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- [00:00]
Pete Thamel
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- [00:33]
Zubin Mehenti
Hey, it is day two of four at the SEC Media Days down in Tampa. But before you think that we're just halfway done, keep in mind down there the talking never stops. As our Ryan McGee reminds us.
- [00:49]
Greg McElroy
Questions? It's what every season starts with and we have plenty of questions as talking season takes over Tampa which stars are ready to lead their teams? How will the six new head coaches transform their programs? Which games are we circling on the calendar? And who will win the SEC its next CFP title?
- [01:15]
Zubin Mehenti
Today?
- [01:16]
Greg McElroy
Questions await for Auburn, Georgia, South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Welcome to SEC Media Days where it's time for answers
- [01:33]
Zubin Mehenti
and these four men will provide them at the podium. Alex Golis of Auburn, Georgius Kirby Smart, Shane Bieber of South Carolina and Clark Lee of Vanderbilt. We'll hear from all of them before the hour is up. That's what we're here to do on College Football Live. I'm Zeeba Mahenti. Welcome inside, tongue planted firmly in cheek. Are you old enough to remember the last time the SEC won the national championship? Way back in 2022. It was the second of back to back titles for the Georgia Bulldogs. And speaking of back to back, it's been back to back tough appearances in the Sugar Bowl a couple years ago. Notre Dame just got the best of them 123 10. Didn't even feel like a 13 point game. Irish just dominated from start last year. Sugar bowl again regular season game between Ole Miss and Georgia went to the dogs, but the rematch went to the Rebs thanks to this field goal. Kirby Smart reminded everybody at SEC Media days earlier today.
- [02:31]
Greg McElroy
I think you forget that we also lost to an SEC team within the playoffs. So it's another tribute to the fact we won the SEC because we beat that team and then we won the SEC championship and then we turned around and lost to an SEC team that was was a really good football team and obviously one of the top four teams in the country, especially at the end of the year with the way they were playing. So I don't get hung up a lot on just the finish. I like to look back and say, okay, what did we do well in those games and what did we do poorly and how do we improve on it?
- [03:01]
Zubin Mehenti
That Kirby Smart earlier today again, all four coaches that took the mic will be here on College Football Live. Taking the mics from Tampa, Greg McElroy, Gene Chisyk and Pete Thamel. Gentlemen, welcome aboard. Pete, let's start with you. I know there were some other macro level comments about the playoff that Kirby Smart wanted to make sure got out there today.
- [03:19]
Pete Thamel
Well, Zubin, I'm sure you remember the first time Georgia played Ole Miss last season and beat them. Kirby Smart famously declared his Bulldogs hard to kill. The strength of the team was the team. He did mention today that they were a little bit easier to kill. After a 25 to 30 day break between the end of the regular season, the SEC championship in Georgia's case, and then getting a bye into the quarterfinals, Kirby Smart said today, quote, no sport I know of shuts down for 25 to 30 days between performances. And he mentioned they haven't had their best performances when they needed them the most. He made clear he wasn't making an excuse, but it was an idea to perhaps tweak the calendar for less of a break.
- [04:03]
Greg McElroy
That calendar has been challenging for Georgia. We called each of the last two Sugar Bowls and the team you saw at the end of the regular season was very different from that of a team that played in each one of those two Sugar Bowls, beating themselves. In particular against Notre Dame two years ago, the defense not playing very well there against Ole Miss, allowing a lot of broken plays, allowing a lot of big third down conversions. But if you look at this year's version of Georgia, coach, I love what Kirby Smart brings back. Defensively, yes, there were aspects of their team last year that were not what you've kind of come to expect from Georgia. You anticipate them being able to rush the passer consistently. That was not part of their arsenal. In the first eight games of the year it got better, but still a far cry from what we've long anticipated from the Georgia Bulldogs. And offensively, yes, while efficient, they lacked explosiveness. And with a whole new crop of wide receivers, manufacturing those big plays down the field is a real priority for this offense so they can keep up in the event in which a game gets into the 30s like it did in the quarterfinals last year.
- [05:02]
Gene Chizik
Yeah, you've talked about the quarterfinals. We know that the quarterfinals aren't the goal for the Georgia Bulldogs, right? It's National Championship or bust. And if you look at the last couple of years, there were some uncharacteristic things. Go back to the Ole Miss game in the quarterfinals this year, right? Georgia goes up 21:12 at halftime and then blows that lead and loses 39, 34. You don't really see that in Kirby smarts teams. So when you hear him talk, you hear him use the word elite a lot. He uses it with his players. He uses it in terms of developing guys. But he wants an elite football team. Greg, they've been really, really good. Yeah, you can't say they've been elite. Indiana was elite. They were. They were not. They were not weak in any area, but that's what Kirby's trying to get to. They return almost 70% of their production from last year. I think there's. This is the best set team since. Since 2022 to actually make a return to the national championship game.
- [05:56]
Zubin Mehenti
That's very interesting, coach, that you use the verbiage there. Good but not elite. I think that's how some people right now at this point, with still some Runway ahead of them, would think of Gunner Stockton. Good but not quite elite. But Gunner made sure to say at SEC media days today he was very bullish on where Georgia stands at the moment.
- [06:14]
Greg McElroy
Yeah, it's been a great off season. I think the biggest part is just the excitement we all have for this year. Last year definitely didn't end up the way we wanted it, but. But, you know, we came off an SEC win in the championship, but definitely didn't end up where we wanted. But, you know, we've had a great off season so far. We've put a lot of sweat in the bucket. He embodies what leadership is, and he doesn't do it through his mouth. You know, we can't get the guy to talk half the time, but when he gets around the players, they know he leads from the front. He takes hits. He embodies everything our program's about in toughness and culture and the love for his university.
