The Kevin Sheehan Show - WFT Record Recalibration

Episode Date: September 29, 2021

Kevin opened the show with more discussion about the Washington Football defense. Marcus Spears/ESPN ripped Chase Young and Montez Sweat calling both selfish and undisciplined. Kevin reacted to that. There was an early-season adjustment on the Washington predicted record from Kevin as well. Then it was Cole Cubelic/ESPN & SECNetwork calling in to talk Terps-Iowa and college football.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

You don't want it. You don't need it. But you're going to get it anyway. The Kevin Cheehan Show. Here's Kevin. All right, a quick podcast today. Tommy will be with me tomorrow and I think we'll have Cooley on Friday. Just a reminder to subscribe to the podcast.

If you haven't subscribed, that really helps us. Rate us and review us where you can, especially on Apple. That's a big help as well. Cole Kublich, who covers college football for the SEC Network. for ESPN. We've had him on the podcast before. He was a really good draft analyst back in this spring. He's going to join us. We're going to talk some college football with him at the end of the show today. We'll talk some Terps, Iowa with Cole, and then go around the country as well. I want to start with this today, and that is a video that's circulating,

certainly among Washington football fans. And it's a video from Marcus Spears, Marcus Spears, longtime linebacker, defensive end in Dallas, and has been a big part of ESPN's coverage for several years now covering the NFL. And Marcus Spears was doing sort of a film breakdown, and he really got after the Washington defensive front. And I want you to listen to what he said,

and also keep in mind, you know, this is not, you know, your run-of-the-mill analysts that didn't play this particular position for a long time in the NFL. I want you to listen to it. And I also want to make sure that those of you that are really, really upset with how critical we've been of the team in recent weeks. And I read that email from Charles yesterday and have had a few others about how the media is stirring it up and how you just really can't handle the negativity.

I just want to give before I put out this Marcus Spears a video that is circulating, just give you sort of a Tommy surgeon general warning that there is a lot of criticism of the team and it could trigger bouts of anxiety in some of you who are listening. So with that understood, this was Marcus Spears this morning on ESPN talking about the Washington defensive front. Yeah, let's talk about some D-line play. I'm going to say two words. efficient undisciplined is what the Washington football team defensive line is and when I talk about

being a basketball team this is what I'm saying you cover for the guy when he loses this guy this is Chase Young Chase Young is so sack hungry right now that he's losing rushes behind the quarterback this is good interior pressure by Durand Payne if Chase Young retraces this is a sack on Josh Allen instead Chase Young wants to get to Josh Allen so bad the undiscipline comes in He gives him a lane. Moss has time to release and get a free way to the end zone. Now, this is one of the examples of being greedy. You look at Chase Young and Montez-Swit. Two really good defensive linemen, but you look at this pressure of the center of the pocket,

but look at my two defensive beings, who are the stars on my defensive line. Looking at the back of Josh Allen's head, Josh Allen escapes up, he drops it off to Cole Beasley. This is undisciplined. this is selfish D-line play. These defensive ends for the Washington football team are the catalyst. They are the guys that you expect to get to the quarterback. And when you have that type of pressure up the center of the pocket, that's supposed to be a sack on a retrace for your defensive end.

They got to get back the fundamentals and basics. Easy enough to do, but they got to start right now because this secondary is really hurting because they are undisciplinar. You know it's serious when the big man stands up. He's getting the round of applause. That's my favorite tape of yours. Yeah, RSI and Dan are mad that they're not over here right now, but they don't get to be because we're over. So that was Marcus Spears on the ESPN NFL show, one of their NFL shows,

undisciplined and selfish in talking about their defensive ends. That would be Chase Young and Montez Sweat. Just so you know the plays that he was talking over, the first one was the play that I talked about a little bit on Monday and Tuesday, where it was obvious that Chase Young was not necessarily playing the scheme or being disciplined. It was the touchdown pass to Zach Moss that made it 14 to nothing, the one where Duran Payne gets pressure, and then Josh Allen has the ability to step up into the pocket going right where Chase Young should have been. And Chase Young was completely, as Ron Rivera said, washed out by the right tackle on that play

and nowhere near making a play. The other one was a completion to Beasley where both sweat and Chase Young went too far up the field, giving an easy opportunity for Josh Allen to step up in the pocket and throw a pass. Now, there are a couple of things here. Number one is undisciplined is what we've been hearing from Ron Rivera, you know, maturity, discipline. And, you know, if it wasn't clear to many of you, it should be clear by now. Among the players that he believes are playing in an undisciplined way are their defense events, Chase Young being one of them.

