College Football Live - Hoosier Hoorah

Episode Date: October 25, 2024

Jen Lada, Pete Thamel and Stanford Steve are in Bloomington to break down Week 9 of College Football! The crew discusses MetLife's marquee match up as Navy puts their playoff hopes to the test against Notre Dame. Plus, some analysis as LSU gets ready to take on Texas A&M in a massive SEC battle. Stanford Steve as always gives you his gambling guide and Pete provides some injury updates on key players! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When you're flying Emirates business class, enjoying a good night's rest in your lie flat seat, you'll see that your vacation isn't really over until your flight is over. Fly Emirates, fly better. College Football Live, presented by DirecTV. It is a gorgeous October day in Bloomington, Indiana, and we are talking football! Oh, that's right. IU football school head coach Kurt Signettis made in season at IU. And what a start it has been.

I know you guys have been waiting for me to say something crazy. That wasn't quite crazy. When you get to be 62, 63, you lose your filter a little bit. It didn't take much convincing the proofs in the pudding. Nothing gets people excited like winning. Keep winning people going to come. It's pretty simple. I win.

Google me. Oh, don't you worry, coach. They have Googled and they know. Welcome into college football live. He's Pete Thammell, Stanford, Steve, and I am Jen Lata. Why are we here? Because Indiana is having itself a season on the football field. This is a school guys, a program that has only had three winning seasons since 1995,

and they are doing it with Kurt Signetti at the helm. Washington coming into Indiana for this Big Ten matchup. Huskies will try to take down the unbeaten Hoosiers, but Indiana is going to have to do it without their star, Curtis Rourke, who is out with that thumb injury on his right hand. So it's Taven Jackson's time. Both head coaches talked about the matchup. The team has 100% confidence.

I have confidence. Staff has confidence in Tavon Jackson. I thought he played really well in the second half. He's a guy that's extremely capable, extremely capable. And I'm sure he'll rise to the occasion. We're going to have to see what they're going to do on offense. They probably will have some change. But they certainly didn't have to make any big changes in that game.

And they were able to continue running the offense that they had done extremely well with. Okay, so this is a huge blow for Indiana that has been rolling along, steam rolling, if you will, opponents. Pete, what more can you tell us about the QB situation? Well, there's just good news this week on Curtis Rourke, Jen. So Sunday we learned that he was doubtful for this game and he's not going to play against Washington on Saturday. On Monday, he had surgery on that thumb. and there's some optimism amongst Indiana folks that Curtis Roark could be back next week

when they play at Michigan State. Again, fingers are funny injuries and the thumb is obviously a huge part of passing the ball. But the early read is that this is not going to be a long-term injury for Curtis Roark and we could see him as soon as next week, November 2nd, in East Lansing. Wow.

I just amazed at the toughness that he showed. He played 13 more plays after that play. Supposed his thumbnail ripped off too. Like it was a mess. But getting to Taven Jackson, I wasn't sure what to expect when you put the tape on. And he comes in to start the second half. And I thought, you know, they're already up 28-7. They're just going to run the ball and get out of here.

No, not Kurt Signetti. They go passes on four of the first six plays. He throws two touchdowns and they score 28 more points in the second half. So there was no handcuffs on. There was nothing. Taven came out and played really well. So, you know, it's funny. Signetti brought up the word capable because that's what you want in your backup, right?

We need capability to be able to not lose anything. And the way the run game is, their skill guys are way better on tape than I thought. They are not losing much to me with with Tavenette's starting quarterback. Of course, if you saw Signetti's face in the later parts of that game, you wouldn't have known his team was up 42 to 7 or whatever it was late. What is the situation for Washington to win this game, Steve? Well, I think when you look at Washington, then haven't been able to put 60 minutes together against good teams.

And sorry, Michigan, I don't consider you a good team. now. Des isn't here today. No, I'm not taking shots at all. I'm just when you talk about what they're, what they're going against. Because you go back to Iowa, right? Their last road trip,

they cross the time zones. Now in the Big Ten, the teams that cross two time zones are five and 12. But Washington has to put 60 minutes together against Iowa. They come out two four, you know, everybody worries about the rust and the travel. Come out two 14 play drives. They only have seven points to account for.

