College Football Live - CFB Live- 8/18- 12, 14, 24, or 28?!

Episode Date: August 18, 2025

Join our crew Zubin Mehenti, Sam Acho, and Heather Dinich on CFB Live as they discuss remaining QB competitions, new CFP format proposals, and notable Power 4 competitors... Will we see a 28 team playoff format in the near future? Tune into College Football Live to find out! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When you're flying Emirates business class, sipping your favorite cocktail at our onboard lounge, you'll see that your vacation isn't really over until your flight is over. Fly Emirates, fly better. We welcome you to college football live right out of the gate. We have some quarterback clarity and some of the most important and tradition-laden programs in the country. And that's where we're going to start today with our Heather Dinnich and Sam Acho. On August 30th, we know Archmanning is going to roll out there for Texas. We know who the starter is going to be for Ohio State.

Word came down this morning. It's going to be Julian Sane. Let's talk a little bit about this guy. Ryan Day kept saying all throughout camp that the competition between Sane and Lincoln Keenholz was neck and neck, though people inside the program always seemed to indicate it was Sagan's job to lose,

and he takes control, and he'll be out there, August 30th, at noon, when Arch and the number one team in the country come to town. talk about it a little bit. Sam, I want to start with you. I think most people may know one thing about him. He committed to Saban and bolted after Nick Saban retired at

Alabama. So what was the ultimate factor you think that got him this starting knot? I think it says maturity. We talk a lot about the armed talent that Julian San has. At least you listen to people who watch Ohio State or know Ohio State. They're excited about his arm talent. I get excited about the maturity level to lead this

team. I remember just watching some of his interviews, listen to him talk. You get an understanding that he understands the weight and gravity of being the starting quarterback at the Ohio State University. So you combine the level of armed talent that he has with the level of maturity. And that's what gets you excited about him leading this Ohio State team as the next great quarterback in the regime. Well, Sam, it's great that they found an answer here at quarterback because they have so many questions everywhere else across the board. I mean, when we talk about Ohio State, they get

so much credit in the preseason polls and deservedly, So, but listen, they lost their top two leading rushers. They lost their number two receiver. They lost their top three leaders in sacks. Oh, and by the way, they have two new coordinators this year. They also have the second toughest schedule in the Big Ten. So it's fantastic that they finally announced their answer at quarterback playing saying is very talented, but they have got to come together quickly as a big ten.

As a team in time for this Texas game, we're talking about 12 days here that this new team has to get together. And it's not just them getting together. It's who's going to be the guys who are going to make the players. I remember going back to Florida State last season. So many of the talented players, they were in the NFL. So the Trey Benson's of the world were the NFL, all these talented guys. So all of a sudden, Ohio State's coming off of a national championship. And yes, they're a five-star recruits.

They're extremely talented individuals. But the question is, you were not the ones who made the players. You're not the Jack Sawyer who had the big time sack versus Texas. The JTooey Maloal. Now, yes, Caleb Bounds is still there. And yes, Jeremiah Smith is still there. But there's so much production and that playmaking ability that you still have to go improve to the world. In talking to Coach Ryan Day in Las Vegas at Big Ten Media Days, he said there may not be household names right now,

but there's a lot of talent on this team and you guys are going to get to know them. Can't wait to see it. At the very same time, Texas takes on Ohio State. Tennessee will be taking on Syracuse. And both of those programs unveiled their starting quarterbacks as well today. More on the Q's here on a second. But first, let's talk about Tennessee, naming Joey Aguilar, their starter. This is sort of like saying.

I think a lot of people felt it was going to end this way. And it did. The other two guys, Jake Merklinger and George McIntyre, simply don't have a ton of experience. And Aguilar was one of the best players in his conference at App State a year ago, but of course, up in your game to the SEC is a different story altogether.

Heather, let's start with you. Tennessee has won 30 games over the last three years. It's been a remarkable turnaround, but you feel there are reasons to indicate that this year may not be as fruitful for the Vols. Why do you think that? Zubin, because they lost so much from last year beyond Nico Iomaliava.

And when you look at this team, they are 100,000. intense in the country in returning offensive production. And it's not just Nico. Dylan Samson, their leading receiver, this was a running team last year. And they lost their top three receivers. Our analytics give them just an 11% chance to reach the SEC championship game. The reality, I think, is that Tennessee is going to be an afterthought, not only in the college football

playoff, but in the SEC race as well. And I think the frustrating part is if you're a Tennessee volunteer fan is this. Number one, you lost your quarterback. But also look at all the talent that's not there. You've talked to some of the people in Nico I.M. Aliava's camp. Part of the reason that he left wasn't because of NIL, it may have been because of the talent that wasn't there. Tennessee was a defensive team and to run the ball team. If you want to be a quarterback, yeah, you want to win.

