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Speaker 1: And welcome in Lake kick on the area. It is

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Speaker 1: Sunday night, March fourteenth year of Our Lord, twenty twenty one.

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Speaker 1: We've got a jam pack show a little bit different

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Speaker 1: flavor tonight. It's something you guys have asked for. I said,

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Speaker 1: we're not doing that September, We're not doing that December, January. No,

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Speaker 1: But here we are in March. There's a lot of

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Speaker 1: other sporting interest out there. So I figured, you know what,

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Speaker 1: our diehards are going to be here, We're going to

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Speaker 1: give it to him tonight. What I'm talking about is

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Speaker 1: a little bit different show. I want to talk some

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Speaker 1: recruiting tonight, but I'm not talking about a specific recruit,

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Speaker 1: like We're not taking you into the home of a

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Speaker 1: four star offensive guard from Salt Lake City and talking

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Speaker 1: about his top ten. What I wanted to do is

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Speaker 1: I went and got Steve woop Fung, and I went

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Speaker 1: and got Brandon Huffman from the West Coast for a

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Speaker 1: really specific reason, and I said, you know what, let's

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Speaker 1: just go as long as we want to go. I'm

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Speaker 1: going to accumulate all the stuff you guys always ask about,

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Speaker 1: some behind the scenes recruiting stuff, maybe sort of the

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Speaker 1: inner workings of the recruiting industry, like how are rankings formed?

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Speaker 2: What about this kid?

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Speaker 1: What about that kid? And we're going to talk about it,

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Speaker 1: and it's not going to be Q and A like,

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Speaker 1: it's not going to be kind of compressed into two

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Speaker 1: or three minutes. We're just going to dive in. And

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Speaker 1: so that's what we're going to do on tonight's show

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Speaker 1: now because there's broadcast scheduling conflicts, I pre recorded this.

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Speaker 1: It's a really really good conversation though, and I think

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Speaker 1: you get a lot out of it. So this is

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Speaker 1: my extended talk with Steve Wilffong and Brandon Huffman. Hope

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Speaker 1: you enjoy it. Will Fong, what's it like talking to

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Speaker 1: me on a Sunday night?

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Speaker 3: My man, I've been wanting to be on this show

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Speaker 3: since for years, So to finally be here on this show,

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Speaker 3: to be on the main event, our largest platform show

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Speaker 3: in the network is big for me and big for

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Speaker 3: my career.

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Speaker 1: And yeah, it's uh.

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Speaker 4: Look Whyfe asked me if.

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Speaker 3: I was nervous, and I said, now, Josh, it makes

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Speaker 3: you feel at ease, But I feel good and I'm

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Speaker 3: ready to rock and roll.

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Speaker 1: My Sunday show. Isn't complete until I get the Monday

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Speaker 1: morning text from wilfongking the Sunday Night Show. And then

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Speaker 1: that's when we really put a rap on the Sunday

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Speaker 1: Night Show. But here we are. You're finally on the

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Speaker 1: Sudden Show.

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Speaker 3: You can't watch live at the will Fong Aus. When

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Speaker 3: I got kids that are six and three, we watch

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Speaker 3: a little America's Funny sol videos and maybe there's a

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Speaker 3: game on, and then it's bedtime, so I watch Monday Morning.

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Speaker 1: I Got You, I Got You. So I've got stuff

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Speaker 1: that's just piled up. A lot of people ask questions.

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Speaker 1: They've just piled up. So I figured, hey, middle of

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Speaker 1: basketball season, but folks want the college football. Let's just

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Speaker 1: talk about this. There's going to be a free flowing

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Speaker 1: format here. Let's start with this. I did a segment

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Speaker 1: a few months back about the word bust when it

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Speaker 1: comes to recruiting a lot of people look at a kid.

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Speaker 1: If he's rated four stars, five stars and he doesn't

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Speaker 1: completely meet expectation, he gets labeled a recruiting bust, which

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Speaker 1: in some cases, okay, maybe there was a misevaluation. But

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Speaker 1: to me, Will Fong, you can tell me if you disagree.

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Speaker 1: You're intimately involved in the process. I think far more

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Speaker 1: times than not, especially in modern day where you have

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Speaker 1: so much observation of a kid, so many camp interactions,

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Speaker 1: so much more film. Everything about the kid is known

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Speaker 1: or as much as can be known for from a

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Speaker 1: physical standpoint, and that is what a star ranking is.

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Speaker 1: That when a kid ultimately doesn't pan out, if it's grades,

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Speaker 1: that's nothing you guys could have foreseen. If it is

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Speaker 1: an academic situation or maybe an injury situation or a

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Speaker 1: character situation, character is not something that you guys largely

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Speaker 1: are able to bake in to a star rating. And

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Speaker 1: so I think the word bust is like this one

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Speaker 1: all encompassing sticker that a lot of people like to

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Speaker 1: put on a kid, whether he fails or succeeds. And

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Speaker 1: in reality, there are several shades of gray to this.

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Speaker 1: Are they not well for me?

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Speaker 3: I'm more look at it from the team ranking standpoint?

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Speaker 3: Are they busting? Are these teams meeting their potential based

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Speaker 3: on what we're saying their classes are? So, if you're

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Speaker 3: a team that's generally recruiting in the top ten, like

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Speaker 3: say USC was, but you're not making the college football Playoff,

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Speaker 3: every other year, Well, then you just aren't maximizing your

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Speaker 3: potential based on your recruiting ranking. But if you do

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Speaker 3: a deeper dive, recruiting is a lot of just filling

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Speaker 3: your own team's needs and making sure your roster is balanced.

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Speaker 3: And and so maybe you're striking gold year after year

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Speaker 3: at some skilled positions, but at the point of attack,

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Speaker 3: you're struggling. And so if you're not addressing that, your

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Speaker 3: recruiting classes are smoking mirrors. But but to go back

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Speaker 3: to your your question about the prospect, Uh, there's a

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Speaker 3: lot of reasons why a young man won't meet his potential.

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Speaker 3: I feel like we're only judged if the young man

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Speaker 3: goes there and just hits the portal or or doesn't

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Speaker 3: see the starting line, it doesn't get drafted. I think

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Speaker 3: it's fair to, uh, come at us if a guy

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Speaker 3: doesn't meet his potential based on you know, purely just

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Speaker 3: not being good enough to play. And you see that happen,

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Speaker 3: and you see that happened quite a bit, and that's

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Speaker 3: certainly you know, on us to do. We missed there,

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Speaker 3: and and and and that young man is a bust

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Speaker 3: in theory. You know, he certainly got a lot of

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Speaker 3: shine for being a great high school football player and

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Speaker 3: being a todded recruit and so on the back end of.

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Speaker 4: That, if you don't perform, you do get labeled a

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Speaker 4: bust I.

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Speaker 1: But like how often so you know, I mean as

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Speaker 1: soon as you like. With the twenty twenty one cycle,

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Speaker 1: you guys slapped the appropriate ratings on those guys a

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Speaker 1: lot of due diligence. Obviously it's not a hastily done process.

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Speaker 1: But then they go out and they're off the assembly line.

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Speaker 1: They're headed to their respective universities, out of your control now,

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Speaker 1: and so you're gonna watch these kids and you watch

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Speaker 1: on Saturdays just like I do. Number one, how deep

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Speaker 1: into a kid's career normally do you want them to

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Speaker 1: get before you look back on the ranking and said, yep,

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Speaker 1: we nailed that when or may have missed that one?

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Speaker 1: And then number two, how often do you see maybe

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Speaker 1: a kid not pan out but you look at it

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Speaker 1: and say, he didn't pan out. But I don't think

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Speaker 1: we missed on him. I think the reasons he didn't

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Speaker 1: pan out are extending and extenuating from what we would

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Speaker 1: have put in a star ranking.

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Speaker 3: As a guy like bow Knicks, could he fall into

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Speaker 3: the ladder there talking about a young man that we

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Speaker 3: would be going into his third different offensive coordinator, third

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Speaker 3: different coaching staff.

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Speaker 4: He's never been comfortable at Auburn.

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Speaker 3: And I know it's easy to nitpick bow Knicks and

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Speaker 3: nit pick an SEC program, but you know, I don't know.

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Speaker 3: I Bo Nicks has out a fair shake in college.

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Speaker 3: You had to maximize the top one hundred talent at

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Speaker 3: the top one hundred prospects he was coming in.

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Speaker 1: But see, like that's a really good one. So let's

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Speaker 1: go to Nicks for a second. Because Bo Nicks when

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Speaker 1: he came out of high school, I think it was Hewett,

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Speaker 1: Trustful or somewhere like that. And he's going to a

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Speaker 1: program at that point in time, like Auburn wasn't a mystery.

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Speaker 1: Malson wasn't brand new there. Malzon had yet to fully

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Speaker 1: develop a high school quarterback that he recruited. He had

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Speaker 1: gone the transfer route. Like Nick Marshall had gotten the

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Speaker 1: job done. Jarret stood into a degree he had gotten

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Speaker 1: the job done, but he had never taken a kid

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Speaker 1: from the high school ranks, pushed him through his system,

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Speaker 1: developed him, and gotten a list results out of him.

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Speaker 1: So that wasn't a mystery. So people like me, like

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Speaker 1: I was down in Columbus at the time I'm watching

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Speaker 1: bo Nicks come in. We're thinking at the time I

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Speaker 1: watched him play in the state playoffs, I watched him

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Speaker 1: in high school. I knew how good he was. And

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Speaker 1: yet we were looking at bo Nicks and saying, but

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Speaker 1: even with how good we think he is, he's going

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Speaker 1: to a system that if he ends up developing, he

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Speaker 1: will have butcked the entire trend of what's happened at Auburn.

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Speaker 1: So I'm looking at that and I'm already knowing I

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Speaker 1: think this kid is every bit the star rating that

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Speaker 1: he should be, But yet I think he may massively

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Speaker 1: underachieve relative to that rating through no fault of his own,

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Speaker 1: when he goes to Auburn. And so like I look

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Speaker 1: at bon Nicks and I think, if you guys would

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Speaker 1: have had the exact same rating on him, but he

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Speaker 1: went to play for Lincoln Riley at Oklahoma, I think

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Speaker 1: he'd be a star right now. And that's what I'm

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Speaker 1: talking about with the different factors, different elements that come

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Speaker 1: into play once you go into a college program that

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Speaker 1: no One on the twenty four to seven Sports rankings

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Speaker 1: council could ever foresee or you even if you could

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Speaker 1: foresee it, it would be totally irresponsible to try and

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Speaker 1: factor that into the grade you put on a kid.

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Speaker 3: Do you propose a system where we rank a kid

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Speaker 3: drop a map he commits to the school if we

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Speaker 3: don't like the fit for.

