Hour 3: Live from SEC Media Days

Summary

The Paul Finebaum Show — Hour 3: Live from SEC Media Days Date: July 23, 2026
Host: Paul Finebaum
Guests: Andrea Adelson (ESPN), David Hale (ESPN), Andy Staples, Chris Gordy (Locked On SEC), John Neighbors (Inside Arkansas), Matt Moscona (Locked On LSU)

Episode Overview

Broadcasting live from the final day of SEC Media Days in Tampa, Paul Finebaum brings his signature blend of sharp analysis, candid conversation, and off-beat humor to recap one of college football's most anticipated media events. Joined by top writers and podcasters, the episode digs deep into headline coaches (notably Lane Kiffin), the intricacies of SEC and college football culture, shifting financial realities, and major legislative efforts around player compensation. The hour is filled with unfiltered takes, behind-the-scenes anecdotes, playful banter, and thought-provoking discussion, all true to the unique tone of the Finebaum Show.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. SEC Media Days Vibe and Anecdotes

• Tampa Venue vs. Hoover: Paul and his guests reflect fondly on the prior years at the Winfrey Hotel in Hoover, Alabama, reminiscing about the more intimate and fan-friendly atmosphere compared to Tampa.
  "I knew if I forgot a belt, there’s a Banana Republic right there. They knew my order at the Chick-fil-A." — Paul Finebaum [15:14]

• Gym Humor: Paul hilariously notes bumping into Andrea Adelson at the gym, teasing about seeing her at the donut shop instead, setting a light, collegial tone for the episode.

2. Lane Kiffin Dominates the Narrative

• Kiffin’s Media Performance: Much of the episode orbits around Lane Kiffin’s unpredictable, evasive, and media-savvy performance.

  • Kiffin “Filibustering”: Hale highlights that, as usual, Kiffin sought to control the room, using humor and scripted answers to avoid tough questions.
    "You guys got scripted Lane, who very clearly was filibustering so as to not have to answer very many questions." — David Hale [03:29]
  • Candid Regrets & Growth: Kiffin was more reflective than in previous years, admitting some mishandling of his time at Ole Miss, which guests note as possible (but partial) growth.

• Notable Quote/Analogy:
  "It's like telling your wife of six years you've had a great marriage with that I’m actually leaving you for this woman that you hate over here. And you’re expecting her to say, 'Congratulations.'" — Andrea Adelson [04:08]

• Outshone by Pete Golding: Pete Golding gets significant praise for his authenticity and energetic presence, even upstaging Kiffin according to both panel and room reaction.
  "Didn't he get an ovation in here after he was done?" — David Hale [08:36]

• Kiffin’s Social Media Silence:

  • Discussants dissect Kiffin’s notable absence from social media, viewing it as an intentional retreat as he navigates high-pressure transitions.

3. Coach Soundbites & Offbeat Media Moments

• Ryan Silverfield’s “Aura” Comment: The group riffs on an awkward viral comment by Ryan Silverfield (Arkansas) defending his personal “aura” by citing his “hot wife”—prompting playful debate and references to the “outkick your coverage” cliché.
  "I want to say I landed a hot wife that’s very smart, and I’ve got two beautiful daughters, and I'm the head coach of an SEC program. I've got enough aura." — (Read by Paul Finebaum) [11:05]

• Ric Flair Story: Paul shares a humorous account of Ric Flair gifting him a signed canvas at a bar, highlighting the star-studded and often-surreal moments at SEC gatherings.

4. Shifting College Football Landscape

• Player Compensation and Cap:
  Andy Staples and others dig into evolving realities for roster construction, such as coaches (notably Sarkesian at Texas) citing “reaching the cap”—a euphemism for new budgetary constraints with athlete pay.

  "An hour ago I was talking to Sarkesian here and he said, yeah, we had to get rid of a bunch of good players, including Wisner, because we had to reach the cap. That’s a college football coach." — Andy Staples [24:20]

• Congressional Wrangling over College Sports Bills:

  • Protect College Sports Act: There’s analysis of legislative maneuvering in D.C. regarding the “Protect College Sports Act” and others.

    • Staples expresses skepticism that any bill will actually pass, noting the attempted “Okie doke” where the Big Ten and SEC found themselves targeted by the original bill.
    • Quotes Ted Cruz and discusses league rivalry spillover into politics. "When they actually unveiled the bill, it’s like, oh wait, no, they tried to pull an Okie doke on the Big Ten and the SEC… those were the leagues that benefited the most from the bill as originally written." — Andy Staples [21:06]

  • Professionalization of the Sport: Sharp commentary on the sport’s changing status, with pointed observations about athletes showing off Rolexes at Media Days and the need for a more formalized (professional league-style) model.

    • "Let’s be real here, this is a professional league. The players make lots of money." — Andy Staples [23:56]

5. Program Pressures & Financial Dynamics

• LSU’s Roster Build & Booster Funding:

  • Matt Moscona details LSU’s aggressive behind-the-scenes financial evolution, with their roster budget “doubling” after Lane Kiffin’s arrival (approaching $50 million via donor support, creative contracts, and multi-year deals). "They had a very calculated approach to it and then yes, they had to go shake trees to donors… the budget that they had allocated for this roster, my best guess… I think they have doubled the number that they were planning to budget." — Matt Moscona [37:01]

  • Booster Culture: LSU lacks a famous individual booster (“no Tyson Chicken, Jerry Jones, or Yellowwood guy”) but has a broad donor base and a newly unveiled “wild new plan for revenue generation.” [38:03–39:14]

    • "There are some that just don’t want to be known." — Matt Moscona [39:01]