- [06:55]
Zubin Mehenti
Well, you want to talk about elite here? This is where Stockton has been elite in the fourth quarter of games when they need him the most. He has played his best and I guess for any player at any position. What more can you ask for? Greg, let's put your quarterback hat on here. Tell me what you think about expectations for Gunner Stockton heading into the 2026.
- [07:17]
Greg McElroy
Well, I think watching him last year, we all are very comfortable with where his floor is. His floor is one of the most efficient passers in the sec, however, the question has always been about the ceiling with Gunner Stockton. I think there's a lot more in the tank. Zubin. When you watch him last year, he actually led the country in throws behind the line of scrimmage. But it's not because he can't throw downfield, just because he wasn't asked to. If you look at Georgia's offense, they have traditionally been a ball control team. They were fourth in time of possession. They were in the top 10 in first downs per game. They were in the top 25. When it comes to running the football, his legs are a huge factor as well, and they will continue to be. The next step of his evolution is confidence in throwing the ball down the field with regularity. He's got to do so with a new crop of wide receivers, but they have talent, they have speed and they have length at that position. So I expect Gunnar Stockton to take a huge step forward this year because going into year two as a starter, knowing this offense backwards and forwards and, and knowing that, hey, worst case scenario, my legs will get me out of trouble, I think he's going to be a much more complete and dangerous player
- [08:19]
Gene Chizik
here in 26, if you ask any football coach. G. Mac, what's the number one thing you want your quarterback to do? That's protect the football? 24 touchdowns, five picks. When I look at this guy, he is what Georgia is. He embodies everything Georgia is about. He's tough, he's a leader, everybody follows him. But I love his quarterback acumen and how much he's developed over the last year. Let's remember he hadn't been a starter long, right? But he developed this this past year. He's been very efficient on third down. He's been able to get out of trouble. He can make explosive plays with his feet simply by getting himself out of trouble. He protects the football. And here's one thing G. Mac, no one talks about. He's been fantastic on the road.
- [09:01]
Greg McElroy
Yeah.
- [09:02]
Gene Chizik
This environment in the sec, it can rattle a quarterback. He's never rattled. He's great on the road. Go back to the Tennessee game last year. He had to answer throw for throw because they got behind and he delivered.
- [09:16]
Pete Thamel
And as Gene said, the steadiness is there. What Gunner's offense needs is a little more pop. Last season, Georgia's offense had the fourth lowest plays of 10 plus yards in the SEC. On just 19% of their offensive snaps did they go for more than 10 yards. And as for true explosive plays, plays of more than 50 yards, Georgia had just two of those last year that tied them for third lowest in the the country. Part of that fits the way Kirby Smart and Mike Bobo like to play, but part of it reveals that a little more aggression is needed. In talking to Drew Bobo today, Mike Bobo's son, the Bulldog center. There is a focus on explosive plays this spring for the Georgia Bulldogs to take the offense to the next level.
- [09:57]
Zubin Mehenti
And of course, Mike Bobo himself wants a Georgia quarterback, so he sort of understands the expectations and the pressure there. I want to mention one quick thing. At the end of the press conference today for Kirby Smart. He had a fun little moment where he was asked about a word and then had a word about the guy that lives that word. Listen to this.
- [10:17]
Greg McElroy
I don't even know what troll means. People say that all the time. Can you define what a troll is for me, please? I don't really know. I need to understand that better. A troll just means kind of poking fun. He likes to stir the pot. Yep, that's him. He would say I look like a troll. So to. I wanted to make sure it wasn't defined by appearance because certainly he is the Adonis.
- [10:41]
Zubin Mehenti
Greg, to you. That was. That was borderline personal there, but then he kind of pulled it back a little bit. What do you make of all this?
- [10:48]
Greg McElroy
I mean, by the way, everybody's talking about Lane Kiffin. It's amazing how that happens. He's still not here for two more days. I believe he's the second to last coach that will go to the podium here this week at media days. And yet he's front of everyone's mind, which I think Zubin is exactly how Lane wants it. He just wants to live ever present right there on your shoulder as these guys go into a room with hot mics all over the place.
- [11:08]
Zubin Mehenti
Yes, we can hardly wait.
- [11:09]
Gene Chizik
No doubt about it. I mean, if you.
- [11:11]
Zubin Mehenti
Go ahead, Coach.
- [11:13]
Gene Chizik
No, I was just gonna say, don't think he doesn't love every minute.
- [11:16]
Greg McElroy
He loves it.
- [11:17]
Zubin Mehenti
That is not a troll. That is totally legit. On the way here on College Football Live, is it possible that the SEC would push the nuclear button and say, we're out of here? The man that would ultimately make the decision here to opine on College Football Live next,
- [11:44]
Pete Thamel
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- [12:14]
Gene Chizik
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- [12:52]
Greg McElroy
Bryson, right, with his spectacular grab. Whoa, it is caught. Man, she went high.
- [12:59]
Zubin Mehenti
What a crab.
- [13:00]
Greg McElroy
Run a dime. That's the best catch I've ever seen in person.
- [13:05]
Zubin Mehenti
For the guys, for the gals. It's among the fastest growing sports in America all over ABC, ESPN, the Flag Championships 07-24-2526 nflflag.com for more at the football kickoff on Monday, Greg Sankey was asked about the ever present but yet how serious notion of the SEC breaking apart from the ncaa.
- [13:28]
Greg McElroy
They're real.
