Bill Belichick’s Exit Strategy and Football in the State of Texas

Summary

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Ringer Tailgate — Episode Summary

Episode: Bill Belichick’s Exit Strategy and Football in the State of Texas
Hosts: Tate Frazier, Van Lathan, Joel Anderson
Date: October 9, 2025

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Overview

This episode of Ringer Tailgate dives deep into the brewing crisis at North Carolina under Bill Belichick, speculating about his possible exit and what his disastrous college experiment means for his legacy. The crew also examines the state of football in Texas, the rise of other programs, and breaks down the most compelling games and storylines from the past week in college football. As always, the conversation is lively, sharp, and anchored in both insider knowledge and riotous banter.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Bill Belichick’s UNC Debacle: Rumors of an Exit ([03:04]–[20:46])

• Reports of Dysfunction:
  The episode opens with the hosts discussing rampant rumors of Belichick’s potential exit from North Carolina after just six games, following reports of a toxic program culture, parents’ complaints, coach suspensions (e.g., Freddy Kitchens), and possible NCAA violations.
  • “This is a debacle. This is embarrassing. ... If anything, forget what happens on the field, you’d expect culture and discipline to exist at North Carolina. It’s Bill Belichick! ... And it’s the Bad News fucking Bears over there.” — Van Lathan ([06:06])
• Media and the Feedback Loop:
  Tate suggests Belichick’s closed-off, arrogant attitude toward the media has come back to bite him:
  • “There’s nothing more dangerous than a writer whose feelings have been hurt... and when you lose football games, they are going to write every single thing terrible about what is going on.” — Tate Frazier ([07:54])
• Van and Joel’s Take:
  The consensus is Belichick’s approach—not just the losing, but his arrogance and indifference to college football’s unique pressures—proved fatal.
  • “They thought they were going to the minor leagues … cash money. This is a totally different sport. … You have to deal with parents. … This awakening has been too rude for Belichick.” — [Paraphrased from 09:59–10:28]
• Why Did He Take the Job?
  The crew speculates Belichick was motivated by money, post-NFL relevance, and—most compellingly—the chance to secure coaching opportunities for his sons.
  • “He has two sons. When Belichick moves on from football, who’s going to hire them? ... This is a way…to help get them placed, make a little money, work together, hang out for a year. But they forgot they were going to have to win.” — Joel Anderson ([15:12])
• Legacy Consequences:
  Lathan and Anderson debate whether Belichick’s collapse will stain his legend:
  • “He is doing some type of damage to his legacy, the way his coaching career is going out.” — Van Lathan ([18:35])

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2. State of Texas Football: Who’s Up, Who’s Down ([26:57]–[43:26])

• Texas and Sark’s Struggles:
  Joel questions Steve Sarkisian’s future after Texas falls to being perhaps third-best in their own state (“never a good thing when you start seeing yourself in those social media memes” — Joel, [27:04]).
  • The crew lists Texas’s chronic underachievement—one national title since desegregation, two conference titles in 15 years.
  • “This is very Texas football. I’m enjoying it. This is fundamentally who they are. They’re soft.” — Joel ([37:21])
• Steve Sarkisian’s Excuses:
  The hosts mock Sark’s defense of his record (“Have them go play at Ohio State and at the Swamp, see how they do.”), interpreting it as a sign of resignation and mediocrity.
  • “That’s not what you want to hear from him ... Texas is a team and a program that’s supposed to dominate their opposition.” — Van ([34:34-36:12])
• Texas Tech’s New Era:
  Tech’s portal success and 5-0 start is cited as proof of concept for college football’s evolving “professional” model—with Lubbock’s quirks recalled fondly in an extended, raucous tangent.
  • “They are a professional college football team, and they are the first proof of concept that the professional model ... can be done to that degree.” — Van ([38:22])
• Cultural Notes:
  The segment is peppered with references to Texas culture, barbecue, and personal anecdotes from the hosts, lending flavor to the analysis.

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3. Heisman Watch: Start, Bench, Cut ([43:56]–[48:55])

• The crew plays a round of “Start, Bench, Cut” with three Heisman frontrunners:
  • Dante Moore (Oregon)
  • Carson Beck (Miami)
  • Ty Simpson (Alabama)
• Debate Highlights:
  • Joel cuts Beck: “I think he’s a good quarterback, but ... nobody thinks of him as the engine of that offense.” ([44:08])
  • Van benches Beck and starts Simpson: “He is probably the quarterback ... that I have the most confidence in that’s going to make the throws that are there but also is not going to hurt you.” ([46:33])
  • Tate starts Beck, citing the power of narrative in Heisman races.
    • “A lot of times this award is about the narrative, right? … Carson Beck got a great story, man.” ([47:46])

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4. Biggest Games of the Week & Rapid-Fire Picks ([51:01]–[69:08])

• Headliners (with Timestamps):

  • Oklahoma vs. Texas (Red River Rivalry): ([51:48])
    • Do-or-die for Texas’s season, with OU’s QB status adding intrigue; the importance of desperation and historical spectacle emphasized.
      • “Texas is playing for its playoff life right now … Oh you gets to make up for getting embarrassed last year.” — Joel ([52:43])
  • Indiana at Oregon: ([54:33])
    • Both ranked, high-level QB play, and playoff stakes. The game is used as a microcosm for the new parity-driven era of college football.
      • “This is a fucking fantastic college football game for me … both teams have something to prove.” — Van ([54:36])
  • Alabama at Missouri: ([61:48])
    • Possible “Heisman announcement” game for Ahmad Hardy; chance for Mizzou’s Drinkwitz to score a signature win.
  • Other Notables: Illinois back-to-back ranked matchups, Texas Tech’s run, and Wazzu at Ole Miss discussed for their unique stakes and storylines.

• Favorite Other Matchup Selections:

  • Van: South Carolina at LSU (both fanbases need a 'get right’ game, [62:14])
    • Notable quote: “It’s going to be somebody’s get right game. ... It’s going to be interesting to see which fan base ... gets right in this game.” ([62:53])
  • Joel: Florida at Texas A&M (Kyle Field’s “ultra-weird glory”, [63:33])
    • “America is going to get to see Kyle Field at night and all of its ultra weird glory ... It truly is not an easy place to win.” ([63:33])

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5. Banter & Memorable Moments

• Quotable Banter:
  • “Hubris is a hell of a drug. And I think there is no humility in that building and they’re learning it in real time.” — Tate ([09:59])
  • “Belichick’s coaching tree is notoriously rotten. It’s all dookie.” — Van ([20:33])
  • Lubbock, TX side stories about road trips, well-done steaks, and the quirks of West Texas ([41:16] onwards)
  • Blunt takes on legacy: “The Bill Belichick experience. It continues. The roller coaster ride continues.” — Tate ([20:46])
  • Joel’s musings: “This is fundamentally who they are. They’re soft.” — Joel on Texas ([37:21])
  • Race and college football commentary, handled with typical Ringer Tailgate tongue-in-cheek ([48:09])

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Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• Van Lathan: “[Belichick at UNC] This is a debacle. This is embarrassing. … It’s the Bad News fucking Bears over there.” ([06:06])
• Tate Frazier: “There’s nothing more dangerous than a writer whose feelings have been hurt…” ([07:54])
• Joel Anderson: “He has two sons. When Bill Belichick moves on from football, who’s going to hire them? ... This is a way…to help get them placed, make a little money…” ([15:12])
• Van: “He is doing some type of damage to his legacy, the way his coaching career is going out.” ([18:35])
• Joel: “Steve Sarkesian cannot last in that job if Texas continues being the third best team in Texas.” ([26:57])
• Tate: “The Bill Belichick experience. It continues. The roller coaster ride continues.” ([20:46])
• Joel: “This is fundamentally who they are. They’re soft.” ([37:21])
• Van: “Belichick’s coaching tree is notoriously rotten. It’s all dookie.” ([20:33])

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Tone, Style, & Structure

The episode’s tone is energetic, irreverent, and steeped in both deep football knowledge and cultural observations. The panel is unafraid to challenge sacred cows, mix sharp critique with hilarious asides, and keep the conversation rolling across tightly structured—but never stuffy—segments.

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:04] — Rumors & Reality of Belichick’s Exit, Program Dysfunction
• [06:06] — Van Lathan’s breakdown: “This is embarrassing…Bad News Bears”
• [07:54] — Media/UNC feedback loop, hurt writer quote
• [14:33] — Why Belichick took the job: money? legacy? family?
• [18:35] — Does this damage Belichick’s legacy?
• [26:57] — Texas Coaching Pressure and Sark’s Job Security
• [34:34] — Mocking Sark’s excuses after losses
• [38:22] — Texas Tech as portal & NIL “proof of concept”
• [43:56] — Heisman “Start, Bench, Cut” debate
• [51:48] — Red River: Oklahoma v. Texas preview
• [54:33] — Indiana at Oregon: new CFB era, QB showcase
• [61:48] — Alabama at Missouri: signature game watch
• [62:14] — Van’s pick: South Carolina at LSU
• [63:33] — Joel’s pick: Florida at Texas A&M

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For Listeners Who Haven’t Tuned In

If you want hours worth of smart college football talk condensed into a rich, hilarious, and insightful hour, this episode is a must-read. You’ll come away with a clear understanding of the Belichick chaos, Texas’s football soul-searching, and why the 2025 season is as wild as any. The hosts’ tangents are as memorable as their takes—the perfect balance for a fan seeking both strategy and the stories that make college football so much more than what happens on the field.

