Andy & Ari On3 - North Carolina is hiring OUTSIDE THE FAMILY: UNC insider on top candidates for Tar Heels’ next coach

Episode Date: March 25, 2026

On Tuesday, news broke that North Carolina and Hubert Davis would be parting ways after five seasons in Chapel Hill as the Tar Heels basketball coach. Now, with one of the biggest brands in all of hoo...ps needing a head coach, who could be the next man up for UNC? Join us here as Inside Carolina's senior reporter details how the firing went down for Hubert Davis and who could fill his shoes next in Chapel Hill. A Megaboard Wednesday episode you won't want to miss!   (0:00) On Today's Episode (1:03) Presenting Sponsor (3:18) Intro: Hubert Davis is OUT at UNC (12:20) Greg Barnes joins: Inside the Hubert Davis firing (17:28) North Carolina's AD situation (22:01) Candidates for the Tar Heels job (28:25) Closing out with Greg (31:13) Culver's (32:30) Megaboard Wednesday: Bill Self's Future at Kansas (36:04) Will Hubert Davis's firing affect Kansas? (42:24) What's going on with Will Wade? (55:28) Andy Wants to Dance (1:02:38) Closing out: See you tomorrow!   It's a Megaboard Wednesday, and Andy & Ari go through some of the hottest topics in college athletics. To start, Andy & Ari head to Lawrence Kansas, where the future is currently unclear on what legendary head coach Bill Self will do in regards to next season. Will Hubert Davis's firing affect Kansas?   Next, something is bubbling at NC State. As the rumor mill continues to swirl, a lot of chatter on Will Wade returning to LSU has made its way to the megaboard. Would this actually happen? Watch as Andy & Ari explain this bizarre scenario out of college basketball.   To close, Andy shows us what he's been training for the last few months.   Help Andy's cause here: https://wl.donorperfect.net/weblink/weblink.aspx?name=E349197&id=70&cfifid=135&utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio   Andy & Ari are live at Culver’s Game Day Hub in Indianapolis on April 4th, capturing the energy, flavor and hometown pride that make this city come alive on game day. They’re bringing you the best moments from a day filled with games, fans and plenty of Fresh Frozen Custard.   Our show is also presented by BetMGM!   If you haven’t signed up for BetMGM yet, use bonus code CFB and you will get up to a $1500 First Bet Offer on your first wager with BetMGM! Here’s how it works:   1. Download the BetMGM app and sign-up using bonus code CFB. 2. Deposit at least $10 and place your first wager on any game. 3. You will receive up to $1500 in bonus bets if your bet loses! Just make sure you use bonus code CFB when you sign up!   Make this college football season one for the history books. Make it legendary.   See BetMGM.com for Terms. 21+ only. US promotional offers not available in New York, Nevada, Ontario, or Puerto Rico. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (Available in the US). Call 877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY). Call 1-800-NEXT-STEP (AZ), 1-800-327-5050 (MA), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA), 1-800-981-0023 (PR). First Bet Offer for new customers only. Subject to eligibility requirements. Rewards are non-withdrawable bonus bets that expire in 7 days. In partnership with Kansas Crossing Casino and Hotel.   Join On3 today! https://www.on3.com/join   Watch our show on YouTube! https://youtu.be/K3b0SWXoQVk   Hosts: Andy Staples, Ari Wasserman Producer: River Bailey   Interested in partnering with the show? Email advertise@on3.com Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

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Starting point is 00:00:00 On today's Andy and Ari on three presented by BetMGM. Big news in the world of college basketball. One of the sports Tiffany Jobs is open. Hubert Davis has been fired at North Carolina. Who is next for the Tar Heels? They're going to have to hire outside the family for the first time since Dean Smith got the job in the 1960s. Greg Barnes from Inside Carolina will join us to break down one of the biggest openings. in the sport. Plus, more potential news in college basketball, the Kansas fan base waiting to find out what will Bill self-decide? Is he coming back? Is he retiring? Also in college basketball, it looked like NC State was going to keep Will Wade, but on Monday night, it heated up again. Could Will Way be headed back to LSU? We'll talk about all of that today on Andy and Ari on 3,
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Starting point is 00:03:21 Welcome to Annie and Ari on 3 presented by BetMGM, and we start with your Butterburger breaking news, your Culver's Butterburger breaking news. and that is the North Carolina job is open. Are Hubert Davis out after five seasons. That was the news on Tuesday night. Obviously, we have now shifted to coaching search mode because this is one of the, this is, for football fans listening, this is like the Ohio State job opening, essentially. Absolutely. And I am somewhat amused that Hubert Davis showed up, ruined Coach Kay's retirement,
Starting point is 00:03:57 and then that was it. Yeah. That was it. Yeah, well, he had one of the good season after that, but really it was very inconsistent. It was not up to their standard, which is the word they kept using. And now they have to figure out who's next. And Brad Stevens, by the way, has already taken his name out of the running. I'm sure in his mind, he was never in the running because he has no intention of leaving
Starting point is 00:04:23 his cushy GM job with the Celtics to go coach college basketball again. But you're going to hear a lot of names here, like T.J. Outsleberger at, Iowa State. You're going to hear Mark Buyington at Vanderbilt. You're going to hear a lot of names. There's a job that everybody's... Personal group chat right now, too. That was kind of floated around there. Tommy Lloyd at Arizona.
Starting point is 00:04:46 Some people uncomfortable in the group chat right now. Yeah. So basically, every good college basketball coach is going to be viewed as a potential candidate. Like you had Florida's athletic director, Scott Strickland, coming out on Tuesday saying, hey, Todd Golden's going to be here. hear a long time. But they're still working on the numbers on that, I think. They're going to try to make sure that Todd Golden is paid. But listen, everybody's going to be able to use this as leverage.
Starting point is 00:05:15 NATO, it's at Alabama. All of these names are going to come up. Billy Donovan, the Bulls coach, different situation than Brad Stevens. Brad Stevens has a great job that I don't see why he would want to leave. The Bulls don't try to be competitive. If Billy Donovan ever wanted to go back to basketball now might be the time. And, you know, what's a better job? I covered him for a long time. My thought was always that he didn't want to come back to the recruiting piece of it, but the recruiting's changed.
Starting point is 00:05:45 It's really not much different than what he deals with in the NBA right now. So I wonder if now is the time that he might consider that. We'll see what happens. That's, I think, still considered a bit of a long shot. But it's not the same as Brad Stevens, who has a great job. why would you leave? Billy Donovan's going to forever be in that playing tournament with the Bulls. And that just, I don't know if that's something you want to do every year.
