Latest / North Florida Sports Network Podcast / FSU Week Zero Plus A Hard Look At The 2026 Top 25

Transcript

FSU Week Zero Plus A Hard Look At The 2026 Top 25 · North Florida Sports Network Podcast

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: Let me ask you one question.
• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: Then you know it's lower this bowl, blow this bowl, float and then you know it's floating.
• 0:17
  SPEAKER_00: You gotta give us a spot! You know what?
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_01: Season five on the North Florida Sports Network for now.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_01: Outstanding.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_01: That's half a decade, man.
• 0:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 0:54
  SPEAKER_01: I've won up and that was good.
• 0:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 0:59
  SPEAKER_02: I think I think we're batting over 300 in terms of quality shows.
• 1:09
  SPEAKER_01: 40 good swings, right, Twiglaw?
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_01: That's all we do.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_01: Thank everybody who's listened so far.
• 1:18
  SPEAKER_01: Keep doing so.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_01: Hey friend.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_02: It's really good to have support for our for our paint.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_01: Well, it's my team, and we're doing it by this time of year, every right before every football season.
• 1:33
  SPEAKER_01: And then it ends pretty much at the end of July.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, every year.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_01: So that's how we do it.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_01: Just like a school year kind of.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_01: And we're entering season five.
• 1:47
  SPEAKER_01: Today we're gonna talk about Florida State's opening game against New Mexico State, just for a little bit, not much to get there, get to there, and then we're gonna go over the 18 top 25 for this 2026 football season.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_01: Who's for real?
• 2:07
  SPEAKER_01: Who's not, and who we have in our 12-team college football play.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_01: Let's drop it in!
• 2:20
  SPEAKER_02: We're gonna get into it.
• 2:23
  SPEAKER_02: I have neither a strap or a saddle.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_02: Well, you better he haul.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_02: You better take a seat, then guy.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_01: Boots, man.
• 2:29
  SPEAKER_01: Get some boots.
• 2:31
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_01: Tell me something about New Mexico State.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_01: Is there anything about them that is to be wary of?
• 2:40
  SPEAKER_02: You mean besides head coach Tony Sanchez?
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, I don't know.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_02: They sucked last year.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_02: They should probably suck this year.
• 2:51
  SPEAKER_02: Um, I'm confident that this game is looked at as just a glorified scrimmage by Florida State, which is dangerous because you know, you know how that goes.
• 3:03
  SPEAKER_02: Well, uh the quarterback Tom Header for the Aggies is out of Tampa Catholic High School.
• 3:07
  SPEAKER_01: That's about as much as so you're probably looking at a guy who's gonna have a lot of family there.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_01: You hope you don't want to see anything like getting down two touchdowns like they did in that game where Jordan Travis got hurt, or something like that, just ugly plays.
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_01: A team that you're gonna win the game, but how you play early is what I'm looking for in this game.
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_01: Just how the preparation, how how much the defense sticks to the discipline or what what Tony White's trying to run, and just see the secondary and play in tune with the linebackers, linebackers in tune with the D-line.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_01: On the offensive side of the ball, I'm looking for Ashton Daniels to step up and be that leader, that the guy that knocked the rock at the end of the free season camp.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: The and I want to see him spread the ball around, get it to Deuce Robinson, and I'd like to see this running game.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, finish drives, man.
• 4:06
  SPEAKER_02: Just in any way you can.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_02: The team is relatively healthy.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_02: Um, you know, they had Notre Dame transfer Carson Hobbs toward his ACL.
• 4:16
  SPEAKER_02: He was a reserve corner, safety kind of one of the DBs back there.
• 4:21
  SPEAKER_02: But other than that, I think everybody they were counting on to use this year is is healthy for the first game.
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_02: And it'll be they're all you know, everybody's fresh, ready to start the season.
• 4:33
  SPEAKER_02: It won't be like that North Alabama game where they're just kind of looking ahead.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_02: You know, they they're ready to get out there and and start the season.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_02: Which should be against a lesser opponent.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, this is one of the three games that I feel confident that they have a better roster than the other team.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_02: So, you know.
