Big Names In New Places, Big Ten Schedule Release, Amari Bailey Back to College?!?

All right.

Welcome to the show.

Others receiving votes.

I'm Pat 40 joined as usual by Brian Fisher, and we have Kevin Sweeney in again, also our Sports Illustrated colleague.

We've got a combo platter football basketball show for you.

There's always news happening in college football, and there's enough happening in college basketball.

And after this show, I'm going to Italy for the Olympics.

So these guys are driving the bus.

We'll see.

Hopefully they keep it on the road.

But uh today.

We are gonna weigh in on some notable college football additions, coaches, players, a lot of movement going on out there.

We will check the recently released Big 10 2026 schedules, who got a good schedule, who got a tough one.

Uh, we will recall the college days of some Super Bowl players, since the Super Bowl is happening this week, Seahawks and Patriots.

Uh, we will assess the Bettiaco experiment 3 games in, and the next dumb thing in the NCAA eligibility pipeline fiasco, it could potentially get even dumber than it already has.

Uh, we'll discuss the NBA draft pecking order for the stellar group of freshmen after a big showdown over the weekend, and we have to weigh in on involuntary public to pay removal.

All right, gentlemen, let's get going .

Uh, first of all, some Movements, some big names in new places in college football.

Uh, start with a new defensive coordinator at USC, Gary Patterson, former TCU head coach, good enough head coach at TCU to have a statue of him down there, but they determined his time was up a few years ago, and the switch actually worked well.

Sonny Dykes took the frogs to.

The college football playoff.

Uh, but Patterson clearly wasn't done coaching, and he's had a number of, uh, stints in various places as analyst, advisor.

Now he's gonna take on a full-time defensive coordinator gig at USC, uh, which lost D'Anton Lynn, their DC to Penn State, and have been through a few coordinators under Lincoln Riley.

Brian Fisher, tell me, is this a big deal or not?

Well, I think it's a pretty big deal when you consider that, uh, Gary Patterson is a, uh, recently, recently named College Football Hall of Famer.

So I think in, in that respect, uh, getting him back in the game is, uh, pretty notable and pretty notable for USC and Lincoln Riley and what, uh, kind of pretends to be a make or break year for the Trojans, and for Lincoln himself, you know, and I, I, I'm gonna be curious to see, you know, you look at Gary Patterson early in his tenure a couple, about a decade ago, 3 11-win seasons between 2014, 2017.

Seemed like he had things rolling, and then it kind of just dropped off the map.

He was 21 and 22 over his last three seasons.

So, I, I'm gonna be curious for, for Gary Patterson's sake, you know, has he lost his touch?

Because this is a big hire for, for him .

I, I think in terms of his legacy moving forward in the game, he, he's interviewed at a few places for another.

Num number of head coaching jobs seems like he still has that itch, uh, to, to be coached.

I think it's huge for him.

I think it's huge for USC, you know, I, I think D'non Lynn did some, some pretty good work there in LA.

Uh, you remember back when, when Caleb Williams was running around there, um, USC was 123rd in the 21st, excuse me, in the scoring 34 points per game in 2023.

Uh, D'An Lynn cut that, uh, by about 10, about 11 points, uh, by the time he left in, in 2025, so.

Big for for your passion to kind of continue that and Pat, I know you know GP, I know you know Lincoln Riley, the personality mix between those two tech, uh, it's gonna be pretty interesting to, to me, uh , with what they have going on, who's gonna be the really the coach on either side of the ball, who's gonna be calling the plays, that sort of thing, um, pretty, pretty interesting things, uh, in interesting times there in LA.

Yeah, I, uh, I, I'm fascinated by how this is gonna unfold, frankly.

I, I, two strong personalities, but I think they can be strong personalities together because they have distinct areas of expertise, uh, you know, there's not a lot of overlap.

Gary Patterson ain't gonna come into the office and say, hey, You know, I think our, our 3rd and long offense needs a tweak, and, and Lincoln is unlikely to head down the hallway and say, you know, our blitz packages need some work.

I think these guys will trust each other to, to do their thing.

And yeah, that, but I think your point, Brian, is, is uh legitimate about whether or not, uh, he's lost his touch.

I mean, he's 65 years old, uh, it doesn't mean he can't coach.

We've seen a lot of guys, Kurt Cignettti did pretty well at age 64 this last year.

But he has not had a full-time coaching, like on-field scheme role that we know of.

I, maybe he was a shadow uh coordinator, but I doubt it, at Texas and Baylor, 2022 and 2024.

He was out in 2023, he was out in 2025.

So, we'll see.

Does he need to be sharpened up here at all?

I don't know.

USC has been perpetually in need of better defense.

It did improve the two years under.

D'Anton Lynn, as you mentioned, they have, they gave up 23 points per game last year, the lowest in the Lincoln Riley era, but probably still not good enough.

There were some games they could not get off the field.

Uh, when they needed to, when they were playing Oregon, when they're playing Notre Dame, when they're playing Illinois, those were the three regular season losses.

So, uh, I think intriguing on paper, we'll see about in practice.

Uh, Kevin, any thoughts on that?

Yeah, the, the only thing I had was, you know, it feels like their talent level has, has risen and will continue to rise with their, their front office structure and Maybe that makes it the best spot for for someone like Gary Patterson, who has a reputation as, like, mega film junkie, just wants to coach ball, like, if you're, if you're thinking about where could he get back in the mix, it feels like a situation like this where you have elite offense and elite front office already in place, seems like a, a slam dunk.

Yeah, I mean, that they have loaded the roster, it seems like, I mean, they have improved it.

Um, a lot of that's, a lot of really good freshmen and, and it's risky to count too much on freshmen right away, but they did land.

The number one player in the class of 2026, outside linebacker, and, you know, if you can plug in a couple of guys even on that side of the ball immediately and get some results from them, that uh That could have benefits All right.

Another one that perhaps has not gotten as much attention, but I think is a definite big deal.

Derrick Owings, strength coach at Indiana, is going to Tennessee.

And, uh, USC tried to get him last year.

Indiana kept him.

And if you watched Indiana this year, that was, it, it really the the last two years, but especially this year, I thought that was a dramatically stronger, tougher team upfront on both sides of the ball.

And there's a reason why big-time programs were going after Derrick Owings.

He clearly knows what he's doing, uh, and helped make Indiana go from Good, 11 and 2 to 16-0.

Um, there was uh several of the same players on the offensive line and the defensive line were just demonstrably better at their jobs.

And I think you, you look at, at the, uh, the, the strength coaching is a big part of that.

And, you know, you guys know how coaches are, I mean, they're, they're insane about their strength coaches.

They, they think they're the most important people in the building, they spend a lot of time with the players, they're huge in the offseason.

You know, January, February, those are strength coach months, uh, and then you're on the backside of spring practice as well.

So, I think that's a really big deal.

Tennessee needed it.

I think they took a, really took a, a couple of steps back defensively this last year.

Uh, they, uh, do need to be a bigger, stronger, tougher team, and I think Derrick Owens is a great step in the right direction there.

What do you guys think?

I agree, I agree completely.

And it was funny, Pat, you know, like, he, he was on the field at the national title game and literally the next day, he's there at Knoxville, which I, I think was.

