Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - BIG 10 SQUAD - Iowa Hawkeyes Will Face Missouri Tigers in Music City Bowl!

Episode Date: December 12, 2024

Welcome to the latest episode of Big 10 Squad! Hosted by Craig Shemon from Locked On Big 10, this roundtable podcast brings together experts from Locked On podcasts to dive deep into all the action su...rrounding Big Ten football. Whether you're a lifelong fan or just tuning in, this episode delivers the analysis and insights you need!🚀 In This Episode:Big Ten News & Updates: Get caught up on the latest happenings across the Big Ten, including important wins, player performances, and coaching strategies.Game Previews & Predictions: Tune in for a breakdown of the upcoming matchups, with insights into the Illinois Fighting Illini, Indiana Hoosiers, Iowa Hawkeyes, Maryland Terrapins, Michigan Wolverines, Michigan State Spartans, Minnesota Golden Gophers, Nebraska Huskers, Northwestern Wildcats, Ohio State Buckeyes, Oregon Ducks, Penn State Nittany Lions, Purdue Boilermakers, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, UCLA Bruins, USC Trojans, Washington Huskies, and Wisconsin Badgers.Expert Roundtable Discussion: Hear from Locked On hosts as they discuss key players, potential upsets, and what to expect in the coming weeks.Why You Should Listen: Whether you’re tracking your favorite Big Ten team’s progress or just love college football, this episode has everything you need to stay informed and get ready for the next set of games.🔔 Subscribe to Big 10 Squad for weekly episodes and in-depth analyses on all things Big Ten football! Be sure to hit the bell icon to stay updated on new releases.Join the Conversation: Let us know your thoughts, predictions, and takeaways in the comments below!#Big10Squad #Big10Football #LockedOnBig10 #CollegeFootball #FootballAnalysis #CraigShemon #LockedOnPodcast #BigTenTeams #NCAA #FootballUpdates #BigTenRoundtable

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Well, congratulations to the Oregon Ducks. They won the Big Ten Championship, and of course, the playoff system rewarded them by giving them the hardest draw in the playoffs. We'll discuss that. Four Big Ten teams make it, and we have one Heisman candidate. It's time for the Lockdown Big Ten Squad.
Starting point is 00:00:15 You're talking ball with the Big Ten Squad, sponsored by Game Time. From USC to Ohio State, from Michigan to Oregon, from Nebraska to Washington, it's the local experts of the Locked On Podcast Network bringing you scoops, breakdowns, and the most comprehensive preview of the upcoming Big Ten weekend. No hurt feelings and thin skin allowed. Squad up. You're part of the Big Ten Squad.
Starting point is 00:00:39 Welcome to the Locked On Big Ten Squad. Sit back and enjoy as we shoot the breeze, talk some football here, and anything else that comes to mind. I'm Craig Scheman, the host of Lockdown Big Ten. Today's episode is brought to you by GameTime. Download the GameTime app, create an account, and use the code LOCKDOWNCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Let's introduce us.
Starting point is 00:00:58 We got Zach from Lockdown UCLA. We got other Zach from Big Ten Runner-Up, Lockdown Nittany Lions. I should be the main Zach. Well, yeah. I'm in the playoff in the Brady bunch thing. That's true. That's true. So, but, but Zach say, go listen, Spencer is either late or a wall or whatever he says is going to be here, but the floor is yours. There'll be no interruptions from him. You know, you made it to the championship game. Let There'll be no interruptions from him. Thank goodness.
Starting point is 00:01:26 Let's hear your thoughts on that game before we move forward. I actually feel more confident than ever in this Penn State team. Them losing the Big Ten championship, that does not define the entire season. Everything's reset. We always talk about how for baseball, for basketball, for NFL, this applies to college football too. Now that there is an actual bracket, that there's an actual playoff, and there are 12 teams. Everything's reset. Everybody's zero and zero. What happened in the Big Ten championship game, what happened against Ohio State does not matter for Penn State. But
Starting point is 00:01:59 why, Craig, I am so confident in this Penn State team, it doesn't have to do with the fact that they gave up 45 points. Oregon has a top, what, three offense? That was a team that was going to score a lot of points one way or another. They happened to settle at 45. So yes, I still have questions, if you will, about the defense, but I think they will learn from their mistakes. The offense, though, I said, man, if Oregon's going to win this game, Penn State's offensive line has to step up the ground game. And they did just that. Penn State's offensive line has to step up. The ground game. And they did just that. Penn State's offensive line looked the best that I have seen them all season. That is a respectable Oregon defensive line.
