DICKSON: The last two are fine. The consecutive time outs thing by coaches (generally before a last-second field goal) was tedious. The untimed down change streamlines the game.

However …

I really don’t like the change to keep the clock running after a first down. The estimate is that it will eliminate seven to 10 plays per game. Hey, fans, you’re now paying those high ticket prices for less product! But don’t think you’re going to be getting out of the game any sooner because now the powers-that-be will be cramming in more commercials to compensate. It’s a lose-lose situation for fans. I understand why baseball added the pitch clock to speed up the game. But college football was fine. Please stop trying to make the college game exactly like the pro game.

LLOYD: Darnell is correct about the second and third changes but they don’t really impact the game very much. How many untimed downs to end the first or third quarters or consecutive timeouts does a team see in a season? Maybe two or three? The NCAA isn’t exactly going to send shockwaves with those changes.

The traditional clock stoppage after getting a first down is slightly different — but only slightly. Most of the time, I see officials run up, spot the ball and start the clock after first downs have been made without waiting for the first-down chains like they used to. I think the 7-to-10 plays trimmed estimate is probably too high.

If it were up to me, I’d probably expand the time window to the last four minutes of each half, just to give teams attempting to rally that extra couple of seconds, but that would be my only change.

2. BYU women’s basketball’s Lauren Gustin has entered the transfer portal after leading the NCAA in rebounding last season. Should she stay or should she go?

LLOYD: I’ve known Gustin for a long time and I’ve always been impressed by her drive and work ethic. She isn’t the tallest or most jaw-droppingly athletic but, boy, is she relentless. That will lead her to having success whether it is at BYU or somewhere else.

The reality is that the Cougars look like they are going to have quite a bit of roster turnover, so Gustin is going to have to get acclimated to playing with a new squad no matter what she does. There is a big benefit in knowing what BYU head coach Amber Whiting is attempting to do, but the Cougars will also likely be relying on a number of young players who could take some time to get used to the college game.

Personally, I think the benefits of staying outweigh those of leaving but she clearly has her reasons for at least looking at other options.

DICKSON: Gustin still has the option to stay but she has a “do not contact” note attached to her transfer portal spot, which generally means an athlete already knows what school or schools they are considering. She may be headed to the School Up North (speculating here).

By staying, Gustin could become the all-time leading rebounder in BYU history. Amber Whiting has significantly upgraded the talent level on this team with a terrific recruiting class and the Cougars are going on a trip to Italy this summer, which is pretty attractive.

On the other hand, the Big 12 will be difficult and with just one year to play, maybe Gustin wants to find a team with more guarantees of making the NCAA Tournament. She also has the example of Shaylee Gonzales (the two won a state championship together at the high school level in Arizona and were teammates at BYU). Gonzales left for Texas, won the Big 12 Newcomer of the Year award and played for a program that went to the NCAA Tournament.

I think there are plenty of good reasons for Gustin to play, but remember that she played for two different high schools and was at three different colleges (Idaho, SLCC, BYU). She’s got a bit of wanderlust in her and college kids are always looking for new experiences.

3. The Cougar football team has brought in 17 transfers since the end of the 2022 season. Too many or not enough?

DICKSON: There are 80 scholarships on a college football team and another 30 or so walk-ons and such. That’s a lot of spots to fill. Not only does a team lose its seniors but the transfer portal makes it pretty easy for multiple players to check out other opportunities (see Colorado’s mass exodus under Deion Sanders).

In addition, BYU has a new defensive coordinator and some of the previous regime’s players don’t fit the style. All of those things had me thinking there would be 20-25 new players on the roster by fall camp. The Cougars are well on their way to that number. Also realize that many of the players that have transferred in are starters or will compete for starting reps. As my friend Ben Criddle says on his ESPN 960 radio show, “Jay Hill isn’t messing around.”

LLOYD: Does anyone else find the now expected game of “Transfer Portal Musical Chairs” to be amusing in a sad sort of way? It’s like players and coaches are both basically saying, “Hey, I thought this would be a good fit but I was clearly wrong — so now my judgment is much better and the next one will be right … right?” Name, image and likeness money muddies the waters, of course, but a lot of times the moves are still head-scratching.