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_01: But you got nine days until the next game.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 4:58
  SPEAKER_01: Because you're not playing until Labor Day.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, they're not releasing a depth chart.
• 5:02
  SPEAKER_02: I doubt you're gonna see a whole lot.
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_01: Because this is a glorified skirmish.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I I just don't think they're gonna be able to do that.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_01: So they're gonna hear it like that where they want to see how these guys play under the lights on TV.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, I think you can, you know, you you clearly know who most of the starters are.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, uh along the offensive line, you you don't really know what it's gonna look like in terms of personnel, but you know that Daniels is gonna be the quarterback.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_02: You know Deuce Robinson and Danzi will be two of the starting receivers defensively.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_02: You know all the guys that are gonna be involved there.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_02: Um it uh yeah, glorified scrimmage.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_02: I don't think they're really wasting any time with releasing a depth chart.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_01: Well, great.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_01: I'm looking forward to the first game.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: It's just it's if you're gonna play a team like that, do it on week zero, though.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_01: On a network like the CW.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_01: Well, it didn't it doesn't matter, it's still only one of a few games.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there's not many people playing, so it's better than playing Georgia Tech.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, it's it's a lot better.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_01: You get a game under your belt, you know that's this you get eyeballs, so hopefully you can come out and change the narrative a little bit about FSU or you know, and look sharp and have people looking forward to that game next week.
• 6:14
  SPEAKER_01: Just a nice clean win, man.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_02: I don't even give a shit about the score.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_01: Stay and stay healthy, like you said.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, because the next week against SMU, that is their first game of the season.
• 6:23
  SPEAKER_02: So you get one under your belt, you got a little bit of a leg up, they got to come to your place, and that's when you start.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, all right, I know, I know.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_01: Um, all right, and I think there's a little bit of that going on with not releasing a depth chart.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 6:38
  SPEAKER_01: They don't want to, you know.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_02: It's like this is we're not pretty much the SMU game is Which it is, I would expect the opposite of last season, where you pretty much saw every trick Gus Malzon had in game one against Alabama.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it that I want to see an offense that works, that's get makes the right read, that makes the quick decision, that hits the open guy, that's not just gonna just beat New Mexico State because they're bigger, which you could do, but I want to see the execution of decision of there's only gonna be a few plays that you know or make the right decision, make the right read, hand it off, or make the quick throw.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_01: You know, that that type of comfort and command of the offense is what I'm looking for from the quarterback.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_02: But again, regardless of the score, there's not gonna be a lot to take away from it, unless you lose, which is you might as well just go find something else to do on Saturday.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: All right, well, let's go over the uh full season um from the entire country's perspective.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_01: So we're just gonna go through the top 25.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: All right.
• 7:49
  SPEAKER_01: Ohio State is number one.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_01: You know, they got a calendar where they have the number one schedule, too.
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_01: They play a tough schedule, so we'll they'll earn it.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, they'll earn it.
• 8:02
  SPEAKER_02: You know, they spent big in the offseason, they recruit well, they got some of the some of the top players in the country.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_02: Jeremiah Smith, you know, see if he plays like a guy that should be the top one or two pick.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_01: Open in Austin.
• 8:18
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we'll get to Texas here in a minute.
• 8:20
  SPEAKER_01: But that's for the first game of a lot of states.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_01: So, and we'll go, but they're number one.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_01: Number two is well in the Big Ten, Oregon.
• 8:28
  SPEAKER_01: Another quarterback returning.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, Dante Moore coming back.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_02: Um I don't blame him.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_02: I wouldn't have wanted to go to the Jets either.
• 8:37
  SPEAKER_01: Not when you can come back for and play for good money.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_02: You come back again.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_02: Uh this for me, it's now or never for Oregon.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I understand.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_01: I feel like they've been at this spot forever.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_01: Like just on the cusp for decades, it seems.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_01: But even since they were number one a couple years ago, yeah.
• 9:02
  SPEAKER_01: Undefeated, then got blown out in the playoff.
• 9:05
  SPEAKER_01: Didn't happen last year.
