Boomo Bugg Show 123025

[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 tie, 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 are you ready to take a neat peek in the rearview mirror at the year known as 2025? Welcome in. How are you?

Happy Tuesday to you and the listeners. What a year it has been. Las Vegas insider Bruce Marshall will preview the college football playoff quarterfinals a little bit later in the show. Andrew is here right now to give us his keys for a Bama win over Indiana and Harold Bugg. Yeah. How will Kalen DeBoer and his staff handle the transfer portal starting Friday? That sounds intriguing. So why don't we just go ahead and waste no more time. Jump right in with A.B. Andrew Bone, fine columnist, recruiting editor for BamaOnline.com. That's part of the Yon3.com family and the fine author of the book, Road to Bama. Andrew Bone, welcome in. How are you?

Doing great, guys. How are we doing today? Man, we're doing all right. Are you ready for some Rose Bowl action? And Andrew, before we jump in, let me just go ahead and ask you the question. According to all the people out there who call themselves smart, why is Alabama even showing up for this game, Andrew? Because they've pretty much already penciled Indiana in last year. Have they changed their minds? Yeah, they, you know, from what I saw on social media, Alabama decided to board that flight and make the trip to L.A.

Save the money. Yeah, sort of surprising. They wanted to go out there and at least try to compete against the almighty Indiana. So, yeah, I mean, obviously, Indiana's a fantastic team. You know, they're well coached. They're sound. They're, you know, extremely talented. They had some, you know, some great wins this season. They are the number one team in the country for a reason. They're undefeated. You know, they won the Big Ten. They beat Ohio State. You know, they're defending national champion. So, everything that they have done has been earned and deserved to this point.

So, I think that they should have some confidence heading into, heading into the game against a, you know, an 11-3 Alabama team that, I would say, for the most part, has been very inconsistent for the last few months. And, in my opinion, a lot of that had to do with injuries. And I wouldn't say that injuries, you know, prevented Alabama from winning, you know, games and, you know, looking as bad as they have at times. But it does play a little bit of a role in it. You know, you're missing this key piece or that key piece in certain games.

And, you know, you miss a block here. You miss a block there. You miss somebody on the outside edge. I mean, it sort of all adds up. So, now, you kind of go into this game healthy. I wouldn't say 100% healthy, but you're a lot healthier than you've been probably. Last night, I said the last two months. And it may have been the entire season. I mean, they've been banged up throughout the entire year. Tim Keenan and Jan Miller weren't 100% until October. They played, returned for the Georgia game.

But, you know, they missed an entire month before they got back onto the field. And, you know, we've seen little injuries here and there throughout the season, especially on the back half. But now you get, you know, pretty much your top contributors are all going to be in this game. And they seem ready to go. And, you know, I think, you know, the biggest question is, you know, are we going to see Alabama play a complete game? I don't think we've seen that the entire season. We've seen spurts. I've seen Alabama play two really good quarters, maybe two and a half really good quarters.

And then there's always a quarter in there that you're just like, man, they look horrible. Who is this team? And it's happened more than just a quarter in a lot of games. And, you know, I think that we saw a really good team after the first 15 minutes in their game against Oklahoma, you know, almost two weeks ago. And can we continue to see that team in this game against Indiana? So it's going to be a challenge for Alabama. But I do think that, you know, this is a game that they're going to be ready for.

[5:12] And they've got the talent to go in there and beat an Indiana team. Andrew, one of your keys, Harold and I will talk about this throughout the show. Don't get behind early. Don't let the weather scare you. Run the game plan. Run for 75 to 100 yards. Score touchdowns in the red zone. Get pressure on Mendoza. Stomping the run is going to be a key. See, I did notice that in three key games, Indiana had, they ran for less than three yards per carry against Oregon, Iowa, and Penn State.

And those games were close. What's Andrew Bones' keys to an Alabama win? Well, you've got to move the football. I mean, there's no doubt about it. And Indiana's done such a, you know, they're one of the top, you know, defensive teams in the country. They're not only good against the rush, but they're, you know, a top-20 team against the pass as well. And they are a top, you know, three or four defense in the country. They've only been, I think, two teams that have scored 20 or more points against them this season.

And that was Oregon who scored 20. You know, they only found the end zone twice. And then Penn State, the only team to score, you know, actually three touchdowns against them the entire season. So they've been extremely sound on defense. You know, if you can figure out a way to be consistent, to move the ball, to not get in, you know, these second and long, third and long situations, you know, I think Alabama's got the talent. You know, they've got the quarterback who can move the ball down the field.

You know, if they can capitalize and score points on multiple possessions, you know, their defense is going to be able to give them plenty of opportunities. And I think with Mendoza, you know, that's a guy that, you know, you're going to have to, you know, force him to, you know, to really beat you with his arm. And I'm not saying he's a bad thrower at all, but he, you know, because he is a 71% completion percentage guy. He's thrown, I think, 33 touchdowns, only six interceptions this year.

But five of those interceptions were against top 40 pass defenses. And I think, I would say, I think it was four of those interceptions came against pass defenses that were ranked in the top 10. Alabama has a top 10 pass defense. So, you know, turnovers are certainly going to be key here for Alabama if they can, you know, capitalize. But they're going to have to protect, you know, Ty Simpson as well. You know, Indiana's going to bring, they're going to bring pressure. They're going to bring blitzes. You know, they're going to get into the backfield.

I mean, they're going to have tackles for loss. You know, you're just going to have to make sure, you know, when Ty does get pressure, you've got to hold on to the football. And, you know, we've seen him do a little bit of a better job with that these last few games. There's certainly some times where I was thinking, man, you know, that's definitely going to be a fumble. But he was able to hold on to it. You know, he's going to have to be able to do that this weekend as well and not make mistakes.

But if Alabama can, they can win the turnover battle, it's certainly going to give them a great chance to win the game. So that's probably my number one key. Can they run the football? That's going to be, you know, I think the biggest question, you know, one of the biggest questions as well. You know, they haven't been able to consistently run the football. You get Jam Miller back. You know, he says he's 100% ready to go. So I think that's certainly a big plus for Alabama. You know, they're going to have to create some movement.

They're going to have to, you know, fire off the ball. And I think they've got, you know, the offensive line. As bad as, you know, a lot of people have tracked them this year, they're still a physical group. They can open up some holes. But I think that, you know, Jam Miller, Daniel Hill, AK Deer, whoever it is that they run the football with this week consistently, you know, those guys are going to have to hit those holes and have great vision out there. And, you know, when you're, when you have the right side open, you don't need to cut back onto, you know, into the left.

So I think that Alabama certainly, you know, can move the football. Everybody doesn't think they can. But I think if they can move the football just a little bit against, you know, Indiana this week from a running standpoint, you know, it could really, you know, obviously be big for them in this game. And as of right now, I would be shocked if we don't see them have at least a little bit of success running the football. I'm not going to say they're going to run for 200 yards or anything like that.

[10:22] We've seen that, I think, maybe once the entire season. But if you can get a run game that's going to go for over, you know, 100 yards, you've got to feel really good about that because it certainly hasn't happened too often for Alabama this year. And in the games that they have rushed for over, you know, under 125, you know, plus yards, you know, they've been able to have success because that offense is certainly, you know, successful with the passing game. And you're successful in both of them, you know, to Alabama's standards as far as this season, you know, you're going to, you're going to be able to go in there and win the game.

Andrew Bone, BamaOnline.com. Another thing that I think is so important to Ty Simpson, that's having his Linus blanket, his security blanket in Josh Quibbis. He says he's back, a testament to Jeff Allen. He said he broke his foot in the middle of the season. And because this medical staff, he's back, he's ready to go, especially on third downs and in the red zone, you know, they have a nice connection there. Your thoughts about that importance, the importance of Overton, looks like he's back. And at the end of the day, when the sun sets on the San Gabriel Mountains Thursday afternoon and dark beckons in Pasadena, what will be the final score, Andrew Bone?

Yeah, I think with Quibbis, everyone was probably surprised that he came back as quickly as he did, you know, against Oklahoma. You know, he was, you know, far from 100%, but, you know, just seeing him out there being able to, you know, get some reps, you know, catch the ball, you know, get back into the flow of things, obviously was really big for him. And I think he's got a chance to have a really big impact on this game. I mean, you know, I actually, I actually think he'll have, you know, four or five receptions against Indiana this week.

You know, we started seeing him kind of come along in that back half of the season, you know, before his injury. I think, you know, one game he had, you know, he went from four receptions to five receptions. And, you know, he was certainly a security blanket, as you mentioned, you know, for Ty Simpson. And, you know, just a really impactful player in this offense certainly opens it up more. And I think he's going to be dependent on heavily in this game. And then, you know, you mentioned L.T. Overton, you know, another guy that we certainly did not expect to return.

I mean, all we heard for the last few weeks, you know, a few months was, you know, no chance that he was going to be back this season. And then all of a sudden, you know, last, I guess it was last Sunday night or Monday, you know, word came out that he was going to be, you know, back and able to play. So that was great. You know, how, you know, how rusty is he going to be after, you know, being out for, you know, a month and a half?

