Deep Dive: Maximizing Arch, Stopping Sark’s Offense & The Biggest Missing Piece

Summary

Inside Texas Football - Deep Dive: Maximizing Arch, Stopping Sark’s Offense & The Biggest Missing Piece

Podcast: Inside Texas Football
Episode Date: July 16, 2026
Hosts: Paul Wadlington & Ian Boyd

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Overview

In this engaging episode, Paul and Ian tackle offseason questions from Inside Texas members, zeroing in on Texas Longhorns football. They dive into scenarios for maximizing Arch Manning, how to stop Steve Sarkisian’s offense, what could propel the Texas offense to another level, and philosophical discussions of program folklore and football tactics. The episode is peppered with humor, deep analysis, and some enjoyable digressions into historical warfare and Greek epic literature.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

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[04:32] Can Arch Manning Become Texas's Greatest Quarterback?

• Prompt: If Arch plays like he did down the stretch, wins a national title, and goes No. 1 in the draft, will he surpass all previous Longhorn quarterbacks?
• Main insights:
  • How much does narrative matter? Ian argues, “The nature of how he wins the championship would probably matter” [05:25].
  • Paul emphasizes schedule strength: “If Texas wins the national championship, that would be the most impressive run of a college football team, arguably, ever, in terms of schedule strength. Therefore, Arch would be the man” [07:12].
  • The hosts agree that recency and nostalgia shape the pantheon—“To boomers, James Street is the greatest quarterback to ever play at Texas...to others, it’s all about Vince” [08:28, Paul].
  • The consensus: If Arch leads Texas to a natty through the ever-tougher SEC and playoff gauntlet, he probably becomes the greatest, but deep narrative roots (like with Vince Young’s epic 2005 campaign) will always shape fan perception.

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[09:30] What Is the Key to an Offensive Leap for Texas in 2026?

• Prompt: Which component would most help Texas’s offense leap forward?

  1. Explosive run game
  2. Wingo/Bishop becomes an elite No. 2 receiver
  3. Elite dual-threat tight end emerges

• Discussion:

  • Both Paul and Ian first lean toward (2): “If Wingo or Bishop is co-equally the man... our run game will become explosive because of that.” [12:07, Paul]
  • Tight end emergence (3) is also key, especially for playoff matchups, red zone, and complementing other weapons: “If you have that elite dual-threat tight end... that's the kind of thing, no matter who you play, you’re gonna be able to hang your hat on that” [11:27, Ian].
  • Ultimately, hosts find 2 & 3 are interconnected, each enabling an explosive run game—“2 and 3 create number one, right?” [12:15, Paul].
  • Quote: "Our top men got to work on these questions and we feel honored." [10:06, Paul]

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[14:12] Football “Freak Swaps” & Fun with Position Switches

• Prompt: What crazy position swap would you like to see? (E.g., putting a massive OL at running back or a DB at nose tackle)

• Highlights:

  • Paul cites fondness for big men in unusual roles, recalling Byron Murphy or Derek Lokey as DTs-turned-fullbacks in the red zone: "Derek Lokey, I have to say, was one of the most murderous blocking backs I’ve ever seen in red zone. He would kill people..." [17:42, Paul]
  • Ian suggests, humorously, playing Earl Thomas at nose tackle for disruption on passing downs: “Give me a guy like Earl Thomas over the center... I can honestly see what would happen if you have to block Earl Thomas. He's just darting around in the box" [16:06, Ian].
  • Both agree that unleashing giant offensive linemen at skill positions (like Proctor at WR) creates the funniest chaos.

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[22:24] How Would You Defend the 2026 Texas Offense? (Stark Stopper Game Plan)

• Prompt: Given free rein, how would you scheme against the 2026 Texas offense?

• Strategies:

  • Paul: Play conservative, Cover 4, and drop eight defenders; test if Texas can slowly grind out drives—"I would play PK defense... back everyone off... and bring the house every now and then" [23:44, Paul].
  • Ian agrees, noting, “Maybe even the Iowa State flyover, where you’re just like, ‘we’re gonna make you beat us all the way down the field and convert in the red zone’” [24:27].
  • Both warn against blitzing this Texas attack: "I would be pretty scared to blitz Texas a lot, especially if we get Jermaine Bishop out on the field" [28:34, Paul].
  • Personnel best suited: Ohio State, possibly Oregon (copying Iowa State's scheme), and teams with length at safety/corner and a discipline in staying back.
  • They underline that Texas now has serious anti-blitz weapons—screen games, quick passes, and explosive RBs make gambling dangerous.

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[33:35] Historical Defensive Coordinator (DC) Philosophies: Robinson, Diaz, Orlando

• Prompt: Would Greg Robinson have succumbed to the “Diaz-Orlando curse” if he’d stayed at Texas post-2004?
• Breakdown:
  • Paul distinguishes the coordinators:
    • Robinson: “a very meat and potatoes basic coordinator” (played base, taught fundamentals).
    • Diaz: Scheme failures at Texas blamed on late-era Mack Brown, not Diaz, who was successful elsewhere. “We submarine(d) him more than he submarine(d) us.” [35:17, Paul]
    • Orlando: Overly intricate, micro-managing, didn’t teach players core micro-skills—“He was trying to control everything from the sideline...not how defensive football works." [36:23, Paul]
  • Ian adds, “When new coaches came in…the linebackers had no idea how to take on blocks or what gaps to play” [37:39], reflecting a focus on scheme at the expense of fundamentals.
  • Both argue that Texas's defensive talent in 2005 was so good that almost any DC would have found success, with Chizik’s approach valued for its simplicity and adaptability.

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[44:17] Digression: Comparing the Comanche to World Cavalry Powers

• Prompt: Who were the Comanche’s analogues in world cavalry history?
• Paul: “The Comanche aren’t a blip in world history compared to like…Mongols, Huns, Tatars… The Mongol empire was simultaneously invading Poland and Korea at the same time.” [46:04]
  • Highlights Comanche small numbers and decentralized structure, versus the mass-mobilization of Eurasian cavalry empires.
  • Both hosts retell how technological shifts (e.g., Colt revolver) drove the balance, and how the Tonkawa were instrumental as scouts against the Comanche.

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[53:14] Literary Sidebar: The Odyssey and Its Modern Film Adaptation

• Prompt: Reflections on the Odyssey and the new (Christopher Nolan) movie adaptation

• Engagement points:

  • Both admire the Odyssey for its complex, earthy, resourceful hero (Odysseus) and moral depth. Paul: “One of the greatest characters in, like, all of literature. Incredibly charismatic, brave, smart, devious, but also very flawed.” [54:55]
  • Ian and Paul discuss how the story is obsessed with "guest friendship" (Xenia) and everyday conduct, not just grand battles.
  • They explore translation choices, casting (Matt Damon as Odysseus—“He’s very American, but maybe that works”), and the risk/reward of de-formalized, modern dialogue.
  • Commentary on Achilles’ tragic realization in Hades: “Achilles says, ‘None of it was worth it... I would have preferred to just live as a serf.’ Like, heroism is a lie.” [55:51, Paul]
  • Fun: “Odysseus is, like, always has a freaking angle...very canny. That’s not a typical hero—and that’s why I love him.” [64:28, Paul]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On generational quarterback debates:

  • "To boomers, James Street is the greatest quarterback to ever play at Texas...He wasn't even the best wishbone quarterback at Texas..." – Paul [08:28]

• On DC styles:

