All right, let's get it started.
Hour number two here and our first edition of Coffee and Company in twenty twenty five, Nick Coffee, that's me, Austin Montgomery alongside today fueled by Thornton's and Austin and I had a little little, uh little business trip last night, if we can call it that, a little work trip. I mean, technically it kind of was a work trip.
We used work tickets to go to the game, and right we knew we were gonna have to talk about the game, and you know, so it was fun, a little business and pleasure, right, a little double dipping for us last n Both it was a good time and I was.
I was atple bush lights were harmed, that's right, that's right.
I was very happy to see not only Louis wille win and win the way they did.
And we can get back into that. Obviously that was a big topic at the beginning of the show. But the crowd I thought was.
I mean, I didn't go there at any point and think to look around at empty seats or I just don't really think. Again, I say this all the time when it comes to attendants, those who do get tickets and go I just don't know why you would base your enjoyment on the amount of other people that are or aren't there. Obviously you want a good atmosphere, you
want a good environment. But I thought those that were there last night were really really into it to where you can have much fewer than twenty two thousand plus and if the team's playing hard and the crowd and by the way games like last night, you're going to see the lower Bowl be pretty much full, which for the most part, you know, it was, at least from
what I could tell. But even if it wasn't, those that were there made it to where you could tell the atmosphere was really really good, and it was nice to kind of not, like, to be honest with you, I wasn't even thinking about attendance at all at any point as far as the amount of people that were there or weren't there. I just knew that the crowd was there. Man, they got loud, they made an impact, and.
There we was support in this group.
So that was nice to kind of be reminded because I the attentions, the attendance stuff, really it just annoys me and I've talked about it many times over the years because I just I don't think that Louisville Basketball not having twenty two thousand people there last night is because of like one specific thing. I think it's a variety of things. And I don't think anybody currently at u of L is doing anything wrong as to why the attendance is not what it was. I don't know
seven eight years ago. I think they're a variety of factors, and one of them that just doesn't get discussed the way that it should. Not to say that this should just be the dominant factor that everybody acknowledges and that's the only one people bring up. I'm not saying that, but society changes, we evolve as human like people just don't go to games like they used to because the incentive to say that you were there is just not what it once was. It's not this oh man, I
can't believe I got in. I mean, I don't want to act like it's not a cool thing to do, but like, there's really not a whole lot that you can get at the game that you can't really get on TV other than just being in the environment. And that's awesome, Like I think people should like last night
was awesome. My wife and I we went along alongside with Austin, and we told ourselves we should do that more often, like we should get tickets and go to more games, because it is awesome when you play, like last night, top to bottom was phenomenal.
But I also understand why. It's just it's not.
Like there are probably people who go to a few games a year, love this team, love this program. It's kind of their religion, like it is a lot of us, because it's just, you know, we love it so much, we care so much about it. But they're just not going to be at every game because that's just not what a lot of people do anymore. Now, there are some that make it to every single game. They have season tickets, and you.
Need those people. Those people are important.
But I think even if you start to really thrive and let's say Louisville basketball in the next few years is really in a great place, which I think they're going to be, I still think you're going to see the younger generation, meaning people that are my age and younger, or they may go to eighty percent of the games and cheer their ass off. But like buying season tickets, I just think.
That that whole model it's.
Not gonna fly with the younger generation, and because they can go to any game they want and not pay a big donation, right and not feel like it's a chore to have to go to every game because you made such a big investment with season tickets. I hope I'm wrong, because again, you need you need people to buy season tickets. That money is important, not only for what you pay for the ticket, but the donation that comes.
With it, all that stuff.
I just think I'm trying to find the right words to use here because I don't want to act like if you're buying season tickets, you're getting hustled and you're you know, you're dope, because I don't that's not at all.
What I mean.
But you're just giving them a gift by buying season tickets because again, you could go to every game you want and probably pay much less than what everybody else is. And also like there's probably plenty of games you don't want to go to because you know it's against a nobody at nine o'clock on a Twoday day, and not everybody has, you know, the lifestyle or where they can
they can really justify doing that. So I think you'll see even when when things get better, you'll have big crowds, but season tickets probably won't be as what they once were back like in the Rick Betino days. And again, I hope I'm wrong here, maybe I'm way off, but I just you know, am I crazy to say that buying season tickets and giving Louisville a big donation that you have to make just to be able to purchase said season tickets?
Again? Is that not just a gift to the school.
Yeah, it was right. You're not crazy for thinking that.
And anytime I've I've never met anyone my age really that buy season tickets.
There are a lot of older people than if.