Marcus Spears pointed out Montez Sweat. So we know that they're among the players. We don't really have to debate that anymore. If anybody was thinking, he's not talking about Chase Young Sheean. He's talking about the linebackers. He's talking about Holcomb. He's talking about Jamon Davis. He's talking about Bostic.

Okay, he might be talking about them. as well. And he may be talking about a couple of players in the secondary, although he's gone out of his way so far in these first three weeks of the season to complement his defensive tackles, Duran Payne, Matt Ionitis, and John Allen, which he did on my radio show on Friday. And he's also gone out of his way to complement the safety play so far this year. Cam Currell, Landon, Collins, Bobby McCain. He's gone out of his way to mention those guys by name. So I am assuming that the those guys aren't on the list of players who they're concerned about with respect to maturity and discipline. I will just push back a little bit on Marcus Spears' selfish.

I don't think that they're playing selfishly. And Brian Baldinger, who was on the radio show this morning, also put out his own video in which he suggested that Washington wasn't playing hard enough, that they weren't hustling enough. I'd push back a little bit on that, too. I think they're playing hard. I don't think they're playing selfishly. I think they're not playing the scheme as it's been designed and as it's being called. And I think that that's a problem and one of the big problems as to why they've started off so slowly. And I think it's also a big source of some, you know, some uncomfortable relationships and conversations right now among the,

defensive coaches and some of the players. You know, I'm not so sure, and I've already mentioned this, that the defensive line and some of the defensive players are massive fans right now of the defensive coaching, you know, specifically the position coaching, but maybe overall defensively. But I would also say this, as I said to Tommy yesterday. This is on the coaches. I'm not absolving Chase Young or anybody else that's playing undisciplined. But this is on the coaches ultimately to, if these guys,

don't do it the way they want to do it to find guys that will or to adapt to them. And this is where I would say it's time for them with Chase Young to adapt to him. You know, Chase Young played really well last year. Now, it's four straight games, including the playoff game, where he has been unproductive. He has not been an impact player at all in his last four games. Has he been terrible the entire game for all four games? No. But he was manhandled by Daryl Williams in the Buffalo game, and he was manhandled whether it was Donovan Smith or Tristan Worf's in that playoff game.

You know, he was handled by Rishon Slater in the first game of the year, the rookie for the Chargers. He's been handled by left tackles, right tackles, depending on where he lines up. He has not looked like the player we saw last year. But he still has the talent. that I believe is the most transcendent talent the team has had on their roster since Sean Taylor. Now, I may be proven wrong on this. You know, a couple of people called in this morning,

including one of my favorite callers, Brad from the Outer Banks. Brad called in and said, Kevin, at some point, you've got to recognize he's not winning at all. Whether he's playing freelance or whether he's playing the system and the scheme, he's just not beating his man. Even when he goes out of the scheme, it's not producing results for him. He's not winning. And that's true. He's not winning right now.

But I think he can. And I think maybe part of it is that, you know, there is conflict here. There is conflict between him wanting to do what the coaches want him to do and him trying to do what he's comfortable doing. And I don't know, maybe it's just me with this kind of a player. I would adapt to him. You know, this is right now a coach when you listen to him, and I would expect or suspect that the defensive coordinator is the same way.

Do it our way. We know what we're doing. We've been doing this for a long time. This is the scheme we play. You have a responsibility. You have a job to do. We've heard Ron Rivera say. do your job several times.

Well, John Allen is a do-your-job player. Maybe Chase Young isn't a do-your-job player. Maybe they need to coach Chase Young differently. I don't have solutions here. If it was a basketball team I was talking about, I'd have a lot more in the way of solutions and ideas. I'm a fan, an observer like you guys, and obviously most of us think that we're pretty sharp in terms of our opinion.

We've been watching it long enough. Many of you are and feel the same way. I mean, we can come up with ideas. Like, let's try them all over the place. Let's put them in different matchups. Well, they've done some of that. Let's not make them think so much. Let's tell them to go get the quarterback or go get the ball, at least on third and 15 or third and 10.

I don't know. I just don't think of Chase Young as a gap integrity, you know, play the scheme guy. And if he's not that guy and he's being coached up to be that guy, and that's one of the reasons he's not producing here recently, well, they need to change that because he's too big of a talent to not change it for. That's my thought for today anyway. subject to change, of course. But I'd like to see Chase Young be Chase Young. And if he's being Chase Young and he's really not, you know, doing anything they're telling him to do,

and he's not producing his Chase Young, well, then you've got a problem. But I want to see the most talented player on the football team. I want to see him thrive. We saw it last year. Why did he thrive last year, not this year? Well, there are a couple of obvious reasons the teams they played and the teams he thrived against and the quarterbacks that he thrived against. We've been talking about that since the end of last year. There's a lot of truth in that.

