Andy & Ari On3 - Quinn Ewers and the Texas Longhorns are ready to TAKE ON the SEC | Are we sleeping on Alabama?

Episode Date: July 18, 2024

Texas visited SEC Media Days for the first time, and Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers joined Andy to talk about the video game version of himself, the burning desire to surpass last season’s success and the rekindling of the rivalry with Texas A&M.(0:00-3:54) Intro with J.D. PicKell(3:55-11:10) Quinn Ewers Interview(11:11-20:31) Texas Entering the SEC(20:32-22:27) Are we sleeping on Alabama?(22:28-26:25) Tyler Booker from Alabama joins (26:24-34:49) Continuing the Alabama Discussion(34:50-46:05) Is Florida "On Schedule?"(46:06-46:31) Closing out with J.D.(46:32-1:04:11) Jim Nagy from the Senior Bowl joins(1:04:12-1:06:43) ACC Releasing ESPN Contracts, Conclusion

Welcome to Andy Staples on three greetings from SEC media days in lovely Dallas, Texas is 100 degrees outside. We are calm, cool and collected here. JD Piquel joining me fresh off an interview with Florida quarterback Graham Mertz, dare I say, going to be your new favorite player? So likable. So likable. After talking to him, he's one of those guys you're like, oh, he's an adult, comfortable in his own skin. I'm excited for him. I'm excited for him. We had Graham on the show over the winter. He was convalescing from the broken collarbone.

He suffered dump trucking some dude at Missouri. And he is delightful. And so Graham's from Kansas City. Big barbecue guy. The kind of guy like me who keeps barbecue pictures on his phone. And so he got here, and I told him, you're going to want to head over to the table behind us. So there's a radio station from Columbia, South Carolina.

One of the guys that works there is from Dallas originally and has just been bringing local cuisine to his coworkers every day, like in bulk. Yeah. So he had the Cane Rosso pizza. He had some brisket tacos yesterday.

Today, not one, but two famous Dallas barbecue places. He went to Pecan Lodge and to Terry Black's. So, of course, they let me sample a little bit. Oh, did they? I didn't know that. Oh, no.

They let me have an end piece of the Terry Black's brisket and then some Pecan Lodge burnt ends. I was in heaven. So, yeah, I told Graham. And Graham's the type who can truly appreciate this. I'm like, they let me have the end piece. He's like, they did? Whoa. Did they know? He's like they did whoa do they know he's like did they know i don't think they knew they'll never know now i don't think they knew but yeah you can hear graham on the hard count with jd piquel if you're not already

subscribed to the on three sports youtube channel what are you waiting for you get everything jd does everything i do and we've done a lot a lot so this was a big day at sec media days you had mississippi state florida alabama yep and the texas freaking longhorns the by god texas longhorns showed up at sec media days with a measure of humility yeah might i say. Yeah, which is a good look when you're the new kid in town. Nobody likes the guy that comes into the room for the first time or joins the company or goes to the new school.

It's like, here I am, glad that I'm here. Here I am. My dad told me this a long time ago. Be a there you are person, not a here I am person. I like that. Texas being a there you are person. How about that? Mr. Piquel yeah dropping the wisdom yeah now you don't have to be a here I am person when your

mere presence announces itself and I'm not just saying that in terms of Texas being a big brand like when Quinn Ewers walks into a room you're like that's somebody's quarterback you just know yeah even in a suit you just know yeah even in a fantastic longhorn belt buckle that kind of look like a cross between the longhorn logo and the mythosaur skull from the mandalorian yeah okay but i don't think quinn's a big star wars guy probably watching too much tape or too But I don't think Quinn's a big Star Wars guy. Probably watching too much tape. Or fishing. Watching too much film. Or fishing, yeah.

He's a fishing and hunting guy. There you go. But yeah, Quinn Ewer's big year for him. I laughed because Steve Sarkeesian gives this impassioned speech about the Longhorns. First question about the backup quarterback, Arch Manning. But Quinn's the guy. Quinn is the guy going into this season. He led them to a Big 12 title last year, led them to a 14 playoff berth. Now what's next as he enters the SEC? Well, let's

just ask him. Let's talk to Quinn Ewers. Quinn Ewers from the Texas Longhorns. Everybody's been waiting for you guys to walk into SEC media days. The belt buckle comes first. You have to come strong with the belt buckle game as a native Texan. When do they start teaching you that? Is that something you learn as a kid? I mean, yeah.

But usually you've got to earn it because either you get the buckle from winning the radio or whatever. But, I mean, belt buckles are always fun to hang on to for sure. Usually you've got to earn it because either you get the buckle from winning the video or whatever. But, I mean, belt buckles are always fun to hang on to for sure. So where is this one from? Oh, this is just – it was actually a gift. So to have it is super cool. Very nice. And so how many people now stop you and be like, are you the guy from the video game? It hasn't happened a whole

lot actually um but who knows i think the state of texas they're okay it's qb1 for the longhorns but but i mean how crazy is that to think i mean you were pretty young when when the video game went away but i imagine you'd played it a little bit for sure and to be the guy on the cover when it comes back yeah i mean it's it's like uh I don't even know how to put it into words, except like it's a blessing and it's humbling. And not just for me, but, you know, for the whole university, because, you know, all the university gets recognized for it because they see, you know, the University of Texas jersey on the cover.

So to have that is cool. And it's cool that it's not just for me no your whole qb room's doing doing commercials for those things so you're you're all set but what when you guys come to the sec it's and it's interesting for you because you you got a you're in the big 10 you're in the big 12 now you get a new college football experience but what's the most exciting thing about going into the SEC for you? I mean, I think they do a good job, and, you know, they got a saying, it just means more. So I'm excited to get the full understanding of that and to go everywhere and experience

all those games. How much does having gone to Tuscaloosa and won a game last year help in terms of just understanding what the environments are like and and what the what the competition level is like yeah i think that is that's huge for us you know we've we've gone into um alabama stadium um and we did pretty we did well so you know but that we just gotta we gotta be consistent on that aspect of things well that's one thing last year though that i thought you guys did improve on it is you know there know, there were years past where Texas would have games where it kind of played down to the level of competition. But you had a couple of those tougher games and you still won them last year. Was it was that something you talked about before the season,

being able to handle those situations? Yeah, for sure. I think I was excited for that Alabama win for sure. But coming back home and beating Wyoming. Right. I think just as big because I think that just goes to show that how mature we are and and how and we know how to handle the success of winning those type of big games yeah because if you slip up after the big game it takes away from winning the big game 100 and so you know now that you guys

have kind of gotten over that hump how have you helped the the new guys coming in i mean because you you've done great in the portal last few years being able to fill holes but like your receiver room it's you lose a couple first round type guys but it seems like you replenished it pretty quickly yeah i mean at the end of the day if we want to get to where we want to get to we got to hold everyone to a high standard and the standard is the standard at the end of the day, if we want to get to where we want to get to, we've got to hold everyone to a high standard, and the standard's the standard at the end of the day. I mean, all those receivers have really stepped into a good role, and, I mean, they're all taking care of each other in there.

