Boomo Bugg Show 111126

[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. And Brett Beaird, in one sense today, thank you veterans for what you did allowing us to do this. Good afternoon, welcome in and how are you?

Yeah, happy Veterans Day, Harold. I agree. Listen, I've got, my dad was in the Air Force. I've got about nine other uncles who were in the military and so many of these people that had the ultimate sacrifice for this country. I was looking at the Huntsville Veterans Day Parade coming in and certainly our thoughts and prayers and our appreciation with so many veterans. Alabama moves up to number three in the college football playoff rankings. We'll be discussing that throughout the show. But right now, you and I coach Brent Dearman is here to recap a big win over West Florida and bring you an upcoming road game against West Georgia.

Coach Brent Dearman, UNA Head Football Coach, welcome in. How are you? Doing fantastic, fellas. Anytime you can get a win, especially a conference win, you take it. It wasn't pretty, but you're talking about a team that was ranked for about half of the season this year to get a win. It's a good feeling. Coach, the thing is, at the end of the day, it doesn't matter if it's the good, the bad, the ugly. If you walk off the field with the W, you got to feel good. Your thoughts? Because let's face it, in this modern era, I think fans, all of us can take a lesson. Throw the old stuff out of the room because back in the day, you could say, well, here are the metrics.

We say, this team's going to do this, this, and this. You look at your season, you look at the other guys in the top 25. It's been a rocky road. Your thoughts about that and how refreshing is it to sit here and have this many wins under your belt at this date in the season? You know, I've checked the dictionary. I've checked many different ways. I think W is still spelled with the W. No matter what way you get it, no matter if it's about one point, 99 points, no matter if it's in the fourth quarter, a W is still a W, and we're going to take them.

You know, we're sitting here with six FCS wins. We're 6-3 in FCS football right now. Best season we've had in Division I by far, with two games left, too. So, we're still playing for playoffs. We're telling our guys right now that we're essentially in the playoffs already. We've got to win both of these games that puts us in. But it's a good feeling to be playing meaningful football in November. We tell our guys all the time that they remember what you do in November. So, we've got to finish this thing out.

Let me ask you about your rushing attack. It picked up 244 yards, 6.3 yards per carry. Destin Wade picked up 101 yards on 16 carries. Roderick Taylor, 15 carries for 101 yards. That's quite impressive, number one, for them. But number two, it tells me that a little bit of a makeshift offensive line was doing its job. Yeah, it is. You know, we're down to, we've started nine guys up front this year. We've got injuries, been banged up, and it's not an excuse at all. You go out and you've got to still execute and do your job.

We were playing one of the better rush defenses in our league and rushed for more yards than they've given up all year long rushing. So, you know, our quarterback is a heck of a runner. We were able to take advantage of that and use him. Rod Taylor, I think that's his first 100-yard performance of his career. And not only was it him rushing, he was usually the lead blocker for Destin Wade in a lot of his runs. So, kudos to O-line, tight ends, quarterback and running back for a big day running the ball.

Coach Brent German, UNA Head Football Coach, while we're talking about individuals, there's this guy known as the X Factor. What can you say about the X-Man? Sixth time to be named Freshman of the Week in the conference. I've been doing this a long time. I don't remember the last time someone put that much trophy on the case in one season. It's unbelievable. I mean, he's making a case to be the National Freshman of the Year. He's just a dynamic player with a ball in his hands.

I think we went through the first quarter the other day without him touching it. And I got on the headset and said, hey, guys, what's our plan to be able to play football? You have to have one. And we ended up getting it to him, and he does what he does. He had a big touchdown catch in this game. He's an electric player that changes football games, and I'm glad he plays for us. Let me ask you about an interesting decision that you had to make.

[5:24] Every coach does this two or three times a game. I was reading the Times Daily article. You had a key play in the fourth quarter, fourth and one, go for it or punt, and you got on the headset and conferred with your tight ends coach, who's an 18-year veteran, and then Clint Bowen, who's a Power 4 DC. Somebody asked me to ask you about that earlier this year. When it comes to key decisions at key points in the game, when you get on the headset, who are you talking to?

Yeah, those are my main two. Those are, you know, you're talking about an 18-year head coaching veteran in Craig Shearer. He's been in every situation and experienced him multiple times. He's in the box, so he's not feeling the atmosphere. He's not putting emotions into it as much because he's in a climate-controlled, closed room sitting up in the box. And then Clint Bowen has called it for Kansas. He's been the interim head coach at Kansas, western Kentucky, south Florida. I mean, he's been a lot of places and seen a lot of balls.

So I usually bounce things off of them in game. The other thing that played a lot into that is what a lot of people don't see is earlier in that game, we went for in the red zone area, and they stuffed us at the one-yard line with our jumbo package in there. Now we end up getting a QB sneak that got us the three or four inches on the next play. So that's lingering in my mind. We just went for it on third and two and barely got one.

So they had done a pretty good job of stuffing us, and our defense is playing really well. So let's pin them down deep and let's make them drive the length of the field. And all three of us kind of agreed with that. Let's talk to us about you, Dee. What went through your mind? We were joking earlier with some of our friends about had ever seen a finish like the one over the weekend. They said, yeah, the week before, and key interception there. And this weekend, were you in agreement with a lot of folks that, uh-oh, there it goes, about to run it in, and then, boom, a key tackle.

Your thoughts about the way this baby closed over the past weekend? Oh, no, it's, it's, uh, they, they tempoed on a momentum national known play called Bikesong. They hit the tight end and shot him up the seam. Uh, we didn't see him and, and got a big play. And, uh, one of our corners makes a, a shoestring tackle at the three yard line. And then to be able to hold them, uh, four plays there without getting into the end zone. Um, you know, I'd already got on the headset with our offensive staff and said, hey, guys, let's put a two-minute drive together.

Let's go ahead and start planning some overtime plays, um, that we're, we're ready to go. So we had gotten that deep into, into these discussions. And then for our defense to never quit, never give up. Um, so to have the grit and the resilience to make those plays is pretty unbelievable. Let me ask you about a unit that a lot of people give lip service to, but it wins football games. And particularly in November, we talk with you a lot about defense and offense, but tell us about special teams.

Uh, they've been pretty consistent throughout the course of the year, but it's so key. Phil goes, punts, punt coverage, kickoff coverage. Tell us about special teams this year. Well, I'll compare last year and this year. And last year we lost three games because of a missed extra point. And you don't realize how important something as small as an extra point is until you're not making them. So, you know, in, in, in this game where we've been a hundred percent on our extra point attempts, which is huge.

We didn't have any field goals, but, but just kicking that extra point is just huge in a, in a tight game. Uh, our punter, our true freshman punter has flipped the field. I think he had a 47 yard average this past game. He down one at the one yard line. Um, he's been big for us. And then we had some big returns. I think we had a, uh, uh, kickoff return that got out to midfield. Uh, we had a big punt return. So, uh, we won all three phases.

We won on offense, defense, and special teams in this last game. That's why you come out with a seven point win. Coach, let's talk about your next game and a chance to hit the seven point win and secure and above 500 season. Uh, for a long time, you know, fans, it's like party like it's 1999 again on the road to Carrollton, Georgia to take on West Georgia this weekend. Yes. Another old Gulf South conference rival, uh, very, uh, you know, they're one in nine, uh, they're struggling, but they're a talented team.

They took Tarleton state was seven to six at halftime with the number one team in the country. Uh, they had a halftime lead with Austin P who's number seven in the country right now. Um, so they're, they're talented. They just haven't been able to put it together. And we've got to go on the road and make sure that we play in such a way that they can't put it together against us. Uh, we're going to lean a lot on our offensive line and defensive line, especially late in the year in November.

[10:29] Uh, we've got to run the ball. We've got to stop the run and we do that. We'll be able to get a win and, um, bring home that seventh victory, bring home a seventh FCS win, uh, and, and, and position ourself for a good home game the next week. Absolutely. Uh, listen, best of luck in practice this week. We always enjoyed the conversation with you. Come back from Georgia with a W. Absolutely. Thank you guys. Roll lines. Absolutely. There you have it. coach Brent German, you in a head football coach on his way again to Carrollton, Georgia and the boys from West Georgia this weekend coming up.

He is a veteran. It's hard to believe, but a lot about three weeks from today, BB, a thing called national recruiting day, the Dean of local recruiting, Freddie Kirby with that more straight ahead. Stay with us. Well, the days are getting cooler and the smell of fall is in the air. What a perfect time to go explore the great outdoors and Longshore Cycle Center has what you need. Longshore Cycle also has great deals on new CF moto highlands with their fully enclosed cabs with heat and air for those that like to explore in ultimate comfort.

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[15:55] Don't miss it. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. Brent Beard. I'm looking at the calendar here. Do you know what happens about three weeks from today? I'm going to guess it's National Signing Day. Do you know what else that means for one of our closest friends, my friend? You and Freddie Kirby go back how long? 30 years? 40 years? 50 years? How long is it? Too many. I would imagine Freddie would say Freddie is a guru when it comes to recruiting. And he's moving on up.

He is the general manager of Southeastern Athletics. Freddie, welcome in. How are you? And where are you today? I know you're on the road. Where are you? Well, right now, guys, I'm on Highway 43 between Utah, Alabama, and Demopolis. Oh, you're living, man. You're living. You're living large, are you not, Freddie? Where do you stop down there and eat? On the side of the road with a brown paper bag? Where do you eat down there? Nope. Well, there's a little real place down here in Demopolis that's pretty strong.