And they've played two really good quarterbacks and two really good offenses so far. And another in Daniel Jones and the Giants, he's getting better Jones. And he can really hurt you with his legs. Three mobile quarterbacks. but he didn't sniff Brady in the playoff game. So I don't know. I just want to see him, for the lack of a better description, turned loose on somebody like Matt Ryan on Sunday,

a quarterback that isn't so mobile. It's also just, it struck me, and I think a caller mentioned this this morning. Last year, no offseason, no legitimate training camp. You know, there was some, I think there was some bitching about some of the techniques being taught by some of the defensive coaches and the limited amount of time they had to do it. But ultimately, maybe in his rookie year, there was less structure. I don't know, just guessing, because there was less time to prepare for the season. And then they had a

full off season, and we've seen the guy's performance regress, regress significantly. I want to see Chey Shung, be Chase Young. I know what he has the ability to do. We've seen it in spots here in the early portion of his career. I don't need to go back to Ohio State. He had game-changing plays last year against the 49ers, against the Bengals. He had some big games last year. He was unblockable at times in games last year. So, you know, a guy that, you know, okay, seven and a half sacks is a rookie, not bad, with four forced fumble. to be zero and zero through the first three games this year, something's not right.

And I'm going to put this on the coaches, at least in the short term, to figure it out. All right, when we come back, I'm going to adjust my preseason prediction on the Washington football team three games in. I'll give you that and tell you why I'm adjusting it right after these words from a few of our sponsors. This segment of the show presented by my book

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MyBooky.orgie.orgie, use my promo code, Kevin, D.C. There was some news this morning from the Washington football team. They signed Kelvin Harmon to the practice squad. I guess all of those cuts, remember Washington's cuts, is Jimmy Moreland the only one that ended up getting signed? No, Peyton Barber did. Well, Peyton Barber was back on their practice squad, and then the Raiders signed Peyton Barber

to their main role. roster. But Jimmy Moreland right now is playing, I think, in Houston. And I guess Kelvin Harmon never got picked up. So they re-signed Kelvin Harmon to the practice squad. So there you go, for whatever that's worth. Peyton Barber, if I didn't mention this on Monday show, Peyton Barber, a massive day for the Raiders on Sunday against the Dolphins. He had 111 yards rushing and had, I think, something like 50 yards. Here, I'm pulling it up right now. career high, 111 yards on 23 carries rushing, and then also had three catches for 31 yards and a touchdown in the Raiders' 3128 win over Miami.

I really liked Peyton Barber as an in-between the tackles runner. I thought he had very quick feet and good vision, which is why he was, you know, a guy that really was a good short yardage back for them. Peyton Barber had, you know, before he came to Washington, he had, you know, a decent season or two in Tampa. And he's still, I think, relatively young. So good for him to catch on in Vegas. Washington has Antonio Gibson, and they've got Jared Patterson,

and they've got J.D. McKissick. They didn't need Peyton Barber. That's fine. All right. So I was thinking about this, actually after yesterday's show, about how we're three games in, and part of my brain says, it's just three games.

Stick with what you know to be true, which is the NFL is super hard to figure out after five or six games, let alone three. Don't jump to any early conclusions. Things are going to change. It's a week-to-week league, yada, yada, yada. But there's something not right with this team. And, you know, the performance on Sunday,

if it had been an improved performance by the defense and a decent performance by Taylor Heineke, and they lost 27-21, and they had a chance, legitimate chance to be in the game and win the game. It just would have been much different. It would have been much different. I think getting pounded the way they got pounded, and then also understanding that they got annihilated in that Chargers game, the final score was really not indicative of how much defensively they were dominated in that game.

and then they had a player on the final play of the game. This wasn't one of those. Well, they dropped a touchdown pass, which they did, the Giants did, in the fourth quarter for a 10-point lead. Well, but there was still six minutes left in the game. Dexter Lawrence jumped off sides on the final play of the game. They are so close to being 0-3. And not only 0-3, but 0-3 with two lopsided results,

even if the score didn't indicate it in the opener. So I'm changing right now. I'm adjusting. I'm recalibrating my season prediction of 8, 8 and 1. I think this is a 5-win team. Cover your ears, those people that think I'm being too negative and that the media is influencing the outcome here. It's the way I feel right now.