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Speaker 1: Him, there you go. Well, just a living, breathing star

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Speaker 1: ranking all throughout his college career. That way, I can

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Speaker 1: just follow it day by day. I can wake up

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Speaker 1: and see what the Sunday March fourteenth ranking for bo

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Speaker 1: Nix says, Hey, the rankings process itself, this is something

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Speaker 1: that I don't know if you mean for it too

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Speaker 1: or not, but it's something where seems like there's a

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Speaker 1: big curtain up and the public always wonders what's going

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Speaker 1: on behind that curtain. I cheat a little bit because

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Speaker 1: sometimes I sit in on those rankings calls, not because

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Speaker 1: I want to share information, but because I kind of

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Speaker 1: want to be able to spell out the process for people.

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Speaker 1: And so I get asked a lot of times about

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Speaker 1: the rankings process itself and what actually goes into it,

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Speaker 1: or is it just like someone calls up from Florida

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Speaker 1: and says, hey, I need our kids bumped up a

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Speaker 1: star grade and then you just do it. Obviously that's

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Speaker 1: not what's happening. But I really want you to take

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Speaker 1: us into as much detail as you can because I've

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Speaker 1: heard it, so I want you to take the viewers

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Speaker 1: into as much detail as you can about actually how

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Speaker 1: thorough this is and how much like on a phone call,

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Speaker 1: at least fighting there is sometimes over grading kids. There's

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Speaker 1: a lot of disagreement, Like there's a lot of back

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Speaker 1: and forth, there's a lot of dialogue. It's not just

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Speaker 1: here's where we're going to rate this kid. Here's where

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Speaker 1: we're going to rate that kid. All right, we're done,

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Speaker 1: let's go to lunch.

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Speaker 4: Well, for us, I think it starts with the film.

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Speaker 3: You know, in live person evaluations, people are like twenty

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Speaker 3: four seven sports. You guys don't watch full game for them,

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Speaker 3: we're at the games. You know, most of these guys

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Speaker 3: that are ranked high. We've had people on our staff

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Speaker 3: either at ten full games or they're playing full games

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Speaker 3: on TV, or there's so many platforms with nf HS

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Speaker 3: in so many ways to watch full game films. My

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Speaker 3: guy Greg Biggins, our guy who does the California Game

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Speaker 3: of the Week for Fox Sports in California. I get

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Speaker 3: that game in Indianapolis. Here, I can watch Greg Biggins

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Speaker 3: every Friday night. I can go to a local game

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Speaker 3: here in Indianapolis, come home, and I can watch matter

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Speaker 3: Day versus Saint John Bosco with Greg Biggins on the

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Speaker 3: call Friday night. The Texas State Football Championships also, I

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Speaker 3: was able to watch those here in Indianapolis. So we're

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Speaker 3: able to watch full game films. We're able to go

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Speaker 3: see these prospects in person and see them play in person,

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Speaker 3: and so I think that that's where it begins for us.

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Speaker 3: We certainly put a lot of emphasis on verified athleticism.

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Speaker 3: You look at these guys that are playing in the NFL.

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Speaker 3: Maybe I don't want to combine guy. That guy's a

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Speaker 3: combine guy. Most guys in the NFL are pretty damn

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Speaker 3: good at combines, Josh, I'll take a combine gut that's

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Speaker 3: good at football. And so verified athleticism, whether that's you know,

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Speaker 3: averaging a double double in basketball and being in above

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Speaker 3: the rim player, certainly track data wrestling, being all state,

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Speaker 3: being state champ with that hand you know, hand to

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Speaker 3: hand combat, that leverage that you get doing that sport,

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Speaker 3: and then baseball with the hand eye coordination and and

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Speaker 3: things of that nature. All that stuff applies. Then we

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Speaker 3: get to the reason why I think our rankings are

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Speaker 3: getting better. And certainly we're not perfect, but I think

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Speaker 3: if you look at basketball rankings, Josh, for the most part,

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Speaker 3: a lot of these guys ranked high hit because the

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Speaker 3: basketball analysts are able to go to AAU events and

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Speaker 3: see these prospects compete in a setting that's kind of

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Speaker 3: comparable to what it's going to be in college. You're

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Speaker 3: playing on the same size floor, and you're playing with

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Speaker 3: the same rules for the most part, and so and

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Speaker 3: you're seeing, you know, Josh Pate play against Steve Wilfong

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Speaker 3: six seven times, you have a good idea of who's

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Speaker 3: better in that setting. Football, we're starting to get there

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Speaker 3: more with there's so much seven on seven and now

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Speaker 3: you're seeing Saint John Bosco grow across the country and

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Speaker 3: play Saint Thomas Aquinas, and so you're seeing heavyweight high

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Speaker 3: school football battles on the field. And with the Opening

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Speaker 3: Finals and the All America Ball and the Under Armour

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Speaker 3: All America Game and the Polynesian Bowl, we're seeing these

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Speaker 3: guys in similar settings. So we're able to kind of

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Speaker 3: compare and contrast, and then you certainly still get into

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Speaker 3: the debate, well, you know, Josh Pate's better than Steve

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Speaker 3: Wilfon now, but Steve Wilfon maybe has more upside than

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Speaker 3: Josh Pate. So so those conversations are being had. But

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Speaker 3: I think that all that kind of goes into goes

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Speaker 3: into the pot, and that's kind of our process.

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Speaker 1: Now.

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Speaker 3: Certainly there's some disagreement when you know your West Coast

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Speaker 3: guys have a receiver that they love out west, and

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Speaker 3: you're kind of comparing them to some guys in Texas

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Speaker 3: and you're comparing them to some guys in Florida. It

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Speaker 3: can get heated when you're passionate about a guy you've

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Speaker 3: seen more than others. And so that sometimes is the

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Speaker 3: challenge of getting guys ranked.

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Speaker 1: Here's the other one that it really gets in the

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Speaker 1: weeds sometimes, And I'm really curious as to how often

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Speaker 1: this happens for you guys. So if I were to

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Speaker 1: look at someone right now, he's going to be sixteen

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Speaker 1: or seventeen or eighteen years old, if i'm grading him

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Speaker 1: in high school, will Fong. You know, sometimes, especially guys

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Speaker 1: who are going to go on to play Major D

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Speaker 1: one college football, they are ninety percent physically developed by

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Speaker 1: the time they're a senior in high school. But not

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Speaker 1: all of them are. And so there are some very

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Speaker 1: very notable historic except to this rule where you could

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Speaker 1: be looking at a guy and he's still got baby

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Speaker 1: fat on him, and he's still got a baby face,

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Speaker 1: and he's just now getting patches of acne all over

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Speaker 1: his cheeks. But you're looking at him and he's got

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Speaker 1: all the makings of a future stud but he's just

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Speaker 1: maturing physically a little bit slower. And so you may

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Speaker 1: look at him right now, and he's a junior in

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Speaker 1: high school when you're gonna really want to put a

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Speaker 1: grade on him, and he's probably, you know, let's say

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Speaker 1: a three star caliber player, which is still a very

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Speaker 1: good player. But yet you also say, man, my gut

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Speaker 1: tells me he has got the upside to be a

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Speaker 1: five star guy down the road, but I don't know

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Speaker 1: that he's going to reach his physical potential and upside

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Speaker 1: in high school. So then this gets really into the weeds.

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Speaker 1: Are you grading the current product or are you projecting

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Speaker 1: forward to where you got half a dozen assistant coaches

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Speaker 1: that you use as sources telling you, Steve, this dude,

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Speaker 1: we're gonna get him on campus, We're probably gonna have

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Speaker 1: to red shirt him. But by the time this dude's nineteen,

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Speaker 1: especially by the time he's twenty, he's going to be

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Speaker 1: a stud for us. He just isn't that quite yet

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Speaker 1: because he's the little He's the sapling that hasn't quite

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Speaker 1: grown in the tree yet. How often does that happen?

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Speaker 3: Well, I'm glad you mentioned the college feedback, because we're

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Speaker 3: getting feedback from high school coaches, seven on seven coaches,

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Speaker 3: and certainly next level sources on kids too, and that

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Speaker 3: certainly factors in the decision. You take a guy like

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Speaker 3: Henry Ruggs, who was kind of a late bloomer. You know,

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Speaker 3: we took a chance on him as our number one

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Speaker 3: rank receiver because of the the athleticism and in the

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Speaker 3: multi sport profile, and he goes out and ultimately becomes

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Speaker 3: the receiver first receiver drafted. He was probably on paper

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Speaker 3: when you look at that that Alabama class, you know,

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Speaker 3: he was the considered the third best receiver coming in

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Speaker 3: at best and and and and so you're certainly projecting guys.

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Speaker 3: But then on the flip side. Like you take a

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Speaker 3: guy like Jeff Okuda, he was our number one rank corner.

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Speaker 3: He's a guy that when he spent some time with

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Speaker 3: with Jeff Okuda, you could just tell how smart he

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Speaker 3: was and how motivated he was. And you're trying to

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Speaker 3: get to know these guys. You're trying to get to

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Speaker 3: know their intangibles and what makes them tick and and

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Speaker 3: and how smart they are. And when Jeff Okuda does

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Speaker 3: his his interview at the NFL Combine, he knew exactly

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Speaker 3: how many passes he had given up and was able

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Speaker 3: to have that back and forth exchange with the reporter

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Speaker 3: because he's just so on it and so detail oriented,

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Speaker 3: and so like a guy like Chase Young. You know

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Speaker 3: he Chase Young probably wasn't the coming out of high

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Speaker 3: school you could tell he was going to be absolutely ferocious,

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Speaker 3: and what he developed into in college. You know, those

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Speaker 3: are some of the easier ones to pick out.

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Speaker 1: This bleeds right into the next thing I want to

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Speaker 1: talk about, Steve. The entire process of sourcing information and

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Speaker 1: putting in a crystal ball prediction for a kid and

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Speaker 1: then maybe changing it down the road one time or

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Speaker 1: three times, depending on new information. You don't ever brag

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Speaker 1: about this, but I got to do it for you

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Speaker 1: so frequently. You and I talked once a week at

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Speaker 1: least to do the Wilfung recruiting whip around. And we'll

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Speaker 1: be on a zoom like we are right now, and

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Speaker 1: it'll be eight fifty eight and we're scheduled to start

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Speaker 1: at nine, and yet we got a delay because you

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Speaker 1: get a phone call from a college coach or from

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Speaker 1: an actual recruit. Where about to talk about? And I

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Speaker 1: think a lot of times when you talk about sourcing

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Speaker 1: and you talk about new information, some people are led

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Speaker 1: to believe, oh man, he heard a rumor on a

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Speaker 1: message board. Some folks, maybe that's the case. I have

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Speaker 1: watched you be the origination source for a lot of

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Speaker 1: this information. So I say all that to say this.

