SEC Media Days Day 1 LIVE Recap

Summary

That SEC Football Podcast: SEC Media Days Day 1 LIVE Recap (July 20, 2026)

Hosts: Michael Bratton (SEC Mike) & Cousin Shane
Theme: Day 1 recap from SEC Media Days, with real-time reactions, interview highlights, and candid analysis of Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Oklahoma football.

---

Episode Overview

This live episode, streamed earlier than usual, brings listeners straight to the heart of SEC Media Days. Mike and Shane review the day’s biggest storylines, spill behind-the-scenes details from radio row, analyze interviews, and share their candid, humorous takes on the season outlook for Missouri, Tennessee, Kentucky, and Oklahoma. They focus on new team dynamics, offseason developments, player and coach soundbites, and give some signature SEC Football Podcast flavor—complete with straw power rankings and tales of missed interviews.

---

Main Topics & Highlights

1. Setting the Scene at SEC Media Days

• [01:15–02:33]
  • Show is live an hour earlier than usual due to the Eastern time zone, causing some confusion among live viewers.
  • Mike acknowledges: "We're tired. We're hungry. But it's been a great day of SEC Media Days. We've gotten a lot of great interviews." (02:30)

2. Interviews & Team Updates

Missouri

• Ahmad Hardy Status Update:

  • Eli Drinkwitz gave a positive recovery update: Hardy is expected to be active soon but may miss 5–8 weeks due to injury.
    • "He said he's going to be a couple weeks good to go...if he's good to go, I mean, that changes the outlook completely." — Mike (04:46)
  • Both hosts reflect on the importance of Hardy for Missouri’s season and note Roberts' arrival as a possible sign the team was bracing for Hardy’s absence.
    • "I'm just happy he's alive, but I'm also just as happy that he's going to be able to probably take a snap week one." — Shane (05:45)

• Offensive Line Concern:

  • Josh Atkins, right tackle, suffered a setback and will miss further time, which could impact Missouri’s offensive stability. (24:15)

• Austin Simmons' Photographic Memory:

  • Drinkwitz claims new quarterback Simmons has a photographic memory:
    • "Apparently Austin Simmons has a photographic memory...that changes because the biggest knock on having a new quarterback and a new system is learning the playbook. Well, you got that memorized, we ain't got nothing to blame." — Shane (25:33–26:34)

Tennessee

• DeSean Bishop Interview & Rushing Goals:

  • The hosts hint at a strong running back room, with Bishop returning as one of only four SEC RBs with 1,000+ yards last season.
    • "He came over here and sat down at our table and said...one of his personal goals is to shatter the all time Tennessee rushing record." — Mike (21:43)
  • Tennessee is building a reputation as RB-U.

• Coach Josh Heupel’s Accountability:

  • Heupel publicly owned the team’s embarrassing loss to Vanderbilt, pledging changes and improved standards.
    • "He said we no excuse for losing a Vanderbilt...That's taking accountability." — Mike (12:07)
    • "It just felt like there were moments last season where we lost...focus. Right. So I think that's the key here." — Shane (13:05)
  • Tennessee is investing in coaching; highest-paid DC and strength coach in the nation.

Kentucky

• Will Stein’s Confidence:
  • New offensive coordinator Will Stein made a splash.
    • "He was asked, you know, why is Kentucky going to win? Why should we believe in Kentucky? And he flat out said, because of me. I mean, for a Kentucky coach, I love that confidence." — Mike (08:31)
    • Shane jokes about Kentucky post-Bama win: "'Who you think you are? I am.'" (09:04)
  • Kenny Minchey, a transfer QB with no SEC experience, is named the starter—considered a "lottery ticket" but a move Kentucky has to make.
    • "You may have to take a lottery ticket. And that's exactly what he is...That's what they may need over there in Lexington." — Shane (28:32)

Oklahoma

• Interviews with John Matier & George Stoa:
  • Matier (the QB) impresses as "very likable," mature, and with a "gamer mentality."
    • "Out of all the players we talked to, obviously more experienced, knew what he could get away with, but had a blast. And I'm liking me some John Mateer right now." — Shane (09:31–10:01)
  • Defense receives praise, upping optimism for the season.
    • "Just to see story his eyes light up talking about this defense like, you know, like Christmas morning when you're a kid..." — Shane (10:17)

3. Team Confidence Power Rankings (Day 1)

• [15:30]
  • Shane’s confidence order:
    1. Oklahoma
    2. Tennessee
    3. Missouri
    4. Kentucky
  • Comments that Kentucky's new regime is building for the long-term with immediate results possibly being "an upset here or there." (15:45)

4. SEC Strength of Schedule & Playoff Narrative

• Greg Sankey's Opening Statement & SEC Messaging:
  • Sankey stressed the intensity of nine-game conference schedules plus Power 5 nonconference opponents—priming the Playoff committee for 9–3 and 10–2 teams.
    • "It feels like they're putting it on the committee early...They're trying to say 9 and 3, we need to be looked at a lot of these teams and you can never leave out a 10 and 2 again like they did last year." — Mike (32:24)
  • Sankey emphasized SEC's schedule as "toughest per game...not even questioned," and hinted at using 'leaving the conference' as leverage if the Playoff format threatens SEC access.
    • "You have to resonate because there's going to be some football teams that start out slow, that catch fire at the end, may have three losses and we're begging the committee to let them in over a two loss ACC team. It's coming, it's coming..." — Shane (33:22)

5. Sleepers & Surprises

• Potential Sleeper Teams:
  • South Carolina: "We may be sleeping on them Gamecocks right now...This schedule is not so bad...there's an opportunity for South Carolina to start this season extremely strong..." — Shane (35:10–36:08)
  • Mississippi State: Cited as capable of 7–8 wins and capable of upsets.
    • "Camario Taylor, Fluff Bothwell, and getting Zach Arnett back as defensive coordinator...I think Mississippi State's got potential to, to upset a lot of folks for sure." — Mike (36:08)
  • Alabama: Still splitting the room; Shane says he’s not in the camp expecting a downturn.

