Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - TOP FIVE: Miami’s Darian Mensah Leads ACC Transfer Quarterback Rankings – Who WILL DELIVER?

Starting point is 00:00:01 There are a lot more than Darian Mensa at Miami. About half the football teams in the ACC are going to have transfer starting quarterbacks. Let's rank them. 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. We're available free wherever you get your podcast. We're free on YouTube.

Starting point is 00:00:35 We're part of the number one, Locked on. podcast network, your team every day. He is Kenton Gibbs, former NC State defensive linement and co-host of Locked on Wolfpack. I am Alex Dono, host of Locked on Cainz, and today's episode is brought to you by Mazda. We put the same drive into every detail. Wins define the moment, putting in the work that defines you. Stay tuned for highlights in this week's moving the game forward. There's more to a Mazda because there's more to you.

Starting point is 00:01:01 And yeah, we're going to have to talk on this episode about that comeback in Raleigh. Miami Hurricanes score an eight unanswered to win that game. Huge statement win at ACC basketball, what it does for Miami's tournament picture, ACC and NCAA and NC states, of course, as well. We'll talk about which football programs will be playing just eight conference games between 2026 and 2032 because the ACC announced that late last week. But let's talk transfer quarterbacks, Kenton, where, and I mentioned, The one that took most of the headlines was Darien Mensa transferring from Duke to Miami.

Starting point is 00:01:39 Some other projected starters who are transfers to Ron Dickens transferring to North Carolina, former Western Carolina standout, set NCAA records in 2025 with 46 completions consecutively in a single game. Maybe Bill Belichick has found his next Tom Brady. Lincoln Keenholz transferring to Louisville, Beau Pribula. and Eli Holstein transferring to Virginia. Ethan Grunkumeyer, former Penn State, backup quarterback transferring to Virginia Tech to join his former and now current,

Starting point is 00:02:15 again, head coach James Franklin. But how do you see, Kenton, if we look at transfer starting quarterbacks in the ACC, I'd love to hear your top five because I know you've been working on it. Donald threw a curveball at me. He threw a curveball at me. Oh, don't worry, we'll get to it.

Starting point is 00:02:31 But he threw a curveball at me that I wasn't coming. And this is what I expect from a Miami guy, especially after what we saw this weekend in Raleigh, as he alluded to earlier. But the top five transfer of quarterbacks in the ACC, this is the undoubtable, unrefuted, locked on ACC list. And as Donald says, if it's on locked on ACC, it's got to be right. So we start off with the obvious crown jewel of the class, Darian Mensa. That young man, he is fantastic. When he's on and he's rolling, I mean, he can carry an offense to wherever. they want to go as we saw him carry Duke to an ACC championship game and an ACC championship win.

Starting point is 00:03:11 That is something Miami's never done. That's why they had to go get Dary and Mensa. I was just about to say he's the only player on Miami's roster with an ACC championship ring. That's a factual state. So he is a baller. Well, him and Cooper Barcate now. We got two. Oh, right, right, right.

Starting point is 00:03:25 Cooper Barcake. That's correct. That's correct. But he is a baller. He can get it done through the air. He is, I think his running is a little bit overstayed. I think he's a good enough athlete. I don't think that he's a guy that you want carrying the ball

Starting point is 00:03:38 eight to ten times a game. I think you're in dicey territory beyond that. But he's fantastic both on schedule and when things break down a little bit. You know, he improvises like nobody's business. He's a really, really good throw at the ball. He's got, I mean, he can make every throw. He can do it with anticipation.

Starting point is 00:03:56 He can do it off schedule. That's the type of quarterback you want. And again, when I say his running is overstated, I'm not saying he's a bad runner. People make him out to be a dual threat. That he is not. That's not his game. He's the type of guy again.

Starting point is 00:04:09 He can improvise back there. You do not want him being a meaningful contributor to your running game. That's just not, especially with the depth that Miami has in their running back room, wouldn't even make sense to try to use him in that way. But he is fantastic when he is dropping back and making something happen. Donald, I don't think you'll disagree there. No, I'm in full agreement, Darien Mensa, most impactful transfer quarterback into the ACC. He goes from one ACC school to another, but I agree with him being number one.