I am not very positive about what they've got coming up in terms of a schedule and with the way they're playing. I think there are things going on in the organization. I think in the football operation right now, I'm not dropping any bombs here at this point, but I don't think all is well right now in Ashburn. And, you know, the football operation, I hope, is separate from everything else. And, you know, they laid off, you know, fired a couple of people last week.

Scott Shepard, one of the actual quality people in the organization for years is gone. these are names that nobody knows, that's fine. But, you know, I've been optimistic about the direction that the franchise is headed in. I'm optimistic and have been optimistic about Ron Rivera. Not that I've ever thought he was an elite coach or a great coach, but I think that they did okay to hire him. And I think he might be the right guy to get, you know, the operation back to a point in which it's competent.

And we saw some of that last year. but that doesn't mean that there aren't going to be some growing pains and some stumbling blocks along the way. And I think they're facing one right now in this season. He pretty much predicted it. Tommy and I talked about this yesterday. He pretty much predicted it when in the offseason he talked about we can't think that last year being a playoff team that somehow we've arrived. And, you know, I think maybe there are people, there's certainly people in the fan base and outside the organization that thought that they were ready for prime time this year. And it's clear they're not. They're a rebuilding franchise. And there are rebuilding franchise without a quarterback answer.

You know, with the defense right now looking as if it's not going to turn out to be what we thought it was, and I'm talking about what I thought it was, which was again taking another step in the right direction and being a really good defense, not elite, you know, not best defense the NFL, not top three or five, maybe two years from now that if they continue to add pieces and the maturity of these players, you know, and they're able to grow into that. But they don't have a quarterback to be able to overcome a subpar defense that was supposed to be the strength of the team. They don't have a quarterback. They can get into battles with Pat Mahomes and Aaron Rogers and Tom Brady and Derek Carr and Dak Prescott just looking ahead at the schedule. And I didn't

mention the Broncos and Teddy Bridgewater, who's off to a great start, or James Winston in a week and a half with the Saints coming in. I think they can beat Atlanta. God help us if they don't. You know, Atlanta is at the bottom of the league per-football outsider's DVOA. Number 32 in the league. They are offensively number 32 in the league. So the Washington defense actually gets a chance this week to face the football outsider's DVOA worst ranked offense in the NFL. Washington, by the way, isn't a hell of a lot better. They're 20th, but they're not 32nd. Atlanta's defense is 30th overall per football outsider's DVOA metric. Washington is 29th defensively. So this is not only the last time maybe in a while they'll be favored, but maybe the last time in a while,

while where the matchup is right for them. I think they're going to win Sunday. I don't think it's going to be easy. It's the same thing I felt about the giant game. I thought they would win the giant game, but I didn't think it would be easy like a lot of you did. I think they're going to beat Atlanta, but I don't think it's going to be easy. And it'll feel good at two and two.

But the two and two better be with an improved, like a massively improved defensive performance against a quarterback that's not mobile in Matt Ryan. It needs to be that. It's also got to be a much better performance from Taylor Heineke. Because if it isn't win or lose, the conversation will begin about Kyle Allen. Because we know that they like Kyle Allen a lot. But Maya just here three weeks into the season, which I have rarely done in the past. I don't know that I've ever done it.

It's five and 12. I think they're a five-win team. That's what we're watching right now. In the first three games, we've watched a team that will actually struggle to get to five wins. At the same time, I do want, as a fan of the team, to recognize that this is still rebuilding mode. And they still have pieces to add. And they still have growth among their players, their young players, especially on defense and offense. You know, there have been a couple of positive developments in the first three games.

I think the offensive line has been a pleasant surprise. I think it has been. I mean, Cosmy really struggled and passed pro against, you know, Joey Bosa. I mean, who doesn't? But I think he's been pretty damn impressive. I think Ruey's been impressive. You know, I think that, you know, they, the one, we thought this was a weakness coming in. I don't think it's a weakness.

Gibson and McLorn and Logan Thomas, you know, are real good players. They're good players. Terry McLaurin really good. Antonio Gibson potentially really good. Logan Thomas, I know he fumbled, but he's a big old target. So there are some things that they're not totally void at all of talent or ability or good players and good teammates and, you know, higher IQ guys. They need more of them, though. And ultimately they need the quarterback. because if they don't get the quarterback and there's no guarantee they will,

this is going to be a conversation every year. You're going to rely on the defense to be great and to have a quarterback that Ron Rivera referred to as a game manager. And again, I think that was a little bit, you know, I think people can take that and run with it. I think, you know, almost any coach wants their quarterback to manage the game well. But I think this is a five-win team. Anyway, up next, Cole Kubla.