It's cool to see that they're all competing for the same goal, but, you know, they're good friends off the field. How nice is it when you have somebody coming in who's got huge game experience? Like A.D. Mitchell last year had caught passes in the national title game Isaiah Bond comes in this year he caught the fourth and goal from the 31 pass in the iron bowl like yeah is there anything that could phase these guys yeah I mean again I think that just goes to show you know how mature we are and the experience that we have and you know even the younger guys are mature like a guy like Ryan Wingo has come yeah and really you know know, stepped up.

And it's been cool to see how he's handled his freshman year because he doesn't act like a freshman at all. He's going to be a good player. Well, Luther Burden was here yesterday, another Missourian, and he was singing his praises. So tell us about Ryan Wingo. What do you expect to see? I mean, I think he's going to contribute to us for sure.

I mean, I'm not sure how that looks right now. We've still got fall camp to go through and see how that all turns out. But that room is stacked and I mean, it could go any way. So how are you different from the kid who left Texas to go to Ohio State a few years ago? Man, completely different, I think. I mean, I've grown in so many different ways, whether that be on the field or emotionally and physically, or whether that be in, you know, my own relationships and my relationship with God and with Jesus. So, you know, I think I've grown into the man I want to be, but continuing to grow into that role. Is it not hard to do in the kind of spotlight you're in?

Say it again? Is it hard to do that in the kind of spotlight you're in? Say it again? Is it hard to do that in the kind of spotlight you're in? I mean, basically every move you make, we see it on the Internet. Yeah, I mean, for sure it's definitely hard. But, you know, I think I have a really good corner and a good group of people that surround me and help me make decisions. And, you know, I don't do a whole lot. So I just hang out in the house and hang out with buddies, and I don't do a whole lot. So I just hang out in the house and hang out with buddies and I don't do a

whole lot. I would say you get the video game now to pass the time if you're hanging out at the house. Did they get you right? I think they did a pretty good job. You know, it's hard for them to get every single feature, right. But I think they did a great job with, I mean, creating everybody in what what, all 130 whatever schools it is or 20 schools it is. So, you know, I'm excited how the game turned out.

So I went down to Orlando and got the little preview, and they were telling us, okay, we made Quinn with all this awareness and all this poise. And I was like, awesome. So I set up, you know, Texas at Texas A&M and Kyle Field. I'm like, Quinn has all this poise so i'm gonna still be able to throw i turn that i hit that r2 button all squiggles yeah you need to call them that's crazy you need to call them they got to give you the poise they promised yeah i know that stadium's gonna be rocking oh yeah it's gonna be awesome as a native texan like what's it like to be able to be part of that game coming back and be the first one back?

Yeah, I mean, I'm excited for it. I was I was super young when it went away. But, you know, hearing family members and my dad especially talk about it. You know, he was he actually said that him growing up that the A&M versus Texas game was bigger than, you know, the Red Ribble rivalry. So to have that game back is it is special for both programs and both universities. So last one before I let you go, but you guys reached some goals last year. You got to a 14-college football playoff. You won a conference championship.

But the way it ended, how much has that kind of burned this offseason? Yeah, I mean, it definitely sucked. But, you know, once you get that taste, that little taste, that's all you want to do. So I think it's a good motivator for us. All right, Quinn, thank you so much. Appreciate it. Thank you.

So there you have it, J.D. Quinn Ewers, it does burn the way last season ended. It does bother them. They felt like they got a taste, they want more. And everybody says that coming off a good season. But I do feel like Texas did what they needed to do to plug any holes that they might have had after guys went to the NFL. And then they've got these younger guys that really excite you.

And the portal class too. I mean, going out and getting Isaiah Bond and Silas Bolden, like you mentioned plugging those holes. Matthew Golden from Houston who had a nice little game against texas then conveniently ends up in austin texas so nice nice get there for the uh for the longhorns but yeah i mean i think when you look at this year one thing that i think is interesting to track with them is if they have a year where they let's say underachieve is a fair word let's say they go nine and three missed the college football playoff. Everybody will look at 2023 and say,

oh, yeah, well, that was because they were in the Big 12. Oh, yeah, because that was they had a not Mitchell, Xavier Worthy. So this year to me is about validation, and it's encouraging to hear that the folks they brought to media days are dialed in. And it's interesting when you can tell when somebody's sort of gotten the message and Steve Sarkeesian definitely understands the way people feel about Texas and understands that nobody's going to feel sorry for Texas, that Texas has a reputation for being a bit snobby,

a bit heavy-handed in its dealings with its former league. And I think it was interesting how clear he tried to make it that they want to be a good citizen of the SEC. Like that. Yeah, that was abundantly clear. And here's here's what he said. As far as our transition in the Southeastern Conference, I think the key word is respect. We have a ton of respect for this conference. We have a ton of respect for the teams, the coaches, the players, and the fans. This is the elite conference in college football, and we're fortunate enough to be part of it. We won't do anything without having a level of respect of who we play, where we're playing them, the types of players that they have, the coaching that they

have. And I think on the flip side of that, we have to go earn their respect. We're not going to get anything in this deal. Nothing's going to be free. Okay, we're going to have to go earn the respect of our opponents, the opposing coaches, the opposing fans. And that's going to be kind of on the forefront of what we do. Here's the thing. I think the coaches, especially the ones with Texas on the schedule

who have been watching the tape this summer of all their future opponents they they respect Texas have to the roster makes you respect Texas if you are someone studying tape studying rosters I would agree with Sarkeesian they absolutely are going to have to earn the respect of the SEC fan bases I think the average fan of Auburn the the average fan of Alabama, well, Alabama, they beat them last year, so maybe not. But the average fan of Tennessee or of Florida or of LSU is saying, you don't understand what you're getting yourself into.

You're used to dealing with Iowa State and Kansas State and Baylor and TCU. You don't get it. You can't just be arrogant like you are and expect us to bow down to you. And I think a lot of that comes from watching Texas since the end of the Mack Brown era, where they have not been particularly consistent. Sure. Last year was an outlier compared to the previous 10 years. They've got to prove that last year is the new normal. Yep. Got to prove that last year was the starting block and not so much like the pinnacle. And so

I think what you said is on the money though, like being able to earn the respect of those fan bases when it comes to what happens on the field. Like you said, everybody that lines up against Texas, even if they weren't in the SEC, after seeing that game against Alabama last year, I think everybody was like, oh, that's who Texas is now. No more old Texas. Yeah, and like Quinn said when I asked him about how much does the win in Tuscaloosa help for you guys who experienced it, it does help.

Yeah. Because that is an incredibly hostile environment. It's similar to all of the other hostile environments that they'll play in the SEC. It's one of the best environments, one of the toughest, specifically because of the players you're playing on the other side of the field. And they overcame that. Now, the question is, can you do it multiple times? Like, Georgia's coming to Austin this year.

Can you do it there? And they did get a pretty good draw now that's not to say that they're not going to be challenged because they're actually challenging themselves yeah by going to the big house in week two yeah yeah i mean i think like looking at that schedule with it being probably like the right degree of difficulty for what you would like to have happen for you this season uh there's going to be a lot of points that you can point to as a team once you get to the college football playoff, whether it's an at-large bid or you get a buy.

