College Football Live - CFB Live - 9/16 - What's Next?

Episode Date: September 16, 2025

Join our crew Zubin Mehenti, Harry Lyles Jr, Tom Luginbill, Pete Thamel and Heather Dinich for College Football Live. The team breaks down what we should expect from Arch Manning as the season progresses. Dabo Swinney fires off on the lack luster start of the season for Clemson and Heather gives her thoughts on what Notre Dame needs to do after falling to Texas A&M last week. We'll have Utah's head coach Kyle Whittingham join the show as his team prepares for Texas Tech this week. All that and more on CFB Live! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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. Out of the gate on college football live, the temperature rising on Arch Manning. Our experts here to tell you why the temperature should be cooling, if anything. Clemson and Notre Dame's fan base is cooling a little bit on season-long expectations. are guys on why one school is in far better shape than the other. And as they get ready for the biggest game of the Big 12 season to date, Kyle Whittingham stops by to talk about his most interesting recruiting job

in over 20 years on the job. And with that, we welcome you inside college football live with Tom Lugentville, Harry Liles Jr. I am Zubin Mahenty. Let's get right to it. Arch Saturday. 11 for 25 against U-TEP. At one point, missed 10 consecutive throws.

and the booze were out. They got Sam Houston State, Saturday 90 ESPN Plus, then a bye week, and then Florida. And Arch knows it's got to get better and better right now. Yeah, it was frustrating. Obviously, because I know I'm better than that, but, you know, we're going to be better this week and we're going to get clicking on offense,

and I'm excited to get going. I think I just need to go out there and play my game. I know the type of athlete and type of player I am, just go cut it loose, and has some fun, play ball. That's the attitude to have his 22% off target rate, the worst in the FBI. This is sort of a new stat that's worked its way

into the lexicon, but that's not a number where you want to be. Let's talk about it, Lugues. I want to start with you. I only say this half jokingly. We spent all of last week talking about Arch and his grimaces and his facial expressions. Tell us why the fans of Texas shouldn't be grimacing right now and why this story might be in the minds of many a little overblown.

Well, because it's low-hanging fruit. I don't know if we're having this much of an in-depth discussion if his name's Arch Johnson or Arch Smith. You knew that this was what it was going to be about when your last name is Manning. He knew it. The entire world knew it. But I don't know as we look at the quarterback position, which of course gets more credit than when it's due and more blame than when it's due.

But there's also other issues at play here with the offense. You know, the running back room is banged up. They're down both of their starters. The offensive line's been a bit banged up, particularly at Senate. They've lost a first rounder at receiver, a first rounder in the offensive line. I think that they can do a better job of helping it. But most importantly, with Arch Manning, he's got to stay away from the hero ball mentality. There is nothing wrong with chucking the ball into the sixth row and then live into play second and ten.

Play within yourself, make the routine plays routinely. And then when those moments come, you're going to be able to make those moments. This guy has not played a lot of football, Harry. And I think that's the one thing. We assume that he was just going to jump on the field and be right. ready to go right now and it was going to be flawless. I don't think that's reality. Yeah, I totally agree with you, Luges. And the fact that, like you said, his last name is Manning, the expectations were never going to be realistic. There were never going to be things

that he could meet. And obviously, people feel like, oh, it's easy to say that now after the fact. But when you look at things realistically, right, like you mentioned that this offensive line is new. They've been banged up a little bit. We knew that the running game was potentially going to be a strong point for them. They've also had some injuries back there. And also, they lost a first round wide receiver in Matthew. and store. There are some new pieces here. There's still going to be some figuring, figuring things out to do. But also the one thing that you can't just make appear out of magic, excuse me, is actual game reps. A lot of coaches and teams talk about trying to make their practice reps, replicate those of game reps. As hard as you try to do that, there is nothing like playing actual live football. And it's different when you're doing it in the SEC. And obviously, you know, it hasn't been against all SEC competition. Game one was against Ohio. state, but I still think having any sort of game reps, live game reps is something that is so

invaluable and he just had his sixth start this past Saturday. So look, like, there's been promised there. He hasn't looked completely terrible this entire time, but you still need those game reps. Yeah, and listen, Harry, the throws, the glaring misses are why everybody is so concerned. And listen, I'll be the first one to sit there and say, there's some easy shots right there that you got to make if you have somebody of his physical attributes and talent. But also there's been some plays that you watch and make and you're going, wow, that was really, really impressive. The problem is the negative always overshadows the positive.

But I thought that Archmanning said something very important in his own interview right there. Because I just got to cut it loose and play and have fun. And he's right. Don't worry about all the outside noise. Line up and play the game. And you know what? Have fun. Grip it and rip it, kid.

