Welcome back, degenerates, dreamers, and data-heads!

It's Thursday, July 3rd, and the college football off-season has officially stepped into its next chaotic phase. The calendar has flipped to July, meaning the amateur-slash-professional line has blurred even further, and the conference realignments are still throwing curveballs no one saw coming.

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Fourth & Long: Off-Season Oddities & Overreactions

The cash registers are ringing (or at least, they're supposed to be), conference maps are getting redrawn in crayon, and players are officially back to sweating in the summer sun. Grab your beverage of choice, because this week's phantom football headlines are particularly... lucrative?

The Cash Register Rings (Sort Of): Revenue Sharing Officially Begins!

Happy July 1st, everyone! That's right, the day college football officially (finally!) acknowledged its players are worth more than a scholarship and a free T-shirt has arrived. As of this week, schools are now officially permitted to directly share revenue with athletes. This means that monumental $2.8 billion House v. NCAA settlement we discussed? The pathways for money to hit player accounts are now open. Our snarky take: it's about damn time. The "amateurism" charade has been dead for years, and now it's finally getting a proper burial, complete with a cash-filled coffin. The real fun begins as schools navigate exactly how much to pay, who gets it, and how long it takes for a new lawsuit to pop up challenging the caps. Get ready for a whole new level of recruiting arms race, only now it's out in the open.

The Pac-12's Last Stand (Literally): Welcome to the Texas State Experiment.

Just when you thought conference realignment couldn't get any more bizarre, the Pac-12 continues its desperate quest for survival, reportedly adding Texas State to its dwindling roster. The Pac-12, once a titan, is now looking like a Frankenstein's monster stitched together from whatever pieces are left. We're not sure if this is a master plan or just throwing darts at a map of FBS schools that still answer their calls. Meanwhile, the drama continues with the Mountain West dragging its feet in mediation over exit fees for teams looking to jump ship to the new-look Pac-12. It's a never-ending soap opera of power grabs and financial squabbles, proving that even when a conference is on life support, there's always a reason to fight over the last dime. Good luck making sense of the new geographic alignments on your TV guide.

The 2026 Recruiting Arms Race: Who's Building the Next Dynasty (Early)?

The ink is barely dry on the 2025 signing class, but the 2026 recruiting cycle is already in a full-blown sprint. Early 247Sports Composite Team Recruiting Rankings are out, and surprise, surprise – USC, Georgia, and Notre Dame are already leading the pack. Our take: These "way-too-early" rankings are mostly for clicks and the eternal "who's winning the off-season" argument. While coaches are busy selling visions of future glory (and probably hinting at future NIL deals), it's a stark reminder that the talent pipeline never stops. Will these early commitments stick? Will some 5-star flip three times before signing day? Probably. It's college recruiting; chaos is the only constant. Just remember, a top-ranked class in July rarely translates directly to a playoff berth in January.

Summer Workouts: The Annual Grind Begins (Probably to Avoid Lawyers).

The silence of summer practice fields has been officially broken. Across the nation, college football programs are officially kicking off their summer workouts. This is the annual ritual where players get "bigger, faster, and stronger," coaches yell through megaphones, and the PR teams churn out "iron sharpens iron" content. Our snarky take: It's also the time coaches probably tell their players, "Listen, less time on the portal rumor mill, more time in the weight room. And for the love of all that is holy, don't tweet anything that could get us sued." With direct player payments now official, every rep, every drill, every bench press is a tangible investment. The grind is real, folks, and probably a welcome distraction from the NIL chaos.

That's it for another dispatch from the gridiron's dark underbelly. We hope you enjoyed the ride, the snark, and perhaps even learned something. Stay tuned for our next issue, where we'll continue to expose the truths and absurdities of college football.

Until then, may your mascots be mighty and your bets be bold.

The Betting the Mascots Team

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