Hell. Everybody to the facilities of the iHeartMedia Megaplexus is Dick Gabriel. This is the holiday edition of the state Wide Big Booon Side. He heard Mark Pope's comments, you saw the Wildcats kind of go down in flames right before Christmas. So we're here to sift through it tonight and talk some football because the playoffs have everybody upset. Welcome back and talk with Billy rutligs, Aaron Gershan, Jefpiicorral
in the state wide BBI Border to Border. It is the Big boon Sider, Dick Gabriel, Billy Rutledge, Aaron Gershewan. I hope everybody's having a good holiday a week some of you still had to work today, but it's a good time of year. A lot of football, there's a lot of basketball, there's a lot of crossover. We're going to talk about basketball in the first half hour. Jepeicorrel joins us. At the bottom of the hour, we'll talk about, of course, the playoffs. And Jeff grew up an Iowa
State fan, because we've talked about him before. His dad went to school there, played baseball there, so we don't blame him for room for the buck Eyes and the Tennessee Balls he hated so much, went down in flames, but perfect storm for him. Aaron gershwin alongside along with Billy Rolaseron and I of course across Pass up in New York City. We knew we would. Madisonsquare Garden. That's
gotta be fun for you. Yeah, to go home, see the fam take whatever train you take into the city, and Long Island Railroad, I.
Guess, yeah, Metro North from Connecticut. Yeah, it doesn't get much better. I mean, this is my second game covering. Neither have been kind to Kentucky, but I had a great time of both. I'm trying to remember the first UCLA two years ago. Oh yeah, that was ugly. Both of them were ugly, but that one was even uglier.
So this was weird. There was There was that one stretch where Ohio State just basically couldn't miss ye and Kentucky couldn't hit Nope. And that's separated the two teams by at least ten points. And it stayed that way.
It did that, I mean Kentucky did go on a run there or in the second half. I think Ohio State got it all either all the way to fifteen or to thirteen, and Kentucky cut it to six and I was like, okay, here they come again, the comeback Cats. And then I think it was a pass to Brandon Garrison that he dropped down underneath the basket. It might have been Jackson Robinson. I forgot who dropped it. And if they had just converted a lay up there it's a four point game and you're like, okay, like here
it comes. And then after that play kind of blew up. Ohio State went on another run. I think it was like an eight to two run, pushed the lead back to double digits and that was it. That was it for Kentucky.
And prior to that play, yeah, did you think Kentucky could complete the cut?
I thought they were going to just because they've done it, Ben, They're done that. And honestly, and give Ohio State a ton of credit. They played a great game. And you know, Bruce Thornton Junior was fantastic. That Mobley kid didn't even shoot well coming into the game. Was a fifty three percent three shooter on fifty six attempts, So you know they have some nice players. Aaron Broadshaw played a great game,
but picked a good time, didn't Yeah. With all that said, Kentucky came back and beat two teams that are much better than Ohio State and Duke and Gonzaga. So I thought, you know, you got it to six, there's still fourteen minutes left in the game. Here it comes. But it did not come.
You know, it's funny you said that because I don't know why, and I hate to be you know, Debbie Downer, but I was so skeptical. Yeah. Maybe if I were watching on TV, I would have felt different, But watching it and I can't well, I think you were sitting in the same section I will yep. We were amazingly close to.
The Oh it's amazing Tom leach and and Jack Gibbons rubbing the boonies.
Sorry guys, but anyhow, it just didn't feel to me. Even though the fans were trying their hard, God they did to pull them back into it, it just didn't feel like they could get the stops. They didn't have have the right plan to stop Ohio State and score consistently. Billy, you were one year on the radio, one ear on the TV, yeah, or one eye on the TV. Did you think they complete the comeback? No?
And not because I'm not optimistic, and it's not because I haven't seen it before, which they've done it. It is just I mean, they went on like an eight or nine minute drought of no field goals at the end of the first half, and you and you go into halftime with no momentum, and it's just it felt a little different. It felt like guys were standing around. It felt like Ohio State. It dictated the pace and that was Yep, that's something that's an achilles heel for this
team for sure. You know, you know this is something to build on. Obviously, Mark Pope will point to this game several times throughout the year that I'm sure, but like seven of twenty three on layups is unbelieve.
Yeah, I can't remember a stat line quite that bad.
And then throw on on top of I'm not sure if this team is a good three point shooting team. They again, there was four twenty two in this game. I think that's the worst this year. Yes, as you know, people have said Kentucky needs a guy to get a basket at the end of the game. I've always said it seems like the system is that guy this year. Whoever's open take that shot and be confident. But right now,
Kentucky I don't know. I don't know if they have the confidence of a good three point shooting team right now.