• Arkansas’ Struggles: John Neighbors reflects on Arkansas’ challenges staying relevant, blaming a lack of institutional alignment, financial lag, and reactive (not proactive) leadership.
  "They seem very reactive instead of proactive… that’s why you’ve seen Arkansas football be pretty irrelevant over the past five or so years." — John Neighbors [36:21]

6. Quarterback Battles and On-field Expectations

• Alabama’s QB Situation:
  Finebaum discusses Alabama’s quarterback situation with guests, framing Austin Mack as the likely frontrunner based on camp chatter. "It seemed that he’s hinting that Austin Mack is winning the quarterback battle, which I thought was interesting..." — [19:14]

• Texas’ High Hopes and Arch Manning:

  • Texas is "all in" this season, with sky-high playoff hopes and a reshuffled defensive staff. Arch Manning, meanwhile, appears “bored” by the media circus, having settled into his collegiate routine. "He was wandering around. I mean, he looked like… Are you done? He said, I don’t really have anything else to do. He looked fairly bored." — Paul Finebaum [30:23]

• Expectations for LSU:

  • Crowd consensus pegs LSU as a 9-3 or 10-2 team, barely on the outside of playoff contention, facing a tough schedule. "Asked a bunch of folks here and they said 9-3 is kind of where they think they’ll be… 10-2 is, I think, where they want to be." — Chris Gordy [31:00]

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• "You were running like somebody was chasing you." — Paul Finebaum to Andrea Adelson, joking about her workout [01:34]

• "The excitement that [Kiffin] creates really has little to do with when he’s behind a microphone." — Paul Finebaum [27:57]

• (On LSU’s roster funding:) "It’s higher than $40 [million], it’s closer to if not past $50. And I think they were going to spend $25 and I think they’re close to if not double." — Matt Moscona [37:51]

• "I don’t think it’s done. I just think he’s stuck in the past. Like, if Dabo retires today, he will be viewed as one of the greatest coaches in college football history. But while he is taking that massive paycheck to coach at Clemson, what he did in the past doesn’t matter. It’s what you do right now." — Andy Staples [18:23]

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Segment Guide with Timestamps

• 00:46–03:10 — Opening Banter, Gym & Donut Shop Anecdotes, ACC Media Days Recap
• 03:10–08:56 — Lane Kiffin: Media Strategy, Regret, Pete Golding Praise, Ric Flair Story
• 09:23–12:59 — Ryan Silverfield’s “Hot Wife/Aura” Comment, Off-the-Rails Panel Humor
• 14:36–20:20 — Alabama’s QB Race, Texas’ “All In” Status, Shifting Conference Dynamics
• 20:20–24:20 — Updates on Congressional NIL/Player Pay Legislation (Protect College Sports Act), Politico-Sports Intrigue
• 24:20–28:14 — Financial Realities: NIL Money, Donor Commitments, Arkansas & LSU Contrasts
• 27:04–31:41 — Chris Gordy Reviews Kiffin/Sarkeesian, LSU’s Season Outlook
• 32:46–40:01 — Deep Dive: LSU Booster Culture, Revenue Generation, Arkansas’ Program Challenges

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Episode Tone & Takeaway

This episode blends playful barbs and SEC in-jokes with surprisingly incisive commentary on the fast-changing economics and politics of college football. Endlessly quotable, the conversation’s authenticity (and occasional off-the-rails digressions) showcase the SEC’s blend of tradition and chaos. Lane Kiffin's enigmatic persona dominates discussion, but the real substance is in how schools are navigating the professionalization of college football—rarely pulling punches on the sport’s future, its evolving characters, and the never-ending chase for relevance and revenue.

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Recommended for:

• Listeners who want colorful, insider views on SEC culture and its key personalities
• Anyone tracking the future of college football’s finances, power dynamics, and looming political battles
• Fans who enjoy a mix of sharp analysis and light-hearted storytelling

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For more, subscribe and catch all the SEC Media Days content on The Paul Finebaum Show podcast.

Transcript

[Podcast Sponsor/Announcer]

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[Paul Feinbaum]

the pride, passion and pageantry of college football lives here. This is the Paul Feinbaum Show. Our three podcasts. This might be college football

[Ed]

Ed it

[Paul Feinbaum]

is always great to be here at SEC meetings, especially on the final day. We have talked to the commissioner of the SEC and Steve Sarkeesian. There's still a lot of people left in this room. You probably understand why I said that. We'll get more on that later. It is so great always to welcome my friend Andrea Adelson to the program.

[Andrea Adelson]

And then. And then.

[David Hale]

And him.

[Andrea Adelson]

And then.

[Paul Feinbaum]

And David Hale.

[Andrea Adelson]

Once again, I'm riding her coattails.

[David Hale]

Yeah, that's the way it should be.

[Andrea Adelson]

Yeah.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I shouldn't say this, but I. I did not know what an athlete Andrea is. She probably didn't see me, but I was working out behind her in the gym today.

[David Hale]

What? Oh my God. What was I doing?

[Paul Feinbaum]

You were running like somebody was chasing you.

[David Hale]

I was trying to, you know, running.

[Andrea Adelson]

Did you not see me at the gym?

[Paul Feinbaum]

I did not see you at the gym.

[Andrea Adelson]

I'm sure I was there.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I did see you at the donut shop Downstream.

[Andrea Adelson]

That's what I call the gym.

[Paul Feinbaum]

But that was great. I didn't want to interrupt you because you were a serious workout and I was. That was just there to be seen.

[Andrea Adelson]

Florida punter.

[David Hale]

Yeah, I did punt once with the football team. So I got to stay in shape just in case I get the call.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Welcome to a prominent week on the calendar for media days. Not what you went through. Couple. What was the ACC media days in May. I lost track.

