WEBVTT - Throwback Thursday: Auburn beats Oregon 0:00:02.200 --> 0:00:04.720 Welcome to the Solid verbal. 0:00:04.880 --> 0:00:05.600 I'm that for me. 0:00:06.680 --> 0:00:08.160 I'm a man, I'm forty. 0:00:08.280 --> 0:00:10.119 I've heard so many players say, well, I want to 0:00:10.160 --> 0:00:10.680 be happy. 0:00:10.800 --> 0:00:13.000 You want to be happy for dake Edo State. 0:00:13.360 --> 0:00:14.480 Is that whoo whoom? 0:00:14.960 --> 0:00:17.120 And Dan and Tye. 0:00:19.280 --> 0:00:21.959 Welcome back to the Solid Rebel boys and girls. My 0:00:22.040 --> 0:00:26.639 name is ty Hildebrand, joining me way way over there 0:00:27.600 --> 0:00:31.160 out of the quarantined New York City. He has made 0:00:31.160 --> 0:00:33.440 his way west. He has made the cannon ball run 0:00:33.479 --> 0:00:34.640 to southern California. 0:00:35.000 --> 0:00:38.720 Mister Dan Rubinstein, how are you. I'm tired. It was 0:00:38.760 --> 0:00:42.720 a slog, but I'm okay. Got out of New York, 0:00:42.880 --> 0:00:47.839 did it safely quarantining at the moment from relatives who 0:00:47.840 --> 0:00:51.440 are at a completely different location. So it's just me 0:00:51.800 --> 0:00:55.280 and solid wife Jody, and the Solid toddler because he 0:00:55.320 --> 0:00:58.000 now is walking, so I guess that technically makes him 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:01.040 a toddler. So we're doing everything by the book and 0:01:01.120 --> 0:01:04.080 safe and staying away from people and removing from everybody. 0:01:04.160 --> 0:01:08.560 Ty so took every single possible precaution. And now I 0:01:08.680 --> 0:01:15.080 sit and literally sit with a large pot overturned next 0:01:15.120 --> 0:01:20.720 to the guest room bed, speaking into pillows as one does. Right, 0:01:20.760 --> 0:01:23.440 and we still sound better than the competition. 0:01:23.840 --> 0:01:27.520 Well, we hope everyone out there is as happy and 0:01:27.640 --> 0:01:30.840 healthy as the two of us. I know it's very 0:01:30.959 --> 0:01:33.679 uncertain times for many people listening to this show. We 0:01:33.760 --> 0:01:37.800 appreciate you spending some time to escape it and talk 0:01:37.800 --> 0:01:40.679 college football with us. We've got a fun show planned 0:01:40.680 --> 0:01:44.520 for tonight, which will detail here disagree momentarily. If you 0:01:44.560 --> 0:01:47.120 do like the show and you haven't already followed us 0:01:47.200 --> 0:01:51.560 on Twitter, on Facebook or on Instagram, please go on 0:01:51.600 --> 0:01:52.200 out and do so. 0:01:52.240 --> 0:01:52.920 It is free. 0:01:53.000 --> 0:01:55.080 You can also go on out to our website, solid 0:01:55.160 --> 0:01:56.880 verbal dot com. If you've got a lot of downtime 0:01:56.920 --> 0:01:58.800 you want to listen to some of our archives, you 0:01:58.800 --> 0:02:02.160 can find it there. And if you want to participate 0:02:02.240 --> 0:02:05.160 in the conversation, as I say, long after the final bell, 0:02:05.680 --> 0:02:08.519 you can do so at Soliverbal dot reddit dot com 0:02:08.600 --> 0:02:11.120 or good friend Peter Hoffman is trying to keep the 0:02:11.160 --> 0:02:13.079 fire burning d in. He's doing his part right to 0:02:13.120 --> 0:02:17.320 bring in amas and really keep content fresh and lively. 0:02:17.440 --> 0:02:20.000 Especially again, a lot of folks look for something to 0:02:20.040 --> 0:02:23.280 do right now, So head on out again Soliverbal dot 0:02:23.320 --> 0:02:24.960 reddit dot com. 0:02:25.560 --> 0:02:30.239 What is our show for tonight? We are making peace? 0:02:30.760 --> 0:02:34.560 I am making peace with I suppose it's the twenty 0:02:34.680 --> 0:02:39.520 eleven BCS National Championship game based on the twenty ten season. 0:02:40.440 --> 0:02:44.480 The game is Oregon Auburn. We are not just going 0:02:44.560 --> 0:02:48.360 back and we have rewatched and we are going to 0:02:48.440 --> 0:02:54.000 relive and try to analyze things and rehash things with 0:02:54.280 --> 0:02:59.360 twenty twenty eyes, sort of in retrospect. But I also 0:02:59.400 --> 0:03:01.600 feel it's and I didn't ask you to do this, 0:03:01.919 --> 0:03:05.600 and I have prepared my own Remember when ace Ventura 0:03:05.840 --> 0:03:09.079 answers the question, what do you know about Ray Finkel 0:03:09.680 --> 0:03:13.440 soccer style kicker? Yep, yeah, the twenty ten season, and 0:03:13.480 --> 0:03:15.519 we will get to the lead up, both in terms 0:03:15.520 --> 0:03:19.040 of Oregon's twenty ten season and Auburn's twenty ten season. 0:03:19.080 --> 0:03:22.440 But the college football season that happened in the fall 0:03:22.520 --> 0:03:27.000 of twenty ten was I suppose, depending on who you 0:03:27.120 --> 0:03:30.440 root for and who you care about, kind of perfect 0:03:30.880 --> 0:03:34.480 the way I like college football and the way you 0:03:34.639 --> 0:03:35.600 like college football. 0:03:35.680 --> 0:03:39.280 So you like your eggs over easy, you like your 0:03:39.560 --> 0:03:42.240 twenty ten college football season, Like how. 0:03:42.440 --> 0:03:45.080 I forgot everything that went and we can get into 0:03:45.160 --> 0:03:46.760 it right now. I don't know if you want to 0:03:46.840 --> 0:03:50.320 introduce anything specific or tag anything specific and ask people 0:03:50.320 --> 0:03:52.840 to follow whatever. At this point, they probably know that 0:03:52.840 --> 0:03:56.880 we have social media accounts, but no, I already did that. 0:03:57.400 --> 0:03:59.400 I know you, I already did that. But when you go, 0:03:59.520 --> 0:04:03.360 I'm ready, and I say this actually completely independent, and 0:04:03.360 --> 0:04:05.920 we're getting into it of the fact that my team, 0:04:06.040 --> 0:04:09.760 my alumni, my alumni, my alma mater, the Oregon Ducks, 0:04:10.160 --> 0:04:12.400 found themselves in the National Championship game. They go twelve 0:04:12.400 --> 0:04:16.800 to zero before that game. Completely independent of that. Here 0:04:16.880 --> 0:04:19.680 is what the twenty ten season gave us, and you 0:04:19.720 --> 0:04:23.560 can throw a jazzy little number under this beautiful work 0:04:23.560 --> 0:04:27.359 of art that was the twenty ten season retrospective. We 0:04:27.480 --> 0:04:31.719 have an incredible Rose Bowl champion TCU team led by 0:04:32.120 --> 0:04:35.800 Andy Dalton. I think it's Josh Boyce Jeremy Curley out wide. 0:04:36.240 --> 0:04:39.240 We have the best Stanford team of the modern era, 0:04:39.400 --> 0:04:42.480 Andrew Luck, Jim Harbaugh, and a ton of NFL talent everywhere. 0:04:42.800 --> 0:04:45.600 We have an Ohio State season that technically didn't count 0:04:47.120 --> 0:04:49.840 because wins were vacated, but it's still a Terrell Prior 0:04:50.000 --> 0:04:52.440 led Ohio State team coming back from a Rose Bowl 0:04:52.440 --> 0:04:54.760 win beating Arkansas, and I believe the Sugar Bowl. We 0:04:54.839 --> 0:04:57.800 have Landry Jones in Oklahoma putting up all sorts of 0:04:58.320 --> 0:05:02.640 crazy yardage. We have JJ and Scott Tolzen and Wisconsin. 0:05:02.880 --> 0:05:05.240 They lose the Rose bull but they have an incredible season, 0:05:05.240 --> 0:05:08.440 including a win over Ohio State in Camp Randle. You 0:05:08.520 --> 0:05:10.560 have a Boise State team which maybe played in the 0:05:10.560 --> 0:05:14.040 game of the season against Nevada, that overtime game decided 0:05:14.080 --> 0:05:17.120 by a game winning field goal. You have an Alabama 0:05:17.240 --> 0:05:20.200 team who had four or five head coaches but managed 0:05:20.240 --> 0:05:22.720 to go ten and three, and that includes a Bowl win, 0:05:23.080 --> 0:05:27.000 murdering win over Michigan State and a loss to South Carolina. 0:05:27.000 --> 0:05:30.279 Steve Spurrier in South Carolina, a South Carolina team that 0:05:30.360 --> 0:05:33.120 it was the very beginning of their ascendants. They had 0:05:33.160 --> 0:05:35.440 like a really nice four year run under Steve Spurrier. 0:05:35.480 --> 0:05:40.080 So that's Stephen Garcia, al Seon Jeffrey and Marcus Lattimore 0:05:40.480 --> 0:05:43.719 beating Alabama by two touchdowns. That's incredible. You have Colin 0:05:43.800 --> 0:05:48.839 Kaepernick's senior year. He's obviously an amazing college quarterback running 0:05:48.839 --> 0:05:52.000 that pistol for Nevada. Ryan Mallett and I want to 0:05:52.000 --> 0:05:55.320 say it's Jerius right, Joe Adams, Kobe Hamilton for Arkansas. 0:05:55.920 --> 0:06:00.640 They're incredible. Mississippi State goes nine to four. Nanny Diaz 0:06:00.680 --> 0:06:04.760 is the defensive coordinator and and in retrospect, really fun 0:06:04.800 --> 0:06:08.719 backfield of Chris Ralph and Vick Ballard. You have Florida State, 0:06:09.040 --> 0:06:12.960 MISSOO and Washington somehow generating first round quarterbacks out of 0:06:13.000 --> 0:06:18.159 Blaine Gabbert, Christian Ponder and Jake Locker. You have the 0:06:18.200 --> 0:06:22.160 emergence of Ryan Tannehill converted receiver to quarterback at Texas 0:06:22.200 --> 0:06:25.000 A and M in there I believe it's second to 0:06:25.080 --> 0:06:27.960 last year at in the in excuse me, in the 0:06:27.960 --> 0:06:31.160 Big twelve. All the while realignment is starting to and 0:06:31.200 --> 0:06:34.520 continuing to sell out conversationally continue Sorry. 0:06:34.880 --> 0:06:38.080 Yes, now, hold on, I was hoping that you would 0:06:38.120 --> 0:06:41.400 eventually get to my favorite story, yeah, of the twenty 0:06:41.480 --> 0:06:44.000 ten season, and it really had nothing to do with the. 0:06:43.920 --> 0:06:44.960 On field product. 0:06:45.000 --> 0:06:49.400 But twenty ten is when all this dust started getting 0:06:49.480 --> 0:06:54.360 kicked up around conference realignment. And you might remember some 0:06:54.440 --> 0:06:58.800 publications reported that five of the big public schools in 0:06:58.839 --> 0:07:00.760 the Big twelve were going to make their way west 0:07:00.800 --> 0:07:03.760 to the PAC twelve or the PAC sixteen. It was 0:07:03.800 --> 0:07:06.200 going to become a super conference. This is going to 0:07:06.240 --> 0:07:09.479 trigger some sort of nuclear winter as it relates to 0:07:09.560 --> 0:07:14.000 conference play in college football. Obviously it happened to some extent, 0:07:14.120 --> 0:07:17.800 not to that drastic extent, but that was a huge 0:07:17.840 --> 0:07:21.320 talking point, and it was something of like a side 0:07:21.360 --> 0:07:25.840 gig all to itself, people talking about different possibilities who 0:07:25.840 --> 0:07:29.280 could end up. Where As you said, it was sort 0:07:29.280 --> 0:07:32.040 of the beginning of this run up to what eventually 0:07:32.200 --> 0:07:33.840 was a much more modest realignment. 0:07:34.400 --> 0:07:36.120 Think about these are the teams, by the way, that 0:07:36.240 --> 0:07:44.800 realigned around this time. So and the good teams TCU, Yes, realigned, yep, yep, yeah, 0:07:44.840 --> 0:07:47.360 they make their move to the Big twelve eventually, Boise 0:07:47.480 --> 0:07:51.600 State from the Whack to the Mountain West. I believe Nevada, 0:07:51.720 --> 0:07:55.640 you have MISSII. Colorado. Yeah, well Colorado's not good. Colorado's 0:07:55.680 --> 0:07:57.880 especially not good. But in terms of the good teams, 0:07:58.040 --> 0:08:02.520 Maryland good this year. Offensive coordinator James Franklin at Maryland 0:08:02.520 --> 0:08:05.840 defensive coordinator Don Brown, Danie O'Brien, I think red shirt 0:08:05.840 --> 0:08:10.080 freshman quarterback was promising. Tulsa does not. I don't, I don't. 0:08:10.240 --> 0:08:12.840 I don't have Tulsa's you can just cut this out. 0:08:12.920 --> 0:08:15.160 I don't actually leave it and who cares. But Tulsa 0:08:15.200 --> 0:08:19.920 was Todd Graham and Chad Morris. UCF is good this year. 0:08:20.080 --> 0:08:23.360 Jeff Godfree quarterback. They beat Georgia in the bowl game, 0:08:23.400 --> 0:08:26.360 the other side of the Deep South oldest rivalry. So 0:08:26.400 --> 0:08:28.920 they beat both Georgia and Auburton Bowl games in a 0:08:29.000 --> 0:08:32.360 decade span or so. We have Nebraska real ligning, we 0:08:32.440 --> 0:08:35.280 have A and M real ligning. TJ. Moe is wreaking 0:08:35.280 --> 0:08:41.040 havoc at MISSOO. They move conferences. It's it's a special 0:08:41.120 --> 0:08:45.080 year in that we had the best versions of teams 0:08:45.360 --> 0:08:48.080 or near best versions of teams. We had these strangely 0:08:48.240 --> 0:08:50.680 down versions of really strong teams. I think this was 0:08:50.679 --> 0:08:52.640 the worst year of Mark Rick's ten. You're at Georgia, 0:08:52.640 --> 0:08:55.439 they go they end up going six and seven. Stanford 0:08:55.520 --> 0:08:58.680 was their best team, Like there was just so much upheaval. 0:08:58.679 --> 0:09:00.640 And then you go to the National champion Ship Game, 0:09:01.320 --> 0:09:04.560 and the National Championship Game features two teams that were 0:09:04.679 --> 0:09:06.760 really I mean, Oregon was sort of near there and 0:09:06.760 --> 0:09:09.440 Auburn was sort of near there earlier on in the decade, 0:09:09.480 --> 0:09:12.960 Auburn going undefeated and being left out, Oregon finishing number 0:09:13.000 --> 0:09:15.000 two in both polls in two thousand and one and 0:09:15.120 --> 0:09:19.160 being left out, But these aren't your perennial top of 0:09:19.240 --> 0:09:23.440 college football year and year outpowers, both finding themselves in 0:09:23.480 --> 0:09:26.880 the National Championship game. So there is just an air 0:09:27.040 --> 0:09:32.240 of novelty and freshness to college football in twenty ten. 0:09:32.600 --> 0:09:35.520 There's just a lot of tea magic. Taylor Martinez is 0:09:35.559 --> 0:09:40.200 a freshman for Nebraska, is an incredible story, an incredible watch. 0:09:40.760 --> 0:09:42.720 There is just something. Do you know what the word 0:09:42.840 --> 0:09:49.120 umami means? Ty No, Okay, you've heard the word, though 0:09:49.160 --> 0:09:51.040 as it relates to heard the word, yeah, I don't know. 0:09:51.120 --> 0:09:56.360 Umami is sort of the vague concept of savoriness. There 0:09:56.400 --> 0:09:59.720 are there are four main flavor profiles tie in food. 0:09:59.760 --> 0:10:02.840 It's I think sweet, sour, salt, and bitter. Umami is 0:10:02.840 --> 0:10:05.400 like parmesan cheese that has sort of all of those 0:10:05.440 --> 0:10:08.800 in one or or tomato. You know, there's there's There 0:10:08.800 --> 0:10:10.439 are certain foods that are considered to have a new 0:10:10.480 --> 0:10:11.719 Mammy quality too. 0:10:11.840 --> 0:10:16.199 So twenty ten, what you're saying was your college football umah. 0:10:16.000 --> 0:10:20.760 One thousand percent, Tyler, one thousand percent. You missed the 0:10:20.800 --> 0:10:21.560 best part too. 0:10:21.600 --> 0:10:24.040 The best part was that college football decided that in 0:10:24.080 --> 0:10:27.839 twenty ten they were going to outlaw the ability to write, 0:10:28.480 --> 0:10:32.040 not the ability to write, but the liberty to write 0:10:32.679 --> 0:10:34.400 some sort of message in your EyeBlack. 0:10:34.480 --> 0:10:37.880 So yeah, of course they. 0:10:37.760 --> 0:10:39.720 Decided they were gonna how at Tim Tebow had a thing, 0:10:39.760 --> 0:10:41.680 like there are a couple guys along the way who 0:10:41.679 --> 0:10:44.320 had a thing, and they decided they were gonna outlaw it, 0:10:44.320 --> 0:10:47.360 really cutting down to the important stuff in college football. 