Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - Dabo Sweeney Would Be The "Greatest Portal Recruiter Ever" If... | Duke Football Being Slept On?

Episode Date: July 25, 2024

Clemson Tigers Head Coach Dabo Swinney made some headlines in Day Four of the ACC Kickoff Media Days. Dabo went into detail on his transfer portal philosophy, saying he would be “the greatest portal recruiter ever” if he took a new job tomorrow and had to replace half his roster. He says the reason Clemson does not use the Transfer Portal is because their roster retention of star players has been so good. Swinney routinely preaches development over adding players in the portal. Swinney is very much against the upcoming expansion from 85 to 105 scholarship players. Hosts Alex Donno and Kenton Gibbs weigh in on Swinney’s portal and scholarship comments. Kenton disagrees with Dabo’s perspective on the additional scholarships. JJ Jackson from Locked On Blue Devils joins the show to preview the upcoming Duke football season. The Blue Devils have a number of new pieces, including new head coach Manny Diaz and new starting quarterback Maalik Murphy. Pittsburgh quarterback Nate Yarnell and SMU defensive lineman Elijah Roberts speak on their upcoming football seasons.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply.eBay MotorsFrom brakes to exhaust kits and beyond, eBay Motors has over 122 million parts to keep your ride-or-die alive. With all the parts you need at the prices you want, it’s easy to bring home that big win. Keep your ride-or-die alive at EbayMotors.com. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers.FanDuelFanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook. As playoffs wind down, the sports stop sporting like we want them to. But this summer, FanDuel is hooking up ALL CUSTOMERS with a boost or a bonus, DAILY! That’s right, there’s something for everyone, every day, all summer long! Visit FANDUEL.COM and add a big win to your summer bucket list!FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

In a different place, Dabo Sweeney says he could be the best transfer portal recruiter ever. You are Locked on ACC, your daily podcast on the Atlantic Coast Conference. Part of the Locked on Podcast Network, your team every day. Shout out to the everydayers and thank you so much for making Locked on ACC, your first listen and your first watch today. We're available free wherever you get your podcast. We're free on YouTube. We're part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day.

Today's episode is brought to you by Game Time. Download the GameTime app, create an account and use code locked on college for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. On this episode, we're going to be talking with a couple more ACC football players here at the ACC kickoff, Elijah Roberts, defensive lineman from SMU. It's former Miami Hurricanes. So I know Elijah a little bit and Nate Yarnel, the quarterback from Pitt. We're also going to have a Duke football preview, was able to hook up with JJ Jackson from Lockdown Blue. Devils here at ACC Media Day. So that's going to be a lot of fun. I am Alex Dono from Lockdown Keynes. He is Kenton Gibbs from Lockdown Wolfpack. It was Clemson Day and North Carolina State Wolfpack Day today. As you can imagine, Davo Sweeney drew quite a crowd today. And he had some comments that have people talking. So this is what Davo said on the transfer portal. Because obviously Kenton, people point to the fact that Clemson this year has taken zero transfers. In fact, since the transfer portal became a thing, Clemson has only taken in two transfers. So Davos Sweeney doesn't exactly use that. He said, quote, if I took another job tomorrow,

I'd be the greatest portal recruiter ever because I'd have to replace half my roster. He said that because of the Clemson Tiger's stability and their retention rate of star players, they don't have to consider or use the portal as much. So basically, Kenton, if I understood correctly, Davos comments, He's not saying he doesn't believe in the transfer portal, but in the case of Clemson, they haven't needed it because their roster is so darn good and their player development is so darn good. I get him.

And I actually do believe that he's right in terms of if he wanted to, he would be one of the greatest transfer portal coaches out there. I agree with him on that. But brother, get your heels out of the ground. Take the spikes off. There's no reason that this. This is the hill you need to die on. Respectfully, be better in the portal.