Cole's been on with us before. He's an excellent college football analyst. He's been a big help in getting us ready for the draft. We'll talk Maryland, Iowa and the rest of college football right after these words from a few of our sponsors. This segment presented by Window Nation. Call them at 86690 Nation or go towindonation.com. mention my name and you'll save big with their buy-to, get-to free deal. No limit right now. When Doanation's the best. I've been in endorsing them for 12 years. I've got complete trust in them. Every single person I've introduced Windonation too has had a great experience. You will as well. Call them at 86690 Nation. Go to Windonation.com. Get a free estimate. You can do with it what you choose. Shop it if you want, but do it quickly because you want to save big on your winter energy bills and new windows will help you do that. Buy to get too free. No money down. No payments. No interest for 24 months. 86690 Nation or Windonation.com.

Cole Kublick is an analyst at ESPN and the SEC Network, and he's been on the show before. He's great at analyzing the draft and talking college football with us, and he joins us right now. Cole also hosts Mornings in Birmingham on radio with Greg McElroy. So I do want to get to other college football and some of the, you know, things that we've seen so far through the first month. But Maryland's got a huge game Friday night in College Park, Cole. I don't know how much of Maryland you've seen. They're playing fifth-ranked Iowa.

The Terps are undefeated. What do you make of Maryland so far in their four-and-o start? I think it's remarkable. I think Coach Loxley doing an amazing job. Celia Tunga Bailoa has had an exceptional season so far. I think he's around 76% of his passes complete. I know he's only thrown one tick. He kind of got that RPO system going.

He's doing a nice job sort of redirected when he needs to get the ball out. He's got a whole skill to be a very good college quarterback. And I kind of, I kind of, you know, began to follow Maryland a little bit in the spring when I had Stanford football and I was doing SPS in the spring because I fell in love with Reese Udinski, the backup quarterback who was at VMI at the time, who I still say to this day, Kevin, had the guttiest performance by any college football player I've ever seen when he helped VMI beat Stanford at Stanford for the first time in school history. and TOR's ACL in that game came back in that game and his knee gave out on him, put a brace on it, came back in again, and then led them down to score two fourth quarter touchdowns, and then an overtime touchdown, and then the overtime two points of version to win it.

So I've kind of wanted to follow his path, and that's obviously no Mike Loxley from the midtime in Alabama, but it's been an exceptional season so far. They're one of those sort of four-and-o teams that not a lot of people expected to be there, and they have a tough test Friday night. Yeah, so let me just make sure because not everybody knows who you just referenced. Reese Udinsky is the backup quarterback to Leah, to Talia Tunga Viloa. A lot of people thought that he had a terrific summer. Steve Suter, who does the games on radio, has been on the podcast and the radio show a couple of times, and he said, this kid's really impressive. And he was a transfer from VMI.

And you're saying that he had one of the most impressive games you've ever seen, when he was at VMI. Did you say playing at Stanford or Samford? Samford. Okay, okay, good. Because I was going to say, what was VMI doing playing Stanford? No, it was Sanford and Birmingham, Alabama. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Got it, got it. Not everybody up here knows where Samford is. Yeah, I've heard incredible things about him. The, you know, the interesting thing, Cole, is that Loxley's been putting together some top 20, top 25 classes, you know, in a row. And it just appears to me anyway that they've hit that point in which the talent is now ready to play and it's thriving. They've got NFL wide receivers. They've got, you know, incredible team speed on both sides of the ball. And they opened up with a win over West Virginia 30 to 24 and West Virginia just nearly went to Oklahoma in one. I don't know

if Oklahoma is any good. We'll get to some of the other things, but I actually think they've got a shot at Iowa. I think they have a shot mainly because they've got good quarterback play. And you mentioned some of the guys are going to be catching the football as well, and that system underlockly, I love the options that he's going to give you, whether it's through the RPO's, whether it's the quarterback run, things that they're going to design there. They're going to provide multiple conflicts defenders throughout the course of the game. And Iowa is a team that they're pretty stingy defensively, and that's not just statistically

what they've done, but how they play. their structure. They just don't give you anything. They make you earn everything that you get. So I think the ability to be able to force certain defenders on that Hawkeye defense to make decisions on a regular basis. And hopefully for Maryland's sake, sometimes be wrong, could help provide the terms with some big plays. But that'll be the most physical team that they've played by far.

