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 Pylon, 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 --> 00:00:13,599 Coast podcast networks. 5 00:00:13,919 --> 00:00:15,679 Speaker 2: Here's your host, Matt Zimma. 6 00:00:16,519 --> 00:00:18,800 Speaker 3: Welcome to the latest edition of Get Off My Pilon 7 00:00:18,920 --> 00:00:20,239 college football podcast. 8 00:00:20,280 --> 00:00:21,800 Speaker 2: This is your host, Matt Semmick. 9 00:00:22,000 --> 00:00:25,679 Speaker 4: Get Off My Pylon, part of the College Gridiron Coast 10 00:00:25,679 --> 00:00:29,679 to Coast podcast network. Go to Gridiron Coast on Twitter, 11 00:00:30,120 --> 00:00:33,240 go to Apple, Spotify, Spreaker, and the other places where 12 00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:34,560 you listen to your podcast. 13 00:00:35,240 --> 00:00:38,119 Speaker 2: Get all your favorite College Gridiron Coast to Coast shows, 14 00:00:38,159 --> 00:00:41,560 whether it's Pigskin and Burnt Ends or Noah Drury with 15 00:00:41,640 --> 00:00:45,520 his Big ten Paradigm, Yards and Stripes and the Service Academies, 16 00:00:45,719 --> 00:00:51,880 Jason Powers and Florida Football Insiders. All sports discussion on 17 00:00:52,000 --> 00:00:55,479 the ACC covering college football on the different corners of 18 00:00:55,520 --> 00:00:59,280 the United States, and there's a show for each regional perspective, 19 00:00:59,280 --> 00:01:03,359 each taste here on College Gridron Coast to Coast. So 20 00:01:03,560 --> 00:01:06,239 at Get Off My Pylon, we cover college football in 21 00:01:06,280 --> 00:01:10,719 the Western United States and let's start, you know, at 22 00:01:10,719 --> 00:01:12,560 the bottom of the food chain. We usually work our 23 00:01:12,599 --> 00:01:14,159 way up to the Big Ten, you know how it 24 00:01:14,239 --> 00:01:17,599 goes also to the Big twelve. But we start in 25 00:01:17,640 --> 00:01:21,079 the Mountain West, and you know, it's not likely that 26 00:01:21,159 --> 00:01:25,560 San Diego State is going to just blow away the competition. 27 00:01:25,640 --> 00:01:29,120 But the Aztecs at least have a chance to play 28 00:01:29,159 --> 00:01:31,599 their way into the group of five conversation. I mean, 29 00:01:31,640 --> 00:01:36,640 if they went out, it's probably a conversation now. Obviously 30 00:01:36,760 --> 00:01:39,879 in late October, beginning of November, we're a long way 31 00:01:39,920 --> 00:01:43,439 from that point. But you know, with Boise State having 32 00:01:43,560 --> 00:01:48,640 multiple losses in UNLV, getting absolutely crushed by Boise State, 33 00:01:49,359 --> 00:01:52,319 I've generally written the Mountain West off and I'm still 34 00:01:52,799 --> 00:01:55,480 of a mindset where you know, the American champion is 35 00:01:55,519 --> 00:01:58,280 going to be the Group of five representative in the 36 00:01:58,319 --> 00:02:01,680 college football playoff. San Diego State is not one hundred 37 00:02:01,719 --> 00:02:05,120 percent done, and so the as Techs, you know, if 38 00:02:05,159 --> 00:02:09,680 they can keep rolling along, they can keep doing what 39 00:02:09,719 --> 00:02:13,280 they're supposed to do. Who knows, who knows how interesting 40 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:18,560 uh this could all become. Who knows what that program 41 00:02:18,680 --> 00:02:20,560 might be able to do. And so Sean Lewis, we 42 00:02:20,639 --> 00:02:25,360 do have to say Sean Lewis the head coach at 43 00:02:25,400 --> 00:02:28,000 San Diego State. You know he was Deon Sanders, former 44 00:02:28,759 --> 00:02:33,159 assistant coach at Colorado, and you know, thought it was 45 00:02:33,199 --> 00:02:34,879 a good move for the ads texts to get him. 46 00:02:34,879 --> 00:02:37,879 But you know, last year was a was a rough ride. 47 00:02:39,120 --> 00:02:41,919 San Diego State definitely bouncing back. San Diego State beats 48 00:02:41,919 --> 00:02:44,960 Presno State twenty three to nothing on the road, and 49 00:02:45,039 --> 00:02:46,960 Presno State might not be that good, but you know 50 00:02:47,000 --> 00:02:51,879 what a shutout on the road convincing. That's not easy 51 00:02:51,879 --> 00:02:54,159 to do in college football. Look a look at what 52 00:02:54,199 --> 00:02:58,120 we're seeing elsewhere in the country about how hard it 53 00:02:58,199 --> 00:03:02,360 is to win on the road anywhere, any in any 54 00:03:02,919 --> 00:03:06,400 conference game any context, Like Alabama was fortunate to beat 55 00:03:06,800 --> 00:03:09,280 South Carolina got out played for a good portion of 56 00:03:09,280 --> 00:03:12,919 that game. You know, we've seen teams stumble in the 57 00:03:12,919 --> 00:03:17,680 Big Ten as well, so San Diego State not completely 58 00:03:17,719 --> 00:03:21,319 out of it in the Mountain Western Group of five conversations. 59 00:03:21,360 --> 00:03:24,240 That's gonna be an interesting plot point as we go 60 00:03:24,400 --> 00:03:30,759 into November, as we move along in the other Western 61 00:03:31,120 --> 00:03:36,000 teams in the that have you know, smaller national profiles. 62 00:03:36,280 --> 00:03:41,319 Stanford gets clobbered by Miami. Was good for the first quarter, 63 00:03:42,000 --> 00:03:44,439 quarter and a half, but from midway through the second 64 00:03:44,520 --> 00:03:46,840 quarter and then on through the second half reality set in. 65 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:50,840 But you know, Stanford gave Miami a tough battle for 66 00:03:50,960 --> 00:03:54,680 longer than a lot of people expected. So even though 67 00:03:54,800 --> 00:03:57,319 the score reflects a blo out, and even though, of 68 00:03:57,360 --> 00:04:00,280 course the gap between those two teams is large, you know, 69 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:03,520 Stanford's really fought hard the whole season, and Frank Reich 70 00:04:04,080 --> 00:04:06,319 deserves credit for that. I mentioned it last week, but 71 00:04:06,400 --> 00:04:10,280 like could have just gotten obliterated from the jump in Miami, 72 00:04:10,439 --> 00:04:15,439 and you know, the Cardinal were grossly inferior to the Hurricanes, 73 00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:17,839 but the you know, they made Miami work for it. 74 00:04:17,879 --> 00:04:22,240 They made Miami get irritated and annoyed before the Hurricanes 75 00:04:22,279 --> 00:04:26,519 finally woke up midway through that game. So even though 76 00:04:26,560 --> 00:04:28,879 it's a blowout, even though, like the stat sheets not 77 00:04:28,959 --> 00:04:32,120 gonna flatter Stanford at all, kind of impressed that the 78 00:04:32,160 --> 00:04:36,279 Cardinal have really not become the annual weekly doormat that 79 00:04:36,360 --> 00:04:38,279 I thought they were going to be before the season. 80 00:04:38,360 --> 00:04:41,800 Like that's what Oklahoma State is in the Big twelve. 81 00:04:41,879 --> 00:04:46,240 You know a few other teams really do fit that profile. Wisconsin. 82 00:04:46,279 --> 00:04:48,279 We're going to talk about Oregon in a minute, but 83 00:04:48,399 --> 00:04:51,920 like Wisconsin at least is fighting on defense. So I 84 00:04:51,959 --> 00:04:53,560 give the Badgers a little bit of credit for that, 85 00:04:53,639 --> 00:04:56,439 but boy, their offense is horrible, right, They've barely scored 86 00:04:57,040 --> 00:05:02,360 over the past month of games. I kind of thought 87 00:05:02,439 --> 00:05:05,199 Stanford was really going to get kicked around, like this 88 00:05:05,279 --> 00:05:07,720 team was going to eat forty to fifty point losses. 89 00:05:07,759 --> 00:05:11,800 It really hasn't materialized like that on a consistent basis. 90 00:05:12,720 --> 00:05:15,600 So you know, Stanford's going to have a head coaching vacancy. 