Boomo Bugg Show 052026

[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 here to the Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us free ride around the Tennessee Valley. Brett Beaird, welcome in where the Shoals, the entire Shoals community, is still buzzing about the return of the Wizard of Oz.

Good afternoon, welcome in and how are you? Listeners, yes, Oz, he did a great job last night at the press conference and dinner. A lot of people are glad to see him. He is just a down-home guy, very friendly. Morris Hill loses a doubleheader yesterday to Arrington High School and finishes with its 11th all-time state baseball runner-up trophy in school history. Always delighted to talk with good friend Brett Norsworthy about Ole Miss, the SEC and college football. Anytime I can do Brett in stereo, it is a good day.

Brett Norsworthy is the man behind the microphone, driving you home every afternoon over in the Bluff City. He has hosted Sports Time 3 to 6 on Sports 56 in Memphis, Tennessee. Also busy there with the Ole Miss call before, during, and after on the network. Brett, welcome in. How are you? I'm doing well, so you were with Ozzie Smith last night? I know. Over here is another Ozzie by the name of Ozzie Newsome. He's got the biggest hands on the face. He does. If you ever shake hands with him, I don't care how big your hands are, there will be about three of them fitting into his hands.

He is a super nice guy. He came back for a special occasion to raise money for UNA. I kid. I know. Ozzie Newsome had played at Bama. Is who y'all were talking about? Yes. Yes. He is a great guy. At Super Bowl XLVII, it's the media availability. He was running the Ravens. The standard line around the NFL was being, trust, Ozzie we trust. If he took a guy in the eighth or fifth round, he was going to work out. And so at Super Bowl Media Day, everybody's crowded around, you know, all the stars for the Ravens in.

I went directly to Ozzie Newsome, and the first thing I asked him, do you remember the first time you met Coach Bryant? And he told the best story. He was as good in the front office as he was on the field, and Hall of Famer on the field, and just a great Alabama football legend. And, you know, I always kind of thought he might return home as AD someday, but glad he returned back home and helped with UNA. And two wizards, Ozzie Newsome and Ozzie Smith.

You know what, Brad? I'm proud you brought that up. I had a chance to meet Ozzie Smith because years ago, I was the world's biggest fan of a guy named Jack Buck. And they were coming out of spring training. They came to Nashville. They played the sounds, and I had to go up. And he's the only guy that I've ever interviewed outside of you that gave me the jivvies. I was so nervous. Mr. Buck is a legend in my mind. He's one of the reasons I'm here now.

What a model. But he also got a chance to go in the dugout, and there was Ozzie Smith. So my feet still are not touching the ground. But you got the Ozzie on your side. And while we're at it, your thoughts, you're in broadcasting. Do people realize what a contribution Jack Buck made to your Cardinals? Oh, he only taught me the game. Yep. The radio. And, you know, the old saying, you saw it on the radio, and you did see it on the radio with Jack Buck.

He was so descriptive, but he wasn't over the top. He had a healthy ego, but he was not an egomaniac and just the best baseball play-by-play guy I think I've ever heard. And I love Joe Buck. And years ago, I had the distinct honor, and I sent the picture to Joe Buck. I went to the National Cemetery of Jefferson Barracks on the south side of St. Louis as you're coming up I-55. And I went out and paid my respect at his burial site, at the standard issue, you know, the white standard issue for all military.

And there it was, John Francis Buck. And I took a picture, and I sent it to Joe, and I said, he only taught me about the sport and how much I love him. And Joe sent back, typical Joe, he goes, I hadn't been out in a while. He said, I need to take my little children out there where they can see it. But Jack Buck was a legend, and I think Joe is as well. And, you know, with Ozzie Newsom, as good as he was at the tight end, Ozzie Smith was that good as a shortstop.

[5:09] I think the greatest shortstop to ever play. Yeah. I think you're exactly right. Brent, the Big Ten's had the national stage this week in California at their spring meetings. Commissioner Tony Patetti has been telling everybody he wants to listen all of the advantages to going to a 24-team playoff. Greg Sankey's got his turn next week. But your thoughts on Tony Patetti telling everybody, I'm not even going to consider 16. We need to go to 24. Boy, guys, I hope you all aren't mad at me. Listeners aren't mad at me.

I hope I don't get kicked out as a lifetime dues paid up SEC bootlicker. But I agree with Tony Patetti. I want 24. I either want 12 or 24. I'll take 14 or 16. That's a no-go with him. And he has that veto power because it has to go through with unanimity with Greg Sankey and Tony Patetti. And I'm with him on 24. I know what it's going to do, the bowl system, and I'm prepared for that. I'm a staunch bowl supporter for all these years when it was the end of the year of college football.

When it decided, essentially, we had a playoff. It was called the regular season and the bowl system. But we don't have that anymore. We have a real playoff. And I do want to go to 24. I know it's going to put a lot on the fans to travel, maybe even to host around the holiday season. But it was great last year when Ole Miss did. I think it was my single – I know it was my single favorite home game ever in Ole Miss football history for me to attend was that week, you know, December 19th, game before, the Christmas holidays, and just the atmosphere.

And we kind of thought we were going to win, and we did play well against Tulane, and that added to it. But it's going to be a lot to ask of the fans. I wish somehow we could incorporate more bowls. I think they want to go to more on campus, and I understand that. And I know the Big Ten wants us to go on campus. They can't wait. They cannot wait until they're hosting that quintessential southern team in eight inches of snow. They cannot wait for that game.

And it's going to happen one of these days. We've got to go up there and let our play do the talking. Of course, we try to make up for it on the front end, come to the SEC in the middle of August, especially down in Florida. But, Brad, let me throw – you're in a bad spot here. You know Lane Kiffin better than anybody in this conversation, anybody listening right now. You know Ole Miss better than anybody in the conversation. We know the topic by now. Brad, I want him to go and bore people and take up much valuable time talking about why we're asking the question.

But where are you with what has gone on over the last few weeks between Lane and Ole Miss and LSU? Yeah, I do like Lane a lot. He just did a great job. I think he's just an unreal coach, especially on game day. The ability to zig and zag in game. I just rarely have seen any better than him at it. He is really good. But it was just preposterous, the notion of the grandparent conversation. I had one host ask me, well, could it be possible that a grandparent voiced those concerns?

Well, yeah, I guess it's possible. Well, a meteor can hit us tonight if you want to talk about possibilities. Yeah, and it sounds like it's less preposterous than we used to think. Exactly. It looks good to visit us on game day. But, you know, anything is possible. You know, I guess a grandparent could say, you know, we don't like the traffic on West Jackson Avenue in Oxford on game day. Anything's possible. But Lane knows better than that. Look, he took the job. In his own words, one of the biggest reasons he took the job is he saw and he knew and he felt how much his brother, Chris Kiffin, loved living in Oxford and working in Ole Miss on the Hugh Freeze staff.

That was Lane's words when he took the job. So, you know, we now know what has changed. He's in purple and gold and he's got to, you know, kind of get one in on everybody. But I think at Destin and before SEC media days, you're already seeing it a little bit with their AD. All that's going to be walked back a little bit. For Ole Miss, I think the approach by the chancellor, by Chancellor Boyce and by Athletic Director Keith Carter and by head coach Pete Golding was pitch perfect.

And, you know, look, you don't have to defend the preposterous. No. Let me ask you about Pete Golding. Debo comes out with all of his allegations and receipts as far as the text messages. Steve Sarkeesian comes out with the basket weaving story. But Pete, I think, has handled a lot of this stuff. He stayed above. Brad, all of the masks. Your thoughts on Pete Golding in the offseason. Well, he's just hit everything, just ideal. I mean, just in the center of the bullseye since he took the job.

[10:09] The clock hit zero at the Egg Bowl. Pete Golding has really shown that he is ready for this job. The first order was keep the locker room, advance in the playoffs, give us a chance to win it all. He did, got to the national semifinals and lost them, arguably, the last play or two of the game. You know, led with a minute to play against mighty Miami. And Miami was that good. I don't know how it was going against Indiana. I think it was Indiana's year.