Starting point is 00:06:11 What's the take on what a better job is, North Carolina or a middle tier NBA job? Good question. I mean, I think the middle tier NBA job, if your ownership refuses to do the things you have to do to compete for championships is very frustrating. and I think the really good college basketball job, you're going to get the power to do it the way you want to. Yeah, because they want to win worse than you do. Yeah, yeah, exactly. So it's a great question.
Starting point is 00:06:44 And I'm fascinated to see how this plays out. Now, I do think they probably end up hiring a sitting college coach. There's a lot of good options. We're going to watch a lot of those guys coach this weekend in the Sweet 16 because Othelberger, Lloyd, Ben McCollum, at Iowa. Those are all guys that are coaching this week. weekend. Nate Oates still coaching. Todd Golden's out. But all of these names you will see come up. You're going to see a lot of these guys get very rich extensions to stay where they are just because
Starting point is 00:07:15 this job open. But it is going to be fascinating because North Carolina is going outside the family. Remember, Dean Smith hands off to Bill Guthridge, his longtime assistant. Bill Guthridge hands off to former player Matt Doherty. Matt Doherty gets fired. They bring in Roy Williams, who was a North Carolina guy, who was a Dean Smith assistant. Roy Williams, keeping it in the family, hands it off to Hubert Davis, who had no head coaching experience before that. It's going to break the cycle now.
Starting point is 00:07:47 There is nobody in the family that's ready. Yeah, I absolutely don't think that in 2026 and beyond that hiring of the family is even a pre-wreck for being successful. I thought there was a debate about whether. you know, hiring an alum or a person from your place was smart even in the past. Like, I mean, when, like, related back to football, it's like, Scott Frost was the biggest slam dunk in the history of the world. And then that opened up a conversation when it didn't work at Nebraska
Starting point is 00:08:11 about guys who were hired from within or hired with pasts or ties to the university or even people where it was their alma mater. And it was like, there's no data that shows hiring somebody familiar with the place gives them a higher opportunity or a likelyer chance to succeed than hiring anybody that just really good at the job. And I think that's probably even more true now that recruiting and, you know, talent accumulation is so predicated on who's got the best compensation package and what the place is than it is about selling, you know, what it means to be a tar heel. So, you know, I think that obviously when you're talking about the Ohio State job of college basketball
Starting point is 00:08:50 that plays into a part of it, like what UNC is, is something that everybody who knows what basketball is, understands. And I think that that'll obviously help, but if I were a person in charge of any football or basketball job, my chief goal in hiring would be to go get the most accomplished, proven best coach that I could, regardless of where they happened to be born or who went to school. Who can win in this era? Yeah. That's another key is. Even when they hired Hubert, NIL had started, but nobody really knew how it was going to function. what it was going to look like. I think we have a better idea what it looks like now.
Starting point is 00:09:30 And so I think you also have a better idea of which coaches are equipped to succeed. But it's also interesting because we're not that far into it. So there's nobody that's got a proven track record of consistently winning in this era. Right. Because the sample size isn't big enough. There's not enough years yet to be consistent. So like it is interesting too. Because like sometimes I think about this like, you know, what if Mike Norvell
Starting point is 00:09:55 got the Alabama job. And it's like you think about like guys who succeeded in the new era very quickly or very early on who may actually not be. Right. And now we look at Mike Norvell, the four state football coach as someone who isn't equipped to succeed in the new era because he hasn't been able to keep it going. And that's somebody who won big in this era.
Starting point is 00:10:17 And that was three years ago. Like, I mean, it's like things change so dramatically. But I am always on high alert of who gets higher. after one successful season or one lightning, you know, strike season and that actually isn't the right candidate. And I think that, you know, North Carolina is going to have to sift through some of that. Why was that person successful in the time that they were? Is it something they can duplicate? Is it something they can maintain long term? And I think that that's a little bit more intense than having a system that's been in place for 20 years and watching everybody exist in it for a long
Starting point is 00:10:50 period of time. That said, Andy, I think winning in basketball in the NIL era is probably a little bit more simple than football because the roster sizes are so much smaller. And it's all about, you know, maybe having one or two dynamic players and finding people. Pray nobody gets hurt. Yeah. You know, I think football is a lot more complicated because you have so many different types of positions and so many things that can happen that can tort like, you know, the quarterback's important as much like a point guard is, but if the center gets hurt in football, you're screwed. So, like, It's just, it's a completely different ball game. And I think that's part of the reason why we've seen so many coaches in college basketball
Starting point is 00:11:25 who are participating in the Sweet 16 or in the tournament this year, who had been successful in the past era, continue and maintain that success into the new era. So maybe it's not as drastic as it would be for football, but I still think it'll be interesting to see what North Carolina does here. It would be fascinating. Now, let's get some more insight on this. Let's talk to somebody who knows North Carolina inside and out.
Starting point is 00:11:44 Greg Barnes from Inside Carolina has done a great job this entire, week covering this story explaining exactly what was going on. He's the one who told everybody, hey, it's not happening immediately after they lost in the round of 64 and then explain why everything was going so slowly. Now, hopefully he can help us figure out who the next coach is and how the decision makers at North Carolina are going to arrive at that person. Here is Greg Barnes from Inside Carolina. We are joined by Greg Barnes of Inside Carolina now.
Starting point is 00:12:21 And Greg has been a very, very busy man this week. First of all, Greg, trying to explain the process behind the timing of the Hubert Davis firing because that game happened late last week. The firing didn't actually happen until Tuesday night, or at least the announcement didn't come until Tuesday night. And you were on top of it the entire way, try to say, slow down, slow down. Here's what's happening. So why did it take so long for them to read?
Starting point is 00:12:47 reach that conclusion. And in actuality, Andy, I was a little surprised that came as early as it did. I was thinking this is probably going to be a Wednesday or Thursday type deal. Yeah, so Friday afternoon, they had a big meeting with a lot of the boosters and just decided that it was time to move forward. And a big part of that was there was not the, the fundraising that was going to be available for the 26, 27 roster. They spent $14 million on this current roster, and they were probably going to need a little bit more than that, and the funds just were not there.
Starting point is 00:13:23 There was not enough support for Hubert Davis. And so they kind of knew at that point in time they needed to make a change. And then it was just a process of letting things play out. North Carolina had its team meeting, end-of-year team meeting on Saturday, so they wanted to make sure Hubert Davis could handle that with the team. and then you've got your women's basketball had NCAA tournament. They hosted on site in Chapel Hill this weekend. That played a part of it and just some other conversations that took place. And it was just a lengthy process in trying to help Hubert Davis kind of get to the place of it's time to step down.
