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Bud Elliott
Check out.
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Andrew Ivins
And welcome.
Bud Elliott
I'm not gonna do the Chip Patterson intro. I really can't do that justice. I'm Bud Elliott. That's Andrew Ivins. This is cover three. And this is the COVID three recruiting hour. I just figured, hey man, we got signing day coming up in a couple months here. Excited? It's really time. Even if you're not a die hard recruiting fan, you watch this national title race, you know it matters. No better guy to bring on. Andrew ivins, director of Scattered 247 Sports. What's going on, dude?
Andrew Ivins
Not much, bud. Just gearing up for another fun week of college football. I was hoping maybe I can make it up to the COVID 3 tailgate on. What is that? Friday? Unfortunately. Just. Just not going to happen. I'm going to be at Arch Manning versus hopefully DJ Lagway. I think I'm gonna wear some earmuffs on Saturday so I don't have to hear all the commentary from all the quarterback gurus in the stands.
Bud Elliott
Battle of the five stars, right? Oh, man. I, I actually did talk to a head coach who played Arch Manning recently and I was just texting with him. He's like, it's not as bad as what I see on social media. Like, you see some flashes. I think that kid might be close. I was like, man, I hope so, because I, I do want to see Texas, like fully operational with him.
Andrew Ivins
Well, here, bud. I think this applies to the NFL as well. I think it's really hard to play quarterback and I think as the public, we need to kind of accept that. My favorite thing is, you know, in these former five stars or even, you know, guys that had a really good season in, in 2024, you know, when they kind of stumble, I'm like, okay, if you could just construct a roster, who's the quarterback that would be. Be your guy, whether that's in the college or, or NFL. And you know, it's not a long list of names. So again, I think it's really hard not only to, to play the position, but to predict future success at quarterback.
Bud Elliott
Absolutely. So some teams recently who are having a lot of success with guys they recruited you out of high school and some transfers, some big time games this week, I kind of want to take a look back at some of the stars that they had and maybe kind of know, dive into their backgrounds a little bit. I know we follow this. Maybe a lot of the folks at home, you know, do not. I'm going to start with the Oregon Ducks. Man, like, great job in the Portal, adding to what was already, you know, one of the most talented rosters in the country. I know when you and I talked a lot in the off season, it's like, man, I like their physical abilities. We have not seen any of these Oregon guys play very many snaps. Like Oregon played a lot of their vets last year. They did not play a lot of the young guys. And so I, obviously it was kind of a mystery as to what they would be and they damn sure showed out Saturday night in Happy Valley. Like, I know it got tight there at the end, but I thought they were the better team, you know, for probably what, 50 minutes of that game. And you know, credit to Penn State for, for making it a ball game. Who are some of the guys for them? Top of mind, who you can recall as recruits.
Andrew Ivins
I mean, to Corian Moore, right? The, the five star wide receiver who's a true freshman. And look, coming into the season, we said if there was one individual that was going to have like a Jeremiah Smith impact, it was going to be the Cor. But as you mentioned, Bud, you know, under Dan Lanning there at Oregon, they have not played the young pups. I think there had not been a day one true freshman starter for Oregon since Dan Lanning had arrived. They had played some of the younger guys late in the season, kind of after opt outs in the bowl game. So you knew on paper and having seen the Corian Moore throughout his high school career and really at the All Star games this past winter, the Under Armour game, the Polynesian bowl out in Hawaii, I mean DE Cory Moore was the best player on the field. So when Evan Stewart went down with an injury, it was like, I don't think Oregon's got a chance to really kind of roll him into this. He's got to be a guy from, from day one. So certainly him. And, and to me the other thing here is, is just like the perfect kind of blend of transfer portal and the high school recruiting. You look back at Oregon's 2025 recruiting class, right? So those are, those are the, the true freshmen. Oregon signed 20 players. They're all ranked four star prospects or higher. That's only happened one other time in the 24, 7 sports recruiting era. So I think Dan Laning, I mean he continues to grab talent from all different avenues. And I thought on Saturday night in the wide out in Happy Valley, you really saw it, right? Yeah. Decorium Moore, Dyer Hill, the true freshman running back, Kenyon Siddiq, that's a kid they got out of high school. And then you also look across the starting 22, it's Dante Moore, a kid that comes via the transfer portal. The two tackles, Isaiah Word, Dylan Dyneman, who had the game clinching interception there in overtime. I mean those were veterans. And I, I just think from my perspective with this roster management, they have the perfect mix right now. Dan Lanning is that bartender and he's got it down in terms of, you know, kind of crafting those cocktails.
Bud Elliott
And I like my one memory of decor. I mean I think we both have a bunch, but the one that kind of stood out to me in sort of a different way, was it Battle Miami or Pylon Miami. The one in January, like right around when the Natties played. He's down there. I'm like, cool, we're going to get some good video. We'll be able to put some of these shorts on the COVID 3 YouTube channel. And which hopefully I will say just from the jump, I think as we build this hour out, it's going to be a much better YouTube product. Obviously. We know we have a huge audio audience, so if you guys want to listen to an audio that's cool, we'll try to describe, you know, some of the clips best we can. But this is probably a better visual product, so I would strongly encourage y', all, even if you don't listen to most cover three episodes on YouTube, this one might be a little bit better on YouTube just because of the visual element. You're getting it exposed to some of these guys and be able to see some of their abilities. But he got hurt. Like he got rocked in that seven on seven. And like, selfishly, I mean, obviously you hope the kid's okay. I was like, damn it, man. Like, that's like the one kid. I really want to get clips up because I know he's a freak. We had seen him, you know, as a sophomore down there balling out and dude, like, I know his mom was worried and he got up, he's like, f that I'm playing, right?
Andrew Ivins
Yeah, but I said he's like the best 7 on 7 slot receiver. And I know he plays on the outside, I know he can play above shoulder pads. But basically what I'm saying is not one of these, you know, huge freaks. Like the best 7 on 7 player I'd seen since Jaylen Waddle. And the story that always sticks with me is before his, his senior year, right, Oregon does the Saturday Night Live camp and then everything has changed. Like these high profile blue chip kids, like, they don't work out after their sophomore year, right? They shut it down. They're hanging out on the sidelines in street clothes. From what I heard, Oregon somehow got the Corian more to work out. And then midway through this camp full of elite kids, the Corian Moore is working in at cornerback, right? He's like trying to guard the other high profile wide receivers there. And someone in Eugene had brought that up to me. Just about his competitive drive, how much he cares about winning. And I think that has shown up right through the first month and a half of the college football season.