And you know what Iowa does is strangling you for 60 minutes. So they got to find it in their wherewithal to play for 60. So Jen, over to Washington's walkthrough today, about a half an hour from here today. It was really interesting to hear the different messaging. Jetfish, hey, all the pressures on them, all the attentions on them. We're playing loose. We're playing with joy. We're playing free. That obviously starts with Will Rogers. He's an efficiency machine. 72% of his passes. But look for DeMont Williams. He's been playing about a dozen snaps a game. He's really,

Jetfish is really bullish on him as the future of Washington football. Remember, Steve, he was committed to Ole Miss, flipped to Arizona, and then after one day on campus, flip to Washington. He's a real threat with both his arms and his legs. And, you know, he's two touchdown passes this year, a bunch of yards rushing. So he could be a dangerous guy who could impact this game at a critical juncture. One area for Washington to really pay attention to really focus on is their third down conversions and their red zone, guys, three of nine on the road in the red zone this season. You want to beat the Indiana team? You got to be able to punch it in on third down and when you're in the red zone. Okay, let's take a look at last

night's ACC matchup, Syracuse at Pitt. And this did not go well for Syracuse and its quarterback Kyle McCord. His pass early on. Well, the pause there should give you an idea of what happens, guys. It's going to get picked off and not just picked off, but taken back to the house. That's good for six. Pits defense was off to a great start in this one. It's seven nothing Panthers, but you're not out of it yet. Still plenty of time to recover. Still plenty of time to get back in business. It wasn't that kind of night for Kyle McCord. This is a screen pass batted in the air and intercepted by Braylon Loveless.

Who does, guess what? Also returns it to the house. Pick six. There were three of those on the evening. Five interceptions total for Kyle McCord as Pitt wins that one big 41 to 13. Steve, that brings us to Pitt because that's a pretty big number that they were able to put up on a night where Syracuse was not its best self. How should we evaluate Pitt at this point? Well, they're a hell of a lot better on offense than they were last year.

And that's what I take from this is Pat Narduzzi went against what Pat and Arduzzi is all about. Went and got Cade Bell, offense coordinator who's all about tempo. They get a transfer quarterback in Holstein from Alabama. They've been awesome. And their biggest games are still ahead of them. They'll give them that. Yeah, I really think Cade Bell should be in the thicket of the Broils Award conversation. This pit offense was dismal last year.

Pat Narduzzi stepped back from a three-win team and said, we need to change. And it's hard for coaches. And again, they've run some tempo. back when they had Kenny Pickett. But really, they step back and said, we need wholesale change. They found it. They took a couple guys from Western Carolina who've really been dynamic for them on offense. And it's always

fun to see coaches really change midstream, make some drastic measures, and it's paid out for pit. They are in the playoff race. No doubt. But only favored in two of their five remaining games, that against Virginia and against B.C. So they'll have to play spoiler in some of those games if they want to get the victory. We continue

on college football live right after this. It's a matchup at MetLife Stadium that you're not going to want to miss. Can Navy remain unbeaten facing Notre Dame? Plus, we've got LSU taking on Texas A&M. That is a huge SEC matchup. Can the Tigers challenge the 12th man and that Texas defense with Garrett Nussmeyer? College Football Live is presented by Direct TV. All your entertainment, nothing on your roof. Stream Direc TV, satellite free. This Giving Tuesday, Cam H is counting on your support. Together, we can forge a better path for mental health

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Going to be a very special show for college game day, 9 to noon Saturday morning. The whole gang is here, and it will be a homecoming celebration for Coach Corso. All right, now let's take a look at our ranked versus ranked matchups for this week. We start with number 12, Notre Dame taking on number 24 Navy, that game at MetLife Stadium. The Fighting Irish have won six straight. against Navy, but the midshipmen are eyeing a repeat of their 2010 upset at MetLife Stadium. Top ranked Oregon takes on number 20, Illinois. That's for the first time since 1995. Illinois is fresh off a win against defending champion Michigan and looks to beat an AP number one

opponent for the fourth time in team history. Meanwhile, in the SEC, number 15, Alabama is hoping to bounce back from that road loss at Tennessee last week. The Crimson Tide have never lost to Missouri in Tuscaloosa and they haven't lost to the Tigers at all in nearly 50 years. Texas visits Vanderbilt for the first time in nearly a century. Vandy seeking its second win over an AP top opponent, top five opponent actually, after knocking off then number one Alabama earlier this month. And down in College Station, LSU and Texas A&M both put their six game win streaks on the line in a matchup between the top two teams in the SEC standings.