I tell you what somebody asked, is this a blueprint? And you always ask that after a loss. Early in the year, we saw what at least part of the blueprint is if you can, you know, imagine the opposing coach, game planning, whiteboard, whatever, run them off the three point line. I think Kentucky is a good three point shooting team when the shots you're there, but you can say that about a lot of say they're a volume shooting team.
That's the key. And it was clear that Ohio State was willing to challenge Kentucky in the paint where it was outscored by a million. Yeah, but Ohio was extending. Everybody was in their grill two steps beyond the three point line. And therefore Kentucky wasn't getting many clean looks.
No, they weren't, and I think there might there were some they passed up. Though again that's a that's a concerning trend I've noticed, is they Andrew Carr specifically. I'm not trying to call anyone out, but he's a guy who's a thirty seven percent three point shooter. Last year, he was a forty percent three point shooter in his second year at Delaware that they made the NCAA tournament.
There are several times where he is instead of taking a wide open shot, pump faked or passed it away, and it's like, dude, you're a good three point shooter, just just shoot it. And Mark Pope talked a little bit about that tonight on his radio show that they've been working on getting him more aggressive. So yes, I agree with that, but to me, yeah, the offense was terrible. It was an off night. I think I'm with Billy.
I want to see if this team's really an elite three point shooting team or if it's or like you said, it's a volume shooting three point team. To me, the defense in this game, they o hoop State didn't do anything particularly special. They put Thornton Junior behind ball screens and their bigs just cleared up way too much space and like a million and he score ended up scoring
thirty points because he also had fourteen free throws. Just that's something that's concerning the perimeter, our interior defense all year long has been a little shaky. They haven't quite I don't think they've gotten that three time Conference Player of the Year level of defense from Amari Williams. I think Brendan Garrison they knew coming in was a work in progress in that end. So they have some things
to shure up. And you know, one thing I think this roster is lacking is just the guy off the bench. They have that shooter off the bench in Kobe Brea. They don't have that guy on the debt bench that they can be like, all right, we need you to go get us a stop. Yeah, he's not a great defender. He is a great energy guy. He has awesome energy. They they were lethargic, so they missed that. But I'm not sure they like they don't have that lead defender they can be like, all right, man.
How many teams do though have an elite defender on the bench?
Yees, not that many that that is generally the case. They only really have two elite defenders on the whole roster take Away and La But Williams allegedly it hasn't happened yet exactly.
He did it in the CIA.
Yeah, death is a real problem.
I mean Aley almanor seems he can't really stay on the floor for very long. Defense Colin Chandler, Travis Perry, these guys don't seem ready no yet.
Made a nice steal he did.
I thought after he made that, I was like, Oh, that's a play you can actually turn into some momentum. And then they came and turned it over.
But their their liabilities on defense. A lot of times Lamont Butler scores thirty three and then I think they played him defensively maybe a little bit down.
Hey, his his man was their leading scorer. I think he only scored like royal and he only scored like four.
Points to stay on the floor. I mean he's getting foul trouble.
That's a problem often exactly.
And with Kerkkrisa not available, you're shifting Robinson to the point Travis Perry gets brought in. I expect Pope to tighten the rotation.
Has to. And who was that talking to about that or maybe David Sisk from Cats Illustrated tweeted that at halftime he said he felt like the broader substitution pattern and I hate that word pattern, you know, tendency. He said he thought it negatively affected the flow for Kentucky. So and it's early. I mean, Pope still trying to figure out who to put in win. But you know, if you put a guy in and you're supposed to get X y Z out of him and you don't
get it, now, what do you do? Right? So it's it's a work in progress, like every team in America. And as you said, Aaron, on their resume, are two impressive comeback wins.
Yeah.
And it's one thing I said to somebody after the up there in the garden, I said, Mark Pope and his staff will make good use of this video. They will you talk about teaching no question, you know.
Yeah, at the end of the day, it's a quad one loss. It's not the end of the world. It's all about how you respond. And the problem is, you know you're gonna be stewing in it for a while. They don't play again till New Year's Eve, and then they don't play our real team. Againtil Florida for being honest, but this league is unforgiving. The biggest thing I'm concerned about all everything we set aside is these slow starts.
