WEBVTT - Mac & Bone Show - Taylor Davis Interview 

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<v Speaker 1>Taylor Davis, ESPN college football reporter. She will be on

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<v Speaker 1>the sidelines for one of many interesting SEC games we

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<v Speaker 1>got to talk to her about. She'll be down there

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<v Speaker 1>at Ole Miss as they host Missouri. She joins us

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<v Speaker 1>here on a football Friday. Taylor, thank you for coming

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<v Speaker 1>on with us. How you been?

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<v Speaker 2>Absolutely. Thanks for having me. I am, in fact, here

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<v Speaker 2>to bring the good vibes, so thank you for recognizing that.

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<v Speaker 1>I've been well.

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<v Speaker 2>It's been a crazy start to the season so far.

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<v Speaker 2>I honestly can't believe we're already at week seven, but

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<v Speaker 2>I say that every year. It flies by. Looking forward

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<v Speaker 2>to this one, though, a top 15 matchup, and it's

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<v Speaker 2>going to have everything you want in an SEC game.

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<v Speaker 1>Let's talk about that one first. I mean, there's so

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<v Speaker 1>much to talk about in the SEC. I know we

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<v Speaker 1>want to ask you a Gamecocks question, too. I know

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<v Speaker 1>they're off, but we got to do that for the

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<v Speaker 1>Gamecock fans listening. But let's just start with Ole Miss, Missouri.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean, I kind of feel like you could see

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<v Speaker 1>a fun one with a ton of points tomorrow in

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<v Speaker 1>that one. What are you expecting to see tomorrow?

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<v Speaker 2>Yeah, we are kind of expecting a high scoring game

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<v Speaker 2>in this one, and it really feels like it could

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<v Speaker 2>be one of those that comes down to who has

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<v Speaker 2>the ball last. And I think as much as it

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<v Speaker 2>feels like low hanging fruit to immediately point to the quarterbacks,

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<v Speaker 2>you have to in this one. These are two of

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<v Speaker 2>the best. quarterbacks in the country and by the way

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<v Speaker 2>they've got all the history tied to it obviously Austin

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<v Speaker 2>Simmons formerly at Ole Miss an injury made way for

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<v Speaker 2>Trinidad Chambliss who is now the essential face of college

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<v Speaker 2>football Heisman front runner and now Austin Simmons returns to

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<v Speaker 2>Oxford along with his you know impressive wide out Caden

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<v Speaker 2>Lee who was also with him here at Ole Miss

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<v Speaker 2>and And it's a top 15 matchup with playoff implications.

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<v Speaker 2>It's crazy that we're saying that already. But each of

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<v Speaker 2>these teams already have an SEC loss. And they still

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<v Speaker 2>have Texas, Georgia, and Oklahoma left on their schedule. So

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<v Speaker 2>winning out would be incredibly difficult from here. So it

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<v Speaker 2>has everything on the line already. And I actually think

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<v Speaker 2>that both of these teams have a lot of talent,

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<v Speaker 2>and they're going to have to go prove it. You know,

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<v Speaker 2>you look to Trinidad Chambliss and the Ole Miss offense,

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<v Speaker 2>and they've really just done everything that you expect them

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<v Speaker 2>to be, even with a limited Kiwan Lacy. But the

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<v Speaker 2>defense has been a bit of a question mark until

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<v Speaker 2>their bye week, and then they looked a lot better

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<v Speaker 2>against Vandy. Four turnovers, only six missed tackles when they

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<v Speaker 2>had had three consecutive games of 14 missed tackles. But

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<v Speaker 2>was it because they were up against Vanderbilt? No disrespect

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<v Speaker 2>to Vanderbilt, but this is going to be a much

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<v Speaker 2>more high-caliber opponent that you're seeing in Missouri's offense. And

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<v Speaker 2>Missouri's defense is arguably a strength of the team, specifically

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<v Speaker 2>the defensive front, looking to make things difficult for Chambliss.

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<v Speaker 2>So it has everything that you could possibly want. Special

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<v Speaker 2>teams is going to be important, too. And a little

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<v Speaker 2>bit of emotional tie to this one. So you never

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<v Speaker 2>know what happens when that's in the fold.

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<v Speaker 3>That is the voice of Taylor Davis, ESPN, SEC Network,

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<v Speaker 3>on the sidelines this weekend for Missouri and Ole Miss

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<v Speaker 3>tomorrow afternoon. Taylor, to say it's been a rollercoaster ride

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<v Speaker 3>for the Gamecocks may not do justice to rollercoasters at

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<v Speaker 3>this point. So as we sit here on the bye week,

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<v Speaker 3>what's now the expectation, do you think, for the Gamecocks

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<v Speaker 3>after the big win at Florida last week? It's changed

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<v Speaker 3>so quickly. Now what can they do in a positive

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<v Speaker 3>sense the rest of the way?