Starting point is 00:04:39 Absolutely. And we've got a 2A and 2B situation. Oh, I like that. The 2A and 2B situation, this was the curve ball that Donald threw at me. I'm going to have to throw Dickens in here at 2A as, you know, North Carolina's quarterback. People are going to say he didn't play any competition at West New Carolina. My question is this, which quarterback that's transferring in looked better for more of the year than last year. He was a stud there for sure. So he's going to be my 2A. He's going to be my 2A and that's just where I got him ranked. If you want to fight me about it, fight me about it. I'm sorry. No, no, he's going to be my defendant number two rather. We have a 3A, 3B or yes, 3A3B situation. He's going to be my defendant number two. Any disagreement there, Donno?

Starting point is 00:05:30 No, honestly with the numbers that Taran Dickens put up, and again, I know smaller level of competition, but people have to remember, like before Darian Mensa was at Duke, he was at Tulane putting up video game numbers, and then the step up in competition was no issue for him. So I'm with you on that with Taran Dickens. And here's my 3A3B, Bo Perbula, Ashton Daniels. Let me tell you why. Oh, Ashton Daniels, huh? Both of them, hear me out.

Starting point is 00:05:57 Both of them up, down, all around town. and Smitty pointed me to some games I needed to watch from Ashton Daniels. Upon reviewing the film, I'm higher on Ashton Daniels than I was originally. I reserve the right to change my mind with new information that's presented and going back and watching this game film,

Starting point is 00:06:13 I said, okay, he's got something there. There's definitely something there. My only question is the situation that he's going into is such a mess. Like, I would not be surprised if despite his talent, he ends up being a guy that we look at like, what even was that?

Starting point is 00:06:28 just because of, you know, offensive coordinator, retiring last minute, all those things. It's a little bit of a mess down there in Tallahassee. Boer, on the other hand, I mean, I'm a coach drink stand. I really am. I believe in Coach Eli Drinkwood's a lot at Missouri.

Starting point is 00:06:46 If you can't be a baller for him, I'm deeply concerned. I don't believe in Bo Pruehula that much. I think he could be a net positive, but I'm not even sold if he beats out Eli Holstein for that start spot. That is another thing. thing. Eli Holstein, who had a good freshman season, is going to be competing with him. But with Prubula, I think you're judging him a little too harshly, as was I. So, you know, he was seven and three

Starting point is 00:07:09 in the ten games that he started for Missou and Coach Drink last year. But it was really a tale of two seasons for him. So right in the middle of the season, suffered a dislocated ankle. He only missed two games. But when he returned from the dislocated ankle, he was a different guy. I think that really affected his game playing through all that pain. So, I mean, if you look at like Perbula had a pristine start to the season and a really poor finish with the injury being the clear divider. Here's my only problem with that theory, Donald. The only games that he did not throw, the only games that he threw a touchdown and no interceptions on the year was against central Arkansas and Kentucky. That's it. That's it. The only, every other game against Louisiana,

Starting point is 00:07:56 and Lafayette, South Carolina, UMass, you're turning the ball over against the Massachusetts Minutemen. Here's a fun rule. Anytime you're playing a MAC team that's not from the middle of America. So Sacramento State or UMass, you should be setting the world on fire. I'm sorry. You should be set in the world on fire. And then we go beyond that. And you could say it was the injury.

Starting point is 00:08:23 You could also say it was a level of competition picking up. of central Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana Lafayette, South Carolina, and Massachusetts. How many of those teams have when he records? But then you finish out the season with Alabama, Auburn, Vanderbilt, Oklahoma, and Arkansas.

Starting point is 00:08:40 Well, yeah, I expect to drop off in your stats. I do. But the level that it dropped off for him, he fell off a clip. And don't get me wrong, you can see he was hobbled. You can see he was playing with some pain. But, Donnell, we live in a results-based business, right? You know,

Starting point is 00:08:55 we've heard about you as the Miami Marauder at your son's little league games. You know, at the end of the day, you're not giving his teammates a pass if they can't properly handle a touch and get the pass off to your kid so he can get a goal, right? You're going to be saying,

Starting point is 00:09:11 hey, Becca, get your ponytail out your eyes. I'm very harsh, yeah. Get the, get the assists. Yeah, yeah. We live in a results-based business, okay? That's what it's been since I was knee-hot-to-a-end. that's what it's always been. It's always been, hey, you are what you put on tape.