---

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "[Will Stein] flat out said, because of me. I mean, for a Kentucky coach, I love that confidence." — Mike (08:31)
• "Accountability is key. And you know, I feel like there were a couple teams last year, late last season that had a little give up. And I hate to say my Tennessee balls were one of them." — Shane (13:05)
• "It just kept getting bigger and bigger. You know, they were talking about the guns, you know, the gun shows coming in and stuff, but very humbled." — Shane, on John Matier (09:31)
• On Tennessee’s playoff chatter: "They just lit the SEC on fire on offense. Now, defense, obviously trash, but to say they're always in the Playoff..." — Mike (16:23)
• "It felt like I didn't get picked." — Shane, on being snubbed for a Mizzou interview, likening it to growing up last-picked in dodgeball (23:41)
• Straw Rankings Segment (29:28–30:09):
  • "Power ranking Hardee's number one. Then I'd go McDonald's number two. And then maybe Sonic. Sonic would be number three. Don't trust—like I said—Starbucks."
  • "We're the only ones at SEC Media days power ranking fast food, straws and toothpicks." — Mike (30:01)

---

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Intro & Early Banter – 01:15–02:33
• Missouri/Hardy Injury Update – 03:48–05:45
• Tennessee, Bishop, and Heupel Accountability – 12:07–14:28
• Kentucky’s Will Stein and Confidence – 08:30–09:04
• Oklahoma Impressions and Interviews – 09:31–11:16
• SEC Schedule/Playoff Committee Messaging – 32:24–34:52
• Sleepers Discussion – 35:10–36:40
• Fun: Straw Power Rankings – 29:28–30:09

---

Closing Thoughts

• Day one featured energetic interviews, strong coach soundbites, and key injury updates. The hosts see Oklahoma as the most confident among Day 1 teams, with Tennessee and Missouri close behind and Kentucky a bit more of a wild card.
• The episode concluded with reminders of upcoming content, fan shoutouts, and a promise for more interviews and live recaps.

---

For Listeners

If you missed the episode:

• Expect deep dives into the health and potential of Missouri and Tennessee, candid appraisals of coaching approaches, and offbeat humor characteristic of Mike and Shane.
• For more player interviews and fan Q&A, watch the podcast feed and YouTube channel for uploads throughout Media Days week.

Transcript

[Bank of America/US Soccer Announcer]

Soccer teaches us lessons we can take with us long after we leave the field. That's why bank of America and US Soccer are committed to helping bring soccer to every school. Raise your hand to helpofa.com socceratschools ever

[Apartments.com Advertiser]

walk past a place for rent and wish you could just take a peek inside? Maybe even explore the layout? Envision the natural light streaming through the windows or plan where your vinyl record collection would go. At apartments.com you can. With tools like their 3D virtual tours, you can see the exact unit you could be living in. Really envision yourself in your new home. With apartments.com, the place to find a

[Indeed Sponsored Jobs Advertiser]

place when the right person joins a team, everything changes. Deadlines tighten, momentum builds, chaos settles down. That's why hiring Smart matters. Indeed Sponsored Jobs gets you quality candidates when you need them most. Spend less time searching and more time interviewing candidates who check all your boxes with Indeed Sponsored Jobs. Less stress, less time, more results. Listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit at Indeed.com podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire. This is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs.

[Mike]

Welcome in latest episode. You know what I realized? What? It's 6:00 Eastern Time.

[Shane]

Yes.

[Mike]

I'm used to 6 Central Time, so we're hour early.

[Shane]

Good morning. Wakey wakey. Eggs and baking.

[Mike]

So I don't know that we have literally anyone on because they're like, what the hell guys, you're an hour early. But all right. For those of you just filtering in, welcome in live from SEC Media Days.

[Apartments.com Advertiser]

Yeah.

[Mike]

Thanks to our friends over at Tennessee Legend.

[Shane]

Powered by the Legend. That's right, Tennessee Legend distillery. Be sure if you get there in two of the suburb locations, one in Nashville, let them know that the cousin sent you. Not only you going to get a discount, but you will also get a bonus gift. And I'll tell you what the Tennessee Legend takes. Were coming in. Sorry. I've been around a lot of radio personalities today.

[Mike]

God. How about that last guy though?

[Shane]

Yeah. He was fired up.

[Mike]

You have given permission to exit. Whatever. I was like, oh my goodness. But all right. So hey, we're. We're tired.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

We're hungry.

[Shane]

Yeah. But it's withering away to nothing.

[Mike]

It's been a great day of SEC Media Days. We've gotten a lot of great interviews.

[Shane]

Yes.

[Mike]

We got John Matier on the podcast. That was pretty cool. Desean Bishop, Tennessee running back. All SEC running back. So that'll be posted. And I'd say for our standards, this has been an excellent Start to media days.

[Shane]

Excellent. But I have to have to admit one thing. The coaches that were here, there was one that I had circled that's been with us for several years and I think maybe he got too big for his britches and decided not to come see us. There's a lot of coaches. I mean I've seen them coming up and down radio row here, but one Mizzou coach never made it to the booth. So a little, little upset with that.

[Mike]

Well, you know who did make it though?

[Shane]

Who's that?

[Mike]

The legend. I'm going to play the tune cuz Shane can't see. I just want you to be surprised.

[Shane]

Legend cousin Junior has done it again.

[Mike]

Oh, really? Shout out Junior. What's up, buddy? Hey, cousin Ken. We appreciate you, buddy. Mazu Fan07 Shane gave us a donation. Thank you Mazu fan.

[Shane]

Thank you cuz.

[Mike]

Can I don't donate my normal memberships right now. Also, I think Missouri's going to crush it. Hey, so let's start there because that was kind of again, you never know what you're going to get at media days. You don't know what's going to come. You know, you know what will be the big talking points and, and news relate. There's often not a lot of news. But in case you missed it, in case any of the cousins missed it, Drink said Ahmad Hardy looks like, you know, he gave all the prop promising updates, said he's going to start being active now. He didn't 100 say, hey, he's good to go. But I thought that was kind of going to be like the update was like, well, we're still in a wait and see. He said he's, he's going to be a couple weeks good to go again. I may have that a little bit wrong because I didn't. Well, I didn't have an opportunity to hear all the press conferences and all that. But if, if he's good to go, I mean, that changes the outlook completely because I've kind of been under the assumption that Lamont Hardy's not going to be playing the whole season.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And today I think we took a step closer to that being a possibility.