[Andrea Adelson]

It was. It was just last week.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Last week.

[Andrea Adelson]

Yeah, I know. We sent you like a gold plated invitation.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I never get invited. Well, I used to live there down the street and yeah, I still didn't get invited.

[Andrea Adelson]

You should come. There's occasionally like some that you did. There's good. There's Krispy Kremes there. They got Krispy Kremes.

[David Hale]

But I feel like it's good that we are talking about the ACC here on your show. Feel like this is ACC takeover.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I was asked to talk about the ACC last Friday Morning. Considering that Dabosini continued his. His ERAS tour of excuses.

[Andrea Adelson]

Well, you know who has dodged questions about champion winning national titles better in the last five days? Is it Alabama's coach or Clemson's coach?

[Paul Feinbaum]

Well, at least the Clemson's coach has won a few nationals.

[David Hale]

Yes, exactly.

[Commercial Announcer]

That's true.

[David Hale]

He's got a track record.

[Paul Feinbaum]

So let's get to Lane Kiffin because everybody's got a different view of what they saw and heard today. What was yours?

[David Hale]

Well, we had a great time with him in our room. So we have a chance to talk to all the coaches in a separate

[Paul Feinbaum]

ESPN.com I like us poor schmoes in here. Hey, coach, over here.

[David Hale]

You guys got scripted. Lane, who very clearly was filibustering so as to not have to answer very many questions. He got four right on the main stage. We got more than four in our room. But he was candid as usual. Right. You know, he was like, well, I've got the script here, but, oh, I just, I can't stick to the script in here. I've got to be honest. And he was honest about regrets he had and the way that he handled everything at Ole Miss. And obviously, I think perspective and time makes you feel like, did I handle that the right way? And I think we all know he didn't really handle that the right way. But to be able to sit here and say, I should have done something differently maybe shows a little bit of growth from Lane.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Well, no.

[Andrea Adelson]

To me, the fascinating thing is that he admits that he thought he could somehow do this without blowback. Like, I don't. I don't understand. And the analogy he gave us is like. Well, it's like telling your wife of six years you've had a great marriage with that I'm actually leaving you for this woman that you hate over here. And you expecting her to say, congratulations,

[Paul Feinbaum]

you're talking about Lane Kiffin or the.

[Andrea Adelson]

Oh, this is an analogy that conveniently included that look. I mean, it's just mind boggling to me that he.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Thank you.

[Andrea Adelson]

Didn't see how blatantly.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I can assure you he did.

[Andrea Adelson]

Yeah. So, you know, I think that's what

[Paul Feinbaum]

he's really good at. That though, I just didn't realize. Yeah, I'm a California surfer. That's smart.

[David Hale]

The one thing he did not regret was the way he handled the assistant coaching situation for the playoff. And he said, well, I mean, they're lucky I gave them some of the assistant coaches. So I thought that was interesting, too.

[Andrea Adelson]

I'm a Lane apologist. On some of this, because the whole system is screwed up.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I am. If I'm upset, if I look upset today, I am for a reason. Because I found. Found out this morning watching Lane, that Hulk Hogan died. Someone said, I did not know that.

[Andrea Adelson]

Now, the good news is, you know, Ric Flair is still in. In good health or acceptable.

[David Hale]

Where is the. Where is the signed canvas going, Paul? Where in the house?

[Paul Feinbaum]

So you must not have heard that I encountered Ric Flair.

[Andrea Adelson]

I've heard, yeah. And I mean, well, Ric Flair encountered you. Yeah.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I mean, you walk in. Yeah, I walked into a bar. Yeah.

[Commercial Announcer]

Okay.

[Andrea Adelson]

So many good jokes start this way.

[Paul Feinbaum]

The Sec Nation crew had a dinner down the street, and I got there late because I was finishing the show, and I got to walk. And there's Ric Flair. It was somebody I don't know, and that didn't bother me. I was glad to see him. We had a lot of fun. But what really got to me, David, that about 30, 40 minutes later, he comes over with a canvas of him that he signed. And I'm, like, going, I've met a lot of famous people. They don't carry canvases around with them.

[Andrea Adelson]

It's going to look great. Like in your master bedroom. You just hang it up there and.

[David Hale]

But you can do better than that.

[Andrea Adelson]

So how come Lane hasn't. Lane hasn't brought you one? Like, that's. I'm surprised.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I want to tell the audience this, because since last year, on the final day, we had the what's often described as the most epic Kiffin interview, which followed another one. And so everybody thought, is Kiffin gonna be on today? And we said months ago, he's not going to be on because he's on the early side. We get the late coaches. So I'm literally about to go out and do, you know, a segment for sas, and I run right into Lane Kiffin as I'm about to sit down to do the hit, and he goes, am I supposed to be on today?

[David Hale]

You can't win.

[Paul Feinbaum]

And I go, no. And he's with Michael Bonette, his security, his PR guy. And he goes, did they even ask. They didn't even ask us to be on it. It's just so lame. Kiffin.

[Andrea Adelson]

I didn't know. I thought for sure this would be fine. I didn't.

[Paul Feinbaum]

And so then I said, I'm assuming that you have to get out of here. He said, yeah, you know, we're taking off at 12:30. He said, but I can do it

[Andrea Adelson]

now, Lane, this isn't how TV works. The show comes on at a time every day. I didn't know who knew.

[Paul Feinbaum]

And again, we all know him and I like the guy, but that's just who he is. He's always playing these mind games.

[David Hale]

Yeah, always. That's just who he is. And he's not going to change. I mean, he's not going to change at all.

