Full Transcript for Hutton & Withrow: Titans Gun Incident Sparks Controversy, Robert Saleh Responds & College Football Coaches on the Hot Seat | Hour 1

honest about everything. Now, when you get into someone who may have murdered someone, had he gone through with it, or harmed himself, and he starts going into this, well, we got to ask what's going on with him. 00:06:00 Speaker 2: He's a great father. He's a great husband. He's a great. 00:06:03 Speaker 5: That's a criminal act when you threaten someone with a gun. You also can't get away from that part of it. And also, it's not an NFL rule that they had to cut him To my knowledge, he was going to get suspended. Something was going to happen to him with league discipline more than likely had they reported it to the league. But he's vouching for him for 31 other teams. And I'm thinking you could have him on your team if you vouch for his character so much. If you think this is a one off and he just needs to go get help and could come back. I mean, why vouch with 31 other coaches the way you're saying for his character when you could have just kept him on the team and had him get the help that he got? 00:06:39 Speaker 1: But instead, the Titans cut him. I don't think there's a rule about cutting him. And again, I think they did the right thing by cutting him. I'm not disagreeing with them cutting him, but to cut the guy and then to come back and talk about how great of a professional he is and how great of a dad he is and all of this, and we've got to ask what's going on with his mental health and worry about him. 00:06:58 Speaker 2: Well, what about J.C. Latham? 00:07:00 Speaker 1: And all this too would be my response. I think that's why they cut him. I would also, I'd worry about him also. Well, I, I think, um, in reviewing this and listening to him, he said, Sala goes into the, the self harm aspect of this. And he says, I don't want to speak to that, but he, he did. He mentioned two other players recently who have done this. 00:07:23 Speaker 2: And I went there. 00:07:25 Speaker 1: I thought that after reviewing this, maybe he was going to harm himself. Um, Because he never entered the facility. It stayed around his car or at his vehicle, based on the review. And Franklin Myers came out to talk him out of whatever he was doing, whether that was entering the facility or not. And keep in mind, Sala said in his statement he pulled a gun. 00:07:52 Speaker 5: It's not just he walked to his car and threatened it. He said, the guy pulled a gun. And I'm taking him and. 00:07:57 Speaker 2: His word for that. It has been reported that it was at his car. Yeah. And it never went further than that. 00:08:04 Speaker 1: And that's through, I guess, the NFL review that's gone out to an actual reporter. 00:08:09 Speaker 2: I don't know. But he pulled a gun. 00:08:11 Speaker 1: I mean, I took it immediately as he threatened to pull a gun, walked to his car. John Franklin Myers walked with him, talked him out of it. 00:08:17 Speaker 2: He didn't pull a gun. I think he had a gun, yes. 00:08:21 Speaker 1: He had a firearm, and clearly after review, he's clearly on

film with it. And I think in looking back on it, Chad, the NFL review of this is what took so long from last Thursday to now because Sully gets into how the NFL has handled this. Again, there are things now that they can do for him, and I think the Titans did the right thing, released him. If you violate the NFL policy– with this. They can release you, no questions asked, but they do get the NFLPA involved. And it sounds like everyone's in agreement with the decision that the Titans made and whatever help that they're getting for him. I listened to the key words and thought self-harm more than harm for someone else based on just the words that Sala used and why he ended up talking about it. 00:09:12 Speaker 2: Yeah, look, I think Sala is a decent guy. I do. 00:09:16 Speaker 5: I think where he's coming from with this is from a good place. I will also say that, you know, we're talking about a guy who threatened a teammate and walked to his vehicle and in Salah's work, pulled a gun at the vehicle. It didn't go past that, but pulled a gun. 00:09:33 Speaker 2: And I. 00:09:35 Speaker 5: Want to give full credit to Robert Salah for speaking openly and speaking as much as he did about this. I also think that it's very convenient that this got turned suddenly from a gigantic negative about the type of people the Titans brought in and this issue in the locker room into a, hey guys, we care about mental health here with this organization and with the Titans. I think when the narrative shifted towards that, I'm not saying that's what Robert Salas sought to do. 00:10:03 Speaker 2: I'm saying that is maybe an unintended. 00:10:06 Speaker 5: Positive consequence of this that now suddenly everybody's like, boy, man, this guy really cares about mental health and about his players' mental health when this happened. I would then go back and say, what about J.C. Latham's actual health? In this whole deal, when this goes down. That's a criminal act. Is he going to get prosecuted? It doesn't look like he is. And I'm not asking for the guy to go to prison for this. I want him to get the help that he needs. He may be able to carry a weapon, for all I know, licensed. But yeah, it says the way the story reads is that the firearm did not leave the parking area. 00:10:41 Speaker 1: And the situation was de-escalated, is what it says. Now, I'm not going to criticize Sala for anything he said. Because I commend him for speaking out on it for two minutes and saying what he said about the player in an incident where things were de-escalated, thank God, and you end up having a situation that could have been just awful, being something where you don't have any injuries from this. What I've been thinking about is, Burt Nihill went and did an interview with Corey Curtis, because this happened on Thursday, and they released this interview on Friday. and made comments about stability and organizational growth and everything, knowing that this had happened the day before. And so that's where I could be critical of that more than I'll be critical of Salah. 