Will Cain Country - Bill Belichick Goes To College & Did The Committee Get The College Football Playoff Right?

Episode Date: December 13, 2024

On this edition of The Will Cain Show’s Friday sports episode, Will sits down with the Hosts of OutKick’s Hot Mic w/ Hutton & Withrow, Chad Withrow and Jonathan Hutton. They discuss whether or not Bill Belichick's style of coaching will work in college, if the right teams got into the College Football Playoff, what teams are best suited to win it all, and who the real contenders in the NFL are this year.   Tell Will what you thought about this podcast by emailing [e-mail]   Subscribe to The Will Cain Show on YouTube here: Watch The Will Cain Show!   Follow Will on Twitter: @WillCain Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Book club on Monday. Gym on Tuesday. Date night on Wednesday. Out on the town on Thursday. Quiet night in on Friday. It's good to have a routine. And it's good for your eyes too. Because with regular comprehensive eye exams at Specsavers,

you'll know just how healthy they are. Visit Spexsavers.cavers.cai to book your next eye exam. Eye exams provided by independent optometrists. Did they get the college football playoff right? Who will win? Our predictions, who will win the college football playoff? It's the Will Kane show, normally streaming live every Monday through Thursday at 12 o'clock

Eastern time at Fox News.com, the Fox News YouTube channel, and the Fox News Facebook page. But as you know, because you're listening to a Friday edition of Kane on sports. You can always catch us on Spotify or on Apple. This is a sports edition of The Will Kane Show. Today, we break down Bill Belichick's return to football. But it is in the NFL.

It's college football. Plus, we debate who's really good in the NFL. Like, who do you buy, who is legit? And our predictions for who's going to win it all in college football. I keep saying we and our. And that's because today I am joined by Chad Withrow and Jonathan Hutton. and the hosts of Hotmike at Outkick.com. Here are the guys from Hot Mike.

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I don't live in Manhattan, luckily, so my living room may be bigger than your studio. I did it one time. Chad Withrow and Jonathan Hutton, the guys from Hot Mike here on the Will King Show. We're discussing their studio set up there in Nashville, Tennessee. As they look out beyond their cameras, they see nothing but hot pink. Hot pink, 25-year-old girls, Manhattan apartment. They share that space with Tommy Leran is fearless. So I was just asking the guys how big the studio is, you know,

that they're producing from there in Nashville. And the consensus is one and a half car garage, Manhattan. By the way, not Manhattan living room. Those are small. You're not getting one and a half cars into a Manhattan living room. So is our studio, Will. Yeah, it's, I wouldn't even say a half a car. It's like a motorcycle in a car, right?

Yeah. We do have a moonshine tasting bar next to us, Will, that is like a five-car garage, the size of it. The facility we're in is a full city block in downtown Nashville. Our studio is not. It's definitely not a full city block. You've got a moonshine tasting. Tell me what's in this city block along with your studio. You've got moonshine tasting, and what else there, Nashville?

We were right behind the Music City Convention Center and that is adjacent to the Bridgestone Arena for all the concerts, CMA Awards, Nashville Predators Hockey. And then on the other side of the arena is Broadway where Farrell Nashville is right on the other side of the arena, Will. So we can hit a home run by Chad Withrow.

He can hit a ball that far. I could throw a football, Will, right from here to where Hawk to a girl made her. her national debut. In that interview on Broadway, it was right over here at a bar the corner of, you know, very, very close to where we are right now. And prior to Tommy moving into the studio, we did not have the set in front of us. So there's a huge glass, a huge window. And you can't see in. It's mirrored glass. So all the bachelorettes with the party buses, the drop off and pickup spot is right across the street. So they would either pregame or postgame here at 6th and Peabody. because they have a schedule. They have it reserved. So they're marching in and marching out and they're getting ready for their big night

right in front of the window as we're live on the air. So we're doing our show and they're primping and getting ready for the night out in front of us because they're not seeing in. We're looking out. Now imagine trying to do a show as that's going on. This is why we're the ultimate pros