- [13:29]
Gene Chizik
People have talked about that.
- [13:30]
Greg McElroy
They've opined about the frustrations that bring them to the point of saying we
- [13:37]
Gene Chizik
should look at something significantly different.
- [13:40]
Greg McElroy
I do not believe that as a leverage point. I think that's just honest communication. That national organization must function in a healthy manner otherwise that simmering will continue.
- [13:56]
Zubin Mehenti
I think what he's saying there is it's on the table and it's going to be on the table. But how seriously on the table is it? Pete, I know you talked to everybody inside the sport and this has been percolating for a while. What can you parse there from what Sankey said?
- [14:12]
Pete Thamel
Zubin look, the frustration is real. No one is going to deny that there are, you know, mutterings of frustration as there long have been, especially about the NCAA and the process. Simple things like rules making, etc. Those are, those are things that have long happened. But the ultimate reality of some sort of secession comes with it like myriad issues that we'd have to take up a whole podcast to really dive into all of the different things that would have to happen. I mean, are you going to give up the NCAA tournament? Are you going to give up Omaha? Are you going to give up Oklahoma City for softball? There's nine years left in the house settlement. You can't just dip out of that with all the hundreds of millions that need to be paid. There's a television contract through 2034 that would probably want content from not just inter SEC content. Look, the SEC could in theory go break away and be just fine, but it would come with myriad, myriad complications to where any sort of this notion being nothing else, that this notion is essentially a manifestation of frustration in really nothing else. I don't really think there's any germs of reality to this at this point.
- [15:17]
Zubin Mehenti
All right, so let's take a different view on this. And coach, I want to go to you. You of course went to the mountaintop in the SEC. You were head coach in the Big 12. You coached in the ACC. And a decision like this would affect all the power leagues and all the leagues in general from having your toe in all over the college football landscape over the decades. What do you make of this development?
- [15:39]
Gene Chizik
Well, I'm like Pete, so I think people need to pump the brakes a little bit on this because they're going to hear what they want to hear, right? You're going to have the alarmists that say, oh my gosh, there's all these conversations going on behind the scenes. You have to remember Greg Sankey is a buttoned up, pragmatic guy. All he was doing was answering the question that was asked to him. Are there conversations going on behind the scenes? Well, of course there are. I know for a fact that presidents have talked about it. I know for a fact that ads have talked about it. I know they kicked that can around, around the block. But to sit there and think that that's a realistic something that may happen, there's a lot of moving parts to that gmac and I just don't know that it'll ever happen.
- [16:20]
Greg McElroy
And honestly, I think at the end of the day, Greg Sankey has long been someone that, yes, must protect the interest of the SEC. That that is 100% accurate. That's what he's paid to do. He's really represents 16 universities, 16 presidents, 16 athletic directors, head coaches, all that he is there to represent their beliefs and their wants and their desires. So he's got to protect them. But at the end of the day, he is also, in a roundabout way and people would push back on this. I do think he cares greatly for the greater good of college football, maintaining the college football that we all grew up with, caring about the tradition and the pageantry. And when the SEC expanded to it to add Texas and Oklahoma, they could have gone further. They decided not to. They wanted to make sure that that expansion went to states that already touched the sec. And when you look at the distance traveled when those two teams added, they didn't have to travel that much further when they added those two teams. So he could have added more. He decided not to. I do think he cares a lot about the future of the sport and the best interest of the future of the sport. And he'll dig in for his beliefs for sure. But still front and center. He's got to protect the interests of the SEC first and foremost.
- [17:31]
Zubin Mehenti
Foremost, no doubt. And you got to give Sankey credit where credit is due. There's just a lot of conference commissioners and people that just want to steer clear of this issue. Every single time he is asked, spring meetings, media days, availability, he always takes the issue head on. So you have to give him some credit for that. Taking it head on is what Alex Golis is going to try to do at Auburn. They have had five straight seven loss seasons. As he walks into the JW Marriott with the Joe in his left hand ready to go, he's going to need the energy. This is going to be a big, big project on the plains. He's 42 years old, born in Russia, immigrated to the United States, found his love for football in the state of Ohio and USF fans loved what he did there. Out of The Gate Year 1 at Auburn Coach Goelish going with some modest goals.
- [18:19]
Greg McElroy
If we can leave year one and have a foundation of who we are, our identity, proof of concept offensively, defensively, the wins will take care of themselves as long as our identity is what it is. If we are physically and mentally tough, if we are detailed, if we are player led, if we are connected as a team, if we win in the margins, if we take care of what we have to take care of from a detail standpoint, I love where our talent is. We're plenty talented enough to go win every single game. Year one will be successful. If we leave, leave it and we know exactly who we are and we've got proof of concept to continue to
- [18:57]
Zubin Mehenti
build to and it's the start of the goal ish era. As you take a look at the comparisons at USF, they were top 10 in these offensive categories. Auburn struggled. But of course the caveat there is most of that damage was done against teams in the American we'll see if they can move the ball at that same clip against teams from the sec. I mean, I don't think there's any more of a perfect person we could talk to about this. Then Coach Chiswick, who of course won a national championship, knows exactly what it takes and the pressure that's involved coaching at Auburn. So how do you see year one for Alex Goelish, one of three American coaches that comes from the American into the SEC in this single off season?
- [19:40]
Gene Chizik
Zouban, think about what you opened this with. You said Auburn has seven regular season losses five years in a row. Gmac, that's incredible. So you got to wrap your mind around that. There's never been a better time for Alex to come into this league. But I like all the moves he's made. First of all, he brought almost his entire staff from South Florida. Very reminiscent of what Kurt Signetti did at Indiana. Right. The next thing he did is he brought his quarterback and 11 other players with him. Byron Brown. If you don't have a quarterback in this league, you don't have a team.