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Speaker 1: Number one, I want to brag on you because you're

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Speaker 1: my boy. But number two, I want to talk about

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Speaker 1: the way that you gather information and how it bleeds

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Speaker 1: into how you handle the crystal ball, because you know

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Speaker 1: what the allegation is. So I'm going to toss it

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Speaker 1: up like a softball, and I want you to hit

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Speaker 1: it four hundred and twenty feet. A lot of people

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Speaker 1: get bent out of shape when you have a crystal

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Speaker 1: Ball pick that is Auburn for a kid and it's

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Speaker 1: been there for six months and then, let's say, seventy

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Speaker 1: two hours before the commitment, you change it to Georgia

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Speaker 1: and the kid ends up going to Georgia. For some reason,

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Speaker 1: this has never made sense to me. But for some

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Speaker 1: reason people have a problem with you changing a pick,

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Speaker 1: like you couldn't have gotten new information, or like a

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Speaker 1: kid couldn't have changed his mind. So I don't know

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Speaker 1: if it makes you as mad as I do, but

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Speaker 1: I get kind of aggravated even though it doesn't involved

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Speaker 1: me when I watched this. So just give me your

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Speaker 1: take the way that you're gathering that information, and then

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Speaker 1: if you want to be right on this stuff. Sometimes

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Speaker 1: how frequently you have to change those crystal Ball picks?

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Speaker 3: Well, I love how interested the readers are in the

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Speaker 3: crystal Ball forecast. It certainly makes a job a lot

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Speaker 3: more challenging. It would be easy to cover, you know,

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Speaker 3: Emmanuel Henderson's recruitment Fox star running back who's committing over

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Speaker 3: the weekend and say well, it's going to be Alabama,

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Speaker 3: Auburn and Georgia and leave.

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Speaker 1: It at that.

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Speaker 3: But you have to put your name on it, and

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Speaker 3: you put a prediction on it. And so the prediction

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Speaker 3: is Alabama for Emmanuel Henderson, and you get there in

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Speaker 3: a lot of different ways. And sometimes these prospects, man,

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Speaker 3: they're human, you know, they change their minds, they get

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Speaker 3: new information. Sometimes my original pick, you know, was right then,

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Speaker 3: but then you know, over the course of five months,

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Speaker 3: it changed. And by the time I dug back in

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Speaker 3: for the dug back in to figure out where the

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Speaker 3: young man's going, you know, it's a new school, and

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Speaker 3: so we're just the crystal ball is just something to

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Speaker 3: enhance the user experience on twenty four seven Sports. I

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Speaker 3: think people take it too serious, but I think it's

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Speaker 3: a it's an opportunity for users to come to our

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Speaker 3: network and say, hey, this is where Brandon Huffman thinks

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Speaker 3: so and so is going j T two and Milow

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Speaker 3: is going. This is where Greg Biggins, you know, thinks

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Speaker 3: that Demani Jackson is going. And so as those prospects

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Speaker 3: change their minds, the information and the crystal balls are

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Speaker 3: going to change. Now, some people use the crystal ball differently.

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Speaker 3: Some people like to be closers. They come in at

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Speaker 3: the end when they know it's final and they make

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Speaker 3: the pick. And if that's one of the users you follow,

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Speaker 3: if you see that crystal ball coming in from that person,

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Speaker 3: you know you can pretty much take it to the bank.

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Speaker 3: And if that's the school you root for, you can

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Speaker 3: get excited. And that's a school. He's not coming to

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Speaker 3: the school that you root for. When you can start

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Speaker 3: looking all right, Asking your publisher who's our next guy,

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Speaker 3: Greg Biggins says that we're losing him to Arizona State.

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Speaker 3: Who are we pivoting to? And so for me, I'm

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Speaker 3: current pulse. As soon as I think I have a

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Speaker 3: beat on who the leader is, I like to make

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Speaker 3: the pick. But that doesn't mean that I always do it.

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Speaker 3: It's still kind of a fluid tool for me. I

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Speaker 3: would say eighty five percent of the time I do that,

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Speaker 3: but sometimes I might catch win that the leader. For

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Speaker 3: you know, let's just take Kojo Antwig, who's a top

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Speaker 3: two four seven receiver from Georgia. I think Texas A

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Speaker 3: and M leads. I don't have a pick in yet

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Speaker 3: because I think it's gonna be get very competitive before

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Speaker 3: July fifth, and so yes, I could easily put the

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Speaker 3: A and M pick in to give them two four

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Speaker 3: seven readers know that I like Texas A and M,

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Speaker 3: but I think I'm gonna wait. I'm gonna wait and

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Speaker 3: see what Kirby Smart and his staff do here. And

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Speaker 3: Ohio State has been in this one for a long time,

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Speaker 3: and Brian Hartline, former National Recruiter of the Year, his

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Speaker 3: relationships is good with.

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Speaker 4: Kojo as anybody.

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Speaker 3: And then he mentions Alabama, and you and I both

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Speaker 3: know Alabama can close like wildfire. So I'm gonna wait

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Speaker 3: and see if A now can keep this momentum for

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Speaker 3: a while before.

434
00:20:03,600 --> 00:20:04,199
Speaker 2: I log the pick.

435
00:20:04,280 --> 00:20:05,960
Speaker 3: So even the way I use it's a little fluid,

436
00:20:06,000 --> 00:20:07,720
Speaker 3: but I try to be as genuine as I can.

437
00:20:08,280 --> 00:20:10,760
Speaker 3: And when you come and see a pick, it's what

438
00:20:10,880 --> 00:20:14,600
Speaker 3: I think is happening that day. And if I get

439
00:20:14,640 --> 00:20:19,440
Speaker 3: some information where the kid is thinking something different, I'm

440
00:20:19,480 --> 00:20:22,320
Speaker 3: not afraid to change to Corey Brooks from Florida to Alabama.

441
00:20:22,920 --> 00:20:24,560
Speaker 1: This is a really good point. See this is I

442
00:20:24,600 --> 00:20:27,800
Speaker 1: think another of the many layers of the whole prediction

443
00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:31,480
Speaker 1: process that I'm not sure a lot of casual viewers

444
00:20:31,600 --> 00:20:33,800
Speaker 1: give more than a passing thought to. So let's not

445
00:20:33,960 --> 00:20:37,400
Speaker 1: mention any one kid. Let's just say generic recruit. Right now,

446
00:20:37,920 --> 00:20:40,240
Speaker 1: school X, school Y, and school Z are at the

447
00:20:40,280 --> 00:20:42,960
Speaker 1: top of his list. But school A. Let's say Alabama

448
00:20:43,080 --> 00:20:44,560
Speaker 1: one of the big dogs on the block, they haven't

449
00:20:44,600 --> 00:20:47,520
Speaker 1: offered yet. I know the kind of stuff you here.

450
00:20:47,600 --> 00:20:49,600
Speaker 1: I've sat there and listened to you talk to these

451
00:20:49,640 --> 00:20:52,920
Speaker 1: people before and sometimes correct me if I'm wrong. You'll

452
00:20:52,960 --> 00:20:55,959
Speaker 1: just flat out get told, Hey, right now, it's school why.

453
00:20:56,280 --> 00:20:59,240
Speaker 1: If not school why then school Z. But Steve, that

454
00:20:59,560 --> 00:21:02,480
Speaker 1: is all assuming that school A doesn't offer. If school

455
00:21:02,520 --> 00:21:05,240
Speaker 1: A comes in and offers, whether it's in May or

456
00:21:05,280 --> 00:21:08,200
Speaker 1: whether it's in early December, that's going to change everything.

457
00:21:08,320 --> 00:21:10,800
Speaker 1: If I were you and I heard that, I wouldn't

458
00:21:10,840 --> 00:21:12,439
Speaker 1: care if the kid was telling me he's a virtual

459
00:21:12,520 --> 00:21:14,399
Speaker 1: lot to go to school why, because I know it.

460
00:21:14,480 --> 00:21:17,560
Speaker 1: If school A decides. In other words, if Alabama decides

461
00:21:17,680 --> 00:21:20,080
Speaker 1: they want that kid, they've got him, and there's nothing

462
00:21:20,119 --> 00:21:22,359
Speaker 1: school Why I can do about that, I'd never put it.

463
00:21:22,480 --> 00:21:24,040
Speaker 1: If I put a crystal ball pick in on him,

464
00:21:24,200 --> 00:21:26,119
Speaker 1: I'd be like a level one or level two crystal

465
00:21:26,119 --> 00:21:29,160
Speaker 1: ball because I know something that maybe the casual viewer

466
00:21:29,440 --> 00:21:33,359
Speaker 1: or casual reader doesn't know. And there's this fin just

467
00:21:33,480 --> 00:21:35,200
Speaker 1: off short. It's got a little script A on it

468
00:21:35,560 --> 00:21:37,680
Speaker 1: or a block G on it, and if they come

469
00:21:38,040 --> 00:21:39,320
Speaker 1: and they want it, they got it.

470
00:21:40,600 --> 00:21:42,240
Speaker 3: Well, none of us like to see a blemish on

471
00:21:42,320 --> 00:21:45,120
Speaker 3: our record either. So if we know that the kid

472
00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:48,280
Speaker 3: hasn't gotten the offer he truly wants yet, and maybe

473
00:21:48,359 --> 00:21:51,720
Speaker 3: he's just making a commitment to solidify his spot, but

474
00:21:51,840 --> 00:21:54,440
Speaker 3: he gets offered that he really wants, he may take

475
00:21:54,480 --> 00:21:57,480
Speaker 3: that on the spot. Then you took your l being

476
00:21:57,560 --> 00:22:00,879
Speaker 3: on another school. And so sometimes that's a wait and

477
00:22:00,920 --> 00:22:02,920
Speaker 3: see approach with the crystal ball. Drew Aller is a

478
00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:05,119
Speaker 3: top one hundred quarterback in the top two pour to seven.

479
00:22:05,680 --> 00:22:07,760
Speaker 3: I committed to Penn State last week. I was a

480
00:22:07,760 --> 00:22:10,639
Speaker 3: big gift for James Franklin and company. They haven't hit

481
00:22:10,840 --> 00:22:15,000
Speaker 3: at that position like this in his era, and I

482
00:22:15,040 --> 00:22:17,439
Speaker 3: think they've done a terrific job recruiting every other position,

483
00:22:18,160 --> 00:22:20,000
Speaker 3: and so this is their biggest get at the position

484
00:22:20,119 --> 00:22:25,080
Speaker 3: since Trace Sorely, but Notre Dame. I got some word

485
00:22:25,160 --> 00:22:27,680
Speaker 3: that Penn State led for Drew Aller, and talking to

486
00:22:27,800 --> 00:22:30,520
Speaker 3: his family, talking to Drew, talking to other people close

487
00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:34,760
Speaker 3: to him, Penn State led. I think people around Happy

488
00:22:34,800 --> 00:22:37,000
Speaker 3: Belly felt good about it. Talking to the recruits in

489
00:22:37,080 --> 00:22:39,240
Speaker 3: the class and stuff. But the reason why I didn't

490
00:22:39,280 --> 00:22:41,760
Speaker 3: put the crystal ball in immediately while I waited a

491
00:22:41,800 --> 00:22:43,680
Speaker 3: little bit, is because he was still having dialogue with

492
00:22:43,760 --> 00:22:46,120
Speaker 3: Notre Dame. Notre Dame comes in and throws in an offer.

