Boomo Bugg Show 010926

[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. New exclusive inside track to the Tide, Tigers, Tennessee and the rest of the SEC. Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9, The Score. Good afternoon and welcome here to the Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us free ride around the Tennessee Valley. Brett Beaird, welcome in where last year he did his same for the Lions of UNA and next year he'll get his kicks as a crimson tighter in Tuscaloosa.

And could Notre Dame be wrong about those Kings, Sammy? Welcome in. How are you? Happy Friday to you and the listeners. Miami beats Ole Miss 31-27 on Carson Beck's 3-yard touchdown run with 18 seconds left. We'll recap that game and preview tonight's big game in Atlanta. We'll update Alabama and Auburn's portal additions, including Alabama-adding UNA punter Adam Watford, this morning. And Jimmy is here right now to talk transfer portal, NFL decisions, and a coaching change for the Alabama Crimson Tide. I just called it a Bama Buffet for Jimmy Stein.

The crew there is co-host of Locked on Bama, part of, you guessed it, the Locked on Network. Jimmy, welcome in. Happy Friday to you. How are you? Oh, doing great, guys. Appreciate you all having me back. And we appreciate you taking time out. Is it kind of halftime in the portal season? Got basically a week behind us and a week to go. Jimmy, let's start. We'll try to sit here and thumb through the books and see the last time somebody transferred from UNA to Alabama. Let's get our kicks started there, if you don't mind.

Boy, that's a great question. I'm sure it's happened over the years. I'm sure it has. Usually a walk-on type situation. And I think that's really what we have here, Adam. Watford, the punter, he's going to be a preferred walk-on at Alabama. That doesn't mean he won't win the starting punting job. There's a very good chance that he will, obviously. Had an incredible career for the Lions and I think 46.6 yards per punt. Yeah. With your overall, the accolades, it would take up the whole segment. There's a lot of them.

He's good. He'll be competing with the redshirt freshman, Alex Aperuhoff. Alex missed all of last year, coming back from injury, that he had suffered before even arriving to Alabama. So it was a redshirt year, kind of a mandatory thing. But my understanding is he's much healthier now. He's expected to be 100% even this spring. He is a scholarship punter. Alabama recruited him out of high school. And they're very excited about his potential. But Adam has a lot of experience punting in college football games. He's a much older kid.

And I think it's going to be one of the more interesting battles. I know the attention is going to be on quarterbacks, as it always is. But it will be a good battle between the experienced Adam Watford and the young Alex Aperuhoff at punter. Let's start with it. Obviously, everybody's important. I think Indiana is showing it's not about this person or that person. It's about the team as a whole. I think the Hoosers are showing us that in space. But let's start with the obvious part of the pond, the elephant in the room.

Ty Simpson, since the last time we talked, we know his decision. And your thoughts about Alabama going forward. I think a lot of folks have already penciled down Keelan Russell. But I would imagine Mac is saying, not so fast, my friends. Where do you start there, Jimmy? Yeah, it's really interesting. I think here's what makes it super interesting to me. I think Keelan Russell is going to be the favorite. I know he'll certainly be the fan favorite. That's what happens when you show up out of high school with your wagon full of stars.

You know, the number one or two quarterback in the country coming out of high school hasn't done anything to disappoint or lower expectations since he's been here in Tuscaloosa. I think he'll be the fan favorite or probably even the betting favorite to win the job. But one advantage Austin Mack has is the same advantage that Ty Simpson had one year ago. And I reminded people of this a year ago when it came to the Ty Simpson versus Keelan Russell and Austin competition last year. I said, you know, one advantage Ty has is day one, practice one, rep number one, he's going to be QB one, and you've got to beat him out.

And Ty never gave up that spot. As a matter of fact, he never even came close to giving up that spot in spring and through fall camp all the way up until the injuries started mounting up for him late in his season. So, Austin Mack will be the first team quarterback on day one of spring practice by seniority and by finishing this previous year ahead of Keelan. Notice when Ty came out, it was Austin Mack that came in, not Keelan Russell. So, Austin will be the starter for practice number one.

[5:18] Now, most people will project at some point Keelan would move ahead of him. I don't think that's unfair. I even think that might even be the expectation. But Keelan's going to have to beat him out. Austin's an older kid. He's a bigger kid. He's got the right demeanor for the position. He's got a lot of talent. That's why DeBoer and Nick Sheridan took him with him from Seattle to Tuscaloosa in the first place because they really believed in Austin's future. So, I don't consider it a given or a slam dunk by any means that Keelan will ultimately become the quarterback.

He's going to have to go through Austin to do it. But there's also a reason that he'd probably be the betting favorite. Jimmy, let me ask you about two guys who are certainly on Alabama's radar, and I believe Alabama's on theirs. Kim Coleman reportedly is going to be visiting Tuscaloosa today after being wined and dined by three Texas schools this week. We'll see if he does come. I hear a lot of buzz about this, and one who entered the portal a couple days ago is Michigan offensive lineman Ty Haywood, who is a former commitment to Alabama, decommitted, and then ended up going to Michigan.

I think these two have re-engaged, so to speak. Jimmy, what are you hearing about Kim Coleman's visit today? And Ty Haywood potentially looking at Alabama again. Yeah, the Kim Coleman thing is super interesting. I mean, it's going to have everyone's attention because this has the Alabama-Auburn rivalry attached to it, as well as everything else. Kim's an incredible talent. There's no doubt. I think every service ranks him the number one wide receiver in the portal, so I might even rank him the best player overall in the transfer portal.

You know, when this first started, I remember when the transfer portal season just began, I thought it was a very low chance that Alabama would end up with Kim Coleman. Between already having a pretty stacked wide receiver room and financial considerations, I thought, gosh, it's going to be a long shot going up against huge, famous spenders like Texas Tech and Texas and A&M. It just felt like such a long shot. I would still say it's unlikely, but at the same time, I think there's a better chance of it happening today than I thought a week or ten days ago, simply because Cam has made the trip.

There was a chance he was never getting out of Texas. He's visited all the Texas schools without committing to them on campus. He would have been to all three. And Alabama has cleared some space to use some NFL salary cap language. You know, as they say about salary cap, they've cleared space with Isaiah Horton, not just Isaiah Horton, out of the wide receiver room, but other players at other positions. So I think Alabama's got some more available resources than first thought. They certainly have opportunity. Cam left Texas without committing to any of those schools.

So I think Alabama does have a better chance there than previously thought. Now, what are those chances? I would put them at well under 50%, but, heck, that's above zero, which I was thinking initially about ten days ago. So we'll see. That'll be interesting. As to Ty Haywood, better chance of that happening, though as we're speaking, to my knowledge, Ty has not set up an official visit date for Alabama. I'm not sure what his visit plans are, but that move would make a lot of sense. Haywood almost signed with Alabama out of high school.

He signed with Michigan sort of last minute, again, due to financial considerations. I don't think that would be a bar to him signing with Alabama this time around. We know Alabama is a childhood favorite of his and his mother's. I remember that well from the high school recruiting. Alabama has such a needed tackle. This would make a lot of sense, Haywood, Alabama. So I'm sort of optimistic there, but I say that without knowing what his visit plans are. I don't think they've been released. In the auto with Jimmy Stein, locked on Bama.

Jimmy, obviously, you bring up a good point. It's not a matter of just going out and plucking this guy or that guy. It's a budget. And you're looking at some of the guys that are on the possible list. I won't go through the specifics, but we talked about Cal Coleman. He's a rock star, number one. He's going to command a lot of money wherever he winds up. But some of these other guys we talked about coming down from UNA, other guys from Marshall, Texas State, UT Rio Grande, Mercer.

You get to drift here. You've got to sit here and take the Indiana approach and try to squeeze some people in under the radar to fit your budget. Your thoughts about that, and does it really matter with a lot of these positions until they rectify the problems on the O-line? And we mentioned at the top of the show, any adjustments there with the coaching staff? Well, you've got to have a full roster. I mean, you know, you can have up to 105 players. I know all the attention will be on the headliners.

[10:37] The attention will be on the starting lineup. But you need 105. So two things that you're trying to do with the transfer portal, number one, you're trying to fill out your starting lineup and make that as good as possible, right? That's going to cost you some serious money. But you're also trying to fill out your 105 because Alabama's short there with as many players that have entered the portal. Alabama had a large graduating class. I mean, there were 17 seniors in the last group. That's a lot compared to previous years.

You also had three juniors who entered the draft, and Parker Brailsford, Caden Proctor, and Ty Simpson. So Alabama has a lot of spots to fill. Don't be surprised when there's a lot of additions from the portal from guys from these smaller schools. Not every guy in the portal costs the same. As a matter of fact, some players may be signing for the scholarship alone with no rev share. Others may be signing with no scholarship. There's no rules about that. The only rule is you can't have more than 105 players on your roster.

As far as the coaching change, or certainly the one that was announced this week, is that Brian Ellis, who coached tight ends this past year, he's going to coach the quarterbacks this year around. That will sound strange to a lot of people on the surface. What do you mean you moved your tight end coach to quarterback coach? Does that sound right? Well, keep in mind that Brian Ellis has coached quarterbacks for far more of his career than he's coached tight ends. In fact, he coached tight ends for the first time in his life the past two years at Alabama.

