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Speaker 1: On today's episode, the Fascinating Things about Notre Dame and

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Speaker 1: the Group of five. Welcome to the Solid Verbal.

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Speaker 2: I'll that for me.

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Speaker 1: I'm a man, I'm for it.

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Speaker 2: I've heard so many players say, well, I want to

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Speaker 2: be happy. You want to be happy for Dake, Edo Steak.

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Speaker 1: Is that woo woom? And no, Den and Tye, welcome

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Speaker 1: back to the Solid Rubber boys and girls. My name

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Speaker 1: is Ty Hildenbrand, joining me as always, all the way

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Speaker 1: over there in the heart of the Midwest, Chicago, Illinois,

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Speaker 1: fully entrenched in Big ten territory. Dan Rubiskin, Sir, how

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Speaker 1: are you today?

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Speaker 2: I'm good, Ty, I am good. We have a number

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Speaker 2: of conferences to get through. We have Notre Dame to

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Speaker 2: get through. What future Mountain West power Notre Dame and

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Speaker 2: couldn't be more thrilled, Ty, because this will hopefully complete

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Speaker 2: our And you're gonna have to take notes here, Ty,

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Speaker 2: because you keep screwing this up when talking about Grand Total.

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Speaker 2: This will complete our journey throughout FBS football. Yes, you

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Speaker 2: are correct. Grand Total is the name of the game.

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Speaker 2: You can play it at verballers dot com.

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Speaker 1: You got to go through all sixty nine power five

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Speaker 1: teams Dan and pick the over under pick the over under.

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Speaker 1: At the end, winner gets a soliverrable prize pack. You

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Speaker 1: could only play that game though at verballers dot com.

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Speaker 1: That's our Patreon. You can join for as little as

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Speaker 1: five bucks get in play our over under game again

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Speaker 1: called Grand Total. Yeah, as you mentioned, the last episode

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Speaker 1: was the sec before that, we did the Big Ten,

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Speaker 1: before that, the ACC the Big Twelve, and of course

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Speaker 1: what remained at least at the moment of the Pac twelve.

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Speaker 1: So we're making our full journey through here. We're still

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Speaker 1: going to do I think a predictions episode, and we've

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Speaker 1: obviously got much more content to come before the college

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Speaker 1: football season starts up here in a few short weeks.

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Speaker 1: But yeah, this is kind of our our turn into home.

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Speaker 1: We've got Notre Dame and then we've got our group

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Speaker 1: of five conferences in their present form, and we're going

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Speaker 1: to talk through from a very high level what is interesting,

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Speaker 1: what's fascinating for each of these conferences.

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Speaker 2: I agree, and uh, don't compete in Grand Total. By

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Speaker 2: the way, don't go to verballers dot com if you

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Speaker 2: shy away from competition, right, if that's not something you're into. Yeah,

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Speaker 2: don't do it. Do not go to verballers dot com.

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Speaker 2: But if you want to compete, if you want to

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Speaker 2: prove your metal, verballers dot Com look for Grand Total.

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Speaker 2: It's the only way to go ty, it's the only

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Speaker 2: way to travel.

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Speaker 1: Own wait five verballers dot Com again, that's where we

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Speaker 1: offer bonus perks. We've got more bonus perks coming if

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Speaker 1: you are ever so inclined to check those out. And

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Speaker 1: if you're new here, hit subscriber follow whatever your app

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Speaker 1: lets you do, hit subscriber follow. We are welcoming all

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Speaker 1: new Verballers under the tent. Dan, shall we get rolling?

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Speaker 2: Let's do it?

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Speaker 1: My goodness, how interesting. That's bizarre. How interesting, How bizarre.

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Speaker 1: That's the name of the game. Here we are doing

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Speaker 1: fascinating things for all teams, all Power five teams, and

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Speaker 1: now group of five teams or a group of five

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Speaker 1: conferences at least. As we make the turn into home

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Speaker 1: here and conclude our six episode preview series, I of

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Speaker 1: course have notreed, Dame. I've also got the sun Belt

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Speaker 1: aka the Fun Belt this year it really is the

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Speaker 1: fun Belt, as well as Conference USA, which is ever

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Speaker 1: in flux. You've got the American the Mountain West and

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Speaker 1: your favorite conference of all the mac. Yes, where should

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Speaker 1: we start?

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Speaker 2: I think we should start in the American just because, well,

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Speaker 2: I guess a lot of these American and Conference USA

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Speaker 2: have been through a tumultuous ride with American teams heading

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Speaker 2: to the Big twelve in Cincinnati, Houston and UCF and

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Speaker 2: then the American gobbling up. And I hope I have

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Speaker 2: this correct time because it's a new look AAC, Charlotte, FAU,

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Speaker 2: North Texas, Rice, UAB and UTSA.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, road Runners.

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Speaker 2: I think we start with the American. I think it's fascinating.

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Speaker 2: It's a huge conference. Tie, it is large, it's a

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Speaker 2: big conference. Yeah, you said it right.

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Speaker 1: They gobbled up some other teams after losing honestly some

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Speaker 1: heavy hitters, right Cincinnati UCF to say the least. I

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Speaker 1: mean those were kind of two of the powerbrokers in

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Speaker 1: the conference. It's definitely going to look different, it's going

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Speaker 1: to feel different. Doesn't mean it won't be as exciting,

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Speaker 1: because I think we always look for reasons to get

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Speaker 1: excited about a group of five football. It's not less, then,

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Speaker 1: we don't treat it as less then, even though the

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Speaker 1: system might. But it will feel different.

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Speaker 2: Well, a lot of new coaches. I think it's the

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Speaker 2: big thing with the American is big names coming to

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Speaker 2: the American leaving the American, certainly with FAU hiring Tom

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Speaker 2: Herman and the amount of returning production. That's our favorite

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Speaker 2: Bill Connolly or our favorite thing that sometimes is meaningful

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Speaker 2: and sometimes is not.

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Speaker 1: Did Tom Herman bring the peach chart from Texas out

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Speaker 1: of curiosity?

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Speaker 2: I haven't gotten into the urinal specific elements of the

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Speaker 2: preview portion of the owls, but let's assume yes. Let's

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Speaker 2: assume yes, because you want to hydrate in Florida, you

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Speaker 2: want to hydrate in Boca. Look, so you have an

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Speaker 2: FAU team that returns a ton and should improve. And

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Speaker 2: they weren't disastrous under Willie Taggert. They just didn't win enough.

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Speaker 2: And so they won enough under Lane Kiff and presumably

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Speaker 2: Tom Herman with what he has been able to do

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Speaker 2: on the recruiting trail and the name recognition in the portal,

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Speaker 2: I think he's gonna win. Charlotte hires Biff Pogee from Michigan,

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Speaker 2: like a high school coaching legend, made a bunch of

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Speaker 2: money outside of football, but his roots were more Eastern

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Speaker 2: Seaboard in the Baltimore area, and everybody speaks highly of

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Speaker 2: him for his time as the associate head coach at

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Speaker 2: Michigan and Charlotte. You know, didn't really quite get it

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Speaker 2: working with Will Heely. You have Mike Houston now a

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Speaker 2: few years in at East, you still have Memphis, you

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Speaker 2: still have Navy, but obviously they're still in a transitionary

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Speaker 2: time with Brian Newberry taking over for Ken Neo Modelolo

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Speaker 2: North Texas, moving on to Eric Morris, who takes over

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Speaker 2: from Seth Latrell who had some success but sort of

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Speaker 2: stagnated there. And you have who else you a be hiring,

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Speaker 2: Trent Dilfer. Yeah, that's a thing. Rice comes over and

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Speaker 2: it's still Mike Bloomgren, who of course was hired away

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Speaker 2: from I believe Stanford and JT. Daniels is the new face.

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Speaker 1: There was waiting to ding it. I was waiting to

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Speaker 1: give you the day. No.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, by the way, Luke McCaffrey promising slot receiver for Rice,

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Speaker 2: now he'd made transition. Okay, still a McCaffrey presence in

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Speaker 2: college football and UTSA obviously winning Conference USA last year,

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Speaker 2: looks to be strong to quite strong. Returning Frank Harris

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Speaker 2: and Jeff Trailer. I mean, maybe it's his last year

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Speaker 2: in San Antonio with all the success he's had there.

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Speaker 2: And then certainly if UTSA makes a dent in the

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Speaker 2: American in their first season, that's a good sign for

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Speaker 2: Jeff Trailer in his ability either at UTSA long term

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Speaker 2: or making a move upward. And so there are no

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Speaker 2: divisions anymore. This is division free American athletic football. But yeah,

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Speaker 2: the new names make this new names, both in terms

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Speaker 2: of head coaches and new names in terms of teams

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Speaker 2: joining the conference. As things realign on the group of

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Speaker 2: five level, it's going to be a big one tie.

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Speaker 2: It's going to be a big conference. It's going to

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Speaker 2: be a fun conference. And you still have Tulane returning people.

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Speaker 2: They're a stable team here. They win the conference last season,

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Speaker 2: beating UCF and UCF's final season in the conference. And

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Speaker 2: I'm just excited, Ty, I'm excited for American football. We

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Speaker 2: can get into any of these teams that excite you

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Speaker 2: specifically and try to drill down a little bit more,

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Speaker 2: but no, this conference has a lot going for it

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Speaker 2: just because it has the ability to gobble downward. Yes,

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Speaker 2: it's the best way to phrase it, and that features

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Speaker 2: those teams.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I jotted down cage free farm fresh because we

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Speaker 1: are removed or unfettered from the shackles that were the

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Speaker 1: divisional structure that governed college football for years to no divisions.

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Speaker 1: And then there are some fresh teams, a fresh lot

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Speaker 1: of teams coming in. I'm intrigued by the matchup between

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Speaker 1: Tulane and UTSA, potentially as the top dogs in the conference.

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Speaker 1: You know, UTSA relative newcomer not just to the conference

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Speaker 1: but to the sport, and Tulane of course trying to

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Speaker 1: keep it rolling. There was some speculation in the off

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Speaker 1: season that Michael Pratt might look elsewhere, might might dip

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Speaker 1: his toe in the transfer portal, but ultimately, I mean

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Speaker 1: did look around, but decided to come back to Tulane.

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Speaker 1: And you know, a fair amount gone from that Tulane

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Speaker 1: team that obviously played at a very high level in

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Speaker 1: bowl season with USC But I think enough ammo still

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Speaker 1: there that they're on relatively stable footing. So I'd be

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Speaker 1: shocked if it weren't too lane as one of the

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Speaker 1: top dogs come season end. Yeah.

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Speaker 2: So they host ole Miss early, which should be fascinating,

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Speaker 2: and their home road splits are pretty good, though. They

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Speaker 2: travel to Memphis, who should be decent enough, especially on offense.

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Speaker 2: If Memphis can figure out defense, they become that much

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Speaker 2: more dangerous. Lost a bunch of close games, so if

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Speaker 2: they can flip a couple of those, that becomes a

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Speaker 2: more interesting Tiger team. They host UTSA to finish out

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Speaker 2: the season. We'll see how Florida Atlantic is. But they

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Speaker 2: travel to Boca relatively late, and I don't know. I

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Speaker 2: think they're in good shape. They still have some playmakers

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Speaker 2: on defense you mentioned Michael Pratt. Tulane is in good

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Speaker 2: shape though last season seemed to be the year that

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Speaker 2: it should have and did all come together?

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Speaker 1: How do we feel about the state of the Group

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Speaker 1: of five? By the way, Like I know there is

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Speaker 1: a fair amount to be sorted out with Oregon State

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Speaker 1: and watch Shington State and Cal and Stanford, and we

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Speaker 1: go into twenty twenty four. I suppose they could be

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Speaker 1: in Power five Conference by then. But like it felt

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Speaker 1: to me like the playoff system the way they drew

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Speaker 1: it up initially, where we got twelve teams, one of

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Speaker 1: them goes to a Group of five team, it felt

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Speaker 1: like that had a lot more teeth to it. When

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Speaker 1: it was still Cincinnati and UCF and some of those,

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Speaker 1: some of those schools that have now since jumped to

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Speaker 1: the Power five. So one of these teams that we're

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Speaker 1: kind of talking about in passing is going to be

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Speaker 1: an automatic qualifier in that new system. Do you feel

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Speaker 1: like it is a little bit less then, given the

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Speaker 1: moves that have gone on in the last couple months

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Speaker 1: and weeks, or is it still of interest to you

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Speaker 1: to put one of these teams in there?