Bud Elliott
I just, look, I know a lot of these guys, they shut it down. They're highly managed, man. I still like guys who like playing ball. I think like the guys who really enjoy ball, their hit rate. And I don't know how you'd model this because you'd have to put a rating of like, do they give a damn about ball rating? I guess to put it in there. Obviously we know just intrinsically it's in there. I don't Know how you put a number on it. Like guys who like to play football I think are dudes who you want to bet on and you know, like the toughness of decor and who's not the biggest guy. Like his blocking in some of these early games. Like whoa. Like some of the stuff he had against Purdue, like he's blocking his butt off like that. That is impressive and that like that's something. Money well spent by Oregon obviously and Will Stein does a great job of. Of scheming a lot of the other guys in that offense who are maybe a little more limited. They let the Corian run the full route tree man, like he's getting himself open. They're not having to scheme a lot of stuff. Ford to Corey and more and I like that's. They got an absolute superstar there. I know. We'll talk later in the show about quarterbacks. The top. I have this here. The top 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 teams in the national championship race according to Vegas odds. You know what they have in common?
Andrew Ivins
Please. Some of they all have a five star quarterback on the roster.
Bud Elliott
Two, three, four. Yeah, that is true. Well, except for Georgia. But they all have a guy who was on their roster last year. Right. Who's on the roster this year. And I think five of the six did not have a starter. So Georgia, Bama, Texas, Penn State, Oregon, Ohio State. Like I know, I know Dante Moore is a transfer but he was in their system like as a developmental year last year. Obviously, you know, saying there, you know, Drew Aller, you know, Arch was on the roster, you know, Simpson was on the roster, you know, even Georgia, depending on what you think of their kid. Like it's interesting they didn't go out and get sort of the. I don't call mercenary because like I think the transportal is actually a great thing for the sport in many ways as far as the ability for kids to find better situations. But it does say something for like quarterback development. Maybe having that sit year. Maybe that's coming back in vogue now that all these coveted kids are washing out of the sport.
Andrew Ivins
Absolutely. But I think the quarterback market has completely shifted. Right. And schools are going to have to not like get creative but figure out, all right, where, where are we going to invest? Is, is it a guy that has played some college games or we're going to go after one of these high profile young, you know, quarterbacks. And you think about quarterback recruiting as well. It is so accelerated. Right. A lot of these schools are grabbing kids after their sophomore years and they still have, hey, 24 games to play and I think it leads to a lot of mis evaluations and a lot of expectations that aren't, aren't met. Hey, the other thing on Dante Moore, he was committed to Oregon like throughout his recruiting process. Right. He was a late flip to ucla, you know, when Chip Kelly was there. That whole situation is, is very unique in the sense that he got his feet wet with the Bruins and then decided to take the year off and kind of learn on the sidelines.
Bud Elliott
Absolutely. Probably no better guy to learn from right now in the Will Stein and the great job they're doing at Oregon. Impressive to see him do it with a, you know, relatively younger guy as opposed to me. He had Bo Nix and he had Dylan Gabriel who were both. They could rent a car by themselves without a waiver. So nice to see him do it with the younger guy. On the flip side of that game, Drew Allers taking a lot of heat. He was actually PFF's second rated player on the Penn State offense in this game. Not saying he played well, but I don't know that all the blame needs to go on his shoulders. I do think if he's going to be the top of the draft guy, you want more out of him. But you know, Penn State receivers continue to just be. Last year I think they were lacking. This year I think they're probably like just okay. I don't know if they have that, that difference maker on the outside and that's something that probably does start at the high school level. It is hard to go get a bunch of stud transfer receivers. I mean, think about like who are the top transfer receivers, you know, this year some of the teams are very happy with, with, with what they got. Obviously, you know, Florida State's happy with Deuce. I know Georgia's happy with Branch. That's probably just a product that usc had like 4 NFL guys last year on their roster because USC decided to keep Lemon and Lane or and are pretty happy with that decision. I would assume Penn State receiver recruiting out of high school though is an area that I know we've talked about before. I know something you wanted to highlight on today's show, like something they just have to get better at.
Andrew Ivins
I think it's the Achilles heel and I mean we'll see how the rest of the season shakes out for Penn State. And I know they went in the Trans and they try to get these veterans that guys that had a, a large price tag. But I think Penn State continues to underachieve at that wide receiver position and you look at their 20, 26 recruiting class. Yeah, they got three guys committed. You know, they like all of them. But to me, what I think Penn State lacks is a, is a true game breaker at the position. Like, hey, it's, it's, it's third and eight. You know, someone's getting open at nine yards for Drew Aller or whoever is playing quarterback. And to me, I just can't figure out how Penn State has not been able to land one of these guys. And you know, like, think about Cam Coleman, right? Or Jeremiah Smith. Yeah, Penn State could have thrown their hat in there. But what about like a Nick Marsh at Michigan State who's a sophomore in year two and having a ton of success there in the Big Ten? Like, to me they're wide receiver recruiting. I, I can't figure it out now. You know, they, they recruit the heck out of the running back position. Their offensive line is one of the deepest in all of college football and they have a budding room of future tight ends, but they got to get that figured out. And I thought once again in a, a spotlight game, one that James Franklin needed to have the wide receivers under delivered right outside of devonte Ross. I think they had what, one other catch maybe. Yeah, 16 yards. I mean, it's just not malpractice. But are you really putting your quarterback in the best position to succeed?
Bud Elliott
Like I, they are clearly better at receiver than they were last year. But I'm not sure if you want to tight end with this. I'm not sure they are better at pass catcher. Right. Because Tyler Warren did so many things for them last year. You know, if you take Decorian and you put them on Penn State, Penn State's winning that ball game because like Gary Bryant's not getting himself open necessarily. He's a decent player, but he's not. Gary Bryant to me is not so much better than Pena or, or Hudson or whoever those guys for Penn State have. You know, devonte Ross is a nice addition from Troy, but at the same time, if you look at a lot of his touches, a lot of those are sort of like manufactured touches. He's not necessarily going out there and winning for them on 3rd and 10. I thought Kotliniki did some good, did some good stuff there in the fourth quarter to break out some creative stuff to just get the ball to him in space. But again, that's kind of those manufactured touches and like the best teams seem to be the teams that have Ohio State aside because like, that's just a whole different beast, but like they have one guy they can go to on those obvious passing downs and then maybe some guys who have some good, you know, skills, but they're, you know, flawed players like 99 of college football players are, and they're able to manufacture touches for those guys that have some unique skills, but they still have the one guy they can go to. So that, that does seem to be, you know, maybe the missing piece this year, you know, for Penn State. As much as we want to bag on Drew Aller and I get it, like, I mean he's, he's not taking that next step necessarily, I think that we all wanted to see him take, but he, he doesn't suck, man. And I, I think like when you play in the biggest of games, having that game breaker is a really, really big deal. It's kind of the only reason for all the mobile quarterback stuff that we talked about when Saban was in his prime. Oh, they can't handle mobile quarterbacks. Some of the guys that like they were throwing the ball up to in those games, if you tracked who he lost to, it was almost always people who could beat all the man on man, you know, single coverage stuff, right? Like a Mike Evans, you know, Alshon Jeffrey, like some guys are just like, oh, guess what, your five star corner could handle us. Think again. Right? You cannot place, you really can't play single coverage on that. Speaking of the statement. Sorry, go ahead.