Prior to that, he had been primarily a quarterback coach. So he has a lot of experience coaching the position. DeBoer has gotten to know him. Ryan Grubb has gotten to know him. The players on the team know him. I think there's a lot of confidence in Brian Ellis, who may even be a future offensive coordinator candidate at Alabama. Jimmy, let me ask you about a couple more offensive line candidates. Jimmy Lewis, Mississippi State, started four games a tackle. And then D.J. Chester, former LSU offensive lineman, who has been in and out of the lineup the last couple of years for the Tigers.

What do you hear about them? Good chance at both, particularly Jimmy C. Lewis from Mississippi State. He could be making a decision today, tomorrow. And, you know, he's got some playing experience. Another, D.J. Chester from LSU has even more playing experience. He was a full-time starter as a redshirt freshman. Started 13 games on the interior for LSU two years ago. Some of those games he played every single snap in the game. Now this past year he was sort of demoted to being the sixth lineman. Everybody's got one of those, basically.

So the sixth lineman plays every week and sometimes has to start. And D.J. Chester did start games this past year, both at center and at left tackle. He started games now. He's going to play on the interior at Alabama, should Alabama land him. The thing that's kind of exciting about those two guys is while neither one or headliners are going to create too big of a stir, and they may not even be guys that you would immediately assume will be starters, they're both young players.

I mean, Jimmy C. Lewis will show up with three years of eligibility remaining. Yeah, D.J. Chester will have two. It's not like, for instance, a year ago Alabama bought in Cam Dewberry from Texas A&M, who had been a sixth guy at A&M. He ended up starting at Alabama virtually every game when he was healthy and played quite a bit. Now he didn't play at an all-star level, and no one's going to be talking about him on day one or day two of the NFL draft.

But the fact of the matter, if you brought in Dewberry as a redshirt senior, Jimmy C. Lewis and D.J. Chester are guys that you haven't even seen their best football yet because they're still young players that have time to get to college, develop, and improve. So that's what's exciting about them. They'll contend for starting spots, but you can still develop them and make them better players. Absolutely. Well, we know one thing, Locked on Bama is one of the best sites for Alabama sports, and particularly the transfer portal, any potential coaching changes down the road.

Jimmy, where can we get online and get you and Luke Robinson in some of the best podcasts on the planet? Hey, I appreciate it. Like, Locked on Bama, you can find us on YouTube. If you prefer the video, if you want to listen to audio only, you can find Locked on Bama wherever you find your podcast this time of year. We are doing more than one show a day at times, but you will definitely get brand-new content each and every day that the transfer portal is open.

And as you guys know, we're barely to the halfway mark. That's right. That's just for players entering. There will be a week or two after it closes with all these schools still trying to find guys remaining in the portal. As the old TV shows say, very interesting. I know it's going to be an interesting weekend, Sunday night. A lot of folks are going to see how the weekend goes, and we know you've got it all covered there at Locked on Bama. Jimmy, listen, man, thanks so much, and have a good weekend, all right?

[15:42] Hey, I appreciate it, guys. Thanks. Thank you, bud. Jimmy's down again. Locked on Bama. Blank level football, basketball, and officiating. It's all on deck. Stay with us here on the Bamo Buck Show. Get fit and fab this new year at YMCA of the Shoals with 24-7 access and no joining fee if you sign up before January 31st. The YMCA has leading-edge fitness equipment, year-round swimming, dozens of group exercise classes per week, and a family atmosphere. Elevate your fitness journey with YMCA of the Shoals, where health meets community.

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At H&R Block, they've seen it all. And they're here to help you make the most out of your money for life outside the box. Get started at H&RBlock.com. From the University of Alabama, this is Crimson Tide Today. It's a daily update on Bama sports and it's brought to you by the Good Feet Store. Start your journey today at GoodFeet.com. Hello again, everybody. I'm Roger Hoover. Here are thoughts from Alabama men's basketball head coach Nate Oates following Wednesday's loss at Vanderbilt. We weren't good enough tonight.

We started out turning the ball over too much. Got down early. Then got down 13 right out of the gate. Then we fought back. And then we didn't have enough to close in the second half. We got that four-point lead. And then we took some bad shots. We didn't get good enough possessions on the defensive end. You know, we fouled way too much tonight. They shot 50 free throws. We didn't convert. When we got to the line, we got guys that are good shooters that aren't converting at the line like they need to.

So we didn't deserve to win that one. We did have some bright spots. I thought London Taylor gave us a lot more of what we need. But nine assists, 13 turnovers. Our guards didn't move the ball like they needed to tonight. And they didn't guard the ball either. They gave up blow-by after blow-by after blow-by. I'll have more in a moment. This is Christian Miller for the Good Feet Store. I know from playing football at Alabama and in the NFL that if you have foot, knee, hip, or back pain, it can be a huge challenge.

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Crimson Tide Today is brought to you by the Good Feet Store. Crimson Tide Today is a production of the Crimson Tide Sports Network from Learfield. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back, Kim. What do you say we hit on up the road to Nashville and sailed the pride of the Music City. Blake Lovell got it all covered there. When it comes to the SEC at Southeastern 16, you can check out his yearbook. It's called Blue Ribbon or his podcast. That's called Establish the Past.

Blake Lovell, welcome in. Happy Friday to you. How are you? Yeah, I'm doing well, guys. Good to talk to you as always. The folks up in South Bend say they are smarter than all of us folks down here. Could it be that Notre Dame had it wrong about Miami heading into the playoffs? Yeah, I mean, I think sometimes, again, you sort of see a team like this and, you know, probably had a little chip on its shoulder. Speaking of Ole Miss, I mean, both these teams kind of, you know, probably had a chip on their shoulder coming into the playoffs and felt they had something to prove.

And, yeah, I mean, Miami is obviously taking advantage of that the most at this point. And, I mean, it is one of those things where, you know, it's kind of when you talk about the contrast, I feel like it was really the talk was about Chambliss versus the Miami defense. But it's like you can't forget about someone like Carson Beck and the way he can impact the game. And, obviously, he winds up being, you know, the final play where they win it. And, yeah, so it's just kind of one of those where I think, you know, in the grand scheme of things, a lot of talk about the ACC this year and, you know, a lot of talk about the ranking system and all that.

But at a certain point, when you get put in this playoff, this tournament style, you just have to win games. And credit to Miami. That's exactly what they've done. And how ironic is the cherry on top. They'll play a national championship game in their home stadium. Your thoughts on that. And here we go again. One thing we know for sure, it will be an SEC-free national championship show down again this season. Yeah, it will. And I think, you know, that will obviously lead to a lot of people in a lot of places in the southeast wanting to spend a few more extra dollars this offseason to try to make sure we can overpay and get there.

There's no guarantees, we know, in this era, because if that was the case, the SEC would maybe have the final four every year. But that's not how it works. And so, yeah, I mean, I think it's one with Miami. I mean, again, their defense and their ability to make big stops, you know, that's going to probably be the story. But like I said, I think it's having Carson Beck, whether you're playing Indiana or Oregon, you're going to feel pretty confident in your ability for him to kind of lead these drives that feel like, you know, very consequential, game-changing drives.

Like, you just, again, have that confidence in him now. And, yeah, so I think either way, you know, Miami, with that combination, is going to feel like they have a great chance to win the national championship. And like you said, Harold, I mean, they're playing in their home state and couldn't ask for a better setup. Let me preface this comment by saying, Harold and I know quite a few officials, and particularly in football, and we've had them on the show for years. They've got a thankless job, and most of them do a very good job of that.

But this is at least twice a year we discuss this. Anytime Don Daly's crew is calling the game, you must get comfortable on the count because you're going to be there about three hours. Alabama falls to Vandy. Vandy's a very good team. Alabama had some opportunities, but because of a full-body cramp with LeBaron Phylon and Sherell not playing, that's already hurt them. But 62 total fouls, 88 free throws. And that game reached, I think it was two hours and 45 minutes. And then on Tuesday night, Keyshawn Murphy has what appears to be a buzzer beater that was waved down off by SEC officials.

Now, I have seen a couple of frames where the ball was still on his fingertips with the backboard score, shot clock showing all zeros. And then that's not even talking about Auburn in football last year against Oklahoma and Georgia at the end of the half. You know, once again, your thoughts on SEC officiating? Yeah, it's not great right now. And I think it's like, you know, it is one where I said, like, if you talk about the Auburn A&M game, I'm like, you couldn't ask for a perfect storm like that one again.

[26:06] You know, you could play that out a thousand times and you could have that same sequence where everything just, from an officiating standpoint, like, it was, I mean, you couldn't, again, ask for kind of being in a tougher spot. So I kind of understand that one to a degree because, again, like, and I always say, we're not seeing every angle and that's where, like, the transparency needs to come in a bit more. You know, if we're not seeing every angle, there needs to be an explanation as to what was.

Thank you. And, you know, and I mean, like, to make sure that there's something there to at least give, you know, Auburn something to work with. But, I mean, the Alabama-Vanderbilt game, like, it was, I mean, it was one where you knew coming in, these were two teams that were going to play fast. They were going to get up and down the floor. And that really was one of my fears was, okay, you're going to get somewhat of a smooth first half, but then when that second half rolls around and you've got foul trouble already in some spots, like, you're going to get the game playing out the way that it did, where it legitimately felt like on every possession there was something called.