And I think Miami was just that much, a little bit better by the margin they won by. And they squeaked it out. We had a good team. And then with keep the players, he did, most of them. Lost some, some good ones. Some players are really going to help LSU. They are. I'm going to miss T.J. Dottery as the guy in the locker room as much as anything. He's just a great young man, a Clemson transfer, speaking of Dabo. But Pete has done a really good job, and he's ready for this mission.

And, you know, he's more from the Nick Saban coaching camp than even Lane was. Lane needed Coach Saban, you know, to help him rehabilitate his career. Pete Golding, largely, you know, the career was cast in iron out of that Tuscaloosa football building of Coach Saban's. And we know that's the best that has ever existed in college sports. Brent, what's in the soup? We're in the water for the state of Tennessee. They're getting binged by the bushels. And when it comes to sports, they landed the coup.

Super Bowl coming up I-40 to your east there in Nashville in 2030. Huge news for the Volunteer State. Well, it is great news. And I'm not alone in West Tennessee and Shelby County and Memphis. But there aren't many of us that are kind of congratulatory towards the Titans, towards Nashville. A lot of people feel a lot of bitterness toward Bud Adams and his family over that year that they played in Memphis as the Tennessee Oilers. We knew we were just going to get them for two, and they left a year early, okay.

But we knew it was Nashville's team and Memphis' dream. But we've moved on from that. And I congratulate Nashville for the state of Tennessee to have it. I think envy and petty and jealousy is just a really bad look. And I fear none of it with concern to the Titans and to Nashville, none. They're doing a great job. And in Memphis, we've got to pick up the pace and try to keep up. And we've got to get our lease agreement signed to keep the Grizzlies, and I think we will.

I hope that news is sooner rather than later. But the idea of a Super Bowl in Nashville, that's remarkable. Now, I wonder if it's just going to be the one-off, like they gave to Minneapolis, like they did to the outdoor, cold-weather outdoor site in New Jersey for the Giants and Jets. I hope it's a regular rotation, like Atlanta, like New Orleans, and like some other places. Now, you know, Jerry Jones only got the one. He's only hosted one. So they always reward you building that new dome, and they've got to reward Cleveland.

They're going to have to reward Chicago and the new stadium in D.C. that will get Super Bowls. But I hope it's a regular rotation. I doubt I ever go to one, but it's going to be fun watching. Absolutely. Great stuff, as always. It's going to be interesting to see what comes out of San Destin next week when Sankey hits the podium. Always a delight to talk with you about Ole Miss, the SEC, your life in general. If some of our listeners would like to hear more of you this afternoon, where can they go?

Support 56WHBQ.com, and I'm sure we'd invite everybody to do that. And it will be fun at Destin. But this weekend, I know y'all will, and we all need to pause for sure on Monday on Memorial Day and thank those for everything. And their families, for those families that have had to bury someone, we can't thank them enough. Well said as always, Brett. Listen, man, it's always good to hook up with you. Keep those baby birds flying. It's May 20th. Guess who's only a half game out of first place in the National League Central, Brett.

Ahead of the Cubs in the playoffs. That's right. Life is good. Listen, man, thanks so much, and keep up the good work, okay? Thank y'all very much. Thank you, bud. There you have it. The one, the only, the other Brett. Brett Nornsworthy drives you home afternoons on Sports Time 3 to 6 in Memphis, Tennessee. So who else is from Memphis, Tennessee with deep roots? Could it be Paul Feinbaum? Next. Stay with us. At First Metro Bank, we don't just do business in the Shulls community. We're part of it.

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And when there is a topic for the folks across the country to get an expert opinion on, he is the go-to source. Paul Feinbaum, welcome in. How are you? Harold, I'm doing great. So great to be on with you again. You too. Paul, last night, shock, shock, the election. And I looked up and I saw a familiar name that's going to be in the heat. It'll be the new governor of the state of Alabama. I believe his name is Tuberville. Your reaction to that, Paul, you've known this rascal a few days.

[20:41] And the thing that will make it really spicy, what would happen if Nick Saban was his opponent on the Democrat side, Paul? You know, it's funny. A year ago, after President Trump came to Tuscaloosa for the commencement, I gave an interview where I suggested that Saban run for Tuberville's seat. And the next time I saw him, a few weeks later, he said, don't start up with me again, man. And you know what? Tuberville, let's be honest. Six years ago, you know why I ran for the Senate?

Because he didn't have a job. That's right. Paul, we actually interviewed Tommy. He was basically trying to get this organization for kids because they weren't participating in sports. So we had him on the show, and he was trying to get momentum to get this organization to get kids back interested in football at the time. Well, the funniest thing is, we go to Auburn once or twice a year in, I don't know, 2018. He was like hanging around, said, you guys need a guest? I'm like going, I don't know, Coach.

I mean, he was going to run for governor initially. And then for what, you know, Kay Ivey suddenly became popular. And so he waited, and he made a good decision. But the bottom line is not to get political, because I've been in his office a couple of times. He hated being in Washington. The reason why he hated it, he had no power. He was like the least important senator. Now, mark my word, after November, he will be the most important person in this state. And I got bad news for Alex Dolich.

You're not reporting to John Cohn anymore. You're reporting to Tommy Tuberville. He's your new boss. He is going, if the governor of Louisiana hired Lane Kiffin and runs the athletic department, he hired Will Wade. Tommy Tuberville would be the de facto, forget being the governor. He's got plenty of people that can handle that. He's going to run Auburn Athletics. That's right. Paul, obviously, we know what's been going on in the SEC. And for that matter, what was it, Steve Spurger says, the city talking season. Where do you start in the Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss, LSU love triangle, Paul?

Well, the thing that scares me is that there's a chance, a week from today, I'm going to have to actually talk to him. I really don't want to. But, you know, for guys like us, a week ago, when that story broke, I'm like going, thank you. I mean, this was the story of the spring, and it was amazing. And, you know, there are those stories, obviously, and there's some serious ones. But Lane Kiffin, you mentioned Spurger. If you go back to 1993, 94, 94, Spurger was the villain in the SEC.

You know, it's way, way different. Tony Petetti, the commissioner with the Big Tens in California, Paul, telling everybody about the benefits of expanding to 24 for the college football playoff. It's going to be Greg Sankey's turn next week in Destin. And I think Greg Sankey and you are a little more aligned with, I know you like four, quite frankly, much less 24. What's Greg Sankey's message next week at Destin? Well, I feel like I know what it's going to be because he was on our show late Monday when we were doing the show from the SEC baseball.

And he was pretty emphatic. He said, I realize a lot of people are talking 14, 16, 20, 24, but we believe in 16. And I don't even think he believes in 16, but it's a compromise, and there's no way around it. But, you know, this 24 is, I don't want to use hyperbole here, but it's possibly the worst idea I've ever heard in college football. There's no reason for it. I mean, you're going to get eight and four teams in here who will be lucky if you go back 15 years to be invited to the Florida Citrus Bowl.

And now they're going to be in the national championship race. And the argument that, you know, because we're spending so much, we should have more accessibility is the biggest crock I've ever heard in my life. And I'm afraid, though, that a week from today when we're on the beach, the coaches and the ADs are going to be saying, you know, we're not opposed to 24. Because if you're a fringe team, let's say you're Tennessee, and you're coming off, in my opinion, a pretty bad season, and you go eight and four this year, you can talk playoffs until the end of the season.

Where, under the current construct, or even 16, you can't. Mm-hmm. In effect, Paul, by the way, Paul, five of them, of course, ESPN, part of the SEC network. Basically, what was it back in the old days? We used to make fun of teams that went, remember this, the Poulain Weed Eater Bowl. That was when they played down in Louisiana. These guys are now going to be playing in the playoffs if they keep going with this dilution. Hey, my first job was in Louisiana. Covered in the season.

[25:54] And by the way, just for the record, I left Shreveport, Louisiana in 1980. I've never returned, even under federal marshals subpoenaing me. And this is not an SEC thing. This is a practicality thing. The SEC championship is going away. We don't need to debate that. But as the commissioner reminded me on Monday night, how do we replace that $100 million? There's no answer to that. And it's just laughable to hear the ACC commissioner, who had Duke playing in his championship game last year with a 7-5 record, making the argument that we all need.

