Hour 3: Zach Barnett, Football Scoop

Summary

The Paul Finebaum Show – Hour 3 Podcast Summary

Date: July 17, 2026
Host: Cole Cubelic (filling in for Paul Finebaum)
Featured Guest: Zach Barnett (Football Scoop)

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Overview

Hour 3 of the Paul Finebaum Show, hosted by Cole Cubelic, dives deep into the latest developments in college football, featuring a comprehensive interview with Zach Barnett of Football Scoop. The conversation ranges from Brian Kelly’s immediate future and legacy, the current state and ceiling of LSU’s program, the ACC’s new tiebreaker controversy, predictions for conference dominance in the College Football Playoff era, and thoughtful exchanges with callers about recruiting, program culture, NIL effects, and tactical evolutions in the sport. Throughout, the tone is conversational, opinionated, and reflective—characteristic of Finebaum’s circle.

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1. Brian Kelly’s Next Steps and Legacy

Interview with Zach Barnett begins – [00:33]

Key Points

• Brian Kelly to CBS Sports:
  • Kelly is likely to join CBS Sports as a broadcaster for at least a season, stepping away from coaching for the first time in his adult life, but fully intends to coach again.

    “The expectation is for the first time in his adult life he will not be coaching and join the media… But he definitely wants to coach again.”
    — Zach Barnett, [01:32]

• Reflection on Notre Dame/LSU Tenures:
  • Kelly is content with his exit, acknowledging he’s not always beloved by his old fanbases but emphasizing his impact, especially at Notre Dame.

    “They would not be in this position… without him.”
    — Zach Barnett, [02:40]

• Potential Landing Spots:
  • Kelly won’t move “up” from ND or LSU, but could target strong mid-tier programs like Baylor, assuming they have openings. His motivation is ego/legacy, not finances.

    “He can afford to never coach again… but I’m thinking of a school like Baylor.”
    — Zach Barnett, [03:55]

Notable Moment

• On rooting for Notre Dame:

  “…broke the news that he’s not rooting against Marcus Freeman and the Irish out of some fear… He’s rooting for those guys…”
  — Zach Barnett, [02:14]

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2. State of LSU Football Under Lane Kiffin

Discussion with Zach Barnett – [05:14]

Key Points

• LSU's All-In Approach:
  • The entire athletic department is “going for it”—big hires, big personalities, big paydays, notably Lane Kiffin after Kelly.
  • High expectations but acknowledged volatility: national contender or possible bust season.

    “I don’t think we’ve ever seen a team like this one in an athletic department’s that just going for it…”
    — Zach Barnett, [05:36]

• Challenges of Roster Turnover & NIL:
  • Lane Kiffin cautions it takes time to build a team, “can’t build a championship team in a blender.”

    “…putting $40 million… doesn’t necessarily make them become a team any faster… but in reality, no one wants to hear it.”
    — Zach Barnett, [05:47]

• Key Games:
  • The Ole Miss match is “the most anticipated game of the season.”
• Prediction:
  • Tigers could feasibly make the SEC championship/playoffs—or disappoint at 8–4.

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3. ACC Tiebreaker Fiasco and Conference Structure

Breaking Down the New Rules – [07:04]

Key Points

• Tiebreaker Controversy:
  • New system aims to prevent fluke representatives in the championship but isn't perfect—expects coaches to be upset again.

    “There’s going to be a 97% chance that some coach is going to be very, very mad come late November…”
    — Zach Barnett, [07:28]

• Convoluted Conference Design:
  • Half the ACC will play 8 games, half 9, with non-conference results now possibly key for tiebreaks.

    “The ultimate answer is: don't build a 17-team bi-coastal conference...”
    — Zach Barnett, [07:44]

• Will Still Lead to Frustration:
  • Coaches of 8–1 teams missing out for 7–1 teams will find it hard to accept.

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4. Conference Dominance in the Playoff Era

Which league rules CFB? – [09:01]

Key Points

• Big Ten Edges SEC for 2026:
  • Big Ten called “the safest bet” for producing the national champion, top-heaviness with Ohio State, Oregon, Indiana.

    “If you’re asking me to choose… The Big Ten, clearly the safest bet.”
    — Zach Barnett, [09:18]

• Depth vs. Top-End Debate:
  • SEC has more depth; Big Ten is stronger at the very top.

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5. Calls and Listener Questions

On High-Profile Recruiting & Alumni Loyalty

Trey from Tuscaloosa – [10:50]

• Jalen Waddle Helping Texas:
  • Discussion on former Alabama player aiding Sarkisian at Texas in recruiting five-star receivers.