Starting point is 00:14:05 And ultimately, Hubert Davis did not want to step down. So North Carolina had to fire him. But one of the reasons it actually kind of sped up. there at the end is that there's been this, as it linger on throughout the weekend, there was this organized push really to keep Hubert Davis, a lot of the Carolina family types. And because there started to be a little bit of a groundswell of support, they thought it was necessary to go ahead and finish the deal up. Andy and I reacted to this game, or the VCU game, directly after it happened in the
Starting point is 00:14:44 mooring effort happened. And we talked a lot about the news conference and Hubert being directly asked what went wrong. And you know, you know the answer to that. How long after that game did you kind of see the writing on the wall? That's a good question. I started getting text very quickly after that game. And it kind of really just encapsulated what the Hubert Davis era has been. And really just the last two years of the team looks really good for a stretch of the game. and they have just not been able to put together a full 40 minutes. And so we thought that he was going to be okay entering the postseason. You're giving the injury to Caleb Wilson,
Starting point is 00:15:24 but there was still that condition of, well, they at least need to look good in the postseason for us to feel good about giving him another year. And then the VCU game plays out in the worst way possible. And so very quickly it was like, okay, there's not going to be enough support from the big boosters to provide enough funds to make this worthwhile moving forward. And even if you bring him back,
Starting point is 00:15:49 there would be so much heat on that seat that would really be a dire situation for everybody around the program. You know, it is interesting, Andy, because like boosters have always had says and programs, right? Like, you know, they're always influential, their donations, their money, their influence mattered. But I think now that there is a direct correlation between donations and roster assembly and, you know, roster compensation that they might have more sway
Starting point is 00:16:18 than they've ever had before. Do you feel that way, Greg? I do for sure. And I think the other part of this, too, is the money is a key point. But part of that is because Hubert Davis has never had much interest in handling the fundraising aspect of things. That's just never been something that he's comfortable with or that he has enjoyed doing. And we've heard a lot of concerns about that behind the scenes for years. It's not a new thing. And he kind of raised the fuss a couple years ago because he wasn't able to get a center that he wanted. And the response that we got from some donors was like, well, we didn't know.
Starting point is 00:16:58 Like, he's got to communicate that to us. And I think that kind of speaks to some of the issues. And then the other part of it, which I think shouldn't be overlooked, is that Carolina really has a high standard. they were a sixth seed this year. That's the second highest seed that Carolina has had since 2019. So the standard wasn't being reached either. So it's the combination of the results on the court and the lack of fundraising skills. So as we get into the search itself, because it's fascinating because North Carolina stayed in the family,
Starting point is 00:17:35 basically since Dean Smith succeeded Frank McGuire in 19. 1961. And you went Bill Guthridge, Matt Doherty, Roy Williams, of course. And then Hubert was Roy's handpicked successor. They're going to have to go outside the family this time. But before we get into candidates, I want you to explain the AD situation because Bubba Cunningham has been the AD, but he's on his way out. And Steve Newmark from NASCAR is in place essentially already. And it sounds like he's got to be the one driving the bus on this one, right? Yes. And that's added to some of the the challenge. I mean, they've got the arena situation. You've got the Bill Belichick mess that's going on. You've got the AD transition because Lee Roberts, the chancellor last summer, you went ahead and made
Starting point is 00:18:20 the decision, okay, this is going to be Bubba Cunningham's last year. This upcoming summer is when he's going to transition into an advisory role. And then Steve Newmark is going to spend this year kind of learning the business because as you mentioned, he hasn't been in NASCAR. And he has done that. And so that was part of the challenge here of kind of managing that transition. And certainly, Steve Newmark understands revenue generation. He understands what it's going to take to thrive in this current landscape. And that's been beneficial.
Starting point is 00:18:54 And I think that's going to be beneficial for the program and the athletic department moving forward. But that certainly adds some elements to this of Bubba Cunningham, as we've been told, for the old model of college athletics, he's as good as they're. get. But now that you have NIL and you have REV share and money is such a big part of it, you kind of have to think a different way. And that's what Steve Newmark brings to the equation. And that's been a big focal point, both with the arena discussion as well as this coaching transition. Andy and I had a conversation last week about Big East basketball jobs and how they might actually be much more attractive than they've ever been because they don't
Starting point is 00:19:37 have football programs to worry about funding. And I'm wondering, how much do you think Carolina's investment slash distractions slash Bill Belichick mania do you think has an impact on the basketball program? And do you think that Carolina can be good at both? Yeah, so there's a lot we can dive into there. One thing I will say is you're exactly right that schools that don't have that, that football component, in theory, can spend a lot more on basketball. But I really think that's driven by big donors. And I'm curious to see how that plays out. Everybody knows St. Johns has a billion dollar donor that's helping.
Starting point is 00:20:16 I just think it's going to be difficult for a lot of those schools to be able to raise enough to utilize that full rev share total. But North Carolina is a little bit of a unique situation because the rev share allotment right now for basketball is $7 million. And the Big Ten and the SEC, for example, are not giving them. that much in RevShare to their basketball programs. The majority of that rev share goes to football. And so Carolina has a little bit of an edge there. But the Bill Belichick component, I really think the benefit of that, while that whole situation has kind of been a mess,
Starting point is 00:20:53 it really ignited the booster base in understanding that if Carolina wants to be a player nationally in this modern era, in both basketball and football, they're going to have to spend money. You've got to spend money to make money. And Hubert Davis, his contract was for about $3 million. That is not going to cut it. And so as you move out of the family, you're going to have to at least go double that.
Starting point is 00:21:19 And if you're talking about your guys like Tommy Lloyd or Dusty May or Billy Donovan, you may have to go three times of that. And I think there's an understanding that that's going to happen, that they're willing to do that, knowing that there's buyouts involved and those types of things as well. So I do think the Belichick hire provided a foundation to understand that, hey, we've got to do a better job of being more financially committed to this process. All right.
Starting point is 00:21:44 So let's talk about who Carolina might hire because, again, they've got to go outside the family. Their names all over the place. So you mentioned Dusty May at Michigan. You mentioned Tommy Lloyd. You mentioned Billy Donovan with the Bulls. Ari and I had talked about a lot of these guys earlier in the show. So if you could narrow it down to three or four that you think, Carolina, should go after that would be very receptive to taking the job, who would you, who would you think? Well, everybody is going to throw out Brad Stevens, right? Because he's got a son who's got two years left of college ball.
Starting point is 00:22:22 There's the idea that maybe he's interested in getting back into the college game, partly because of that. I don't think anybody thinks that's going to happen, but you at least have to make the phone call. So I think that's near the top of list. And then from there, you have to look at who's had success at the college level and who fits the Carolina personality. There are some head coaches that may be described as a little bit arrogant in having sharp edges and cussing freely.
