Tom Dienhart, BTN.com Senior Writer, July 19, 2016

Let?s kick off this party with a nice Q&A in the Minneapolis Star Tribune with Gopher AD Mark Coyle.

Coyle has a lot on his plate as he looks to stabilize an athletic department that needs leadership ? and fund raising.

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It was great for Michigan to add Notre Dame back to its sked in 2018 and 2019. But the return of the rivalry created a scheduling quandary.

The Wolverines will have road trips to both Michigan State and Ohio State in 2018, along with a junket to Notre Dame. Whoa!!! The following year, the Wolverines will play all three in Ann Arbor. Sweet!! However, Michigan would like some relief by breaking up the MSU and OSU games-playing one at home and one on the road during that two-year run. According to Big Ten senior associate commissioner Mark Rudner, changes to future schedules must meet approval by the Big Ten Administrators Council. Hmmm. Will Michigan get what Michigan wants? Big, powerful schools usually do. Stay tuned.

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It seems Iowa always is in need of playmaking wideouts. And, that?s the case again in 2016. But I like the potential of this group. And working with vet QB C.J. Beathard will help. The snub of Matt VandeBerg from watch lists is a bit vexing.

Indiana?s Simmie Cobbs and Ricky Jones made the Biletnikoff list along with Nebraska?s Brandon Reilly and Jordan Westerkamp. VandeBerg caught as many and more passes as those four receivers. Yet, VandeBerg didn?t make the list. Gotta love watch lists.

?I didn?t even know, I wasn?t aware,? he told the Cedar Rapids Gazette. ?To be honest, I didn?t know it was out there. I?ve seen a bunch of our guys get recognized. I?m not overly concerned. All I can do is control what I do on the field, and if they don?t see that right now, that?s fine.?

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Pennlive.com looks at the Nittany Lions' incoming freshmen look like. It?s a good-looking group for James Franklin.

I am eager to see RB Miles Sanders. How good can this guy be?

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Since I am a CFL fan, I have to include this piece from NJ.com: 12 CFL QBs who have ties to New Jersey.

Love me some Drew Willy of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers. He is No. 2 in the CFL this year with 1,239 yards passing and is hitting 72 percent of his throws.

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JaQuan Lyle? The fattest point guard in America? He?s working to shed that label.

Lyle has changed his diet, as he looks to change his body for an OSU program with something to prove next season.

"I'm taking my body a lot more seriously," Lyle said. "I'm cutting out all the sugars, eating real good. I'm lifting hard, trying to go as hard as I can in the weight room every day. Our strength coach, Coach Rich (Dave Richardson), if it wasn't for him calling me the fattest point guard in America, I probably wouldn't be trying as hard as I am right now."

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In case you missed this, Mlive.com has a good look at how the football programs at Michigan and Michigan State spend their millions.

Michigan and Michigan State both spent upwards of $25 million to operate their football programs in 2014-15, and have seen costs have grown significantly over the last five years. That's according to five years of NCAA financial reports filed by both schools and obtained by MLive through records requests. Coaching salaries count as the biggest expense for any football program, as well as the fastest-rising expense. Scholarships are next, and have held steady between $3.5 and $5 million in recent years.

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The great Loren Tate of the Champaign News-Gazette chronicles just how sage and savvy new Illinois A.D. Josh Whitman is. Looks like U of I struck gold with its precocious A.D.

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