Speaker 1: It's time to celebrate the previous team sport known to man,
where modern day gladiators collide for all the glory on
the Gridi. Let's talk some college football on Cougar Sports
with Ben Cridle.
Speaker 2: Welcome back Cougar Sports. One of three nine ninety eight
point three esp of the Fan. I'm met Pritle broadcasting
from our Banterwellth Studios, Banterwealth dot Com. Get on that
free Q and A, no obligation to invest Q and
A with our tax more Wealth Advisors certify financial planners.
Nobody does it better than vand or Wealth. It is
time for Little Colle Football segment getting into all the
news and notes on the minutia of the college football
world and BYU football world. It's going to be brought
to you by Odion Men'swear Odeon menswear dot Com. If
you've been called to serve ladies and gentlemen, okay, if
you have a missionary within the walls of your home,
then head on over to Odon Men's where they give
you a free gift with your missionary call. That's right,
lucud Field. Good, go out there and do good and
I get yourself the shirts, the slacks, the suits, the belts,
the bags, everything that you need for your missionary attire,
everything you need for the missionary field. Hit them up,
let them know I sent you a VPPI products, VP service,
VP discounts. Crital fifteen, Crital fifteen, Crital fifteen. At the
website Odeon Men'swear, Odeon menswear dot com, let's get out
to the hotline. Welcome and the CEOs that establishment. We
got brain day on the line, braid and how that
are you, buddy? Doing awesome, doing fantastic? Uh look, uh,
we haven't chatted since the National championship game, and what
a glorious one it was. Look. One of the conversations
that I've been having with the individuals that think college
football has been ruined, it's the it's it's just in chaos,
it's in disarray, all of the bad things that are
happening out there. They're just complaining, complaining, complaining. I'm like, well,
is the the fact that the losing this program in
college football history just won the national Championship a sign
of the contrary fact that you're that you are uh,
you're you're essentially stating as truth is that it's all ruined.
Speaker 1: Is this.
Speaker 2: Tell a sign that it's not ruined that Indiana won
the Natty.
Speaker 3: They one hundred percent thinks. So I think the parody
that's happened with the transfer portal and NIL has been
exactly what we want as college football fans. Like I
think there's plenty of college football fans that feel like
that it's been ruined because they thought that like having
everybody focus on just at your.
Speaker 4: National championship or bus when you.
Speaker 3: Have one hundred and thirty teams is hard. So I
get where they're coming from, I guess and that, but
I think the parody has never been as close as
it is right now, and so for me, I love it.
And obviously it's working at you a saver transporter. We're
losing very few people who are who are studs, and
we're getting in studs all the time. NIL is obviously
working well for us. So I'm probably just biased that
works out for UU, so I'm on the positive end
of it, But I think it's a good thing for
college football. I much said having Indiana be the one
that's wins the National Championship and having Miami the one
that was playing in it. It was an eleven seed
porten seed. I think that was a huge another testimony
that it is good for college football.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean Miami and Indiana in the National Championship game,
you gotta I mean, Miami barely got in by the
skin of their teeth. Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls,
you know what I mean.
Speaker 5: It's like, uh, and it's the first time that all
the playoff games were entertaining true in a long time.
Like all every team in the playoff, with the side
of Tulane and jam You sure got boat raced, but
everybody else had pretty good competitive games.
Speaker 3: One game. But I will say, I'm a contrad that
I'm gonna I'm gonna fight against a little bit think
of the oh well, jam You and and too interest
have been in there because of the domination. But like
what happened to the Oregon game against Indiana or what
happened in Texas Tech obviously, and so I think blowouts
are gonna happen everyone so on football, and that's okay,
But I those teams are playing. It was the one
and ten, and there was a other two others that
moved forward into the final four that were not the
final four seeds. So I love that we're opening it
up and letting.
Speaker 4: Actual I understand what people think.
Speaker 3: When they say, hey, the balls were awesome.
