Boomo Bugg Show 011226

[0:00] Now, get ready to roll, Shoals, Decatur, Athens, and all of Northwest Alabama and Southern Tennessee. It's time for the Valley's exclusive FM Sports Voice. The Boomo Bugg Show. Your exclusive inside track to the Tigers, Tennessee and the rest of the SEC. Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9. The Score. Good afternoon and welcome in to the Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us a free ride around the Tennessee Bats. Brett Beaird, welcome in where Auburn says, not so fast, my friend, while the Longhorns take a Texas-sized stick to Alabama basketball and football.

Good afternoon. Welcome in. And it's just safe to say now we know why Nick Saban said this stuff. Happy Monday to you. Yes, I think everybody kind of figured that out. We'll give you the latest on the football transfer portable for Alabama, Auburn and Tennessee. And Miami offers Ty Simpson $6.5 million to skip the NFL and replace Carson Beck. Wow. UNA and Auburn win Saturday in basketball. And as you alluded to, Alabama loses a tough game to Texas. And Nate Oates isn't happy one bit about it.

Adam is here right now to recap the COP semifinals and talk some SEC men's basketball. Adam Spencer busy there. It's Saturday down south. Adam, welcome in. Did we ever think we'd have a day where you'd take a pay cut to go to the NFL and give up college? How are you? I'm doing great, guys. How are you? Hey, buddy. We're confused, Adam. We are so confused. Where in the world do you start? Obviously, basketball, big weekend, but we know where we are with football. Let's start with the portal. About a week to go, Friday is the so-called deadline to get the paperwork in and all that stuff.

There'll still be some trickle down, of course, after the championship games. But your thoughts, basically, let's just use an example over the weekend for Alabama. Cam Coleman and the Smothers brothers, the guy from North Carolina State, Hollywood Smothers. The name, we're going to tell you something right there. How many of these kids are saying, I'm going to go to a private school, get my leverage up, take the money? I've seen one report where these kids get like $50,000 just to visit, knowing the whole time what they're going to do.

So I'll take that money. I'll get school B to sit here and up the ante, and then I'll leave the other guys saying, sorry, I'm going to richer and greener pastures. Where are we with this portal? And is there any hope that this thing will ever get back in control once they get some grownups in the house with some brains? Yeah, I mean, I think that the biggest hope for some normalcy and some, you know, some less crazy player movement happened in Washington. You know, when DeMond Williams Jr. signed that contract for $4 million with Washington, reportedly, and then tried to enter the portal, you know, allegedly to go to LSU.

Well, you know, Washington, I think, did the right thing. I mean, it's going to be tough. It's going to be tough to, like, have, you know, the player who wanted to leave the school come back to that locker room. I mean, I'm sure Jed Fish will try to make it work as best he can, but, you know, that's going to be tough. But I applaud Washington for, you know, these guys, you know, when you're, you know, 18-plus in our society, you are an adult. So he's an adult.

He signed a contract. That's right. You know, and he's being helped to that. And I think, you know, and it wasn't like you have to do this. It's like you, you know, you can go to LSU. LSU's just now got, they said you can go to LSU. LSU just has to pay your contract here. So, you know, it would have been like $8.5 million or whatever for LSU to sign him instead of the $4.5 that they were, you know, maybe offering to get him to leave his $4 million contract in Washington.

So, you know, I think that that's the hope there for, you know, some normalcy to return, you know, because if you just treat it like contract, that's fine. And you're still going to have the player movement being crazy, but as long as once the player decides he can't change his mind three times before and during one offseason, I think that that's good. But I think we're going to see these guys, you know, I was surprised last year when Quinn Ewers left Texas and didn't transfer and went to the NFL.

You know, now he got a couple of starts for the Dolphins this year and looked decent, but, you know, I thought that he could have made a lot more money, you know, out of Miami or something like that. You know, so we'll see what happens moving forward, but there have been a couple of encouraging signs, even amidst all the chaos. I appreciate you bringing it up being 18 plus. There's a lot of cemeteries out there with dead soldiers who died in battle at 18 plus. So don't, don't play the, I'm just a kid card.

Those guys pay the ultimate price at 18. So I appreciate you bringing that up. Your thoughts about the direction though, with, with teams, because let's face it, let's not kid ourselves here. Indiana is the outlier, but it just seems like going forward, those with money are going to sit here and have their way. They're going to drive the bus. It's like a husband going to his wife and saying, you know what? I got your boat. She says, yeah, but it's a dinghy from Walmart. Bezos bought his wife a yacht.

[5:18] So just because you've got two boats, they're not the same. The point being, everybody's going to come down on killing the board for what happened over the weekend. But what is a coach going to do when basically I was born into my family and somebody else was born into the Walton family? Yeah, you know, I think, I think something, I'm going to test drive a take that I've been thinking of with you guys here. So brace yourselves here. But I think that, I think that the first school that kind of figures out how to create a minor league system is going to be dominant in the sport.

Like, let's say Indiana, you know, they, cause they basically did, you know, they brought a dignity in and then he brought some money himself, but they have, you know, they have, uh, they brought, uh, James Madison's best players over and their coach. And, uh, here they are in year two, undefeated big 10 title already and a chance to win the national title. So, you know, what I just don't understand if they're, if you're not recruiting high school, five stars, I don't know why you want high school players on your roster.

anymore. If you're a big time program, I don't know why you would pay a guy NIL money for a year, only to see him transfer when he doesn't get it. So like, let's say Indiana, for example, if they use the lesser in state school, like, you know, IUPUI or something like that. Um, if they just pay, if they have a donor boost that athletic program, they're like, Hey, we're going to stash. Like we're going to stash like 12 four-star guys down here for a couple of years. Uh, it's going to be crazy. You guys are going to compete like crazy in your division, but then when they're ready and we need them, it's like a transfer system. Like, I just think that we're heading towards like that baseball system of like, cause we're already doing it. You know, the power programs are, you know, we're even rating a Ferris state, you know, the Lane Gibbons saw something in Trinidad Chambliss to give them a backup spot. And that story, you know, couldn't have played out better.

I mean, I just don't, you know, even Stetson Bennett at Georgia, he, you know, he started at Georgia as a walk-on, but then he had to leave to get some playing time. And then he came back to Georgia and became a hero. So, you know, I just don't know why we're, if you're a big time coach in a big time program, I just don't know why you would pay a high school player's NIL salary unless he's like a five-star, like a deuce night type guy. So, I mean, that's just where I'm at with this. And, uh, you know, we'll see if more guys start taking that method.

It's going to be interesting. Uh, Adam, um, last Wednesday, Ty Simpson announces he is going to the NFL and the pressure to win now in the interim and to replace, um, high caliber quarterbacks, Carson Banks leaving Miami, Joey Aguilar is fighting to get another year of eligibility with the Diego Pavia lawsuit. But a lot of people say it's probably not going to happen. And the NCAA turns down Trinidad Chambliss. So, uh, even though Ty Simpson announced he's going to the NFL, Miami's offered him, according to two or three media sources, $6.5 million.

Tennessee's offered four. Ole Miss has offered four. And since the portal opened January the 2nd, 383. And believe me, that that's, uh, probably close to 400 today. As of yesterday, 383 players, um, 383 hundred have hit the portal. Uh, Adam, your thoughts on the number. That's only going to increase in quarterback. Uh, believe me, you can make a lot of money if you're a high caliber quarterback now. Yeah. I think, you know, Ty Simpson's dad said something about when, you know, when they've talked to, uh, to like scouts and GMs and stuff like that during this pre-draft process, I think his quote was that nobody has said second round.

You know, I think the implication there is that first round, but it's like, Hey, you know, there's, there's seven rounds of this draft. So just because somebody says he's not a second round pick, you know, if you read between the lines, your third, fourth, fifth, yeah. Like, so I, you know, I, I want, I would want more clarification on that. I would want, uh, you know, people to say like, Hey, no, you're a first round pick, but if he's a first round pick, you go to the NFL.

Um, cause you know, you, you might not get that chance. I mean, look at Carson Beck. I mean, I don't think he'd get it. Like he took the one year deal to go to Miami. And I mean, obviously if he wins the national championship, he'll be, you know, set for life down there. But like, he's not going to be a first round pick in the NFL draft anymore. And he might've been coming out of Georgia one of those years. Um, you know, he had a lot of buzz. So, you know, you, if you get the NFL buzz, you have to, you have to take a chance, you know, but like, if you're a guy like Quinn Ewers, if you're getting, you know, a third or fourth round draft grade, if you still have eligibility left and somebody's dangling $6.5 million at you and that's, uh, you know, I would not fault Ty Simpson at all.

If, um, and you know, you know, I think that much like the NBA, the NBA guys, the college guys that play basketball, you know, they can go through the NBA combine before they have to make a final decision. I would like to see that change. You know, they've already set the president with basketball. So if they try to block Ty Simpson, if he goes through the combine, and doesn't perform well or something, and you know, his stock drops, like you should just say like, okay, I'm coming back to school. And if the NCAA says, no, just do them like everybody else does, you know, they just try to figure that out.

