College Football Live - Take Me Out To The Bowl Game

Episode Date: December 15, 2023

Host Victoria Arlen is joined by Sam Acho & Jordan Reid as they continue on the latest news in the transfer portal & get us pumped for exciting bowl matchups this upcoming weekend. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Welcome into college football live. Let's go out the tunnel and straight into the portal. With big-name quarterbacks off to new homes in the Big Ten, we've got Pete Thammell here with the latest. And Alabama made an interesting coaching move, signing a former Michigan assistant before their matchup against the Wolverines. And it's bowl season, baby, we've got the experts here to let you know what to watch out for. College Football Live starts now. Welcome into College Football Live. I'm Victoria Arlen, alongside Samacho, Jordan Reed, and Pete Famol.

And look, Pete, we're going to start with you. It's Friday. It's a little crazy. And Will Rogers is looking for a new neighborhood to get to visiting Washington. What's the latest, Pete? Well, he's window shopping as we speak, Victoria. Will Rogers, a Jackson, Mississippi native who's at Mississippi State last year, is in Seattle right now on a visit. We reported earlier this week that Washington is the strong favorite for Rogers.

That remains the same. And it's likely that he'll issue a commitment at some point. point this weekend. For Rogers, the attraction to Washington is simple. They led the nation in passing yards this year, obviously with Michael Penix and that great trio of receivers. Nobody throws the ball around the sandlock quite like the Huskies, and few have thrown the ball around like Rogers. He's second all-time in SEC history in passing yards with more than 12,000. He has 94 touchdown passes in four years and 1,301 completions. Certainly that's the kind of resume that'll be attractive to Kaelin DeBore and Ryan Grubb as they start life after Pennix after the

playoff. Absolutely. It could be a very good neighborhood for him. Now, Will Rogers has had quite the run in start. Bill as Pete mentioned, he's the SEC all-time leader in passing completions in attempts and ranked second in passing yards. Now, we entered the portal on November 27th, which had us wondering where would Mr. Rogers' new neighborhood be? Now, we've seen transferred work out well for Washington with good run of transfer. for QBs such as Jacob Eason and of course Michael Phoenix Jr. The Huskies, they're in the playoffs. It's paid off pretty well.

Sam, what kind of impact do you see Rogers having at Washington? Well, he can make a huge impact. Even if you look at the offense as a whole, this offense at Washington runs is an elite offense because they run multiple, not only personnel, but different types of routes. So Will Rogers has the arm to anticipate the throws in the same way or a similar way that Michael,

Penix Jr. does. And I think one thing I love about Will Rogers, and I can compare it to Michael Penix is they may not be the fastest, but they're great at moving in the pocket. Subtle movements in the pocket allow their receivers to get open. I've seen that on film from Rogers. I also see it all the time for Michael Penning's Jr. Yeah, I agree, Sam. And I think the philosophical difference between both of these guys is that. I think Pennix has a much stronger arm than Rogers. Rogers more so he kind of has selective decision making down the field. And he picks and chooses opportunities when to cash in on those opportunities down the field. He's more so

of your short or intermediate quarterback that really likes to pick and choose when he takes shots down the field. So what I'm interested to see with Caitlin DeBoer and then also Ryan Grub is how they kind of shift their philosophy a little bit or if they keep it the same as if when Michael Pennix was there. Now we've seen

what Pennix has done with the offensive weapons. He has both Rome O'Dunze and Jalen Polk now could possibly declare for the draft. Sam, what kind of changes could that make for Rogers if they were to declare for the draft? Yeah, that would be a big deal. I mean, we've seen not only Romadunes Day, but Jalen Polk and Jalen McMillan all excel at contested catches.

And to Jordan's point, Michael Pennix Jr. will take shots down the field. And so without two or maybe three of those receivers, all of a sudden, someone will have to step up. We don't know who it was going to be. I think last year everyone knew about Romadunesly how great he was. But just because you have a new quarterback, you're going to need that wide receiver, maybe not a trio, maybe a duo. And obviously, Dylan Johnson, that transfer, who was from Mississippi State as well, you need a running game as well. It's going to be very interesting to see how that lines out. Now, the portal train keeps going.

After another solid season at Oklahoma, Dylan Gabriel continues a trend of transfers at QB for the Sooners, committing to the ducks for next season. Now, we've got two new QBs on two of the new teams in the Big Ten, heading out to the Pacific Northwest. But that's not what's catching our eye. It is the 2024 schedules. They're not kind. They're really not kind. So it's not doing them any favors. Sam, let's start with you and Oregon's schedule for next year.