493
00:22:46,480 --> 00:22:49,959
Speaker 3: He's having meetings with offensive coordinator Tom Reeves. He's supposed

494
00:22:49,960 --> 00:22:52,840
Speaker 3: to have a big meeting with Brian Kelly the Thursday,

495
00:22:52,840 --> 00:22:53,919
Speaker 3: a few days before his.

496
00:22:57,280 --> 00:22:59,960
Speaker 4: Commitment date. Now I know that Notre Dame has to

497
00:23:00,280 --> 00:23:05,440
Speaker 4: turn the momentum of the recruitment to win this one.

498
00:23:05,880 --> 00:23:07,760
Speaker 3: So I still like Penn State, but I just didn't

499
00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:10,760
Speaker 3: want to do it to the readers. Josh to put

500
00:23:10,800 --> 00:23:15,520
Speaker 3: in a Penn State pick on Monday, knowing that Thursday

501
00:23:15,920 --> 00:23:19,080
Speaker 3: Brian Kelly could flip this thing and then I'm going

502
00:23:19,160 --> 00:23:22,560
Speaker 3: from Penn State Monday to Notre Dame Thursday. So again,

503
00:23:22,640 --> 00:23:25,680
Speaker 3: my I just was gonna wait and see. And that's

504
00:23:25,800 --> 00:23:27,800
Speaker 3: when I heard the Drew Aller canceled the visit. I

505
00:23:27,880 --> 00:23:30,440
Speaker 3: was like, all right, I'm in on Penn State. I'll

506
00:23:30,520 --> 00:23:33,239
Speaker 3: ride this one now. But I just so again, it's

507
00:23:33,320 --> 00:23:36,160
Speaker 3: fluid like the readers sometimes they you know, you don't

508
00:23:36,160 --> 00:23:37,840
Speaker 3: want to let them down either, there's.

509
00:23:37,720 --> 00:23:40,840
Speaker 4: That element and that component of it. So I held

510
00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:41,840
Speaker 4: off on that Penn.

511
00:23:41,680 --> 00:23:44,560
Speaker 3: State pick for a few days because I thought, hey,

512
00:23:44,640 --> 00:23:46,640
Speaker 3: Notre Dame's got a puncher's chance here. He's still talking

513
00:23:46,680 --> 00:23:48,280
Speaker 3: to him even though he's a heavy Penn State lee.

514
00:23:49,000 --> 00:23:51,040
Speaker 1: So I got Steve Wolfong and Brandon Huffman with me

515
00:23:51,160 --> 00:23:53,240
Speaker 1: right now. The JT to him alow out. I won't

516
00:23:53,240 --> 00:23:54,920
Speaker 1: call it saga because I mean, he hasn't been overly

517
00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:57,280
Speaker 1: dramatic about this, but the recruitment is still playing out.

518
00:23:57,359 --> 00:24:00,200
Speaker 1: We've still got obviously a little time to go before

519
00:24:00,240 --> 00:24:02,560
Speaker 1: he finally makes a decision. So huff you're out on

520
00:24:02,600 --> 00:24:04,480
Speaker 1: the West coast, and Steve, you've been involved with this

521
00:24:04,560 --> 00:24:06,359
Speaker 1: thing throughout the duration as well. I've just kind of

522
00:24:06,400 --> 00:24:09,879
Speaker 1: watched from afar. I had an inclination early on that,

523
00:24:10,000 --> 00:24:12,440
Speaker 1: because of the way COVID up into the recruiting schedule,

524
00:24:12,840 --> 00:24:14,840
Speaker 1: that we were going to have several kids go past

525
00:24:14,880 --> 00:24:18,000
Speaker 1: December to February and then maybe even past February to

526
00:24:18,440 --> 00:24:20,879
Speaker 1: I don't know, April, May, June or just enroll and

527
00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:23,680
Speaker 1: not even really have a commitment ceremony. And there's only

528
00:24:23,840 --> 00:24:26,480
Speaker 1: one major name. JTT is the only big name that's

529
00:24:26,520 --> 00:24:30,000
Speaker 1: done this. So number one, I'm curious, did you expect

530
00:24:30,080 --> 00:24:32,440
Speaker 1: this to be a bigger trend? And number two, like,

531
00:24:32,520 --> 00:24:34,480
Speaker 1: what's just been your overall take on the way that

532
00:24:34,520 --> 00:24:35,280
Speaker 1: he's handled this thing.

533
00:24:36,480 --> 00:24:38,440
Speaker 5: Well, I think the way he's handled it has actually

534
00:24:38,520 --> 00:24:40,880
Speaker 5: been really smart. I don't think that there was any

535
00:24:40,960 --> 00:24:41,520
Speaker 5: need for him.

536
00:24:41,440 --> 00:24:42,400
Speaker 2: To rush into decision.

537
00:24:42,760 --> 00:24:46,600
Speaker 5: And honestly, I'm surprised that more top to recruits, guys

538
00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:49,320
Speaker 5: that are highly coveted by everybody, don't take a little

539
00:24:49,320 --> 00:24:52,240
Speaker 5: bit longer, don't maybe leverage things into no sunning an MLI.

540
00:24:52,640 --> 00:24:55,159
Speaker 5: But scholarship paper is an intent to enroll whatever it

541
00:24:55,240 --> 00:24:58,119
Speaker 5: may be, So that doesn't surprise me. I think what

542
00:24:58,240 --> 00:25:01,840
Speaker 5: surprises me now is there is still the possibility they

543
00:25:01,880 --> 00:25:05,600
Speaker 5: could wait until June, provided the NCAA does open recruiting

544
00:25:05,720 --> 00:25:07,080
Speaker 5: up in the month of June and they end the

545
00:25:07,160 --> 00:25:08,320
Speaker 5: dead period at the end of May.

546
00:25:08,960 --> 00:25:11,240
Speaker 2: I couldn't see them waiting until the middle of June

547
00:25:11,280 --> 00:25:12,040
Speaker 2: to make a decision.

548
00:25:12,119 --> 00:25:14,360
Speaker 5: He graduates the first week in June, most of those

549
00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:16,639
Speaker 5: guys are going to be on campus by the end

550
00:25:16,680 --> 00:25:19,000
Speaker 5: of June and his high school basketball season, which is

551
00:25:19,080 --> 00:25:20,680
Speaker 5: part of the reason he came back for the entire

552
00:25:20,720 --> 00:25:24,000
Speaker 5: school year will go until mid June, so it's unlikely

553
00:25:24,040 --> 00:25:25,480
Speaker 5: that he'll even be able to take business.

554
00:25:25,280 --> 00:25:26,720
Speaker 2: Until his basketball season is done.

555
00:25:27,040 --> 00:25:29,119
Speaker 5: Most guys are already on campus and that the latest

556
00:25:29,119 --> 00:25:31,639
Speaker 5: are enrolling in June, so I'm kind of surprised that

557
00:25:31,680 --> 00:25:33,840
Speaker 5: they're taking it all the way until June.

558
00:25:34,119 --> 00:25:36,159
Speaker 2: I thought that the NCAA's decision to extend the dead

559
00:25:36,200 --> 00:25:38,080
Speaker 2: period at the end of May meant that they might

560
00:25:38,160 --> 00:25:39,160
Speaker 2: get out on their own.

561
00:25:39,000 --> 00:25:41,640
Speaker 5: To visit Ohio State in Alabama, and they still might,

562
00:25:41,960 --> 00:25:44,840
Speaker 5: but the possibility that they could wait until June that

563
00:25:45,040 --> 00:25:46,479
Speaker 5: does surprise me a little bit.

564
00:25:47,119 --> 00:25:49,399
Speaker 3: I will say, if you look at the top fifty

565
00:25:49,560 --> 00:25:55,040
Speaker 3: prospects from this twenty twenty one class, only three or

566
00:25:55,720 --> 00:25:59,919
Speaker 3: JT if you include committed to a school they had

567
00:26:00,160 --> 00:26:05,080
Speaker 3: and visited. Travian Henderson committed to Ohio State sight unseen.

568
00:26:05,480 --> 00:26:08,560
Speaker 3: It's actually the second time Tony Alford, Ohio State's running

569
00:26:08,600 --> 00:26:10,080
Speaker 3: backs coach, has done that.

570
00:26:10,480 --> 00:26:10,760
Speaker 4: JK.

571
00:26:10,960 --> 00:26:14,160
Speaker 3: Dobbins committed to Ohio State Site unseen over a blue

572
00:26:14,240 --> 00:26:16,760
Speaker 3: chip offer list, and then he does it with Travian

573
00:26:16,840 --> 00:26:20,200
Speaker 3: Henderson to Tony Alford, obviously flexing his muscles there. I

574
00:26:20,240 --> 00:26:23,960
Speaker 3: think I think Mario Williams maybe committed to Oklahoma with

575
00:26:24,080 --> 00:26:27,280
Speaker 3: never being there. But if you look at the other

576
00:26:27,400 --> 00:26:31,680
Speaker 3: guys in the top fifty, I think that everyone that

577
00:26:32,000 --> 00:26:35,879
Speaker 3: committed to their school, they had been on those campuses before,

578
00:26:36,000 --> 00:26:39,000
Speaker 3: whether it was before the pandemic where during the pandemic

579
00:26:39,080 --> 00:26:41,760
Speaker 3: they went out and did self guided. So for j T,

580
00:26:42,920 --> 00:26:45,440
Speaker 3: he hasn't been to Ohio State. That's the twenty four

581
00:26:45,440 --> 00:26:49,200
Speaker 3: to seven Sports crystal Ball favorite. He's expressed to Huffman

582
00:26:49,840 --> 00:26:52,080
Speaker 3: and his family numerous times have expressed on, Hey, we

583
00:26:52,119 --> 00:26:55,120
Speaker 3: want to visit Ohio State before we're deciding, and he's

584
00:26:55,160 --> 00:26:56,680
Speaker 3: one of you know, I think some of those other

585
00:26:56,800 --> 00:27:00,520
Speaker 3: guys that chose to sign, they had were able to

586
00:27:00,640 --> 00:27:06,679
Speaker 3: accomplish something that JT hasn't. And by the time Travian signed,

587
00:27:06,960 --> 00:27:10,000
Speaker 3: he had also been to Ohio State, and so I

588
00:27:10,119 --> 00:27:12,119
Speaker 3: think that that was a big I think that's a

589
00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:14,280
Speaker 3: big thing that makes JT unique. I think maybe you

590
00:27:14,320 --> 00:27:16,960
Speaker 3: would have saw some other guys wait and sign and

591
00:27:17,040 --> 00:27:20,280
Speaker 3: wait out this pandemic if they could have, if they

592
00:27:20,400 --> 00:27:23,240
Speaker 3: hadn't seen, you know, a school that maybe they're they're

593
00:27:23,359 --> 00:27:23,720
Speaker 3: leaning to.