Speaker 4: Because you didn't have to be national championship or bust.
Speaker 3: And what sport do we not actually have a tournament
to find out the champion keyball? Like keyball, dmo sport
besides college football that says, you know, we're just gonna
play for the fun of it, like every other sport
has a championship.
Speaker 2: Amen. Amen to that, Braden Day here on your Utah
ESPN Radio network. This college football season, I think was
one of the most entertaining. It just was. There were
so many storylines. There's more viewership now than ever. I
think for the most part, all is well in the
college football world, and the pendulum has swung. Do I
wanted to swing back a little bit and get to center, Yes,
but I don't know how long. I don't know if
I want that immediately. I kind of want to see
how this plays out. I need more data points of
the free market capitalist a collegiate football landscape that we're
living in right now. I need at least five years
of this, how about you?
Speaker 3: Yeah? And I honestly, I think we've talked about this.
I'm a huge believer that as soon as we start regulating,
it hurts you you the most because other schools might
be willing to play, you know, behind the scenes and
do things that they're not technically closed to, but they're
doing it anyway. The way you will not play in
that ballpark. And so right now where it's pretty market
the way you can play, and I want that as
long as possible. I don't think it's going to be
that way forever. I think the regulation is going to
come at some point, but I do think that.
Speaker 4: I mean, look at what happened.
Speaker 3: The SEC was the national champions for like eight out
of ten years or something like that, and now we
decide that, hey, we're not going to put a regulation
on it, and we cheating is now not cheating, and
now they're not there. For three years in a row,
they don't win a national championship, even in the national Championship.
So I think you put twoudred together there, I guess
if you want to.
Speaker 6: I do want to build on that point.
Speaker 5: At what point, this is the third year in a
row the SEC has not been in the national Championship.
The last time they were in the nasal championship was
that Georgia TCU game. At what point does the national
media take notice of that and start dinging the SEC
and their rankings and their ratings for.
Speaker 3: That Never, sadly, because ESPN is SEC like I think
they should, because I mean, when you just play each
other in a round robin and everybody's supposed to be good,
then you just keep telling yourself that you're winning top
twenty five games because you were ring top twenty five
in the preseason. But I'm just going to keep doing
that because it brings in the money, and that's ESPN
is the group that's pushing that.
Speaker 4: Obviously, you guys, you guys are in ESPN show.
Speaker 3: So I'm not trying to go crazy to keep me
careful here, but not trying to get trying to get
you put criddle.
Speaker 4: But but I definitely think like either way, like the
money is.
Speaker 3: What they're going for, and so they're going to keep
pushing the NCC agenda because that's what's good for them.
Speaker 2: Yeah, don't don't you dare loves in it. We are
truth seekers. We are not We are not corrupted by
filthy luker here at ESPN the Fan. You can't buy
us we will always speak truth from our pulpit. Okay, anyway,
you know, but there is hey, you know, we cannot
be bought here at ESPN the Fan. Maybe at ESPN Bristol,
not here at ESPN the Fan. You can't buy us,
even if we have the sole distribution rights of a team.
But okay, so where's BYU Football added all this right now?
You made a statement deregulation is beneficial for BYU. Where
are we trending right now with that deregulation going into
twenty twenty six?
Speaker 3: Well, I mean you look at what we're I guess
what you said, Like where what is it doing for us?
Is that what you mean?
Speaker 2: Yeah? Like, so, where where do we stand amongst this
this deregulated college football landscape going into going into twenty
twenty six? How are you feeling about it? You looked
at the schedule, You look at the preseason rankings like
the way too early preseason. You look at the final rankings.
I'll say this, Kirk Signetti was one of like three
coaches including I think I want to say Liberties coach. No,
Liberty's coach was the one that that ranked BYU lowest,
which was sixteenth Kirk Signetti had b YU had fourteenth
in the nation at the end of the year.
Speaker 3: Oh, and I thought I liked him, dang it.
