Speaker 1: Good Morning at seven am hero and Monday December twenty third,
Today in bed Rouge, you can expect sunny skies with
a high of sixty six and our one of today's show,
we'll react around one of the college football playoffs and
we'll talk about the latest transfer portal editions for your
LSU Tigers. You can follow us on Twitter or Instagram,
at OTV Underscore ESPN and watch us on YouTube at
the one of four or five ESPN channel. Our number
one of Off the Bench Live from the Mercedes Benz
of Bedridge Studios starts now.
Speaker 2: Merry Christmas from Off the Bench presented by All Star Toyota.
Join Jacob Hester and t Bob Avery as we spread
some holidays year and talk all things sports live from
the Mercedes Benz of Baton Bruce Studio.
Speaker 3: Let's get this Christmas party started. Sin's a tell me
if you.
Speaker 4: Till my fun Look, it's Santa towning issue, really can
because get get it?
Speaker 3: Yoah?
Speaker 5: What's going on y'all? Merry Christmas.
Speaker 6: I hope everybody is having a wonderful Monday morning here.
Hopefully you're off of work, you got a nice coffee
in hand, and you're excited to enjoy an excellent pre
Christmas season. As we are here on the eve of
Christmas Eve, Turkey's going in the brine, he's getting ready
for church tomorrow, Presence getting ready for Santa coming to town.
Speaker 5: What a time to be alive.
Speaker 6: And here we just experience our first ever round of
the twelve team playoff. And my god, it takes a
lot of takes to get too on today's show. So
if you are listening and you're up and about, welcome
you want to get involved. YouTube dot com, slash one,
O four five ESPN is how you can do so,
having to buy you forward YouTube chat. I'm teaba baby.
We got Jake Hester, we got Joran. We've got Taylor
hanging out of us today at lives out Jake. What's
up man?
Speaker 5: How are we feeling? Merry Christmas? Merry Christmas? Uh, you're
not ta Bob, You're olof. I love warm ugs. I
think ninety three Alabama should have made the playoffs. That's
what you sound like, an idiot. Tide fans.
Speaker 6: You're real loud before that Tennessee game done, quiet and
down a little bit out of that now.
Speaker 5: And then whe there, Oh Alabama.
Speaker 6: Bare They did, I guess listening on radio, I'm I'm
in an adult sized to whole off costume. So actually
my second costume of the morning, I worked out an
evolved this morning, an adult sized Buddy the Elf pajamas.
Speaker 5: So we are off to a brooring Christmas Eve eve.
What's up though?
Speaker 6: Man?
Speaker 5: How's the weekend? No? No traveling?
Speaker 7: No stay back and watch football? Yeah no, no traveling.
Got a chance to sit back watch all the games.
Memphis and his little indoor soccer team had two competitive games,
and so that was fun. Already, get a couple dubs there,
family time, got a lot done. So no, it's a
good weekend. I felt bad. He's like, we got so
much done with you here this weekend.
Speaker 5: Yeah, imagine that.
Speaker 7: Sorry about that. I'll see you in February. Seeing a
month actually mid February.
Speaker 5: It's brutal, Jordan, what's up? Welcome? I wish Thelandrew is here,
but I guess you're okay. No, it's cool, man. I
do what I do. I do what I do.
Speaker 6: Merry Christmas going on? Uh so, where where's your family?
Is your family in New Orleans?
Speaker 5: Where are they at?
Speaker 7: Uh?
Speaker 8: Well, my mom's gonna leave to go back to Shreveport.
My grandpa, he's uh, he was in the hospital. I yeah,
I mean, so she's gonna go back up there to
go go back with him. So she's not gonna be
here for the holidays, but my dad and my sister
probably go by my grandparents.
Speaker 5: Okay, All right on, man, So you're not going to Streetport, No,
I can't. I got work. Okay, right on, Tita. What's
up with you?
Speaker 6: Man?
Speaker 5: How you doing today? Oh too, Bob. It's a good day, dude.
Heck of a football weekend. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Look, we got till about six pm tonight. Okay, I
gotta fake it till I make it. You get through that,
and we are partying the next two days. Yes, shut out,
I mean probably not leaving the house.
Speaker 6: Uh, tyitay pulling double duty on December twenty third, doing
off the bench seven to ten am in then AFR
three to six.
Speaker 5: So uh, maybe I'll be maybe I'll.
Speaker 6: Be a little bit nicer the tailor today. So look,
we have a lot of uh, we have a lot
of playoff talk to get to. Jake got us some
fantastic gifts too, we can unwrap and uh later in
the show. But we got a lot of playoff talk
to get to a lot of portal combat to get
to Saints Packers is coming up later tonight NFL over
the weekend, and I think we gotta okay, we need
to there in the next commercial break, guys, make a
priority of seeding this movie bracket and start putting votes
out there to the people. And there's gonna be quick votes,
and see if we can advance through this thing. Maybe
we can, maybe we can't, maybe do aver all fair
as well, but we will. We will complete the Christmas
movie bracket. Okay, fair enough, Okay, let's start. Let's just
start with the playoffs because of course, right, let's go
ahead and get this show started.
