← SEC Unfiltered
SEC Unfiltered
Smart/Golesh/Lea/Beamer Said WHAT?, Top 5 QBs In The SEC, Will Mizzou Finally Break Through And More
01:18:43
Loading summary
Transcript1 lines
- [00:00]
A
Hello everyone. I'm Chris Phillips. This is the Chris Phillips show here at SEC Unfiltered. We appreciate each and every single one of you tuning in. Like I mentioned, jam packed show here on this Tuesday, July 21, 2026, day two of SEC Media days, essentially in the books. I'll give my full thoughts. Also, we're talking quarterback rankings for 2026 and the Missouri Tigers, our official team preview for Miz as we continue to count down the days until toe meets leather on the 2026 college football season. Grateful for each and every single one of you tuning in. I thank you all so much. Jumping right into your questions and your comments because you guys are a big part of the show. Without your love and support, we would not be where we are or where we're going. My guy. SEC football 2 26, my friend. It's been a while. He says been a while. Love the content as always, Chris. SEC football too, man. It has been a while. What a journey it's been for both you and I. Really appreciate you tuning in. Turkey Slammer, aka Ms. Terry's Bathwater, as he's formerly known. First comment of the day says Crazy Tennessee's got two out of the top five quarterbacks in the SEC. Do you mean they face off against two of the top five or they have them? I'm assuming you mean they face off against them because in my list I know they have number five and they get number two who? So I think that's what you're referring to. If I am guessing correctly there, Luke, RJ 138 says let's go Beamer ball year six again. We're gonna start there. Luke, I appreciate you and guys keep the questions and the comments coming. I really do appreciate it. First things first, by the way, I want to start with this quick shout out to Mad Lab Sports on Instagram. You see this helmet to my right, maybe your left on your screen. Mad Lab Sports sent this in Instagram account hits me up. We followed each other. Said, hey man, I do custom helmets. Would love to send you a helmet. I'm thinking, okay, sure, it's probably going to be some SEC team helmet or something random. I really just didn't know. This comes in the mail yesterday. It is a custom SEC unfiltered helmet. You see that? The helmet stripe on top is all 16 of the SEC teams. We've got SECU on the front bumper. The Beauties and the Banter on the back bumper even have the Kalshee logo. Shout out to Kalshee We've got the map of the SEC states, the USA flag, of course. This thing is absolutely awesome. So Mad Lab Sports really appreciate you. If y' all check him out on Instagram, he does custom helmets. So if you want a helmet for anything, he can do it for you. Mad Lab Sports just wanted to show some love, man. This is a great new addition to the studio setup. If you all find a spot for it probably in the background there. But really, really cool stuff. Really appreciate our guy over at Mad Lab Sports wanted to give him a quick shout out. SC Football 2 says haven't been able to chat as much, but I've been listening daily. Awesome to see you and Cole and everything on SECU SEC football team again. I appreciate it, man. Yeah, every Monday, Wednesday chewing clock our football show. You can catch us 10am Central or if we specify a different time, then that is when we will go live. But either way, let's get into it because guys, day number two of SEC media days in Tampa, Florida officially in the books. We had four coaches of course take the podium. Georgia head coach Kirby Smart, Auburn head coach Alex Goelish, Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lee, and South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer. Let's start with the beginning of the day, Kirby Smart, who has become really the dean of the sec. When you think about it, just how long he's been at Georgia and certainly the most successful with a pair of national championships. I think the big takeaway. Listen guys, I like to keep things on the field. As y' all know, I'm not the person you go to for all the the legislation and the SEC separation and what have you. But it is a big talking point. Kirby Smart talking about and the momentum continues. I think that is probably going to be one of the big overarching themes or one of the big story lines leaving SEC media days is it feels like love it or hate it. The SEC is not bluffing from the standpoint of hey yeah, we're thinking about the SEC branching off and leaving. Which I don't think anybody realistically in college football or college sports wants that. Like when you think about it, we all grew up on college football being like a national type of thing, right? We get these great out of conference matchups. SEC versus ACC, SEC, SEC for experts, Big Ten. I'm someone like I miss the old Pac12. So as much as you might love your conference, as much as you might love the sec, I, I don't just want to see for the rest of time only SEC on SEC matchups. I mean, think about some of the rivalries we have that potentially could be lost. South Carolina, Clemson, Florida, Florida State, Kentucky, Louisville, the list goes on and on. But it is interesting how this continues to carry momentum. Now, Kirby Smart also said, and I feel like he was speaking to me when he said this, and I'm paraphrasing, essentially saying, like, hey, this time of year, everybody wants to talk about all the off field stuff, the legislation or what have you, some of the stuff that he ironically talked about later in the day. Nobody wants to really talk about how you win football games or just winning football games, what it takes to win football games. And that's what Kirby Smart wanted to focus on. And I can appreciate that as someone that again, we have reached this point in the summer, this point in the preseason. It's time to start talking about what's going to win football games because in about a week, week and a half, pads are going to be popping and all that other really isn't going to matter. We discussed Georgia about a week and a half or so ago on these airwaves and the wide receiver position was a question mark for us. Kirby Smart, he was on one. He was very, very sharp today. I thought his answer about the wide receiver position specifically was really funny. It was really clever. And I appreciated what he had to say. A confidence without being cocky, if you will. He had this direct quote, quote. I'm just thankful for people like you who keep questioning our wide receiver room. People say we don't listen to y', all, but our wide receivers are listening. So what, what you'd expect from Kirby Smart, from the standpoint of excited about the challenge, I think he feels he came off to me as a guy that feels really, really good about his football team. I mean, Kirby's always been a guy at the podium that every time I hear Kirby Smart talk about football, guys, I want to run through a brick wall. Master motivator. He's one of those people. There are certain people, they don't have to be head football coaches, just people in life. They are so passionate about the thing that they are talking about. It oozes out of them to such a degree that they can inspire and excite others just by talking about it. Like, they talk about it in such a way that it brings a level of excitement and inspiration to those around them. That's how I feel when I listen to Kirby Smart talk football. I mean, it's just you want to run through a brick wall and you can understand why his players do that for him on a week in week out basis. The other big takeaway from me, obviously, the confidence around Gunner Stockton. Really, really confident about his quarterback. You know, talked about some of the questions and everything that they had coming into this event last year and, and certainly it's now he's a veteran, he's experienced, talked about his leadership and what he means to the University of Georgia and the type of guy he is. So again, Kirby Smart, all in all. We did also get a really funny moment of course with the Lane Kiffin thing, saying that what is a troll? You know, how do you define a troll? Whatever. And he had some fun picking with Lane Kiffin. But I mean, all in all, Kirby Smart, extremely confident about his football team. And you know, if you were on the fence about buying stock in Georgia, listen, games aren't won and lost in late July. They aren't one and loss at the podium. But boy, I tell you this, I, I feel even better than I felt about Georgia going into this event. Leaving this event, if you will. I mean, I, I just. Every team has questions to some degree, but I think Georgia's got a ton of answers as well and they're certainly going to be a factor. And why shouldn't Kirby be confident, right? With all he's got returning and he's won the conference back to back years. I, I think Kirby Smart and company are in a great position. So kind of what you'd expect from him. Then you went into Alex Golish, Year 1 Auburn head coach, certainly, as you can imagine, talked about the year one expectations. I thought it was interesting. He mentioned standards over goals. I thought that was very interesting. And I, I understand where he's coming from. From the standpoint of you focus on the process and that will take care of the end result. I know a lot of fans and all don't like to hear that and it's, it's sounds like coach speak, but heck, I implement that in my daily life. And if you do anything of, of of significance or you have any goal or you strive for something, then you know that the only way you get to that bigger end goal