Beating the Book: Alan Boston, Chris Fallica, and Michael Lombardi

get to that. Followed by Chris Felika, the Bear from ESPN's College Game Day Stanford, Stephen The Mary Podcast, and Daily Wager. Not talking about draft props so much as we are. What would be the craziest things from his perspective immersed in college football that any NFL teams could really do that an NFL team rather could really do in this draft. What's the move or moves that would be the absolute stupidest. We'll talk to Chris about that.

And finally, Michael Lombardi responding to criticism levied against him by Boomer A. Siasin about some remarks that Lombardi first made on a numbers game at Visa. Got all that Lombardi's reaction to it as well coming up enjoy right here on the Beating the Book podcast. It's a numbers game with your host Jil Alexander to want comunis to

believe in Adaly, It's good Tuesday morning to you. Excuse me, it is kill Alexander right here on a numbers game at Visa, the sports betting network, Serious XM Channel two four, Visa dot Com, the Visa app, phobost Len Game plus on down the line. Appreciate you tuning in. Good show today. Michael Lombardi at the very tail end of the show to talk NFL Draft with us and Boomer A. Siasin went after Michael Lombardi, will get Michael's reaction, will actually

play with Boomer said, get Michael's reaction to it? Uh, Michael care, let me just spoiler alert so we might have a nice reaction with Michael coming up. Chris Felika, the bear from ESPNS College Game Day, will join us

as well. Uh, not necessarily just to talk NFL Draft props with him, but I want to get a perspective from a guy who is just as immersed in college football as anybody who can just step us back for a second on this NFL draft, which is now less than seventy two hours away where he can just say, Okay, if a team does this, they are being ridiculous based on what I saw on a football field. So we

want to get into that with the Bear. Will do so midway through the show and on the heels of a day when I talked about when I thought was the biggest omission in the Michael Jordan's The Last Dance thirty for thirty doc on ESPN, which I truly did enjoy. I hate being this guy fact checking parts one and two. You will not want to miss this kind of deflating for me. But first, uh, the end of our three

part series, and it is the final four. We didn't get a legit final four this year in college basketball, obviously because of the pandemic and everything being shut down. But the final four the top four of Alan Boston's best college basketball coaching jobs from this past season. We welcome and once again our friend Alan Boston. Good morning, Allen, how are you man? Good morning? Uh? No more, it's a segue into this and to expedite matters. Uh. One

final note on Joe Gallo. Didn't really get to finish him. One might wonder, and this is a good way to like review things too. If Merrimack only improved three points on power ratings with three and app points, I forget which one it was. How do I have him as the fifth best coach, fIF fifth best coaching job last year when others below him were plus six plus seven

plus five and a half an improvement. The reason is is when I talked about what the what that program number is to start, and especially with Merrimack, where's their first year in Division one, we were out there completely guessing as to what their power rating is. We I give, I give Matt, Matt from a three man, we have the credit for this. He had read where Gallo was a terrific coach, and after we watched him play, UH was in total agreement. Now that the team played UH

just a very cerebral Brandon basketball. But we inherently started the program higher than everyone else. So within the program number we had given already given the coach a lot of props. So when I'm evaluating who did the best coaching job, it's not fair to take that that piece of of the number that I included for the coach away. So most most all right, So let's do it another way.

I started Merrimack at seventy three and a half. I think most people started him in the hight sixties, so I already started in three and a half, four points higher than most, So when they improved by plus three and a half, it doesn't include my analysis that this coach is fantastic all right and and inherently started him higher. So most most would have started him sixty nine and air four boast would have started post would have given him like plus seven for the year. Uh and in

coaching points, in power rating points. I hope that makes sense sense. It does make sense that Joe Gallo, okay, who we mentioned started following yesterday. We should also just give context before you launch into this your final four Matt, Kai and Jim who were frequent guests of a numbers game on visa all year long, all season long, courtesy of you from three Man. We've the collaboration between you

and them very fruitful as you see it. Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, well we uh we had talked a little of the year before, but this year it was it was full steam and had mostly with Matt. He was the one that that Kai has a regular job which takes up a lot of his time, and Jim had other endeavors that took up some of this time. But Matt had the most interest in in uh in really getting inside of of of how I approach it, and uh, the others the other Believe me, the other kids did a

great job too. It was not I'm not there's no knocking anyone here. Uh but yeah, we we crushed the first two weeks of the year, and it was it was it's something I haven't done for a long time, crushed the first two weeks. And the only difference I had this year was I went over every single team with them as to what we thought how good they'd be, and uh yeah, so yeah, that just just the first two weeks a long wasn't enough, but the entire year played out very very well, so cool. I just wanted

to give him a shout out. Problem Paramac, which only went up three, would typically have gone up six and a half or seven. So that's why uh uh Gallo gets gets way up there because I can't take away those points from him because I thought he was really good to start. Okay, I might have been, it might have been even higher. Other otherwise, you know, everyone else would have had him higher. And the reason I started

him started the team higher was because of Gallow. So if he did a great job, and I already gave them four points for Gallow, I can't take them away when I'm gonna analyzing who did the best coaching job. Okay, cool makes sense. If that doesn't make any sense, I don't know how I still explain it. No, it's beautiful. Number four. Uh Fran on Handling Lafayette Lafayette, and again I'll give a little history and on Handling uh he he Uh, actually so old. He played the A B

A for a year. Wow, talking about the throwback. Uh. He coached overseas somewhat. He coached some ladies high school in Philly, kind of bounced around a little bit. And then when Fran Dunfy took over at Pen, the legendary Frand Dunfey, I think it's safe to say now, Uh, he hired Handling as his assistant. And oh, Handlon was with Dundee for six years and then Lafayette offen the job. He took it, and uh he just finished his twenty fifth year there and this was probably his best coaching job.

The team, so Lafiette had always been up against it. The Patriot League didn't offer scholarships. When they did finally agree to offer athletics scholarships, Lafayette was the last of the Patriot League to give them out to players. So, oh Handlon has always been kind of behind the eight ball at at a school that it's very difficult to win with with very strict academics that did not offer scholarships until they were the last of the d ones actually besides the IDEs, which don't allow it at all.

Uh So Lafia at the last four years prior to this year, their closing program members were seventy three, seventy seventy three and a half, seventy three and a half. Now, prior to that, they had also finished in the low seventies for many, many years. So it's safe to say that the program number for Lafayette is in the low seventy somewhere, and we've gone over what programed number being. So I'm gonna start RT somewhere between seventy and seventy four. Probably, uh,

we're gonna start him higher. But then Alex Petrie, arguably the best player, got hurt in the preseason. He was done for the year. So I started Lafayette at seventy one and a half. That's where we started. Uh. Their first game was against Columbia. I made Columbia three point favorite. The closing line of the game was picked. Lafiat won six sixty three. I chose not to change their rating based on that. The next game was at St. Francis, New York, and I'll be pretty quick here. Uh. St

Francis closed five and a half. Uh a five and a half point favorite, and I closed. Uh. I'm sorry I had St. Francis, I get that wrong. I'm sorry. I won't. I won't have Cocco hell like I did Friday. This is fine, I I uh. I made Stan eight, five and half point favorite. The closing line in the game was one, and Lafayette lost by one. So the Linemaker once again had it right. They had it more right with Columbia the first game. They had it more right this game, so I chose to upgrade Lafayette a

half a point to seventy two. Uh. The next game against Princeton, who was beat up and struggling at the time, I had Princeton actually thirteen, and the line closed five

and a half and Lafayette went straight up. So once again I was very very wrong about Lafayette, So this time I chose to upgrade them a point and a half, and so on and so on and so on, and so finally, uh, when conference rolled around, this team was at seventy six and they overcame the loss of yet another really good player to injury for the year and

finished at seventy seven. So with two key cogs out of the lineup, a program that's been struggling for years, that's been playing to the low seventies for years and years and years, oh Handlon got this team to a seventy seven, so five and a half points of bubble would estimated. But obviously just a fantastic job because from out of nowhere is twenty five year at the school he plays to the best number of the programs have I played too, So great job friend, all right, Francis

