Locked On Hawkeyes - Daily Podcast On Iowa Hawkeyes Football & Basketball - BONUS EPISODE: COLLEGE FOOTBALL KICKOFF LIVE: CAN TENNESSEE UPSET GEORGIA? MICHIGAN LATEST. WASHINGTON DISRESPECT

Episode Date: November 17, 2023

The Georgia Bulldogs surged to the number one spot in the College Football Rankings, can the Tennessee Volunteers pull an upset this weekend? The Michigan Wolverines and Jim Harbaugh’s latest legal action against the Big Ten conference. The Washington Huskies stayed at number 5 in the College Football Rankings, could another ranked win against Oregon State this weekend be enough to push them into the top 4? Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! eBay Motors  With all the parts you need at the prices you want, it’s easy to turn your car into the MVP and bring home that win. Keep your ride-or-die alive at EbayMotors.com. Eligible items only. Exclusions apply. eBay Guaranteed Fit only available to US customers. Athletic Brewing Go to AthleticBrewing.com and enter code LOCKEDON to get 15% off your first online order or find a store near you! Athletic Brewing. Milford, CT and San Diego, CA. Near Beer. PrizePicks Go to PrizePicks.com/lockedoncollege and use code lockedoncollege for a first deposit match up to $100! Daily Fantasy Sports Made Easy!   Gametime Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONCOLLEGE for $20 off your first purchase. Jase Medical Get $20 off these lifesaving antibiotics with Jase Medical by using code LOCKEDON at checkout on jasemedical.com. LinkedIn LinkedIn Jobs helps you find the qualified candidates you want to talk to, faster. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com/LOCKEDONCOLLEGE. Terms and conditions apply. FanDuel  Make Every Moment More. Right now, NEW customers can bet FIVE DOLLARS and get TWO HUNDRED in BONUS BETS – GUARANTEED. Visit FanDuel.com/LOCKEDON to get started. 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)  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

You're listening to Locked On College Football Kickoff Live with myself, Drake Toll of Locked On Big 12, Kenton Gibbs of Locked On ACC, and Alex Dono of Locked On Canes. Live every Friday from noon to 1 Eastern Time, wherever you get your Locked On favorites on YouTube. Let's take a look around the country in college football. Happy Friday, everybody, and welcome into College Football Kickoff Live. That is Alex Dono of Locked On Canes, Kenton Gibbs of Locked On ACC, and Locked On Wolfpack. Drake Toll with you from Locked On Big 12. Thank you for making Locked On College Football Kickoff Live

your lunchtime listen every Friday. Guys, we finally have some sort of closure on this Michigan deal, at least for now. The Big Ten has suspended Jim Harbaugh for three games two remaining here in the regular season and then that's it Donald the investigation from the Big Ten is over they're not going to probe anymore it's just you know what you take this you accept it basically a plea bargain it's weird the way this played out because earlier in the week Michigan seemed intent and hell-bent on filing for a temporary restraining order,

wanting Harbaugh to be essentially reinstated until further review and be able to coach out the rest of these games. They decided to back off of that, and that court hearing is no longer going to be happening today. I've got two theories on why that could have happened. why that could have happened. Number one is you take it at face value because I can definitely see the argument from the Michigan side that accepting the penalty from the Big Ten, the NCAA investigation, I should note,

is still ongoing. But as far as the conference goes, I know it's tough to be without your head coach these final three-plus games, but understanding the situation, it could be a lot worse than this. And by accepting this penalty, Drake and Kenton, Michigan takes some of that distraction away from their student athletes because they do have a team that is on the cusp of competing for a national championship.

And the idea that you're continuing to fight this in court and fight it in and out of the public eye maybe could take some of the focus away from your team heading into a probable college football playoff appearance. So if you take it at face value, it's that. Another one of the theories out there is why did Michigan decide midweek to instead of fighting to keep Harbaugh on the field, they completely turned face and said, OK, we're just going to accept this penalty. Perhaps they've been given more information from the NCAA investigation that would make it look a little bit harder for them to win this thing. So take your punishment now, because another side of that is, Drake, whenever the NCAA finishes their investigation, which probably won't happen until sometime next year, if not even later,

happen until sometime next year, if not even later. I'm sure that Michigan, by accepting the conference punishment and having Harbaugh serve out this suspension, that's probably going to take something away from eventual NCAA sanctions where the NCAA would say, hey, at least part of this, we're giving you time served for Harbaugh serving that suspension. So that's where we're at. Ken, give me this. I don't think a guy could write a 600 page manifesto steal signs at 30 plus ball games dozens of games and his head coach just never know about there we we were all in agreement a couple weeks ago that hardball likely had some inkling of what's going on here especially if they're using those signs for competitive advantage so while michigan was the bad guy i think we've taken the spotlight off of them because how the big 10 has

mishandled this, no investigation, automatic suspension, Michigan paying for something they haven't been investigated for. Doesn't seem right. Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, cop a plea, all the rest of 2023 clock cop a plea,

all the rest of 2020. If you can do it, go ahead. Don't go to trial. Listen, if you know that you did what they said you did, if you even close, if there is evidence of it, cop a plea. But no, very seriously, I mean, we all know, right? And even if he didn't know, here's the biggest thing, right?

I actually love what the NCAA did with the lack of institutional control thing. I absolutely love that because at the end of the day, the buck has to stop somewhere. And if that were not in place, teams could continue to do what Michigan would do in this situation if it weren't in place and just say, hey, Stallions was acting as a rogue and all that good stuff. I'm sure Harbaugh didn't tell him, write a 600-page manifesto about how you're going to become the head coach here. I'm sure he didn't do that, but I'm sure he didn't know about that part, but he knew about the actual scheme to some degree.

And even if he didn't, even if he didn't, even if I'm giving him all of the grace, all of the benefit of the doubt saying he didn't know, at some point in time as the head coach, you have to be a part of stopping things like that from happening, stopping bad things from happening on your staff, knowing that you're hiring the right people as staffers. I get it.

Apparently nobody knows who's on their sidelines anymore. Congratulations, Jim McElwain and Central Michigan for informing us of that. But the reality is if you're hiring somebody and paying them a salary, you ought to know something about them. You ought to know what their dealings are, what they're doing, something of relevance about that person. Yeah. Also big this week, the coaching carousel is here.