Starting point is 00:09:30 And the unfortunate part is we hope that he could have a bounce back year, but there's been plenty of people in his similar situation that haven't. We all thought that J. Knot was going to have a bounce back year at Oklahoma. That man had about what? 60 yards? 67 yards? Something like that. And it's not just him.

Starting point is 00:09:47 That's just one example. So both Buehula and Ascendant's, he lit it up at times at Auburn. against a pretty good defensive. But again, he was in a dysfunctional situation there. Coach doesn't finish the season. It's probably going to be the same situation at Florida State. He has talent. I think in the right situation, he could light it up

Starting point is 00:10:08 and maybe be on a borderline ACC player at a year type of deal. But the reality is, the reality is, that situation is very dysfunctional. And the same way that I said injuries are results based that you got to play through it, coaching change, turmoil in the locker room. Same thing. You got to play through it.

Starting point is 00:10:27 And I did not see him perform to a high level. So that's my 3A and my 3B. And last but not least, because obviously if you got two, you got to close that with somebody at 5. I'm going to go with Grunkelmire. I'm going to go to Brunkelemyr. And I'm going to go at Grunclemire

Starting point is 00:10:43 because you come with your offensive coordinator. You come with a head coach that knows the area, recruits the area well, has done all the things. Well, Bruncomer did not inspire me to greatness, but he also wasn't mid or pedestrian for his entirety. Like you saw the flashes, flashes that I didn't see from McKenzie or EGitt or those other guys.

Starting point is 00:11:04 I just didn't see it from them. And EGet played a very passing friendly system at San Jose State. I didn't see it. I didn't see it to where I'm like, I believe in that guy. And, you know, ultimately, when it came down to who was going to make the back end of my top five, that's what ended up being. I don't remember mention Lincoln Keenhol. I was about to say that.

Starting point is 00:11:26 And you know what? I think he could very well end up in the top five for a couple of reasons. So Lincoln Keenholz is the likely new starting quarterback at Louisville. Now, the difference between Keenholz and the last few quarterbacks that Jeff Brom has brought in is Keenholz does not have true starting experience. It's been a backup at Ohio State, but he's got three years of eligibility remaining Kenton. And this is a four-star recruit coming out of high school. remember hearing about him when he was coming out of high school, a really dangerous dual threat guy. So a couple factors here.

Starting point is 00:12:02 Number one, Jeff Brom is usually bringing out the best in quarterbacks. We've seen that pattern over the years. He has clearly identified Keenholz as someone who's going to fit his offense. And so, you know, I think a guy who had a ton of pedigree coming out of high school, listen, you commit to Ohio State with all the quarterbacks that they bring in from high school and in the transfer portal. You know, there's not always a path to become a starter there. You know, there was a certain guy by the name of Joe Burrow was someone who was cast off

Starting point is 00:12:32 from Ohio State transferred to LSU and had a pretty good finish to his college career. He did all right. I'm not saying Lincoln Keenholz will necessarily have that sort of an impact, but obviously being a guy who transfers out of Ohio State is not necessarily an indictment. Absolutely. And another thing that he has different from the former Louisville quarterback's body, and he could shuffle the puppies a little bit, right? When you think of Plummer, when you think of Moss,

Starting point is 00:12:56 you're not thinking of guys who can transform your offense and be a meaningful part of the running game. Keen-Holtz is that. He is that type of guy that he can be a plus as a rusher. And I know that that's not necessarily Brahms bag, but Brown finds ways. What I realize about Brown is it's not just about him bringing out the best in quarterbacks via my system does this.

Starting point is 00:13:17 He adjust his systems to what his quarterback strengths are. If you are really good at processing, he's going to give you a bunch of re-process it right away. If you are really, if you have a ton of arm strength, he's going to let you, you know, chuck it down field, pass and completion percentage be damned. We're going to give you the opportunity to hit those deep shots that you're really good at.

