It's time for coffee and company, fueled by Thornton's.
On Sports Talk seven nine day. Now here's Nick.
Coffee, Well not exactly Nick Coffee. I'm Scott Fitzgerald.
He is John Alden. I'm filling in one hour.
To go here before we knock off and head over to Little Bro's in town. You're gonna go get some dinner and then I'm gonna go over to the Lynn Family Stadium watch me some footy. Night gonna be fun. I'n rock Frankfurt is the team that is in town. Pot of Bundesliga. Get me in that soccer sort of mood. International friendly tonight would have many held at Lynn Family Stadium.
The Ladies played Theirs already Kaisersladen was in town last year.
Lots of good things happened in Loui City's sitting up point above Charleston in the USLS Prince Performance standings.
With that, what is it? I think it's all.
I'll get the exact day for it, but it's coming up in August, that all important showdown with Charleston at Lynn Family Stadium. It's gonna have a lot ride now that that's for sure. But Luke City with the best record in the us L. John, you were sitting with us, and we're sitting here, we're talking with my brother, he's a pilot for American Airlines, and we're getting a little insight into the airline, and so we had a question for what was your question?
I did?
I know you were talking about the craziness of the airports and that type of thing with different airlines.
And one thing I've kind of wanted.
Since we do have a pilot with us, what is the craziest experience that your little bro has had as an airline pilot with the.
Patron or somebody question, it's a great question. Oh, let me turn your mic on there. Yeah, there you go, Now you're good.
Or fortunately unfortunately, I don't know which way you want to look at it.
I haven't had anything where somebody's video and me, you know, and it's going on tack or YouTube, yeah, whatever, But I have had you know, you'll have people getting off the plane and they'll just say thank you, thank you. And I've had customers say, hey, use a little too much break on that landing.
Oh thanks for the flying tip.
John. Let me let me ask you this.
Do you do you still get people that clap when planes land.
I've heard it as a passenger and then uh, but but you don't hear it from from the front. I mean, you pretty much just land. And usually when I'm landing, I'm just closing my eyes and hoping for the best.
Anyways, So that's that's encouraging. It's the American way. I get it. Now.
Do you kind of feel like you're in your own little world, separated from the passengers while you're up there.
I'm not gonna lie to you. Sometimes I do, and sometimes I enjoy it.
Okay, that makes sense.
I'm not a pilot, obviously, but I feel like i'd be the same way I'd want to feel in a totally different environment than them.
Yeah, it's yeah.
Once the door shuts, you know, we're just in our own little closet up there, and and and then occasionally they'll get somebody call up, hey, we got this going on back here, or somebody's getting rowdy, but nothing where we got to get crazy or anything. I did just recently have my whole family fly with me from Miami to San.
Francisco, just so just does Amy's wife. By the way, my sister, who we love dearly. She is a beautiful, beautiful person. Did she sitting back and go shut? She did get first class?
She sat up and she does enjoy wine, so yes, yes she does. There was no Luckily I could not hear through the door. Although when you have to use the bathroom, you come out, you know, and they block off the entrance.
H yeah.
Yeah, I got to see her and talk to her. But I did have a customer. When we come out of the bathroom, the flight attendants block off that first roll and first class, and so we come out there and a customer first class is wearing Ohio State shirt and she was she was talking to me about football, and you know, I told her I was a Michigan fan. And it doesn't happen very often, but sometimes you got to get into it with the customers a little bit and let them know.
You know, play played the victors over the PA announcements. You do that.
Let me ask you, now, you've traveled along those lines, You've traveled a lot, You've been around a lot of different places. Do you get you currently live in Florida, Pennscola right, yes, yeah, I didn't know that, right.
Do you get it?
Do you get adapted to the Florida sports scene at all.
I think no, you know, we live in Pensacola, which is about as close to Alabama as you can get. We're right on the So now we've got but we're kind of we're in this weird place where you've you're three hours from Tallahassee, you're four hours from Tuscaloosa. You're probably four hours from from Baton Rouge. So you're in like sec country there.
So no Florida, no Florida state.
Now well we're about three hours from Florida state, so you got you got Florida state. Those are the three and then all learn I guess, oh yeah, and so we're in this in the southeast and then and then some Florida fans, some some Miami fans. My daughter, by the way, Molly is a huge Alabama fan, only because we got her a stuffed elephant when she was little.
Yeah.
Yeah, she's a huge role Tide.
So but that went in the house. Well this year, didn't it?
Not so much? Right, We didn't talk. We actually flew out to Colorado when we were watching the game out there.
But yeah, so it's an interesting sports mix and I'm not you know, we didn't really grow up in the SEC. Yeah, I'm more of a big ten, you know, But now what is the big ten?
Right?
What is anyone? What is anyone anymore?