I think Dave Aranda from Baylor put it so well. When you're watching a commercial and see the bow on the car, somebody's getting fired. That is the mark of carousel season. This one starts with, what a segue, Jamie Chadwell kicks off carousel season by moving his weekly coaches press conference to Wednesday. Liberty tweets about it. Jamie Chadwell retweets it and says see you guys Wednesday where did he retweet

it from Starksville Vegas baby Vegas fired their head coach and that my friends begins the chaos we've got Jeff Traylor interviewing at A&M, Jimbo Fisher out, Mississippi State is open, and plenty of other schools will follow in the coming weeks. Dono, are you shocked that Jimbo is getting $76 million right now to sit on his couch? That's one of the few places in the country where being able to write that big of a severance check does not surprise me. I mean, I saw a photo of the halftime ceremony at their game last week where they the firing ceremony. Well, before the firing ceremony where they received a donation check for like a hundred million dollars to one of their arms of the athletic department. That's what that was. That check. Yeah, sure. That was the donation that fired Jimbo Fisher.

They presented it at halftime in front of the fans. So you're right. To call it the firing ceremony. You're not wrong about that. So listen, I mean, there are, there's a handful of universities across the country that, you know, can handle a $76 million buyout. Like it's a drop in the bucket. That's not the case in most places, even in the power five, but in the case of Texas A&M, I'm not surprised.

And honestly, with the way it's gone, the last couple of seasons for Jimbo Fisher, he's kind of been coaching like a guy who maybe doesn't care a whole lot because he knows either way he's getting paid. Well, now, Jimbo, you get paid a lot of money not to work. So congratulations. Yeah. Kenton, for you, I mean, $76 million. I think it's Terry Bowden you could rent out Terry Bowden who makes 450 a year for 174

years for 76 million dollars you can get that many Terry Bowden's this the business side we've always talked about but this is unbelievable I remember when coach O was talking about LSU paid him what 17 million 17 and he said where's? He said, which door you want me to go out of and where you want me to be going, brother? That was a terrible Coach O impression, but you get the point. And moving forward with Jimbo, $75 million. There's no job in America.

There's not a single job in America as good as fired head coach. Josh McDaniels, go ahead, get your money, brother. Jimbo Fisher, go ahead, get your money brother Jimbo Fisher go ahead get your money brother I'm telling you there are plenty of coaches around this there's gonna be balls on cars for all of their wives that car may have to be shipped to another city that car may have to be delivered by Carvana to wherever they're going but I'll tell you what I'll tell you what there

are some coaches that are about to you know as they like to say tis the season of handing out bags for no reason and that's what a lot of these athletic departments are about to do it's about to be big bag season because they're getting new coaches well let's stay on a.m for a second here dono if they're going to go to do they go blue collar here jeff trailer from utsa are they trying to make another splash higher from the NFL ranks or another big power five college like LSU did with Brian Kelly um I could see either side of it you know one of the one of the names I've seen thrown out there and I doubt he would be interested because he's doing such a great job in the NFL right now but he is a Texas A&M guy

and that's who said that Campbell don't you win that even though you're Detroit. And Kenton, I'm telling you, I don't think it's going to happen, but he would check off every box because he knows the Aggies culture. He's got that tough sort of grinding mentality. I mean, this is an NFL coach who is like the opposite of Hollywood, right? He doesn't bring that sort of glamour. He brings that blue collar, let's run Oklahoma drills and practice every day. I think that would probably be the dream candidate. again he's doing fine where he is and not too many coaches it happens I mean it happened to Nick Saban when he arrived in Alabama he left an NFL job to do that he wasn't

doing as well as Dan Campbell is right now but it's not unprecedented so I don't something like that would be intriguing for me if they want to make a really, really, really big splash. But I don't know. I think maybe going a little bit more low key with it because Jimbo Fisher was a big splash and that one didn't really play out. Maybe you go in a different direction this time. Yeah, Kenton, to me, it's look, you're the guy you put all the eggs in this basket for didn't work out. What you need at the very least is a bridge guy. Arkansas just did this with Sam Pittman. They said, look, he's not going to win us

a national championship, but if he can get us back to relevance and then we make the hire, that's perfect. Does A&M go with the intermediate then? First of all, Daniel Allen Campbell is staying up there in Detroit. Let's stay there. Let's stay there for a second, but now let's move on. I think that

as a program like Texas A&M, you always swing for the fences. You always swing for the fences. You have too much money to do a stopgap guy. With all due respect, I don't think that Arkansas and A&M are working with the same type of budget here. Like, this is how crazy this is, okay? Now, I was hearing from my sources, hey, A&M is on Elko's heels hard. Elko, Mike Elko from Duke, of course, who coached at Texas A&M.

I was hearing, oh, they're on his heels hard, da-da-da-da-da-da-da. And I said, no way. They got to buy out Jimbo. They're going to have to buy out his contract with Duke, and they're going to have to pay him. And I was told, the money ain't an issue. I said, oh, there's no way. There's no way you can pay out, in essence, three coaches in short because you're paying Texas A&M Jimbo, Duke Elko, and Texas

A&M Elko. No way they can do that. And I was told the money ain't an issue. Next thing you know, you look up and you say, OK, so now the only issue that would be a very clear path for one of the best and rising coaches in the NCAA is whether or not he wants to go from Duke to where if he continues on the path he's on, they'll rename Wallace Wade Mike Elko Stadium. They'll build a statue for him.

They'll give him all the good things. Or do you want to go to the pressure cooker where you know, three eight-win seasons back-to-back, my brother in Christ, get ready to get served a severance package that you've never been served before. So, I mean, and that's just one coach. That's just one possibility of a home run hire. But even if we're not talking about guys in the NFL and all that, how many coaches would turn down the actual Texas A&M bag

that they're coming with? I can't see a world where too many do. Well, guys, let's turn it from the off-the-field stuff from Michigan and the coaching carousel to on the field this week with our biggest game of the week. How about Washington facing a tough and unexpectedly tough Oregon State team. I don't know if anybody expected to be top 10 good, but here they are at home with the chance to upset the Huskies.

Let's talk to Lockdown Huskies host Roman Tomasoff. Roman Tomasoff of Lockdown Huskies here with Lockdown College Football Kickoff Live. Roman, Oregon State, Washington. For a Washington Huskies team that's already beaten some of the powerhouses of this conference, I can't imagine they're batting an eye at Oregon State, though those Beavs seem much better than expected. You know, the one crazy thing about this is the huskies are underdogs for the first time this season and a lot of this has probably has to do with them

going on the road and but the huskies are they're they're taking this one a little bit personally they're they've gone on some national shows this week uh pat mcafee was talking about it yesterday saying yeah like the normally soft-spoken michaelix was out there just in the grand scheme of things saying, yeah, no, we like this wide receivers coach to Marcus Shepard, who's just one of my favorite humans on this planet to talk to. He always has something good to say, said, yeah, we love this. We love this disrespect. We want you to talk about about their girlfriends. We want you to talk about about their families. We want you to do all that stuff because we like, we play our best when we're backed against the wall and going down to research