Go decide to be better. You have the capability. I have no doubt in my mind. That will be better. I have no doubt in my mind. You look at how he's recruited high school players. I have no doubt in my mind. He could be better in the portal if he so chose to.

And I think that that's a much worse indictment than him saying, I'm giving it everything I got. Folks just don't like Clemson. That's much worse because it means you, have the ability to be better. You have the ability to land a Quinshawn Judkins type of guy because with all due respect, I don't think that your back field is that great that you couldn't use a guy like him. You have the ability to go out and potentially land to Cam War because with all due respect to Kay Clombeck, I don't think

he's that good to where I could say there has not been a quarterback in the portal yet that I could imagine would be better than him. And you just choose not to. That is not smart. This is worse than, hey, I'm trying my hardest. I just, you know, I'm coming close, but I'm just never sealing the deal. I could live with that. But as a fan, if I were a fan of Clemson, I could live with that much better than I can live with. I mean, I'm just not doing it. It is what it is.

What about it? Yeah, no, it's tough because, again, like Kenton, you know my opinion on this. I think Davos Sweeney, he's dug himself into this trench. And part of it, he's kind of a mad genius with it because I think he's tried to turn this into a big-time recruiting tool that, hey, if you come to Clemson, we're going to focus on developing you. We're not going to give up on you. We're not going to recruit over you in the transfer portal. So he has dug himself into that very, very deep trench. But obviously the problem with it is, no matter how good your development is, no matter how good you think your scouting department is, sometimes you're going to miss on recruits that don't turn out to be what you thought they were

coming out of high school. And then sometimes maybe a player doesn't take to your development as good as that might be. So I think the transfer portal, it's like a cheat code that every other coach in major college football is using except for this one. So it's a powerful recruiting tool because, again, if you commit to Clemson out of high school, you know they're not going to replace you through the transfer portal, but at the same time, it puts the coach at a disadvantage. You know, I look at it like this. It's like taking supplements as a player, right? And I'm not talking about anything banned. I'm not talking about antibiotic steroids or anything like that, but I'm talking about like creatine and things along those lines or creatine, however you pronounce,

whatever the case is. It's like, hey, you can choose not to do it. You can choose to say, hey, I want to keep my body pure. That's just not something that I want, yada, yada, yada, so and so forth. And that's fine. Not saying that you're wrong at all for doing that. But please, no, if you are not compensating or over-conversating for that lack, players who are doing it are going to be ahead of you. If you are not using, hey, I could use state-R facilities that place X, Y, and Z to train. but I like my high school margin. Okay, if you are going to do that, if you are going to stay in that lane,

you have to know that you're putting yourself at a disadvantage. Okay, that's just what it is. You know, the other thing that Dabo spoke about and spoke against today is the new scholarship limit that's coming, where they're increasing it from 85 to 105. And I respect his opinion on this, and I'd love your take on it, Kenton, as a former powerful athlete,

former NC State football player. Because from where I sit as a fan, I'm saying, okay, 105 scholarships, this is going to give, you know, opportunities for 20 additional players to get their education paid for, to get all those benefits that come with scholarships. Dabo is very much against it, though. He says the crazy thing is there's not many coaches that want 105 scholarships. We want to keep our walk-ons, he said. It's hard to manage that many guys.

And when you have that many guys on scholarship, you think you've got transfers now. you wait till the number gets there, it's going to change a lot of things. So I guess I look at it as 20 extra scholarships is 20 extra opportunities to get scholarships. Dabo looks at it as 20 fewer opportunities for walk-ons to fulfill their dreams. How do you feel about that? Okay, hear me out. Do you like your walk-ons? I hear you, Dapo.

Here's an idea. You can, much like you're doing with the portal, making an intentional choice to not use things in a certain way, you cannot use those scholarships in the exact same way. You can say, hey, these 20 are reserved for the top 20 walk-ons on this team, to guys to walk on to this team, period. If you're one of the top 20-ons, you'll end up into 105. If you're not, you won't. That's just what it is.

