Venables Extended, Auburn Flips 4-Star, Greg Sankey, and More

CFB Roundup – June 22, 2024

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Oklahoma Extends Brent Venables Through 2029

Oklahoma and Brent Venables have agreed to a new six-year contract which will keep Venables in Norman through 2029.

Venables’ new deal has a total value of $51.6 million, which means an average of $8.6 million per year. His previous deal was for six years, $43.5 million, signed in 2021, meaning an increase of $1.35 million per year.

Auburn Flips 4-Star RB Alvin Henderson from Penn State

Consensus 2025 4-Star RB Alvin Henderson has flipped from Penn State to Auburn. Henderson committed to the Nittany Lions back on April 11th, but has flipped to Auburn after visits to both Auburn and Penn State recently.

ESPN and Rivals rate Henderson as the 4th and 3rd best running back in the 2025 class, respectively. On3 now rates Auburn’s 2025 class 7th in the country with Henderson on board as the Tigers’ 10th commit of the class.

Colorado Transfer DB Jahquez Robinson Commits to Auburn

DB Jahquez Robinson has committed to Auburn from Colorado after having previously spent one year with the Buffaloes and three years at Alabama. The former 4-star played seven total games at Alabama in his first three seasons, and then played in another seven games with Colorado last season.

On3 ranks Auburn 11th in its transfer portal rankings for this season, as Robinson becomes the 15th portal addition for the Tigers.

New Mexico State Transfer RB Jamoni Jones Commits to Vanderbilt

Jamoni Jones, the transfer RB from New Mexico State, has committed to Vanderbilt. Jones is the second New Mexico State RB to transfer to Vanderbilt this season, with Makhilyn Young also making that move.

In two seasons with the Aggies, Jones totaled 826 rushing yards and 9 touchdowns on 198 carries. Jones marks the 22nd addition in this portal class for Vanderbilt.

2026 4-Star DL Richard Anderson Commits to LSU

4-Star DL Richard Anderson has committed to LSU over Ole Miss, Florida, Florida State, and USC. The 2026 DL Anderson is a consensus 4-star according to all four major recruiting sites, and is LSU’s first commitment in the 2026 class. Coach Brian Kelly and Co. are undoubtedly looking to build on the positive momentum created by also currently having the second ranked class in the 2025 class.

Clemson and East Carolina announce 2029 Matchup

Clemson and East Carolina have agreed to open the 2029 season against each other in Death Valley. Clemson’s 2029 non-conference slate now includes South Carolina, Georgia, and East Carolina.

Barring a postseason matchup between the two teams before Sep. 1, 2029, this will mark the first time East Carolina and Clemson have ever played each other in football.

2025 TE Micah Jones Commits to Florida

Consensus high 3-star TE Micah Jones has committed to Florida over Ole Miss and LSU. Jones cited the culture he could feel when visiting the Gators as for part of the reason he wanted to commit to Florida. He also consider Florida to be a program on the rise.

Jones is only commitment number 6 for the Gators in the 2025 class, which currently ranks 52nd and is only ahead of Mississippi State in the SEC.

Greg Sankey: “No easy answer” for future of CFB

SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey recently made an appearance on the Paul Finebaum Show. On it, he said that there is no easy answer for what lies ahead for college athletics, and that there are plenty of answers – all with problems that need to be worked out.

Sankey sees the conference’s and university’s responsibility as educating Congressional leaders to try and help make the most informed decision as possible for a decision which he himself has described, ultimately, as unknowable.

2026 4-Star QB Oscar Rios Commits to Purdue

2026 QB Oscar Rios committed to Purdue yesterday. The QB from California is currently listed as a 3-star on every major recruiting site, but is a composite 4-star on On3 and ranked between 22nd and 11th for QBs in the 2026 class.

Rios committed to the Boilermakers over offers from Nebraska, Virginia Tech, Washington, Utah, Michigan State, and others. This is Purdue’s first commitment for the 2026 class.

Pat McAfee Makes Impassioned Plea for Walk-Ons

On the most recent edition of his show, Pat McAfee made an impassioned plea to not get rid of walk-ons. As questions of roster limitations have been raised as the House settlement moves forward, walk-ons are a potential staple of college athletics which may get axed to meet those future roster limitations.

According to reporting done by Seth Emerson of The Athletic, Kirby Smart and Lane Kiffin both offered to take pay cuts if it meant walk-ons could remain on the roster.

As for McAfee, he was a little less diplomatic on the issue than Kiffin, Smart, and other coaches: “what a bunch of bullshit. Why would you even think about [this]? … It’s stupid. This is just stupid … [t]his is so dumb. Yeah, we’re all gonna come together and say this stupid, right? … Whatever the case, we need dumb people out of decision-making positions.”