Thoughts of the Day: June 11, 2026

Jadan Baugh (13) predicted second team All-SEC by Lindy's (Photo by Chris Spears)

A few thoughts to jump start your Thursday morning:

For all the optimism being generated by Jon Sumrall, who is having one of the best offseasons of any coach in the country, Lindy’s preseason college football magazine offers a rather sobering reality check. The fine folks at Lindy’s love Sumrall and believe he’s capable of halting the downward trend that is Florida football since 2011, which is why they rank the Gators No. 25 nationally. That is high praise for a coach who inherited a program that has posted four losing seasons in the last five years.

When you look at Lindy’s preseason All-SEC teams, you understand why the Gators went 22-23 during Billy Napier’s four years at the helm and 6-7 in Dan Mullen’s final season (2021). There is talent on the roster Sumrall inherited from Napier but not enough to make a championship run. Good coaching can do a better job of developing the talent, but only through recruiting can Sumrall bridge the gap Napier left behind.

Of the 75 players that make up the Lindy’s preseason first, second and third team All-SEC, Jadan Baugh is the only Gator listed and he’s second team. That’s it. By contrast, South Carolina, predicted to finish 14^th in the 16-team Southeastern Conference, has six players – one first teamer, three seconds and two on the third team. Even Kentucky has three including a first teamer.

Lindy’s doesn’t offer up its unit-by-unit rankings for the Southeastern Conference but Athlon’s magazine does where only Florida’s running backs and wide receivers rooms are given any respect. Here is where the Gators rank position-by-position:

Quarterbacks: 12; Running backs: 5; Wide receivers: 3; Offensive line: 9; Defensive line: 9; Linebackers: 9; Secondary: 9.

Those numbers suggest a middle of the pack finish for the Gators this season. Anything better than that will tell us that Jon Sumrall is capable of squeezing every last bit of potential out of his players.  

Lindy’s preseason SEC predictions: 1. Texas; 2. Georgia; 3. LSU; 4. Ole Miss; 5. Alabama; 6. Texas A&M; 7. Oklahoma; 8. FLORIDA; 9. Tennessee; 10. Missouri; 11. Vanderbilt; 12. Auburn; 13. Kentucky; 14. South Carolina; 15. Mississippi State; 16. Arkansas

Lindy’s preseason top 25 nationally: 1. Oregon; 2. Texas; 3. Ohio State; 4. Notre Dame; 5. Indiana; 6. Georgia; 7. Miami; 8. LSU; 9. Ole Miss; 10. Southern Cal; 11. Alabama; 12. Texas A&M; 13. Oklahoma; 14. Texas Tech; 15. BYU; 16. Michigan; 17. Houston; 18. Louisville; 19. Washington; 20. SMU; 21. Iowa; 22. Utah; 23. Penn State; Clemson; 25. FLORIDA. Other schools of interest: 27. Tennessee; 32. Missouri; 34. Vanderbilt; 39. Auburn; 43. Kentucky; 44. South Carolina; 48. Florida State; 52. Mississippi State; 59. Arkansas; 63. UCF; 100. Florida Atlantic; 116. Florida International

HAS THE BEAST AWAKENED?

Wednesday night, Jac Caglianone had the first four-hit game of his brief Major League Baseball career against the Texas Rangers. The night before, Caglianone had the first multi-homer game of his career with two prodigious blasts to right center field of Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City. Caglianone has 10 hits in his last 15 at bats with two doubles, two homers and five RBI, raising his average to .275 with eight homers and 19 RBI this season.

It is way too early to tell if this is the Caglianone we’ll see in the 94 games before the regular season ends, but the signs are encouraging. The power has always been there – it’s rare that one of his home runs takes a less than sub-orbital path to the right field bleachers – but now he seems to be more patient at the plate, willing to take a walk instead of a swing at a pitch that’s off the plate and out of his wheelhouse.

If Cag’s inner beast has truly awakened, then there isn’t a ball park capable of holding him. He’s not a superstar just yet, but the power and the skills are there just waiting to be unleashed on the baseball world.

SOCCER: WORLD CUP BEGINS

Back in the day when I roamed the neighborhoods surrounding Shepherd’s Market on London’s West End, I had Arsenal tickets. By no means am I a soccer junkie. If anything, I find the game boring but the allure of soccer when I was in London had less to do with the game and more to do with the passion of Premier League soccer fans. They hit the pubs hours before a match, get totally wasted, then use the match as a chance to jump around, sing, shout and sober up so they can hit the pubs again after the match.