You know, we'll have to see, you know, is he going to be, you know, on a limited snap count? And, you know, is he going to have the same type of impact that you, you know, kind of expect him to when he's at 100%? I think we'll just kind of have to wait and see. But I also like how we've seen, you know, some of these other guys, you know, get some playing time, get some reps to build that depth, you know, with Keon Keeley, Kelby Collins.

So that's been very positive for Alabama. You know, as far as my prediction, it's hard to predict against Alabama. I know everyone expects Indiana to win, you know, cover the spread, blow Alabama out, send them packing. But I see Alabama winning their 1,000th game, their, you know, another win in the Rose Bowl. This is going to be certainly a, you know, big test for them. But I think they've got the talent. And, you know, you look back at, you know, before the season even started, we felt like this team was different.

It had the, you know, capability to compete for a national championship. Obviously, that kind of fell off after that first game. But it was thought kind of throughout the season. And, you know, going into Athens and winning that game and then that stretch, you know, through October was just really impressive. So they've certainly been battle-tested. But, you know, being healthy, I like Alabama going into the Rose Bowl. And, you know, I think that when they are at their best, they can beat anybody. And I think that they can be at their best this week.

Andrew, you had a great article about the portal. Had to navigate it, five focus areas and a couple of players. Here, Alabama, may be looking at Devin Tompkins, a USC defensive lineman. And I'm guessing you've already been asked 20 times, will Alabama pick up Cam Coleman in the transfer out of Auburn? We'll see how that goes. Hopefully, we can get you on next week. It's amazing. The Rose Bowl Thursday, Transfer Portal Friday. And we'll probably begin knowing Sunday or Monday the players who may be entering the transfer portal for Alabama.

[15:37] A.B., a great time to get on BOL. How can we get your articles, the team's coverage from the Rose Bowl, and all the good stuff? Yeah, I certainly encourage anyone to go to BamaOnline.com. We have content every single day. A ton of it. We've got guys out in California right now covering the Rose Bowl. We'll have all the coverage on the transfer portal and just basketball teams. There's a lot of great stuff on BOL. And you can actually sign up right now, if you haven't yet, for a 50% off membership for one year.

So you get us all the way until next December 30th. So come check us out, BamaOnline.com. Our premium message board, the BOL Roundtable, is kind of where all the action happens all day long. But you can read our content throughout the day, every single day. So come check us out at BOL. You can follow me on my Twitter handle. I guess it's X now, but Andrew, the letter J, Bone. Sounds great, Andrew. Listen, man, as always, appreciate your time. Thanks so much. Oh, 2025 was great.

Oh, 2026 is even better. Thanks so much for your time today. You guys are the same. Happy New Year. Thank you, bud. Happy New Year to you. Andrew Bone, hooking up with us. Visit you there at BamaOnline.com. That's part of the Yawn3.com family. My goodness gracious. They looked for a while. Auburn fans had a lot to root for. And now, are they still sure? Brian Matthews on deck. Stay with us. Welcome back to Winter Hack Radio, the place for clever hacks to survive the season.

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Hello again, everybody. I'm Roger Hoover. As we get set for the Rose Bowl, here are thoughts from Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson. Growing up, playing in the Rose Bowl is a dream come true. It's such an honor because of the big-time game and the implications. But, you know, I was talking to Tarion and Patrick Sertain on their podcasts about this game and just remembering, one, you know, how it started, right? Like, I think Caleb got a pick or something like that. Something to where, like, the momentum had shifted.

And there were just key plays in the game to where we could have put the game away, but we didn't. And I remember, you know, that last play and we getting stopped and how, you know, Michigan rushed the field or whatever and how we felt in the locker room and just telling myself, like, hey, have we ever got, you know, this place again to making sure that I do everything I can to make sure we don't feel that way. I'll have more in a moment. Tide fans, are you ready for game day in Tuscaloosa?

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The Rose Bowl Preview Show will be from 6 p.m. until 7.30 p.m. Pacific time and hosted at the JW Marriott Hotel in Los Angeles. For more information, head to RollTide.com. Crimson Tide Today is brought to you by Vector Security Champions Lane. Crimson Tide Today is a production of the Crimson Tide Sports Network from Learfield. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. Welcome back again. Time to open the door and say hello to Brian Matthews. We've got Auburn covered there as a senior editor for AuburnSports.com.

Brian, welcome in. How are you? I'm doing good, guys. Thanks for having me in. Hey, Billy. We appreciate you taking time out. Brian, hats off to you. I love it when people in this business just tell the truth and say, if I'm reading it right, there's no way to sugarcoat it, as you put it. For the folks who haven't read your article, where do you start in your thoughts there on not sugarcoating the situation right now in your backyard? Well, I'd say it's a really tough time for Auburn football.

You know, you're coming off the worst stretch in history, or tying the worst stretch in history with five consecutive losing seasons. You just signed the worst class of the Rivals era, which goes back 25 years. And now you're basically having your roster torn to pieces with the potential portal here opening on Friday. It hasn't officially happened yet, but I think we're up to 27 now players. Wow. They'll be leaving Auburn, and nine of those are guys I would project as starters on next year's team. So that's really a lot of big losses.

The thing is, Brian, if I saw it right, it's not only just losing. I mean, let's face it. Let's be honest about it. Sometimes you want to lose players when they don't live up to their expectations. But when you lose the caliber of potential players that have been lost, and not only that, correct me if I'm wrong on this, but it looks like as far as what any football team is built around, the respective lines, those respective lines have been hit hard so far. Am I reading that right?

No, that's right. Auburn has to replace every starter on its offensive and defensive line. Not every guy is left because of the portal, right? Some of those guys have graduated. They'll be moving on in the NFL or just moving on with their lives there, especially offensive line-wise. But, yeah, there's been some key losses there. Amaris Williams was a guy you thought would be a starter, of course, at defensive end. Tyler's been so many. I'm trying to remember them all. It's a lot. Yeah, Malik, another guy that you thought was going to be starting a defensive tackle again for the third straight year.

Probably going to be his best season there. As a starter, he's moving on. So, yeah, it's tough, really tough for Auburn. And the staff are basically going to start from scratch almost. The priorities beginning Friday, and what a two-week period that is going to be for Auburn. I know a lot of people believe Brown is going to be transferring from South Florida to Auburn, but you've got to start over on the offensive line, defensive line, a couple of corners, the receiver room, trying to put some sanity to this.

How will Auburn begin the process starting Friday? It is like starting over in a lot of ways. You do have to almost rebuild your entire quarterback room over again, and we'll see what this night does, right? That'll decide that. We'll see there. But, yeah, I think Byron Brown will be a guy they will look to to move toward really, really fast. We'll see how that goes. But, yeah, I do like Auburn in that scenario there. But around him, he's going to have to have an entire new offensive line in front of him.

That's a lot of work, and getting those players out of the portal is going to cost a lot of money. And, you know, right now they're going to have to replace almost every, you know, top receiver on the roster. We'll see what Eric Singleton does. But if they lose him, that would be their top five receivers, I believe. So that could be big, too, there on that side of the ball. And the tight end room was bad last year, and it's got to be overhauled again this year.

So you're basically rebuilding an entire offense, depending on what Deuce Knight and Eric Singleton decide to do. On the defensive side of the ball, the entire defensive line has to be replaced. The linebacker unit looks great. It's the one position which you can point to that's really, really good, returning that in safety. And then you've got to find two starting cornerbacks, which will, again, be very, very expensive in the portal. Brian Matthews, senior editor, AuburnSports.com. Brian, just listening to Auburn fans. I think a lot are in shock right now because they thought once Freeze left town, it's a chance to start over, a brand new breath of fresh air.

[26:12] And you saw the opening speech, Scolish preached a good sermon. Where are Auburn fans right now? And are they asking the question, why can't you hold on to these guys? Because he said, if I understood what he's saying in his opening speech, we got the money. We're starting all over. So where are Auburn fans right now outside, in some cases, being in shock with this many key guys leaving this team? Yeah, that's a good question. I think there's just a lot of frustration. There's a lot of wondering what is going on with this program because we've heard over and over again about roster retention, how important it was.

And now the roster is being completely blown to pieces. So, you know, on the one hand, Al Scolish and his staff deserve the opportunity to build a team. They want to build it. On the other hand, what was the point of signing these back-to-back top 10 classes? Right. And 2024, 2025, if you're going to blow it all up, you know, a year later. So it's very, very confusing about the direction of the program right now and the leadership of it. B-Med, how will Golich and his staff restructure the NIL?

Will it be a lot more performance-based than just throwing money out there? Again, I think Auburn officials have said once this thing gets up and running, we're going to be able to invest in it with a lot of money. But what would be the difference in the NIL package from Alex Golich versus Hugh Freeze? Well, you're right. They are putting it more production-based. And clearly the value that they place on certain players currently that were on the team last year compared to the value that they originally had is different.