O'Hanlon from Lafaye College, Patriot League number four. I'm gonna make a overriding point on this momentarily, but I want you to get through a couple more here. So number three sair best coaching job, al right. So I wanted I just wanted to. I wanted to go over a little bit how I adjusted the numbers to start, just so people have an idea of what of what of what I was doing, how, how I how I changed numbers. I I threw a little bit of that out out

of them there. So yeah, no, no, I love it. Well, let me let me make you know, yeah, go ahead, go ahead, James James Jones from Ye. Well, here's the point, because I think this will relate directly it. You know, yesterday I was talking about regular season records in the day before, and we talked about that off offline. But one of the things that I think, and I think the main into all this for people who are like, well why are we you know, I get it's Allen's

process for rankings. You know early in the season too late in the season. This correlates very nicely when you get it right as you do Allen with what a team's a T S record pre flop a TS record ends up being at the end of the season. I mean, on your top twenty two, UM North Florida, we have Matt Driscoll. They were the number one team against the spreading the country. Last year twenty two and seven, you

had Hofstra on the list. Uh, they were the second best a T S team in the country with Joe Mohollick. South Dakota State was number three with Eric Henderson on and on. By the way, Lafayette just mentioned, Yeah, Lafayette was twenty nine. Yale, who you're about to mention with James Jones, James Jones sevent So it's that's where that's why this matters so much for people who you know missed that overriding point, but number three, James Jones Yale.

Just wanted to point that. I thought, Madam just as an interesting because so very few people do their own work. What the hell one second point, just very few people do their own work in college basketball, So I thought it would be interesting to hear the actual part of the process of what I'm doing. And also you're hearing all these Coaches of the Year honors. I wanted to get at who truly did the best jobs. Absolutely, that's

why we still having my opening number verseus. My closing number is a very accurate indicator for reasons I've said several times, So I thought that would be part of the interest to it it. It is, uh, it is kind of intriguing that, uh, they match up with the teams did well against the points. I guess the point spread. It probably means I got someb right anyway. As far as you're pretty good means you're pretty good anyway. So James Jones at Yale. A little history of Mr Jones.

He played at Albany, he coached it all but as assistant. Uh. And he too, like this has been a pretty consistent theme here with these coaches, has a great foundation for his future coaching prowess. Again, an assistant to Dick Couchin, a legendary coach at Yale for for years and years and years. And he also assisted for the great Larry Hunter at Ohio, you who retired a couple of years ago from Western Carolina. Uh. Just just a terrific basketball mind.

And uh, those were his two assistant jobs before he got the Yale job. Uh. And what he's done to Yale is just extraordinary. Like I said before, the Ivys do not offer athletic scholarships. To get into Yale is virtually impossible. I do some alumni interviews for Penn, and I'll tell you that Yale is harder to get into a pen. And there were these are rough estimate out against the pen and got in Uh. Yeah, like I said to somebody, I don't have to be a math

I wasn't a math major Penn. But I don't have to tell you that there's probably gonna be more than one unhappy person when the acceptance of rejection letters come out. Yes, very very difficult to get in, to get into an IVY, to get into a lot of schools. It's it's it's hard. Uh So already James Jones is up against it. Where you know you can, you can, you can, the ibis can let in whoever they want there there's no rules. So yeah, he doesn't have to be in Einstein to

be in the basketball team. But he's sure, he's sure a ship is not gonna be stupid and be on that basketball team. So he already has a limited number of people that he could recruit given how difficult it is to get into school. Yet year in and year out, uh, Yale has just been just spectacular. Uh. This year after he lost a guy to the pros uh and made the first round of the NSCA tournament. They made, they made, they were way way behind. I think it was against

the l s u. Uh. They're like over the first seventeen and threes and made that big, big run to back door the game. But arguably one could I say they were the right side anyway, because they got whatever they wanted every time down the floor and just didn't make any shots. Uh So that's the team that James Jones had the last year. Only one started return from that team. So we had a team that was five minutes away from beating L. S U in the first round the NSA tournament. And he only has one player

back from that team. So and and again, I can't stress how hard it is to replace players at an IVY school. Uh So he has his home run team, which by the way, it was like the fourth straight year he's had some home run team. Uh So that team ended at eight. And again I like to say mentioned Indiana's Indiana is an eighty nine and a half just to give you some idea of what an eight means.

Just extraordinary. This is an IVY school, was about coming out of the IVY League the year before, and he lost his point guard when he was his team was completely crippled. Uh he ended in an eighty. But the year part of that when they beat uh, all right, you're at break yep. James Jones Yale number three, third best cojy job in America last season courtesy or Perr. I should say Alan Bawson coming back two and one, Chris fa Laka, Michael Lombardi as well on a Numbers

Game and Visa the Sports Betty Network. Welcome back to a Numbers Game with Jill Alexander. Numbers Game proudly brought you by man Escaped, man Escaped dot Com as the tools for your family jewels. You get off Let's free shipping with the code Visa at man Escaped dot Com. That's off at man Escaped dot Com with promo code v S I and Chris Flenkol Michael Lombardi still to come on the show today. It's Gill Alexander live in San Francisco, Allen Boston on his way to the top

college basketball coaching job. For his rankings, for his ratings this past season, you wanted to say one final word on number three James Jones from Yale. I know we talked about how difficult it is to get into Yale and that his that the the market that he has to recruit from is limited. And in spite of that limited market, he just has these teams playing the numbers that are just insane. So coming off a year of eight, he had one player coming back. Uh. Now, typically Yale

is the wa waiti loa waities type program. Okay, I didn't throw that out there. By the way, my owney was a guy who was drafted. Uh yeah, I was talking off yeah yeah. So he once started coming back last year. So I started him at eight two, which is very reasonable. It's and I to the school, Uh, eight two is a good team. Eighty two is like a good Missouri Valley team. Uh. Just as an idea, and once again his team to steadily rose up the rankings, finally ending at eight eight and a half. They were

the favorite to win the IVY League tournament. Even though the idly tournam was was at Harvard this year, Yale was the favorite to make it. Now, in case you didn't hear what I said, I said, any eight and a half. Now, ye all lost a player to the pros, all right, a pro player at Yale, and yet they got to eighty eight and a half. They closed at eighty eight last year with the pro player. This year, any eight and a half, I can't convey you said.

You said Indian What you said Indiana, Indiana was what by comparations, Indiana ended an eighty nine and a half. It's amazing, really, is right. Had you point out five star recruits you know you know, well, yeah born five star recruits. Yeah, just uh just uh, I mean pick a team and and and like you uh U c l A is A is A ended ended an eight and a half. Exact same number. Okay, so there you go. Yeah, y U c l A ended at the same power rating by my numbers. I don't have to say much

more than that. Say just how good this guy. This guy is arguably the best coach in the country. Year in and year out. His team has improved every single year I've done this. His teams have gotten better except for the team they except when I lost all his players to injury. And even when he got beat up he lost his point guard and ended up at Taylor and and uh his second as other really good player get hurt that year too. That team also improved as

the year went on. It's just incredible what he does there. Uh number two and we had a big battle here for the top two spots. Both these guys, their teams improved eight points from start to finish. So since I wanted to give relevance to my starting number of closing number, these two guys had the top two places as far as Net game empower rating points. So then I had to determine the winner, and I was bouncing back and forth, and finally number two is uh Mike mcconnothy at Northwestern State.

