College Football Live - CFB LIVE - LIVE FROM OXFORD

Episode Date: September 18, 2026

Join our crew Jen Lada, "Stanford" Steve Coughlin, Des Howard and Pete Thamel on today's episode of College Football Live. The desk talks about Lane Kiffin's anticipated return to Oxford. Preview some of the other big games this weekend. All this and more on today's episode of College Football Live! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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This is the number eight team in the country. LSU taking on Old Miss in a top. hustle tomorrow night. Des, I'll start with you. What are you expecting from Lane Kiffin and company as they walk back into that stadium tomorrow night? The circus is coming to town, led by Dennis to Minnis himself. There's three things we know about Lane Kiffin. Lane Kiffin can call plays. He can build a program, ask these people, that's why we're here. And it does not mind stirring the pot. And I tell you what, he's the best at it. It's going to be crazy. They say that they're going to increase their security, state troopers. I saw,

on horses the other day, it's going to be kind of wild tomorrow. Yeah, in my 20-whatever years, and you guys, we've all been lucky to go to big games, right? Big rivalry games, heated contesting games. There has never been, in all my years, just like a singular anger towards one person like there is in this game. And I think that's what really makes this unique. We're lucky to go to walk through today over at Ole Miss.

There were personnel people from Ole Miss, making sure people walked by. They were worried that LSU might be watching them. They had people canvassing the parking garage garage that overlooks the practice field. People canvassing the stadium that overlooks the practice field. There is an edge in this town that is unlike any I've seen going into a big game. Yeah.

And you talk about what the atmosphere is going to be like, right? But when we were in Baton Rouge two weeks ago, talking to those LSU fans, almost no one said they were coming to this game. They knew what they were getting into. Seriously. And they're like, you know what, Lane, that's why we hired you. Go to Oxford, get a win. Good luck getting out of there.

But we'll be here for Texas A&N in the following week. I look at this is more of a celebration of Ole Miss in Oxford and what they have in Trinidad Chambles and Pete Golding. That's where I look at it and so excited for. A chance, you know, people always ask for opportunity. Ole Miss has the ultimate opportunity tomorrow night. And I think Lost in a lot of the conversation is just how good of a coach Pete Golding is, right? We forget that he was the guy at the helm when they beat Tulane, when they beat Georgia, when they

went toe to toe with Miami. He's got this program ready to go and I can't wait for him to show what he has done since taking over the helm after Lane Kiffin left. All right, let's get to players to watch. It's presented by Rippling. Sam Levitt, 6 and 1 versus ranked opponents. Trinidad Chambliss, 5 and 2, each completing 61% with the QBR north of 80. It has been 292 days since Lane Kiffin left Ole Miss for LSU.

They have had this game circled on the calendar ever since. Kiffin coached Chambliss just one year ago. Now he returns to Oxford with Levitt leading his offense. guys, let's talk about the X's and O's. What is the latest thing on Sam Levitt, Pete? Well, Jen, if you hadn't heard, he was listed as doubtful on the Wednesday injury report. And if you didn't hear from the Ole Miss football facility, they were all laughing along. They've seen Lane Kiffitt put together chicanerous injury reports time after time after time. He's at injury reports to 26 players.

Lane Kiffin likes to touch the stove and this was him putting his hand right up to the burner there. Sam Levitt is a little bit banged up like a lot of players are in football, right? he has been somewhat limited in practice this week, so he's probably going to avoid that SEC fine. I do think this. He's been successful running the ball. One of the reasons why they've been so optimistic about this offense with Sam Levitt is him using his legs. They've only called five runs for him. He scored on both the runs they called for him last week against Louisiana Tech.

If he is a little banged up, are they a little more hesitant to run him in this game? I think that would probably be the biggest impact any Sam Levitt injury. We expect Sam Levitt to have an impact either way in this game, especially after what we have seen from him on the football field. But Des, outside of that, what do you expect to determine the outcome of this game? Well, I think about this game. You think about the X's and O's, the Jimmies and Joe's. And I think that the best Joe is going to be Trinidad Chambliss. I mean, Trinidad Chamblis is the most exciting, electric, dynamic player in the country. He's the best quarterback we've seen so far. The way he ended last season, and then the way he picked up where he left off the guy. Obviously, he can

run. He's a dual threat quarterback. He's as effective throwing the ball. Outside the pocket as he is inside the pocket for his size guys very strong arm can push the ball down the field There's nothing that he can do And he's one of those rare players that he's must-see TV and he's gonna be the best player on the field tomorrow night Steve. Yeah, I believe Lacey's very important too because they need balance in their offense Because when you look at the groups or the units whatever you want to call I hate to say it right here in front of these people But the best unit on the field is LSU's defense So how do you combat that?

