Andy & Ari On3 - Big Ten commish Tony Petitti talks 24-team College Football Playoff and how to get the SEC on board

Episode Date: September 3, 2026

While college football games are being played tonight, the topics of discussion leading up to this point have involved court cases with former NFL players and the expansion of the College Football Playoff. On toda's show, Big Ten commissioner Tony Petitti joins to discuss the state of college football and the expansion of the 12-team CFP to 24-team. Do you think this is a good idea for the sport? Why or why not?(0:00) On Today's Episode(0:44) Presenting Sponsor(1:52) Intro: Previewing Tony Petitti(6:25) Tony Petitti joins(10:11) 24-Team Playoff with Petitti(12:20) TV's impact(15:00) Non-Conference games in regards to expanding CFP(26:52) Recapping Petitti(28:58) Cash App(31:06) Who Am I?(37:43) Gametime(38:51) LSU v SEC lawsuit(55:02) Closing out - Georgia Tech vs Colorado(56:15) Call 615-378-8879After Petitti joins, Andy & Ari dive into this week's rendition of Who Am I? How many guesses did it take you?Next up, Andy & Ari discuss the SEC filing a lawsuit against LSU and Lane Kiffin.Call out hotline to give us your unfiltered takes! 615-378-8879Our show is presented by Polymarket!New User Offer: Deposit $10, get $50 upon sign uphttps://app.polymarket.us/S8ac/ON3Trade on College Football games every week on Polymarket. Download the Polymarket App with code ON3 for a $20 bonus upon sign up.18+ only. Restrictions and eligibility requirement apply. Not available in all jurisdictions. Trading is risky. 100% loss can occur.Download Cash App Today: https://click.cash.app/ui6m/ixiigptr #CashAppPod.Cash App is a financial services platform, not a bank. Banking services provided by Cash App’s bank partner(s). Prepaid debit cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC. Cash App Visa® Debit Flex Cards issued by Sutton Bank, Member FDIC, and The Bancorp Bank, N.A., pursuant to a license from Visa U.S.A. Inc. See terms and conditions for the Sutton prepaid card, Sutton debit flex card, and Bancorp debit flex card.  Savings provided by Cash App, a Block, Inc. brand. Visit cash.app/legal/podcast for full disclosures.We are sponsored by Gametime! Take the guesswork out of buying tickets to every type of event with Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code STAPLES for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Gametime.co Watch our show on YouTube! https://youtu.be/6UX3LscPeRA Hosts: Andy Staples, Ari WassermanProducer: River BaileyInterested in partnering with the show? Email [e-mail] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On today's Andy and Ari on 3 presented by Polly Market. Big 10 commissioner, Tony Petiti, joins the show. And he's got some very interesting things to say about early season scheduling and about how that might be different in the era of a 2014 playoff and not just talking about it, but potentially making a rule about it. Plus, the SEC sues LSU and federal court as a hearing is going on in Louisiana that could determine whether players are eligible to play this week. Another twist in that saga.

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New users deposit 10, get $50 upon sign up and start trading today. 18 plus only restrictions and eligibility requirements apply, not available in all jurisdictions. Trading is risky. 100% loss can occur. Welcome to Andy Nari on 3, presented by Polymarket. Big guest. I hinted at at the end of yesterday's show. That big guest is here today, Ari.

He is Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petitti. Big Boone for the show. Yeah, very interesting interview with Tony Petiti. And on a day when there's a little bit of a college football playoff news, Ross Delinger reporting that the CFP may exercise the clause in the ESPN contract. says ESPN has X number of days to make an offer on potential extra inventory. And then if it doesn't suit everybody's needs, that it might go to the open market, well, that happens if you're deciding whether to go to 24.

The other piece of going to 24 is what the SEC decide that they're okay with going to 24. Well, one of the things the SEC wants, we know, because Ross reported about a memo from Greg Sankey last week. is they would like everybody else to have to play at least 10 power conference opponents if you're in a power conference. That's something that the Big Ten doesn't have a rule about. And we've talked a lot about it. I've complained a lot because I think it's a reason that the Big Ten's first week schedule is so bad this year. I mean, they've got big new kickoff going to North Texas, Indiana.

Want to hear a fun stat? Yeah. I think you know the stat, but I'm just going to. how many teams in the power four are not playing at least one power four team at a conference this year? It's four or five big ten teams. There's a couple big 12 teams that moved. And then Texas Tech got canceled on by somebody. Nine total in the power four, five are in the big ten.

Okay. Yes. It's Indiana, Penn State, USC, Washington, Nebraska? Nailed it. Okay. There's no stumping you, guy. There's no stumping you. But it is interesting.

though that half of them are from one conference and it is something that like I think that everybody is on board with Andy right like you know your your thing that you brought up in the interview and I can't wait for you guys to see it it was I wanted to thank him he was awesome I really enjoyed just talking to him about ball and about the way things are going but like just because it's expanding to 24 potentially doesn't

guarantee anything especially considering the fact that when it went three times bigger it got worse in terms of of outlooks on whether they should schedule. Coaches are more scared of scheduling these games than they were before. Yeah. Yeah. And maybe 24 is so big, Andy, that it's just like, you're not going to not be in the top 24 if

you're any good, right? But, you know, I think that writing it down. I don't trust anything at this point. Yeah. You know, but I think getting to a place too where everybody plays 10 power four teams, I think would be a good thing for the sport. It would be a good thing for big noon kickoff. I mean, who's losing in that regard?

So, you know, I think a group of six schools are. But, you know, I think the majority of the viewing public wants better games. So I think there's a tradeoff that has to be made there. Well, I don't know the stat on this. You might know this because you're, again, big-brained. How many of the non-power four games are against FCS opponents or teams that are even lower than the group of five? Like, I think, like, completely eliminating some of those games and still getting group of six teams funding would be good because your needs to be a line in the sand in terms of who should benefit financially.