    “That’s just relationships… Not overly surprising that Sark would utilize him… If that’s where his loyalties lie, he’s going to want to help his coach out…”
    — Cole Cubelic, [11:51]

• Big Commitment News:
  • Five-star Moshon Sell commits to Indiana—a massive get for Kurt Cignetti.
• On following recruiting:
  • Cole admits not being a recruiting expert; leans on experts for deep dives.

Dark Horse SEC Teams & Depth

Andrew from Dallas – [15:09]

• South Carolina's Offensive Changes:
  • Expects fireworks with new OC and athletes like Sellers and Harbor.
• UNLV and Jackson Arnold:
  • High hopes if Arnold, a dynamic athlete, can adjust.

    “3,000, 1,000 quarterbacks, they don’t grow on trees, Cole.”
    — Andrew, [16:32]

• Cole on South Carolina:
  • Loves the Sellers-Browse fit but points to brutal late season schedule:

    “After your bye week, October 17th, you better have your act together…”
    — Cole Cubelic, [18:58]

The Rise of “Letdown” Games and Consistency Issues

Hastings from Alabama – [19:35]

• Why More Upsets?
  • Parity, rampant transfers, NIL, leadership churn causing top teams to lose to massive underdogs.
• Cole’s Response:
  • Consistency/leadership is gone due to plug-and-play transfers.

    “The hardest thing to find in college football today is consistency. And it used to almost be a given…”
    — Cole Cubelic, [21:43]

  • Lack of “fear” factor—few teams are pre-game intimidating anymore.

    “The amount of teams that are defeated before the ball is snapped has almost vanished…”
    — Cole Cubelic, [23:04]

  • NIL as double-edged sword: players now “play for a check,” hungry for bigger contracts after big games, not just for school pride.

    “Going from $50,000 a year to $250,000 a year, that makes you hungry, man…”
    — Cole Cubelic, [25:24]

Cultural Shift: NIL’s Effect, “Playing for Paychecks”

Sheila from Birmingham – [30:03]

• A Memorable Rant:
  • Passionate affirmation that NIL has transformed motivation in college football:

    “No more stickers. Throw me an extra thousand in the contract… Your stats are now your paycheck. Repeat, repeat. Run that back DJ…”
    — Sheila, [30:52]

• Cole’s Agreement:
  • “Leverage is king… Having big games against big opponents brings a ton of it in a hurry.”
    — Cole Cubelic, [31:54]

Zach Arnett’s Return to Mississippi State

Steve in the SIP – [33:58]

• Can MSU Get Back to Defensive Roots?
  • With Arnett on staff, could improve discipline and aggression.
  • Modern successful defenses are schematically aggressive—coaches “coming after” offenses.
  • Potential danger in MSU’s “foot on the gas” style on both sides: could lead to volatile, fatigued seasons if not carefully managed.

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6. Other Noteworthy Moments & Quotes

• Zach Barnett (on Kelly’s job search):

  “It’s very much as much of an ego play because it’s certainly not a financial one…”
  — [03:55]

• Cole on the state of motivation in college football:

  “If you could triple your earnings with just a few good games, you better damn well believe those kids are playing a different kind of ball…”
  — [25:24]

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7. Timestamps for Major Segments

| Topic | Timestamps | |------------------------------------------------|----------------| | Zach Barnett interview begins (Kelly/LSU/ACC) | 00:33–10:37 | | Jalen Waddle recruiting, recruiting landscape | 10:50–13:37 | | Dark horses, South Carolina, Auburn, UNLV | 15:09–19:35 | | Parity, trap/letdown games, NIL era | 19:35–27:13 | | NIL’s effect and culture shift (Sheila) | 30:03–31:54 | | MSU defense, Zach Arnett | 33:58–40:01 |

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Overall Tone & Style

The episode features frank, insider analysis on elite coaching movement, the unpredictable new normal of college football’s playoff era, the impact of the transfer portal and NIL, plus sharp banter with the passionate—often colorful—Finebaum caller base. It’s a mix of industry expertise and lively fan debate that captures the crossroads at which college football now stands.

Transcript

[A]

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[B]

and pageantry of college football lives here. This is the Paul Feinbaum Show. Our three podcasts this might be college football. Appreciate you guys tuning in 855-242-7285 to get into the show. You'll do that after Zach Barnett joins us. Cole Kubik filling in for Paul final day of the week, final show before SEC media live in Tampa. Zach Barnett, you can find him@football scoop.com does an excellent job covering all different things college football and Zach, one thing that you have an article up now on is Brian Kelly and just kind of where he is right now post coaching. Not forever, but for the moment being what's the latest on where Brian Kelly will be? Maybe what he wants to do in the near future.