0:10:47.360 --> 0:10:51.840 But you're right, Auburn Oregon, there is definitely a novelty here, 0:10:52.320 --> 0:10:55.160 and both of these teams took a very different path 0:10:55.720 --> 0:10:57.520 to get there. If you look over the course of 0:10:57.640 --> 0:11:02.240 Oregon season, Oregon didn't have much trouble along the way. 0:11:02.280 --> 0:11:05.680 Oregon had a weird game on the road mid November 0:11:05.720 --> 0:11:09.280 against Cal that they barely won, but outside of that, 0:11:09.320 --> 0:11:12.000 they were blowing the doors off teams. And we can 0:11:12.000 --> 0:11:15.640 get into why, but just a really dynamic offense that 0:11:15.960 --> 0:11:18.760 teams in the Pac twelve couldn't keep pace with. On 0:11:18.800 --> 0:11:22.080 the Auburn side of the equation, though a much different 0:11:22.080 --> 0:11:24.360 story now, still a very dynamic offense, a very good 0:11:24.400 --> 0:11:28.480 defense for sure, but they had six one score games 0:11:29.080 --> 0:11:31.520 before they got to the National Championship game. The National 0:11:31.600 --> 0:11:33.960 Championship by the way twenty two to nineteen obviously a 0:11:33.960 --> 0:11:36.360 one score game that made it number seven on the 0:11:36.440 --> 0:11:39.839 year for the Auburn Tigers. But going into this football game, 0:11:40.559 --> 0:11:43.400 these were teams that took two very different paths. Oregon 0:11:43.760 --> 0:11:48.320 goes thirteen and ZER twelve and h there was no 0:11:48.360 --> 0:11:52.280 pack to get to No PAC twelve. Yeah, to get 0:11:52.320 --> 0:11:57.880 to the BCS National Championship game. At the time, They're 0:11:57.960 --> 0:12:01.400 led by their quarterback Darren Thomas, who had an amazing 0:12:01.480 --> 0:12:05.520 year well Michael James, Kenyon Barner, Jeff Mayle, a name 0:12:05.559 --> 0:12:07.000 that I'm going to talk a little bit more about 0:12:07.000 --> 0:12:11.320 as we get into the actual football game. And as 0:12:11.360 --> 0:12:16.360 we saw in the National Championship pretty good defense too. 0:12:17.240 --> 0:12:20.880 So we can start there. This was in terms of 0:12:20.960 --> 0:12:25.839 Dannalytics points per drive defense. This was twenty ten and 0:12:25.880 --> 0:12:29.200 twenty twelve were the best Oregon defenses of the modern era, 0:12:29.360 --> 0:12:32.240 I suppose until twenty nineteen. But this was a team 0:12:32.320 --> 0:12:36.560 with an amazing offense but an uncharacteristically great defense to 0:12:36.600 --> 0:12:39.400 go along with it. Now, I suppose you can look 0:12:39.480 --> 0:12:42.000 at the PAC twelve and the offenses and the up 0:12:42.000 --> 0:12:44.680 and downness of the conference to say, well, it's okay, 0:12:44.920 --> 0:12:47.000 there were some good quarterbacks in the Pac twelve that year. 0:12:47.040 --> 0:12:50.640 This was Matt Barkley, Andrew Luck. You know, you're you're 0:12:50.679 --> 0:12:54.719 a big Brock Mansion guy. But now Nick Foles was 0:12:54.720 --> 0:12:57.840 at Arizona. There were legitimate quarterbacks who have played and 0:12:57.880 --> 0:13:00.680 succeeded in the NFL in the Packed twelve that year, 0:13:00.720 --> 0:13:05.840 and Jake Locker. So I really do, especially with how 0:13:06.000 --> 0:13:09.920 little success the players on this defense had at the 0:13:09.960 --> 0:13:13.200 next level, I think they did a really nice job 0:13:13.360 --> 0:13:16.120 rounding out a very complete, excellent Oregon team. 0:13:16.200 --> 0:13:18.760 You're right about saying that some of the defensive stars 0:13:18.760 --> 0:13:20.200 didn't have much luck in the NFL. 0:13:20.240 --> 0:13:21.880 But on both sides of the ball. But yeah, on 0:13:21.920 --> 0:13:23.360 both sides of the ball. Yeah, for sure. 0:13:23.800 --> 0:13:28.040 What was apparent though watching the championship game was that 0:13:28.120 --> 0:13:30.600 they came to play. And Kirk Kurbstreet even said her 0:13:30.600 --> 0:13:32.360 on the broadcast, by the way, this is my first 0:13:32.360 --> 0:13:35.080 time watching this broadcast as well. Oh yeah, just like 0:13:35.160 --> 0:13:37.560 last week because we were at this game, which I'll 0:13:37.600 --> 0:13:42.560 get into here momentarily, but he made mentioned the fact that, 0:13:42.640 --> 0:13:45.360 you know, we expected that defense would come to play. 0:13:45.440 --> 0:13:48.679 We figured they'd come to play early. Both offenses had 0:13:48.720 --> 0:13:51.800 a tendency to start slowly. We did not expect to 0:13:51.840 --> 0:13:54.080 be this deep into the game, that deep into the 0:13:54.120 --> 0:13:57.760 game and have the game be nineteen to eleven or 0:13:57.840 --> 0:14:01.320 nineteen nineteen or even twenty two nineteen. Given the strength 0:14:01.320 --> 0:14:05.760 of both offenses, these defenses came to play, and Oregon 0:14:05.800 --> 0:14:09.400 I think was more surprising in that regard. We knew 0:14:09.440 --> 0:14:12.560 that Auburn was very good upfront, but what I don't 0:14:12.559 --> 0:14:14.880 think we expected is for the Oregon defense to show 0:14:14.920 --> 0:14:15.760 up quite the way it did. 0:14:16.520 --> 0:14:19.640 No, I was pleasantly surprised that they were able to 0:14:19.920 --> 0:14:22.080 handle Cam the way that they were across the board. 0:14:22.120 --> 0:14:24.080 I know Deon Jordan was taken high, but he was 0:14:24.120 --> 0:14:26.120 not a huge factor in this game. He was taken 0:14:26.200 --> 0:14:28.360 high in the NFL draft and didn't fully work out 0:14:28.400 --> 0:14:33.040 given where he was drafted. And defensively, certainly, Cliff Harris 0:14:33.040 --> 0:14:37.479 had a number of off field incidences that incidents that curtailed 0:14:37.520 --> 0:14:41.360 his NFL possibilities, but he had an All American caliber 0:14:41.520 --> 0:14:44.800 brief career at Oregon at cornerback and played a major 0:14:44.880 --> 0:14:46.960 role in this specific game. When I think about the 0:14:46.960 --> 0:14:49.440 twenty ten season, I think, I guess I think of 0:14:49.920 --> 0:14:51.960 you know three or four things. One the speed on 0:14:52.040 --> 0:14:54.760 offense with Mi Michael James and Kenyon Barner, especially in 0:14:54.800 --> 0:14:57.120 the backfield. They had terrific seasons with Michael James as 0:14:57.120 --> 0:15:02.680 a Heisman finalist. The fact that they had two pretty 0:15:02.720 --> 0:15:04.840 crazy games. You mentioned the Cal game that they eke 0:15:04.880 --> 0:15:07.760 out with I think only one offensive touchdown for each team. 0:15:07.880 --> 0:15:10.280 Cal recovers a fumble in the end zone and Oregon 0:15:10.320 --> 0:15:12.320 gets a touchdown from Cliff Harris on a punt return 0:15:12.400 --> 0:15:14.600 to eke out that fifteen to thirteen win. I believe 0:15:14.640 --> 0:15:17.160 you said what the final score was. And then they've 0:15:17.160 --> 0:15:17.720 teen thirteen. 0:15:17.760 --> 0:15:17.920 Yeah. 0:15:17.960 --> 0:15:20.760 They fall behind twenty one to three to Stanford at home, 0:15:20.840 --> 0:15:23.880 this excellent Stanford team, Jim Harby Andrew Luck and we 0:15:23.960 --> 0:15:26.960 made a Jeopardy video out of this on our YouTube channel. 0:15:27.200 --> 0:15:29.320 They fall behind twenty one to three pretty early on 0:15:29.760 --> 0:15:34.280 and then completely ran sacks Stanford. They completely demolished them, 0:15:34.280 --> 0:15:36.880 and they rip off something like forty nine points from 0:15:36.880 --> 0:15:39.200 that point on. It was like fifty two to twenty something. 0:15:39.760 --> 0:15:43.480 So those things came to define the season for me. 0:15:44.040 --> 0:15:46.880 They were terrific at USC I was at that game. 0:15:46.920 --> 0:15:49.800 The twenty ten game. Darren Thomas and Jeff Mail had 0:15:49.800 --> 0:15:53.040 these huge games with Michael James Kenyon Barner that came 0:15:53.080 --> 0:15:56.120 to define the season for me. And this was chip 0:15:56.200 --> 0:15:58.920 Kelly's second season much in the it was Jeane Chiswick's 0:15:58.920 --> 0:16:02.760 second season with all but chip Kelly had the advantage 0:16:02.800 --> 0:16:05.000 of being in Eugene since two thousand and seven, so 0:16:05.120 --> 0:16:07.680 this was not a sort of flash in the pan 0:16:07.760 --> 0:16:10.840 for chip Kelly. This was sort of the culmination of 0:16:11.360 --> 0:16:14.320 a ton between Mike Blatti and chip Kelly getting to 0:16:14.400 --> 0:16:16.880 this point the Rose Bowl the year before with Jeremiah 0:16:16.880 --> 0:16:20.640 Massoli and then Darren Thomas taking over because Jeremiah Massoli 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:24.440 has kicked off the team, taking them to the National 0:16:24.560 --> 0:16:27.920 Championship Game in his first year as the starter. It 0:16:28.480 --> 0:16:30.360 was an incredible season for Oregon for sure. 0:16:30.400 --> 0:16:32.560 And on the Auburn side, this was a season that, 0:16:34.000 --> 0:16:36.320 let's be honest, it was dictated by Cam Newton. So 0:16:36.400 --> 0:16:40.600 Cam Newton had been at Florida, he was there two years, 0:16:40.640 --> 0:16:44.640 decided that he was going to go play elsewhere I 0:16:44.640 --> 0:16:46.680 think in two thousand and nine, and then came to 0:16:46.760 --> 0:16:48.440 Auburn for the twenty ten season. 0:16:48.640 --> 0:16:52.640 Yeah, was that Blynn College jouco between Florida and Auburn. 0:16:52.760 --> 0:16:55.320 Yeah, all sorts of speculations. Was there a bag man. 0:16:55.360 --> 0:16:56.800 Was there not a bagman for camp? 0:16:56.960 --> 0:16:57.480 Who cares? 0:16:57.960 --> 0:17:01.840 Cam Newton accounted for fifty one touchdown in twenty ten, 0:17:02.440 --> 0:17:05.920 thirty through the air, twenty on the ground, and even 0:17:05.960 --> 0:17:09.360 caught one as well. So the story of the year 0:17:10.680 --> 0:17:14.359 in many regards was the fact that this newcomer to 0:17:14.560 --> 0:17:18.960 big time college football steps in, leads this high powered offense, 0:17:19.280 --> 0:17:24.399 wins the Heisman Trophy, leads a very gritty campaign, obviously 0:17:24.480 --> 0:17:28.640 undefeated all the way to the national championship. On that 0:17:28.760 --> 0:17:32.280 Auburn team, you had some other names that we'll get into, 0:17:32.640 --> 0:17:35.639 like Michael Dyer, he was a true freshman at the time, 0:17:36.240 --> 0:17:40.000 rushed for over one thousand yards. Ontario mckaleb, one of 0:17:40.080 --> 0:17:44.320 the great names of the time, another guy who had 0:17:44.320 --> 0:17:48.359 a very huge impact on the success of that Auburn team. 0:17:48.760 --> 0:17:52.240 What I find interesting watching back, and this is no 0:17:52.359 --> 0:17:55.360 knock on Cam Newton. Cam Newton's gone on to amazing things. 0:17:55.960 --> 0:17:59.600 I find myself somewhat underwhelmed by Cam Newton as a passer. 0:18:00.640 --> 0:18:03.000 He was such a bull as a runner, and the 0:18:03.119 --> 0:18:05.840 numbers speak for themselves. The guy ran for over fourteen 0:18:05.920 --> 0:18:09.600 hundred yards. But what he could do on the ground 0:18:09.640 --> 0:18:13.280 trying to bring this behemoth down really open things up 0:18:13.320 --> 0:18:15.399 in the passing game in a way that you know, 0:18:15.440 --> 0:18:19.240 maybe somebody with similar arm talent wouldn't see the benefit 0:18:19.280 --> 0:18:21.120 of just because they didn't have the legs of Cam, 0:18:21.200 --> 0:18:21.920 you know what I mean. 0:18:21.920 --> 0:18:25.480 Totally one hundred percent correct. I will add this, this 0:18:25.520 --> 0:18:29.480 Auburn team was not fully realized early and a lot 0:18:29.480 --> 0:18:31.000 of that has to do with the fact that Cam 0:18:31.080 --> 0:18:35.400 Newton almost stands alone as not just a one year wonder. 0:18:35.720 --> 0:18:38.000 He was only there for a year. So we've seen 0:18:38.040 --> 0:18:41.800 quarterbacks come into situations and players come into situations for 0:18:41.880 --> 0:18:45.840 a year and shine. Russell Wilson at Wisconsin. Russell Wilson 0:18:45.880 --> 0:18:49.520 was a Power five starter before then. Russell Wilson, I mean, 0:18:49.520 --> 0:18:51.320 I think NC State was ranked at the end of 0:18:51.400 --> 0:18:53.360 twenty ten, and so in twenty eleven when he goes 0:18:53.359 --> 0:18:56.400 to Wisconsin. There are those one year wonders. But Cam 0:18:56.440 --> 0:19:00.119 Newton didn't start at Florida and goes to Auburn for 0:19:00.160 --> 0:19:02.240 a season. We've seen it with some JUCO guys. I 0:19:02.280 --> 0:19:04.399 think Chad Johnson was at Oregon State for like a 0:19:04.440 --> 0:19:06.240 month and a half. He was there for the season 0:19:06.560 --> 0:19:08.800 and gone, So we've seen sort of that but on 0:19:08.840 --> 0:19:11.600 the level and the success that he had. I suppose, 0:19:11.720 --> 0:19:14.360 if you're talking strictly on this level, Vernon Adams kind 0:19:14.359 --> 0:19:17.880 of did that playing at the FCS level before succeeding 0:19:17.920 --> 0:19:20.000 at Oregon for just a year and then moving on. 0:19:20.280 --> 0:19:23.919 But cam Newton really stands alone. Mitch Trubisky sort of 0:19:23.960 --> 0:19:25.920 did that. You know he's there, it's a red shirt 0:19:25.960 --> 0:19:28.080 sophomore at North Carolina. But Cam Newton what he was 0:19:28.119 --> 0:19:32.560 able to do, So it's understandable that against Clemson. Say 0:19:32.600 --> 0:19:35.280 they go to overtime at home Mississippi State, they sneak 0:19:35.320 --> 0:19:37.879 by in Starkville early on, they sneak by on the 0:19:37.960 --> 0:19:43.000 road against Kentucky into October. But then starting with I 0:19:43.040 --> 0:19:47.359 guess they get by LSU with that amazing seventy some 0:19:47.520 --> 0:19:51.320 odd yard run from cam Newton, they turn a corner. 0:19:52.119 --> 0:19:55.280 They beat Georgia by nearly twenty points. Again not a 0:19:55.320 --> 0:19:58.880 great Georgia team, but that comeback against Alabama, I think 0:19:58.960 --> 0:20:00.240 I don't know if gritty is the word. I know 0:20:00.280 --> 0:20:02.800 you used that, but there was something twinkly, there was 0:20:02.840 --> 0:20:06.080 something charmed about this Auburn season. Twenty four point comeback 0:20:06.119 --> 0:20:09.879 against Alabama, amazing twenty four point comeback. They needed to 0:20:09.920 --> 0:20:12.920 come back against South Carolina, a good South Carolina team 0:20:12.960 --> 0:20:14.800 in the fourth quarter. I think they were down going 0:20:14.840 --> 0:20:17.280 into the fourth earlier on in the season, and then 0:20:17.320 --> 0:20:20.520 they just obliterate them. In the SEC championship game, Darvin 0:20:20.560 --> 0:20:22.200 Adams has a huge game. You mentioned some of the 0:20:22.280 --> 0:20:24.919 running backs, but Darvin Adams and Emery Blake were at 0:20:25.000 --> 0:20:28.159 least solid on the outside. And then Philip Lutson Kirkhin 0:20:28.560 --> 0:20:30.439 was an underclassman. I want to say he was a 0:20:30.480 --> 0:20:34.560 sophomore that year. Obviously in an incredibly tragic situation with 0:20:34.640 --> 0:20:39.200 his far too early passing. But this was a talented 0:20:39.200 --> 0:20:44.240 offense led by once in a lifetime quarterback talent and 0:20:44.359 --> 0:20:48.600 a pretty average defense, a pretty average defense that didn't 0:20:48.600 --> 0:20:52.200 need to be more than average obviously for Auburn to succeed. 0:20:52.400 --> 0:20:56.040 Very good upfront, and we'll get into that specifically when 0:20:56.080 --> 0:20:58.439 we talk about this game. But the other element of 0:20:58.520 --> 0:21:03.080 this for us is where we were at the start 0:21:03.119 --> 0:21:07.240 of the twenty eleven calendar year. Correct, This was I 0:21:07.280 --> 0:21:12.480 believe our first national championship slash media day experience. 0:21:12.920 --> 0:21:13.240 Correct. 0:21:13.240 --> 0:21:18.520 Also correct, I don't know about you. I was completely starstruck. 0:21:20.280 --> 0:21:24.040 I was starstruck. I Levasier t A. I was starstruck, 0:21:24.320 --> 0:21:28.120 not just by the players, but like seeing Stu Mandel 0:21:28.320 --> 0:21:30.880 up close and personal. It's like, this is somebody who 0:21:30.920 --> 0:21:33.680 I have talked to, I have interviewed. Now to meet 0:21:33.680 --> 0:21:35.680 these people. I'm sure Stu here is this all the time. 0:21:35.720 --> 0:21:38.720 He's a megastar. But you know, this for me was 0:21:38.760 --> 0:21:41.320 a big deal. It was my second time in a 0:21:41.359 --> 0:21:43.000 press box. I had no idea what to do. You 0:21:43.040 --> 0:21:44.520 looked at me like I had two heads a couple 0:21:44.480 --> 0:21:46.200 of times like what you what are you doing right now? 0:21:46.480 --> 0:21:48.480 I had no idea what I was supposed to do. 0:21:49.119 --> 0:21:53.000 The whole experience was overwhelming for me. This was was 0:21:53.040 --> 0:21:55.679 this when we saw Mike Tarico wearing the dad jeans? 