[Andrea Adelson]

Is it great that he might actually, like, have a proper foil in Pete Golding now? Like, Golenk needs to win a little to really. But he's. I mean, he was great this week.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Is Kiffin aware that he got totally upstaged by Pete Golden?

[David Hale]

I was wondering if he was going to try to upstage. Yes. He doesn't need to.

[Paul Feinbaum]

He doesn't?

[Andrea Adelson]

No.

[Paul Feinbaum]

But he couldn't. He's not capable of doing what Pete golden did.

[Andrea Adelson]

Well. And, you know, here's the thing that I think that because Pete has rubbed a few people, I don't know, a certain coach and Clemson the wrong way, but when he says these things, it does come off as authentic. Right? Like, that's.

[Paul Feinbaum]

No, it's like, why do we have to pay attention to rules? That's absurd.

[Andrea Adelson]

But the way he says it, you're like, yeah, that's dumb.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Listen, I've never even liked Pete Golding until this week, but I think he's great.

[David Hale]

Didn't he get an ovation in here after he was done?

[Andrea Adelson]

Paul was up there. I mean, he was on his chair.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I did not know him very well. We had interviewed him a couple months ago, and he is that way in person, too. He's just a fairly cool guy that is either going to be a smashing success or he's going to be somebody's great defensive coordinator.

[Andrea Adelson]

Well, that's the other thing. And again, maybe how much of this is Lane's revisionist history? But he's like, before I made the decision to go to lsu, I sat in a room with Pete Golding and he's telling me, I don't want to be a head coach. I like being a defensive coordinator. And me and Charlie and Golding, we're going to be like. Well, actually, he said Clemson with Dabo and Venables and Tony Elliott. And, you know, I don't. I don't know how much of that is true, but I can see you. Knowling is a fine defensive coordinator.

[Paul Feinbaum]

No, but, you know, I do want to ask you one more thing, and I like this guy, but he said something. Andrea, I don't know. You were in the side room, so you probably don't hear Everything that's said in the main room. No, but have you heard about Ryan Silverfield?

[David Hale]

No.

[Paul Feinbaum]

He was. I'm trying to remember the context. Were you in here when he talked?

[Andrea Adelson]

I wasn't, but I did. We had a great call.

[David Hale]

We had a great.

[Paul Feinbaum]

See, you're ESPN Elite, right? And just because you have a great call doesn't. This is a room that's like broadcast on. On tv, though. He had a line. He was. He was talking about. Yeah, can you. Do, you know, Jamari, can you give me the whole con? Yeah. Oh, I know. There was a big controversy in Arkansas the other day that he doesn't have this aura.

[Commercial Announcer]

Aura.

[Paul Feinbaum]

So he got up there.

[Andrea Adelson]

Houston Nut aura, or what aura are we talking about?

[Paul Feinbaum]

It was just some pictures got out and he said, you know, in front of there, live on television. He said, yeah, he said, I don't know why everybody thinks I don't have an aura. He said, hey, I got a hot wife now. I just, you know, I just. I find. I don't know. I mean, I've asked people, and really, nobody knows what to even how to respond.

[Andrea Adelson]

That is. Well, you're probably the one who should answer this so that neither of us get fired.

[David Hale]

I feel like it improves a man's, like, cool points if they have a hot wife.

[Andrea Adelson]

Well, you've seen Moneyball where they talk like, the scouts are like, I wouldn't take him. His girlfriend's not hot. Like, he doesn't have enough confidence.

[David Hale]

Yeah. What is it like swinging up or. What's the term for that?

[Andrea Adelson]

Out kick your coverage.

[David Hale]

Yeah, out kick your coverage.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Oh, yeah.

[David Hale]

I mean, men, their coverage.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Like, here's what he said.

Let me read it back.

[Ed]

I don't know.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I want to say I landed a hot wife that's very smart, and I've got two beautiful daughters, and I'm the head coach of an SEC program. Program. I've got enough aura.

[Andrea Adelson]

I mean, I. I can't argue with these facts. Yeah, but, I mean, it does, you know.

[David Hale]

So you're saying he should not have used that as a defense to say I've got aura.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I mean, the outkick. Your coverage is just cliche, right? I don't know about the head coach at an SEC school in 20, 26, hey, I got a hot wife.

[Andrea Adelson]

Most head coaches have. I mean, their wives are, you know, you did all right for yourself. You played football in high school, you know.

[Paul Feinbaum]

No, I. I'm not even disputing whether she is or isn't. It. It's just saying it you're right.

[David Hale]

I think he was trying to compliment

[Paul Feinbaum]

his wife and no, he was trying to promote himself.

That hey, I'm, I wanted to impress.

[Andrea Adelson]

And Paul was like, I'm not having any of that.

[David Hale]

That's not.

[Paul Feinbaum]

If he had said that to you in that room, how would you have reacted?

[David Hale]

I probably would have just stared at him and not had a reaction. I, I, you know, how would you have reacted?

[Andrea Adelson]

I asked if she had a sister and if he's.

[Paul Feinbaum]

No, I would not have done that.

[Andrea Adelson]

I would not have done that.

[David Hale]

Okay, the segment has gone off the rail.

[Paul Feinbaum]

National Organization of Women is texting.

[Andrea Adelson]

I've said many times that every time I come on here, I'm expecting to be fired after the show. I think we're, we're inching ever closer.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I, I normally would come in with a joke. It is funny in deference to yes, something, anything I say will be splashed across the Internet.

[Andrea Adelson]

Well, Andrea said a little bit before he came on here, like what is Paul gonna wanna talk about? And I said there's no point in preparing for this if we'll go off the rails rather quickly. And thank you for living up to our reception.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I love segments like this cause they're so non traditional and I know both of you and friends and I know we can just like we're at the bar.

