your ass

no bigger critic than yourself in this case

What a bitch. Fucked over the players, took another job without telling his wife and is forcing his kids to move again. Horrible, horrible selfish man.

HOL UP

so he had no balls for not wanting to take the Oregon job, but now he's a horrible selfish man for taking a different job? pick a slant, slime

Don't know if the quick turnaround is the look after finally getting a head coaching gig at Maryland

maybe that's the point

see how he sticks to his convictions when things get tough

Smart of her not to follow him. He’ll need somewhere to hide when he gets fired for losing to Texas

gonna have Texas fans looking like

Gonna be a tough go. High expectations here.

[redsox907]

---

Maryland Set To Host 1st-Round of College Football Playoffs

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Marcus Washington // Terpsville • Published: December 10th, 2028

For the first time since the College Football Playoff's inaugural season in 2015, the Maryland Terrapins will be participating after it was announced they secured the 8th overall seed in the 2028 playoffs behind their 10-win season and multiple AP-ranked wins throughout the season.

Even better, their first foray into the Playoff will be at SECU Stadium as they'll host the 9th-seeded Penn State Nittany Lions—the Big Ten runner-ups after their loss to the Oregon Ducks, giving the Terrapin fans one more chance to cheer on Malik Washington and the other seniors.

The Terrapins are among four Big Ten teams to make the 2028 Playoff, alongside #1 overall seed Oregon, 11th seeded Ohio State, and their upcoming opponent Penn State.

The winner of the Terrapins and Nittany Lions will advance to the Rose Bowl to face the undefeated Big Ten champion Oregon Ducks.

[Captain Canada]

Drawing Penn State right off the rip is definitely going to be a challenge, but you gotta start somewhere.

Best of luck.

[djp73]

Deserter

[redsox907]

---

Oklahoma Announces Armando Leon As Next Head Coach - Ryan Clark and Pat McAfee Debate If It's The Right Move

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ESPN • Published: December 11th, 2028

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Good afternoon and welcome to ESPN. We have breaking news out of Norman, Oklahoma. The Sooners have hired Maryland head coach Armando Leon to replace the recently fired Brent Venables. Leon, who just led the Terrapins to their first-ever College Football Playoff berth in his first season, has agreed to a five-year, $35 million deal but will continue coaching Maryland through their playoff run before officially taking over in Norman.

Joining me to discuss this hire are former NFL All-Pro safety Ryan Clark and former NFL punter and host of the Pat McAfee Show, Pat McAfee. Gentlemen, thank you for being here.

PAT MCAFEE:Laura, I am FIRED UP to talk about this! This is a MASSIVE hire for Oklahoma!

RYAN CLARK: I appreciate the enthusiasm, Pat, but I've got some serious questions about this move.

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Let's start with the obvious, Pat. Your immediate reaction to Oklahoma hiring Armando Leon?

PAT MCAFEE: Laura, I think this is a HOME RUN hire! This man is SIXTY AND ELEVEN at the collegiate level! That's an 84.5% winning percentage! He won an FCS National Championship at Montana State! He won back-to-back Pac-12 Championships at Oregon State! And this year? He took MARYLAND—Maryland!—from six and six to TEN AND TWO and the COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF in his FIRST YEAR!

You wanna talk about a guy who knows how to WIN? Armando Leon is your guy! Oklahoma just went four and eight! FOUR AND EIGHT! They needed someone who could come in and turn this thing around IMMEDIATELY, and that's exactly what Leon does everywhere he goes!

RYAN CLARK: And then he LEAVES, Pat. That's the part you're conveniently ignoring.

PAT MCAFEE: Here we go...

RYAN CLARK: No, no, let me finish. I'm not saying the man can't coach. Clearly, he can. But let's look at the PATTERN here, Laura.

Montana State? Two years. Left for Oregon State.
Oregon State? Two years. Left for Maryland.
Maryland? ONE YEAR. And now he's leaving for Oklahoma.

