College Football Live - Hump Day in the CFB

Episode Date: October 16, 2024

It’s Hump Day, and Victoria Arlen has Tom Luginbill and Sam Acho in the studio to dive into the halfway point of the season! They’ll highlight the teams and players that have really stood out so far. Sam and Loogs will break down the exciting doubleheader in the SEC: #7 Alabama vs. #11 Tennessee and #5 Georgia taking on #1 Texas. Pete also joins the discussion to share insights on potential playoff and coaching opportunities that could be up for grabs come Week 16. Plus, with so many transfer QBs making waves this year, the crew will weigh in on who has made the biggest impact and why. Don’t miss it! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

When you fly in Emirates business class and you're picked up by your private, luxury, chauffeur-driven car, you'll see that your vacation isn't really over until your flight is over. Fly Emirates. Fly better. Welcome into College Football Live. I'm Victoria Arlen. Happy Wednesday. Let's go out the tunnel. We are officially halfway through the college football regular season and we discuss which teams and players to keep an eye on as we kick off the second half of the season. And for the first time since 2021, Georgia finds themselves in the rare role of the underdog this weekend as they prepare to take on Texas. But why is that the case? We discuss. And the power of the portal is real.

Lugues will rank which transfer Cubies have had the biggest impact to their new teams. All that and so much more coming up right here on College Football Live. Welcome to College Football Live, presented by Google Pips. So now it wouldn't be a Wednesday without Sam and Lugues joining me on all the fun. And we also have Pete joining us in just a little bit. Now, you know what, fellas, we are halfway through the week, but we're also halfway through the season. If you can believe it, I felt like it was just yesterday.

We were kicking things off. But Lugues, I have to ask you, since we are halfway, what is a statement that we wouldn't have believed before the start of the season? The Tennessee and Alabama would be playing each other and the loser would have two losses already. When you consider all of the talk about the college football playoff and the 12 team inclusion and how much the SEC would be included in terms of the amount of teams we'd be talking about, I don't believe anybody thought we would be at this point. And I also don't think anybody thought we'd see Alabama and Tennessee play the way they've played so far this year. Yeah, I can agree more, Lugues.

And I think my biggest statement is that out of the three teams that are the top five teams that are in the Big Ten, that Ohio State would be the last ranked out of those top three teams in the Big Ten. So look at AP Poll, the top five, there's three teams, right, that are in the Big Ten. But Ohio State being last, to me, that's surprising. This is what makes it so great, though, Sam. I think that all of what I would call competitive balance top to bottom and the games and the outcomes, that we've had and we haven't even gotten it to November yet. And we're going to start talking about teams like Iowa State and Boise State and Indiana. Teams would never even been coming out of our mouths with the 14 college football

playoff is what makes this so spectacular. The fact that Alabama has been beaten by Vanderbilt would have been mine. But Sam, what is a team that you're keeping an eye on in the second half? I'm keeping an eye on A&M, Texas A&M. And the reason why is you go back and watch how they're playing. Like they're playing a dominant level of defense. Yes, offensively, they struggled early, but they found their groove. But their game a few weeks ago against Missouri was shut down defense.

It's scary the way they're playing defense, least scary for the opponents they're getting ready to face. As the season progresses, we're seeing Alabama with a loss, Tennessee not playing great. This A&M team is getting hot at the right time. And so that's one team I'm watching at the second half of the season continues, especially that last game of the regular season when they play Texas. That's a great pick, Sam. How great would it be if Texas A&M runs the table the rest of the way

and goes into that matchup at the end of the year? We finally see Texas and Texas A&M playing against each other once again. For me, I'm going to go with the Clemson Tigers, who have just gotten better and better each and every week since that opening weekend lost to Georgia. And it's because of the quarterback Cade Clubnik. Let's not forget, they've been playing without Peter Woods for three straight weeks. He finally came back against week fours, made an impact.

with his presence along the defensive front. Now, you may say, well, who's Clemson going to play down the stretch? No Miami on the regular schedule. I don't care because I know the types of players that they've got, and they've got the type of athletes and competitive depth. And the quarterback play right now to match up with teams that got similar personnel that are ranked ahead of them. And it's been interesting to see when the AP polls been coming out,

that Clemson is still kind of at number 10. It's almost like they've got this thing that's keeping them from getting there. But when the actual college football playoff selection committee ranking comes out, Clemson very well may be higher than that number 10 spot. Why? Because a lot of people were remembering that week one loss versus Georgia, that second half collapsed. But ever since then, this Clemson team offensively has been dominant.