The old country ribs, about like what you get at Dreamland and everything. I've eaten there a few times and everything. But I plan on going on down closer to Grove Hill, which is my destination, to see if I can find a new place and see what's on the ground that way. Always something new. Freddie, obviously, a lot to get to. We want to talk recruiting to you. But here we are. Is it safe to say that the national media right now is shopping for some help for the butt hurt today?

They got Alabama. Last week, they exploded because they were number five. And then we saw what happened over the weekend. And then the committee had the audacity to move Alabama up to number three. And some of these guys, especially down in Louisiana, I don't know what they're going to have to do. They're calling 911. Freddie, can you help those folks out with a major case of butt hurt? Well, like I heard on a radio station as I was coming down this way, as I was coming through the Birmingham area, I think Crane worked, had to talk to Ego at Lake Kiffin off the field Friday or Saturday night.

And they were saying, but I heard that load was quite as heavy as it was walking into the stadium. But it's been a great football season. And Alabama has earned that number three ranking at the moment. Yes, they've got a couple losses. Of course, some people are undefeated, but you can take those two undefeated teams, put them in the SEC, and they got five losses. Well, here's the deal, Freddie. You look at the committee said in the preseason, we're going to do things different this year.

We're going to go by not necessarily on wins and losses, because you can fabricate that. You can put together a championship season if you're smart about that and you've got enough money to put it together. And with a roster, hello, Indiana, last year, taking nothing away from Indiana. But the committee said, let's play by different rules this year. Let's truly practice what we preach and go by strength of schedule. And if you guess last night, according to ESPN, you can agree with it, disagree it. Who has the strongest strength of schedule right now?

They're right down the road from you there in Tuscaloosa. So it looks like the committee is sitting here saying, you can throw all the darts you want at us, but we're not going to sit here and just put you in just because you're unbeaten. There's more to it than the recipe than just that. Most definitely. And they're going to have to start forcing these teams to play, society. Like Indiana's went out for the next four years and scheduled Indiana State people like that. That's right. And you've got to start penalizing these people and everything.

They want to go out here and run their mouth about the SEC, but don't want to play the SEC. And you go back and look at every week this year on ESPN, when they start talking about the games of the week, four out of every five was an SEC matchup. And so I don't want to hear either upgrade your schedule or live with the consequences. Because the consequences are you can't play with them. But at the end of the year, a lot of the SEC teams are beat up and some of the other teams are beat them in bowl games because a lot of these teams didn't want to be in those bowl games.

And they were chasing bigger prizes and everything. And I hear the argument from Tennessee people that they beat Alabama, they should be ranked ahead of them. Okay, Sacramento will be ranked ahead of you. But it's twofold here. You've got to look at all the glasses and not just yours. And so, but I think the committee so far has gotten it right. Yeah, if Tennessee wins out, they should build up Alabama in the end. And they should. They did have the benefit of facing Alabama the week after they got beat up by Georgia.

And everything physically, because Alabama was without five major players, including four starters that day. So, but it's a situation there. You've got to play your schedule the way it's laid out. And then, but the situation also that's there that Tennessee's still got to prove they belong. Because they got LSU. And of course, Tennessee's had the fortune also of Texas, Alabama, Kentucky, and LSU all coming to Knoxville. And the decimal reading the other night was 95 at the Kentucky game and 130 at Alabama. Does it sound like pipe noise to you?

[21:20] Absolutely. Yeah, that was a debate on that. Freddie, your thoughts on the game itself? I thought Alabama played their most complete game of the year. Even special teams, the big punt returned by Coleman Williams, the recovered fumble. Ashmeroff had a tremendous and punted for nearly 50 yards on average. Maybe some little innovative plays on offense. The offensive line blocked well. The defense, I know this bend but don't break, but they were huge in the red zone. And particularly with turnovers. And as you alluded to, Bud, when you get four or five starters back, it does make a difference.

Most definitely. And especially at key areas of your team. Yep. Because it's not made a difference from racing Delgati to center. Yeah. And it just shows you how valuable he is to that entire team. And to get Terrence Green to block that middle up, freed up the defensive end there to Tompkins to be able to go one-on-one a little bit more, still having to fight double teams. But some of these other teams haven't had to face a situation with losing four starters in one ballgame. But I thought the overall game the other night against LSU, I thought it was the most complete, as you said, from a standpoint.

They played as a team. The play calling was a lot better. And everything. There were a few other times I thought they still should have run the football. But overall, I was pleased. And everything. They're utilizing the tight ends the way they should. I hate to see Josh Forbes for the year and everything. That's going to hurt a little bit. But you've got probably your deepest room in the whole building. And this staff is really, really good at getting tight ends. And being able to utilize them.

Coleman Williams being back opened up an avenue for other receivers to be able to find the gaps because they're going to angle at him, which frees everybody else up. But I thought you've seen, especially in the fourth quarter and toward the end of the third quarter, I thought you've seen Russell take another step in his development to where he's seen the field and everything. He's seen the big picture. And he was confident in being able to deliver in those moments. And I think that growth is going to help down the road.

If you can come back at Baton Rouge in the second half that way, that late in the game, then you can't say enough about how much he's grown in that situation compared to the road trips to Kentucky and Tennessee. Freddie, your thoughts just about how this team finishes starting this weekend with that dreaded trip to Nashville. Your thoughts about the finish here. And are you in the same camp? Let somebody else play in the SEC championship game besides Alabama. Well, it definitely ain't going to hurt my feelings if I get beat up again.

Before they win or lose that Georgia game, you're going to get physically beat up a little bit, which is going to hurt you for your next ballgame. And because, in my opinion, those are still the top two teams in the country. And because they have the same part of throats. UCLA has not played anybody that's incomparable. You got teams like Notre Dame played Miami the other night without their number one receiver and their number one weapon. And it's the situation there. Who else are you going to point to on their schedule?

Oh, the team that beat them. That's right. And that team that beat them is going to be the Indiana this week, too. And they're going to see how far Indiana will plummet. But the head and shoulders, the SEC, by far, the most dominant conference this year. It ain't even close. Yeah. But I think you're looking at a 3-0 finish year in the regular season. And if it comes down to where you play Georgia in the championship game, that's just an extra avenue to build your resume.

And playing the number one team in the country at that point shouldn't hurt you from making the playoffs and everything. You should be able to still host the playoffs. You might not get to buy. But as far as allowing these Indiana's, Notre Dame's, people like that, to jump you in the top four when they haven't played anybody, to me is totally wrong. You're rewarding incompetence when it comes to schedule. Trady, let me ask you a little bit about recruiting before we let you go. In about another month, as we mentioned, it's going to be another National Signing Day running back.

Nigel Newkirk, a top 100 running back from Gainesville, had scheduled a visit to go to Ohio State. I think after watching Ohio State play the last three weeks, he decided to cancel that visit. We'll see if he makes it up. Will Alabama eventually get him? And then, I think, plan B, maybe Kingston Allen, a Wisconsin running back. Trady, your thoughts as far as recruiting running backs for Alabama? Well, like you said, if Newkirk stays on board, I don't know that they'll take another one and everything. But he might want to look at the overall security of the Ohio State coaching staff right now, but I don't think they're safe.

[26:47] Because there's a lot of talk up there right now that they're fed up with Ryan Day again. And you'll obviously see them jump, and to me, if they jump, I think they're going to try to bring the heart line back home. Yeah. And try to keep everything else in order. But there's a lot of them that just don't like Ryan Day, no matter what he does. And of course, you let him go out here and lose to Michigan, like he has in the past. And that'll really set the fire going and the smoke really big, really loud.

Because I just don't think they're a better situation than Alabama is, number one. You just tell them up there on the radio, they think they've got the greatest things since last period. But our buddy Double D does that Ohio State impression. I'm not going to try to do that. But right now, Hugh Kirk has not performed on the field this year either, because he's been hurt most of the year. Now, Alabama's stuck by him. And so it might be a situation he might want to look at his picture.

But it might not be as visible as what most of them are. And some of these kids, I'm sure, they got a little money thrown at them when they started talking about taking a business. Oh, sure. But the kid that met at Wisconsin, and from what I'm hearing, is just as good a back as Hugh Kirk. And so if he plays his cards too much, they may bring him on and tell him to go somewhere. So they don't have to bow down to him. But there's a defensive lineman coming in from out of junior college.

He signed with Miami out of high school that was a five-star. I think he's a little bit of a head case. But if they get his head on straight, they'll think Alabama could pull off a major steal there as a defensive lineman. And there's another one that's a high school teammate of Nolan Wilson that I know they're looking at. Because right now, defensive lineman is another thing I'm still focused on. And they're like, I think you need a couple more, if not three. And then you've got situations they've got a few other spots they're bringing in that I think they're looking.

Secondary seems to be a spot that they're looking at. And I think they're looking at a linebacker that's committed to Texas State that really blossomed up pretty high this year in the state of Texas. And everything, which they're going to be losing Caleb Woodson and everything at linebacker. So they're probably looking to try to bring in at least one more body there. But I think you'll see them sign as many as three to five more here towards the end of this 27 class. And I think it'll be ranked pretty good when it's all said and done.