is that we were able to do the show with no problem. Absolutely. That takes discipline. I have to come visit there, the Outkick Studios at some point in Nashville. But I do have Chad Withrow and Jonathan Hutton here from Hot Mike. I want to start with a broad conversation that is sort of my chance to catch up on the NFL. The reason is the Cowboys aren't any good, so I haven't kept up on a day-to-day basis with what's going on in the NFL. I mean, I watch on Sundays, but it's the kind of thing when your team is good, you memorize everybody's record,

pay attention to every game that doesn't include your team. and you start to understand who's really good. When your team stinks, like the Cowboys, you lose a little touch with who's really good. So I was looking at this, and I was curious to ask you guys what you think, about in the NFL, like, who is legit? Because I have this sense, having watched them quite a few times,

that despite being 12 and 1, the Chiefs keep pulling out games, it doesn't actually give me confidence. Same way, actually, I feel about my Texas Longhorns. Like, you keep one. winning these razor-thin games that don't live up to your reputation. So I'm not sure I buy the Chiefs, but I'm not sure who I do buy, guys. I mean, I don't know, am I supposed to buy the Eagles?

Am I supposed to buy the Vikings? I'm pretty sure I do buy the Buffalo Bills. I buy Kansas City because I have sold in the last two years around this time. This is like clockwork, Will. Chad and I discussed this recently. They go through these lulls around this time in December. of the Raiders last year in an upset in December. And then they haven't lost since until they lost their game this year.

Their one loss, 11 and 1. Look, they have Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reed. That's all I need to know. There is the upper tiered upper shelf of the NFL. Josh Allen is there. I really like Detroit, the gambling aspect of their coach. That, I think, can hold them back in the postseason. They're getting away with it this year.

They didn't last year, Chad. Kansas City, though, I'm not falling for it again. I'm backing the Chiefs. Why not? They were talking about the three Pete immediately after winning two. Well, and Will brought up Buffalo and Josh Allen, and that, you know, that's their one loss on the year. I buy them, certainly.

I don't want to get too much gambling on this, but it's crazy when you look at the Chiefs against the spread. And this is like five or six straight games. They failed to cover the spread, yet they're winning pretty much all of these games. But no team has ever won. won the Super Bowl with a record this bad against the point spread, which is interesting me. But like Hutton, I'm not selling on them because they find a way to win. And that's what you've got to do when you get in these tough playoff matchups. I love the Detroit lines.

I think they've looked better than any team in the NFL so far this year. It's a terrific story. Dan Campbell is a breath of fresh air. Jared Goff is not the perfect quarterback, but he's perfect for that offense where he's surrounded by great talent and two great running backs that do very different things with Montgomery and Gibbs. So I'm rooting like heck for the Detroit lines and that story for them to get to their first ever Super Bowl. I think they're the best. But if you're asking me right now, who's definitely going to be there and who's going to

be the best? It's a team that's going for a three-peat, the Kansas City Chiefs. They will. There's two more to mention. You mentioned Philly. The Eagles, there's something about them that internally they fracture around. They did this last year. They're starting to chirp again with AJ Brown.

and Jalen Hertz, who are really good friends, but I guess not right now. And it's like a soap opera in that locker room. And Siriani didn't have control of it last year. They took forever to announce who was coming back. And it seems that even though they're really good record-wise, they're still, they can't be happy unless they're unhappy. And Baltimore, the penalties and their secondary, holding them back. If they can get that under control, they have the weapons and the thoroughbreds,

as I like to say, to get it done in the postseason. So I only had a small bit of technical difficulty there for a moment. So if you mentioned either of these teams, please forgive me, everyone listening and forgive me guys in Nashville. But I heard most of what you had to say about these teams. And I was going to go division by division. Now I don't have to because you rattled off so many teams. But there's two that I didn't hear you mentioned that are worthy of some conversation. Like the Minnesota Vikings, they are 11 and 2 and they just keep winning.

Now, I think we all are tempted to dismiss them because their quarterback is Sam Darnold. And, like, there's this reputation he's earned over multiple chances in the NFL that's like, well, I'm not going to invest in Sam Darnold. And then the other team is the Pittsburgh Steelers. And it's a little bit by a similar analysis. They're 10 and 3, but everybody feels burned on Russell Wilson. So, by the way, Pittsburgh's got a great defense that could carry them really far. But both these teams are winning games.