I mean, the NCAA tournament is still a great event, but the college basketball regular season is not. And I think you guys will agree with me that there's nothing quite like the regular season in college football. And it's not going to be completely destroyed, but it's going to be diminished if we have a 2014 playoff. Well, Ross Dillinger is a very good writer. He's on your show frequently. And he had an article earlier in the week, the next week, one of the agenda items, believe it or not, may be about the SEC and the Big Ten pulling out of the NCAA.

Now, this is nothing new. I think basketball will stay the other sports, but, and we've had several big guests mentioned this week, the possibility in five years. Do you see down the road the SEC and the Big Ten pulling out of the NCAA and more or less doing their own thing? Yes, I do. And here's why. For whatever reason, the SEC and the other conference commissioners believed that somebody else could solve their problem. And I cannot tell you how much. I'm guessing tens of millions of dollars in lobbying fees for these fat cat do nothing Georgetown lobbyists who go up to the Capitol with the commissioners and sit around and have, you know, five-course meals, what we learned this week, Congress is not going to act.

You've got threats from the Congressional Black Caucus. It is a disaster there. So after all this conversation that we're, you know, we're this far away. So I bring that up as a preamble to say that the commissioners have to find a solution because the rules are ungovernable. We know that. And it's a, I think right now it's a threat. You've got a couple of ADs, notably the one in Knoxville, who's really pushing this hard. But I think, I think, I think the league next week will at least acknowledge we are considering it, but I don't think it will happen next week.

Paul, before you jump off, obviously we're always asking about Alabama and Auburn for obvious reasons, but you cover the entire league. What, in your opinion, is going to be the most intriguing story as far as a team that may be overrated right now and may be underrated right now heading into the season? Well, I think you named it early on. I mean, you will hear people predict LSU from everything to playing for the conference championship to going to the Poole and Weed Eater Bowl. And I really don't know.

I mean, they could lose three games in September. They have the opening game against Clemson. They're at Ole Miss, of course, and they have Texas A&M. Those are not automatic. So I think they're the most intriguing team. I think right now, Tennessee is probably the team I'm least confident in. I said the other day they don't have a quarterback. I'm well aware they'll have a quarterback, but they will have a tested quarterback. And again, I think Auburn is a team that can overperform. I mean, right now the goal at Auburn is just have a winning season, okay?

That hasn't happened in about before COVID, okay? And I'm most interested in Alabama because I was with Kalen DeBoer about three weeks ago, and he's very confident. He really likes where they are, especially a quarterback. And you know what? He better be right because if he does not have a quarterback between those two, he will be looking for real estate back in Seattle here pretty soon. Brought to you by two men in a truck, right? Paul, as always, you bring it. Good luck on the beach next week.

If you need Brett now to be the referee when you interview Lane, let us know what we owe you one, okay? Well, I've learned just don't say anything because he's not going to say anything either. You are a pro. You've been there, Donnie. Paul, as always, good to catch you with you. Safe travels to and from you. Thank you so much for your time today. Thank you, guys. Thank you, Paul. Absolutely. Paul Feinbaum, host of the Paul Feinbaum Show. Afternoons here on 939 The Score and the entire SEC ESPN network.

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[36:19] He's got a book. It's called Bigger Than Bama. Rodney Orr, welcome in. Happy Wednesday to you. How are you? Doing well, Harold and Brett. How are you guys? Hey, buddy. Man, we're doing fine, Rodney. Obviously, it's always a crazy time in your neck of the woods. Before we get into this football talk, what's it been like as far as the city being able to host postseason play in softball and baseball? I imagine by May standards, the traffic's picked up. But I would guess the mayor, the restaurants, the hotels, they love Alabama softball and baseball, do they not these days?

Yeah, I mean, it's just tremendous. I mean, the excitement is obviously really high. You know, I think that, you know, clearly the job that Patrick Murphy and Rob Vaughn have done this year has been amazing, actually. You know, of course, obviously, you know, Nate Oates did a really good job and Kaelin DeBoer did a good job, too, in terms of showing some progress from the year before. So, it's been a good year overall, I think, for sports at the University of Alabama. You're exactly right. Ron, you had an article on TI earlier this week.

Basically, football notes and football questions going into the season. And I know we've talked with you about this. We all feel pretty much the same way. I've had another conversation about this this morning. Can this team run the ball? Can they be more physical? And you had right tackle and center developing a nasty streak, as you put it. Will the offensive line overall be able to do that? Javon James at Mississippi State, they noticed that on tape. Again, Del Gaudi has got a lot of potential.

And, Rodney, they've got to go out and show this. I mean, again, that's the number one question you get on the board all the time. But I think that's the key to the season. Can Alabama win the line of scrimmage again? And will this offensive line develop a nasty streak, open some holes for the running backs, and protect the quarterback? Yeah. I mean, I think that's really key. I mean, obviously, those are really big question marks. You've got a lot of new faces. And I think you hit the nail on the head, Brett.

We won't know until they actually get out there and do it. But there are some, I guess, if you want to say positive vibes that we've heard since spring that they felt like some progress was made. They feel like they have a lot of potential up front. Again, they were only together for 15 practices, a lot of new faces. They're on the offensive line. And Xavier Crowell, the fantastic running back that they got out of high school, the true freshman that expectations are so high, really didn't practice this spring because of some injuries.

But they hope that and they expect him to be ready to go when camp starts. So, you know, there's a lot of, I think, ingredients that are there. But we really won't know one way or the other until we actually see them. Rodney, your founder and editor, Titer Insider.com. Again, the book's called Bigger Than Balmer. Rodney, we talked with a guy named Paul Feinbaum right before he came on. And I think he stated what a lot of folks are thinking. He just articulated it. And that is, obviously, the board.

We know what happened first season. We know what happened the second season. We know where the bar is set in Tuscaloosa, despite what season it is. How much pressure is on the board to get it right to quarterback spots? You get that wrong, and it's hard for that wheel to roll, certainly smoothly. Your thoughts just about year three overall and the pressure of making sure you make the right call to quarterback spot. Yeah, I think, you know, as far as you start to look at this team overall, I think it's really tough to predict.

I mean, I think you have so many new faces, a lot of question marks. But, Harold and Brett, like I said, I do think there is a lot of potential on this team. They could come together and have a special season. I think they have that kind of potential. They do have a tough second half of the schedule. So, I think the first five games are really important. If they can get through those first five, build some momentum, build some chemistry, find some identity, and like you guys have mentioned, run the football, the young quarterback develop, then I think when Georgia gets here, it could be really interesting.

And it could be interesting the second half of the season. I think Alabama could be, if you want to say, a surprise team. And I know that's kind of something that is foreign to Alabama fans. They don't like to hear that. But a lot of people are predicting Alabama 15, 16, 17 in the country. So, from that perspective, you would say Alabama has a chance to be a real surprise team. As far as the quarterback, that position, I think, Harold, that if they can't run the ball, that's going to put a lot of pressure on this young quarterback.

[41:28] Yeah, that's right. And the question is, can one of those two guys manage that? I don't know. We just don't know. They're inexperienced. Both very, very talented. But I would say this. Hopefully, the run game's improved. I'm going to make a prediction that it can't be any worse. How about that? I mean, what was I thinking last year, Ronnie? I mean, you saw T-shirts before the games every year, run the you-know-what ball. I mean, that's nothing new. Bear Bryant built a legend off running the ball.

Gene Stallings made a legend and a good living off running the ball. In your opinion, what was it last year? Was it just somebody being stubborn with a play calling, or was it just a lack of talent, or what? I don't think it was a lack of talent. I mean, look, let's be honest. They don't have the backfield, the running backs that they've had in the past. Yeah. That's one thing. But still, you know, they were decent enough, solid enough. There was some inexperience there, some injuries.

The offensive line, you had a first-round draft choice at left tackle. And quarterback. You had a center who, they tell me, the Cleveland Browns are extremely excited about Parker Brelsford. Regardless of what anyone says about Wilkin Formby, he played guard and tackle. Texas A&M paid him close to $2 million to transfer. Yep. You know, so I don't know if there was a real talent issue, or they did, well, now they did make a change on the offensive line with Coach Kapp. So that indicates that they at least thought they needed a change in direction.

