Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - BIG 10 SQUAD - Is Iowa preparing to face a USC ELITE Recruiting Class?

Episode Date: March 26, 2025

USC's recruiting prowess is shaking up the Big Ten landscape. Could the Trojans' 2026 class redefine college football dynamics? With top-tier recruits and a national #1 ranking, USC's potential impact... is a hot topic. The episode dives into the pressure cooker of Big Ten coaching, spotlighting figures like Kurt Signetti at Indiana and Ryan Day at Ohio State. The stakes are high, and expectations are soaring. March Madness also takes center stage, with the Big Ten's mixed performance under scrutiny. Hosts Spencer McLaughlin, Jacob Goins, Jay Stevens, Zach Seiko, and Roman Tomashoff bring their unique insights, dissecting the conference's basketball prospects and potential upsets. Will Michigan surprise everyone? Tune in for a deep dive into the Big Ten's evolving narrative and the strategic moves shaping its future. Don't miss out on these expert analyses and predictions!

Transcript
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Starting point is 00:00:00 Is USC rising to be a threat in the Big Ten? Which coach has got the most pressure? March Madness continues for the Big Ten. That's all on today's Locked On Big Ten Squad. 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. Welcome everybody to the Big Ten Squad. Wednesday edition, Jacob Goens of Locked On Hoosiers is here. Jay Stevens of Locked On Buckeyes, Zach Seiko of Locked On Nittany Lions, Roman Tomashov of Locked On Huskies, and I'm Spencer McLaughlin hosting,
Starting point is 00:00:45 I'm Lockdown, college football and neutral arbiter of all things of that particular sport. Great to be with you as always. We've got a lot to get to because the number one recruiting class in the 2026 cycle is currently held, not by the Buckeyes, not by Oregon, not by Washington or Penn State or anybody else.
Starting point is 00:01:04 It's currently held by USC. So Jay Stevens, you've got an improved defense in Los Angeles, Lincoln Riley's still there. They're recruiting in a way they haven't in several years to this point. How are you feeling about the Trojans right now and their ability to ascend to be a tier one program in the Big Ten?
Starting point is 00:01:24 A tier one program in the Big Ten? What? Tier one program in the Big Ten? That's funny. That's a good one. It's not going to change. They're still not going to be the top three or top four, top five team in the Big Ten. Recruiting rankings right now, cool. You can be number one in the country.
Starting point is 00:01:37 What's going to happen when we get into summer, once kids actually get on campus? How are kids' minds going to change once the games start being played in the fall? I don't care about recruiting rankings right now. I think USC can recruit well. They have the talent right there in their own backyard. But schools like Ohio State, schools like Penn State, schools like Oregon are going to go right over there and take all that talent out of Southern California.
Starting point is 00:02:00 Indiana. No, sorry, Jacob. Sorry. This is not your kind of conversation. Jacob, we're having a serious conversation about recruiting perhaps you sit in the corner and suck on your thumb. Hey, man, we're getting there I we're getting there. We'll get a seat at the big table Table eventually the what the what table Jacob I had to resay it. It's been a yeah. Yeah. No, yeah, he definitely did 40 top 50 I guess that I'm sorry Washington's not chiming in right now, right? Yeah, he definitely did. Anyway, Jay, finish that thought. Hold on, hold on. Oh, go ahead, go ahead. Top 40? Top 50? Like, is that?
Starting point is 00:02:27 I'm sorry, Washington's not chiming in right now, right? Seriously? Well, hold on. We're comparing recruiting classes and Indiana thinks it's out recruiting Washington? We can compare season results. UCLA's ranked higher than both of you. We can compare that.
Starting point is 00:02:40 Oh, oh, oh, that's not good. That's not good. UCLA. Of course, Zach Anderson, the Oxhomer's not here to chime in on that, that's all right. No, he's not good. That's not good. Of course, Zach Anderson-Yaksheimer's not here to chime in on that. That's all right. No, he's not. But anyway, Jay, go ahead finish that thought. They're not going to be there.
Starting point is 00:02:52 I don't care about recruiting rankings right now. Once USC puts a consistently good product on the field and they get 10 wins and back to back years, then we can start talking about that. But I don't see USC being there. Yeah, Lincoln Riley has done good things. He's not doing good things now. Not things good enough.
