Herm Edwards Fired + The Drive for Six - podcast episode cover

Herm Edwards Fired + The Drive for Six

Sep 21, 20221 hr 7 min
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Episode description

Ty and Dan walk through the Herm Edwards firing at Arizona State and try to make sense of the rumored candidates. Plus, an exhilirating ride on the Drive for Six, with a closer look at the chances of Kansas, Duke, Rutgers, Arizona, Oregon State and Vanderbilt of making a bowl game.

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Transcript

Speaker 1

Welcome to the solid verbal Hell.

Speaker 2

That for me. I'm a man, I'm for I've heard so many players say, well, I want to be happy.

Speaker 1

You want to be happy for a day?

Speaker 2

Edith Steak is that woo woom?

Speaker 1

And Dan and Tie, welcome back to the solid Verbo boys and girls. My name is Ty Hildenbrandt. That fine gentleman over there, the one, the only, still, the incomparable Dan and the man Rubinstein, Sir, how are you?

Speaker 2

I'm good? I'm I say that every show and I'm a happy guy. Ty, I don't know what to tell you, and I'm especially happy about this show. I'm especially happy about what the day holds. Look. Fall hasn't encroached. It's still summer sort of. It's going to be the eighties today. I got outside yesterday. You know what I got yesterday? Ty, I got a library card. Come on, look at me.

Speaker 1

Wow, it's the other time in my life, father time chasing you down.

Speaker 2

Welcome one, Welcome all.

Speaker 1

Thank you for tuning back into the solid verbal of this episode, all of our episodes, driven by our good friends over at Geico. We have announced a concept for the live show next month. In like two weeks, two and a half weeks in New York soliverblelive dot coms where you can buy tickets. If you're in the New York area, please come on out and see us potentially fail spectacularly. No, that's not a way to sell the show. Ty okay, Well, then sell me. Sell me on College Football The Game Show.

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Speaker 1

Yeah, to be clear, you can bring your friends. Uh do we have a splash zone set up for this. Oh yeah, yeah, come on, we always have that splash zone. It doesn't always work out that people are going to get drenched in the Knight's fluid.

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Da joure right, right, But the potential, the possibility always exists. Oh my gosh, the possibility always exists that the people need to know if they're sitting close that they're in the splash zone. You never know what could happen at a Soliverble Live show College Football Colon. The game show Colon, an interactive experience Colon presented by the Solid Verbal Colon is still a podcast.

Speaker 1

Not until actual game show, but close enough.

Speaker 2

I don't know, might be someday, who knows.

Speaker 1

Colon come and see us. Sorry, that's five Collins. Welcome to our college football show. I'm ty he's been over the next forty five minutes or so, we've got news. We've got a little game that we are very excited about. Oh gosh, I love this game. I don't even recall how long we've been playing this game for. It's a little bit of a drive for six Spin type of show that you know, we've kind of had percolating for

a while. And it just so happens that this year we've got teams like Duke and Rutgers, Kansas, even Vandy that are potentially going down that long wiggled road that is a drive for six. So gonna do that here momentarily.

Speaker 2

But before we.

Speaker 1

Do, Dan, I can't yell today.

Speaker 2

I don't got the energy breaking.

Speaker 1

Herb Edwards fired shortly after we hit the stop button, as per usual on the Sunday recap episode. Thankfully, we had the foresight to preempt it a little bit at the very end of the episode by giving ourselves some contingent season the event that Herm or Brian Harson or hel Kirk Farrens got the axe. Indeed, Herm was fired potentially on the field. I don't know if you saw that clip, looks like maybe it happened on the field.

He took it like a man. But this was pretty much an open secret that it was going to happen. We were just waiting for it to occur. This one, of course, happens after the loss to Eastern Michigan. Naturally, you've got articles out there. I've got one in front of us from Dennis Dodd, our friend from CBS Sports with eleven potential candidates. Should I read through some of these names for you, that's sure. Absolutely Matt Rule. That

rule always would be a win. Always named in conjunction with the college game Byron Leftwich, the current offensive coordinator for the Tampa Bay Bucks, Dan Mullend currently with ESPN.

Also Tom Herman, currently studio analyst. We've got Todd Monkin, the offensive coordinator for Georgia, Hugh Freeze, the much maligned head coach at Liberty, Brian Harson, the currently and still much aligned head coach at Auburn, Dion Sanders coach, prime head coach at Jackson State, Mike Norvell at Florida State, Justin Willcox, who just keeps getting on these lists despite the fact that we've seen the offense the last couple of years, head coach at Cal and Rick Neuheisel, if

only because he lives in the area. God, So those are eleven names, Dan, of those eleven names outside of Matt Rule, which I think would be a huge win, I don't know if that's likely to happen. You know where I stand on Matt Rule. I think he's the next head football coach at Penn State. If and when James Franklin leaves right. But beyond rule, who would clearly be a win. Of the other ten names here, who is of interest to you? Of them?

Speaker 2

None of them are of interestable. So here's okay. Here are the particulars. I do not think Arizona State is a bad job. I don't think it's an average job. I think it's an above average job that perhaps when you see job lists or you see the fact that college football media people spend time in Phoenix, and they wonder to themselves, why doesn't every top kid go to Arizona State, And they think Arizona State is a bigger job, perhaps or a more attractive job than it actually is.

I think it's a pretty good job. Now, the changing landscape of the PAC twelve ten in the future, and the changing landscape of whatever happens with the NCAA investigation into alleged improprieties on the recruiting trail, it seems like you are going to need somebody young, hungry, and can turn chicken shit into a chicken sandwich because the roster is going to be in a place that might not

be super attractive for a year or two. Now, you can always upgrade things quickly via the and Arizona state is a place where you can attract talent from southern California, from the West Coast, from other parts of the country that aren't necessarily looking like what Arizona looks like later on in the season. It's an attractive place geographically. It's a big campus. They upgraded facilities relatively recently. There is a history of some success, but infrastructure internally wise, right now,

who's going to be the ad moving forward? Is it a long term Ray Anderson thing? Who brought in his close personal friend and former client, Herm Edwards. Is he going to be making that decision? I don't know, Maybe, maybe not, And so there is there are the number of question marks involved in the job make it interesting and so generally speaking, with jobs like this, going retread doesn't work out. You can ask your neighbor to the south and Tucson with how it worked out with Kevin Sumlin.