Is it your sense that they're really just won and done in the playoffs? man it's a great question because the vikings are totally a mystery to me as to why i don't like them more and i think you nailed it i think it's sam darnald and then i get back to asking myself well if you don't like them because of sam darnald did you feel this way about the lions with jared goff when he was sort of a cast off from the rams and then i think back and say well jared goff did get the rams to that super bowl down in Atlanta where they couldn't score and they lost to new england but he was a guy who got his team with the Super Bowl.

Russell Wilson won a Super Bowl, should have won a second one, and then he had a terrible go of it in Denver, but he's back to playing really good football with Pittsburgh. Sam Donald's never really done it. He was drafted by the Jets to do it, and for circumstances that weren't all his fault, never really connected with the Jets.

And now he's playing really good football. I'll be at sporadic at times, but I still, I just can't, I can't get that same level of bias. But yet I'm bought in now with Pittsburgh, mainly because of Mike Tomlin, but also some of Russell Wilson. And I'm certainly bought in with Detroit and Jared Gough. So why not Sam Darnold when you've got Justin Jefferson to throw to him? Yeah, I guess I've mentioned the other quarterbacks that I trust more, you know, like that in the postseason.

Darnel's been great. Russell, I can't get last year out of my head with Russell Wilson. He's six and one as the starter. I do trust Mike Tomlin. I trust that defense. They're allowing 18 points per game. But Russell Wilson on the road, Sam, Arnold potentially on the road. I like the other quarterbacks who have been there and done that.

I mentioned Lamar Jackson. That would, you know, he hasn't been there done that. He has to prove it, but he's the two-time MVP, maybe three now. With now, Derek Henry. All right, I want to move to college football. I said earlier this week on the Will Kane show, I am putting my marker down. Bill Belichick as the head coach of the University of North Carolina Tar Heels is a failure. There's just no way that works. And I don't mean to doubt the greatest. professional football coach, I think, of all time, but it's a different game than college football. And college football itself is changing so rapidly that's running out legends like Nick Saban. I don't expect a legend from the NFL to come in. Recruit on a 365 day a year basis.

Recruit the players you've already won when recruiting that are already on your roster and figure out NIL. I just do not see how this works for 72-year-old Bill Belichick. What is the success if you think it's a failure? a success of Belichick at UNC would mean the Tar Heels competing for ACC championship game. So they would have to be in the same category as SMU, Clemson, and Miami. Which Mack Brown, by the way, was able to do early in his tenure there. He got them to an ACC championship. They didn't win it, but he was able to get there. I'm fascinated to see the model that all of the coaches and

hoops and in college football, Saving, they're getting out of it because of the model, you know, the new era, because it's like the NFL. And Belichick's going to build. He's going to have to do it fast because he's got the, it seems like he's got the short-term contract for a reason. But he's only got to do it for one year, even if he doesn't retain those players. I think I've tried not to overcomplicate things when it comes to, at the end of the day, it comes down to which coach is going to have his team ready that following week. That particular week. I mean, think about if you're another ACC coach right now, and Bill Belichick just entered the conference. I mean, if he's entered the SEC, I can easily say I don't think it's going to be a

short-term solution. But in the ACC, yeah, I mean, they just had an AAC team come in and play for their conference title. I'm torn on this, Will, because even his former players are all kind of making this a joke. You know, oh, yeah, he's really going to get along, like all the great coaches out there doing TikTok dances after wins in the locker room and doing this. And he's not going to be that guy. And he's going to rub everybody the wrong way that comes through the program. And they're just going to have to deal with it. So I do see that side of Bill Belichick.

But I also think it is kind of professional sports now. These guys are signing NIL deals. They're signing contracts. So you can go and pay and structure your roster based on what you want and who you want to go after in recruiting. But you also always hear this old adage that. if you're a really good team that gets top level talent, your best recruiter is your head coach. Davosweeney's that way. Kirby Smart is that way. Dan Lanning is that way. Steve Sarkeesian is that way.