The Tigers are a perfect eight no in A-Festown. he ranked matchups against A&M. So let's take a look at today's road test presented by Goodyear. LSU looks to snap a five-game road losing streak against AP top 15 opponents when they face the Aggies. The road team has not won a game in this series since 2016. Steve, both teams famously undefeated in the SEC. Who has the edge for you? It's pretty crazy after week one that these two teams, you know,

that start their season would have lost our first in probably the best conference in the country. But I love this matchup. It's my favorite matchup all day, Saturday. When you look inside the matchup, that LSU offensive line led by Will Campbell, Emery Jones, the bookend tackles against the defensive line of A&M, being down at A&M, going to practice before week one. I think Mike Elko was the only coach in America I talked to that was not worried about depth on the defensive line. So you've seen that come out in the last, in this third, this windstreet, the two Shamar's up front in the middle. Scort and the transfer has been incredible.

But how can they get to and try and fluster Garrett Nussmeyer, who has just brought his team back, put him on their shoulders time after time. This stretch for LSU has been incredible for what they've done. They still have a little bit longer. This would be a huge step, but a great matchup on the lines of scrimmage. So interesting for LSU for Nussmeyer at the receiver position. They have been without Chris Hilton Jr. all year long. He's really there are only four three.

take the top off the defense guy, like pure straight line speed. He's been game time decision, but he has not played a snap yet this year. It'll be interesting to see if he can finally go. He's had a funky ankle injury that he got during August. He could really be a difference maker on a night where taking the top off, the defense can make all the difference in the world. Yeah, I wonder about Nussfire too and whether he will choose to use his legs. He's going to get pressured.

They're going to push him out of the pocket. How much out of pocket stuff does LSU do, knowing that the guys that A&M has? and LSU's defense has been really, really good during this win streak. You know, got diced up against USC, but they have gotten better and better. I mean, we were there at South Carolina. They couldn't get off the field. And it was big play after big play. Tackling wasn't great.

They didn't look organized, but they've been excellent during this win streak. And you talked about the battle at the line of scrimmage and how important that is going to be to the outcome of this one. A big reason why Nussmeyer has been successful this year is the offensive line. Marissa tells me they've allowed just two sacks this season. I believe she said good for second. in the country. A big reason why they're having success, Pete. Oh, absolutely. When you look at the LSU offensive line, you could argue this is the best

offense line in country versus the best defensive line in the country. Certainly the best set of tackles in the country. And Nick Scorton, I think, is the best edge in the country right now. He's obviously the Purdue transfer. We'll see if the crowd reacts. They don't. Purdue couldn't afford him. He went to A&M. He's from right outside College Station, Texas. And he really has been a huge difference. He's a pro. I think he just turned 21. maybe 20 is a younger guy. And he's put together, man. He looks like it should look like down the street in Indianapolis

when they roll those dudes out there in late February or early March. Yeah. He is a prototype freak. And really, if he can rattle Garrett Nussmeyer, it's going to make a huge difference in this game. Brow noise, the whole thing. Yes. Yeah.

All right. Well, there has been a lot of movement in the rankings already this season. What better time to check in with Steve on his gambling guide? Yeah. Let's give some picks for the people. Looking at this week's slate, one game sticks out to me like a sore thumb. Miami is hosting Florida State.

They haven't won in about four years. The last time Florida State went to Miami, 45 to 3. Miami hasn't been great. All these comebacks, I expect if Mario Cristobal could put a number on Florida State. This is the year and this is the week to do it. I expect Miami to score a ton of points and that defense will get after Florida State's offense. Next one is a game that makes zero sense. BYU is undefeated.