The guy you're going to want to watch is 65 a sinner for Iowa, Tyler Litterbaum. Maybe my favorite player in college football right now. He is one of the best centers that I have a value. the last six to eight years in college football. He is an absolute joy, and they're going to be ground to pound, and then they're going to give you your play action shots down the field. And like I said, defensively, just they are going to be stiff, heavy-handed, and the defense is not going to give you much. So, terms got the work cut out for them, but I'm going to make sure I'm in my room at 7 o'clock. And find that football game, be able to watch it. I'm excited to see sort of how that one plays out. Cole's been phenomenal for us in the last couple of years before the NFL draft. I mean, he's really. really a terrific keen evaluator. He'll also be working for the SEC Network on Saturday night,

the Texas A&M, Mississippi State game. One more thing on this. Kirk Forens has always been one of my favorite college coaches. You know, it's amazing. He's in his 22nd year now at Iowa. That's really an anomaly in college sports these days. What are your thoughts about him as a coach? Underrated.

as far as what he's accomplished in his career. And I think sometimes we look at consistency, Kevin, and we just look at it as, well, that's just a guy that was able to stay at the same place. But he's had his team play at a high level almost every year. And I think there have been two years. I know one year they were the first team out in the college football playoff. And I think there was another year that they were either fifth or six.

So he doesn't get enough credit for how close he's actually had those teams a couple of seasons since the college football playoff. has been installed. So he's just, he's the model of consistency right now in college football and a guy that's put together some great years. And I still doesn't think that he gets enough credit for all that he's accomplished as the Hawkeyes head coach. Yeah, I think that didn't they play Michigan State the year Michigan State was in the

playoff in the big 10 title game with the winner advancing to the playoff? I think that was the year that they were actually undefeated and they lost to, to Michigan State in the Big Ten title game in a defensive game, if I recall. And then Michigan State got slaughtered by Bama in the semis, I think in Dallas. All right, I think it's a weird college football season start from this perspective. And I'm curious as to what you think. I think it's the furthest from being sorted out in terms of playoff teams. Usually at this point, even a month in, you know at least two or three.

and then we're talking about who might sneak in is the fourth. I think it's the most wide open start to a season we've seen in a long time. Your thoughts? It's been very surprising, and I think it hasn't been overly surprising, Kevin, just because of the amount of teams that have lost. It's that 25-ranked teams lose to four weeks the most ever. I think 13 top 10 teams have lost, like the second most ever. It's not just that.

It's that some of the regular teams. cast of characters towards the top of the ranking have been those teams that lost. We've seen Ohio State now outside of the top 10. We see Clemsons now with two losses. A team that I don't believe should be still hanging around the top 25. So I think the fact that you have a couple of those teams that have sort of disappeared and are not necessarily there anymore,

Texas A&M would probably be another one, at least this particular season that falls into that category where a lot of people anticipated they would make a playoff push and now they're just not there. on top of the fact that Arkansas has moved into the top 10. Ole Miss looks like a top 10 team and has a chance to prove it this week. You'll BYU undefeated again. No one thought Michigan was going to be four, no. Definitely nobody thought Michigan State was going to be four.

No, we talked about Maryland a little bit early in their start. So you're seeing some new bases towards the top of the rankings, which obviously is going to make it more interesting. You have in Penn State and Oregon right now in the top four, I think it's great for college football. And then having a couple of other teams on the outside, like in Iowa, like in Oklahoma, Cincinnati still with a chance to play their way in. And then you've had some other games that have just been close.

I mean, Iowa didn't look great last week. They trailed up the hat. Oklahoma hasn't really been convincing other than one game this entire season. So we knew with all the super seniors coming back, the transfer portal becoming more and more popular and what that's going to allow teams to be. And then also, what that we always forget to talk about is what that's going to take away from certain teams and not allow them to maybe be what we thought they were going to be. It's just going to change the landscape of college football,

and I think we're seeing a big piece of that so far this season. We're talking to Cole Kublich, SEC Network, ESPN, hosts Morning Drive-Down in Birmingham with Greg McElroy on radio. So let's do a couple things here. I want to start with the ACC. Do you think that they're totally out of the playoff with Clemson with two losses, Carolina with two losses? I do.

And obviously, you've got a couple of good stories still in that league, but I don't think that there are going to be teams that realistically are a threat right now. Like Lake Forest should have been one of those teams I mentioned at 4 and O in the top 25 that absolutely nobody's talking about. BC also. Nice win. Yeah, nice win against Missouri last weekend. They physically really took it to Missouri. It was a very impressive win.