Sorry to tell you, you know, tough titty said to kitty when the milk went dry, but you don't have to change what you do wholesale just because they're there and available, right? It's the old adage of, you know, just because somebody gives you, you, or just because you get a large lump sum of money, doesn't mean it should burn a hole in your pocket. It's the same thing here. If you personally, if a large swath of coaches,

if all these coaches don't want more scholarship players, they want their walk-ons, good. Now you just made your walk-ons lives easier. What's the problem? I don't understand. I, Davo is, I love the fact that he is who he is in so many ways, but he is also so frustrating at the same time because he complains about everything.

And it's just like, please, dude, give it a rest already. And he's, despite all of this stuff that we criticize it for, he's a darn good football coach. Yeah, one of the best they ever been. He's proven that. And that's why Kenton, I'm so anxious to see how Clemson performs this year because last couple of years they've been on a bit of a dip. So was that the valley?

and they start to head towards that peak this year, or will they continue to dip this season? Because, you know, if you go talk to different people who predicted how the ACC's going to finish this year, you could see people predicting Clemson anywhere from first to fourth or fifth. So, you know, folks agree they're going to be in the upper half in the upper echelon of the conference, but a lot of people think that that dip is going to continue.

So definitely some pressure on Clemson this year. Maybe not so much pressure on the Duke Blue Devils, but they do have a new head coach. got a lot of new faces. They've got a new quarterback, Malik Murphy, who is here for ACC Media Days. Mani Diaz, their new head coach, going to sit down with J.J. Jackson from Lockdown Blue Devils and preview Duke's upcoming football season and what the expectations are in Durham. We're also going to hear from SMU defensive lineman Elijah Roberts and starting pit quarterback Nate Garnel a little bit later on in this episode.

So my friends, we're only getting started. You want to keep it locked right here on this brand new episode of Lockdown ACC. And you know we're only getting started on the GameTime app. This is the only ticket app that Kenton and I use because they take the pressure out of buying last minute tickets because you know you're going to get the best prices right up to the start of the event. Sometimes even an hour after the event already started, you're getting amazing deals on the Game Time app.

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Thank you so much for making Locked on ACC your first listen and your first watch day for your second listen. Make sure you check out Kenton and Grayson on Locked on Wolfpack. They do an awesome job. Check me out at Locked on Cains. Make us your second listen here on the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Now you can also make Lockdown Blue Devils your second listen today. Let's sit down with the man himself, J.J. Jackson for a Duke football preview. Here at ACC kickoff media days with J.J. Jackson from Lockdown Blue Devils, it's nice to connect with you in person, first and foremost. And you just came out from Manny Diaz's media session.

How did that go? Yeah, football's right around the corner, Alex. Anytime we're all able to gather here in person and get to hear from the coaches, it's really exciting. Mani Diaz getting his first chance to be back at ACC Media Days, this time as a head coach for the Duke Blue Devils, It was really fun to hear him take the podium and talk about sort of the transition that this team has gone through. Obviously, Duke coming off of two really successful seasons under Mike Elko,

Mani Diaz now takes over a locker room that knows what it takes to win. However, there was a good bit of turnover with players leaving the program, kind of following Mike Elko to Texas A&M, a quarterback competition coming up this fall, so a lot for us to unpack here today about Duke. I'm a big believer in coaches learning from their travel. and learning from their mistakes. And obviously, I cover Miami and Diaz is not the most popular guy down in South Florida these days. But he did a good job as defensive coordinator at Miami.

