College Football Live - CFB Live Aug. 14 - Bama vs FSU | ISU vs KSU

Episode Date: August 14, 2025

On this episode of CFB Live Zubin Mehenti, Roddy Jones, Jordan Reid, and Katie George break down the week 1 matchup between Alabama and Florida State along with the week 0 matchup between Iowa State and Kansas State. They also discuss who has a prove it year and your ideal fantasy football draft? That's right! 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. Hey, I'm Zubin Mahenty coming up on college football live as we go out of the tunnel. We're nine days away from week zero. And the next installment of one of the longest continuous rivalries in America, ready to take the next step. And of all places, Dublin, Florida State University is coming off its worst season in 50 years.

why they are out to prove last year was a fluke. And speaking of Prove-it programs that over the last several years have gotten the benefit of the doubt every season are now fully in Prove-it mode this season. And with that, we welcome you to College Football Live with Roddy Jones, Jordan Reed and Katie George. I'm Zuban Mahenti. Katie joining us on behalf of our sideline series

where we talk to the top reporters in the sport to get their perspective. And if there's a fan base that needs a little perspective after a top 20-24 Florida State, Let's count the things that went wrong. Well, they had a 13-win season in 23, plummeted to two, as I said, at the top of the program. That is their worst outing in a half-century. But they have tried to turn the tide at quarterback with Tommy Costalanos, the transfer from Boston College,

who definitely has been a 10 on the swagger meter, and that's something a two-win team could always use. And, of course, the lifeblood of the sport is recruiting Florida State outside of the top 25. But when you consider it was a two-win season, all things considered, that's not too bad considering the circumstances. Let's start with Roddy. I know you were in Tallahassee earlier this week, despite all the doom and gloom that I just referenced. What did you sense the vibe was for Mike Norvell and the Seminoles? I think the vibe was pretty good. And look, this is the season for optimism.

So if you're not optimistic now, when are you going to be? But it's a different feel down there in Tallahasse. Mike Norvell has given up the play calling duties and is now the head coach. And that's allowed him to be involved everywhere across the field. So not seeing him directly with the quarterbacks with his hands on on exactly what's going on in every single one of their drills was different. Gus Malzon was running those drills. Gus Malzon was running the routes on air. Gus Malzon was running the walkthrough stuff on the offensive side of the ball.

And he looks invigorated. He looks passionate. He looks like he is ready to get this Florida State offense. There's also a different vibe on defense with Tony White coming over from Nebraska. There is a relentless pursuit of getting that reputation back for Florida State because they are all embarrassed by what happened last year. And even the people that weren't there last year, Katie, are really, really passionate about getting this place back where it needs to be.

Well, and rightfully so, because when Florida State's good at football, it's good for the overall sport across the country. And for whatever reason, Florida State season opener, Roddy, have seemed to be. indicative of the season that they've gone on to have overall. I've been lucky to have a couple of Florida State openers over the last few years. I had the Notre Dame game when it went to overtime in Tallahassee that season. They went on to go seven and five. In 2022, yes, Florida State opened week zero against Duquesne.

Fair enough. But then they played Brian Kelly for the first time at LSU down in New Orleans. And if you remember, that was the first time or in that game where it ended with the blocked extra point. They go on to have a nine and three season. So improvement there. They go on in 2020 to blow the doors off of LSU

in their season opener and go 13 in O miss out on the CFP. We'll save that saga for another time. Last year, I was in Dublin and I watched them lose a heartbreaker to Georgia Tech on the last second final field goal. Felt like they were kind of spiraling

already in that game. They go on to have one of the worst seasons ever in school history to go two and ten. And so I think for this Florida State team, this opener is extremely important. I don't think that they have to go out and beat Alabama, but I do think it needs to be competitive. I think it needs to be a close game for long so that those guys can go into the locker