- [20:12]
Zubin Mehenti
Yeah.
- [20:12]
Gene Chizik
And this guy has been extremely productive. Yes, it's in the American Conference, but he is responsible for more touchdowns than the entire Auburn offensive last year. So you ask, what do the Auburn people want to see? They want to see hope. They want to see an offense that's explosive. They want to be able to look up. He comes in, Alex Golis comes in averaging six plus plays of 20 plus plays a game. That'll get a fan base excited. Right. And that's what they want to see. They want to see an explosive offense. And let's not forget maybe one of the biggest moves he made other than bringing all those guys with him, he kept DJ Durkin. He has got a steady side of the football on defense. D.J. durkin, one of the most respected defensive coordinators in college football and he's proven that at Auburn the last couple of years. Huge hire or keeping of DJ Durkin when he came in.
- [21:06]
Greg McElroy
What I love most is when asked about year one expectations, you didn't hear the amount of wins, you didn't hear the amount of losses. What you heard was establishing a clear and obvious identity. Any of us that have watched and covered Auburn football the last five or six years, when I close my eyes and I visualize what the Auburn offense was supposed to look like, I couldn't tell you what it was back 10, 12 years ago when you were there. Coach, I knew exactly what to expect. They wanted to run tempo, they wanted to utilize quarterback run as a power run scheme that was built on spread principles. Well, the last couple of years they've really kind of gotten away from themselves. Now they go and they hire Alex Golish, a guy that does have experience calling offense in the sec, which I think is a tremendous advantage. And you look at the numbers at South Florida, people say, well, the gap is so significant. You look at what they're going to have to do. And Byron Brown, can he make the jump? Well, Byron Brown played against Miami, he played against Florida, he's played against Alabama. He's seen what the best has to offer and the personnel that the SEC could put forth and frankly, a national championship contender last year in Miami, he's played against all of them. Now he's thrived against American Conference competition, but maybe not thrived as much against SEC competition. However, the personnel around him will be better and I think they'll be more comfortable relying on a defense that can get some stops as well. So I am very bullish on Auburn this year. I think they're flying under the radar and if they can just make Jordan Hare into a stadium that no one wants to play in again, they have a real chance to pull off some upsets this season.
- [22:36]
Pete Thamel
And Greg, part of making Jordan Hare a hostile place again is going to be dominating on the recruiting trail. The quote Alex Gollish said to me today that really hit my ear was with Auburn not having won seven games since 2019, the last time the current recruits say juniors in high school saw Auburn as a winner, they were in junior high school. That's a long time ago. Sadly for Coach Cizik, most of them weren't born when Cam Newton was running through college football. So look, Alex Goelish has to present Auburn. He said he's really made a focus of bringing kids to campus multiple times. He really feels like it's a place that people see and people feel they can get accustomed to. Auburn's had success on the recruiting trail, but they've had to work a little bit harder. They can't just live off the brand anymore. It's been too long. So. And success. The last two head coaches, both of them did not have a winning season at Auburn in Brian Harson and Hugh Freese. It's hard to believe considering the success that Gus Malzahn and Gene Chisik had there, that there has been that type of a drought.
- [23:33]
Zubin Mehenti
There's no doubt. The one thing everybody's always said is if you take a dot and put it on Auburn and then just make a three hour radius, you might be able to get all 85 right then and there. So let's see if he can naturalize and take advantage of the position that Auburn is geographically on the way. Who wins the sec, the contenders and the champion from our experts. Next.
- [24:04]
Pete Thamel
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- [24:21]
Gene Chizik
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- [24:22]
Greg McElroy
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- [24:24]
Gene Chizik
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- [24:27]
Pete Thamel
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Gene Chizik
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- [24:42]
Pete Thamel
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Gene Chizik
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Pete Thamel
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Gene Chizik
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Pete Thamel
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Gene Chizik
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- [25:17]
Pete Thamel
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- [25:30]
Greg McElroy
Last season, it didn't end how I want. I know what I left out there. That's why I'm not running from it.
- [25:36]
Gene Chizik
I'm running toward
- [25:40]
Pete Thamel
Sellers is not fair.
- [25:41]
Greg McElroy
He's a cheat code.
- [25:42]
Pete Thamel
You know that. You're not stopping him.
- [25:43]
Greg McElroy
How many can I count on? On my A few times. Every single game, Lenor Sellers just ends up putting a Superman cape on the ground.
- [25:56]
Zubin Mehenti
Lenoris to the end zone, put the ball in. Lenora Sellers hands the best athlete on the field.
- [26:06]
Greg McElroy
That kid's the best player in the country.
- [26:10]
Zubin Mehenti
That's quite a statement. But when healthy, I mean, I guess it could be debatable. The one thing that's not debatable is how slow out of the gate he is over the last couple of seasons. We should mention he's been hampered by some injuries as well. His head coach Shane Beamer at SEC media days today saying he can do a little bit of everything.
- [26:30]
Greg McElroy
I think what makes Lenoris great is his ability to throw the ball and run the ball. So will there be some design runs for Lenores Absolutely. We'd be remiss in my opinion if we don't utilize what makes Lenore Sellers great. And his legs are a big part of it. Playing with anticipation, trusting my guys, just trusting what I see, not hesitating. So I've been working on that offseason, being more consistent with my footwork, things like that. So just attacking that hard every day.