A little history on him. He played at Louisiana Tech, which at the time was in the South Play Conference. By the way, Uh he coaches some community college down there for a long long time and then took the Northwestern State job way back in the I think it was his second year there. They were in a playing game. I think it may have been the first year that the playing game. Don't quote me on that, but uh, he was in the playing game and he played. Uh

he played Winthrop coach by Greg Marshall. Uh So, a little little history there. Uh. In two thousands six, Northwestern State is a fourteen state beat Iowa in the first round, who was coached by Steve Alford. Uh. Two thousands six was that wild year. I won't rehash it, but that was the year of the upsets. That the year that George Mason made the final four. Bradley beat Kansas thirteen seed Verse five. Uh, Wisconsin Milwaukee. I think Bruce Prole

was the coach there, another double digit first round upset. Uh. There were two twelves other two other twolves seas that won. Anyway, it was a whild year for the n c A tournament. And then he made it again one other time two thousand thirteen. Up top of my head. I might be wrong about that. Uh, but it's been a while since they've had any run of success. The last two years the team has been completely crippled by injuries and transfers.

They've had the worst run of arguably the worst runt of block of top five, worst runt of luck in the country. Uh So this year the talent was lacking, to say the least. The program was certainly headed the wrong way, and uh, it wouldn't have been hard to envision that maybe, uh, it was time for him to go. It wasn't his fault that players got hurt and players got coached, But WHOA all right? Michael mcconothy from Northwestern State, the Demons of Northwestern State of the South won conference

number two. We get to number one on Allen's list next on a numbers game in Visa the betting number. Hopefully welcome back to a numbers game with Gil Alexander. As the man said, it is a numbers game right here on VISA and V Sports Betting Network, All Alexander

sirius XM Channel two oh four. Uh getting to the top here of Alan Boston's list, and once again, um, and I know Allen wasn't thinking about this, but there is correlation between the best A T S teams in the country and the coaches of these teams, Northwestern State and Michael McConaughey, which came in at number two here twenty third best in the nation A T S seventeen and nine, Yale James Jones just before that, seventeenth best in the nation A T S UH at eighteen and ten.

By the way, there will be exceptions at number one, just spoiler alert. Number one maybe an exception to that correlation, but that's not exactly what we're talking about here. So number two, Alan, as we bring back that. So yeah, back to mcconnothy. So uh, I had a little note on him. Uh so he he he got there. So the top two guys actually got there by different ways. So the players that kind of came on at the end of the year. Uh. The reason I'm giving McConaughey

a lot of credit is Jared's Robinson. Jarvis Roberson, Uh, one of his key players down the stretch. He only started the last four games. So mcconnothy got him in there as a starter only near the end of the year. His minutes increases the year went on. Uh. This Trenton Master, he had an offseason injury that when it healed, mcconnothy got him in there and he gave them a ton of quality minutes. He started the last one to two games. Uh. There was another guy, uh, Jamir greg started the last

five games. So a lot of what a lot of mcconnothys changes in lineups allowed them to explode in power ratings. I started them. The program has been just bludgeoned. So they typically a low seventies program, Uh, but the last bunch of years they've been in the low sixties to high sixties. That's their range. The low sixties is because they had so many injuries. The high sixties is kind

of where they've settled into. Years before that, there were a low seventies programs, so most recently they're uh amid to high sixties program So I started them at sixty eight and next to that six I had a little plus sign meaning I think this team could improve because the program has taken typically better. And by the way, mcconothy is is a is a very very good coach.

Oh one one note, I saw Northwestern State play. So back in the dark ages, you could not bet on UNLB basketball and you also the the casinos could not host games. So when un I'll be, when not un will be? When Vegas had a tournament out here, the games were played at various high school gyms. So I recall going to watch Northwestern State play TCU TCU at the time coach by Billy Tubbs. By the way, another legend,

uh I watched north Western State TCU game. I think it was at Clark High School, and there were like three games going on at the same time at various high schools around Vegas. So that's how it used to be. And I remember Billy Tubbs said, so it's okay for us to walk through a casino and state at casino, but we can't play a game there. Seriously, and of course it was so I did I did see uh, I did see it with Western State play at a high school in Las Vegas and mcconnothy was the coach.

That's how far back he goes, he's been there. Uh that just finished his twenty first year. Uh. So we started him at sixty eight and they were still going by the way. Uh, they had won their first round game seventy two of a Texas and m community uh Corpus Christie. Uh A winner for me, by the way, in the gambling world. In fact, I had a lot of luck with north Weston State. I had this team uh tett tet with having good ratings by the way, it gives you winners. And uh, I want a lot

of bets on Northwestern State this year. So my adjusting upward uh was good with them verse versus the point spread. Uh. They ended at seventy six. They ended up plus eight and a lot of it. So as of let's see here pick a day. As of January eight, the team was at seventy one. Still, so they started sixty right and and and that's that's coaching, right, that's that's they didn't have any injured players come back. He maybe maybe he did a poor job. It just didn't have the

right guys in there. But that that's not You can't argue that because the program never played to a number this high ever, not even in the heyday. Or maybe in the hey day, I shouldn't say that, you know, maybe back nearly two thousand's when they had that when they beat Iowa, they might have been somewhere around here. But I don't think so this is as close as good as helen. Let me step in and get the number one. Yep, and finally number one, a team that

also rum roll finished at plus eight. But I'm gonna give him a little more credit. Danirol at b M. I, Uh, strangely enough. Strangely enough, I bet against this team a lot. So that's that's kind of ironic that he is a team I raised. I raised the most that I was betting against a lot. Uh. It took me a while to catch up to their rating, and uh when I did, Uh again, what he did was mind bowing. Uh. This team is a high sixties program. Uh two years ago, uh,

three years ago, sixty six. Last year they ended a seventy. But from that team that ended a seventy Bubba Pa transferred to Georgia Tech. Uh, and they had I think three other players transfer. So again, as has happened in many other years under Dan Earle, the team had players post. So here he is once again with a young team. I think he had two or three starters returning let's call it two and a half. But what ultimately happened

was he played a freshman. Oh by the way, little history and Daniarl he played at Penn State underhead the Cellis, and he did his assistant coaching at Penn State under the Cellis and then under the Cellis at Navy. Kind of ironic because the Cellis places grinded out half court game uh, and Dan Role plays fast and shoots a lot of threes. In fact, b m I was the number two in the country and three points made last year. Little side note, and again that probably has something to

do with this success. But back to the point the Northwestern State used duco's to get to their rating. Darn Role decided to use freshman. Uh. It's kind of strange that players get poached form v m I, right, Uh. Matt and I talked about this that if you go to b m I, you figure you're gonna stay there, right, I mean, you're you're going there for a reason, and and it's usually not basketball. Uh it shows you how evil this is anyway. Uh. He ended up with the

Freshman of the year, Travis Evie. Uh. He made his first start December twenty one against Virginia Tech another freshman, uh, Camden Kurfman. He started the opener and then I think it's Sean Conway and he had a sophomore Jake Stevens that that also contributed a lot. But a very very very young team that got better as the year went on. I started them at sixty six and it took me a while to catch up to them, so it's not

quite fair. But at the end of December they were seventy two, at the end of January they were seventy one and a half, and they ended at seventy. Yes, I'm gonna I'm in a step in because we we've run out of time. But Dan Earl from v M I your number one. I want to just thank you on behalf of everybody, because it's we never get glimpse into this from someone as legit as you, So thank you, man. I appreciate all of this. You're welcome the legend, but

we did at Boston Rade eight eight on Twitter. Coming back Chris fleiknext on a numbers game at Visa b Sports Betting Network. Welcome back to a numbers game with Gil Alexander. A little more than forty eight hours away now from the night or from the NFL Draft. Sorry, wires crossed. Join us for the Visa Draft Special, of course Thursday night a p m. Eastern five pm Pacific. Our draft bet casters Matt Humans, Michael Lombardi, Brent Musburger,

