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The McShay Show
10 Truths from Week 4 of College Football. Plus, Finding the 2026 NFL Draft’s Mendoza Line.
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- [00:00]
A
Man, do we have a show for you today. Our 10 truths after a full college football week four slate. Plus, we're unveiling a new list today. It's the Mendoza Line, the 2026 quarterback class. Are you above it or below it? It's a wild week five in college football and just 213 days until the NFL draft meant. You good?
- [00:24]
B
I'm good, man.
- [00:25]
A
All right. Roll that thing, Tucker. There are a lot of different ways to go, Mitch. On a Monday morning after a full slate with like one of the most incredible slate of games you could ever ask for. In week five, I'm gonna rip off some of these games. You ready? This is the McShay show, presented by FanDuel. And college football Saturdays are already delivering. Every game means something right now. Ranking shift, upsets hit and the best place to stay on top of it all, fanduel. Whether you're riding a noon kickoff or betting the late games, FanDuel lets you bet it your way. Same game parlays, live betting, player props, alt lines. Whatever your angle is, it lives in the app. So if you're watching the action, bet on it with FanDuel. So download the app or head to FanDuel.com McShay and make every Saturday count. The ringer is committed to responsible gaming. Please visit rg-help.com to learn more about the resources and help lines available and listen to the end of the episode for additional details. Must be 21 and older and present in select states or 18 and older and present in DC, Kentucky or Wyoming. Gambling problem. Call 1-800- gambler or visit rg d help.com call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut starting at noon, two games at noon. Notre Dame, Arkansas, USC, IL 330 slate. LSU at Ole Miss. That's 4 versus 13. Auburn at number 9. Texas A M, Ohio State, Washington. Washington's pretty damn good. Indiana, Iowa. Indiana might be like a top 78 team in the country. Tennessee, Mississippi State, Oregon, Penn State, Alabama, Georgia. To round things off. Those are 415 and then 730 games. Wow.
- [02:43]
B
Excited.
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A
We got our hands full this week.
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B
It's going to be incredible. It's going to be a nine hour show on Saturday night.
- [02:48]
A
But we're still recovering from a great, like kind of wild week in week four in college football. And so talk to Dan Comer, our trusted producer on this show and editor and like 10 other things and trying to kind of find out what what he thought. How do we frame all of this because I feel like everyone's doing well. The AP poll came out. Maybe we'll, we'll come. I think they're starting to come to their senses a little bit. Maybe we'll touch on that a little bit later. And then, and then Connor. I love Connor Nevins, by the way, our executive producer. It feels like sometimes he just kind of sits back and popcorns, maybe has a cocktail, watches the show and then we'll like pop in an idea. Right. The truth is he's like the executive producer, producer over multiple big shows here at the Ringer and, and has guided me and us through this entire thing. But he just kind of shoots off this text. The Mendoza Line. Brilliant. We got to do nowhere. Quarterbacks in this year's class who are above Mendoza, who's rising, who we, we predicted early in the season, and quarterbacks who are below. And we've had a lot of guys not play up to standards, so we'll get to that today. This episode is brought to you by Vuori. As an analyst, I'm a rankings guy. I scope the landscape, look at all the prospects and, and then make the call. And looking at the Vuori Sunday performance jogger, it's safe to say I found your new favorite jogger. Soft, lightweight, four way performance stretch. The Sunday performance jogger moves with you. No restrictions. And get this, we just landed a deal for friends of our show. They're offering 20% off your first purchase. Get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet@vori.com McShay exclusions apply. Visit the website for full terms and conditions. But let's just start with the 10 truths from college football week. Four things that, like you and I believe in, that we've seen. We've studied tape, we've watched games like, like everybody else on Saturday. And now we've had a day to kind of digest. I watched a lot of tape yesterday trying to figure out certain players, certain units. So five things each. Ten truths for us in college football that we, we believe in. Now that we've seen four games, you know, four weeks of games plus the week zero. I will throw it to you, Steve. You can take it anywhere you want in college football. Start off with one of your truths that you believe in. Right now in college football, I believe.
- [05:17]
B
That three ACC teams are going to the playoff, I think. And by the way, none of those three are Clemson. Unthinkable to begin the year. I look at Georgia Tech, right? They get the Clemson win. Now you look at their schedule. The only game that they probably won't be favoring going forward, in my opinion, is Georgia. They could go. They could lose one game this year, and you look at that schedule, that favors them there. I don't think there's a game that they're not in. So Georgia Tech, I think, is the one that's the most interesting, but I think it's in. You could make the argument that. What about Florida State having to go to Clemson in Florida?
- [05:53]
A
Those.
- [05:53]
B
Those games don't look like they did before. And I'm a believer in Florida State. I think Florida State loses the Florida State Miami game, which means that. I think Miami goes undefeated. That means three ACC teams are in. That's interesting in itself. What's more interesting is now what. Who is the 12th team? If you get three from the ACC, you get three from the Big Ten, three from the SEC. I think those are all locks. Then you add Texas Tech, that gets you to 10. And then let's say Memphis, that gets you to 11. Who's the 12th team? Where are they coming from? I thought Notre Dame still had a road back into this thing. If this plays out the way.
- [06:29]
A
I don't know anymore, man.
- [06:31]
B
I think they're toast. And it's. It's brutal. It's brutal to lose like that to two outstanding teams to begin the year with a freshman quarterback.
- [06:40]
A
I think, surprisingly for me, if you had told me in the beginning, at the beginning of the season, after talking to people in South Bend, surprising to me is that it may be the defense that costs Notre Dame and maybe not the offense. We'll see how it plays out. But I've been really encouraged by CJ Carr. I've been really encouraged after that first game against Miami about the run game, Jeremiah Love and Price. But on the flip side, this defense, and especially secondary, and I know they've been nicked up and all, but the defense has not played to the level. And all the reports out of South Bend was this defense locked it down also all summer.
- [07:20]
B
Right.
- [07:20]
A
You know, so that's interesting. Go ahead and finish.
- [07:24]
B
Notre Dame's got to go scorched earth.
- [07:26]
A
Earth.
- [07:26]
B
They got to destroy everyone. They need Texas A and M and Miami to basically win out. They need to especially handle usc. That's the biggest game for them. That's the only real game that I think they can make a statement. They're in real trouble because if you put them in, you're not getting a fourth team from the Big Ten or the sec. And that doesn't make a lot of sense to me, especially the sec. I just think there should be. But that's the hardest part for me is trying to unravel all of the different scenarios this early in the season with all those big time SEC teams playing each other. So I know three will be there. Will there be a fourth that doesn't have too many losses for the committee to consider? That'll be interesting. But again, I just can't imagine a world where you're not taking a at least one of one of the two one either the Big Ten or the SEC is going to get a 14 and I would, I would be stunned if they didn't.
- [08:17]
A
I couldn't disagree more and I see the path in fact, like I can't allow the ACC to Hold on, hold on.
- [08:30]
B
You said that you think Georgia Tech is a top 12 team, right?
- [08:34]
A
I believe they're right in the mix of top 12. What I did say definitively is that Georgia. No, I said this and I want you to hear me. I would be shocked. This is exactly what I said. I'm going to quote myself, which is worse than even, you know, third first person that I would be shocked if Georgia Tech was not playing in the ACC championship game given its road and the way it's performed so far. And I like the bounce back this week and what could have been a letdown game didn't show a whole lot of letdown. I think Georgia Tech will be in that game. I think if Miami's in that game with Georgia Tech and Miami wins, I think it could be significant enough that Georgia Tech gets knocked out and Florida State gets in. The committee won't do it.
- [09:21]
B
The committee didn't do it to SMU last year. They won't do it.
- [09:25]
A
But what's different, what's different was that SMU team, it's ranking, it's record, listen, it's ranking, it's record and also the fact that I, I think you're going to look at this thing when we get to that ACC championship game and say, yeah, Georgia Tech got in because it's a damn good football team and it, and it's, and they certainly belong in that game. But if Miami or Florida State were to beat them in, let's say 10, 12, 14 points and the other team didn't get in but had a really good road and kind of deserved, but because Georgia Tech had the lesser schedule, I could see that occurring.