Turn it loose. You make a mistake. You forget about it. to the next play and your coach is going to support you. There's no doubt about it. Speaking of a coach that needs to support his guys and people are wondering why exactly he's supporting his guys would be Davosweeney. We're going to get into that now with the Capital One rewarding performance.

And this is after the latest Clemson stumble. This course came Saturday, 55 yards for Georgia Tech to announce their arrival in the ACC race. What a win for Georgia Tech. You think it's bad for Clemson? moments ago, Davos Sweeney, listen to this. Hey, listen, I mean, the Clemson's tired of winning. They send me on my way, but I'm going to go somewhere else and coach.

I ain't going to the beach. Hell, I'm 55. I got a long way to go. Y'all going to have to deal with me for a while. If they want me gone, if they're tired of winning, they can send me on their way because that's all we've done is win. So if they tired of winning, we've won this league eight out of the last 10 years. Is that not good?

I think that was rhetorical, but I'll answer it. It is good. These are some eye-opening comments. I can see the looks on all three of the guys' faces. So we're going to weigh in with everybody. Pete, let's start with you, though, because there's a lot of things we have to know that kind of went into some of those comments that we just heard from Coach Sweetie. Sure. I think ultimately the frustration at Clemson, three games into this season, Zubin, has been the impotence of their offense. their sub 100 in numerous major important categories like scoring and running the ball and total offense.

Three seasons ago, they made a targeted strike hiring Garrett Riley soon after he was the offensive coordinator on TCU's national title team. They brought him in for a pretty price tag to rev up that offense. Other than a glimpse late last season when we saw things flowing with Cade Clubnick, we haven't seen that under Riley's offense. Now, there have been key injuries on offense. Antonio Williams, the slot receiver, is the biggest playmaker in Clemson's offense. Anyone loses their left tackle like Tristan Lee. Both those guys have basically been out for the last two full games plus part of LSU. So we will see if Clemson's offense gets some flow when those guys eventually return,

which is expected to be near turn, if not sooner. Yeah, listen, there have been injuries. There's no doubt about it. But there is enough pure talent in depth on this offensive football team where if you didn't look at who else was on the field and you just watched Cade Clubnick, you wouldn't know that Antonio Williams wasn't on the field. You wouldn't know maybe their left tackle

wasn't on the field. For whatever reason, Cade Clubnick has regressed. This almost looks like the 2002-23 Clemson offense. He's hesitant. He's indecisive. Doesn't look like he's trusting what he's seeing.

He's been sloppy with the football. The urgency that he showed the ability to get the ball of his hand and anticipate a year ago and throw guys open and throw guys before they're coming out of their breaks was exactly what everybody was hoping they'd see from Kade Klovenik when he arrived out of high school. And you saw that last year. And that's why

everybody was so excited. Listen, there's nobody more frustrated than Davos-Sweeney. Probably nobody more frustrated than Garrett Riley and Kate Klobnik. But the bottom line is, and this is a reality situation. Kek-Klebnick is not a first-round draft choice at quarterback. Kitt Kovnik is probably a third to fifth round draft choice at quarterback. And a lot of people say, oh, you're out of your mind. Okay, well, all I know is with that ability around them, And that returning level of production, he should be producing at a much higher level than he is. Yeah, without question, Luke, I think to me that's the one really actual concerning thing here with Clemson. But I laugh here at the beginning of Davosweeney's comments because he really is sort of explaining the absurdity of college football fandom.

Like college football fans, and I mean this in a complimentary way, are the most unreasonable people on the planet. Clemson has had its most success underneath Davosweeney both with championships and with consistency. And he's correct. He's just going to continue to win. And Pete, you and I had this conversation last year at same time with this Clemson team when they had early losses. We said, we're probably going to get to the end of the year and we're going to look at Clemson. They're going to have improved and they're going to be in the race. And sure enough, they were right there. We did that a couple of years ago as well. I don't think there's any shame in losing to an LSU team that most of us believe is one of the top five teams in the country and a Georgia Tech team, which was really good last year. years to be an ACC contender this year. Clemson could be doing a heck of a lot worse than what they've done. I think they just need to find that consistency and prove as the year goes along and we're

probably having a different discussion by the end of the year. I mean, guys, did we really just need Tyler from Spartanburg to reemerge to ignite this program? It feels like they need a spark. Does anyone know where Tyler is? You're the reporter. Go get it. Go find it.

Let's go. Come on. Let's see what you got. You know, the thing is, and I, agree with Dabo Sweeney. Winning's hard. And when you win as much as they have, you become a victim of your own success

because fan bases, alumni, boosters, supporters, they all become conditioned to think that it's going to be easy every week. And it actually gets harder every week because now you get everybody gunning for you. And listen, like I said before, is everybody disappointed in this start for Clemson?