Pretty interesting thing, like at least take a break between jobs, dude, uh, but I, you know, you're right about the toughness part, and I, I think for Tennessee and Josh Heiel, hey, look, there's a bit of a statement of intent hire.

Yes, it's a strength coach, but that is your, your biggest touch point with players nowadays, like you're saying.

And so I , I think that does mean a lot for, for them, not only to, to, to get tougher, but, but to kind of have a new voice in there after the, the setback they had this past season.

So, uh, big, big for Tennessee to, to poach somebody from the national title winner, somebody who has that inner workings of the operation down that can maybe, uh, maybe it's not just Josh Heiel, maybe it's, you know, your new defensive.

Staff.

Maybe it's some of your offensive guys that, uh, were, were a little bit cozy there.

You know, that, that to me is the, the big thing with, with a new voice in the room and, and a new voice for a lot of those players as well.

I, I think it's gonna pay off dividends down the road for, for Tennessee and, um, was a really big, I think, thing because we, we know Kurt Cignetti wanted to keep somebody like him, uh, back in the fold in Bloomington.

Yeah, it, it strikes me that everybody wants a piece of the Signetti culture, magic, fairy dust, whatever it is, right?

So, no matter how expensive, it seems like a, a really good test, and I, I think on the Indiana side, like, it's the first real shakeup of this staff nucleus that has Been incredible.

I'm not gonna say that, OK, you know, that there goes Indiana, oh, the strength coach is gone, but, you know, that, that, it is a big deal, I, I think for their program as well.

Um, I think the culture is set, but, um, when you start draining your talent, that, that, that, that's how, that's how dynasties don't build, I guess it's the best way I would say.

Yeah, I, I think that's a very good point, is, is that, that I'm, I'm still, I am stunned that Brian Haynes, especially the defensive coordinator, but also Mike Shanahan.

are still there for year 3.

I thought one of them would get a head coaching job.

Maybe they had offers and just decided, I want a really good one.

but, but to keep those two, I think it's a huge coup going into year 3.

But, yes, this is the first key piece of the Signetti coaching staff that left in there, and now you gotta see, OK, what, what does that mean?

How does that manifest itself?

And is it a, a big loss or not?

We'll find out.

Uh, Kevin, I gotta ask you this one.

This happened a couple of weeks ago, but we didn't have a chance to get to it in the middle of covering the playoffs.

My man, the great Harley Ryder, Easy Rider, Bobby Pittrino to North Carolina as offensive coordinator.

Bill Belichick, did he welcome the fox into the henhouse, or did he welcome in a really good play caller?

Uh, big deal or not, Kevin, what do you think?

I don't think it's a big deal because I look at the quarterbacks they brought in this winter.

Um, I, I don't think Billy Edwards is the guy, uh, I don't think he's been the guy in Maryland, I don't think he was the guy at Wisconsin.

Uh, I'm not sure why , you know, the third time is going to be the charm there.

Uh, so while I am a believer in Bobby the play caller, ignoring all the other stuff that you get when you hire Bobby Pittrino into your building.

I just don't know that that's the type of swing I'd make at quarterback if I'm trying to navigate a winnable ACC.

And, you know, it's interesting, Pat, you know, we, we always talk about, uh, what, what kind of books would you like to write?

And, and I think doing embeds are always a kind of a bit of a pain in the ass, but doing an embed at North Carolina this year with a Bill Belichick from the Hall of Fame and Bobby Petrino in, in the same staff meeting, uh, that, that, that, that's gold, that's riding gold.

So kudos to the North Carolina beat, at least on this hire.

I, I think it is a a floor raiser at least.

Um, you look at Tayle Green, super raw prospect at Arkansas last year.

Uh, I think, you know, he impressed, uh, I think with what he was able to do.

It was an offensive.

Heavy, uh, Razorbacks there when Bobby took over.

The, the very good.

They were able to put up some points, um, you know, they pushed A&M to the limit, uh, mid-season, nearly won that game.

So, um, Bobby can still call some plays.

He can still dial things up and maybe, you know, with some, some more reined in responsibilities in terms of not having to worry about the defense or special teams or now the roster too, which could be a bit of an issue as well at North Carolina there.

I, I, I think it's gonna be an interesting, interesting hire just on the field.

If we kind of remove everything, um, in, in the coaching staff meetings and the, the clash of personalities, I, I think it could raise the floor a little bit there in North Carolina and just having somebody to go to for Bill Belichick to say, here's how things.

Like he, he didn't have that voice in the room.

A lot of NFL guys, yes, there's, you know, certainly his son worked at Washington last year, but somebody who's been in the, in, in the college game for a long time, I, I think that could serve the program well, and we all know that should the school, you know, decide to, uh, to make a move, we, we all know who's everybody's favorite intern could end up being.

That's the thing.

Please, no, not another Bobby Pittrino interim, uh, stint.

I, I've, I've had enough of those in my life.

And, uh, The, the question there, I think, Brian, is.

Can Bill Belichick bring himself to go down and say, hey, this is this weird college deal here .

Bobby, what do you think?

I, I have a hard time seeing Bill in that role, but maybe this last season showed him what he doesn't know, and, and perhaps humbled him in some manner.

I , I don't know.

I kind of doubt it.

Uh, there's no doubt, look, if you, Petrino's quarterbacks still perform well.

And the offense still moves and scores and, and racks up yardage.

There's no doubt about that.

So he can make the, and that, that the North Carolina offense was terrible last year.

Now, uh, to Kevin's point, does he actually, how much does he have to work with?

Uh, you know, are you turning hamburger Helper into Better hamburger helper, as opposed to a steak.

Um, we'll find out, but it's fascinating.

It's just, it's an interesting combination, again, of personalities there.

And while, Belichick maybe on, in theory, can say, you know, Bobby's gonna handle the offense, he is not the kind of guy that just is not gonna stick his head in on pretty much everything, I think , uh, that's, that's who he is and that's how he rolls, so.

We'll see how that works out.

I am, I am less convinced that's gonna work than the other two we have talked about.

Uh, now, a couple of players.

Uh, starting with quarterback Darian Mensa to Miami, as Miami continues to lead the nation in lawsuit players.

We had Darian Mensah, who settled the lawsuit with Duke.

We got Xavier Lucas, who has an ongoing lawsuit with, uh, Wisconsin, and, um, oh, Brian, help me out, the, the defensive end from Missouri who's being sued by Georgia.

00, absolutely, which I just wrote about Damon Wilson, Damon Wilson.

There we go.

Um, so, yeah, uh, we, we got a lot of lawsuits hanging around Miami, but at least the Mensah one is settled.

He's free to go there, uh, and steps into the Carson Beck role, the Cam, uh, Ward role.

The last two years, they've had plug and play guys that have worked out quite well at quarterback.

Uh, is this one a big deal or not, Ryan?

Well, I think it's obviously a big deal because it's Miami and there's the lawsuits attached to everything.

So that just adds another layer to, to this transfer.

But I, I think if we're, we're just kind of removing kind of how he got there and I, I'll be honest, it was, it was hilarious to see as soon, you know, maybe what, 223 hours after the, the lawsuit was, you know, technically settled between the parties, Darian Mitza just happened to show up on Miami's campus for his visit and just Couple of team site media members there taking photos of him, you know, I mean that, uh, that, uh, really kind of sums up where we're at in college sports nowadays.