Jonathan Vonduble other special guests. I'll all analyze the draft from our unique betting perspective, of course, and they'll track all the available props. Let you know when each cashes, how they go either way. Check out the Visa Draft Special Live Thursday, April two nights from now a p m. Eastern five Pacific, right here on Visa and the Sports Betting Network. Still to come, the aforementioned Michael Lombardi. I got some things to talk to him about, including Boomer

a Sciasin going after him. Lombardi will have some stuff to say. It all gets back to what Michael first said on this show, his comments about two a Tago Tago by Loa and two teams um failing him on a physical Uh, he broke that on this show. And then it's sort of what like wildfire viral after that, and then Boomer has taken him to test. So Michael's

got some stuff to say. But first from ESPN, ESPNS College Game Day, Stanford, Stephen the Bear podcast, and of course Daily Wager, it's our buddy the Bear, Chris Felika, How you doing, Chris, I'm doing well, and I enjoyed that on something and then there with one uh, with one thing that I immediately caught on too, But I'm gonna I'm gonna not revealing. I'm gonna see if you called on to it and uh, and I'll send you

catch later about it. Oh. Okay, yesterday I was saying, I'm not that was a great that I did not realized that. Obviously you're being a Bolt fan and probably watching that game, but I did not realize that his first game and that and I checked uh uh take down there that that was something and imagine that that does seem like a I look, there are eight other

episodes coming up in the series. Maybe yeah, that will be addressed some of But but you're right, I like that beats like something that I probably should have been brought up. Yeah, I mean I didn't want to make it too big of a deal out of it. For those who missed yesterday, I was talking about Jordan's first game, first half of the first game, first slam dunk attempt, he actually traveled, so it was after the whistle he almost you know, died on the court. Basically maybe his

career was almost ended right there. He's down on the floor for thirty seconds. But what I what I have to say later on the show is actually a little more disappointing, uh, because I fact checked this thing and it was like a big part of the first two episodes. So it has to do with a detail in that documentary. Yes, so we'll get into that after after your appearance. But Chris, the reason I want you want here today because you

you and I and E are buddy. Uh. We text back and forth because people know on this show, and you know, one of the things that it occurred to me yesterday because I was like, well, you know, God, I've we've just beaten up this NFL draft. I've given all my bets. Uh, we're nearing it. We've said all there is to say, maybe, but you know it's always

changing from you. I think that the beauty of having someone like you no one is more immersed in college football than you are, and you're sort of my BS detector on all this, meaning that beyond the props, if we step back for a second, just as college football fans, pro football fans and observers, you're a guy who could sort of poke holes in a lot of this. What is the single biggest draft rumor you've heard. Let's start at the top where you're like, man, if this happens,

these teams are crazy. We'll be talking about teams potentially Kicky Jailer back in the first round of your kidding any like, he had a great college career, but he was benched at Alabama because he couldn't throw the ball. That's not to say that he hasn't improved, because he has. He improved a much to be a first round and

it's all picked. Two teams think that that they're gonna get the second coming of Lamar Jackson is dual threat guy who who let the league know that completely different player, person's a completely different type of runner. Lamar has a has a much better on the jailer like in the

in the first round or even the second round. Don't you need to take either an immediate starter, an immediate contributor, or someone who do you think present a year or two is going to be that he's not that he's neither. Like I didn't need to take him in the second round. I could see him going in the third round certainly with at some point in there. If you if you think that that that he can be a change of

peace guy in a shirt yardage player. Uh, he he can be what Kyson Hill is because Sean Payton's et. But just talk about jailing hurts going to the back of the first rang and yet like if it happened, would you be flabbergasted? I guess maybe first round still you would be right, But I mean these teams go crazy, Yeah, first round, I still want that's just insane? Yeah? Um, all right, what's another one where you're like, Okay, how does this make any sense? Because it's one of my

biggest points through the years. It's like, do we lose our minds between what we saw in you know, December and November and October and by the time the draft. You know, there's so many of these examples. Literally, Like I remember when Michael Crabtree is just one example that comes to mind. When Michael Crabtree caught that touchdown past for Texas Tech to be Texas. I remember thinking at that very moment, and perhaps there was exaggeration in my head at that moment, I was like, Oh my god,

this dude, you gotta drive. And then he would fall, and he falls, you know, and that that the sentiment just change. That's just one example, probably not a great one, but there's so many, so many players through the years where perception is it just for whatever reason we get into this frame of mind we're it just completely alters.

What's another one besides Jalen Hurts going first round or second And I think that the talk with with the Giants like like there's some potential drama there, Oh, we're gonna take ja Se. So you're gonna take a guy who you really don't know what position he's going to play on your defensive unit that he's probably gonna need a very specific defensive unit in order to get to maximize his ability. And on the other side of the football, you've got in hearing your quarterback in the future, and

Daniel Jones. You've got s Kwen Barkley in his prime right now, and you're not gonna get someone to help on the offensive line to help Locker partly helped protect Jones blindside or in pat row uh either either side on the ball. You would think that he probably you played a lot of right tackle for I mean, you would think he eventually would move over to left talker like them, but they had a tomb problems on the

offensive line right now. Actually, so you're telling me that the Giants are gonna pass either on Works or Wills in take Isaiah Simmons. I just don't see that at all. It's interesting because you can look at a lot of the draft picks and the people always like to see what what's the safe pick? What what what's the value pick? What's got a low pluff factor that you know, what's got a low bus factor is better safe the possible pick you can make an offensive lineman from the University

of le Seriously, the Iowa. The Iowa tackles that have been taken in the first round, Brandon Sheriff, Relly Rice, Brian Ballaga, Robert Gallery, Ross, Berba and John. I won't think one of those guys had had a pretty darn good, weighty career. Uh, I don't. I don't know what Wills want where it will be one of the I can't see them passing up on one of those two tackles to take. And and Sheriff is a great example. You know, the Redskins just plug him in and it's like they're

ten years of Brandon Shriff. As soon as you pick him, you're like, that's fine, we got ten years of this guy. And sure enough he's on his way to doing just

that with the Redskins. Um about the offensive Lineman. Then it follows which of the combinations because we're talking about Wills and we're talking about Beckton and we're talking about worths um which is the order of that Getting back to our premise, which is what you find would be ultimately ridiculous if it happened, like what's the who's the guy that would go first? Where you'd be like, how does this guy going before the others? It would be Beckton.

I mean, everyone loves the outside and the potential, but we've never thing has come out in the last couple of weeks of affected in the in the potential drug test and and the word that people worry about his weight issues. Like I think anyone who take Beckton ahead of either of those two guys, I again, you know, I'm not rooting against any of these kids. I don't want to see any other I hope they all get drafted high. I hope they all make a ton of money or they all have a lathy career. But we

all know that's not the case. Uh. You say, you just need to do your due diligence and figure out

what you're talking about. A major financial investment from your organization, And I think if you go into something knowing that there is a better potential for an issue to arise with player A over a Player A B or C, that you want to air on the side of player B or C, and with with with Worse than Wills, I don't think they have the same question marks and concerns that have arisen about Beckton in the in the

last couple of weeks. I if it were my team and I'll really need to pick, I certainly wouldn't want to take Beckton ahead Wills or Worse. And I know that there is a prop out there at Jesus, and I think it's Christ pretty significantly now, like who will be taken the first though, Gentric Wills or Beckton? And you would take back in ahead of Wills, I wouldn't. We're flashing up on the screen right now at Visa

dot Com and the Visa app. It is courtesy of Caesar's generic Wills Jr. From Bama minus three sixty Mackay Beckton from Louisville at plus two eighty? Would you lay the minus three sixty on that? Are you that confident on that? Ye? Yes, I would like I totally what I mean. I think there's a really good chance that

that that Wills could go to the Giant ship. And again, this is something being a college football guy and you hit on there are a little text chain with with with E and you and myself and and I. I had had it in the back of my head and

he brought it up, and he's exactly right. You can potentially see a relationship between Joe Joe and his highs to Alabama and the information you get from Alabama on Wills, and you can make a very very strong taste of the Giants and Judge would make Wills there pick it for. And I know that there were some some offshore books that that had a some pretty healthy prices on wills

to be the second offensive player taking the draft. Yeah, so many ways to play is that was the biggest thing that Drew Dinsick and I when I had him on earlier in the week talking the draft. Biggest thing about betting the draft. There are so many ways to slice the you know, any individual pick, first offensive lineman taking, will this guy go exactly to that team prop that we just showed one on one head to head prop