Well, and you should also try to challenge. yourself against the group of six teams, like against a Boise State or a Memphis. Yeah. But. But, I mean, River just pointed out, Tennessee is playing firm, and I would much rather Tennessee play a team from the American. Yeah. Tennessee, Memphis would be a great game.

Yeah. I remember, what was it? What was it? 1996. That didn't work out very well for Tennessee. So I don't know if they want to do that again. But at any rate, this is going to be a very interesting time because it feels like there's movement.

And I've been telling you all along. I don't think the SEC is. is diametrically opposed to 24. I think they're willing to do it with certain assurances, including, hey, we're gonna get made whole on giving up our championship game financially. So I think that's a huge piece of this too. We don't have an answer to that yet.

But the competitive part of it, the scheduling part of it, well, let's just ask Tony Petiti about it. Here is Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petiti. We are joined now by Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petiti and I was giving your new PR guy, David Bass, he's some flak, Tony, because he didn't put the national championship trophies on either side of view for this shot, like at Big Ten Media Days.

If I were you, I would just walk around with them. Yeah, I got a little small replicas and keep them in our pocket, right? You go out there and put them on, put them everywhere I go. Yeah, I didn't even know they were doing that on the stage at the Big Ten Media Day. They all of a sudden, like, you know, I wanted to go rehearse, and there they were. I was like, I'm not going to argue. You know, the joke is, you know, you'll just have two on each side at Big Ten Media Day next year, right? You know, I'm very superstitious.

We're going to play these games. And, you know, it was funny walking off the field at the end of the championship game last year, you're thinking, like, wow, we got to do this again next year. Like, that's just the way you feel about it. It was different. You know, when you work in MLB, it's different. One of the 30 teams is going to win the championship. Like, you're not invested in the same way. But when you compete outside the league for these national championships, you know, you feel that pressure to keep doing it, obviously.

and, you know, I'm looking forward to a great season. We've got a lot of great football teams, players, coaches, all of it. What has that been like for you, though? Because three titles in a row with three different schools, which I think is the difference. It's not just one team dominating everybody. How much has that helped in terms of when you're talking to other schools in the league? You can say, hey, look, Indiana did this.

You, who may have not had that much success, can also do this. Yeah, I think it's the expectation that it can happen, right? And it's a combination of great coaching, investment, resources, picking the right players, coaching them, making them better, and then getting through an incredibly difficult schedule like you have to do to play in Big Ten football. So I think that's all, you know, something that is believable. It can happen. It has happened. You know, and look, I think that's the great thing about what this is supposed to be. It's supposed to be unpredictable. It's supposed to be that teams rise that maybe you didn't expect and teams have different types of seasons.

you know, it's just different all the time. That's what makes it so great. So I think, you know, we have high expectations for everybody in our league, and I'm just really, I'm really excited about going in and see how it plays out week to week. Tony, you know, the SEC did, by and large, dominate college football for the 20 years before your arrival at the Big Ten. What's your hypothesis or your thought for how the Big Ten has managed to flip the script and win three national championships in a row? Look, I think it starts with the coaching. I think our coaches have been as strong as we've ever had.

I think we're really deep. We're attracting great student athletes and great players. I think this, you have to be honest, the system where you can, where you're, you know, have the refshare system in the NIL era of how players get compensated. That obviously had an impact. And it's all part of it.

All those things kind of coming together. You combine that with incredible tradition and fan bases. Like, that's all where it is directionally. And, you know, I think also like it's clear. clear that the expanded playoff has definitely helped us. There's no doubt about it. It's a very different thing, the 12 to the 4 versus even the BCS when it was just two. It's just a different tournament to get to the championship. You've seen that. The last two years, like there have been teams that wouldn't have not been in the four team field that made it to the championship game.

So I think the show you, like the format has some piece of this too, right? Because it's expanding access. It's a very different thing. When you have to go through the gauntlet now 12 and hopefully we'll get it to be bigger at some point. That is where I was going with this because I know you would like it to be. You segue way. It's like trying to help you out, you know. You have a gift for this, Tony. You know that.

But so the 24 team playoff is the one you want. I am curious because I remember sitting in the lobby of that lovely hotel in Miami Beach when you won in 24 and it didn't seem like anybody else did. And then within a few months, it felt. like that that had flipped and now a lot of you want 24. I've always said the SEC doesn't seem completely diametrically opposed to 24. They just want some assurances. It certainly feels like it's heading that way. What changed over February, March, April that shifted the wind on that? I give a lot of credit to our coaches. I think we did a good job as a staff here at the Big 10

in explaining why we were why we want the 24. We went to them very early. on in the process to get their thoughts about it. How it would be scheduled, the format, the access, all of it. And they were united in talking about it. And our coaches have a lot of influence. They have a really powerful voice. They have relationships across all leagues with other coaches, people they work with and, you know, across other places. So that really helped when they were so united.

And then we started doing like, I think we just, a lot of different things happened. And I think part of it was this belief now that we can schedule better. have better non-conference games, strengthen the way this season starts. I think all fans want us to do. And then I think the fact that, you know, people really believe now that you can make November better for so many more teams

and just play more impactful games later in the season, I think that's just the core of what this is and make it just, you know, keep more fan bases engaged longer. Those are all great things for the sport. And so I think the momentum really started with our coaches talking about it in a really consistent way. And that helped. and I think other coaches really started having the same opinions and that I built the momentum

because you know ultimately the coaches are the ones that have the biggest the loudest voice in this and I think that's just really what helps us get this thing over the top in terms of the momentum for it. Tony, I know you guys have meetings periodically and you know Andy and I both have sat in the lobby for 12 hours while you guys go about it and you know try to put your ear up against the wall to see how contentious it is but it's my understanding that you guys recently got some feedback about the television impact that, you know, getting all the extra inventory at the end of the year of the 2014 field would do. Have you guys gotten any impact in terms of how it might, you know, impact viewership in early season games if there's a perception out there that losses don't aren't as punitive as they are in the current system and the previous systems? Yeah, look, I think there's some people who will say, you know, are you going to impact, you know, some of these really high leverage matchups that do happen. I think I agree there's not enough of them right now in the current system we have.