And that's causing a lot of guys to leave. So we'll see how that works out. They do have a different approach. And they will be bringing in players they feel like fit that approach better. And, you know, right now we're just in the part of that process where all the players will leave. And the process of getting new players in begins on Friday. Let me ask you this, Brian. Is college football right now at a tremendous crossroads? That may be the understatement of the year because you said 27 there at Auburn.

Get this. At Iowa State, I saw a while ago they've got 42 guys off the roster. They've got 17 guys coming back from last year's team. How can college football sustain this going forward unless you're just swimming in money like Texas Tech and some of these other schools? Yeah, that's tough. And the best way to handle it, the best way to handle it it's been for years now, is to sit down and do collective bargaining and come up with some agreed-upon rules for this sport instead of waiting around for some governing body to take control and set rules or standards that may or may not hold up a court.

So that's what needs to be done. You need leadership at the conference level now at NCAA. I guess CSC level to start, you know, doing things that actually make a difference instead of blowing smoke and try to create rules that don't really stand up in the court block. How will your staff handle the transfer portal? I mean, there are so many rumors out there right now. There are some names, and particularly South Florida, et cetera. You've got more staff now, which I know certainly helps you.

How will AuburnSports.com handle the portal? Well, we're just going to continue to have a lot of coverage of it, right? It's been, you know, one way so far, right? But that changes Friday. We've been coming guys starting and visits starting. I know we reported the first visit. The big offensive tackle at Oklahoma State will be here once the portal opens. So that's a start there, and we'll continue to step below our coverage of that and basketball and everything else happening with Auburn Sports going forward at AuburnSports.com.

And right now we're running a special 50% off your membership. You can sign up online. Absolutely. Well, listen, I hope you get to feeling better. I know you and I both had a little bit of the same situation. As Harold mentioned earlier, we appreciate your candidness. You've done it all year long, being honest about the Auburn program. It's been a great year working with you. Have a wonderful 2026, and let's do this again next week. I appreciate you all having me. I'll take care. Thank you so much, man.

Please don't transfer. Brian Matthews, senior head for AuburnSports.com. Alabama is going to California. Why don't we go to Nevada and Bruce Marshall next day with us. Well-informed truck and SUV buyers wait all year for this moment because they know the year-end deals are worth the wait. Hi, folks. Don Wessels for Woody Anderson Ford, and these are the final days of our year-end sales event. We've got nearly 700 new Fords ready for you, and all 25 models come with an additional $1,000 final days bonus cash. Drive home with no payments for 90 days, plus get financing as low as 0% for 60 months on the 25 F-150, Explorer, Escape, Transit Van, and the Lightning.

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NFL action last night. The Atlanta Falcons winners over the Rams 27-24. B. John Robinson 195 on the ground and a touchdown. The Falcons are now 7-9. 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. At Straight Talk, we get it. You say no a lot. Mom, can I get a tarantula? No. Coffee? No. So we're giving you more reasons to say yes. Like a free 5G phone with real unlimited data with select plan activation.

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[36:45] Learn more at cvshealth.com slash Investor Day. The score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score. The score. Welcome back in. It seems like everybody is head west these days, young man. Alabama to Pasadena. Why do you say we go to Las Vegas and say hello to Bruce Marshall. He's the Las Vegas Insider. They're at BAMSports.net. CBS Sportsline. Winners and whiners. Picks and parlays. Bent Rivers. Vegas Insider. Bruce Marshall. Welcome in. How are you? Happy New Year, boys. Quick NFL note for you before we begin.

By the way, we actually went to the Raiders-Giants game, if you can believe that, the other day. We were among those there. But the storyline, the note for today is, and this applies to all sports, week one matters. In the NFL, we've got two instances this year. You look back to week one, the 49ers scored very late to beat the Seahawks, 17-13. It didn't seem like it was that remarkable a result at that point. It was McDonald's first game for Seattle and all. That, though, has kept the Niners alive into the finale and will give them the tiebreaker over the Seahawks if they win the game Saturday night at the Santa Clara.

The other one, nobody can believe this. I mentioned the Raiders a second ago. Week one, if you can believe it, the Raiders beat the Patriots. I repeat, the Raiders beat the Patriots. Now, why is that significant? Denver has the tiebreaker edge on New England right now because when you get to common foes, which is how this goes down the list, the break they have is the Raiders. New England lost to the Raiders. Denver beat the Raiders twice. That's giving Denver right now the edge in a tiebreaker, and it goes back to week one.

So just a reminder down the road, week one matters. It really does. Bruce, only you would be smart enough to come up with that. You know, to extend that, it's not only in the NFL, but look at college football where Alabama in week one lost to Florida State. Then they went on and beat Georgia at Georgia, which is another way of saying they can lose to anybody. They can win against anybody. They're up and down with Seth Page for Alabama taking on Mr. Consistent in Indiana.

Bruce, your thoughts on how did Indiana get this good this fast? God, I don't know. By the quick note, it may rain on Thursday at the Rose Bowl. I can't even remember. It's not supposed to rain on New Year's there, but they say it might. So anyway, let's stay tuned for that. Indiana, well, boys, when we were doing this show before last season, if you would have said, you know, the five teams that would be, there would be five teams make the playoff the first two years, and you'd have Alabama, and you'd have Georgia, Ohio State, and Oregon, who's the fifth.

You might go through a hundred schools before you get to Indiana. Here we are two years in a row, Indiana there. Give all credit to Kurt Signetti. And maybe I shouldn't underestimate Indiana because they did beat Ohio State and Indianapolis and win at Oregon. So there's two wins with their biggest foes, not games in Bloomington. But that non-conference schedule was pretty laughable, and I know Mendoza's good, and I've talked about him reminding me of Bernie Kosar with a bit more mobility all season. But I think, you know, the hype for him has gone a little too far.

I'm hearing a lot of people saying, for sure, fire first-round pick. Raiders should draft him. I don't know about that. I'd rather have Malik Willis as quarterback, thanks to you, if it's me. But everybody's in love with Indiana now because they're number one, and who thought we'd have been saying that? Bruce, I get it. They've got some very good players. Besides Mendoza, Cooper, their leading receiver is good. Surratt, the other receiver. Hardy, their linebacker, 86 tackles, et cetera, et cetera. They really stalemated Ohio State at the line of scrimmage.

But your point about strength of schedule and being tested, and one thing I noticed, Indiana runs the ball first. That's what Alabama's got to do is stop the run. They rushed for three yards or fewer against Oregon, Iowa, and Penn State. In other words, their toughest games, they did not run nearly as effectively as they did the remainder of the seasons. Bruce, one of your keys for this game for Alabama to pull the upset, and who wins, Alabama or Indiana, who is a six-point or seven-point favorite?

Hopefully, we'll get Bruce back on with us here. Bruce Marshall, Vegas Insider, and you know a lot of folks, and please, I don't want us to lose that connection. You know a lot of folks want to know his insight into that game, so hopefully we'll be able to hook back up with Bruce. And I also want to ask him about, you know, we've got the Alabama game working, but coming up in just about, what, an hour or so, Tennessee, we'll get the bowl season going up in Nashville, BB.

[42:07] And so, all right, if you want some bowl action, you don't have to wait until Thursday. Well, yeah, it's an interesting day, and tomorrow we've got three games, and I'll mention that a little bit later. But, no, it's a great time of the year. I think Tennessee will beat Illinois. Annualer, of course, is there. They have not been able to defend the pass. Tennessee's got opt-outs. They've got injured players, but I think Tennessee is just going to simply outscore Illinois in the Music City Bowl, where you and I went many years ago to watch Alabama and Minnesota.

The Gophers came out on top there, and let's see if the man is back with us, Bruce Marshall from Vegas Insider. Bruce, are you back with us? I am. There you go, bud. 2004, 20-16 Gophers. I remember it very well. And nobody thought the Gophers had a chance, and Alabama needs to stay away in the Music City Bowl. They got beat by Virginia Tech in the very first one up there. They're sleeted in that game, so Alabama needs to stay away from Nashville. But Brent asked, what's going to happen in Pasadena?

At the end of the day, Bruce, what's going to be the final score out there? 27-24 Alabama. And before I lost contact there, listen, I think they've got more speed, more often. They've had to deal with speed. There's just been a couple of games the last two years where Indiana has really had to step it up. And I know they won those two games this year, but they haven't faced this sort of speed. Look, Alabama's won in Oklahoma. They won at Georgia. They won at Auburn.

They won at South Carolina. They are battle-tested. I love the way they fought their way back and took charge of that Oklahoma game. The defense made a big play. They got more quick than what Indiana's used to seeing, and they're used to these close games. I know Indiana is unbeaten, but I don't think that lasts after Thursday. 27-24 Bama, and we'll see if it rains. Let's talk about Georgia, Ole Miss, Sugar Bowl Thursday night. Will, the Georgia Bulldogs. Ole Miss is a good team. They won the first game, outscored Ole Miss 17-0 in the fourth quarter.

