1 00:00:01,840 --> 00:00:05,440 Speaker 1: Check it out college football on the West Coast. This 2 00:00:05,519 --> 00:00:08,039 is Get Off My Pilon, a look at the PAC 3 00:00:08,160 --> 00:00:11,839 twelve and more, part of the College Gridiron Coast to 4 00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:13,519 Coast podcast network. 5 00:00:13,919 --> 00:00:17,519 Speaker 2: Here's your host, that Zimma. Welcome to the latest edition 6 00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:20,120 of you Get Off My Pilon college football podcast. This 7 00:00:20,280 --> 00:00:23,160 is your host, Matt Bemmick. This episode brought to you 8 00:00:23,199 --> 00:00:27,079 by the College Gridiron Coast to Coast podcast Network. Every 9 00:00:27,120 --> 00:00:30,199 week during the college football season, Get Off My Pylon, 10 00:00:30,359 --> 00:00:35,000 focusing on western college football in the United States. To 11 00:00:35,200 --> 00:00:37,799 find out more about College Gridiron, Coast to Coast and 12 00:00:37,920 --> 00:00:42,280 all of the different college football podcasts that originate from 13 00:00:42,320 --> 00:00:46,679 the College Gridiron Coast to Coast Channel and podcast Family, 14 00:00:47,039 --> 00:00:49,600 go to Apple and the other places where you listen 15 00:00:49,719 --> 00:00:53,399 to your podcasts. You get all the different podcasts such 16 00:00:53,439 --> 00:00:56,920 as Jason Powers, Florda Football Insiders podcast, the All Sports 17 00:00:56,960 --> 00:01:00,719 Discussion ACC podcast, which has a lot to talk about 18 00:01:00,759 --> 00:01:04,760 after Miami's loss. Well, heck, Florida Football Insiders from Jason 19 00:01:04,760 --> 00:01:07,000 Powers that also was going to talk about the Miami loss. 20 00:01:07,120 --> 00:01:10,640 So really the ACC and Florida Football Insiders both have 21 00:01:10,840 --> 00:01:16,599 a lot of interesting Miami content. This week. Also on Twitter, 22 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:18,640 you want to go to Gridiron Coast. You can find 23 00:01:18,640 --> 00:01:21,840 the links to the various college Gridirn Coast to Coast 24 00:01:21,879 --> 00:01:26,400 podcasts there on social media as well. So in our 25 00:01:26,439 --> 00:01:29,719 survey of western college football, we have to start with 26 00:01:30,159 --> 00:01:34,640 the Holy War, right the Beehive State BYU versus Utah. 27 00:01:34,760 --> 00:01:39,239 It was as contentious as most people expected. Yes, Utah 28 00:01:39,280 --> 00:01:42,200 has been having a miserable season and BYU was unbeaten, 29 00:01:42,680 --> 00:01:45,680 but right, you throw out the records when rivals play, 30 00:01:45,760 --> 00:01:48,959 and you also knew, hey, this is Kyle Whittingham, this 31 00:01:49,120 --> 00:01:51,799 is Morgan's galley, like they would have a plan for 32 00:01:51,840 --> 00:01:55,400 BYU's offense. Utah was going to bring everything it had 33 00:01:55,799 --> 00:01:58,840 to this game, and certainly on defense it did. Now, 34 00:01:58,879 --> 00:02:04,319 on offense, a really interesting story for the youths because 35 00:02:04,760 --> 00:02:07,560 you know, in the first half they actually were pretty good. 36 00:02:08,280 --> 00:02:11,960 They scored twenty one points in the first half. You 37 00:02:12,759 --> 00:02:15,520 would think that Utah was at least going to score 38 00:02:15,599 --> 00:02:17,879 something in the second half, but it did, and really 39 00:02:17,919 --> 00:02:20,520 that's where the game was decided. And we're going to 40 00:02:20,599 --> 00:02:22,560 talk about the penalty at the end of the game, 41 00:02:23,599 --> 00:02:26,719 but we have to start with Utah not scoring one 42 00:02:26,759 --> 00:02:31,120 point in the entire second half, and Utah did get 43 00:02:31,240 --> 00:02:34,840 very conservative with the play selection. Obviously, BYU had just 44 00:02:34,879 --> 00:02:37,400 one time out in the third quarter, so you know 45 00:02:37,479 --> 00:02:40,000 it was there. It was there for Utah to shorten 46 00:02:40,080 --> 00:02:43,039 the game BYU not being able to have timeouts. It 47 00:02:43,080 --> 00:02:44,919 was there for Utah to win the game late with 48 00:02:45,039 --> 00:02:48,120 BYU having only one time out. But the youth just 49 00:02:48,159 --> 00:02:51,479 couldn't get first downs, not even points. Now, if they 50 00:02:51,479 --> 00:02:53,120 had just gotten the field goal in the second half, 51 00:02:53,159 --> 00:02:55,960 it would have been enough, but they couldn't even get 52 00:02:56,039 --> 00:02:59,439 late first downs. So much to talk about in terms 53 00:02:59,479 --> 00:03:04,039 of Utah's offense, because you know, Isaac Wilson had been 54 00:03:04,280 --> 00:03:07,120 the backup to Cam Rising, cam Rising obviously being hurt 55 00:03:07,120 --> 00:03:10,639 and unable to play for much of the year. But 56 00:03:10,719 --> 00:03:13,560 in comes Brandon Rose at quarterback in this game, and 57 00:03:13,599 --> 00:03:17,000 he played a solid first half. And so like that 58 00:03:17,639 --> 00:03:20,240 goes to Kyle Whittingham and his staff. They didn't have 59 00:03:20,280 --> 00:03:22,520 the right backup quarterback for most of the season, because 60 00:03:22,520 --> 00:03:26,360 you have if Brandon Rose plays anything close to how 61 00:03:26,360 --> 00:03:28,439 he played in the first half against UYU, and you 62 00:03:28,800 --> 00:03:31,919 apply that to the season and the games that Isaac 63 00:03:32,120 --> 00:03:35,680 Wilson played, Utah certainly has at least one more win, 64 00:03:35,759 --> 00:03:38,479 if not two or three more wins. So the Utah 65 00:03:38,599 --> 00:03:41,400 coaching staff got that one wrong. But then we have 66 00:03:41,439 --> 00:03:46,840 to deal with the play selection. And obviously Andy Levwig 67 00:03:47,120 --> 00:03:50,039 no longer the offensive coordinator, so you're talking about an 68 00:03:50,039 --> 00:03:57,039 interim Mike pajakion in in an interim capacity calling place, 69 00:03:57,159 --> 00:04:00,919 so like you don't have your ideal shot Pollar here. Nevertheless, 70 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:06,479 Brandon Rose threw a downfield pass for an interception with 71 00:04:06,680 --> 00:04:10,280 Utah leading twenty one to ten, and you know, he 72 00:04:10,360 --> 00:04:13,439 had a short receiver in the short left flat open. 73 00:04:14,039 --> 00:04:18,199 So it seemed as though Utah's passing game was going 74 00:04:18,240 --> 00:04:21,360 a little bit too vertical and it wasn't safe enough. 75 00:04:22,199 --> 00:04:25,560 But then after that interception, it seems though Utahs staff 76 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:28,399 overcorrected for that. It's not as though Utah should have 77 00:04:28,399 --> 00:04:31,759 been taking shots downfield, but Utah should have still been 78 00:04:31,759 --> 00:04:35,360 throwing the ball but short, short, easy passes. What happened 79 00:04:35,360 --> 00:04:38,160 to the screen game? What happened to you know, just 80 00:04:38,199 --> 00:04:42,759 getting these easy completions, you know, like, so you're passing 81 00:04:42,800 --> 00:04:46,040 the ball, but you're still extremely likely to complete the pass, 82 00:04:46,079 --> 00:04:51,480 which keeps the clock running. Utah went heavily to running plays, 83 00:04:51,560 --> 00:04:55,519 handoffs and That's where I think really the play calling 84 00:04:56,399 --> 00:04:59,720 should have and could have been better. You know, people 85 00:04:59,759 --> 00:05:04,040 get wrapped up in run pass mixture, and while that's 86 00:05:04,079 --> 00:05:07,959 certainly salient, it's certainly relevant on a broader level. I 87 00:05:07,959 --> 00:05:10,720 think what gets lost in that run or pass discussion 88 00:05:10,839 --> 00:05:13,399 is you know there are aggressive ways to run and 89 00:05:13,399 --> 00:05:17,319 there are conservative ways to pass. And you know if 90 00:05:17,319 --> 00:05:21,000 a defense is expecting run, you don't. This doesn't mean 91 00:05:21,040 --> 00:05:23,079 you should be throwing down the field, but you could. 