Starting point is 00:22:53 I don't know how well that's going to play in Chapel Hill. And that's a key part of it. Would that be a certain guy in Ames, Iowa? Possibly. So I do think, I do think when you talk about coaches like a Dusty May, you talk about Tommy Lloyd at Arizona. And I do think OTS is a unique example of somebody who's really shown the ability to do more with less, and that's very attractive given his age.
Starting point is 00:23:21 So I think those three individuals are probably at the top of the list, but there's a lot of options on the table, and I think Carolina's doing, they've got a lot of people working on this, making phone calls and those types of things to see what the true options are as they start moving past the Hubert Davis era. So as you may or may not know,
Starting point is 00:23:44 I went to Arizona, and Tommy Lloyd's name has been circling around, and I'm in a group chat with friends that I went to college with, who are much more interested in Arizona. of basketball than I am, but they're my best friends and I read them. And somebody was like, I don't think that Tommy Lloyd would want to go to North Carolina. He's a West Coast guy.
Starting point is 00:24:03 And I'm like, you realize that like North Carolina is like the most iconic job in the entire sport? And he responds, I think saying UNC is the epitome of college basketball is taking too much stake into its history and not enough about right now. The ACC cannot hold a candle to the Big 12 in hoops right now outside of Duke. Your thoughts? I will say this. There's a lot of components in play. And so as North Carolina makes this decision,
Starting point is 00:24:35 it's not necessarily about right now. It's about where's the program going to be five years from now, 10 years from now? And that's just not in Chapel Hill. That's, are they still in the ACC? Which I would be surprised in five to 10 years of Carolina is still in the ACC. That's a component. it because if you're talking about Carolina may be going to the SEC or the Big Ten or wherever it may be,
Starting point is 00:24:59 that changes a lot of the money dynamics. And then the point about kind of the level where Carolina wants to be, I think a great benefit in this process for Carolina is what Duke's doing. Because Carolina does not want to play second fiddle to Duke. And Duke has done a fantastic job in handling the new era and Shire's done a great job. And so I think that's a motivational tool for. for Carolina just down the street. And Carolina wants to get back
Starting point is 00:25:27 to that standard of being year and year out, a top five team that can contend for national championships. That's the ultimate goal. So what I'm interested in because it's, I think I'm, my brain is locking up
Starting point is 00:25:43 because the family ran Carolina for so long. And I'm just assuming that they're going to look for somebody who would adopt a Roy Williams style recruiting philosophy. fee. But here you can talk about John Shire at Duke, and I find it interesting because Duke has been getting this top end high, you know, lottery picks every year kind of recruiting. That continued from Coach K through John Shire. That's not really what's been going on at North
Starting point is 00:26:12 Carolina by design, not because they couldn't, but because that was Roy's choice and then it sort of carried over. Caleb Wilson, what if he's a top five pick, it'll be the first top five pick. What's it's 2005 in North Carolina? So is it possible that the next coach embraces a little bit different recruiting philosophy? I think so.
Starting point is 00:26:34 And one thing I want to add here is if you go back to when Roy turned the job down the first time back in 2000, one of the coaches that Dean Smith said that he'd wanted after the fact was Rick Majeris. It was not a Carolina guy whatsoever. Good offense. Right. So that's, yes, there's that Carolina component,
Starting point is 00:26:56 but I don't think it's as glued in as some people like to make it to be, including within the Carolina family. And I think a lot of frustration was kind of around the Hubert Davis higher back in 2021, because they saw it as a continuation of what Roy did. And to your point, Roy was never about the one in done. He never liked to deal with handlers and those types of people around players. And that kind of limited what he could do on the recruiting trail. Of course, the NCAA investigation played a role in that as well.
Starting point is 00:27:30 And there was concern that when Hubert came in, he would just kind of continue on with what Roy did. And that didn't fit where the college basketball landscape was. And we've kind of see that play out. I mean, Hubert was not really receptive to having a general manager until it was somewhat forced upon him last year with Jim Tanner. And that speaks to that slow willingness to adapt. And I do think North Carolina understands that,
Starting point is 00:27:57 and they want to make sure with this next hire, that they embrace the current landscape, they accept it for what it is, and they get North Carolina back up to a level where it can be somewhat transactional. I mean, Hewitt Davis two years ago at Media Day, said, this is not a transactional program, and then ended up paying six months later $14 million for roster.
Starting point is 00:28:19 So there's some disconnect there that they have to make sure they address with this next hire. The Cooper Flag transaction worked out okay. The Boozer Twins transaction worked out okay. It is okay to play that game now. Yes. Andy and I were talking before about how we need to find, we need to find coaches in the new era that can excel in the new era. But the new era hasn't really been that long.
Starting point is 00:28:51 I mean, we're only in it, what, two or three years now? What do you think Carolina has to do in this search? What are the qualities, the traits, the aspects of what a new coach would bring to the table that they should be looking for in their replacement? Well, adaptability is kind of the key thing because it is ever-changing. and even though we got the House settlement through, what, nine months ago, there's still been a lot of changes since then, and there will continue to be changes. So I think that's the primary aspect. And then, I mean, kind of in our business, right?
Starting point is 00:29:22 I mean, if you go back 25 years, if you were just a good writer, then that was enough. That's no longer the case. You've got to be able to handle the multimedia part of it, like what we're doing now. And I think the same thing holds true with coaches. I mean, everybody thought Hubert Davis. when he came to Carolina because of his history at ESPN, that he would be great with the media, that he would be good with boosters,
Starting point is 00:29:45 and that it would translate to good recruiting and him as like this spokesperson for college basketball. It didn't play out that way. He wasn't interested in the fundraising. He wasn't really good at all with the media, and it was problematic. So I think having an understanding of those components and using it to your advantage
Starting point is 00:30:04 and understanding that kids care about brand, value. That's very important, especially for the top-end kids. And being willing to have that bridge mindset between high school to college to the NBA. Cali Perry, he got banged on for a long time for doing them. And then Coach Kay followed him, and now here we are. So that is the approach. And I think having people in place who understand that and are willing to change on a dime because that's required. I think that's kind of a key thing. they're looking for. Well, I'm fascinated to see who they pick because this is one of the best jobs in the
Starting point is 00:30:43 country. They're going to have their choice. And you're going to be really busy trying to figure out who it is. So, Greg, thank you so much for giving us some time today and a really busy day. But we don't have any of Lawton Hudson questions before we get out of here? I got no, we're going to bring Greg back after they hire a basketball coach. He's got to work. All right.