Now there were highs and lows with rich Rodriguez, for sure, but I thought he was in a hungrier place than Kevin Sumlin when he arrived in Tucson. So no, they're going to be a number of names. But like the ones that you mentioned don't do much for me. I'd like to see somebody getting that early opportunity, be it a high profile coordinator, be it somebody with a connection to the school or at least connection to the West coast, so you feel like can hire relatively well, you know,

coming up from the Mountain West. Obviously, we saw Brent Brennan's name come up for the Arizona job and the success he's had at San Jose State, so that would be a come up job for him a San Jose State, a place that traditionally has not had a ton of success. So I think it's a good job. I think you can go into California and recruit a bunch of high level three star kids and some four star kids that you know, the LA schools or Oregon whatever, like, it's

a different experience. You can go away to Arizona if you're from southern California, you're from northern California, whatever. I think there's plenty of talent. The uncertainty around conference, I suppose, is a thing more for a school like Arizona State than for Oregon or Washington, because the general sentiment is that they're going to land somewhere bigger than whatever the long term prognosis is for West Coast football. But I

don't know. I think you can win in Tempe. I think with the right guy, and that's true of anywhere basically, but I think specifically there. As the talent level has increased in the state of Arizona, which it has, it absolutely has, the Arizona schools have not done a successful job keeping that talent at home. You look, you know b Jon Robinson and Spencer Rattler. Oregon's done a tremendous

job recruiting Arizona talent. Obviously, USC has a history of doing it as well that geographically, it's in a tough place to want or to convince kids to stay home with, you know, Texas not terribly far away. The California schools,

Oregon whatever, Washington has had success in Arizona. So I just think the right smart guy, which is very easy to say without naming a specific name, But everybody can succeed at somewhere, well, no everybody can succeed at a place that's set up in the way that Arizona State is set up, with the with the right surrounding investment. So in terms of Matt rule, could succeed at Nebraska,

could succeed at Arizona State. Sure, but this is not the point of his career in which he's coming up from Temple right, this is not his like proving ground point of his career, which is different. So as I look around the West Coast, there's nobody really assistant wise at USC that jumps out to me or UCLA. Arizona did a good job finding Jedfish with his connection to the West Coast and the way he hired aggressively, I think is is pretty great. Kenny Dillingham's name has come up.

He's very young, but he has that ASU connection. I think he is from Arizona and went to ASU. He's thirty two. He's called plays for three weeks. But again, thinking like that, yeah, I think is a more successful way about going about your business. Well, so the I think it's a solid B plus job.

Speaker 1

Yeah, I mean the point that keeps coming up, and again, I think there is a lot to be learned about this exact circumstance here, what somebody is walking into. But the common threat, if there is one among all the reports that I've seen, is ASU was willing to spend whatever resources to make football more of a priority, to get it out of the proverbial gutter. Everybody says that, literally everybody says that after they fire a coach, So you don't take much from that.

Speaker 2

But they spent on those facilities. They did spend in the facilities. They raised the money they spent like they're trying to keep up and be aggressive. That the actions are backing up the words. And I think that's my point. So regardless of what the circumstance is with the administration, there has been at least a fairly recent track record out in Tempe for investing in the football program, and so we'll see here. I mean, I'm not enamored with any of these names.

Speaker 1

I think Matt Ruhle will be a huge win, but I'm not convinced he wants to leave the NFL unless they kick him out of the NFL. Byron left which, of course is an interesting name. Brian Byron Leftwich should be an NFL head coach now and it's going to happen before long. So I don't think college is in the cards for him. I'm interested in Tom Herman. I'm interested in Tom Herman. I know you said about retreads to him. I like Jonah Hill, like, I don't know. Yeah,

I tell you though, I'll give you a second. He's from southern California.

Speaker 2

I understand. Uh has the Texas connections continue?

Speaker 1

It just feels like his star faded so quickly after a meteoric rise, given what he did at Ohio State and then got the Texas job and that kind of went poorly, as you would be a much different circumstance than what he had at Texas. But Herban's a guy that's interesting. Another thing that's interesting to me. And then we're going to move on to you know, one or

two other mini news tidbits here. If they're going to put Hugh Freeze on the list, given the controversy around Hugh Freeze, why not put Urban Meyer on the list too, right, Like you would think a program that is under investigation for whatever would want to steer clear of any other potential controversy by hiring a coach that perhaps has a toxic name. Hugh Freeze is on the list, why not herbs? Why not herb just throw them on the list?

Speaker 2

Right?

Speaker 1

Why not?

Speaker 2

Right? So, Okay, I'm looking at Bruce Felman's list. Obviously this is like his beat the coaching circles and the coaching hiring world. Whose list did you go off of? I went off with Dennis Dodd. Okay, I'm gonna take mine over yours. Sorry. He has Jeff Jonathan Smith, who is a legacy and a proud Alama Star quarterback from Oregon State, so you can understand his emotional tized to Oregon State might be more difficult to pull out an

existing successful Oregon State coach. Kalani Sataki interesting, but they're going to be a major conference team in short order, so Arizona State is a bigger job to me than BYU, but still like he has his connection to BYU as well. Charles Huff is an interesting man so that he just became very familiar with as a Notre Dame fan. Now thank you, still very early on in his tenure, but his ability to recruit the roster in the Sun Belt, I would probably say another year too, because he's still

relatively young. But I don't think age is as much a barrier as it used to be. So Charlestoff is interesting, though his experience in footprint is not on the West Coast. Sean lewis another younger guy who's done good things at ken State offensively, especially younger guy. I don't hate the Todd Munkin name just because he hasn't had that proved experience at a major place. He was at Southern miss

and did a good job turning them around. And now you can sell people on the like gets In Bennett, Yeah, stets In Bennett, and just the tutelage of Kirby Smart and the Georgia DNA and the way that like Dan Lanning, got himself opportunities and ended up at Oregon in some part because of that. Barry otom I'm seeing obviously his head coaching tenure didn't go terrifically well at Miszoo. But somebody else who I think has a pretty strong name

in the industry. I've seen Bill O'Brien, Alex Grinch, Jeff Grimes, Casey Dunn all come up. I think when you mentioned Tom Herman, I think it's fair to say, and this is I don't want to speak out of turn. I think it's fair to say that you'd think he'd have more opportunities that would come out Tom Herman's interviewing for this. Tom Herman is the guy that they're honing in on

for this job. You'd think that there would be more interest given the success he had at Texas when he did have success, the success obviously he had at Houston, and the success as a coordinator Ohio State success on the recruiting trail, that there's something behind the curtain. There's something behind the curtain. There's always going to be, you know the other side of this, the whispers about oh, he's this, he's that, and sometimes not specific to Tom Herman.

That's the reason why an obvious candidate for a lesser job than Texas isn't as obvious as it seems, and so you're always gonna hear whispers about guys. But I think that's something probably with regard to Herman.

Speaker 1

Unfortunately, unfortunately, and double unfortunately is the fact that this is not going to be the last in season firing. I think there are more on the way. We've heard rumors of Jeff Collins at Georgia Tech, Brian Harrison, you'd have to believe is another guy on thin ice. I believe that they're going to get this cycle started early. Just the way US seeded last season, I could expect there's going.

Speaker 2

To be more of this.

Speaker 1

So, yeah, we're going to have to continue taping our contingency plans at the end of our Sunday recap show.

Speaker 2

Depending on what happens. Yeah, I think somebody with especially strong connections to California or Texas would be helpful as a starting point for the next Arizona State head coaching job, or have the opportunity or have the ability and personality to attract guys with that background.