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Next Up:
Tune in Saturday night for the live postgame edition with full week reactions!

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Transcript

[A]

Foreign. Welcome back to Ringer Tailgate. I'm your host, Tate Frazier. It's the Wednesday edition of the show and Van Lathan has the football back in the studio. He's already pump faking right now, and there is a pump fake that's happening in college football. Is Bill Belichick done? There's rumors that he could be out already. We got a lot to get to today. We got big reactions, big questions, obviously, a big week of games. But first and foremost, let's say what's up to the guys. Van Lathan, how you doing, man? Good to see you.

[B]

I am fantastic. The week of college football officially begins now with Ringer Tailgate.

[A]

I love it. And Joel, good to see you, man. How you doing on this Wednesday afternoon?

[C]

I'm fantastic, man. It's great, man. You know what? You know, it's really hard to convince people that you work for a living when you actually get to talk about something you'd be doing anyway, you know what I mean? So, yeah, I'm just. I'm grateful today, man. I've got a spirit of blessings or whatever going, radiating off me.

[A]

Van is already laughing at that.

[B]

But I will say over here, yeah.

[C]

Man, why gotta be Donny McClurkin.

[B]

Don't make Donnie McClurkin my. My brother don't have to be. Question real quick. Would you consider your hair to be a flat top? Because he said so listen, my brother goes, is you and Tate and the brother with the flat top. And I was like, that's not a flat top.

[C]

No, man.

[B]

And then he was like. He's like, that's kind of a flat top.

[C]

He called me Alan west, man.

[B]

Like Patrick Ewing. Would you consider that to be a flat top?

[C]

No, I've had a flat top when I was in middle school and that was real, you know, like it was really, you know, high. I had the sides faded. This is a less of a fate. I don't know what you would call this because that. I don't know what kind of haircut this is called. I just go. When I go in there, I say, hey, man, just take a little off the top and make sure to fade and line me up. And that's all.

[B]

There you go.

[C]

So I know. So, yeah, it's not. To Vance, brother. This is not a flat top, man. Yeah, don't call it that. That's. That's embarrassing as I feel like Alan west, man. Don't. People walking around.

[A]

Everything comes back in style. You know, flat tops, wallabies, right. Everything can come back in somehow.

[B]

On the cool. I can make an argument that your is a flat top too.

[A]

Do you think he was talking about me Now?

[B]

I could make actually your is kind of a. You got the kind of Johnny Bravo popping a little bit.

[A]

No Bravo.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

This is Ringer tailgate presented by FanDuel. And if you're betting on college football, FanDuel's the place to do it. They've got everything. Same game parlays, quick bets for when you want to jump in live and futures available all season long to to make your playoff predictions. The app's fast, it's easy to use and best of all, when you win, you get paid out instantly. Download the FanDuel app or go to FanDuel.com tailgate to get started. The Ringer is committed to responsible gaming. Please visit rg-help.com to learn more about the resources and helplines available and listen to the end of the episode for additional details. Must be 21 or older and present in select states and 18 and older in D.C. kentucky and Wyoming. Gambling problem. Call 1-800- GAMBLER or or visit rg-help.com Call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org ChatInElectric let's talk about Johnny Footballs. Not actually Johnny Football. We're not going to talk about him. But you know, let's get back on track here. Let's talk about Bill Belichick. We got reports, we got rumors circulating. We have a lot of parents describing this as a toxic nature of Bill Belichick's football program. We got a report from Hill to 247 that there's quote unquote a potential exit strategy, discussions about coaches. We got reports that one coach already has been suspended for two weeks. Maybe Freddy Kitchens could be out as the offensive coordinator. So a lot is happening in the worlds of Carolina football. We used to flip the coin. Coach Prime, Coach Belichick. Let's start here with Coach Belichick. Joel, when you see these reports and you see the Jays all getting together and they're talking about this do are you buying into the idea that this could be the beginning of the end? Like where are we already at that point so far, only six weeks in?

[C]

I mean I already thought the beginning of the end somewhere in the early in the first quarter against Clemson. That was that was clear when this is going nowhere and that you can't let this continue. What I always think about it this way because sometimes I'm like there's just some people that they never have a good headline, man. Like Malik Beasley. Like, when Malik Beasley got caught up, I was like, bro, I've never seen him in a good headline.

[B]

Josh Gordon.

[C]

Josh Gordon. Yeah, man. You just never. I'm just like, hey, man, I've never seen, like, good news associated with him, with Bill Belichick. When is the last time there have been a headline that you were like, oh, okay, Things seem to be going fine. They've got things under control down there in Chapel Hill. Like, the things are heading in the right direction. Everything has either been spectacle or embarrassing. And, I mean, what's the. Who's getting anything out of it? If Even if. Like, it would be embarrassing to be fired or be pushed out before the end of the year, but really, what is he staying around for? Because you really can't let him come back next year. Right. And, I mean, they need to get started on another thing. I mean, Bill. Bill Belichick's legacy is mostly secure. Nobody will remember this in 10 years. So I would have to think the process is already starting. And if it becomes official this week, great. Because what is. What is the. Scott Strickland, the. I think the athletic director at Florida or maybe. No, actually, it wasn't him. It was Jeremy Fowler. He said something along the lines of, what must be done eventually must be done immediately.

[B]

Wow. First of all, I want to say that both Josh Gordon and Michael Beasley. Would you say Michael or Malik? Malik. Malik Beasley. Okay. Either one of them. Both of those guys. Shout out to them because they had incredible talent, and I don't want to pile on those brothers and whatever they did, sometimes there were some good headlines when I saw them. Josh Gordon. I was watching Josh Gordon highlights. I love Josh Gordon. Going crazy, man.

[A]

So good.

[B]

So good. All right, so shout out to them. Love and peace to all of them and all of that stuff. No, love and peace to this situation. This is a debacle. This is embarrassing. This is embarrassing. Tate. Tate, I'm sorry. Look, we've eaten around the edges of it, and we gotta talk about it.

[C]

Eating around the edges, Exactly.

[A]

Right now just eat the bread.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Now we about to eat the middle. You know what I'm talking about? You know how that goes. Take. This is embarrassing. This is a shit show. Let me tell you, if anything. If anything, fuck what happens on the field. Forget about that. If anything, you would expect culture and discipline to exist at North Carolina. It's Bill Belichick. It's Bill Belichick that they hired. You would expect a really Strong culture and discipline. You'd expect the entire thing to be buttoned up. And it's the bad news fucking Bears over there.

[A]

It's completely unbuttoned.

[B]

There's nothing on the field that even resembles a competitive football team. Then you have Jordan on the field itself. The coaches, you know, supposed to be.

[A]

Banned from the field, by the way, but still on the field.

[B]

And then you have parents complaining. You have coaches being disciplined. You have rumors coming out of the program. This is one of the most monumental failures in management from a head coach of Bill Belichick's caliber that I can remember in college football. I can't remember something going this badly when it was expected to go at least somewhat smoothly. You got to give me. Forget what I think. You got to give me your read of this situation. As a Carolina die hard basketball, football.

[A]

And soccer fan, I love all the sports in North Carolina. Shout out to the baseball team, lacrosse team, field hockey, everybody involved. You know, it's my alma mater. I love these guys. And look, this is a quote that I. Have you guys ever seen the movie the Wife with Glenn Close? You remember that movie, 2017? Yeah. Good movie. Here's a quote from it. There's nothing more dangerous than a writer whose feelings have been hurt. These writers have no access to, and their feelings have been hurt. And when you lose football games, they are going to write every single thing terrible about what is going on. They're going to dig it up, they're going to figure it out, and they're going to put it out to the world. And I think right now, what's happening, this is. This is the feedback loop. Van's upset right now. I'm telling you.

[B]

Like, are you kidding me?

[C]

Tate, are you. Wait, are you going. Hold on, hold on, man. Wait, so wait, you. Tate, are you blaming the media? Is that what.

[A]

No, no, no, I'm not blaming the media.

[B]

I'm saying, what did you expect?

[A]

When this is the product? You know what I mean? Like these. These are writers that you have cut out access to, that you've not let them come around the program. They have nothing really, other than to talk and dig from, you know, sources within the program, whether it be parents, whatever it is. And they have every right to write the story because look at the product on the field. So, like, winning can absolve all of these issues, right? If you win games and you look competent on the football field, all this stuff makes sense, I guess. And it's okay. When you put out something as bad as it has been against the power four teams that they have played. Then, of course, the. The. The feedback loop is going to be so dire and so terrible and so horrific that these stories are going to come out of everywhere. And we're at this point right now.

[B]

Tell you what, guys. What Tate just did this. This is Tate. This is. I'm gonna do my Tate impression right now. You guys need to watch a video. The fake news media. The fake news media. You. I see you back there. Where are you from? Where are you from? Are you from CBS fake news? Is that where you're from?

[A]

There's no fake news here.

[B]

The fake news media. You. You blame the fake news media.

[C]

I'm just saying.