So I think we need to make more of them. So I do think this expansion will help that. Look, I think overall, there's just no doubt. You know, we face this, I'm just going to, I understand that MLB is a very different sport. You know, it's a long season. But I can tell you, like, in being involved and expanding the postseason there to add the wild cards and create the three-game series, a big part of the analysis is like, what will it do in late August and September? Like, to having fans show up in ballparks.

I feel the same way here. I think a lot of this is so intuitive. I don't think you have to do a lot of work to convince yourself that when you're playing more meaningful games, it's a good thing for your fans. It's a good way to grow the sport and the engagement. I don't think that's something that league spend a lot of time trying to convince themselves of. I think in this system, you know, it's got a very different tradition. It's been, you know, the postseason has been very small for a really long time. So it just takes more time to convince people to get there. But I do think, you know, if we can get this thing done and expand, I really believe that we can unlock a lot of things that fans are going to be excited about. Like playing more good non-conference

games, playing these games in November that really counts. So I just think, you know, overall, you know, the whole ecosystem will be so much stronger and healthier if we do this. The more good non-comference games. We got to make sure there's real value, like, because it's going to force you to give up your championship games and you got to be, you got to do the work. And so, you know, we got to make sure that, you know, the hypothesis that this is going to be additive is, is right. And this is the process we have to continue. And I'm I'm optimistic that, you know, hopefully we can get to a point where we continue that process. That's what the conversation has been about.

Like, hey, okay, if we like 24, it's going to require us to do certain things. Like, are those things actually manageable and doable? So the more good non-commerce games is the part that I'm concerned with because I look at this week's schedule. Week one shouldn't look like this. Like, I'm sure Fox never envisioned when they sent that direct deposit to you guys that there at North Texas, Indiana for big noon week one. And the coaches keep saying if the playoff expands, we'll be less concerned, we'll schedule better non-conference games, we'll be

all for that. But the playoff just expanded the field by 3x. And people have never been more scared to schedule good non-conference games. How do you guys fix that? Is it, do you have to make a rule that says you must schedule this many power conference teams? How does that part get fixed because I got to tell you, I don't want to see another week one schedule looks like this. We're comfortable making commitments to do that as a league. And I think you've probably seen some reporting around, you know,

what the SEC is asking about as part of the process of getting to 24. And I think Greg is right. I think, you know, his position about doing things to strengthen the game. And if you're saying that 24 unlocks this, then what's the commitment to actually do it? And I think as a league, you know, we're ready to have that conversation

and try to make those commitments. And look, I think, you know, to me, it would be a great result. You know, we had more access to the playoff. And at the same time, we're also talking about playing the games that you want to see these first couple of weeks of the season that all fans want to see. So I totally, I'm totally lined up with what Greg's position has been on, you know, the scheduling strength and what has to happen. He's right.

And we've been saying it from the beginning that if you get 24 and, you know, it's like, we're going to put our money where our mouth is. We're going to do what we said, which is we're going to improve our schedules. and I'm totally comfortable doing that as a commitment. Coach, obviously there's a, you know, big 10. Just because coach. I'm sorry. Commit.

We have a lot of coaches on the show. I usually get confused for an official. When I'm on site. Well, you are an official. You are an official in the... The most like, are you on the field in the game? I was like, most of the time I just say yes. You know, you'll know if you ever listen to our show.

I can't get through an interview without messing up at least one thing. But there is a rivalry to a certain extent between the. the SEC in the Big Ten, at least amongst the fans. You know, it's a constant talking of point about, you know, who's going to win more or who's got a harder schedule and all the things that you know fans, you know, to discuss. When you and Greg are deliberating in the CFP room, I think there seems to be a view that there's an adversarial relationship. What is your relationship like with Greg Sanchez?

I mean, I would say it couldn't be better. Like, we've partnered together on some really complicated issues. I think, you know, we, early on when I got the job, like I was in the first couple of weeks, I went down to Birmingham to see Greg and just, you know, talk to him about the space and and how we could work together. And we both said, look, there'll be times when we disagree on something substantively, but it's not, that's what we're trying to do. We're trying to get to a place where we, you know, we do more good things together than not. And we have a real opportunity to do that. And I think he understands that. And it's been great. We get along. I laugh.

You're showing some pictures of us at games. You know, we have a rule. He said to me, look, I'm never going to wish you luck at a game because I don't mean it. And I said, I can really totally respect that because if I said it, I wouldn't be meaning it. either. So, you know, I think we like the competition part on the field. And like, we're so lucky that our fan bases really care about this rivalry. That's like, you know, those are things you want to have happen. We don't even have to manufacture it. It just exists. And that's a great thing to lean into. And like the way to really double down has to play each other more, right? And have more comparisons, have more matchups, have their fans come to Big Ten stadiums more and have our fans go to

their stadiums. Like, I think our fans want to do those things. But as a, you know, I view them as an important partner. We're like we're charged. We're trying to, you know, in really complicated times, we're charged to trying to make this better. And so, you know, we work together. I talk to them virtually every single day on some issue. And, you know, that's, and I have, we have a great relationship with the other commissioners as well. It's not, it's not just the SEC, but there's just been some issues where we've lined up, you know, around the bill, for example, those past summer trying to make the bill better so we can both, both of our leagues can get to a supportive position, which we did. So you do like him.

I do like them. Okay, just want to make sure we got that on the record. The one last thing I wanted to ask you about this. Sounds like a high school question, to be honest with you like, do you like? I don't know. I'm going to avoid it in the hallway. I think that there's been no secret that over the past, you know, decades, the SEC programs administratively have cared more deeply than the Big Ten about being good at football.

obviously Indiana, you know, winning the national championship opens up opportunities and possibilities that maybe didn't even exist 10 years ago. As the commissioner, how do you get a sense for every team's desire, passion to want to be good at football within your league? Yeah, I can't speak to like what was there before I was there. If I can tell you the last three years, I don't see anybody who's not passionate about trying to win. Like I, you know, one of the great things I get to do is every summer we try to go to a bunch of camps and see five or six, seven days of practice. just be around the coaches are a little more relaxed. You can spend a little more time with them than you do. In game day, you just want to say a quick hello and get out of the way, if that.