- [26:58]
Zubin Mehenti
All right, let's talk about this quarterback with our quarterback. All right, Greg, what do you think expectation wise for Sellers? He seems like he just flashes, has so much potential. Haven't kind of seen it all put together though.
- [27:11]
Greg McElroy
You know Zubin, it's in there. We all know that. I mean the flashes, that's the starting point for a young quarterback. Let's remember, I mean, yeah, he's, he's been around for a while now. As year three, as a full time starting quarterback, we can anticipate significant growth. I also look to. Over the last couple years there have been some real inconsistencies, consistencies on the pieces around him. I think the offense last year especially really lacked an identity. I think there were times when he dropped back and didn't always have a plan for where the ball needed to go. It often looked like his eyes would drop, he'd find the rush and he'd just go. Try to be an athlete at that point, which is great. But that's the get out of jail free card that he possesses. At 6 foot 3, 240, you run when you absolutely have nothing else there. I think the next step of his evolution is in K Kendall Briles's offense. The new offensive coordinator that was hired this year from tcu. I love the addition of this coordinator and the quarterback marriage that's going to result because this is an offense that will simplify things. It will cut the field in half. It will be a game of numbers. If there's three guys over there, throw it over there. If there's three guys over there, throw it over there. If there's six guys spread out, run it. It's a very simple offense for a quarterback to run and I think it's going to allow him to play faster, coach. It's going to allow him to play, play more confidently and allow him to go through his progressions quicker and then when nothing's there, take off and be the best player on the field, which he often is.
- [28:29]
Gene Chizik
Yeah, it's definitely a quarterback friendly system. You can go back to the days of RG3. That's where Kendall Briles got kind of cut his teeth right. On this offense with art, it was RG3, it was Jared Stidham, it was guys like that. But the number one thing they tried to do in this offense, Greg, which is really good for Lenora Sellers, is they want to get a tailback run game going. Why does that matter for him? Because then he doesn't feel like he's got to be the guy that rushes for 100 yards every game to get a run game going. So that's where they're going to start it. They're going to start it trying to run the football. The other thing they did, they brought in the offensive line coach, Randy Clements, who's been with Briles at Baylor. So it's really, really synced up. They got everything in place as far as coaching and let's be honest, you got to remember Lenore Sellers. He's had three offensive coordinators in three years. But I think this will be the the most system friendly coach that he'll have to get him going. You talk about no fast starts. I think he start fast this year.
- [29:30]
Zubin Mehenti
Yeah, it just what a difference a year makes. I remember coming into SEC media days at this time last year, the hype around Sellers was so high and now we're just trying to figure out where kind of the equilibrium equilibrium would be here in year three. One thing you're not going to see is South Carolina on the title lines. They got a long way to go to get there. Ohio State and Notre Dame are at the top according to the DraftKings sportsbook. Then you're going to see a lot of SEC out there mixed with like the Big 12 as well. So our Ryan McGee tells us, even though the title drought seems untenable to SEC fans, it's just a matter of time, says Ryan.
- [30:11]
Greg McElroy
Three straight seasons with no SEC team playing for a national title. In a conference where you are measured by trophies in the case and rings on your fingers, three years feels like three decades. That's what happens when you win four in a row, six out of eight and the two you didn't win, you still had a team in the game. And yet, while the football crowd has spent those three years grumbling and finger pointing and reminding everyone that it just means more, the SEC quietly did plenty of what it always does. It won. Oklahoma dogpiled in Omaha. Texas took over Oklahoma City. The SEC just wrapped up another school year with a record 13 national championships across all sports. That's a lot of hard work. But let's be honest, around here, every sports conversation eventually runs a circle route back to football and there there's plenty to talk about. Georgia still has Kirby and the smart money is on a dog resurgence. Texas has given Arch a supercharged motor to finally become Superman name Ole Miss returns their dynamic duo after last year's playoff run. Reid Mateer the conference is a convoy of experienced quarterbacks. Yes, three years is an old Testament drought by SEC standards, but when the conference has this much talent, this many quarterbacks and this many contenders, the question isn't whether the SEC will one day return to the title game game. It'll be who gets there first.
- [31:56]
Zubin Mehenti
History kind of indicates you should be very careful when doubting if there's been a sea change in the sport. There have been some changes to the playoff yet again, Power four conference champs get an auto bid in Notre Dame automatically in if they're in the top dozen, which is notable of course, after last season. And the highest ranked group of six team will make the playoff even if if they don't win their league, which is something that was snuck in there and I don't think a lot of group of six teams realized that was happening. We are joined by the playoff insider, Heather Dinich. Greg and Gene, of course, are still with us for the hour. Simple conversation here. Heather, let's start with you. Nobody follows the playoff closer than you. You've been on it since day one in 2014. Give me an SEC team that has the ability to do what Ryan said, not just get there, but win it all.
- [32:43]
Greg McElroy
Texas is my preseason number one team
- [32:45]
Gene Chizik
in the whole country, not just the SEC.
- [32:47]
Greg McElroy
And I've got 10,000 reasons for you, and the first is the talent that Sark brought in at running back, at receiver with Cam Coleman, they are going to have a more explosive offense which
- [32:59]
Gene Chizik
is going to make Arch Manning so
- [33:01]
Greg McElroy
much better because the talent around him is better.
- [33:04]
Gene Chizik
But also I love the hire of
- [33:06]
Greg McElroy
Will Muschamp as defensive coordinator and I think they've got one of the best players in the entire country on defense in Collins.
- [33:13]
Gene Chizik
I mean, when you look at this
- [33:14]
Greg McElroy
team, it's the total package.
