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Too Early Preview of 2026 Florida State Football · Conversations: Special Guests with Preston Scott

• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Here.
• 0:04
  Speaker 2: It is the third hour the Morning Show with Preston Scott,
• 0:07
  Speaker 2: now in year twenty five of this fine radio program
• 0:11
  Speaker 2: otherwise known as common Sense Amplified. He is Jose playing
• 0:15
  Speaker 2: injured today, but he's here and joining us on the
• 0:18
  Speaker 2: phone line. Is the managing editor at war chan dot com.
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: That's where you go you subscribe to get all things
• 0:24
  Speaker 2: Florida State athletics. He is Irishafelle. I were good morning.
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: How are you, good morning, Preston. How you doing I'm
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: doing well, all right.
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  Speaker 2: So we've got spring football underway, and how would you
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  Speaker 2: set up what the big storyline is heading into this
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: season following what was a very difficult last season.
• 0:47
  Speaker 1: You know, I think there's probably a couple of different
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: layers to it. You know, obviously, you know Mike Norbel.
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: The biggest story has been, you know, Gus Malzan retiring
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: at the end of last season and then Mike Norbel
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: reclaiming play calling duties. So there's a new offensive coordinator,
• 1:03
  Speaker 1: Tim Harris, who got promoted in the staff. But but
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: Mike Norvel is taking back over the offense. I think,
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: you know, some people think that's a great idea. Some
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: people are over the whole Mike norvel era, So so
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: everybody has different opinions, but you know, that's the big story.
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: He's kind of taking back control of the offense after
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: one year as the CEO head coach, and then, you know,
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: then there was also a bunch of other changes to
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: the staff. So it's another year where you know, Florida
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: State didn't make a change in the head coaching spot,
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: but they did change the front office. They have a
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: new general manager, a whole new scouting department to help with,
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: you know, bringing new players in, and then there's also
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  Speaker 1: several changes on the coaching staff, so it's kind of
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  Speaker 1: a they're trying to kind of get a little new
• 1:46
  Speaker 1: new car smell, but with the same head coach er.
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  Speaker 2: Would it be fair to say, just big picture, that
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  Speaker 2: we went to this era where coaches realized the program
• 1:59
  Speaker 2: was just too big for them to be the defensive
• 2:02
  Speaker 2: coordinator or the offensive coordinator and the head coach. But now,
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  Speaker 2: because of the advent of this new general manager that's
• 2:09
  Speaker 2: taking care of recruiting, ani l and all of that stuff,
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: that those coaches that specialize in offense or defense can
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  Speaker 2: maybe feel free to go back to doing what their
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  Speaker 2: real first love is.
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  Speaker 1: I think that's absolutely the hope here. You know from
• 2:25
  Speaker 1: Michael Alford, official's athletic director and the administration is that
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  Speaker 1: you know that Mike, Mike Norvel that this is more
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  Speaker 1: suited for his skill his skill set. You know, when
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: when they made the change last year to to you know,
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: bringing Gus Malzan as the offensive coordinator, that was kind
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: of the idea, as you just out outlined that there's
• 2:45
  Speaker 1: so much going on now in college sports with nil
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: and player negotiations and trying to you know, keep your
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: roster intact and not let players get posted by their
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: schools and and all of those things beyond what happens
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: on the football field, that by bringing in somebody like
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: Gus Malzan, that would help the offense and give Mike
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: Norvel time to kind of adapt that more of a
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: big picture role. Number One, they did make the front
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: office changes, like you said, so that should give Norvell
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: more time to be more hands on on the field.
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: But I think the other thing is, and nobody's ever
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: said this on the record, but this is my personal belief.
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  Speaker 1: I don't know that Mike Norvell was suited to be
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  Speaker 1: a CEO. There are some CEO head coaches you know,
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: Bobby Bowden famously went from being the offensive mastermind and
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  Speaker 1: play caller to more of a CEO head coach. He
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  Speaker 1: was one of the first ones probably really to make
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  Speaker 1: that move. But I don't know that it suited Mike Norvel.
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: I just don't know that that's where his skill skill
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  Speaker 1: set is. I think his what made him what he
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: was as a head coach that was very successful at Memphis,
• 3:45
  Speaker 1: was very successful Florida State in those first few years,
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  Speaker 1: was he's an offensive mind, Like that's what he wants
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  Speaker 1: to do, That's where he feels like he can contribute.
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  Speaker 1: So I think not only did you make the changes
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  Speaker 1: to kind of give him better resources, but maybe you're
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  Speaker 1: putting him in the position where he can have more
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  Speaker 1: impact on the team.