91 00:05:16,680 --> 00:05:19,680 There's plenty to like about, you know, Andrew luck having 92 00:05:20,079 --> 00:05:24,360 a war chest, having plenty of funds to spend on 93 00:05:24,439 --> 00:05:27,319 a head coach on nil like that program could come 94 00:05:27,360 --> 00:05:30,600 back up quickly if it makes the right hire. That's 95 00:05:30,639 --> 00:05:33,600 gonna be an interesting part of a very wild coaching carousel, 96 00:05:33,639 --> 00:05:37,519 which of course, you know Brian Kelly fired at LSU. 97 00:05:38,199 --> 00:05:40,800 More high end jobs coming open. It's gonna be really 98 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:45,000 interesting to see how Stanford and also UCLA fit into that. 99 00:05:45,199 --> 00:05:48,439 Pictures more on UCLA, of course later in the show. 100 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:53,120 The other Bay Area school in the acc cow agonizing 101 00:05:54,160 --> 00:05:58,920 overtime loss at Virginia Tech. Both kickers on each side 102 00:05:59,160 --> 00:06:02,079 missed kicks that that could have made the difference in 103 00:06:02,079 --> 00:06:04,360 this game. But it's ultimately hope the Hokies that get 104 00:06:04,399 --> 00:06:07,839 the win. You know, what is there to say about Cal? 105 00:06:07,879 --> 00:06:12,759 I mean, first off, Cal should make a bowl game, 106 00:06:12,839 --> 00:06:14,759 or at least has a pretty good chance of making 107 00:06:14,759 --> 00:06:17,079 a bowl game. I mean, if Cal just can if 108 00:06:17,120 --> 00:06:19,439 Cal just beat Stanford, it gets to a bowl. So 109 00:06:19,519 --> 00:06:21,519 you have to think, if you're Cal, you need to 110 00:06:21,560 --> 00:06:23,959 at least do that and get to a bowl game, 111 00:06:24,040 --> 00:06:26,800 which makes the season, you know, a success to a 112 00:06:26,839 --> 00:06:30,160 certain degree. But you know, these games in the ACC, 113 00:06:30,399 --> 00:06:35,360 the lower tier Cal North Carolina last week, Calvertonia Tech 114 00:06:35,560 --> 00:06:38,920 this week. It's some bad football. It's some really sloppy, 115 00:06:39,120 --> 00:06:43,199 ugly football, so many mistakes on both sides. So you know, 116 00:06:43,759 --> 00:06:46,680 getting to a bowl game it doesn't happen for everyone. 117 00:06:46,800 --> 00:06:49,839 And so to that extent, Cal is doing what it 118 00:06:49,879 --> 00:06:53,199 can under Justin Wilcox. But in a bigger picture, like 119 00:06:53,279 --> 00:06:56,680 I don't see Cal being a remote threat in the 120 00:06:56,759 --> 00:07:01,759 upper tier of the ACC anytime soon, And the lower 121 00:07:01,800 --> 00:07:04,399 and middle parts of the ACC are so soft and 122 00:07:04,439 --> 00:07:07,399 so mediocre. You know that Cal is going to be 123 00:07:07,399 --> 00:07:09,839 able to claw together a few wins and get to 124 00:07:09,879 --> 00:07:13,160 a bowl game. But bigger picture, like I don't see 125 00:07:13,759 --> 00:07:16,920 this translating to Cal being an eight nine to ten 126 00:07:17,000 --> 00:07:20,920 win program anytime soon. I mean, cal just seems to 127 00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:25,319 be stuck in this very middle of the road existence. 128 00:07:25,439 --> 00:07:27,279 Not a whole lot of upside, not a whole lot 129 00:07:27,279 --> 00:07:31,319 of ceiling. You just got to wonder if the acc 130 00:07:31,680 --> 00:07:38,120 relocation package was really worth it for the Golden Bears. 131 00:07:39,360 --> 00:07:42,480 Let's now continue with the two packs. So Washington State 132 00:07:44,120 --> 00:07:47,839 beats Toledo, and Washington State has looked like a really 133 00:07:47,839 --> 00:07:50,240 good team, or at least maybe not really good, but 134 00:07:50,319 --> 00:07:53,959 certainly a good team the past few weeks. Easily could 135 00:07:53,959 --> 00:07:57,800 have beaten Virginia on the road, but you know, crumbled 136 00:07:57,800 --> 00:08:00,360 in the fourth quarter, gave up a tie breaking game 137 00:08:00,439 --> 00:08:04,839 deciding safety. But you know, this team which barely lost 138 00:08:04,879 --> 00:08:07,160 that Ole Miss, remember lost by just three points on 139 00:08:07,199 --> 00:08:13,439 the road at Ole Miss. They hammered Toledo twenty eight 140 00:08:13,439 --> 00:08:16,439 to seven. And Toledo, you'd figure, is a you know, 141 00:08:16,480 --> 00:08:21,120 a contender in the MAC and Washington State pretty easily 142 00:08:21,160 --> 00:08:27,040 brushed Toledo aside. So Washington State, you know, very different 143 00:08:27,040 --> 00:08:30,480 story from Oregon State. You know, Oregon State, languishing at 144 00:08:30,519 --> 00:08:33,519 the at the bottom of college football, doesn't even have 145 00:08:34,639 --> 00:08:38,720 a win over an FCS team. Washington State very different story. 146 00:08:38,759 --> 00:08:41,240 You know, Washington State lost in North Texas by forty 147 00:08:41,320 --> 00:08:43,919 nine earlier in the year. It seems that the Cougars 148 00:08:43,919 --> 00:08:46,679 were just gonna you know, circle the drain. No, very 149 00:08:46,679 --> 00:08:52,279 different story, very different trajectory, and so you know, it's 150 00:08:52,320 --> 00:08:56,399 really encouraging what's been happening with that program. The win 151 00:08:56,519 --> 00:08:59,639 over Toledo being the latest example. Oregon State had the 152 00:08:59,679 --> 00:09:03,919 week off. The Beavers play Sam Houston, or excuse me, 153 00:09:03,960 --> 00:09:07,639 they play Washington State next. Then they'll play Sam Houston. 154 00:09:08,279 --> 00:09:11,919 So you know, Washington State should certainly be favored against 155 00:09:12,039 --> 00:09:16,440 Oregon State in the meeting of the two Pack brothers. 156 00:09:17,200 --> 00:09:19,720 If Washington State does not win that game, it will 157 00:09:19,720 --> 00:09:24,159 come across as a distinct surprise. Remember Oregon State laboring 158 00:09:24,240 --> 00:09:28,960 under an interim coach after Trent Bray was fired earlier 159 00:09:29,519 --> 00:09:32,480 in the season. All right, So moving along with our 160 00:09:32,519 --> 00:09:37,320 survey of Western teams in college football. We made it 161 00:09:37,360 --> 00:09:39,559 through the Two Pack, made it through the ACC, the 162 00:09:39,559 --> 00:09:43,279 Bay Area schools, and the Mountain West. So now we 163 00:09:43,360 --> 00:09:46,440 come to the Big twelve and the big story is 164 00:09:46,519 --> 00:09:50,440 BYU And it's not just that the Cougars are unbeaten 165 00:09:51,240 --> 00:09:54,639 and we are sitting sitting pretty for the Big Twelve 166 00:09:54,759 --> 00:09:57,840 championship game and a chance to play their way into 167 00:09:57,960 --> 00:10:03,080 the College Football Playoff. That's impressive enough in its own right, 168 00:10:03,799 --> 00:10:10,000 but what's really remarkable is that, let's remember Jake Retzlaf, quarterback, 169 00:10:10,360 --> 00:10:15,200 gets into trouble with the honor code at BYU, he leaves, 170 00:10:15,240 --> 00:10:20,519 he goes to Tulane, and so BYU is left scrambling. 171 00:10:20,559 --> 00:10:23,440 It has to find a QB two and elevate him 172 00:10:23,879 --> 00:10:28,159 to QB one and get performance on a QB one 173 00:10:28,279 --> 00:10:32,559 scale at a QB one standard. And it turns to young, 174 00:10:32,799 --> 00:10:38,679 untested bear Bachmeyer. And really, who thought that bear Bachmeyer 175 00:10:38,840 --> 00:10:43,080 it was going to be this good this quickly. I mean, 176 00:10:43,600 --> 00:10:46,159 it is a real shocker that this guy is a 177 00:10:46,159 --> 00:10:50,240 freshman and yet not only is he piling up points. 