[Shane]

You know, it's funny because we go back and forth on these, on these football teams and it's like, well, if this happens or if that happens, you know, if the stars align, we can do this. And I feel like that's the big one for Mizzou. Right. It's Hardy going to be there. And, and I'm not saying it was A red flag. But, you know, Roberts coming in, I thought that was like, are we saying, hey, this is, this is our new number one. Like, you never know. And I, I feel like this is great news because you pair that with, with an inexperienced quarterback and with this, a pretty good offensive line, this, this could be, this could be an explosive offense, man. And I, I, yeah, I, I'm just glad that he's healthy. Just, I mean, hell, he could have been dead, Mike. He got shot. You know what I'm saying? So I'm just happy he's alive, but I'm also just as happy that he's going to be able to probably take a snap week one.

[Mike]

Is it possible that Drake was just so confident, he's like, we're going to have this machine, we're going to have these running backs. Austin Simmons is amazing. He's like, I don't need to speak with those two lunatics over there.

[Shane]

Maybe, maybe, you know, and that, and it's funny because we had conversations with him. My way over. He was asking me how the golf game was going and, and you know, he was, I think he was buttering me up, knowing he wasn't going to come over here, which again, it sucks. But let's be honest, man, players and coaches, you're not going to get a lot. I mean, these, these guys are well trained athletes, right? But they're also well trained interviewees. And these, these guys, they know what they can say.

[Mike]

And in fairness to them, they are on a media days. They're absolutely slammed. I mean, there's, there's literally hundreds of tables here. There's SEC network, there's espn. They got to run here. There. We saw the back rooms. They're like being interviewed in the back room. So I think we just, we probably just got cut for time.

[Shane]

We did, we did. But I will say, man, I, I felt like we got a lot of great content coming out your way. So having those notifications on are important because some of these interviews, buddy, you know, I do this every year, man. It takes one or two guys come over here and I'm like, dude, maybe, maybe I'm sleeping on this team. You know what I'm saying? So there's been a few eye openers and again, I haven't officially released my top 16, you know what I'm saying? But it's very fluid right now in the middle. So.

[Mike]

Yes. Which Rick said, according to the cousins. You never know what the cousins. Five to eight weeks for Ahmad Hardy.

[Shane]

Okay.

[Mike]

Which again, we're, that's we're talking about. We got five to eight weeks. He should be good for the season.

[Shane]

Seems like when kickoff is, right.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[Shane]

Weeks. Because we're. I mean, what is it? July? I'm not good with math. July 20th, so. Yeah. And they. They kick off in August, so just about five days. Well, I don't like it. Eight weeks. That would cut in a little bit to the season, but, you know, you

[Mike]

know what's going to cut into the dinner bill or. Dinner bill. Mizzou Fan07 give us 50 bucks. Except for Shane's Cracker Barrel.

[Shane]

You know, Mike tried to take me out. There's a. There's a restaurant. What did you call it? Naked Farmer.

[Mike]

Naked Farmer. It was fantastic.

[Shane]

I don't know, man. Yeah. Mike likes to experiment down here. And. And I was like, you know, let's just hit up some quesadillas in the lobby, which were okay, but I'm thinking after seeing some photos, I should have trust the process and went and checked it out. But thank you so much, Mizzou fan.

[Mike]

And how about. I think from what I saw, again, I was limited what I saw, but I think Will Stein, I think he was the star of day one.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

For anybody that missed it, he was asked, you know, why is Kentucky going to win? Why should we believe in Kentucky? And he flat out said, because of me. I mean, for a Kentucky coach, I love that confidence. You were never going to get that from boring old stoops. You know, last year, he was pissed off because our buddy Nick Roush asked him how motivated he was. I think Will Stein knocked it out of the park.

[Shane]

Oh, yeah. And after that Alabama win, he'll grab the mic and say, who you think you are? I am.

[Mike]

Yeah. Do we do any interviews in the broom closet? Believe it or not, this is right behind me in the broom closet, so to speak. That's where the. The main ballroom where all the SEC coaches are being interviewed.

[Shane]

So we are by the SEC boys right here, too. So if you're watching SEC now, you're guaranteed to see my fat ass walking around here somewhere.

[Mike]

And any takeaways from getting interviewed? John Matier.

[Shane]

John Mate here, man. I will tell you, this is a very likable character. Right. You know, I just. You almost felt like his Persona, like he. It just kept getting bigger and bigger. You know, they were talking about the guns, you know, the gun shows coming in and stuff, but very humbled. Said the right things, man. And. And was it. I felt like out of all the players we talked to, obviously more Experienced, knew what he could get away with, but had a blast. And I'm liking, I'm liking me some John Mateer right now.

[Mike]

Well, you've been kind of all over the place with him. Sometimes you've been high, sometimes you've been low, over under seven and a half. We talked to George Stoa too, Sooner scoop, so that'll be on the channel soon. But after having these Oklahoma interviews, has anything changed for you? More confident, less confident.

[Shane]

I was. I may have been wrong about those Sooners, man. I mean, I just to see story his eyes light up talking about this defense like, you know, like Christmas morning when you're a kid, you know, you can't wait to open that first present. You had that and then you like, you know, just, I don't know, Matir coming over and the conversation because it wasn't just him. You know, you go to some of these other shows and they're like, hey man, Oklahoma. That if we can get past. You'd be amazed how many people say if we can get past the Sooners. You know, that's a good thing, right? When they're saying if we can get past you. And I'm looking at it. Yes, it's a tough schedule and, and like I said, my rankings is very fluid right now, but I think that may be one team. I was a little low on coming in this thing.

[Mike]

Interesting question from Vulpit. Do Matier's arms look big in person?

[Shane]

I mean, obviously I, that, that photo I put on Twitter. A little bit.

[Mike]

A little bit, Yeah.

