The Herd with Colin Cowherd - Best of The Herd for Jul 10, 2020

Episode Date: July 10, 2020

Five Changes Colin would implement as President of College FootballLeBron paved the way for other free agent decisionsCam was never going to have a long careerWide Receivers don't win muchDak Prescott hasn't succeeded enoughGuests: Joel Klatt, FOX College Football Analyst Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Guaranteed Human. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo, and every episode, we're cutting through the noise,

breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice on the Iheart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Another podcast from some SNL late night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel. Help an a cappella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter.

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 is big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a year, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors.

Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild. I mean, it was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all? You're listening to Learn the Hardway with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing.

How many men carry a suit or armor? It signals to the world that you not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to. Listen to learn the hard way on the IHard radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Thanks for listening to the best of Heard Podcast. Be sure to catch us live every weekday from 12 to 3 Eastern, 9 to noon Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and FS1. Find your local station for the herd at Fox Sports Radio.com or stream us live every day on the iHeartRadio app by searching Heard. is the best of the herd with Colin Cowher on Fox Sports Radio.

Ah, it's a Friday, making it through another week, live in L.A. This is The Herd. Wherever you may be and however you may be listening, we're on IHeart Radio, Fox Sports Radio, and FS1. Absolute pleasure to have you in today. Joel Clatt, big college football story today. We'll be joining us one hour from now. Joy Taylor's with me as always.

Joy, how are you? I'm doing great. So, Friday. Friday, big news yesterday. The Big Ten basically said conference games only. Yes. This is not a big surprise. I think the Pac-12 is going to announce theirs within the next day or two.

ACC will follow. This is what's happening. I put a tweet out about a month and a half ago. I said, Bama USC is a pipe dream. It's not happening. We know now it's not happening. Everybody's going to follow suit with this, and it's fine. Is college football going to happen?

Coin flip. I have no idea. 50-50 proposition. I do think the SEC will bulldozed their way through. it because it matters more down there. But the deconstruction of sports is happening. You're getting rid of the unnecessary. And college football's out-of-conference schedules have always been bloated and unnecessary, just full of junk. In fact, this morning, people are freaking out, oh, my God, we're not going to see Oregon play Ohio State. 42 games were canceled by the Big Ten.

Three, I would have watched. Buckkeyes, Ducks, and Eugene, Wisconsin, in Notre Dame, Michigan at Washington. The rest is nonsense and shouldn't be scheduled. I look at Northwestern schedule. They play Tulane, Central Michigan, and Morgan State. I wouldn't go to those games if my kid quarterbacked Northwestern. They're awful. Blowouts, junk, the sport needs a commissioner.

It needs better schedules. Colin, those small schools rely on those games. That is a you problem. It is not Ohio State's job to save Bowling Green football. It's not. You know what? Today, I'd like to be the president of college football. I'm announcing my candidacy here on this show.

My qualifications, I love the sport, and I have an IQ higher than motor oil. At this point, I think that about all you need. I'm going to make five changes in college football. football. And I love the sport. Number one, no more neutral site games. Jerry Jones makes enough money in the NFL. He doesn't need a game every year between Alabama and some pinata to make more. You want an out-of-conference neutral site game. It's called conference championships or occasional bowl games. Play games on college campuses. The colleges need the revenue because college football revenue, plays for all the guy sports, most of them that don't make any money, and the

women's sports that don't make any money. Play the games on campus. I want to see Georgia play at Athens. I want to see Michigan in Ann Arbor. I want to see Wisconsin in Camp Randall. I want to see USC at the Coliseum. I don't want to see teams lining the pockets of Jerry Jones. He's rich enough.

Number two, you get one cupcake on your schedule. Sorry, SEC teams. you can't play Troy in Citadel and Towson State three times. You get one cupcake. Notre Dame, no more independent. BYU, no more independent. Join a conference. No exception.

Can you imagine if there was an NFL team? They're just independent. No, 40s, 50s, 60s, 70s, 80s maybe. No more. Join a conference. You get one cupcake pre-season level game. My third change in college football, everybody plays 10 conference games. That means the Big 12 has to add a team.

Take Nebraska back. They don't feel like a Big 10 team. Geographically, it doesn't work. They need to be back playing Texas schools so the parents of the recruits can drive to some games. Big 12, add a team. This is less fluff. Everybody plays 10 conference games. Number four, the college football playoffs.

four teams, that's it. There's never been a time in my life. I thought the seventh or the eighth best college football team after 12 games deserved a shot at a national championship. So why? Make the regular season count. I don't want to see a three-loss team getting boat race by Clemson, the Buckeyes, Alabama, or LSU.