178 00:10:50,279 --> 00:10:54,240 BYU scores forty one at Iowa State, but what bear 179 00:10:54,320 --> 00:10:59,519 Bachmeyer is also doing is BYU is falling behind consistently, 180 00:11:00,159 --> 00:11:03,960 fell behind at Colorado, fell behind at Arizona, fell behind 181 00:11:05,159 --> 00:11:08,240 at Iowa State, was down twenty four to ten, like 182 00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:14,039 BYU is falling behind by double digits, ten fourteen points 183 00:11:14,120 --> 00:11:17,240 on the road. All those games Colorado, Arizona, and now 184 00:11:17,279 --> 00:11:21,440 Iowa State all road games BYU was it down by 185 00:11:21,480 --> 00:11:24,200 at least ten, if not fourteen in each of those games, 186 00:11:24,240 --> 00:11:28,320 Bear Blackmeier just shrugs it off and in the second 187 00:11:28,399 --> 00:11:33,679 half he's absolute nails. He's money. So raw point production 188 00:11:33,840 --> 00:11:38,000 is one thing. Raw success, the wins, the consistency is 189 00:11:38,039 --> 00:11:42,080 another thing. But doing it from behind and just always 190 00:11:42,120 --> 00:11:45,879 finding the ability to get into a hole, to find 191 00:11:45,919 --> 00:11:49,799 some in game adversity and conquer it. This is a freshman. 192 00:11:50,639 --> 00:11:55,039 It's really rather spectacular. And so for BYU to have 193 00:11:55,159 --> 00:11:59,879 a really good season last year under Redslof and now 194 00:12:00,120 --> 00:12:04,679 you know, lose Retslof and then have to go turn 195 00:12:04,759 --> 00:12:08,840 to a freshman as QB one and not not only 196 00:12:08,960 --> 00:12:12,039 not miss a beat, but actually be better. At least 197 00:12:12,080 --> 00:12:15,799 right now BYU is better than it was last season. 198 00:12:16,279 --> 00:12:21,080 That's pretty remarkable. That's really rather extraordinary. It's one It's 199 00:12:21,120 --> 00:12:25,600 a story that really hasn't gotten enough national play in 200 00:12:25,639 --> 00:12:29,200 college football. But you know that might change this week 201 00:12:29,240 --> 00:12:33,159 because BYU plays Texas Tech. Many people think and have 202 00:12:33,240 --> 00:12:35,559 thought that Texas Tech is the class at the Big 203 00:12:35,600 --> 00:12:39,240 twelve despite the loss to Arizona State. So BYU go 204 00:12:39,360 --> 00:12:42,879 playing Texas Tech. If BYU wins that game, I mean 205 00:12:42,919 --> 00:12:46,480 BYU's pretty much a lock for the Big twelve championship game, 206 00:12:46,480 --> 00:12:51,639 with Cincinnati probably occupying the other spot in that game. 207 00:12:51,679 --> 00:12:54,159 But I mean, if BYU beats Texas Tech, BYU will 208 00:12:54,200 --> 00:12:57,279 have a two game lead over Texas Tech in the standings, 209 00:12:58,000 --> 00:13:00,200 and it will have the head to head tiebreaker, so 210 00:13:00,320 --> 00:13:03,960 essentially a three game lead for BYU if it can 211 00:13:04,000 --> 00:13:10,039 beat Texas Tech. And so that's an extraordinary story in provo. 212 00:13:10,879 --> 00:13:14,120 It's gonna get more more of the spotlight this week. 213 00:13:14,200 --> 00:13:17,000 And even if BYU fall short against Texas Tech, the 214 00:13:17,000 --> 00:13:21,440 Cougars are still well positioned to make that Big twelve 215 00:13:21,519 --> 00:13:23,440 champiship game. You know they're gonna be looking at another 216 00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:26,279 Big twelve game Cincinnati Utah. We talk a little bit 217 00:13:26,320 --> 00:13:31,600 about that that one in just a moment. But a 218 00:13:31,679 --> 00:13:35,039 lot to pull apart here. One like Kilanie Sataki, the 219 00:13:35,120 --> 00:13:38,879 job he's doing it BYU pretty great, Pretty great, right 220 00:13:38,960 --> 00:13:43,919 because he's not he doesn't necessarily have the most talented teams. 221 00:13:44,000 --> 00:13:48,039 But like this has been a thing that BYU wins 222 00:13:48,080 --> 00:13:51,840 the close ones. It certainly beats Utah, like it finds 223 00:13:51,879 --> 00:13:55,519 a way to make those winning plays against Utah home 224 00:13:55,559 --> 00:13:59,960 and away, did so last year did so this year BYU. 225 00:14:00,279 --> 00:14:03,879 Just it's not just one season. This is a thing 226 00:14:03,919 --> 00:14:06,919 that repeats itself over time. B YU is a great 227 00:14:06,960 --> 00:14:10,480 scramble team. It's a team that's able to rally, it's 228 00:14:10,600 --> 00:14:14,480 able to adjust, it's able to pivot when when things 229 00:14:14,519 --> 00:14:17,559 aren't going well. BYU finds ways to turn games around. 230 00:14:17,679 --> 00:14:21,759 So it's not limited to this year and to bear Bachmeier. 231 00:14:21,799 --> 00:14:25,480 It happened last year. It's happened before in the Sataki era. 232 00:14:25,639 --> 00:14:28,159 I mean, this is a coaching staff that not only 233 00:14:28,200 --> 00:14:33,440 instills belief in players and creates the right culture, but 234 00:14:33,519 --> 00:14:36,480 they do find the ways to crack the code. They 235 00:14:36,519 --> 00:14:41,480 make adjustments, they find openings. Uh. And and that you know, 236 00:14:41,639 --> 00:14:45,480 their their players play really well in second halves and 237 00:14:45,600 --> 00:14:50,960 especially fourth quarters. So when that consistently happens over a 238 00:14:51,000 --> 00:14:53,919 longer period of time, it's not an accident. You know, 239 00:14:54,000 --> 00:14:57,840 there's obviously something there. There's obviously something that this coaching 240 00:14:57,879 --> 00:15:01,799 staff is doing that other uh, other staffs are not. 241 00:15:02,480 --> 00:15:07,120 And as much credit as Kolonie Sataki deserves as the boss, 242 00:15:07,360 --> 00:15:10,080 you know, the guy who's running the ship, let's also 243 00:15:10,159 --> 00:15:14,840 give some credit to Aaron Roderick, the offensive coordinator and 244 00:15:15,080 --> 00:15:18,320 when we consider how wild this coaching carousel is going 245 00:15:18,360 --> 00:15:21,200 to be, all the jobs that are open, all the 246 00:15:21,320 --> 00:15:24,080 jobs that are soon going to be open, and then 247 00:15:24,200 --> 00:15:27,639 you know when coaches leave their current jobs for bigger 248 00:15:27,720 --> 00:15:31,080 jobs or other jobs, that's going to create vacancies in 249 00:15:31,159 --> 00:15:34,679 this large scale game of musical chairs that we're going 250 00:15:34,759 --> 00:15:36,440 to see one month from now, at the end of 251 00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:39,519 November in the beginning of December, you have to think 252 00:15:39,720 --> 00:15:44,120 Aaron Rodrick is going to be a hot commodity. People 253 00:15:44,159 --> 00:15:47,000 are gonna see what he's done with Retslov and now 254 00:15:47,039 --> 00:15:50,440 with bear Bachmeyer, and they're gonna say, hmm, if I 255 00:15:50,480 --> 00:15:54,879 need offense, I need quarterback development, and you know again, 256 00:15:55,399 --> 00:15:59,679 bear Bachmeyer a freshman and he's crushing it. I need 257 00:15:59,720 --> 00:16:02,759 to get Aaron Roderick into my program. I need to 258 00:16:02,799 --> 00:16:06,279 have Aaron Rodrick calling the shots, like this guy is 259 00:16:06,320 --> 00:16:09,720 on the rise, and this guy is turning in such 260 00:16:09,759 --> 00:16:14,320 a great body of work at BYU. Like if I'm 261 00:16:14,320 --> 00:16:17,799 an athletic director at a mid tier power Forward program 262 00:16:17,919 --> 00:16:21,360 or a Group of five program, I'm going to be 263 00:16:21,440 --> 00:16:23,159 making a phone call to him. I'm going to be 264 00:16:23,200 --> 00:16:26,799 making a run for him as a head coach. So 265 00:16:27,000 --> 00:16:30,240 Aaron Roderick is part of this larger story at BYU. 266 00:16:30,759 --> 00:16:33,720 The Cougars go to Texas Tech in a in a 267 00:16:33,879 --> 00:16:38,480 featured Big Twelve game, part of the developing story in 268 00:16:38,519 --> 00:16:42,279 that particular conference. So we continue with the Western teams 269 