Welcome to the Solid Verbo. I'm that for me. I'm a man, I'm for I've heard so many players say, well, I want to be happy. You want to be happy for Dake Edith Steak.
Is that whoo whoom? And now Dan and Tie, welcome back to the Solid Purple Boys and Girls. My name is Ty hilden Brandt, joining me from away, still way over there in southern California.
The one and only Dan Rubinstein, Sir, how are you? Ty? I'm terrific And I like painting pictures for not just you, but for everybody listening, because this is not a visual medium, so I have to do so with my words. And as I record this in the makeshift clofice, which is an actual closet, not a walk in closet like I
have back East. But as I record this in the makeshift clo office, there is a bar from which clothes normally hang, and I use it to brace myself just so I have balance as I record, because the microphone is on top of a dresser, and I have some pillows strewn around here to sort of calm everything down sound wise. But I hold on to this because the takes that I am about to put forth into the college football universe about mid Aught's very good teams. Tye,
I don't want to launch myself backwards. I'm just ready to roll.
It sounds a little bit like you're going over the top style. You've seen that movie with Sliced alone, right, of course, he has the little contraption in the big rig with him as he's going and he just works out with that right arm the whole time.
Ty I'm not touching that in the way that a lot of people are going to be saying, that's what she said. But I'm just going to tell you you're not wrong. You are absolutely not wrong. And I came up with the concept for this show a mirror twenty four hours ago.
Yeah, as is not something we've blocked ideas on the soliverbl This came up.
Last night, I believe. But there is something about re educating oneself through reading, watching tape and thinking things over with a twenty twenty brain as you watch mid Ots college football that I think is illuminating. I think it's refreshing, and I think gives gives it least me. I can't speak for you a new perspective. As we start our three part first place Losers series first place Losers.
So we're going to get into that in a second. Dan can explain exactly what this concept entails. But hello on ty, He's Dan. We are the solid verbal. We're a year round college football podcast. We still don't know exactly when we're gonna get or if we're gonna get college football in twenty twenty. We are certainly hoping for that, right, Oh absolutely, we shall see though. In the meantime, thank
you so much for joining us. We will be with you all off season long, for however long that off season lasts.
If you do like the show, don't forget to subscribe.
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I guess it is probably the worst way to categorize it.
But Dan and I'd just like to connect up and do some video and talk to the masses. So we've been doing that every night at around five pm Eastern time. So if you want more of the show, that is certainly another avenue for you to pursue.
Dan, it absolutely is. I'm ready to get into first place losers, are you?
So explain this to me again? So I am clear being so I am one half of this show.
So there is the of course, people know that second place is just first place loser, right, that the second place is never going to be good enough. You should never be proud of a silver medal. Almost receiving the bronze is there's somewhat more dignity than having the opportunity to win gold and coming up just shorts. I wanted to go back to before we actually started doing the solid verbal, but not too far back. So we are starting with the two thousand and five season, so it
would be the two thousand and six National championship. So we have second place teams of the last fifteen years. We're doing the first five years today and the goal is to both honor and see how close that first place loser came to just finishing the season in first place, because the champions, they're the ones that get the parades, they're the ones that get the DVDs, they're the ones that get honored at halftime of various games, and that
they're the immortal ones. And so Just Short of Immortality is a may podcast dedicated dedicated to your success, which I believe as somebody who is arguably the most experienced first place loser in rooting for the Oregon Ducks, who have lost two national championships in the last fifteen years, You've watched your team lose one national championship and it should be noted one playoff game in spectacular fashion. Correct.
I feel like this is squarely within our wheelhouse to honor teams who either came up just short or well short when given the opportunity to win the national championship and sort of talk about the context, talk about the season at large, and just how close they actually came to winning, because, as you know as a Notre Dame fan, the heartbreaking losses stay with you longer than the wonderful wins. Right.
I think that's right. You're a competitive guy a little bit, Yeah, you could say that. I think that's fair. No, that that that kick, the Boston College kick still haunts me.
I talked about it previously on one.
Of our shows, but that that still haunts me, that kick, And you know, i'd imagine if you're an Alabama fan listening, the kick six is something that resonates still in a very emotional fashion. Fans of all teams kind of find themselves in that category and first place losers, I think gets to that a little bit. Some of the games that I think we're going to go through certainly have that that heartbreaking ending for some fan bases.
Others do not.
Others do not have that at all. So we'll really run the gamut here on some of these teams that essentially finished second place, how their season ended, and in what fashion it did that that left them kind of on the outside looking in, not holding that trophy on the podium with one Bill Hancock. But we can get into that here. What what is the what is the structure of this? So we're starting with the two thousand and five regular season in USC.
Yes, we're starting with two thousand and five USC. And we're not gonna labor two thousand and five USC too much because we actually did just talk about them with Yogi Roth looking back at the put the Bush push game. So we're gonna look back at why they got to the championship game, like what got them there and then why they lost and could they have won those I think those are the three pillows, pillows, pillars or pillows that you can rest your head on for each of
these teams. And I'm going to go through this really quickly. With two thousand and five USC, you know, Pete Carroll was the head coach and the defensive coordinator Lane Kiffin was running the offense. They have the close game against Notre Dame, they have the comeback against ASU. They run through the Pac ten otherwise they you know, they murder Oregon and UCLA and everybody knows it's Matt Lioner, Reggie Bush,
Lendel White. They end up against Texas. The defense, this is something that was at least knew again for me. And I don't know how much you remember about the two thousand and five USC defense, but they didn't really stack the depth chart, stock the depth chart whatever. No, with no the lud chip talent leading up to the Texas game. It was actually the year of the Texas game. Two thousand and five. There were freshmen that came in
that were pretty highly touted on defense. But anybody who watched, especially the back end of that USC defense tried to tackle Vince Young, knows that this was not an electric, hard hitting, fundamentally sound, open field tackling team.