92 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:28,360 You could offer a conservative pass, right, It doesn't. Passing 93 00:05:28,439 --> 00:05:32,120 doesn't inherently mean aggressive. You can be safe with a 94 00:05:32,160 --> 00:05:35,639 pass but still be throwing the ball when the defense 95 00:05:35,720 --> 00:05:38,040 is expecting a run, and in that, in that sense, 96 00:05:38,079 --> 00:05:41,600 you can keep a defense off balance. And as for 97 00:05:41,720 --> 00:05:45,079 running plays, you know, it's not as though you are 98 00:05:45,160 --> 00:05:48,040 obligated or required to hand the ball off or toss 99 00:05:48,079 --> 00:05:51,519 it to the tailback the running back. You know you 100 00:05:51,560 --> 00:05:53,879 can do handoffs to wide receivers. You know you can 101 00:05:53,959 --> 00:06:00,199 do jet sleep sweeps, fly sweeps, other ways to get 102 00:06:00,040 --> 00:06:04,920 at the ball to a fast guy, to an athletic player, playmaker, 103 00:06:06,240 --> 00:06:08,199 and yet you're still running the ball. It's still a 104 00:06:08,240 --> 00:06:10,439 running play. But you can be creative with it, and 105 00:06:10,439 --> 00:06:13,839 that's what I think Utah really lost. You know, going 106 00:06:13,879 --> 00:06:16,240 from a pass to a run after the Brandon Rose 107 00:06:16,240 --> 00:06:19,839 interception totally understandable, but I think there's still needed to 108 00:06:19,879 --> 00:06:22,160 be a mix, not so much of run versus pass, 109 00:06:22,839 --> 00:06:26,360 but finding different ways of running the ball and finding 110 00:06:26,439 --> 00:06:30,560 different ways of keeping the clock running. You know, it's 111 00:06:30,560 --> 00:06:33,240 not as though you just have to go into handoff mode. 112 00:06:34,279 --> 00:06:37,399 And that's where I think Utah definitely lost something. And 113 00:06:37,480 --> 00:06:39,560 you have to be a you have to be able 114 00:06:39,600 --> 00:06:43,759 to be creative even when you're trying to be safe, right. 115 00:06:44,040 --> 00:06:45,839 You know, you want to keep the clock running, you 116 00:06:45,879 --> 00:06:48,839 want to shorten the game, and Utah definitely try to 117 00:06:48,879 --> 00:06:52,480 do that, and that definitely made sense, no question about that. 118 00:06:52,839 --> 00:06:55,959 But you have to find ways of being creative within simplicity. 119 00:06:56,000 --> 00:06:59,399 You have to find ways of being creative within perhaps 120 00:06:59,439 --> 00:07:02,000 a more conservative safe offense is you don't want your 121 00:07:02,040 --> 00:07:06,399 young backup quarterback to throw another interception. So Utah in 122 00:07:06,399 --> 00:07:10,279 many ways overcorrected for that. Couldn't get three points in 123 00:07:10,279 --> 00:07:13,680 the second half, couldn't get a first down late, and 124 00:07:13,920 --> 00:07:17,000 you know Utah had third and one late in the 125 00:07:17,040 --> 00:07:20,120 game around three minutes left. If the youth get that 126 00:07:20,160 --> 00:07:23,519 first down, they almost certainly win the game. Holding penalty 127 00:07:23,519 --> 00:07:25,439 on third and one, and they were stopped on that 128 00:07:25,480 --> 00:07:27,199 third and one, so it would have been fourth and one. 129 00:07:27,399 --> 00:07:29,879 But still you would rather have fourth and one than 130 00:07:29,920 --> 00:07:32,399 third and eleven. But that that holding penalty, which was 131 00:07:32,439 --> 00:07:35,360 a good call. There was definitely a hold and got 132 00:07:35,439 --> 00:07:41,000 the Utah blocker was grabbing the BUYU defender's shoulder pad 133 00:07:41,079 --> 00:07:43,199 from behind. You have to call that that was a 134 00:07:43,240 --> 00:07:48,519 good call. That ten yard penalty, you know, ruined Utah's 135 00:07:48,600 --> 00:07:52,120 chances of getting that late first down, and so Byu 136 00:07:52,199 --> 00:07:54,079 gets one more crack at it and then we arrive 137 00:07:54,160 --> 00:07:57,040 at that fourth and ten and that holding call on 138 00:07:57,199 --> 00:08:01,399 Utah which keeps the drive alive. You know, this game 139 00:08:01,639 --> 00:08:04,759 was not stolen from Utah and the refs did not 140 00:08:04,879 --> 00:08:08,759 decide the outcome. Okay, I want to be very clear 141 00:08:08,800 --> 00:08:11,360 about that, and we we you know, it's one of 142 00:08:11,399 --> 00:08:16,560 my long standing points of emphasis as a sports journalist, 143 00:08:16,560 --> 00:08:18,560 as a sports commentary, there needs to be a way 144 00:08:18,680 --> 00:08:21,839 to differentiate between the refs decided the game and the 145 00:08:21,839 --> 00:08:24,879 refs influenced the game, all right, and this was definitely 146 00:08:24,920 --> 00:08:27,360 not the rest deciding the game because Utah still had 147 00:08:27,399 --> 00:08:30,480 by U backed up in its own half of the 148 00:08:30,519 --> 00:08:33,799 field after that holding penalty and couldn't do the job. 149 00:08:33,879 --> 00:08:37,000 And also Utah again, as we said earlier, couldn't score 150 00:08:37,039 --> 00:08:39,639 three points in the second half. Come on, you score 151 00:08:39,679 --> 00:08:42,120 three points in the second half, you win. You couldn't 152 00:08:42,120 --> 00:08:44,600 do that. You couldn't get any of those first downs late, 153 00:08:45,039 --> 00:08:49,240 So Utah had its chances. And what do we keep saying? 154 00:08:49,320 --> 00:08:52,200 I mean, I've said this a lot, and you know, 155 00:08:52,240 --> 00:08:54,519 if you listen to my podcast regularly, you've heard me 156 00:08:54,519 --> 00:08:58,000 say it at some point earlier this season, especially as 157 00:08:58,000 --> 00:09:00,600 someone who covers USC You don't allow the game to 158 00:09:00,639 --> 00:09:03,600 come down to one call. You know, lead by ten, 159 00:09:04,360 --> 00:09:06,000 get the first down so that you don't have to 160 00:09:06,000 --> 00:09:08,519 play defense again and the other team can get a 161 00:09:08,600 --> 00:09:11,759 questionable holding call. If you have a chance to put 162 00:09:11,799 --> 00:09:14,120 the game away, put the game away, because that do 163 00:09:14,159 --> 00:09:18,600 you take one bad call or one questionable call off 164 00:09:18,639 --> 00:09:20,559 the board. You don't have to worry about that bad 165 00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:22,600 call because it's never gonna come, or if it does, 166 00:09:23,120 --> 00:09:26,120 you've already surmounted the margin of air. You're outside the 167 00:09:26,120 --> 00:09:29,320 margin of air. You know, My long standing saying is, 168 00:09:29,360 --> 00:09:32,039 you know, lead by ten, lead by ten late, so 169 00:09:32,080 --> 00:09:34,240 that if a bad call costs you a touchdown, you 170 00:09:34,320 --> 00:09:36,960 still win the game. But if you're only up six 171 00:09:37,080 --> 00:09:40,039 or in this case, if you're up only two points, 172 00:09:40,840 --> 00:09:44,039 a bad call can swing things. So the rest did 173 00:09:44,080 --> 00:09:47,080 not decide this game. That I've even said that was 174 00:09:47,120 --> 00:09:50,600 a dubious holding fall. And if you look at the replay, 175 00:09:51,080 --> 00:09:53,240 there's a jam on the receiver, and you're allowed to 176 00:09:53,320 --> 00:09:55,759 jam a receiver, right, So like that, there was nothing 177 00:09:56,759 --> 00:10:02,039 over the top unusual about that within the first five yards, 178 00:10:02,320 --> 00:10:05,440 and then the BYU receiver stumbles and he didn't really 179 00:10:05,480 --> 00:10:08,879 regain his balance, and it doesn't seem from looking at 180 00:10:08,879 --> 00:10:10,519 the tape, from looking at the film of that play, 181 00:10:10,519 --> 00:10:14,080 and I've seen, it doesn't seem as though the failure 182 00:10:14,159 --> 00:10:17,679 to regain balance was caused by the Utah defenders contact 183 00:10:18,000 --> 00:10:21,879 that the BAU defender slipped and he never really regained 184 00:10:21,960 --> 00:10:23,919 himself on the route, and there didn't seem to be 185 00:10:23,960 --> 00:10:29,720 any further action by the Utah defender after the initial jam. 186 00:10:30,000 --> 00:10:32,320 So I'm looking at that plane and I'm going, what's there? 