Andy & Ari On3 - What Miami MUST do to beat Texas A&M in the College Football Playoff | LATEST on Michigan’s Head Coaching Search

Episode Date: December 16, 2025

The College Football Playoff is just days away, and one of the more intriguing matchups resides in the Lone Star State between the Texas A&M Aggies and the Miami Hurricanes. While A&M is looking to protect Kyle Field, Mario Cristobal and the Hurricanes are ready to prove all the talking they did before the College Football Playoff reveal was worth it. Can Miami prove it deserved to be in the field with a big win over the Aggies, or will Mike Elko and the 12th Man prevail? Watch here as Andy & Ari dive in to this matchup here. (0:00) On Today's Episode(1:05) Presenting Sponsor(2:50) Intro: Previewing the CFP: Miami at Texas A&M(11:42) Glitch in the YouTube World(12:45) Is Miami a blue blood?(15:47) How does Miami win at A&M?(28:41) Academy Sports + Outdoors(30:06) QBs in the Portal: DJ Lagway & Dylan Raiola(33:12) QB entering portal: Aaron Philo, Georgia Tech(36:52) The QB Market this year compared to last(38:17) Huel(39:21) Jayden Maiava re-signs with USC(42:29) Arch Manning returning to Texas(44:34) PaniniAmerica.net(46:50) Programming Note: YouTube Glitch(47:37) Michigan Coaching Search Latest: Kalen DeBoer, Alabama HC(51:57) Is Michigan waiting on Alabama-Oklahoma game?(54:22) Michigan Search: Kenny Dillingham, Arizona State HC(58:22) Eli Drinkwitz, Missouri HC(1:03:25) Clark Lea, Vanderbilt HC(1:04:35) Jedd Fisch, Washington HC(1:05:04) Jesse Minter, LA Chargers DC(1:06:34) Wrapping up Michigan Discussion(1:07:44) Conclusion: Thanks for watching! Send in Dear Andy & Ari Questions to:[e-mail]@on3.com Next, as news regarding the transfer portal is starting to pick up, USC QB Jayden Maiava announces he is returning to Southern California next season. What about the rest of the quarterbacks in college football? Andy & Ari break down the latest with big names like DJ Lagway, Sam Leavitt, and Dylan Raiola. Later, the fellas head up to Ann Arbor to dive into the latest with Michigan's head coaching search. Who's a real candidate to replace Sherrone Moore in Ann Arbor? Our show is 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 sureyou 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. Our show is sponsored by Academy Sports + Outdoors! https://www.academy.com/discount Get Huel today with this exclusive offer for New Customers of 15% OFF with code STAPLES15 at https://huel.com/STAPLES15 (Minimum $75 purchase) We’re also brought to you by Panini! Panini delivers the most collectible sports cards and memorabilia on the planet. Check out the new exclusive Arch Manning collection or the Panini Prizm Draft Picks College Football series. Visit PaniniAmerica.net to start your collection today. Join On3 today and get one full year of access to The Athletic included! https://www.on3.com/subscribe/C Watch our show on YouTube! https://youtu.be/8YiZvcg12ig Hosts: Andy Staples, Ari WassermanProducer: River Bailey Interested in partnering with the show? Email [e-mail] Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

On today's episode of Andy and Ari on 3 presented by a bet MGM, what does Miami have to do to beat Texas A&M on Saturday in the college football playoff? Miami did a lot of politicking. Mario Cristoball specifically did a lot of politicking to make sure the Keynes got in the playoff. Now is the chance to prove the canes belong in the playoff, but how does that work? Spoiler alert, it may hinge on a freshman tailback. Also, we've got quarterback news. There's a big time quarterback staying in the Big Ten. You know some quarterbacks are leaving in the SEC in Big Ten. The question is, where might they be going? There's an ACC school interested in both. Plus, an update on the

Michigan coaching search may be a little bit longer before we get a definitive answer on this thing. And of course, that means we just get to talk about it more. We'll talk about that and everything else is going on in college football. And today is Andy and Arion 3 presented by BetMGM. We are presented by BetMGM. We use BetMGM lines and totals. And you can join us by joining BetMGM. If you have not signed up for BetMGM yet, use the bonus code CFB is in college football. CFB. And you'll get up to a $1,500 first bet offer. on your first wager with bed MGM. Here's how that works.

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Welcome to Andy and Ari on 3 presented by BetMGM, and you're looking at your BetMGM app right now. You know that Miami is a three and a half point underdog at Texas A&M at Kyle Field on Saturday, noon eastern kickoff. Ari, we will be there. We'll be heavily sleep deprived because we'll be coming off the Alabama-Oakholm game the night before. but we will be running on gas station coffee and probably roller grill snacks,

roller grill breakfast? How are we feeling about that? I'm feeling about like a 3 a.m. icy. Oh, yeah. Just to take the edge off a little bit. Yeah, I don't know what we're going to do. I told Brittany, I said we might be in my house at 4.14 a.m. for an hour's sleep.

We might not. We'll see how it goes. But it's good to be live here with you, Andy, and I'm super fired up for this weekend. And, like, listen, I don't know how you feel about this. I'm not sure how the general fan feels about it. I feel like Friday night's game is a mere appetizer for the feast of the weekend. And I think the feast of the weekend occurs in College Station. It's brunch.

Like, the biggest game of the college football playoff first weekend is brunch. And this is going to be so much fun. Sailor Joe in the chat says that we should do a live show during the drive. and the chat will just keep us entertained and keep us awake the whole time. I actually don't think that's the worst idea I've ever heard. But I think my excitement for this game will keep me awake because I was reading a great column

at On3.com. And if you're not a member of On3.com yet, what are you even waiting for? Best College Sports Coverage in America. But I was reading a great column by some guy named Ari Wasserman about how Miami, having gotten this gift of inclusion in the college football playoff, now cannot blow the opportunity ahead of it.

And we had Mario Cristobal on this show on Championship Saturday, and he was laying out his case. And I think he was just giving a pretty factual argument. But I know that people watched him that week, and you saw him twice on our show, you saw him go on other shows. And they said, when he got in, I guarantee you when that you popped up on the screen on that Sunday,

they said, okay, now you better prove you belong. yeah so i had a hard time with this uh column a little bit because i didn't know if i wanted to call them lucky but they're lucky right like with the way that it played out like it's not it's not necessarily luck i mean yes i guess the circumstances could have worked out differently and Notre Dame might have had a better case than they did or uh i you know because Alabama could have dropped out too that that was also a possibility so i don't know if it's the point of the the point of it is here the their fate was not in their hands and they left it into other people's hands and for a while there felt like they were not going

to get in even though we both agree that they have the just argument the right decision was made for a month going into that day it didn't feel like it was going to be made so like i don't know like i think that you're lucky to be in doesn't take away from the fact that you earned it and that you were rightfully in but your day on sunday last sunday could have been the funeral of this and it turned out to be a celebration. And how do you move on from that is a really important thing? Because, like, listen, Mario Cristobal is in year four. He was part of a coaching carousel that included some other big names like

Brian Kelly and Lincoln Riley. And I feel like him going there, although a huge deal to return back home and leave a program like Oregon, kind of got lost a little bit in the craziness of that specific carousel because nobody saw Lincoln Riley or Brian Kelly doing what they did. But like year four, Brian Kelly's gone at LSU. Lincoln Riley is

hasn't made the playoff yet. They're not thriving to the extent that we thought he would. Like they're in the playoff now. And they're recruiting well and they've got a very good team. Like I think that this is an important opportunity for Miami. And I may be getting in as just all you needed for this year to show that you're able to do that. But I don't think they have to do more than this, but I think, I think because of the circumstances, I agree completely with your column.