[A]

Right now he's in discussions to join CBS Sports and their team. He noted that nothing's been signed yet, but the expectation is for the first time in his adult life he will not be coaching and join the media, join our business for at least one season. But he definitely wants to coach again and where he is more than that is he's at peace with where he is. The LSU thing did not work out. He knows that he's not the most popular guy in any fan base of where he's coached, but at the same time he's still a really good football coach and he's going to position himself to go get a job this coming fall, this coming winter. And whoever hires him will probably be much better off because the guy's going to be in the College Football hall of Fame and he's going to he'll visit South Bend during camp and quote unquote broke the news that he's not rooting against Marcus Freeman and the Irish out of some fear that then go running off and winning the national championship would make them look bad. He's rooting for those guys and some of those guys are his former players now that he's been gone a while. Most of them aren't. But the uncomfortable truth for Brian Kelly's many haters is that they would not be in this position where I mean I think they should be the preseason number one team without him for number one for him joining there, they were well behind where they needed to be when he got there after the 2009 season. And then his leaving, as painful as it was to the ego, really spurred the investment that they needed to make. And now Notre Dame is getting players that they never got before and they never would have gotten them, most likely that he had left.

[B]

Zach Barnett a football scoop joining us on the phones talking Brian Kelly. We'll get into multiple college football topics here with Zach. Here's what I'm always interested in. With coaches that are in Brian Kelly seat, what sort of job would wouldn't they take next? Because I think you've seen this act like I have a lot of guys get caught up in the Only this one, only this one, only this one. Some guys just want to get back in. Where do you think Brian Kelly's brain is as it pertains to what type of job he may actually take next?

[A]

Yeah, I mean I think of it as we know it's very much as much of an ego play because it's certainly not a financial one. He can afford to never coach again. But I mean you're probably going down quote unquote in prestige from Notre Dame and LSU because there's not a lot of room to move upward there. But I'm thinking of, you know, a school that that's certainly on the hot seat and would have been looking for a coach had things been differently this past year. But if things don't turn around this season, Dave Aranda won't be at Baylor very much longer. And I mean no offense to Dave Aranda, but I don't think anyone would argue that Brian Kelly isn't a better coach than him. And Brian Kelly would go win win a lot of games at Baylor. He demands a professional ball coach, so to speak. So a school like that, mid tier power 4 if you want to dive in there, I think would do a lot of good for him. And I think a lot of it is who wants him like you saw James Franklin maybe could have gotten involved in some SEC gigs but Virginia Tech put on the full court press and really recruited him hard to there and those two seem to have hit it off famously.

[B]

Zach Barnett of Football Scoop.com joining us on the phones now talking a little Brian Kelly. I just I got to follow up with what you think about LSU now heading into this season. Lane kift in the head coach obviously the roster probably more so. The cost of the roster has made a lot of noise this offseason, Zach, but just give us your thousand foot view of the LSU tigers heading into 2026.

[A]

I don't think we've ever seen a team like this one in an athletic department that's just going for it in every sense of the word than lsu. I mean Kim Mulkey is now the third biggest lightning round among their their head coaching roster behind behind Lane and behind Will Wade. So that says something quite a bit. I I know Lane has said that it's going to take time and you can't build a championship team in a blender. And putting $40 million paying these guys a lot of money doesn't necessarily make them become a team any faster. On the ground level, he's right. But in reality no one wants to hear it. So I think every game they play is going to be 1A or 1B in that window that they're playing and on the talk shows they're going to give us a lot to digest, win or lose. I know that Ole Miss game I have circled along with a lot of us as the most anticipated game of the season. Getting Blake Baker back was obviously enormous for him and I'm not going to be I wouldn't be excited to line up against that offense. So long story longer if they're playing, I'd be surprised they're playing for the SEC championship. They made the playoffs. That wouldn't shock me. But if they crashed and burned and I mean crashing Burmery 8 and 4, 7 and 5 type season, that that wouldn't surprise me either.

[B]

Zach Barnett of Football Scoop.com joining us on the phones talking a couple different college football topics. You also have an article up on the ACC and the tiebreaker fiasco that took place a year ago and how that has been repaired. What's your level of confidence in where the league is going with the tiebreaker to get into their conference championship game now?