I thought he did a really good job at Penn State at D.C., obviously. And then I think sometimes you get that second opportunity to be a head coach. Do you get the sense that he's maybe learned from some of those previous mistakes and travels? Absolutely. It sounds like he's definitely reflected a lot. I think earlier today he was speaking about his days as a coordinator, going all the way back to his introduction into coaching his time at Florida State, learning from Bobby Bowden with Mark Rick as an offensive coordinator on those

staffs and able to kind of bounce ideas and then taking that with them to NC State, being around the league and being there for six seasons before ultimately ending up at a place like Mississippi State, Penn State, and his time at Miami, of course. At just 50 years old, Manny Diaz still looks great. By the way, I think he's really prepared and excited for this opportunity. to be the head guy once again. You talk a lot about roster turnover from last year. And, of course, a big one was Riley Leonard, you know, leaving and going to Notre Dame.

What would have been the vibes on Malik Murphy and on the quarterback situation there? Yeah, excited to get Malik Murphy in the transfer portal. Grayson Loftis also here at ACC kickoff. Manny D. has not trying to fool anybody with who the quarterback is by bringing both of them. Duke's the only team this week that has done that, like that game's been, that Coach Diaz is putting out there. But yeah, Grayson Lof just played five games last year, but still you feel like there could be a little bit of a better player available.

And that's exactly what Malik Murphy was for the Stuke football team. I think he ends up as the starting quarterback. It's time it's Texas. It was pretty impressive filling in for Quinn Ewers last season. I think he's going to bring a lot to the Stucke offense. Yeah. And so other places of turnover, what are the biggest maybe concerns you have for Duke football this year?

Well, yeah, anytime you talk about it, quarterback. You want to make sure that they're upright, Alex, right? And so several players on the offensive line either transferred, graduated, or if you're somebody like Graham Barton, you're a first round pick by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFL draft. So that offensive line has had a good bit of turnover this offseason. It's a group that I think is going to have to come together rather quickly for the Stook football team. Their four non-conference games. And then the first ACC game of the season coming up in week five. It's Duke in North Carolina, the finest rivalry, the big test for Duke there. So it's an offensive line that's definitely going to need to stand

tall to make that quarterback competition easier and to make a player like Malik Murphy able to make those plays. Have you had a chance to, have you made any win-loss predictions yet? I should say, have you gone through that? Have you put anything on record yet? I haven't. I've kind of bounced back and fourth with where I think this Duke team fits within the picture of the ACC. I understand that the Duke team surprised a lot of people last season with the start that they had, beating Clemson, a big start to the year, big Notre Dame game, where Duke was a fourth and 16 stop away from being 5 and 0. If they get that stop, Riley Leonard doesn't go back out on the field, doesn't break his ankle,

and he might still be playing for Duke had things gone that way. when I look at this team and seeing all the turnover, I do think this Duke team's capable of making it to a bowl game, but I think their ceiling would be right there at that seven, eight win mark when I look at them. You mentioned Mike Elko just had a couple of successful seasons at Duke before stepping away. How much do you expect the systems to change now?

I think a good bit. I think when you think about what Manny Diaz was able to do in Miami and his experience in the ACC, I think that that is certainly going to help what he's trying to bring here to the Blue Devils. I think you look at the staff that he's put together much different build than what Mike Elko was able to do over the past couple of seasons. And then just looking at the offense as a whole, the guys that Duke's currently trying to recruit in future classes, seems like there's going to be a bit of a different kind of play style for the Duke football team. How do you see the ACC playing out this year, JJ, because this is one of those seasons.

where obviously their Florida state has earned a lot of equity with how they've been the last couple years defending ACC champs. People are kind of wondering, does Clemson take a bit more of a step back or are they resurgent this year? People are wondering, can Miami actually play up to their talent level this year? How do you see the conference playing out? I think those are the three teams to start with. Anytime you have that ACC conversation, right? I look at what Clemson had last season, some of the tough losses that they went through and just poor performance. that they had to go back to that first game of the season that they had against Duke on Labor Day. Who expects Duke at home to knock off Clemson?

