Ringer Tailgate – CFB Week 10 LIVE Reactions: “Miami & Vandy's Playoff Hopes, OSU on top + LSU Latest”

Podcast: Ringer Tailgate
Date: November 2, 2025
Hosts: Tate Frazier, Van Lathan, Joel Anderson
Episode Overview:
This episode dives deep into the chaos and drama of Week 10 in college football. The crew reacts live to the biggest games, major storylines, and wildest fan moments—Miami’s unraveling, Vandy’s narrow playoff hopes, Texas’ rollercoaster game, the stability of Georgia, OSU’s dominance, and the ongoing search for a new LSU coach amid political chaos. Interspersed throughout are vintage Ringer Tailgate banter, inside jokes, and memorable quotes.

Episode Theme & Purpose

To provide immediate, insightful, and entertaining reactions to the pivotal Week 10 college football results, focusing on shifts in playoff races, underperforming programs, and coaching drama, while highlighting the unique characters of teams, fanbases, and the wider CFB universe.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Georgia Survives Florida Again

• Discussion: Georgia defeats Florida for the fifth straight time. The crew debates whether this Georgia squad is really on par with past powerhouses.
  • Joel: “They are a very good veteran, plucky team but nothing about them scares me. Like… they’re gettable.” ([01:52])
  • Van: “If you’re comparing them to the dominant Georgia teams from the past then they certainly don’t have that same aura.” ([02:51])
  • Tate: “Kirby Smart...he is the class of all coaches right now in college football. So that's what really scares me about Georgia.” ([03:27])

2. Miami Hurricanes: Out of Playoff Contention?

• Van’s Hot Take: “I think Miami’s in hell…I wonder about the Hurricanes if there isn’t another loss in there somewhere.” ([03:58])
• Joel’s Accountability: Claims he predicted Miami’s struggles and mocked for it earlier; now insists fan unrest is justified: “If he loses any one of these last games, people are going to start talking about getting his ass out of there.” ([06:33])
• Fan Reaction: Recap of a wild Miami Twitter space, highlighting the intense, divided fan base and their demand for Mario Cristobal’s ousting.
  • Van: “There were people inside of that space that wanted Mario Cristobal to be fired…And they were asking if there was some systemic contagion inside of the program.” ([09:14])
  • Tate: “The best part of the spaces…someone brought up the refs, and everyone was like, man, shut your ass.” ([10:14])

Miami’s Playoff Path & ACC Outlook

• Record: Cristobal is now 12-10 vs. unranked ACC opponents at Miami, struggling late in seasons.
• Miami now outside the ACC title game hunt and virtually no playoff path remaining.
• Joel: “If Miami can’t make the ACC championship game, they’re definitely not going to the playoffs.” ([13:26])
• Louisville and Georgia Tech named as possible class of the ACC, but all contenders have glaring flaws.

3. Two-loss Playoff Teams? Vandy, Miami, Notre Dame Debate

• Van: Dissects Vandy’s resume, poking holes in the playoff hopes for two-loss teams.
• Joel: “Maybe there are a lot of two-loss teams at the end of the year…but Miami is going to be at the bottom of that argument.” ([19:34])
• General consensus: Miami and Notre Dame are effectively out, Vandy likely needs chaos.

4. Vanderbilt’s Gritty Loss to Texas

• “Game of Inches” was the story, with a dramatic onside kick recovery attempt.
  • Tate: “What an incredible moment there with that onside kick. That was total drama.” ([21:14])
  • Joel: “Vandy’s not overly talented…but they’re really just stitching it together and they’re very tough and obviously they’re resilient.” ([22:08])
• Texas, for all their talent, still seem incapable of imposing their will for a full game.
  • Van: “Texas is a bewildering college football team…they play to the level of their opponent and they don’t seem to be able to really impose their will.” ([23:22])
  • Memorable Image: “They are one squiggly ball onside kick recovery away from really being in a puckered asshole situation.” ([24:54])

5. Quarterback Development & The Texas Conundrum

• Arch Manning’s Progress:
  • Tate: “Arch Manning did, we did. Obviously this was the best game he’s played, but do we believe that he’s actually turned the corner?” ([25:37])
  • Joel: “No, I wouldn’t say he’s turned the corner…Texas for at least three and a half quarters today we saw that team.” ([26:09])
• Comparing QB rooms around the country, with van and Joel debating who’s most dangerous—Texas, Alabama, Notre Dame, Georgia.