[A]

Turn away the writers and you turn away the media, and you act like you're above it. Hubris is a hell of a drug. And I think there is no humility in that building and they're learning it in real time that they thought they were going to the minor leagues, right? They thought that they were going to go from the NFL, go down to the minor leagues. It was going to be easy money, cash money. This is a totally different sport. And guess what you have to deal with with college football Parents. Guess what you have to deal with with college football.

[B]

Do you think this awakening has been too rude for Bel Belich? You think he's wilting under the pressure of the college football culture?

[A]

I just think humiliation is the only way to get him back on track. And I think that the humiliation news cycle is happening in real time. You have NCAA violations in a world where you can't even get violations without doing something really, really dumb. And they already have done that. You know what I mean? They've already done something really dumb by selling tickets and selling parking passes and all that sort of stuff. So now you got coaches on the chopping block. I'm just saying, what did you expect the media to do? Like, yes, they could build you up and say you're the greatest coach ever, but when you give them no access and you act like you're above it and you have this level of pretension to everything you do, they're going to turn on you and they're going to turn hard, and they're going to laugh and gobble it up and enjoy every second of it, well, that's what's happening right now.

[C]

I feel like you took a really circuitous route to get to the media here. You know, fair enough.

[B]

I get it now.

[C]

Kind of. I sort of get it.

[A]

You know, I'm just saying scorn writers are Going to do what they do, they're going to cook.

[C]

I think the thing is though, is that there's such bad fuck ups that it didn't even really require good reporting. Right. Like, you know, depending on what you think of Pablo Torres investigation into it like that didn't really implicate the program.

[A]

By the way, Pablo is coming back. I have sources. Pablo is working on his next investigative piece about our girl Jordan.

[C]

So here we go again. So I'm just. They've. I think the point that I'm taking from what you said, Tate, is that they have nothing, they have nothing to project to the, to the public that is positive also. What could a recruit, how could you sign there now? Like if you're, if even if, you know, maybe, I guess if North Carolina is your best offer and you know, it's that G5 school that apparently that they keep beating everybody out for, for the transfers in the past year. But if you don't have another, I mean, if you have other options, why would you go to North Carolina right now? You don't know who the coach is going to be. Why would you want to play for the coach that's there right now? It just doesn't make a lot of sense, man. So I, that's why I think to the extent that North Carolina has any power, the administration has any power in this situation and they just want to go ahead and salvage their reputation and move on from this. Just move fast, man. Get that old man out of there. He don't. He'll be fine. He's going to go right back up to some, you know, nice beach house in, in, in New England and Jordan is going to get bored with him eventually, but at least he'll have some time, at least he'll have some time with her before she moves on.

[B]

Tate being, in all seriousness, being a part of the culture there, why did Bill Belichick want this job? What was the stated reason? What made Bill Belichick after the most successful run and maybe, maybe in American pro sports history, maybe you could say that, you know, being that it's six Super Bowls in the NFL, which is just a notoriously difficult sport to win in for a very, very long time over the course of that, why did he want to do this? Because the college coaches that I know have such a strong want that that want translates into their process. They want to build young men and maybe they do. They want to build a culture and maybe they do. They want to win. They must win. They have to win. And they believe that Their process is pure enough to get those wins. What was Bill Belichick's want? Why did he. It doesn't seem like he gives a shit. He doesn't even give a shit about the perception of his program. You forget what happens on the field, like, what's going on. Even with the reputation of North Carolina football or Bill Belichick as a coach, he doesn't care about any of that stuff. Like, he was talking to people of Good Morning America. Girl told Bill Belichick. He told Bill Belichick, shut up. Bill Belichick, shut up.

[C]

We're not talking about that. Also, he came out in public. He came out public with a sweater with a hole in it. You know what I mean?

[A]

Like, it's just.

[C]

Even by, like, your hoodie swag, it's just like, distressed.

[A]

I think it's two words.

[B]

When you.

[A]

To answer your question, I think it's two words. You know what I mean? Like, I think it's money. I mean, this is really what. He's the ninth highest coach, highest paid coach in college football. $10 million a year.

[B]

I mean, this is wealthy.

[A]

He is wealthy. But you're also funding a lifestyle of a young person that, like, look, man, doing TV appearances for $2,500 ain't going to pay the bills. You know what I mean? But you know what would? Being the head coach, being in a position of power, running a program. They tried to go to the Falcons with this whole staff, and the Falcons basically pulled out in the last minute. They're like, we're not firing everybody in our building. And North Carolina said, yeah, you can fire whoever you want. We get Bill Belichick.

[C]

You know, I know.

[B]

Like, that's.

[A]

That's what it is.

[C]

I know what it is. I. I've come up with the reason for it. He has two sons. When Bill Belichick moves on from football, who's going to hire them? Right? This is a way. And again, it goes back to what you said was a hubris of the situation. Bill Belichick thought, oh, man, I've been beating ass in the NFL forever. How hard could the ACC be? And he was like, I'm going to do well, and then we can move my boy into that head coaching job, and then he'll always have that head coaching thing on his resume, and he'll have. He'll have work in college football forever. Is it a guarantee that people love Steve Belichick and Brian Belichick so much that they're going to hire them again? Are they going to Hire Mike Lombardi's kid to be a quarterback coach anywhere else. I felt like. And as we've been talking about this, oh, this is a way to see the next generation here, just like, help get them place, make a little bit of money. We get to work together, hang out for a year. Jordan to bring some friends. They'll be cool and they'll be all right. But obviously they. The part, the part that they forgot about was that they were going to have to win. Right? Like, you've got to be able to win. And they took that for granted because, I mean, I guess, you know, they're in the NFL. They thought we compete at the highest level. The ACC is not that. So of course we're going to win. But it has not worked out like that.

[B]

Joe, I feel what you're saying. I think that's actually a good motivation. But I'll tell you this. They don't need to worry about that. They hire every other coach's son. Every other coach's son. Every time I'm watching the game. Yeah, that's the linebackers coach, Dan Reeves iii. Hey, just to let you know, that's a special team. Coach Marty Harbor Harbaugh, like every time. Every time I'm watching every. Every goddamn. Hey, that's Patty Gruden, the, the, the assistant analyst. He's 27 years old. They hire every other coach's son, even.

[A]

Jerry Newheisel, the star of this weekend. Right.

[B]

Jerry Neuheiselle is the coach. Like they, they. Every other coach's son gets hired. Okay? So don't worry about that, Bill. Let them boys go out and, and, and, and, and earn a keep.

[C]

Not his head coach. Yeah, I mean, that's the thing. They ain't about to know.

[B]

You're right. You're right. You got to work yourself up to it. You got to work yourself up to. I'm not saying that you're wrong. I'm just saying if he's trying to set his sons up for success, he's actually doing the opposite by not running a competent program. And it doesn't seem like he's running a competent program right now in North Carolina.

[A]

And the Hulu doc is out. That. That's official. Now. This is supposed to be an all inside access Hulu documentary about this season. The thing that really gets me with the whole process is like, yes, you knew this team was not good, Right? That's what they're saying now. We knew we didn't have the town and the building, all that sort of stuff. So why do you invite college game day in on Monday Night Football? And why do you have Hulu come in and film everything? Right. Like, you can say all that stuff now that you thought you knew that you didn't have the town in the building, but it's like you built up this whole thing, and now all the eyeballs came, and now you're upset that their reaction is, this is an abject disaster. Right. It's like they wouldn't be here without you selling the idea that Bill Belichick was going to come in and be Nick Saban 2.0. Right. I mean, that, that, to me, is where there's a little bit of, like, what happened here. How do we get to this point?

[B]

Yeah, look, here's the reality. It, I did not think, and we got there pretty quickly, that we would be turning the page on North Carolina football. I thought it would be, I thought they would hang around, thought they'd get their fifth win. They, they have a big upset. They, the cleansing game.

[A]

That's what people thought. Right.

[B]

I thought that, I thought that the genius of Bill Belichick was worth something. And, you guys, the guy can coach ball. He can coach ball and he can run or organization. We've seen that. But he, I do think that in this media landscape with this type of eyeballs on him, he is doing some type of damage to his legacy, the way his coaching career is going out. Some type of damage.

[A]

Yeah. Joel, you said, like, in 10 years, people will forget. I'm not sure they will. I, I, I really do. I think this might leave such a bad taste in people's mouths that they might be able to go down the line of saying that Bill Belichick won and the Patriots won in spite of him, not because of him, which is the opposite of what the conversation always was.

[C]

I just think he's going to get inducted into the hall of Fame and people want to do the hate geography and Patriots fans going to be happy. And hopefully by that time, North Carolina would have moved on to somebody else because I just, I, I don't think any. Yeah, I mean, people don't talk about Bill Walsh ending off at Stanford now. The difference is he didn't embarrass himself in the way that Bill is.

[A]

He was good in his first year. Yeah.

[C]

So many people are embarrassing themselves in the world and so many bad things are happening. I just can't guarantee that people are going to care about Bill Belichick in 10 years. Let's say go to the week of page.

[B]

Yeah, fair point.

[A]

Fair Point also, you look at Matt Patricia at Ohio State and he's out scheming everybody, and you're saying to yourself, in that first game against Texas, I'm like, okay, North Carolina is going to be fine. Like, look what Patricia is doing with his defense. Yes, he has a lot of talent, but also some of the stunts, some of the NFL kind of verbiage that came over, it seemed like it would be exactly what North Carolina would be up to. But I think his eye is not on the prize. I'm just gonna say that. No, wait. I don't want to blame Jordan, but.