You are age three years ago, and if you are our age ish because you're younger than me, obviously you they were you inherited the tickets from like your dad or from your grand.
Like, yeah, that's how we get football tickets is because my great uncle had them. He was a lummy. He'll pay for the stadium like twenty five years ago.
And that's great, and that that that there is. I think that specific scenario what you just mentioned with your family in football, that will keep season tickets alive for a while. But at some point there'll be somebody within the family that is on the hook for having to pay that just decides, you know what, like I don't. I don't think we really need to do this right. So anyways, it was an awesome atmosphere last night, myself, Austin,
and my wonderful wife, who her name is Tiffany. She has The last time she was mentioned as Mercedes on the show, I don't remember when it was, but she was asked by somebody at work, I believe, like, who's Mercedes, Like are you really married to this guy?
What's going on? And I don't know.
I'm sure they could tell I was, you know, having fun, that's what this show is. But back in gosh, what year was that. That's a long time ago. When I went to the Bats game.
It was definitely I think pre COVID, wasn't it.
Or maybe no, I don't know.
Yeah it was pre COVID. God, no, it may have been post COVID right at that. I want to say twenty twenty one.
Yeah, that sounds about right, because I think it was when we were starting to be able to come back into the office, but not like everybody, if that makes sense. But We had a an iHeart night at Slugger Field for the Bats and had a good time. Got hammered a lot of people, did myself included and Tony Vinetti. You know, he was he was feeling pretty good, and I don't know, we got there later. I think that then a lot of people because when I got there,
Venette was already feeling pretty good. And then, uh, he'd met my wife a few times at that point, he's met my children. He thought my daughter when she was a eight month old, or maybe it was whenever she came to the office for the first ever trick or treating that we had when she was a baby, he thought she was a boy.
Hey, little fella. It was what he called Maya.
And then the next yeah, the next couple of times she saw him, of course she's really young. She gave him a look that I've never seen her give anybody else up to this point, just a real stank face because she knew she was insulted Tony Vinetti. So, Tony's met my wife and family many times, but this was this was the you know, the the lubricated Tonynetti.
Very rare for me.
Yeah, and it was a fun time, but he was like hey. After you know, he came over and and we wapped up, and you know, he put his arm around my wife and was like hey, and then.
He realized, like I think I know your name.
And my wife, whose name is Tiffany, looked at him and just grinned and said you don't know my name, do you?
And he said, yes, I do.
Mercedes, which is not her name, but she became Mercedes to the iHeart world that night, and uh yeah, I think she she always will be when it comes to to folks like Vannetti and Austin and and Dwight and the other when.
It happened, because and the thing is is I really didn't even know Tiffany well, but you know after seeing you, like you always see Tiffany like attached to your photos or like tell you on it, so like I already knew. So like when Mercedes came out, I just thought that that was already an inside joke.
I didn't know that that was when it became a slip up right there.
Oh yeah, So yeah, that's that's that's why we refer to her as as Mercedes.
So yeah, good times last night at the Young Center and for those just now joining us. We did talk a little bit about the you know, the game itself and how well Louisville played despite well, I think it's anybody claiming that they didn't play well would have to just be talking about the fact that they didn't shoot it well, which is true. But man, they played so hard. They were locked in as soon as that game started until the final second they were more. And again this
is what I know. Carolina is not having the year that they expected. I know they didn't have one of their better players last night. Like I'm aware of all of that, but for Louisville just to be, you know, as physical as they were to I feel like outwork them. But it's not like I think Carolina came out there and loafed. I just think it was a battle. Neither team shot it well. Both shot at forty ish percent.
Louisvill shot at forty five percent, Carolina shot at forty percent, and neither team shot it that well from three ten threes total for both teams, four for Carolina, six for Louisville twenty three percent from three from the lower which is you know, those are things that you know, they were getting some decent looks and you should be able to make way more free throws than you did. I mean, it was really frustrating to see twenty five to thirty nine.
And I know when they let they missed the first three one in ones the front end of them, and you had guys going to the line missing two. Chucky went to the line at one point missed two of them. So, like the free throw three, free throw shooting is an issue.
And I actually think throughout the year they had some games where they're like twenty four or twenty eight, which is great, but then they have games like last night, so they're not They're certainly not a consistently good free throw shooting team, and that is something that you should worry about.
But it's also something that if they.
End up maybe getting a little bit more consistent and they're no longer shooting around sixty four percent, they're shooting close to eighty as a team, that wouldn't really shock me. So what I'm getting at is Louisville was really impressive to me last night. And there's a couple of things that you would have looked at ahead of time and said, okay, twenty three percent from three, only made six of them.