stadium that's going to be a really hostile environment there's going to be some weather in play but i think that this is going to be a really really even matchup and where i think that it's it's going to come down to on the field is if washington can stop the run we know that they can throw the ball over the yard jalen mcmillan is finally healthy again he should be playing we'll see probably somewhere around 20 snaps in this game. And moving forward, I think that there's just a whole lot to like. And the fact that the Huskies are an underdog is a little shocking to me, I will say. Well, let me ask you this, Roman. In terms of, you talked about a little bit of inclement weather, and we all know that Penix is the guy. It's, you know, flinging the ball down the yard, but not only flinging the ball down the yard, this is a big shot offense, which is generally the worst in

inclement weather. What do you see as the key to getting this offense going if it is a, you know, very rainy, very windy, very, you know, all those things type of day, maybe even some snow out there. What do you look like there? So that would be be my my guy on the ground dylan johnson dylan johnson has played in in nine games of mississippi state transfer he's been fantastic this season after struggling early on with a knee injury that he suffered during his time uh in mississippi state but he has gotten healthy over the course of the season and in the nine games he's played he's only rushed for 100 yard three times but those three times were against number eight oregon uh where he went for exactly a hundred yards, 256 yards in the Coliseum against number 20 USC.

And then last week he ran for 104 yards against Utah. So in Washington's three ranked games, he's been at his best and Oregon state. I like their defense a lot. They're a little bit on the lighter side. And when Washington wants to go heavy, they're really hard to move off the ball. And I think that the 215 pound Johnson can just really have his way with some of these lighter Oregon State defenders if he wants to. Roman, like you, when I checked the odds at FanDuel and I saw that Oregon State were favored

by one, despite, you know, Washington has all this momentum, panics, undefeated, sensational. They're in the top four college football playoff now, and yet they're underdogs this weekend. defeated sensational. They're in the top four college football playoff now, and yet they're underdogs this weekend. It is worth noting Oregon State hasn't given up more than 24 points at home all year. You know, they also haven't faced an offense like the one Washington is bringing to the table. But what scares you most when you look at Oregon State? What are the biggest concerns you would have from the Washington side? The biggest concern that I would have is they're just fantastic rushing attack. Damian Martinez is, in my opinion, one of the top two best backs in the conference.

And he's been fantastic all season long. That offensive line that they have there is unbelievably good. And they've just done whatever they wanted all season long. And I think that Washington's defense, yeah, it's been a little bit questionable at times. They did a really good job after allowing 28 points in the first half last week against Utah, just shoring up, not allowing anything in the second half. They held them like 75 yards just over, over the course of the second half. And that, that offense doesn't move the ball really well through the air, but they're, they're a rushing attack and they, they held them far under their season average. They only, they only rushed for 115 yards last week. So I think that that's going to be the biggest concern

that I have is if Oregon State can run the ball effectively. Roman, give me a score prediction. That's tough. See, I usually don't do score predictions because I'm the worst jinx on the face of the planet. Tell me Oregon State's going to win. Tell me Oregon State's going to win. Washington wins.

That's what I can give you. I love it. Roman, top us off. Locked on Huskies. Thank you for joining Locked On College Football Kickoff Live. Thanks for having me. Guys, PrizePix is the largest daily fantasy sports platform in North America. The easiest and most exciting way to play DFS,

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The Cougars play host to the reeling Oklahoma Sooners tomorrow at noon Eastern. Cougs are 24.5 point underdogs at home for a BYU team that seemed so promising a few weeks ago. Here is Jake Hatch of Locked On BYU to sell us why the Cougars cover 24.5. The reason why BYU can cover their spread against the Oklahoma Sooners is simply put, BYU cannot have played much worse over the past two weeks. I'm expecting a pride factor to pop up for BYU at minimum when they take on the Sooners at Lavelle Edwards Stadium. The other thing about it is it is senior day. A lot of guys who are playing potentially their final game in a BYU uniform and they want to go out on top if at all possible and more importantly just have a good performance overall. The Cougars offense is absolutely ground to a halt over the past five games or so. They need to find a way to generate some offense. Well, a simple way to do that is to

take care of the football, not find yourself behind the eight ball before the game really begins. And also on defense, force turnovers. Give that offense short fields. The big success for BYU this season has come when they have forced multiple turnovers and have cashed those in for touchdowns. If they want to keep this a game against the Oklahoma Sooners, they're going to have to do just that. Find a way to get their run game going. Hope that Jake Retzlaff, their starting quarterback, can find a way to really get his passing ability going as well. We'll see how it all shakes out on Saturday morning

as BYU takes on Oklahoma. Guys, I know we've gotten into more of a commentary on how the hosts approach. Tell me why. There have been those little tells where you hear, maybe the host isn't sold. And a lot of this is, can they show us? Can this guy step up?

Can this happen? And not, here's what will happen. Here's where BYU does have the edge. Dono, 24 and a half's a lot. That's why I stay in and out on this one. But as far as being sold, I'm not in either direction. I'm with you. I'm not playing it because that's just too big of a number for me. If Oklahoma was at home, I'd probably take them minus 24 and a half. I don't like that so much on the road,

but with that said, they're going to win this game comfortably. I think when you've got a spread that big, it kind of all depends on how does the fourth quarter shake out? If it is a blowout, are there starters in? Are there starters not in? How much did they take the foot off the gas pedal? How does Brent Venables kind of approach that fourth quarter? So it's just too big of a number for me to take here. With that said, yeah, I mean, he mentioned BYU probably not quite as bad

as they've looked the last couple of weeks. But, you know, Oklahoma had a tough stretch. They bounced back, putting up 59 points against West Virginia last week. So Oklahoma's definitely the side here, just 24 and a half points. If I had to pick a side, I'd pick Oklahoma, but I'm sitting this one out.

Yeah, Kenton, a conference game between one team in Oklahoma that has had a rough few weeks, and then a BYU squad that's a game away from being bowl eligible, and they're at home. I block it 24 and a half in almost any conference game. That Texas game has broken the odds makers when it comes to Oklahoma. Texas is one and three against the spread since that game. BYU covers this ball game, and let me tell you why.

I'm looking at this, and as much as I love Coach Venables, because y'all know, y'all know, I've talked about it many a time on this show, how much I love me some Brent Venables. But the reality is they're not pissed off anymore. They got their pissed off game out of them last week. And beyond that, what do they have to tune it up and get style points for? What is the motivation or the reason to get? If they were in the playoff hunt, I would say, hey,

can they beat this team by 24? Absolutely. What does Venables gain by going after that? If you're number five and you think that there are going to be five or six undefeated teams, you got to run it up. You got to get your style points. But the reality is he gains nothing. Y'all are probably going to be on the cusp of a New Year's Six Bowl,

maybe just on the outside looking in to still get a good bowl game, regardless if you win this game by 10, you win this game by 17, you win this game by 24, and he's not going to risk injury in order to get that, you know, hey, make Vegas happy type deal. So I think the BYU covers here. I talked about this game a little bit on Locked on Big 12 this week, and for me, the injuries for BYU at key positions make this a tough game to sell me why they can cover.