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  Speaker 2: This team, if you look at it from the outside,
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  Speaker 2: and I'm absolutely a layman who just loves the school
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  Speaker 2: wants to see them do well, as I think most
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  Speaker 2: people listening do, would you say that this is a
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  Speaker 2: real season of change on the offensive side and in
• 4:19
  Speaker 2: special teams, not so much on defense.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, I would definitely say that the defense has a
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  Speaker 1: lot more continuity. And why you'd say, well, you know,
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  Speaker 1: the defense wasn't great last year. Either I think the argument,
• 4:32
  Speaker 1: you know, Mike Orvell would make and I think I
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  Speaker 1: could see some merit to it. And I've spoken to
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: Tony White, the defensive coordinator about this. A good bit
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  Speaker 1: is this is they are going into year two now
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  Speaker 1: with this defense, and you know, I think that they
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: feel like, other than the Florida game, which was an abomination,
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: that they did make some improvements last season over the
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: course of this season, and they got better as the
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  Speaker 1: player started to really understand the defense. It was a
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: much different defense under Tony White than what they played
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: under Adam Fuller. Went from a lot of men's schemes
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  Speaker 1: to more zones schemes. They changed the defensive fronts a lot.
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  Speaker 1: So as last season went on, they thought the players
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  Speaker 1: started to kind of assimilate better to it. And now
• 5:12
  Speaker 1: you're going into year two of that. Plus you brought
• 5:14
  Speaker 1: in some pretty big impact players Chris Jones at linebacker
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  Speaker 1: who had one hundred and thirty four tackles last season
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  Speaker 1: at Southern Miss, a few guys in the defensive backfield
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: on the defensive line as well, so they feel like
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: the rosters better on the defensive side. Plus you're going
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: into year two on that side of the ball, and
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: you pretty much have you bring back most of that
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: coaching staff in place, except one big addition was you
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: added a defensive ends coach who should help with the
• 5:38
  Speaker 1: pass rush. And then Ernie Simms was elevated to full
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: time linebackers coach after being in a support role last year.
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: So yeah, the defense has a lot more continuity, but
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: they expected to be much improved.
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: You were mentioning a couple of new players that FSU
• 5:53
  Speaker 2: was brought in. I thought really important was and again,
• 5:57
  Speaker 2: this is such a big change to recruit your own roster.
• 6:01
  Speaker 2: You got to figure out the guys you want to
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  Speaker 2: keep and uh, I guess now spend money on. And
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  Speaker 2: it seems as though Mike Norvel still has a little
• 6:11
  Speaker 2: magic in his in his UH persona to keep key
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: players around because he was able to do that.
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: Yeah, there was a point in time in early December
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  Speaker 1: where it looked bleak because you know, we were hearing
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: word that a lot of the you know a lot
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: of the players on this team were going to go
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: into the transfer portal. There was concern that Deuce Robinson
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: would go to the NFL. Certainly the the Seer Twins
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: the defensive lineman. Kevin Wynn went in the transfer portal
• 6:38
  Speaker 1: the defensive lineman. There were questions about the running back,
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: who's mn chromat like. There were a lot of rumors
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: about players leaving. Some of them went into the transfer portal,
• 6:46
  Speaker 1: but but FSU was able to retain a good bit
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: of them. Jabrill Rawls at cornerback with a big retention.
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: As I mentioned the Seer Twins. They also Ashland Barker
• 6:56
  Speaker 1: at safety. You know, you've got Deuce Robinson to come
• 6:59
  Speaker 1: back for his seat year. And as you said, some
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: of its relationships, some of it is some of the
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: players have talked about wanting to kind of turn the
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: program back around. They were here, some of those guys
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  Speaker 1: were here when they were thirteen wins in twenty twenty three,
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  Speaker 1: and they really feel bad about what's happened the last
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  Speaker 1: couple of years and want to be part of the
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  Speaker 1: solution in twenty twenty six. And then also money is
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  Speaker 1: a big factor as well. FSU is spending I've got
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: a story actually coming up at war chant dot com
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  Speaker 1: about FSU's investment in NIL and how committed they are there.
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  Speaker 1: So it all goes into it. But yeah, the rosters
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  Speaker 1: a lot better now than I thought it might be
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  Speaker 1: as we went into December.
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  Speaker 2: One of the questions I know that you and Corey Clark,
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: one of your senior writers there at war chant dot com,
• 7:42
  Speaker 2: spend a lot of time talking about, and of course
• 7:44
  Speaker 2: my friend Jeff Cameron, was whether there was going to
• 7:46
  Speaker 2: be an open quarterback competition this spring or not. Whether
• 7:51
  Speaker 2: the transfer I think it's Ashton Daniels out out of
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  Speaker 2: Auburn and Kevin Sperry, the returning quarterback who didn't play
• 7:59
  Speaker 2: a lot, played some and showed promise, whether there was
• 8:02
  Speaker 2: going to actually be a contest in the spring. What
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  Speaker 2: is your sense at this point is there a competition?