Starting point is 00:03:11 Keep him being the top five in the big 10, standing at the end of the season. No, recruiting rankings, yeah, they're there now. They won't be at the end of the season. The way that I look at it, Jay, is it's a potential first step of many to getting there we might look back in two three years time if USC is where they feel they should be which is at the top of any conference in college football where they're capable of being we might say yeah it all started when they
Starting point is 00:03:36 hired a GM from Notre Dame and they started to place more of an emphasis on high school recruiting and they brought in bigger guys and better players in the trenches so they didn't get pushed around by teams like Michigan as they did this past season in the big house but I'm with you that it's not a quick turnaround I do think they're as capable of a quick they've won this league and went to the college football playoff, something that Penn State didn't do in the four team era. So sorry for the unnecessary shot there, Seiko, but I just look at what Michigan State can be with Jonathan Smith and say, okay, well, they can rise, but it's gonna take a little while. USC doesn't have to take a while, but of course, Seiko, your Nittany Lions are already there.
Starting point is 00:04:23 And so do you look at USC, a team that you guys went across country to beat last year and worry at all about where they're at or where they could be under Lincoln Riley? Wow, so we're talking about, I get it, it's the off season, but this is the 2026 recruiting class. The impact of this class will not be, we won't be able to know how valuable this class is
Starting point is 00:04:46 until 27, 28, 29, those football seasons. Jay makes a good point that so much can change. Recruiting is so fluid. Let me point this out about it because they have the most quantity. They have the highest quantity of commits and it's not even close. They have 15.
Starting point is 00:05:02 The second highest is give or take, Ohio State, Penn State, or well, I guess in the case of the big 10, where it's around the average is eight or nine commits. Okay, okay, so they're getting the quantity, but then if you grade them out by quality, now they're still in the top 10, but they definitely take a few steps back. So it seems like, how do you wanna read that?
Starting point is 00:05:24 How do you wanna read that about USC? Are they just taking commits to take commits are those placeholders until they wait on some other because if you always look at? Texas watch how Texas does it because they wait till the end for the premium four stars and five stars Why is you USC taking all these verbal commitments now? Remember they are verbal so at any point in time they could either Read that that happens a lot in recruiting where somebody might verbally commit and then they say hey We're getting somebody better and we're gonna push you out or if USC does have to settle with those If they're going after other prospects, I don't know. I wouldn't read that as oh Lincoln Riley's taking a big jump forward I do worry about USC simply because a brand power
Starting point is 00:06:07 USC is always going to be relevant because there's nobody to challenge them in the state of California There's nobody to to push back against them UCLA nobody nobody So when it's one of the when they're the face when they're the university that is the face of one of the biggest states when It comes to producing football talent That's USC is always going to be relevant to an extent. I cannot believe that Zach Anderson, the Ox-I-mers UCLA Bruins were just disregarded like that after they were slaughtered by a very average Indiana team on their home field a season
Starting point is 00:06:40 ago. I mean, just the outright disrespect to the Bruins is pretty incredible. But Roman, what do you make of everything we've discussed so far? I think everybody has made some really solid points, where as Zach Seco just put very nicely, yeah, they are verbal commits.
Starting point is 00:06:59 But they've done a really nice job of securing some top end talent so far from their home state, whether it be RJ Sermons, Moda Katawanga, Eastern Toplives from Utah, another really talented player, they're getting some nice top end talent. And of course, we want to see if they sign, right? As Jay was saying, things can change very, very quickly. And Spencer, I look at archery programs, I look at Oregon and Washington as schools that have a nice footprint already on the West Coast that can come in and hey, they're gonna make a push for some of these guys. We know
Starting point is 00:07:29 that whether it's setting up official visits now in the fall, there's a lot a lot of things can change between now and signing day. And I want to go back to another thing that Jay said, we're looking Riley is still there. And, you know, they can recruit all this talent they want. And it's great if they sign but are they can actually develop these guys especially defensively, we haven recruit all this talent that they want. And it's great if they sign, but are they can actually develop these guys, especially defensively? We haven't seen them do that yet.
Starting point is 00:07:49 Well, they're coming off their first year where they had an actual defensive coordinator. They are doing it, though. You can only go from 0 to 100 so quickly there. So I will give them that. I'll give Jacob Goins this. They went from 0 to 101 year under Kurt Signecki. They made the cultural playoff.