Speaker 3: It's time to get to work.
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Speaker 5: Playoff problem.
Speaker 6: They broke in. What's wrong? Did the wrong teams get in?
These are all questions that are being asked after the
four home teams completely dominate the four games over the weekend, Jake.
In my opinion, it is not as much that you
got the wrong teams in the field.
Speaker 5: Though. Look, if you want to make that argument, there
are arguments to be made, but I think.
Speaker 6: It's still tough to say, well, how would you have decided?
Like we get into that. I think though, the root
of maybe what went wrong from a matchup standpoint this
weekend is mainly in seeding, right, And I did not
think seeding was that big of a deal because I
thought these teams were closer than they ended up being.
Like I thought Indiana was on part with Notre Dame,
and I was dead wrong in my analysis. I thought
Tennessee had a real chance. I mean, I know how
State had an advantage of will. However, I though Tennessee
had a real chances.
Speaker 5: I was.
Speaker 6: So the point is, before people were talking about seeding,
I'm like, yeah, it's kind of dumb, but whatever, I thought.
Speaker 5: These games are still gonna be close. It is what
it is.
Speaker 6: But if you had seeded this based on how these
teams were ranked, two of these teams would have not
been playing this weekend, right, And so in theory, maybe
maybe you get some better games there instead of maybe
now you might have two weeks a row where get
a couple upsided matches.
Speaker 5: But I will say this, though a lot of.
Speaker 6: People came away from this weekend very negative, very angry,
very rare. I don't the games were not enjoyable to watch,
they were not exciting to watch. But I am excited
to watching to watch the four winners going forward, because
everybody that won this weekend looked so damn good that they, like,
every one of them looked like a national championship caliber team. Yeah,
and that has me very excited going forward. There's a
lot of victory lapping over, like the playoff suction, it's
broken and never should make sure. Okay, Like, we got
a lot of games up to play, guys like, and
they're only gonna get better and more exciting. So I'm
pumped up. I think all the four teams that won
look like they could legitimately win a national championship. But
I do think I don't know if you can change
this for next year, but I do the seeding maybe
is the root of some of the mismatches here, and
maybe it is.
Speaker 7: Obviously a lot of people didn't like the fact that
we had, you know, Boise State and Arizona State get
a bye and I look, we'll see and you know,
people speaking on those two teams like those teams hadn't
even played yet, so it's like you're speaking on those
an absolute love for them.
Speaker 5: I would love for them to do well.
Speaker 7: But uh, you're right though about like Tennessee, Like a
lot of people's narrative did change once Tennessee got blown out.
Look like Penn State SMU, like that one was kind
of exactly how I thought it was going to play out. Yeah,
I'm very bullish on Notre Dame. On off campus, they
were like, hey, pick three teams to win a national championship,
and I went Oregon, Notre Dame.
Speaker 5: Texas, That's the three that I chose.
Speaker 7: Yeah, So like I wasn't surprised there either.
Speaker 6: Well, and if you'd see it just off the rankings,
it would have been Notre Dame in Texas getting the
buys right, or maybe Penn State it would have been
Pensate Texas.
Speaker 5: Or maybe, I mean because Notre Dame couldn't.
Speaker 7: But yeah, I mean if they could, if they could,
uh they actually that they would have been the conversation. Maybe,
but look, we have first round blowouts in the NFL
all time. I understand that maybe the receding, maybe that
can be something that you take a look at. Maybe
you know, if Arizona State's playing Clemson and and let's see,
Boise State probably would have been playing SMU. Yeah, I mean,
maybe you get a better game there. I do understand that,
But now I want to see the better matchups, Like
we're gonna get Ohio State in Oregon, We're gonna get
Notre Dame Georgia. Can't wait to cover that game, and
we don't know about Arizona State, we don't know about
Boise State just yet.
Speaker 5: And I upset that it was just clunker after clunker. Yeah. Absolutely,
I was expecting some great football.
Speaker 7: Watched every spend a lot of time making a gumbo
getting excited for it, and I felt like gumbo is
the most exciting part of the weekend. I mean, none
of these get not one, not one of these games
was interesting and intriguing, Like Indiana at the at the
end kind of made it a little bit spicy there.
But I mean that game was never going to go
a Hoosier's way. So even Texas and Clemson, like Clemson
had a little comeback, I'm like, they're not gonna win.
Speaker 6: It was a strong I thought it was a I
thought it was an impressive shutting of the door. After
Clemson did get a little hot. Like I'm a Clemson fan,
I'm actually not feeling terrible. Yeah, because club nicking those
freshman wide receivers looked very good. It's a very good defense,
and like you can carry that into next year and
be pretty excited about your potential of your Clemson, Like
Clemson could be back as a national championship contender next season.
But I thought for Texas, yeah, when they came up
with that fourth and goal stop, then they immediately respond,
I think, like a seventy plus yard touchdown run or no, no,
Clemson scores get down seven, they go seventy yard touch
around Climson can get down to the one, and then
they come up with a fourth down stop. Then they
then they run that four minute offense that really should
have into the game, but they didn't call that one
a first down in the but like basically into the
game it was. It was an emphatic finish from Texas there.