and win or lose after and say, hey, we've got confidence in the guys that we brought in, the transfers we brought in, and the new members on staff that we have. If they have confidence down in Tallahassee after week one, I think that bodes well for Mike Norville trying to turn things around this season, Jordan. Well, Katie, you said it. This is a prideful program, and Mike Norville made it known that last season was unacceptable. by every single standard. And you can tell the additions that he brought in,

not just from the personnel staff, but also the players as well. They expect a bounce back season this season. You have to remember, they're one year removed from going 13 and 1 when Jared Burs and Braden Fiske and a lot of other transfers were there and the great personnel that they had

during that magical season. Mike Norville wants to get back to setting that type of standard. And I think they have an opportunity to do so. They have some pieces that they do have to incorporate that I'm really interested to see what happens this season. But they want to get to get to set. get back to the seminal standard of what we saw two seasons ago.

And Jordan, when we talk to the players down there, they all had the back of Tommy Castellanos with his comments in the offseason about Alabama. They're all confident. They all feel great. Now, look, it's different when you line up across the field from future NFLers and whether or not you can hold the point against an NFL tackle. But everyone down there supported what Tommy Castellano said. It probably wouldn't have said it the same way, but they certainly had their quarterbacks back with his confidence and his swag. No doubt. I'm going into my seventh season in working for ESPN. Never have I had my open hit, which is my first report when we come on the broadcast when we come on air. Never have I had my open hit written two months in advance to kickoff.

And I have Tommy Castellanos to thank for that. And Deonti Lawson for responding the way that he did. There's no doubt about it. Keep in mind, Norville gave back $4.75 million of his own salary and pumped it back into the program just to let the fans and the people that support the program know. I hear you, as Jordan said, not acceptable. Florida State's going to open their season against Alabama. This is going to be an absolutely huge game, of course, Alabama coming off year one with Kail and DuBow. Remember, their last three quarterbacks all won the national title or won the Heisman or made the playoff.

but those starters are all gone and in the NFL. And so, Katie, I want to begin with you here. It's been a long time since the starting quarterback at Alabama for college football fans at large has been an unknown quantity. But the bottom line is Ty Simpson's thrown 50 career passes. What do we need to know about this guy who sooner or later, for better or for worse, is going to become a household name in the sport? Yeah, no doubt about it.

I think anyone you spoke to in the offseason during spring ball would tell you that this was Ty Simpson. his job, his job to lose. So this week's announcement that he, in fact, won the starting job ahead of week one against Florida State. Wasn't necessarily surprising. He's an older veteran. Even to your point, though, he hasn't taken a lot of snaps.

He doesn't have very many starts to his name. But he's going into his fourth season at Bama. He didn't walk after years of being the backup, which I think says a lot about a kid, especially in this transfer-happy world that we're living in. He stayed behind Bryce Young, behind Jalen Milrow. He was a good teammate and he patiently waited his turn. And now the years of waiting have finally paid off.

But I think the most telling part of this entire situation, you guys, is that Kalin DeBoer believed in Ty Simpson enough to not feel the need to go dip into the transfer portal this off season. He said, I've got three quarterbacks. I'm going to ride with my guys. I believe in Ty Simpson enough that he can be QB1 at the University of Alabama. I think that says a lot, you guys. Yeah, Katie. And I think the offense is going to be a little bit.

different. And I know Kaelin DeBoer bought over some principles from Washington as far as the verbiage and the language that they were using in last season's offense. But Ryan Grub is going to bring back what we saw during their last season together at Washington when they went on that national title run before they ultimately ended up losing. But with this offense, I think it's going to be more wide open from a down the field perspective with more explosive throws. And we saw that briefly with Alabama last season. But as the season went along and defensive started to figure them out with Jalen Milrow, I think the offense got a little bit stale. But with Ty Synth, who's a little bit more of a polished passer than Jalen Milrow.

I think they're going to be able to run some concepts that they had during their time at Washington. And you know who that bodes well for, Jordan, is Ryan Williams, who had a stellar, obviously, freshman campaign at wide receiver. If you have a true pocket passer who can move the ball down field, that should be a dream for somebody like Ryan Williams, who I think is one of the most electric players in college football. I can't wait to see what Ryan Williams does in year two with Bama. I can't wait either, Katie.