Yeah, looking at the schedule, you know, Michigan's got USC Washington and it's just crazy.
Well, you know, I will say along those lines.
And the reason I asked you that question was because you and I grew up in the same environment. But our travels have taken us all over the world and all over the country. Living here now for close to thirty years, I've become in John, You and I were just having this conversation when we came on the air. The beauty of working in sports media is I've learned to become so objective, unlike what sometimes happens to people that get into this business, especially sports talk business. And
it almost makes you Homer to some degree. Which don't get me wrong, people like Homer. You need Homer in this business. I want to make that clear. You need Homer hosts in this business. But in the same token, this has made me objective because I don't know if you you saw, we opened the show talking about the TVT Tournament and we had a big dust up here last week yeah, and I saw both sides of the coin. I mean, it was embarrassing for both sides, is what
what I was going for. But you know, you know my son, your nephew, Brogan, he is a big Louisville fan. And John and I were talking on the air when we came on that this year in baseball Kentucky went pretty far in baseball louis fans. Louisville dominates baseball pretty much, and they're always the top dog, the big brother, to use the term. And now the table's returned. So I was trying to talk objectively with your nephew about that, and he wanted nothing to do with it. And because
but we get into those modes. We're fans and that's why, you know, being in this business for a while, and you were around when I did my college football show nine years that taught me to be a little bit more objective when it came to Michigan. Ohio State didn't get me wrong, I still don't like Ohio State, but but you do get a chance to be objective to it. And John and we're talking a couple of times. I've
been to Columbus to see that. It's ironic I've never seen Michigan play Ohio State in ann Arbor.
I've seen him twice in Columbus. Yeah, yeah, that is weird.
I didn't know that, right and so, but in the same token, John was. I was telling John the story about how I went down there and I didn't put any Michigan gear when I went on because I just want to enjoy the game.
So well, I think the the being objective because I feel the same way in Pensacola. As a matter of fact, we good buddy of mine's an Auburn family might go up to an Auburn game just to take my son who's ten, and his son.
And great experience.
I think it'll be awesome because we're not we don't have a dog in the fight, but you can just take in the atmosphere.
And we've done that. We went well. We went to UCLA, right, Ucla was great. We went to the Rose Ball and saw UCLA play. We went to We.
Said to Oakland, remember going to open Yeah, we went to Oakland.
John, Yeah, there is no fear like, dude, when you're now. Oakland was the one game I was stupid enough to wear Lions gear too, And I'm staying at the urinal behind a bunch of Raider fans. And dude, these aren't the Las Vegas travel We'll show up Raider fans. These are the Oakland hear, the real ones? Yeah, I mean Oakland is I mean people in Detroit are scared to go to Oakland. Well, put it that way, and so we go there and I remember that day. Now we did see we saw UCLA play Miami. We saw him
play Michigan, but not the Rose Bowl game itself. Right, But you don't have to go to the Rose Bowl game to appreciate the venue.
Well, I want to ask you this, Scott too. Yeah, so Indiana travels to UCLA this year playing in the Rose Bowl. Right, is the environment a little difference? I know, UCLA the fan base isn't necessarily what it is in football compared to what it is in basketball.
Is it a little more sleepy?
Is it not?
It probably doesn't live up to what yep, maybe somebody would expect out of a stadium that has that much history.
Yeah, USC fans a little bit more hard. In fact, if you watch an early UCLA game. I got one guy, he's one friend of mine. He's an Ohio State fan.
He's that fan.
If you watch a UCLA game early in the season, there's nobody there. That's because the students are all gone. They don't go back to school at UCLA till way later. So for the first couple of games, there's this big empty section in the Rose Bowl and people just think it's Califans not showing up. And here's the hardest thing I tried to explain to people living on different coasts.
When it comes to sports.
What we loved was one when we got we could watch the NFL afternoon games and be done with the late games by what four o'clock, and then go up to the little Asian fast food place up the corner and get some dinner.
It was such a chill lifestyle. Dude.
Yeah, Well the Rose Bowl too, is just you know, for it being La and LA is a Southern California.
Is a lot going on outside of the sports.
It's not like you know, Lambeau and Green Bay, where that's the attraction, right right. But the Rose Bowl was such a great venue because you got the backdrop of the mountains and when you go in there, it's a bowl style stadium, so you really don't have you don't have an obstructed seat, and it's just one huge crowd. And I thought that was really awesome as compared to I've been to a couple of USC games and you go there and that's like situated right in.
You know, that's a rough part of town.
Yeah, exactly, And so there's not a whole lot of places to tailgate, and there's not a whole lot of places to kind of hang out to the Rose Bulls.
And it's the granddaddy of them all. You know, there's so much history there.