like that. Uh So, even if you're limited on any one of those, you can actually get some significant money down. I slicing it up more with Chris Felika because I want to ask him about the third pick. Will the Lions really be drafting a corner at three? Uh? And this whole Jordan's love stuff. Really we'll get Chris Flakes take on that. Coming back a numbers game right here at Visa the Sports Betting Network. It's a numbers game

with your host Gil Alexander Believe in Analytics. Our number two of the numbers game right here at Visa and the Sports Betting Network Series X of Channel two four Visa dot Com, the Visa app Foo boastling at Game Plus. It is Gil Alexander Live in San Francisco. Thanks to Allen Boston for being on the show today and the last couple of shows as well. True originator and original Alan Boston, Uh for being on the show. Michael Lombardi later Chris Felika on with us. Now. It doesn't get

better than Boston, Felika and Lombardi. I am very blessed, and we will talk about the thirty for thirty doc little fact check coming up as well. Chris um back on the show. You can follow Chris at Chris Felika f A L L I c A on Twitter. Of course from ESPNS College game Day. The glue he wouldn't say this, but I'll say it for him, the glue

that holds game day together. Uh, daily wager and even getting back to what to what Allen was talking about with those coaching rankings, I think what that just did and and you said it for al and Uh and

it was kind of a bioproduct of it. But we we often talked about and he is definitely an advocate and a strong believer in coaching and correlation to a T S numbers and the exercise, and Allen just went through as a pretty darn good indicator that that that coaching does matter, especially in college football, and there is a correlation between between head coaching ability and at success.

Though that was a really uh informative, fascinating society. It was good too because it was a lot of the coaches. Unless you're a hardcore college basketball fan, a lot of people probably wouldn't know that the head coach of the m I was. It's things like that, and it was good to get that information. I you listen to that over the last two days, I appreciate it. Uh. Gallow even even started following us because he wanted he wanted to find out where he ended up. I ended up

at number five out of Merrimack. Marymaco of course, was ineligible for postseason tournaments anyway. This year on a rise up to a D one, still in that window. But yeah, I mean, it's it can't be repeated enough, right. We talked about it in the NFL more than anything, where it's like god these code like obviously Bill Belichick being the greatest example, but if you could only have one item at your disposal to handicap. Let's take the NFL

and NFL football game. And I'm not talking about having the benefit of a box score retroactively, because if you

have that, turnovers would obviously be the top thing. But if you could only power rank coaches, you'd probably do okay, you know, if that was the only thing that you're you know, in your it's your in your quiver, because that just means so much in college basketball such a coaches medium, as Alan was pointing out, and yeah, the A T S correlation, Uh, he didn't and he wasn't even aware of that, he said, So you know, by the way number one v M I did you know

they were kind of middling A T S. So that was an interesting pick to have at the top there. Um, all right, let's go with this, Chris, And I'm gonna have to step in here and and maybe interrupt you in in the middle of this just to identify the station. But one of the things also NFL Draft related, and again the premise of this segment is stuff that could happen that forget about your props necessarily, but as just a college football fan and keen observer, you'd be like,

what are they doing? Number three Detroit Lions. You know, they're kind of screwed because I'm not sure any team really does want to trade up for Tua or Justin Herbert. And yet they're in this position where, when it comes to need, do you really draft a cornerback at number three? Like, that's the biggest thing that I've talked about with Okuda early on is they could probably get him six or

seven a little further down. Will a team give them that opportunity or will they have to draft Okuda if that's who they want to replace Darius Slay ostensibly at number three, a defensive tackle. All of a sudden, Uh, Derek Brown from all Burn, He's really moved up in some of these mock drafts. I just had Evan Sylvan yesterday. All of a sudden, a lot of mockers are like, no, they could go with Derek Brown at number three. Again,

another guy really really good. And again, as you point out, very very keenly, everybody wants all these guys to be drafted high and to make tons of money. Uh, but he's probably a guy they could get further down. But the Lions might just be trapped at number three drafting either of these two guys, and so the question to you, uh is, Wow, what do they do at number three? Is is it is it worth the draft capital to actually pick one of those players? It's Chris Felika, it's

Gill Alexander. Uh, it is a numbers game right here at Visa V Sports Betting Network. What's the answer, Chris. He kind of hit on it there because everyone is just under the assumption that's Rock begins. Uh, three, Dee the borrow go one, Chase Young would go to and three is the Star Wars it's gonna be. But uh, yeah, the Lions are kind of in Noman's land right here because I've told her that in the Dolfins and Chargers,

neither of them are are itched to jump up. A couple of spots didn't know what the Giants are taking a quarterback at four, So it's like, okay, Dolphin durt five. Well, we'll we'll take our pickage or Tour or Herbert and we'll move on. And what charges to take Remembers of last connects teemed to be a function that But again, Team you accept. Walter hit on a little this as well on your show even last week or two weeks ago. About uh, did you just wipe the bullet and say,

you know what, we've got Matthew Stafford. We're gonna take one of the quarterbacks on at least we have either a backup or a successor or trade capital. Because if you look at the defensive backs that have been taken in the top three, it Sean Springs, Eric Turner, Goose Pickens, and Benny Blades. That's it. It's like unprecedented to take a cornerback at the hinds to back that that high. Now the reason why and in theory you want to trade back, you can more than you can more so

justify taking a dB at five. It's going to get to five. Now you're talking about guys like Patrick Peterson, Berry, Sean Taylor, Dion. My teams, these are all these are all players that were taking bill overall. So you're able to still get that player in need. That's a couple of picks, gain a pick later on in the draft, and that's the ideal situation. But again, I don't know if they're coming up. So what you ultimately shock me if they just said, you know what, in bring it on,

there's like, do you just take the quarterback? I don't know if go do that. I think the lines in a position where they totally need to take someone that's gonna help them this year. One coaching staff is gonna be gone. So it seems to me like a player like Derek Brown or Kid Law or someone like that

would have a bigger impact on your team. Uh get it would having a defensive back that that just me, but partaking the three, it's just so unpressure after that, I don't know how you do that, Like Jeffic Cooda considered to be in a class like Sean springs Wood, Earl Turner or Peterson or se um all Right, then, speaking of towards the top of the draft, let me just take a guy like Justin Herbert, because as we get immersed in all of this pre draft talk, there's

this notion now, okay, well, you know, too, was the favorite to go before Justin Herbert for so many weeks, and now all of a sudden, it's Justin Herbert. And I guess my question to you would be like, and I hate to be so blunt about it, Chris, but when you watched Justin Herbert at Oregon, was there any part of you that was like, oh, I've got to have this guy, maybe maybe part of a couple of games,

but that's what I'm saying. The heating any great game as a freshman, it was like, Wow, you can see this kid or a soft bar salt Barado really making it improvement. His qbr numbers actually declined from sophomore junior in the last three years, actually got worse. And if you look at like his quarterback radio. Again, I'm not saying qb R is an end all metric. Uh, that

is a surefire indicator of anf all success. But if you look at Justin Herbert qbr um this year against Power five teams, it's worse than what Tyler Huntly had. It's worse than what Jack colinor Wisconsin had. It's worse than what Shade Patterson and Michigan ad. It's worse than Bright Price Purpet of Virginia, and it's worse than Jakes Throng. So it's like the numbers don't like match the perception

of what this kid is. And and watching the being in mt and that Arizona State team watching that game, it watching being an attendance of the Patrol Championship game, wa watching that team being an attendiates at the Rose Ball and watching me work in that game, it was like the tongues that it appeared at the Oregon and a Royal and or Crystal ball. Whoever is making the new seasons, it don't looks like that even trusted to

throw the ball. I mean the MVP of the Rose Bowl when your legs, but it was like watching him slowly was it was an exercise and like ringing, right, where is the ball gonna go? So look, I'm sure there's going to be a team. I'm sure. I'm sure there's a team out there that's going to think that they can correct this and put it in a system and make this better. But I sure as I couldn't take him in the top five. So so to the and I don't want to use the word apologists because

that seems loaded. But to the people that would counter that and say, well about that coaching, that coaching really did hold him down. He could be much better. You don't fully or even maybe even go halfway and accepting that is what I'm getting. No, I would I would buy a little bit of that. And again I don't sure.