00:11:30 Speaker 2: It's a good point. I didn't think about the timeline of that. And you're right. I mean, that interview dropped on Friday. I'm assuming he did the interview on Friday. 00:11:36 Speaker 5: He certainly would have done it at a time where he knew this incident happened on a Thursday. Again, you know, and then the part where he gets into 31 other coaches can call me and I'll vouch for this guy's character. He's a great run-stuffing defensive tackle who's a good man and a good father and all these things. I don't think that the NFL would– if the NFL forced him out of the league for this violation of policy– then no one else could sign him. So if you're vouching for him, I mean, look, I think they did the right thing based on policy and everything else. 00:12:09 Speaker 2: And I hope he goes and gets the help that he needs. 00:12:11 Speaker 5: But I'm just a little bit confused about how glowing he spoke about this guy in Jordan Elliott and that, well, if you feel that way, then suspend him from the team indefinitely. 00:12:23 Speaker 1: Let him go get the help that he needs. Keep him as an active member of the team. it's not really going to help him to cut him and cut him loose right now. If you truly care about the guy and keep him in the fold and let him go and do this, if you're vouching for him for other teams is my point. If you just said, look, we want him to go and get the help he needs, it's a violation of team policy. 00:12:42 Speaker 2: It's cut and dry. 00:12:43 Speaker 5: Here with the Titans, we're going to cut someone if they have a gun on campus. And this happens. 00:12:48 Speaker 2: Our hands are tied. There's nothing we can do. That's one thing. 00:12:51 Speaker 5: But then when you're like, we're going to cut him, but you should take him. And here's why to the rest of the league. That part confused me a bit in the messaging with that. 00:13:01 Speaker 2: I'm sure there are. 00:13:01 Speaker 1: NFL programs that he's got to go through now. He would go on a commissioner's list. He'll be suspended if he were in the league. It's an organizational decision to release him. But it's not like they'll just release the guy that brought a gun on campus and, okay, you're free to go. 00:13:16 Speaker 2: Get out of here. You're cut. 00:13:17 Speaker 1: I'd rather them handle it like this than not based on whatever support they're trying to get for him instead of having beef with J.C. Latham as he leaves the facility. That's one thing. Number two, Robert Sala knows him better than most. I mean, he coached him in San Francisco as well. They brought him in through the system that Sala was running, knowing the player. He would be on my list of coaches to call if I were about to sign the guy. And he wasn't with the Titans. So I think teams would do that anyway. But, I mean, look, if this is Jeffrey Simmons, the best player at his position, Are they cutting

him or are they putting him in the program? 00:13:59 Speaker 2: He's suspended, but he's still on the roster. He's on the commissioner's list, suspended. 00:14:04 Speaker 1: This is a guy who has started one game, appeared in all five, is good against the run. 00:14:08 Speaker 2: You know what I'm saying. He's the role player. 00:14:11 Speaker 1: That's probably handled differently. But that's how I think any team would treat this. But now they've set a precedent. And I don't mind that they did that in this instance. And also, saying what they said instead of just saying, yeah, we have no comment. and he's free to leave, and he still has beef with Latham, and have at it. 00:14:30 Speaker 2: I think they held it well. 00:14:33 Speaker 5: Yeah, look, again, but if we're going to also go back and say if it was Jeffrey Simmons, they wouldn't. 00:14:38 Speaker 2: Have cut him. I don't think so. 00:14:40 Speaker 1: But again, my point would be if we're truly about the individual and his health and everything else, then it's got to be either you're cutting everybody who does that and forcing them to go get health, Or you're going to keep them on the roster and they're going to be put on the commissioner's list and they can get the help while on the team at that point. And I think it would be the same programs or whatever else. I don't know the programs that the NFL is doing. He alludes to that, though, the support that the NFL is going to get and the way that they handle it with the NFLPA. I think there's a joint agreement there with whatever they have to do if this happens, like there would be with many other things that are on this policy, I'm sure. I don't pretend to know the very details of that, but it seems like Sala alluded to it and was there firsthand during discussions of it. But yeah, I'd prefer this than just that we'll have no further comment on the matter. 00:15:32 Speaker 2: Absolutely. 00:15:33 Speaker 1: The fact he spoke, I give him credit for. And he may be asked about this again. He may come back today and say, hey, I want to go further with what I said. We're concerned for J.C. 00:15:40 Speaker 2: Latham also. This is part of this, right? 00:15:42 Speaker 5: We don't tolerate someone getting into a verbal or physical altercation in practice and And it escalated to someone walking to their vehicle to go get a gun. So let's be clear on that, too. We're very firm against those type of things happening. What we heard there, though, was all about Elliott and all about concern about him. 00:16:01 Speaker 1: Not a lot of concern about J.C. Latham that he spoke about in that whole thing, right? That's where I think people get the mixed messaging. I also think people are responding to this in one of two extremes. It's all about, boy, everything Robert Sala said, amazing mental health awareness, all of this. 00:16:21 Speaker 5: And other people, it's in the YouTube chat right now. It's like, this guy's a criminal. This guy needs to be locked