594
00:27:24,520 --> 00:27:24,920
Speaker 4: Huffman.

595
00:27:24,960 --> 00:27:27,119
Speaker 3: I wanted to ask you you reported this week that

596
00:27:27,280 --> 00:27:30,720
Speaker 3: JT got a basketball offer from Oregon. Now, this is

597
00:27:30,760 --> 00:27:34,520
Speaker 3: a young man that I'm under the impression that he is.

598
00:27:35,920 --> 00:27:38,359
Speaker 3: He's choosing a school one of the most important factors

599
00:27:38,440 --> 00:27:40,280
Speaker 3: in his decision, and people can see us so you

600
00:27:40,320 --> 00:27:42,280
Speaker 3: can shake your head and say if you agree or

601
00:27:42,320 --> 00:27:43,960
Speaker 3: disagree he.

602
00:27:44,000 --> 00:27:45,119
Speaker 4: Wants he's picking a school.

603
00:27:45,119 --> 00:27:46,720
Speaker 3: One of the biggest factors is where can I go

604
00:27:46,840 --> 00:27:49,959
Speaker 3: to not only maximize my potential, but maximize my potential

605
00:27:50,040 --> 00:27:51,360
Speaker 3: and be a top ten pick.

606
00:27:51,480 --> 00:27:54,000
Speaker 4: Like there's a big difference between even being top ten

607
00:27:54,080 --> 00:27:56,080
Speaker 4: in first round? Is that the way they view it?

608
00:27:56,240 --> 00:27:56,400
Speaker 1: Right?

609
00:27:57,040 --> 00:28:00,600
Speaker 3: So the basketball things are relevant, right, Like he he's

610
00:28:00,600 --> 00:28:03,560
Speaker 3: not gonna be messing around with basketball and Kyle, He's

611
00:28:03,560 --> 00:28:05,560
Speaker 3: gonna be putting all his energy into being a top

612
00:28:05,600 --> 00:28:09,320
Speaker 3: ten pick. Where do you stand on like this, Is

613
00:28:09,400 --> 00:28:11,680
Speaker 3: that just a cool little feather in another way to

614
00:28:12,320 --> 00:28:15,560
Speaker 3: have some interaction with the young man or is this

615
00:28:15,680 --> 00:28:17,639
Speaker 3: a guy that even though he's aiming to be a

616
00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:20,240
Speaker 3: top ten pick because he you know, is basketball real.

617
00:28:21,200 --> 00:28:23,720
Speaker 5: Basketball is very real and people need to understand basketball

618
00:28:23,880 --> 00:28:26,600
Speaker 5: was his first love. His best friend is Paulo Bonchero,

619
00:28:26,800 --> 00:28:28,520
Speaker 5: who I think is the number two ranked player in

620
00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:31,520
Speaker 5: twenty four seven twenty twenty one rankings. He's headed a

621
00:28:31,600 --> 00:28:33,960
Speaker 5: duke and a big reason why JK decided to come

622
00:28:34,000 --> 00:28:35,440
Speaker 5: and play his entire senior year.

623
00:28:35,640 --> 00:28:36,440
Speaker 2: Now that's all or not.

624
00:28:36,600 --> 00:28:39,680
Speaker 5: With the date of Washington's decision to not have state championships,

625
00:28:39,880 --> 00:28:42,440
Speaker 5: but Paula being his best friend when they were freshman,

626
00:28:42,520 --> 00:28:45,760
Speaker 5: Paulo the team won the state football championship. JT wanted

627
00:28:45,800 --> 00:28:48,440
Speaker 5: a sophomore and junior, but paul also won a basketball

628
00:28:48,480 --> 00:28:51,840
Speaker 5: state championship, and so JT was motivated to get one

629
00:28:52,200 --> 00:28:54,440
Speaker 5: ring for each sport, just like his best friend has.

630
00:28:54,640 --> 00:28:56,560
Speaker 5: But he's a really good basketball player. If you look

631
00:28:56,600 --> 00:28:59,040
Speaker 5: at his AAU team, you got Paul Bunchero, you got

632
00:28:59,080 --> 00:29:00,400
Speaker 5: Nolan Hickton is going toy.

633
00:29:00,680 --> 00:29:01,960
Speaker 2: You got players going to Arizona.

634
00:29:01,960 --> 00:29:04,440
Speaker 5: Their starting point guard is Drew Carter Steve, a guy

635
00:29:04,520 --> 00:29:06,280
Speaker 5: you and I have talked about who's going to Colorado

636
00:29:06,320 --> 00:29:09,440
Speaker 5: to play football. He too, will play basketball. We'll see

637
00:29:09,440 --> 00:29:11,320
Speaker 5: if a quarterback actually plays basketball. But this is the

638
00:29:11,440 --> 00:29:13,440
Speaker 5: number one player in the country we're talking about. I

639
00:29:13,560 --> 00:29:15,760
Speaker 5: remember when Eric Arnstein went to Oregon, and a big

640
00:29:15,840 --> 00:29:18,360
Speaker 5: reason he picked Oregon was because he wanted to be

641
00:29:18,400 --> 00:29:20,360
Speaker 5: able to play basketball and Oregon was going to give

642
00:29:20,440 --> 00:29:22,960
Speaker 5: him that opportunity. I think he played a combined three

643
00:29:23,080 --> 00:29:26,680
Speaker 5: minutes of basketball for Oregon. Marcedes Lewis was the number

644
00:29:26,680 --> 00:29:28,920
Speaker 5: one tight end. This is fifteen twenty years ago. He

645
00:29:29,000 --> 00:29:30,960
Speaker 5: was the number one tight end, went to UCLA, played

646
00:29:30,960 --> 00:29:33,880
Speaker 5: basketball for a season, didn't see a whole lot. Realized

647
00:29:33,920 --> 00:29:35,600
Speaker 5: I got a good chance of being a first round pick.

648
00:29:35,800 --> 00:29:38,240
Speaker 5: Same with Art staid, they both did. You got to

649
00:29:38,280 --> 00:29:40,680
Speaker 5: go back to Julius Peppers, Tony Gonzalez and those are

650
00:29:40,680 --> 00:29:44,000
Speaker 5: almost lifetimes ago. That's twenty five years ago to find

651
00:29:44,120 --> 00:29:48,080
Speaker 5: elitk two score players. But I think with JT, basketball

652
00:29:48,160 --> 00:29:50,160
Speaker 5: is such a love for his that I really do

653
00:29:50,280 --> 00:29:52,160
Speaker 5: think it is a part of the process for him.

654
00:29:52,360 --> 00:29:52,479
Speaker 4: Now.

655
00:29:52,600 --> 00:29:54,600
Speaker 5: Having said that, we all know that if he's going

656
00:29:54,640 --> 00:29:56,840
Speaker 5: on a football scholarship, you don't need to offer him

657
00:29:56,840 --> 00:29:57,880
Speaker 5: a basketball scholarship.

658
00:29:57,920 --> 00:29:59,880
Speaker 2: Football is on the hook for that. But I think

659
00:30:00,000 --> 00:30:01,280
Speaker 2: it's a ceremonial thing.

660
00:30:01,600 --> 00:30:04,000
Speaker 5: It also is those coaching stats away of not just

661
00:30:04,080 --> 00:30:06,440
Speaker 5: saying yeah, you know, sure you can come play basketball

662
00:30:06,480 --> 00:30:08,640
Speaker 5: for us. It's their way of saying, we think you're

663
00:30:08,680 --> 00:30:11,120
Speaker 5: a great basketball player, regardless of what you can do

664
00:30:11,240 --> 00:30:13,840
Speaker 5: in football. We want you to just come play basketball

665
00:30:13,880 --> 00:30:14,120
Speaker 5: for us.

666
00:30:14,360 --> 00:30:17,440
Speaker 2: He's not pivoting that direction, but I think there's a

667
00:30:17,520 --> 00:30:20,280
Speaker 2: little bit of a not a floy here, but a

668
00:30:20,320 --> 00:30:22,320
Speaker 2: little bit more of a play like, Hey, we really

669
00:30:22,400 --> 00:30:23,240
Speaker 2: really like you, like.

670
00:30:23,280 --> 00:30:25,720
Speaker 5: The football coaches like you, so we're offering you this

671
00:30:25,800 --> 00:30:28,800
Speaker 5: opportunity as well. Ultimately, when it's all said and done,

672
00:30:28,840 --> 00:30:31,160
Speaker 5: this is a potential number one overall pick in the draft.

673
00:30:31,440 --> 00:30:33,800
Speaker 5: I think basketball hoop dreams might be done after his

674
00:30:33,920 --> 00:30:36,400
Speaker 5: freshman year. Hey, maybe he plays two years, Maybe he

675
00:30:36,440 --> 00:30:37,040
Speaker 5: plays spears.

676
00:30:37,080 --> 00:30:38,120
Speaker 2: Maybe he doesn't go to.

677
00:30:38,160 --> 00:30:40,480
Speaker 5: The NFL early because he wants to keep playing basketball

678
00:30:40,480 --> 00:30:43,200
Speaker 5: and wants to participate. Mark Madnets that said, when you're

679
00:30:43,280 --> 00:30:46,360
Speaker 5: that elite of a football prospect, go focus on football.

680
00:30:46,800 --> 00:30:50,280
Speaker 3: He left out Antwine, Randall all Man, the best two

681
00:30:50,320 --> 00:30:55,120
Speaker 3: sport athletes, Donovan mcnahb too. Yeah, yeah, absolutely, and those

682
00:30:55,160 --> 00:30:58,040
Speaker 3: guys would just roll out of bed, Especially when Josh

683
00:30:58,080 --> 00:30:59,560
Speaker 3: and I were talking about it before the show. Josh

684
00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:02,880
Speaker 3: talked about the expectations that athletes have on them now

685
00:31:03,000 --> 00:31:06,320
Speaker 3: within their college programs. That was maybe maybe different back

686
00:31:06,640 --> 00:31:09,520
Speaker 3: back when Randall Ell and Donovan McNabb and stuff. We're

687
00:31:09,560 --> 00:31:12,720
Speaker 3: dressing at Syracuse and Indiana respectively. Your Crystal Ball forecast

688
00:31:12,840 --> 00:31:16,040
Speaker 3: is on a one for Ohio State. Does the basketball

689
00:31:16,120 --> 00:31:19,440
Speaker 3: offer give Oregon an inch in this recruitment or Washington

690
00:31:19,840 --> 00:31:22,520
Speaker 3: or does al I mean where Ohio State and Alabama

691
00:31:23,320 --> 00:31:25,280
Speaker 3: with the with the dual sport thing. Then you know,

692
00:31:25,360 --> 00:31:29,000
Speaker 3: obviously Alabama's letting Terry and Arnold play basketball. They beat

693
00:31:29,040 --> 00:31:32,520
Speaker 3: out Georgia and Florida for him late in the cycle.

