Latest news with #BCS
New York Times
3 days ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Let CFP committee finally use advanced stats, plus the $8M transfer offer
Until Saturday Newsletter 🏈 | This is The Athletic's college football newsletter. Sign up here to receive Until Saturday directly in your inbox. Today in college football news, your music rec of the week is Particle House. Every song by anyone should have synths and saxes. Remember years ago, when coaches and broadcasters in various sports still thought of advanced stats as deceptive witchcraft? (I say this as if many of them aren't still of that mindset. Bear with me.) The contemporaneous subplot that still feels surreal: Despite having an especially old-school power structure, college football had long entrusted a handful of computer ratings with helping to decide which two teams got to play in its most important game. That BCS system's computer formula — originally based on ratings by Jeff Sagarin, the New York Times and the Seattle Times — started in 1998, five years before 'Moneyball' was a book, let alone a movie. College football! Wildly progressive somehow! And then those two perspectives flipped. As most sports people slowly realized there is more to life than what can be gleaned by a single pair of human eyeballs, college football fans went the opposite way, growing tired of the BCS computers — for reasons that often had little to do with the computers themselves. In 2011, for instance, the machines tried to steer us clear of the reviled Alabama-LSU championship rematch that killed the BCS, but human polls overruled them. Now in the College Football Playoff era, we're headed back in the other direction. You often hear (and/or say), 'The BCS was actually fine,' or even, 'We should bring back the BCS,' whenever the CFP's human committee ranks your team one spot too low. That felt especially valid during the committee's only actual disaster, the 2023 robbery of undefeated Florida State, when the computers would've had the Noles in the field of four. Technically, the committee has used lots of stats since its inception in 2014, but not anything 'advanced.' Eleven years ago, Bill Connelly criticized the committee's usage of lackluster math (in a post edited by your boy, of course), and now he appears in a new article by The Athletic's Ralph Russo on the state of the committee, still making a similar argument … because nothing has really changed. In a time when the ground-and-pound SEC is out here promoting itself via fancy numbers, why is the committee still stuck pretending its basic statistical comparisons are all the numbers college football fans can handle? We're way past the BCS backlash by now, man. These days, everybody knows Vegas spreads are punishingly predictive only because they're informed by computer ratings. It's long been time to empower the committee to use and cite Connelly's SP+, Brian Fremeau's FEI, ESPN's FPI, the Massey Composite and all the other great tools out there. (Besides, unlike the BCS' mysterious computers, the public can actually learn details about how most of these actually work.) Anyway, that's just one rant spinning off of Ralph's article, which also has a lot of stuff about other potential changes coming the committee's way in the 16-or-whatever-team era of the CFP. (Usual note, because I mentioned FPI, the rating that some people believe is nothing but a devious ESPN propaganda tool: FPI is solid. Against Vegas, it typically holds up about as well as any other rating. When evaluating teams, look at a bunch of rankings, which irons out each rating's individual quirks.) 💰 'His dad said other schools reached out to see if he was interested in transferring, and the biggest offer he heard was for $8 million for two years.' Bruce Feldman on South Carolina redshirt soph QB LaNorris Sellers, one of my favorite players to watch last year. 〽️ How to attempt to stop Michigan five-star freshman QB Bryce Underwood, according to his high school opponents: 'We wanted to … force them to throw (laughs). That sounds crazy.' 🧢 Florida! USC! Pitt! UCLA! Stanford! Cal! Lots of schools with grumbling fan bases have some significant recruiting hope right now. 🎭 Former NFL players who were once bullied by Bill Belichick are now having a good chortle at him being an offseason sideshow. 🌎 Texas State is teasing a move to the Pac-12, potentially joining the impending crowd from the Mountain West. (Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State and Utah State, in case you've forgotten. In addition to Oregon State and Washington State, that's so many states! Plus Gonzaga in non-football. Gonzaga State!) 🏆 Texas won its fourth Directors' Cup in the last five years, having officially taken over for Stanford as the school that constantly wins the award for the best all-sports athletic department. Speaking of all sports: Last week, during Until Saturday's slapdash preview of Conference USA and the MAC (part of a chaotic series that debuted with a glance at the FCS, Division II and Division III), I asked which FBS straggler you'd take over, if you had a chance to build one of them for years into a College Football Playoff power. Advertisement This was of course inspired by the upcoming entry in EA Sports' college football series, where for decades now, people have enjoyed overhauling the little guys. But it's a fun thought exercise regardless. In your survey responses, your most popular pick: UMass. Some of you chose the woebegone Minutemen because you attend there (hello, Zach) or have family there (hello, Kathy's niece), while others simply crave the benevolent masochism that goes along with attempting to make UMass football matter (hello, various freaks). Otherwise, Tulane was your No. 2 pick (even though they're way too good to qualify for the question), thanks mostly to their blue uniforms. Among your other responses, this one from Carter jumped out as a really fun reason to take charge of Hawaii: For more on the massive challenge that is Making Something Of UMass, read this story by Matt Baker on exactly how hard that has been. OK, that's all for today. Email me at untilsaturday@ with any thoughts! Last week's most-clicked: The ranking of college football's 25 biggest storylines since 2000.