Starting point is 00:02:33 Any of those defensive ends can go off at any point in time. And a backup right tackle held his own. Nolan Rucci, who came in from Wisconsin, was more or less a liability going into this game, at least projected so, and he made me eat my words. The offensive line collectively across the board had a great performance. Nicholas Singleton and K. Tri Allen had that classic one-two punch type of game where both guys went over 100 yards. Drew Aller, hey, a couple interceptions, but man, played his tail off, especially late in the game, to keep them in the game until that interception, and that's just a great play by the Oregon defensive back.
Starting point is 00:03:08 But I did not see any glaring mistakes that make me say, whoa, I don't know if this Penn State team can do it. This is a national title contending team. Part of that has to do with the fact that they avoid Oregon. They avoid Ohio State until, hypothetically, the national championship. They match up well. Of course, anybody matches up well with SMU and Boise State, but Penn State at least has even matchups with any of Georgia, Indiana, or Notre Dame. And then they don't face the two teams that beat them until the final. I actually think if that game was another five minutes, I think you might have pulled it off. It seemed like you had the momentum there for sure. And how did that feel you i think you went a couple minutes there without spencer ridiculing or interrupting how did that feel felt it felt
Starting point is 00:03:51 great these guys should feel on top of the world too oh fantastic it's pure bliss over here well roman since you're there what um your thoughts on that game before we move forward i like both of you to chime in on this do you agree that maybe if that game was just a little longer, Penn state kind of was getting the momentum at the end? Oh, absolutely. And I, I,
Starting point is 00:04:11 you know, I, I know exactly what I'm going to hear in my comment section for saying that, but I, I echo everything that, that Zach just said. I think he said it perfectly where the offensive line was what really
Starting point is 00:04:20 needed to show up and they did a fantastic job. And that's the one thing that I really came away from that game saying, if Penn state is going to make a run, that's who needs to really step up and be there. I agree with Zach when he says the defense is going to learn, they're going to adjust. And I certainly agree that as well, that the path is going to be so much different where, you know, I certainly have my own thoughts about that and where Oregon has to be. I'm not complaining in the least bit, but when i when i look at it i say yeah penn state absolutely has a shot to make it real far in the playoffs and i'd love to see
Starting point is 00:04:49 that zach anderson before we go any further what's the temperature where you're at what's the situation you look like you're bundled up in canada somewhere right now yeah i'm still finishing up a new york trip and east coast swing and it's actually gotten a little bit warmer on the east coast but still i need like three layers because I'm from L.A. And they make fun of me because I'm cold, even when it's not. I don't blame you. All right. How about Zach?
Starting point is 00:05:13 Put a put a note on this, your thoughts on that game and how it played out at the end. Look, nobody thought this was good. Big Ten football does not give up 82 points combined. We're we're a defensive conference. I was surprised by the score. So what happens when you invite the Pac-12 in, right? You invite the Pac-12 in, you get some offense, you get some quarterback play. That's what we're supposed to inject the West Coast schools,
Starting point is 00:05:34 some fun into Big Ten football. I didn't know they were going to win the conference championship heading in, but obviously heading into this game as the season played on, Oregon, they were going to beat Penn State in this game. Now the final score, as you mentioned, Craig, I did not see that coming or the competitiveness the way it was but you know that bodes well for penn state heading into a tournament style football playoff and they're going to go a lot farther than i think we might expect it a few weeks ago yeah it's like the uh the sec championship game turned into a big 10 game and uh we turned into
Starting point is 00:06:02 a big 12 shootout or something was crazy was crazy. All right. So I'm going to come back to you, Zach Saco. Leading up to these games, I thought, you know who really may have the advantage in all of this or maybe, I don't know, maybe the third place teams in the Big Ten and the SEC, Tennessee, the SEC or Ohio State get that extra week of rest. They don't have to put themselves at risk. We saw happened to george's quarterback they had to play the extra game and he may be gone with the elbow uh i would like to get all your thoughts on that the way this is structured now with all these teams getting in and maybe these third and or fourth place teams in the conference are going to be a little bit of an advantage they're certainly going to be rested up i I mean, I think the playoff structure is it's stupid.