I don't like the chances here sixty four percent from the line and you went there thirty nine times.
Those are things that again.
Should be better, but they were what they were, and yet because of everything else, Louisville was able to pull off a thirteen point victory and get it. You know, one of the is say what you want about Carolina and the ACC this year, because I don't really think you're wrong if you're gonna claim that Carolina is not that great or that the ACC is lousy.
I'm kind of with you on both those things, but it is what it is.
You can only control or you can only control the teams on your schedule, right like you go out there and you play Carolina.
He's probably the ACC and the schedule itself than anything.
But that was one of the better opportunities.
You had left this year to go win games.
It can potentially help you.
Find yourself in the NCAA tournament. So really really impressed with with with everything last night. And again I happened to think that last night was kind of a rare night when it comes to how poorly they shot it from three. We know they can have nights like that where they're just not feeling it. They also have had nights where they get to the line that many times
and they shoot it much better. So if if they what impressed me so much last night was that that's something that you know, maybe you don't bring it every single game to that level, but man, if they play with that type of energy, that type of attention to detail defensively, and they're just ready from start to finish in a game like they were last night, and then they start making more than twenty three percent from the from three point range, and they start making more than
sixty four percent of their free throws. This team, I don't want to claim that they could be great, but like, yeah, you could go on a hell of a run here in the ACC. So really good night last night. And what made it even better was the commitment from mckel brown junior, who actually committed Louisville and side with Louisville in the early part in November, but he kept it within and wanted to have a special announcement and he certainly did that. We'll talk about that on the other side.
As far as why this is big for Pat Kelsey other than just knowing that he's added one of the best point guards in the country for next season's team. I think there's a lot of ways this can benefit him and this program. So we'll get to that and a lot more. As I mentioned, I do want to talk about the NFL MVP conversation. If you're on hold, we'll stick with you, or if we're If you are on hold, stick with us, we will get to you.
I can't speak today. It's coffee and company, feel abut Thorntons right here on Sports Talk seven.
Ninety Now back to coffee and company fueled by Thornton's on Sports Talk seven nine day.
That's right, coffee and company fuel about Thornton's here on Sports Talk seven ninety nit coffee Austin Montgomery alongside as we take you up until six o'clock.
We'll let you guys be a part of the show. Good text.
Don't want to get to coming up in just a moment. But before we do that, let's go to the phone lines. Five O two seventy nine hundred is the number if you want to give us a call, and we will now welcome in. Will will how we doing today?
Brother?
Hey?
Man?
How you doing? Hey?
What do you think about this? Analysis?
Man?
Okay, these younger coaches are coming in and they know what they're up against. You know, you got a new roster pretty much every year, you know, going on almost. I mean, yeah, we'll be especially our teams here in this state. I think I'm not like dissing them so much, but I'm I think there's some smoking mirrors going on here. It's like they're touting these three point shots, but dude,
if you can't make them. You know what I'm saying, Like, if you've got six curries on your team or three curries on your team, okay, go for it.
But these kids, they can't shoot the ball.
So you know, it's like, but but they're selling this, your notion that we're gonna come in and shoot forties threeties. Who cares if you don't make them? But I mean it makes no sense, you know. I think what they're hiding is a lot of these young guys just don't have the.
You mean coaches, not players when you say young guys.
Yeah, yeah, the coach. Yeah, I'm at the coaches, I think with their high WIT's being hid. And I'm not saying like they're doing something malicious or anything. I just think this landscape, but they can't you know, produce the boys, the young guys on the court that can bang and do all this stuff where you know, the older cats like us are used to seeing. So it's like I've got this new formula and I'm smart, just like all
the betting stuff. Man, so many people losing money betting, you know what I'm saying, Like, you know who's going to make money? So you know you want to the.
Gist of my point, no, I to I totally do will And I actually I think it's a great question, and I've got I've got some thoughts specifically on on why. And appreciate the call on on what you laid out, because I don't think you're wrong at all as far as the observation that you've made there. What I mean is this both Pat Kelsey and Mark Pope, where they came from. It's sort of, you know, their rise to
be where they are today. Mark Pope coaching Kentucky after a brief stint at BYU and after a run at Utah Valley State, and then Pat Kelsey had went through up to Charleston and now Louisville where they were able to kind of build a brand and and carve out success. Again, both guys were successful to an extent at both places.
They were at b YU.