- [10:08]
B
The committee said before the ACC championship game last year, no matter what happened, SMU was in. That's what they said.
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A
Right.
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B
I would have to reverse it. Would have to reverse course.
- [10:18]
A
Should they?
- [10:19]
B
Should they. I think you have a strong argument for that. They should play it the way you're saying they should play it. I think you're right, but I don't think that's the reality. I think whoever's in the conference championship games for the Big Four, for the Big Ten, the SEC and the sec, they're all going.
- [10:36]
A
You want to. You want to know what the difference is this year from last year? And it leads me. This is perfect. It leads me to my first truth. Okay. This is truth number two. The biggest difference is that the SEC has reestablished its dominance in college football this year. The SEC threw four weeks of the season and take your records and take all the. Like, they. They lost this game again. Take all that.
- [11:02]
B
Arkansas with a tough one.
- [11:04]
A
Wrap like, do this to it and. And then throw it across the room. All right.
- [11:09]
B
I hope you need that later.
- [11:11]
A
I probably will. It's kind of a touch pass. It was a weak throw. I meant more like. Like this. Like take your. The. The records and who they've played and. And then the. Okay. The SEC has re. Established dominance. And I say that and I'm just. I'm looking at this and the Big Ten is still damn good. The Big Ten still have. If you. If you look at it right now, the Big Ten. Right. Ohio State, number one, Penn State, I don't know the AP poll, it's somewhere in the top three or four. Right. Oregon is up there. Indiana. And I think we'll get to Indiana a little bit more. I think you and I have a great deal of respect. I don't think. I know we have a great deal of respect. In fact, respect Indiana a lot more than we did a year ago. That's four teams right there. Then you got these two sneaking around the chicken coop. Right. Usc, Washington, way better than people think. Okay. Now Washington plays Ohio State this week and that's going to be interesting. USC's got a pretty decent task in Illinois, but there's a drop off after that. And the diff. The difference I've said in years past is that there's a drop off and I think the top of the Big Ten is as good or as caught up and maybe in the last three years, like the very top of the Big Ten has been better than the sec, but there's a significant drop off. Like even teams that are near their good records in conference, like Iowa. Right. Right. Not. They're just not that good.
- [12:44]
B
No.
- [12:44]
A
Minnesota, UCLA's garbage. Illinois, Illinois just got dragged.
- [12:51]
B
I think they get, I, I think they get whacked by USC too, by the way.
- [12:55]
A
I think they could too. Michigan State just got handled by usc. Nebraska, valiantly. Nebraska is actually one of the better teams that I just mentioned. But there's a, there's a drop off. The reason I say, and, and I want people to understand this, the Big Ten has found a way with its scheduling where not all the top teams are playing the top teams. Every year we do this right. Well, Penn State only has to play Michigan, Ohio State, but the rest of their schedule, Ohio State doesn't play this team or that team. And it's the case again this year. And so it's very helpful that the Big Ten, we've reemerged. We're the best conference in college. Look at the national championships, look at the college football playoffs. But what, what goes overlooked is that you're seeing these games with the, with the top teams, with Oregon's and the Penn states and the Ohio states and the Michigans. We're seeing a lot of games against Iowa's and Minnesota and UCLA and Michigan State, you know what I mean? And get down to the, the real nitty gritty. Rutgers, Purdue, Wisconsin, Northwestern. There isn't that in the sec. So there may be, there may be a cannibalization in the SEC this year, but last year there was a cannibalization of what I thought were a lot of teams that were good but weren't above that line. Like Ole Miss was really good but never could. You know, we love South Carolina very, very good, but maybe didn't do it, you know, so, but this year, LSU sitting up there, two impressive wins. Less impressive. Yes. Clemson's not.
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B
Yeah, we'll talk about that.
- [14:36]
A
Yeah, but lsu, Georgia with that win at Tennessee, Oklahoma, one of the tougher schedules so far and have looked really good. And that Auburn team is good and we'll get to them in a second. You still have Texas. Let's see if Texas now gaining some confidence. Yeah, I get it. Not a big opponent this past week. But like see if Arch and that Texas team kind of carries over a little swagger. Texas A and M beat Notre Dame on the road. A game they never seem to win as a program. Ole Miss is better than we thought. Tennessee's better than we thought. That when that loss against Georgia felt like a win for that program. Alabama, do not count Alabama out. Then you've got this next tier. That's eight teams I just rattled off.
- [15:27]
B
I Hear you, brother.
- [15:28]
A
And I'm not done. This is that next tier. When we talk about that next tier in the, in the Big Ten, I was talking about Minnesota and Nebraska and Illinois and Michigan State. The next tier for the SEC is Missouri, Auburn. I know Auburn lost, but they.
- [15:48]
B
No one wants to play those teams. No one wants to play those.
- [15:50]
A
Vanderbilt might be a lot better than we thought.
- [15:53]
B
Scary team, man.
- [15:54]
A
State is a lot better than that garbage I saw in defense a year ago. Arkansas just lost a Memphis 18 point lead blown the worst since like 2016 for that program and a losing effort. And by the way, some of the bottom teams in the SEC right now. You want to go play Florida's defense?
- [16:13]
B
No.
- [16:15]
A
You want to go play Lenora Sellers? No. They're dangerous. So that's 15 teams in the SEC that you just don't want to play. The SEC is reestablished dominance in college football. So you can't tell me after I just went through those eight teams at the top and those six teams at the top of the. For the Big Ten, eight in the SEC, 15, competitive for the top of the Big Ten, six, like maybe, maybe all together with USC and Washington, you can't tell me the ACC is getting three in.
- [16:49]
B
Why not? I totally agree with everything. I disagree with. I agree with everything you said. And if you and I were picking the playoff bracket, it would look, it would reflect that. We don't live in that world, McShay. This is an imperfect system, my man, and this committee is going to. It went by wins and losses more than anything else last year. It didn't matter that Alabama should have been in smu. It didn't matter that, that South Carolina should have been smu. Anyone with eyeballs who watched those team, teams play could tell you that they should have been in.
- [17:20]
A
If we don't, if we don't have eight teams between the Big Ten and the SEC in that college football playoff, something went really wrong.
- [17:29]
B
I, I agree, but it's going to go wrong, my man. It's going to go wrong. I am telling you right now. You're looking at this as, as how normally I would. This is, this is like a script flip for me. You would generally be like, yeah, men, that's true. But this is the system. Yeah, you're right. The SEC is way better. Correct. It is way better. The Big Ten is way better. But when you look at the wins and losses and you look at the path of how you get into the playoff and what the committee did last year and I wanted to pull my Hair out when the way they were doing it. Tell me that those three teams don't have a path to get in.
- [18:01]
A
All right, let's move on. What's your truth? Number three?
- [18:04]
B
LSU dropped the spot in the poll this week. I think it might be good for them. I do. You're starting. We just mentioned it. You look at those wins, you be Clemson by 10. You be. Was it Clemson by seven, Florida by 10. You looked not great against Louisiana Tech 23 to seven. Kind of a little underwhelming performance there. Better this week against a team that really doesn't have the talent to hang with you. This is, I think LSU is for real, but we're going to find out. This is going to be an interesting game because they're going to Ole Miss and this is. You could find out if they're a paper tiger. And the biggest thing for me is Blake Baker, the defense coordinator for LSU has been awesome. It feels like this defense is different, but the thing that killed them last year was the mobile quarterback, right? I mean, what was it? Jaylen Milro went for 185 yards and four touchdowns against them last year. That's insane. And Marcel Reed, when he came in of relief last year against LSU and took that game over. They're going to have to exercise that demon because we'll see what happens. Austin Simmons has been hurt, was hurt last week and didn't play most of the Arkansas game, which allowed this kid, Trinidad Chambliss to come in and he's gone for 174 rushing yards over the last two weeks. So it'll be interesting to see how Lane handles that situation, Lane Kiffin handles that situation if Simmons is healthy. But I think LSU is going to be see a healthy dose of Chambliss. So they're going to have to be able to handle that mobile quarterback which was, you know, just a problem for them last year. And that defense, that offense better not be stale. Nussmeyer better get out of the gate. They better put up some points because I'm telling you, the, the Rebels are going to put up some points. I think they're going to score some. As good as that LSU defense has been, I think that Ole Miss offense is a lot to handle. So going down a spot in the poll for LSU is probably a good thing this week.