That's just more junk. Last year, Georgia. Oh, Georgia should be in. They lost two games. best team they played LSU beat him, then they lost to South Carolina. That's not even an elite college football program. A couple years ago, Ohio State, we deserve to get in. Not only did you lose to the best team you faced that year, Oklahoma, you got beat by 31 by Iowa. Sorry, you don't get an argument. My fifth thing I would do, and this is going to rankle a lot of people, but 12 bowl games,

that's it. Colin, bowl games help the little guy. The little guy's been irrelevant in my whole life. Purdue's not winning championships. Kentucky football is not winning a championship. Oregon State football. We don't need to create bowl games that nobody watches,

nobody goes to, and some weed eater company I've never heard of sponsors to help the little guy. The little guy is mauled in this sport. Next year, there's five teams that can win a national championship. That's funny. it's like every year for my entire life. There's about five to eight teams that can win it.

The bowl games are the rose, the orange, the sugar, the cotton, the peach, the fiesta, the Alamo, the Sun Bowl, the Holiday Bowl, the Outback Bowl, the Citrus Bowl, and then flip a coin on the Vegas Bowl or the Gator Bowl. I'd go to Vegas. They got a cool new NFL stadium. Let the kids go back to school. That's what it's sort of about, right? They're colleges and universities.

All in, you'd have 10 conference games, two non-conference, one, you know, Cupcake, 12 great bowl games with mostly sold out stadiums, really good television products with really good eight and nine win football teams and a four-team playoff. Listen, if Shreveport needs that bowl game for their economy, then you better start recruiting other companies to come to your town for your economy. Because I've seen that bowl game. Nobody goes. College football needs some reconstruction, and I love the sport.

And this morning, as you all get freaked out about 42 games eliminated, three you would cross the street to watch. Three. College football is becoming like college sports. Bloaded, junk filled, not financially viable. Some of the reconstruction on all this COVID-19 stuff for college sports is long overdue. I love college football. it's gotten too junky, too regionalized.

There are weekends in college football where there are 70 games and there are four that I would even give a quarter to. Four. About a month ago on this show, we were trying to build some topics and we looked at college football. And it was painfully easy to go to every week of the year in college football and find the three best games. because there were 40 unwatchable games. More is not better. Fewer bowl games, fewer teams in the playoffs, fewer at a conference. These are universities.

These are colleges. You go for an education. School matters. Class matters. Hanging out with other people besides football player matters. Universities. 99% of the guys that play never play in the NFL. They need jobs that are non-football jobs out of school.

Let's educate. Let's grow. Let's have college football be shorter, more impactful, more amazing, more high quality, more great games, fewer junk bowls. And stop with the expanded playoff. Let's make college football one of the reasons it's one of the great sports in America. Every Saturday matters. And increasingly, every Saturday does not matter. And that's the go-to strength of the sport.

You got to watch the games. When Alabama's playing four schools that are directional or I've never heard of, even Saban has complained of empty seats at the dynasty. New England never has empty seats at their dynasty. When the Lakers were a dynasty, they didn't have empty seats. Nick Sabin's complaining. It's hard to get students here because students are not dumb. They see how bad and bloated the schedules are.

make every game count. College football will never be the NFL in terms of quality of players, or even coaches. The coaches are better in the NFL. The players are better in the NFL. The quarterbacking is better in the NFL. But the one thing is the NFL expands its schedule, the one thing college football has that makes it amazing. You've got to watch the games. They matter.

Ohio State loses a second game season's over, at least over in terms of they can't win a national championship. Now we're just adding games and adding fluff and adding junk and adding TV revenue. and in the end, it's just messy. It's just messy with a bunch of nonsense. So I know everybody's freaking out that 42 games were eliminated. You would have watched three. You really, the rest of them, they were playing across the street. You drive by.

You wouldn't even slow down like a traffic accident. You just drive right by. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. On Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the I-Hard Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed the game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in.

I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, calls, we break it down, give you context, and ask the questions everybody wants answered.

SportsSlice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people who live them. Listen to SportsCise on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tap Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do with a little bit? Kim. Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam Jay. And I'm Alex English.

Each episode, we pick it here, unpack what went down, and try to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack. I'm down to talk about crack on day, but just so you y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack. So I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now. Thank you for finishing that sentence. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really?

Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of mental health awareness month, I'm bringing over a decade. of my own experience in the middle health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking.

Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, we get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch. Life becomes about wins and losses.

Steve Burns, Dustin Ross. Because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth. Are you a good person? because you're free. Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust.

I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Kear Gaines, as we have real conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, Learn the Hardway. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the Fourth.

And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff. Like being an internet famous. Miss Referee. We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What?

Time out. Quarterback on office blue 42. Hey, rec, my mama want you to wave at her. What? Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Cliverts show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. So, J.J. Reddick, who once I saw,

sought Whole Foods. I used to live around me. I lost my dog one time. J.J. Reddick found my dog. He doesn't like me. I have no idea why. But I'm going to agree with him here. J.J. Reddick came out on, he's got a podcast or something. And he talked about LeBron James and Kevin Durant leaving the mobility and leaving to teams. And he said part of it is rooted in racism. I'm not a host that screams that at every turn. But he said when they left, everybody said they're going to this team and that team. They're joining stars. He goes, but I think the underlying reason for the reaction, people were uncomfortable with powerful black men making a decision for themselves.