And I just, like, for two teams that, again, feel like two of the best teams in the SEC, if not the two best, I mean, you just hate to see a game kind of played out that way because it's going to look like 96-90. And for anyone who didn't watch it, they're going to say, wow, that sounds like just a great must-see type second half between two teams that put up a lot of points. But when you realize how many of those points came from the free-throw line, it's just like, it takes a lot out of it.

I mean, these two teams combined for 16 of 60 from three, and these are two great three-point shooting teams. But yet they still got the 96 and 90 points, respectively, based on how many free-throws were shot. So it's just not ideal when you get in these kind of games, guys. Like you said, Brad, I mean, it's something we talk about every single year. And I think especially when you have two teams that play at a fast pace, for whatever reason, the game just completely comes to a halt. And that's what happened on Wednesday.

I still agree with you. They need to come in the postgame. If they're going to say it, they need to play it and tell them why they did what they did so at least we can be educated going forward. Be there as it may, they're not going to do it because they're not going to sit here and spend the money it's going to take to bring in what they call professionals. So that's a pipe dream, in my opinion. Your thoughts about this weekend? What's the most intriguing matchup across the league?

Yeah, I mean, I think, you know, Florida and Tennessee is pretty interesting just because, you know, you've got both teams at one and one right now. Loser goes to one and two. So you're sitting, you know, already looking at, you know, these five teams are at two and oh. And so you're thinking, all right, we don't want to put ourselves in another kind of spot here. We're a game behind again. But somebody is going to be that way. And I think it sets up well for Florida, two of the best offensive rebounding teams in the country.

It's going to be, hey, I don't want to worry anybody here. But if you want to talk about a free throw shooting contest, look out. Because you've got two teams that are great on the glass, especially the offensive glass. And we know that can lead to some, you know, free throws and fouls and stuff, too, in the SEC. So keep an eye on that one. I think elsewhere, Arkansas and Auburn. I mean, you've got Auburn in complete desperation mode right now. They've got to win this game.

Arkansas may be the best team in the SEC if it's not Vanderbilt right this second. They're playing like it. And so that's a must-win game it feels like for Auburn. And then I'll tell you guys, the one you just absolutely cannot look away from at this point is Kentucky and Mississippi State. Because Kentucky is 0-2. They're hosting Mississippi State. They're one of the hottest teams in the league right now. And if they lose that game, I just don't know what this looks like for Murph Pope moving forward.

Yeah. Baildown. If you wonder, well, how's Bucky Ball going to do in the SEC? Ask Stephen Pearl after the 33-6 run when Auburn had a 16-point lead. Steal 3, steal 3, steal 3. It was absolutely amazing. Again, I give Auburn credit. They came back on a 14-3 run to get to the point where they were to have a chance to win the game at the end. But I think Bucky Ball is going to do pretty well in the SEC. Yeah, I think so, too. And I think, again, we're already kind of seeing that.

And, you know, they've had two games here against LSU and Auburn where it's like they've been in two close games. They've not really played hardly any close games all year one way or the other. Either they've blown out teams they should blow out or they've gotten beat by double digits, you know, to teams like SMU and UCF and Oklahoma State. So, like, it was finally good to see them and how they react in some of these close games. And, again, we've seen that the first two SEC opponents here.

And so I think it tells you kind of a lot about their mindset, about the way he coaches. And, you know, like I said, sure, either both those games could have gone either way. But they were the ones who put themselves in a position to have a chance to win it. They did it. And, yeah, I just – I think, you know, in all honesty, someone said this to us the other day when we were doing our show. And I think it's accurate. This is probably the worst Texas A&M team he's going to have.

[31:09] And right now, they're pretty good. That's right. I mean, I think they're only going to get better under him moving forward. And so I think it looks like a team right now that's going to challenge for an NCAA tournament bid. And, yeah, they've got plenty of opportunity here with their upcoming schedule. Guys, don't be surprised if in two or three weeks, Texas A&M is sitting there either, you know, maybe one of the top teams, one, two, three, or something like that. Because they've got a very opportunistic schedule.

Oh, Lord, just think about what he's going to do – he's going to be like in a couple of years once he gets his guys in there and they all know the system. Great stuff. You also, among your other ten platforms, Baskin Under Review, you have a great article wrapping up the week in the SEC, and I look forward to reading that later today. Where can we get online, young man, and get the best podcast on the planet Earth? Yeah, I always appreciate it, guys. Yeah, check us out over at Southeastern 16 on YouTube.

Obviously, we'll have all of our live shows tomorrow reacting to these big SEC games on Saturday. And, of course, there will be plenty to talk about an SEC football in the world here in the next little bit. So, yeah, you can find us there, Southeastern 16 on YouTube. Blake, as always, good to hook up with you. You've got to come back on with us next week, or we will whistle. You up and put a technical foul on you, okay? That's right. I'll do it, guys. Thanks, as always.

Thank you, bud. State level, Southeastern 16. Talking about a guy literally in the doghouse always. The Mr. Bill Show next. Stay with us. Hello, folks. Mark Humphrey, new car sales manager at Ray Miller GMC, where we treat you like family. We understand that buying an automobile is the second largest purchase you'll do in your lifetime. And just like all the Alabama athletic programs, we take pride in what we do. So, if you're looking for a new or pre-owned automobile, we have you covered. Also, don't forget to schedule your next oil change or any of your mechanical issues with our award-winning service and parts department.

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Sponsored by Pfizer. This college football moment is brought to you by ServPro. College football teams have moments they recovered from and made it like it never even happened. Like on October 2, 1993, when the University of California faced a 30-0 halftime deficit to Oregon. Cal went on a remarkable 42-11 run in the second half to capture a 42-41 victory. One of the largest comebacks in college football history. ServPro. Like it never even happened. Rich Eisen here. LinkedIn Jobs is stepping things up with their new AI assistant so you can feel confident you're finding top talent.

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[36:30] South Alabama will play Georgia Southern in Mobile tomorrow. South Alabama 11-5 on the year and 2-2 in the Sun Belt. 13th-ranked Alabama will host Texas tomorrow. The Tide 1-1 in the SEC, 11-4 overall. The Auburn Tigers are at home tomorrow. They'll take on No. 15 Arkansas. Auburn looking for their first SEC victory. Troy's on the road tomorrow to play at Louisiana. The Trojans are 3-1 in the Sun Belt. Bundle auto and home, renters or condo, and save with Progressive. I'm John Thayer with the Sports Flash presented by Progressive on 93.9 The Score.

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Know the tube at 41 NBC in the Peachtree State. Bill Shanks, welcome in. How are you? I'm doing good. How are y'all? Hey, Boone. Wondering what went through the minds of Georgia fans last night when they saw that quarterback from Miami in the Final Four against the Ole Miss Rebels, Bill? Well, there's some people that hate Carson and don't like Carson. You know, look, I don't. I think it was an amicable, this is kind of over. And, you know, when he left, he was supposedly going to the NFL and then decided not to and decided to take the offer at Miami, as a lot of quarterbacks are probably going to do moving forward.

I think Levitt's visiting there today or tomorrow, I believe. I just read it on Twitter. And, you know, look, there were some things that I think bothered some people inside and outside the building last year of what was going on with him. But, you know, look, the kid had a good year. He didn't have a great year, mainly because the team led the country in drops with the wide receivers, which didn't help him a great deal. But, you know, people may be jealous that he's doing what he's doing, but I don't think they should hate him or think, well, he could do this for us or whatever.

Yeah, that's college football. H***, it's going to happen a lot moving forward. Yeah, that's right. Right. By the way, according to Bruce Feldman of The Athletic and Fox TV and two guys, Tom Fornelli for one on CBS, this is the third consecutive season without an SEC team in the national title game. Bruce and Tom and a couple other guys have a short memory. Alabama lost in overtime three years ago to Michigan. Texas had a strip sack in the semifinal game and lost that game at the end.

In the end, Miami scores with 18 seconds to play. That seems to be conveniently left out of the narrative. Well, I've seen some anti-SEC hate on social media today. And, you know, part of it is because the arrogance that the conference has, which I understand non-conference people probably, you know, hating the big dog, right? Right. Human nature. They hate the Yankees. Yeah, I think that's exactly right. And, you know, I get it. I understand where people come from and facts are facts and so forth. But, look, I don't have any issues with the Southeastern Conference in the style of play that they have.

Georgia and Ole Miss played an unbelievable game last Thursday night. Ole Miss played another great game. They could have easily won that game. I mean, it was a back-and-forth game. It was a great game, what you want to see in a championship game. We'll see how the two Big Ten teams play tonight and see what they look like and then match an ACC team. But it's almost – it's just a silly argument for me in a discussion. But, you know, a lot of it's because the SEC brings it on themselves.

[41:55] They're the ones that talk about how great they are and so forth. And I don't think there's any doubt that from a depth perspective – and a majority of the conversation, I think, comes from the fact that when the SEC teams say, well, you don't know what it's like to play an SEC schedule, you're right. I mean, I think that's correct. I don't think a Big Ten schedule is like an SEC schedule or an ACC or a Big 12. I think, Al, you could – I think Texas A&M had a very easy conference schedule this year, and you could get a lucky draw where you match up with teams in the conference that you're going to beat pretty easily, and then when you face a strong team, they may pop you, you know.