But you also want to show off your talent, show off your ability, show off your arm talent. And so without the receivers there, that makes it even harder for Tennessee to win and to be competitive. in a stacked SEC. It's not just the quarterback that's gone. It's the receivers as well. Sam, take me inside the program. Josh Heppel said the morning of the press conference where he unveiled that Nico left that nobody,

including him, was bigger than the big orange or the power tea. How do you think the fan base is galvanized after what is really one of the wildest stories we've seen in the offseason in years? Well, fans want to win. I don't think that fans galvanize around statements. They galvanize around production. Are we winning or are we losing? are we producing or are we not?

I think in the time being, Nico I. Maliava looked like the bad guy in so many ways. You could galvanize around that, but all of a sudden, you got one of the top transfer quarterbacks in your mind, and you are a premier program. And so if Tennessee starts off the season with a loss to Syracuse, I don't know if there's going to be that much to galvanize around.

So what needs to happen now is now that Tennessee does have their quarterback in Joey Aguilar, they need to be able to produce and to win, and it's going to start week one against a stacked Syracuse team. Now, we should mention it's not exactly a trade because this isn't the NFL, but essentially UCLA and Tennessee made a swap because the aforementioned Nikol Iamaliava is now in Westwood back home in the state of California. Sam, let's start with you there. A lot of people are thinking this is just the start for UCLA.

What are your thoughts on his move from Knoxville to Westwood? I think it's a perfect move not just for Nico, but also for UCLA. Nico Imelava is from the California, from L.A. So that's home for him. And so all of a sudden you get a premier recruit like Nico, who has the armed talent that could match anyone else in the entire college football landscape. Players start to watch. L.A. natives start to watch. High school recruits start to watch.

And no, you may not have a 10-win UCLA team this year because of one player, but you start to build something now. You start to say, okay, as they recruit, I can win there. As a L.A. native, I can go there. and UCLA starts to become relevant again, unlike they were last season. Sam, I think it's going to take a lot of time for UCLA to become relevant again. And I understand Nico I Amaliava is a piece of that puzzle, and he told me that one of the reasons he told me the reason he transferred was to be closer to home and it'll be good for him.

But listen, here's the reality. UCLA was picked 15th in the Big Ten by a lot of the preseason media polls. If they get to a bowl game that's successful for UCLA. But I just think even bringing in a quarterback of that caliber is not going to help UCLA as fast as UCLA needs the help right now. That's fair. DeShon Foster trying to turn it around in what has certainly become a stacked Big Ten. Now, there is one other quarterback situation that is worth monitoring and there is no resolution just yet, courtesy of the man that would make the decision to begin with. We're talking about the national runner-ups Notre Dame

on his quarterback competition. Marcus Freeman, quote, we're still in a competition. We'll go back and evaluate today's practice and make a decision. We have to make a decision here soon. I don't know when we'll make it. I don't want to put a timeline on it. He said that yesterday, a reminder,

they open up Sunday, August 31st. So for whatever that's worth, they will have one extra day. Most teams will open on Saturday. They'll open on Sunday on your local ABC station at Miami. Sam, I want to start with you. The combatants are C.J. Carr and Kenny Minchie. A lot of people thought this was going to be Carr in a runaway. What has Minchie done? And let's take, let's take coach at face value to make this a competition.

What's his dual threat ability? Think about it. Last year, Notre Dame, they didn't really throw the ball downfield a lot with Riley Leonard. They were more of a run the ball team and play defense. And not just run the ball with your running backs like Jeremiah Love. It was quarterback run as well. What does Kenny Minchie do extremely well? He's an athletic dual threat quarterback. So your offensive line, your offensive scheme won't have to change entirely too much with a guy like Kenny Minchie under center. So the reason why Kenny Minchie is making it a competition and maybe they might even be leaning towards Mitchie is his ability to avoid and evade the pass rush and use his legs as a dual threat quarterback. Sam, regardless of who they pick here,

Notre Dame, I think, has time for some margin for error, even though this Miami game is going to be huge. Because when you look at the college football playoffs selection committee, if we've learned one thing over the history of the CFP, it's better to lose early than late. And no one was a better example of that than Notre Dame last year losing to Northern Illinois. So if by some chance their new quarterback struggles against the Keynes, keep in mind that Miami has a chance to win the end. ACC. So win or lose, if you're talking about a win against the ACC champs or even a close loss to the ACC champs, that can certainly help the Irish on selection date. But because Notre Dame can't lock up a spot as a conference champion, since it's an independent, obviously, that result will go a long way because of the head-to-head tiebreaker in the committee meeting room. But the strength of Notre Dame,