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Speaker 2: Depends on the team. I mean, you can make the

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Speaker 2: case that Tulane and beating Kansas State last year won

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Speaker 2: the Big Twelve in the way that we talked about

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Speaker 2: BYU a couple of years ago winning the Pac twelve,

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Speaker 2: and so Tulane with that notch on their belt, beating

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Speaker 2: USC in their bowl game, I think it's there's a

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Speaker 2: good argument to be made that the right team can

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Speaker 2: compete in the playoff, right the Cincinnati team from a

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Speaker 2: couple of years ago. Now, look, Cincinnati has always been

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Speaker 2: a different level. But I really do believe that even

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Speaker 2: with some of the top American teams heading to the

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Speaker 2: Big twelve, and the definition of Group five seems to

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Speaker 2: evolve and morph every single season, I'm still a believer

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Speaker 2: that the right team can make a dent in the playoffs,

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Speaker 2: should be in the playoff, even with you know, the

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Speaker 2: pressure from you know, a new look Big twelve SEC

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Speaker 2: and Big ten that missing the playoff and allowing a

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Speaker 2: lesser than a quote unquote lesser than team and conference

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Speaker 2: in is detrimental, you know, to the vantage point of

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Speaker 2: these major conferences. No, I still think that it's worthwhile.

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Speaker 2: And the American features the deepest roster I think of

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Speaker 2: teams that have the highest ceiling, and that still features Tulane.

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Speaker 2: You know, I still think schools with success in this

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Speaker 2: conference have a ways to go before meeting where Tulane's

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Speaker 2: roster was last year. But you know, we've seen Boise

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Speaker 2: State teams perform well on the big stage. But you're

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Speaker 2: going back a few years now. So No, I'm still

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Speaker 2: a believer that the best of the group of five

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Speaker 2: becomes quite tantalizing nationally, but maybe not every year.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I mean I asked that question because I know

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Speaker 1: it's going to get people fired up.

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Speaker 2: Let's be first, you know, I don't even think people

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Speaker 2: have opinions that strongly anymore about it. When we expand

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Speaker 2: to twelve, right, there's no scarcity.

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Speaker 1: Well, I think the implication that the group of five

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Speaker 1: is less than tends to get people riled up. And

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Speaker 1: I mean, yeah, of course, Tulane for the most part,

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Speaker 1: is less than Alabama on the field. On the field,

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Speaker 1: less than Clemson or Florida State or perhaps Ohio State. Right,

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Speaker 1: I mean, they're just they're not pulling from the same

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Speaker 1: pool of talent. But I don't believe that means they

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Speaker 1: shouldn't get a seat at the playoff table. Like my

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Speaker 1: argument the whole time has been Okay, if you want

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Speaker 1: to do a playoff, and if you want to give

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Speaker 1: this illusion of every team in the FBS having a

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Speaker 1: chance at the national title, then you got to let

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Speaker 1: them play for it. You can't just give them scraps

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Speaker 1: and throw them in a bowl game against a team

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Speaker 1: that didn't have a better matchup. Otherwise, that doesn't feel

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Speaker 1: fair to me. This at least feels fair, and hopefully

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Speaker 1: some of the teams that we talk about here will

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Speaker 1: get more of a fair shake at the playoff and

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Speaker 1: perhaps there will be years where they're going to allow

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Speaker 1: more than just one into the twelve team field. I

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Speaker 1: don't know how likely that is, but I like the

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Speaker 1: fact that it feels to me like we've at least

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Speaker 1: progressed now where they are built into the system, and

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Speaker 1: even if they get drilled every year first round, I'd

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Speaker 1: still rather have them in there than not. Like it

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Speaker 1: just seems like what's fair is fair and for all

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Speaker 1: too long. Like remember the excitement around Cincinnati finally cracking

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Speaker 1: that TOPF and that felt like an eternity pushing the

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Speaker 1: boulder up the hill. That was a good Cincinnati team too.

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Speaker 1: Think of all the NFL talent that was on that team. Sure,

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Speaker 1: so there's no reason to say that a group of

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Speaker 1: five team can't build up and get to that point

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Speaker 1: where they where they seriously can tend for something. But

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Speaker 1: they just you got to start somewhere with at least

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Speaker 1: letting them in the door on a consistent basis and

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Speaker 1: not leaving it up to the polls or the media

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Speaker 1: or whoever. Like put him in. Put him in, and

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Speaker 1: we'll see what happens. And just from there.

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Speaker 2: I just believe that I think the riling up that

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Speaker 2: you talk about is a thing of the past, because

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Speaker 2: you were talking about the BCS era and so the

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Speaker 2: precious two spots, you know, one of them being filled

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Speaker 2: by Boise State feels like craziness to people if they're

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Speaker 2: rooting for a PAC twelve or SEC or Big twelve

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Speaker 2: program whatever, And so now it's just it seems fine.

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Speaker 2: Nobody's going to be left out. Nobody deserving that is

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Speaker 2: a clear national championship threat is going to be left

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Speaker 2: out and robbed of a spot because Tulane or SMU

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Speaker 2: or Poise State or Fresno State makes it in the playoff.

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Speaker 2: Every team has every opportunity to make it into a

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Speaker 2: twelve team playoff, and so it's fine. But I do

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Speaker 2: think with you know, since we've evolved from that point

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Speaker 2: of Utah and TCU and Cincinnati now joining major conferences,

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Speaker 2: that I think we're drawing from a different kind of

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Speaker 2: pool of group of five teams. Now the portal can

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Speaker 2: change that. You said they're not drawing from the same pool.

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Speaker 2: They actually are drawing from the same pool. It's just

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Speaker 2: some of it happens via the portal that an Ohio

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Speaker 2: State player ends up at you know wherever, and a

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Speaker 2: you know, a Cow player ends up whatever, you know,

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Speaker 2: a Texas Tech player ends up wherever. Eventually there's it's

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Speaker 2: more homogeneous in terms of where players play. But no,

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Speaker 2: I think it's fascinating all the same because a lot

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Speaker 2: of these teams are able to fortify in ways that

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Speaker 2: they weren't before. Anyway, just to put a bow on this,

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Speaker 2: my main point of fascination definitely the TSA two lane

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Speaker 2: collision course. Okay, SMU is interesting to me. Yeah, Well,

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Speaker 2: SMU with Red lashly he's hit the portal hard obviously,

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Speaker 2: you know, going back to the Miami roster with his

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Speaker 2: connection as an offensive coordinator there, and so you've got

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Speaker 2: an SMU team and they move on. Obviously, Tanner Mordecai

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Speaker 2: goes to Wisconsin. He is our Preston Stone is the

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Speaker 2: new guy at SMU. But I think that should be

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Speaker 2: a really interesting, fun offense if they can figure out

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Speaker 2: defense near the top. You know, Tulsa hires Kevin Wilson.

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Speaker 2: You know, I don't think they're gonna be a big

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Speaker 2: threat right away. Temple's still really down, but showed flashes

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Speaker 2: on defense USF starting over with Alex Golash. We'll see

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Speaker 2: what happens with the Bulls. They have a ways to go.

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Speaker 2: Memphis is interesting to me if they can figure defense

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Speaker 2: out like I mentioned, and they returned Seth Hennigan at quarterback.

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Speaker 2: You're right though, and leaning into Tulane. That Tulane UTSA

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Speaker 2: matchup at the end of the year is going to

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Speaker 2: be fascinating. Frank Harris Big Frank has been in college

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Speaker 2: football a long time, and it's just it's worth appreciating

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Speaker 2: the top of the American looking interesting. I like that.

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Speaker 2: That's all you want to talk Notre Dame now, I

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Speaker 2: want to talk Notre Dame.

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Speaker 1: Dan Okay eight and four last year eight and four

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Speaker 1: with Drew Pine last year nine and four after the

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Speaker 1: bolwin over South Carolina, So a couple points on Notre Dame.

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Speaker 1: I'm sure I could talk to him blue in the

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Speaker 1: face here. Obviously a rocky start last season that goes

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Speaker 1: without saying losing to Ohio State, which everybody expected, but

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Speaker 1: not so much on the Marshall front. If you watched

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Speaker 1: the Marshall game, tho, it was not a good performance

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Speaker 1: by Notre Dame. Then they almost lost to Cow the

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Speaker 1: game after. So it took a while to get this

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Speaker 1: thing going for I think two main reasons that we

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Speaker 1: need to address here because it does tie into where

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Speaker 1: things in twenty twenty three. The first was obviously the

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Speaker 1: offensive line, and this was very much a known issue

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Speaker 1: going into last season. All the talk was how they

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Speaker 1: need to under Marcus Freeman now build up an offensive line.

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Speaker 1: He wants to run the ball, he said. He wants

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Speaker 1: to be a physical team that runs the ball, that

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Speaker 1: plays aggressively, has the attacking mentality right along the defensive line.

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Speaker 1: They did that on the defensive front, but not so

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Speaker 1: much on the offensive front. It just took them a

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Speaker 1: while for them to get that line and to a

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Speaker 1: point where it was stable where it could support a

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Speaker 1: rushing game. Eventually they did sort it out and did

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Speaker 1: get a ground game that followed suit behind Audric Estimee.

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Speaker 1: They absolutely pulverized Clemson in Week ten. Dabosweeney came out

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Speaker 1: and said as much right, that was a big time

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Speaker 1: unveiling of what I think Marcus Freeman's vision is for

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Speaker 1: Notre Dame's ground game. Just took a long time to

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Speaker 1: get there. So they've got that coming into twenty twenty three.

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Speaker 1: The line I think is sorted out. Obviously, some turnover

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Speaker 1: at running back. Logan Diggs, who was kind of their

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Speaker 1: number two back, transferred down to LSU to be with

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Speaker 1: Brian Kelly, but Audrick estime is still there. They've got

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Speaker 1: some other names that I'm really excited about, whether it's

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Speaker 1: Darien Price, Jeremiah Love. I just think they have options

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Speaker 1: at running back and we will see names beyond audric

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Speaker 1: estimate pop. But they got that part sorted and that's

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Speaker 1: good now going into the season, because I think that's

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Speaker 1: going to be the bedrock for this whole thing. The

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Speaker 1: second reason for the issues last season obviously the injury

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Speaker 1: to Tyler Buckner. Second game of the year. Buckner goes down,

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Speaker 1: that means it's Drew Pine's team. Now. Drew Pine in

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Speaker 1: limited action did give them a little bit of a spark.

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Speaker 1: I think that's why, at least initially it was like, well,

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Speaker 1: we know he's limited physically, but he at least seemed

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Speaker 1: to be a guy that his teammates are willing to

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Speaker 1: play for. And that's true to an extent, but it

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Speaker 1: did mean a pretty drastic shift with how they schemed around.

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Speaker 1: Drew Pine suddenly a lot more dependent on a run

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Speaker 1: gave that initially wasn't there, and with respect to the

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Speaker 1: passing game, it just put him in a box. Drew

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Speaker 1: Pine was not throwing down the field. I had the

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Speaker 1: air yard stats in front of me. I don't right now,

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Speaker 1: but it was well under eight air yards per pass,

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Speaker 1: and what it amounted to was pretty much everything going

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Speaker 1: to Michael Maher. If Michael Maher couldn't get it done

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Speaker 1: through the passing game, or if the ground game couldn't

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Speaker 1: get something going, couldn't get any kind of push, then

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Speaker 1: Notre Dame was really really hurting to move the football.

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Speaker 1: We saw a lot of that early, but even still,

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Speaker 1: Drew Pine won eight of his ten starts. All things considered,

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Speaker 1: I thought a pretty good coaching job by Marcus Freeman

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Speaker 1: in year one, and that's now what leads us into

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Speaker 1: year two. First off, recruiting has remained very strong under

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Speaker 1: Marcus Freeman. You can argue that's why they hired him

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Speaker 1: in the first place. Right again, he pulls in a

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Speaker 1: top ten class. There is no need to bury the

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Speaker 1: lead though. The main point of fascination here is Sam Hartman.

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Speaker 1: The best recruiting job that he did was not so

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Speaker 1: much out of high school, it was out of Wake Forest.

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Speaker 1: Bringing Sam Hartman over to Notre Dame. I cannot tell

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Speaker 1: you what it feels like to finally have a quarterback.