187 00:10:32,399 --> 00:10:37,320 What do we have? Uh? So that that is part 188 00:10:37,320 --> 00:10:39,480 of it, and also it was removed from the play, 189 00:10:39,759 --> 00:10:42,960 right it wasn't even a ron talking pass interference. We're 190 00:10:42,960 --> 00:10:47,559 talking about holding. Uh, you know, a jam two three 191 00:10:47,759 --> 00:10:51,240 two yards after the line of scrimmage. It's not holding unless, 192 00:10:51,279 --> 00:10:55,840 like you're it's a big fat jersey grab and you 193 00:10:55,960 --> 00:11:00,000 basically stop the receiver's route. You're allowed to jam, you're 194 00:11:00,120 --> 00:11:02,399 not allowed to grab the jersey. I saw a jam. 195 00:11:02,600 --> 00:11:05,200 I didn't see a grab of a jersey. And it 196 00:11:05,200 --> 00:11:08,399 could be that when the BYU receiver stumbled right after 197 00:11:08,440 --> 00:11:11,120 that jam, it was thought that, oh he was held, 198 00:11:11,200 --> 00:11:14,840 and that basically short circuited the whole route, and therefore 199 00:11:14,840 --> 00:11:19,320 you could call holding. And if it seemed as though 200 00:11:19,360 --> 00:11:22,720 the there was a jersey grab would shut down the route, okay, 201 00:11:22,759 --> 00:11:25,039 then you call holding. I just didn't see that. I 202 00:11:25,080 --> 00:11:29,679 saw a jam, not a hold, not an egregious jersey grab. 203 00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:34,320 So you know, I think it's understandable that Utah would 204 00:11:34,360 --> 00:11:37,799 feel hard done about that. But but you do have 205 00:11:37,879 --> 00:11:41,960 to say Utah had so many opportunities to nail this 206 00:11:42,000 --> 00:11:45,159 thing down and didn't. And you have to credit BYU 207 00:11:45,240 --> 00:11:49,919 for once again scrambling back. Jake Retslof. He's been doing 208 00:11:49,960 --> 00:11:54,200 it all season long. Captain clutch late game situations the 209 00:11:54,240 --> 00:11:57,200 guy's money. If you give him an opening, he takes it. 210 00:11:57,639 --> 00:11:59,840 Did it against Oklahoma State, did it in some other 211 00:12:00,320 --> 00:12:03,240 late game situations. I mean, you know, this is a 212 00:12:03,279 --> 00:12:05,399 team that keeps getting it done. It's kind of like 213 00:12:05,440 --> 00:12:09,639 Miami before this past Saturday. You know, Miami was scrambling 214 00:12:09,720 --> 00:12:12,200 back to win Layton games and is still in position 215 00:12:12,200 --> 00:12:14,679 to have an excellent season. You know, Kynes could go 216 00:12:14,720 --> 00:12:17,799 eleven and one. That's a tremendous year for Meryal Crystal Ball. 217 00:12:17,840 --> 00:12:21,200 It's because they've been able to scramble back in second 218 00:12:21,240 --> 00:12:23,799 halves and in four quarters. B WHYU continues to do that? 219 00:12:23,840 --> 00:12:26,600 You have to tip the cap to Reetslof and Clonie 220 00:12:26,639 --> 00:12:29,360 Sataki and the rest of the Cougars, like they they 221 00:12:29,360 --> 00:12:30,879 could have bailed on that game. I mean, I know 222 00:12:30,919 --> 00:12:32,759 it's a rivalry, so like they were always going to 223 00:12:32,799 --> 00:12:35,559 play hard, but they might have lost faith. That team 224 00:12:35,600 --> 00:12:37,919 did not lose faith. That team did not lose trust, 225 00:12:38,600 --> 00:12:42,120 kept battling, put itself in a position to be close, 226 00:12:42,879 --> 00:12:45,120 and it was able to benefit from that call. And 227 00:12:45,519 --> 00:12:49,840 again Utah still had BYU pinned fairly deep. By you 228 00:12:49,879 --> 00:12:51,399 still had to move the ball down the field. B 229 00:12:51,440 --> 00:12:53,720 Why you did move the ball down the field and 230 00:12:53,720 --> 00:12:57,759 then a clutch forty four yard field goal. Keep in 231 00:12:57,799 --> 00:13:01,000 mind no time out and any people have said, and 232 00:13:01,440 --> 00:13:04,840 it's a great comparison. Twenty twenty four BYU is twenty 233 00:13:04,879 --> 00:13:08,200 twenty two TCU, and now both teams have had a 234 00:13:08,600 --> 00:13:12,240 run the field goal unit on the field kick to 235 00:13:12,360 --> 00:13:14,919 win a key game late in the season. For TCU 236 00:13:14,919 --> 00:13:16,799 in twenty twenty two, it was the game at Baylor. 237 00:13:17,120 --> 00:13:19,279 Didn't have a time out, rush the field goal team 238 00:13:19,320 --> 00:13:22,440 one that was a little more hectic TCU Baylor twenty 239 00:13:22,519 --> 00:13:26,399 twenty two. Two years ago, that was a more rushed situation. 240 00:13:26,519 --> 00:13:28,639 It was more of a pure fire rope. BYU had 241 00:13:28,679 --> 00:13:34,879 plenty of time against Utah, but still had to get 242 00:13:34,919 --> 00:13:37,399 everything lined up, did not have the benefit of a timeout. 243 00:13:37,440 --> 00:13:42,279 Everything went smoothly. So that's a well coached team maintaining 244 00:13:42,320 --> 00:13:46,080 his poise late and so BYU leads the Big twelve, 245 00:13:46,120 --> 00:13:48,279 and that leads us into the next part of our conversation. 246 00:13:48,679 --> 00:13:51,519 The Colorado Buffalo. So they go into Lubbock, they beat 247 00:13:51,559 --> 00:13:54,000 Texas Tech, and you know it's not a great Texas 248 00:13:54,039 --> 00:13:56,960 Tech team, but Lubbock in November. It's been in a 249 00:13:57,000 --> 00:13:59,399 thorny spot for plenty of Big Twelve teams over the years. 250 00:13:59,399 --> 00:14:02,519 In Texas Tech was coming off a win over Iowa 251 00:14:02,600 --> 00:14:06,759 State and Iowa State loses again, so that pretty much, 252 00:14:07,120 --> 00:14:10,720 you know, clears the field in the Big Twelve. If Colorado, 253 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:13,639 it's right there for Colorado. You know, Calorad's gotten the 254 00:14:13,679 --> 00:14:16,720 help in the standings. It's now a done deal that 255 00:14:16,759 --> 00:14:20,240 if Colorado wins out, Colorado is playing for the Big 256 00:14:20,279 --> 00:14:23,039 Twelve Championship, and if it wins that Big Twelve Chmionship game, 257 00:14:23,120 --> 00:14:25,360 Colorado will be in the College for pup playoffs. And 258 00:14:25,399 --> 00:14:29,600 that's just absolutely spectacular. It's absolutely amazing what Deon Sanders 259 00:14:30,240 --> 00:14:33,440 has done, and he does have the Heisman Trophy leader. 