At what point do we say, "Hey, maybe this guy doesn't actually want to BUILD anything. Maybe he just wants to WIN and LEAVE"?

LAURA RUTLEDGE: That's a fair point, Ryan. Pat, how do you respond to the concern that Leon has never stayed anywhere longer than two years?

PAT MCAFEE: Because he's been CLIMBING THE LADDER, Laura! That's what coaches DO! You think Nick Saban stayed at Toledo forever? You think Kirby Smart stayed at Alabama as a coordinator? NO! They took better jobs! They moved UP!

Leon went from FCS to Oregon State—that's a move UP! Then he went from Oregon State to Maryland—honestly, lateral move, but he wanted a new challenge in the Big Ten! And now he's going from Maryland to OKLAHOMA—one of the premier programs in the country! That's how this works! You don't punish a guy for being SUCCESSFUL!

RYAN CLARK: But Pat, there's a difference between climbing the ladder and using programs as stepping stones. And here's the thing that really bothers me—he's never coached his own recruits. Think about that. He inherits someone else's team, brings in a great transfer portal class, wins for a year or two, and then leaves before those guys he recruited ever play for him. He's never proven he can develop the players HE brought in.

PAT MCAFEE: Well maybe that's because he's so GOOD that he keeps getting BETTER OFFERS!

RYAN CLARK: Or maybe it's because he doesn't want to stick around for the hard part! It's easy to come in, fix things with transfers, win quick, and leave. What's hard is recruiting a class, developing them for three or four years, and building a SUSTAINED program. Leon's never done that.

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Let's talk about the recruiting aspect, because there's an interesting twist here. Oklahoma's current recruiting class is ranked 33rd nationally with only eight commits—six four-stars and two three-stars. Meanwhile, Leon has Maryland ranked 17th nationally with four four-stars and nine three-stars. Ryan, what does that tell you?

RYAN CLARK: It tells me that he's better at recruiting at MARYLAND than Oklahoma's staff was at OKLAHOMA! And that should terrify Sooner fans! This is a blue blood program that just got out-recruited by Maryland!

But here's my question—if Leon's such a great recruiter, where's he gonna be when those Maryland kids are juniors and seniors? He won't be there! He'll be at Oklahoma! Or maybe he'll be at Alabama or Ohio State by then! Those kids committed to play for HIM, and he's abandoning them after one year!

PAT MCAFEE: He's not abandoning ANYBODY, Ryan! He told those kids UP FRONT that he was leaving! Malik Washington—their senior quarterback who's about to break the Big Ten touchdown record—went on Twitter and said Leon told him ahead of time and he supports the decision! Manu Hasty, who played for Leon at Oregon State, called him the "greatest coach I've ever played for!"

His players LOVE him! They're not out here crying about him leaving—they're THANKING him for what he did! Maryland's going to the PLAYOFF because of this man!

RYAN CLARK: And they're going to the playoff WITHOUT him, Pat! Because while they're preparing to play Penn State in the first round, he's going to be in Norman recruiting for Oklahoma! How is that fair to those Maryland kids?

PAT MCAFEE: He negotiated in his CONTRACT to stay and coach Maryland through the playoff! He's not leaving them high and dry! He's gonna finish what he started!

RYAN CLARK: Finish what he started? He's NEVER finished what he started! That's my whole point!

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Let's pivot to the Lane Kiffin comparison, because I know a lot of people are making it. Lane Kiffin famously left Tennessee after one year to go to USC, and he was vilified for it. Are we seeing a similar pattern with Armando Leon?

PAT MCAFEE: NO! Absolutely not! And here's why—Lane Kiffin left Tennessee in SHAMBLES! They went six and seven the next year! What did Leon leave at Oregon State? They won ten games in 2026, eleven games in 2027, and nine games in 2028 WITHOUT him! Sure sounds like he built something there if you ask me. What's he leaving at Maryland? A team in the COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF!