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Speaker 1: It feels like the first time in forever, dan as

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Speaker 1: I yelled to the sky with my hands up the

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Speaker 1: first time in forever that Notre Dame hasn't had a

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Speaker 1: starting quarterback who used to be a backup with a

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Speaker 1: little bit of spunk. It feels good, doesn't it. It

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Speaker 1: feels good sure. By comparison, Sam Hartman's air yards were

400
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Speaker 1: closer to twelve. He's a bit of a gun slinger,

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Speaker 1: which got him into trouble in spots at Wake Forest,

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Speaker 1: But at Notre Dame it is long overdue to have

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Speaker 1: a guy who could stretch the field a little bit,

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Speaker 1: especially with how physical they ended up being on the

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Speaker 1: ground last season. It's a really big deal, man, It

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Speaker 1: is a really big deal. If they can suddenly stretch

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Speaker 1: the field. You've got defenses coming up wanting to stop

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Speaker 1: Audrey Guestimy keying on the run. Now suddenly, if you've

409
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Speaker 1: got a guy in Hartman who's willing to throw it deep,

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Speaker 1: that changes the equation. It gives them an extra dimension.

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Speaker 1: Who is he throwing to. I'll get back to you.

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Speaker 1: I'll get back to you on that one.

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Speaker 2: Who's calling the plays? Is it Dave Clawson? Does Dave

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Speaker 2: Clawson running the Notre Dame offense. No, it's Jared Parker.

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Speaker 2: It is Jared Parker, by the way, fantasy thing.

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Speaker 1: I know, we're not necessarily doing the full live show

417
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Speaker 1: concept this year, but the relationship between Marcus Freeman and

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Speaker 1: Jared Parker, dating way back to their days as lowly assistance,

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Speaker 1: will absolutely be a topic for conversation. Either when Notre

420
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Speaker 1: Dame is up forty points or down forty points, or

421
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Speaker 1: maybe trailing by four points late in the game, they

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Speaker 1: will find ways to work that into the equation because

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Speaker 1: it's too good to pass up.

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Speaker 2: Ty, I can't go. I can't go anywhere here on

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Speaker 2: Chicago's North Shore. Forget even that I can't go the

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Speaker 2: West coast, East coast. Everybody tip of their tongue, it's

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Speaker 2: just Marcus Freeman Jared Parker talk everywhere I go.

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Speaker 1: Hey, Carl List, Okay, take my word for it. You

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Speaker 1: will get sick of hearing about how close these guys

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Speaker 1: are as friends.

431
00:23:21,200 --> 00:23:21,640
Speaker 2: Yeah.

432
00:23:21,800 --> 00:23:25,360
Speaker 1: That being said, my first big question about Notre Dame

433
00:23:25,480 --> 00:23:28,720
Speaker 1: is at the receiver position. One of the things I

434
00:23:28,720 --> 00:23:30,879
Speaker 1: know Pete Sampson has written about. I know others are

435
00:23:30,880 --> 00:23:33,080
Speaker 1: written about it as well, but one of the big

436
00:23:33,119 --> 00:23:35,880
Speaker 1: differences between Sam Hartman and a guy like Drew Pine

437
00:23:35,960 --> 00:23:39,399
Speaker 1: or even a Ian book. These guys were not Sam Hartman.

438
00:23:39,560 --> 00:23:42,720
Speaker 1: In that Sam Hartman throws guys open. Sam Hartman sees

439
00:23:42,760 --> 00:23:44,960
Speaker 1: the field. Sam Hartman knows where the space is. Sam

440
00:23:44,960 --> 00:23:48,040
Speaker 1: Hartman throws to the space and he's hopeful that his

441
00:23:48,119 --> 00:23:51,320
Speaker 1: receivers will get there. Now, who the receivers are. They've

442
00:23:51,320 --> 00:23:54,919
Speaker 1: got Big Number eighty three, your boy, Jayden Thomas, so

443
00:23:55,040 --> 00:23:56,120
Speaker 1: called Big Number eighty three.

444
00:23:56,320 --> 00:23:56,960
Speaker 2: It's my guy.

445
00:23:57,480 --> 00:24:00,639
Speaker 1: He is your guy. Outside of that, I mean, I

446
00:24:00,640 --> 00:24:02,800
Speaker 1: think it's a free for all. Whether it's Chris Tyree

447
00:24:02,800 --> 00:24:04,800
Speaker 1: in the slot who is still there, who I know

448
00:24:04,800 --> 00:24:07,560
Speaker 1: they'd love to get in space. Whether it is Deon

449
00:24:07,600 --> 00:24:10,040
Speaker 1: Colsey who's got the big frame, whether it's a younger

450
00:24:10,040 --> 00:24:13,080
Speaker 1: guy like a Jaden great House, whether it's Tobias Merriweather,

451
00:24:13,119 --> 00:24:14,639
Speaker 1: who I would have loved to have seen more of,

452
00:24:14,720 --> 00:24:16,920
Speaker 1: but he only had one catch last year for forty

453
00:24:16,960 --> 00:24:19,760
Speaker 1: one yards whatever ended up being. So they've got guys,

454
00:24:19,800 --> 00:24:22,639
Speaker 1: and they've recruited pretty well there. Talent should not be

455
00:24:22,720 --> 00:24:25,199
Speaker 1: an issue, but it's a matter of who can they

456
00:24:25,200 --> 00:24:27,000
Speaker 1: put out there that's going to get open and find

457
00:24:27,000 --> 00:24:29,480
Speaker 1: that space that Sam Hartman's going to throw to and

458
00:24:29,520 --> 00:24:32,320
Speaker 1: who can catch the ball? Frankly, they had a problem

459
00:24:32,320 --> 00:24:34,680
Speaker 1: with that last year. Who can catch the damn ball?

460
00:24:35,960 --> 00:24:39,399
Speaker 1: First point of fascination with Notre Dame not just Sam Hartman,

461
00:24:39,640 --> 00:24:44,040
Speaker 1: but also the receivers. I guess too, I wied. The

462
00:24:44,119 --> 00:24:47,359
Speaker 1: second thing for me, third thing for me, I should say,

463
00:24:48,040 --> 00:24:50,920
Speaker 1: is now defensively, there's been a lot of attention on

464
00:24:51,000 --> 00:24:55,640
Speaker 1: their defensive line since there was turnover there. Notably, Isaiah

465
00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:59,879
Speaker 1: Foski broke the school record for sacks. Who's going to

466
00:25:00,040 --> 00:25:03,440
Speaker 1: who's going to fill in for that? I think they've

467
00:25:03,440 --> 00:25:06,080
Speaker 1: got enough depth of WAE on the offense or defensive line.

468
00:25:06,080 --> 00:25:08,280
Speaker 1: Excuse me, I just don't know if they've got the

469
00:25:08,359 --> 00:25:10,719
Speaker 1: experience to make us feel confident about it. So like,

470
00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:13,680
Speaker 1: Jordan Betelho is a name that I think steps in

471
00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:18,720
Speaker 1: and should have a pretty good season, replacing Isaiah Foski

472
00:25:19,200 --> 00:25:22,680
Speaker 1: more of a third down specialist type last season. They're

473
00:25:22,720 --> 00:25:25,120
Speaker 1: eager to get him into kind of an every down role.

474
00:25:25,359 --> 00:25:29,560
Speaker 1: They also went out and they brought in Javonte Jean Baptiste,

475
00:25:29,800 --> 00:25:33,399
Speaker 1: who was a rotational guy from Ohio State. He seems

476
00:25:33,440 --> 00:25:36,200
Speaker 1: to also fit pretty well from a skill set standpoint

477
00:25:36,560 --> 00:25:39,800
Speaker 1: along the defensive line on a per play basis was

478
00:25:39,800 --> 00:25:42,720
Speaker 1: crazy productive. Just didn't get a lot of snaps because

479
00:25:42,720 --> 00:25:44,720
Speaker 1: he was buried in the depth chart at Ohio State.

480
00:25:45,520 --> 00:25:47,800
Speaker 1: So I like what they've got up front, even though

481
00:25:47,840 --> 00:25:51,080
Speaker 1: it's not as experienced. I think they're sound at linebacker.

482
00:25:51,560 --> 00:25:56,040
Speaker 1: I think they're really good in the secondary. Between Benjamin Harrison,

483
00:25:56,080 --> 00:25:59,680
Speaker 1: who probably gets some All American comparisons, Cam Hart, who's

484
00:25:59,720 --> 00:26:03,040
Speaker 1: a seat but figures to lock down, hopefully lockdown the

485
00:26:03,080 --> 00:26:06,600
Speaker 1: other side of things, maybe questions at safety. But my

486
00:26:06,680 --> 00:26:10,440
Speaker 1: other point of fascination, just broadly is what happens while

487
00:26:10,440 --> 00:26:12,399
Speaker 1: on the defensive line, because Notre Dame needs to get

488
00:26:12,440 --> 00:26:14,240
Speaker 1: a pass rush in order for this thing to work,

489
00:26:14,920 --> 00:26:16,600
Speaker 1: and there are some new names that I think are

490
00:26:16,600 --> 00:26:18,200
Speaker 1: going to try and establish that this season.

491
00:26:19,440 --> 00:26:23,080
Speaker 2: Okay, so who's catching balls, who's rushing the passer, who's catching.

492
00:26:22,760 --> 00:26:25,840
Speaker 1: Balls, who's rushing the passer? And the final thing I

493
00:26:25,880 --> 00:26:27,720
Speaker 1: will add here on Notre Dame, as I'm sure people

494
00:26:27,720 --> 00:26:30,919
Speaker 1: are tired of me waxing petic No.

495
00:26:31,200 --> 00:26:34,400
Speaker 2: Look, nobody knew the seventy seventh best player on Notre

496
00:26:34,480 --> 00:26:36,840
Speaker 2: Dame until you started this preview.

497
00:26:36,960 --> 00:26:39,280
Speaker 1: I know. The other thing that I will add is

498
00:26:39,320 --> 00:26:44,560
Speaker 1: that it is a fascinating schedule, because that's true. There

499
00:26:44,600 --> 00:26:48,920
Speaker 1: are three monster games in Ohio State Week four at home,

500
00:26:49,640 --> 00:26:52,960
Speaker 1: USC Week seven at home, and Clemson on the road

501
00:26:53,000 --> 00:26:56,879
Speaker 1: week ten. I will say the schedule looks harder now

502
00:26:57,280 --> 00:26:59,080
Speaker 1: than it did when we did our schedule preview way

503
00:26:59,080 --> 00:27:01,680
Speaker 1: back when, because as I've got a chance to dig

504
00:27:01,720 --> 00:27:04,800
Speaker 1: into some of these other teams now, it feels like

505
00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:07,040
Speaker 1: some of those filler teams that kind of make up

506
00:27:07,040 --> 00:27:11,000
Speaker 1: the schedule in between those big guns, I don't feel

507
00:27:11,720 --> 00:27:15,080
Speaker 1: as confident in those as wins as I did before.

508
00:27:15,320 --> 00:27:17,760
Speaker 1: Right Like, you can make a case that going to

509
00:27:17,840 --> 00:27:23,000
Speaker 1: NC State, going to Duke, going to Louisville, hosting pitt Louisville,

510
00:27:23,080 --> 00:27:26,040
Speaker 1: those are not easy games by any stretch, and we

511
00:27:26,080 --> 00:27:29,320
Speaker 1: can obviously talk more about those as we get closer

512
00:27:29,359 --> 00:27:31,879
Speaker 1: to each of those weeks. But it just feels like

513
00:27:31,920 --> 00:27:34,239
Speaker 1: each of those teams has something to prove and they

514
00:27:34,280 --> 00:27:38,080
Speaker 1: always get up for Notre Dame. Notre Dames over under

515
00:27:38,160 --> 00:27:40,760
Speaker 1: is nine. The over under is nine. I think that

516
00:27:40,840 --> 00:27:43,639
Speaker 1: is the perfect number. I think they could be a

517
00:27:43,680 --> 00:27:46,879
Speaker 1: top ten caliber team this season. They could easily lose

518
00:27:46,920 --> 00:27:50,320
Speaker 1: one of those Big three games. They could easily lose

519
00:27:50,560 --> 00:27:53,480
Speaker 1: all three. They could also lose to any of those

520
00:27:53,480 --> 00:27:58,040
Speaker 1: filler team quote unquote filler teams, NC State, Louisville Pitt.