But for Oklahoma, again, I turn back to the point spread being so large. It's not a matter of can Oklahoma win this game and win it by a lot? The answer is yes. But even if they win 38-21, they still didn't cover by a touchdown, more than a touchdown. So with that, I can't trust it. I'm not sold on BYU. I'm just not sold that Oklahoma runs it up at 24 and a half.

How about this one? Top 25 teams with the Kansas Jayhawks, who are still ranked, and the number 21 Kansas State Wildcats. The Jayhawks are nine and a half point underdogs, and they are at home. Here's Derek Johnson to sell you why Kansas can cover against K-State. I'm Derek Johnson with Locked on Jayhawks. Why can Kansas cover the spread on Saturday in a top 25 sunflower showdown? For one, it's senior day.

They're going to be juiced up. 19 seniors that have meant so much to this program. And if not now, then when? They've lost 14 straight to K-State. They are chomping at the bit to get back at it, and they have the emotion you would think on their side in this game. But they're 2-0 against the spread coming off a loss this year, which they're coming off of last weekend's tech. 4-2 against the spread at home. They are also 3-1 against the spread this year as an underdog, and 2-0 against the spread as an underdog at home.

But beyond that, how are they going to do it? Well, it's going to take the rushing game to get going, and as great as Kansas State has been, as great as their defense has been overall, Texas ran for 230, 6.2 yards per carry. Texas Tech ran for 182 on over 6 yards per carry. Oklahoma State and UCF both ran for around 150, 150-plus on over 4 yards per carry. Kansas has a great running game. If they can get that going, they can cover the spread, which is exactly what can happen on Saturday.

Yeah, Derek had to bury the lead here a bit because Kansas quarterback Jason Bean was questionable. It looks like he's going to play, took most of the reps in practice on Wednesday. With him being back in, that's a huge boost. Kenton, this is a Kansas team that, when at full strength, is very dangerous. But I want to pause it there. I want to pause the full strength thing and go to something that Derek mentioned senior day. I mean, you, you've been right there before. Does that truly add, does it add that much juice?

The thing is senior day is just like every other major event that happens to a football team. It can be a positive. It can be a negative. Some teams, they see senior day and they're like, all right, great. We're going to get the seniors out there. All the seniors are going to start all the scenes that we can find to walk on the, you know, end of the bench guys all that. And we're going to feel great about it. We're going to play great. Some some folks senior day is a little bit too big of a moment. It's a little bit too much pageantry. It's a little bit too much before the game. So I don't want to say one way or the other, whether or not it's a positive or negative motivator. It's all about what you make it. But going from there, I'll tell you this much. I'm worried about the lack of continuity at quarterback for Kansas. And I understand that you're getting the starter back. I understand that. But we have seen many a time where the

starter comes back and the timing is just a little off because you're used to the backup that throws that hook route inside and up instead of directly on your numbers and all that type of going on and so that's tough for me and and also this 15 game winning streak for kansas state didn't come by accident like we can talk about hey this is not the less miles years and all that sure but even after that this kansas state team has absolutely dominated this rivalry. So with that being said, I think that Kansas does exercise some demons here. But you said Kansas State is nine and a half point. Nine and a half.

Okay, Kansas State nine and a half point favorites. I don't think Kansas State covers that. So I have been effectively sold why on why Kansas will get this done. I apologize for mentioning the quarterback there, but I think they'll get it done. You did. You gave me every reason to not trust Kansas and then gave me Kansas plus 9.5. Donna, what do you got on this one?

You know me, Drake. I like to approach these sell me why segments as if I'm a juror and I'm hearing an argument in court, and I thought that that was an excellent sell me why. So some of the preconceived notions that I had about you know uh Kansas State winning 14 straight times in this rivalry but being such big favorites on the right all these all these home dogs and I know there's one in the ACC we're going to talk about as well but all these big home dogs around college football is uh is making my head spin a little bit. I think Kansas is going to cover.

I think they're probably going to lose a game by three points to a touchdown. They're going to cover the nine and a half. Yeah, for me, having watched this Kansas State team the last couple of weeks mow through Big 12 competition, even that Texas game, as close as it was, I think they've hit their stride. They beat Baylor last week by 34 points. They're in a position to make another statement this week as they try to get to the Big 12 championship and guys something

we can unpack later on I don't know if you saw this the Big 12 changed its rules this week the Big 12 had in the rule book if there is a tie at the top of the conference with three teams your quality of of record basically your record against common opponents is what sends you to the Big 12 championship game Kansas State was gearing up to go to that game, and guess what happened? The Big 12 changed the rules in the middle of the week and said, no, sir, it's going to go by head-to-head, which should have been in place to begin with. Now, Oklahoma State is in the Big 12 championship. In a matter of 48 hours, it was ripped from the Wildcats with two weeks to go. They've got a lot to play for, and for that, I'll give them 9.5 points.

They win it by 10, 34-24 in Lawrence. This one, though, we'll go to the ACC where you guys live. Number 20, North Carolina Tar Heels traveling to Death Valley to take on the unranked Clemson Tigers. Isaac Shade of Locked On Tar Heels is here to sell us why. They will cover 7.5, their underdogs. Hey there, it's Isaac Shade, the host of Locked on Tar Heels, and I'm here to sell you why North Carolina is going to cover the six and a half point spread at Clemson on Saturday. Four words for you, Drake May Omarion

Hampton, the leaders of the nation's third most prolific offense. Now, to be fair, Clemson is the best defense Carolina is going to see all season, and last year they held Drake May in check and have only improved since then. But guess what? So has North Carolina's potent offense, and most importantly so because they can now play complementary football that comes in the form of running back Omarion Hampton. Last year, Clemson could sell out to stop the pass, but not so anymore because Carolina boasts the nation's second leading rusher to go alongside everything that Drake made does so well. Hampton is a powerful between the tackles runner that gets better as the game goes on, aging like a fine wine. Don't believe me? Ask Donono over there he's seen it up close and

personal all right donno let's ask you he didn't sell me though it's as good as good of a job that isaac did i just like clemson looks like a completely different team ever since tyler from spartanburg called out davo sweeney clemson's at home in this game. And I just, listen, yes, North Carolina did beat Miami. So, you know, Isaac has that to hold over me for another year. But I just can't trust a team that gave up 46 points to Georgia Tech and expect them to go into Death Valley against a Clemson team that's playing well and cover. Like, I don't think North Carolina's going to win outright,

but I don't think they cover either. I think Clemson wins this game by 10 points. Kenton, this North Carolina team frustrates me so much because they lost to Virginia at home and Georgia Tech. And, yeah, I mean, they have every opportunity to be 10-0 right now. They should be undefeated and in the conversation for college football playoff. But what matters the most, they pee down their leg. I don't see why that doesn't happen again this week. in the conversation for college football playoff, when it matters the most, they pee down their leg.