So it's beautiful. It's a beautiful. The San Gabriel Mountains are so beautiful in the backdrop. And I will say this our neighbors when we lived in our apartment in San Diego, our neighbors were Laker fans.
And you know, I.
Will say this for the LA sports scene. Laker fans are dedicated. Yeah, Laker fans. I think Lakers in Laker fans own Southern California. So for people that say the So Cal sports scene is two blase, it's too quiet, it's too Baker fans would beg to differ.
I mean this team you.
Look any I mean, the Lakers sneeze out of the left nostril, and that's headline news.
That's headline news with everybody.
But again, there's so much tradition with the Lakers.
Two, every time I fly into Los Angeles, you fly right over, you fly right over Sofa Stadium and it's right next to the form. You want to talk about a pass versus the President Mohment, you fly with the form and it just looks.
But that's what the eighties was.
It was this small little venue and now you got so fine. And then you got Staples Center right next door. But you fly right over all three of them, and it's pretty pretty amazing.
So let me get your take without putting in and give me an honest opinion. And because you're you're from out of town and you come in in like today, you're crashing in the Gold House and the pillows set horses on them.
When you see NBC paint that picture in Derby Town.
Now, you were here one year for the Derby But that was an unfair I think that was an unfair assessment because you all drove literally the night before you show up and you go straight to turn three in the infield, and this was long before.
As you get.
Older and you mature some what do you think of when you see maybe horses or you see a Santa Nita, or you see a track or del Mar even.
Yeah, West, well it was you know, even just walking up here from the gulhouse and seeing all the signs for the you got the bourbon and the horses, and bourbon and horses is a tradition unto itself.
I think.
And yeah, I remember that weekend. I think that was right. I don't even think I was married then. And we loaded up two SUVs full of guys and we said let's go to the derby and we were driving from Norfolk, Virginia. I think I forget what it was, an eight hour drive straight to the infield. We crashed with you guys, But it was an experience that I was just telling the guy I was flying with today.
I said it was awesome because it was one of those things you do.
Now what I want to do it right now as a guy approaching fifty with the kid, I don't know. I would definitely love to go down there and be part of the atmosphere.
I've been to del Mar.
I like to place bets on the ponies, but that history, that that exists.
There is amazing. I was telling you guys, like we were on the infield, you didn't.
See horse racing, right.
That was one thing that surprised me. You're you're betting on the horses and you're looking at the screen.
But but I think it's a great tradition. It seems like what this city is all about. And it's a great identity, I think. And we've taken tours down there with you guys, and uh, every year I get excited and I get my kids in there.
Yeah you do it. Call me who you got, who you got?
And I think you see for and for me, I've okay every This Derby was so much fun this year and John John helped me out in Oaks Day, I was up under the grand stand.
I was able to broadcast and sit there and be part of this. I can go.
I love going to the track every year. I love doing that. That's we don't get any extra money for doing it. That is just that's a perk of the job. That's all it is. And it still cracks me up John that there are some people that say I'm not getting paid for this.
Yeah, I mean, this is a privilege of the job.
It's probably I mean, I hate to say, it's probably just people, the olds, the people who've been around while they've covered up their entire life, and maybe it's just old hat to them.
Right right.
I mean you you were such an awesome part of Oaks Day and we were able to sit there and John, John just kept me going and the boss threw me and he goes, hey, look you're gonna sit under the grand stand. You're gonna You're gonna do Oaks Day. And I was like okay, and John made that so easy. And after the day was done, I sat there and I'm like, I am so lucky to be able to do this. Now, I just need to talk to the company and to let me go to sant Anita.
That's what I want to do.
I want to get out west and go to Santa I've never been to sant Anita. In fact, I don't think I've ever been to del Mar.
Oh really no.
And I think del Mar's where they host the California Stay Fair, isn't it.
I think so it's it's been a while now. We just went out there or.
San Diego State San Diego County Fairs.
I think I believe so yeah, but del Mar is great because it's right there on the ocean's where the Breeders Cup.
I think the Breeders Cup is coming there. I had to wait before I open my mouth and double check this stuff. But you know, to your point, you know what's funny you mentioned that about how how now when you're pushing fifty, you don't.
Know if you can go to the derby and do that.
Do you find yourself maybe? Like for me, like, Okay, I got a night. I don't have to get up and go to work tomorrow. I'm going to lose city.
I can rock.
Frankfurt is here. They're giving away free beer, s dines. I should be out there pounding studs like there's no tomorrow, and yet I'm sitting here going not.
On drink during the week. I'm like, what is happening? What kind of weird universe are we in?
Now?
But no, Yeah, we went to We just recently went with our son out to Disneyland for a day and we flew out there, you know, flew out their standby, dealt with the crowds and stuff.
And as I get older, I'm like, I'm all set.