  • “His fundamental issue at Texas was late Stage Mac Brown. Mac Brown didn’t allow hitting. They were not physical.” — Paul on Manny Diaz [35:17]

• On the O-line and defensive plans:

  • “A lot of people might say let’s get aggressive, let’s blitz Texas…they were just running four and line stunts...They were not blitzing. And that’s what makes it all more sad.” – Paul [27:27]

• On Comanches vs. Mongols:

  • “The Comanche aren’t a blip in world history compared to…Mongols, Huns, Tatars...The Mongol empire was simultaneously invading Poland and Korea at the same time.” – Paul [46:04]

• On the Odyssey’s lessons:

  • "It’s almost every story emphasizing the same thing about proper guest-friendship relationships." – Ian [58:09]
  • "Odysseus is always lying…for sport. He’s a very slippery guy. And that’s not a typical hero, even in modern times." – Paul [63:44]
  • "Achilles is a great man, but he's not a good man." – Paul [57:07]

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Timestamps by Major Segment

| Time | Topic / Segment | |------|-----------------| | 04:32 | Arch Manning: Texas Pantheon QB Debate | | 09:30 | Making the Offensive Leap: WR, RB, or TE? | | 14:12 | Craziest Position Switches & Football Fun | | 22:24 | How to Stop Sark’s Offense – Defensive Schemes | | 33:35 | DC Philosophies at Texas: Robinson, Diaz, Orlando | | 44:17 | Historical Cavalry: Comanche, Mongols, and More | | 53:14 | The Odyssey—Book, Movie, and Enduring Lessons |

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Tone & Closing

The episode flows with the hosts’ familiar blend of expertise, irreverence, and deep-dive fandom. They balance blunt critiques, nostalgia, and tactical breakdowns—offering thoughtful perspectives for Longhorns diehards and casual listeners alike. Literary and historical digressions add color and insight without losing the football thread.

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Summary Takeaway

This is one of those vibrant offseason episodes where the hosts blend hardcore Xs & Os, Longhorn lore, and intellectual curiosity. The takeaway: Texas has a chance to make offensive history—and narrative legend—if its talent (and especially Arch Manning) peaks at the right time, but the past teaches that fan memory is as much about the "mythos" as the stats. And, as always, it’s the details and fundamentals—on the field or in myth—that separate the all-time greats.

Transcript

[A]

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[D]

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[A]

Welcome, everyone. Welcome to the Deep Dive Live. I'm Paul Watlington. The gentleman's Ian Boyd. And you know what we like to talk about? We like to talk about Texas football. We like to talk about college football. We like to talk about football in general. But more importantly, we like to talk about gladiatorial combat animal fights. Who would win? What army? What is the latest army that a Roman legion at its peak could still defeat? These are the real questions that we want. And then we have to do it under the artifice that we care about Longhorn sports, but. Ian, how the heck are you?

[D]

I actually have a cold, so I've been really. Yeah, probably people will be able to hear it in my voice. Probably.

[A]

It's actually added a rich timber to your voice.

[D]

It's probably better, and I think people

[A]

will find more attractive. I think you sound like Christian Bale as Batman. Hi, Batman.

[D]

Somebody said it sounded like. Sounded like I've been smoking two packs a day. In the morning, live.

[A]

Well, you. When did you quit smoking? I mean, I'm not talking about cigarettes.

[D]

I never smoked cigarettes.

[A]

I know what you smoke, buddy.

[D]

I did a good cigar every now and then, but it makes me sick.

[A]

Pretty easy. There's a place that you can go and have these riveting conversations that Ian and I are having. You can tell it's the height of the off season. Join Inside Texas for one American dollar. That's four quarters. That's ten dimes. That's eight nickels and eight dimes. Do you see how quickly I could do change in my head? I wasn't even a cashier.

[D]

It's because you're so old.

[A]

It's because I'm so old. Yeah, we had. We had change back in the day. 50 off. And it's the best place to be, guys. It really is. There's no other place that can compare. And there's no other chat that can compare to the deep dive chat. Because you guys indulge our nonsense and you actually feed a lot of it. This guy says, oh, you sucks. This is. We're setting the right tone. Right off the bat, it. You could tell it's July. All right, Ian, are you ready to answer some questions from the good people?

[D]

I'm ready. I'm ready. You've got some more good ones

[A]

versus Andrew Jackson in a fist fight. Andrew Jackson, I'm afraid.

[D]

Yeah, no contest.

[A]

That guy could scrap. No disrespect to Mr. Lee, by the way, but Andrew Jackson, that's not a dude you wanted. That's not a country boy you wanted a piece of, I can tell you that. All right, Ian, read the question for us, please.

[D]

Producers already like trying to yank the leash as hard as you can. All right? If Arch plays like he did down the stretch, we win a Natty and he goes number one. Will he take over as best quarterback ever in the Longhorn pantheon?

[A]

Clarification.

[D]

Zona horn.

[A]

Clarification. Question. Is natty a national championship or a natural light beer? Because that's what we called natty natural light beer back in the day. Natties.

[D]

Well, you call them natty lights, right?

[A]

Yeah. Is that what he means?

[D]

I don't think so.

[A]

Okay. He means a national title.

[D]

I think he means a national championship.

[A]

Okay. I'm here to clarify because not everyone's as quick as you, so. All right, got it. Can I go first or you go first.

[D]

Can I. Let me say just that the nature of how he wins the. The championship would probably matter.

[A]

You think? We win the game 7 to 3, and our defense holds the opponent to 47 yards, and Arch throws three picks.

[D]

Right. That's not part of what hold. Part of why Vince Young is. Is held on such a pedestal is because he won an amazing game in such dramatic fashion where it was very much, Vince Young is winning the game.

[A]

I was there. I saw it. It was amazing. I've never seen anything like it.

[D]

True.

[A]

Okay. Without qualifiers, though, assuming. I'm assuming if we win the national title, Arch played really well. Is that fair?

[D]

Yeah. Yeah.

[A]

Okay, so what do you. What do you reckon, Ian?

[D]

I think it's possible.

[A]

Okay.

[D]

I think it's possible.

[A]

I'm gonna one up you past possible and say yes. An unequivocal yes. Why? Because we will have won the national title against the hardest schedule.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

That a Texas team has ever played and arguably college football team has ever played. Because I'm not talking about the regular season. I'm talking about a potential SEC title game, which will be against the top five opponent. And then we're talking about a playoff run where you're gonna have to beat several highly ranked teams, including probably the second best team in college football, in the title game. So we're in the. Or in the. The game before that.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. So that would be the most. If Texas wins the national championship, that would be the most impressive run of a college football team, arguably, ever, in terms of schedule strength. Therefore, Arch would be the man.

[D]

I still. I still think it could be just a little dicey for people that remember O5 because Vince had to go win in Columbus against the loaded team. And then obviously, the season was, like, kind of a cakewalk.

[A]

See, that's the thing is, like, if you talk to Drew, he'll be like, dude, there were multiple games in a row where we were just like, let's just get to the. Like, let's just get to the title game.

[D]

Yes. Simulate. But then simulate.

[A]

Like,

[D]

the O5 trojans had so much hype.

[A]

Yeah. Greatest team of all.

[D]

Greatest team of all time on ESPN before we even played the game.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

So incredible. I. I think if Arch achieves that, that's going to be the greatest season by Texas quarterback ever. Probably. But I don't know. I don't know if the. Because when you're talking about the pantheon, you're talking about the mythos and how it's perceived in the fan base.

[A]

True.