Speaker 1

I have one other bullet point here before we get to our game, Djore, this is breaking, quote unquote breaking per Brett McMurphy of Action Network. Yeah, just a little bit before we hit the record button here, the Bedlam series betwe in Oklahoma Oklahoma State officially off starting in twenty twenty five when Oklahoma makes it official and jumps over to the SEC. I don't know if this comes is in great surprise. We've seen this often when teams

move conference. The first casualties are generally the rivalries that we love among college football. It is one of the big bombers, perhaps the biggest bummer when we've got this conference realignment going on. Beside the fact that this is all underpinned by money, and I don't know if any of us college football fans like to think in those terms, but losing a rivalry is something that is very tangible, and especially a game as great as Bedlam. This fricking sucks.

This sucks. I can't even uugh. I love this game every year, and I know they've moved it around a little bit, and you know, to try and accommodate the Big Twelve championship and not have it on back to back weeks and what have you. But the fact that we're losing games like this, I think is going to be the biggest black guy for any wide scale, mass scale conference relign and beyond what we've already seen.

Speaker 2

Agree, and Oklahoma fans would say, look, all we did was beat them ninety eight percent of the time. Like, what's the novelty in it at this point? Like we kind of know what's going to happen almost all the time. Although correct me if I'm wrong with Oklahoma State is

on a current winning streak in this rivalry game. Actually correct, yes, And the Oklahoma coach may have left in the wake of it in no small part because of the way that they lost that game and the way that the disappointing season ended last year of parentheticals, the d parentheticals, who's who's to say, who's to say? Astricies and parentheticals. In Oklahoma state fans, you have the hope every year of turning around the trend of losing to Oklahoma all

the time. And then from a national standpoint, people who just enjoy big college football games, we lose one of the best and whatever. You wanted to find a rivalry as it's a rivalry. Oklahoma fans consider texas their biggest rival, and that's fine, but there's a certain amount of energy and emotion tied to bedlam that you're just not going to get, at least not for a long time, between Oklahoma and Arkansas, Oklahoma and Tennessee, Oklahoma and Auburn, Oklahoma

and Florida. However this works out. I know Oklahoma has a history with some of these teams that they're going to play in the SEC, but this is in state. This is a certain amount of energy that like we are trying to now compress everything into a pretty good spot. Everybody's eight and four and maybe we'll have some new bad blood arise. I don't know. I just when you start taking these emotional and energetic elements out of the sport.

It sort of depersonalizes it. Everything is a TV show, nothing has history, nothing has specific energy to it, or it takes a while, and this is how we let it all happen. I mean, when we're questioning in ten, fifteen, twenty years, like, huh, sports just kind of seems more antiseptic without some of these rivalry games. And look, we get some of them back, right, we have the Backyard Brawl back and it's more of a novelty than a thing that you can set your calendar to.

Speaker 1

Better than nothing. But I don't know, it's a bummer. It's all sad, still sad. It's a bummer.

Speaker 2

I mean, we're in a North Korean video to this game, which people thought that was real. I know people did think that was great. It's a bummer.

Speaker 1

It's just a big bummer again. Per the report from Brett McMurphy, neither athletic Department with any imminent plans to start up the rivalry beyond twenty twenty five. They're not ruling it out at some point in the future. I'm sure they will play at some point in the future, maybe a playoff game that'd be wild, but at least for the time being. Starting in twenty twenty five, the move over to the SEC claims another rivalry victim.

Speaker 2

I guess we could always hope in the way that Texas and Texas A and M seem like they're going to meet more often than they have lately now that they're going to be in the same conference. There's always hope that when the SEC expands to thirty seven teams, at one of those expansions will include Oklahoma State and they'll be forced to be in the same room together again. But I don't know. This is what has always attracted me to always attracted me to the sport is the

Taylor Swift bad blood of it all. Then you and especially like the in state stuff, especially getting Florida Florida State, Clemson, South Carolina, even if you know Oregon Oregon State, even if it's weighted in such a clear direction that you get that upset, and that's what actually means more, not the SEC. The upset in the rivalry game is what means more. And so I don't know, it's just it's all deflating. It's not new. This was sort of bound to happen. I wish I had do I have my Yeah,

I still have Bound. It was bound to happen when Oklahoma left the Big twelve. But you know when you see stories like this confirming at all and you're like, well, too bad. All right?

Speaker 1

That does it for top level news items, stay tuned. We of course have our preview episode for week four. We'll go through much more news and specific game previews. Then let's talk about the drive for six.

Speaker 2

Damn oh, I'm a driver.

Speaker 1

Such a good frickin' movie, baby driver.

Speaker 2

It is very good? Is it as good as Bound? We'll find out when you eventually watch Bound for the first time. I still have that, and give a very detailed and specific review, which you've promised offline.

Speaker 1

I have promised off I don't understand what the big deal is. It's just is it a spicier movie than normal?

Speaker 2

For me?

Speaker 1

Like? What do people think I am here? I have lived a bit of a sheltered life. I'm not gonna lie, but I'm not averse to watching movies with a little bit higher spice factor.

Speaker 2

Why not? Okay, you're gonna watch Bound, give and report back. I'll rewatch Bound too. We'll dedicate a specific segment to the movie Bound. The nineteen ninety six erotic thriller Bound.

Speaker 1

Yeah, let's do it, baby, I'm in. Okay, all right, I'm in. This segment brought to you by our good friends over at Verballers dot com.

Speaker 2

M that's us, Yeah, that is us.

Speaker 1

Forballers dot Com early access to all of our episodes, get access to the discord server. Discord server is fricking cool.

Speaker 2

It's great.

Speaker 1

When we started this thing, we had no concept for what discord was. It has quickly become our favorite hang during well throughout the course of the week, but certainly during game days on Saturday. You can just chat with other like minded college football fans. It's civil, it's fun. We've got a score bot that keeps you up to date with all the games. Scorebot gets a little bit over the top from time to time, but sure. Nonetheless,

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To my knowledge, it might be the first poll that is out there. It is certainly the most important poll. Yes, I think we'd agree it's the most important top ten pole on the interwebs come Sunday morning.

Speaker 2

Agree verballers dot com. Okay Forballers dot com get in on that early access and that that's sweet, sweet pole action. I regret that phrasing.

Speaker 1

We're popping the hood today on a group of surprise teams. Thus far, through three weeks of the college football season, four if you count week zero because some teams in here did play Week zero games. We have made a lot of hay on this show. And I want to say this goes back to our conversations with our friend Will Leach talking about Illinois a lion I football, how every year it's not just a plight to get to.

Speaker 2

Be not embarrassing. Yes, is the phrasing hugging with the instruction there? Thank you?

Speaker 1

Yeah, But the drive for six, the drive for Bowl eligibility is something that we have paid I think a fair amount of attention to over the years, we think it's important. Yeah, definitely, we like to train our attention on teams that clearly have a drive for six underway, and thus far there are a grouping of teams that I think are particularly interesting, and we do need to take some time right now and evaluate what their drive

for six looks like. It Just pop open the hood, just pop it off in that hood and let's talk it through, whether they're going to make it to six, whether they're going to break down along the way, What does the future have in store for a grouping of teams here.