Andrew Ivins
Yeah, well, I just want to point this out, but I don't know if you've heard the same, but you go back to this past transfer window, like talking with different GMs and, and guys in personnel departments. There was a huge market for these X wide receivers with size that can do exactly what we're talking about. Win on the outside and, and make the 50, 50 contested catches. You brought up Deuce Robinson. There's a few others out there in college football, but like these are the ones and there are a ton of, you know, smaller receivers in the transfer portal every single window. But like the Isaiah Hortons, the Deuce Robinsons, like those guys are, are extremely valuable. Noah Thomas at Georgia, like those are the ones where when they hit or when they enter, you know, the College Football Playoff contenders are gravitating towards those guys.
Bud Elliott
It's also as, as we see the sport really just going to so much too high, right? Deny the explosive play at all cost that is producing an increased number of red zone snaps, especially in these big time games. And you know, then it becomes at certain point a vertical game, a Size game, a box out game. And that, that's where the size, you know, really matters. When you get inside that low red zone, it's harder to just scheme guys wide open. All right, so let's go to another team here that unfortunately had a disappointing result over the weekend and that's Georgia. Which do we need to issue like an MIA or APB for Georgia's pass rush? Dude, because I'm. Kaylin DeBoer somehow has like a magic bullet in the first half against all these Saban style defenses. Like if you look at what he did both times at Washington against Oregon, obviously he's done it to Kirby twice now. Like they go out, they should have scored 31 in the first half. In Athens, they scored 24. If Ryan Williams catches that ball, it's, it's probably 31 in the first half. What is up with Georgia's defense?
Andrew Ivins
I can't figure it out, right, because I got into the PFF and I added it up by my counter. You know, eight former five stars played 25 plus snaps against Alabama. Again, eight, five stars on the defensive side of the ball. I thought it was a bit alarming. If you go back to off season chatter fodder right there in August, you know, Elijah Griffin, the number one D lineman from this past recruiting cycle, five star interior guy was getting a lot of buzz, which to me wasn't surprising. I think when you looked at Georgia's roster and these defensive linemen, it's like, okay, Elijah Griffin, I put him in a different category than the Christian Millers, than the Jordan Halls who, who are ranked extremely high. So I think they've been searching and searching on the interior. Now Elijah Griffin, I think he played a season high, you know, 30 snaps against Alabama, but they got to get him going. I also think Chris Cole, the linebacker, like give me more of, of Chris Cole. But, but I, you know, to me, I think what's a little alarming about Georgia, we just talked about all, all the former five stars that are there with how college football, the landscape has changed, right, with the rev share and we're seeing more, you know, highly ranked players end up at other schools than ever before. I worry about what is the Georgia defense look like two years from now because Georgia right now number two ranked recruiting class in the, in the 247 sports composite team rankings, right? They got like 31 guys committed. You know, none of those are five star defenders. Like, I just think Kirby Smart and his staff are having to adjust or they're going to have to pivot at some point down the line where you aren't getting the best of the best because so much has changed and parody is here in college football. So that's something that stood out to me. Like, I don't know if it's a personnel issue. I just think Georgia is obviously very young. I mean, they lost what, seven guys on the defensive side of the ball to the 2025 NFL Draft. So it's some youth, but these guys can play. It's just, they don't seem to be gelling right now.
Bud Elliott
So if you take a look at this too, the sport is just compressing so much. We go back like a half decade. From a power rating standpoint, I'll just use the FPI because it was easy to pull up and unfortunately ESPN's having some issues right now displaying Connolly's stats. So we'll go with FPI for a second here. But just, just go with me. From a power rating standpoint, like the national champions like half a decade ago were power rated to 30. Oregon's number one right now at a 24. So basically like the very best teams in the sport are a touchdown worse than they were a half decade ago, which means it's a little bit harder to just hoard that much talent, right? And so you don't have quite as much iron. Sharp as iron, even at a place like Georgia as you did back when Georgia was winning. They had like Jalen Carter and all those guys on 1D line. It was, it was insane. I'm going to read you a list here too. To your point, as far as the ability to hold on to that much talent. Ja Jarrett, Marvin Jones Jr. Who's finally getting it right at Oklahoma, it appears maybe Xavian, sorry, Barry Alexander, who actually played some big time snaps for Oregon in the win there in Happy Valley. Damen Wilson, who's killing it right now at Missouri, Darris Smith and Sam Pemba, like some of those guys are dudes who we knew were raw but needed development. And you know, they bounce for playing time earlier and they're now basically developing and playing at other schools and they're eventually hitting their ceilings, right? And so I don't know if it's like an internal evaluation and selection issue at Georgia. And the thing is, if you're a Georgia, like, you're not going to play those guys when they're not ready, if you have guys who are ready. But sometimes good is the enemy of great, right? And it's hard to like convince those guys to stick around if maybe they didn't like how they were being used in Wilson's case. Right. Or just maybe they were not getting a full starters, you know, share of snaps. So I don't think they quite have the depth, you know, to your point that they once did.
Andrew Ivins
I had someone at Georgia tell me maybe a year ago. It's like we, we don't really recruit developmental guys. You're showing up and expected to compete for a spot in the, in the two deep. And to your point, bud, like, it's kind of a double, double sided knife, right? Like if, if a kid isn't ready to go, then they are going to hit. Hit the, you know, transfer portal. And we saw Georgia backfill a little bit with, with some guys in, in the, in the front seven. It's interesting, you know, just again, with the current landscape, I think Georgia is one of the more affected teams out there in terms of how they've had to recal celebrate their operation 100 and.