Because of the circumstances of how they got in, it feels like they should do a little more. Yeah, you got in. Like, if Miami wins two games, that means they beat Ohio State in Dallas. I don't know what would happen after that. If they do win that game, then maybe they would go on to win the national title. I have no idea. But they have an opportunity to stake their claim. Like, I don't know if Miami has been accepted by the rest of the teams on this graphic as, like, you know, I saw this clip that was so hilarious.

And it was just super bad. And I think I sent it to you. But it was Ohio State was Seth. And Indiana was, what's the, what's his friend's name? I forget. You remember. I'm blanking on it. Evan.

Evan. Evan. Evan. That's right. Seth. And then McLevin comes around the corner. Excuse me, wearing his vest. And it had the Texas A&M.

logo and Seth goes, what? Like he doesn't belong in the conversation, which is funny because Indiana, it's also one of those. But I feel like Miami is the, is the McLevin of this group, not A&M. See, I don't, I don't think that accurately portrays how, because I don't think Ohio State and Indiana are in the same boat. Like Indiana is on its own side of the bracket. I think Ohio State was watching the bracket come out. And it's the first three words out of all the Buckeyes' collective mouths was, oh, come on. because I wouldn't want

I wouldn't want either team that wins this game because they're both really really sturdy on both lines of scrimmage A&M and Miami are which is what I love about this game it's what excites me the most because it feels like just a clash of the Titans and I get Alabama Oklahoma really good players up front NFL players on both sides

of the ball Oklahoma's front seven is nasty nasty but like Francis Maui Noah against Cassius Howl? I mean, come on. Yeah. What more can you ask for than that? I don't think that we've acknowledged this on the show. And it's an important thing because I think it's the entire theme of the

playoff this year. It's old money versus new money. It is the established blue blood type programs, Ohio State, Georgia, and Alabama. And maybe to a certain extent, Oregon, who moved in recently, but now is accepted into the club. First, Ole Miss, A&M, Miami, Texas Tech. You've got a bunch of programs here that have been in Indiana.

Who's going to win this thing? Is it going to be the traditional, of course it's them teams, or is it going to be a new guy? And I feel like the Miami column that I wrote today made more sense from Miami's angle because Miami might not have got, like was close to not getting into the tournament at all. Right.

The same can be said about A&M, too. A&M is a new team, a new kid on the block. And they get criticized for their schedule, too. Remember, everybody's circling the bottom of the SEC and being like, hey, it's A&M's SEC schedule until they played Texas. And then they played Texas and they fell on their face with the entire country watching and everybody's looking at them like, you are a product of your schedule and you're not very good. Now, I don't know what A&M actually is. They did, in fact, beat Notre Dame holding call or not. But other than that, the only real major test that they had all year in terms of a team that is either in the playoff or playoff adjacent, they lost.

So what do we really know about them? So you have two teams in this game that are building something under a fairly recent head coach. Mario Cristobal has been at Miami twice as long as Mike Elko has been at the A&M. But this is a prove it game for both. Who belongs? Go prove it. And your reward for winning this game is to go play one of the final bosses of college football blue-bloodedness, Ohio State, and Dallas. And I think that's ultra-compelling.

And I think it's compelling, too, for Ole Miss and Indiana, Oregon, to the same extent. They've never won a national championship either. Texas Tech hasn't won a national championship that I can recall, unless there was one in the 40s in there somewhere that, you know, before my memory, you know, I have no ability to recall anything that happened in college football. football before 1970. So, but yeah, this is great. Like, haves and have-nots. Who's going to storm into the club and take it? Ari, I'm going to put my hand up.

I just did something really dumb. I just accidentally took us off YouTube. I was trying to take us off Twitter, and it took us off YouTube. Oh, we're back on YouTube. We're back. Okay, we're back, guys. Producer River is the greatest producer of all time. We're okay. We're good.

Producer River deserves all the raises that can be given. Because I, yes, I did about take us off YouTube and I don't know what to say, but thank you. Thank you, producer River. You're the greatest. Which brings us right back to the YouTubeness of YouTube, which is, is Miami not a blue blood? Exactly. Exactly. Are they? uh they were i think but they're not now so i i don't i don't know that they are now i think they've been not really nationally relevant part of the national title conversation

for what 23 years so i'd say they have to work their way back into it yeah i mean if you won a national championship when i was in middle school then that was the last time you were like nationally relevant then you uh you have to earn it again um this is yeah you're old as hell yeah especially because there's been like what multiple eras since then too like i mean you join the acc in 2004 and you've never won the acc isn't that right it is unbelievable yeah i don't i don't understand how it could have gone this far this long i mean we could talk about all that that that that's this team is is is the solution to that. Like Mario Cristobal and what he's done, that's the solution

to that. Yeah. I mean, and the entire goal, too, of all these teams is to be relevant in the modern era. And like, there's somebody in the chat here that took exception to me, including Oregon in the Blue Blood conversation. And I also agree that Oregon has more to prove in terms of its inclusion in that club, but Oregon has been consistently good for a large portion of the modern era. Now, they've never broken through, and I think if they won a national championship, that would be automatically, you know, inclusion, because I think anybody who wins a national championship now gets into that club, including a team like Indiana, who came into last season as losing its program in the entire sport. And now they're the number one overall seed. So, you know,

I think, you know, if you want to quibble about who's, who's a made man and who is and go for it. But I think that there's a very clear line of demarcation when you look at this bracket at who's in the club and who's not. And there are three traditional powers that ruled the era for even. I think Oklahoma would be in that mix too. Although it's been quite some time. Hasn't Miami won a championship more recently than Oklahoma?

They have not. Yes, they have one year. Yes. Oklahoma was 2000. Miami was 2001. Oklahoma was played for it more recently than Miami. Yeah. So, but yeah, anyway, I'm very curious to see if at the end of the road here, Andy, if we're just going to get more of the same or if they're

going to be an entirely new champion, um that changes the way that we perceive the sport because when fernando mendoza won the heisman trophy on saturday night um i tweeted indiana has just done two things in the last two weeks that i didn't think were even possible for indiana football and teams like it for the past you know 20 years and some people took exception to that but like i thought that that was a pretty benign comment like i did not think it was possible for indiana to beat ohio state win the big 10 be the more overall seed in the playoff and win a heisman trophy five years ago three years ago two years And now they can.