I mean I am at a and on the field exceno, football savold or being able to pick up on little things that really good coaches, really good executives, really good draft evaluation is not the other saying, hey, this is this is something? Clearly, how did how did the Royal? When Christo Ball missed? This is an easy STI I'm not saying that I could be able to pick that out, but I certainly if if someone obviously it's going to

think that they are I just don't know. You look at his mesables and the kid is a great kid, but I don't know. Man, I have a hard time taking him for me too, Man, me too. Jordan's Love obviously predicted to be the fourth quarterback taken after Burrow two and Herbert in whatever order uh to a tuck offy loa that is, or just in Herbert in any order. Jordan's Love from Utah State, Uh the arm is awesome.

UM accuracy maybe not his greatest trait. And Tim Hasselbeck on Your Air did a great piece on Jordan's love that oftentimes he just kind of misses the gimme passes um this first round talk and I get it. NFL gms and NFL front offices, go quarterback. Gaga, maybe justifiably.

So it's a quarterback league. U when wanting to uh to get a rookie quarterback that will turn out to be a Hall of Famer or a perennial All Pro Jordan's Love top twenty pick, let's couch it that way or in the first round pick, however you want to answer it. Um, was there anything you saw with him where you're like, oh, this dude's a first rounder? No, and and and and over. The piece of you ad mentioned like if you look at catchable ball rate, which kind of hits on a little bit of great arm,

but you kind of don't know where it's going. His catchable ball rate was seventies three percent, nearly nearly thirty percent of his pastores where it will be deemed to be uncatchable, I think with a catchable ball rate, So Burrows catching the ball rate was eighty seven percent. Two is was eighty two even justin Herbert, and we just protect it with seventy seven, which isn't much better to so much indent, but but it's still better than that.

It seems like the Love would be a guy that a few years ago, like if you wanted to get a Russian Wilson with a picked where he was a people who are looking for those types of players and like willing to jump the gun a little bit and take them much higher than I should be. Like if you were taking loves you like in the second round, you know what you could see maybe a developmental pick. If you've got a quarterback who's gonna be there for a while, you can groom him. You could justify that,

I think, But first round, I don't know. Again, the Utah State does not have the resources and the players that a lot of these Power five teams too, And his numbers obviously took a big step back when he left a lot of his production from two bags in the eight team. But if you look at the games against the three Power five teams that he played LFC this year wait in Michigan State, he had three touchdown

passes eight interceptions as Qbright. Now, again, he doesn't have an offensive line that could compete every day and against some of the inns of players that they have been But that would worry me that against the better d fencers that he faced, he really really struggled. So in college in the Mountain West, you could probably get away with some of those untouchable balls, and they aren't always going to be intercepted against NFLB fencers in completions that

are off target, is it. There's a much better chance that they're gonna turn to interceptions and you can't turn the ball into that level. And there a good just tactle with James mentioned all the insubstances that he had despite it in a leagal pastor to use game expendable. So I don't know top twenty pitch and send Way's gonna take him. But as you take a step back and you look at it, it's like, really, you're gonna take take a toy pick on this guy. And people

people think that they can here. It's here people big, they're big things. Here all the problems and they have all the answers met great bad, a tend of confidence in their ability, but there's a lot of times it's not gonna it's not gonna work out. Yeah, and again we are so much more concerned from our corner of the world with with our bets and with our draft prows.

I do think it's worthwhile just back and you're the perfect guy to deal with and just be like, what are we doing, like seriously after our props cash or don't? What are the what are these teams done? You know? And there's there's an endless and number of of subjects or positions. We can do this for in college football and for the NFL Draft in a couple of nights, Chris, One of which is the often not talked about running back position, which obviously through the evolution of the game

has UH in the NFL. You know, to say it's been de emphasized and doesn't mean as much would be the understatement of the world from our childhood until now. Um, so you know, most projections have maybe DeAndre Swift from Georgia goes in the first round, maybe he doesn't A is he the best back? Uh? And then more interestingly for me, after Swift, if you think he's the best projecting to the to the top level, maybe you do, Maybe you don't. What's your pecking order with these guys?

Because I'm hearing a lot of Jonathan Taylor talk. Now, what's your thoughts there are? I think Swift probably is the best out, but I don't think it is like night and day. I gotta get you take DeAndre and if you take j j. Dobbins is not considered that much of a fall off from DeAndre Swift. If you can't Clyde Edwards Hilaire, is that much much of a

drop off from John I don't think so. But but if you like again college football, there wasn't a kid out there who you who you're rooted for, would appreciated, uh with Jonathans had a great kid. But and it's always about would be Mr contrary and Mr negative that there's always about you're gonna take this guy back into the first round and pay in first round money. The last three years, nine hundred sixty eight touches and eighteen bumbles. That's why had you been sixty That is a ton

of of workload on that body. Did you look at you if you look at Dobbins and that's same time fan, he had two points in a fewer touches. If you look at any only have pot bumbles. If you look at Tyed Edward de Laire, you had five hundred fewer touches and have tuts man and only two fumbles. That that could be like an extra cheating tight uh. Number of workload for food Taylor and a lunger's intensity to

put the door on the ground. You're gonna you're gonna get that guy a first round construct where UH you might not be getting much out of him in like years three. I don't know, I'm gonna get him in

the checking around less money. You could put him in situations in the offerings, fine, but for him to be UH every day and type back in the first round contract I had it, and I would actually rather take dabbing joy Hilaire UH in the second round and had to checking around, and I would UH packing a first round pick on that I hadn't realized eighteen fumbles for Jonathan Taylor. I had not realized that. All right, Chris, I let you go with this, and it is the

contractual obligation question, which is to uh and listen. We can we can slicen dise this draft any which way, but really the most compelling player here and the player that might have the most variants and where he could get picked, is Alabama's to a tago by lower. There certainly hasn't been a player in college football that we've talked about more in his brief college football career. UH started with the bang and then ended in UH what

could have been tragedy really with his injury. Um, and when I say a bang, I mean a national championship doesn't get a bigger bang than that. What do you do? I mean where where do you think if you were in NFL GM, how much do you covet to a given the injuries? How cautious are you? What's your overall opinion on it? Unfortunately, I would have to be super pacious. Um, it attains me to stay it out because again watching him at Alabama and just the type of kid, in

the type of family late he comes from. You, I would love to see you and have a lengthy, healthy NFL career. But you just look at the two years and it's always seemed like there was some type of little Maggie injury that he had. I having said that, I mean there are times you look back in draft histories. Uh, there a guy that got keep Scofford coming out at all. He's always heard and then he was pretty healthy and his NFL careerans was very recently. Here are you look

at it? Guy like Deshaun Watson was at Oh he played Krippie whatever it was Scott to Compson there and then he cook Kurt Cart and injury. We talked about this before a baseball adults about earlier you're only topic injury and they really can't do it. Yeah, you really can't do it. But at the same time, in football,

with the starting quarterback, you kind of can. And I wonder if at times, like there's this perception that because who will replace shail and Hurt from that Alabama offense, that maybe there was a perception that he was more mobile or more of a runner than he actually is, or maybe he was trying to show that he was more of a runner or more mobile than he actually it's when he's really not. He's he's a pocket quarterback.

And I think at times some of the injuries that he had, uh was was him just trying to a bood pressure and maybe just not throw the ball away or maybe not just just take a sack and it con seach him to do that, and you're confident in your ability to do that. But you might take them a little behind the usual. But yeah, I think someone will will will take him in the top ten. But

I would, I would. I would, unfortunately, have some some reservations about the look for surgeries in Alabama allegedly were to make the ankle tighter and stronger and help them long him. So so we'll see, like, is this something that you're talking about. Maybe what we'send that he had till eight years down the way, ten years down the road.