Speaker 2

Yeah, it's basically our version as college football fans of like backdoor relegation, because no other sport has that very specific benchmark. Now, you can you're either a playoff team or you're not a playoff team, But I feel like the weight of being a bowl team carries more gravitas

in the winning world of college football. That's barely English, but yeah, there is something about like a perennial being a perennial not bowl team, in the way that you can be a perennial not playoff team, lottery team depending on the sport, sort of brands you as something and so that benchmark is a very successful benchmark, like, Okay, we're making progress, Okay, we're competitive, Okay, we missed out, but look like how we got to five and seven. We had this upset. We put the fear of God

into these three teams. There is that very specific benchmark, and we're going to look at teams who have started out now. Granted, quality of competition generally not there, but winning games better than losing games, and not all of these teams if I looking at I don't know if we want to start with Duke, but lost to Charlotte last year. If I if I recall right, correct, that is correct insand be Northwestern last year too. I understand that.

But winning, winning, winning, winning, winning. Let's start with due.

Speaker 1

Duke's got a new coach, Mike Elko, formally defensive coordinator at Texas A and m formerly defensive coordinator at Notre Dame. Guy knows how to coach defense. He's done a really good Duke's numbers. I was actually quite surprised going through and looking in advance of this week's game how well

their defense has played. Granted, the competition's been Temple, Northwestern and North Carolina A and T. Not going to pretend that that's the stiffest of competition, but they've won all three games, and on a per play opponent adjusted situation

adjusted basis, Duke's play in pretty solid defense. They're at three to zero with wins again over Temple, Northwestern, North Carolina, A and T. Per our friend Bill Connolly, Duke has a fifty percent chance of winning six or more games, which look if you're a Duke football fan, if you're just interested in teams along their drive for six fifty percent coin flip. Here's what it looks like the rest of the way. As I look at Duke. They're on the road this week at Kansas. Don't worry, we will

be covering that game. We have to get a choice game. They should be there. Cowards continue Virginia, Georgia Tech, North Carolina, Miami, Boston College, Virginia Tech, Pitt and Wake Forest. There are a number of games on here. If I am looking at this objectively through three weeks of the college football season, I say they could beat Kansas. I say Virginia could be a hot mess.

Speaker 2

They could win that game.

Speaker 1

They could certainly be Georgia Tech. Given the state of affairs in Atlanta, Virginia Tech, Boston College, even wake Forest, who knows what wake Forest. There's definitely potential on the schedule for them to find three wins along the rest of the way. How do you feel if you're looking under the hood here with Duke football.

Speaker 2

I think there's a lot of smoke and mirrors early because the competition. I think Temple might be a disaster. It's Temple Northwestern, who also might be kind of a disaster after to lose to Southern Illinois yep, and some sort of very small north North Carolina A and T A and M A and T. I'm impressed by we talked about the manor impressed with the manner in which they're winning. They're doing a lot of little things correctly.

By the way, it does help to be a former Brian Kelly defensive coordinator to get a Power five job, right, So, Mike Alco I think with his connection to the area, I think he hired well. I think Riley Leonard looks to be promising competition. He looks pretty good so far. He looks confident, and they're going downfield. It's not a lot of short stuff. The underlying information about Duke football, right now, and I watched a good chunk of that

Northwestern game. Is they're playing with a good amount of effort, which goes a long way when the talent level isn't there and the roster isn't there. It does seem to me that if we're going to use that key term of drive, they're driving fast enough to draft off of what tie, driving fast enough to draft off of drive right behind and be prepared when something falls off of the opportunity truck. The opportunity truck.

Speaker 1

It took me a while.

Speaker 2

It's ex because again you go through their schedule, Virginia Tech opportunity truck in and of itself, Boston College opportunity truck in and of itself. So the Drive to six includes right there two programs that are telling the world, hey guys, we beatable, Hey guys, you can have us.

So whatever you think of Kansas, which I don't think Kansas, I think Kansas's opportunity truck is souped up a little bit more than it's used to in a way that Boston College and Virginia Tech's axels are not necessarily ready to roll quickly. So I don't know how axles work. I am I'm going to say Duke's drive to six is looking and I'm inventing this scale on the fly. I'm gonna say robust, brisk. I think there. I think they have a really good shot of getting to six games.

Speaker 1

Interestingly enough, again per sp plus, the worst remaining team on this schedule is Georgia Tech.

Speaker 2

Which doesn't say much for Tech.

Speaker 1

Because we listed some other bad teams, but Tech is in a bad place. There's a reason we called that, Jeff Collins Collins excuse me at the beginning of the show. So we will find out a lot more this week, believe it or not. That Duke Kansas game, the Battle of the Basketball schools, quote unquote, I do believe is going to have a fair amount of interest among the weirdos that listen to this show. You and I included, Yeah, for sure, you and I included. That's why it's part

of our weekly pick them game. That is part of why it is going to be featured. As we go through and talk about all things week four, we will learn a lot more about both of these teams. Are going to talk about Kansas here shortly as well. I'm not sure if you have a lean in that game perhaps we can save it for tomorrow. But I have been impressed by Riley Leonard so far. He's completing about seventy three percent of his passes. He does look confident, and I think above all else it gets down to

like the friskiness quotient. It's not a real thing, right, We make up these terms, these scales every week when we do the show. But you do like the teams that have a little bit of fight the drive, and I think Duke in the early going has at least shown that much to our surprise.

Speaker 2

I just like the general. We were both pretty high on the hire of Mike Elcho. When you bring in a coordinator who has been at big places, who has built up a resume and a rolladex of assistance, and when he gets that opportunity at a place where he is, you know, obviously aware going back to his time in the state of North Carolina, that he's going to come in with a vision and whatever we think of the roster right now, I think it's going to continue to improve.

And it's in a good place of the country. And no, Duke has the academic thing as well, but it's in a good place of the country to restock in a better way than where Duke was roster wise the last couple of years under God. Now I'm forgetting on. I'm seeing his face with his dyed hair Cutcliff coach cut. Yeah, okay, so yeah, I say drive to six successful. How about that? I like it?

Speaker 1

I like it all right. Sorry about Oregon State. We've got Oregon State on this list. Boll team last year, both team last year. And I was going to say, despite the fact that I both, I think we both think that Oregon State is pretty good. Yeah, pretty good offense. I should qualify that per SP plus ninety seven percent chance of winning at least six games, which sounds high, but if you look at the remaining schedule, it computes USC Utah back to back weeks tough. That's pretty tough.

Probably two losses, though they could knock off either one of those teams. Who knows what their offense. Then we got games against Stanford Washington State, which you know we'll find out more about Wazoo this week as well against Oregon Colorado. Colorado's a hot mess, Washington better than expected,

cal still knows how to play defense. ASU who knows what state they'll be in by second to last week of the season close out the year Platypus Cup against Oregon So despite the fact that the projections seem to like Oregon State, there are enough teams on here that could really cause them some heartache. It does help though that they've started three to zero thus far. They've beaten Boise They've beaten Fresno, they've beaten Montana State. I think we are both pretty keen on this offense.