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<v Speaker 2>Right. You have to continue the momentum that you were

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<v Speaker 2>able to garner from that. And I think what is

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<v Speaker 2>also kind of a head scratcher this season is the

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<v Speaker 2>Florida Gators. What in the heck is going on in Gainesville?

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<v Speaker 2>Beginning of the season, I was covering Florida and I

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<v Speaker 2>was going, okay, this may be one of the best

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<v Speaker 2>offenses in the country. All the weapons that they have.

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<v Speaker 2>Aaron Filo looks great. I think Buster Faulkner is one

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<v Speaker 2>of the best offensive coordinators in the country. People need

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<v Speaker 2>to pay attention to the Florida Gators. Even Ole Miss

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<v Speaker 2>and Missouri, who I've got this week, faced Florida a

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<v Speaker 2>week apart. And if you look at the stat line

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<v Speaker 2>difference in Ole Miss's loss to Florida and Missouri's win

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<v Speaker 2>over Florida, it doesn't look like the same team. So

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<v Speaker 2>I do wonder how impactful that loss can be for

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<v Speaker 2>Ole Miss, because now we're looking at Florida a little

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<v Speaker 2>bit differently, but also how impactful can that win be

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<v Speaker 2>for South Carolina? I think that they're going to have

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<v Speaker 2>to continue momentum because you do have a question mark

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<v Speaker 2>of the opponent. But regardless, we all know how contentious

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<v Speaker 2>things have been, you know, in Columbia, around Shane Beamer,

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<v Speaker 2>around the North Sellers, the Dylan Stewart suspension. Things were

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<v Speaker 2>not feeling good. That's typically when the train goes off

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<v Speaker 2>the tracks entirely. The fact that they still focused inward

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<v Speaker 2>and were able to go get a road win like that,

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<v Speaker 2>I don't care what Florida's doing. Playing in the swamp

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<v Speaker 2>is hard. It is loud. It is intense. The fact

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<v Speaker 2>that this team still rallied, put something together that and

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<v Speaker 2>looked like a much more equipped team. I think there's

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<v Speaker 2>momentum to be taken from that. I want to see

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<v Speaker 2>Lenores continue to find his groove because I think what

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<v Speaker 2>he's been up against with so much change, and honestly,

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<v Speaker 2>at times, not even a lot of help for his targets.

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<v Speaker 2>I think you've got to build a little bit off

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<v Speaker 2>of what they've garnered in the Florida win.

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<v Speaker 1>Taylor Davis is with us, ESPN sideline reporter. She's got

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<v Speaker 1>Mizzou and Ole Miss tomorrow. I want to ask you

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<v Speaker 1>about Alabama-Tennessee, that one. I mean, there's three real interesting

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<v Speaker 1>SEC games on at the same time. You got one

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<v Speaker 1>of them. But this Alabama-Tennessee game is intriguing. I mean,

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<v Speaker 1>do you think– can Tennessee's defense kind of keep them

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<v Speaker 1>in that game? Because, like, if Alabama goes off like normal,

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<v Speaker 1>I have a hard time believing Tennessee's going to score

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<v Speaker 1>with them. What do you think about this one?

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<v Speaker 3>Yeah.

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<v Speaker 2>I'm glad that you started with Tennessee's defense because I

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<v Speaker 2>think that that is what would keep them in the

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<v Speaker 2>game if it's possible. Also, this being in Neyland. But

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<v Speaker 2>I think that actually Alabama losing that game last week

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<v Speaker 2>is bad news for Tennessee because they are coming into

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<v Speaker 2>this game so irritated. They feel slighted. They feel like

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<v Speaker 2>they let that one slip away. And obviously the calls,

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<v Speaker 2>whether we like to focus on it or not, it

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<v Speaker 2>definitely played a role. So if you, I wouldn't want

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<v Speaker 2>to be in the line of fire of a slighted

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<v Speaker 2>Alabama team personally. And I think that's what Tennessee is

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<v Speaker 2>going to see. But I just was on the call

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<v Speaker 2>for Tennessee, Arkansas last week. And I saw that defense

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<v Speaker 2>up close, specifically the defensive front and the linebackers. The

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<v Speaker 2>first two levels of that defense are very talented, very,

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<v Speaker 2>very talented defensively. Bringing in Jim Knowles from Penn State

