Good morning, and welcome back to CFB Roundup from CFB Home – the first daily newsletter that’s all college football, all the time with no bias, no slant, and no fluff.

Bill Belichick Reportedly Has Yet to Sign Contract

CBS Sports recently reported that there is no signed and fully executed contract yet between Coach Bill Belichick and North Carolina. This could be relevant in the event an NFL team comes calling and there are questions about Coach Belichick’s buyout.

CBS Sports shared, “industry sources say that could lead to a legal gray area about how much, if any, of a buyout there would be if Belichick left for the pros.”

As written in the term sheet that was publicly shared, the buyout would be $10M before June 1, 2025, but then it notably drops to just $1M after June 1. Without a signed and executed contract, though, it’s possible that enforcing this contract would be a problem.

Pro Football Talk also speculated that a return to the NFL was possible, and that the slow pace with assembling a staff could be cause for concern for UNC. All along the way, new GM Michael Lombardi has vehemently pushed back on these reports and insists on Coach Belichick’s and his (current) staff’s commitment to UNC.

Coach Prime Met with Resistance When Asking for More NIL, Staff Resources from AD

NFL Network’s Jane Slater is reporting that Coach Deion Sanders asked Colorado AD Rick George for additional NIL and staff resources while the Cowboys have been calling Coach Prime, but he was “met with resistance” from George about the additional support.

Slater also said that the University of Colorado would neither confirm nor deny the information when asked, and Coach Sanders also did not respond to Slater for comment.

Colorado football paid assistant coaches roughly $5M, 44th best nationally and 7th in the Big 12.

Oklahoma GM Curtis Lofton Stepping Down

Oklahoma GM Curtis Lofton is stepping down from his position, a decision he announced in a post on Facebook.

Lofton was hired as part of the Oklahoma program in 2022 and took over the GM role before the 2024 season.

Lofton has decided to step down to pursue ministry, sharing, “I am stepping into this next chapter with the conviction that true greatness is found in eternal impact, and I am ready to embrace that calling.”

As GM, Lofton was instrumental in developing recruiting strategies, identifying which players to recruit, how to manage the roster, monitoring NIL activities for the players, among other job responsibilities.

USC and DC D’Anton Lynn Agree to Extension

USC DC D’Anton Lynn has agreed to a contract extension with the Trojans according to On3’s Pete Nakos. The specific terms of the contract have yet to be released.

Coach Lynn joined the Trojans ahead of the 2024 season, having spent 2023 as the DC at UCLA.

In just one season, Coach Lynn’s defenses averaged almost 100 fewer yards allowed per game, going from 433 to 337.

This improvement did make Coach Lynn a potential target for other programs looking for a DC. Most recently, that was Penn State, looking to replace DC Tom Allen after Coach Allen left for Clemson.

Alcorn State EDGE Transfer Malachi Bailey Commits to Arizona

Alcorn State EDGE transfer Malachi Bailey committed to Arizona this past week.

Bailey was one of the top remaining edge rushers in the transfer portal, and committed to Arizona during an official visit.

In 3 seasons with Alcorn State, Bailey put up some large numbers, including 128 tackles, 46.5 TFLs, and 28 sacks.

Bailey currently ranks 69th nationally and 8th at his position according to the On3 transfer portal rankings.

Texas A&M WR Micah Hudson Stepping Away from Football Team

Last month, Micah Hudson committed to transfer from Texas Tech to Texas A&M. Now, Hudson is temporarily stepping away from the football team’s day-to-day football activities, according to On3’s Pete Nakos.

Hudson was a consensus 5-star in the class of 2024, and was Texas Tech’s top-rated commitment in a long, long time (or ever, depending on which recruiting service you look at). He only appeared in 8 games and finished with 8 catches for 123 yards for the Red Raiders, but his potential and talent is obvious to anyone who watched him play.

It’s unclear when Hudson plans to return to the A&M program, but the Aggies have also added NC State’s KC Concepcion and Mississippi State’s Mario Craver in the transfer portal this offseason.

Clemson QB Cade Klubnik on Decision to Return in 2025

Clemson QB Cade Klubnik recently shared with ESPN’s Field Yates why he wants to return to Clemson in 2025, and it’s largely because of Clemson’s returning production and his interest in getting more NFL-ready.

Klubnik said on Yates’ podcast, Field Talk, “first of all, I think I need another year to really develop and keep getting better. … It’s that, I want to get better, but I’m still hungry for what I know this program has. We’re gonna be bringing back nine starters back on offense and probably seven or eight on defense. We’ve got a great thing coming back. I came to Clemson to win a national championship. That’s still right here for me. I think we’ve got the best team we’ve had since I’ve been here coming back. That’s really what I wanted.”

Texas DE Trey Moore Returning to Texas in 2025

According to ESPN’s Pete Thamel, Texas DE Trey Moore is returning to Texas in 2025.

Moore finished this season with 36 tackles, 5.5 sacks, 3 forced fumbles, and a pass deflection in his lone season with the Longhorns after transferring in from UTSA.

In his career, Moore has 138 tackles, 27.5 sacks, 9 pass deflections, 6 forced fumbles, and an interception.

The outside linebacker/DE room for Texas is looking pretty stacked next season, with Moore coming back to join Colin Simmons, Ethan Burke, and Colton Vasek, among other notable underclassmen.

LSU Backup QB Colin Hurley Reportedly in Stable Condition After On-Campus Car Accident

ESPN’s Pete Thamel shared a statement from the family of LSU backup QB Colin Hurley after Hurley was injured in an on-campus car accident early Thursday morning.

“Colin would like to thank the first responders, the incredible doctors and nurses at Our Lady of the Lake Health, and the many Tiger Fans for their care and compassion. Colin is resting and is stable while more tests and care are being administered. We are confident that Colin will make a full recovery from this terrible accident.”

Hurley was injured in the crash, which happened around 2:45 AM on Thursday after his Dodge Charger crashed into a tree near the south side of LSU’s campus. Hurley was found unresponsive but breathing, and when firefighters pulled him from the vehicle, he was in and out of consciousness.

Penn State CB Transfer Cam Miller Commits to Rutgers

Penn State CB transfer Cam Miller committed to Rutgers yesterday.

Miller has played for Penn State the last three seasons after joining Penn State in the Class of 2022. Rutgers was heavily involved in his recruitment back then, even though Miller’s finalist programs were Penn State and Virginia Tech. He was a 4-star prospect, ranking 160th nationally and 24th at the CB position, at the time.

Miller made 4 starts in his 16 appearances this season, racking up 27 tackles, 4 TFLs, and 5 pass deflections. Across 40 games with Penn State, he finished with 56 tackles, 8 TFLs, 4 sacks, 9 pass deflections, and an interception.

247’s Brian Dohn shared that he was viewed by Penn State as a DB that could play safety and nickel, as well as cornerback, but Miller entered the portal because he wanted to play cornerback.

According to the On3 transfer portal rankings, Miller ranks 190th nationally and 22nd at the CB position.

Other Commitments/Decommitments

3-Star (83) DL Jayden Madkins decommits from UNT

3-Star (83) TE Aiden Brewer commits to Indianapolis (D2)

3-Star (82) QB Sebastian Circo commits to UNLV

2026 Unrated DL Sam Dawson commits to Louisville

Unrated K Landon Shaffer commits to Georgia Tech