I'm going through some of the coaches that oversee some of the biggest and best programs in the country. They're also one of the top recruiters on their staff. That ain't Bill Belichick. It's never going to be him. Is he a guy that'll meet with someone in his own office when they're on campus and they're being led around by the general manager, Mike Lombardi, and the personnel step? Yeah, he's going to talk to players then, but I don't see him being overly active in recruiting, so are they going to be able to pull it off that way? I think maybe they can if they structure everything right and they hire the right people.

But what he has to do is join this group in the ACC, Florida State, Clemson, Miami, SMU. Those are the programs with money, with motivation, with a fan base, with history, or some combination of all of those factors that they can compete for ACC championships. So if Bill Belichick and North Carolina are going to spend to a level to join that group, if they're in that group every year, to me, that's a success.

People are saying that cover the NFL, he's going to win multiple national titles. And I'm thinking there's no way he's going to win multiple national titles. But can he get to one playoff? I think if he does that, it's a success. We'll see. Well, but consider this. We agree.

They're not going to spin to the 22 million, the ceiling. That would be the group that Chad's referencing. They're going to get around $15 million. And when they do, can he be the same coach he was in New England where he finds the Edelman's and others and pieces things together more like Kurt Signetti than Davosweeney? Like, can they be Indiana? We just saw Indiana do this with Big Ten's schedule. Like if you get the right schedule, yeah, I mean, you can sneak through and have a successful season. And with the short term contract and his age, I mean, we're going to find out fast.

Well, here's, it's, I agree with you on the measure of success. All three of us agree on what would be success. And I think it's such a statement that I forgot to include in that group, Florida State. But I think that, I think, I think that what you have here is immovable object against irresistible force. Bill Belichick representing the immovable object. This is the way he does business. It's the way he's always done business. I don't see him as extremely adaptable.

Did New England change a bit over time? Yeah, but mostly as an adaptation to Tom Brady. He's not Nick Saban, who was incredibly adaptable over time, changed that team on like three-year cycles, changed that team to maintain their position at top. And you're talking about a sport now that if anything else I think requires adaptability. That's the main thing it is.

It's like you're changing, quickly, not on three-year cycles now. You know, I was texting with a friend this morning. I keep up, as you guys know, like deeply with University of Texas, like recruiting and football, obviously, everything. And I'm hearing rumors about a stud at Texas, like a starter, a stud, an underclassman who's been starting since his freshman year about portaling in the spring. I'm like, why would he portal?

He's at Texas. He's playing the entire game. game. He's good. He's on his way to the NFL. And the text I got back was NIL. He just wants to get paid. Like now is his time to get paid. And I'm like, this is the world that Bill Belichick's going to step into this college football? Yeah, it's not ideal. Can you imagine Bill Belichick in the 360 body camera where you have the wrap around camera for recruiter. Oh, the Brian Kelly thing where he's doing the goofy dance and putting up the, you know, the LSU signs and stuff. Bill Belichick changing his accent to sound more southernly. He takes North Carolina job.

Yeah, he's not going to do any of that. Now, can Bill Belichick be the Bill Belichick we see on TV with the Mannings during Manning cast or when he does NFL film stuff where he's a lot more likable and he can joke around a little bit? Can he transform into that personality as a coach? I don't think so, but maybe he can. And yeah, Will, I don't see Bill Belichick sitting in his office and some freshman four-star receiver comes in and says, coach, you're not using me the right way. I'm thinking about entering the portal and I want a red shirt this year, Bill Belichick will probably have something to leave right then and there and that he's not going to deal with it. And you are going to have some of that. Here's what I'd say to this rumor Texas player also. And I don't

think enough college players back to this end. Yeah, you can go get paid by someone who may need your services more because they're a worst team. And you're going to be a big, big, a gift to them and they're going to overpay you for it. But factor in the non-monetary value of staying three or four years at one program. You're still going to get paid at that program. If this guy's a starter and playing well, Texas NIL will pay him something. And just the ability to go back 15, 20, 30 years from the point you play and know that you stay to Texas Longhorn or a Tennessee ball or a Florida Gator or a Michigan Wolverine all four years, I don't think players that are having success at their current program understand the lifelong value of that. And I hope someone's in their

You know, Chad, trying to tell that to them. Yeah, what struck me about this player at Texas, and I don't, I mean, I'll tell you his name because people are already reporting this out there, that there's rumors. And I don't know that he's going to happen. And I hope it doesn't happen. But it's Malik Mohamed, who is a five-star cornerback, who has started since he walked on campus at corner. And I'm like, I just text him guys, I'm like, what is going?