No, it wasn't, and you know that's been a thing for USC for quite some time, to be honest. But this, again, just to provide some context, was a very good USC team. Obviously, they made the Rose Bowl. This was the season that led up to that famed two thousand and six Rose Bowl game that they lost to Texas and Vince Young forty one to thirty eight, one of the greatest games ever played by many accounts. But let me ask you this, what was what was USC's official.
Record in the five six season. Do you know, well, the librarian in you is probably going to say, like, whatever the sanctions dictate the record was, but it was twelve and oh during the regular season, twelve and one.
Overall, the official record books, I believe classify it as oh and oh, oh and o oh and oh because of the vacation of wins. Now, there is some debate over whether or not the loss still counts, so depending on your perspective, it's either O and O or OH to one. But that was one of the seasons that was supposedly wiped out due to the NCAA swooping in being the White Knights that they are and cracking down after the Reggie Bush stuff. So lo and behold we
get to the Rose Bowl. You know, a lot of this stuff is is a formality, an administrative type stuff, but one of the greatest games I've ever seen played. As you said, we talked about this USC team in a previous show, being so we recapped the Bush push. The talent on this team, though from an offensive standpoint, was pretty incredible, And again we won't replay the show that we did before, but there was a lot of
firepower on this offense, Matt Lioner. We had Reggie Bush, we had Lendale White, We had a really good receiving corps. Specifically with this game though, this National Championship game. You mentioned it to me last night, and I did have a chance to go back and scrub through it again today. They had so many chances to win this damn game.
You know, it's going to go down in history as an amazing individual effort by Vince Young, a record setting performance, but even he gave USC a bunch of chances to win this game and they could not take advantage of it. USC in two thousand and five is going to go down as one of the better teams, certainly in this generation of college football. Unfortunately for them second place. They lost to Texas in this game, but they did have their chances.
Should point out they were the defending national champion and USC and Texas went wire to wire as one and two before flipping at two becomes one and one becomes two once Texas wins this game, And obviously the answer is, yes, USC had many chances to put away this game, but great teams closed ty and that's what Texas was. That's what Vince Young was a great closer. But here's what struck me watching back this game, because we all just sort of remember Vince Young running into the corner of
the end zone and the confetti and everything like that. Again, rightfully, so as superhuman effort, Texas does zero in the first quarter. Pretty they come out sloppy and undisciplined. They probably would have lost one of their starting safeties to targeting if it were twenty twenty. It wasn't even like a close was he He tried to decapitate a full back Cedric
Griffin did on a wheel route and almost did. Also three Texas fumbles in the first seventeen minutes and then not including but then another one in the fourth quarter, so amazing fumble luck, which great, great, it's good to have fumble luck. Vince Young does not get called down at the USC ten yard line before he pitches it for a Texas touchdown for them to go up I believe nine to seven early and there's a play that I had completely forgotten about. USC's up twelve with five
and a half or so minutes left. Vince Young rolls out to the left, is in the midst of being sacked, throws the ball away from his body like thirty yards across the field, straight up into double coverage, and one of the I think was one of the Ting brothers, instead of coming down with the game sealing interception, simply swatted it away and Vince Young a couple of plays later, I think ninety seconds later, runs it in to cut it to a one score game. That would have iced
the game. So from I don't know if we're using a scale of one to ten or one to two thousand and two Miami, whatever we want to call it. USC one thousand percent had the chance to win this game, which I assume makes things all the more painful.
So what I think would be fun to do is, as we're going through, maybe like war style, we can compare two thousand and five USC to our next team, which would be two thousand and six Ohio State. Oh I like this, you know, like which team's like? I think I already know which team's better. But we can get into two thousand and six US or two thousand and six Ohio State.
Excuse me if you're ready for that. If you're okay with that, I am ready for that. And then the comparison is not terribly difficult. We have two Heisman quarterbacks, Troy Smith for Ohio State and Matt Lionert wins it a couple of years before, and only one of the teams beats Texas on their way to the national championship at least appearance, and is not USC, but rather Ohio State. They beat Texas twenty four to seven early on in the season. They of course have that tight, tight shootout
against Michigan forty two to thirty nine. That left some people, because they were one and two in the country, saying, should there be a rematch in the National Championship Game. The answer is no, Ty, The answer is no. What do you remember about two thousand and six Ohio State if anything, because I have some notes?
Well, so, first off, again context, this is an Ohio State team that finished twelve to one after the season. They got smoked by Florida in the BCS game forty one to fourteen. But what's what's important to note about Ohio State is that this was right when the program was hitting critical mass and firing up the engines that are in effect still running fifteen years later. You know, they won the two thousand and three Fiesta Bowl. They
knocked off Miami. We talked about that game previously. They had a really good run in between then and where we're at now, which is when they got back to the BCS Championship game. This was the number one team in the country all year long until they lost that BCS game, and they had a really good defense that was sort of a hallmark of this era of Ohio State. Maybe not quite as good as they were the following year, which we'll get into, but a really good defense that
had high level talent. Vernon Golston got drafted, you know, I want to say sixth overall maybe by the Jets. Along the couple of years, yeah, along that defensive front, James Laura Nidis who of course had a really good year, Malcolm Jenkins who went on to have a really good NFL career. Troy Smith, you mentioned, won the Heisman in
the school, seventh Heisman Trophy winner. So there were some headliners on this team, and I just remember the one prevailing thought I had, thinking back and certainly living through the era, was I always had a hard time trying to project Troy Smith forward, you know, like, is this guy going to actually play in the NFL. I always had a hard time with that, especially with quarterbacks that won the Heisman Trophy because a lot of them, as
you know, don't pan out. But Troy Smith, to me, it just I don't know why he gave me a hard time trying to figure that out. I've obviously he didn't pan out as a long lasting NFL quantity. Certainly in the college ranks though, and within that system he was very good. And Ohio State went on to build on its success the next season, the year after the year after all the way up to where we're at today.