[Shane]

I promise to say a lot, but no, he looks good. He looks good. He's. He's in shape. And one of the things I wish I would have asked him a little bit is, you know, he's. He's a gamer, you know, and there's a lot, right? You look at a lot of these teams and it's easy to say the team's riding on the quarterback, but there's a lot riding on this kid. And, and I do wonder a little bit because he is got that gamer mentality. How, how often is he going to take this thing outside the pocket? How often is he going to put his body in a situation where he can get injured again? And I'm not saying it's just the thumb, but it's just who he is. And I, I wonder if during some of this QB training that he's been doing here in the offseason if there was some of that, hey, it's okay to get down because you can get back the next play.

[Mike]

Mm. Anything stand out to you about the Tennessee's day hypo came in here talking, said we no excuse for losing a Vanderbilt. Yeah, I feel like when you got a head coach that comes in here and says that stuff, this is the, this is the venue where they like avoid all the talk. Yeah, that's not avoiding it. That's taking accountability. And I feel like one of the things when I talk up Tennessee, it's who they got coming back. But a lot of it's the changes on defense, strength and conditioning. Because that to me is a, is a coach that is taking accountability for what went wrong last year. It's an administration that's giving him the resources. Yeah, they're paying over $2 million for a defensive coordinator. The strength coach is the highest paid strength coach now, I believe in the country. This seems like a, not a. This seems like a program that is looking itself in the mirror and realizing what, what is acceptable. And, and I, I'm still kind of amazed that he said that.

[Shane]

Accountability is key. And you know, I feel like there were a couple teams last year, late last season that had a little give up. And I hate to say my Tennessee balls were one of them. I'm not saying that they could beat Vanderbilt because Vanderbilt was playing some, some great football at the end of the season. They were trying to get into the college football playoffs. But I do feel like you didn't get the best Tennessee volunteer football team and that's, that's embarrassing at your home. And just you pair that with the Oklahoma game. I was just talking up the Sooners. It just felt like there were moments last season where we lost. Not the locker room, but we, we lost our focus. Right. So I think that's the key here is, is. Is starts with the top, works its way down. So Josh Apple obviously saying the right things, but this is also a program that should be, or at least expects to be in College Football Playoff conversations year after year. And you don't do that by losing a Vanderbilt at home.

[Mike]

No, I think that's 100% accurate. I mean, that's. I'm right there with you. And that's a big reason why I'm high on Tennessee. And I think they can do a lot of big things, but it seems like a lot. It seems like people are very, very mixed on Tennessee. Like some people are completely out.

[Shane]

Yeah, some people.

[Mike]

Some people are bought in. Does that surprise you? I mean, it's. It almost feels that way with a lot of teams where it's. It's like, all or nothing.

[Shane]

Yeah, it does. And, you know, it's funny because I feel like they're after conversations day one. I feel like there's more teams that are convinced that they have an opportunity for postseason. Right. But then also there's a handful of teams that not giving up. But, yeah, you know, and we'll get to Arkansas later. But I just. I. That's this kind of where I'm at. But I will. I will say this, Mike. I felt like this is the first season in a long time that there's more expecting. And when you go to expecting, that means some are going to get it and some are going to be extremely heartbroken. So I, you know, I'm kind of curious how that plays out.

[Mike]

All right, so again today, Missouri, Kentucky, Tennessee, Oklahoma. Which one are you most confident in today and which one are you least confident in?

[Shane]

Yeah, I'll give you the order. Right now, it's just confidence. Oklahoma number one, Tennessee number two, Mizzou three, and then Kentucky four.

[Mike]

I think that's fair.

[Shane]

Confidence, too, is the eye of the boulder, I guess. You know, like, Kentucky's not saying they're going to come out here when, you know, 10 games, but I don't know. There was a lot of confidence in Stein's comment, but this is what he needs to say, right? This is. You don't need to win over the media, but you need to. You need to. You need to let them know that this is a new regime, that this is a new program, and it's going to take a little time to get it right, but you're going to notice results immediately. And that immediate may be an upset here or there. It may be them, you know, just finishing the scenes and stronger, and they started that sort of thing.

[Mike]

And shout out, Mike, we appreciate you, Mike. Mike. Andrew's always in the chat. He's saying, but I don't. I don't agree with this at all. He says Tennessee always in the playoff conversation. How many times have they made it? Don't you remember going into last year, Syracuse? We were like, oh, that could be a toss up. Nico left in the middle of the spring. It's like people just forget everything that happened. Yeah, and we were in the similar situation. They don't have a quarterback, they don't have any receivers. Who's this running back? They just had SEC offensive player of the year at running back, all these unknowns. And then they just lit the SEC on fire on offense now, defense, obviously trash, but to say they're always in the Playoff. I mean, I think they were, I, I, I think 90% of Tennessee fans would have accepted 8 and 4 the moment Nico walked out the door. But then it happens and then they're like, oh, that's not very good. It's like we just forget what, what has happened. They in no way was Tennessee in the playoff conversation last year.

[Shane]

No, no, I, I, I mean obviously I thought they were in the playoff conversation every year, but I'm just a homer. But I, I feel like really the conversations are, doesn't, this is last year. It's a 9 and 3 and okay, I can see these losses and if you look at what Tennessee was favored and you know, underdogs. Yeah, I, I felt like there was a shot they could be in, in contention, but they would need to pull off an upset or two and, and you know, and they weren't able to do that so well.

[Mike]

And I do remember shout out to Cameron in the comments. He reminded me of something. Remember old Joe Morehead when he came in at Mississippi State?

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

When his first one, he was like, I think he said we measured everyone's ring sizes because we're going to win champions. So that may have been the best liner for one.