So again, I think I think all four teams that
we saw win this week in are National Championship Cali.
Probably my biggest disappointment of the week and remains Indiana.
I was a firm believer and that they were legitimately
a very good team regardless of schedule because how they
had handled who they played on their schedule, And for
all of Kurt Signetti's brash courage, it seemed to kind
of go out the window this weekend as it felt
like he was just trying to keep it close, you know.
Speaker 5: Yeah, and that's the most disappointing.
Speaker 6: Part, Like go out on your sword, don't go out
trying to lose by ten, do the things that maybe
end up losing by thirty five, But like, you gotta
do it like that fourth and eleven. And I get
what he's saying after game, He's like, I mean, we've
done nothing up to that point, So what I think'm
gonna get fourth Elevenses and hopes and dreams. But it's like,
but that's not the point. You have to go for
it because you have to you don't even have a choice,
Like at that point, Notre Dame, even when they're not scoring,
they're spending five six minutes of drive. They are just
suffocating you, and you're allowing them to do it without
using everything at your disposal. And so I mean between
that kicking the field goal, I think when they were
down seventeen with like a short fort down, like just
a lot of not winning football, not aggressive decisions from
Signetti and kind of interesting, Jake in that we didn't
get to see Signetti make decisions from behind a lot
this year. No, I mean, they dominated the entire years.
So maybe that's a part of his game that he'll
have to evolve going forward, is being willing to engage
in more risk when you have.
Speaker 5: To because the game flow dictates you have to. Yeah.
I mean when he punted, I was completely shocked.
Speaker 7: So see that's somebody that with the way that he talks,
you thought, oh man, he's going to be on the
front foot. He's going to try to get back in
this game. If you lose by forty, be damn, but
we're going to go out fighting. And then when he
played it safe's like you don't play it safe in
the playoffs. No, bro, what do we talk play safe
in the playoffs? Dude?
Speaker 5: I have been in that situation.
Speaker 7: Like I've been in a playoff game where it's been
tied up, we get the ball back, he got like
thirty seconds left. It's like, let's go win this deal,
and we took a knee went to overtime. I'm like,
what do we got timeouts left? Like what are we
doing here?
Speaker 5: And game? And you have PR seventeen at the time?
Speaker 7: Wow in Mile High where see what are we doing?
You can kick a long field goal? Woxy, what are
we doing?
Speaker 8: You know?
Speaker 7: But we took an nay with thirty something seconds left
with two timeouts with Peyton Manning, So like, I hate, like,
I don't like any of that.
Speaker 5: And I was shocked when they did.
Speaker 7: That because it just felt like with the way that
you know, he was talking before the game, he was
going to go for broke.
Speaker 5: I did not. He did not.
Speaker 6: And it's actually like and then you saw Smu and
it looked like at first Lastly was about to teach
Signetti and Jenning's just completely imploded. I mean, you saw
the power of the home field in that Penn State game,
because remember SMU had the early, they stop him three
and out, they get the ball back, they're driving, they
have fourth and one, and it's a perfect A lot
of times, Jake, we talked about play calls and whether
or not they're good or bad, and we only use
the result. This is one where we can all agree
it was a good play call, but it just didn't work.
They ran that naked boot on fourth and one, and
he had both the first down and he had the touchdown,
and he got neither as he tried to do a
little too much do it behind the receiver, incomplete turnover
on downs. And that was just the start of Jennings night.
I gotta say. I mean, we talked about it coming
into the round. The two themes of a lot of
the teams you were identifying talking about this first round
of games or defense and the power of home field,
And both defense and the power of home field were
on display this week in his Penn State. Just yeah,
I mean, it looks like it looked like watching poor Jennings,
he looked like he was just a normal human battling
a frost giant and just getting the hell beat out
of him.
Speaker 5: Yeah, he was.
Speaker 7: He was having around Nathan Peterman territory, like all game long.
You know a lot of group chats talking about that
over the weekend because Merry Christmas.
Speaker 5: I mean, come on, I got the like six aerceptions
NFL game.
Speaker 7: But that's what he felt like. It's like, man, the
Monstars team came down here and took his talent.
Speaker 5: What is going on? And like once you saw that, you.
Speaker 7: Knew there was no because he needed to play like
dynamic football for them to have a chance to win.
Speaker 5: Against that team. You can do like he did.
Speaker 7: He had you know, multiple turn at six what against
the Duke and they found a way. You can do
that against Duke and Duke's not bad, they're nine when
football team. You can't do that on the road in
the playoff game against Spence State, Like that game was
the one that I felt like, look like two different
levels of football.
Speaker 5: Uh yeah, a Notre Dame a little bit. That one.
Speaker 6: It looked like two different levels. Yeah, Like the bodies
were just different. Rojas looks so big on the edge.
Was it de Luca who came up with the other
Pig six linebackers?
Speaker 5: Yeah?
Speaker 6: I mean Drew Aller looks like a jot like Josh Allen,
like straight up. I mean, he's not as good as you,
but he looks exactly like Josh Allen.