So these were kind of the early workings of this juggernaut that has become the Ohio State Buckeyes.
So Troy Smith is a very fun watch. Not as much of a dual threat as he was the year before. He runs a lot more in two thousand and five, and I don't know if that's cut back in two thousand and six because of wanting to prove himself un center more because it wasn't a full spread Ohio State. Did they spread the field. They had good receivers led by Ted Ginn and also worth remembering, I think Troy
Smith was very foolishly. It was suspended over like accepting five hundred dollars the year before and sat out a game. I think it was their bowl game, but I don't remember. I should have done more research into something that silly. But it's Jim Bowman, who is not a spread offensive coordinator running the offense for Ohio State. And you're right, it is the defense that is that is leading the way. But Troy Smith is awesome. But if you watch some of their bigger games. It's a lot of quick stuff.
It's not a ton down field. It's not a ton of creativity, it's not a ton of you know, a dynamic look on offense from Ohio State. And that's fine. It worked amazingly well. They run the table at number one throughout the regular season, and of course the Big Ten doesn't have a championship game until twenty eleven, so they don't have to play in that to sort of jump that hurdle before the National Championship game. They have the close call against Illinois, but it's really more of
an offensive struggle. The defense was still amazing against the Aliini at least this year. We'll get to something about Illinois later on about Ohio State, but it was a good team ultimately, though. The problem with Ohio State was their tackles. They get to the National Championship a game against Florida, and mind you and I have the two thousand and six BCS Ohio State and Michigan in the back half of the season. They're one to two from
Week seven until they play in week twelve. Auburn's up there early on, Notre Dames, up there early on, Texas early on, until Ohio State beats them, and then as we get into the national championship game, Florida edges out Michigan thankfully to reach that game. We have LSU Louisville. Even later on in the season, Rutgers in Arkansas are
in the top ten, waiting the top fifteen team. Things were weird tie in two thousand and six, but we get to this championship game early on in urban meyers career against an Ohio State team who had won a national championship in two thousand and two but couldn't quite get back on that level until so this would be early two thousand and seven. But the two thousand and
six season and the offensive tackles. One of them was an NFL player for some time, Alex Boone for Ohio State, but he kicked inside as a guard once he was in the NFL. They were beaten mercilessly by Jarvis Moss and Derek Harvey, just hounding Troy Smith, who proved himself to be And this is a term that I am going to try to employ just because I'm stealing it from Draymond Green, who talks about it in the context of NBA players. A lot of players play well in
the fall. The best are Winter Wonders. Tie your new thing, right, This is my new thing, because when we look across these teams in these national championships, it's very clear that the team with the Winter Wonders who step up their game with all the time off, with the other team getting a whole season's worth of film to prepare for everything that goes into a national championship game. Ohio State, especially on offense, had essentially no Winter Wonders. And that's
early Beanie Wells in the backfield but not starting. He's behind Antonio Pittman and Ted Gin runs back the opening kick for a touchdown and tweaks his foot out the rest of the game his foot and ankle, and so the dudes on this Ohio State offense just don't exist. As Troy Smith looked to be a Heisman dude but could not make anything. It was just heads or tails. It was a rough game, rough game for him. In that title game, they were overwhelmed by a Florida defensive
line that had him on the run. I think he completed what four passes the entire game, so it was clearly not a Heisman level effort from him.
And Florida went on to a pretty big victory. Interesting side note here for those of you that follow all college sports, Florida went on to beat Ohio State in the two thousand and seven NCUBA Men's basketball Championship game as well. Correct the first time in nc DOUBLEA history that the same two schools played for both the football and basketball.
Championships in the same year, and.
The first time that a school held both the football and basketball championships in the same academic and calendar year as well. So a little bit of history, a little bit of a random factoy that malely interest tyned in. But two thousand and six Ohio State a runner up? How do they compare to two thousand and six or two thousand and five USC?
In your view? I think USC is stronger, and it's mostly because of the sheer number of Winter Wonders and dudes. I agree USC offense and as good as the Ohio State defense was at a certain point, the speed of Florida and it's a freshman year Percy Harvin and it's Chris League, who's fine. Florida is simply just fine overall with unblockable defensive ends. That was the clear difference in this game. They just did not allow Ohio State to
do a single thing on offense. And so it's not as if this very early Urban Meyer Florida team was overwhelming offensively, but the team speed for Florida on offense, and then similarly, the team speed between Reggie Bush and whatever, Dwayne Jarrett, Dominique Bird, these guys on the USC team, I would have them, not just because they were closer to Texas. Ohio State was not close to beating Florida, not a conversation.
So that means it's two thousand and five USC against our next runner up, two thousand and seven Ohio State. Ohio State runners up two years consecutively, and two thousand and seven as a college football entity, maybe the wackiest season we have seen.
Dan.
This was right around the time where you and I were emailing for the first time, right trying to figure out what we're going to do, if we're going to do a podcast, just kind of getting to know each other as friends. Meanwhile, in the college football world, we had teams like Cal, like South Florida, Boston College, West Virginia, even Kansas, all reaching number two in the AP polls. We had teams like Notre Dame, Miami and Nebraska clearly
not having their best seasons. Combined, those three teams went a collective thirteen and twenty three, and perhaps the strangest thing of all was the fact that LSU won the BCS National Championship with yes, you guessed it, two losses. Dan.