[D]

I just don't think it's a given that he'll surpass Vince. Although I think it's very possible to

[A]

your point in the power of Myth and sort of what age you were when something happened that's very formative.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

To boomers. James street is the greatest quarterback to ever play at Texas. And he was a very good quarterback within that system. He was super clutch and, like, very charismatic and, like, likable. He wasn't even the best wishbone quarterback at Texas.

[D]

Right.

[A]

Like in terms of proficiency of running that offense. But because he was such, like, kind of a winner and because all this amazing stuff happened under his watch and his leadership, he's just like. If you say any, like, any of these contextual things to a boomer that was there at that time, they're just like, what are you talking about? And it's like, similarly, 10 years later, if you were there when Earl Campbell was at Texas, you don't want to hear about Ricky Williams, like, or Bijan Robinson, like, it's. It's also has to do with your age and sort of what the larger formative sense of yourself was happening at that time as well. Does that make sense?

[D]

Absolutely.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

What's the next question?

[A]

Let's bring it. What would help the most to make the offensive leap? I like this question a lot. I think it's great.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Number one, the run game becoming pretty explosive. Number two, Wingo or Bishop becoming an elite. Number two, number three, a high level dual threat tight end emerging. And that is from the elusive Shadow, a very good poster on Inside Texas.

[D]

Yeah, he's great. Zona Horn. Also, these are from our.

[A]

Not excluding Zona Horn.

[D]

See, our top. Our top minds got to work on this list.

[A]

Our top men got to work on these questions and we feel honored. I love this question because at first I looked at this, I was like, oh, this is easy. And then I was like, no, wait, actually there's. Actually you could make a pretty good justification for several of these. So I'm curious, Ian, what do you think?

[D]

My gut, when you read number two, I was like, it's number two.

[A]

My gut was number two. Can I make a pitch for number three?

[D]

That's the One that I would also pitch for. Go ahead.

[A]

He's at a high level.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

And so what if Townsend, okay, he of 10, 900 meters now, weighs 245 pounds, right. Murders people blocking. Kind of a mean streak. What if that dude catches 70 balls for 900 yards and 12 touchdowns and he just murders people down the seam at the same time, he's a vicious lead blocker and just like wins the freaking. What's the tight end award. I just blanked the Mackie and he wins the Mackie award. And he's like first team All American tight end. Would that guy not be an incredible compliment to our receivers and our run game?

[D]

Yes. Also beyond that, if you think about what's going to translate to beating the best teams in the playoffs, it's us two elite receivers or it's Coleman being what we expect and then having that elite dual threat tight end. That. That's the kind of thing that, like, no matter who you play, that's. You're gonna be able to hang your hat on that.

[A]

Okay, but let's go back with our gut. If Coleman. And we're assuming Coleman is like a good man.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

If Wingo or Bishop is co. Equally the man.

[D]

Yeah. It's over.

[A]

It's over, dude. Because our run game will become explosive because of that.

[D]

Right.

[A]

So Ian and I kind of think that two and three create number one. I'm not trying to speak for you. What do you think, Ian?

[D]

For sure. Also, in. In some sense, 2 and 3 are almost the same thing.

[A]

Well, so someone says in the chat, hey, you got to run the ball to make red zone tragedy. Turnaround. I agree, but you said it says explosive. Explosive means you hit long runs. It doesn't mean you're getting grinding red zone runs and converting third and twos. Explosive means you hand the ball off and you go 70, right?

[D]

Yep. I think that number three probably does more for the red zone than number one. Arguably, number two does more for the red zone than Number one.

[A]

Yeah, I mean, we talked about last week that one of the secrets of Indiana and its efficacy in the red zone was they didn't run the ball into the red zone. They threw the ball for touchdowns in the red zone.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

That's how much they trusted Mendoza and those. Those receivers. So you're allowed to do it. I personally, I prefer to run the ball in the red zone and try to score because there's less opportunity for turnovers. And it gets tight in there.

[B]

Right.

[A]

You have tight windows, but if you can pull it off and I'll tell you one thing about Cam Coleman. You and I watch that on the all 22 because Ian and I, for those of you don't know, we. We watched like every all 22 snap of the Auburn offense, which was one of the most painful things I've ever done relation to football because the offense was so stupid. But Cam Coleman in the red zone is a potential monster if he can get a good quarterback. So this is a great question. I, I think number two or number three is the answer because it creates number one.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

So I think what's more likely though? I think Wing or Bishop becoming an elite number two is more likely.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

Our Titan room's a lot better.

[D]

Maybe even Mosley. Probably not, but maybe could be.

[A]

Well, file that away because I think we may have a question about this. We'll see as we, as we go forward, but there have been some off season reports about Mosley that are rather encouraging. All right, let's move on. What is the craziest position switch, even if temporarily, that you'd like to see? For example, a big man at running back or in the slot. Rick in Houston, Texas. All right. I loved Kaden Proctor. I love DeBoer throwing the ball to Kaden Brocktor. Out, out wide. Did you. Do you remember that? Did you see that?

[D]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

Like trampled the defensive back. That was awesome.

[D]

Yeah, that was pretty great.

[A]

I can tell you a high school trick that people used to do back in the day and people still occasionally do it. You'll see a different level. They would get their best wide out and they break the huddle quickly and sprint to the ball. If it was like say a 12 base personnel offense and one of the. The tight ends would be their best and fastest receiver and then they'd run a tight end vertical because being high school, it's man coverage. And you now have one of your linebackers who runs a 495040 covering their fastest receiver up the scene. So that's a good one. What do you, what do you reckon, Ian?

[D]

I think I want to see something like a smaller guy playing defensive line, which we see now and then. Give me a size like a running back.

[A]

Okay.

[D]

Like a really explosive, powerful dude. Like, I'm trying to think of a really good. They're like Earl Thomas over the center.

[A]

What?

[D]

Just for the opposite dichotomy of like Kaden Proctor catching the ball in space and all these like corners and defensive backs have to take them. I can honestly see what happened if Earl Thomas, if you have to like block Earl Thomas. And you have to get your hands on him. And he's just darting around in the. In the box.

[A]

Are you drunk? Are you taking cough syrup? What's going on?

[D]

No, not yet.

[A]

Okay. What if they run duo? Aren't they gonna drive him off the ball? 37 yards.

[D]

Be more of a passing down kind of thing.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

All right.

[A]

So it's third and 18. I might walk him up, only to drop him back in, like Cover 3 Sky or something. Like, just to give the crazy look and then have him drop. But yeah, I don't know if Kelsey's in the chat. Kelson, would you like to line up at nose tackle and experience that world? I don't know.

[D]

I. I think that Kaden Proctor, I think the huge dude outside at receiver, and you get him the ball and then they have to actually tackle him. That's. I think that's the most fun.

[A]

This is a somewhat related. Not. It's not crazy, but I do like the trend of when we were getting really good defensive tackles to play fullback in the red zone because Byron Murphy, Derek Loki, Roy Miller would murder people. Derek Loki, I have to say, was one of the most murderous blocking backs I've ever seen in red zone. He would kill people because he was a smaller defensive tackle.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

And he had. He was kind of like coordinated. He had good feet. And so guys couldn't olay him. They couldn't matadorm.

[D]

And he was as wide as he was tall.