[David Hale]

We're just chopping it up.

[Andrea Adelson]

Yeah, chopping it up as the guys say.

[Paul Feinbaum]

See you guys need, I'm available for the ACC Network if you wanna bring a little humor over there.

[Andrea Adelson]

If I make one more joke about Ryan Silverfield's wife and her sister, there might be a spot on ACC Network for you fill in.

[Paul Feinbaum]

So we on that note are coming right back and we're not coming back here. There'll be like some sec inside the volleyball team at Vanderbilt next.

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[Paul Feinbaum]

You know, when you're locked in, focused and fearless. Welcome to the wnba. Your vision narrows.

[David Hale]

You can't look away.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Every assistant, every stop, every logo, three

[Andrea Adelson]

from beyond the logo, every.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Did you see that?

[Chris Gordy]

Moment.

[Paul Feinbaum]

You bet.

[David Hale]

What records are going to be broken this season?

[Paul Feinbaum]

All of it.

Right here.

Lock in. It's the WNBA on ESPN all season long.

You're listening to the Paul Fine Bomb show podcast.

We continue. Andy Staples has dropped by. We'll get to him in just a second as time is running out for Tampa. Our one visit here for media days. We've been here for SEC basketball, we've been here for national championships. And now media days.

Come on back.

Nice as.

As Florida, man. I request you come on back. And this is an incredible town. Not just because I spent my bachelor party here. Just incredible town.

I'm going to get criticized. I missed the Winfrey Hotel in Hoover. It was just such a. I do,

too, because I knew if I forgot a belt, there's a Banana Republic right there. They knew my order at the Chick Fil? A. I mean, you do media days. 15 years in a row there.

And I got to know every one of those Alabama fans by the escort.

The guy with the ring on his head. I miss him so much.

There's so much to deal with here. Kiffin was the name that everybody's not on social media. Paul. Yeah. No, he's not.

I told him we're going to get. We're going to find your burners, Lane. I told it after. After the interview session this morning. I was like, we're going to. We're going to find your burners. Don't you worry.

I mean, I didn't hear a lot of it. I was, you know, talking to Steven,

yelling at Stephen and.

But the one thing that I thought was just fascinating was when he said he doesn't pay attention to the media.

Well, apparently he's not doing it now.

No, because.

No, but. But he has somebody printed out and put it on his desk, which is very quaint and analog. So shout out to Michael. But of the sports information staff at lsu, who is actually doing the printouts? And if it's Lane Kiffin, though, the printout must. I mean, when it hits the desk, it must be a thud.

Yeah. I mean, I don't know how many people were in this room today, but just of all the people here, we just confine it to the sec. I'm not talking about Game Day Crew and SEC Nation. Other media. How many people do you think have in. Just forget the last couple months. But during his last two years at Ole Miss, received a text from Wayne Kiffin about something they said or wrote.

Probably a voice memo. He's more Voice memo guy.

The 37. I always feel like it's like the Mission Impossible. It's going to disappear.

Yeah. It's funny because different people have different opinions on the voice. I like it because I feel like I can get more context than a text.

But his voice is so monotone.

But if you read a text, you don't really can't pick up tone. You can't pick up mood. But some people are offended by the voice. I don't want to listen to it. I just want to read it. But Lane is a voice memo guy. Like, for instance, I know he sent a lot of voice memos to the folks at Florida the week before Thanksgiving. And then the week of Thanksgiving, they didn't get any voice memos anymore. Then the LSU people were getting the voice memos.

And then the walking tour. I'm out here like, he's talking and walking and whatever he's doing.

Listen, I enjoy Lane Kiffin. He makes my job easier. When you do things like leave Ole Miss in the middle of the season to go to lsu, as someone who does shows every single day, it is gold. Absolutely. But look, he's going to be good at lsu.

Yeah.

I don't think there's any doubt that he's going to be good at lsu. And I'm very excited to see what it looks like when it finally does get on the field. And to have Dabo on the other side of it, it's even better. Your guy stuck on dumb. Is that what you said?

Stuck on stupid.

Stuck on stupid. That's right.

That was not. I didn't write that out in advance. That was a. That was just off the cuff, natural, organic response.

Well, you might have a future in this business, Paul.

Now, some of the other. The one I will confess about four or five years ago, when I went on with Greenberg and I said, the Dabo dynasty is done, that was in front of me.

D, D, D, yeah, Alliteration is great. I don't think it's done. I just think he's stuck in the past. Like, if Dabo retires today, he will be viewed as one of the greatest coaches in college football history. But while he is taking that massive paycheck to coach at Clemson, what he did in the past doesn't matter. It's what you do right now. The second you stop taking the paycheck, your past matters again. But right now, it is what have you done for me lately? And he didn't do it last year, so. And look, we see that here. Like, in this league, there's five new coaches here. Because People didn't get it done.

Speaking of this year, Alabama was certainly. Has certainly been a discussed topic. They certainly weren't for a couple of days. Yeah. And then Caleb dubois showed up here yesterday. What did you read from him and this program right now?

It seemed that he's hinting that Austin Mack is winning the quarterback battle, which I thought was interesting because they're an interesting case. Like Florida and Alabama both have quarterback battles. Florida has a schedule that sort of lends itself to them trying out the two guys in the first two games. And then they go to Auburn and you can kind of figure out who your guy is. Alabama has East Carolina first, which was not a bad team last year. They did lose a bunch of players in the portal, but they're pretty well coached. And then you have to go to Kentucky. So I feel like you really do need to come out of camp with an idea who your guy is. And so it sounds like they're. They're sort of moving that direction. He did throw out there. He's like Austin Max, a better runner than you think. Because we all saw the spring game and thought, okay, if they can't run the ball like they couldn't run the ball last year, maybe you go Keelan Russell, because he runs the ball better. But if I'm going Galaxy brain here, Paul, maybe, maybe that means the revamped offensive line, new, new offensive line coach, Adrian Clem, all that they're going to be able to run the ball better, which honestly, if they can, they're a playoff team again. They're fine. Everybody stop freaking out. If they can't run the ball again, then there's going to be a problem.