But look, Darian Mits a pretty good quarterback.

I mean, he was 7th nationally last year in, in passing yards per game.

Uh, number 2, you know, he, he's replacing Carson Beck who was number 2 in completion percent.

And I think that is something that when you look at that offensive staff and and the way that they, they, they develop their quarterbacks, that can something can, can really help him.

You know, I think, you know, at times he was a little bit reckless, uh, last year, you know, 6 interceptions, 34 touchdowns, um, you know, the highs were there, but, uh, there, there were a couple of lows.

And so if they can coach that out of him.

Uh, I think it's a big pickup, and this kind of seems to be Miami's MO in terms of, we talk about roster building all the time.

All right, it seems like their roster building plan is not to get those five-star guys out of high school and, and bring them up through the program.

It's all right, we're gonna go out.

One, it might be a mercenary thing every, every other year, but, uh, it seems like we're gonna go out, we're gonna, we're gonna grab the best quarterback that we.

We can, whatever our money can buy and, and it seems like that that's been working so far.

I mean, they had the number one pick in Cam Ward, had the top offense in the country.

Obviously, Carson Beck took him to the national title game.

So high expectations there in Coral Gables for, for Darian Mensa, but uh, I, I do think you, you talk with coaches as a player, he is capable of kind of getting to another level.

It's gonna be interesting to see how he can do that with the Hurricanes.

What do you think Kevin?

When you talk about arm talent, I mean, Darren Menta has all of it.

Um , there were some, some very high highs, as Brian said, at Duke, and, you know, I, I, I really liked watching their offense, and I also really liked Bargate, the, the top wide receiver at Duke, who seems to be headed to Miami as well, like, that's a loaded skill position room, uh, with, with him and Tony, uh, Fletcher was really phenomenal in the playoff run, took things to another level there, like.

I, I think their offense looks maybe substantially more dangerous than it did, you know, at times this year, like they, they look , they look very dynamic to me on paper.

Yeah, I, I, I think it's a potentially huge pickup.

We, we, he's gotta perform.

Uh, you mentioned 6 interceptions, he also had 8 fumbles.

He fumbled the ball a lot last year.

So that the 14 turnovers, uh, you know, that kind of stands out as something he's got to clean up.

And in the games that they lost, uh, a lot of times you were looking and saying, too many made some mistakes.

The Illinois game early, uh, the UConn debacle, um, but, He is talented.

You watch him throw the ball and you say that's an NFL passing talent, I think.

So, again, to, to Kevin's point, you plug him in with Malachi Tony, you plug him in with Mark Fletcher to run the ball, uh, offensive line, they've got some, some monsters to replace there, but, but if they do that, I think.

The Miami offense is at least as good as last year, if not better.

So, I like that pickup for the Hurricanes.

Uh, another big deal pickup, Jordan Seaton, left tackle to LSU.

Uh, he was at Colorado, was the highest-rated recruit, high school recruit that, uh, Coach Prime had in his time there, and has had, um, higher, uh, highest rated he's had since Travis Hunter joined him at Jackson State.

And uh he was good.

Freshman year, he, they threw him in as a true freshman, he had some struggles.

Last year, definitely improved, and he looks like the kind of guy who will be an NFL left tackle.

Um, maybe a little bit like Will Campbell, who was at LSU and is now starting as a rookie for the New England Patriots.

Uh, I think that's a very big deal.

I would imagine Sam Levitt, the quarterback they've brought in from Arizona State, thinks that's a very big deal.

Uh, and they're gonna, I, Lane Kiffin's gonna put together a good offense.

I don't think there's any doubt about that, but that's, that's a key part there, because the, uh, the line that we'll see on the, they got a run block, and we'll see if, how Seton does in that area.

I think he's a little bit more naturally gifted as a passing blocker, but, but he can improve.

Uh, but I like that pickup for, for LSU.

You guys thoughts?

I think it's massive, you know, I, I think that, you know, early in the, the portal kind of window, and, and you're talking about Lane Kiffin's tenure, and yes, you know, landing a quarterback was certainly paramount for the Tigers and, you know, revamping that roster, you know, 40 new incomers, uh, when, when, when you add Seaton in there.

But you needed a building block, you know, along that offensive line.

And that was, I mean, that was their biggest issue, you know, last year.

I, I thought, you know, their, their offense just collapsed.

Um, number one, as soon as Garrett Nussmeyer got hurt, certainly.

But I, I mean just the constant, uh, you know, issues up front, you know, guys running free when, when they shouldn't have been, uh, the pass ball issue.

I, I mean, for LSU to really compete in, in the SEC like they, they want to, you know, you, you've got to have an offense line that one a couple of years ago when, when, uh, you know, they were, they were developing talent, did not have it.

I mean, Brian Kelly said was, was speaking of a pretty high game.

Sorry, this might not that he's ever had.

All right, well, it turned out, uh, to be nowhere near that.

And so I think.

Because they're gonna replace all, you know, basically all five starters.

Uh, when, when you look at some of their other portal additions, they're, they're bringing in guys, uh, to completely revamp that unit, but you need a guy that you can rely on.

I think when you look at Seton, you know, he's got that prototypical size.

I think with what he's been able to put on tape, you know, he, he could be a first-round talent, one of the, the rare first-round talents, uh, that you could say is gonna come out of LSU.

LSU this year and and maybe challenge for one of those top 10 positions in a very quarterback-rich draft next year.

Um, I, I, I think it's a huge pickup for LSU and really another statement of intent, you know, for Lane Kiffin to say, look, this is what I'm all about.

Yes, there were a lot of promises about how much I'm going to be able to spend on my roster.

All right, well, this is a good reason why, uh, LSU is ponying out the big bucks to La Lane Kiffin and bring him in.

Yeah, Pat, Pat pointed it out that Sam Levitt has to love this, that, that's, that's the angle I take, like, you gotta protect your big asset at quarterback, he's obviously super talented, he took a lot of hits last year, was banged up, was never really healthy.

Now, part of that is I, I think Sam Levitt is a bit of a , a riverboat gambler himself and is, you know, is not going to be sliding every first down, right?

He, he, like, wants to lower his helmet and hit, but um, you gotta, you gotta protect him more than LSU has protected its quarterbacks the last couple of years, and Jordan Seaton certainly helps you do that.

Yeah, I, I did love the, uh, the element, like they're, they're bringing him in like 2 weeks after school started, and I, and after like final enrollment deadlines and everything, it's like, yeah, we'll work it out.

And I think somebody threw out the, the magic word alignment, and we go back to Kevin Sweeney's now famous phrase, at least in my mind, of alignment means the coach gets whatever he wants from the AD and the president.

There we, there we have it.

So.

Waiver from the governor , I'm sure.

Yeah, right, I mean, you know, you got, you can take that one all the way to the top and he'll just rearrange the entire academic calendar, I would imagine, as needed.

Uh, so, beautiful thing, the alignment there.

Uh, all right, hey, the Big 10 announced, uh, their schedules for the season for 2026.

We will hit the other ones too.

We, we will, we will take a look.

It's gonna be a long offseason, people, so we will, we will take a look at the SEC schedules, ACC, Big 12, all that business.