So, you know, again, this year, you've got your coach. You had the opportunity to pick your offensive line coach. And I think that DeBoer has told people that Clem was the guy he wanted to go with initially that first year when Huff left. So you've got your guy now. We'll find out what happens. Rodney, I had the pleasure last night of talking to Alabama legend Ozzie Newsome. And we talked a little bit about the physicality. And I asked him about Josh Cuavers. He said, look, we're excited about Josh Cuavers because he's so physical.

His blocking is superb. He runs routes well. We've been really happy with him. And one of the questions in your article is, will Ford bring a physical presence, Josh Ford, at tight end? And Alabama runs the 12 personnel with two tight ends. He's certainly big enough at 6'6", 260 plus coming from Oklahoma State. And, Rodney, again, this goes in with winning at the point of attack. If you've got a good one or two good tight ends who can block their butt off, that's going to really help a run game.

And I'm like you. I think Josh Ford can help this team. I really do. I mean, physically, you know, and I know people, we've seen him some. You know, obviously, we got to see him up close a little bit. He's a big guy, and he moves really well. And I know some people who have spent more time with him than I have, and they just said physically, he's one of the more impressive-looking tight ends they've seen around here in a few years. You know, and again, I think Caleb Edwards.

Think about the production or the contribution he had last year, which was pretty solid for a true freshman. Then throw in the fact that he was not an early enrollee. He got here last June, and he made a really solid contribution. I think he could take a big step. I really like Caleb Edwards. You've got some other guys that love Marshall Pritchett. We saw him some last year as a true freshman, as an H-back-type guy. I think he's a real winner, and he is a real talent.

I like the freshman, too, from Illinois Suter, Max Suter. So I think they've got some talent. Danny Lewis is back if he can stay healthy. So I think they're pretty solid. I know there's been some that have questioned the tight end position in Alabama, but, you know, I think the feeling over there is that, hey, they're pretty solid right now. Rodney, you already got you covered there at tighterinsider.com. Rodney, I would imagine one of the many topics is it's always recruiting season, official visits. It's hard to believe, is it not?

The season itself is just over 100 days away. In the meantime, it's all about recruiting. Your thoughts as far as official visits, how is that stacking up here over the next few days and weeks in Tuscaloosa? Yeah, it looks really good. I mean, they've got a, you know, like I said, they've got a great list of guys that are coming in. You know, obviously they're going to have some key targets that are going to be real crucial, I think. You know, it's going to be a small class.

[46:31] You know, Harold and Brett, I've got to admit, I'm a little, again, I don't know the plan, but, you know, the word is 15 to 18, take out of high school, it's a little less than what we normally see. You know, maybe they take, have a good portal run, we'll see about that too. And again, things can change, you know, I mean, plans change. But, yeah, they've got a really good list. I mean, I think, you know, obviously they'd like to get a running back or two, and I think Nigel Newkirk out of Gainesville, Georgia, is a guy to really keep an eye on.

He's a fantastic player. I know Trey Martin and Tyson Robinson have been linked. Now, look, I know Robinson's supposed to make a decision. He might have already made it, but I haven't seen it publicized, to be honest with you. He's an outstanding player. You know, it'll be interesting to see if they can hold on to their tight end commit, Colton Lumpress. Michigan is all over him, they've been all over him. He's really, you've got to give this staff credit now. They get guys early, they get on guys early, identify them.

Another one I would throw at you is the defensive lineman from over in Louisville, Mississippi, Mitchell Turner. Alabama jumped on early, got ahead of the game. That's been a real plus for them because now a lot of schools are coming after him. So, we'll see. They do have an outstanding list, but, you know, they do plan on signing a smaller class as well. So, we'll see how it all kind of unfolds. Well, and we've discussed this on the offensive line, Rodney, and again, give the devil his due.

They did a good job of bringing in 10 linemen last year, but I'm looking at this list that you had on tighter and sider. I see three defensive linemen and two edge rushers. I do not see one offensive lineman. And I know we've talked about this, that they may only sign one or two. And again, if they all stay here, Rodney, that's great. But we all know with the transfer portal, it's like we'll conform be. If somebody offers them $2 million, you know, thank you, but I'm leaving town.

And I've got the same, again, I hear this quite a bit too, and I know you certainly do on your great board, is we understand you've got 10, but what if about six of those guys end up leaving? Whoops. Right. No, I think you make a lot of great points. And again, one guy to watch out of Tupelo is Antonio Berry. Now, Ole Miss is really involved with him. I think they like him a lot, and it's going to be tough to get him out of there.

I know that Alabama has been stated to be a team that maybe is the team. We'll see, because I'm talking to my Mississippi people, as I told you about a week ago, and that could be really rough. Now, let me say this, too, because I want to, I know you've got some listeners that are on Titer Insider and all of that. Yeah, on the Wilkin-Formby deal, a couple of things here, just to clarify. It wasn't quite $2 million, but it was in the neighborhood, I'll put it that way.

That's number one. Number two is, you know, some guys jump for different reasons, and I want to be clear, I'm not indicating that Wilkin jumped for money, because I don't think that was it. I think it was, playing offensive tackle was really key for him. But it goes back to what you said, Brett. You never know when you've got a group of 16 offensive linemen that are supposed to be back next year. Someone says, hey, you know what, I can go to this school, I can play tackle, I can play guard, I can be a center, whatever it is.

It fits me better. Plus, they're giving me a good offer. So, this is all unpredictable. And for, kind of, I see, I hear people out there saying, well, Alabama doesn't need offensive linemen, they don't need defensive linemen. Well, you know, you just really never know at this point. Yeah, well, please. Again, every school needs to sign. I've always believed, Ronnie, they need to sign a minimum of three offensive linemen every year. You just never know what's going to happen with this. Great stuff, as always. Just an example of what you can find on Titer Insider, along with Titer Insider TV, that 24-7 message board, Alabama baseball, football.

And then a huge recruiting weekend beginning next weekend. You'll be on top of. Ronnie, where can we get on line for a nominal price? And then beach time is coming up, and we talk about five stars. You can find some on the beach, too. Ronnie, where can we order the book? Right. TiterInsider.com is only $48 a year, and you can go there. You can get instant access with a credit card if you prefer. There is an address there to send a check. But also, the book, Bigger Than Bama, and it's available on RodneyWare.com or Amazon.com.

And Harold and Brett, if you haven't checked it out, I had the five questions yesterday. I did the little survey on the interest in college sports and about NIL. Has it impacted it? What's the impact on your interest in high school recruiting? All of those things. I had several of those. Man, we had a ton of responses yesterday to those questions. And I just posted, right before I came on, you guys probably hadn't seen it, some of the results. And they're very interesting. As I say, what's behind door number one, two, and three?

[51:59] Stay tuned. Good job, as always, Rodney. Thank you so much. And stay safe down there, okay? All right, guys. Appreciate it. Take care. Thank you, buddy. Rodney, you're a founder and editor of Tyler and insider.com. And again, the book's called Bigger Than Bama. BBSEC Baseball Tournament Day 2. Obviously, coming up as far as opening can. State taking on the boys from Mizzou. And then later on tonight, more Tigers, Auburn and LSU in Hoover. Yeah, State won 12-2. In fact, that was run-ruled game. Auburn playing, I don't know what time it is, Harold.

It's the late game. And as long as you and I have been following the SEC tournament, it could literally be a late date. Can you believe people stay up past 8 o'clock? Yes, they do. It's unbelievable, is it not? Coming up. Not to wait that long for Ron Higgins to lead up the second hour. The legend himself, Max Howell, is going to be on board. And Double D, Drew DeArmond, it's all straight ahead of the Boom on Buck Show. Stay with us. When getting the job done right is job one.

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U.S. Congressman Barry Moore will be up against former U.S. Navy SEAL Jared Hudson in this runoff race. Hudson appeared to be behind Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall on Tuesday but pulled ahead towards the end of that day, squeaking past Marshall with 25% of the Republican vote to Marshall's 24%. Moore pulled in less than 50% coming in at 39, forcing the runoff election to happen, which will be held this coming June 16th. I'll be back with more Alabama stories after this. Where I was living was not a great place to live anymore.