6. Ohio State & Jeremiah Smith: Are They Unstoppable?

• Jeremiah Smith named as potentially the best player in college football.
  • Tate: “Is Jeremiah Smith the best player in college football right now?” ([33:33])
  • Van: “I think he’s certainly the most talented…They took all of the past Ohio State wide receivers… and put them all into one guy. And that guy is Jeremiah Smith.” ([34:07])
• OSU’s Big Ten advantage: “they essentially get live scrimmages every Saturday.” ([35:00])
  • Importance of building depth and experimenting week by week ahead of real tests.

7. Heisman and Defensive Standouts

• Heisman Odds: Julian Sayin favored, but panel questions if it should go to him or defensive players or WRs like Jeremiah Smith.
• Discussion on other defensive stars: Colin Simmons likened (favorably) to past greats like Brian Orakpo. ([38:22]-[39:51])

8. LSU Coach Search: Political Interference and Uncertainty

• Van delivers a passionate monologue on the disastrous political meddling in LSU’s football program.
  • Van: “What’s happening right now in Louisiana…the search for a head coach goes is such a slap in the face to the LSU football fans. The disarray, the disorganization, the politics, the cronyism...” ([51:34])
  • Direct criticism of Governor Landry inserting himself in the search and taking on agent Jimmy Sexton: “He looked like a cute little baby rabbit who didn’t know what the hell he was doing.” ([54:05])
• Coaching names floated, but no clear favorites emerge; Kelvin Sheppard mentioned as an interesting in-house candidate with upward momentum but also high risk (social/racial components discussed openly).
  • Van: “He’s a guy that continuously impresses people…But it’s a fucking high leverage hire.” ([60:05])
  • Joel: “I root for the brothers…I want them to have opportunities for jobs like this. I get tired of them getting the UAB’s or the FAU’s…” ([61:21])

9. Quick Hitters, G5 Report & Notable Moments

• Navy loses its first game, opening up chaos in the American.
• Mike Vick vs. DeSean Jackson as HBCU head coaches, celebrated as a special moment for black coaching pipeline.
  • Joel: “The hiring of DeSean Jackson is maybe the most inspired coaching hire of the year in college football.” ([85:23])
  • Van: “It’s also important that these brothers who want to be head coaches just get opportunities to get their feet wet.” ([86:28])
• Extended banter over historical SAT scores and Wonderlic trivia, a recurring Ringer Tailgate diversion.

10. Urban Meyer and Dabo Sweeney Speculation

• Urban Meyer says he has “no desire to return to coaching,” but hosts are skeptical.
  • Van: “He likes to find a younger lady and show her the spread offense, but that is not…when you look at some of the other stuff that has gone on, not that bad.” ([71:48])
  • Crew concludes that if Meyer wants a job, he’ll have offers.
• Dabo Sweeney’s situation dissected, determined unlikely to bolt for another job despite Clemson stalling.

11. Parting Shots: Season’s Stretch Run & Outlook

• Van: “A lot of flexing of the muscle going. We got one big upset overall thus far. It’s been a good week of college football.” ([89:53])
• Joel: “College game day, the big game next week might be in Lubbock, Texas, BYU at Texas Tech…The Big 12 might be in the center stage for a little bit.” ([90:10])
• Consensus: The season’s flying by, multi-view TV struggles hindering fans, and uncertainty at the top of college football persists.