Not kind, but not as bad as you would have thought. I mean, look at those first four games, Hawaii, Idaho, Boise State, then you got Oregon State was going to be a big game. But the only real difference is that Ohio. state game on October 12, right? Obviously, Michigan and November, and then Washington. So I'm not overly concerned, if you will, if I'm an Oregon team, going into the Big Ten, Michigan, Ohio State, big deals.

So those would be bigger games, but I don't know, I expected a little bit more coming into this year. All right, Jordan, how about Washington? Yeah, what really caught my eye on this schedule is the October to November stretch of three or five games. You have Michigan, USC, and then also Penn State. Luckily for Washington, two of those three are at home, but I think that's the situation that's really going to make or break their schedule. Those three or five games, they're going to have to come out of that game, two and one or three and oh in order to salvage their season.

All right, Sam, let's talk about Ohio State. Yeah, Ohio State. So I'm looking at, once again, early season, I think you see the teams wanted to try and get on a role. Akron, Western Michigan, Marshall, Michigan State, maybe they'll be back. Then that Oregon game, you circle that again. That's at October 12. state, northwestern Michigan. So Ohio State isn't as challenging when you look at that schedule as some of the other teams, but there will be challenges specifically late October, mid to late

October. Speaking of Michigan, Jordan, how about Michigan? Yeah, I'm really intrigued by this schedule and caught my eyes that first week of September all way through the first week of October, three of five, USC and then also Washington. I think that's a brutal stretch for Michigan, but we've seen They have a game that can translate anywhere. They love to run the football. So they're going to link running game, whoever is under center next year, assuming J.J. McCarthy declares for the draft. We know that Jim Harbaugh is going to want to run the football.

If they're able to do that and all those games, I think that's victorious. It's going to be interesting indeed. We welcome back Pete Famil. Pete. What other news do you have for players in the transfer portal? Well, an interesting transfer at the receiver position, Victoria, Will Shepard, who was a really productive receiver for four seasons in the SEC for Vanderbilt, which should not have a particularly productive offense over that stretch of time.

It's headed to Colorado. He's going to play for Coach Prime. He's going to catch balls from Chador Sanders. And this is a similar archetype of a move that we saw Xavier Weaver in Jimmy Horn Jr. make last year. Those guys caught a ton of vertical routes, a ton of goal balls in that tempo offense. Now, we're not sure what Colorado's offense is going to look like, but we know Chador is going to huck at a lot.

around. Former Ohio State quarterback Kyle McCord is on a visit to Syracuse this weekend. There's a lot of synergy between McCord and the Syracuse staff. He's a Philly area kid, and there's ties to Jeff Nixon, the expected offensive coordinator at Syracuse, who'd been at Temple, and also Fran Brown, a former Temple assistant and a former Rutgers assistant. He's one of about 20 recruits and portal guys who's on campus in the Q's this weekend. And then we'll end with Cam Ward. He's on his visit right now to Tallahassee. He was in Miami or in the week. It's not known if he's going to take another visit. Ward remains one of the most sought after players in the transfer portal, but those are the two places that have openly targeted him right now.

Interesting twist. DJ Ui Ungleilay lands in Tallahassee tonight. His visit with Florida State starts tomorrow. It'll be interesting to see how that plays out with two top quarterbacks in Tallahassee on the ground. Interesting indeed. Pete Bammell, thank you so much. Coming up on college football live, Alabama's controversial playoff path has ruled the college football headlines. Ryan McGee sums up their season and their path to a national championship. All season.

Days away from these epic matchups, a perfect way to kick off the new year. With Texas taking on Washington and Michigan, taking on Alabama, and speaking of Alabama. Well, their season has been quite the summary of. luck in controversy and our very own Ryan McGee sums up Alabama's season that has them knocking on a door of yet another national championship. I feel awful for Florida State. I bet you a prime time Dionne Sanders was that coach they wouldn't have gotten left out. You're not going to have a college football playoff without Nick Saved into Godfather.

I think it's a little disrespectful for the game in the football. Are you angry that Alabama is in the college football playoff? Okay. that's cool. I get it. But that outrage was for the earliest days of the summer and maybe big picture debates further down the road. But the here and now reality is that the crimson tide has rolled into this year's finishing forward. And the harsh reality of that, well, reality is that history tells us that if you were one of the other three teams, the ones who arrived carrying far less baggage, and amid far fewer boots.

