Locked On ACC - Daily College Football & Basketball Podcast - Uiagalelei? Ward? Martinez? Which Transfer Addition Will Have The Biggest ACC IMPACT?

Episode Date: April 30, 2024

Impact Transfer Portal stars like quarterback Cam Ward, running back Damien Martinez and quarterback DJ Uiagalelei have found new homes in the ACC. Ward and Martinez landed at Miami from Washington St...ate and Oregon State. DJ left Oregon State for Florida State. Will these three be the highest impact transfers at their new destination or will players like new Louisville QB Tyler Shough, NC State QB Grayson McCall, or Florida State defensive lineman Marvin Jones Jr have something to say about that?Hosts Alex Donno and Kenton Gibbs are joined by Locked On College Football host Spencer McLaughlin to break down these players. Spencer covered the PAC 12 and shares his insight on Uiagalelei, Ward and Martinez and which will provide the biggest spark to his new team. Spencer explains why he considers Florida State as favorites to repeat as conference champions. Donno and Gibbs discuss a new prediction on when FSU and Clemson will find a way out of the ACC’s Grant of Rights.Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Monopoly GO!Get in the game and join your friends. Click HERE to Download MONOPOLY GO! now free on The App Store or Google Play. LinkedInThese days every new potential hire can feel like a high stakes wager for your small business. That’s why LinkedIn Jobs helps find the right people for your team, faster and for free. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/lockedoncollege. Terms and conditions apply.GametimeDownload the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase.FanDuelFanDuel, America’s Number One Sportsbook. Right now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning GUARANTEED That’s A HUNDRED AND FIFTY BUCKS – win or lose! Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started. 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.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.

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Teams like Florida State, Miami, Louisville have been very active in the transfer portal. So who's in the best position to win the ACC? 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 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 Locked on podcast network.
Starting point is 00:00:35 team every day. Today's episode is brought to you by Fanduel. Make every moment more. Right now, new customers get $150 in bonus bets guaranteed. That's $150 win or lose. Visit Fandual.com slash Locked On to get started. We got a whole party in here today. I am Alex Dono from Locked on Cains. Of course, my co-host is always, Kenton Gibbs from Lockdown Wolfpack. Kenton, how are you? I'm good. As y'all can see, the shades are gone. My eyes are still a little bit of rent, but the Morpheus look is no longer with us. I'm going to miss it. And we brought in the big guns today.
Starting point is 00:01:11 Our guest, you know him and you love him from Lockdown College football. He's also the former host of Lockdown Pack 12. RIP. And the host of Lockdown, Oregon Ducks does a fantastic job. Spencer McLaughlin is with us. Spencer, one of the reasons why I really wanted to pick your brain is given that you have all that Pack 12 expertise, been a handful of big-time Pac-12 players former. who now find themselves in the Atlantic Coast Conference.
Starting point is 00:01:38 And, you know, one of them is the new quarterback for the Florida State Seminoles. We're going to get to that other quarterback in a little bit. Indeed, DJ Weungalai, who was at Oregon State. Now, Kenton and I, of course, also know him from his initial stop at Clemson. So he's back in the ACC after a year out west. And so, you know, DJU, obviously there's pressure for the guy who's got to replace Jordan Travis and on a team that has college football playoff, aspirations defending ACC Championship on the line for Florida State.
Starting point is 00:02:09 Your experience covering DJU at Oregon State last year was what? It was one of, you know, a high floor, but a pretty low ceiling. I think you know at this point what you're getting from DJ O'Iungalala, and that's a quarterback who will make some special throws from time to time. He will get robotic sometimes and make you do one of these for those listening on podcast. That was a head scratch that I gave. you there and he'll have some sequences where he flashes the five star potential and
Starting point is 00:02:40 maybe NFL potential and then I'll have some sequences where you kind of go wow that that throw wasn't close his receiver didn't have a chance in his defense compared to what he had a year ago he is going to have better receivers down at Florida State particularly guys that have just got a little bit more size his top two wideouts last year were Silas Bolden and Anthony Gould and Gould is a dynamite punt or Turner. Bolden is now over at Texas where he's going to be a high level gadget guy for Steve Sarkesian. Those are good pieces to have as a part of your offensive repertoire. Neither one of them is a true big body, number one outside 50-50 ball sort of wide out. And I think
Starting point is 00:03:19 DJ missed that a couple of times. But this is not someone who you can expect to contend for a Heisman trophy. It's not someone who you can run your offense through. This running game for Florida State has to be there. They have to be able to play on the defensive side as well, complementary football. Now, if you do that, DJ Oweungalai can win you games. Oregon State last year was eight and two through their first 10 before they lost a two-point game to Washington and then got housed the following week on the road at Oregon.