I don't see why that doesn't happen again this week. First of all, nobody gets to out-sing my sweet prince, Drake C. Toll. Nobody does that. He did a hell of a job. He did a hell of a job. You tried. You tried. He's a worship pastor. It's not even fair.

It's not a fair fight. And then to be nasty and throw shade at the Italian betting guy on this show. The ad guy. Oh, no. The commercial guy. That will not stand. That will not stand. This is Locked On College Football Live's Tyler from Spartanburg moment.

Because I have had enough. You know, this North Carolina team, I finally started believing in them. And all of a sudden, they had to break the rubber sheets out to do some bad work. Matt Brown announces he's coming back this week. Everybody's excited about it. They're jazzed. They're geeked up.

Death Valley is going to be the deathly hollows for this team. It's going to be that for their hopes for the season in terms of, oh, man, we really have a shot at the ACC championship game. No, you don't. This defense will not be the best you face all year because statistically there's a better one you got coming up, but we'll go there later. The reality is Clemson's defensive backfield has gotten exponentially better

over the last few weeks. On top of that, they're now realizing Shipley is your all-purpose back, but Moffa is the guy. That is the guy who carries the mail and gets you home. So with that being said, I don't think that UNC goes into Death Valley and covers this spread. Drake may can do all he want. Omarion Hampton is only rushing great against really bad team.

And with that being said, they're going to have some problems. But don't worry, Roy Cooper and company are going to try to get South Carolina's AG on the line to make sure that Tez Walker is eligible to get open as well in this one. Could very well be a lock of the week this week, going Clemson over North Carolina at home. As we wrap up our Sell Me Why, let's talk about one of the biggest games of the week,

another one of these big games coming from the SEC, Georgia and Tennessee. Can somebody finally stun the Bulldogs? That is coming up when Eric Gain joins us. Now for your game changer of the week brought to you by Athletic Brewing Company. I'm going to put the focus on Washington. We talked about them earlier. The Huskies have momentum. They're in the top four. They've got a Heisman candidate playing quarterback for them, but they didn't have long to enjoy that top four in the college football playoff because they've got a tough matchup against Oregon State.

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You can find Athletic Brewing Company's non-alcoholic brews at a store near you or buy online at athleticbrewing.com. First-time customers can use code LOCKEDON to get 15% off your first online order. That's our code LOCKEDON, all one word, at checkout for 15% off at athleticbrewing.com. Near beer, exclusions and conditions apply. Athletic Brewing Company, fit for all times. Eric Kane of Locked On Vols with us here on Locked On College Football Kickoff Live. Eric, this is no fault of your own, but we see host after host coming here week after week and say, this is our week to beat Georgia.

This is the week we beat Georgia. Can you give me some firm answers as to whether or not the Vols could actually pull it up, set much less cover double digits? I mean, judging off what Tennessee did last week in Missouri, I don't think anybody with a brain is going to pick Tennessee to win this game. But Tennessee plays really well at home. Tennessee is a good home football team, not very good on the road. It's won 14 straight at Neyland Stadium, won some big-time football games

in a bunch of different ways this year because the offense has been less explosive and you've had tons of injuries on the offensive side of the football. So it's a good team playing at home. Georgia, you know, really, I mean, you had two true road games this season. One was at Vanderbilt. That didn't count. The other was at Auburn where it struggled, won 27-20, and allowed Auburn to run over 200 yards against Georgia.

And Tennessee's a great running football team. And so, you know, you can look at it from that angle. You know, we'll see what happens. But I feel like the juice for this game has kind of been – the air for this game has kind of been deflated a little bit, just based off Tennessee's performance against Missouri last weekend. Well, I, you know, Missouri is a team that I'm very high on, but I was expecting a better performance out of Tennessee last week. Do you think that that revenge factor, that anger, that, hey, we're pissed off that we didn't put our best on tape.

Do you think that that helps this team that even if they can't win, just cover in this game? Yeah, we'll see. I mean, I would think so. I mean, Tennessee under Josh Heibel, Tennessee is like, I think eight and two after losses or something, or eight and one after losses, whatever it is, they've been really good after losses. And again, what we saw from Tennessee last weekend was, I mean, that's not Tennessee.

I don't know what that was. I mean, I'm not trying to say Tennessee is a college football top-four team, but, I mean, it wasn't that team that just no-showed. I mean, it was offense. It was defense. I mean, you had one play offensively, and that was it. And then everything else was just horrible. So it's a team that gets motivated after a loss, again,

coming home to play your first SEC game in five weeks. So I think that's going to be exciting to get back in front of playing the home crowd and all that. Tennessee responds well under Josh Hypeloff losses. And again, I mean, Georgia's a good team. Georgia's gotten better and better, in my opinion, every single week. It's gotten healthy. It's dangerous right now.

But Tennessee's just a different ball club at home, and the lack of a true road environment I think is going to hurt Georgia a little bit, at least in terms of allowing Tennessee to potentially cover, like you said. Yeah. And you talked about some of the juice being taken out of this matchup, not only with how Tennessee played last week, but you know, with the sec championship game already having been locked in, there are no conference title implications in this one, but I'm curious for, for more on, on the home environment and what you are expecting there. Because Tennessee, they're unbeaten at home. They haven't lost there in a long time.

Dolly Parton's going to be at the game. I don't know. The queen. What? Is the Dolly factor? Y'all got some tickets available? Hold on. Probably not.