Starting point is 00:08:04 Yeah, I don't think Lincoln Riley's Kurt Signe. I think one is already proven that he's better than the other. I mean, Lincoln Riley is and that's the concern you have for USC, right? It's like, okay, let's say they have another mediocre year where I've got their schedule pulled up. They go to Illinois, not crazy, to Notre Dame, to Nebraska, to Oregon on top of hosting Michigan State, Michigan, Iowa. I mean, what if they have another mediocre year? We've had this conversation before of if Lincoln Riley goes out, then all those recruits are gone. The ones that you have
Starting point is 00:08:35 are going to completely disappear and USC has to restart from the ground up. Can they do it? Yeah, probably with the money and the brand but then who do you go and get? That's the concern for us if this year doesn't work out. I agree it's just starting. They could get Kurt Cignetti. They could. Shut your mouth. Stop. No. No, Seiko's not gonna not gonna do that. They could get James Franklin. James Franklin. I think I just saw, I don't know if it was a clickbait thing but they said James Franklin apparently was close to leaving Penn State for USC at one point in time. Oh no, he was.
Starting point is 00:09:09 Yeah, that was a legitimate thing. But when that didn't happen, I think that cemented that James Franklin will be your head coach forever. I mean, forever Seiko. He might outlast your entire lifespan as Penn State's head coach, whether you like it or not.
Starting point is 00:09:23 And I'm hoping you live a long, active, and healthy life and whatnot. Thank you, I was worried how you were gonna preface that. Yeah, no, I was going for the dramatic effect. I realized that got very dark for a moment. I don't live life on the edge that much. That got dark and tragic really quickly, but I think I saved it flawlessly.
Starting point is 00:09:41 But some coaches have got more pressure than others going into next year in the Big Ten. Who's got the most pressure and we've still got to break down March Madness. That is all coming up next on the Big Ten Squad. First this episode brought to you by Supply House. Get the supplies you need from the site made for the skilled trades. Supply House, whether you're in plumbing, HVAC or electrical work, Supply House is the reliable way to order products online. Their easy to use website is packed with helpful resources
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Starting point is 00:10:45 Plus use promo code SH5 for 5% off your order that's supplyhouse.com. Which coach in the Big 10 is facing the most pressure? That's a loaded question. Jacob Goens, I go to you first. I think Kurt Signetti is facing the least amount of pressure because he has to have more house money and equity with his fan base than anybody
Starting point is 00:11:06 else in this conference except maybe Ryan Day. But I'm sure Jay, if you look hard enough in the Ohio State corners of the internet, you can find those who are still doubting Ryan Day, right? They got to still be out there. So we'll get to the Buckeyes head man in a moment. But I just look at Signetti and think, boy, he's got to be able to do a lot of things this year and the fan base say we still believe. Yeah, I mean when you set the bar that high at a place like Indiana where I'm not oblivious, it's been
Starting point is 00:11:35 horrifically bad for the entire existence of the program when you come in and you have the best season that you've ever had. You get to a college football playoff and you retain most of the talent from that team a year ago, yes, the expectations are high, but they're not astronomically high.
Starting point is 00:11:52 Nobody in Bloomington is saying you have to back it up with another college football playoff appearance. That's just insanity. It'd be great if it happened, but nobody's asking for that. But you can't just sit in your office, kick your feet up in your office, kick your feet up on your desk and say, ah, let's just see how it goes
Starting point is 00:12:08 and only win four or five games. That won't be acceptable either because Hoosiers fans now have a little bit of taste of this crazy thing called victory and they want more of it. They are so excited for football season. They almost didn't even know they had to get a new basketball coach
Starting point is 00:12:23 because they want football right now. And so yeah, Signe, Eddie has set himself up very nicely big contract extension, but he's not satisfied and neither other fans. And so while again is a playoff appearance this year, the bar maybe not but eight, nine, 10 wins. Absolutely. Think about early 20th century America for just a moment, just a moment, if you will. I think that Indiana fans, from a winning standpoint, have grown up in prohibition, and someone brought them a little moonshine whiskey, and it caught on, and everyone realized
Starting point is 00:12:58 this is great. And they became, dare I say, intoxicated with that feeling and just want more of it. Is that what you're telling me, Goins? Is that exactly what you meant to say? I mean, I'm not going to say exactly, but sure. We'll kind of somewhere in that analogy where you can decipher it and find your way through and say, yes, fans want more winning. Crazy, I know.
