# College Football 2024 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Tags:** football-nfl\ **Created:** [March 1, 2024, 6:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326 "2024-03-01T18:06:07Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 14
**Author:** ![Chisquirrel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6bbea6/32.png) [@Chisquirrel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chisquirrel)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/261 "2024-12-12T17:26:25Z")
UNC replaced the oldest head coach in college football with the oldest head coach in college football. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/262 "2024-12-12T17:46:43Z")
It’ll be easier for Bill to spend time with his girlfriend between classes. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 5:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/263 "2024-12-12T17:51:03Z")
Now that Bill has shown his communicative and fuzzier side on TV, sports reporters will be looking forward to asking him questions at UNC postgame press conferences. 🤔 😆 ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/264 "2024-12-12T17:58:00Z")
It’ll be interesting to see how this goes. Two of the functions of being a college head coach, which aren’t really roles that an NFL head coach has to do, are recruiting and interacting with alumni and boosters. While the recruiting thing isn’t entirely unlike being a GM or Director of Player Personnel in the NFL – and Belichick was the _de facto_ GM of the Patriots – I really can’t seem him enjoying having to spend time glad-handing boosters. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 6:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/265 "2024-12-12T18:17:01Z")
I’m sure he’s mellowed. ---
**Author:** ![Mighty\_Mouse](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mighty_mouse/32/7776_2.png) [@Mighty\_Mouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mighty_Mouse)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/266 "2024-12-12T18:20:58Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > I really can’t seem him enjoying having to spend time glad-handing boosters. He’s going to take his girlfriend along. ---
**Author:** ![smithsb](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smithsb/32/12107_2.png) [@smithsb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/smithsb)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/267 "2024-12-12T18:24:30Z")
Piling on ( something I’d never do), she’s young enough to have some eligibility left. She could go out for the cheerleader squad. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 6:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/268 "2024-12-12T18:35:42Z")
A small hijack but a fun story. There is no age limit for eligibility. A person in their 40s who hasn’t played for their four years (or however many it is now) can try out and play if they make the team. Another thing that people may not know is that marching band is considered a sport and has the same eligibility and even scholarships. So, a friend of mine is a realtor and saved his money well and found himself with no business in 2008 during the housing crisis. He had gone to USC for three years twenty years earlier and was on the marching band. He decided to go for one more year and finish his degree and, what the hell, try out for marching band. He passed the audition and was by far the oldest athlete at USC. Even though he was wealthy, he travelled on the bus and stayed at the same hotels as everyone else. The rest of the band loved him. His nickname was Blue (after the character from the movie Old School) ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/269 "2024-12-12T18:38:57Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > There is no age limit for eligibility. Such as Chris Weinke, who played minor-league baseball for seven years after he graduated from high school, before enrolling at Florida State as a 25-year-old freshman quarterback, and winning the Heisman as a 28-year-old. ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/270 "2024-12-12T18:43:28Z")
According to the source below, there were four football players in their 30s this year and two in their 60s in this century. All kickers or punters. > **[Oldest College Football Players (2024 and All-Time)](https://www.collegetransitions.com/blog/oldest-college-football-players/)** > > Oldest College Football Players - Who is the oldest college football player in 2024? What about all-time? View our list of gridiron geezers. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/271 "2024-12-12T19:01:35Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > According to the source below, there were four football players in their 30s this year and two in their 60s in this century. All kickers or punters. It’s not uncommon in recent years for guys who played in Australian football to come to the U.S. as punters in their 20s, and that’s what it looks like the three Aussie punters are. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/272 "2024-12-12T19:02:17Z")
He has a unique, built-in advantage of being THE Bill Belichick. Getting money from boosters should be easy, even if a little more time consuming than he’d prefer. And building a new roster of his own design will be way easier than in the NFL with the transfer portal. He can scout and poach from hundreds of other programs without having to worry about draft position or waiting for contracts to expire. And he can legitimately advertise NC State as an NFL preparatory school to high schoolers and transfer candidates alike. ---