But it always felt possible for Miami. And we're talking about Miami here. And for Miami or Texas A&M, the way you are in respect is go deep in the playoff. One of them will be able to get to the second round and one of them is done after Saturday. So how does Miami do this? What does Miami have to do? And I think what makes this so interesting, like we can talk about Carson Beck, but I don't think anything about the environment is going to be shocking. talking to Carson Beck. This is a guy who started for two years at Georgia. He's used

to that. I think Carson Beck should be fine. I mean, I know he's had those games at Georgia and he's had at least one at Miami where he's thrown a bunch of picks. The Louisville game was the bunch of picks game for Carson Beck this year. He threw six interceptions and there two losses. Yeah. If you have those games, if you get a bunch of picks Carson Beck, that's that's ball game. So you got to avoid that. think the team that controls the game on the ground will be the one that wins it because both of these teams are capable of making big plays. Miami's going to do a bunch of stuff with Malachi Tony because he's the most electrifying freshman receiver in the country this

year. Texas A&M is going to probably be able to pop a big player or two with either Casey Concepciona Mario Craver. But I think it's more likely the team that wins will be the team that is grinding it out or that gets a lead and can hold that lead in the second half. because they can move the ball on the ground and they can eat the clock. Both of these teams have good offensive lines. Both of these teams have pretty good running backs. But Miami's situation is interesting. You remember, Ari, Mario Cristobal talked about how much better they played in November,

which was, you know, a departure from Miami of the past few years. Like they got better in November. Now the games in November, Syracuse, NC State, Virginia Tech, Pittsburgh. Those were those last four games that they won after losing to SMU. only Pittsburgh was good out of that group. Now, they did crush Pittsburgh. But what I find interesting about that is that they kind of found something in their run game in that last period. Because remember, Mark Fletcher got hurt, I believe in the SMU game.

And so he didn't play against Syracuse, didn't play against NC State and only had 16 carries combined against Virginia Tech and Pitt. So they went to Gerard Pringle Jr., the freshman, who had played a little bit to. that point, but not a ton. Before those games, before those four games, he carried the ball 10 times. In those four games, he went seven carries for 55 yards against Syracuse, 17 for 116 against NC State, 14 for 49 against Virginia Tech, which was his worst one, and then 10 for 82 against Pittsburgh. They needed a home run threat running the ball. They didn't have that. Like, Mark Fletcher's a good back. He'll grind it out for you. but he's probably not a breakaway threat,

Pringle might be their breakaway threat. And if you can potentially get some big plays in the run game, and by the way, Fletcher now should be healthy too. So you can batter people with Fletcher. I think that makes their offense a lot more dynamic. Yeah, and also when you get a spark at the end of the year or add a piece to your equation that wasn't a part of it, and it works like that is such a lightning rod um and i don't know if i'm going to like

pin the entire miami football team fate in whether or not gerard pringle is him as a freshman but at the same time i know that a and m can be run on and i know that you know that a lot of people have been asking mario because i watched some of his news conferences today about their ability to have explosive plays in the run game and he he has acknowledged that that's important so um you know i I personally don't know where you stand on this whole thing, Andy, but I'm kind of surprised that Miami's an underdog in the game. And I know where the game is and I know it's loud. But, you know, when you look at the rosters from top to bottom,

like I think that Miami has more difference makers. Am I wrong about that? I think it's pretty close. I think both teams are pretty stacked. And that's what excites me. And that's why I said the first words out of the Ohio State people's mouth had to be, oh, come on, because both these teams at every level of the offense and defense have somebody who scares you. Like, these are athletically stacked teams. Now, you mentioned

that A&M can be run on. Yes, that's true, but not, it's not that easy. I mean, Jeremiah Love in Notre Dame, they did run on them some. They gained 136 yards, but the only average 3.5 yards of carried. The team that most successfully ran on them was Arkansas, and that game was just way too close, way closer than it should have been. Missouri averaged six yards of carry, but that game was never in doubt. Yeah. So Texas was the one, Texas averaged six yards of carry. So, and I remember watching that game with you and being surprised that A&M allowed Texas to run the ball like that. That, if they play like that, Miami's going to beat him. Like, If that's the defense that shows up, Miami's going to beat me.

And the thing is, Miami can make you do that. Miami can make you weak as the game goes on because Miami has that big offensive line. They will, like, Mario Chris Ball is an exiled line coach. Like he wants to pound you. And I go back to that Florida game, Ari. Remember Florida got close in the third quarter? It was still a fairly close game. I think it was a one score game.

And Florida, you know, Florida gives it up. Miami gets the ball back and then just goes on one of those punishing drives. And it's one of those where the piles moving. Like the back is still up and running. He gets hit four yards into the run and it ends up being a nine-yard run. Like if Miami's doing that, they're going to win the game. Yeah, I mean, it's a suck your soul drive. We see those time to time.

And Miami's done it a few times. You know, I think that Miami's offense can beat. them in multiple ways, but I also think, like, I really do, you know, I think this is going to be a tremendous game because, like, all the things that you say about Miami, do they have, let's do it. Miami, do they have an explosive pass threat that can change the game on a dime? Yes. Right. Does Texas A&M? All right. They have two of them. Casey Concepciona Mario Craver. Does Miami have multiple running backs on their team that excite you and potentially can move a pile? Yes. Does Texas A&M?

they have one in Rubin Owens. We'll see about Levi-on-Moss. It sounds like Levion Moss, they were expecting him back when they thought they had a buy. Like they figured if they had a buy, they were going to get him back for that first playoff game. Mike Elko said this week it's sort of wait and see, which suggests to me that they might need to win this game to have Levi-on-Moss playing again this season. But they have a good running back. But they have E.J. Smith, E.J. Smith will run on you, and by the way, when Levion-Moss is healthy, you could make the case that he's one of the five. 10 best running backs in the entire sport.

Like, that's not just like a, oh, they're getting somebody. He's a really good player. Does Miami have a really good front seven? They do. And a terrifying pass rusher in Ruben Bain. Also, Akim Messador, nothing to sneeze at as well. And does A&M have a terrifying pass rusher? Yes, his name's Cassius out.

Like, you go down the list and like they both, now here's the real thing. because I was higher on Marcel Reed and his Heisman candidacy than most other people. In fact, I was ridiculed in the On3 group chat for it. Who are you taking at quarterback in this game? Oh, they've both wowed me and they both let me down. Like that is, that's the problem. In both cases, you don't know which guy you're getting.