up. Who cares about his mental health and this and that? I do think there's a little bit of both here. I like that Robert Sala said that and what he said. I like that he cares about him as a person. 00:16:36 Speaker 2: I believe it. I buy it when Robert Salas says that. 00:16:39 Speaker 5: I also think you could be even stronger with what you're saying about, but there's a zero tolerance policy here. We can't have him on our team now that he did that on our premise. 00:16:50 Speaker 1: What he said was he's a good man. He had terrible lapse in judgment. That would be a comment for someone that's staying on the team, but this guy's not. They still got him. They did both in this. They're showing support and also told him to GTFO as an organization. I can't fault that. for the way it was handled. And again, I'm listening between the lines here. He references self-harm more than he references someone else's harm. So I can't help but think about that than the other thing, which, again, it stayed in the parking facility. And if he has a license to carry, the rule is he can't have it on the campus of the Titans. 00:17:28 Speaker 2: Not that he can't have it in his car. So, I mean, again, I don't know the details of all of that, but there's no. 00:17:36 Speaker 1: You know, it doesn't sound like the fact that the Metro police or anybody, they weren't contacted. It doesn't sound like they're all upset about that based on the reporting of A to Z. I mean, look, whatever happened, whether he's under some sort of, you know, welfare check right now mentally or that he's under a self-harm alert or anything like that. John Franklin Myers knows probably more than anybody right now because he was the one who talked him down and was at the vehicle with him. 00:18:05 Speaker 2: We don't know what Elliott was saying to him. In all fairness, we don't. 00:18:09 Speaker 5: Know what was said there that Robert Sala is referencing when he talks about something. I know what he's referencing in terms of, hey, guys, there are NFL players who have taken their own lives here recently. This has been a problem. So my mind did go to that also when he's got a gun in his car. 00:18:25 Speaker 2: Totally fair. 00:18:27 Speaker 5: I think we all should agree, totally fair, that that should be a concern with players in the NFL and when things like this happen. 00:18:35 Speaker 1: And clearly he knew to follow him out there to try to de-escalate something because of something he overheard in the locker room, right? That would be another point to make in all of this. Look, we're very fortunate we're not talking about something else with this story, with the way that it was handled. 00:18:52 Speaker 2: Thank goodness for Franklin Myers in this case. 00:18:55 Speaker 5: Yeah, and I'm very interested now in the sequel to all of this. Like, where does Jordan Elliott go from here? I mean, I hope that he figures it out, and it was just one brutal lapse in judgment, and he let his temper get the best of him, and there's not a lot of other underlying things going on with him. 00:19:09 Speaker 2: My assumption is that there are a lot of underlying. 00:19:11 Speaker 5: Issues going on with him that would lead to something like this, and he's going to have to get evaluated and get the help that he needs. But I am now interested in what is the next chapter of this guy's life, not just football. But what's the next chapter of his life? Because we've seen too many times where one bad decision defines someone's entire life in terms of what people perceive them to be. And that's oftentimes, I'll say pretty much every time unfortunate, with the exception of some truly awful things that take place. But with this, where no one ends up hurt, I hope he gets the help that he needs. I'm glad that he's no longer with the Tennessee Titans. I think the team made the right decision to cut ties with him. I applaud Sala for speaking. I applaud Sala for speaking. I don't agree with everything he said in his message, but again. 00:20:03 Speaker 1: I'm not going to sit here as someone who's been so critical, and we have on the show, of the Titans for hiding behind written statements, for not speaking, for when it is time to answer tough questions, they go on a damn show with Corey Curtis and Teron Davenport, and they get softballs thrown their way in Burke-Nihill. 00:20:20 Speaker 2: I'm going to sit here. 00:20:21 Speaker 5: And say, I was stunned when I saw Robert Sala actually addressing it and talking about it and saying what he did yesterday, because I fully expect the Titans to say, we'll refer to the statement. Go back to the statement that was released yesterday. That's all we're talking about it because it's a legal matter. They could have easily hidden behind that and they didn't. 00:20:39 Speaker 1: An organization that needs leadership. I thought that Robert Sala showed that in this. And for an organization that takes the field on Sunday, they've shown a lot more in regards to this than the Cleveland Browns who will have Deshaun Watson at quarterback. So, you know, there's two different presidents set right there and I'm not faulting the Titans for the stance they took. 00:20:59 Speaker 2: No. 00:20:59 Speaker 1: And again, Kudos to Robert Sala for speaking. I disagree with a lot of what he said, but I think that he means what he said. Look, I disagree with a lot of what. 00:21:08 Speaker 5: Bernie Sanders has to say on matters, but I've always admired Bernie Sanders because. 00:21:13 Speaker 2: I believe he believes it. 00:21:15 Speaker 1: He's not some paid robot that's going to regurgitate what someone else wants him to think or believe. I don't buy into Bernie Sanders' political policies, but I've always respected the guy because I feel like he's a 100% true believer in everything that he is saying. He is not putting on a front. He's not lying about his. 00:21:33 Speaker 5: Feelings or thoughts on anything, and I respect that. When I watch

