← The Bill and Doug Show: Ohio State Football Talk
The Bill and Doug Show: Ohio State Football Talk
USC-Notre Dame, Michigan-Washington, Georgia-Ole Miss, Penn State-Iowa: College Football Picks
00:48:47
Notre Dame vs. USC on Saturday night is a rivalry with major College Football Playoff implications, while Michigan-Washington, Ole-Georgia, BYU-Utah and Tennessee-Alabama also matter in the playoff race. And then there's Penn State at Iowa.
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A
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B
Welcome back to the Bill and Doug Show. Doug Lamoris, Bill landis, National picks here on a Friday, making six picks in national games. Bill landis, I got a little better last week. I did a little better.
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C
I knew it. I knew you would. I know you would.
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B
So we include we make an Ohio State pick on our Thursday Ohio State show. So we include that pick because we picked that game against the spread also. So we include that with these national picks. So I went 5 and 2 last week. You went 3 and 4 for the season. Against the spread, you are 25 and 25.
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C
Okay.
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B
And I am 23 and 27. So you are two games ahead. But I made up a little ground overall, no spread. You are 30 and 20. I am 29 and 21. How do we feel about all that?
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C
I feel pretty good about it. Yeah, I'll take 500 after a bad week. And I'm glad, I'm glad to see you getting turned things around. You've been on the roller coaster a little bit, though. So I'm interested to see what happens for you, for you this week.
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B
I'm staring down an over. No doubt about it. No doubt about it. I haven't had two good weeks in a row the whole year. So we're picking six national games here. Let's get right into it because a couple of them, Bill, really, really, really matter for the playoff race, which we just think is exciting. And we're going to start with Washington at Michigan. This is a noon game and this is Michigan favored at home by five and a half. And there Is like, you know, there's a little bit of this. Washington hasn't been a great road team. We know that they didn't win on the road last year, but they did go to Maryland and win this year in a game where they did nothing in the first half and they got their stuff together and rallied in the second half and played really well. They were shut out in the first half at Maryland. Interception. Punt stopped on downs. Punt stopped on downs. The second half for the Washington offense. Field goal. Touchdown. Touchdown. Touchdown. They came back and won 24, 20. As you think about this Michigan Washington game, just how much immediately does the fact that Michigan is at home in the big house and Washington's on the road factor into your evaluation?
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C
Yeah, a decent amount. Washington starting going back to last year has covered in Eastern Time is 1 in 3 playing on Eastern Time. This is a 9 o' clock body clock game for Washington. I did see funnily enough, like the Washington, I guess like changed up its travel a little bit. Our pal Christian Capable did some reporting on this and the person that Jet Fish talked to is Mike McDonald. The Seattle Seahawks head coach is the former defensive coordinator at Michigan. So they didn't do anything drastic. They basically like they got a bigger plane and they left at a different time.
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B
But I think are they leaving a day early? Are they going Thursday instead of Friday? Is that a thing? Because that's like what Ohio State did when it went to Washington. There seems to be a little more fly Thursday instead of Friday in the Big Ten for the cross country trips this year.
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C
Yeah, it's like practice, practice Thursday, then get on the plane Thursday evening.
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B
Okay.
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C
And then practice on, on site or not on site, but somewhere in the area on Friday. Yeah, Ohio State did that. Did not do that last year did do that this year. I think Pence, Penn State's done it with their west coast travel. So it's not a foolproof plan. But teams, teams are, teams seem to be adjusting a little bit. So you know, I, I did factor it in. It wasn't like an automatic. Well, Washington's playing in eastern time zone. Let me give him a loss kind of thing. But I certainly thought about it.
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B
Okay. I, I'm thinking about it less because I, I, they sh. When you look at this, you know, you're on alert when Washington makes that trip to Maryland. They went to Rutgers last year and Jed Fish acted like they went to New Zealand. He acted like New Jersey was on the other side of the planet, not the other side of the continent. So to go to Maryland and then just lay an egg in the first half and then get your stuff together. That, that. Now I'm not saying that solved everything because there are other like road games so far this year is Washington State. So that's like the only real trip they've made. And I'm not saying that going to Maryland is the same as going to Michigan, but I, I might have shed the doubting Washington just because of that part of it. I don't think you can completely do it, but they earned my respect with that second half. And then the other part of this is Demon Williams Jr. For instance, the Washington quarterback. In five games and five of the six games this year that he's played, he's averaging 291 passing yards. Against Ohio State he had 173. In five games, he's averaging 82 rushing yards. Against Ohio State he had negative 28 the other five games he's averaging 373 yards of offense per game. Against Ohio state he had 145. So we kind of said this, we kind of told this to Ohio State fans when it happened. It was like, hey, we thought the mind Williams Jr. Is good. Williams Jr. Is good. We think Washington's offense is good. Then Ohio State slowed him down or shut them down and was sort of like, I don't know, are they that good? It's like, yes, they are that good. But Bill, in many years past it would have been a very reasonable comparison or even to be like, well, if Ohio State can do it, can shut somebody down, certainly Michigan can. Because Michigan's defense now to think like, well, basically Washington offensively has scorched everybody except Ohio State. So who's Michigan more like? Is Michigan's defense more like the Ohio State defense? Are they more like the everybody else defense? And coming off a game where they got spread out and then run over by usc, they certainly are looking more like the everybody else defense. Which then makes me think, I don't know if they're going to stop Washington. Yeah.
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C
And I think that they still like look a little susceptible in the secondary too, especially at the corner spot. So. So Washington just like Washington's offense was like number one in like everything when Ohio State played them and then did not have a great day. But currently 10th overall in the Formau index, fourth in points per drive, third in the available yards, seventh and touchdown rate, first and first down rate, like they just kind of picked it back up. As you were saying, like this is still profile wise anyway, one of the elite offenses in college Football and Michigan just played one of those two, I think against USC and it didn't handle it well. Now this is home. Jerome Moore's got his blue collar shirt on. Maybe, maybe they rally and play, play a little tougher. Like I, I thought USC pushed Michigan around a little bit. I don't know if Washington's equipped to do quite the same up front. But I think what you worry more about is. Yeah, Demon Williams, Denzel Boston. Seems like let's. I just had his name with my tongue. Who's the freshman, the receiver?