Absolutely. But please have an appreciation for the level of success of that program and how hard it is to sustain it. And it's not as if the sky is falling in Clemson, South Carolina. There is time to write this ship, but clearly there are areas that need to be addressed because the defensive players on that team, which features multiple first rounders, cannot continue to carry this team the way they have in keeping them in games. Fair enough.

As you take a look at the remainder of their schedule, it's going to be tough sled. You know how the committee tends to feel about. three lost teams in this new 12-team format, though I should note. Clemson, of course, made it last year as, you get it, a three-lost team. On the way, I don't think Kyle Winningham is feeling some of the heat that Davos-Sweeney is, but he is himself

coming off a down year, why he simply couldn't walk away after 2024. He'll join us. And speaking of the playoff, I know it's September 16th, but is there one team that's really in trouble? Our playoff insider, talk about them next. College Football Live is brought to you by IberoGast, six digestive symptoms, the power of nature, Iberogast.

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We're back on College Football Live. Here are your rankings presented by Goodyear. Ohio State maintains this top spot. Penn State angling in a couple weeks for a big one with number six Oregon. That appears to be the next title. Titanic clash on deck for college football fans. Notre Dame, nowhere in that top 10, but they are hanging on to the bottom vestiges of the top 25. Speaking in at 24, they are 0 and 2 have yet to win a game, though I should mention.

At this point, they have played the number 4 team in the country and the number 10 team of the country as of this very moment, and they have lost both games by a combined four points. It's a pleasure to be joined by our college football insider, Heather Dinnich, along with Tom and Harry. Heather, let's start with you. I don't want to be too alarmist, but that's what these shows are. It's September 16th. It's September 16th, and we're already talking about the Irish and their playoff possibilities as they sit at 24. How do you see the whole situation? Technically, they're not eliminated because there's, as you mentioned, a lot of football left to be played. But Notre Dame is under tremendous pressure for a lot of things. Not only do they have to

win out, they have to look good in the process. They need to. to hope that some of those opponents like maybe USC, maybe Boise State are ranked by the college football playoff selection committee come selection day. Because this is where not being in a conference can hurt them. They don't have the opportunity to lock up a spot as a conference champion. They don't have an opportunity to impress the selection committee with one more game against a ranked opponent in a conference championship game. So their 12-game schedule, needs to stand on its own in the committee meeting room. And I don't know if it's going to do that right now

because we've got to see how everything else shakes out. They're probably going to need some help. But right now, according to the Allstate Playoff predictor, their chances to reach the CFP are 6%. It definitely seems slim, Heather. And Matt Brown, who writes the extra points newsletter, actually looked up the last time that a team started 0.2 and remained ranked. And it was the 1988, Michigan Wolverines.

ended up winning out that season and finished ranked number four. So there is, you know, some precedent. It's been a long time. But if you look at this schedule, a lot of people have talked about, you know, where are they going to make up ground here. I think if you look at that stretch where they play, Boise State, NC State, who Luke's and I just saw this past weekend and USC. And even that Arkansas game, you go up against a quarterback like Tailing Green. That's not a, you know, it's not an easy stretch. And obviously, we saw last year Notre Dame lost to Northern Illinois. And they ended up proving that they improved as the season progressed. And the committee clearly takes that into consideration and even when you look at the two games that they have lost, they are

arguably two of the 10 best teams in the country by a combined 12 points. So obviously, if you're Notre Dame, you would prefer to at least get one of those wins. I think you, if give most other teams that same two game schedule. They are also probably 0 and 2, but a lot of room here to make up for Notre Dame that I think that there's still some opportunity. Yeah, I definitely think there is. And you mentioned NC State. Well, let's just say NC State were to finish 9 and 3, 10, and 2. One of their losses is to Notre Dame. What if SC finishes 9 and 3, 10, and 2? One of their losses is to Notre Dame. So clearly the schedule can help them going forward, but they're going to need the teams remaining on that schedule to have solid successful seasons. And listen, at the end of the day,

as we look at teams coming through the first two to three weeks of the season, not everybody had to play Miami in Texas A&M. Penn State didn't. Georgia played Austin P and Marshall the first couple of weeks. So we've seen a scheduling discrepancy here. And listen, to Zubin's point, you lost two games by a total of four points. One of them's on the road to really good football teams. I think two very, very good football teams. And statistically, you're going to look at Notre Dame, you're going to say, boy, particularly on defense, they are not a good looking football team statistically. On the hoof, and as you look at them through the lens, you're going to say, hey, they got athletes. They've got to play better. So they're kind of just tinkering.

and they're in the middle right now. Fair enough. Last point. We'll think about this in December. What if this all comes down to a missed extra point? Just food for thought if you watched it Saturday night. Now elsewhere on Saturday, it's the biggest game of the week for sure in the Big 12. Maybe the biggest game of the season to date in the league as Texas Tech takes on Utah. Probably heard that Tech won the off season in the Big 12 with all their acquisitions. But there are many think that resurgent Utah is set to win.

the conference regular season crown. And it's a pleasure to welcome Kyle Whittingham inside college football live as he gets ready for a morning kick Saturday in Salt Lake City. First things first. What concerns you most about the Red Raiders? Well, they're playing great offense right now. I mean, they're first or second in the nation in total yards and first or second in the nation in points. I think it's first in points and second total yardage. So very explosive on offense.