260 00:14:33,519 --> 00:14:36,320 I would think Travis Hunter guy played one hundred and 261 00:14:36,360 --> 00:14:40,840 seventy snaps against Texas Tech and Elite on both sides 262 00:14:41,679 --> 00:14:46,279 absolutely phenomenal. With cam Ward of Miami stumbling against Georgia Tech, 263 00:14:47,159 --> 00:14:50,799 you know, and Ashton genty crossing the two hundred yard 264 00:14:50,799 --> 00:14:53,320 marks Boise State, but Boise State didn't look great against 265 00:14:53,399 --> 00:14:57,360 Nevada and its group of five. You know, it's hard 266 00:14:57,399 --> 00:15:02,080 to think that Travis Hunter is not the Heisman Leader 267 00:15:02,279 --> 00:15:05,320 front runner at this point, and some will say Dylan 268 00:15:05,320 --> 00:15:08,720 Gabriel of Oregon, but you know, we had that discussion 269 00:15:08,840 --> 00:15:11,879 a week ago that you know, Dylan Gabriel was not 270 00:15:11,919 --> 00:15:14,879 great in September, and are we really just going to 271 00:15:14,919 --> 00:15:17,279 give the award to the quarterback on the team that 272 00:15:17,320 --> 00:15:19,360 has the best chance of winning the national championship. The 273 00:15:19,360 --> 00:15:22,279 Heisman should not be devalued that way. So you heard 274 00:15:22,360 --> 00:15:25,240 me talk about the Heisman last week. Nothing new to 275 00:15:25,279 --> 00:15:28,159 say on that front other than with cam Ward stumbling, 276 00:15:28,200 --> 00:15:31,480 I think it's now Travis Hunter's award to lose. And 277 00:15:31,639 --> 00:15:34,240 of course, if Colorado does win out and go to 278 00:15:34,320 --> 00:15:38,279 the college football Playoff, really hard to see anyone other 279 00:15:38,320 --> 00:15:43,919 than Travis Hunter winning the Heisman twlby one other things 280 00:15:43,960 --> 00:15:47,879 to note about what Colorado was doing. And Colorad'll beat 281 00:15:47,919 --> 00:15:51,519 Texas Tech forty one twenty seven. So you would think 282 00:15:51,519 --> 00:15:55,639 that Shradur Sanders, you know who, whose draft stock continues 283 00:15:55,639 --> 00:15:58,639 to rise, almost certain to be a top three pick, 284 00:15:58,720 --> 00:16:02,519 if not number one, in next year's NFL draft. But 285 00:16:03,279 --> 00:16:09,200 you expect Shader Sanders and his electric ability to produce points. 286 00:16:09,679 --> 00:16:11,919 But one thing you're seeing with Colorado is that the 287 00:16:11,960 --> 00:16:14,360 defense is not hemorrhaging and you know, as someone who 288 00:16:14,360 --> 00:16:17,440 covered USC last year under Alex Grinch, you know USC 289 00:16:17,519 --> 00:16:21,320 would regularly give up more than forty points. This Colorado defense. 290 00:16:21,840 --> 00:16:24,840 Wouldn't call it a spectacular defense, especially against you know, 291 00:16:25,000 --> 00:16:29,159 a big twelve quarterbacks which have been you know, very inconsistent. 292 00:16:29,240 --> 00:16:32,759 Put it mildly, but nevertheless, Colorado is not getting lit 293 00:16:32,840 --> 00:16:35,840 up like a Christmas tree. And I did certainly expected 294 00:16:35,840 --> 00:16:41,440 Colorado's defense to buckle on a few occasions. It's not 295 00:16:41,559 --> 00:16:44,600 really happening. So Dion is putting in great work. His 296 00:16:44,679 --> 00:16:47,720 assistants are doing a great job. You know, Warren Sapp 297 00:16:47,919 --> 00:16:52,360 on the defensive line. There's a commentator on Twitter, Mikey Surf. 298 00:16:52,440 --> 00:16:54,759 He's really a big Virginia guy, but he made the 299 00:16:54,759 --> 00:16:59,799 comment comment about Colorado that Warren Sapp has really transformed 300 00:17:00,240 --> 00:17:03,159 Carora's defensive line. So, Mikey Surf, wherever you are, you 301 00:17:03,159 --> 00:17:06,359 know on Twitter. Uh, you know, like he gets the 302 00:17:06,359 --> 00:17:09,559 credit for that insight. I'm just noting his insight, So 303 00:17:09,680 --> 00:17:12,359 don't don't give me too much credit. Like I didn't, 304 00:17:12,400 --> 00:17:15,359 you know, come up with that originally. It's Mikey Surf, 305 00:17:16,240 --> 00:17:19,160 the commentator on Twitter who did. But like that's a 306 00:17:19,279 --> 00:17:24,000 very very astute point. Carla's defense is, you know, it's 307 00:17:24,039 --> 00:17:28,880 basically doing what USC's defense is doing this year under 308 00:17:28,960 --> 00:17:33,839 Danton Lynn. Uh, you know, USC is not giving up 309 00:17:34,200 --> 00:17:38,359 massive point totals on defense, and you go through, I'm 310 00:17:38,400 --> 00:17:41,039 just trying to make the comparison here. I'm not focusing 311 00:17:41,039 --> 00:17:43,039 on USC so much as I'm just trying to illustrate 312 00:17:43,079 --> 00:17:47,440 a point. US he's giving up around thirty points, you know, 313 00:17:47,559 --> 00:17:51,960 upper twenties, low thirties. Generally that might seem bad, but 314 00:17:52,279 --> 00:17:54,359 you know, given where US he was a year ago, 315 00:17:54,480 --> 00:17:58,000 it's actually pretty solid. And the point remains that if 316 00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:01,440 you have Schradura Sanders and your defense is giving up 317 00:18:01,920 --> 00:18:05,400 high twenties, low thirties point totals, that's gonna win most 318 00:18:05,440 --> 00:18:08,200 of the time. And really that was Lincoln Riley's, you know, 319 00:18:08,359 --> 00:18:11,400 vision for USC. It's it was his vision at Oklahoma. 320 00:18:12,039 --> 00:18:14,799 Just give up thirty, my offense is going to score forty. 321 00:18:14,839 --> 00:18:17,160 The problem for USC this season is that it hasn't 322 00:18:17,200 --> 00:18:20,160 been scoring forty all right. But if you give you know, 323 00:18:20,359 --> 00:18:25,880 a team with an electric elite quarterback such as Shader Sanders, 324 00:18:25,960 --> 00:18:28,519 you know, a defense that's just gonna give up around 325 00:18:28,519 --> 00:18:32,640 thirty twenty seven to twenty eight points most weeks, that's 326 00:18:32,720 --> 00:18:34,759 going to be enough. That will be enough to win. 327 00:18:35,119 --> 00:18:37,680 And that's what Colorado was doing. It's exactly what Colorad 328 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:40,920 was doing. So in many ways, Deon Sanders is doing 329 00:18:40,920 --> 00:18:44,240 what Lincoln Riley has always dreamed of doing. But this 330 00:18:44,359 --> 00:18:47,000 year Lincoln Riley has been able to do that. Last year, 331 00:18:47,160 --> 00:18:49,599 Riley didn't do it because his defense was giving up 332 00:18:49,640 --> 00:18:51,960 forty five. This year, Riley isn't doing it because his 333 00:18:52,119 --> 00:18:55,359 offense isn't scoring forty five. The defense is where it 334 00:18:55,359 --> 00:18:57,880 needs to be, the offense isn't. So that is basically 335 00:18:57,880 --> 00:19:02,640 the model that illustrates what coach Prime and Colorado have 336 00:19:02,720 --> 00:19:05,079 been able to do this year. And so if they 337 00:19:05,079 --> 00:19:06,880 can just continue to do it a few more weeks, 338 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:09,799 they're gonna be in the Big twelve title game, you know, 339 00:19:09,920 --> 00:19:13,680 against BYU, with a chance to play for a spot 340 00:19:14,079 --> 00:19:19,839 in the playoffs. So you know, b YU unbeaten, one 341 00:19:19,839 --> 00:19:23,400 of the four remaining unbeatens now that Miami's lost, and 342 00:19:23,440 --> 00:19:25,480 then Colorado in the very much in the mix of 343 00:19:25,480 --> 00:19:27,480 the Big twelve. You know, that's that's those are really 344 00:19:27,519 --> 00:19:33,160 the headline generating stories in this week of Western College 345 00:19:33,160 --> 00:19:35,240 football in the United States. Boise State did not play 346 00:19:35,240 --> 00:19:38,440 well at all, but it got got the win against Nevada. 