Kiffin burned bridges everywhere he went! Leon? Every program he's left has THANKED him on the way out! Oregon State fans still love the guy! Maryland's athletic director released a statement today saying Leon informed them on Sunday and they appreciated his honesty! That's not Lane Kiffin! That's a professional who handles his business the right way!

RYAN CLARK: But here's what I'll say about Lane Kiffin, and this is important—Kiffin LEARNED. He went to Ole Miss and he stayed there for FIVE YEARS. Five years, Pat! He built that program! He got them competitive in the SEC! And THEN he took the Texas job, where he's now 37-6 with a National Championship and two SEC titles in three years!

Kiffin proved he could settle down and BUILD something before moving to a bigger job. Leon's never done that. He's never stayed anywhere long enough to see his own recruits become seniors. So yeah, I'm comparing him to Lane Kiffin—but the EARLY Lane Kiffin, not the one who learned his lesson.

PAT MCAFEE: Okay, but what if Leon doesn't NEED to learn that lesson because he's already THIS GOOD?! What if he's just BETTER at building programs quickly than other coaches?!

Look at what he did at Maryland—took them from SIX AND SIX to the PLAYOFF in ONE YEAR! Do you know how hard that is?! They beat the number five team in the country! They beat UCLA and Northwestern—both ranked! Their defense was FIRST in the nation in yards allowed! FIRST! He knows what he's doing!

RYAN CLARK: And that's great, Pat! But what happens in year three when the transfers age out and you need to develop your own recruits? We don't know! Because he's never been there for year three!

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Let's talk about Oklahoma specifically. This is a program that went 12-0 in 2026 with a Heisman Trophy winner in John Mateer, lost to Texas in the SEC Championship by three points, then lost to 12th-seeded Missouri as the fifth seed in the playoff. Since then, they've gone 7-5 and 4-8. They're 0-6 all-time in the College Football Playoff. Ryan, can Armando Leon fix this?

RYAN CLARK: I don't know, Laura. I really don't. Because here's the thing—Oklahoma's problems are DEEP. This isn't a quick fix with some transfer portal guys. They went 0-5 against ranked teams this year. ZERO AND FIVE. Their recruiting class is ranked 33rd in the country with eight commits. EIGHT.

And to make matters worse, Oklahoma went after Dan Lanning first—he got a new extension to stay at Oregon. They went after Josh Heupel—he stayed at Tennessee. They went after Lincoln Riley—he wouldn't even INTERVIEW. They went after Jedd Fisch and Jon Sumrall—both said no. Leon wasn't their first choice. He wasn't their second choice. He wasn't even their FIFTH choice.

PAT MCAFEE: So what?! Who cares if he was their seventh choice?! He's the RIGHT choice! Dan Lanning's making 13.5 million a year at Oregon—Oklahoma couldn't afford him! Lincoln Riley's at USC making 11 million and he's never coming back after how he left! Leon's making seven million a year and he's gonna WIN!

And you wanna talk about the record vs ranked opponents? Leon's six and four against ranked teams in his career! Oklahoma's nine and eleven over the last THREE YEARS! He's already better at beating good teams than they are!

RYAN CLARK: Six and four is good, Pat, but it's not dominant. And here's what worries me—Leon's never won a Power Five conference championship. He won the Pac-12 at Oregon State, sure, but Oregon State isn't Oklahoma. The expectations are different. At Oklahoma, making the playoff isn't enough. You have to WIN playoff games. And they're 0-6! ZERO AND SIX!

Can Leon be the guy to change that? Maybe. But I need to see him stick around long enough to actually BUILD something before I believe it.

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Pat, let me ask you this—Leon's currently coaching Maryland, and they're preparing to play Penn State in the first round of the playoff. He's also trying to build a staff and recruit for Oklahoma. Can he do both?

PAT MCAFEE: YES! Because he's a PROFESSIONAL! Look, this is not ideal, I'll give you that. But the man negotiated in his contract to finish Maryland's playoff run, and that's what he's gonna do! He's gonna coach them in the Rose Bowl, and if they win, he'll coach them in the semifinal! And THEN he'll go to Oklahoma full-time!