You know, they weren't in the Big twelve at the time Mark Pope got hired, so you know, they're not Charleston or Winthrop, but they also were you know, he only coaching in the Big twelve one year. So what I'm getting at is when you are trying to succeed consistently at that lower level, a lot of the players at that level are all very similar when it comes to talent and ceiling. Not a whole lot of NBA guys, right. You occasionally have the rare job Morants that's playing at
Murray State. You occasionally have some guys that are elite despite playing at a lower level, but the majority of the guys that you have are all kind of the same. There's way more two star, three star ish players out there in college basketball than there are fours and fives, and the majority of those guys where they reside at the smaller level. So that's when that's the landscape, that's the playing field. I think you're much better off to not be so dependent every year on this guy or
that guy. It's more about your system and what you do. So both Pat Kelsey and Mark Pope when they were succeeding before they were at the jobs they're at now, it wasn't because they had players that everybody else in the country wanted but they were just lucky to get them.
It was because they really they were early in this new world of basketball when it comes to analytics and playing at a really fast pace and driving to generate a bunch of open threes or layups because you're playing fast, or you get at the free throw line, and they were able to do that consistently to where you know, you could kind of you could get good enough players to fit those roles to where you're succeeding at Charleston
and at BYU and Utah Valley State and Winthrop. More so because of what you've installed and what you do more so than who you have at this level. You can't necessarily win like that all the time. So these guys like this is all they know. I'm going to put a team out there to where I'm not so dependent upon having this elite level talent guy. But we we play fast, we have depth, we have guys that
can shoot it. That's what they want to do. Because that's that's that's that's their brand, like, that's that's their style, their philosophy. I think what you'll see and Mark Pope's already off to a good start. He's got but three five star kids that have committed for next year. Pat Kelsey just got his. So what I think you'll see happen.
And I certainly hope you see this happen with Pat Kelsey that you'll realize, Okay, I'm at Louisville now, and yes, we're always going to have the identity that that that that I want to have. As far as our style, we want to shoot a lot of threes, that's never going to change. We're gonna believe in in in fast tempo, a lot of possessions within each game. That's that's that's
our that's in our DNA. But you know what, man, I got this guy named Michel Brown who's really really good, and I know that that we could just decide to do something specifically with him because and I'm not saying this will be the case with mckel you just really you never know.
But like we've got some We've got guy like.
Him to where nine out of ten teams we play they're not gonna be able to really, you know, like we're gonna have our way with their point guard because he's that good. And again, who knows, maybe maybe he's
not as good as the rankings say. But I'm just saying, when you play at Louisville in Kentucky at that level, and especially not only because of you know, you're gonna have the ability to get better players at Louisville Kentucky than you did where you were before, but also you're gonna you're gonna play against teams like Ole Miss, like Tennessee that are just gonna know from the jump, Look, if we go out here and we take away the way they want to play, we're gonna be able to
dare them to just go beat us one on one. We're gonna be able to dare them just make tough shots. And that's not a good recipe for you to win if that's the case.
So I think.
What you what you're observing their will is is just because it's a lot different for those guys. Now again, I think they'll bring in better players from from a recruiting standpoint, I think Louisville and Kentucky are the type of programs that if go do stick around meeting in college, maybe they hit the portal, or maybe they realize, you know what, like, I'm going to stay Louswell because there's not another program that's gonna pay me more than what
they're paying me. Same thing with Kentucky. So that's where maybe we'll see, well do they end up developing guys? You know, as far as longevity to wear man. You brought in this freshman and he's a junior. Now, oh, he's a tough player because he's been working with the staff and he's really developed. They've really you know, developed players. Player development is still going to be important, but it.
May burn you.
You may develop a guy and then he's ending into his junior season and the payoff is going to be there for you as a coach, and.
He decides to bail.
So you need to be able to mean the job really has changed in a major way because all of the components of being a successful college basketball coach, I think are still the same. You need to recruit, you need to be able to know what you're doing as far as ex'es and o's. When it comes to strategy, you need to be able to retain players in the portal. You need to be able to recruit in the portal. There's not anything that's no longer at all relevant. It's
just it's men. It's it's it's been off balanced, and it's and it's a there's you know, for example, you used to be able to bring in a number one recruiting class every year or a top ten recruiting class every year, and like that would be enough to wear.
Yeah, you're gonna be really good.
But now that's that's just not the case because guys stick around in college longer. And I'm not even just talking about the guys that have more eligibility because of the COVID year. I'm talking about dudes used to say, Okay, I know I'm not going to go to the NBA. I could stay around and play in college for two more years and do it for fun and not get paid. Or I can go ahead and start my pro clock and go play in Europe and give me two years of making really good money when I'm in my prime
as far as an athlete. So now they're realizing, hey, I'll stay in college as long as they'll let me, because I'll make more money here than I will playing in Argentina or playing in Greece because I'm not an NBA guy, but man in il in college, at these high level programs, they're still paying big money. So I think you'll see both Mark Pope and Pat kell see realize at these two places that they're at, they don't
need to be as reliant upon their system. They can get dudes that like, hey, you can you can mix it up and do a little little bit of you can do some different things because you know you've got guys that the majority of the teams you're gonna play they don't have guys as good as this guy.