[10:41] And, uh, you take that money from Miami, but you know, we'll see. I, it would be hard to pass up 6.5 million. If you're not a guaranteed first round pick though. Some days, Brenton, I don't make that much. Adam Spencer Saturday down south. Adam, the good news, you mentioned Miami and, uh, everybody down there. You're, you're, you're playing for the national championship game. More good news. You're playing at home. The bad news. You're playing Indiana. You're playing Indiana who right now they're not beating people. They're simply embarrassing and taking away the manhood. Yeah. I mean, that Indiana team is, uh, you know, everybody's made the comparison. It does look like, uh, Nick Saban, Alabama team right now.

That's terrifying. I mean, you know, that defense is everywhere. Um, you know, it, it, it, that defense is so good right now that people are like spouting like ridiculous, uh, uh, conspiracy theories that they're like hacking into, uh, systems on, uh, other teams and, uh, stealing their playbooks. Basically it's like that. That's what level of dominance Indiana has reached. That it just looks like they're a step ahead of everybody else. So, uh, yeah, credit to Kurt Signetti. I mean, yeah, like I said, you know, bringing the key guys from, uh, from JMU to build the, the talent level and, uh, you know, just hitting time after time again in the portal, you know, getting him being in the backfield, getting, uh, you know, Mendoza obviously went and won the Heisman trophy, you know, which is a crazy thing to say about, uh, an Indiana player in general. So, I mean, yeah, credit to him for what he's built.

That Miami defense is going to be nasty, but, uh, you know, Fernando Mendoza is a Miami kid too. So it's a, it's a home game for him too. It's a, I think it's going to be a heck of a game and, uh, just probably hopefully one of the better national championship games we've had in a long time. Yeah, I agree. Mendoza's family lives literally one mile from the, from the Miami campus. I thought that was interesting. We'll get into SEC basketball with you a lot more in the weeks to come.

Very impressive. You know, how long is it going to take for Bucky ball to win in the SEC? Oh, about two weeks. Two minutes. He is three and O now, um, signs that controversial inning against Auburn. He is a tremendous coach. Bandy, uh, undefeated still on the season. Auburn gets off the skids to beat Arkansas 95 to 73. And Nick Saban, Nick Saban, Nate, Nate Oates is not happy. Uh, Texas holds on to beat Alabama 92 to 88, despite many opportunities to win that game at the end for Alabama.

Nate Oates asks his players after the game, are you tired of losing? Uh, or let me know when you're tired of losing. Cause I certainly am. Uh, we're going to get into a lot more of this and I know you're going to have a lot more about SEC basketball, but where can we get your stuff? Joe Cox, Connor O'Gara, Connor O'Gara and all the teams, good stuff online. Yeah. Saturdaydownsouth.com. We've, uh, got some big stuff coming ahead of the national championship game next week. And, uh, Connor is a Indiana graduate. So, uh, so he wrote a nice piece today. So go check that out too, about what it means for him as a Hoosier.

Um, so yeah, Saturdaydownsouth.com for all, all the basketball and, uh, football stuff. Adam, thanks so much for your time today. Have a great week. Okay, buddy. Yeah, it sounds good. You guys too. Talk to you soon. Adam Spencer, Saturdaydownsouth.com. It's funny how we as fans are, baby. I was at yesterday and, uh, where I live, it's kind of an eclectic mix of fan bases. I've seen something. I've lived here a long time. I saw something yesterday. I've never seen. It was a giant Indiana flag. I think they had to dust off about four inches to get that thing up.

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Max Howell, welcome in. Help us make sense of college football 2026. How are you? Well, you know, coming from me, you're going to find this probably a little unusual. The key word is old. I pulled up some numbers last night while I was prepping the shows today. Don't think that Signetti at Indiana has got a bunch of snotty-nosed freshmen. The average age on that team, 24 years old. There you go. That's right. So, you know, a lot of people think because he went to the pool and got several players out of it, without a doubt, and he broke, I think, 17 from James Madison when he came two years ago.

But all that, guys, the maturity thing in any industry, you know that, plays a major role. And I'm really not surprised. And I'm going to go out on a limb today and say, I think they can beat Miami. They don't have the talent, per se, in every position Miami's got, but they don't make wrong decisions. They don't make errors. They don't hold. They don't jump off sides. You know, they don't hit late. They don't make those kind of – and I believe Miami's got kind of a track record for that, to say the least.

[21:24] So, you know, I think it's going to go back and forth. I think the score will probably be somewhere in the 30s. But I do like Indiana. I like what Signetti's doing. He probably has taken a page out of Nick Saban's book. Probably as good as anybody who's ever been through his program. Well, he sets boundaries and he enforces it. Now you've got a bunch of – they're basically sitting here. These coaches can tell they're scared that someone's going to, you know, transfer out. To which, Kurt Signetti, Nick Saban says, which door do you want to choose?

I'll put a boot in your butt and you can go right now. Here we go. How many coaches are going to sit here and say, now, this is the way to go? And the reason I bring that up, Max, I'm looking at what is happening now in the portal. Back in the day, if Alabama fans saw a four-star, they were starting to panic. Why is he not a five-star? And then went to a three-star. Over the past few days, they basically have lost a lot of four- and five-stars that were there.

They've replaced them with three-stars. They're getting guys from Mercer, Jack State, and other places. How much is the budget now, especially when these rosters are expanding to 105, how much of it is I just got to go out and do a better job of evaluating and get a big bang for my buck? Well, I don't think there's anything wrong with that. But I had – and you guys know where on Monday morning who show up over in Tuscaloosa. And I'm going to tell you, I had a hardcore 30-minute discussion with them this morning.

But they came at me like, well, Alabama can't compete with Texas and A&M. You know why they can't compete? Because they don't ask them for the money. I'm telling you, I was right in the middle of the Ole Miss situation. Guys, they went from 200 to 15,000 contributors for that portal over there. Now, a lot of those guys don't give us $20 or $50 a month. But you know what they uncovered? They uncovered two guys in Texas. One wrote a $30 million check and one wrote a $20 million check. So my position on that is ask them.

You've got to ask them. And let me just give you one more number. You compare what Ole Miss has in the national audience out there. Ole Miss has got about 200,000 people that either are graduates or have been boosters for that club. You know how many the University of Alabama has? 600,000. So I'm just saying, the reason, if they're giving you the poor mouth of we can't afford it in a school like Alabama, they had to ask them. And I'm going to give you one other statement I made.

They said, well, how are you going to correct that? In my opinion, you either do one thing. You either get in the game or you quit. That's right. Ain't nobody going to feel sorry for it. You can't sell the logo for so long. The logo is going to sell for so long. You're absolutely right. And that's what I'll say. I lose patience sometimes. And, of course, you know, my background, I've jumped around and done a lot of things. But where I am right now in my career, I don't regret that now.

I did it some of the times because I lost some money along the way. But you know what? When it's all over, you can sit back and say, hey, you know, I was able to watch this, this, and this. And it helped me do this, this, and this. You know, and I just kind of get frustrated with some of the fan base would say, well, you know, we can't compete, so we're going to settle for eight and four or nine and three seasons. You don't settle.

You don't settle for anything. Where do you put the bar? It'd make it. I tell you, I get fired up about people in programs like Alabama that start trying to give me the poor mouth situation. That's ridiculous. All I've got to do is roll up a sleeve and go to work. And if Cigney is not the absolute perfect example of that, I don't know where Woody is out there in the country right now. Max, when you watch Cincinnati, and you alluded to this, they just don't beat themselves.

They're plus 20 or 21 in turnovers for the year. They're so efficient. They don't jump off signs. They don't have personal foul, late hits, and all this other stuff that you see. When you watch him and his staff coach on the sideline, Max, what do you see? Well, you know, sometimes it's not exactly like what's in the book, if you don't know the truth. You know, I think I look at it from a technical standpoint, Brent. I really do. I told you before, I chart every game down.

I don't go anywhere with sitting in my bed. I sit in my bed with a notebook. Because I want to know how these teams are progressing. You know, and I can single out coaches, and I say that's why I look at Indiana, per se. I think they are a team that, without a doubt, Miami has got more talent. I don't doubt that. So, Alabama and Ohio State. That's right. Yeah, you're right. But you know what, Ole Miss against Miami, they formation them out of keeping those big rushes from coming.

They put three guys on one side, and when they do that, that rush in has to become a pass defender. So, he didn't come and pressure on the quarterback. There's several things like that you can do to utilize some of that, you know, some of that big-time talent that they've got at Miami. But I still go back and say, they make few mistakes. They'll play hard. And I think if they can win the ballgame, if they do that every time, and I'm going strict on what we've seen up to now, about what the line is, seven and a half right now.