[A]

I mean I think there's going to be a 97% chance that some coach is going to be very, very mad come late November and he'll have a great argument. But at the same time I don't, I don't really see a great way out of it. I mean the ultimate answer is don't build a 17 team BI coastal conference where you only are able to play eight or nine games. But we're well past that at this point. So 1/2 of the league is going to play 8 games, 1/2 is going to play 9 and who has not punished or reward the 8 or the 9. Basically in their mind if you go 7 and 1, you go 8 and 1, then you're tied and assuming that you didn't play each other, then the next step is basically a BCS type ranking and where I presume I haven't seen the formula myself because it's proprietary, but I presume then your non conference games would counter into whether you make the conference championship, which is fraught in and of itself. But the goal here is to avoid a situation where you have a 7 and 5 Duke team in the ACC championship at the expense of Miami team that very nearly missed the playoff altogether. And they're going to avoid that if that's the main goal. That's, that's what they're going to do. But you're going to have a coach who's 8 and 1 and misses out in favor of a 7 and 1 team. He's not going to be very happy and it's going to be hard to argue against him.

[B]

Zach Barnett of Football Scoop.com joining us on the phones talking different college football topics. What will be the dominant league at the end of this college football season? And we'll probably measure that by amount of teams in the college playoff, I would assume.

[A]

I mean it's hard to, it's hard to knock the Big Ten because the SEC has certainly has more depth. You could talk me into eight, nine SEC teams making the field of 12 out of a group of four to five. You can't do that in the Big Ten. It is, you get to five and then after that it's Slim Pickens. But that's not really how we measure conference quality. I remember 10 years ago when the Big 12 of the SEC were making this argument. The SEC, the Big 12 was arguably the deeper team, but the SEC fans didn't want to hear it because the SEC was strongest at the top. And now the shoe's on the other foot. So it's hard to argue against Ohio State, Oregon and Indiana as your top three. That's a heck of a batting lineup. And then from there maybe they get a fourth team in, maybe they don't. But if you're asking me to choose a national, what conference produces the national champion? The Big Ten, clearly the safest bet.

[B]

Zach, great stuff man. Thanks for hopping on with us today. Definitely appreciate the time. All your work [e-mail] right now. A couple good reads that our listeners can go and check out. Look forward to doing this again soon.

[A]

Sounds good, Cole. Thanks.

[B]

All right, there you go. Zach Barnett of Football Scoop joining us on the phones, 855-242-7285. We'll go to Trey in Tuscaloosa wants to join us on the Paul Finebaum Show. Welcome in, Trey.

[A]

Hey, I'll tell y', all, I really enjoyed y' all this week. You've done a great job.

[B]

Thank you.

[A]

I'll throw something at you and I got, I got a two part, two part question to this.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

I read where Jalen Waddle is helping Texas and Sarkeesian recruit two elite five star receivers. An Eastern Royale on Ready's 511200 pounds, world class speed, just broke a 46 year record at 100 yard dash, 10.17 seconds. And then Moshon sell 6, 5, 200 pounds, his 100 meter dash was 10.81 seconds. So this is my question. How would you feel if someone that you have played with was helping another school recruit? Or what's your opinion on it? And the second part is, what more do you know about these two players? I mean, can you elaborate on them a little bit and I'll hang up and listen because I know you got other callers but I'd like to hear your response. And you have a great weekend.

[B]

Yeah, I'm not big on the high school recruiting as far as being able to keep up with it and talk about it. I think as far as how would I feel if a guy that played at my school was helping recruit another school? I mean that's just, that's relationships, you know, Jalen Waddle, a Texas guy. So I know that he's got those ties that are close to Sark. Not overly surprising that Sark would try to utilize him and bring him in and say, hey, this the guy that helped me do what I've been doing. And if that's where his loyalties lie, he's going to want to help his coach out no matter what. It's not extremely surprising. I don't think that I'd really be mad at him, maybe a little bit more disappointed that we weren't able to utilize what he's doing in the NFL, has done in the NFL to potentially bring that player to where he played. And that's Alabama. But at the end of the day, you know, that's just, that's kind of where it goes. Sometimes these kids want to be around the guys that they felt like did the most for them in their careers and they're going to be loyal to them. I do know that The Manchin sales 5 star plus I guess wide receiver committed to Indiana today, which is a massive get for the Hoosiers for a lot of different reasons. We've seen them have so much success success with the Portal. But now you're giving Kurt Signetti elite high school talent to play with there in Bloomington and showing that he's going to be able to win in multiple ways. Not games, but win and putting his roster together, which is extremely impressive. So that's what I can offer up. Trey, not a recruiting expert. I usually lean on other guys to join my shows that I'm on to be able to give me insight there. We'll get to a break, come back more of your calls. 855-242-7285 for you to join the Paul Feinbaum Show. You're listening to the Paul Feinbaum show podcast.

[A]

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welcome back in Paul Feinbaum Show. Cole Kubik sitting in for Paul today, 4:20 Friday, July 17th. It's great to be with you this entire week. Last show before SEC Media days down in Tampa. Next week I'll be there along with Paul and others covering every coach, every player, every quote, every comment, every bit of information that we get we'll share with you. And Paul obviously will be back in this seat Monday afternoon. 855-242-7285. To get in, Andrew in Dallas wants to chime in on the Paul Feym Show. Welcome in Andrew.

