WAY too early GAC Rankings (2024)

[UniBison]

I always love when ESPN does the way too early football rankings right after bowl season is over. Since now this season has officially come to a close what do my fellow GAC guys think about next year. I understand coaching and personnel changes are unpredictable with the transfer portal plague that is affecting all of college football but what are your thoughts? How does the GAC look next year and where does your team fall in the mix?

[OldBison]

Not sure which teams are loosing the largest number of starters but my gut tells this should be ranking for GAC teams in 2024:

1. Harding
2. Henderson State
3. Ouachita
4. So. Ark.
5. Southeastern OK
6. Oklahoma Baptist
7. Ark. Tech
8. SNU
9. East Central
10. UAM
11. Southwestern OK
12. Northwestern OK

[LeftSider]

What are y’all’s thoughts on the transfer portal? It seems good at first but man, the point of college is to get a degree in higher learning. There are always cases where it’s obviously the best choice for a kid to go somewhere else but there are also kids that transfer 3+ times.

What’s the cut off? Where do you draw a line when the line has been erased? How bad is it for high school kids coming out?

i think Harding doesn’t lose too many to the portal and gets a couple guys- stays at the top and competes for another natty.

[Bisonfan from FLA]

What are y’all’s thoughts on the transfer portal? It seems good at first but man, the point of college is to get a degree in higher learning.

True, true, true... the purpose of selecting a school to attend and play sports is so you get the degree AND play your sport. Choosing to play for the school establishes a relationship to partner towards a goal for both student and school. The reason for school is the degree; playing the sport and getting $$$ support for doing so helps to offset some of (or all of) the cost of obtaining that degree.

Also this creates loyalty and creating a bond/tie to the school, to the heritage and to the brand that is created by the school.

There are always cases where it’s obviously the best choice for a kid to go somewhere else but there are also kids that transfer 3+ times. What’s the cut off? Where do you draw a line when the line has been erased? How bad is it for high school kids coming out?

Yes there can be reasons for a student athlete to be better served to move to another school (coaching changes, academic/degree changes, family issues/needs) but most times a student athlete should focus on be bonded/loyal/faithful to the established relationship between student and school.

Sadly our society is quick to change out of a relationship for cause (think marriage) and not stay and work and focus on what brought the two parties together. Should a student athlete decide and have the opportunity to go to school one year, move to another to play, then as noted above to transfer 3+ times? What are we creating but a "transfer mentality" to everyday life events.

I think Harding doesn’t lose too many to the portal and gets a couple guys- stays at the top and competes for another natty.

Agreed! There have been some comments mockingly about Harding coaches and players calling the relationship of HU Football as "the brotherhood" but yet that united feeling and commitment is real and binds those young men together to be an effective, cohesive unit. Freshmen and sophomore players stay and learn, develop and gain experience behind the juniors and seniors that play fulltime, so that when they reach junior and senior years they too take the leadership role. Yes there will be some younger players (Harding QB Cole Keylon) who play and excel as a freshman/sophomore, but overall stay committed to your school and stop the jumping in and out through the transfer portal.

[BisonBones]

What are y’all’s thoughts on the transfer portal? It seems good at first but man, the point of college is to get a degree in higher learning. There are always cases where it’s obviously the best choice for a kid to go somewhere else but there are also kids that transfer 3+ times.

What’s the cut off? Where do you draw a line when the line has been erased? How bad is it for high school kids coming out?

i think Harding doesn’t lose too many to the portal and gets a couple guys- stays at the top and competes for another natty.

I think the portal is way out there on the pendulum. Too many players are convinced they can jump around and find the right place for them, when staying and developing will actually be much more likely for them to find success. There will always be guys who are playing behind young stars and have a small chance of meaningful time outside of an injury, and I say good luck to guys who want some meaningful playing time.

I am hopeful that Harding's culture combined with the different types of players needed for the flexbone insulates us a little from the portal, but it's here and is going to have some effect on everyone. At this level, I'm not sure how important NIL will be, but I do know getting buy in from players will be key to keeping them around.