They're number 11 in the country. I mentioned they did not have a loss so far that this year. And UCF is favored in this game. This does not make any sense. So we're going to take UCF. They were in the same spot. A couple of last year against Oklahoma State, gave them a dose. UCF will take minus the points.

And then finally in the SEC, Vanderbilt, number one ranked team in the SEC when it comes to third down conversions. It's because of that guy right there, Diego Pavia. he has been sensational. Alabama, you go back and watch tape, they could not get off the field. Coach Sabin's still talking about it, almost a month later.

But Vanderbilt will provide problems. I'm really interested to see how Texas comes out. Quinn Ewers has to be better. It took a good shot on that fumble. We all know that Arch came in for a couple of series, got it together a little bit in the second half, but Quinn Ewers has to be better for Texas. We'll take Vandy plus the points.

That Vanderbilt crowd is ready to go again. You know it after that big win earlier this season. They're ready to tear down some goalposts and marching back into the river, aren't they? All right, guys. We'll maybe be able to remain unbeaten after this week's game against the fighting Irish. The guys break down why the Notre Dame defense will be the key

to the MetLife matchup. That's next on College Football Live. College Football Live is presented by DirecTV. All your entertainment, nothing on your roof. Stream Direc TV, satellite

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See your local Nissan dealer or Nissan.ca for details. Conditions apply. This Heisman Update is brought to you by Nissan. Premier partner of the Heisman Trophy. Here's our ABC College Football Saturday Triple Heather with every team ranked in the top 25 at noon Eastern, number 12. Notre Dame taken on number 24 Navy in the Medellons, then number 15, Alabama, host number 21, Mizzou. And we kept the night with

8th ranked LSU and 14th ranked Texas A&M in College Station. What a football lineup we have on ABC and ESPN Plus for you on Saturday. And with all those good games, you know, we've got some good storylines that we are monitoring this week. Pete, let's start in the SEC with Mizzou

and the quarterback situation. Well, Brady Cook's status is one of the biggest stories. We'll be tracking on game day tomorrow, Jen. He is listed as doubtful for this game. I was told he was extremely limited in practice this week. Remember, he left the Auburn game with an injury. He went to the hospital. He came back.

He let a miraculous comeback win. He's got an ankle issues. You can see him fall down here. That's when it happened. We will know tomorrow if he does try to ramp up and play. Isaiah Bond, Texas's star receiver, is not expected to play at Vanderbilt tomorrow. He'd been dealing with an ankle issue and was questionable. the whole week of the Georgia game.

He re-agravated that ankle in the Georgia game. He's Texas' fastest player. He's their leading receiver. He's a potential first-round pick. This is a big loss for Texas. It should be temporary. They have a buy, and that ankle is expected to be better coming off the buy for Isaiah Bond.

And Haynes King, the Georgia Tech quarterback. They play Virginia Tech tomorrow is another guy. We're going to be monitoring on college game day tomorrow. He obviously missed the Notre Dame game. He's got an upper body injury he's been dealing with. On Thursday, Georgia Tech coach Brent Key said, if the game is today, he would not be playing. He said he's hopeful with a capital H that Haines King could come back.

If it's a smaller case H, it'll be Zach Hiron going for the second straight game. Be right on your grammar. Hyron was pretty good, actually, in relief of King. All right, guys, let's take a look at today's player to watch, brought to you by today's military. Keep an eye on Navy's Blake Horvath when he takes on Notre Dame. He's one of two FBS players to have 10 passing touchdowns, and 10 rushing touchdowns this season,

along with Alabama's Jalen Milro. Steve, we cannot undersell how important this game is. What is the matchup you will be watching in Notre Dame versus Navy? Well, Notre Dame's defense against that Navy, sling tee offense. I don't care if people don't like it. I like saying it. It's catchy and it's good and it's different,

which is what exactly this offense is. But when you watch Notre Dame, I thought they did a great job against Georgia Tech last week, who loves to do pre-snap stuff and mess with your eyes and give you all that eye candy. Notre Dame was great against Georgia Tech. Now this is about assignment football. I know Notre Dame has lost guys on their defense,

but they really rally to the football. I love what they bring to the table from a secondary. They tackle. You have to tackle in the second level against Navy. Notre Dame plays good defense. They take care of business. Another Broyo's word candidate is Drew Chronic, Navy's offensive coordinator.