Speaker 5: A lot of people love Drew Alick in the NFL
draft community. I can see that. I can see that
for sure.
Speaker 6: Also, I mean, you know, big white Penn State quarterbacks,
there's a ton of them in the NFL. They never start,
but they're littered throughout there.
Speaker 5: They'll be a random Penn State quarterback. It's gonna be mine.
Speaker 6: Okay, I was gonna go with Tracey mcswirly. There's one other.
Who's the other one that I'm missing that's been in
the recent lineage? Oh Hackenberg? Yeah yeah, yeah, they're all
the same guys.
Speaker 5: I'll go Carry Collins.
Speaker 6: They're all the exact same guy. Oh Carry played for
shut Out? Yeah okay, so then okay, so those are
those two games. Uh. Clips of Texas was actually pretty good.
Like I said, like you got some semblance of excitement there.
But again, that's a game that analysis wise, we really
everybody nailed it, not just to us, but like Clips
that can't stop the run, we said it, they're awful
run defense, and sure enough Texas runs the ball for
three hundred yards. I would be very concerned if I'm
a Texas fan though about if you run into an
elite rush defense, Like how did Georgia be Texas?
Speaker 5: Both times?
Speaker 6: They completely shut the run. I don't think Quinn's got
the goods when you put it on him. I don't
think Quinn's championship caliber when you make him win.
Speaker 7: It, which is so odd because there's so much of
him that is, but the parts that are not feil egregious,
Like when you watch him play, it's like, oh man,
that guy can spin it in like two seconds later.
Speaker 5: T It's like, what in the hell is he thinking? Yeah,
what is he saying out there?
Speaker 7: He will throw a ball to a squatted corner more
than any quarterback in the country.
Speaker 5: It is wild to me.
Speaker 7: I'm like, y'all, what is he It's like, you'll run
a ten yard come back into a corner that's waiting
on He's like, I can fit it in there.
Speaker 5: I'm like, dude, you can. Nobody can. A rocket launcher
couldn't fit it in there. But he'll do it.
Speaker 6: He'll do it every game and he's not really a
rocket launcher thrower. He's like that his beautiful touch. Yeah,
feathery touch, incredible spiral all that. But it's not a
rocket arm. It's not going back to Josh Allen. It's
not that he But look, Texas still has, you know
what with top two, top three defense, maybe the number
one defense.
Speaker 5: Their safeties. Yeah, give me one of them, get like,
give me half of one of them.
Speaker 7: They are out there hitting and covering, but hitting and
like setting the tone for the game.
Speaker 6: And the Texo line was great as well, leading the
way for Wiser and Blue. So if they can run,
Texas can win a championship. But if you stop them,
I think you win the game. All Right, we get
we can talk more about the final game. Look forward,
we'll get to portal combat. Keep it locked right here
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Speaker 2: Welcome back to the best morning sports show around sorta.
Speaker 3: It's off the bench with Hester and t Bob.
Speaker 5: What's going on y'all?
Speaker 6: Welcome back to OTB Hope you're having it very merry
Christmas season.
Speaker 5: Talking about this weekend's playoff games.
Speaker 6: You don't get we haven't touched on yet the nightcap
Tennessee Ohio State. And it was real interesting up to
this point because up to this point everything had been
about you know, I mean, lane Kiffin, every lane, lane lane,
you look like a petulant child. But whatever, everything up
until this point had been the sec basically saying see
I told you like the strength of schedule, HIBE was
very strong, even to the point where I tweeted out,
like I basically bowed out, you know, because I was
on the opposite side of that discussion throughout the selection process,
and I basically tweeted something along the lines, if you know,
sometimes just got to accept like like like it was
going to be impossible to win hypothetical arguments with the
games that we had gotten thus far, and so I
basically said, Okay, I bow out of it. How then, though,
if you are someone who is arguing that these three
loss SEC teams should have gotten in and they were
so much better and strength of schedules so much better, how.
Speaker 5: Then do you make sense of the Tennessee game?
Speaker 6: Because here you had a two loss SEC team that
played a tough schedule, that was third in the SEC,
Ohio state, third in the Big Ten, and you look
as completely outclassed as anybody.
Speaker 5: Over the weekend.
Speaker 6: I mean it was, I mean like SMU was worse,
Clemson was better. In Indiana maybe better, maybe I guess
it's maybe a matter of opinion, But the point is,
I like, how do how do these lesser SEC teams
then still try to justify everything they were whining and
complaining about when the team that finished third in the
conference with two losses went got absolutely troutced to the
third place Big Ten team who finished with two losses.
And it was also real interesting to see Lane's Twitter
go completely radio silent after after that, because like, here's
here's the thing, Like, again, just just beat Kentucky, just
beat Oklahoma, Like, if you really want to be there,
we have never in this sport ever rewarded three loss
seasons two loss Yeah, they gets you in the New year,
six balls, this sort of stuff. So at the end
of the day, I still think like, yeah, you know,
when some of these two loss teams maybe have have
been better, better quality games.
Speaker 5: Potentially, it's not a guarantee, potentially, Uh, but.