• 9:07
  SPEAKER_01: This year, pressure's on Oregon.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, but they they unlike the year when Git Gabriel was the quarterback, they got a guy that's been in the system for a full two years.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_01: And he's an NFL guy, too.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_01: So no more excuses.
• 9:21
  SPEAKER_01: You got a defensive coach.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: You got all the talent you could ever want.
• 9:25
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, they got they got guys back who could have gone to the NFL last year.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_02: The the younger Uyungalai along that defensive front.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_02: Jordan Birch along that defensive front.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_02: Those guys are, you know, it's now or never.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: Number three is the University of Georgia.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_01: Kirby Smart.
• 9:44
  SPEAKER_01: Flying under the radar, man.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_01: Zero, zero votes for number one.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_01: Back-to-back SEC champs.
• 9:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's kind of under the radar because the Big Ten's won the last three national champions.
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_01: But the uh SEC's been run by Georgia.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_02: And it, you know, they didn't go out and and and get any big flashy transfers.
• 10:06
  SPEAKER_02: Um you know, they're not.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_02: They're kind of one of the few teams that's still holding on to a little bit of the old way of doing things.
• 10:15
  SPEAKER_01: But we'll get it twisted, which is still paying a lot of money.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_01: They they have focused the right high school players.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_02: They focus a lot of their money on retaining the guys that have been there and helped them win.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_01: Which they should.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_01: Which they should.
• 10:29
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, you get the talent, man, you keep it there.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_02: That's you can't blame them for that.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_02: And they continue to win, so it's obviously working.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_01: Which is tough to do.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: It's much harder to maintain than it is to build.
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_01: And credit to Kirby, he's been able to do it.
• 10:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_01: He's the guy, he's all Georgia all the time.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_01: Let's see if they're the guy you want, and you know, as far as your coach, you feel good about.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_01: You know, you just like he'll handle it.
• 10:56
  SPEAKER_01: Whatever, you know, and he's been able to maintain through the storm.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: It's a natural fit, him at Georgia.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_01: And he go, he'll back it, and it's annoying some of the crap he says, but I don't hate him for it.
• 11:09
  SPEAKER_01: Because if I'm a Georgia fan, I'd say the same thing.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_01: Why should why should Georgia have to come down to and a lot of it's having to do with you know the future of the game and how the alignment of it, but we'll get to that.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_01: Anyway, uh Georgia's number three, and a team that I think is gonna be at there at the end, Notre Dame.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: Well, they another team that's gonna complete top to bottom, the right coach.
• 11:39
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_01: And the right and and a team.
• 11:45
  SPEAKER_01: Well, they're don't get wrong, they're spending money.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_01: They're spending money.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: This is a team that has handled NIL correctly as well with Miami.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 11:52
  SPEAKER_01: Use it to your advantage, but hey, we're Notre Dame.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: There's a all we are is tradition.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_01: Get the right guy that can recruit and back him financially to compete with everyone else.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_01: And he's showing you what he can do.
• 12:05
  SPEAKER_01: Well, and that's that the you said it, the right guy.
• 12:09
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, because it matters.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_01: You have to have the right guy.
• 12:11
  SPEAKER_01: You can't just throw money.
• 12:12
  SPEAKER_01: This wouldn't be going on.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: The right guy.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: They got the right guy.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_01: They got the a-hole kind of out of there.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_01: Who did who did the who kind of set it up for Freeman?
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_01: As far as breaking the administration down and and as to far as what it what it's going to take to win.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_01: And then he stepped in, it was the perfect timing there.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_02: The thing he couldn't deliver on was once he got the administration lined up, he didn't have that that next push work ethic.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_01: And he didn't he didn't have the connection with the players.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_02: No, no.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, Marcus Freeman's a different animal.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_02: That guy, like on the recruiting trail, he's did yeah.
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_01: If you're a Notre Dame fan, it was perfect timing as far as when you want to get rid of a coach before it's rock bottom.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 13:02
  SPEAKER_01: But you kind of know it's it's peaked there.
• 13:05
  SPEAKER_01: And you had a guy in place.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_01: Kind of like a Bobby and Jimbo.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_01: Instead, it it happened a little earlier.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, if you you get a guy from the Midwest like Marcus Freeman, an old a former player, a young guy that at Notre Dame, like Notre Dame will run the entire Midwest.