I think, what what is your What's your you've been to Disney which I hear so many stories about Disneyland. What are your impressions? You don't I think do we take you when we went when we were younger.
I don't we. I think we went out there once.
Maybe, Okay, I want to, yeah, but I you know, as I get older, and I hate to be the ba humbug, but I'm not a Disney guy.
Yeah.
I think there are adults who are Disney people, all right.
Those are people my age, the Disney adults. That is not me specifically, but my generation. There are so many people friends of mine even that like their number one vacation destination's disney World or Disneyland whatever.
They because they grew.
Up watching the movies and now all the different rides that they've added on that type of stuff. It's it's a lot more newer, like they still have the classics and that type of thing, but it fits what.
They grew up doing.
And I don't know what it is about the marketing that they've done, or you know, just the overall experience of it. But my generation, people between twenty and thirty years old, those are the Disney adults. People going without kids and just taking it in for themselves.
It's that type of crowd. Oh, I see.
It's crazy that people will wait two hours in a line for a four minute ride. That's just I don't understand it. And maybe again, maybe I'm just getting old and I'm becoming that guy. But yeah, for vacations like I enjoy going skiing, I like something where you get outdoors, you tire yourself out, and you go back to the hotel room, you have a drink, and you know, you call it a day.
But waiting in a two hour line while everybody's just sweating.
You just look around at everybody and they all look miserable, right, and you go.
What we what do we do?
They've done marketing has I don't know how Disney, what their marketing team looks like, but they and they keep.
Raising their prices.
I know, hey, how about you pay more money to come be miserable.
All day long? Again, maybe I'm just being a little negative Nancy there, But.
No, no, no, you're not alone, dude. I just don't do amusement parks. I'd like to because I don't mind roller I went through the stage in my life where I loved roller coasters.
Then I hated them, then I loved them again. I've been that way before, right to your point in Ohio. Yeah, oh yes, I mean that's if you're into roller coasters, that's the place to be. But the same thing though, if you're if not in the lines, either find go during the off season or you got to get one of those fast passes or whatever they call them nowadays, that type of stuff.
Right right Amy. My wife she had this plan. I mean she must have spent weeks concocting this plan for the ass passed. It's a whole system now. And we did find something out on Disneyland. If you go into a single rider line, it's.
So much quicker.
Really, it's a little hack if you're if you're okay, all right, Well.
The by the way, the Breeders Cup is it del Mar this year, So you can go to del Mar if you if you want to go.
So I did see that, Sorry.
Squirrel, uh but no, it's we're visiting with my little bro.
He's in town. He's flying for American and this just happened to work out.
He just happened to be the day that that I was sitting in here with John filling in for Nick coffee, having a little conversation with him as he travels the world and gets out.
So let me ask you, you leave here tomorrow, where are you off to?
I go back to Miami and then I do a flat of Cuba.
Back and what's like flying into Cuba?
It's uh, you just you land and it is kind of funny. They do have a truck that follows you out to make sure nobody's attached to your gear landing gear, trying to really jump onto your plane. It's but no, it's it's it's it's nothing different really than any other place.
When we go down there. We just we just go down there, unload and load up and get back up.
Do you guys are a lot of people going to Cuba?
As far as I know, I don't really. Yeah, are your flights full of flints? Are pretty full? Usually?
So yeah, it's uh.
Since they opened it up for people, I guess maybe everybody. Everybody goes down and then you go to Cuban and then you come back to Miami.
Is that what you do? You spend the night in Miami?
No, then I'm done. Then I go home and hang out with a family for how long you're home for?
I'm actually home for three weeks because I've got some military duty to do there. So yeah, so I've got some reserve stuff to do. So so's your three weeks.
So is the family ever?
Say, do you spend a lot of time in the road, like a lot of people listening probably do. Whether they're truck drivers, whether they're transported, whatever they do, they spend a lot of time on the road. How is it when you come home? Is the family having to get used to you again being there? Do you have to get used to them?
You know, I think it's different as the kids get older, there's definitely a different dynamics. So you know, sometimes they're like, hey, when are you leaving again? It's usual. It's usually after I told them, hey, why are there? During dishes in the same right right. But no, I've always since my kids have been young, my only thing about this job is being away. So I try to minimize the time away and and I try to maximize my time at home.
Because it is a different job.
I mean, you're you're I'm gone for maybe twelve, thirteen, fourteen days a month, but when I'm home, I'm home. It's a different job. You know, when they wake up. I'm taking them to school and I'm getting them breakfast. And you haven't lived life until you've been in a carpool full of teenage girls and you're taking them through the Starbucks line, going.
What do you want to order?
Oh?
And I'm like what, I don't even know what they're ordering anymore. It's a yeah, but so so it's a little bit different lifestyle. But I always you know, I've coached their their sports teams and stuff, so I try.