is by tackling the minute details and the little things on a day in, day out basis, on an hourly basis. I mean, it comes down to those minute details. So talk more about process. Talk standard over goals. And I, I understand where he's coming from. The standpoint that you handle the standard and you set the standard, the end goal is going to take care of itself. I think also for Alex Golage, very smart of him to maybe not lean into hey, our goal is to set, like, a hard line in the sand, if you will, because I think he understands they got to rebuild at Auburn. I mean, it's. You know, there's reasons to be optimistic and excited for this year's team. I'm not saying there's not, but the last thing you want to do is go out there and say, you know, our goal is to win a national championship. Our goal is to be, you know, in the College Football Playoff or contending for an SEC title. And all of a sudden, you're giving fans something to where it's like, hey, you said we'd do this. What happened, right? If you don't reach those goals. So I think early on for Alex Golish, and he made it clear it's about laying that foundation, setting that standard. He was very high on his quarterback, Byron Brown. I am very excited to see Byron Brown this season. Called him one of the best quarterbacks in college football. So high praise. But, I mean, certainly, man, he's been with him at South Florida. He knows him better than probably anybody else, besides his family, maybe, but knows him as well as anybody. He knows what the kid is capable of. I'm excited to see it play out, and I think if you're an Auburn fan, you should be pretty excited about what Alex Goelish had to say. Guys. Moving to Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lee as the afternoon session got underway. You know, Clark Lee is another one where you. You can love or hate Clark Lee does not matter. You really have to respect, though, Clark Lee and what he represents and how he represents Vanderbilt. Right, because he could have gone up there on the podium and said, man, we're so proud of what we did last year, and it's such a great accomplishment. And he could have ranted and raved and kind of dwelled on what they were a season ago. And this could have been the first time that we heard Clark Lee, you know, go out there publicly and say, hey, like, our goal is to be the very best and compete at the highest level and be the best program in the country. He's been saying this for years, and I'm paraphrasing a little bit, but the quote that he had saying that, you know, talking about the players that were willing to stay and commit to Vanderbilt while others sat on the sidelines from the comfort of the sidelines and laughed. I thought that. I thought what Clark Lee had to say today was very, very powerful. Powerful is the way that I would describe it. He's a guy that, again, you can tell and again, of course, Clark Lee cut his teeth here. He played at Vanderbilt. His greatest attribute, one of them, at least one of his greatest attributes, is that Clark Lee, he believes in what Vanderbilt can be and dismisses what it has always been. He does not let what it has always been deter him from his belief in what Vanderbilt can't be, which I believe genuinely that Clark Lee believes that Vanderbilt can be the best football program in the country. Whether you want to laugh at that, you want to mock, you want to scoff, whatever, I respect the fact that he is willing to go out there and say that because he, his belief in that is so strong he had this to say as well. Quote. Let me be clear. Progress is not the destination. Last season was not an arrival. It was simply another step in the climb. Our objective remains what it's always been, to build the best football program in the country. I, I respect the hell out of Clark Lee. I think Clarkley is the perfect fit for Vandy. Listen, may they take a step back this year. They very well might. They probably will because Vandy, realistically, let's call it for what it is, is probably not winning 10 games again. But I remember two years ago this time when our biggest question was, is Clark Lee even the right guy for the job? I think they were coming off a 2 in 10 season. How much things can change from the standpoint of. I don't think there's any question Clark Lee is the right man with the job. And I think Clark Lee should be at Vanderbilt probably as long as he wants. And I, I don't have an extensive, you know, I, I don't know Vanderbilt football history like I'm sure many of you out there do. But I have to imagine Clark Lee at some point will be knocking on the door of being the best coach in school history. I'd have to imagine that. You know, I, I just. What he's done, what he did last year and what I think he will continue to do, I think in a place like Vanderbilt is going to be really, really special. Now, of course he did talk about Jared Curtis. Blake Berlowitz did not name a QB one, as you would imagine. Nobody's probably going to do that. This week left the door open for both guys. I think he did a really good job of, of acknowledging Diego Pavia for what he did last year. But also I, I think he did a good job of essentially saying, hey, this team is more than Diego Papia, this program is more than Diego Papi. This program is not just identified or just Defined, I should say, by Diego Pavia and what he did. As proud of. Is it as proud of it as we are? We are more than Diego Pavia. I. I thought he did a pretty good job of making that very clear. I saw a guy in Clark Lee that strong. Foundation is strong. He's built a solid foundation in Nashville that he's really proud of. You know, Clark Lee's name is one that circulates around in coaching searches. We saw it at the end of last season. I see Clark Lee as a guy, guys. I. You know, to say Vandy lifer may be a bit extreme because he's got a lot of football in front of him and you just never know. But I think he's very happy where his feet are. And that's kind of coach speak, if you will, coming from me. But I think it's true. I think he's very happy where his feet are. I think he's proud of what they built, but understands that he mentioned progress is not the destination. Again, I thought it was really powerful stuff from Clark Lee. And no matter what, how this season shakes out, which there should be a lot of optimism and excitement for this season, but no matter how this season shakes out, you got to be really, really excited and really confident just from the standpoint of you have Clark Lee leading your football program. And finally, guys, South Carolina head coach Shane Beamer, I will start by saying this, and this is to no fault of Shane Beamer. I cannot stress this enough because people are going to take this as I am being critical somehow of Shane Beamer and that, no, this is not Shane Beamer's fault, but I left or I come to you after his press conference media availability, extremely disappointed with the media. I mean, what are we doing from a question standpoint? And I understand everybody's got to ask questions, that everybody's in there trying to write a story, right? Everybody wants a question for an answer for their story. Hey, if you're an A M writer, hey, you play A M, give me something there. Hey, you play Tennessee, give me something there. This, that, whatever. But Shane Beamer is arguably on the hottest seat in the conference. They have a brand new offensive coordinator in Kendall Briles, and they've had offensive line issues essentially since he's gotten there. And there's not a single question about that. Not a single one. I just feel like Shane Beamer leaves that podium. There was so much missed opportunity to ask questions. Now we got some things out of it, but I. There were some very obvious things that did not get addressed. And I'm not sitting there saying, go say, hey coach, you're on the hot seat. How does that make you feel? I think there's a way to craft a question where it says, hey, you know, you, you face a certain level of pressure heading into year six. How does that impact the way you're preparing for this season, if at all? What's the energy like in the building? There's a way to soften the blow of that question. Hey, how about a question about the comments Shane Beamer made after the Clemson game last year when he essentially said, we expect to be sitting here next year talking about College Football Playoff? How is that not brought up in conversation? I just feel like there was so much missed by the media in the big room. I digress, though. Shane Beamer's emphasis on finishing, I mean, it was, you know, his first question of the day comes about the Texas A and M last game last year and he is very quickly his response, can we not, can we not talk about it? But I mean, he went on record and talked about how many games and how close they were and their inability to finish a season ago and how, how much that's bothered him. And I, I would agree. Listen, that's going to go a long way in determining who they are as a football team because this is the sec. You're going to be in close games and if you're trying to overachieve, well, what does that mean? You're going to be trying to pull upsets. So those games are probably going to be close. You're going to have to come up big in the fourth quarter. Beamer pointed out, quote, we had six losses last season that were one score games going into the fourth quarter, six losses that were one score games. He continued, we certainly had to play better in the fourth quarter, end quote. So and I would agree with him. I mean it's, they should have had A&MB they had Alabama beat. There