← The McShay Show
The McShay Show
Cotton Bowl Instant Reactions: An Ohio State–Notre Dame Natty, Jack Sawyer’s Signature Moment, and Quinn Ewers’s Next Move
01:05:27
Loading summary
Transcript173 lines
- [00:00]
Bill Simmons
This episode is brought to you by Amazon Prime. Here's the thing about prime, whatever you're into, it makes it even better. I love because we watch a lot of prime movies for the rewatchables. I love being able to pop up the X ray thing that tells you what actors in what scene. I love that. I love being able to rent movies that just came out or buy them if I'm excited to do that. From streaming to shopping, it's on Prime. Visit Amazon.comprime to get more out of whatever you're into.
- [00:31]
Todd McShay
It's the McShay show, presented by FanDuel. It's time for the first 12 team playoff and you can bet on all of the action with FanDuel. Just think about all the opportunities we're going to have to bet on the College Football Playoff. We're talking about different conferences, home games for certain teams, the three or four week run that you're going to have to play. There's so much to earn and you're betting with FanDuel this College Football Playoff season. Why we love FanDuel. There's so many markets like spreads over unders, national championship futures and so much more. This app is safe, secure and easy to use. When you win, you'll get paid instantly. Visit FanDuel.com McShay to download America's number one sports book. The Ringer is committed to responsible gambling visitors RG D 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 gambling problem. Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit rg d help.com man, you good?
- [01:59]
Matt
Yeah, man, I'm good.
- [02:01]
Todd McShay
Still good. We tried to catch lightning in a bottle two nights in a row. We did. We had every good intention. We were here. And then Captain Jack messed it all up. No, I mean, what a. What an amazing play. I just heard Herbie say it and he's obviously in Ohio State. Alum and informer. Player and. And has lived it his whole life. His dad was an Ohio State Buckeye. He said this is like the top, top three plays in the history of Ohio State. Wow. Yeah. And how about like Jack Sawyer, the career he's had, the captain he's been. The fact that I didn't even realize that he was the first recruit of the Ryan Day era and helped.
- [02:42]
Matt
I didn't know that.
- [02:43]
Todd McShay
Yeah, I guess that's what they're saying. Or helped with that, with that class, whatever it was. And and on top of it was roommates with Quinn Ewers.
- [02:54]
Matt
Yeah.
- [02:55]
Todd McShay
And then to have that strip sack to seal the game for Ohio State, to send him to a national championship in the same year that. That it looked like Ryan days out. It can't beat Michigan. Everything's falling apart. It was not the game I expected, but it was still. I mean, there were so many fascinating things to this game. I'm excited to get. Get to it. What are your initial thoughts, bud?
- [03:21]
Matt
I mean, first of all, that play, I mean, the way he beat Cameron Williams clean, just a great move with his hands and. And, you know, got. Cameron Williams was top heavy. Slipped him. I mean, right away. I mean, it wasn't like yours. I thought at times, held onto the ball too long tonight, that wasn't the situation on that throw. He. Sawyer was there in a heartbeat. And then I just thought, like, I'm like. I'm like every other big guy. I was like, there's no way he's gonna make it. We never make it. You know what I mean? We never get all the. We never get all the way to the end zone. Like, I thought someone's gonna catch him. But no, ultimately a little disappointing at the end. I felt like, you know, I wanted Texas to score there. I wanted it to be a little bit more interesting. But I also. As soon as they got down to the goal line, I didn't have faith that they were going to get that ball, and I wasn't. I did not think for a moment that this was a lock that they were going to tie the game.
- [04:12]
Todd McShay
I didn't either, to be honest. And. And. And I heard Fowler, you know, talking already about what. What a response by Quinn Ewers and what a drive. And I'm like, whoa, slow down, man.
- [04:22]
Matt
Like, hey, is not in the barn yet, man.
- [04:27]
Todd McShay
I mean, what. Just a wild finish. But I want to say this. Just my initial reactions to the whole game, the game as a whole. Now, it was not great. It was not made for tv. Right. It just wasn't. But as the game went on, I. I grew an increasing level of respect for what was actually going on in the field. Okay. All right. I thought this was. This was like watching NFL defenses with. With college uniforms. Like, the level of play from Pete Kwikowski and his Texas defense and Jim Knowles from his. In the Ohio State defense. This is a game where, like, first of all, the College Football Playoff semifinals, if. If you're a big fan of wide receiver play, if that's why you're in it, like, this was not for you man. Like not your year was not for you. Jeremiah Smith came in on an absolute heater. They shut him down. I don't know if he. 1 for 3 was what he had. You know, deep into the game.
- [05:28]
Matt
I don't know what he ended up with.
- [05:30]
Todd McShay
So. But, but to the point coverages dropping 7, dropping 8. Disguising zone like eyes and instincts in zone coverage. The back seven of these. Of both of these defenses were absolutely phenomenal and not in a traditional way. When you think oh it was a defensive, hard fought defensive game. They're usually like sacks and great defensive individual efforts. Your pass rushers and one on one. It wasn't that. It was a bunch of dudes in the back seven playing with the, with the. The amount of discipline that you come to see from great NFL defenses like in their spots, dropping in zones, disguising coverage, timing things perfectly and it made for a boring game for, for a good portion of it made for a frustrating game for both of these quarterbacks. For the vast majority of the game took out all the top wide receivers. I mean Mika Mika. I thought, I thought early in the game, yes early in the game I thought this was going to be his game because it was a lot of zone coverage. His great. He was early on and then he went away and so now Jeremiah now the credit to to for Ohio State with Carnell Tate. You know he had. I don't know if he finished with it but like midway through the fourth quarter seven for 87 yards.
- [06:52]
Matt
He had a big game what he finished with. Yep.
- [06:54]
Todd McShay
And it was a result of something had to give on this smothering Texas defense is doing a great job in the zone coverage while also bringing another you know safety over bracket coverage doing all the things they had to do to keep Jeremiah Smith to one catch for three yards. So I give these both these teams like to game plan for this game to continue to show different things. And like how about. I mean how about Jim Knowles we talk so much about Chip Kelly and what he did in terms of adjusting things on offense. Becoming more aggressive in the past game. Opening things up counter, you know going from a zone blocking to to. To the guard tack guard tackle, backside misdirection. All the stuff that they were doing the offensive side. Well defensively you just the other day I thought did a brilliant job of. Of explaining like moving. Moving a corner into the free safety spot downs into that like that rat roll in the safety turning and covering and getting him closer to the line of scrimmage. Having A three deep. Nick Saban did a good breakdown on it today, too, for those of you who are watching. But I just thought it was brilliant defensive football, and it made two good college quarterbacks. Not great. Not elite prospects. Good college quarterbacks with a lot of wars on. I mean, what, like over a hundred games started between them? Something like that around that made them look very average. And even more so, I thought it made them look confused, like they were swimming in it. Especially yours, for a good portion of the night. Swimming in it, mentally.
- [08:33]
Matt
Yeah, it was. This was the microcosm of the Quinn Ewers experience.
- [08:37]
Todd McShay
Yes.