Starting point is 00:31:01 All the Jordan Hudson questions. All the Billy Edwards Jr. questions. All the Bobby Petrino question. Don't worry, Greg. we'll see you again soon. I look forward to it. Thanks, guys. Thanks, Greg.
Starting point is 00:31:11 And Greg, appreciate you being here. Sure thing. That is Greg Barnes from Inside Carolina. Great insight from a guy who's covered the team for two decades. And now we move on to Megaboard Wednesday where there are, there's more going on in the world of college basketball. The coaching carousel feels like it could get real hot, real fast.
Starting point is 00:31:35 but if your team's still in it, if you think your team might make it to Indianapolis all the way, then start making plans to come see us at the Culver's Game Day Hub live in Indianapolis on April 4th. That's the day of the semifinals. That's that Saturday. We're going to be there. If you remember last year,
Starting point is 00:31:55 we were with Culver's at the draft, it was so much fun, frozen custard all around, butter burgers, you name it. We'll be back with Culver's on April 4th. in Indianapolis. And if you can't make it to Indy, make sure you enter the Culver's swish-swish dish sweepstakes for a chance to win up to $2,500.
Starting point is 00:32:14 But again, if you can get to Indy, if you live in Indy, or if your team makes it there, if your team earns its way through this weekend and makes it to Indy, come see us at the Culver's Game Day Hug live in Indianapolis on April 4th. Ari, it is Mega Board Wednesday,
Starting point is 00:32:31 and the boards are popping. on Monday night, the boards really started almost melting because stuff's happening everywhere. Let us start in Kansas. Jayhawksland. The boards there are understandably trying to figure out what happens next with Bill Self, because Bill Self said after Kansas lost to St. John's, he's going to take some time to figure out what he wants to do. It is unclear what that is right now. Bill Self has had some health issues, and he's only 63,
Starting point is 00:33:09 and we've talked about how there are a lot of guys in their 70s who are coaching really well in college basketball right now. Bill Self, obviously, there's some extenuating circumstances that are causing him to take a step back and look at whether he wants to continue as Kansas is coach. We don't know the answer to it right now. There's some folks on the Jayhawks slant boards that are a little worried that it might already be done.
Starting point is 00:33:34 there's a thread on there sounds like a done deal and more of a tribute thread love you coach and then just sad songs they're posting the youtube videos of sad songs brick by benfolds five was really sad don't don't don't go go go go go go govue what that's about uh he stopped loving her today by george jones i will remember you by sarah mclec yesterday by the beetles slide by Fleetwood Mac. So that is the mood in Lawrence right now. Now, the other extenuating factor of this. Andy, before you go into it, is that he did such a masterful job
Starting point is 00:34:13 navigating a really bad situation. Yes. He still has it. Like, that's the, that's the hard part. Yeah. He's 63. If he keeps coaching, I think he's probably got another national title in him, or at least another final four run in him.
Starting point is 00:34:25 Yeah. He handled that Darren Peterson situation as well as anybody could have because that could have blown up. The whole team could have imploded in the middle of Big 12 play with Darren Peterson taking himself out of games and all the stuff. He could have put him in Darren Peterson's life too, by the way. Yes. If Will self had been a little more selfish or just fed up with it and let that show, it could have really messed with Peterson's draft stock. he threaded that needle as well as you could. And look, they got knocked out in the round of 32
Starting point is 00:35:02 by a Hall of Fame coach with a great team that won a good league. I don't think you have any quibble with how this season went. I know Kansas expects more than the round of 32, but the circumstances are, you know, that stuff happens. if Bill Self can keep coaching, I'm convinced he gets way into the NCAA tournament again, potentially another national title. But again, that's his decision because he's had some health issues that have kept him from coaching in some games over the past few years.
Starting point is 00:35:38 And I just hope he does whatever the best thing is for him. Yeah. I mean, obviously, when you're dealing with things that aren't just do I want to work anymore, you know, you have to leave it to that person to come up with what they think is the best. And a lot of times, I think, you know, people, if they do retire early, might have a change of heart in three or four years and end up somewhere else, which would probably be the biggest Kansas nightmare. But, you know, I thought that the title of the threat, Andy, was kind of interesting because we dealt a lot of this with football. And if he is, in fact, retiring. Yeah, this is another thread on the Jayhawks slant boards.
Starting point is 00:36:14 Yeah. Will Hubert Davis is firing affect Bill Self in Kansas? Because if I'm the Kansas administration, it's a tricky story. spot because obviously you appreciate everything Bill's self is done. You want him to stay. But you also probably need a decision now that North Carolina is open. And I saw some people online debating what the football parallel of this would be. And the one I saw that I thought looked the most accurate is if North Carolina and Kansas
Starting point is 00:36:40 open in basketball, it's really similar to Ohio State and Georgia opening in football at the same time. No, it's not the same stature of team. but like we literally just fought through like second tier SEC teams being afraid of being late to the party when. Right, because LSU and Penn State opened. Yeah. Yeah. So like LSU, like do we think LSU fired Ryan Kelly when they did because Penn State fired James Franklin when they did?
Starting point is 00:37:04 I think that LSU was a superior job to Penn State regardless of when it opens. I don't know if they had that much calculation, but I do think it was interesting to watch like Florida and Auburn deal with their coaches as they were trying to get in like they were racing for Summer Hall too, weren't they? So, like, you know, I do think that timing is a thing, but like as the thread points out, I'm no basketball history buff, but if Bill self was picked second, I'd love to know or remember, you probably do off the top of your head because you're encyclopedia who was first in that cycle. And it's like, I don't always think that the first person who was hired in a cycle or the top choice in the cycle always necessarily means you got the best guy. And I'm very curious, and we might not know this for five, six years,
Starting point is 00:37:42 but of the Alex Goalish John Summerall, Lane Kiffin hiring. SEC circle in five years who we view as a top five coach in America and who the other two are. You know, and it might not be Lane Kiffin. It might be, but I just don't think that being first of the party has ever, you know, like here's the question too. It's like, if you're Kansas, do you try to speed up a decision because you're anxious about being second in line or second to the hiring station, which then gives you a 10% less chance of potentially holding on to your Hall of Fame coach. It's like,
Starting point is 00:38:18 who knows, like, what the decision-making process for Bill's self looks like behind the scenes. So I don't know that I would, like,
Starting point is 00:38:25 lose a bunch of sleepover being second in the cycle. What I would do is, is hope that Bill's self returns, or if that's already too late and he's done, you know, hiring the right coach for your program and it might not necessarily
Starting point is 00:38:39 be the person that North Carolina wants. Well, it would be kind of poetic because these jobs are inextricably linked. Dean Smith played for Fog Allen at Kansas. He then goes to North Carolina. He was a North Carolina assistant. He was a 30-year-old North Carolina assistant when he got the job.