It won't be a switch you have to flip on if you're Texas. They won't sleepwalk through their schedule. They will show up and say, we played Michigan, we played Georgia, played at A&M, which is a heck of a way to finish the season in rivalry fashion. They're going to be well-tuned if they end up being in the spot they want to be in. And the Quinn Ewers quote from a few weeks ago, basically we're saying we're everybody's Super Bowl. Yeah, so is one of the other teams that was here today.

Yeah. Alabama's also everybody's Super Bowl. Georgia's everybody's Super Bowl. You're just going to have to get used to playing a bunch of games like that. And that's my big question is can you consistently, you play Alabama one week, week two you play Alabama last season. Next week, can you have that same degree of intensity? Physically is one thing that's going to be obvious.

We also know – so Arkansas is its own situation. I actually can't wait to hear from Sam Pittman when he comes on Thursday because they're in a weird spot. But we also know what happened the last time Texas went to Arkansas. We know how the Arkansas fans feel about Texas. So even that game where everything could be going completely wrong for Arkansas at that point, I guarantee you it will be as hostile an environment as those Texas guys have seen. Everybody will want to be Texas.

Everybody, especially like you said, the Arkansas. I mean, throughout the schedule, we can pull it up again. Like you look up and down this schedule, it is absolutely packed with teams that not just want to beat Texas. I mean, heck, look at Kentucky. I want to be surprised when you play Kentucky and Austin the week after the game against Arkansas after going on the road. Like that's a team that has a lot of really good talent,

and it will mean as much to Kentucky as it does anybody else in that schedule. And then, of course, they've got to go to Kyle Field. And that is another level of rivalry, another level of hatred. I'm so excited to see that because the rivalries in this league are so good already. Florida-Georgia, Alabama-Auburn, the Egg Bowl. I mean, just incredible rivalries. And you add this into the mix. Texas and Texas A&M have not played in 13 years. Hate each other with the fire of a thousand suns.

And you said it on your show multiple times. If you do conference realignment, you do the SEC schedule and you don't have Texas and Texas A&M playing. You're doing it wrong. You should be fired. Doing it wrong. Doing it wrong and pack your stuff and get out of here so glad that everybody's keeping their job for the time being another very funny thing steve sarkisian said because we wonder we have our conspiracy theories about timing about when all this stuff was going on who knew what when remember steve sarkisian got hired after the 2020 season, so basically after Alabama wins the national title. And so he, of course, does not find out that they're going to the SEC.

I imagine he knew before word leaked to the rest of us at SEC Media Days that year, but it doesn't sound like he knew when he put pen to paper. I wish they maybe would have informed me before i took the job that this is what we were going to do but i didn't get informed that until afterwards but i said hey we already had to build a team that was going to have to beat the best team in the sec if we wanted to win a national championship so not much had to change their force on that front great point whether he was going to the sec or not it didn't actually change the job he signed up for yeah yeah it's sort of like dabbo and clemson where they had

to build teams to beat the best team in the sec if they wanted to win the national championship which they did twice like sark came in knowing you're gonna to eventually have to play in Alabama or Georgia anyway. So just be prepared to do it. Just bring your best and then we'll tell you the obstacles. And I think it does kind of amplify the prerequisites to be the Texas head coach a little bit because you kind of got to have that it factor to be able to handle Austin and handle the logo and handle everything that comes with it. Then you amplify that with the SEC sauce.

And it's like, oh, you really better bring it. You really better be able you really better be able to yeah and i think sark's seen that having worked for for nick save and also having been the usc coach where you have to have a similar level of swag yes to make that work and we're actually going to talk later in the show about another coach who where the expectations are similar maybe does not communicate that in the same way. So we'll talk about that a little bit later in the show. We'll tease that. But there's another school,

and this is a sign of the new SEC, that we are now 20 minutes into the show, and we have been talking about the Longhorns. Alabama was here. Yep. We did not spend the first 20 minutes of the show digesting every word out of the Alabama coach's mouth. That's all we've done for the past 15 years at SEC Media Days. They probably get half a show in the old SEC.

Half? You get the whole damn thing. And now we're talking about them after Texas. But that's crazy. That's where it is right now. And it's not. But I don't think it's a slight. I think it's more novelty, really.

Because I don't know about you, JD. You also went to Tuscaloosa in the spring. Yep. And talked to Kalen DeBoer and the boys. And I did too. I came away thinking, this is a team that can win the national championship. Yeah. A hundred percent.

Yeah. Nothing has changed in my view of what Alabama can be. My only question, and this is maybe a little bit, you know, splitting hairs. Whenever there is such an intensity that a Nick Saban brings and you go to somebody who, from the outside looking in, seems very normal. Heck of a college football head looking in seems very normal heck of a college football head coach but very normal I wonder how much that dials back the intensity like is this a group that's able to still keep their foot on the gas and has that internal

leadership I think they do because of seeing Jalen Milrow throw his helmet in the spring game because he's upset about the way that drive finished so that encouraged me I'm excited to watch how they perform early on in the season. So I am glad you mentioned that in terms of the intensity. I think they will be very dialed in, and I'll tell you why. Well, you can hear why from Tyler Booker, their great offensive lineman, because we talked to him, and I had heard something from Jalen Millerell earlier, and I'm going to ask Tyler Booker about it, and his answer is very telling.

All right, we are here with Tyler Booker, Alabama offensive lineman. So I saw something that Jalen said in one of the other rooms, and I thought it was really interesting. People were asking, well, who on this team should we be paying attention to who's not getting talked about? And he said, the whole team. And they said, why? And he said, the whole team. And they said, why? And he said, because everybody could have gone somewhere else

after Coach Saban left, and everybody's still there. What was that period like for you guys? That was a crucial period for us as a team because it really created a sense of togetherness for everyone. We could all look at each other in that locker room and like okay i know this guy cares about me because he stayed for me he stayed because he loves me he stayed because because of this brotherhood and i mean this was already a pretty tight team we could tell that last year but now when you guys can look at each other and say i stayed for you i stayed for for you. How much more cohesive does that make you?

It makes us so much more cohesive. We just have another level of respect for one another, another level of trust. So I saw what you said about Coach Saban's prediction. Coach Saban said he didn't think you guys were going to make the SEC championship game. So how do you handle that relative to the teachings of nick saban that you've learned over the last few years the same way i handled it when it was asked me i jokingly said he he tells us not to listen to the guy that lives in his mom's basement so i so i said we're

not gonna listen to the guy who plays golf all day i obviously said that jokingly said it was very saban-esque of me oh yeah okay so. Well, okay. So people don't realize that, like, you guys would talk trash to each other. Like, people love talking trash to him at practice, right? Especially because he's a defensive coach. Yeah. There was one day where JC and Malachi were talking trash to one another. So Malachi started with JC. And JC said, hey, man, worry about your side.

And Coach Saban took JC out of practice. No. Yeah. See, hey, man, worry about your side. And Coach Saban took J.C. out of practice. No. See, the stories are legendary. Like, Matt Jones, when he ran the scout team, would just talk trash relentlessly. Just like Ty does to this day. But he loved that, right? He does. He does.