Yeah, this is the easiest case for most interesting year of the first place losers we're reviewing, and it's I mean, the case is simple. It's there was chaos this year and Ohio State was the clear beneficiary. They sort of hung around. LSU popped up at the end, But we have that wacky do you know who was slated to be in the National Championship as of November twenty fifth BCS rankings, West Virginia, West Virginia. As you know, they lose the backyard Brawl to Pit. I think it's thirteen
to nine, but it's Missoo. Missoo's coming off of the win over Kansas. They then get stomped by Oklahoma. I figure personally into all of this because I was at Oklahoma's upset loss at Colorado. I watched the South Florida Pit upset the night before. I believe it was a Friday night. I watched that from a bar in Boulder, and that next day was also when Cal upset Oregon and there was chaos there and then we finally get
to the end of the season. In the two thousand and seven season, LSU makes the jump from five to two thanks to Ryan PARLOEU not intentionally rhyming there, but I'm happy it did. Matt Flynn is out for the SEC championship game. Ryan Parolou steps in. Is good. LSU beats Tennessee. I think Eric Ains throws a couple picks in the fourth quarter, and Ohio State is the beneficiary of the best defense of their modern era, right. I think it's zero point eighty six points per drive allowed.
They hold Michigan from thirty nine the year before to three in two thousand and seven, So the Ohio State defense leads the way. They get LSU. And this is just a stroke of bad luck in New Orleans, Ty. They get LSU in New Orleans. It looks like it's going to be a good game and then it just sort of isn't. And that's great for LSU fans, not so great for Ohio State fans. But what do you remember what do you treasure about two thousand and seven itself? For the Buckeyes.
This was two years in a row again where they were runners up. And this really was, like I said in the previous blurb about six Ohio State, this is right around the time with this program is getting annoyingly good, and they're there, and I say that lovingly, but annoyingly good. They're in it every year. And I remember Ohio State being very good on defense. But I also remember the fact that Todd Beckman sort of came out of nowhere.
Was this no name.
Compared to Troy Smith who had won the Heisman the previous year, And it didn't dawn on me until I went back and looked and did the research. But he was a big kid. He was six' five two forty. Three that's a that's a big freakin'. Dude and he was fine as. Quarterback you. Know he didn't give them much in the way of, athleticism but he got the ball where it needed to. Go he was an effective game, manager and they had so much talent around him that they were able to piggyback off all that and find
their way back into THE bcs title. Game SO i certainly remember What Jim trump soul built in six and then built upon in two thousand and. Seven, honestly my lasting impression of This Ohio state team might have been the loss To, illinois BECAUSE i remember at the time this is such.
A big deal that they lost To.
Illinois if it were to happen today in our little, world that would classify as a let down look Ahead, sandwich because they had come off a win over number Nineteen, wisconsin they were at home Against illinois where they LOST i think twenty eight twenty one something like, that and then the very next week played Against michigan AND i
think won something like fourteen to. Three so right in between in that real like soft underbelly is Where illinois showed up at the, horseshoe knocked them, off gave them their first loss of the, year and through some fortune the rest of the, way as we, said a crazy, year they were able to weasel their way into THAT bcs title.
Game, wow weasel their way In Ti damn was a team that was a number ONE bcs team a good chunk of this.
Season most of the season they, were so, YEAH i remember the loss To. Illinois illinois of course went on to play in The Rose bowl and get boat raced BY usc. Whatever AND i do, remember certainly the controversy around them getting in THAT bcs game they did. Lose it was essentially a home game FOR lsu thirty, eight twenty. Four and this is a game that we talked about not all that long, ago, right.
Sure, yeah, Absolutely, NOW i mean towards the end of the, season obviously mentioning the topsy turvy nature of two thousand and seven and having all sorts of teams at number, Two Ohio state they just hang, around they. GO i think they start ten and zero before losing To. Illinois they're replacing a lot on their defensive. Line but THIS i mean soft, underbelly a term you like using tie
The Big ten and Especially Ohio state's non conference. Schedule let's not pretend like they were prepared this year's, team especially upfront on, defense for a team as talented AS. Lsu this was. Not it was a god Awful minnesota. Team by the, way they don't play anybody in the non conference part of the. Schedule this Is Anthony, Morelli Penn. STATE i know you have your own thoughts about that era of Nine ellyan. Football wisconsin's, fine but they're not
what they are. Now they were ranked at the time That Ohio state beats. Them So Ohio state replaces i think three starters up front on the line other Than Vernon, golston but they return the linebacking cores in the, secondary so they're in great shape. Defensively Cameron, hayward Who i'm sure a lot of people now know his, name both from His Ohio state career and HIS nfl. Career he's a, freshman becomes a Freshman All american and An All Big ten.
Player he's terrific for them, upfront and so they really get to this amazing place. Defensively but with your focus On Todd beckman comes the fact that comes with, it the fact that there's No ted Ginn Antonio, pittman who was a big, deal big play guy in the backfield For Ohio. State he's. Gone we Have Beanie, Wells Mo. Wells you have Apparently Brian ribiski And Brian hartline are two different. PEOPLE i don't know really have the breaking
news sound, wow they are in fact two different. People And Brian ribisky drops what should have been a touchdown. Catch so no fault Of Todd beckman AGAINST Lsu Brian hartline is, fine but if he's your second best, Receiver i'm not sure what you're going to be able to do against a pretty, good if not really GOOD lsu, defense especially up. Front It's Tyson jackson And Ricky Jean francois And Glenn. Dorsey so they just they didn't have the horses. Tie they didn't have the winter, wonders AS
i like to call. It some guys are good in the. Fall you need the guys who are good In january on. Offense Ohio, state outside OF i Guess Beanie, wells they just didn't have that. Guy didn't have that guy who was to have that guy at a number of positions who was on THAT lsu. Team So ali High smith is in the is in the linebacking. Corps he was obviously. Terrific the second was. Fine we're not talking you Know Honey badger Or Patrick. Peterson you know the guys that
you know this year Obviously Derek. STINGLEY i don't think anybody on that specific talent, level but their, speed there's aggression and When Ohio state is playing a short, game when they're just looking for seven yard outs and they're just looking to run the ball between the. Tackles how much do you really need from your secondary if they're able to cheat and blitz and crowd the line AND lsu took.
