See Ball Get Ball with David Pollack

Episode: Notre Dame QB CJ Carr | SEC Tiebreaker Silly Season
Date: November 6, 2025
Host: David Pollack

Episode Overview

In this lively episode, David Pollack dives deep into the wild world of college football playoff scenarios, the upcoming NFL draft, stand-out players and coaches, and delivers an in-depth interview with Notre Dame’s starting quarterback, CJ Carr. The episode strikes a balance between strategic analysis, bold predictions, and lighthearted banter, highlighted by memorable quotes and keen insights. Expect detailed talk on the SEC’s complex tiebreaker rules, the unpredictability of the playoff chase, the current landscape of assistant coaching talent, a breakdown of top receivers, and, of course, a candid conversation with one of college football’s hottest young QBs.

Key Discussion Points & Highlights

1. SEC Tiebreaker "Silly Season" and Playoff Scenarios

[02:25 – 10:53]

• David & Wesley break down SEC tiebreaker rules: Head-to-head, records against common opponents, scoring margin, and—if all else fails—a random draw.
  • “The last one is terrific... it is a random draw of the tied teams. I’m picturing like the Friday Night Lights scene where they flip the coins in the truck stop.” — Wesley [05:25]
• Simulation fun: The crew uses an online tool to play out alternate SEC endings, emphasizing just how chaotic and improbable qualification paths are.
• Texas and chaos: Texas is still alive for the SEC title game but must win out.
• On Ole Miss: Technically “sitting pretty,” but the probability of making it to the SEC Championship is “very small…chaos has to happen for them.” — Brent [08:33]
• Playoff field speculation:
  • “You're going to have so many teams that are in this that are good, and the talent isn't that big of a gap.” — David [11:45]
  • Parity, injuries, and the unpredictability of college football all play a part in Pollack's skepticism over an undefeated champion.

2. College Football Playoff Contenders & "Who’s In, Who’s Out?"

[10:53 – 18:55]

• Debate over undefeated teams & playoff surprises:
  • Are we finally getting a three-loss team in the expanded field?
  • “It will be chaos. There will be discussion points out the wazoo. All this will be debated.” — Brent [23:22]
• Teams likely to miss out:
  • Oregon's brutal schedule puts their chance at risk.
  • “I'd be shocked if they went undefeated the rest of the way.” — David [15:54]
• Best two-loss contenders: Utah impresses.
  • “They’ve found what they are offensively... they're going to run the piss out of damn Pier.” — David [19:27]
• The three-loss debate:
  • David predicts Texas could sneak in as a three-loss team thanks to strong scheduling and close defeats:
    • “Am I really going to penalize them for going across the country and playing a great out of conference team that we all got to enjoy? Like, I think that would come down. I think that would be a say in that matter.” [21:10]
  • Outrage if Oklahoma doesn't get in after running the table:
    • “If that's the case, like, I'm out of here. Like, I'm leaving the sport.” — David [22:54]

3. Standout Assistant Coaches & the Broyles Award Watch

[23:37 – 32:42]

• David's Top 5 Assistant Coaches:
  • Matt Patricia (Ohio State): “To rebuild the roster and be where they're at…if he's not on the list of semifinalists, I'd be shocked.”
  • Bryant Haynes (Indiana): “They know how to play the ball in the air, it's technical and it's sound and it's great.”
  • Ryan Grubb (Alabama): “He’s done an unbelievable job continuing to dial up plays and develop a quarterback that's a first time starter.”
  • Aaron Roderick (BYU): “They've taken a freshman quarterback and remained undefeated and in some big moments they've been absolutely fantastic.”
  • Buster Faulkner (Georgia Tech): “To dial up all the crap he dials up, man, it's insane…it looks simple. And that's when you're a really good offensive coordinator.”
• Discussion on hiring trends:
  • “Nowadays... it's a new world of football... A lot of these guys that sit there and marinate for a while, they—like, Kirby knew exactly the playbook he wanted to use to go be successful…” — David [31:26]
  • Agents’ influence in creating coaching “buzz,” even when real candidacy is limited.