Starting point is 00:13:38 And so I expect him to use Keenhocks in the running game in a meaningful way because that's one of his strengths. That's one of the things that was advertised is like, hey, this is what he does well. I'm not saying this going to be a Gus Malzahn. He's going to be carrying the ball 15, 20 times the game. Let's not get crazy, but he is going to, you know, be a threat to defenses. And I'm going to tell you what, imagine that read option.

Starting point is 00:14:00 You got two things to stop. A dual threat and Isaac Brown. Oh, my God. Yeah. Hold on. Hold on. Wait a minute. As a defensive lineman, I can't sleep thinking about former defensive linemen.

Starting point is 00:14:11 I can't sleep thinking about that. So ultimately, you probably, you're definitely right there. Again, with the way that this is, with the way that this was ranked, this was ranked based off who I think is most and least. talented. Now, if you had to, if I had to rank about who's going to have the best and worst season, this list would look a little bit different because, again, some of these guys, Keenholz is in a great situation to succeed. Ashton Danes is not. Ashton is in a situation. Fair point. At the end of this season, if he saves, if he saves Norville's job, he should

Starting point is 00:14:42 be an ACC player of your consideration. Unless they have a running back of wrestlers for 1,500 or something, he's going to be in that conversation. Because what How many wins do you think it takes to save Norvelle's job at this point? And I know we've got to go to break. But how many do you think it would take there? I mean, I would say eight. You think it's probably. And that's my point.

Starting point is 00:15:04 I agree. So eight wins or more for Florida State. Somebody's going to need to do a Herkulean effort to get there. Yeah. Yeah. Well, when we come back, Florida State is among teams in the upcoming years that's going to get a couple of breaks where they only have to play eight conference games. Because remember, this is so ACC.

Starting point is 00:15:22 with an odd number of teams, even though they're going to a nine game conference schedule, not all the teams can actually play nine games because it mathematically doesn't work out. We'll tell you how that breaks down next. You want to keep it locked right here. We're only getting started on this brand new episode of Lockdown ACC. Workplace chaos. Deadlines are stacking up, inbox overflowing, and the one position you have to fill is still sitting open.

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Starting point is 00:17:08 On the Everydayer Club, you get exclusive ad-free versions of our episodes, a lot of other benefits like exclusive Discord server chats with our hosts. You can check out your favorite locked on podcasts at locked on podcast.com slash everydayer. You want to join the EveryDayer Club for Locked on Wolfpack, Locked on ACC, Locked on Cains, all your other favorite shows. Go to Lockedon Podcast.com slash Everydayer. All right, Kenton, so we're still awaiting the official word on what the new ACC tiebreaker format is going to look like. You know, one of the reasons why they have to change the tiebreaker format outside of the obvious that the tiebreaker format failed the conference last football season. They also need to change it because not every team in the ACC is going to be playing a nine-game conference schedule.

Starting point is 00:17:58 There's, I think, five teams that will play just eight games this coming season. And then still, even beyond 2026, you're going to have to have teams rotating to only play eight games because with 17 teams in the conference, mathematically they cannot all play nine conference games. So per on three Sports.com every year between 2027 and 20, sorry, 2032, 22, 27 and 32, there's going to be one team that only plays eight conference games each of those years. So Clemson, in 2027 and 28, Clemson will only play eight conference games. How they got that two years in a row probably has to do with who they already had locked into their non-conference schedule. Georgia Tech in 2029 and 2031 will only play eight conference games.

Starting point is 00:18:51 Syracuse in 2030 and Florida State in 2032. So everybody else, those years, will be playing nine conference games and God help us all with the tiebreaker. Because if a team goes 7 and 1 and a team goes 8 in 1, how you decide who's more worthy to play in the ACC championship game, We'll see what Jim Phillips comes up with. This is the most ACC thing that the ACC has ever done. I genuinely don't get it, Donno. If this is the case, and we are sitting here talking about, you know, whether or not who gets what or whatever, just make Notre Dame, although they are a partial member, count that into the ACC football games.