[Shane]

Maybe that's it. Maybe sometimes that locker room talk kind of bleeds out a little bit. But no, I, I'm not saying this as a homer, but I'm, I'm saying it as. There are a lot of teams that you can realistically sit there and say, hey, if this would have went this way, Texas prime example, right. Last year, you could argue that they were playing some of the best football at the end of the season last year and they probably deserved a spot. But you say deserve. Well, they lost to Ohio State. They lost. You know. Yes, yes, I get that. I totally understand. But you know, I, but were they in the mix? You know? Absolutely. If they would have had one game, even if, if they would have beat Ohio State, there's no way and you know, there's no way in hell they wouldn't have made the playoffs then. So I don't know, I just, I'm kind of torn. Same thing with Vanderbilt. Vanderbilt 10 and 2 should have got in and I will die on that hill. Any 10 win SEC team, I don't care who you played, needs to get in because Tennessee, a team, we're just talking about the playoffs. You know what I'm saying? Like, right, they beat you. And if they would, if Tennessee would have been in playoff contention on that game and Vanderbilt walked away the victor Vanderbilt no doubt. My mind would been in the playoffs so it's, you know, I just, I feel like that playoff narrative gets thrown around so much but we got 16 teams in this league. I realistically see eight of them competing for that, that opportunity.

[Mike]

And who are the eight dog? We'll get to anything else stand out again? Let's try to focus on the teams that were today. Tennessee, Kentucky, Missouri, anything Oklahoma. Anything stand out about any of the conversations or anything that we had today.

[Shane]

I feel like Oklahoma is the biggest one. We talked about it but also Kentucky, you know, nice to see. Oh Adam and Nick with a little pep in their steps. You know it just, they, I feel like they're happy right and, and it's been a while since Kentucky fans were happy and now obviously there's not been one snap yet. But I do feel like after that week one matchup we're gonna all be like oh my God, what do we got here? You know, Whoa.

[Mike]

We just got amazing download or donation chain from Vulpet. $120 maybe. I think he meant to do 1998 for this 198 so. Oh, I don't know. I don't know if if it was an error or not. But we do appreciate your vp. He's just asking you. Shane. Shane. Damn. V is getting DGG on Wednesday. The five star running back. He's going to make his decision.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

What do you think?

[Shane]

I think so. I mean just people I'm talking to and I'm talking to some people now, you know what I'm saying? I really do feel like there's a good chance we get them in the boat. But remember Mike, I think it's a little bit different, you know than it was a couple of years ago. I was always worried about okay I got a guy to commit. Will he commit by the time we get to signing day. But I feel like there's some paperwork, there's some money, there's some, you know, there's some agreements that are happening and it's a pretty good shot if you get them in the boat that you're going to keep them. So I'm feeling pretty confident here and why wouldn't you? Why wouldn't you? This is a perfect team. I mean just look at the track record. Everybody talks about quarterbacks and you know him going five wide up tempo now it's about the running game man. And we're, we're going to keep committing on getting offensive line. We're going to keep committing on thousand yard running Backs, which we're going to do again this season. I'm, I'm fully, I mean we talked to Bishop and.

[Mike]

Right.

[Shane]

And I, I, he's got, he's got a damn goal, man. He wants to break records here. So. And I felt, yeah, I was just

[Mike]

going to say so again I reference Dylan Sampson, SEC offensive player of the year when Tennessee went to the playoff and then DeSean Bishop, one of only four SEC running backs that had 1,000 yards last year. That is back this year he came over here and sat down at our table and said, you know, one of his personal goals is to shatter the all time Tennessee rushing record.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And he could potentially do it Shane, with that offensive line if he has a big year. You know he's going to be in the conversation. And now you're talking about depending on what recruiting service. Number two, I think number one running back prospect in the country making his decision on Wednesday. So I mean he could just be the next in a long line. Tennessee's quickly becoming one of the running back use in the Southeastern Conference.

[Shane]

I'll tell you because if that was a mistake and you're in the doghouse because wife found out, I apologize. But we'll take you and Bishop to Texas roadhouse which seems to be a popular place to him and next meals on me because I appreciate it.

[Mike]

Yeah, you got a got to donate to his nil

[Bank of America/US Soccer Announcer]

dude.

[Shane]

He was, he was all about the I thought I like Texas Roadhouse. No, Bishop's all in on it.

[Mike]

All right. And then again anything Missouri. I, I feel like we haven't talked a ton about, you know, Missouri.

[Shane]

The thing I've noticed, not a lot of Mizzou representation here.

[Mike]

Yeah, we saw Cody from Power Mizzou. He's going to stop by tomorrow.

[Shane]

I didn't, that's about it again. I know they were tied up and probably busy with because Drink was here, but that's one Honestly, I, I probably will have a better feel later in the week maybe after Power Mizzou. But right now, short of what I've said or what I've heard from, from the cousins, nothing really moved the needle for me. You know what I'm saying? I, I haven't seen anything. But you know, just because you didn't win the podium doesn't mean you lost a football game either.

[Mike]

Right. Well, I think what that is really in your heart is just I'm hurt. I'm hurt Drink didn't come by and

[Shane]

you're like yeah, I felt like you when you grow up, when you grow up in grade school, Mike, there's a couple of things that are like, they're your lifeblood. And one is going to the cafeteria, right. With your friends. And the second one is getting picked in dodgeball. And, you know, growing up a fat kid that couldn't really throw too hard, there was a lot of times I was the last one picked. You know, I've never felt that until today. I felt like I didn't get picked.

[Mike]

And I forgot to mention this because this was relatively big news. Shane? Yeah, they're waiting for their. They got a right tackle here. Josh Atkins suffered a setback in his rehab, so he missed spring because he got hurt, and now it looks like he's going to miss time. Now they're counting on the offensive line being really good. And I'm not saying he's. He's certainly their best tackles. Kaden Green, you know, but being down a starting tackle for who knows how long, that could be pretty costly for Mizzou.

[Shane]

You know, it's. It. Some teams, it starts to snowball. You know, we just talked about Oklahoma. You remember a couple years ago when we had Lyman falling off left and right, and. And sometimes you get bit by the bad bug, you know, and I'm trying not to pile on. And I'm not saying that this is a situation because it may not. Right. He may come back, be healthy as an ox. And I hope that happens, because last thing you want is any football team to have an asterisk saying, well, if this would have happened or if this guy didn't get hurt, you know, So I hope that we have a healthy Mizzou come week one. But that being said, there is, you know, we don't really need them week one, you know, may need them. Go over there and beat up on them birds, you know.