Speaker 2: I know I did too. I thought I like Kurt too.
I thought I did.
Speaker 3: I think is in a really good spot. I think.
Do I think they're gonna win the national championship next year?
Speaker 4: Probably not?
Speaker 3: Well, yes I do in my heart of hearts.
Speaker 4: But do I actually.
Speaker 3: Logically think that they're gonna win the national championship?
Speaker 4: No, But I think we're getting there. I think we're
getting close.
Speaker 3: And that's why I hope to deregulation, like we said,
it keeps going, because I think we need just a.
Speaker 4: Few more classes like this twenty twenty sixth.
Speaker 3: Class, and then we'll be there. Like it can't be
just one year of recruiting the what we have and
a couple of transferportal guys and all of a suddenly there.
I mean, yes, Indiana just did it. But I think
we're not quite there yet. But I think we're definitely
we're playoffs. Should be expecting playoffs next year based off
of the last two years we've had, like that should
not maybe not expecting, but it shouldn't be out of
this conversation, and honestly we should have been in the
last two years.
Speaker 2: We got Brydon Day on the line. Cougar Sports, ESPN
the Fan. ESPN has dropped their their projected twenty twenty
six college football playoff bracket. Bill Conley put this thing together,
and I love Bill Conley. If anyone can put together
a preseason way too early projected twenty twenty six college
football playoff bracket, it's Bill Conley of ESPN. First round
game number eleven BYU at Ohio State.
Speaker 6: I'll tell you right now.
Speaker 2: Winner plays number three Notre Dame, a rematch of the
Fighting Irish if BYU survives in advance. He's also got
ole Miss at nine, Miami at eight, Winter plays number
one Indiana. He doesn't have a twelve seed at at
number five, Oregan Winter plays number four seed Georgia, and
then Texas A and m is the ten seed versus
Texas Tech. Winner plays number two Texas. What do you
make of it? Is this an accurate depiction of the future?
Speaker 3: I mean, I think us being in the playoffs is
the accuracy part of it. Whether or not we're playing
in ohiuse I mean seeding is obviously impossible in this play,
but I take it. I mean, yes, that's a tough
game playing, you know the buck Geyes, But at the
same time, if it means we're in the playoff and
we actually have a shot at it, we can go
play to do it, let's let's do it.
Speaker 2: So I amen, Amen, did that right? I mean, be
what he returns much of their roster. Is there anything
that you're concerned about with the attrition via the portal
or the attrition via the National Football League.
Speaker 3: I'm still a little bit nervous about death at corner,
but I think we'll start hearing some names, you know.
I think coach Warren just barely you know about on
staff for a week or two, so I think we'll
hopefully start hearing some stuff going on there, just because
behind Trey and Evan there's just not a ton of
proven moditis. I think running back depth is something that
people are worried about. I think it definitely could have been.
We could have, you know, hoped for more. But I
think with Sion Androvesa behind LJ, I think will be okay.
And then you got Davon Akka and some of the
guys coming in. So I Honestly, like offensive line, I
feel good about We've got picked up some good spots there.
Defensive line we're looking great. Linebackers were deep as ever,
safety's were great. So I really is just corner depth
and and then some running back depth a little bit.
Speaker 2: Are you concerned about quarterback depth?
Speaker 6: No, but.
Speaker 2: You you tried to just convince yourself. You just said said, no, well,
who's who's Who's QB two?
Speaker 3: Well, I think that's that's a that's a cool thing.
Is I think Enoch Watson could play himself into QB two.
But I think having Trayson on the team gives us
a very high floor for a situation. He's not this
super high ceiling guy, but he's been in the system
for a long time. He knows what he's doing. It's
a good play all black, and then if he comes
in to start blown out and beats him out, that's
a great situation. So I think for what you can
expect in twenty twenty six in college football, I think
our our quarterback death is great. Obviously, if you had
a room that was full of all starters that were
just waiting in the wings, that's a great thing.