Bud Elliott
Even on the other side, like, first of all, Ty Simpson, I thought he was going in the right places against Florida State. He was just getting there like a second late. That led to five pass breakups by FSU DBs in this Georgia game. He got to the right places and he was on time with it. And, and really part of that is he had very little pass pressure around him, especially in the first half. But like on Bama's defensive side, you know, Quay Russo's out now. Like they, they had another couple guys, but I saw Overton, you know, get banged. I think he's okay. Like, I don't. I'm very curious to see how they play this weekend against Vanderbilt. Like that. That's a Vandy team. That again, as a product of the transfer portal and you know, Barton's doing a good job developing their guys there and getting guys who, who really, you know, fit their system. I think they're pretty. They're pretty true to who they are, you know, in many ways as far as like just understanding what their system requires, what they need and obviously what, like what deficiencies they can tolerate relative to the system that they run. But I'm curious to see how their defense looks this weekend. I mean, the backs, like backhand look pretty good against Bama, but. Or against Georgia, but I mean, they're getting a little thin there as well on the defensive side, so it's just, it's hard hoard talent, man.
Andrew Ivins
You think Kaden Proctor could give some snaps there in the middle of the defensive line, man.
Bud Elliott
Good. Good for that kid for finally getting it right. Like he was really, really good. And, and in Tallahassee I was like, good God. Like is there a more looks like Tarzan plays like Jane kid. And then in Athens flipped a switch, man, he was pretty good against Wisconsin as well. So, you know, good to see that he's, he's a freak.
Andrew Ivins
Oh yeah. I mean, you know, obviously I, I do a little play on, on Bruce Feldman's freaks list with the high school guys. I think Kaden Proctor was the, the first year I rolled it out and I had a video of him pushing his teammates in an F150 across a parking lot during a summer workout. I don't know. That's where my mind went. When he caught the little pass and, and plowed through those guys, I thought he scored a touchdown.
Bud Elliott
So yeah, the, the photo of him like running with the ball is like that. That's just not normal. Normal humans don't do that like that. That's, that's, that is wild. All right, we talked about some blue chip quarterbacks who are finally showing out. Let's take a look at the, the high school class of 2026 quarterbacks here and kind of check in on how the senior seasons are doing. I know you've done a lot of research on this and it does look that there's some real correlation between having a good senior season. It's not determinative. Obviously if you don't have a good senior season, doesn't mean you're doomed for all time. But if you have a nice senior season, it does usually show that well, you're much more likely to be able to play and play well early. Who are some guys we need to highlight from this list?
Andrew Ivins
Well, to touch on the senior season thing, bud. And look, I mean there is no formula to evaluating quarterbacks. If there was, I think the NFL would have figured it out at this point. But from what we've seen over the years, usually these quarterbacks that in their prep careers on a high note, those are the ones that, that seem to be ready to go. I mean look at Bryce Underwood at Michigan. This is a kid that started 54 games throughout his high school career. Jaron Kiave Sagabatelli at Cal, Malik Washington there at Maryland. Those are kind of the other gym true freshman signal callers. But like both those guys, you know, played for championships of some type of sort as seniors in high school and they, they started 34 games. And why I bring that up is you saw our list of quarterbacks at the top and obviously we have listeners as well you got Faison Brandon, number one player in the country. He's, he's committed to Tennessee. Right behind him you have Diabell, the Texas commit Elite 11 Finals MVP. What's unfortunate is both those guys are dealing with injuries and Diabell has shut it down. He's, he's done for his senior season there at American Heritage and this is the second year in a row he's going to miss to postseason football.
Bud Elliott
Right.
Andrew Ivins
He played a few playoff games last year before injuring his leg. Rehab came back obviously look great in, out in LA at the nation's premier quarterback competition. Got a few games under his, his belt and they have shut it down. So Diabell, 24 starts is what he's going to have over his high school career. You look at Fazen, Brandon dealing with something with his, his hand I believe got hurt in his senior season opener on a touchdown run, game winning touchdown run. I think he kind of landed on it and nasty. And why we bring these up, bud, these two quarterbacks is I think a lot of people assume, okay, you see the five star ranking, you see what a guy like Bryce Underwood has done at Michigan, you see what we saw from DJ Lagway in his rookie campaign at Florida. You assume these guys are going to step in and be ready to go. I don't know if that's the case with Faze and Brandon. I don't know if that's the case with Diabell and you know, Tennessee and Texas, very interesting potential quarterback situations heading into the 2026 season there in Knoxville. Joey Aguilar, I mean he's out of eligibility now they have George McIntyre, but are they going to kind of hand the keys to the offense to Fazen? Brandon, who you know, didn't get that senior season, didn't get all those live reps, didn't have to overcome some adversity or, or difficult situations in a state title run. Now he's played a lot of football, I just don't think it was ideal for his development. And then at Texas, I mean if Arch Manning really is, hey, the biggest bust of, of all time, is Sark gonna run it back with him or you know, would they potentially look to add a, a transfer quarterback knowing that hey, maybe Diabell isn't ready to go because this is a guy that second season in a row he has dealt with an injury.
Ryan Wilson
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Siya Najad
What's up everyone? It's the counselor of Cash Cnajad from the Early Edge, a daily sports betting show powered by Sportsline and part of the CBS Sports Podcast Network. If you're looking for the best bets, picks and analysis for the day in sports, we're your one stop shop. We're locked in every day with NFL bets and player props, college football picks and so much more. Download and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and anywhere podcasts are found. Subscribe to the SportsLine YouTube page to watch us live at 10am Eastern Time every weekday. Make sure to turn on those notifications so you don't miss a single pick all season long. Good luck. What's up everyone? It's Siya Najad from Fantasy Football Today dfs, a weekly NFL daily fantasy show that's a part of the CBS Sports Podcast and Network. If you're looking for NFL game by game previews, which players stock is up or down, and DFS strategies and advice, Mike McClure, Meg Shoup and I have you covered every single week. Download and follow us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and anywhere podcasts are found. Make sure to turn on those notifications so you don't miss a single pick all season long.
Bud Elliott
Good luck.
John Henson
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Bud Elliott
Oh no, mute button. I've got the wind chime on the patio. I got to take this thing down because when it gets windy here you.
Andrew Ivins
Can kind of hear the hurricanes moving through, right?
