Boomo Bugg Show 100926

[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 Tide, 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 Valley. Brett Beaird, welcome in where, of course, we've got a close eye on the sky and the passing of a football legend with strong connections to the entire Shoals area. Good afternoon, welcome in and how are you?

I know you're talking about Mike Ditka, Iron Mike, an amazing coach, amazing player and quite a character. Passes away today. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. Zach Pounders of the Shoals Sports Report recounts last night's games, previews tonight's big games in high school football. The one and only Bill Shanks talks Braves and Dawgs. But Jimmy is here right now to talk about the keys for an Alabama win over Georgia. Did you say win or wind? Wind. W-I-N. Without the D, less so. Jimmy Stiles, co-host of Locked on Bama, part of the Locked On Network.

Jimmy, welcome in. How are you and James Spann doing on this Friday? I am less busy than James. I think all week James has been like a CPA on April 14th. Let's talk about the latest that we're seeing, Jimmy, is compared to where this baby got started at the beginning of the week. It looks like now most of it's going to come through tonight, through tomorrow morning, maybe lingering into the afternoon. But by showtime, the stage should be ready to play. What are you hearing? And make sure we're clear on this.

We're not saying that's the gospel. That is just afternoon on a Friday that what we're hearing. What are you hearing on your end? Yeah, I think that's about right, Harold. I'm anticipating rain starting in Tuscaloosa around 6 p.m. this evening. Maybe the worst of it being, you know, well after midnight, maybe very early in the morning, 5, 6 in the morning here. I think there's a possibility that the rain could be ending as soon as noon. That might be a little optimistic, but I'm hopeful that that could happen.

And if that's the case, you know, perhaps tomorrow afternoon will feel more like a real game. You know, a lot of tailgating events have been canceled. They've changed the tailgating situation significantly by order of the university. They don't want tents up in the morning flying around campus. So they've changed a lot of the tailgating. But I'm hopeful that we have somewhat normal weather as soon as noon. But I've not, I've no reason to believe that it's going to be rainy or even windy during the game.

The field will be wet. But Alabama has a state-of-the-art drainage system. And I don't anticipate the fields being a mess. It just might be a little wet. Absolutely. And in fact, Andrew Bone of Yale, Alabama had a very detailed article about that drainage system that was changed in 2023. Jimmy, James and I were looking at, of course, your show with Luke, watching and listening at the same time. And you had an interesting comment about the chess game. We don't talk a lot about offensive coordinators, defensive coordinators.

This is a good one. Wayne Grubb against Glenn Schumann. Mike Bobo against Kane Womack. Jimmy, your thoughts on, as you put it, the chess game. Well, what's really interesting to me in games like this is it reminds me a lot of the NFL. And, of course, so many of the players you see on the field Saturday night will be in the NFL fairly soon. But one thing about the NFL, I believe, when I watch those games, is, you know, the teams are so evenly matched. I think the play calling, the schemes, the chess game, it matters a ton in that league.

Because athletic, you're not going to out-athlete the NFL team you're playing, right? I mean, they've all got premium. Even the worst team in the league is full of some of the best athletes in the world. So, the scheme and the coaching and the play calling, it all really matters. It'd be like a car race when all the cars are identical, you know. Then it really comes down to who's the best driver. That's what I think of when I think of this Alabama-Georgia game. I think that both teams are pretty evenly matched.

[5:09] I mean, I think almost guy for guy, player for player, you're talking about a fairly equal athlete. And the play calling and the scheme and the chess game matters more in games like this. And I do think Kirby Smart and Glenn Schumann are really good defensively, not just with those elite athletes. But they're as smart as it gets, you know, when it comes to call and defenses. And when you're playing a quarterback that's making a sixth start, this has to be where Georgia thinks they can gain advantage, right?

It's, hey, we're not going to, we're not going to, you know, be faster than Keelan. You know, we can't do anything about how talented he is with his arm. But what we can do with a guy making a sixth start is confusing. And I think that's going to be Georgia's plan is to throw as much as Keelan as possible. I'm not talking about blitzing every down. I'm just talking about different looks. They've watched all five games. They know what Keelan's seen. I think they're going to try to show him things he has not seen and just try to get in his head.

It will be Ryan Grubb's job and Brian Ellis' job to counter whatever Georgia's doing by coaching Keelan up and that player-to-coach communication has never been more important. But I think out of all the games Alabama will play this year, I think the chess match between coordinators will matter more than it does in any other game, partly due to Keelan will be a far more experienced player in November than he is today. Jimmy Stein, Locked on, Bama. Jimmy, a fun question, and how in the world do you answer it?

It's just a fun question. If you were a coach and you could take this quarterback or that quarterback in this game, who would you take? Would you take the experienced and proven track record of a guy under Stockton or a guy whose potential right now is off the charts? And is it safe to add to that, safe to say that this is something Alabama has not seen a team like Georgia? And you take the coin, flip it over, and I don't think it's, or I think it is safe to say Georgia hasn't seen a team like Alabama yet.

I think the question about the quarterback is great because I'm 100% sure this is the case, 100% sure on and off the record. Alabama, happy to go to war with Keelan Russell. Yeah. Georgia, happy to go to war with Gunnar Stockton. I don't think either coach would trade for the other guy. I think they like exactly what they got, and with good reason. I do think that what's important in terms of winning the game, Keelan is viewed as the dynamic playmaker, right? And Gunnar Stockton is viewed as this game manager type.

I don't think either one is 100% accurate in terms of labeling them that simply. But what the game could come down to, guys, is how good does Keelan manage the game, and how much of a playmaker does Gunnar Stockton become? Because for Georgia to win the game, Gunnar's going to have to make plays against Alabama's fine defense. And for Alabama to win the game, Keelan's got to manage it. He can't just be out there trying to hit a home run with every swing. He's going to have to take what comes to him, get out of bad plays, not turn over the ball, manage the game.

So Keelan, the game manager, versus Gunnar, the playmaker, that could determine the outcome. Jimmy, last year in Atlanta, in the SEC championship game, Alabama ran for negative three yards on 16 attempts because they got behind early. Now, Alabama's averaging 185 on the season. Everybody sees they've improved significantly in the run game. But Georgia's rush defense has only given up 57 yards per game. I don't expect Alabama to run for 185. But, Jimmy, can they run for 125, 130-ish in that area, get key first downs, get some productive yardage on first down.

In other words, can Alabama run the ball more effectively this time against Georgia? I believe strongly that the answer is yes. I don't think the run game will look anything like it looked in Atlanta last December in this matchup. It might look a little more like what happened in Athens in the early season, regular season matchup between these two. When Alabama ran the ball okay against Georgia the first time, Jim Miller in particular had a pretty good game. And I know he caught a ball out of the backfield that was critical in the game.

I do think Alabama's going to have some success running the ball. But I'm glad that you picked out, Brett, the number of 125 and 130 because I think that's literally like the magic number. I think that's the number Alabama has to hit. It would be great if they could rush for 185, you know, the team average, or 200 yards. That'd be great. I'm not sure how realistic it is because Georgia's so good against the run. But if you can run for about 125, that's going to help Keelan throw the football.

[10:15] That's what you're trying to do is achieve some level of balance where the entire game is not on Keelan's right arm or even on Keelan's legs. But I am optimistic Alabama can get to that number. In fact, they might get to the number with help of Keelan's own legs can help them accumulate some yards. I'm sure that's going to be something that we will see. Gunnar Stockton himself, he can run the ball pretty well too. So both quarterbacks at least running to the sticks on some key third downs because I truly believe third down is probably your padlock stat in terms of like what stat can you look at after the game and know who won?

I think it'll be third down. And Alabama was awesome on third downs against Georgia last year in Athens. They weren't in Atlanta, but they were in Athens. Third down's huge. And it's part of the reason, guys, why I'm going to pick Alabama to win this game because third and 10 is trouble for Georgia and Stockton. Third and 10 does not mean the drive is over for Alabama. I think Keelan is exceptional in that regard. He's a dynamic. And Alabama converting a couple of third and 10s probably is what's going to be the difference in the game.

You get a feeling there is a mutual admiration society here. A lot of respect on both sides of the ball. Certainly Kirby's earned his stripes. But as good as he is, there's one thing, just like Goliath, he had that little bit of spot there between his eyes. Everybody's got that little weakness. His history shows that he hates facing a guy like Keelan Russell, who's a Swiss Army knife. He can gun it. He can run it. And he can throw it through a donut hole. Your thoughts just about that side of the matchup.

And then the role that, let's face it, this week these coaches have kind of had to tweak their practice schedule because you would think they'd be emphasizing running the ball, which leads to the next question. Your thoughts about the respective play of the tight ends. Yeah, well, it's going to be a great tight end game. I mean, this is a tight end summit of games because these might be the two best tight end rooms in the country. Certainly in the SEC, both rooms. Now, Georgia may be a little better group catching the ball.