[Bisonfan from FLA]

Putting forth my listing for GAC Football in 2024

1. Harding - duh!!!! Not much regression here with any holes from graduation. Backups got lots of playing time and the depth chart is, well, deep!

2/3. Henderson State / Ouachita
Depends on the development of the younger players in the early part of the season and the results of BOTR.

4. Southern Arkansas
Would not be surprised to see them jump in the contention for 2 or 3 based on the results from early games.

5. Oklahoma Baptist
Lots of potential here in this group but still only reaching the upper end of the middle of the GAC teams. Still, a good team who will surprise a few teams.

6/7.Southeastern OK / Southern Nazarene
Again there is much potential within these two and I would give a slight nod to SNU but it will be a dogfight between each team clawing for growth. SNU was not a one man team with a strong offensive line and defense is good.

8. Arkansas Tech
A year away from full development; will frighten most of the middle teams of the GAC.

9. East Central
Don't sleep on them. They could find their footing and make some moves up the list but I feel right now (without Spring practice results) they are more a bottom dwelling team this upcoming year.

10. UAM
Success was due to one player output BUT there is evidence of strength in the team to grow. Still, a bottom ranked team.

11/12. Southwestern OK / Northwestern OK
I predict a two win and a one win for these two, but still they will round out the bottom of the GAC.Come on fellas, we are rooting for you to make some movement upward so a couple of wins would be good for you and the GAC.

Playoff teams: Harding, Henderson State
Bowl game teams: Ouachita, Southern Arkansas

[WonderboysATU]

Twisting this thread from portal and players to coaching. There is no secret Harding and its coaches is built on a super deep bond. With that being said, what is the possibility that one of the younger Harding coaches could ever get pulled away from Harding? The defensive staff has a lot of young, great minds. Tribble for example killed it in the playoffs with his special teams game plan. I know fake punts are ultimately okay'd from the HC, but Tribble is extremely impressive to me. Also, with some of the older Harding coaches staying for many years, could that also make some of the younger coaches more likely to possibly pursue a larger opportunity to try and climb a ladder? Bigelow and Blankenship are both still in their 20s and have shown they are the real deals. It's just interesting because Harding is such a unique place I could see it being very hard for a coach to leave and pursue a FCS opportunity because not having that culture and drive could change your day-to-day big time.

[BisonOL]

I think the biggest challenge for Harding will be replacing 4 starting OL. But hopefully there are the next wave of studs ready to step up

[BisonBones]

Twisting this thread from portal and players to coaching. There is no secret Harding and its coaches is built on a super deep bond. With that being said, what is the possibility that one of the younger Harding coaches could ever get pulled away from Harding? The defensive staff has a lot of young, great minds. Tribble for example killed it in the playoffs with his special teams game plan. I know fake punts are ultimately okay'd from the HC, but Tribble is extremely impressive to me. Also, with some of the older Harding coaches staying for many years, could that also make some of the younger coaches more likely to possibly pursue a larger opportunity to try and climb a ladder? Bigelow and Blankenship are both still in their 20s and have shown they are the real deals. It's just interesting because Harding is such a unique place I could see it being very hard for a coach to leave and pursue a FCS opportunity because not having that culture and drive could change your day-to-day big time.

Yes. The Harding culture and raising your kids in Searcy is a big draw to Harding across the board. A lot of professors could be at larger institutions getting research done and getting more prestige, but they are at Harding because they believe in its mission and they want to raise their kids their.


Luke Tribble's father was the HC when Luke was a kid up until his redshirt year playing for the Bisons. I would imagine it would be hard for him to leave.

[Bisonfan from FLA]

Twisting this thread from portal and players to coaching. There is no secret Harding and its coaches is built on a super deep bond. With that being said, what is the possibility that one of the younger Harding coaches could ever get pulled away from Harding?

First, thank you for your compliment of the HU staff.

As a private school it is good to see the recognition given to us from state school supporters.

As a GAC member it is a good to see support given to one of our conference schools, both inside and outside the conference.

As the reigning D2 Football National Champions (yes, it does feel good to write that!) that recognition is well earned and are glad to be a part of giving a nod of appreciation to our city, state and conference!