Starting point is 00:38:57 Roy Williams was coaching Kansas and coaching Kansas really well when Mama called. Now, it was the second time North Carolina tried to get him from Kansas because that happened when they hired Matt Doherty as well. But so Bill Self replaced Roy Williams at Kansas. I'm trying to think who it would have been who was the first choice. I can't even, it was 2003. I can't remember back that far, you know, because obviously Roy leaving open the job and Bill Self was coaching at Illinois at the time and was doing a good job there. So that was, Scott Drew was hired at Baylor that year,
Starting point is 00:39:40 but he was not viewed as that level of coach at that point. So I don't know. It's a strange situation because now, I mean, you look at what Bill Self did there where he was winning the Big 12 every year. And obviously the Big 12 got much harder in these last two rounds of realignment. But he basically won the Big 12 regular season title almost every year until the last few years. And was ridiculously consistent. Roy Williams was hired in 2003, but he left.
Starting point is 00:40:09 That's what I just got through saying. No, I know. I'm working through it here, Andy. Drew you mentioned. What about Jamie Dixon? Would that have been it? Going to Pitt. No, I don't think so.
Starting point is 00:40:24 Well, there's no other coach that I'm seeing here that would have gone to a place instead of Kansas. But it's a tough spot. But here's the thing, like all those names that we mentioned in connection with the North Carolina job. And I'm talking about the sitting coaches, the T.J. Otselberger, Tommy Lloyd, Nate Oates, Todd Golden, Ben McCollum, like all of these guys would probably consider the Kansas job. Now, they'd probably consider it the same way they consider the North Carolina job. And so I think the window is wide open.
Starting point is 00:41:08 And if Bill Self does decide this is it, Kansas has lots of good options. Even if North Carolina is open, there's more than two good coaches. is out there, you can find a really good one in this circumstance. So in so many times this gets lost, the program makes a coach sometimes too. Let's not forget. Yeah. Like if you're Kansas and you get to wear the Jayhawks logo on your chest and you are given the resources, a lot of times you will become a great coach as a result of what
Starting point is 00:41:40 you have around you. So it's not always what, and I know that the person is important. I'm not trying to diminish that. But how many coaches in college football and college basketball landed in good situations? Like, is Dan Lanning the greatest coach ever? Is Ryan Day the greatest coach ever? Or are they good coaches that landed in the really good spot? Like, I just don't know, and we'll never know, like, what Dan Lanning would do if he got hired at Kansas State.
Starting point is 00:42:07 Maybe he would be great. Maybe he'd be much better than, you know, we give him credit for. But I think that the place also really carries a lot of the weight in terms of what, you get out of your program. Yeah. I hope Bill Self isn't done. I hope he keeps coaching. But we don't know the answer to that yet.
Starting point is 00:42:24 So we'll have to, we'll keep our eyes on that one. Got another situation brewing over in North Carolina, well, and Louisiana. We got two of our message boards going crazy. All through Monday night into Tuesday morning.
Starting point is 00:42:41 Sorry, all through Tuesday night and into Wednesday morning. And it's just, It keeps going. So we will talk NC State and LSU. Next. Are a developing situation Tuesday night. Like when I wake up to a text from Pete Nacos,
Starting point is 00:43:02 I know something's up. And there was a Pete Nacos text asking if I had a certain person's cell phone number that was sent at 530 Pete Nacos time a.m. So there's stuff going. on. And so I went to the boards at NC State and at LSU. So I went to the Wolfpacker, which is on three's NC State site. I went to the Bengal Tiger, which is on three's LSU site. And stuff that had died, threads that had gone slightly dormant, had come back to life. So at the Bingle Tiger, we had Will Wade Monday from this past Monday with Verge Osbury, the
Starting point is 00:43:48 AD saying, I will not fail you. Now, not much happened on Monday, but Tuesday it all picked up. Tuesday night, middle of the night into Wednesday morning is where it picked up. And so now we have from the Wolfpacker, the thread called Wade Rumors, and that one started last week. NC State goes out in the first four, Will Wade's talking about how, you know, how he was mad at the way you constructed the roster for this season in C State. He said, I think this is the worst
Starting point is 00:44:21 team we'll ever have here. It might be the only team he ever has there. Because the smoke is rising about a potential return to LSU for Will Wade. Now, Ari, what complicates this is Matt McMahon is LSU's coach and has not been fired. As we record this
Starting point is 00:44:39 at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Matt McMahon still has his job. And Will Way to still NC State's coach. But it sounds like that could change in the next hours and days. LSU just hasn't gotten enough of the freak show. You know, they want to do it again.
Starting point is 00:45:00 They, okay, so the fan base loved Will Wade. They loved Will Wade when he was there. They fired him. Remember Scott Woodward was the athletic director. He's the one who fired him. And he waited until the NCAA stuff came out so that he could fire him with cause. And so, like, Will Wade almost seemed to be past the stuff. Because remember, he got caught on a wiretap in that FBI investigation in college basketball.
Starting point is 00:45:26 And he was talking about a strong-ass offer. Well, guess what? Strong-ass offer is what you got to do to win these days. And LSU's not good at basketball these days. So that's what's going on. Obviously, the NC State fans royally pissed if he's really considering this because they feel like they got a pretty good job, too. So this is crazy. This would make the LSU fan base deliriously happy.
Starting point is 00:45:53 Now, the one thing I will point out that I know the NC State fans know, the guy who was president at McNee's state when Will Wade was there the last few years before he went to NC State, now the president of LSU. Question, because I don't know, pantheon of jobs, NC State in the research triangle and LSU in the SEC, where do we stand on this? Because I don't know what's a better job. I don't, I think they're pretty parallel. I think the right coach at NC State can win pretty big.
Starting point is 00:46:29 I think the right coach at LSU. I mean, John Brady took them to final fours. Yeah. Is life at least, either one is considered the top job in the conference or anywhere near the top job in its conference? Is life at NC State more difficult because you're directly the shadows of two of the powers of the sport. I think that's difficult, but I also think
Starting point is 00:46:51 you have a fan base that cares more about basketball. I mean, at LSU, yes, the fans are excited that Will Wade might come back, but you know what they're more excited about? Maine Kiffin. Jordan Seton lost 23 pounds. It looks amazing. Yeah. That's their left.
Starting point is 00:47:06 By the way. He does. Transfer to Colorado. You lost 23 pounds? Yeah, he already looked pretty good. Now he looks amazing. See, that was not a chubby tackle. That guy was always fit.