[A]

Hey Cole. Hey. I think it's real swell that you had to make a wish kit on Michael Bratt to start this show off today, I think he had a comment that Texas wasn't deep. I mean that'd be news to me. I don't know what the hell he's talking about. And Kirby I think was pretty sad to see Muschamp go. As far as Easton Royal is concerned, we're fighting off Lane Kiffin in the Louisiana State Children's Hospital From Dolan out IO used to keep him committed. He runs a 101100 but that's not why I call. I want to talk about two dark horse SEC teams that I could see really making a move this year. The first being South Carolina adding former Texas safety and converted wide receiver to be the offensive coordinator. I think you put some athletes out on the field, spread them out like Sellers and Harbor and just let them run and don't think about it like I don't know what Shula was doing, you know, last year, but think you're gonna see some fireworks with those two. Now the other team that I think was missing some key pieces last year, I got a riddle for you. What do J.W. walsh, Gerard Heard Eli Dowers and Jackson Arnold have in common?

[B]

That's a lot of names. You're gonna probably take me longer than I need to to figure out the answer, so I'm gonna go ahead and let you just give it to me. Andrew.

[A]

They're all denting our quarterbacks. They're all great athletes and only one of them still thinks he can play quarterback at this level. So we'll see what happens at unlv. I think you guys got what you need. You got continuity at defensive coordinator. I agree with the caller from the other day who said that he could see Auburn making some real noise because, you know, 3,000, 1,000 quarterbacks, they don't grow on trees, Cole. And that's what you were missing last year. I mean the guy should have been getting you a quarterback that could play instead of playing all that golf.

[B]

Hook them some really good points there. By Andrew, I do think that, I mean, listen, I've talked about a Jackson Arnold have stretches of his career we couldn't let go of the football. Not ideal when you're trying to play quarterback. However, I do think he's a really good fit for what Dan Mullen is going to want to do and obviously they'll utilize his legs and I wouldn't be surprised if he's legitimately just a run first quarterback in that UNLV system. The South Carolina thing, we talked about it earlier in the week with a Takeover guy on defense. And Dylan Stewart, a takeover guy on offense. And Lenore Sellers. I love the fit with Lenore Sellers and Kendall Brows. Kendall Brows is exceptional as a college football play caller that he just needs a little bit more around him now. Is that Dana Arnett stepping up at tackle? I think Jacarius Peak's going to be fine at tackle. Your O line was dinged up in the spring, but that could allow you to help develop some depth for once you do get into the season. Nick harbor needs to be a little bit more consistent. Nitro Tuggle's got to come along. Mazio Bennett needs to be healthy and be in the lineup consistently. Matt Fuller needs to be good at running back. But I, I could see it with South Carolina because defensively you got a lot of guys back that have played in that system. And Clayton White is vastly underrated as an SEC defensive coordinator and he's got guys with a lot of experience, not just in Columbia, but around college football. And Dylan Stewart will be the guy that they can design a lot of it around that can go take over a game. So listen, the thing that people are going to point to is South Carolina is the schedule. We can play that game with every team in the league. It's a nine game league schedule. There are going to be no gimme schedules anymore. Some may lean one way or the other. I understand that, but I love the Runway for South Carolina. Early Kent State, Towson, Mississippi State before you travel to Alabama, Kentucky, then at Florida, week off Tennessee at Oklahoma, Texas A and M at Arkansas, Georgia at Clemson. I will just say this about Coach Beamer's group. After your bye week, October 17th, you better have your act together because that is one of the most insane closes to a season that you will ever see. It is ridiculous what they are going to have to do at the end of this season, but they have the bodies to potentially be able to go out there and do it. Hastings in Alabama. What's up my man?

[A]