0:21:56.160 --> 0:21:58.520 Maybe yeah, this is why we saw Tarico and the 0:21:58.600 --> 0:22:01.639 dad jeans. What did you expect Mike Turrico to be wearing? 0:22:02.760 --> 0:22:03.000 Well? 0:22:03.080 --> 0:22:05.040 I did, I just I didn't expect the dad jeans 0:22:05.040 --> 0:22:08.440 to be so dad. Extra dad jeans is how I 0:22:08.440 --> 0:22:09.360 would classify them. 0:22:09.400 --> 0:22:11.240 What is a dad jean? By the way, just a 0:22:11.280 --> 0:22:13.560 lot of room in the seat. Is that what you're hearing? Yes? 0:22:13.680 --> 0:22:16.040 Maybe, just maybe maybe you wear it a little higher 0:22:16.359 --> 0:22:17.119 than you're supposed to. 0:22:20.680 --> 0:22:23.680 Chris Fowler very cool, very cool. 0:22:23.760 --> 0:22:26.119 Especially on media Day with his lot going on, people 0:22:26.160 --> 0:22:30.520 buzzing about trying to get interviews. Chris Fower would casually 0:22:30.600 --> 0:22:33.199 walk in, had a Manila envelope with all sorts of 0:22:34.200 --> 0:22:38.040 stats and whatnot in it, had a rosters, had had 0:22:38.040 --> 0:22:40.199 a coffee in his hand, just sort of saunters up 0:22:40.200 --> 0:22:43.200 to someone who's maybe not got anyone at their booth 0:22:43.200 --> 0:22:44.359 and just chit chats him up. 0:22:44.560 --> 0:22:49.719 Chris Fowler looking like he runs an especially successful juice 0:22:49.760 --> 0:22:52.119 bares Denver. Yes. Yeah. 0:22:52.200 --> 0:22:54.639 I also remember from media Day looking at Cam Newton 0:22:54.680 --> 0:22:58.159 as he walked by, thinking maybe he had shoulder pads on, 0:22:58.280 --> 0:23:00.639 but then saying there's definitely no and for him to 0:23:00.680 --> 0:23:02.120 wear shoulder pads to media. 0:23:01.960 --> 0:23:04.040 Day, superhero would I would go as far as saying 0:23:04.080 --> 0:23:05.120 he looks like a superhero. 0:23:05.200 --> 0:23:05.400 Yes. 0:23:06.040 --> 0:23:08.639 So we were there thanks to press passes. We got 0:23:08.760 --> 0:23:12.840 through a Canadian media outfit still in existence called the Score, 0:23:13.880 --> 0:23:19.400 and we got there on their dime by pitching them 0:23:19.400 --> 0:23:21.399 a video idea. We were going to go and we 0:23:21.400 --> 0:23:25.040 were going to document the national Championship. The caveat was 0:23:25.080 --> 0:23:27.040 that we didn't really have a plan for that video. 0:23:27.520 --> 0:23:28.760 We had no idea what it was going to be. 0:23:28.800 --> 0:23:31.119 We just said it was going to be loosely about 0:23:31.119 --> 0:23:33.640 the National Championship, but we didn't we didn't really know 0:23:34.320 --> 0:23:38.240 what we were going to do. So you brought along 0:23:38.240 --> 0:23:41.840 our friend West Coast Kevin to serve as the cameraman 0:23:41.960 --> 0:23:46.240 and producer, and that was where we ended up coming 0:23:46.280 --> 0:23:48.760 up with our idea in our cheap little hotel room 0:23:48.800 --> 0:23:52.080 across from a strip club called the Dream Palace. This 0:23:52.200 --> 0:23:54.960 idea to do something of a Renaldi spoof video. It 0:23:55.080 --> 0:23:57.760 was going to be kind of a rags to riches 0:23:58.840 --> 0:24:01.840 type of thing where we talk about how improbable it 0:24:02.000 --> 0:24:04.360 was for us to make it to the National Championship, 0:24:04.880 --> 0:24:05.520 and yet. 0:24:05.320 --> 0:24:06.399 Here we are there. 0:24:06.680 --> 0:24:08.880 This is all the adversity we fought through to get here. 0:24:09.400 --> 0:24:12.840 We ended up making that video, putting it on YouTube. 0:24:12.840 --> 0:24:15.840 The Score loved it, ESPN loved it. They put it 0:24:15.880 --> 0:24:20.280 on ESPN News and they got Tom Ornaldy to call 0:24:20.359 --> 0:24:23.720 in and comment on the video as they were watching 0:24:23.800 --> 0:24:26.840 it on ESPN News, which was a big moment for us. 0:24:26.840 --> 0:24:28.639 I'm not gonna lie, would you say, would you go 0:24:28.680 --> 0:24:31.280 as far as saying in the end, maybe the Dream 0:24:31.359 --> 0:24:33.560 Palace was where we were all along. 0:24:33.600 --> 0:24:33.760 There. 0:24:33.800 --> 0:24:34.840 It is there. 0:24:34.880 --> 0:24:37.960 It is the other thing that I must point out 0:24:37.960 --> 0:24:41.080 about this two things. First off, you've heard, if you've 0:24:41.080 --> 0:24:42.800 listened to this show for any number of years now, 0:24:43.520 --> 0:24:46.280 about this encounter I had with Bill Hancock. 0:24:47.600 --> 0:24:50.080 Head of the then head of the BCS. 0:24:49.640 --> 0:24:52.919 Then executive director of the BCS, now executive director of 0:24:53.040 --> 0:24:56.880 the College Football National Championship Playoff Series, whatever it's called, 0:24:58.720 --> 0:25:01.600 Bill Hank. I don't remember how exactly we crossed paths, 0:25:01.640 --> 0:25:06.080 but at the time we were at this resort in 0:25:06.200 --> 0:25:09.920 Arizona where they were having all the media events, and 0:25:10.240 --> 0:25:16.440 there was a hospitality suite near enough to where all 0:25:16.440 --> 0:25:19.120 this other stuff was taking place, where the work rooms, 0:25:19.960 --> 0:25:21.960 and so I had made my way over there just 0:25:22.000 --> 0:25:25.679 to grab food and drink whatever snacks tostitos a plenty, 0:25:25.720 --> 0:25:28.800 you know. And I sit down for a second, and 0:25:28.840 --> 0:25:31.200 doesn't Bill Hancock walk over to me and just chat 0:25:31.240 --> 0:25:32.920 me up? Hi, how are you on? 0:25:33.000 --> 0:25:35.800 Bill Hancock? I talked to him about. 0:25:35.560 --> 0:25:38.320 The notion of a podcast, which blew his mind, and 0:25:38.400 --> 0:25:41.280 before I knew it, I found myself in about a 0:25:41.280 --> 0:25:43.920 half hour, forty five minute discussion with Bill Hancock over 0:25:43.920 --> 0:25:47.440 a gigantic the biggest bowl of Tostito's I'd ever seen 0:25:47.920 --> 0:25:50.960 salsa a plenty drinking I think Coke at the time, 0:25:51.600 --> 0:25:56.359 talking about life, media life, A very nice guy and 0:25:56.440 --> 0:25:58.160 in that moment I like to think we bonded. 0:25:59.600 --> 0:26:05.040 Wow, what an unpaid commercial for a human. And also, 0:26:05.200 --> 0:26:07.679 this was the night of the really hard binge drinking, 0:26:07.760 --> 0:26:11.240 was it? That was the same thing. We went hard. Yeah, 0:26:11.359 --> 0:26:13.919 we were going. You were going with Kevin and a 0:26:13.920 --> 0:26:18.040 couple of media members, drink for drink and at the 0:26:18.119 --> 0:26:20.960 end of it, Kevin threw up and you just edited 0:26:21.000 --> 0:26:25.800 audio ten beers in. Yeah, a good way to sum 0:26:25.880 --> 0:26:29.040 up our show. Yeah, so that was all before the game. 0:26:29.800 --> 0:26:32.720 That's the backdrop. That's the backdrop. We were excited to 0:26:32.760 --> 0:26:34.479 be there. We were in the press box, we were 0:26:34.520 --> 0:26:37.080 down the field. We had a front row seat to 0:26:37.920 --> 0:26:41.200 everything that transpired in this game. Did you. 0:26:42.800 --> 0:26:45.840 Watch this game? Did you watch the broadcast of this 0:26:45.960 --> 0:26:49.080 game after you got back? How long did it take 0:26:49.119 --> 0:26:50.040 before you could watch it? 0:26:51.040 --> 0:26:54.080 Well, so I technically, and maybe we technically watched the 0:26:54.080 --> 0:26:56.959 broadcast as it was happening because we were in the 0:26:57.040 --> 0:26:59.760 press box and had a terrible angle. I think we 0:26:59.800 --> 0:27:02.359 had press box access, but we didn't have press box 0:27:02.440 --> 0:27:06.520 seats something like that, so we ended up the two 0:27:06.560 --> 0:27:11.480 of us, and I want to say, Michael Wilbon sat down, 0:27:12.480 --> 0:27:14.840 sat down in a seated area that was like an 0:27:14.840 --> 0:27:18.359 eighty inch three D TV, and so we watched this 0:27:18.440 --> 0:27:22.919 game in three D for a stretch with Wilbon in 0:27:23.000 --> 0:27:25.879 the press box, and that's how we took in the 0:27:25.880 --> 0:27:27.680 majority of the game, at least until we went down 0:27:27.720 --> 0:27:31.240 to the field to watch the final few minutes. So 0:27:31.359 --> 0:27:35.120 we technically did watch the broadcast, but we're not keenly 0:27:35.160 --> 0:27:36.760 paying attention to those elements. 0:27:36.840 --> 0:27:40.000 I sat next to one of the Fiesta Bowl executives 0:27:40.040 --> 0:27:43.080 because they had the orange jackets on. Yeah, And that 0:27:43.200 --> 0:27:45.240 was before a bunch of them gotten dited. 0:27:44.880 --> 0:27:46.600 For Did he offer you to take you to this 0:27:46.680 --> 0:27:48.040 dream palace? No? 0:27:48.040 --> 0:27:51.120 No, that was that was before those guys got into 0:27:51.160 --> 0:27:53.840 any kind of okay, legal trouble. 0:27:54.040 --> 0:27:56.280 But we were there for the game. It was exciting. 0:27:56.880 --> 0:27:59.280 The first thing that jumps out to me upon watching 0:27:59.359 --> 0:28:03.639 this broadcast is gene Chiswick was really bundled up for 0:28:03.680 --> 0:28:04.640 this game, wasn't. 0:28:04.400 --> 0:28:06.080 He in a dome? 0:28:06.200 --> 0:28:08.679 Yeah, in a dome in the middle of the desert 0:28:08.680 --> 0:28:11.439 in Arizona. I'm not going to say it was the 0:28:11.560 --> 0:28:15.879 warmest day in early January, but there's a reason a 0:28:15.880 --> 0:28:19.280 lot of folks from the Northeast migrate down to the Southwest, 0:28:19.280 --> 0:28:22.840 and it's because it's usually pretty warm. Gene Chiswick was 0:28:22.880 --> 0:28:28.400 wearing an under armor turtleneck and what looked close enough to. 0:28:28.400 --> 0:28:31.399 Being a winter coat inside a dad Yeah it was 0:28:31.440 --> 0:28:32.840 a big coaches jacket thing. 0:28:32.920 --> 0:28:36.320 Yeah for sure, no sideburns in true gene Chisick fashion. 0:28:36.520 --> 0:28:40.000 I also noticed that Chip Kelly was his usual abrupt 0:28:40.040 --> 0:28:43.800 self when being asked questions from Aaron Andrews, to the 0:28:43.800 --> 0:28:46.760 point where Aeron Andrews just like, okay, Chip, okay, thanks, 0:28:46.880 --> 0:28:50.040 have a good game, Like she knew that was coming, 0:28:50.160 --> 0:28:51.800 but she had asked the questions anyway. 0:28:51.880 --> 0:28:54.320 Chip was his normal abrupt self. My takeaways from the 0:28:54.320 --> 0:28:57.320 introduction of this game one, we have a Bob if 0:28:57.320 --> 0:29:00.200 you remember Bob the Rapper and future flat Earther. As 0:29:00.280 --> 0:29:05.120 part of the pregame festivities music wise, Joey Harrington and 0:29:05.160 --> 0:29:09.040 Jason Campbell are signing boxes of Taco Bell Big Boxes 0:29:09.360 --> 0:29:13.600 at Tailgates. They have introductions for both Auburn and Oregon. 0:29:13.640 --> 0:29:16.000 The Auburn one is as you would expect, talking about 0:29:16.000 --> 0:29:18.760 Tumor's corner and how football's are religion in the South. 0:29:19.080 --> 0:29:22.920 For Oregon, they got the guy known to sell joke 0:29:22.960 --> 0:29:25.080 books near the school, a guy named by the name 0:29:25.120 --> 0:29:27.920 of Frog who's been there forever. So they had him 0:29:28.040 --> 0:29:31.000 and the Oregon portion of it, which was a choice. 0:29:31.040 --> 0:29:34.480 I suppose Nick Saban and urban Meyer in the pregame. 0:29:34.680 --> 0:29:37.840 Nick Saban's really good. He's really good on camera, as 0:29:37.920 --> 0:29:39.360 urban Meyer I thought was alsome. And by the way, 0:29:39.400 --> 0:29:41.120 I think urban Meyer retired at the end of the 0:29:41.120 --> 0:29:43.560 twenty ten season. That was another thing that we missed 0:29:44.640 --> 0:29:47.400 urban Meyer. Yes, if that timing, I think that timing 0:29:47.480 --> 0:29:52.840 works ye. And also just happening because it happened in 0:29:52.880 --> 0:29:55.840 the state a few days before, three days before something 0:29:55.880 --> 0:29:59.560 like that was the horrific Gabby Giffords and other people 0:29:59.600 --> 0:30:03.400 shooting in Tucson. Oh jeez, outside of a grocery store. 0:30:04.320 --> 0:30:08.960 This horribly tragic thing perpetrated by a lunatic happens just 0:30:09.280 --> 0:30:11.760 in that same state. So that all is the backdrop. 0:30:12.720 --> 0:30:15.600 We have a switch foot intro as well. We are 0:30:15.640 --> 0:30:20.880 one tonight in that time, we are one tonight outside 0:30:20.920 --> 0:30:23.280 of this I should add because we talked about it 0:30:23.280 --> 0:30:27.920 in the previous episode. We have number one in the country, Firework, 0:30:28.080 --> 0:30:33.000 Katie Perry, Grenade, Bruno Mars, We are letter are who 0:30:33.040 --> 0:30:35.160 we letter are? Kesha? Kesha? 0:30:35.280 --> 0:30:35.480 Yeah? 0:30:36.400 --> 0:30:40.480 What's my name? Rihanna? Raise your glass? Pink Tonight, Enrique Glessias, 0:30:41.120 --> 0:30:43.800 the Time, Black Eyed Peas Black and Yellow is Khalifa? 0:30:44.000 --> 0:30:46.520 Just the way you are, Bruno Mars, just a dream, 0:30:47.080 --> 0:30:51.520 Nelly an incredible top ten and the top ten movies 0:30:51.520 --> 0:30:57.360 of the week. Less than that, it was True Grit, 0:30:57.560 --> 0:31:02.880 Little Fokker's season of the Witch Colon Legacy season that 0:31:03.000 --> 0:31:05.560 was one of the worst Nick Cage movies, really bad. 0:31:05.840 --> 0:31:10.640 The Fighter, Country, Strong, King Speech which quality, Yogi Bear 0:31:11.040 --> 0:31:14.520 and Tangled round out the top ten. The Fighter I 0:31:14.560 --> 0:31:18.760 think was, wasn't it? Fighter was? I think that was? Yeah? 0:31:18.800 --> 0:31:23.320 Was that? Christian Baiale Wahlberg? I think so okay? I 0:31:23.440 --> 0:31:26.720 was all right, No. I enjoyed that. The mom was 0:31:26.760 --> 0:31:29.800 really good in that. So that all places us in 0:31:29.840 --> 0:31:34.440 early January of twenty eleven, two undefeated teams with TCU 0:31:34.520 --> 0:31:36.440 being left out, and they were excellent going to the 0:31:36.520 --> 0:31:41.120 rose Ball, and I was very excited for this game. 0:31:41.520 --> 0:31:43.120 And it was awesome. 0:31:43.320 --> 0:31:45.520 The atmosphere we were down on the field before the game, 0:31:45.560 --> 0:31:48.520 it was striving. Remember they let Challenger the Eagle go 0:31:48.640 --> 0:31:51.440 in the dome and he just like, rather than just 0:31:51.560 --> 0:31:54.920 dive bomb, he just did a slow circle around and 0:31:54.960 --> 0:31:57.520 people were going. He must have flown around the stadium 0:31:58.080 --> 0:32:01.560 two or three times and people were losing their freaking 0:32:01.720 --> 0:32:03.880 minds that a bald eagle was flying over them. Then 0:32:03.880 --> 0:32:06.800 eventually it went down to midfield and that was that. 0:32:06.880 --> 0:32:09.680 But the crowd was nuts, and the first quarter, for 0:32:09.760 --> 0:32:14.000 its part, was equally as crazy. Second play of the game, 0:32:14.680 --> 0:32:17.680 it's very apparent that Darren Thomas maybe has a little 0:32:17.720 --> 0:32:20.760 bit of a nerve thing going on as he overthinks 0:32:20.800 --> 0:32:22.040 an option pitch. 0:32:22.240 --> 0:32:25.000 A little too late with it. It had disaster written 0:32:25.000 --> 0:32:25.600 all over it. 0:32:26.080 --> 0:32:29.080 Thankfully, for his sake, it didn't amount to anything, but 0:32:30.120 --> 0:32:33.720 right out of the shoot it's looking like, okay, Darren Thomas, 0:32:33.760 --> 0:32:35.200 he's got some nerves. 0:32:34.920 --> 0:32:36.760 That he needs to work through here. In the early going, 0:32:36.880 --> 0:32:40.120 tried to pitch it over a receiver blocking like a 0:32:40.160 --> 0:32:43.680 linebacker or a defensive back. It was maybe the worst 0:32:43.720 --> 0:32:47.240 option pitch attempt we've seen during the duration of the Solimar. 