[C]

Did y' all talk about this in North Carolina fact that Scott Pioli is helping to build that roster, Virginia. And he didn't come down there to North Carolina with the boys.

[A]

Right. I mean, there, there's, there's tons of examples. Also, you know, Bill o' Brien at Boston College is the second worst team in the acc. So these are two former Patriots guys, former head coaches in, in the NFL that look kind of lost at sea.

[B]

So, I mean, Belichick's coaching tree is notoriously rotten. It's all dookie. Yeah, it's like. It's not, it's not one of the best things that you make that graphic.

[A]

Dookie.

[B]

Yeah, that's not.

[A]

Oh, there you have it. The, the Bill Belichick experience. It continues. The roller coaster ride continues. We'll see who's on the plane going to the California game. I think that is the next conversation to be had. Now, let's talk about some good teams. We did have a good slate of games on Saturday. We talked about a few of them. Obviously, the big upset, the UCLA game. We got to that. Let's do one big reaction. I'll start with you, Van. One big reaction from over the weekend.

[B]

This is not in any way some incredible pithy take, but Miami is the most complete team in college football. We've, we've seen it now. We've seen Miami up against a variety of competition. I'm not going to act like they've played the best competition, but they've beaten Notre Dame, they've beaten Florida State.

[A]

Two good teams, in my opinion.

[B]

Two good teams. And they've beaten a Florida team which is at least capable of beating another team with high level talent. Now, Texas is in the shit box. But still, though, it's a team with real. Speaking of Duke, with real players on the squad. So they've, they've come out and they've, they've won, They've won these football games and what you've seen is, man, you've seen dominance by some of their newcomers. You've seen Carson Beck look like he's knowing what the defensive and offensive lines, man, a bunch of animals. Miami is a tough, tough out right now. Their schedule looks pretty navigable for the rest of the season. That doesn't mean that they won't, you know, fuck up and have an off game somewhere.

[A]

Have a Syracuse game from last year, right?

[B]

Syracuse. That doesn't mean that. But right now, from what we've seen, even more so than what we, than Ohio State or anybody else that people have fallen in love with, Miami looks like the most complete team in the country.

[C]

I don't necessarily disagree with that. I still don't think they're the best team in the country. But I mean, they have, they have probably the most impressive resume of any team in the country right now. Like the only, the only team that they kind of played, it was like, okay, Betoon Cookman, but other than that, I mean, beat Notre Dame, usf, Florida, fsu. I mean, back to, back to, back to back. I mean, that's a, that's a really impressive resume and it speaks well of them. And I mean, you know, they went right into Tallahassee, took it to the Florida State kind of. I mean, they didn't, they didn't take their heart from. Because Florida State still got back into it a little bit, but it was like, okay, you could clearly see that Miami is a much better team and is, you know, got talent all over the field. So, yeah, like, I mean, the only possible hiccup is always the time management thing or the Mario Constable, you know, just befuddling coaching decision thing. But who? Mario?

[A]

Crystal.

[C]

Crystal ball. What did I say?

[A]

Oh, you're having your Nico moment again.

[C]

Don't do that. Hey, man, I was, it's funny, Jim Pasaki today. And, and they were like, My wife was like, what? How do you pronounce her name? And I was like, it's not Saki. So I've been, I've been. My confidence is shot. My confidence is shot. So what did you say again? Crystal ball. That's funny, man. Really?

[B]

It's like that. Okay, Mario Cristobal is Joel talking about.

[A]

Parker Livingstone all over again.

[C]

I've heard it before. Anyway, the point is I sort of agree with that. I don't think that. But I, I, I, they make a, a fantastic case for it. And again, I mean, they're, they're not, unless they do something stupid, they're not going to really be tested in the way that all these other teams are going to be the rest of the year. So it'll. They. I, I think it's very likely that they end the year ranked number one.

[A]

Yeah. And if you look at the trenches of that team defensively, I mean that D line is monstrous. I mean Ruben has been incredible. I mean, yeah, he's already in the Heisman conversation because of his dominance, but I mean that is sort of what Crystal Ball has always done. He's had an offensive line that's been incredible. He's had a. That's been incredible. But for me, my big reaction, they have special players on the outside, skill position guys and my favorite, I think he's the most electric in the country. Malachi Tony. I was watching Joel Clatt the other day, he kept calling him Kadarius Tony and it was cracking me up. And I just want to say the man's name is Malachi. If you don't know the name, you will know it very soon. I mean the flea flicker touchdown, that was huge. As a true freshman in these big games, I mean Malachi Tony has answered the bell and like that is the one piece they had Restrepo last year, who was great, great possession receiver. I know that's kind of derogative to call him a possession receiver. He's all time leader in receptions for Miami. But Malachi Tony is a different level of elite speed, elite athleticism, game changing plays and what he's able to bring to this Miami offense and to give a safety net for Carson Beck. I just think he's been incredible and if you don't know it now, you need to know his name. Malachi Tony. So shout out to him. I think he's been great.

[C]

Oh yeah, Malachi. Yeah, man. I mean I. And that was one of the funny things that was one of the questions about Miami coming into this year. Like you said they had with strep row and all those other guys and they really just seemed to reload at those skill positions and in fact they seem a lot more dynamic. It's just like, man, wouldn't it have been cool if they, if Cam Ward had had those target. You know, I know those people to throw to last year that have been really cool.

[B]

Well, I think what Cam Warden more than anything was a defense. I think the offense, that's fine.

[C]

But yeah, yeah, that's fair.

[B]

He, he, he needed a defense. But it's for all the changes they've made in terms of their staff, who they've brought in, they are getting immediate Results from this team. Uh, I expected Carson Beck to play, to play better this year. He's. He's not spinning it like he's Joe Burrow or anything like that, but he is probably the quarterback right now in the country that I have the most confidence in that's going to make the throws that are there, that's going to make some of the big plays, but also is not going to hurt you when it's time, when the moment gets high, leverage. So, like, a lot of what they're doing, particularly on offense, has to do with the fact that. That their signal caller is a pro. They got an NFL quarterback.

[A]

Absolutely. And they look like a team right now that can win the national championship, which is very encouraging for Michael Irvin and the rest of the Miami fans. Salute to Michael Irvin. Joel, one big reaction. What'd you get from this weekend?

[C]

So Steve Sarkeesian cannot last in that job if Texas continues being the third best team in Texas.

[B]

Oh, wow.

[C]

It's. It's never a good thing when you start seeing yourself in those social media memes comparing you to coaches who got fired and they.

[A]

James Franklin. Yeah, yeah.

[C]

And so they did this. I just saw it this this week with him and Jimbo Fisher, and it was like, Sark is 41 and 19 through 60 games. Jimbo was 39 and 21. Jimbo had five top 10 wins by then, Sark has two. And then they did, you know, some other stuff, but it was like, hey, man, you know, when people start talking about that and that gets out into the air and obviously a lot of it is because people, they were really disappointed about going down there and losing to Florida. But if you had seen that team this year and watched them play, you kind of thought, well, they got a lot of potential, but they haven't shown a lot yet. And so it's not a huge surprise that they went down there and lost. And so I don't know, man. Coming into this season, I thought Sarkeesian and Texas and sort of solve for their problem is what I think is the most underachieving major college football program in the country year after year. I mean, for people that want to argue with me about that, one national title since desegregation, two conference titles in the past 15 years, finished ranked in the top 25 times in the past 15 years, and twice they finished 19th. So they've never done what they're supposed to do. And I felt like Sark had everything in alignment. You know, the recruiting was back up. He had Arch Manning sending Guys to the league. Their lines were good.

[A]

Now they were getting called the new Alabama. Right? Yeah. Athletic article.

[C]

Right. They beat Alabama at Alabama, which is a huge win for Tech. That is not a game in my lifetime with. Unless Vince Young is the quarterback that they win. And they. They were doing all that, and they seem to have been ticking up, but now all of a sudden, you can see the. The. The. The cracks in that foundation. So. I don't know, man. I mean, Texas A M looks pretty solid under Mike Elko. Texas. Texas Tech is spending all the money in the world to build a nice roster. I just can't imagine that Longhorn fans want a. Are cool with looking up, looking up at A and M and Texas Tech. So he gonna have to do something, bro.

[B]

Y' all know the Mark Sanchez story. We ain't got to see Mark Sanchez. You know, it's gonna be funny. Joel's gonna be involved in a story like that.

[C]

Wait, hold on. It's an old man or Mark.

[B]

Nah, it's gonna be like Colt McCoy has attacked Joe. It's gonna be somebody. It's gonna be like Joel ran into Ricky Williams. Colt McCoy, Roy Williams, Jordan Shipley.

[A]

Stevie.

[C]

Stevie Lee. Shout out, my boy. Stevie. Defense.

[B]

Some on Joel ass. The Texas thing. Good.

[C]

Texas.

[B]

Texas.

[C]

First of all, I'll say this.

[B]

I'll say this. Number one, we have to put some context to those comparisons to Jimbo Fisher, particularly A M. They did make the College Football Playoff. What is it, Twice.