Starting point is 00:13:19 But that's where Indiana fans are because you're, again, you're coming off the best season you've ever had. You retained your head coach, both of your coordinators and 75% of your talent from last year. How could you not be excited about what is happening in Bloomington plus the facility upgrades, plus the NIL, everything is all coming into place. Now you just gotta keep it going and keep winning,
Starting point is 00:13:43 get your recruiting numbers up and you're gonna be just fine. So yeah, you get a taste of it and you want more, and that's what's happening in Bloomington. Jay, I think Ryan Day is the most hilarious coach in the discussion landscape of college football, in college football, maybe in the history of the sport, because who else could win a national championship and still have a giant cloud hanging over the program.
Starting point is 00:14:05 I mean, that's a uniquely Columbus trait, isn't it? It definitely is. It's one that Ryan Day has taken on and he understands what it means to be the Ohio State head coach when you lose to that team up north and then you follow it up by winning the national championship. You can have the banner great. You earn the banner. You earn the ring.
Starting point is 00:14:22 You earn all the trophies. You still couldn't win that game Thanksgiving weekend. He's under a lot of pressure. It's not because he couldn't win the national championship, it's because he still can't beat Michigan. It's the biggest weird thing about Ryan Day right now is you're preparing right now in spring ball, everybody's owing and eyeing
Starting point is 00:14:40 because it's CJ Hicks is now playing off the edge and he got Julian Sands quick release. No one's really talked about the Michigan loss yet, but they need to start talking about it because there's a lot of pressure on Ryan Day. He feels very relaxed right now. I hope he doesn't get too relaxed because he has to figure out what's going on Thanksgiving weekend and why he can't beat Michigan outside of the one year and it's the one win this first year as the head coach at Columbus. I think under pressure coaches in the Big Ten, can we go back to Lincoln Riley? I know Ryan Day's as pressure on him for one game. Lincoln Riley might be up out of Southern California if the season,
Starting point is 00:15:16 if you have another season like he had last year. He's a great offensive mind. Things just aren't going well at USC and they might pull that plug quickly and say we got to get somebody else to run this program. They'd have to pay fat buyouts. I mean. They got the money. Well, they'd have to have the desire to spend the money. They'd have to reach Texas A&M levels of breaking point of I you know, we
Starting point is 00:15:46 Collectively the donor class don't want to watch this guy I'd rather pay him full-on David Justice and money ball. No, the you are New York Yankees are paying half your salary That's what the New York Yankees think of you. They're paying you to play against them. You got to get to that point I don't know that USC is quite there since they just finished year one with Danton Lin as a defensive coordinator, but Seiko, you guys are about to be in year one with Jim Knowles as defensive coordinator. And I lament just for the one reason and no other one in particular, that Ohio State won the national championship because we could no longer annually recycle the greatest tweet in the history of that website which is Ryan Day is the Michael Jordan of James Franklin's
Starting point is 00:16:31 and there's just something beautiful and poetic about that line you can't do it anymore since he won a national championship but speaking of the big one what's the pressure level on James Franklin to get further than they did last year? Depends who you ask, because I put that out there initially when they hired Jim Knowles that this team's all in. They are absolutely all in on winning a championship. And anything I think short of an appearance is a disappointment. Now, as a...
Starting point is 00:17:00 In the national title game, you mean? Yes. Yeah, anything short of that. They absolutely, bare minimum, have to get to the national semifinal because you return you return your quarterback You return both of your running backs you've returned stars on defense. I know Abdul Carter's a top five pick So that's a different story But guys that could have gone off to the NFL you retain them with NIL revenue sharing Maybe just a you just a nice conversation. You were able to bring them back.
Starting point is 00:17:27 So if, what, were they just gonna do that for fun? What was the point of Allard coming back if a national title wasn't on the line? So that's Penn State's expectations. Then you go and make Jim Knowles the highest paid coordinator and it's not even close. You don't spend $3.1 million annually on a coordinator. Poach him from the team that's been a thorn in your side
Starting point is 00:17:49 for the past decade. That's not gonna change. All to not, you don't know that. You don't know that. You got a new quarterback. For Penn State, they are absolutely all in and that's why I think, so some people might say otherwise that,
Starting point is 00:18:02 well, there's still a building process to this It's a new defensive system Okay, but you still have it it comes with the territory now You made the national semi-final either either put up or shut up because the expectations Ohio State fell short won a championship Michigan fell short won a championship It's Penn State's turn and if they they don't, it is a disappointment. If they don't at the very least make a semi-final, I think they gotta win.