Advantage, wow they had trendon holiday on this. Team they had on. Offense, Yeah Brandon LaFell, sure early du, SET i believe early du. Set, Yeah Jacob, hester he got what he. Wanted, yeah a lot of these guys went on.
The plane in the.
League BUT i don't know IF i AND i think as we saw it crystallize over the next decade or, so it wasn't always clear That elisa how to use guys like. That they got the most they could out Of Jacob, hester but guys Like Brandon lafel and some others obviously in their current system might have profited a little bit more on the stats. Side but nonetheless they win the national. Championship the final was thirty eight to twenty.
Four going back to the team by team, deathmatch here we've got two thousand and FIVE usc against two thousand and Seven Ohio. STATE i still THINK i got to go two thousand and FIVE usc.
Here, YEAH i don't think firepower, Wise Ohio state on offense has that much to keep. Up even THOUGH i think the defense would do a really nice job against USC's more deliberate. Offense i'm going to go with. Quarterback i'm going to go, with you, know the game, changer probably the best open field player ever In Reggie. Bush so If Jacob hester was able to get his against This Ohio state, DEFENSE i Imagine Reggie bush And Lindell
white would have been. Fine So i'm going to roll WITH usc here And Ohio state just they didn't have they didn't put it. Together trestleball was never going to be an. Offense it was never going to field an offense that could compete with the speed of some of the nation's best Until Urban meyer got rid of trestleball and did his own. Thing so we now go to two thousand and, eight and this is where for me it gets. Interesting oh two thousand and eight Is. Oklahoma this was a hell of a.
Year it was a hell of a year two thousand and. Eight, now we talked a little bit about this era on a previous, show but here is the. Context oklahoma goes twelve and one in the two thousand and eight. Season they LOST i think forty five thirty five something like that In Red river shootout To. Texas that's always Mid, october, right run the table the rest of the. Way they eventually qualify for THE Bcs National championship against The Florida.
Gators it was interesting on a number of different, fronts not the least of which was it obviously being A national championship. Game but one of the big other headliners here was the fact that it was Two Heisman trophy winning quarterbacks going against one. Another this is only the second time it had. Happened it happened a few years prior With Matt weiner Against Jason, white But Sam bradford as a red shirt sophomore Against Tim tebow was quite the top billing. Here it was a hell of a
year For Sam. Bradford so you'll remember we talked about The oklahoma game and The National championship With Paul thompson and how that was a. Disaster, Well Sam bradford in that old clip is sort of wandering the, sidelines youthful, looking, innocent no idea what he's about to become In Oklahoma. War Sam bradford won the job the next year and in two thousand and eight ends up throwing fifty touchdown.
Passes and winning The. Heisman feels. Good.
Yeah the offense At oklahoma was incredibly, dynamic over fifty points a game on. Average they were beating teams by about four touchdowns at a pop sixty points or more in five straight games to close out the. Year so this is a team that was. Humming they were firing on all cylinders going into the. Postseason there was some talent on that. Team there was some real talent on that.
Team DeMarco, murray who actually was At oklahoma five. YEARS i didn't realize that UNTIL i went back and, looked but took a red shirt and then played out his eligibility in, totality he didn't play in THE bcs game because he heard his, hamstring but he was on that. Team Trent williams was on the offensive. Line there's a whole slew of other folks on the offensive side that are of interest and certainly household notable names for college football.
Fans on the defensive, Side oklahoma Was we're not going to pretend that this was the shutdown. Defense it was. Anything but that, said they were. Fine they were, fine and they Had gerald. McCoy joe McCoy went on to be a really high draft, pick was An All american a couple times. Over it was like a six Time All. PRO i don't even know if he's still, playing but he clearly was a. Dude and it was funny when
you were watching back parts of this. Game you were texting me last night or this morning basically, saying, like, Man gerald, McCoy he just couldn't do it, all could? He oh, wait he just got an interception off Of Tim tebow dropping back into. Coverage, yeah so there were Some there were some real dudes on This oklahoma, team and you, know we could talk about the dudes that were across from them on The florida. Side but this game here definitely had that feel OF sec dominance really
coming to the. Mainstream it also had the feel of like the early makings of The Big, Game Bob. Moniker there were a lot of things THAT i think started with this game or were kind of like intensified by this.
Game you go back a couple of, years so this IS i think year three Of Kevin wilson as the offensive, coordinator this iteration WITH. Ou you, know he does great things For northwestern at the turn of the. Century and, look The Paul Thompson Boise state experience was very. Entertaining but we got to see what An oklahoma offense looked like with somebody better suited to run. It And Sam, bradford especially after they lose To, texas was a man
possessed and rightfully won The. Heisman, interestingly there was A big. Twelve The Big twelve was the center of college football probably this, year right with the three way tie in The south Between, Texas Texas, tech And. Oklahoma of, Course oklahoma just Murders Texas tech. LATE i think they dropped
sixty six on the number two team in the. Country they lose To, texas and of Course texas famously loses To Texas tech and on The Michael crabtree play at the end of the game In, lubbock so we have a three way. Tie they go to the fifth tiebreaker to determine That oklahoma is indeed the team that should be going to The Big twelve championship. Game they end up storming back and Beating maszoo to get to this.
Game and you're, RIGHT i think you're under selling the defense a little just because of how quickly the offense, played and that sort of Left Brent venables probably scrambling a bit to rotate in guys and keep guys fresh Because gerald McCoy couldn't literally be everywhere as great as he.
Was Travis lewis was very good behind. Him the secondary took some lumps against some very good big twelve, quarterbacks but The oklahoma defense, especially it got much better next year When venables got used to things a little bit. More they were. Fine they were good enough to get them to THE Bcs National, championship and they were a great. Story they had the, speed they had the talent on.