And so I get it. They look like they're number 10 now. But if they keep on playing the way they're playing with K. Clubneck and quarterback in that defense, they may be higher in a couple weeks. No question. And it's just further evidence that who you play, when you play, and where you play matters.

That Clemson and Georgia game, if it was played right now, might be an entirely different contest. And so you lose one early, and now you start to make up ground and you gain momentum. And Clemson and Texas A&M, to your point, want to be peaking in the month of November. So we're going from teams now, Lug, to what about a player to watch in the second half? I think it's Curtis Rourke at Indiana. One of the best pickups and well-research pickups in the transfer portal.

Now, listen, Indiana is in a great spot right now. But the reason why I say he's a player that you've got to watch out for is because if you're going to play Michigan and Ohio State in back-to-back weeks, you're not winning either of those two games without outstanding quarterback play. If he plays well, all right, and they were to split those, I think they're going to be the favorite in every other game that they play. Kurt Signetti's done an unbelievable job. And I think Curtis Rourke has kind of been a guy that's flown under the radar. Even when he was at Ohio, I had the opportunity to broadcast a couple of his games. and he was a really productive player.

And I thought Kurt Signetti and the staff did a great job in their selection in the Trance Report. The player that I'm watching, Lug's is Ashton Genti from Boise. And the reason why is multiple. Number one, because he's a Hizman Trophy candidate. Currently, the Hisman Trophy favorite. He's ran for over 1,200 yards this year. And like Victoria just said, we're just halfway through the season. He's aiming for 2,000.

If he does, he's cutting off his locks. But also not just because of him, but because of the Boise team right now, they'd be the highest. group of five team. They'd be in the college football playoff if the playoff happened right now. And so as he goes, the team goes. So he's a player to watch for the team perspective, but also for an individual perspective as he goes for that Hasman trophy.

I'll tell you, Sam, they don't look like a group of five team to me. They look like a power four football team on both sides of the ball up front. And listen, you could put 12 in the box if you want to. And nobody's been able to come up with an answer for how to stop their run game, even though the numbers weigh in the favor of

the defense every single time. It shows how good they are up front and how fantastic he is. I think that's a team that everybody talks about group of five. They don't look like a group of five team to me. And to your point, Loux, earlier in the season, this Boise team played Oregon, and Ashton Gentie ran for 192 yards versus the same Oregon team that just beat Ohio State. That Ohio State couldn't really get their running game going. So if that doesn't tell you something about Gentie and this Boise team, I don't know. know what will. Well, we have more to get to on Gentie in just a bit. But now we're going to bring in Pete Thammel. Pete, let's get to your biggest storylines for the second half of the season.

Well, Victoria, we'll start with the playoff, right? The chase for the playoff is going to define what the second half of this season is going to look like. And it's such an adrenaline shot to the sport. We've got Iowa State chasing for the playoff. We've got Pitt chasing for the playoff. We've got Indiana chasing for the playoff. But I really think the playoff chase that is going to define the second half of this season is, Alabama's. They have one loss already. They have huge wins at Wisconsin, home against Georgia. Obviously, the big game at Tennessee this weekend. They close out at LSU, at Oklahoma. And then, of course, Auburn, they're going to be huge playoff stakes in those games. If there's one thing we

learned about Kalin DeBore while he was at Washington is he's a, it's a high wire act when he coaches. So it'll be interesting to see if Bama can land in the playoff. The next thing we'll take a look at is the hot seat, the coaching carousel, rolling in. Right now in mid-October, there are zero jobs that have opened this year because of in-season firings. Think about it just two years ago, there were five power conference jobs already opened by now. Look for Florida, Barra, Baylor, and North Carolina to be the power jobs that end up opening. And the other part of of the playoff chase that's really going to add some juice to the end of this regular season is which G5 team gets in. Sam and the guys mentioned Boise earlier with Ashton Genty,

