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or just visit JLab dot com. Their price points really good. Okay, I want to spend ten minutes on college football. So my prediction before the year was Ohio State would lose at Outs and Stadium, would play Oregon again and beat them, and would play in the National Championship against the Texas Longhorns. So right now, Texas and Ohio State, in my opinion, looked like the two best teams along with Oregon. Notre Dame Penn State also very very good. So again it's
big brands. You could put seventy four teams in this tournament. It just doesn't matter college football even more than college basketball because you have to have depth in football because there's a regulated level of violence. I thought Ohio State, I think Ohio State, Texas and Oregon feel like the best teams. I thought it was interesting against Indiana. I thought the game would be close. I like the buck Eyes close. I thought it was a real moment where
everybody was selling me BYU. No, everybody is selling me Indiana. They just they look nervous. I mean the special team's gaffes. They just didn't look they didn't have the power, they didn't have the arsenal. They looked nervous. And it was funny. Josh Howard got some crap as they were rolling to win Signette's coat. Yeah, Will Howard. Will Howard, who's a good quarterback. I don't know if he's an NFL guy, but he's a good quarterback. Big kid, you know, makes play.
Don't like players who are like I'm kind of into this.
Yeah, I kind of like him. I kind of like him. Somebody probably drafts him. He's hard to evaluate because they're old lines historically, this O line, but you know they've got NFL high round receivers and running back. So he's a hard guy. In Ohio. Staate Os has so much better personnel than everybody in the conference, you know, but Michigan and Penn State on an annual basis. Now Oregon
has their kind of level of talent. But it was funny watching Indiana get up there, and some people were bothered by this gesture Will Howard did at the end, and it's it's really funny. I'm like, guys, Indiana came into that game, and for a team that has never won a huge college football game in my life, I thought came in with a lot of attitude and a lot of a lot of bravado. And I had no
problem with Will Howard's gesture at all. And it's like, if you're going to come into the ring against the perennial world chaml okay, and you're talking shit, then if they if they do a little gesture, I don't want to hear about it. And you know, Colin, you didn't like Baker Baker Mayfield nine different gestures at Oklahoma. This was Will Howard two seconds. But I kind of found myself. I thought Indiana was obnoxious, a little cocky coming into the game.
Yeah, well starts with the coach. I mean, he's got a big opinion of himself. And the second half looked like the little kids versus the big kids. And if all these other teams hadn't lost as the day went on, I would have had no problem leaving Indiana at home. Listen, I like you, I didn't go to one of these schools. Like I'm a Big ten guy or an SEC GA. I'm just an unbiased lover of college football. Anyone making the argument like, just watch the games with your eyes.
We have the evidence of the NFL draft picks where all the talent is. I'm watching the SEC games on the road. You know, Oklahoma, I'm sure they got five or six guys on defense they're going to be drafted. And one these environments on the road are so hard in the SEC. If you put Indiana in the SEC, I think they struggled to sniff eight wins. I think they get rolled. And obviously they've benefited this year from playing nobody. They just they're a great story and I
appreciate it. But up until all these other teams with two losses lost last night, I would not have cried for them if they didn't get the invite to the dance. Now, just because of record, they probably will, but I would bet on them to be one and done. Yes, and see it and listen like I listen. I know you talked to Clad a lot. I can't fathom watching all these games and thinking the Big ten talent and well, they're six and six, and their six and six. We'll
just watch the two team play. Yes, watch the speed of guys on defense at Auburn, who's I don't even know what their record is, five, They're gonna end up going five and seven. The talent discrepancy between them and Wisconsin on defense is fucking wider than the Grand Canyon. And yet we argue this every year. It's like, guys, take a deep breath, let's just watch the games and go like, no one says that about the Big Twelve. We all acknowledge, Yeah, the Big twelve is a fun conference,
but it's not that talented. Yeah, but we always argue, like the Big ten in the SEC, well, if you removed or the Big ten would be terrible this year, right, And let's face it, it's not a Big ten team. You guys just got them this year. So it's like, Ohio State's carrying you the rest of your conference talent wise looks down. I watched the SEC and I get it. They got a lot of three and four lost teams. The talent on their teams is night, and it's just
harder to play more talented teams. On top of that, because of the television networks. Now they're playing all these night games, these road night games against a bunch of NFL defenders is way more difficult than the Big Ten. Is that even arguable this year?