00:16:42,440 --> 00:16:46,480 in the Big Twelve, and we had Utah absolutely blowing 270 00:16:46,519 --> 00:16:49,960 the doors off Deon Sanders in Colorado. Boy, that one 271 00:16:50,200 --> 00:16:55,480 that was over pretty quickly. That was thirty three forty 272 00:16:55,600 --> 00:16:59,840 nothing before you could blink. I mean, Utah just absolutely 273 00:17:00,519 --> 00:17:05,920 Colorado flat footed buff The Buffs were missing some players, 274 00:17:05,960 --> 00:17:10,119 but even then, like no resistance really from the Colorado side. 275 00:17:10,119 --> 00:17:12,559 It was a tsunami that got started at the beginning 276 00:17:12,640 --> 00:17:15,759 of the game, and you know, five minutes into the 277 00:17:15,799 --> 00:17:19,279 second quarter, that game was done and dusted. And so 278 00:17:19,400 --> 00:17:23,799 as we turned to Utah hosting Cincinnati, you know, the 279 00:17:23,839 --> 00:17:26,599 fact that Utah had such a low stress game was 280 00:17:26,640 --> 00:17:30,480 able to put that one to bed before halftime. Utah 281 00:17:30,519 --> 00:17:34,400 is gonna be fresh for Cincinnati. And Cincinnati another really 282 00:17:35,279 --> 00:17:39,119 big pleasant surprise. Scott Saderfield, the head coach, was on 283 00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:44,799 the hot seat before the season began. Amazing job at Cincinnati. 284 00:17:44,880 --> 00:17:48,880 No one saw this coming from the Bearcats, and so 285 00:17:49,079 --> 00:17:52,319 now they go to Salt Lake City, and you know, 286 00:17:53,119 --> 00:17:56,799 like Cincinnati has been underestimated the whole way, including by myself. 287 00:17:56,839 --> 00:18:00,400 I freely admit that. And Cincinnati did not look great 288 00:18:00,480 --> 00:18:03,200 against Nebraska. I thought that Week one game was more 289 00:18:03,240 --> 00:18:07,799 about Nebraska being weak and flawed, which, by the way, 290 00:18:07,839 --> 00:18:11,480 that still holds, and more about Nebraska later on in 291 00:18:11,480 --> 00:18:16,319 the show. But you know, one could also look back 292 00:18:16,319 --> 00:18:18,519 on that game and say, you know what, Cincinnati did 293 00:18:18,559 --> 00:18:21,960 show something and Cincinnatis continued to get better and better 294 00:18:22,000 --> 00:18:25,319 and better as the season has gone along. And so 295 00:18:25,599 --> 00:18:28,200 that's gonna be a real measuring stick for both Cincinnati 296 00:18:28,279 --> 00:18:30,960 and Utah. And one of the things we've been talking 297 00:18:31,000 --> 00:18:34,559 about with Utah this season on Get Off My Pilon. 298 00:18:34,599 --> 00:18:37,119 If you've been listening to each week's show, you know 299 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:42,720 Utah crushed Ucla when Deshaun Foster was coaching the Bruins 300 00:18:42,720 --> 00:18:46,920 and Ucla was a total clown car amateur hour back then. 301 00:18:46,960 --> 00:18:50,960 So Utah caught Ucla under Deshaun Foster, caught the Bruins 302 00:18:51,000 --> 00:18:53,880 at the right time. And then Utah hammers Arizona State 303 00:18:53,920 --> 00:18:57,759 when Sam Levitt was not in the lineup. You know, 304 00:18:57,839 --> 00:19:00,519 so Utah got Arizona at the right time when the 305 00:19:00,559 --> 00:19:05,119 Sun Devils were uniquely vulnerable. So Utah goes up against 306 00:19:05,119 --> 00:19:08,160 the Cincinnati team that's at the top of the Big 307 00:19:08,240 --> 00:19:13,559 Twelve alongside BYU. Can Utah play a good team well 308 00:19:14,559 --> 00:19:17,319 for the first time this season hasn't really happened yet. 309 00:19:17,359 --> 00:19:19,599 You know, Colorado is not a good team, all right. 310 00:19:19,640 --> 00:19:21,599 I mean it was impressive that Utah put that game 311 00:19:21,599 --> 00:19:24,000 to bed as quickly as it did, But Coloradle is 312 00:19:24,039 --> 00:19:27,960 not good. Can Utah play a really good game against 313 00:19:28,039 --> 00:19:31,000 a quality opponent, And I think it's fair to say 314 00:19:31,000 --> 00:19:34,519 that Cincinnati is a quality opponent. That game is going 315 00:19:34,559 --> 00:19:38,079 to be another big revealer for the Utes this season, 316 00:19:38,200 --> 00:19:40,400 Like if they want to walk away from this season 317 00:19:40,960 --> 00:19:43,400 with something to really feel proud of. You know, they 318 00:19:43,440 --> 00:19:47,799 fell short against Texas Tech, fell short against BYU. This 319 00:19:47,880 --> 00:19:49,720 is the time for Utah to stand up. This is 320 00:19:49,759 --> 00:19:52,720 the time for Kyle Whittingham's team to make a big 321 00:19:52,759 --> 00:19:56,400 statement in a game of considerable national importance, because everybody's 322 00:19:56,440 --> 00:19:59,400 going to be following this one in the nation because 323 00:19:59,599 --> 00:20:04,920 this is you know, if Cincinnati and BYU win their 324 00:20:04,960 --> 00:20:08,079 respective games at the top tier of the Big Twelve, 325 00:20:08,640 --> 00:20:11,720 it's it's almost certain that they're going to be meeting 326 00:20:12,599 --> 00:20:15,079 in the Big Twelve Championship game. The winner goes to 327 00:20:15,119 --> 00:20:20,759 the College Football Playoff. So Utah and BYU on opposite sides. 328 00:20:20,799 --> 00:20:22,960 BYU trying to cement its place at the top of 329 00:20:23,000 --> 00:20:26,880 the conference and Utah not trying to help BYU but 330 00:20:26,960 --> 00:20:30,519 trying to win a big game and knock off Cincinnati. 331 00:20:31,039 --> 00:20:33,200 And of course you have Texas Tech in that mix, 332 00:20:33,240 --> 00:20:35,519 and Texas Tech will try and handle its business against 333 00:20:35,559 --> 00:20:39,519 BYU and then get help from Utah. You know, if 334 00:20:39,599 --> 00:20:44,519 Texas Tech beats BYU and Utah beats Cincinnati, Texas Tech 335 00:20:44,680 --> 00:20:47,440 is going to be sitting very pretty in that Big 336 00:20:47,480 --> 00:20:51,240 twelve race. Briefly mentioned Arizona State, you know, talking about 337 00:20:51,240 --> 00:20:55,440 how Utah thumped the Sun Devils when Sam Levitt was out. Well, 338 00:20:55,440 --> 00:20:59,400 sam Levitt was back in this past weekend against Houston, 339 00:21:00,200 --> 00:21:03,480 got briefly knocked out of the game. Did come back in, 340 00:21:04,000 --> 00:21:08,079 but he wasn't very good. He fumbled to cut short 341 00:21:08,319 --> 00:21:11,039 of promising Arizona State drive. The Sun Devils missed two 342 00:21:11,079 --> 00:21:15,200 field goals, they commit thirteen penalties. This was a horror 343 00:21:15,240 --> 00:21:19,640 show for Kenny Dillingham's Sun Devils. They lose to Houston, 344 00:21:21,079 --> 00:21:24,200 and so Arizona State is pretty much on the ropes 345 00:21:24,240 --> 00:21:27,680 on life support in terms of defending its Big Twelve title. 346 00:21:28,359 --> 00:21:32,000 Arizona State a lot like Illinois. Both Arizona State and Illinois, 347 00:21:32,039 --> 00:21:35,319 let's make this parallel, both ranked in the preseason top 348 00:21:35,400 --> 00:21:38,480 twelve in both polls. They were given a lot of 349 00:21:38,519 --> 00:21:41,279 respect based on what they did last year. And that's 350 00:21:41,279 --> 00:21:43,559 why I don't like preseason polls. It's why I don't 351 00:21:43,599 --> 00:21:47,400 like poles really at all until November. You know, in November, 352 00:21:47,440 --> 00:21:50,839 you've seen enough football to measure a football team, But 353 00:21:51,119 --> 00:21:53,920 first two months of a season, like poles are worthless. 354 00:21:54,039 --> 00:21:56,799 You're trying to see teams evolve and get a sense 355 00:21:56,839 --> 00:21:59,839 of where they are, who they are, what they are 356 00:22:00,119 --> 00:22:02,559 on a state, and Illinois were given a lot of respect. 