So you have that kind of situation that can always pop up in any kind of conference. But I still think the SEC is an outstanding football – you know, has parity come to college football? Sure. These d*** people have been money like crazy. I mean, there's no doubt about that. And, look, I don't think there's any surprise that Indiana has popped up out of nowhere and has all of a sudden, you know, sniffed at a national championship. I think we're going to have more programs that aren't associated with being up at that big tier that are going to pop up here in the future as we go along here.

It's just the way it's – you know, the way it's going to go. I mean, if Texas Tech had busted through, we'd say Texas Tech, you know, and we had TCU a couple years ago. You know, you better look out for Baylor. They're spending money. I mean, the teams that spend money and choose the right players and come together as a team, they're going to have a chance to be successful into mid-January. There's no question about that. Nobody knows this better than you, Bill. Super producer James just sharing something with us.

Moments ago, the paint's still wet. Shameless said that Ole Miss denied his sixth year of eligibility. Your thoughts about what that does for Ole Miss and this guy down at LSU who's been coveting his services. Well, yeah, and LSU, they got deuce yesterday, didn't they? Didn't they get deuce from Auburn, the kid deuce tonight, I believe? I think so, yeah. And I'm sure they're going to get somebody else. Well, I mean, Ole Miss is now in the market, right? And, you know, I mean, Bo Prabula, the former Missouri, former Penn State quarterback, he's visited Georgia Tech today.

And, you know, the quarterback stuff is, I mean, Leavitt was at Tennessee last night, I believe, and he's on his way to Miami, you know. And, you know, I think several weeks ago we talked about the fact that the backup for Georgia Tech was supposedly getting $3 million to go to Florida, and they supposedly, at Georgia Tech, matched the offer. And he's barely played in his life, you know. I mean, his quarterback stuff is incredible. But you've got to pick the right one, ask Hugh Freeze. Yeah.

Yeah, you're right about that. We don't talk very much about the Atlanta Falcons, but they've had an interesting week. They fired Coach Raheem Morris, Terry Fontenot, eight consecutive losing seasons. Bill Shanks on Twitter would like them to continue to clean house with a couple more. Your thoughts on what's happened this week? Can they bring some sanity to this? Matt Ryan may be in the picture as president of football. Update us on where the Falcons are. Well, they did what I wanted them to do. They fired or got rid of Richard McKay and fired Terry Fontenot, the drum manager, Rachel Morris, the head coach.

I mean, I appreciate Arthur Blank and his people listening to Bill Shanks' show on Superstations.com. You know, when you're not successful, you've got to get rid of people who are not doing their job. And he did that, and I appreciate that. I'm not a particularly big Arthur Blank fan. I think, I mean, I'm just not a big fan of his. I think he's full of c***, to be honest with you. A lot of owners are. I mean, that's just kind of the way it is.

But I think a lot of times he talks out of both sides of his mouth. But I hope he hands things over to Matt Ryan, who will then turn around and call John Harbaugh and bring him to Atlanta. There's no better candidate on the market for these eight jobs than John Harbaugh, and he's probably going to be able to name his price. I just, something from a Cleveland Twitter account an hour ago that he's going to want $20 million. He'll get it. He'll get it. I think someone who's been 18 years with Baltimore and been that successful, he could name his price.

And $20 million may be the highest of anybody. I don't know. But I'd give it to him because I think that consistency that he showed in Baltimore was success, just kind of like Tomlin did in Pittsburgh, has done in Pittsburgh for all those years. It's something that you crave, especially a team that had a winning season in eight years. So, yeah, I hope Matt Ryan, I wouldn't be surprised if Matt Ryan's announced by the end of the day, to be honest with you. Bill, before you jump off, your thoughts so far?

[47:04] The portal's about halfway through. What are your feelings about the Georgia Dogs so far with the portal party? Well, they got a wide receiver from Georgia Tech, Isaiah Canyon, who I think is very good. They missed out on a kid from Vanderbilt, Fitzgerald, who went to Louisville, which was a little bit of a surprise this morning. They still need another receiver. They're supposedly in on the running back, Dowdle, from Kentucky. And they're supposedly the leader on him. They're waiting on two starting offensive linemen, Monroe Freeling and Ernest Green, to see if they're going to jump to the NFL.

And if they do jump, they're going to need another offensive lineman or two. They're going to need some help there as well. So that's kind of a little bit on pause, it seems like, as far as that position, because of waiting for those two seniors or whatever class they're in. I don't keep up with classes anymore, it's a waste of time, but I think they're waiting on those two to see what they have to do at offensive line. They'd like another defensive lineman. I think they've got a big edge out of Auburn with Amiris Williams, who I think is going to be a really good player for them.

He's good. Yeah, I think he's a good player. I think he can help on the pass rush, which is something that they have got to improve. They're still waiting on Gabe Harris, a player who was hurt there in the game last week against Ole Miss and who could go to the NFL, so they're waiting to make sure he doesn't jump. They've got a couple of DBs out of the portal, a kid from Clemson who I think will help out safety a great deal. They've done okay.

I mean, they're all crazy, I don't think, but I think there's still some people who are on their list. And, you know, the activity, I can't keep up with it. I was telling Ray yesterday, h***, I can't keep up with it. It's over 15 minutes. It is. No, no, I mean, you know, I got that Transfer Portal Twitter account that my phone is a text. It's been three times since we've been on the air. I mean, it is. You know what, Bill? To me, for all the longtime baseball fans, I bet when you were a kid you could remember every position for the Braves.

I know I could. With the Cardinals. And then Kurt Flood came along and blew everything up. I couldn't tell you anything about the teams. Now, to me, in principle, that's where college football is going, that we're no longer going to sit here and be almost kid-like and remember, this guy played this year at this position, blah, blah, blah. Well, it would be more difficult. And it's kind of, you know, college basketball, the rosters are changed every year. That's been going on a little bit. And it's been a little bit more prolific with basketball because they only have fewer players.

But what I think, and I remember asking Brett about this a couple of years ago on my show, is like, you know, what's the percentage of the turnover? Well, I'm to the point where I'm believing that every single year, every program is going to have 50% turnover no matter what. Exactly. At least. At least. At least, yeah. At least. Yeah. Bar a coaching change. Yeah. All right. Before we let you go, the Braves are one of nine teams. It's terminating their existing broadcast contract with FanDuel. We had a discussion about this time last year.

Now, is Shanks broadcasting working behind the scenes to determine the Braves games? Please do. Yeah. I mean, am I going to have to wait for the Braves to be on Saturday night on Fox National? Absolutely. Where is this going again? Well, I mean, there's still a chance they could circle back around and do a deal with FanDuel. I don't think that's going to happen. If I had to bet and guess, you know, the last couple of years, there have been a handful of games on great television.

And great television has an affiliate. I know they've got one in Birmingham and Huntsville and Mobile. Yeah. And they've got one in every market here in the state of Georgia. They've got one in every market in every big market in South Carolina. They've got one in every market in most markets. I'm saying all that may be a mistake, but they've got an affiliated station, great broadcasting in just about every market in Mississippi, Alabama, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina, and North Carolina. Well, that's Braves Country. And now with these subchannels that these stations have, they don't want to put games.

And, you know, here's the thing. Network programming sucks. You know, ABC, NBC, CBS, and Fox are not like these. That's right. Sports carries it. Sports carries it. I mean, look at NBC now with Adam Baseball has got everything. They've got NFL, football, NBA, and MLB. And, of course, ABC with all the ESPN ties and so forth. So, yeah, I don't know if NBC would have anything if not for sports, to be honest with you. So, I would assume that when this happened, great television knocked on the door at Truist Park and said, okay, we're ready to talk.

[52:04] Because the Braves contract with FanDuel, to my knowledge, was up either after this year or after next season, 2027. And that was a longstanding 20-year deal that was a horrible deal. They've redone it a couple of times, but it was not good. So, I believe the Braves and great television will create a network that will have the games on. And what I'm talking about with the sub-channels, you know, what's the major number of the channel of the biggest station in Huntsville, for example? Give me the number.

What channel? Well, it's 31. I think the ABC affiliate has it, if I'm not mistaken. Maybe I'm wrong. Maybe it's easy. Which is it, Braves? Is it the ABC or NBC affiliate? Well, actually, they both do. But, yeah, great TV's with NBC here. What's the gray station in Huntsville? Do you know what the gray station is? I believe it's – I don't watch enough of it, baby. Which one is it? I think 48's got the best right. So, it's the NBC affiliate. Yeah, NBC. Okay. There's probably a 48-1.

Oh, yeah. They've got like five, six, seven of them, yeah. Right, right. And you've got networks like Antenna TV and MeTV and, you know, all kind of game show network and all kind of different things. You can go on those subchannels. Well, the owners of those stations can put different programming on those subchannels. And now in Atlanta, the Atlanta gray station just went from a CBS affiliate to independent. And I know, there's no question in my mind, they did that, thinking, we're going to have news, we're going to have the Braves, and we're going to have the Hawks.

And so – but they can either put the Braves games on their regular affiliated stations, like, you know, weekend day games or whatever, or bump the network programming if the networks won't kill them, or put them on the subchannels. And that'll be over the air for everyone. And then, you know, there's going to have to be some filling in the gaps, perhaps, of some of the areas in these states that may not be covered by these affiliates. But that's not a big deal. So I think that's probably what's to come.