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B
Desmond Roebuck.
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C
Roebuck. I wanted to call him Roebuck but I know that wasn't right.
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B
Are you setting me up? Are you?
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C
No, I wasn't, I wasn't, I wasn't, I wasn't. But yeah, Desmond Roebuck seems like he's emerging as like a reliable number two receiver. We know Jonah Coleman's good, so a lot of weapons for, for Michigan to deal with and yeah, I don't know what kind of shape that defense is in. I don't think it's a bad defense, but I don't know that it's an elite one. And I don't think it's the caliber of the one that Ohio State has that shut Washington down.
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B
Yeah, I spread them out and then gash him in the run game. That's what USC did. And it's like, man, like Makai Lemon for USC last week, Denzel Boston for Washington this week. King Miller as a running back, walk on third string guy for USC last week. Okay, if he can do it, then Jonah Coleman can do it this week. Like a lot of challenging each other at Michigan this week. Wink Martindale, the defensive coordinator, challenging coaches, challenging players. We can't let that happen again. That was about as gashed as the Michigan defense has been in several years. So I think you can reason, can reasonably look at that and say like, okay, maybe that's a one off. We've seen some one off games this year. But then also you just go through. It's like everybody, you know, Ernest Houseman and Jason Barum, people are excited about the linebackers. Derek Moore can still get after the pass for a little bit. Rayshawn Benny inside. But like it is a step down. I mean you can't, you can't lose Mason Graham and, and Kenneth Grant and everybody has made Michigan great defensively the past couple years. Josiah Stewart and not have a little bit of a step down. But it, it might be a, I don't know. They got 408 yards against Oklahoma 5.5 yards per play. Michigan's defense, Nebraska, 351 yards, 4.9 yards per play. USC, 489 yards, 7.2 yards per play. So, like, it's not the only time that somebody's gassed him a little bit. They're kind of having some trouble tackling. And again, just to add on top of your Washington stats, they're. They're successful, they're consistent and explosive. So they have the second best offensive success rate in the Big Ten behind only usc. That's the. Do your job down after down. And then they're tied for fourth in the nation of 20 yard of plays, of 20 yards or more with 44. So they're also big play. So, man, like. And that's what you said, they're consistent and explosive. They can run it and they can throw it. And they're facing a Michigan defense that's back on its heels after last week. The. There's a part of me that's like, I, I kind of don't care where that game is played. I'm not exactly sure how Michigan's gonna stop Washington.
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C
Yeah, I like the, the matchup for Washington there, not side of the wall. And I also like, to the point of the travel in Washington's record, like, I do think there's something to this being like a big game.
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B
Right.
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C
It's a huge game for both teams that, that might erase some of like the sleepiness factor you might be worried about with Washington. Right. Like you're not going to play Maryland, you're not going to play Rutgers. You're going in a game where like the winner keeps its playoff hopes alive. Right. So I think, I think the travel matters. Like I said, I considered it some, but only so much because I think the, the stakes of the game might help over overcome whatever. The, whatever impact the travel might have for Washington.
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B
And then, you know, Michigan, a bunch of its big games, has allowed touchdowns on the first drive of the game. I think they did against Oklahoma. I think they did it against Wisconsin. I think they did it against usc. I think Nebraska marched and then got stopped on down. So like, that's just one of those. Get the home crowd. But Demon Williams Jr. And Jonah Coleman, they march down the field and then it sets the home crowd on edge. And now you have Bryce Underwood as a true freshman trying to lead him back. And the big part of this on the other side of the ball is people don't know if Justice Haynes is going to play.
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C
Yeah.
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B
And Justice Haynes for Michigan has been as good as any running back in the country, I think he's fourth in rushing yards in the nation. He was averaging 7.7 yards per carry and 131 yards per game in the first five games. And then he got hurt, I think, in the second quarter against USC and didn't come back. They went to Jordan Marshall as a younger guy who was 14 carries for 68 against USC. Pretty good. But Justice Haynes kind of makes this offense go. Tremendous transfer. And Sharon Morris says he's questionable. And like, that's if this feels like if he plays, like, if he was healthy. I think Michigan's like, you want to keep Washington's offense off the field. You want to control the game, and you just give the ball to Justice Haynes 30 times. But he might not play. And if he plays, will he be fully healthy?
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C
Right. Washington, statistically, anyway, has a good run defense. They have not given up a lot of explosive run plays, which is like, kind of what Michigan needs, I think, to win games like this. I like Jordan Marshall, but I don't. I don't think he's. He's at the level that Haynes is and has not provided the impact, at least to this point, that Haynes has. But then you could, you know, you could run Bryce Underwood more and maybe to account for that in this game. I. I wonder if Michigan might have found something with Andrew Marsh at receiver in the USC game. Like, they lost, but Marsh had a nice game. A receiver looked pretty explosive. So maybe is there. Is there, like, a world where Michigan can, like, tweak its offensive identity a little bit in this game and still find success if they don't have Haynes?
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B
Because I'm mentioning Underwood, right? Didn't run in the first two games. And it's like, okay, they unlocked Bryce Underwood. They let him go. 114 rushing yards against Central Michigan, 61 against Nebraska, last two weeks. Five carries for 12 yards against Wisconsin, five carries for minus four yards against USC. And the only two games where he's run are the two games that Sharon Moore didn't coach.
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C
Oh, I did not put those. Those things together.