Hey, everybody's fired up for Dolly. All right, Dolly is the queen. She doesn't come around often, especially to Rocky Top. But when she does, you roll up the red carpet and everything. So it's going to be fun. I hope, I hope that there's something in the works for her to get out there with a proud of the Southland marching band and sing Rocky top. I think that'd be amazing. Um, you know, I would imagine she's here for a reason. So maybe that gets people fired up, but nah, if she's in the house, you've got to put on a good showing because she's the queen i love it she's got the dolly magic coming this weekend eric i unabridged i know you've you've

probably over the course of the week talked yourself into where tennessee can win this game because it's an sec matchup any given saturday but it's possible if you had to pick it right now do you have enough confidence to say the balls will will win? No, no, I don't. And honest man, good man. I mean, I call it like I see it. And in fact, I've, I've called Tennessee to win every single game this year so far until this week. And, um, you just can't trust Tennessee right now. Um, even though I do believe that they're a better team at home, I do believe it's a good running football team, but in the three losses this year, Tennessee's run game, just not shown up. Um, Joe Milton ran pretty well at Alabama, but your, your traditional run game just not shown up. Joe Milton ran pretty well at Alabama,

but your traditional run game has not run well at Florida, at Alabama, at Missouri. And up until last week, this run game was leading the SEC. I mean, averaging over 230 yards a game. It's a good run game, but in losses it doesn't show up. And in two years under Josh Heupel, Tennessee has not been able to – Tennessee's been able to run on everybody but Georgia. Tennessee just can't run on Georgia the first two years under Josh Heupel, Tennessee has not been able to, Tennessee's been able to run on everybody but Georgia. Tennessee just can't run on Georgia the first two years under Josh Heupel. So we'll see if that trend can, you know, kind of alter here in 2023.

But if Tennessee wants to have a chance to win this game, if Tennessee wants to have a chance to be in this game in the fourth quarter, which I believe if Tennessee does what it does well, it can absolutely make this a game. It can absolutely have an opportunity to win. It's just been too inconsistent for me to trust right now. But got to run the football on offense. Got to shut down running the football on defense,

which it's done a good job so far of doing. And then you've got to steal a possession somewhere, whether that's a fake punt on special teams, going forward deep in your own territory, an interception, fumble recovery. You've got to steal a possession somewhere to try to get some points and keep up, in my opinion. Well, coming up, let's do some booms and busts.

That's Eric Kane of Locked On Vols. Thanks for joining Locked On College Football Kickoff Live. Appreciate it, guys. All right, fellas, let's do some booms and busts. I'm going to start because I usually I bury my own lead here. I usually have you guys go and then I'd fall in place. James Franklin and Drew Aller and all these guys, because we keep going through the whole Penn State's college football playoff material and oh, they're going to win the big game. You know what it's starting to remind me of?

You ready for this? What if, what if James Franklin is just Big Ten Mark Richt? What if he's just that guy that goes 9-3, 10-2, gets you to an upper-tier bowl game, sometimes a New Year's Six Bowl, and at some point, at some point, some point you hit the break and you say we don't need a nine and three head coach we need a national championship head coach Georgia decided that and they went on to win a couple of national championships my bus this week is Penn State and I'm starting to ask is James Franklin Mark Rick Dono I see you're not no you're following in line

with that well I am and it's funny you it's funny you bring up Penn State as your bus because you know I'm Mr. Positivity on the show because I have Michigan as a boom. Obviously, everything you said is accurate, but Penn State, it wasn't just them losing the game. It was also Michigan going in there into hostile territory and winning that game and doing it despite all the awkwardness surrounding your program and your head coach having to watch it from a hotel 20 miles away.

By the way, RIP Jim Harbaugh. That postgame on the field interview was just spectacular. It's almost like he's still here with us. We need this for coach. But continue, on the Michigan front front it's like not only and this is a great football team right i mean and i think they could potentially win a national championship even if jim harbaugh is not allowed and he would be allowed to coach in the playoffs but even if he wasn't i still think this team is good enough to win a national title and before that game all

the questions people had because yeah michigan had been covering spreads left and right, beating up on anyone. They hadn't really faced a real opponent until they went in to face Penn State and they passed that test with flying colors. So Michigan is a boom for me. And I've got a bust as well because, yeah, I was pretty hyped a couple weeks ago about Oklahoma State and they're ranked number 15 in the country. They go down to Central Florida, which, you know,

the same program that in 2017 had a parade for a national championship because one rogue poll had them ranked number one. They go into Central Florida. They didn't just get beat in Oklahoma State. They got blown out 45-3 by UCF. That is my bust of the week. Yeah, pretty good one. I can see that.

Kent, let's go to you. Well, first of all, Drake, I 1,000% agree with you about James Franklin. It's the old Cat Williams joke. A 300 seed looks like a phantom until an actual phantom pulls up. It's the exact same thing with Penn State. They look like a playoff team until an actual playoff team comes around and is like, oh, that's what a playoff team is like.

We are not there. We are not there yet, my brothers, sisters, friends in Christ. But my boom of the week, my very first one, I've been riding with him all along. Oh, that's it. We stand on business, Josh. We stand on business, Eli Drinkwits and the Missouri Tigers. I'm sorry, Mr. Kane. You know, I love the fact that Tennessee showed up on today's episode.

I held the sign down for long enough. But darn it, I'll tell you what. People talk about Eli Drinkwits immediately scurrying away. He did. Well, guess what? He stands on business. He walks on business. He runs on business.

He'll throw on business if he got to. Because Eli Drinkwits is a man of business. That is, it's so, again, if I come up to you at the corner bar and say something about your mama and then immediately run away, what does that say about me? Because that's what Eli Drinkwits did. Well, I think it's a little different because it's like if you beat me up and said something, then immediately run away because they won the game.

I can understand if it's like, oh, this is before the game. He's like, hey, we're still on business. And then he runs away. But, like, you, because they won the game. I can understand if it's like, oh, this is before the game. He's like, hey, we stand on business. And then he runs away. But, like, you know, he won the game. They stood on business. Business was, in fact, stood on before he said we stand on business. So if you knock me out, say something about my mom and didn't run away, you know, you could just be ducking the feds.

You know, that's what that is there. But anyway, my bust of the week. There are so many teams that were so disappointing this last week. And I'm sorry to say this. Donald, you know I love you. And I defended your honor against Isaac. TVD, every single Miami game recently seems to end with a Tyler Van Dyke interception. What under God's green earth is going on over there? The minute Emory Williams went down, I said to myself, this game's going to end with Tyler Van Dyke throwing the interception.

Not only is it going to end with him throwing the interception, it's going to end with him throwing the batter. And, Donald, I'm sorry. I see the little one coming in and creeping in the picture. I don't want him to hear this type of nonsense. He's a huge TVD fan. That's why he had to come in. You're disrespecting Van Dyke. Listen, tell him to not set himself up to get his heart broke this young because immediately when I watched that last play of the game,

you have Restrepo on the out route, wide open. Well, not wide open, but he's college open enough to where you hit him. That's your guy. He's your best friend. He's your roommate. And what does TVD do instead? Let me pull the ball down let me look over the middle let me throw late let me lob let me throw it over the

middle the three rules of quarterback play that you don't violate not a defensive tackling i know that tbd my brother in christ biggest bust almost of the year so far in terms of zero touchdown six interceptions in his last three conference games. I can't argue with a single word that you said. And, of course, the irony is now because Emery Williams, who they benched him for, breaks his arm in that final possession. It's the Tyler Van Dyke show the rest of the way. And, obviously, we all feel terrible for Emery for what he's going through.