- [08:38]
Matt
Times where you like, you know, he goes. He flips the ball to the running back, and the running back makes a play. He made some nice throws. The blue, like, the touch. I mean, those throws, the blue. I know that, you know, one of them was wide open, and the other one, he had a blue. Had the linebacker beat. And I get it, but there were still nice throws. He made some nice throws in this game. And then he's stepping into sacks, then he's holding on to the ball too long. Then he's high on a throw. You know that drive just before Ohio State went up by 7, 21, 14. He had golden, and he just. And I know there's a little bit of pressure, man, but you gotta make that throw. And he just. He sailed. It sailed, and it was over Golden's head. And golden couldn't come down with it. I was just. If you just wanted him to be more consistent, you saw flashes of it like you always do. And then, I mean, what about the run where he did? They ended up reviewing it, and he was short, but they ended up. That was the play before the Arch Manning, where he ran and he lowered his shoulder, and I was like, all right, let's go, man. A little fire, a little emotion, you know, Willing to sacrifice your body to make a play that can get you rolling as a passer, too. But again, it's a microcosm, right? It's the. Good, good, good. What are we doing here? What are we doing? Okay, what are we doing now? And I thought that, you know, I don't think the strip sack is his fault. It'll be interesting to look back on it because again, I thought Cameron Williams got. Just got beat clean. And it's hard for a quarterback to see that coming right off the. The bat. But it'll be interesting to go back and look and see if there's, you know, when I think he's holding on to the ball, if he had better options because I just. It just felt like he was indecisive at times.
- [10:14]
Todd McShay
Nobody's the level of nonchalant that Cam Ward is. But, but watching yours all year long, it just leaves you wanting. And I feel like I've said that 10 times this year with, with Quinn Ewers and the Texas offense. There are so many flashes, there are drives, there's a play here and there. But, But Quinn Ewers just, he's. And, and I respect and appreciate the level of, of chill of poise the game, you know, the moment. Not being too big. He's excellent on finesse throws, layering the ball over touch, you know, angles. He's. He's great in certain, certain situations, certain throws. But when you need someone to just rear back and drive one. When you need a quarterback to like climb the pocket, quick, decisive ball out, but just rips. Rip it right. Not your guy. Very often, he's just not your man.
- [11:11]
Matt
You have an arm, rip it. There's sometimes I was saying that we flash.
- [11:14]
Todd McShay
We. He flashed in the, in the Arizona State game, right? That deep. Throw that into the end zone.
- [11:21]
Matt
Yeah.
- [11:21]
Todd McShay
Didn't see enough of that this year. Didn't. Certainly didn't see enough of that in this game. But I also, I think, I think both these defenses in Ohio State especially, like, they just were brilliant in their coverage. And it's like the more shots that I got from that sky cam view of what the quarterback was seeing in the back more I started to realize, like, yeah, he's swimming in it, but like, a lot of guys would be right. That's fair. You know, that's fair.
- [11:48]
Matt
Yeah, I would agree with that. Again, I want to see the, I want to see the, the coaches tape to see because it's tough when you're watching on tv. They show you the, the big plays, the third, the third down plays, you get to see a little bit what's going on on the coverage end of it. There's other times where you don't see it and it just feels like, come on, man, get it out. I will tell you something about this game, unless you want to make another point about you or.
- [12:09]
Todd McShay
No, no, we're doing a bounce around all over the place. Before you jump in, I just want to say thank you everyone. Again, this is two nights in a row. Audience keeps growing like the, the fact that people are coming on live to watch this show. We appreciate you. You've been here from the beginning, a lot of you, you continue to, to grow with us and we truly Appreciate it. So, and, and we tried. Like, we tried. I sent out the tweet, X, whatever you want to call it. I was like, let's go. You know, let's run it back tonight. And then by the time we got things fired up and going strip sack, I thought for sure, I didn't think for sure. We both stayed. But had there. Had Texas scored there, we would have been like, my eyes here. You would have been doing your thing right up the screen like last night, getting a stiff neck and we could have had a lot of fun. But. But we will. For those of you who are here now, we will be back. January 20th, national championship. The game is set. We've got number eight, Ohio State, which is ridiculous that they were number eight. Number seven, Notre Dame, ridiculous. They were number seven going head to head in the national championship. And, and, and we've already decided, no matter what happens, five minutes remaining in that game, we're going to be here live. Please come join us. We'll promote it and we'll remind people as we get closer. But again, we just want to truly show our appreciation for everyone being here. And, and yeah, we'll do our best for the next however many minutes to break this game down. Start projecting a little bit forward. And a couple things draft wise, I want to get into with you too, but go ahead. Matt. Sorry.
- [13:37]
Matt
Yeah, I thought outside of the, The Texas touchdown just to tie the game in the first half. From the time the. Trayvon Henderson punched, I don't even know. I can't remember who he punched in the face.
- [13:51]
Todd McShay
Yeah.
- [13:51]
Matt
From that time on, what a sloppy end of the half. Oh, my gosh, so many penalties. Then the refs missed the PI against Wingo. But yeah, fairness to them, throw the ball to like in the area. The ball wasn't even close. So the refs aren't really. It's tough for them to see that. I thought that, I thought that yours was so off on that throw that it cost them the penalty. You know what I mean? If that ball's even close, I think the refs are seeing that Wingo is getting interfered with. And then they have the, the, the call and the screen is a great. Let me listen. Trayvon Henderson, great vision, great patience, great play by him. Great play call by Chip. You can't let that happen if you're Texas, like.
- [14:32]
Todd McShay
No, it cannot. It's basically. It's the equivalent of giving up a Hail Mary.
- [14:39]
Matt
Right, Right.
- [14:41]
Todd McShay
It's like what Chicago did against Washington. Like the, you know, your cornerbacks taunting the. It Just, it can't.
- [14:50]
Matt
I love that defense. That defense, they did a great job with the staff.
- [14:56]
Todd McShay
That's the side of the game, but it just can't happen. And you know what it did, you know what it did mention. Here's what, here's the whole story of this game, right? The right team won this game. The better football team, the team who has played better the majority of the season, the team that has played better in the College Football Playoff won this semifinal game tonight. Ohio State has been the most dominant team in the College Football Playoff. There's no. No arguing that. No coach that was in the playoff would argue that they weren't the most dominant team tonight, but they were the. They didn't play like that dominant team that we had seen in the first two outings, but they were the most dominant team in this game, especially in the first half. What happened was self inflicted wounds, right? They controlled the line of scrimmage early in this game, both sides of the ball. I thought there was a chance after that first drive, first two series, that Ohio State was good. This is going to be an ugly one. I really did. And it didn't have that same feel of big plays and all that because Texas wasn't going to allow it. That's not what they do. They're a zone heavy defensive team. They're going to take away the big play. You're going to have to drive and earn it. Ohio State made three penalties, one on each of their three drives following that touchdown drive that ruined the drive. And in doing so, Ohio State let Texas back in. Because you saw all of a sudden this Texas defense that looked kind of knocked back on their heels, they came out and quit. Sean Judkin was running all over their ass like chunks and just more physical up front. But all of a sudden it was like, oh, a second and 20. Now like this Texas and deep. This Texas defense is like, we got an opportunity to get after the quarterback. And I saw a defense literally like before my eyes with each one of those penalties and each one of those series. In the first half, it was back to back to back. One penalty killed, what was early on a promising drive. And then you start to see the defensive lineman make it one big, one big play. But it was second and 25 or second and 20, you know what I mean? And so it went from like, would have been midfield to now they're back up on their own 20 and. And like they kind of bowing up their neck and it's like, yeah, we got this. All right, four Quarters. We're going to make this a four quarter fight, right? It's fine that yours is in the tank. It's fine that our offense can't run the football. We're going to keep this thing close. And so Texas had one drive in the first half and all of a sudden it's seven, seven. And now the, like that defense from the first series of the game to the second, got better to the third, got better to the fourth, was now the dominant unit on the field.