347 00:19:38,960 --> 00:19:41,039 So Boise States still in the mix in the group 348 00:19:41,039 --> 00:19:44,759 of five. And we have Army against an Order Dame 349 00:19:45,079 --> 00:19:48,119 in two weeks, and that might decide the whole thing, 350 00:19:48,319 --> 00:19:51,200 you know, whether it's Army or Boise State. Army might 351 00:19:51,240 --> 00:19:54,839 need to beat an Order Dame to to get that 352 00:19:54,920 --> 00:19:57,359 Group of five title. And then if Army falls short 353 00:19:57,400 --> 00:20:00,440 against Order Dame, that would, you know, presumably play Boise 354 00:20:00,559 --> 00:20:03,880 State in the driver's seat for the Group of five 355 00:20:04,000 --> 00:20:08,519 championship and a playoff spot elsewhere in western college football 356 00:20:08,839 --> 00:20:12,400 in the United States. In Week eleven, so Oregon handles 357 00:20:12,440 --> 00:20:17,640 Maryland easily at home, like no drama there. Oregon's next 358 00:20:17,640 --> 00:20:22,599 game at Wisconsin, and so you might be wondering what 359 00:20:22,640 --> 00:20:24,880 the weather is going to be like in Madison. You know, 360 00:20:25,000 --> 00:20:28,680 is Oregon gonna get a snowstorm? Well, early forecast, No, 361 00:20:28,880 --> 00:20:30,599 it's actually gonna be in the fifties. It's going to 362 00:20:30,640 --> 00:20:35,319 be entirely mild pleasant. There's gonna be no big ten 363 00:20:35,400 --> 00:20:38,799 weather in the middle of November. So you know, it 364 00:20:38,799 --> 00:20:42,000 would seem as though Oregon's very much I mean, Oregon's 365 00:20:42,039 --> 00:20:43,680 gonna be in the playoffs, just a matter of whether 366 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:45,839 Oregon's going to be in as a Big Ten champion 367 00:20:46,000 --> 00:20:50,240 or as an at large team. And so we'll drill 368 00:20:50,319 --> 00:20:52,759 deeper into that discussion the closer we get to conference 369 00:20:52,839 --> 00:20:56,279 championship Saturday. But Oregon very much in line for the playoffs. 370 00:20:56,279 --> 00:20:59,000 It's just gonna be a matter of the seeding. And 371 00:20:59,039 --> 00:21:00,720 it's gonna be interesting to see what the Ducks do 372 00:21:00,799 --> 00:21:07,039 on the road against Wisconsin. This week, Washington got its 373 00:21:07,119 --> 00:21:09,799 doors blown off at Penn State, and you know, that 374 00:21:10,000 --> 00:21:14,680 just reaffirms how ordinary Washington has been this year. And 375 00:21:15,279 --> 00:21:19,559 you know, do you hold this against Jedfish. Uh, that's 376 00:21:19,559 --> 00:21:24,119 a complicated conversation. One of the things that's hurt Washington 377 00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:27,519 generally this season is that Washington's gained more yards than 378 00:21:27,559 --> 00:21:29,640 its opponents most of the time, but has been able 379 00:21:29,680 --> 00:21:32,759 to finish drives all right. Now, against Penn State, Washington 380 00:21:32,799 --> 00:21:36,000 just got smothered. This was not a game which Washington 381 00:21:36,039 --> 00:21:38,480 got more, you know, more yards and was kind of 382 00:21:38,519 --> 00:21:42,160 winning most snaps but then just couldn't finish plays in 383 00:21:42,200 --> 00:21:44,799 the red zone. This was not that game. This was 384 00:21:44,799 --> 00:21:48,279 a game that Penn State dominated from start to finish. 385 00:21:49,279 --> 00:21:52,279 So you can you can lay certain things at Jedfish's 386 00:21:52,279 --> 00:21:55,000 door in terms of certain game management decisions in the 387 00:21:55,119 --> 00:21:58,319 close games that Washington's lost. But this game was kind 388 00:21:58,319 --> 00:22:00,720 of a reality check for Washington in the sense that 389 00:22:01,039 --> 00:22:03,640 you know, these players aren't all that aren't all that 390 00:22:03,680 --> 00:22:06,720 good across the board. It does bring up the point 391 00:22:06,720 --> 00:22:09,559 that you know, Fish only got some of the players 392 00:22:09,559 --> 00:22:12,839 he wanted from Arizona in the offseason. You know, some 393 00:22:12,920 --> 00:22:14,640 of them came to Seattle, but a lot of them 394 00:22:14,720 --> 00:22:18,119 stayed in Tucson. It really explains in many ways by 395 00:22:18,119 --> 00:22:21,160 both Washington and Arizona have struggled this year because they 396 00:22:21,160 --> 00:22:26,799 were both weakened by the Portal Arizona in the defections 397 00:22:26,799 --> 00:22:29,920 that went to Washington. Washington in terms of not getting 398 00:22:29,960 --> 00:22:36,000 as many Arizona Wildcats as Jedfish hoped, neither side really 399 00:22:36,039 --> 00:22:38,279 won out in that deal. And that doesn't strike me 400 00:22:38,319 --> 00:22:41,079 as overly surprising, like it actually kind of it actually 401 00:22:41,119 --> 00:22:45,160 stood to reason that when Washington did not get Noah 402 00:22:45,160 --> 00:22:49,720 Fafita and Tetroya McMillan from Arizona in the portal, that 403 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:53,200 to me right there told me Washington isn't going to 404 00:22:53,240 --> 00:22:58,400 be that good this year, and Will Rogers of Mississippi 405 00:22:58,440 --> 00:23:01,799 State was ultimately the the guy that Jedfish was able 406 00:23:01,839 --> 00:23:05,160 to land in the portal. I wasn't particularly impressed by 407 00:23:05,200 --> 00:23:09,119 Rogers at Mississippi State, so I wasn't expecting really big 408 00:23:09,160 --> 00:23:11,359 things from Washington this year. So in many ways, the 409 00:23:11,400 --> 00:23:15,079 conventional wisdom on Washington has held up. I think the 410 00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:18,359 Huskies haven't been better than expected, and I haven't think 411 00:23:18,440 --> 00:23:20,640 I don't think they've been worse than expected. This was 412 00:23:20,759 --> 00:23:22,960 just going to be a difficult year. And now we 413 00:23:23,000 --> 00:23:25,799 get to see in you know, in December with the 414 00:23:25,839 --> 00:23:28,279 portal opening up, and then you know, as the off 415 00:23:28,359 --> 00:23:31,960 season begins, and the off season is not that far away. Man, 416 00:23:32,039 --> 00:23:35,640 the time is fine right in December and when the 417 00:23:35,640 --> 00:23:38,400 portal opens, and then on the recruiting trail, we're going 418 00:23:38,440 --> 00:23:42,640 to see how Jedfish restocks that Washington roster for next year. So, 419 00:23:43,640 --> 00:23:46,160 you know, does this year mean that Jedfish is you know, 420 00:23:46,359 --> 00:23:48,240 a little bit out of his league? I don't think so. 421 00:23:48,359 --> 00:23:51,240 I don't think this is a coaching issue for this season. 422 00:23:51,759 --> 00:23:54,359 I think now now now we get to see how 423 00:23:54,359 --> 00:23:57,279 he can build a roster at Washington. I don't think 424 00:23:57,279 --> 00:24:01,440 this roster was in position to do big things. So really, 425 00:24:01,599 --> 00:24:05,599 I just this is a wait and see. I would 426 00:24:05,680 --> 00:24:08,440 not if I'm a Husky fan. I'm saying I'm not 427 00:24:08,799 --> 00:24:11,319 happy with the way the season's gone, But I really 428 00:24:11,480 --> 00:24:13,799 can't say I'm all that surprise either if I'm a 429 00:24:13,839 --> 00:24:16,400 Husky fan, I just want Jedfish to really hit some 430 00:24:16,440 --> 00:24:20,079 home runs in the portal and upgrade his roster. Make 431 00:24:20,119 --> 00:24:23,599 sure he has a big time quarterback, because we saw 432 00:24:23,640 --> 00:24:25,839 what happened at Washington last year with a big time 433 00:24:25,920 --> 00:24:30,680 quarterback Michael Pennix. Jedfish just has to get the dudes. 434 00:24:31,200 --> 00:24:33,839 I mean, we've just earlier in this show here and 435 00:24:33,839 --> 00:24:36,759 get off my pie. We've talked about Coloradle having Schadur Sanders, 436 00:24:36,839 --> 00:24:41,240 and as as well as Dion has done, you know, 437 00:24:41,799 --> 00:24:45,079 as as much as he has overachieved this season, he 438 00:24:45,160 --> 00:24:49,400 does have Schadur Sanders as his quarterback. That's gonna overcome 439 00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:55,480 and minimize other roster limitations and so other programs other 440 00:24:55,559 --> 00:24:59,400 coaches that don't have a Cadillac quarterback. I've seen it 441 00:24:59,440 --> 00:25:03,240 at USC with Meller Moss under Lincoln Riley. Other coaches 442 00:25:03,319 --> 00:25:06,160 that don't have that elite quarterback. They have suffered. They've 443 00:25:06,200 --> 00:25:11,480 really suffered. You know, I think the exception that proves 444 00:25:11,519 --> 00:25:14,279 the rule in terms of you know, having a not 445 00:25:14,400 --> 00:25:18,920 having an elite quarterback. Indiana, Nathan Urk's been good, but 446 00:25:19,359 --> 00:25:22,839 like he's not, you know, an extraordinary quarterback. But Kurt 447 00:25:22,880 --> 00:25:28,160 Signetti has dudes at the other positions on the field. 