Robert Sala, I feel the same way. I don't think he's putting a front on. I don't think he's lying. 00:21:40 Speaker 1: I can disagree with him, but I can respect the fact that I believe he believes everything that he's saying. Coming up, there's a coach who's out. In college football, we discuss who could be next. Plus, we have one big thing in college football and SEC's over and under achievers. That's all straight ahead here on Hutton and Withrow. 00:22:00 Speaker 4: This year, the party's getting even bigger. 00:22:03 Speaker 5: Hey, there's Jay Boyd. 00:22:04 Speaker 2: They know me. This party, everybody's somebody. And the Hard Rock bet has something for everyone. Plus, new customers bid $ 5 and get up to $ 500 in no-sweat bets. Hey, big friend. 00:22:17 Speaker 1: Great promo right now with Hard Rock Bets. Bet $ 5, get up to $ 500 in those sweat bets right now at hardrock.bet.com. And we turn to Hard Rock Bet for all of the odds and lines, plus sharp insights, analysis, top content. And while you already know the Hard Rock name, you might not know about the Hard Rock Bet Sportsbook app yet. Hard Rock Bet, it's Florida's only legal sportsbook, making it the most trustworthy option in the market. Plus, it's live and ready for action in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia. 00:22:48 Speaker 5: Yeah, and they've got a great welcome offer right now. Bet $ 5, get up to $ 500 in no-sweat bets. And for new customers, 10 daily $ 50 no-sweat bets. Great promos on the app as well, and you've got one every single day. that you can take advantage of. You can see Clay Travis' blood bank guarantee as well. 00:23:07 Speaker 2: It's real simple. 00:23:08 Speaker 5: To get more information and to sign up, just go to hardrock.bet backslash clay. That's hardrock.bet backslash clay. 00:23:15 Speaker 1: Chad, we can look at some odds on the next coach fired because we know now that there's at least one. 00:23:21 Speaker 2: Coach out for the first time this season. It took a while. 00:23:24 Speaker 1: Mike Loxley. He's out with Maryland. That news coming down yesterday. And there's several players Names and interesting names that are on a list of maybe the next guy on the hot seat to take the pink slip and maybe not even make the season complete. Well, let's first, I want to talk about the three guys that were initially mentioned to take over at Maryland, which jumped out to me. Dan Mullen was the first name that popped up, leaving from UNLV. Brian Kelly, getting back in the game at Maryland. And then Jake Dickert. 00:24:02 Speaker 2: At Wake Forest. 00:24:03 Speaker 1: I think Jake Dickert's a terrific coach, and he is a more with less type of guy. 00:24:08 Speaker 2: He did it at Washington State. He's doing it now at Wake Forest. 00:24:11 Speaker 5: They don't spend anything compared to their rivals and what they spend on that roster, and he doesn't even make excuses about it. 00:24:17 Speaker 2: He's like,

yeah, it's not an excuse. 00:24:19 Speaker 1: We have to do a better job of evaluating than everyone else, and that's what we're going to do. We're going to out-evaluate you even if we're not spending the money of some other schools. That sounds like a great recipe for a job like Maryland. Now, you are in the Big Ten. how much better of a job is Maryland than Wake Forest? With Wake Forest and the ACC? 00:24:38 Speaker 2: I don't know. 00:24:39 Speaker 1: That's up for people to debate. That's up for how much money each school is going to spend and everything else. But I think that's a reasonable question to ask. And if you're Dan Mullen, if you can keep having success at UNLV, do you take the Maryland job now or do you wait for a better job to open up? 00:24:53 Speaker 2: So some questions to be answered there. 00:24:55 Speaker 1: Speaking of jobs that could open up for Dan Mullen or anyone else, here are the. 00:25:01 Speaker 5: Odds right now of the next coach to get fired. Mike Norvell, no surprise. The problem with Mike Norvell, Hud, is his team's shown a lot of fight. They had a great chance to knock off number one Miami this past week. They've done some good things, even though they continue to lose. 00:25:17 Speaker 1: Well, and this is a case of you have the university talking about how much debt they're in. You have a decision to make on the buyout. because he got this contract whenever the Alabama job came open. And you have to decide whether or not paying the coach is too steep that you can afford to pay the coach, or can you afford or not afford for not firing the coach for the direction of your program. This is the top of the list just based on that and results. If we look at this list, Chad, let's just go through it in the top five or six and say yes or no if we think they're out. 00:25:56 Speaker 2: Mike Norvell, yes. 00:25:58 Speaker 1: You'll eventually have someone step up and pay that ticket. That's always the case. They'll have someone step forward because they're so pissed off at the job and the fact that they want to win and keep up with the Joneses. Because they're Florida State, they're on another list that we'll look at coming up in the show. But, yeah, I say yes on this. 00:26:16 Speaker 5: Yeah, Lance Leipold, I feel like, just got a huge extension and raise after a great start at Kansas. 00:26:22 Speaker 2: So I don't know. 00:26:24 Speaker 1: Look, I don't even know what the appetite for great football is at Kansas half the time. 00:26:28 Speaker 2: It looked like they committed. They improved their stadium. 00:26:31 Speaker 5: They have a beautiful new setup there with their football facility and everything else. And I guess the thinking is, hey, we did all this, and now Leipold's not winning anymore, so it's time to go get someone else that they can bring into their new facilities, which is understandable. Dave Dorn, I thought, was dead the moment his quarterback wouldn't take a knee properly against Vanderbilt and