I really believe that. Well, I certainly think it was part of it. The percentage, I don't think, I think some of Kevin Durant was, if you're going to Golden State. But I think JJ's right to a large degree on this. And if you think he's wrong, just go read the letter from the Cavs owner Dan Gilbert, the Knight, LeBron, and this is an educated man. read Dan Gilbert's letter.

I went and got it this morning. I don't need to go over it and over it. I ripped him for two years. There's racial coding all over it. It's disgusting. He talks about LeBron being a former hero, cowardly betrayal, shameful act of selfishness, shocking act of disloyalty. Would you want your children to grow up like LeBron?

Self-declared former king. This is a player LeBron that tripled Dan Gilbert's net worth. Tripled Dan Gilbert's net worth. That letter reads like, I own you, how dare you? It's awful. In fact, it's so bad, it is so bad that ESPN, this is true, had to call the Cavaliers PR department to make sure it was a legitimate letter. It was so bad. They're like, you may want to sleep on this.

This is awful. I mean, they thought it was a hoax, literally. So is JJ Redick right? Yes, absolutely to some degree. And this is from an educated man. What a less educated people think about LeBron leaving. But I will say this. What is fascinating, it shows what LeBron James has been willing to do.

And this is the way it works in the world. The trailblazer gets all the heat. The trailblazer, the first to do something, gets all the heat. But he opens the door for everybody else to have a less bumpy ride following through. And this is really the value of LeBron beyond his great. beyond his physical gifts, what LeBron has really done, the players owe him a debt of gratitude, what LeBron has done. He opened the door to this, a superstar saying, I'm going to do it publicly, and I'm going to

go to Miami, and I'm going to be the villain of the league, which, by the way, LeBron didn't like being a villain. Who wants to be a villain? Besides our president. Like, who wants to be a villain in life? But here's what's funny about it. Think of how LeBron has changed mobility. Number one, LeBron leaves Cleveland.

He is eviscerated. Kevin Durant follows. It's annoying, but we're not bothered by who he left. We're more bothered by who he joined. It seemed unfair. But we got him leaving Westbrook. People got that part. People like me, I wasn't the only guy that said, yeah, I mean, he needs to play with

the guy that compliments him. So we went from LeBron eviscerated to Kevin Durant was annoying. Then Kauai left Los Angeles. and our reaction was, oh, yeah, of course. And by the way, he got Paul George to join him. Excellent move, Kauai, and he didn't let it out. Nobody knew. And next is Yonis.

If Yonis doesn't go, if Milwaukee can't get through the bubble, can't get through Boston, if Chris Middleton, nice player, not great, Max Guy, if he lets Yonis down, and Yonis stays, we will say, what are you doing? Milwaukee can't get free agents. What are you doing? LeBron has changed the conversation from how dare you to, how could you just stay there? That, my friends, is a remarkable transformation in the NBA. There are going to be great athletes my entire life.

Mahomes. I mean, just a crazy town out there. I'm not sure we've ever had an athlete. There's a Muhammad Ali quality of LeBron James willing to make everybody's journey easier, from eviscerated to annoying to, hey, good job, Kauai, to how in God's name can you stay in Milwaukee? Loyalty, in my opinion, said it before, say it again, is wildly overrated. The window's small, take care of yourself, be loyal if you trust the owner, GM and the coach to get you to the place that your talents deserve.

But JJ Reddick, you think he's wrong. Read the Dan Gilbert letter. That guy should have slept on that one. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd weekdays in noon Eastern, 9 a.m. Pacific. You know, I was actually surprised when Cam Newton and his agent, because his agent had to agree to this, pick New England. I thought it was a weird fit. I thought it was a weird personality fit, Belichick and Cam, a weird culture fit.

Cam's very expressive, you know, very much into fashion and image, and New England's like the hoodie and the opposite. I thought it was, it doesn't feel long term to me. I don't think New England has very good weapons. I don't think it's, I think it's a hard place to go and like flourish. I really do. That's why Tom left. And I also think, frankly, replacing Tom Brady is like replacing Howard Stern. It's just he could go nine and seven and play well and you'd be like, well, Tom won 12 with the same people. but I think it shows the market was very small. But Jason Whitlock used to always say this, but happiness is really based on expectations.

I mean, it just, you'll be happy in life if you're grateful and your expectations are reasonable. I think a lot of times we looked at Cam and we think franchise quarterback, yes, but maybe he was always built for 10 years and not 20. If I said to you, there's a quarterback joining the league. He is a power running quarterback who's kind of an inconsistent, a iffy mechanic pocket presence. He can make throws, but that's not his thing.