521
00:27:58,280 --> 00:28:01,880
Speaker 1: Pitt always plays them tough. Notre Dame I think will

522
00:28:01,880 --> 00:28:05,359
Speaker 1: be judged by two things this season. First off, what

523
00:28:05,400 --> 00:28:08,479
Speaker 1: does Jared Parker do with Sam Hartman at quarterback? The

524
00:28:08,520 --> 00:28:10,720
Speaker 1: second is how many of those big three teams do

525
00:28:10,760 --> 00:28:13,600
Speaker 1: they beat? Because if Marcus Freeman comes out of that

526
00:28:13,640 --> 00:28:16,440
Speaker 1: stretch only beating one of the three, I think there

527
00:28:16,480 --> 00:28:18,360
Speaker 1: will be a fair amount of disappointment in the Notre

528
00:28:18,400 --> 00:28:20,960
Speaker 1: Dame community. Even if they go nine to three otherwise

529
00:28:21,560 --> 00:28:24,360
Speaker 1: or ten to two otherwise, they've got to beat more

530
00:28:24,359 --> 00:28:26,719
Speaker 1: than one of those big guns. I think for Marcus

531
00:28:26,720 --> 00:28:31,080
Speaker 1: Freeman to be fully entrenched in the Notre Dame community

532
00:28:31,119 --> 00:28:34,280
Speaker 1: and for Notre Dame fans to accept him as their

533
00:28:34,320 --> 00:28:38,120
Speaker 1: guy forever more, and that's a high bar. I think

534
00:28:38,160 --> 00:28:41,280
Speaker 1: they're good enough for it, I really do, but it

535
00:28:41,320 --> 00:28:42,320
Speaker 1: will not be a picnic.

536
00:28:42,760 --> 00:28:45,880
Speaker 2: It's also an interesting quarterback schedule for Notre Dame with

537
00:28:45,960 --> 00:28:48,960
Speaker 2: the teams you mentioned, and maybe the most interesting ty

538
00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:53,160
Speaker 2: you Glosston or filled your COVID in South Bend folks.

539
00:28:54,720 --> 00:28:58,040
Speaker 2: That's pretty good, right. So we've got Cave Club, Mickfilder, Covid,

540
00:28:58,080 --> 00:29:01,560
Speaker 2: Caleb Williams, Riley Leonard. It's a nice little stretch. Whatever

541
00:29:01,600 --> 00:29:05,240
Speaker 2: happens at Wake. Obviously Dave Clason has developed quarterbacks. Stanford

542
00:29:05,320 --> 00:29:08,360
Speaker 2: is probably going to be pretty easy considering where their

543
00:29:08,480 --> 00:29:12,760
Speaker 2: roster is at this moment. I don't know, man by

544
00:29:12,800 --> 00:29:16,840
Speaker 2: the way, it's worth glossing over, but I believe Central

545
00:29:16,840 --> 00:29:21,480
Speaker 2: Michigan has Burt a Manual. Is that his name, Burt

546
00:29:21,480 --> 00:29:24,920
Speaker 2: a Manual? The like he ran for like two hundred

547
00:29:24,960 --> 00:29:27,200
Speaker 2: and ninety yards in a game playing quarterback for Jim

548
00:29:27,240 --> 00:29:30,120
Speaker 2: mckaway and the Chips. I'm not saying it is a

549
00:29:30,160 --> 00:29:33,600
Speaker 2: sandwich moment. Notre Dame should cleanly win that game. But

550
00:29:33,760 --> 00:29:36,520
Speaker 2: in terms of the quarterbacks faced, Notre Dame's got a

551
00:29:36,600 --> 00:29:37,880
Speaker 2: roster ahead of them.

552
00:29:38,360 --> 00:29:41,200
Speaker 1: This is a schedule that's built for a playoff run.

553
00:29:41,960 --> 00:29:45,040
Speaker 1: It is built for a playoff run. They play a

554
00:29:45,040 --> 00:29:48,920
Speaker 1: fair amount of really big teams. Most of the teams

555
00:29:48,920 --> 00:29:52,760
Speaker 1: in between are Bowl teams, and so getting to nine

556
00:29:52,800 --> 00:29:55,320
Speaker 1: wins I think will be a challenge. I would like

557
00:29:55,360 --> 00:29:57,200
Speaker 1: to see Marcus Freeman win two of those three big

558
00:29:57,240 --> 00:29:59,920
Speaker 1: guys though, even if they're are losses otherwise, which would

559
00:29:59,920 --> 00:30:02,719
Speaker 1: be disappointing in their own right. But now set a

560
00:30:02,760 --> 00:30:04,720
Speaker 1: new high water mark with all the talent that he

561
00:30:04,800 --> 00:30:09,160
Speaker 1: has infused the program with. You got to get to him,

562
00:30:10,280 --> 00:30:11,000
Speaker 1: got to get to him.

563
00:30:11,040 --> 00:30:12,800
Speaker 2: I might, I might take the under.

564
00:30:13,360 --> 00:30:15,760
Speaker 1: I wouldn't bet the over. I wouldn't take. I wouldn't

565
00:30:15,760 --> 00:30:18,280
Speaker 1: take the over for Notre Dame. And I think I

566
00:30:18,800 --> 00:30:22,520
Speaker 1: think in grand total, because we only used half games,

567
00:30:22,960 --> 00:30:25,160
Speaker 1: I think it's eight and a half. I'd feel confident

568
00:30:25,160 --> 00:30:30,520
Speaker 1: with nine. I think nine's a good note, but I

569
00:30:30,520 --> 00:30:32,800
Speaker 1: don't know getting over nine. Getting two ten will be

570
00:30:32,840 --> 00:30:34,280
Speaker 1: tough with this schedule, it just will.

571
00:30:35,280 --> 00:30:39,760
Speaker 2: All right, fair enough, Where do you want to go next?

572
00:30:40,600 --> 00:30:44,600
Speaker 1: Let's talk about the Mountain West? Okay, I would love

573
00:30:44,640 --> 00:30:48,200
Speaker 1: to You made a comment earlier about the AAC being

574
00:30:48,240 --> 00:30:52,120
Speaker 1: the deepest group of five conference now in this new reality. Yeah,

575
00:30:52,160 --> 00:30:55,600
Speaker 1: and I'm curious as to why it's American and not

576
00:30:55,720 --> 00:30:58,400
Speaker 1: Mountain West because the American lost some big guns.

577
00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:01,920
Speaker 2: Yeah, So the Mountain West is two and a half

578
00:31:02,000 --> 00:31:05,840
Speaker 2: teams deep. The Mountain West is Boise State, Fresno State.

579
00:31:05,880 --> 00:31:08,000
Speaker 2: And we can have a conversation about air Force because

580
00:31:08,040 --> 00:31:11,640
Speaker 2: of their defense. Air Force has won a bunch of games.

581
00:31:11,680 --> 00:31:14,760
Speaker 2: They lose key dues on offense, including their quarterback. Last year,

582
00:31:14,800 --> 00:31:17,400
Speaker 2: they win a bowl game, an impressive bowl game. The

583
00:31:17,440 --> 00:31:21,520
Speaker 2: Falcons due last year at Boise State starts slow but finishes.

584
00:31:21,600 --> 00:31:25,320
Speaker 2: Taylor Green is a revelation at quarterback when he's healthy.

585
00:31:26,080 --> 00:31:29,600
Speaker 2: Fresno State is starting over in a number of places

586
00:31:29,600 --> 00:31:32,360
Speaker 2: on offense. You know, it's a Logan Fife Mikey Keane

587
00:31:32,440 --> 00:31:35,800
Speaker 2: battle at quarterback and Jeff Hedford certainly seems to have

588
00:31:35,840 --> 00:31:38,760
Speaker 2: an eye for coordinators, and they're starting over there on

589
00:31:38,840 --> 00:31:44,000
Speaker 2: offense after losing their offensive coordinator to I believe it's Maszoo.

590
00:31:44,600 --> 00:31:49,400
Speaker 2: But aside from Fresno and Boise right now, you're talking

591
00:31:49,400 --> 00:31:51,760
Speaker 2: about a Wyoming team that has been pretty decent on

592
00:31:51,840 --> 00:31:54,880
Speaker 2: defense but can't figure out offense. A Utah State team

593
00:31:54,920 --> 00:31:57,120
Speaker 2: that fell off a cliff last year after winning the

594
00:31:57,160 --> 00:32:01,200
Speaker 2: conference two years ago. UNLV starting over with Barry otom

595
00:32:01,480 --> 00:32:05,640
Speaker 2: and they actually took some nice strides under Marcus Arroyo

596
00:32:05,720 --> 00:32:08,160
Speaker 2: and recruited well enough. And they're going to be a

597
00:32:08,200 --> 00:32:12,040
Speaker 2: destination because obviously Las Vegas is a nice place to

598
00:32:12,160 --> 00:32:14,160
Speaker 2: end up as a transfer if you're looking for somewhere

599
00:32:14,160 --> 00:32:18,160
Speaker 2: warm and interesting. San Jose State has been inconsistent. Chavon

600
00:32:18,240 --> 00:32:21,960
Speaker 2: Cordero still there. Tie, Chavon Cordero is still a college

601
00:32:21,960 --> 00:32:24,480
Speaker 2: football player. He transferred from Hawaii a couple of years ago.

602
00:32:24,560 --> 00:32:25,120
Speaker 1: That's amazing.

603
00:32:25,480 --> 00:32:28,400
Speaker 2: San Diego State still can't figure out offense and took

604
00:32:28,400 --> 00:32:31,520
Speaker 2: a step back on defense last year. New Mexico was

605
00:32:31,800 --> 00:32:35,719
Speaker 2: catastrophically bad. They were the worst offense in America and

606
00:32:35,760 --> 00:32:39,520
Speaker 2: now start over ish because Rocky Long, their defensive coordinator,

607
00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:41,920
Speaker 2: former head coach, former head coach of San Diego State,

608
00:32:42,240 --> 00:32:45,000
Speaker 2: he moves over to Syracuse to take over that defense.

609
00:32:45,440 --> 00:32:45,640
Speaker 1: Now.

610
00:32:45,640 --> 00:32:48,400
Speaker 2: That is interesting to me because they've done a good

611
00:32:48,480 --> 00:32:51,320
Speaker 2: job in the portal. Ken Wilson was there forever was

612
00:32:51,320 --> 00:32:55,040
Speaker 2: at Oregon for a few years coaching linebackers under Mario Christobal,

613
00:32:55,080 --> 00:32:58,000
Speaker 2: and he's brought some Oregon players there. Their roster was

614
00:32:58,000 --> 00:33:00,360
Speaker 2: a nightmare last year because of how many players left

615
00:33:00,400 --> 00:33:03,240
Speaker 2: for Colorado State with Jay Norvel. But Nevada is at

616
00:33:03,320 --> 00:33:06,400
Speaker 2: least interesting. I think they can take some steps forward

617
00:33:06,440 --> 00:33:09,520
Speaker 2: on offense. Hawaii has a ways to go on both

618
00:33:09,560 --> 00:33:12,120
Speaker 2: sides of the ball, especially on defense with Timmy Chang

619
00:33:13,160 --> 00:33:16,760
Speaker 2: Fresno I mentioned, and look, they've won some big games.

620
00:33:16,880 --> 00:33:20,240
Speaker 2: This was a team that after Jake Hayner got healthy

621
00:33:20,360 --> 00:33:23,600
Speaker 2: last year, just started running through the Mountain West. It

622
00:33:23,680 --> 00:33:27,160
Speaker 2: was great to see, but especially at skill positions. This year,

623
00:33:27,280 --> 00:33:28,960
Speaker 2: there's a lot of work to be done, a lot

624
00:33:28,960 --> 00:33:33,280
Speaker 2: of new faces. Colorado State has a ways to go.

625
00:33:33,760 --> 00:33:38,280
Speaker 2: They just do under Jane Norvel. They were just catastrophically

626
00:33:38,280 --> 00:33:40,400
Speaker 2: bad at times last year and the roster was and

627
00:33:40,440 --> 00:33:42,440
Speaker 2: I use that term again, but the roster was in

628
00:33:42,480 --> 00:33:45,400
Speaker 2: a rough shape. And then Boise State. Boise State has

629
00:33:45,440 --> 00:33:47,760
Speaker 2: a lot to a lot of new faces on defense,

630
00:33:47,800 --> 00:33:49,520
Speaker 2: but there's still a little bit of star power on

631
00:33:49,600 --> 00:33:52,480
Speaker 2: defense and offensively, they should be in a very good

632
00:33:52,520 --> 00:33:55,560
Speaker 2: place with Taylor Green getting that full off season as

633
00:33:55,600 --> 00:33:58,880
Speaker 2: the incumbent starter at quarterback. And the only thing, the

634
00:33:58,880 --> 00:34:00,800
Speaker 2: only issue with Boise State and being high on the

635
00:34:00,840 --> 00:34:04,960
Speaker 2: Broncos is their schedule is rough and I don't even

636
00:34:05,000 --> 00:34:07,160
Speaker 2: like the Mountain West all that much. Top to bottom.