Meanwhile, yeah, he's building a staff. Yeah, he's recruiting. But that's what GREAT coaches do—they multitask! You think Nick Saban wasn't recruiting while coaching Alabama in the playoff? You think Kirby Smart's not on the phone with recruits right now? This is the business!

RYAN CLARK: But those guys weren't leaving their schools, Pat! They were recruiting for the team they were COACHING! Leon's recruiting for a completely different program while trying to win a National Championship for Maryland! How is that fair to Maryland? How is that fair to Oklahoma?

And let me bring up one more thing—Leon's best players at Maryland? Malik Washington, their senior quarterback? He was recruited by Mike Locksley. Iverson Howard, their running back? Locksley. Garrison Dobbs, their defensive star? Locksley. Leon didn't recruit those guys—he inherited them and won with them. That's the pattern. He inherits talent, wins quick, and leaves. What happens when he has to develop HIS OWN guys at Oklahoma?

PAT MCAFEE: Then he'll develop them! You're acting like he's never coached before! He won an FCS NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP at Montana State with his own recruits! Those were HIS guys! He knows how to develop talent!

RYAN CLARK: That was FCS, Pat! This is the SEC! This is Oklahoma! This is a completely different level!

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Let's talk about the SEC, because that's Oklahoma's reality now. They're 0-1 in the SEC Championships. Texas, their biggest rival, just won a National Championship in 2026 with Lane Kiffin after beating them in the SEC Championship. How much pressure is on Leon to deliver immediately?

PAT MCAFEE: A TON of pressure! But you know what? GOOD! That's what he WANTS! This man said, and I quote, "Everybody wants to win until it's really time to win. And then you have to nut up and do a lot of shit that you don't want to do."

THAT'S the mindset Oklahoma needs! They've been soft! They've been disappointing! They need someone who's gonna come in and say, "We're gonna WIN, and we're gonna do it MY WAY!" And that's Armando Leon!

RYAN CLARK: But will he be there long enough to see it through, Pat? That's my question. Because if he wins ten games next year, you know who's gonna come calling? Alabama. Ohio State. LSU. And based on his track record, he's gonna LEAVE.

PAT MCAFEE: And if he wins a NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP at Oklahoma and then leaves, Oklahoma fans will build him a STATUE! You hire a coach to WIN, not to STAY! If he delivers a title to Norman, I don't care if he leaves after two years!

RYAN CLARK: But that's the problem, Pat—Oklahoma fans DO care. They don't want a mercenary. They want the next Bob Stoops. They want someone who's gonna be there for fifteen years and build a DYNASTY. And I don't think Armando Leon is that guy.

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Final question for both of you—five years from now, where is Armando Leon?

PAT MCAFEE: He's at Oklahoma with a National Championship ring, Laura. And if he's not at Oklahoma, it's because he won so much that an even BIGGER program came calling. Either way, he's winning. Book it.

RYAN CLARK: I think he's at his fourth or fifth school, Pat. I think he wins nine or ten games at Oklahoma for two years, gets a better offer, and leaves. And Oklahoma's back to square one, wondering why they can't find stability. I hope I'm wrong. I really do. Because Oklahoma deserves better than another two-year rental. But that's what his track record says he is.

LAURA RUTLEDGE: Well, we'll certainly be watching. Armando Leon will be officially introduced in Norman tomorrow with a press conference scheduled for 3:30 CT before he fully takes over at Oklahoma after Maryland's playoff run concludes. Gentlemen, thank you for a spirited debate.

PAT MCAFEE: BOOMER SOONER, baby!

RYAN CLARK: We'll see, Pat. We'll see.

[djp73]

Man gonna have to be a lifer at Oklahoma to beat the allegations

[Soapy]

Lane Leon

[Petey48]

That was a great back and forth, Pat won that debate. If the players support his decision, why should fans care? Players can transfer too if they want.

I have also only read the last few pages so maybe I am missing things.