But when I look out on those two schedules, I'm not going to sit here and tell you that I really believe that those teams are going to be undefeated and have a real chance to make a push in the college football playoffs. So, yeah, I do believe that the ACC is essentially eliminated as we stand here today at from Michigan. college football playoff. What about the PAC 12? Obviously, they've got the signature win that they've been looking for for a while. Oregon's win in Columbus. But UCLA fell to Fresno. That quarterback's been amazing, by the way, here in the first month of the season. I mean, what if UCLA and the Rose Bowl ends up beating Oregon later on in October? Does the PAC 12 need Oregon to run the table? I think they probably do. Now, some of that's going to depend on. happens in other places. We could talk about wacky scenarios in the FECC of an old

miss team running the table and maybe having a one-lossed Georgia in Alabama or or a one-loss Old Miss two in Alabama that's undefeated in each Georgia. And you also got a one-lossed Georgia sitting there. There's some crazy things we could sort of, you know, get into and begin to talk about potentially happening. But I think if Oregon were to drop a game, it would depend on who that game was, how that game played out, and then some of the other things that happen. I think they probably need to go undefeated. And I'm going to say this. UCLA is the President of State.

It's nothing to anybody should be ashamed of. I love Fresno State. I think they're a heck of a football team. You mentioned Jake Hainer. He's been unbelievable this year. Ronnie Rivers has been great as tailback. I mean, they're a team that can beat you multiple ways. Jalen Cooper is a big-time wide receiver that could be a problem on the outside.

They have a physical brand of football. No one should be ashamed of having a competitive outcome or even a loss of Fresno State. They're just a good team. And I think UCLA is still a really good football team. Love what Chip Kelly do with the run scheme this year, veteran defense. Obviously, a quarterback that's been around. They're not asking him to do as much this year, and they've got a couple of running backs that can absolutely go. That's going to be a big game from Oregon.

That feels kind of like their last state game of the theater, attention game, so to speak, where they can get everybody else to look at them and say, wow, what they just did. But the reality right now is they're the number three team in the nation. They've got a massive win at the horseshoe, and they got a couple of tough road games coming up. Utah is not great, but they're going to get credit for winning at Utah. They'll do credit for winning at Washington. And we mentioned that UCLA game also on the road. So I think Stanford's another one you throw in there this weekend.

I think with what Oregon would do on the road, and then if UCLA continues to play the kind of ball that they're playing, it would absolutely be enough if they won the Pac-12 to get in. Just don't know if they can drop a game because I would need to see what happens with every other team, and I would need to know who that team was and what they did the rest of the way. Oregon, you know, number three in the rankings right now. now, and I think if we had a playoff, you know, ranking at this point, which we're still, you know, a month away from, they would be in it.

I'm curious as to what you think about the other teams. Like, what do you think of Bama? You've already mentioned Ole Miss a couple of times. Do you think they have a chance on Saturday against the Crimson Tide? I think they have a chance because they can score and they can flat out score with anybody in the country. They scored 48 last year against them, right? Wasn't it 48 against them last year? And unfortunately, I think they gave up 63.

Yeah, they did. They did. And that's the problem is that I don't know how this has happened. And I don't really know where we kind of got lost with this, but it's almost as if, I'm almost embarrassed to admit this, but it's almost as if people are sort of underserving the Alabama office a little bit right now and just how good they've been and how it may not be the same as far as points in yardage as it was a year ago.

but I think the efficiency might actually be a little bit better. I mean, you're looking at one maybe mediocre half against Florida in a game that you still found a way to win. Other than that, they've been lighted out. So we know they have a little bit more talent than Ole Miss does. The defense has been a little bit better. Yes, Ole Miss defense has improved, but I want to see it against Alabama

because I don't know what kind of test they got in the first three games of the season that they face against Austin P. Tulane and Louisville. But the fact of the matter is, they have a quarterback that's playing as well or better than anybody else in college football. They have skill position guys that can make plays, create explosive plays, and they have a system that's going to move those guys around. They're going to formation you. They're going to go fast. They're going to give you visual deception behind the line of scrimmage before and after the snap. And that's going to be tough for Alabama to defend.

A lot of those things, Alabama had trouble defending against Florida. So I think it can be a competitive game. I think it'll be a good game. I think the depth of the Alabama defensive line would be my biggest concern for Alabama going into that game. They're going to be a 2.30 game at Bryant-Denny Stadium, still going to be warm. And, you know, that defense looks a little bit gas at the fourth quarter against Florida at only 72 plays. Levy and those guys are going to try to get to 100 plays. So that would be my main concern with Alabama going into this game, but I still think the Crimson's Tide get to win.