Speaker 6: Tennessee really knocked the wind out of the sales of
just bumping up the SEC above everybody because it's the SEC.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 7: I just I didn't like the same thing I didn't
like over the weekend. It's like, oh man, this is intriguing,
this is a grace is riveting. I just you don't
know what you would have done. And you're right about like,
if you want to be there, you you can't have
the bad loss like if you'd had three good losses,
maybe maybe maybe it's a conversation because South Carolina maybe
they got it, Like if they didn't lose to two
teams that were in front of them with the bad losses, Yeah,
maybe that looks a little bit different. Maybe if they
would have lost to l s. U. Tennessee and Texas
and then they finished the way they did, beating the
teams they did, maybe it looks a little bit different.
I don't know, but yeah, you just you can't assume
that you would have gone out there and done any better.
Speaker 5: I don't know. I didn't like to look very much either. No,
I mean, it was, it was.
Speaker 6: It was annoying, but it was one of those deals
where it's like I can't even debate think Shane was
doing any of that? Was he?
Speaker 5: I know Lane was. Was Shane Beamer doing any of that? No,
I don't. I don't not that I saw. Lane was
the only coach. I don't think debor was either.
Speaker 7: More feels like somebody that doesn't use Twitter. I'm about
to say he might have an account, but somebody else
runs that account, like Shane and Lane for sure tweet
from there.
Speaker 5: Lane is the most twittered heavy coach there.
Speaker 6: Is probably exist of co existing truths where yeah, those
teams would have performed better, but at the same time
they did not play well enough to get in the tournament.
Like you don't get rewarded for underachieving, and those teams underachieved,
maybe not South Carolina but actually by by by the
talent level they eventually reached at the end of the
year they did given how good they were playing.
Speaker 5: So it's uh, I don't know.
Speaker 6: My bottom line is like whatever, if you believe that,
you believe that I can't argue against hypotheticals, you know,
like you you have the hypothetical love. Oh, well, we
would have won and the game wasn't played, so I
can't tell you.
Speaker 5: Yes, who know. What I do know is that Tennessee
did kind of take away. I think some of this
steam out of that argument.
Speaker 6: As far as the game itself goes, though, this is
another one where it feels like the difference is what
we said it was going to be going into the game.
Will Howard versus Nico Iamaliava. Will Howard's just better. He's
been really good all year, saved for that Michigan game.
The one part of this game that I did not
expect to go so well for Ohio State, Jake. I
thought Ohio State's O line would struggle more, they would
struggle to protect town at a time. I didn't think
High State would be able to run the ball like
they did, and Ohio States O line completely dominated a
very good Tennessee front seven and then obviously them losing
Dylan SAMs is going to be a death now, No,
that's weird, matter what.
Speaker 7: It's just like, it looked like he was trying to
warm up and then he looked like he was done.
He looked like he was trying to want to He's like, ah, man,
that's tough. Like that guy's offensive player of the Year
in the SEC. And I don't know that it really
would have mattered, but that was tough just seeing him, like,
you know, try to get loose and then go back
to the sideline and that weather, it's almost impossible if
you're tweaked it all to kind of get back into
the game. It's kind of a you know, a bad
situation for him. But going back to the Tennessee rush,
I thought that was maybe going to be the difference
in the game. And I was like, look, I don't
think they're going to have any upsets. But if I
had to pick one, I'll pick Tennessee sure because of that.
Because of their defensive line, their front seven, and they
got one of the best corner tandems in the country.
I'm like, they'll be okay man Ohio State, and I
think it was a lot of it was Chip Kelly
and they watched a lot of Michigan film, and that
team didn't run anything they did in the Michigan game.
Speaker 5: I mean they were going over the top, pushing the
ball down the field.
Speaker 7: You could tell Tennessee had a play to try to
stop the run and intermediate passes and Ohio State did
none of that.
Speaker 5: They were going to go down the field.
Speaker 7: It was going to be, Hey, my freshman against your
top corner, and my freshman is going to win.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 6: I mean Jeremi Smith, is he the best weapon left
in these playoffs?
Speaker 5: I mean, Ash and gent T would be up there. TJ.
Warren would be up there. Jeremih Smith's amazing, and Buck's
Ukah is amazing as well. Kataboo katabooy would be up there.
I was asking.
Speaker 6: I wasn't saying, but I mean, to me, the Jeremiah
Smith play that is not the biggest play, but that
I found me in some ways. The most impressive was
the fourth down drag round where they're going against his
own defense and when the ball is thrown, he comes
back and attacks the ball, you know, coming underneath the
line to gain but naturally creating the space from the
defenders to not just catching, not ever broken up, but
then to be able to get around him and get
the first down. It's just such a natural in a
high level football Like you, very very jeremih Smith is awesome.
Speaker 5: He is incredible. I mean, he was doing things that
like a savvy fifth year senior does.
Speaker 7: Like you're saying, that's a great breakdown tea of what
he did on that play, because you know a lot
of freshmen allow that ball to come to him maybe
or maybe they fade a little bit and they don't
get Yeah, you don't get the first down.