To even while you're on that, even while you're flying yes to coach, it wouldn't that a challenge.
It was considering coaching basketball and I've never played organized basketball.
And that's funny to see the same thing happened to me.
I was picking my daughter up from tryouts over at Saint Martha one year and the ad comes out to me. He goes, hey, coach. I go, no, I'm not coaching this year. He goes, yeah, you are. What are you talking about? He goes, I need coaches. You're coaching your daughter? Like, man, so I got to coach, and I mean, like you, I don't know how to coach basketball. You're basically glorified babysitter at this point is what you are. And then you always get that one parent that goes, hey, it's
my coaching. I'll give you a hand man, and that time you're on an ego trip. At that time you're like, no, I can do this. I got this, you asked me. Now I'm like, hell, yeah, take over the team, will you plase?
Yeah?
Do you have effy deal with people or parents saying their kid wasn't playing enough?
I haven't.
Oh, I got a story five too, John, good question.
I coached middle school girls basketball and the first I've done it two years now. The first year I said, Hey, everybody's gonna play. This is gonna be awesome. Everybody's gonna get equal amount of playing time. And then the next year I was like, well that's not fair, Like we need to start winning.
Games, right, So then I was like, hey, not everybody's.
Gonna be get the same playing time and nobody said anything to me. Though nobody was like, hey, my daughter's not playing or anything like that, and so it was.
It was pretty interesting.
It was it's a private girls it's not private girls school, but it's a private Christian college. And it's funny cause we did play a team where the girls would come off the court and they'd be like, hey, they're cussing this out there.
They're they're they're getting a little rough. And and we did have to speak to the other coach about stuff.
Oh, I say, but now I didn't really have to deal with too much parent drama. Everybody was pretty you know you did in middle school, middle school girls.
I totally underestimated what it would take to coach.
It's a lot. That's how old Kayla was when I coached your team. It's a lot.
Dude.
Well, i'll tell you.
I coach Cameron, who's my son, his his flag football team.
It's like, this is gonna be awesome.
I spent hours, at not hours, maybe like an hour drawing up all these plays.
And I go to them they're probably in third grade, and I go, all right, guys, here's what we're gonna do. See this play.
Let's let's line it up. You got two receivers, a quarterback, a center. And they go to line up and I says, kids, stand around, what are you doing? He goes, what's the last scrimmage?
Oh?
No, oh no? A lot more share.
I'll have to share a story that I had one parent and then we'll go to break because I know we're getting over on break here.
I had. I had one parent when I was coaching Broken.
Your nephew his soccer team, actually make a lineup and hand it to me before a game.
Because her kid wasn't playing.
She goes, I've taken the liberty to draw your lineup, and thank goodness we had like two games left in the season, because I would have literally just walked off after that. So here you go, mom, have at it. You can coach. So yeah, I had great question, John. I'm glad you brought that up because I'll tell you what.
Obviously, I've never been a coach, but I feel like if I was in that position that you were just talking about in the parents up and does that and I hate to to kind of punish the kid for that.
Yeah, it is.
There is kind of association. You almost don't want to play the kid at all for that.
That's exactly. Yeah.
I didn't want to say that, but I'm glad you did, because Yeah, that's kind of where I was going with that. Hey, when we come back, we got about a half, we're gonna wrap things up. We're actually gonna talk some sports. We're gonna get my little bro's take on some of the teams here and get John to jump in here. Just having a ball today. But this has been a lot of fun. This has been a treat to have
everybody here and just kind of yip yap around. Glad you're along with us too as well, Tony and Tony Vanetti and Dave Jennings is gonna take you home the rest of the week, and I'm gonna head over to lou Cities game after this too, So it's a good time.
We're back after this on Sports Talk seven ninety.
Now you're playing my music there, mister John Alden, little Fogerty.
Big baseball guy. I am.
I know it's not unpopular take, but if you listen to Tony Cruz in the morning, baseball is my forte and I love me some baseball and I can do it. The first thing, in fact, when I get I get done, my day basically goes. I work with Tony, go to the other gig, I get home, well, I go to the gym. After that, I get home, probably around six, I go upstairs, take a shower.
First thing goes on the MLB network.
I just have to have it on his background noise because they do a great job because they bunce around ballpark cam etcetera.
And I just love to have that on.
Then I sit on the couch at night and and pretty much if I'm not watching pressure luck because I'm old and I watch game shows. Now I've got the ballgame on, and so I pick a ball game because I got the MLB TV app, which is fantastic on every level. So little brother Sean is in studio with John Alden and I. He flies for American Airlines. He's
in town and louisvan a layover. We're gonna go get some dinner soon as we leave here, and then I'm gonna head off to the game and You're gonna go home get some sleep because if people are flying American tomorrow, they don't want a tired pilot.