Or that guy.
So I think it's a good observation by Will. Now when it comes to the three point shooting, I think you know, not as much for for Kentucky, although you know they're not shooting it as good from three as.
I think they were supposed to.
I mean, I think they've got guys like Louisville that if anybody gets hot that you see shooting a lot of threes every night, you can't be surprised because you know they've got that ability. But from a percentage standpoint, Kentucky shooting about thirty five percent and I think their numbers in recent games have kind of fallen off a little bit, but again, there's still a team that at any moment they get hot from three, nobody's going to be that shocked. Louisville, on the other hand, has not.
We know, it's been a talking point. They've had nights where they look really good from three, they make a bunch of them, and then they've had night where they keep firing it up.
And it just doesn't work.
I mean, right now, Louisville shooting twenty nine percent from three as a team, and that's bad, which again, that's concerning in one way, but it's also I think a sign that, man, despite the one thing they rely on maybe more than anything, it has not gone well for them yet this year. And yet I think they're still in position right now to where they could potentially be
in the tournament. So my guess is as far as why these guys are still while these teams are both shooting a ton of threes and it's just not working, is because, yeah, let's say, I'm trying to think of a good example Terrence Edwards, and in fact, he shot it pretty well in the last month or so. He's played really good basketball. Didn't have a great night as far as production last night, but he still played a
role in the win, no doubt. But him shooting thirty eight percent or thirty nine percent, whatever it was at James Madison that was in a much different system, much different world than what Louisville wants to do with Pat Kelsey's offense. So you know, you're not as efficient at shooting the three whenever or you're playing as fast as Louisville does, or when you're playing as many minutes as
he's playing. So again, both teams I think in any moment could get hot from three and completely flip the game. But the percentage is just haven't been as good as most expected. Louisville, that's for certain. With Kentucky, I still be thirty five percent is a pretty good percentage. But I do feel like they had a little little bit of a dip there towards, you know, towards the end of the of December. And I guess back to the other point that he made about the you know, these
guys not being able to develop. They might be able to, but like you just if you've got to balance what you are giving most of your resources to player development is the one that's probably just the natural thing. Some of these coaches probably enjoy that more than a lot of the other aspects to come with the job. But do you really put as much investment into that as
you once did? And maybe the answer is yes, of course, But if not, I wouldn't be shocked because again, if you've got a guy, you can't just operate, well, hey, I don't want to I don't really want to, you know, prioritize his development as much because I think he's going
to leave. But you just kind of it's we're at a point now where for the most part, there are some exceptions, but really, anybody in college sports just deciding to leave can't really shock you because they just have the ability to do it now, and they want to leave, they'll leave. So it's, you know, it's a new world when it comes to when it comes to that, all right, FABO two five seventy nine hundred is the number if you want to jump in and give us a call.
You can also text in on the Ellen and Federal Credit Union text line. This Texter earlier mentioned the Ken Palm predicted record for Louisville as of now after last night's win against Carolina, and they're asking me if I believe that that record, if it played out the way Ken Palm's formula predicts, with that get Louisville in the tournament,
We'll tell you what that record is. And I mean, I can't predict the future, but I'll give you my guess on the other side right here, Coffee and Company feel about Thornton's on Sports Talk seven ninety.
Now back to Coffee and Company, fueled by Thornton's on Sports Talk seven nine.
Day because they delayed the Sugar Bowl by twenty four hours.
We actually had the kickoff.
Between Notre Dame and Georgia at four o'clock and we've got two minutes roughly left in the first quarter. No score at this point, and it looks like tough for me to tell, just about pulling it up here who has the ball? But they're here we go. It looks as if ye had Notre Dame. Well, never mind, I can't tell who has the ball either way. It's scoreless, zero to zero at this point, and it looks like Notre Dame has the ball and they are on their
own twelve fifteen yard line something like that. So no score just yet, and the live odds for those that you know, maybe forgot there was a game going on because it's not usually a workday where you have a four o'clock game with a college football playoff matchup. But right now as we speak, Notre Dame minus two and a half is, uh, well, let me see is that right?
That doesn't sound right it does it?