And so when you're there practice, you have an opportunity to see and let them talk about their team a little bit. I mean, I don't see anything but just an absolute fire to compete and win with all 18. Like, this is what these guys are in it for. And that's what their student athletes expect. They come to the Big Ten to play with the best, against the best, and to be coached by the best. That's what all 18 are trying to do. it doesn't obviously every season is different

there's going to be success and there's going to be some places where you didn't have the season you hope for that's what this is but I don't see anything but absolute strong commitment and that's part of the reason why I don't keep circling back to 24th that's why I care so much about it because I want more teams

to be able to experience that like just think about you know there was a lot about when Indiana played that first playoff game against Notre Dame was sort of like this idea they had to kind of prove that they deserved to be there Okay. They played there. They ended up playing against a team that, you know, made it to the championship game against Ohio State. But at the end, like, their whole offseason changed, like for them. You can talk to Scott Dolson, their AD, like what that meant in the offseason in terms of tickets and fan engagement and expectations and all the things around the program.

Like, that's a great thing. And that could be the same for so many different teams. Like, you know, being part of it changes the outlook that fans have. And that's an important part of how you, you know, how you grow the game is doing those things. Like if you talk to Skype, I'm sure if you talk to Damon Evans at SMU about, you know, their first playoff experience against Penn State, even though it didn't go the way they wanted it to, it drastically changes what your fans expect and think is possible. And that's a really powerful thing. So, Tony, as we're doing this interview, there's a hearing that's starting in Baton Rouge where, you know, the SEC is now prominently involved. We saw what happened with the Big 12 in Texas Tech this summer. And I'm curious because we've had a couple situations where conferences have had some issues within themselves where maybe one school is doing something and the other schools are not happy about it. You've dealt with that.

You had to deal with that early in your tenure at the Big Ten with Michigan in 2023. What is that like as a commissioner when you have the majority, the vast majority of your school saying, we need something done, do this, do something now. and you have another one of your members that would be on the receiving end of that. Yeah, I would say there's nothing probably more difficult. And I saw it like when I was at MLB watching Commissioner Manfred deal with, you know, the Houston Astro situation during that offseason. It's really difficult, right?

You know, we work for all eight. And me, I work for all 18. Commissioner Manfred works for all 30. Commissioner Sankey for all hits 16. You know, being in an environment where you're asked to do that, but you have an obligation in these jobs to the entire league and the good of the entire league and always trying to make the right decision on behalf of the entire, you know, organization. It's a partnership, and we need to make sure that people, you know, understand that.

And not every vote is going to be unanimous in a league, and there's different thresholds for different issues and how you vote. And those are things that need to be respected. But, you know, the way I, what I go back to is, you know, there's huge benefits about being a member in the Big Ten. You get the, you know, you get the exposure and the scheduling and the tradition and what it means to fans. And that comes with, you know, rules and how you have to work with your partners. And I think, you know, you get both ends, right? You get the incredible benefits of being in a league like the Big Ten of the SEC or any of the P4 leagues. But that comes with the responsibility to understand that you're part of something when it comes to following rules and everything else.

Like, that's just the way it has to be. It doesn't make it easy. That's for sure. It's among the hardest things you're at being asked to do. But generally with, you know, with, you know, discipline, you know, people get to be very, emotional strong, especially when it impacts competition on the field. Well, I'm sure you're not enjoying watching a colleague deal with it, but I'm sure you're glad it's not you guys this time.

So enjoy that as you enter a season where you've got three consecutive national titles and no court hearings to worry about right now. Yeah, and look, I think like this to say, I think every conference, you know, passing a rule that talked about this issue was really helpful. And I think it showed that there's no wavering among any of the leagues. That, you know, obviously the SEC is, it could have been any of us in this situation in terms of like the court, the impact of court cases. You know, I think, you know, we have commitment in our league that this is the right rule. I think that's why it was 18 to zero.

Tony, I think a lot of coaches say a lot of the same things publicly when it means like we need, you know, rules and enforceable rules and everybody needs to be playing by the same rule book. and there's no rules. And you keep hearing this. Like as a commissioner, how, how difficult is it to be in a position where everybody seems to be clamoring for some sort of baseline understanding of the way things work and how courts with systems? And it just seems like a moving target on your part. How do you deal with that? Yeah, I think the first thing is I think in most cases, we actually have good rules. I think we actually have the ability to make good rules. I think some of the enforcement has been challenged by this idea that state courts are going to weigh in to create competitive advantages or, you know, there's just different things. That's why we sort of support the bill. That's why we got to the position where we

support the bill, because I think it gives us the best chance to have national standards. You can't compete the way we compete without having commonality and a lot of rules. It doesn't make any sense. And so, you know, you need to understand, like, where does it mean to be eligible and how it has, it's got to be the same in the Big Ten as it is in the SEC or the ACC or the Big 12 or anywhere else. And so I think that's a big part. I think the, you know, the obligation to coach is not just in football and every sport is it needs to be the same for all of them. If you can look, if you can say, hey, we made this decision. You may not love this rule. You may not like the way, but it doesn't disadvantage you. It's the same for everybody, right? The scheduling, the practice schedules,

where, you know, the eligibility issues, all those things. If you can tell coaches, look, it's the same. I think what coaches are concerned about is because you have this constant, like, battle in state courts, it isn't always the same for everybody across all these different decision points. Well, I know you've got to get on the road hitting some games this weekend. So, Tony, thank you so much for joining us. And we've got to do this again. This is fun. Yeah, I'm happy to do it.

Now, you know, we've got the, with David Bassety here, you know, pushing me around all over the place. We're happy to come back. Yeah, it wasn't that bad. Remember put the trophies. Put the trophies up, Bassidy. Like, I'm in the replay center. This will be the only time I'm in the replay. I don't even have an ID to get in here.