448 00:25:28,559 --> 00:25:32,119 And that that, you know, is the roster construction that 449 00:25:32,240 --> 00:25:35,079 most coaches have not been able to attain when they 450 00:25:35,079 --> 00:25:39,720 don't have the elite quarterback that can minimize other roster flaws. 451 00:25:39,799 --> 00:25:42,960 Then that that really had That's been a consistent lesson 452 00:25:43,720 --> 00:25:46,759 across college football in twenty twenty four. If you do 453 00:25:46,839 --> 00:25:49,319 not have the big time quarterback, man, you better be 454 00:25:49,559 --> 00:25:52,880 elite at the other ten spots on your offense, and 455 00:25:52,920 --> 00:25:55,720 you better have a strong defense. You have to be 456 00:25:55,839 --> 00:25:58,839 elite at the other positions on the field, both sides 457 00:25:58,880 --> 00:26:01,640 of the ball. If you don't have that elite quarterback, 458 00:26:02,039 --> 00:26:04,720 you have to have a deep, tough, physical roster. You 459 00:26:04,759 --> 00:26:07,480 also need some injury luck. You know, you can't get 460 00:26:07,880 --> 00:26:12,599 your depth eroded significantly if you don't have that elite quarterback, 461 00:26:12,599 --> 00:26:15,119 because then the margins become really small. But of an 462 00:26:15,119 --> 00:26:19,839 elite quarterback that expands your margins and can cover in 463 00:26:19,920 --> 00:26:22,559 spots for some weaknesses, can't do it every game, but 464 00:26:22,640 --> 00:26:26,079 can do it most most of the time. And so 465 00:26:26,240 --> 00:26:28,839 coaches really need to be aware of that dichotomy, right, 466 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:32,920 quarterback and overall roster. If the quarterback's not the very best, 467 00:26:32,960 --> 00:26:35,200 you can do, the rest of your roster has to 468 00:26:35,240 --> 00:26:39,359 be elite. If your quarterback is excellent, okay, then you 469 00:26:39,440 --> 00:26:42,400 might not have to have the very best at all 470 00:26:42,480 --> 00:26:46,039 other positions. You know, in terms of what what coaches 471 00:26:46,160 --> 00:26:50,759 and schools are paying for in the transfer portal, they're 472 00:26:51,240 --> 00:26:55,079 like the cost benefit needs to be identified, right that 473 00:26:55,240 --> 00:26:57,759 if you don't have the elite quarterback, you better get 474 00:26:57,759 --> 00:27:02,160 that premium offensive tackle. You better get that premium wide receiver. 475 00:27:02,279 --> 00:27:05,880 You better get that premium player who's gonna be able 476 00:27:05,880 --> 00:27:08,960 to stitch things together for your offense. You know, so 477 00:27:09,480 --> 00:27:13,599 you have to make real difficult choices on your roster, 478 00:27:13,720 --> 00:27:18,119 but it should be clear what really matters that you 479 00:27:18,160 --> 00:27:20,720 either get the elite quarterback. You know, if you don't 480 00:27:20,759 --> 00:27:23,279 think you have the offensive line that could be dominant, 481 00:27:23,799 --> 00:27:25,920 then you need the elite quarterback that can you know, 482 00:27:26,160 --> 00:27:28,960 reduce pressure on that offensive line, who can get the 483 00:27:28,960 --> 00:27:32,160 ball out more quickly, who can run for thirty forty 484 00:27:32,160 --> 00:27:35,559 five yards, who can make plays when when the pocket 485 00:27:35,559 --> 00:27:38,200 breaks down, if you don't think you're getting the really 486 00:27:38,200 --> 00:27:41,039 big fish in the portal on the offensive line, you 487 00:27:41,119 --> 00:27:44,200 need the quarterback to be there. So that that's something 488 00:27:44,319 --> 00:27:46,599 we were seeing at Washington, we're seeing at so many 489 00:27:46,599 --> 00:27:53,200 other programs in the West, usc being another example, and 490 00:27:53,680 --> 00:27:57,480 it's really been a central lesson, a central epiphany throughout 491 00:27:57,519 --> 00:28:03,279 college football. Four. Continuing with our survey of western college 492 00:28:03,319 --> 00:28:06,000 football in the United States, UCLA beats Iowa and so 493 00:28:06,240 --> 00:28:09,759 Deshaun Foster and I wrote about this that Trojans Wire 494 00:28:09,799 --> 00:28:13,119 my website under the Gannet USA Today banner. I wrote 495 00:28:13,119 --> 00:28:16,079 about this Deshaun Foster as out coached Lincoln Riley this 496 00:28:16,160 --> 00:28:19,960 year in Los Angeles. I don't think a single soul 497 00:28:20,160 --> 00:28:24,559 was ready to say that in early for mid September, 498 00:28:24,640 --> 00:28:27,599 but here we are in mid November. It's absolutely true, right, Like, 499 00:28:27,839 --> 00:28:33,640 you can't really debate it that UCLA in early mid 500 00:28:33,680 --> 00:28:35,440 September looked like a team that was going to be, 501 00:28:36,319 --> 00:28:39,039 you know one in eleven, two and ten, you know, 502 00:28:39,079 --> 00:28:42,240 Indiana beats UCLA by twenty nine points, and how how 503 00:28:42,279 --> 00:28:46,240 different that game looks now in retrospect, And it wasn't 504 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:49,400 about UCLA being so horrible. It was really about, oh, 505 00:28:49,519 --> 00:28:52,880 this Indiana team might be really special. So like that's 506 00:28:52,920 --> 00:28:55,079 one of those early season games that really looks so 507 00:28:55,200 --> 00:28:59,359 much different now compared to you know how it felt 508 00:28:59,400 --> 00:29:01,759 at the time. At the time, it felt that UCLA 509 00:29:01,880 --> 00:29:04,880 was just a nobody, a nothing burger. But really it 510 00:29:04,920 --> 00:29:09,000 was all about Indiana building something big under Kurt Signetti. 511 00:29:10,200 --> 00:29:13,640 And so Ucla, after losing that game to Indiant up 512 00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:16,960 by twenty nine and taking its lumps early in the season, 513 00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:20,599 that team's gotten better. It's gotten better every week. One 514 00:29:20,599 --> 00:29:24,519 at Rutgers, one at Nebraska, and now be Kirkparents in Iowa, 515 00:29:25,240 --> 00:29:28,599 and so UCLA has a chance to make a bowl game. 516 00:29:28,880 --> 00:29:31,279 No one was predicting that in September. It was it 517 00:29:31,319 --> 00:29:33,480 was about how many games would UCLA lose. It was 518 00:29:33,519 --> 00:29:36,640 about would UCLA lose a double digit amount of games? 519 00:29:36,640 --> 00:29:39,119 And like, hey, no, no, I'm not going to hide 520 00:29:39,160 --> 00:29:42,359 from this. I was banging that drum as loudly as anyone, 521 00:29:42,559 --> 00:29:46,279 maybe even more so, Like I sure looked like UCLA 522 00:29:46,319 --> 00:29:48,559 was headed to two and ten and that was the 523 00:29:48,599 --> 00:29:51,480 best case scenario, you know, maybe one and eleven. So 524 00:29:51,559 --> 00:29:55,200 I thought UCLA was in deep, deep trouble to shun 525 00:29:55,279 --> 00:29:58,839 Foster an amazing coaching job. Now, you know, Signetti is 526 00:29:58,880 --> 00:30:02,079 your coach of the year nationally and so he's in 527 00:30:02,119 --> 00:30:04,440 the Big Ten. So it's not as though Deshaun Foster 528 00:30:04,559 --> 00:30:06,400 is gonna win any Big Ten Coach of the Year 529 00:30:06,400 --> 00:30:10,559 awards or anything like that. But in terms of like underrated, 530 00:30:10,839 --> 00:30:15,359 under the radar, surprisingly good coaching performances in twenty twenty four, 531 00:30:15,599 --> 00:30:18,920 you have to include Deshaun Foster there. He's what he's 532 00:30:18,920 --> 00:30:22,599 done with UCLA very very impressive. And keep in minding again, 533 00:30:22,880 --> 00:30:27,640 UCLA lost