No, they do not.
You probably said this before, but my Add's and Flago. Are you back to Charlotte tomorrow morning, Miami, Miami.
Thank you. I knew it. I knew it. I knew it. Okay, So, uh, Sean, we were talking a little bit. Sean. Let's let's talk some sports now.
And John, you feel free to jump in here when you can we've got the new look Big ten. You're a Michigan guy, John's an Indiana guy. Indiana's got a new coach. John's Signetti. He is uh, he's fiery. I don't know how much he is, but he means business. He's expecting to or he's already raised expectations without even coaching a game for the Hoosiers. The guy has never had a losing season as a head coach. He's been at three different places, never been at the power four, power five level.
Yep.
But I think this will be a very good experiment for Indiana to see if they can, you know, kind of get out of the cellar. They did it for a while and or Tom Allen a couple of years they had some success, but they haven't found sustained success. And Signetti maybe the guy to potentially get in there. We'll have to wait and see.
Well.
And that's why I was going to ask you what your comfort level was with him, because not only do you have a new coach coming in now, but you have a new coach who's coming into a new Big ten.
I think it was the perfect time to do it.
I said last year, whenever Tom Allen, whenever it was kind of his time to go. I'm like, if you're going to make the move, you want to do it now. Whenever everything's changing in the Big Ten, because it's going to be new for everybody. Yeah, you have the experienced guys like Ryan Day and that Krew, Kirk Farnce, that type of stuff, but it's still going to be new.
With all the traveling to the West Coast, all four of those teams out there, it's gonna be way different for them, and really it's it's just gonna be a totally different game. I mean, the game will be the same, but like it's gonna feel different. Whenever you're watching these teams play that have never played each other, you're gonna have some of the jet lag issues with the West Coast and you know the Midwest teams they travel to
each other's home stadiums. So it's a lot of different stuff coming to college football and the Big Ten specifically this year.
To your point, first, get you got FIU at Home Western Illinois. Then they go to UCLA. Go to Ucla. That is a primetime game on NBC.
Bro. I'm at So's that's actually gonna be fun.
I'm gonna tune that one in and then the only other former Pac twelve opponent they have is Washington coming to Bloomington.
So you avoid the USC's, you avoid the organ You're probably playing more than likely the two weaker teams of the four that are coming.
From the West Coast.
And UCLA is kind of in a weird position this year because they had to get a new head coach in the middle of the off season and Chip Kelly jump to be the offensive coordinate at Ohio.
State, which is a very weird move.
But in college football you're seeing a lot of weird moves now with coaches who don't want to mess with the nil and the transfer portal as much and have less responsibility and that type of a thing. So Deshaun Foster comes in for UCLA, and again, you probably didn't pay a lot of attention to Big ten media days, and I wouldn't blame you, but Deshaun Foster kind of embarrassed himself at the podium whenever he was speaking to the Big tim media for the first time.
He got up there to do his opening statement and he just froze. He said a few things.
And then he got starstruck or stage fright, whatever, you want to call it, and kind of just made a fool of himself. Wow, I didn't see the entirety of his statements, so he might have picked himself back up, as I'm assuming you might have. But that's not a good look whenever you're introducing yourself to a brand new conference and really to your fan base like that for the first time. So it'll be interesting to see what UCLA doesn't really all these new teams do.
But I'm obviously super.
Intrigued by Indiana traveling out to the West Coast taking on UCLA because to me, that's a turning point game for Indiana and Kurtzignetti's first year.
Absolutely it is.
And the nice thing for IU this year, bro, you get a little time in between Michigan and Ohio State. Yes, Michigan comes into Bloomington on November ninth, then you don't face Ohio State until November twenty third. You've got a bye weekend between, yes, so which is nice. And speaking of remember we were visiting last time and I was trying to remember that place in Bloomington that we always go to, and I was on with Joe Lincoln on Saturday. He's not you guy, like you Sells and I remember
what it was. It was Buffalouis. Okay, that's the place to go. The Wings were amazing, a bit pricier in Bloomington.
But definitely take all the recruits. Is it that they think go there?
Now?
Sean, you obviously no secret you're a Michigan fan. What's your take on the new Big Ten?
What do you think I think it's gonna be.
I think college football in general, we're going to see a lot of different a lot of different looks because now you've got you know, obviously the two power Power conferences. I'm what I'm more curious about is is the l nial stuff. Do you guys think that's going to make players stay longer in college football because now they they're making more money here will have a positive effect on college football? Or will you still see one and done's people you know, jump into the NFL quicker.
That's a great question. I think the one thing.
I think one thing that you're going to see, And Scott, I can't remember if you and I talked about this or if I mentioned it with a Nick whenever he was on here, but I think one thing you're going to see in the near future, probably maybe not this year. But I think one thing that's been one of the biggest issues is players opting out of playing in bowl games because they they'd rather not risk getting injured and get ready for the NFL.