Trinidad Chambles in the passing game, but not getting in third and unmanageable situation. That's where Blake Baker's at its best, where he could dial up pressure from depth, send guys, disguising looks, all that jazz. This LSU defense is real, and Ole Miss has to be balanced on offense to go at that defense. The home team, if you're keeping track, has won 12 of the last 14, including six straight. And of course, that will be the game that ends our Saturday. We have other games going on, SEC on ABC. off at noon with number two, Georgia and Arkansas, followed by 10th ranked Alabama,

squaring off against Florida State. Each game, of course, also available on the ESPN app. All right, Pete, take us around college football. What else do we need to know headed into the weekend? Huge Big 12 matchup, Houston at Texas Tech tonight, and sources have told me that Texas Tech backup quarterback Thomas Castellanos is going to have a much more prominent role in the game plan this week for the Red Raiders. Look for Casalanos to enter.

early in the game to give the Red Raiders a spark. Wilhelmine struggled in spots, took four sacks in Corvallis in that narrow win last week. As for Louisiana Tech, LSU's opponent last week, they head to Baylor this week, and it'll be the rare game with two backup quarterbacks playing. Louisiana Tech quarterback Blake Baker is out with a fractured hand. Baylor quarterback DJ Lagway obviously has that high ankle sprain that he's been nursing. Both are not going to play, which means we will get Nate Bennett for Trey Kukukuk. the in that matchup. And then finally for Indiana, we couldn't go this long without mentioning a

TRO, right? The temporary restraining order that had allowed Stephen Daly and Wyatt to play for the Hoosiers, a two-star defensive lineman has expired. The ruling on the injunction from that TRO is not going to come to next week. So they will not be eligible for the game this weekend against Western Kentucky. They will find their fate as early as Monday next week. They will continue to practice, Jen. Yeah, it's one of those things where they're just going to add talent. as the season goes on, apparently, at Indiana. Coming up on College Football Live, the ACC taking center stage,

Belichick and Davo in a critical coaching matchup, SMU and Louisville in a rank showdown, and Norvel facing a must-win situation. We'll break it all down next. College Football Live is presented by Fire TV. In Toronto, every arrival is a statement, and nothing says it better than this. Cadillac Optic was the number one selling luxury EV

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Now it's time to look at the Allstate AFCA Good Works team honoring college football's most impactful student athletes for the difference they make beyond the game. This year's team includes representatives from every level of college football and among them the first female selected in program history, Gianna Bennett of Iowa's Northwestern College and Clemsons, Gideon Davidson, who is turning his adoption story into an opportunity. To meet this year's team and learn their stories, go to ESPN.com forward slash allstate. Yesterday, see Belichick resigned as North Carolina's defensive coordinator amid the conclusion of an internal investigation into the football program's culture. Michael Lombardi resigned as general manager earlier this month, and now the tar heels hit the road to face Davosweeney and the Clemson Tigers. All right, Pete, there's a lot of news surrounding those tar heels. Where does everything currently stand? So, Jen, the first part of this is obvious.

This is a black eye for Carolina for Bill Belichick that now in one month, the two, the two, key people he brought to that operation at Carolina football, GM Michael Lombardi, and his son, Steve Belichick, the defensive play caller and defensive coordinator, have both resigned. Now, this is a bit counterintuitive for Bill Belichick moving forward. There's been two positives from this development. One is the investigation is resolved, so they are no longer investigating UNC football internally. And the second part is in the statement they released, they found that the issues were, quote, isolated in scope and not a systemic failure. So translating that to legalese, That means that UNC is not going to attempt to fire Bill Belichick for cause.

Sometimes these investigations happen and they're widespread and that can trickle up, if you will. So UNC is moving forward with Bill Belichick as his coach. He's in the, he will be entering the final year guaranteed in his contract. It was third years, the only year left that's guaranteed. If they were going to fire him at the end of this year, they would have to owe him $10 million, but they will not be firing him for cause off this investigation. It does seem like sometimes head coaches can hide behind. I didn't know what was happening.

And I literally think that's your job to know what is happening, particularly with guys who you are very tight with as he is with these two characters. Nevertheless, guys, there is a game to be played between these two squads. Des, what do we need to see on the field for the outcome here? Well, guys, Clemson, I mean, there's just so much to correct with that ball club. I was disappointed and watched them. I thought they were outmanned against LSU, but even moving forward, they're still not an impressive group.

You start the quarterback position. Obviously, Christopher Bezina was a starter against LSU, And now they're going to go with Tate Reynolds. He's more of a dual threat quarterback. Giving the office more of a running element. Big kid, I remember looking at him in Baton Rouge. Like, man, he looks like a linebacker or an edge player. Strong can throw the ball.