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B
So Biff, old Biff came in and was like, let's roll the dice with the big old freshman. And then Sharon Moore is like, I want to coach this guy for another two seasons after this. I'm not telling him to run the ball every play. So I don't know, because I agree. It's like, what are you gonna do? Because I feel like you look at the passing stats for Bryce Underwood, I think solid. He's not turning it over a ton. He's not being reckless, but you watch him in the course of a game, it's like, there's a good throw, there's a miss, there's a good read, there's a battery, which. He's a true freshman. Of course you expect that. I actually think he's been pretty good, but he. If you get. I think if they get into a, like, let's match points showdown with Washington, they can't keep up because Damond Williams Jr. While being explosive, also does not make mistakes and does not miss. He's super accurate and he's super explosive. Like, one little missed third down throw by Bryce Underwood and they're gonna feel that pressure. So I would think, like, run the ball with whoever you can run the ball with. But will Haynes play and will they let Underwood run? I don't know. So I just think it's a tough spot for Michigan.
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C
Yeah. This is maybe, maybe, maybe important to check with some of these games in the Midwest because there's gonna be rain, I think, in our, our neck of the woods.
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B
Yeah.
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C
So I don't know. Again, I don't know if that grounds a passing attack or not. And certainly Washington is no stranger to playing in the rain, but something, something to keep and keep in the back of your mind, I guess, as you're pondering these games. I don't, I just don't know that I believe a whole lot in Michigan's ability to win a game like this without Justice Haynes. Like, I think he's that important to what they do.
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B
Yeah.
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C
I think that offensive line is like, okay, okay to good, not great. I don't think Washington's defense is anything special, but like I said, they have been at least good against the run. They've also now played like great rushing attacks, including Ohio State, which doesn't have a great rushing attack. But I don't know without, without him. I think it's going to be tough without. And, and Washington has some injuries in its secondary that's been dealing with all year, but I don't know if Michigan's equipped to like, make them pay for that either.
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B
And Takario Davis did play last week. He played 81 snaps last week as his rucker. So, like, that was the, the corner who was missing against Ohio State and several other games. So, like, he's back, so that's good.
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C
Yeah. So Underwood's played much better at home than he has on the road. But they've also like, played all the good teams on the road.
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B
Yeah.
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C
I don't That's a little bit misleading. Yeah, I think my. I don't know, my lean is Washington here.
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B
I think. Yeah, I. I'm pretty strong Washington. And I'm going to take Washington 26, 19.
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C
Okay. I'm 28, 24. So. In a similar area. Area.
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B
Okay. So. And. And this is. Again, this is. This is Washington's a five and a half point underdog. So, like, we really like Washington as an underdog here. You know, certainly there's a winning pedigree at Michigan. If Haynes can play and be a workhorse, and if this defense remembers what it's been and rises up, okay. But Demond Williams Jr. Is going to have something to say about that. And I just think it, like, it's. It's good for the national media. Like, there's Washington's 28th in the polls. Like, one of the main, like, discussion points in college football now is like, why isn't Washington ranked? And the reason that they're not ranked is because they should be ranked and the voters aren't getting it. But this is really a statement game for Washington. So, like, and, And I like Judd, Jed Fish, I think, will seize on that. I think Demon Williams Jr. And Denzel Boston and. And Jonah Coleman and these guys will seize on that. Like, this is for. For Michigan, it's like, well, what would you rather have, like, Michigan, the guys there, they've been in the games like this for three years. Like, this is nothing new. This is what Michigan is now. But these Washington guys, like, this is all new because there's a complete program revamp from the national title game two years ago. Last year was mid. And now if they are firmly in the playoff race and they're definitely going to be ranked and people are going to wake up to what Washington is. So I like Washington being fired up to seize that opportunity. And I do think Jed Fish and this staff will use that in the right way, that this will be a positive, not like a, oh, no, there's pressure on us. We have to go to Michigan. We've never been in this spot. I think it's a plus, not a minus for Washington, that this is their kind of opportunity to enter the spotlight.
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C
Yeah, no, I think so, too. That's. That's what I mentioned about the. The travel thing. Like, so that's why it's just not as much of a factor for me because of, like, the moment for Washington, and I guess, like, they could wilt in the moment, but I don't think they're going to. I just think, you know, they're, they're, they're pretty confident team and even like the Ohio State game, Ohio State controlled it start to finish. It was a lower scoring game, Ohio State controlled it. But like it felt like Washington.
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B
Like.
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C
Had some regrets there, right? Like or like, like some missed opportunities I think to make that a more competitive game. So I think they're solid. I think they're pretty good. Like in a loss to Ohio State, I think they showed themselves to be not a pushover, right? And then since then they've kind of just like picked up where they were before that game. So I don't, they look very dangerous to me and I think this is, this is a spot where they can get a nice win.
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A
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B
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A
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B
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A
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B
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A
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B
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A
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B
Okay, second game we're picking is Ole miss at Georgia 3:30 on ABC. Georgia is a 7 1/2 point favorite at home. And I just think these are two overrated teams.
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C
I had not realized that Trinidad Chambliss has not started a game on the road yet. So he'll do that for the game.
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B
Oh, in the hedges. He has to, like, what do you do? Yeah, what do you do? You got to come out between the hedges. They make you come out like, you gotta, like, wade your way. You did that when you're a kid. Everybody does that when you're a kid. Like, you have neighbors who have the really nice, tight, trimmed bushes, right? But you're too lazy to go all the way around the block, so you want to cut through somebody's yard. So you leave like a Wiley coyote imprint in the beautifully trim bushes because you're trying to shimmy through and there's no room. That's how you have to enter the field as a visiting team.
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C
In Georgia, we used to call it bush hopping. We would jump into them.
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B
Oh, for real?
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C
Yeah. It's a good way to get hurt.
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B
Yeah. No, I believe that there was. I don't know why. Well, I won't. I won't. Tell us. No, I will tell a story. No, I won't. No, I will. This is just my. The group of friends I had in college. For some reason, like, if you were just like walking by a bush, somebody would say, have some bush and push you into a bush.