Speaker 4: But that's just not what twenty twenty.
Speaker 3: Six is because the guys want to go get playing
time somewhere else.
Speaker 6: Oh this, this might sound like a stupid question, but
what about safety? Here? We are you just lost?
Speaker 5: You're one of the best safety Tanner Wallace is pretty good.
You've got falloutown Raider coming in. But who are you
sticking in behind him?
Speaker 2: Well? Tommy, Tommy, he's been playing people playing, Yeah Tommy,
tom he did that.
Speaker 3: For didn't Tommy do that? Based on needs? Basically because.
Speaker 2: He's a free that can play nickel Okay, okay, yeah,
not a nickel man can play free.
Speaker 3: And then behind them you've also got oh my goodness,
just blanked on his name. Yeah, I'm not that gona
remember stuff and good there I go.
Speaker 2: Oh you're talking about it? Safety?
Speaker 3: Yeah, safety, I'm I just blanked on the guy just
behind Fallatole.
Speaker 2: You had, Matthias Leech, you had you had.
Speaker 3: And are both are there yet?
Speaker 4: Yeah?
Speaker 3: So I think with those three I feel I felt comfortable. Obviously,
falla Tell is a huge piece that you listen went down,
you'd be nervous about it. But Raider and and Tommy,
you know, ran it for a long and the year
not this last year, but the year before and twenty
twenty four. So I told something forbot ap.
Speaker 2: Don't sleep on my boy Joe Douglas either pound for pound,
the strongest man in that weight room and maybe one
of the fastest on that team. Don't sleep You guys
don't know about Joe. You haven't. You have been hearing
about Joe Douglas in your uh your insider reports?
Speaker 3: Have you yet?
Speaker 2: Bradon day, I haven't.
Speaker 3: I haven't.
Speaker 2: You're right, and watch out for Joe, baby. Don't sleep
on Joe.
Speaker 3: I'll be, I'll be, I'll be listening. I'll be waiting
for it.
Speaker 2: You've been waiting for it. Uh. You know he's gonna
He's gonna make an impact on special teams, special teams.
Speaker 3: Uh.
Speaker 2: Yeah. Ronald the three Man Weaver also brings up uh
how about Poula? How about uh? Uh one of the
Pola twins, right, and also Kaa. I like him.
Speaker 6: That's safety.
Speaker 3: Is it is going on a mission first year and
maybe he's not a mission first car.
Speaker 2: To remember, I don't, I can I can can't remember that.
Speaker 6: I can't remember.
Speaker 2: Yeah, we can pull that up, pull up this tran strategy.
But he's down at.
Speaker 3: Enrolled.
Speaker 5: I didn't realize he did a conna isn't it's from
what I've read, he's he's playing.
Speaker 2: He's playing. Oh, he's playing going to mission. Yeah, so
he may be a mid season enrollee and he's down
there right now, I think, at least around the program,
but could still be going on a mission.
Speaker 6: Yeah.
Speaker 2: So yeah, I think it's a good question which position
depth are you most concerned about right now? Cornerback, running back, quarterback,
or other? So the only the four if you're gonna
go other, you're okay, So you're making an argument for safety.
Speaker 6: I think that maybe there's some for safety.
Speaker 2: Okay, offensive line no Nickel, Oh yeah, Nickel, Nickel deserves
But Beasley, you have Jonathan Gabay, you have Cannony Breeze.
Speaker 6: Yeah, but does that play into the corner.
Speaker 3: Yeah, That's where I was kind of going With the corner.
I feel like, yeah, you could, you could move over,
Like if you have three studs, you could have Evan
played and play that slot. Also, you have oh my
godness in the summer two. He obviously played halfway through
the year. He kind of came back from injury, so
we'll see how he did. But he did okay in spots.
He also looked, you know, young in spots. But I
think you need some depth there.
Speaker 4: But I think the first three guys there are.
