College Football Live - CFB Live - 9/12 - Live from Knoxville

Episode Date: September 12, 2025

Join our crew Jen Lada, Desmond Howard, Stanford Steve and Pete Thamel live from Knoxville! Big matchups this weekend between 6 Georgia and 15 Tennessee, 16 Texas A&M visits South Bend to play 8 Notre Dame and 18 USF looks to show 5 Miami who runs Florida. Pete gives some injury updates to be on the lookout for and Stanford Steve gives some prop bets you may want to check out. All that and more coming to you on CFB Live. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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checker board end zones and site of tomorrow's big game between Georgia and Tennessee. We got fans. Boy, do we have fans. I'm in their spot for tomorrow morning's big show. I want to be in the front of the student section on game day tomorrow morning. This is college football live. And we are so happy that they are with us. We are so happy that you are with us.

Of course, Desmond Howard, Stanford Steve, the authority, Pete Thammell and I am Jen Laddie. Guys, we're not going to waste any time. Let's dig right into the big game taking place here in Knoxville tomorrow. And Gunter Stockton will lead the Bulldogs into Knoxville facing the Joey Aguilar-led Valls. It's the 55th all-time meeting between these familiar foes. UGA leads that series. Here's what Hypo had to say about their upcoming matchup today

on the Pat McAfee Show. I know our fan base is ready for this one. Boats have been tied up early in the week here, and you can tell it's a big game. It's going to be physical. That's at the line of scrimmage. It's out on the perimeter. You got to win with physicality.

You got to play smart, but you got to be really aggressive, too. And you got to play a complete game. Offense, defense, special teams, line of scrimmage is going to matter. You got to win on third downs offensively and defensively. Of course, Coach Heipel, referring to the Vol Navy, which will certainly be strong out there this weekend. Steve, I'll begin with you. What do the Valls need to do to secure the victory on Saturday? I believe they have to match Georgia's physicality for 60 minutes.

Last year at Athens, they matched it for 30. and then the second half they wore down and Georgia took it to them. It starts with matching the physicality when you play Georgia and with Tennessee with all the new moving parts. They've looked crisp. They've looked organized. But now you've got to match the intensity for 60 minutes and that's where it starts

for me. I could not agree with you more. That's going to be the name of the game. Who can control the line of scrimmage? Who's going to dominate the trenches? You look at Kirby Smart. I listen to his press conferences this week. He emphasized just how physical their brand of football is going to be. And Stanford, Steve, hit it on the

Listen, you come out in the Leland Stadium, you got the crowd behind, you're hyped up, you're amped up, and then you're going to match that physicality. But can you sustain it for four quarters? See, that's their brand, the Bulldogs brand of football. They want to wear you out, getting to the late third quarter, fourth quarter, drag you into deep waters, and then that's when they take over the game. So can Tennessee, offensively and defensively, especially in the trenches, match that physicality, like you said, for 60 minutes? Pete, what updates do you have for us on personnel in that game? Well, to get to the deep water, Tennessee's defense is going to have to slow down Georgia's pass game. They are obviously down two starting corners.

Both Ricky Gibson and Jermad McCoy are scheduled to miss this game. It's going to put a couple new players in decent positions, and it's going to be really interesting how they handle them. Let's start with Colton Hood. He's a transfer from Colorado. He's performed well. He leads the SEC and PBOs this year, and has really been a statement guy who's, has been pressed into coverage. Another player who we've got to watch this weekend, Jen, is Boo Carter.

He had some off-field issues, and it was touch and go whether he was going to play for this Tennessee team this year. He's likely to match up some with Zachariah Branch in the slot. He's the USC transfer who has the most diamondism of anyone on the field this weekend. So it would be interesting to see if Carter can slow down Branch. That's a matchup that may determine the game. All right. On the other side, of course, we have Georgia Gunner Stockton facing his first true road start in what

is going to be a very tough environment. These balls fans can make some noise, make it a hostile space. Right, guys? A little bit. That's my thought. Des, what are your expectations for that Georgia offense? I think Kirby Smart, he wants to come in here and wants to control the line of scrimmage. He wants to take the offense out of the game, right?