They're already off to a very strong start in the 28 class. Absolutely. Listen, before we let you go, tell us, you work for a company for many, many years as far as helping freshmen, sophomores, at least give them a little bit of a blueprint, a game plan to get a college scholarship. You've been very successful doing that for years. Freddie, tell us a little bit more about Southeastern Athletics before you go. We're a company that's been around now for 42 years. And I've been in the recruiting game myself for the same amount of time.

And this coming February on the official signing day will be my 43rd official signing day that I've dealt with and everything. But we've had a historic run over these 40-something years. 80% of my kids nationwide have signed scholarships and everything, and that's in every sport. 87% of the kids since I've been with the company have signed and everything. And then personally, I've hit about 98%. And then 1,398 girls that I have signed since I've been with the company have signed scholarships. And you were talking about the freshmen, the sophomores, and all that, and everything.

Right now, if going further back than that, because… Oh, I bet. Right now, if you want the major D1 schools to look at you, you have to start the 7th, 8th grade. Yeah. Because in some of these cases, depending on the sport and everything, they're going to shut the door on you in 9th grade. That's right. Wow. And the two kids I'm headed to see right now, one in softball and one in baseball, are both 8th graders. They've seen the situation, and both of them have gotten very high marks.

The softball girl, I've seen personally myself and really like what I've seen. And a young lady that I had back in the day from Pryce for High School that played on the national championship team at Wall Street and everything in softball is one of her teachers, coaches and tutors that she's dealing with. And everything. So I know she's getting talked the right way and everything. And then they've got a baseball kid down here that's already caught a lot of attention as a catcher and everything. And that's the young man in baseball that I'm headed to see.

[31:58] And I hear he can really hammer it and everything. And the same girl that I worked with back then is the one to put them in contact with me. And so it's a situation where I don't do a whole lot of advertising and everything. I let the people that I've met with do my talking and everything. And so far, 98% will speak for itself. And if anybody needs to contact us, we've done away with the office phone and everything because the only one we ever got a call from morning was telemarkers.

Most people go to cell phones now anyway. So my personal cell phone is 256-227-6986. And the boss, Glenn Jackson, who owns the company and everything, his phone number is 256-810-7076. Either one of us can take care of your situation, meet with you and everything. It don't cost you anything to sit down with us. But if you like what we do and everything, you want us to help you and everything, we could potentially save you a lot of money. Freddie, on the road again, I got a feeling you're going to be getting a call, letting you know your car warranty has expired, Freddie, if you'd like the rest of us.

Listen, man, safe travels down there. Good luck at the rib shack, okay? Like I said, I'm going to go past him. You'll find one. You'll find one. I can assure you between here and Grove Hill, which is close to the Mobile territory, this little stomach will find something. Yes, you will. There you go. It's got its own built-in GPS, Freddie Kirby, Southeastern Athletics, again, 256-227-6986. I wonder if it's going to go through Tuscaloosa. It's where we take you next with Rodney Orr. Stay with us.

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That's up to 35% off at L-E-A-F-L-T-E-R dot com slash rich. Restrictions apply. See representative for warranty and promotion details. Progressive presents the Sports Flash on 93-9. The score. Mid's basketball election last night. Troy a winner in overtime. They beat Loyola Marymount 74-69. Donovan O'Day with 16 points. 10 rebounds. Troy is 1-2 to start the year. South Alabama fell in Orlando, losing to UCF 76-69. Stephen Williams with 18 points and 11 rebounds. South Alabama is now 1-2. In the latest college football selection committee rankings, Georgia's number one, Utah number two, and Alabama number three.

[37:25] UCLA and Notre Dame are also in the top five. The New Orleans Saints are back in action on Sunday when the Saints play at home against the Carolina Panthers. Both teams are currently 3-5. Tune in Friday night for the 5A football playoffs as Florence hosts Minor. Pregame at 6 o'clock. Kickoff at 7. I'm John Thayer with the Sports Flash presented by Progressive on 93-9. The score. The dirt. The dirt. The hassle. The hustles. It was all in a day's work. And now, it's all on your shirt. Don't give your laundry a second thought.

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Until three weeks later when you're joining vacuum forums and pouring through countless articles, pretty soon you're making full-on spreadsheets, sifting through thousands of online reviews, and saying things like cordless run time in your everyday conversations. At least bundling home and auto with Progressive is an easy choice. Progressive Casualty Insurance Company affiliates and third-party insurers. Not available in all states or situations. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. He is behind the curtain there at one of the most active, if you want to call it, internet boards in the entire world of Alabama football.

Rodney Orr, he is the founder and editor of tighterinsider.com and the fine author of his book called Bigger Than Bama. Rodney Orr, welcome in. How are you? Doing well, guys. How's it going? Hey, Rodney. And the question is, how's it going in your backyard? I would assume pretty well. I saw some of the national talking heads, and they're calling this national poll, the college football poll, the Bama Invitational. They're getting all the breaks this year. Rodney, do you agree with the national guys that Alabama's getting all the breaks this year with the poll?

Rodney Orr, well, I don't know. I mean, I've watched all these other teams. They don't look too great to me. Do they do you guys? I mean, there's maybe a few teams that have looked better than Alabama, but. Here's the deal. What is your definition? What is this like when you go to the kitchen? What is in your recipe to come up with this? Because all these years, they basically, they've preached one thing, practiced another. They've come up and said at the end of the year, well, this team's unbeaten.

This team's lost one or two. So the unbeaten team gets in. It seems like this committee is saying that's one of the ingredients, but you've got to have more than sugar. Sometimes you've got to have a little salt. Sometimes you've got to have a little flour in the right mix. In other words, what is the tiebreaker? And people have been clamoring for the strength of schedule to be a major factor, because otherwise, all you've got to do is sit here and win your championship with your scheduler.

Your thoughts just about how this committee is putting this group together compared to some of the years past. You know what? I mean, again, a lot of things have changed. I think there's been some years where you've seen, you know, there were clearly teams that stood out that were better. Right. And all of those things. And, I mean, I think right now, again, I go back to what I said. I mean, I just look at it and, you know, everybody's got about two losses right now.

You know, the top teams, you know, obviously Miami's got one, Georgia's got one, you know, Utah's ranked real high, you know, all of that. But after those first two or three, I mean, it's just a bunch of teams to me right now. And I'm not even sure those top two or three are much better than what we've seen, you know, among the other teams. So, right now, I mean, I don't really, I don't understand all the hoopla over the rankings, because it's so early. It's still a lot of things to play out.

That's right. It's all going to usually always fall basically into place. You have a couple of arguments here or there. But I figure that everything's going to fall into place, you know, right now. Is Alabama the third best team in the country? I mean, you know, who knows? I mean, I just think, Harold and Brett, when you look at the field, there's just not a lot of teams that stand out right now. But you're exactly right. Ronnie, when you look at the stats of this Alabama-LSU game, you think, well, my Lord, LSU won this game by three touchdowns, 457 to 285 in total yards.

They ran 81 plays to 53, 27 first downs to 13. But let me add two more stats. 0 for 4. That was on fourth down. Oh, let me add one more stat. Turnovers. LSU had two. Alabama had zero. And the real number that counts that is 31 to 13. I thought Alabama overall played their most complete game of the season. I get the BIM, but don't break that, believe me, your board and everybody else I talk to get tired of. But they forced turnovers. They made plays in the red zone. I thought the offense looked much more fluent, much more in rhythm.

[42:51] This, to me, was Alabama's most complete performance of the season. Well, you know, again, I think, you know, those are some interesting comments. I think defensively, I tip my hat to Kane Womack. He probably knew that LSU was going to get their yards, and they got them, you know. But I think they pressured Levitt a lot. You know, he got out of sync. He got rattled. He took some sacks on scoring position or on the edge of scoring position. Just made some bad decisions. I think Lane Kiffin didn't help matters at all.

It's like we said last week right here on your segment. These are the kind of games that Lane tightens up in. He does. He makes some really, really questionable decisions. I thought he kicked a field goal when he should have punted, and I thought he didn't kick field goals when he should have at times. So there were a lot of bad decisions there. I'm not, that's not taking anything away from Alabama. I thought, you know, they did a better job of managing the game, Alabama did, DeBoer did, his staff, than what Lane did.

And so there at the end, you know, like you said, the red zone was just, you know, basically they only gave up 10 points in the red zone. Alabama got 21 points in the red zone. That's a difference. Plus they had the touchdown pass of 25 yards. So basically that's an 18-point difference, and that was the difference in the game in terms of the score was 18 points. So I think the red zone was really key, obviously. It was a really big key. And, you know, to me, listen, I think that the offense has a long way to go.

I think it's basically Keelan time, you know, and that's what it was against Texas A&M. His late third quarter and fourth quarter heroics. And I think, once again, you saw Keelan Russell here in the stretch after LSU goes up 13-10 with 244 left in the third. Keelan immediately hits a 57-yarder. He has the big scramble on third down for the first down. He throws the touchdown pass to Ford. Ryan comes back and gets the great punt return. Guess what? First down, Keelan throws a dart, 25 yards touchdown.