Because yeah, we went to break it was zero zero Georgia minus three and a half. Now the live line is Notre Dame minus two and a half and they did just convert there on a first down, so they're moving down the field and I'm probably not going to touch it, love because I just be guessing. But I've never really been a believer in Notre Dame because Louisville played so poorly against them and should have beat them, and I know that they lost in Northern Illinois, which
is just insane to think about. But you know, when I've watched them in other games, even though like Indiana is not great. Obviously Anyan had a good year and good team, but I understand why Notre Dame beating Indiana. It doesn't really impress a lot of people. But when I watched Notre Dame. I feel like they do have some really good players and maybe they are a really good team.
Hey, can you turn the music off? Completely down?
His music still on?
Yeah, it's in the can I little I hear that song?
There we goes.
Anyways, it's allry about it.
I'm sure nobody else even noticed it, and it made it might have been soothing.
I just it was. It was throwing me off there a little bit. But that's good.
I mean, you've once again started off the twenty twenty five year by delivering.
It's got a.
Great, great set of set of tracks. Here as weyhere. Yeah, I like it.
I like it mixing it up to start twenty twenty five. But yeah, I'm not I'm not touching this game live. But would be something if George ends up losing, because at that point Texas would be the only SEC team left.
And wow, well maybe they win.
It all because I still think Texas is pretty damn good. But to see how really how bad they looked against Georgia. Although George is great in the SEC championship game and they did handle Clemson pretty easily, so I guess that one counts, but it just be it would be wild to see Notre Dame pull off this win because Georgia, despite you know, this year, losing a couple of games, they lose two games or just one. I think they lost two, didn't they two? Now I got to look it up.
Georgia on paper.
For being honest, I think heading into this year was probably viewed as one A, one B as far as most talent. That's along with Ohio State also, who looked really good yesterday against Oregon. But I just, I don't know, have a hard time seeing Notre Dame win this game. But so far we're a quarter in and it's scoreless, and Notre Dame is the one that has the momentum, and in real time they're favored by one and a half.
And then again, this was delayed twenty four hours because what happened on New Year's Eve in New Orleans, which is just a tragic situation. I think it's fifty people or fifteen people have lost their life, more than thirty were injured.
I mean, just an awful situation.
And I can't even watch some of the video that has surfaced of the whole thing, just because it's awful.
But I've actually been to.
New Year's Eve on Bourbon Street in New Orleans one time, and it wasn't because I made it a point, Hey, I want to go party on New Year's Eve in New Orleans. I was there for the Louisville Sugar Bowl.
And we landed on New Year's Eve in New Orleans in the evening, like dinner time, and got to our hotel, got situated, made the walk to Bourbon Street, probably around I don't know n I'm thirty ten, and it was it was scary it, you know, and I don't mean because like everybody should have been scared, and I was predicting something to happen, like what happened the other night. But you know, it's the kind of crowd that gives me next level anxiety and and you know, I panic.
A little bit. So we walked to a couple of spots.
And I'm glad my wife said it before I did, because if I said it, I would have been worried. She would think that, you know, I'm a whimp, and maybe I am. But she was like, do you want to just go back closer to the hotel bar because there was a lot of loival fans there just hanging out partying, but we wanted to EXPERI I'd never been to New Orleans at that time. But you know, as far as being in a big city for a big holiday like New Year's Eve, I mean not to say that.
And this is where I'm spinning my wheels here because I don't want to act like the people who went should have expected that to happen, because that's ridiculous and you can't live your life at every moment thinking should I go, should I have fun, should I enjoy my life? Or should I worry that somebody's gonna to be a madman or a terrorist and come and kill me along with other people?
Like you can't. You can't live that way. But you know, when I watched.
New Year's Eve on Tuesday night whenever it was, and saw all the coverage that you saw from the National networks on in Nashville, in Vegas and New York City, I mean I never once thought like, wow, that would be that, that would be where somebody's gonna target, if they're gonna make some kind of a you know, terrorist
attack or something like that. But when you do see it happen, like it's just I mean, this is one of those things that as bad as it is, I think I'm kind of numb to this kind of stuff now, not to where like I'm thinking, oh, who cares, no big deal, But these kind of things have happened enough to where the overall like shock and surprise, it.
Just didn't there anymore.
And that that that's sad for a variety of reasons. But one of those reasons is because we're not surprised anymore.
Like it happens enough, it's happened.