Starting point is 00:06:45 It's ludicrous. I don't, I, a group of five teams should not be the three seed. Let's, let's be honest here. I have not now I have no issue. I have no issue with winning your conference championship game. You get in because you have to, because the whole argument is, oh, they're not valuable. They're not worth it. Hey, look, you just won your conference championship game. And now you were in the college football playoff. It's the same argument that I've made about the NFL for probably a decade now is that division winners should not be hosting as a, as a third or a fourth seed you get in, but then you are reseeded after that based on your record. So when it comes to Boise state, they are not the third best team in the country yes they
Starting point is 00:07:26 won their conference championship but that should be whatever the nine or the ten seed give or take I don't I don't have the rankings memorized the actual rankings memorized but them being the three seed and them getting a bye against the schedule of work that they put that they had to go up against it's the same thing as because look 11-5 Saints, I always think back to the Seattle Seahawks with the Marshawn Lynch beast mode run, that if Seattle has to go on the road in that game, we don't get that awesome bit of history, but it's not fair. Seattle at 7-9 should not have hosted a game against the 11-5 Saints. That stuff matters. I don't know why you get credit for winning in a weak division or winning
Starting point is 00:08:06 in a weak conference. There are plenty of teams that are more deserving to be ranked ahead of Boise State. That's just the fact of the matter. So if they can change that structure and make it so when your conference championship, you get a guaranteed spot, but it's not one of the top four seeds. That's just flat out wrong. I can simplify this. I have a Craig Scheman plan. Like I'm one of the only people that were against expansion in the first place. Four teams. I was happy with, I think we have the champion of the poor for a power for schools in their
Starting point is 00:08:35 championship game. They get into the playoffs. We can treat the conference championships of the power for conferences as a quarterfinal and let's roll. That'll force Notre Dame to get their rear end into a conference. A Mountain West team isn't winning the championship anyway. That's just me. That's how I'd simplify it. Roman, Zach Anderson, am I crazy? Well, I have a couple of different takes here where I certainly hear what Zach Sacco is saying, and I don't disagree with the point of,
Starting point is 00:09:03 you know, reseeding different things like that. But I personally am not going to sleep on this Boise team, where if we look at their one loss, they were in that game against Oregon. And yeah, it's early in the season. You can say what you will about that and where it took from there. But A, Ashton Gentry is the Heisman winner.
Starting point is 00:09:20 Let's be real. I'm like, you can say what you want about Travis Hunter, about anybody else. Ashton Gentry deserves to win the Heisman. That alone should give them some kind of prop. Three seed? I don't know. That's up for debate. To be frankly honest, I don't care about that because if we look at what Boise State had to do when they played their toughest opponent of the year, it took two gigantic special teams plays from Oregon to win that game. I feel like that is something that people forget over the course of just the
Starting point is 00:09:46 season. And Hey, they made them. That's why they're the number one team in the country, as much as it pains me to say it. But when I look at this Boise state team, this is a better team than people think. Do they beat Penn state? If that's the matchup, probably not.
Starting point is 00:09:58 I think they give the SMU run for the money. I truly do, but it's the whole mountain West thing is its own debate, in my opinion, but I look at the Boise State team, truly, I just couldn't be more excited about it. Zach Anderson, I'll let you put a cap on this conversation. Well, I would just do copy and paste what Roman just said with the transcription and put it into my words, but I guess the biggest thing is this isn't any regular year. Under no circumstance did we expect the group of five champion to be a three seed every
Starting point is 00:10:25 projection every model they're always the 12 seed right they're always that last team in this is a different boise team they're unbeaten and they tested the number one team in the country in their house and went all the way to the literal wire this isn't your normal team that's like all right maybe army could have made it in a different year versus Boise State if Boise was like 12 and 1. Right. But this is a unique season where, yes, we could have done better things with how the playoff system works. Right. It's probably better done in the FCS playoffs than it is in the FBS playoffs. But, you know, we forget that other football exists, too, until they decide to figure it out and centralize everything. We can argue about the college transfer calendar. We could argue about everything.
Starting point is 00:11:05 We got playoffs. we got games, and I think Boise is actually going to win a game and make it to the semis. All right, when we continue, I want to get these guys' early reaction and predictions on the playoff matchups themselves, involving the four, count them, four Big Ten teams in the playoffs.