And look, he's got Jeremy Bernard and Isaiah Horton there as well. So it's not just the Ryan Williams show. They got weapons all over the place. But we mentioned the comments that Thomas Castellanos made earlier in the offseason, essentially saying that Alabama doesn't have Nick Saban to save them. Deontay Lawson comes back at him saying he's going to have to prove it on the field and he's going to have to back that up. I just want to throw this out here.

Like, is Thomas Castellanos not a little bit right? Doesn't Thomas Castellanos's comments kind of show that the fear factor that Nick Saban brought is gone? And so Alabama's got to go out there and prove, hey, we may not have had Nick Saban. And we may have just had the first season since Nick Saban's first year that we didn't win 10 games. It's been since 2007. But this is still Alabama because if Sabin's on the other side, I don't think anybody's popping off like Thomas Castellanos did in the offseason. Well, I think Thomas Casillanos, so formal, Roddy, calling him Thomas instead of Tommy. But I think he proves the point because the fact that Lawson, the fact that Lawson actually responded to the question, to the media, that wouldn't have happened with Nick Saban running the show in Alabama.

And that's not to say that there's two different ways to skin a cat. Kailen DeBore is a much different coach. But I think that the fact that Lawson responded kind of answers the question that Tommy put out there from the get-go. Yeah, that's fair. It's not like Alabama and Florida State needed any more fuel to the fire to get the excitement going. But clearly, these guys have provided it. On the way, we talked about it, week zero, Kansas State, Iowa State, with the latter coming off its best season ever.

So what's in store next for the Cyclones? We'll hear from Matt Campbell nine days away from kickoff in Ireland. Next. We have a real football happening for the first time in March. It's Farmageddon. It's an air-lingous football classic on one. Week Zero in Dublin. Saturday, August 23rd, a couple of FCS games on ESPN 2 as well as football is back.

And Matt Campbell, Iowa State's head coach, has one word to describe this whole experience. As uniquely challenging as this opportunity is, the word opportunity is right. What a great experience for the fan bases, the universities, the schools, and to play in this kind of setting, I still think it's really special. I think when there's respect, especially within a rivalry, you're just grateful to be a part of something like that. You know, we're really fortunate here that we have been able to get our program to a place where we can play really meaningful rivalry games. And this certainly is one of them. Katie, let's start with you. It is interesting to have a Big 12 game in week one league play, not played on either team's campus.

But you kind of understand the logistical challenges both of these teams are going to have because you covered last year's Aer Lingus Classic. Take us inside what both teams are kind of getting into here. Well, first of purpose, it was so much fun. And I echo what Matt Campbell said. And I know the game logistically is a lot for these teams to make the trip over to Dublin and then get back and prepared for next week's game. But it is a huge opportunity to showcase your team's brand. We're desperate for college football to start. This is your opportunity to kick off the season with all eyes on you.

And last year, you know, after Georgia Tech beat Florida State, Brink Key went viral post game when he said, runs. the damn ball. I mean, that was Roddy's former team's rallying cry all season long. So this is your chance to show people who you are as a team, what you stand for as a program in front of millions of people. So I do agree with him. It's a massive opportunity. And I think what you're going to see when Iowa State takes the field is a super talented team led by Rocco Beck. I mean, Rocco Beck is one of my favorite players to watch because he is tough as nails. I love the way he plays. He gets it, gets right back up and continues to fight for his guys. That was apparent 12 title game.

And even though this group is coming off its best season yet, an 11 and 2 season, the guys will tell you, especially at Big 12 media days, they felt like they underperformed. Rocco Beck said, yeah, it was fantastic. It was historic. We are hungry to be the first ever group at Iowa State to win a Big 12 title.