lost that game. 00:26:52 Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely. Absolutely. 00:26:54 Speaker 5: They've done some decent things since then, shockingly. Greg Sciano hasn't done anything at Rutgers in his second stint. So again, that's another one. It's a question of what is your appetite for success at Rutgers? Have you thrown your hands up and just said, guys, it's never going to happen. We made a mistake from a competitive standpoint joining the Big Ten and we can't win in this conference. 00:27:13 Speaker 2: So what does any of it even matter? I don't know. but it's interesting. 00:27:17 Speaker 5: He's fourth on this list where I feel like Hutton, he should be right there with Mike Norvell. If you're looking at someone who hasn't gotten anything done at a place, right? 00:27:25 Speaker 2: Yeah, absolutely. Yes. 00:27:27 Speaker 1: And then look at the run on 18 and 22 to one, Mike Elko, Shane Beamer, Luke Fickle, and then Jeff Levy. Ryan Silverfield is there as well. At 28 to one. Coaching for the buyout. 00:27:40 Speaker 2: Great song. 00:27:41 Speaker 1: Hey, I mean, Elko, how does he handle the stretch here when he's facing heat? You know, I, I think the way that we saw the thing go down with Billy's cesspool, I think to myself, Billy helped him keep his job on that with how he handled it and didn't go after him because that was low-hanging fruit. If Billy took the high road, Chad, I think in most cases, if this is another university where the fans don't show as much patience– and you don't have the sights that are covering your team, show as much patience and generosity in that moment. Billy released a statement saying he's going to have comment later. He's going to think about things. I don't think most people would do that. They would have buried this guy, because that's a battle he's not going to win. Shane Beamer, quite frankly, if Beamer wins this week against Tennessee... He's safe. I think he's safe, because he has an argument against Florida. 00:28:36 Speaker 5: I think they have rallied better than anyone expected. with that blowout win at Florida. They're coming off a bye. We're going to get into that tomorrow with the top ten college football games. But what are some commonalities between surprising games that happen? Now, this wouldn't be a surprise because Vegas actually has South Carolina favored by two and a half, and I think it may have ticked up. 00:28:57 Speaker 2: To three, in fact. But Auburn, Georgia, a great example. Well, what happened in that game? 00:29:02 Speaker 5: Georgia just had an emotional win over Alabama on the road. They had gone– All these weeks without a break, with no bye week, and you had Auburn coming off a bye. Going into that game, getting ready for them, and they pull off the upset. 00:29:16 Speaker 2: Tennessee, South Carolina. 00:29:18 Speaker 5: Tennessee's about to go eight straight weeks without a bye, which is a late bye in the season. South Carolina's coming off their rest. They blow out Florida on the road. They're feeling good about it. They get a week off, and now they're getting ready for Tennessee. This is Tennessee's last game before they get two weeks. They get the week off before then going into November in the back part of their schedule. 00:29:38 Speaker 2: Again, I'm not saying that as an excuse. 00:29:41 Speaker 5: I'm just saying if you're looking for some common themes of how these games happen, that could be a factor in this game for sure. 00:29:47 Speaker 2: But I'm with you. I think Beamer's safe, especially if they win this week. They win, for sure. 00:29:51 Speaker 1: Yeah, and even if they lose, I don't know that he's going to get fired based on what they have left and games they could win. 00:29:57 Speaker 2: Fickle's going to get fired. I firmly believe that. 00:30:00 Speaker 1: I think he would have last year had the jobs in the SEC not. 00:30:03 Speaker 2: Been wide open the way they were. He should be way higher on this list. I agree. I think. 00:30:08 Speaker 1: Jeff Levy should be lower on the list. Lincoln Riley's way down this list for some reason. 00:30:11 Speaker 5: Yeah, if Kamario Taylor's healthy, Jeff Levy's not even on this list right now. 00:30:15 Speaker 2: Totally agree on that. Ryan Silverfield, I mean, I. 00:30:20 Speaker 1: Think the only way Ryan Silverfield's going to be a one-and-done is if there is some sort of coup that is orchestrated by Arkansas people that gets rid of the AD... that brings in a new administration and says, we're going to do a complete reset of the football program and start anew. 00:30:35 Speaker 2: And after one year, it's not a huge loss. He was only here a year. 00:30:38 Speaker 5: We're going to go get somebody else and rebuild this thing with a different head coach. I think he's probably safe, though. Bill O'Brien's interesting. Good start for him. Has not been good since. Lincoln Riley. Dabo Sweeney's not getting fired, I don't believe, anyway. Kalen DeBoer's not getting fired. The guy would leave before he's fired. 00:30:58 Speaker 1: Deion's going to retire before he gets fired. You're spot on. Steve Sarkeesian I don't think is getting fired. But if they lose their third straight game this week and things start to fall apart with how much investment has gone on in that program and how much investment into Arch Manning and Hutton, we know the political pressures with that job in the state of Texas. I'm not saying it's impossible. that Steve Sarkeesian is out of a job by the end of the year? 00:31:25 Speaker 2: No, not at all. 00:31:27 Speaker 1: And again, he's not an easy guy to deal with. And I understand this is just Vegas. This is not actual reporting of people going. But if you want to look at an example of, okay, college football has jumped the shark in terms of expectations of fans and where we are right now and job pressure for coaches, look at the final two entries on that list. Kyle Whittingham and Matt Campbell in year one. 00:31:51 Speaker 2: Come on now.