So what's Kalen DeBoer like? Because he seems like he has a different personality. Yeah, he is a little bit of a different personality. He's like, he's an office-minded head coach, so he loves when we're doing great. So he takes your side in the arguments, right? Yeah, there we go. Yes, sir. And then, you know, how different is it? Because obviously you came to play for Coach Saban. It's a top-down process. Yes. Does it feel that different, or there parts of what Coach DeBoer does that are similar to what Coach Saban did? So when you break it down, everything Coach Saban did was to win and everything that Coach DeBoer does is to win as well. So that same process, that same

standard, that same everything is still in place because that lives through us as the players. So as a line, very, you know, very cohesive group. You've got guys coming back. Yeah. But to get Caden back, when you lost him for a minute, was it like, was there a group chat? Was there, I'm coming back? How did that go?

You just heard rumbling. So, his best friend on the team, like one of my close friends as well, would conform. But he really just stayed on him the whole time. And Wilkinson told me, he said, bro, I think he's really going to come back. And I'm like, really? Like I got excited because that's a brother of mine. You watched him grow up on the line last year.

I feel like I raised him a little bit. But, no, all seriousness, it's just great to have Caden back. He's a great player. He's only going to get better. And to have that continuity playing next to somebody for two years now, we're able to just make calls without saying anything. There's just a lot we're going to be able to do because we have that continuity. Last one, and I can't believe I'm actually asking this and I'm serious.

Is Alabama being slept on? That's something that goes on outside of the facility, so I'm really not paying attention to what people think. Oh, that's like those commentators like that Saban guy say. We don't have to worry about that? Exactly. I appreciate it, Tyler. That's Tyler Booker not worrying about the externals,

even if the externals are his former coach. Yep. Got to love it. You got to love a guy who's able to differentiate. Nick Saban coming live from mom's basement? I'd pay for it. I'd please make it happen. Mom!

Yeah. That would be something that I think would rewrite the record books I'd pay for it. I'd please make it happen. Mom! Yeah, that would be something that I think would rewrite the record books when it comes to viewership. ESPN, make that show happen. Peyton's company would do that show, right? Oh, tomorrow. Okay, let's make that happen. Let's talk about what Tyler Booker and what Jalen Milrose said, where because they stayed together because

they all could have gone anywhere now they lost Caleb Downs yeah and that's a massive loss they lost Isaiah Bond that's a big loss but for the most part this team stayed here they probably lost less through the portal in terms of guys who played than almost any other team yeah yeah it was one of those things too where you're kind of trying to do Alabama math because it's like, okay, they lost this guy. Right. The guy behind him is a five-star. They lost the usual bunch to Florida State,

like guys who were maybe going to be backups, who really need to be starters right now for their NFL futures. So they lost that, but they always lose that now. Yeah. That doesn't count. And they have the five stars behind them, a four-star behind them, who, because we haven't seen him play, doesn't mean he's not going to be really freaking good

when it's his time to actually play. But I think that point that Mel Romade and Booker echoed was a really good one. The adversity that they've gone through and the way that they have kind of become more and more. You have to imagine together through that process. Like, I think that's massive. I think that'll play some tremendous advantage for them.

Yeah, and I think it just makes them a tighter team. It makes them a closer group. And this was already a pretty tight-knit group before. I felt like by the end of last season that it would really come together. It was interesting seeing Booker's eyes light up talking about Caden Proctor. They have got to be so happy because that's the one they probably felt like was the one that got away. And he comes back. And Booker, who played next to him, had to watch the struggles early and then got to watch him grow into a very effective sec offensive

lineman by the end of the season and now you get him coming back as a guy with a full season under his belt and the fact that caden proctor when he got back to alabama was like hey i'm sorry for not giving y'all a chance like is now fully bought into what they're doing like i think that matters as well like they've had some adversity from this offseason, but also we look back to the Rose Bowl, that final play, that in itself is enough adversity to pull most teams together. Absolutely. We talk about Texas and the way the Washington game left them.

The Rose Bowl left Alabama wanting way more because they looked at what Michigan did to Washington in the national title game, I'm sure, and were like, hey, we could have won that. Absolutely. If we don't give up that touchdown at the end of regulation, we're in that game. We're playing Washington in the national title game,

and we're winning. Of course, they would have been playing their future coach. Caleb Moore was smooth as usual. Has he made a misstep since he got the job if he has i haven't seen it i suppose is that even a misstep though too it didn't seem like he had a chance yeah i mean he's someone who i think i forget if we talked about this or not but he seems so normal yeah to where like if he wasn't wearing alabama gear i'd be like wow that guy probably kills it selling insurance he's probably probably crushing it somewhere.

The thing about it is, though, I think he's a lot more intense than he lets on for us. I'm sure. Saban wasn't different around us. I don't know that Caelan Boer is different around us. I would just imagine there's an edge to his personality that we're not seeing. Nick Saban was happy to let you see his edge in those situations, though Nick Saban would try to use his sense of humor. And a lot of times people like us wouldn't get it.

Sure. Cause it's a very dry sense of humor. It's like, you know, we're talking with Tyler Booker about the trash talk that goes on. And I'm sure that those offensive players at Alabama loving that their head coach now has their back in the practice trash talk situations. And I wonder if the way that Caleb Moore operates is maybe built for where college football is right now to be a little bit more personable and not to say Nick Saban.

Well, Nick Saban had to change that way, and he said that. Absolutely. And I mean, I guess the caveat there is Nick Saban's got a few national title trophies to where you probably have a little more margin for talking how you want to talk to people. And that's not saying anything less of Nick Saban, but just Caleb Nabor. I think right now at Alabama, the way this game is trending with player ability, I think he's a tremendous fit. So, I mean, normal, honestly, is probably a good thing. Absolutely. Absolutely.

And I do think certain coaches might be wired better for this era than others. But Caleb Nabor, and a lot of it, we cover recruiting it on three. What was the big worry? Could Kalen DeBoer recruit the same way Nick Saban could recruit? Judging by the class of 2025 and the way it's coming together, yes, he can. So far, so good. And then we already know what he is as a coach. He's done more with less at Indiana, at Fresno State,

and now at Washington, I hesitate to say less. They were really good. They had a lot of talent. They had a first-round quarterback, a first-round receiver, an offensive line that was outstanding. So it's not really less, but it's not what Alabama had. No, no way. And to be fair to the teams that Alabama will play

will also be a different degree of difficulty than a Washington. But no, I think what you're saying is on the money. My only question, and I don't mean to say this in a negative way, but defensively, can they have what they need to maximize that offense? And not questioning the players, I'm just questioning overall when we look back at Kalen DeBoer's time in alabama and maybe he's still coaching there in 20 years i don't know but there hasn't historically been the defense to go with the offense quite as much so i'm curious to watch that yeah and and kane womack will have a lot

to say about that too the new defensive coordinator who was the head coach at south alabama and i think the plan is to continue having a team that can beat you in whatever game you want to play against them. And I think that's critically important. I think Michigan still feels like a little bit of an outlier, like where they were going to play their style. But they probably weren't going to be a team that would win a 50-45 game against another elite team.