[A]

He was a refrigerator, basically. Yeah, yeah, yeah. He was. He was a Frigidaire. And just. He would kill people. I loved watching him do that. I'll tell you another one. I'll tell you the thing that's interesting that you mentioned. The small guy, the best and most dominant high school nose tackle, or actually one of the most dominant high school players I've ever seen, was a guy that was 5:10, weighed about 215, and he ran about a 4, 5:40. And he was not skilled enough to sort of like, be a good running back. He did play some running back for them too, but he was just a monster and crazy fast. And at the high school level, like, we weren't big enough to just like mash a guy like that because he was so strong and so fast and he was an amazing nose tackle and he just shot a gap every play. That dude had like 35 tackles for loss. It was. It was amazing.

[D]

You'll still see stuff like that. There's one year when Liberty Hill went to the state final. They had like a 190 pound wrestler as the nose.

[A]

Yep.

[D]

And he would basically just cut the center every play and just create, just make a mess in the middle. Demarco Boyd, remember him? Yeah, he played defensive line at Gilmer a lot as a senior.

[A]

Oh, I bet he was good.

[D]

He's kind of like what you're describing. It was kind of like that or it was kind of like that. D. Dorba at, at, at Highland Park.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

Where they like didn't have the strength at his level of ball. They didn't have the strength and size and athleticism and so to. To handle what he brought there. And so he would, he would create major problems.

[A]

Well, I've talked about it before, I think, but lbj, back in the day, they had a team that went to the final four, LBJ and Austin, and one of the guys was Ray Jackson, who ended up on the Michigan Fab Five. He was one of the Fab Five at Michigan and their power forward was their starting middle linebacker who ended up going to Florida State and being their team captain on their national championship team.

[D]

Well, he was 6.

[A]

He was 6 3, 240 and fast and very coordinated and he could bench press 440 pounds as a high school senior. So imagine the 6 foot 7 power forwards in high school basketball that weigh 195.

[D]

Oh, I see.

[A]

And he would just physically humiliate these guys. Like when he would block them out, he would drive them out to like the half court line. Like it was insane. Right? Yeah. I mean he, it was just like, it was crazy to see. But that doesn't level up to the next level of basketball. Right, but at high school it was. He was devastating.

[D]

Right. So yeah, Frank could have gone, probably could have gone in college too for a little bit against some teams.

[A]

I bet height, height starts to enter in skill, then that 6 foot 7 skinny guy starts to fill out and then you can't abuse him quite as much.

[D]

But Rick Barnes used to get guys like that though, like Dirskin.

[A]

Oh, for sure.

[D]

But that Johnson, that guy was what, six?

[A]

Six?

[D]

Yeah, he was there a little taller. Gary Johnson played it like. There's another one too. That is on the tip of my tongue, but we can go to the next question.

[A]

All right, let's. Before we do that. Oh, what's on the tip of everyone's tongue is the best mortgage guy on the planet. That's Gabe Winslow. You got to reach him at 832-557-1095. Hey, now is a great time to go buy a house. Or if you've got a house refi. And you should say, well, rates aren't like optimal right now. Doesn't matter. There's all sorts of ways that he can structure deals that will make sense to you. And I can't get into all of it for financial disclosure for like financial rules reasons. Call Gabe and pitch him your situation and what you're trying to do. And you would be shocked at some of the things this guy can come up with that really serve you well financially. And the great thing about it is you buy the house, you marry the house, you date the rate, and this is the guy you want to date the rate with. And I've got people, I've got friends who've refied with this guy five, six times over the years. And he's really good at what he does. Reach him at 832-557-1095. Tell him that deep voiced Ian Boyd sent you. Next question.

[D]

I'll read this one.

[A]

Yes.

[D]

You've both been given the job to formulate a defensive game plan to stop the 2026 UT offense, similar to what must champ did for Georgia last year. One, what schemes would you implement to accomplish this goal independent of personnel? Well, that's, you know, it's hard to divorce from personnel. Two, which teams, which teams on the schedule next year have the personnel best suited to pull off your plan? This comes from Fig Nuts.

[A]

Fig nuts, huh? All right. Okay. We've been asked to formulate a defensive game plan for a major college football team. First of all, I'm honored. Secondly, what are we being paid, Ian? What's our consulting fee?

[D]

Oh, let's go for one game.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

And we both work on it.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

So we gotta split it. So I don't know, 80?

[A]

Yeah, I was gonna say 75k. I like your ambition. We're gonna ask for 80, but settle for 75. Deal. We'd both do it for free. That's the truth.

[D]

All right.

[A]

I would play PK defense. I would play cover four. I would back everyone off. I would do drop eight type stuff. And then every now and then I would bring the house and like a jail blitz to like to, to sort of change it up and mess up the rhythm. But yeah, I would prove that we could stubbornly run the ball or execute like a 12 play, 80 yard drive. Just moving down the field with like 10 yard chain movers and running the ball. I would make Texas prove they could do that on a couple of consecutive drives. If they do that and we're down 14 nothing, I might be out of ideas and we might get blown out. What do you think, Ian?

[D]

You know what's funny is that that's how they beat Oklahoma. Oh, yeah, they can, they can do it. And they maybe even be really good at it this year because Manning is so much more experienced now and he's such a. It's hard to stop him on third down because he will use the check down on time. He will scramble. I think that's the right answer though. Maybe like even the Iowa State flyover, where you're just like, we're gonna make you beat us all the way down the field and convert in the red zone. Yeah.

[A]

The thing about Iowa State at its best, and we've seen Iowa State also get lit up a few times too.

[D]

Right.

[A]

But at its best, they would show you like a four man box, like a five man box. And it's like we're running the ball, we're getting 10 yards and guys would sprint downhill at the snap and hit the gap and you're like, how is it 2nd and 11? This makes no sense. Like, and they were really good at sort of the guessing and every now and then. But because by alignment they were so back, you'd be like, we're not throwing the ball deep. It's going to be intercepted. Right. And so they were so good at that when it was like peak Iowa State defenses when, when he was really dialed in with the right personnel and they had like the big linebackers, the big safeties that could also kind of COVID because Iowa State really liked tall safeties. Did you, did you notice that, like when they could, they would get like 6 foot 4 safeties and just post them back and be like, try to throw it over his head. Yeah, yeah. I, I kind of think that might be the move for Sark. And it has frustrated in the past, but we have seen Stark stubbornly just hand off the ball like nine times in a row when he sees that kind of defense.

[D]

I'll be really curious to see if we draw Oregon this year and they still do what they did last year. Because last year they did a four down version of it with the. They had a white Big Ten transfer safety in the middle. It was like a deep Tampa 2 middle linebacker.

[A]

Every playman from Purdue.

[D]

And they got another one to replace him.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

Which is really funny to me.

[A]

Oh, Koi Parish.

[D]

Yeah. Koi Perich, who's really. He was really well regarded in recruiting actually, but for like a white Big Ten guy. But that, that one could be trouble. I think we've Seen that slow up start Sark a few times in the past. Also he figured out how to beat Iowa State a few times but his methods for doing so was like, well, we're just gonna have to sustain drives and win a lower scoring game. Yeah, so that, that, that sounds good to me if I'm a defensive coach.

[A]

Agree him you're in the game. Yeah, yeah, yeah. That's. That's kind of what you want to be. A lot of people might say well like let's get aggressive, let's blitz Texas, they have O line problems last year. Let's test that. But if you guys watch the deep dive. What we covered was actually teams didn't blitz us and got a lot of pressure. They were just running for me and like line stunts and if they brought extra men, it's pretty rare.

[D]

Drop somebody else out too.