That type of stuff.
I think you're going to start seeing NIL incentives or maybe maybe even requirements from whoever's paying these players to force them to participate in these bowl games, because it kind of whenever your your stars for your teams aren't playing in the postseason, it kind of ruins the product in a sense, and it almost becomes more of a tryout for the second string, you know, your lower tier players to get ready for the next season. So I think that's one thing you'll you'll see be a positive
change when it comes to NIL down the road. I don't know when that type of stuff would go into effect, but I think that's one way you could you can definitely see improvement in a positive way for these players, these players to get played paid.
Excuse me, you know, I had a chance to talk with Chancellor Douge and the women's basketball coach A Bellaman. They just signed it to an extension and we had that conversation. You heard it here on this station. Here's what she had to say quickly about Nil.
No, I've gone through and seen everything, you know. I never, in my wildest dreams would have thought that the NCAA would have given so much autonomy, because it's like the Wile Wall West. Yeah, I mean the rules change and update daily.
I do think that they need to reel in an il to some degree. I think the NCAA could do a much better job at that. I don't want to critique them because I don't I don't live in that world. No, they get paid a lot more money and have a lot more education than I do. I constantly remind mister Cruz about that in the morning. You know this, It's like so funny. Everybody wants to a d but nobody's
ad in and everybody seems to have the answers. It's just like in our business, everybody wants to coach, they have all the answers, but nobody's coaching Colin Coward And just saying that, I do think that they need to reel in Nil to some degree and give places like a Bellerman kind of a fair shot because right now, let's be honest, Bellerman can't run with who is it that the Texas there was at NC State one of the softball players send a million dollar anil deal.
I mean, Bellaman can't run with that, you know. So this is really gonna be college athletics.
So to your All's point, this is going to be very interesting to see how this shakes out. Sean, you were telling me off the air. Now, Michigan in defense of their national championships. By the way, they're getting ready to issue there. I guess their nose of allegations is coming out from the sign stealings.
They're gonna have to deal with that.
But they have Texas at home on September seventh, and you looked into September twenty first.
USC is coming to town. Yeah, what were the ticket prices going for that?
They were two hundred dollars minimum, is what you're looking at, And of course it goes up from there.
And then Texas is going to be an.
Interesting battle because they got their quarterback back, Irwin or drown a plank on his name. But Steve Sarkejian's put together a pretty good product out there. So now you got Texas in the SEC, and then where's Alabama going to come into play there because they're, you know, a new head coach. That's the other thing is how are the head coaches going to handle this whole It just seems like a whole different landscape, and it seems like it's a new now. I mean before recruiting was tough.
Now you got to deal with the nil, you got to deal with money, you got to deal with boosters. So I think we're dealing with a whole new, whole new game here. But and you add in the twelve team playoff. Now you've got a team like say a top mid mid tier team, say in the Big Ten, like in Indiana or Nebraska that normally would all right, you had a decent year, maybe it got you know, eight or nine wins, but you're certainly not going to
be in the hunt. Now you're in the hunt because all you got to do is get to that top twelve position. So how many teams are we going to see that? You know what we see in basketball where it's you know, a number seven team goes all the way or so it'll be interesting to see how that plays out and does that lever like kind of lower the competitive field as far as it's not going to always be Alabama always going to be, you know, the big name team, so well.
You know, it will be interesting to see how the college football landscape shakes out. It's going to be a very interesting year, to say the least. I know a lot of people are looking forward to it. Switch gears while we have a little bit of time left, Fellas.
I can tell you.
When I was in Detroit for the NFL Draft, I saw firsthand what a massive beast this machine really is. You have no idea of what seven hundred thousand people feels like until you're in the middle of all of them. And I don't think i've ever seen you know, Detroit was such a ghost town for so long, and I remember going over to Greektown the night after the draft. You could not move in the street. I mean people were everywhere. They came from all walks of life, every
fan if you were listening to Terry Miners. I had a chance to interview fans from all different teams that right now, the NFL is a machine and it's only getting bigger, it's only getting better. How do you see it shaken out? John, I never did get a read on where you're at when it comes to the NFL. Do you have a team, So I buy association.
I have a team, and it's I have a family member up in Buffalo and whenever, whenever we went and visited them. A couple of years ago, my wife took a big liking up for the Bills. We went to, Yeah, we went to a bar that was a Bills centric bar. And so my wife decides she's gonna be a Bills fan. Like, you know what, I don't have an NFL team, Let's just be Bill's fans. And so I'm not you know, it's not like something I grew up watching being a fan of the Bills, that type of a thing, but
it is. It is fun to be a part of kind of a crazy, you know, group of group of people. And I know you're I'm sure you're familiar with the Bills mafia. Yeah, I'm obviously not that type of person. I could never be out in the tailgate grounds, jumping on tables, that type of thing, breaking tables. But that's kind of where I'm at with with the NFL.