Alabama may be a little bit better on the physical side. But not much difference between these rooms. Alabama plays five tight ends with the first team. Five different Georgia tight ends have caught touchdown passes. There you go. We're talking about a deep, deep tight end room for both teams. As far as Kirby struggling dealing with athletic quarterbacks, I think it's really interesting that they said the same thing about Saban. For years, you know, that Saban's kryptonite are these dual threat quarterbacks. Now they say the same thing about Kirby.

Well, there's no coincidence in my opinion. First of all, it's not just an athletic quarterback. I mean, they destroy athletic quarterbacks all the time. What I think both teams, both Saban and Kirby, struggle with are athletic quarterbacks who do things like Lynn Heisman. I mean, those guys are good against everybody. I don't think that it's some sort of weakness on Saban or Kirby's part. But what I do think is true about these athletic quarterbacks and Kirby's defense, which is largely Saban's defense, is they don't play exclusively man-to-man.

In fact, they play a lot of zone, but there's a lot of man matchup in it, particularly at cornerback. But even in the middle of the field, there is a lot of man principles. And when you're in man defense and you're guarding your receiver, your back is to the play. You're guarding your receiver and man coverage. You're not in zone watching the quarterback. So, when you're in man and your back is to the play, it's sort of ideal for quarterbacks to take off and make some yardage that's given to them.

In a zone, more of a zone concept or a cloud concept, there's a lot of eyes on the quarterback and the quarterback's less likely to make a big play with his legs. But when you're playing against man defense, the quarterback is often unaccounted for. And when you're talking about an elite athlete like a Keelan Russell, you can spy him with a great athlete like Chris Cole. And Cole's going to have his wins. But most of the time, Chris Cole's not going to tackle Keelan in the open field.

Not most of the time. He certainly will some of the time. He's a special player. But most of the spies aren't as athletic as a Keelan Russell. And I think for those reasons, I do think Keelan will have a big game. Alabama quarterbacks in the regular season matchups with Georgia and the last two. Jalen Milrow had not only his career best game, you know, he had one of the best games of all time. I mean, he threw for like 375 yards and ran for 115 against Georgia. And last year, Ty Simpson was extremely efficient and good in the win at Athens.

I think that game tape more than any other landed Ty Simpson in the first round. I think you're exactly right. I can't think of a better way to end the week than break down an Alabama game with Jimmy Stein. You and Luke Robinson do a phenomenal job. Six to seven days a week. Just that. And then sprinkle in Cover Crimson with Travis Reier on YouTube. Jimmy, where can we get online and get the best podcast on the planet? Yeah. Locked on Bama. We're doing shows seven days a week in season.

[15:39] So a new show every day. We'll even have post-game reaction. You can find Locked on Bama on YouTube or any place you get your audio podcasts. Jimmy, as always, great to, as Brent said, put the brakes on a weekday, big weekend. Enjoy and stay as dry and safe as you can. Okay, buddy. Hey, appreciate it, guys. Thank you, bud. Appreciate you. Jimmy Stein, great job there, buddy. Jimmy is always locked on Bama. He's been locked on Alabama, Auburn, the entire college landscape. The man, Doug Segrist on deck.

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Pat Boyle here to help you beat the Bulls in Western One Sports. Colts and the Steelers in Pittsburgh, and I like Aaron Rodgers and the Steelers to bounce back. This is purely a situational spot. Steelers have had 10 days to prep for this one after playing last Thursday while the Colts are coming back from London and immediately playing on the road. Pittsburgh will have to stop Jonathan Taylor, but I believe they forced some turnovers out of Daniel Jones in that Rodgers picks apart a mediocre Colts secondary.

Give me the Steelers minus 2.5. I'm Pat Boyle, BetSmarter and Beat the Bulls. Download the BetMGM app today. When my husband passed, our son was only one. I learned life insurance is something that you need to have in place, especially as a parent. With Ethos, you can get covered in minutes. No medical exams, up to $3 million in coverage, and it's all online. Get your free quote at ethos.com slash game. That's ethos.com slash game. Paid spokesperson. Application times and rates may vary. Online health questions required.

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Tickets are $100 and reserved tables are $1,000 with eight tickets included. For more information, call Coach Brian Pounders at 205-246-0644. That's Dinner in the Dome at Deschler High School on Saturday, October 17th. From the University of Alabama, this is Crimson Tide Today. It's a daily update on Bama sports and it's brought to you by Vector Security Champions Lane, the best pregame fan fest in college football. For more information, visit championslane.com. Hello again, everybody. I'm Roger Hoover. Here are final thoughts from Alabama football head coach Kalen DeBoer as we get ready for Saturday against Georgia.

[20:47] Coach, roll tide's been taken, so what's your final word? Yeah, I know everyone knows that this is another big game for us this week and got some weather concerns and all that good stuff, but we need to see you out there and hope everything can blow through and we are able to all go out there and Saturday night have a great night. So, appreciate all the support we've gotten so far and our guys are continuing to work hard, continue to be relentless and, you know, getting better every day, every week.

So, looking forward to seeing everyone on Saturday. So are we, Coach. Appreciate your time so very much, both you and Rico Scott. I'll have more in a moment. Are you ready for game day in Tuscaloosa? Don't miss the ultimate pregame experience this season at Vector Security Champions Lane. Opening four hours before each home game, this fan fest has everything. Located next to the Walk of Champions, you'll enjoy live music with our great concert series. Plus, player autographs, food trucks, giant LED video boards to watch games, and ice cold beer at Legends Lounge, where there is never a cover charge.

Check out ChampionsLane.com each week for the latest updates. Roll Tide. We've got you covered for Alabama football on Saturday against Georgia. Kickoff is set for just after 6.30 p.m. Central, with our coverage of the network starting at 3.30 p.m. You can listen on our full radio network, the Varsity Network app, as well as watch the booth cam, presented by Regents Bank, streaming live on all CTSN social media platforms at UA underscore CTSN. Crimson Tide Today is brought to you by Vector Security Champions Lane. Crimson Tide Today is a production of the Crimson Tide Sports Network from Weirfield.

What's happening this week in college football? The Lindy's Football Report has the answers. 30 minutes of college football discussion on the biggest matchups of the week. Concise, engaging, accurate, with opinions thrown in from some of the most knowledgeable reporters in the business. The Lindy's Football Report. Check it out. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. Speaking of checking out, let's check in with the man, Doug Segers. Name one of the 50 legends of Alabama sports writers in the great state of Alabama.

Also home of Jim Cantore and a whole host of weather folks this week. Doug, welcome in. Have you got the Doug Segers man cave hurricane proof and ready to go? Not quite. I don't have the power generator. I'm a little nervous going in. Hey, we're going to roll the dice. We're going to hope everything, the lights stay on and we can get to some football. You know what, Doug? Just the wifey and I was talking about that. Obviously, you pray for the folks in the path of it, including any of us and everybody else out there.

But here's the other side of the coin. One of the things that could affect a lot of people is just that. Everything is okay, but the electricity goes out. And then guess what? There ain't no game on TV. Are you ready for that, Doug? No. No, no. You'll think that was it. That Florida State opener, remember? Yep. Just what a mess it was. Oh, yeah. And they didn't have power. I mean, it's something we take for granted now. Exactly. Doug, obviously, right now, the green light is blaring.

They're ready to go. Where do you start breaking it down, how this baby's going to go tomorrow night? Assuming everything goes as at least the last report as scripted. I just think it'll be a holy war. I think Georgia has more of a, you know, stop your cold defense, but they're going to have their hands full if, you know, this Alabama offense is clicking. Alabama's more kind of the bend, don't break. They let you do stuff in the 20s, and then they're like an ambush. You know, the minute you make a mistake, they're forcing a fumble.

They've got to pick six. So, I think it's two great contrasts. Even offensively, you know, Georgia's more of the power run game, short passes, gunner's percentage is just incredible. But Alabama can kill you with a big play from any part on the field. I'm not sure I've got as much faith right now in their running game. So, I think it's just going to come down to the wire. I've got Georgia right now by maybe a field goal. I watched the replay of the Georgia-Vanee game, at least the first quarter last year.

Last night, the first drive Georgia had. They went down the field about eight or nine plays. And Stockton, as you mentioned, every pass was within 10 yards of the line of scrimmage. He had two quarterback draws. He never handed the ball off one time to a running back. And I know Bowens is not going to be able to play. Alabama's got to get off to a good start. In Athens, they jumped out 17-7. But Georgia has outscored opponents this year in the first quarter, 70-7. And again, I know people look at their schedule and kind of roll their eyes.

[25:54] But still, Georgia has been very efficient early to get up on opponents quickly. Yeah, I think Georgia is the most complete team in the country. And again, they haven't played the same schedule. But they're, you know, everything's kind of clicking right now. Here's the funny thing is, I don't think Alabama's even come close to playing their best game yet. No, I agree. And, you know, potential-wise, I think they're the best team in the country. So Georgia's a little more seasoned. But the schedule, you know, they really haven't been tested.