Starting point is 00:18:30 I think this is a national championship or bus type of season because you don't get Dorowler back. You don't get Dennis Sutton back. You don't get Nicholas Singleton and Katron Allen back. All this NFL talent that could have moved on early decided to come back. What, for fun?
Starting point is 00:18:41 Just for fun. No, you came back to win a title. I mean, to be fair, college football looks very fun. It's fun just to sit here and talk about it playing. It can't be unenjoyable. I like sitting in the stadium and you know, listening to crowds go absolutely crazy when plays are getting made. It's got to be a little fun to make those sorts of plays. No, not like college football. No, not even close. If this were part of the interruption, I would down. For football players.
Starting point is 00:19:08 You'd be down like four points. We're watching, man. We're all watching. We're all spectating. What about the people actually doing it? You mean around the horn? Yeah. Yeah, that is what I did.
Starting point is 00:19:18 He'd get a mute for that. Yeah. That was a big time. That was a flop for me. All right, so moving on from my embarrassing mix up from a moment ago. It was. Roman, you're one for Jed Fish.
Starting point is 00:19:30 I don't think anyone could have expected a lot. Some people predicted them to go six and six, and lo and behold, they did. But is there any sort of pressure, big expectation, or is it still kind of, eh, we're filling this guy out as he establishes himself as Washington's head coach. I think he's turned the pressure up on himself quite a bit
Starting point is 00:19:50 where one of the most interesting things about Washington going into the season with DeMond Williams who's got two games under his belt as a starting quarterback is every time there is a microphone in front of Jed Fish's face, whether it's on Good Morning Football, The Rich Eisen Show, whatever podcast he's appearing on, he's been saying, hey, Damond Williams is going to be an elite quarterback, not just in the Big Ten, but in the country.
Starting point is 00:20:14 He has been very clear about that. And it's one of those things where if you have an elite quarterback and you go out and you invest in a top tier offensive lineman and Carver Willis in the transfer portal, you go and you spend big money to go get six players to add to your front seven to add to a run defense that just did not cut it last year. Because you didn't have the bodies, you need to take a big step forward. And this is a fan base that's still kind of trying to wean themselves off of, hey, this team was 25 and three for two seasons under Caelan DeBoer.
Starting point is 00:20:44 And won a playoff game, got to the national championship. So the expectations have been raised in Seattle and Jed Fish talks a great game. He does and he's got a quarterback in place that if you watch him play, there's a lot to like and there's a lot to be excited about if he can reach the very lofty expectations that his head coach has set for him. And with everything else around him with Jonah Coleman coming back, Denzel Boston coming back, your number one running back and
Starting point is 00:21:07 number one right receiver with what is expected to be an improved defense under Ryan Walters and an improved offensive line. He's turning the pressure up where I don't think unless things go horribly wrong, he's gonna find himself out after year two. But if things don't improve from six and seven to, let's just call it nine and three, like eight and four, nine and three, somewhere in that ballpark, that conversations are going to start to be had. Yeah, conversations. Who would be having those conversations? The big 10 squad, we have lots of conversations, and we've still got this one rolling along because we got to dip
Starting point is 00:21:43 our toe into the water of March Madness. That is right after this. First this episode brought to you by Monarch Money. Ever check your bank account and wonder where did all my money go? Did I pay it to Jimbo Fisher's buyout? I don't know. Between dining out, online shopping, and entertainment, it's easy to lose track.
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Starting point is 00:22:28 Use code LOCKDOWNCOLLege at MonarchMoney.com for 50% off your first year. That's MonarchMoney.com. Code LOCKDOWNCOLLege for half off your first year. MonarchMoney.com. Was it a second round flop for the Big Ten in March Madness? They had eight teams advance past the first round. Oh, we're flying high, feeling good about Big 10 basketball. And then goings just two teams,
Starting point is 00:22:51 find a way to win in the next round. Illinois loses to Kentucky. Oregon blows a big lead against Arizona very early in that game. You just keep going down the list. You've still got Michigan alive. So three Big 10 teams, the two Michigan schools plus Maryland who survived against Colorado State. And I mean like, boy, that's probably the best game of the tournament so far. But three teams in the sweet 16 going,
Starting point is 00:23:17 I don't think it's bad. I definitely think the first round set expectations higher than that. No doubt. And look, shout out to Maryland for giving us one of two buzzer beaters in the entire NCAA tournament. That was the only game winning one. There was another one for people who, you know, head out and hang out with our friends at FanDuel. There was a buzzer beater that made an over-under.
