Michigan Building Confidence Throughout Spring Ball
“It’s not normal to go somewhere and see the ‘Beat Ohio’ drill, the sirens going off, and dudes just getting ready to hit for three hours,” Michigan defensive end Dominic Nichols said.
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Dudes Of The Week 😤
Chris Klieman
Head Coach, Kansas State
Despite notching nine wins last season, Kansas State’s offseason has been marked by in-state recruiting woes and transfer portal misses.
The Wildcats finished the 2025 cycle with the 42nd-best class nationally, and last year, ranked 13 out of 16 Big 12 teams in 247Sports’ team talent composite.
Ahead of Friday’s spring practice period, head coach Chris Klieman offered a refreshing and candid statement on college football’s current climate.
“Off the field, I still think the industry of college athletics is a disaster. It just is,” Klieman said. “Between the lines, I think it’s great.”
Klieman mentioned that throughout April, Kansas State will be tasked with “removing a lot of players” from its program due to the House Settlement and newly imposed 105-player roster limit.
“There’s a lot of kids that want to be here, want to stay here, that we can’t have in the program,” Klieman added. “… Kids that have put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears in this place.”
Coastal Carolina’s Athletic Department
The Chanticleers’ athletic department deserves a collective “Dude of the Week” nod for an exciting innovation to boost home-game attendance.
Beginning this fall, fans at Brooks Stadium will be treated to free concessions, including hot dogs, nachos, popcorn, and fountain drinks, to “elevate their game day experience.”
All fans with ticket stubs can pick up four free items per concession visit and make unlimited trips throughout the game.
“Our fans are the heartbeat of Teal Nation,” Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Chance Miller said. “… We’re excited to offer free concessions this fall as a way to say thank you for the energy, passion, and support they bring to Brooks Stadium every game.”
As prices to regularly attend college football games continue to rise, Coastal Carolina hopes to offset this phenomenon by giving back to the fans, while incentivizing ticket sales to drive program revenue.
Chris Fowler
College Football on ABC’s Lead Play-By-Play Commentator
One of college football's most prominent voices, Chris Fowler, recently gave fans an exciting preview of EA Sports’ College Football 26 video game set to launch this summer.
Last Tuesday, Fowler took to Twitter, telling fans that he recently finished recording 155 new touchdown calls for the game.
Each call seemed to be far more animated than last year’s edition, with Fowler channeling similar energy to how he typically announces plays in the booth on fall Saturdays.
While an official release date has yet to be announced, EA Sports is targeting July and recently stated that each player included in the game would receive $1,500 in NIL compensation.
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Mood Tracker Across Fanbases 🤯
Stanford 📉
Perplexed
The Cardinal haven’t finished above .500 since the 2020 campaign, but a complete cultural overhaul in April certainly wasn’t on the bingo boards of the Stanford faithful.
Less than two weeks ago, general manager Andrew Luck decided to let go of former head coach Troy Taylor after an investigation revealed he had “bullied and belittled athletic staffers.”
In a rapid turnaround, Luck hired veteran NFL head coach Frank Reich on a one-year interim tag to lead Stanford this fall. However, five players have now hit the portal in a 10-day span, including star pass rusher David Bailey and talented wide-out Emmett Mosley V.
Mosley chose the Cardinal over Alabama, Notre Dame, and USC as a recruit, and as a true freshman last season, he finished second on the team in catches and receiving yards.
As for Bailey, the California native now resides as the best-available player in the portal, after amassing 111 total tackles, 23 tackles for loss, and 14.5 sacks over the last three seasons.
Luck believes in Stanford’s near-term trajectory, but for now, the immediate future appears bleak on The Farm.
Michigan 📈
Confident
After concluding the 2024 go-around as hot as any team nationally, Michigan fans recently received intriguing spring ball news from Sherrone Moore’s group in Ann Arbor.
Per On3, Michigan’s spring practices have been more “intense” compared to last year.
“We went from whooping Ohio State to whooping Alabama, too,” sophomore defensive end Dominic Nichols told reporters last week. “You just roll into spring ball with that, and you go in feeling confident about yourself. It’s easy to make plays when you’re confident.”
Nichols added that the biggest difference from this year to last is the team’s collective physicality.
“It’s not normal to go somewhere and see the ‘Beat Ohio’ drill, the sirens going off, and dudes just getting ready to hit for three hours,” Nichols added.
A confident Michigan team could prove to be a scary sight for the rest of the Big Ten throughout 2025.
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Who Made Money This Week? 💰
Cash Peterman
Punter, Arizona
Arizona’s senior punter Cash Peterman hasn’t seen in-game action in three years due to lingering injuries.
However, no college football player has signed more NIL deals than Peterman with 21 brand endorsements from companies like Southwest Airlines, Wendy’s, Marriott, and Nintendo.
Peterman has steadily created a name for himself on social media, garnering over 600K followers across YouTube, TikTok, and Instagram by focusing on a mix of comedy and sports commentary.
“I knew kickers weren’t going to make anything from NIL collectives or anything like that,” Peterson said in an interview with Tucson.com. “… I was just like, ‘I’m just going to make videos, then I’m going to get brand deals and stuff like that.”
Now, he has over 10 times the digital following compared to former Wildcat and projected first-round draft choice Tetairoa McMillan and two more brand deals than reigning Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter.
If you have any questions, comments, or feedback, please don’t hesitate to reach out to me by email at adam@brenemanmedia.com.
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Shoutout to Connor Krause for helping to write this newsletter and putting it together!
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