College Football Live - CFB Live - Final Week 12 Preview

Episode Date: November 14, 2025

On today's episode of CFB Live, Jen Lada, Stanford Steve, Desmond Howard, and Pete Thamel preview the big matchups in week 12, including Notre Dame/Pittsburgh, Texas/Georgia, and Oklahoma/Alabama. All this and more on CFB Live! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When you're flying Emirates business class, relaxing in an exclusive airport lounge, you'll see that your vacation isn't really over until your flight is over. Fly Emirates, fly better. College Football Live is presented by Vanguard. We are on stunning college campuses every single week, but the backdrop this week is truly unmatched. Downtown Pittsburgh, the site of Saturday's big game between Notre Dame and Pitt. And I think I know who those folks are cheering for. Welcome into another edition of College Football Live.

A fantastic group here. We've got Desmond Howard. We've got Stanford Steve. He's the authority, Pete Thammel, and I am Jen Lata. three weeks remaining in the regular season and things are tightening up in the race to make the playoffs, although it still feels like there are a lot of contenders out there. And this game certainly includes some. Notre Dame and Pitt facing off here in the Steel City. Major test for both teams. This is Notre Dame's last game against a ranked opponent. And Pitt only has

two wins against an opponent with a winning record. Both coaches understand the matchup and they previewed it this week. We'll start with Coach Narduzi on if this game, is a must win for his squad. It is not an ACC game. I'm glad you brought that up. It's not an ACC game. You know, I gladly get beat 103 or 110 to 10 in that game. They can put 100 up on us as long as we win the next two after that.

But again, our focus is on Notre Dame and getting as many wins as we can. Yesterday, somebody texted me, it's a trap game. I said, this is not a trap game. This is a challenge. This is a real challenge. great challenge. And so we have to understand the challenge that we have ahead of us on Saturday and use that as, again, a reminder to prepare the right way to take care of what we have. And that's what's right in front of us. And so we've got to get to work and we've been getting to work

and we've got to continue to do it. All right, Des, you were chuckling to yourself during those responses. What stood out to you? Well, I thought that Narduzi made a really interesting statement, right because you know he understands what's at stake for his team but he also understands what's at stake for Notre Dame don't forget Notre Dame they do not have a conference championship game so every game that they play is a play in for the CF the college football playoff like you have to look at it that way and so for him to say ah you know it's just another game for us I mean it's not an ACC matchup for us so you know we can get blown out it puts a lot of pressure to me on Notre Dame because do you see when Coach Freeman get asked the question.

He's like, you know, this is a trap. This is not a trap game. Like, well, who told you it's a trap game? So that lets you know that his players, they're looking at this game like, oh, okay, it was a trap game before this statement was made. Now he understands that, yeah, I got to go and redirect the mentality of my team if they think this is like a trap game. Interesting.

Maybe some mind games being played there by Coach Norduzzi. All right, let's move on. This is a very big game for Notre Dame, obviously, even if Narduzzi wants to minimize it with his squad. What are you focused on in this one, Pete? Well, if Pitt is going to lose 103 to 3 to 3, they're going to have a new kicker kicking that field goal. Trey Bikowski, their starting kicker, who's really been a star for them this year, 19 to 21 field goals. He is out for this game with an undisclosed illness. They will be starting for kicking duties, a redshirt sophomore named Sam Carpenter. He has handled

kickoffs for Pitt this year, but this will be his first time as the starting kicker. He has kicked two career extra points, one against Youngstown State, one against Wofford. slightly more pressure in that building tomorrow. Absolutely. Des, what will you be focused on? Notre Dame's running game. I mean, I'll tell you what. I think Jeremiah Love is just sensational. He's one of the best players in the country and you look at Narduzzi

in this defense. They get their linebacker. The strength of the team is their linebackers. They have Braylin Love Lace, Rashim Bowes, and Kyle Lewis, but go up against Judarian Price. Jeremiah Love I mean, this is probably the best one-two punch in all of college