were so many others. You keep going down the list of games where South Carolina had a great opportunity and fell completely flat on their faces. But you know, I did think it was interesting. While he wasn't asked specifically about Kendall Briles and didn't go into crazy detail in depth about the offense, there was a good question asked but I don't know who it was, but about the running game and specifically the utilization of Lenora Sellers and he was very quick to, to embrace the fact that they're going to have to run the football with Lenora Sellers. He said, quote, I Think would be crazy not to use Lenoris legs. Will there be some design runs for Lenoris? Absolutely. I mean, and I don't think that should come as a surprise, but he certainly leaned into the idea of, like, hey, the offense was too bland last year. They did what they could to keep him in the pocket. And I think they took away a lot of what made Lenora Sellers really dangerous, which is his ability to improvise, his ability to get outside the pocket, make big things happen, make big plays. Like, you got to live with some of the. The risk that is involved with that to get the good. You cannot take away one of his assets and strengths. You're not helping him, you're hurting him. And obviously that's why Mike Shul is not in Columbia, South Carolina anymore. So, you know, he did also kind of allude to tampering, which I thought was interesting when talking about, you know, after a tough season, guys had the opportunity to go elsewhere and he was like, you know, we had guys that were contacted to go elsewhere that weren't in the portal. So not that that's big news. That's happening everywhere, and it is what it is. You can love that, hate that, but I think it's the reality. Until we get some legendary. We get some guardrails and get some Some actual rules enforced, we can enforce these things. But outside of that, I mean, Shane Beamer seemed like himself crazy to think it's his sixth SEC media days, you know, continue. He's a great salesman. You know, I think sold the fact that he believes that, you know, they can get back. Also, Shane Beamer is one of the most. How do I want to phrase this? Socially aware coaches or aware of what people are saying about him, I wouldn't doubt it. In his office, he's probably got one tab pulled up that's on Twitter where he knows everything everybody's saying about him. He did mention, hey, y' all picked us here after 2024. You picked us here last year. Y' all aren't going to pick us very high this year. We got a lot of those same players coming back from a 4 and 8 team, a team that y' all picked to finish very, very highly. I don't know if he necessarily did a good job of selling, why they'd be better on that standpoint. But either way, Shane Beamer is always very entertaining from the standpoint of he knows everything that everyone is saying about him, good, bad, or indifferent. So that leads to a very fiery press conference and a guy that's fired up and inspired and excited. You know, also talking about Clayton White, the takeaways, how good they've been on defense. And so yeah, I mean, again, I thought overall, great day at SEC media days. Very four, four coaches, I'll say this, four coaches in very different positions. You got Kirby Smart, who is the leader of a perennial power in the sport, Alex Goolish, who's in year one of a rebuild, Clark Lee, who is following up the greatest season in his program's history, essentially, and Shane Beamer, who I think is on the hottest seat in the SEC and one of the hottest seats in all of college football. So certainly it made for, for interesting commentary to say the very least. And guys, I'd love to hear from you as day two of SEC football media days in Tampa's wrapped up. Your thoughts, your takeaways and what your, what you were most excited to hear from Tampa, Florida. Guys, I want to get into your questions, your comments. Let's see, let's see. Michael, Ray Lynn, South Carolina is definitely under the radar, which is the way we want it. Well, I mean, you created that under the radar yourself when you went 4 and 8. I don't think South Carnavan should say, oh, great, under the right. Well, you went four and eight. Here's. All right, here is, here is the question I have for South Carolina people and people that say this because people, what people will say is, man, South Carolina fares so much better when they're under the radar. So if you ever hire a big, like, if you ever get to a place where you're winning big time games and you're consistently good, does that mean they can never be consistently good? Because anytime there's hype around the program, they're going to fall flat. I mean, that's not really a great place to be in, is it? We're like, man, we really, we have to be picked dead last and doubted to, to have a surprise season and have a good year. It's like I, it's just kind of, it's kind of funny. There's nothing really no takeaway on it. It's just kind of funny. And it's like, is that really how you're going to operate? Like, it's like, well, hopefully we don't have big expectations next year because it means we won't do good. It's like, well, that's, I mean, you think that's how Georgia thinks, how Texas thinks, how Alabama thinks? Like, is that you think that's how those fan bases think? I, I just don't. You know you want to be ranked number one in the country preseason. It's a compliment to be ranked number one in the country. Let's see, Luke RJ says how much does Kendall Browse actually help the South Carolina offensive? Lenore Sellers. They were almost laughed in first downs last year. Luke RJ the answer to that question probably determines where Shane Beamer is in 2027. I mean I talked about it a couple so I think you can title this season as can Kendall Briles save Shane Beamer. That, that's what it comes down to. I think you and I both know well enough. Clayton White in the defense. I think they'll be solid. Even if they're not great, they'll be solid, they'll be good enough. It all comes down to the offense, right? And I, I think there were many that understood a couple years ago that Shane Beamer was probably going to be judged off of what he did with Lenora Sellers. Because Lenora Sellers, homegrown, you know, thought to be a, you know, he wasn't a five star prospect by any means, but you look at the measurables and look at the player he is, you know, thought to be a generational quarterback and a guy that, you know you can go to the playoff with and you can win a lot of games with and if they're not able to capitalize, especially this year on the Norris Sellers, Nick harbor and Dylan Stewart and a fourth OC is not productive and I don't care that it's year one. That'll be all she wrote. So here's the, here's the good news. I don't think the offense can be much worse than it was last year. But we're asking the wrong question, right? And it's an important question you pose. Kendall Brows. The offensive identity is important. Can the offensive line block. Riddle me that. Because there's no scheme that exists that can scheme around a horrific offensive line. No, there's none of them. There's just, there's not a scheme that exists. So let's see. Sandman says question Between Oklahoma, Aggie and Texas, which of the three do you believe will have the best season? Which of the three will disappoint the most and why? I think Texas. I think Texas has the best season of the three. I've got Texas in the SEC title game. The one that I think will disappoint the most. Here's the thing, man. I got OU and A and M finishing with the same record. So I, I will go. I will go Texas A M When my game by game predictions are released, you will understand why and I'll just leave it at that. All right, guys, let's keep it moving. We got a lot more to get into here on this Tuesday, July 21st. I really appreciate each and every single one of you tuning in. Do me a favor and continue to keep the questions and the comments coming. Guys, before we go any further, really quick, we want to tell you about our friends over at Kalshi because as always, we are brought to you by our friends at Cali. Guys, before the season even kicks off, everyone, and I mean everyone, is making predictions. Who wins the division, who makes the playoffs, who's lifting the trophy at season's end. On Cowshi, America's number one prediction market platform, you can trade those predictions in a live market. For example college football. You can place wagers on everything from percentage chance to win an individual game, to make the college football playoff, to win the national title and everything in between. Guys, on Cowshe you're trading against peers in a live market, meaning there's no house. And as the probability changes, you can buy in and out of your position, trade the draft, pick the game and more on Couchy for a limited time down the Couchy app and you smoke on secu to get $10. When you trade 10 that's K A L Shi Kalshi trade on anything 18 and up. Only restrictions and eligible to requirements apply. Event contract trading involves risk. It may not be suitable for all investors. Cowshi products are not available in all jurisdictions. Prices, values and available markets may differ from those mentioned. For more information see kalshi.com regulatory okay, let's move into one of everyone's favorite off season topics. That being, give me just one second here. That being okay. Quarterback rankings. Entering the 2026 SEC football season, I'm ranking every single quarterback from 16 to 1. So without further ado, these are my selections as we start at number 16. I've got Vanderbilt's