That's right. You're not allowed. I forgot about that. Let me in because I just don't. We have a command center upstairs where we can watch games. But this replay center I'm sort of in now is really just for our replay officials. We don't come in here at all. It's just something that we just decided.

And so every time I want to give a tour, I have to like, it has to be let in. Well, at least your PR guy has a key. So that's good. Don't overturn any calls while you're there because that. That's a problem. It's pretty dark in here. There you go. I was great to quit you guys.

Thank you so much. Thank you, Tony. Really appreciate it. Truly. That is Big Ten Commissioner Tony Petiti. Covered a lot of ground there, Andy. Yes, sir. Yes.

And, you know, we're going to talk about the SEC suing LSU here in a minute. That had not, when we interviewed Tony Petiti, this is how fast everything's moving. That had not dropped yet. Obviously, I'm sure the SEC's attorneys have been working on it for a while, but they had not filed the lawsuit yet a few minutes after that interview ended the SEC filed its lawsuit against LSU. And I thought what he said about dealing with that Michigan situation in 2003 was pretty illuminating because it is a tough situation when you've got all of your schools saying, do this, do this. And you've got one that's in the crosshairs. That's what's

going on in the SEC right now. And I thought his point of, if you want to be in a conference, you have to have rules. I mean, it seems like common sense, but that's, That's where it's at right now. Yeah, yeah. You know, and I think that you could make the case that Petiti's situation with Michigan in 2023 was even more dire in terms of, you know, who they were dealing with and the status of who they were in that conference. But at least they never had to file a federal lawsuit because Big 12s had to do that against

Texas Tech. And we'll talk more about all that in a minute. But we've seen this story play out before. But yeah, yeah, Tony Petiti had to suspend. Jim Harbaugh for three games. And that was a pretty tricky situation, too. So, yeah, I mean, like, we're a few hours away from kicking off the season with Georgia Tech and Colorado tonight, and it just kind of feels like we're still getting dragged back into this.

And I think that it's important, but, you know, I think the more interesting thing as it pertains to the next topic is, you know, how do you deal with the relations of it within your own conference and how does that, you know, pertain to enforcing your own rules more so than I am interested in any of the NFL players playing. Put a pin in that, Ari, because we've got a couple things we've got to do. One, we're going to talk about Cash App. Then we have the game that sweeping the nation. Who am I?

So let's talk Cash App first. For all the parents out there with teenagers, we know you're already trying to keep a million different things under control. Cash App is here to make sure your teen's money and their spending isn't adding to that craziness. I am in this boat right now. I have a 17-year-old and a 15-year-old. it is very difficult to help teach them how to move about in the world, which is increasingly

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notification on my phone. I know exactly what they spent. I know where they spent it. And it helps me understand what's going on. Also, they know I know. And I know you guys who also have teenagers understand that's a very good motivator and very good at making sure they stay under control. So get that cash app card now. Help teach your teens how to move about in the world, how to deal what they're spending, how to keep track of it. And you can keep track of it as well in real time. Download the cash app today. Use the code Family 10. That's Family 1-0 at checkout. Cash app is a financial services platform not a bank. Bank banking services provided by Capshaap's bank partners, pre-bay debit cards issued by Sutton Bank member FDIC, cash app visa debit flex cards issued by

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slash podcast for full disclosures. Ari, it is time to play my favorite game. Mm-hmm. I ever hit it. I had some fun with this in this week because there was one that stumped you not long ago and feel like I structured the questions for this in a similar way.

I will tell everybody if you are really paying attention, really paying attention. And if you're decent at math, I think you can get this on clue number two. Thanks for bringing that up. I appreciate that. I'm in the right mindset now to attack the game with full heart without any crippling anxiety at all. Good. I'm glad.

I think you can get this on clue number two. Also, no shot. All right. Here we go. Okay. Clue number one. I made my head coaching debut last season. Okay.

Clue number two. My record was 6 and 11. Is this like the, what was that show back in the day where I don't know. It's a clue number three. I grew up in Prosser, Washington. Prosser? Proser. Okay, never even heard of that place.

I don't even know. Clue number four. I was ranked the number 10 player in the state of Washington by rivals in the class of 2007. Okay. Clue number five. I set career records in Washington for completions and touchdown passes in high school. Okay. Clue number six.

I won the starting job at my college as a redshirt freshman. Okay. Clue number seven. while in college, I played with my younger brother. He is about to make his head coaching debut. You said this guy played in 07? He was a freshman, a true freshman in 07. And his younger brother's a head coach?

Correct. Ready? Clue number eight. I went 50 and three in four seasons as a starting quarterback in college, throwing for 14,667 yards and 1442 touchdowns. Okay. After going on drafted, I spent six seasons as an NFL backup before transitioning to coaching. I called the plays for the Eagles during their title season in 2024.

Oh, I think I know who it is. Well, you have one more clue if you need it. Oh, I think I know who it is. Is it Kellyn Moore? Yeah. Clue to 10. I currently coached the New Orleans Saints. So yes, Kellyn Moore, first time head coached last year, went 6 and 11 with the Saints.

I structured it exactly the same way I did the Charlie Ward one because I knew it would met like the fact that it wasn't a college football record was going to really mess with your head. His brother Kirby Moore is the head coach at Washington State. He'll make his head coaching debut on Sunday in the Apple Cup against Washington. Yeah. I should have probably got better sooner. I don't think I think once you didn't get it after Clue 2,

you probably weren't like 50 and 3 is where I think a lot of people are going to to get it because he just he won so many freaking games yeah uh it was the eagles thing for me that got that got it yeah but yeah kellen more was a badass at boise state a badass i just didn't want to get stumped again and it's in my time area where i should know this i'm kind of upset that it took me that many clues but um i didn't know where he was from which is also stupid me pros or watch i know what that is i mean you knew he was pacific northwest guy but there's There's a lot of people from the Pacific Northwest. Yeah, yeah, Pacific Northwest high school player who won a bunch of games is probably Boise State, right?