• 13:25
  SPEAKER_02: I know Ohio State is Ohio, but I'm talking every state, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_01: The key there is they're you know they're gonna have the money, and you get the right guy to use it.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_01: And he's he's come down to Florida and gotten some really good players.
• 13:43
  SPEAKER_01: And uh so they're number four, and then going to number five, I think a team that's right up there with Oregon, if not above them as far as expectations, and that's Texas.
• 13:54
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_01: They're number five.
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_01: This is make or break year for their Longhorns with Manning at quarterback with Stark, head coach.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_01: You got everything, the added players.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, they they cut a lot of guys loose.
• 14:12
  SPEAKER_02: They went and got running backs.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_02: You know, they they they got Hollywood Smothers from NC State, stole them right out of Alabama's lap.
• 14:20
  SPEAKER_02: And it it's put up or shut-up time for Sarkeesian.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it really is.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_02: He's done a lot of talking, a lot of griping.
• 14:27
  SPEAKER_02: Um, even though he's at a school that has more resources than 98% of the country.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_01: It's not gonna, and I don't think there he's that they shouldn't be punished for losing Ohio State.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_01: No.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_01: But I don't I'm not looking at the Ohio State game.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_01: It doesn't matter.
• 14:41
  SPEAKER_02: That game almost a competitive game, it almost counts as a I'm looking at games like the game last year against Florida.
• 14:50
  SPEAKER_02: Like the game against Kentucky that they very nearly lost.
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_02: And I'm looking at their schedule and games against LSU and Ole Miss and Texas AM and Oklahoma.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_02: You know what, man?
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_02: You gotta win at least three of those.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you need to there's the floor is ten wins.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 15:11
  SPEAKER_01: You can't make the playoffs the floor.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_01: You can't.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: You have to you really need to go to the championship.
• 15:19
  unknown: Yeah.
• 15:20
  SPEAKER_01: Oregon and Texas need to go.
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, if you you beat you beat Ohio State, you're playing with house money a little bit.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_02: But you drop that game, and now you're another three-lost season, and you're out of the playoffs.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_01: All right, let's go to number six.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_01: That's the defending national champions, Indiana Hoosiers.
• 15:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_02: I mean, they brought a lot back.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_02: You know, I know they Mendoza's gone.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_01: Veteran team.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it was a team that a lot of guys that came with Kurt City from James Madison, but they're retaining it, you know.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_01: You what you what you trust there is his evaluation.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_01: His evaluation.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_01: They did really well in the transfer portal.
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_01: And they're able now to attract top players, and just like Notre Dame can do, they can finance those players.
• 16:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, Indiana's got money.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_01: I know it's un Big Ten's got all the money.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_01: That's what you're seeing here in the last few years.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_01: It's just once this NIL thing came into play, you're like really seeing the benefit of a corporate money coming in.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_01: And the actual like now it's tax legal and all this stuff.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 16:29
  SPEAKER_02: You're seeing network deals playing a factor here.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_01: You've seen a league that's getting it from every single network.
• 16:36
  SPEAKER_02: The the thing about Indiana, I don't think that their quarterback this year, Josh Hoover, the transfer from TCU.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_01: But hey, nobody thought Mendoza would be.
• 16:52
  SPEAKER_02: But it was just him.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_02: He was still doing things.
• 16:55
  SPEAKER_01: You know, he went toe-to-toe with Cam Ward.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yep.
• 16:58
  SPEAKER_01: And but the thing is, we'll find it will be up to the quarterback.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_01: But what you like if you're an Indiana fan is the evaluator and the system behind him to be able to get the guys to where this guy doesn't have to do it all.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 17:10
  SPEAKER_02: And they're still bringing back most of that defense, which was a huge part of it.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_01: So they should be right up there again.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_01: No pressure on Indiana.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_01: They can be spoiler almost as a defending champion because I believe Oregon is the most pressure in that conference.