Heather, has been their defense. Think about Marcus Freeman, what he's been able to do. Their defense of the running game has been the strength, even early last season, in their loss to NIU. There wasn't strong quarterback play, whether they were winning or losing. And so whether it's Kenny Minchie, C.J. Carr, the defense was one of the best at taking the ball away and scoring points on defense. They were one of the top leaders when it came to interception return yard. Special teams was another place where Notre Dame used to strive and do really well in. So no matter what they do, it's going to be the defense special teams. And oh, by the way, Miami's breaking again a new quarterback as well.

So there's going to be some question marks there for the other team. Yeah, last thing I would just say real quick is that after having Sam Hartman and Riley Leonard, no matter who wins this competition, no pun intended, the Irish are going to be green at the quarterback position. And one last note, Steve Angelly, who was with Notre Dame last year. He transferred to Syracuse. And today, he was named the starter. So that's another starting quarterback spot that has been taken. That were Fran Brown there in Western New York.

On the way here on college football live, we've gone from a 14-place. off to a 12, not yet to a 16, but maybe a 24 or 28 team model that's being talked about. We'll talk about that next. It's week three of Canadian tires early Black Friday sale. These prices won't go lower this year. Maybe too long. Freezing. Save up to 50% November 20th to 27.

Conditions apply, details online. It's a beautiful time in a wonderful town that we have real football happening for the first time. It's Farmageddon. the Air Lingus Football Classic on week zero in Dublin. The Iowa State fans are already there. I was seeing some photos. They're going to spend the whole week getting ready for Iowa State and Kansas State Saturday on ESPN.

Now, those two teams are still looking for their first appearance in the 14th team playoff or the 12th team playoff. Maybe they'll get in if the Big Ten's idea of a 28-team playoff is possibly a deaf. They're willing to trim it down to 24, but tongue planted firmly in cheek, an incredible opportunity here to not just blow by the 16 team playoff that still hasn't happened yet, but really exceed it. In a 2018 model, if you take a look, a full 50% or half the field would come from the two conferences that now control the future of college football. That, of course, being the Big Ten and the SEC. bottom there, having multiple 20 games on campus would be something.

We saw the electricity this past season when we had the quarterfinal rounds there on campus. Heather, let's start with you. They're talking about a 2018 playoff, a tongue planted firmly in cheek. There's about 28 problems that a lot of people have with all of these situations. Let's just dig into it. What's your first thought when you hear a 2018 playoff posited? Well, first let me say that every person that I have spoken, to about this as far as a decision maker in college athletics over the past couple of days

has said this is an idea that is in its infancy. They have stressed that. And the power for commissioners are expected to meet in person at some point over the next couple of weeks to talk about this. I mean, when I talked to a Big Ten source yesterday, I was told that it hasn't even been formally presented to the Big Ten head coaches yet. Of course, they've had some conversation with their athletic directors. But it's not just the Big Ten and SEC that have to buy into this. It's the ACC and the Big 12 too, because this requires conferences to get rid of their conference championship games. That's not impossible, I'm told, but it is certainly a very big and real obstacle, especially if this were to happen as soon as 2026. I'm told it would

solve the access problem. That's what the Big Ten is thinking and trying to sort of imagine it as a mini March madness. But there are people out there who were surprised by this and were not happy they were surprised by this on the weekend. One source told me we look like petulant children throwing spaghetti at the wall. Yeah, and I got some children. I don't know if the word was petulant. They don't, they throw some spaghetti and some walls in my house. So I don't. don't like the way it looks in that way as well. Think about it. A 2018 playoff to me, it invites people to the table, but are you really having an

opportunity to be competitive at that table? The first round games, many of them last season were blowouts. You think about it. It was a 42-17 was one of the games. A many double-digit wins. So for me, even if you expand the field of the playoffs, it's still those main competitors that are going to be competitive. Think teams like Penn State this year or Clemson this year or Texas or even teams like

Alabama, you're going to get the same crop of teams that are making it to the top. So I don't think there's necessarily an access quote-unquote problem. Yes, they're Oregon in there as well. It's not an access problem. It's a matter of you don't need that many more playoff games. The 12-team playoff is a-okay. I think the 14th playoff was fine. The same teams that are at the top are still dominating.