0:32:47.360 --> 0:32:49.840 It was really bad. The flow of the game itself 0:32:50.160 --> 0:32:53.080 was Oregon comes out and tries to run a lot 0:32:53.080 --> 0:32:56.800 of optiony looks. They have two running backs in the backfield, 0:32:56.960 --> 0:32:59.880 and they used the receiver as sort of an h back. 0:33:00.480 --> 0:33:04.400 Their best blocking receiver Drew Davis, so they looked different 0:33:04.480 --> 0:33:07.640 than what they were showing on film all season long, 0:33:07.720 --> 0:33:10.360 and they eventually abandoned that strategy. They're trying to option 0:33:10.480 --> 0:33:13.120 Nick Fairley at times, which is a bad idea. They 0:33:13.200 --> 0:33:16.880 tried to leave Nick Fairley unblocked, the clear best player 0:33:17.320 --> 0:33:20.680 probably in this game. Really, right, Nick Fairley, We're gonna 0:33:20.680 --> 0:33:22.360 get the dominant player in this game. We'll get to 0:33:22.440 --> 0:33:29.560 Nick Fairly. First quarter was relatively uneventful in terms of offense. Yes, 0:33:29.760 --> 0:33:32.800 Darren Thomas skittish, the Oregon offense skittish, but they're able 0:33:32.840 --> 0:33:36.160 to when backed up against the wall. Throughout this game 0:33:36.240 --> 0:33:40.400 really generate big plays, but never really the way Auburn 0:33:40.480 --> 0:33:43.880 was able to more methodically move the ball. Auburn was 0:33:43.880 --> 0:33:46.400 a little bit more efficient in terms of balance in 0:33:46.480 --> 0:33:50.040 terms of bigger plays. In terms of finding matchups. Poor 0:33:50.120 --> 0:33:53.120 Kenny Rowe for Oregon. There, their undersized ed rusher found 0:33:53.200 --> 0:33:56.040 himself in coverage a couple too many times, and Auburn 0:33:56.080 --> 0:34:01.760 was able to exploit that. But I Oregon's offense being 0:34:02.480 --> 0:34:05.360 worse than it actually was. The Oregon offense was fine. 0:34:05.560 --> 0:34:08.840 They just either came up huge when backed up against 0:34:08.840 --> 0:34:12.280 the wall or slowed down in the worst possible times 0:34:12.320 --> 0:34:15.680 to slow down, whereas Auburn would move the ball and 0:34:16.200 --> 0:34:19.360 they would either turn the ball over or shoot themselves 0:34:19.400 --> 0:34:22.880 in the foot or overthrow somebody that was relatively open. 0:34:23.440 --> 0:34:25.840 So there was not a lot of rhythm early on 0:34:25.920 --> 0:34:28.080 in this game, but there were a fair amount of turnovers. 0:34:28.400 --> 0:34:31.960 As I fast forward to the second Oregon drive where 0:34:32.400 --> 0:34:35.360 Darren Thomas throws a high ball to Kenyon Barnert to 0:34:35.400 --> 0:34:38.560 flex off his hands, goes for an interception, they turned 0:34:38.560 --> 0:34:41.840 the ball over to Auburn. Cam Newton gets the ball 0:34:42.360 --> 0:34:45.080 throws it to Cliff Harris. He's noted as being a 0:34:45.160 --> 0:34:50.560 risk taker by the conlitaryah in this football game. Then 0:34:51.160 --> 0:34:54.719 Oregon gets the ball back. Darren Thomas proceeds to throw 0:34:54.760 --> 0:34:57.680 a pick on the ensuing drive after being hurried by 0:34:57.880 --> 0:34:59.920 Nick Fairley. So you stole a little bit of my thunder. 0:35:00.280 --> 0:35:03.319 But I did want to get into talking about Nick 0:35:03.360 --> 0:35:07.000 Fairley because him changing the rhythm of the game. The 0:35:07.080 --> 0:35:11.319 rhythm of that Oregon offense became a recurring theme. And 0:35:11.360 --> 0:35:12.960 so I guess my question to you is, and I 0:35:12.960 --> 0:35:15.439 think we already know the answer, who are the three 0:35:15.600 --> 0:35:18.120 best players on the field in this game? Not throughout 0:35:18.160 --> 0:35:20.800 the course of the year, not in the NFL, nothing 0:35:20.840 --> 0:35:24.320 like that, but on the field on January the tenth, 0:35:24.680 --> 0:35:27.560 twenty eleven. Who are the three best players that you 0:35:27.640 --> 0:35:28.400 saw on the field. 0:35:29.520 --> 0:35:31.160 Two of them are Auburn players. I think it's Cam 0:35:31.200 --> 0:35:34.040 Newton and Nick Fairley. And the third is probably Casey 0:35:34.080 --> 0:35:38.840 Matthews for Oregon, the middle linebacker who is really good 0:35:39.000 --> 0:35:42.720 in run, stuffs and forces later on in the game 0:35:43.080 --> 0:35:48.200 a huge fumble for Oregon that the Ducks recover. So yeah, 0:35:48.480 --> 0:35:51.480 he was the heartbeat of a great defensive performance for Oregon. 0:35:51.840 --> 0:35:56.560 But ultimately it's Nick Fairley, ya just wreaking complete havoc 0:35:56.719 --> 0:36:00.920 and demanding a ton of attention from a decidedly college 0:36:01.600 --> 0:36:05.960 offensive line, collegiate offensive line from Oregon. And then Cam 0:36:06.000 --> 0:36:09.920 Newton extends drives with his legs and even though he 0:36:10.000 --> 0:36:12.880 wasn't amazing in this game, hit a couple of incredible 0:36:12.920 --> 0:36:16.080 passes that changed the I mean that won the game 0:36:16.120 --> 0:36:18.719 for Auburn essentially. So yeah, those are those are to me, 0:36:18.800 --> 0:36:21.760 those are the clear dudes. Jeff Mail has a huge catch. 0:36:21.800 --> 0:36:24.560 There are moments, you know, Emory Blake, Darvin Adams, but 0:36:24.840 --> 0:36:28.400 and certainly Michael Dyer late, but the game changers were 0:36:28.440 --> 0:36:28.839 those three. 0:36:28.880 --> 0:36:29.080 To me. 0:36:29.840 --> 0:36:35.480 Nick Fairley was a monster in this game. There was 0:36:35.560 --> 0:36:37.879 no answer for him, especially in the second half when 0:36:37.880 --> 0:36:41.399 Oregon's line started to hire out. It was apparent that 0:36:42.120 --> 0:36:45.640 in the interior part of that defensive line, Auburn was 0:36:45.680 --> 0:36:49.040 just so much better. Truly, it was the catalyst. It 0:36:49.120 --> 0:36:52.279 was the catalyst that pushed Auburn over the top here 0:36:52.760 --> 0:36:57.160 fairly for sure. Hurried that early interception that we talked 0:36:57.160 --> 0:37:00.080 about before in the first quarter blew up as his 0:37:00.120 --> 0:37:02.480 own read later in the first quarter when Oregon was 0:37:02.480 --> 0:37:04.799 down in the red zone. So this is a guy 0:37:04.840 --> 0:37:09.200 who continuously changed the point of attack, changed the game, 0:37:09.200 --> 0:37:12.080 and changed the rhythm of that Oregon offense. And you're right, 0:37:12.160 --> 0:37:14.280 like Jeff Mail and Michae Dyer, they had moments. 0:37:14.280 --> 0:37:15.520 They're very good in this game. 0:37:15.960 --> 0:37:18.719 Cam Newton was just so good all year and had 0:37:18.760 --> 0:37:20.960 such a skill set that just by. 0:37:20.840 --> 0:37:22.680 Being on the field. He was a game changer. 0:37:23.080 --> 0:37:24.799 You know, you couldn't avoid him. There was no way 0:37:24.840 --> 0:37:27.279 that you could avoid him. You couldn't game plan around him. 0:37:27.360 --> 0:37:30.080 He had to be the centerpiece of everything. And so 0:37:30.200 --> 0:37:32.200 even if he wasn't running for more than I think 0:37:32.239 --> 0:37:34.719 he had sixty four yards on the ground, even if 0:37:34.760 --> 0:37:38.040 he was air mailing a couple wide open passes and 0:37:38.320 --> 0:37:41.359 maybe making me feel a bit underwhelmed watching him back 0:37:41.400 --> 0:37:43.840 as a passer, he just brought so much to the 0:37:43.880 --> 0:37:46.600 equation that there was no possible way you could ever 0:37:46.640 --> 0:37:47.040 game plan. 0:37:47.160 --> 0:37:49.440 Yeah, Oregon did a good enough job that they were 0:37:49.440 --> 0:37:51.439 able to tackle him in the open field more often 0:37:51.480 --> 0:37:53.600 than not. They kept a spy on him and Kenny Row. 0:37:53.680 --> 0:37:55.799 The problem, as I mentioned earlier, is they were able 0:37:55.800 --> 0:37:58.399 to force a mismatch with him and at one time 0:37:58.440 --> 0:38:00.840 a receiver with an edge rush, which is not anything 0:38:00.880 --> 0:38:04.640 you want an undersized edgrusher at that. But he did 0:38:04.640 --> 0:38:07.439 a nice job spying on Cam Newton and they didn't 0:38:07.440 --> 0:38:09.200 have to bring a ton of pressure. They were able 0:38:09.200 --> 0:38:11.319 to get to him, able to confuse him a little 0:38:11.320 --> 0:38:13.120 bit in the past game because he wasn't making a 0:38:13.120 --> 0:38:17.120 lot of you know, going across the field horizontally progressions. 0:38:17.320 --> 0:38:19.160 It was sort of play action and this guy should 0:38:19.200 --> 0:38:21.760 be open, and sometimes that guy was, sometimes he Wasn't 0:38:22.320 --> 0:38:24.560 you neglected to mention one thing which I know you love, 0:38:25.000 --> 0:38:29.160 which is a terrible attempt at a kickoff return trick 0:38:29.200 --> 0:38:33.040 play Oh no, the end around, right. Oregon went for 0:38:33.080 --> 0:38:34.879 a couple times end a rounds and the first time 0:38:34.920 --> 0:38:37.160 they try and end around and it ends up with 0:38:37.280 --> 0:38:40.640 Kenyon Barner I believe, being tackled something like twelve yards 0:38:40.880 --> 0:38:43.440 behind where he took the hand off. And you know, 0:38:43.560 --> 0:38:46.120 Oregon started so deep into their own territory on so 0:38:46.200 --> 0:38:48.200 many drives that being one of the worst. 0:38:48.480 --> 0:38:53.200 And Herbie mentioned it later in the broadcast that Oregon 0:38:53.280 --> 0:38:55.840 just they can't get too cute here. They're very good, 0:38:56.000 --> 0:38:58.279 they're very dynamic, but they got to watch it. They 0:38:58.280 --> 0:39:02.000 don't get a little too cute, and that, to your point, 0:39:02.200 --> 0:39:05.160 was a little too cute. I think the overwhelming theme 0:39:05.200 --> 0:39:09.160 of this game was first off, defense. First, the defenses 0:39:09.200 --> 0:39:11.879 were outstanding in this football game the whole way through. 0:39:12.480 --> 0:39:15.399 And that's true for both teams, maybe a little more 0:39:15.400 --> 0:39:17.239 so for Auburn in the way that they changed the 0:39:17.280 --> 0:39:19.719 game at the point of attack. But two very good 0:39:19.719 --> 0:39:24.279 defensive showings in this football game. But the theme I 0:39:24.320 --> 0:39:29.160 think throughout was Auburn was a little stronger with its 0:39:29.200 --> 0:39:32.880 offensive line and a little stronger with its defensive line, 0:39:33.040 --> 0:39:36.960 and over the course of sixty minutes, that gradual fatigue 0:39:37.000 --> 0:39:40.360 that set in on the Oregon side led to Auburn 0:39:40.440 --> 0:39:43.359 taking a little bit more of an advantage. And it 0:39:43.400 --> 0:39:45.759 was a close game. It was won on a last 0:39:45.760 --> 0:39:48.960 second field goal. You know, I mean this was truly 0:39:49.440 --> 0:39:52.480 it was there for Oregon had they gotten a few breaks. 0:39:52.719 --> 0:39:55.600 I just felt watching back that it was apparent Oregon 0:39:55.680 --> 0:39:58.640 just got a little tired. They couldn't quite compete in 0:39:58.680 --> 0:40:02.280 the trenches. That's ultimately what gave Auburn just a little 0:40:02.360 --> 0:40:05.960 just a sliver of an advantage that they could capitalize on. 0:40:07.440 --> 0:40:09.400 The thing that and maybe this is more big picture 0:40:09.440 --> 0:40:12.800 that surprised me watching this game again, is it felt 0:40:12.840 --> 0:40:16.959 like a twenty eight to seventeen Auburn win that came 0:40:17.040 --> 0:40:20.239 down to the last drive in last second. Auburn was 0:40:20.239 --> 0:40:23.440 able to generate a lot more opportunities. Now they missed 0:40:23.440 --> 0:40:26.440 on some of them. I think Cam Newton threw a 0:40:26.440 --> 0:40:29.239 pick to Cliff Harris that was reviewed and ruled not 0:40:29.360 --> 0:40:32.319 a pick. But that's probably much more heart than head 0:40:32.360 --> 0:40:34.400 on my part. I don't know when you rewatch that, 0:40:34.440 --> 0:40:37.920 what were your thoughts. Throw He overthrows a ball, Cliff 0:40:37.960 --> 0:40:40.839 Harris jumps in front of it, and as he's sort 0:40:40.880 --> 0:40:45.240 of careening out of bounds, gets a foot down, switches hands, 0:40:45.880 --> 0:40:49.359 gets an arm down, I believe, as he's careening out 0:40:49.400 --> 0:40:51.480 of bounds, and then as he lands already out of 0:40:51.480 --> 0:40:55.480 bounds having a foot and an arm down, loses control 0:40:55.520 --> 0:40:58.000 of the ball. Yeah, I mean allow. The NFL rule 0:40:58.040 --> 0:41:02.120 is holding it onto it through the the contact with 0:41:02.200 --> 0:41:04.920 the ground. It seemed to me like that was an interception. 0:41:05.040 --> 0:41:07.560 And then cam throws a touchdown pass on the ensuing 0:41:07.640 --> 0:41:09.720 play when it's ruled not an interception. 0:41:09.440 --> 0:41:13.360 Right right, No, I mean it's Look, the rules have changed. 0:41:13.960 --> 0:41:16.400 Ask anyone who's watched football for a long time and 0:41:16.440 --> 0:41:18.839 they'll tell you how infuriating it is not just what 0:41:19.040 --> 0:41:22.520 counts as a reception, but what counts as a fumble. Right, 0:41:22.560 --> 0:41:24.840 So the rules have changed drastically over the course of 0:41:24.880 --> 0:41:28.880 time in football. And one of those breaks though that 0:41:29.000 --> 0:41:31.080 I was talking about, one of those breaks where where 0:41:31.080 --> 0:41:35.080 Auburn was able to capitalize This was a defensive game 0:41:35.120 --> 0:41:38.160 though the whole way through. Here is your second half 0:41:38.280 --> 0:41:40.759 drive chart. I know you like to do this. I 0:41:40.760 --> 0:41:43.040 don't have the musical drive chart. No, it's okay, go 0:41:43.120 --> 0:41:43.440 for it. 0:41:43.640 --> 0:41:50.680 Field goal, punt, punt, turnover on downs, punt, punt, punt, punt, fumble, touchdown, 0:41:50.760 --> 0:41:56.480 field goal, end of game. Not electric ty, but somehow 0:41:56.640 --> 0:41:57.840 the end of the game was exciting. 0:41:58.880 --> 0:42:01.680 The end of the game was very exciting. So there 0:42:01.680 --> 0:42:03.919 were moments in the second half that I think were 0:42:04.480 --> 0:42:08.600 extremely notable. Maybe not the pyrotechnic display of offense that 0:42:08.640 --> 0:42:11.879 you might expect, but there was a crazy goal line 0:42:11.920 --> 0:42:15.200 stand late in the third quarter, maybe the key play in. 0:42:15.200 --> 0:42:15.759 The whole game. 0:42:15.880 --> 0:42:19.160 Oregon driving seems like it's a great opportunity for them 0:42:19.160 --> 0:42:21.239 when Michael James gets stood up at the goal line 0:42:21.520 --> 0:42:25.120 turnover on downs at that point. From that point forward, 0:42:25.680 --> 0:42:30.320 it seemed like Auburn Jean Chiswick, gusmus On like they 0:42:30.520 --> 0:42:34.560 just decided we're gonna turn this over to Cam, We're 0:42:34.560 --> 0:42:38.399 gonna let Cam take over. Starting now. On the ensuing drive, 0:42:38.440 --> 0:42:40.880 it started to become a little bit more apparent, and 0:42:40.920 --> 0:42:43.759 that combo of Cam on the ground of dire on 0:42:43.840 --> 0:42:46.759 the ground of what it did in the passing game 0:42:46.800 --> 0:42:49.680 to open things up, and just I think the Auburn 0:42:49.760 --> 0:42:53.840 offensive line wearing down Oregon ever so slightly in the trenches. 