• 17:25
  SPEAKER_02: You don't have to go undefeated again.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_02: They just they just happen to do that.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_01: All right, let's go to number seven and it's the first team from the ACC, and that's the Miami Hurricanes.
• 17:34
  SPEAKER_01: Uh another low for them.
• 17:37
  SPEAKER_01: I would I wouldn't expect that.
• 17:39
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I know.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_01: And they lost some guys.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_01: Look at the the four the top four are heavy hitters.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:45
  SPEAKER_01: Georgia, Notre Dame, um, Oregon, Ohio State.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:49
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, you're picking, and it's the preseason.
• 17:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, no.
• 17:53
  SPEAKER_01: I think they're properly rated.
• 17:54
  SPEAKER_01: They did lose their quarterback.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_01: They didn't.
• 17:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I know they picked up the top quarterback in the portal from Duke, but it is a new quarterback.
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_01: There are new players in the country.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_02: I think their losses on defense might play a bigger part in why they're on the side.
• 18:09
  SPEAKER_01: And they do have one of the best players in the country.
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_01: I think who's going to be a Heisman contender this year.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 18:15
  SPEAKER_02: Wasn't even mentioned for ACC Player of the Year, but that's because it's a quarterback award.
• 18:21
  SPEAKER_01: It's ridiculous.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_02: So you're talking about Malachi Tony.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_01: Of course.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_01: I think a lot, almost, he reminds me a lot of Rashad Green.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_01: Almost with another with another gear.
• 18:35
  unknown: Right.
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_01: He's dangerous.
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_01: As far as mentality and just ready to play right off the bat, like mentally prepared and a veteran off day one.
• 18:46
  SPEAKER_01: Him and Rashad Green stepped right in.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: More recently.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_01: On their size, too.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_02: And you know, there's a lot of that Jeremiah Smith, you know, as soon as he stepped on campus at Ohio State, they're like, everybody knew that.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_01: I know this guy was a borderline four-star.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_01: And he's a playmaker.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_01: He's the best player on that team.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_01: He's going to make things go for them.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_02: They return that running game as well.
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_01: But that's just going to open up just a wide open field for him to make huge plays.
• 19:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, they got he's going to get a lot of scores.
• 19:20
  SPEAKER_02: They got one tough game on the schedule in terms of a roster that will challenge them.
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_01: If there, if there's a year, I can't believe they still haven't won the ACC, but if they don't do it this year, it should be I don't see anybody challenging them.
• 19:34
  SPEAKER_01: How do you not?
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_01: You can afford to stub your toe probably twice.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know.
• 19:41
  SPEAKER_01: The ACC's weird.
• 19:42
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, the tiebreaker we saw that last year.
• 19:45
  SPEAKER_02: That's out of there, though.
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_01: But you shouldn't lose.
• 19:47
  SPEAKER_01: If you lose twice, you don't deserve it.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: There should not lose more than one game in the conference, and honestly, they shouldn't lose a game.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_01: They shouldn't lose a game to anybody in the ACC this year.
• 19:58
  SPEAKER_01: They're far and above the elite team in this conference.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_01: It's not even close.
• 20:03
  SPEAKER_01: No, it's not.
• 20:04
  SPEAKER_01: Their roster is.
• 20:05
  SPEAKER_01: In the conference, they're they have the maximum difference than of the Big Four.
• 20:11
  SPEAKER_01: It's more, you can't.
• 20:13
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I know Texas Tech is kind of up there in the Big 12, but not as much as Miami is in the United States.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 20:19
  SPEAKER_02: It's not even close.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_02: Miami's done a great job.
• 20:22
  SPEAKER_01: Let's go back to the uh SEC number eight is Texas AM.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_02: It's another team that that you just I mean, you know, everybody's back.
• 20:34
  SPEAKER_02: Um they they had it all lined up for them last season and just you know laid an egg.
• 20:40
  SPEAKER_02: Although Miami was the team that ended up making the title game, so it, you know, you could have done worse.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_02: But again, I expect them to be tough.
• 20:50
  SPEAKER_01: That that's gonna be a great end of the season matchup there.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, yeah.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: Old school.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: I remember back in the day when it was that game, Florida, Florida State, where the all those they really meant some.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_01: I'm glad that's the only good side, I guess, of them joining the SEC now.