Why in the world would we lose Malik Muhammad? And what it shows me is this new version of. of what NIL is doing to the market. Because what we've come to understand, it's for disgruntled players. Okay, disgruntled players can leave. It's for players who aren't getting playing time. Okay, then you can leave and go find your opportunity. I understand NIL in the recruiting process, meaning I'm going to go,

there are certain players that go to the highest bidder. And we can even see the programs that become those highest bidders. Like, we know Texas A&M was a highest bidder program for a while. We know that Ole Miss is a highest bidder program right now. But what we're now seeing is, if this is true, and if this happens with Muhammad, is you could be playing full time, getting NIL, headed to the NFL, playing in the college football playoff, a legit national title contender. In other words, you have the world on a string.

You have everything. But you portal out because one year earlier, exactly what you said, Chad, somebody else needs me more and they're going to blow me out of the water for money one year earlier than the NFL, right? So his only calculation is going, you know, of course, I can stay at Texas and play for two national titles this year and next. I could get my NIL money and then I'll be drafted. Most likely I think he's a player who's probably on his way to the first round. But somebody's saying, yeah, man, but if you transfer to Colorado right now, you may get $3 million this year. And he's making that one year, $3 million play to go to, I'm just, I just made up Colorado.

Yeah. And then if he makes that, let's say it gets to $3 million, whatever, everyone's going to come back and say, well, can you blame them if he gets paid that much? And I would just say, well, yeah, I can to this extent. I just hope there's someone that's a handler or all these guys have agents now in the NIL world and everything else that says, look, man, I could go to Malik Mohamed or whoever else. I can go get you top dollar on the open market from someone. That someone may not be a college football playoff contender, that someone may not have a fan base as passionate or as big as Texas, but I can go get you more money next year if that's what you want.

But here's what you need to consider. In taking a little bit less here, you're going to continue your career at the same place, playing for the same coach in the same system. You're going to continue getting graded out in the same system playing as well as you are by NFL scouts, and you're still going to make money. So this is the, you know, option B here in this case is the better decision. I'm a Tennessee grad.

So Jermad McCoy is a great cornerback for Tennessee. He transferred in from Oregon State when they didn't have a conference, when it became the PAC two. So that makes sense, right? He overperformed their freshman all conference. He goes to a bigger program that's now in the college football playoff. If I'm his handler, I say, yeah, this is a move worth making. But for some of these guys who are already starting where they are, and their teams having success, I don't get it.

I wish there was school loyalty here, well. But, I mean, if he transfers, he doesn't have to transfer down. He can transfer to Georgia and still compete. Like, the lateral move. If he gets money. If he gets money. If he's this good. So, like, I view it as we see it all the time we have with Bama and Georgia.

I view it as a lateral move where you still at the same, you're competing at the same level for the same goal, and you're making bank, and you're getting coach by a defensive backs coach who's putting dudes in the league. That could happen. You may know where he's going. I don't. No, I don't. I don't know where he's going. I presume it's a step down because of honestly what Chad said. I just presume the highest bidder is going to be a bidder of need. And Georgia wouldn't be, you would presume, not on that level of need to outbid Texas, right? But they may. I don't know what Georgia's debt chart is next year at corner. Just like Texas will pay their guys who succeeded. Georgia's got a bunch of guys on their roster. They're going to pony up and pay to it to bring back while going out and getting maybe a player like. this or two or three that they could pay from someone else. I'm sure they have dudes in the portal too, though. Yeah. Yeah. What do you guys think about the playoff? Are you happy? I don't see an injustice this year. I think it worked out really well. I have advocated for, if any change, let's go