Now on to your question. It is always possible for one of the coaches looking to move away to other coaching opportunities, but. . . .

It's just interesting because Harding is such a unique place I could see it being very hard for a coach to leave and pursue a FCS opportunity because not having that culture and drive could change your day-to-day big time.

. . . . you answered your own question.

Coach Simmons and his staff call it The Brotherhood!

Thank you for asking!

[codeblack]

Twisting this thread from portal and players to coaching. There is no secret Harding and its coaches is built on a super deep bond. With that being said, what is the possibility that one of the younger Harding coaches could ever get pulled away from Harding? The defensive staff has a lot of young, great minds. Tribble for example killed it in the playoffs with his special teams game plan. I know fake punts are ultimately okay'd from the HC, but Tribble is extremely impressive to me. Also, with some of the older Harding coaches staying for many years, could that also make some of the younger coaches more likely to possibly pursue a larger opportunity to try and climb a ladder? Bigelow and Blankenship are both still in their 20s and have shown they are the real deals. It's just interesting because Harding is such a unique place I could see it being very hard for a coach to leave and pursue a FCS opportunity because not having that culture and drive could change your day-to-day big time.

You touched on the culture part already but most of the guys that coach there have a tight bond because they were former players. For a lot of them they don’t just want to be a football coach, they want to be a Harding University football coach. That plays a big part in the longevity of a coaches career there and why you see very little turnover. There was a large coaching turnover in 07-09 when Coach Huck took over the program but other than that most of the coaching positions are pretty safe, especially compared to positions at other schools.

There is something to be said for stability in any career - especially coaching. There is a dollar figure that you have to account for job stability/security. That number is different for everyone. Some of the younger guys may want to chase the bag, and you can’t fault them for that if that’s what they think is best for them and their family. At the end of the day Searcy is a great place to raise a family with a low cost of living and for the young coaches you mentioned - I can pretty much guarantee they will have a job at HU for as long as they want one there.

[Divisiontwo]

Twisting this thread from portal and players to coaching. There is no secret Harding and its coaches is built on a super deep bond. With that being said, what is the possibility that one of the younger Harding coaches could ever get pulled away from Harding? The defensive staff has a lot of young, great minds. Tribble for example killed it in the playoffs with his special teams game plan. I know fake punts are ultimately okay'd from the HC, but Tribble is extremely impressive to me. Also, with some of the older Harding coaches staying for many years, could that also make some of the younger coaches more likely to possibly pursue a larger opportunity to try and climb a ladder? Bigelow and Blankenship are both still in their 20s and have shown they are the real deals. It's just interesting because Harding is such a unique place I could see it being very hard for a coach to leave and pursue a FCS opportunity because not having that culture and drive could change your day-to-day big time.

Tribb dabbled outside the bubble for a while. After he was done playing, he coached at Swosu for 2 seasons I believe. Then came back. He’s a good one. It may be several years down the road, but my guess is he’s the next head bison.


side note: HU win the GAC again next year. Bring back the entire backfield. Bring back a large portion of the defense as well.

[LeftSider]

I think the biggest challenge for Harding will be replacing 4 starting OL. But hopefully there are the next wave of studs ready to step up

You’d be surprised how easy it is to replace OL. The 2’s this year looked good enough and had enough experience that I doubt they miss a beat. Some players give you something different but for the team picture, it’s a pretty consistent product when any bison OL steps in the field.

the big step up or down is experience at slot and QB. Which Harding has in spades.

[BisonOL]

You know that I’ve seen that but I have to feel like losing 2 - 3 yr starters at guard (one of which was an AA) will have some effect but moreso than individual personnel it’s the continuity that has to be developed with 4 new starters. You know as well as I that we haven’t had to replace that many in a single year in several years

[LukeMcConnell1]

It's so hard to predict rosters right now, especially with transfer portal and guys still exercising a COVID year. Fortunately, that part should be pretty much done after this year with some exceptions.

It's not next year, but I did post a final wrap up from this year: https://www.d2football.com/gac-season-wrap-up/