USA Today
10-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
James Franklin suggests a fix to one of College Football Playoff's problems
James Franklin suggests a fix to one of College Football Playoff's problems Penn State head coach James Franklin has always had thoughts and opinions on the current state of college football. With the talks about the future direction and decisions being made with the College Football Playoff, it is no surprise Franklin has voiced some concerns about where the postseason is heading. Talks of possible expansion and comments from rival coaches like Ohio State's Ryan Day about how many teams from the Big Ten should be in the playoff have not gone unnoticed by Franklin. And he once again has shared his concern about how the whole operation conducts itself. "It's funny, because I think there's all these complaints about the BCS, but then we go to this, and I think it goes back to really, my answer is, the problem is, everybody voting and everybody involved in the process whether you want to be biased or not, we all are biased," Franklin said in a recent offseason press conference. "I think in a lot of ways, you could make the argument a formula could be better. But we didn't love the formula. So we went to this other system." Judging by his comments, Franklin is prepared to stump for the return of the old BCS formula to eliminate as much of the potential bias as possible in the selection process for the College Football Playoff. And he is fair to point out this concern, and he is not alone in that line of thinking. The BCS was created with the intent of guaranteeing a. true national champion in college football, a sport where a matchup of the top two teams in the rankings was not guaranteed at the end of the season due to bowl partnerships. Penn State is well aware of the flaws of the old style with championship-caliber seasons ultimately going unrewarded in the history books. The BCS was not a perfect system, but it ultimately did more to improve the championship issue than not. The College Football Playoff was the natural progression in college football's postseason format, but the move to the playoff removed the BCS-style formula from the picture. It replaced the BCS computer rankings with a selection committee, a decision that was questioned from the beginning by some. The selection committee is tasked with being as well-educated on all of the developments in the sport on the field throughout the season at all levels, from the Big Ten and SEC to the Sun Belt Conference and MAC. But even with that responsibility, Franklin echoes the concerns that even that is not necessarily enough to ensure a break from any bias in the process. "In my mind, a formula makes the most sense because it takes the bias out that we all have," Franklin said. At this point, the removal of the selection committee in favor of a return to a BCS-style formula is highly unlikely. The College Football Playoff's broadcast partner, ESPN, has invested far too much into the product and has created weekly appointment watching in late fall with the weekly selection committee rankings show as part of the package. Removing the selection committee drama and debates would not be in ESPN's interest from a ratings perspective. And perhaps that is the larger concern with the current state of college football. Penn State is coming off its first College Football Playoff appearance in the playoff era. The Nittany Lions reached the semifinal round after a home victory over SMU in the first round and a Fiesta Bowl victory over Boise State in the quarterfinal round. The College Football Playoff has already adjusted how the seeding will be done in the playoff beginning next season by rewarding the top four seeds of a first-round bye regardless if they are conference champion or not. Under the updated seeding procedure, Penn State would have had a first-round bye in the 2024-25 College Football Playoff. Helmet sticker to CBS Sports / 247Sports. Follow Kevin McGuire on Threads, Bluesky, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook. Follow Nittany Lions Wire on X, Facebook, and Threads.