Offense like you, Mentioned Jermaine gresham was just fantastic all season long and gave them a really difficult matchup element for essentially, everybody Including. Florida he was probably the most successful offensive player in that game in terms of getting open and affecting the. Game it was an Amazing oklahoma
team to. Watch they weren't fully the modern. Spread Sam bradford was under center a good, deal but they would get the ball quickly to playmakers in, space as people like to, say and guys Like Chris brown And DeMarco murray And Joaquin, iglesias a Young Ryan. Broyles they just tormented, everybody and they did it, Quickly they did it with,
pace they did it without. Huddling it was you can't tell AND i know our Pal Bill connolly just wrote all about, this but you can't tell the story of the modern spread without the utter destruction laid at the feet of The big twelve By. Oklahoma and so when they get To, florida you think to, yourself, well both these teams are, fast both these teams are, talented both
these teams of All. Americans we've got A heisman, Winner we've got this battering ram And Tim tebow and the speed Of Percy harvin and this absurd secondary what's gonna come of? It and it was just a fast. Game it kind of lived up to the billing, ultimately, though And i'm sure you have thoughts here, too it Was
florida's general speed on defense winning. Moments it was seven all going into halftime Because Sam bradford throws a pick at the goal, line and just the resilience OF i Guess florida's rushing game just they're Battering oklahoma down the field With Tim tebow And Percy, harvin and you, know whether It's Jeff demps Or Chris, haney it's just play after play after, play and it just Wore oklahoma. Down, YEAH i Mean oklahoma was not.
Themselves they were not AND i don't know if it's Because DeMarco murray wasn't out there on the, field but they were a shell of their former self in the rushing, department Whereas. Florida florida had a number of. Options tebow was of course the headliner that, year but you Mentioned Chris, Rainey Jeff, demps Even Percy harvin got. Smack Em Manuel moody was on that so they had a number of guys and it Was it was just so interesting the way That Urban meyer constructed that team because it just
those three, Names, Rainy, demps And. Harvin all of them were incredibly fast and could be used a variety of different. Ways it extends into the receiving game. Too Percy harvin so many different ways that you could play him if you wanted to put him out wider in the, slaughter out of the, backfield he was a matchup. Disadvantage Lewis murphy was on that, team sort of underrated but got
a lot of action And Aaron. Hernandez you, know we'll take all the bad stuff, aside But Aaron hernandez was a big time matchup disadvantage for, defenses so so much versatility on that offense that it was very difficult to. Defend and as we said at the top of this blurb about oh, Wait, oklahoma the defense is. Fine we're not here to disparage the, defense but it was certainly not their. Specialty they did a good job in this.
Game we did a good job keeping it close in this, game and, truly if not for like two possessions that went, haywire they could have won this.
Game, yeah And Tim tebow was really good on the. Ground he has a jump pass at the goal line which works out, well but he was okay through the. Air he wasn't, bad but he Wasn't he didn't lead the way with his. PASSING i know people are shocked knowing that he's A hall Of fame passer now and setting all sorts OF nfl. Records his picks were not,
good his interceptions were not. Good he was. Hesitant but when you were built like he, was And oklahoma just doesn't have the depth of, talent it's you, know it's an immovable force versus what's the phrase, Time i'm very tired, now but an unstoppable force against immovable. Objects. Yeah so you have The gerald McCoy led, front but at a
certain point they just wore down The oklahoma. Front AND i came away very impressed overall With oklahoma's two thousand and eight again the mere fact that we have a three way. Tie and by the, Way, Texas Texas, tech And oklahoma were all presented with big Twelve south, trophies which is sort of absurd that such a trophy, exists but they're all presented with. It and we get this championship,
game WHICH i think is what everybody. Wanted After Sam bradford wins The, heisman maybe outside Of austin And, lubbock But alabama comes relatively. Close, Right alabama GOES i think they're. Undefeated they go twelve to zero into THE sec championship, game And Tim tebow actually has an awesome game In atlanta Against John, Parker, Wilson Glenn, coffee a Young Julio, jones but not What alabama what what they would. Become those were Not winter. WONDERS i would, Say Glen coffee
And John Parker. Wilson but would they have been enough to Beat? Oklahoma? Perhaps, perhaps but they definitely were not enough to Beat, utah who actually finished number two in the FINAL bcs, standings going thirteen TO zh Beating alabama in The Sugar.
BOWL i am inclined to go oh Eight oklahoma over over at FIVE sc over FIVE.
Sc so the CASE i think is pretty easy For. OKLAHOMA i don't think it's an easy. Game but if you were going to exploit USC's weakness that, year it's probably their. Corners and while you know it's it's not clear That Joaquin iglesias and a Young Ryan broyles are killers on the, outside that offense is pretty perfectly suited to take DOWN. Sc SO i could see that for.
SURE i Think i'm gonna, go oh, Wait, Oklahoma i'm gonna do. It it goes against better, judgment AND i just love those TWO sc teams in four and, Five but they have Beaten florida.
Man florida was, Loaded clorida was. FLOADED i think how many times out of, ten how many times out of one hundred if this game is simulated In Elon musk's, simulation how many times Does oklahoma Beat florida on a neutral field with by the, Way Tom, BRENNAMAN i think three straight national championships With Tom brennaman calling all one hundred.
Simulations, well in simulations they could they could win forty percent of the. GAMES i don't, Know, OKAY i don't think it's that.
HIGH i THINK i could not believe The florida secondary was what it was that. Night Genor's, Jenkins Joe, Hayden Ahmad black And Major. Wright that's. Serious that is, very very. Serious AND i don't Think oklahoma if you play this game over and over, again especially Without DeMarco murray as just an an option leaking out of the backfield for over four. Quarters but what About but what ABOUT? SC i Think florida is in a better pasi to win
that game because of their speed on. DEFENSE i don't love their defensive, line BUT i think It's Brandon spikes And Brandon hicks at linebacker along with that secondary And Tim. Tebow if we're talking about a physically imposing quarterback with the ability to inflict damage with his, legs we KNOW usc didn't do well against that specific. Prescription So i'm going to Say florida. Here, okay all, right let's. Disagree how many? Ease?