637
00:34:07,480 --> 00:34:10,919
Speaker 2: They open at Washington, they host UCF, and then they're

638
00:34:10,960 --> 00:34:14,880
Speaker 2: at San Diego State at Memphis all in September. So

639
00:34:15,400 --> 00:34:18,480
Speaker 2: in the sage wise words of ty hildeen Rand, the

640
00:34:18,520 --> 00:34:20,120
Speaker 2: way that Ty hilden Brant looks at the sport, You're

641
00:34:20,120 --> 00:34:23,720
Speaker 2: gonna know a lot about Boise after September. It gets

642
00:34:23,920 --> 00:34:27,160
Speaker 2: better from there, thank you. But it's still at Fresno

643
00:34:27,360 --> 00:34:30,600
Speaker 2: and finishing against air Force. So it's at Fresno in

644
00:34:30,640 --> 00:34:33,840
Speaker 2: early November and then finishing against air Force in Boise.

645
00:34:34,080 --> 00:34:38,319
Speaker 2: So it's a schedule full of land mines, if not

646
00:34:38,520 --> 00:34:40,840
Speaker 2: good teams because of what their September looks like with

647
00:34:40,920 --> 00:34:44,640
Speaker 2: Memphis UCF and Washington Washington in Seattle and then traveling

648
00:34:44,680 --> 00:34:46,759
Speaker 2: to San Diego State, which I think is fine. San

649
00:34:46,760 --> 00:34:49,239
Speaker 2: Diego State is fine. I just don't think they are

650
00:34:49,239 --> 00:34:51,960
Speaker 2: fielding the defense that they did three four years ago

651
00:34:52,200 --> 00:34:55,600
Speaker 2: and certainly not featuring a running back on the level

652
00:34:55,680 --> 00:34:59,879
Speaker 2: of you know, Sharpenny or Donelle Pumfrey, guys like that

653
00:35:00,000 --> 00:35:02,799
Speaker 2: in the past ten twelve years. So there's not a

654
00:35:02,840 --> 00:35:05,640
Speaker 2: lot of identity to San Diego State with Brady Hoke,

655
00:35:05,800 --> 00:35:08,480
Speaker 2: you know, in his second term as Aztec head coach.

656
00:35:09,520 --> 00:35:13,400
Speaker 2: So if Boise State can weather that's schedule and Fresno

657
00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:16,080
Speaker 2: State can develop dudes on offense, which is not like

658
00:35:16,320 --> 00:35:19,640
Speaker 2: a difficult thing to foresee. With Jeff Tedford, I think

659
00:35:19,680 --> 00:35:22,080
Speaker 2: we can get a repeat of the Mountain West championship game.

660
00:35:22,280 --> 00:35:25,040
Speaker 2: There's just a it's a conference full of half teams,

661
00:35:25,080 --> 00:35:26,440
Speaker 2: which you can say about a lot of group of

662
00:35:26,440 --> 00:35:29,080
Speaker 2: five conferences that it's tough to build a complete team

663
00:35:28,800 --> 00:35:32,040
Speaker 2: with a group of five roster. But no, I think

664
00:35:32,080 --> 00:35:35,360
Speaker 2: the Mountain West will likely look a lot like it

665
00:35:35,440 --> 00:35:38,319
Speaker 2: looked last season. So that's where I am with the

666
00:35:38,320 --> 00:35:39,400
Speaker 2: Mountain West in this moment.

667
00:35:39,719 --> 00:35:45,680
Speaker 1: Repeat for me. Boise's September slate at Washington UCF they

668
00:35:45,680 --> 00:35:50,240
Speaker 1: play against North Dakota, at San Diego State, at Memphis. Wow,

669
00:35:50,600 --> 00:35:52,799
Speaker 1: they're kind of like the Boise State Seminoles in that

670
00:35:52,800 --> 00:35:54,759
Speaker 1: they've got a schedule that's very top here or very

671
00:35:54,760 --> 00:35:56,000
Speaker 1: front loaded. Not top heavy.

672
00:35:56,200 --> 00:35:58,440
Speaker 2: Yes, it is a front loaded it's sort of like

673
00:35:58,440 --> 00:36:01,279
Speaker 2: a traditional Kent State schedule. Well if you remember those

674
00:36:01,880 --> 00:36:04,719
Speaker 2: Kent State schedules were like, oh, they're playing Georgia, Washington,

675
00:36:04,960 --> 00:36:10,239
Speaker 2: and Oklahoma. Cool to start the year. But yeah, I

676
00:36:10,280 --> 00:36:12,560
Speaker 2: think I think boys say I think Andy Avlos should

677
00:36:12,600 --> 00:36:14,839
Speaker 2: be given sort of the benefit of the doubt with defenses.

678
00:36:14,880 --> 00:36:17,880
Speaker 2: He's super creative in the way that he you know,

679
00:36:18,160 --> 00:36:20,880
Speaker 2: has uneven fronts and bunches dudes up. He's very good

680
00:36:20,920 --> 00:36:23,880
Speaker 2: at confusing quarterbacks, and so even with new faces, I

681
00:36:23,880 --> 00:36:26,920
Speaker 2: think they should be put in a position to succeed

682
00:36:27,000 --> 00:36:27,720
Speaker 2: pretty quickly.

683
00:36:29,360 --> 00:36:33,000
Speaker 1: I'm curious about Boise, I am yeah. I feel like

684
00:36:33,120 --> 00:36:35,440
Speaker 1: it took them a bit to figure out what they

685
00:36:35,520 --> 00:36:37,959
Speaker 1: wanted their offense to be last season. But once they did,

686
00:36:38,680 --> 00:36:42,400
Speaker 1: and once it was more of a dual threat version

687
00:36:42,440 --> 00:36:45,400
Speaker 1: of what they were running before. Once sort of they

688
00:36:45,400 --> 00:36:47,400
Speaker 1: found their quarterback and realized it wasn't going to be

689
00:36:47,400 --> 00:36:50,840
Speaker 1: Hank Bachmeyer. It feels like they got better, and I

690
00:36:51,800 --> 00:36:55,600
Speaker 1: think share your optimism around Andy Avolo's. So we agree,

691
00:36:57,040 --> 00:36:57,319
Speaker 1: all right.

692
00:36:57,360 --> 00:36:59,320
Speaker 2: There's only by the way, in terms of the American

693
00:36:59,440 --> 00:37:04,120
Speaker 2: and Mountain only, Tulane is in the Coach's poll, checking

694
00:37:04,120 --> 00:37:10,200
Speaker 2: in at number twenty three. UTSA is somewhere like twenty nine.

695
00:37:10,239 --> 00:37:11,920
Speaker 2: Troy is in there. I'm sure we're going to get

696
00:37:11,920 --> 00:37:14,319
Speaker 2: to Troy at some point. Fresno State is in like

697
00:37:14,400 --> 00:37:17,640
Speaker 2: the thirties, Boise State in the thirties. So Boise and Fresno,

698
00:37:17,719 --> 00:37:20,520
Speaker 2: at least in the coaches poll, are the clear one

699
00:37:20,560 --> 00:37:22,640
Speaker 2: to two of the Mountain West in this moment.

700
00:37:23,520 --> 00:37:26,080
Speaker 1: Let's go to the Sun Belt. Then let's do it.

701
00:37:26,120 --> 00:37:30,480
Speaker 1: I'd love to talk sun Belt because quietly, the Sun

702
00:37:30,520 --> 00:37:34,560
Speaker 1: Belt is sort of amassing a very very interesting roster

703
00:37:34,640 --> 00:37:37,920
Speaker 1: of teams. And yes, I don't know if it is

704
00:37:38,160 --> 00:37:40,560
Speaker 1: quite to the point. I know it isn't to the

705
00:37:40,560 --> 00:37:45,480
Speaker 1: point yet where it is not a conference of extreme

706
00:37:45,520 --> 00:37:49,640
Speaker 1: half teams. It's not there yet. Still mostly the case.

707
00:37:50,760 --> 00:37:55,040
Speaker 1: But as Bill Connolly points out in his preview that

708
00:37:55,040 --> 00:37:58,080
Speaker 1: he put together for the Fun Belt, quote, I don't

709
00:37:58,160 --> 00:38:04,040
Speaker 1: ever want to touch the Sun Belt. It's perfect, geographically,

710
00:38:04,080 --> 00:38:07,600
Speaker 1: sensible and competitive. At least three of its current members

711
00:38:07,600 --> 00:38:10,680
Speaker 1: have finished in the SP plus top seventy five for

712
00:38:10,760 --> 00:38:13,759
Speaker 1: five straight years. I think he is speaking more specifically

713
00:38:13,760 --> 00:38:16,160
Speaker 1: about the sun Belt East, but I will broaden it

714
00:38:16,239 --> 00:38:18,520
Speaker 1: to the Sun Belt as a whole, because there's a

715
00:38:18,560 --> 00:38:20,680
Speaker 1: reason we call it the Fun Belt. It is a

716
00:38:20,680 --> 00:38:24,960
Speaker 1: fun conference and it makes for fun football. Last season,

717
00:38:25,000 --> 00:38:28,920
Speaker 1: it was Troy over Coastal in the championship game forty

718
00:38:28,920 --> 00:38:32,800
Speaker 1: five to twenty six. If you believe the preseason media polls.

719
00:38:32,880 --> 00:38:36,280
Speaker 1: That's the thing that you're into. They've got James Madison

720
00:38:36,680 --> 00:38:41,400
Speaker 1: JMU against Troy in the title game. Oh, the East Division,

721
00:38:41,440 --> 00:38:44,640
Speaker 1: it's sort of like the Baby Big Ten. The East

722
00:38:44,640 --> 00:38:50,759
Speaker 1: Division is way more competitive than the West. And you know,

723
00:38:51,239 --> 00:38:54,239
Speaker 1: in total, maybe six teams that we could have a

724
00:38:54,280 --> 00:38:57,840
Speaker 1: conversation about them potentially getting into that title game winning

725
00:38:57,840 --> 00:39:02,319
Speaker 1: their respective division. But it's just fun football. It's fun football. Man.

726
00:39:02,360 --> 00:39:05,759
Speaker 1: Here's one for you. There are fourteen teams in this

727
00:39:05,840 --> 00:39:10,399
Speaker 1: damn conference. Only one coach is new, only one new

728
00:39:10,440 --> 00:39:13,880
Speaker 1: coach that yeah, they're all back. The new coach is

729
00:39:13,920 --> 00:39:17,959
Speaker 1: your boy, Tim Beck. Tim Beck's back, Dan, my guy.

730
00:39:18,320 --> 00:39:22,800
Speaker 2: Yeah, get lift arm or speak.

731
00:39:24,239 --> 00:39:26,440
Speaker 1: Want a related note. I will not be picking Coastal

732
00:39:26,480 --> 00:39:28,600
Speaker 1: because tim Beck is the higher there. We can get

733
00:39:28,640 --> 00:39:35,280
Speaker 1: into that momentarily. Another one, let's call out Georgia Southern.

734
00:39:36,280 --> 00:39:40,640
Speaker 1: You know who coached Georgia Southern. I do, Clay Helton right,

735
00:39:41,640 --> 00:39:46,400
Speaker 1: of course. Last season Clay Helton transitioned away from a

736
00:39:46,520 --> 00:39:50,600
Speaker 1: team that was running the option, and y'all know how

737
00:39:50,640 --> 00:39:51,200
Speaker 1: that works.

738
00:39:51,880 --> 00:39:53,560
Speaker 2: Oh look at that thrown in a yall.

739
00:39:54,120 --> 00:39:56,040
Speaker 1: Sometimes the kind of thing that goes a little bit

740
00:39:56,080 --> 00:39:57,840
Speaker 1: sideways when you try to move away from the option.