Speaker 4: Man.
Speaker 7: That is high level stuff. And he he's certainly in
the conversation for best playmaker left. This is not a
this is not like a heavy top tier receiver playoff. No,
you know, like it hasn't been a year. Think think
about the teams that are still in it like, and
if Jordan Tyson doesn't come back, which I don't think
we you know, we expect him to come back like
he would have been in the conversation at Arizona State,
like Texas has really good receivers at times, but it's
like not that one dominant guy. Golden's like a deep threat.
He's going to go get the go ball, but it's
not running eighteen yard dig routes. But I mean he
might be like, can we think of another one that
can take over a game?
Speaker 5: You know what I'm saying, Like, I mean to Ohio
might be the only one game breaker? Does the state
of the would better than He's not on the level
of I don't think no.
Speaker 7: But I'm saying, like, do we have another receiver at
all that can take a game break?
Speaker 5: You know what I'm saying, I don't think so. Is
he the only other one?
Speaker 7: And I don't even think he's on the same level
as his teammate. I mean, because they think about Notre Dame.
I mean Notre Dame's a really good football team. They're
not going to get you with their weapons over a game.
Same thing with Penn State. I mean, Warren to tight
end might be their best bet. In that conversation, I
think that's it, because Georgia certainly doesn't have it they
need they need one.
Speaker 5: George is looking for somebody to throw the football too. Yeah.
Speaker 6: Uh open it as a slight favorite in that game,
and then did bounce back George's way.
Speaker 5: I just looked at it right now one and a half.
I feel like this is a hellish first start for gunnery.
Speaker 7: Opened up Notre Dame minus one and the yelf, you're right,
and now it's moved to Jaoujia minus one and a half.
Speaker 5: Mm pick them, flip them.
Speaker 6: Oh well, but look the bottom line again, not exciting games,
but I am excited about the teams who won. They
all looked awesome, They all look championship caliber. Can't wait
for this next round. All right, more OTB coming up,
keep it locked here on one of four five ESPN.
Speaker 3: Off the Bench, Welcome back to more sports talk.
Speaker 2: What's some other stuff mixed in off the bench with
Hester Anti Bob.
Speaker 5: What's happening y'all?
Speaker 6: Welcome back here to OTP and right now weird please
be joined by you high director, mister Kevin George here
on off the Bench talk a little you high as
uh Me and Jake, both proud Cubs but also going
to be hosting the gala this year.
Speaker 5: Very excited, keV. We were killing it on the dance
floor last year's gala.
Speaker 9: I'd say, yeah, we had a great time. I think
you and I did a little dance. I think we
got some rave review, some rave review.
Speaker 8: Yeah yeah, I.
Speaker 6: Also got a little trouble. Might have got a little
two sideways. Uh gone a little too you know, celebrate
a little too hard. But no, stop shaking your head tailor. Okay,
as the MC this year, we're gonna keep it between
the lines and we are going to raise some money
and have a.
Speaker 5: Hell of a time.
Speaker 6: You're costume, I am not. I am not wearing the
ol Off costume. Uh I'll I'll be rocking by pierp Cat.
Speaker 5: What's going on though?
Speaker 4: Man?
Speaker 5: How are you doing this this Christmas season?
Speaker 6: Bruh?
Speaker 5: Look?
Speaker 9: This Christmas season is great because right now, you know,
everyone goes home. We get we send your kids back
for a couple of weeks. But we we stay busy,
right you know, with uh with all sorts of athletics
going on right now. I mean our girls basketball team
just went to Mobile this weekend. They're undefeated, undefeated, ranked
number one in Division two, and so we're just really
excited about that basketball team right now.
Speaker 5: Yeah, they want a big tournament mobile over the weekend. Huh. Yeah,
you know, looking real good. You know coach C. J.
Speaker 9: Johnson, she's been there a long time form LSU women's
basketball player. She does a great job her and our
staff with our team. They were state runner ups last year,
lost our crosstown rivals Park View Baptists. But our girls
are back and ready and they seem better than ever.
Speaker 6: So as as you look forward to the spring, what
is like, uh, what is the main goal right now?
Like you say that y'all are working on over the
break while our kids are are all back home and
y'all are not having to take care of them for
us every single day.
Speaker 9: Yeah, no, no worries and and so one of the
few things going on like right now again is real
busy we have. You know, we just talked about a
girls basketball team. You know, our boys soccer team right
now is undefeated as well. They're they're ranked number two
in the division right now. You know, our girls soccer
team they're ranked number four right now. So you know,
Our coaches just do it a great, amazing job, and
they have tournaments all throughout the break leading up to
one of our big tournaments, the Wade Sims Tournament, our
boys basketball team would be participating in in January, second, third,
and fourth.
Speaker 5: You know that raises a lot of money for that Wade.
Speaker 9: Sims Foundation, one of the great clubs and so just
an incredible family. So we're super excited about supporting them
and what we're doing here at U High.
Speaker 7: H Are you telling them about the Pink Pandas I
mean soccer, I mean, you're gonna have a cup playing
soccer victory.
Speaker 6: Unfortunately we're not the premiere high soccer club that belongs there.