Bud Elliott
Tropical storm it is man, it is. At least in Tennessee's case. I I you saying this made me pull up their schedule for next year. This is a very friendly schedule overall. So you get Furman, Georgia Tech, who loses Haynes, King, although we know they like the backup quite a bit. You know, Kennesaw, Arkansas out of South Carolina, team that most I'm assuming will lose Lenora Sellers. He's actually been playing pretty well with a very limited supporting cast around him there. For the Gamecocks, you got to play Bama, you got to play Auburn. Both those are at home. You get Kentucky, you get lsu, they lose Nussmeier, you get Texas. As we just mentioned, you get at A and M. It's not easy. And you get Vandy, which unless Pavia wins the ruling, you know Vandy, Pavia will look a little different. I don't think they're going to fall off and just be awful. But he has just been such a perfect fit for what they do there in Nashville. So depending on do we know the dates on these games yet or just the opponents? I think it's just the opponents right in the sec I he might get a lot of run early. Man. Like if you get those three non con games and then like an Arkansas, maybe Brandon is a guy that they they try to roll with. It'll be interesting to see. Certainly they would feel better about it if he actually had a senior season, especially if he was balling out in that senior season. Two guys though that I want to highlight and I know we talked about this pre show so Keyshawn at Houston and then Jared Curtis who's committed to Georgia. What have you seen from those guys so far?
Andrew Ivins
Oh Keyshawn Henderson's kind of like the darling of, of the 247 sports scouting department. I mean, it's a kid we had listed as an athlete this time last year, which is honestly embarrassing given how he has looked as a quarterback. MVP of, of the Navy All American bowl as a junior. That was the first year we had the underclassmen there in San Antonio. And he was the difference. He was electric. He led his team to multiple scoring drives when no one else could move the ball. As a, as a senior, I mean, he has just lit it up and, you know, again, listed at one time as an athlete because some schools thought he was a wide receiver, some schools thought he was a defensive back. No, he is a, he is a quarterback and a guy that wants to win with his arms. You see him under center, right? So you know when you're, you're going through the tape, you're like, whoa, okay. Like, didn't know we were getting some five and seven step drops for Keyshot Anderson, but he's doing it. And you know what always sticks out to me about Keyshawn Henderson is he is a, a magnetic personality, a glowing personality. You see him on the sidelines, you see him in different kind of environments in, in, you know, 7 on 7 or, or the elite 11 finals. Like, he is a force multiplier. Kids want to play with him. He raises the ceiling. I thought out at the Elite 11, I know Diabell was the MVP, but I thought there was a different energy when Keyshawn Henderson, when he went, and you know why this is important. He's our number two player right now. And he's committed to Houston, right? He's committed to Houston. And you know, all the time people push back on our rankings about, oh, you guys just look at the offer sheets and, and this and that. It's like, no, we, our number two players headed to the Big 12 to play for Willie Fritz and the Cougars. And it'll be interesting, Bud, to see, you know, if anyone tries to take a swipe at him down the stretch. You know, the past few years, we've had big, high profile quarterbacks flip at the buzzer. Bryce Underwood from LSU to Michigan. Dante Moore, right. It was Oregon to ucla. Like, these things happen. And Keyshawn Henderson, he's been linked to a few different programs. With that being said, he seems to be all in on Houston. And I think if you're looking right now for a, a quarterback that's going to make some noise in 2026, coming from the high school ranks, Keyshawn Henderson would, would be my pick.
Bud Elliott
Do you remember the last time that Georgia had a quarterback drafted in the top half of the draft?
Andrew Ivins
Well, Stetson Bennett was day three, right?
Bud Elliott
Yeah.
Andrew Ivins
So it's got to be Matt Stafford.
Bud Elliott
Matt Stafford. Fifteen years since Georgia had a QB draft in the top half of the draft. Like, given that, just the tremendous NFL production out of that program, it does seem a little wild that they've basically had like, you know, good caretakers, but caretakers, for lack of a better word, you know, Bennett, Jake Fromm, Aaron Murray, like guys who were, you know, good college quarterbacks. Obviously Bennett won national titles there, but Curtis is a guy like, look at, I know over the summer it's like, man, this kid ever going to be healthy and like be at an event and play with other elite guys? Or at least it is helpful to compare some of these guys. When you see the body types, you see how they interact, you see how the ball comes off their hands. When you, when you get a big collection of four and five star, you know, or four and five star hopefuls at an event, I'm just glad this guy's healthy and playing now. Man, what have you seen now that has you so encouraged?
Andrew Ivins
I think he's a fighter pilot to steal a term from our former colleague Barton Simmons there. I mean he rattled off some quarterbacks and I think they would be in Barton's bus driver, maybe bucket. Yeah. I was the big question about, about Jared Curtis, like what is the ceiling? Can he be the guy when he needs to be the guy? Now he's there outside of Nashville, he's playing a, a lower level of football in Tennessee and he has absolutely lit it up over the past few years. But we've never seen him really in a best on best setting. He wasn't at the Elite 11 finals. Now that certainly is not the end all be all in our evaluation process. We got him at the OT7 Championships, which has kind of turned into the opening finals. And it was hard to really gauge what was the buy in from, from Jared Curtis. But you could tell. All right, this guy can make every throw on the field. You know, he is 6 foot 4, he has 230 pounds and really entering the senior season we knew, hey, Jared Curtis, he's got this, this spotlight matchup, right. You know, he's going to play a higher level of competition. Competition Endsworth and, and Bud, I thought he was awesome. He was the guy and to me that's what we wanted to see from, from Jared Curtis. He kind of reminds me And I've gotten pushed back here from some of. Some of the guys on the. On my team. He reminds me of Dylan Raiola at Nebraska, but an athletic Dylan Raiola. And remember, Dylan was committed to Georgia at one point during the recruiting process. The folks in Athens are fired up about what they are getting in Jared Curtis. And, you know, kind of talking with some of those individuals after that, that huge game where, you know, he was the difference and he scored, you know, four touchdowns. He ran for a few others. They didn't know that they had that in Jared Curtis. So I think from what we've seen of Jared Curtis, you know, him and Keyshawn Henderson are really the two quarterbacks that have us the most excited here as. As, you know, the midway point of these senior seasons. And I think for Georgia, this is the guy, right, that they've tried to get more athletic at quarterback. You can tell just kind of based on some of the scholarship offers that they've. They've given out and really over like the past 12 months, it's like, okay, you know, you can tell maybe they're trying to get some guys that can beat you with their legs. And I think Jared Curtis, who was a running back at one point in the youth football leagues, like, he's the perfect guy because he can make all the throws in. In Mike Bobo's offense, but he can also create with his legs. And when he escapes the pocket, he is a threat to move the chains.
Bud Elliott
Just in those clips we just. We just saw there. I. I like that he was decisive and on time with it. Like on. On that one in breaking route. I mean, he's throwing that before the guy gets into his break like that. That's. Some of these guys, I'm always a little bit worried if they're like, so see it, throw it, you know, and sometimes when they play on these dominant teams, you never have to really anticipate because you can see it and throw it, but it looks there like he's throwing the ball, you know, on time. I like how he slid in the pocket to find a different passing lane. The ones kind of like sidearmy, not.