741
00:39:58,680 --> 00:40:03,759
Speaker 1: But Clay Helton hit Portal very hard. He essentially contracted

742
00:40:03,800 --> 00:40:07,240
Speaker 1: out a passing game. We talked about Kyle Van Trees

743
00:40:07,320 --> 00:40:09,640
Speaker 1: or Van Treaesan as we refer to it last season

744
00:40:09,640 --> 00:40:13,680
Speaker 1: a little bit. Wow. Yeah, they jumped eighty spots in

745
00:40:13,760 --> 00:40:16,479
Speaker 1: the sp plus on offense and they ended up making

746
00:40:16,520 --> 00:40:19,600
Speaker 1: a bowl game, So good on him. He again went

747
00:40:19,719 --> 00:40:22,160
Speaker 1: very hard at the portal this offseason. For what it's worth,

748
00:40:22,200 --> 00:40:23,880
Speaker 1: I think the defense could be in trouble, but the

749
00:40:23,920 --> 00:40:26,239
Speaker 1: offense may be fun. The defense is still going to

750
00:40:26,280 --> 00:40:29,319
Speaker 1: be kind of fun for Georgia Southern. So outside of

751
00:40:29,320 --> 00:40:32,960
Speaker 1: those two, JMU is in a really good spot. JMU

752
00:40:34,120 --> 00:40:37,920
Speaker 1: was a first time FBS competitor last season and they

753
00:40:37,920 --> 00:40:39,680
Speaker 1: were good enough to make a bowl game. They didn't,

754
00:40:39,680 --> 00:40:44,160
Speaker 1: but that's for other conversations about the NCAA and how

755
00:40:44,160 --> 00:40:49,040
Speaker 1: they work. But JMU is I think this season going

756
00:40:49,080 --> 00:40:52,279
Speaker 1: to be a story about good lines and defense. One

757
00:40:52,280 --> 00:40:54,040
Speaker 1: of the few group of five teams that we talked

758
00:40:54,040 --> 00:40:58,960
Speaker 1: about perhaps that is going to be having defense as

759
00:40:58,960 --> 00:41:01,560
Speaker 1: a strength, which is not a commonality. That's not to

760
00:41:01,560 --> 00:41:03,120
Speaker 1: say they're gonna be like top fifty. I don't think

761
00:41:03,120 --> 00:41:05,960
Speaker 1: they'll be that good. But lines in defense for JMU

762
00:41:06,000 --> 00:41:11,160
Speaker 1: will take them places in the sun Belt. Marshall is look,

763
00:41:11,400 --> 00:41:14,520
Speaker 1: I mean, Marshall beaton Notre Dame last year. Marshall beaton

764
00:41:14,520 --> 00:41:17,760
Speaker 1: Notre Dame last season. I like the way that Marshall

765
00:41:17,880 --> 00:41:19,680
Speaker 1: is built. The problem is that they got to replace

766
00:41:19,719 --> 00:41:22,520
Speaker 1: the three best players this year, and so that'll be

767
00:41:22,520 --> 00:41:25,440
Speaker 1: interesting to see how they fill in those gaps. They

768
00:41:25,480 --> 00:41:29,680
Speaker 1: again were working the portal Coastal Carolina lost its coach

769
00:41:29,719 --> 00:41:33,399
Speaker 1: in Jamie Chadwell to Liberty. Liberty, by the way, now

770
00:41:33,480 --> 00:41:37,000
Speaker 1: in a conference we can talk about them momentarily. Grace

771
00:41:37,120 --> 00:41:39,800
Speaker 1: McCall is still back, coming back for another tour of duty.

772
00:41:39,880 --> 00:41:43,239
Speaker 1: On offense, I think the defense could be catastrophically bad,

773
00:41:43,640 --> 00:41:45,680
Speaker 1: just saying it could be really bad.

774
00:41:45,960 --> 00:41:47,000
Speaker 2: I love this term.

775
00:41:47,120 --> 00:41:50,239
Speaker 1: Yeah, just not getting great vibes about the defense, but

776
00:41:50,280 --> 00:41:52,759
Speaker 1: offensively will be fun. I don't know what the tim

777
00:41:52,800 --> 00:41:56,440
Speaker 1: Beck version of the offense looks like, and I know

778
00:41:56,520 --> 00:42:00,720
Speaker 1: when I read Bill's preview he was probably more artful

779
00:42:00,719 --> 00:42:03,040
Speaker 1: in how he described the Timback system than you and

780
00:42:03,080 --> 00:42:06,080
Speaker 1: I would have been. He tends to describe it more

781
00:42:06,080 --> 00:42:09,759
Speaker 1: as Tim Beck wants to throw short as often as

782
00:42:09,800 --> 00:42:13,279
Speaker 1: he can and get away with it, which does not

783
00:42:13,400 --> 00:42:20,000
Speaker 1: strike me as the pyrotechnic multivariant version that Jamie Chadwell

784
00:42:20,080 --> 00:42:22,120
Speaker 1: liked to run, where he kind of ran all the systems,

785
00:42:22,160 --> 00:42:24,839
Speaker 1: and one that is not the tim Back system, so

786
00:42:24,960 --> 00:42:26,959
Speaker 1: I hope the system does not take a step back.

787
00:42:27,080 --> 00:42:29,520
Speaker 1: And Bill was quick to point out that when tim

788
00:42:29,560 --> 00:42:31,759
Speaker 1: back has a quarterback, generally he does pretty well. I

789
00:42:31,760 --> 00:42:34,000
Speaker 1: think he's got one with Grayce and McCall, but I

790
00:42:34,000 --> 00:42:35,839
Speaker 1: don't know if Grayson McCall will do well in this

791
00:42:36,000 --> 00:42:37,880
Speaker 1: in this new system. We'll just have to wait and see.

792
00:42:38,440 --> 00:42:40,719
Speaker 1: On the app State side of things, Dan, I'd love

793
00:42:40,760 --> 00:42:44,680
Speaker 1: to know who's playing quarterback, whether it's whether it's Ryan Berger,

794
00:42:45,200 --> 00:42:48,759
Speaker 1: whether it's Joey Aguiar. That that to me, will be

795
00:42:48,880 --> 00:42:54,320
Speaker 1: kind of an open question. Georgia State's got Darren Granger

796
00:42:54,360 --> 00:42:59,839
Speaker 1: back at quarterback. Dude who just loves to scramble. He's

797
00:42:59,840 --> 00:43:01,799
Speaker 1: a point of fascination for me. I love dudes that

798
00:43:01,920 --> 00:43:03,520
Speaker 1: just scramble. That's all they do.

799
00:43:03,719 --> 00:43:08,320
Speaker 2: You're just fascinated by dudes. Okay, settle old dominion.

800
00:43:08,480 --> 00:43:12,359
Speaker 1: I like Jason Henderson, their winebacker who led the nation

801
00:43:12,440 --> 00:43:15,080
Speaker 1: in tackles with one hundred and sixty four tackles.

802
00:43:15,719 --> 00:43:16,920
Speaker 2: I love tackling machines.

803
00:43:17,000 --> 00:43:20,920
Speaker 1: Yep Odiu and Ricky Ronnie took the approach of not

804
00:43:21,080 --> 00:43:23,920
Speaker 1: working the portal at all, kind of going with what

805
00:43:24,000 --> 00:43:28,040
Speaker 1: they had, which I guess we'll find out how we

806
00:43:28,040 --> 00:43:31,520
Speaker 1: feel about the ODEU recruiting department beyond that, like as

807
00:43:31,560 --> 00:43:34,600
Speaker 1: we shift our focus to the West. As I said,

808
00:43:34,640 --> 00:43:37,080
Speaker 1: the West, I don't feel is as competitive as the East.

809
00:43:37,400 --> 00:43:39,919
Speaker 1: It's a two horse race. It's a two horse race

810
00:43:39,960 --> 00:43:43,720
Speaker 1: between between Troy and South Alabama. Troy has more guys

811
00:43:43,760 --> 00:43:46,360
Speaker 1: to replace, but I think a better schedule and probably

812
00:43:46,400 --> 00:43:49,320
Speaker 1: a better defense. South Alabama has a dude named Yam

813
00:43:50,080 --> 00:43:54,080
Speaker 1: Yam Banks in the secondary, which was that one who

814
00:43:54,120 --> 00:43:56,120
Speaker 1: doesn't love a good yam. I mean, let's be real

815
00:43:57,080 --> 00:44:00,399
Speaker 1: out on Louisiana here, they kind of bottomed out last

816
00:44:00,400 --> 00:44:04,400
Speaker 1: season on offense, and there's no immediate path that I

817
00:44:04,480 --> 00:44:06,719
Speaker 1: see for them to fix it in the short term.

818
00:44:07,120 --> 00:44:09,480
Speaker 1: Some dings here if we just go through rapid fire

819
00:44:09,640 --> 00:44:12,560
Speaker 1: other teams in the conference, Southern miss still is Frank

820
00:44:12,600 --> 00:44:15,959
Speaker 1: gor Junior. That makes me feel That makes you feel

821
00:44:16,080 --> 00:44:19,160
Speaker 1: very old. Yeah, and he's not new, he's not real,

822
00:44:19,200 --> 00:44:22,399
Speaker 1: but they still have him. He's getting older, which means

823
00:44:22,400 --> 00:44:24,920
Speaker 1: we're getting older, and I don't like the way that

824
00:44:24,920 --> 00:44:28,399
Speaker 1: that feels. Okay, both now in our fifth decade of life,

825
00:44:28,440 --> 00:44:30,680
Speaker 1: but Frank Gore Junior is at least a point of

826
00:44:30,680 --> 00:44:34,800
Speaker 1: intrigue on offense. Defense was great last year under Austin Armstrong.

827
00:44:34,880 --> 00:44:37,480
Speaker 1: Now the Florida defensive coordinator right had a cup of

828
00:44:37,560 --> 00:44:41,400
Speaker 1: coffee elsewhere. Now he comes to Florida as well, But

829
00:44:42,080 --> 00:44:46,759
Speaker 1: Southern miss defense took a step forward. Texas State is

830
00:44:46,880 --> 00:44:54,799
Speaker 1: also very interesting. Texas State is doing the transplant thing

831
00:44:55,160 --> 00:44:57,400
Speaker 1: that Western Kentucky did a couple of years ago. You

832
00:44:57,440 --> 00:45:00,960
Speaker 1: remember that when they kind of contracted out everybody from

833
00:45:01,040 --> 00:45:05,120
Speaker 1: what was it Houston Baptist. That was how they met

834
00:45:05,160 --> 00:45:11,480
Speaker 1: Bailey Zappy, And they're kind of doing something like that here. GJ.

835
00:45:11,960 --> 00:45:15,600
Speaker 1: Kinney is the new coach. He comes over from Incarnate Word.

836
00:45:16,160 --> 00:45:18,560
Speaker 1: He brought his coordinators and a bunch of guys with them.

837
00:45:19,120 --> 00:45:21,880
Speaker 1: So the question that I think a lot of folks

838
00:45:21,920 --> 00:45:25,239
Speaker 1: have is, Okay, if we transfer like we saw cam

839
00:45:25,400 --> 00:45:30,520
Speaker 1: Ward come over from Incarnate Word to Washington State last season,

840
00:45:30,800 --> 00:45:33,920
Speaker 1: what happens if we take all the guys? What happens

841
00:45:33,920 --> 00:45:36,160
Speaker 1: if we take all the guys, bring them over, put

842
00:45:36,200 --> 00:45:38,520
Speaker 1: them into a power or I almost did it again

843
00:45:38,520 --> 00:45:42,920
Speaker 1: a group of five conference? What happens? Texas State is

844
00:45:42,960 --> 00:45:45,480
Speaker 1: nothing if not intriguing. Also a very underrated logo. If

845
00:45:45,480 --> 00:45:46,960
Speaker 1: you've not seen it recently.

846
00:45:47,280 --> 00:45:47,760
Speaker 2: Of course.

847
00:45:48,719 --> 00:45:50,839
Speaker 1: And finally, just to kind of close things out, we've

848
00:45:50,840 --> 00:45:54,480
Speaker 1: got another point of intrigue with Arkansas State and ULM.

849
00:45:54,520 --> 00:45:56,319
Speaker 1: We've got two coaches that you know if we've got

850
00:45:56,320 --> 00:46:01,400
Speaker 1: Butch Davis, Butch Jones excuse me, running Arkansas State, and

851
00:46:01,400 --> 00:46:05,560
Speaker 1: we've got Terry Bowden running the Warhawks of ULM. Arkansas

852
00:46:05,600 --> 00:46:09,240
Speaker 1: State loses its entire offense. Good they might be giving

853
00:46:09,239 --> 00:46:12,120
Speaker 1: the ball to J. T. Shrout you remember him from Colorado.

854
00:46:12,160 --> 00:46:14,640
Speaker 2: Of course in Tennessee.

855
00:46:15,200 --> 00:46:17,920
Speaker 1: ULM I think could also still be very bad. It

856
00:46:18,400 --> 00:46:22,319
Speaker 1: is very much a difficult project for Terry Bowden. But

857
00:46:22,360 --> 00:46:27,480
Speaker 1: they've got Tyrone Howell out wide, who's an elite six' two,

858
00:46:27,640 --> 00:46:32,399
Speaker 1: framed deep ball type of receiver who at least makes things.