- [17:47]
Matt
Truly.
- [17:48]
Todd McShay
Right. So those three penalties, self inflicted wounds and the bonehead penalty on Henderson kept him alive. But then Henderson erased all that, right? He did. And then they come out and they, you know, didn't, didn't get off to a great start in the second half. Texas then has the, the really good drive that I thought that was a critical drive in, in the second half to what was. It was Jaden Blue. The second touchdown that he had. Right. The game, that, the play. Sorry. This, the series though that decided this game was Ohio State fourth quarter tied up 14, 14, 13 play drive the first eight. They came out and threw the ball eight straight passes and then it took the, the Will Howard run, chunk run. They got down to the eight and, and then it just. Then Ohio State was back to. All right, we're gonna, we're gonna have a physical. You just like they did on that very first drive of the game. And it was just, it was three runs from the eight yard line and they just out muscled Texas. That, that drive to me was, was the difference in this game.
- [19:01]
Matt
Yeah. The Will Howard run, which I think Fowler called or Irby might have called Fowler.
- [19:05]
Todd McShay
Fowler predicted it.
- [19:07]
Matt
Yeah, that was a. And they talked about it. But I'm, I'm just going to echo it because I thought it was a really important point formation wise. It's. We always talk about this with offense. It's a numbers game. Especially with the rpo, the development of these things. It's a numbers game and you're looking at that defensive front and there's a defender over the tackle, a defender over the guard and defender over center and then there's no one. And you're seeing that and you're thinking my, you're thinking to yourself, I'm gonna, I mean I run left, I gotta, I got a hat on a hat. I feel really good about our numbers if I go that way, especially if it's a quarterback run because you got the extra blocker. I thought it was a great call and I thought the Texas wasn't prepared for it, they didn't make the right adjustment adjustments in terms of their alignment and in terms of their personnel, but it does. Why, so why didn't they? Well, because you have these studs at wide receiver on the other side of the formation. They had three. They're other three top receivers on the right side of the formation, and Howard runs left. So you're putting safeties over there. You're making sure that these guys still aren't going to beat you over the top. The problem is that it opened it up for the Will Howard run. I gotta say something. I gotta like, aesthetically, Will Howard's. I don't love him at times, like when he stumbles and he falls and, and, you know, I think that's, it's kind of a problem that I need to, like, get that out of my mind when I'm evaluating him. And I thought he got lucky with a couple throws tonight. Like, he threw one to that Scott caught into traffic, and I was like, good luck making that play every time. And then there was another one that went through, I think, Hill's hands early on, and then he had a pick and there was just a couple plays where I was like, ah, I don't know. But you know what? He made it, he made plays when it mattered, man. And you got to give him credit for that. And I just think that I maybe, you know, I know it's hard on him earlier, and I know that he didn't play as well tonight, but they played the best team they've played so far. I know they played Tennessee or the best defense, right? Yeah, they played Tennessee and Oregon. I think this, the Texas defense is better than both of those units. So I think there's a little bit of a, you're expecting a little bit of a coming back to earth for Will Howard, but he still played well.
- [21:13]
Todd McShay
He did. And I, I, I'll give him, I'll give him this, this for credit. They haven't leaned on him all year, really. They, they gave him the opportunity. They opened things up in the previous two games, right? It was just the game plan they came in with. They leaned on him tonight. They, the run game wasn't there. And, and, and Chip. Chip recognized that like Henderson, Judkins combined had 15 carries. They weren't running on this, Tex. After there were, after that first drive, they just, they recognized we're gonna have to throw to win this game. Now the running backs got heavily involved. Like, Henderson had the one catch for 75. Judkins had three catches for 22. But it was interesting to see that 33 pass attempts for, for Will Howard in this game compared to the run game. Just 15 carries for those two guys. And Will Howard had seven runs of his own, seven carries of his own. A couple of those were, were sacks. But it was just, it was interesting to see how the, the shift in that like late in this, I remember that Nebraska game tighter than it should have been, that hell or high water were running the football. Right.
- [22:30]
Matt
Right.
- [22:32]
Todd McShay
Penn State at times, you know, Howard made a couple mistakes in that game. Hell or high water, run the football. Michigan can't run the ball. Still running the football. That's when it all shifted. But, but Howard has been, he hasn't been brilliant by any stretch of the imagination. No, but, but he has absolutely. I don't feel like he carried the team in the previous two games, although he was, he was the, the distributor to a lot of big plays. Right. And a scheme that was scheming up wide open receivers and one on ones. And Jeremiah Smith was phenomenal and Abuka was, was outstanding. Right. I felt like those were the receivers in the scheme tonight. It felt like Will Howard's going to determine whether we win or lose this game. And he did what he had to do. Wasn't brilliant through the interception. Had some, some moments where it was frustrating. It's never pretty, my God, is it? It's just never pretty. But that's why they brought him. You asked me like why did they bring him in? You asked me in mid season or right, three quarters, why him? Why not the kid up in Syracuse. This is why.
- [23:42]
Matt
Or why not Cam Ward? And we, we talked about this a little bit. Why not Cam Ward? Why not, you know, one of those bigger name transfer portal guys. And you know, you think of Will Howard, you're like, oh really? Will Howard? And we talked about it then like he's a fit. He fits what they want to do. He's fit for what they are. So it's the fit.
- [24:01]
Todd McShay
It's the fit and it's, it's just enough running ability to keep you honest. But it's not going to be the feature.
- [24:08]
Matt
You know, I thought Chip and Howard, the first drive. Chips play calling. Howard's execution was a thing of beauty. They're mixing in run, they're mixing in past. They took the deep shot to Smith, didn't hit. But they said they sent the message of, hey listen, I mean he may have one for three tonight, but he's going to open up all kinds of space for everyone else.
- [24:32]
Todd McShay
And if you stop if you stop giving him that attention. Yeah, if you stop giving him that attention, fine. Give him that attention all night. He doesn't have to catch the ball again. Or. Or maybe, you know, one or two catches tonight, and that's going to open up every other thing for us to a certain degree. But, yeah, that was fascinating.
- [24:52]
Matt
So I thought they had their first series was, I mean, boom, boom, boom. I wrote efficient, methodical. He was accurate. He was getting the ball out on time. They're mixing and run with pass. I thought they were throwing to different levels of the defense. I thought. I thought it was. It really knocked Texas off balance with the way they came out of the gate. I thought it was a great job by Chip, and I thought it was a great job of Howard executing that. That script.