We don't know what Georgia will do when they fall behind 17-7 or 17-7. We know what Alabama can do. And I think that's a big factor, the mental factor. And again, you know, things kind of get in Kirby's head at times. He just wants to be more physical in Alabama. And under DeBoer, Alabama has been the equal physically in the two regular season games. So I just think this is, you know, we're always talking about Texas-Ohio State was game of the year. I think this one's better, potentially.

Isn't it amazing? Because in years past, there would have been only one game talked about across the country, and that would be Texas and Oklahoma. Your thoughts, well, Texas show that they're human somewhere down the road. I don't think a lot of folks are picking this weekend to pick up the L. The schedule certainly toughens up a little bit after that. But your thoughts just about the Oklahoma situation and what happens there if this thing continues to stay off the tracks? I mean, this is right where Oklahoma was last year, and they ended up going to the playoffs.

You know, obviously, if they could win tomorrow, it turns their season around. They aren't as bad as they look. They've got to make some adjustments. So potentially one of the better defenses. They've had some bad outings. But the talent there, offensively, they just have to, you know, kind of regain Matera's confidence. Because we know what he can do when he's healthy. Right. But, you know, they can't protect him right now. So what do you do? Do you slide coverage? Do you go short passes? I mean, there are solutions to that when you've got a quarterback of that capability.

So, you know, I'm not as down in Oklahoma as everybody else. Let me ask you about an intriguing game to me. Texas A&M at Missouri. Missouri coming off that emotional beatdown of the Florida Gators. I know everybody's been talking about quarterbacks, and particularly the freshmen in the league. Austin Simmons, 23 of 30 for 340 against the Gators. On the other hand, Doug, Marcel Reed, who so many people thought was going to have a fabulous year, last in the SEC in completion rate, yards per attempt, and quarterback rating.

He has had a rough year. Will Missouri have a letdown in this game and A&M play one of their better ones? Your thoughts? Yeah, I think it's certainly possible. And, again, I'm going back to these schedules. I talk about it every week. It's not the one game. It's the series of three, four games. And Missouri's coming off that emotional win. But before that, they had an emotional loss. Defense has been consistent. Offense came to light last week. A&M's already had two really big games where they fell short.

So, they've actually got nothing to lose at this point. Yeah. So, I think that kind of favors the game. I still think Missouri's slightly the better team. I keep going. You know, the Drinkwits, you know, can win 10 games a year. And nobody gives this program any credit. That's right. Exactly. The bugaboo was, yeah, the bugaboo was they couldn't beat the ranked team. Well, they just did. And now, you know, it's kind of like the dam breaking down. I think they're a legitimate college football playoff contender.

So, I think A&M has a chance. I still think Missouri pulls this out. Well, I agree with that. Well, listen, you've got 24 hours to go get a generator. Get online. See which one is the cheapest one. Or see if they can deliver it. To be totally prepared. I know you've got the refreshments, the plumbing, and the bathrooms ready. Please enjoy the conversation. Have a fun and safe weekend, my friend. Thank you. Hey, in all seriousness, I hope everybody gets through this safely. Let's say prayers for everybody.

Absolutely. Well put. I guarantee you, football is big, but some things are bigger. Be careful if you're on the road. A thing called hydraprime with those high winds and potential rains. So, please be careful. Doug Seegers. Good advice with the weather and also with the sports stuff. Doug Seegers named one of the 50 legends in Alabama sports writer's history. Coming up, he's a legend in a place called Georgia. Bill Shanks on deck. Stay with us. All right, grab some buds and listen up. Grilling season's here. Now we find out what we're made of.

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Progressive presents the Sports Flash on 93.9 The Score. Sunday in the NFL, the New Orleans Saints will be at home. They'll take on the Vikings. Minnesota's 4-0. Saints are 1-3. Sunday night, the Falcons will play at Mercedes-Benz Stadium as they host the Baltimore Ravens. Ravens are 3-1, while the Falcons enter the matchup with a 2-2 record. The second-ranked Georgia Bulldogs will play in Tuscaloosa. Tomorrow is a deacon No. 6 Alabama. The Dogs and the Tide are both 5-0 on the year and 3-0 in SEC play. Bundle auto and home, renters or condo, and save with Progressive.

I'm John Thayer with the Sports Flash presented by Progressive on 93.9 The Score. Here at Liberty Mutual, we work with independent insurance agents who work for you. They really get to know you. So the more you share, the more it helps. Up to a point. So definitely list any vehicles you own, but not all your allergies. Tell them about your home square footage, but not your gossipy neighbor. Ugh, he's so gossipy. Budget? Yes. Your dream journal? Probably not. So I was talking to a moose, and the moose just…

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[36:46] The show starts at 6 p.m. and you don't want to miss it. Roll Tide. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. The Score. And welcome back into the Boomo Bugg Show. Brett Beaird and Harold Bugg will be rejoining us in just a few minutes, but I can't think of anything in the world that I would rather do than before an Alabama and Georgia game. Right. Talk to an Alabama expert and that is Bill Shanks, host of the Bill Shanks Show on 93.1 FM and Macon, the Superstations.

He does TV High School on 41 NBC, Savannah Morning News, and he's the biggest dadgum Alabama fan I've ever seen in my life. Welcome in the show, Bill. Glory, glory, glory to Georgia! You're supposed to wait till tomorrow to drink, Bill. Come on. It's too late to start that stuff, brother. Welcome in. Look, I want to tell you, you people do anything to get out of playing Georgia, even put a hurricane on your deck on the stage. That's it. Bill, that's how you become a successful program.

You do what it takes to get the job done. Before we get into it, let's talk about the social stuff. I'm assuming that you're going to come over early and you're going to tailgate with the Beard Boys. Are those rumors true? You know what? I've known these two Beard Boys for 20 years. Yes, you have. I finally got them straight about year five. But I want to tell you, I still ain't had no dadgum invitation. Here it comes. I know they're up there in that dadgum box up there, you know, by Barry Bryant.

Oh, yeah. Yes. Hey, now d*** one time didn't mean no invitation. So, if you put your thumb on the pulse of the Dog Nation, what are they saying about these boys from Bama over there? Well, I think everybody's curious about the quarterback. I think that's the main thing is what is this quarterback and, you know, what's his deal and what are we going to see from him? I think that's probably part number one. And so, I think that's the main thing is, you know, Georgia has had trouble containing running quarterbacks at times.

Even last week against Blaze, whatever his name is, for Vanderbilt, he had a little trouble. But, you know, I'm more curious about the Georgia's defense against the Alabama offense. So, look, last time these two teams played, y'all had negative running yards. Negative three. So, I don't think they haven't gotten any better with that. Yeah, you're exactly right. Georgia has outscored, we mentioned this earlier, opponents in the first quarter at 70-7. Wow. Alabama got out 17-7 in Athens, which, that's the game that I would rather, I'll race the other one from my memory banks in Atlanta, but I try to remember the one in Athens.

But I watched the first quarter of the venue replay last night and Georgia went right down the field, short passes, two quarterback draws, did not hand off to a running back, but very efficient and once again, Georgia got off to an early lead. Well, it did and, you know, the interesting part is that Georgia got off to an early lead and Vanderbilt outrushed him in the first half in 82-20. And then Georgia bounced back and kind of clamped down and outrushed Vanderbilt 156-13 in the second half.

So, you know, that's again why I'm kind of curious as to what this Alabama running game is going to do and how good this Georgia defense is. Look, I love this Georgia defense. I think it's really good. And I think it's deep. I think it's talented. And, you know, I can't say it's 2021 or 2022, but it's close. It's the closest thing they've had since. And I just, I'm anxious for the challenges of Russell tomorrow, Brown next week, Jayden Vaughn in three weeks. I think there's a lot of good players here that are getting ready to face.

And, you know, so it's going to be the challenge. There's no question about it. And I can't wait to see what they do. But, look, I have complete faith in Georgia's talent on defense. I'm almost the point, and I know you guys have had defenses where you've had to probably say this too. I've got to believe it. I've got to see it to believe it that they can push because they've been so good up to this point through five games. And I'm not saying they're perfect.

I'm not saying it's going to be the best defense in history, but it's really, really, really, really, really good so far. And, therefore, I want to see what happens tomorrow night. The numbers bear it out. Ironically, did we ever think back in the day with defense being the king of the hill that the number one and number two scoring teams in the entire country would be Georgia and Alabama respectively? So, they're looking for big numbers. Bill, you mentioned the running game. How healthy is the room overall?

[41:47] And as far as Georgia, one thing I think a team, a coach wants, they want to win, but they want their team to face some adversity so they know how to get a read on how they're going to respond to it. Your thoughts about the importance of that and how healthy is the team overall coming in? Well, you know, Chauncey Bowens is out at running back tomorrow. I mean, they do have Nate Frazier back, which obviously is their premier back. That's important. Bowens has been really good at stepping up throughout the year as the number two running back.