That's their focus. They want to be on that level, Jordan. And the best way to do that is go out, kick some button, Dublin, send a message to K State, send a message to the rest of the Big 12th of title teams. Yeah, Katie, the least of their concerns is quarterback Brocko Beck, but the biggest question mark heading into the season for the Cyclones is who is catching the ball for him this year.

And they have a host of transfers that they are going to be counting on a lot this year. One is Xavier Townsend. He's one that I'm really interested to see how he does end up playing this year. And you have to remember, they lost two big NFL draft picks who went on day two and Jaden Higgins and also Jalen Noel. But Xavier Townsend, along with Chase Sewell, transferred from East Carolina. And then also remember this name, Brett Eskelson, who's a sophomore that's really turning heads in training camp as well. So I think it's going to be more so of a committee approach with them this year as opposed to being so top-heavy with Nolan Higgins and how it was a season to go.

So I think they're going to be able to grow throughout the season with Rocco Beck. But that is the biggest question mark for the cyclones entering the season is who steps up in this wide receiver core. Totally agree with you on Rocco Beck. Roddy, I want to go to you on the other team's quarterback. You know, a lot of people said, we can do better than Will Howard, you know, that guy that won the national championships. We're going to let him go and bring in Avery Johnson. I think a lot of people felt like he was good but not great last year. What are you expecting this year for him under center?

I think he needs to take a step, Zubin, and particularly in the past game, 58% completion percentage last year. It's just not going to cut it. There was too much inconsistency when he was delivering the football. I think there's some fundamental work that he could do in the pocket in terms of, his base and his setup, his delivery, that'll make him more accurate. But you're right. This was the guy who was one of the highest rate of recruits

that Kansas State had ever got. Came from the state of Kansas. The reason they let Will Howard walk is because they wanted the dynamic Avery Johnson to have an opportunity to be able to go out there and prove that he was worth all the hype. And he is electric with his legs.

But the consistency throwing the football is a step that he's going to have to take this year. Kansas State is going to contend for a Big 12 championship. Well, you said the operative word, and that is prove. We'll see what he's able to do in a very competitive Big 12. But when it comes to proving it, let's go into that subject a little bit more. Roddy, let's go back to you. Give me a team that after what you saw last year and the expectation generally placed upon

these teams that we talk about every day on these shows needs to prove it to you. I'm going to go with Michigan, and Michigan's in the news. It seems like all the time for off the field reasons. But after winning their last three games a year ago, it felt like there was a lot of momentum with this Michigan program, knocking off Ohio State after Thanksgiving, knocking off Alabama in the bowl game. And everybody was willing to give Sharon Moore a bit of a mulligan on year one. We just came off a national championship.

Jim Harbaugh left. It was late. It's okay if we don't make the college football playoff. I don't think that's going to be the case here in year two. So I think this is a year where Sharon Moore and Michigan prove that with improved quarterback players, they should get. They were one of the worst quarterback teams in the conference last year. 15th in QBR in the Big 10.

There weren't even 15 teams in the Big 10 a couple of years ago. 15th last year, that has to be better. And with average quarterback play, this should be a team that contends in the Big 10 and is in the running for a college football playoff. I think that's fair, Roddy. And I think when you look at the Big 12, Utah would be the team that I would pick that has a lot to prove.

I'm very curious to see how Kyle Whittingham's group responds. They made the move from the Pac-12, and everyone expected the youths to go in and win a Big 12 title. They finished five and seven. Now, a lot of that has to do with injuries. And they had to play five different quarterbacks over the last two seasons. I mean, that's a tough hand for anybody. But this season, Winningham went out and he hired New Mexico offensive coordinator, Jason Beck, who had the Lobos ranked fourth in the nation in total offense. And winningham, you didn't stop there. He said, I'm taking your offensive coordinator. I'm also taking your QB. Devin Dampier is now going to be in Utah. And he had a fantastic season a year ago through over 2,500. yards, rushed for over 1,000. Not very many guys can do that. So I'm extremely excited to see him take his game to another level and see how he can play at the Power 4 level. And then lastly, Winningham told us at Big 12 Media Days, he said, this is the best offensive line I have had since I've been at Utah. The man has been there for 21 seasons. That's saying something. They've got two first