- [25:17]
Todd McShay
You know who's awesome tonight? Sunny Styles.
- [25:22]
Matt
Yeah. Other than he did get beat on the touchdown, I think, but he. Listen, man, I've been saying this for a few weeks now.
- [25:28]
Todd McShay
Yeah. And Simon has. Simon's been the better player. But. But, yeah, Styles tonight, outside of that one play, I thought played it the best game I've seen all season. But you're right. You've been. Even the last two weeks, you've said. I. I mentioned Simon. You said don't keep an eye on Styles, too. Styles was awesome tonight. Team high six, nine tackles. Had a sack. Felt like he was just around the ball a lot. Made a couple plays in coverage. I just, I. I was impressed by him.
- [25:58]
Matt
Those safeties as good as advertised. Although they were as good as advertised. The corners I still have concerns about, but who's.
- [26:05]
Todd McShay
When's the last time you heard Igbanosin's name or Burke without a.
- [26:12]
Matt
And I don't even mean to be like. I don't mean to be like a critical or like a, you know, the grumpy old man without it being attached to a call. I don't know. I mean, the Penn State, the 10 state interception is outrageous. An unbelievable play he made. But he. I think I saw it tonight. 14 flags this year. 14 flags?
- [26:34]
Todd McShay
Really?
- [26:35]
Matt
Yeah. And I think that might have been before he got his last one. So that's been a real issue for them. But again, we talked. We. How many times have we had a conversation about Ohio State's got all these receivers. There's a couple other teams that we liked, but none of the top end contenders had that, like, stable of weapons that they could come out and really ch. Challenge these corners. And now you. Now you get Notre Dame. And I don't want to look Too far ahead here. I know. We're reviewing this game next.
- [27:03]
Todd McShay
Holy breaking news. Breaking news. Don't look at your screen. Have you looked at your screen? Don't look at your screen.
- [27:09]
Matt
I saw it. I saw.
- [27:12]
Todd McShay
All right, everyone watching on the live screen right now. We just fanduel. Breaking news. We just got this in. I love this stuff, man. What's the spread? Ohio State, Notre Dame, national championship game. What is the spread? I'm gonna try to pull up.
- [27:33]
Matt
Are you asking me?
- [27:34]
Todd McShay
I'm trying. No, I'm asking everyone who's watching live, man. I was trying to pull up our feed right now and see. See if we can get some answers. Here we go. Live feed. Come on, give me your answers. I want to see them. Everyone, our guys.
- [27:50]
Matt
Said, get it in now. If you can get Ohio State, Notre Dame in now, get it in now. Because if Ohio State wins this game convincingly, and I think when you look at 2814, it feels kind of convincingly, then that number's gonna jump, and it's already jumped.
- [28:04]
Todd McShay
All right. Always trade back. It said minus nine and a half. Scumbag. You already knew it. Corey Hand. Corey Hansford's the only guy on this. On this live feed right now is being honest. He's got Ohio State six and a half. Bradley Wilson's another cheater. Elijah Taylor minus 10.
- [28:22]
Matt
These are our listeners.
- [28:23]
Todd McShay
Res March. I know they're flying in. Jason James minus eight. Chase Bigelow says Ohio State minus 100. Corey Ballas minus 21. Keith Merce, Mercer Mercy, minus 14. Trevor Carpine minus two. It's nine and a half, folks. It's nine and a half. I don't know why it shocked me. I didn't.
- [28:50]
Matt
It's a big number for a championship game.
- [28:53]
Todd McShay
It's a big number for a championship game. Thank you, everyone, for. For throwing those in. I appreciate you guys.
- [29:00]
Bill Simmons
This episode is brought to you by Viori. I love sports. I know you do, too. I also know that lots of you exercise. But if you're like me and my wife, though, the beloved sports gal, you're sick and tired of ugly, uncomfortable workout gear especially. You know, I do a lot of walking. I walk around la. I make calls. I listen to podcasts. Here are two words that will change everything. Viori clothing. A line of activewear that is unbelievable. The best thing about Vuori is you can lounge around in it, you can work out in it, you can go outside, you can go shopping down your local wherever, and you never feel like you're either underdressed or overdressed. You're just comfortable. You can wear it when you're training, traveling, lounging around the house, go get yourself some of the most comfortable and versatile clothing on the planet. Here's the deal. Our listeners get 20% off their first purchase at vuori.comsimmons Once again, V-U-O-R-I.comsimmons this.
- [29:58]
Shopify Ad
Episode is brought to you by Shopify. Upgrade your business with Shopify, home of the number one checkout on the planet. Shop pay boosts conversions up to 50%, meaning fewer carts going abandoned and more sales going cha ching. So if you're into growing your business, get a commerce platform that's ready to sell wherever your customers are. Visit shopify.com to upgrade your selling today.
- [30:20]
Todd McShay
The McShay show is brought to you by FanDuel Football Fans Buckle up because for the first time ever, we've got five straight days of playoff football and FanDuel is celebrating with the great playoff payoff. That's a no sweat same game parlay every day for all five days. How about that? With a no sweat sgp, you can combine your bets from the same game for a chance at even bigger winnings and if it doesn't hit, you'll get bonus bets back. There's a lot to get excited about for these NFL wildcard playoff games, but the game that really stands out to me Baltimore hosting Pittsburgh. Everyone knows the Steelers are limping in five straight losses. That spread is at 10. The Ravens are favored by 10 points in that game. It doesn't seem high enough to me. I think the Steelers problems are real on the offensive side. I think Baltimore is hungry. I look for the Ravens at home in that environment to be at least a two touchdown winner in this game. So not only do we get to watch five straight days of playoff football, but that's also five chances to win big. Just visit FanDuel.com McShay that's FanDuel.com McShray it's the great playoff payoff and it's only on FanDuel. America's number one sportsbook must be 21 and older and present in select states or 18 plus and present in DC. Opt in required minimum three leg parlay required Refund issued as a non withdrawable bonus bets that expire 7 days after receipt. Max refund $5 unless otherwise specified restrictions apply including token expiration. See terms@sportsbook.fanduel.com gambling problem. Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit rg-help.com I like this. We got we Got like a little community here, man. We're gonna grow this thing.
- [32:13]
Matt
Yeah.
- [32:13]
Todd McShay
I mean, It's Die Hards. 11:35 Eastern Time. Joining us on the show.
- [32:18]
Matt
That's awesome.
- [32:19]
Todd McShay
And the quick responses. I appreciate it. Let me think. Let's just be honest with ourselves.
- [32:26]
Matt
Okay.
- [32:26]
Todd McShay
You asked. You asked me the question. Tucker doesn't ruin it. Ruin the surprise. But he broke the news for us. Ohio State, Notre Dame. I would have said what it was six tonight. Yeah, I guess I would have said seven and a half. May maybe six and a half seven, but seven and a half. That's interesting. Here's the other thing and I'm just gonna throw the caveat. We'll come back to it, but. Caveat. The injuries for Notre Dame are. Are real like that. That's. You know, and I'm not saying they're all going to be but like figuring out between now and then, if. If you're trying to just annihilate the. The book fanduel take him down. You're gonna have to really get the injury information because. Because that. I mean, there's a lot of question marks versus Ohio State. Like, yeah, JTT kind of tweaked his. His ankle today.