Dwight Phillips has stepped up and pushed Bowens to that label, so I don't think Bowens' absence is going to be that difficult. Look, again, I mean, this has been an easy five games, so you think about the fact that Arkansas got toward Gunner a little bit, okay? They pushed him a little bit. Well, I mean, so not a catastrophe, but I mean, he got pushed a little bit. Then Oklahoma, they had a third quarter where Oklahoma really played pretty tough. Well, that shouldn't be a surprise.

Oklahoma's got one of the best defense in the country even though their quarterback and their running back suck. So, you know, that was a push. Georgia handled that, came back in the fourth quarter, did a little bit better. Then, as I said last week, you know, for Vanderbilt to outrush Georgia, was interesting and we were all kind of raising our eyebrows at halftime, but then, like I said, they clamped down the second half. So, they've been pushed a little bit at times, not much, but they've been pushed and they've responded pretty well to it.

So, that's why I want to see what happens tomorrow night. Georgia's got 13 sacks through the first five games. Rayland Wilson, a tremendous linebacker with three. If you think Wilson's good, just look at Chris Cole. I mean, he's just absolutely incredible. As far as, again, Georgia, quote, got criticized last year for not getting enough pressure on the quarterback. Started doing that more. Gabe Harris and his friends, there's no question, this is a very good front seven. Oh, it's good. It's good. Gabe Harris got a sack last week.

He was the one that was out for the Ole Miss game back at the Sugar Bowl that was really a problem. Gabe Harris may have been able to catch trends if he had been in the game, but he wasn't. Chris Cole is an outstanding football player. He's an American. And I tell you, there was a play, Brett, two weeks ago against Oklahoma. There was a video that was put on social game and the video was taken from the east end zone looking at Oklahoma coming toward the camera from the end zone.

And John Mateer had a play where he kind of bootlegged out to the left and all of a sudden you see this beating bullet coming from the left side of your screen and it's Chris Cole tackling. And it reminds me of when Roquan Smith did something similar to Baker Mayfield in the Rose Bowl back in 2018. Chris Cole was kind of getting into that kind of play. Roquan was unbelievable football player for Georgia. And of course he's a good pro right now. But still the defense is outstanding.

The defensive line, and this is something that's very important in my opinion. I had a guest on in mid-August and I said that offensive line depth looks outstanding. What do you think? And so he talked about it and he said there's no question it's very good. There's probably eight or nine deep. And he said, Bill, I think the defensive line depth is better. And since they moved us in the press box halfway to Atlanta because we're in the upper deck now, I have to use binoculars.

And I want to tell you, this defensive line is scary. This defensive line's depth is outstanding. And that obviously is what separates Georgia and Alabama from everybody else. It does. It's so excellent. And Georgia's rotating for their front three up there about seven guys. And that's amazing. And one of the true freshman belt in Sone, S-O-N-E from Virginia. But it's a really good front seven. And it's going to be fun to see what they do tomorrow. That's why both teams are there in the fourth quarter.

We talked about the front guys. Talk to us about Georgia's secondary. Of course, it doesn't matter if that line does their job. He's not going to have time done a little like he has. But overall, your thoughts about Georgia's secondary? I think Ellis Robinson is the best quarterback in the country. He is an All-American candidate. He's very good. He's been one overall prospect by 247 Sports from high school a couple years ago. He's going to be a first round pick in the NFL. I think K.J.

Bolden is also going to be a first round pick. He's a very good safety. And so there's two excellent All-American candidates on that side. The other side, not as strong, but I think it's still pretty good. I think they'll pick on Demelo Jones, the other cornerback a little bit. Brad Conley is a transfer that I think is going to see some snaps as well. But they're in good state. Khalil Barnes transfer from Clemson is playing some at the nickel and doing a pretty good job. That's probably the other side of the secondary away from Robinson and both is probably the weakest part of the defense, but test them.

[47:01] I don't think it's that good of a I don't think it's smart to test them too much because they'll make plays as well. They've made them all year long so far. Let me ask you about the Braves. We talked about the frustrations. Yeah, I know you wanted to skip that topic. Listen, no one, as much as we enjoy teasing you, no one knows this team and front office better than you do. They win 94 games. They made a lot of money. That's great. They win the division again.

But once again, when you've got a two-man pitching starting rotation, and you basically wore out some of these guys in the last couple of games, and you've talked about this all nauseam. Well, you know, these guys were injured, but they'll all be back next year. Well, some of them will be and some of them won't, but I've been asked twice this week about what are they going to do about some of the core position players? The decline of Austin Riley, Ozzie Albies, and he does get some key hits.

You have said this for two years. Trade Ronald Lacuna now while he's still relatively healthy and get somebody for him, and we've talked about Murphy. Can they do something before the strike and the lockout, but your overall thoughts again about where this team's going? Well, they can. They can make a deal between the World Series being over and the beginning of the lockout which will be on December 1st, so they'll have the month of November where they can make some moves. It'll be really interesting to see what trades and moves teams are going to want to make considering they don't know what the rules will be moving forward with the new CBA.

Yeah, I mean, I'll say it again, reiterate it, they need to trade $17 million in a team option for this coming year, 27 and in 2028. The Braves can pick that up, obviously, but in two years, he's going to want a new contract. Let's just say he says to teams, I'm going to double my salary. I'm going to go $34 million. Are you going to get Ronald Acuna $170 million over five years to play in his early to mid 30s when he's getting older and he's breaking down a little bit and he can't stay healthy now?

So, I mean, I think that's the decision you've got to make. The Braves aren't going to pay that money. I'd be shocked if all of a sudden we get a tweet that Braves of extending the contract with Ronald Acuna. It's not going to happen. You want to let Freddie Freeman, Max Dansby Swanson walk out the door don't let it happen with this and get something now. They've got a really good blossoming farm system that I'm starting to really love a lot of their young talent. And they're not ready yet.

Maybe a year from now could be ready to burst a little bit. We'll see some next year, but the majority of the players are a year or two away. But they can add some talent through a Ronald Acuna trade and help themselves for next year, stay competitive, not a rebuild. It's kind of a little bit of a push reset on some areas. I don't think they can get rid of Sean Murphy because he's got two more years plus an option year of $15 million each year. Who the h*** is going to get that guy?

He's hit 186 in his last three major league seasons. He's not even at the Mendoza line. He's way below it. Bill, that's the thing about it. Everybody's talking about the pitching and rightfully so, but I saw the numbers and maybe you have a different set than I do. In the playoffs, the Braves hit a whopping as a team 2-0-4. It wouldn't matter if you had Kofax and Drysdale. It'd be tough to win with those numbers. 145 against the Dodgers. You can't make that kind of bad number up.

It was awful. It was an awful offensive performance. They had their chances. Not only the Dodgers killed the Braves, Atlanta had their chances all the way to the game on Wednesday night. They had their shot and they lost it and they couldn't take advantage of it. They had bad at bats and they had pitchers come in for the Dodgers bullpen. the Braves players including Acuna would swing at the first pitch and so did Olsen. It was a catastrophic playoff when it comes to the offense because they failed.

You're exactly right. All right. Prediction time. How bad will Alabama beat Georgia? I know you won't buy me to win this game so bad. Where can our listeners get online this afternoon to listen to all the predictions, your breakdown of the game, etc. Well, we'll be playing the best of the Bulldog musical choices around 5 o'clock so if you want to hear the Bulldog bite by Clancy Clark I hope you'll listen to 5 o'clock Eastern time. TheSuperstations.com will be taking your predictions. My prediction is I have settled on I've settled on 27 to 17 Georgia.

[52:23] 2717. That's the first half. How is it going to end, Bill? It's going to end with Brett Beaird writing me a big check because he's giving me a lot of money. Well, what we got to do is go ahead and try to book something Monday, one way or the other. We got to get back together. We're looking ahead here. We got to look in the rearview mirror Monday, but in the meantime, if Georgia wins, I'm on at 1205. I bet you are. Central time, not Eastern time. Bill, stay safe over there, okay?

All right, guys, y'all stay safe too. See you, buddy. Bill Shane's picking up with us. I can't believe he picked Alabama. Can you be me? Coming up the next hour, going to be taking all over the place. Finally, a quiet time on the plains, at least when it comes to the game. Justin Ferguson talking to Auburns. Zach He knows about football and hurricanes from the state of Florida all straight ahead. Stay with us. This football season, bring the flavor that wins every time. Champi's world famous fried chicken.

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That's up to 35% off at LEAFFilter.com slash football. Restrictions apply. See representative for warranty and promotion details. 1819 News. The National Hurricane Center is now reporting that Hurricane Isaias has strengthened into a Category 3 hurricane as of this Friday morning. hurricane now sustains winds of 120 miles per hour. The hurricane is expected to land between Gulf Shores Alabama and Destin, Florida. Governor Ivey has now issued an evacuation order that applies to any non-residents or visitors in South Alabama. At the request of local officials, we are requiring all tourists and visitors in Baldwin County, south of the Gulf ICW, as well as those in Dauphin Island and Mobile County, to evacuate immediately.