357 00:22:03,599 --> 00:22:06,759 It's a little more understandable with Arizona State compared to 358 00:22:06,799 --> 00:22:10,039 Illinois because the Sun Devils, you know, went all the 359 00:22:10,079 --> 00:22:12,680 way to the playoff, and they played Texas tough in 360 00:22:12,720 --> 00:22:16,039 that quarterfinal, and you know, they got that bad officiating 361 00:22:16,559 --> 00:22:19,640 late in the game. They really easily could have won 362 00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:23,240 if the officials make better calls. So like Arizona State 363 00:22:23,319 --> 00:22:27,359 climbed higher and Illinois did last season. But even then, 364 00:22:27,559 --> 00:22:30,200 I still don't like the idea of, well, you just 365 00:22:30,359 --> 00:22:32,799 rank a team in the top twelve, top fifteen just 366 00:22:32,799 --> 00:22:35,559 because it did so well last season. Now you got 367 00:22:35,559 --> 00:22:39,680 to each season is its new entity, it's new organism. 368 00:22:39,720 --> 00:22:42,319 You have to let things play out. Is pretty clear 369 00:22:42,400 --> 00:22:45,400 without Cam Skataboo, who I thought, you know, should have 370 00:22:45,400 --> 00:22:49,880 been a Heisman Trophy finalist last season. Without a player 371 00:22:49,920 --> 00:22:52,759 of that quality and that magnitude, I thought Arizona State 372 00:22:52,799 --> 00:22:55,319 was going to be a lot less this season than 373 00:22:55,319 --> 00:22:58,599 what it was in twenty twenty four. You know, that 374 00:22:58,640 --> 00:23:02,079 assessment looks pretty good right now. You know, maybe if 375 00:23:02,119 --> 00:23:05,720 Arizona State puts together a perfect November and all the 376 00:23:05,759 --> 00:23:10,240 dominoes or Plinko chips just happened to fall just right, 377 00:23:10,680 --> 00:23:13,160 maybe Arizona State wiggles its way back into the Big 378 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:16,799 twelve title game. But that's not likely. And I know that. 379 00:23:16,839 --> 00:23:20,079 You know, we don't regularly cover Houston on the show 380 00:23:20,119 --> 00:23:26,839 because that's more the South than the West. But briefly, 381 00:23:26,880 --> 00:23:30,759 you know that Houston team which handled Arizona State. Houston 382 00:23:30,839 --> 00:23:34,279 led that game twenty four to nothing before ASU made 383 00:23:34,279 --> 00:23:36,799 the late rally for the twenty four to sixteen final. 384 00:23:37,519 --> 00:23:40,200 Houston has only one loss, and so Willie Fritz, who 385 00:23:40,279 --> 00:23:42,559 did it at Tulane, he's now doing it at Houston. 386 00:23:43,279 --> 00:23:45,920 Houston doesn't look like a dominant team, and Houston easily 387 00:23:45,960 --> 00:23:49,680 could have lost to a bad Oregon State club earlier 388 00:23:49,759 --> 00:23:52,440 this season. Was able to rally late, force overtime and 389 00:23:52,480 --> 00:23:55,799 win in the extra period. But hey, having just one loss, 390 00:23:56,319 --> 00:24:00,920 Houston's winning consistently. Houston's winning just about every fifty fifty 391 00:24:01,000 --> 00:24:04,839 game that it plays, so really the Big Twelve In 392 00:24:04,920 --> 00:24:07,480 many ways, it's a story of Cincinnati, it's a story 393 00:24:07,759 --> 00:24:10,440 about Texas Tech, but it's also a story of Cougar's 394 00:24:10,680 --> 00:24:14,400 BYU and Houston both winning all the games that are 395 00:24:14,440 --> 00:24:17,680 up for grabs and showing great resourcefulness in high stress, 396 00:24:18,359 --> 00:24:21,319 high leverage situations. But the other side of Houston's win 397 00:24:21,559 --> 00:24:26,079 is Arizona State's loss, the Sun Devils being knocked back 398 00:24:26,119 --> 00:24:28,640 a few pegs, and there's kind of a reality check 399 00:24:28,640 --> 00:24:33,720 in Tempe for Kenny Dillingham. I think Kenny Dillingham loves 400 00:24:33,759 --> 00:24:37,920 coaching in Tempe, suburban Phoenix. I think he loves the 401 00:24:37,960 --> 00:24:40,799 Sun Devils. I think he's invested there, so I don't 402 00:24:40,799 --> 00:24:44,359 think he's gonna go anywhere, but you could certainly imagine 403 00:24:44,400 --> 00:24:49,799 like Andrew luckin Stanford courting him. Maybe even UCLA gives 404 00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:54,000 Dillingham a call. Again, I think Dillingham stays put. But 405 00:24:54,079 --> 00:24:56,640 that's gonna be an interesting name. How much is his 406 00:24:56,720 --> 00:24:59,799 name going to be floated in the coaching carousel, part 407 00:24:59,839 --> 00:25:04,920 of the drama surrounding Arizona State football and the Big Twelve? 408 00:25:05,680 --> 00:25:08,799 All right, we continue with our survey of western college 409 00:25:08,799 --> 00:25:13,160 football here on, get off my pileon. So we need 410 00:25:13,200 --> 00:25:15,799 to have an Oregon conversation, and we don't need to 411 00:25:15,839 --> 00:25:18,039 have a long one, but we need to have one. 412 00:25:18,640 --> 00:25:24,799 Oregon's offense looks very, very ordinary against Wisconsin. Dante Moore 413 00:25:24,880 --> 00:25:28,759 goes to the medical tent for a bit. It seems 414 00:25:28,759 --> 00:25:31,759 to have escaped a severe long term injury. But you know, 415 00:25:31,799 --> 00:25:36,240 he got pushed around, he got banged up. That's certainly 416 00:25:36,279 --> 00:25:38,240 going to be a story to monitor as we go 417 00:25:38,359 --> 00:25:42,559 into the month of November. But you know, Oregon's offense 418 00:25:42,599 --> 00:25:47,839 got handled by Indiana. The Ducks scored twenty points, but 419 00:25:48,039 --> 00:25:51,000 seven of those points were a pick six. So the offense, 420 00:25:51,799 --> 00:25:56,319 the Oregon offense scored just thirteen now it scores just 421 00:25:56,400 --> 00:26:00,400 twenty one. One commentator did say, you know what, Oregon 422 00:26:00,400 --> 00:26:03,079 didn't look good against Wisconsin last year, and you know 423 00:26:03,079 --> 00:26:07,039 when Wisconsin was not good last year, Wisconsin's worse this year. 424 00:26:07,039 --> 00:26:11,480 But Wisconsin still wasn't very good last year. Oregon barely 425 00:26:11,519 --> 00:26:14,880 gets past the Badgers. Last year, you know, it didn't 426 00:26:14,880 --> 00:26:18,400 really matter. Oregon was still the number one seed. Duck 427 00:26:18,480 --> 00:26:21,720 still went thirteen to Oh. So, just how much stock 428 00:26:21,759 --> 00:26:24,480 are you're gonna put in one who home game against 429 00:26:24,519 --> 00:26:27,759 Wisconsin in which Oregon clearly seemed to be just kind 430 00:26:27,799 --> 00:26:29,640 of it was just kind of a get through it game. 431 00:26:30,160 --> 00:26:34,960 You know, Oregon should be better against you know, more 432 00:26:35,039 --> 00:26:38,359 high profile teams later on in the schedule, But do 433 00:26:38,440 --> 00:26:42,359 you have quite the same level of certitude on that. 434 00:26:43,000 --> 00:26:48,359 You know, just maybe, just maybe Oregon's offense is more 435 00:26:48,440 --> 00:26:53,640 vulnerable broadly than we might have been assuming or being 436 00:26:53,720 --> 00:26:57,680 willing to accept. So it's gonna be interesting as we 437 00:26:57,799 --> 00:27:02,200 get into the latter part of the schedule. Oregon will 438 00:27:02,240 --> 00:27:06,480 play USC, it will play Washington. Those two teams have 439 00:27:06,720 --> 00:27:10,680 just two losses, they have some talent. It's gonna be 440 00:27:10,680 --> 00:27:15,240 interesting to see how Oregon handles that USC Washington double 441 00:27:15,279 --> 00:27:17,920 stack later in the season, so we don't have to 442 00:27:17,920 --> 00:27:19,799 do It's not a five alarm fire. It's not a 443 00:27:19,799 --> 00:27:23,400 major crisis in Eugene, but just something to keep an 444 00:27:23,440 --> 00:27:27,599 eye on, right that the Oregon offense really hasn't been 445 00:27:27,640 --> 00:27:32,039 thumping people regularly. I mean, you know, Oklahoma State is horrible. 