[C]

Yeah.

[B]

Got deep into the College Football Playoff. All right, so they've had some success. Success that they had not had in the recent years before. Sark, Tom Herman did not have them playing like that. And Sark was able to at least. At least get Texas back to a point where they were expected to win the sec. They looked like the class of the sec. They certainly do not now. So have them having a down year because Warby Parker can't get his together, like, until he starts playing. Well, his name.

[A]

Update the specs.

[B]

That's.

[C]

That's your guy, though, Sark. I mean, that's you. That's your. Dude. You're the Carson.

[B]

No.

[C]

Well, I'm talking to Sark. I'm using you as a vector to talk.

[B]

Oh, that's true. It's true.

[C]

Yeah, it's true. Like Carson Palmer, that. I mean, you did you. Jake Locker, Matt Leiner, you've worked with. I mean, you've worked with quarterbacks before. So this is. This is your project. That is the. That is one of the major reasons that Arch Manning Is there in the first place that he gets to work with, with Steve Sarkeesian, offensive mastermind who's worked some in the NFL and helped modernize Nick Saban's offense. So if Arch Manning isn't doing well and looks, in fact, not not doing well, he looks bad. That's kind of, I mean, that's, I'm.

[B]

Not saying it's not. All I'm, all I'm saying is, as a referendum on Sarkeesian, what you're saying about Texas right now is certainly true. They are certainly in the shit box. Okay. Do we call it. It's certainly in the shit box. But, you know, we, we are getting to a point in college football where the calling for the coach's job by the fan base is starting to become a little annoying.

[A]

It's like the boy who cried wolf, right? I mean, it's like every single week you lose, you're like, fire this guy. I, I honestly thought Luke Fickle already got fired. I had to, like, check that. The other week I was like, I thought he got fired.

[B]

Right. So it's like we're doing two things. And look, the fan bases are not going to change the way they view their teams and the way they act just because we're in a new era of college football. We're in an era where teams are going to lose a little bit more. We've talked about that. So Kaylan DeBoer, who would have already been fired if a lot of the Alabama fan base had their way, it seems like that game never even happened. Now, I don't know if that's going to happen for Texas, but we know Steve Sarkeesian is a good coach. We'll. We'll see what happens. But they, for right now, I do think it's a little bit of an overreaction for, for anybody to be calling for his job. Yeah, I know that you're not doing that.

[C]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. I'm just, I'm not. I, I. But it's just so, it's just something to monitor that. You know what I'm saying? Just something to keep track.

[B]

The talk has started.

[C]

Yeah, the talk has started. Yeah. I'm just, again, I'm always like, keep your, Keep your guy, because I'm fundamentally, keep your guy guy. But, you know, Texas thinks that they should be better than that, even though the record shows that that's not who they are. And ain't nobody, nobody from the Longhorns is gonna bother me. I'm fine. You know my name in Missouri City, man. We don't even care about Texas like that, bro. We want mostly most city Doc. We don't care about Texas like that down there.

[A]

Travis, put it on the record. Joel's a keep your guy guy.

[C]

Wait, hold on.

[B]

Keep your guy guy. Josie, keep your guy. We're very progressive. So you're not fucking with Travis Scott? Mositi. You're not fucking with him.

[C]

I mean, that's just. That's not really of my generation. I'm more of a zero guy, you know, more of a ghetto boys guy. I'm not really a, you know, a.

[B]

Travis Scott person, even though he's not really Travis Scott. Because, see, that's the difference between me and you. It. It. I. I'm not from. I'm not from the era of, like, NBA Youngboy, but NBA Youngboy from Baton Rouge. So I gotta put on for NBA Young Boy.

[C]

I just kind of feel like his vibe. Okay, well, it's not. It's not just that, like, I'm older than him, but it's just that whole Travis Scott vibe. And, like, his audience also, man, he went down there and had that concert at NRG and got them people killed, man.

[B]

Here we go. All right.

[A]

Yo.

[C]

I'm just saying. Well, I just. So. I'm just not.

[A]

You disavowed after that?

[C]

Yeah. How does it. You know, this is why people think I'm a hater, I guess. I'm sitting here and reflecting. I was like, damn. I mean, I hope the. I wish the brother well. I hope he has a good life. I want. I want the best for him, but he's not my cup of tea.

[A]

Let's do overreaction of the week. We were talking about Sark. Here's what Sark said. He was asked about Texas. Texas's struggle so far this season. This is the quote. Quote. I mean, take the other. How many teams are there in college football? 136. Take the other 135. Have them go play at Ohio State and at the Swamp. See how they do in quote. I read this as an excuse, right? Fan. Like this. I don't. I don't like this quote. This is not. I'm not inspired by that quote.

[B]

Okay, see, now. See, now, y' all didn't flip me on him. This is why I can't be consistent. That's what Kalika says. You just can't be consistent on anything. And I can't. I can't because, like, that's not what you want to hear from him, right? That you. You hear that from the Oklahoma State coach. You hear that from the coach at a team where their schedule is supposed to dictate their success. Texas is a team and a program that's supposed to dominate their opposition. I'm not saying that Texas was supposed to go out and dominate Ohio State. Ohio State is another team that's supposed to dominate their opposition. But you don't want to hear at Texas about how tough a schedule you. You've had, particularly when the Florida team that you played in the Swamp lost to ucf. Usf. They lost to usf.

[A]

Probably would have lost at UCF too, right? I mean, they've looked horrible.

[B]

Exactly. So in that situation, you know, Sark is not going to endear himself to the fan base there that has an expectation of winning, that has an expectation with the amount of resources and money that are pumped into that program, that they're going to go out and be better than whoever that they are playing on Saturday. Look, you understand if you lose a game though Ohio State, you understand that if you lose a game to a Notre Dame type team, if you lose a game to an A and M teams that are supposed to be able to fuck with you, you get that. But that's not what we're talking about here. So if I was looking for a reason to not believe that he could be a dominating head coach at Texas, it's because he just said he couldn't be one. And that's something that he should not be doing.

[C]

I mean, dog, he said that like, man, we went to the Swamp like Percy Harvard and Brandon Spikes were there.

[A]

Like Spurrier was going to.

[C]

I mean, yeah, like we said, we just saw a group of, a group of six teams just, just go do that, like beat them at home. So, yeah, man, I mean, that is. I mean, look, also your preseason number one.

[A]

I mean, at the end of the day, your preseason number one during the off season, your offensive guru, you bragged about not having a backup coach quarterback because you don't need one because you have a Heisman candidate in Arch Manning. And so far those things, I mean, go. Going back to hubris. Sounds like hubris.

[C]

You have the wealthiest, you're part of the wealthiest athletic program in the country. You don't take a backseat to anybody. Like, you got everything you need to make the Swamp nothing for you, right? There's nothing, there's nothing in your way. It's you. You are your pilot here. You can make it happen for yourself. You can author your own story and then you're gonna be up here talking about, man, which sometimes we got to go play it. Mississippi State, man, they be ringing them cowbells. I mean, you tell anything. Yeah, it confuses me up there. So I just. Yeah, man. I look again. This is. This is very Texas football. I'm enjoying it. It's great. I mean, this is. This is. This is fundamentally who they are. They're soft.

[A]

Watch out, Joel, watch out. They're listening.

[C]

Ain't no more Grady Cavanaughs there, man.

[B]

You know, I'm. I'm telling you, Joe Butcher, Melton, Henry Melton gonna see you somewhere and just put a foot in your ass.

[C]

Nah, man. Nah, bro. I mean, Roy Williams, Brown, if I see him, I'll dap him up, man.

[A]

BJ Johnson, I would dap up Roy Williams, too. Just the other Roy Williams. So, you know, shout out. Yeah, different connotations. Let's do a first fact here, because you brought up the other Texas teams. Texas Tech, first five, zero start, five straight wins by 20 points for the first time since 1953. 1954. So Texas Tech looking like a team in Texas that we can finally buy into. Also, they dominated the portal. They've kind of given you a blueprint that you can just go get a team and put a team together and they can, you know, look like Joey McGuire having a great year coaching this squad. So do we believe in the Red Raiders right now? They even just changed. They de. Beveled the logo. They. They're trying to change everything down there at Texas.

[B]

They are a professional college football team, and they are the first proof of concept of the professional model of college football, that it can be done to that degree. Now, listen, what I mean by that is this like that the rest of these teams that we're talking about that are in play for the national championship, they have this amazing tradition. If you're Talking about the LSU's, the Texas's, the Ohio states, the Notre Dames, all of the teams that were supposedly teams that could take a shot or at least an outside shot at the national championship. The Alabama's, hell, even the Florida states. Texas Tech is a team that does not have that type of tradition. I'm not saying that there's no football tradition that exists at Texas Tech. If you are a college football fan, you've had a lot of good times.

[A]

Shout out to Mike Leach.

[B]

Shout out to Mike Leach.

[A]

Michael.

[B]

Yeah. You've had a lot of good times with Texas. I'm not saying that you haven't, but I'm saying for this team to be this good, and they are that good for this team to be this good in the way that they are, and for them to have been able to get that good by using the levers that they could pull in this, this version of college football, this particular place that college football is in their proof of concept, that you can kind of do that at a place where it hasn't always been high level college football winning, that if you have the right alumni group, the right boosters and the right want to. From your people in place there, your intelligentsia, your money people, whatever your ads, that you can turn Lubbock into Ann Arbor or into Columbus or into Austin a lot quicker than you think you'd be able to.