You want to take the crowd out of the game. And offensively, the way you do that is by running the ball, sustaining drives. That drains the crowd noise. start to get restless. They're not as amped up. And then at the end of those drives, they have to score touchdowns, not kick field goals, but they want to run the ball, sustain drives. Keep that Josh Hypo, high-powered offense on the sideline for like six, seven, maybe

eight-minute drives. And then at the end of those drives, they have to score touchdowns, not field goals. I totally agree with you with running the football. But just in general, they have to be more consistent offensively. They run the ball and then they get in a pass in situations, whether it's going to Gunner Stockton not having the confidence to throw the football. But again, up front, it feels like for two years, we've still haven't seen Georgia's get right offensive line.

And that's really effective in pass protection. You see it when you put on the tape, guys at different levels, not on the same page, and guys coming right through the A-gap and getting in Gunner's face. So there's a lot of intangibles that are factoring in their lack of consistency. And with the crowd noise that you guys have pointed out, it's a huge task for Georgia to get it. And they're not going to wow you.

They're not going to throw the ball 50 yards. down the field. They want to be methodical in their approach as we touched on before. So the consistency is the most important thing to me for Georgia. And Georgia has started sluggishly in other seasons, but they looked at last week against Austin Piers. So obviously time to turn the page,

playing a little SEC football. We expect them to be more dialed in. Let's go to our next game, Texas A&M and Notre Dame after a week off, Notre Dame hosting Texas A&M, fighting Irish looking to avoid their third O&2 start in the last 15 years. Look, a loss for Notre Dame,

would drop their chances to make the playoffs from 24 to 7, that according to the all-state playoff predictor. Notre Dame, meanwhile, fizzled out late a couple of weeks ago when they faced Miami. In the fourth quarter, take a look at these numbers. They allowed eight pressures, three sacks, both tied for second most in a quarter in the last five seasons. So we go to that game after that week one loss against Miami. What adjustment, Steve, do you need to see from Notre Dame for them to get the win this weekend?

I was surprised at how much zone coverage they played against Miami. I mean, Notre Dame got that Wind Street going last year because they had corners that would cover and then they could get pressure with minimal guys. I expect them to go back to it. I mean, this is a weird scenario. You play Sunday, a Labor Day weekend. You have a week off after a loss. I can see Marcus Freeman getting after his guys and saying, hey, we're going to go back

to doing what we do best. And that's to me playing man covers that helps your defense. You got a mobile quarterback in Marcel Reed. That defense has to be better, especially at home for the Irish. And you were surprised they didn't play as much man. They played so much zone. I was surprised that Jeremiah Love only had 10 carries. Now, coming to the 2025 season, I thought that their running back, Jeremiah Love, was probably the guy was going to win the Doke Walker Award because he was outstanding a year ago.

He only got 10 carries against Miami. And then you have Judarian Price. He had six carries. You're talking about your running backs combined only 16 carries. Now, I understand Miami's front, they pretty much control the line of scrimmage on defense, but you cannot allow people to take the best offensive weapon that you have on your team out of the game. So I think Mike Denbrock, he's going to kind of devise some plays now to make sure that Love gets his hands on the ball. We also expected Love to be a receiver threat for Notre Dame this year.

They might be able to try to work that. Absolutely. Great point. To your point about 10 carries, C.J. Carr had 11. Exactly. The quarterback. The crash. That's ridiculous.

Pete, go ahead and give us your update on quarterback Marcel Reed. Well, great news for the Aggies, Jen. Marcel Reed left that Utah State game late in the game. Didn't return. They said it was precautionary. He has been full go in practice this week for the Aggies. I was told essentially no limitations on Marcel Reed. He's really off to a hot start.

They're averaging 305 pass yards per game. And I don't think anyone here thought A&M's offense would be pass forward going into this season. Trey Zuh in the left tackle. He's good to go, too, Jen. All right. So what do you like about the Aggies so far, Steve? First of all, this game is a match with my two favorite coaches. I love Elko.

I love Mark and Schreemann, how they get after their guys. But they stay positive about their teams. And this is a big boy matchup. You know, must win. People are throwing out for Notre Dame. You don't want to start the season 0 and 2 because you don't have wins against ranked team on your schedule as of right now. So when I look at A&M, they've been great.