Does it sound like a 20-year quarterback? It doesn't. It's Dwayne Wade. Dwayne Wade is great. He wasn't built for 20 years. Dwayne Wade spent half his career on the floor because Dwayne wasn't a great pure shooter. So Dwayne probably plays bigger than any six,

four and a half guy in league history. He attacked the rim because he wasn't a brilliant three-point shooter. And so, unlike Ray Allen, who started his career attacking the rim and then moved out and stayed out, Duane always attacked the rim. Most of his highlights, I went to YouTube the other day. There was Duane Wade stuff. It was just Duane going to the rim and jamming on seven footers. But by year 12, even LeBron sort of bailed.

Like, he was hurt. He wasn't the same player. Does that mean Duane Wade's not a Hall of Famer? He's top 20 player in the history of the league. I love him. Nothing about Dwayne Wade I don't like. But Dwayne Wade was never built to play 20 years. By year 12, he wasn't quite the same guy.

You remember those Miami runs. If Dwayne played 36 minutes one night, the question was, can we get at rest him? Knees are going to be a little rough. You're not going to get quite the same game. I mean, I can remember those whole things with Bosch would get hurt and Wade and LeBron would have to. And then there was nights you're like, okay, Wade and Bosch are both ready to play. And then those are the nights they always won.

But they'd play the Pacers. And Dwayne had been great the night before. and Roy Hibbert gave LeBron problems in me, and he'd be like, God, the Pacers are giving Miami a problem. That's because Duane Wade couldn't give you the 39 at that level. And Cam's a lot like Duane Wade. He's not this great pocket presence. His mechanics are all over the map.

He's got a power arm. But if you go look at a lot of Cam highlights, I'll show him to you here. A lot of them are Cam jumping over people and running over people. He's the opposite of Russell Wilson, who never gets hurt because he never gets hit. Russell never gets hit. Cam gets hit on everything.

Even the successful runs, he's getting dogged. And so I think sometimes expectations on Cam. There wasn't a big market because I think a lot of NFL people think he didn't the last two years look like Cam. The mechanics are off and they think his arm is hurt and they think his knees aren't the same. But maybe it's just expectations. Not everybody is built to play for 20 years in pro sports. They're just not. I think shooters in the NBA, Dirk Nabitsky.

stayed out of the middle, fall away jumpers. That's what 20 years looks like. Steph Curry, if he can, you know, his knees stay healthy, could play forever. You know, the Steve Kerr, the Clay Thompson, by the way. Clay Thompson's a spot and shoot guy. Clay could play 25 years, and I'm not joking. I mean, Kobe Bryant at the end of his career was a shooter. Kobe Bryant.

Now, Michael Jordan, by the way, was not a, he was a good mid-range shooter, but as the game became a little longer in distance, Michael was another Attack the Rim guy. I mean, when you watch that Michael Jordan documentary, it was hard for Michael. He was tackled for the first six years. He wouldn't have been if he relied more on outside shooting. So I think sometimes with Cam, if we would have said when he joined,

there's a power running quarterback. He gets hit a lot. He runs over people. And as a pocket passer, he's kind of inconsistent. That doesn't sound like 20 years to any of us. We should be more realistic. One more herd? The herd streams 20.

four hours a day, seven days a week within the IHeart radio app. Search heard to listen live or on demand whenever you'd like. So I saw this. So the other place, they came out, they asked 50, I like this when you ask execs and GMs and players and stuff. And you ask them, it's an anonymous poll. So people can really dog guys. Because you know, you don't want to dog anybody.

You wouldn't want a dog like Odell Beckham if you had to face him or something. But you can dog guys if you, or you don't think they're quite as good. Or Ezekiel Elliott. You know, you can be brutally honest when you're anonymous. It's harder to be honest. You don't want to hurt people's feelings and be a jerk, right? And get called out on Twitter. So all these executives and scouts and GMs rank the 10 best players at every position in the NFL.

And the quarterbacks was earlier in the week. And the quarterback list was like, oh, those are Super Bowl favorites. And after the first two Mahomes and Russell, you can argue all day long on who third is. You know, Aaron Rogers, one third. I got no problems with that. The top 10 wide receiver list is interesting, though. Julio Jones, Michael Thomas, DeAndre Hopkins, Odell Beckham, Tyreek Hill, Mike Evans, Devante Adams, Keenan Allen, eight, struggles to stay healthy, but really good.

Chris Godwin in Tampa, well, that's two guys. That's why Tom Brady went down to Tampa. And Amari Cooper, who is, people are all over the map on Amari Cooper, top ten. I don't have any big disagreements. I mean, I really don't. I think Devante Adams is going to get better. I think a lot of these guys, I know what they are. Devante Adams is a guy that if he went to another level,

it wouldn't surprise me. I think he's really, really good. But what's interesting about this, the top 10 list, there's one ring in it. One ring, Tyreek Hill, and he was not the number one target. Travis Kelsey is that wide receivers matter, but there's injuries. It's lousy weather. They don't mean as much. They're becoming prohibitively expensive. And it's always been a little bit of an ego position, right?