Yeah, what's up Cole? By the way, the answer to the question this morning on the airport TGIF Friday, no doubt that's a hands down winner in the airport. You go every time. Yeah, no, actually kind of a, kind of a different question and it's more along the lines of a lot of people predicting Oklahoma, Notre Dame to be really successful but kind of want to talk about some things with like Notre Dame, Ohio State, Alabama, all these major teams and as of late something that's been happening that used to not happen all the time and it's let down game, whether it's, you know, Northern Illinois or teams that aren't just underdogs, but like massive underdogs that are coming in here and competing. And since we're pulling more talent up to the power four and the roster should be better built, I'm just curious as to what is causing the collapse. And I see it a lot with Alabama and I know, you know, that's not the only reference because I mean, you can put Notre Dame in there, you can put a lot of teams in there as far as just utter fall apart against teams that they should be beaten by 40 points. And I don't know if it's a rat poison type deal from Nick Saban or if the athletes just kind of get ahead of themselves or if it's the money involved. But even with the money involved, you almost look at it and you're like, these teams should just put on pads and be able to go out there and walk out there and beat them. And yet the more and more we're watching and the more and more things unfold as the NIL era and everything has started to happen, the more it's like these teams lose focus. And it's not like it's bad coaching. I mean, you got Marcus Freeman, Caitlin DeBoer, Brent Venables, you know, Ryan Day. Even with Ohio, I mean Ohio State, I mean, they've had some letdown games. So I was just curious if there's something to that or like what, what exactly your thoughts are and all the utter collapses that seem to happen and just the letdown games that aren't even like they're lettuce games that they're losing. It's not even trap games, they're just losing lettuce games. So

[B]

don't hang up, don't hang up. Hastings. So listen to this. Okay, A couple of things here. I think you bring up some great points and I think they're accurate. Number one, I would say this, and it's a word you hear me talk about often, consistency. It is the hardest thing to find in college football today. And it used to almost be a given. Kind of like what we talked about with leadership earlier in the week. Your quarterback, your center, your inside linebacker, your free safety, like they were handed the keys to maybe not only a position group, but a side of the football. And the team quarterback would have been another one of those. Well, now when you're plugging go at those spots, you don't know if you're getting that leadership because they didn't sit there for two and three years to see how the other guy was doing it. That's not just a given anymore. Without the leadership comes questioning, comes lack of communication, lack of understanding that takes away situational awareness that allows you to do second, third, fourth level coaching. You have to stay base level four first level coaching with all the guys that you have because you don't all understand everything together as one. Here's a big one that I actually wanted to talk about today, so I'm glad you brought it up. Fear. How many teams Hastings right now, honestly do you think are feared before the game actually kicks off?

[A]

Probably two. Indiana, maybe three. Georgia, Indiana and Ohio State.

[B]

And compare that, and Compare that to eight years ago, you could probably tell me 10 or 12 weekly the team just didn't want to play, right? Yeah, I mean it's just like I think the amount of teams that are defeated before the ball is snapped has almost vanished. Like that is almost like a Tyrannosaurus rex of college football. Like it's extinct, it's just not there anymore. And I think part of that is you have guys that have played other places, they're on the move. I'll say it point blank, a lot of guys are playing for a check. So they just don't care. And some of that, like sometimes not caring and not knowing can be a positive. Like if you transfer into Mississippi State and you go play at Tuscaloosa, you don't know how that's gone for probably the last five, six, two, three, eight, 12 years, you don't know. Especially if you come from Fresno State or Washington or Rutgers, you don't know what that thing's looked like. So you don't care. That can be good. Now also can be bad with the understanding of what you need to tell the guy next to you and what you need to do in a certain formation because you also haven't done that. So I think it's multifaceted and then

[A]

too also has anything to do it like the Alabama right now or like Notre Dame. Do you think fear of losing has anything to do with those teams playing up tight for the paycheck and stuff? May have something to do with it to just kind of reverse that.

[B]

No, but I do think this when, when App State knocked off Michigan. Let's just use that game as an example because it's an easy one for everybody to remember. I mean, ultimately all the kids playing for App State, they were playing to win the game, correct?

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

What else were they playing for? Like big picture, ultimately, what else Were

[A]

they playing the players? They were playing for themselves.

[B]

Yeah, maybe. Maybe to put some film on to try to make the NFL, but mainly they wanted to go win the game. What are most of the kids right now at New Mexico, Utah State, Southern Miss, Florida Atlantic, uab, Troy like? What else are they playing for besides just beating that opponent that day?

[A]

They're trying to get film because they want.

[B]

There you go. And going from 50,000 a year to 250,000 a year, that makes you hungry, man. Mike, when you could triple and quadruple and quintuplet your earnings because you had two or three good games in a season against the right opponents, you better damn well believe those kids are playing a different kind of ball. And the kids at Notre Dame that are maxing out. I hate saying this because I don't like it internally, but what are they playing for? Where's the bigger check? I mean, the NFL, obviously, but. And you would hope that that handles itself, but it doesn't always work that way. We know that.

[A]

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[A]

Great call, Hastings, I guess. Yeah. No, hey, thanks, Cole. Appreciate it.

[B]

All right, man. Thank you, Hastings. 855-242-7285. If you want to get into the Paul Finebaum show, take Catherine in Florida before we go to break. Welcome into the Paul Feinbaum Show. Kathryn.

[C]

Hi. Hi, Paul. Or hello.