446 00:27:32,039 --> 00:27:34,599 We all know that. So scoring sixty nine against Oklahoma 447 00:27:34,599 --> 00:27:38,079 State yet, like that's more about Oklahoma State. I think 448 00:27:38,119 --> 00:27:41,640 it's safe to say need to see more from this 449 00:27:41,720 --> 00:27:47,359 Oregon offense for certain as we go along. All Right, 450 00:27:47,440 --> 00:27:51,920 the other Big Big Ten game involving a Western school 451 00:27:51,960 --> 00:27:57,920 from this past weekend, Washington hammers Illinois forty two twenty five. 452 00:27:58,720 --> 00:28:02,000 The game felt as lopsided as it actually was. I mean, 453 00:28:02,119 --> 00:28:06,000 Washington moved the ball very easily, and really the main 454 00:28:06,160 --> 00:28:09,519 insight here is that, you know, Washington scored just six 455 00:28:09,559 --> 00:28:13,960 points against Ohio State, scored just seven points against Michigan, 456 00:28:14,240 --> 00:28:18,799 scored just three points in the first three quarters against 457 00:28:18,839 --> 00:28:23,279 Maryland before a twenty one point fourth quarter enabled the 458 00:28:23,359 --> 00:28:26,759 Huskies to escape that particular game, Like this offense has 459 00:28:26,880 --> 00:28:32,240 been below average for large portions of play in the 460 00:28:32,279 --> 00:28:36,599 Big Ten season, and so scoring forty two did home 461 00:28:36,599 --> 00:28:41,480 cooking help in Seattle at Husky Stadium to a certain degree, yes, 462 00:28:41,960 --> 00:28:46,160 But really the bigger story is Illinois did not look 463 00:28:46,240 --> 00:28:48,880 the part. Illinois did not look physical, Illinois did not 464 00:28:48,920 --> 00:28:54,319 look prepared. So Illinois was really viewed by a lot 465 00:28:54,359 --> 00:28:57,680 of experts. Now I mentioned earlier Arizona State given that 466 00:28:57,799 --> 00:29:01,039 top twelve preseason treatment, well, Illinois was also given top 467 00:29:01,079 --> 00:29:06,480 twelve preseason placement in the polls back in late August, 468 00:29:07,039 --> 00:29:11,440 Illinois exposed as not ready for prime time. The Illinois, 469 00:29:11,720 --> 00:29:14,039 the Ali and I are now fully out of the 470 00:29:14,079 --> 00:29:17,640 college football playoff race. You know, they hoped they would 471 00:29:17,680 --> 00:29:21,279 be this year what Indiana was last year. Didn't even 472 00:29:21,279 --> 00:29:24,519 come close. Like, they didn't even make it to November 473 00:29:25,759 --> 00:29:29,039 with any playoff or high end aspirations. So they got 474 00:29:29,079 --> 00:29:32,359 shut down. And so credit to Washington after all of 475 00:29:32,400 --> 00:29:37,920 the rough, ugly offensive performances, Jed Fish gets the most 476 00:29:37,920 --> 00:29:41,680 out of DeMont Williams and the rest of this offense, 477 00:29:42,119 --> 00:29:44,519 and so Washington has at least given itself a chance. 478 00:29:45,359 --> 00:29:48,079 You know, I don't think Washington's gonna be Oregon later 479 00:29:48,160 --> 00:29:51,480 this season, but the Huskies at least have a shot. 480 00:29:51,759 --> 00:29:53,920 They do have to get through a road game at 481 00:29:54,000 --> 00:29:58,680 UCLA as well. That could be tricky, but Washington with 482 00:29:58,759 --> 00:30:02,799 only two losses is not entirely out of the conversation 483 00:30:03,519 --> 00:30:06,240 in the Big Ten. And for the playoff, it's really 484 00:30:06,279 --> 00:30:08,599 where USC is, and we're going to talk about USC 485 00:30:09,359 --> 00:30:11,960 in a little bit. So, you know, the Huskies, they 486 00:30:12,000 --> 00:30:16,559 haven't looked steadily good, but in a game they absolutely 487 00:30:16,599 --> 00:30:21,680 had to win, they brought their best fastball against Illinois, So, 488 00:30:21,799 --> 00:30:26,839 you know, Washington able to end a really rough week 489 00:30:26,880 --> 00:30:29,279 for Seattle sports on a positive note. You know, the 490 00:30:29,279 --> 00:30:31,799 Mariners didn't get to their first World Series, but at 491 00:30:31,880 --> 00:30:36,240 least the Huskies were there to brighten some faces in 492 00:30:36,279 --> 00:30:39,559 the Pacific Northwest on Montlake. So it'll be interesting to 493 00:30:39,599 --> 00:30:43,160 see if Washington can carry what happened in the Illinois 494 00:30:43,160 --> 00:30:48,599 game forward into November and especially those late season tests 495 00:30:49,000 --> 00:30:52,359 against UCLA and most of all, the hated Oregon Ducks 496 00:30:52,559 --> 00:30:56,720 Washington Oregon. For those who don't live in the Northwest 497 00:30:56,839 --> 00:31:00,799 and don't follow you know, the West Coast football and 498 00:31:00,880 --> 00:31:03,480 what used to be the Pac Twelve very regularly, let 499 00:31:03,480 --> 00:31:07,559 me just tell you Washington Oregon is a much nastier, 500 00:31:08,799 --> 00:31:14,640 more fierce rivalry than the Apple Cup. Washington Washington State, 501 00:31:14,799 --> 00:31:17,880 or the Civil War Oregon Oregon State Washington Oregon is 502 00:31:17,880 --> 00:31:20,759 the true hate fest in that region, you know, to 503 00:31:20,799 --> 00:31:25,359 a much larger degree. Outsiders might be surprised, but those 504 00:31:25,400 --> 00:31:28,920 who live that rivalry, they know what that means and 505 00:31:28,960 --> 00:31:33,119 they know it's the real deal. So Washington at least 506 00:31:33,119 --> 00:31:36,160 stays in the conversation for now. But the Huskies now 507 00:31:36,240 --> 00:31:39,119 need to be steadily good in a way that they 508 00:31:39,160 --> 00:31:41,480 haven't been previously this season if they want to make 509 00:31:41,519 --> 00:31:45,400 that run at a ten and two record and the playoff, 510 00:31:45,519 --> 00:31:48,559 and maybe it's not likely, but maybe a spot in 511 00:31:48,559 --> 00:31:52,039 the Big Ten championship game. Ohio State and Indiana certainly 512 00:31:52,039 --> 00:31:55,839 seem to have that on lockdown, and it's going to 513 00:31:55,880 --> 00:32:00,400 be hard for anyone to overcome the Buck guys and 514 00:32:00,640 --> 00:32:04,880 the Hoosiers. Speaking of the Hoosiers, we now trans transfer 515 00:32:05,000 --> 00:32:07,119 the show over to that game in the Big Ten. 516 00:32:07,200 --> 00:32:12,960 Indiana fifty six, UCLA six. Not a whole lot to say, 517 00:32:13,039 --> 00:32:18,160 right that, Tim Skipper offensive coordinator Jerry Neuheisel defensive coordinator 518 00:32:18,240 --> 00:32:22,240 Kevin coyled this interim UCLA staff. We were all waiting, 519 00:32:22,720 --> 00:32:25,240 what's it going to look like against number two Indiana 520 00:32:25,720 --> 00:32:29,839 Kurt Signetti, Fernando Mendoza, the Heisman contender, and the rest 521 00:32:29,880 --> 00:32:33,559 of the of the Indiana Hoosiers fifty six to six 522 00:32:34,000 --> 00:32:36,519 pretty much says it all right. It would seem to 523 00:32:36,960 --> 00:32:41,720 be the case that the dream of retaining this staff, 524 00:32:42,359 --> 00:32:45,799 which still has done a very good job. Like it's 525 00:32:45,839 --> 00:32:51,559 not as though this this staff was exposed. I wouldn't 526 00:32:51,599 --> 00:32:54,319 say the staff was exposed. It was more of UCLA 527 00:32:54,359 --> 00:32:58,400 doesn't have the depth or the physicality to play with 528 00:32:58,440 --> 00:33:01,759 the big boys, and you CLA's wins over Penn State, 529 00:33:01,920 --> 00:33:05,200 Michigan State, and Maryland the previous few weeks, it was 530 00:33:05,319 --> 00:33:09,480 more a commentary on how badly things have slipped at 531 00:33:09,519 --> 00:33:15,039 those other three programs than how uniquely good UCLA was. 532 00:33:15,480 --> 00:33:19,640 But UCLA, with toughness, with some smarts, a lot of hustle, 533 00:33:19,839 --> 00:33:24,480 elbow grease, was able to outclass three sliding Big ten opponents. 