- [33:29]
Matt
But this.
- [33:30]
Todd McShay
I mean, look, though he came back and played well. He did. Yeah, he came back. All right. So jumped in.
- [33:38]
Matt
No eyes. Not. Not to preview that game. Right now I'm trying to like, save that for the. For the next time we sit down and talk. But it's. Right now I'm looking at that and thinking and try and I'm already like projecting forward what I saw tonight, whether or not Notre Dame can do some of those things both schematically and personnel wise. But we'll get.
- [33:57]
Todd McShay
Go ahead. This is. This is your show just as much as it is TJ Raymond's and. And Quentin and everybody else who just chimed in. Go ahead.
- [34:06]
Matt
What do you. Man a lot of. Man a lot of single high and I wonder if Al.
- [34:11]
Todd McShay
And rely on it.
- [34:13]
Matt
Yeah. I wonder if Al Golden's defense coordinator is going to come in and say that's our identity. Or is he going to say, I just saw what Texas did to effectively slow down and I think they did. Remember, they had the defensive touchdown and they had the screen pass. So take away. You know, and I'm not saying that you can take away those scores, but Texas had a good game plan, I think for this game.
- [34:31]
Todd McShay
I think if you're looking at phenomenal. Right.
- [34:33]
Matt
So we both agree on that.
- [34:35]
Todd McShay
Jeremiah Smith had one catch.
- [34:37]
Matt
Right. So if you're looking at that. I'm saying myself no matter what, Smith can't beat us which to me is too high looks. So is golden gonna be. Are they going to transition to more too high looks and and play it safer or are they going to do what's gotten to the national championship which I'll be blunt, I think is a mistake. It'll be oh man, imagine if Morrison was still healthy and they had him in this game in that matchup. That have been unbelievable. Unbelievable. But unfortunately that's not the case.
- [35:03]
Todd McShay
First round cornerback. He was ascending towards that to an.
- [35:07]
Matt
All universe wide receiver. Yeah. So does golden switch it up or does he stay or is he one of those guys that says this is our identity, this is what we do.
- [35:17]
Todd McShay
I don't see them changing. I think it's hard to. Yeah. I mean but it was hard for. For Chip to go from. From zone scheme to counter. It was hard for Knowles to go from. From his coverage look to. To bringing. Bringing Caleb Downs in and playing him as the Tampa 2 linebacker essentially with a lot of like three. Three deep safety, three high safety looks like. Yeah, it's hard but you got. They've got an extra day of prep. 11 days as we chronicled last night. I'm. I don't see them changing schematically what they're doing but there's gonna have to be wrinkles and adjustments.
- [35:54]
Matt
Right.
- [35:55]
Todd McShay
And and and we said this during the season with Notre Dame. They never really faced. They never face what's. Indiana was the closest thing. Right.
- [36:06]
Matt
Right.
- [36:07]
Todd McShay
To a pat. To a like a pat a dangerous passing attack. Right. Am I wrong?
- [36:13]
Matt
No. I mean their other big one was at Texas A M and, and that's.
- [36:17]
Todd McShay
When George's biggest weakness personnel wise wide receiver led the nation in drops. Had a couple guys who are dangerous but could never put together a complete.
- [36:28]
Matt
Game and a guy making his first.
- [36:29]
Todd McShay
Start of quarterback and I've got exactly Penn State. Really. Truly. They're only like only personnel weakness is wide receiver. My goodness, did it stand out. They didn't have a receiver with a freaking catch. Okay. They played. They played the army and Navy and a couple times they USC not world beaters and a backup quarterback. Right. Who became the start but like the guy who didn't start the season right. Who was inexperienced shredded him for like 365 or something like that. So. And I'm. Yeah, it's going to be a big challenge talking myself into Ohio State -9 and a half. No. But we got a lot of time to get into that, but that, that will be fascinating. The injuries will be fascinating, matching up in coverage and like you said, and Texas almost did it tonight. Texas actually effectively did do it. Texas was what, four yards away at one point from tying this game and things getting really dicey. Texas did it tonight. Exactly what you said. Watch out. Mess around long enough and find out with Notre Dame, they will drag you into a fight you're not comfortable fighting in and then see what happens in the fourth quarter. And that's what Notre Dame does at a very high level, and that's what Ohio State has got to guard against in that game.
- [38:01]
Matt
Agree. All right, I'm jumping around on you now.
- [38:04]
Todd McShay
Okay.
- [38:05]
Matt
Did you see the report that yours.
- [38:07]
Todd McShay
Is, is, I did. That's exactly where I was gonna go.
- [38:09]
Matt
All right, let's go. What do you got?
- [38:12]
Todd McShay
I think I sat here and I yelled and screamed about Carson Beck and how, how an NFL scout said he was foolish and how I completely agreed. I, I think I've been yelling and screaming about Jalen Milroe, how, how he needs to go back. Not because he won't be a high draft picker, where he'll go in the draft because he ain't ready. And I'm, I, I, I spent so many years in this career worrying about where a guy's going to go and get drafted and, and I guess I've gotten closer to the game and closer to the players every year and going out to pro days and I've been around too many families and too many sisters and girlfriends and mothers and dads and who have like all of it. And I'm getting older, I'm probably getting softer. Like I care about these guys. Even the guys I don't yet know, I, I care like I want what's best for them. Garrett Nussmeier, we said from the beginning. Yeah, he'll, he'll, he'll be. If he decides to flip tomorrow, January 15th, the date, we got five days until the underclassman declaration, unless it's changed a little bit. But it's always January 15th. Right. Right. In and around that date, Garrett Nussmeier decides to come out. He's gonna be a first round draft pick at quarterback. Is he ready? No. Does that put him in a position where that he's got to start early in his career? Yes. And if he's in that position, did Garrett Nussmeier the last few weeks at LSU look like a guy that was, was ready to go in and went over and like to have success in an NFL offense? No, Carson Beck, the same thing. Carson Beck. Georgia fans. Hey, how are you? You've hated me for several things over the years, you know, and like I love you, I love Athens. We talked about Chuck's fish. Like I don't know what the feud is but I said all along Carson Beck's not ready. Carson Beck's making a huge mistake. I even went as far as to go and break down his salary over a four year span if he was a second to third round draft pick. Literally sat there and gave you pick 33 to 62 and what it would be and he's going to make more money in an nil. So if you're not developmentally, developmentally ready, you got opportunities and you're actually going to make more money. And I remember saying this to you, Mitch. I was yelling kind of like I'm yelling now and I don't know why I'm yelling now but I love, I was saying he's what's an nil worth if he goes somewhere? If he comes back to, I, I thought maybe come back to Athens. And I was like, I'm sure the folks in Athens will raise like two, two and a half, three. I don't know what I, I said at the time. I don't know what an nil deal is. I've heard different numbers here and there. It's not what I cover. Now he's making $4 million to go to Miami.
- [40:53]
Matt
What's wrong with that?