I mean, the more you do this game breakdown, the more it turns into the Spider-Man meme. You're right. And right down to both of them trying to get the respect because this is the one where all of their conference mates believe, oh, you're just buying your team, blah, blah, like that matters, everybody does that. But that's, you're just trying to buy the best.

Like, yeah, they're both trying to earn respect. And the only way you get it is you move ahead in this tournament. And so they've got to get through each other. Somebody said, Ari looks like he can't wait to tell people he tried kombucha. I've never had kombucha. Yeah, I don't, I heard it taste terribly. Lastly, one other comparison between these two teams that I'm curious about. I was a guest on a podcast this morning.

And I said if Miami or Texas A&M wins, I would not be surprised if they gave Ohio State a game because they both possess things that could hurt. Ohio State's weakness, which is a really good... 100%. And the person that I was on the pod with said, I can't imagine Mario Cristobal ever coaching well enough in game to give Ohio State an issue. So the question I have for you is, Mike Elko, a coach who earned an extension this year

and has become the epitome of Aggie, do you question or fear Mario Cristobal in a big game moment still, or do you think that that's been overblown? I don't worry about that. I think he's going to be fine. Yeah, I don't either. I think it's overblown. I know the Georgia Tech game a few years ago happened. I know he should have taken a knee.

I think if he gets in a situation like that now, he's going to take a knee. Yeah. Also, when you think about how quickly a coach's reputation can change, think about where we were on December 16th of 2024, and what we thought about Ryan Day. And now let's talk about December 16th, 2025 and what we think about Ryan Day. I think perceptions and layups and low-hanging fruit on how we feel about people can change quite dramatically with two or three successful games.

And Miami has an opportunity to do that. I think this is a really big game for Mario Cristobal because he's further in the build than Elko is at A&M. And, you know, he has more of that stigma than I think Elko has. In fact, I think that Elko's stigma is that he has, you know, illustrated some of the best ability in the sport to adjust at halftime and change the way a team, you know, attacks the opponent. I think that Elko's probably been given a lot of flowers in that regard. So from a coaching game day standpoint, I think that you probably, based on just the perception of it, would give A&M an advantage there. But we'll see. I think that this is a narrative game.

This is a feelings game. And this is a big picture game. And I know that I buy into that crap more than you do. But I think that the winner of game is a line of scrimmage game, Ari. The team whose big people play better than the other team's big people will win. Yeah. And that's why whoever wins this game has a chance against Ohio State, too. Yeah.

We picked it already. Have you changed your mind about anything? Or are you still riding with the eggs? Go get them, Max. I still feel like the egg. guys can do it. And really, I mean, like I said, whose big people play better? I guess it's also whose quarterback makes fewer mistakes. We've seen both of them meltdown. We've seen both of them throw their teams to wins. Yeah, Carson Beck's last four games, I'll buy it against,

you know, some bad opponents. 1,125 yards passing 11 touchdowns, one interception. That's how he's playing right now. Yeah, he's been throwing darts. Now, granted, nobody can rush him the way these guys can. None of those four could go after in the way these guys can. So that's what I want to see. And the pressure will be on both these teams. I love it. This is exactly what we want in the playoffs. I just stop myself from this urge to jump through the camera, grab your collar and bring you into it. SEC versus ACC discussion about how important is this for the ACC conference in Miami. Save that. Save that for later. Hey, might even win the ACC. So they're not even the ACC representative officially.

If Miami gets the doors blown off or something, the ACC is going to be down bad again. So I don't know. The FCC's got plenty of opportunity to prove itself in this tournament. The ACC's got one, and it's wearing green and orange. Yep.

Ari, before we move on to some quarterback news, lots of quarterback news, actually. I'm going to talk about Academy Sports and Outdoors. The holiday season is here in Academy Sports and Outdoors has legendary gifts you need at undefeatable prices every day. Shop in store and online at academy.com to save gifts. on gifts on everybody's list from football jerseys, basketball hoops to fire pits to deer stands.

The most wonderful time of the year happens here this Christmas give the gift of fun from Academy Sports and Outdoors. And Ari, since I know he's not listening because he only listens on the way to school to and from school and they're off right now. You know what we've got my son from Academy? Huh. Punching bag.

Oh, so he's one of those guys. He's begging me for a punching bag, begging me for a punching bag. Yeah, he's jacked. That's a great place to get it. You know what I need? What you need? Ski pants.

Ooh, there you go. My pop-a-roo Academy. You need a ski bib? I'm going skiing during the Christmas season this year. And I went snowboarding a few times in my 20s, but we're getting on the slopes. I guarantee you're better at it than me. I am a terrible, terrible skier. I just roll down the mountain.

So, yeah, hitacademy.com or visit an Academy. Sports and Outdoors Store, and you will find whatever you need. That punching bag, you know, might be as much of a present for me. Not going to lie, but I appreciate the folks at the Academy. All right. All right. Let's talk quarterbacks because we have multiple pieces of quarterback news. And you want to start with the one staying or the one's going?

Going is more interesting. All right. DJ Lagway and Dylan Riola. Our Pete Nacos had an interesting story about one school that would be interested in either of them, or at least exploring the possibility of either one. And that would be the Louisville Cardinals. Okay. I just thought that all these quarterbacks are going to LSU.

Well, I think LSU can probably only take one former starter. Because I was trying to explain this to a friend of mine today. like if you're going to pay up to get somebody who's been a starter chances are it's not really an open competition so you can't really take two of them and also they might be expensive yeah i just lSU has been in the headline for everyone ls u is in the market for quarterback but i am kind of intrigued by this louisville thing let's talk yeah so jeff brougham obviously very good coach of quarterbacks He's been very successful through the years.

Miller Moss is done. He's out of eligibility. So they need a new quarterback kicking the tires on DJ Lagway and Dylan Riley. I don't, you're obviously not taking both of them. And I don't know if they end up taking either of them. But I am, that's the one thing. We said that with Lagway, especially, because he has some traits that just from an arm talent standpoint that most quarterbacks don't. if he got with a guy who is a renowned quarterback whisperer and I think Jeff Brown qualifies

here, would that change the situation where would he throw fewer interceptions? Would he be more accurate? Like, could that person do it? I think we forget, too, that, like, DJ has only one, if you, like, add in all the time that he missed from injury and stuff has really. what 90% of one full season under his belt experience wise like he's not it's not like this is like a two or three year player that like we kind of get who he is like that's the thing with Dylan Raola I kind of feel like whoever goes out and pays him knows what they're getting and I don't

know almost two full years as a starter with him yeah like I don't know like if I am going to head into this off season anticipating some sort of rejuvenation or or rise from the Phoenix type scenario from him where he's a completely different player. Like, I think that, like, he is, I've got a pretty good grasp of what he is and who he's going to be. Ratchet DeWan with a good point. Lane Kiffin convinced Trinidad Shameless to be a backup in his final year, so he may get to, that's true, but I don't think you get two coming from, like, the SEC and big,

yeah, exactly. Well, Aidan Childs, maybe. Aiden Child is going from Michigan State to somewhere because he was not going to have the job. That's a different story. One of the name on this list, because this is one that Pete Nacos wrote about on Tuesday, Aaron Filo, who was the. the backup to Haynes King at Georgia Tech, expected to enter the portal.