And it's not just in losses. It's happened in wins. Obviously, we just talked about how they had to come back from sixteen down to be Gonzaga, came back from nine down to be Duke Colgate. They let they start the game on a seventeen old run and then Colgate two, and then they trailed early in the second half, Clemson
the first. If they don't have that bad first half, I think they win that game because they started the second half on fire, took the lead, but the you know, they couldn't get that gap they needed, so that that's something that has to get cleaned up.
They can't.
The SEC is I mean, this might be the best single year basketball conference there is. They will lose more games than they win if they start like this in the SEC.
But like going five hundred in the SEC is not a bad thing. Like people are for this team, No, no, not for it. I think people are going to freak out when they see how.
Many told me. Hoops Weis told me he thinks the SEC champion regular season could lose as many a six game.
I agree, no question. Just look at it's it's insane. The worst record in the SEC is nine and three South Carolina and they just beat the same Clemson team, suspect.
Sure, how about protecting home court? I mean, whoever does that? The best may win the conference?
Yeah right, yeah, And you know that's one thing Kentucky has done really well so far. But they haven't really. Louisville is a good team, but not a great team. They haven't played a Marquiere's.
The other thing I keep reminding myself this is a collection and again people's American excuses. No, this is a collection of guys, and yeah, they've been together for a while, but they're playing under fire. Now. How many games have they played?
That was game eleven?
How many tough games?
Of twelve? That was game twelve? They played four tough games.
Yeah, so they're still trying to figure out this Mark Pope way of doing things. They've never played this style with the exception of Jackson Robinson, and Pope has talked about it. Robin. They turned to him and say, you know, what are we supposed to be doing here? That kind of thing. They're smart, they're older, they're mature, they can think on their own. They don't have to watch the coach like the previous guy in charge here because he
has so many true freshmen. But they still have to figure out how to play together within this style of offense and it's different, you know. So I can see they'll stumble a few more times, yep. But will they be ready in March?
Well, I think if you look at the non conference as a whole, I mean, if they you beat Brown, you're eleven and.
Two in non conference play.
You take that ten times out of ten when Pulp gets hired, right, I mean you've just squabbling a roster together.
So yeah, I think the start to and who you beat raised the expectations. Look, they were ranking number twenty three going to the year, and I would argue they didn't even deserve that just because they hadn't played together.
I think the brand got them in those rankings, and they went out and proved it, and they moved up into the top five, and they played worthy of it, And now, you know, I think it's kind of just kind of going back to what the expectations really were, which is this is a team that should be middle of the pack to top half of the SEC and be a seven to six seed in the tournament.
And see what happened. I thought over I thought the fourth was over ranked. I really thought they were over.
Oh yeah, but there's also just not there aren't because there are a lot of good teams in college basketball and not a great a lot of great ones this year, you know, a lot of people.
Speak up on each other no one, yeah.
Right, really losing his mind. And arguably Tennessee's rosters arguably not as good as last year. And they're number one and undefeated.
Isn't isn't Hawaii where you going to relax? Supposed to be?
Not if you're dan early or buying groceries.
That's right. We'll take a break, come back and talk more Kentucky hoops a little bit later on. We're going to talk about the college football playoffs and the portal as Mark Pope and company had been busy or to come here on the state wide BBI from Pikeville too. Paduka is a state wide big blue in cider. Dick Gabriel, Billy Rutledge, Aaron Gershan, Bottom of the hour, je Pecorl joins us. We're talking about Kentucky basketball as we keep an eye on my Packers and the New Orleans Saints.
And by the way, your your giants keep stumbling Number one pick? Are they number one?
Right?
Now number one all alone.
Just lose two more and it's ours and you're hoping quarterback, right, I guess who would you like? I have to watch more of the two. It's going to be their Shadore Sanders or A or cam Ward. So I honestly I gotta go watch more of them to give you a better opinion.
You're gonna get a little Eli treatment on the Sugar Giants situation here thumbs down to the.
Well, he already said, and he just said in an interview that he's his son's made for New York.
Though, well maybe maybe that's true, made.
For the Giants or made for It's it's Dean Sanders. He's not gonna tell this kid he can't play in New York. He was also playing. He was playing catch at the Heisman Trophy ceremony with Elik Neighbors in the streets of New York.
He sounds old.
I have to watch him more. I have to watch him more. I just am ready for something to give me any.
Hope and your bucks. That was crushing yesterday.
Yeah, we stumbled. We controlled our own destiny until we lost to Jerry Jones's worst Cowboys team in years. Uh nothing, like there's a weird ending. Yeah, Rashad White just couldn't hold onto the ball and just kind of taken away from him like a little child.