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C
Yeah, of course. Yeah.
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B
I mean, why. Who. Who doesn't do that? And then, like, one day it was like we kind of were walking and. And my future wife was with us. And it was like just guys that, like, she kind of knew of but didn't really know. And she was just like, have some bush to this one guy. And he flew through the air and it was like, do you know him well enough to tell him to have some bush? But also, that was great, you know, like, everyone. So anyway, so that's. So that's. Hey, like, that's what Trinidad Shambliss is dealing with on the road. Ole Miss is so overranked at number five. It absolutely blows your mind. I think Washington would beat Ole Miss.
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C
Don't you want. Don't you, like, in your heart of hearts dog mentality, you want Georgia to Win this game. You want Georgia to get Ole Miss out the paint? It's okay.
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B
The consternation that I feel in my body trying to pick which mid SEC team that I don't believe in to actually beat the other, I. I have no idea what to do with any of this. We have another mid versus Mid SEC game coming up. Is somebody here good? Like is somebody good? George is nine. Ole misses five. This is a top 10 matchup. But nobody's beaten. So Ole miss beat LSU. Except LSU stinks. I don't have to repeat this because I went nuts on it for 25 minutes the other night. Georgia should have lost to Tennessee. They did lose to Alabama. They got handed the game against Auburn because the SEC hates Auburn and then nobody else they mat they beat has mattered.
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C
And Ole Miss is out here playing one score games with Arkansas, Kentucky and Washington State, right?
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B
And Lane Kiffin's like laying a trap for Kirby Smart this week by saying like, Kirby Smart's the best coach in the game and George is the best program in the game. And like this is it. And it's like so then called Kirby.
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C
Fat, which makes me think Kirby's gonna hammer his team.
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B
I pass again. I can't do it. I can't. I really don't believe in Georgia though. Do you believe is there?
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C
I think they're. I think they're offenses bad.
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B
Okay, well, that makes me feel better.
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C
Yeah. All right.
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B
So like what. So then what, what. What's the deal here? What do you think?
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C
I don't know. I think Georgia's gonna win.
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B
Because.
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C
Because Ole Miss won last year. I don't think so. Ole Miss won last year. I think like on the strength of its defensive line. Like playing out of its mind or. Defensive line, excuse me, playing out of its mind. I don't think Ole Miss is built that way this year. I think George is worse than it was last year. But I don't think Ole Miss is quite. Is built quite the same way. I don't know the Trinidad Chambliss for as good as he's been. And I think like he. How good he's been has been a little overstated. Is quite ready for like going on the road in the SEC to win a game like this. So I'm with you that I don't think either team is particularly good. But I think George is going to win the game. I have 2417 dogs.
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B
2417 dogs?
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C
Yeah.
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B
I mean it's like you just look at success rate and stuff. It's like everybody in The SEC is just like kind of in the middle of everything on both sides of the ball. Like nobody stands out in it. The only things that stand out are like in the SEC are the Vanderbilt offense and the Oklahoma defense, but everybody else is like really kind of average. So I'm, I'm picking Ole Miss.
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C
Wow.
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B
35, 24. Ole Miss. I, I, I, I really, it's a.
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C
Lot of points for an SEC game. Usually SEC games are like 24, 20.
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B
But nobody plays defense there anymore either. It's like I can see Gunner, Stockton throwing a couple picks or whatever. There's, I don't, my dream is that this looks nothing like a top 10 matchup, which is like that. That's what I, that's what I hope for. I hope for chaos and I hope for everybody stumbling over each other. So I don't want to watch it. Don't make me watch it.
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C
You don't have to watch it.
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B
Penn State at Iowa. 7 o' clock on Peacock. They're putting the, the, the day after on the Bird, man. Hey man. Hey. We paid extra. Put it on the bird. What do you got? We got fired, coach. Penn State on the bird. Backup quarterback fired. Coach Kirk Ference trying to win 6 2. What do you think of that Bird? Take that. You're driving a lot of 499 subscriptions on that. Penn State is actually an underdog here. I was favored at home by two and a half. Landis and this is, I, I do think, you know, there's the, hey, could you get like the, you know, our coach got fired. There's a bounce off of that. It wakes everybody up. But it tied to our starting quarterbacks out for the year. We're playing a backup who's never played before. So this is I think much more about Ethan Grunkmeyer as a quarterback. Who they, who is there to be their quarterback of the future? And he's not a true freshman, right? He's a second year player who is being groomed from Ohio, from Central Ohio. Who is being groomed to be Drew Aller's successor. So like on one hand, so like it's not crazy. I mean there's plenty of second year Julian Saints a second year quarterback. C.J. carr is a second year quarterback. There's plenty of second year quarterback starting in college football. If Drew Aller had gone to the NFL, Ethan Gronkmeyer would have been the starter this year, right? I don't think they would have gone and gotten a portal guy.
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C
I don't think so, no.
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B
So now Jeweler Aller's out for the year, so I. I don't know that I don't think Ethan Gronkmeyer is like completely unprepared. But it's also his first start and it's on the road in Kinnick against a Phil Parker defense.
- [27:42]
C
Yeah, but as we know, the Penn State backup is usually better than the starter, so could be the case here. I just don't know. Yeah, Guy making his first career start against Phil Parker's defense. There's just a level of precision that's required to have success against that defense that I'm not entirely sure Penn State is prepared for both, like, schematically and emotionally. I do wonder, like, the season's over, but they still gotta play. There's like Andy Coltonicky just like throw every weird idea he has in his brain out on the field over the next six games, see what happens. Or does he save those and they run them in Columbus on November 1st. We don't see much of that in this game. I don't know.