But the Big 10 is freshest, just came out within the last few days.

Uh.

Kevin, just give me, let's do, let's do it this way.

Let's do, first of all, a team that had a good draw, got a schedule that is favorable for them to have a good season, we'll each do one of those, and then we'll do who had a tough draw.

Yeah, Wisconsin, after this gauntlet that they've been on the last couple of years, avoid Ohio State, avoid Oregon, avoid Indiana, avoid Michigan.

Um, obviously have the non-conference game against Notre Dame in week one at Lambeau, uh, have to go to Penn State week 4, you probably have to steal one of those two to be a serious playoff conversation team, and if not, I'm sure the pressure on Luke Fickle heats up again, but You know, this is the type of schedule you've been, you've been dying for, if you're Luke Fickle with, with, with what they've stared down.

It seems like they feel like they have their guy at quarterback in Colton Joseph from Old Dominion, a lot of excitement there.

I, I think reason for optimism, if you're a Badger fan trying to climb out of the uh the depths of despair here .

Yeah, and, and, and I, I mean, after a couple of years of just absolutely the worst possible draw that you could get in terms of Big 10 play, I mean that I, I think that's almost kind of impacted just in terms of, uh, our, our opinion of Luke Fickle so much because they, you know, I mean, every game, it seemed like they were a decided underdog uh down the stretch playing the Ohio State's and Michigan's of the world and Um, you know, to miss a lot of those, I mean, that, that, that's huge for that program in terms of rebuilding confidence more than anything.

I think that's huge for them.

I'd also throw out Maryland, you know, they do got to play at Nebraska and at Ohio State back to back, uh, in, in the middle of October, but look, they're at USC and at Penn State at the end of the year, but outside of those two, pretty manageable, you know, you miss Indiana, you miss Michigan, you miss Oregon, and I think those are kind of some of those other teams that you're gonna talk about.

If, if you play Ohio State, if you play Um, Indiana, certainly, if you play Michigan or USC, uh, Oregon is, is in the mix as well as a, as a semifinalist from the past year.

If you're playing any of those teams or, or 3 or the 4 or something like that, um, that, that's a big thing on your schedule, and, uh, you know, for Maryland, I, I think all things considered, pretty.

Manageable for them, especially another year that they said, all right, we're, we're gonna keep the band back together.

We're gonna bring a lot of those freshmen that played a lot last year back.

Maybe this is where you can kind of show that growth and for Mike Lockley, certainly show the administration that you deserve to be back in the job come 2027.

Yeah, so both, I mean, it, it is absolutely now or never scheduling for Maryland and for uh Wisconsin, for Fickle and for Locksley.

Uh.

A lot of people were surprised they still have their jobs, and now you've got the chance to either show something this year or you're out and perhaps out by the middle of the year if things are going particularly poorly.

So, they've got, yeah, they've got the schedule and for Wisconsin, yes, this is a little bit of a counterbalance after having just a brutal run of it, uh, gives Fickle a chance there.

I like Washington's schedule.

It ends really hard, but through the 1st 10 games, and especially after keeping Demon Williams, the quarterback, they've got, I think, a chance for a great start to the year.

They open with 4 in a row at home, Washington State, Utah State, Eastern Washington, Minnesota.

Your first road game is USC certainly not gonna be easy, but it's not a time zone issue.

You're home against Iowa, then your next road games at Purdue, certainly winnable.

A week off and then at Nebraska, could be winnable.

You're home against Penn State, you're at Michigan State, winnable.

It's not out of the question.

They're sitting there 10-0.

I don't think they will be, but those are all games that you can look and say, we could win.

Now, you close home against Indiana at Oregon, which could be the top two teams in the league, although you probably factor in Ohio State there as well.

But I think if you are Jed Fish, you're saying, Give it to me, man.

We'll see, we'll take our chances, we'll see how many wins we can stack up and see how good we are, how much confidence we've built up heading into those last two games.

So, all right, who, who got a bad schedule?

Uh, who do you think really, uh, is up against it from a schedule standpoint, Kevin?

Yeah, I mean, I'm a proud Northwestern Wildcat, and I'm staring down quite the gauntlet, uh, at Indiana, at Oregon, at Ohio State, uh, that is not a fun trio for David Braun and Chip Kelly.

Um, they also have a week to buy, uh, and then play 11 straight weeks.

Uh, that was not the Big 10 being out to get them, I believe it was because their stadium may or may not be finished, um, working to get that done, but if not, you know, gives them maybe a little bit of a pass to hopefully get, you know, play an FCS game on, on their home camp on their home lakefront stadium, and then.

Uh, opened the, the, the Grand Palace for the, the new Ryan Field, uh, in a couple weeks against Colorado, but, uh, yeah, they will certainly be tested, you basically schedule in 3 losses for yourself, uh, never say never, but, uh, you know, staring down, how do you win the other 9 is, uh, is tricky, and, uh, they, they've been aspirational in a, in a respect.

David Braun has spoken about it, uh, I think their AD Mark Jackson has, uh, Expectations of more than, like, oh, we, we snuck into a bowl game this year, let's pat each other on the backs and say we're Northwestern, like, I, I think there is this feeling of, like, why not Northwestern, uh, the schedule, uh, I think, suggests why not Northwestern, at least in 2022.

Well, and at Minnesota late in November too, which is, uh, that can be a tricky one, not just in terms of the weather, but uh we know how PJ Fleck likes to get his gophers fired up for a lot of those games, especially with the old Big 10 West.

So , um, yeah, you're, you're right.

I mean, Northwestern was, was top of mind.

Ohio State, of course.

I mean that that schedule, you, when you factor in the Texas game.

Uh, in, in the non-conference, pretty brutal, you know, Iowa, they're at Iowa, uh, Maryland, at Indiana, at USC, on Halloween, no less, uh, home versus Oregon.

They also got Nebraska and Michigan, of course.

So Ohio State is, is playing, if, if they get Through this gauntlet, not only undefeated, but even just one loss, I think they will definitely be well deserved in terms of a college football playoff bid like they expect there in Columbus.

I kind of single out Nebraska though, in, in, in a pretty make or break year, um, you know, really for, for everybody there, uh, for Matt.

Play Indiana at Oregon back to back in in October, and their closing stretch of with no Washington at Illinois, yes, at Rutgers, but also Iio State down and then at Iowa, and, you know, that has been a tricky series and especially those close, you know, beat up by Ohio State possibly at home, which has been the norm, uh, they're there for the corner.

The series against Ohio State and then having to go to Iowa, uh, and, and we, I, I think that's gonna be a, a pretty improved team as well under Kirk Fran.

That, that's a tough, tough hand to, to, to be dealt for Matt Rhule when you kind of thought, all right, they're gonna make a big, big advancement last year.

Now you kind of take a step back, get 7 wins, um, could be a, could be a tough, tough sledding there in uh Lincoln.

I agree, Nebraska is gonna be the one that I was gonna bring up because, uh, that, they, they've got most of the heavies on there, uh, that they've got to deal with.

Uh, so does Michigan.

I will say that, that, uh, they, they've got the usual spa treatment September where every game is at home, but they're not all easy games this year.

Um, they've got Oklahoma at home September 12th.