Starting point is 00:03:49 I think that game would have been tighter had they not lost to the Huskies the week prior. I think they were just a little bit deflated after that defeat. So I think DJ is a guy who can get Florida State to the playoff. I don't know if he carries them to a national championship. He is not Jordan Travis. He's not Jordan Travis. I don't think he's particularly close to Jordan Travis in the playmaking or consistency
Starting point is 00:04:09 department. But certainly he's a guy that will give you average to above average quarterback play. His completion percentage numbers in his career, they don't really impress you because he goes through those stretches where he'll just miss guys by three or four or five yards or he'll overthrow a guy or he'll hold the ball too long in the pocket. And he's got solid mobility, he's got a good arm. He can make special throws, but he doesn't do it. consistently, and that's where Florida State is at and why if they're going to hit their
Starting point is 00:04:37 ceiling as a football team this year, they have to play really, really well defensively, and they've got to be able to run the ball. Well, let's stick to that Pacific Northwest to the Sunshine State Pipelines, shall we? You look at Cam Ward, one of the most sought-after quarterbacks in the portal, and I know Donno is over there lighten up like a Christmas tree because they won the Cam Ward sweepstakes. But tell me about Cam Ward and what you think about him. floor and ceiling wise of what you think you can do with this is your in Miami here. Yeah, I don't think his floor is as high as DJUs, but his ceiling is much, much higher.
Starting point is 00:05:13 I'm a big Cam Ward fan. Now, like DJU, he's got consistency problems. And when he is on, he looks like an early round NFL draft selection, maybe first or late second. But when he is off, he looks like an undrafted free agent. And that's just been the reality with him. You know, he came from Incarnate Word where he began his career. He had two good seasons, by all accounts at Washington State, but there was a lot of ebb and flow. If you look at the 2022 season when the Cougs made a bowl game and, you know, had a nice year.
Starting point is 00:05:45 The first half of the year, he was really, I think it was these were the splits. First half of the year, he was really good. Second half of the year, he fell off. And the advantage of him going to Miami is he's now got a better team around him, where when he struggles, the team has got a better chance to succeed. But for him, it's limiting the turnover plays and playing within the structure of the offense. And I think that the reason Miami is such a great fit for Cam Ward, and look, I wanted Oregon to go after him. I like Dylan Gabriel.
Starting point is 00:06:16 I personally would have rather had Cam Ward because I think he's going into a situation now similar to what Bo Nix went into. And that's one of the talent has been flashed, but there are turnover issues. There's an inconsistent element to his game. But if you give him a better overall situation, I think he pops. And that's what he's got at Miami, who, of course, added Sam Brown in the transfer portal. They've got Xavier Restrepo on the outside. Damian Martinez at running back. Third year offensive line for Mario Cristobal and Alex Mirabal.
Starting point is 00:06:46 I expect Dono. It'll be good. Am I crazy? You're not. The offense has been trending very nicely from Miami. There are still a couple of concerns personnel-wise on defense. So I kind of view Miami's situation as a little bit just personnel-wise on not talking big picture, but kind of a reverse of Florida State.