694
00:31:32,840 --> 00:31:35,160
Speaker 3: What are you hearing with those two schools in the hardwook?

695
00:31:35,560 --> 00:31:37,960
Speaker 5: I mean they're both very very much involved there. Both

696
00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:40,400
Speaker 5: I still at the forefront of his recruitment. To me,

697
00:31:40,600 --> 00:31:43,880
Speaker 5: the whole entire recruitment hinges on will he actually get

698
00:31:43,920 --> 00:31:46,680
Speaker 5: out to Tescalosa, will he actually get out to Columbus,

699
00:31:46,720 --> 00:31:49,240
Speaker 5: And most importantly will he get the Columbus He visited

700
00:31:49,280 --> 00:31:52,320
Speaker 5: Tescalosa going into a sophomore year with he camp there

701
00:31:52,760 --> 00:31:54,960
Speaker 5: going into that sophomore season when he got his offer

702
00:31:55,000 --> 00:31:57,000
Speaker 5: from Alabama, but he was with the seven on seven

703
00:31:57,080 --> 00:31:59,280
Speaker 5: coach Tracy Ford. His family didn't go with them. His

704
00:31:59,400 --> 00:32:01,360
Speaker 5: famley has been to Oregon, they've been to usc they've

705
00:32:01,360 --> 00:32:04,800
Speaker 5: been to Washington. They've not been to Tuscalooser or Columbus.

706
00:32:04,840 --> 00:32:05,200
Speaker 1: But JT.

707
00:32:05,360 --> 00:32:07,760
Speaker 5: Himself has never been to Columbus, So that's why I

708
00:32:07,880 --> 00:32:10,960
Speaker 5: have never moved that crystal ball from Ohio State off

709
00:32:11,040 --> 00:32:13,760
Speaker 5: of a lie to anything more. But I also think

710
00:32:13,800 --> 00:32:16,200
Speaker 5: that they're still a leader until he goes into visits

711
00:32:16,280 --> 00:32:18,480
Speaker 5: or until he pulls the plug on that visit. And

712
00:32:18,600 --> 00:32:21,400
Speaker 5: that's why I think that visit is so crucial in

713
00:32:21,560 --> 00:32:25,480
Speaker 5: Ohio State's efforts, because Dave essentially said, we will wait

714
00:32:25,520 --> 00:32:27,640
Speaker 5: as long as we need to to get out to

715
00:32:27,720 --> 00:32:29,280
Speaker 5: see Ohio State and see if.

716
00:32:29,200 --> 00:32:30,000
Speaker 2: That's the right pick.

717
00:32:30,360 --> 00:32:32,360
Speaker 5: If the NCAA is ending the dead period at the

718
00:32:32,440 --> 00:32:34,360
Speaker 5: end of May, then great, you do that in June.

719
00:32:34,400 --> 00:32:36,840
Speaker 5: But with the NCAA keep moving that back, and JT

720
00:32:36,960 --> 00:32:39,480
Speaker 5: and his family keep moving the decision back, that tells

721
00:32:39,560 --> 00:32:42,280
Speaker 5: you that the interest in Ohio State and in Alabama

722
00:32:42,480 --> 00:32:45,520
Speaker 5: is genuine, it's real. Otherwise, he could have already committed

723
00:32:45,560 --> 00:32:47,320
Speaker 5: to Washington, he could have already committed to Oregon, he

724
00:32:47,360 --> 00:32:48,600
Speaker 5: could have already committed to USC.

725
00:32:49,120 --> 00:32:50,080
Speaker 2: Those three schools are.

726
00:32:50,040 --> 00:32:52,080
Speaker 5: Having to wait because he really wants to get out

727
00:32:52,080 --> 00:32:54,480
Speaker 5: to see Ohio State in Alabama. But I still think

728
00:32:54,560 --> 00:32:56,959
Speaker 5: Ohio State is ever so slightly in the lead. I've

729
00:32:57,000 --> 00:32:59,680
Speaker 5: maintained that all along. If he ultimately decides to make

730
00:32:59,720 --> 00:33:02,360
Speaker 5: it this without having getting out there, so be it.

731
00:33:02,520 --> 00:33:04,520
Speaker 5: I don't think if he goes, if he doesn't take

732
00:33:04,560 --> 00:33:07,400
Speaker 5: that trip to Columbus or Tesscaloosa, then I think he's

733
00:33:07,400 --> 00:33:09,040
Speaker 5: staying in the pack field. And that's where I think

734
00:33:09,120 --> 00:33:11,680
Speaker 5: Oregon emerges as a school he assigns with. But as

735
00:33:11,760 --> 00:33:13,720
Speaker 5: long as they are maintaining that they are going to

736
00:33:13,760 --> 00:33:17,360
Speaker 5: trip to Columbus and a Testcalosa, there's every reason to

737
00:33:17,360 --> 00:33:19,720
Speaker 5: believe that those two schools are still at the forefront.

738
00:33:19,320 --> 00:33:20,000
Speaker 2: Of his recruitment.

739
00:33:21,200 --> 00:33:24,080
Speaker 1: This organ recruiting class, it's pretty wild, the organ recruiting effort,

740
00:33:24,120 --> 00:33:25,800
Speaker 1: the machine out there is pretty wild. I know, maybe

741
00:33:25,880 --> 00:33:28,560
Speaker 1: a casual recruiting observer who just shows up the week

742
00:33:28,640 --> 00:33:31,479
Speaker 1: of signing day in December and February and they say, oh,

743
00:33:31,920 --> 00:33:33,920
Speaker 1: there's the top ten, all right, got it, moving on,

744
00:33:34,080 --> 00:33:35,920
Speaker 1: I'll be back in the fall when to meet's leather.

745
00:33:36,000 --> 00:33:38,400
Speaker 1: They may not pick up on the nuance of this.

746
00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:41,880
Speaker 1: Like North Carolina has a really good recruiting class. Ninety

747
00:33:41,880 --> 00:33:43,600
Speaker 1: percent of the kids in their class are from in state.

748
00:33:43,640 --> 00:33:45,840
Speaker 1: I'm looking at Oregon's recruiting class right now. There's one

749
00:33:45,960 --> 00:33:48,600
Speaker 1: kid in this entire class that's from the state of Oregon.

750
00:33:49,000 --> 00:33:50,480
Speaker 1: If you're going to recruit at a top ten level

751
00:33:50,520 --> 00:33:53,600
Speaker 1: in Oregon, obviously you have to have a massive out

752
00:33:53,640 --> 00:33:57,080
Speaker 1: of state recruiting infrastructure in place. But man, it's one

753
00:33:57,160 --> 00:33:59,160
Speaker 1: thing to say it huff will fall like it's one

754
00:33:59,200 --> 00:34:01,360
Speaker 1: thing to say, it's an other thing to actually get

755
00:34:01,400 --> 00:34:05,160
Speaker 1: your staff in there and go from Florida to they

756
00:34:05,200 --> 00:34:08,279
Speaker 1: went to Nebraska this year, California, youtah, all over the place,

757
00:34:08,600 --> 00:34:12,440
Speaker 1: and they're beating people. They're beating programs who are mainstays

758
00:34:12,680 --> 00:34:16,800
Speaker 1: in those geographical recruiting beds. I know, no one doubted

759
00:34:16,840 --> 00:34:19,200
Speaker 1: whether Mario Christobal could recruit when he got there. But

760
00:34:19,320 --> 00:34:21,520
Speaker 1: there's there's a difference. We talked about this a lot

761
00:34:21,560 --> 00:34:24,359
Speaker 1: behind the scenes. There's a difference in your profile as

762
00:34:24,440 --> 00:34:27,640
Speaker 1: a regional recruiter when you're an assistant coach versus the

763
00:34:27,880 --> 00:34:30,319
Speaker 1: entire vision you have to cast, when you're the head

764
00:34:30,360 --> 00:34:33,520
Speaker 1: man and you're casting division, you're running the program. It's

765
00:34:33,560 --> 00:34:35,400
Speaker 1: kind of a redundant question, But man, has this not

766
00:34:35,480 --> 00:34:37,000
Speaker 1: been pretty impressive from them so far?

767
00:34:38,560 --> 00:34:40,200
Speaker 5: I think when you look at what they've done over

768
00:34:40,239 --> 00:34:42,160
Speaker 5: the last three or four years, you can't help. But

769
00:34:42,360 --> 00:34:46,000
Speaker 5: notice that ORGAN is recruiting like they're a national program,

770
00:34:46,239 --> 00:34:49,279
Speaker 5: like in Alabama, like an LSU, liking Clemson. They're going

771
00:34:49,360 --> 00:34:52,320
Speaker 5: and picking and choosing who they want in states outside

772
00:34:52,360 --> 00:34:55,160
Speaker 5: their own region, and then they're going into their backyard.

773
00:34:55,160 --> 00:34:57,440
Speaker 5: They're going into the states that aren't ORGAN, but that

774
00:34:57,520 --> 00:35:00,160
Speaker 5: are in that pactual footprint and cherry picking players. If

775
00:35:00,200 --> 00:35:02,160
Speaker 5: you look at what they've done over the last few years,

776
00:35:02,360 --> 00:35:04,640
Speaker 5: they have made a big time pain in the side

777
00:35:04,680 --> 00:35:06,719
Speaker 5: of the state of Arizona, getting three of the top

778
00:35:06,800 --> 00:35:09,520
Speaker 5: five players this year. When you're going into the Arizonas

779
00:35:09,560 --> 00:35:11,680
Speaker 5: and to the Utahs of the world, not only are

780
00:35:11,719 --> 00:35:14,920
Speaker 5: you strengthening your roster, you're crippling your fellow packed ball

781
00:35:14,960 --> 00:35:18,080
Speaker 5: school's rosters by taking their best players. And that's what

782
00:35:18,200 --> 00:35:20,480
Speaker 5: I think ORGAN has done that's been so remarkable is

783
00:35:20,560 --> 00:35:23,000
Speaker 5: it's not just what they've done from a national standpoint.

784
00:35:23,120 --> 00:35:25,320
Speaker 5: I'll let Steve talk about what they've done nationally, but

785
00:35:25,640 --> 00:35:29,080
Speaker 5: regionally on the West Coast, how they've really crippled so

786
00:35:29,320 --> 00:35:31,440
Speaker 5: many of their packed world counterparts.

787
00:35:31,800 --> 00:35:34,240
Speaker 2: That's been what's really separated them in my opinion.

788
00:35:34,280 --> 00:35:36,799
Speaker 5: I mean, Oregon is a national brand, don't get me wrong,

789
00:35:36,920 --> 00:35:39,520
Speaker 5: but Oregon is also a destination that when West Coast

790
00:35:39,560 --> 00:35:42,000
Speaker 5: kids want to go take an unofficial visit when they're

791
00:35:42,000 --> 00:35:44,200
Speaker 5: a freshman, when they're a sophomore, Oregon is one of

792
00:35:44,239 --> 00:35:46,680
Speaker 5: those places they want to stop so they can offset

793
00:35:46,760 --> 00:35:47,720
Speaker 5: the pandemic when.