534 00:33:24,960 --> 00:33:28,599 But there's nothing about Indiana's that's sliding. There's nothing about 535 00:33:28,599 --> 00:33:33,279 indiana that's mediocre or second rate. UCLA just had a 536 00:33:33,279 --> 00:33:36,759 big jump up in weight class and Indiana looked the 537 00:33:36,799 --> 00:33:40,680 part of the heavyweight team. It appears to be Indiana 538 00:33:40,880 --> 00:33:44,720 very much on course for another playoff season at least 539 00:33:44,720 --> 00:33:48,200 eleven wins, if not twelve for the second straight year. 540 00:33:48,279 --> 00:33:52,680 Kurt Signetti is a master. He's a wizard every positive 541 00:33:52,759 --> 00:33:56,799 label or description you can apply, So UCLA at least 542 00:33:56,839 --> 00:34:01,640 gets clarity. It wasn't fun. It's never fun to eat 543 00:34:01,680 --> 00:34:04,160 a fifty point loss. But at least now we can say, 544 00:34:04,359 --> 00:34:08,199 you know what UCLA needs to start from scratch, needs 545 00:34:08,199 --> 00:34:11,440 to hit the reset button, needs to fire athletic director 546 00:34:11,519 --> 00:34:15,679 Martin Jarmond, needs to get in someone new. That new 547 00:34:15,719 --> 00:34:19,599 athletic director can preside over a head coaching search, and 548 00:34:19,760 --> 00:34:22,840 UCLA can cast a wide net, do its homework, do 549 00:34:22,920 --> 00:34:26,159 its vetting, get the best guy available. But I'm not 550 00:34:26,199 --> 00:34:29,519 going to predict what UCLA does. I would only say 551 00:34:29,519 --> 00:34:33,199 that UCLA should not limit itself like some people say, Well, 552 00:34:33,320 --> 00:34:36,519 UCLA needs a proven head coach. It can't just wing it. 553 00:34:37,719 --> 00:34:40,880 Deshaun Foster was winging it. I get that because he 554 00:34:41,039 --> 00:34:44,480 wasn't a previous head coach. He wasn't a previous coordinator, 555 00:34:44,960 --> 00:34:48,920 all right, But UCLA doesn't necessarily have to get a 556 00:34:49,079 --> 00:34:53,000 head coach. Someone who has head coaching experience. You know, 557 00:34:53,039 --> 00:34:57,079 a coordinator or an assistant can be really good. Think 558 00:34:57,079 --> 00:35:01,039 of Oregon with Dan Lanning. He was Kirby Smart's assistant 559 00:35:01,400 --> 00:35:04,719 at Georgia. So that hire for Oregon worked out really well. 560 00:35:04,760 --> 00:35:07,760 It did not matter that Dan Lanning didn't have prior 561 00:35:07,880 --> 00:35:10,519 experience as a head coach. It's just that Deshaun Foster 562 00:35:10,679 --> 00:35:15,960 did not have previous experience comparable to Dan Lanning. You know. 563 00:35:16,000 --> 00:35:21,400 So getting an established coordinator, that's fine. Just what matters 564 00:35:21,480 --> 00:35:24,719 is is it the right fit? Is it someone with 565 00:35:24,760 --> 00:35:28,079 the competence and the vision, just you know, not vetting 566 00:35:28,119 --> 00:35:34,960 Deshaun Foster, not really drilling down into the details, which 567 00:35:34,960 --> 00:35:37,119 is why Martin Jartman needs to be fired, like he 568 00:35:37,199 --> 00:35:40,480 presided over that mess. That's what you Sily needs to 569 00:35:40,519 --> 00:35:43,840 do this time around. Dive deep into the details. Make 570 00:35:43,840 --> 00:35:47,159 sure you get a detail oriented guy who really has 571 00:35:47,199 --> 00:35:50,079 the vision and the plan backwards and forwards. Not just 572 00:35:50,079 --> 00:35:53,079 someone who's liked by the players, Not just someone who's 573 00:35:53,079 --> 00:35:57,039 popular in the locker room or beloved among alumnias Deshan 574 00:35:57,119 --> 00:36:00,599 Foster was when he took that job. You need the 575 00:36:00,639 --> 00:36:05,559 guy who can actually put it all together. UCLA can 576 00:36:05,679 --> 00:36:09,559 go for a coordinator will Stein of Oregon. The offensive 577 00:36:09,559 --> 00:36:13,159 coordinator for Oregon is certainly a possibility, but util could 578 00:36:13,159 --> 00:36:15,199 also go to a proven veteran. But it could also 579 00:36:15,280 --> 00:36:18,440 go to a coach from the group of five ranks 580 00:36:18,440 --> 00:36:21,000 who's ready to move up. Like so, UCLA should not 581 00:36:21,079 --> 00:36:24,360 limit itself. UCLA should not put itself in one narrow 582 00:36:24,400 --> 00:36:28,760 box or silo. It should cast a wide net and 583 00:36:29,119 --> 00:36:32,159 it should take its time vetting candidates and come up 584 00:36:32,199 --> 00:36:34,679 with the best choice. You know in this game of 585 00:36:34,760 --> 00:36:37,559 musical chairs that the coaching carousel is going to be 586 00:36:38,280 --> 00:36:42,599 with so many coaches relocating, it's going to be really 587 00:36:42,599 --> 00:36:44,840 interesting for UCLA, Like do you want to pick off 588 00:36:45,320 --> 00:36:47,760 a candidate as soon as the regular season is over, 589 00:36:48,199 --> 00:36:50,159 or do you want to actually wait and see some 590 00:36:50,280 --> 00:36:54,280 of these chess moves, like this guy might go to LSU, 591 00:36:54,360 --> 00:36:56,480 and that guy might go to Virginia Tech, and that 592 00:36:56,519 --> 00:37:02,760 guy might go to an opening at Stanford Oregon State, 593 00:37:03,679 --> 00:37:08,559 And then after several coaches change jobs, then you can 594 00:37:08,599 --> 00:37:13,320 find a candidate in the right position at the right moment. 595 00:37:14,719 --> 00:37:19,199 It's the timing of these moves in the carousel is 596 00:37:19,199 --> 00:37:21,800 going to be really interesting to watch. But UCLA should 597 00:37:21,840 --> 00:37:25,960 not limit itself by category or type. UCLA needs to 598 00:37:26,000 --> 00:37:30,960 be doing its homework but of course doing homework with 599 00:37:31,400 --> 00:37:35,360 an athletic director who knows football, Martin Jarmond. The current 600 00:37:35,400 --> 00:37:39,360 ad does not know football, and so that's the first 601 00:37:39,480 --> 00:37:43,519 order of business, firing Jarmond and then getting into replacement 602 00:37:43,639 --> 00:37:48,920 before it's too late. All right, And USC the other 603 00:37:49,199 --> 00:37:51,800 West Coast team in the Big Ten we haven't talked about. 604 00:37:52,039 --> 00:37:55,360 USC had the week off, so the Trojans didn't lose. 605 00:37:56,119 --> 00:38:00,239 Their next game is Nebraska, and that is a lead 606 00:38:00,239 --> 00:38:03,119 defining game for both teams, for both head coaches Matt 607 00:38:03,159 --> 00:38:06,440 Roll of Nebraska Lincoln Riley of UFC. It's a game 608 00:38:06,480 --> 00:38:08,840 that's very similar to what we just saw with Illinois 609 00:38:08,880 --> 00:38:11,840 and Washington, a couple of two loss teams. So it's 610 00:38:11,880 --> 00:38:15,199 a playoff elimination game. It's a Big Ten title game 611 00:38:15,239 --> 00:38:19,039 eliminator as well, so you know, the losers season is 612 00:38:19,239 --> 00:38:23,280 over in terms of aspiring to bigger, higher goals. The 613 00:38:23,360 --> 00:38:27,360 winner at least stays alive and gives itself a chance. 614 00:38:27,400 --> 00:38:31,360 So you know, Washington eliminated Illinois from everything, and Washington 615 00:38:31,360 --> 00:38:35,199 at least enters November with a chance. Same dynamics supply 616 00:38:35,719 --> 00:38:39,239 to USC and Nebraska, and it's worth just reflecting for 617 00:38:39,280 --> 00:38:42,280 a little bit on this game. You know, six years ago, 618 00:38:42,880 --> 00:38:45,000 Lincoln Riley and Matt Rule met in the Big twelve 619 00:38:45,079 --> 00:38:48,400 CHAMGISIP game. Oh Oklahoma played Baylor. The winner went to 620 00:38:48,440 --> 00:38:52,800 the College Football Playoff. That game went into overtime. Oklahoma 621 00:38:52,880 --> 00:38:57,159 barely slipped by Baylor. But you know, watching Lincoln Riley 622 00:38:57,159 --> 00:38:59,480 and Matt Rule that day six years ago, I thought, Hey, 623 00:38:59,519 --> 00:39:01,400 these guys are going to be around for a long time. 624 00:39:02,000 --> 00:39:04,199 They're gonna crush it. They're gonna be great head coaches. 