859
00:46:32,400 --> 00:46:35,520
Speaker 2: Interesting The South alabama story is, great What Caine wamack

860
00:46:35,560 --> 00:46:37,879
Speaker 2: has done. There, obviously you remember them being super close

861
00:46:37,880 --> 00:46:40,880
Speaker 2: AGAINST ucla last. YEAR i want to say their offensive

862
00:46:40,880 --> 00:46:46,280
Speaker 2: coordinator Is major Apple, white so well, Traveled major Apple,

863
00:46:46,280 --> 00:46:50,640
Speaker 2: White Georgia southern from The. East i'm just trying to

864
00:46:50,680 --> 00:46:53,320
Speaker 2: remember things that fascinated me about any of these, teams

865
00:46:54,520 --> 00:46:58,279
Speaker 2: possibly probably responsible For Scott frost getting fired when he,

866
00:46:58,480 --> 00:47:01,719
Speaker 2: was because you lose at home To Georgia southern first

867
00:47:01,800 --> 00:47:04,120
Speaker 2: year head Coach Clay, helton it's probably not going to

868
00:47:04,200 --> 00:47:10,680
Speaker 2: get demonstrably. Better, no and it. Didn't Willie fritz gets

869
00:47:10,840 --> 00:47:14,040
Speaker 2: very excited About Sun belt defensive coordinators to the tune

870
00:47:14,080 --> 00:47:17,399
Speaker 2: of hiring two of them having one of them taken from,

871
00:47:17,480 --> 00:47:20,759
Speaker 2: him With miami Hiring Lance gidrie Away Lance geddree From,

872
00:47:20,800 --> 00:47:24,360
Speaker 2: marshall and THEN i think it Was tulane Hiring troy's

873
00:47:24,960 --> 00:47:30,359
Speaker 2: defensive coordinator to replace the short Tenured Lance. Gidrey App

874
00:47:30,360 --> 00:47:34,680
Speaker 2: state lost its offensive, coordinator did they. Not then we

875
00:47:34,840 --> 00:47:38,960
Speaker 2: have Future virginia head Coach Kurt signetti At James madison

876
00:47:39,160 --> 00:47:42,319
Speaker 2: looking to win eight nine games a, year because if

877
00:47:42,360 --> 00:47:44,880
Speaker 2: you do, that you're probably gonna get hired away with

878
00:47:45,160 --> 00:47:47,400
Speaker 2: THE fbs. Team, yeah THE.

879
00:47:47,719 --> 00:47:52,120
Speaker 1: Jmu story did not get Enough love's, great it did

880
00:47:52,160 --> 00:47:54,640
Speaker 1: not get enough. Love it was. There we, Tried we,

881
00:47:54,719 --> 00:47:58,080
Speaker 1: tried AND i suspect many other podcasts tried as. Well

882
00:47:58,840 --> 00:48:03,960
Speaker 1: but in the national media churn in college, FOOTBALL. Jm you,

883
00:48:05,239 --> 00:48:08,440
Speaker 1: again they just got, Here, Dan they just got TO

884
00:48:08,560 --> 00:48:11,480
Speaker 1: fbs and they were good enough to be in a.

885
00:48:11,480 --> 00:48:13,480
Speaker 1: BOWL i, mean they were a really good team last,

886
00:48:13,560 --> 00:48:16,600
Speaker 1: year And Todd santio is gone, Right they're gonna they're

887
00:48:16,600 --> 00:48:19,640
Speaker 1: gonna have some replacing to do at, quarterback and but

888
00:48:19,800 --> 00:48:22,759
Speaker 1: they're really sound along the. Lines and if you're going

889
00:48:22,800 --> 00:48:25,719
Speaker 1: to be sound, anywhere it doesn't matter what level that's

890
00:48:25,760 --> 00:48:26,719
Speaker 1: that's a pretty good place to.

891
00:48:26,760 --> 00:48:30,360
Speaker 2: START i, agree And, MARSHALL i, MEAN i like to

892
00:48:30,480 --> 00:48:32,920
Speaker 2: joke about, them but, look If Charles huff keeps, Winning

893
00:48:33,160 --> 00:48:36,600
Speaker 2: Charles huff will keep climbing the coaching ladder as. Well,

894
00:48:37,160 --> 00:48:39,759
Speaker 2: uh he was super well regarded during his time At,

895
00:48:39,800 --> 00:48:42,120
Speaker 2: alabama AND i Believe Penn. STATE i want to say

896
00:48:42,160 --> 00:48:46,279
Speaker 2: he was At Penn. State so, No sunbelt's. Fascinating you're

897
00:48:46,320 --> 00:48:49,319
Speaker 2: right that The east is just a mess and must SEE.

898
00:48:49,360 --> 00:48:52,880
Speaker 1: Tv why don't you close out your side of things

899
00:48:52,920 --> 00:48:55,280
Speaker 1: with The mac dan your favorite. Conference you love Picking

900
00:48:55,320 --> 00:48:57,520
Speaker 1: mac teams In bowl. GAMES i.

901
00:48:57,600 --> 00:49:02,080
Speaker 2: DO i love picking Against mac, teams AND i was

902
00:49:02,120 --> 00:49:03,960
Speaker 2: wrong this year more THAN i THOUGHT i would. Be

903
00:49:05,400 --> 00:49:07,759
Speaker 2: The mac is SOMETHING i don't know what it. Is

904
00:49:07,800 --> 00:49:10,080
Speaker 2: i'm rooting For akron just BECAUSE i Like joe moorehead,

905
00:49:10,120 --> 00:49:13,000
Speaker 2: teams and so they improved last. Year they were not

906
00:49:13,160 --> 00:49:15,360
Speaker 2: very good last, year but they did Improve over the

907
00:49:15,400 --> 00:49:17,800
Speaker 2: course of the, year the story with The mac continues

908
00:49:17,840 --> 00:49:22,040
Speaker 2: to be What Toledo takwan finn is, back playmaking quarterback

909
00:49:22,040 --> 00:49:25,040
Speaker 2: and they've won a bunch of. Games Western michigan starts.

910
00:49:25,080 --> 00:49:28,560
Speaker 2: Over they Fired Tim lester and they went from being

911
00:49:28,719 --> 00:49:32,279
Speaker 2: really interesting UNDER. Pj fleck and game day was. There

912
00:49:32,600 --> 00:49:35,479
Speaker 2: offense completely fell off a, Cliff so they're starting. OVER

913
00:49:36,000 --> 00:49:40,719
Speaker 2: niu returns ready for a name Tie Rocky. Lombardi Wow

914
00:49:41,880 --> 00:49:45,319
Speaker 2: class of twenty. Seventeen, yeah he got hurt last year

915
00:49:45,320 --> 00:49:47,120
Speaker 2: AND i think he got an injury, waiver so he

916
00:49:47,239 --> 00:49:52,000
Speaker 2: enters his seventh year of college Football Rocky lombardi and

917
00:49:52,000 --> 00:49:52,600
Speaker 2: The Ottoman dell.

918
00:49:52,680 --> 00:49:53,520
Speaker 1: Plan that's.

919
00:49:53,600 --> 00:49:55,719
Speaker 2: True twenty twenty one was very good FOR, niu though

920
00:49:55,760 --> 00:49:58,640
Speaker 2: he had some good. Games Eastern michigan continues to be

921
00:49:59,200 --> 00:50:02,360
Speaker 2: dangerous and good and so good For Chris creighton in

922
00:50:02,440 --> 00:50:05,120
Speaker 2: the job he's done in Ipsil. ANTE i Mentioned Bert

923
00:50:05,320 --> 00:50:08,920
Speaker 2: bert Am manuel At Central michigan and The, chips AND

924
00:50:09,640 --> 00:50:11,560
Speaker 2: i don't think he's going to be throwing it thirty

925
00:50:11,560 --> 00:50:14,680
Speaker 2: times a, game but he is a ridiculous runner and

926
00:50:14,719 --> 00:50:17,840
Speaker 2: so Hopefully jim macklewain and his staff can develop him

927
00:50:18,000 --> 00:50:21,480
Speaker 2: him Because Central michigan has been Down miami Of ohio

928
00:50:21,680 --> 00:50:25,000
Speaker 2: in The. East Chuck martin does nothing but field pretty good.

929
00:50:25,040 --> 00:50:28,680
Speaker 2: Defenses Brian, kelly Guy Ty Chuck. Martin, yeah they were

930
00:50:28,680 --> 00:50:32,000
Speaker 2: together for a little time together for a long. Time

931
00:50:32,160 --> 00:50:34,759
Speaker 2: has been a solid coach is probably AND i was

932
00:50:34,800 --> 00:50:38,239
Speaker 2: Reading Bill connolly talk about this somewhat is sort of

933
00:50:38,280 --> 00:50:42,440
Speaker 2: a very very conservative mind on offense to the detriment

934
00:50:42,840 --> 00:50:47,160
Speaker 2: Of miami Of ohio's chances to win a winnable, conference

935
00:50:47,200 --> 00:50:51,640
Speaker 2: a WINNABLE mac year over. Year so an interesting, team

936
00:50:52,000 --> 00:50:55,479
Speaker 2: but all the, same let's hope for some more fun

937
00:50:55,719 --> 00:50:58,160
Speaker 2: from both from excuse, Me miami Of. Ohio, yeah there's

938
00:50:58,360 --> 00:51:03,120
Speaker 2: A rourke At, ohio which should surprise. NOBODY i believe

939
00:51:03,160 --> 00:51:05,960
Speaker 2: this Is Curtis rurc if memory serves with the K

940
00:51:07,400 --> 00:51:10,440
Speaker 2: CURTIS roc so they've had injury issues The bobcats have,

941
00:51:10,520 --> 00:51:13,560
Speaker 2: obviously it's been a transition Since Frank soulich, left But

942
00:51:13,760 --> 00:51:16,239
Speaker 2: ohio certainly has a high ceiling and is one of

943
00:51:16,280 --> 00:51:19,640
Speaker 2: the better teams in The. East Kent state loses its

944
00:51:19,880 --> 00:51:24,440
Speaker 2: head coach To colorado and a ton of, players but

945
00:51:24,880 --> 00:51:28,640
Speaker 2: they look to like The Craig bowl AND. Pj fleck

946
00:51:28,719 --> 00:51:31,040
Speaker 2: tree to get things started, out but that is a

947
00:51:31,360 --> 00:51:35,960
Speaker 2: reclamation project in its beginning stages At Kent. STATE Mo

948
00:51:36,080 --> 00:51:40,239
Speaker 2: linguists certainly still At. Buffalo the defense has signs of.

949
00:51:40,320 --> 00:51:43,480
Speaker 2: Life Mo. Linguist, yeah great. Name so of course two

950
00:51:43,520 --> 00:51:46,879
Speaker 2: years ago he took over For Lance, leipold who took

951
00:51:46,920 --> 00:51:49,640
Speaker 2: The kansas job late in the process in, springtime and

952
00:51:49,680 --> 00:51:52,000
Speaker 2: SO Mo linguists came over from a brief stay At.

953
00:51:52,080 --> 00:51:56,040
Speaker 2: Michigan we'll see what. Happens Scott leffler And Bowling. Green

954
00:51:56,200 --> 00:51:58,240
Speaker 2: doesn't look like things are trending in the right. Direction

955
00:51:58,800 --> 00:52:01,000
Speaker 2: here's What i'm hoping. For i'm hoping for a Fun,

956
00:52:01,000 --> 00:52:04,600
Speaker 2: ohio which usually we get on. Offense i'm hoping for

957
00:52:04,680 --> 00:52:08,080
Speaker 2: an Improved. Akron i'm hoping for a more Complete. Buffalo

958
00:52:08,520 --> 00:52:11,000
Speaker 2: i'm hoping for signs of life from a Ball state.

959
00:52:11,080 --> 00:52:14,839
Speaker 2: Offense Burt, manual Burta, man you will excuse. Me i'm

960
00:52:14,840 --> 00:52:18,319
Speaker 2: looking forward To Rocky lombardi's retirement, plan his retirement tour

961
00:52:18,360 --> 00:52:22,000
Speaker 2: At Northern illinois and a ton Of dakwan finn At. Toledo,

962
00:52:22,200 --> 00:52:22,919
Speaker 2: yeah how about.

963
00:52:22,960 --> 00:52:25,040
Speaker 1: THAT i love. IT i love.

964
00:52:25,120 --> 00:52:27,040
Speaker 2: So it should be a fun year in THE mac

965
00:52:27,160 --> 00:52:31,839
Speaker 2: just because THE mac produces almost no teams that are

966
00:52:32,080 --> 00:52:35,200
Speaker 2: anywhere near a complete.