But Alabama, Saban built Alabama into that, where they could win the 24-21 game or the 45-40 game. And they're going to have, it looks like, pretty solid trenches at Alabama for the next couple of years. I agree. That's also something that no shade on Washington, Hale and the Board didn't necessarily have the same amount of access to. This offensive line at Alabama is going to be very good,

which brings a piece from Washington and Parker Brails to the center. So I do think offensive line, defensive line, Alabama should be feeling very good about itself. Run game, Alabama should be feeling good. Throw game, that's where the question mark is. I'm buying a lot of stock in Jalen Milrow. I've gone out and already said that I think Jalen Milrow is going to be a Heisman finalist. I think the space they're going to give him to run, one,

but to pre-snap to create a little bit more of consistently open throws, I think that's going to be incredible. It felt like last year it took a while for this offense to find its identity. I think Jalen Milrow having the confidence from last year, knowing he's the guy this year, this wide-open offense, I think it's going to be like French fries and the milkshake. It doesn't sound like it's going to work. You're like, oh, man, he's not Michael Penix.

You've been talking to my wife and daughter about the fries and the Frosty. Then you dip it in, and you're like, oh, this is – how do I live without this? I think that's the call for me. I'm very excited to see alabama play this new era because it it feels so far and again they haven't played a game yet so far it's been seamless and if you just said to me you know 12 months ago nick saban's gonna retire and alabama's not gonna skip. I said, how is that even possible? How could anyone do that?

Well, so far, so good. We now move on to a different program in the SEC. This is in a different place. The Florida Gators. And we have made it abundantly clear on this show. And if you follow college football at all, you know this. Florida faces what might be the most difficult schedule on paper anyone has ever seen. It ain't good.

It's tough. You've got a tough draw from the SEC where you go to Texas. You obviously have to play Georgia in Jacksonville. Ole Miss comes to town. You got to go to Tennessee. Kentucky's been a problem for Billy Napier and company but you also have your annual game against Florida State which happens to be really good again yep and you're there you're going to Tallahassee you also are playing Miami this year in the swamp you also are playing UCF in the swamp and nothing UCF would want more than to beat Florida.

So the motivation factor as high as possible for the Knights. Florida, everywhere it turns, there's a bogey. And Billy Napier comes in. And, of course, he's going to get questions about that. But throughout the offseason, the mood out of Gainesville has been fairly positive. It's been fairly upbeat that this could be a better team than the 5-7 team last year. Now, realistically, you say, is a better record against this schedule? But that's

a fair question. I do think if you're Billy Napier and you show improvement, that's good for you. Absolutely. Your job is in question right now. If you show improvement, it probably isn't. If you don't show improvement, we probably know how that ends. was in the scrum with Billy Napier on Wednesday and asked him a very interesting question about that confidence that seems to be seeping out of there and why it does. And I'm not going to, I don't want to prejudice anybody

with a synopsis of Billy Napier's answer. I'm just going to let you hear how he answered it because this answer fascinates me and left me with more questions. You talk a lot outside the boys just about your job security and kind of where do they stand. So you've kind of exuded kind of a white confidence the last six months, kind of how I've been around you. How much does that kind of maybe trickle down to your team as you guys kind of interpall and sit next to each other? Yeah, I mean, I just – change doesn't happen overnight. I think ultimately we kind of – timing is everything, right?

I think when we took the job, what we inherited, the work that needed to be done. I think we're on schedule to some degree. I mean, should we have won a couple of games down the stretch, would I have liked to close some of those games out in the fourth quarter? Absolutely, but reality is, I think from a system standpoint, process standpoint, in-, the culture, I think we've made tremendous progress. And I think this off season in particular, after observing things for two years,

we made some changes that I think have really made a difference in our team. So I'm with our team every day i think ultimately that's why i've got confidence okay so jd i the on schedule just blinking lights around that phrase and i put it out i clipped that entire clip and put it out on social media and said I don't know what to make of this what do you guys think and I didn't want to hear answers from the Miami fans or the Florida State fans I knew how they were gonna sure I wanted to hear from the Florida fans and the responses were really interesting because it it kind of tracks with what I was thinking that the fan base is basically split 50 50 on this this situation, where 50% of them are like,

oh, God, what is going on here? Doesn't he know you're supposed to win? And being on schedule is not being under 500? And then the other half is like, yes, this is what we've been saying all along. Stop changing for change's sake. Let someone build a foundation. Let someone build a program here. And it is, I don't know which side is right and i think this season is going to tell us the troubling part about saying we're on schedule is you're like okay so it was going five and seven

part of the plan surely not like sure that wasn't actually a part of what we're on schedule and he talks about games that that they could have won that got away from them. Absolutely. But on the flip side, the same thing happened in your favor at South Carolina. Yeah. That could have easily gone the other way. I appreciated what Graham Murch said when we sat down with him a little bit earlier. He said, you know, we are who our record says we are right now. Wow, he went straight up Bill Parcells. He went straight to it he's like listen like

that was our record last year now at the same time we're zero and zero right now so last year was last year but at the same time i think we're going to be reading between the lines here i feel like it was implied hey there's going to be you know a different florida outfit this year so i don't know it's i'm with you it's a little bit troubling to the ear. Maybe when you unpack it, there's a little bit more that meets the eye. I will give the charitable version of this. It's been building to this. When you have a team that's played for you for a while, that understands what you want, and you've kind of weeded out the people

who don't want to play the way you want to play, it does tend to play better together, And it does tend to be more disciplined. Now, Florida was not very disciplined last year. Some of that was players, but some of that was also coaching. And so that part of it, I understand. Maybe you think it's going to be a group that is just more disciplined, that understands what the coach's staff wants, understands what the play calls are and what they're for

and why they're doing this. I can get that. I can get behind that. Here's what I will say. The crowd that says you need to give people time to build, this is not 2015. Because you can give people all the time in the world. Back then, every player you signed was going to stay with you

for at least three years. That's not the world today. Your best players can just leave. So if they don't feel like you're building that foundation fast enough, your foundation just sort of rots away from underneath you. And Florida, remember, lost its most talented running back and its best edge rusher to the transfer portal. Two teams that are on its schedule that are expecting to make the playoff and the other part of that too if you're a fan you're saying okay if we're going to lose some players like we better freaking go get some players right like you we can we can lose our best player we can also go get your best player yeah and they

did not do that no they did not go get anybody's best player. Maybe Arizona State. What do you think? Oh, well, Elijah Badger. Elijah Badger could be a nice addition. Sure. My son torched me for a touchdown. Graham Mertz to Elijah Badger. Oh, okay. Playing the video game the other night. Oh, good for him, though. That's good.

I was like, ooh, this Badger guy. Can go a little bit. That's right. So, yes, they definitely did not, if you're just going on balance, if we were doing a college football 25 rating system, did not come out with a higher rating after portal season than they went in. No. And that's a problem.

Yeah. So that's the issue. And if it doesn't work out, that's going to be the obituary of the tenure, was if you had hired Billy Nathier in 2015 or 2010, this would have worked. Yes. Because what he was doing is the perfect thing for that era. College football changed into a new era the year he got hired. Yeah.