- [19:51]
A
Yeah, you got me fired up good. I mean, I'm not going to disagree. I don't know that it's like affecting their practice habits. But. But yeah, I hear what you're saying.
- [20:02]
B
It's a, it's a, it's a game, it's a inflection point in their season. Like this is the next test for lsu. This is. Are you guys really for real or we.
- [20:10]
A
No, I don't disagree with that.
- [20:12]
B
Yeah. Because Clemson wasn't as good as we thought and Florida's having a tough one.
- [20:16]
A
Yeah. My second truth is that Miami defensive coordinator Corey Heatherman is, is the real deal and he's the perfect fit at Miami.
- [20:31]
B
This is the Corey Heatherman pod now.
- [20:33]
A
Good.
- [20:35]
B
I'm all for it.
- [20:36]
A
Good. When you grow up in like Western Mass and you coach over in Europe and you grind it out at JMU and Old Dominion and Maine and Minnesota and you bring a level of discipline. But with that discipline freeing up these Miami athletes and top tier four and five star guys to play free, to play with juice and to play violently. And it's like this perfect blend of. Of X's and O's and Jimmy's and Joes and like it. It's been a treat to watch. I went back and watched some of that. Reuben Bain Jr. Is one of the. Has been playing like. I'm not saying he's gonna be a top 10 pick. Has been playing like you'd expect a top 10 pick at the edge position to play. And it's not with speed, it's with power, it's with relentlessness, it's with effort, it's with toughness, it's with like grinding through as a pass rusher. It's like it's been a beauty to watch. You get Torre linebacker. Love him just all over the field. He's got a sack, he's got a pass breakup. You got Messidor along the defensive line, two and a half sacks, leads the team. The saint. That linebacker like Aguiar Blay, like Thomas, like they just got dudes flying to the ball. And the thing that I notice on their tape as much as any program out there so far, when the play is whistled dead, good luck finding me one. Unless it's a rare like, you know, out in the. Good luck finding me one where there's not at least six canes around that football.
- [22:18]
B
They hunt, man. The way they swarmed the ball is impressive. It's. And it all goes back to coaching. I mean that's just effort.
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A
I mean he's.
- [22:27]
B
Corey Heatherman is. He's like the human version of Red Bull to me. Even when you see him, he just looks like energy like he. And. And it's not just that. I mean he's Putting all these guys in great positions to succeed with the, with the, the scheme. It's just, I don't know.
- [22:40]
A
He.
- [22:40]
B
I'm with you 100% on this one. He's great.
- [22:44]
A
And like, they didn't have their best stuff on offense right this past week. Nope, didn't have their, their best stuff. But you, you go back and you kind of look at what they relied on. It's the defense. And, and Florida's defense played great in that game. And they wore them down. They're just built in the trenches. And so we talk about Malachi Tony, and he's awesome, right? As a freshman wide receiver. Came out early. He just turned 18 the other day. That's the new Ryan Williams story in college football this year. Everyone's gonna. If you mentioned Ryan Williams, he had to mention 17 years old a year ago. And if you mention Malachi Tony, you got to mention that he was an early entry and, and, and should be a senior in high school right now and just turned 18. I get it. But. And then you talk about, like at the running back position with Fletcher. Right? And then you talk about, you talk about obviously Carson Beck and the transfer and that story. And they're all things. Yeah, but it's really the offensive line. It's really their ability to impose their will late in games. And it's really Heatherman's defense. And that, to me, is why this Miami is different. They had the number one overall pick at quarterback last year. They had all the weapons. They had an early second round pick in Arroyo at tight end. They had receivers for days. They had running backs. Right. And they had a good offensive line. This offensive line's better. And they had a defense that they had to overcome.
- [24:18]
B
Yeah, defense was reliability.
- [24:20]
A
So now all of a sudden you still got weapons. You still got a good balance with the run game. You got a quarterback who's not as talented. Right. He's not the number one overall pick, but he's rising, he's playing better. But you've got a defense that can carry you in games like this. I think this, this Miami team is different, and I think Heatherman and that they're averaging 11.5 points per game allowed. That's like 15th in the country. And I know it's a, it's a small sample, and I know Florida is not very good offensively. In fact, they're flat out terrible. But a year ago, they were averaging 25.3. And I got to be honest, like, I was surprised it was as low as that. I thought When I looked it up, it was going to be in the 30s or like 29 or something. There was almost 70th in the country in points per game allowed last year.
- [25:09]
B
And yeah, those stats are great and they back up everything, but it just looks different on tape when you put it. When you put on the tape, it just. It just looks different. So, yeah, what do you got? I believe in them.
- [25:21]
A
All right.
- [25:21]
B
We kind of hinted at this. Indiana is better than last year. That is a truth. My question now is how much better and can they handle that success? Fernando Mendoza, the quarterback, is a perfect fit for their scheme. He is. He's going to be so good for them this year. We'll talk about it more later on. We've talked about their weapons at wide receiver and Elijah Surat and Omar Cooper got weapons. There surprises me how quickly they reloaded at running back, though. McShay, they. You know, I love Justice Ellison and. And Tyson Lawton last year. Kaylin Black was there last year. Looks awesome in an increased role. And getting Roman Hemby from Maryland is going to be one of the steals. I think of the transfer portal. He looks explosive. And then you look at Kobe.
- [26:03]
A
Martin had 107 rushing last week.
- [26:06]
B
Yeah, they're deep at running back, man. They've. They have not skipped a beat. The offensive line is better than this year, I think.
- [26:12]
A
I agree. I'm glad to hear you say that.
- [26:14]
B
So I think the offensive line is better this week. I mean, this year I look at that defense, they got leaders on every level. You got Mikel Camara at edge on the defensive line. You got Aiden Fisher at the linebacker position. And you've got d' Angelo Pons at a corner. And then that doesn't go to mention the talent there, too. They have a talent all over the place on defense. Seven sacks against Illinois. I don't think that's a mistake. I think they're going to be able to get after the quarterback. I think they're going to stop the run. Now. What's this all mean? They're better than they were last year, man. But they got at Oregon and at Penn State left on the schedule. And if I'm being honest, I don't see them winning those games. Now. Can you handle the success?
- [26:50]
A
Go ahead, finish.
- [26:51]
B
I know, I know. I love that you think this. I get it and it's cool. It's great. But maybe Penn State. Oregon, I think is a freight train. But I think let's. Let's say those are two losses. Can you manage the rest of the Season. It looks good in terms of schedule, but do you have that hiccup at Maryland or at Iowa, teams that you are significantly better than? I think. But Indiana traditionally hasn't had this kind of success. Can they manage the expectations? Can they play up to the level now that people are looking them not as poor old Indiana and are looking at them as this is a team that could compete?
- [27:26]
A
I, I think Oregon's really good. I don't know that they're as good as you think they are. I know, and I think I'm fine with that. I want to table it for, for later in this week because I spent a lot of time yesterday, like an embarrassing amount of time while NFL games are going on and watching both Penn State and Oregon. And I think they're both really good. I think Oregon's better than Penn State. I think we're going to get some answers this week and I'm pumped to see that game and we'll talk a lot about it on, on Thursday's show. But I do want to say this. I don't think Aller's playing to the level. I don't think, I don't see any improvement. And we'll talk a lot about it later and we'll talk about Aller today on the show with the Mendoza Line. And I think Dante Moore is playing really good. I think he started really slow against Northwestern, but he got going and he like, I see it, but is it Evan Stewart, right? The wide receiver? Yeah, yeah. They miss him terribly. And this, this Decorian. More is more. Awesome. But he got better. Yeah, but he got nicked up and I, we gotta, we gotta keep a watch on that. Okay? There was. Yeah, but he played great last week. So there was like a report about practice, but I, I, but my point is, like, he's a star, he's a freshman, but they're missing that like that other guy. My, the most important point, I want people to take away from this. And I went back and watched Mendoza and I went back and watched that offense and I saw the defense in the game, in the. Indiana is legit.