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[57:03] Caroline Dobson has won the Republican primary to be the candidate in the Secretary of State race. Dobson received 65% of the vote over Christopher Horn, who had 23%, and Glenda Jackson, who got 12%. Dobson is a real estate lawyer out of Montgomery, who also launched a congressional bid back in 2024 and lost to Shamari Figures. Dobson will now go up against Democrat Wayne Rogers in the general election. And incumbent state auditor Andrew Sorrell will continue to run as a Republican for that seat. Sorrell was victorious over his primary challenger, Derek Chen, who is a newcomer to Alabama politics.

Chen pulled in 32% of the vote in this primary to Sorrell's 68%. Sorrell will now go up against Democrat nominee Violet Edwards in the November general election. I'm Andrea Dimes. For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com. And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter. Just hearing the word IRS can make people break out in a cold sweat. No one wants to deal with the IRS, and now you don't have to. The good news is legal tax defense has been successfully negotiating with the IRS for more than 15 years.

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800-979-3168. 800-979-3168. You have nothing to lose but everything to gain. 800-979-3168. Valley Broadcasting Corporation, WITK-FM, Rogersville, Athens, Decatur, The Shores. Sports Radio 93.9, The Score. Boomo Bugg on 93.9, The Score. It is a privilege for a say hello to Logan Fowler. He's got the Auburn Tigers covered at 1819 News. Logan, let's play a little game here. Let's talk basketball. One of the latest additions to the class. I'll take the first name. You take the last one, okay? I'll give you a hint. He's from Lithuania. His first name is Mantis.

You can help us out with the second name. I've practiced this. Good, good. And I still think I'm wrong. We'll call him Rusty, okay? I can't, I cannot wait with the Auburn media relations without a pronunciation of your eyes. So I'm going to go with Rube Stavichius. That's good. That was our second choice. Good, good, good job. We're going to go with it. The Boomo Bugg show. Weekdays, noon to two on 93.9 The Score. 93.9 The Score weather. Today, an 80% chance of afternoon showers and thunderstorms with a high around 85.

Tonight, mostly cloudy with a 60% chance of showers overnight and a low near 65. Tomorrow, an 80% chance of showers and thunderstorms with a high around 85. Tomorrow night, cloudy with an 80% chance of showers and thunderstorms overnight with a low near 65. And for your Friday, a 90% chance of showers and thunderstorms with a high around 85. 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. Your 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 little bit more bug show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us free ride around the Tennessee Valley. And baby, we get the question all the time. Where is LSU getting all that money for football, basketball, pickleball, you name it? I think we might have found the source. Would you agree? Listen, Ron Higgins spends his money on his dogs. Yeah. And he would be glad to take this segment to talk about the dogs he and his lovely wife have had over the years.

Now, if you're suggesting that Ron Higgins is the source of NIL, we better ask him first. Well, you know, we've been called dogs and a lot of other names, so Ron should be comfortable here. He's a fine columnist for the Shreveport Bourgeois Journal. Ron, welcome in. How are your buddies? I'm good. You know, my dogs, Buddy Skippy and Ernie, they take all the NIL money. Ron, if you are a dog owner, listen, we don't have any money left over for universities. We spend all hours either at a dentist's office or a vet.

[1:02:09] Ron, let's talk about a zoo, if you will. Has anything interested happened? It's the off season. Has LSU been in the news over the last few days and weeks? Well, let's see. We've got Lane Kiffin trying to rewrite the history of Ole Miss, which he doesn't know c*** about because he wasn't around 20 years ago and doesn't know how bad it really was. You've got Will Wade buying a roster with names with a bunch of consonants who are going to cover next year. And you're going to say, Vladi, come here, and the whole team's going to come over.

LSU's baseball pitching has let it down all year. Last night, they probably didn't walk 86 batters and won a game. So, that'll cover it, yeah. That's it. Ron, obviously, we had another guy. You're familiar with Memphis. You're familiar, I'm sure, with Bretton Worsworthy, a fine host up on Sports 56. I remember Rick Dees back in the day when it was WHBQ. Another guy by the name of Paul Feinbaum has been on with us today. You got roots to Memphis with a fine Memphis commercial appeal. Where are you?

You know, what we're trying to get at is, you know Oxford, you know LSU. Where are you, as objective as you can, you're in the Pelican State, so we understand that, but where are you with what has basically been the topic de jure across college football here, and as Steve Spurrier said, the silly talking season? Lane was so incredibly wrong, it was mind-boggling. Having, you know, been in Memphis for a long time and covered all names for a long time, and understanding what it used to be compared to now, it was like a comparison.

I mean, if Lane thinks it's bad now, if Billy Brewer was alive, he'd tell him how bad it was. If Tup Brewer wasn't running for office all the time, he'd tell him how bad it was. You know, they did the tools to try and measure, you know, to not use the flag and not play Dixie. And, you know, even try to get a goopy mascot, which nobody bought. You're always going to have some frat boy whose daddy went to Ole Miss, whose grandpa went to Ole Miss.

Some rich, white frat boy. This is a God-given right to win the Rumble flag. But all I can say is, if Lane said, you know, that hurts recruiting, you know what I mean? I'm going to say this. If it hurts your recruiting, Lane, how come you recruited a team that went to the friggin' playoff last year? Ryan, that's my point. What he was saying is sincere. He had the platform. He had the microphone. He's a phone call away from Paul Feinbaum to put it on. I think that's a big mystery.

Would you agree? Yeah. I just want, you know, I want to say, look, sure, there's probably an occasional grandfather who, you know, goes back to the 60s and history and the times of Mississippi, Mississippi burning, the lynching. You know, 20 years, there's a lot of people like that. And then it was impossible to recruit there. Now you can get kids there. I mean, if it was so bad, I get up with it so bad. How did you get that character team out together last year? It wasn't just the bag money.

I mean, they had to go there. I thought of just like, you know, like Lane, can't you just like go to the beach and look at the sky instead of pulling out your phone? And just like pouring gas on everything and blowing it up. Yeah. So, you know, I thought it was incredibly wrong. I just thought, you know, I just, sometimes I wish the LSU AD versus Osbury with Till Lane. If you're going to do an interview with a major magazine, I need to know. That's a good point.

You know, run on that topic. If you're going to play that issue, I mean, we're down here in the South, okay? We know what the rest of the country, how they feel about us in general. You're in Louisiana. We're in Alabama. We're all part of the South. But if you go back, if you're going to play that card, look at the Boston Celtics and the Boston Red Sox. This is as North and as Yankee as you can get. And yet, they were some of the last teams to incorporate blacks on their teams.

Bill Russell used to talk all the time. Bill Russell was born in Louisiana, by the way. Yeah. Bill Russell used to talk all the time how racist Boston was. Yeah. I mean, you know, he was the capital of the team. He was a star attraction. How racist it was. And so, there's all going to be racism everywhere. But I think in the South, I mean, I may be naive, but I don't think it's as bad as the rest of the country perceives it is. I think we all try to get along, and I really think we all try to be sensitive about that toward each other.

And I know that we also have that problem. Yeah, but Lane made it out like it was still the 1960s. And like, you know, first of all, here's Lane, who said in his opening press conference, yeah, I'm just going to run off the road of all of this fans so angry. I was going to the airport. That was a total lie. Made up. You know, just like, so he makes these things up and says, he probably says them over and over to convince himself it's like reality.

[1:07:34] And then he presents it that way. So, I just, all I can say is, we're all going to taste to what the oldest media had to put up with. You know, like, but, you know, the thing is, we're kind of used to crazy around here. Oh, yeah. You said it, right? Oh, yeah. Yeah, I mean, we're used to crazy when you tell us you hire a basketball coach who they fired for cheating and they hired him back. And then he hired the guy who, as an assistant, they fired before they hired Will Wade the first time.

So, we're used to this dappiness. And so, we all just kind of shake our heads like, oh, Jesus. Really? I mean, you know, next. So, we're just, you know, it's just, that's just, I hate to say it, folks, that's just how nuts Louisiana is. It'd be just like, you've got a football coach who just says anything. You've got a men's basketball coach who's aggravating every men's basketball coach in the nation because he's buying a completely professional roster from Europe. Yep. And people say, what is Will Wade doing that?