Sometimes the players, you know, they want a bolt, they want this catch, they want that, blah, blah, blah. three of the top 10 receivers have been traded on that list. And trading quarterbacks a lot in this league. There are certain things in life that are awesome but not crucial, like an expensive watch. I got a phone. I know what time it is. I don't need a watch.

If it makes guys feel, you know, whatever it does, whatever you project and the watch makes you feel, you don't need a watch. New England's built a dynasty without great wide receivers. Philadelphia has won a Super Bowl without great wide receivers. In fact, only three of the top 20 highest paid wide receivers in the NFL. One's Al-Shon Jeffrey, who on the Super Bowl team was the number two target. The other is Emmanuel Sanders in Denver when they couldn't move the football. It was about defense and kicking. So, you know, if you go to the top 20, all-time wide receiver list, take out Jerry Rice.

And for the record, the Niners won two Super Bowls before he got there. There's not a lot of Super Bowls on it. And now college football is furnishing you with 25 to 30 wide receivers a year. So I think wide receivers are fun, but this is why salary cap leagues are fascinating. What do you pay wide receivers? Cleveland pays two of them a ton and a tight-ended ton. But I don't like Cleveland's secondary or linebackers. Until this year, I hated their offensive line.

So it is interesting when you look at the wide receiver top 10. Not a lot of rings on it. Not a lot of rings in the top. 20 all-time wide receiver list. There's a lot of Randy Moss and a lot of Calvin Johnson. I don't disagree with this list at all. Keenan Allen at 8. Kenan's really good.

He gets hurt a bunch, but he's really good. Odell Beckham gets hurt a lot, but he is a spectacular after the catch guy. Amari Cooper, I've always thought it's really good. He feels like to me in big games against elite coverage, he shrinks a little, but I like him a lot. I'd love Amari Cooper on my team. Let me shift to this. So speaking to Zeke, Ezekiel Elliott is a top three running back in the NFL, not quite as good as he was a couple years ago, but still great. McAfree, Sequin, Barclay him, they're all great.

But yesterday, on this top player list, they're talking about running backs, and an NFL offensive coach said, he's 11th. He said, very few breakout runs, doesn't look as strong anymore, feel like he's about 60 to 70% of what he was. Zeke didn't like it. But here's what's interesting about this, is that Zeke, to me, feels about 85% of what he was. He doesn't doesn't quite have the burst he had. Still very good. I'd love to have him on the team. But the other thing is the Dallas offensive line is not as good as it was three years ago. That's not debatable. They lost Travis Frederick at Center and Tyron Smith is a first ballot Hall of Fame left tackle. I'm not sure he's built to get to 16 games anymore.

He feels like 12 to 14. And the interesting part, obviously, Dak Prescott is part of this conversation is that the first three years, Dak Prescott had the best O-line and the best running back, and the result was one playoff win. One. Now, Zieg is probably not the best overall back. He's certainly not what he was two, three years ago, and the O-line is not the same.

It is not the best line in football. I think Indianapolis has a good argument to get theirs. And if you go back and look at DAC, here's what's interesting. Dax's winningest year was his rookie year. They were 13 and 3. But they didn't lean on Dack. Dack only threw 450 times, 27, 28 a game. He was very efficient, highest passer rating.

But he was not their first punch. They did not lean on him. Last year, they leaned on deck. He threw 600 times 5,000 yards. and Dallas was 500. So for those, and they couldn't beat a Philadelphia team down the stretch, where Dallas was better at every spot, I mean, outside of quarterback, they were better on the O line, they were better at wide receiver,

they were better at running back. So the question becomes, they were actually better in the secondary by the end of the year Philadelphia was beat up. The question becomes, clearly the cowboys are better, 13 and 3, when they don't rely on DAC to carry them. Last year, as the defense got worse, Zeeke's not quite Zique, the O-line's not the same, they relied on DAC, and they were 8-8.

That is why, after Mahom's signs a deal that will pay him $45 million a year, when I look at DAC and the franchise tag at $31.5 million, I think that's exactly the number. That is right. He is a complimentary quarterback that was surrounded with the best O-line and the best running back. He'll get you a nice record.

You'll get double-digit wins, win your division, and that deserves to be paid. That deserves to be paid. But as everything's tailing off, and that's not arguable in doubt, the defense is worse, the O-line's not as good, Zeeke's not quite Zique, and you need him to throw for 5,000 yards

in 600, 650 attempts. It's not the same football team. So the franchise tag was created for I like you we're making a coaching change. I'm not sure I love you. And that's precisely where Dallas is at these days. Be sure to catch live editions of the herd

weekdays in noon Eastern 9 a.m. Pacific on Fox Sports Radio, FS1, and the IHeart Radio app. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind. Highlights are trending, opinions are flying, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where Sports Slice comes in. I'm Timbo. Every episode, we're cutting through the noise.