to 16 because I think college football. Here's a debate I want to put to you guys. It doesn't need to be this, but I would like to go to 16 because I want to get rid of the buy and I actually think they're, I'd love to see South Carolina. I don't think it's an injustice that South Carolina's not in the playoff, but I sure would like to see them play some of these teams right now. I think Alabama could go on a four-game run, so I wouldn't mind seeing Alabama play in the playoffs. I don't think that means they deserve to be in a 12-team format, but they would benefit a 16-team format. So I'd go to 16, but I'm doing that largely under my belief, there's a lot of parity. My old friend, my former co-host, Ryan Rosillo at ESPN Radio, has gone

the opposite way. He's got a podcast on the ringer, and he's like, I think, honestly, you know what it worked to this year? The BCS. The BCS had it down right. And he's like, the national title game, we all know what it should be. It should be Oregon versus Georgia. And he said, he doesn't think anybody else has a strong case to be made other than

those two teams in a national championship game. And he makes a pretty good argument. I mean, he's like, Texas obviously doesn't have an argument. They lost to Georgia twice, you know. The argument he doesn't do well is, well, Georgia has two losses just like Ohio State, just like Tennessee, just like everybody else.

but I do think it's interesting the point he's bringing up. I want to expand because of parity. He's like, I think we've got two teams. It's clear we should be doing BCS. Well, I mean, either way, regardless of format, we end up with the same teams that we think will be in the title game every year, whether it's

the four, the BCS, or with the 12. I like this format. I don't, I like the, I like the playoff. I don't like the format. I like the playoff, Will, because of the interest I had in other games this year across college football. I watched more college football. I didn't think it was possible.

But I mean, it made other games intriguing with the, the battle for the 12th, but also like, who's 16? How far can they jump up? They did a great job of promoting the final bracket reveal every week where Bama's out of it. Then they have Bama LSU, which is a playoff game, quote unquote. Then Tennessee's out of it. And they have Tennessee, Georgia, where Georgia's got to win because they're out. I mean, they set this up for the TV circumstance. But it was also great for the viewer and the college football fan. And I mean, if we're really debating whether it's SMU or Bama, that's a great thing, not a bad thing.

Yeah, and I'm coming to this from a fan perspective. But I think, with all due respect to Ryan Rusilla, I think it's crazy to say, we just want this one game to look forward to if we're a champion. I get what he's saying. You know, you look at NFL prospects and what they did this season, the conferences they won and all those things. Say, yeah, we could land on Oregon, Georgia, maybe the two teams playing for the national title.

And that's a good spot to be in if you want to go there. but why eliminate all this drama around Team 7 through 15, 20 throughout the year? There are so many more programs that are invested in a chance to actually play for a championship throughout the year that I never want to take away from that. If anything, I'm with you will. I'd expand to 16 teams. Now, what did I like and not like about it? I think they got the right 12 teams.

I have no problem with SMU and over Alabama. They got the right 12. Two things I would change. One, I just don't like, but I get the why it happened. I don't think Boise State needs a buy. I just don't think a team that played their schedule throughout the year is worthy of that buy into the second round. So I don't like that.

And I would get rid of the automatic buy for the conference champion. And while you would get a big boost in ranking by winning your conference championship, I kind of like the format where they just go one through 12. You get those automatic entries into the playoff for the conference champion, but don't give them the automatic buy. That way you can have a little bit more space in between those teams. And I'd be fond of that. Hey, if it's three SEC teams in the top four or if it's three Big Ten, however the chips fall, I'm good with it.

Like they do the NCAA basketball tournament. You know, you get in with your conference championship, but that doesn't get you a seed. I totally it. Let's do two things. Let's predict. Okay, let's first, let's predict our college football. playoff final. I'll give you mine and I'll give you my champion. I think that my prediction is Oregon, Notre Dame in the final national champion, Oregon. And I want to hear both of your

prediction. I was going to say Notre Dame in Oregon. Notre Dame's been sleepwalking. I've been sleepwalking to Notre Dame, I should say, since they lost the Northern Illinois. And they haven't coasted. They've developed a brand, a identity since that loss. gradually. And, you know, it's not like they, they were struggling to beat teams. They just kept winning and winning big. I was impressed with how they did that. And Oregon, I mean, the answers that they had for every time Penn State and James Franklin, they were down 2810, they pulled a comeback and then Oregon started rattling off answers again offensively. They have the difficult draw being the one seat, but they're playing the winner of Ohio State, Tennessee. But, I mean,