NO i agree with, you okay. Wholeheartedly do you how do you feel about The oklahoma VERSUS c.
THING i Like. OKLAHOMA i, MEAN i THINK i think it's sort of a fifty to fifty toss up situation BECAUSE i don't know how they Cover Dwayne. JARRETT i don't know how they you, know there's just so many different problems with That Lane kiffin offense to have to deal. WITH i don't. Love we Saw Percy harvin get loose a couple of. TIMES i Imagine Reggie bush could also against This oklahoma. Defense so it's more of a toss
up to. ME i THINK i WOULD i would probably give the big game coaching nod To Pete carroll Over Bob stoops if we're looking at track, record So i'd say seventy thirty PROBABLY. Usc but it's it's very, close AND i can understand why you would Take oklahoma because of the. Matchup all, right, well let's let's do. This let's keep with two thousand and FIVE.
Usc, okay BECAUSE i think it's interesting now as we go to two thousand and, nine our final team that we're looking at on this show two thousand and nine would Be. Texas we've already talked about this game and what happened in this, game Notably cold McCoy getting, hurt his arm going, numb then Freshman Garrett gilbert coming in and throwing four. Picks, Ultimately texas loses in The Rose bowl To alabama thirty seven to twenty. One you AND
i debated the merits of their late. Comeback they did make a run at, It alabama pulled away, Late, okay but the headline here Is colt McCoy getting, hurt and prior to, That texas was in a remarkable spot thirteen to. Zero couple close calls throughout the course of the. Year really good, Team colt, McCoy Jordan. Shipley that was the. Offense let's not kid. Ourselves that was the offense in
two thousand and nine for The Texas. Longhorns that, Year Jordan shipley caught one hundred and sixteen balls for fourteen hundred and eighty five yards and thirteen. Touchdowns, Right colt McCoy threw twenty seven, touchdowns so not quite half of, them but pretty damn close to half of those touchdowns went to his boy, Roommate Jordan, SHIPLEY i, believe older.
Brother Of, jackson older brother Of. Case this was an interesting spot.
Here it was a good defense to compliment that two men, offense and they ran into An alabama team that was very loaded at the, time very loaded at the. Time this is A greg McElroy. OFFENSE i know you love WHEN i put him at the. Top but we're talking about guys Like Mark ingram And Trent richardson carrying the. Ball we're talking about receivers Like Julio, Jones Marquise mays
was on that. TEAM a whole host of talent on, defense not the least of which we Are, Yeah orlando, McLain Mark, Baron Javier, Arenas Marcel darius as you, Mentioned Mount cody on that. Team so there's a lot of talent on That alabama. Side it's no secret why they won that. Game but what strikes you looking back At texas and nine and specifically as you try to compare them to some of the other teams that we've discussed, Here so.
The defense takes a step back as much as or the, offense excuse, me takes a step, back the defense actually gets better even though they lose guys up. FRONT i think they Lost BRIAN. A rackpo from two thousand and. Eight Sergio kindall's still, There Earl thomas still. There the secondary is very good and it was for a long time With DWAYNE. A, kina who is just like the defensive back whisper For. Texas so they lose a key playmaker on offense In Kwan cosby who really helped to
stretch the. FIELD i Think colt McCoy set a record for completion percentage in two thousand and. Eight it was like it was like seventy six. Percent it was, cartoonish and so THE i think the shame is that the two thousand and eight squad wasn't playing healthfully Against, alabama not. Necessarily the two thousand and nine a really impressive. Defense strange to See texas without a running. Game this is Post Jamal, charles and you, know they just can't seem
to get it. Gone It's Trey newton as their leading. Rusher but all things, considered they do survive some close calls in The big. Twelve that includes what the best Modern big twelve defense probably, yeah in two thousand and Nine's nebraska And domakin Sue Bo polini just mad house of. Horrors so they survived that game in the literal last, seconds and they make it to THE Bcs championship. Game they hang around really all season, long in the top
two or. Three the scares don't really drop them that. Much they end up not losing to anybody Until, alabama and even, then even, then With Garrett gilbert going fifteen to forty and throwing the interceptions that he, does it's still a game. Late so if we're SAYING usc could have, won if we're Saying, oklahoma maybe not often in a hundred game, simulation but they had, enough you, know if
certain things break correctly to Beat. Florida the way that that team came, TOGETHER i think you have to say the two thousand and Nine texas, team for all of its, flaws this is the Year Nick saban's Death star Of alabama became. Operational what they were upfront two thousand and, eight they were getting, there but they weren't there with the offensive skill positions like they were With Mark ingram And Trent, richardson and the depth of talent that they
built on defense was starting to become pretty. Scary so For Garrett gilbert to pull That texas team. Back i'm going to, say, yes they absolutely could have, one but because it Was Garrett Gilbert's i'm going to nick them a few points and Say i'm not putting them up against probably many of the first place losers of the four years. Prior but, still all things, considered this was a damn Impressive texas. Team this is A will Muss champ.
Defense this is an experienced offense that just didn't HAVE i Guess winter wonders once again Without colt, McCoy Without, kuwank Without Jamal, charles guys that were just so good for them in the couple years leading. Up they just couldn't. Hang they couldn't, run even though it was extremely close.
Late you're giving it a little too much, credit AM. I though you're giving, it you're giving. Again i'll come back to the previous argument we had on a different. Show but, like this game was over early And alabama Let texas back into. It, wait, No Grek gilbert was awful in this. Game he Made he was awful, mostly but he did make. Plays you were, Saying, alabama this is just we're rerunning an. Argument we had a couple
of weeks, Ago alabama tried very very. Hard alabama's offense put the defense in a very bad spot by going three and out a lot in the second. Half alabama's defense was. Trying Garrett gilbert threw over this defense a little, bit right?
