***Official portal tracker thread***

[GP4ISU]

Who knows if it’s completely true or not. But it had nothing to do with bitter about playing time as one will 100% be at PSU. Just waiting to be able to announce it.

That sounds like tampering….

 

[BCClone]

And this would benefit MC how?

Playing in a bowl keeps them busy and somewhat accountable to teammates. Not playing gives them more time on their hands and easier to tell teammates not in person.

 

[ema28]

Who knows if it’s completely true or not. But it had nothing to do with bitter about playing time as one will 100% be at PSU. Just waiting to be able to announce it.

So obviously all the players are buying what Campbell is saying?

I had a friend who was a division 1 athlete.....she talked about how much she hated her coach but also how devastating it would have been if her coach would have left due to her age and the amount of time they spent with their coach.

If Campbell is truly doing this then it's a jerk move manipulating these kids....

yes. I understand it's business but its glaring that it's a very dirty business

 

[isufbcurt]

That sounds like tampering….

It is but no one ever gets n trouble for it

 

[MyNameEhJeff]

It would be really disappointing if this is the case, but it doesn’t sound completely unrealistic. The number of players entering the portal and presumably not going to Penn State lends further support of this theory - whether accurate or not.

So many of the “build him a statue” crowd will never accept this to be true even if proven to be by those in the know.

I’ve seen this so many times with “leaders” in business. The way they choose to prove their worth is to let it fall apart when they’re not there. They don’t understand the true definition of leadership is to build it in a way that it runs without you there. Not hard to see an athletics equivalent here being a possibility

It’s absolutely true. Campbell has a super fragile ego. He HATED that Otz and the MBB have been having the success they’ve had, because it’s now no longer about what Campbell’s achieving and the success of the football team. Another reason why he wanted to go to Penn State - they’re a football (and wrestling) school, but he hated having to compete against the basketball squad.

Rewatch his pressers after a loss or at the end of the season…he needed people to know ISU was nothing before him and everything that ISU has accomplished was solely because of him, and wanted people to worship him for that and feed his ego.

I wouldn’t be surprised - if Jimmy has early success and despite Jimmy now having to replace nearly every starter - if Campbell were to make a comment about him being responsible for the success..in some way of “the culture we built there…” leading to why Jimmy’s having success.

 

[CloneFan65]

have you heard about the Poweball? Lol

The odds against winning the Powerball are 292 million : 1. Once the Powerball gets up to $1 billion dollars again, ISU could use their $20 million budget on 10 million tickets. This would give them a 3.4% chance of winning. If they lose, there is one year with no NIL money, but if they win, that’s a $1 billion of funds. Think of the championships!

 

[twincyties]

It’s absolutely true. Campbell has a super fragile ego. He HATED that Otz and the MBB have been having the success they’ve had, because it’s now no longer about what Campbell’s achieving and the success of the football team. Another reason why he wanted to go to Penn State - they’re a football (and wrestling) school, but he hated having to compete against the basketball squad.

Rewatch his pressers after a loss or at the end of the season…he needed people to know ISU was nothing before him and everything that ISU has accomplished was solely because of him, and wanted people to worship him for that and feed his ego.

I wouldn’t be surprised - if Jimmy has early success and despite Jimmy now having to replace nearly every starter - if Campbell were to make a comment about him being responsible for the success..in some way of “the culture we built there…” leading to why Jimmy’s having success.

It's really not that far fetched. Campbell NEVER strayed from this coach speak. That's kind of a red flag, in retrospect.

We see a decent amount of it from TJ, for comparison. Always opens his presser with expressing respect for the other team. Talks about daily habits, etc. But a lot of what you hear from TJ is not scripted. You can catch him in a more casual setting and he'll open up. He is not 100% coach speak like Matt.

The more I look back, the more phony it looks. Shame on me for buying in, I guess.

 

[GP4ISU]

It is but no one ever gets n trouble for it

I wonder how long until some feeder program loses its coach and players follow them and the feeder school sues the deep pockets school for tampering? Certainly could be damages. $$$ could be significant. Maybe I’m just litigious….

 

[twincyties]

I wonder how long until some feeder program loses its coach and players follow them and the feeder school sues the deep pockets school for tampering? Certainly could be damages. $$$ could be significant. Maybe I’m just litigious….

Desperation causes people to take steps they otherwise would not have considered. I don’t think this is a stretch.

 

[Cyched]

Campbell lost an arm wrestling contest to Otz, then it was all downhill from there

 

[IcSyU]

I wonder how long until some feeder program loses its coach and players follow them and the feeder school sues the deep pockets school for tampering? Certainly could be damages. $$$ could be significant. Maybe I’m just litigious….