Starting point is 00:19:36 You don't want to know why, because the agreement will work out in a way that you could, jingling jangle oh who's short again who's short every year that team short great throw nother dame on a schedule that team short great throw nondon on schedule that team short great throw nondon on schedule you know why that would be such a clean and easy solution why is not already a partial member of the ac c yeah so why would you instead leave it uneven and mismatched And I know some people will say, well, kidding, that's not fair. Notre Dame is a powerhouse team and their money is going to trample over a lot of teams. Well, some teams already have agreement signed with them to play them on a yearly basis.

Starting point is 00:20:23 And some of those teams have competing money with them. So Dono was Clemson or were they not one of the teams that you just named? That's going to be short ACC games. They were for two different years. They're not going to play the full ACC schedule. Well, me thinks we have a solution on our hands. It's ultimately, and this is why I say you would do it for everybody, because if you do it for Clemson, it would be unfair to only count those games for Clemson.

Starting point is 00:20:53 No, count it for everybody. Count it for everybody. Say, hey, this is a conference game. You know, we would love to have an even number of teams in a conference, but we don't right now, so we would use a partial conference member to bridge the gap. But instead, in the most ACCC way, possible. I promise you, if you gave the ACC a door and

Starting point is 00:21:12 the key to open that door, they'd spend the entire day trying to claw down the door with that key. They just, ah, I'm going to get this door open. I'm going to get it up. And it's like, dude, just the keyhole is right there. Do you remember the movie Zoolander? The files are in the computer and they're

Starting point is 00:21:27 taking the computer apart. Yes. Where are the files? Exactly that. Exactly that. And I'm so disappointed because Jim Phillips doesn't even have a good blue steel look. That's the most disappointing part about all this. So ultimately, I really and truly hope that we can figure out a way to make this even. Because Donald, imagine the nightmares that are going to come out of that timebreaker scenario,

Starting point is 00:21:49 where it's like, this team has nine games, this team has eight, this team played all the winners, this team played a bunch of losers and a couple winners. It's just foolishness. Yeah, and there's an even more of an emphasis to make sure you have the right teams in the ACC championship game. because the way, like, the ball don't lie kind of worked out this past year. Like Duke won the conference. Miami didn't, but the playoff committee still put in Miami, which, you know, that decision was validated by the deep run that Miami made.

Starting point is 00:22:18 But moving forward now, as we talked about last week, power four conference champions now have a guaranteed bid. So you better get it right who's playing in your conference championship game because you can't sort of make up for it on the back. like you did this past year, right? I mean, if it had happened a year later, Duke would have been guaranteed to get in to the college football playoff, even with a 7 and 5 record.

Starting point is 00:22:45 Let's take it a step further. Beyond Duke being guaranteed to get in, Miami would have been guaranteed to get left out because the Notre Dame team that they beat was in the top 12. And because Notre Dame is such special and wonderful and good boys and girls, they get automatic top 12 bit, even though no other team has such a clause, right?

Starting point is 00:23:06 If Miami is number eight, but there's the way that the auto bids and all that work out, they're going to be pushed to the outside, guess where Miami's going to be. Congratulations, get ready to play for some Pop-Tarts, bates. Hey, I love to pop-tharts, babe. Congratulations. Hey, I love me some Pop-Tarts.

Starting point is 00:23:20 Frosted Strawberry is goaded. Here's a piece of ACC, locked on ACC trivia. I was at the first ever Pop-Tarts Bowl, covering that thing in person. Graysson Boone and I were both there as Kansas State top-d-incy. But the reality is very simple here. You have to, have to come up with some way to even this thing out because the tiebreaker situation that we see in year one are going to be flatly ridiculous.

Starting point is 00:23:47 And I hope that there is somebody that is a definitive enough champion to where it does not matter. But it just feels like this will inevitably end up blowing up in our faces. This feels like, oh, yeah, let's leave the stove one every day to heat the house. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. We have a good heating system. We are not in poverty. We can do better.

Starting point is 00:24:07 No, but I want to do it anyway. Why is the house on fire? This feels like one of those things. Yeah, I mean, I know you don't like this solution, but I think what they're going to end up doing is heavily waiting college football playoff ranking as a tiebreaker. And like Kenton doesn't like it for competitive reasons, but I think for logical reasons, it just makes a lot of sense

Starting point is 00:24:30 because that's the way you would get the fewest complaints, right? If the tiebreaker goes to the team that has a higher college football playoff ranking when the goal is to get a team into the college football playoff, I just logically it makes sense. Like there, we know that the rankings are manipulated and that's why you rightfully don't like it, but I think it's the most logical way to do it. I mean, so when we work from the conclusion that getting the most teams possible into the playoffs is the end goal, it is the correct thing to do.