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  Speaker 1: I think Kevin Sperry would have to just be incredible
• 8:13
  Speaker 1: this spring for it to be a real competition. As
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: you said, a lot of people want that. Kevin Sperry
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: did show some signs of some you know talent, you know,
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: during his first year of Florida State. But this is
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: w we talked about this late last season. One of
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: the frustrations I had, I think I know you had
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: as well, was that when the season wasn't going to
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: go the way they hoped after the Alabama game, and
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: you start losing games. Why didn't they give Kevin Sperry
• 8:36
  Speaker 1: more of a chance, Because I think the problem now
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  Speaker 1: is Ashton Daniels has not been a star in college football,
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: but he has started for over two years. He started
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: like twenty something games in college football. Kevin Sperry has
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: thrown like twenty something passes in college football. So from
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: that standpoint, you know, I think he's the underdog. It's
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: kind of like in boxing, if you're gonna knock it,
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: if you're gonna beat Mike Tyson, you have to knock
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  Speaker 1: him out like you're not gonna win on the decision.
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  Speaker 1: And so Kevin Sperry have to have an incredible spring
• 9:01
  Speaker 1: and summer to beat him out. I don't think that's
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: going to happen. So I think Gaston Daniels is gonna
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  Speaker 1: be the starter of barring something unexpected.
• 9:13
  Speaker 2: Final segment here with Iras Chaffelle Again, if you want
• 9:17
  Speaker 2: the skinny, that's an old school term. Isn't an Ira
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: the skinny on all things Florida State Athletics. If you
• 9:26
  Speaker 2: want to know the lowdown, just go to warchand dot com.
• 9:29
  Speaker 1: Subscribe.
• 9:30
  Speaker 2: You'll get some intel there that you will not find
• 9:32
  Speaker 2: anywhere else. Do a great job over there, Ira, you
• 9:35
  Speaker 2: and your guys and the work you do. Let's talk
• 9:39
  Speaker 2: for a second about the decision to not play in
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: the NIT for FSU men's basketball. We were talking in
• 9:45
  Speaker 2: the break. I think we both walk away very impressed
• 9:47
  Speaker 2: with how Luke Laus adjusted to how the season started
• 9:51
  Speaker 2: to where it ended. They were arguably maybe a top
• 9:54
  Speaker 2: twenty team at the end of the season, I think,
• 9:56
  Speaker 2: but yet not playing the NIT. What did you think
• 9:59
  Speaker 2: about that decision and letting it be up to the players.
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: You know, it's one one of those things where it
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: was disappointing because I think everybody wanted to see that
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: team play again. You know, they just played so well
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: the last two months of the season after the really
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: rough start, and then you know, they went down to
• 10:16
  Speaker 1: the wire with Duke basically the last shot to win
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: it with the ball in their hands. You'd love that
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: to have the opportunity number one team in the country,
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: and so all of for all of those reasons, people
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: wanted to see them keep playing. Plus, you know, I
• 10:27
  Speaker 1: think part of it is the way this athletic department
• 10:30
  Speaker 1: has gone the last couple of years. Other than you know,
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: soccer winning the national Championship. There just hasn't been a
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: lot of glory for this athletics department for FSU fans.
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: So the idea of going to the n i T
• 10:41
  Speaker 1: and maybe winning the n i T, which they might
• 10:44
  Speaker 1: have been one of the favorites if they had gone,
• 10:46
  Speaker 1: you know, had people really excited. Then when when they
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: decided not to go, it brought up a lot of
• 10:51
  Speaker 1: you know, just bad feelings for the fan base. So
• 10:53
  Speaker 1: they got a lot of heat. Luke Roux talked about
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: that the other day that he was getting messages from
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: fans who are were mad at them and and and
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: he understood it. But his point was, I want to
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: give it to these players to decide, because they put
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: so much into the season, the way how hard they
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: played over the last two months, and a lot of
• 11:10
  Speaker 1: the players just didn't feel like they had anything left
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: to give. They laid it all on the line in
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: that Duke game. They some of them had some injuries
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: things like that they were playing through and they just
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: felt like they gave it. They're all in that ACC
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: tournament and they were done. So he honored that, He
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: respected that they decided not to play. It's unfortunate from
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: the standpoint that we did want to see them again,
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: but it could have a silver lining in that it
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: gives Luke in his staff a chance to get a
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: head start on the transfer portal, you know, where they're
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: gonna have to do some work because they do lose
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: sixteen ors from this team.