Come on now. They're just taking that as a flyer. I don't care what happens. 00:31:56 Speaker 5: Sharon Moore had his issues with the program. Kyle Whittingham inherited those. They invested way too much money in Bryce Underwood, who's not very good. They're already replacing him with Lloyd Carr's grandson to start this weekend after replacing him last week. Kyle Whittingham is completely safe at Michigan. The only risk of Kyle Whittingham not being at Michigan is if he decides I'm going to retire after a year because I don't want to deal with this stuff anymore. 00:32:19 Speaker 1: And Matt Campbell, the same thing. They're not going to fire Matt Campbell after one year. And the next coach fired, which is what you would be– it would be in season here. So we're looking at the top three options is what I would say for what could happen realistically. 00:32:37 Speaker 2: But, I mean, will we see as much movement in the SEC? No. Not like we did last year. 00:32:43 Speaker 3: No. 00:32:44 Speaker 1: Last year was crazy. And this year, maybe a bit more stability, at least for right now. I mean, Jeff Lebby, again, you're dead on with what they've done prior to the quarterback injury. No, he should not be fired. And same thing in Arkansas. I mean, if we saw the walkout or whatever that they had for the first game, the first home game where they didn't show up, that didn't continue. 00:33:11 Speaker 2: Had that continued? 00:33:12 Speaker 1: Maybe. Maybe. With the fans not showing up and just apathy towards anything they're doing. And they're just going to basketball games now. But Arkansas has basically declared they're a basketball school. But they did that whenever they hired him. Not when they fired him. They're not going to spend money all of a sudden. They clearly showed that they're just putting all their money in basketball. 00:33:32 Speaker 5: I think you're spot on with that. Also, another name on the list that jumped out to me. Do you remember when Sonny Dyches was playing for a national championship with TCU? 00:33:40 Speaker 2: Just a short time ago? 00:33:42 Speaker 5: Doesn't that feel like light years ago when you think about Sonny Dykes losing. 00:33:46 Speaker 2: To North Carolina? It feels like 10 years ago to me. 00:33:48 Speaker 5: Flying to Ireland and losing to Bill Belichick in a bog. 00:33:53 Speaker 2: Yeah. 00:33:53 Speaker 5: You know, just to open the season. I'm thinking, that guy played for a national championship. 00:33:57 Speaker 1: He got boat raced by Michigan, but that was not that long ago, and now he may get fired in season. 00:34:04 Speaker 2: Crazy. 00:34:04 Speaker 5: Brooke says, Fickle has coached his way off the hot seat according to most Big Ten people. They'll likely finish 7-5 or 8-4. currently 4-2 favorite in three to four more games this year. 7-5 with their schedule, if that's enough to keep him, good for you, Wisconsin. 00:34:22 Speaker 2: He saves it this week, probably. Good for you. 00:34:25 Speaker 5: I've got higher expectations for my Wisconsin Badgers than what Luke Fickle has accomplished at Wisconsin in his time there. 00:34:33 Speaker 2: Crazy. We've got USC this week. But USC's been better on the road within the conference. 00:34:39 Speaker 1: But again, a quick turn and Again, Fickle's trying to coach his way back there. Maybe Brooks is right, but I felt like he was going to lose his job last year had there not been so much movement with all the coaches choosing to go elsewhere. They didn't take the dive. They didn't decide to go spend that much money on coaches for the guys they wanted. 00:34:58 Speaker 5: Catfish Jake says, if Bama loses to Texas A & M and LSU, a good chance DeBoer is gone, and there's a damn good chance that happens. They're not losing to A & M at home coming off that loss to Tennessee. I don't think A & M has the offense– Now, that could be an uncomfortable game with Texas A & M' s defense. That could be a close sort of slugfest type game. But I think that game's probably like a 24 to 19 type weird score. And Alabama holds on and Texas A & M scores late to make it look closer than it actually was. But yeah, I mean, if I'm picking a winner right now in Death Valley, LSU is going to win. 00:35:36 Speaker 2: At home over Alabama, and that's going to give them a third loss on the season. 00:35:40 Speaker 1: Just pondering how quickly things change. The coaches that either made the playoff last year, like Elko, or the coaches who have been to the playoff or played for a title that are on this list quickly. 00:35:55 Speaker 2: There's not one truth. 00:35:57 Speaker 5: We're going to get into this in the next segment on underachievers and overachievers. There's never just one truth when it comes to a team and a coach in what he's done. Alabama's a great example of this. Alabama Hutton three weeks ago was God's gift to offensive football. I mean, they went into Starkville in a game that I picked Mississippi State to win and just pulled the larynx out of the Bulldogs in that game. And Keelan Russell is running around, dropping dimes 50 yards down the field. They're doing whatever they want offensively. They're breaking records for points on the road in the SEC and killing Mississippi State. Defense is opportunistic. They're scoring touchdowns. Kalen DeBoer, we're talking about his record is better than Nick Saban's through his first so many games or the same as him in Alabama. 00:36:42 Speaker 2: All those things. Two weeks later, they win one close. 00:36:45 Speaker 5: Game on a controversial call that should have been a pass interference that would have given them another chance to Georgia. And they get their doors kicked in by Tennessee. 00:36:54 Speaker 2: No doubt. 00:36:54 Speaker 1: Physically, they got whipped in that game. But two weeks ago against Georgia, DeBoer's not on the hot seat. He's being praised for the way he handled the player who made the dumb decision to push the player that pushes opponent. This