- [33:16]
Pete Thamel
But Zubin, you know what the College
- [33:17]
Gene Chizik
Football Playoff selection committee likes? They like big time non conference wins. When in doubt, go with the home
- [33:23]
Greg McElroy
team Texas over the Buckeyes at home
- [33:26]
Pete Thamel
and that's going to be a difference on selection day.
- [33:30]
Greg McElroy
I think if you look at the personnel, it's completely understandable why Texas would be Heather's pick. But there's one issue with crowning Texas so far and it's the Georgia Bulldogs. They've yet to solve that riddle. If you look at the performance that Georgia's had against Texas in each of the last few years, it's really been the Dogs world and everyone else is just living it. Bama or Georgia's won the SEC 11 of the last 12 years. The one outlier being LSU. Eileen Georgia here just looking what they bring back the fact that they're flying under the radar just a little bit. Yes, they there are question marks at wide receiver. Yes, there are a couple question marks about what things might look like along the defensive front seven. How will they affect the opposing quarterback? Will they be more aggressive? Will they be more explosive? All that's fine. I just look at the attitude and the physicality. And if you talk to Kirby Smart and he talked about it throughout the day today, he said, look, we might not have the depth we had in 21 and 22, but our depth is really competitive. We have 85 really good players, whereas some other places they have 60 good players and 40 not so good players. We can go the distance all the way down the roster. The schedule sets up nicely for him as well. You look at some of these games, you got Oklahoma at home. That'll be a tough test early. You go to Arkansas early in the season, but two games to kind of get their feet wet before they get in the conference play. So I like the way things set up for him, Coach. I think they have a real chance to take a huge step forward offensively this year.
- [34:51]
Gene Chizik
Yeah, I'm bullish on Georgia as well. I'm going to throw out two numbers that may resonate with you, 27 and 16. So back to your point, Greg. When Texas has played Georgia the last three outings, they've averaged 27 yards rushing. That's hard to win in this league, especially against a team that really kind of prides itself on running the football and stopping the run. And then 16 is how many sacks Texas has given up to Georgia in those three games, creating chaos and negative plays. That's kind of been the mentality and the toughness you see when that game is played between Georgia and Texas. So I love either one of them, I think. Look, it depends on quarterback play. There's so many variables in there. But in this league, let's be honest, there's enough good quarterbacks to go around. It doesn't have to be just Georgia or Texas. You don't know what Ole Miss is going to be with Trinidad Shambliss coming back. You don't know how much Marcel Reed is going to progress with what they got going on in Texas A and M. And hey, let's not forget about ou. John Mateer. They've loaded up their wide receiver room, so there's a lot of other teams. But I think right now the conversation probably is Georgia and Texas.
- [36:00]
Zubin Mehenti
All right. Certainly somebody at the Big Ten Conference office is going to clip that off and make sure they play that on a loop or all the motivation that they need as these two power conferences continue to dominate the future of the sport. On the way, how do you replace the best, most magical, electrifying player your program's ever had? That's Vandy's job and we'll talk about it next.
- [36:35]
Greg McElroy
Barkley's contract extension looks like money well spent. The Commodores have imposed their will. They're built like an SEC team. On the trenches, on the offensive front, on the defensive front.
- [36:49]
Pete Thamel
Touchdown.
- [36:50]
Zubin Mehenti
Diego Pavia. You hit that Heisman pose in the
- [36:53]
Greg McElroy
corner of the end zone. Take me to New York. Most successful season in vanity football history. Come watch the show. Stay for the party on Broadway.
- [37:02]
Zubin Mehenti
That was their 2025 beat Alabama for the first time in 40 years. The year before, as you just heard, coming off their best season ever. Not often you can say that, but they're going to have to replace a ton. Diego Pavia gone. Eli Stowers, the great tight end, gone but arriving, not gone to replace Pavia. Notably Jared Curtis, who played his high school football in Nashville. The Commodores flipped him from Georgia at the last second. Despite all that success, Clark Lee still wanting more.
- [37:37]
Greg McElroy
I think we're still internally the chip on the shoulder underdog that has a lot to prove. Again, you know, there's nothing that we inherit from last season that has to do with any future win. Everything's about the responsibility we have over the program that we have built, but how this team can actually move it forward and maybe more importantly how this team can fully express itself over the course of the next six months. My hope would be that the program with every year becomes a little more of a thorn in the side to other SEC fan bases.
- [38:13]
Zubin Mehenti
Oh, I think they've accomplished that already. Greg, I want to start with you. It would be short sighted to say that this was all Pavia, even though you got to give him so much credit credit because it really feels like what they've got going there post Pavia is legit.
- [38:30]
Greg McElroy
Well, Zubin, I mean last year they built a season, right? It was a few years in the making, but they built a season. This year it's about whether or not they have built a program, and I happen to believe they have. I think when you watch the way they played at all positions last year, yes, Pavia was the guy that walked in the room and told everybody, we can do it. And there was not that belief A few years before his arrival. They were wondering, all right, well, here we are. Let's go get our teeth kicked in again. That wasn't the case. Piper said, I don't care. We're not taking a backseat to anybody. He changed the culture inside the locker room. But the way they played was a direct reflection of the values that Clark Lee has preached since he arrived at his alma mater. It's probably the most unselfish team I saw in the SEC last year. The way the. That they would intentionally take themselves out of plays to set themselves up, set their teammates up to make a play. The way guys, if they're a receiver and their job in that particular play is to run a guy off, they know he'll never get the ball. They're running it at 100 miles an hour. It was an unselfish team that played with the chip on its shoulder. And I think those values aren't just deposited and wiped away as the river flows downstream. I think those things are deposited and built on year over year. So while they might not have the get out of jail free card that was Diego Pavia last year, the values that they've incorporated the last few years are here to stay. I'd be shocked if they're not back in the bowl game this year and knocking off a contender or two along the way as well.