- [40:55]
Todd McShay
Four times more money he would have made as a rookie quarterback as a second round draft pick if he was a second round draft pick because he wasn't going to be a first round draft pick. Will Levis made 9, 985, $995,000 as a rookie second round pick is what I read today. That's four times as much money to go back and, and play in a new system, get a different opportunity, see if that fits a little bit better. Play with new wide receivers, play with competent wide receivers. They got some there at Miami. Try to have the season in 2025 that you were hoping to have in 2024. And let's see now, maybe now that rookie contract, that rookie year is instead of $990,000, it's 3 or 4 million and you're not taking a pay cut going to the NFL. So, so all of that ranting and raving gets me back to the point. I don't know that another year with Quinn Ewers is necessarily going to change him. Like I think it could elevate A Carson back, Garrett Nussmeier, Jalen Milro. If I'm being totally honest, I think there's. There's a difference. But I also think we didn't see the best of Quinn Ewers this year. Whether it was the oblique injury, whether it was the ankle injury at times, whether it was the pressure of playing at Texas, which is a lot more overwhelming than people think. Just go ask, like, the handful of coaches who have been fired. It's a different animal. It's like the. The media coverage, Texas high school football, all of it. Maybe just an opportunity to get somewhere else, see the game a little differently. New opportunity. We. We've talked about every single one of these quarterbacks. Jaden Daniels, really, Caleb Williams, Bo Nix, Michael Penix, all these guys. New spot, could have a really good career somewhere, like in Texas. Quinn, yours had a really, really good career at Texas. It's over at Texas. Now. The report that you're referring to is he talked to Pete Thamel, and unlike Drew Eller, Quinn, yours came out. And when Drew Eller was asked the question, hey, you still. You're still standing by, you're coming back to Penn State next year, he said, I don't know. We're gonna have to. I'm just gonna deal with that after the season's over. Whereas he already had declared, if you will, that he was coming back to school. And the. When the question was. Was asked by Pete Thamill to Quinn Newers. I don't. I'm paraphrasing, but I. I have no intention of playing college football next year was ultimately what he was saying, right?
- [43:28]
Matt
Yep.
- [43:30]
Todd McShay
When I talk to NFL teams and I. And I've solicited and I've gotten unsolicited, every single one of them, even before I was starting to ask the question. And I. And it wasn't even in my head of Quinn going back because he's played a lot of ball and Sark's an awesome coach, and Sark has developed. A lot of guys have gone on and had success in the NFL. Sark was with Matt Ryan. Like, he's been in the end, like, you're not going to get much better than. Than Sark, but maybe a different setting. Doesn't matter what I think for a second when I'm talking to guys in the league. Landslide. He needs to grab transfer. Everyone knows. Everyone knows. It's arches. It became Arch's gig the second that gun went off. Right. It's Arch's gig next year in Texas. Archie. Archie Manning will be the Starting quarterback there. But everyone I said is grad, transfer, transfer somewhere, where else? Get one more year. What do you think?
- [44:22]
Matt
I think you should. I mean, let me ask you this. I'm gonna fire right back at you. You're the advisory committee. And he puts his name in. What, are you coming?
- [44:29]
Todd McShay
Go back to school. We said it last night. But for those of you who weren't with us last night, the advisory committee is made up of, excuse me, ex NFL personnel, people, scouts, guys who, who know how to evaluate players. The NFL put this in, they put it, put it into motion several years ago for the purpose of, of trying to combat the bad information that was out there by NFL agents. Okay? And so for so many years we saw all these guys being told their first round draft picks, you know, and guys coming out and they would go in the sixth or seventh round, they'd hire, they'd go to all these training facilities and rack up. People are like, oh, you signed with an agent. Oh, you're going to train with, you know, you're going to train out in Phoenix, you're going down to Bradenton, you're going. It's like, yeah, they are and it's cool. But what people don't realize on the outside looking in, and I've experienced it like with Peter Warwick and, and Travis Taylor, Ron Dugan, Daryl Jackson, all those guys I helped train when I was first coming out of college, right. We were down in Bradenton doing it with them and all that. And there were a couple other players, I won't mention their names that came along because they, you know, they played at the same schools and were friends of those guys and, and the agency that I was helping out, I was just helping out to show them like what the combine drills are, you know, all that stuff. They're, they're living the lap of luxury. And Saddlebrook, look up Saddlebrook, like, you know, like Martina Hingis, I think it was Jennifer Capriotti. They were trying to advance into the, into NFL, into football, right? They were doing a lot of, a lot of tennis at the time. A lot of the big stars, beautiful facility, pools, massages every day, like athletic massages, training, all the stuff for like high level athletes. But you had some of these guys who were fifth round linebackers and like a seventh round offensive guard that were hanging out there and racking up fifty, sixty, seventy thousand dollar bills that weren't as big as their signing bonuses, right?
- [46:30]
Matt
Someone's got to pay for all that stuff.
- [46:32]
Todd McShay
Someone's got to pay for all this stuff. And I don't even. I forgot my train of thought. I got so deep in the story. Where are we going with that mention?
- [46:40]
Matt
We're going with the, we were talking about the advice.
- [46:42]
Todd McShay
Or the advisory committee comes.
- [46:43]
Matt
Why it developed.
- [46:44]
Todd McShay
Yeah, the advisory committee comes in to try to help prevent a lot of that stuff. And so the advisory committee, now you have to, you have to submit your name. I think school only. Schools can only put in five names. I think that's what it is. But anyway, not to get caught up in the logistics, but it's too late now. They give you three, one of three grades, first round grade, second round grade, or go back to school. So when I say the grade I would give if I was on that committee to Quinn Ewers would be go back to school because I think he quite honestly would be a third, fourth round draft pick.
- [47:16]
Matt
Wow.
- [47:17]
Todd McShay
You.
- [47:18]
Matt
I, I don't. It's not, I hate being on the fence. It's not that I disagree with you. It's just that. And, and that's the grade I would give him, right? I would get, I would give him a third round grade. I would give him, you know, maybe a fourth round grade, probably a third round grade. But the class is so weak, it's probably going to inflate his value a little bit. Where he actually goes will probably be earlier than where we or I would grade him. So I get that at the same time, I do. I, I completely agree with you on the overall point, which is he should go back to school. I do think he might go earlier than the third. You know, maybe someone falls in love with them, maybe has a great pro day, the pre draft process, all that stuff could all fall in line. But even if that does fall in line, I don't see him going early first round. That's just, I don't see that he's got too much ground to cover to get there, in my opinion. And I also believe maybe more so than you do, listen to what you had to say about the other quarterbacks. I think he would benefit from going back. I think momentum and confidence are a huge part of that position. And if you can go to a school and you can get that M.O. going a little bit and that confidence and you start putting up big numbers and you're like, oh my. And you stay healthy for a year. That's the other thing. We don't know behind the scenes about what the kid's been dealing with in terms of his health. I, I don't think it can hurt him if he's and he's getting paid. This was. Remember when these kids had to make a decision of I'm gonna have to go and try and support my family.
- [48:43]
Todd McShay
Yes.
- [48:44]
Matt
It's a totally different world. That's not a thing for the players that we're talking about tonight. That's not a thing for a queen.