No? I mean I watched Oklahoma. I thought they played a perfect football game against Alabama. They just were well coached, They were buttoned up, their quarterback had movement, they were kind of they gave Alabama some fits. I mean, I watched that game and I was like, Jesus, Oklahoma.
They're good on defense. They have NFL guys on defense well. Venables coach Clemson a bunch of pros, like he knows what it looks like. Offense is gonna be a problem for him. But no one's gonna argue that Venables in his defense is gonna be good. No, And they handled Oklahoma. I thought the same thing about Opera. I'm like, I don't know most of these players on Auburn. Shit, they sure look good to me.
And you're a former NFL scout, Yeah, I'm just like.
But doesn't that jump out sometimes when you watch these SEC games, even when their records like six and six, well, you're like, listen, I know they're struggling to win games, but they got talent on the roster.
If it doesn't really matter how mny? I mean, I think Ohio State, Texas, Oregon, Notre Dame and like a like a Georgia Old Miss. I don't really buy Penn State. You know they've beaten them.
They're in because they didn't play anybody and they only had the one tough game and they're luckys. Washington Miss is out probably right, But if you told me Old Miss played Penn State on a neutral field, I'm taking Old Miss so much.
And I think Jackson Dart actually is going to be like a second round pick, so I mean they have the better quarterback. You know. It was funny.
I Florida is a good example, aren't they. I'm watching them, and I'm like, you put them in the if they made the twelve team tournament right now and they were playing Penn State in the first where's most of the money coming in on that game? Florida on Lagway if he's healthy on Florida, right and if you told me Florida played Notre Dame, Like I'm not saying that Florida would win that game, but you can't tell me that like you would be surprised at Florida one.
So I want to throw this at you. You know my connection to USC. I'm a homer. So I was saying this. It's it's not the South as La is distracted, You're going to be more patient. Jen Cohen's not running Lincoln Riley out. The boosters aren't going to step up and pay him the seventy million ys ode or whatever it is. Or they're building a three hundred million dollar facility. The nil collective at USC is thirteen million. They're not writing another check for Lincoln Riley. But I I was
texting somebody inside USC Athletic department. I said, if you beat Penn State in overtime this year, and you had the opportunity overtime at the coliseum, I said, you would have beaten LSU, Penn State, your rival with nine returners on a If you just go get a quarterback like Oregon did in the portal, you bring back the entire offensive line outside of center, all of your receivers, all of your tight ends, and you have you had a very good recruiting class last year. Defensive line the best
they've had since Pete Carroll. But they all red shirted. And I'm like, you're a quarterback and maybe a defensive tackle and a corner away from being really interesting. And somebody said, hey, thanks for the optimism, and I'm like, now that's what you really are. Like with Brian Kelly, I don't know what I get week to week. USC's games, John, they all look the exact same. They lead in the
fourth quarter. I mean, take the Michigan game out where it felt like they were playing from behind, they were playing Chase. Every game looks the same. They just don't. They're not good enough at quarterback and they're too young on the offensive line to seal it. But I was talking to a friend about this, and he's in the South, and I said, it's just different out here. It's not the beginning and end. They're not no boosters riding a fifty million dollar check for Lincoln Riley. They just paid
three hundred million for facilities. And I said, when I look at coaching, I said, do I get the same kind of team every week? Brian Kelly's a bit of a mess and he's not really likable people like you know, the players like Lincoln, they're not a lot of guys transferring. The coaches like gi Me built a nice staff. So my take on USC is there the advantage to being non sec is you get another year to two. Shit, they kept Clay Helton around forever and he was over his skis your thought.
On USC, Yeah, I would fall under the USC guy that you texted that you're a lot more optimistic than me. Yeah, I mean, they're they're probably gonna get killed this week, right and be six and six. So last year was a devastating year for Lincoln, right, it was. It was not thought of highly and they had a better record than this year, right in a conference too that was really down. So you look back the Michigan and Minnesota. Minnesota is actually pretty good on.