Speaker 5: Great, So there might be an argument for wide receiver.
I don't know that you've got really a proven guy
outside Parker.
Speaker 2: You have plenty of depth, you have wide receiver.
Speaker 6: Yeah, well, it's just like you've got a lot of
unproven guys.
Speaker 3: A ton of a ton of unproven. I've heard such
good things about Reggie, so I think I feel comfortable
that he'll be able to be a good player there.
And then obviously, I think Casper is going to be
interesting to see because you know he's been he was
a super higher, highly rated recruit when he has been
healthy in Oregon. He was always listed as a starter
in the too deep and then he just kept getting injured.
So I think if we can keep him healthy, I
think he has the potential to be you know, wide
receiver one with Parker wide receiver one, A one B
right there. But yeah, I think depth is totally fine receiver.
It's just yet, are we going to have the top
end guys that we need.
Speaker 2: Brandon, as far as uh, the culture is concerned. Uh,
you gotta be happy with everything that Klatt's built. Everyone
was scared. Everyone was, uh, you know, was very much
concerned about Jay Hill leaving and taking Gennaro. What have
been what's been the fallout of that? What impact has
that had on Cougar Nation, on the Cougar football team,
on anyone for that matter.
Speaker 3: Way less than we all expected, I think, at least
that I expected. I thought colony was really the reason
why a lot of the guys were here, but I
thought they were leased the a few, like like both
of them. I thought fallat that was for sure. Jronal
with Jay, and I thought Evan was going with Gennaro.
Those are like the two that I felt like as
soon as they both got announced, that was like, crap,
there we lose those guys. So I feel really good
about the fact that we retained all of them. And
then I also think recruiting will hurt a little bit
because you'll have you know, Jay and Kyle will both
start recruiting a lot of the guys that they've been
in these first couple of classes. I think they'll recruit
guys that are from Utah. They'll always do it, but
it'll be a higher clip just because they're guys that
people they know already, but hopefully in the year or
two they've kind of obviously expanded their their recruiting regions
enough to that they're not coming for every guy out
of Utah.
Speaker 2: So they're on the recruiting tra right now. That u
AU Kucker's staff Kilani, Chad kay Sioni Puja the assistant
head coach, and Kelly Pepinki, your defensive coordinator. I love
seeing Kilani on the recruiting trail. I think Kilani's probably
the best recruiter on this staff. There have been limitations
for head coaches having interpersonal face to face contact at
certain periods. I think some of those those those bylaws
are being lifted and now you can get out and
pound payment. I wonder how much of an impact this
is going to have on Billy's recruiting classes. And I
think it made a huge impact obviously on top of
the wins right, winning cures everything. But I know Kilani
was able to pound payment a little bit more last
year with some of these by laws being lifted by
the nc double A and being able to get his
boots on the ground. How impactful is it to have
Kilani out recruiting right.
Speaker 3: Now, And honestly, I hadn't heard about that, but I
think that's huge. Clonnie's such a good relationship guy and
will obviously recruit so well. I think something that actually
had just been thought it, thinking about yesterday, yesterday or
two days ago, was how good of a pitch it
is to recruits that we retained everybody, Like the guys
that are here want to stay here. Yeah, Like that's
a pretty big It's like, hey, out of all the
schools in the FBS, we basically had the highest attention rate.
Why do you think that's true? You should probably come here?
And we're having all the guys that decided that they
were gonna go somewhere else come back to us, like
Lyons obviously, like Uka back in the day. Like, there's
a lot everybody that comes to us, the guys who
snubbed us the first and everybody that did come to
us ends up staying with us. That's such a good
recruiting pitch, honestly.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and you wonder how many of the guys that
did leave the YU this last this last season regret it.
Minus Kielan Marion, I don't I think there was more guys.
I think I think Keelan probably did not regret av me.
He mean, it's a National champions game and he was
one of the best wide receivers on that Miami team.