Yeah, that's one of the hardest sitting NFL games I've watched. Said, I didn't get to see any of that.
Vita Vea had a huge hit.
Vita's just a big boy boy. He is a big boy. But bucks, I mean, they went out there in and if the Falcons lose to the Washington Commanders on Sunday Night football, then that's all they need.
So they will.
Let's hope they back into the.
Falcon Commanders have their Rookie of year quarterback.
That's true.
The Falcons have a brand new starter.
I'll tell you what. We just played them. Oh so that's a free win for Atlanta.
How do you pay? How do you get Kirk Cousins we see on the Hard Knocks or whatever, it was the quarterback, the nicest guy you'll ever meet, and he just although I heard some experts talking today we'll get back to basketball about how they you know, there were people who privately predicted he would fail at Atlanta because this skill set doesn't fit that offense.
Well, they do zero play action pass, which was his strongest.
You know, he's thirty seven coming off or thirty six coming off in the Chilles.
Yeah, so you've got to have play action these a defense. But uh, you know, getting it back to the UK. That's what the Wildcats had depended on for so long as play action. Without it, they haven't been able to do much. But as I said, we'll talk football with Jeffichorp touchdown Packers, getting back to the basketball Cats. This is exam week. This is back when we used to hear about what was a camp cal You know, there's
you might know this, Aaron. There's a certain point once exams are over, they can toss the twenty hour rule out the window. And I wonder if that's going to go out the window when the contracts come in for the players anyhow, you know, I want to see what kind of advancement this team shows, what kind of improvement coming out of the holidays when they can forget about those pesky classes and just work on basketball.
Yeah, look, there's a lot to work on. I think there's need some confidence needs to be built back into this group after a game like that, and really just the fact that they're not hitting that thirty three is a game mark or not even really not coming close. They just got to get back and hone in on some certain things. And the biggest thing to me again though, is they got to figure out what's causing them to start so slowly. I didn't we didn't really get a
clear answer. Mark Pope, by the way, for people I know, he's very positive. He comes off that way. That dude doesn't handle losing well. He was very much deflated, not only after the Clemsing game, but this game very short with us very much just didn't wanted to get back to work, it felt like so. But he's got to
find a way. He hasn't really had an answer for it yet as to why this team struggles out of the gates, because it's been outside of the Louisville game, it's been a problem for since really even the Georgia State game is close, like, it's been a problem for almost a month, and they've got to figure that out this week. That's to me issue number one, because what are the chance is.
That, to your point, that the slow start can be explained by the fact that they are bent on being and I'm not second guessing a volume team when it comes to three point shooting, when you go out before you've really established a flow, you know, you've not looked for some easy buckets. You can get inside, you can use your size and athletic ability, but your your bombs away right away, because to me, that's pine of the biggest culprits.
Yeah, it could be. They do definitely seem more aggressive with their threes early in games, and they miss them, and maybe that hurts some confidence. But you know, they made them early against Louisville and they stayed confident, and you know, maybe it's as simple as all right, we gotta make it a priority to get a really clean look with the first one and make it. But whatever it is, maybe that is what it is. It's got to get fixed because that they play. It's not like
they just start SEC play. They have to play Florida, who's undefeated. They go to Georgia, who might be the most underrated team of the conference, and then they go to Mississippi State, who's a rank team that's veteran led.
Was it the Colgate game where they led seventeen to zero.
Yeah, and then they were trailing early and.
And then they trailed early in the second half against Colgate. So I even if they have a somewhat of a good start, it's that first media time out. You know, what are you going to do after that? How are
you going to adjust? So you probably come in kind of like a football team with a game plan, not that that it's scripted, sure, but you know you're going to do this, this and this, and then when you get past that point, maybe it changes a little bit, and it kind of depends on what the what's happening in the game now. I will say the outlier is that Duke game or even the Gonzaga game where they've trailed big time and then they were able to still
come back. That showed some poise, that showed some experience from graduate transfers being brought together. But maybe there's an emphasis on maybe doing something early like three pointers, and then when it doesn't work, it kind of hit they hit a wall.
That's what I'm saying.
That's how it feels, and look, they got to just figure out a better way to make that adjustment quicker. When you know the Gonzaga the Duke game, they shot the three pretty well overall, but in the last five minutes they kind of said it's not going to happen. Let's get in the paint and score. Yes, Gonzaga, they didn't. They took like seven threes in the second half in overtime combined. They need cranked up the defense, and they cranked up the defense. They went to the one three to one.
Rotation they tried against Carolina.