Starting point is 00:25:00 to have that work out. That's not my end goal of having the conference football. That's not, for me personally, when I look at the conference championship, I want to put the two teams that have earned the right to be there. And to me, the rankings is a way to determine that. I don't feel like it's the only way or should be the way that trumps all other things. For me, that's the only problem there. But again, when we look at the conference objectively and what it should be doing and all that,

Starting point is 00:25:30 the biggest thing right now, we have Sacramento State playing in the Mac, the mid-American conference playing against teams from Indiana, Ohio, Michigan, and Massachusetts. That's middle America now. Apparently Massachusetts and Sacramento are middle America. Apparently, Cal. Anything outside of Hawaii and Alaska are now Middle America. Apparently Cal and Stanford, Palo Alto and Berkeley, California, are now on the Atlantic coast,

Starting point is 00:26:03 because money is the ultimate driver of everything we're seeing in college sports right now. If you go around South America, like the Atlantic and Pacific are connected, right? Right, right. It's the same water. Yeah, it's all the same water. I mean, even though if you look at where they do meet,

Starting point is 00:26:20 there's a clear delineation between which water. But that's, you know, nature and science. We're not nerds. We are not nerds on this show. But in all seriousness, you know, You can take a shortcut right through the Panama Canal. You can come right over the Pacific. There you go.

Starting point is 00:26:34 There you go. So in all seriousness, this is a moment where the ACC is ACC in it up once again. And the tie break is probably going to be that because like you said, it's to get the most teams in the playoffs. That's where we are as a conference. And that's not just where we are as a conference. That's not an indictment of the ACC. That's where we are as college football right now. It's just about get as many of my teams as possible into the big dance.

Starting point is 00:26:56 Well, when we come back, had some big back. basketball wins over the weekend, including Duke beating up Clemson, Miami Hurricanes, with a big comeback win at NC State. You want to keep it locked right here. Even if Kenton refuses to listen, you want to keep it locked right here. We're not done yet on locked on ACCC. Folks, this is Mazda's moving the game forward. For those who show there's more to the score than what's on screen, you know who moved the game

Starting point is 00:27:30 forward on Saturday? true Washington for Miami made his return for a personal absence missed three games returned against NC State hit three clutch free throws to win the game with absolute ice in his veins and it reminds us of what it really takes to raise the bar it's the extra work off the court dialing in every detail giving it that extra fire that grit and I never quit we put that same passion in every model highlights make the real what it took to get there makes it count There's more to a Mazda because there's more to you. Folks, we are also proudly brought to you by Fandul.

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Starting point is 00:29:01 Kent and Gibbs and Grayson Boone do an awesome job on Locked-on Wolfpack covering all things NC State. I cover all things Miami on Locked-on Cainz. We had a fun crossover episode on Saturday and then Saturday afternoon. Kent, I had left Miami for dead in the final minute of that game. Miami's down seven points, an 80 scoring run to finish the job at NC State, including those three clutch free throws by True Washington at the end. And also, I give Will Wade a lot of credit, not only for what he said after the game, where he was critical of his players without throwing anybody under the bus, which is a delicate art,

Starting point is 00:29:40 but also, Ketton, what Will Wade said before the game, like you talked about it, where NC State had this tendency to let star opposing players go off. And that's what happened with Malik Renew, who dropped 26 points, which is seven or eight points above his season average, like exactly what Will Wade unfortunately expected to happen, happened was a massive dub for Miami. Obviously a tough loss for NC State, but it doesn't change NC State's tournament status. I think you all are still pretty much a lock, and Miami becomes a virtual lock with the win. Yeah, and ultimately, you know, the same way that I said, credit to Louisville, you got to give all credit to Louisville, they showed up and

Starting point is 00:30:20 what behind. I've got to credit Miami here because Miami did everything that they wanted to do in terms of the winning the rebound battle by, I want to say it was like 11 or 12 rebounds might have been even more than that. 20 offensive rebounds. It's 20. Yeah. 20.