Maybe he's going to give that office the spark that it needs. Because so far, guys, it's just been some tough sledding watching that office trying to go up and down the field against opponents. Yeah, and to talk about how opinions change. Like in the off season, I didn't think North Carolina had a chance in this game. And now you get here. It's week three, and it's a three-point spread. Clemson's on another quarterback from the starting game.

And I look at Carolina. Now this is their first true road game, right? They played in Ireland, came home, played East Tennessee State. And I just look at the balance. They're playing way cleaner football, balanced on offense. Billy Edwards has been really good. They got a tight end in Jalani Thurman, who's been fantastic. And the two running backs they use Benjamin Hall and Jalen McGill have been really good.

So I look at Carolina. They want to take that next step, right? bowl game, you know, positive record. You've got to play balanced football. You can't get in in unmanageable situations on the road because Clemson still does have really good athletes on defense. It wasn't that long ago that if you had said you got Belichick versus Dabo for a matchup, that would have been must-see TV.

But the way these two programs have kind of gone recently, it's a little like, eh. Like an aggressive pillow fight. It's a game. There are others. Time now for our fast plays brought to you by Good Year. expect a high scoring showdown between number 16 SMU and number 22 Louisville, led by two dynamic quarterbacks. You got Kevin Jennings leading the ACC's 767 passing yards,

while Louisville's Lincoln Keenholz has four passing and three rushing touchdowns through just two games. All right, Des, what is the key to victory in this one? Quarterback, Lincoln Keenholes. I'm so impressed with this young man. He went toe to toe with Trinidad, Chamblez, and Ole Miss in week one. transfer from Ohio State. He's a dual threat, like legitimate dual threat quarterback. His willingness to run, he can make all the throws very impressed with him so far.

If he's able to go out there and continue his level of play, I think that Louisville can beat SMU. Yeah, I look at Louisville's defense and have to make an adjustment against Kevin Jennings and SMU. In two games, Kevin Jennings is averaging 292 yards and seven yards per carry. Wow. Louisville has to maybe get the crowd involved, but they have to do. do something to slow him down. He's played his best football in those two games against Louisville. They've taken care of business. You know, we wondered how

SMU would be coming in. They have the best record in the ACC since they came into the league. So Louisville's defense has to be better. Steve, I don't think it's an overstatement to say whoever wins this game has the inside track to be the co-favorite with Miami for the ACC title. Neither of these teams play Miami in the regular season this year. Whoever wins this game can vault itself in position for potentially match up with Miami and the ACC title game or potentially a second CFP spot from the

ACC. And obviously you can tell it's a tight one. The line is only one and a half in this game. So obviously, a bit of a pickup there between those two ACC foes. All right, Florida State opened last season by stunning number eight Alabama, 3117. The Seminoles starting 3 and O, climbing as high as number seven in the country.

But the season quickly unraveled after that. They lost seven of their final nine games. Now Mike Marvell and the Seminels head to Tuscaloosa, looking to pull off another upset. Would you consider this a must-win game for Mike Norvel, given all of the challenges he's faced? Jen, this is not a must-win game for Mike Norvel, but Mike Norvel must win a few big games, right? Whether it's this one or in the upcoming weeks, and they do have a fairly brutal schedule.

Mike Norvel needs something to hang his hat on to keep his job. Look, going into this season, his hot seat was unambiguous, right? Everyone knew Mike Norval needed to win. I believe they're now 3 and 14 in their last 17 ACC games. That gets you fired at any ACC school. mind one that has national championship aspirations. So look, what Florida State signaled by firing athletic director Mike Alford this week was, we're going to get a whole new regime in here.

They don't want to pay like Norville almost $50 million. So they would like him to win and they would like to pair him up with a new AD and keep going. But the reality is if Mike Norville's ACC performance continues like it is, they will be paying that money and they will have a new athletic director and a new coach by Christmas. The dilemma. What's worse? The big buyout or continuing to suck. about Alabama, by the way, has won 87 consecutive home games against unranked opponents that, of course, would qualify.

Can FSU pull off the upset, Des? Can they? I think they can, but they've got to play much better defense. Like, the defense has been really, really bad. I mean, looking at a defense that gave up eight explosive plays against SMU. I was talking to our researcher, Marissa. She said that SMU's quarterback, Kevin Jennings, had 585 yards against the. the nose in their own backyard.

That's unacceptable. When you want to win a big game, you have to make sure you eliminate. Look, you can't miss tackles like that. You have to eliminate the explosive plays. I really do think if they're able to just stop the explosives, they could be in this game and pull out an upset. And I tell you what, I think Norville needs this game like Sarkisian needed that game a week ago. Yeah, the bad part is just three touchdown underdog in this game.

Sark was in the driver's seat last week. I look at Florida State's offense. It's been years, multiple years since they've won a true road game. And I look at Ashton Daniels. He's not the best throw in the world, but we showed the highlights a last year's game.