And you'll find – you'll find the games, and you'll find more programming. I mean, I think FanDuel did a horrific job of providing complementary programming. And I say that because I've produced that type of programming before. And there was no reason that they couldn't produce Meyer League programming, Meyer League games, you know, profiles. I mean, that's kind of like what they do on the Yankee – you know, that Yankee network, yes, that's up there in New York. So I think that – I don't think people should worry about that.

I think that that's coming. Now, I do believe that the financial ramifications could change a little bit about what their revenue is this year until that gets in place, because they may not be getting the same amount of money. But that's a question in itself that I don't know the answer to. Yeah. Yeah, I understand that. It's sad also that we've only got two more college football games on the season. I've just had to dry my eyes over that. Now, if any of our listeners would like to call in this afternoon to talk about a myriad of things, including you starting your own TV network along the radio, where can they get online and do that?

My hair might be as gray as yours and Harold's if I were to do something like that. No way. That's for sure. TheSuperstations.com. TheSuperstations.com. Bill, hang in there. Baseball comes their way. Are you ready for this? Next month, spring ball gets rocking and rolling. In the meantime, have a great and safe weekend, Bill. Thanks for your time today, buddy. Okay, guys. Thank you so much. Have a good weekend. Bye-bye. The one and the only Bill Shanks. Check him out at TheSuperstations.com. Don't have to wait that long to get the latest from Auburn.

Justin Ferguson on that. Zach Panter's seen what's shaking in the shows. And Mike Hugenon, he's got it all covered straight ahead on the Boomo Bugg Show. Stay with us. Hello, Shoals. It's Elmer Pierce from Garner Pierce Autos. Are you tired of being told it will take two weeks to service your vehicle or even to look at it to tell you what's wrong with it? Are you tired of being told that it's going to be $200 to $300 an hour for labor? At Garner Pierce Autos, we have four full-time certified and trained technicians that have over 75 years of automotive service experience.

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Hire right the first time. Post your job for free at LinkedIn.com slash Eisen, then promote it to use LinkedIn Jobs' new AI assistant, making it easier and faster to find top candidates. That's LinkedIn.com slash Eisen to post your job for free. Terms and conditions apply. 1819 News. Two Republican candidates running in the U.S. Senate primary here in Alabama for 2026 were in Fairhope this week. Jared Hudson and Morgan Murphy both spoke to the Eastern Shore Republican women. Hudson is a former U.S. Navy SEAL sniper and Morgan Murphy is a U.S. Navy Reserve captain.

Hudson says he's a real warrior who fought for this nation and is not a career politician. Murphy has worked for U.S. Senator Tommy Tuberville and says he knows how Washington works. Both men are in a crowded race for the Senate with Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall and U.S. Congressman Barry Moore also running. Marshall and Moore were unable to attend this Fairhope meeting due to events going on in Washington, D.C. I'll be back with more Alabama stories after this. Did you know that 70% of people experience a potentially traumatic event in their lifetime and that six out of every 100 adults face PTSD every day?

Help us bring hope to these survivors by signing up for your Alabama distinctive PTSD awareness license plate today. Two women from Daleville were sentenced to prison this past Thursday for abuse of children at a daycare center. Kaylee Gilley and Megan Coker worked at the Happy Hearts Christian Academy Daycare. They were arrested in September of 2024 when the hitting came to light by parents who reported bruising on their children. The two were given split sentences of five years in prison and 36 months probation. A woman was indicted this week for ramming her vehicle into gate two at the Redstone Arsenal.

She was also found to be holding a weapon and refusing commands by law enforcement to drop it. She then went on to attack an officer. The incident occurred last December. Julia Hartzell is currently being held in the Morgan County Jail and will be in court regarding this case on January 22nd. I'm Andrea Theis. For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com. And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter. Valley Broadcasting Corporation, WITK-FM, Rogersville, Athens, Decatur, The Shores, Sports Radio 93.9, The Score. It's the most wonderful time of the year.

For college football fans, that is. It's bowl season. And you can hear all the action of bowl season right here on 93.9, The Score. Through the national championship game on January 19th. Tonight, bowl season continues with the CFP semifinal Peach Bowl, Indiana and Oregon. Airtime is 6 p.m. with a kick at 6.30 here on 93.9, The Score. Bowl season on 93.9, The Score is brought to you locally by Carter Oil. The CFP semifinal Peach Bowl, Oregon and Indiana. Tonight at 6 on 93.9, The Score. Join us for UNA Basketball Night from 7 to 8.30 p.m. on Monday nights from Lost Pizza Shoals.

Go inside the UNA Basketball programs with head coaches Tony Pujol and Candy Whitaker. Plus hear from UNA players and get full recaps from Atlantic Sunplay each Monday night at Lost Pizza Shoals for UNA Basketball Night from 7 to 8.30 p.m. Right here on 93.9, The Score. Roar Lions. 93.9, The Score weather. Today, an 80% chance of showers and thunderstorms with a high around 70. Tonight, cloudy. Showers and thunderstorms likely overnight with a low near 55. Tomorrow, cloudy with possible gusty winds. A 70% chance of showers overnight and a low near 65. Tomorrow night, mostly cloudy with a low around 35.

[1:03:17] Ampier Sunday, sunny with a high around 45. 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 tide. Tigers, Tennessee, and the rest of the SEC. Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9, The Score. Welcome back in our tour of the Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us a free ride around the Tennessee Valley.

And for Mike Huguenin taking time out of his schedule and saying hello, Mike, National College football slash basketball analyst, Mike Huguenin. Welcome in. How's life in Orlando today? It's going well. Well, last night's CFP semifinal was tremendous. I'm just hoping that tonight's is as good. We want to talk about that, Mike. But there's a sub-story coming out just moments ago from last night. And that is regarding shameless eligibility has now, moments ago, being denied a six-year of eligibility. Obviously, predictably, he's going to appeal that. Your thoughts on what that does to the SEC, Ole Miss, and other schools that may be looking for his services?

And what's going on there? What's going on at Washington? It seems like the only folks having fun these days are the lawyers. When the can't got out of the bag years ago, remember Bo Nix at Auburn? He got a deal selling sweet tea for Milo's. And everybody said, that's good. That's the way it should be. Did people, when this seed was planning out, realize that greed has no bottom in the cup? That's true. But I think a lot of these players are realizing this is my only chance to make money off this sport, so I'm going to do it as much as I can.

The DeMond Williams thing, he has said, okay, I'm going to stay after him. I'm going to stay at Washington. Interestingly enough, it was reported today by Matt Zenitz, former AL.com guy, that not only was Washington ready to file a lawsuit against DeMond Williams, the Big Ten was going to be involved on Washington's side, which would have been interesting. Chambliss will appeal, there will be a lawsuit, let's see if he wins it. I think the interesting thing about this is that if you're Ole Miss and he doesn't get that year, what are you doing?

That's right. Because Austin Simmons has already said he's leaving. Miami doesn't have a quarterback for next year. LSU doesn't have a quarterback for next year. Tennessee doesn't have a quarterback for next year. All of them are involved with Sam Levitt. My assumption is that Sam Levitt will become the highest paid college football player ever next year, legally or illegally. He's going to make a mint. And LSU, Miami, and Tennessee, all of our offenses that have shown that they're extremely quarterback-reliant. So, I'm saying LSU because it's Kiffin.

That's going to be interesting to see. The Trinidad Chambliss news, yeah, it's the second big body blow, obviously, in two days for Ole Miss. But, again, I think he will sue, and that will be an interesting thing. So, playing NCAA Division II football, to me, is different than playing junior college football. So, yeah, that will be an interesting case. Yeah, and Ole Miss is a law school, so they're going to lawyer up and probably get a good deal to get your best life out of school to go to bat for them.

But you mentioned LSU. Mike, word is that Deuce Knight's on his way from Auburn to LSU, he flashed potential. But you saw it last night with Carson Beck. Potential's great, but you better have somebody who's kind of been there and done that and can score a touchdown with less than 20 seconds to go when everything's on the line. You can say what you want about Beck, but he came through last night. You can't replace experience. Your thoughts about if Deuce Knight is the man at LSU, your thoughts?

Lane Kiffin, all that money to have a year where his quarterback learns on the job. That's, that's, I don't think that's, that's not what LSU signed up for, let's put it that way. Deuce Knight does have a high ceiling. I don't think, though, I think next, you know, let's say if he's a 10-story building, you know, yeah, he's got 10-4 potential, but I don't see that coming next year. So, yeah, that's not what LSU signed up for. That will be interesting. Again, Leavitt, where does he choose to go?

[1:08:30] That will be interesting. I would, I've been, I grew up in Miami, been to Knoxville many times, been to Baton Rouge. If I'm putting quality of life in the city, LSU has no chance of landing in Leavitt. But we all know this is not about lifestyle, this is about money and offense. Ta-ching. So, that's going to be interesting to see what happens. Mike, Miami ran 88 plays to 60 for Ole Miss. Time of possession, 41 minutes to 18. Ran for 191 yards versus 121 for Ole Miss. Listen, I still wonder if Trinidad Chambliss has 20 more seconds if Ole Miss would have won that game with a couple more plays.