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Barclays Just Cut 200 Bankers--Here's Why Investors Are Cheering
Barclays (NYSE:BCS) is shaking up its investment bankagain. Over 200 roles are on the chopping block, mostly at the managing director level, as the firm sharpens its focus on higher-return business lines. While the headlines say cuts, the subtext is reallocation: Barclays is redirecting capital toward areas where it believes it can punch harderthink M&A, equity capital markets, and sectors like tech, health care, and energy transition. This isn't a retreat from its full-service model. Insiders suggest it's about shedding lower-yield headcount to go heavier in places with more upside. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 6 Warning Sign with BCS. The move fits squarely into CEO C.S. Venkatakrishnan's longer-term playbook. Last year, he laid out a plan to strip 2 billion in costs by 2026 and hand back 10 billion to shareholders. The investment bankstill Barclays' biggest revenue engine at 11.8 billion in 2024is being told to do more with the same capital base. That means no fresh risk-weighted assets from the parent, despite higher regulatory buffers. Instead, Barclays is betting on talent upgrades: recently tapping ex-Centerview dealmaker Andrew Woeber to lead M&A and poaching RBC's John Kolz to co-run equity capital markets. And so far? The early signals look promising. The firm has started inching back into bigger league tables, landing mandates on high-profile deals like Alphabet's (NASDAQ:GOOG) $32 billion acquisition of Wiz and Sunoco's $9.1 billion buyout of Parkland. In markets, Q1 revenues popped 16%stock trading notched its best quarter in nearly three years. Barclays shares have climbed 24% year-to-date, handily beating the FTSE 100's 8% gain. Investors could be warming up to Venkat's bet: cut costs, reload talent, and go leaner but meaner into the next earnings cycle. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Sign in to access your portfolio
Business Wire
09-06-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Lubrizol Announces an Important Milestone for Its Novel Patented Excipient, Apisolex™ Polymer
CLEVELAND--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lubrizol announces that an Apisolex™ polymer excipient-enabled drug formulation is in Phase 1 clinical trials. Introduced to the market in 2022, Apisolex polymer excipient is a polyamino acid-based polymer that enhances the solubility of BCS Class II and IV active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). Apisolex polymer excipient is manufactured following Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) guidelines and can be used in dosage forms for various routes of administration, including parenteral. The use of Apisolex polymer excipient has been proven to increase the solubility of certain APIs by as much as 50,000-fold. Apisolex polymer excipient is currently being evaluated in multiple programs across the globe, enabling delivery of hard-to-formulate APIs from various therapeutic classes and by multiple routes. Kevin Song, Senior Director, Global Pharmaceutical and Nutraceutical Business, notes 'the progression to clinical trials of a medicinal product formulated with Apisolex polymer excipient demonstrates its ability to provide differentiated solutions to solubility and bioavailability challenges in parenteral formulations.' Song adds, 'Lubrizol continues to invest in expanding the reach of the Apisolex polymer excipient across global markets and nurturing relationships with drug product manufacturers that are facing insoluble API challenges.' About Lubrizol Lubrizol, a Berkshire Hathaway company, is a science-based company whose specialty chemistry delivers sustainable solutions to advance mobility, improve well-being and enhance modern life. Every day, the innovators of Lubrizol strive to create extraordinary value for customers at the intersection of science, market needs and business success, driving discovery and creating breakthrough solutions that enhance life and make the world work better. Founded in 1928, Lubrizol has global reach and local presence, with over 100 manufacturing facilities, sales and technical offices and over 7,000 employees worldwide. For more information, visit
Scottish Sun
06-06-2025
- Health
- Scottish Sun
At-home ‘brain quiz' reveals your risk of heart disease, stroke, dementia and 3 types of cancer