This is what I think he's doing that. I think he's pushing the limits with the NCAA to force them to come up with some kind of rules and ruling to definitely say, no matter if you go to court, this guy can't play here. I know the Alabama that took it to court and didn't have to happen. I think almost everybody got in this roster trying to go to court, you know. They're going to spend more time in court than on the court. I mean, because he's got, you know, foreign players from all over the place.

And look, it's a good idea. I'll say that. It's a good idea because I'll say this because the NBA, the best NBA players, and the best NBA players now, honestly, are foreign players. And why? Well, because they start playing professionally when they're about 16 or 17 years old. They're taught a style that doesn't matter how big or how small you are, you've got to be able to handle the ball. You've got to be able to shoot threes. You're not pitching a hole into a position. And so when you get to America, you have a guy who's seven feet who can shoot threes and handle the ball.

And last year, some of the best teams in the college for basketball, they had at least, you know, one foreign guy and two foreigners on there. And if it was allowed, great. And so I just don't wait to say, you know, I'm not really tough from here. Yeah. You know? But it's crazy. And I'm just interested to see what will actually show up in the fall. And, you know, how much, I mean, court battles are going to have to have to get these guys on the floor.

But, again, nothing's ever come around here. God, God. I mean, there's never a month where you exhale, don't you? That's exactly right. But, Ron, let me ask you about next week in Sandestin. The SEC is going to take their turn at the podium. And Padetti has been with the Big Ten this week telling everybody about how great expanding the 24 teams are going to be. Greg Sankey doesn't exactly see eye to eye with Padetti. He will have an opportunity to explain that next week, either stay at 12 or go to 16.

Ron, what's Greg Sankey's message to college football next week going to be? Probably that the only reason we're going to 24 or 24 is for revenue sources. It would be a lot of TV money. But you have to think about the integrity of the game a little bit. And there's not 24 teams who deserve to go to a playoff. Thank you. Okay? 16 is the absolute most. I can see 16. I agree. There's enough people on the front at 12 to make you think, yeah, sure. 24? H*** no. I mean, how long do you want these, you know, I would say kids, but how long do you want these paid college professional kids to play a season?

You want them to play like two more weekends? You want them to play like 16, 17, 18 games? What do you want? I mean, how do you want to squeeze them? How much? And how much do you fans have to spend to see their team all the way through? It's ridiculous. And I think there's not more than 16 teams deserving of a chance to play for a national championship. 24 is insane. And I think I don't want to see it happen. I think it's stupid. Well, I think a lot of people are going to agree with you, Ron, about that.

But always great to catch up with you. We always enjoy talking to the Hall of Famer. Where can we get online and learn a lot more about LSU basketball, football, baseball, et cetera? Well, besides spending my time at the dog rescue, I'm at ShreveportBosierJournal.com, dronhiggs.org, on Twitter, at Ron Higgs, and on Instagram, SECRon. Ron, I got a way to come up with some money and pay for those vet bills. You need to have a T-shirt that says, Louisiana, we cray-cray down here. Absolutely. That's right.

[1:13:00] Cray is our state motto. There you go. You're going to survive, I guarantee you, Ron. You've been through hurricanes. I guarantee you can survive this. Thanks so much for your time today, and have a great rest of the week, okay? All right, guys. Take care. We'll see you. All right, buddy. Ron Higgins is going to be with us, Shreveport, Boosier Journal. Coming up, speaking of guys who've been there and done that, we'll take you to the max next. Stay with us. Hello, my name is Keith Medley, and I'm an attorney with the law firm of Johnson, Passour, Medley & Burchill.

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Well, the one and only Max Howell. You took the words right out of my mouth. Max Howell, pioneer in sports talk of the Southeast, former assistant coach at a place that's been the news of late Ole Miss, not to mention Florida State, now living the life in the Magnolia State. Max Howell, welcome in. How are you? I'm doing great, guys. You've got to love this. So I stopped here to see a friend of mine in a restaurant to get lunch today. Right. And we got here talking and I looked at the watch and said, what time?

So they just put me, they just sent me up a little studio back in the back of the restaurant and not there to do that. not when I told them I was going to eat in their restaurant. They bought my lunch free. How about that? Only you, Max. Only you. The state of Mississippi is supposed to be so bad according to Lane Kempion. What message do you tell Lane about that? Well, you know, some guys will say anything and do anything to get the headlines. Yeah.

I've got to put him in that category. I don't demean at all his ability to coach football now. Right. In fact, I'm going to almost bet you Ole Miss won't match that record next year. I can almost tell you that. That's going to be a fact. But I did, I have in that lane, in that relationship to Lane, I've talked to several people from LSU. And one particularly used to listen to me in Atlanta all the time. He was a huge contributor. Right. And I asked him, I said, what's y'all going to do in about two or three years if he's winning along and the NFL comes calling or some other school and he wants to jump ship and go?

You know what he said? We don't care. He said, if he gets to the championship and it costs, and listen to this, he said, if it costs us $100 million over the next three years, we'll pay it. And we'll help him back if he wants to go. So, we're not going to see the same story won't play out at LSU that did it on this. I think some of the people, most of the people over there, I got in that conversation with these guys I met at lunch with today.

They won so much. It's been so long since they held. They take it so personal to them. I'm not going to that third Saturday in September. I wouldn't go close to options for that game. But I'm telling you, you let LSU go walking and beat them pretty bad and you let them win seven or eight this year, I'm going to just see how they're going to handle that. I really do. Yeah. Well, we know where game day is going to be that weekend. And you know that.

And it's bad as he's left and he's still talking and we all know that, but that's his personality. He's a good football coach and they'd have never been to that level that they hadn't been there since Johnny Paul. Yeah. No. It took them 60 years to get back to that level. Yeah. The guy that took them got another job. I know some of the other stuff that's, you know, he talked about since then. It's, you know, it's borderline to say the least. And a lot of it's not true either on these remarks.

But I think he's, he's mentality-wise, he's made up of the nature is if I'm talked about, that's better than being not talked about. That's exactly right. Good, bad, or the other way. And I think that's what he's got. I really do. Yeah. I love the man in the mirror says Lane. I guarantee you that. But your thoughts out you'll have to be in charge of staff meetings at LSU. You know when Kim Mulkey is the same voice in the room, you've got problems. You've got Lane over here.

You've got the knucklehead Wade over there. with basketball, buying basically NBA players and European players. That's going to be fine if they win. What's going to happen if they lose? That's the question, Max. That is. No, I think it's all up in the air. I think it'll be played, it'll be played week by week. You know, and it depends. And I think also is a lot of it will be how they respond. You know, what their response will be. If they start trying to give, you know, be-in-the-mouth excuses to why.

But when you sit back and look at their programs, the historical part of their programs, and look at the money that's available for them to operate on, that's a main component today. You know that. But the fact is, if they can't do it, then I'm not real sure they don't deserve to be talked about. because there is no excuse. No. Come look at the baseball, look at the baseball team this year. Yeah. Preseason like number one or two. Yeah, yeah, yeah. They don't even go back.

[1:23:42] I mean, they win five or six games or something like that. It's ridiculous. So, you know, certain things happen, whether it's in the cards or not, but it's going to be interesting with this football. I'm wondering how he's going to be received in Destin this coming weekend when he starts hitting that to kick and all. Because you know some of those coaches in the league. Oh, yeah. They'll stay away from it. They'll think he's toxic to say the least, particularly with the media. Max, we had Paul Feinbaum on the show earlier today and I asked him and we've been blessed to be talking to you now for decades instead of years and we've all heard this, that one day the Big Ten, the SEC, some of the conferences are just going to say enough's enough.

We're going to get out of the NCAA and do our own thing. I asked Paul in the next five years do you believe that the Big Ten and the SEC will pull out of the NCAA and start their own conference and more or less come up with their own rules and he said yes. Now, basketball will remain with the NCAA, baseball and the Olympic sports, but Paul said and we had another guest this week say the same thing, they believe by the end of the decade that the Big Ten and the SEC will be governing their own body.