Starting point is 00:47:15 So he must be a machine now. But yeah, I agree with you. I'm just curious, like, too, obviously the people who are involved in his dismissal are no longer there. So. Well, but that's the other part of it. If Will Wade had never coached at LSU before, I don't even think this is happening. This is not, this is not an issue. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:47:33 Will Wade coached at LSU. He liked coaching at LSU. He was successful coaching at LSU, and they liked him there. And I think that's, that's why this is happening now. rather than, you know, if Will Wade had gone from McNeese to NC State and the LSU part of his career had never happened or he'd been in, you know, some other SEC school before. Like, what are we talking about having this conversation? Yeah. It's just I'm always curious, too, of like, do you harbor feelings towards a place if things went the way wrong, the way that you did?
Starting point is 00:48:05 But at the same time, he also was cheating at the time. So whether or not we find that to be important anymore, I think is irrelevant. I know. I find it to be he was doing exactly what you got to do to win now. So I have no problem. If you were doing something that was against the rules at some point and we're doing it well, and now everyone's doing it. Didn't your advantage get taken away?
Starting point is 00:48:30 Like, I feel like that's the hardest. I think he's probably still good at making strong ass offers, though. Yeah. I mean, all you have to do is make a strong ass offer, but it's kind of like if you're going 50 and a 30 and everybody else is going 30, and then the speed limit becomes 60, and then everyone's driving 60, then your advantage from when you were driving 50
Starting point is 00:48:48 doesn't exist anymore. I think Will Wade can exist in this era too. Yeah. I mean, he won a game in the NCAA tournament with McNeese. Now, it didn't go as well as he wanted to this year at NC State, but the years he was at LSU, and it's not just because he was, well, you're assuming he was doing something nobody else
Starting point is 00:49:11 was doing. He was doing what everybody was doing. Yes. Not everybody, most people. Most people. Most people he was recruiting against and playing against. So five seasons at LSU, he makes the NCAA tournament three of those, would have made it four, but the 2021 got canceled because of COVID. That is a lot of success for LSU. That's really good for LSU. Yeah.
Starting point is 00:49:40 So that's why they love him so much. And they should. He kind of fits their ethos. Like he, he makes very, the wrestling people would say he can cut a promo. Like he's on the mic, very similar to Lane Kiffin.
Starting point is 00:50:00 Yeah, LSU with both of them, man. What a wild, wild, wild boon for business. It would be for the message boards down there. But like, yeah, I will be very curious to see how this plays out. and I think that the NC state people are rightfully upset and angry, nervous, because you feel like you might be on the verge of actually, because I mean, winning at McNeese also proves that he's a good coach.
Starting point is 00:50:23 You know what I mean? So like I saw how excited they were when they got him, and it would be a rough go of it if they were to lose him now. So we'll see how it plays out. And the thing is like Will Wade excited the NC state people right off the bat. Like he's talking about the transfer from North Carolina, Van Allen Lubin and calling
Starting point is 00:50:43 basically calling Hubert Davis dumb for not playing him. And like that got everybody excited right off the bat. He's going to say stuff like that. He's going to do stuff like that. And if he goes to LSU, we already know he's going to do stuff like that
Starting point is 00:50:58 because he's done it before there. But yeah, the NC State people will be furious and understandably so if he leaves. Now, that's still a good job. It would suck for them if they had to search for a coach the same time that North Carolina does. We'll see if the Kansas job opens.
Starting point is 00:51:17 But I don't think North Carolina and NC State are necessarily fishing from the same pond in terms of the job opening. So I don't think that's really going to make that huge of a difference in who NC State would hire with North Carolina open. But obviously those guys are going to be compared side by side because they're going to come in in the same year if this indeed happens. And at this point, it may be so far down the road that the Will Wade thing kind of has to happen. Because if he's like, no, never mind, I've stayed at NC State. By the way, his newest follows on Twitter as of Wednesday morning. Oh, boy.
Starting point is 00:51:55 Yeah. Cody Warshim in the LSU Athletic Department. Shea Dixon, our guy at the bingoet tiger.com. Matt Mascona, our friend who does radio in Baton Rouge. Like, it is interesting. That's where he's going. Either he's trolling or that's where he's going. Or maybe he just likes to hear about himself.
Starting point is 00:52:21 Maybe, but man, you can't really go back at that point. I think the NC State people are not happy about any of this. You could have squelched this a long time ago. but it kept popping back up. If you look at these message board threads, especially the one on the Wolfpacker, this dates back to Thursday of last week. And then the rumors died down,
Starting point is 00:52:45 and it's like, okay, no, he's staying. Here are the actions he's taking that suggests he's staying. And now you're back here on Wednesday morning. The transfer portal opens April 7th. Who does this remind you of any football thing? Who does this remind you of in football? Well, so not from the, NC State side as much, but from the LSU side, it reminds me of a couple ones.
Starting point is 00:53:06 It reminds me of when Texas fired Tom Herman and four minutes later hired Steve Sarkesian. And it reminds me of when Miami fired Manny Diaz because Mario Cristobal was willing to come. Because Matt McMahon, as we record this, still employed by LSU. And how does he feel about all this, you know? I'm sure he feels terrible about it. Yeah. It's wild. like that's the worst spot like i mani dyes i always thought that that was the worst way
Starting point is 00:53:43 to get fired and and you know before mario took miami to the national title game manny's career at miami and maras were fairly comparable so now if you're miami you say okay here's why we did this but manny's also the coach of the defending ac c champion so let's not forget that. But if you're Matt McMahon, this sucks because why didn't they just fire you when the season ended? When they fire you before the season ended? It wasn't like LSU was good this year. Yeah. If they were going to get rid of me, well, just get rid of me. Just pay me my buyout, let me go. Well, when something comes out of nowhere and is interested, that changes your own. But it didn't come out of nowhere. LSU was bad. People knew that Will Wade was good at LSU. And
Starting point is 00:54:32 that his president from McNeese State was at LSU now. Like, this has been going on since February. I've ever said something in theory that didn't occur until recently too. I, listen, there was always a little bit of burning desire in Baton Rouge to get Will Wade back. And the circumstances now have aligned so that they can't. But they've been aligned in that way for a few months. So it was headed this way, and I was a little surprised
Starting point is 00:55:07 late last week when it seemed to die down. This was less surprising that this happened. So we'll watch that one. By the time of show drops, circumstances might change, so we'd have to fly in a little update. But that's what we need on a Megaboard Wednesday, Ari. That's the kind of action. Yeah, it's action.