And I think Kenton Van Dyke, obviously, the way he's played this year year is indefensible I'm not even going to attempt to try to defend it I'm just hoping that he can find a little clarity because it seems to me like he put way too much pressure on himself to try and live up to the NFL draft stock that some people thought he had heading into this year he's been pressing a lot of throws he's been really avoiding checkdowns he's allergic to checkdowns and he's thrown a ton of interceptions 12 on the season including a stretch where he's thrown 11 in his last five appearances it's it's just absolutely horrific so hopefully he can find some kind of clarity because Miami's matching up against Louisville on Saturday which is a game where I think it's pretty evenly matched in most areas.

And Miami is at home on senior day, but the variable is, can they take care of the football? Because Jack Plummer at Louisville has done an excellent job doing just that. Tyler Van Dyke has been the opposite of someone who takes care of the football. Yeah. Guys, I've got two busts this week. My second, but I had poison Ivy this week. So I've already pessimistic. I've got four medications and a steroid,

which I can still not dunk a basketball. How does an adult man get poison ivy, you ask? Great question. So in my waller, I have decided I am done with the Big 12. I will, in spite of the Big 12, I will keep hosting locked on Big 12. But they have these rules set in place. What a bust for Brett Yormer. They have rules set in place that are terrible that say, hey, look, there's a three-way tie, which there is right now, Oklahoma State alongside Kansas State and

Oklahoma. In the event of a three-way tie, even though Oklahoma State has beaten Kansas State and Oklahoma, they don't get to go to the Big 12 championship. The reason why is because the rule is written that it's based on your record against common opponents. That doesn't make a lot of sense, right? That shouldn't go above head-to-head. So the Big 12 comes out this week. They gaslight fans. They say, hey, we're going to clarify this rule.

They add an addendum to the rule saying, we didn't change it. We just clarified it and allowed head-to-head to take precedent. Now look, Kansas State, Oklahoma, if you want to go to the Big 12 championship, beat Oklahoma State. That's the first thing you should do.

However, if you're the Big 12, and on Monday you said Kansas State was going to the Big 12 title game, and then you didn't change the rule, and now Oklahoma State's going to the Big 12 championship game. That's not right. There's something wrong there.

The Big 12 is my bust of the week this week because the SEC wouldn't do that. The Big 10 wouldn't do that. The pressure coming down from those conferences, they wouldn't just change the rules in the my bus the week this week because the sec wouldn't do that the big 10 wouldn't do that the the pressure coming down from those conferences they wouldn't just change the rules in the middle of the season hell they probably wouldn't have written the rule that poorly in the first place and it all started when an oklahoma beat reporter just sent an email to the conference and said hey can you help me unpack these very vague rules you have and the big 12 said uh no i guess we should probably decide what those mean and that got us to this

point i just donald i don't know i've ever seen anything like this in college football that's wild um it's one thing to change rules from year to year like a lot of conferences will change the divisional structure they'll change the tiebreaker structure we see it happening it's happened in the acc this past year you know the acc did make a mid-season change but it's for the rules for next year right they changed their scheduling and some of their tiebreaker to do that within the middle of a season to the point where you're actually switching out a team that plays in your championship game unfathomable to me unbelievable why it's it's flatly shameful it's 100% those young men earned the right according to rules, to play in the conference championship.

Point blank period. Point blank period. There is no ifs, ands, or buts about it. There is no way around this thing, right? In the words of MJ, too high to get over, too low to get under. This is a situation where the Big 12 seems to be stuck in the middle of a turd sandwich right now because they look terrible. They look terrible.

To change the rules, because let's just be honest, right? You can say, oh, we're clarifying the rules. So if you're clarifying the rules, that should simply add clarity to a picture that is already there. If you're looking at them. Change it, yeah, clarify it, and then if you really want to change it, change it for next year. Yeah, yeah.

You don't do it in the middle of a season. But if we're adding clarity, right, that would be donald's background being a little blur and then all of a sudden when you add clarity you can see the you visibly there you shouldn't see a seminal sign in the background all of a sudden when you add clarity to donald's background you've changed it you've changed the background you've changed the picture which was painted you changed the rules and the ben 12 should be so ashamed of themselves because at the end of the day regardless regardless of how you feel about either team, regardless of how you feel about the rules, whatever the case may be, the rules are the rules. And to change the rules of engagement in the middle of the event is what are we doing here? What are we honestly doing here?

It's it's this is one of the biggest black eyes I've seen on college football in quite some time. And mind you, we're about to talk about a coach who just got fired for sharing signs. Yep, 100%. Guys, let's take it to this week. Our best bets, our big picks. Let's go through all the big games in the top 25. But first, take it to Dono. Best Picks is the largest daily fantasy sports platform in North America,

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and you'll be so happy you have it. Go to prizepicks.com slash locked on college and use code locked on college, all one word for a first deposit match up to $100. That's prizepicks.com slash locked on college with code locked on college for a first deposit match up to 100 bucks. Prize Picks really is daily fantasy sports made easy. Fellas, before we jump in here to our picks of the week, some breaking news in college football that our producer, Brandon Olson, relayed in. Michigan has fired linebackers coach Chris Partridge,

who apparently was good buddies with Connor Stallions. We just saw the acceptance of the three-game suspension, and now Kenton a firm firing here. I can't hear Kenton. Oh, good. I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry. I'm with you.

We have the moment of demarcation here. That's what's happening. We have the moment where Michigan is saying, okay, we're going to shed everybody who definitively is indicted or indicated to have been a major player in this sign stealing scheme. We're going to shed all of them. We're going to accept the punishment and we're going to go from there as opposed to trying to hold on to Partridge, hold on to Stallions and say, hey, we're going to rally around you and do all the things. I don't know if they were the only ones in on it. I don't know if they're just the fall

guys, but that's what seems to be happening. The reality is this is Michigan saying, hey, we accept it. We accept the blame. We're going to get rid of the negligent parties or the bad actors and move forward from there, much like my mic was a bad actor when I first started this segment. It goes back to what I brought up in the opening segment, right? Wondering if the reason why Michigan completely changed course midweek and decide to accept the big tens penalties rather than fight it and fight for that temporary restraining order. Maybe they'd been given some more information, right? Maybe Michigan who have, we they've said they continue to cooperate with the NCAA investigation, which is ongoing, even though

the big 10 investigation is now closed, perhaps in some of those findings and discovery, they've realized, OK, there are other coaches on this staff who can be implicated along with Connor Stallions. And clearly, Coach Partridge appears to be one of those. It's why that firing happened. So I'm wondering if that discovery is maybe what led Michigan to decide we don't have a leg to stand on here with the Harbaugh thing. Let's just accept it and move on with the rest of our regular season. Now I also have to wonder if it ends with Partridge.