Again, that means visitors in Gulf Shores, Orange Beach and Dauphin Island need to head home. We want to make sure y'all are safe and can enjoy Alabama in better weather. Right now, we are worried about strong winds, heavy rain, and possible spin-off tornadoes in certain parts of the state. I'll be back with more Alabama stories after this. Mark your calendar for November 6th. The Albert Patterson Gala returns to the Barber Motorsports Museum featuring United States Senator Tommy Tuberville. We've sold out two years running and tables are already filling for 2026.

[57:47] If you believe in a thriving Alabama built on truth, courage, and accountability, this is your night. Don't miss your chance. Visit 1819news.com slash gala. That's 1819news.com slash gala to get your table today. A North Shelby County man was arrested on Thursday and charged for disseminating child sex abuse material. Michael Bridges was already out on bond for similar charges that were issued against him last year. Bridges now faces a total of 14 felony charges involving the child sex abuse material. Bond for Bridges was revoked during this latest arrest, so he remains in the Shelby County Jail.

I'm Andrea Tice. For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com. And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter. We gonna beat the daddy. That's daddy. All the Georgia fans, Daryl, all of them coming up, Brad, we are your daddy. What do you think about that, Paul? All fun gone. Weekdays at 3 Eastern on the ESPN app and the SEC network. Roll Tide fans, this is Roger Hoover. Join me and former Alabama quarterback and football radio analyst Tyler Watts each Monday night at 6 p.m. for Crimson Tide Rewind.

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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. The Boomo Bugg Show. The Boomo Bugg Show. New exclusive inside track to the Tigers, Tennessee, and the rest of the SEC. Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in our tour of the Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg. That's Brett Beaird. Thanks so much for giving us free ride around the Tennessee Valley or checking out all the things going on in the 93.9 The Score app.

What do you say with that? We head on down to the Sunshine State and also a state that knows about football and about hurricanes. State of Florida where Mike Hugenin calls home there in Orlando. National College football slash basketball analyst. Mike, welcome in to the new home for hurricanes and football. How are you? Yeah, doing well. And, yeah, right now here it's sunny and about 88 degrees. Oh, man. Yeah, the idea of hurricanes approaching, that's something unfortunately lived through numerous times. Yes, and yeah, the Alabama-Georgia game obviously is gigantic.

It is too bad that weather is going to impact that game, and that's a little bit, that's a shame, I think, because I think this game could have been a high-scoring game. I don't think it's going to be that high-scoring given the conditions. But, yeah, it's obviously the biggest game of the weekend and one of the biggest games of the year. Obviously, Mike, a lot going on there, and who knows what the condition is going to be like. We're in a place where we get one that says it's going to be this, and that's going to be that.

I think all the good Lord knows for sure, maybe some of the smarter weather people out there, and we're not one of them. We'll see how that plays out, but your thoughts about literally the perfect storm. You've got a huge game, biggest game on paper in the entire country, one of the biggest of the years. You've got a major hurricane just to the south. Who knows what path it's going to take? You've got game day there, and oh, by the way, the world's most powerful person, Donald Trump, who at last report, anyway, is still scheduled to come.

Once they go through all of that, and they get to the X's and the O's and the Jimmys and Joe's, Mike, what's going to happen? Yeah, this is Georgia's second road game, but the first one was against Arkansas, so that doesn't count. This is also Keelan Russell's first true big game. I know they played last week in Starkville, Mississippi State was unbeaten, but that was not a big game. This is a big game, so the sixth college start, going against a very experienced defensive head coach in Kirby Smart.

[1:03:17] Georgia's got the best linebacking core in the country. I think their secondary has some hole and it can be exploited. Their defensive front is solid. It lacks a truly elite guy, though Griffin's getting there. Offensively, I think Georgia is not as good as Alabama offensively, but I think Georgia is better defensively, and because I think the field is going to be less than ideal, I think that helps Georgia some. I think the one concern I would have if I'm a Georgia fan, how good is my running game really?

They did not run the ball effectively against Oklahoma, only 129 yards, but they still rushed for three TDs. Nate Frazier is back. He will not be 100%, but he is playing and will start, but Chauncey Bowen, the number two back, and the 230-pounder who's really good between the tackles will not play. So the depth factor could be problematic for Georgia. The flip side, Alabama's running game has been a heck of a lot better than it was last year, but I would argue that this will be the first truly elite defense Alabama has seen.

The Alabama's running game, can they effectively handle the Georgia linebackers? I don't think so. I thought this game would be high 20s into the 30s on a good field. I think now it's going to be a little bit more difficult. I think 28 points will win this game. And while I think Alabama has the better offense, I think that Keelan Russell playing in his first huge game in the Georgia defense, specifically the linebackers, I think Georgia wins a close game. And I think the, again, I think the elements are going to play a role, and I think that's too bad.

I agree with you. Mike, I have heard less about Red River this year than I have for years. Maybe it's because Oklahoma's offense and John Mateer have been so average, trying to be nice about it. We know what Texas front seven can do. They got 10 sacks against Tennessee. Simmons is incredible when he behaves himself. Mike, Texas seven and a half point favorite, of course, in the in the Cotton Bowl. Can Oklahoma keep this game relatively close? Yeah, I think they can. Defensively, Oklahoma is still pretty darn elite.

They lead the nation in third down conversion percentage defense. They allow their opponents to hit, to convert only 23% of their third downs. That's two percentage points better than anybody else. And that's, again, and they're playing defense at that level and getting zero help from their offense. Yes. There is no complimentary football when it comes to Oklahoma. That said, you look at the stats for Mateer and the stats for Arch Manning, eerily similar. They are. The one difference, Manning does not fumble as much as Mateer does.

Mateer's got one more TD pass and one more interception. Defensively, the pass rush for Texas was dominant against Tennessee, and that has to worry Oklahoma because their offensive line, I'm confident there's somebody listening to this show who could show up in Norman and would have a good chance to start on their offensive line. It is really bad. Wow. And they can't run the ball. They've got good receivers, but Mateer can't get them the ball. This is going to be an extremely low-scoring game. If Texas gets to 20, they're going to win.

But I actually think Oklahoma can make this an ugly game. I think they can harass Manning enough. I'm not convinced that Texas can run the ball all that effectively on Oklahoma. And, you know, everybody's talking about Oklahoma's offense being a gigantic disappointment. Yeah, it is. Given the amount of money Texas is spending on its offense, Texas is 12th in the SEC in total offense. That's right. They're not even averaging 400 yards a game. I know they played Ohio State, but they're not getting the bang for the buck either.

And all of this is a reason for me to say this is a gigantic rivalry game. Mateer's playing in his hometown. Basically, he grew up in the Dallas area. More than half of the Oklahoma team is from Texas. I think this will be one of those old Bob Stoops, Mac Brown kind of games where it's 13-10, 17-10. And again, if Texas gets to 20, it's over. But I think Oklahoma can keep this close into the fourth quarter. I think Texas wins, but I don't think Texas covers.

[1:08:23] Interesting place to play it at the fairgrounds there. They deep fry everything, including gravity and air. Speaking of elements, your thoughts about two games that no one's talked about. It depends on the speed of this system. I saw one report on the Weather Channel this morning. Ole Miss goes to Nashville. Nashville's right up 65. It's right up the gut from the path right now. Last report of this hurricane. And then Kentucky has got LSU. Weather, obviously, who knows what's going to play a role there at those two places.

But your thoughts about Vandy hosting Ole Miss and LSU against a team that I think people are still saying it's still Kentucky. Yeah, I sort of think that about Kentucky. I know they beat Texas A&M. Texas A&M's not good. And I think that LSU's defense is going to make life extremely difficult for Menchie, especially if it's wet and rainy and the best defense. If you have a really good defense in bad weather, I think that's a gigantic option. And I believe 100% in the LSU defense.

Ole Miss is better than Vanderbilt. There's going to be a heck of a lot of Ole Miss fans there. I don't think much of Vanderbilt's offense, especially if Curtis doesn't play. The last time we saw Ole Miss, they were in Gainesville getting crushed by Florida. I think Ole Miss bounces back. I don't think either of these defenses is very good to a training there. I'm not sure who it benefits. But in that situation, I think it benefits a team with more talent. I think that's Ole Miss.

So I think the road teams win both those games. I'm extremely confident that LSU beats Kentucky. Maybe like 75% that Ole Miss wins. But again, Ole Miss has so much more offensive firepower than Vanderbilt. Let me ask you about one of the national games. It's a whiteout at Penn State hosting USC. They're coming across the country. I asked you about Gary Patterson in the summer, and you said, I don't think he's going to have that much effect. He hadn't coached in five years. Well, they held on in the end zone to beat Washington last Saturday night.