Jared Curtis. Now let me be clear. This list is not where I think they will finish. This is a quarterback rankings list of where I see them at right now. So some of these quarterbacks at the bottom, a lot of fan bases are going to raise hell about where they're ranked. This is just right now I will release another list end of season for my postseason quarterback ranking. So when I tell you that me having Jared Curtis at number 16 is nothing personal, Vandy fans, I mean it. It's nothing personal but the kid has never played a down of college football. What do I have to judge him off of from the standpoint of I don't know if he's going to be a good college quarterback. I have no idea. I know he's a talented player, but I also know he's a true freshman who's going to try to navigate the sec and true freshman signal callers don't typically fare well in this league. Do I think he finishes at number 16? Most likely not. Here's the other part of this is Jared Curtis even the starting quarterback at Vandy, I don't know that he is right. Blake Berlowitz is pushing and there is no clear decision made that Jared Curtis is QB1, although I think he will be. So that is the reason I have Jared Curtis at number 16. I fully expect to him to finish higher than number 16 and number 15. Let's stay in the state of Tennessee. Over in Knoxville I've got Tennessee's Faison Brandon or George McIntyre. Now I could have listed for 16 as well Jared Curtis or Blake Berlowitz. Although I feel confident Curtis is a starter. I, I don't know who Josh Hyple is going with. I really don't. I know most are predicting that it's going to be Faison Brannon and I understand why. If it's still a tie at this point, if it's a tie in fall camp, logic would tell you go with the guy who's more talented again. And I know Tennessee fans see this list and they raise hell because last year I had Joey Aguilar 16th. That was my bad. But this year, if I'm just ranking off pure talent, Faison Brandon is much higher on this list. But it's either Faison Brandon, who's never played a down, or George McIntyre who's played barely at all to a point to where he's done nothing of significance in college football. 15 is the rightful place right now for either one of these quarterbacks. I mean really, you could put a 15A 15B for Tennessee and Vanderbilt's quarterback situations because as much as y' all hate each other, y' all are in the same spot when it comes to under Center. Number 14. I got Arkansas's K.J. jackson. Now I have K.J. jackson this low. What kills me about this is I'm excited about K.J. jackson. I, I think K.J. jackson is a very capable player. I saw him in Austin against Texas and I thought he did some nice things. Right. Dual threat guy can beat you with his legs. I, I, I thought he had some nice touch on the ball in that game. Made some nice throws. I would be lying to you if I told you or I didn't tell you that I would be lying to you if I told you this didn't have something to do with what's around him as well. I'll just be totally honest with you. I don't think his team is very good. I don't think his proper weapons is very good. Therefore I don't think K.J. jackson, he's, he's a guy it is much harder for me to buy in on and have a lot of optimism about. But I do think there are some things I think he's going to have some wow moments this season. But I got K.J. jackson at 14, number 13. This is a guy that has no shortage of weapons and again, I do have him down this low because he's just unproven. But Aaron Philo at Florida and heck, it may be Tramell Jones Jr. In Gainesville. This is another one of the big quarterback battles that's going to be going on during the fall. But I do think more than likely it is the Georgia Tech transfer in Philo. I think Buster Faulkner bringing him over, I do think that gives him the leg up when it comes to the quarterback competition in Gainesville. Philos played a little bit here and there. Not, not a lot. Nothing really, really significant. But I think under your OC from Georgia Tech, you follow him over and guys the weapons he's got at his disposal, I mean it's an embarrassment of riches when you talk about Dallas Wilson and Vernell Brown and Eric Singleton and Jaden Ball to hand the ball off to and a, a big physical offensive line. I mean it's a great situation to be walking into as a first time starting quarterback. At number 12, I've got Kenny Minchi and I've already seen it, I've already heard it. The pushback from Kentucky fans. I understand Kenny Minchi is a guy that was highly, highly praised when he was in South Bend and a guy that thought many or many that thought that covered Notre Dame. They thought he was a guy who could win this quarterback battle and win this job. We just haven't seen anything. All the hype and the hoopla and the practice reports are great, but we haven't seen it actually play out on the field. Therefore I have him at 12. I, I just want to see it. I think under Will Stein he could put up some big numbers. I do, but I just got to see it. Number 11, I got Alabama's Keelan Russell this is another one. Listen, I'm high on Keelan Russell. I think that Ryan Grubb and Caitlin aboard will have the quarterback situation figured out. Notice I did put Key Lime Russell. I don't think Austin Mack wins this job. I think this is Keylon Russell's football team. I think Keelan Russell does things that nobody else at the quarterback position in Tuscaloosa can do. So I do think Keelan Russell is QB1 right out of the gate and I do not think he will let go of that position. That being said, young player, young player has had a great spring game. He ain't done much else than that. I mean, when they went to QB3 last year or QB when whoever it was, it was QB3, I think it was Austin Mack. It wasn't Keelan Russell. So really not any game experience. But I do think Keelan Russell's a guy I'd be shocked if he did not finish higher on this list. I just trust Grubbing Deborah to get the quarterback position figured out. They got to find a running game to compliment him. Ryan Coleman Williams I think is going to return to form. There is just no way he has that bad of a season as he had last year. Lots here, Brooks being back as well as big. A lot of questions on offense, but I think Keylon Russell I think could be a really special player for the Crimson tide. At number 10, I've got Camario Taylor. This is one of the most exciting players in the sec. Guys. You know, I don't want to overreact to one play, but that run that he had against Ole Miss in the Egg Bowl, I was there in person and watched that. This dude does some magical things in the pocket, man. And when he gets outside of the pocket, watch out. I mean he is a house call waiting to happen every time he leaves the pocket. Right. I think under Jeff Levy, who's an offensive mastermind, if you will, that's essentially his calling card. Having fluff both will at running back, having Anthony Edwards on the outside. This could be a really fun offense in Starkville. And again it starts under center with Camario Taylor now again, lots to prove. You can't build a resume off one play. But he did some really nice things against Pete Golding's defense end of season last year that I think could. And and in the bowl game as well against Wake Forest. Thankfully he's healthy. I know we're. There was a scare in that game when he went down. He is a guy I think that can make one of the biggest Leaps in the SEC and could be one of the most exciting players in this conference. I love what he brings from an athleticism standpoint. Really, really fun player to watch. I, I think he is going to rise meteorically up this list. Number nine. I've got Austin Simmons over at Mizzou. Austin Simmons, a guy I was extremely high on last year. Extremely high on him from the standpoint of I thought he was going to be Lane Kiffin's next great quarterback, next rate signal caller, probably lead the SEC in passing, all conference type of dude. The injury happened in Trinidad. Shambles happened, you know, and I, I know that Austin Simmons was not very consistent early through five interceptions. I believe in the first three games I believe it was, he wasn't good early. But you know, I, I go back to two years ago and what he did against Georgia and that one drive he had and you can see it, you know, I, I think there's a lot of potential with Austin Simmons, you know, what is he able to do under Chip Lindsay, the new OC there at Missouri? A lot of questions from the Missouri Tigers. He does have a great running game to accompany him. He's got his good buddy Caden Lee on the outside as well, who also comes over from Ole Miss. There's a reason I have Austin Simmons near the middle. I just. There's a little more uncertainty than say going into last year, right? There's just a little more uncertainty with what Austin Simmons brings to the table. Can he be more consistent and can he live up to the billing that so many of us set out for him this time last year? That is my big question. And number eight, I've got Auburn's Byron Brown. Dynamic player. Alex Golish at SEC media said he thinks he's one of the best quarterbacks in the country. How does it transition from South Florida to the sec? That, that, that is the number one question. Because I mean, you look at his numbers, you look at what he did last year, the numbers speak for themselves. I think 45 total touchdowns, I mean he was electric for South Florida last year and he's got all of his buddies from South Florida coming over as well. So how does a largely portal built South Florida built offense transition to the sec? That's