As Harold alluded to, I thought Carson Beckham, one of the best games he's played in a couple of years. 23 of 37, 268. And then Chambliss, 23 of 37 for 277. But I agree with you, it's a great game. You know, it started out in fits and starts. It wasn't exactly aesthetically pleasing in the first half. But the second half, the action ramped up. The entertainment ramped up. Phenomenal fourth quarter. I was surprised that Chambliss' legs were not a bigger part of Ole Miss' offense. I figured, I think I remember two called quarterback runs.

I'll be honest, I thought they'd run him, you know, called plays seven or eight times. It's obvious that Miami, Miami defensively, they were, it was schooled. Keep this guy in the pocket. Do not let him get out. And Miami did a great job with that. That is a well-coached defense. Corey Hedrington, the guy who came from Minnesota, he knows what he's doing. He has athletes and he let them play. Now, Miami dropped about, I would argue, four interceptions. At one point, I think it was, it was her shoot or Fowler said, you know, there's a reason a lot of fast guys end up playing defensive back instead of receiving.

They can't catch. And Miami's CBs last night were certainly, they could not catch. But, you know, Lacey's big run was, what, 75% of Ole Miss' rushing offense. And the thing about, you know, I'm an SEC alum. I've lived in the Southeast basically my entire life. The SEC's perceived advantages on the line of scrimmage, I think those have disappeared. Ole Miss got bullied last night. They could not get off the field on third down. Miami's offensive line controlled them. Miami's defensive line didn't get any sacks. But, again, I think they actually will worry more about making sure Chambliss stayed in the pocket.

But for the SEC, this will be the second year in a row, no title, nobody in the title game. I think that, again, I'm an SEC alum. I know you guys are big SEC guys. I think it's time to retire the SEC is the best league mantra because I think that has gone. I think it is gone now. I think the big fan has better coaches. Look at what happened this offseason in the SEC. Take Kiffin out of the mix. They hired a guy from Memphis.

They hired a guy from USF. They hired a guy from Tulane. Look at the Big Ten. They hire Utah's winningest coach ever. Hall of Famer. And they hire Iowa State's winningest coach ever. So, the SEC seems to be trying for the next big thing. The Big Ten seems to go with a more proven, we want a proven guy. So, the perceived difference of the line of scrimmage last night, Miami was expected to have the advantage, and they most certainly did. Having the ball for 41 minutes. And they barely won, which I think shows that the Ole Miss offense was extremely effective.

But you also wonder, don't kick so many field goals, Ole Miss. Put one of those in the end zone instead of kicking a field goal. Yeah. What a thought. Good lines of scrimmage and a running game of defense. What a concept. All right. Mike, what's going to happen tonight? Indiana and Oregon. The best team in the country. And I'm an old guy. And it's, I cannot even fathom saying that with a straight face. But, you know, this is a horrible program historically. It's not, you know, one of the two or three worst in major college football.

And it's the Washington Generals, if you will. Yes. The Harlem Goatrotters. In two years, Signetti has them on the cusp of a national title. He is obviously a phenomenal coach. This was the lowest paid roster among the final eight. They had the least amount of recruited talent in the final eight in terms of high school recruiting. Signetti is very detail-oriented, just like Saban. And they play with a relentless ruthlessness. And it's impressive. I said earlier on your show this season, Indiana is the kind of team that, you know, when some teams get up 28-0, the coach says, okay, let's cruise.

[1:14:15] Cruise to the finish line. And Signetti is a guy that says, no, we're going to stomp on them. We're going to win 56-0. And they are, again, it's ruthless efficiency. Mendoza is a phenomenal story. Their line play is tremendous. They have relatively good depth, tons of transfers, tons of transfers that no one noticed. These are huge transfers. These have those who knew what they were doing. Right. They knew what they were doing. And I think it shows that, you know, I mentioned Corey Hetherington before, the guy at Minnesota, the defensive coordinator.

Indiana announced today that Brian Haynes, its defensive coordinator, got a raise to $3 million. Their offensive coordinator, Michael Shanahan, is tremendous. That's a phenomenal staff. Bob Bostad, their offensive line coach, he was the offensive line coach when Wisconsin annually turned out 1,800-yard rushers. This is a staff that knows what he's doing. Indiana, it's a phenomenal story. It is. Again, this is Indiana. One game away, or two wins away from winning the national title. And if they do so, they're going to have to do it on Miami's home field.

Amazing. But Fernando Mendoza is a Miami guy. Same high school as Mario Cristobal. Grew up a gigantic Canes fan. Miami did not recruit him. So, he'll have a big tip on his shoulder. And tonight, you know, Oregon is a well-coached team as well. I'll be honest, I trust Indiana's offense more than I trust Oregon. So, I think Indiana's going to win. Yeah, I agree with you. Signetti is a Nick Saban 2.0. I mean, even some of the mannerisms you can see on the sideline. Great stuff. It does make me sad.

We've only got two more college games left in the season, though, Mike Huguenin. Listen, bud, I always enjoy the conversation. Have a great weekend. Let's do this again next week. Mike Huguenin, Hooking up with us. Busy down in the big old Orlando National College Football slash Basketball. And listen, coming up, what's going on right here in your own backyard? We'll check in with Dak Pounders next. Stay with us here on the Boomo Bugg Show. Have you ever seen those halftime scholarships where you have to nail a 40-yard field goal?

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Shoals Royale, 2026, Saturday, February 21st at 7 p.m. at the Renaissance Shoals Conference Center. Tickets are available now at givebutter.com slash ShoalsRoyale2026. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back again. We know you're busy. You might have missed it just in case. And even if you did, it's worth repeating. After turning in a second All-American season at UNA, Adam Watford is on his way from UNA to the Alabama Crimson Tide, BB. He is a tremendous punter, and believe me, Alabama needs one.

Speaking of what's shaking in the show, Zach Panners knows all about it at What Better Place, the show's sports report. Zach, welcome in. How are you? Doing good, how are y'all? Hey, bud. Yeah, we're doing all right. Zach, let's just jump right in. It's that time of the year. Obviously, it's hard to believe college football with only two games remaining. But another way, time for high school basketball to get the spotlight shined on them. Zach, for the folks who've been busy trying to keep up with all this football talk, what has stood out so far on the high school hardwoods across the shoals to you?

I think it's pretty obvious around the area. The story of the season is going to be 4A boys. Right now, you've got right now four teams with two or two, three, and four A losses. You've got Wilson on top of the area at three and one on the boys' side. That's the last night. On the girls' side, it's Deschler. And then Hatton-Wilson-Central, all over that two, three, four, five. It's going to be a battle for the two and three seed to avoid the four or five game to play Deschler in that different and varied tournament on the girls' side.

You know, Zach, sometimes we get caught up with numbers, but you've got coaches who say, I don't really care about it. But more importantly, I want to go play a quality opponent. If we lose, as long as I learn something from it, that's going to pay dividends when the money's on the line at the end of the season going into the postseason. Your thoughts so far, Zach, where maybe a record is a little bit deceiving because some of these teams, they play a tough regular season.

They go to all these premier holiday tournaments. And maybe the numbers are not impressive, but they have gone out and gone through the war so far. Lawrence girls, Lauderdale County girls are the two of the girls' type that sent out to me. Yeah. Lawrence girls are 8-12 going into this week. I think they're not as low now. But they've played up. They've played those games. They've played Marion County last week. Beats them at home. It's a 118. It's still a top end in the 118. And Lauderdale County girls were 8-7 in this week.

I think they're 9-7 now or something in that range. But they hit a rough stretch over this break, where they lost a couple games in a row. I think four in a row is what it was. But they're one of those teams, if they play the right line at the right time, they'll learn through it, and they'll get better because of it. Absolutely. You mentioned the Wilson boys, 14-5 after beating Collingwood, 64-49. Noah Hedrick, I believe, on senior night, had a big game for them. Congratulations to Waterloo boys.

[1:24:35] They beat Shoals Christian in 47-40. They reached double-digit wins for the first time in six years. That program obviously improving. And a Red Bay, we don't talk about Red Bay a lot, but they won 13 out of 15 games, beating Lamar County 72-48. Their two losses were the teams that are 29-4 entering Monday. A couple of teams who are really having a good year so far. Yeah, I'll start with Waterloo. That's a new coach over Waterloo. I think it's Blake Young is who it is. He's doing a real job down the ground, early veteran-led group at Waterloo.

And Wilson, Coach Krieger, in year three, has turned that program around. There's a coaching theory about year three in coaching, how that's a turnaround year always, how the first year is a coaching year. Second year, you kind of have some success. But year three is a take-off year. And that's moving the case for Wilson this year. They've only lost to Deschler in area play. And that night, Deschler really punched him in the mouth. And didn't look back. Came out, I think it was like 20-8 first quarter.

And didn't look back from there. And Deschler beat Wilson that night. But Red Bay also, a child like the college football playoff right now with Coach Saban and all his disciples, I guess you could call them, who's left in the playoff. But I kind of like that with Coach Rizki, John Rizki, is the son-in-law and former assistant coach of Coach Johnny Robert. Everybody who has taken over the boys program now and turned them into a respectable program across the state. Obviously, let's go to the girls' side of things.