Andrew Ivins
Not to.
Bud Elliott
Not. Not do like the imitating Mahomes thing, but like, it looked like he had to slide there, you know, to find a better angle. And then, you know, when the guy's not. When the guys that obi seem to take off at the right time. So like that. That's. That's some encouraging clips right there. Obviously, that's. If you're a Georgia fan, that's not a bad little thing to hear on Tuesday morning after that loss to Alabama. You might have a true difference maker coming in at quarterback for sure. So he'll be there next year. Let's go ahead and pivot now to guys who are coming in in 2027. I know we have our updated 247 sports top 247 coming out Wednesday, right? So let's get a little preview of. Obviously, like not everybody who listens to cover three loves recruiting, but give me like three or four names that you really should know so you can kind of like start talking to your buddies in your foursome this weekend. All right? Hey, have you guys seen this dude? Have you seen that dude? And they're going to think y' all are like true ball knowers.
Andrew Ivins
Yeah. Paul Knowers, right? Nerd. Nerd out here. Yeah. Our 2027 rankings updates coming out on, on Wednesday. Bud, everything has changed so much, right? We keep talking about the college football landscape and how accelerated recruiting has gotten, right? Remember when like mid years used to be kind of a big deal now like if you're a recruiter, if you don't mid year, it's like, what's wrong? Most of these colleges have, have shifted their focus from the class of 2026. So that's the seniors right now to the class of, of 2027. Those are the juniors. And after the season, after the playoff, you're going to see a lot of these guys come off the board. And you know, these kids are taking visit visits now. And, and I think if, if you see or you hear that one of these names is at your college or visiting your rivals, it's, it's a big, big deal. And, and bud, the guy I want to start with, D.J. jacobs, edge rusher out of, of Georgia. This guy's an animal. You know, a player is good. If you are watching other guys and you are like, who is number 15 on the screen, right? That happened three or four times with, with DJ Jacobs. I call him a cast iron edge player. This guy gets after the quarterback and you know, dad played at Georgia Bulldogs, seem to be in a very good spot with him. But everyone in the country is after DJ Jacobs, right? He's been to Oregon, he has been to Miami. You think about two point of attack programs right now, they fit the bill. And DJ Jacobs, to me, I think he is a difference maker. I think he's a guy that you can align at multiple spots up front. I think the other thing that jumps out about DJ Jacobs is he wins with Effort, right? He can go speed, he can go power, but he brings it every single snap. And I think when you find one of these guys that, you know, has a potential round one of the NFL draft ceiling and they are getting the most out of them in terms of applying, you know, the effort and the pursuit and all that, those are the ones that have a chance to be special. So DJ Jacobs, man, if he. If he shows up on your campus like, this is the one to certainly know.
Bud Elliott
Yeah. I mean, six, five, two and a quarter is what I think our latest measurement on him. If you're scoring at home, like, for a guy who's just playing his junior year, that. That's actually really good size. He could easily play. What do you. What do you think he plays at? Like, 255, 260.
Andrew Ivins
Yeah, it's. Again, you know, it's fun, bud, because I've been in this chair for, I don't know, four or five years now, and a lot of the guys in the NFL drafts are. You're seeing them in the mock drafts, right? A lot of the seniors, and it's like, guys, you thought we're going to shift inside, ended up staying on the edge. I would say DJ Jacobs has a chance to maybe get up to 285. You know, do they. Do they want him to do that? The. The individual he kind of reminds me of. If we're talking about, like, current college football would be Keldrick Falk, who. Auburn has. Has used different alignments depending on the. On the down and distance. So, yeah, I. I think 285. You know, he's a kid that showed up on one of these college visits and, you know, the feedback from the college side was like, you know, who is this animal that just walked through our door?
Bud Elliott
True, man. His. His closing speed at that size is. Is crazy on this video. Again, it's why you guys should be watching us, certainly on. On YouTube. All right, Ivan's. Who else we got that we really, really should know in that 20, 27.
Andrew Ivins
Class, I'm gonna save the quarterback for last. Let's go to the Hoosier State wide receiver Manchun Sales. But I think this guy. I think he's. He's like in the Cam Coleman conversation, I. I don't know if I want to put him in the. In the Jeremiah Smith, but I want everyone to picture a. A big freak that can win on the outside. On the outside. And that is. That is Manchun Sales. He's a kid that I saw at a 7 on 7 camp back in the spring I had a hunch that he was the real deal and he has absolutely flipped the script here As a junior. If you wanted to tell me he was a safety, I mean he is a top 50 prospect for us. Shows a ton of physicality there but man can play above shoulder pads. Bud. You brought it up earlier in the show. All right. You need guys that can get open down in the red zone. That is Monsieur Sales. I actually had a DPP at an SEC program tell me just we were trading text kind of regarding some of the wide receivers and they said they thought he was the best red zone target in the class. I, I would absolutely agree and stamp that. What why I think Mansion Sales is interesting is look he's right there in the midwest. Ohio State has had their pick of the litter when it comes to these wide receivers. But as Monchensel is going to end up there in Columbus playing for zone six. You know, he's a guy that I think would start solve a lot of problems for Penn State who we just talked about solve a lot of problems for Michigan which is where he's been multiple times. You think about Bryce Underwood getting him some help. We saw that kind of rear its head in the Oklahoma game. He can't be a one man show. You need guys that could be difference makers on the outside. I think Mont Sales is certainly a name to know and I bring up the Cam Coleman because yes, he is a big freak. But Cam Coleman, you know he, he didn't have a ton of production until his senior season. There was a massive uptick. You saw the year over year improvement. We are seeing that with Mancha and Sales.
Bud Elliott
I just in watch this. I, I, you don't see a lot of the dropping the hips in the route but I think in that first clip when he was actually like juked those two guys out like that. That's some really nice, like really nice agility right there. Which was always kind of the question with a guy who's already 6 5, you know, close to 200 as, as a junior in high school. And then on the one ball which is pretty badly under thrown, he does a good job like tracking it, tempoing down and then creating that late separation as opposed to just continuing his route and having to come back for it like that. That's, that's pretty advanced stuff right there, man. It looks like a kid who plays hard. This is, this is exciting for sure. Do you think is Sales the type of kid that just maybe there's not a kid like him in every class.