During the brief time I lived in Schramberg, Germany, I was in Stuttgart on a Saturday when arch-rival Dortman came to town. In anticipation of violence among the competing fans, businesses shut down at noon and there was a heavy police presence. Such is the passion of soccer fans in Germany.

With the World Cup set to begin today there is hope among American soccer fans that this will be the event that serves as a springboard for the game to elbow its way into the hearts and minds of the sporting public. The game is more popular than it has ever been in the United States, but will watching foreign teams dominate the action over the next month cause a significant increase in popularity? I have my doubts.

Soccer is the world’s game and that’s part of the problem of why the game isn’t more popular in the US. Until the United States becomes a true world power, I can’t see the soccer season tickets a prize that gets passed down through generations or MLS matches becoming must-see whether in person or on television.

For years we’ve been told that soccer is going to explode in popularity in the US but it hasn’t happened and won’t happen until the United States team becomes a regular threat to make the final four in the World Cup. When the US team plays consistently and wins at the highest levels, then and only then will great athletes start choosing soccer over football, basketball and baseball. When the US team with homegrown talent proves it’s capable of winning against the likes of Spain, Argentina, Brazil, Germany and France then soccer has a chance to become a truly relevant sport in America. Until then? Not a chance.  

ONE FINAL PITHY THOUGHT: Since the favorable ruling by Lubbock County judge Ken Curry granted a temporary injunction that will allow quarterback Brendan Sorsby to play for Texas Tech this fall we are seeing the first real signs that college football’s conference commissioners, school presidents and athletic directors are willing to unite for a common cause. Other than Texas Tech which fully supports Sorsby playing despite the fact the only thing that stopped him from gambling was getting caught, there is near unanimous outrage in the rest of the college football world. That they have found common ground to stand on with this one situation lends hope that they can remain united to find practical solutions to the problems that threaten to derail all of college sports if something isn’t done soon.

Outrage is a good place to begin but it has to be followed up by decisive action. A message must be sent not just to Texas Tech but everyone else thinking about finding an activist or buddy-buddy judge to issue favorable decisions that allow bypassing the rules that there are consequences. The Big 12 athletic directors met Wednesday and while no actions were taken a vote could be coming in the next day or two that will make Texas Tech ineligible for the Big 12 championship. If they make the decision to go scorched earth, then they could rule Tech can play but if Sorsby takes the field it will go down officially as a forfeit.

The presidents at Nebraska and Georgia have taken a stand that prevents any of their athletic teams from scheduling Texas Tech. More schools will probably take a similar path, but for this to be effective it has to start with the 15 schools not named Texas Tech that make up the Big 12. That would be decisive and a real shot across the Texas Tech bow.

Sorsby is just one problem that has to be addressed and solved. There are dozens of others that are going to require a united front to solve. Finding solutions should begin with Southeastern Conference commissioner Greg Sankey and Big Ten commissioner Tony Petiti taking the lead by proving the two most powerful men in all of college sports are in lockstep when it comes to dealing with the issues that threaten to unravel the entirety of intercollegiate athletics and not just football.

Because the SEC and Big Ten are so dominant Sankey and Petiti have the kind of clout that would send a much-needed signal to the rest of the college sports world that the answers can be found within and not in the halls of Congress. About the only thing that the men and women in Congress ever agree on is giving themselves a pay raise and the partisan divide is so great that it is difficult to imagine them coming up with a proposal that is anything more than a band-aid.

Brendan Sorsby shouldn’t be allowed to play football but the NCAA’s inconsistency when it comes to enforcing its rules plays into the hands of Texas Tech, which has adapted an us against the world mentality. The NCAA is powerless to stop Texas Tech but what would happen if Sankey and Petiti rallied the Division I commissioners, presidents and athletic directors to do something consequential in opposition? Simply speaking out will have zero effect on the outcome, but if there was complete agreement that Texas Tech would be severely punished if it didn’t withdraw its support of Sorsby then something could be done swiftly.

The dire consequences predicted for all of college sports if Sorsby is allowed to play are very real. Now we get to find out if the people at the top of the food chain are real leaders willing to take a stand or just talking heads who hide behind their words.