0:42:54.200 --> 0:42:59.480 That confluence of events led championship cocktail tie. That championship 0:42:59.520 --> 0:43:02.920 cocktail just was enough to push Auburn over the top. 0:43:04.719 --> 0:43:09.080 I think I misremembered Darren Thomas being better in this game. 0:43:09.840 --> 0:43:11.719 He had a rough game, He had a rough time 0:43:11.760 --> 0:43:13.560 with the Auburn defense, and I don't even think it 0:43:13.600 --> 0:43:17.160 was just the pressure that he was under. And you 0:43:17.280 --> 0:43:21.360 mentioned I Ultimately, yes, the Auburn winning in the trenches 0:43:21.400 --> 0:43:25.000 won them this game. Darren Thomas looked uncomfortable, not just 0:43:25.080 --> 0:43:28.960 early but just misguys, and when they went to more 0:43:29.000 --> 0:43:30.919 of a hurry up later in the game, he got 0:43:30.920 --> 0:43:33.680 into more of a rhythm. But the majority of his 0:43:33.800 --> 0:43:38.160 yardage came on two, three four plays, and so his 0:43:38.200 --> 0:43:41.240 final line looks better than he actually looked, comfort wise, 0:43:41.280 --> 0:43:44.560 control wise, poise wise, And so that's why I felt 0:43:44.560 --> 0:43:47.719 that it rewatching. It had the rhythm of a twenty 0:43:47.760 --> 0:43:52.359 eight to seventeen Auburn win, but it was Auburn just 0:43:52.560 --> 0:43:55.840 screwing up key moments third downs, Red zone trips whatever 0:43:56.200 --> 0:43:58.600 that kept Oregon in this game and the Oregon defense 0:43:58.680 --> 0:44:03.000 like you've mentioned, But yeah, I do think you're right 0:44:03.239 --> 0:44:05.879 on that that Oregon has a terrible call that ends 0:44:05.920 --> 0:44:08.719 into safety where they line up under center. They go 0:44:08.880 --> 0:44:11.319 they just abandon their offense. They lay line up under 0:44:11.320 --> 0:44:13.719 center from the half yard line, their own half yard 0:44:13.760 --> 0:44:16.279 line and try to run some sort of power withle 0:44:16.360 --> 0:44:19.840 Michael James. Just it goes terribly, It goes really poorly. 0:44:21.840 --> 0:44:25.839 So my big takeaway later on in this game when 0:44:25.880 --> 0:44:28.359 you talk about the lack of offense in the second half, 0:44:28.400 --> 0:44:29.960 in Oregon put it together late and they had that 0:44:30.000 --> 0:44:32.560 great two point conversion to Jeff Mail with Darren Thomas 0:44:32.560 --> 0:44:37.560 throwing against his body, and it was it was those moments. 0:44:37.920 --> 0:44:40.239 It was you mentioned that the stops in the reds 0:44:40.280 --> 0:44:42.400 one Oregon would I think it was a Darren Thomas 0:44:42.560 --> 0:44:46.120 really cool juggled catch from Lavasier tuoen A. He runs 0:44:46.120 --> 0:44:48.640 it down and Auburn saves a touchdown and then they 0:44:48.960 --> 0:44:54.080 stand Oregon up at the goal line. It was Auburn's 0:44:54.080 --> 0:44:58.000 defense coming up in those moments and Auburn's offense surviving 0:44:58.680 --> 0:45:02.200 some screw ups for three plus quarters in big moments 0:45:02.239 --> 0:45:06.440 on offense and Cam Newton and then ultimately Michael Dyer, 0:45:06.520 --> 0:45:09.320 who not just on the play where I mean Comedy 0:45:09.440 --> 0:45:13.319 was down. He was not down. He was down, but 0:45:13.440 --> 0:45:15.759 he was down a second time running it into the 0:45:15.880 --> 0:45:18.279 end zone lates and they ruled him down at the 0:45:18.320 --> 0:45:20.439 one or two yard half yard line before they kicked 0:45:20.440 --> 0:45:23.200 back to half yard line. There it is. Yeah, I 0:45:24.000 --> 0:45:26.959 watched that play back and back and back in HD, 0:45:27.320 --> 0:45:30.200 and I know people have written scientific articles talking to 0:45:30.280 --> 0:45:34.560 experts that indeed Michael Dyer was not down on that play. 0:45:35.320 --> 0:45:39.359 My guy was down. Guy was down, ty all right, 0:45:40.239 --> 0:45:42.920 I think I saw that risk down, Tye. I still do. 0:45:43.160 --> 0:45:45.120 All right, Well, I want to let's talk about the 0:45:45.160 --> 0:45:48.800 sequence that led up to that moment. So, okay, just 0:45:48.920 --> 0:45:55.880 to reframe things here, we've already mentioned how little happened 0:45:55.920 --> 0:45:59.280 on offense in the second half of this football game. 0:45:59.320 --> 0:46:01.920 But that being said, the last five minutes or so, 0:46:01.920 --> 0:46:06.520 we're pretty crazy. It is nineteen to eleven at that 0:46:06.640 --> 0:46:11.480 moment in time, Oregon punts the football way, there's about 0:46:11.480 --> 0:46:14.279 five minutes left. So you're watching this team terrible drive 0:46:14.520 --> 0:46:17.960 after a terrible drive. You're watching this game. You're thinking 0:46:18.560 --> 0:46:21.120 Auburn can put this game on ice. All they have 0:46:21.160 --> 0:46:23.960 to do is what they're really good at. Keep it 0:46:24.000 --> 0:46:26.520 on the ground, put it in the hands of Cam Newton, 0:46:26.920 --> 0:46:29.680 like just be super conservative, run the clock. Even if 0:46:29.680 --> 0:46:32.800 you run it down to like two minutes. You can't lose. 0:46:33.200 --> 0:46:37.080 You just can't lose the football game. Sure enough, Oregon 0:46:37.120 --> 0:46:43.040 punts it away. Three plays into that Auburn drive, Casey 0:46:43.120 --> 0:46:47.960 Matthews comes up from behind a quarterback rush, punches the 0:46:47.960 --> 0:46:50.680 ball out of Cam Newton's hands, It flies up, Cliff 0:46:50.680 --> 0:46:54.600 Harris jumps on it at the Auburn forty yard line. 0:46:56.040 --> 0:46:59.279 WHOA what a moment late in this football game? 0:47:00.040 --> 0:47:01.880 Did we run down at that moment? 0:47:02.800 --> 0:47:06.200 Well, what was funny about it is, for as sure 0:47:06.239 --> 0:47:09.160 footed as you were in a press box, compared to me, 0:47:10.080 --> 0:47:12.520 you were like a deer in headlights trying to figure 0:47:12.520 --> 0:47:15.799 out the precise moment that we should go downstairs. And 0:47:15.840 --> 0:47:18.600 I remember you kept asking me, should we go down now? 0:47:18.600 --> 0:47:19.359 Should we go down now? 0:47:19.360 --> 0:47:19.880 What should we do? 0:47:19.920 --> 0:47:24.279 What should You were unlike any other time I'd ever 0:47:24.280 --> 0:47:27.799 seen you completely in that deer in headlights bode And 0:47:27.800 --> 0:47:29.480 so eventually I made the call, I sall right, let's 0:47:29.520 --> 0:47:31.640 go down. Let's go down, and I think we made 0:47:31.640 --> 0:47:35.799 it down in time for the Oregon touchdown, and then 0:47:35.840 --> 0:47:38.239 of course the game winning Auburn field goal, which we'll 0:47:38.239 --> 0:47:40.000 get to here momentarily. 0:47:39.440 --> 0:47:39.600 But. 0:47:41.080 --> 0:47:45.120 An incredible moment that Casey Matthews would punch the ball 0:47:45.160 --> 0:47:48.440 out of the Heisman Trophy winning quarterback. Oregon gets the 0:47:48.440 --> 0:47:50.880 football back. Now they've got all three of their timeouts, 0:47:50.920 --> 0:47:54.920 four fifty four left on the clock. Darren Thomas connects 0:47:55.000 --> 0:47:58.440 up with DJ Davis a long pass that takes him 0:47:58.440 --> 0:48:01.680 down to the eleven yard line, and then it takes 0:48:01.719 --> 0:48:06.920 Oregon a couple tries. It was emotionally fraught there for 0:48:07.400 --> 0:48:08.920 I don't know, a good minute and a half of 0:48:08.960 --> 0:48:12.360 gameplay as Oregon's trying to figure out how they going 0:48:12.400 --> 0:48:14.440 to get in here now. They had been in a 0:48:14.440 --> 0:48:17.640 similar situation earlier in the game. We talked about that 0:48:17.719 --> 0:48:20.000 goal line stand at the end of the first quarter. 0:48:21.600 --> 0:48:24.920 They again were trying to rely on that rushing attack. 0:48:25.760 --> 0:48:28.920 It took them a couple tries to get in eventually. 0:48:29.160 --> 0:48:31.440 Shovel pass, Yeah, yeah, yeah, I think it was a 0:48:31.440 --> 0:48:33.000 shovel pass. I don't remember if it was. Yeah, I 0:48:33.000 --> 0:48:34.080 think it was till Michael James. 0:48:34.200 --> 0:48:35.880 Yeah, so a. 0:48:35.880 --> 0:48:39.520 Little scamper in from Michael James. That brings us to 0:48:39.560 --> 0:48:42.759 the situation of nineteen seventeen. Oregon's obviously got to go 0:48:42.840 --> 0:48:45.840 for two. There's only about two and a half minutes left. 0:48:46.400 --> 0:48:49.880 That is when Darren Thomas delivers that really nice ball 0:48:50.520 --> 0:48:52.719 across his body to Jeff Mail on the back of 0:48:52.719 --> 0:48:55.399 the end zone to tie it at nineteen Mail time. 0:48:56.280 --> 0:49:00.680 You at this point are virtually speechless. I look over 0:49:00.719 --> 0:49:03.960 at you. We're down on the field. Dan is speechless, 0:49:04.480 --> 0:49:05.799 forget trying to talk to him. 0:49:06.000 --> 0:49:10.440 Hyperventilating, gay, hyperventilating everything, hyper ventilation, Yeah. 0:49:10.120 --> 0:49:14.399 Everything you might expect. Problem was they left too much time. 0:49:15.560 --> 0:49:18.240 They left too much time for Cam Newton. First play, 0:49:18.680 --> 0:49:21.640 fifteen yard passed to Emery Blake, gets down to the 0:49:21.680 --> 0:49:26.240 Auburn forty yard line. Next play, the Michael Dyer thirty 0:49:26.280 --> 0:49:29.200 seven yard rush he was not down, makes it all 0:49:29.239 --> 0:49:32.960 the way down to the Oregon twenty three. A couple 0:49:33.040 --> 0:49:36.520 other short rushes followed by a long one, the one 0:49:36.520 --> 0:49:39.960 that you referenced earlier, Michael Dyer sixteen yards to the 0:49:40.000 --> 0:49:42.239 half yard line. They had to take that to replay 0:49:42.719 --> 0:49:45.080 to make sure that he didn't get in, and he didn't, 0:49:45.880 --> 0:49:47.600 and then a couple plays here and there to run 0:49:47.600 --> 0:49:50.560 clock before they turn it over to Wes Bynham, who 0:49:50.640 --> 0:49:52.960 was as reliable a kicker as you were going to 0:49:53.040 --> 0:49:59.120 find in all of kin byrom Yeah, nineteen yards feel 0:49:59.160 --> 0:50:01.720 go good, twenty two to nineteen year final score. 0:50:03.320 --> 0:50:06.640 Yeah, it's a It was a really brutal weight hand 0:50:07.239 --> 0:50:09.920 just because it took so long, just because the Michael 0:50:09.960 --> 0:50:13.480 Dyer run spelled. I don't know what yard line he 0:50:13.600 --> 0:50:15.840 ran it down to, but it was just like, Okay, 0:50:15.880 --> 0:50:19.799 Oregon's going to lose this game short of a horrific 0:50:19.880 --> 0:50:22.560 snap on the field goal attempt. He was That was 0:50:22.600 --> 0:50:24.920 all I could have played prayed for at that moment. 0:50:25.280 --> 0:50:29.319 He ran it from the Auburn forty, so they're on 0:50:29.360 --> 0:50:31.840 their own side of the fifty yard line all the 0:50:31.840 --> 0:50:34.239 way down to the Oregon twenty three. 0:50:34.320 --> 0:50:36.040 At that point, it's a forty yard field goal, which 0:50:36.080 --> 0:50:41.399 is not automatic but certainly reasonable. And then the long, 0:50:41.480 --> 0:50:44.960 dire run to the goal line, it's like, Okay, it's 0:50:45.320 --> 0:50:49.440 praying for a kicker tripping or a terrible snap, and 0:50:49.520 --> 0:50:52.680 both of which are pretty unlikely from that short Yeah. 0:50:52.920 --> 0:50:57.040 So now that we've sort of gone through all this, Dan, Yeah, 0:50:57.080 --> 0:50:58.960 being so you were there, You've lived it. I know 0:50:59.000 --> 0:51:03.640 you've rewatched it. What is your what is your impression 0:51:03.719 --> 0:51:07.320 on the rewatch? What are things that you felt, maybe 0:51:07.360 --> 0:51:10.239 for the first time after watching this game like ten 0:51:10.320 --> 0:51:15.359 years later, I was. 0:51:15.360 --> 0:51:18.120 As impressed with Oregon's defense as an Oregon fan. I 0:51:18.640 --> 0:51:22.799 mentioned the Darren Thomas thing where I watching it there, 0:51:23.040 --> 0:51:26.120 I was not in the mindset of really analyzing it. 0:51:26.200 --> 0:51:28.800 Was just so skittish. She was so all over the place, 0:51:28.880 --> 0:51:32.560 and offensively, I thought it was actually a pretty sound 0:51:32.640 --> 0:51:34.520 game plan to get trying to get into the perimeter 0:51:34.600 --> 0:51:38.280 with the option game. But if Michael James and Kenyon Barner, 0:51:38.320 --> 0:51:40.680 who had been the heartbeat of that offense and as 0:51:40.680 --> 0:51:42.919 good as guys like Drew Davis and Jeff Mail were, 0:51:43.320 --> 0:51:45.319 they didn't have I think Josh huff was on this 0:51:45.360 --> 0:51:47.640 team as well, they didn't have a game change or 0:51:47.640 --> 0:51:50.359 a receiver. So if those two guys at running back 0:51:50.400 --> 0:51:54.359 are not difference makers, it's almost impossible to win MI. 0:51:54.360 --> 0:51:58.400 Michael James pace that Stanford comeback, Cliff Harris on defense 0:51:58.520 --> 0:52:01.960 paced that the uh the col win with his punt return. 0:52:02.440 --> 0:52:06.160 If their fastest dudes are not changing the game that 0:52:06.360 --> 0:52:08.359 for that specific team, it was going to be very 0:52:08.360 --> 0:52:11.040 hard for them to win, and ultimately it wasn't going 0:52:11.120 --> 0:52:13.359 to be that hard. They needed just a stop at 0:52:13.400 --> 0:52:14.840 the end of the game to try to get the 0:52:14.840 --> 0:52:21.360 ball back. But with with you know, Vernon Adams probably 0:52:21.360 --> 0:52:25.239 wins that game for Oregon. Marcus Mariota wins that game 0:52:25.280 --> 0:52:30.160 for Oregon. An offensive line that either came before that 0:52:30.239 --> 0:52:33.480 line or after that line, with you know, more NFL 0:52:33.560 --> 0:52:36.880 caliber talent, stands a better shot of winning that game 0:52:36.960 --> 0:52:41.239 for Oregon. I thought what Cam Newton was able to do, 0:52:41.280 --> 0:52:45.360 and I mentioned the mismatches was amazing. Auburn was the 0:52:45.360 --> 0:52:48.880 better team. Regardless of Michael Dyer being down or not. 0:52:49.040 --> 0:52:52.319 Auburn was the better team. They earned that National Championship game. 0:52:53.040 --> 0:52:55.160 I just thought came away thinking it was wild that 0:52:55.200 --> 0:53:01.600 Oregon was in that game. So ah. Overall, I am 0:53:01.680 --> 0:53:04.840 grateful that Cam Newton didn't do to Oregon what he 0:53:04.880 --> 0:53:08.600 had done two other teams because just an incredible player. 0:53:09.200 --> 0:53:17.399 And while that the epilogue of everything was that much 0:53:17.520 --> 0:53:20.000 like Cam's career, that was a flash for Gene Chiswick. 0:53:21.080 --> 0:53:24.880 Jean Chiswicks are success was owed to Cam Newton, and 0:53:24.920 --> 0:53:28.400 he gets fired two years later. Chip Kelly only ascends 0:53:28.440 --> 0:53:31.280 from that point. The twenty eleven and twenty twelve teams 0:53:31.280 --> 0:53:34.080 that he coaches for Oregon are better than this National 0:53:34.160 --> 0:53:36.920 Championship contending team, although they don't get to a National 0:53:36.960 --> 0:53:40.799 Championship game. And it was just a right place, right 0:53:40.840 --> 0:53:45.879 time situation for Oregon and for Auburn, and so big 0:53:45.920 --> 0:53:49.800 picture it's Nick Fairley and Cam Newton and their gang 0:53:49.800 --> 0:53:50.360 of pals. 0:53:50.520 --> 0:53:52.920 I think that's fair I mentioned earlier that I felt 0:53:52.920 --> 0:53:57.160 a little bit underwhelmed by Cam Newton as a passer. Obviously, 0:53:57.200 --> 0:53:59.800 Cam Newton is once in a generation player, certainly on 0:53:59.840 --> 0:54:02.560 the college level and to some extent on the NFL 0:54:02.640 --> 0:54:03.080 level as well. 0:54:03.200 --> 0:54:05.239 NFL MVP took a team to a super Bowl. I 0:54:05.239 --> 0:54:07.040 don't know a lot about the NFL, but he was good. 0:54:07.360 --> 0:54:09.280 He is very good, very good player. 0:54:09.560 --> 0:54:13.160 And Cam Newton was absolutely the engine that made this 0:54:13.200 --> 0:54:18.000 Auburn season go. He was absolutely the star, the superstar 0:54:18.920 --> 0:54:21.160 of this football team. But in this game, I felt 0:54:21.200 --> 0:54:24.440 underwhelmed on the rewatch with what he did as a passer. 0:54:24.480 --> 0:54:29.120 Maybe some nerves by him. I was really impressed again 0:54:29.160 --> 0:54:29.960 with Nick Fairley. 0:54:30.840 --> 0:54:31.719 I knew at the time. 0:54:31.760 --> 0:54:35.319 I remembered from us previewing the game that we saw 0:54:35.400 --> 0:54:37.640 Nick Fairley as a bit of an issue for that 0:54:37.719 --> 0:54:40.040 Oregon line to try and a count for him, the 0:54:40.080 --> 0:54:43.920 game plan for him. And we were right. Everybody was right. 