Bruce, your thoughts on the game? Brett, this is interesting because we've got another rematch here. And throughout conference title weekend, and then last week with Bama, Oklahoma, it has been a big advantage to have lost the first game before you get the rematch. I don't know that that's going to apply here because, one, it's a playoff game. Two, no lane, although it didn't bother Ole Miss against Tulane and Chambliss and the rest, they've got the rest of the staff there who will be joining LSU or except Lane.

But I think at some point it's going to bother Ole Miss. And listen, Georgia, the way they came back in that game, I think that's the game that really made Georgia this year, coming back. And they also came back in Alabama the first time. They barely fell short. But they came back and beat Ole Miss 17-0 in the fourth quarter. This team has power running better than I've seen any Kirby team in recent years. Gunnar Stockton is not quite the smooth, polished, NFL-style quarterbacks like Stafford and back and some of those others we've seen out of Georgia.

But, man, he's a fighter and a scrapper. And the defense, maybe not quite at those championship levels of three, four years ago, but still darned good. The game against Bama in the SEC title game was the best game I have seen a college team play this year, I think, and that sort of effort I think gets Georgia over the line here. 31-20, Georgia, if I had to pick a team right now to win the whole thing, that's my one. If you want to drive the national pun, it's crazy to let Georgia and Alabama play for the national championship.

That would drive them nuts. But, obviously, Ohio State and Miami have got something to say about that. Your favorite team, Bruce, say that tongue-in-cheek, the Ohio State Buckeyes taking on the Canes from Miami. What happens there in a cotton bowl? Yeah, that's, I mean, tomorrow night, boy, I'll tell you, Miami didn't do much against A&M, but A&M did less. And I think we'll see maybe not quite a 10-3 scoreline, but something lower than that 40-and-a-half total. I mean, Miami's defense really showed up at College Station and they confounded Marcel Reed the whole game.

On the other hand, Miami struggled to get moving against A&M, and I'm not sure they're going to do much better against this Ohio State defense. I am not convinced, though, about Ohio State's offense and this baby-faced quarterback, Julian Sane. I know he's good, but, man, he had everything go his way this year. He had time to throw. He had running backs who could run. He had the best receiving core in the country. They were always open. When things didn't go well against Indiana, you didn't see him respond that well.

I think Miami's going to confound him here and keep this thing close. I just don't know if the Canes are going to do enough against that Ohio State defense. It's 17-13 Ohio State. I think it's going to be lovely. I think they advance. They may not cover the spread. It probably stays under that 40-and-a-half. Texas Tech and Oregon, a very interesting game. Dante Moore looked really good against James Madison, and he's played well this year through, over 300 yards. He's got a lot of weapons. Texas Tech, again, they have not played for a while.

[47:33] They beat BYU twice. I've got a lot of respect for their program. Joey McGuire is a good coach. Morton, their quarterback, been banged up a little bit. Rodriguez, they're a tremendous linebacker. Bruce, very interesting game. Texas Tech, Oregon, in the Orange Bowl. And tell me, when was the last time an Orange Bowl kicked off at 11 o'clock in the morning? Yeah, you're right. I mean, that's a little bit odd. You've got to go back to the early 60s, I think, when the games got on ABC, you know, and Nebraska, Auburn, you know, 64.

Listen, Texas Tech, we've talked about them this year, and I'm like you. I do, you know, got to tip our hat to everything they've done to build that program up with Joey McGuire and James Blanchard, the football GM, and that money from Cody Campbell. I haven't heard, but they've spent the money right. It took me a while to come around Texas Tech, and I finally was by the end of the season against those big 12 teams. They just matched up so well with BYU, and they just destroyed all of them, except Arizona State that one game.

They did miss Arizona this year, though, and I think that was the one big 12 team that might have given them a fight. Well, I guess Arizona State did, too. But I don't know if they faced any elite offenses this year, and I'm nitpicking maybe, but this is an elite offense. And you mentioned Dante Moore a second ago, and if you believe Mel Kuyper and some of these others NFL draft guys, he might be the first pick in the draft if he decides to come out. They're talking him or Mendoza.

He's that good. They have weapons galore. I don't think Texas Tech has seen an offense like this, and I think that's going to be the difference. I could be wrong on Texas Tech. I guess I just need one more dose of the Red Raiders to be convinced. But I'm going to go with Oregon in this one, 34-26. I think they outscore them. This is a dangerous team, and at times I've looked at that offense. I mean, it looks like, I want to say an NFL offense.

Listen, I just saw the Raiders last week. Oregon's offense looks a lot better than the Raiders. That's unbelievable. Bruce, can you indulge us just for a second? You know where we are. You mentioned rain. The question comes up, if it does rain, and what was the old song back in the day, it never rains in Southern California, who does that favor in the case of a rain? Does it favor Alabama? Does it favor Indiana? I think the umbrella salesman at the Rose Bowl. It's hard to say.

I wish I had a little bit more faith in Alabama running the ball. Even on a dry track, they're not running all that well. But it's just that that may actually help Indiana a little bit. If it slows the field down, they're going to have that thing covered with the tarp. The field's probably going to be in pretty good shape. But the speed edge, that's the only thing I worry about Alabama. It has a speed edge, I think. But if anything negates that, the weather might.

But like I said, that field, they're taking care of that. Like they've got nuclear weapons underneath it. It's going to be in the best possible condition, and I don't think it's going to hurt even if it rains on Thursday. Let me ask you about two quick SEC games. Vandy, Iowa, in the required quest bowl. Vandy, again, Pavia, you know, is this going to be his last game? He's applied for one more year of eligibility. Vandy, a four-point favorite over Iowa. And in the Cheesehead Citrus Bowl, Texas against Michigan, I think is going to be one of the more popular bowls.

Texas is a five-and-a-half-point favorite. Does the SEC win both games? I don't know. Iowa's sort of a difficult foe. That defense is real. But I'm not going to bet against Pavia. And, you know, Iowa, you know, they darn near beat Oregon, they darn near beat Indiana. So, Kirk Ferentz can do some things. But I just see that offense too many times. They're still too stodgy. Even though Gronowski, the quarterback, was better than what they've had. So, I think Vandy probably survives. I'll go 27-20 there. The other one, I think Texas probably survives.

I don't want to dismiss Michigan yet because, you know, if Pogge did step in a couple games and Sharon Moore was out, they're sort of used to the distractions there at Michigan because they've had a lot of coaches on suspension in recent years. Now this is fired. And a good hire for Whittingham, I think, but we'll talk about that later. But I'm not sure about Texas. Texas is playing better later in the season. And the number is dropping some. So, I think Texas might win this close, go 20-17 Texas.

But I think Michigan might actually put up a pretty good fight. A wonderful year spent with you, breaking down games, talking history about college football in the NFL. Have a great 20-26. We look forward to talking with you throughout the course of the year. Still the gold standard. Where can we get online to get all of the platforms? Thank you very much, Brett. Check me out online. All the picks up at the old standbys, VegasInsider.com. Also, CBS Sportsline, Sportsline.com. And picks with a different twist at WinnersAndLiners.com and PicksAndHarleys.com.

[52:50] Bruce, I echo the cinemas of Mr. Brett Beaird. Thank you so much. I hope 2025 was great and 2026 is even better. Thanks so much and stay safe out there, okay? Happy New Year, boys. Thank you. Thank you, Billy. Thank you, Bruce Marshall. Again, Vegas Insider. Coming up for the next hour, we're going to be taking it back across the country with Matt Michelle Joe Cox at the stage in the NCC and Ben Thomas from north to south Alabama and all points in between. It's all straight ahead of the Bumult Bug Show.

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Online health questions required. 1819 News. Good afternoon. I'm Carl Brady for Andrea Theis. Governor Kay Ivey on Monday announced Alabama has officially received more than $203 billion from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for the Federal Rural Health Transformation Program. The five-year program is designed to improve health care access, quality, and outcomes in the state and will be administered by the Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs. The RHTP was established under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which Congress passed in July, and President Donald Trump signed into law.

More news after this. Did you know that 70% of people experience a potentially traumatic event in their lifetime and that six out of every 100 adults face PTSD every day? Help us bring hope to these survivors by signing up for your Alabama distinctive PTSD awareness license plate today. The great thing is you can sign up no matter when your current plate renews and the first year is complimentary. The Dow County Sheriff's Office has not charged anyone in the shooting death of Elba Zion Missionary Baptist Church Pastor Dequarius Green, leading some to speculate the incident may have been justified.

The 31-year-old pastor died Saturday in a domestic incident at a Level Plains home. A woman is suspected of the shooting, but authorities have not released her name. A proposed bill in the upcoming legislative session could require Alabama counties to conduct mandatory post-election audits to verify the accuracy of election results. The bill aims to increase confidence in election results without altering outcomes or triggering automatic recounts. For 1819 News, I'm Carl Brady. For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com. And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter.