[Mike]

Now, something drink did say about Austin Simmons. I was unaware. Apparently Austin Simmons has a photo graphic memory. Oh, does that change anything for you?

[Shane]

Photographic memory is. It's exciting.

[Mike]

Remember everything.

[Shane]

Yeah, I love that. I. Who's that coach? Obviously, I do not have Jimbory. No, no, no. Oh, well, I heard Jimbo does, but that doesn't make sense. He carrying around 50 sheets of paper if he can remember everything.

[Mike]

I think you're thinking of the. The Rams coach.

[Shane]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. McVeigh. Yeah, yeah. And he can. He can. He can recall like third down and something at these situations. That's awesome. Yes, that changes because the biggest knock on having a new quarterback and a new system is learning the playbook. Well, you got that memorized, we ain't got nothing to blame. And you got somebody in your, in your head telling you, you know what you need to do, what not to do. I mean, would you want that? Is that a power you would want?

[Mike]

Is it a blessing or a curse? Is that what you're saying?

[Shane]

Yeah, I think it would be. I, I think it would be a curse. I'd be up all night thinking about some phone book page or something, you know, like Rain man, just going through them numbers I couldn't do.

[Mike]

You lay up, you lay awake at, at night, concern that you could be Rain man sometimes, Right?

[Shane]

Like, how many toothpicks did I drop? Yeah.

[Mike]

And I will. So we again, Shane said we went to dinner last night, which is true.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

And we're. He. He asked the waitress as we're like walking out the door, he's. He asked for a straw and I was like, that's kind of weird. But he's like, trust me. He's using it as a toothpick as we walk past the toothpaste. And he's like, you bend a straw, it's a lot more effective than a toothpick. Like there. You've got some Rain man to you.

[Shane]

Well, I'm just a trained professional. It comes to eating food, Mike. And yeah, a toothpick at times is too thick. You know, even, you know, one of those dental floss deals doesn't do it. I've got this, this back left one here especially is perfect for a straw. So I, I have one. If you get in my truck, you'll notice it. Now, whenever you're riding with me in the truck, the sun visor, there's a little red straw that's sticking out and I change it. I can't, you know, I rotate it. Hardies has good straws. You know, you don't want to trust a Starbucks straw because that thing's going to break in probably three tries. But, yeah, I do have a little bit of an art here.

[Mike]

Any thoughts on. I know, again, we didn't get to. We're just like locked down, doing interviews and stuff. But. Kenny Menchie, Kentucky bring in a quarterback that's never played in the Southeastern Conference. Yeah, no, obviously there's no competition. He's the guy. You don't bring a guy like that unless you have confidence in him. But is that a bold move to bring in a quarterback that is transferred in? Now, again, there's new pieces everywhere, so I'm not saying it's completely bold, but I think that's kind of a big move by Will Stein a little bit. Right.

[Shane]

But I do think that there's a couple of schools that have to do it this way. I think if, if you're being honest, Mike, if Kentucky is hitting in their, you know, nine, 10 win seasons, they're not probably bringing a guy like this in. But at this point, you may have to take, I don't want to say damaged goods, but you, you may have to take a. A lottery ticket. And that's exactly what he is. He has a. I mean, he has the ability. Right. If you're just looking at attributes, he's a hell of an athlete. And that's what they may need over there in Lexington. So I don't hate it. I don't hate it because it's a move that I would do too. Even I've. I've never coached or anything, but if I got a list of five quarterbacks, but this one's got so much upside, even though he's got a few, I'm going to take him.

[Mike]

Hey, one of the cousins is asking an amazing question for you. Yeah. I don't know if you're prepared. We need Shane's restaurant straw as toothpicks rankings. Are you prepared to give us a rank?

[Shane]

Yeah. We're talking fast food, right? Because you can't really trust any. Any restaurant, especially in Nashville. There they got all these fake straws. And by fake straw, I mean probably not going to kill a turtle or something, but yeah. Power ranking Hardee's number one. Then I'd go McDonald's number two. And then maybe Sonic. Sonic would be number three. So that would probably be the third one. Don't trust. Like I said, Starbucks. But, you know, it's not like we do a lot of fast food. Bojangles is a good one,

[Mike]

I guarantee you. Shane.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

We're the only ones at SEC Media days Power ranking fast food, straws and toothpicks.

[Shane]

It doesn't take long or much to get off path, does it?

[Mike]

I mean, that's just too good. Too good.

[Shane]

Yeah, it's. But the worst. The worst. And I don't know whose idea this was, but those cardboard ones, I'm sure you've. You've drunk out of them.

[Mike]

Oh, yeah.

[Shane]

I love them places.

[Mike]

I love them.

[Shane]

All I could think about is drinking out of one of those paper towels. You know, like, it's pretty gross. Whose idea was this?

[Mike]

You know, this is stupid.

[Shane]

What are we doing? Let's just. I mean, I'm not gonna. I would rather cut up a really good Plastic straw at the end so I don't have to like if this saves turtles lives or whoever we're helping, you know, I don't know. I don't know. The straw thing. I don't. Is there something that came up that they're saying you, you got to have biodegradable straws all of a sudden?

[Mike]

I'll be perfectly honest with you.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

I don't keep up with straw news or anything like that, you know.

[Shane]

Yeah, I get it. I get it. There's just some stuff I don't. I don't understand.

[Mike]

Hey, is there anybody that you're really looking forward to speaking to the rest of media days that we haven't got a chance to meet with?

[Shane]

Yeah. John Sumrall, the new guys.

[Mike]

Yeah.

[Shane]

Goal. Ish. There's a few. I, I feel like before we go too far, because I do want to also bring up Sankey starting.

[Mike]

Oh, yeah, we go there.