• 21:06
  SPEAKER_01: Um let's go to number nine as we try to hurry it up here.
• 21:09
  SPEAKER_01: Old Miss.
• 21:11
  SPEAKER_02: I I'm watching for them to to to take a step back, man.
• 21:16
  SPEAKER_01: I that's what everybody expects.
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_01: Uh but they do get the quarterback back.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_01: They do.
• 21:23
  SPEAKER_01: I think there's a team that could have a chip on their shoulder.
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean they um they're not horrible.
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_02: It's not a terrible roster.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_02: It's you know, I it's more for me, it's more of lack of faith in Pete Golding.
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_02: Well, the SEC is gonna be kind of you really don't know.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_01: No, you don't.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, every team is spending, so it's yeah, so out you got Ole Miss, and then there's Oklahoma, number 10, LSU, 11, Lane Kiffen.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_02: You could change those interchangeable right there.
• 21:54
  SPEAKER_01: Like it Texas Tech at number 12.
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_02: That's an interesting one.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_02: To follow.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: The first team from the Big 12.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_02: Quarterback issues.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_01: And only the second team that's not in the uh SEC or Big Ten.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that's a theme here.
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_01: Back to the SEC at number 13 in Alabama.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, gonna be starting a freshman this year at quarterback Kehan Russell.
• 22:18
  SPEAKER_01: Our third team from non-Big Ten, non-SEC, and that's BYU.
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_01: They're tied at 14th with another Big Ten team in USC.
• 22:28
  SPEAKER_01: And then back to the Big Ten in Michigan and Washington at 16 and 17.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_01: And then there's and the Big Ten at Penn State at number 18.
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_01: You go back to the ACC with SMU, Tennessee also starting a freshman quarterback.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_01: Another non Big 12, Iowa.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_02: To me, these are just throwing little Missouri.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_02: Throwing throwing darts at a at a board.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_01: You know, like you just pleasing the big dogs.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_01: They run the sport.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 23:00
  SPEAKER_02: After you get out of the top 10, top 12 teams, it it's which goes to what this needs to be.
• 23:06
  SPEAKER_01: And right now it's not what it should be.
• 23:12
  SPEAKER_01: And that's because they didn't get it in place when they had the chance.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_01: And now they let that case go to the Supreme Court.
• 23:21
  SPEAKER_01: And now so if anybody tries to set in limits, somebody's gonna take them to court and sue them.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, is there yeah?
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_01: And but if you get all the universities somehow to participate, and you can somehow get this thing, and start, you know, you there obviously is two main leagues here, the SEC and the Big Ten.
• 23:44
  SPEAKER_01: But that doesn't mean that the whole sport should suffer.
• 23:47
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 23:48
  SPEAKER_01: So they need the TV meet people need to figure out a way to make it like the NFL, just bigger.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_01: You have an AFC, you have an NFC in retrospect, and you just I have it.
• 24:02
  SPEAKER_01: Well, here's let me finish real quick.
• 24:03
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_01: Have a draft of ACC and the Big 12 by the ACC and the by the SEC and the Big Ten.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_01: And they they get to pick their teams back and forth.
• 24:14
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_01: And some sort of measurement, uh, or you do a snake draft if you have to, who cares?
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_01: Televise it.
• 24:21
  SPEAKER_01: Televise it.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_01: It'd be the it would be the greatest draft ever.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_01: It would be the most rated thing ever.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_01: And then just come up with a players union and try to get some sort of mutually bargained agreement where they have a structure here to develop players to play at the next level.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_01: Because now you're hating you're getting guys that are on NFL teams that are not going to make the 53-man roster, in which other teams be like, alright, we can get them on our practice squad.
• 24:54
  SPEAKER_01: No, they're gonna go back to school now.
• 24:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_01: That's coming.
• 25:00
  SPEAKER_01: So that that's another thing.
• 25:01
  SPEAKER_01: It's well you've already got it.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_01: You've already got guys leaving the NFL.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_01: Just have it to where it's set up in place, where this, if you leave the league and go to the NFL, that's another step.