football. Both of them can go the distance at any time, they're strong, they're big, they're fast. And number four, love, he's extremely athletic. Kind of reminds me of like a Melvin Gordon when he was at Wisconsin. Yeah, he's just incredible, incredible. He's not getting

a cough from behind. No, sir. That's what I noticed, because he's done it enough times to see it. I look at everybody talking about how good Narduzzi's teams are against the run. They're third in the country, at rush yards allowed per game. They're first in the country at yards per

carry allowed. But I look at the secondary for Pitt as being a weakness and something that Notre Dame with C.J. Carr and the great upgrade of wide receivers they brought in, that's where Notre Dame is going to attack. And as far as what Pitt's going to do, the counterattack, Heinzel's going to get plenty of chances. They're going to throw the football. Desmond Reid back, as Pete pointed out, he's an absolute playmaker. I think it's going to be a very high scoring game. I think if Pitt were to pull off the upset, it's going to be a high scoring affair. I like the, I like the fact you guys mentioned Desmond Reed. I saw him yesterday at

practice, he's had that look at his eyes, like, yeah, I'm ready to go. I can't wait for Saturday to come. Is she taller than 5'5? You know, listen, I don't want to be, you know, put the man's business out there, but he's definitely shorter than me, probably about three or four inches. Is he shorter than me? I think is the question he's asked. Hills or no heels? Probably shorter with heels at last. Something to keep an eye on for both offenses, guys, is how they perform in the red zone. of course. Notre Dame has been struggling there this season, only 75%. Meanwhile, Pitt has been more successful, scoring 86% of the time when they're in the red zone. Let's take a look at today's proven performance. It's brought to you by Goodyear. The Panthers offense, as we mentioned, has Ben Harmon ever since Mason Heinzel took over as the starting QB. Now, since then, they're 5 and O averaging 446 yards per game. Des, why don't you tell us a little more about Heinzschel?

Yeah, guys, I spent some time with Mason yesterday, and I asked him. I said, what's your biggest attribute? What do you bring to the offense? He said his ability to escape pressure and keep plays alive. It made me think about the Florida State game. Let me show you exactly what I'm talking about. Against Florida State, they're going to bring pressure from the left. Watch Mason.

He's going to feel the pressure. What I love about him as a true freshman, he steps up into the pocket, But then he steps around the pressure. Now, as he's going to his left, eyes down the field, this receiver is in his vision. But his running back, Desmond Reed, is going to come into play right here for a touchdown throw night. Listen, guys, I don't know how this young man contorted his body to throw the ball like this. Watch how he, I don't know.

Watch this. This is crazy. And through the ball against, I mean, just defying all throwing rules. Man, it felt like I hurt my spleen watching him make that throw. And here he is right here. Now, against Stanford, one thing with a young quarterback, you want to make sure he has quiet feet when there's pressure and bodies around him. Here it is against Stanford. He's going to have some pressure come from his right.

And then another one's going to come right here from his left. He doesn't panic. He throws the in route right in the middle of the field for a first down in the big game. you don't normally see that sort of poise from a young quarterback, especially a freshman. Now, here we go, one-on-one. Desmond Reed against this lineback.

He's going to run a choice route, but it's going to be a cat bliss that he's going to feel he's going to hang in the pocket. Desmond beats the lineback. He throws it. He takes that hit. But that's what he brings, guys. For a freshman, extremely poised, athleticism,

I tell you what, Notre Dame is going to have their hands for with this Pit Panther offense tomorrow after tomorrow. Des good stuff as always. All right, Pete, what else should we be paying attention to this weekend in college football? Virginia and Duke are playing ACC title game implications on the line. Virginia quarterback Chandler Morris is trending towards coming back.

Remember, he left that Wake Forest game last week in the second quarter with an apparent head injury. I've been told these proceeding through protocols and there's optimism that he will start for the Cavaliers against Darian Mesa. and the Blue Devils in Durham on Saturday night. CFP chair, Mack Rhodes, the Baylor Athletic Director, is on indefinite leave from his job as Baylor's athletic director. That announcement came yesterday. Looking ahead to Rhodes' tenure at Baylor, as he's on leave here, I've been told we'll find out in the next week or two what his ultimate fate is.