Starting point is 00:07:08 Whereas for Florida State, I see the defense as you talked about being the massive strength for them. And then maybe some holes in question marks on the offense. Again, I'm not directly comparing the two teams Florida State has earned their respect over the past couple of years. Miami is trying to do just that. But I think it's a little bit of a flip scenario. But you know, you mentioned Spencer Damien Martinez, who's another. Pacific Northwest guy who come over to Miami. I had the privilege of talking about him on your show earlier this week at
Starting point is 00:07:35 Lockdown College football. I'll make sure you check that out. But Martinez, you know, this is a guy that I didn't watch probably as much Oregon State as I should have, but very aware of his exploits. I have become a Damien Martinez expert in recent weeks. But your experience watching him for the last couple of years with the Oregon State Beavers and what do you think he can do on an offense with Cam Ward? Well, I think he is by far, and it's not really close.
Starting point is 00:08:03 No disrespect to Nikia Watson, but he's the best running back. Cam Ward has ever had next to him in his college career. And why this move is so great is, you know, the point that I was kind of making is that Ward has never had a great run game to complement the offense. They've been, you know, kind of air raid base, and they just haven't been able to run the ball because they haven't had great offensive lines, which is why I think Ward can really unlock more potential with Miami this year compared to what he showed the last couple years at Washington State, which was still, for the most part, a very good player who can make high-end
Starting point is 00:08:37 NFL caliber throws. With Martinez in the backfield, look, he can be a workhorse. I mean, you can, if at times, if you want to lean on a guy and run out the clock, I'm not going to make the joke, but we all know what it is, if you want to lean on a guy for the final few minutes of a game, Damien Martinez is that guy, because he's going to fall. forward. He's going to wear teams down. He's going to make really good decisive cuts. And he's just a load to tackle. He's not the shiftyest guy in the world because you don't need to run around guys when you can just run through them. So I think that those two in the backfield and Ward is a mobile quarterback to be sure and certainly is capable of being a factor in the run game. Those two
Starting point is 00:09:21 guys down the stretch of a game, I feel like on third and two, you just run a little, you know, RPO tied in in the flat and say, hey, Cam War, go make the right read and put the ball in those two guys' hands, and you're probably going to wind up with a big first down. So I think that those two are just a really, really excellent fit. So let me ask for this. We've talked a lot about that, hey, guys from Oregon, Washington, all that coming on down to Florida State and Miami, of that trio, which one do you think will have the biggest impact? If you had to go on Fandul and bet the house on which one will have the greatest value above replacement? Which one would you say this is the guy that I'm riding with to be the most impactful out of the league? Oh, that's a, that's a great
Starting point is 00:10:06 question. I'm sorry, sorry Florida State fans. I won't go with DJ because I think he's a downgrade from Jordan Travis. Doesn't mean I don't think he's good or capable. He's solid, but he is not Jordan Travis. I think you have to lean with the quarterback position. So I'll go Cam Ward here. But I am curious to see how close Damien Martinez comes to, you know, notching that title of the most impactful transfer of, of these three guys. And obviously, they're all going to be featured heavily right away. I mean, Miami at Florida, week one, man, that's a football game. That is, that is a heck of a football game.
Starting point is 00:10:41 And you're going to see a lot of number six and you're going to see a lot of Cam Ward in that game for the hurricanes. But I think Ward can really elevate what Miami had at their quarterback position. year ago where Tyler Van Dyke was had a couple glimpses, but Adonno's face right there, I think, says it. Yeah. A lot of interceptions, Spencer. A lot of, well, you know, Cam Ward can be prone to interceptions. So you got to get him to be able to take care of the football. I just think that Ward, Ward has got a lot more upside than Tyler Van Dyke. I think he's a more proven power five quarterback. You're not wrong talking about that Florida game because we're months out. I mean, August 31st,
Starting point is 00:11:22 And I've already been trash talking with Brandon from Locked on Gators. It's like, and I'm not even a trash talker, but he brings it out in me. He does. He does. Brandon is like that. Miami's been bad. Florida was really bad last year. And yet we're talking, I don't know why we're even talking trash to each other,
Starting point is 00:11:39 but it's just something that happens. But I want to get Spencer's take when we come back on which team he thinks is in the best position to win the ACC this year. Florida State are the slight betting favorites to repeat Clemson and Miami. and you're also in that conversation. I think there are definitely dark horses, including the team that Kenton covers in North Carolina State. So I want to get Spencer's take when we come back.