[26:58] In the NFL, I don't know whether they win by that much, but I think they can win by three. And that's what I'm going to say is the score will be in the 30s, and I'm going to say they'll probably win it by three points. Max, back and forth, it's good to have a lot of potential in a name like Deuce, is it not? I saw a report here in the Magnolia State. Is he at Ole Miss now? And if so, what does that say about the lawyers?

That's a law school. They like money. They love litigation about their case with Chambliss fighting that case there. I saw where Ole Miss is offering, at least according to the reports, Ty Simpson four mil. Why would they bring in Deuce Knight if they're serious about that? Your thoughts about Deuce Knight now at Ole Miss, and if you're Ty Simpson, do you take six and a half million dollars, or are you trying to get more money with the NFL draft? Well, you know, who knows about that?

That was part of my discussion this morning earlier. It was a lot about the agents that handled those guys. And, you know, well, they just go win either way. You know that. That's right. It's like Vegas. They're going to win either way. That's right. You're right. They're going to get this all right off the top. But, you know, I'll tell you what, as far as lawsuits are concerned, that court will probably be held in a federal court right there in Oxford. That's in Oxford. Well, let me just tell you, I know the judge.

The judge, you know where the judge lives? The federal judge at that court? That judge is in Fulton, Mississippi. I know her. You hear what I said? I know her. So I'm just telling you, Ole Miss will win that case. I can almost promise you they will. And, of course, he'll get another year. You know, I don't think probably he's 25 years old now. I don't think he'll try to go to the NFL. He may, you know, I don't think he'll get a high draft situation. Much like Ty Simpson, I think he's going to shuffle around.

And I think Miami's offered him $6.5 million to come out there. Yeah. So, you know, he better jump on that because that's more he'll make as a rookie in the NFL. And so, but if he doesn't go there, he'll go to Tennessee and play it. You know, he'll probably be the star at Tennessee next year if he goes. So, I mean, here's the thing that all of us has to understand, guys, that this game is changing. All the, you know, that used to be under the table stuff and you had to creep around.

That's all out in the open now. I mean, there are no, there are no secrets. I mean, if a kid's off for $4 million. And no McDonald's sandwich bags. Right. I mean, you're right. It's all out there. I mean, you know, if you can't handle that, you might, you know, you might need to look to another profession if you're coaching because that's the way it's going to be. The NFL's got its fingers all over it, their fingerprints all over it. Okay. You can't argue with the system that the NFL's got.

I mean, I believe there's probably, if you go into the industry, into the business world, it's probably grossing as much money for that size of business as anybody in the world, to tell you the truth. And very little, you know, other than salaries, they ain't got a lot of experience either. Because most of the stadiums are owned by the cities that they're in. Yeah, that's right. Taxpayers. I'm just saying that, you know, that's right. So, the whole thing is changing. And if you can't be flexible enough to understand it, my position always has been when this thing started.

And I know some of the guys my age and up, not me to leave it up, but close to my age, they said, well, how's this game going? It's running the game. No, it's not running the game. It's changing the game. The young guys coming along, and I put Kiffin in that bunch because everybody knows him by now. You adjust. You just make adjustments to that. You know, I believe they finally signed the Levitt kid. That was the quarterback they wanted at LSU. Well, you know what?

He had to get on the plane and follow him around for the last two stops he made, going to other teams to see what they were. And I think he was matching. Whatever they offered, he matched it or upped it. But he got him. That was the whole key. This time next year, nobody will even remember that. All they'll remember is they probably won 10-11 ballgames with him. So I just say all that to say that, you know, for you listeners out there, don't get frustrated.

You know, this is off-season. This is the second year we've been through all this stuff. And the media loves it because it's different. And everybody's interested in it right now. But you know what? Next year for the lineup, kick it off, all this stuff is forgotten. It's who wins on that football field next fall, starting in September. Max, as usual, we're delighted to have you on to explain that because I've heard a lot of frustrations from friends who've been following this sport for decades. And I've heard a lot of the same frustrations from them.

[31:58] But you're right. You've got to adapt now to this. And if you're not, you're going to be left behind. Listen, great conversation. If you will, let us talk with you one more Monday. I know we take a break with you after football season. But let us talk with you one more Monday. And have a great, great week. Thank you, guys. It's always my pleasure. I'd love to be here to explain and talk to you. Absolutely. If you don't, we're going to follow you around like Lane Kiffin until you say yes.

That's Max. Max Alhuggin' with us from the great state of what Lane used to say. Coming up, time to keep up with the Joneses. It's Caleb Jones on deck. Stay with us. There are many advantages of doing business with an independent insurance agent. Page Borden Insurance in Tuscumbia and MJ Carter & Company Insurance in Florence can show you. An independent insurance agent is not tied to just one company in order to get you the coverage you need at a competitive price. Go by and see MJ Carter & Company Insurance at 127 South Court Street or call 256-760-9999.

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Or go in VIP style for $350 or $600 per couple. Shoals Royale 2026, Saturday, February 21st at 7 p.m. at the Renaissance Shoals Conference Center. Tickets are available now at givebutter.com slash Shoals Royale 2026. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. It is an absolute pleasure for us on the door and say hello to Caleb Jones. He's got the Auburn Tigers covered at scorehouseauburnsports.com. Caleb, welcome in. Happy Monday to you. How are you? Man, I'm sipping on an energy drink because it's been a busy new year for me and the rest of the crew at auburnsports.com, but I'm doing great, man.

[37:18] Thanks for having me on. It's a whole new way of losing weight with a new year. Just try to cover this portal. Let's do the math if you don't mind, Caleb. Fans like to get there with some numbers here. Where's the math right now for Auburn? How many have gone and how many have come as far as the portal story goes? Auburn's lost a little north of 30 players from the portal. Whether that be some guys that they wanted to keep or, you know, it's a mix of guys that they wanted to keep.

It's also some guys that maybe, you know, need a new start, a fresh start somewhere. But Auburn's got, as of, you know, this hour, Auburn has 23 guys expected to come in next season from other places. Let me ask you, listen, you're not kidding. I mean, this changes by the hour. Auburn had 16, I believe, Friday. They added six over the weekend. They added Shamar Arnaud, I believe, and correct me with that, the Florida State transfer, I believe, to get up to 27. But Andre Jordan Jr., the cornerback from UCLA.

Nate Johnson, the edge rusher from Missouri. St. Farrier, the defensive lineman from Alp State. Jake Johnson, the tight end from North Carolina. Bryson Washington, the running back from Baylor. And that may be the best of the lot, at least for this weekend. Very impressive kid. And then Arnaud I mentioned. And then Tristan, T.A., I'll let you pronounce that for me, the quarterback, who's a Oregon State transfer. Am I correct with those guys since Friday? Yeah, Auburn's been busy ever since the first couple of days.

It's kind of worked out to where guys are figuring out if they're going to go to the portal or not. And then you start seeing some guys get on campus for visits. And let me tell you, this staff has been absolutely busy as far as hosting guys nonstop, really, ever since that portal opened. And I think, I want to say I did the math the other day, and it was like Auburn signed a guy or had a guy commit every day since, like, January 3rd or 4th.

Like, every day they've had somebody new jump on board via the transfer portal. And, I mean, that's kind of expected, just with, you know, the amount of kids that are heading elsewhere from Auburn. And so, I mean, this staff's done a really nice job, I think, of getting guys on campus and then essentially keeping them on campus, if that makes sense. And, you know, just they're not really letting them leave until they get that commitment, that signing for most of the guys that they've wanted that they've had on campus.

Cam, have us out with this. We don't have the numbers in front of us. Maybe you have more information. As far as visits, what are these, as far as a school, if I want to bring Caleb Jones in, you're a five-star, how much money am I going to pay you just to visit? Because, let's face it, these kids cannot lose, even if they know up front pretty much where they're going to go, but if you're going to give me this much money just to come visit, I'll come and I'll talk it up, I'll say what I'm supposed to say, and then cash that check and then go on and get the bigger bucks.

Your thoughts on that, and we had a guest on earlier from Saturday down south, that brought up a good point. Our coaches now come into a point where they're going to have to make up their minds as far as putting rosters together in the future. Either go out and aggressively try to get these five-stars out of high school and develop them, or just say, we're not going to take that chance. We're going to go Indiana, bring in all these older guys, and every year we know, we know that we're going to sit here and replenish our roster every year because if I bring you in a five-star, two things are going to happen.

Either I'm going to waste my money because you're not going to live up to it, or you're going to be very good and you're going to go somewhere else, and I'm wasting my investment either way. Caleb, your thoughts just about what kind of money are these kids getting just to visit, and the strategy going forward with these coaches. Are they going to have to do like Indiana, or are they going to have to do like some of these other schools and go the high school route?

I think it's different for every coaching staff as far as kind of how they want to approach it. As far as like exact numbers, I think it varies by position as far as either. I mean, obviously quarterback is going to draw the big bucks there. Offensive line is going to draw, you know, some big bucks, skill position guys. So I think as far as specific numbers goes, it definitely varies by position. But kind of going back to what you're saying about, is it even worth signing some of these five stars?