How did they win? Those jet motion, side to side runs, and then get your quarterback running downhill. Ashton Daniels can run the football. They have to do them against a defense that's been tremendous in Alabama. 4% conversion rate teams have on third down against Alabama. I was just going to say that.

So you better make hay on first down and second down so you don't find yourself. You've got to stay ahead of the stick. In those third down situations. All right, still to come on College Football Live. Houston and Texas Tech squaring off tonight in a Big 12 matchup. Can the Cougars pull off an upset? We'll make our picks on that game right after this.

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I've had a lot of elite guest pickers on the show, but there is something regal about Morgan Freeman making the picks tomorrow morning right here on college game day. All right, the SEC hits the road with five teams in enemy territory this weekend. Georgia can set the AP poll era FBS record with a 12th straight 3-0 start. Will Stein looks to become the first Kentucky head coach with a win in his first two conference games in 35 years. And here in Oxford, the rebels boast the third longest active home win streak amongst the FBS teams when LSU comes to town. Steve, what is the storyline that you will be paying attention to most this weekend?

Number two ranked Georgia Bulldogs finally in a national window where the country is finally going to see all the new toys that Gunner Stockton has to play with. Eight touchdowns, zero picks for Gunner on the year. But the new blood in there, Isaiah Cannon of transfer, Jaden Redell is an absolute stud at tight end. Ethan Barber, another tight end, Talen Taylor. There are very, very versatile offense with Georgia. No one's seen them yet, but they'll show out tomorrow in a big spot against Arkansas.

I just believe is undermanned. I don't like those white helmets. Go ahead. A lot of eyeballs in Columbia, South Carolina this week for one of the best quarterback matchups. We have Camaro Taylor, Super Camaro. Nick Saban called him the truth and the light. He stormed out so far in his first season as a full-time starter for the Bulldogs.

and he goes up against the player in Lenora Sellers, who had similar hype when he streaked onto the scene a couple years ago. Obviously, Sellers struggled last year. They now have Kendall Bryles running the offense, so we will see a once rising quarterback star against a current rising quarterback star. Shane Beamer told me that Kendall Browis has done a really fantastic job with Lenore Seller. So I'm excited about that matchup, too. But how about LSU?

My man, Sam Levitt. Are you kidding me? Is he playing? Is he not playing? He's a dual threat quarterback. He's going to come out here tomorrow night and try to expose weaknesses in this Ole Miss defense.

I'm excited to see Sam Levitt tomorrow night against Ole Miss. You keep saying Sam Levitt. They're just going to keep booing, Desmond. All right, you keep saying it. They're going to keep reacting. Time now for our game picks. Brought to you by Dick's Sporting Good.

Let's start with number five Miami versus Wake Forest. Pete, what are you watching in this one? I am watching for the first hostile environment. No offense to Stanford Steve's alma mater that Miami gets to play in. It will be sold out at Wake Forest tonight. 3,3,1,500 people, one of the smallest FBS stadiums. But it will be sold out.

It will be packed. It will be the biggest crowd. Miami's played in front of this year. I think Miami rolls, but I need to see that defense dominant. They're weren't enough TFLs or sacks when they went to Stanford. They got to get the defense. The offense struggles, they got to rely on that defense. I'm watching that defensive line from Miami, but I think they take care of business.

Yeah, guys, you know, I live in Miami. I'm going to say, that team is very excited. You know why? Because they left the three stripe and they went to the swoosh. They just joined Nike. I got Miami Big. Moving on, a big match rank up in the Big 12, number 22, Houston versus number 13, Texas Tech. Pete, what do we need to know headed into this one?

So there's two big game time decisions in this game. Start tight end, Terrence Carter, who may be the best tight end prospect in the country, and then Edge, Trey White. I've been told there's a lot of optimism that they are both going to play against Houston tonight. Remember, we talked earlier about an uptick from Thomas Castellanos in snaps with Will Hammett. It should be an awesome atmosphere in Lubbock. I mean, we were there last year. It's a fantastic spot to watch a football game.

I'm going to pick the upset here. I didn't like the inconsistencies. I saw a Texas Tech's offense on the road in a tough place to play in Corvallis. Houston, Austin Armstrong, defensive coordinator slows down that Texas Tech offense. Give me Houston on the field. I'm with you, too.

I didn't like what I saw from Will Hammond. And then you said Castellano's going to play, boy, that lets me know something's going on with that offense. I'm going with the upset too. I'm going with Houston. Guns down? Me. And of course,

eyes will be on the big matchup right here. Ole Miss, taken on LSU. Who you got, Guy, amazing. Since we got here 30 minutes ago, there were no tense in sight. And now all you see behind us is a sea of tense in the blue, in the red, in the white, very excited for a huge matchup tomorrow. And they will be bringing it on the Grove for college game day at 9 a.m. Easter.

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