Speaker 2

Yeah, you'll pay good enhanced Boise State, to be clear, especially in that first half of the number of turnovers that then the havoc that they wreaked on the Broncos.

Speaker 1

Yeah, we feel pretty good about this offense. It was a question of defense going into this thing for Oregon State, at least in the early going, for whatever that's worth. The early going, the defense is better. It's better by about thirty spots in the sp plus as compared to twenty twenty one.

Speaker 2

Will that continue, I don't know. I have no idea.

Speaker 1

They haven't played bad offenses in the form of Boise State and Fresno thus far, so I'm curious to see as they get into certainly this week against USC certainly next week against Utah, They're gonna have plenty of opportunities throughout the courts of the season to showcase what that defense has done in the offseason, how it has improved,

if it has improved. Because there's also a game against Washington, there's also a game against Oregon Like, there are at least four or five teams on this thing that are really going to test Oregon State.

Speaker 2

Oregon State, for their part, might.

Speaker 1

Be content to get into shootouts, and my hunch is that with Jonathan Smith and his gambling tendencies, they'll probably win a couple of them. But how good do we think this team is? Is this let me let me phrase it two this way?

Speaker 2

Maybe is a.

Speaker 1

Tease for our show tomorrow. All Right, I think we both feel pretty confident that Oregon State's getting the six wins. Yes, totally, okay, Yes, that being said, level of confidence that Oregon State is good enough to catch USC and knock them off games in corvallis.

Speaker 2

Yeah, they're good enough to win that game. You know, we're sort of waiting for USC to play a different type of game and see how they respond, especially with that defense that you know, the forcing of the red zone turnovers and you know, Fresno was driving with Jay Hayner down I think twenty one to ten when he got hurt in the third quarter. Now they comfortably won that game. So it's like you're picking knits, You're you're looking at very small things in moments, but it's a

four quarter game. Oregon State's good enough to win that game. There is something, and this is gonna sound insulting to both of these entities, there's something about, like the Princeton offense, an Oregon States offense, the Princeton basketball offense, who do they take down like UCLA, like prime nineties UCLA and the NCAA tournament that when you watch Oregon States offense and you're a team who can't generate open receivers and open plays, you're like, well, the Beams are doing it.

If Oregon State can do it, why can't we major major program to it. Why can't we Texas A and M do it with five star athletes Oregon State doesn't have. And so that's why they'll be in a position to go to Bowls basically every year for as long as Jonathan Smith is there, be it long term, be it short, medium term, whatever. The defense is probably again bad this here. That's the problem, Like, why wouldn't you just run straight at Oregon State. They don't have much of a pass rush.

They're not stopping the run early on against what Fresno and Boise and Montana State. I want to say is who they played in Portland. So until they are able to get that to average or slightly below average where they're just frisky enough to get off the field at times, maybe confuse a couple quarterbacks who are down, it's hard to say that they're taking the next step into that the best of what they were under Mike Riley or

Dennis Ericksson way back when. So yeah, I have them squarely in that seven win footprint, which again considering some of the lows under both Mike Riley and Gary Anderson, you'll take because that also means you're probably threatening your rivals in Oregon, Washington, in the Northwest.

Speaker 1

Yeah, I'm scared to death of Oregon State, especially this week against USC. I'll give it away. I'm taking Oregon State, not necessarily, not necessarily to win outright. Come when I saw it, when I saw this line early on Sunday, when it first dropped, it was seven seven favorite of USC. On the road against Oregon State. I grab seven. It's come down a little bit. I'm not sure what it's at now. We'll find out in time for tomorrow. But that USC Oregon game I think is going to be fine.

I think potentially a lot of points. I think they get into trouble when they run up against teams like Utah because Utah just plays a much different style of offense.

Speaker 2

On a winning streak on a winning streak against Utah on winning streak. But we'll see, we'll see.

Speaker 1

I think we both feel very positively about Oregon State. It is an open question for me of how good do I want to feel about Oregon State. I've got it as like an eight win team, right I think by the time all is said and done, eight with maybe a game or two that you could flirt with nine, isn't there.

Speaker 2

There's also a sense with Jonathan Smith just about program construction, roster construction, that he hires West Coast guys that he's familiar with, that he's worked with, that are legacies in the Northwest. I think his defensive coordinator, let's Trent Bray, played at Oregon State, has experienced a bit. You know, it's good at Nebraska as a linebackers coach, and he didn't try to hire young recruiters. Let's just you know,

he's hitting the portal smartly. Like there's just like he's building a house slowly instead of trying to build it real quick and flip it right. Well, and then's just what we talked.

Speaker 1

We talked about this when we did the preview. There are some coaches and i'd include Mail Tucker, you know, even Greg Shianna. We'll talk about Rutgers next, but coaches that are not on the overthink express. They're doing exactly what everyone says they should be doing. And of course it doesn't always work. But at least in the case of Oregon State and frankly some of these other teams. Rutgers again next, it does appear to be working. Team is better than it was a year ago. So all right,

let's move on to Rutgers. Good chow, Let's talk Rutgers football. Let's talk Rutgers football. Rutgers football is three to zero. They've got wins on the road, a weird win Week one on the road over Boston College twenty two to twenty one. They crushed, absolutely obliterated Wagner for whatever that's worth.

Speaker 2

Come on, Tyan, you were Seahawks, Seahawks, Seahawks all week long, continue.

Speaker 1

Long, pause, and then last week on the road at Temple a sixteen to fourteen wins. So the wins that they've got here against Power five teams have both been on the road. Neither has been all that exciting. For what it's worth, They've got Iowa this week. They're about a seven and a half point home dog. The over under for that game is thirty five and a half point thirty five and a half point.

Speaker 2

I don't know if I realized they were playing this weekend. Yeah, which is just unwatchable.

Speaker 1

That is Vegas telling you don't watch this game, don't do it, don't put yourself through the Let's talk though, about this Rutgers football team. Rutgers has a thirty seven percent chance for the sp plus of winning six or more football games. Great their schedule the rest of the way gets in the way of that. A little bit gets in the way of that.

Speaker 2

A little bit.

Speaker 1

Iowa and Ohio State back to back weeks. I don't know if we think that highly of Iowa's offense, but i Will still plays defense and that's going to be a challenge for this Rutgers offense, which at last check is one hundred and third in the SP plus.

Speaker 2

Not a good all. By the way, we talk about the drive to six Rutgers, Iowa's gonna be the drive to thirteen.