Danton Lynn, a really good, sharp, talented defensive 534 00:30:27,640 --> 00:30:31,039 coordinator to USC. UCLA has been able to fill in 535 00:30:31,079 --> 00:30:36,759 the gaps. And you know, let's acknowledge briefly that big 536 00:30:36,839 --> 00:30:39,799 Big Ten parody is a thing like after that top 537 00:30:39,880 --> 00:30:44,319 four of Oregon, Ohio State, Penn State, and Indiana, it's 538 00:30:44,319 --> 00:30:47,759 a big mishmash of mediocrity. You know, from basically from 539 00:30:47,880 --> 00:30:51,880 spot five through spot seventeen, then you have Purdue at 540 00:30:51,920 --> 00:30:54,960 as the clear worst team in the Big Ten. There's 541 00:30:54,960 --> 00:30:58,960 no doubt that Purdue is number eighteen in the expanded 542 00:30:59,000 --> 00:31:02,599 Big Ten. But five seventeen, it's just a muddle. It's 543 00:31:02,640 --> 00:31:06,799 a it's a pool of mediocrity. I mean, Rutgers had 544 00:31:06,799 --> 00:31:10,359 been horrible for several weeks, got off the deck and 545 00:31:10,400 --> 00:31:13,000 beat Minnesota. So it's not as though you can say 546 00:31:13,079 --> 00:31:16,039 Rutgers is obviously the seventeenth best team in the Big Ten. 547 00:31:16,200 --> 00:31:20,200 That's not so clear now after Rutgers beat Minnesota, Rutgers 548 00:31:20,200 --> 00:31:22,559 won at Virginia Tech early in the season. So really, 549 00:31:23,119 --> 00:31:25,480 you know, five through seventeen, there's not a ton of 550 00:31:25,519 --> 00:31:32,519 separation among those thirteen schools behind the top four and 551 00:31:32,559 --> 00:31:35,720 ahead of number eighteen Purdue. So you can say that 552 00:31:35,839 --> 00:31:38,559 parody is part of what's helping UCLA and some other 553 00:31:38,599 --> 00:31:41,640 schools punch above their weight. But you know what we're 554 00:31:41,640 --> 00:31:44,400 seeing parody throughout the sport, right in the Big Twelve, 555 00:31:44,559 --> 00:31:47,400 in the ACC, in the SEC where you have a 556 00:31:47,400 --> 00:31:49,799 big jumble in the standings instead of you know, Alabama 557 00:31:49,839 --> 00:31:54,559 and Georgia lording themselves well over everybody else. Right, it's 558 00:31:54,599 --> 00:31:58,240 a jumble in college football this year like you do 559 00:31:58,359 --> 00:32:02,279 not have you know, a clear a hierarchy of elite 560 00:32:02,279 --> 00:32:05,839 teams that are well above the rest. Like that's what 561 00:32:05,960 --> 00:32:08,160 it used to be. Five six years ago, it was 562 00:32:08,200 --> 00:32:12,640 Alabama and Clemson, and in twenty nineteen it was you know, 563 00:32:13,000 --> 00:32:18,279 LSU and Clemson. And then you know, you had Georgia, 564 00:32:18,960 --> 00:32:21,519 which was you know, clearly above the rest of college 565 00:32:21,559 --> 00:32:24,599 football in twenty twenty two, and it was Georgia and 566 00:32:24,640 --> 00:32:28,039 Alabama in twenty twenty one. You know, you had like 567 00:32:28,119 --> 00:32:30,559 two or three teams that were, you know, at the 568 00:32:30,640 --> 00:32:34,559 very top, and then it was everyone else. My mind, mind, 569 00:32:34,640 --> 00:32:38,480 how much that has changed. Now. It's just a wild scramble. 570 00:32:38,680 --> 00:32:40,680 You know. It's basically, you know, go to your favorite 571 00:32:40,680 --> 00:32:43,000 breakfast place, fire up the skillet, and it's just a 572 00:32:43,039 --> 00:32:48,119 big scramble. Lots lots of eggs in the playoff basket, 573 00:32:48,240 --> 00:32:51,839 lots of eggs in the national championship derby. Like, like, 574 00:32:51,960 --> 00:32:54,240 I don't have any clue who's winning the national title. 575 00:32:55,160 --> 00:32:58,279 Some might say Oregon, others might say Ohio State. I 576 00:32:58,319 --> 00:33:00,960 don't you know, hey, like again to o how State, 577 00:33:01,200 --> 00:33:04,279 Like they're almost certain to be in the playoffs with 578 00:33:04,160 --> 00:33:06,480 a with a really good chance to win it. But 579 00:33:06,519 --> 00:33:11,599 I'm not seeing significant separation between like Oregon and Ohio 580 00:33:11,640 --> 00:33:14,559 State and then the rest of the field not seeing 581 00:33:14,559 --> 00:33:15,200 that at all. 582 00:33:16,079 --> 00:33:16,279 Speaker 1: Uh. 583 00:33:16,559 --> 00:33:21,720 Speaker 2: You know, like you give you give Kirby Smart, Uh 584 00:33:21,799 --> 00:33:27,279 you give Mike Elkou, you give you know, another top coach, 585 00:33:27,359 --> 00:33:30,759 top team a couple of weeks to prepare for Oregon. 586 00:33:31,079 --> 00:33:33,759 I don't see the Ducks being you know, way better 587 00:33:34,880 --> 00:33:39,279 uh than than an SEC contender other teams in the field. 588 00:33:41,400 --> 00:33:45,640 I think it's a it's very much in question as 589 00:33:45,680 --> 00:33:47,559 to who comes out of this thing as a winner. 590 00:33:47,599 --> 00:33:49,720 Let's let's keep in mind Oregon beat Ohio State by 591 00:33:49,720 --> 00:33:54,200 a point, needed a questionable offensive passer friends colin Ohio 592 00:33:54,279 --> 00:33:56,559 State late in that game to win by one in 593 00:33:56,680 --> 00:34:00,839 Eugene at Austin Stadium. Yeah, this is this is a 594 00:34:01,000 --> 00:34:07,039 very open ended, a very uncertain college football national championship race. 595 00:34:07,720 --> 00:34:11,519 And let's not pretend that there's there's this strong hierarchy 596 00:34:11,559 --> 00:34:15,079 that we used to have in the Alabama Clemson Georgia years. 597 00:34:16,159 --> 00:34:18,800 It's it's a really different reality and I'm loving it, 598 00:34:18,880 --> 00:34:21,639 like this is this is this is a college football 599 00:34:21,679 --> 00:34:25,239 season I can really embrace because you you knew that 600 00:34:25,320 --> 00:34:30,559 Alabama and Clemson were making the national championship game unless 601 00:34:30,559 --> 00:34:32,400 you know, unless they played each other in the semi 602 00:34:32,480 --> 00:34:36,719 finals six seven, eight years ago, Like you knew that 603 00:34:36,760 --> 00:34:39,800 Alabama Clemsenberg were just going to be there and that 604 00:34:39,840 --> 00:34:42,039 felt awful, That was a buzzkill. And then you know, 605 00:34:42,119 --> 00:34:45,599 watching the national title game. Yeah, they played a couple 606 00:34:45,639 --> 00:34:49,880 of entertaining games in twenty fifteen, in twenty sixteen, those 607 00:34:49,960 --> 00:34:52,440 two seasons, I should say, you know, they played in 608 00:34:52,519 --> 00:34:56,639 January for the actual national championship game. But in those seasons, yeah, 609 00:34:56,639 --> 00:34:58,559 they played a couple of entertaining games. But you know, 610 00:34:59,079 --> 00:35:01,679 like if you were not in the South, you're not 611 00:35:01,719 --> 00:35:04,079 a fan of one of those two schools. You know 612 00:35:04,199 --> 00:35:07,880 how just how worth it was it to watch, you know, 613 00:35:07,920 --> 00:35:13,679 to to Southern Juggernauts meet in the National changing game. 614 00:35:13,679 --> 00:35:17,800 But now you have true regional balance and representation and 615 00:35:17,840 --> 00:35:21,079 the twelve team playoff is only going to magnify that. 616 00:35:21,880 --> 00:35:25,199 And you know, there will be a lot more to 617 00:35:25,239 --> 00:35:27,880 say as this playoff picture comes into focus, as we 618 00:35:27,920 --> 00:35:30,719 get closer to the conference championship games. It's gonna be 619 00:35:30,760 --> 00:35:35,920 some really interesting discussions about about how the college football 620 00:35:35,920 --> 00:35:38,119 playoff system works. And I know that get off my 621 00:35:38,199 --> 00:35:41,559 pilone is devoted to western college football, but you know, 622 00:35:41,920 --> 00:35:47,079 with this with the twelve team playoff, you know, debuting 623 00:35:47,360 --> 00:35:50,599 this season that there's definitely a place here on our 624 00:35:50,639 --> 00:35:54,360 show for the playoff mechanics, how they need to be 625 00:35:54,440 --> 00:35:56,960 reformed and what it means for college football more broadly. 