[A]

I just wanted to say welcome to Tampa next week for who all is coming to your media day.

[C]

I think.

[A]

I know Paul wasn't real happy about it being held in Tampa or in Florida. I guess he thought it was sort of too far removed and, you know, hard for a lot of those to have to travel here, but I think those that come will have a good time. It's not like we're unaccustomed to, you know, catering to people. The Raymond James Stadium with a home of the Tampa Bay Bucks. They have a lot of bowl games and right now we've had, we'll have seven of the World cup games down in Miami tomorrow. There'll be the one final. But Tampa is a great, it's a great city. A lot of heritage here and a lot of good places to eat for those that would be interested in that. But and I don't and as a fan, I don't know how close we are to be able to get to those that will be attending and on the show. How would you know?

[B]

That's a great question, Catherine, because I don't know the layout, the format either. I've never done an SEC media day in Tampa. So I don't know exactly how that's going to look, exactly how that's going to work. I don't know where fans are going to be able to line up. There's always a place for fans to have a little bit of access to come be a little bit a part of everything that's happening and taking place. So I would imagine there will be that here as well. I don't know exactly where that'll be. I'm sure it will be shared by multiple people once we get there. And you're able to kind of either check social media or you hear people talking on SEC network or this show about kind of where to go, where to be. But I'm sure there'll be some access somewhere. I just, I haven't done it yet so I, I don't know where should I was going to ask her what's the one place that we should go eat? I got a couple of you on hold. 855-242-7285. Stay there. We'll go directly back to your calls next right here on the Paul Feinbaum Show. You're listening to the Paul Feinbaum show podcast. About an hour and 20 minutes left in today's show. And then we'll be back live from SEC media days in Tampa. 8552-427285-85524, 27285. Sheila in Birmingham, welcome back in.

[C]

What up, Cole? ICE Cole, you hit my soul today because you just called another one. You just called another one. Your passion comes out. It's a real thing. So it's all about the money. You said that you don't think Those guys are going to play hard. It is a different culture. It is a different ball game. And that's where you struck me. I started not to call today, but I couldn't help myself. I couldn't help it. This is what you said to me. You're like, look, guys, when you get another notch in your belt, you get a play. You're hitting somebody, they're going down. You got two games you're up. And your stats start looking different. Your stats are now your paycheck. Your stats, repeat, repeat. Run that back. DJ Is now your paycheck. You just said that. Because if your stats go up, then you can. What? You can negotiate? Yeah. This is a negotiation. Now it's a mediation. Now it's a negotiation. And they got the upper hand. So you're going to play extra hard to get what? I asked my brother one time. I'm like, how many stickers you get on your helmet? He's like, oh, yeah, we. What you get for that play? Oh, we got a sticker. You got a sticker? A sticker. No, no more stickers. Throw me an extra thousand in the contract. An extra 50 grand. Throw the all the quarterback. Let's not even talk about what that paycheck looks like if you got a championship. So now forget about the stickers. It's all about the Benjamins. And if you know Benjamin, you can stack that cash, baby. So to my good friend Cole, ice cold to the rest of y', all, war Damn. Eagle. I am checking out. The Eagle has landed. Bye bye.

[B]

More Eagle, Sheila, thank you very much. Leverage is king. And when you have it, obviously does a lot of different things for you. And in today's college athletics, there are multiple ways to find it. But having big games against big opponents brings a ton of it in a hurry. 8552-4272-8585-5242, 7, 285. We talked a little bit of recruiting, which I'm not up on. It's not my expertise. But I did want to share this because this one has come up multiple times per rivals. Steve Wilt Fong is logging an Expert prediction for LSU to flip Texas 5 star wide receiver commit Easton Royal. So we had a couple callers mentioned this specific recruitment, this specific player, these specific schools, and just wanted to update you on that as it has just come across my timeline via social media. So listen, I'm not going to sit here and tell you that I watch all the film on these kids in high school. I watch some. I can't tell who it's against, I don't know. So I normally just take those guys word for it and I'll break it down when I see it in college and let you know exactly what I think of it. Tell you what I think of the next segment of the show. It's there for your calls. 855-242-7285. Any college football topic, player, schedule, team, part of a team position, group, side of the football you call in. Give us your thoughts. What do you want to talk about? 855-242-7285 more next on the Paul Feinbaum Show. You're listening to the Paul Fine Bomb show podcast. Welcome back into the Paul Fine Bomb Show. Cole Cubic with you Friday, July 17th. Little over one hour to go until the next time you hear us live from Tampa, Florida at SEC Media Days. 8552-4272-8585-5242, 7285. To get in, Steve in the SIP wants to chime in. Welcome in, Steve.

[A]

Hi man. How you doing, Cole?