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) AN at-home 'brain quiz' can reveal your risk of dementia, as well stroke, heart disease and three common types of cancer. It suggests that taking better care of your brain could boost your overall health, researchers said. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 1 Factors such as blood pressure, exercise and sleep can affect your risk of dementia, as well as heart disease and cancer Credit: Getty Developed at Mass General Brigham - a hospital affiliated with Harvard Medical School - the McCance Brain Care Score (BCS) is a tool designed to assess modifiable risk factors that influence brain health. The quiz's 21 questions evaluate someone's physical health, lifestyle, as well as social and emotional factors. All together, these can pain a picture of someone's risk of brain diseases that come on with age. But researchers found the quiz could also shed light someone's risk of non-brain related diseases, such as heart disease or cancer. That's because neurological diseases such as stroke, dementia, and late-life depression, as well as cardiovascular diseases —including ischaemic heart disease, stroke, and heart failure —and cancers are often driven by the same risk factors. These include things like unhealthy diet, lack of exercise, smoking, excessive drinking, high blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar. Psycho-social factors like stress and social isolation are also drivers of disease. In fact, at least 80 per cent of cardiovascular disease cases and 50 per cent of cancer cases can be linked to these factors, researchers claimed. Senior author Sanjula Singh, of the McCance Center for Brain Health at Massachusetts General Hospital, said: "While the McCance Brain Care Score was originally developed to address modifiable risk factors for brain diseases, we have also found it's associated with the incidence of cardiovascular disease and common cancers." 'These findings reinforce the idea that brain disease, heart disease, and cancer share common risk factors and that by taking better care of your brain, you may also be supporting the health of your heart and body as a whole simultaneously.' 10 second one leg stand test The quiz will generate a score of 0 to 21 - the higher your score, the more brain-healthy habits you practice. Researchers used data from the UK Biobank to analyse health outcomes in 416,370 people aged 40 to 69 years using the test. They found that a 5-point higher BCS score at baseline was associated with a 43 per cent lower risk of developing cardiovascular disease - including ischaemic heart disease, stroke, and heart failure - over 12 and a half years. For cancer, a 5-point increase in BCS was associated with a 31 per cent lower rate of lung, bowel and breast cancer. How to do the quiz Before you take the test, you'll need some information from your health records, such as your latest blood pressure reading, you haemoglobin A1c score, your cholesterol levels and BMI. The test - available on the Mass General Brigham website - starts off by asking people about their blood pressure, cholesterol levels and BMI, as well as smoking, exercise and sleep habits. It also asks patients about social relationships - whether they're close to anyone outside of spouses and children - and if they feel that their "life has meaning". Once you've answered the questions, the quiz will generate a score between 0 and 21, and ways to improve your brain health. The aim is to achieve the highest score possible. The score will be made up of three categories – physical, lifestyle, and social-emotional health – and it measures what you are already doing to protect your brain and prolong your brain health. This can include exercise, sleep, social interactions, lowering blood pressure and more. "Your McCance Brian Care score is a tool you can use to measure and improve how well you care for your brain throughout your life," according to Mass General Brigham. "Small adjustments, like finding some time to walk more in your day or making it a priority to call your best friend, can have a major improvement on your overall score and brain health over time. "Achieving your highest score and keeping your highest score month after month, year after year, will ensure you are taking the best care of your brain as you grow and thrive." Study authors said that previous research suggests that some individual components of the BCS quiz - such as smoking, lack of exercise and high blood pressure - can raise the risk of dementia or heart disease. But they said that their study can't prove that the BSC components can cause disease - only that they are strongly linked. Researchers also noted that the quiz can't be used to predict whether someone will get a specific disease. Instead, it can serve as a framework to help people identify achievable lifestyle changes that support the health of their brain, as well as the rest of their body. Lead author Jasper Senff said: 'The goal of the McCance Brain Care Score is to empower individuals to take small, meaningful steps toward better brain health. 'Taking better care of your brain by making progress on your Brain Care Score may also be linked to broader health benefits, including a lower likelihood of heart disease and cancer. 'Primary care providers around the world are under growing pressure to manage complex health needs within limited time," he went on. 'A simple, easy-to-use tool like the McCance Brain Care Score holds enormous promise - not only for supporting brain health, but also for helping to address modifiable risk factors for a broader range of chronic diseases in a practical, time-efficient way.'