They've got Iowa to open Big 10 play on the 26th, but then they've also got The top 3 teams in the league, at least on paper going in.

You've got Indiana , they're in the big house, October 24th, you go at Oregon, November 14th, and then, of course, you close at the Horseshoe, November 28th.

And you guys did mention, I, like, I think Ohio State should be ranked number 1, but the schedule might be the one thing that makes me say, hmm, there just might be a couple of losses on there for them.

Um, so, we'll see how it all shakes out.

Obviously, a lot of time to further analyze, overanalyze, overreact, decide who the conference office is out to get.

That's always a fun, uh, offseason job for, for the various fan bases to decide who the, who the, who the conference office is stacking the deck for or against.

Uh, but, all right, let's talk about the, the Super Bowl coming up .

In case you didn't know, there's, there's one more football game to be played, Santa Clara, Seattle versus New England.

And always at this time of year, kind of like to go back and look at the, the guys we covered in college and see how they are, uh, doing what we remember about them, if we thought they would be at this position.

Uh, at this point, and I'm gonna start with the guy.

I'm not saying I thought that, that he would be an NFL I thought he would be a very good NFL back.

He's been even better than I thought.

Kenneth Walker, the 3rd , uh, at Seattle, who, uh, frankly, like Mel Tucker owes him everything.

Like all of the money that, whatever he got to keep from Michigan State, he should just give to Kenneth Walker, because That dude, like, made his career for, for the one good year that Mel Tucker had in 2023, what was it 2021.

When, uh, when they went 11 and 2, and Kenneth Walker ran for 1600 yards, had 8 touchdowns, uh, had another touchdown receiving.

I mean, he was a beast, and Mel Tucker's career with, with Mel, with Kenneth Walker and without him were two completely different things.

So, I hope if, if at any point, Kenneth Walker ever, you know, comes through town wherever Mel Tucker is, he's keeping a very low profile for some reason.

Uh, you know, if he ever comes through and like needs a, a, a ride to the airport or needs a, you know, somebody to help him fix a spare tire or something, Mel Tucker better answer the phone and say, yes, sir, anything you need, sir.

Um, but I'm happy to see Kenneth Walker, I interviewed him, he's a really, really nice young man, um, renowned hard worker.

Just a, an absolute workout warrior and a beast.

So, happy to see uh him in this position.

Uh, you guys got any thoughts there on, on Super Bowl guys we covered in college?

Yeah, I was at the uh the first Kenneth Walker game for Michigan State, when he ran for 75 on the first play from scrimmage against Northwestern, and it was uh it was sort of like, who is this guy?

Uh, and off to the races he went, and uh he he is, he's no longer an unknown commodity, certainly.

Uh, I also certainly remember watching the Jackson Smith and Jigba Rose Bowl, uh, and You know, I think there were maybe some questions when he entered the league, like, is this guy a number one wide receiver?

Uh, maybe it's just sort of Ohio State star wide receiver fatigue, but uh he has been, uh, as good, if not better than uh Seattle could have asked for, and a huge reason that they, their offenses has made the strides, obviously, Darnold, but, um, he's been absolutely phenomenal after, you know, trading DK Metcalf in the offseason.

Yeah, I was, I was at the Rose Bowl, you know, it was one of the rare, uh, Rose Bowls after the semifinals, and it still plays on New Year's Day.

It was supposed to be the last traditional.

12, uh Rose Bowl matchup and you're thinking, all right, you know, we'll, we'll see how and it was just a wild game and uh JSN certainly went off.

I mean, 347 yards and uh 3 touchdowns and carried them at times.

I mean that was maybe one of the greatest all time, you know, performances as a wide receiver, at least I saw in person, uh, I, I mean.

That Utah were throwing everything at him, like, you know, crazy defenses, they were, they were down a couple of cornerbacks, I remember that, and he was just, he was, he was feasting on on a pretty good you defense that season, um, but he had, he had his way certainly.

The California kid, um, pretty well and the other Rose Bowl obviously was, was the, uh, Sam Darnold Penn State one, which was back and forth.

Daquan Barkley there, uh, that was a crazy one.

Sam threw for 5 touchdowns and 453 yards, and, uh, if you remember like USC kind of jumped out to a big lead and then Penn State came roaring back.

They led 42, 27 in the third quarter, and then, um, I mean, the, the crazy comeback.

I remember.

Uh, you know, just the, the euphoria around him, and he, he was a great kid, uh, certainly in terms of just, you know, dealing with them, you know, that, that certainly came through, and he, he was just, I, I think, so happy.

And you remember at the beginning of that season, which, you know, it's funny to think about, uh, the first game was the opener against Alabama, and he didn't, Sam Darnold didn't start.

It was, uh, Max Brown versus Blake Barnett, which I'm sure, uh, rings out there.

They were both.

Getting benched and uh if if it ends up winning that, that game, you know, the, the two quarterbacks that came off the bench in that game, uh, Darnold and Jalen Hurts might be the back to back Super Bowl champions the last two years.

So, uh, goes to show you, you never know, never know from those openers uh what you might end up getting.

Yeah, both those guys you mentioned, um, Jackson Smith and Jigba, there have been so many good receivers at Ohio State that they just kind of blend together.

It's like he was on the same team with Chris Olave and Garrett Wilson, and then his junior year, he barely played.

Uh, he played like 3 games, and that's when all of a sudden Marvin Harrison.

blows up and Emeka Abuka, you know, and now all of a sudden, we're, you know, we're on to Jeremiah Smith, and it's like, oh, Jackson Smith and Jig was about as good as any of them.

And so, good for him to, to be showing it here.

But also Arnold, yeah, I've got a soft spot for, for Sam Darnold, who's been given up on by multiple NFL franchises.

He was very good at USC and he was a very likable guy, you know, just that very SoCal chill and You know, friendly and just didn't seem to even like almost understand how big a deal it was to be the USC quarterback at times, and he's figured it out, and now he's a big deal as a, as an NFL quarterback.

So, happy for him and to see him in this position.

Uh, Drake May, who we, we didn't mention, but You wonder if, if Drake May had not, uh, decommitted from Alabama, uh, and they went with Jalen Milroe, who's a who's a good quarterback.

But Drake May might have been the guy that kept Alabama's dynasty, uh, on track a little bit longer there, because he's clearly showed what an exceptional quarterback he is.

I mean, we, we could see it in, in college, for sure, but He's, uh, he's, he's proving it very quickly at the NFL level.

So, yeah, I mean the break was, you know, when, when the, the coordinator change happened there at North Carolina under Mack Brown when they went from Phil Longo, who he had that, he he had that phenomenal first season as a starter under Phil Longo, and then he goes for to Wisconsin, and Chip Lindsey comes in, and it wasn't quite the, the first season, you know, in terms of the numbers and certainly from, you know, he had to carry that Tar Heels team, you know, at times and Um, you know, you could still see the talent though, and I, I think that's the Patriots were on in terms of that upside.

I, I think the bigger question for me, Pat, uh, 12:30 a.m. kickoff, uh, there in the middle of the night in Italy, will you come up for the game and at least wake up or stay up for the first half?

Absolutely.

There's no doubt I'm watching that game.

I, I am not gonna not watch the Super Bowl.