Penn State has been, quite frankly, drubbed. And I think Matt Campbell's a really good coach in time. But I keep going back. Penn State gave up 400 yards rushing to Northwestern when they debuted the new stadium. Nittany Lions are a one-and-a-half point favorite over USC tomorrow night on NBC. Mike, your thoughts? Yeah, I think if this game were anywhere but State College, USC would be favorite. And it is, the last two years have shown, it is extremely difficult for 19 and 20 and 21-year-olds to fly across the country to play a football game.

Penn State is not what their fans expected them to be. I don't know why people are surprised. They didn't have much talent coming back. There's a reason Campbell brought so many guys from Iowa State. There weren't a lot of other guys out there. So I think that Campbell, in time, will get them better. But obviously, you don't get time anymore. I think that even though this is a white-out game, I think USC is a better team. I think they will win. This should be the marquee game in the Big Ten tomorrow, but it's not.

Nebraska-Indiana is. I don't believe in Nebraska at all. So I think Indiana wins. I also think USC wins. So, again, the last time USC traveled all the way across the country, they almost lost to Rutgers. They did. So that is a dangerous thing. But you're right. Penn State's offense has looked anemic. The best thing for a bad defense is playing an anemic offense. So maybe USC's defense can actually do something two weeks in a row. Let's go to the left coast and talk about a game that's quietly flying under the radar on this side of the Mississippi.

And that's number 21, UCLA, and number 13, Oregon. Yeah, fascinating game. It is. Oregon, without its starting quarterback, Dante Moore, Dylan Riola will get the star. Everybody's saying, well, what a great job he did against USC. USC's defense is garbage. But so is UCLA. I think it's interesting. Bob Chesney has turned, it looks like he's turned around UCLA in a very short time. Brought those guys from James Madison. Wayne Knight is a really good running back. UCLA's defense is horrible. But, you know, if you're a ball fan, the idea that, oh my goodness, look what Niko's doing.

And they, I think what one thing Niko's doing is, they're not asking him to be D-Doc. They're asking him to do, here are certain things we want you to do, don't worry about doing anything else. And Niko can do those things, they're asking him to do. They're not asking him to be the lead playmaker, but he's been steady, he's been a nice distributor, and it helps when Wayne Knight is there. I think this game is going to be extremely high scoring. I don't think either defense is that good.

[1:13:45] I think this game is going to be like a 38-31 kind of game. I think Oregon wins, but I think Oregon's defensive issues will, again, rear their head. I expect this to be a fun game to watch. I think Oregon wins, but I think UCLA equips itself nicely, and people, when they watch, will realize, well, this Wayne Knight dude is pretty darn good. Yeah, they're running for seven yards a carry, and people forget Bob Chansney was the coach for James Madison last year when Oregon beat him 51-34.

I'm like you, this may be 42-38. That should be a fun game. Well, going to be a fun weekend period. Always enjoy breaking it down with you before the weekend. Listen, have a super weekend. Let's do this again next Friday. Appreciate it, and hope everybody in Alabama gets through this weekend. Yeah. Absolutely. Well, thank you. Thanks, man. We need all that help. Thank you, buddy. I'm going to throw a few extra ones up there for all of us. Mike Huganen checking in for the big goal, Orlando.

Coming up, what about a crazy set of games last night and tonight in the high school gridirons right here in their own backyard? The very latest was Zach Pounder's next. Stay with us. Getting the kids to practice on time. Remembering if it's your day to bring snacks. Making it to the game with a clean jersey. Why are simple things sometimes so complicated? Thankfully, with auto owners, insurance doesn't have to be one of them. Auto owners works with independent agents who answer when you call, so you can worry about more important things, like whether your kid is going to run toward first or third base.

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for Crimson Tide Rewind. Live from Baumhauer's Victory Grill in Vestavia Hills and on this great station. Tune in and roll tide. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. Quickly, baby, we alluded to it at the top of the show today, going back to the passing of Mike Ditka. The reason we brought it up was that close connection to the shows. No one knew Mike Ditka more than Harlan Hill, the legend of Brooks High School. Both played with the Chicago Bears.

In 1954, Harlan Hill set a team record with four touchdown passes. That record was tied seven years later by a kid at that time by the name of Mike Ditka. Mike Ditka listened to Harlan Hill talking about how to run routes. He looked at him like he was a big brother. They stayed close all the years. And the reason I say that is because I had the pleasure of interviewing Mike Ditka because Harlan called Mike and asked him if he'd come down and emcee one of the year's athletic brackets at the Brooks High.

And I interviewed Mike at the airport and he had this image of being a bear on the outside. Couldn't have been nice on the inside. So I know the Harlan Hill family they are deeply along with a lot of folks grieving today over the passing of Mike Ditka. Harold, it's funny you mention that. I was reading some articles today. Again, Iron Mike and of course the incredible football player that he was and then coach. He had some run-ins with some of his own coaches. But I saw testimonials today that said the same thing.

Off the field, he's one of the nicest guys you'd ever want to sit down and talk to. He'd like Josh Ford and some of those guys right now in Minnesota, Alabama would he not? He just had that kind of demeanor. Speaking of the show, a fellow knows Brooks High and every school in the entire show's area is Zach Pounders. He's the founder and editor of the show's sports report. Zach, welcome in. How are you? Doing good. How are you all? Hey, buddy. Man, we're doing all right.

When's the last time we have said the first week of October Florence High seals a playoff berth? Talk to us about Thursday night's big doings for the Falcons. Yeah, Florence in the playoffs but also one more Wilson in the playoffs the first time in 2017. So, Wilson and Florence both got in the playoffs the first time. Florence is, I think, six straight times in the playoffs now. Yes. Wilson, first time is in 2017. Yeah, you're exactly right. In fact, Florence is traveling to Austin next week. they can clinch the region championship and I've said this two or three times you told me in August one of the more improved teams were going to be Wilson and they held on to beat West Limestone last night 14-7 to clinch his first playoff berth since 2017 and I know you mentioned that several times.