Yeah they did against Uh yeah, yeah, So I'm sorry oh Oho State. Yeah they got I was blown away Carolina.
Yeah.
It was incredible from them, But uh, they got to make that adjustment quicker because you go into half down fifteen an sec game, you're going to lose nine at a ten time.
Billy, you mentioned the Gonzaga game, and I keep thinking I was thinking about that during the second half of the Ohio State game, because Jack Gibbons told the story on the air and then told me on my show as well about how he could hear they were so close to the bench when they were really struggling the biggest, biggest deficit I think in the second half against against Zaga and Jackson Robinson ran by Mark Pope and Pope
was yelling, we're fine, We're good, We're fine. And you may have heard Jack tell that story and I wondered, does he see the same thing or what is he not seeing? Even though they're down double digits to Ohio State, is he thinking about yelling, hey, guys, we're fine, and if not, why not? You know what I'm saying. They were fine against Gonzaga. Clearly they weren't fine against Ohio State.
Welcome back and shift the chatter to football Kentucky and otherwise here on the state wide edition of the Big Boon Siders, stay with us border to border, it is the Big Bloon Sider. Dick Gabriel, Billy rudleds Erin Gershan join now on the celebrity highline. We keep trying to turn him loose for a little while because it was basketball, but of course he knows a lot more about football. But Jeff Bercorrel, football keeps popping in to the radar.
And before we talk about the Wildcats, I'm wondering how many of these playoff games did you get to watch? And I also told Billionaire and that while I was in New York killing some time waiting to go to Madison Square Garden, I watched a good deal of North Dakota State versus South Dakota State. It was a great playoff game. But anyway, how many of the D one playoff games did you have a chance to check out?
I love Verry Christmas. Sorry, Dick, I had to just pay for my Kiza here a good fellaw.
I've stalled, stalled, and I stalled. S all right, I won't put the audience to the long question again. How many playoff games did you watch?
Yeah? I watched a lot. And you know what, I did watch that North Dakota State game that you're talking about, went right down to the watch that great. Yes, I mean it's it's really good football. I guarantee. Now, I don't know if they have the depth to sustain a season if they played, but I guarantee they could play in the MAC and some of that heck yeah, uh they you know, had some really nice players man there. It's fun to watch. And they played wide open too.
They don't you know, they don't. They don't mess around.
And a lot of their alums who are now in the NFL came back and watched that game. They kept showing them on camera.
Uh.
But anyhow, your Buckeyes they won big. They look good. I don't know how you feel about Notre Dame, but uh, they put us. Really the only team that who lost that really was competitive was Clemson. But now everybody wants to tear the tear the playoff system down and start over. But I think all of those games, you can explain every bit of them, don't you. I mean, smut smu ain't gonna come up in that kind of weather and play.
Well, there's just yeah type yeah, oh huge advantage. Yeah. I look, if they played ten times, Notre Dame probably wins seven or eight, right, easy, yeah, probably, But you can't And I know everybody now starts saying who did they play? Who did they play? And I know Herbsteek's big on that too, and but you can't discount a season's worth of of what they've done. And I know what's gonna happen now, and I know everybody's gonna have
this knee jerk reaction. Why should uh, why should for instance, Alabama play Clemson in the first game of the year, right, Why should they play in these games? If you can play Patsy's and you know, and and pad your win loss total, why play these big time games during the season. And I just disagree with that because to me, as a player, Look, you want to play the best and beat the best. You know, if you're Alabama, if you're a high state, if you're Georgia, you don't want to
play the the fune Cookman's of the world. I'm not knocking those guys, but you really you just don't want to play those games. You want to play against, you know, the best teams in the country.
See, Jeff, your argument, Your argument to me is the best against what people are saying. If Alabama's losses were to you know, if they had a one or two losses to the likes of Clemson, whoever, and not to have pair of six and six teams, they don't think that argument holds up. It's it's not anymore. It shouldn't just be about who you beat, it's who did you lose to? And that that set Notre Dame back a little bit. And it's said Ohio State back as they lost to Michigan.
Yep, yeah, yeah, no, I agree with you, But I'm just saying from a player standpoint, I really, look, you have to have some breathers, and I understand that, but every year in the SEC, somebody's a bad team. Missippi State this year is a bad team. That's a breather on the schedule. To tell you the truth, Kentucky was kind of a breather this year for a lot of teams, right, Yeah, it just happens. There's ebbs and flows. The great teams are always gonna be great. But Arkansas they're kind of
like Kentucky. They're up and down and up and down. Mississippi State's up and down, up and down. You know, Vanderbilt's up and down. They've been on an uptick the last two years. Good for them. But you know the thing I feel sorry about now is I think Kentucky Louisville goes away. Yeah, and that's too bad, Jeff.