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: Do you think we'll let's just with that? Maybe influencing
• 11:45
  Speaker 2: my question here, Ira, Are we at a point though,
• 11:48
  Speaker 2: where you turn and you look at the guys or
• 11:51
  Speaker 2: the gals and you say, look, you're compensated to play.
• 11:55
  Speaker 2: Maybe not all of you the same, but we're going
• 11:58
  Speaker 2: to play. This is an opera tunity to put the
• 12:01
  Speaker 2: profile of Florida State basketball on a national level on
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: national television where it wasn't getting a lot of publicity.
• 12:09
  Speaker 2: But we're playing well now and we're going to keep playing.
• 12:12
  Speaker 2: I mean, are we at that point now nationally where
• 12:15
  Speaker 2: we're gonna start seeing programs say I'm sorry, but you
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: will play well.
• 12:20
  Speaker 1: That's an interesting question, Preston, because what were what would
• 12:23
  Speaker 1: happen if maybe two or three or four players the
• 12:26
  Speaker 1: week of the n I said, you know what, coach,
• 12:29
  Speaker 1: I pulled my hamstring. Oh man, I just I don't
• 12:31
  Speaker 1: think I can give it a go. I'm going to
• 12:33
  Speaker 1: I'm gonna have to shut it down because at the
• 12:35
  Speaker 1: end of the day, the players have been given so
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: much power now, and so it's the same thing we've
• 12:40
  Speaker 1: seen in these bowl games with these opt outs, including
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: you know, there were players in that twenty twenty three
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: team that FSU had that got murdered in the in
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: the Orange Bowl. There were some players who went through
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: practices for two weeks of Bowl practice and Mike Norvel
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: fully expected them to play in the Orange Bowl, and
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: then when the team went down to Miami, they decided,
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: you know, but I don't think I'm gonna play in
• 13:01
  Speaker 1: that Bowl game. After all, the players have all the power. Now.
• 13:04
  Speaker 1: What I think needs to happen is the Bowls and
• 13:07
  Speaker 1: the n I t any other tournaments that's a postseason
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: that's not the National for the National Championship, I think
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: they're going to have to step up and start, you know,
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: compensating players to play. And we hate hearing that, and
• 13:19
  Speaker 1: I understand the frustrations, but or play or coach. The
• 13:23
  Speaker 1: schools can put in their contracts, you know, so heavily
• 13:26
  Speaker 1: incentivized to where they they can't pass up that money
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: to play in the postseason game. But otherwise I think
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: the players have all the power.
• 13:34
  Speaker 2: Is there any scenario where you see the contract looking
• 13:37
  Speaker 2: more like well until the season's over and you're obligated
• 13:43
  Speaker 2: and look, you know, and I know because we both
• 13:45
  Speaker 2: have talked to scouts on the professional level on a
• 13:48
  Speaker 2: lot of sports. If they start saying, you know, I
• 13:51
  Speaker 2: pulled a hammy and I'm not, that's going to impact
• 13:54
  Speaker 2: their draft grade if they are draft if they are
• 13:56
  Speaker 2: a draft quality player, it definitely can.
• 13:59
  Speaker 1: But I think that's a lot of times that's in
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: the margins. You know. NFL coaches and NFL executives are
• 14:04
  Speaker 1: a lot like college recruiters who overlook things in high
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: school players. If a kid's talented enough, I think they'll
• 14:10
  Speaker 1: find a way to look past it. But yeah, I
• 14:12
  Speaker 1: do think the way contracts are negotiated, all of those
• 14:15
  Speaker 1: things can be worked out. But man, there are so
• 14:18
  Speaker 1: many issues right now with player compensation and NIL and
• 14:22
  Speaker 1: revenue sharing. Like they have to me that's going to
• 14:25
  Speaker 1: be a little bit more in the fine tuning, and
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: right now they're still kind of trying to overhaul the engine.
• 14:29
  Speaker 2: Our As always, I could visit with you for hours. Thanks,
• 14:32
  Speaker 2: so much for the time this morning, and as I mentioned,
• 14:34
  Speaker 2: we'll circle back summertime when FSU football kicks off in Earnest.
• 14:39
  Speaker 1: Thanks Presdin, thanks for having me on.
• 14:41
  Speaker 2: I appreciate it. Iris Chafelle with us managing editor at
• 14:43
  Speaker 2: Warchant dot com here on The Morning Show with Preston
• 14:46
  Speaker 2: Scott