• 25:13
  SPEAKER_01: You're guaranteed this amount of money.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_01: No, right?
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_01: Or you know, and you're uh there's minimums here, there's maximums here.
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_01: It's all agreed upon.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_01: Everybody's paid.
• 25:23
  SPEAKER_01: But in what's what I don't like to see, and I know that's Miami's our rival, but what they did to Duke.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I mean, it's just to go clear out and just straight up buy him out and just pay him what he wants.
• 25:37
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 25:40
  SPEAKER_01: And that shouldn't be allowed, but honestly, you can't are you could argue it should not not be allowed either.
• 25:45
  SPEAKER_01: Right, it's the same thing as as it's just that's what you're gonna say.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_01: Premier League soccer.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_02: That's what that's what happens there.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_01: That's true.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_02: But you know, it until the at the heart of it is their inability to have any kind of collective bargaining.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_02: And that's because they will not make these players employees, they will not make student athletes employees, so they cannot have that.
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_02: They cannot have a union.
• 26:09
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, they they clearly are stupid.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_01: This are just this is what people are getting in too much about as the quote unquote was Chris Farley used to do.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_01: Employees.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 26:22
  SPEAKER_01: Like, and what is this guy?
• 26:23
  SPEAKER_01: An employee.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, well, they're getting paid.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it doesn't matter who's paying them, they're getting paid to play, and they're going to the highest bidder.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_01: And you're playing a game that's won and lost by the field, and who's got the best players?
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_01: And the highest version of the game is has a system where everybody has a salary cap to pay their roster.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_01: You can pay it however you want, but you're only allowed to spend this much money.
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_01: So there's not necessarily a cap, but there's a cap on how you spend it.
• 26:56
  SPEAKER_01: But that's because they're employees and they agree to it.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
• 26:59
  SPEAKER_01: So until that's some, they're gonna have this the wild, wild west, and then every year you'll have this kind of BS thing that's coming across as college football, but really it's kind of like a soccer league, but there's no relegation.
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there's no that'd be fine if they had relegation.
• 27:22
  SPEAKER_01: They'd be like, all right, well, if you're not spending, you need to go down.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 27:25
  SPEAKER_01: Or if you're not winning, you don't deserve to go down.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_02: And and the teams would go down and play other teams.
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_01: I'm fine with that too.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_02: That's honestly, that's probably got a more likely chance of having to do that.
• 27:35
  SPEAKER_01: That's the reason that it there's some sort of way it it levels out there.
• 27:40
  SPEAKER_01: And again, that's still pro, and that's there's still employees.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_01: Which is just a come on, man.
• 27:46
  SPEAKER_01: Just that that cat's out of the bag.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_01: But they'll fight it.
• 27:50
  SPEAKER_01: I know.
• 27:51
  SPEAKER_01: I know.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_01: I have an idea.
• 27:53
  SPEAKER_01: But even if you were in the SEC, correct?
• 27:56
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_01: Why wouldn't you want when when's the point where the Big Ten as well, where they're going to have members in their own conference being like, Where are we going to put a cap on this?
• 28:08
  SPEAKER_02: Oh, yeah.
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's it's already there for a team like big like Rutgers is operating in the red every year.
• 28:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so because you got teams like Ohio State and Oregon that are just Michigan that there's a bidding war right there.
• 28:23
  SPEAKER_01: Then USC.
• 28:24
  SPEAKER_01: Mm-hmm.
• 28:25
  SPEAKER_01: And then how do how do other teams in the Big Ten even like come into that?
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_01: They don't.
• 28:30
  SPEAKER_01: They focus on other sports.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_01: You know, if you're Purdue, you focus on basketball.
• 28:34
  SPEAKER_01: Purdue, you're there to win national championships.
• 28:36
  SPEAKER_01: If you want to win championships, you go to Indiana.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 28:38
  SPEAKER_01: You don't want to win championships.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_01: You go to Purdue.
• 28:40
  SPEAKER_02: You don't want to have fun or anything, you go to Purdue.
• 28:43
  SPEAKER_02: You want to go watch Matt Painter?