And all of a sudden, a 13-10 deficit, 24-10, I'm sorry, a 24-13 lead. And then Lane pulls the boneheaded move with 8-20 left in the game. He goes for it on fourth down. And he gets a sack. Alabama takes over. And the game's over, right? And three plays later, Keelan throws a touchdown pass, and it's over. So I think there were a lot of things there. You know, Lane made a lot of mistakes. Keelan made some plays. The defense, as you mentioned, Womack, I thought, did a really good job, especially in the red zone.

Rodney, or tighter on Saturday.com. Rodney, talk to us about that. One thing this team, as you mentioned, Russell put it on his back. What is his status as far as the health of it? And it seems like every week we hear the same thing from Ryan Grubb. We've got to get the running game going. You look at the stats, it's embarrassing by Alabama standards where this team stacks up running the ball. What happens? What changes this weekend? And again, what are you hearing about Russell's health status?

Yeah, I think his status, that's a good question. You know, obviously, DeBoer said day to day. I know he was out there yesterday. How much he actually practiced, I just don't know. It's kind of a lighter day on Tuesday. Wednesday today, I think, would be a much more telling day. And I haven't, you know, obviously we're blocked out. We don't know, at least at this point, exactly what happened today at practice. But it'll be interesting to see. And you know what? If he can't go, then you go with Austin Mack.

You may have to do that. And again, I want to be clear. I have no idea what his status is. I'm just saying hypothetically, if he can't go, obviously you've got to go with Austin Mack. But, yeah, the ankle is, I think, been bothering him for a few weeks and probably aggravated it against LSU. And I'm sorry, what was your other question, Harold? But, Rodney, we mentioned this all week long. What a difference starters make coming back from injuries. Terrence Green may not have made a lot of tackles or a sack, but I thought he plugged the middle.

LSU had 77 yards rushing. I thought that was a key. What a difference Rayson Delgotti makes at center. Coleman Williams just simply opens up the field. Now, I know Zabian Brown may have re-injured or been injured again, but, Rodney, we've talked about this for two or three weeks. What a difference it makes when you get four or five starters back. Yeah, and I think Harold was also asking, too, Brett, about what can Alabama do offensively to get things going. Right, yes. And find some rhythm, find some balance, find some consistency, which they really haven't had in several weeks.

And, you know, I don't know if they can do that. What I mean by that is I'm not really sure. Now, down the stretch, I think they can, you know, here. But when you're talking about making a playoff run, you know, is the offensive line, is it good enough? And I think that's something that's going to have to be answered. I think they're going to have to be able to establish a run game. And I'm not sure, Brett and Harold, if that offensive line is going to be, you know, up to par to be able to do that.

[48:18] But, again, I'm not saying they won't. I'm just saying I think that's the real question mark moving forward is can they give Keelan Russell more than just, you know, just him having to make plays? It's going to have to be more than that. It's going to have to be – they're going to have to develop some rhythm and consistency in the run game. How far they make a run in the playoffs will answer that question as well, Rodney. Stay tuned for that. But, in the meantime, the most important game of the year is always the next game.

And what's Kalen DeBoer in the pulpit preaching to his troops and his congregation this week about the road trip to Vanderbilt after a big win? Yeah, you know, that's a great question, Harold, because last week, like we said, we thought that set up really well for Alabama because, you know, DeBoer's team seemed to respond really well when their backs are to the wall, and they did. And then we also said Kiffin's prone to laying an egg, which I thought he did. So, now you look at Vanderbilt, and this is kind of one of those situations where it's a little reverse.

I mean, you know, DeBoer's teams have had trouble bouncing back from big wins. Thank you. The question, though, is, you know, this Vanderbilt team is, let's just be honest, they're really struggling, and they have struggled. Now, they had a big win against Mississippi State, and here's the thing. I know they made, I think they made a few personnel moves up front offensively that helped them against Mississippi State. They ran the ball well. They went for 160 or so. They dominated possession, had nearly 40 minutes. Now, you know against Alabama that's what they're going to want to do, dominate possession, keeps the ball away from the offense, punch in some scores, and they have a field goal kicker.

And I know Brett probably is on top of this because he keeps up with this kind of stuff. Brock Taylor was 6 of 6 against Mississippi State. He had a 54 and a 55 yard. He's good. He's good. So, yeah, I mean, he could be a weapon in this game. Harold Brett, I picked Alabama 27 to 12, and I know that's not a blowout, but it's a win. It's coming back and, you know, going on the road and, you know, winning a game that you have to win. And so that's taking into account the history of, you know, struggles coming back from a really emotional big game like they had with LSU.

Absolutely. Yeah, that's been, again, that's in Kaelin DeBoer's DNA. It's a basketball team playing pretty well. They beat Oakland Monday, and Nate Oates is about to National Signing Day for basketball. He's going to sign another top five class. Nate Oates is, we'll see how far this team can go. They've got a lot of potential. Rodney, where can we get online and get the absolute latest for Alabama's four's coaching interviews, a little bit of recruiting, National Signing Day on the horizon, 24-7 message board, and where also can we get online to buy your book?

Right. I appreciate it, Brett. It's tigerdecider.com. It's only $48 a year. You can get access right now with your credit card, if you prefer. There is an address there at tigerdecider.com to send a check, and that gives you the premium information, but also our all-sports forum, a lot of stuff going on there, a lot of debate back and forth about different things, especially, you know, football. And, you know, like you said, Brett, I think basketball is really heating up. There's a lot of excitement on tigerdecider.com about Nate Oates' team.

The book is Bigger Than Bama, and you can find it at rodneyor.com, or you can go to Amazon, Google it, and you can find all the details there. Sounds great, Rodney. Listen, man, thanks so much for your time, Dan. Let's do it again soon, okay? Okay, Harold and Brett, appreciate it, guys. Take care. Appreciate it. You, Rodney Orr, founder and industry, tighter, and insider.com. Again, the book's called Bigger Than Bama. BB, one thing that if you plan on making up the game, this is, believe it or not, for a lot of folks here, this is the closest game to watch an SEC game on the entire schedule right off the road in Nashville.

Let us say this. Break out the Woolies. It looks like the temp is going to take a big dip this weekend, BB. Yeah, the wind chill is going to be the biggest problem beginning tomorrow. Boy, I tell you one thing, high school football Friday night is going to be a little chilly. Yeah, it's going to feel like football in November for a change. Coming up the next time, I've got to heat things up with Drew Yarman. He's going to be on board. Tony Pujo talking about what a week it's been on the road to Oklahoma and Miami.

And Kevin Scarbinsky says, what's all the fuss with Alabama being number three? He'll try to sort through that and more straight ahead of the Boom on Bug Show. Stay with us. This is Miranda Haddock with the Florence Education Foundation. We invite you to support our Friends of the Foundation campaign. As a Friend of the Foundation, you can contribute any amount to help fund classroom needs in Florence City schools. Please visit our website at FlorenceEducationFoundation.org to explore our new giving levels and the added perks available.

[53:31] We would like to wish Coach Morrison and the entire Falcon football team good luck this season. This holiday, Gifted Your All with Target and the perfect gifts for everyone on your list. For your oh-so-chic sister, Target has 100% cashmere sweaters at just $45. Trending trading cards for literally every collector. For your Hogwarts superfan cousin, the Harry Potter 25th Anniversary Collection. New and exclusive scents for your beauty-obsessed bestie? Now that's just the thing. Target's got all the gifts, so you can gift it your all. Restrictions apply. Hello, I'm Ozempic.

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O-negative blood donors are especially needed since they have a universal blood type that can be used on all patients. Donation sites can be found at the LifeSouth website. I'll be back with more Alabama stories after this. Brian Dawson here, CEO of 18-19 News. I'm also the host of 18-19 News, the podcast, and we'd love for you to join us by listening to our weekly show on all the top podcast apps, both in audio and video format. At 18-19 News, the podcast, we are in pursuit of a free and flourishing Alabama.

Every week, we're having important conversations with guests from across this great state, all with the goal of equipping Alabamians to be in pursuit of a free and flourishing Alabama with us. New episodes are released weekly. I hope you'll join us. Voters in Selma will be going back to the polls within a month as part of a special election. The date for that special election has been set for December 8th. The election will be to fill the vacant seat on the Selma City Council after Troy Harville was removed from office.

Harville was removed for not attending any of the regular or special meetings for the past 90 days. Two candidates are running in this race, Denson Henry and Felicia King-Thomas. And today, the Mobile City Council will be meeting to consider a resolution on whether or not to launch an investigation into recent financial fraud. That fraud was reported by the city administrators and occurred this past August and October. First Lady Melania Trump and Second Lady Usha Vance are going to be visiting Alabama this coming Thursday. The First and Second Ladies will be visiting military families at Fort Rucker ahead of the Thanksgiving season.

I'm Andrea Theis. For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com. And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter. The Florence Beautification Board invites you to a Florence holiday tradition. The North Court Street Tree Lighting will take place on Sunday, November 22nd at 5 p.m. This festive evening will feature treats from U&A Culinary and joyful music from community carolers. Gather with family and friends as we light the tree and welcome in the holiday season to downtown Florence. That's the North Court Street Tree Lighting, November 22nd at 5 p.m.