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Starting point is 00:14:09 my friends. Fandual.com slash locked on. Make your first bet an automatic win. Fan duel, America's number one sports book. Thank you so much for making this episode of Locked on ACC, your first listen and your first watch today. We're free. We have to get your pods. We're free on YouTube. We're part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. Alex Dono from Locked on Cains, Kenton Gibbs from Lockdown, Wolfpack, Spencer McLaughlin from Lockdown College Football joins us. So Spencer, how do you handicap the ACC this coming season? You know, Clemson, they don't do the transfer portal the way that Florida State and Miami and Louisville's been very active with incomings and outgoings.
Starting point is 00:14:52 How do you handicap the ACC this coming season? Who do you think wins? Well, I have to pick who wins right now. Right now, this is the end of... You can give me a speed. The way too early prediction. Lay it on the line, Spencer. Lay it on the line, baby. You can lay out your line. The spring portal window hasn't even officially closed yet. Everyone hasn't removed themselves. There are over 3,600 players who have gone into the transfer portal. But I think you look at Florida State, and certainly they have to be your odds-on favorite. And our friends at Fandul, that way as well. As for number two, I'm warming up to Miami here, Alex. I think that my,
Starting point is 00:15:32 that that Damien Martinez edition is is just massive. And it also demonstrates something and sends a message to the rest of that hurricane's locker room, which is, okay, we're going to get these guys who are in their final year of eligibility in some cases. Cam Ward doesn't have any time after this year. Damien Martinez is going to go to the NFL in all likelihood after this season unless he, you know, has a major injury there. I think adding those guys sends a message to the conference, the coaching staff, and the players as well of, hey, we're here to compete here. Now, this is year three.
Starting point is 00:16:12 We're going to try and make a push. And it's hard to get behind Clemson. They do have something that I hold very near and dear to my heart on Locked on College football, which is a returning coach, offensive coordinator, and quarterback. When you have those three things, you have a rarity in college football. You cannot find more than 50% of the teams in any major conference that have all three of those people returning. Clemson can say that.
Starting point is 00:16:40 So the foundation is certainly there. But you wonder because guys have left the Clemson program, guys like Andrew McCuba, the safety who ended up at Texas, do they have someone ready and waiting? they have someone who is capable of stepping in and and filling that sort of role of producing at that sort of low? I don't know. I don't know. They had an offensive line. They've had other departures and they're just not bringing guys in. So I think that puts a lot of onus potentially on on young players or at the very least inexperienced guys. And that's why I can't fully get behind Clemson. I like them, but I don't like him as much as I could. If they would just go in the
Starting point is 00:17:19 portal and just a couple, you don't have to go Dion Sanders crazy here. You don't even have to go Miami's level. You can just go, just get a couple of pieces like, hey, we lost this guy. Let's bring it another starting caliber player. Hey, we lost this guy. Well, this guy's actually a little bit better coming over from that power four school over there. So I wish they would do that. But I like Clemson. And then the third spot, well, fourth spot technically, because I think Miami and Clemson are kind of jockeying for that number two position in my preseason expectations. But NC State is hard to overlook. They've had a great offseason. I love what the they have done in the transfer portal. They have brought in players on both sides of the ball who are
Starting point is 00:17:59 coming from power schools where they were starters or have got plenty of potential. And then they bring in Grayson McCall, who's been one of the most accurate quarterbacks in college football over the last couple of years. People might not know as much about him because they, you know, haven't seen him playing in the Sunbelt conference. But, you know, Kent and you and I have talked about this before, NC State's got weapons. They've got real weapons. They've got a quarterback that can get him the They've got a coach who has been winning a lot of games, just not double-digit wins. I think NC State could be poised with a win total of eight and a half to get to 10 wins under Dave Dorn.
Starting point is 00:18:31 Maybe that comes in a bowl game. They go 9 and 3 and 10 and 3 with a bowl game victory. But those would be the top teams in there. And then, you know, if you want a couple of dark horses, I'm curious what Manny Diaz does at Duke with Malik Murphy as his quarterback. I think that's a really interesting dynamic. And, you know, Diaz at Miami, as you know, Dono, he wasn't bad. He wasn't great, but let's not look at his record and be like, oh, my gosh, he was terrible.