I, I, I will be like physically ill in one respect because the Broncos aren't in it, but Uh, I will be watching whatever the time is, and no matter what my duties at the ski slope may be the next day.

So, I'm, I will be on board.

A little bit of news just broke here while we're taping , by the way, Gus Malzahn is retiring.

Uh, Florida State offensive coordinator.

So Gus Buss, 35 years in the business, uh, stepping down.

Hope he enjoys retirement, had put in some great work, but, uh, something has to be fixed there at Florida State, and that starts with the offense.

So, happy trails to, uh, to Gus Malzahn.

Uh, all right, let's get hit a couple, uh, hoop topics here.

Uh, Kevin, please tell us here, the, the Charles Bettiaco experiment.

It's not going great, I don't think, at Alabama.

They're 1 and 2.

they lost at home to Alabama, and then they got absolutely run by Florida on Sunday, a very impressive performance by Florida.

I think their big men were turbocharged for that, uh, meeting.

They played great, all three of their big men that they can play at once, uh, just take, took turns beating up on Alabama in various ways.

Uh, Todd Golden backed up his, his, his very, uh, bold pronouncement.

We'll beat them anyway, even with Bettiaco in the lineup.

What, uh, what do you make of the Bettiaco situation three games in?

Was it worth the amount of, of criticism that Alabama has taken for bringing him in?

Well, I don't know that Nate Oates really cares about criticism or has embarrassment, like the guy will do whatever it takes within or without the rules to win basketball games, like, and, you know, it, it, it's nice when people make it very clear who they are, right?

Like Nate Nate is that guy, um, but I do think Nate really thought that they were one piece away, that they were a really good team with great guards, that if they could add Charles Bettiaco or someone like that, you know, cause.

Um, they were exploring mid-year options that did not require a lawsuit, uh, to play, that those did not come together, uh, you know, from, from the G-League, from overseas, um, I think it was after those things didn't go, that, that they, that they shook Biaco back, um.

And I, I think they really thought that that would swing things for them, but their roster has a lot of holes, uh, the lack of size outside of Bettiaco, um, their portal class, he's been so good in the portal the last several years, uh, this one is a total bust, uh, they, they look very average, um, maybe Brandon Miller wants to come back, that might swing things a little bit, but, uh, if not, I think the Tide are, are not, not destined for any glory this year.

Yeah, and uh, you know, is, is the juice worth a squeeze, and I think Alabama is certainly learning that, uh, it was not, you know, in, in this case, and, and, and to be honest, you know, this is the, you know, everybody jokes, you know, about, uh, you know, BYU and, and having older players and especially on the, on the football side, and, um, you know, sometimes it that just cause they're older does not mean that they're always pan out, you know, it's just cause you're getting these GLeague guys.

There's a reason why they're in this G-League.

I, I mean, I, I think the, the overall perception of Charles Bettiaco, maybe it's just, you know, from, from the time they're at Alabama the first.

He was a key part of that final 44 runs and, and he was a key part of those teams.

And, and you would, you think, all right, he's, he's had some growth, right?

Well , it's clear that development has stalled out and I think it's gonna be interesting too, when the committee gets down and, and starts discussing Alabama, how are they going to treat these last, these couple of games?

Are they gonna completely throw away those results ?

Are they gonna, is it gonna impact the tight seeding if if they get into the tournament?

What, uh, how, how's the Committee going to treat this, especially if, say, you know, in, in, in a couple of days when, when the judge ultimately rules on this, if, uh, he ends up, uh, missing the rest of the season in terms of getting taken out or whether he's, uh, included in the roster moving forward.

I, I think it's gonna be very interesting to see because uh as, as you termed, it is an experiment, Pat, and, uh, I, I, it is not going great.

They're, they're in Tuscaloosa.

But the good news is, uh, spring football is only a couple of weeks away and so I think that will be.

Turned uh quite quickly in that state .

Yeah, that, that performance, uh, was, was somewhat alarming, I thought from Alabama cause it looked like they just rolled over and quit at one, at, at certain points.

Uh, and I give credit to Florida.

Florida played hair on fire.

We're the reigning champions.

You come in here, we're gonna take care of business.

And I mentioned the big guys, but also, I gotta give a shout out to Boogie Fland who You know, started off not having a very good season there at all, but uh in that game, 8 steals and 8 assists.

I think he's figuring out what to do.

Can't shoot, cannot shoot from the outside.

Hadn't made a 3 since January 13th, doesn't mean he can't help the team and make some really big plays, and he did in that game.

So, Florida looks like they are, are coming together nicely now at this point.

But, but if you're Alabama, jeez, that was, that was a A very concerning performance, not just from getting beaten, but, but looking like he kind of quit at, at various stages of that.

Uh, but now, Gotta ask you this.

Charles Bettiaco might not be the most ridiculous college player.

This is not, this is gonna wait maybe till next year, we'll see if this actually comes to pass.

But Amari Bailey, who played at UCLA, uh, at some point in time, I, I vaguely remember him.

Went pro Uh, early, I think was he just 1 year , Kevin?

Yeah, he, he was one and done on a Sweet 16 UCLA team, um, was sort of like this elite recruit who decommitted a million times, wound up at UCLA, was always, you know, eyes short set on college and longer term on the NBA, uh, made a really bad decision.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, he wants to come back.

He played 10 games in the NBA.

So he's, he, he's, he has taken that next step beyond Bettiaco, who never actually got to the NBA, signed NBA contracts, didn't play.

Uh, Bailey is the next step.

He did, he has played in the NBA.

But as he, he told ESPN last week, right now, I'd be a senior in college.

I'm not trying to be 27 years old playing college athletics.

No shade to the guys that do, that's their journey.

But I want to go play.

I went to go play professionally and learned a lot, went through a lot.

So, like, why not me?

Well, I'll tell you why not you, because the rules don't allow it.

And again, the, the, the, the thing that gets me is the, I got bad advice.

That's a you problem, if that's actually true.

Usually it's not true.

Well, it may actually be true.

You may have gotten bad advice, but that's because you wouldn't listen to the good advice.

Because there's plenty of people out there that you can talk to, and they do talk to, that will give you feedback.

The NBA itself will give you feedback.

You're School, your coach will give you feedback.

You can find all kinds of feedback, but if you only want to listen to the guy you've known since high school who said, you're the bomb, go, man.

Nobody, they don't know what they're talking about.

When they see you, they'll figure out how good you really are.

Then that's how you end up in this situation.

I'm sorry.

If that's the advice you listened to, then I believe you probably ignored better, more rational advice somewhere along the way.

Anyway, Brian, I'm sorry, I have, I have hijacked this, but I'm fired up.

Amari Bailey, BS, what do you think?

Oh, it was, and this is the crux of the situation even with Charles Bettiaco and and certainly what the NCAA's argument.

When you make that decision to declare for the draft, you kind of have crossed that point of no return in terms of the eligibility, and NCA is one of their chief arguments with with Bettiaco.

Obviously it's gonna be a big, big.

Like, I, I, I'm just kind of curious, like, what kind of NIL deal has has somebody promised him or something like that that makes it worth it for him?

Like, go play in Italy, man, or, or go over to, you know, the Euro League or something like that, like, or keep trolling in the in the G League.

Like that is a more viable path.