For board information or project details, visit the Beautification Board at the City of Florence page at FlorenceAL.org. Tis the season. We hope to see you there. By TK, Rogersville, Athens, Decatur, the Shoals. Sports Radio 93.9 The Score. Valley Broadcasting Corporation. Everybody, Bill King, Bill King Show. Listen to me. 9 until noon. 93.9 The Score. Monday through Friday as we talk college football like nobody else does. Because he listens in Florence. Our show's, Charlie, our show's on down there. Bill King Show. Monday through Friday. 9 until noon. Every league, every big topic is covered.

[58:40] 93.9 The Score. This is Jerome from Birmingham, previously from Paul Feinbaum Show. Blair is up next in Birmingham. Hey, Blair. Hey, Paul. Why are you thankful for this thanks to you? Blair, I'm thankful that all of us on this program get to do this every day. It's not something that I take for granted. It's something that's very important to me and hopefully to all of you. The Paul Feinbaum Show. Weekdays at 3 Eastern on the ESPN app and on the SEC network. 93.9 The Score weather. Today for your Veterans Day, a 20% chance of midday showers and a high around 70.

Tonight, mostly clear with a 30% chance of showers overnight. Possible gusty winds and a low near 40. Tomorrow, sunny. Gusty winds continue with a high around 60. Tomorrow night, mostly clear and cold with a low near 35. And for your Friday, sunny. Gusty winds continue with a high around 50. 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 Tigers, Tennessee, and the rest of the SEC.

Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back in. Hour 2 of the Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Redbeard. Thank you so much for giving us free ride around the Tennessee Valley and BB. A lot to get to this hour. But before we get the ball rolling, again, a big salute to all of our veteran friends. Well, Semenya made the ultimate sacrifice for this country. I know my family had Semenya. My dad was in the Air Force, and he had about seven brothers who were in the military, too.

And I was watching a little bit of the Veterans Day Parade in Huntsville. It means a lot to them. It means a lot to this country. And I'm glad they've got a special day. And it is always a special time for us to say hello to UNA Head Men's Basketball Coach Tony Pujo. Coach, welcome in. How are you? Guys, how are you doing? Doing great. Man, we're doing all right. Is it true that you've got the Willie Nelson queued up on the road again? I mean, let's start with your first destination this week.

Out in the middle of the plains of Oklahoma. And I tell you what, Coach, I got to fit in those folks out there. They know the name UNA. Talk to us about the showing against the Boomer Sooners. Yeah, I thought it was a really good showing for our guys. You know, I thought our guys competed at an extremely high level. A lot of credit goes to, you know, Coach Moser and that program. You know, he's done a good job everywhere he's been, right? Loyola, Chicago. And now there, you know, he's trying to make sure that this team is competitive in a very, very competitive league.

And I can tell you right now, he's got pieces that can do that. But I was really, really impressed with the game plan that we had set up. I thought our staff did a tremendous job of preparing our guys. I think our guys took the game plan and applied it. And they just made a few more buckets than we did. But I was very pleased with the way our guys came out and competed. Let's talk about it, Coach, what it means when you're in these, let's not kid ourselves, David versus Goliath matchups on paper.

And I think Oklahoma might have bought that coming in the game. But I tell you what, talk to us what this means, playing this competitive with a team with that pedigree. And one thing that was impressive that I saw in the game, Coach, this team never gave up. They looked at the scoreboard and said, let's close this gap. Let's never give up until there's nothing but zeros on the clock. You know, one of the things that we've been telling this group as we're, you know, to continuing to progress as a team is that right now we've established an M.O., right?

Like this is who you are. And on the side of continuing to grow, we've come out to kind of some slow starts. And it was evident in this game as well. But one M.O. that we have shown is we know how to finish games. And that right there, if I'm going to share with them the things that they've got to continue to grow in, I've got to share the things that I see as a strength. And our guys, you're absolutely right. They're never going to quit.

They're going to continue to compete, which is what I've told our fan base from day one with this group, is they're going to be proud to be supporting this group because they will not relent. They will keep playing no matter what the score is. We can be up or down. They're not relenting. They're going to keep moving forward. And I'll tell you right now, the sooners I know they experience that about this team, is that tenacity to keep fighting, to keep going, and keep competing for 40 minutes.

[1:03:49] Tony, when I looked at the stats in this game, several things caught my attention. UNA outscored Oklahoma 36-22 in the paint. You won the rebounding advantage 36-33. The bench points were 36-23. You shot 48% from the field, 26-54, compared to Oklahoma's 43. Tony, that's pretty impressive. Well, I appreciate you saying that. The one area that has kind of held us down a little bit, and trust me, our guys are doing a great job of showing our guys what they need to get better at. And our guys are working on, because I'm seeing the gradual growth from our players, and that is valuing possessions.

When you're on the road, you've got to value possessions against teams, especially in the SEC. And credit to Oklahoma. They did a really good job of pressuring our guys and turning us over on occasions. And I think that kind of led to some points that I wish we could take back. But outside of that, for me, this is all part of the process for us, right, is how are we growing as a team? And right now, I'm very pleased in the way that our guys are growing.

Well, Coach, obviously, it's going to be a very interesting week. We alluded to it with Nelson on the road, first out in Oklahoma. And I don't know if you've heard about the forecast here in our neck of the woods. It's supposed to get cold this weekend. And the best way to beat that, I guess, Coach, is what? Go to Coral Gables, Florida. That's the good news. The weather should be better. The bad news is you're going to be facing a hurricane named Miami down there. Your thoughts about the next game for you on the road?

Well, I'm going to tell you right now, it's going to be great to be back at home. So for me, I get to see a lot of family and friends, ex-players, you know, ex-colleagues. You know, I'm very blessed to be the head of basketball at North Alabama and being able to go down to Coral Gables and compete against the Miami Hurricanes. I will say this. You're right. The weather is going to be nice, but there's a storm of brewing in Coral Gables. And Jai Lucas has done a really, really good job of recruiting players to his style of play.

Obviously, a top-20 team in the country. So I can't wait for the challenge that our guys are going to be going up against in the Miami Hurricanes. They're going to present challenges and adversity at times. And I can't wait to see how our guys respond to competing against this ACC opponent. Yeah, I'm delighted. You and I talked off the air. I'm delighted you're getting a chance to go back home. Because I know you had so many friends and families down there. You're going to get a chance to see Miami's 2-1 on the season.

They beat Vandy. As a matter of fact, Tony, I think one of the best things that happened in basketball were the exhibition games. Beat Vanderbilt. Yeah, beat Vandy in an exhibition game, 109-96. They beat Wagner, 83-57. North Florida, 89-51. Who was their only loss this year? Number one, Florida. The Gators. Yeah. 77-60. By the way, Alabama plays, goes to Miami December 2nd. But, Tony, you know what, Ben, or anybody else, this Miami team, yeah, they're in the top 20. They're good. Oh, they're legit. They're legit. And not only what Coach Lucas has been able to do, but he's got a great staff, right?

Like, I'm very familiar with two of their assistant coaches, and Eric Pastrana, who came from Georgia. He's a South Florida native. And then Charlton Young, CY, a legend in Miami in basketball. He's been a head coach at Georgia Southern, has been at Florida State, been at a bunch of places. So, not only has he assembled an unbelievable roster, his staff is elite. So, it doesn't surprise me at all that they're, you know, they're top 20. But, to be honest with you, I got a feeling this is going to be a top 10 team when it's all said and done.

That's how talented, and that's how well coached they are. In the huddle with Coach Tony Pujo, UNA. Coach, talk to us about, at this point in time, let's face it, especially in the modern era, you never really know when you bring your roster together. You can go and project things, get a kind of a gut feel in the preseason. But, now that you've got a few games under your belt, the C word has to come into play. Your thoughts about the chemistry of this team, especially going on the road against stout competition.

You've got two choices. Get in the fetal position, feel sorry for yourself, or say, you know what, we can play with these guys. Your thoughts just about the C word so far with this team. Well, you know, guys, I'll go back to year one, right, when we played Gonzaga, who happened to be number one in the country at the time. And, you know, that's one thing we're not going to do. We're never going to get in the fecal position, right? We're going to go ahead and we're going to compete.

[1:09:06] And we realize that this is all part of a journey that we've embarked into to make our team the best possible team come March, right? And I'll say this to you. You know, it speaks volumes of the program and it speaks volumes of the players of the program year in and year out at North Alabama. When in the last three seasons, North Alabama's won four of these, what you call by games, you know, going to San Francisco, going, you know, going to UC Davis this year, East Carolina at Air Force, you know, for the, in the last three years, all of those games have been wins.

And it's funny that you mentioned that because one of the, when I spoke to one of the assistant coaches at Miami, Lucas brought that up to them. He goes, why are we, why are we bringing somebody in who's had four wins against by schools in the last three years? So again, that just shows you, that just shows you from year one to right now where this program has grown. And I'll tell you right now, the, the reason why it's done that, it's because of everybody that's a part of the organization, but especially the players that, that have come in here and just compete at a level that, that, that, that, that can do those things.

So again, just very blessed to be a part of this program, guys. Absolutely. Listen, we always appreciate it. I know you got a busy week, came back from Oklahoma, and then you got to leave to go to Miami, safe travels down there. I know you, you can't wait to see former players, coaches, friends, family. God bless you and the team. Bring back a W from Miami. I appreciate you guys. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. And bring us back some good weather. If you don't mind as well, you and a men's basketball coach, Tony Pujol on his way to play in a place called Coral Gables, Florida coming up on Friday.