- [39:57]
Gene Chizik
Clark Lee was an old school fullback, right? That says it all right. He was a guy that didn't care whether he got the ball. They just said, go block somebody, and he did it. That's how his teams play. When you put on the film last year and you watch these guys and Greg, you mentioned it, it doesn't matter what position you're looking at. Fundamentals were key. Physicality was key. Toughness was key. I have to believe that he has built that. When you look at Cedric Alexander run the football from last year, he's a physical, downhill dude. They've got enough guys that were in that locker room that learned how to believe to win. C.J. hurd on defense, Brian Longwell, the two leading tacklers on defense. There's enough guys in that locker room to remember what it was like to go out on the field and expect to win.
- [40:40]
Greg McElroy
Yeah,
- [40:43]
Pete Thamel
Gene. The most improbable sentence in college football right now remains Indiana Hoosiers national champion. The second most improbable sentence in college football. Zubin just said vanderbilt flipped a top ranked quarterback from Georgia. That's just mind bending. It would never have happened two years ago, three years ago, five years ago. The Jared Curtis era is going to be fascinating. First of all, he has to win the starting job. Clark Lee had some funny lines today. He said he liked to label Vandy last year as a team of misfits, right guys a few inches too short, a few ticks too slow, but they played a gutty style of football. He said to Jared Curtis, you're a misfit because you decided to come to Vanderbilt. Very important guys, whoever starts at Vanderbilt at quarterback this year, they do not need to replace Diego Kabbi's production. It has to go to other places. And that speaks to what Greg was saying about the growth of the program. Cedric Alexander, the tailback, one of the most productive players in the sec. A high end skill guy. They have Junior Sherrill coming back at wide receiver. He had 784 receiving yards last year. He had a buck 23 against Iowa in the bull game. What Vanderbilt is doing now in this Nil era, they can spend 30 million, two guys. They are now supplementing that roster, building it through recruiting, building it through the portal. A lot of transfers from the Ivies and they are building into the program that Greg alluded to. And Jared Curtis, if he wins the starting job will be a fascinating centerpiece for Clark Lee.
- [42:03]
Zubin Mehenti
No doubt they've always been one of the biggest outliers in all of college football and it looks like they're now leveraging that to their advantage. By the way, last year Vandy ended the regular season by knocking off Tennessee, which might be the third craziest thing, at least historically. Sometimes you hear in college football, right, Pete? Because when it comes to the Vols, One of those five losses, as I mentioned, was to the Commodore's 8 and 5 campaign. But they had all the Nico I Amaliaba mess heading into the season. Joey Aguilar was cleared late. He tried to do what he could, was not a vintage Tennessee run by any means. So now they've got a brand new quarterback situation. Coach,
- [42:40]
Greg McElroy
I know much is going to be made about our quarterback situation as we come in starting our fifth different quarterback in five years. We've done that historically. At some point I'm going to have the opportunity to come back here with a returning starter at quarterback. But seven out of the last nine years we've had a different starting quarterback. And seven out of the last nine years we've been top ten in the country in scoring. Going to have a guy that's ready to go compete and play at a championship level.
- [43:11]
Zubin Mehenti
All right, so Pete, tell me who those guys might be and what we are hearing about. That's a crazy stat. Five in five years. Who are the combatants here?
- [43:21]
Pete Thamel
In his very Dakota downplay draw, Josh Hypel told this Zubin, it really doesn't matter because we're going to have a great offense and these are two very different quarterbacks that are going to battle for the job. First you have George McIntyre, he's a more pure pocket passer. The nephew of Mike McIntyre, the former head coach at San Jose State in Colorado. He's a short area quickness guy who's going to move in the pocket and throw the ball downfield for Tennessee. The more intriguing of the options if we're being honest is Faison Brandon. He's a true freshman. He's a pure dual threat quarterback. He lost one game in high school as a quarterback. He comes in as ballyhooed as any quarterback at Tennessee this generation. Josh Hill told me yesterday, the earlier the better for that winner to reveal itself because they are very different styles and they'll obviously have to tailor that offense. One offense that's likely going to be ranked in the top 10 in scoring and the top 10 in total offense around that player's skill set. Zubin.
- [44:16]
Gene Chizik
Yeah, I totally the Faison Brandon one to me Pete is really interesting. You know I've watched this game play in seven on seven games. A couple of years ago when he was young at Grimsley High School he was the number recruit in the state of North Carolina. 6foot4, 225lbs 351 as a starter in high school with back to back state championships, threw for over 6,500 yards and rushed for 21 touchdowns. He does it all. And I will tell you something about this kid, this offense. If he ends up being the starter, he doesn't have to do it it all G Mac, you know why? Because people think this offense is predicated upon throwing the ball. It's not. It never has been. He spread you out. He wants a physical downhill run game to take it off the quarterback which is perfectly suited if you're going to start a freshman.