Starting point is 00:18:57 No, he wasn't terrible. He just, yeah, there was, there were things that were working, that were to be fair to him, that were working against him with the administration. They were not as committed to really giving him resources to win as they are now. You know, there were, Diaz, tremendous defensive coordinator. Outstanding. Outstanding. Like, he still hasn't proven what kind of a head coach he is.
Starting point is 00:19:21 I didn't really like him as a recruiter. So I'm curious to see how that translates over to Duke, where it's not always the easiest place to recruit football players, but strictly X's and O's, the guy is a stud. I'm just, I don't, I'm not convinced on him as a program builder. Yeah, I think that's a, I think that's a fair criticism at this point in his career.
Starting point is 00:19:41 I think getting Malik Murphy's a good start in, in the recruiting sense. But certainly, it's hard to bring guys to Duke. So I wonder what they can do. I'm pretty down on North Carolina. Like, you know, Mac Brown, is fine, but they might be rolling with Max Johnson at quarterback, who I've just never been a fan of. Like, he's just, I just don't, I don't see the special. I don't see the it factor. I don't see big
Starting point is 00:20:04 playmaking in, in that sense. I think SMU is kind of trendy because they've brought in a great portal class and they had a good team last year and they've got their coach and their quarterback returning. And I certainly like that. I can't see him going from the American where they had success to then jumping into ACC contender. I don't think they can. Now, can they be, you know, 7, 8, 9 win team? Maybe, but I think 9 is probably your upper limit there. Well, let me ask you this, because everybody is saying that the only new team to worry about is SMU.
Starting point is 00:20:40 The only new team is going to piss a drop in this league is SMU. So let me ask you this. You cover the teams in terms of Cal, in terms of Stanford and company. Is there any other new initiate outside of SMU that you can see even going to a bowl game this year? Well, I can see them going to a bowl game. I can frankly see either team go into a bowl game. And by the way, before the Hokies come after me, don't sleep on Virginia Tech. They are one of the leaders in the country in returning production.
Starting point is 00:21:12 Brent Pry has done a really good job over the last couple of years. And look, I'm just old enough to remember when Virginia Tech was closer. to its peak as a football program. That's no joke. They show up to do Entersand, man. That's a real home field advantage if you get that thing rolling. So I think the Hokies have got a lot of potential to be solid. I just wonder if they can really put it all together and if they're at the same level as the other teams that we discussed.
Starting point is 00:21:40 But for Cal and Stanford, I think Cal expects to be a bowl team. Their win total is around five and a half. They were a six-win team last year, which is exactly what I predicted them to be. they lost their offensive coordinator, Jake Spavidol. He went to go be the OC at Baylor. And that's difficult because Justin Wilcox, who I think is solid. I don't think he's special as a head coach, but he's solid. He has had a tough time with OCs over the years.
Starting point is 00:22:07 He kept Bill Musgrave around for two seasons too many. And when they brought in Spaviddle, it suddenly got a lot better. But this is a coach that has not had a winning season in conference play. They've had above 500 years, but they haven't had an above 500 record in conference play. And I don't know if going into the ACC, they expect to do that. They picked up a nice portal commit, a former top 100 player from LSU, a safety on the back end of that defense. And Wilcox is a good defensive mind. But, you know, Fernando Mendoza, capable, solid, you know, slightly above average at quarterback, but nothing special. You have Jaden Ott coming back.
Starting point is 00:22:46 He'll be one of the best running backs in the ACC this year. I think Stanford, can surprise you because Troy Taylor is a I think he's a really good coach. He's just in a really, really tough spot. Don't know what they're doing in the quarterback situation. Ashton Daniels is back from last year, but they got Elijah Brown, a four star from Modder Day coming in as a true freshman. I don't know if they've actually figured out their quarterback battle. So not sure if they can put all that together, but I think for those team's expectations,
Starting point is 00:23:13 pretty middling right now, maybe slightly higher than they would have been, had the Pack 12 stuck together because that league would have been low. more so in the ACC, but I think that, you know, for Cal and Stanford, I think Cal's the better of the two right now, I could see either one making a bowl game. Dropping the knowledge and the insight. Spencer McLaughlin, locked on college football, locked on duck. Spencer, thank you so much for the time and enjoy the rest of your week. Yeah, great to be on with you guys.