They scored plenty of points at home. But the run defense, they got diced up by UTS. just not things you're accustomed to seeing from a Mike Elko defense, and they lost a ton of NFL guys up front, but there's no excuses. They have to be better against the run. Because to your point, Notre Dame is going to feed Jeremiah, I love. They have to.

Like you said, the Aggies, they got diced up. I think UTSA average like over six yards per carry. But then it gets Utah State. I think they got the little run defense together, the only average Utah State only average two yards per carry. I look at this Aggies team and like, when you look at this scale, you say, okay, you circle the Notre Dame game. The games before that, you just want them to go out there and handle their business.

I give them credit for handling their business. It wasn't anything special or unique. This is the game that you circle. And if you're Mike Elko, this is the game that you're going to judge your team by. You will know what type of team you have in 2025 when you play Notre Dame. Your point does, I do think they locked it up a little bit, week two, after being a little surprised by how well the other team was able to go against them in week one. A Mike Elko defense, really? Let's talk Pete about what you got going on here.

Top stories for the week. Well, let's start tonight, Jen, in Tucson, Dylan Edwards, the star Kansas State tailback, will return for K State. Remember, he got injured in the first quarter of the Dublin game in week zero. You see the play here on that punt return. Just an awful start for Dylan Edwards this season. He's one of the most exciting players in college football. He averaged 7.4 yards per carry last year.

They're going to use him both in the run game and throw game. We'll see how much he can go tonight. He was deemed 50-50, but he's cleared to play. As for another Edwards, no relation, Billy Edwards, Wisconsin's quarterback, I was told to not expect him to play at Alabama. He's going to dress, he's going to warm up, he's going to take the trip with the team, but we're going to see Danny O'Neill again for the Wisconsin Badgers. It's obviously very interesting to those of us who live in Wisconsin, Jen,

that Maryland comes to town next week. That's obviously where Billy Edwards transferred from. We'll see if he's ready for that game. for the other game tonight. Ryan Stobb is the expected starter for Colorado. Coach Prime was very clear. Stob was taking all the first team reps in practice this week or a majority of them. He's one of the great stories in college football guys.

He was the third stringer coming into the year. Everybody was talking about Juju Lewis and Caden Salter. He simply went out and won the job in that Delaware game, and we'll get to see a lot more of him tonight. All right, the Buffaloes, as you just mentioned, they take on a Houston team that is 2 and 0, featuring dual threat cornerback Connor Wegman

and a defense allowing nine points into games. Coverage kicks off with college football countdown at 7. You can always watch that on the enhanced ESPN app. Still ahead on college football live. Florida's rocky start has the pressure

mounting in Gainesville. Is tomorrow at LSU make or break for Billy Napier and the Gators? We will discuss that next on College Football Live. This giving Tuesday, Cam H, is counting on your support. Together, we can forge a better path for mental health by creating a future where Canadians can get the help they need when they need it, no matter who or where they are.

From November 25th to December 2nd, your donation will be doubled. That means every dollar goes twice as far to help build a future where no one's seeking help is left behind. Donate today at camh.ca.ca.g.t. Join us on the show. Russell Dickerson performs in Candice Parker is your guest picker tomorrow morning for college game day, Saturday, 9 a.m. Eastern on ESPN and the ESPN app. Taking it back to last week, USF upset number 13, Florida. It was the Gator's first home loss to an in-state opponent, not named Miami or Florida State since 1938.

My goodness, their loss came at the hands of a game-winning field goal by South Florida's NICO, as time expired. So let's take a look at today's. road test presented by Goodyear. The Gators have had their fair share of struggles this season, ranking 13th in yards per game and mustering up just seven touchdowns in 11 red zone drives this season. They hope to figure it out against a stingy LSU defense tomorrow.