[Shane]

Yeah. I felt like that was clearly a message that he wanted to get across and, and maybe we can get him on at some time this week. I know he'll be here all week, but I really would like to. If I gave you the keys and told you to fix college football, what would the perfect system look like? And because it quickly. Conversations so quickly today went to 16 games to 24 games to. We got to move this, we got to move that. And I'm like, what are we. What are we doing here? Is this really what you want? Is this. Because I, I'm just, I'm kind of torn with postseason talk and, you know, this conversation that we're always getting to something. Even though we've been talking about this since we started coming to media days,

[Mike]

you know, hey, well. And you know, it's interesting. We're already hearing the messaging. We've been hearing it from the coaches, but. And I guess we always kind of get it from Sankey. But I think it was heavily emphasized today that. And people roll their eyes, but it's 100% the truth. Nine game SEC plus an additional power, non conference opponent. And just noting that it's just different the schedule wise. It feels like they're putting it on the committee early. I mean, we haven't even played damn games. And they're like, guys, this is on another level. Because what. Obviously what they're doing, they're trying to say 9 and 3. We need to be looked at a lot of these teams and you can never leave out a 10 and 2 again like they did last year. I mean, do you get that? Feeling that they're, that they're putting an emphasis on the committee already to be like, yeah, you really need to hammer home how tough these schedules are.

[Shane]

Well, I mean, Saki said, he goes, he was about to say one of the, he ripped it up. He says, we have the toughest schedule per game for league. I mean, it's not even questioned, Mike. And I feel like Big Ten, you know, they, they, they, they put a few teams up there and they say, hey, look what these guys are doing. Yeah, but what is everyone else doing? You know, what is. Look at an Oklahoma schedule, look at a Kentucky schedule, look at a Tennessee schedule. I mean, give that to anyone. And I know we say this same shit over and over again, but I mean, you have to, you have to resonate because there's going to be some football teams that start out slow, that catch fire at the end, may have three losses and we're begging the committee to let them in over a two loss ACC team. It's coming, it's coming, you know, so it's stupid. We shouldn't have the conversation. And that's when somebody asked him in here and he said, how real is this SEC leaving the conference thing? And of course, I think he's like, well, we really did have the conversation, so I guess it's real, you know, but he said he's not using it for leverage. But that's what it is. It's leverage. And, and it's something that push come to shove. You know, we're doing all this for entertainment, to make the fans enjoy it, to make, you know, Dizzy enjoy it. But if it's going to cost us an opportunity for postseason, then there'll be changes quicker than later. You know, I can feel it. I can feel agitation when Sankey talks.

[Mike]

Oh, I can. I can feel you being agitated.

[Shane]

Yeah. Angry. Getting angry.

[Mike]

Mike, we got a great question. Mackle's on fire. I want to know who are your sleeper teams in the sec? Who you got as a sleeper team? Everybody.

[Shane]

Well, that's a great question because sleeper. Are you thinking about like a team that you don't have in the playoffs but could make it top team? Here's one, here's one that we didn't even talk about yet. And you're. Maybe I'm looking forward to it. And I'm not saying it makes the playoffs, but I don't know, man, from people close to that program, South Carolina, we may be sleeping on them Gamecocks right now. I mean, the, the easy, the easy talk is the coordinator and you know, the best quarterback, potentially the best defensive player. But they're not talking about all the other things that, that South Carolina has added this season. And, and even, even our boy Marlowe coming on here saying, hey, man, this schedule is not so bad. And he's right. I feel like there's an opportunity for South Carolina to start this season extremely strong, and who knows what happens when momentum gets behind them.

[Mike]

Yeah, and I've. I agree with everything you just said. Again, not playoff for me, but sleeper. A good team no one could see coming. How about Mississippi State? Yeah, again, seven, eight wins is kind of what I'm thinking, best case scenario. But that would be my sleeper Year three. Jeff Levy, Camario Taylor, Fluff Bothwell, and getting Zach Arnett back as defensive coordinator. Yeah, I think Mississippi State's got potential to, to upset a lot of folks for sure.

[Shane]

And honestly, if you look at their schedule last year, they were so close. Right. They just, they screwed up. I mean, we were talking to Bishop and somebody, I don't know who stole a cowbell the last time they were out there, but that was a big win for them Vols. You know, they almost got an upset on the road there, but you could flip the other side of that coin. If Mississippi State would have won that, what would it have done to the program? You know, so it's so easy to sit over here and say, you know, Levy's on the hot seat, he's got to get it done. But brother, if they win the games they're supposed to and they win the games, their toss ups, not all of them, but, you know, a majority of them, then all of a sudden they're sitting in that 7, 8 game spot. I like it. I like State. I think, hell, I like, I like the fans. They deserve some, some goodness, you know, they are do. Mike.

[Mike]

Yeah. Is Alabama do. She got Stephen up in the comments. I'm trying.

[Shane]

Yeah, you're tied.

[Mike]

I mean, people are kind of split on them in here, too.

[Shane]

I got a video coming out here on a short. I'll probably do it tomorrow morning, so you guys will have it. But yeah, there's split. There's a lot of, A lot of media personalities up here that feel like Alabama is about to hit the ground. I'm not in that camp. I know Mike is, but. Yeah, I'm intrigued to see what the boring company has to say when they get here.

[Mike]

They're always on Wednesdays. We got, we got some. A couple days before that arrives, but I like it.

[Shane]

They make the Bama and Dogs and all of them stay here. This time Kentucky went fourth. You know, they were already packed up. It's just me, you and Roush that time.

[Mike]

Yeah, they were smart. They got Kentucky in here day one.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

But again, a lot of energy, a lot of enthusiasm, complete turnover of the roster. They're another team. I know I'm down on them, but it's. How in the hell can you figure out what this team is when they're completely overhauled on offense, New defensive system. They still got a lot of Mark Stoops holdovers on the defensive side of the football. And I've been down obviously on Mark Stoops, but he's always been a good defensive coach.

[Shane]

Yeah.

[Mike]

You know, if they can just pair this together, they could be a dangerous team. I'll just be happy if Kentucky's not of, you know, just awful to watch on offense.

[Shane]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Mike]

And that's why I think their fans are fired up.

[Shane]

My only concern is the three and out in the defense. You know, so much when we talk about Kentucky, I feel like 80% of conversations about the offense, but it's the defense that ultimately is going to suffer if the offense doesn't get going. And that, that's. That's my only concern. Just the competitive depth on that side. We just. I've said it a million times, going to a nine game SEC schedule, this, you need a deeper roster than ever. And I feel like that's really going to hurt some of these new coaches.