obviously going to dictate a lot of what his performance is. Dynamic player, exciting player. That typical dual threat guy got a great build on him as well. Like he, he is built for this. And I'm not worried about the throwing motion stuff. I just, you know, how does it transition? Can he do it? At the highest level, that's the big question. It's the only thing we have left. I think Byron Brown will be a really, really solid quarterback in this league. There's just some other guys ahead of him that I have ranked ahead of him that are more proven. They've actually done it at the SEC level. On that note, number seven, I got Oklahoma's John Matier. I've gotten a lot of pushback from OU fans. Why is John Matier so low? Let me make it very clear. I am high on John Mateer. I. I think the top seven, as I look at it now, the top seven of my list are in a different category. I think there's seven and then a gap and then you go eight and the rest and then you probably stop. It's probably 8 through 11 or maybe 8 through 12, and then 13 through 16 are in a different tier as well. By the time I get to 7, this is where I'm like, okay, proven. At least somewhat proven. Would be really surprised if they had bad seasons or especially if they had subpar seasons last year. I'd be really surprised if they followed it up with another subpar season. Put John Matier in that category. And I'm not saying John Mateer had a bad season by any means. The thumb injury was a big deal. Obviously changed him, and it changed their offense. They didn't eclipse over 400 yards of offense post thumb surgery that he had in late September. Right. He was a different player. The decision making has to improve. He's a dynamic player. He's very Johnny Manziel esque, in my opinion, where he wants to hit the home run, he wants to make the big play, he seeks it out. And a lot of times he does make that big play. But sometimes he forces the issue and makes a mistake when he could just hit a single. Like you don't always have to hit a home run. Sometimes it's okay to just hit a single, hit a double. Doubles, hey, doubles will get you around the bases. You will score when you hit doubles consistently. But at times, as we saw, heck, I was at that Texas game, that Red River Shootout, in person. There were some boneheaded decisions. He made some boneheaded throws and some boneheaded plays, and it cost Oklahoma a chance to win that football game. So. And he did that down the stretch. 11 interceptions to his credit. He's got to be better. He knows he's got to be better. I am excited to see my hope and my prayer is we get a healthy John Matier from Game one to the very end. I want to see the very best of John Mateer and see what he can do in front of what I think is going to be the best offensive line they've had under Brent Venables at this point. I think the rushing attack, while they don't have a guy I think at running back that is probably a thousand yard rusher. Do they have someone that can take some of the pressure off John Mateer and take some of the bulk of the carries if you will, and not be well, the running game is all just John Matier. Do they have someone like that? And I think at wide receiver they've got some nice pieces that are really underrated. Parker Livingston, the Virginia Tech transfer, they rebooted the tight end position. I think John Matier is getting wildly slept on. He might be the most underrated quarterback in my opinion. Going into kickoff. Everybody around this time was so high on this kid. Heisman Trophy candidate, Heisman Trophy finalist. He could be in New York and now It's a complete 180. Nobody's even talking about this kid. I think John Matier is prime for a big time year. Just got to stay healthy for the Sooners. Number six. I've got Sam Levitt at lsu and admittedly guys, as I look at this list, I, I could very well make a case that I should have John Mater ahead of Sam Levit. I think the one thing I give Sam Levitt and I can't even say that I was going to say let a team to a college football playoff. A college football playoff, which John Matier just did that on a broke thumb. So this might be one. If I could make any one switch on this list I would flip flop six and seven, but I'm just going to ride with it. Sam Levitt, lsu number six for me did really, really nice things at Arizona State. I honestly think guys, he gets the bump because he's got Lane Kiffin calling the shots. And I just trust Lane Kiffin to get the most out of a quarterback. I do, I really, really do that. There are question marks. Sure. You know, he should be 100 coming back from the injury. You know, I, I can't get the game out of my head. That was Sam Lovett and Starkville a season ago. But man, I, I think having Lane Kiffin lead the offensive attack, Charlie Weiss Jr. Obviously be in his ear. I think we're probably going to see the best version of Sam Levitt. So give me Sam Levitt at 6. Certainly it is one that is debatable I will even admit at number five, I've got Lenora Sellers, Lenoris Sellers from South Carolina. Even I guys was surprised how high I listed Lenora Sarah's. Here's what it comes down to. Did Lenora Sellers have a bad year last year? Yes. Did the entire offense have a bad year? Yes. Could they block anyone? No. Are they very good at wide receiver? Not really. They have Nick harbor and that's about it. But I still look at it. Lenoris Sellers can do things that nobody else in this league can do. Flat out, Lenora Sellers can take over a ball game unlike anyone else in this league can do. We saw it in 2024. I refuse to believe that's all just gone to the wayside. He still has that ability and it's mostly coming from a scrambling ability. Although I saw him in Como last year do everything he could to will South Carolina to win. They fell short, but that was through the passing game. Some of these throws he made were crazy. He put the team on his back at times. Doing it all by himself, essentially. So I understand the struggles he had last year. I also think Mike Shula did him a disservice and made him change up his game from a standpoint of doing things that just don't fit his game. So I think he's going to get more out of the pocket this year. Use his legs. I think Shane Beamer and Kendall Browse, I think true to what he said at SEC media days, I think you're going to see Lenora Sellers take off and run a lot more. A lot more. Design runs again. This is a guy. He's got to be better than he was last year. I totally get it. But he can take over a ball game unlike anybody we have seen. He does things you can't coach. So for me, that makes Lenora Sellers a top five quarterback in this league. And number four, I got Marcel Reed from Texas A and M. I get it, man. Marcel Reed's got to be better against the better competition. Shocker. And this comes as a shock to everyone. Everybody struggles against better competition for the most part. When you play better competition, typically your numbers come down. It is what it is. It's a big prove it year for Marcel Reed needs to take the next step for sure. But the floor's pretty high, man. I mean, you can do a lot worse than Marcel Reed. A lot worse. A lot worse than Marcel Reed needs to play his best football in the biggest moments, like I said. But I could argue what he did in Baton Rouge, what He did in South Bend, Indiana. There were other moments last year where he proved himself as one of the top signal callers in the conference. Right. Should be in a great position to do so yet again. Although he has a first time play caller that is calling the shot. So I, I'm very curious to see how much, if at all does Marcel Reed's game changer with that fact in mind. But you know, I know it's very popular. A M takes a lot of criticism from people and that certainly Marcel Reed falls under that. But if you're honest with yourself, Marcel Reed is one of the top quarterbacks in this conference. I, I feel very, very confident in saying that. I think there's a good shot he guides them back to the College Football playoff. Number three, I've got Gunner Stockton at Georgia. I know I called John Matiers the most underrated quarterback. Gunner Stockton falls right in that category as well because I see. Still think Gunner Stockton is underrated for what he does at Georgia. Now listen, I understand he's on a great team. I understand Georgia essentially led the country. I know they led the conference. I think they led college football. Number of passes thrown behind the line of scrimmage. I get it. But there's not a tougher quarterback in the country. There's not a better leader at the quarterback position in the country. There is only one Gunner Stockton and there are few guys. And if I got to go win a football game, there are few guys. I'm taking over Gunner Stockton to go do that for me. I think he's wildly underrated, gets wildly disrespected because he doesn't have the flash and pizzazz of a guy that we're about to talk about from Texas. But that's how Kirby Smart would have it. As he said a couple years ago, we're not here to take pictures. That is Gunner Stockton's mentality. He's tough, hard nosed, does exactly what Mike Bobo and company asked him to do. He, he takes care of the football. He had a 5 to 1 touchdown interception ratio last year and I think he could be even better this year. Guys, to a point to where if you're looking for a dark horse Heisman trophy play, I think Gunner Stockton's a great pick. Number two, I got Arch Manning from Texas. Now some will even say this is too high. I am a big believer that Arch Manning is going to take a massive leap forward in the 2026 season. You look at