rounders and tackle. They've got three seniors in the interior. I think it all starts up front. If that offensive line is able to move the football. I think Utah is going to be in really good hands, but they got to prove it and put it all together, Jordan. Yeah, Katie, I'm excited to see those two tackles in Spencer Final and also Caleb low move, but I'm going to go to the SEC and LSU. I think LSU has something to prove this year. And we have to remember, they're 0 and 3 during Brian Kelly's 10-year season openers,

and it does not get any easier this year. They have to go into Clemson in week one. And there's a lot going on at LSU right now from a personnel standpoint. Offensively, they have four new starters along the offensive line. They have to replace over a thousand snaps over the past few seasons there. They bring in two SEC transfer wide receivers and Nick Anderson, then also Barry and Brown four quarterback Garrett Nussmeier. And then also defensively, they could have five new starters who are incoming transfers

led by Patrick Payton, the defensive end that comes over from Florida State. So my eyes are on LSU. Brian Kelly has a point to prove this season. So I'm interested to see what happens in Baton Rouge. Interesting answers for all. I just want to follow up with Roddy real quick with Michigan, just to give my just two cents here. They have five quarterbacks in their room, and the guy that's leading the charge is a guy that was in high school last year. So that tells you what a prove it year it is.

Now, speaking of quarterback, you may have heard in the off season or late last season, Andrew Luck became Stanford's GM going back to his alma mater. It's a very interesting situation with the Cardinal. We'll get into that in a second. But first, Luck just wanted to remind our ACC Road Tour and everybody else. There's a lot of benefits. I'm going to Stanford. earlier this year when I made a coaching change, I mean, you know, trying to figure out who the next head coach would be. I told a couple of the captains of the team, you know, this isn't the NBA. We don't tank for the first pick in college football.

It's about winning, right, in a winning culture, in a winning process, and setting ourselves up to give ourselves the best chance to win. We are embracing the changes. And when participating in revenue share, you know, to the max, we realize that, look, we've got to be competitive. And that means embracing the changes in college sports. I still believe in the, we still, we still, believe in the holistic offering of a place like Stanford, right? And what it means to come in as a young man and grow and self-actualize and be challenged and learn about yourself. But we're making progress every day as a team and excited to see where this goes. On that note, Roddy, Cliff Notes version, they fired head coach Troy Taylor and they hired

Frank Reich, his old coach on the staff at the Colts to be a one and done. So if you've got a one and done coach and the players know it, the coach knows it. it and the GM knows it. Tell me the dynamic that could unfold on the farm. What feels like the message that Andrew Luck is giving is the one that they're going to follow. Frank Reich has been very clear that this is Andrew Luck's program, Andrew Luck's vision, and they're going to try and mold it to that. And if there's any time that this can work with a one-and-done coach, it's now because no matter who Andrew Luck goes and hires, if you're invested and you can pay players at market rate, then you're going to get great players. The thing is, is Stanford

willing to let those players in in the transfer portal, they're going to have to do it through traditional recruiting only. That would make it really tough to build this thing the way Andrew Luck wants it. Yeah, Luck's new boss, the new AD at Stanford, by the way, was the CEO of Nike and PayPal. So he's got some coffers to dig into if he wants to. TBA on that. On the way here on college football live,

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IKEA, bring home to life. Hey, one for the road before we get out of here. After Yukon finishes their regular season opener later this month, they're going to allow fans that go to the game to use the stadium suites to hold their fantasy draft. Pretty sweet idea leading to the question. Let's start with you. Katie, one word answers.

A couple words here. The best ideal place to hold a fantasy draft is? My house, I have renovations that I need to afford. I'm going to go drive-in movie theater. That's my answer. I guess I'll be the different one. I'm going to say Jamaica, where my honeymoon was. Oh, wow.

Great Scott. I vote for that. Come on. We'll see him on.