And at the time, nobody knew what was going to happen or how it was going to look. And unfortunately for Billy and for Florida, I think they were a little slow in adapting. Can I play devil's advocate a little bit here with the schedule a little bit? I think as we sit here right now at Media Days, we feel like we have a good idea, a good definition for what most of these teams are going to be. Not going to pull up Florida's schedule. In November, Florida will play just the absolute hunger games. Yes.

Like that stretch is going to be brutal. Georgia at Texas, LSU Ole Miss at Florida State. Right now, all of those teams are probably college football playoff contending teams. Right. By the end of the season, we don't know if they will be. What if LSU doesn't figure it out on defense? What if Ole Miss? Right. What if the transfers don't fix?

What if somebody has a bunch of terrible injuries? 100%. I mean, Texas, we don't know what they're going to be in the SEC just yet, as good as I think they're going to be. So, I mean, Missouri this time last year, we're all like, hey, is Eli Drink was going to make it? And then we fast forward the tape, won 10 ballgames in the Cotton Bowl. So I guess I see that's kind of a cop-out take because it's like,

hey, anything can happen. It's college football, but it's fair. But it's not. Florida is good enough to win some of these games especially if some of these teams are not all that they're supposed to be sure and so look if florida's eight and four at the end of this season we're not complaining about billy napier throwing parties even if they're seven five i don't think we're complaining about billy napier i don't think so i think you got to grade them on the curve right yeah i walked into many classes i had a dn and i'm like i'm going to retake this

walked out of the final i'm like yep failed that gonna retake this check the uh the website online i'm like hey they curved it it ended up being a c plus we're good you know like it might be the deal for billion eight year seven and five you curve it up so whatever it is passing for four i i think anything that shows growth improvement gets you excited for next season gets potential recruits. Because right now, the recruiting class is not where it wants to be. But, again, this is 2024. This is the class of 2025.

If you win some games, maybe you start trying to flip some people. Remember, people flipped guys from Florida last year. You could start flipping people from other teams if you're successful this season. Just need a little bit of ammunition to do it. But that's it. And that's what the most reasonable responses, when I tweeted out that whole Billy Napier answer, were the ones that said,

all that matters is what happens on the field this year. And I think they're right. The more I think about that statement, and I've been trying to just find meaning in the on- thing there's nothing he can say no there are there are no words that make what happened the past two years right the only thing that matters or makes it right is winning you and i talked about this a couple of weeks ago when we were in the nashville studio it was after the prince leo man mielo thing about being developed, and that was shortly after the Steve Spurrier comments about function internally.

And it's like, they just need Miami to get here. When they play Miami, nothing matters. No headlines matter. Play the ball game. And we'll totally overreact to that. It's going to be great. Whoever wins. Post-game Twitter will be cinematic for either side.

It'll be amazing. Meltdown City. Pitchforks and Torches Bowl. Miami at Florida. August 31st. Be It'll be amazing. Meltdown City. Pitchforks and Torches Bowl. Miami at Florida. August 31st. Be there or be square. J.D. Piquel, thank you so much. Of course.

Pleasure's mine. Next up, Jim Nagy, the executive director of the Senior Bowl, talks about the guys in the SEC that he's looking at, including a team that we're having big expectations for and he's going to give you some empirical data as to why those expectations might be realistic we're right back with Jim Nagy joined now by Jim Nagy the executive director of the senior bowl nice to see you in person Jim how are we doing I know it's good's good. So this has been an interesting... I remember last year, you were at SEC Media Days, and the story that came out of there is, like, you were

talking to Darius Robinson at Missouri, and he said, what do I need to do to get in your game? And he wound up playing his way into the first round last year. I mean, how cool is it to see some of these guys, you know, when you look at them right now and you're not really sure where they're going to fall and then they blossom. Yeah, it's so cool seeing that play out for Darius Robinson. He was one of my favorite guys last year. When he asked me that question, I said, Darius, we had you in like the fourth or fifth round. And again, we do all our own work. I take a lot of pride that we've got a great staff. But that's also partly where the NFL, like we factor in where the NFL has these players graded as well.

I mean, that's part of the last stage of our process is getting on the phone with the NFL teams. So they had him there too. So to see him get all the way to the first round, man, that's what the Senior Bowl is all about. It's a platform. It's an opportunity. And nobody took advantage of it more than Darius last year. Another conversation you and I had last year at SEC Media Days, we were talking not about an SEC team.

We were talking about Michigan. And we were talking about it because Harbaugh had come out, I think, earlier that month and said something to the tune of, well, we may have this many guys drafted. And I said, is he for real? And you were like, well, we have draftable grades on that many guys. Yeah. Yeah, and that almost played out.

That almost played out. Whatever they had, they ended up with 13, 14. Yeah, yeah. It was close. Yeah, and Ole Miss this year. And we talked about it, you know, when we got. That's what's so interesting is Ole Miss might be a team like that now. When we got here to Dallas, you and I connected, and we talked about it.

Yeah, they hit the portal hard. I mean, of the SEC teams, it was Ole Miss. I mean, around the country, Louisville hit it hard. Ohio State hit it hard. Miami hit it hard. But in the SEC, it was Ole Miss. Right now, we've got over 20 draftable grades there. And you're thinking, well, there's only 22 starting spots.

Well, it's guys that are transferring from other schools. And guys that might not necessarily leave after this year too. Right, right. We're getting ready to push our watch list out on August 21st. It's going to be way bigger than I'd like it to be. I like that thing to be around 400. But because this is the last year of the extra COVID year, we're going to it's going to be over 700 names. Wow. And Ole Miss is probably going to have the most. That's a lot to watch. But you saw it play out with Michigan last year. Yeah. They were big, experienced, athletic.

They had NFL players on their roster. And look, on three is a site that follows recruiting, but I think the input is very important, but it's also how you develop them along the way. I think we saw that with Texas last year. No question. But Ole Miss is a good example. So you have Walter Nolan leave Texas A&M. Prince Lee and Man Mielin leaves Florida.

I would imagine these are guys that you are watching very closely. Prince Lee's name just rolled off your tongue like that. That was impressive. There's multiple Man Mielins. Like, his brother's at Nebraska. I believe there's a younger brother who's still a recruit. So we're going to have to say it for a while. Okay, when we finish up, you're going to have to me that um but i i spoke to princely last year you

know when he was trying to actually i've been speaking to a lot of players the last couple years that's what's the the covid year dynamic has made it weird that like coaches will call me hey can you get on the phone with this with this player and i mean it doesn't put me in a weird spot i just tell them the information yeah obviously I'm not trying to steer them in any direction. But here's what we think. Here's what the league thinks. But, yeah, for Ole Miss to add two guys that can get to the quarterback, you know, one on the edge and then the other guy inside,

like that's two massive gets for them. Well, and I thought it was interesting because Nick Saban goes on ESPN and says their biggest issue against teams like Alabama and Georgia was they weren't good enough up front. Right. And when he says, I think they're much better up front, that's obviously somebody everybody's going to listen to. Yeah, and they didn't lose any offensive linemen, really.