Memorable Quotes & Moments

• On Miami fans:

  • “There were people inside of that space that wanted Mario Cristobal to be fired…asking if there was some systemic contagion inside of the program.” – Van Lathan ([09:14])
  • "The best part of the spaces...someone brought up the refs, and everyone was like, man, shut your ass." – Tate Frazier ([10:14])

• On Georgia:

  • "They are a very good veteran, plucky team but nothing about them scares me." – Joel Anderson ([01:52])

• On the playoff conundrum:

  • "If Miami can't make the ACC championship game, they're definitely not going to the playoffs." – Joel Anderson ([13:26])
  • "You'd have to take the totality of a lot of other things that happened...I don't know what to make of Vandy right now in their playoff chances if they can win out." – Van Lathan ([19:34])

• On Texas:

  • "Texas is a bewildering college football team…they play to the level of their opponent and they don’t seem to be able to really impose their will." – Van Lathan ([23:22])

• On Ohio State and Jeremiah Smith:

  • "They took all of the past Ohio State wide receivers…and put them all into one guy. And that guy is Jeremiah Smith." – Van Lathan ([34:07])

• On the LSU coaching search:

  • “The governor comes out and takes this guy on. He looked like a cute little baby rabbit who didn’t know what the hell he was doing." – Van Lathan ([54:05])
  • "He would be a coach, a brand new head coach at a really, really, really coveted job, and he’d have some bumps and bruises and he would have to grow. So knowing that he’s just always leveled up wherever he’s been, I’m not saying he’s the guy for the job, but I’m saying that, like, he does have some momentum." – Van Lathan (about Kelvin Sheppard) ([60:05])

• On black coaches in college football:

  • “I just...like to see throwing some of the brothers out there, man, give them a chance to fail, too. They can go out there and go six and six like anybody, everybody else.” – Joel Anderson ([88:04])

• On legendary HBCU coaching moment:

  • "The hiring of DeSean Jackson is maybe the most inspired coaching hire of the year in college football." – Joel Anderson ([85:23])
  • “It’s also important that these brothers who want to be head coaches just get opportunities to get their feet wet…for the ecosystem of black coaches.” – Van Lathan ([86:28])

Notable Timestamps for Important Segments

• [01:52] – Joel’s take on Georgia’s “gettable” nature.
• [03:58] – Van says "Miami’s in hell" and breaks down their collapse.
• [06:33] – Joel takes a victory lap on predicting Miami fan unrest.
• [10:14] – Recap of Miami Twitter space meltdown, “shut your ass.”
• [13:26] – Joel asserts Miami’s playoff hopes are dead.
• [21:14] – Tate and crew recap Vandy’s “game of inches” loss to Texas.
• [33:33] – Is Jeremiah Smith college football’s best player?
• [35:00] – Van discusses Ohio State’s “live scrimmages” and development.
• [51:34] – Van’s impassioned critique of politics derailing LSU’s coach search.
• [60:05] – High-leverage risks and rewards of hiring Kelvin Sheppard.
• [71:48] – Van’s irreverent summary of Urban Meyer's off-field issues.
• [85:23] – DeSean Jackson’s HBCU coaching breakout.
• [88:04] – Joel’s John Thompson-inspired quote on black coaches getting opportunities.

Additional Highlights

• Plenty of fun banter, including SAT/Wonderlic talk, shout-outs to families, and off-the-rails moments (e.g., extended riff on Urban Meyer, Percy Harvin and Tebow stories at Florida).
• Ongoing frustration with TV/streaming issues impacting fans’ ability to watch all games.
• “Game of inches” motif as recurrent metaphor for the fine lines in chaotic playoff races.
• Analytical yet entertaining breakdowns almost always graced with some chaos or personal digression typical of Ringer Tailgate.

Wrap Up

Episode Tone:
Smart, lively, chaotic, and deeply knowledgeable, balancing irreverence with genuine analysis and concern for the sport and its culture.

Summary for Newcomers:
If you missed Week 10, this episode will get you caught up on everything from Miami’s meltdown, Vandy’s heroic near-miss, Texas’s identity crisis, the surgically precise (if rarely tested) Ohio State juggernaut, and the turbulent search for a new LSU coach. Expect fan drama, playoff litigations, coaching rumors, plenty of memorable quotes, and wild, infectious college football energy.