[A]

They were dropping someone out and what they kept doing though was attacking left guard and they kept attacking that center guard combo with stunts and TEs and replacement games and all that. So just because we were getting a bunch of pressure, I think Joe fan sees that on TV and thinks oh, they're blitzing. They were not blitzing. And that's what makes it all more sad. That's why, that's why Arch Manning was still holding the ball and not hitting a hot route because there was no hot route.

[D]

I think the anti blitz weapons this year are going to be pretty formidable too.

[A]

I would be pretty scared to blitz Texas a lot.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Especially if we get Jermaine Bishop out on the field.

[D]

I. Yeah, I mean Townsend and a screen could be huge trouble.

[A]

Relique Brown on a little Texas route.

[D]

Relique freaking Brown. Hollywood Smothers too. Is not going to be like that fun either. Not or like your blitz. Does your blitz involve one on one coverage with Coleman?

[A]

Firstly, are you blitzing and we can time Wingo on a swing pass.

[D]

Yeah, that's.

[A]

And he's in a single. Like you have a dude 185 pound corner whose job it is to tackle Wingo in the flat and if he doesn't it goes 70. Like those aren't great percentages to me as a defensive coordinator. So yeah, I would, I would pay play very conservative Texas. You know, show me that you can move up and down the field and then obviously in the red zone I'm gonna tighten up. So which teams on the schedule next year have the best personnel best suited to pull this off? The Ohio State Buckeyes.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

Last year.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

Anyone else you could think of?

[D]

I did this whole exercise in articles earlier this year.

[A]

Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't read them.

[D]

I'm trying to. Well, I. I thought I read them, but I'm trying to remember what teams maybe won't. Yeah, that's not really their thing. Right.

[A]

That's not their thing.

[D]

Tennessee might do that.

[A]

Knowles could do that.

[D]

Knowles could do that.

[A]

Knowles might do that. Who else?

[D]

I don't really know Sumrall's philosophy that he could be. He might be in that camp too.

[A]

Kentucky. Kentucky would do that. But they're not. Mississippi State. They don't have the personnel. I don't think they have one good corner who's actually good at kind of that off coverage stuff. Because he's 6 4.

[D]

Oh, that's right.

[A]

Kelly Jones.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Oklahoma. No, Venables can't help himself. He will do that occasionally.

[D]

Yes, he will.

[A]

He will. I mean, there's no doubt. But he gets nervous and antsy if you start, like, driving the ball and he's like, we're gonna run replacement games and we're gonna blitz. Right. Let's see who else.

[D]

They don't. That's not. That's not how they play.

[A]

That's not their bag man.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Frankly, I thought they defended us pretty well for most of the game last year. And then the. The dam kind of broke.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

Ms. Golding. Yes. Possibly.

[D]

Possibly. Go. Golding likes to. He. He'll play conservative on the back while doing wild stuff up front.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

Which is maybe a good idea against Sark.

[A]

It's not a bad idea against our O line based on what people saw last year. But if our O line cleans that kind of stuff up, I'm telling you, as a defense, you're in trouble if you're running a lot of exotic nonsense because we will catch you. And it's not gonna be Trey Wisner getting nine yards. It's gonna be Relique or Hollywood Smethers or Derek Cooper, who. Actually, it's funny, we have this perception of Derek Cooper's the power back because he's a big strong guy. He's got better top end speed than both Relique Brown and Hollywood's mothers. Those guys are super quick and they're fast and they accelerate. But, I mean, did you. Did you watch, like, a lot of Relik Brown or Hollywood Smothers stuff?

[D]

Oh, yeah, some. For sure.

[A]

I mean, they get caught from behind, right? Derek Cooper, if that dude gets moving, I think he's like Breeze hall at Iowa State, like, big back and. But once he gets going you're not making up ground on that dude. Like, he's gone. He gone. So, yeah, we've got several backs that if you play a lot of little games up front, you might have to pay a toll for that. And it's not going to be a not, you know, a six yard CJ Baxter run where someone touches his shoe and he falls to the ground.

[D]

Right.

[A]

All right.

[D]

He's a 10, 7 guy in the 100 meter. That is fast.

[A]

That is booking, man.

[D]

That's. That's. That's like a four. Four, basically.

[A]

I mean, for a guy that big, that's legit.

[D]

Yep, absolutely. I love that comp. That's a great comp.

[A]

Yeah, it. It is. I have to pat myself on the back for that comp. That's. That's who he is, basically. All right, let's move on. Oh, this is a very ornate question here. Can you read it, Ian? It's actually. I probably would have to put on my readers to pull this off correctly.

[D]

I got you, old man.

[A]

Thanks, buddy.

[D]

If Greg Robinson hadn't left for syracuse after the 2004 season, would he all have also succumbed to the Diaz Orlando curse in 2005? All three DCs had great year ones, using exotic, gimmicky schemes with players lined up all over the place and weird blitzes that confused offenses. But for both Diaz and Orlando, it was just a matter of time until OCS figured out their systems and our defensive fundamentals regressed due to the focus on scheme over basics. So would the same thing have happened to Robinson too? Or would have been able to do what the other two couldn't by also maintaining strong fundamentals like he did in both of his DC stints, 2004, 2013? Or put it another way, had Robinson returned 405 if we had still won the national championship? Or would our defense have had a similar year to your aggression meltdown?

[A]

Okay, so another fine poster on Inside Texas. Interesting question. I actually have opinions about this, J.C. denton. I disagree with the premise of your question, sir. So Greg Robinson was a very meat and potatoes basic coordinator. We are going to play a couple of defenses and we're going to play them correctly. So he was not doing a lot of exotic blitzes and a lot of other stuff.

[D]

Right.

[A]

So I would disagree with that description. Manny Diaz and Orlando are very different. Manny Diaz is a good defensive coordinator who has been a good defensive coordinator at every place he's ever coached. And he's coached like nine different defenses. Right?

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

His fundamental issue at Texas was late Stage Mac Brown. Mac Brown didn't allow hitting. They were not physical. I mean, I. I know this for a fact because at that time when I was writing at Barking Carnival,

[D]

we

[A]

reached out to Manny Diaz and basically talked to him, and he was very non defensive and very cool and basically kind of said, this is what's going on. So I think I can real. I think the statute of limitations on that is painful past, so we can talk about that. But Manny Diaz has been a very successful and a very good coordinator at a bunch of other places. We submarine. We submarined him more than he submarined us. And I know people watch that BYU game and they're, like, utterly disgusted, but that was a consequence of Manny Diaz not being allowed to run practice the way he wanted, not being allowed to come coach personnel the way he wanted, etc. Etc. And.

[D]

And even the scheme.

[A]

Well, he had a snake in his own room that was. Yeah, that was working against him. And that doesn't work as a football team. Everybody's got to be on the same page. So that's how I feel about Vanny Diaz. Orlando. I was out on Orlando the earliest of any person in Longhorn Internet them, because I could see that it was all choreographed. And the more he tried to take control of every movement of every defensive player and not actually teach them the game, the more I realized it was going to fail. Even when he was still doing okay, like, and people were trying to be like, I don't know what's going on with the defense. Like, I know Orlando is awesome, right? Orlando, to his credit, has since changed some. I saw him at USF last year. I don't know where he is now, but he had changed up some stuff, and I think did some reflection that he wasn't doing a good job, but he was overly intricate and overly controlling and trying to, like. He was trying to, like, control everything from the sideline. And that's not how defensive football works. You've got to teach the guys the game and trust them to make some adjustments on the field, too. So those are my thoughts. What are your thoughts here?