- [45:02]
Greg McElroy
Well, I think what's amazing too is their personnel beyond the quarterback. So much focus will go to the quarterback. Especially an offense like this that's exciting and high volume passer. They are great back coming back into sh they have a really good offensive line, maybe one of the best offensive lines in the SEC. They have a 1, 2 punch at wide receiver that can go with anybody in the conference. And then the other thing, too, about Tennessee last year, it wasn't about the offense that was challenging. It was the defense that struggled. They went out and got Jim Knowles, one of the most respected defensive coordinators in the country. I thought it was a major coup to bring him down from Penn State. He brought a couple players with him as well. And while, yes, the schedule is daunting, a road trip to Georgia Tech Week 2 is difficult. You get Texas at your place, you get Bama at your place, you get LSU at your place. You have some tough road games at A and M, especially at South Carolina, House of Horrors for a lot of people. It's a difficult schedule for sure, but it starts by playing better defense. They're going to run the ball like you referenced, for sure, and the defense will be put under pressure because they're going to utilize tempo and they're going to score a lot of points and they're going to have a lot of defensive snap exposure. But if the defense is more sound, if the defense isn't giving up big plays and isn't giving up trunk yardage, they have a real chance to surprise a lot of people in the SEC because I think they are flying under the radar in the biggest way possible given their personnel.
- [46:18]
Zubin Mehenti
Yeah, I'm glad you mentioned Knowles. Each of the last few years, wherever he's been, he's kind of been the ballyhoo addition. So I'm glad we mentioned him to firm up that defense, which Hypo says the offense will be just fine. Hypo, of course, a former college quarterback on the way here on College Football Live. It's the year of the quarterback in the SEC who's the most intriguing quarterback in this league. Plenty of choices for the group to weigh in on. That's next. Just a reminder, SEC media days can be seen where else on the SEC Network next couple of mornings starting at 9am Eastern. If you're on the go at school, at work, ESPN is carrying all of it as well. You heard Gene say it earlier in the show, if you don't have a quarterback in this league, you don't have a chance. Lucky for us, and for most of the fan bases, you do got a quarterback and there's some really promising ones, seven of them on your screen at the moment. But we're going to whittle this baby down and just have have the crew pick one apiece. The most intriguing SEC quarterback. Coach, I'll start with you.
- [47:35]
Gene Chizik
I don't know how Zubin, you could watch a game that Trinidad Chambliss is in and not be mesmerized and glued to the tv. You know why? Gmac. No one can get the guy down. Go back and look at the quarterfinal game when Georgia was doing everything they could to contain this guy. He is literally like Houdini and he does everything just. It's, it's jaw dropping on some of the things that he does. He escapes, makes creative plays. I really love the way he protects the football. He is not only a game manager, he can change games. He's got a great element in the quarterback run game, but he has a tail back behind him in Kewan Lacey. That takes some pressure off of him. But I love everything about him. He's tough, he understands the game, he protects the football and this guy makes something out of nothing. He is mesmerizing to me and I don't know why everybody's not talking about him as one of the best, if not the best in the country.
- [48:28]
Greg McElroy
He's definitely up there for sure. I'm going to go with Byron Brown at Auburn and I think we just want to. The big knock on Byron Brown is oh well, he hasn't done it against SEC competition. Oh, that won't translate well. Let me just remind everybody, the two best quarterbacks in the SEC last year transferred from New Mexico to State and Ferris State. One of those is a Division 2 program and guess what? It translated pretty well. I think Byron Brown's game is going to translate beautifully. It's the same offense, it's the same skill set. He's big enough to handle the physical nature of the SEC at 220 plus pounds. He's going to be able to run it. He's going to throw. He's also a tremendous deep ball thrower and that's going to put a lot of pressure on defenses throughout the league. So those that are wondering, will it translate? Well, I'll give you an example from last year with Trinidad champs and Diego Pavia translated just fine for them. I think it will translate, Pete, just fine for Byron Brown as well.
- [49:19]
Pete Thamel
Well, Lenora Sellers came straight out of nowhere in 2024 and became one of the most talked about players in the sport. Look guys, he had a season of pure regression last year. He threw more interceptions, he threw less touchdown passes, he ran for less touchdown passes. His completion percentage dropped by those numbers are going to reverse and all go up this season. Simply put, wherever Kendall Brile, South Carolina's new offense coordinator, has gone, we've seen a significant jump in points. We've seen a significant jump in yards. And remember, the pure talent is there for Lenora Sellers. We did a poll of NFL scouts for the 2027 draft. Even coming off that down year, Lenora Sellers Zubin finished fifth amongst scouts. The pure talent is there. The tempo of Kendall Browns offense and the quick decision making is going to revert him back to the trajectory he showed in 2024.
- [50:09]
Zubin Mehenti
So they're bullish about him on Sundays. We'll wait to see it on Saturday. And you guys mentioned Kendall Browse. He's made it able to work with a variety of different quarterbacks. We'll see if Lenores is the latest Wednesday at the mic again. Four days, four coaches a day. Alabama's got a quarterback competition. You may have heard about it. Caitlin DeBoer will discuss at 9:05am Eastern. John Sumrall made the playoff last year with Tulane. He's now in Gainesville at 10:30am Eastern at the podium again. All these on SEC Network. First full year for Pete Golding at 1:30 Eastern. Mike Elko five minutes before three to talk about their great eleven win season a year ago. So those guys will be ready to go tomorrow. We'll be joined by Marcel Reid on the program as well. Look forward to seeing you then. You know when you're locked in, focused and fearless.
- [51:01]
Greg McElroy
Welcome to the wnba.
- [51:03]
Zubin Mehenti
Your vision narrows.
- [51:05]
Greg McElroy
You can't look away. Every assist, every stop, every loco three from beyond the logo, every did you see that moment? You bet. What records are going to be be broken this season?
- [51:19]
Zubin Mehenti
All of it right here.
- [51:21]
Greg McElroy
Lock in.
- [51:22]
Zubin Mehenti
It's the WNBA on ESPN all season long.