is your fault. 00:37:09 Speaker 2: That was the storyline. You lost the game. I love that. When you can see, it's. 00:37:15 Speaker 1: Back to back weeks for him with a means because he's got the Rocky top meal on the sideline to Rocky top where his face is. 00:37:22 Speaker 2: That needs to be a t-shirt. That's a, uh, that face. Yes. 00:37:27 Speaker 5: Sporting state, sporting state marketing. If you're listening, uh, If we get a picture of DeBoer's weird face in Neyland Stadium, that would be a great shirt to sell. But yeah, I mean, again, I think Caleb DeBoer's a good coach. I will believe he's a good coach the rest of this season. But there are multiple truths about a college football team in any given one season. 00:37:46 Speaker 2: What was said. 00:37:47 Speaker 1: Three weeks ago about Caleb DeBoer is still true. And about that Alabama team. What we know now about Alabama is true. They lost a close home game to a very good Georgia team. And Tennessee decided to whip them physically, and they accomplished it. Those two things happened in the last two weeks. And now they've got a chance to go home and beat A & M. But I am with Jake. If they lose to A & M at home, there's going to be a lot of people calling for his head. 00:38:13 Speaker 5: Whether right or wrong, and I think that's wrong, there's going to be a lot of people calling for his head. 00:38:18 Speaker 2: There's no doubt. 00:38:18 Speaker 1: And it's not that Tennessee beat them. Tennessee beats them at Neyland. We've seen that. It's how they lost. 00:38:23 Speaker 3: Yep. 00:38:24 Speaker 1: That's how Tennessee beat them. This was not a 50-yard field goal at the buzzer. This was not an interception to seal a 24-17 win like it was in 2024. 00:38:34 Speaker 5: Jason Swain, who you had on last week, I know, Hutton, said this was the best win he has witnessed for Josh Heupel because it is not just winning. He said it was thrilling in 2022 to beat Nick Saban. 2024 was great to win a close game. This was a physical manhandling of they were telling Alabama where they're going to run the football right down the middle, and they did it over and over again in the second half. And defensively, we've talked a lot about it. It's as good of a game plan and as well executed of one as I can remember for any Tennessee defense. To do that to that offense with Jim Knowles, it's as good of a one-game sample as As I've ever seen, and there's been some really good Tennessee defenses over the year, including one that won them a national title in 1998. That's as good as I've seen from Jim Knowles. 00:39:25 Speaker 2: So again, Kalen DeBoer's a good coach. 00:39:29 Speaker 5: Is it going to get nervy for him if they lose to A & M? 00:39:32 Speaker 2: Absolutely. 00:39:33 Speaker 1: But they should not fire him no matter what happens this year. Coming up, over and under achievers across college football and the SEC. That's straight ahead here on Huntington Withrow. John, I think it's been a perfect 10

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Builder-funded rate buy-downs can get you a rate the bank can't print. 00:40:24 Speaker 2: Date the rate. 00:40:25 Speaker 5: Marry the house. Get the house you want now. Refinance and rates come down. Straight talk on what you actually qualify for. Built for real people, not paperwork. Perfect10Mortgage. com or call them at 855-789-1010. That's Perfect10Mortgage. com. Perfect 10 Mortgage is an equal housing lender. Perfect 10 Mortgage is a DBA or network funding LP. NMLS number 2297. Equal housing lender. All borrowers must qualify. This advertisement is not a promise to make alone. 00:40:50 Speaker 2: Coming up, we have one big thing on every NFL game, plus Conrad Thompson joins us. 00:40:54 Speaker 1: Right now, the 25 most expensive rosters not in the top 25. So looking at them, right at the top, the most expensive unranked rosters, Oregon, Texas A & M, Michigan, Oklahoma, Penn State. The money doesn't surprise me based on the competitive level of these conferences, but Chad, it's the SEC and the Big Ten, and these teams are, well, they may have been all in two or three years ago with this number, but they've kept the number right where it was. They're finally reaching the level of LSU, courtesy of 2024. 00:41:30 Speaker 2: We've seen the other rosters go way up. 00:41:33 Speaker 1: Michigan, though, Texas A & M, Oregon, the teams at the top have an expectation of not just top 25, but college football playoff numbers. And if you start looking at the bottom of the top 10, Florida State, Vanderbilt, Clemson, Auburn, maybe some teams that are not in rebuild mode, but in a level that's not up to the standard or the expectation, I think is a better word, of what the top five looks like here. 00:42:00 Speaker 5: I think the number is either 10 or 11 of programs that spend $ 40- plus million. And I believe the number is one, maybe two, that spend plus $ 50 million. That's Texas and maybe Ohio State. On that list, it's closer to 50. Oregon at $ 43 million, not being in the top 25. Their quarterback got hurt, a big reason why. And they had a disappointing loss early at Oklahoma State. 00:42:25 Speaker 2: Even at the start, they were getting out slow to the gate. 00:42:28 Speaker 5: I'm surprised they're $ 10 million more than A & M and that Michigan. They're $ 10 million. 00:42:34 Speaker 2: Less than Oregon. 00:42:34 Speaker 5: I thought that would be a little bit closer, honestly, with the amount they're spending. Vanderbilt spends more than Nebraska. 00:42:41 Speaker 2: On football. Vanderbilt being this high surprised me. Yeah. 24.5 million. But higher than Nebraska, higher than South Carolina. 00:42:51 Speaker 5: I mean, think about the dudes on South Carolina's roster. 00:42:55 Speaker 2: They're 12th at 21 million. But you know what? 00:42:57 Speaker 1: There's only $ 4 million that separate 25th from Vanderbilt. 