Andrew Ivins
I think, I think he's a freak, man. I think he's, I think he is the biggest freak show. And look, that's the beauty of, of kind of evaluating these guys, right? And if, if you're trying to win on Saturdays, I can see someone sitting in the other chair being, hey, this guy might not be ready day one, but he can do things that other individuals simply can't because he's got the God given athletic juice, right? We're talking about a kid that, you know 98 explosion score, 95 speed score for next gen prospects at 6 4, 215 pounds. So yeah, you know, he's going to be a longer burn, but you want to see the improvement and who knows what kind of jump he's going to make. We, we saw the sophomore to junior year, junior to senior year. It could be a completely different level.
Bud Elliott
And we know much like the tight end position, sometimes the kind of Jeremiah accepted the bigger frame. Receivers are often the guys you got to keep watching because they do develop a little bit later. Oftentimes it's just more body to control. It's kind of like, you know, tackles, running backs. A lot of times you can kind of see, you know, a little bit earlier. All right, Ivan's got time for a couple more here. Who else do we want to really highlight?
Andrew Ivins
Well, I, I mentioned the quarterback. We're gonna save him for last. You brought up tight ends bud, Ahmad Hudson. And the reason I'm bringing up Ahmad Hudson is because this kid's probably gonna play college football and he's probably gonna play college basketball. He is a, a top 247 recruit for the basketball guys at 24, 7 sports man. He is one of my favorite tight ends that I, I've scouted through the high school ranks. Now I'd put Luke Reynolds at Penn State up there. I put Mark Bowman, who was committed to USC in the 2026 cycle. But Ahmad Hudson, he is the guy in 2027. I was up at Nebraska back in June and, and Matt Rule and the Corn Huskers, they kind of had this really unique seven on seven tournament where club teams from around the country showed up and Ahmad Hudson was there and he absolutely took over the event. I mean you see it right there. Six, six and a half, 230 pounds. Gets it done on, on the EYBL circuit as, as a, again, he could legitimately play basketball. But this guy is a difference maker at tight end. And Bud, what's unique about him, he gets a lot of inline Work like usually, you know these, these tight ends like they're these glorified jumbo wide receivers on the outside. That is not the case with Ahmad Hudson. He, he blocks right. He's, he's a blocker first, he's a pass catcher second. And a lot of schools around the country, this is the top guy that's on their board at tight end. I mentioned Nebraska, Matt Rule on the Cornhuskers bye week. He was down in Louisiana to see Ahmad Hudson play. All the heavy hitters are involved with him. I think trade as Green, you know, at LSU who has played basketball for the Tigers as well. To me I think Ahmad Hudson is, is a better version of trade as Green who is more of a perimeter wide receiver. I think this guy can be an inline tight end and just love the way that he is, he is wired. He is a competitor, non stop year round athlete. And I think Ahmad Hudson freak, we said it with Manchun Sales. That is also the case with Ahmad Hudson.
Bud Elliott
And when you watch Hudson here a lot of times when you see these basketball guys getting a three point it looks foreign to them and they, they just, they pop right up out of their stance. He actually like comes out with some good lean to him. That, that's, that's good to see. All right, two more I know you got on your list. Do you want to go Bruce or you want to go qb?
Andrew Ivins
Yeah, let's just hit on Elijah Haven real quick. Right? The number one ranked quarterback in the, in the class of, of of 2027. This recruitment is, is interesting to me bud, because you know four of the of the top 10 ranked quarterbacks have, have already given verbal pledges. The dominoes are going to fall really soon. We talked about a quarterback. Recruiting is so, so accelerated. Elijah Haven, I know you saw him at the, the Future 50 this summer at IMG Academy. I mean he is, he is super sized. He is one of the biggest quarterbacks to come out of the high school ranks in recent years. 6, 5, 215 pounds. You know a lot of Florida buzz for Elijah Haven back during the summer months. Now Billy Napier seat is as hot as ever and that kind of has me wondering, okay, who is the team to beat for Elijah Haven? He goes to school right there in Baton Rouge. LSU already has their quarterback. They went with Peyton Houston. Another in state kid, Elijah Haven wasn't for them. So you know, where, where does Elijah Haven end up? Penn State has gotten involved. Georgia's involved. Is it Florida? So he is one to know. Kind of reminds me of Jacoby Brissette, right. And I think a lot of people think about Jacoby Brissette in the NFL and the tail end of his career. Like Jacoby Brissette was a good college player. Right? And he was good on Sundays as well. Jacoby Brissette was a basketball player. Elijah Haven is a basketball player as well. Can, can finish above the rim on the hardwood, little bit up and down start to his junior year. You know, there's been really, really, really highs. There's been some lows. But I thought at the Future 50 where all the top juniors in the country were there, he exceeded expectations for me. I mean, this is, this is a guy that, you know, once NFL evaluators get around him, I mean, they're going to be drooling over him. So certainly a name to know at quarterback.
Bud Elliott
And when you talk to him, he doesn't really talk like a 15 or 16 year old. Like he seems to have, he seems to kind of get it, which is, you know, certainly encouraging just from the like, limited interactions I had with him there at future feature 50. All right, and the last one, number one defensive lineman in the class, Jalen Brewster. What? Why do we need to be excited about this guy?
Andrew Ivins
Jalen Brewster? He's going to announce a college commitment on third Thursday. Texas Tech appears to be in the driver's seat to land the number one ranked D lineman in the class of, of 2027. I say that they appear to be in the driver's seat, bud. Some of these high profile recruitments have gotten very interesting in the final 24 hours. Jalen Brewster, kid we saw at the Navy National Combine back in, in January. We loved him there. But you'll like this. He has played some Wildcat quarterback at 300 pounds there for Cedar Hill High School. Doing it a little bit here and there. Look, it's so hard, I think, for these big bodies to identify them so early in these recruiting cycles. And Jalen Brewster is one of these guys. You know, I think he's a 3 tech. I think he can push pockets, he can make stops in lateral pursuit. He is someone that has a chance to be an impact player up front, especially if, you know, he ends up in the Big 12 at Texas Deck and the Red Raiders 2027 for them. I know it was a big transfer portal class. That's one of the big reasons why they are in the College Football playoff conversation. But Joey McGuire and those guys are parlaying that into the high school ranks, right? If they, if there is a postseason appearance, they're Going to have the opportunity to capitalize on the recruiting front because yes, you know, compensation nil deals, those are certainly factor into heavily into a lot of these decisions. But you still have to get a seat at the table with these prospects. And I think Texas Tech, what they have a chance to do in 2027, they're also involved with Kavion Bryant, quarterback there, number three quarterback nationally, one of the top players in the state of Texas. Like keep an eye on the Red Raiders because it's not just what they're doing in the transfer portal. They are now getting more active and active on the, on the high school front and they're getting a seat at the table with some of these players that usually they wouldn't. I mean heck bud, they went into Georgia and they got La Damian Guyton, a five star edge rusher that anyone in the SEC would have loved to have.