I still think there's value in signing some of those, but it's 1,000% a balance of finding the guys that fit. And one thing that I think Alex Golesh and the staff have done is they evaluated Auburn's roster, and they basically said, okay, this is how you feel, this is how we feel, this is how much these guys are worth. This is their value. And it's like, okay, this staff is not going to overpay, right? They're not going to overpay a guy to just be on the roster.

These guys… I'm going to call him an example. Yeah, Cam's a great example. Now, Cam is a fantastic football player. He's a fantastic receiver. I think he's going to fit in great, you know, with Texas, and he's going to go out and probably ball out over there. But Auburn's done a nice job, I think, kind of supplementing their losses through the portal and finding guys that fit what they want to do on offense that you kind of have to balance. It's almost like budgeting a little bit, you know?

[42:42] That's it. But if you look at what Indiana's done, and you mentioned them earlier, Indiana's kind of like, it's a wild thing to sit here and see just a bunch of three stars. There's maybe one or two glue-chip guys on that roster. But Cignetti's got them bought in, and they're playing at an incredibly high level that I don't think anybody else in the country could have predicted. And a lot of those guys, they're kind of one of the older rosters in college football, and I think there's value in that as well.

So I think it's definitely a mix as far as, okay, well, this five-star, is he going to be an elite? Because there's a lot of five-stars that can come in, and they can play right away, right? There are some other guys that are going to be really highly ranked that are going to come in, and they're not going to be college-ready. And I think Deuce Knight's a really good example of that, where Deuce came in, and he's just a raw talent, right? Deuce was going to need a year or two to develop and fit in and pick up the speed of the college game.

You saw it a little bit when he played against Ball State when he was with Auburn. He kind of came out a little shaky, had some kind of bad throws, some plays that were just kind of like, ooh, I don't know. And then he looked totally, he looked way more comfortable later on in the season against Mercer. Now, granted, you know, Mercer and Ball State, FCS, FBS, say what you will about that. But I thought Deuce looked a lot more comfortable. Now he's going to Ole Miss.

We'll see kind of what the situation over there shakes out to be. But, you know, it's all about finding the right guys that you feel can make an immediate impact and then just kind of balancing that out with other guys that have already been there and fit what you want to establish, not only as like an X's and O's identity, but also from a culture standpoint, you know? Let me ask you about position of need and every team needs to win the line of scrimmage. On the defensive line, Auburn signed or got a commitment from St. Farrier, Arkansas State transfer, Cody Sigler.

On the offensive line, Stanton Ramil and Joseph Simmons. I know they've had Ohio State transfer, Tegra Chibola, I believe is how you pronounce it, and Cole Bass from U.S. South Florida and Cole Skinner. They've got two right now on both lines of scrimmages. How many more would they like to get on the offensive line and defensive line? Yeah, I would say there's a need for maybe three or four more guys along the offensive line, just kind of a mix. Maybe you get, you know, another tackle, another guard, and then maybe another guy that can kind of play both, you know, somebody that can switch between, you know, outside and inside.

And then along the defensive line, just a couple more bodies, you know, maybe two or three more guys along the defensive line. You saw it last season, Evontrail, King-Williams, and D.J. Durkin, kind of what they're able to go and establish on the defensive line is they establish a pretty deep rotation of guys where guys getting a little tired, he comes out, the next guy up, and they're ready to rock and roll. So I think you'll probably see Auburn maybe try and add some more guys along, add some more depth along that defensive line, just to have some more guys in the rotation.

But they've got a couple of guys, you know, in Cody Siegler and St. Ferrier, who I think Auburn's really high on. I think they have really high expectations for those guys being able to come in and contribute. Auburn's also got some young guys that I think are primed for an opportunity to really step up along the defensive line. Just coming in, you know, looking at, you know, Jordan Crawford, a nose tackle who's coming back. Malik Autry is another guy that you could really expect to step up.

And both of those guys, Malik Autry was really highly rated out of high school. Jordan was not as highly rated as Autry was. But, I mean, you can look at that dude and say that's a SEC defensive lineman. So, I look for those guys to really step up in the rotation and maybe see Auburn try and buff it up a little bit more through the portal. Caleb Jones, AuburnSports.com. Caleb, a lot of folks had the Auburn basketball team written off and then Lazarus came out of the ashes over the weekend.

They not only beat Arkansas, they spanked them. Yeah, I mean, John Calipari, one of the first things that he says when he walks into the post-game press conferences, he's talking about prior to the game on Saturday night, Arkansas' three losses were to top ten teams. Every single one of those games, Arkansas had a chance. Main difference Saturday night, Arkansas, it felt like they did not have a chance. That's what Calipari was saying. He said he's not even going to watch that tape. He said it's not his team.

[47:43] Burn it. Exactly, man. Auburn did exactly what it needed to on Saturday night. I think that speaks a lot to this team and kind of the last two games that they played at Georgia and then, of course, the controversial buzzer beater at home to Texas A&M. This team could have easily been down and just had that still on their mind, but they didn't. They flushed it, and they whooped Arkansas in pretty much every aspect of that game. It was not even close. Once Auburn got out in front by about eight or ten points there in the first half, no shot.

Arkansas didn't go on a run where they cut it close. I mean, it was just pure domination by Auburn. Absolutely. Dead period for the next three days in parentheses. I don't know how dead it's going to be. I don't believe you can make official visits, but I can assure you teams and players and agents will be texting and making phone calls. Great stuff. Great summary where Auburn is right now. As you well know, Brian Matthews has been a staple on the show for years. We're delighted to talk to you again.

Where can we get online, keep up with transfer, portal, recruiting, all sorts of stuff? Yeah, absolutely. Kind of like you said, it is going to be a dead period for the next three days. That means nobody's going to be visiting campus or anything like that. It doesn't mean that transfers aren't going to be making decisions. And so you can find all of that stuff on auburnsports.com, part of the On3 network. We'll have all the breaking news, whether that be Auburn football transfer portal, Auburn basketball.

We'll have transfer trackers. J.G. Tate, one of our fantastic writers over there, has a daily portal palooza that goes out. That way, if you don't have time to keep up with everything, there's one that's got everything on it. Just daily updates. Here's what happened. Here's who Auburn added. So we've got really anything that you need, anything that you want, can be found on auburnsports.com. We've got a great community over there, two message boards, the corner, the bunker. You can talk with fellow Auburn fans about what's going on, the latest happenings in Auburn Athletics.

I'm sure Lane Kiffin will obey that edict of not having any contact, any shape, form, or fashion. Two words, Caleb, energy drink, okay? Absolutely. Keep it going. Thank you, Bill. Thank you so much. Caleb Jones, looking up with us, auburnsports.com. BB, quickly, your thoughts about, obviously, I think yesterday, people, I don't think Cam Coleman was ever in the mix. I just think he used that as leverage to up his ante with Texas to get that easy money on the visit. But your thoughts about the Hollywood Smothered Store, was he ever in, or BB, was it, again, in principle, one of those deals, I'm going to use Alabama to get more money out of Texas?

Well, Harold, that could certainly be the case. Alabama got a commitment, and I don't understand why they did not get a signature with that. Again, that's something only the Alabama coaches can offer, and I know they've been beat up over that, and I also understand they allowed him to go on a trip, but everybody knew once Steve Sarkeesian had the 12 Lamborghinis lined up outside the football office, it was just a matter of time. Now, we'll get into some possibilities to replace Hollywood Smothers at 135 with Redfish, William Barger, but I really don't, in fact, he had even enrolled in Alabama.

He had enrolled in school, and I didn't quite get that, but anyway, we'll talk about potential replacements, but again, I agree with Caleb, trying to keep up with this is an achievement. We're going to try to keep up with the very latest with the Redfish, William Redfish Barger, as you mentioned, that's coming up in the next hour, along with the talk up in Big Orange Country, and the services are in the market, according to the reports for one Ty Simpson and Ben Thomas, he's got the rest of it covered, it's all straight ahead, second hour, Boomo Bugg Show here on Sports Radio 93.9 The Score.

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1819 News. State Senator Chris Elliott believes the West Alabama Corridor Project is already beginning to drain off state funds for other highway projects in Alabama. Elliott was on FM Talk 1065 out of Mobile after the Alabama Department of Transportation announced an end to the Highway 69 Skyland Boulevard project in Tuscaloosa. That decision was made due to lack of funding, and Elliott contends that this will continue to happen since Governor Ivey and ALDOT did not obtain matching federal funds for this project. It's hard to see, looking at the numbers, how the state affords that project when they've conducted themselves like they have by borrowing against future tax, gas tax revenues to the tune of $730 million in West Alabama, and then continuously spending, you know, recurring gas tax revenues in West Alabama for a total, you know, project cost of somewhere around a billion and a half dollars.