Now is it twenty is it? Not hold? On hold? On you don't need to buy, anything, ty it was twenty four to twenty one, late, right that's. Irrefutable it's twenty four twenty One texas ball with three minutes. Left that's, fact. Right, Okay so if we're gonna say ten Point florida Over oklahoma is within reason For, oklahoma FOR. Ou if we're going to, say you, Know Ohio state AGAINST, lsu which was you, know started out pretty well for O, house THE i don't think they had much of a chance.
There if we're gonna SAY usc has a chance close, late we have to talk About gilbert completing passes against a Good alabama defense at. TIMES i don't. Know twenty four to twenty one three minutes, Left, Okay, well, anyway up against the rest of the, teams the text let's shot Against, Beckman let's do.
This let's see. This let's assume That colt McCoy. PLAYS i think that he started the. Game he started the, game but let's assume he doesn't get. Hurt, now let's compare Nine texas against for starters FIVE. Usc, okay where do you come down in that?
Matchup i'm FAVORING. SC i don't Think texas has the receivers LIKE i, Mentioned oklahoma sort of did the previous. YEAR i don't think outside Of Jordan, shipley they had the advantage going against THE usc. Secondary So i'll TAKE.
USC i am intrigued by That texas team and their offense against a really good defense In Ohio state both.
Years, Really colt McCoy texas did Play Ohio state in two thousand and, six SO i can't tell you what. Happened it was a Young colt. McCoy it was a different, team But Ohio state beat him twenty four to seven IN. DKR. Yep that's pretty. GOOD. Yep so we know the, ants. Sir different different, Team but we know About colt McCoy
Against Ohio. State what ABOUT Oad, oklahoma Ohait oklahoma against two thousand and Nine, Texas, Right so what's the difference BETWEEN Oad oklahoma and two thousand and Nine OKLAHOMA i guess now Is Sam. Brett, yeah now's not not much, really It's Sam bradford. Injury, yeah in two thousand and. Nine So oklahoma falls to a very average offense IN o,
nine but Oad oklahoma AGAINST o Nine. Texas If texas is a little bit worse and they were ten points better than them the year, before they're a little bit better on, defense but a little bit worse on, offense or noticeably worse on. OFFENSE i Think oklahoma has the, edge but not by, much because at least we have a good chunk of data about that.
Matchup BUT i Think i'm hearing here is if we are, ranking we've got five usc that we're going to take with.
Us to the.
Next show that we do talking about runners, up followed pretty closely by Eight, oklahoma followed by Nine, TEXAS i would, say followed BY oh Six Ohio state With Troy, smith followed by Seven Ohio state With Todd.
Beckmann Oh beckman as the last, place yeah, MAN i don't. Know that may have been the best defense of those. Five. Yeah so it's, BASICALLY i, mean who would you take between Six Ohio state AND o Seven Ohio. State pray Go Troy, Smith Troy smith being the difference, MAKER i think. So, YEAH i think he gave him the defense one year Older Todd, BECKMAN i think. So BUT i think the best thing on the field between those two squads is the seven. Defense i'd probably end up taking. That i'd
probably end up taking the. Defense we saw what the offensive line Of Ohio state would look like against a pretty nasty defensive. LINE i actually might take this very incestuous seven team over.
Six all, right, well right in solid verbootgmail dot, com right in on our social media, channels and let us know.
What your thoughts are on the. Matter.
Here it has been, fun, actually not just to go back through and rewatch old games now obviously we've got a lot of time to do, that but to do something like this where you actually get to look at it over a five year, chunk and we're gonna do
more of. Them we're going to continue to do this over the next few, episodes to look at runners up and really talk about individual seasons and how things broke, down because you kind of forget as time goes on some of the interesting and cool things that happen over the span of a, season and you know where we're in this mode of talking About alabama And clemson so often you forget about some of the other teams that have.
Challenged So i'm excited to keep. GOING i guess next time it'll be twenty, ten, eleven, twelve, thirteen and, fourteen, correct which means we get to talk About Notre.
Dame And oregon And, oregon AND i think we're gonna we're gonna go pretty quickly Through Oregon auburn because we've already sort of discussed that at. Nauseum but, yeah twenty twelve is a crazy. Year we've got A heisman winner And Marcus mariota twenty, fourteen so that'll be.
Good all, Right well, again soliverbal at gmail dot. Com go on out to our website at solidverbal dot, com and we would advise everybody to follow along with the.
Show you can sign up for our.
Newsletter we're gonna start sending that out at some point in the very near. Future going out To. Spotify you don't follow the, show make sure you do out. There make sure you subscribe to the show On apple Or, google whatever your podcasting app of choice may. Be we will be with you all off season, long for however long that maybe we're in this for the long.
Haul. Dan, yeah and if you have listened to any errors on this show as we combed through five years of, seasons it's solid verbal at gmail dot. Com Attention, Tie, yeah Attention. Tie Now i'm the one WHO i think my batting average is lower on this episode BECAUSE i have the Loggeria. TIE i like to going through a whole bunch of games and teams and. Players BUT i had a ton of fun rewatching these old games and
watching where they were not as. Strong teams were not as strong AS i thought they, were or a lot, stronger, faster more impressive THAN i remember them, being especially Those Ohio state teams on. Defense so, yeah let us know what you think and give us your. THOUGHTS i suppose now that you know what we're doing here on the First Place losers moving forward from two thousand to twenty ten season through the twenty nineteen. Season all, Right well that's on that. Note for that guy over, there way
over there in Southern. California for, Myself Ty hildebrand over here in Eastern, pennsylvania thank you so much for giving us some of your. Time we hope you and yours are happy and. Safe and.
Healthy keep washing those. Hands we will talk to you all in a.
Week in the, meantime stay, solid, peace