Bud Elliott
I mean like watching this guy, he's certainly taller than like a booger McFarlane was but like you see and maybe it's just because like the, the red pants, you know, so you think bucks a little bit but like this, there's a lot to like here man. It's a little, a little like Marcel Darius is too to kind of a throwback to, to you know, Bama guy. But like, like the, the bendy plays with the ability to like keep one hand free and engage is. This is nice man. This is certainly a guy. If Texas Tech does get him, that's, that's a hell of a get for the Red Raiders. And man if that's the case Texas, Texas would become a major pain in the ass for schools like Texas and A M. I mean this is like Jimbo kind of disrupted the national title race when they did such a good job recruiting all those, all those D line in that one year. Okay, so we're just going to take all the top D linemen in the sport and send them to one school. Like what's this going to have like, like downstream effects to an Alabama or an LSU or you know, a Texas or Ohio State. Tech's starting to grab some of these like impact big bodies out of the high school ranks that are just, you know, kind of difficult to get in the portal. And you see here number 23 right now in the 2026 class. But like some of the guys that they're, they're getting are really highly rated dudes.
Andrew Ivins
I haven't seen Texas Tech recruit like this and I don't know to tie all this together right about parody in the sport. I mean, in previous years, ladamian Guyton is going to go play for Nick Saban at Alabama or ladamian Guyton's gonna go play for Kirby Smart at Georgia. Jalen Brewster is likely ending up at Texas A M or, or Texas. It's just, you know, you talk with the, the guys that pull the strings of these rosters in, in every, everyone is having to adjust and you, you brought it up with the power ratings in, in the fpi. It, it, it really is leveling out the playing field.
Bud Elliott
No doubt about it. All right, last one here. We, we talk about all these stars. You can't afford to have a roster of not like, of nobody but five stars. You have to do a good job on the evaluations of sort of some of like the down ballot guys. You got to do a good job of understanding like what your scheme demands and also what flaws, you know, potentially you can deal with relative to what you run. You have a guy you wanted to highlight who had an absolute beast mode game against one of the, like one of the better offices in the country, shockingly so far this year. And that's Anthony Smith at Minnesota. Yeah.
Andrew Ivins
But I'm hoping we can like during the, during the season, you know, maybe this, this be like a weekly award, kind of like evaluation of the week. You know, give. Give a golf clap to a coaching staff or a personnel department out there that, you know, really not like out kick their coverage but, you know, got someone that maybe others didn't see it and, and that is really paying off. And it is. Anthony Smith, he. I think he tied for the FBS lead this past Saturday. Seven pressures, two sacks against Rutgers. He was really big late in the fourth quarter for the Golden Gophers to secure that huge win. And Anthony Smith is a kid that's originally from Pennsylvania, Bud. And Ohio State didn't offer him. More notably Penn State didn't offer him, but Minnesota did. And I think he's a perfect fit for PJ Flex program. And these, it's. It's turned into a development program. Right. Put these guys in a, a strength program, the, the first, you know, strength session the first few years and then reap the benefits at some point down the line. And Anthony Smith, you know, you talk with the people that know this is a guy that, that can very well end up going in day two of of the NFL draft and his profile was awesome coming out of high school. He shattered multiple backboards while playing basketball. He was on my freaks list. So I do want to give a shout out to Minnesota. You know, Antoine Irise last year was was a guy that they plucked from three star land and turned him into a day two NFL draft pick Anthony Smith looking like another hidden gem for them where they were well ahead of the curve.
Bud Elliott
Absolutely. I've it's been fun man. I I we definitely do this every week as we lead up to signing day. You maybe a couple one offs in the off season as well. A couple around you see some of these national events. We'll incorporate, you know, more video going forward as well. Probably see some of this content on some of our social channels. Be sure to, you know, follow like and subscribe to the COVID channel. We didn't. What how can they follow you?
Andrew Ivins
You can find me on X. I'm also on Instagram and I've dipped my my toes into the the tick tock water there bud. But I'm still still learning.
Bud Elliott
I I have a tick tock CBS post some stuff and they collab or share or tag me or whatever. I don't actually know my TikTok password so I need to figure that out. I made it a long while ago. But you can follow me @budely3 on on Twitter or X and buddy CFB there on Instagram if you want. And depending on when this comes out, you can also watch cover 3 at noon Eastern on CBS Sports Network. So we'll be talking some of the Big Ten highlights so far and maybe breaking down the Big Ten Championship race. So Brand Drive and Bud Elliott, appreciate you guys joining the COVID through recruiting hour.
Sylvester Stallone
Tulsa is my home now. Academy Award nominee Sylvester Stallone stars in.
Bud Elliott
The Paramount plus original series Tulsa King.
Sylvester Stallone
His distillery is a very interesting business. We got to know the Enemy from Taylor Sheridan, co creator of Landman. What are you saying? I'm over at if you think you're going to take me out, it's going to be really difficult.
Bud Elliott
Tulsa King New season now streaming exclusively on Paramount Plus.
Episode: Latest College Football Recruiting News and QB Updates + Early 2027 Lookahead | Recruiting Show
Date: September 30, 2025
Hosts: Bud Elliott & Andrew Ivins
This episode of the Cover 3 College Football Podcast dives deep into the latest trends in recruiting, blue-chip quarterback updates, and a sneak peek at transformative prospects in the 2027 recruiting class. Bud Elliott and Andrew Ivins analyze roster construction, the changing landscape of recruiting (including the impact of the transfer portal and NIL), and offer insider takes on teams and players to watch moving forward. If you're a die-hard recruiting or CFB fan—or just want to get smarter about the next wave of superstar players—this episode is packed with insights.
Timestamp: 03:30–09:46
Timestamp: 09:46–12:56
Timestamp: 12:56–16:36
Timestamp: 17:25–23:20
Timestamp: 25:12–29:13
Timestamp: 33:53–37:24
Timestamp: 41:31–53:45
Timestamp: 58:25–60:45
This episode offers comprehensive insight into team-building strategies, the evolving recruiting landscape, QB development, and a look at the next wave of impact players. Whether you’re a hardcore recruiting follower or just want to sound sharp at the tailgate, Bud and Andrew’s breakdown cuts through the noise and spotlights what truly matters in the future of college football.