In the meantime, a lot of hurt throw to Alabama in the poll. What's Kevin Scarbinsky saying about it all? The tale's next. Stay with us here at the Boom O' Buck Show. Hey guys, this is Mark down at Warehouse Tackle. So we offer the best fishing tackle and outdoor supplies in the Shoals area. We're located on 4170's College Street. Our phone number is 256-980-0951. And you can find us on the web at www.warehouse-tackle.com. Come and see us. We're proud to be a sponsor of Florence Falcons football.

And we wish Coach Morrison and the team good luck to you in your season. Imagine a bank where you feel at home. Real people living right here in your community are the heart of Bank Independent and everything we do. You have our commitment to bring the people, ideas, and resources together that create a stronger community full of endless potential. For over 75 years, we've served this place we all call home. Bank Independent. We're invested in you. Member FDIC. This is the story of the one. As a procurement manager at an industrial manufacturing facility, she balances inventory levels with sourcing supplies.

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800-803-3922. Optima Tax Relief. Testimonial from an actual client. Some restrictions apply. For complete details, please visit OptimaTaxRelief.com. Calling all Shoals basketball fans. Something exciting is coming to the Shoals. On November 20th, join us for the first ever Shoals Hoops High School Basketball Media Day. For the first time, high school basketball programs from across the Shoals will come together under one roof to celebrate our local teams, players, and coaches as they gear up for another exciting basketball season. Come watch your favorite local teams and coaches take the spotlight with media interviews, team introductions, and plenty of basketball excitement.

The day also features an FCA breakfast and a special Learn from the Best coaching clinic featuring college coaches and championship winning coaching legends. And we want you to be a part of it. The entire community is invited to come out, support our local athletes, and help make this inaugural event something special. That's November 20th from 7.30 a.m. to 2.30 p.m. at the Lauderdale County Workforce Development Center, 250 Career Drive in Florence. Presented by Turbo Coffee, SCA, and the Triple Threat Podcast. Shoals Hoops Media Day, where our basketball stars take center court.

The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back here and talk about a busy boy, Kevin Skarbensky, multimedia personality. If you want something spicy, check out his columns there at A-Hill.com. That's one of the reasons he's an award-winning writer, also a TV host. Now, but imagine getting ready for a fun time ahead on the mic, on the coverage of the Alabama High School Athletic Association Football Super 7. After that, the state basketball finals. In the meantime, check him out at Scarbo Nose. Kevin Skarbensky, welcome in.

I'm out of breath. How are you? I'm exhausted just listening to that. I tell you, man, you'll be wearing us out. You're busy. It'd be the alternative, for sure. Good to be with you guys. You too, Kevin. Obviously, I guess the topic is your, does Amazon.com sell anything for butt hurt? Because a lot of national guys need it with the recent polls. Do you agree with the national guys that it's the Alabama Invitational with the big polls of late? I do not, and I have heard from many new friends in the Tennessee fan base in the last week.

I use the word friends loosely. I have been, man, if I listen to some of the suggestions that they've made or some of the comments they've made, I might crawl under the covers and never come out. Apparently, I'm not worth much as a human being in their lives. However, I like to think I know a little bit about college football. And I also would point out that every ranking, standing, statistic, own to man places Alabama ahead of Tennessee at the moment. At the moment. And we need to speak a little louder for the Tennessee fans in the back and remind them that, hey, guys, there's only been two polls by the college football playoff committee.

There will be more. And I happen to have looked at the schedules for both teams, and I see that Tennessee has a more difficult closing schedule than Alabama. And the strength of schedule gap will close. And I fully believe that it may happen at 9-2. But if both get to 10-2, I believe you will see that flip-flop. And then Tennessee's head-to-head victory. Yes, I am well aware that Tennessee beat Alabama 26-10. I've been reminded about a million times in the last five days or so of that result.

I know. I watched it. Tennessee will end up ahead of Alabama. But it's fun debating with people. It's not so fun when people want to get personal and take shots. But, hey, that's college football, right? Yeah, it is. Do you think this committee, basically, they said, we're not going to just preach it, we're going to practice it? Because in years past, it's been, okay, Kevin Scarbinsky's unbeaten and Brent Beard's lost two, even though Kevin played three blind mice while Brent played the Buffalo Bills with those two losses.

[1:19:37] Are they basically practicing what they preach and taking into consideration, seriously, the strength of schedule this time around to date, as you say? Yes, finally. Yeah. And a lot of people have screamed for that for years to recognize that who you play, when you play, where you play, that should all factor into how you rank teams. Common opponents is one of the criteria that's listed on the college football playoff website as one of the things they're supposed to consider. And, for example, guys, I don't have all the numbers in front of me, but, and many people seem to be upset because Hunter Juracek keeps saying that the committee considers Mississippi State a quality win for Alabama because it's a place on October 3rd and Camario Taylor played three full quarters and he didn't come out of the game until Alabama scored a touchdown to make it 49-23, I think, early in the fourth quarter.

So, and if you look at what Mississippi State did before that, they beat Minnesota badly. Yeah, Missouri. At Minnesota, by far bigger margin than Minnesota lost to UCLA or Indiana, both of whom are in the top 10. And that's just one example. And I might remind my Tennessee friends that Mississippi State handled South Carolina. Tennessee did not. And Alabama handled South Carolina very easily. That's different. Tennessee got beat by the Gamecocks. So, again, we could go on and on. It's amazing how people get angry when you present facts to them.

Now, you can interpret the facts however you like. You can't change the facts. Kevin, we've got a long way to go in the season, obviously, but Alabama's performance against LSU, Harold and I talked about this a lot last week, that at some point, Lane Kiffin's going to beat himself. He went for fourth down four times, failed all four times. But when you look at the entire game, I thought it may have been Alabama's most complete performance on all three units. They won special teams by a lot.

Again, getting five starters back, or at least four, helped. Kevin, your thoughts on Alabama? Well, I agree. I thought it was against a quality opponent. It might have been their best overall game. I thought the game plan was very, very smart. They clearly took advantage of the time off. Getting back some key players was huge. You think Alabama's not a better team with Ryan Coleman-Williams making plays? You know, that's, and remind our Tennessee friends, Ryan Coleman-Williams did not play in the Alabama-Tennessee game for factual purposes.

But no, and you hit it on the head, and that's one reason that I picked Alabama to win that game Saturday, is because if you give Lane Kiffin enough rope. That's right. We know what he's going to do with it. And I've got to say, guys, of all the bonehead coaching decisions I've ever seen, fourth and ten, your own 25. Yeah. You're down by only two scores. It's an 11-point game. Well. And you, with eight minutes to play, mind you. Thank you. And at this point, your offensive line is getting whipped by Alabama's defensive front and his pass rush.

But you decide to go for it. Yep. And essentially end the game right there. That may be in the history of bad decisions made by Lane Kiffin, and that's a long list. That one might leap right to the top. Well, no. It would have to be number two right behind leaving a playoff team on the brink of a playoff to go somewhere else where you think you have a better chance to win the playoff. I've always wondered why $20 million would get you. Now we know the answer to that.

Kevin Scarbinsky in the huddle with us. Kevin, your thoughts about the balance of this season, that dreaded game to Vanderbilt after a big win. It's safe to say that it wouldn't hurt Alabama's feelings if somehow, some way, they don't lose. But the things play out to where they don't have to go play Georgia again, the SEC championship game. When you break out the risk versus rewards in the modern era, it may not be a good move there. But your thoughts about the balance of the season for Alabama?

Yeah, well, again, when they're healthy or close to it, they are as good as anybody, and they can beat anybody. I think that's been proven to this point, and I don't think anyone can really argue that point. And sadly, your calculation on what may be best, what may give them the best chance to make a deep run in the playoff, may be avoiding Atlanta. That's right. And avoiding another knockdown, drag-out, rock-em-sock-em-robots game with Georgia, which beat up both teams. And don't think the committee clearly has recognized that neither Georgia nor Alabama was the same the week after playing each other.

[1:24:45] Because that following week gave us the most inexplicable result of the entire season, Auburn beating Georgia between the Hedges and Athens. Ollie versus Fraser. Speaking of the Auburn Tigers, your thoughts about where they are relative to preseason expectations with a new regime coming in. Kevin? You know, I think they're coming about as close to the ceiling of their talent as possible. They're sitting there now at 5-4. You have two very winnable games coming up. Won't be easy at Mississippi State. No, they don't have Camario Taylor.

But they'll compete. And it is in Starkville. But if you get that one, you certainly should beat Samford next week. No offense to John Gross and company. But you get to 7-4 going into the Iron Bowl. That's a successful season. Because it has been made clear when they've played teams like LSU, they just have vastly superior rosters. That it's hard to compete. Again, the Georgia game is a complete outlier. Because Georgia has four more talent than Auburn also. But, again, we understand the circumstances. But still, that game happened.

And that is a huge positive for Alex Golesh. As is winning all these close games. They're 4-1 in one-score games this year. I think the U-Freeze won one one-score game in his almost three years on the plane. They created new ways to lose close games when Freeze was there. And the same thing under Harsin. So, that's a positive. Again, these are baby steps, relatively speaking. And you're still a lot closer to the bottom of the SEC than you are at the top. But you have to stop the slide somewhere and start moving back up.