Speaker 1

First one of thirteen. Get that dub continue amazing. We've also got a game against Nebraska. There's an Indiana game here, which might be the only winnable of the bunch here of the remaining lot, Minnesota on the road, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, back to back to back weeks. They close out the year on the road at Maryland. That final stretch of five games is brutal. So they've got two

stretches here with Iowa, Ohio State back back weeks. Then there's a little bit of a break before they get into it Halloween weekend, one more time. Minnesota, Michigan, Michigan State, Penn State, Maryland. I do not feel confident that they're getting the six wins. I have no doubt that they will challenge a couple of those teams, like the game against Indiana will be interesting. They're at home. The game against Michigan for some portion of that game I think

will be interesting because home. Yeah, for some portion of that game, they'll play super conservatively. They'll try to drain the clock to try to keep it out of JJ McCarthy's hands. They might keep that interesting for a quarter before they get blown out. But otherwise here it's really hard for me to see that path they get the six wins.

Speaker 2

Hmmm, Well, the Nebraska's not something you spend a ton of time. They have the Huskers. I think that's the Friday night of our live show. Do they play? Is that a Friday night game?

Speaker 1

October seventh, Soliverbolive dot com to see our show, not this one.

Speaker 2

We won't have the TV. We promise, yeah, now we won't subject people to Nebraska. Rutgers football's fine. So we talked about Oregon State going about its program building and roster construction whatever in a smart way that like there's a self awareness there. It seems like there's a self awareness with Ruckers as well that I agree. We're leaning

into the Greg Ciano defense thing. We're leaning into transfers, We're leaning into hiring assistants from the Northeast and have the connections in New Jersey as an underrated state in terms of developing high school talent and so far, again it's what Boston College, Wagner and somebody who who did they Temple beat Temple? Temple? Everybody gonna Temple this year probably,

But they get the hell off the field. They're not wasting time on defense, aren't they something like fifteenth or twentieth or something in terms of three and out percentage nationally? So they get off the field against bad teams, which makes me think they're going to get off the field. We'll be a little bit less against even better teams. That there's that confidence, the alignment, the responsibility, the effort on defense is there, and they're building depth. I just

I think they're gonna be pain in the ass. They're gonna bring teams down to their level, and they're not going to be as good as Iowa. But are they good enough to beat Iowa? And Iowa's especially bad on offense? Perhaps? Are they good enough to beat a Nebraska team who is willing to lose to you name it? Perhaps? So I'm kind of if we're talking Indiana, who I'm not a big believer, And still I think they're gonna be okay, They'll be improved but Indiana. Am I fully sold on Maryland?

Not quite? Yeah, this is kind of a September Terps thing, right Indiana, Nebraska, And I'm not sold on Penn State. I think it's you're not sold in se No, I'm not sold on Penn State being a challenge that Rutgers will be a challenge for Penn State. I'm not sold on that quite yet. But again, these are all a lot of these programs, especially what Michigan be ruckers by a touchdown last year at home. These are all programs

willing to have extremely off character and down weeks. They're all willing to maybe without counting Ohio State, but these are not bulletproof programs. And so if Rutgers is just doing it with sloggy defense up front, then they're gonna catch somebody sixteen thirteen. They just are. And I don't know if that's win number five or win number six or were number four, but they went to they kind of went to a fake bowl game last year right when they got that last second invite, lost to way

Wake Forest at five and seven. So yeah, I'm in for a similar season that the drive is going to be that they have enough gas to draft off the opportunity truck.

Speaker 1

You could see them Halloween weekend going to Minnesota and we get a Minnesota stinker where they're hyper conservative.

Speaker 2

They try to run the ball.

Speaker 1

Rutgers knows it's coming, probably not good enough to fully contain Moe Ibrahem, but you know they're not really going to air it out. That's just not the style of play. See that one being closer than might meet the eye. I've got him for five. I think they can get to five, but six to me is really pushing.

Speaker 2

It all right. Aaron, by the way, watching along on forballers dot Com, says New Jersey is underrated in general. I agree, okay, I agree there you. I'm a big fan of the state of New Jersey. My people hail from the great state of New Jersey, the Garden State.

Speaker 1

A couple more teams here, Kansas Okay three and oh three and oh Kansas thirty five percent chance of going six or more wins. They've beaten Tennessee Tech, They've beaten West Virginia, They've beaten Houston. The Houston win in particular was especially impressive. Also impressive here is the fact that they scored fifty six fifty five and forty eight points in their first three games, respectively. This is not an offense with Jalen Daniels that has had trouble against the

competition through three weeks. When it comes to moving the football and putting up points, you can do a hell of a lot worse than that. You can more a hell of a lot worse than that. If nothing more, Kansas football has ascended to the point where it is now entertaining, and that's an upgrade given where this program's been. That's a huge freakin upgrade. So I'll due credit to not just Jalen Daniels, but Lancel I pulled and what he's been able to do in very short order at Kansas.

The game against Duke this week I think is going to be particularly interesting. Kansas favored by about nine points in that game. We can talk more about that on the recap show or the preview show. Excuse me and the recap show for what it's worth. The rest of the way, here is what Kansas has in front of them. Iowa State TCU back to back road games at Oklahoma and Baylor before a bye week. Then as they get into the month of November, Oklahoma State at Texas Tech.

Texas closed out the year against Kansas State on the road, so they're getting into the thick of their Big Twelve schedule starting up in the month of October. I feel like Kandris Kansas excuse me, is particularly dangerous, Okay, per the sp plus a thirty five percent chance of winning six or more games. I just feel like, whenever you've got an offense like this, and granted it may all revolve around one player, but still, you can do a

lot worse than having one really good player. In college football, We've seen that work for any number of other teams in the past. Jalen Daniels right now, completing about a sixty seven percent clip of his passes not turning the football over through the air seven to one touchdown interception ratio, leads the team in rushing yardage, also has three touchdowns on the ground, so he is clearly the focal point

of their offense. They will obviously go up against defenses that are good enough to contain him, but there are plenty of other teams here in the Big Twelve that I don't know where their defense stands, and you could certainly see a scenario in which Jalen Daniels tortures them as well. So given the fact that they're already at three wins, I feel awesome that Kansas is getting a six. I feel great about this drive for six.

Speaker 2

Okay, I perhaps don't feel as good as you do, judging by your enthusiasm. I feel good about them today. Yeah. The problem with Kansas right now to me is the thinness of this roster and what this defense looks like over the course of the year, that even if their offense is still humming, scoring fifty ish points against your West Virginia's and your Houston's, that they're giving up fifty eight because two defensive linemen went down in the backups are just not as good, are just not and the

starters aren't great right now in that front seven. So it's just such a thin line right now that they're tiptoeing across because of depth, and so I think they're going to score points against a lot of teams. And like, I'm not super high on the Baylor pickleball offense at the moment, I'm not super high on the Kansas State offense at the moment. I'm not super high on Texas

Tech just in general, at the moment. There's a lot of things to hesitate about regarding a lot of these Big twelve schools, but a lot of them have built up rosters and have backups that are probably going to be closer to their starters.

Speaker 1

Now.