[C]

Yeah, I mean, absolutely. I mean. So have y', all, either of y' all ever been to Lubbock?

[B]

I have.

[C]

You have. Okay, what'd you think? Did you go to Buddy Holly Museum or what did you do?

[B]

So, you know, I.

[C]

So.

[B]

Let me. I gotta be nice, though. I gotta be nice because I like.

[A]

Texas Tech at the final four, 2019, they were playing Old Town Road. They were going ham. I was like, man, I like Texas going Darvin Hill.

[B]

I gotta be nice. Cause like, it's not like I'm a go there, but I have fun. Like, you know, I like that part of Texas. I like that part of Texas. Cause it's weird. It's a reason why the horror movies a lot of times would take place.

[C]

Sales job here, right here.

[B]

And that. I'm just saying it's a reason why the horror movies would take place in those parts of West Texas. Because it's something eerie, ethereal, and very, almost ancient about that part of it. I enjoyed my time in Lubbock, but I, I like Marfa. Like, you know what I mean?

[C]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah, I've been to Marfa before. So like, I like those parts of Texas, though.

[C]

Yeah, No, I mean, look, and I, I would say, I think that part of Texas is a beautiful place to go. Like, you can look clear across the horizon for like 10 miles. Like, you can see it. Like, really, the sky is so big.

[B]

You driving.

[C]

And if you like, you go in.

[A]

100, the speed limit's like 90, right?

[B]

You, you driving and you, you like, if we get a flat tire, we dead. Like, you, like, they tell you to get gas driving. You, like, if you lose cell phone service, you're. Anything can happen. You know, there's something about it.

[C]

I, I really, I really recommend. There's no reason for anybody to do this trip, but I made a drive from Oakland, Oklahoma City to Lubbock in 2003. And it was great.

[B]

You could stop things.

[C]

The Big Texan. The Big Texan Steakhouse in Amarillo. You can get a free 72 ounce steak, but you got it if you eat it all in one setting. And that's where I learned that, you know, I didn't have to have my steak well done. I was a well done steak guy. Yeah. And the waitress was like, you know, I promise you, if you have a meeting, if you don't like it, you know, you don't have to have. You don't have to pay for it. I was like, all right. It's very sweet of her. So I was like, all right.

[B]

Well, Joel, they called you so many n words. Joel. Joel. It was so funny. Like, there was a chef back there making steaks, and he said, you go out there and you tell that nigger, there's a way that a good, upstanding white eats their steaks. He wants to eat here.

[A]

Best I can do is meet him.

[B]

The best I can do is meet him. You go back out there and you tell him, this ain't the south side of Chicago. Now he's in West Texas. And she was.

[A]

She.

[B]

She was all freaked out because she was like, I can't go out there. So she was being nice to you.

[C]

She was.

[B]

And she was being nice to you. But they was. They called you so many N words back there, bro.

[C]

I wish I could remember this woman's name because nobody has had that. It's just like one of those moments of impact in your life. You just never know. You never know when something like that's going to happen. And, like, I'm going to remember that moment forever. And that woman really got me. But the thing is, I'm more of a medium well guy now. I still, you know, medium still. Just a little too much pink for me. I'm sorry.

[A]

It's a little too much.

[C]

What were we talking about?

[A]

Shout out to Texas Tech. I just wanted to give them. Give them congratulations, you know what I mean? They look like a good football team. Wanted to give them some love, you know, in West Texas. Shout out to you guys. Start, bench, cut. Let's have a fun one. Heisman favorites. If you look right now. Fanduel appreciate Fanduel sponsoring the show. We got three guys who are top of the board. We got Dante Moore from Oregon, we got Carson Beck of Miami, and we got Ty Simpson of Alabama. Now, this is a tough conundrum right now. We got a lot of football to play. Start bitch. Cut. I'll go to you first, Joel. How do you feel about those three?

[C]

All right, I want to start with cut first. Okay. I mean, I'm gonna get. I'm get rid of Carson Beck because I think. I think he's a good quarterback, but I don't think anybody thinks of him as the engine of that offense. Like, you just up here talking about Malachi Tony, you know what I mean? And his numbers aren't overwhelming. And like, while the other guys are playing a Big Ten SEC schedule, he's going to be on the. What's that network again? What is it? Yeah, cw.

[A]

Shout out to the cw.

[C]

He's going to be on the CW playing Louisville, Stanford, smu, Syracuse. I mean, come on, bro. Nobody is going. The only thing Carson Beck can hope to do is screw his. His hopes up. So now we get to the other two guys. I think I'm going to bench Ty Simpson because he's going to have plenty of opportunities to play in front of a huge national audience. He does look like he might literally be the best quarterback in the country. Like, as shocking as, like when I. When I think about the guy that I would want, I probably will want him. And he's got great supporting cast, good offensive line, but Got a run game now. Got a run game now. That Jam Mill is back. There's a lot of opportunities to look bad and lose. So that's why I think that you got to start Dante Moore. He's got a big showcase game against Indiana this weekend that we're going to talk about a very manageable schedule down the thing. And he's just. And according to Shout out fanduel, he's the Heisman favorite. And so I think that's right. I think he's going to avenge the Heisman that Dennis Dixon should have won, you know, or at least been able to.

[A]

He.

[C]

Dennis Dixon should have been able to go to New York. I've just. But whatever. But the point is, is that I think Dennis Dixon. You remember Dennis Dixon?

[B]

I do. I haven't heard that name in a long time.

[C]

Long time.

[B]

Man.

[C]

I just thought about. I was thinking about him today when this came up. I was like, damn, Dennis Dixon, man.

[B]

They might have won a national championship that year. They might have been. Had he not got hurt yet.

[C]

Oh, yeah, man. He got hurt on that Thursday night game. I'll never. I'll never forget.

[B]

I'm going to start Ty Simpson. I'm going to bench Carson Beck. I'm going to cut Dante.

[C]

Wow.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

And that's just because of the way I think the season is going to shake out. I think Becky and Simpson, I think Simpson is going to have the numbers and he's going to look like the most impressive quarterback, I expect. I think there's another loss in there for Alabama. We'll see where it's at. Carson Beck is going to be on what I think is going to be the best team in the country, and his Heisman watch is going to start really intensifying as he starts to pile up numbers against the lesser competition that they are getting ready to face right now. He doesn't have the numbers, but you have to think they're about to go into the part of their schedule where he is going to pile up those numbers. Right?

[C]

Good point.

[B]

Dante Moore, I think his welcome college football moments are going to happen this season. I don't know if it starts this weekend, but I think that they will happen. I think by the time the season is over, those two guys, Beck and Simpson, are going to be a little bit ahead of Moore in terms of who's going to win the Heisman. But I wouldn't be surprised to see all of these guys in New York.

[A]

Yeah, I think they'll all be there and I think it will be a quarterback class. I want to give a shout out to Tez Johnson, former wide receiver for Oregon last. When they got done last year, Oregon. In his closing press conference, he said that Dante Moore was going to be a Heisman finalist. And they were like, oh, really? Dante Moore. So Tess Johnson, now with the Buccaneers, wanted to give him some love. Very prophetic for doing that. I'm gonna go Carson back, though, to start. I'm gonna bench Dante Moore, I'm gonna cut Ty Simpson. I think, you know, I think Carson Beck is going to put up the numbers. I think the narrative is great. Leaving Georgia goes down to Miami. We're talking about stolen Lamborghinis, we're talking about Cavender twins, we're talking about everything that's not football related. And this guy put a good product on the field. Bill Belichick, take a lesson from Carson Beck. But I think he's got the narrative. You know what I mean? A lot of times this award is about the narrative, right? I mean, Travis Hunter, the narrative was great around him. I mean, you know, it really does. It does come down to the storytelling. Carson Beck got a great stuff story, man.

[C]

You, you. I mean, you guys look at Carson Beck and I mean, he does look like a really solid quarterback, like a really good. He's got a lot of potential. You can see why the scouts like him. But y', all, y' all look at him and y' all really see.

[B]

I just.

[C]

I don't know what it is about him. And this could just be my own bias. I look at that dude, I'm like, he don't look like they could be the best. Yeah, right. He does not look like the dude who could be the best college player in college.

[B]

I know why it is because he's white.

[C]

Well, you're the ones. I mean, you are the one that cut the black one.

[B]

That's. That's. Hey. Cause you know what? Cause you know what? I'm fair in battle.

[C]

I'm fair.

[B]

You know what? That's. But you I'm sick of. I'll tell you guys one thing that people I want to say right now, I'm sick of the race baiting that happens, and I don't stand for it. So for all of the people out there, I'm going to start calling out all the race baiting that I see in every place that I see it because it's not something that I ever get into. I stay far away from talking about that type of stuff.

[A]

Above the fray.

[B]

Above the fray. So I'm sick. I'm sick of it right now.

[C]

We established that you were anti woke on Saturday. This is true.

[B]

Not asleep as could be. Okay.

[A]

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[C]

Okay.