967
00:52:35,200 --> 00:52:40,640
Speaker 1: Team close things out With CONFERENCE. Usa Dan LET'S utsa

968
00:52:40,680 --> 00:52:44,400
Speaker 1: One CONFERENCE usa last year Over North. Texas, now we

969
00:52:44,440 --> 00:52:48,759
Speaker 1: talked ABOUT UTSA utsa move, conferences BUT utsa goes out

970
00:52:48,800 --> 00:52:51,040
Speaker 1: on top Of CONFERENCE. Usa it's just kind of a.

971
00:52:51,080 --> 00:52:55,640
Speaker 1: TREND a lot of teams move Through CONFERENCE usa on

972
00:52:55,680 --> 00:52:58,840
Speaker 1: their way up to other, conferences and perhaps we're going

973
00:52:58,880 --> 00:53:01,640
Speaker 1: to have more of that this. Season there are four

974
00:53:01,840 --> 00:53:07,320
Speaker 1: new schools in The CONFERENCE usa this. Season CONFERENCE, usa

975
00:53:07,440 --> 00:53:10,759
Speaker 1: for what it's, worth made it clear in the preseason

976
00:53:11,080 --> 00:53:13,719
Speaker 1: that they did not want their abbreviation to feature a

977
00:53:13,800 --> 00:53:19,480
Speaker 1: hyphen so instead of instead OF c DASH, usa now

978
00:53:19,480 --> 00:53:25,680
Speaker 1: it's JUST, cusa like cusa, cusa, sousa cusa. Cusa that's,

979
00:53:25,719 --> 00:53:30,839
Speaker 1: right all one string of four. Characters for their four new.

980
00:53:30,880 --> 00:53:35,520
Speaker 1: Schools we've Got liberty And New Mexico state joining along

981
00:53:35,560 --> 00:53:40,120
Speaker 1: With Jacksonville state And Sam houston who come up FROM. Fcs. Now,

982
00:53:40,280 --> 00:53:44,640
Speaker 1: Interestingly Jacksonville state Is. Ritrod, yes that team knows how

983
00:53:44,640 --> 00:53:49,400
Speaker 1: to score. Points liberty Was Hugh, freeze Now Jamie Chadwell

984
00:53:49,880 --> 00:53:52,480
Speaker 1: New Mexico. STATE i Believe jerry kill he's working on

985
00:53:52,480 --> 00:53:55,960
Speaker 1: that reclamation. Project so this is a nine team conference,

986
00:53:56,000 --> 00:53:58,719
Speaker 1: now which actually works out pretty well for. SCHEDULING i

987
00:53:58,760 --> 00:54:00,919
Speaker 1: know everybody's trying to get to an even number, now

988
00:54:00,960 --> 00:54:03,880
Speaker 1: but Maybe CONFERENCE usa has the right. Idea this is

989
00:54:03,920 --> 00:54:07,480
Speaker 1: not a conference THAT i think is going to produce

990
00:54:07,480 --> 00:54:10,200
Speaker 1: Any titans this. Year if it were up to, ME

991
00:54:11,320 --> 00:54:15,400
Speaker 1: i would probably Have liberty at the top of things

992
00:54:15,600 --> 00:54:19,600
Speaker 1: In CONFERENCE. Usa as for the other, Schools we've got

993
00:54:19,640 --> 00:54:23,200
Speaker 1: schools Like Middle. Tennessee we've got schools Like Western, kentucky

994
00:54:23,200 --> 00:54:26,959
Speaker 1: who obviously are very, formidable in addition To Louisiana tech

995
00:54:27,200 --> 00:54:29,920
Speaker 1: AND utep and of COURSE. Fiu, right those are your.

996
00:54:30,000 --> 00:54:33,759
Speaker 1: NINE i favor What Jamie CHADWELL i think has At,

997
00:54:33,840 --> 00:54:37,640
Speaker 1: liberty AND i Favor Western. Kentucky those to me figure

998
00:54:37,680 --> 00:54:40,920
Speaker 1: to be the two top. Dogs beyond, that, THOUGH i

999
00:54:40,960 --> 00:54:44,080
Speaker 1: will be super, intrigued of, course to see How Jacksonville

1000
00:54:44,080 --> 00:54:47,920
Speaker 1: state And richrod do moving, up How Sam houston does moving.

1001
00:54:48,000 --> 00:54:51,480
Speaker 1: Up these are not teams that necessarily are built with

1002
00:54:52,640 --> 00:54:57,240
Speaker 1: both offensive and defensive skills in, mind, right you generally

1003
00:54:57,280 --> 00:55:00,279
Speaker 1: get one or the. Other so from my, standpoint the

1004
00:55:00,320 --> 00:55:02,239
Speaker 1: real point of intrigue is just the fact that this

1005
00:55:02,320 --> 00:55:04,840
Speaker 1: is a conference that again is adding new teams THAT

1006
00:55:04,960 --> 00:55:06,799
Speaker 1: i think we've got two teams at the top that

1007
00:55:07,480 --> 00:55:10,440
Speaker 1: figure to be better than the. Rest Maybe Middle tennessee

1008
00:55:10,480 --> 00:55:15,000
Speaker 1: would have a bone of contention with that, assessment BUT

1009
00:55:16,080 --> 00:55:18,040
Speaker 1: i think if you're trying to handicap things right, now

1010
00:55:18,120 --> 00:55:20,200
Speaker 1: It's Western kentucky and Newcomer, Liberty and.

1011
00:55:20,239 --> 00:55:22,680
Speaker 2: That's our, preview that's Our group of five, preview that's

1012
00:55:22,680 --> 00:55:27,440
Speaker 2: Our Notre dame. Preview and there's a lot. BETWEEN i

1013
00:55:27,480 --> 00:55:29,920
Speaker 2: would say the new teams in The american new teams

1014
00:55:29,960 --> 00:55:33,680
Speaker 2: In CONFERENCE, usa The Sunbelt, east the hope and prayer

1015
00:55:33,960 --> 00:55:36,360
Speaker 2: for there to be four or five good teams in

1016
00:55:36,400 --> 00:55:39,839
Speaker 2: The Mountain. West there's a lot. Here there's a lot

1017
00:55:39,880 --> 00:55:42,440
Speaker 2: of meat on the bone hopeful, improvements especially if we

1018
00:55:42,480 --> 00:55:44,279
Speaker 2: can just get a bunch of fun offenses in THE.

1019
00:55:44,280 --> 00:55:44,840
Speaker 1: Mac i'm was.

1020
00:55:44,920 --> 00:55:48,399
Speaker 2: Totally good with forty eight forty Five tuesday. Nights that's.

1021
00:55:48,440 --> 00:55:51,680
Speaker 2: FINE i don't NEED i actually encourage one hundred and

1022
00:55:51,680 --> 00:55:54,400
Speaker 2: eighth ranked defenses in THE. Mac that's fine by me

1023
00:55:54,520 --> 00:55:57,880
Speaker 2: because it produces GOOD tv AND i will. Watch So

1024
00:55:57,960 --> 00:56:01,160
Speaker 2: i'm good with all of. This ty the big names

1025
00:56:01,200 --> 00:56:03,239
Speaker 2: they mean you just mentioned Rich rod And Jacksonville, state

1026
00:56:03,280 --> 00:56:06,840
Speaker 2: but big name coaches in What Tom herman AT, fau,

1027
00:56:07,080 --> 00:56:09,960
Speaker 2: like there's just a lot to love about this season

1028
00:56:10,120 --> 00:56:13,440
Speaker 2: and the chaos THAT i think will happen within a

1029
00:56:13,480 --> 00:56:14,480
Speaker 2: lot of these group of five.

1030
00:56:14,520 --> 00:56:18,040
Speaker 1: Games, yeah and and also just some just to kind

1031
00:56:18,040 --> 00:56:22,320
Speaker 1: of close the loop on a close corporate loop. Tie,

1032
00:56:22,480 --> 00:56:25,359
Speaker 1: YEAH i, mean like just some some interesting coaching NAMES

1033
00:56:25,360 --> 00:56:29,440
Speaker 1: i think in, yeah oh. Yeah In CONFERENCE, Usa Mike

1034
00:56:29,520 --> 00:56:33,480
Speaker 1: mike McIntyre is With Florida, International, Right mike, McIntyre it's

1035
00:56:33,480 --> 00:56:36,000
Speaker 1: a tough time who we talk about as like a

1036
00:56:36,040 --> 00:56:39,439
Speaker 1: pejorative with respect To. Colorado he had one good, year

1037
00:56:39,760 --> 00:56:42,719
Speaker 1: but you, know obviously kind of went out on a

1038
00:56:42,760 --> 00:56:45,439
Speaker 1: bit of a down. Note Rich rodriguez is, There jerry

1039
00:56:45,520 --> 00:56:49,280
Speaker 1: kill is working on the, project like Yep Sonny cumby

1040
00:56:49,880 --> 00:56:53,000
Speaker 1: is At Louisiana. Tech like these are ALREADY hoak part,

1041
00:56:53,040 --> 00:56:57,239
Speaker 1: Two part. Two Brett Rick stock still still there At Middle.

1042
00:56:57,280 --> 00:56:57,760
Speaker 2: Tennessee.

1043
00:56:58,440 --> 00:57:00,360
Speaker 1: Right so these are not new names from a coaching.

1044
00:57:00,400 --> 00:57:04,759
Speaker 1: Standpoint it's just a matter, OF i, think trying to

1045
00:57:04,800 --> 00:57:07,359
Speaker 1: put together a conference that is a little bit more

1046
00:57:07,400 --> 00:57:09,960
Speaker 1: well rounded and not just all one side of the.

1047
00:57:09,960 --> 00:57:17,080
Speaker 1: FOOTBALL i agree that brings us to twenty seven fascinating

1048
00:57:17,160 --> 00:57:21,040
Speaker 1: things The Notre dame in the group of, five let

1049
00:57:21,120 --> 00:57:24,080
Speaker 1: us know what we. Missed Solid verbal at gmail dot

1050
00:57:24,120 --> 00:57:26,800
Speaker 1: com is the. Email make sure you hit us up

1051
00:57:26,840 --> 00:57:29,880
Speaker 1: on social media if you made it this far in the.

1052
00:57:29,920 --> 00:57:33,320
Speaker 1: Episode if you've Got twitter or x or whatever we're

1053
00:57:33,360 --> 00:57:35,000
Speaker 1: calling these social media networks these.

1054
00:57:34,920 --> 00:57:35,880
Speaker 2: Days throw us some.

1055
00:57:36,040 --> 00:57:39,160
Speaker 1: Zets, yeah throw us a Z send us a picture

1056
00:57:39,240 --> 00:57:42,640
Speaker 1: of where you listen to the. Verbal, yeah we're listening

1057
00:57:42,760 --> 00:57:46,880
Speaker 1: right now at this. Moment send us a, picture will.

1058
00:57:47,400 --> 00:57:50,640
Speaker 1: Retweet do you want rezat your?

1059
00:57:50,680 --> 00:57:55,520
Speaker 2: Message if the answer features a picture of somebody's pants

1060
00:57:55,560 --> 00:57:59,600
Speaker 2: crumpled at their, feets clearly on a bathroom. Floor is

1061
00:57:59,640 --> 00:58:02,240
Speaker 2: that some thing you want? Confirmed or is that something you?

1062
00:58:02,320 --> 00:58:04,240
Speaker 2: Say why don't you hold on to? That maybe hold

1063
00:58:04,240 --> 00:58:07,000
Speaker 2: on to that? One, yeah, okay just making sure maybe

1064
00:58:07,000 --> 00:58:07,880
Speaker 2: hold on to that, one.

1065
00:58:07,720 --> 00:58:13,200
Speaker 1: But everything else provided IT'S. Pg, okay we're At solid

1066
00:58:13,240 --> 00:58:16,800
Speaker 1: verbal on social. Media that does it for our, Previews, Dan,

1067
00:58:16,880 --> 00:58:20,120
Speaker 1: wow we made, it made it the whole of. It can't.

1068
00:58:20,120 --> 00:58:22,840
Speaker 1: Wait check us out of our ballers dot. Com much,

1069
00:58:22,920 --> 00:58:25,000
Speaker 1: much much more to come for that guy over, there

1070
00:58:25,080 --> 00:58:27,520
Speaker 1: my good Friend Dan, rubinstein for, Myself Ty Hilda, brand

1071
00:58:27,560 --> 00:58:30,120
Speaker 1: thank you for, downloading for listening playing along with our

1072
00:58:30,160 --> 00:58:31,200
Speaker 1: madness at. Home we'll talk to you.

1073
00:58:31,200 --> 00:58:33,680
Speaker 2: Soon stay, solid, peace