0:54:44.000 --> 0:54:46.640 This wasn't a secret. He was just so good. There 0:54:46.680 --> 0:54:49.080 was nothing that anybody could do. You could triple team 0:54:48.920 --> 0:54:51.719 and it didn't matter. Nick Fairley really changed the game 0:54:51.760 --> 0:54:55.920 just by being out there. The other thing that really 0:54:56.280 --> 0:54:59.280 stuck out to me on the rewatch was just how 0:55:00.080 --> 0:55:02.879 little Oregon was able to do on the ground. And 0:55:03.200 --> 0:55:05.279 I forget what the what the stats are Officially it 0:55:05.320 --> 0:55:08.359 was something like seventy five yards something like that, but 0:55:08.800 --> 0:55:10.919 it was clearly an issue that Oregon could not get 0:55:10.960 --> 0:55:14.800 that facet of their game going. It had an outsized 0:55:14.840 --> 0:55:18.319 impact on the rest of the offense, the rhythm that 0:55:18.360 --> 0:55:21.600 I think Chip Kelly wanted to establish. Without having that 0:55:21.719 --> 0:55:24.200 to fall back on which they had relied upon all year, 0:55:24.719 --> 0:55:25.760 it really did change. 0:55:25.520 --> 0:55:27.000 The complexion of this football game. 0:55:27.280 --> 0:55:28.960 So that stood out to me in a way that 0:55:29.000 --> 0:55:31.520 I guess I didn't notice at the time. And the 0:55:31.520 --> 0:55:34.080 only other thing that I'll point out here, and this 0:55:34.200 --> 0:55:37.920 is probably because I haven't watched the broadcast until I 0:55:37.920 --> 0:55:41.120 don't know, a couple of days ago. M h, I 0:55:41.160 --> 0:55:42.239 miss Brent Musburger. 0:55:43.080 --> 0:55:45.160 Yeah, I was gonna bring that up right now the 0:55:45.200 --> 0:55:48.600 broadcast itself. So we talked about he's great. 0:55:48.760 --> 0:55:51.640 Yeah, we talked about on our last show some of 0:55:51.640 --> 0:55:55.040 the beef I have with Tom Hammond. Tom Hammond has 0:55:55.080 --> 0:55:57.600 called a lot of important events, all right. I don't 0:55:57.640 --> 0:55:59.800 actually dislike the guy. It just not my cup of 0:55:59.840 --> 0:56:03.400 tea when it comes to an announcer. But the difference, 0:56:03.480 --> 0:56:08.799 the stark contrast between Brent Musburger and someone like Tom 0:56:08.840 --> 0:56:12.879 Hammond was on full display here. Tom Hammond shot out 0:56:12.880 --> 0:56:16.040 of a cannon for that usc Notre Dame game. Not 0:56:16.120 --> 0:56:19.960 that excitability is a negative in the booth, it's not, 0:56:20.480 --> 0:56:23.719 but he was just keyed up from the opening kick 0:56:23.840 --> 0:56:28.080 all the way through the final gun. Brent Mussburger has 0:56:28.120 --> 0:56:32.359 more of a calm and cool and collected nature about him. 0:56:32.360 --> 0:56:35.279 He didn't get excitable. He knew how to let the 0:56:35.320 --> 0:56:39.040 game speak for itself. He knew when to use silence 0:56:39.120 --> 0:56:41.719 as his ally, and he knew how to hand it 0:56:41.760 --> 0:56:44.880 off to Kirk kurb Street in a way that I 0:56:44.920 --> 0:56:47.960 thought made Herbi a better announcer as well. He did 0:56:48.080 --> 0:56:51.720 use the big Fellow Moniker a little too much, almost 0:56:51.800 --> 0:56:54.919 to the point where I think Herb Street started saying 0:56:54.960 --> 0:56:58.719 it too just by proximity. But Brent Mussburger one of 0:56:58.760 --> 0:57:01.280 the all time greats. I miss him in the booth. 0:57:01.760 --> 0:57:03.200 It was great to hear his voice again. 0:57:03.400 --> 0:57:06.960 Very big on the because this is the twenty ten season, 0:57:07.040 --> 0:57:10.600 so this is not as pass happy a college football 0:57:10.680 --> 0:57:13.960 as we have now. This is, you know, pre Lincoln 0:57:14.040 --> 0:57:17.400 Riley at Oklahoma. This is pre you know, the Clemson 0:57:17.440 --> 0:57:21.800 in the Alabama Renaissance. And it's before Oregon becomes a 0:57:21.840 --> 0:57:24.240 really good passing team. It's before the air raid really 0:57:24.280 --> 0:57:27.479 takes hold. This is pre Dana Holgerson becoming a household name. 0:57:27.920 --> 0:57:31.320 And so when Auburn and Oregon we're throwing these quick 0:57:31.360 --> 0:57:35.160 little screens out wide. Brent Musburger was very big on folks. 0:57:35.200 --> 0:57:38.840 This is a de facto run play, folks. They're just 0:57:38.880 --> 0:57:41.080 getting the ball real quick out there. It's a run 0:57:41.160 --> 0:57:44.440 play type play. That was something I noticed that stood 0:57:44.480 --> 0:57:49.320 out a few times to me. It was more modern 0:57:49.320 --> 0:57:52.200 than I anticipated, and the two thousand and five Bush 0:57:52.200 --> 0:57:55.320 push game felt older. Than I anticipated, So I was 0:57:55.480 --> 0:57:58.240 I was pleasantly surprised by that. I suppose it's five 0:57:58.320 --> 0:58:01.160 years after that game, the Bush push to the twenty 0:58:01.200 --> 0:58:04.720 ten to twenty eleven game. So I thought it was 0:58:04.720 --> 0:58:07.040 a good broadcast, that there was nothing it was. The 0:58:07.120 --> 0:58:08.960 big thing that stood out to me were the number 0:58:09.000 --> 0:58:11.720 of replay angles as compared to the first game we did, 0:58:11.720 --> 0:58:14.480 the two thousand and five USC Notre Dame game. That 0:58:14.640 --> 0:58:16.480 there were certainly elements. The fact that it was an 0:58:16.600 --> 0:58:19.000 HD was very good. To watch this game in ten 0:58:19.080 --> 0:58:24.959 ADP made a big difference watching it back. I don't 0:58:24.960 --> 0:58:27.240 have that many other notes on the broadcast itself. I 0:58:27.240 --> 0:58:27.840 don't know if you do. 0:58:28.160 --> 0:58:31.200 Definitely came away feeling that this was way more modern 0:58:31.960 --> 0:58:34.160 than what we had seen just a few years earlier 0:58:34.200 --> 0:58:37.240 in two thousand and five. The broadcast just felt like 0:58:37.280 --> 0:58:39.360 it was a much more modern product, pretty close to 0:58:39.400 --> 0:58:40.080 what we have now. 0:58:40.200 --> 0:58:45.560 So after this game, Darren Thomas returns to play quarterback. 0:58:45.720 --> 0:58:49.280 Lemichael James, Kenyon Barner are joined by d Anthony Thomas. 0:58:49.840 --> 0:58:52.720 Oregon wins the Rose Bowl, they beat Wisconsin, they win 0:58:52.800 --> 0:58:55.000 the Fiesta Bowl. We watched that game, I think with 0:58:55.400 --> 0:58:58.560 our friend Bruce Feldman at some sort of sports bar 0:58:58.760 --> 0:59:01.440 that's over Kansas State, and twenty twelve, Chip Kelly ends 0:59:01.520 --> 0:59:04.160 up leaving. Then we have Mark Helfrich and so forth 0:59:04.200 --> 0:59:06.920 and so forth. They get back to the National Championship 0:59:06.960 --> 0:59:10.760 game in twenty fourteen. The year before that, Auburn's in 0:59:10.800 --> 0:59:14.600 the National Championship Game with Nick Marshall. So that must 0:59:14.600 --> 0:59:17.960 have been a great progression, right, nah Ah, They took 0:59:18.000 --> 0:59:21.160 a different route to get back Jean Chizz. It gets fired. 0:59:21.160 --> 0:59:24.640 I think it's it's Barrett Trotter getting the majority of 0:59:24.680 --> 0:59:27.640 the snaps of quarterback, which doesn't go particularly well. It's 0:59:27.640 --> 0:59:32.400 Barrett Trotter and Clint Moseley for Auburn. Kil Fraser gets 0:59:32.400 --> 0:59:35.920 in there as a touted freshman in twenty eleven, and 0:59:35.960 --> 0:59:40.040 in twenty twelve, kil Fraser takes over and is not 0:59:40.160 --> 0:59:43.640 the answer. I'm gonna be kind. My twenty twenty goal 0:59:43.680 --> 0:59:45.680 is to be a little bit kinder to student athletes. 0:59:45.720 --> 0:59:48.400 He was not the answer at quarterback in twenty twelve. 0:59:48.840 --> 0:59:52.360 Gus Malson comes in in twenty thirteen with Nick Marshall, 0:59:52.840 --> 0:59:58.439 and things change. The Auburn offense improves greatly. They run 0:59:58.480 --> 1:00:01.760 the ball really well, that's a Trey Mason team. He's 1:00:01.800 --> 1:00:05.040 had obviously a weird go of it since his career 1:00:05.080 --> 1:00:08.680 at Auburn, but he's a terrific patient runner. And that 1:00:08.720 --> 1:00:12.200 twenty thirteen even that twenty thirteen SEC championship game, that's 1:00:12.240 --> 1:00:16.480 Auburn Miszoo with that great missoo front. That was That 1:00:16.600 --> 1:00:19.040 was a really fun game too. That was a fun season, 1:00:19.280 --> 1:00:24.000 the twenty thirteen SEC season. So Auburn rehires Gus Malzan 1:00:24.080 --> 1:00:28.680 after he moves to Arkansas State and gets annihilated by Oregon, 1:00:28.720 --> 1:00:30.200 So that at least felt a little good for me, 1:00:30.240 --> 1:00:35.439 even though he was coaching Arkansas State, and Auburn moves 1:00:35.480 --> 1:00:39.560 on to having nothing but amazing and uneven season. Since then, 1:00:40.000 --> 1:00:42.960 Oregon has plenty of up and downs, ups and downs themselves, 1:00:42.960 --> 1:00:45.680 and seems to have found a coach that is working 1:00:45.680 --> 1:00:49.480 out for them in Mario Cristobal eventually, but that's after 1:00:49.520 --> 1:00:52.520 some upheaval with Willie Taggart and the end of the 1:00:53.240 --> 1:00:54.080 Mark helferg Era. 1:00:55.200 --> 1:00:58.880 So to put a cherry on top, much the way 1:00:58.880 --> 1:01:02.280 we did last week when we talked about Notre Dame USC, 1:01:02.440 --> 1:01:06.520 with some first hand perspective, we have arranged a similar 1:01:06.560 --> 1:01:07.720 setup for this episode. 1:01:07.760 --> 1:01:08.160 Have we not? 1:01:09.240 --> 1:01:12.040 We have We want stakeholders. We want people who were there, 1:01:12.080 --> 1:01:13.840 and we were there in the way that you obviously 1:01:13.960 --> 1:01:16.280 were there for the Bush Push game in two thousand 1:01:16.320 --> 1:01:20.960 and five. But we are going to be joined momentarily. 1:01:21.200 --> 1:01:23.200 I think I'll do it solo, Tie, because this is 1:01:23.280 --> 1:01:26.280 just too deeply nerdy Oregon. I'm going to speak with 1:01:26.400 --> 1:01:29.280 Jeff Palmer, who was the short snapper for the Oregon 1:01:29.360 --> 1:01:31.440 Ducks in this game. So he was snapping field goals 1:01:31.480 --> 1:01:33.800 and extra points for the Ducks and they had a 1:01:33.840 --> 1:01:36.840 lot of extra points in twenty ten, just to sort 1:01:36.880 --> 1:01:38.440 of walk me through what it was like to be 1:01:38.720 --> 1:01:41.440 not just a contributor but a fly on the wall 1:01:41.720 --> 1:01:44.560 during the Oregon season. He was not the offensive coordinator, 1:01:44.600 --> 1:01:47.200 he was not leading the defense, he was not on 1:01:47.240 --> 1:01:49.880 the field for a majority of plays like a lot 1:01:49.960 --> 1:01:52.880 of players were. But damn it, long and short snappers 1:01:52.880 --> 1:01:55.760 are people as well, Tie, So I'm excited to sort 1:01:55.760 --> 1:01:59.360 of go behind the scenes with Jeff Palmer. Let's roll 1:01:59.400 --> 1:02:02.320 it all right. Tide dropped out because this is a 1:02:02.720 --> 1:02:08.640 special safe space and comfort zone for sad Oregon brains 1:02:08.680 --> 1:02:12.920 that remember this, and somebody who is probably I shouldn't 1:02:12.920 --> 1:02:16.000 say probably. There is a chance he is sadder about 1:02:16.120 --> 1:02:19.880 this game because he actually played in it and was 1:02:19.920 --> 1:02:24.240 on the team during arguably the golden era of Oregon 1:02:24.280 --> 1:02:28.160 football from two thousand and nine through twenty twelve. He 1:02:28.240 --> 1:02:30.040 started in two thousand and eight, but the Chip Kelly 1:02:30.040 --> 1:02:34.520 era and the Jeff Palmer short snapper extraordinaire for the 1:02:34.560 --> 1:02:39.360 Oregon Ducks overlap perfectly. So, Jeff, thanks for joining the show. 1:02:39.560 --> 1:02:40.840 Thanks for having me. I'm excited. 1:02:43.840 --> 1:02:50.360 All right, let's start here. The season was terrific, was 1:02:50.480 --> 1:02:54.280 you know, from the outside, it looks fun, it looks excellent. 1:02:54.400 --> 1:02:57.760 You're blowing teams out, you're surviving a couple of close calls, 1:02:57.800 --> 1:03:01.360 a big comeback against Stanford, and ugly that these are 1:03:01.400 --> 1:03:04.560 my words, win at Cal in a low scoring game 1:03:04.600 --> 1:03:08.560 with only one offensive touchdown for each team. Do you 1:03:08.600 --> 1:03:10.480 remember this season fondly? 1:03:11.800 --> 1:03:12.520 Absolutely? 1:03:12.640 --> 1:03:16.120 I always hear you guys say, you know, a team 1:03:16.160 --> 1:03:19.480 has to win their clunkers, and I think we. I 1:03:19.480 --> 1:03:21.919 think we put up forty points on every single team 1:03:21.960 --> 1:03:26.240 except that Cow game, if I remember ly, and so 1:03:27.400 --> 1:03:29.600 you know, I forgot about that comeback against Stanford, but 1:03:29.640 --> 1:03:32.560 just looking at scores, we didn't have a ton of 1:03:32.600 --> 1:03:37.160 close calls. I still, looking back, don't know if it 1:03:37.200 --> 1:03:39.240 was our best team out of my five years there, 1:03:39.720 --> 1:03:42.680 but it was definitely the closest team with the best leadership, 1:03:42.720 --> 1:03:46.680 I'd say. And yeah, we really ran through a lot 1:03:46.680 --> 1:03:48.520 of a lot of the schedule pretty easily. 1:03:49.920 --> 1:03:53.680 Only thirty seven points at Oregon State War Game. The 1:03:53.800 --> 1:03:58.360 disappointing the Civil War was only thirty seven led by 1:03:58.520 --> 1:04:01.480 Michael James on the ground. But what does that mean? 1:04:01.480 --> 1:04:03.640 What is when you say that it's not necessarily the 1:04:03.680 --> 1:04:06.400 best team, but in terms of leadership, I suppose in 1:04:06.480 --> 1:04:09.400 terms of locker room vibes and just a feeling you had. 1:04:09.720 --> 1:04:13.640 What is different about a team able to survive their clunkers? 1:04:14.040 --> 1:04:18.600 That say, different from losing narrowly to Stanford in twenty twelve, 1:04:18.600 --> 1:04:22.280 losing to I think it was USC and LSU in 1:04:22.320 --> 1:04:26.720 twenty eleven. What's different about leadership and survival? 1:04:27.680 --> 1:04:31.240 I think a lot has to be attributed to Chip 1:04:31.320 --> 1:04:35.800 Kelly coming in and changing the focus to a lot 1:04:35.840 --> 1:04:39.120 more attention to detail, and the guys that really bought 1:04:39.160 --> 1:04:42.760 in that were left over from the Vallati years were 1:04:43.120 --> 1:04:46.680 you know, we're the upperclassmen at that point, the Jordan Holmes, 1:04:46.720 --> 1:04:49.960 the David Paulson's, the Eddie Pleasant, all the older guys. 1:04:50.640 --> 1:04:51.320 Those were all the. 1:04:51.280 --> 1:04:55.479 Best leaders on that team, and I think the entire 1:04:55.520 --> 1:04:58.919 team was so in especially you know, post Civil War 1:04:59.360 --> 1:05:02.440 going into that National championship game. I think it was 1:05:02.480 --> 1:05:07.280 a time for us to all really bond and become 1:05:07.440 --> 1:05:10.120 that much closer as a team. It was just incredible 1:05:10.160 --> 1:05:12.480 leadership is what I'll always remember about that team. 1:05:13.840 --> 1:05:17.240 There's no Pac twelve, so there's no Pack twelve championship game. 1:05:17.320 --> 1:05:20.919 So this is a long layoff between I think it's 1:05:20.960 --> 1:05:25.240 the Civil Wars December fourth, The Auburn game is January tenth, 1:05:25.320 --> 1:05:28.640 so this is over a month. How does that space out? 1:05:28.760 --> 1:05:31.640 I assume at some point you go home for the holidays. 