Breaking down the plays, the controversies, and the stories behind the headlines. We go straight to the source, the athlete themselves. Their locker room stories, their reactions, the stuff nobody gets to hear. The laughs, the drama, the triumphs, the moments that never make the highlight real. From viral moments to historic games, from buzzer beaters to controversial calls, we break it down, give you context and ask the questions everybody wants answered. Sports slice brings you closer to the action with stories told by the people. people who live them. Listen to SportsSlic. On the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you

get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 and the TikTok podcast network on TikTok. Do you remember when Diana Ross double-tapped Little Kim's boobs at the VMAs? Or when Kanye said that George Bush didn't like black people. I know what you're thinking. What the hell does George Bush got to do a little Kim? Well, you can find out on the Look Back at it podcast. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick you here. Unpack what we'll do. went down and tried to make sense of how we survived it. Including a recent episode with Mark Lamont Hill, waxing all about crack in the 80s. To be clear, 84 is big to me, not just because of crack.

I'm down to talk about crack all day, but just so y'all know. I mean, at this point, Mark, this is the second episode where we've discussed crack, so I'm starting to see that there's a through line. We also have AIDS on the table right now, so. Thank you for finishing that sentence. Yes. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Really? Yeah. For me, it's one of the most important years for black people in American history.

Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Welcome to my new podcast, Learn the Hard Way with me, your host, and your favorite therapist, Kear Games. And in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, I'm bringing over a decade of my own experience in the mental health field and conversations with so many incredible guests. I'm talking, Tripp Fontaine, Ryan Clark. Sometimes when we're in the pursuit of the thing, We get so wrapped up in the chase that we don't realize that we are in possession of the thing. And we're still chasing it. And we don't know when we've done enough. Because people scoreboard watch.

Life becomes about wins and losses. Steve Burns, Dustin Ross, because you find it important to be a good person while you hear on earth. Are you a good person because you're afraid? Because that's two different intentions, bro. Absolutely. And that's two different levels of trust. I want you to just really be a good person. Join me, Keir Gaines, is we have real.

conversations about healing, growth, fatherhood, pressure, and purpose on my new podcast, learn the hard way. Open your free iHeartRadio app. Search Learn the Hardway and listen now. What's up, guys? This is Clever Taylor the 4th. And on my podcast, The Cliverts Show, I'm bringing you conversations about all kinds of stuff, like being an internet famous referee.

We're in the middle of a game. This linebacker walks up to me, he goes, hey, ref, my mom wants you to wave at her. What? Time out. Quarterback on office blue with 42. Hey, Rhett, my mama want you to weigh better. What? Where's she at?

Hey, Miss Parker. Listen to the Clifford show on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. Joel Clatt's joining me, the voice of college football at our company, Joel Clatt, who a lot of times is wrong, but he's a good sport about it. He's joining us via the Coward Global Satellite Network. All right, Clastor. Let's start with this. Let's just start with the news that the Big Ten is getting out of conference games. Your opinion on just that news?

I think it's a pretty smart decision, to be honest with you, because when I look at this season and the potential of this season, I think that adjustments have to be made. And one of those adjustments means that you've got to minimize your bubble, if you will. Every other league has done it, right? And they've done it based on location and so on and so forth. well, I think in college football, you can do that based on your conference. And what I mean by minimize the bubble is that you can have like procedures and testing protocols.

So everything's the same so that you don't have to worry about that. Everyone tests on Monday and Thursday in order to get on the plane. All those different things. I think that it makes it a much more manageable situation. To me, this is a solution to a problem. This is not an acknowledgement that we've got to change as much as it is a solution to a problem in order to try to get the season in. So I thought it was actually a really smart move. You know, college football in the spring, there's parts of it, I think.

Listen, I think I like college football. And January, February, March, let's do it. But then I think about the draft. Yeah. And part of me looks at it and think, you know, listen, if we can't get it in the fall, you know, kind of what's the point? Where do you land on that? Well, well, I'm glad you asked because, you know, there's some politicians have chimed in on this.

And I think a lot of people that haven't been around football at the highest level of college or the NFL have kind of chimed in. And they think, like, well, what do you lose by going to the spring? Well, I am a firm believer, a very firm believer. And I think that the data would support this is I think that players would be under more duress. And I think player safety would be in a greater degree of scrutiny if you try to play a season in the spring and then in the fall again because of the lack of time to, not only rehabilitate, but also to develop for the next season. I think that player safety would be an issue. I think it's much more dangerous to play a spring season backed up by a fall season, rather than actually playing through the coronavirus when the statistical data based on all the

government websites, CDC, whatever you want to look at, would suggest that the danger from the virus to these players in their age group is virtually zero. So I think that we need to acknowledge the reality of the situation and understand that trying to play seasons, and back-to-back spring fall would be far more dangerous to these kids in their bodies than actually playing through the coronavirus. So I am running for president of college football. Oh, but, oh, dude, I heard that, by the way. I'm listening, so I'm on vacation, but I still listen.