Starting point is 00:23:40 Appreciate it. We are locked on ACC. And so, okay, another college football expert has predicted potential timetable on when Florida State and Clemson are going to leave the conference. And if you're a Florida State and Clemson fan, it's maybe not the timetable you want to hear. We'll get to that and so much more right here on Locked on ACC. I've been having a blast with Monopoly Go. I get a little bit addicted to this thing sometimes. In Monopoly Go, you can team up with friends for timed tournaments where you work together to build up each other's boards. The more you win together, the more awesome prizes
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Starting point is 00:24:52 Go download it now, free on Google Play or the App Store. It's game on with Monopoly Go. Thank you so much for making Locked on ACC your first listen and your first watch today. Here, you watching Fox Sports or ESPN on your TV all day? Have to turn down the volume with all that shouting? Make the switch to Locked on Sports Today. A free 24-7 sports streaming channel program for you every day to bring you the biggest stories without all the screaming. Locked on sports today brings you can't miss analysis, opinions, and news.
Starting point is 00:25:25 streaming 24-7 on YouTube or the free Amazon Fire TV channels app, part of the Lockdown Podcast Network. Your team every day. So Kenton Gibbs, Ross Dellinger, who's now with Yahoo Sports, was on the Paul Feinbaum show, talking about, you know, the potential exits from Florida State and Clemson. Now, you and I both agree at some point they're getting out, right? They're suing the conference.
Starting point is 00:25:51 You know, Florida State is really deep in the weeds with their lawsuits already. Clemson, I think, has had one hearing so far in South Carolina. Like, three, four years down the road, I don't expect to see Clemson and Florida State still in the ACC. I don't know what the ACC's going to look like in three, four years. I don't think they're going to be a part of it. But Ross Dellinger was on with Paul Feinbaum and talked about, you know, how long the road is and where it will end is still anyone's guess. But he says the two schools, quote, are not going to be in the ACC for the permanent future.
Starting point is 00:26:22 he said whether it's two years, three years, or five years, he said, in terms of what that timetable could look like. And obviously, Kenton, that's one man's opinion. And, you know, Delinger, he's known as a college football insider, call him an expert, call him whatever you want to. Maybe you don't like Delinger for whatever reason. And, you know, maybe he's not as in the weeds with some of these hearings and stuff as some other folks think they are. But, you know, there have been some predictions out there that say, as soon as June 30th of this year, like June 30th is in a couple months from now that Florida State and Clemson may be out of the ACC. I think it's going to happen. I just don't think
Starting point is 00:27:02 it's going to happen that quick. I think Delinger's timeline of two to five years down the road, it's a lot more realistic. Oh, absolutely. Again, court does not function like Judge Mathis. I'm sorry to tell you. This is not an immediate you all go back and forth, stating your cases cutting each other off. And then the judge says, enough. This person, This person's right, this person's wrong, keeps it pushing. There is going to be an extensive amount of information shown by both sides. There's going to be hearing one, hearing two, hearing three. It's going to seem like it's dragging on for forever in the day because that is how these things work.
Starting point is 00:27:41 I'm so sorry to tell everybody. I know people don't like to hear it. I understand. I get it. I know that we would all like to see things happen in this sensationalized super fast way. That's not reality. And now we're seeing from all the experts, from all the people who get paid to do this, that it's much closer to the timeline that both you and I predicted, where neither one of us said, hey, these teams are staying all the way through 2036. Neither one of us have said that.
Starting point is 00:28:09 Both of us have said they're leaving ahead of time. They're going to leave early. The question is how early. And you and I both agree June 30th wasn't going to happen. But I, you know, I'm not going to lie. sound mature enough to not victory lap. Donald, you may be that guy. You're a dad, you're a husband, but I'm a victory lap. But it's not June 3rd. Like you can't victory lap now. Like what if something unforeseen how? Like you can't victory lap on on April 30th. It's not June 30th yet.