The well Washington did in a rebuild, Michigan did a rebuild, and UCLA's rebuild.
Here's the thing, like, let's use Texas analogy with Sark. Sark started just buying sweet players and maybe it's more just the Texas boosters and every it's a little more aggressive there with football, like they knew they were going to the SEC. They have cared for a while, they've been dying for like make money legal. Right, they were
lined up. I wonder if USC, so far removed from Pete, has the same aggression, Like if there are six or seven guys that can immediately change your organization or your program. You know Caleb Downs, I saw you tweeting about him yesterday, Who's immediately transfer portal? And really probably three teams put all their chips in the middle tables, probably Georgia, Texas,
Ohio State. Right, Well, can USC start swimming in that end of the pool, because I do understand up, I'm a USC guy or a booster or someone around the program like a liner. I go, well, I know for a fact, given the rules that are at play now, when we were here with PETE, we would have Caleb Downs. Maybe we don't get him, but he's definitely taking a visit and having long conversations with all of us. And it doesn't even feel like USC is dealing in that.
And like the slow build, like they aren't slow builds anymore. You can quick flip it. And that's why everyone's down on Brian Kelly. It's like you guys are in year three? What's going on here? Right? And that's where I wonder if Lincoln is he going to recruit hard enough? Is he going to be able to do that in terms of like, listen, I'm not Ohio State guy, but I do respect whoever the Caleb downs is this offseason. You bet you're ass that it's Sark and Ryan Dan on
the phone with that kid. Well, because they got the money, Well does Lincoln out of them? And Dan Lanning?
Well the knock on Lincoln and I think it's fair he doesn't recruit Southern California. Well, he has not engenered himself to Southern California coaches. He can be prickly and precious and sort of you know, he's a small town guy. Sometimes he feels aloof and that does not work in high school recruiting.
Do they care enough? Look at Michigan's a good example, right, They had Harbaugh and they got that taste the last three years and it was incredible. And then this year's going couldn't be going much worse relative to what they've been. All of a sudden, it's like LSU is getting this quarterback. No, we'll rally the money get Larry Ellison on the phone, and all of a sudden, we have some package of ten to twelve million dollars. I don't exactly, there are
a lot of discrepancies how the deals structured. But we will pay you more than anyone else. Why because we care that deeply. We care that deeply, and it feels like, you know, when USC was in their heyday, they really really cared. Oregon has maintained that right from Bellatti to Chip to heal Rich to now through the landing. Well, hell feels like it doesn't feel like us he cares enough.
And I think that's fair. I think Jen Cohen, the athletic director does. They're collective thirteen million, so they I mean that people have stepped up. But the economy in Los Angeles is bigger than almost you know, it's bigger than Canadas. So it's you know, are certainly thereabouts.
So it's fair question, shouldn't it shouldn't they be able to outbid some of these You know, if LSU and Alabama want a kid in the transfer portal and they're willing to pay X, shouldn't they pay X plus another twenty percent?
Yes?
I am the guy.
Yes, I mean it's if you look at sports from baseball. I mean, there are salary caps, but I think players know who's committed. I mean you can see it in the NFL like free agency, like people know Philadelphia's committed people San Francisco has committed, Chicago's not. And players can sniff it. Players can see it and smell it and feel it. And I think your questions are what I hear from my friends, and I'm probably more patient and
too optimistic. I think that's that's reasonable. I will say this, and I heard it again today from somebody I trust. The fastest rising quarterback is going to be Jalen Milroll. He can be a bit robotic. It doesn't look pretty. But if Minnesota keep Sam Darnold as you're suggesting, and many will, there's gonna be seven teams that need a quarterback. Somebody's taken that guy. I mean, if the Raiders, I
mean we know the Raiders Giants are taking quarterbacks. You start looking around this league, it could be an our three teams taking quarterbacks. John Middlekoff Three and Out is his podcast at the volume former NFL scout. We chopped it up for an hour and twenty two minutes. It looks like to me as ohas John great, great talking.
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