I wrote about this a little bit on Monday. If he enters the portal, I would think the heavy favorites would be Florida, his former offensive coordinator, Buster Faulkner, at Florida now. So I would think you'd have an Aaron Philo, Tremel Jones Jr. quarterback competition in the spring. How are the people in Gainesville going to like that? I don't know if they're going to like it or not. I think if they like the hire of Buster Faulkner, then you trust him that he,

he likes the guy he coached. He knows what he's bringing in if that's if that's what happens. Yeah. Not much of a sexy splash there. No, but look, the guys that like Julian Sayan was not a starter before this year. Ohio State didn't go get a guy out of the portal because they liked the guy they had. Just because he didn't start last year doesn't mean he sucks. Haynes King was a pretty good starting quarterback last year. I think Julian San is a terrible example on how to make Well, he's a five-star recruit. That's true.

And also I committed to Nick Sabin and then transferred to Ohio State. Okay. So any quarterback who, like Fernando Mendoza at Cal, yeah. I wouldn't know who he was. I knew who he was. He was a starter for a year. He was awesome. No, before he became the starter.

Oh, yeah. No, I know. I just mean like from a- And actually, Philo, we've seen start because he had to start a few games when Haynes King was hurt. Yeah. And how did you feel like he performed? in those games.

I thought he was pretty good. He was better this year than he was last year. When he played as a freshman, it was a little bit tough. But when he got in this year, he was pretty good. So I clearly Faulkner likes him. Now, I think the thought is if he goes to Florida that he's the guy, I think Tremel Jones gets a shot at the job. Trimel Jones has the support of the players that are coming back for Florida.

Like the locker room loves that guy. And I think that's that's why they want to keep them. Yeah. And I think that a nice little competition is healthy, especially when you have a new coaching regime. Like it is so interesting to me that, you know, you're a new coach and you get paid all this money and you're going up a level.

And that's like, what are your first thing and how you're going to be successful? Did you gamble on the portal correctly? Isn't that wild? Like it is. And the thing is like this is this will determine, I don't, well, for some raw for Lane Kiffin at LSU, like this this will help determine your success or failure in year one and there are different ways to go about it because like i would say with somerall

and i know that there's a three million dollar number floating around there about philo i have a bridge to sell you if you believe that that they're paying a guy who was a backup more than they paid dj lagway last year where's this bridge and what are the features of it no i look florida needs offensive linemen and interior defensive lineman, they got to clear the decks to spend some cash in the portal. Yeah. I don't think they're putting it all on QB. Yeah. And maybe that's the case.

You know, there too. If you need to, you know, fill in some holes on your roster, you might not have as much money to overspend. And honestly speaking, like, I don't know, like, I think Sam Levitt is probably a no doubt about it for producing. That's the guy I'd spend the most on. Of the people who are in the portal now, Sam, Leavitt is the one I would be willing to spend the most money on because I feel like he's proven

it the most that he's done done the most that his skill set translates to any level of competition. Now, number two in this group would be Brendan Sorsby for me. Right. Because he's also proven it. But Brendan Sorsby is not $2 million, right? I don't know what the, we've got to figure what the market is because Derry Minson was $4 million last year. Like we've got good solid reporting on that. Now, I will say that from what we've heard anecdotally, the prices are leveling off slash going down because last year, a lot of the money was this, this paying up front before the rev share started. And so I don't know that there's as much of that going on this year. Yeah. And I think that we're also seeing, too, that like, well, there's obviously not any of that

going on. Like, they were front loading entire years. How much money? Dylan Rayola making. And did he produce commezerate with that income? Yeah. How much money was DJ Lagway making and did he perform commasura with that income? How many of the people in the portal? Like, that's the other thing, too. I know people leave for different reasons. Not everybody in the portal is in the portal because they were not successful.

But if you're in a position to make a ton of money in NIL and you gave the place that was paying you what they paid for, more often than not, you're not in the portal. because it's a good working functional business relationship that's actually fruitful. And let's talk about a player who fits that mold right after I tell you about Hewle. That's right, the Hew Black Edition, the best meal replacement going. I put the powder in, I shake up the bottle. I drink and I've got a full meal with 35 grams of protein, all the vitamins and minerals I need.

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So you can pick them up at Target, or go to huel.com, that's H-U-E-L-com, use the code staples 15 for 15% off. first purchase of $75 or more. Ari, you just mentioned a quarterback who came from the portal, got paid, then performed commensurate or maybe even overachieved relative to that pay, and is now still the starter in his school, which it feels more rare than anything, even though that's how it's supposed to work. USC announced on Tuesday, Jaden Mayaba, will be back as a trojan. for another season and why not he was awesome last year like i think with jane miaba you're

only deciding whether you're going to go to the NFL or not and he's coming back to usc honestly well and maybe he feels like he needs another year and USC felt like okay we're going to give you we're going to pay you fairly and you you get one more year of seasoning we get a really good quarterback and everybody's happy a lot of people were laughing at this like re-signing ceremony like is this the thing now i mean already after yesterday i'm not like i i i get it they're free agents every year like they're free agents every year it's funny that they are resigning like it's like i know you know it's ridiculous but yeah but if i'm a USC fan i'm so happy today because that schedule tomorrow or that schedule next year is

brutal if you have not looked at USC's big 10 schedule next year and I don't even know if they have Notre Dame officially on their schedule for next year yet but I'm assuming they're going to play but they have the toughest draw from the big 10 that you can possibly get now I get it it it changes year to year and maybe we think it's tough and by the time they play it won't be but their home schedule yeah their home schedule is Maryland Ohio State or in Washington. So Maryland, not so much, but Ohio State, Oregon, and Washington. Those are home games, thank God. Away Indiana, Penn State, Rutgers, Wisconsin, UCLA. So Indiana and Penn State are going to be rough away games. And what if Wisconsin's good again? Like, what if Fickle gets it figured

out? That's a rough schedule. Yeah. The road trip to Rutgers, although easy, is still a pain in the ass, too. Yeah, long flight. But yeah, and so, and you add Notre Dame to that mix, you better have a good quarterback, and they do. Like, that's the beauty of it. You don't have to ask, you don't have to worry. Does the guy fit the offense?

How is he going to mesh with the coaching? Nope, it works. He plays really well for Lincoln Riley and Lincoln Riley's offense. And I think it's also important to acknowledge, too, that, like, I remember in the off season that I made some, some comments about. I thought that the one thing that you were 100% going to get at USC with Lincoln Riley was an elite level quarterback. I cannot believe they have Jaden Maiava coming in as the starter this year or returning as the starter last year. Yeah.