**Author:** ![Railer13](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/railer13/32/9742_2.png) [@Railer13](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Railer13)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/273 "2024-12-12T19:11:58Z")
> [@garygnu](#): > > And he can legitimately advertise NC State as an NFL preparatory school to high schoolers and transfer candidates alike. He could, but he’d probably rather do that for his employer, UNC, rather than their rival from down the road. > [@garygnu](#): > > And building a new roster of his own design will be way easier than in the NFL with the transfer portal. This is an excellent point. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/274 "2024-12-12T19:18:17Z")
> [@Railer13](#): > > He could, but he’d probably rather do that for his employer, UNC, rather than their rival from down the road. I really miss the vintage head-smack emoji from the old old board. ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/275 "2024-12-12T19:34:52Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > A small hijack but a fun story. There is no age limit for eligibility. A person in their 40s who hasn’t played for their four years (or however many it is now) can try out and play if they make the team. Another thing that people may not know is that marching band is considered a sport and has the same eligibility and even scholarships. Not quite true. In NCAA Division I, once you start classes or practice, you have five years to use up your four years of eligibility. The clock doesn’t stop if you leave the school, with two exceptions: bona fide religious missions, and serving in the armed forces. (Well, that, and being able to talk the NCAA into giving you a waiver.) Marching band is not subject to NCAA regulations. Note that in Divisions II and III, the clock does stop if you aren’t attending school anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 7:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/276 "2024-12-12T19:42:56Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > In NCAA Division I, once you start classes or practice, you have five years to use up your four years of eligibility. The clock doesn’t stop if you leave the school, with two exceptions: bona fide religious missions, and serving in the armed forces. (Well, that, and being able to talk the NCAA into giving you a waiver.) In the latter case, we have linebacker Jared Folks, who started playing college football in 2014, and due to injuries and other factors (including the NCAA allowing the COVID year of 2020 to not count against student-athletes’ eligibility), just finished his _eighth_ year of eligibility. > **[The incredible story of college football's first -- and only -- eighth-year...](https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/32382280/the-incredible-story-college-football-first-only-eighth-year-senior)** > > It reads like a misprint, but East Tennessee State linebacker Jared Folks really is in his eighth year of college football, thanks to medical hardship waivers and an extra season following the COVID-19 pandemic. ---
**Author:** ![mattgg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ccd318/32.png) [@mattgg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mattgg)\ **Post date:** [December 12, 2024, 9:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/277 "2024-12-12T21:31:40Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > Not quite true. In NCAA Division I, once you start classes or practice, you have five years to use up your four years of eligibility. The clock doesn’t stop if you leave the school, with two exceptions: bona fide religious missions, and serving in the armed forces. (Well, that, and being able to talk the NCAA into giving you a waiver.) Marching band is not subject to NCAA regulations. Note that in Divisions II and III, the clock does stop if you aren’t attending school anywhere. A friend’s kid is a mascot at a D1 school, which makes him a D1 student-athlete. He gets a lot of the same swag the players get, like free sneakers, the backpack the athletes use, and more. He can’t get NIL money though because it’s not his name, image, or likeness to license. He’s burning up his eligibility in an animal costume and couldn’t be happier. ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/278 "2024-12-13T01:37:05Z")
> [@That\_Don\_Guy](#): > > Not quite true. In NCAA Division I, once you start classes or practice, you have five years to use up your four years of eligibility. The clock doesn’t stop if you leave the school There go my dreams of playing Division I college football. 😡 ---
**Author:** ![Atamasama](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/atamasama/32/12961_2.png) [@Atamasama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Atamasama)\ **Post date:** [December 13, 2024, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/279 "2024-12-13T23:33:21Z")
> [@Ponch8](#): > > There go my dreams of playing Division I college football. Look at it this way, you can now tell yourself this is the only reason why you’re not a star college football player. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [December 21, 2024, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326/280 "2024-12-21T04:39:33Z")
Notre Dame wins the first playoff game of this season, beating Indiana. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326.md?page=13) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/college-football-2024/998326.md?page=15)