Speaker 2

Look, there's a lot of changing. The new coach of Texas Tech, new coach at TCU, new quarterback at Baylor, new there's a lot of new at a lot of different places. But I just think depth wise and the toll of the season wise, I think it's going to be a lot closer to five than seven to me for Kansas football. But in terms of being a hard out, in terms of in the way that they put the fear of God into TCU in West Virginia last year, they're going to be doing that more often this year.

So I think it's I think it's within the realm of possibility. I just think that roster, and even as impressively as they hit the portal, I think that roster is just in a more precarious spot to get it done weekend week out. Yeah, I mean, I'm probably going to take Duke in this game. Where's the game? It's a game is in Kansas.

Speaker 1

Oh, But the point spread's nine, and I feel like there is probably a little bit of undue hype for both sides of this equation. It's a letdown spot letdown spot for sure, And like I said at the top, Duke has been playing really impressive defense so far. Not the best competition, but still I think their body of work has been impressive for the teams that they have played and what that looks like on an adjusted basis. I also think it's important that people live in reality totally.

It's really important, like a lot of people don't do that when it comes to Kansas football or really life in general. If broaden this out, but we've had a lot of commentary when we put together over Ball or Top ten Paul and I know most people are tongue in cheek about it, but we didn't even have Kansas on the list of the top thirty teams, and people are not so much calling for Kansas to be a top ten team. I don't think most people outside of

perhaps Lancelot I Pulled and Jalen Daniels, believe that. But the amount of pushback we got to the fact that they're not even on that list is kind of surprising to me. This is not a top thirty team. This is a fun team.

Speaker 2

Is it? Is he team the root for.

Speaker 1

We're certainly gonna root like hell for Kansas to get the six to go beyond. It'd be a great story. It might be the best story in college football if they can continue at this clip. But let's pump the brakes a little bit here. I like this team to get the six wins, but put them in my top thirty.

Speaker 2

I don't think so. I think you need to ignore ironic online college football fans. I'm not talking about ironic online college football fans. I'm talking about it for bowlers. No.

Speaker 1

I understand people are like, hey, where's Kansas? Yeah, send in private messages, where's Kansas? Why's Kansas not on here?

Speaker 2

Yeah? And I asked them, ask them to wager one thousand dollars on Kansas against the tie rifteen team, and then they're going to be a little bit less excited about having them in the top ten as an option.

Speaker 1

I respect that viewpoint. I respect the enthusiasm for Kansas. I am right there with you. Yeah, but pump the frickin breaks?

Speaker 2

Okay? Can we pump breaks? Everybody?

Speaker 1

Yeah, let's live in reality here for a second. Six wins, count me in, count me in for and entertaining an entertaining season ahead, probably an entertaining game this week against Duke Like. They are nothing if not plucky and dangerous given their offense and their coach, who's a good coach.

Speaker 2

But Jalen Daniels is randomly excellent. I don't think he had any other Power five offers. I just quickly looked at his twenty four to seven page and it's a lot of like New Hampshire Air Force, Bryant, Eastern Washington. That's that is a wild Then that happens. That happens with G time guys. We saw with Grayson McCall. We've seen it all over the place. And now obviously the movement between you know, promising backups who were recruited by a number of schools going to a G five place

and thriving, that happens much more often. But yeah, Jalen Daniels randomly being really scary and good for Kansas is you know, awesome falling through the cracks of recruiting. It's always a cool story.

Speaker 1

Final talking point here before we let the fine people go. Yes, there are two teams on our list that have one loss and matching six percent probabilities of getting to six wins or more. Okay, those are the Arizona Wildcats two and one beat San Diego State, beat North Dakota State, lost in Mississippi State Week two m.

Speaker 2

H and Vandy.

Speaker 1

Vandy's three and one because Vandy played that Hawaii game, destroyed Hawaii on the road no less in week zero sixty three to ten. They've also beaten Elin and Northern Illinois. They lost to Wake for us by twenty Vandy three and one, Arizona two and one. As I said, matching six percent likelihood per the spplus of getting to six or more wins. Of those two teams, the only answer for which one is more likely to get the six wins is Arizona, right.

Speaker 2

Given the schedule? Yeah?

Speaker 1

Yeah, given the schedule, it is Arizona. So I want you to walk down that treacher path of getting Vandy to six wins and tell me what that looks like and how it could possibly occur.

Speaker 2

You want me to paint you the universe in which Vandy gets to six wins, right now, build me that Vandy universe, all right? Miszoo, South Carolina Florida, Tennessee are all prone to full collapses emotionally, spiritually, physically, football wise, whatever. No, they're not going to get there. But could they do something weird and beat Miszoo in South Carolina? Sure, that's the path to five you asked me to do. Six

is a bridge too far. But the depths of Miszoo, the woeful play, especially on offense at times, and Lucky. You can't judge a team against I'm an Oregon fan. You can't judge a team against Georgia. You just can't. Don't do that. Don't do that to yourself. I'm still worried about South Carolina. I don't think I'm worried about Florida. But the progress of Anthony Richardson the opportunity truck is going a little bit further farther in the distance.

Speaker 1

Might be rolling down the hill in Neutral.

Speaker 2

Yeah, so that's weird to me. They could be sort of the like Week one. They look like their way ahead of things, like the eighteen wheeler truck with tyrons. We're like, oh no, that was a Week one thing. I am confident in Vanderbilt and their ability to maintain a healthy distance behind like the Northwestern at its best opportunity truck, the Pat Fitzgerald of the South. I think

they're doing again. It's it's correct construction that they are going to be built like a six and six SEC team, and when teams completely implode, when programs implode, like I don't know, pretty much everybody the SEC East is prone to doing outside of Georgia and Kentucky. At the moment, I think Vandy might find themselves in an interesting spot. So I don't think they're getting to six games this year.

I don't think they're probably getting a five games this year. No, But are they get Are they gonna lose more games thirty to twenty four instead of thirty to three?

Speaker 1

I say, yes, Yeah, this is a team that Gosh, if you look at SP numbers from years past, it's been all deep red, which is not good. That that signifies bad. And so far in the early going, there have been market improvements across the board offense, defense, special teams, just the overall rank. Again, it's early, but this is all opponent adjusted stuff. We trust our friend Bill pretty deeply here with a lot of this stuff, and you know the proofs in the pudding there three and one.

Speaker 2

And yeah, what if aj Swan's really good, Yeah, then he's If AJ Swan is really good, then he's one of the best five quarterbacks in the SEC. Like, it's not an incredible SEC quarterback here, so I'd not to heap that kind of expectation on him, but that takes them pretty far.

Speaker 1

Six touchdowns, no interceptions, true Ridge average net yards per attempt is twelve point zero, which is really damn good.

Speaker 2

Yeah, so this year it's price Love, It's Stetson Bennett, It's kJ Jefferson, Will Evis, and then Hendon Hooker. So okay, so there's your obvious A list group. Will Rogers, I think Will Rodgers is there's a drop off before Will Rogers probably. I think there's a drop off before Jackson Dart definitely drop off between that top group and whatever A and M is doing at quarterback and Anthony Richardson, I think there's a drop off before him. Spencer Rattler

has a drop off before him. So I'm just saying, especially in the East, there's some opportunity. There's some opportunity when one of these teams is a mess, which you can never fully write off. Florida or Tennessee from being a mess that oh Fandy just beat Tennessee, why not? And they have So I'm I'm in on an improving Vandy. Think it's going to take two more years.