When these types of things happen, the chances of someone coming back in that job are not good. So there's pessimism around Rhodes's future there. And then we have Blake Corvath. I've been told that he'll be back as Navy's quarterback. They are practicing right now. This is his final ramp-up practice before the game against South Florida this week. He was a bit of a surprise scratch before the Notre Dame game.

It was a game-time decision. He had a clavicle issue. Couldn't throw well in that game. It was an upper-body injury. Look for Horvath to be back on senior day in Annapolis. Pete Thammle, always busy on Friday afternoons as we get ready for a busy Saturday of college football. Up next on College Football Live, Archmanning seems to have found his stride just in time to take on the fifth-ranked George Bulldogs in Athens, while Oklahoma heads to Tuscaloosa, aiming to slow down the fourth-ranked Alabama squad and stay in the playoff race. Can either road team pull off the upset?

We'll discuss after this. College Football Live is presented by Vanguard. 50 years of investor success. and happen by chance. Get no frills delivered. Shop the same in-store prices online and enjoy unlimited delivery with PC Express Pass. Get your first year for 250 a month.

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A huge weekend in the SEC. Let's kick things off in Aggie Land. We're number three, Texas, A&M, host, South Carolina. That's at noon Eastern on ESPN. Then we've got a top 15 SEC matchup, number 11, Oklahoma, number four, Alabama, clashing in Tuscaloosa. And get this, guys, of the teams that have faced Alabama five times, Oklahoma just one of five teams that owns a winning record against them.

And then we'll go between the hedges, number five, Georgia, hosting number 10, Texas in Athens for the very first time in series history. Both teams know what they're up against in this one. They're 51 and two in their last 53 home games, and so anytime we play at night on the road of the SEC, you know, it's a great challenge. I can't wait to see our fans. They embrace it. This is one they've been waiting a long time. Excited to go play another big-time SEC atmosphere against a really good team. Momentum is something you earn.

You earned it by how you practice, and our team has to go out and earn it, and they're out to earn it on the field Saturday night. They're hard to kill. You got to play all 60 minutes against them. We'll never quit. I feel like we're never out of the game. Winning the game Saturday night. That's our main focus.

That's what's in front of us right now. Going to be a good one for sure, guys. All right, let's break this one down. What are the keys to this matchup? Well, we saw the quarterback of the offense. The quarterback of Texas's defense, Michael Taft, the senior safety, is back this weekend. He's missed a couple of weeks with that thumb injury, Jen. That's a huge key to Texas getting lined up and having everything ready to go against that Georgia offense.

The other key, Jen, is going to be Texas's run defense. Number one in the SEC, number two nationally. They give up 0.3 yards before contact. That's top five nationally. They've only given up 95 total yards before contact on the ground all year. That's like a big honeycomb in front of that Georgia offense on Saturday. Population tackling, as they say, Steve. That's to me what the game is, is Texas defense.

You know, they've gone to Florida. They gave up 29 there. They gave up 38 in an overtime at Mississippi State. Last week they give up, you know, a bunch of Vanderbilt. They get the byway. But what they do on the road, they have not been good on the road against the spread. They're 0.4. Steve Sarkeesian.

teams as an underdog, one and seven straight up. That defense has to show up tomorrow because I think with the energy that building provides, the Texas offense is going to be slow to go. Yeah, you're talking about Texas offense. Listen, Arch has been playing much better lately than we saw earlier

in the season. There's no doubt about that. But I still think when you go down between the hedges and you go to Athens, you take on the Bulldogs, you have to establish some sort of running game. You don't want Arch Manning dropping back 38 to 45 times thinking that you're just going to throw the ball on this Kirby smart defense. They don't have to be great in the running game.