The literal elephant in the room isn't just about whether or not Big Al should be here. It's what he might do to everyone now that he is. Am I right, Michigan? I am told that the numbers tell us that this is the worst Alabama team in a decade and a half. I am terrible at math, so I'm not going to use a beautiful mind to try to explain that.

But I do know ugly, when I see it. And in September, Bama was more unseemly than that time Florida's uniforms tried to look like actual alligators. This is not the talented Alabama teams we've seen in the past. Week two, Bama was pushed around at home by Texas. Week three, a sloppy showing against South Florida after Jalen Milro was benched because Nick Saban believed that his sophomore QB needed an attitude adjustment.

entering October, the talk in Tuscaloosa was that the goat's greatest days were behind it. The dream of his record-extending eighth national title seemed as likely as saving going back to coach at his alma mater, Kent State. Is the Quarragoor dynasty dead? The season just doesn't have a very bright outlook. But Alabama hasn't lost since that embarrassing outing

against the horns. They beat Ole Miss, Tennessee, and L.A. who were all ranked while Mill Road ran and threw his way from the bench to Heisman ballots. And think about this. If Bama manages to win out to somehow win its 14th AP or coach's national championship, then look at what they will have done to get there. Iron Bowl, fourth and 31, the grave digger.

Then defeat the number one team in the nation. in the SEC championship team. Up next, defeat the new number one team and doing it by winning the Rose Bowl. And then, perhaps, winning the Natty in a revenge rematch against the only team who has defeated them this season.

Yes, you can be mad about BAMRA in the college football playoff all you want. If you live in Tallahassee, you should be. But if the tide can turn all of that crimson, And they do it in four straight games, then the time for debating their CFP worthiness will have long passed.

And it might be time to start thinking about renaming the CFP trophy, the saving. Thank you, Ryan. All right, let's dive into some more Bama. Jalen Milro struggled early in the season, but really came into his own after being benched for the game against South Florida. Milro has 12 rush touchdowns this season,

one shy of tying the Alabama program record for most by a QB in a season set by Jalen Hertz in 2016. It's paid off well for Jaylen. He also announced that he will be staying with the Crimson Tide and Touch the Leafs Ben next season. And Alabama is making people feel some type of way. Ahead of their Rolls Bowl game against number one Michigan, they hired a former Michigan assistant George Heelo.

Well, it's not immediately known exactly what his role will be. He will not be one of the 10 on-field assistants. He actually started his coaching career as an intern for coach Sabin back in 2012. Speaking of elephants in the room, it's quite a game of chess that Alabama is playing. But games aside, pun intended. Sam, what do we think about these coaching moves?

Well, I think it's a huge move for a myriad of reasons. Number one, all of that intel that Hilo's going to bring over to Alabama is going to be integral. This coach was coaching in 2021 and 2022 before being released. leave of his duties or mutually parting ways earlier this year. And so that's going to be the intel. But then secondly, Alabama is on a role.

You talk about Jalen Milro. He's leading the nation, top three and passerating since that 11 game win streak. And so offensively, Michigan's going to have to be ready for a Jalen Monroe attack, not only passing the ball outside of his passing touchdowns, but also those 12 rushing touchdowns he can do it all. Yeah, I'm right there

with you, Sam. I think this is a huge advantage for Alabama. And we know Nick Sabin, he wants to get any edge that he can And with him hiring this linebacker coach, I think even though the terminology may be different from when his time was there, there's some things as far as the technique perspective and then some of the tendencies that they do have that are still similar. So Nick Saban is trying to get every single edge that he can. And with this Alabama offense, they're very versatile. And I think the game changer that we have seen over the past few weeks is the incorporation of Jalen Milrow as a design runner.

They did not use Jailen Milrow a whole bunch early on in the season. They were relying on his arm more primarily. but using him in the design quarterback run game, I think that was a game changer for them this season. Now, of course, like we said, Mill Roll will be coming back next season, but there's still a lot more football left this season. All right, we're going to take a quick break still to come on college football live. Bull season officially kicks off tomorrow.

Our betting insider Joe Fortinbaugh joins us to give us his best bowl vets. Bull season begins Saturday starting at noon Eastern 9 a. Pacific with Howard in Florida A&M in the cricket celebration bowl. Then Miami of Ohio takes on App State and the avocados from Mexico Cure Bowl. Then we finish things up with UCLA and Boise State and the Starko Brands L.A. bowl at SoFi Stadium. Now there are seven bowl games on the slate this weekend and our very own ESPN betting analyst Joe Fortinbaugh shows us what are the best bets for the game.