These things have happened enough to where like it's just kind of kind of kind of life now, which again that's awful, but condolences to to to you know, everybody. I mean, what a sad, sad situation. And I'm just you know what, I what I was thinking about yesterday, when of course it became such a big story, was just those who did die, like knowing they were out, probably expecting to have a night of their maybe the
night of their life, right sell it. Maybe they're you know, some of them weren't locals obviously in some of the stories about those who have passed and were killed that night, and we now know, you know, their backgrounds at least some of them, and anybody losing their life like that as a tragic situation, but man, just to be so excited, probably to celebrate the New Year holiday and be somewhere that you know is probably a fun place to be Bourbon Street in New Orleans. Yeah, and then to have
that happen. Man, it's just again, like it's an obvious thing to say. It's a sad situation overall. But you know, like we postponed a big sporting event, which they made the right call, I think to postpone it twenty four hours, and I just think, like we're now in I don't want to say autopile, and then everybody's different. I can only speak for myself, and maybe I'm in the minority
here in a major way. But like these kind of big stories, these tragic things that happen, it just it's it's not surprising anymore, and that overall is what's what's sad.
I think at the top of my list, New Orleans is still up there for a possible bachelor party.
I've been to two of them there.
And it was it was always it's something that's out of the uh. Well, I feel like a lot of people locally don't think about that. Everyone just seems to go to like Nashville or Vegas.
And I don't want to do all that.
New Orleans is still close enough and it's still big enough, like of a party town.
I would recommend It's still have fun.
If you could make it happen. I would recommend New Orleans for a bachelor party.
I was.
I was the best man in my buddy Matt's wedding, and that's where we did his, and it was it was different, it was it was awesome. I also have been to one in Vegas, which which that was fun, but you know, I I wouldn't be you know, if I had a buddy who got married and was having one and I could make it work, I'd try to
be there, but I could also go without it. I'm glad a lot of a lot of Like my my bachelor party was in Chicago, but I've been to probably yeah, I've been to more bachelor parties in in Nashville than anywhere else. But this was before Nashville became what it is now. Oh Okay, So I mean I kind of feel fortunate. Dare I say that that we got to experience like some bar like it's so corporatized down there now on Broadway, which.
It's awesome for a single bar as a country artists bar.
Jelly Rolls got one now, Luke Combs has one.
Now.
The other ones have been there a dame.
And look, I'm sure those places are a lot of fun. Like I was just in Nashville for the Titans Bengals game a couple of weeks ago, and I didn't go out bar hopping because I was there with my family. But you know, Nashville is awesome right now. It's a cool place to be. It's just not necessarily my cup of tea. But there were some bars on Broadway that, you know, dare I say, hole in the wall type compared to what you have there now, and I kind of like, I think it was.
Called Paradise Park. There was a bar that.
Was essentially like two double wide trailers together and like it but it was if you know, you know, but it was really cool, Like it was just a different type of setting. It's not the corporate Nashville country that's that's there now. And again clearly they're doing well. You know what it costs to stay in Nashville for a weekend now, it's it's a lot of money, So clearly they're they're doing well. But I'm glad that we were able to experience the bachelor parties I went to right
before it kind of turned into to what it is now. Right, But yeah, New Orleans, I would definitely definitely recommend.
It's definitely up there.
I've only been there once, and I was really only there for like an hour. I was there visiting Biloxi and we went to Uh, I think we're on our way to Pensacola, but we stopped there for like two hours and it was in the daytime.
So can I remember that trip that you went on.
Yeah, it's still stop.
It's a little bit of it and uh, but it's it's still like it was still pretty live for like the daytime. It's it's almost like the sentiment for Nashville. No matter when you go, it's always going to be popping. But I want to have like a whole night there. I think that'd be fun.
Yeah, I think, uh, I think you should make it, make it a point to get there for a weekend have good time. I'm sure it's not the case anymore because everything's way more expensive than it used to be, But I remember going to Nashville, or not Nashville, but New Orleans twice and thinking to myself, Okay, I'm drinking a lot.
I've had a couple of meals.
I've just been bouncing around at different establishments here on Bourbon Street, and I'm doing it way cheaper than I would ever do it in Vegas, in Nashville, in Chicago, in New York City, in Miami. These are all places I've been to, so like, I remember, one of the things that stood stood out about New Orleans was that it was much more affordable now. Again, nothing seems to be as affordable now as it was because of the
economy and whatnot. But I remember thinking to myself, I remember the drive to the airport one time, and then we actually drove home. We drove there on one of the trips. I went on, thinking both times, all right, I'm hungover as hell. I'm really gonna be regretting it at work tomorrow. Oh man, I can't hang like I used to. Like those were thoughts going through my mind
as I had that anxiety hanging over me. But then I also found out, like, okay, I didn't spend near as much money as I would have if I was in a different city, So yeah, New Orleans is a lot of fun real quick. The question that somebody asked on the text line that I wanted to get to before we get to the top of the hour here, The text says, Nick, I know you're a.