the end of last season, how he finished a lot of momentum. He was really, really Special down the stretch, capping it off in that bowl game against Michigan, obviously utilizing his legs and had a big performance on the ground. I think we have to recognize two things. Number one, the hype going into last season for Arch Manning was outrageous. It was kind of like the hype around LSU going in this season. We're being totally honest, just unable to meet it right, like. But for Arch Manning specifically staying focused on the topic at hand here, the hype was absurd for a guy who had never been QB1 who was not that guy yet. Number two, the struggles last year were not even remotely all on Arch Manning. You know, I, I saw a lot of Texas games last year. I was at game one against Ohio State. The offensive line got eaten alive, ironically enough. I was also at the game against Florida in the swamp, same deal. I was at the game against Oklahoma. That was where you kind of started to see Arch Manning turn a little bit. You know, didn't have some crazy, you know, all, all world performance, but did what his football team needed him to do to win and made some great plays in that game. Don't get me wrong, but Texas's lack of running game and inability to protect him was the real issue. I think Arch Manning's got all the talent in the world. I do think it's a bit of a prove it year for Arch Manning. I think. I mean, don't get me wrong, there's hype and there's expectations, there's excitement, but not nearly to the level it feels like of last year. I think the hype and the hoopla not being so insane could maybe help him out a little bit also. It helps him out. They added Cam Coleman out of the portal. Ryan Wing goes back, Relik Brown, Hollywood Smothers. I mean they, they added everybody you could on the offensive side to get the offense the level it needs to be and make Arch Manning's life easier. Because listen, Steve Sarkis and you talk about a coach who's going to be judged off of how his quarterback performs, that is Sark. He will be judged. I don't want to say solely, but a large way that Texas fans will judge Sark is what did you do with Arch Manning if he didn't go win a national title? With Arch Manning, it was a failure, flat out. So I do think Arch has the ability to be an all American kind of player. I, I'm, I'm not even saying New York because who knows, with the Heisman it's really, really tough, but he has the ability to be in that conversation and I think he will take a step forward and be a much better player than he was a season ago. I think he will have more help than he had a season ago at number one. Guys, I got Trinidad Chambers from Ole Miss. He's the best player in the conference. I mean, flat out the guy is a. He just makes plays. Man. There's those guys who have a knack and they love the moment, right? They. They don't look around and say who's getting the ball in the biggest moments. They say, I want the ball, I want the ball. I'm going to be that guy. That's Trinidad Chamblas. Every time it helps him that he's got his Robin to his Batman and Kan Lacy doesn't hurt and we'll see what Chambles can do. Post Lane Kiffin, Post Charlie Weiss Jr. Post losing 3, 000 yards receiving off his offense. But I have that much faith and trust in Trinidad Chambliss. That dude, I, I just. He's answered the call every single time. I fully expect him to do the same yet again this season. So those are my quarterback rankings, preseason quarterback rankings ahead of the 2026 SEC football season. Guys, would love to hear your thoughts. Do you agree with me? Do you disagree? How would you power rank the quarterbacks of the SEC entering kickoff? Guys, really good stuff as I imagine the comments are going absolutely crazy here. Let's see. Okay, I promise I will get into these. Holman Wiggins. Yes, Holman Wiggins, the new Aggie oc. I'm surprised my guy Sandman's not in here. Just, just crushing my Marcel Reed ranking. I'm stunned that's not the case. All right, guys, we're going to keep it moving here really quickly. College football season is around the corner, so I do want to tell you about our friends over at Game Time because you are going to need your tickets this college football season. Download the Game Time app used from the code SCCU to get $20 off your first purchase. Guys, it's great for last minute ticket buying. They're going to tell you exactly where you're sitting, what you're getting, how much you're paying. I use them for every event and every function I go to and that's key right there. It doesn't have to just be sports, concerts, comedy club events, you name it. Anything you can buy a ticket to Game Time has got you covered. So once again, download the Game Time app. Use promo code SEC. You going to get $20 off your first purchase. The 2026 season just around the corner for the Missouri Tigers. Eli Drinkwitz entering year number seven. And the big question for my Z is this. Can the Tigers break through what feels like their proverbial glass ceiling? Been so close over the last couple years and just haven't quite been able to get over the hump. And, and last year, guys, was more the same of that. An 8 and 5 overall record, 4 and 4 in conference play. As we start this conversation looking back on what happened a season ago so we can set the table for what is to come this fall. I mean guys, it was another very ho hum season for Mizu. You know, when you look at the numbers for them and there are numbers that indicate that against average to below average competition, Missouri was very good. Against big better competition, Missouri was not very good. They scored over 40 points per game or right around 40 points per game. In the games they won and the games they lost, they averaged less than 13 points per game. And this, this has been the issue for Mizzou over the last few years, right? I mean there are highs. Don't get me wrong. Eli Drinkwitz has raised the standard and raise the expectation of Missouri football, at least here recently. I know historically had a lot of success in the Big 12, great program, but I'm talking about the SEC version of Missouri football. You know, the pre and post Drinkwit splits. I mean they're very evident. What he has done with his program has been really impressive. But I wonder if it's not starting to wane on Mizzou fans a little bit because again, you look back, guys, at 20, 25, the Bo Prabula thing didn't really work out, right? The passing game was non existent. Ahmad Hardy, Jamal Roberts, fantastic players. This offense ran through the rushing attack, right? The defense under Corey Batoon was really, really good. Yet again, Cory Batoon has done a great job in Como, but there's just a level of disappointment that comes from the last couple seasons. Because the last two seasons I could argue you have been looked at as a real college football playoff contender, right? Last season of Brady Cook, Theo we sleuth of burden. And then last year with what you had returning and the weapons you had and guys, the schedule, the schedule that you had, I mean, your first six games were in Como. You didn't go on the road last year until October 18th. And what happened? Big game against Alabama at home, big opportunity. You lost by three, but you still lost. You fell up short. The tough loss at Vanderbilt, right? That was an extremely disappointing game. 17 to 10 in that ball game, you get throttled by A and M at home, which getting throttled by a M has been a theme for Missouri 38 to 17. And then you lose at Oklahoma, a bitter rivalry game 17 6. And then you cap it off losing to Virginia in the bowl game. What does that really mean? Who cares? It is what it is. But just another missed opportunity to get to the college Football Playoff. And you wonder if that window isn't closing. And that leads me to guys I mentioned Eli Drinkwitz entering his seventh season. Do I think Eli Drinkwoods is on the hot seat of any sort going in this season? No, I do not. Do I think Eli Drinkwood is a great fit at Missouri? I absolutely do. But I've also talked to Mizzou fans that again, they are becoming very exhausted with okay, like we're gonna go win eight games, seven or eight. And we're gonna be, you know, it's almost like Mizzou is in sports purgatory where you're good enough to have some success but you're not good enough to win anything of significance. I think there's a reason you're seeing, with all due respect, I think there's a reason Eli Drinkwood wants play in games expanded playoff. However he wants to phrase it, he wants more inclusion. But why is that? Because it's going to make his and Missouri's playoff path much easier to achieve. If there was a 16 team playoff or a 2014 playoff, guess who would have been in the last two years? The Missouri Tigers. And you could argue the narrative around Eli Drinkwoods or around Mizuho football be a lot different. So I think there is certainly a semblance of pressure going into his seventh season. Again, I think Eli Drinkwoods has done a phenomenal job. But I think after back to back seasons where you've been close but have fallen up short both times and you felt like you had teams capable of getting to that quote unquote mountaintop of reaching a college ball playoff. A lot of disappointment. A lot of disappointment over the last two seasons. They have fallen short of expectations. And you just wonder, you just wonder if Missouri reverts back to say a fringe bowl team, does the chatter fire back up around Eli Drinkwich going into 2027 of hey, maybe this isn't. Maybe this was the guy to get us to the guy. Maybe we've reached the ceiling