With this playoff format, do you like the true home games? Definitely felt like it gave those teams a massive advantage. And if so, if you like them, do you think they have it? We were talking about this before the show. The order of operations correct, where they do the first week they have the home games and then they go on to neutral sites. Where'd you rather see those teams that have by weeks rewarded with also getting a home game?
You know, it's interesting thing you you say it that way, Aaron, It it I think the reason they gave home games to those is because and again what's what is everything about? It's all about money. Yes, and they knew one hundred thousand people were going to be in the Horseshoe, and they knew ninety thousand people were going to be at Penn State or one hundred thousand. They knew ninety thousand was going to be at Notre Dame. That's why those were there. I think, in the best of all worlds,
why not let the Citrus Bowl? Why not let the you know, all the bowl games be those games? Does that make sense? Or that is that too much to to give to this college playoff? Because then you're limiting some teams. But again you have a five and sevent team that's playing, Yeah, teams that can't play players not in the playoffs though, but yes, But what I'm saying
is you're limiting the Bulls. Now if you go ahead and use the Capital One or the whatever it's called now, the Citrus Bowl, the out Back Bawl, use those as those games. See. But the problem comes back to this, Aaron. When I played, and again I'm not saying back in the day, but from the start of football, if you won the SEC, you were going to the Sugar Bowl. So fans of the great teams, fans of Alabama, fans is of Georgia, they would buy tickets to the Sugar
Bowl ahead of time, hoping their teams got there. If you're in the Big Ten, you in the Big Ten, where are you going? You're going to the Rose Bowl. If you were in the what's now the Big twelve back then the Southwest, if you went to the Cotton Bowl, that's where everybody went, right.
Conference.
Yeah, yeah, So I said, yeah, you're right. So you know it's you had that Bowl tie in, which you just don't have now. And it's really interesting the way they do it now. And but again, look they're looking for money, and if you have it at a home stadium, you know that it's going to sell out. Hey, there was a lot of Tennessee fans that made the treck to Ohio State. Now I don't know what Tennessee team that was, but I sure wish they'd have played Kentucky. It would have been a different outcome.
I say that, you know what, I like the format the way it is, Jeff. And here's why, Because I think the first the top four teams, and then maybe they need to rethink about how they seed it. Get the buye. I'm good with that. And Aaron and I were talking. Aaron and I were talking. I don't think that if you're a top four team, you should get both a home game and a by So give them a bye, but give the next four the advantage of having a home game, you know. And if you're in
the bottom four, look, you're in the playoff. You got a chance. You can't play your way into the playoff, but once you're there, you can play her with a title game. So I think that rewards that rewards the second four, and it rewards the first four.
You're exactly right, But I have two questions for you guys. It's kind of the same question. You wouldn't let Florida State in last year because they lost their quarterback right undefeated season going in they lost their quarterback, They don't go Georgia had two losses, and I guess because they're the champion, Yeah, they get an auto.
Bid, ye, playing it might be better for them anyway. Yeah.
Yeah, here's my second question.
And by the way, let me interject it. Florida State looked terrible without their quarterback. They did win.
They did anyway, Okay, well that kind of that kind of leads me to this. Do you really think Boise State is the third best team in the country. Do you really think Arizona.
State that I do not. I don't know about Boise haven't seen him play. I think Texas is the third best team in the country.
Probably, Yeah, I just I And you look at the way it's seated. And I really thought the Tennessee Ohio State game was going to be a lot better.
Of the day.
Yeah, I really think so. But what I was getting at is, Okay, so Ohio State blows him out, they got or Oregon kind of gets screwed out of the whole thing. They almost walked to the championship game, right now?
Yeah, I know, You're exactly right, Jeff. And to expand on some of your comments, I mean, this is a made for TV event. This isn't a committee that's doing the what's best for college football. It's to get the most entertaining matchups. And so here's my question. We're at twelve teams. Now, where are we at ten years from now? Jeff?
Do we go up?
Are we going down?
I mean, my only natural thought is we go to sixteen.