You can legally tamper now. You aren’t speaking to the kids anymore....you're speaking to their agents. And the agents are a nasty mix of used car dealer and realtor.

 

[ShopTalk]

The odds against winning the Powerball are 292 million : 1. Once the Powerball gets up to $1 billion dollars again, ISU could use their $20 million budget on 10 million tickets. This would give them a 3.4% chance of winning. If they lose, there is one year with no NIL money, but if they win, that’s a $1 billion of funds. Think of the championships!

Come on man! We're talking magic fairy dust here - not math!

 

[3TrueFans]

I’m impressed how this thread always gets dumber.

 

[Nococy]

You can legally tamper now. You aren’t speaking to the kids anymore....you're speaking to their agents. And the agents are a nasty mix of used car dealer and realtor.

or someday when women’s sports tries to sue using title 9 as it’s backing.

 

[Pizzapitter]

You keep coming up with crazy comparables. Haluska & now Dillon Gabriel.

Rocco spent 4 years at ISU. He got his undergrad degree at ISU. He led Iowa State to 26 wins. A 66% win/loss. How many players in Iowa State history won more games? Or two-thirds games played?

He did a ton of charitable stuff for Ames community. And his family were always great promoters of Iowa State.

I hope Rocco always views himself as a Cyclone first, even if he spends his last year elsewhere. I accept we are in a new era, where money comes into play. In all likelihood, Rocco will makes MILLIONS more at his next stop. And are you 100% sure leaving was entirely Rocco's decision? What if new staff wanted to go a different direction? Or not willing to pay Rocco same as CMC?

I watched the TJ Otzelberger interview with reporters from this morning. They were discussing players need to get away from basketball over Christmas holidays, needed a "reset". But he also said (paraphrasing), "easy to forget, it's (hoops) not who they are, but what they do".

Who is Rocco? For me, he'll always be a Cyclone. Hope to see him at Homecoming some day.

Rocco. Great young man, for sure, as was the qb kid from AZ.
Forget his name. Last I heard he plays for the SF 49ers.
Can't wait to see who Rocco plays for in the UFL.

 

[xr4ticlone]

I find it interesting, and maybe self-correcting at some point, that SO MANY players are entering the portal everywhere. If any player at ISU says, "I am going to enter the portal and get a check at Univ X" here is something they should think about. (or maybe just pray about)

As of late December 2025, teams like West Virginia, Purdue, Virginia, Colorado, and Houston were among those with the highest number of players entering the portal, with WVU leading with over 50 players, indicating significant roster turnover, though the exact top 5 shifts daily with new entries. (24/7 Sports)

There are a HECK of a lot of players to compete against on a very "buyers" market.

This is what I’ve been saying. You’ve got new Fr coming in…you’ve got players from JUCO/D3/FCS/P5 all looking to up their status & money…and kids at P4 schools all looking for a bigger payday.

We’re gonna see how valuable these guys are…and how loyal MC is to them. Better options will be available to us and MC on plenty of these guys imho.

 

[GP4ISU]

You can legally tamper now. You aren’t speaking to the kids anymore....you're speaking to their agents. And the agents are a nasty mix of used car dealer and realtor.

Respect that. But I’d hate to have to risk a $100 million settlement (made up) on whether the school-agent-player is true separation. Especially if the damaged school is teetering on the brink of having to decertify their football program. Put that in front of a jury.

Of course I’m just noodling on a late Friday night.

 

[Pizzapitter]

Just watched JC & Company's InCyde Zone.
Fabulous commentary from those that PLAYED the game, re: NIL, portal.....
Thank you!

 

[Skyh13]

It's really not that far fetched. Campbell NEVER strayed from this coach speak. That's kind of a red flag, in retrospect.

We see a decent amount of it from TJ, for comparison. Always opens his presser with expressing respect for the other team. Talks about daily habits, etc. But a lot of what you hear from TJ is not scripted. You can catch him in a more casual setting and he'll open up. He is not 100% coach speak like Matt.

The more I look back, the more phony it looks. Shame on me for buying in, I guess.

To be fair, that’s also a hallmark stereotypical difference between football and basketball coaches. Football coaches being NOTORIOUS for non-stop coach-speak, cliches, and platitudes. Whereas, basketball coaches generally are known for being more honest, sometimes brutally so. (although often to a lesser degree in college vs the NBA)

 

[awd4cy]

I think some of you underestimate how easy it is for these teenagers to transfer these days.