at the Rose Bowl, I still, I mean, I like the ducks in that. And Dan Lanning seems like he's the next coach that's the next guy to be the guy. Yeah, I like Oregon to win the title. I just had done saying I didn't like Ryan Rusillo's plan, but I like Oregon, Georgia to play for the national title in the end, just like he likes it if it was the old BCS format. Even without Carson Beck? Even without Carson Beck. Heck, they're able to beat Texas, you know, where they're down or tied at halftime with Gunner Stockton and a quarterback. I will say this, though, watch out for Penn State. And if not Penn State, SMU or Penn State, whoever wins that first game, because I think the way things line up for Penn State to get SMU

and then Boise State, they're going to be the freshest. I think not that these games are easy, but they're easy in comparison to Tennessee and Ohio State playing in the first round as an example. Some of these games are going to be absolute wars against top level competition. While SMU and Boise State have had great seasons, that's a nice opportunity for Penn State to be pretty fresh playing in that final four with a chance to go play for the National championship. I don't trust James Franklin. On Georgia, on Georgia, I would say, in Gunner Stockton beating Texas. I knew when it happened. Like, you know, you can feel it. You can feel this in

football like, oh, they knocked out the starter. Here comes the backup. This is bad news. There are times when the backup comes in and you're like, we got them. There are times when a backup comes in, you're like, I just wish the starter would have stayed. This was one of those situations like Colt McCoy, Texas, Alabama, 2009 national championship game. Colts, Marcos. Markle's marching on Alabama. So when he gets knocked out, you know, in, in comes, come on, Will, what's his name? I got, Garrett Gilbert. In comes Gary Gilbert. I knew it wasn't, it wasn't going to work. But Texas was handling Carson Beck. I'm fine with Carson Beck in the game. The minute that he goes out, I'm like, oh, no, this is not, you know, this is not, this is the wild card of football.

But when that wild card plays itself out over half a game, it isn't going to go on a four game. run you're not gunner stock during four game run into the into the national championship game also like it's a different style of quarterback he presents more of a running threat mobile at least with an rPO game and you want to just blitz the crap out of cars and back like it that's why marcel reed when he came in was running all over the place and you're defensively not prepared for that style i think if you have a week or so to prepare that that's a huge benefit and i trust kirby smart i do if we're looking at coaches that i think you're going to go on a run and know how to play in these environments in these games.

Give me Kirby Smart. Davo's been there, done it. I think that if you're looking at the next two guys in line to be those coaches, it's Dan Lannning or Steve Sarkesian. And one of those guys has to go prove it in a playoff like this to really see it. But who's going to rise to that challenge to become that next guy? Is it Ryan Day getting over the hump even though he can't beat Michigan to go win a national title?

Is it Josh Heifle winning a couple games and going to Ohio State and winning a game? Who's going to be that next? next big time coach. Until that person emerges, I'm picking Kirby Smart. Yeah. And I said earlier in the season, give me Kirby Smart and Davo and you can have the field, especially with the buy with the size of their coaching staff. It's smart.

They can advance scout. They will be ready for whoever they're going to draw in round two. I think you're right about Dan Lanning. I do think he's probably going to prove to end up being in that group. I think you're wise to give deference to Davo and to Kirby Smart. and as much as I want it to be Sark, he's had two opportunities to show that he's on the level of Kirby Smart

and quite honestly, he hasn't shown yet that he's on that level, but that is the highest level. Kirby Smart is the marker of college football right now. All right, Jonathan Hutton and Chad Withrow here. Hot Mike, check them out, 4 to 6 at Outkick. We appreciate you guys being on the Will Kane show. Thank you, Will. Thanks, Will.

There you go. I hope you enjoyed that conversation with Jonathan Hutton and Chad Withrow. Again, check them out over at Hotmic at Outkick.com. Until then, I will see you again on Monday, which is the time that I will see you next time. Listen to ad-free with a Fox News podcast plus subscription on Apple Podcast, and Amazon Prime members, you can listen to this show, ad-free on the Amazon Music app.

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