Just make sure that the Bulldogs respect your running game. So you have some sort of balance that they have to defend. Despite the fact, like I said, that Arch is playing great right now, you don't want him to have to go out there with the weight of the game on his shoulders and think he has to beat the Bulldogs in between the edges by himself. You know, there is some thought that George is the team that can flip a switch, right? And play on another level as things get tight in the end of the season. They've done that in some games as well, guys.

In four of their eight wins this season, they've trailed by at least seven points. Obviously gone on to win those games. That's tied for most in FBS. So a little comeback kid action happening in Athens for the Bulldogs this year. Let's take a look at the Heisman update. It is, of course, brought to you by Nissan. Fernando Mendoza leads this group with 26 passing touchdowns. That's tied for most.

in FBS. Then it's Ohio States Julian Sayan, who leads FBS in both completion percentage and total QBR. And then you got Ty Simpson, who has also been terrific. 21 passing touchdowns tied for most in the SEC, and he has just one interception on

the season. So he will, of course, be under center when Alabama hosts Oklahoma. The tide favored by six and a half in that game. Last year, it was an elimination game. It kicked Alabama out of the postseason race, and tomorrow's game could be the same thing for Oklahoma. How do each team secure the win, Pete?

Well, Oklahoma's going to have trouble securing the win if they don't have R. Mason Thomas, the star defense event. When we last saw R. Mason Thomas, he was streaking down the field on a 71-yard fumble return. Problem is he injured his quad on that return. Oklahoma's coming up a buy week. He's listed as questionable, Jen. That's not a good sign at this point in the week that we don't have clarity on R. Mason-Thomas's status. We'll keep this updated tonight. We'll keep it updated tomorrow.

Yeah, exactly. So if our Mason Thomas can't go with that quad injury, it's going to be a big blow. He's the best player in that program. That's what starts with me is Oklahoma's defense. And for Alabama, a team that has struggled to run the football, you don't have to worry about the other team's best defense event. That helps things. But still, the way Oklahoma plays with all the disruption, the movement across the board,

it's important for Ty Simpson to get them out of trouble. He's done a good job of that, facing adversity, throws against LSU or some big time. NFL throws that got them out of jams because they couldn't run the football. So to me, Alabama has to be better up front against the Oklahoma's defense. That wouldn't be me if I didn't address that highs, Melissa. If you don't have Notre Dame's running back, Jeremiah.

Love on that list, that list is trash. That was the Davey O'Brien watch list to me. But now, let's talk about Alabama. So Alabama's quarterback, Ty Simpson, he's having a phenomenal season. What they have to do defensively, the Sooners, you have to get him

off his mark. Listen, there's no secret. The tie, they can't really run the ball either, right? But because Simpson's playing at such a high level, they can win games despite not having a strong run game, which is something we've seen for decades with the tie. They've always been able to control the line of scrimmage and pose their will on the defensive front seven and run the ball, despite the fact they're not doing that because Ty Simpson is phenomenal right now. They can win games.

This is going to be the best defensive front that they've seen all season. season long, even if my man R. Mason Thomas isn't available isn't on the field. I like the soonest chances to get after Alabama, but they got to move Ty Simpson off his mark. He's too good. Just let him sit back there and pick you apart. Totally agree. And then when you look

on Oklahoma's offensive side, they're off a by week. Matera rush for 80 yards in the last game at Tennessee. That's a season high. He looked like the old John Mathier at the beginning of the season. That's a great addition to have a run game, which Oklahoma has improved. A bunch of offensive line woes.

to start the season, but they've gotten it together. And if they can keep Ty Simpson off the field with that run game and possess the clock, that's a huge advantage going on the road in a tough environment. Well, to Desa's point about Oklahoma's defense, their top five in the country and pressure rate and sacks. Simpson's numbers, guys, drop 20 percentage, completion percentage. It drops by 20 points when he's pressured versus when he has a clean pocket. That is a huge key to getting him off his mark, getting him out of a rhythm.