794
00:35:47,560 --> 00:35:50,520
Speaker 2: There's no official business, no unofficial visits for a year.

795
00:35:50,840 --> 00:35:52,720
Speaker 2: Most of those kids visited ORGU when they're a freshman

796
00:35:52,719 --> 00:35:53,640
Speaker 2: of software to begin with.

797
00:35:53,920 --> 00:35:56,200
Speaker 5: In fact, in a pure stroke of luck, I don't

798
00:35:56,200 --> 00:35:57,360
Speaker 5: think they knew that there was going to be a

799
00:35:57,400 --> 00:35:59,880
Speaker 5: worldwide pandemic capital in five days later, but they have

800
00:36:00,120 --> 00:36:04,120
Speaker 5: a junior day literally the last weekend before the pandemic

801
00:36:04,200 --> 00:36:06,759
Speaker 5: shut down recruiting. In fact, Ty Thompson, who was their

802
00:36:06,800 --> 00:36:09,480
Speaker 5: quarterback of the Assignments class, was on campus when the

803
00:36:09,600 --> 00:36:11,600
Speaker 5: NCAAA released a statement.

804
00:36:11,560 --> 00:36:13,480
Speaker 2: Saying that the dead period was one to be extended

805
00:36:13,520 --> 00:36:14,680
Speaker 2: for an indefinite period.

806
00:36:14,760 --> 00:36:18,680
Speaker 5: So Oregon just even by without even trying, was able

807
00:36:18,760 --> 00:36:21,400
Speaker 5: to get ahead of the pandemic shutting down recruiting.

808
00:36:21,640 --> 00:36:23,839
Speaker 2: And that's the kind of just what you expect from them.

809
00:36:24,000 --> 00:36:25,479
Speaker 2: They always got a plan in place.

810
00:36:25,560 --> 00:36:28,200
Speaker 5: They've always got something that they can do that really

811
00:36:28,280 --> 00:36:31,120
Speaker 5: show their university off to recruits. They have that junior

812
00:36:31,200 --> 00:36:33,239
Speaker 5: Day had a number of kids come in from California,

813
00:36:33,280 --> 00:36:34,440
Speaker 5: from Oregon, from Washington.

814
00:36:34,880 --> 00:36:36,480
Speaker 2: The surprise that they end up at the top class

815
00:36:36,480 --> 00:36:37,120
Speaker 2: in the PAC twelve.

816
00:36:38,640 --> 00:36:40,520
Speaker 3: I've I've been a fly on a wall for an

817
00:36:40,560 --> 00:36:44,080
Speaker 3: Oregon Big Oregon visit weekend as I was out there

818
00:36:44,160 --> 00:36:48,399
Speaker 3: for their Saturday Night Live camp in Eugene two years

819
00:36:48,400 --> 00:36:50,879
Speaker 3: ago and ended up landing a bunch of those kids.

820
00:36:51,040 --> 00:36:55,280
Speaker 4: Kingsley Jackson, Light, Jonah Miller.

821
00:36:55,320 --> 00:36:57,279
Speaker 3: Those guys are part of the offensive line group, Keith

822
00:36:57,320 --> 00:37:01,200
Speaker 3: brownet linebacker Troy Franklin was out there, So that camp

823
00:37:01,239 --> 00:37:04,359
Speaker 3: really paid off for them. And just the the as

824
00:37:04,400 --> 00:37:06,920
Speaker 3: soon as you get off the elevator you're a prospect

825
00:37:07,000 --> 00:37:08,759
Speaker 3: and you're visiting Eugene. As soon as you get off

826
00:37:08,800 --> 00:37:12,960
Speaker 3: the elevator, the whole coaching staff, offield staff, everybody's there.

827
00:37:12,840 --> 00:37:13,360
Speaker 1: Waiting for you.

828
00:37:13,480 --> 00:37:15,960
Speaker 4: And that elevator door opens and they just are rough.

829
00:37:16,120 --> 00:37:16,839
Speaker 4: I mean they are.

830
00:37:17,160 --> 00:37:20,200
Speaker 3: Cheering their asses up for you. You haven't even gotten

831
00:37:20,320 --> 00:37:23,920
Speaker 3: in the building, like you're still on the elevator. And

832
00:37:24,160 --> 00:37:27,160
Speaker 3: so what an amazing way to start off the visit.

833
00:37:27,280 --> 00:37:30,800
Speaker 3: And I've seen coaches talk about that before and kids.

834
00:37:30,880 --> 00:37:32,480
Speaker 4: But then the next thing you do.

835
00:37:33,200 --> 00:37:35,640
Speaker 3: You go from there from the lobby, you're in the

836
00:37:35,760 --> 00:37:38,920
Speaker 3: kitchen man. You're in the cafeteria, and Mario Cristobal is

837
00:37:39,040 --> 00:37:41,960
Speaker 3: leading the discussion about the nutrition and meal program you're on.

838
00:37:42,040 --> 00:37:43,560
Speaker 3: And if you're an athlete, that's like the thing you

839
00:37:43,600 --> 00:37:45,200
Speaker 3: want to hear, one of the first things.

840
00:37:45,080 --> 00:37:46,560
Speaker 4: You want to hear. So you go from the lobby

841
00:37:46,600 --> 00:37:47,480
Speaker 4: to the kitchen man.

842
00:37:47,400 --> 00:37:50,880
Speaker 3: You're so now you're you're in there learning about their

843
00:37:50,920 --> 00:37:53,480
Speaker 3: strength and conditioning program and how they're going to fuel

844
00:37:53,560 --> 00:37:55,160
Speaker 3: you and how they're going to take you to the

845
00:37:55,239 --> 00:37:58,880
Speaker 3: next level. But beyond beyond the bells and whistles and

846
00:37:59,200 --> 00:38:02,840
Speaker 3: Organs got to riff facilities and terrific backing for their athletes.

847
00:38:04,520 --> 00:38:06,960
Speaker 3: The way that they've recruited is impressing me. And I

848
00:38:07,000 --> 00:38:09,120
Speaker 3: think that they're knocking on the door of getting into

849
00:38:09,120 --> 00:38:11,640
Speaker 3: the college football playoffs. Theyve recruited the offensive line as

850
00:38:11,680 --> 00:38:14,200
Speaker 3: well as anybody nationally. I know, Alabama just signed an

851
00:38:14,239 --> 00:38:17,200
Speaker 3: epic class. So but but beyond that, you know, Organ's

852
00:38:17,200 --> 00:38:19,480
Speaker 3: recruiting the offensive line at the same pace as Notre

853
00:38:19,600 --> 00:38:21,960
Speaker 3: Dame and and some of those other schools.

854
00:38:21,680 --> 00:38:26,000
Speaker 4: That have amazing fronts. Oregon hit you know, quarterback.

855
00:38:26,840 --> 00:38:29,279
Speaker 3: That that's the one where, like is Ty Thomps, you

856
00:38:29,360 --> 00:38:31,280
Speaker 3: got to have a program change you're at that position,

857
00:38:31,760 --> 00:38:34,239
Speaker 3: uh uh to make the playoff more times than and

858
00:38:34,320 --> 00:38:35,800
Speaker 3: if you don't, you got you got a guy like

859
00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:39,000
Speaker 3: Ian Book who's got a ton of talent around him.

860
00:38:39,600 --> 00:38:42,320
Speaker 3: I like that Oregon has landed some guys on the

861
00:38:42,440 --> 00:38:44,719
Speaker 3: in the front seven that can beat difference makers and

862
00:38:44,800 --> 00:38:48,960
Speaker 3: pass rushers. Obviously you have Kevon Thibodeau Ohio States. Pointing

863
00:38:49,000 --> 00:38:51,759
Speaker 3: towards all the guys that that they've developed on the

864
00:38:51,800 --> 00:38:54,560
Speaker 3: defensive front. Mario crystal Ball and company are saying, well,

865
00:38:54,600 --> 00:38:57,480
Speaker 3: you caveon and then you for JT. You guys can

866
00:38:57,560 --> 00:38:59,600
Speaker 3: kind of start that for us out west. But even

867
00:38:59,640 --> 00:39:02,440
Speaker 3: getting a guy like Jabril McNeil and guys like that,

868
00:39:02,560 --> 00:39:04,680
Speaker 3: those guys can be difference makers.

869
00:39:04,480 --> 00:39:06,160
Speaker 4: Suol and Flow.

870
00:39:06,239 --> 00:39:09,120
Speaker 3: Those are elite guys in your front seven. And then

871
00:39:09,120 --> 00:39:12,480
Speaker 3: they've added a lot of speed at the skill offensively

872
00:39:12,800 --> 00:39:17,439
Speaker 3: and defensively. So if Anthony Brown is the answer there

873
00:39:17,719 --> 00:39:20,319
Speaker 3: at quarterback or Todd Thompson, ultimately I think they put

874
00:39:20,360 --> 00:39:24,000
Speaker 3: the pieces around the quarterback position to be very competitive.

875
00:39:24,120 --> 00:39:28,000
Speaker 3: JT would be an extremely pivotal recruit. For them next

876
00:39:28,080 --> 00:39:30,240
Speaker 3: year as they try and get over the hump. But Brandon,

877
00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:32,920
Speaker 3: do you think that they've recruited championship level in the

878
00:39:33,000 --> 00:39:37,280
Speaker 3: trenches and more than anything, your thoughts on Ty Thompson

879
00:39:37,440 --> 00:39:40,880
Speaker 3: and then their coordinator situation with a new DC they

880
00:39:40,960 --> 00:39:43,960
Speaker 3: lose Andy Availis And your thoughts on Joe Moorehead Is

881
00:39:44,000 --> 00:39:46,640
Speaker 3: he a championship level of C Yeah, I mean I

882
00:39:46,680 --> 00:39:48,360
Speaker 3: think we look at the last time that Morhell was

883
00:39:48,400 --> 00:39:51,160
Speaker 3: calling an offense as a coordinator. It was at Penn

884
00:39:51,239 --> 00:39:53,200
Speaker 3: State and they were lighting up the Rose Bull score.

885
00:39:53,280 --> 00:39:56,000
Speaker 3: But now their defense couldn't stop UFC that day, but

886
00:39:56,080 --> 00:39:57,239
Speaker 3: their offense did everything that.

887
00:39:57,280 --> 00:39:59,839
Speaker 5: They could, So we know he's a champion play caller.