I you know, I don't mind twelve. I wouldn't mind sixteen. That means everybody has to play the same amount of games, which I'm kind of for I think that especially. You know, when you're looking at a what's the difference between Texas and Georgia? Those two are so close now right, yeah? You know, or an Ohio State and Oregon. I mean Ohio State. If the kid gets down one second earlier, they kick a field goal, they probably win. But now
Ohio State has to play an extra game. Those are the kind of thing and sob so, I know it's rewarding to be the top four, but in the end a tournament in basketball there's no buys. Everybody has to play same amount of gameses.
And you know what, you know what there used to be football.
I get it. This is a this is big time football. And when you have to play an extra game and and you might get banged up or somebody gets hurt, you're screwed for the next game. We look at Georgia.
Does it works in the NFL?
Well, that's basically what you are. Now. You're saying, everybody, you know, so, who do you like everybody.
So do you like the Buckeyes now?
Uh, I think that's gonna be an un I mean the first game was unbelievable. I don't know if you guys saw it, but there was six seconds left and uh and the quarterback will takes off running. He gets down as it goes to zero. If he gets down the step earlier they make the first down, he can run up clock it and may kick a field going and possibly win the game. I mean, that's how close that game was. Here's the other thing. This has been what three weeks now since Oregon's played, or since any
of the number one seeds have played. That's a long time. And you you cannot come out slow. I mean, look at Tennessee for whatever reason, they just look like you know, that first quarter was abysmal and again go ahead good And I.
Was gonna say that that might have been the biggest surprise to me, not just how Ohio State beat Tennessee, but Aaron and I were talking about this, Uh, Tennessee, at least the Tennessee that we saw was one of, if not the most physical team in the Southeastern Conference and didn't play like that at all Ohio State.
But what was wrong with the running back, Well, he got bad, something.
Wrong, but it was more on the other side of the ball for me, Jeff. I mean, Tennessee defensive line has three pros and they just got run over.
Yeah, and really, guys, that was an incredible almost catch interception. How he got us put down I'll never know, but that should have been twenty eight to nothing game over what nine minutes into the game something like that. Uh, that's that's.
Crazy, Jeff.
I want to switch you switch gears a little bit to the Kentucky football team. There's been a lot of news made with the transfer portal quarterbacks receivers from Alabama. I mean the quarterback from Texas A and M I believe had some play in the past. Has any name caught your eye? Do you like the direction that Stoups and company are going?
Well, you've got three new starters on the offensive line and possibly a fourth, so you've got some depth there. Now. You know, you got the center that you needed, you got a guard, and these are guys that are that are really good. I mean, you've got an All MAC first teamer, You've got a All se Seed player. I mean, and this isn't just like they're going and getting guys to fill holes. This is almost like Ole Miss the running back. I mean, the guy scored twelve touchdowns, right,
I mean he's a great third down runner. You've got a quarterback that can sling the ball. You've got some receivers. You got a six foot seven, two and seventy pound tight end. You get two edge rudder, two edge rushers who are really good and have size. You've got yourself a defensive tackle that is kind of like Keishan Silver where you don't I don't really think they know what they got because he hasn't played a whole lot, but he had a lot of promise coming out of high school.
So yeah, it's it's gonna be real interesting. Guy. I think they they to me, they've had home runs. They're supposedly, if you count this stuff, a top ten team in the transfer portal whatever that's good for.
Well, Hey you know what Nick min Jones team was ranked six last year on the portal. Yeah did pretty well.
Yeah, look what they did got him to the World Series. You know, and let's not stop with football. Look at what Skinner has done with the volleyball team.
Yeah.
Really, I meant he got the Big Ten Freshmen of the Year, the girl that led the Big ten in kills, and a six six middle blocker. Gracious, look at that, right, Yes, Jeffy, this portal's crazy.
With all that said, and I do what I like. Actually, probably like most of They got a few guys who have been captains before, and we saw leadership was a massive, massive problem last year. How do you think they'll go about I mean, they're gonna have at least fourteen transfers. That's a crazy number. How do you think they go about the culture because that clearly there's a miss there last year.
I think the guys have to get in here as soon as possible, and understand. I think that's why they kind of went after some of these guys that they went after, because they've been leaders before. Remember when Will Levis got here, he said, I wanted to earn it. You have to step in here day one and take it. There's no earning. It's you come and you are the guy, and you have to be that way. You have to play that way, you have to practice that way, you have to lift weights that way.
But you can't they do that.
You know.
You can't force it, though, can you Remember Mike Hardline tried a little bit too hard, right, and it wasn't until the end of the year that he settled in to that role and being a leader, you know, the way you have to that you've got to the guys have to be wont to be led by you, correct.