You need to know something real quick, right? Like, you would get destroyed in a presidential college football election by me. It would be like the 1984 Reagan-Walter Mondale election, Those of you that don't remember that election, Reagan carried every state but won. I think he got like 530 plus electoral college votes. That's what would happen if you and I had a little election battle for president of college football. Not even a contest. That was before I let my hair grow out.

Now there's a lot of – it's very Trumpian. It's just all over the place. Very, very polarizing, very popular. But let's get to my five changes. Let's just show the audience. I talked about this an hour ago because we both. both love college football. You're a feet on the ground guy. No neutral site games. Why do you need to make Jerry Jones richer? I want games for Georgia to be in Athens or in Alabama. You get one

Cupcake game, only one non-power five. Everybody plays 10 conference games. That means Big 12, go get Nebraska, put them back in her BYU. I don't want to have more than four teams in the playoff. The bottom line make it special. I've never once looked at the fifth or six best team and thought, wow, they should be number one. And only 12 bowl games, and I already named them. I don't need a bunch of wheat eater bowls that nobody goes to, this idea that they help the little guy, then why has the little guy been irrelevant for 50 years? The sport's never been more power base than it is now. So these are all brilliant and I would win. But push back. Where are my holes on this? Well, there are a couple of holes. And let me start with, I think that your list is very good for a

novice for someone that just kind of dabbles or things like that. But leave it to the experts to actually think through everything. Okay. Here's the first one. I would make all the conferences in terms of the power conferences. I would make all the teams join four conferences. So I would take it from five to four. And then they would all have a similar amount of teams. So the same number of teams. At that point, here's what I can do. And you were onto something here with no neutral sites. I'm going to make your conference schedule for you. I'm going to make your non-conference schedule for you. And this is where you can grow revenue. Because remember, Colin, these conferences will never get out. of what they are currently doing right now because they are not motivated to do so.

So you've got to give them a carrot by telling them that you're going to grow television revenue and this is how I would do it. You're going to play nine conference games within that conference, that power conference. You're going to play two other non-conference games against one of those power opponents, but I'm going to schedule it for you based on where you finished last season. So if you're a first place team similar to the NFL, you're going to play a conference champion from another conference. So let's just say for the sake of argument, you're doing a first place team, you're doing a first place team similar to the NFL. it off of last year. And the Big Ten was scheduling partners this year with the PAC 12 and the Big 12.

Well, that means Ohio State would welcome Oklahoma and they would host Oklahoma and then they would go and they would play Oregon, the champion out of the Pac 12. That's how I'm going to get more top line games within power conferences. And then the one leftover game, you can play some cupcake that's a regional. You can help with their budget. Yeah, it's not bad. I mean, a lot of times you're... No, it's brilliant, actually. It's way, it's way bad. better. It's more thought through than yours. It's actually brilliant. Yours was good for a novice. Mine's brilliant. Well, I connect with the people. I'm very relatable. You live up in a, you know, a castle. I'm right there in a secluded grotto, 800 square feet with a common man. So let's move to this.

You played college football at Colorado. You were okay. But you were also very good at baseball. And I'm looking at Mahomes. Great baseball player. James Winston. Great baseball player. Russell Wilson. Good baseball player. Kyle Murray. Great baseball player. they all choose football. And my takeaway is football, the journey is more fun. I get a free ride in college, big man on campus, all the girls free cocktails, and I'm on television. And then I go to a football team, and the chances are I'm going to play within a year.

Baseball is a lot of Appleton, Wisconsin, Schenectady. And that's my takeaway, is that the journey of football is more glamorous. I get to be a leader of men that's built around me. All these baseball football kids, the guys are choosing football. Maybe I'm wrong on this, rarely, but it happens. Why did you choose, would you have chosen football or baseball? Which one would you choose? Well, I went to baseball out of high school, but I had to choose football because I failed at baseball.

But at the position of quarterback, you're on to something. You mentioned all of these guys. And I would actually go, and I want to try to debunk the theory that baseball is more financially beneficial for those players. It's because when you sign a baseball contract to be a professional baseball player, that team retains your rights and you're under team control for years.

Nearly a decade. People don't understand this. Let's say it takes you two or maybe three years to even get to the big leagues. That's when your arbitration actually starts, right? Your clock actually starts. This is going to take you four more, maybe five more years to actually get to a point

where you can negotiate a top level salary. So you're talking about, eight seasons where you've got to be great at baseball in order to get to a point where you can get one of those big guaranteed contracts. You contrast that with football. Look at some of these guys. Kyler Murray played one season of college football and a successful nature and he was a first round draft pick. That's guaranteed money right there. I think actually for a quarterback, the more financially reasonable and guaranteed money you're going to get is probably through football and you get all of those things that you're talking about, which was the ride was more fun real quickly.