- [29:17]
B
I agree.
- [29:18]
A
Like, I think they're actually, I, I was like, I had to go on with Dan Dakic and I had people like riding me all year less. I thought they were, I don't want to say fraud, but I thought they were a little bit of a paper tiger last year.
- [29:32]
B
It was inflated. They were a little inflated.
- [29:34]
A
Super inflated last year. And I was watching some SEC programs. I'm like, I just know they're Better. And I watched them against Ohio State, and then we watched them in the playoff against Notre Dame. They weren't at that level. I think they're a lot closer this year to, like, top seven, eight teams in the country. I think their efficiency is off the charts. I think I'm watching guys like Club Nick, and I'm watching guys like, even Sellers. I'm watching guys like Nussmeier, super talented quarterbacks. I'm watching guys across the board where it looks difficult. I'm watching Aller struggle against shitty opponents. Villanova, fiu, right? And then I put on the tape of a guy like Mendoza and it's like, no wonder why they had him bottled up. No wonder why he's not allowed to go to Manning passing academy. No wonder why he needed every single minute that Signetti I'm talking about in this offseason with him because he is playing so efficiently in that offensive system and he, like, it's easy for him. It looks easy compared to these other guys who are grinding it out and the system's efficiency in the offensive line play together as a group. I don't know, man. I. I'm. I'm starting to buy stock in Indiana.
- [30:57]
B
I like it.
- [30:58]
A
All right, I. I just went on a rant, and it was your truth. I kind of double down.
- [31:04]
B
You agreed with me, so that's good.
- [31:07]
A
I'll tell you another truth. Texas Tech is for real, and I did not buy it. Coming into the year, this Texas Tech team, they won me over. That defense going to Utah and putting up that performance against that quarterback and how hot that Utah offense was like. And. And to have that drive where didn't it feel like, all right, Baron Morton's out. It's about, what, nine, ten minutes left in the. I don't remember exactly, but it was, it was. It was like four or five minutes into the fourth quarter, Utah drives down, and it's all right. Hopefully. Hopefully. I'm like, watching the clock and I'm, you know, I'm like, if they can just maybe get a couple first downs here and punt. Talking about Texas Tech's often, and instead they come in with Will Hammond, their backup quarterback, and they're better offensively. And not only are they better, they have the confidence in him where they, they like, actually press the accelerator more. And so you got this defense and we're talking about Bailey, obviously at the edge position, but there's a bunch of dudes on the defensive side and they're playing hard. And the thing with Texas Tech, you always think like the, you know, screen game, quick game and then we're going to pop one over. This is a balanced team, man. I'm watching Jacoby Williams as a receiver at the running back position.
- [32:36]
B
He's a dude.
- [32:37]
A
He's a dude. I'm watching Cameron Dickey. I'm watching balance in the run game. I'm watching Hammond come in and rush the ball eight times for 61 yards. I think it was the first play in. He just. Hey, I'll take it. Quarterback draw. Watch. Hey, watch this, Utah. You want a 10am start us with big Noon kick there and all this hoopla and all this madness. Toughest play. One of the toughest places to play in college football. BLEEP off. Here's our backup quarterback. Home for 30. The confidence they played. That tight end. Spitting all over my mic now. I'm so excited. That tight end, Terence Carter, I love him, man.
- [33:18]
B
Love him.
- [33:19]
A
Team high, 17 catches. You get Coy Eakin at wide receiver. You got this, Caleb Douglas cat averaging over 20 yards per catch. This Texas Tech team is for real. The two epiphanies I had this this weekend, my two true truths, the biggest ones were. Oh, oh, okay. Indiana and Texas Tech are like Our legitimate top 10 top 12 teams in the country. And, and if it keeps tracking this way, should be in the College Football Playoff.
- [33:52]
B
Yeah, it feels like the defense runs the top five defensive front in the country right now. I mean, I don't want to get into hyperbole, but they, that defense front looks that good. Especially when you had Jacob Rodriguez, who we mentioned at linebacker, just flying around the field. They're deep, they're talented, they got guys in the middle, they got guys on the edge. I think that's, I'm all in on Texas Tech. I'm a believer. The thing I really loved about that game, there was a lot of things to take out of the game. And by the way, I'm not sure who the starting quarterback should be anymore. I said they should go back to Morton. I think on Saturday night. I'm not convinced that's the case. I'm kind of coming over to your side. That being said, the thing I loved about that game, they never took their foot off the gas. They could have easily made that a 10 point win or whatever. They, they kept going. They went for the jugular against Utah. And I think that sends a message to that entire roster of we're not here to win a tight game in Utah. We're here to tell people that we're one of the best teams in the country. And if you let us, we'll take your hat off.
- [34:46]
A
I said it the other night and I know we did social clips on it and I think people are well aware. So I don't want to beat a dead horse, but. But I think. I think Texas Tech has a real. To me, I think Texas Tech has a real problem on their hands and it's a good problem, but I think it's still a problem in that. How can you watch that tape and watch a tale of two halves and not come to the realization that our backups better than our starter? And here's the human part of it, man. Baron Morton's done everything. He's transferred, he's grinded, he's done like, he's worked his ass off, he overcame injury and fall camp. He's out there, he's given you everything he's got and this is his last year and NFL scouts are talking to him and he may be a day three pick. And how do we ruin this guy's opportunity when he's done nothing but give us everything he's got as a leader, as a teammate, as a worker, as our quarterback. How do we do that to him? And that's why I, I don't want to be in Joey McGuire's shoes. No, because, I mean, because I also got this. I also got the Matador club that just invested. Lord knows how much they really did to bring in all this talent. 22 transfer guys is the last report I read. And we get this window and that window is this season. And Hammond is better than Morton, period.
- [36:16]
B
I agree. I agree with everything.
- [36:18]
A
He's a better runner. He's a. He's. He's a. He's an accurate passer. That offense opened up when he came in the game. I don't want to be McGuire. I don't want to be that staff because it's a brutal decision.
- [36:30]
B
Are you worried about the smaller sample size?
- [36:32]
A
Of course.
- [36:34]
B
But here's the thing. Here's. I'm going to talk out of both sides of my mouth right now. I am too. But it wasn't like he was going against a sub, like subpar competition, man. He did it at Utah and that's when he came in cold, more confident about it. Yeah. Talk about being ready for the moment, by the way. Being ready for the moment. Unbelievable job by that kid. Like being ready.
- [36:54]
A
Also got in camp. I talked about the injury with Morton. He got. He was working first team quarterback.
- [36:59]
B
Right.
- [37:00]
A
So the difference between. Yeah, okay, I know we got it all Right. Go ahead. Next.
- [37:06]
B
If Oklahoma is going to run the gauntlet of number 10, Texas 13, Ole Miss at 15, Tennessee at 17, Alabama. Man, this is crazy. 20 Missouri and 4 LSU. Its defense will have to play as big a role as Mater does. And I love Mater and everyone's talking about Mattier carrying this team, but that defense is going to have to continue play at a high level. And I think it can. I think that that defense is for real and I think it can keep Oklahoma in the title hunt as much as Mater does. So for me, look at it, tie for the fbs lead with 16 sacks. And I look at that and that's, you know, that's interesting and all that. What I really like is they have guys who can get to the quarterback off the edge who we talked about our Mason Thomas, Taylor Wein, Marvin Jones Jr. Doesn't even have a sack yet. That's going to change. But they have the guys on the inside, too. Jaden Jackson and Grayson Holton are problems for interior offensive linemen. They're going to make it hard for these quarterbacks to step up. They're going to make life difficult. They're already against the good, against the run. You got Kip Lewis at linebacker flying around like a maniac. This is an interesting stat for me. They have not intercepted the pass or recovered a fumble yet. They have no turnovers. That's a glitch to me. That seems like one of those stats that. Yeah, well, maybe then maybe they can't cause turnovers or they need to do a better job of that. I think that's going to change too. I think those numbers, it's going to start to come to them. They're too good, they're too fast, they're too smart on defense. And then of course you add in Brent Venables, like a genius, a master motivator. This defense, I think is going to keep this defense for Oklahoma. We could talk about the difference that Mater has made, but as good and the defense was good last year. This defense is different. This defense is one of the best country.