So Joe, show me the money. It's the most wonderful time of the year. College football bowl season, two important factors you have to keep in mind when handicapping these games. Number one, motivation. Which teams want to be here? Which teams don't want to be here? Number two, the transfer portal. Some of these teams are going to look very different in their bowl games than they did during the regular season.

And with that in mind, we begin with Georgia's southern minus three and a half over Ohio. Ohio absolutely decimated by the transfer portal. Starting quarterback out. backup quarterback was already out. Top wide receiver gone, top two running backs gone, top linebacker gone. Georgia's Southern limped down the stretch, but they're coming in in better shape than the Ohio team is. We're going to lay three and a half with Georgia Southern. Game number two, Jacksonville State minus two and a half over Louisiana Lafayette.

Great debut at the FBS level for Jacksonville State. Eight and four straight up, eight, three and one against the spread. But because it's their first year in FBS, they weren't allowed to play in the postseason for each of the first two years. Unless we didn't have enough six-win teams to fill out the bowl schedule. Well, we didn't have enough six-win teams to fill out the bowl schedule. And now Jacksonville State is going to be rewarded with their first bowl game in program history. Love the motivation angle there. Give me Jacksonville State minus two and a half. And then finally, New Mexico State minus three and a half over Fresno State. Two teams headed in very opposite directions. Jerry Killed

did a remarkable job with New Mexico State this season as they won eight of their final nine games down the stretch. Meanwhile, Fresno State lost each of their final three games down the stretch, two of which were they were the outright favorite. Complicating matters, head coach Jeff Tedford is stepping away from the program due to health concerns, so we're going to lay the three and a half with New Mexico State over Fresno State. Thanks, Joe. All right, there's a lot of bowls on the slate this weekend, very exciting stuff. And Sam and Jordan, we want to know who are your impact players to watch. So Sam, I'm going to start with you with The Myrtle Beach Bowl with Georgia Southern and Ohio.

So impact players, a player you may not have seen a lot of. It's going to be third string quarterback Parker Navarro. Why? Because we heard it. The starter is transferred. The backup is out because of a medical issue. So Navarro, who has legs, is going to have to step up big in this. All right, Jordan, the cricket celebration bowl between Howard and Florida A&M.

It's a nym dunkwa, the offensive tackle, Howard University, 6'8, 360. pounds. Didn't start playing football until his junior year of high school. Scouts really like his upside as a late round drafts selection. All right, Sam, the R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl with Jacksonville State in Louisiana. Give me number 91, Chris Hardy, all conference USA player. This team is one of the top in the nation in sacks. He has eight and a half himself. I'm going to go Chris Hardy, defensive lineman for Jacksonville State. All right, Jordan, the avocados from Mexico, Cure Bowl with Miami, Ohio and App State. I don't know how many times we've highlighted a specialist on college football live, but we're doing it today.

I'm going with Graham Nicholson, the kicker, excuse me, of Miami of Ohio. Lou Groza Award winner made 25 straight kicks in a row this year, which was an FBS record that was set in 1982. We love to see it. Sam, the Isletta, New Mexico Bowl with New Mexico State and Fresno State. Quarterback Diego Pavia from Mexico State. Remember that game when New Mexico State upset Auburn? They won 31 to 10. was a huge party that had three passing touchdowns, did it with his legs, elite.

Jordan, the Starko Brands L.A. bowl between UCLA and Boise State. Give me defensive end, Gabriel Murphy, who's tenacious off of the edge. Seven sacks, a 12.5% pressure rate this year. He's been simply phenomenal opposite of Layatulatu. Remember the name Gabriel Murphy in this game. He's going to stand out a lot. All right. And finally, Sam, the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl between

Cal and Texas Tech. Who do you got? Texas Tech running back, Tos Brooks, ran for over 1,400 yards this season. That was fourth in the nation. He's a big reason why Texas Tech made a bowl game. Could have opted out. He didn't plan in the game.

It's going to be a big one. All right, which game fellas are you looking forward to most? Sam, Jordan, quick. I'm going to start with you, Sam. Well, I'm going to go to that last one. So Tosh Brooks is playing J.Nott. So two star running backs outran for over 1,200. And so as far as tomorrow's games, that's what I'm looking for.

What about you, Jordan? I'm going with the cricket celebration ball. The battle of the HBCU National Championship. All the marbles are on the table. I'm looking forward to that one. I'm just looking forward to all of them. First day, I'm Jordan and Pete. I'm Victoria.

Thanks for watching. Have a great weekend.