And I think they've done that so far. And that's why this game last week was huge. It was that after the ugly first half against Arkansas. That was a must win. And they got it done. And they played much better in the second half. And now you've got to go to Starkville and do it again. But, yeah, if they can get to 7-5, I think they have definitely maxed out and hit their ceiling this year. Harold alluded to this in the introduction. But I have really enjoyed the high school game of the week.

I know you came up for Brooks at Dassler in Tuscumbia to see the tradition and heritage that they've got. I got back last Friday to see the fourth quarter of that Muscle Shoes-Oxford game. But it's high quality. I've really enjoyed this. I go to a game, try to every Friday night and also Thursday. But I've really enjoyed that. I know you've got the, as Harold said, the Super 7, which I think is now the Super 9 or the Super 10, whatever it is in Mobile. But, again, congratulations. I know you quarterback a lot of that stuff.

But you've had a very good season so far. Oh, it is so much fun, guys. And I had a great, great time. That was my first trip to Dessler. First time I'd ever been in Tuscumbia. And I really enjoyed that. The hospitality from everyone at these schools where we travel week after week has just been unparalleled. And everybody makes us feel welcome. We have a great time. We get to meet new people. We get to talk. This is one of my favorite parts of our pregame show, our Countdown to Kickoff show, which is on 5 to 6.

And now it's on Friday nights because we have a, it was Thursday night game of the week during the regular season, but obviously in playoff time we're off Friday nights. But just getting to talk to the coaches. Yeah. You know, and they've been so gracious with their time. You know, it's advantageous to us because the show is 5 to 6 and kickoff's not until after 7. So that makes it a little easier. But coaches have been very willing to come on with us. And we've enjoyed those visits. We had a good, yeah, I was so impressed with Muscle Shoals last week.

We did that Oxford game. And wow, what a performance by Muscle Shoals to take down Oxford in advance. And then this week we've got a heck of a shootout. What could be an elite shootout. We've got Sarah Land at Hillcrest Tuscaloosa. I think they're the two highest scoring teams in the state regardless of classification. If not, they're very, very close. And we know what Sarah Land has done. They seem to show up in the state championship game every year. And Hillcrest Tuscaloosa had a great season.

And it's going to be, again, guys, just to go back, it's not the Super 7. It's not the Super. The actual name is now just the Alabama High School football champion. I think they hung up on Kevin there. Kevin Scarbinsky, if you will, for the folks who are wondering what we're talking about there, a little bit of a tech problem there with Kevin, talk to us about that. Folks, some of you may not realize it, but you can check out quality. And I'm not talking about quality games.

I'm talking about quality coverage from Kevin and his crew each week. Yeah, they do the pregame, Harold, from 5 to 6. Alabama Public TV has got another program that they show from 6 to 7. Then they come back to the stadium to do the actual game. But throughout the course of the season, Kevin and his crew have been doing the pregame show on Thursday nights. That's why I mentioned they came up to Dessler to do the Brooks-Dessler game. But, yeah, they've done a tremendous job. But with that, now it's switched over to Friday.

[1:30:09] And I think Kevin's going to join us to end the program. But, yeah, Alabama Public TV, the game of the week, it's been tremendous. And I think Kevin's rejoined us. Kevin, I know you're excited, man, but you blew up my bell there. But talk to us about how we can check out your work, brother. Yeah, apparently. But, yeah, so we're going to have 12, counting them, 12 championship games the first week of December. Oh, great. We're at Hancock-Whitney Stadium on the campus of the University of South Alabama for the first time.

We'll have four flag football championships, eight tackle football championship games. Yeah, I'm going to be – I've got to rest my voice sometime between now and then. But, again, it is such a joy to be able to be a part of a great team, first-class outfit that I work with, WOTM, Vinnie Early, his team. I'm just glad to be along for the ride because it's a lot of fun. I'm Kenny Wright. I look at it, and I've been around this business a day or two. You guys are quality.

Keep up the good work, and thank you so much for your time today, Kevin. Thanks, guys. You have a great day. You too, bud. Kevin Scarbinsky, much other places. Check him out in the meantime at Skarbo Nose. Coming up, time to check in with Double D, Drew DeArmond on deck. Stay with us. 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 Meat House now has the finest team of butchers, caterers, and sandwich makers in the league, and we're playing to win.

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So get down to your local Hyundai dealer and get away with a deal you'll love during the Hyundai Getaway Winter Sales Event. Visit HyundaiUSA.com for details. Progressive presents the Sports Flash on 93-9, the score. The New Orleans Saints are back in action on Sunday when the Saints play at home against the Carolina Panthers. Both teams are currently 3-5. Men's basketball action last night. Troy a winner in overtime. They beat Loyola Marymount 74-69. Donovan O'Day with 16 points, 10 rebounds. Troy is 1-2 to start the year. South Alabama fell in Orlando, losing to UCF 76-69.

Stephen Williams with 18 points and 11 rebounds. South Alabama is now 1-2. In the latest college football selection committee rankings, Georgia's No. 1, Utah No. 2, and Alabama No. 3. UCLA and Notre Dame are also in the top five. Tune in Friday night for the 5A football playoffs as Florence hosts Minor. Pregame at 6 o'clock, kickoff at 7. I'm John Thayer with the Sports Flash, presented by Progressive on 93-9, the score. This is the story of the one. The shipping manager who's there before the first truck backs in and the first pallet is loaded.

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Your life. So, don't drop the ball, drop the call. Don't drive distracted. A message brought to you by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Project Yellow Light, and the Ed Council. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. The Score. Come back in, really appreciate the free ride around the Tennessee Valley, especially on this Veterans Day BB. We can't thank our fans enough for what the service they put in to help us be here to talk every day because I'm telling you, BB, you look at the way this world is shaping up right now.

Let's never take this thing called freedom of speech for granted, my friend. No, and particularly what's going on in this country now, but the men and women made the ultimate sacrifice for us to be able to talk sports and fans to complain about their teams not rated where they think they should be. And that's just a part of it. But yeah, it goes deep in my family. I mentioned that a little bit earlier, but yeah, this is a special day for the Veterans. Every day should be Veterans Day.

I know there are a lot of parades today, a lot of memorials, a lot of special activities. They richly deserve it. All right. Obviously, I'll effort to hook up with Drew DeArma. In the meantime, while we effort to get Drew on board with us, BB, the poll is out. We just had Kevin Scarbinsky, who we've known Kevin for years, and he's not afraid. The difference between Kevin and a lot of reporters, especially, I don't mean to be mean, but a lot of guys who I say basically dress up as reporters and a glorified fans.

They're real sensitive about their team. And that's okay. If you've got a side, I understand that. If you're going to call yourself a journalist, you have to tell the story regardless of where the chips fall. And I think that's where Kevin comes in. You can love him, you can hate him, but he's going to tell you his honest opinion about things. And his honest opinion right now, and let's face it, over the years, plenty of Alabama fans have thrown darts at Kevin. Plenty of Auburn fans have thrown darts at Kevin.

And now Tennessee fans are throwing darts at Kevin. But basically what he's saying is, to date, this is what the data says, and it's justified to put Alabama at third ahead of Tennessee. Well, Kevin used that, as a matter of fact, Drew just joined us, but Kevin used a lot of data. The committee now is taking, I get the head-to-head, and that will come into play probably the last two weeks of the college football selection committee. But again, you look at this, both teams beat Kentucky by 28.

Alabama beat South Carolina by 31. Tennessee lost to South Carolina. Alabama's got three road wins in the Associated Press on the road. Tennessee zero, and you just go on down the road. Again, the head-to-head will come into play a little bit later, but not right now. Well, they beat Alabama, beat Kentucky at Kentucky. Tennessee beat Kentucky on Rocky Top. Drew DeArmond, host, talking ball, announced was 97.7 F in the zone. Drew, welcome in. How are you? I'm doing good, guys. How are you? Hey, bud. You agree with Kevin Scarbinsky that Alabama is justified to be the third-best-ranked team right now in the big poll?

Well, I don't know if third is the right, you know, spot. I do think they are probably somewhere in the top five or six. I understand the rationale with them being ranked ahead of Tennessee for now because of the win over South Carolina. You know, that makes a lot of sense. And I think Alabama's overall schedule has been more difficult than Tennessee's. But they certainly did lose to Texas in an extremely close game, just like Alabama lost an extremely close game to Georgia. But, you know, as Brett said, that will all play itself out.

[1:40:23] People act like, you know, the rankings have already been decided. It's really kind of stupid to argue about it because, I mean, if Alabama continues to win, if Tennessee continues to win, even as somebody that can't stand Tennessee with all my being, I said on my show today that if they both win out, then Tennessee will fall at the head of Alabama with the head-to-head at the end. So, just relax and win football games. And if you don't win football games, and if, you know, I do think Tennessee's got a tricky game this weekend because of some injuries, but they should beat A&M, no doubt about it.

And if they do beat A&M, then I think they'll beat Vanderbilt. And then they have to beat LSU, which Alabama's already done. So, if they take care of all that, then I fully expect that they will jump ahead of Alabama. They just got to win. You just got to take care of business. Mm-hmm. Absolutely. Your thoughts on a LSU victory, and I know how you feel about Lane Kiffin, and we talked about it all week long. At some point, Lane was going to beat Lane and going 0 for 4 on fourth down and a couple other interesting decisions.