[58:24] Valley Broadcasting Corporation, WITK-FM, Rogersville, Athens, Decatur, The Shores, Sports Radio 93.9, The Score. Tide fans, here comes the Tide. Let's roll. At one for the win. Ballgame, ballgame, ballgame, ballgame, and the wins. Grab your hard hats and tune in for blue-collar basketball with the Crimson Tide all season long on your home for Alabama basketball. This Saturday, Alabama opens SEC play as they welcome the Kentucky Wildcats to Coleman Coliseum. Airtime is 10 a.m. with a tip at 11 here on 93.9 The Score. Brought to you locally in part by Nationwide Insurance Agents Michael Noe and Bill Cochran, Garner Pierce Otto, the Alabama Music Hall of Fame, Bob's Tire and Alignment, Alpha Insurance Agents David Jordan, Mike Mitchell, and Matt Henry, Fake Independent, Champy's World Famous Fried Chicken, Woody Anderson Ford, Garnett Electric, and Elliott Johnson Insurance.

Alabama and Kentucky, this Saturday morning at 10 on 93.9 The Score. 93.9 The Score weather. Today sunny with a high around 40 and wind chill values between 15 and 25. Tonight mostly clear with a low near 25. Tomorrow sunny and breezy with a high around 50. Tomorrow night clear with a low near 30. And for your New Year's Day, mostly sunny with a high around 60. 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 Trudaloo Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg. Alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us a free ride around the Tennessee Valley. Brett Beaird, we're just moments away from kicking off what has to be one of the most fun bowls of all time. Remember the famous Poulain Weed Whacker Bowl? Oh, absolutely. Down in Shreveport. Sad to say, it's no longer the Poulain Weed Whacker Bowl.

It is the Radiance Tech Independence Bowl, Coastal Carolina, Louisiana Tech, about to get rocking and rolling in Shreveport. Do you miss the Poulain Weed Whacker Bowl? I miss the name. I thought it was one of the best names in the history of bowls. Another good name at AL.com is Ben Thomas. He's got the entire state covered from the north to the south, and as we mentioned, all points in between. Ben Thomas, welcome in. Hope you and your family had a great, great and safe Christmas.

I once rang in the New Year in Shreveport at the Poulain Weed Eater Bowl. It was Auburn and Army in the game. Turned out to be a great game. I think Auburn won late. Maybe Damian Craig was in that game. And then I got to go down on the, whatever, the downtown strip, and they had the performance by Vanilla Ice on New Year's Eve. Ice Baby ringing in the New Year's. So, it's been a while, but I haven't forgot that. I thought you were going to say Vanilla there for a minute, Ben.

That is one thin album for greatest hits, is it not? I think he played Ice Ice Baby three times. Oh, man. Ben, it's hard to believe. Here we are, one day away from saying goodbye to 2025. With it, we take the memories, the good, the bad, the ugly. If you will reflect on your 2025, and as far as the high school scenes, what were some of the highs and some of the lows for you over this past year? Yeah, I mean, actually, we have something on AL.com coming on tomorrow afternoon, our top ten stories of the year.

Alabama High School sports-wise in 2025, that'll be up tomorrow afternoon. And, you know, there were some big stories. Some of them didn't make our top ten list, but obviously we talked last week about Phillip Rivers and what's happened in the last three weeks with him and the Colts. I had our staff vote on their top stories, but that was the number one story for me, maybe just because I'm so ingrained down here where Phillip coaches and that stuff. But him coming out of retirement after five years and age 44 and playing pretty well.

I think everybody's agreeing that he played a lot better probably than most people expected him to, even though they didn't win any games. I thought that was a huge story, and I think, you know, I don't want to spoil it, but one of the top stories, and probably the top story for next year, is going to be whatever happens with the public and private schools and reclassification. You know, this year has been the CHOOSE Act and the governor's lawsuit against the HSAA over that, and that is all going to spark whatever happens in January.

[1:03:43] Right now, reclassification is set to be announced on January 23rd, but that's going to be probably the story of the year. Obviously, it's hard to tell what else might happen in 2026, but that certainly is going to be a defining moment, I think. Me and obviously, we don't know. We don't have the envelope, and it's not open, so there's nothing official. Make sure we're clear on that. Well, right now, with a day left in this year, what does your gut tell you that's going to be in that envelope once they open it up?

You know, it's hard to say. I mean, I think it still depends on, you know, as far as I know, they're still mediating this lawsuit, this injunction. I mean, my hope is, as I've written a couple of times, that the governor and the HSAA and the lawyers can come together and find a way to move forward without dramatic change, but, you know, the more – I don't hear a lot of optimism about that. In fact, I think I'm going to try and poll the coaches anonymously, football coaches, and just see what they think.

I mean, I do think there's a very real possibility, maybe more realistic than we've ever had before, that there's going to be some type of move to separate private schools. I'm still not sure whether it can be done, you know, this quickly, but, you know, I think that's what we're waiting on. I mean, that's obviously why they moved the meeting to January 23rd to try and get through this mediation and see what happens. But, you know, you've got people who are unhappy on both sides, and, you know, who knows where we'll end up.

But I don't like it. You know, as you guys said, I don't think the government should be involved in this. I don't think we want – if we're headed toward the Department of Education, State Department of Education, running high school sports, first of all, I don't think they want to do it. And second of all, I don't think they would know what they're getting into if they did do it. So, I'm concerned moving into 2026, but hopefully Heath Harmon and those guys can help pave a way to a better future.

Here's the deal on that. Obviously, nobody knows until that date, but let's say that comes to fruition. How in the world do you schedule? I mean, there ain't that many private schools. You'd have to end up playing multiple times, or so it would seem. How do you schedule, given that reality? You know, that's a good question. I mean, especially up in y'all's neck of the woods, I mean, there's almost no private schools in North Alabama. We've got a good many down here, but they're all, for the most part, smaller.

I mean, you have McGill School and St. Paul's and John Carroll, I guess, in the Birmingham area. But for the most part, you're talking 3A and below. So, that would be an issue. I mean, do they – and, you know, the other issue is, look, if the HSA comes out and it says, all right, we're going to separate private schools into their own category. You can still play during the regular season, but you'll play your own in the championship. Then will private schools even want to be a part of that?

I mean, what would be games of being under the AHSAA umbrella? So, I think that's one scenario. I think I've heard that, you know, maybe some of the larger schools, like McGill, and those schools would still be involved in the public school-type playoff if they did it that way. I just – I just – you know, it's hard to say. It's like a mess. Yeah, it's a mess, and it didn't have to be this way. You know, it didn't have to be this way, but that's where we are.

B.T., that concerns – I mean, my dad was a judge for 16 years, and I'm well aware. I hope the Montgomery County Judge, J.R. Gaines, who has ordered the lawyers for the AHSAA and Governor Kenny Ivey to get this thing mediated, I hope all of this can be worked out to come to some kind of a resolution in January. Even the reclassification that was scheduled for December the 15th, as you've noted several times, now will be announced hopefully January the 23rd. Now, I know with COVID, we learned that you can change athletic schedules fairly quickly, but I know there are a lot of coaches who want to know, am I going up and am I going down?

And if so, I've got to get busy scheduling for the 2026 season. Yeah, I mean, well, no matter what you're doing, you still want to know what your schedule is and what you've got to set up. You know, you'll have however many region games you're in, but you'll still have to set up the other three or four or two, however many teams are in your region. You still have to try and schedule those and make it work out. So, yeah, it needs to happen, but, you know, there's no, I wonder if when the HSA comes out with whatever they come out with, assuming they do come out with it on January 23rd, if there's, you know, if then the private schools say something else, we've got to redo it again.

I mean, you know, it's, I don't know. I don't know where we'll end up on this thing. When we do, we know you'll have it covered there at the AL.com, Ben Thomas and the crew. Good news, Ben, they tell me that Mr. Alabama's football is down to a mere 48. Do I have that number right? And your thoughts about Mr. Football, how dramatic is the final selection there, Ben? Yeah, 48. So the Alabama Sports Rights Association announced the three finalists in each category, each classification in the AISA for the back and lineman of the year.

[1:09:18] And then, so we're in the process of notifying those folks, and they will be invited to the player of the year banquet on January 20th, which is sponsored by Alpha Insurance, great partner for us, and the Alabama Athletic Directors and Football Coaches Association. And then from that, at that banquet, we will name the lineman and back of the year in each classification in the AISA, along with the Super All-State team, and then we will name Mr. Football. And as I said before, I mean, I think you've got a couple of contenders in my mind.

I mean, I'm only one vote. But, you know, obviously E.J. Crowell, the Alabama signee from Jackson who led the state in rushing. It would be one Trent Seaborn. I mean, I think you have to consider the junior quarterback at Thompson, who probably is going to, you know, statistically going to be the best quarterback maybe ever to play in Alabama. I mean, he's played so long, you know, and won multiple championships. So those two guys are at the helm. I mean, obviously there's a lot of other great players.