That's right, that's right. Yeah, you can't come in and be a jerk. You have to come in and say, here's the way. And these guys are almost all these guys that come up with winning programs that have made Bowl games and stuff. Right, here's the way we did it, and here's the way it worked, you know. And because from day one, remember we heard so much about Pops and the defensive player saying this guy is a leader and this is the way, and we followed him. That's
how these guys have to come in that way. You just have to, you know. And again, they're paying these guys a lot of money. I mean, I couldn't. I don't know what it would be like to be in college and have literally thousands of dollars in my pocket. That just blows my mind. It's just it's crazy to think that the money they're they're giving these these players.
Well, Jeff, I'll switch gears again to athletes that are driving around in porsches. And that's the Kentucky wodcasts. Concerning game versus Ohio State, we were talking a lot about the slow starts from this team and also the poor three point shooting. Is there anything really concerning or do you think this is all something that Pope can work out?
I think you got to say it's concerning, Billy. I mean, I mean, they didn't get beat, they got annihilated. I mean Ohio State, they're you know, basically their best player in Michi, you know, and still were able to do whatever they wanted. I think it really shows what Lamont Butler means to this team. He's got to stay out of foul trouble beyond the court, and I'm talking thirty five minutes a game. I don't think they have I don't think their bench is what we thought it might be.
I mean, I don't know if Almanor is the answer or whatever. But you know, you now, we've seen that he's really whittled it down to, you know, about seven guys, you know, and the only time he goes any deeper is when he's in foul trouble, and yeah, I just I don't know. Again, are they going to get better as the season goes on? You? I hope so, because
the're going to learn each other and everything. But this, without saying I'm not saying possibly is this is the deepest SEC that it has ever been ever in the history of the SEC. I mean this, my god, you have ten teams in the top twenty ten.
I think they'll start to melt away a little bit for obvious reasons when conference play begins. But all that's gonna do is is confirm what we know and that
this is a brutally tough conference. And the people who are rating the SEC and and writing and talking about it have watched these teams play and yeah, they're feasting on uh some of the have nots, but they're also winning a lot of these you know, interregional games against really good teams and you know, Kentucky school everybody's schedules,
Jeff is brutal. But Florida, I think is a surprise team at Kentucky starts conference play with Florida, and I don't know that anybody expected Georgia to be this good.
Vanderbilt, I don't know, are they because I don't really follow basketball as much as I should, but I is Texas A and M that good?
Well right now the answer is yes, based on wins and losses. But you know, we'll see it all, it'll all level off. But no, it's I. I there's it's the greatest start in the history of the SEC. Yeah.
I think that the winner of the SEC might have four or five conference losses. Oh yeah, I mean Tennessee looks really good, but Auburn looks really good.
Well, I talked, talked, looked really good.
I talked to Hoops Weiss, the legendary basketball writer. He told me he thinks the SEC champion regular season one seed in the conference tournament could have as many as six conference losses, and he said he believes Auburn could or will win the national title. So that tells you a lot. Jeff percarel follow him at what is your your jefpicaol Just Jeff Picaul right, yeah, and watch for him on WTVQ. Thank you, champion, and we'll probably talk more football next week and we'll take a break and
come back. My packers are up seven to nothing on the Saints right now, back in a minute. Here on the state wide BBI. Thanks again to Jeff piicorrel We like I said, we tried to turn Jeff loose because he's our football expert. But there's so much football going on right now, and let's get back to the playoffs real quickly while we have the time. Both of you boys, which team that won this week could win again on the road in the playoffs?
On the road, well, there it's neutral size.
You just I mean, I'm sorry, No, you're good again. Not on the road, but against the teams that are coming in with.
Buy I would be close to guarantee the Texas feets. They were Arizona State.
I agree with that, Penn State beating Boise State.
I don't trust games Franklin. I'm taking the Broncos.
Yeah, everybody except Ohio State. I trust James Franklin against right.
They can't beat Michigan either on their normal years and never.
They just don't win big games. They don't.
They couldn't win the Big Ten title game. They can't win big games. Last week was big, but it was not big like you said one hundred and five. They practiced it all summer. They have to go into twenty degrees in a game that didn't belong in Yeah, damn wow.
Sorry that's true. Are you telling me you thought Alabama should have been in there?
Now?
They should have made it, but they weren't good enough for it. Given the circumstances, they should have made it, but I just don't think they were a playoff.
CALIBERT gotcha, didn't look like it. That'll do it for now. Thanks so much for joining us for Aaron and Billy, Hey, have a great Christmas and we'll talk to you next year. On the state wide BBI