And that kind of set the tone for the year that would be. I find it really hard to believe that a program like Clemson with what Davosweeney has been able to do can have consecutive seasons less than what the standard has been there. So I definitely think Clemson's going to be there in the hunt at the end. Florida State, like you said, going undefeated last year. year being the ACC champs. And I don't know, man, I like your hurricanes. Like you said, they got a lot of talent, especially at quarterback. How fun is that offense going to be able to watch for Miami? And without divisions, man, it just feels wide open for what the league could look like

in terms of, okay, are we going to get down to tiebreakers to determine which teams end up in Charlotte for that conference championship game. So, yeah, I don't know that there's any team outside of those three that I would pick to win the league. Yeah, a big topic this week, especially day one, The commissioner was here, Jim Phillips, and he spoke so passionately about all this realignment talk and about the legal disputes, which is how he referred to them with Florida State and Clemson. How concerned are you that, you know, in a few years' time, there either won't be an ACC or it's going to be so different from what's constructed now? At this one, I think you'd be foolish not to be concerned, although I will say, Alex, I am one of the ACC truthers as a native North Carolinaian right. It only feels right that the ACC remains intact and that the schools that have been there for a really long time continue to be a part of this conference. I have been really excited by the commissioners across every league so far this week, kind of talking about we're satisfied with where we're at and what that will look like in the future.

So I think for now we've bought a little bit of time, but the concerns definitely still got to be out there. I know you and Kenton are talking about it a lot. You guys are who I go to unlocked on ACC to kind of hear the latest in those discussions and conversations. But, yeah, change might be coming just hopefully not too soon. Yeah, and I think it's going to be a couple of years, I think. And, you know, Kent and I and I have both been of the mind that Florida State and Clemson, they're going to get out. Like it's moving in that direction, but people seem to argue about how quickly it's going to move to that direction. You know, we already know it's been reported this week by Pete Thammell of ESS.

P.N that they're not going to make a formal declaration this summer, which would mean, I guess, the earliest they could join another conference would be the 2026 football seasons. So we've got at least, I think, at least two more football seasons of the ACC in its current form. Yeah, absolutely. And I think that what happens after that is a conversation that I hope we can put off for a little while, right? I hope that once we get through talking season here in these few weeks, once we get into fall camp, we're able to focus a little bit more. about the product on the field and what these teams are going to look like. Because I think college football is going to look different this year, right, than it has in years past. And I'm excited to really kind of dive into those nuances, man, just thinking about some of the rule changes coming to the sport. How can you not be excited about what we can see?

Well, darn right. And I hope you guys are excited for Locked on Blue Devils as well, because JJ does a fantastic job, whether it's football season, basketball season, everything in between. He's got you covered on Locked on Blue Devils. Thank you guys so much. JJ, thank you. Thank you, Alex.

Happy to be here. Not the edge, but it lets you know that you know what to expect already. From team-wise, weekend and week-out wise, player-wise, so for sure. The ACC used to be home for you at Miami. It has a feel to be back in the conference. It feels great. It feels great to be back in the conference. It feels great to be back against the teams that I've been so used to seen on the schedule.

The type of talent I'll see. And just being able to make plays against the type of talent again, what are some of the team goals for you guys heading into the team? What are some of the team goals for you guys heading into the team? year? Team goals? I'll probably say staying consistent,

not beating ourselves. Last year, there was definitely games that we beat ourselves. And, you know, we just can't have that this year, you know? Playing the ACC weekend and week out, every game's a big game, no game on our schedule.

It's a cake walk, you know? So we just definitely just, like, can't beat ourselves this year for sure, for sure. You feel like you're ready for the step up and competition? Yes, sir. That's it for sure. I'm born ready.

I have a player, sir. survey that I'm doing. If you could steal a player off another roster, doesn't have to, I mean, obviously not on your team, but he's not on another roster. Who would it be in why? In college? Yeah, college. Oh, um, it's tough. It's tough. It's tough. It's tough. It's think. Um, well, he's not, he just graduated, but I was going to say James Williams for camp kitchen is one of those guys for sure. Having those guys, like, those guys were probably some of the most, like, football, like, Like those guys love ball.