Starting point is 00:11:21 And we already know who Roman is voting for the Heisman. We'll find out the other two guys as well. All that coming up as we continue with the Lockdown Big Ten Squad. Get yourself the GameTime app if you want to go to these games. You want to go to playoff games? You want to go to Big Ten basketball games, NBA games? Get the GameTime app on your device, on your phone. It is so easy
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Starting point is 00:12:38 Get your early thoughts. We've got a couple of weeks before these games get rolling. And there he is. Let's just crawl out of bed out there is let's just crawl out of bed out there let's just crawl out of nowhere yeah the stink bug the pillow the pillow we're calling it the pillow you're you're a slacker spencer because you won a championship so no suit and tie this week so you're casual and you're late i don't know what to make of you anymore. Me neither. Well, congratulations to the Ducks. No, I did not wake up from a nap, though.
Starting point is 00:13:09 I was taking one earlier today because, as you may be able to hear, a little bit under the weather today, hence the sweatshirt. I have no interest in taking this off. I don't think I've ever worn a sweatshirt on a podcast before, but this is not coming off today. All right. Well, we're glad you're here, nevertheless. We obviously spent a lot of time talking. Craig, when you say we, you just mean you, right? Because these three, I mean, Zach is indifferent at best,
Starting point is 00:13:33 Anderson, Yaxheimer. Seiko doesn't want to see green and yellow. And Roman, I mean, that's just obvious. Well, Seiko did a nice monologue uninterrupted on the Penn State Oregon game. So, I mean, you weren't here to jump in jay oh jay joins me hey here we go other playoff teams i'm alive i i'm still here i'm better than last week guys welcome friends we're getting ready to talk about the tony the tiger sun bowl
Starting point is 00:13:58 with washington yeah that's why we're here well I will tell you both, since Jay and Spencer, you just jumped in, the Oregon Ducks win the championship, and they get rewarded with the most difficult draw in the playoffs all the way through. And Jay, Ohio State, I've talked about this a lot, third-place teams, Big Ten, third-place team, Tennessee, and the SEC. I think they got the advantage here because they're extra rested and they didn't put themselves at risk at injuries like Carson Beck in Georgia. Let's get your thoughts on that. Spencer, we'll start with you. I can't believe that college football screwed up the 12 team playoff. Holy smokes,
Starting point is 00:14:40 surprise of the year that the people that run this sport and the powers that dictate how we get to enjoy it have messed it up royally oh my goodness shock and awe in college football except not but i liked what dan lanning said i don't remember what show he was on when he said it that you know they're not focused on that that's stuff for us to talk about externally. But internally, he sends the right message. And I think that's something he does pretty consistently. And I think he did again here saying, look, it's a great opportunity to play a bunch of great teams.
Starting point is 00:15:15 It's never going to be easy. And winning a national championship isn't supposed to be easy. And you know what? If this is going to be the season when Oregon finally breaks through, there's not going to be any question about, well, did they play any well? They got through. There's not going to be any debate about that. Don't want to hear it at any point in time because they do have the toughest path to get there.
Starting point is 00:15:37 But if you're good enough to win the national championship, you'll go out and win those games. Jay, you got the extra week and advantage. You're still putting the Michigan thing behind you, but then you win and you're going to take on the Oregon Ducks. How about your thoughts of where Ohio State stands right now? Ohio State stands in a, I guess, decent spot. They had a little bit of time to kind of decompress
Starting point is 00:15:58 and get away from the Michigan thing, but also realizing they have to do everything in their power to beat Tennessee. Because you can't look past Tennessee to look at Oregon because that's how you lose that game to the Volunteers. The Volunteers are a good football team. They have their issues, just like Ohio State does. And if Ohio State just looks in themselves and fixes their own issues, the ones that they can, the offensive line stuff, you're not going to fix that.
Starting point is 00:16:22 Those guys are hurt, two of your starters, going to the NFL. You can't fix those things. But Ohio State can fix some of the issues that they had against Michigan, some issues they had the latter part of the season. They took some time, worked on themselves, figuring some things out with the game plan. And I do think the Buckeyes are focused on Tennessee. They're not looking to head to Oregon.