[Mike]

Yeah. And of course they got Louisville too, which is I think going to be a really good team this year too. So it just adds so much to it. But anything else standing out to you about so far? Day one, SEC media days,

[Shane]

camp is all right, right? I don't hate it, but it makes no sense. I'd be happy to not do this again. Oh, big announcement. I guess there. They have announced they'll be in Nashville. One thing that I did notice here and same thing they did in Nashville last time. There was a. There was a pretty big fan experience. So next year it will be July 12th big and date the big date. Cousin Shane's birthday. So hopefully we'll start on your birthday. Yeah, the event does. So they'll probably.

[Mike]

You're gonna miss day one.

[Shane]

Yeah, I'm out drinking, partying. I mean I can't miss my 35th birthday. Mike. Yeah. My wife, she. She turned 29 for like 10 years in a row and I was like, honey, we probably should bump this number up a little bit. But we're. Yeah, they're gonna really roll out some fanfare over there. And so I'm hoping that next year we can set up like a cousin event and I think that would be kind of cool.

[Mike]

Yeah, that'd be great.

[Shane]

Yeah. Already talking about next Tennessee right there. Yeah, they're on day one.

[Mike]

I'm already talking about next year. It feels like 98, you know, that's right.

[Shane]

Next year's our year. See you boys. Them Kentucky's, you know, they're going to take free drinks.

[Mike]

Trying to fight with the Kentucky sports radio folks over here.

[Shane]

Somebody's got to keep them in line.

[Mike]

All right, we haven't gone too long here, but I feel like I'm kind of out of words. How about you?

[Shane]

Which is rare, you know, rare air. Mike's usually a big talker. Again. No, no, like I said, it was a cool, cool little day one event. I do feel like we've lost a little bit of media on this one. Maybe because it's too far or something like that, but we've. We got a lot of content. I know it doesn't seem like it, but I swear to God, we talked to so many people today, we're going to talk to so many tomorrow. It's just going to keep rolling. So be sure you have those notifications on because Mike, I mean, hell, you never know when it's go. Mike may put five of them out tonight, he may put two out tonight. But I guarantee if your team was going today, we talked about them. So just kind of keep a lookout for him.

[Mike]

Oh, yeah. So much content coming and so many cousins. Shane added to the family thanks to Mizzou fan number seven. He gifted 20 members drink and he's feeling guilty. I think it might be. So I want to give a shout out to these cousins, Shane. Oh, man, this is gonna be difficult to read here.

[Shane]

Tag, drink. Tell them. Tell them they're disappointed.

[Mike]

Not Kyle Mark Dr. NLR Hog Zach Miller, Inverse defender Andrew Fask, colton colton nerf odf corrections 101 that's Shane's burner there, Joseph Muir. And let's see, we got LJC, WD69, Cigna, Nomad, Bruce Dub less action Brandon Jones, 247 Dogs fan JJ Swifty, Brandon Kurtz, Bama Savage Falls, not Notsville. And that's it.

[Shane]

Welcome to the family.

[Mike]

All right, buddy. Any final closing thoughts here from day one? Sec. Media days.

[Shane]

No, no. Everything was a success. I think we only lost like two pieces of things.

[Mike]

I know, but awesome gear, we're down.

[Shane]

Yeah, we're down a Little gear, but that's all right. Other than that, no, it's been fantastic. Shout out to the chair keeping me afloat this entire event. Probably need to rotate.

[Mike]

Yeah. So we'll be back. We'll be fully energized next tomorrow for another live show and I'll. I'll try to get the time right. That was my bad. I mean, I feel like so many people are going to log on and they'll be like, what the heck? They went an hour early. Yeah, that was my bad. I'm used to central time. We're on east coast time, so. Again, apologies for that, but tons of interviews coming. Shane's got the shorts working hard, so. Man, so much stuff coming and we got it covered. We'll catch you on the next one.

[Shane]

All right, see you guys. Go by.

[Mike]

Hey, buddy, this beer's for you, Mike and cousin Shane. That SEC podcast loves the pirate and

[Shane]

the pirate loves that SEC podcast.

[Mike]

Hail State.

[Shane]

My community gives me the confidence to

[Bank of America/US Soccer Announcer]

ask myself, what would you like the power to do?

[Shane]

So every time I'm on the pitch, I play for more than myself. From Naomi Ganner, absolutely brilliant bank of

[Bank of America/US Soccer Announcer]

America champions U.S. women's national team member Naomi Girma and everyone who dares to ask, what would you like the power to do? Bank of America, Proud to be the Official bank of U.S. soccer bank of America NA member, FDSE.

[Apartments.com Advertiser]

Ever walk past a place for rent and wish you could just take a peek inside? Maybe even explore the layout? Envision the natural light streaming through the windows. Or plan where your vinyl record collection would go. At apartments.com you can. With tools like their 3D virtual tours, you can see the exact unit you could be living in. Really envision yourself in your new home. With apartments.com, the place to find a place.

[Julian Barnes, New York Times Reporter]

Normally in these ads you expect somebody to ask you to buy something. But this is something different. I'm Julian Barnes and I'm a reporter for the New York Times. I'm a national security reporter and that means I'm reporting on military operations. These are fast paced, quickly moving situations. What exactly is happening on the ground is often shrouded in mystery. But we turn to trusted sources, satellite imagery and expertise built up over years in order to ferret out the facts that wouldn't otherwise come to light. I'm here to ask you to seek out a news source that does firsthand fact based reporting. If it's your local paper, great. If it's the Times, thank you. Because where you go for your information matters.

[Indeed Sponsored Jobs Advertiser]

When the right person joins a team. Everything changes. Deadlines tighten. Momentum builds. Chaos settles down. That's why hiring Smart matters. Indeed Sponsored Jobs gets you quality candidates when you need them most. Spend less time searching and more time interviewing candidates who check all your boxes with Indeed Sponsored Jobs. Less stress, less time, more results. Listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit at Indeed.com podcast. Terms and conditions apply. Need to hire. This is a job for Indeed Sponsored Jobs.