That worked out pretty good for USC. So, like, yeah, like I think that like Lincoln Riley for as much flack as he has taken over the course of the past few years has still shown that he knows what he's doing at the most important position. I think he deserves credit for that. Yes. Oh, also Arch Manning coming back too. Did he resign? I don't think they did a ceremony. Arch not really one for that,

but he did say he's coming back, which his grandfather did tell us that before the season ever started, and then Arch was like, ah, poo-poo that for a little bit. Do you? Yeah, okay. We haven't unpacked this,

and I want to for five minutes with you. Sure. Was Arch good this year? He got better as the season went on, for sure. Would you say that was a second? successful year for him? But it depends on what you're, what are we talking about? Because you were the one who said he couldn't possibly not get to New York.

So I think you're probably saying it's unsuccessful. It wasn't a successful year because they didn't make the playoff. But did he get better? And is he in a position to be a really good quarterback next year? Yeah, he is. So there's the insane expectations, which is you have to be the greatest thing that's ever happened to college football to live up to the high. hype that created out of your control.

Correct. He clearly didn't live up to. But first year starter against that schedule improved as the year went on. Like a normal person, if his name was Steve Mack, would he have had a good year? No, because you're supposed to go to the playoffs at Texas. So it's not a good year, but you're in a position to have a good year next year. And I hope everybody was ready to have another offseason of arch hype, because, like, I don't think that's dead.

I think he played just good enough. Yeah, but I don't think it's going to be like last year. Because you do know what the limitations are now. He's definitely going to be a top five odds in the off season to win the Heisman next year, though. Of course, but that's because that's who everybody, you know, it's like a coaching carousel situation where everybody's like, Urban Meyer, because that's a name they know. So that's all that's going to be.

Yeah. Speaking of the coaching carousel, we got to break down the Michigan coaching search and where it stands. But first, we need to talk about Panini, our friends at Panini, America.net. That's the place to go to collect your favorite college and NFL stars. I got a pack of Donorous right here, Ari. I'm going to open it up. I know you have some unbelievable stuff on your desk, but we're going to hope that I grab something awesome. Look at this.

Hey, Georgia fans. I wonder if Matt, the Georgia fan who was always trying to trade Mike Bobo. Hey, Matt, Garrison Hurst right there. Well, Caleb Williams, who also growing into a very good quarterback at his level. Hey, hey, raided rookie Emeka Abuka. He's going to be amazing for the bucks for a long time. Got Antonio Gibson, Tank Dell, Dominators Tyree Kill, A throwback rated rookie, Jalen O'L.

I don't know what makes that a throwback because he is a rookie right now. Jake Bates, we got a kicker card. How about that? Jimenez and Andrew Van Ginkle. Andrew Van Ginkle. I've got a pretty interesting card here that is top. What you got? Yeah.

Here is a 2025 National Treasurer's Collegiate Booklet. of Quinn Ewers. Oh. It opens up like a book with a patch. With an autograph? It does longhorns. And then on back, you know,

it's the number to 99. And then you close it like a book. Mm-hmm. And I have a Benjamin Morris National Treasurer's Collegiate RPA right here. Badass at Notre Dame. And then a first off the line limited edition, Tess Johnson, Oregon Patch Auto. Wow.

Just sitting on my desk right here. Some of it's coming in. Some of it's going out. But, you know, we're running the card game like the Navy on my desk right now. I wish I could, like, zoom out and show you. It looks like a Panini box exploded in my office. They're everywhere. I need to, like, figure out a better organizational pattern.

But this is my favorite thing in the world. So grateful to have Panini as a sponsor. And it's an activity and a hobby that I very much enjoy. So check it out. Panini America.net to start your collection today. Programming note, because I'm an idiot and killed the YouTube feed at the wrong time. this show will be packaged together. If you miss the first part of the show and you're like, wait,

they just picked up in the middle of that Miami conversation, the show will be in its entirety on the On3 Sports YouTube page as soon as we get finished. Our producer is going to work his magic to save my ass as usual. Yeah, I think that's happened, pal. Listen, I'm not going to ever get on you. Yeah, that's not a little mistake, Ari. That's a big mistake.

Yeah. That's a bad one. I think that over the course of time, you've done more good than bad. So we'll let the slide. I hope so. I hope so. We'll see if they keep me employed. But we've got to talk to Michigan coaching search now because the job has been open for six days now.

And it's interesting because the name that continues to pop up and it has been the name we've talked about the most. And we keep saying, he keeps saying things. He keeps getting ass things. Kail and DeBore, I'll point out when Alabama's. job opened when Nick Saban retired. Caleb was the head coach, I believe, within 48 hours, certainly within 72 hours. But Michigan is a little bit different timing spot here because the transfer portal has not opened yet.

It opens on January 2nd. And signing day has passed, so there's no rush to try to get somebody in before signing day. So they don't have to do anything immediately, but I'm sure if you're a Michigan fan, you're like, what the hell? When are we getting a coach? So let's talk about the various people. And we'll start with Kailin Dabor. And I know what Kailin Dabor said. We talked about his statement the other day. Kailin Dabor then went into his press conference on Monday, was asked twice about whether he'd be the Alabama coach next year and said he would be. Ari, I still believe Kailen Dabor. though the fact that Michigan has not hired somebody yet because I think the other candidates feel

like they could be hired immediately, suggests to me that they're still going to wait and try to talk to him after this Alabama Oklahoma game. Is that the timeline? Because that's my tea leaves theory. I think they would have hired somebody already if they weren't going to at least try. I still think he's going to say thanks, but no thanks. I think his agents are keeping the doors open. because you can squeeze as much as you can out of Alabama.

But I don't think the guy said what he said. He would have said it differently, I think. I may be wrong. I think he would have said it differently if he still harbored the idea that he might leave. Let's just repackage the conversation that we had earlier today on the phone as friends. This is a normal dude. Okay. Yes.

He's not Nick Saban. he's not a robot he's not programmed to be a liar and like live in a world of deceit so that he can like get every last inch of money possible in order like i feel like having interacted with this person before that i would be surprised as hell if he left after that now surprising things happen every day in this sport oh my god moments happen every day I don't think this is the guy So like it feels like they're waiting for him Because if they wanted to hire somebody One of the other people I'm about to name They could do it right now But here's the thing

You don't really have anything to lose If you're waiting for him Because if he tells you to screw off on Sunday You just hire somebody Sunday or Monday And then that's done. And then you have plenty of time to prepare for the portal Which isn't after the new year So I understand that

But on the other hand like the timing of the Jim Harbaugh situation let's not forget I know you know Sharon Moore is you know a name that is now in the past but he got hired on a full-time basis and a pretty terrible time on the calendar so late January so like from that standpoint I think you could make the case that Michigan was worse off in year one because Sharon Moore wasn't hired before because of the Jim Harbaugh delay before the the portal open. And I think that Michigan is keenly aware of how important it is to have their guy in place by the time that opens, especially considering the fact that they just signed

a recruiting class that may or may not be staying together. So if you're them, Ari, if Alabama wins, you don't, you don't say, let's see if he loses the second game. I feel like Michigan, right? I think if Michigan is, is waiting because they're hoping to talk to Kaylon DeBore, they should take like a large portion of their like salary pool and just like put it on. you know, Oklahoma to win so they can at least like get something back. So dial up a bet MGM and just, he's going to, I think he's going to tell you no. Yeah. I also think like every day that goes by, I don't know what it is.