I think it is a Rainbow Union now the Rainbow Unicorns.
It's something there. There's we're kind of we're kind of
the B team, but we're on the ride.
Speaker 5: But he's starting. No, I mean we went that doubt.
Speaker 6: I went winless in Little League sports for I think
three years and then uh and then we might have
gone like nine and one or so.
Speaker 5: So yeah about it.
Speaker 7: It was.
Speaker 6: It was.
Speaker 5: It was a big turnaround for.
Speaker 6: The Pandits and you know where we're committed to continuing
to strive for excellence and improving.
Speaker 5: But it's been rough. Kep. Do you take any of
those playoff games this weekend?
Speaker 9: Oh? Absolutely, I mean watching it, you know, of course
I had to watch my Pitstsburg Steelers, so in the
middle of all that kind of went.
Speaker 5: Down a little bit and Russell had a couple of
bad turn overs there. But hey, yeah, I feel good.
I feel good. When George Pickens comes back, we're gonna
be all right. Yeah, you probably do feel good. You're
a Steelers fan.
Speaker 6: All you get to experience every single year is consistent winning, absolutely,
like you've never did.
Speaker 5: How did you end up a Steelers fan?
Speaker 9: My son, who is thirty years old, have never experienced
a losing Steeler season.
Speaker 5: Never, and so it is. He he doesn't understand why
Rothlisberger retired. He's like, who's a quarter I don't even
know how to how to operate?
Speaker 9: But uh, you know, it's just a tremendous job that
coach Tomlin and uh you know all the group does
up there in Pittsburgh.
Speaker 7: Immaculate reception was on this day in nineteen seventy two.
It was today, yes from seventy two about Steelers up
as a Steelers.
Speaker 5: Shed just growing up.
Speaker 9: My dad was a Steelers fan, you know, growing up
in I grew up in Crowley, Louisiana. Yeah, the Cowboys
and the Steelers were only teams on televisions. Uh in
the seventies, the Saints were, you know, and so you know,
you you fell into two groups. You either Cowboys Steelers
fan and you know we were Steeler fans.
Speaker 5: Choose the right group. His family ended up in the Cowgirls.
Speaker 7: There is a large host of Steeler fans still in
Shreeport because of Terry Bradshaw. That kind of the same
thing makes their TV h In the seventies, the Saints
warn't as much and Saints were kind of you know,
rifles somewhat new and resting rifle from Shreveport.
Speaker 5: Jones, Oh, that's not Terry Bradshaw. No, the this is
Sport High School, shreve Ford Slinger. Slinger. No, I mean
Terry Bradshaw's got it. Uh.
Speaker 7: A kind of an interstate named after him in Treeport,
the Terry Bradshaw Passway.
Speaker 5: It's an inn loop. I know those are a lot
of people. Yeah, it would be nice we had maybe
kept So what comes next for you? High football man?
Speaker 6: Obviously a very good team, but disappointment and everything else
what comes next?
Speaker 9: Yeah, you know, we're moving forward. You know, it was
just a devastating blow to us. They have that season
in abruptly for us. You know, just working with our
with our squad and just trying to rebuild some things,
working with the l s A to make sure we
don't have any other issues. And you know, we're bringing
back on oldie but goodie our You know, Jill White
is athlete direct she was at like director for about
eighteen years. Uh, and so she's our interim ad to
get things in order to make sure that we are
cleared and ready to go.
Speaker 5: I can tell you what this is.
Speaker 4: Uh.
Speaker 9: You know, for our seniors, obviously we bid them for
Farewell and they were a great group of seniors. We
wanted to see them in there on the on the field.
Speaker 5: Uh.
Speaker 9: But you know, for our underclassmen, they are ready. They
are just ready to get back on that football field.
So just look out come this fall.
Speaker 6: Hell yeah, man, I can't wait. Very excited for the
spring as well. Galla coming up? You ready to dance again?
Speaker 9: I'm ready. I want to do your first dance and
look it's gonna be in Tiger Stadium.
Speaker 5: So a new venue. He's going to build a Tiger Stadium.
Speaker 9: You got that backdrop, that amazing backdrop to just a
wonderful night of Every year, it just gets bigger and better.
You know the first few years and we had it
at the Laberge and you know, our chair said this year,
say look let's bring it to Tiger Stadium. We can
bring more people in.
Speaker 5: That was the thing.
Speaker 9: It just tickets sol out in hours, and so bringing
it to this bigger venue we would have be able
to have more cubs to participate.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 6: Man, you know it is the best education to money
racer out there. I love being a part of the
U High crew. Go Cubs, and thank you keV. Thank
you so much for hanging out with us this morning. Man, No,
thank you and everything that you'll do.
Speaker 5: Thank you. Thanks for allowing me to be here. Thank you, Jack.
Do you hike? Kevin George?
Speaker 6: All right, moro GB closing out an hour one coming
up next off the bench.
Speaker 2: Thanks, Thanks, Thanks, Welcome back to more sports talk. What's
some other stuff mixed in off the bench with Hester
Anti Bob.