Let's continue here on college football live. This week saw the second college football playoff rankings drop. One big question remains, what is going on in the ACC? We'll break down the current playoff picture next on college football live. This Heisman Update is brought to you by Nissan. Premier partner of the Heisman Trophy. Talk about stepping up.

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College Football Live is presented by Vanguard 50 years of investor success doesn't happen by chance. going to be a good one Saturday morning. Join us for college game day at 9 a.m. Eastern. We've got Paths kicking contest. We've got Notre Dame running back. Jeremiah Love live from the field. And we've got Aaron Donald as your guest picker.

Saturday morning, 9 a.m. Don't miss it. Let's go to the ACC where there is a lot at stake as the regular season winds down. Georgia Tech currently sits with the best chance to win. the league at 35% followed by Duke at 21%. They are the only two teams in the ACC that actually control their own destiny the rest of the way. Meanwhile, Miami, although in the playoff based on the current rankings, has just a 3%

chance to win the conference. So what do you guys think? Does the ACC deserve a playoff spot or should those last spots go to a couple of group of five champs instead? Pete, I'll start with you. Well, the ACC has certainly been a case study in canalization. They have been eating each other alive. I actually think the ACC still has a decent chance at two spots when everything settles. And that stadium right there is going to go a long way in proving that.

If Pitt can beat Notre Dame and knock that out, that is a key spot. Miami sits at 15 right now, Jen. They'd have to get to the top 10 or 11 in order to be considered. Now, they're probably not going to win the ACC championship. So the ACC champion will be in. But don't discount Miami with that really good Notre Dame win from early in the season and a chance to have a statement win here at Pitt late in the season. season to put up a very good case for that.

No one has doubted in Miami's talent, which, again, eye tests and all that is going to matter in the long run. Yeah, I look at a team like Louisville. They beat Miami. They beat Pitt. They beat a good JMU team who's ranked in the AP top 25, and they're five spots behind Miami. Yeah.

That doesn't make sense to me. And I'd be really upset if I was a Louisville fan. Well, you guys seem to get the ACC thing cover. What surprised me was the top three, right? You have Ohio State, Indiana, Texas, A&M. And now watching Texas A&M, One of the arguments for the Aggies for me has been that these teams, they play tougher schedules. Even Indiana.

I said, Indiana, they blow out teams. They don't play with their food. What did they do? They went and played winless in the conference, Penn State, and it took them the last play of the game to beat Penn State. So I thought at least, look at the resume. So I thought the Aggies should at least be at number two this week as opposed to still steady at number three. I didn't understand that move. Something that could work itself out, though, as the season goes on.

Yeah, but you know what? This is a week-to-week thing. This isn't, hey, let's see it, work itself out. Because why the hell we're talking about is going to work itself out, right? So you're supposed to judge them week by week what you see and the metrics. And what I saw in Indiana should have dropped behind Florida, I mean, Texas A&M. But some people are saying that that was Mendoza's Heisman moment, too, that drive at the end of the game. I was more impressed with the catch.

I mean, I'm just saying, bro. It was an incredible catch. Absolutely. You see. You see Starbucks nation. J.C. Girlback's name up there on that 4th to 1 against Notre Dame, did you? Certainly did not. Let's get to the picks. They're brought to you by Dick's sporting goats.

Who do you guys have tonight? We've got Clemson at Louisville. Let's go with you, Steve. Yeah, I talked about Louisville, and I'm sad for them. Less than a minute ago. I still don't trust them. You got Clemson? Yeah. I got Louisville. They're not going to lose back-to-back games at home.

They just lost the cow last week. I got Louisville. Minnesota and Oregon this evening, Steve, dare I ask. I'm going to take the points with Minnesota. in a very ugly game, but Oregon will win. I don't even know what the spread is, but Oregon is just a better team. Oh, 44, 24? 24. I was like, wow, woo, we the disrespect.

Have a good one, everybody. Game day starts at 9 a.m. Eastern. We'll see you there.