If you really want to be back in the NBA, if you really want to go be a pro like that, signing those 10-day contracts, getting in from GMs that way, like is is is way better.

Than jumping onto some random, uh, college team at this point.

And it was, it was a bad, you know, going back to the original decision that he made, uh, you know, I, I know a number of people at UCLA were, were kind of upset at, at just the way, how, how, how focused he was in terms of jumping to the draft before he was ready.

He, he definitely showed some flashes, you know, during his time there at Westwood.

Um, you know, you know, he had some, some pretty explosive games, you, you could kind of see the scoring touch there.

Um, but nowhere near the, the well-rounded and really consistent player that you would have expected out, you know, out of a top recruit like that.

He definitely needed some, some more seasoning and man, in this, this day and age, I, I think kind of, you know, guys like Bailey kind of reconfirmed the case that if you're not kind of that guaranteed top 15 type of guy, NBA or NFL at this point, go back to school because you can make way more money and you can get that extra development.

And so I think it's, um, You know, these test cases that we're we're seeing right now, whether it be Bettiaca , whether it be Bailey, I, I, I think they're gonna go by the wayside pretty quickly, not just because the courts are ruling on it, because I think the kids are getting smarter.

They are getting better advice and they are understanding the name of the game is actually to stay in school as long as possibly, uh, you can because let's face it, there's not much of a compensation difference at the high end of college football or college basketball compared to some of those first-round contracts at the end of the first round.

Yeah, I mean, look, assuming someone takes the dive, Omari Bailey will be a billion dollar million dollar player in college basketball next year.

Like, I, I'm not, I'm not guaranteeing that someone will.

I think you, I think number one, I think there's now a sensitivity, you know, to not being the guy who's blowing up the Enterprise, the way that, you know, Nate Oates is perceived right now, but look, there's what, 70 high major coaches, you're not telling me one of them with, with, with, with maybe lacking job security, he says, yeah, like, he's, he's better than the guy we can get in the portal, and he's more proven.

Um, so, yeah, I mean, look, assuming he's able to build some sort of a market for himself, which I imagine he will, uh, he will get paid a lot of money, he will get paid more than he would make if he was on a two-way in the NBA, which is the best case scenario for someone like him who has been.

Um , kind of bouncing around, as you said, between the G-League and potentially going to Europe.

Um, I, I just had to laugh at his lawyer, Elliott Abrahams, who is, by all accounts, like, one of the best, uh, of the, you know, college sports lawsuit chasers.

Um, his quote, you've got a college-aged kid who wants to go to college, and you've got a system that says, you've gone to a different league, so you're out forever.

As far as I'm, I, I'm, I'm concerned, I'm pretty sure he can enroll in any college he would like.

If, if education is what Amari Bailey seeks, I promise it's out there for him.

Absolutely.

Yes.

That's, that's part of the, you know, the, the great sham of this.

And, and yes, no uh disrespect to counselor Abrahams, but uh he is also the guy who part of the argument for Tez Walker, the receiver from North Carolina, who he, he got to, uh, he got a waiver in a very public battle where, uh, Uh, Matt Brown lost his mind, basically at the NCAA as they, as everybody tried to shame the NCAA into making Tez Walker eligible.

But part of the thing with Tes Walker was, well, if he doesn't play this year, he's not gonna catch passes from Drake May.

OK, all right, I'm sorry.

You may still have to sit out.

If you're a good enough wide receiver, the next guy can throw it to you too.

He really can.

And as it turned out, Tez Walker, hm, it didn't really pan out that much for him.

So, I mean, he's, he did play for the Ravens, so he's made it in the NFL, but uh the fact that, that we were acting at the time like this was just this gross injustice, the, the, the ability for lawyers to find a little foothold.

And, and attack it.

That's what they do, I get it, right?

Good for them, but, uh, this one, if, if, if Omar Bailey shows up in a college uniform next year, I.

Uh, I will perhaps expire.

But we'll see what happens.

Uh, last hoop topic, Kevin, uh, you, you wrote about it.

We had the big showdown Saturday, Alan Fieldhouse , Darren, half of, half of Darren Peterson was better than the whole of AJ Debosa.

Peterson for Kansas, DeBonsa for BYU, maybe the top two picks in the draft, both freshmen, both outstanding, both having great years.

Uh, did Peterson lock up the number 1 pick?

Does it matter how much he actually plays?

He's missed 10 games, he's played fewer than 30 minutes and 5 others.

He sat out the second half with cramps, I believe, uh, of that game.

Tell us what happened there in that game, please.

Yeah, what, what's sad is it was the best Darren Peterson has looked, uh, from an explosiveness standpoint.

Um, obviously the dunk, uh, that, that will be replayed a gazillion times between now and, and the draft, um, was, was special, but, you know, defensively, he was flying around, got in passing lanes, uh, for, for, for transition buckets, uh, he just makes the game look incredibly easy in a way that, like, I can't remember another, you know, high school guard doing.

Uh, and you can contrast that with, with AJ where things look really difficult for him at times, right?

As, as talented as he is, I think, as he, you know, you know, refines his handle and learns how to really use all of his elite athletic gifts, I, I just think at times, like, you, you watch AJ and it's like, oh, look, another tough 18 ft pull-up, like, it's, it's a, it's, it's, it's a tougher way to live than the way that Darren does on the court.

And so I do think, you know , he has created some space for himself with the field.

Uh, now, the hamstring issues and the cramping and the quads, what, what, what, whatever is bothering him in his upper leg area does seem significant to me.

I know there are, uh, sort of grand conspiracies floating on the internet about him load managing, him not wanting to play, like, it, it seems like a a situation where, like, I would be much more concerned that it's the latter, that that it's that he has a real problem, because, number one, like, if his agency and him wanted to load manage this, they would probably tell Bill Self to stop playing him 17 minutes every first half.

He comes out, he plays almost the first half every game, and then his, his legs lock up.

That would be the most illogical way of approaching this, and if they didn't want him to play, he could opt out and not play.

He would still probably be the #1 pick, especially after this, like, or, or at worst, he would be 2nd or 3rd.

He wouldn't be costing himself anything substantial by not playing.

So, the most logical explanation is that there's something actually wrong here.

How severe, I don't know, uh, and, and.

I don't think we will know until he does his medicals at the combine in May, and that will either calm any NBA nerves that don't seem to be overly prevalent at the moment, but I'm sure will grow, especially as, you know, non-scouts get involved in these decisions, GMs, owners, right?

Like, you know.

I believe the owner of the Hawks flew in for that game, right?

I, I, I, if, if you have the number one pick, I think the owner probably is more worried about, oh, this guy doesn't actually play basketball than the scouts are like, well, yeah, but I watched him in high school, and he's unbelievable, right?

Which, which he is, right?

So, look, I, I'm, I'm still optimistic that everything will be fine in the long term, and this is something he just has to, to work through, whether via diet or stretching or conditioning , or, um, you know, whatever the case, but it, it strikes me that there being a real medical issue here just makes more sense than like, Oh yeah, we're gonna take a dive around the U16 in the second half every game, like that, that it just it just doesn't, it doesn't pass the smell test to me, and I refuse to believe that uh the people advising him would, would be that, uh, that, that daft.