Starting point is 00:55:30 It's frothy. Juice. Yeah. All right. One more thing before we go, because I've been working on a project and it's about to come to fruition on Saturday. So I have been learning to dance. And I don't mean like taking ballroom classes with the wife. So I got called up. I got called in from the bullpen essentially to be in a dancing with the stars competition, a local dancing with the starst competition in Gainesville. My daughter's ballet school is attached to a professional ballet company. They've been operating out of the same studio since the 60s. They are trying to build a new studio. So they're trying to raise money to build a new studio. So they had somebody lined up for this thing, and they had to drop out with about a month and a half to go before the deal. Everybody else has been training for this thing since November.
Starting point is 00:56:24 And so I got to do a fox trot with an incredible professional dancer. named Bia, who is very, very patient, maybe the most patient person in the world. And we're trying to raise money for the studio. And I want to thank, because I put some stuff out on social media, Ari. I want to thank Steve from San Antonio and Lori, two of our best question askers, because they've donated money to my daughter's studio. And I just can't thank you enough for your help. And so anybody else, have you got a couple bucks just lying around?
Starting point is 00:56:55 And you enjoy laughing at me dancing because you're getting to watch it. you go to my Twitter, you'll find the link, you go to my Instagram, you'll find the link. And yeah, please, every little bit helps. But Ari, what do we think? We're watching rehearsals from last night. How are we feeling about this? Here's what I think.
Starting point is 00:57:14 Do you want my honest opinion? I do. I think that you're incredibly good shape. And you were an athlete. So that means you can move on, you lift weights, and you work out, you run long distances. loosen up a little bit. You seem a little tight.
Starting point is 00:57:32 Yeah. Okay. That's what my offensive line coach has all said too. Okay. I think that's how I'm strong. I think if I were a little more loose, I'd have been a better athlete. You're doing great, pal.
Starting point is 00:57:44 I'm just giving you. I'm just giving you. Now, well, fortunately I brought in somebody who knows more than you. Okay. And who's nicer than you. Our friend Laura Rutledge from ESPN, so before you saw her on Monday Night Football,
Starting point is 00:57:55 she actually contemplated being a professional ballet dancer. When she was leaving high school, she had an offer to join a ballet company in China to dance professionally and was about to take it and then kind of at the last minute decided, you know what, I want to go to college instead. And so she takes a scholarship to the University of Florida and basically work for, you know, the sites, She worked for a bunch of different team sites.
Starting point is 00:58:26 She covered recruiting. She was the hardest working student reporter I've ever met. And so you knew she was going to be successful no matter what. But what I didn't realize because Laura was also Miss Florida at the time. And so she kept dancing to keep her talent sharp for the pageant circuit, but also just because she loved dancing. So she danced at this dance company that my daughter belongs to. Oh. And she was doing the same Nutcracker productions that my daughter did, you know, where they travel
Starting point is 00:58:53 round to do the productions. And so I brought Laura in to critique my lifts. And I got to say, I was surprised because this is, you know, it's just like Laura is a football person now. Like Laura just does football now. This is a great film breakdown for me. Partnering in dance is really difficult. And there's a lot more to that than just lifting a person. It's all about weight balance. I think you have a really strong base. I'm noticing even when you're pulling the lift off, you're doing like a little hop, then you're doing your own lunge there. I mean, that's difficult. There's a lot going on.
Starting point is 00:59:30 And look at the side angle of this. This is a typical lift. A lot of times we call it a fish lift, but you're getting down low. Then you're pulling her back up for me. That is no easy task. I'm really impressed by what you're doing. I would say for you, my biggest feedback, like, especially when it comes to wowing the crowd, raising some money, you're going to have a wow factor no matter what.
Starting point is 00:59:48 People are going to be really excited, captive audience. But, you know, stand proud, like showing. know I'm who you are. Here's the reality. Standing up there on that stage is not an easy thing to do. And learning any of this is extremely difficult. I want to give you a ton of credit for that. You really technically, that's another thing too. You don't have happy feet.
Starting point is 01:00:05 You're like a quarterback who's calm in the pocket there doing these lifts. That's impressive. She's too nice to you. But you are. Listen, we don't have happy feet though. When she said that, I was like, you're right. I don't. I don't do anything else right.
Starting point is 01:00:20 But I keep my feet where they need to be. I'm in no position to criticize you. When we went to Knoxville a few years ago and Dylan Samson taught us how to dance, you did so much better than me. Brutal. But yours looked good. Mine was like, I mean,
Starting point is 01:00:34 I am. Mine looks good because I'm with someone who knows what she's doing and she's explaining. Like, you can't see her giving me subtle cues, do this, now, do this, now, do this, now,
Starting point is 01:00:46 if not for that. But I will, it's funny because now I'm getting cocky. and I cannot dance. I still cannot dance. But now I kind of think I can. Are you competing against other dads or other people that aren't dancers too? Correct.
Starting point is 01:01:02 Oh, there's Dylan Samson. Oh, yeah. You're loose. I'm better now than I was then. So there's that. But yes,
Starting point is 01:01:10 no, I'm competing against people in my age cohort who are not professional dancers. So that is very helpful. So, you know what, we'll have to come back next week after your performance. and I'll judge. So like, listen, I, I watch Star Search with my wife. Look at you. I know. I'm saying, let's see, you got, you got the loose knees and the loose hips.
Starting point is 01:01:30 Yeah. You're built for this. I watch a lot of dancing competitions because my wife's into it. And I don't know what I'm looking at. So, but I am used to watching people dance. So I'll give you an honest, honest feedback of whether I think. I know, I think Carrie Anna novel would rip me a new one if I were on the real show. Do you, you will know if you won on Saturday? I think the winner is the person who raises the most money. So I'm going to need everybody in the audience to give. See, if everybody in the audience gives a buck, we're in good shape. Okay.
Starting point is 01:02:03 Well, depending on how the tournament games go for me on Thursday and Friday. Yeah, Saturday's donation. Yeah. So we're all rooting for Arkansas right now. Yeah, right? Arkansas is going to win, right? I don't know. I have no idea.
Starting point is 01:02:18 no idea these sweet 16 games are awesome we will we will break those down on Thursday and try to try to give you some predictions but I don't know
Starting point is 01:02:29 man these games are are tough to predict it's gonna be fun can't wait I can predict I probably will not win the dancing competition but I'm gonna throw you a few shuckles
Starting point is 01:02:40 listen I am going to rock out on that stage I'm leaving it all out there that's all I can tell you remember just said if the balls make the elite eight i'll donate everybody i love reaching their uh their happiness yeah go balls yeah no we'll talk i'll throw a few bucks but yeah i appreciate it we'll see you tomorrow

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