You can't do those types of things and do Mobile River and do Northern Beltline and do 565 and do the little bridge over 69 that needs to be done in Tuscaloosa. I'll be back with more Alabama stories after this. Did you know that 70% of people experience a potentially traumatic event in their lifetime and that six out of every 100 adults face PTSD every day? Help us bring hope to these survivors by signing up for your Alabama distinctive PTSD awareness license plate today. The great thing is you can sign up no matter when your current plate renews and the first year is complimentary. All you need is your BIN number on hand. Drive awareness, drive hope, and customize your plate today at at ease.org.

An investigation is now underway in Mobile to find out why a shooting occurred after a high school basketball game at Murphy High School was canceled. One person was seriously injured. No other suspects had been arrested. A fight first broke out before the shooting occurred, some of which was captured on surveillance video. I'm Andrea Tyson. For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com. And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter. Who says vaping isn't addictive? The use of vaping devices has the potential for addiction and dependency. A recent study measured nicotine dependency among traditional cigarette smokers, vape users, and dual users, people who smoke and vape, and found that vape users exhibited twice the dependency of traditional smokers, with dual users showing an even greater dependency. The nicotine delivery methods in vapes can heighten addiction. For more information, visit ul.org slash vaping.

YTK, Rogersville, Athens, Decatur, the Shoals. Sports Radio 93.9, the score. Valley Broadcasting Corporation. Join us for UNA Basketball Night from 7 to 8.30 p.m. on Monday nights from Lost Pizza Shoals. Go inside the UNA Basketball programs with head coaches Tony Pujol and Candy Whitaker, plus hear from UNA players and get four recaps from Atlantic Sunplay each Monday night at Lost Pizza Shoals for UNA Basketball Night from 7 to 8.30 p.m. right here on 93.9, the score. Roar Lions! Missed the Boomo Bugg Show today? Or Bill King or Paul Feinbaum? Missed the last Florence Falcons game? You can access the latest episodes and game broadcasts at our website, 939thescore.com. Click on Podcast and then All Podcasts to access the latest Bumo, Feinbaum, Bill King, and Florence broadcast. That's 939thescore.com. 939thescore.com.

[58:23] 93.9, the score. Weather. Today, sunny with a high around 50. Tonight, mostly clear with a low near 30. Tomorrow, sunny with a high around 55. Tomorrow night, mostly cloudy with a low near 40. Every Wednesday, mostly cloudy with a 20% chance of showers and a high around 55. Your weather from 93.9, the score. Now, get ready to roll. Shoals, Decatur, Athens, and all of Northwest Alabama and Southern Tennessee. It's time for the Valley's exclusive FM Sports Voice. The Boomo Bugg Show. New exclusive inside track to the tie. Tigers, Tennessee, and the rest of the SEC.

Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9, the score. Welcome back in our true living Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us free ride around the Tennessee Valley and for Ben Thomas taking time out of his busy schedule on the other end of the state from North Alabama to South Alabama. Ben Thomas got a cover there at AL.com in the Mobile area. Ben, welcome in. Happy Monday to you. How are you? Hey, I'm doing good. How are you guys doing?

I'm good. Hey, we're doing all right. Interesting time of the year, isn't it, Ben? Seeing all these coaches coming and going. And obviously, the list is pretty long. But to me, one of the more intriguing changes is one Patrick Nix. For the folks who might have missed that story, how surprised were you with his recent news? Well, you know, not terribly surprised. I mean, I'd heard that for a couple weeks. That might happen. I think I even heard it last year. It might happen. You know, now that I think his daughter, his youngest child is a senior this year. And so it seemed like maybe now would be the right time for him to do something different with, you know, Bo starting in the NFL and Caleb at Jacksonville State and those type things. So, you know, it didn't totally catch me off guard. It was interesting, you know, what he's decided to do, which is basically go full-time into the ministry or a version of the ministry, which is, you know, to work with athletes of all ages, but particularly pro athletes, apparently, and pro quarterbacks in feeding the gospel to them and working with them both physically and also mentally and helping them grow spiritually.

So I thought that was interesting. I'm sure Bo's heavily involved in that. And I talked to Patrick last week and he didn't shut the door on, you know, an eventual return to coaching if that's where the Lord leads him. But had a good run there and have to see who's next. Let me, uh, first of all, applaud you for your three-part series, uh, based on an AL.com got the coaches survey that you did. Uh, a lot of this is leading up to reclassification schedule for January the 23rd. And a lot of it is topics that we discussed with you now for years. Uh, should public and private schools be separate? Should they continue to compete against each other? Uh, I'll let you tell us how many coaches, I think it was over 50 that, uh, responded to the survey. And then what should happen when the, um, Alabama high school athletic association and central board votes January, uh, before January 23rd, stay with the traditional plan, uh, stay with the same plan, but possibly remove competitive balance, uh, separate private schools totally from public schools in athletics. You also want to talk with them about, uh, recruiting players. And that's been a big topic, enforcing the rules, et cetera. Summarize, uh, your great three-part series.

Yeah, I think you kind of just did it there for me, Brett. You know, so, um, we've just, like you've mentioned, we've talked about it and I've written about this situation, I think like for 20 years, uh, but certainly since September, you know, when, when the choose act controversy really started, uh, and then when Mr. Harmon, Heath Harmon, the executive director had the meeting with the, uh, 58 independent schools that got, that is, that meeting is what really got me thinking about, uh-oh, we, we may be close to separating this thing. Um, and so, you know, just, just in a way to look at it and try and do something different as we, uh, lead up to January 23rd and week from Friday. And because I'm not sure anybody really knows what's going to happen, um, at, on that day. And I thought, well, you know, I've got all these coaches emails, these football coaches and I'm going to just email them and see what they think and tell them, Hey, you don't have to put your name on it. Um, just tell me what you vote, what would you do and why? And, uh, when you, whenever you say that you won't quote anybody, you get a lot more comments than if you said you were going to quote them. And, and the comments, I think I told you guys last week, we're all over the place. I mean, you know, everybody has an idea of how to make it better. Uh, I would not be want to be in Mr. Farman's seat right now, but basically the, you know, the, and, and I had an email today from a private school head of school that said, well, why did, why would you email football coaches and not superintendents or principals head of schools? And the short answer is those are emails I had number one. And number two, those are the, you know, football is the most heavily interested interest sport, I would say. Um, and you know, this is, we're talking about the fall reclassification. So that's, you know, football, volleyball, cross country, and eventually whatever they do will lead into winter and spring. But that's why, that's, you know, why I polled those guys. Um, so what, what the end results were, were we had 54 people respond, not, I went, I was hoping we'd have more private schools.

[1:04:29] I think only nine or 10 private schools responded, um, and the rest public schools, but basically the, the, the majority felt like we should stay united with some, possibly with some changes. I think 43% said it needs to stay the way it is. I think 31% said, um, separate a private school. So it wasn't, you know, it wasn't a dominating majority, but, um, still I think, and I do think most people believe that we need to keep public and private schools playing together in athletics. Now, whether that's the way it turns out on January 23rd, I don't know, but, uh, I think most people believe that. And again, regardless of what happens, is there an appeal process or is that the gospel? Let me, if you don't mind being, let's try to put a face. Obviously we've got a mixture here. Marcel is a prominent private school. We've got a ton of public schools. Uh, how does it, we live in the real world, we can go to Hollywood and we can escape for a couple hours with fantasy and all that stuff, but the real world come fall, they got to, whatever the rules are, they got to live by it. How's that going to affect as far as the public and private schools? And if we could put a face with it compared to where life has been over the past few years? Well, I'm not sure. It depends on what happens. I mean, you know, if they separate them, I mean, I think that to me as I, and I've gone back and forth on this issue and I don't think anybody really knows. I mean, I've sung to Terry Curtis yesterday about the unfortunate, uh, passing of coach Jimmy Perry. And I just asked him at the end of that conversation, what do you think is going to happen? He obviously is the president of the central board right now. And he said, I really have no idea. He said, I think there'll be multiple plans. And he probably, you know, he may be shading me a little bit. I mean, I'm sure there's some details he's not telling me and we didn't go into, I didn't ask him to go into detail, but, um, I think what he told me was, I think there'll be multiple plans to choose from. And I think that's, that's the case. I think you got to have at this point, you know, some options and, and we don't know what's going to happen between now and next Friday. I mean, the legislature goes back into session tomorrow, the governor's state of the state speeches tomorrow. We know this choose act is kind of, I think that's, she wants that to be her legacy. Um, and so, you know, the legislature could make some rule involving the HSAA, uh, this week or so that, that changes everything. So I, I don't know.