1:05:31.680 --> 1:05:36.000 Maybe I'm wrong, but what is preparation like for a 1:05:36.040 --> 1:05:38.880 program that has never ever been in this spot now 1:05:38.920 --> 1:05:40.680 going to a national championship game? 1:05:41.480 --> 1:05:45.760 Yeah, we almost had almost like a year of prep 1:05:45.800 --> 1:05:48.000 before going to the Rose Bowl and having close to 1:05:48.040 --> 1:05:50.840 a similar layoffs, but I think it was I think 1:05:50.880 --> 1:05:53.160 it was like thirty five days if I remember correctly, 1:05:53.240 --> 1:05:56.960 something like that. And being on the quarter system, you know, 1:05:57.000 --> 1:06:00.440 you get out relatively early for Christmas, and so the 1:06:00.520 --> 1:06:02.520 only people in Eugene, And that kind of goes back 1:06:02.520 --> 1:06:05.000 to why I think the team bonded so well is 1:06:05.480 --> 1:06:09.000 we're pretty much the only people in that little college town. 1:06:10.200 --> 1:06:12.080 And so we practiced, I want to say, for like 1:06:12.120 --> 1:06:14.600 two weeks. A lot of it was just you know, 1:06:14.640 --> 1:06:17.080 helmets and shorts or whatever. And then we got to 1:06:17.120 --> 1:06:20.520 go home for six or seven days celebrate Christmas with 1:06:20.560 --> 1:06:23.640 the family. And then if I remember correctly, we reported 1:06:24.080 --> 1:06:27.760 directly to Scottsdale and all met there, you know, over 1:06:27.760 --> 1:06:31.000 the course of two days, and then started six or 1:06:31.040 --> 1:06:34.960 seven days of bull prep practices in Arizona. 1:06:35.080 --> 1:06:36.960 So yeah, it was it was a really long layoff. 1:06:39.120 --> 1:06:42.960 Do you remember things being different in terms of, you know, 1:06:42.960 --> 1:06:46.080 you're not necessarily an offensive or defensive meetings, But is 1:06:46.120 --> 1:06:49.240 there a different field to preparation for a game like this? 1:06:49.400 --> 1:06:51.880 The the Oregon offense comes out with some different looks, 1:06:51.920 --> 1:06:56.120 The Oregon defense is preparing for a singular dual threat 1:06:56.280 --> 1:06:59.560 quarterback talent that maybe we haven't seen since or before 1:06:59.560 --> 1:07:02.480 in cam Newton. Is there do you feel a heightened 1:07:02.560 --> 1:07:07.960 sense of focus? Is there? Is it learning something all new? 1:07:08.160 --> 1:07:11.440 What do you remember about the team sort of preparing 1:07:11.520 --> 1:07:15.280 in Arizona, basically after not playing in a game for 1:07:15.440 --> 1:07:16.520 as you said, about a month. 1:07:17.760 --> 1:07:20.320 Yeah, I think it was a pretty tricky balance of 1:07:20.400 --> 1:07:22.920 like trying to stay relaxed over that whole ten day 1:07:22.960 --> 1:07:25.560 period when we were there, but also putting in the work. 1:07:25.600 --> 1:07:28.120 And obviously there's no one on the scout team that's 1:07:28.160 --> 1:07:32.320 gonna simulate Cam as big as Cam and as. 1:07:32.240 --> 1:07:35.600 Versatile as he was, so yeah, it was. 1:07:35.880 --> 1:07:39.240 It was pretty interesting because being a specialist, I'm able 1:07:39.320 --> 1:07:42.880 to watch during practice and get a sense of the 1:07:42.880 --> 1:07:45.880 team in that sense, but I'm not sitting in on 1:07:45.920 --> 1:07:49.040 all the meetings and seeing how focused everyone really is. 1:07:49.280 --> 1:07:51.960 We met with the tight Ends because coach Osborne was 1:07:52.440 --> 1:07:54.560 the tight End's coach, so we would, you know, we'd 1:07:54.600 --> 1:07:57.760 see how locked in David Paulson and those guys were. 1:07:57.760 --> 1:08:00.680 But that's really the only real sense we had. And 1:08:00.920 --> 1:08:04.440 just comparing to the Rose Bowl the year before, how 1:08:04.440 --> 1:08:05.480 many guys were. 1:08:05.360 --> 1:08:08.560 In the video game room where they have kingpong tables 1:08:08.560 --> 1:08:09.360 and pool tables. 1:08:09.400 --> 1:08:13.840 There was just less guys in there fooling around throughout 1:08:13.840 --> 1:08:17.360 the day, and what I would assume is more intense 1:08:17.640 --> 1:08:21.040 film study and meetings and everything of that nature. So 1:08:21.439 --> 1:08:24.000 I think just the level of overall focus that year 1:08:24.160 --> 1:08:27.519 compared to especially the year before, was just that much 1:08:27.520 --> 1:08:28.080 more intense. 1:08:28.520 --> 1:08:34.320 So the game happens and the Oregon defense is I 1:08:34.360 --> 1:08:37.320 would say, pretty exceptional all things considered with what the 1:08:37.720 --> 1:08:39.680 Ducks are facing and Cam Newton and the season that 1:08:39.720 --> 1:08:43.800 Auburn had offensively, and the Oregon offense really struggles to 1:08:43.800 --> 1:08:47.120 get into a rhythm. The offense generates some big plays, 1:08:47.600 --> 1:08:49.919 comes up huge near the end of the game, generating 1:08:49.920 --> 1:08:54.519 a touchdown drive. Did that surprise you based on both 1:08:54.520 --> 1:08:57.040 the season and by what you saw in practice that 1:08:57.479 --> 1:09:00.880 it was the Oregon defense leading the way of underrated 1:09:00.920 --> 1:09:03.720 part of the team and the offense, which had been 1:09:04.200 --> 1:09:08.960 this explosive unit really struggling with a i'd say somewhat 1:09:09.000 --> 1:09:11.760 average Auburn defense. Was that surprising to the way the 1:09:11.760 --> 1:09:12.439 game played out? 1:09:13.760 --> 1:09:14.200 It was? 1:09:14.520 --> 1:09:18.080 It was especially like I said earlier, us putting up 1:09:18.080 --> 1:09:21.000 at least forty points on almost everyone we played, I 1:09:21.120 --> 1:09:24.160 thought this was for sure going to be a shootout. 1:09:25.080 --> 1:09:28.639 I believe the over under was like seventy points or something, 1:09:28.680 --> 1:09:32.880 and I thought that was crazy. But our defense was 1:09:32.960 --> 1:09:36.559 underrated throughout the year. I mean it was the typical 1:09:36.600 --> 1:09:40.960 bend but don't break that ALIODI loved and there are 1:09:41.000 --> 1:09:43.479 so many studs on that defense, so it didn't surprise 1:09:43.560 --> 1:09:45.600 me in that sense. But I was pretty surprised that, 1:09:47.080 --> 1:09:48.760 you know, especially in the second half, we didn't come 1:09:48.760 --> 1:09:50.960 out and look all that different and make that many 1:09:50.960 --> 1:09:54.320 crazy adjustments. I thought we'd come out of the locker 1:09:54.360 --> 1:09:57.840 room at half and hopefully hang thirty or whatever, and 1:09:57.920 --> 1:09:59.839 it's just, you know, it never came to fruition. 1:10:00.800 --> 1:10:01.040 It was. 1:10:01.080 --> 1:10:04.679 It was pretty sloppy overall. As one of my biggest 1:10:04.760 --> 1:10:07.040 memories is how quick the game went and how sloppy 1:10:07.040 --> 1:10:09.040 it was overall. 1:10:09.240 --> 1:10:13.640 You hear sometimes in retrospect coaches saying, you know, it 1:10:13.720 --> 1:10:15.280 was a story that came out. Who knows how true 1:10:15.280 --> 1:10:18.400 it is after this year's LSU Oklahoma game that LSU 1:10:18.479 --> 1:10:22.320 coaches were quietly extremely confident that they didn't view Oklahoma 1:10:22.479 --> 1:10:25.719 as worthy of the stage. Who knows if it's true, 1:10:25.720 --> 1:10:28.920 But you do hear stories about coaches being especially confident. 1:10:30.040 --> 1:10:31.960 What do you remember about the vibes heading into the 1:10:32.040 --> 1:10:35.240 game compared to other big game moments, Because you have 1:10:35.960 --> 1:10:38.840 now played in a number of huge Chip Kelly coached 1:10:38.880 --> 1:10:43.120 Oregon Team Games. Was there a sense of yeah, we 1:10:43.200 --> 1:10:46.200 got this, they're vulnerable, or was it if we do 1:10:46.320 --> 1:10:48.439 this and if we do that, we have a shot. 1:10:48.479 --> 1:10:50.920 What what was the sense of comfort and confidence do 1:10:50.960 --> 1:10:53.000 you from the from the coaching staff? 1:10:54.200 --> 1:10:59.960 Super confident super confident ship was always about you know, 1:11:00.080 --> 1:11:03.520 control a wee can control and win the day, and 1:11:03.640 --> 1:11:07.000 you know, build up to the game, and the sense 1:11:07.040 --> 1:11:09.120 throughout the team is that as long as we played 1:11:09.160 --> 1:11:10.880 our game, there was no one that could beat us. 1:11:11.720 --> 1:11:13.840 And we were all extremely bought in on that. And 1:11:13.880 --> 1:11:16.080 there were a few guys, especially on offense, like when 1:11:16.120 --> 1:11:18.960 Mike and I were pretty close, and I always checked 1:11:18.960 --> 1:11:21.719 in with a couple of the other backups on offense 1:11:21.760 --> 1:11:23.880 and just tried to get a sense because I wasn't 1:11:23.880 --> 1:11:26.559 in their meeting rooms, and every single one of them, 1:11:26.680 --> 1:11:28.439 you know, would would look me in the eyes and 1:11:28.439 --> 1:11:30.639 be like, oh, yeah, we're we're going to be fine. 1:11:30.760 --> 1:11:32.760 So you know that. 1:11:32.920 --> 1:11:34.960 Why do you think that was it was based on 1:11:34.960 --> 1:11:38.960 one film study, based on confidence with previous results. What 1:11:39.080 --> 1:11:41.799 was it that that filled the team with that much confidence? 1:11:43.360 --> 1:11:45.520 I think it was because. 1:11:46.840 --> 1:11:49.320 I don't know if they thought that Nick Fairley could 1:11:49.479 --> 1:11:52.080 could really take over a game like he had throughout 1:11:52.080 --> 1:11:55.040 the year. I remember talking to a couple of the 1:11:55.080 --> 1:11:57.559 old alignment and they're like, if you know, if we 1:11:57.600 --> 1:11:59.880 neutralize Nick fairly and if he runs upfield and takes 1:12:00.040 --> 1:12:01.960 himself out of a lot of the plays like he 1:12:02.040 --> 1:12:02.760 had throughout. 1:12:02.479 --> 1:12:04.960 The year, then we're going to be fine. And then 1:12:05.000 --> 1:12:06.840 he blew up so many plays in the first half. 1:12:07.040 --> 1:12:09.000 I thought they would, you know, do something different in 1:12:09.040 --> 1:12:11.439 the second half to to kind of mitigate what he 1:12:11.479 --> 1:12:11.800 was doing. 1:12:11.800 --> 1:12:12.719 And it never happened. 1:12:12.760 --> 1:12:15.960 But I think it was, you know, man demand, if 1:12:16.000 --> 1:12:18.080 you looked at their defense versus our offense, I think 1:12:18.120 --> 1:12:21.439 that you could still argue we were better. We just 1:12:21.800 --> 1:12:24.280 they they made plays, especially in the red zone, that 1:12:24.720 --> 1:12:25.599 we couldn't punch it in. 1:12:25.960 --> 1:12:29.600 So, you know, so frustrated to look back on. 1:12:29.760 --> 1:12:34.479 But have you watched that? Have you watched the game since? 1:12:35.720 --> 1:12:35.800 So? 1:12:35.920 --> 1:12:37.960 I had not watched it until. 1:12:39.280 --> 1:12:41.400 I don't know if if you knew Tim Taylor, our 1:12:41.439 --> 1:12:44.280 backup hunter on the earlier years, he got married this 1:12:44.320 --> 1:12:47.400 summer and I stayed at Rob Beard's house. This was 1:12:47.439 --> 1:12:51.160 like August of this year, and we decided to watch it. Yeah, 1:12:51.200 --> 1:12:52.880 and we decided to watch it. I don't think he 1:12:52.920 --> 1:12:55.679 had ever watched it, and we came away like, oh 1:12:55.720 --> 1:12:58.120 my god, we we were the better team, Like we 1:12:59.720 --> 1:13:02.200 you know, it's just a few plays here there. Again, 1:13:02.280 --> 1:13:04.000 it was the little things that I came down to 1:13:04.120 --> 1:13:08.400 and just so close. So yeah, that was the first 1:13:08.439 --> 1:13:10.040 time this summer that I actually watched it. 1:13:10.680 --> 1:13:13.880 And what during your time do you feel like was 1:13:13.920 --> 1:13:17.679 a more talented team better team? What was that difference 1:13:17.760 --> 1:13:21.880 you mentioned the leadership? Where were other teams better, stronger? 1:13:21.920 --> 1:13:24.920 Do you feel like other teams could have done the 1:13:24.960 --> 1:13:27.559 little things perhaps that the twenty ten team couldn't do. 1:13:27.720 --> 1:13:31.000 Certainly there was a quarterback change after twenty eleven and 1:13:31.040 --> 1:13:34.519 a different quarterback in two thousand and nine. Where do 1:13:34.600 --> 1:13:38.519 you think other teams during the Chip Kelly era would 1:13:38.520 --> 1:13:41.559 have fallen against this twenty ten Auburn team. 1:13:41.720 --> 1:13:45.080 Yeah, so the twenty twelve team was our best team. 1:13:44.400 --> 1:13:45.920 I know. 1:13:46.640 --> 1:13:48.760 The athletic just came out with a piece the other 1:13:48.840 --> 1:13:52.680 day with the brackets, and the twenty ten team was 1:13:52.680 --> 1:13:54.880 the most talented team in the best and I think 1:13:54.920 --> 1:13:57.920 they would have beat that Auburn twenty twelve. Imagine Marcus 1:13:58.160 --> 1:14:00.240 the twenty five team. Yeah, imagine Marcus first case, that 1:14:00.240 --> 1:14:03.559 would have been such an awesome game. And I think 1:14:03.600 --> 1:14:06.040 the twenty eleven team was every bit as good as 1:14:06.040 --> 1:14:07.000 the twenty ten team. 1:14:07.240 --> 1:14:08.519 It was just a younger team. 1:14:08.680 --> 1:14:11.519 We graduated a lot of studs from that, you know, 1:14:11.560 --> 1:14:15.960 after the Auburn game. So I think talent wise, the 1:14:16.000 --> 1:14:19.040 twenty twelve team I think would have beat that Auburn team. 1:14:19.040 --> 1:14:21.280 And I think the twenty eleven team also would have 1:14:21.320 --> 1:14:24.360 been been a really good game. The team that played 1:14:24.400 --> 1:14:29.360 Ohio State in that rose bolm definitely wasn't as talented. 1:14:30.360 --> 1:14:34.439 I think Darren Thomas was better than Masoli overall, and 1:14:35.840 --> 1:14:37.280 so I think there, you know, there was a big 1:14:37.320 --> 1:14:39.639 hole there. And then I think the difference of Kenyon 1:14:39.680 --> 1:14:42.519 and Michael versus Lemichael and la Garrett the year before 1:14:43.040 --> 1:14:45.719 was a big step up, and I think that would 1:14:45.720 --> 1:14:46.679 have made a huge difference. 1:14:46.720 --> 1:14:50.519 So what is it like, locker room before the game, 1:14:50.840 --> 1:14:54.280 locker room at halftime, and sideline do you do you 1:14:54.439 --> 1:14:58.879 feel energy changing, do you feel confidence turning into concern? 1:14:59.880 --> 1:15:02.000 Or are you just so wrapped up in the game 1:15:02.080 --> 1:15:04.880 because it's just this this huge crowning moment of the 1:15:04.880 --> 1:15:05.920 sport you're playing in. 1:15:09.000 --> 1:15:12.040 Sideline was always extremely confident. Every time we got the 1:15:12.040 --> 1:15:13.600 ball back, we thought that's when we were going to 1:15:13.680 --> 1:15:16.479 get rolling. And that's really how every game was, including 1:15:16.479 --> 1:15:18.800 that col game. It was like, every time we got 1:15:18.800 --> 1:15:20.320 the ball back, this was when we were going to 1:15:20.320 --> 1:15:21.920 put our foot on the gas and go. So there 1:15:21.960 --> 1:15:25.839 was always a lot of confidence. And I'd say pregame 1:15:25.920 --> 1:15:27.640 is the same way. It's like we just wanted to 1:15:28.240 --> 1:15:31.160 get on the field and get kickoff going because you know, 1:15:31.240 --> 1:15:33.479 we knew we were going to blow out a lot 1:15:33.479 --> 1:15:37.759 of these teams going into it. I can't really comment 1:15:37.840 --> 1:15:39.720 much about the locker room at halftime. We're in there 1:15:39.760 --> 1:15:43.680 for a few minutes, and we hear coach Ow, you know, 1:15:43.760 --> 1:15:46.960 gathering up the defense and you know, screaming at the beginning. 1:15:47.040 --> 1:15:48.719 But most of us. 1:15:48.600 --> 1:15:51.080 Specialists when would get out there as early as possible 1:15:51.080 --> 1:15:55.200 and during halftime, so didn't see a lot during halftime. 1:15:55.200 --> 1:15:57.519 But I can just say our confidence on the sideline 1:15:57.560 --> 1:16:00.799 always was was really positive, really really upbeat. 1:16:01.120 --> 1:16:05.200 Okay, fair enough, and after the game, is it is 1:16:05.200 --> 1:16:08.679 it a crush team? You know, the way Oregon loses 1:16:08.720 --> 1:16:11.840 the game, certainly with Michael Dyer with the last second 1:16:11.840 --> 1:16:15.200 field goal, is it is it depressed. Is it is 1:16:15.280 --> 1:16:15.839 it crushed? 