And let me change subjects. There's been some breaking news this afternoon on a subject. We talked to Greg Sankey about 90 minutes ago. He walked in here literally on the phone, I believe it was with Eric Schmidt. He said he talked to several others. Today was a critical day. And I know you had an interview with Ted Cruz recently. You've been following along more than some of these people. The majority of the leader, John Thune, talked to reporters. There's a lot going on in D.C. right now, and, and he was asked if the bill would be introduced on the floor as Cruz promised it would be before the, the recess. And he said, I don't think we'll be able to get that done.

That doesn't sound good for the old Protect College Sports Act. But I've been the person saying all along it's not going to pass. I, I said before it wasn't going to pass because I thought when they eventually unveiled it, it was just going to give the Big Ten and the SEC everything they wanted, which essentially would have been limiting the pay of the players and a way to make it where they had a broad antitrust exemption that would allow them to just break the law without actually being punished for it. And then when they actually unveiled the bill, it's like, oh, wait, no, they tried to pull an Okie doke on the Big Ten in the sec. I asked Cruz, because we had Cruz on the show the day after the bill came out, and I asked only semi jokingly, did you let Cody Campbell write the bill? Because it read like somebody from a Big Ten school or an ACC, sorry, a Big 12 school or an ACC school wrote it. Those were the leagues that benefited the most from the bill. As originally written, the SEC and the Big Ten were specifically targeted to keep them from ever merging, to keep them from ever really getting together and using their power. And if I were the SEC in the Big Ten after that, I would have really struggled. Even though they did try to amend the thing to make it more palatable for the SEC in Big Ten, that would have been a problem for me because it felt like they tried to pull a fast one right off the bat.

And it just seems like everything about this was wrong and, you know, dropping it during spring meetings.

They don't know when the spring meetings are. They don't know when you're in Destin.

[Andrea Adelson]

Paul.

[Paul Feinbaum]

They don't. I mean, Ted Cruz was certainly pretty, pretty quick to be able to jump on the horn with you, though.

Oh, he sure was. His, his people were in touch. They were in touch weeks before that because they, they were really confident. And look, I, here's the thing. I'm not a political reporter. I'm a sports writer. We don't do politics on the show. But I do understand. I live in this country. I live in the world. I vote. I understand it's, it's rare in these days when Republicans and Democrats will work together on something. And that's, that's what you had. You had Ted Cruz.

That always felt like that was the

reason, but that was what gave them confidence.

Paul.

But the thing is, I don't think they understood the dynamics of this world well enough because if they did, they never would have put that bill out as it was originally written. They would have known what the Big Ten and SEC response would have been, because, I mean, the second I read it, there's 111 pages I didn't need to get that far down before I was like, oh, this is. They're gonna have a problem here.

They're still Tuberville's bill.

You know what the skinny and it gets skinnier and skinnier.

It's a pretty good bill.

It's not. It's not a bad thought. I still think I don't have. I don't like the idea of giving them antitrust.

I mean, that's.

That's my problem.

It will never.

They need to figure it out. They need to figure out how to make the athletes employer, make the football players employees. It doesn't have to be the athletes collectively bargain with them, have a real salary cap, have real rules, have real eligibility rules. You can do that. You can actually enforce them. You have the model, all these other professional leagues. And let's be real here, this is a professional league. The players make lots of money.

An hour ago I was talking to Sarkeesian here and he said, yeah, we had to get rid of a bunch of good players, including Wisner, because we had to reach the cap. That's a college football coach.

Well, they also needed to revamp the running back room very badly.

It was just a phrase.

Yeah. No, no. I was at Big 12 media days a couple weeks ago and we were. We met up with some folks from a team and were talking to some of their players and I was just kind of glancing casually. And three of the four players that came from this Big 12 team were wearing Rolexes and I don't think they bought them off a carpet on 7th Avenue. I think they got them from the real deal place.

I've never owned one.

[John Neighbors]

I'm.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I'm waiting. When I. When I make fine bomb money, I'm getting it.

I don't even have a watch, so doesn't. There's nothing to worry about.

How do you even know when your show ends? Oh, it never ends. It's just. You just keep going. That's four hours a day.

Danny Bramwell right there.

Oh, I see. I see. I see where we're going here. Get him off the air. It's over.

Great to talk to you. Appreciate it very much. Andy Staples joining us. We are back. 90 minutes remaining here for from Tampa

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[Paul Feinbaum]

You're listening to the Paul Feinbaum show podcast.

Train to where do you, where do you take a train in Tampa? I don't know, but I haven't seen that train. But I'd like to get on it, go somewhere a lot of people are. Chris Gordy from Locked on sec. We had a great conversation with him last year. He lives in Texas but talks about SEC football. He went to lsu. Chris Kiffin, your review today.

[Chris Gordy]

You know, he's a lightning rod. I appreciate his attempt at what he did in filibustering and killing time. And I kept saying all week, everybody's like, what are you looking forward to? I'm like, man, I want to hear Lane ask some tough questions. You know, it's the first time since he took the job he's going to be, you know, ask questions by national media folks in Oxford and all this. And he did a great job of, I think, what was about five questions he actually answered Four. Four. Okay. Well, even better.

