Daily briefing: On fans in stands, USF's Jeff Scott and the Big 12

Ivan Maisel’s “Daily Briefing” for On3:

All is good because fans are back

Say what you will about the value of Tanner Morgan’s experience, or the refusal of Mohamed Ibrahim to go down on the first hit. But what struck me about Minnesota’s ability to come back from a 10-0 deficit and put Ohio State on its heels for a while is the power of a filled stadium. Gophers coach P.J. Fleck had the guts to go for it on fourth-and-1 at his 29 trailing 10-0 early in the second quarter. Ibrahim’s 56-yard run electrified the crowd, and the Buckeyes had to deal with that electricity for the rest of the night. In case you needed more evidence that college football missed its fans.

Tough times in Tampa

A talented, experienced North Carolina State made quick work (45-0) of a USF team that is neither. Bulls coach Jeff Scott is now 1-9 as coach; that’s one more loss than he suffered in his last six seasons on Dabo Swinney’s staff at Clemson. That speaks to the rebuilding job that Scott undertook when he replaced Charlie Strong. You want to believe Scott will get the time he needs to build the program. Except that so few coaches get that kind of time anymore, and Scott is in a pro town, and what happens if UCF goes to the Big 12 and leaves USF behind?

A different viewpoint for Big 12

It’s all perspective, right? The last time the Big 12 thought about expansion, the conference took a hard look at the BYUs and UCFs of the world and decided they didn’t demand that the conference change the status quo. Without two bellcows like Texas and Oklahoma, the remaining Big 12 schools now look at UCF, Cincinnati, and Houston and see kindred spirits — second (or third or fourth) programs in big football states. BYU brings a national fan base. The point is, there is no shame in having that identity. There isn’t as much TV money, either, but that’s what the Big 12 has become. Be who you are.