- [48:50]
Todd McShay
Because if you're gonna go get paid in the NFL, you're getting paid in college. And then I get it. A guard or a tackle isn't getting as much, but a first round tackle or second round tackle is still getting enough money where it's, it's helping out. Right.
- [49:04]
Matt
Not for nothing, but if someone came up to us at the end of our careers in college, it was like, I'll give you, you know, 750, 000 to hang around. Now that wasn't like really in our the stars for us, but if someone said that to you, I mean, what are we doing? I get to go back.
- [49:20]
Todd McShay
Someone said 20 grand. I want you to think about it. Like we were hard up for like a night out in.
- [49:30]
Matt
Yeah.
- [49:32]
Todd McShay
You know, like.
- [49:32]
Matt
Yeah, ramen. We had to eat ramen during the.
- [49:35]
Todd McShay
Off season because Papa John's like we were looking for those coupons, you know. Yeah, we are.
- [49:43]
Matt
But that being said, go back. And we've been saying this, this has been an overall theme for, for us for a little while now. And I just think it's true. Even, even, you know, to, to spread it out a little bit too. Like the tackle, Cameron Williams from Texas is a really talented kid. This was his first year as a full starter. He got beat tonight and he. And he's had that problem on tape too where he's lunged and he got beat by Jack Sawyer for the sack. Go back, man. Go back. I'm sure he's going to get a little money too. He's that talented of a player and he's going to be a very good pro in the long run. I think he's going to be a really good pro football player. But right now he's just got some things to work on and he's only got one season of starting under his belt. Why not go back and you know, Austin seems like an awesome place to be. I don't understand why don't stop rushing this if you're these kids. Like, if it's just there's no need for you to get out earlier than when you're ready.
- [50:36]
Todd McShay
I thought the defense was awesome. I'm going back to Ohio State. Let's swing it back. And, and I love the yours talk and I love, I love the draft talk and I can't wait. January 21, like, we're, we're gonna hang. Yeah, we're gonna, I promise we'll be a fun hang. I can't always promise that year round, but for a few months we're gonna, we're gonna do some, some awesome stuff and have a lot of fun and talking to GMs and scouts and breaking down tape and, and going through the process and, and really doing it right. And we're going to get creative and we're going to show you kind of behind the curtain of everything we do. But I do want to make sure that, like, if, if you tuned in tonight to talk about Ohio State and that awesome win that we, we get enough into it. And yet I keep looking like we covered Will Howard. Jeremiah Smith didn't do much. Mecca Buka was, was really good early. I think he had one other catch that I can remember that was like, of significance, but he tailed off. Carnell Tate we talked about was awesome. 7 for 87. I don't know if that was his final numbers. I'll look it up here. Yeah, 7 for 87. They needed him tonight. They haven't needed Carnell Tate. Carnell Tate has been like, you know, throw some sprinkles on the top. Yeah. And, and I think they said in the broadcast, I agree, he'd be a number one or number two. Most places he'd be a feature.
- [51:54]
Matt
Penn State would love a Carnell Tate.
- [51:56]
Todd McShay
Oh, my God. Gosh, I can't unsee that. I can't. I still can't unsee that. We've had some bad wide receiver playing college football this year, but at Ohio State, it's, it's, it's their calling card. And we had some, some not some featured wide receiver play at Ohio State for a long time, but not the case. And to see a guy like Carnell Tate step up, that's huge, you know, and, but this defense, I just keep going back to it. I like, like Styles was awesome. Hancock made a lot of plays downs with the interception at the end of the game, I didn't like he, he wasn't on TV as much tonight, but he's still like, I caught him in the tail end, like trailing guys deep in coverage, you know, I'll be interested to go back and watch the tape, but just like locking guys down all night.
- [52:46]
Matt
He had a big tackle on the, in on that goal line run where they tried to run outside with blue late. Yeah, that Was the same thing.
- [52:52]
Todd McShay
Yeah, oh yeah. When the insects, when he went on the inside out, right.
- [52:55]
Matt
And you're like dude, not a lot of guys could do that. And there are a lot of guys, you wouldn't even tell them to do that. You, you're telling them to fight over. But he's closes and he reacts so fast. He's one of those, you know, unique individuals that can do it.
- [53:09]
Todd McShay
I mean Captain Jack, you know, he.
- [53:11]
Matt
Had an unreal game.
- [53:13]
Todd McShay
He did. And then not like he didn't have like 10 tackles or anything but like the batted down pass early on doing a good job containing. When I saw at times when they're trying to run outside of him being physically he's gotten more violent. I don't know where it came from. I don't know if it was the planting the flag in Michigan like but he has been more, that whole defensive line has been more violent during this po. It's what the coaching staff was looking for all year long. It's what NFL scouts who I've talked to who have left Columbus disappointed in September and October to a certain degree, just like expecting more, wanting more. Right. It wasn't, it's not like we, I thought we had a bunch of first rounders, 20 million dollar roster. This is like this defense has played to the level that we, we were hoping to see all season long. And, and Captain Jack like you know he had a few tackles but he had the, the sack. He had the batted down pass early in the game. He, he had obviously you know, the fumble recovery return for the touchdown that sealed the game. But just. I don't know. This defense has gotten better and better. It's been fun to watch.
- [54:18]
Matt
Jack Kenyatta, Jackson and Ty Williams all had bad passes and it was a. I, I thought it really affected what Texas trying to do over the middle of the field. They did. I mean they do a great job of just reading the quarterback and getting their hands up and being disruptive in that way if they're not going to get home. I, it jumped out to me. It was in a weird way I thought of like the hockey players, they always talk about block dots. All of a sudden block shots become this big deal and it's like oh, look at this guy blocking the shot. And then he's. I remember a Bruin player broke his leg and had a skate off on one thing but it becomes a something.
- [54:54]
Todd McShay
They don't say that all year long because I, because I'll, I'll self admit I don't watch hockey for A single.
- [55:00]
Matt
Playoff thing, I'm telling you.
- [55:01]
Todd McShay
Okay.
- [55:02]
Matt
Guys are sacrificing their body and it's the same thing. Like you're like, oh, he batted a pass down. What's the big deal? It really in, in these games, these competitive, close, you know, playoff games, man, everything counts. And when you start to make plays like that, it's, you know, it's a big deal to me.
- [55:19]
Todd McShay
Who stands to benefit the most? I'm just looking. Let's take a look. Ohio State, 15 draft prospects with, with grades in the top 250. That was, you know, over a month ago. Still a lot of work to do, but it's just a feel. Notre Dame, not as many. Xavier Watts has been the stud. Mitchell Evans has improved. Howard Cross is still playing on like one leg. It seems like at times. Yeah. Who stands to benefit the most? Like who, who jumps out? I just feel like we've seen so much ball this year. It's like different. Right. We used to have like a playoff game or a championship game or even a semi final. Like we hadn't seen it. Like we're now into like 16 games and stuff. Yeah.
- [56:07]
Matt
I mean the court, listen, the quarterbacks, you know, are they both, are they.
- [56:12]
Todd McShay
Both going to the Senior Bowl?
- [56:13]
Matt
I think they are. I think that's right. Yeah.
- [56:15]
Todd McShay
Riley Leonard is.