The question that everybody wants to know, guys, is, is Billy Napier on the hot seat? I will begin with you, Des. Izzy? I believe so, because, like, personally, I had high hopes for the Gators coming to this season. Like huge DJ Lagway fan. I thought that he was going to have a monster season if he stayed healthy because he's had just so many injuries throughout his young career. But when you watch this team as talented as they are, they shoot themselves in the foot with penalties

and things of that nature. The two categories that really would dictate if you lose a game, any coach would tell you, penalties and turnovers. And last week against USF, they had 11 penalties for over 130 yards. And these penalties either took points off the board. I'm talking about touchdowns that the Gator scored, or it helped us sustain drives for South Florida, especially that last drive that led to the game-winning field goal.

So it seems like it's really a culture problem. It's not a talent issue. They have the talent. But Napierre, he hasn't built the type of culture where these guys are disciplined enough to not do things that's going to hurt them throughout the game. and it's just sad to see because I believe that if they played up to their potential and eliminate the turnovers and the penalties,

then they can be one of the best teams in the SEC. That's what's frustrating to me, as you pointed out, it's a combination of mental mistakes and physical mistakes. And when you talk about DJ Lagway, he's a guy everyone had monster expectations for. But there's instances last week, there's three throws, deep balls, guys are wide open. He overthrows them. And, you know, now that goes back. He didn't do spring ball.

He didn't miss time during camp. So like the idea is to get consistent on offense. That's what Billy's offense is. They run the ball and then everything sets up off the play action. Now you combine that. You mentioned the penalties. They scored three touchdowns last week on one drive. All of them got called back.

Look, wins and losses. It's just unacceptable. And wins and losses obviously matter, but so do the financials, Pete. Yeah, Jen. So it's an interesting situation at Florida as modern college coach contracts go. If Billy Napier would be fired, he'd be owed about $20.4 million. half of that would have to be paid essentially immediately within the next 30 days. They call that a poison pill, and that would be a big chunk for Florida pay.

The other interesting nuance about his contract, Jen, is that there's no offset or mitigation. So that means if Billy Napier goes and gets a head coaching job somewhere else, Florida still has to pay him out in the full $20 million. So I don't expect anything to happen at Florida immediately, regardless of result this weekend or next. no team is going to fire their coach in modern college football before game four when the entire roster could go in the portal. And look, Scott Strickland was patient with Billy Napier last year. He gave him the vote of confidence and got him back when nobody thought would happen. I guess the left-handed compliment all close on is that Billy Naper has shown under duress he can keep a team together.

He's going to have to show that again. All right. Let's go to the LSU side of things, guys. What will be the X factor for the Tigers? I take along with Florida, I mentioned find imbalancing consistency on offense. LSU has to do the same thing. The lack of ability to run the football has really problem. You saw it last year in a letdown spot after the big win at Clemson.

The past game always gets helped out if you could run the football. It opens up your options, how you're going to throw the football. So to me, it's that offensive line and the want to run the football for LSU. I'll tell you what, LSU's defense under Blake Baker, man, from year one to year two, has been phenomenal, like a hell of a leap. Last year they made him the highest paid assistant coach, brought him over from Missouri. they struggled defensively. He's like, it's not a schematic issue.

It's a personnel issue. So they went into the portal deep. Got guys like Mansour, Delane, the transfer from Virginia Tech. He's like a chess piece back there, very versatile. I think the way that they're playing right now, I have not seen the more impressive defense as far as the whole, the defensive line, the linebackers, and the secondary. I haven't seen a more impressive defense so far this season.

And we didn't even dive in together. Garrett Nussmeyer, who, by the way, is frustrated. Teams 2-0, by the way, because he feels they've left points and plays out there on the field. That's all you need to know about this kid. It's a good sign. I think is one of the best quarterbacks in the country. All right, Steve, time for your gambling guide. What do you got for the fine folks?

Yeah, I'm going to look at the best offense I've watched this year, and that's USC. They go to Purdue conference game. Purdue's been a good story, 2-0. They've scored some points. USC's averaging 66 points a game. I like the over in that one. great game at Willie B Saturday night. I believe Vanderbilt's the better team.