Quarterbacks playing well. receivers are making plays up the field. Offensive line is efficient, and the backs are doing a great job. I also like their tight ends. They've got a couple really nice tight ends. So got to try to slow that offense down somehow, some way. Well, somebody's got to try to start a line to the Utah offense as well. You mentioned how good Baron Morton has been, but your guy, Dan Pierre, has been outstanding.

I know recruiting is different now, but take me inside the quote-unquote recruiting of Dan Pierre and his offensive coordinator, Jason Beck, to join you in tandem in Salt Lake City. Right. You know, we're on the look for, or on the hunt for a new offensive coordinator after the season. And in our OC, Andy Ludwig, had resigned during the season. And so we were doing a nationwide search. And I had my assistant, Morgan Scali, our defensive coordinator, you know, helping with the search. And we both independently went about our business and looking at coordinators. And then we met. And we both had the same guy at the top of our list, Jason Beck. And so we reached out and got that done and got Jason on board.

And it wasn't long after that his quarterback at New Mexico went into the portal, Devin Dampier. And obviously that was a no-brainer to try to marry them back together again and get him in our program. And the recruiting visit went well. And he obviously had a big time reason to come here, knowing the offense and having worked with Jason the previous season. and so it all worked out and so far so good.

So far, so good indeed. You know, last year after the game against UCF, you publicly said you weren't sure whether you were going to come back. People were talking. It was the biggest story in all of Utah sports across the board in the whole state. No, real coach. What was the deciding factor to return? Well, last year was such a downer.

It was so frustrating. It was, you know, when we played UCF, we were on our fifth quarterback, literally. I mean, the other four had gotten hurt. and so it was a situation where I just didn't feel comfortable going out on that note. Wanted to try to come back or come back and get things headed back in the right direction. And, you know, through three games, we feel pretty good about where we're at. But a lot of tough football ahead. But that was the driving factor and the driving force was not being able to come to terms with stepping out on such a frustrating season.

I think anybody can relate to that. Last thing, you invoked Morgan Scali, your defensive court, earlier in our chat. He is your designated coach in waiting, which used to be a big thing in college football. It's pretty rare these days. Just how might that decision that that has been made and the trust you have at him affect

when you eventually do walk away from your legendary tenure there? Well, it'll have a big impact and already has had a big impact in recruiting. You know, when a coach is getting near the end of his career, recruits want to know what the future holds. And here at Utah, we can tell them exactly

what the future holds. It'll be a seamless transition when I step down and Morgan takes over. And so that's really been a big plus force in recruiting to have an answer for these recruits as to what our future looks like here and who's the next guy in line. Yeah, bottom line, I know you have a great relationship

with Alex Smith. I know he's going into the ring of honor. He's a college football Hall of Famer and dare I say, I think both of those things are in your future as well down the line. Thanks for joining us and best luck this Saturday. All right. Appreciate you having me on. Thank you very much. Still to come on Sunday in a span of

10 minutes, Virginia Tech and UCLA fired their head coaches. Major inflection points for both. What's next for both? That's next. Black Friday is here at IKEA, and the clock is ticking on savings you won't want to miss. Join IKEA family for free today and unlock deals on everything from holiday must-haves

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Brett Pry, Deshaun Foster, within 10 minutes of each other on Sunday. We're both dismissed by their programs. Pete is back. Give us some of the intel we need to know here on these two jobs, Pete. Well, Zoom, and it's early. Both schools are expected to target successful head coaches after failed tenures of assistant coaches that they hired. Before any sitting head coach can take these jobs seriously, they need to know what the financials look like. UCLA paid Deshawn Foster the same salary that some Big Ten schools are paying their coordinators. A lot of people

mentioned Shane Beamer for Virginia Tech. Well, he's making nearly twice as much as they were paying Brent Pry. They need to get their finances in order and pitch candidates on what the job will look like in the next iteration. Fair enough. Tom, go ahead. Better job. Virginia Tech. UCLA is not serious about being a premier football program. They don't believe in making it the doorstep of their university. At least Virginia Tech does from a top-down alignment standpoint. Much better job right now. All right. That'll do it for today. Back with more college football live right here tomorrow on ESPN2. See you then. Thank you.