- [38:47]
A
I agree. Yeah, I'd add to it, but like we're locked up on that. No, I, I honestly, I was glad you sent me your notes on. Because I didn't know where to fit Oklahoma in because I talked about Miami's defense and I had to talk about Texas Tech and that whole team and especially Will Hammond and I had to start with the SEC not to counter your acc. I had already gone through my notes and that's what I was going to say, but it worked out perfectly. But the one thing I was missing when I was done with the five things I wanted to say, my truth from this weekend is like, I believe in Oklahoma's defense more than I thought coming into the year, and I have really good resources or sources and intel to know it was going to be a good defense and it's even better than I expected. Speaking of defense, let's just transition to my Next Truth the McShay show is brought to you by FanDuel. FanDuel is changing the way you live bet football and and it starts with Next Drive sgps. That's Next Drive, same game parlays. You can bet what's happening on the next drive. Will it end with a touchdown, a punt, a field goal? Then see the player stats you need, stack in player props and build your bet exactly the way you want. And every NFL game day comes with a profit boost you can use on your next Drive SGP so you can get more out of every play. Whether you're betting a drive a player or the next big moment. FanDuel makes live betting feel smarter, faster and way more fun. Visit FanDuel.com McShay to download the app today and bet the next drive. Your way must be 21 and older and present in select states or 18 and older and present in DC, Kentucky or Wyoming. Opt in required bonus issued as non withdrawable profit boost tokens. Restrictions apply including any token expiration and max wager amount. See terms@sportsbook.fanduel.com gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit rg-help.com call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut. This episode is brought to you by Duluth Trading Co. Ready to give rival tailgates the foam finger? Duluth Trading Co. Crafts hall of Fame game day gear to help you grill hotter, cheer louder and tailgate longer. Trust me, like I'm a scene at the Grill, I know what this is all about. They've got bibs loaded with pockets, gusseted pants so you can crouch without snuffing out your coals and free swinging shirts and tailor made for beanbag tossing or some like to call it cornhole. Stay comfortable from preseason to playoffs in the toughest tailgate attire around. Only at Duluth Trading Co.
- [41:36]
C
This message is a paid partnership with Apple Card. There's one thing I'm going to make sure I pack for my summer vacation. It's my Apple Card. I can earn up to 3% daily cash back on every purchase, including fuel for my car and booking places to stay. Plus, I don't have to worry about fees, including foreign transaction fees, which is perfect when I'm planning to travel abroad. To get an Apple Card for your summer travels, apply in the Wallet app on your iPhone today. Subject to credit approval. Apple Card issued by Goldman Sachs Bank USA, Salt Lake City Branch. Variable APRs for Apple Card range from 18.24% to 28.49% to based on credit worthiness rates as of July 1, 2025. Terms and more@applecard.com Michigan ain't there yet, okay?
- [42:27]
A
And I know there was a close game and the Hail Mary and you can, you could go through all the minutia you want. But the one thing I feel really good about right now is that this defensive front can carry Michigan to a one loss record going into Ohio State. And that's saying a lot because they got to play at usc and I just told you, I think. And I'll get to USC in a minute, all right? And I've kind of hinted where I'm going with it. They play against Washington and that's a. I mean, and I'll get to Demon Williams, but if you look no further, he's got the top QBR in all of college football. But this defensive front and NFL scouts aren't stupid, man. In fact, I have an unbelievable level of respect for NFL scouts, the vast, vast, vast majority of them, because they go into programs and they're looking ahead a year and they're evaluating the talent and they're watching the tape even when guys aren't starters and rotating in and they're getting prepared to present to their general manager and to their college scouting director who's going to be the best for coming up next year. Maybe some guys are transfers, maybe some guys were backups, but they always know they've got a range. And I've talked talking to scouts in the preseason, this Michigan defensive front is different. And I know they lost a bunch of dudes, they lost two first round defensive tackles, but this defensive front is different. And then you look at like the national list and the Blesso list and you talk to people in the league coming into the year, Michigan had more senior defensive front guys with high grades. I'm talking high grades first, second round, maybe trickling into early third than any other program in the country. Now it doesn't mean the most talented because there's sophomores and juniors and a couple freshmen here and there. But I'm saying of the senior guys, veteran guys who have been around the program. I'm talking Derek Moore, J. Sean Barham, Ray Benny, Ernest Houseman, TJ Guy, okay? This group is loaded. And then you watch like you look at the numbers, right? Houseman at the linebacker position, 29 tackles in a sack. You got that? Reuter cat, 21 tackles and a sack. Sullivan at lineback. They like, they've got nine linebackers because their edge guys are outside backers. They're off the ball. Linebackers, right?
- [44:55]
B
They move around.
- [44:57]
A
Barham has been awesome, leads the team with three sacks, is an edge rusher. Okay? This team. And so as you've got a young quarterback in Underwood who's going to continue to develop, and we're starting to see that development in the last couple weeks, but we're also still seeing. He's, he's got a ways to go as a passer, but you've got an offensive line. Michigan is not there yet, but I can see this Michigan team because of that defensive front and the, and the way they play as a group offensively towards the end of the year, going into Ohio State where we're like, oh, they're One of the 10, 12 best teams in the country, and now they get this shot against Ohio State. And we know how that thing's gone for the Buckeyes. Watch Michigan because that defensive front continue to go and ascend as the year goes on.
- [45:44]
B
Two things. One, you're preaching to the choir. And two, typical McShay, you have 35 teams making a 12 team playoff.
- [45:50]
A
Okay, keep going.
- [45:51]
B
No.
- [45:51]
A
What's up?
- [45:53]
B
My last truth. My, my fifth.
- [45:55]
A
And.
- [45:55]
B
Oh, you want me to go on about Michigan? I get.
- [45:57]
A
No, no, no, no, no, no, no. I want to keep it moving because.
- [46:00]
B
You'Re also that run game. I'll just say that that run game is awesome.
- [46:03]
A
Yes.
- [46:03]
B
Anyways, my last and final truth is, and there are a bunch of caveats here, I understand that. But Mensch. But mensch. But Mensch. Arch Banning's performance this past week against Sam Houston State is encouraging to me. I get it at Sam Houston State. I also get that he didn't look great.
- [46:21]
A
But everyone, but everyone on the Internet is trolling and saying he's acting like a prick, a spoiled little jerk, and then, oh, it's him. He should State and all that stuff. You're like, no, not for you.
- [46:32]
B
I, I actually don't love him trolling kids who were like one star players who are out there competing against him. I don't love that. But I don't really, I'm not here to, like, I don't really care about that, you know, like, I just don't care about it. That being said, I am concerned about some of the things on tape. Like the throwing motion still looks a little funky. His footwork is a little off at times and he missed low at a couple of times or a couple throws that weren't great. But he built confidence. Clearly over the course of this game he got better. Clearly over this course of the game, I thought his timing and again, the confidence in his delivery, throwing outside the hatches on some of the timing stuff all looked better to me. He did what he's got to do. If he's going to be great, which is extending plays, making off platform throws, making plays with his feet, I. He's going to have to get a hell of a lot better. But this was a step forward and let's just take that for what it is right now. Let's take that as. And here's a. Here's a couple of things that jumped out to me in terms of numbers. Ryan Wingo, 4 for 93 and two touchdowns in this game. DeAndre Moore, 5 and 79. Those are two dudes.