625 00:39:04,199 --> 00:39:07,320 They're gonna be like the next faces of a new 626 00:39:07,360 --> 00:39:10,679 generation of college football coaches. You know. Matt Role, Let's 627 00:39:10,679 --> 00:39:16,360 remember he was awesome at Temple before coming to Baylor. Now, 628 00:39:16,480 --> 00:39:20,360 he won the American Conference Championship at Temple. That, you know, 629 00:39:20,440 --> 00:39:23,880 just transcended all expectations there. So it's not as though 630 00:39:23,880 --> 00:39:27,559 he just had one good brief run at Baylor. He 631 00:39:27,719 --> 00:39:30,360 was good at Temple before. I mean, that's important to 632 00:39:30,400 --> 00:39:33,320 point out. And it's just so jarring to see both 633 00:39:33,400 --> 00:39:39,480 men so clearly struggling right now. Nebraska barely beat Northwestern 634 00:39:39,519 --> 00:39:43,199 at home this past weekend, and it wasn't because Northwestern 635 00:39:43,280 --> 00:39:47,960 played great. Northwestern quarterback Preston Stone was bad. He was 636 00:39:48,000 --> 00:39:52,480 committing turnovers, all sorts of bad plays. Like, given how 637 00:39:52,519 --> 00:39:58,239 poorly Preston Stone played for Northwestern, if Nebraska's Nebraska, if 638 00:39:58,239 --> 00:40:00,599 things are going right, that should be a thirty seven 639 00:40:01,320 --> 00:40:04,519 Nebraska win. Instead, it was a squeaker. It went right 640 00:40:04,559 --> 00:40:08,400 down to the final minutes. Nebraska's not a good team 641 00:40:08,519 --> 00:40:10,960 right now, and the record might tell you otherwise. You know, 642 00:40:10,960 --> 00:40:14,920 the Huskers have just two losses through October heading into 643 00:40:14,960 --> 00:40:18,760 that November first game against USC. They're not as good 644 00:40:18,800 --> 00:40:22,079 as their record. They're certainly not playing as well as 645 00:40:22,119 --> 00:40:24,800 their record might suggest. And I think the same pretty 646 00:40:24,840 --> 00:40:29,320 much goes for USC. Only two losses, but have not 647 00:40:29,400 --> 00:40:32,159 seen USC play a really good game against a really 648 00:40:32,199 --> 00:40:34,400 good team. And no, I don't think Michigan's a really 649 00:40:34,440 --> 00:40:37,599 good team. If you watch Michigan Michigan State, that was 650 00:40:37,639 --> 00:40:42,320 a very mistake field game, exasperating on both sides, just 651 00:40:42,320 --> 00:40:45,440 that Michigan State was actually worse than Michigan. Like, I 652 00:40:45,440 --> 00:40:49,079 don't think Michigan is all that special. I'm waiting to 653 00:40:49,119 --> 00:40:53,000 see both USC and Nebraska play well. And so because 654 00:40:53,039 --> 00:40:55,679 our focus is on USC more than Nebraska. Here at 655 00:40:55,679 --> 00:40:58,760 get off my pylon. It comes down to a very 656 00:40:58,760 --> 00:41:01,440 simple thing. When was the last time a Lincoln Riley 657 00:41:01,480 --> 00:41:06,679 team at USC played a really good road game, again 658 00:41:06,800 --> 00:41:12,519 against moderately good opposition. Lincoln Riley's best road win to 659 00:41:12,760 --> 00:41:15,159 date in three and a half seasons at USC was 660 00:41:15,239 --> 00:41:18,199 at Oregon State back in twenty twenty two, and that 661 00:41:18,360 --> 00:41:21,440 was not a great Oregon State team. That Oregon State 662 00:41:21,480 --> 00:41:26,679 team was good, but not amazing. And that's Lincoln Riley's 663 00:41:26,719 --> 00:41:29,679 best road win in three and a half seasons on 664 00:41:29,760 --> 00:41:34,440 the job with the Trojans. So can USC go into 665 00:41:34,519 --> 00:41:38,960 Lincoln at night national television and beat the Huskers? Now, 666 00:41:39,559 --> 00:41:42,400 in terms of how these teams match up, USC has 667 00:41:42,440 --> 00:41:47,920 more talented Jade and Mayava is a better quarterback, better passer, 668 00:41:48,159 --> 00:41:54,119 better everything than Dylan Reyola. USC has better receivers than Nebraska. 669 00:41:54,320 --> 00:41:59,880 USC's offensive line has been good, Like, there's no excuse 670 00:41:59,880 --> 00:42:04,000 for USC to not win this game. USC absolutely should 671 00:42:04,239 --> 00:42:06,800 win this game. But can you trust USC on the 672 00:42:06,880 --> 00:42:10,880 road at night? Haven't been able to under Lincoln Riley? Like, 673 00:42:11,360 --> 00:42:14,840 what what should happen? Does not happen? And so even 674 00:42:14,880 --> 00:42:18,199 though USC opens as a six point favorite, let's remember 675 00:42:18,320 --> 00:42:20,320 USC was a six and a half point favorite at 676 00:42:20,320 --> 00:42:24,639 Illinois lost that game outright. So you know, Vegas thinks 677 00:42:24,719 --> 00:42:29,119 USC should win. I think USC should win. But should 678 00:42:29,360 --> 00:42:32,480 and will are two very different things. And so if 679 00:42:32,559 --> 00:42:37,039 USC loses to Nebraska, man the pitchforks, which frankly among 680 00:42:37,039 --> 00:42:39,639 the fan base, they're already out for Lincoln Riley at USC. 681 00:42:39,800 --> 00:42:42,599 But if us he loses to Nebraska, it would just 682 00:42:42,800 --> 00:42:45,880 undercut him and kneecap him with the fan base that 683 00:42:46,079 --> 00:42:49,519 much more. And it's going to be a very ugly, 684 00:42:49,800 --> 00:42:53,920 ugly reality for Lincoln Riley if he can't beat Nebraska 685 00:42:54,719 --> 00:42:58,719 this coming weekend. I will wait for that game to 686 00:42:58,760 --> 00:42:59,159 play out. 687 00:42:59,159 --> 00:43:01,599 Speaker 5: But let me just tell you, if us he does lose, 688 00:43:02,360 --> 00:43:04,559 when we do this show next week, we're going to 689 00:43:04,599 --> 00:43:10,239 have a very very severe conversation about Lincoln Riley and USC. 690 00:43:11,280 --> 00:43:15,199 Speaker 2: So that's our survey of western college football teams. 691 00:43:15,239 --> 00:43:17,079 Speaker 3: Here at Get Off My Pylon, we're part of the 692 00:43:17,079 --> 00:43:23,760 College Gridlon Coast to Coast podcast network Gridron Coast on Twitter, Apple, Spotify, Speaker, 693 00:43:24,159 --> 00:43:26,719 wherever you get your podcasts, that's where you want to 694 00:43:26,760 --> 00:43:29,519 catch all your favorite college Gridiron Coast to Coast shows, 695 00:43:29,920 --> 00:43:33,320 Pigskin and Burnt Ends, Yards and Stripes that covers the 696 00:43:33,360 --> 00:43:34,440 service Academies. 697 00:43:35,920 --> 00:43:39,559 Speaker 2: You also have the All Sports Discussion crew on the ACC. 698 00:43:40,199 --> 00:43:44,159 You have Jason Powers in Florida Football Insiders. You have 699 00:43:44,239 --> 00:43:47,440 Noah Drury on Big Ten Paradigm covering you know the 700 00:43:47,480 --> 00:43:51,199 Midwestern teams. We focus on the Western Big Ten teams, 701 00:43:51,199 --> 00:43:54,239 but Noah's focusing on the whole Big Ten and especially 702 00:43:54,280 --> 00:43:56,880 the teams in the Midwest. You know, the old guard 703 00:43:57,400 --> 00:44:01,000 of the conference, not these four new interlopers from the 704 00:44:01,000 --> 00:44:04,840 West Coast. So Norah Drury has Big Ten Paradigm. All 705 00:44:04,920 --> 00:44:09,119 those shows part of the family of podcasts on College 706 00:44:09,159 --> 00:44:12,119 Grid coast to coast. So this is Met Zenek. Thanks 707 00:44:12,119 --> 00:44:15,079 for listening to another episode of Get Off My Pylon. 708 00:44:15,639 --> 00:44:17,280 We will talk to you next week.