- [28:24]
B
Yeah, so Penn State, they this, they play this and they're off a week and then they come to Ohio State. Also, Terry Smith, the interim coach who's a die hard, loyal Nittany lion, might just tell Andy Kodel, Nikki, like cram it with the tricks. We're handing the ball to Nick Singleton and Katrin Allen 40 times or we don't win like that.
- [28:42]
C
Yeah, he could. I thought some of what Terry Smith said this week was interesting. I was watching his press conferences and they were like, are you going to make any changes? And he said, like, not immediately because we're like trying to get all our ducks in a row, but like, yes, eventually. So I don't know what that means. I don't know what the changes are. I don't know if that's personnel changes, what you're saying, like, we're running this thing through Nick Singleton and K. Tron Allen. They. There's a lot of discussion about, like the Penn State players having a hard time grasping Jim Knowles's defense. Like, simplification on that side of the ball maybe, is what he could be alluding. But whatever that is, I don't know that we see it in this game. I think that's something they address in their week off. Maybe we see it from that point forward.
- [29:22]
B
I don't.
- [29:22]
C
I just think this is a. This is already a tough place for Penn State to play there. 10 and 6 at Kinnick all time. And I don't think I was great. But I was confident coming off of shutting Wisconsin. I. It's just a, it's a heck of a place to have to go play after your coach gets fired and everyone's pretty bummed out.
- [29:39]
B
It is Iowa's. It's kind of strange this year they're 4 and 2. They are coming off a 37 nothing win over Wiscons. Their losses are a three point loss to Iowa State and a five point loss to Indiana that Indiana had to score in the final two minutes to win that game. Like Indiana who looks like they're headed to a playoff semifinal. And, and, and you know, Kurt Signetti is like, man, it's, it's a. That was the toughest challenge. We felt like the heck with Oregon and Illinois and everybody else like playing at Kinnick. That was great. You know, he loved that win. A five point win. And then they've beaten Wisconsin, Rutgers, UMass and Albany. They're not really. It was like, hey, they got Mark Gronowski. He's a, he's the FCS Heisman winner. He's coming to save the passing attack. And like not really.
- [30:21]
C
No. You know, it's an Iowa passing attack. Yeah.
- [30:25]
B
Passing yards per game for Mark Ranowski. 44.83, 179, 186, 144, 107. And then like you know Kamari Moulton and like some like he's no Caleb Johnson. Like they don't quite have that, that game breaker at running back but like they're kind of back. They like they're, they're Iowa. They're Iowa. So can Penn State reeling, slash motivated, slash confused. Penn State go in and do something because if Ethan Gronkmire can do something, they did bring in the transfer receivers. They too have, do have two great running backs. Like they still. There's all the things that we thought the shell, the shell of the team that we thought everyone thought was a national title condor is all still there. It's all still there except for the quarterback and the head coach.
- [31:17]
C
But those are the two biggest question marks for everyone coming into the season. So not to make ladies injury but.
- [31:29]
B
If everything else is still there, are you worse, Are you actually worse at head coach and quarterback? You're different. But are you worse? And are. Are you maybe just obviously James Franklin and Drew Aller achieved a lot, but maybe just not having them is just freeing a little bit. You can maybe just play a little bit of a different way. You can. It's not the burden of like Ken James Franklin and Drew Aller do it. It's like it's just Penn State now. And so I am picking Penn State.
- [32:01]
C
I think everything you laid out is within the realm of possibility. Sure. But I kind of think maybe this roster is checked out. So I'm picking Iowa.
- [32:11]
B
All right, I have 2321 Penn State, 2117 Iowa. Okay.
- [32:19]
A
This episode is brought to you by Indeed. Hiring isn't just about finding someone willing to take the job. You need the right people, person with the right background who can move your business forward. If I wanted candidates who match what I'm looking for, I'd trust Indeed. Sponsored Jobs Hiring Indeed is all you need. Stop struggling to get your job. Post seen on other job sites. Give your job the best chance to be seen with Indeed's sponsored Jobs. They help you stand out and hire quality candidates who can drive the results you need. Sponsored Jobs boosts your post for quality candidates so you can reach the exact people you want faster and it makes a big difference. According to Indeed data, Sponsored jobs posted directly on indeed are 90% more likely to report a hire than non sponsored jobs because you reach a bigger pool of quality candidates. Join the 1.6 million companies that sponsor their jobs with Indeed. Spend more time interviewing candidates who check all of your boxes. Less stress, less time, more results. Now with Indeed Sponsored Job Jobs and listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit to help get your job the premium status it deserves@ Indeed.comBWN just go to Indeed.comBWN right now and support our show by saying that you heard about Indeed on this podcast. That's indeed.combn terms and conditions apply. Hiring do it the right way with Indeed foreign.
- [33:47]
B
To the Bird. This is a big one. USC at Notre Dame 7:30 NBC Notre Dame at home in this rivalry favored by nine and a half since allowing 98 points over their first three games, Notre Dame has allowed 27 points over the last three. And Chris Ash, the beleaguered first year defensive coordinator, did talk this week, I think for the first time, maybe all season. Spoke with the media and said, we didn't change anything. We're just executing, executing better. Which is like, it's not my fault. It was the player's fault. And so now they figured it out.
- [34:19]
C
I didn't talk to you when it was bad. I'll talk to you while it's good and tell you it's not my fault.
- [34:24]
B
Yes. Boom Shakalaka coaching 101 Ah Notre Dame's good.
- [34:35]
C
CJ cars played really well. Notre Dame's good CJ cars playing well.