Army and Navy. We had Jeff Monkin talking smack on the McAfee show today. They're both ranked for the first time since 1960. And then Liberty, poor old Liberty just keeps winning games. They went into the New Year 6 out of the G5 last year. Could Liberty be undefeated and be in that CFP race for the 12th spot this year? Now, Boise has the best chance to make the playoff from the group of five with a 47% chance according to the Allstate Playoff Predictor. Thank you so much, Pete. All right, coming up, there's a lot on the line in the SEC this week. Coming up, we'll discuss why the dogs are considered an underdog against the longhorns this week. Plus, Lugues gives us his top QB portal picks so far this season.

All that and more coming up next. College Football Live is presented by Google Pixel and impart by Liberty Mutual Insurance, only pay for what you need. This Giving Tuesday, Cam H is counting on your support. Together, we can forge a better path for mental health by creating a future where Canadians can get the help they need, when they need it, no matter who or where they are. From November 25th to December 2nd,

your donation will be doubled. That means every dollar goes twice as far to help build a future where no one's seeking help is left behind. Donate today at camh.com.com. slash giving Tuesday. It's the Nissan Black Friday event where you can, wait, wait, wait. Isn't it like a month long now? Nissan Black Friday Month?

Does that work? It's the Nissan Black Fry Month event. On remaining 2025 Rogan Centra, get 0% financing. Plus, get $1,000 Nissan bonus on kicks models. This Black Friday, you've got a whole month to catch all the exclusive offers waiting for you. See your local Nissan dealer or Nissan.ca for details. Conditions apply. Black Friday is here at IKEA, and the clock is ticking on savings you won't want to miss.

Join IKEA family for free today and unlock deals on everything from holiday must-havs to cozy at-home essentials, all the little and big things you need to make this season shine. But don't wait. Like leftovers at midnight, our Black Friday offers won't last. Shop now at IKEA.ca.ca.com slash Black Friday. IKEA, bring home to life. It's week three of Canadian tires early Black Friday sale. These prices won't go lower this year.

Maybe too long. Freezing. Save up to 50% November 20th to 27. Conditions apply, details online. This is College Football Live, presented by Google Pixel. I can enjoy the best environment you'll see. It's going to be a big one down in Austin on Saturday. Catch the game day crew Saturday at 9 a.m. on ESPN.

Let's take a look at today's road test presented by Goodyear. Texas is 25 and 1 as an AP top 5 home team over the last 20 seasons. Good for the best such record in those games. The dogs have played an AP number one team eight times, but never on the road. That changes Saturday in Austin. Here's Kirby Smart on what he's looking for from his team this week. I want to see him play their best game against Texas. I mean, simply stated, I mean, we have not played our best game.

We have not put a complete game to go. together. And that's what every coach's goal is, right, to play your best game moving forward. And that's what's going to be needed to go on the road at Texas and play. We got to play better. And that's the only goal I'm thinking about right now is how we play this week. Now, Pete, Georgia for the first time since 2021 is being considered an underdog in their matchup against Texas. Can you tell us why? Well, I think it's simply put, Victoria, Georgia's an underdog because they've been underwhelming this season.

They were underwhelming at Mississippi State last week, giving up 31 points. On defense, the sum has not been greater than the parts. They have really good defensive personnel. The NFL really likes many of their players to be drafted. I was told by one scout that this Georgia team could break the last Georgia record, which is NFL record for most players drafted. but something hasn't synced up for Georgia on that defensive side of the ball. They've been without a full throttle, Mikel Williams.