I had to go play in Medicine Hat Canada in the Pioneer League. You don't want to go to Medicine Hat Canada. I'm just telling you right now. The Cleveland Browns are a lot better than playing in Medicine Hat Canada. Yeah. Okay, here's another topic. So yesterday I saw this list of college football coaches on the hot seat. And, you know, Clay Hilton, USC, absolutely.

Tom Herman in Texas, I think he's got to win 9-10 games or those boosters. There's a couple billionaires on those chairs. They want to win a lot of games. So then it's a bunch of coaches at programs that I think the fan base are unrealistic. I think Will Mushchamps doing about as good as you're going to do mostly at South Carolina. Chip Kelly at UCLA, their stadium's not even on campus. It's also academically rough, international university. And then I looked at Scott Frost at Nebraska, and I'm like, timeout.

He's a great coach. Nebraska still thinks it's the 80s and it's a great job. I don't think Nebraska's a top 20 program anymore. I don't. I mean, it's, yeah, listen, I don't disagree with that. I think that Nebraska, you said Nebraska's in the wrong conference. I tend to agree with that, right? Because you've got to have a recruiting base. I think you were spot on with that. I think right now what you have in college football, or I should say what you have had in the last five, six, maybe 10 years is unrealistic expectations at programs that shouldn't have some of those expectations. And fan base has always fighting you on this. Like, what? You think that we should just accept seven wins or? eight wins, you don't have to accept it, but at some point, you've got to acknowledge that you're not Alabama or Ohio State or Clemson or Oklahoma, right? Like, there has to be an acknowledgement of who you are before you can know where you're going. And I think you were spot on in terms of that. And I think Nebraska falls in that category. Here's one thing that I would say. And this hot list or

a hot seat list, I don't think you're going to see many coaches fired this year, because the budgets are going to be absolutely crushed from the COVID issue. You know, whether we have football or not, and I think we're going to have football, but even in a season that we're going to have, these budgets are going to be absolutely decimated to the tune of 12, 15, some of them, 20 percent for these athletic departments. They're not going to have the appetite to buy out these massive guaranteed contracts that they have been giving these coaches over the last decade. So even if some of these coaches don't achieve their expectations, don't get to the win mark

that people think that they should, I don't think you're going to see a lot of movement this year in the coaching ranks. because quite frankly, there's not enough money to do so. So finally, I am running for president of college football. Oh, you get crushed. I mean, this is not even close. Put it up. Goulet, put it up on Twitter. I'm certainly going to put it up on Twitter right now.

Let's just look at both of us right now. Who looks presidential? I mean, this is. You've got a golf shirt on. Yeah, and it's red, white, and blue. I'm a patriot. Thank you very much. I wouldn't vote for you.

It looks like you're in some ritzy, fancy hotel room. I'm here working. 24-7. I only own one home. How many homes do you own? First of all, that's personal. And mine is, again, it's a tiny ski chalet on a very bumpy mountain with no snow. Got him.

We got him. We got him. Put it up. Put the poll up. Who would you vote for? Clat or whoever that guy is in the purple shirt for president of college football. All right. Well, it's not going to end up well for you.

Enjoy your family, Joel Clad. It's a pleasure to talk to you. Pleasure's always on this side. Thank you, Colin. Last night, a blown call changed a game. This morning, the internet lost its mind, and nobody's telling you exactly what happened. That's where SportsSlice comes in.

I'm Timbo, and every episode we're cutting through the noise, breaking down the biggest moments in sports and giving you the real story behind the headline. And we're going straight to the source, the athletes themselves, their locker room stories, their reactions in the moment, and the stuff nobody gets to hear. Listen to Sports Slice on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. And for more, follow Timbo Sliced Life 12 in the TikTok podcast network on TikTok.

Another podcast from some SNL late-night comedy guy, not quite. Unhumor me with Robert Smygel and friends. Me and hilarious guests from Bob Odenkirk to David Letterman help make you funnier. This week, my guest, SNL's Mikey Day and head writer Streeter Seidel, help an acapella band with their between songs banter. Where does your group perform? We do some retirement homes. Those people are starving for banter.

Listen to humor me with Robert Smigel and Friends on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. On the Look Back at it podcast. From 1979, that was a big moment for me. 84 was big to me. I'm Sam J. And I'm Alex English. Each episode, we pick a here, unpack what went down,

and try to make sense of how we survived it. With our friends, fellow comedians, and favorite authors. Like Mark Lamont Hill on the 80s. 84 was a wild. I mean, it was a wild year. I don't think there's a more important year for black people. Listen to look back at it on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, what's good, y'all?

You're listening to Learn the Hardway with your favorite therapist and host Kear Games. This space is about black men's experiences, having honest conversations that it's really not safe to have anywhere, but you're having them with a licensed professional who knows what he's doing. How many men carry a suit or armor? It signals to the world that you not to be played with. And just because you have the capability that does not mean that you need to. Listen and learn the hard way on the IHard radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcast. This is an IHart podcast. Guaranteed human.