If it's 2026, some things do not change. Maybe the calendars do. But there's Lauderdale County about rocking and rolling. And when are the Deschler girls going to pick it up, Zach? Deschler's been rolling. I think it's the good part of Deschler. They're amazing. Yeah, the good part of Deschler is, it's not Lauderdale County last year. Last year with Lauderdale County, Shiloha Morris didn't have to do it all. She didn't have to have 35, 49, 40 points. She could have 10, and that's going to have 30,000 points apiece. Deschler, the same story this year.

Reese Davis does not have to do it all. She has twins in Chloe Nelson, number 10 and 12, who can go and get 10, 50 in a piece, and eight or nine boards also, and five or six steals. And Reese can have 20 points, five or six, three steals, and they can steal them. Yeah, and every time I look at Morris Hill girls, it's Bell Hill, Molly Wright, and Mia Humphreys. Bell Hill with another 23 points. She's been in 30s and even higher than that. Morris Hill beat Cumbert Heights earlier in the week.

Once again, the Panther girls playing well. Yeah, but Morris Hill this year, they have more offense this year. Evan Nambola and also soccer players come over to basketball this year, who has really helped them out, getting nine or 10 points in the night. And then Molly Wright, she's on from three. Good luck. I'm watching that Loretta last weekend. And Molly had 12 in the first quarter, four kicks from three. And Bell Hunt had three in the first quarter, and another 35 points total. I always enjoy your storylines. And you've got that on Facebook again today.

Lauderdale County win and clinched the one seed in boys and girls. Dasher girls move one step closer to one seed with a win. Dasher boys look to get out of the bottom two seeds with a win. And Muscle Shoals, who's playing pretty well, they're 10-5. KJ Cowan, they beat Decatur Heritage, a very good team in the region earlier this week, 82-73. Once again, you've covered all. We're getting down really to crunch time as far as area play. You've got it on Facebook. You go to games every night.

You've got some clips of games. Tell us once again where we can get online to get all the great stuff to get called up. On Facebook, Shoals Sports Report. Shoals Sports Report, three words. Twitter, at lowercase, S-H-O-A-L-S-B-O-R-T-S. And our website, this year, has live area standings updated every night, usually. Yeah. Where today, it'll be updated through last night's game. And right now, we have that up for today from last night's game. So, we have also the seeds that have been clinched, scenarios, that possible offensive scenarios, tiebreakers explained, and all the chaos and drama and foreign boys explained possibly.

There is any drama and more. Zach, that's a lot of work. Congratulations. Keep up the good work, and thanks so much for your time today. Thank you, y'all, dude. Thank you, Billy. Zach Patterson, with us, Shoals Sports Report. It's hard to believe we're heading down the stretch of the high school. Hello. February is always a fun time down the I-65. In the meantime, what do you say we head on way on down to the Wiregrass Country and talk Auburn Tigers with Justin Ferguson on deck on the Boomo Bugg Show.

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It's game day. Are your moderate to severe Crohn's disease or ulcerative colitis symptoms keeping you from the action? Skyrizi, Risenkizumab Risa, could help you get back to the game. Skyrizi is proven to help people feel significant symptom relief, achieve remission, and visibly improve damage of the intestinal lining. Skyrizi is a prescription injection medicine for adults. Don't use if allergic to Skyrizi. Serious allergic reactions, increased infections, or lower ability to fight them may occur. Before treatment, get checked for infections and tuberculosis. Tell your doctor about any flu-like symptoms or vaccines.

[1:35:00] Liver problems leading to hospitalization may occur when treated for Crohn's or ulcerative colitis. Ask your doctor about Skyrizi, the number one prescribed biologic in Crohn's and ulcerative colitis combined. Learn more at Skyrizi.com or 1-866-SKYRIZI. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back again once again. Thanks for sharing your TGIF with us and for Justin Ferguson to be able to join our huddle here. He's got the Auburn Tigers right there in the crosshairs at the Auburn Observer. Justin, welcome in. Are you up to your next swimming in the portal pool?

How are you? Yep, I'm doing all right. How are y'all? Hey, Billy. Yeah, we're doing okay. Justin, obviously, I was joking earlier, we're basically at halftime of this portal season, about a week behind us, about a week to go. Where are the Auburn Tigers to date? And what do you see heading down the stretch here for the Tigers? Yeah, Auburn's in a really good spot right now, I think, in the portal. They've addressed a lot of needs. Obviously, getting Byron Brown this week was huge. You know, their quarterback just picking up and plugging in exactly what they want to get out of, you know, the Alex Gullish offense, Joel Gordon.

Also bringing in, you know, his top running back from last year. Four of his top five wide receivers now with Keyshawn Singleton signing today. With the Tigers, one of the top tight ends. They're looking to get another offensive lineman from there. So, it's a lot of plug and play from this offense that did, you know, such an excellent job last season. Top five in yards per play and points per game. Really, really good offense. And Auburn's taking a good chunk of that. And then it's all about just kind of adding on to it.

They needed to, you know, reload up on the offensive line because they lost so much there. They got Stanton Ramil this week from Michigan State, a guy they recruited out of high school, played at Thompson, you know, got a couple years of eligibility left, you know, two-year starter in the Big Ten, you know, 6'8", big guy, exactly what you want today. They go get Joe Simmons from James Madison, you know, left tackle starter on a team that made the playoff this year. They're going to bring him in and plug him in.

You know, after a couple of big names on the interior of the offensive line, so that's an area you've got to continue to watch. You know, and then on the defensive side of the ball, I'm still looking for, you know, a top-edge rusher. They brought a couple of guys in. Still looking for maybe a top corner. But it's safety and a linebacker. They feel really good about where they're at right now. And they're starting to load up at defensive tackle. They get a really, you know, get a guy this week's Arkansas State transfer, Cody Sigler, who started his career at West Alabama, worked his way up.

He was one of the best group of five defensive linemen in the country this season, about 300 pounds. They're going to bring him in and let him compete with some of those young guys up front. So, yeah, Auburn's in a good spot. I mean, you know, I think there's still, like I said, corner and edge rusher is probably the area where they're looking at the most, along with the offensive line. But to this point, they've gotten a lot done. And, you know, you said it was halftime in the portal.

Alex was last night saying it's about halftime with what they want to bring in. So, trying to kind of double up their numbers here in this next week. And they made a lot of progress with it today with some of the pickups they made. Justin, that's an interesting phrase to plug in, because is that where we are in college football now? Because, in effect, it sounds like he wants to win right now. We know Deuce Knight had a high ceiling. But, in some ways, is it safe to say that, basically, he's putting his bet on the establishment as opposed to the two in the bush with Deuce Knight.

In other words, he's leveraging what many people say was Auburn's future with Brown coming in. If it works, then you go back out and shop again next season. And, as far as Knight, we're hearing all kinds of stories. He's at LSU. He's on his way to LSU. Maybe he is. Maybe he's not. But, your thoughts just about the strategy there of bringing in a guy. And, basically, not one, but three or four months ago, Auburn's future was two different guys. Your thoughts about that strategy? Yeah.

I mean, I think it makes sense, obviously. You've got to start winning. You know, you need to establish a personal concept kind of right away. Yeah, exactly. And, look, Byron Brown has one year left, right? You know, he was one of the best quarterbacks in the country this season. He knows this offense inside and out. This will be his fourth year with the same offensive coordinator and the same head coach. Auburn has not had a starting quarterback who has had that since Brandon Cox, you know, back in the day.

So, it's been a long time since you've had that kind of continuity. So, it makes sense to plug and plug. As for Deuce Knight, look, I think Deuce Knight has got a huge ceiling. You know, just kind of speaking, you know, from what I've seen from him, I would be surprised if Deuce Knight is a starting quarterback in the SEC next season. I think he just needs some more time to develop. I think he's got a great ceiling. But, I mean, let's keep in mind, he was QB3 for Auburn pretty much all year long this year.

[1:40:09] So, I think he just needs some time. Ole Miss may have a spot for him now with the Trinidad-Chamless waiver not going through. LSU is still looking for a quarterback. I'd be surprised if he's a starter at either of those places. It would show that he'd really take that kind of step up and step forward. So, I'm interested to see, you know, where he ends up. And if he ends up starting, I just think, you know, when you're a team like Auburn and you need to start winning right away, it makes more sense to go with a guy that knows the system inside and out and start to build.

You know, you hate to say it, but with the way the portal is, I don't think you can build with, you know, okay, what is this going to look like in two or three years? I think it's getting more to be kind of a year-to-year cycle. And right now, if you've got one year that you can plug in one of the best quarterbacks in the country this past season, and Byron Brown, I think you go ahead and do it. Let me ask you about bringing in so many UCL players.

We'll get the right, the correct number in a minute, but I noticed Matt Campbell now has moved on to Penn State. I believe he's brought in 18 players from Iowa State. Kirk Signetti, who we'll see tonight, two games away from winning a national championship, brought 13 from James Madison. Is it 12? Let me double-check, trying to follow this, it changes by the hour. Is Auburn sitting right now at 17 transfers and 12 of those from UCF, USF? Yeah, I believe that's the right number. And, yeah, I mean, I think it makes sense, you know, to go get those guys.