1:16:16.000 --> 1:16:16.280 Is it. 1:16:17.840 --> 1:16:20.519 Sort of confused and in a daze. What do you 1:16:20.560 --> 1:16:22.880 remember about the emotion following a game? I mean, you're 1:16:23.240 --> 1:16:25.400 you have and I was on the field, you know, 1:16:25.400 --> 1:16:27.679 the blue and orange confetti comes down, You're going into 1:16:28.479 --> 1:16:31.200 a locker room losing the biggest game of your life. 1:16:31.240 --> 1:16:33.360 What do you remember about that emotion? What do you 1:16:33.439 --> 1:16:37.479 remember about communication with coaches and the way everything is 1:16:37.520 --> 1:16:41.280 gathered and even the minutia of a postgame loss. 1:16:43.320 --> 1:16:47.400 Yeah, I remember personally just trying to get out of 1:16:47.400 --> 1:16:49.080 the locker room and get on the bus as quickly 1:16:49.080 --> 1:16:53.720 as possible. I you know, I witnessed a lot of 1:16:53.880 --> 1:16:56.800 a lot of tears and a lot of you know, 1:16:56.960 --> 1:16:59.280 just a lot of really sad handshakes. I think it's 1:16:59.280 --> 1:17:01.360 the way it allays down at the end of the day. 1:17:01.439 --> 1:17:03.639 I think, you know, we went toe to toe with them, 1:17:03.640 --> 1:17:06.320 and to have a play like Michael Dyer play really 1:17:06.320 --> 1:17:08.479 be the decision maker was what made that loss that 1:17:08.600 --> 1:17:11.920 much worse. Right, and then the fact that for most 1:17:11.920 --> 1:17:14.360 away games, you know, you fly out right after the 1:17:14.360 --> 1:17:16.360 game and you get back. The fact that we had 1:17:16.360 --> 1:17:19.200 to like go back to the hotel that night, and 1:17:19.520 --> 1:17:21.280 still kind of all sit around and wait to flock 1:17:21.360 --> 1:17:22.000 out the next day. 1:17:22.000 --> 1:17:23.599 I think it made it that much worse. 1:17:23.640 --> 1:17:26.439 So it was it was quiet, If I used one word, 1:17:26.479 --> 1:17:29.760 it was really eerie, really quiet. 1:17:29.479 --> 1:17:29.960 Really sad. 1:17:30.080 --> 1:17:32.200 But do the coaches communicate? Is there is there a 1:17:32.280 --> 1:17:35.639 giant team meeting? Is there like a debriefing. Is there 1:17:36.160 --> 1:17:39.280 a coach saying, you know, like looking at film, not 1:17:39.280 --> 1:17:41.639 necessarily film right after the game obviously, but is there 1:17:43.040 --> 1:17:45.840 is there a communication with the coaches saying, you know, 1:17:46.320 --> 1:17:48.200 we did everything we could or we didn't. You know 1:17:48.240 --> 1:17:51.000 what is that like the interaction with the staff? 1:17:52.520 --> 1:17:53.439 Yeah, yeah, it was. 1:17:53.840 --> 1:17:55.960 I definitely remember Chip addressing the team and just saying 1:17:55.960 --> 1:17:58.600 how how proud he was of us and how we 1:17:58.640 --> 1:18:01.719 have nothing to hang our heads about. I don't remember 1:18:01.760 --> 1:18:05.439 exactly what was said, but I just remember him saying 1:18:05.439 --> 1:18:07.120 something to the effect of like you have nothing to 1:18:07.160 --> 1:18:10.519 hang your hats about, and how proud he was of us, 1:18:11.080 --> 1:18:13.240 and he was always, you know, pretty positive even after 1:18:13.280 --> 1:18:18.000 losses and taking them as a learning experience. So that's 1:18:18.080 --> 1:18:20.400 the general takeaway of what I remember him saying to 1:18:20.439 --> 1:18:21.400 the team as a whole. 1:18:21.840 --> 1:18:24.640 And now as you look back, what do you what 1:18:24.680 --> 1:18:28.200 do you remember about playing at Oregon that people don't know, 1:18:28.280 --> 1:18:32.920 people misunderstand, people are one hundred percent correct about when 1:18:32.920 --> 1:18:34.840 you look back at this time, Oregon goes to a 1:18:34.920 --> 1:18:37.720 National Championship game and you went to You went to 1:18:37.760 --> 1:18:40.840 four BCS games, right, you go to the Rose, the Fiesta, 1:18:40.920 --> 1:18:44.920 the Fiesta again, and the Rose again. What do you remember? 1:18:44.960 --> 1:18:46.960 What do you take away from the Chip Kelly era 1:18:47.160 --> 1:18:48.479 and that level of success. 1:18:50.960 --> 1:18:55.320 Yeah, I personally take away how So I came in 1:18:55.360 --> 1:18:58.800 Bloodi's final year, so I saw what the culture and 1:18:59.400 --> 1:19:01.599 the day to day it was like pre and post 1:19:01.680 --> 1:19:04.559 Chips and so I'm you know, I'm a huge Chi 1:19:04.640 --> 1:19:06.960 Kelly defender, and you know I'll defend him to the death. 1:19:07.320 --> 1:19:11.640 I just think what he did coming into that program 1:19:11.960 --> 1:19:15.799 and changing the culture, changing the style of play, putting 1:19:15.840 --> 1:19:17.800 his stamp on it. 1:19:17.800 --> 1:19:19.960 It was really remarkable to be a part of. 1:19:20.240 --> 1:19:23.760 And you know, the teams that bought into it really 1:19:23.800 --> 1:19:26.040 benefited from it. And he didn't try to just develop 1:19:26.120 --> 1:19:29.439 us as players, but as people, you know, like people 1:19:29.479 --> 1:19:31.720 started going to class more and getting better grades, and 1:19:31.800 --> 1:19:34.760 our networking opportunities got better and better. So just the 1:19:34.800 --> 1:19:36.840 little things that ship did to make us better people. 1:19:36.840 --> 1:19:41.360 I'll always be thankful for from a football perspective, obviously 1:19:41.400 --> 1:19:42.919 getting to play in all those big. 1:19:42.680 --> 1:19:45.280 Games, winning that Rose Bowl. 1:19:45.479 --> 1:19:48.080 Being a kid growing up in southern California, that's like 1:19:48.400 --> 1:19:49.519 what I always wanted. 1:19:49.600 --> 1:19:51.800 So I'll always. 1:19:51.520 --> 1:19:54.559 Remember like running on the field when time expired during 1:19:54.560 --> 1:19:57.080 that Rose Bowl and like jumping into David Paulson's arms. 1:19:57.320 --> 1:19:59.080 It was it was It was like one of the 1:19:59.080 --> 1:19:59.880 best memories ever. 1:20:00.080 --> 1:20:04.360 So, you know, just winning a Rose Bowl, the first 1:20:04.360 --> 1:20:07.559 one that and I forget how many years for Oregon. 1:20:07.920 --> 1:20:11.680 Just being part of that was really special. And just 1:20:11.720 --> 1:20:14.639 the culture shift that ship in still during his time 1:20:14.640 --> 1:20:16.439 there was awesome to be a part of. 1:20:16.600 --> 1:20:18.639 We've talked a lot on the show about the secret 1:20:18.680 --> 1:20:20.960 sauce of winning in championship programs. A lot of that 1:20:21.080 --> 1:20:25.280 is that word culture and buy in. And you have 1:20:25.360 --> 1:20:28.400 limited experience that the final year of Mike Bolotti was 1:20:28.439 --> 1:20:30.439 a good but not great team. You end up in 1:20:30.479 --> 1:20:33.840 the Holiday Bowl, you red shirted that year. Is it 1:20:34.080 --> 1:20:39.880 just a coaches being more humans, being more direct about expectations, 1:20:39.960 --> 1:20:44.639 being more empathetic? What is to you? What is championship culture? 1:20:44.680 --> 1:20:44.760 Like? 1:20:44.760 --> 1:20:47.080 What when you talk about buying, is it just getting 1:20:47.080 --> 1:20:50.920 people to care, explaining things, getting them to understand what 1:20:51.000 --> 1:20:54.040 is expected to them. What, how do you actually define 1:20:54.280 --> 1:20:55.200 buy in in culture? 1:20:55.439 --> 1:20:57.840 I think it was just put really simply for us, 1:20:57.920 --> 1:21:01.920 like if you're not going to buy in, you're gonna 1:21:02.280 --> 1:21:04.760 be out of here. Like if if you can't be 1:21:04.800 --> 1:21:08.240 accountable to get good grades and go to class, then 1:21:08.280 --> 1:21:10.640 I'm not going to play you on a Saturday. So 1:21:10.680 --> 1:21:12.920 it was just laid out really simply for us, okay. 1:21:13.479 --> 1:21:16.559 And there was a lot more accountability teammates to teammate 1:21:16.920 --> 1:21:20.600 from winter conditioning to staying there for the summer and 1:21:20.960 --> 1:21:23.479 you know, taking summer school and conditioning in the summer. 1:21:23.640 --> 1:21:26.480 There was just a lot more player to player accountability, 1:21:27.760 --> 1:21:30.960 you know, guys like Walt Thurman and TJ. Ward, especially 1:21:30.960 --> 1:21:35.880 that first year after we were like big culture instillers. 1:21:35.920 --> 1:21:38.559 I'd say, but yeah, I think it was just player 1:21:38.560 --> 1:21:42.080 to player accountability was the biggest change that I noticed. 1:21:42.640 --> 1:21:44.960 Jeff Palmer, thank you very much for your time and 1:21:45.000 --> 1:21:48.519 for your insight and just speaking from the heart. Michael 1:21:48.560 --> 1:21:49.200 Dyer was down. 1:21:49.439 --> 1:21:50.920 He was definitely down. He was. 1:21:53.000 --> 1:21:54.040 All right, man cool. 1:21:54.720 --> 1:21:58.280 Thank you to mister Jeff Palmer for stopping by sharing 1:21:58.320 --> 1:22:02.760 some of his insight twenty two to nineteen. Auburn won 1:22:02.840 --> 1:22:07.519 the National Championship for the twenty ten college football season. 1:22:08.160 --> 1:22:11.479 They played the game on January tenth, twenty eleven, out 1:22:11.479 --> 1:22:15.240 there in Glendale, Arizona. Dan and I were there. I 1:22:15.320 --> 1:22:20.479 will post as part of this posting out on our 1:22:20.520 --> 1:22:23.800 website and maybe on some of our social channels that 1:22:24.000 --> 1:22:27.240 video that I mentioned earlier, the video that we put 1:22:27.400 --> 1:22:30.559 to the score that we ended up making that got 1:22:30.640 --> 1:22:32.200 us a little bit of a claim, which was really 1:22:32.200 --> 1:22:35.160 cool and a lot of fun to make, So you 1:22:35.160 --> 1:22:37.200 can relive that moment with us. I watched it a 1:22:37.240 --> 1:22:39.200 few times last night, still get a kick out of it. 1:22:39.479 --> 1:22:42.639 Can't believe we put that thing together, But we'll put 1:22:42.680 --> 1:22:44.280 that out on our website for those of you who 1:22:44.320 --> 1:22:46.439 want to take a stroll down memory lane with us. 1:22:46.840 --> 1:22:50.120 We would also encourage you to email us at sliverbo 1:22:50.120 --> 1:22:52.920 at gmail dot com. We don't know how long we're 1:22:52.960 --> 1:22:55.400 going to be in this offseason mode. Quite frankly, it's 1:22:55.439 --> 1:22:59.680 a much different offseason given current world events. So we 1:22:59.760 --> 1:23:04.439 always ready willing and able to read your suggestions for 1:23:04.720 --> 1:23:07.639 what we should talk about next. Do you like these shows? 1:23:07.680 --> 1:23:10.120 Do you like us rewatching games. Great, let us know 1:23:10.160 --> 1:23:12.759 which game we should watch next. Do you have another idea, 1:23:12.880 --> 1:23:15.880 something else that we can cover to keep that fire 1:23:15.960 --> 1:23:19.240 of college football burning even in these uncertain times? 1:23:19.320 --> 1:23:22.240 Dan, do you have a non Notre Dame and I'm trying, 1:23:22.320 --> 1:23:25.120 I will think of a non Oregon game that you 1:23:25.240 --> 1:23:27.320 still need to make peace of that you were just 1:23:27.800 --> 1:23:31.679 either disappointed with or surprised by and are still trying 1:23:31.680 --> 1:23:34.360 to figure out how to feel about a specific matchup. 1:23:34.360 --> 1:23:35.960 I'm putting you on the spot as you think about 1:23:36.080 --> 1:23:39.040 hundreds or thousands of games that are cycling through your brain. 1:23:39.800 --> 1:23:42.920 But well, if there's anything that jumps out, let's think 1:23:42.960 --> 1:23:43.320 on that. 1:23:43.439 --> 1:23:47.920 A game that was formative for me was that National 1:23:48.000 --> 1:23:49.960 championship game I want to say in two thousand and 1:23:49.960 --> 1:23:58.080 one between Miami and Ohio State's. 1:23:56.600 --> 1:23:59.120 I think that's later, that's three. So two thousand and 1:23:59.120 --> 1:24:01.080 one was nebrass So the two thousand and one season 1:24:01.120 --> 1:24:04.200 was Nebraska Miami, Miami shells them. 1:24:04.680 --> 1:24:08.160 The game where willis mcgae he blew out his knee right. 1:24:09.360 --> 1:24:12.800 That game, to me is one that I still have 1:24:12.920 --> 1:24:18.040 trouble with. And the pass interference game past interference game, 1:24:18.280 --> 1:24:21.720 but that knee injury went through me in a way 1:24:21.760 --> 1:24:24.960 that most injuries don't, and it's something that I still 1:24:24.960 --> 1:24:27.720 remember to this day. Maybe not so much from a 1:24:27.720 --> 1:24:29.960 game standpoint. The game was incredible. There were a lot 1:24:29.960 --> 1:24:33.720 of megastars on the field for that game, but that 1:24:33.840 --> 1:24:36.000 injury in and of itself is something that I still 1:24:36.040 --> 1:24:38.680 think about and had a really really profound impact on 1:24:38.720 --> 1:24:40.680 me as a college football fan, to be honest. So 1:24:40.960 --> 1:24:42.559 I want to say it instantly comes to mind. 1:24:42.720 --> 1:24:47.519 It was all three. It was ACLMCLLCL, I believe PCL, 1:24:47.600 --> 1:24:48.760 whichever it was, but it was It. 1:24:48.720 --> 1:24:50.679 Was the fact that he came back and was able 1:24:50.720 --> 1:24:54.479 to play again in the NFL. Didn't achieve nearly the 1:24:54.520 --> 1:24:57.160 success that made me some thought he could have before 1:24:57.200 --> 1:24:59.640 the injury, but nonetheless, the fact that he got to 1:24:59.680 --> 1:25:05.040 where he was an accomplishment. Unto itself, that game stands out. 1:25:05.040 --> 1:25:06.360 I would need more time to think of. 1:25:06.320 --> 1:25:08.640 Other ones, but no, I'm I'm looking at some of 1:25:08.680 --> 1:25:11.280 the stuff from this game. MVP. Craig Krenzel, how do 1:25:11.360 --> 1:25:13.879 we not who I think is a doctor? 1:25:14.000 --> 1:25:14.200 Now? 1:25:14.280 --> 1:25:17.120 I want to say, it's a Keith Jackson game. So 1:25:17.800 --> 1:25:20.519 he went through to go through two thousand. I know 1:25:20.520 --> 1:25:22.680 we did USC Texas, so he still had a few 1:25:22.720 --> 1:25:24.519 years a couple Well, he did the rid of this game. 1:25:25.000 --> 1:25:27.240 He did the retirement tour where everyone gave him gifts, 1:25:27.280 --> 1:25:29.320 and then he didn't retire, which I think is still 1:25:29.360 --> 1:25:31.799 one of the greatest schemes ever played. 1:25:34.120 --> 1:25:38.320 Totally true, I'm totally I'm I'm down to do this game. 1:25:38.439 --> 1:25:42.519 This was the two thousand and three Tostedos Festival. I 1:25:42.560 --> 1:25:44.960 want to say, I watched this at an ex girlfriend's 1:25:45.000 --> 1:25:50.479 parents house. That's that's your that's AT's I suppose. There's 1:25:50.520 --> 1:25:53.599 a lot of that guy names in this game, including 1:25:54.120 --> 1:25:56.960 you know, everybody on that Miam that crazy Miami team. 1:25:57.439 --> 1:26:00.599 That's what Andre Johnson and Sean Taylor and John Nathan Vilma, 1:26:00.680 --> 1:26:05.599 DJ Williams. There's Entre role who's in a lot. Yeah, 1:26:05.720 --> 1:26:07.240 so I'm down. You want to do that, We can 1:26:07.280 --> 1:26:09.439 do that. It's also pretty sound verbal, which I like 1:26:09.479 --> 1:26:09.840 a lot. 1:26:10.200 --> 1:26:12.519 All Right, well, let's plan on doing that. If anyone 1:26:12.520 --> 1:26:14.920 else has any other suggestions for games that we could watch, 1:26:15.360 --> 1:26:18.360 We're open minded. We'll take a look. But for now 1:26:18.400 --> 1:26:21.360 we'll go with that as sort of our our marching 1:26:21.479 --> 1:26:22.439 orders until next week. 1:26:22.439 --> 1:26:26.760 Oh Man, Maurice Clarett. Yeah. Oh, there's a lot happening here, 1:26:26.960 --> 1:26:29.200 a lot going on in that game. I'm feeling that 1:26:29.280 --> 1:26:31.120 juice TI all right. 1:26:31.320 --> 1:26:34.400 So on that note, thank you for bearing with us, 1:26:34.439 --> 1:26:37.599 thank you to mister Palmer for stopping by with some 1:26:37.680 --> 1:26:41.080 of his wisdom and first hand account, and we will 1:26:41.080 --> 1:26:43.679 be back next week. In the meantime, we'd encourage everyone 1:26:43.800 --> 1:26:47.040 wash your hands, stay safe, and as I say each 1:26:47.080 --> 1:26:48.920 and every week, thank you so much for listening. 1:26:49.240 --> 1:26:56.960 Stay solid, Pe