• 28:45
  SPEAKER_02: Purdue.
• 28:46
  SPEAKER_02: Well, my big idea, man, is I think they should only rank the top 10 teams.
• 28:50
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah, hold on.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_02: Is that the shuttle?
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_03: Our rod was here.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_03: We gotta uh shuttle.
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_01: Well, we gotta get on out of here.
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_01: But before we go, what Jimmy, what were we saying?
• 29:03
  SPEAKER_01: So we don't need a top 25.
• 29:05
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I know, but it's yeah, you don't definitely don't need a top 25.
• 29:07
  SPEAKER_01: No.
• 29:08
  SPEAKER_01: But I understand it.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_01: It's just like hyping up a movie, you know?
• 29:12
  SPEAKER_02: Right, and it's a way for the the the Big Ten and the SEC to keep their teams at the top.
• 29:17
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 29:18
  SPEAKER_01: Just the get it's the like uh the lobbying and stuff.
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_01: Just going ahead and putting it out there.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_02: And you'll have to be like, well, they beat number 18.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_02: Well, they beat number 12.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_02: So there's look how good they look.
• 29:30
  SPEAKER_01: And that's just back and forth.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_01: Crowd in the yeah, crowd in the and it'll just throw in, you get one team, pretty much.
• 29:39
  SPEAKER_01: That's what they want.
• 29:40
  SPEAKER_01: They don't want the ACC or the Big 12 to get more than one.
• 29:44
  SPEAKER_01: Honestly, and they don't even want them to get that.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_02: Right.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_02: If they could do, if they could get away without having them.
• 29:51
  SPEAKER_02: Even at 12 teams, if they could get away with just, you know what, let's not even include the Big 12 or the ACC.
• 29:56
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 29:56
  SPEAKER_02: They would.
• 29:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, they would do that.
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 29:59
  SPEAKER_01: Definitely.
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_01: But that's where there has to be somebody to step up and not let that happen.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_01: And if they want to do it, they have to leave.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_01: And that's the next step.
• 30:14
  SPEAKER_01: Who's going, like, are they gonna take teams with them?
• 30:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, somebody's gotta lose games.
• 30:18
  SPEAKER_01: Then, then yes.
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_01: But there'll still be a divide there.
• 30:22
  SPEAKER_01: Then who who's the national, who's the true national champion?
• 30:25
  SPEAKER_01: But it would be total college football, then.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_01: If you have them, that would be your national championship.
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_01: If those two conferences agree to break ties.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it would be a different league.
• 30:34
  SPEAKER_01: Oh well, man.
• 30:35
  SPEAKER_01: They play for their own, yeah.
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_01: They play for their own championship and have one with the Big 12.
• 30:41
  SPEAKER_01: ACC Big 12 challenge.
• 30:42
  SPEAKER_02: Everybody, just the everybody else league.
• 30:45
  SPEAKER_02: The everybody else league.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_02: That's right.
• 30:49
  SPEAKER_02: Play for the love of the game.
• 30:51
  SPEAKER_02: We don't make any money.
• 30:52
  SPEAKER_02: You gotta pay to play here, man.
• 30:54
  SPEAKER_01: And that's just because of conferences, which are something that I don't it doesn't make sense anyway, that that that's how the money should be divided up.
• 31:06
  unknown: Yeah.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_01: Based on your affiliation, something from decades ago that where it didn't had anything to do with how what the sport's garnering now.
• 31:18
  SPEAKER_01: Right, it used to be all regionally.
• 31:20
  SPEAKER_01: Or like who developed the sport and what, you know, it wasn't.
• 31:24
  SPEAKER_01: You're you made that conference now, now all those members get this shitty team gets all this money a year.
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_01: That's crazy.
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we got a lot to talk about.
• 31:32
  SPEAKER_01: We'll watch it, we'll react to it.
• 31:34
  SPEAKER_01: We'll talk to you next time.
• 31:35
  SPEAKER_01: Right here on the North Florida Sports Network.
• 31:45
  SPEAKER_00: You gotta give us a shot.
• 31:46
  SPEAKER_00: You know what?