00:43:02 Speaker 2: You know? Yeah. You're tight on the money there. 00:43:05 Speaker 1: What that tells me is there are a lot of programs– They're just spending $ 20 million to $ 25 million for the opportunity to be in the top 25 and go to a top-tier bowl. Yeah, and next year being in the top 25 could get you in the playoff, as long as you're not number 25. So that'll be a big gain and a big difference for those teams. Clemson at $ 25 million jumped out to me a little bit. I mean, Mississippi State, you want to talk about how it's hard to compete and contend? $ 21 million is a lot of money on a football roster. 00:43:43 Speaker 5: But when you look around the SEC and you consider Auburn spending $ 6 million more on their players, Vanderbilt spending $ 3 million more, and you've got to contend with it's Mississippi State, which is not the top hot spot for players to go in the SEC, makes things very, very difficult. 00:44:02 Speaker 2: And Colorado's spending at a good clip. 00:44:04 Speaker 5: For what Colorado is right now, I feel like that's still a bit of the shine of Deion Sanders that's getting them that $ 21. 00:44:11 Speaker 2: 5 million. I mean, South. 00:44:14 Speaker 1: Carolina surprised me being this low with all the players who came back. If they hit the portal, they're getting paid more than what they ended up getting just based on the number here. 00:44:26 Speaker 2: I agree. 00:44:28 Speaker 5: Louisville's another one that if they took a little bit of their basketball spending. 00:44:32 Speaker 2: where. 00:44:33 Speaker 5: They're maybe the top spender or one of the top spenders in the sport of college basketball. And understand, Kentucky, a basketball state, Louisville, a basketball school first and foremost. But if they could just give them a little bit of that money to football, how much better they could be in the ACC if they're spending more than that. I mean, could Louisville theoretically spend $ 30 million on their roster? 00:44:53 Speaker 2: I think so. with some of the money in that program. Let's show it again. That's one to watch. 00:44:57 Speaker 1: I want to just look at North Carolina. They went all in with Bill Belichick, but they're not all in with the money compared to

other ACC schools ahead of them. Just looking at the conference comparison, Virginia ahead of them, Louisville, Virginia Tech. There are others. For the money, they're spending $ 10 million more on their entire roster compared to their head coach. You know, like that's that's the surprising part. They went all in with their head coach who when they came in, there's going to be the NFL team of it's going to be the 33rd NFL team or whatever they said. Well, to me, that means more than being outside of the top, the top 25 spending that that much money compared to compared to that of the top five on this list who are not in the top 25. 00:45:43 Speaker 2: Well, and they went all in on Michael Lombardi, who is no longer there. 00:45:47 Speaker 5: They went in on not just Bill Belichick as a coach, but his staff got paid a ton and his support people and everything else. That's where they invested the money where I'll continue to ask the question, what's the smartest route in today's college football to invest that much money in the coach and the staff or to take a little bit of that money from the coach and the staff and reinvest it back in your roster? I think it all depends on the coach and who he has coordinating for. 00:46:13 Speaker 2: Him to answer that question. Chad, what are we looking at next? 00:46:17 Speaker 1: We are going to look at overachievers based on FPI, Football Power Index, of rosters in the SEC from 2021 until now. There is a volunteer state theme to this. 00:46:31 Speaker 5: The two biggest overachievers from 2021 to 2025 based on roster and the value of the roster and the players, recruiting rankings, everything else. Tennessee and Vandy are both in the plus column of overachieving rosters. 00:46:46 Speaker 2: Over those years. 00:46:48 Speaker 5: I think about Tennessee, 2021, they definitely overachieved inheriting a team under NCAA sanctions. 00:46:53 Speaker 2: 2022, absolutely overachieved. 00:46:55 Speaker 5: Based on what they were expected to be that year. 2023, about where people thought. 2024, about where they thought, maybe a little bit better. 2025, around with the expectation. And now 2026, they are exceeding expectation right now at six and one. So that's a really good, this is a good graphic for both Josh Heupel and Clark Lee. Now, overachieving at Vandy in that 10-2 season, especially, there's various levels to this because Vandy hasn't had a ton of success other than the two seasons with Diego, the last two years. But they still could not have a lot of success and technically be overachieving. based on the talent on the roster, right? So that's something to keep in mind with this. Ole Miss, obviously doing a good job. Georgia, even with all their talent, still overachieving. 00:47:46 Speaker 2: Yes, absolutely. Look at the difference between Georgia and Alabama on this list. 00:47:50 Speaker 1: Well, then look at the difference between Tennessee and Florida on the list and the players in the state of Florida that the Gators still get in recruiting and the lack of wins that have followed with that program. 00:48:02 Speaker 2: A & M is a no-brainer. I thought A & M would be lower. 00:48:05 Speaker 5: Yeah, and I mean, LSU, the Brian Kelly years drugged them down, obviously, with those numbers were their way down the list. 00:48:12 Speaker 2: But found that interesting. State of Tennessee should be very proud. 00:48:16 Speaker 5: A couple of overachievers in Tennessee and Vandy based on metrics of talent on those two rosters and what they've done each season. 00:48:24 Speaker 1: Coming up, one big thing on every NFL game to get you ready for week seven, already week seven for the National Football League. 00:48:32 Speaker 2: Straight ahead.