I saw Langston last week they lost in the last 18 seconds to Calvert County. Well, they do what they've done with Brett Mask and Zane Kilburn they beat Winston County 47-0 They're now 6-1 on and Red Bay beats Waterloo 55-31 Phil Campbell beats Tanner Phil Campbell now 4-3 They beat Phil Tanner 53-6 and congratulations to Heath Wood They beat Convert Heights last night Convert Heights with Brett Vick they're having a challenging year but Lucas Price has been playing really well but Central Clinch is a playoff berth Your thoughts on some of the games played last night Yeah, last night I was going home from Wilson at about 945 and I realized all the games tonight it did by 930 It was kind of a weird night It was but also one of those where if you run the football you can run the clock and the game was over by 9 and 930 Wilson was first quarter was over by 7-15 because Wilson had a 7-minute drive to start West Limes hit the ball down the field and drove in and scored in the first place in the second quarter and by 7-20 it was 7-7 and you would have thought we were going to have a close game a high-touring game that won't score until about the fourth quarter third quarter Wilson scored one more time but Wilson is built to play from a head and a tie game kind of like Marzell last year with Coach Higgins and Russell this year they're built to play ahead and play tied or down one possession if you get up on two scores who knows how they enjoy it they don't want to pass a whole lot Wilson don't blame because you can maneuver the team you're playing to break down mentally when you're throwing the ball four or five yards to play you want the other side to break down and they will eventually if you keep pounding the rock down the field speaking of Russellville there's going to be a lot of black and gold tonight would you agree the golden tigers on the road to the golden eagles your thoughts about Russellville and Athens yeah Russellville is kind of in a really good spot Athens is almost in a must win spot Athens is kind of phenomenal for another lost in the region but I think Russellville if they get ahead tonight and jump out on Athens they have a chance to win this game and a matchup with two great coaches also Coach Higgins from Russellville and Coach Athens former UNA quarterback this is another matchup of coaches in this region where it's loaded with coaches across the board you're exactly right number nine Dessler yes number nine five and one at Ardmore Ardmore has got a pretty good running back Javion Riddle he has ran for 850 yards on 140 carries Dessler has got all sorts of playmakers Kendrick Gunn Amarnie Jones Bryce Williams has been one of the best quarterbacks that I've seen besides Mason Holloway Jeremiah Fletcher Dessler's got a very interesting game next Thursday they're hosting Brooks on statewide TV it's on public television but your thoughts on Dessler at Ardmore tonight yeah first off Dessler Ardmore is going to move to a 6 o'clock start the weather coming in tonight but Dessler should win this game pretty easily their match number to clinch playoff is 1 so if Dessler wins we're going to playoff for Dessler and the Brooks game next Dessler is almost in the need to win out in the region they can lose to Dessler next week they can still be profitable to get in but if they lose the next two weeks if they lose two or three weeks it's looking bleak for Brew to playoff this year obviously that game is down on the road to Lawrence County 3 and 4 Lawrence County 4 and 3 Dessler let's talk about two other old neighbors it's rare that we're sitting here especially back in the day that we'd be talking about these respective records but Muscle Shoals the good news they got the home cooking against a program that's been around forever the Decatur Red Raiders tonight yeah to those schools where they kind of hit rough Patrick here lately Muscle Shoals 2 to 3 season most schools 2 to 3 this point of the season hey great season so far good season so far Muscle Shoals that's not that's not the standard the standard the standard is like Alabama Auburn kind of standard where you want to be 5 and 1 5 and 2 at this point of the season not 2 and 3 and for Decatur Coach we're trying to build that program back to what it used to be but tough region Muscle Shoals that needs to win this game and stay the playoff race there's a 3 way tie right now Muscle Shoals after the 4 seed all at 2 and 2 Muscle Shoals is on top of that on my stand but Muscle Shoals wins this game and Austin loses tonight to Hartzell then Muscle Shoals jumps Austin in the stand wow let me ask you about Haleville 3 and 3 against number 9 undefeated Hanton they have just been rolling they had their toughest test last week they held on to beat East Lawrence 20-14 in overtime Nasi Gamble actually fumbled the ball one of his offensive linemen picked it up for a touchdown Severius Evans who has been running wild along with that Dessert running back this year he got hurt Cade Parham is a good quarterback I think that Hatton wins this game let me ask you can Hatton go undefeated in the regular season if Hatton wins this game they have Curry and Danville Danville 7-6 Curry's 4-3 but Central is waiting there at the end in the last few weeks there was a collision for Rogers Central all be 9-0 or 8-0 at one point and then Central Rogers were going to play undefeated and the winner will be undefeated heading the last week of the season if Hatton can withstand the next three weeks and get the Central at 9-0 I don't know they can stop Central but that would be their best chance that would be Central's that would be Hatton's best chance of a loss if that makes sense at the end of the season a couple of other games if you don't mind Lauderdale County and Rogers neighbor versus neighbors and Morris Hill with a home cooking against Lindsey Lane tonight yeah Rogers Lauderdale County ironically enough Rogers clinched the playoff spot last night with a West Limes on wall Lauderdale County with a win can clinch playoffs and I don't like Harrison or region have all four spots clinched this earlier than the season but it'll be the first time I've seen that in a while ever possibly Rogers it's a really good matchup two county schools they played a two-point game last year and I think Rogers had to come from behind that one to get back to two points and once it was onside kick at the end they missed had they got it it would have to win so very close game for Rogers and Lauderdale County Lauderdale County needs it more than Rogers does but Rogers they both need it for a home foul game chance against Wilson in the next couple weeks absolutely well hopefully the weather I keep hearing this storm is advanced a little bit so we'll see again you mentioned I got one game already has moved from seven to six o'clock you do a great job of previews standings who's clinched playoffs we're going to be getting into it even more next week you've got recounts I know you can also follow you on twitter can't think of anybody who does a better job in the shows of following high school football than the shows sports report where can we get online to get all the good stuff real quick one more game got moved overnight West Morgan was possible it got moved at six o'clock also so both of those are six o'clock because on twitter at lowercase s-h-o-a-l-s-p-o-r-t-s on facebook show sports support appreciate that update Zach listen man stay safe out there and let's do it again soon okay thank you buddy Zach Pounder show sports report that's why we asked yesterday about potential rain and how it would affect the games tonight by the way pray I'm a praying man I know you are too and if you are pray for the folks on that Gulf Coast Pensacola right now a nine foot surge in downtown Pensacola that's a that's a lot of water the northern edge right now is between montgomery and birmingham just south of tuscaloosa so it looks like it's moving fast and of course it can't move fast enough coming up let's go down to the southeastern part of the state and todd tigers when it comes to auburn the man next justin ferguson stay with us when my husband passed our son was only one I learned life insurance is something that you need to have in place especially as a parent with ethos you can get covered in minutes no medical exams up to three million dollars in coverage and it's all online get your free quote at ethos.com slash game that's ethos.com slash game paid spokesperson application times and rates may vary online health questions required this is the story of the one as a procurement manager at an industrial manufacturing facility she balances inventory levels with sourcing supplies too much stock ties up the budget too little slows down production so she counts on Granger with two billion dollars in on hand inventory Granger helps deliver the product she needs fast helping her stay stocked without overstocking call 1-800-GRAINGER click granger.com or just stop by Granger for the ones who get it done 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[1:37:18] Progressive Casualty Insurance company and affiliates not available in all states or situations from the heart of the SEC to the national stage no filters no fluff get the real story and all the hard-hitting analysis on AP as we see it Saturday mornings at 7 a.m. Sports Radio 93.9 The Score The Score Now back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score Welcome back in time to say hello to Justin Ferguson he's got the Auburn Tigers covered there with the Auburn Observer Justin welcome in how are you? How are y'all?

Hey Boone Man we're doing alright Justin before we jump in to the obvious topic of football this thing coming ashore I look at the entire south southern part of the state it looks like it's wall to wall what's the weather there in your backyard of Auburn and what's the forecast going forward? I know you don't have a game but you still there's something more important that's just everyone's safety Yeah absolutely Auburn is not in any of the triple storm warnings right now it's kind of on the edge so it depends on if that if the storm kind of turns a little bit more to the east we might be able to get a little like heavier rain and winds you know coming our way but right now it kind of seems like we're going to get a lot of rain and a lot of wind but not quite as damaging as some of the other stuff like towards the middle of the state so yeah they're expecting if this storm kind of comes they can kind of blow through here and you know be a lot of rain be a lot of wind but not be super damaging Auburn's got a pretty big concert adjourned here tomorrow night that is still on for right now because they're expecting the rain to be out of here by the middle of the day tomorrow so we'll keep an eye on it so if the storm shifts anymore to the east that's where it could kind of hit us but you know right now we're kind of on the edge of kind of the worst of it inland for the state of Alabama what a week to have an off week as far as a home game I'm sure that a lot of folks are happy about that it has been to get into metaphors a stormy start for the new regime two things obviously I'm not breaking news here Justin your thoughts is some of the reasons why everybody's asking that question your thoughts how you answer those questions and perhaps more importantly what's fixable literally with about half the schedule to go here yeah I think Auburn's got to do a much better job of kind of play into what their personnel is I thought we saw that against you know Tennessee last week kind of come come to fruition they have some explosive plays you know they have some points on the board the team can move the ball on offense so it's not happened very consistently this is an offensive line that has just really struggled against quality competition this year Auburn's having a hard time running the ball especially on early downs I think Auburn might need to do you know maybe a better job moving forward of spreading the ball out spreading formations out a little bit more trying to play in space maybe throwing the ball a little bit more on early downs getting the ball out of Byron Brown hands quickly and kind of play kind of some of that two minute offense that we've seen them be successful in you know this season I just think those offensive lines are really struggling to block you know on a consistent basis and the last thing you need to do is kind of invite more traffic you know in the box when you play kind of these condensed sets or you're kind of this heavier personnel so I think Robert is just you know you are what you are at the line of scrimmage on the offensive side of the ball you just need to do a better job I think of scheming around that and there are some things that I think they can do a better job of and kind of lean on it a little bit more on the defensive side and that's where I think more of the alarm bells are for Auburn because you've got an experienced defensive front your spine of your defense at least with that middle linebacker group that safety some of these defensive tackles that have played well this year you know Auburn's people coming in the year thought okay maybe edge rusher maybe corner would be your issues they've been fine for the most part I think relative to expectations probably the teams are running the ball really well in Auburn and that has been the one thing that under DJ Durkin they've been elite at and against Tennessee I mean Tennessee subs out their quarterback and doesn't even have to throw the ball in the second half they just hammer away on the ground usually that was you know it's usually hard to beat Auburn that way but it hasn't been the case this year Florida and Tennessee have both done that so and that's got to get cleaned up there's missed tackles there's misfits these are guys who are experienced these are guys who've played a lot of football who are making mistakes and giving up free yardage and that's something where DJ Durkin this defense they have to crack down on it because again I think their pass defense has been fine I think their pass rush has been fine but their run defense is really letting them down I didn't really expect that coming into the season yeah and as you well know the schedule for October I've said this all the entire summer maybe the worst most difficult in the country by week at Georgia LSU at home Ole Miss I mean it just it just I ask you this every week about the offensive line and you've alluded to it will there be more changes for Georgia McManus Colbass Ramel Simmons we talked about a lot of these guys will the offensive line that started against Tennessee be the one that starts against Georgia I think it's really going to come down to what happens this week in practice and what happens next week in practice because I don't know if Auburn is necessarily feeling like they have a lot of guys they can kind of turn to at this point to be like hey okay this dude is definitely going to be that guy or hey this guy is next man up I think they've tried to kind of put what they think their best five is but I mean it couldn't hurt obviously to try to change things up I think if there's some younger guys who use this off week as an opportunity to step up and challenge for playing time you might get some of that but honestly I mean I think Auburn has been pretty forthcoming they made some early changes and haven't really changed a ton off of that I think it is what it is at this point so I could see some things shaking up but it's going to have to be earned on the practice field I don't think it's necessarily going to be changed for the sake of change and just trying to throw some guys out there they're going to have to earn it your thoughts about how let's be honest about it it's tough to put a team together anywhere especially on a short notice like that what lessons has this staff learned from putting this team together going forward now they've got more time one thing you would assume is you might want to sit here and take your budget and say we need some offensive linemen quarterback is great but if he can't stand up right and get more than a second and a half to make up his mind it doesn't matter what the name of the quarterback is including Marino or anybody else your thoughts what lessons has this staff learned about putting together a roster going forward yeah I just think this reinforced kind of it's hard to portal an offensive line it just is everybody wants them correct and I look at Auburn's offensive line this season I think the best guy on the offensive line right now is a true freshman and what that tells me is you need to recruit these guys develop them retain them give them some opportunities these one year rentals that they've had on the offensive line haven't really made the grade at this point so I think there's going to be a really big push after the season we've got to go get all these guys you've seen that you've tried that you freeze it a few years ago I think his first full class at Auburn was the best offensive line transfer portal class in the country and that didn't make the grade you have to be able to get guys like a Wilson zero and say hey we're going to let play you we need you to stay here develop here we're going to retain you we're going Auburn has recruited really well on the offensive line for the 27 class they've got to keep doing that they've got to stack and I know Auburn fans hate to hear this because it's been a decade since Auburn's had a really good offensive line but this takes time you cannot microwave an offensive line in the portal so I think Auburn had to do some of that this year just because of the numbers game and it's just not working so I think maybe moving forward for Auburn the rest of the way if you have some young guys that you feel like can play for you right now throw them out there see how it works you know you can at least say okay well if they take their lumps maybe it will be better for them in the long run and we can build around that but yeah there's going to be a push where people are going to be like we've got to get transfer portal guy X, Y, and Z in the portal and maybe you can get one or two guys but you can't build an offensive line through the portal it's just not how you do it you look at Tennessee last week Tennessee hammers the ball on the ground against Auburn in the second half why most of that offensive line have been playing with each other for 2, 3, 4 years that's what Auburn's got to get to build it's just going to take time and it's frustrating but it's going to take some patience absolutely well listen enjoy the weekend hopefully everybody around who's going to joke with you and say well you're going to be watching the Braves and the Brewers and that ain't going to happen I know you're a Braves fan and everybody I've seen this week has been quite frustrated 6 a.m.