888
00:40:00,160 --> 00:40:01,840
Speaker 5: We also know that Tim de Ruter has had a

889
00:40:02,000 --> 00:40:04,600
Speaker 5: great run as a defensive coordinator when he was at

890
00:40:04,600 --> 00:40:06,560
Speaker 5: Texas A and M, and even in the early parts

891
00:40:06,600 --> 00:40:09,399
Speaker 5: of his time at Cal's the DC before Peter Sermon

892
00:40:09,520 --> 00:40:11,759
Speaker 5: took over. You look at how he showcased a guy

893
00:40:11,840 --> 00:40:14,280
Speaker 5: like Evan Weaver. Now take a guy with the talent

894
00:40:14,480 --> 00:40:17,239
Speaker 5: of a Kavon Phibodeau and what he could do as

895
00:40:17,280 --> 00:40:20,600
Speaker 5: a featured pass rusher like Cal used Devin Weaver you're

896
00:40:20,640 --> 00:40:22,920
Speaker 5: looking more like von Miller Territory, who de Ruder was

897
00:40:22,960 --> 00:40:25,000
Speaker 5: the defensive coordinator of Texas A and m for So

898
00:40:25,120 --> 00:40:28,200
Speaker 5: you've got two coordinators that have a history at big

899
00:40:28,280 --> 00:40:31,719
Speaker 5: time programs in big stages of being great at their

900
00:40:31,800 --> 00:40:32,840
Speaker 5: play calling duties.

901
00:40:33,000 --> 00:40:33,920
Speaker 4: But I think we're Oregon.

902
00:40:34,040 --> 00:40:36,400
Speaker 5: Like you said, the CD asked how they recruited a

903
00:40:36,520 --> 00:40:40,200
Speaker 5: championship level in the trenches. Absolutely, because I think that's

904
00:40:40,239 --> 00:40:42,880
Speaker 5: what's really separated Oregon in the last few years is

905
00:40:42,960 --> 00:40:45,120
Speaker 5: how much of a priority and an emphasis has been

906
00:40:45,200 --> 00:40:49,840
Speaker 5: placed on offensive lineman, on defensive lineman, on pass rushers,

907
00:40:49,880 --> 00:40:53,600
Speaker 5: on skilled athletic tactics. You look at Alex Mirabell, I mean,

908
00:40:53,680 --> 00:40:56,520
Speaker 5: he is one of those. He's probably the smallest offensive

909
00:40:56,560 --> 00:40:59,080
Speaker 5: line coach in college football. I mean when I see

910
00:40:59,160 --> 00:41:01,160
Speaker 5: him at a camp, it's always just you have to

911
00:41:01,400 --> 00:41:03,880
Speaker 5: have to do a double take. But that guy's units

912
00:41:03,960 --> 00:41:06,160
Speaker 5: are among the best in the country each and every year.

913
00:41:06,280 --> 00:41:09,000
Speaker 5: You look at what Piney Sewell did at Oregon in

914
00:41:09,000 --> 00:41:10,440
Speaker 5: the two years that he started there.

915
00:41:10,719 --> 00:41:12,279
Speaker 2: He went from being a guy that we liked.

916
00:41:12,320 --> 00:41:14,040
Speaker 5: He was a top fifty player, number one player in

917
00:41:14,160 --> 00:41:16,759
Speaker 5: Utah to now a likely top three or four pick

918
00:41:17,120 --> 00:41:17,360
Speaker 5: and that.

919
00:41:17,440 --> 00:41:20,120
Speaker 2: Was all development. Because Mario Crystobol is an offensive line guy.

920
00:41:20,360 --> 00:41:22,440
Speaker 2: He was an offensive lineman in college, he's an offensive

921
00:41:22,480 --> 00:41:22,959
Speaker 2: line coach.

922
00:41:23,719 --> 00:41:26,920
Speaker 5: Between him and Mirabelle, there is such an importance in

923
00:41:26,960 --> 00:41:30,520
Speaker 5: an emphasis place on getting great offensive linemen that can

924
00:41:30,600 --> 00:41:31,520
Speaker 5: do a number of things.

925
00:41:31,880 --> 00:41:33,400
Speaker 2: You look at their class this year and you look

926
00:41:33,400 --> 00:41:34,319
Speaker 2: at their offensive line.

927
00:41:34,520 --> 00:41:36,640
Speaker 5: You get Kingsley Sue, I'll tell you who's the number

928
00:41:36,680 --> 00:41:39,239
Speaker 5: one tackle out West, a five star player, and then

929
00:41:39,280 --> 00:41:41,319
Speaker 5: you get Jackson Light who you know when you watch

930
00:41:41,400 --> 00:41:43,880
Speaker 5: Jackson live on film, it's one of the more entertaining

931
00:41:43,920 --> 00:41:45,920
Speaker 5: things that you're gonna watch. The guy is running stride

932
00:41:45,960 --> 00:41:48,359
Speaker 5: for stride with his running back, but knocking people out.

933
00:41:48,360 --> 00:41:50,680
Speaker 5: While his running back is looking for his blocks, Jackson

934
00:41:50,760 --> 00:41:52,920
Speaker 5: Lights are foot in front of him, knocking guys out,

935
00:41:52,960 --> 00:41:54,759
Speaker 5: getting right back in front of him, so they know

936
00:41:54,880 --> 00:41:57,520
Speaker 5: it's not just about tackles, it's about getting good interior

937
00:41:57,600 --> 00:41:59,920
Speaker 5: lineman too. Then you flip it over the defensive side

938
00:41:59,920 --> 00:42:03,080
Speaker 5: of the ball. Joe Salavea's got a tremendous reputation to

939
00:42:03,200 --> 00:42:04,920
Speaker 5: his time when he was at Washington State, when he

940
00:42:05,000 --> 00:42:07,560
Speaker 5: was at Arizona before that, and now at Oregon. Of

941
00:42:07,680 --> 00:42:10,200
Speaker 5: not just being able to really recruit high level players,

942
00:42:10,200 --> 00:42:11,960
Speaker 5: but then those guys turn out and play at a

943
00:42:12,000 --> 00:42:13,759
Speaker 5: high level when they get to Oregon. So I think

944
00:42:14,160 --> 00:42:17,480
Speaker 5: that commitment to the trenches is probably the biggest thing

945
00:42:17,560 --> 00:42:19,960
Speaker 5: that Oregon has been able to do. If you go

946
00:42:20,080 --> 00:42:22,480
Speaker 5: back to their national championship lost to Ohio State in

947
00:42:22,520 --> 00:42:23,480
Speaker 5: twenty fifteen.

948
00:42:23,760 --> 00:42:27,080
Speaker 2: After the twenty fourteen season, where did that game really turn? Well?

949
00:42:27,280 --> 00:42:31,240
Speaker 5: Termed Ezekiel, that was unstoppable and untouchable by Oregon because

950
00:42:31,280 --> 00:42:34,680
Speaker 5: Oregon's offensive or defensive line was getting pushed back every

951
00:42:34,719 --> 00:42:37,200
Speaker 5: single play. Keep in mind, they had Eric Armstead into

952
00:42:37,200 --> 00:42:40,600
Speaker 5: Forrest Buckner, two future Pro bowlers, two future first rounders

953
00:42:40,640 --> 00:42:43,080
Speaker 5: on that defensive line, but Ohio State was that much

954
00:42:43,120 --> 00:42:46,080
Speaker 5: bigger and stronger. Oregon didn't have the depth. Now they've

955
00:42:46,120 --> 00:42:48,480
Speaker 5: made that a priority, not just to get talent on

956
00:42:48,640 --> 00:42:51,279
Speaker 5: the offensive and defensive lines, but to get depth of

957
00:42:51,440 --> 00:42:53,920
Speaker 5: those positions so you can rotate, you can keep your

958
00:42:53,960 --> 00:42:57,160
Speaker 5: guys fresh. They had a very young offensive line this year,

959
00:42:57,200 --> 00:42:59,880
Speaker 5: with Caney Sewell opting out and losing for their previous

960
00:43:00,040 --> 00:43:04,279
Speaker 5: artists to graduation. I thought Oregon's offensive line jell just

961
00:43:04,480 --> 00:43:06,080
Speaker 5: find this year. So what are they going to be

962
00:43:06,280 --> 00:43:09,279
Speaker 5: like with the spring football, with a normal season, with

963
00:43:09,440 --> 00:43:11,960
Speaker 5: a normal year with no opt outs. I mean, people

964
00:43:12,040 --> 00:43:14,960
Speaker 5: forget a number of key players opted out for Oregon

965
00:43:15,040 --> 00:43:16,799
Speaker 5: this year and losing to day Sewell was.

966
00:43:16,760 --> 00:43:17,360
Speaker 2: A big blow.

967
00:43:17,600 --> 00:43:19,520
Speaker 5: So that's a problem that I think because they have

968
00:43:19,680 --> 00:43:22,000
Speaker 5: the depth, that's why they were able to offset the

969
00:43:22,160 --> 00:43:25,000
Speaker 5: losses to opt out and still be the packfield champion.

970
00:43:25,360 --> 00:43:27,319
Speaker 1: Yeah, and to circle back here, just to go back

971
00:43:27,320 --> 00:43:29,200
Speaker 1: to that whole word branding, I think a lot of

972
00:43:29,239 --> 00:43:32,120
Speaker 1: people think sometimes it's overused, and maybe sometimes it is overused,

973
00:43:32,360 --> 00:43:36,320
Speaker 1: but in this particular context, if anything, it's underused. I

974
00:43:36,480 --> 00:43:38,600
Speaker 1: just want someone who doesn't even know anything about college

975
00:43:38,640 --> 00:43:41,319
Speaker 1: football to say this out loud. There is an entity

976
00:43:41,440 --> 00:43:43,759
Speaker 1: on the West Coast that has convinced if you got

977
00:43:43,840 --> 00:43:47,000
Speaker 1: one opportunity and you can take one visit, I've got

978
00:43:47,120 --> 00:43:50,640
Speaker 1: seventeen and eighteen year old kids opting to visit coastal

979
00:43:50,760 --> 00:43:55,200
Speaker 1: Oregon or interior Oregon instead of coastal southern California. That

980
00:43:55,640 --> 00:43:58,160
Speaker 1: is the power of branding. Like, that's what that oh,

981
00:43:58,520 --> 00:44:00,719
Speaker 1: over time, that's what that thing has become. Steve woo Funk,

982
00:44:00,920 --> 00:44:03,879
Speaker 1: Brandon Huffman, A pleasure, my friends. We'll do this again soon.

983
00:44:04,160 --> 00:44:06,759
Speaker 1: I thank you guys so much for joining me. Good

984
00:44:06,800 --> 00:44:09,000
Speaker 1: stuff there really fun. Hey if you like that, let

985
00:44:09,040 --> 00:44:11,200
Speaker 1: me know we can do more like that. Whatever March

986
00:44:11,239 --> 00:44:13,800
Speaker 1: madness won't last forever, as you know. So for Director

987
00:44:13,840 --> 00:44:16,640
Speaker 1: Emeritus Colin Jesse and the crew up in Connecticut, I'm

988
00:44:16,719 --> 00:44:19,239
Speaker 1: Josh Pete. Thanks so much for watching Late Kick on

989
00:44:19,360 --> 00:44:21,600
Speaker 1: this Sunday evening. Have a great start to your week,

990
00:44:21,760 --> 00:44:22,440
Speaker 1: and God bless