Starting point is 00:30:41 They won the overall rebounding battle, 40 to 29, Miami. Yeah, so 11, 11 wins on the board or 11 point or 11 board marginaire. But then on top of that, Dono, let's really get into it. As much as I want to say, this is 100% Miami winning, NC State choked away the last minute in a way that I've never seen. I mean, I mean, if you, if you ask me as a spectator, that's why I had left Miami for dead in the final.

Starting point is 00:31:10 Because you asked me, how do you score eight unanswered points in 52 seconds? I don't have a clear answer for you on how you do that. But let's dive deeper into it for a second, Dono. So what's the highest level you play basketball at? I played, let's see, fourth grade YMCA basketball was the highest competitive level I got to. I played, you know, playgrounds, more competitive in soccer and football. But yeah, fourth grade YMCA. Did your coach ever tell you how to break a press?

Starting point is 00:31:43 Did y'all ever go through that? No, we never went through that. Okay. The highest level I ever played out was in middle school for the Ann Arbor Trailblazers. Okay. and we learned that if you're getting a full court press with a trap element into it, the worst place you could possibly catch the ball is in the corner when you are stationary. If you do catch in a corner, you at least want to be on the go to where like, yeah,

Starting point is 00:32:08 I'm caught in the corner, but I'm going up to court to where multiple guys have to shuffle their puppies in different directions. They can't just collapse towards me because the trap has one guy on the endbounder, and one guy that's like either roaming around the middle or somewhere like from the block out just about and those guys are both converging on you coming forward right you want to make guys move their feet in different direction why do we have a senior guard and trey holloman do it not once but twice catch the ball in the corner for his body facing the out of bounds like you're you're stationary That's, again, I've never got paid to play basketball. Nobody ever paid me to do it, and don't get me wrong.

Starting point is 00:32:54 I was more than a football player. I look like an athlete hitting the left-hand layup. You understand? I'm not one of those guys that looks crazy trying to do that. But I guarantee you what these guys are making, I can do that. What Quater Copeland is making, you need to be able to hit a free throw. They put you on the line for one-in-one. And so, ultimately, you see that.

Starting point is 00:33:14 And then you have a chance to still win the game. and who else files a three-point shooter? Yeah. Then you're a big money super senior. So mind you, you want to know what name I didn't mention in that, Matt Able. You want to know what name I didn't mention in that, Colt Langdon. You want to know what name I didn't mention in that, Zemichael Wilkins. You want to know what all three those guys have in common?

Starting point is 00:33:38 True or Red Shirt freshman. If my young guys make mistakes like that, even then I'm a little upset because I'm like, this is basketball one-on-one stuff, but I live with it. But these super seniors that are supposed to be the stars just wet in the bed, crapping themselves on Valentine's Day. In that way, I felt no love from the wolfback in this game.

Starting point is 00:34:03 You know, I was supposed to break out the wheelway sheet. Never mind, we ain't got to get it all that. But I sat here with deep disappointment because this team gave the game. actually they didn't give the game away they forced the game to miami they said miami whether you want this game or not here you're not leaving raleigh without a w take it we're nice guys and we don't want you leave an empty-handed if you've got to miss all your valetides because you're in raleigh we want you to leave with something yeah and listen obviously you know from my angle i'm more more prone to giving credit to

Starting point is 00:34:37 miami but i agree with you because there really is no way in that sport to come from a seven point in under a minute left to win a game without an element of the other team choking. Like it can't be done. Like you need the other team to choke and you also have to take advantage of every opportunity that they give to you. Both of those things happen. Miami took full opportunity. NC State did everything they could to give the game away. Both of those things were true at once.

Starting point is 00:35:06 Otherwise it doesn't end that way. Well, we appreciate everybody. We'll talk more Bracketology throughout the week as those statuses get updated. everyone, make sure you smash the like button and subscribe to Lockdown ACC on Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your pods. Make sure you become an everydayer. Join the EveryDay or Club link in the show notes below. And we'll talk to you again next time on another episode of Lockdown ACC.

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