I don't disagree with that at all. Jackie Sherrill said that to me 25 years ago. that was coming that way. I'm going to tell you to me the underlying component of that is what Nick Saban does between then and then because I believe he'll be the automatic choice to be the commissioner of that league. I really do believe that provided if he won't sit or if his health is maintained and all. The guy's extremely knowledgeable. He's like his personality and not like his personality but the fact is I don't say he has all the answers but if he doesn't have them all he knows where to get them and I think the league they'd go wrong if they didn't go after him per se.

But I think the rules have been watered down of what we all knew coming through. The money situation they've got to get a hold of that and cut the transfer down and if they aren't going to be students they're going to be employees of the university or whatever the concept may be by paying them like they are they're going to have to have some rules for that. There's just so much so many things that has to come through and it may take five years it may be a group playing in that right now to take a moment but I think if you ask I think Greg thank you that much in the SEC office I think they'd welcome it to tell you the truth.

Now Big Ten I'll be honest with you guys I have kind of a hard time in the geographical location I mean I think they probably if they do that they're going to have to maybe move somewhere in St. Louis or somewhere in the middle part of the country to gravitate to that and maybe have some stadiums where they play playoffs to that kind of thing where it'd be central to a lot of different people but you I mean think about for UCLA are they going to fly on Southern Cal are they going to fly to New Jersey for a golf tournament or for a swimming match or is it just going to be football see I think those those are the things going to have to be you know have to be worked out Max well if you could sit down what would be your message to Greg Sankey to stop this big mole where the Big Ten basically they're using big money and now they're trying to play the political card with what's out there with the South in other words they see blood in the water they got some momentum they want to build on that momentum and right now to my knowledge and that's limited the only person who can kind of take care of those headwinds would be Greg Sankey what would be your message to Greg Sankey to kind of reel some of this in and stop some of that mole that's going up north well you know the first thing I think what's going to have to affect him to get an answer at all out of him Harold is the fact is is it just football what about scheduling see I just go back to talk just briefly about the schedule because how it affects that I understand why they were to go to three the conference nine conference games but if the if the committee that selects the championship under this same format cuts it off at two two losses as they've done so far the SAC you tell me the SAC team is going to make the playoffs look at the schedule and the way the conference is built it's mostly built for two to three lost champions that's right the NFL now really right and so there's so many different questions but I think look I've watched Greg Sanky for a while if you watch him guys he'll comment on certain things but don't think he'll sit back and ask a hundred people what they would do that he's molded over in his mind kind of his position and how it affects his future I think he thinks he's going to be in the commission SEC until they tear him out in the box I do believe in that so he loves that position and he you know overall he's been a good commissioner he's got to put the conference first every time so I just think they've got so many you know so many avenues they've got to take a look at to make this thing work but I do believe it's coming I don't disagree at all maybe that five year is something that you know is more realistic than just talking about it Max if you're the commissioner of the SEC or college football which we'd be better off if either one or more in place are you 12 16 or 24 advocate as far as expanding oh that's great I'm going probably I'm going probably give you this answer I love the 12 16 might be more attractive to more people I'm going to be way out worried about 24 I think that may come when you have the 60 man conference that may end up being what we call a national conference that may work but with the teams right now just 15 to 20 teams in fact I think you may have 10 that can qualify I think 12 or 14 is about all you financially can support now I think there's a lot of other things that go with it I think the fact is how much money how much money are the schools going to make out of the thing whether they play the first round on college campuses if they go to 16 or they play the first two rounds on college campuses and they go to central points of competition I don't know it's all going to be about the money and the money that's what it's always been and that's what it's going to continue to be the guys I mean this they're going to probably head out about 75 million this year in another year it's going to be up close to a hundred million dollars so that's one of the conditions they're playing now you've got to remember those teams in a conference like the SEC right now I mean you go down and take Missouri or used to be with a Mississippi state we're in four or five they're going to get just as much as the teams that would that's right that's exactly what went of our against mentioned earlier today Max that he didn't think there were 24 teams that were worthy to be in the playoff oh that I think the level see that's another thing level competition has to fit in that formula for that and I've heard it talked about yes it is but you can't just look at a team well let's just take Alabama for example Alabama when the Saban was great but it is they hadn't played at that level since he's been retired to tell you the truth you know when you go to hiring coaches if you go out and find a program that has been very successful and that guy is not a right fit for that program and yet the carry over and making decisions about their competition their scheduling even all that is going to play a major role in these decisions but I think whoever decides to take that job once that happens you hear me saying I know it's going to happen at some important time I don't know whether it will be in my lifetime or not but it's going to happen and the fact is they've got to have a board of directors on that thing it's just like a major corporation they all got to be on the same page it's got to be as equitable as possible it's got to be financially supported nationally and I think that's several obstacles got to overcome before I think any success can be headed off to them absolutely manx I can't tell you how much we've enjoyed catching up with you glad you got a free meal as only you can manx let's do this again real soon buddy all you got to do is call always appreciate it guys who says you can't get a free lunch and stand on Lane Kiffin if he walks in okay he ain't crossing that state line unless he has to I guarantee you max howl the one and the only from max the double d drew the arm and on deck stay with it this is Keith the Cypress Creek indoor range we're turning nine and want to celebrate with you all week from May 31st to June 6 representatives from Smith & Wesson Browning FN Winchester Dead Air and more will be here we'll also be having a suppressor class open to everyone with great discounts for all those that attend plus tons of door prizes and even a sidewalk sale each day we'll highlight different aspects of our business like training matches memberships optics suppressors gun sales ammos accessories and more our Facebook page will have all the details or sign up to be on our email list it's happening all week at Cypress Creek indoor range on our 9th birthday party May 31st June 6th Cypress Creek indoor range 5060 Highway 157 and on the web cypress creek range dot com and on social media just hearing the word IRS can make people break out in a cold sweat no one wants to deal with the IRS and 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saturday game three if necessary is sunday the winner of the two best of three matchups will head to the women's college world series stanley cup playoffs tonight the avalanche host the golden knights bundle auto and home renters or condo and save with progressive i'm john thayer with the sports flash presented by progressive on 93 nine the score progressives home quote explorer helps you easily find and buy the right coverage for you it's everything you've always wanted well i mean you know as far as a website that lets you shop quote and buy insurance in one place but hey maybe that is everything you've always wanted you know yeah people have different types of dreams and if all you've ever been searching for is a website that helps you choose home insurance rates and coverage boy do we have great news about progressives home quote explorer progressive casualty insurance company affiliates and third party insurers comparison rates not available in all states or situations prices vary based on how you buy hey john why so glum i just got let go the company's downsizing this is the third time in the last two years i'm done with this have you thought about my computer career i've heard they can train you for a career in it in just a few months including cyber security and the basics of ai and you don't need prior training or experience now that's a recession resistant career wow thanks i'll check them out go to my computer career dot edu and take the free career evaluation my computer career dot edu and elite comptia certification partner financial aid is available to those who qualify including va benefits the score now back with boom o bug on 93.9 the score welcome back in baby i feel so lonely today over the past few days i can't tell you how many texts i've gotten from all my politician friends and today i have not got one text today from a politician can you answer that question and can you answer also what's going on with una and the sec when it comes attorneys yeah uh the election over with last night some interesting results they dropped me they dropped me well they dropped everybody una has a three to nothing lead over jacksonville in the top of the third the florida gators are three to nothing over the vanderbilt commodores by the way if florida wins that game maybe i'm playing the alabama crimson tide tonight and the last time i saw hartzel uh they were in a rain delay and i'll try to get an update on them too in the meantime we don't need any umbrellas to say hello to drew de arm and he's talking ball inside at huntsville's 97.7 fm the zone double d welcome in how are you i'm good guys how are you man we're doing all right appreciate you taking time out uh you're you're so selfish it's a crazy time of the year uh we were talking earlier with our mutual friend rodney or about it's may and does anybody love alabama softball and baseball more than the city of tuscaloosa this the time of the year when a lot of restaurants the schools getting out the bars the hotels they need some business and the softball and baseball team they have come through and basically both of them have hit home runs with