So. Or Washington or Washington State. I mean, but nobody during that time period won 50 games at Washington. Yeah, well, nobody won 50 games, period. I think it. Period. At least, Aaron Murray were the ones that, you know, four-year starters that won so many games. But Kellan Moore, I mean, it was insane.

I mean, he won. Yeah. Yeah. Well, that was a good one. I'm happy I didn't get stumped. I'm a little bit disappointed because I don't like looking like an idiot, and I feel like I look like an idiot again. I don't think you do.

You got it right. Yeah. What were the first two clues again? You said I could maybe get it on two? Yeah. The first clue is I made my head coaching debut last year. Yeah. And the second clue was my record was six and 11.

Six and 11. Yeah. So 16, a 17 game season should have told you it's an NFL head coach. Yeah. Yeah. How many NFL coaches were great college? players. A few. You know, Marball is one of them. They say like one of the

super powers of humanity is learning from previous mistakes. And like, you gave me enough clues to know that like you're probably not talking about a college football record, but in my brain like a big dumb animal that I am, I was thinking, this is football record of 6 and 11. I wasn't thinking another sport.

Well, that's why I sent it into producer River this morning and said, is he going to get it on number two? And Rivers is like, no, I don't think so. No, I mean, I'm not clever. hunting like you. But hey, that was good. Obviously, one of the most iconic players in college football history, right? He was sort of a major purpose and was like the base of the group of five teams being included in bigger conversations.

Also, he was a very capable backup quarterback in the NFL. He actually, he retired and decided to go into coaching after an injury. And he's been really good as a coach. I thought the Saints got considerably better as a season. And basically once they figured out Tyler Shuck was their starter, they were much better. So, I think Kellan Moore could wind up being a really good NFL head coach, which is going to be fun to see. Yeah, with you 100%. Good one. All right.

We're going to talk LSU. But before we talk LSU and the SEC and lawsuits, let's talk about LSU on the field. Specifically, do you want to get into Tiger Stadium to watch LSU play Clemson on Saturday night? The get-in price is down to $112 if you would like. like to get into Tiger Stadium to see LSU and Clemson, Lane Kiffin's debut as LSU's coach. This is going to be a special one. If you want to be there, download the GameTime app because GameTime has all of your tickets to every football game, college pro, you name it, every sporting event, every concert,

every comedy show that you would want to go to is on game time. Plus, the price you see is the price you pay. And when you're looking at that app, you can see exactly what the view from your seat would look like. So download the game time app, redeem the code Staples. Get $20 off your first purchase terms apply. It doesn't matter if it's if it's LSU Clemson you want to go to. Do you want to go see Notre Dame play Wisconsin at Lambeau Field? Oh yeah. Price a little more for that one. But that's a big game. Do you want to go see Cal and UCLA in Berkeley? Do you want to see Baylor and Auburn in Atlanta? They're all on game time. So if you want to go watch those games this weekend,

download the game time app, use the code. Staples for $20 off your first purchase terms apply. We had a feeling this day was coming. I didn't know if it would come so soon, but we were thinking, hey, we don't know how to approach on the show this hearing in Baton Rouge where the players are trying to get an injunction

and maybe they're going to be able to play for LSU. Well, as the hearing began, the SEC dropped this sucker in federal court in Alabama, suing LSU, athletic director Verge Osbury, and Lane Kiffin, essentially saying you are violating our First Amendment rights to assemble together as a conference

and to do the things we want as a conference and to believe what we want to believe as a conference. And this, I think, may do the trick, Ari. I think the affair of LSU or any other school in the SEC attempting to put on its roster someone who was in an NFL training camp, who signed an NFL contract, I think that's probably going to be it.

Yeah. You know, and good for them, I guess, for like acting on it the way that they did. But like, you know, the one thing that I think is just always interesting about this stuff is, you know, there's so much disagreement in college football, Andy, and everybody has their different opinion. And of course, people prop up the teams that they root for. But in this specific issue, I think we're all kind of on board and like rooting for the SEC to prevail here.

And it's a shame that it had to get to this point. but, you know. Well, I think the NCAA and, you know, obviously the committee that passed it is made up of people from the schools and the conferences, they could have just not screwed everybody by changing the rule when they changed it and arbitrarily cutting out the class of 2022.

Like they could have done this in a more timely fashion. They were obviously talking about it years ago. So that caused all this. But yes, the SEC rightfully understood the public is behind the SEC on this. The public is behind all the conferences that don't want people who've been in the NFL, people who've been in the NBA,

coming back to college boards. It is a pretty universal feeling among the consumer base here, which I got to admit with all these other things, it hasn't been that universal. There's been more of a split. So they were smart to attack this one, just like the Big 12 attack the Sorsby thing

with the gambling, because everybody was pretty galvanized behind the conference. And I think very similarly to that situation where it was Texas Tech versus the Big 12, the standoff was going on for a while. And then when Texas Tech got sued by the Big 12 in federal court, within a day they decided Brennan Soresby wasn't going to play for them. Yeah, yeah. So I know that we're like on pins and needles on Thursday waiting to hear from a court case,

but it feels like this is kind of. kind of like the game of chicken that you were talking about, right? Where it's like, you know, who's going to veer off? And it does kind of feel like your analogy, which is, you know, moped versus metron, especially given the fact that like, if you were to continue to play chicken and stay in your moped for longer, you know, the victory for what you would get in return for being brave enough to stay on it long enough isn't worth it.

Like, it's just like, what are we doing here? you would think that, you know, part of this is like, I don't want to deal with this right now. Like, do you think that, like, LSU fans want their coach dealing with this right now? Like, they're playing Clemson in 48 hours. And I don't think they're going to wind up having Dayquan Wright or Zavian Harris on their roster.

I think they're going to back off on this thing. Yeah. And here's the thing. This is where Lane being Lane comes in handy. Because I don't think Lane Kiffin cares either way. He did all this. He tried all this. It didn't work.