under Eli Drinkwoods. I think that's the big question, guys. As we take a look at this football team, there is a lot of reason to be excited on the Offensive side of the football It's a new era on offense as Kirby Moore heads over to Wazoo to take that head coaching job. Chip Lindsay is the new offensive coordinator. You might recall him served at Auburn. He's been all over the place. This guy no off knows offensive football. Of course, the offense runs through the rushing attack of Ahmad Hardy and Jamal Roberts. We did get a positive update on Ahmad Hardy at SEC media days. Thank goodness. When will he be ready to play? Is it week one? Is it week two? Is he ready by that Kansas game? I would imagine that's probably what they're targeting in regards to getting him back. But the good news is this. It does sound like not only is Ahmad Hardy going to play football this season, but that he will play and be back at full strength, at least in the early part of the season. But again, Jamal Roberts, fantastic player. Mizzou produced over 2400 yards of rushing on the ground, 22 touchdowns a season ago. So no question the rushing attack was, excuse me, the bread and butter for Mizzou. Austin Simmons from Ole Miss taking over at QB1. This is a guy last year, guys I was extremely high on felt really good about Austin Simmons potentially being an all conference guy and maybe even more than that, to say the season didn't go as planned is putting it lightly. He suffers the injury, inconsistent play early on, Trinidad Chambliss takes over and that was all she wrote, right? So I, I think the hope and the expectation obviously is Austin Simmons has not even remotely played, come near playing his best football yet and he can do that in Como under Chip Lindsay. I certainly think there's more of the tank there for Austin Simmons and I do think the sky is the limit for him. I still think he can be the guy that I guess we all hyped him up to be. Five seniors anchor the offensive line. Three returners from 2025, including Kaden Green, Curtis Pegler and Dominic Gadice. You got to be really excited about that, paving the way and then three new starting receivers. This is probably where the most change happens with Donovan O returning. But you do add Caleb Goody from Cincinnati and Kaden Lee from Ole Miss, who of course was one of the favorite targets there in Oxford. And of course, guys, I would be remiss if I did not mention the tight end position because Brett Norfleet returns at tight end, one of the best tight ends in the entire conference. He will certainly be one of the favorite targets of Austin Simmons. So when you take a look at this offense as a whole, guys, I Don't think much is going to change in the standpoint of the offense is going to run through the rushing attack. The big question for the offense and Chip Lindsay and that group this year, can they get more out of the passing attack? I mean, here's the good news. You had Beau Prabula at quarterback, all due respect to him, but you didn't have a passing game. Essentially they could go win you a game and you still won eight games. But I think you saw it in those losses. A lot of times the passing game just vanished. It just flat out vanished. If you can add that wrinkle to your office, heck, make that a strength. I think with Austin Simmons, you could make it a strength. You need some of these new guys at receiver to step up and Donovan O to have his biggest season yet. Brett Norfleet to be that big time target. But quarterback feels like the pick to click here from a zoo. And I know that's so easy to go to. Oh, it's all in the quarterback. But if they have the right signal caller with what they've got on the offensive line, with what they've got at the running back position, certainly. And the way they'll be able to work off that rushing attack, I mean, guys, I think the sky is the limit, right? But it's. That is what controls the ceiling of this offense. You're going to be able to run the football. I mean, even if, even if Ahmad Hardy misses the first month of the season. Jamal Roberts is a fantastic player. You guys might recall. I know you all know if you're watching Ahmad Hardy, number one in the conference in yards per carry last year. Third was Jamal Roberts. I mean, Jamal Roberts probably would start on every other SEC team for the most part, at least he would start on every other team. He's that good of a player, right? So Ahmad Hardy getting back is huge. I mean, that's as good as Jamal Roberts is. Ahmad Hardy's Ahmad Hardy for a reason. Him getting back and the update we got from Drink is massive. But will they be able to throw, throw the football consistently? That is the big question. And that is why you went out to the Portal and you brought in a guy like Austin Simmons now on the defensive side of the football. Guys, this is really interesting. This is probably one of the most, in my opinion, interesting and intriguing units in this conference. Corey Batoon back at defensive coordinator. But this is the reason why all 11 starters are gone from 2025. All 11. You look at a depth chart. 00 starters who played significant time last year. Are back. Now there are guys who played who are back, but to not have a single starter back is jarring and it is alarming. But I think if you read between the lines again, there are some dudes that return that should be able to make a big time impact. Darius Smith at the end position up front and Marquis Graciel defensive tackle. They're going to anchor the defensive front. Guys, you added in seven new defensive linemen from the Portal lost some big time pieces in the Portal. The departed, you're going to need those portal additions to step up. Just bottom line, you're banking big time on the Portal and it being able to fit or plug holes, I should say, on your defense. And it starts up front. Nicholas Rodriguez is back at linebacker. He's got some experience. Robert Woodyard Jr. Comes in from Auburn via the transfer portal, of course at linebacker as well. And your secondary. Again, the theme here built from the portal. Chris Graves Jr. From Ole Miss, Jaleel Florence from Oregon, Elijah Dotson from Michigan, all brought in to boost that side of the football or boost that position unit if you will. Santana Banner and Trajan Greco return at safety. So guys, I really think a lot of Mizzou's success this season it will come down to, hey, Corey Batoon, go earn your paycheck. Go earn your paycheck, Corey Batoon. Because there is a lot more questions than we have answers on this side of the ball. That doesn't mean this cannot be a good unit, but as of right now, just a lot of unknowns, man. Lots of unknowns, right? You need a lot of Portal guys to pan out, a lot of them. And maybe early on, guys, you need your offense to carry the weight and carry the water because you might be figuring some things out on defense early again. Cory Baton I think has earned the benefit of the doubt to the to a degree from the standpoint of how good the defenses have been under his leadership. But this is his greatest challenge in Como. There is absolutely no question. What do you get out of a defense that essentially is built off of all newcomers or at least newcomers to contributing at the level they will be contributing. Guys, let's show some love to special teams. What a Mizzou special teams look like this season. Well, Blake Craig is back from an injury at kicker, got hurt beginning of last year. He is back taking over those kicking duties. Bruno Roos from Florida State via the Portal takes over at punter and the Marion Falx is back as returner. And you might recall, guys, special teams wasn't exactly a bright spot for Mizzou last year. So they're hoping to get more out of that. I think. Certainly again, when you are a team that's kind of feels like Mizzou right now is kind of middle of the pack, special teams is important. It can be that thing that maybe pushes you over the edge and, you know, helps you pull an upset or two and get you more in that playoff conversation. So special teams very important for Mizzou. Guys, our overall outlook or my overall outlook for the Missouri Tigers. First things first. What do our friends at KALSHI have to say about Mizzou as far as percentage chance in win totals are concerned? KALSHI gives Mizzou a 93% chance to win four or more games, 87% chance to win five or more, 73% chance to win six or more, 55% to win seven or more, 52% to win eight or more. They don't have a percentage chance for nine or more. Weirdly enough. Then they got a 14 chance to win 10 or more, 12 chance to win 11 or more. So we see it start to break, I mean really at seven or eight wins. So kind of you get an idea. Seven and a half is sort of the number that's at in regards to the bigger picture. Missouri a 19 chance to qualify for the College Football Playoff via CalSHI. And as far as winning the national championship, Missouri less than a 1% chance. Six starters are back for Miz, six on offense and as I mentioned, zero on the defensive side. Do with that information what you will. Guys, let's take a look at the schedule because I mentioned the schedule last year and the way that it played into expectations and it was an extremely favorable schedule. Let's take a look at what this one has in store. It ain't quite what you had last year, maybe even the year prior. You open up with Arkansas, Pine Bluff, of course, in that Thursday game, Thursday, September 3rd, then that next Friday, you're at Kansas for the border showdown. Of course that is a massive game for Mizzou fans. Then you close out non conference play the following