- [34:40]
B
Like, they're, they're good. Like, no, I. C.J. car. 270 passing yards per game, 13 touchdowns, three interceptions. C.J. cars good defense is good now. Like, they have a lot of good players, I think. Yes, I think we're sure. Because I think there's enough. Like. And like, it was close early against NC State. They shut out NC State in the second half last week. NC State through three picks, you know, they kind of clamped down on Boise State. Like, they're really, I think, putting the screws to, like, some okay offenses. And I. Again, you just. Leonard Moore was out. He's back. He was back last week. So, like, that all American quality cornerback is back and you just. I mean, they just have a lot of good players. I do. So, I mean, like, I actually. So, like, I do think it was Chris Ash's fault early on. And I also think they were playing two awesome teams that they were in both of those games. And so I just still continue to think that, again, I picked Notre Dame to win the national title. I think they have a lot of very good defensive players. And so that for that defense to be good, like, it would not be shocking to me. And then I think there's a depth of talent with the skill players on offense, and I just think. I just think they're back to being the good Notre Dame. That was like a top five team in the preseason. I think they're back.
- [36:03]
C
I kind of think they're back, too, but I'm. I'm not as confident in the defense as you are, you know. Okay, talk to me, Talk to me after this game. This good offense are getting ready to play against usc. This is like a. This is a Lincoln Riley offense. I think, like, more or less this is like what he wants to be. Now they're. They're banged up at running back. Their top two running backs are not going to play. But the guy they put in last week was good.
- [36:29]
B
For 158.
- [36:31]
C
Oh, line's pretty good. Receivers are great. Well, I mean, we'll know, We'll. We'll know if I, if you, you think Notre Dame's defense is fine. I'm a little more skeptical. We'll get our answer because if they're not good, then USC is going to light them up. Some injury stuff for Notre Dame in this game. New center Ashton Craig's out.
- [36:50]
B
Yeah.
- [36:50]
C
And Gabe Rubio, defensive tackle is probably like their best interior run. Defenders also out.
- [36:55]
B
Yep. But they, they. One of their stories of last season was Handing, handling offensive line injuries. But then the problem was all the guys who were the good backups, like, like Pat Coogan is like, oh, man, they could really use Pat Coogan. Except Pat Coogan transferred because they thought he wasn't going to start. So he's a starting center in Indiana. Notre Dame. Marcus Freeman would like to drive down to Bloomington and kidnap Pat Coogan right now. So again, success rate. Do your job. Metric. Rushing, rushing plays. USC, number one in the country. Do your job. Passing plays, number three in the country. Do your job. Ohio State's number one in passing plays, but Ohio State's like 50th in rushing plays, so it's like they're 88th. Sorry, I knew you knew that. So, like, this is a very good offense. This. This offense is really clicking on all cylinders. And we talked about it with the Michigan matchup. They really took it to Michigan last week. But I also think Jeremiah Love, CJ Carr, depth of receivers. I think Notre Dame is going to be able to move the ball, too. I'm a little surprised. This is nine and a half. This feels a little much on the line, frankly.
- [38:02]
C
Yeah. What's the total? Do you have that in front of you? I actually didn't look.
- [38:05]
B
61 and a half.
- [38:06]
C
Yeah.
- [38:07]
B
Okay, so pretty high scoring. So I'm gonna take Notre Dame, but I am going to take USC to cover. So I have 34, 28 Notre Dame.
- [38:15]
C
Yeah, I'm doing the same Notre Dame win, USC cover, but I'm higher scoring. 42, 38 Notre Dame.
- [38:22]
B
Oh, watch that. All right, so like a middling Bird game, but the. The Tr. All like the. The actual NBC is getting a banger here. I. I would watch this. Oh, yeah, watch this.
- [38:33]
C
I'll be tuned in. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- [38:35]
B
This would be a good one. So you can ignore Tennessee at Alabama at 7:30 on ABC. Alabama is favorite at home by eight and a half. The question here, the only question that matters in this game is will I pick against Alabama for the fourth straight week? Picked him to lose to Georgia. They won 24, 21. Picked him to lose to Vanderbilt. They won 30 to 14. But like, it. It was a game for a while. Picked him to lose to Mizzou. They lost. They. They won 27 to 24. And Mizzou had the ball driving in the final minutes and threw a pick because Bo Pebula threw the wrong guy. So I think they've been playing with fire. I think their stats are mid. I do not believe in them at all. I feel a little weird picking against Them for four straight weeks.
- [39:21]
C
Are you doing it?
- [39:23]
B
Yes, I'm doing it. Screw it. I could like, like my only rationale would be like, it's crazy. Like I, I shouldn't do it. It's, it's. It's a bridge too far. But I actually think it because I do think, like Tennessee's put up some points, Joey Aguilar on that offense, like.
- [39:39]
C
Offense in the country.
- [39:40]
B
I think Tennessee can put offensive pressure on Alabama. And I still don't know that the Alabama offense, again, it's one like. Right. Demond Williams Jr. I think can maybe crack the Michigan offense by making Michigan try to keep up. I think Tennessee's offense can crack the Alabama's offense by making them keep up. So. But you're a Bama believer. What is it about Bama that you think is good?
- [40:07]
C
I'm a Bama believer within the context of the sec. Yeah, like Ty Simpson's good. Ty Simpson I think is a good quarterback. Good, good skill. I think Kaylin DeBoer and Ryan Grub are like starting to figure it out with what that offense needs to be and should be. They still, you know, decent running game, good O line. I don't, I don't know how good their defense is. It's. It's not. It's definitely not like traditional Alabama standard, but they have good players still, like left over from the Saban era. So I don't know. Like, I don't. I don't think. I mean, I'm going pretty far down the list of national title contenders before I get to Alabama, but I still think Alabama could be the best team in the sec. So I'm not like a strong believer. I'm not going to pound the table for them to be a national title contender. But someone's got to win the sec. We do playoff picks.
- [40:54]
B
I gotta.
- [40:54]
C
I gotta pick somebody to be the sec. It's like you want to pick Alabama or Texas A M? Those are your choices.
- [41:00]
B
Yeah, no, I want to pick Texas A M. Yeah. I have Tennessee 3023 over Alabama.
- [41:07]
C
I have Alabama winning 35, 24. Tennessee is not 1 in Tuscaloosa since 2003, by the way.