- [47:34]
A
The Wingo thing to me is huge because it wasn't an opponent thing. It wasn't him getting locked down. It was a connection thing. And I detailed it last week. Part of it was on Wingo, part of it was on Manning, part of it was timing. All of it. I will respond to this, to you and this point by saying I tend to lean in your direction here. I don't think that's the behavior.
- [48:02]
B
Yeah, no, I don't. Whatever, though.
- [48:05]
A
But whatever, though, I think, honestly, because. Because it's easy to sit back and have never played. You play the game, but it's easy to sit back and just watch and be like, yeah, he's a Manning few million dollars and I asked maybe 6 million depending on reports, all that stuff. He's acting like a spoiled little, you know, all that and, and the opponent and it's. But, you know, who needed that, like, who needed to see that more than anything? His teammates, man.
- [48:35]
B
Yeah.
- [48:36]
A
And I think somebody, and rightfully so, got to him this week. And I don't know if it was a teammate. I don't know if it was Sark. I don't know if it was his dad or his mom or his uncles or who it was like, would just stop caring about being a Manning. Would just stop caring about how people perceive you. Would just stop caring about everything that doesn't matter and just be you. And you know what? His dad's a riot. His dad is a stand up comedian. His dad beats by a different. Different drum, different gat.
- [49:12]
B
Yeah.
- [49:12]
A
Different drummer than the Eli and the Peyton. You know his dad is a little bit out there and I fucking love his dad. Cooper Manning is awesome and he's got a little bit of Cooper in him and he's got a little bit of his mom in him and it's okay. It's actually great. And I think we saw he's a little bit of a prick. And you know what? I don't know a great quarterback out there who isn't now how they. How they externally show it and all that. But I know so many stories about quarterbacks in the meetings and what they do to the backup quarterbacks and all that. Including his uncles.
- [49:47]
B
Right.
- [49:50]
A
Especially Peyton. He ain't the commercial funny guy when he's at business. And Tom complete a hole to deal with robot like they all are. So like. So he's letting it out, man. I think it was good to see. We'll see if he does.
- [50:10]
B
It's all about the opponent. If he does that. If he's doing that to Oklahoma in two weeks. If he's flexing on Oklahoma like that in two weeks I am going to be fired up.
- [50:17]
A
But I think it's more about just get it out of your system, man. Like let your teammates see. I'm. I'm good. So we're good now. Let's move on. All right. The final truth. And this is taking way too long, but it's been a lot of fun.
- [50:29]
B
Screw it.
- [50:31]
A
Jaden Mayava. Jaden Mayava at USC is the best quarterback in the country that nobody's talking about because they really haven't played great competition yet and they play late at night and all the other reasons. But Navajo it's completing almost 71 of his throws. It was averaging 12.7 yards per attempt. Dude, that's.
- [50:55]
B
I'm glad you brought that up. That is a big part of the number that you're saying because a lot of guys who have that kind of number, you're looking at 8.9, 9.4. You're looking at a smaller average. That's an important to me. That's an important number to bring up.
- [51:08]
A
And I think when people think of Lincoln Riley they think of. And nine touchdowns, zero interceptions. Anyone could read stats. But like I think those stats are worth noting. Of course. Okay. He's also rushed 15 times 55 yards for. But his Game is play action and, and striking. And he has done that at an unbelievably high level so far, albeit against competition. That's not great. And we talked about USC and what's coming up and they got a lot of work to do. And I'm excited to see them do it because I think, I think UFC's vastly underrated. I think they could wind up being in the playoff picture at the end of the year. Put them in. Put them as team 17 in my top 12 match if you want. Good luck. They got Illinois coming up. They got Michigan coming up. They get at Notre Dame coming up, they get at Nebraska coming up. It's brutal.
- [51:53]
B
But I think at Oregon too, later on.
- [51:55]
A
Yeah, in the second to last regular season game. But I think this team is going to wind up being a lot better than people think. Okay. And I think Mayava is a big reason why. But when you think about Lincoln Riley, you think about the passing game, you think about the Baker Mayfields, he said you think about the Kyler Murray's and you think about the Caleb Williams.
- [52:15]
B
Right.
- [52:15]
A
And you think like. But the thing that people never quite understood and the reason why coaches around the country, including NFL, were flying into Norman for a long time in the summer to try to pick his brain is that run game set it all up. And the reason why he had the best offensive line coach in college football for a long time. And I'm surprised that Bead and Bow didn't go with him from Oklahoma to, to usc. And people in Norman should be thrilled that he didn't. Their run game is critical and it's, it's now working the way it worked for Kyler and for Baker and, and not really for Caleb. And Caleb was awesome. But they didn't win a lot. It's back to that and this tandem for USC at running back, the Waymond Johnson and Eli Sanders.693 rushing yards, averaging seven yards per carry. This USC team is a little different. And I think Mayava is the most underrated quarterback in the country because no one's really seen him so far. Yeah, it's.
- [53:16]
B
It's tough. I think it's Wayman Jordan, by the way, not Johnson. But I would say this. I love his efficiency. That's all right. I love his.
- [53:23]
A
When you correct me, I feel like you.
- [53:25]
B
It's better. It's like.
- [53:26]
A
No, no. I always said in tv, like I would say when we get down on a set and you haven't worked for somebody, if I say something stupid, like correct me. So we can laugh about it. Don't let everyone be sitting at home being like, McCade just said this. No. You know what he's talking about. Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly.
- [53:40]
B
They want to jump on you. He is efficient, man. There's a lot of good quarterbacks out there that we haven't talked about in depth, I think. But he's up there. He's great. He's fun to watch. And I'm with you. I'm not sold on USC like you are, but they put themselves in a good position to shut me up.
- [53:55]
A
Defense is a lot better, too. Not great, but they can get after the quarterback. Good things, but they can get after.
- [54:02]
B
The quarterback and they can turn the ball over. They're pretty good.
- [54:04]
A
All right, let's transition. We promise the. The fine folks supporting this show. And by the way, thank you for watching. Thank you for listening. Thank you for. Thank you watching us on YouTube. Hey, by the way, the numbers were awesome. Saturday night, the YouTube live show. We're gonna be back.
- [54:17]
B
I love the interaction.
- [54:18]
A
I love the interaction. Is my favorite. If you haven't been part of it, you gotta. You gotta jump on. We're gonna jump on. We got those late games. I talked about Georgia, Alabama on Saturday night. What was the other one? We got? Oh, Oregon, Penn State.
- [54:32]
B
Yes.
- [54:33]
A
Date on NBC. Talking to Blacklidge this week. Maybe I might actually ask him to come on the show. We'll see what his schedule is like. But we're gonna jump on late in those games and come watch them with us. Have the big game in the background, but you can kind of interact with us. We'll be talking. We'll be yelling and screaming just like you at the tv. And we don't even look at the screens. I'm looking at the game and mentions doing the same. But thank you for Supporting us on YouTube at the McShay show, channel, Apple podcast, obviously, Spotify taking care of our business for us. Yeah. So. But we got a transition here because we're running out of time. As if we have a clock on us. The Mendoza Line. Thanks to Connor for his great idea and thanks to Dan again for his great 10 Truths from College Football Week 4 idea. This is interesting. I think what spawned this mensch, I don't think I know, was that Pete Thamel, our good buddy, came on game day the other day and did a report where he talked to 25 different NFL executives, personnel, people, scouts, all that, and asked them, who's your number one quarterback for the 2026 NFL Draft right now? And the numbers the responses and the numbers attached to some of the names were a little bit interesting. I'll read them to you. Okay. Lenora Sellers played this past week after being questionable after the injury, had the most votes with eight. Garrett Nussmeier had seven just behind him. Then there was a drop off. There were two other names that had three. That was Carson Beck, John Matier, obviously Miami and Oklahoma respectively. Then I guess. So that's 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. That and then fifth on the list with two, just behind Beck and. And Mater was Drew Aller from Penn State. And then just behind that, behind Aller were two more names. Sam Levitt with one and Arch Manning with one. So it begged the question for Connor and I think it's a great question. We're here to answer it today. What is the Mendoza line? Because Mendoza wasn't on that list.