[1:46:18] emails on Wednesday the mailbag on Friday the podcast where can we get online to get all the good stuff auburnobserver.com got a lot of football up got more coming up this weekend and then basketball as well done a lot of basketball had a pro day scrimmage yesterday Auburn has their first exhibition on Wednesday you got SEC media days on Tuesday in Birmingham so we'll be covering football and basketball full blast these next couple weeks it's a great time to jump on board go subscribe to the Observer we email everything out to you as soon as it drops and the meantime stay as safe and as dry as you can down there okay yeah appreciate you Justin Ferguson Auburn Observer BB Alabama speaking of basketball exhibition time when's the last time Alabama played an exhibition game without an injury this point in the season well with NATO style Harold he's got two or three now on the bench boy that's a shock but they beat Furman last night 111-93 do you think this team is going to be loaded offensively this year what's that you win by 18 you give up 93 points and you still win by hello NBA right coming up is SUP the stupid underdog picks next day with us it doesn't matter if you're running drills at the park playing pickup on a Saturday or sinking the final putt when you compete with your friends with Michelob Ultra on the line competition isn't that friendly the trash talk next level and the stakes oh those are crystal clear with only 95 calories and superior smooth taste it's the ultimate trophy superior is worth playing for Michelob Ultra superior light beer enjoy responsibly copyright 2025 Anheuser-Busch Michelob Ultra light beer St. Louis Missouri I've always felt that sports imitate life and in both arenas everyone loves a good comeback story I sold my dynasty almost three years ago and have missed coming to the ballpark every day since once my old team dispersed and our fan base hinted about wanting to come back we built a new stadium made some calls to our old players and signed some new ones off of waivers and trades Midtown Meathouse now has the finest team of butchers caterers and sandwich makers in the league and we're playing to win our new location is 123 Magnolia Street in Florence but our lineup with the very best steaks chops burgers and sandwiches has remained the same don't call it a comeback we'll be here for years make the most of every lawn with Kubota commercial landscaping equipment from the productivity boosting Z700 mower to the reliable SVL track loader it's a lineup built to get the job done right because when your reputation is on the line you need equipment that will never let you down visit your local Kubota dealer today stop by Brown Equipment located at 826 North Military Street in Loretto or visit them online at brownequipment company dot com Harold Bug inviting you to join Brett Beard and me for the latest on UNA during the two weekdays of the Boomo Bugg Show here on 93.9 The Score When you've got a job to do 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prep means packing the cooler washing your jersey and finding the perfect tailgate spot but there's one more step grooming walmart has the manscaped lawnmower lineup including the streamlined lawnmower go and the lawnmower ultra with dual tone spotlights and up to 100 minutes of runtime both features skin safe technology and waterproof design for easy cleanup so next time you're at walmart loading up for the tailgate swing by and grab a lawnmower too one less thing to think about before kickoff chris canter here to tell you about sugar-free fall treats straight from the orchard all new caramel apple five-hour energy shots are available now fall is back which means those sugary fall treats are too thankfully five-hour energy just dropped their new caramel apple flavor so you can get that fall flavor fix without the sugar enjoy refreshing apple and sweet caramel comfort in every sip caramel apple five-hour energy shots available online for a limited time at fivehourenergy.com or on Amazon hey it's Evan Cohen coming up Monday we'll recap a jam-packed football weekend the league championship series in major league baseball as well as get you ready for a potential Superbowl matchup it's on Sportsmanlike 6 a.m.

[1:51:27] Eastern right here on ESPN Radio ESPN2 and ESPNU our favorite bow wow buddy the underdog Brett Beaird are you ready for the $400 question trivia when it comes to underdogs I haven't done real well with trivia for underdog but I love the thing so as always next time he changed costumes a lot where was the normal place for the underdog to change his costume I would say a phone booth aka Superman but I don't think that's correct well you're partly right it's an exploding phone booth you know what you win probably a free trip around the room all the air that you can breathe all right breathe in breathe out Mr.

Yoga Man where you start with your stupid underdog picks around the country I only got three games to pick today Tennessee 14 and a point favorite over the Arkansas Razorbacks Tennessee experiments with passing game George McIntyre will start Tennessee's first in the FBS to 23 sacks that is not good for Arkansas Tennessee 34 Arkansas 14 he's back again Georgia and Alabama we've talked about it all week long Alabama must match Georgia's physicality at the line of scrimmage Georgia as we mentioned earlier outscored their opponents 70 to 7 Alabama must rush for 125 Russell can extend plays with his legs defense needs one key turnover I think Alabama gets all that stuff Alabama 24 Georgia 21 thank you Rick and my stupid underdog pick Minnesota is a two and a point favorite at Purdue P.J. Flank has been going absolutely wild he licks he literally licks the blood off of a player and then eats it last week he dumped the trophy of the on his head got water but I think they've been emotional this time around I think Purdue Barry Odom who was at Missouri I think Minnesota is emotionally spent and Purdue is the stupid underdog pick do it do it you need to say hello to Dracula Luke Fickle all right Tennessee Arkansas what was your score again BB 34 34 14 you're not going to believe mine I like that I like that I did on that 34 14 all right choir here's the deal Alabama and Georgia I think it started out two high powered offenses who knows how much influence they've had this week trying to prepare for a running game let's go Alabama 28 24 minus those turnovers all right there you go and the stupid underdog pick USC going across country to Penn stage I still believe USC has enough bullets in their gun to take this one down 29 25 USC can I get an eight man yeah baby all right pass the plate while you're at there BB obviously a big weekend ahead Alabama and Georgia but again BB keep an eye on the sky tonight for all these high school games that storm is moving through at last report it was north of Montgomery so it looks like it's moving fast but if you are into prayer we might want to throw all the prayers we can up for everybody to be safe this weekend it's going to be a tough night and a tough morning across the state let me mention again 6 p.m kickoffs these two games were moved up an hour early Dessler at Ardmore Priceville at West Morgan two games that were moved up early a lot games played last time a lot more tonight again as you mentioned stay tuned to the weather but have a safe and fun football weekend by the way get some extra batteries for your radio because we're not kidding with those power allergies that maybe you can't watch it on TV so make sure you got that battery operated radio ready to go to catch that game right here on 93.9 the score coming up tomorrow night it's going to take care of business for now on behalf of BB Greg James Blair the entire crew here Carol Buck thank you so much for your time today let's do it again Monday noon to 2 with the boom old bug show back here on sports radio 93.9 the score