He was a kickoff returnery. Apparently he's got a beautiful
girlfriend that that someone someone sent me, like a picture.
He's like, well, no, wonder they went to Miami, Like,
we can't compete with this look. I don't know, man,
he he got paid a pretty penny to go out
there too. We love Keelan. Once Cougar, always Cougar, But
apart from Keelan, I feel like there's probably a pretty
big list of guys that they have regretted it.
Speaker 6: Jake probably doesn't. Jake made the playoffs.
Speaker 2: You don't think Jake believes he would have made the
playoffs with b YU.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I think he does.
Speaker 7: But that situation is kind of different because Jake wanted
to stay, but he also wanted to play football. I'm know,
I'm jumping in that's that's so tough because of the
that wasn't a It's so because I think the team
wanted to keep him, but the rules and the bylaws
that they're at b YU it was a different decision.
So he I feel like that one was just we
gotta let that one go.
Speaker 6: Personally, for me, that's tough.
Speaker 2: I ain't letting it go. We live in the past
year at ESP in the fame, Jake, I don't think
wanted to Carleno. Matt Carlino said on our shirts. Yeah,
I don't live in the past. I'm like, well, you
know what we do. I have a we huh.
Speaker 6: We haven't left nineteen eighty four.
Speaker 2: That's what we do.
Speaker 7: Man, Jake didn't want to leave. But I think I
don't think Jake wanted to leave YU. But he also
he wouldn't have been able to play. There was no
way he would have been able to leave BUYU to
Gloria victory because been at that point, when he was
that far out, he wouldn't have been the starting quarterback.
Speaker 2: I think everybody on this call agrees with that. Yeah,
that's true.
Speaker 3: I agree and and but I think the thing is,
I think the only two that left that wanted to
leave the YU last year were Keeling and.
Speaker 4: Oh hel no name today.
Speaker 3: Yeah, you're right.
Speaker 2: I could tell you're an offensive line and you got
CTE just like me. Man.
Speaker 3: Yeah, I think I think those two are the only
two that actually chose, maybe not chose to, like, did
it because they wanted to. I think everybody else that
leaves is usually because they want playing time somewhere else.
So yes, they want to leave, but it's not because
they if they were playing here, they'd rather be here
type of guys.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think I think Crew Wakeley wish she would
have said Crew Wakeley does.
Speaker 3: Yeah, that's true. Yeah, that's true.
Speaker 6: You know what I mean?
Speaker 2: I think I believe I wonder. I don't think Miles Davis,
you know, I think I think Miles was happy. I
think he's happy, you know, I think he's happy.
Speaker 3: And I think he fits into that category though, of
guys that if he was playing at BAUS, wu'd rather
be a b AU. But he decided to go somewhere
from more playing time, and I think that's happy about it.
But it wasn't like he chose to be do a
you because he wanted to besides just playing time of situation.
Speaker 2: Yes, I think Michael Harper probably happy with his decision.
He went out and balled out. Now he's at Iowa
State bounce back. How does he still have eligibility that's
none of your damn business. And I think you're stay
out of his personal affairs.
Speaker 6: No, I'm just saying that man has been around.
Speaker 2: I have no idea.
Speaker 6: As I remember.
Speaker 2: I have no idea.
Speaker 3: I think it's seventh, his seventh year, I think is
what it's supposed to be. Next year is his seventh
year in college football.
Speaker 5: I don't know how amsha back to back season ending injuries.
Speaker 6: That's two years that okay?
Speaker 2: If he gave me like a year to work out,
I wonder if I could get in good enough to
play college football again. I don't think I could.
Speaker 3: There's more guys doing that right now than in their
training order, the temporary training order stuff.
Speaker 2: There you go that maybe I don't know. Man, my
old joints, I don't know if they're built for a high,
high level activity anymore. I'm a hiker, I'm a walker.