- [56:48]
B
No.
- [56:48]
A
Which I found interesting. But go ahead.
- [56:51]
B
We're talking NFL draft, correct?
- [56:53]
A
We're not talking about a quarterback 2026 NFL Draft. Yes. Because right now, if we were doing college football rankings with quarterbacks, Mater is number one. Like, no problem.
- [57:02]
B
It's a different thing, right?
- [57:02]
A
It's a. It's a different thing. Yes. This is for the NFL draft. Where do you want to go with this? Because I, I could just rattle off what I think my list is. Do you want me to do that first and then you can resp. Yeah, go something.
- [57:20]
B
Let's do it that way.
- [57:20]
A
All right. Okay. If I had to say right now and re. Rack him and I think Dan and I talked about this. Maybe, maybe it'll be next week after these big games where I feel like I have enough of a sample size to officially release my new 2026 updated quarterback rankings. And we gave the fine folks who showed up in Chicago for our live show, you know, a kind of an in between update on that. So what happens when you show up to live shows? I'm not, you know, we're not at Pac McAfee status. We don't have $500,000 to give away to for one kick. But I give away an updated QB rankings when you come and show up. Awesome crowd there, by the way. Thank you to everyone who's watching who was there that night.
- [58:01]
B
Like, you guys hung out to meet.
- [58:02]
A
Us afterwards after week and like the energy and like, it wasn't this massive crowd, but it was more people there than I thought. And the venue was amazing. It just, it was, it was a special night for, for both of us. And I can't thank our crew and the Folks who showed up like enough. Anyway, here's my. Here are my rankings right now. Kind of off the cuff, but I'm going to update it next week after we have. After we have like another full. This is going to be a big week for guys like Aller, for guys like a Dante Moore, for a lot of these top guys. Lsu, Nussmeier. I would start there. Garrett Nussmeier is my still my QB one. And I recognize that that offense hasn't clicked the way you want that offense to click. I think that they're playing complimentary football. I am so damn impressed with the way he's managing games, how he's reeled it back in. I think he understands the onus is on him to allow that defense, which is light years ahead of where it was a year ago, and and create more balance at the run game and all those things. He has a role to play in this offense and it will continue to increase and he will show up in the big moments. I believe we'll find out. But I still, I just trust Nuss. Number two would be Lenora Sellers. Even though I have not budged an ounce off my stance that my man Lenoris has. Like, I desperately want to see him come back and play another year of college football. I desperately want him to be closer to 40 starts than 30 starts when he goes into the NFL. For his sake, not for his agents, not for any people in his circle that want the money and the fame and all that stuff for Lenore, not even for South Carolina.
- [59:48]
B
True.
- [59:49]
A
And you know, I love Shane. I love Shane Beamer. I love that a lot of people there in Columbia. But for Lenores, that's what we're talking about. The player going to the draft, I want to see that. But I understand how he got eight votes. He's dynamic, he's different. He. But he's got to continue to develop as a passer after that. I would put Matier slightly ahead of Beck, but I would have a bang, bang, bang of Matier, Beck, Mendoza and. And I want to see more from Mendoza, but Mendoza could very easily become 3 on that list depending on the way he plays. So if the Mendoza line for me is at 5, then that means I got him ahead of a bunch of other guys. I want to, I want to explain to people, there are some, some national scouting lists. There are scouts across the country that do this in the preseason. I just talked about Michigan. Taylin Green from Arkansas was rated higher than a lot of other big names on this list. And on other Lists. He's a guy that would be below Mendoza for me. But I'm saying keep an eye on what he does. Dante Moore, I just watched a lot of his tape. Oregon. I think he's got a chance to really be good. I'm seeing a guy who in not flashes but in certain areas of his game, it's outstanding. I don't think he's that fast, but I do think he's mobile and quick and moves around. I think he throws really well on the run. I think he throws a really nice deep ball. I think he can drive the ball down the field. But I think there's a lot of like line drives. I think there's some trajectory and some layering stuff that he can improve upon. I think his game is just not refined because he hasn't played a lot of ball played in 2023, didn't play last year. He's with Will Stott. Like Will Stein is the QB whisperer right now in college football. Look no further than B Knicks, right? Look at what he did last year. Gillen Dylan Gabriel, right. And Bo Nicks had two years. Think about what Bo was that first year coming from Auburn. A wounded duck. And then, I mean, ironically, right. I didn't even. That was a play on words. But then was took off. Flying right.
- [62:14]
B
Fly next.
- [62:14]
A
Fly. Yeah, fly. Ducks fly, as Mitch likes to say. So I think Dante Moore. I see what people are saying. Like I see those things and I finally like sat down and watched the tape and I studied Northwestern. He got off to a slow start and he keep. Kept getting better. And then I watched last week against Oregon State and he was dealing at times, but I think that he's going to continue to improve and Stein's the guy to help him do that. So I don't want Sellers in this class. I don't want Dante Moore in this class. I don't want Arch Manning in this class. And he's not going to be, as we said, going back to May. And it's not because I don't think they're talented or good enough. I don't want them in this class because I don't want that for them. Right?
- [62:54]
B
Yeah.
- [62:55]
A
And then other names you have to include Klub. Nick not playing to the level really has hurt his draft stock this year.
- [63:00]
B
He's fallen below the Mendoza line. I agree with you.
- [63:02]
A
Below the Mendoza line. And that takes a lot for me to say because I believe that young man and the leadership and the way he cares. But he's. He's not played to the level and we've seen some more blemishes in his game than I expected to see. I thought he was going to do this like take it to another level. Instead he is taking a step back and that happens. Sam Levitt needs another year of college. Put him in the list with Sellers and Dante Moore and Arch super talented. So I would have Taylor Green, Dante Moore club Nick Levitt than aller. Wow. And I want to remind people fans.
- [63:42]
B
Don'T come after me. Man. I hope you heard that. I mean that is. I'm blown away. I don't have a listen I'm with you. I am lower than I think almost everyone else. I don't know if I'm that low but that's interesting.
- [63:55]
A
I hope he proves me wrong. I'm excited to see him against Oregon. I hope that they've just kind of been vanilla and they. I hope he's got a. He's got a lot of new faces at wide receiver and we're going to get into this a lot more. On Thursday I watched a guy who has the same problems and I'm wondering why does why those other receivers go off to was Ole Miss and and somewhere else I think in the SEC and and they're. They're thriving or projected to thrive.
- [64:23]
B
Right.
- [64:24]
A
Because May and why would you leave a program that is legitimately a contender for the national championship with a quarterback who's who by a lot of NFL scout standards is potentially a first round pick, one of the top two or three quarterbacks in this draft.
- [64:37]
B
Yeah.
- [64:38]
A
Why would you leave what's and and by the way Andy, their offensive coordinator like they never going to say it but I I just see some of the play calling. The play calling versus the play calling on third down and six when they need it. When they need a play it's over the middle. It's receiver coming back to him. It's a quick out which he can throw iron. Not ironically but it's interesting. But the swing passes, the post corners what is going on running away from him. It's the fades. It's a lack of visualization and or lack of touch and being able to layer it and just feel as a.
- [65:21]
B
Passer I'm seeing this that is concerning.
- [65:24]
A
And if it's concerning against Villanova and concerning. I think it was FIU is the other tape I watched.
- [65:30]
B
Yep. Nevada, FIU and Villanova the teams they played.
- [65:34]
A
I'm concerned what that's going to be against Oregon and we'll see.