the chamber of commerce your thoughts just about that and the overall season for the alabama athletic program uh it's been a strong year for alabama no doubt anytime you have a great chance to you know host uh baseball just like you have already hosted a regional and softball and you're hosting a super regional against lsu it's been a very very successful spring uh no doubt about that it's a really good year for you know alabama gymnastics as well they spent the year highly ranked and of course we know uh football reached the sec championship game won a college football playoff game won 11 games and improved no matter what joel clatt says uh and did a you know a really nice job and then uh certainly uh i i think nato's had another highly successful year with a sweet 16 the women's program and christy curry's final season reached the round of 32 and certainly uh went with their fifth straight tournament so it's just it's been a really good year overall for alabama athletics no doubt and to me that's a tribute to greg byron and his leadership and giving a lot of these programs what they need to succeed certainly there's still some areas they'd like to improve but i think alabama athletics uh is that a strong year no question d2 let me ask you about baseball uh they may be playing the florida gators or they beat bandy today they've got some solid starters tyler fay adams up church liam has come on fowler lebron uh eric hines with some key home runs how far can this baseball team go in the sec tournament in hoover well i mean it's a it's going to go as far as their pitching can take them uh you know they uh by far the strength of their team has been the starting rotation which i think they may be the only team in the sec that started the same three guys yeah uh on the weekend all year long and of course especially within the sec i mean certainly tyler fay's been a horse and gotten them deep into games and then uh you know for three years zane adams has been durable and been a good uh pitcher and a guy that'll pitch in the professional rank surely following this season and then miles up church has been one of the best freshmen uh in college baseball and in the sec and uh getting invited to try out you know for the national collegiate uh baseball team in carry north carolina certainly uh is a big time honor for him and one that he richly deserves and and really i thought in their biggest game of the year having to beat a really good old miss team at home uh to to decide that series and and ultimately lock in a regional host and and maybe even a national seed he came up huge giving them seven innings 101 pitches and uh and and putting them in position to beat the rebels six to two so uh certainly it'll be interesting i would expect tyler fay to be on the bump tomorrow for alabama yeah and i think rob vaughn's gonna attack this try to win it uh alabama hasn't won it since 2003 and if you can win tomorrow against the florida gators who or la or excuse me vanderbilt looks like florida's got the upper hand right now three nothing but if you can beat florida potentially for a fourth straight time i think to me that locks in a national seat a top eight uh and that would be big for alabama it would give them another off day and then you come back on the weekend on saturday and sunday potentially uh with zane adams and then maybe even miles up church on sunday pitching for a championship so uh certainly alabama you know is gonna have to play well uh down here down in hoover i think they've got the potential to do so the key is going to be to play clean defensively i thought they played really clean against old miss in the last weekend of the regular season and if they can do it down in hoover then they got a chance to advance but certainly it's the best league in the country we already saw mississippi state dispatch missouri this morning uh 12 to 2 in seven innings and florida's looking strong thus far so and alabama will get a chance to see you know one of their top two arms if this continues so certainly in vanderbilt if they lose today i if i were them in kentucky i'd be a little nervous the uh selections coming up on uh on monday it's good as sec baseball is sec sophomore may be even better alabama the super regionals against lsu that's an interesting matchup for pat murphy's did not remember creme if i'm wrong on this drew he actually left alabama had a cup of coffee to be the new softball coach at lsu and said you know what i think i'm going back to tuscaloosa and picking up my old office and my old job very intriguing matchup for bama lsu and what a job again for pat murphy well i mean that was back after the 2011 season he and allie habit and allie had close ties to louisiana and uh she had played at louisiana lafayette that's where she's the head coach right now and lsu had actually hired both of them and they stayed for a few days uh i think about four or five days and coach murphy thank goodness decided uh that he wanted uh he got told he wanted to come back to alabama and then won the first national championship in sec history the next year so uh that was that was big for alabama big for the southeastern conference and now he'll face beth tureen and lsu and they didn't play in the regular season so uh or the or the tournament so they have not seen lsu this year lsu was very uh you know uh very good and they're in hosting their regional and baton rouge and winning three three straight including being a good virginia tech team 72 to advance this is a really good alabama team that stayed healthy all year uh they've got three really good pitchers especially their top two and that should be who you'll see is jocelyn briskin big moden so uh certainly alabama two wins away from going back to oklahoma city i believe for a 16th time and uh coach murphy and the ladies are the number one team in the country right now the number one national seed and they've got a really good chance uh i think to you know contend for a championship this year really good lineup really much deeper than a year ago with a lot of power and uh it'll be a really interesting matchup uh against the bayou bengal starting on friday d2 let me ask you about amari allen i know you've been asked about this this week went through the combine according to some of the draft experts is stocks falling a little bit i've seen anywhere from basically 26 to 32 he's going to make a decision am i coming back to alabama for another year or am i going to stay in the draft uh uh your thoughts your gut feeling on amari allen well i felt the whole time that he would come back to school uh i didn't think he finished strong last year and certainly uh i didn't think he was six eight uh i thought he was closer to six six which is really what he is uh you know he's more of a bigger guard uh next year he could be a uh the primary ball handler and point guard for alabama uh and of course if they can get uh you know a aiden holloway back that would be a boon too uh because certainly uh he he would be another guy that can help with the primary ball handling responsibilities and can play the point position so uh aiden holloway uh with his legal situation and of course and maury allen would be huge impact guys i think amari could definitely solidify himself maybe a top 15 spot in next year's draft if he came back and had a really good year and i think that's what uh he needs to just kind of follow the blueprint of la baron file on that's what la baron has done now i've also heard la baron may have slipped a little bit in the draft but for me that's a good thing he can go to a good organization uh maybe maybe not a team that's horrendous and play for a good team still have a really good career because i know the guy can play i have no doubts about that and he made the right decision in coming back and improving his stock so certainly uh i do think that amari allen would benefit coming back and i think nato's and his staff are probably crossing their fingers and toes that happens and then i still think they need another guard even if yeah i agree uh and certainly i'm sure they're looking at the overseas market but i also wouldn't be surprised if maybe a young man reclassified academically and did something but we will see about that but certainly i think amari allen being closer to six five and needing to improve his outside shot much like laveron a year ago would benefit from coming back i agree with you harsell in a rain delay hopefully they've gotten back uh going competing for the six eight state championship again calvert county and softball uh a lot of stuff going on hard to believe d2 the final week of competition for high school sports lord have mercy uh where can we get online and listen to you and scott with your extended show my friend yeah certainly uh you think you can connect with us at nine seven seven ESPN uh we're also on wdz and tv on youtube uh and of course they go to nine seven seven ESPN dot com if you missed any of our content we had to cut a little short last two days because of this sec baseball tournament which is rolling on so far good weather hopefully they can get in all four games today including auburn who will play in the final game of the day i my estimated time was no for no earlier than nine uh but we'll see uh because we've already had a run ruling so the game seems to be moving along pretty quickly but auburn will take the uh field against lsu uh and in the final game of the day and of course before that arkansas and tennessee uh but certainly you can hear all those games on 977 the zone and if you miss our content we have 977 ESPN uh the zone on our soundcloud page and of course uh you can uh see the replays on uh on that wcdn tv as well and if you want to connect with us it's 977 ESPN on x but we certainly always enjoy being with you guys last i heard before this rain delay hartson was down three nothing so that's a bit of a tough start against spain park but brad phillips seems very tough family i got a chance to watch them last week uh against uh hazel green when they swept it's over at uh the uh sims booth field over that parkman city complex and a hartson great atmosphere and they're trying to repeat as six day state champs and certainly uh they're the there's north alabama's final hope there and then there's been a lot of great action in softball over in chocolaco and jack state as well so we've been monitoring all that and certainly we look forward to alabama taking the field tomorrow in the sec baseball tournament it's always true plenty on the plate thanks so much and stay safe and dry out there okay yes sir thank y'all thank you bud double d drew german 97 7 f in the zone baby what's the latest of their friends at una still three to nothing third inning una leading and again florida three to nothing over vandy uh the braves by the way adding to their lead last night they win the fields lose so the braves will start tonight eight full up on the fields mr sell taking the mound for the braves and one of the best names for a pitcher in all the league for the marlins his name is jason junk i kid you not you can hear it tonight here on 93 nine the score that's going to take care of business for now man for bb greg james blare the entire crew here harold buck thank you so much for your time today let's do it again tomorrow noon to two for the boom old buck show back here on sports radio 93 nine the score you you you