week against Troy and then you get into SEC play. You're at Mississippi State, Florida at home to kick off the month of October. That is homecoming. And that will be a massive game for the for the Missouri Tigers. You get A and M at home at Ole Miss, bye week at Arkansas, Texas at home at Georgia, Kentucky at home, and then Oklahoma at home to close out the season. Guys, this schedule is a gauntlet and if you get to eight wins, you get to nine, Shoot. You get to the college ball playoff, you will have earned it. This is not like last year's schedule. This is not a, hey, we're in Como for the next two, two months and we're kicking our feet up and, and everybody's coming to us. And we got a great opportunity to build that 5 and 06, 070 momentum. Guys, this is a really, really tough schedule. It is. Now, with that being said, I know I just made the comment, I was kind of half joking about the, the early momentum. There is an opportunity in this schedule to build some early momentum. Arkansas, Pine Bluff, Kansas, Troy. Good chance. I mean, you know, I'm not going to sit here and be like, I'm an expert on Kansas football, but Mizzou, I'm giving you the benefit of the doubt. Let's say you're three and oh, then you go to Mississippi State. I mean, barring the upset, you're 4 0. Then you got Florida on homecoming. I mean, Gator's got a first year head coach. What if you're five zero with A M coming to town? All of a sudden the conversation around Mizzou will shift. Right? The issue, the issue is this schedule. After that, five games start, the last seven are brutal. A and M at Ole Miss, Texas at Georgia and Oklahoma. So you've got A M, who was in the playoff? Ole Miss, who was in the playoff. Texas, who just missed the playoff. Who's a favorite to win the national title this year? Georgia, who was in the playoff, And Oklahoma, who was in the playoff. So you got four playoff teams from 2025 and maybe the favorite to win the national title in Texas. Yeah, I think you gotta stack wins early if you're, if you're Mizzou here to have a real shot to, let's just say, match last year's win total. I think you're gonna have to get off to a really, really fast start. That means Austin Simmons coming out of the gate, firing, that means that defense, after at least the first three weeks or four weeks, you know, complimenting what you're doing offensively, Ahmad Hardy getting back healthy, I mean, that's a good news for Ahmad Hardy. He should have a couple weeks to kind of, you know, you don't have to rush him back necessarily. But the schedule more daunting, I would argue, than years past. Now, with that being. Excuse me. That being said, that brings me to this question. I, I just, I wonder. Expectations from a Zoo in 2026, year seven of Eli Drinkwoods. What does that look like, what are expectations? I mean, I think for every program, almost every program, if you boil it down to it, the answer could be summarized. And you just want to see positive trajectory with your program. You want to know that your program is not on the decline and isn't stagnant. It's on the up and up. So, I mean, I think the expectations from a zoo, you at least have to match last year's win total. Right? Right. If not exceed it. You know, you went out in the portal, you spent money, you brought in Austin Simmons, you bring in Chip Lindsay at oc, got a lot of your top contributors back, especially on offense. Like, I, I just, I wonder because again, it does feel like with Missouri football, I will echo this again, it feels like they are in sports purgatory where Missouri has done plenty enough to earn the respect that they are a program to be taken seriously. You know, when you play Missouri, it is going to be a challenge. They have continuously been slightly above the middle of the pack of the sec. They have been a team we have talked about as being a potential contender for the College Football Playoff. Like, they have not been bottom of the barrel of the league. They have been a program that Missouri fans should be very proud of. But at the same time, that's all they've been. They haven't been good enough to win anything that you really are going to hang your hat on. And so I just. Is there a breaking point where it's like at some point the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and over again and expecting different results. And so if you go 8 and 4 again, if you go 7 and 5, God, God forbid, you regress to 6 and 6, then what? Then where are we with Eli Drinkwoods? Then where are we with the Missouri football program? So I think it makes the expectations this year. Sure, you got lots of questions, but I, I don't think there's a lot of excuses for Eli Drinkwoods this year. I doubt many Missouri fans are making excuses for Eli Drink. It's just like, bro, this is your seventh year. Put up for shut up time now. Austin Simmons panning out. It's going to play a big role in that. Will he pan out? That's the big question. Ahmad Hardy getting him back, like I mentioned, early season is huge. I think he has another monster year along with Jamal Roberts, Corey Batoon earning his check, getting the most out of the defensively big. But you know, I have written in my notes here, guys, will Mizzou finally break through? And I just go Back to this question. What does that look like? What does Missouri breaking through look like? Let me rephrase the question. Have we reached the ceiling of Missouri football under Elijah in beating Ohio State in that bowl game a couple years ago in the Cotton Bowl? That was awesome. Great memory. That was a great accomplishment for the program. Was that the ceiling? Is Missouri knocking on the door of the playoff but not getting in? Is that the ceiling? Or is Eli Drinkwitz capable of doing more? Is he capable of taking into further heights? And if. If not this year, then when? If not year seven, then how long will it take? Has Eli Drinkwood's earned enough goodwill to be a lifer at Mizzou? As long as the wheels don't completely come off, I just think Missouri football. And in closing, I'll say this. I. I think this is a big trajectory year for Missouri. Like, who are you? Which way are you going? This success you've had of late, is it sustainable to a point to where you might even do more? Or did you miss your window? Like. Like, what is the trajectory of this program? Because you've been really solid over the last couple years. You've been as steady as any, but you haven't been able to win the big one. And you got some big ones this year. Boy, if you want to win a big one, you got some big ones. How about A and M? How about Ole Miss? How about Texas? How about Georgia? How about Oklahoma? I mean, those are five big opportunities all games are going to be underdogs in, but those are five big opportunities for Missouri. I mean, if you're going to get back to eight and four guys, you've got to win at least one of those. And if you want to exceed last year, you got to win multiple. Can they do it? Can they do it? Or if we reach the ceiling of Missouri football under Eli Drinkwood, we shall see. So, guys, I'd love to hear your thoughts. How do you think Missouri is going to fare? Year 7 of Eli Drinkwitz? The 2026 season for the Tigers just around the corner, guys. That's going to do it all for me. Really, really good stuff. E. Lumen says, I'm glad you got on our ass. It's time to put up or shut up, Miz. I. I'm just. Listen, I got nothing but love for my Miz faithful. I just think at some point. I think at some point, like, what are you. I just don't know what you are. I just don't know what you are. You know, he's done a great job there, man. He's done a great job. I just don't know what you are. David Chambers, six and six floor eight and four ceiling for Mizzou. Okay. I just. I don't know. I don't know that an 8 and 4 ceiling is good enough. I mean, is it. What, what is or what are Missouri's goals? What is their goal? Who does Missouri want to be? That's the question I have. That's the question that I have, man. So, guys, really good stuff today. Really appreciate each and every single one of you tuning in. The coverage continues all week. Chewing clock will be live tomorrow t10am Central. I think there's a good chance I probably go live tomorrow at the conclusion of day three of SEC media days and give my thoughts because obviously going live that early, we really won't spend any time talking media days because it'll be ongoing. So just stay tuned. All the content guys, hit that like and subscribe button on YouTube. Hit that notifications bell as well so that you get notifications when we drop new content because again, it's just content bleeding out of the eyeballs. So again, make sure you do that. Also, check us out where we get your podcast all across social media. Make sure you follow me at C Philly 19 and again, stay tuned to all of our content. Content bleeding out of the eyeballs. Guys, I really appreciate each and every single one of you tuning in. I can feel the excitement from all of you out there. College football's here. The season has started. In my mind, the season has started. We are just waiting on kickoff. So really appreciate each and every single one of you tuning in. Guys, y' all have a great rest of your day. I am Chris Phillips. This is the Chris Phillips Show. We back Thursday afternoon, same time, 2:33 o' clock or so to recap the final day of SEC many days and we'll have some other fun content that we will dive into as well. Guys, again, thank you all so much. I'm signing off. Appreciate y' all have a great rest of your Tuesday. We will talk to you all on the other side. Cheers. Sa. Sam.