I think I forgot what your question was. Well, as far as just trying to just say, for instance, Mars Hill, let's say that it changes. How would that affect Mars Hill using that as an example of a private school here? Yeah. So, I mean, if, if they separated, you know, that the issue to me would be, you know, I think one travel, I mean, and they're not, like you said, there's not a whole lot of private schools up there. So, so if they're the private schools are in their own association, uh, scheduling travel, you know, how would all that work? And it would, it would hurt the public schools as well. You know, if they can't play during the regular season, you know, public schools would, some public schools would have to travel. And, and the question, you know, there's the other question is, you know, if the HSA decided that's what they wanted to do. And like we all said, we've talked about this for years and years, then, you know, what's stopping the private schools from saying, well, we're not going to be in the association. We'll create, or at least those that want to, I mean, you know, they can have an opt-in or opt-out situation. Um, I just, it's, um, I think there's a variety of issues right now. And, you know, at this point, it seems like to me, the best plan is to let's reclass as we have recently. And if, if this, if we're going to make this major change, we need two years to, you know, get, get all the dots in a row, whatever, whatever that saying is and go from there. I just think you don't want anything to be rushed, but, um, it's a, it's a difficult time in the life of the association. I'll say that.

Speaking of rush, where's rush going to wind up next year? That's, uh, yeah, boy, that's a take, that's a take it off for us. Um, gosh, yeah, I don't, I don't know. I mean, there's obviously some openings around the state, central Phoenix city's now open. Although the latest rumor is that Jamie Dubose may end up going back to central Phoenix city. Um, I just reached out to him and he said that hasn't happened. He's still in, the weight room at Bainbridge, Georgia, uh, which is the job he just took within the last month. So, um, I don't know, you know, I would just rush called on that. I think a lot of jobs open. Are there some jobs open in Georgia? There's some jobs open in Alabama. Huey town's open. Greg Patterson stepped down. Uh, Hey, new hope is open. I just heard that, uh, so, um, I, but to answer your question, I haven't, I haven't heard, uh, any, any, any intel on where Russ may coach next year. Yeah. Russell's open to coach. Goodwin is stepped down there. How many private schools are there? Is it 58? And that's the question that I get when I talk to people about this and they understand if you want to separate private and public, but I keep saying, I don't know how many private schools that would be scheduling. I don't know if they were 75 or 100 and some of those schools don't play football, but it's the point I think you made in your article. And just one more caveat. Uh, I mentioned enforcing the rules and you've mentioned this. They're trying to use the, um, online site dragon fly to flag the transfers, but the illegal transfers of players remains one of the biggest issues. And one of the coaches in the survey said, well, if the Alabama high school athletic association wants to keep, uh, uh, all of this together, uh, drop that quote, drop the hammer on, on some head coaches at programs, public or private who are caught recruiting and force them to serve a two year suspension. And if they do it again, you're suspended for life. And let me preface this.

[1:10:40] We're not trying to fire coaches. I'm just trying to mention, uh, but there's no question that the illegal recruiting quote has been an issue. And we all know that for years. Well, it has not non-compliant transfers is what Heath Harmon terms it. And you know, they have made some crackdowns. I mean, everybody always says that they got to enforce the rules. Well, they, you know, I, I haven't seen all the cases, but they've come down pretty hard on, uh, some schools, including Cusa Christian, whose coach just had to, we just mentioned, we just had to sit out a year, uh, for them to be eligible for the playoffs and ultimately win a state championship.

So, uh, I think, uh, every, everybody has a lot of, uh, a lot of ideas and, um, I don't know how we bring it back together, um, and be unified, but I, I hope we find a way. Well, Cusa Christian learned their lesson, didn't? Let me ask you this, Ben, obviously we're back circling back to coaches on the move. Price will have a good run. And this guy named Seth Parker and Seth Parker now basically is living a dream. Is he not? He has roots as a kid, uh, going back to Bob Jones there in Madison. And now he is the new hatred, basically living a childhood dream as the new head coach at one of the biggest high schools in the entire state, Bob Jones. Yeah, maybe, uh, it may be the biggest. I haven't seen the enrollment numbers, but, um, yeah, it seems like a good hire. Uh, you know, again, you gotta, you gotta figure out a way in those North Alabama seven, eight schools to, to win some playoff games, but that's assuming we know even what the reclassification is going to be, um, you know, coming up, but, uh, he did a good job at price. Well, I think that's a good hire for Bob Jones. And, um, that's part of back to the reclassification as part of, um, you know, there'd been some talk that maybe that if they separated the private schools, they would be six classifications. Well, then you're, you're talking about, you know, maybe a school with seven or 800 students having to play against a school with 24, 25 hundred students, um, which would be hard as well. But I think a good hire for, uh, for Bob Jones moving forward and that should help that region. Uh, I think you're right. He was the Bob Jones receiver coach and the offensive coordinator for three years. Uh, amazing stuff, amazing time. Uh, like you said, everybody's waiting with bated breath on, uh, the announcements on January 23rd. I'm like you, I think what they will end up eventually doing is staying with what they've, the model they've got tweaking that and then being such a major decision waiting a couple of years. What else is on the agenda is if this wasn't enough, let's go basketball coaching moves. What else is BT and Thomas Ashworth and all the staff got going on this week? Yeah. One other quick thing about the reclass. I mean, also remember we're, we're dealing with basically a whole new central office down there in Montgomery. So they've not been through reclass before this group. So, um, you got a lot of the familiar faces handled it before or not there.

So that, that kind of throws a wild card into it, but, uh, a lot, a lot going on this week, as you mentioned, um, Raina Kennedy, um, is, is updating his best in Bama recruiting rankings. I think probably for the final time before we throw those seniors out, you know, and, and adjust with the, uh, with all the classes that'll be on Thursday, look for that. Uh, and obviously we are a week and a day away from Mr. Football being announced next Tuesday in Montgomery is when that happens. It's going to be a great day. Look forward to that. And also today, uh, actually within the hour, we will announce the winner of our people's choice, ale.com player of the year award. It was down to, uh, Trent Seaborne or EJ Crowell. Uh, so we'll have that up as well on ale.com. So a lot of stuff going on. It's going to be a busy month of January with all this reclassification news. We have been warned. I'm listening for the clicks, even as we speak being listed, man. Thanks so much. Have a great week. Okay. All right. You guys do the same. Appreciate it. God bless. BT Express, Ben Thomas, go.com. What's the big story in big orange country? The B-man, Vince Rora. I got that and more straight ahead of the boom old bug show. Stay with us.

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Progressive presents the Sports Flash on 93.9. The score. In the wildcard round of the NFL playoffs on Saturday, the L.A. Rams were winners as they went to Carolina and beat the Panthers 34-31 to advance onto the divisional round, and the Bears rallied to beat the Green Bay Packers 31-27. Yesterday, the Bills were winners in Jacksonville. They beat the Jaguars 27-24. 49ers top the Eagles in Philadelphia 23-19, and the Patriots winners over the Chargers 16-3. Wildcard weekend wraps up tonight when the Steelers host the Texans. Next week's schedule includes the 49ers at the Seahawks Saturday. The Bills on Saturday will play in Denver Sunday. The Rams are at the Bears, and the Patriots will host the winner of tonight's matchup. Bundle auto and home, renters or condo, and save with Progressive. I'm John Thayer with the Sports Flash.

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The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. It is a pleasure for us to walk in with a man who knows Tennessee football and who is man's best friend up close and personal. Vince Verhart in 99.1 The Sports Animal in Knoxville on the Balls Radio Network. Vince, welcome in. How are you? Good, guys. You know, just keep it refreshed on the computer and the phone and, you know, just keep injecting myself with portal news. That's what's going on. Hope you guys are doing well.

If you need to go, just let us know, V-Man, because we know that it changes not by the minute, but by the second. But as the dead period looms, where is Tennessee right now, V-Man? Well, they've had 26 players leave. Now, five of those are walk-ons. So really, the important number is 21. And I would caution, depending on the site that fans are looking at, some of them include those walk-ons, so it can be a little bit deceiving as to the exodus. But for the most part, Tennessee's in the middle of the pack-ish in terms of players that have left the program. Now, they had a huge weekend. They doubled the number of players that they've added in the pool from five to ten just since Friday morning. And they've had a lot of visitors in. And the big thing is, is the pipeline from Penn State to Knoxville. And that's, of course, because of Jim Knowles and two other assistant coaches that were on that staff. So it's up to four Penn State, Nittany Lion defenders only that were on that team that have now transferred to Tennessee, or at least committed to Tennessee. So it will definitely have a Happy Valley flavor here between the coaches and the players. But they needed Chaz Coleman. He's an edge guy, a guy with first-round talent from what a lot of the analysts say. And the familiarity there, too, to, you know, when there's been so much talk about the complexity of Jim Knowles' defense and, you know, it takes time to learn it. And he doesn't have that kind of time. Josh Heupel doesn't have that kind of time. So when you have players that are familiar with your system that not only can jump in, but also can hear, teach the other guys on all the different levels, because now they have Penn State players on all three levels.

[1:22:52] Then now you're talking about being able to make a better transition. So from that standpoint, it is smart. So they had a big weekend. So they're not going to catch up to the total number of players that left. And there's still more work to be done in terms of DBs and D linemen. I got to get a quarterback, got to get a running back. So those are all, you know, glaring openings that are still there, but they've, they've checked some boxes. So it's definitely picked up as of late.