Brock Bradley, the quarterback at Spain Park. Jamison Roberts at Fairland had a good year. You know, Jabari Esgar from Viger is a fourth on defense. So a lot of good players will be invited. It's going to be a good event there in Montgomery on January 20th, and look forward to seeing who the winners are. New update the brackets, AL.com voting for the Alabama High School Player of the Year. I think you're down to the semifinals in BT. It appears to have a, how could we call it, an Alabama flavor.

It does. Randy Kennedy has termed it the People's Choice Award. I kind of like that. So the People's Choice, AL.com People's Choice Award, we started with a 16-member bracket and seeded those players. Actually, it was a little bit more than that because we voted off seven players to get our number 16 seed, which turned out to be Aaron Fry, the quarterback from Clay Trottsville. So we really had 23 players involved in this. But we are down to the semifinals. You can vote on those this week. And they are all either Alabama signees or commitments.

So you have Crowell, the aforementioned Crowell, who is the number one seed, has advanced, which you would think that's not a big deal, the number one seed advancing. But last year, the number one seed got beat in the first round. So you got Crowell. He has taken on C.D. Morgan, the Benjamin Russell wide receiver, who's already at Alabama practicing for the bowl game. So you kind of got the senior bracket there. And then on the other half, you got two juniors, two junior Alabama commits, Trent Seaborn, who we just talked about, the Thompson quarterback, and Jabari's Chicken Garrar, who we just talked about, the Weiger defensive lineman.

So four good, so sick, you know, they're all, you got a one seed, a two seed, a six seed, and a three seed, and a five seed there fighting it out. And so we'll, that'll go through, you can vote through Sunday morning. And then starting next Monday, we'll, we'll start voting for the finalist and see who the people's choice is to be the player of the year. Ben, you invoked the name of Morgan. He is in a field full of stars. He is opening some eyes in the practice, on the practice field at Alabama, getting ready for the Rose Bowl, since he's already enrolled at Alabama.

It seems like he's not missing a beat from high school to this level. I don't think he will. I mean, I saw him in the Alabama-Mississippi game. He's kind of one, he's a little bit like Cam Coleman, which is ironic since they were both, well, Cam Coleman played at Central Phoenix City, but he's, they're kind of similar in that they can moth people, is the phrase that the kids use. And in the Alabama-Mississippi game, he went up over two Mississippi defenders, who were both interfering with him, by the way, and made a touchdown catch.

I mean, that's what you're going to get with him. I mean, he's, Cam Coleman liking that he can, he's one of those guys you can be like, oh my gosh, how did he, how did he make that catch? Not really a speed guy that's going to necessarily separate, but he doesn't have to when he's got that type of physical ability to just out-jump people and out-muscle people for the ball. BT, a tip of the count to the Huntsville Crimson Panthers. Thomas Ashworth covered the, it's a great tournament in Huntsville.

Huntsville beat Oxford 57-46 behind MVP Evan Toms, 25 points, 11 rebounds in the four games. He had 100 points and 44 rebounds. He's a junior, only a junior. He's 16 years old. He wears a size 17 shoe. He's still growing. They won the, down in your neck of the woods, the Orange Beach, the battle for the boards at Orange Beach. So they're coming off a two impressive tournament wins, and we'll get into more of the high school basketball. But, again, it's a lot of great basketball. Let me also mention, you had a great article about the passing of your dad, and we talked with you about that through the process.

[1:14:37] You handled that with a lot of dignity and class, as he did. He was a great man. He's got a great son, too. BT, where can we get on line to get all the good stuff? Well, I appreciate that, Brett. Yeah, first Christmas without dad. And it was different, but it was okay. And, you know, we don't forget him. And, obviously, he's in our thoughts and prayers every day. And just the legacy that he left us is as special, as I'm sure, you know, people, a lot of people listening can say the same about their father.

So, and my point was, a lot of people have lost people this year, you know, and so just praying for all those, because it's definitely different during the holidays. But I appreciate you bringing that up, and hope it helps some people. That was my goal in the column. But, yeah, you can, we've still got it going on on AL.com. We're still doing our newsletter this week, even though it's the holidays. Like I said, look for tomorrow, tomorrow afternoon, look for our top ten stories. Actually, it turned out to be 11, because we had one tied for the 10th spot.

So, our top 11 stories of 2025 will be coming your way. And, also, this week, we're doing our all-state, all-region volleyball teams, one a day. So, Dennis Victory is in charge of that. So, check that out. Hope you guys have a happy new year, and look forward to talking to you in 2026. Right. Back at you, Ben. Ben, Thomas, AL.com, BB. We'll put there about Ben. Life's the journey. Make the most of every moment. Don't take anything or anyone for granted. Coming up, we don't take Joe Kotz for granted.

He's got the entire Southeastern Conference covered, and he's next on the Boomo Bugg Show. Stay with us. What if your instincts could pay off? With Robinhood Prediction Markets, you can put your sports IQ to work on the games you know best. It's not you against the house. It's you participating in a live market. Buy or sell your predictions all game long. Trade every play with Robinhood. Visit Robinhood.com slash predict. That's Robinhood.com slash predict. Futures and cleared swaps trading involves significant risk and is not appropriate for everyone.

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That's E-T-H-O-S dot com slash game. Time spent on application may vary. Online health questions required. Hey fans, welcome back to Fansville's Cheers and Tears. Okay, so like everybody deals with losing, right? To a rival on a last-second field goal. Whatever, it's fine. I'm totally fine. But I cope with losing with an ice-cold Dr. Pepper. Mmm, those 23 flavors are like so delicious. They totally wash away the pain of your college football team taking a big fat L. College football, it's a pepper thing. Target work, stepping up.

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Whatever, it's fine. I'm totally fine. But I cope with losing with an ice-cold Dr. Pepper. Mmm, those 23 flavors are like so delicious. They totally wash away the pain of your college football team taking a big fat L. College football, it's a pepper thing. The college football playoff isn't over. Not yet. That epic run. That wild dream. Not over till the clock hits zero. Till the stadium shakes. Till the wild things are let loose. Till the trophy is lifted and the confetti falls. This is the national championship.

When it's over, you'll feel it. This is the wild world of college football. The CFP National Championship. Monday, January 19th at 7.30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN and the ESPN app. Good night away of Northwest Alabama is thrilled to announce the return of its signature fundraising gala, Shoals Royale, on Saturday, February 21st, 2026 at the Renathon Shoals Conference Center. This black-tie optional casino-themed event brings all the glitz and excitement of Las Vegas to the Shoals, complete with live entertainment, gaming tables, prices, hors d'oeuvres, and a cash bar, and all for a great cause.

[1:19:44] Now in its fourth year, Shoals Royale has become one of Northwest Alabama's premier charity events, uniting local businesses, community leaders, and residents for a night of luxury and purpose. Proceeds directly benefit United Way of Northwest Alabama and the 12 local nonprofit partners and 22 community programs and funds. Individual tickets are $125 or $200 per couple, or go in VIP style for $350 or $600 per couple. Shoals Royale, 2026, Saturday, February 21st at 7 p.m. at the Renathon Shoals Conference Center. Tickets are available now at givebutter.com slash Shoals Royale 2026. The Score. Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.

The Score. Welcome back in. Really appreciate your free ride around the Tennessee Valley. And for Joe Cox, anytime of his busy schedule, there's columnists for Saturday down south, the fine author of a fine team man. Joe, welcome in. First of all, how's your son? Last time we talked, had a little bit of an issue there, I believe. Correct me if I'm wrong with Scarlett Beaver. How are things with family? He's doing fine. I've been sick, of course, just because… No! Everybody played catch with all the winter bugs.

But, you know, right now, hey, I'm getting back to normal, just trying to get out there and spend a few of those holiday gift cards. So, I hope you guys are doing all right, too. Well, be careful if you use the old grandpa's… Remember, grandpa's favorite medicine for the cold has something to do with Jack Daniels and some honey. So, I think it was heavy on the Jack Daniels and light on the honey. You've got to be careful of that one, for sure. There you go.

It seemed to work for a granddad, all right. He was sick a lot. Yeah. Joe, let's talk a little bit about the Rose Bowl. Who gets the roses and who gets the thorns Thursday in Pasadena? You know, it's going to be really, really interesting. I don't know how it's going to come down. You know, this whole postseason, it's been one of those things where everything you think you know, then you turn around and it goes out the window. So, I'm kind of leaning in the direction of saying just toss a coin and whatever you get is whatever you're going to end up seeing.

Because at this point in time, you know, it could go anywhere. Joe, Indiana's got a good team. There's no question about it. They don't beat themselves. They're plus 17 in turnovers. Their defense has been very good. I don't know if anybody's scored over three touchdowns against them. But Harold and I talk a lot about strength of schedule with the Matrix for the college football playoff. Alabama's been there and done that. They've won five games in the SEC on the road. And I'm not making light of any in the schedule at all.

But it has not been as tough. They're not as battle-tested as Alabama. Again, we'll see what the weather has to do with this. But when you look at the wins on the road in an SEC schedule, how much does that benefit Alabama? Well, you've got to think it benefits a lot. And, you know, you point out a thing there that is kind of a subtle key to me. I've just been a little bit skeptical of this Indiana defense. Every time I see it, it plays really well.