I'm talking about from being in the facility from six in the morning to like eight at night just in the film room. Those guys really, really love ball. Who's the best ECC players out on your team on offense?

Let's go Donald Chaney. Yeah, let's go Donald Cheney. He's a great player. Him healthy, like people kind of forget about it, but, man, Donald Cheney healthy is a really good player. Like 200 solid, 2.05 solid. He can run, he can move.

I'm excited to see what he does this Giard Louisville for sure. Investing that's a defensive player or not on your team? It has to be a deal line, man. Oh, let's go. Ruben Bain. He's great, he's a young kid. Just being a freshman, having that type of impact. It's crazy, that people don't probably like, like, understand how hard it is,

but the kid was like 18, 19 years old, making plays as if he was like 25, so it was crazy. Yeah. He's crazy for sure. Best accomplishment in the gym? This offseason, probably saying just being able to test good in all my weightlifting stuff hit like 225 about 24, 25 times this year. And I was coming off of, you know, banged up shoulders. I jumped like 30 inches on the vertical. So it was a good offseason for me, for sure.

Best road environment that you're looking forward to. This year, Louisville. Louisville would probably be a great environment. Last time I've been there was during COVID. It was like my first time during COVID. So it wasn't the same. So for sure this year, it's just going to be the biggest job. What do you think it's going to be the biggest job of the year?

Like I said earlier, just keeping your body, like, intact. Stay healthy. Stay intact, you know, trying to – because every week is going to be a big game. Every week is going to be like – you know, you're going to get banged up every game. So you got to make sure that after that first game, you're never going to feel 100%. So you've got to stay in the training room. You've got to get extra rehab for sure. What's it like for you guys when you come here and kind of, one of the big conversations is all these, a few teams wanting to leave at the CCC, right?

As you guys are company, you're so excited to join. Is that weird? And how do you kind of deal with all that? You know, we kind of, as players, trying to have to pay the attention to this much, but, you know, it's definitely hard not to see, you know, every time you open your phone, you see, like, a couple of teams trying to leave the conference and stuff like that. But, you know, for me, it doesn't really affect me as much, you know, this being my last year in college. But I'm definitely just giving for the opportunity that we do get to play these teams in the SEC, for sure. Elijah, how much did play, I'm sorry, did you have to follow up? It's just so unrelated.

I was just going to ask you if you got to play the video game. Oh, yeah, for sure. Yeah, for sure. It's a great game, having all our teammates on there and just seeing all the guys, but actually know what actually practice with and it's so crazy for sure. Thank you. Thank you. So you played Boston College in the hole last year.

So you kind of got a taste of the ACC. How much does that kind of prepare you for what to expect? And what do you expect? I would definitely say playing against them, you know, it gives you a feel, you know, especially like going back on film and just watching them, watching us. It definitely gives you a fit. Even though we're a completely different team now than we were at the time, it definitely, you know, it does.

And then as far as me, excuse me? Just expecting, you know, just like I said earlier, just week in and week out, it's going to be physical. It's going to be a physical, physical game every week. Everybody's going to have, I want to say a target on that back, but nobody wants to lose to the new guys in town. You know, nobody wants to lose to the new guys on the block. So it's definitely, I definitely expect to see every team's best, for sure.

And if I remember, right, isn't Boston College on your schedule this year? So you got a shot at him when you get home, too, if I remember. Yes, sir, they come to us this time, not in, not in Fenway Park with that field in the weather. A neutral sight, you're supposed to. I appreciate it. When you made the transition from Miami to SMU, you know, familiar faces over there with you, and of course Coach Lashley,

did that kind of ease that transition for you? Oh, yeah. That was honestly, like, the biggest reason. Like, having guys, having coaches who, like, I knew, who knew me. Who even knew my family? Like, they knew my family already from Maine, Miami. So having those guys was just like, it was a no-brainer, you know, because, like, NIL is one thing.