[Paul Feinbaum]

He had one. One. One tough one. Michael Bratton asked him about the Vanity Fair article and he went off on some Hulk Hogan.

[Chris Gordy]

Yeah, very strange. Said we're all going to die.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Yeah.

[Chris Gordy]

Made me feel really good.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I did not like hearing that.

[Chris Gordy]

Yeah.

[Paul Feinbaum]

At my age, you don't want to hear you're going to die.

[John Neighbors]

Right?

[Chris Gordy]

Exactly. But yeah, look, he's, he's in a tough spot. I mean, it's anything he says is going to be magnified times 10. He's a lightning rod. So again, I think he did the best that he could, but ultimately he's got to go win football games.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I think that we were all reminded, and I'm a fan and he's great for the game, but I was reminded, I think hopefully others were, that Lane Kiffin doesn't. The excitement that he creates really has little to do with when he's behind a microphone.

[Chris Gordy]

Yeah, that's what I tell people all the time. They're like, oh, what do you think he's going to say? I'm like, he doesn't say much. It's a lot like Nick Saban. He's very monotone in front of a microphone, not very talkative, not going to give you a whole lot. It's his social media presence that really is what draws the ire of people and all that. And he's been mute there the last few months. Kudos to him.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Yeah.

And I think even that it's all fairly contrived. But social media is fairly contrived. And I think too, it's just his past. I mean, nobody in college football history has ever had more ugly exits.

[Chris Gordy]

Yeah, there's no doubt. I mean, look, this day and age of college football, it's. There's no right way to. To leave unless you're a John Summerall and you're out of two lane and they let you finish to go to Florida. But going from an SEC school to another SEC school, I mean, I don't know what the right way to do it is, especially when you have a team that's about to go to the playoff. It was a tough spot. And again, folks in Oxford are going to hate him until, you know, his next stop, I'm sure.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Well, I mean, the biggest winner this week was a. Was a. Was the last Ole Miss coach who left under dubious circumstances. And that was Tommy Tuberville, who in 1998, before the egg bowl, said, they're going to have to carry me out of here in a pine box. And he left the next day.

[Chris Gordy]

Yeah, exactly. And now he's. He's in Congress and saying things that we agree with now in terms of trying to pass some, Some laws here for college sports. But yeah, this will be really interesting. There's a lot of pressure on him. There's a lot of pressure on Steve Sarkeesian. I mean, interesting dynamic with those two coaches, with the other two coaches we saw today, Ryan Silverfield and Jeff Lebbey, where it kind of feels like the expectations are bottom of the barrel for those guys.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Yeah, it was interesting because certainly Sarkeesian is one of the more colorful, quotable, likable, and he almost felt. Almost felt overshadowed today by Kiffin.

[Chris Gordy]

It is strange.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Yeah.

[Chris Gordy]

I mean, with everything Texas has and Paul, I've heard the words all in about 50 times this offseason. When it comes to Texas, they are all in. It's probably Arch's last season all in. They fired. They're D.C. they bring in Will Muschamp. So there have been numerous things that they've done to go all in this season and expectations super high for the Longhorns.

[Paul Feinbaum]

And the funny thing is I ran into Arch Manning outside our best spots. He was dapping you up and he said, man, this doesn't seem like last year. Last year when he walked in that place, I mean, he had, it was like, it was like the, you know, bringing the president first, the Secret Service and the security. He was wandering around. I mean, he looked like. I said, are you done? He said, I don't really have anything else to do. He looked fairly bored. I thought, yeah, but so what? I'll sound like all these other pundits asking you, but before you go, what is your expectation for lsu?

[Chris Gordy]

Oh, for lsu. Gosh, man. I mean, I kind of did an informal poll, asked a bunch of folks here and they said 9 and 3 is kind of where they think they'll be on the outside looking in for the playoff. 10 and 2 is, I think, where they want to be, but it's a tough schedule. Everybody's got a tough schedule. I think we're not talking enough about the nine game SEC slate.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Wait. As a losses start piling up, we'll hear plenty. Great to talk to. Chris Gordy from Locked on sec, John Neighbors from Arkansas, Matt Moscone from who covers LSU will join us in a few minutes. We are beginning to head toward the final hour here on SEC Media Day's Day 4.

[Chris Gordy]

Awesome.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Thank you very much.

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[Chris Gordy]

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[Andrea Adelson]

An army hung on her every word.

[Paul Feinbaum]

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[Paul Feinbaum]

You're listening to the Paul Feinbaum show podcast.

There are 12 media members left in the room. We always do that contest at the end. We haven't made a final decision yet, but 12 not a bad number. I think we. I think. I think. I literally think people stick around just so they can get interviewed. Speaking of being interviewed, John, neighbors from inside Arkansas and my good friend Matt Moscono from Locked On LSU and a million other things. I mean, I was at a radio conference in New York, and, man, they were every. It seemed like you had a line. People wanted to talk to you about the success of your show down there.

[Andrea Adelson]

We've.

[Ed]

We've done well. And it's ironic. We're a class C radio station, which forced us into the digital space about 15 years ago. So we were. We were pretty early adopters to all the digital stuff.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Yeah. No, and everywhere I went up there, people were asking me out there, and I'm watching. I have no idea. This is not my specialty. Talk to that guy right there. Let's talk about Kiffin today, Matt, because it's been the story of the millennium. You've been at the. At the vanguard of it all. Just. People are nitpicking what he did or didn't say today. There are a lot of different rooms. What he says in this room is really the one that gets disseminated on tv. What was your treetop read?