- [41:13]
B
Oh, well, good for them. That'll be exciting.
- [41:17]
A
This episode is brought to you by Indeed. Hiring isn't just about finding someone willing to take the job. You need the right person with the right background who can move your business forward. If I want a candidate's who match what I'm looking for, I'd trust indeed sponsored jobs. Hiring indeed is all you need Stop struggling to get your job Post seen on other job sites. Give your job the best chance to be seen with Indeed Sponsored Jobs. They help you stand out and hire quality candidates who can drive the results you need. Sponsored Jobs boosts your post for quality candidates so you can reach the exact people you want faster and it makes a big difference. According to Indeed data, Spot sponsored jobs posted directly on indeed are 90% more likely to report a hire than non sponsored jobs because you reach a bigger pool of quality candidates. Join the 1.6 million companies that sponsor their jobs with Indeed. Spend more time interviewing candidates who check all of your boxes. Less stress, less time, more results now with Indeed Sponsored Jobs and listeners of this show will get a $75 sponsored job credit to help get your job the premium status it deserves@ Indeed.comBWN just go to Indeed.comBWN right now and support our show by saying that you heard about Indeed on this podcast. That's indeed.combn terms and conditions apply. Hiring do it the right way with Indeed.
- [42:45]
B
All right, so this is a good, good also late game. So I would, I would ignore Bama Tennessee and just check scores and say woohoo when Bama's losing. But I would double screen USC Notre Dame at 7:30 and Utah BYU at 8 on Fox. This is at BYU. Oh that is true. I did. I you have to be careful. Like I just googled Holy War and it was like this is not the Utah BYU game. And it's like no Doug, there are other meanings of the word holy war. So I had to put holy war college football. And then I got the Utah BYU game. 103rd meeting in the series. Utah had won nine straight, but now BYU's won the last two, including last year in a in another lost year for Utah, BYU was undefeated. Utah got up 21 to 10 and BYU rallied to win 22:21 on a 44 yard Will Farenfield goal with 40 with 4 seconds left to move to 9:0 and stay unbeaten. So like that was that was like as good as the Holy War could get last year. I mean it was awesome. But now the difference this year. So last year it was like, hey, BYU's like a top 10 team in a legit playoff contender and Utah is just trying to play spoiler now. They're both good and and I think, I think one of the two teams is maybe really good. BYU, Texas Tech and Cincinnati are all 30 in the Big 12. Utah is 2 in 1 with a loss to Texas Tech 60 BYU has outscored opponents 225 to 88. 5 and 1. Utah has outscored opponents 237 to 83. They're both good. Landis.
- [44:31]
C
I'm. I don't know how good BYU is.
- [44:34]
B
Okay, that's the trick. It's like one might be really good. I think the five in one team is actually really good. And I think the six no team is good, but perhaps teetering.
- [44:44]
C
We call out SEC rankings. Why is BYU 15th? What if I get there undefeated? Why are they 15th? What on their resume tells you that's the 15th best team in the country?
- [44:54]
B
They went to double overtime last week with Arizona and that's their best win. They beat Colorado. Colorado's two.
- [44:59]
C
Another one score game. Yeah, yeah.
- [45:04]
B
There's no like BYU 15 in Washington unranked is crazy. Crazy. It's, it's, it's crazy and like the even it's like now the one thing I will say is Clowny Sataki like flowers to Clowny Sataki. This guy good football coach, man. But. And they're doing with a true freshman quarterback. Bear Bachmeyer, freshman transfer from Stanford came on board. Jake Retzlaff obviously like kind of the weird off field stuff. Winds up leaving the school. Ends up at Tulane. Bear a good quarterback matchup. Barebach Meyer throwing for 200 a game for BYU and running for 50. Devin Dampier for Utah throwing for 190 a game and running for 60. Like good QB matchup. But guys who can hurt you both ways.
- [45:44]
C
Yeah, really. Like I, I don't think BYU stinks. I just like I don't think they should be ranked with their current resume. There are one loss and maybe like two lost teams. Better resumes or at least I think we're better football teams than BYU is. But yeah, it's a fun quarterback matchup for sure. Two teams. By the way, I was looking this up.
- [46:04]
B
Sorry.
- [46:06]
C
Highest rushing rates in the country. BYU is 6th. Utah is 12th. Low possession banger coming at you here.
- [46:15]
B
Real backs and quarterbacks who can run. LJ Martin for BYU averaging 109 rushing yards per game. Great. And then a two headed monster in the backfield for Utah. Wayshawn Parker and Nakiri Rogers, they're averaging combined 23 carries for 113 a game. So they want to hand it to the back and then they want to use the quarterbacks in the run game. And it works. And again I. All off season on what we did previously, we have been saying buy the dip on Utah. Buy the dip on Utah. We really Liked Utah as a Big 12 contender. We really liked Utah for a bounce back here. I think if you allow the Texas Tech loss to change your mind on Utah, I think there's a chance to buy the dip on Utah again. They lost that game to Texas Tech 34 to 10, but they were down 13 to 10 entering the fourth quarter in a game where they had three turnovers in the first three quarters, two fumbles and an interception. And then like, like, I guess they were down 10, 3 entering the fourth quarter. They wound up. So then Texas Tech score. They cut it to 1310. It was like, man, they're back in it. And then they gave up three straight touchdowns. So they lost 34 to 10. They just kind of got blitzed in the, in the fourth quarter in a game where they were giving it away the whole time. But I don't think that's what Utah is at all. And Devin Dampier in the Texas, Texas loss, no touchdown passes, two picks. The five other games, 11 touchdown passes, one pick. So. So I think there's two things at play here, possibly just as you think about Utah and how that game influences you. One is stuff happens. You get blitzed. You have a game where you give it away and you wear down in the fourth quarter, you get blitzed. The other is, as much as I did not think it was actually going to happen, Texas Tech might be really good. Yep. And BYU hasn't played anybody like Texas Tech. So I think it's quite possible that Texas Tech and Utah are the two best teams in the Big 12. And then within that game, it got a little goofy. And that might be the Big 12 title game, but I think actually only giving three and a half with Utah in this spot is a good. A great opportunity because I think maybe Utah's somewhat significantly better here.