Speaker 6: What's going on y'all? Welcome back to OTB Round Up.
I number one one thing that was great about this
weekend playoff home game, right, electric atmospheres at all the
home games. It's kind of funny because you know, I'm
I I want to keep the legendary venues, so I
love that this next games or the Sugar Bowl, and
what do we get Ohio State, Oregon in the Rose
Bowl and then Georgia. Who's at Georgia? Who in the
Sugar bowlhy Am I blaking Georgia the Sugar Bowl? Like, okay,
incredible venues, incredible matchups. But damn, I'll be damned if
these home games aren't pretty awesome as well. And they uh,
I mean, I don't know, Jake, we okay, since we've
kind of been theming it throughout our one overall takeaway
on the first round and any changes that you feel
like with one round of evidence that you would make
and obviously, like I had some of my friends like
talking craft to me like oh seen you met, and
I'm like, huh, you know, it's almost like the actual
evidence in front of my face changed my opinion. Imagine
that that you could see something and say, you know what,
I was wrong, and I think actually this should maybe
be fixed. But did you do you do you have
any takeaways about things you would change in the future.
Going for about the playoff, yeah, I mean I don't.
Speaker 7: Okay, So just like the NCAA Tournament, just because you
win your conference in basketball, it doesn't mean you get
a one seed like that probably would be okay. Hey,
let's do one through twelve, all right, and let's get
the twelve teams in there. And if you have to
knock one out because the ACC champs sixteenth like we
had with Clemson, Okay, then they get that.
Speaker 5: Yeah, they get the very bottom spot.
Speaker 7: I'm okay with automatic qualifiers, I am, because like the
ACC and the Big twelve, like you want them represented
in the playoff, but they don't have to be in
consideration for a top four seed.
Speaker 5: And if you earn one, you earn one. And even
look Notre Dame.
Speaker 7: And I know a lot of people are not gonna
like that, Like if if they're are a top four seed,
I have I really don't have a problem with them
being a top four seed.
Speaker 6: And by the end of the game, by the end
of the year, I think they came into what ranked
fifth overall, so they wouldn't have got it, but they
are a top four seed caliber team this year. Even
they remind me so much of that Ohio State team
which had the inexplicable Virginia Tech loss, but then.
Speaker 5: Just got better and better and better as the year
went on.
Speaker 6: Like, I know they lost to Northern Illinois, but if
every time Notre Dame's brought up, you bring that up,
then at a certain like then we can have a
conversation because Notre Dame has been awesome since then. And
I still think this was nobody every nobody cares what
I think, but I still think it was a pretty
good Indiana team.
Speaker 5: They completely dismantled.
Speaker 6: But you know, maybe I'm wrong and I'm favoring them
slightly over over Georgia. I just think Gunner stocked. And
there's a big difference between coming in halfway through a
game and entering, you know, and then Notre Dame and
Marcus Freeman having eleven days to know their game planning
for you, Jake, that's him. That's such a hard hand
for him to have been dealt.
Speaker 5: How much time? So how much times between right now
until we get to I mean like right now, like
nine days? Nine days?
Speaker 6: Right?
Speaker 5: Yeah?
Speaker 7: Okay, So like that's that's going to be intriguing too. Like,
so the teams that had all that time and how
much they were preparing for two teams? Yeah, I know
Georgia was preparing more for Notre Dame. Yes, absolutely, you
know what I'm saying. Like I know Oregon was probably well,
they had a book out Ohio State, so maybe not
in that scenario like Arizona State, I guarantee was working
on Texas more than they were Clemson.
Speaker 5: I want to see how much that helps them. Do
you think Notre Dame was already doing some advance I
mean had some of their analysts.
Speaker 7: Maybe some yeah, maybe some for sure, But I know
Kirby was probably had the full eighty percent book on
Notre Dame twenty percent Indiana, yes.
Speaker 6: Yeah, yeah, no without a DOB, without a that. And see,
I'm excited to see how that plays out again. One
system that is posed for twenty twenty six that I
think we can make better decision about when we have
two years of a twelve team playoffs. I do like
the idea of the fourteen team where it's top four
teams in the SEC, top four in the Big ten,
top two in the Big twelve, and top two in
the ACC It takes all kind of judgment out of it,
and then you have to at large, but it takes
kind of the judgment out of it's just win your
conference games. And it doesn't penalize you for scheduling hard
out of conference games because it's all.
Speaker 5: About your conference standings. Uh, but whatever, I love it.
Speaker 6: It's college football suck at nerds. Okay, all y'all freaking
are pissed me off? Without negative you're.
Speaker 3: Being We'll do it top to bench.
Speaker 5: What are you gonna do?
Speaker 7: No, it's just gonna I want to see, like who
you think is gonna have the biggest advantage as far
as the preparation for who there are appoint's going to
be in this round. And it's kind of like I'm
just thinking like Dane Landing and Kirby Smart, like all
those coaches. Man, they prepare as well as anybody in
the country, and they've had some real extra time to
get ready for their opponent.
Speaker 5: How much it's going to play a factor into it.
Speaker 6: And we can talk about it next hour a week
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