[D]

We had another statue of limitations thing. I remember when the. When the new coaches came in in 2020, the linebackers had no idea how to take on blocks or what gaps to play or how to, like, read a gap. They'd be like, all right, what's my gap? And they'd be like, well, if you see this, you're gonna fit here. If you see this, you're gonna fit here. And the linebacker would be like, What?

[A]

What are you talking about? Before the snap, I'm supposed to fire into this gap. That's all they knew.

[D]

Yeah, yeah, they. The. All the. That 2019 team, everyone in the secondary got injured because they were teaching garbage tackling. They were teaching them to just like launch heedlessly and recklessly into people as hard and fast as they could.

[A]

Yep.

[D]

One of the DBs even tweeted about it and then it had to delete his. He was. Took his tweet down,

[A]

put a shoulder into people.

[D]

Yeah, they had really bad fundamentals.

[A]

Yeah, it was bad because I think Orlando got so caught up in the macro of the game, he forgot that defense is actually played in the micro. Once you get a basically decent scheme, right, I mean, obviously you're playing a stupid scheme. The macro matters. Don't run a 6:1 against a 5 wide spread because every time you don't get a sack, it's a touchdown. But beyond that, you got to teach people how to play the game of football on defense.

[D]

He also. I don't know that people even necessarily caught on because a lot of his. Like, what. What beat them? Wasn't the blitzes not getting there? Like, people would be like, oh, our blitzes never get there. If you would, like, watch them from 2018, 2019, and you, like, set a stopwatch, you'd be like, these blitzes are all getting there. But the quarterback always knows where to go with the ball.

[A]

Yes.

[D]

And we would get beat outside and they would get to the quarterback within like three seconds almost every time.

[A]

But, well, it really fell apart because you remember in year one of Orlando, people could not run on us.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Do you remember how, like, amazing we were in that tight front and just bouncing everything out to Malik Jefferson and Gary Johnson, who. Yeah, Malik played great that year. Like, he was awesome.

[B]

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[A]

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[A]

once people figured it out, we had no counters. Like do you remember Oklahoma State just running the ball on us and West Virginia running the ball on us at will. Like they would target our nickel over and over. And that's when I coined the term super nickel because I was like Orlando's requirements for the nickel are unrealistic. Like he has to carry up the slot, he has to be in man coverage, he has to like stop hot rods in the blitz and he has to be our best run defender against like a pulling guard. Like no, this doesn't work. So yeah. So back to the question. Gene Chisk was I think kind of a good meat and potatoes defensive coordinator for that era and I know the players liked him in 2005, but we were not doing a lot of complex stuff. We just had a really good, talented defense and we didn't.

[D]

And like so we had Drew Kelson wrote a guest post on Inside Texas once like eight years ago. Or he was like, he said he was watching the defense and he was like they need to do stack four check. And so he was like, he was like Chiswick taught them this like base defense, stack four check.

[A]

Yep.

[D]

That they could do in their sleep. And he would throw exotic stuff out there for different opponents. But anytime the players started to get lost or they had any trouble. Yes, back, back to base, just stack four check, stack for check.

[A]

And then right before the snap. Do you remember we would do the pre snap shift on the D line under Chiswick?

[D]

Yes, yes.

[A]

And that was part of it. We were moving and that kind of messed up the blocks but we were still in our base defense. Like nothing, literally, literally nothing had changed. So also our defense had really good personnel.

[D]

Like yeah, 2005 was not going to be bad for anybody because Ian and

[A]

I could have that D. Like yeah, we would have been fine. Yeah, yeah. I mean by the way, I will say USC game played us really well, because I was, I was at that game and they were lighting us up in that second half. I can tell you that was the

[D]

last time I watched it. I was like, you know what? I think if they had just thrown more to the fullback and tied in from the beginning on our linebackers, they might have boat raced us.

[A]

Their fullbacks killed us. Yeah, they had those two fullbacks. They had two Hancock and Bird, I think. No, no, it was the guy that Cedric Griffin knocked on, almost knocked unconscious on like the second Dominic Bird.

[C]

That.

[D]

Not it.

[A]

He was a tight end, I think. Oh, I'll have to go look it up. But they had four catches for 66 yards in that game.

[D]

You're right.

[A]

Like, yeah, every time they threw the fullbacks, it went for like 17 yards. We were like, oh, no. But yeah, I gotta say, they dialed us in on, on offense in that game. That was a incredible game.

[D]

Could understand why they wouldn't want to do that because they had all these legends at the skill positions, but we couldn't cover their. We couldn't cover their underneath play action crossers and rollouts to the fullbacks and the tight ends because. And tackle Lindell White and track Reggie Bush and cover Steve Smith or whoever. And.

[A]

And I'll tell you, man, seeing him in person, Matt Leiner, I don't care about his NFL career. That guy was an awesome college quarterback.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Super accurate and a bigger guy than I think you think. Like he could stand in the pocket pretty strong and like, see. So yeah, liner. Seeing him in person impressed me. Very accurate. What else we got? All right, in the spirit of last week, who are the Calvary contemporaries to the Comanche nation at their peak dominance? From Mason Puncher. Interesting question. So here's the thing about the Comanches. If you were out on the Texas frontier, Ian's like, here's the thing about the Comanches Texas frontier in the 1850s, and it was a moonlit night and you're coming back to your cabin in Fredericksburg and you look out and you see a Comanche war party. Your life is about to change for the worse in a very significant way. And some terrible things about to happen to you and your family. And the Comanches themselves were absolutely ruthless, very dangerous individual fighters and sort of raiders. But I don't think people fully appreciate how few Comanches there were.

[D]

And what makes them so amazing is that they're like less than a hundred thousand and they ruled like a quarter of the United States for 100 years or something.

[A]

Oh, not even they were like 30, 40,000.

[D]

Yeah, I knew I couldn't remember the number.

[A]

And so their biggest raid, though. Ian. But the thing about the Comanches that they had, there was no the Comanches. It was a bunch of sub tribes and they were constantly fighting each other. Very quarrelsome and they struggled to organize. So the biggest Comanche raid in Texas history happened in 1840, and it was a thousand Comanches. A thousand. So when you're talking about who are the cavalry contemporaries of the Comanche, the Comanche aren't a blip in world history compared to like 15 centuries of Asian horse barbarians. Mongols, Huns, Tatars, Seljuk, Turks, like, these are people. Mass mobilization, mass scale. And I think I wrote a response in the Post and inside Texas this question. And at their height, the Mongol empire was simultaneously inviting invading Poland and Korea at the same time. Get out a map and put your finger on Korea and then take your other finger and trace it all the way to Central Europe and Poland and consider that the Mongols were controlling more or less everything in between there to some degree. The Comanches were ultimately taken down over about 20 years of campaigning by a handful of Texas Rangers, some Tonkawa scouts, and about 1200 federal troops.

[D]

Yep.

[A]

They took down the Comanche nation.

[D]

So it took a while before the nation was able to give it them their full attention. Yeah.

[A]

Well, and Texans, you know.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

But I can tell you this. If you were a little tiny town or a settlement and it's a Comanche moon, there's a reason they call it that. And you look out and you see 30 guys on war ponies all decked out and looking for problems. You're about to have. You're about to have a real bad night.

[D]

You should consider shooting your family.

[A]

You should consider killing your family and yourself.

[D]

Yep. Unmorally. I don't know about that, but we're not recommending that. But it would be an understandable decision. Here's. Here's the thing about the other thing about the Comanche, though, is that their horsemanship and their ability to shoot and fight from horseback is comparable to just like about anybody. All. Although if they fought any of these other people you're talking about, there's. There. It's like they have Stone Age weapons.

