The National Championship Game on Monday night between No. 1 Indiana and a resurgent Miami isn’t just the culmination of a wild college football season - it’s a statement about where the sport is headed. And if you’re still clinging to old-school recruiting models and the Blue-Chip Ratio as gospel, it might be time to update the playbook.
Former NFL tight end and current college football analyst George Wrighster recently made a sharp observation that cuts to the heart of this new era: experience matters - a lot. Indiana’s starting lineup?
An average of 4.3 years of college football under their belts. Miami?
Not far behind at 4.1 years. That’s not a coincidence.
That’s strategy.
These are veteran-laden rosters, built not through the traditional path of high school recruiting classes and redshirt development, but through the transfer portal - the new frontier in college football roster construction. And it’s not just Indiana and Miami.
Programs like Oregon and Texas Tech have also leaned into this model, often backed by deep-pocketed boosters like Mark Cuban (Indiana), Cody Campbell (Texas Tech), and Phil Knight (Oregon). Their support has helped fuel a new kind of arms race - one built less on five-star high school recruits and more on proven, college-tested talent.
The transfer portal officially closed at midnight, and by the looks of it, the floodgates were wide open. An estimated 10,000 players entered the portal, turning the offseason into a full-blown free agency frenzy.
Teams with general managers - yes, that’s a real thing now in college football - are scouring the market for players who bring both production and polish. It’s a buyer’s market, but the price tags are soaring.
And this is where the game within the game begins. Some programs will spend big, chasing the formula that Indiana head coach Curt Cignetti has seemingly mastered: find experienced players who can be coached up and plugged in immediately. But without Cignetti’s discipline, structure, and eye for talent, that approach could backfire - especially for schools with champagne dreams and soda water budgets.
This shift marks a potential end to the Blue-Chip Ratio era - the long-standing belief that to win national titles, you needed a roster stacked with four- and five-star high school recruits. For years, that formula held true. Think Alabama, Clemson, Georgia, LSU - programs that built dynasties on recruiting rankings and NFL-sized rosters.
But this season? Indiana dismantled Alabama 38-3.
They torched Oregon 56-22. The Hoosiers didn’t just beat the blue-bloods - they embarrassed them.
That’s not supposed to happen if the Blue-Chip Ratio still ruled the day. But it’s clear: the portal is the new kingmaker.
Oregon, for their part, came close. Their 74.5% Blue-Chip Ratio is among the highest in the country.
But despite their talent on paper, they’ve consistently fallen just short of the mountaintop. In fact, every one of their losses over the past three seasons has come against a team that either played in or won the national title.
They’re knocking on the door - but it’s the teams that have embraced the portal with precision that are kicking it down.
Still, not all portal strategies are created equal. Some programs are paying top dollar for players buried on the depth charts of elite teams - sometimes even third-stringers.
That’s a risky game. The portal has created its own inefficiencies, and the smartest programs are learning how to navigate them.
Take Dan Lanning and Oregon. While others are throwing money at big names, Lanning is playing the long game.
He’s using the portal, sure - but he’s also doubling down on high school scouting, character evaluation, and player development. His staff is looking for guys with upside, work ethic, and a team-first mentality.
It’s a more balanced, nuanced approach - and one that could pay off in the long run.
Because here’s the truth: there’s no one-size-fits-all formula anymore. The college football landscape is evolving fast, and the programs that adapt - with vision, discipline, and a clear identity - are the ones that will thrive.
Monday’s title game isn’t just about crowning a champion. It’s a glimpse into the future of the sport. And right now, that future looks a lot more like Indiana and Miami - veteran, portal-savvy, and built to win now.