Smell Mundin is going to miss this game because of injury, just everything isn't firing. Like Kirby said, they haven't played their best game. And this is the time where a team like Texas is going to want to expose that. You would think about last week, Texas playing Oklahoma, that's a game over the last several decades. It's been a game of swings. But there was not too many swings outside of being down by three early and then scoring 34 straight. Texas looked dominant for the majority of that game. And now the true test comes where they get a chance to play a Georgia team that hasn't played a complete game.

They've played complete halves or complete quarters, but haven't played a complete game. And so that's what Texas is going to try and do. They're going to try and now that Quinn Ewers is back healthy, going to try and get him back in a groove, take shots down the field. Offensive line, guys like Kelvin Banks are going to have to protect. Hayden Connor going to have to protect. Then the run game is going to be extremely important. They're down their top two backs. We talked about it early in the season, but guys like Trey Wisner have stepped up, right?

the offensive line has stepped up. And so it's been an impressive opportunity for Texas over the first few weeks, but now the real test begins when you play Georgia. Oh, Sam, I agree with you. I think that's kind of where the difference is here. There's been a complimentary run game to the passing game, despite the injuries for Texas. With Georgia, there's not.

I think that's the biggest concern I see with Georgia is they're throwing the football too much. They have not been able to get into a rhythm in the run game where that they get themselves in a second and third and short, advantageous line to gain so that they can, can start dictating terms of how the game is going to be played. They're playing behind the chains. Who would have ever thought Georgia would be the 13th ranked rushing team in the SEC? And so you go on the road, you better be able to run the football so that the play action game can start opening up.

And oh, by the way, run the football effectively. That Texas offense stays on the sideline. So, Lug, what does a Georgia win look like? Well, you know, coaches talk about playing a complete game. I think we all strive for that, but it's probably not overly attainable. I think it's about consistency. And I think when you have two teams like Texas and Georgia, where the talent is equitable across the board,

meaning that somebody doesn't have a glaring deficiency somewhere that's going to be overly exposed, then it becomes about avoiding errors. Most football games are lost. They're not one, especially when talent is equal. And so I think you've got to go on the road if you're Georgia, and you cannot make critical errors that turn into catastrophes because I think Texas will jump all over that.

Now, speaking of catastrophes on the other side of the SEC, it was a close call for two other dominant teams. Alabama gave up a 14-point lead against South Carolina as they narrowly avoided their second straight southeastern conference upset. Well, Tennessee narrowly avoided getting beaten by unranked Florida, who scored with 29 seconds left in force and overtime. Now, these two teams face each other this weekend.

But let's take a look at some analytics here. Alabama's playoff chances would go up significantly to 80% while Tennessee would see their playoff chances rise to just 20%. Now ESPN Analytics gives the tide a 54% chance to win this week by no more than one point. So it's going to be a close one. I'd say get your popcorn ready for this one. Now, a lot is at stake here, Lugz. What concerns you the most for this Tennessee team?

I think it's the penalties. I just talked about avoiding errors and not beating yourself with the Georgia, Texas game. 26 penalties over the last three weeks for Tennessee. And that's just not winning football. I think the second thing to come to mind is they have not been able to get off the fast starts in the run game. I know Dylan Sampson is the leading rusher in the SEC, but for the last two weeks, they've rushed for 15 yards and 40 yards, all right, in the first half. And they only rest for 78 yards in the first half against Oklahoma.

That's less than 2.8 yards a carry. Well, Tennessee wants to run the football, but here's what ends up happening. When you can't run the football and you're having trouble up front, now it's tough to create those explosive plays. Last two weeks, Tennessee is thrown for what, 155 yards on average, so there's no explosive plays because they can't get the run game going. So not only are there no penalties and run the football. To your point, Louvre, and not only are there no explosive plays, but it's also the fact that there's negative plays, right? Nico I. Maliava last week was sack three straight plays, three plays in row. And then if that's not a negative, then are interceptions.

There are fumbles. You're seeing him overthrow balls. And so you're seeing some of the youth show up in Nico, the red shirt freshman that we didn't see earlier in the season. Right? You see there's nobody in the pocket. There's nobody, no pressure in his face. He has a receiver wide open and it gets overthrothed in this game last week. Later in the game, another opportunity, another overthrow where people are wide open.