[A]

Yeah. So here's the thing. Comanches didn't have compound bows. One thing that people don't fully appreciate, and this is the case in every situation, whenever Native Americans, Indians, East Coast Indians, the Iroquois. I'm Talking about like 18th century, 17th century, Comanche on the plane, Apache, whoever. Whenever they could adopt firearms over bows, they would do so even when there were muzzleloaders. Like the Iroquois actually became very good shots and like good, good snipers. The reason is the killing power of gunpowder weapons. There's lots of accounts of people on the prairie who were shot, you know, like had nine arrows in them and would drag themselves home and still survive. You don't take nine shots from a cult revolver and so drag yourself home.

[D]

Right. So what made them so great wasn't necessarily their fighting, but the fact that they could hit you. And then they were so mobile and they understood the planes and how to ride and how to move around in the planes. So like tracking them down was like impossible it.

[A]

So that's why the Tonka was scouts that I mentioned were so crucial. So the Tonka was in Comanche were blocked blood enemies. Long before there were Texan settlers, everybody were blood enemies. The Comanches were absolutely ruthless and. But with the Tonkawa, Comanche attempted to exterminate the Tonkawa and basically almost did so by the time Texas had got settled by Anglo settlers and won its independence and all that, there are 200, 300 tonkoa left. And so they despise the Comanches. And those Tonka was scouts were crucial in taking the Texas Rangers and federal troops out into Comancheria in West Texas. And you think of it as flat and like, you can't hide there. It's all arroyos and canyons and little readouts. And if you don't know where you're going, you're going to get ambushed and murdered. And they would.

[D]

They would like double back and like steal your horses in the night and leave you to die.

[A]

Your horses, now you're with out horses and then they, at the leisure, they would come in and kill you.

[D]

So the other fun thing we have to mention is that they had this advantage where European settlers had already moved past armor and iron weapons and all that and moved into gunpowder. So they weren't wearing armor when the l. They come in with the lance or the bow and arrow or whatever.

[A]

Yep.

[D]

But the Rangers figured out, I think maybe during that big 1840 raid, some of the Comanches got intercepted by the rangers and like 30 rangers charged into all the Comanche and the Comanche like, stupid. Here we go again. Take these guys out. And what they didn't know was that the Rangers had armed themselves with a new thing called the revolver.

[A]

The cult revolver is.

[D]

Yeah. And so finally they were able to fight on horseback to Horseback, rather than trying to dismount and shoot these guys on the move, which is impossible. And they just rode in amongst them.

[A]

And so what most people don't realize is Calvary as we understood it for most of its existence, even in the, in the Gunpowder age, were actually what they call dragoons. And dragoons are mounted soldiers who get off their horses and fight. Then they get back on their horses and they, and they use the horses for mobility. That's how Texas Rangers fought until the Colt revolver. And then on the revolver you could now fight on horseback. And that was a huge advantage because you have killing power. And also it's hard to shoot a rifle on horseback.

[D]

Right.

[A]

And a pistol really is a close up weapon. You know, you're not sharpshooting, you're getting close to people. Instead of stabbing with a lance, you're just shooting them with a pistol. So that was a big factor. Technology. All right, next. Can you talk about the Odyssey today or should we wait till next week after you see the movie from Utah Horn, Another great poster on Inside Texas where you should all join us maybe movie. Ian, what do you reckon?

[D]

I'm gonna see it. I'm not seeing it yet. Is. It's not out yet, right? Does it come out like it's out?

[A]

Yeah, I'm gonna see it.

[D]

I'm gonna see it Monday. Maybe we can circle back. I did actually just listen to a translation a couple weeks ago, so it's pretty fresh for me. I didn't really, I didn't remember from college or whenever the last time I read it that the whole like last third act is him coming home,

[A]

planning the slaughter of his. The suitors. Penelope Suitors. Right.

[D]

I remember like the TV version and like different versions I've seen. By the time he gets home, it's pretty fast. And they do like the air, the bending of the bow thing and then that's it.

[A]

And the book, the really touching part is where he sees his dog that he had raised as a puppy that he absolutely loved. Odysseus. And then he sees his dog laying on a dung heap like beaten and treated horribly while he's been gone. And it's any. The dog recognizes him. And so, yeah, he comforts his dog as it dies. And the dog's last memory is seeing his master again. Woodcrest says, sing it Saturday. And Max IMAX 70 mil. Dude, that's brilliant. That's. That's how you got to see this. Yeah, I, I think it's great. I loved Odysseus even like when I read it As a kid. Then I studied it again in college in a civil classics class. It's, it's an amazing story. I much prefer it to the Iliad, actually.

[D]

Yeah. There's so much to it.

[A]

And I think that Odysseus is one of the greatest characters in, like, all of literature. Like, incredibly charismatic, brave, smart, devious, but also very flawed. Like, his curiosity gets his men killed all the time. Right. Yeah, he just has this insatiable curiosity of like, hey, there's a giant cave and hey, let's go in the cave and explore. Oh, there's a Cyclops, like, you know,

[D]

just like, oh, let's see if they'll give me a guest friendship gift.

[A]

Yeah, exactly. That's an amazing tale. And you know what part I'd forgotten? Ian?

[D]

No, I, I, there's a couple parts I had forgotten when I just listened to it, but I can't remember.

[A]

Goes to Haynes.

[D]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

Killes his ghost, his shade. And Achilles, in one of the greatest, like, turns in Greek history, which is obsessed with heroism and all that, says, none of it was worth it. Achilles is like, had I now been given a choice between living my life as a serf and just living a long life, or this, I would have preferred to just live as a serf. Like, heroism is a lie. It's all like being dead in Hades is the worst thing in the world. And it's like this great turn of Greek tragedy which is like the celebration of pros and all that. And he offers this counterpoint saying, none of this is worth it. Right.

[D]

What if, like, his whole point in going to Troy is that he, he knew he would die, but he knew he'd be remembered for taking part in this great event. And then he's in being like, I chose wrong.

[A]

So in the mythology, he's given a choice as a young man.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Would you like to live for almost, you know, like a happy life in obscurity? Would you like to, like, shine, you know, burn bright and then explode, you know, in your 20s? And he's like, I want the glory. He's a young man. And then he goes and lives that and goes. He's effectively sent to hell because Achilles is a great man, but he's not a good man.

[D]

Right. Well, they don't have heaven.

[A]

No. But I mean, Hades is sort of a stand in for combination purgatory, slash hellish, I guess. It's not a good existence.

[D]

They all, everyone goes there, though.

[A]

True. But I think, aren't there different types of. Yeah, so, yeah, Achilles didn't get a great one, I guess is the sense. So I don't know, maybe I'm out of my depth there, but it's an interesting turn and it's similar to the Iliad in which the Greeks, the Achaeans are the good guys, right. In a sense, like Homer's a Greek. The most noble, like likable person in the whole Iliad is Hector, who's like a really good guy, right?

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

And he's disgraced and like his body's abused. And you, turns out Achilles is who like you're supposed to look up to is kind of a jerk, right?

[D]

A little bit.

[A]

As Norman McDonald would say, the more I learn about this Achilles fella, he's kind of a jerk.

[D]

I, I am struck by the themes of the Odyssey when I, when I listen to it. It's. Almost every story is emphasizing the same thing about proper guest friendship relationships.

[A]

Xenia is what the Greeks called it.

[D]

How, how, how you treat people when they, when they wander into your domicile and how you treat people when you're the wanderer. What you do and you don't do.