Let me ask you this, man, obviously in every market, you're going to have some reporters, if you want to call them that, they're going to go out there and throw clickbait at, and every fan base seems to be in some of these reporters saying it's over for this school because they've lost X number of players. And then you go and do due diligence and your school's about where everybody else is. They're getting clicks off of it, making money. Your thoughts about that with a fan base is, and you mentioned quarterback. There's a name down here that has been mentioned with Tennessee in the same breath. And his name is, you may have heard of him, Ty Simpson. He's declared for the draft, the NFL draft, but there's reports out there that Tennessee, Ole Miss, and Miami are in perhaps the market to maybe woo him back into the college range. What are you hearing about Ty Simpson?

Yeah. I saw the Tuscaloosa news story, you know, that Tennessee and Ole Miss had offered them for, and Miami had offered them a whole lot more than that. So, yeah. I mean, that's insanity money, but aren't we already past the line of where insanity is? So, um, then it's just, then it's monopoly money seemingly at that point. Uh, so look, Cam Ward did it, uh, a year ago where he, or the previous year where he had declared he was going to the NFL. And then Miami was the one that was able to, uh, entice him to come back to school because he hadn't turned in his paperwork and that seemingly is the case with Ty Simpson. Now, Tennessee just officially offered Ty Simpson's younger brother. That was just a matter of time, but probably, you know, uh, just, uh, just add to, hey, the draw of, uh, of Tennessee.

Um, although he'll be long gone, but by the time he, if he makes it onto campus, but yeah, it's, uh, it's not surprising, um, that until it's a, the players officially gone, especially at that quarterback position with the desperation that's out there, that Tennessee would have interest. He would be a natural, perfect fit for Tennessee, but you know, seemingly it seemed like it would be a, a long shot anyway. Um, and, and just because they're throwing that kind of money around the Ty Simpson doesn't mean he's going to do it, but it's definitely a different world where you can keep guys in the NFL with, with money. And then on the terms of the quarterback position for Tennessee, uh, Matt Zinitz had a report over the weekend saying that it was unlikely that Joey Aguilar would get the ruling in his favor for another year of eligibility in that Diego Pavia case. Uh, but there was still supposed to be a conference call a day. Maybe there'll be some more clarity on that. It's not a definite as of yet.

So Tennessee had Sam Levitt in last week since I talked to you guys last, the Arizona state quarterback who's now since committed to the LSU. Um, so there's that. And then they also hosted Bo Perbula, a Missouri starting quarterback last year. So, um, so those are really the only two that we've heard of quarterbacks that have been in the visit for Tennessee. We'll see if they, if they wait, or if they keep going down the line in terms of, uh, of other options, uh, Florida running back, Jacoby Jackson, uh, I believe either was visited or Tennessee was trying to set one up with an interest in the, um, James Smith and Quay Russo. Yes. Our listeners are quite familiar with those two names from Alabama who entered the portal. Um, I believe they have visited or are about to is Jacoby Jackson. One of the answers at running back. And what do you hear about the status of the two Alabama players? Well, the two running backs that have not committed to other schools that have visited, uh, are from the state of Florida. And one of them is Jackson. So, um, and the other one is Gavin Sawchuck, former Oklahoma running back that for the, for a good part of last year was Florida States starting running back. So those are, are the two that have visited. Um, Jackson talked positively about Tennessee. I mean, he was supposed to be a bigger factor in their running back rotation last year. And, um, and you know, good size, a guy that certainly has more, uh, potential than production.

Um, and then Sawchuck has played, but he's battled some, some injuries. He's played against Tennessee actually when he was at Oklahoma. So, um, he's got a little bit more of the, on the field than Jackson does. But those are been the only two guys cows starting running back Raphael, uh, from, uh, uh, from last year, he was the leading one of the leading rushers in the ACC. Um, he was supposed to visit, but he did not make it on the campus. So, um, those, those two are the two running backs we've known him right now that have not committed to other schools. So, well, running back definitely is a position they need to address in addition to, uh, to quarterback. There's no doubt about that.

[1:28:27] We'll see if he takes any more visits, but, um, it, uh, it certainly, you know, is, uh, guys that are, uh, that, uh, those two would, would be at the top of the, um, the target list at least right now at that position until somebody else emerges. But as you guys know, we're in a mini dead period here, uh, today through Wednesday, and then it'll open back up on, on Thursday. Now that doesn't mean that kids can't come in and make their decisions or even sign. Um, but they, they just can't go on visits, that kind of thing.

Well, it's going to be an interesting week. I can assure you, uh, somebody else who's not happy along with Nate Oates at Alabama, Rick Barnes, not happy about getting beat by Florida, uh, 91 to 67. That's a little bit surprising. Alabama plays Tennessee a week from Saturday in Tuscaloosa, a lot of stuff going on V-Man. Where can we get online and get all of your good stuff? Yeah, I appreciate that. Yeah. Rick Barnes was as frustrated as we've seen him on the bench. And then afterwards, so there was, you know, during a stretch after it was 26, 26 in Florida, couldn't miss and Tennessee couldn't stop turning it over. So that's one of the worst displays of basketball.

So, um, but they were blown out last year by 30, uh, at Florida and they still made it to the elite eight. So you can't just go off of one game, but they got to fix a lot of things like give it up 30 points off turnovers. That's not, not winning basketball, but, uh, we'll have that and a whole lot more on all the socials. It's at Ventsports, V-I-N-C-E sports and on sports source digital network on YouTube for some of the TV work. V-Man's always good to hook up with you. Make sure you got plenty of antifreeze. Let's do it again soon. Okay.

Yeah. Stonebageddon may be coming for sure. Appreciate you. Thank you, buddy. The four letter word that starts with an S. There you have the V-Man hooking up with us. I thought maybe that they don't sort of had an instant quote after the game. And, and I think there's a lot to the coaches have said this in the past, but the NIL era, do these kids even get bothered when they lose ballgames now? Well, that was one of his quotes, uh, about it. He said, well, when these guys get tired of losing, they can let me know because I sure am tired of losing myself.

Oh, new ball game out there. Coming up, uh, the man who's been there and done it, former Alabama O-L, the redfish. I'm Dak. Stay with us. How will you protect your family if you're no longer here to provide for them? Show them you care with a life insurance policy from Alpha. Our affordable policies can cover a range of expenses upon death, including mortgages, death, and education costs. Life can be complicated, but protecting your loved one shouldn't be. Call Alpha and take the first step toward protecting your loved one's future. In the Shoals area, call Mike Mitchell at 256-383-0678, or stop by his office at 211 East Avalon Avenue in Muscle Shoals. Or in Killen, call Matt Henry at 256-757-5006, or stop by his office at 1717 Highway 72.

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It's the ultimate fan experience. Level up for more on the ESPN app or at stream.espn.com. Sign up now. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. It is a pleasure for us to say hello to William the Redfish. Barger, former University of Alabama offensive lineman, now co-host of BAMS Radio. William, welcome in. Have you committed yet, or are you waiting on Texas to offer you a new oil well and a Lamborghini? How are you? Man, I don't need that much. I'll just be happy with the standard $350 to a half million dollars that offensive guards are getting these days.

Let's keep it all on the books. We're an honorable society here. William, your thoughts about when I saw names like Cam Coleman coming to Alabama over the weekend, I thought, this dude is not going to come to Alabama. He is a businessman. He's going to sit here and up the ante with the guys who got the real deep pockets out in Texas. Not that Alabama doesn't, but where are you with Alabama? Let's break it down since we're talking Alabama here. In 2026 going forward, this past weekend, to me, illustrated why Nick Saban said, screw this, I'm out of here.

Man, I'm not getting these bidding wars here. The old way is not going to be the successful formula going forward. But where is Alabama, in your opinion, and what have they got to do to see now where this thing is going to make the necessary adjustments? Well, you know, I think they've got to, you know, in the coaching staff's priorities for what they need to, you know, go out there and get to shore up their roster might be a little bit different than mine. But, you know, I think they need to get, you know, two or three offensive linemen and two or three defensive linemen.

You know, they need some big-bodied guys on the defensive line, and, you know, they need some depth pieces, maybe a center that they can plug and play to start on the offensive side of the ball. And then, you know, they're obviously looking for a running back. I don't think they want to, you know, all unproven guys that have never, you know, been RB1 before in the running back room. They probably, you know, want to, you know, add a couple more depth pieces or if they can find a guy that can, you know, kind of do what Hill Green did for them, you know, inside linebacker.

So, you know, it's not like they're, you know, going into the second full week of January here with just a barren roster. But it is young. It is inexperienced. You know, I do think they've got some nice young talent on both sides of the line of scrimmage. But, you know, I think other than a little bit of icing on the cake at other positions, I think, you know, they've been, you know, pretty aggressive and kind of, you know, refurbished the special teams areas. But I think they need to, you know, be primarily focused on, you know, both sides of the line of scrimmage.