626 00:35:57,000 --> 00:35:58,480 You're going to get that here and get off my 627 00:35:58,519 --> 00:36:04,119 pielone as we get to late November and early December, 628 00:36:04,679 --> 00:36:07,360 so so much to talk about here on Get off 629 00:36:07,360 --> 00:36:10,239 my pion and we are getting into the nitty gritty 630 00:36:10,280 --> 00:36:13,559 of the season. It's just kind of weird that in 631 00:36:13,639 --> 00:36:18,280 terms of you know, Western teams, like, there's no intrigue 632 00:36:18,320 --> 00:36:21,920 around Oregon in the sense that, you know, Oregon's pretty 633 00:36:21,960 --> 00:36:24,239 much in the playoff. So it's not as though, you know, 634 00:36:24,280 --> 00:36:26,519 if this was if this was a fourteen playoff era, 635 00:36:26,599 --> 00:36:29,239 we would be devoting a lot more discussion to you know, 636 00:36:29,360 --> 00:36:32,840 chan Oregon survived this test on Saturday in Wisconsin. Well, 637 00:36:32,880 --> 00:36:36,119 you know, Oregon could lose to Wisconsin and really would 638 00:36:36,119 --> 00:36:39,639 still be on very very solid footing for the playoff, 639 00:36:39,679 --> 00:36:42,119 precisely because it has that win over Ohio State. Like 640 00:36:42,199 --> 00:36:44,960 even if if we imagine a world in which Oregon 641 00:36:45,079 --> 00:36:49,320 somehow loses twice before the playoff, and I don't think 642 00:36:49,320 --> 00:36:52,159 that's gonna happen. But if let's just imagine this right, 643 00:36:52,239 --> 00:36:54,519 Let's say Oregon slips up once and then loses to 644 00:36:54,599 --> 00:36:58,960 Ohio State in the Big Ten chainship game, Oregon's still 645 00:36:58,960 --> 00:37:01,320 getting in, right, because you know, splitting two games with 646 00:37:01,360 --> 00:37:05,840 Ohio State and then losing one other game and being 647 00:37:06,039 --> 00:37:10,039 ten and two or maybe eleven in two, that's that's 648 00:37:10,079 --> 00:37:13,760 not gonna be enough to knock Oregon all the way out, 649 00:37:15,280 --> 00:37:17,639 especially since you know there are four Big Ten teams 650 00:37:17,639 --> 00:37:22,559 in contention. Oregon is in Indiana, are the unbeaten teams. 651 00:37:22,559 --> 00:37:25,320 Ohio State and Penn State have a loss each. If 652 00:37:25,360 --> 00:37:30,599 there's a wild you know, scramble for playoff bids, Oregon's 653 00:37:30,639 --> 00:37:34,079 not going to be the fourth team in the Big Ten. 654 00:37:34,320 --> 00:37:39,360 Barring something crazy, Oregon would almost assuredly be one of 655 00:37:39,400 --> 00:37:43,000 the three Big Ten teams. You know, it looks like 656 00:37:43,039 --> 00:37:45,119 the Big Ten is getting four, But if we imagine 657 00:37:45,159 --> 00:37:47,199 a scenario in which the Big Ten gets only three 658 00:37:47,320 --> 00:37:50,639 instead of four, I don't think Oregon is going to 659 00:37:50,719 --> 00:37:54,199 be the team that gets excluded. So in that sense, 660 00:37:54,400 --> 00:37:57,599 like we're not riveted to Oregon's games right now, because 661 00:37:57,639 --> 00:38:02,159 there isn't that in or out drama relating to the Ducks. 662 00:38:02,480 --> 00:38:06,639 The drama is much more about Ohio State and Penn State. 663 00:38:06,719 --> 00:38:09,320 You know, if they lose a second game, because you know, 664 00:38:10,039 --> 00:38:13,960 Ohio State didn't beat Oregon, Penn State didn't beat Ohio State, 665 00:38:14,000 --> 00:38:15,880 So if they both pick up a second loss, there's 666 00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:20,079 going to be more of a conversation about whether those 667 00:38:20,159 --> 00:38:24,599 teams belong in. But Oregon's really kind of insulated itself. 668 00:38:25,000 --> 00:38:28,079 And then Indiana, Indiana plays Ohio State in a couple 669 00:38:28,039 --> 00:38:30,840 of weeks. If Indiana loses to Ohio State finishes eleven 670 00:38:30,880 --> 00:38:34,920 and one, that should be enough for the Hoosiers. But 671 00:38:35,039 --> 00:38:37,360 you know, because Indiana is not that big brand name, 672 00:38:37,679 --> 00:38:41,039 there might still be some questions. But it's still hard 673 00:38:41,079 --> 00:38:44,679 to see how eleven and one doesn't get Indiana into 674 00:38:44,880 --> 00:38:46,920 the playoffs. It is looking very good for the Big 675 00:38:46,960 --> 00:38:52,559 ten to get four. But anyway, as these discussions gain 676 00:38:52,639 --> 00:38:55,440 a little bit more clarity, or if not necessarily clarity, 677 00:38:55,760 --> 00:38:59,679 they gain more definition, you will get plenty of analysis 678 00:38:59,760 --> 00:39:03,639 on the playoff workings, the workings of the system in 679 00:39:03,719 --> 00:39:07,199 late November, you know, around Thanksgiving and then on into 680 00:39:07,280 --> 00:39:11,400 early December here on, get off my pilot, So you know, 681 00:39:11,440 --> 00:39:14,000 We're brought to you by College Great Aroon Coast to 682 00:39:14,079 --> 00:39:16,199 Coast and College Great on Coast to Coast wants you 683 00:39:16,280 --> 00:39:19,519 to know that with the season now in November, you're 684 00:39:19,519 --> 00:39:22,880 still looking for the best seats at the most competitive prices, 685 00:39:22,960 --> 00:39:24,559 you know, for the big games that are on the board, 686 00:39:24,639 --> 00:39:26,960 the big games that are about to come your way. 687 00:39:27,440 --> 00:39:29,519 We want to make sure you take advantage of ticket 688 00:39:29,639 --> 00:39:33,320 Smarter and the ticket Smarter mobile app. Buying college football 689 00:39:33,360 --> 00:39:36,639 tickets online requires trust. 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Right, you want to be able to afford this, 698 00:40:04,159 --> 00:40:08,480 Like we just had a national conversation about the affordability 699 00:40:08,480 --> 00:40:10,679 of things, right, so you want to get these lower, 700 00:40:10,760 --> 00:40:14,119 more affordable prices for college football tickets at the ticket 701 00:40:14,119 --> 00:40:17,320 Smarter and mobile app and at ticketsmarter dot com. And 702 00:40:17,360 --> 00:40:19,679 we have an additional offer for anyone listening to our 703 00:40:19,719 --> 00:40:23,760 podcasts on College Gridiron Coast to Coast take five percent 704 00:40:23,840 --> 00:40:26,480 off your purchase of one hundred dollars or more and 705 00:40:26,519 --> 00:40:29,079 you can do that with our promo code GRIDIRN two 706 00:40:29,119 --> 00:40:33,519 to two. That's grid Iron twenty two grid Iron two 707 00:40:33,559 --> 00:40:36,159 to two for five percent off your order of one 708 00:40:36,239 --> 00:40:38,800 hundred dollars or more. And that's not a one time thing. 709 00:40:39,119 --> 00:40:41,639 It's for use as many times as you want throughout 710 00:40:41,639 --> 00:40:44,880 the rest of the college football season to get the 711 00:40:44,920 --> 00:40:48,639 best seats for the biggest games. So check out the 712 00:40:48,679 --> 00:40:52,360 selections and pricing now with ticket Smarter and remember our 713 00:40:52,400 --> 00:40:57,280 code grid Iron two to two. Think smarter at ticket Smarter, 714 00:40:57,440 --> 00:41:01,119 go to ticketsmarter dot com, or use the ticket Smarter 715 00:41:01,599 --> 00:41:04,119 mobile app. So that's all for this week. I'll get 716 00:41:04,119 --> 00:41:07,079 off my pylon. Part of the College Gridiron Coast to 717 00:41:07,079 --> 00:41:11,119 Coast podcast network. Go to Apple wherever else you listen 718 00:41:11,119 --> 00:41:14,880 to your podcast, Go to Twitter for Gridiron Coast. So 719 00:41:15,000 --> 00:41:17,960 I'm Matt Zemic, Thanks for listening. We will see you 720 00:41:18,000 --> 00:41:18,639 next week.