Starting point is 00:16:40 Okay. Yeah, that's our job in the media to look ahead to Oregon. I got to believe you want a rematch with them, but you think's our job in the media to look ahead to Oregon. I, I gotta believe you want a rematch with them, but, uh, but you think it's a favorable matchup against Tennessee. I do. I do. I think that this is what Ohio state thought they would, where they would, where they thought they would land. And they kind of started preparing for this even before the draw came out. So it got a little ahead of watching the film and getting some of the game plan down. Like I said earlier, you can't look ahead.
Starting point is 00:17:05 If you look ahead to Oregon, you're going to lose. You're going to lose. You're absolutely going to lose. And it's just a bitter end to an odd year in Columbus. Can we call it a Texas A&M looking ahead after the infamous Mike Elko comment? Yeah, we're focused on Texas. I mean Auburn. Auburn focuses. And I mean, Auburn. Auburn.
Starting point is 00:17:25 And then loses to Auburn. That's just everything a rivalry should be, quite frankly. Is Ryan Day getting fired if they lose to Tennessee or Oregon? How far does he have to make it to have his job security? I don't think the new AD's going to fire him.
Starting point is 00:17:41 I think the new AD has enough support and enough belief in ryan day that it has to be a belief it's not it's hope and prayers yeah yeah definitely i think he has the belief in ryan day that no matter what happens in that game against tennessee that he's going to be there ryan day is going to be there next year i would say bye like i am done. Who would you hire? Who's your replacement? Urban Meyer. Urban's not coming back. I don't think Urban's coming back. I know that statement.
Starting point is 00:18:11 I don't believe everything I hear or read from some coaches. I just don't think Urban's coming back at all. I don't think his wife wants him to come back. I don't know if his health is good enough for him to come back. I don't know who you would get. I'm being honest with you. I don't know if you go and try to get an FCS guy that's been
Starting point is 00:18:27 leading and leading that level and say, hey, come back to the people. Ohio State head coach Lane Kiffin. That won't work. I was going to say Mike Vrabel. That won't work. Vrabel doesn't want it. He doesn't want to recruit. He hates recruiting. He talked about that when he was a position coach. What about Bill Belichick?
Starting point is 00:18:44 That's a joke. I honestly think that... What are they doing besides coaching Roman's defensive coordinator? Coach and waiting. That would be it. Head coach and waiting. You're selling out to the Belichick family? For what?
Starting point is 00:19:00 It's got to be a guy that's got gravitas to handle it. I don't know if he stained himself with a couple mediocre years at Wisconsin, but had Luke Fickle still been on that staff instead of Ryan Day, Luke Fickle would have got that job over Ryan Day when Urban Meyer left, I think. Do you agree? I do.
Starting point is 00:19:16 I think that Fickle's the guy that kind of gets overlooked, which is kind of silly when you think about it. If Rabel's the first option, everyone wants to go back to Urban, and all the other guys are at the top of the sport, you're not getting Dan Lanning. You're not getting Sarkeesian. You're not getting those top guys. You're not getting Kirby Smart.
Starting point is 00:19:34 I think Fickle would be a good one, but I think Fickle's comfortable in Wisconsin. And honestly, I don't know if Fickle wants the pressure of coaching at Ohio State following what Ryan Day has done. I just don't know if I'm him. I think that job at Wisconsin is a good job. Yeah, going back to your alma mater is great, but the pressure is one that will keep a lot of the really good coaches,
Starting point is 00:19:56 well-qualified coaches, away from Columbus. Ohio State head coach James Franklin. Absolutely not. I have to get one thing in here for all the disrespect for your guy. He did. He went, he wins the team. He beats the teams that he's supposed to, and he loses the teams that he's supposed to the definition of consistency. It's fair. Wow. I forget one thing in here real fast, Jay, the fact that you threw Steve Sarkeesian in there for any, washington fan
Starting point is 00:20:25 who you know had to spencer and zach anderson you guys understand this from the era that steve sarkisian was at washington to think that he would ever be in contention for the ohio state job is just mind-blowing to us west coast football fans really ohio state head coach Eric Biennemi. The better joke is Chip Kelly. Okay, wait, wait, wait. Hold on. Goins is going to kill me for saying this, but Ohio State head coach Kurt Cignetti. Stop, stop.