I mean, like I said, four receivers, a quarterback, a running back. I mean, you've got the basis of an offense right there. You can start kind of building around. They've got some guys who are younger dudes, kind of like lottery tickets, guys who like the coaching staff and wanted to see, you know, to beat depth pieces and see if they can develop down the road. Fred Gaskin, the safety they got from USF, I really like him. I mean, just, you know, a pretty good ball player, reminds me a lot of Daniel Thomas, you know, who played at Auburn, obviously, a few years ago.

So, you know, and they could get another offensive lineman. Cole Skinner is probably the one to look at there, maybe some more pieces. But, yeah, I mean, it just makes sense. Are you familiar, you know, bringing guys who are familiar with what you do and who you want to be, you know, and I also think there's something to be said for a coach just being like, you know, kind of like what Cignetti did with James Madison where it was like, all right, you guys helped me get this job.

Come on with me, you know, like that's kind of the thing. I do think that's kind of cool when, you know, coaches who make that jump up do that. And you're right, this is happening kind of everywhere. Matt Campbell's taking all of Iowa State with him to Penn State, and it makes sense. I mean, that's why you hired him. Yeah, yeah, that's why you hired him, because he was successful there, right? So, you know, to me, I think that makes plenty of sense. And so, yeah, I mean, look, that's the number of transfers they got.

They'd like to have maybe 12, 13, 15 more. They're not all going to come from USF. I think you're going to start to see more and more names who aren't from USF. But I think the USF guys pop the quickest because, obviously, those are the easiest sales to make on the recruiting trail. Justin Ferguson, the Auburn Observer. Obviously, Auburn's in a little bit different situation to ask this question. A lot of folks are wondering what happens once this window closes, what happens as far as, what's the word, tweaking the coaching staff.

They don't want to sit here and muddy the waters too much until they get everybody in the house. But your thoughts about any potential changes with the staff once the window closes? No, I think it's just because it's a year one. You kind of know who you got at this point. And so they've been able to kind of build this staff out. I mean, if there's a guy who gets an opportunity maybe in the NFL, that's probably the only way you'd probably see maybe a change this late in the ballgame.

But, no, I think Auburn, you know, they got – one of the good things about the portal being, you know, in January is that Auburn got to take all of December to basically get the staff together. So, you know, I think they really like the crew they've got together. And, you know, they've been hard at work. So, yeah, I think this is the bunch they're rolling with in year one. They just need to, you know, get some more guys to make it happen. It's been an interesting week in SEC basketball for officials.

With the Alabama – the Alabama Vandy game, 62 fouls called with 88 free throws. And I thought it was going to last to midnight. Needless to say, national attention on the last six seconds of the Auburn game when Murphy's shot was waved off. And, again, I give Bucky Ball a lot of credit to outscore Auburn 33-6. What a lot of people don't mention is Auburn came back on a 14-3 run. But, again, going back to football season with the Oklahoma, some of the Oklahoma calls, the Georgia call at the end of the first half, and then this.

[1:45:11] And Stephen Pearl just said, look, we've got to go into the next game. We've got too many games to sit here and cry about this. But I know he wanted just a little bit of transparency. The officials, I believe, just ran off the court without even talking to him. Been an interesting week in SEC basketball, hasn't it? It has, and I think that's just the thing. We want to see more transparency with officiating. We want to see kind of more responsibility taken. You know, yesterday Stephen Pearl said, you know, the SEC said they had indisputable video evidence to wave off the call.

And he was asked, well, have you seen that evidence? And he said, no, they didn't share it with me. So it's just like the transparency, I think, is the real issue, right? You know, it was a very close, borderline call. I think it could have gone either way for sure. But for Auburn, it's like, well, we're looking at this one thing. And you say you've got a different view. And, okay, can you show us the view? Not really. No. They're just going to move on. Yeah, exactly.

And you're right, Auburn's got to move on. They play Arkansas tomorrow. Arkansas might have the best roster in the league. It's going to be a really tough challenge for them at home. They don't want to start 0-3. But, you know, that's the tough thing about this team. They've gone through a lot of adversity. You think about, you know, when they played Georgia last week, they had to pull off a miracle to force overtime in that game, and they come up short in that one. You know, they felt like they had this one won even after blowing that lead.

And so it's a team that's had to grind through a lot. They've got to hang in there because it's a long season. They've still got plenty of time to turn things around. But, you know, I think, you know, the best way to put it is like what Steve Pearl said. It's like, we've got Arkansas on Saturday. We can't sit here and keep feeling sorry for ourselves. So I think tomorrow is going to be a really good challenge for Auburn to pick themselves up and just show that they've got some resolve and they've got some maturity about them.

And even though they feel like they might have, you know, gotten shafted in that game against Texas A&M, there's no change in it at this point. You've got to go out there and turn around. Justin, talk to us about the health of the team coming in. And you bring up a good point because you can come up with every excuse in the world, but nobody's going to feel sorry for you. And in terms of critical window, this is it. You're off to an 0-2 start.

You're right, there's plenty of time left. But if you get too far behind the eight ball, that can get in your head and things can go south in a hurry if you're not careful. Talk to us just about the psychological aspect of it and the health of the team coming in. Yeah, I mean, this team's been through a lot. I mean, I think, you know, you've got a team that's gotten blown out a few times by some of the best in the country and then turn around and won after that.

So I think they've shown some good fight to them. But you don't want to – yeah, I think Keyshawn Hall said it best yesterday when we were talking to him. He said, you know, we're a tough team. We keep fighting. We, you know, don't – you know, we fight through adversity. Problem is we just can't keep creating our own adversity. Like, you know, that's the thing. They're putting themselves in these positions. So, yeah, that weighs on you. You've got to try to turn it around here moving forward if you're Auburn.

Health-wise, this team is, you know, in terms of like, hey, this has been a reset year. You know, it's not last year's team. It's not the year before. The expectations have to change. On top of that, you've been missing two-year rotation guys all year long pretty much. And now you could be down a third guy tomorrow with Phillip Jovich suffering a knee injury against Texas A&M. Didn't get to play the second half. I thought that made a big impact in the game, especially with A&M being able to come back.

He is going to be able to practice today. He practiced yesterday. He's going to give it a go on Saturday. It's not anything kind of serious with a knee injury. It's just about how much he's going to be able to do. So, he might be able to play. If he does, great. If not, you're talking about an Auburn team that's, you know, down to seven or eight guys at this point. And so, it's a tough, it's going to be a real tough test. I think, you know, for Steven Pearl in year one, he has gotten a whole lot.

You know, he's gotten seasons worth of adversity thrown at him early on. And so is this team. But, you know, they're of the belief that they can stick it out, maybe pick up some wins, catch a break or two, turn it around. And they feel like this team still has a chance, you know, make the NCAA tournament and try to establish something. You've got to keep in mind, 10 new players on this team. The majority of those can come back next season. So, you know, there's a lot of potential growth to be had on this team.

They've just got to go out there and do it. Yeah, a lot of people thought Calipari was washed up at Kentucky in his second year, Arkansas. They're running number 15, 12, and 3, 2-0 in the league. Calipari is going to continue to attract talent. And you see him coaching a little bit more now. Great stuff, as always. 6 a.m. e-mails, the Friday mailbag, the podcast. Football, basketball, transfer reportable, you name it, where can we get online to get it? Yep, AuburnObserver.com. Check it out. You've got the mailbag and the podcast out today, so a ton of stuff for our subscribers.

Did a film room earlier this week on Byron Brown, you can read. We've got the roster tracker on football. We've got coverage coming all weekend long from Auburn, Arkansas, and basketball. So, there's plenty of stuff going on. AuburnObserver.com, sign up there. Justin, listen, man, have a great weekend, and thanks for your time today. Yeah, I appreciate you all. Thank you. Thank you, buddy. Justin Ferguson, the Auburn Observer. Quick update. Good news for Alabama from UNA in the portal, but they missed out on Peek. It looks like the big premier offensive lineman of NC State looks like he's on his way to South Carolina.

[1:50:40] And Jordan Ross, the coveted services of the defensive end from Tennessee, looks like he's on his way to LSU. B.B., obviously, Alabama, it looks like for right now out of the bidding war there, but your thoughts heading in to this weekend. Well, it's a big weekend. You mentioned Peek going to South Carolina. Well, they can match that, Harold, or make up for it by getting Ty Haywood. Yeah. Again, five-star, was committed to Alabama, and then went and followed the money, quite frankly, to Michigan. But, yeah, this could be another big weekend.

The kid from Mississippi State, Chester from LSU, we may be hearing something about that quickly. And just before we go, Seth Parker, and we mentioned him yesterday with Caleb Suggs from Priceville. Well, no longer Priceville, he is the new head football coach at Bob Jones. Alumni Bob Jones was wide receiver coach three years as offensive coordinator. As I mentioned, my former neighbor across the street, he and his dad, Robbie and Anita, new head football coach at Bob Jones High School is Seth Parker. Quick programming note, the Flores game schedule for tonight, you're on 93.9, canceled, so it's full coverage of the Indiana-Oregon game later on tonight.

You're on 93.9 to score, kick back, and enjoy. That's going to take care of biz for now. On behalf of BB, Greg, James Blair, the entire crew here, Harold Boggs, thank you so much for your time today. Let's do it again Monday, noon to two for the Bumbo Bunk Show. Back here on Sports Radio, 93.9 to score. We'll be right back.