Starting point is 00:23:37 May or hit or not, you can check that out. The sicko bet. The people that were a part of it were soul crushed, okay? Not me, no way, right? But Maryland gave us an excellent buzzer beater. It was fantastic. But yeah, the first round, I think, you know, Big Ten were bumping our chest, not us at Bloomington,
Starting point is 00:23:53 but the Big Ten as a whole, right? We're just excited. We have teams alive. And then they just kind of get picked off one by one. And it was Illinois falling to a really good Kentucky team out of the SEC. And yeah, you've got Michigan State alive and you've got Michigan alive, but now they're going up against two teams in the SEC. Are we confident in those teams from the big 10 to take down what they're saying
Starting point is 00:24:16 is historically the best conference we've ever seen in college basketball? I don't know. I don't have confidence in Michigan State, especially with how Ole Miss is playing. I think Michigan matches up well with Auburn, but I don't know. I don't have confidence in Michigan State, especially with how Ole Miss is playing. I think Michigan matches up well with Auburn, but I don't know. I just think Maryland's got a lot of talent, but maybe they used it all up in a win over Colorado State. And so I don't think it's as bad as some people are saying it is, but I don't think we have a national champion left. I don't think that at all. By the way, we've done a miscalculation as a group.
Starting point is 00:24:45 It's four teams in the Sweet 16 because Jacob, you let us forget about Purdue? You might be banned from the chat for that. Quite a sweet- You're the one who said two when we opened the segment. No, there's no documented record of that. That never happened. That never happened.
Starting point is 00:25:01 I said three. I don't credit Purdue for anything don't for anything produce sucks they're yeah the fact that they're even alive I did not pick them in any of my brackets and so no I don't even give them credit no I'm not McNeese state Jay hey whoa whoa first of all it's just McNeese there is no state you will put respect on Respect on McNeese in the Southland Conference champs Hey, there's a state on the end of NC though, which is where will wait is now that staff member jump shaft Jumpship to they don't care. Oh aura aura aura or did officially jump a mere con a mere con Yeah, his name is aura as, as far as I'm concerned.
Starting point is 00:25:46 His backyard baseball comes out, too. Oh, that's outstanding. Anyway, Jay, so four teams in the Sweet 16 for the Big Ten. How many do you think make it to the Elite Eight? I've got one in my bracket. I want to have two. I don't know. I don't think four and four is bad after the first round. It's certainly not what the league was capable of. How many make it to the elite eight just at a quick glance and trying to figure out if I could just make one get there? I don't see it.
Starting point is 00:26:20 I don't. It's very, very tough with the way the SEC regular season went, which was a gauntlet. And that made a lot of these SEC teams more prepared for the tournament. Where you have Michigan against Auburn, you have Michigan State against Ole Miss, you got Maryland and Florida, and then Purdue and Houston. It's weird that we're sitting in a situation right now where the Big Ten, at one time you expect to get at least one or two of those teams to the Elite Eight. You're not getting that now. I don't think it's a knock against the Big Ten. I think it just, the SEC is having such a special year that you kind of think, well,
Starting point is 00:26:55 the Big Ten was down a little bit. SEC was a little bit better. That's just kind of where the season went. It's weird that we're here right now because growing up, I know the Big Ten was good at basketball, was on the better conferences. the kind of way the season here right now because gro conferences. No national football. Has it has it b last year but you con was
Starting point is 00:27:24 the greatest coach in the sport in case you didn't know. Oh gosh. I mean that's oh gosh. Oh he'll tell you. Don't worry. Oh okay. Thank you. Okay but who's going to push back on that notion? I mean I'm not. I'm I'm I can't look at him go. Oh no.
Starting point is 00:27:41 There's someone I'd rather have. No, there isn't. He's he's he's a maniac. Yeah and he's really good. Seiko, the Big 10's got three cracks at number one seeds in the Sweet 16. Which one goes down? Houston, Auburn, or Florida? I would say the best, the most likely chance at being upset is probably Auburn, even though Auburn's my title pick. I just like what Michigan has to offer. They're just running into a buzzsaw.