This, like, all the other stuff. The city's one thing. But, like, at the end of the day, I wanted to play, and I wanted to be technical. care of and over here like I got them both so for sure it's wonderful man that's the thank you so much watching DJ and all those guys I remember watching Clemson's defense said you're really good but yeah no I didn't I didn't prefer the

office sadly that year well I asked you because you know they still do some of the same stuff you know West changed up a little bit but what do you when you watch Clemson what it was soon about their defense and and how did they challenge you he was saying that was the most you guys went in there blind of some things because you just really couldn't prepare as much from what they were. From what I remember, you know, obviously, you know, getting prepared from this year. You know, they just changed. They had a different blitz for every play almost, and that's not something that's, you know, exciting.

The I'd be prepared as a quarterback for that, you know, every single game, so make sure you got to know where your hot answers and where to get the ball. When you, when you face a defense like that, what's your, how much does a quarterback look forward to it other than the fact that, you know, probably don't get a lot. But other than that, I mean, what is it that's good to play kind of defense with that for a quarterback? You know, I love playing teams at Blitz. You know, I think my favorite part of the game is protection.

I think my favorite part of the game is knowing where blitzers are coming from and sliding guys or, you know, getting guys out so I have an answer. So I'm excited. I love, you know, bring the heat. You know, it's kind of what is part of the game. And if you're not prepared for it, you're never going to be, you never succeed. I know you guys had West Virginia this year's coming in. You got Clemson coming in. Remember the atmosphere when I was there that year.

It was pretty big. It was like a Steelers game with the atmosphere and they had the towels that passed out and all that. and kind of get the fans more involved. Kind of excited to have those two games at home this year and with that at the series me all? Definitely. You know, that's something I'm always looking forward to having the fans there and having that support.

At the end of the day, it's another game, and we're going to try and win it. Obviously, Cade Clubnick. I played, didn't get a chance to play him in high school. I'm excited to get to play him this year. When Coach Bell came in, what was his message to you guys about, okay, here's why we're going to do this spread.

Here's why I think it's going to work for you guys. What was kind of the, you know, this is the overriding message when it came in about why this offense will work for you guys? You know, Coach Bell came in, like I said, just set a standard. And so I knew that if we, you know, we, you know, listen to him and did what he said, we were going to succeed. And that's something I've tried to, you know, instill on everyone on the team. And I think we're all on the same page that way. I mean, our guys instantly going on YouTube and calling up with his old offense and kind of say, okay, oh, that looks fun or that looks good?

Definitely. Yeah, Washington's Western Carolina tape is really, really fun. and I think he does a lot of great things that are going to help us to share. I know you mentioned in the other room learning from Kenny Pickett. What are some of the lessons that you learned through the years just to help prepare you for finally getting the keys to the car and leaving the out of the biggest thing for him was just leadership. Getting to watch how the guys around him responded to him

and how much he commanded in the huddle and, you know, and from the team. It's extremely important to have someone that, you know, the team can rely on and, you know, can set the tone. And what's coach Bell brought that helped you the most throw as a quarterback? You know, he's just been there every single day to push me.

He's pushing me making sure I'm playing the best I can. And I think for me, that's what I need. I need someone that's making sure that I'm playing on my best. And I think he's going to bring that to the table. And I think that's going to really help me succeed this year. How much will your offense look different to your fans as opposed to, you know, what you were running match? I would say very different, very different.

almost unrecognizable. So yeah, the big change, which is, I mean, I'm excited about. I think that's what we needed. Can I have to say it's spread, I guess? Or you have a different name for it? I would say, yeah, spread, yeah. We'll be out wide.

It'll be good. Yeah, yes, sir. Yeah, yes, sir. Pittsburgh is a town known for its rough run the football mentality, play defense. Cities kind of decided, do you think, maybe to see this wide open, spread it out, up-tempo offense?