Your thoughts on the Alabama win in Red Stick? Well, I mean, I was pleasantly surprised. I certainly picked LSU to win the game. I thought Alabama did out-coach LSU, and I thought, you know, the way you phrased it there, Brett, I mean, Lane Kiffin was his own worst enemy again. I thought, you know, I was wondering how he would coach against Alabama without Nick Saban, you know, the boogeyman there. And he still coached the same way. I thought he and Charlie Weiss kind of panicked a little bit.

And they didn't just take points. I mean, they were moving the ball up and down the field. But, you know, it's not a bad thing to take a field goal. And I just thought a couple of times they should have kicked it, and they did not. And they decided to go for it. And I think it put them in a bind. And, you know, and then when they, like, for example, at halftime, you know, I felt like Alabama had the lead, and they had done a nice job.

But, you know, if I'm LSU to the end of the first half, I don't go for it and allow Chuck McDonald to deny me points. I get the three. And that way I just keep chopping away, even though, you know, I'm not winning the game. And then, you know, they did finally break through and smartly run the ball in the red zone and get ahead 13-10. But then Alabama countered and did not panic and retook the lead so quickly. I think it almost shocked Lane and his coaching staff because, you know, LSU was too busy celebrating.

And having Chris Kiffin's son shoot off a fire extinguisher, Lane was too busy cringing for the cameras and smirking. And his team didn't back it up. And then when Alabama quickly regained the lead, I thought that's when the real panic ensued. And then when they stupidly, you know, went for it and – or excuse me, when they finally – let me correct myself – they went for it later in the game. But when Alabama, you know, forced that punt and – I thought for once Lane did the right thing.

He punted the football. But Alabama got the explosive punt return from Ryan Coleman-Williams. And then as soon as Alabama scored right there, you could just kind of see the news tight. You could just see the look on Lane's face. And it's like the moment was too big for him. And then they did – as I was about to say, they did stupidly go for it after that from their own 25. I mean, it was still just an 11-point game. And I thought he should have just, you know, punted then.

And they decided to go for it on fourth down for their own 25, which to me is just – if you don't make that play, it's just ending the game. And it did because Alabama was much better in the red zone where – you know, and Ryan Grubb's been criticized. He deserves some of the criticism. But, you know, the bottom line is that honestly – because I think Alabama's been really efficient in the red zone. But as soon as Lane didn't make that play and Alabama scored again, the game was effectively over.

And I just felt like, you know, it came down to the fact that Alabama executed on both sides of the ball in the red zone. And LSU did not execute. And then one thing people aren't talking about is the mismatch in special teams. Because as critical as I was to Jay Newton's a year ago, Alabama's special teams have been really good. Conor Taltby made his kick. I thought Alex Asparuhoff was an unsung hero in the game. He continued to kind of pin LSU back. And then, of course, Ryan Coleman-Williams makes an explosive return.

[1:45:43] So, I just felt like that's kind of where Alabama won the game. It's amazing how fans are in national media. Before the game, folks saying Alabama loses this game. There's a chance they won't even make the playoffs. They win the game. And now they're fighting one of the top four spots. And going against what Vegas said, your thoughts, speaking of that, USA Today sports guru, Eric Smith. Now, you're talking about a bold one here. He's saying not only is Alabama in the playoffs, they're going to go deep in the playoffs.

All the way to the national championship game on January 25th, of all places, in Las Vegas. Are you on board with Eric Smith's bold prediction about this team? Well, I'm not going to go there. You know, I think they certainly have a chance to, you know, make a run into the playoffs. I don't think there's any excuse for them not being a definitive favorite in the last three games. But I'm not ready to say that they're a walk to go to the national championship game or anything like that.

First of all, you don't know how healthy they're going to be. So, making stupid statements like that, you've got to see who's healthy and who's not. And Alabama is very fortunate to be getting some guys back. But as you guys know, they also lost a big piece in Josh Ford. So, luckily, they have Depp and Danny Lewis and Jay Lindsey and guys like that. And Caleb Egbert should take on a bigger role. You know, so can Marshall Fritchett. Maybe even Max Sutter, the freshman, because there's no longer red shirts.

But certainly, you know, I think Alabama's got a definite chance. The one thing I will say is if Alabama does win out and get into the playoffs, I don't know that they're going to be a top four seed. Matter of fact, depending on who continues to win, I'd say no. I would say they would be, you know, they would host a college football playoff game, which would be a huge accomplishment. Last year, they had to go on the road and beat Oklahoma. They're the only road team to still win.

But I would just say right now they need to focus on Vanderbilt and understanding what happened there two years ago. Absolutely. Let me close with a little basketball. You and our beloved friend Freddie Kirby went down to see Alabama set a record with 30 assists against Oakland as the tied won 109-268. Lyndon Jimson's already the most improved player on the team. He hit an amazing 7-of-7 from the field. And football recruiting, we've talked a little bit about today, about a month away. Basketball recruiting is here. You mentioned this on our show last week.

Alabama from the Congo picks up Johan Cabongo, 6'9", senior, out of DME Academy in Florida. But overall, Alabama may end up with a number five or top five class. Chase Lumpkin, number 28 nationally, a four-star guard. Zion Green, number 27 nationally, D2. Once again, Nate Oates knows how to recruit. Yeah, I mean, he does a great job of what they have available resource-wise of attracting great players. I mean, Yohan Cabongo is a jumping jack, springy, very, very athletic. To me, he looks like a really good fit for the system.

They out-recruited Mississippi State and Tennessee for him. He's a top-70 player. I mean, you know, and then you combine that with Chase Lumpkin of McEachern and Zion Green, who's, I believe, going to be a five-star in the last rankings. You know, that's a couple of top 25, top 30 guys. So it's a top four to five class nationally, so it's a really good group. And then, to top it all off, I believe they've got 14 guys with eligibility left. So you're probably going to lose some to the NFL.

You may lose a player in the NBA, pardon me, in the NBA. You might lose, you know, a couple to the transfer portal. I think there's a couple of obvious candidates right now in Chris Onyejuwaka and TJ St. Louis. But I will say this. I thought near the end of last year that Keaton Bristow was an obvious guy to transfer. He did not. And good thing he didn't because he's done a great job of developing a NATO system and has been really, really impressive thus far.

So it's a really good group of Chinese. I think they've got a really good team. And, Brett, I should have let you know, I ended up not attending the game on Monday, but I hope to attend the game on Friday. I was a little under the weather, and Freddie Kirby and I did not go to that game on Monday. But they did shoot the lights out, no doubt about it. They did get out-rebounded, which you've got to fix that. But a lot of times it's because the ball was going in the basket.

[1:50:43] And it was good to have Aiden Holloway back, and he had 12 points. He was really efficient offensively. London Jimmison, you are correct, he's been on a heater. He's really coming to his own with his offensive efficiency and just the way he's playing on both ends. Brandon Garrison has been the hard hat machine so far. I really like the fit for him because I saw him last year for Kentucky, and I thought he was their best defender, you know, down the stretch last third of the season a year ago.

And they could have used him last night with the Big Blue Nation. I certainly saw Kansas Plats or the Wildcats, but I think they're more focused on football, as crazy as that sounds right now. So they're excited to play John Summerall and the Florida Gators in Lexington on Saturday because Kentucky's got a lot to play for as well. Because if they win out, they have a very strong case to be better than a lot of these Big Ten schools who are absolute fraud. Absolutely. Well, let's hope you get to feeling better as the week progresses.

Got eight teams in the shelves advancing to round one in the high school football playoff. Only two, unfortunately, in Madison County. Where can we get online, my friend, and listen to you and Scott on the radio? Yeah, you know, we're basically down to the lone wolf. We've got the Spartan Senators on our network after a bye. They've got a really difficult home matchup on Friday night. We'll have that on our streaming network and on our station. And I believe they'll be on, probably on, on, they'll either be on talk radio or ESPN 977 The Zone.

The other will, of course, carry Alabama basketball. The Senators have a really good Vestavia Hill team that, you know, thrashed Sunspil High last Friday night. So, that'll be the last of the Mohicans for us. And, you know, it was really kind of a tough, you know, Friday for the entirety of North Alabama, except for the pipes in the world. I mean, I know that a lot in plain views, I know a lot of teams, you know, came to, you know, a quick end. And that's the way this high school football season can be.

But, certainly, they can connect with me at DrewD977ESPN. They can also connect with me at 977ESPN on our X account for our station. And then, 977ESPN.com for our content. And also, ESPN 97.7 The Zone on the SoundCloud. But, we look forward to it and hope to be in Tuscaloosa on Friday and Nashville on Saturday for some hoops and football. Drew, again, echo those sentiments. Thanks for your time, Dave. Safe travels and get feeling better soon, okay? Thank you, guys. Thank you, buddy. And you are at 97.7 FM The Zone.

BB, break out the Woolies, okay? It is going to be, yes. We'll be talking a lot more high school and college tomorrow, my friend. Yeah, absolutely. It's going to take care of bids for now. On behalf of BB, Greg, James Blair, the entire crew here. Penelope, thank you so much for your time today. Let's do it again tomorrow, noon to 2, with the Boom on Bug Show back here on Sports Radio 93.9 The Score. We'll be right back.