4. The Impossible Task: Top 5 College Wide Receivers

[33:03 – 38:48]

• Pollack struggles to name just five:
  • “If you can narrow this list to five and go, I'm 100% sure this is the best five wide receivers in college football, I'll kiss your butt…It's just asinine, bro.” — David [33:03]
• Names to note:
  • Jeremiah Smith & Carnell Tate (Ohio State), Craver & Concepcion, Surratt & Cooper, Makai Lemon (USC), Danny Scuder(o) (San Jose State)—“the dude's a dude now,” Brazil (Tennessee), Chris Bell.
  • “Scudera…runs by guys like he's standing still…he's got that hesi crossover…love it.” — David [35:17]
  • Skyler Bell (Connecticut), K.J. Duff (Rutgers), Cooper Bar Crate (Harvard/Duke), Hank Beatty (Illinois).
• Brent on the WR explosion:
  • “It's the position that matters most to me in the sport, outside of quarterback.” [36:25]

5. 2026 NFL Draft: Quarterbacks vs. Edge Rushers

[38:48 – 46:00]

• Previewing next year’s draft talent:
  • QBs: Fernando Mendoza, Dante Moore, Ty Simpson, Lenoris Sellers (“a chunk of marble”).
  • Edges: Rueben Bain, UI Ang, Kendrick Falk, LT Overton, Cassius Howell, Arvell Reese, T.J. Parker, David Bailey, Romello Height.
• David on defensive difference-makers:
  • “Receivers are starting to become more and more prevalent. I need someone that can go get the quarterback and make his life hard.” [40:48]
• Brent’s focus:
  • “I want to see where Reese, Arvell Reese, and Caleb Downs go – likely the two best players.” [41:58]
  • On Reese: “He puts them things on you…every time you turn on the tape…that dude's ridiculous.” — David [42:23]
• On QB development: Sellers has raw potential but not enough tape.
  • "Lenoris is the perfect example of what could be—if it clicks.” — David [46:52]

6. Podium Kings: Best Soundbites of the Week

[47:30 – 49:41]

• Fernando Mendoza on opponents loading up to stop Indiana’s pass:
  • “We’ll run 370 yards down your throat.” [47:57]
• Bill O’Brien calls out a part-time reporter:
  • “You come in here with these down questions. I'm not down. You can go out there in your dark clouded world or whatever it is and do what you want to do. We're not down. The sun is up and we're fighting.” [48:29]
• Dabo Swinney on referee accountability:
  • “There's a system of accountability, but y’all don’t know anything about it.” [49:41]
• Pollack explains referee grading and game prep:
  • “Every college team, when they go into a game, you know exactly what this ref is known to call, what he's not going to call... you have scouting reports.” [49:45]

Featured Interview: Notre Dame QB CJ Carr

[50:42 – 62:50]

About CJ and the Notre Dame Choice

• Background: Grandson of Lloyd Carr, Michigan football royalty, but chose Notre Dame.
  • “All my cousins go there, went there. I have one there right now. But I visited Notre Dame…every time I came here, it just felt more and more like home.” — CJ Carr [51:52]
  • “They were, you know, one of the only schools in the country that didn’t think I was just going to go to Michigan. And...recruited me hard. And, yeah, I couldn’t say no, man. It’s the best place on Earth.” [52:08]

Learning from 2024’s Run & Riley Leonard

• Watched team recover from a bad start: “Inside the building you remember losing to NIU Week 2... you're at the bottom of the barrel... but you got to watch somebody come in every day and not worry about the outside noise.” — CJ Carr [52:53]
• On Riley Leonard: “He was going to do exactly what was needed…whether that was running it 12 times or throwing the ball, it was going to get done.” [53:46]