And they added some more to get competition. And they added more. There's more competition, more experience, so that that group will be better. The D-line, I mean, J.J. Pegues seems like he's been there forever. Jared Ivey was here yesterday at media days. And both of those guys are transfers, which is crazy. J.J. Pegues was playing tight end at Auburn, you know, four years ago. Wildcat quarterback, the greatest Wildcat quarterback of all time, 300 pounds. So you know, you know, but yeah, I mean, that's a good group. I mean, they're better in the trenches than they've been in a

long time. So another guy that we talked about is Garrett Nussmeyer and he dropped by here yesterday and so impressive. Now obviously Garrett grew up around the game. Dad Doug is a long time college and NFL coach. So he knows how to play that game, but it's kind of the old school quarterback ascension that we used to see, but nobody does this anymore. Yeah.

It's refreshing. He stayed, he ascension that we used to see, but nobody does this anymore. Yeah, it's refreshing. He stayed put. He was patient. And I think that comes from having a dad that's given him good advice. Yeah, I mean, we were at the first practice last year in August, whatever date that was, in Baton Rouge. And we're there to watch Jaden Daniels, but you can't help but watch the guy throw.

I knew he could throw it. So before, knowing that Garrett was going to be here, I threw on the bowl game against Wisconsin. And, man, there was some good stuff there. If I'm LSU fans, and they probably know this better than me, maybe I'm late to the game, but I didn't realize how good this guy played at the end of last year in that bowl game.

So a lot of next-level stuff, man. I mean, anticipation, pocket feel. He's got an arm to fit it into tight windows there's some really nice you know throws into into tight windows so um i'm excited to see him oh yeah like i i didn't know if he was just one of these guys with a big arm or a guy that could actually play the position and he can play the position well speaking of lsu another guy that obviously the nfl people are all zoomed in on as Will Campbell. Emory Jones, the other tackle also. But Will Campbell seems like one of the more sought-after left tackle prospects that we've seen in a while.

Yeah. I mean, he's a really good player, right? He was a five-star kid coming out. I met him at the Pro Day. He said, Jim, they didn't have to recruit me here. Like, I was coming. I guess he grew up in the northern part of the state. Huge fan.

Huge fan. So, yeah, this year overall, the offensive line class is down a little bit from last year. Last year was an incredible year. Right, it was a big year. So, you know, Will, it's a good year to be that guy because there's not a whole lot of challengers. There will be a couple guys emerged, trust me. There will be a couple guys emerged. Calvin Banks will be here.

Calvin Banks. And we had their right tackle in the Texas right tackle in the senior bowl last year, Christian Jones. But, yeah, Will Campbell, Emery. I mean, they're bringing back four offensive linemen on that football team. Good place to start if you're Garrett Nussmeyer. Oh, absolutely. It's strange, though, because LSU is the kind of place where normally I'd expect you

to be rattling off the names of D-tackles and cornerbacks, and that's just kind of not where they are right now. But it feels like the interior D-linemen might be in some less usual places in the SEC this year. Yeah, I mean, Georgia's going to have a couple. You always go to the SEC to find the big bodies. Yeah, Georgia and Alabama are always going to have some. They're always going to have those guys. But this year, I mean, we talked about your alma mater, Florida, with Cam Jackson and Banks.

And then you go to Tennessee with Norman Lott. I mean, there's some good interior defensive linemen at places that, you know, not the usual places. Yeah, and that's a good sign because that's where you need to have NFL guys to truly be successful. Yeah, you're not going to find them anywhere other than the SEC usually. But that's what makes this week fun because, you know not going to find them anywhere other than the SEC usually. Yeah. But that's what makes this week fun because, you know, in past years that we're sitting here, we're always talking about Alabama. We're talking about Georgia. It just feels like this year there's more – it's more wide open.

Of course Georgia's going to be good, and of course we think Ole Miss is going to be good. They've got all these players. But there's going to be more teams in the mix this year, and it should be fun. Well, and we started out talking about Darius Robinson last year at Missouri. Well, they've got guys that you're going to be more teams in the mix this year and it should be fun well and we started out talking about darius robinson last year at missouri well they've got guys that you're going to be watching and brady cook and luther burden obviously uh but you know where are they at in terms of of nfl potential well you know they lost blake they lost that's a big loss um a defensive coordinator and they look at look at their defense so you just start up front, and they had Darius.

They had Hopper at linebacker. You know, they had Abrams, Drain, and Rakeshraw. Abrams, Drain, and Rakeshraw. So they both, you know, and then they had, God, they had a big safety that we liked in playing the senior, but a big safety that we liked. I'm blanking on his name. But that's a lot of pieces to replace, right? So I think they're going to have to be more offensive heavy.

They lose Cody Schrader. That's a big loss, man. Well, just wait. Marcus Carroll coming from Georgia State could be an interesting one. And they've also got another transfer from Appalachian State who could be. But Cody was really good. Oh, yeah. And he played good in big games.

And he was a guy that they could hand it to and take pressure off Brady Cook. Moore is going to be on Brady this year. But just we didn't get a chance to connect for a long time at the Manning Camp. But the little bit we connected on the field, like I think he's up for it. I think he knows like this is really like last year's team was more about the defense and you know more about the run game. Like I think he knows this is going to be more about him. It helps when you have Luther Burton to throw to you. Yes, that helps. Yeah, it helps. Is that one of those ones? I mean, you have to look at all of these players with a critical eye.

That's what scouts do because you're obviously grading in terms of, like, very, you know, valuable draft positions. But with Luther Burden, who any of us with no training can watch and be like, well, wow, that guy's special. He's a pretty easy one. But what makes him so special? Just the athlete. I'll start there.

He is a real, I mean, the first thing you put on the tape, I mean, he's a springy athlete. And what he can do after the catch, like if you're looking at transferable skill sets from college to pro, it's the guys that, and again, historically, and this is the last 25 years, for a long stretch there when I was with the Patriots, I had to cross-check all the draftable receivers.

So I feel like that's a position I'll put a lot of effort into. And guys that can run after the catch and are threats with the ball in their hands usually end up being good pros, and that's what burden is. Who else do you like at receiver in the league this year? Ooh, around the league? Well, you know, sitting here talking about Alabama, Isaiah Bond was a loss. You know, Texas had to replace A.D. Mitchell and Xavier Worthy. Isaiah Bond is a talented guy.

I would start there. I just jumped off something with the Tennessee media. Like Brew McCoy, we're excited to see what... We liked Brew McCoy last year because he was different. Within that receiver group last year, he was big, he was physical. The staff loved the toughness. He was a cool, unique player. So look forward to seeing how he bounces back.

But last year coming out of SEC, if we were sitting here a year ago, did you think Xavier Leggett was going to be a first-round pick? Did you think Ricky Pearsall was going to be a first-round pick? We didn't even have a grade on Xavier Leggett last summer. Wow. I mean, we didn't have him graded, and he ended up being a first-round pick, maybe one of our biggest success stories. So there's going to be guys emerge.

I tell our scouts all the time, we just stay open-minded, because there's kids right now that have worked so hard in the last 12 months, and that's the fun part. Now we kick it off here in a month, and we see what all that hard work turns into. How does that work in the scouting community when somebody starts to bubble up? Do guys try to keep it a secret? Do guys start passing the tape around? Have you seen this guy? Have you seen this guy?