And so Nico is going to have to not only get settled, but to your point, the running game is going to have to allow him to be able to have more calm and more peace in the pocket to be able to hit his receivers at our getting. behind defenders. Well, I think the looming variable in this game, Sam, is going to be the play of Alabama secondary. Now, in the last three games, they have had two game ceiling interceptions in the end zone, but it's because those games have just been an unbelievable aerial tax. They've given up 329 yards on average over the last three games. Look, there's a lot of new personnel in this Alabama secondary.

They got Keon Sab from Michigan, Damani Jackson, former top recruit from USC. and obviously Zabian Brown, the true freshman, that group is at moments, but they really haven't gelled together, and that Tennessee offense can expose your secondary if it's not communicated. One, I think another issue with the Tennessee offense is Nico Imaliava has thrown one passing touchdown and one interception in his last three games, which looks significantly different than what we were seeing in the beginning of the season. All right, two must-see matchups are on ABC as part of our triple header that begins at noon, including the Alabama, Tennessee matchup at 3.30 and at 7.30 Eastern number one, Texas,

host number five, Georgia. What a epic football lineup on ABC and ESPN Plus. Now, the transfer portal has been a hot topic, and so has their QBs who have been making a big impact. So, Luges, who are your top portal QBs halfway through the season? Well, I'll tell you, there's absolutely been a bunch of them. There's no question in my mind. I'm going to start off with number five, and that's Curtis Rourke at Indiana. I mentioned him earlier because I think that this is a guy that was so well researched based off of production. And boy, has he been a difference maker for this offensive football team?

He brings experience, poise, supreme accuracy. He's rarely put the ball in harm's way. He's thrown 14 touchdowns. I've just been so impressed with his consistency, but it's not all that. surprising when you look at the body of work of him coming into the program for Nettie. I think number four is Dylan Gabriel. Now, there was some some hits and misses early in the season. Poor decisions in the red zone. Limited explosive firepower from what we become a custom to seeing. But when he had to answer the toll, boy did he ever last week. He played

his best football in the biggest moment. Hey, let's move on to Pitt. We talked about her. Pete mentioned Pitt. Eli Holstein, the red shirt freshman, highly touted prospect coming out, redshirted Alabama last year. He and Desmond Reed comes over from Western Carolina and the Pitt Panthers are rolling. He has been outstanding as an overall player, not just through the air, but he's really athletic as a runner. I think he's the primary reason that Pitt is in the position that they are in right now. So huge impact there. How about up in Western New York, Kyle McCord, the former Ohio State Quarter,

back, you know, hey, listen, they're going to go another direction in Columbus. Well, Fran Brown at Syracuse will welcome this guy with open arms. And all he's done is throw BBs and darts all year long. Super accurate, super consistent. He's got great weapons around him. The leadership skills, the acumen have been fantastic and have elevated this Syracuse football team. And then finally, Cam Ward at Miami.

And I think the reason that I admire Cam Ward so much, It's not for the performances where he makes it look easy, but for the second half against Cal, because for the first time, Cam Ward got beat up that first half on the road. He got knocked to the ground. The jersey was dirty. They were off platform.

And then all of a sudden, something clicked. And he performed so well way out west when he needed his team to, and he's been remarkable throughout the entirety of the first half of the season. I love that list, Luke. Cam Ward has been outstanding. Look at the 20 touchdown. But I was impressed to your point of Dylan Gabriel and his ability to use his legs. Remember last year at Oklahoma, he was, anytime he was in the red zone, you would often find him not throwing for touchdowns but running it.

What did he do last week against Oregon? He did the same thing. Use his legs again. And so there's a sense of calm poised and, hey, I've been here before from Dylan Gabriel. That really impressed me. And I think we have like a lot. Dylan Gabriel showed a lot. Those were money well spent and research well spent for sure too.

I think if you had to pick one for your team, who would you go? If I had to pick one, I still like Will Howard. I know I know it wasn't the best performance last week is coming off of a loss, but maybe it's a pieces in team.