But I guess you look at what type of window do you have to get the best out of your kid and hopefully step if you want to take the risk that you're gonna get great years out of the guy, and maybe you make the plans or maybe you're turning your French tack around you're taking. But but if you're looking at someone you really a long term deal, I don't know. Yeah, and we love to it needs to be stressed. We all love the kid. Chris Felika, Chris,

thank you so much, man, I appreciate it. Chris Felika, ESPNS College Game Day coming Back, Welcome back to a numbers game with Jill Alexander. What better time than Draft week to play Quick Picks. Quick Picks as a new

betting game featuring all top grades from the NFL. If you're looking for action during the shutdown, how about Quick Picks Classic and matches superstars from then and now using historical stats to determine winners who was better in their prime Aaron or Peyton, Julio or DeAndre Zeke or a p Now with Quick Picks Classic, you can play these matchups takes less in a minute's creator ticket spent as little as ten cents when as much as fifty thousand

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before we get back into football. Here for a second, Danny, I'm sort of like, um, um, almost apologetic about this, because I want to stress how much I love the thirty for thirty franchise and how much I still enjoyed the doc despite the fact the thirty last dance Dock, despite the fact that yesterday I came on and said,

oh I wish they had shown this. Uh Jeff ruland uh, Michael Jordan's spill in game one of his career and then today much broader than that, Like one of the key theme of a part two of that was this Jerry Krause Michael Jordan's conflict about limiting him on minutes a minutes restriction. And that's not even close to being the impression that the facts show that, it's not even close to being the anywhere near the impression they were given.

So it's it. Then it makes me wonder, like, how many other things in there might I need to question? And by the way, you know, maybe did Scottie Pippett really was he really a manager at first and Central Hard? I'm just throwing out some stuff. There's other stuff in there, uh that I didn't find on my own. There's there's one other detail that we just found about out about that is clearly not right either. Um, maybe I'll bring it up on a subsequent show. So it's not like,

but this is a big thing for me. So anyway, I sheepishly pointed out. I don't know how you feel about me pointing pointing it out, Danny, but I feel

like I had to. It's kind of one of those things where it's like, no, don't only don't tell me, But at the same time, you need to know because when you're watching these documentaries, whatever it may be, you assume that everything is factual considering they're studying just you know, this one subject, So uh, it makes sense that it would be something that you would really want to search and find out about and more stuff continuing on, considering

we have eight more episodes. So uh, it's not enough to where me personally you pointing it out. It doesn't really ruin anything for me. It's just kind of something where it's like, oh, I'm surprised it went that direction. If anything, it's not more that it, you know, ruined its character or something. It didn't really alter anything I assume in anybody's minds. But like I said, it's interesting to note and it deserves to be factual. So well, yeah, let's let's put it this way. Am I still gonna

watch parts three through ten? Of course I am. I enjoyed the hell out of it, and I'm an m J. I mean, is the thing and it needs to be stressed. No one was more of an m J freak than I was in junior high and high school and beyond, Um, nothing was as big as college hoops. I mean, really, when you grow up in the DC area, it's the Redskins during the fall, and then it's basketball. It's college basketball,

it's high school basketball. I went to basketball camp with all the DC greats who were like my coaches and went out to college basketball fame, so like, no one was more Jordan than a CC obsessed that we were so anyway, uh, and then into his NBA career, so I just felt the need to point out. But yeah, is it gonna take me away from watching it? Of course not. But you know, um, just to set the

record straight back to football, Danny. Uh. We have Michael Lombardi coming up, and on his podcast this week, the GM Shuffle, he responded to Boomer A. Siasin taking shots at him former Cincinnati Bengal University of Maryland great Boomer Assiason, who now does so many things in the media, national

and local at w f and in New York. Um, Boomer was taking some shots at Michael Lombardi for uh, something that Michael Lombardi has been talking about for the last two weeks, but actually talked about first here specifically, not on the network, but specifically on a numbers game at Visa exactly two weeks ago. Let's roll that clip of what Michael had to say that can you give us some sense of the inside scoop of all of that or and of how all this really goes down?

Or maybe there's a crazy story or two that you that you have or have not shared before about this time of year that just would blow our minds. Well, I mean this time of the year is really misinformation time, right, I mean it's really about you know, what data do you believe? Where are you getting your data from. It's a little bit like the CIA. You've got to trust you know, who is your who is your contact, who are you working, where are you trying to find information out?

And how are you not giving information out? And there's so many tales of this time of the year where the agents stir the pot. You know, the agents create this illusion, which is what their job is to do. And I don't ultimate all Ford, I think they're very good at doing it, is to create this illusion like like two is healthy, right, Like that's an illusion. Okay that was reported in the day of the coronavirus. We read the two is healthy and most people living in

America accepted that, Yes, he teams. Meanwhile, I've had two teams in the past ten days told me he's failed their physical and I said what, And they said for a host of things. You know, he broke his wrist the first day of spring ball, I think two years ago when he came back, he broke it again. I mean, we've never talked about a broken wrist with him, right, We just talked about his hip. His hip is fine.

It's really about understanding that you've got to be able to separate the noise from what you're really trying to focus on. And I think it happens all the time, and I think the one good thing about this draft is there's less noise. So that was what Lombardi had to say on our air two weeks ago on this show, and I didn't let it slide. I actually we didn't have this on the tape right there, but I didn't let it slide. I followed that up immediately with I

don't want to gloss over that. This is I'm quoting myself an out from the show. I don't want to gloss over that. Can you repeat that? How many physicals has he failed? To which Lombardi further replied, Uh, well, I've spoken to a lot of teams. I've talked to two teams in the last ten days. I've spoken to two teams who have him failed on their board as physicals unquote. So then Lombardi went on to say it on his own podcast and it got picked up all

kinds of different ways. Um, but he's been taking a test and specifically Boomer Sizen did that, So I wanna I wanna play Boomer back to Michael, get his response to it. Uh. And then of course ask him a whole series of questions as well, uh, Danny, because of course uh um, I have those too, share with him as well. By the way, you feel free to jump in with any questions of your own, Danny as well. For Michael Lombardi, who of course is the host of

the Lamarti Line here at Visa. UM, and we'll have his show coming up at the top of the hour right after I talked to him, because I don't know if he's gonna talk about Boomer when he comes on the air, So we'll do it next right here on a numbers game at Visa. The Sports Betting new Welcome back to a numbers game with you. Alexander oh Man getting excited for the NFL Draft. Let's do this already,

Let's draft some players for goodness sake. Visa of course a draft special that will take place during the draft. It's our vis Draft Special Live Thursday night, UH eight p m Eastern five pm Pacific. Our draft bet casters will include Matt Humans, Brett Musburger, Jonathan von Tuble, and of course the esteemed Michael Lombardi who's about to join us. Other special guests as well to UH analyze the draft from our unique betting perspective. Track all the props they'll

tell you when they cash. It's the Draft Special Live Thursday, eight pm Eastern, five pm Pacific, right here on Visa, the Sports Betting Network. And now, ladies and gentlemen, his show is coming up at the top of the hour. It's called the Lombardi Line, exclusively on Visa. He's got a dynamite do we still use the word dynamite? Dynamite podcast GM Shuffle. The book is Gridiron Genius, and of course he writes for the Athletic. He will also make you some great Italian food and then oh, you won't

do yeah, No, I am not the original. This coronavirus is killing me in terms of the car. I mean, there's too much cooking going on in there. It's Michael Lombardi. Everybody at m Lombardi NFL. Alright, Michael, let's start with this, because of course I have a couple of questions for you, but let's start with this. This is I just played the clip the last segment of you on this show

talking about TOA and a couple failed physicals. This uh is boomer A Siasin on his show on w f A n UH talking about you and the the other thing. And it goes back to the to a tongue of volois stuff with Mike Lombardi, like like, who the hell was Mike Lombardi to be reporting that uh to had broken a risk in spring practice and then rebroke it,