Well, in Xavier's case, it wasn't hard. No, he was the only one they were throwing to. Yeah, they had that big opener against North Carolina in that game. He had more yards in that game than he had the whole previous year combined for the listeners that didn't know his story. But there's no secrets anymore. I mean, you might be able to keep wraps on a small school guy, but hopefully if we're doing our job right at the senior bowl,

those guys won't fly under the radar. The Dylan Laubs of the world. But, no, everyone kind of figures those guys out. Like in Xavier's case what happens is like when there's a true one-year wonder and I'm not saying that derogatory Xavier put in the work but then you dig in why yeah like why did it take this guy so long and I think what happened in Xavier's case the more teams dug the more they realized what he'd been through and you know what he had to overcome you know losing both parents and his story. That's where teams bought in.

They're like, this guy's been through some stuff now. Oh, yeah. And he came out the other side, and now he's just tapping into his potential. So I know the Carolina Panthers are so fired up to get him. So how much of that detective work, you know, finding out the why, how important is that in the scouting world, being able to do that? Oh, very important, man. You got I mean, you got to be able to answer all those questions. And again, the

easiest part I say this all the time, the easiest part once you've been scouting a long time is to watch the tape and figure out the skill set and figure out if they can play. The hardest part really is to figure out how they're wired. And people ask all the time, like what's on a held on the scouting? What is portal done scouting? It's cleaned it up in the sense that one of the big questions always has been what is this guy going to do with a lot more money in his pocket a lot more time on his hands well they kind of you know we're kind of figuring that out now these kids do have a lot of money right you know and you're

seeing the guys you you talk to the agent community they'll tell you which guys showed up for stuff on time oh and which guys were accountable so i think it's there's like a lens into these players now that we didn't have before. So I feel like scouts, the hit rate is going to start getting better. Right, because they're having to be pros before they're pros. Before they're pros, well put. It is amazing because I remember talking to somebody who works at a collective and they were telling me about various players and like, oh, this one's a dream to work with.

This guy yelled at our person and I'm like, well, that's not going to go over well. Like when the scouts come around. It's opened up a whole other level of sourcing for scouts. Like when you walk into a building, I mean, there's always the anchor sources we call them. Oh, right. You got the strength coach and the trainer and the pro liaison. Equipment manager.

Be nice to the equipment manager, everybody. The equipment guys know everything. Those guys are the best. But now it's the collective people, and it's the NIL people, because you're seeing how they handle their business. That's it. And now you have this information. This is going to be a fun season in the SEC.

As we sit here, this is the day that Tennessee and Oklahoma and Georgia and Missouri are here. They all have playoff aspirations. But you mentioned it's not just Alabama. It's not just Georgia. Has NIL also kind of sprinkled the talent in different directions? I think so, yeah. I mean, I would think so.

I don't know if it's NIL, but it doesn't feel like there's a prohibitive talent advantage like it was. We were in a rut there where it was literally every year Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma. We were literally six teams in the playoff, six teams every year. We're the only ones that had a chance. And now we're seeing Michigan kind of emerge the last couple years.

And Oregon. So, no, it's going to make it so much fun once we get in the fall. Texas being in the league. Oklahoma being in the league. Like two more big brands than the SEC. Not that the SEC needed it. But to go out and get those two, it's going to be fun. The other thing you're talking about, you know, seeing how they act with NIL,

you learn something. But with the transfer portal, how much does seeing them play in different environments and play in different systems also help you figure out what they can be? The system part is big. I mean, that's the other hell. You know, if these guys are transferring for the right reasons, it's opportunity because they're not getting on the field. Or they just see us, you know, like I'm getting pigeonholed as this.

I want to show that. Yeah. So, again, maybe hurts the senior bowl a little bit sometimes because that was always been a great value of the senior bowl is come to Mobile, we will play you differently than you were played in college and let you showcase some of that stuff. And now some guys are just being proactive and like, you know what, for my senior year, I'm going to go to a place that's going to use me differently.

Well, and I was thinking about that with Dylan Gabriel, not an SEC guy, obviously, but he's actually been at two different schools but played in the same offense, and now he's playing in a different offense. So we get to see what he looks like. Well, look at Bo Nix last year. The Auburn Bo Nix was a very different player than the Oregon Bo Nix, and I think to get a really good feel for Bo, you owed it to yourself to go back to Auburn, right? Like he got pigeonholed.

This guy was like a dink and dunk quarterback and a guy that like played from the pocket. But if you went back to his first two years when he's running around for his life, you saw the mobility. You saw the athlete. I think people lost that. So, yeah, I mean, we can rail on NIL and portal all we want, but there are some benefits to it, especially from the player side, there's a lot of benefit.

Well, I cannot wait to text you after week one. Who popped? Who do I need to watch? Hopefully there's another Xavier Leggett. No, that's always fun, Andy. I hope we can go into the fall. Jim, there's always another Xavier Leggett. There is? Though, maybe not with the spectacular accent. How about that? I love country dudes. It makes me so happy. My original accent before we moved to Florida

and I got it beaten out of me was closer to Xavier Leggett. Really? Oh my gosh. I talk like this. Absolutely. If you'd heard 7-year-old me oh i love i love hearing that i love him i love like keon coleman bringing the louisiana everywhere with that he goes well i hope they don't beat that out of xavier legged in carolina once it's so once you get that age

it's set in stone so yeah it's gonna be awesome jim thank you so much. Thanks, Andy. It was fun. Great visit with Jim Nagy. Thank you so much to Jim. And I can't wait to get more intel from him once the games start. But speaking of intel, a little bit of news on Wednesday. A little nugget. So the ACC

has agreed to release copies of its ESPN contracts over the years to the Florida Attorney General's office. Remember, Florida State has been trying to get these copies of these contracts, which are available only for viewing at ACC headquarters. The Florida Attorney General sued under Florida's open records law saying, hey, you need to release these. These are in the public interest because they are part of a deal involving one of the Florida State Universities. Well, after much fighting back, the ACC decided to release those.

Now, they're going to give them the AG's office. According to the AG's office, if there are trade secrets in them, those will be redacted. Those will not be released to the public, but everything else will be released to the public. So we're going to find out what those things say. I don't know how interesting they're going to be. I'm not going to lie. I don't know how interesting they're going to be, but I do want to know one thing, because the Florida State lawyers dropped this into the lawsuit against the ACC.

Does ESPN have to opt into the back half of the deal? Is that deadline coming up in early 2025? Because if it is, it changes the timeline of things considerably, or doesn't change it, but so much as defines the timeline that you're dealing with in this whole Florida State versus the ACC versus Clemson, and who knows what else is to come. But right now we're going to get that information. That info has to be turned over to the Florida attorney general's office by August 1st. So who knows? Maybe we'll have some, uh,

some dry contract reading, hot, dry contract reading on the show. I know you can't wait. I can't wait for SEC media days on Thursday. Auburn, Hugh Freeze, Arkansas, Sam Pittman, big time hot seat situation. But the kind of guy who probably addressed any hot seat thing head on. Also, Kentucky and Texas A&M. You had the Longhorns. Get the response from the Aggies.

We'll talk to you tomorrow.