Well, you know, finally we have a, have an excuse to actually read those, uh, Big 12 availability reports, uh, because it does seem the, the lone thing to, to, to be interested in in terms of Kansas because obviously if, if Kansas is not, does not have him out there, you know, they're losing to the likes of UCF and some others, and, um, it, it is a bit of a struggle for the team at large, but he is just there, and I think he, he definitely probably earned himself the benefit of the doubt in terms of being that number one pick.

We'll obviously see, you know, the results of the lottery are probably gonna be.

Uh, overly determining in terms of who, what, what the order is of those kind of top 34 picks, um, in terms of all the, the options available to those teams at the top of the draft this year and It, it, it will be interesting.

I, I think that the injury thing with Peterson in, in particular, I, I think it's, it's going to pop up in terms of, is there a team out there, maybe they're 2 or 3, maybe they have enough picks to maybe move up to 2 or 3.

Maybe you start hearing those rumors from those NBA insiders, uh, you know, what the medicals, his, his hamstring was a little bit bad, maybe it's, uh, you know, a severe strain, you know, somebody's to do a little bit of jockeying.

I think that might be more than anything.

Um, leads to, but, um, you know, he, he, he's, he understands what he wants to do with the ball, you know, as soon as he gets in, he's coming up court, you know, I think with, with the bana, I mean, He, he's still in, in the system, you know, I think it has not helped him at all, the supporting cast.

You will see guys go off, you know, here and there in spurts, but the supporting cast has not been as consistent as I think BYU ultimately would have liked them, uh, these last couple of games, especially on the big stage.

Um, they have had some big comebacks, but, you know, in terms of putting themselves in big holes early on in the games, this just seems like what, what the Uh, that, that's probably very concerning for Kevin Young, very concerning for AJ Amana, but I, I think he's still in terms of his upside, you can tell he's just scratching the surface, and I think that that performance that we saw between both guys on Saturday, what we've seen out of Cam Boozer, I, I think every week we're starting to see why everybody talks about this draft class so much.

You know, you, you can see it.

It, it's easy for the common fan to see.

It's certainly easy for NBA scouts to see, and , uh, certainly the general managers out there.

There, there's a reason why they have all been circling this draft class and, and we're seeing it pretty, pretty much on a, on, on a nightly basis in college basketball, and that should make come March, come tournament time, even more fun when we see these guys in action.

Yeah, that it is a special freshman class and, and they just keep showing up.

I mean, like, Keaton Wagler has just been a revelation.

He was unbelievable on Sunday.

Uh, there's just a lot of really good freshmen that are fun to watch out there.

The dunk, the Peterson dunk, he dunked on the entirety of BYU.

I mean, he, he dunked on generations, he dunked on Jimmer Fredette, he dunked on Danny Ainge, he dunked on, like, 7 generations of BYU.

That was an incredible play.

And we will get to see that, uh, in the draft run-up.

I hope we get to see Darren Peterson play 30 minutes of football or 30 minutes of basketball during the NCAA tournament as well.

And, yeah, I, you know, the number one pick, you want to, you want some durability there.

I, I, I can't help but thinking of Zion Williamson, who's never really gotten himself going for a variety of reasons, but that was a guy that was supposed to be.

You know, an NBA superstar, and he's not in the lineup very often, which is a key part of being a superstar.

Uh, all right, guys, let's end with this, uh, point after this was a, this was a fantastic moment in sports over the weekend.

Uh, boxing match.

Uh, I don't even know, they were probably in Vegas, I don't know, I was on the zone, uh, and our man, uh, from Sports Illustrated, Chris Mannix, was , was ringside, and, uh, boxer Gerald Miller.

He had a, a unique wardrobe malfunction.

He was fighting Kingsley eBay, and at one point, eBay hit him with enough force and at the right trajectory that uh suddenly Gerald Miller's hair came off.

It was fake hair, it was a hairpiece, it was a toupee.

Uh, and it came loose and, uh, started flapping, created a bit of a, uh, a, a sensation on the internet, believe it or not.

Uh, and Miller actually just kind of grabbed it and threw it out of the ring at one point, kind of laughed about it while that was actually happening.

Uh, and then he laughed afterwards in the interview with, with Mannix.

I like the, I liked his, his approach to this whole debacle.

Uh, he won a split decision.

Uh , but lost the hair.

Gentlemen, and my question for you, existential question, is it better to be knocked out with your hair on or to win without it, Brian.

Well, that, that's the thing, like I almost think this is a better thing for Kingsley eBay, be like, look, you, you know how hard I hit?

I knocked the hair off of guys like that that's a bigger thing, uh, as opposed to this, and he kind of looked like, he kind of looked like one of those Franciscan monks a little bit, you know, with the hair.

At, at some point though, dude, like, uh, you know, there's, there's a point of demarcation in terms of just going full shave, and I, I think, uh, Mr.

Miller has, has certainly reached that after, after that fight .

And, uh, if nothing else, he will at least go down in the annals of boxing, uh, in terms of, uh, having done this.

But, uh, to answer your actual question, I, I think win without it because, uh, not only do you, do you make the money in terms of the purse, but like the amount of interviews he's gonna get, the amount of publicity he's gonna get, I'm sure he's gonna get some just for men.

Uh, or, or some, you know, one of those Rogaine hair removal or whatever, uh, type of NIL deals, if you will, uh, for, for, for boxing.

So he, he's gonna make the money off of it.

And, and I, I have no doubt about that.

Yeah, I, I would also say to win without it, it, it's the NIL era, like, like, let's cash in.

Uh, the other thing, this is the underappreciated part of this, he lost his hair in the first place in the days leading up to the fight, like this is not a bald guy.

Uh, he said that he was, I believe he was at his mom's house and he showered.

Um, and he used what he thought was shampoo, but was what he claims to be ammonium bleach, which would do much more damage than simply, like that, that, that I, I can't imagine it was that, but he obviously used a cleaning product of some kind that did, did, did poor numbers for the hairline.

I don't know if the rug was necessary, but who knows?

I, I hope he has plenty of brands in his DMs after this.

I, I'm struggling to believe that excuse.

I don't know.

Uh, I, I, yeah, who grabs bleach ?

Who has bleach in the shower or wherever you're washing your hair and then says, yeah, I'm gonna, what is this?

I'm just gonna put it on my head and, and assume it's, it's shampoo.

Maybe that's the case, but hold, I, I don't even know how you would make that up.

So, so I guess maybe it's real, but.

Good Lord.

I don't know, I kind of, I, if, you know, if you're gonna go the toupee route, which is really kind of never a good route to go, uh, but if, if you're going to, I think I'd rather lose and keep the facade intact, you know, than to have to walk, to have to walk out of the ring with, with the, as you said, the monk look, and, and everybody knows now that you got, you had the fake rug on there.

I, I don't know.

I.

Anyway, I'm glad he won, and, and yes, I hope he puts the purse money to, to, to good use and maybe uh better hair in the future.

Good luck to, to Gerald Miller.

Uh, and good luck to us as we try to continue this podcast through the offseason.

Uh, I'm out for Italy.

Brian and Kevin got the wheel for a couple of weeks.

Um, I'm sure things will go smoothly, probably go better.

In my absence, we'll find out, but thanks for listening.

Please download, subscribe, give us nice reviews, whatever you want to, and we will talk to you all later.