I'm a bike rider now anyway, Uh, braydon uh give
us some of the deals we have going on at
Odeon Men's Wear and wild and missionaries that are called
to serve need to head on into any Odeon Men's
Wear location along the Wahsatche front.
Speaker 3: Yeah, all of you to have missionary if you're either missionary,
you're getting ready to go out, or obviously you have
a mission in the walls of your home. We definitely
this is the time of year you're starting to put
in papers and get ready to go. We do our
premissionary gifts. We do a free shirt and free pair
of socks just for having a mission call. We believe
that our stuff is so often that you're gonna come
in and try it for free and you don't like.
I believe in it enough that I think you're gonna
take a home, wash it, wear it, and you'll absolutely
love it. You're gonna come back and buy everything else
from us, And so make sure you take advantage of that.
And then honestly, the Cridal fifteen code that Kurdle talks
about all the time is a great deal. It's it's
it's compared. We have a lot of different packages for missionaries,
but that Curdl fifteen makes it so you basically get
a package price, but you can mix and match however
you want to do it to get what you need
and what you what you are, what you're missing in that.
And then we always have you know, we have the
Elevate suit. We talk about a lot in the Tempa shirt.
Absolutely incredible. Certain suit that are extremely comfortable but still
looking credible so you can look good, feel good, do
good in all the different events that you need to
wear your suits for.
Speaker 2: Boomshaka Laca. Always appreciate our time together, brother, Thanks for
hopping on Braden.
Speaker 3: Thanks guys, gokoogies.
Speaker 2: Yes sir, yes, sir h I love this, Bill Conley,
give us some love to the Koogs. Projecting the twenty
twenty Sister college Football Payoff bracket, Bill Conley of ESPN
putting b Layers an eleven seed versus number six seed
Ohio State the Buckeyes.
Speaker 6: I would take that right now, you take it. I
would take it.
Speaker 2: Take it. And they give us a Notre Dame. He's
really high on Notre Dame at that three seed.
Speaker 6: That that's interesting. Notre Dame.
Speaker 5: I don't know if they have a schedule to get
shit a three seed. There's a conference affiliation.
Speaker 2: That do you think? See this is I I disagree
with you. I'm not that I disagree with their strength
of schedule. I don't disagree with there. What I disagree
with is you saw the knee jerk reaction of the committee.
This year when they didn't cater to the SEC. That's true, right,
So they went like they they are. They're all over
just jocksniff and freaking Greg Sankey and the SEC like,
oh well it's good five, five and we could consider six,
we can consider like all this hullabaloo, all this you know,
tom foolery and poppy cock. They're gonna do that. They
they they they chopped off the leg. They they got
punched Notre Dame this year. They said, ah, you know,
we're gonna push you to a conference. I don't think
they're gonna do it again. I think they're gonna have
respect for the quitting Irish and they're gonna say, you
know what, they're gonna give you a proper seeding because
the strength the schedule, they're gonna be too good. They're
not gonna lose. They're gonna be undefeated. And then they're
losing pro bo. Oh okay, well they couldn't. Okay, they're
eleven and one, so they're not gonna be They can't
be a three seed.
Speaker 6: They can't.
Speaker 2: Don't be surprised at BYU. That's their only loss. Yeah,
Notre Dame is a good football. They're good they're a
good football team and a good program.
Speaker 5: Legacy has some some bargaining power with ESPN because that's
what they have to deal with.
Speaker 2: The human nature is reactionary. Does that make sense? Like
this was a reaction this year having five SEC teams
in to what happened last year because they got left
out of the club. After all we've done for this,
after after all we've been through, all we've done and
what we've produced, all the equity.
Speaker 6: That's all you have to say to me.
Speaker 2: You know what I mean, That's what they did. So
they're going to they're gonna they're gonna revert back to
Oh yeah wait, Notre Dame needs to be in. That's
what they're gonna do, guarantee you. Because with Miami as
a twelve seed getting they were twelve seed, right yeah? Sorry,
yeah yeah yeah, because Jamu was the twelve seed. Yeah right,
Like I feel like, you know, that is a really
good data point of like, hey, like you can make
an argument that Notre Dame deserves to be in two.