Starting point is 00:20:58 Hold on. Which school is more prepared to pony up the money for a high-end head coach than Ohio State? If anyone could pay. For those that don't know, I'm an Indiana grad. Look, he coached four games, beat UCLA in the Rose Bowl. Thank you, Zach Anderson, for that. And they started talking about a contract extension
Starting point is 00:21:17 and doubled his money, $72 million, after four games. And they got the NIL. Do you think Indiana can pay more in Ohio State? Because I don't well no they can but they he's making nine million right now that's pretty good that's top of market they got the boosters too like they got the nil yeah yeah stay away from my guy fine didn't he say ohio state sucks in his main like yeah yeah buckeye fans will forgive him once he actually beats Michigan. Ooh.
Starting point is 00:21:47 Well, he's already done that once. Sorry. Sorry. All right, maybe this is a good time to take a break. All right, when we come back, I want to get these guys Heisman pick. We got one Big Ten guy in there. We'll take a listen to that as we continue on the Locked On Big Ten Squad. Get ready to tackle NFL action with America's FanDuel,
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Starting point is 00:23:07 with Fanduel, official sportsbook partner of the NFL. Back with the squad here on Lockdown Big Ten. All right. Heisman Trophy. We got one Big Ten player in there and Dylan Gabriel. Let's go round-robin here and get your thoughts. Zach Anderson,
Starting point is 00:23:23 Yachzheimer, Travis Henry, Ashton Gentry, Dylan Gabriel. Who do you like? Well, I certainly don't like Travis Henry, but I think what Travis Hunter, I was going to say, who's Travis. Glad you took ownership of that. It wasn't our bad. Travis Hunter, what he's been doing on both sides of the football in any other year jenny i think is the clear-cut winner but i'm gonna go travis hunter even though he's not in a playoff doing things on both sides of the ball making plays for two years now i think it just culminates in a heisman moment do that charles woodson pose sorry jay and uh you know heisman for him another shot you know my complaint was that he was doing
Starting point is 00:24:07 that pose like every game from september on we get it we get it but it's about branding to new york you got to market and brand yourself yeah once is enough if you tell if you tell a lie enough eventually people will believe it right desmond howard did it once all right um roman who do you think's gonna get you already you already said you're gonna get yeah i but i'd love to expand on it a little bit because i look zach anderson you make a good point about you know everything he's done on both sides of the ball yeah sure that's great he's also stat padding against oklahoma state like it it goes back to last year do you want jayden daniels who scores 18 touchdowns against army and citadel or whoever else or georgia state yeah georgia state thank you thank you spencer where do you want that or 18 touchdowns against Army and Citadel or whoever else. Georgia State. Yeah, Georgia State.
Starting point is 00:24:46 Thank you. Thank you, Spencer. You're welcome. Do you want that or do you want Ashton Gentry, who has dragged his team to the college football playoff? Boise State's a good team. But without Ashton Gentry, they're certainly not the college football playoff. That's where this team is.
Starting point is 00:25:01 And Ashton Gentry is just doing nothing we've ever seen before. What teams did Ashton Gentry face other than Oregon? Oregon. He went for 190 and three touchdowns in that game, by the way. I think his lowest game is 130 for the year. UNLV is a good team. We're sleeping on UNLV. Hey, UNLV is a top 25 team, and they kind of kept him in check the first time,
Starting point is 00:25:22 and then in the conference championship game, he was like, all right, you're not going to do that again. I'm playing devil's advocate because I'm on the same page as Ashton Gentry. You are? Okay. I'm also in the Gentry camp. I don't begrudge people that land on Travis Hunter. He is unique and not like anybody we have seen before.
Starting point is 00:25:41 I cannot, for so many reasons, stand the Twitter argument, snap count isn't a stat. Just stop talking if you've ever tweeted that or liked anything that has that remark on it. That is so not the point. I don't know what his snap count is. I don't care what his snap count is. He is a highly impactful player on both sides of the ball. Nobody else has done that in a really, really long time. The reason, though, I come down on Jenty is if you take Travis Hunter off of Colorado and you take Jenty off of Boise State, both teams are worse off. But who is worse off between those two? I think the bigger drop-off would be Boise State. I think Colorado without Travis Hunter, probably a 7-5 team,
Starting point is 00:26:30 which is, again, worse than what they are now. But if you take Jenty off of Boise State, I do not believe they win the Mountain West, and he's got them in the college football playoff. And historically, by the Heisman voters' own rules that don't exist, but have somehow been set up by the committee anyway for this prestigious award your team's success has historically mattered unless your stats are so overwhelming like Jaden Daniels but remember the favorite to win the Heisman was Bo Nix until Washington won the Pac-12 title game and that somehow didn't
Starting point is 00:27:02 put Pennix into the Heisman frontrunner discussion because Daniel's stats were just so crazy. But Boise State has the team success. How is he not being credited for that when he's such a huge part of it? The quarterback's nothing special. He's just a guy. He's a solid guy, but he's just a guy. Jente is the engine that makes the offense go.