- [65:39]
B
Okay. I am going to. I want to make this very clear, I will. I agree with you on the quarterbacks that you think should go back, and I want to make that clear because there's going to be some names in here that I think are very high. Lenore Sellers from South Carolina is by far the best quarterback in this class. It's not even close. He is the best runner. He is the best deep ball thrower. And when you look at his intermediate passing, it's not even close. Lenora Sellers is an elite quarterback prospect who is only going to get better. I feel I, after watching him, watching all of his tape this year and went back and watched it, I feel better about him now than I did coming into the year. And you know how I felt about him. I don't think it's close. Then I looked at the rest of the list and I'll be honest with you. I just said to myself, have some balls, Mitch. Like, you can do this and you can sit. You can do all the math and all the mitigating factors of why Nuss Meyer should be, you know, two, maybe even one. I get all of that. I understand where you're coming from. He's not for me. He's not. I'm going material too. He just played too well. And I get it. I know it's a roller coaster ride. I understand the flaws. Mater to me, has put himself in that position that he's the second quarterback available next.
- [66:47]
A
I don't. Yeah, I, I see why. I don't think. Yeah, I see why.
- [66:53]
B
I've seen enough from Dante Moore to think he's three right now. I. The frame, the accuracy. I see a guy who's trusting his reads. I see guys trusting his protection. He has not faced a high level of competition yet. We'll see how that goes this week. I love Dante Moore and I said it in the beginning of the year that I, I said. And I'm like, I'm going to beat this drum for as long as I can. That I thought they could be better at quarterback this year than they were last year. And I still believe that. Right now, at this point in the season, I think this kid is that freaking good.
- [67:25]
A
I would, I would agree and say, I don't know that he's. I thought Dylan Gabriel was like getting the ball out and processing and all those things really, really quickly and had a unique understanding of that offense. Could, could orchestrate that offense way better than you would expect. Someone who just, just transferred in love.
- [67:45]
B
Dylan Gabriel last year. I just, I just think this kid's.
- [67:47]
A
And Dylan Gabriel, like he won the battle for Cleveland. He's the backup quarterback. Kenny Pickett's gone Shador, like whatever. Like watch from the sideline. So like there's obviously it was a third round pick. Yeah, good player but this, this cat's different talent wise. I totally agree and I, I'm kind of. I gave you a real, you know, 30,000 foot view of, of what it was. But I'm excited to Talk about Aller vs I'm excited to talk about Aller in the Penn State offense versus versus versus Oregon and Dante Moore's offense because I, I see some real differences and.
- [68:27]
B
I don't want to steal your guy because he's been your guy from the beginning. Will Stein, the offense coordinator from, from Oregon is your guy. But I, he's my guy now too. Like I, I absolutely believe in what Will Stein can do. So, so I'm going sellers mater more then I got nos.
- [68:42]
A
I love nuss.
- [68:43]
B
I love nuss. I do. I love the brain. It's just a matter of him. If you look at the three guys ahead of him, it's clear what he's missing compared to what they have. He doesn't have the physical tools that they have. Great quarterback though. And I think he's going to be a really good quarterback in the league. Then I go back, I think Carson Beck's played his way into that, you know that top five conversation. And then when I get after Beck I'm going, I think that Aller and Mendoza are both there. I think Aller's got a strong arm. I will say this. For a guy who's got that much arm strength, he's a shitty deep ball thrower. And I don't get it. I just don't get why he. Anything with touch is, is a problem. He can, he's got a laser when he wants to drive the ball. Yes, I was encouraged by the way he moved in the Nevada game. I thought he. But which goes back to what we've been saying all along against subpar pass rushes. He's been very good in terms of moving and then when he gets into these elite athletes. So we're going to see something different against Oregon. And I'll say this about Mendoza. I really like Mendoza. When you get him off his first read and can keep him in his, in the pocket, it starts to be a problem because Mendoza's.
- [69:47]
A
It's not that he said he's going to be a tough evaluation.
- [69:52]
B
I meant to say that. I meant to, I meant to lead with that. You said that Saturday night, and I wasn't. I don't know whether I was tired or what. I wasn't understanding what you were saying.
- [70:00]
A
100.
- [70:01]
B
Correct. Because he is in the perfect system. They give him those reads. He is in a. He's a surgeon on rpo. His release timing and accuracy make him a surgeon on rpo. And he can throw the deep ball if it's there. If he gets that first read, he can throw the deep out. All that's good. But if you take away that first read and it. The. The footwork and the accuracy start to get a little more shaky. It's not a mobility thing. He can move around.
- [70:25]
A
No, he can run. It's not a throw really well on the run, too.
- [70:29]
B
Right. It's just. It's almost like he speeds up his process a little bit. I don't know what it is. I think it's something you can fix. But right now that's a weakness in his game that I see. But yeah, let's just say this, too. Some damn good quarterbacks in that group. It's exciting. It's an exciting group. We'll see who comes out and who stays. I think Sellers could be the first overall pick if he comes out. I still hope he stays because I'm with you. It's not about being that. That first overall pick or wherever. It's about being the best quarterback that you can be. And I think he will benefit from staying in school longer and getting more. More experience.
- [71:02]
A
This is awesome. Yeah. I mean, it is what it is. And the beauty is honestly, week. Like, we've had a lot of good individual games. It feels like the season starts in week five.
- [71:16]
B
Yeah.
- [71:17]
A
We're going to learn. I mean, it's like conference matchups. It's like critical games. Even the teams that don't have a ranking next to them, like Arkansas for Notre Dame is scary. Illinois for usc. Illinois just got dumped on and they've got injuries on defense, but, like, this is kind of the next step up before things get really hard for usc, lsu, Ole Miss. Ole Miss is dangerous right now, but is Ole Miss really legit? Is LSU as good as we. We think they could be because of the defense? Can. Can nuss shut you up?
- [71:53]
B
Yeah. Yeah.
- [71:54]
A
Ohio. Washington's dangerous. For Ohio, Ohio State. I mean, A and M. Auburn's dangerous. That Auburn team is scary.
- [72:03]
B
They're getting a pissed off Auburn team.
- [72:06]
A
Iowa always kind of is like the snake in the weeds and they'll do little things. They'll take you off your game. And they will, they will get Mendoza off of that first read. A lot. They are so disciplined and like consistent defensively. I'm excited to see that. Mississippi State, not a team you want to overlook for this, this year. And Tennessee's got them, I think, at Mississippi State. Right? Cowbell's going. Is that right? Oregon, Penn State, Alabama, Georgia. Like we're going to find out a lot, lot about these dudes.
- [72:40]
B
This is a great weekend. It's a great weekend. All right.
- [72:43]
A
I wanted to get to the AP. I think the AP put the AP up real quickly. Tuck, I'm gonna give you 30 seconds. I am not an AP fan at all outside of Iowa State, though. If you watch back at the show that we did, the live reaction show Saturday night into Sunday morning, this is what I was talking about. I said to you, I, I need Indiana in the top 12 and, and maybe top 10. There they are sitting at what number nine? Texas Tech. I said, I need them in the top 12. Those are going to be two jumps. I think one was like 16, one with 19 or something like that. They got to be in the top 12. There they are, nine and ten. I love that. I said Ole Miss is right behind those teams right there.
- [73:22]
B
Yep.
- [73:23]
A
With my 14 teams that I put in the top 12 the other night, Ole Miss was right there. The next one up, I said, get Iowa State out of here. They, they were in the top 12 and now they're out. Not far enough for me. And I said, Tennessee's got to be right behind Ole Miss. So this list, while it's not perfect, is a hell of a lot, a hell of a lot better after we. So. And again, it's not, it's not the committee, so it doesn't matter. I'm just saying I'm starting to see some common sense and people actually studying what's going on rather than just throwing up the names that they thought in the preseason. So it's the only point I wanted to make. We're back on Thursday. We got a monster show. A monster show. We got all those. I just talked about monster week in college football. So pumped. It might be a two hour show when we're done with it, but I hope you enjoyed this one. 5 stars match. Must be 21 plus and present in select states for Kansas in affiliation with Kansas Star Casino or 18 plus and present in D.C. kentucky or Wyoming. Gambling problem. Call 1-800-G GAMBLER or visit rg-help.com, call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut or visit mdg.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit gambling helpline ma.org or call 1-800-327-5050 for 24. 7 support in Massachusetts or call 1-87-7-8, HOPE NY or text Hopeny in New.