Is this just kind of the first step? Are they going to figure out maybe, and any Michigan fans listening may be like, what is this guy piling out of my program? I don't know, but I know the investigation from the NCAA is ongoing. Maybe they find more, and maybe more heads are going to roll in the coming weeks. All right, let's turn it to this week in college football with some of our big picks as we now get, again, a little bit more clarity on Michigan.

That's a team that should beat Maryland this week by their favor by 19, and they should win by that much or more. Go to some of the closer games here, and one that matters really to both of you, Louisville and Miami, a.m make it noon on ABC this week Kenton where do you go Miami favored by one as we sit WTF wrong team favorite Miami is a one-point favorite in this game is beyond me and and I mean that from a ton of standpoint don't get me wrong miami is not a

terrible team outside of quarterback play they're actually a good team i would say with that being said they're not better than louisville at anything statistically except sacks um and time of possession and i believe well i believe i was just about to say there's one other thing so rushing defense as well those are the three things. I don't see how Miami comes out of this game as a winner when you've got a quarterback who's got the gifts in terms of doing five-yard checkouts. I don't see how that happens. So I've got Louisville winning this one.

And if they win it all, of course, they've covered the one-point spread there. But I've got Louisville winning this one. I just don't see it for Miami. Dono, you're the Miami guy. Yeah, I'll make the case for Miami. And obviously there is more at stake for Louisville because Miami's basically playing for pride and for a better bowl game like Louisville. They can clinch a berth in the ACC championship game if they win. If they win against Miami, they book their ticket to face Florida State in a couple weeks in the ACC title game. They have not been as good when it comes to numbers on the road versus at home.

Louisville hasn't. You know, Miami, Kenton outlined the reasons why Miami can absolutely lose this game, and most of that has to do with erratic quarterback play, okay? At the same time, I think there are some very good matchups at the line of scrimmage. I think Miami is capable of stopping Louisville's running game. I look at Miami's defensive coordinator, Lance Guidry, who's now a Broyles Award semifinalist. I think that's the guy who can really decide this matchup in a positive way. As long as Tyler Van Dyke on the other side of the football doesn't decide it in a negative way,

because Guidry has done a fantastic job canceling out opposing teams, rushing offenses, and really being exotic with his coverages and blitzes. So I think if Miami can force Jack Plummer to try to beat them, I think the Hurricanes have a good chance based upon their defense. I think Miami will be able to run the football even against a tough Louisville defensive front. So it comes down to quarterbacking. I have predicted Miami to get a close victory at home, noon game, a lot of humidity, I should say. It's still very hot down here in South Florida on senior day. So I think

Miami is going to win probably 24-21, something like that. But it's going to be very close. And I know Kenton has watched a lot of Miami football this year. I'm sure Drake has as well. And I know Kenton has watched a lot of Miami football this year. I'm sure Drake has as well. Anytime you watch Miami, good, bad, or ugly, things are always close, and things are always theatric, right? Some weird stuff is going to happen on Saturday. I can see Miami pulling out a close one.

All right, quick fire, guys. I'll take Louisville on that one, by the way. Quick fire, Utah, Arizona, Kenton. Give me Utah. I think that that defense is too good. I like Arizona. They're a great story. They're a great feel-good story this year.

I just don't think they got the horses in the stable to beat Utah. Dono. I'm a huge Jetfish fan, but I'm with Kenton on Utah. I think Utah's defense, I think they're going to bounce back this week and come away with a nice win. I'm riding the hot hand here. I think Arizona, Jetfish, they do get it done and become a legitimate player early on in the Big 12. Let's go to big game. 230 CBS, SEC, Georgia, Tennessee. Donna, we'll keep it with you. Georgia. I think Georgia is going to win

and they're going to win comfortably and extend that 27 game winning streak. I know that, you know, Tennessee, they haven't lost at home this year, but Georgia, they are peaking at the right time. They're back in the number one spot. They're going to roll. Kenton? Hustle and Flow was also based in Tennessee. And as the great CJ once said, whoop that trick. No, I'm just joking.

Very seriously, it's not going to go well for Tennessee. Georgia is going to beat the brakes off those boys. Let's take you to Kansas State and Kansas Sunflower Showdown. This one in Lawrence and Kenton. Give me Kansas. I got Kansas in a really, really close game. I think Kansas finally breaks that streak. I think they got all the horses in the stable to do it.

I think that they're finally ready to have that moment. And they've been up and down and all that good stuff. But I think that this is their moment to finally show, like, hey, we're here. We've arrived. We can do things in this conference. Dono. Going with Kansas State. It's been a one-sided rivalry in their favor.

They're going to continue that trend. Give me Kansas State as well. Everybody taking Texas over Iowa State here. Is that right? Just want to make sure. Yes. Iowa State it is. One of us picks Iowa State to beat Texas this week.

Wow. Now, our last two games here, I want to give you the college game day pick. James Madison at home against Appalachian State, Dono. I haven't looked at the spread, but I will tell you, Appalachian State is always one of those teams I enjoy watching. I think they're going to pick up a dub. Wow, Kenton. Give me the Dukes.

They're pissed off. They've been disrespected by the NCAA. They're undefeated and belong in the New Year's Six Bowl game. They're the best team in the state of Virginia right now. That is true. Fight on, Dukes. All right, men. It is 630 ABC, the marquee game of the week.

It's Washington. It's Oregon State. Kenton, are you going with the Beavs? You know, an eager beaver has been the downfall of many a men, but not these Huskies. They get the job done on the road. I believe in pennants enough. I think that that defense can do enough to stop the Pac-12's leading rusher

to come out of there with a win. Give me the Huskies. Dono. I feel like something weird is going to happen in Oregon State. It's weird because you can't even call it an upset because they're favored. I was surprised to see that they're favored,

but I just feel like the narrative is set for a letdown with all the hype and Washington's had to really earn some close wins this season. Going into the road against a tough team and a great running team, the fact that they're now in the college football playoff kind of feels good to be true for them. I think the other shoe is going to drop on Saturday. Beaver tail.

I'm tailing beaver. Oregon State. Rat line. They get it done at home. I'm stepping in the poop and I'm taking them. Give me Oregon State. Let's do it. Over Washington this week.

That is Alex Dono of Locked On Canes. Ken Gibbs of Locked On ACC and Locked On Wolfpack. Drake Toll with you from Locked On Big 12. Always, always a good Friday when you're on Locked On College Football Kickoff Live. Thank you for making Locked On College Football Kickoff Live your lunchtime listen every

single week. I'll say it again. This has been and always will be Locked On College Football Kickoff Live.