I have always been of the opinion that potential over-inflates value, whether that be in the form of pro drafts, high school recruiting or now the transfer portal. How many times have we been told that a player is going to be the next star, only to have him or her never live up to the expectations that were outlandish to begin with?

So will BYU’s transfers adequately shore up the team’s needs? We’ll find out when the Cougars take the field this fall. I do believe that lots of changes hurt timing and cohesion, so I lean toward  trying to get guys to stay instead of shuffling all the time. I think BYU has done that fairly well

4. Where do you think former BYU football stars Jaren Hall, Blake Freeland and Puka Nacua will go in this week’s NFL Draft?

LLOYD: I expect all three to hear their names called, simply because the body of work they have put together over the last couple of years. I even am pretty confident that the order will go Freeland first, Hall second and Nacua third.

But where exactly they go is a bit more of a mystery. Offensive linemen like Freeland with size and agility are valued, so I look for him to be a third or fourth-rounder.

How teams are grading Hall is fascinating, since he can make brilliant throws and adds a dimension with his athleticism — but he has also been limited by injuries, is older than many QBs and has had questions about his hand size and eye-manipulation ability. I’m going to say he gets taken in the fifth round and I hope its a team who values what he brings to the table.

As for Nacua, I think he is almost the ideal sixth or seventh-round selection for a number of teams. He’s a playmaker who isn’t afraid to go after the tough yards. He’s not the fastest or biggest, but he’s the type who could be a difference-maker in the right system.

DICKSON: Mock drafts have kind of been all over the place with competing opinions, especially about Hall. I’ve seen as high as the third round but NFL Draft expert Mel Kiper doesn’t even have Hall in his top 10. As a side note, Kiper had Hall as his No. 6 quarterback after last year’s draft, so these things can be fickle.

Certainly Freeland is most likely to go first, maybe in the third round. Nacua’s injury history might be scaring teams off for the draft but he’ll get a good shot as a free agent if he doesn’t get selected.

5. Put on your forecasting hat: Which BYU athletic program will be the first to win a Big 12 title?

DICKSON: I’m glad I don’t make a living prognosticating sports, or I’d be in the proverbial bread line. Anyhow, BYU’s Olympic sports (cross country, women’s soccer and women’s volleyball) will be hoisting a Big 12 championship trophy far sooner than football or men’s basketball. All three programs have competed regularly on a national level and will be right near the top of the standings as soon as 2023.

The Cougar football team could get there in a couple of seasons if Kalani Sitake and his coaching staff realize their vision but men’s basketball is harder to call because that league is so good. I think Amber Whiting has the women’s team on a good track as well. I would say BYU baseball has the longest road to go. The Cougars can hit the ball but an ERA of 7-plus in the West Coast Conference is troubling.

LLOYD: The challenge of this question isn’t which teams have the best shot at winning a league title. It’s whether the BYU women’s soccer team will be able to do it before either the Cougar men’s or women’s cross country teams will.

Those three teams (with the BYU women’s volleyball team as the darkhorse candidate) have been the most consistently elite programs in Provo. Look at what happened in their respective NCAA tournaments in the fall of 2022:

• The Cougar men’s cross country team was third, with the best Big 12 finish being second by Oklahoma State (no other Big 12 team was in the Top 25).
• The BYU women’s cross country team was eighth, with the best Big 12 finish being fourth by Oklahoma State (no other Big 12 team was in the Top 25).
• The Cougar women’s soccer team reached the Sweet 16, as did TCU from the Big 12. UCF, West Virginia and Texas all made it to the second round of the NCAA tournament.

It’s clear those teams should be able to compete with Big 12 competition and I’m going to say that women’s soccer gets the first title. BYU women’s volleyball faces a tougher task since it is features the defending national champs  from Texas.

As for the other programs, there will likely be some bumps in the road as they get used to the level of competition in the new league.