I'm wrong all the time. Every day that goes by, I'm more I think Oklahoma is going to lose. So like that, that's another thing. I think Alabama's going to win the game. So, you know, again, it's a one point spread. Who knows if I'm foolish shit or not. It's a pick-um game essentially. But it's not like to you're waiting to talk to somebody who's a 20,

three-point underdog. Like, they very well may win the game. And then your entire timeline is completely screwed up because he's off the board. Can I push back on one thing, though? That I said. So, no, Jackie in the chat says, DeBore would have a more sane life in Ann Arbor. Guys, the Michigan job is just as high pressure as the Alabama job.

You're expected to win national titles at Michigan. They almost fired Jim Harbaugh. Like, you're expected to do the same things, especially now the way Michigan's paying and the way Michigan's constructing rosters. Yeah. Also, coming into a, do you see what Biff Posey said about how his roster feels betrayed and stuff?

Betrayed. I know that, like, a lot of people got their jokes off about the Sharon Moore incident. For the players that were returning, that's a pretty damaging thing. Like, it's a very sad thing, very serious thing. Like, I don't know if going in and taking the Michigan job is the same task as, like, replacing somebody.

who left. There's some damage control that has to go into it too. And then also to push back on the thing with you, Andy, if you think Kalen DeBoer was concerned about living a more sane life, don't you think that human being would have considered that before replacing Nick Saban and Alabama? Like, nobody stayed in Seattle. Like that would have been no problem. A millionaire in Seattle and never had any pressure, or at least any pressure in comparison to what other teams that are going to be hiring him are going to be offering. Like, I don't think that Kayland to bore a person who's in the playoff

needs to run away from pressure as if he didn't like go head first into it like knowingly can't stop winning says you're just expected to beat Ohio State if you do that you're safe oh that's all that's pretty easy yeah that's a Lord

Francisco that's right okay so all right let's say Ari and I are correct and Kayland Abor is saying the complete truth and he's going to beat Alabama next year, which I believe. I believe him. Where does that believe you? I'd say Kenny Dillingham at Arizona State. And he had a press conference on Saturday. We talked about a little bit yesterday. I think he danced around it a little more than Kaelin DeBoer did. He never said anything that backed him into a corner. He did choke

up talking about the Arizona State job. This is his alma mater. He's living in his hometown. His, you know, His in-laws and parents are right there. It is a wonderful existence by all accounts. It also looked like he was going internally. Oh, man. But what, but Michigan. Like, because here's the difference. You can win the, you can win the national title at Alabama.

You can win the national title at Michigan. Can you win the national title at Arizona State? Oh, the mountains, though, Andy. They're so pretty. you've ever seen a nice town too you feel the same way he does yeah i don't live there that's true that's true and you went you went to the rival school but but yeah no i mean tucson's not nearly as nice as a city as tempi or scottesdale like i'm not going to pretend i'm not like uh an oklahoma fan who pretends that norman is as nice as l a like i'm just uh oh god

I don't know why. No, but like, also, just because you're from somewhere or you enjoy living somewhere doesn't mean that your career doesn't take the wheel. And, you know, Ann Arbor is one of the best college towns in the country. And I know he might not like snow and there's no mountains, but you can live a really nice life of there too. And you can win the national title. Yeah. So the question that really is more than anything is like when Kenny Dillingham took the job or when he, He grew up watching Arizona State.

I actually think it was more of a sleeping giant than it is now. I wonder if the new way that the sport is constructed based on the unbalanced power dynamics of the other conferences and how expensive it is to keep your players. It's not just as easy as, you know what, in 2017, if he took this job, you're going to activate the valley the same way he wants to now, sign really good players in, in and around your state and develop the shit out of them and keep them for three or four years, you have as easy of a path as anybody else in your conference. And you don't lose players year over here. Arizona State, I think, and the other teams in the Big 12, I think, have a harder path to sustainability of anybody else.

And I actually think that Arizona State is a less attractive job now than it was when he took over. And I know NIL existed when he took over. And I know that he was in the modern era. But is it harder to win a national championship or easier in your mind at a big 12 school that isn't run by an oil baron now as it was in 2015? Did it get easier or harder in the NIL era? It's harder and it's still hard if you have the oil billionaire. It's much easier at a place like Michigan or any elite Big Ten or SEC. Even if Michigan's not on the table.

Is it harder for program X in the Big 12 to win a national championship in 2025 than it was in 2019? Correct. It is harder. Although the perception of saying that there's more parity, right? Like you would think that maybe it's easier because none of the teams at the top are a stack. There's more parity in the Big Ten in the SEC because they have similar amounts of money. But the ghouls at the end of the road aren't. typically as deep and as talented as they were in 2017 either.

Like the mountain, like there's more obstacles, but none of the obstacles are quite as high. Yeah. Still. So if you want to win a national championship, you might have to move away from mountains is what I'm getting at. So who else? Eli Drinkwoods at Missouri, which Michigan fans having the same reaction that Florida fans did, that LSU fans did when I brought up his name. And I don't know. I think he'd be great. I think you would drive Ohio State people crazy.

Yeah, he told some Conner Stallion's jokes, and that probably hurts your feelings, Michigan fans, but get over it. You'd love it if he was on your side. I'm telling you right now, you'd love him if he was on your side. Of course they would. Andy, I know that this is bad podcasting, but just because we talked about it earlier, Drew Mestemaker is expected to enter the portal. I know that that's not shocking news. That just happened. Expect him to end up at Oklahoma State with his former coach.

Because we're live, and we don't have to edit it in, people are here. I just wanted to say it. Yep. But yes, I agree with you when it comes to Eli. Also, I find this to be my existence, really. Like, last year, I was Notre Dame's best friend. All their fans loved me and they liked my work. And now I'm the worst human being and it's ever lived. Like, it depends on where you're coming from, right? If you're coming from that attitude in favor or in support of that place, people's minds will change. So I don't even think that that's like a thing. Like, do people like not want him because of that? now they don't and I think it's just delivery that that maybe turns opposing fans off but I'm telling you again if he's on your team you're happy and if you think oh well he's not he's not going to he's not going to get big time player he gets big time players at Missouri like I know that this might not be the most politically correct or the best way or best thing to bring up on a live podcast but I have to bring it up Andy what do you think it is

Eli Drinkwitz that rubs fan base is the wrong way. I saw it at Florida. I'm seeing it with Michigan. Delivery. You think it's corny? Yep. I'm entertained, but I don't care. It's not hurting my feelings when he's making fun of Coach X or whoever.