He's coming and transform them. They are now the 126 passing team in the country, which is 50 more yards than they averaged last year. They went from 105 to 161. Drew Cronic, elite OC, bad marketer. Call it the sling T.J. Chronic, chuck it around maybe. They're going to need a few gash plays through the past game

if they're going to score with Notre Dame and that MetLife on Saturday. Riley Leonard is another quarterback guys who has 10 rushing touchdowns as well as the passing touchdowns that we mentioned earlier. The breakout star of the season and Heisman frontrunner is Boisey State's Ashton Genty. He's on pace to join Marcus Allen. Ed Marinaro and Barry Sanders as the only players in FBS history to average 200 rush yards per game in a single season. All right, lots of action that we can get to tonight, guys.

Let's take a look at Friday's games. Boise State at UNLV. Let's talk about this one, Pete. What should we be paying attention to? Last call, playoff stakes. It's a new era. You've got UNLV. You got Boise.

You got Vegas fired up for a game that has college football playoff. implications. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay and watch this game on the East Coast because it's going to be on past last call. I just love what has happened to the sport here. This would have been a fun game for the junkies like Steve and I would stay up and watch, but now it really ripples deeper in the sport. And I think that's a really cool thing.

And let's see if Barry Oda can stop Ashen Genti. You and LV as the number 20 run defense in the country, Steve. Fascinating matchup. I love it. My favorite game of the week. I will be sleeping, but it's the first game that I'm going to get the tape on and go back. When you think about Boise State, you know, back to when, you know, they went to Oregon and battled them. And Oregon needed two kicks to get, you know, the lead in that game.

But Gentie was, he did it against Oregon. He's done it against every team, three plus 200-yard plus games. And Boise State's defense, I think, is the key here. They lead the country in sacks that go-go offense with UNLV has scored plenty. Even with Hodge Malik, he's been great accounting for 14 touchdowns recently. So what gives on the defensive side? Barry's known as a defensive guy. He's got plenty of transfers he brought in that have played well. They do great job of creating turnovers. I think Boise State wins by a field goal.

And I'm glad you were able to get the go-go in there because every week I look forward you talking about the go-go offense. Louisville at Boston College, the next one. Pete, what should we be watching for? Well, this has been a revived BC defense under Bill O'Brien, which is not what you think of when you think of Bill O'Brien. You think quarterback play. They're averaging eight points less allowed per game. One of the breakout stars of this whole season has been Donovan Azaraku. He's a senior from New Jersey defensive, and he's third in the country with nine sacks. If he can harass Tyler Shuck, it could be a long night for Louisville in Chestnut Hill. Really interested to see how Louisville comes out tonight.

Short week, they expounded a lot of energy in trying to come back and beat Miami in that game. I thought Shuck played well enough to be in. They play 60 minutes, and that game basically comes down to a fumble in the end zone, and that's why Louisville loses. I think BC keeps it close. They might even win tonight. All right, BC for Steve. And then the one that I'm most interested in watching is the Rutgers at USC.

That feels like there's a lot riding on this one, Pete. What do you think? Are you going to watch it and then just come to work? Because it starts at 11 Eastern. Probably not. After the World Series. I really think for Rutgers, the injury report has read like war in peace, And it has been the worst of times for the Rutgers defense.

Last week, seven of the 11 defensive players for Rutgers were either out or questionable from the starters to start the season. We'll see how their injury report looks a few hours before kick tonight. But Rutgers has been struggling. USC big. Miller Moss Monster Night tonight. I like USC big. They need a win bad. All right.

So I will not be watching, but I'm sure some folks out there will be. We have to get to set tomorrow morning for college game day, which comes your way from 9 to noon right here from Bloomington. Have a great one, everybody. Thank you.