Starting point is 00:28:41 Let me tell you something. There's a certain point in time where you know you're going into the end zone where you start dancing already. Your job is just to hold the ball across the goal line. Okay. And here's the deal. I will hold myself back because you know what, Donald, you're right. You're right. You stop me from that one in a thousand or one in a million or maybe even a billion chance that both of these teams just go nuclear and say, we're not playing a single game as long as we're in the ACC. I have chances there. But I'm telling you by every account on everybody who gets paid to follow this stuff and not just no dad 76, not just Death Valley, Dune, Dayor 81 telling us, oh, yeah, these schools have played their last game in the ACC. You know, I knew that was a load of hooey when I saw it. I said, wait a minute, if they've already played their last game in the ACC, and if they have no fiduciary responsibility to the conference,
Starting point is 00:29:37 why are they still going to court? Why? You know, so at this point in time, you're right, Donald. I'm not going to victory left yet, but y'all got exactly, exactly two years. months and I'm going to get on this show and I'm a show my behind because I know what y'all would have done in those comments if you were right. So I'm going to get on this here platform and don't go have to stop me because I'm going to be in Casuala. I may be wearing the shades again, but it ain't going to be because I trouble this time. Well, let me play devil's advocate
Starting point is 00:30:10 because I think that one of the theories out there, I don't know if this is true or untrue, because who am I? I don't know exactly what's in the grant of rights. Very few people do, right? I don't know exactly what's in the fine print of the ESPN TV contract with the ACC because very few people do. But one of the theories and assumptions out there is if one or both of these judges gets to the discovery phase where your business gets put out there and this stuff becomes either cross-examination or if it becomes public record, because I know that's what the Florida State, the Florida Attorney General wants that TV contract to become public record. The theory is if the ACC and or ESPN is so afraid of what people might see if that stuff becomes public, then that's going to motivate them to settle. And maybe that happens by June 30th. Again, I'm playing devil's advocate. And here's the thing.
Starting point is 00:31:08 I'm not going to withhold the possibility that you're right. I'm not going to do that. I'm not going to withhold the possibility that during discovery something will come out that is so heinous, so erroneous, that it will instantly be, oh, This is rewarded in their favor. I have a hard time believing that that's going to be the case. I have a very hard time believing that. And here's the biggest part of why I have a hard time believing that. The fact that I believe Florida State's complaint went all the way back to Swofford
Starting point is 00:31:39 and said that some of the dealings with Raycom are part of their complaint. That is what tells me that there is nothing in just the grant of rights alone that is that bad to where they're like, oh, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, this is so bad that I know that when a judge sees this, everything will go nuclear. And even if something is that bad, Florida State doesn't know about it at this moment. Clemson doesn't know about it at this moment because if they did, that would have been the first, that would have been the bomb drop. That would have been the moment of, boom, my drop, we're out, we're leaving, because here's your smoking gun to say that the ACC intentionally withheld. funds from us. They intentionally cut our legs from under us in terms of a media deal, which, again, I just don't believe is the case here. So if you're going back to Swofford,
Starting point is 00:32:28 that's telling me you've got a whole case ahead of you. You've got a whole ordeal of back and forth and back and forth and who's right, who's wrong, a bunch of battles ahead of you instead of just that one moment where, you know, somebody drops the big bomb and it's over. I really don't think that that's the case. You're probably right. but all I'm saying is I haven't put anything in my calendar yet for July 1st in terms of doing this show. It was the same way when December December 21st of 2012. That was the day that the Mayan calendar just ended. I didn't put anything in my calendar for December 22nd. Let me just see. I don't want to waste my time making any plans just in case we don't actually get there.
Starting point is 00:33:11 I haven't booked our July 1st episode of Locked on ACC just yet. I'm just going to see how this one plays out. But tremendous job, as always, by Kenton Gibbs, Lockdown Wolfpack. Follow him on X at TGIF underscore Kenton. I am Alex Dono from Lockdowne Keynes. Follow me at Alex Dono. Huge shout out to Spencer McLaughlin, who did a fantastic job. We will talk to everyone again next time on another episode of Lockdowne ACC. Part of the awesome Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day.

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