And they're building that new stadium form now too, and it's not a dome, right, It's still going to be out there. It's crazy That's where I respect Bill's mafia. Yes you had like Minnesota build a dome stadium. Yes, Bill's Mafia said, no, none of that noise. We're going out in the cold. We're going to do miss the Bay.
They'll never change.
Exactly, dude, exactly. And Sean, you and I are both Lions fans. We saw they got so close. The proof is going to be in the pudding to see if they can do it again in year two. That was probably the most frustrated I've been. That was almost at the NFC Championship. Was almost as frustrating as the Owen sixteen years to get that close.
And sure, I think it.
Would have been better if that game was just a blowout, if it was just the forty nine ers rolled over them. But if you look at the Lions coming back this year, they got a lot of returning players. They've got a lot and both coordinators are coming back, which I think they interviewed but didn't take jobs. And so you've got this like, and I travel a lot. Obviously, I talked to a lot of people and they're like, oh, you're a Lions fan. Oh I was rooting for the Lions.
Oh I didn't know you're a Lions fan.
Oh, I was. Really everybody seems to be pulling unless you're a.
Diehard, you know San Francisco or a Bills or but a lot of people in the country are really pulling for They like Dan Campbell as they should.
Yeah, a blue collar guy, he's in a blue collar city.
But then I was just looking at the odds to win the championship and I saw right behind them, just behind them, as the Bengals, and so.
It gied you went there, because that's where I was going next.
Yeah, it seems like behind the Bills, the forty nine Ers and the Chiefs, you got the Lions, and then you got the Bills or the Bengals are right there in the hunt.
Well, that's where our house is. My son is a huge Bengals fan, and so it's very interesting. My son, born and raised here in Louisville, is kind of fit that mold. He loves the Reds, he loves the Bengals. He's a big Louisville fan.
He's into it.
So it's funny with the Bengals one because I cover him in the mornings here. I covered the Bengals, Colts and the Titans. Which is a lot of fun. It really is, because those are the geographical teams here. But you know, the Bengals, I find myself rooting for him
because my son does. In fact, when they went to the super Bowl that year when they won the AFC Championship, we were coming home from a hockey tournament in Ohio and I will never forget us sitting in the car driving along when Dan Horne announced they were going to the Super Bowl and it was just like, what I mean, I was excited for him. Yeah, I didn't grow up a Bengals fan, but I was excited for him. And so they got a lot coming into The Bengals got
a lot coming back. And you know, sometime and when I feel and again we'll talk more about the NFL. But the Colts there's high expectations with Shane Steichen, and of course the Titan have the Bengals old offensive coordinator Bill Callahan and former Kentucky quarterback Will Levis. The Titan's gonna try to put this thing together. So if you're an NFL fan and you're living here in Louisville, you're in prime real estate. There's some good NFL action all
around you, right here. So hey, we're gonna wrap things up. There's been a lot of fun. We're gonna wrap things up when we come back in just a bit. I'm Scott Fitzgerald. He's John Alden. That's my little bro Seawan. We're back after this on Sports Talk seven ninety all right, great song. As we're wrapping things up here. Boy, this has been a lot of fun. John Olden, you always make this so much fun. Buddy, Thank you.
I will take you any day, Oh brother.
I love this.
And I know Nick's gonna be back. He's probably not gonna take any vacation.
For a while because it's coming up on his This is his sweet spot now as we get into football season in basketball season.
To him, this is the beginning of the calendar year, whenever sports really get back into play.
Right, the big sports right.
And I did want to say that imparting to I just wanted to give Nick a lot of love because he's one of the best we have in this building, if not the best, when it comes to of sports. And I don't think that gets set enough around here, and it doesn't get acknowledged by people in our own house. But if you're a fan of Nick Coffee. You know what I'm talking about. If you're not dial him up. My man is so dilled him when it comes to
Cardinal sports. He's critical of the Cardinals when he needs to be, but also at the same time he's not a homer either, So you know, take it for what you will. Nick Coffee, Love you, brother, Appreciate you letting me on. John, love you too, Man, Thank you so much. Look forward to whenever it is you come on again.
All right, And Sean, thanks for joining us.
Bro.
Yeah, this has been fun.
That's a great, great sports city. I love Louisville every time I come here.
So if you fly American, ask for Sean Fitzgerald, then give him. Hell.
I don't ask for peanuts, right for peanuts, all right?
For John Alden, my little brother Sean. I'm Scott Fitzgerald. Make it a great day, everybody. I'm off to Lynn Family Stadium. We'll talk to you next time.