Big kin Pom fan.
When you look at Louisville's projected record via kin Pom, do you think that would be good enough to get him in the tournament?
Yes?
And you really are putting me on the spot here because you didn't even tell me. I had to look it up, which I do have a subscription humble brag to kin Pom. I mean, yes, I do well enough here at iHeart I can afford the nine to ninety nine nine dollars and ninety nine cents per year to cover it. So just a little bit of a humble brag for me, But yes, I logged in and I'm looking at it. So currently, Ken Pom has Louisville finishing twenty and eleven overall, thirteen and seven in the ACC.
The only games they're projected to lose the rest of the way Pittsburgh twice, because they played pitt at their place and at home and then also at SMU Now, again, the way the formula works, just because they're projected to win every game but three doesn't actually mean that they're end result in the formula of projection is going to
show that they are an eight loss team. So there's some games that you have like a fifty four percent chance of winning or a fifty one percent chance of winning, and they just assume that you're not going to you know, when it's that close, one of them is probably not going to go your way. And of course you'll lose to teams you probably mean a lot of teams will end up losing games in January and February against teams that they really had no business losing, because.
That's just that's just how it works.
So if they are twenty and eleven overall thirteen and seven in the ACC, I mean, I hate to give you a cop out answer, but it would really so much depend on what that thirteen and seven looks like in the ACC. If your seven losses are I don't know, I gotta be honest with you, just guessing, because that's
all I can do is guess. I think thirteen and seven in the ACC would probably have them on the bubble, but maybe on the outside looking in, because right now you have one loss inn ACC play, and that's to Duke and I think they're there's a handful of games on here that like if you lose, like, for example, you play Virginia at their place this weekend. Virginia is one O two and the Ken Palm Louisvill's fifty four. Louisville is projected to win this game by two points,
sixty six to sixty four. That's a game that if you lose it, it's no longer. It doesn't look like the other losses you have like that, even though it's at their place in Virginia, for the most part, has been one of the better teams in the ACC since louis has been in the league, that loss actually stands out as an outlier compared to your other losses, like you can no longer like Louisville's best case scenario is to beat all the teams they're supposed to be in the ACC.
Have the losses that they do.
Take come against teams like Pittsburgh, like SMU, who else is decent? You know, gosh, there's not even that many deep you might have them, Yeah, there's not even they play They've got Clemson at home next.
Tuesday or Tuesday in just a few days.
So that's one that like, you could lose that and it wouldn't be and be like, how'd you lose that one? Because they're still a top thirty caliber team right now. The best thing on Louisvill's resume is that everybody that has beat them at this point they're safely in the field for the tournament, and some of them, including Duke and Tennessee, are top five teams. So I would guess that at twenty and eleven, thirteen and seven, they're probably
not in, but they're close. I don't know that for certain. Again, I'm just guessing because I told you it's just a guess at this point. And that's how wild it is to see the acc in this position, is that it's not only about like not having a whole lot of opportunities to get real signature wins. You've got I think
maybe two thirds of this league. If you lose to them, it's a shot at your your resume takes a hit to where maybe it doesn't automatically eliminate you, but like if you mess around and loose to Virginia Clemson, and then maybe you slip up when you go play wake at their place. Like those are losses that aren't just gonna be like what are you gonna do? You play in a tough lie, Like no, you don't. I mean, there's some teams in this league that are really, really bad,
and like this is just how wild it is. You've got Syracuse, You've got Georgia Tech, Boston College, cal those kind of teams. They're now in a Louisville is in a position with the rest of the league as well, but that you know, it's still a lie for the tournament in some way that if you don't beat them bad, you're probably gonna take what's called a metric loss.
Like the fact that the ACC.
Is a basketball conference is now filled with is now filled I shouldn't say filled, but like throughout your entire schedule, you're gonna have some games that not only do you need to win, but if you don't beat them bad enough, you're gonna get them, like in the SEC because of
how loaded that league is and the Big Ten. And I don't know how loaded the Big Ten is this year, but clearly you know much better than the ACC with that, Like you don't have many losses that are considered metric losses, right, Like, you could lose close games to really good teams for two weeks straight and probably climb in these formulas, which again my biggest gripe is that winning and losing should
be factored more than it actually is. But nonetheless, it's danger zone here in the ACC because you have very little room to mess up or have a bad week, because these losses now will hurt you more than ACC conference losses probably ever have with you know, not every team, but with quite a few of them. All Right, we're up against it. We've got the five o'clock hour come up next, so stick around. A lot more to get into right here on Sports Talk seven ninety