But then again, how much of that is a lack of battle testing. It's just been interesting. One thing I know we've talked about, to drag in another team here kind of randomly, Georgia this year has been really good defensively, but it's very much been a bend-but-don't-break thing. It's not been the Georgia defense of the past where you're sacking the quarterback all the time and you're making all these big negative plays. Indiana's more built in that realm. They're going to be aggressive. They're going to try to make these plays.

But based off what Kirby Smart has done, I almost feel like I just kind of generally credit him with being a step ahead of everybody. And maybe the answer this postseason isn't going to be to be the aggressive defense. It's going to be the defense that just kind of bends and bends and then doesn't break. So maybe that's the answer for Alabama. Maybe you can catch these guys getting a little over-aggressive, thinking that they can make some big plays and instead you can hit them for some bombs down the field.

And, boy, that would be a welcome thing for Caleb DeBoer, certainly. Yeah, and this place is coming in. Indiana's got the bigger target on their back. They're the heavy favorite in the national media's darling. So we'll see how that works out between the ears. Joe Cox, Saturday down south, who wins the battle of the ex-Nick Saban coaches? Will it be Kirby Smart or Pete Golding in a cotton boat, Georgia, and Ole Miss round two? Nothing like a nice SEC game late in the year. Yeah, again.

[1:24:47] You know, Georgia has just been such a funny team. And all year long I feel like I've been looking for reasons that they're not going to show up and not going to be who we think they are. But at the same time, I think they've got less question marks heading into this than Ole Miss does. You know, the Rebels have had a fine season, but at some point all of the chemistry balancing that's had to go on behind this team is really going to have to come to the surface.

I like the Bulldogs. That's probably the kiss of death. I probably just handed Ole Miss their ticket based on my record this season, guys. But I feel like this just fits better for Georgia right now. Joe, let me ask you about, speaking of Lane Kiffin, how in the world can the man fail? Because he has no championships, but now he's got Lane Kiffin, he's got money, he can go out. And I thought it was telling what he said the other night in that interview during the ball game.

He stayed until the cameras turned off and then he left two hours before the game was ending. So be Lane. But how in the world can he fail given the fact that he can now play NFL ball and put together a team, the best team that money can buy? Yeah, the question is going to be, can he win with the favorite label? He's had the advantage at Ole Miss of kind of sneaking up on people. Right. And now the crown's going to get a little bit heavy for him.

He's never done that. Maybe he can do that. Maybe he can't do that. But the image thing, you know, I keep thinking Lane Kiffin is that beautiful girl who just charms everybody. And then the next week she's with your, the guy you talk with your best friend. She's charming again, but not with you. Yeah, exactly. And, you know, Ole Miss should be wise to remember the knowledge I gained in my youth, which is that if they'll do it for you, they'll do it to you. So, you know, who will be the next suitor who comes along who's a little more charming even than the Tigers?

You know, as a Kentucky basketball guy, we went through that with Rick Pitino. When Rick Pitino was the flavor of the week. And, boy, you loved him, but, man, so did the New York Knicks and the L.A. Lakers. And, you know, it's unending. So, you know, will it work? It could, but it could blow up in their face just as easily as Lane Kiffin could be the answer at Baton Rouge. And I really, I think at the end of the day, in some manner, that's what will happen.

Let me ask you about a couple of SEC bowl games before we let you go. The Liberty Bowl. No, the Liberty Bowl. The Music City Bowl. The Liberty Mutual Bowl. Tennessee at Illinois. Tennessee at five and a half point favorite. Illinois' pass defense is terrible. Naguilor led the SEC in passing. Does Tennessee get a win here? And then, you know, will tomorrow morning be the final game for Pavia? We'll see if the lawsuit goes through. They're playing Iowa. They're a four-point favorite. Will Pavia get a win?

Joe, your thoughts. Will Tennessee and Vandy win the next two SEC games? I like where they're sitting. I like where Tennessee's sitting even better just because Illinois, Illinois in many ways feels kind of like the prototypical Big Ten team. They're a little bit wooden. They're a little bit clunky. And I think Tennessee's kind of got a statement to make. They've kind of been forgotten here in the last few weeks with all the CFP talk. And the Vols could have very easily been there. I think that's going to be a statement game.

I think they've really got something on their mind and will put together an impressive performance and really take care of that one. Pavia will be sharp, but so is Iowa. Iowa is always the funny team to watch there. Just that defense, you know, it's the kind of football everybody hates because it's just boring. It grinds and lean on you and make you beat them 17-14 or 14-10 because you're just not going to open up much. I do think Iowa's got an advantage there in terms of having been there before.

I don't think Vandy's in bad shape, but if push comes to shove, I feel like Iowa maybe pulls that one out. But, you know, again, just a 14-10, 17-14, turn it into a mutter, get the ball on the ground a couple times, something like that. But certainly an interesting way for a couple of SEC teams that really just missed the playoff hunt themselves. Joe, before we jump off, a couple of things. Number one, where can we get the latest with you? And you mentioned Kentucky basketball.

The two shall come together this weekend to take the lid off the conference schedule. Alabama and Kentucky, what happens there? That should be a great game. I would rather be in Alabama's shoes right now because Kentucky, I think, is still putting things together. But they have gotten Jaden Quaintance into the mix a little bit. And I think right now I like where Alabama's at. It'll be more interesting to see where they're at, you know, come time for everybody to head to Nashville and do this in a couple months in a tournament setting.

[1:29:58] But at the moment, I certainly like the Tide and I like that team for the long haul. But Kentucky could be on their way. And as far as where to watch, Saturday down south, we'll be, you know, moving from the oblong ball to the round ball any time now. Always on the ball. Joe, listen, man, thanks so much. Get the feeling better up there, okay? Thanks, guys. I appreciate you. Thank you, Joe. Joe Cox, Saturday down south. Update from the bowl game that was formerly known as the Poulain Weeds Witter Bowl.

It is now Coastal and Louisiana Tech 0-0-5-17 to go down in Shreveport. Bella, we've still got time if you jump on the jet and get down there after the show before it ends up, PB. I still love the name, though, yes. I do, too. First, Matt Merchelle on deck. Stay with us. You still thinking job change in the new year? Yeah, I need something that's in high demand and more stable in this economy. IT? Yeah, cybersecurity, maybe even AI. That's what I did. Really?

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Live a little. Start today at Empower.com. Progressive presents the Sports Flash on 93-9. The score. NFL action last night. The Atlanta Falcons. Winners over the Rams. 27-24. Bijon Robinson. 195 on the ground and a touchdown. Falcons are now 7-9. Men's Hoops yesterday. Number 14, Alabama. Beat Yale 102-78 in the victory. Gade and Holloway had 26.7 assists. Alabama is now 10-3 on the season. South Alabama defeated Mobile 85-52. The Jaguars are now 10-4. And the Auburn Tigers. Winners last night to beat Queens, 106-65. Auburn with the victory is now 9-4.

Elijah Freeman had 27 points in the victory. 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. Taxes was feeling so stuck. Sitting in traffic, squeezing into a parking spot, all to squeeze in getting tax help during your lunch break. Now Taxes is a TurboTax expert who does your taxes for you, while you go about your day getting real-time notifications about their progress. And the most money-back guaranteed. Now this is Taxes. Intuit TurboTax.

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[1:35:10] Welcome back to the Boomo Bugg Show. And say hello to the man who's always sitting on goal, Matt Merchel. He's busy there. He's a college insider with the Orlando Center on his podcast. It's called Gridiron 365. Matt, welcome in to the question of the day. If you don't mind, this beginning is, where does Santa find a chimney to come down in Orlando? How are you? I'm doing well. You know, Santa still finds a way. He always finds a way, right? To drop the gifts off. Whether it's on the, whether it's on the Lanai or it's in the hammock or it's on the beach.

He always finds a way to make sure you get those gifts. There you go. Matt, obviously, it's the Christmas season. If you love some serious bowling, we've had the warm-ups. We're about to get, as they say, very serious. Starting tomorrow night with the Cotton Bowl Classic, a team from down the interstate south of you there in Miami. They're ranked number 10. Notre Dame's favorite team outside of Alabama in the bowl contest playoffs, taking on the Ohio State University. Number two versus number 10. What happens in the Cotton Bowl Classic, Matt?

You know, I think this is, you know, Ohio State has played really good football throughout most of the season. This is a team that's put up a lot of points. I think there's a little bit maybe of a feeling that they're being overshadowed because of the fact that they lost to Indiana. And Indiana, obviously, seems to be the Cinderella story of this college football playoff. But I think my, I think Ohio State really is locked in and wants to find a way to push forward. They're defending national champs.

You know, they feel like they've done everything right. And because of the fact that not a lot of people outside of Columbus, you know, really talking about them, I think they feel like this is a perfect situation for them. You know, they go in, they play a Miami team that, you know, had to scratch and claw its way to get past Texas A&M. You know, Miami comes in here trying to play the, you know, the undercard. But I think this is a game that Ohio State ends up winning.