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<v Speaker 2>was such a good hire by Josh Heupel. And interestingly,

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<v Speaker 2>he brought with him a coach at every level and

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<v Speaker 2>a player at every single level. So it's allowed them

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<v Speaker 2>to implement this system way quicker. They are doing new

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<v Speaker 2>install weekly because they have so many guys that are

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<v Speaker 2>helping make sure that that thing is fine-tuned. So I

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<v Speaker 2>think the defense is actually going to be a tough

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<v Speaker 2>test for Keelan Russell and Alabama today. But I think

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<v Speaker 2>they've got more firepower offensively to eventually make it happen,

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<v Speaker 2>whether it's deep shots, whether it's just continuing to kind

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<v Speaker 2>of ground and pound and let Keelan Russell go improv

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<v Speaker 2>a little bit more. Because I don't know that this

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<v Speaker 2>Tennessee offense can keep up with him. The fact that

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<v Speaker 2>Tennessee's offense has, you know, had so many question marks,

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<v Speaker 2>specifically around the quarterback, and we have been told that

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<v Speaker 2>George McIntyre is getting another start. He was good, not

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<v Speaker 2>great last week. A few turnovers and a few kind

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<v Speaker 2>of young moments. But Faison Brandon still dealing with a

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<v Speaker 2>shoulder injury. And honestly, even injury aside, It did seem

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<v Speaker 2>the game was a bit too fast for him. Some

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<v Speaker 2>of the sacks were on him. So I think that

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<v Speaker 2>they kind of feel that's the best option to start McIntyre.

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<v Speaker 2>But Deshaun Bishop can't carry the load, you know, the

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<v Speaker 2>entirety of the SEC season. I mean, he's a stud.

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<v Speaker 2>Don't get me wrong. But I don't think this Tennessee

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<v Speaker 2>offense has enough figured out to hang with the tide.

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<v Speaker 3>Taylor, we were talking to sideline reporter Evan Washburn of

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<v Speaker 3>CBS last segment. He's got the Eagles and Panthers in

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<v Speaker 3>Philly today. This week, we were talking to him about

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<v Speaker 3>being near the Philly fans on the sidelines, and he

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<v Speaker 3>told us about the Black Hole fans in Oakland, and

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<v Speaker 3>he would have to run from spot to spot just

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<v Speaker 3>to get away from them. We were going to ask you,

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<v Speaker 3>in the SEC, who has the rowdiest fan base when

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<v Speaker 3>you're sitting there on the sidelines doing your job?

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<v Speaker 2>That's a really good question. I think it really has

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<v Speaker 2>so much to do with the matchup, I will say. Like,

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<v Speaker 2>I fully expect tomorrow is going to be kind of wild,

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<v Speaker 2>but it's dang near impossible if you're talking SEC rowdy

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<v Speaker 2>fan bases to not talk about LSU. Come on. I mean,

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<v Speaker 2>a game in Death Valley after tailgating all day in

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<v Speaker 2>Baton Rouge, those people get nuts. And honestly, it's all

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<v Speaker 2>in good fun. I love covering games there, but... Yeah,

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<v Speaker 2>do I get messed with a good bit? Yes, but

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<v Speaker 2>it's all in good fun. I love going to Death Valley.

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<v Speaker 1>That's awesome. That is awesome, and that is not a

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<v Speaker 1>surprising answer.

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<v Speaker 3>That was the odds-on favorite.

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<v Speaker 1>That was the favorite. That was definitely the favorite.

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<v Speaker 3>We didn't think it was the Vanderbilt fans.

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<v Speaker 2>No, no, unfortunately not. Well, when the Pobias were there,

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<v Speaker 2>there was usually some stuff going on with that.

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<v Speaker 3>Oh, that's true.

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<v Speaker 1>They got rowdy. That fam got rowdy.

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<v Speaker 3>That's a good point.

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<v Speaker 1>No doubt about it.

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<v Speaker 2>You knew when they were in the stadium, I'll tell

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<v Speaker 2>you that.

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<v Speaker 1>And Theo Vaughn showed up, too. It was a party,

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<v Speaker 1>no doubt about it. All right. Taylor, great talking ball

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<v Speaker 1>with you. Awesome stuff. We appreciate it. We'll be watching

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<v Speaker 1>tomorrow for you on the sidelines, SEC Network at 3.30,

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<v Speaker 1>Ole Miss and Missouri. Thank you so much. Enjoy your

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<v Speaker 1>time down there in the Grove. Appreciate you.

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<v Speaker 2>Thank you guys so much. Have a great day.