[B]

I'm doing great, thanks.

[A]

And we're live from the living room as Doug eyes up the match. Say spread. He's reaching for the buffalo wing. Perfect. Hang on. What's this? Oh, he's gone for a can of Pepsi too. Incredible. What a finish. Sensational combination. Look at the delight on his face. There's no doubt about it. It just tastes better. Match days deserve Pepsi. Food deserves Pepsi. Grab a pack of Pepsi. Zero sugar for today's match. It's poetry in motion. When you think about Crocs, you think the classic clog. But did you know there's also a canvas clog, a vegan suede clog, a coastal inspired style, a style with studs, straps and lots of sass. Honestly, I could keep going with the surprises. You've got to see them for yourself because there is literally a style for every kind of girl.

[B]

So do your thing and head to

[A]

crocs.com or a store near you now. So I'm just going to ask about, you think Arnett coming back to Mississippi State, is that going to try to set the, try to set them straight on there? It feels, you know, historically great defense, you know, comparatively to the rest of the sec. Do you think this sets the sets the boat straight or you think it's more hard times for him this year?

[B]

I don't think it's more hard times. I mean I think they're going to have to find a way to play more intelligent football in critical moments. You go back to some penalties, some mistakes in massive moments last year. There are a couple of swing plays, swing calls that could have completely shaped the season for Mississippi State. I think you got the right guy in there for the head man. I think the players love Jeff Levy. I think they play hard for him. Thought they played hard for the previous defensive coordinator also is one of the things I complimented them on towards the end of last season. But I will say this. If you look across college football, the majority of the defenses that are beginning to have more success are the defenses that are creating it on their own and are not necessarily leaning on individual players to win matchups or be bigger, stronger, faster than everybody else. You're also not as being as protective on every blade of grass on the field. Zach Garnett brings that. I mean, he's going to be obviously a little bit more aggressive. He is going to be someone who at times leaves things open for the offense to find. But because of where we are with offensive lines, where we are with quarterback play, and I'll just call it what I think it is, the lack of development at both and probably a little bit of over communication between coaches and players, a lot of times of trying to have the perfect play every down, every down in every down, out every series, the defensive coordinators are saying to hell with it, we're coming after you because we don't think you can handle it. And it's being proven more times than not that they can't, they can't pick it up up front, they can't get to the right throw in the right amount of times and D coordinators are starting to get theirs. So I love that part of it. For Jeff Levy, I'm a Zach Arnett fan. Here's where my concern would come with that, is that if you are going to be foot on the gas offensively and then also foot on the gas defensively, you're going to have a lot of quick possessions, you're going to have a lot of three and outs on both sides of the ball. You're going to have some turnovers, but you're also going to have some explosive plays on both sides of the ball. Does that rapid pace throughout the entire season catch up to him at some point? I don't know the answer. I don't. And it's actually one of the cool things. I talked to Alex Golish about Auburn head coach. I realize it's a different team and it's a different head coach, but I think philosophically what we discussed applies here and he said you know, I looked down our schedule and I kind of started thinking about how we play defense, how we play offense, and I thought to myself, do I need to start thinking about calling some things in some different ways at different points in times this year because of how it's going to look? And if you look down that Auburn schedule at the style offenses that they play, I mean Tennessee is going to sling it around LSU slinging around, Ole Miss slinging around, Mississippi State slinging around. And then some of the teams that don't can probably will be able to when they want to. Florida, Bama, and it's basically him saying, I'm we're going to have to call a run play every now and then. We might not need to go as fast as humanly possible all the time to protect the defense. So listen, Jeff Levy knows it. He knows that that would be hard to just put your foot on the floor on offense and defense for an entire season. Managing that is going to be critical, I think, for how successful they can be this season. Appreciate the call. Steve. 855-242-7285. You want to get into the Paul Finebaum show talk any SEC team, any SEC schedule where we want to go and you look across this league with what LSU's defense has had success doing. Attack, attack, attack. Auburn's defense under DJ Durkin, much more attack mode going after people trying to find theirs. You looked at higher that Josh Hypo made at Tennessee with Jim Knowles. That's going to be much more aggressive than it has been going after people trying to force mistakes. Look what Elko and company are doing up front defensively with Texas A and M showing all the different looks, moving, stunning, slanting. Oklahoma might be the most aggressive defense in the sec. The with how much they move and how much they show, it's paying off. The offenses are proving to the defenses and to themselves they can't manage it enough. I mean, Clayton White at South Carolina will turn it up on you, man. He'll give you some wonky looks that teams just can't manage. We'll talk more about that. More college football. Get to your calls, 855-242-7285. Next on the Paul Finebaum Show.

[A]

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