Oh, well. I don't think he's going to give it. Like, if he decides in the next few hours, we're not doing this. Oh, well, it's not working. He's not even going to give it a thought on Saturday. And you think that Lane Kiffin's thought process on this is just, I want to win.

I want every edge possible. It doesn't matter what it looks like or how we do it. But it's my duty to put the best team on the field for LSU, and I don't care how far I've got to push it before I hit the exit ramp. Yeah, I think that was where he was at. And he found the line. So, yeah, I mean, that's the line right there. Yeah, it's a pretty big line.

But, you know, I think that this is a really good thing for college football as a whole. I know I wrote something a few weeks ago saying that it's a coach's duty to do what Lane Kippen did, which is to push the limits of what needs to be done. But at the same time, in the same breath, I also am agreement with everybody else in the idea that anybody who plays, I think that anybody who puts on an NFL uniform, I don't care what camp it is, how many or big it is, should not be able to play in college football.

And I'm happy that the SEC and college football in general is taking the steps in order to prevent that. Well, it's interesting the way it was phrased in the lawsuit about what was going on. So defendants have continued their campaign to engage in willful efforts to recruit and soon roster professional athletes and direct defiance of the professionalism rules. This contact is detrimental to the conference and contrary to its core purpose. Hold on. It gets better. I read through this whole thing very quickly after our man, Pete Nacos, dropped that bomb on Twitter. In June 2026, this is the narrative that the SEC's attorneys have written in this lawsuit.

In June 2026, the NCAA adopted a new age-based eligibility model commonly referred to as the five-for-five rule that allows student athletes up to five-season of competition within a five-year period. Beginning in the summer of 2006, certain student athletes who first enrolled in college in 2022 and had exhausted their eligibility by spring of 26 began filing lawsuits across the country, challenging the NCAA's decision to implement the five-for-five rule. Despite the SEC's longstanding rules, prohibiting professional athletes from returning to college athletes, which defendants, and they're talking about LSU and Kippen in this case, saw this as an opportunity to be exploited. They began an orchestrated campaign to recruit professional athletes

to join LSU's roster for the 2026-27 season. These efforts included recruiting players who had signed contracts with the NFL's Cleveland Browns, the New Orleans Saints, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, and were actively participating in NFL training camps. They then quote Lane Kiffin throughout various interviews. And I don't think this is the first time the Pat McAfee show has appeared in court documents, but maybe the most prominently. Yeah.

You know, I think where I aired, and I mean, I don't know if it's good podcasting or bad podcasting, but it's one thing to try to do everything you can to get the best players on your team. I think it's another thing. Like, literally, this lawsuit says he's tampering with NFL players. Essentially. Yeah, I mean, that's what it is. Exactly say it in so many words, but that is.

They stopped just short. And, yeah. So we'll see if this does the trick. It probably does. The Georgia Attorney General came out on Wednesday and said, hey, the SEC should kick out LSU if it wants to do this. The LSU attorney general, I'm sorry, the Louisiana Attorney General, she came out on Thursday morning with a brief in support of LSU in this hearing,

but was pretty hands off as far as the SEC goes. And that was wise because what got Texas Tech fried was the Texas Attorney General threatening the Big 12. The SEC had no threat to hang its head on. It had essentially a roadmap that the Big 12 had laid out with its lawsuit against Texas Tech to figure out, okay, how do we frame this? What's our argument here? And what the SEC is asking for is injunctive relief essentially, essentially, and this is a federal lawsuit. It's filed in a federal district in Alabama, which is where the SEC is located in Birmingham. And basically, it's asking a federal judge to say, hey, any injunction that bars the SEC from enforcing its own rule is superseded by this court.

So any injunction from a state court that would bar the SEC from enforcing this rule would be barred by the federal court. And that hasn't happened yet. There's been no hearing. There's been no discussion. So we don't know how a judge would rule on that. But what this is doing is essentially creating a potential layer of protection for the SEC. If that hearing that is currently going on in Baton Rouge as we speak, if the judge decides, I'm going to issue this injunction.

And not only am I going to say the NCAA can't enforce its rules against these players, but the SEC also can't enforce its rules either against the players or the school or the coach, because remember, it's coach suspension, it's fine against the school, half of your

programs operating budget. So if the judge in Louisiana in state court were to say the SEC can't do this, the SEC is going to a federal judge and saying, could you please say that we can do this? That's essentially what they're asking. Also, there's one thing to learn, too, about the Big 12 thing that you referenced a few times.

Like, when it came to, like, the Big 12 lawsuit, it was also about a really good quarterback that was set to make north of $4 million. Like, and that got them to separate. Like, think about how important Brendan Sorsby was, the Texas Tech during that whole fiasco earlier in the summer, and then try to think about what some of these players at LSU and, you know, is trying to. get right now and it doesn't even stack up in terms of even close about like i talked to somebody i talked to somebody right before this thing dropped who had been in ls u's football building on

thursday and the the mood there was basically these guys are probably not going to going to wind up playing yeah so even before the lawsuit and i'm sure the people at lSU had been prepped and warned this is something like this is coming. We don't know exactly when it's coming, but something like this is coming. And so I think probably a lot of those decisions have been made in the last few days. And but they were, you know, contingency plans, like if this happens, if this happens, it seemed like as of early afternoon on Thursday, the LSU folks had said, okay, we're probably going to stand down on this thing. Can you go a galaxy brain and say that this actually was a net negative?

of the distractions and the reps that were taken away from practice from people who are actually going to play? I guess. I don't. If you really want to go the other way with it, like, with the, I don't know. I don't think it's that much. I think, look, if they were to lose to Clemson on Saturday, then absolutely people are going to say that.

Yeah. Yeah, somebody's going to say that. I don't think that's the case. I really don't. And look, part of this is understanding Lane Kiffin, like having covered Lane Kiffin long enough and, you know, seeing how. seeing how he operates. He revels in this.

He's also got, like, he's got a little bit of goldfish memory when it comes to stuff like this. Yeah. Oh, it didn't work. Don't care. On to the next thing. Yeah.