And just because you have access to the dance doesn't mean spaghetti won't be on your walls at that dance. Well, a couple of points to also. realize about this. If you look back at the Big Ten standings last year and go seven deep, you are talking about five lost Michigan, five loss Iowa as those number six and number seven teams when the season was all said and done. There's a concern from some people that I spoke with about this basically eliminating bowl season because of postseason play in games and how that would work, but the Big Ten is saying that this would make the regular season more compelling. And I'm told that the Big Ten is prepared to do whatever is necessary to study it.

But there are a lot of people who don't know how they feel about it because they haven't had a chance to really look at it yet. And that's part of the problem. But Sam, to your point, I've talked to a lot of people and coaches who say, look, the reality is there's five to eight teams that can win. the national title no matter which way you slice it. Yeah, I couldn't agree more. And so I think when you start having these conversations of Iowa or Michigan last season,

I don't really start with Iowa. They're not going to be able to be competitive against the other teams that were winning championships. So a five-loss team in the Big Ten, I don't think deserves, if you will, to be a part of a, I don't think there needs to be a bigger playoff in general, right? Like, it's not going to have better teams go to the championship. the same teams that went before will go again. Yeah, the bottom line is, you know, they say less is more sometimes. What Sam is saying, more is definitely not more sometimes.

Last thing for you, Heather, it just seems to follow that in all sports, baseball expanded the wild card round, the NFL ended a couple extra wild card teams. The NBA is four teams in a play in tournament. It is sort of moving along the lines that this sport inevitably, the sport is going to grow in the postseason. It's just a matter of how much, right? Feels natural. And look, they've been talking about this over a year. 14 teams, 16 teams, got a lot of traction. So it does seem to be heading in that direction. But the reality is that Big Ten and SEC have to come to a consensus on if it were to change what it would look like in 2026 and beyond because they have the bulk of control. But here's the thing. It can stay the same. Greg Sankey and Tony Petiti have told me this repeatedly. There's a playoff format for 2020. and it looks exactly like the one that we have now. The question is, do they want to change it? That is the question.

We'll wait to see. I know there's a December 1 deadline, and like in everything, deadlines make deal. So we'll check back in with Heather on the last week of November to see if there's any traction on that. Sam, you invoked Michigan. The big story last week in college football really had to do with all the sanctions

from the sign stealing scandal. Essentially, a lot of people thought this was a great deal for Michigan to essentially get a monstrous fine. sure, $30 million and to be put on probation, but there is absolutely no postseason ban and nothing that would preclude Michigan from going to the playoff and trying to win the national title.

The probation is there, and the fines are prohibitive, and Jim Harbaugh, Connor Stallions, and others involved in this, do get a show-cause order, but it seems unlikely that either at any point would return to college football, so a lot of people don't think those things really matter too much. On the way, Auburn's greatest of all time will get his due on a Saturday in October.

Why is Cam heading back to the planes and heading to a season that's new for NC State? Champ has a new role taken over for Ripkin. Same job. Grabbing the T's and one of college football's great traditions when they open against East Carolina on the ACC Network on August 28th. And we're back with more college football live. Next. Black Friday is here at IKEA. and the clock is ticking on savings you won't want to miss.

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Shop now at IKEA.ca.ca. Black Friday. IKEA. Bring home to life. Good to be an incredible moment there. 11.59 a.m. it on for the final time. And happy 90th birthday. Coach Corso turned 90 last week. Extra points before we get out of here. You know, Jan Miller got jammed up a little bit. Practice got a little bit of a hand injury. Looks like he's going to miss the opener. He could be back in time for the gigantic game

on September 27th when Alabama plays Georgia. And speaking of Georgia on October 11th, Auburn will play Georgia. And on that day, they will retire the jersey of maybe the greatest player to ever step foot on the plains, other than Bo Jackson, that is. But the one and done that Cam Newton had is second to none. Sam, what do you remember about that 2010 one and done ripping through the college football season? I just remember, like, Tyrant, Tyron Matthew, Honey Badger, outstanding. Tim Tebow, amazing. man, he was him, right?

Like looking at what Cam Newton was able to do, it was outstanding, running people over, throwing the ball. I mean, he just put the team on his back on his way to a national championship. So so many great players, Cam Newton is on that Mount Rushmore. Last word to you, Heather. Yes, I agree. It's Cam Newton, but don't forget about Joe Burrow, 2019, LSU, and oh my gosh, Barry Sanders.

He only played an 11 regular season games, guys. That is fair enough. I'll always remember coming back from 24-0 to beat Alabama, to seal it. We're back tomorrow.