[Ed]

There were two things primarily that from an LSU perspective people wanted to hear. One is, why did he get off social media? And then two was about Sam Levitt was a big story. I mean, for what they invested financially to get Sam Levitt from Arizona State. And all the expectation this season rests on. On Levitt. He's coming off the list. Frank injury. So is he healthy? And why didn't you bring him? I mean, it's. It's SEC media days. You want interesting stories here. Kentucky brought Kenny Minchi. Doesn't matter that he hasn't started. So that was a little bit of a red flag, I think. So Kiffin, given that answer, that he was leading the player led practices today, I. I believe he was leading the player led practices. I don't believe that's why I wasn't here. And then the other part about social media, I think is probably something that a lot of people grabbed onto that was. It's. He's. Paul, you know, Lane well, I mean, he's. He's a very. He's a. He's a fascinating figure who is complicated. He is obviously a very different person on social media than he is.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Do you think, personally, why. Why do you. What do you think the main reason he left Levitt home?

[Ed]

I think Sam Levitt, and I don't know this to be clear, it's just an opinion. I think Sam Levitt missing spring, didn't have the opportunity to really take hold as a, as a leader on this team. I think that's probably something. Still has to be earned. That or maybe Lane Kiffin just, just, just forgot and just picked who.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Yeah, he, he could have. I mean, he's been very busy lately not, not being on social media. John Silverfield got good reviews, you know, made a comment people are talking about. But the fact that people are talking about Arkansas is actually good news.

[John Neighbors]

Yeah, I mean, listen, it's the least interesting team in SEC media days. I said going into it.

[Paul Feinbaum]

But as long as you don't go

[John Neighbors]

viral for all the wrong reasons, I feel like Brian Silverfield did a good job of not doing that. And I think that he needs to come across as confident, which I think he did. I think he answered every question he was supposed to in the way that he did. Even had some fun here and there, but it's just one of those things. Do you walk away feeling a little bit better about the season? I do. Doesn't mean I'm like, you know what, after media days, I think they're going to win 10 games now. But it does make me feel a little bit better about the situation, about things moving forward. He's got, I mean, he's got it all going on against him right now. So many obstacles to overcome. And I think he did a good job today, but I don't know if it's going to translate to any more wins if he.

[Paul Feinbaum]

What is it going to take for this program to become relevant again?

[John Neighbors]

It's got to take the all in approach, as they say, the hashtag all in. But truly it means that he has to have the support financially. It has to have the support fundamentally and organizationally across the board. And Arkansas has not had that. They have been behind the eight ball pretty much every stance in nil and in funding and everything. And they seem very reactive instead of proactive when it comes to these things. And I think that that's why you've seen Arkansas football be pretty irrelevant over the past five or so years.

[Paul Feinbaum]

And Matt, from, from an LSU perspective, I always hear things, people talking about the school struggles from a financial standpoint and this or that. Nobody seems to be struggling from a financial standpoint with that pro. I mean, where is this money coming from?

[Ed]

I think the important thing to remember is most of those funds are not immediate lump sum payments. Even Brian Kelly's buyout, the 54 million, is prorated over the duration of the contract and there's going to be mitigation. The roster. LSU did a fantastic job pre revenue share of front loading contracts when the collective could still do that. And so they effectively have two years worth, not, not entirely, but close to two years worth of revenue share money to spend on this roster. They, they've, they had a very calculated approach to it and then yes, they had to go shake trees to donors to once Lane got here, Paul, the budget that they had allocated for this roster, my best guess in the conversations I've had, I think they have doubled the number that they were planning to budget.

[Paul Feinbaum]

I mean people throw around the $40

[Ed]

million, it's higher than 40, it's closer to if not past 50. And I think they were going to spend 25 and I think they're close to if not double. And the reason is there's some multi year contracts and there's some things with escalators.

[Paul Feinbaum]

If, with playing time, you always hear certain things. People point toward the big boo. I mean, are there, I know, I know one. Are there, are there where? I mean, who are these people putting the money in?

[Ed]

It's, it's interesting because LSU doesn't have a famous booster, right? They don't have Tyson Chicken, they don't have Jerry Jones or they don't have the Yellowwood guy. They don't have the fame. They don't. Who's the Tech? Texas Tech.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Cody Campbell.

[Ed]

Campbell.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Thank you.

[Ed]

They, they don't have a famous booster. They have, they have wealthy people. I mean everyone always points to Todd Graves from raising canes. He's one, but he's not the only one.

[Paul Feinbaum]

He. But I mean I've been on national shows where he gets all the credit, this one guy. And I'm like going, I want to meet him.

[Ed]

I can tell you, first of all, Todd's a great man. He's very generous. Not just lsu, just General with his wealth. He's very generous, but he is not the only one. There are some that just don't want to be known.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Okay. So because you hear some people say, well I was on the show today, they said, well, Alabama just doesn't have the money. I mean LSU had less money than Alabama when all this started. It's about so somebody's doing a good job down there.

[Ed]

It's about commitment and allocation of resources. But what will be fascinating is there's going to be a meeting coming up with the governor, with the president of the university, with the top 40 boosters at the governor's mansion in about a week and a half. And they're supposed to unveil this wild new plan for revenue generation. And they're going to need it because everybody is.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Just a second. I mean, 10 seconds. How big is the governor and all this?

[Ed]

The governor appointed the university president, Wade Roos. But this is Wade. This is 100% Dr. Wade Roos's plan.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Okay, so is it fair to call up the Governor, Huey Long 2.0 or not?

[Ed]

I'm good with that.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Huey Long on his deathbed, said, what's going to happen to my lsu?

[Ed]

I think Jeff Landry would laugh at that.

[Paul Feinbaum]

Thank you, guys.