Speaker 1

It was four star aj Swan. Yeah, didn't get a lot of big offers.

Speaker 2

But you look at what Vandy's done on the trail and you know your credit. You know, Barton Simmons is the former podcaster, yep U director of player personnel or whatever. If they're finding those three stars who are like the number twenty seven linebacker, the number thirty eight left tackle, the number forty, you gonna win games. You're not gonna win a lot of SEC games. Is not gonna be a nine win team, win some games though, I like it. Let's close this out here very quickly.

Speaker 1

Let's mention Arizona. A lot of good vibes on Arizona right now, A lot of good vibes on Arizona. The schedule does get tougher, it does get tougher. This week on the road at Cow almost feels essential if they want to get the six wins, as does next week at home against Colorado, because the rest of the way, you've got Oregon, you've got Washington. You've got USC and Utah, all four of those teams in a five week span, which is just brutal close out the year at UCLA,

Washington State, Arizona State. So the thinking would be, you beat cal you beat Colorado. That gets you two four wins, because this team is two and one at the moment, and then you got to pick off two across the board. Maybe it's UCLA, maybe it's Washington State, maybe it's Arizona State. It's a very narrow path to get the six. I think most impressively, we've talked a lot on this show about coaches that aren't overthinking it. Jedfish is another one

that I would throw into that category. He's just building things in a way that makes a lot of sense. Yeah, he needed help at quarterback. You went out and got Jayden Delara like he's He's recruited skill position guys or guy Temac coming over from California freshman.

Speaker 2

Why I'm the guy from UTAP Jacob calling.

Speaker 1

Jacob cally also working the portal, bring in support where it's needed. So this is a team that feels very plucky to me in terms of plucky, frisky All Stars Arizona is up there, and there are a lot of good vibes, and it can be a weird place to play. And so I don't know if you're Oregon going on the road, I don't know if you're usc going on the road. But I don't think it's too far beyond

Arizona to just scare the hell out of someone. I'm not sure they're winning those games, but I expect Arizona to be at least frisky enough to be in this thing. Most of the games on the schedule get to like five wins. Six feels like a little bit of a stretch to.

Speaker 2

Me, though. Yeah, before the season started, I had them in my mind as a three ish win program, and I'll have them as a five ish when program after all.

Speaker 1

By the way, yeah, five and seven, looking right at you, I was all in on Arizona being better than expected.

Speaker 2

Yeah, I uh, with what Colorado and Arizona State look like at the moment. That's two. That's two of the needed three to get to five, right, Yep. So you talk, UCLA is currently a Southern Alabama ish program, are they not?

Speaker 1

That is what we are led to believe after what we saw in week three.

Speaker 2

I'm not fully and we're now just talking about two song games. I'm not fully sold on Washington State. On offense, no, I don't know. I think Washington and Oregon are pretty good. I think USC and Utah are pretty good. But ASU, UCLA, Colorado Cal still not figuring out offense. There's a path if Arizona injury luck and you know, forcing turnovers, getting off the field, whatever, because I think the offense will be fine, but there's a path to that five ish win jump.

Speaker 1

Let's send a big shout out to some of our premium for ballers who are watching, who are waiting, who are in joining this live hopefully enjoying the slide branded Jason Cale you mentioned Aaron earlier, Andrew. Who else we got in Sean mister Pizza Cooley always in mainstay mm hmm another Shane here. We got all sorts of action, Dan different, Dan and Chris, Danny.

Speaker 2

You'll like going through a sixth grade classroom taking role Danny Andrew, Aaron by the way, G five wise real quick, and then let's just get the heck out of here. Youn LV UNLV disastrous these past few years, very absolute disasters. But here's what we have so far. They're two and one. They beat North Texas comfortably, they beat Idaho State comfortably, and they kind of barely lost to Cal. Another incitement against Cal. But the Mountain West, the bottom of the

Mountain West is pretty bad. So if you and LV found a quarterback, Doug Brumfield has done well. Younger QB their schedule right now, and what I guess you're looking at Bill's thing. Hawaii is a nightmare, Nevada is a nightmare. New Mexico's nightmayor Utah State after winning the conference last year, might be a secret nightmare in not a good way. I don't think they're being the Notre dame, but San

Diego State's offense might be trash. I'm just saying, UNLV, Yeah, if the Brumfield bandwagon is taking on new passengers, like U and LV could just scoop up, like, oh, we're the worst five and seventeen in America, the worst six and six team in America. Like, I think the drive is actually pretty real for the Rebels right now? How about that? The drive is real? Marcus Arroyo, who I did not have a terrific relationship with as an Oregon fan, but I think he's hired pretty well. I don't know.

I think they're hitting the portal pretty hard. And like they they went after Harrison Bailey, like the former blue chip Harrison Bailey is not being great. He hasn't been great, but like he hasn't been loyal to guys because of names. Brumfield is the guy entered the portal last year. Convinced him to come back. Awesome, He's OKOD. So I'm saying the bottom Mount West is kind of trash right now, and so it's good to be near the bottom, but not the bottom.

Speaker 1

Seventy three percent likelihood of getting the six wins, that's not bad. Six wins are more unlv not bad.

Speaker 2

They were an over team a couple of years ago.

Speaker 1

They were really bad, Yeah, really bad. Two years ago they were one hundred and twenty third nationally. Yeah, and last year only like ten spots better. So again, slow and steady progress here, mm hmm is definitely.

Speaker 2

The name of the game.

Speaker 1

They've actually been quite good on special teams, which when you're trying to like when you're trying to cut corners as best you can, being good on special teams can help. I'm in all right, don't forget to going out to Solid giveaway dot com. If you've made it this far, we were giving away a CJ. Stroud signed mini helmet. We're going to do so in about three weeks. You can enter to win. You can also enter to win Quasi Daily. Go to Solid Giveaway dot com to find

out more about what Quasi Daily looks like. Yeah, in your neck of the woods, but we're giving away CJ.

Speaker 2

Stroud.

Speaker 1

I've got Michael Mayer behind me right now. For those watching on the video, I'm going to give that out. Send that guy out here in short order. We're giving away all sorts of cool stuff here as we wind through this college football season here in twenty twenty two.

Speaker 2

Daniel, I have nothing to add.

Speaker 1

You nailed it for that guy over there, my good friend Dan Rubinstein, for all of our most ardent and passionate for bawlers who are watching live at home via verbawlers dot com, and for myself, Ty Hildenbrandt, thank you so much for downloading, for listening, for playing along with our badness wherever you may be.

Speaker 2

We will be back tomorrow.

Speaker 1

We're going to preview week four. In the meantime, as always, stay solid, peace,

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