[A]

But do you know why?

[D]

What?

[A]

Well, so it's always emphasized as to why and it's self interested. You never know when you might encounter a God.

[D]

Right.

[A]

Because the Greek gods like to come down and like wander around and you know, Zeus likes like mate with mortal women.

[D]

Right.

[A]

And the gods like to like play around and interfere. Even Athena likes to come down and like watch battles.

[D]

Right.

[A]

And so the thing was treat people well because you never know who might be a God. It's not like because all humanity has equal value or something like that. It's like, yeah, that was a funny like, caveat.

[D]

Right.

[A]

But it is all about right behavior, right?

[D]

Yeah. Yeah. And I, I wonder what I, I have concerns about how Nolan will. What he's looking for in the story, what he seeks, what he thinks the story is saying. I mean, I'm very interested to see what he thinks the main theme is, but it's. That's. I don't know if he's going to capture that same Xenia thing or a modern equivalent. He may have something else in mind and maybe that's okay, but if it may not be a very faithful adaptation, then I worry about. He's obviously chose to lean into like this is going to be grounded in being like very modern seeming.

[A]

Yeah.

[D]

I got all American actors that are. You're never going to see doing Shakespeare, like Matt Damon. Matt Damon is like the ultimate like fun guy. To hang out with. Not a period piece actor.

[A]

He's very American.

[D]

Very. I'm so American, so normal. And so I wonder. It sounds like it's working. It sounds like. It sounds like it worked.

[A]

So I think that's a smart choice because we have a belief that the classics should only be played by, like, stuffy British actors.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

But in that world. And people are like, I remember they were kind of criticizing the film, and there's some stuff about the film I'm a little concerned about, I'll be honest.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

But people were criticizing that. There's a scene where Tom Holland, Spider man is like, my dad's coming home.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

I'd be like, oh, no one would say that. And it's like, yeah, they would say that. They had. They. They didn't. Father, I shall. Like, people back then had, like, dad. Like, there was an equivalent of that, too. Like, you had formal words, and then you also had informal words. Like, people have always done that. So that doesn't, like, destroy everything. And I think he wanted the dialogue to be more approachable. Now you can go too far and make it stupid. Like, I don't want to see an iPhone in the film or something. You know what I mean? Like. Like, don't take me completely out of it. Or don't have him say, like, that's cool, or something like that.

[D]

Right.

[A]

You ever read the old, like, biblical. Things like that are supposed to be approachable. Like when you're a kid and it's like, wow, said Jesus, you know, you're like, no, I don't think this is, like, this is a little too far to make it approachable.

[D]

Right. I use those every now and then just to. If something. If something's like, agricultural metaphor that goes over my head sometimes, I'll look at the. The message or whatever and be like, yeah, so who. Some assume I'm stupid on this, because I am. What should this say if I'm stupid? And then it's helpful. But, yeah, it takes the grandeur out of it. Yeah.

[A]

And I think that's. It's supposed to be a gritty story. I mean, it's. At his core is a minor, minor king. That's one of the key points of that story and the Odyssey is that this is an age of epic heroes, and even ancient Greeks would recognize the value of certain kingdoms. Right. Ithaca is a backwater. It's nothing. The fact that he's elevated is proof of, like, he. His incredible abilities.

[D]

Right.

[A]

His competence.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

But he's also very earthy, like, he's grounded. He's not like this high faluting, big speechifying kind of guy.

[D]

But he's also.

[A]

Go ahead.

[D]

There's a great part in the story that I had forgotten about, where he lands in Faisha. The people that eventually get him home, and they're like doing like, games and stuff to celebrate having a guest friend amongst them, a new guest friend. And one of these guys is like, I wonder what this, this guy is and what his real story is. And he starts, like, taunting him and he's like, I bet you can't wrestle or throw javelins or shoot bows. And, you know, if you could, you would test yourself against us. Right. This gets all pissed off.

[A]

Yep.

[D]

And he totally responds like, like Anthony Edwards on a basketball court or something.

[A]

Yes.

[D]

Give me one of those. He like, grabs the javelin and like, throws it like 100 yards farther than anybody else.

[A]

Dominates. Yeah.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

Well, another thing about Odysseus that's funny is he's constantly lying. Partly to protect himself or to protect his men, but also he lies for sport.

[D]

He lies poker all the time.

[A]

He's constantly, like, never telling anyone what his angle is. He's a very slippery guy. And that's not a typical hero, even in modern times. Like, it's. It's kind of almost from like the other legends of, like, you know, the Native Americans have like the trickster coyote. Right. Or Polynesians have Maui. Yeah. Who is actually, they depict him as like Dwayne Johnson and all ripped, but he was actually in, like, Polynesian legend, like a trickster and, like, very clever. And so Odysseus is a different type of hero. Achilles is, like, very impressive and everybody wants to be him, but he's kind of a brute and he's a big baby and he's like, super emotional.

[D]

Right.

[A]

Odysseus is, like, always has a freaking angle. Like, he's like, very canny. And that's like. That's not a typical hero in that sense, which is why I love him. I. I think he's, like, really charismatic. At the same time, though, when you start to forget he's a badass warrior, he reminds you like, like slaughtering 102 suitors with his bare hands for disgracing his palace.

[D]

So Damon, Damon is a good choice for that because Damon has that same. He's usually comes across as smart, but he can be physical. Yeah, I think trt for this too. So he looks pretty jacked.

[A]

Well, I'd forgotten in the Odyssey too, that Odysseus comes back Relays his plan to his son. They reunite, tears everywhere. And then two faithful servants are in on this plot, right?

[D]

Yep.

[A]

It's like, well, there's only four of us. We're gonna be able to kill 102 guys. And Odysseus is like, I'm a hero. I've killed a lot more men than that. And they're like, oh, okay. Like, sometimes we forget because you're clever and smart and like. Like, wordplay that you're kind of a ruthless badass and, like, you don't want to cross Odysseus.

[D]

So Athena, which helps a lot, having a thing.

[A]

And Athena, like, really digs Odysseus, by the way, multiple really hot women are into Odysseus throughout this episode.

[D]

Epic. It's. It's. It's kind of. It's. You really see the difference in the times and the ethics.

[A]

Oh, yeah.

[D]

Penelope is, like, praised for staying true to Odysseus the whole time.

[A]

Fidelity. Like, her fidelity.

[D]

And then he's out there like, well, I gotta sleep with Cersei now and compels me to bed every night. And.

[A]

Well, and the crazy thing is, they're also like, oh, he adores Penelope. He can't wait to get back to her.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

But also, yeah, of course I'm gonna sleep with these hot women. Cool, right? But I still love my wife. I don't know. You know, men can relate to that ethic a little better than women, probably, but, yeah, I mean, I'm looking forward to it. I. I will be crushed if it's bad. I will be not happy. I will go on the war path. But I'm hoping. I really respect Nolan, and I think he can pull it off. So we'll see.

[D]

I. I've seen people that I trust that have said, he's really. He did it. He did it. Right? So.

[A]

Good deal. All right, folks, you could join us for our outstanding movie reviews and musings about Greek mythology and its reflection on the human condition at Inside Texas. Also, actually, we write more about sports and Texas sports there. That's really why you should join us. $1 50 off for the rest of your. It's a great flash sale. Come join us. You'll be a part of the best conversation on the Longhorn Internet. And some nice things said in the chat. Someone said, you two guys together are great. We agree. All right. That's been the deep dive. Thanks all for joining. We'll see you next week.

[C]

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