Starting point is 00:28:09 Michigan is a really good team. If you put them on another side of the bracket, I think they could upset or just continue to advance. It's just you happen to go up against another national title contender. It's the same thing with Maryland. So those teams, they're not bad. They're just not good enough either. So the number one teams, I actually have all four advancing this this is probably one this this
Starting point is 00:28:33 bracket. Whoa, whoa, whoa. You think the big 10 teams are about to make up half of the Elite Eight after there were two in the Elite Eight last year? No, I'm talking about... He's talking about the one feeds. Oh, okay. Okay.
Starting point is 00:28:48 Okay. I got lost in translation there. I thought Seiko was coming in with the backyard baseball flamethrower of a pitch. No, I got to preserve my juice box stamina for... I got other podcasts after this. Smart play. So this has been a year where this tournament is top heavy, where it's... for I got I got other podcast smart play. So I this is this has been a year where it this this tournament is top heavy
Starting point is 00:29:08 where it's Houston. They're just their veteran teams. They're well coached. There's not a lot of weaknesses. You look at the you stare at the can palm rankings for hours trying to find something and you and you can't it's obvious that the four number ones are the best of the best Michigan has the best chance because of who they are coached by in in dusty May and I but they got to go up against Auburn. So you put Michigan has the best chance because of who they are coached by in Dusty May. And I, but they got to go up against Auburn.
Starting point is 00:29:28 So you put them somewhere else on the bracket. I think they could upset a Kentucky, a Tennessee upset, if you will. Same thing. Maryland's a good team too. You're just kind of hoping, for the big 10 sake, you're hoping and praying that Michigan State is the team that, you know, kind of disrupts everything. Gets a team into the Final Four, gets a team into the championship, but Ole Miss is not a pushover. I'm not guarantee, they're a three-point favorite. They're only a three-point favorite,
Starting point is 00:29:52 so that's a one-score game with a two-seat against a six-seat. The odds for the Big Ten to have nobody in the Elite Eight are greater than somebody getting through to the Elite Eight. That's bad. Roman, take us home. Who's winning it all? Florida's winning it all. That's bad. Roman, take us home. Who's winning it all? Oh, Florida's winning it all. That's...
Starting point is 00:30:07 Good pick. ...the way it's gonna be. I like where Seco's going with Michigan upsetting Auburn, potentially, where that's certainly something I've got on my bracket, where it's gonna come down to, can their seven-footers stay out of foul trouble? If Lab Golden and Danny Wolfe can stay on the floor for a long period of time,
Starting point is 00:30:24 I like their chances in that game. So I'm really interested to see how that's gonna go. to stay out of foul trouble. If Vlad Golden and Danny Wolf can stay on the floor for a long period of time, I like their chances in that game. So I'm really interested to see how that's gonna go. Spencer, I'll leave you on this note. Maryland, Colorado State gave us the best game of the year. Who beat both those teams? Washington. Ah, hot.
Starting point is 00:30:38 As the last place team in the big night, they beat both. Head State beat Purdue, don't do that. Showed it in Indiana. Hey, yeah, there you go. Take your wins. That's what I'm doing. Don't do that. So did Indiana. Hey, yeah, there you go. Take your wins. That's what I'm doing. I'm just taking a look.
Starting point is 00:30:49 Hey, we beat Michigan State too for the record. There you go. Yeah, let's go. Yeah. Let's go, there you go. Okay. Washington and Penn State had the same conference record. Come on.
Starting point is 00:30:59 And Washington beat Penn State. They did too. They did. Yeah, they did. Does that make Penn State worse than Washington? I don't know. Don't they're half game or they're one. They're one game better because they won. Seiko was not prepared to talk Penn State basketball on this episode. I heard I heard March madness when you sent me the show. So I was all prepared for He wanted the wrestling juice. He wanted the heat. We did not provide it in the
Starting point is 00:31:30 wrestling form though. But in everywhere else, we do our best. Jacob going locked on Hoosiers, Jay Stevens locked on Buckeyes, Zach Seiko locked on Nittany Lions, Roman Tomashoff locked on Huskies. I'm Spencer McLaughlin locked on college football and locked on ducks. That'll do it for the big 10 squad this week. See you next time, everybody. Thanks for watching. Until then, hope you have a wonderful rest of your day.

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