- [56:16]
Matt
Yeah, yeah, they both are and Howard is. Yeah. And we'll see how the schedule unfolds because it's tough. It really is tough for those guys. I hope they're there, but it's, it is the games one week after. It's literally they'd have to win the, they'd win, you know, play in the championship game and then they're there the following Monday. So I hope they're there, but I think those are guys, you know, it's maybe not the most exciting two players to talk about, but I do think it's opportunities for them to kind of improve their stock. I mean, who else? I think, I mean you're looking at that. It's, it's tough for me to say based on one game because I think that a lot of that Ohio State front seven has steadily been, been climbing in the last month.
- [57:02]
Todd McShay
Yeah, I just wanted, I wanted to take a look to see if there was like a guy or two that could jump out.
- [57:08]
Matt
I, I may we'll have something on Tuesday.
- [57:10]
Todd McShay
I, I think those linebacker, I think those linebackers for Ohio State will continue. Like this is a great opportunity against that, that offensive line, those running backs, three headed monster, if they can continue. But they're not going to be taxed. No, that back seven is not going to be taxed. This is going to be brutal sledding for Notre Dame. They're going to have to be creative. They're going to have to whip some ass up front. And I. And I'm not saying that like it's. It's not a Notre Dame thing. I just don't know many. How many. How many offensive lines in the country can whoop some ass against Ohio State right now, the way that defensive front is playing.
- [57:52]
Matt
Damn.
- [57:53]
Todd McShay
All right. You got anything else, man?
- [57:56]
Matt
I think that that's. I will say this. Jeremiah Smith excited to see what he does in the next game. And I think it's, you know, I get it. One for three. I do think that it's important not to overlook the contribution that kind of a player makes even when they're not touching the ball. And that Jeremiah Smith, again, we. We hinted at it, we talked about it a little bit. The. The way he's opening up space for other guys. And even the run game, he's the. Those are the kind of players, those, you know, elite players that can affect a game when it. When they're not. Even when they're not getting touches and making the big plays that they. They can make, you know, because you just. Again, Texas couldn't. They may have wanted to commit another defender of the box to stop the run. They may have wanted to bring pressure at times. It's difficult to do when you have that kind of a threat on the outside.
- [58:44]
Todd McShay
Always trade back's been here from the start, so I want to give some love. He said Cody Simon versus Jeremiah Love. I agree. That's a good one. That's a great matchup. I'm gonna. Let's do this. Molina. I believe it's Molina McGlynn. What do you. What do you think? Gotta finish with this match. Okay, great question. It's got to go to Mensch. What did you think of Ohio State's offensive line tonight?
- [59:09]
Matt
The penalties were tough, but it's just. It's just a group that continues to gut it out. I mean, you. And they're going kind of like you.
- [59:18]
Todd McShay
With your voice right there.
- [59:19]
Matt
Yeah, it did. You know, I mean.
- [59:23]
Todd McShay
When you're talking.
- [59:24]
Matt
About guys like Colin Simmons, they are a handful, and it's not clean, it's not perfect. I don't think they're the. I don't think they're the best offensive line in the country. But Donovan Jackson, to think about the guys that they have lost and then Moving. There's probably their second best offensive lineman in Jackson to tackle. They've lost a guy that I think is going to be, is in the mix to be the first tackle off the board in the draft. You lost a center who won the Remington, Josh Simmons.
- [59:51]
Todd McShay
Yep.
- [59:52]
Matt
Right. Seth McLaughlin's the center.
- [59:54]
Todd McShay
Josh Simmons is the tackle you think could go be the first tackle off the board. And then it was kind of tracking that way. Yep.
- [60:00]
Matt
Right. And it, it's, it's not always clean. There are times that they get beat, but they are just, they just gut it out. And it would be interesting to see if someone could get them in because they're better run blockers than they are, you know, past protectors. That's just the case. If someone could get ahead of them, if someone could get a 14 point lead and someone could put them in a position where they have to throw the ball more to see if they can kind of expose those weaknesses in obvious passing situations. But it just hasn't been the case yet. So I think it's impressive what that, that they've done as a group. Imagine. It does make me think this. Imagine if they were healthy up front. Imagine if they were, because, I mean, we're talking about eight. You talk about the talent receiver. You talk about the talent running back. If they are healthy up front. I don't think this is, I think this might be a historic run for Ohio State. I mean, they would have been that good.
- [60:55]
Todd McShay
Yeah. I don't disagree. I mean, you get Simmons as a first round offensive tackle. Center is an absolute stud. Then you move Jackson, who's been pretty awesome at left tackle, and move him back into his natural guard spot. Yeah, this, this would be, it's hard to imagine it being a whole lot better than the run that it's been, but I, I, I think it would be a, just a lot easier sledding, but. All right.
- [61:18]
Matt
Yeah, I mean, the guy.
- [61:20]
Todd McShay
Yeah, go ahead. No, go ahead.
- [61:21]
Matt
I mean, Josh Fryer is playing tackle right now. I think if he's, he's gonna make it in the NFL, he's gonna have to kick inside. I mean, they don't have, they have like, I think two guys who are gonna ultimately be guards playing tackle right now.
- [61:33]
Todd McShay
Yeah.
- [61:34]
Matt
And it's not like they lost guys that, you know, I'm not going to be overly critical of. The guys are playing right now because they're good. It's not like they lost their fourth best offensive lineman. I mean, they've lost dudes.
- [61:44]
Todd McShay
Yeah, yeah. We appreciate everyone. It's been fun. Thanks for joining us. I'm glad we got to interact a little bit more tonight. We're going to make that an emphasis moving forward on these live shows. We got one left during the season. We'll find some way. We'll do some live stuff from. Go ahead.
- [62:00]
Matt
Maybe don't call them scumbags. I mean, I don't think you have to call them liars and scumbags when they, when they're coming up with the spread.
- [62:09]
Todd McShay
I think they got it. Yeah. I mean, if you, my best friends are sitting in the room, if I'm not calling you a scumbag or calling you out for being a liar, that's then, then we're not close. So we're getting close fast. All right. Appreciate everyone. Appreciate everyone staying up late and doing this with us. We will be back. National championship January 20th. It's going to be, it's going to be interesting. We'll see. Like, I don't Notre Dame's just count them out, Count them out. You know, so this, this will be fun to build up. We'll break it down from every angle. We'll start a little bit more heavily in the draft. We get the NFL playoffs coming up. Got to start talking about team needs, where we're going. We got the draft order set. Like everyone's winding down. Like Herbie and Fowler figure out where they're going on vacation and like, you know, we're, we're, we're going to work. My hat says it right, something about going to work. So let's go. Appreciate you being with us. We'll be back on, what is it, Friday night. I'm so, so thrown off from the holidays to the game schedules. It's Friday night. It's now Saturday morning at 1205 Eastern. We will be back for our show on Tuesday for regular scheduled show on Tuesday and appreciate you joining us. So we'll talk to you soon. 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. gambling problem, call 1-800- GAMBLER or visit rg-help.com, call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit gamblinghelplinema.org or call 1-800-327-5050 for 24. 7 support and in Massachusetts or call 1-877-8-HOPE NY or text Hopeny in New.