How much of a believer are you in Georgia in their defense? As much of a believer as you can be. because they have human beings that no one else can match up with. It starts with Jordan Davis, but 6-6-3-50-360, I mean, they can give you Julian Rochester. They can give you Devonsa Wyatt. They have multiple guys up front that just you physically cannot match up with. Kevin, they have a Star, which is essentially a hybrid safety in Adam Anderson that goes 6'5-245. Yeah.

And even if you're only playing them at Star part of the time, that means he can run with tight ends and receivers. that's a scary thing to even think about, not to mention physically with what they give you on the offensive line, but what they give you a tailback. They're going to get Darnell Washington back to tight in. He's 6-7-280 pounds. They just physically are a very different football team

to anybody else in the country. They can utilize that with good quarterback play and a front seven that just really gets after you in a different way than a lot of other teams do. The thing about them is it's not just physicality. It's not just brute force. They are very precise with, how they do things defensively as precise as anybody else that I've seen on film,

and that also gives them massive advantages with what they're going to attempt to do to your offense. I saw your alma mater up in State College a couple of weeks ago. How impressed are you with Penn State, and by the way, their defense? I feel great about that group with what they've been able to accomplish. I still, if you're talking about just overall talent, then compared to the rest of the top ten, I think they're towards the bottom, but I think they're well coached. I think they play hard.

I think they have a great understanding of what their coaching staff is after them to do. And they've got a good resume so far. The scary thing for Penn State is what lies ahead. I mean, what they've done so far has been magnificent, but outside of Alabama and Arkansas, you could make a case that Penn State may have the next most difficult road ahead of them. They play AP 5, 11, 14, and 17 the rest of the way through. So other than them and Arkansas, that's the most difficult.

schedule remaining. It's going to be a tough task to just stay where they are right now, ranked in the top five. Could be AP number 19 after this weekend, too, with the Terps moving in there if they beat Iowa. All right, last one for Cole Kublich. So Cincinnati, first of all, I think that that targeting call in the Indiana game was just a terrible call, and I think it was a crucial call. And Indiana, who I'm not impressed with their quarterback, the lefty, Pennix, like I was at the beginning of last year. But I think that that was a big break for Cincinnati. They get Notre Dame this weekend. They've got the schedule, obviously, if they're able to survive it here. What do you think will happen with them? Do you think they go to South Bend on Saturday and win? If they do,

they've really got an inside track to being undefeated and being a legitimate playoff candidate. I think it's as good of a chance as they've had in this setting. We talk about some of those postseason settings where teams have a month and certain guys opt out and things that's not the same. I would look at this one in a very different way. And then I think, too, some of the season openers that we have, actually you're able to do a lot of different things that teams might not be prepared for it. There might be a player or two you're not prepared for it

because you haven't seen them perform. This one's very different. a group of five teams with this type of an opportunity this late in the season just does not happen very often. And because of how beat up Notre Dame is, I think you have an even greater chance to go in and pull a massive upset. I think this one comes down to quarterback play. I don't know exactly which way I would lean. I could go back and forth. It's convinced me either way.

But I know that Cincinnati's got a guy pulling the trigger in Desmond Ritter that absolutely can get it done. I have been down on Cincinnati all season, but I actually think they find a way to get this one done. I think they're the healthier team right now. I think they're the team that has had a little bit more consistency throughout the course of this season. And even though Notre Dame piled on Wisconsin there in the fourth quarter with a couple pick sixes, there are a lot of things that I saw in that game that I didn't necessarily love. So if it's going to happen, this is the spot. And I think Cincinnati actually does get it done this weekend.

Do you agree with me that Indiana game, that play when they were down four? 13-0-0 and missed on that third down and they called targeting that that changed that game and probably their season? There's no doubt. 100%. And I'm not totally against the call. I feel like by rule you kind of had to make it there with the way that it happened. And it's not just the call.

It's who it was. And Michael McSaggs is a heartbeat of that football team. Best player on defense that they have. You could probably state the case he's the best player on that football team. And emotionally, I know he's the leader. Physically, he's the leader. You talked about even with tennis not being very. consistent this year. He's the guy that a lot of those guys lean on for him to go out of that

game at that point in time. I think magnifies that even more. Cole Kublich covers games for the SEC network. He's an analyst on ESPN. He's a great draft expert and analyst and we'll certainly have him back, if not before the end of the college football season for that. Follow him on Twitter at Cole, C-U-B-E-L-I-C. I always love our conversations. I Appreciate it. Hope you're well. Talk soon. Absolutely. I appreciate you having me on. All right. That's it for today, back tomorrow with Tommy. And again, I think Cooley will join us on Friday.