I mean, here's the thing. Lane, this isn't the first time Lane Kiffin's been in the news, and it's certainly not going to be the last time that Lane Kiffin's in the news. The one thing that you can unequivocally say about the man is that his teams have performed in the recent past. So, you know, who knows what's going to happen?

I think that, you know, know, this LSU Clemson game is amongst one of the most intriguing games of the weekend. And I think that people will, like you said, come up with their opinions on what they think could have been done or how it should have been done after that game was over with. But if LSU comes out and wins 31 to 14, like no one gives a shit what happened last week or today. No. It's over. We're moving on.

Absolutely not. And I don't think this is going to like, okay, we pick the game on Monday, right? The spread on Polly Market is still the same. It's still 10 and a half, LSU minus 10 and a half. nothing's changed. Nothing's changed for me either. Like, nothing about what has happened over the last few days, nothing about the SEC filing this lawsuit,

has changed my feeling that LSU is going to cover this game. Now, you pick Clemson to cover. I don't think you think Clemson's going to win outright, but I think it's going to be closer than I do. Yeah. But I don't think it's going to change one thing about this game. Yeah. I don't know.

Lane Kiffin, that's the other thing where you said, like, Lane Kippen is how he is, Andy. It's like maybe this would be a distraction for a coach that was like weaker in the public eye or a coach that doesn't like being talked about and stuff. Like lane Kiffin revels in this. Like this is him in his natural habitat. Like there's no such thing as a Lane Kiffin distraction. What would distract Lane Kiffickick?

Not having hot enough yoga classes? Yeah. Not enough Keshah being played during yoga. Yeah. So, you know, that is a, remember our friend Casey Smith passed that little nugget along? I've gotten that triple verified.

Lane is big into Kesha during the workouts. Big, big, big, big Keshe guy. So I don't know, until he falls on his face and the thing that everybody actually cares about, which is the results of the games, like I guess you can just let Lane be Lane. But, you know, as the SEC acted on this, I think this is the appropriate thing to do.

And I think hopefully this will be the end of this ongoing, nonsensical brain-numbing discussion point. I'm tempted to act like this is the autopsy. ask the question of, you know, how does this affect the relationship between LSU and the league office going forward and LSU and the other members of the league going forward? I don't really want to do that yet because, one, it's Louisiana. I mean, there's always a potential for something else crazy happening. But I do think this probably will do the trick in this particular case.

I also kind of feel like LSU might just be like the kid brother that's always like ball tapping you and pulling your pants down and stuff. You might get angry at them at the beginning, but just they're crazy down there. And the SEC just delivered a giant nuggie. Yeah, and that's it. And then a week from now, we'll just move on. Like, I know that it's a reporter's, you know,

baseline thing to try to unpack everything and make it into a big deal and explain a way. Like, you know, I think that. I mean, this is a fairly big deal, but the thing is it's such a big deal that it may be the thing that just knocks all of this stuff out. And it also pales in comparison. to what Petiti had to deal with in terms of the severity of what Michigan was accused of three years ago.

Also, because that was in the middle of the season, there's a team on a run to a national title. You're talking about taking the coach out. Yeah. I mean, that's so much. And the implication, I mean, that was integrity of the game stuff. That goes back to like even Texas tech situation. Texas tech situation was far more, in my opinion. Right.

Crucial to like the normal fan experience. I think some of the moral grandstanding on this has been kind of silly. Yeah, that's the particular case. Yeah. But it's okay. Lane's going to lane. We're going to. Lane is going to lane and Davo's going to stay in his lane.

And Lane and Davo are going to play each other on Saturday. And we're all going to very much enjoy it because college football is back, baby. Speaking of which, it's Thursday, this is our final show. weekday-wise because we're in the season. But you're going to see us a few times, at least before that post-game show on Saturday night at 11.30 p.m. Eastern time. Because we had so much fun going live after the TCU North Carolina game, which, I mean, shouldn't have been fun for us through talking about how wrong we were. But was fun because we love hanging out with you guys.

We're going to be live again after the Colorado Georgia Tech game tonight. So Thursday night, Colorado Georgia Tech, 8 p.m. East. Eastern time on ESPN. When that game ends, come back here. We're going to talk about it because we don't know what we're going to see. Two new coordinators on each side of the ball. It's going to be great. Also, Friday night, there's a couple games of interest. You've got Fresno State, USC. You've got Miami Stanford. We'll come to you after those and talk some more. And then Saturday, 11.30 p.m. Eastern time, you know, the most fun show of the week. We'll be live. Also, So new feature this year.

We want to hear from you after your team's played. Whatever's on your mind, I want you to just unload as fresh a take as you possibly can. Call the Andy and Ion three hotlines, 615-378-8-8-78-8-78. That's 615-38-78-8879 and leave us a voicemail that you are going to hear potentially on the show. this could be your voice screaming about your team. And it could be screams of joy. It could be screams of anguish. But I want to know right after your team finishes playing,

like do not give it any time to settle. Don't give it yourself any time to marinate on it. Call 615-378-8-8-7-9 and tell us what you think. Andy, can I also add? You can, you know, point your praise at us or anger at us too. Like if we said something on the show that you didn't like or whatever, for people who don't like writing long emails and you want to do it. Like we're looking for the most unhinged, most raw, most passionate reactions to anything college football related.

And we're going to play them on the show because, listen, Andy and I were talking about this, you know, off air. But part of the reason why we want to go live after some of these games in the early season and into the season is because, you know, we don't forget the times where we were live every morning and got. to interact with you guys as we were doing the show live. Like, we missed that. We like that. We like the feeling of knowing that you're hanging out with us. So please call that phone number 615-378-8-8-7-9, leave voicemails. We will chop them up in the best possible way and play them in full so that they sound really good and you're represented on our show.

Exactly. So 615-378-88-89. Give us a call. Leave us a message. You may hear that message on the show. Guys, we're here. The season now begins in earnest. Week one begins tonight. We will talk to you after Georgia Tech in Colorado. We'll talk to you tonight.