South Carolina, they have the common opponent of Virginia Tech. I love what Pavia and that team bring to the table. They're fearless. They're not going to be afraid of the atmosphere. I like Vanderbilt plus the points. And in another late night game in the desert, Sam Levitt was brutal last week against Mississippi State. But now you've got to get right spot against Texas State

whose defense is not a strength. I believe Arizona State gets back on track. Texas State with G. Kenny, the head coach, always has a good offense. We're going to go over that total also. I keep wondering how much longer Pavia can have that chip on his shoulder. Forever, apparently. He keeps getting eligibility, so it could be a lot.

Great point. Good number five, Miami be on upset alert. USF's chasing a third straight ranked win, and the Bulls have their sights set on those canes. That's next on College Football Live. When you fly in Emirates business class and you're picked up by your private, luxury, chauffeur-driven car, You'll see that your vacation isn't really over until your flight is over.

Fly Emirates. Fly better. Back here on college football live, a beautiful day on the Tennessee River. Ball Navy getting ready for the big game at Neeland Stadium tomorrow. And we've heard good old Rocky Top, which is good. We're going to hear it a lot. Let's get to a big matchup when number five Miami hosts number 18 USF. Both teams led by solid quarterback play.

You've got Byron Brown for South Florida. Carson Beck, of course, a familiar name for the Hurricanes. Beck's 89 total QBR is fifth best in FBS this season, while Brown has scored a touchdown in five consecutive starts. So let's get to this game. How is USF doing this, Des? I tell you what, guys, I have to give Coach Golish and his staff a tremendous amount of credit. He has those guys believe in. Like, those guys believe they can win every game that they go in.

They're very competitive. They play a high-spirited game. They believe in each other. And they take advantage of other team's mistakes. Like I said, Florida, 11 penalties, they accepted all of those gifts, and they capitalized on them, too. So a well-coached team, they're not going to beat themselves, and they're going to force you in the mistakes that they're going to capitalize off of.

Well, all the credit to golish, right? They have the best pair of wins of anyone in the country. But before we coronate them and just enter them into the bracket and say they're going to be the G5 champion, I'm going to pump the brakes a little bit. This team is four and four, each the last two years in the AAC. So I want to see them go win some games. Florida gifted them that game. And I also want to see a little cleaner play by them.

They're averaging eight penalties a game. And they just can't do that if they're going to go win the AAC. What about Miami, Steve? I just love the way this team is built. And it starts on the lines of scrimmage. And in this matchup, I think it's important to know. Florida's defensive NFL talent didn't play last week. Miami's NFL talent's going to be there.

It's a really tough matchup for South Florida to come back after two great wins and match the physicality that Miami brings to the table. It's a tall task for sure. I like Miami. I agree with you. I was actually at Miami's practice this week, and those guys are locked in. Like, Mario Crystal Ball got those guys out there practicing like they're about to play Florida State.

They're not going to take South Florida for granted. I guarantee you that. Not after what they've done this season. Absolutely not. All right, guys, let's get to the game picks. They're brought to you by Dix. We start with Colorado at Houston. Steve, who do you like in this one?

I'm going to go with the home team. Houston here. Connor Wegman at quarterback. I think they score, outscore Colorado. I'll take. I'm going to go with the visiting team, Colorado. They got their quarterback, Ryan Stoff, former three star recruits. I'm going with the Colorado buffs. All right, Arizona at Kansas State, the other game. You all have to pick, Steve.

It's not even October, but this is an absolute must win for Kansas State, the way this season has ended with just brutal losses. I look for them to respond. Pete mentioned Edwards is back. He's their best player on offense. Kansas State at, Arizona wins. You know, so when they asked me this question, I didn't get the injury report.

I didn't know he was back and he is a star player. So I'm going with Arizona anyway. I think they're going to find a way to win this game, but that's huge for Kansas State getting him back. That's going to be big. Good stuff for you guys. You guys got a little Rocky Top back there for us? I heard Rocky Top playing before.

Can we get a little Rocky Top action? You'll hear it. I love that they're already lining up for college game day tomorrow morning. Of course, it comes your way at 9 a.m. we have a big show prepared for you. Lots of surprises in store. Of course, we have Candice Parker, the goat as our guest picker. I thought that would get a bigger response from these folks out there.

I don't know. It's hot Knoxville. Have a great one, everybody. Join us tomorrow morning at 9 a.m. Eastern for a college game day right here in Knoxville.