I know, but when he was talking about Dan Mullen, when Dan Mullen was at Florida, and he said, you sew jackass, you reap jackass. It's badass. The Florida people didn't like it. When he goes, we stand on business, Josh to Josh Heiple, after they ran up the score because Tennessee ran up the score the year before, the Tennessee fans didn't like it.

But if you're your guy, if he's your guy and he's doing that, you like it. But I think people in general, I'm telling you, I looked at a threat on the Wolverine Ari, and his name came up, and it was universal. Didn't want him? Finn wanted. I think that's short-sighted. I mean, when you took me and welcomed me into your lovely home in Gainesville, and we talked to the Gator Club down there in Gainesville,

like everybody that came up to you before the show before Florida made a hire that you told about Eli Drink was like, oh. And it's like, I think that, like, people like people who, I mean, Lane Kiffin, it was like the most coveted person. Nobody talks more shit than that guy. It's how you talk shit. He has to talk shit cooler, I think. but he's not he is who he is

it's like the philip seymour hoffman character less you know he's playing lester bangs and almost famous i'm always home i'm not cool like that's who eli is and he he is who he is but i do think he could be very good there but i don't think the fan base would be thrilled if he got hired because they they just it's

automatic Like, they, same reaction, every fan base. Do you think that Eli Drinkwitz, if and when given an opportunity like this, will go to a bigger place, talk the same corny stuff that he talks, win games and become like Darth Vader-ish type of trigger? I think he'll annihilate people if he ever gets one of these. And when he does it, he will annihilate people. Do you think that the, the cornyness will turn into coolness? Yes. to that fan base.

But Steve Spurrier is the coolest person who ever lived and Tennessee fans and Georgia fans hated him. They've grown to respect him now. Yeah. But when he was coaching against them at Florida and South Carolina, they hated it. I think the thing that you and I are not connecting on and I just want to reiterate is that it's not that

the opposing fan bases that he talked crap about don't like him. I don't think that he is a candidate that will excite anybody for some reason. And I don't know why. No, I'm saying the same thing. Okay. We're agreeing.

Okay. But I'm telling you, if you're a person who feels that way, you're probably wrong. And when he takes one of these jobs, he's going to murder people. Yeah. So just, you know, put a pin in that one. I may be wrong, but we'll see what happens down the road. I don't know that he's going to get this one. Another one for this one, Clark Lee, Vanderbilt.

Okay. Is it just the same? Drinkwitz and Lee, by the way, both were talking to other schools that were open during this cycle. Both of them got extensions already. But Michigan has a lot of money and can pay whatever buyout they need to pay. Drinkwitz didn't even go up. I'm trying to use this QR code on our thing to open up NACOS's a story on my phone. And I'm, okay, I'm just going through this list here.

And this list is very similar to all the hot boards from all the other head coaching jobs. And like, and I think it's almost as if there's only a select set of really good coaches that people would be comfortable hiring in a big time job. And I feel like we're banging our heads against the wall again with the same stuff. And it's like, why is Glenn Schumann not on this list? Like, why is there no hot shot coordinator that's ready to take this job? Well, there was a hot shot coordinator. Will Stein got the Kentucky job. What do you have been on this list?

Yes. Okay. I just like one of, I just, I feel like it's like Jedfish, Eli Drinkwitz. Yep. Kenney, the only. Jedfish just finished his season. Yeah. Ready to go whenever.

So you've got him. Now Jedfish also was a Harbaugh assistant. So you have to decide on that. And the other guy I'm going to bring up is Jesse Mentor, who's the Chargers defense coordinator currently working with Harbaugh. was Harbaugh's defensive coordinator in Michigan. So talk to somebody who was involved in mentors in CAA case. His show cause is done.

Now, it may not have mattered because Jeremy Pruitt got the injunction in court in Alabama that basically is probably going to invalidate every show cause around the country. But Jesse Mentors, the timing of it, it is expired. He can coach in college now. And I also think that there's a clear difference in line in the sand. you are a Michigan person who is wary of going back down the Harbaugh path. I don't think that hiring Jesse Mentor and hiring Jedfish is nearly the same thing. No, Jedfish works for briefly.

Right. Right. And Jed Fish went off and did his own thing. Like he might be a Harbaugh disciple to some degree, but he's like a Bill Belichick disciple, too. Like, it's not like he's direct branch. Or Sean McVeigh's worked with him too. Like, yeah. He's a more multifaceted candidate.

And I don't know that hiring Jed Fish would bring up, like, we're going back down the same well that we just left. Now, Jesse Mentor is a Harbaugh disciple, and it could be Jim or John, because he's worked for both of them. Now, also, he's a Rick Mentor disciple. That's his dad, Rick Mentor, former Cincinnati head coach, longtime college coach. So it's not just Harbaugh. But, yes, he's worked for both Harbaugh. If you hire Jesse Mentor, you're hiring directly back from the. Exactly.

You're continuing that. And I, here's where, and not just because the Sharon Moore thing ended so disastrously, I would say look at USC after Pete Carroll USC kept trying to recapture the Pete Carroll magic by hiring people who work for Pete Carroll

and it didn't work. And I think you also have to acknowledge that what Jim Harbaugh did during the time of which he did it was one of the single most remarkable coaching exploits of our time. He's also fairly one of a kind as a human being.

Yeah, like I feel like trying to recreate the remarkable is a stupid, stupid errand. Yeah. Yeah. That's the thing. He's so different. You're never going to get that back. So don't try to chase it.

Which, and I think the fact that Sharon Moore flamed out probably will discourage them from chasing that. Yeah. But we'll see. I suspect we're going to have a few more updates on this. because if the timing is what we think it is, if we think they're waiting to talk to DeBoer, that game's not till Friday. Are we going to have to pull over on the way to college station, you think?

We might. Who knows? All right. Ari, we've got to go. But thanks to everybody for watching. Be sure to subscribe to the On3 Sports YouTube page. Wednesday is Megaboard Wednesday. We will be.

highlighting threads from all of the message boards around the On 3 network. And there are some bangers right now between the college football playoff, the transfer portal, the coaching carousel. There's a lot to talk about. So get your, get your threads up. Start posted on those message boards, you on three members. And also, hey, get your questions in for Thursday. We got a dear Andy, dear Ari. Andy Staples on3 at gmail.com. Ari. Dot wasterman aton3.com.com. Give us your questions, and we will attempt to answer them on Thursday. But tomorrow, the Mega Board. We'll talk to you then.