I think the city's excited to see a team win. I don't think they care how they do it. And so if we're outspread, we're in tight, I think they just want to see a score points and win football games. What do your team goals look like for this year? Team goals, win football games. That's every one week at a time and we'll take care of business.

That's definitely our goal. What are some parts of your game you feel like you've worked on and improved through Springton out? For me, it's just been owning this offense, making sure it's second nature to me. Learn a whole new offense takes time. And so as a quarterback, sometimes it's hard. to implement these concepts. And I think for me, it was just making sure I relied on the guys around me and just did with Coach As.

A lot of talent on that offense. Talk to us about your weapons and highlight some of the guys on your oath. We got a ton of weapons. I'm really excited about it. You know, receiver wise, you know, we have two new guys from Western. Really excited about them, CJ and Pop. And then obviously, Tay and Kenny from last year,

excellent receivers. Tay's always open. Kenny's always open. They're going to do great things. You know, the running back room, you know, we got Rod, DC, you know, Derek Davis, and now we brought Desmond Reed just to add that to him. So, you know, the skill players were totally fine on, and we're going to have guys, you know, running free everywhere.

If we, you know, do Coach Wells' offense and then all lines, all lines kicking. Obviously, we got Gavin over there in tight end room, so plenty of moments this year. A lot of wealth likes to start us back in next year. Is the new offense to gate that or is it's a, is that still a huge plus for you guys? I think it's a big plus for us. You know, we got a lot of vets, especially in the O-Line. Now we got some guys that are coming back and have played. And I think that's really exciting.

You know, they have a good mesh up there, and a great relationship. And I think, you know, it's going to take them a long way. As far as the offense goes, you know, these older guys, they easily take in this new offense that are able to learn it and apply it fast. So I'm really about it. Was it hard for you to learn or not?

You know, not really, no. You know, Coach Bell made it easy. You know, hammer away at it, you know, every single day. And so it didn't take too long. for me to get comfortable with. Winning only three games last year, as you look back in last year, what do you kind of point to of, okay, we do this better or that better?

I think we're going to turn things around the win season. You know, for me, it's just taking the lessons from last year and making sure that I'm just trying to implement whatever Coach Bell wants. He's bringing in the offense, and now it's my job to, you know, run it efficiently and make sure that we score points. So for me, it's really just making sure I do my job and listen to Coach Bell. Kenton, it's been an eventful week out here at ACC kickoff in Charlotte. And they're like this close to kicking me out of here.

They've been breaking down radio row down here. I'm getting like dirty looks from the people like, hurry it up, hurry it up. So I'm going to be stepping aside pretty soon. But, you know, we learned a lot of things this week, Kenton, including the ACCCC commissioner, is not going to stop fighting with all these disputes. The legal disputes with Florida State and Clemson, he's not going to roll over for this. He was a real milk toast guy, in my opinion, up until this here, ACC Media Days. This is the most impassioned I've ever seen him. This is the most fired up I've ever seen him.

And I'm excited about it. You know what I mean? And there is so much that as a conference there is to still fight for. There is to remain. Like I keep talking about, this is not about who likes who or this is not about who wants to be friends with who. This is about survival. This is about numbers. This is about at the end of the day, is my bottom line going to say, I'm in the

or I'm in the black. And that's what we have going on right now. And Jim Phillips' willingness to fight to be vocal is going to be very important as to whether or not the ACC is in the negative or net positive at the end of this thing. Well, we're still coming out of these media days, we'll have a lot to digest throughout the next couple of weeks unlocked on ACC, including fall practice is starting. Now, Florida State, they've already started theirs in Georgia Tech because they play week zero or week negative one, whatever it is out in Ireland. So, They've already started practicing. All the other teams in the conference are going to start starting practice within the next week.

So we'll have a lot to talk about. Make sure you tune in again next time on another episode of Lockdown ACCC. We are part of the awesome lockdown podcast network. Your team every day.