Speaker 6: Right, it's there. I don't know how strong it is.
Speaker 2: Yeah, but you can make an argument for is what
I'm getting at. Right, they're a good team, They were
a good team this year, and they probably could have
won some football games. They were extremely talented. They had
arguably the best running back in college football. Running Backs,
premiere running backs, elite running backs in college football many times,
okay historically speaking, are much more powerful, much more impactful
than quarterbacks in college football. Really, I'm telling you right now,
college football is still can still be very much dominated
by a an elite running back.
Speaker 6: So are you gonna say, let's let's put this to
the test.
Speaker 2: Look at Alabama with so many just borderline talented quarterbacks,
winning natties through running backs and good defense.
Speaker 5: Well, let's let's look at this in a by lens.
If you're gonna stand on this take, I am yeah,
who was more valuable to the team?
Speaker 6: Taysom Hill or Jamal Williams.
Speaker 2: Jamal in twenty sixteen, just throughout the career.
Speaker 6: No.
Speaker 2: Twenty sixteen.
Speaker 6: Jamal was way twenty sixteen. For sure, he was fourteen.
Speaker 2: I mean when Taysum was was healthy in two thousand,
you know, thirteen throughout the entirety season. Do you make
an ur Taysum was the most valuable player because he
was just so dynamic. But you know, Taysum's the outlier.
Taysom's literally a running back. Taysom is the fifth best
running back in b Way football history.
Speaker 6: So so you'd take you would take a premiere. Let's
say you take you would take a premiere.
Speaker 2: No one's ever been, no one's ever been, You've never
seen anyone like Taysom Hill. Taysom Hill is the most
unique football player in the modern era, like of college football,
of the NFL game too. No one plays football like
Taysom Hill. So so I I I'm gonna push back
on you on this. What I'm saying is Tyler Ow's year. Okay,
in many ways in twenty twenty one, was the best
player on the offense and defense can buy special teams like,
he was literally the best player and he got you
to double digit wins. I'm not trying to take anything
away from quarterback play. Okay, they're they're good that you
need good quarterback play. But there's no doubt that Tylar
Tylar was the MVP, and you could make an argument
that l J was actually the most valuable player this year.
You can make an argument for that because as soon
as LJ went down, you know what I mean, He's
the offensive player of the Year in the Big Twelve.
He goes out in the Texas Tech game, we struggle.
Bear bachmar Yes also got injured in in uh In
in the second game, and they they they they still struggled, right.
So it's not cut and dry. But I think you
can make an argument that l J was the most
valuable player on the BA football team. I think you
make an agree there. Yeah, I think you make it
like I'm on sides. I'm not gonna be like, oh no,
I'm not gonna sway. L J when he was at
his best, was was really a good player. There's a
reason why he was voted as the Big twelve Offensive
Player of the Year. And and it was a consensus vote.
No one said. Coaches that had been coached for a
long time, they were saying, oh no, Bear is now
They said, LJ freaking Martin. He was the gas that
powered this offensive engine. And Bear was really good too,
But LJ. I think I give him a slight LJ
was good. I give him a slight advantage there, and
and and you need him to be at his best necession.
So what I'm getting at is like running backs, I
think you know my thesis year is I think elite
running backs and going back to Notre Dame. Notre Dame
last this last year was gonna win, was gonna win
football games, and they did on the back end with
one of the best running backs in college football and
a good defense. So anyway, we'll go to break, don't
go anywhere more to get to on a beautiful Thursday,
January twenty second edition of Cougar Sports. That was a
great segment brought to you by Odion Menswear odeon menswear
dot com. Let's get to more news and notes coming
out to break them coming up next. This is Cougar
Sports on one, O, three nine. Now to your point
three