On Head Coach Marcus Freeman

• “His competitiveness and his love for the game…he feels like he's just one of us…Everything he does is competitive. He wants to win at everything he does.” [54:40]
• On Freeman’s athletic ability: “He's not like a baseball player...he can't hit real well, can't field real well, but besides that, he's great. I'm saying that because that would piss him off.” [55:25]

Team Culture & Personality

• Player #4’s (presumably RB) athleticism:
  • “He looked to our sideline [on a 90-yard TD run] and our coach had said, ‘when you score, hit the Heisman’...he was looking at [Coach] Cider, like ‘get ready for this one’.” [56:28]
  • On #4’s vertical: “Four walks in, he's, ‘what are we doing?’ Like, you gotta touch the ceiling. Jumps up, touches the ceiling, walks away. It's like, oh, my gosh.” [57:43]
• On early losses: “We realized it’s not really about anyone else. It’s about Notre Dame. If we execute our plays... we’re really hard to stop.” [58:26]
• Coach Freeman’s Mantra: “‘Choose Hard.’ We're at Notre Dame, where you gotta go to class... everything we do is hard, and we're gonna continue to keep choosing harder because I think that's our edge.” [59:14]

Looking Ahead: Challenges & Goals

• On facing A&M’s defense: “Elko’s so good at understanding, seeing it through a quarterback's eyes…preparing for that third down defense was a challenge.” [60:09]
• On the Navy game and team improvement: “We want to continue to get better at staying on the attack and not letting the defense dictate how we call plays or how we execute.” [61:13]
• Team hype man: “Billy Shroud on the O line...and on defense, it’s a Don Shuler.” [61:51]
• Biggest trash talker? “I'd say I'm up there for sure...other than that, it's those O linemen.” [62:15]

Notable Quotes – Timestamped

• “The last one is terrific...it is a random draw of the tied teams. I’m picturing like the Friday Night Lights scene where they flip the coins in the truck stop.” — Wesley [05:25]
• “If that's the case [Oklahoma left out], like, I'm out of here. Like, I'm leaving the sport.” — David [22:54]
• “If you can narrow this list to five [receivers]...I'll kiss your butt.” — David [33:03]
• “We'll run 370 yards down your throat.” — Fernando Mendoza [47:57]
• “You can go out there in your dark clouded world or whatever it is and do what you want to do. We're not down. The sun is up and we're fighting.” — Bill O’Brien [48:29]
• “He was, you know, one of the only schools in the country that didn’t think I was just going to go to Michigan…couldn’t say no, man. It’s the best place on Earth.” — CJ Carr [52:08]
• “His competitiveness and his love for the game...he wants to win at everything he does.” — CJ Carr on Coach Marcus Freeman [54:40]
• “Choose Hard… that's our edge.” — CJ Carr [59:14]

Episode Flow and Tone

• Energetic, humorous, and full of authentic “football guy” banter.
• David Pollack leads thoughtful, direct analysis, always bringing a player’s and analyst’s perspective.
• The episode balances deep-dive football talk with behind-the-scenes anecdotes and the warmth of friendship among co-hosts.

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [02:25] SEC Tiebreaker rules breakdown and scenario simulation
• [10:53] Playoff contenders and who’s truly alive
• [23:37] Broyles Award: Top Assistant Coaches & big-picture coaching discussion
• [33:03] The Impossible List: Top Five Wide Receivers
• [38:48] 2026 NFL Draft early positional talk (QBs vs Edge defenders)
• [47:30] Podium Kings: Best and funniest press conference bite
• [50:42] Notre Dame QB CJ Carr interview: career, team culture, and upcoming games

For New Listeners

This episode is a must-listen for anyone craving both the strategic and the emotional sides of college football—how games, players, and even coaching staff can swing a season, as well as the raw individuality and leadership that define programs like Notre Dame. If you want an unfiltered mix of expert analysis and authentic college football storytelling, this is an episode you shouldn’t miss.