- [48:25]
C
I think they could be. I mean, it's two. It's two pretty good defenses. I think that that part of BYU. I mean, I like BYU's run game, like BYU's defense, and the same is true for Utah. And neither one of them really scares you throwing the ball all that much, I think. And I don't know the Bear Bachmeyer, and he's home here, so that'll be. That'll be good for him. But I don't know if he's equipped to, like, throw it all over Utah's defense. It is not a typical Kyle Whittingham like Utah defense, but it's still pretty good. I don't know. I actually the. I like the, the hook. It's Three and a half, right? Yeah. Similar like the Penn State Oregon game when there was the half point on there, that felt enticing to me. I think it's low scoring. I think it's super physical. A lot of, lot of run game, few possessions. I'll take Utah to win, but I'm picking BYU to cover. I have Utah 24, 21.
- [49:25]
B
Interesting, because I also think it's like one of those again, it's kind of like last year was really a mess and the year before fell apart as well. And so like Utah dominated this series. Now they've lost two straight to the team that they had dominated. And then with also in that, like they think they have a team this year. Right. We've talked about Utah. Great offensive tackles, the two headed running back, new offensive coordinator, new quarterback, defensive identity. There's a lot of great, I think just like fundamental things like inside the Utah program and then some dudes sprinkled through the roster.
- [49:59]
C
So is there any? Because I actually think there would have been some of this last year that allowed Utah to like to keep that a game when they weren't very good. You thought last year it might be Kyle Whittingham's last Holy War Utah head coach Former BYU player Like now, I don't really know what to make of his pending retirement, but certainly this could be his last Holy War as well. I wonder what that does for Utah in this game if they think that's the case.
- [50:24]
B
And I actually, I think he's kind of said this. He didn't want to go out in a bad year. So like go win the Holy War and win the Big 12. And I'm pretty sure he's done. He wants to go out on top. So like, you know, so like that. But like they want him. And then at some point it's like, I'm 88, I want to go out on top. It's like it's been a rough 20 years. It's like, well, at some point you just got to go out. But he wants to go out. He's been one of the 10 best coaches in college football for two decades. He wants to go out on his terms. And his terms absolutely include beating byu.
- [50:56]
C
Yeah.
- [50:57]
B
So I think that's a good way to. I think they're going to be motivated as heck. I think they're motivated by the Texas Tech loss when they weren't really themselves. They're motivated by true straight losses to byu. They're motivated by two seasons that didn't live up to Utah standards and they're motivated by the opportunity that is in front of them, which is if they lose a second Big 12 game, they're not out of the race. But probably that's a tie that if, like, you know, somebody in the Big 12 will have zero or one conference losses and then maybe you'll have multiple teams at two and you're. Now you need help to get in. If you want to control your own destiny, you got to keep doing what you're doing because you. This Utah team is capable of winning the Big 12, so they have to go beat their rival on the road to do it. And BYU I Colonies Attacki, brother. Like, we like colonies Attacki is the man. Coloni Sataki gets absolutely the most out of his teams. And it's like, oh my God, Jake Red sloff. That was a huge story of the off season. They're like, we're fine. We're playing the freshman. It's fine. Like, just unbelievable credit. But they've just been skating by a little bit. Like, they've been. They've been living on the edge a little bit and they kind of been living on the edge for two. Like they started. What are they, nine and oh, last year they're six zero this year. Like, it's hard to go undefeated. And they've had some.
- [52:09]
C
Yeah.
- [52:09]
B
Some games in both those seasons where it's like, wow, I cannot believe they won. Which is a credit to Kalani Sataki in that program. But also at some point, the worm turns. So I like Utah 31 22. Not a blowout. But I. I actually really like Utah minus the 3 1/2 I was looking.
- [52:26]
C
To see the last time BYU lost by double digits. Oh, and it's been a minute. November 11, 2023 against Iowa State.
- [52:42]
B
Okay. Okay. So great game. Like, fun games, man. Fun games that really matter for the playoff picture this weekend. There's a bunch we didn't pick. We didn't pick Georgia Tech, Duke. There's a bunch of other weird mid SEC games that we didn't pick. Nebraska, Minnesota on Friday nights. A really interesting one. We didn't pick that. That really matters, especially for Nebraska. Although Minnesota would like to tell you they're hanging around in that too. So, like, there's just. There's some really, like another great college football weekend. I don't know what to tell you.
- [53:08]
C
Louisville, Miami's Friday night too. Not a bad double feature on Friday night.
- [53:13]
B
Yeah. So we do it every week here. If you want to go check out roback.com r h o b A C K. Great college football gear. It's the great game day collection. Put in the code BAD20, you'll get 20 off your first order. But just like super interesting college football season and just like another weekend where you can point to seven or eight games and say, man, that really matters for the overall picture of the Sport. And the 12 team playoff, which is why 12 team playoff is, is elevating an already great sport to even new heights. Second most popular sport in these United States of America. We will have an Ohio State post game show after Ohio State Wisconsin on Saturday. You know, some weeks we do like another post game show. We're not doing that this week, but like we'll be checking in. There'll be other weekends where we do like a national post game show in addition to an Ohio State post game show. And then on Tuesday nights we're getting close. Landis. November 4th, I think it is, is the first official the actual college football rankings from the playoff committee. And then I think we're gonna turn like our Tuesday night stuff will probably come on after the committee rankings and give you like live react. How do they match up with what we think the, the, the playoff should be? And so we would invite you to join us for all that stuff. But for now he's Bill Landis, I'm Doug Lemarise and that was the Bill and Doug show.