[A]

Must be 21 or older and present in select states. For Kansas and affiliation with Kansas Star Casino are 18 and older and present in D.C. kentucky or Wyoming. Gambling problem. Call 1-800-G GAMBLER or visit rghelp.com, call 1-887-89-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit gamblinghelplinema.org or call 800-327-5050 for 27 support in Massachusetts or call 1-877-8-HOPE and WHY or text Hope and why in New York.

[B]

All right.

[A]

Welcome back. Ringer tailgate. Let's do biggest games of the week. Great weekend of football games. Van just let us know prior to coming on the air that he got an exclusive VIP invite to the Michigan game. You know, Sharon Moore came out and said that Michigan fans are going to fill up the building and that that's the reason why it's sold out. Lincoln Riley says I don't care what he says. So we got some nice beef going into that game. So that's going to be a good one to watch out here. Yeah, it's great.

[C]

I don't care what he said.

[A]

I don't care what he says is what he said. That's great. But here, here we go. Biggest games of the week. We got number one at number one, Ohio State at number 17, Illinois. Number eight Alabama at number 14, Missouri. We got number six, Oklahoma at Texas. That's a Red river rivalry. Going to be a good game. Number seven, Indiana at number three, Oregon. So four huge games right there. Joel, I'll go to you first. What game out of those four really stands out to you?

[C]

Well, I mean, you know, I'm from this part of the country and I've never been to this game and I want to go to this game so bad one day, the oh, you Texas game. Because really right now we're talking about Texas playing for its playoff life, right? Like they've got two losses, a third one. I mean, it's possible that a three loss team will make the playoffs at some point, but it, you know, in one year we see that that kind of was the cutoff there. So if they lose here, they're probably out of the playoff race. But there's also this intrigue on. Hey man, is Oklahoma's quarterback John Mateer going to play? You know, he's supposedly going to be out for at least three weeks with the broken right hand. That's his throwing hand. And so if he were to try to play, and it seems to be indications that, you know, he wants to be available for that game, but that's only like 17 days since he got hurt. So even if he, even if he were to play, I can't imagine that he would be operating at peak capacity so that, that he's going to be.

[A]

On the injury report. My sources have said he's going to be on the injury report and they're making the decision on Friday. That's what I've been told.

[C]

So there you go.

[A]

We've reached out. That's what they said. And our buckle is telling him he doesn't need to play, but it sounds like Mattia wants to play, so there you go.

[C]

I still think it'll be a close game even if Michael Hawkins has to go and, you know, it looked all right. Yeah, yeah, it looked okay. And it was, it's a great atmosphere, man. Like I really, like I said, I really, I'm shocked that I've not been to this game personally. But yeah, man, I think, you know, I, I, I like the idea of Texas having to be really desperate in this game. Oh, you gets to make up for getting embarrassed last year and still maintain, you know, inside positioning to be in the SEC title game. So there's a lot at stake in Dallas this Saturday.

[B]

One of the biggest Red Rivers we've seen in a while, like one of the biggest ones. I mean, you have Brent Venables and his team playing to sort of solidify that they are a team to be reckoned with. And Oklahoma football is back, whatever. Everyone is back, everyone is out, everyone is back. And then you have, like you said, Texas fighting for their lives. If Texas were to lose, this would be two straight losses, you know, and it puts them almost in, not quite, but almost in a Penn State situation where you have the whole nation breathing down your neck about what is possible, especially when you think about what, what we thought was possible. So it's just a gigantic game for Sark. It's a huge game for Oklahoma. It's a Red river to where the winner of the game has positioned themselves. It's a sigh of release from the Texas fans and it's a we're back sort of nut dropping moment for Oklahoma. So that's a big one. I'm going to go with, though, Indiana and Oregon.

[C]

Ooh. Oh, good game.

[B]

That's a fucking fantastic college football Game for me, based upon what we've seen from Penn State, does that change our opinion of Oregon? Now, normally it wouldn't. In a normal college football season, we look at these teams, we look at these rosters, and we go, hey, you, stub your toe. It is what it is. This college football season has been different. The losses that Clemson suffered, everybody was wondering whether or not that should make you look at LSU differently. And it turned out it should have. It should have made you look at LSU differently. You have other teams now that with the parody that we have in the sport, how they are performing as teams in regards to our expectations of them, the transitive property of this team is not as good as we thought they were. So your win against them isn't quite what we thought it was. There are a lot of other years where that wasn't a thing. This is just not one of those years. This is one of those years where we're still asking so many questions this deep into the season that Oregon still has something to prove in this game against Indiana, and Indiana has something to prove in this game against Oregon, even though Illinois went on to beat Scott. This is a game where Indiana, every single Saturday, Indiana is answering the critics about whether or not they're a legitimate college football power. I think those questions have already been answered, but they're going to get another shot in Austin on Saturday. So I can't wait to see this one.

[C]

Yeah, I mean, you got to think that the winner of this game probably is going to play, assuming things play out the way we assume they will. Why would we assume that anything's going to play out the way we assume, but that the winner of this game was probably going to play Ohio State in the Big Ten championship game because neither of them face them in the regular season, so they get to avoid them. Indiana does have to play against Penn State at the end of the year, but who even knows what kind of state that Penn State will be at that point in the season.

[A]

So they changed the end zones. That was a big story. They. They updated the end zones, went back to the throwback. Try to. It was a classic deflection. I love college football. They're like, yeah, look at our new end zone.

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

And I mean, look, I mean, for people, this is sort of weird to think, but these might be the two best quarterbacks in the country that are getting together on Saturday. You know, between Fernando Mendoza and Dante Moore, a couple of guys also, that might be, you know, if they both declare, could be the two top quarterbacks drafted in this next draft. So, like, we're going to get to see some good quarterback play. The scene at Autumn is amazing. I've, you know, I covered a game there before. It's the real deal, like, especially when those folks are geeked up. And so, yeah, man, this is going to be something that Indiana, I mean, it was. It's like going to Notre Dame in the playoffs, right? Like you're going to find out, like, what they're made of now. Like, this is the, you know, to be with Indiana aspires to be and what their fans are telling us they are. This is the kind of game you sort of win as proof of concept.

[A]

Van I want to get your, your take on this. We get the anti Gundy from Signetti. So going into this game, we remember Gundy talking about they're not going to wear the Nike, they're going to put duct tape over the Nike uniform and they paid for their team and all of stuff got him all fired up. But Signetti before this game said, quote, he's probably one of the most impressive young coaching phenoms that come around in a while talking about Dan Lanning. He also said, I don't care what their roster spend is, they have a lot of talent on that team. So, I mean, Signetti famously, for being a little bit of, you know, kind of poking the bear, you know what I mean? This time he's buttering up. Dan Landing. Is this a smart game play that.

[B]

Tells me he believes in this team. Before, when you're the scrappy. When you're a scrappy doo, you stick your chest out. My daddy used to say a real confident man doesn't stick his chest out. He just walks. He just stands up straight. He's like, there's a difference between sticking your chest out and just standing up straight. When you're confident, you just stand up straight and you walk into a room. When you poking your chest out, you're trying to make people believe it. I think there was a part of Kurt Signetti that needed his team to hear the way he talked about them and talked about everything else because he was trying to prove to everyone that Indiana football was a real entity. Right? That's been proven. That's been proven. They are real. We don't know if they're real elite, but they are real. So there's no need to give Oregon bulletin board material. Going into Austin, you might not want to slob at a knob. Okay? You might not want to do that. But there's no need for him to Be the old Kurt Signetti. Let the talking happen on the field. Your team is that good. You believe in them. They believe in themselves. I think it was a smart way to go.

[C]

Aren't you guys. I kind of want to see what Indiana's uniforms look like, too. Like, they just a school. I feel like they got kind of interesting enough color scheme that I'm like, man, I want to see what that looks like in that stadium there. That's going to be kind of cool, man. I mean, just. I was just Indiana, man. I mean, this is what I'm talking about, this era of college football, like, the idea, the concept of Indiana playing an important game is just amazing to me. So, yeah, you know what they need?

[B]

Indiana needs a Michael Irvin because they have a lot of famous. They need, like, Isaiah Thomas. They need Isaiah Thomas to be their Michael Irvin.

[C]

Is Kent Benson still alive?

[B]

Or they need. Didn't Antoine Randall. L go there as well? Yeah, they need Antoine Randall. Shout out to him. He was a dog, right? But he not. Might not be quite enough, but they need Isaiah Thomas to take the Michael Irvin path. They need somebody prowling the sidelines, going nuts. Victor Oladipo, I just saw him put 20 on the spurs. Let Victor Oladipo go up there and go up and. Yeah, Cody go nuts up and down the sideline going crazy.

[C]

So if I say Anthony Thompson, I ain't gonna do nothing for y'. All. Y'. All. Y' all remember Anthony Thompson, do you? He's a great running back in the late 80s.

[A]

I think he'd move the needle. Somebody. We need somebody.

[C]

Somebody Indiana. Indiana. His.

[B]

No, okay. I'm saying, like. Like have somebody. They got all kinds of. Of people. What was the guy he played? He was in blue chips. What was his name?

[C]

Oh. Oh, man.

[A]

Bobby Hurley wore the Indiana jersey in blue chips.

[C]

Remember?

[A]

Bobby Hurley played.