I think a lot of folks that they're realistic, they don't want to spend, Coleman's good, but they didn't want to waste the budget because they can make do, if they get a decent line, maybe they can get the ball a little bit quicker. But your thoughts, you've got a better eye than any of us. I mean, if E. Crowell lives up to his expectations, he's going to be all that in a bag of chips coming out of Jackson High. But he's a kid. He's been getting those numbers against high school competition.

[1:38:49] Your thoughts there, because you were obviously a standout in high school. But when you go and play at this level, it's a whole new ballgame part of the pot. Your thoughts just about the running back situation with a guy who has been mentioned with the best at the running back spot coming ever out of Alabama, but he is green. Well, I mean, I think if you just look at what most people consider the, you know, the primary characteristics of a running back, which is, you know, running the football and being a receiver out of the backfield.

You know, that's not where your concerns lie, especially if, you know, Alabama is going to continue to be a pass-heavy offense. It's, you know, how quickly can the young man adjust to pass protection, being able to excel in blitz pickups, because that is a bit of a challenge for a running back. I think that's probably, you know, whereas up until 10, 15 years ago, that was the biggest growth piece for an offensive lineman, you know, making that jump was, you know, learning how to pass protect, especially if they were offensive tackles dealing with these edge rushers.

But that's the biggest mental piece. It's not so much the physical aspect of it. It's being able to identify the blitzers, knowing where one is probably going to end up, where one's coming from, if the quarterback changes the protection. You know, and I think that's probably the biggest, you know, piece that all these young kids, you know, even if you're a defensive back, I mean, there's more than just, you know, cover two, cover three, and a bunch of, you know, a bunch of man coverages back there in the secondary.

It's the mental part of the game that kind of determines, you know, and I think that's, I heard Sankey or somebody with the NCAA said they want to get rid of the early signing period in December, and I think that would be a huge mistake, because then you eliminate the benefit of all the kids that work, you know, extra hard academically to go ahead and get qualified and become early enrollees, you know, and that's part of the benefit is they get a couple extra weeks of goal prep to get adjusted to the mental side of the game.

And so, you know, I think that's the biggest thing, depending on, you know, any position that you want to talk about, probably quarterback sits at the top of the totem pole in this aspect, but the mental aspect is the bigger adjustment for high school to college, and it's even more so from college to the pros. William, the deadline to declare for the NFL is, I believe, the January the 15th this week, which is coming up 15th or 16th. Pending draft decisions, Bray Hubbard, Keyon Saab, Yonsei Pierre, all of these are defensive dudes.

Of the three, William, how many in your gut will return to Alabama? Well, I think as we're sitting here, you know, now on a Monday, I would think that those guys, you know, have already gotten their draft grades back. Yes, yes. You know, maybe they're negotiating with the powers to be in Tuscaloosa for a little bit bigger salary for next year versus 2025, but I would anticipate at this stage in the game all three of those guys returning. The Redfish, Redfish Barger. William, talk to us about the quarterback room.

Obviously, it looks to be different. This is going to be one of the more intriguing offseasons. Anytime you have a changing of the guard, it always is. And then your thoughts about all this stuff about Ty Simpson going elsewhere. I mean, if it's money, obviously they've been talking about Ole Miss and Tennessee, but if it's strictly a money decision, I think Miami shut that down. They're offering about $2.5 million more. So if that's the case, then we pretty much know the answer. But your thoughts, what's the TV show?

What would you do, William, gamble, go to the NFL draft, take the $6.5 million, if that's true, from Miami? But if you're an Alabama fan, more importantly, your thoughts about the quarterback competition heading into the spring? Well, as it pertains to Ty Simpson, again, he's already gotten his projected draft grade, or he wouldn't have declared, you know, when he did. And, you know, those draft grades are, you know, relatively accurate, barring, you know, collapses at a pro day, collapses at a combine, you know, going for the end, especially with the quarterback, the in-person face-to-face meetings are a lot bigger deal.

But, you know, playing in Kalen DeBoer's offense for the last two years, I think he would probably do really well in the face-to-face stuff. But, you know, I think, you know, even if he slides to the early second round, you know, that's still $8 to $10 million in guaranteed money over a four-year contract. And the biggest decision for me would be, you know, what does my draft grade look like this year in comparison to the quarterback draft grade I'm going to get next year? Because it's a much deeper quarterback.

[1:44:19] LOR. Yeah, it's a much deeper, you know, quarterback room. I mean, a quarterback draft in 2027 than it is this year. So, I think the smart play for Ty is to go on ahead and go pro. And hopefully, you know, when you slide later in the draft like that, odds are, you know, you get yourself into a Bo Nix-type situation. Thank you. You know, where you go to a team that's already got a good supporting cast and maybe, you know, that quarterback spots the missing piece of the puzzle there versus, you know, going to a place where you're just basically going to be ridiculed for your first couple of years like Bryce Young's had to overcome.

So, and, you know, now that Bryce has made his adjustments, now that the Panthers have gotten some pieces around him, Bryce Young's a pretty good NFL quarterback today. So, you know, I think Ty's, I think the play for Ty Simpson is to go on with his original decision and go ahead and turn pro. But as far as the quarterback room for Alabama in 2026, you know, it's going to be a pretty contested quarterback battle when spring practice opens. I think you'll see, you know, even if the coaches have an inkling on who it is, they're going to allow that to play out maybe into, you know, the early part because, you know, Alabama kind of has a friendly schedule in the month of September.

Then things get hot in a hurry once October 1st comes around. You know, they may, they may choose to, you know, let it play out to try and keep both people, you know, in Tuscaloosa. So, you know, but we'll wait and see how it goes. I think they've got, you know, two really good young candidates and Keon Russell and Austin Mack to see who, you know, which, which, which one of those two guys rises to the top. Who has impressed you the most? And again, I know you don't have a list in front of you.

Some of this is positions of need. Obviously, as far as the transfer, as far as the transfer, in fact, Alabama got a defensive lineman from Mississippi, Kendrick Bingley Jones, Mississippi State last night, Josh Ford, the big tight end from Oklahoma State, Strayhorn, the Michigan, a probably going to be a center, another defensive lineman, Devon or Devin Tompkins at a USC in a 6-4. Man, you talk about length. This secondary is going to have it with Carmela O'Neal coming in for Mercer, he's 6-4. But, William, who stands out to you as far as the transfers Alabama does have in fold?

Well, you know, all those positions, I think, are, you know, value pieces. Now, if we just have to talk about the ones that already have signed contracts, you know, probably the big defensive tackle for Mississippi State, you know, and he's more of a, even though he's not quite as big, you know, he's more in the mold of a Tim Keenan. I mean, they're bringing him in to be a run stuffer. He's not a guy that you're going to expect to, you know, affect the quarterback on a regular basis.

But I've got to be honest, of all the ones that I've seen that I potentially could be excited about, and I can't remember the young man's name, but the center prospect from Cal Poly would immediately become my favorite player if Alabama can conceal the deal with him. Very athletic, has a nasty streak. And, you know, for people that want to kind of, you know, poo-poo a school like Alabama, you know, pulling a kid from a school that size, that's the same school that they found Josh Quavis at.

Exactly. In Washington. So, you know, I always just look at the film and factor in the level of competition, and, you know, especially at the offensive line position. But all of his stuff is, you know, very tangible and transfers over to the next level. I was very impressed with that young man's film from this past season. Yeah, William, his name is Rayson, R-A-C-I-N Delgatti. And I'm like you, I've heard good things about him. DJ Chester is another alternative from LSU. And Ty Haywood, of course, has been making the rounds on social media since he pulled out of Michigan.

Great stuff, as always. We sincerely appreciate the insight. Yeah, positions of need and everything else will come into play, certainly, this week. William, have a great week, buddy. Let's do this again real soon. Sounds good, guys. Talk to you soon. Absolutely. Going to hold you to it. There you have it, William Redfish Barger. BB, obviously, coming up tonight, how about some UNA basketball and good pizza? You know, 93.9, the score. Yeah, if you're hungry for dinner, go down to Lost Pizza. They've only got 375 menu items. Probably have added two more since I started talking.

[1:49:40] Great place to eat. And then UNA basketball, UNA basketball had a great win over the weekend over Bellemine in Kentucky. Went 1-1 in the state of Kentucky. But Kenny Whitaker's show is on first for 45 minutes. Tony Poohol to wrap up the show. If you can't get down to Lost Pizza, you can listen to it tonight on 93.9, the score. You can't lose either way. That's going to take care of business for now on behalf of BB, Greg, James, Blair, the entire crew here. Harold Bugg, thank you so much for your time today.

That's doing it again tomorrow on noon to 2 for the Bumult Bug Show. Back here on Sports Radio 93.9, the score. We'll see you next time on Sports Radio 94.9, the score.