Like how does he find out that information? Because he's close friends with Nick Saban and his Nick Saban given Mike Lombardi that information, So mich Lombardi can go running out there and just absolutely try to discredit a kid. Did you find so? I find something wrong with that, And I understand that Lombardi and Mike town I'm on both. You know, they're they're in the media now they were on the other side. Now they're on the dark side. And they get they have contacts, they have information, and

they use that information. And I get all of that stuff. But I do think that there's a violation here somewhere along the line, that somebody is outing players and their health issues when those things should be kept private. I think Michael the Laura as yours there, well, he doesn't think that's the problem. He has no idea what he's talking about. I mean, the reality of it is, he knows nothing about the draft. I mean, he's just spouting

off information. But he sits on his throne at w F A N and he thinks he's got Franz psychitis. You know, he can just say whatever he wants. And because he's on w F A N, he becomes this, oh my gosh, like make a point. Like make a point, Boomer, like tell me what I did wrong? Discredit the kid. The kid had the injuries. If you watched football on Saturday afternoon, you saw the kid get injured. Nick Saban hasn't talked to me about it. I don't have to

talk to Nick Sab but it's common knowledge. If you would do a little bit of work, just a little bit of work to prepare your audience, so you could educate your audience about what's going on in the National Football League, that might be a better show than taking a shot at me. I didn't discredit anybody. The fact remains, you discredited yourself by that idiotic statement you made Michael Lombardi addressing Boomer just to clarify and not me on on on that. Um. It really is the word discredit

that got you a little round. Actually, no, I think it was that he put me in the same category as Mike Tanabat might have really irked me a little bit. But the discredit thing, you know, it's like like at some point, like seriously, like why are you saying this? Like where where's where is your story? Like if you study the draft doorability injuries are a huge critical component of it. I didn't make it up. I didn't say you know that he was did something as a child,

or or you know had this problem. I didn't make anything up. I just said here's the reality. Now. If you want to be if you want to make no statements, if you want to be on f a n and just pontificate about subjects and you know, you want everybody to like you feel free, were as Sissin always invited on this show and coming on GM Shuffle, coming on, not coming on? You kidding me? I just wanted to point that out. I means, as they said about Pauli

and the Godfield, that's the last we'll see him. That's the last we'll see him. Uh. Did you see this back and forth on Twitter yesterday between the Jags owner's son and their standout defensive end uh in Guake yesterday? He got real personal, It got real nasty. Um. You know, on the one hand, I thought the owner's son, uh con comported himself well. On the other hand, I'm like, well, why did you even engage them at all? But it's basically over a contract issue. You've been in in the room,

so to speak again in NFL front offices. How did you view that? First of all, I think they should take Tony's Twitter account away from him. First of all. The second thing they should do is keep Tony. Tell Tony what the draft is on May the fifteenth, and keep him away from the draft because if you look at their drafting history, Tony if you look at their drafting history, it's been atrocious at the The organization has

been a disaster. So here's the reality. The let's keep it out of out of this this this fight on Twitter. The Jacksonville Jaguars since two thousand and eleven have lost over ten games at every season except one, the year they finished up behind the Patriots in the conference championship game. They've had one winning season. Like, at some point you have you're the model of a horrendous franchise. You are

the model of a horrendous franchise. You've kept a general manager who's been picking in the top ten since two thousand and thirteen all but one season and only has now two players on the team. They're gonna trade for net soon. So like, don't like, don't engage anybody, and then don't tell me you're working on the draft. Like, seriously, the problem with your organization is you have nobody that really understands what it takes to be a successful organization.

And if you think you're working on the draft, you know, there's a lot of people that watch tape. There's a lot of people that watch tape. There's very few people that study tape and that's the problem. Well said, UM, look, we we've batted this draft around and how we think this order is gonna go every which way. Um, I'll try to ask something that I haven't asked of you before,

which is just a sort of buzz lately. I had Evan Silva on a couple of days ago, and now I've seen sort of a a little bit of a wave of Derek Brown going number three. I want to say you were the first person I might have heard that from Michael. Derek Brown going to the Lions at number three? Um, do you think that could happen? And if it should happen, he's he should happen. They look, you don't win with corners in the NFL. You've win

with defensive linement. The forty Niners proved that once the Forts defensive line got tired, you know, their secondary got exposed. Couldn't play man, can't play zone. So yeah, I mean Derek Brown can rush inside to get into the paint. I think if you read the athletic Bob McGinn, he was the former beat writer for the Green Bay Packers, wrote for the Green Bay Press Gazette. He's had done remarkable work on the draft for most of his career. In fact, when I was in the league, he was

a new sense. He would constantly call you up about the draft. I just had to divorce myself from him. I love Bob. He's tremendous as a fan. I would urge people to read his column. He made a car. He wrote about how Isaiah Simmons is really viewed by differently in the league than by the perception outside of

the league. And I've heard that by numerous people, by a lot of people that there's really no position that the scheme allowed him to be successful at Clemson, and his speed allowed him to be successful, but teams are having a hard time figuring out what to do with them. There's more of a mischance with Simmons that there is a hiss hiss chance. He's straight line speed, He's not overly athletic with ben and lateral quickness. I think McGinn's

onto something. I think this guy is gonna slip. Every time you say scheme, Michael, a little part of me giggles and yeah, we gottap even Bleach. So if so, the follow up that is, if Derrick Brown goes number three to the lines, let's say that does happen. Would the Giants me let me choose my words carefully. Would the Giants be uh sort of lurd into not taking an offensive tackle and maybe taking Okuda at four because

they never have good corners in New York. Now that the Giants, the Giants should stick to the theory of Look, we win games with offensive and defensive linement. I mean, I don't care. I know it's not sexy, I know it's boring, but the game comes down to offensive and defensive lineman. How many ones you have when you travel. It really comes down to when you take those ten

players at another pass rusher in the defensive line. If you could get seven, six or seven blue chip red chip players in that category, you're gonna be a hell of a football team. You're gonna be a hell of a football team. And that's the goal. And if I'm the Giants, I'm taking the best tackle. If Derek Brown made it to me at four, I would take Derek

brownify with the New York Giants. I would reseend the tender on Leonard Williams, the most idiotic thing possible I've ever seen, and then have a real legitimate pass rushing defensive tackle. What's the thing? Like a broad question, I'll leave you with this, what's the one thing up at the top? And I've asked some other people, I don't think I've asked of you. That would just be the

surprise that blows all of this up. What could you possibly see happening where you're like, this is the one thing that could blow all of our thoughts up on this draft. I think if if the Redskins trade too, I don't believe they will. If they trade out of two, I think it'll blow it up because somebody's coming up not to get Chase Shown, because the Redskins are gonna

pick Chase Sean. If somebody gets into two, they want a quarterback, and that would be Herbert based on what I'm told, and that would lead the Lions with with Chase Young. And I think that would blow everything up. Jeez, I I still say, and I've never wavered on this, I think the Redskins do take Chase Young, but yeah, you're right, that would totally blow it up. Michael. I leave you with a documentary recommendation, The Pharmacist on Netflix. Have you seen this? I have not. I've got to

get to it. I've been too much into the singer songwriters from the seventy I've got to get moved out of that. I it was, It's fabulous. The other one I recommend strongly to you, Gill is Sinatra at Palm Springs. Just absolutely fabulous. So I'm always down for Sinatra. Michael, give me some time to prepare for your show. The Lombardi line coming up top of the hour. Thank you

as always, Michael A preach. Thank you Michael Lombardi. Uh. And when I say the best in the biz, I often throw that out with some of my favorite guests because I love my guests, my regulars, but Michael Lombari is the best in the biss Uh. That dude tells

it like it is, and it was. It was generous of him, and he wouldn't even use the word generous, but to respond to the boomer comments because as as Michael told me offline, you think I care, though he didn't really use the word care, if you know what I mean. Thank you to Michael Lombardi. Thank you to Chris Felika. Thank you to Alan Boston for the third of three appearances on the show. Don't get better than that drive, But the