Starting point is 00:27:21 Shador Sanders got the award for Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, Travis Hunter didn't. Interesting. Nobody says the starting quarterback for the number one undefeated team in the country is getting the Heisman. I will give it to you straight, Craig. He should not even be a Heisman finalist. And I love Dylan Gabriel with all of my heart.
Starting point is 00:27:39 He is great. Go look at his numbers this year. Compare them to past Heisman Trophy winners and tell me that it's in the same sort of category. He and Cam Ward shouldn't be there. Great. Go look at his numbers this year, compare them to past Heisman Trophy winners, and tell me that it's in the same sort of category. He and Cam Ward shouldn't be there. Gabriel doesn't have the individual numbers. Cam Ward doesn't have the team success. Cameron Scadaboo should be the third Heisman finalist.
Starting point is 00:27:58 And if you were going to go with four, it should be Ward over Gabriel, who has been a better individual player in terms of his numbers this season. And I think that Gabriel getting there is a credit to the season that Oregon has had, but in no way would, like if I were picking the Heisman finalists, Cameron Scadaby would be there over Dylan Gabriel. Tyler Warren should be there. I was just going to say, Tyler Warren
Starting point is 00:28:17 is an Army Swiss knife guy that I thought should have got more consideration than he did. Army Swiss knife? Craig, what's going on up in that top left box today? Because I wholeheartedly agree about Cam Ward. Oregon is the number one team. So Dylan Gabriel at least gets some credit here, but let's take that a step further. Tyler Warren, okay, Travis Hunter, cornerback, wide receiver, Tyler Warren, quarterback, running back, tight end, wide receiver. If you, in some points in time,
Starting point is 00:28:49 he was the leading rusher for Penn State this season. If you take those rushing yards and add them to Tyler Warren's receiving yards in total, he would be the third or fourth leading receiver. He would also have the third most receptions among receivers as well. And he's responsible for double digit total touchdowns. I mean we're talking about generational players and and Travis Hunter so
Starting point is 00:29:11 in that same because that that same standard is applied to Tyler Warren you were never going to see anything like this for at least another decade from both Travis Hunter and Tyler Warren so I don't know why one gets the consideration in the invite and the other one doesn't especially when this was a weak quarterback class in terms of Heisman. Tyler Warren doesn't even play linebacker. What are we talking about? He could, though. He could.
Starting point is 00:29:32 He's big. Jay Stevens, final word on the Heisman. Who are you going with? The running back, Asha Gentry. I think it's too easy to not just give him the award. We haven't seen this. We haven't seen what he is doing in quite a long time. I think about the great running backs at Wisconsin.
Starting point is 00:29:48 He's doing what they're doing and then some and taking a team in Boise State that has had success as a team. But he's taken them to a place that I didn't think they were going to be this year. I didn't think they were going to be in the playoff, but he's gotten them there. He has single-handedly gotten a lot of eyeballs on Boise State and at a running back spot where you're not really thinking about it. You're not thinking about, well, Boise State's running back. Is he good? Yeah, he's good. Is he going to potentially break Barry Sanders' record?
Starting point is 00:30:14 No, no one's going to get that. He might get it. And I think it's just very – it's too easy. Travis Hunter's a good – it makes sense for him to be there. I understand why Dylan Gabriel is a finalist. I think it would have been very, very weird if he would not have been. I am with Spencer, though. I get the numbers debate, but Ashton Gentry is the guy.
Starting point is 00:30:33 I may have said his name wrong just because it happens. No, you nailed it. He's the guy. Yeah, take it from Craig, the expert on pronunciations. Hey, you got it right. All right. Thank you very much. to our audience out there. Follow and subscribe these guys.
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