[B]

Probably. They had him playing. I can't believe Bobby.

[C]

No, man, he was a power forward, man.

[B]

I know this guy was. He played Ricky Rowe, but he played for Indiana in real life, his name was.

[C]

I'mma get it for you. Matt Nova.

[B]

Matt Nova. Let Matt Nova go there and, you know, prowl the sidelines. Get them all together. Put all of the guys together and let them prowl the sidelines. They need something like that. Get us going. Get us going. Indiana.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Come on.

[C]

Eric Gordon. Eric Gordon. I mean, Eric Gordon.

[B]

Eric Gordon used to be in there tossing that thing. Go over there and, you know, go. Let Eric Gordon get loose.

[A]

I like it. Just a couple notes on the Other matchups, Alabama, Mizzou. This could be an Ahmad Hardy game, like a Heisman announcement type game for them. Drinkwits, by the way, could be a big win for him. They obviously beat Ohio State. That was probably his biggest win so far. But a signature victory at home for Mizzou, make sure people know they're for real. That could be. That could be a big moment. Illinois having back to back rank games, big deal for them as well. So shout out to the linei let's do favorite other matchup. Van, who do you have this weekend?

[B]

Easy one. South Carolina, lsu. Obviously LSU needs a victory. They need to win, but they also need to prove some things. Lenore Sellers is a quarterback that has not had the year that a lot of people thought they. That he would have had. South Carolina's reeling a little bit. It's an interesting game for both fan bases in that both fan bases are disappointed in the product that's been on the field. And it's going to be somebody's get right game. And it's going to be interesting to see which fan base, you know, LSU coming off of a buyer, which fan base gets right in this game. I'm really interested to see how both teams respond.

[A]

Shane Beamer, by the way, said that there's no way they can, quote, unquote, simulate heavily intoxicated Louisianans in Tiger Stadium, end quote. So I thought that was a pretty good quote going into the game. Shout out to Shane.

[B]

I don't know why people act like we're going to be. No, we be drunk at that bitch. Yeah, we drunk. So you can't.

[A]

What are you supposed to do?

[B]

Be the beers flowing.

[A]

Honestly, the best fan base I ever dealt with. LSU fans, 2010 Chick fil a kickoff. They were great. It was a close game. 31, 30. Zach Piano dropped the ball at the end of that game. Heartbreaker. But the LSU fans after the game were great. And they were trying to fire less miles. Right. Even though they won, they were like, we got to fire less miles. So Carolina by one close game. Joel favorite of the matchup on the board.

[C]

I mean I got Florida at Texas A and M because America is going to get to see Kyle Field at night and like all of his ultra weird glory. Right? This, I mean, just, you know, the cadets, the whole, the whole she bang.

[A]

Like they go in a lot of stolen valor happening.

[C]

Yeah. Yes. It's going to be amazing. And it's. It really. And it truly is not an easy place to win, you know, like. Yeah. And so that's going to be. That's going to be. Also. Are the Gators for real? Right? Like, I, you know, they got on track against us.

[B]

They're not. They're not for real?

[C]

Well, no, because they make dog. Are you going to tell Dallas Wilson you're not for real?

[B]

Because I just wonder if Dallas Wilson's great.

[C]

I wonder if Dallas Wilson might be the difference here. They just felt like they played different when they had that brother out there. It was like, oh, shit, we got somebody out here who can go, you.

[A]

Know, Napier is, like, saving when he's on the hot seat. I mean, he turns into a totally different coach. I mean, that's, you know, Billy Napier on the hot seat.

[C]

They looked good against a team that was ostensibly, like, decent. Like, I, you know, I. I don't. Who knows what anybody is anymore? But that. That win, you know, sort of piqued my interest in Florida. And again, and we talked about it on Saturday, them boys play hard for Billy Napier, man. They do.

[B]

They do.

[C]

You.

[B]

That's one thing you cannot say. They play hard for their coach. They play hard for Billy Napier, which is why, you know, if there was a consistent scheme and all of that, you just think that they could be playing better. Maybe they have found something. Let me not be so hasty. Maybe they have found something. I just think we've seen enough from Florida this year to know that there's some major, major, major problems. But who knows? They got some momentum now. See how they play on Saturday.

[A]

This feels like a game that Mike Elko needs to win just to, like, send the message that this is not the same old A and M, you know what I mean? So, like, that's really the situation.

[C]

This game would be very typical Laggy, so. Yeah, absolutely.

[A]

Yeah. And I think he's got that circled for everybody. I want to point this game out. Denton, Texas. We're talking a lot of Texas towns on this podcast, but North Texas, this is like a G5 playoff game right here. Number 24, South Florida, going down to take on North Texas. I'm a big fan of Eric Morris, their head coach. He was a former Wazoo offensive coordinator, obviously learned under Mike Leach. This is a team that knows how to play football, especially on the offensive side of the football. So this is going to be a fun game. Two good quarterbacks going head to head. So if you're not watching this game on Friday night, you're really missing out. So go check out South Florida, North Texas, nice G5 showdown. I know we keep it more P5, but I like a G5.

[C]

No, no, man. I mean, Green, man, Denton didn't. Texas is fine, man. That's. North Texas is a fun school. Texas Women's University is right up there. It's a good. That's a good time, y'. All. Y'. All. That'll be a fun place to go hang out, man. Y' all should go. Y' all should go check that game out. If you in the Dallas area somewhere.

[A]

Go get some medium stakes in Denton, Texas, you know what I mean?

[C]

That's.

[A]

Some other notable games that are on the board. I mentioned it before. Number 15, Michigan at USC. That'll be a good one. We got number 10, Georgia at Auburn. BYU. Number 18 at Arizona. Number 21, Arizona State at Utah. A little swap there with the Utah and the Arizona schools going back at it. This is a fun one. Wazoo at number four, Ole Miss. Wazoo. Not the same old Wazoo, but an interesting game just based on their scheduling with the pack 2/future pack 12, NC State at number 16, Notre Dame is another game to throw out there. Virginia tech at number 13, Georgia Tech just, you know, some more games to. To kind of get your palate. I saw you.

[C]

I saw you skip that game in College Park, Tate. I saw Nebraska and Maryland. That's a good game. Dylan Rayola about to be in the.

[B]

House trying to launch a show.

[C]

Dylan Rails might be here, man.

[B]

Maryland football again.

[C]

Maryland football.

[A]

Almost had a big win last Terps, man.

[C]

September, Maryland, man. Okay, that's the thing.

[A]

TCU at Kansas State. Joe, you fired up for that one?

[C]

Not really. I mean, you know, I mean, look, I was. I was just really disappointed in that loss at Arizona State. And I still haven't quite gotten over it yet. But look, we got Eric McAllister back. Cavorian Barnes, running back, is there. K State. See, the thing about this, I don't want to believe because I mean, K State should be easy work, man. TC is much more talented than they should beat they ass. But this is just the kind of game that I've gotten used to us losing over the last couple years. So I'm trying to protect my heart.

[A]

Smart. Number 22, Iowa State at Colorado. I do want to bring this up. Prime. This is a prime day. And I don't. I don't understand how Amazon hasn't done a deal with Coach prime and they have him being the. The voice of the. The Prime Day situation. Maybe that's something in the future they can figure out. But he just had his 16th surgery. He had a four hour procedure. For blood clots in his leg today. That was announced. But he's expected to still coach. I mean, Dion, you know, he had. He didn't have a shoe on when he was coaching during the game this past weekend. So obviously a lot's still happening with coach prime, but he's still keeping it going. So I wanted to give a salute and a shout out to him because, man, just feels like every single week there's a new story, right? It's crazy.

[B]

Just want to see him. Okay.

[C]

Yeah, Just see him healthy, man. It's just. I just. Yeah, man. I hope he's okay, man. Do you see the clip with Karu? What is it? Karuchi. That's how you say it?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Karuchi. Karrueche.

[B]

Say. Say that you want to see him. Okay. Then you diss his girl.

[C]

No, I'm. Dog. I'm not dissing this girl. I'm not dissing his girl at all. Prime, man, Power to you, brother.

[A]

He was great. In the press conference, they. I guess Eli Manning on Monday night football said that Travis Hunter didn't practice with the offense, and then he was asked about it, and he went into detail how they actually did the practices. So prime still, like, in prime form when it comes to, like, going at the media narratives, he does not agree with. Also, when they're false, he's not afraid to call it out. So coach prime still seems like he's all with it, and that's what you got.

[C]

That's where you got your tactics from today, man. You were like, man, yeah, yeah.

[A]

When you guys are asking me about Belichick, I almost put my sunglasses on. Make sure block out the haters. But is what it is. This has been ringer tailgate van. Joel. Appreciate you guys. We will be back live on Saturday. We'll be reacting to the full slate of games and we appreciate everybody tuning in, and we will see you all then.

[C]

Foreign.

[A]

Must be 21 or older and present in select states. For Kansas and affiliation with Kansas Star Casino or 18 and older and present in D.C. kentucky or Wyoming. Gambling problem, call 1-800- GAMBLER or visit rghelp.com, call 1-888-78-9-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit gamblinghelplinema. Org or call 800-327-50 50 for 24. 7 support in Massachusetts or call 1-877-8-HOPE NY or text HOPE NY in New York.