I think they have enough points. I think their defense can play well enough. And, you know, I think that, you know, this is an opportunity for Ohio State to say, listen, don't count us out just because of that loss to Indiana. We're still a very good team. Man, speaking of Indiana, obviously, we've looked at Alabama and Indiana quite a bit. They're a very good team. Again, Mendoza winning the Heisman has got very impressive numbers. Cooper, the leading receiver. Surratt is good, too. Hardy leads the defense, which I don't know.

I don't believe they've given up over three touchdowns. Alabama's battle-tested. They've won five games in the SEC on the road. They're much healthier than what they've been, really, since at least midseason, if not before. We've talked about it quite a bit. You know both teams well, and particularly in Indiana. Matt, your thoughts? You know, I think this is, for Indiana, this is where you've got to put up, you know, everything that you've been talking about. Everyone's talking about Indiana. They think that it's, like I mentioned, the Cinderella going into this tournament.

They've played really well. Mendoza, obviously, is the Heisman Trophy winner. They're a favorite. A lot of people feel like this is a team that can move on. I feel like, really, honestly, it'd be an incredible story if they could somehow win it all and win the national title. You know, so for them, you know, this is about putting all the outside noise aside, putting all those distractions aside, getting out there, and just going back to playing football. They played really well. They've got a really good defense.

You know, Alabama came from behind, looked impressive, beating Oklahoma, really steamrolling them once they got going. You know, but again, can Indiana maybe shake off a little bit of that rust? You know, they haven't played in a few weeks. Can they get that rust off? Can they go out there and can they find a way to beat Alabama? You know, an Alabama team that clearly wants to make a statement, you know, that this season was nowhere near what they thought it was going to be. But if you can beat an Indiana, the number one seed, and move on, you know, and get to the semifinals, you've got a pretty big case for it.

So, I like Indiana still, I'm still falling in that line. But, I mean, I think this is going to be a really good game when it's all said and done. Here, first time for the show, congratulations. Please stay with us. We appreciate the ride. If you've been with us, you know, Matt, you're an Indiana native. The question is, how did Indiana get this good this fast? And if you look at the respective rosters, is it safe to say Alabama has the depth? They got nine five-stars.

I saw a story the other day where, Matt, Indiana's never signed one five-star out of high school. They only got two four-star starters. Their quarterback was a two-star coming out of high school. Yet, here they are, number one in the country, favored over a brand, Alabama. How did Indiana get this good this fast? And what does it say about a coaching staff that can squeeze all the juice out of an orange? Yeah, you know, and I think going back to that, I think the days of what five-stars and four-stars mean are slowly going to disappear.

You know, I just don't think you've seen coaches time and time again say, we can get the most out of guys. We can get the most out of, you know, you've got a lot of two, three-star guys who have been on teams who have become superstars. Look at the Super Bowl rosters. Yes, exactly. And then they go on the portal, and then a team grabs them, and you've got that. Meanwhile, you've got a five-star or a four-star kid sitting on the bench as a freshman going, well, okay, I've got all these stars.

[1:40:32] Well, you know, I think it goes back to what coaches can do to develop a little bit at this point. And I think 100% is roster management. I mean, you know, we're talking about how you can get the most out of your roster. Listen, Steve Sarkeesian was here this morning talking about getting ready for the Citrus Bowl. And he mentioned, someone asked him about, you know, roster management. And he said, listen, we would love to get to 105 players, but because of the amount of money we can only spend, you know, it may be 85 scholarship players.

Right. You know, because we can't, if you get to 105, then you're stretched thin. That's in Texas. Yeah, exactly. That's Texas. Now, you know, he was talking about, let's start, you know, you're supposed to follow the rules, obviously, when it comes to all this stuff. But, you know, I think a lot of these teams, it's about roster management. How can you get the most out of your money that you're allowed to spend and the most out of the players you bring in there? So, it's talent evaluation and it's roster management.

Those are the two keys to success. I think Indiana has done a really great job of that. Kirk Sinetti got that when he was at James Madison. He figured out how to do it in other places. And I think getting to Indiana, he was able to get guys that he felt like fit well into his system and were able to find a way to have success. So, you know, yeah, he may not have a lot of fives and fours, but I think he's realizing very quickly he's got enough guys to find success.

Yeah, you're going to get a chance to see Diego Pavia's last game, maybe. Maybe. If, pending the legal battle, you've had a fast thing. I want to ask you about the Pop-Tarts Bowl, which has turned into a fan paper, but I've got to ask you about Kyle Whittingham. Alabama fans were saying, thank you, Lord, that somebody is finally in place in Michigan. That was a mass, mad, and it's going to take – it's not about winning games. It's about changing culture, but I think they made a very good hire with winning him.

I've always had a lot of respect for him, been very successful in Utah. It's going to take him a while, but he knows how to win, defense, running the ball, physical, which is what he's done for years at Utah. Your thoughts on the hire? Yeah, I thought it was a great hire. I mean, I've always thought that Kyle Whittingham is probably one of the more under-evalued coaches in college football. Doesn't get a lot of attention, I think, because he's on the West Coast, because he was coaching at Utah.

Michigan was clearly looking for someone to change the culture in their program. He clearly wanted somebody that they felt like to come in and have the authority and the gravitas to really kind of inspire the team, get things on the right path. It was interesting. I was at his press conference the other day, and he kind of checked all the boxes talking about the culture, talking about how he wanted to get things back on the right path. And it was funny, they asked him about Ohio State, and he kind of just hemmed and hawed about it a little bit.

And I think Michigan fans are a little bit, you know, you want your coach to say, heck, I hate these guys. I want to beat these guys. But he really wasn't focused on that so much as he wanted to say, I'm focused on getting our players ready, getting this program back to where it is. I think that's important, because yes, being Ohio State is important. Winning the Big Ten is important. But at this point in Michigan right now, it's about getting that program back on track.

And so I think that Kyle Winningham is going to do that. I asked him flat out, I said, listen, people come to Florida to retire. They don't come to Florida to find new jobs. You did that the other day. And he said, I'm 66. I feel like I've got a lot in the tank. I can go outside a five-year deal. I'm going to be here for the foreseeable future. So I think Michigan feels like they've got the right time. Let me ask you this on that topic, Matt.

Who got the bigger bump, the better deal, Penn State or Michigan? When it comes to coaching hires? Yeah. Who got the best coach? That's a good question. I like what Matt Campbell did at Penn State, at Iowa State. I think he's a good up-and-coming young coach. I think he's going to have more, I might say resources. I think he's going to step in a situation where maybe they can win quicker right now. You know, I think for winning him, I think long-term, I think Kyle's going to really help them out.

I think he's going to probably find a way to get everything back to where it needs to be. His struggles are he's a California guy. He's going to have to start recruiting. He's going to have to build a staff that's really got a lot of pieces, that has a lot of connections to the high schools and Michigan and the Midwest and down south. And he's going to have to recruit a lot of those guys. So, I mean, long-term, I'm going to say probably Michigan got the better deal.

You know, I think Matt Campbell was always going to move on at some point. But he's still a young guy. I think, you know, he knows how to have success. His biggest hurdle is going to be, okay, now you're in the Big Ten where finishing third or fourth isn't going to work very well for that fan base. They want to win a Big Ten title. And that's what's really going to be the pressure on him. So, Matt, staying with the coaching theme, does Lincoln Riley get any cheese with his whining out there about Notre Dame?

No, I think Lincoln Riley needs – I mean, listen. I mean, it's been proven that USC had no interest in renewing that rivalry with Notre Dame. You know, they wanted to do it on their terms. They wanted to do that. I think Lincoln Riley's in trouble. I think USC's in trouble. I mean, Lincoln Riley hasn't really won a lot lately. They have another subpar season. You know, I think they're going to find themselves in a difficult situation where, you know, okay, they're going to have to find – maybe have to make a change.

[1:46:00] And Lincoln Riley, the shine has come off of him. You know, it's come off in the last couple years. And I don't necessarily believe that he's the hot commodity he was when he took the job at USC. And that's a shame. But I just don't think that, you know, bashing another team, you know, bashing Notre Dame like the way he did, I don't think that helps your cause. Listen, Notre Dame's an easy target now because of what they did, the opting out of the postseason. So, you know, it's easy to take that.

But to get rid of a rivalry series that has gone on for as long as those two of them, I don't care what needs to be done. And get everyone in a room, lock the door, and tell them, get it done. Because college football needs rivalry still. They can't just let these things go away just because times are starting to change. The Pop-Tarts Bowl has the best postgame celebration I think I've ever seen. It was a great game. BYU came from behind to beat Georgia Tech 25-21.

Kalani Satake, the BYU coach. I don't know if you can get sick from eating Pop-Tarts, but he may have come close to it. But BYU, with that win, 12 wins for the first time since 2001, you were there. You saw all of the chaos going on before and after the game. Tell us a little bit about the – it grows in popularity a little more every year. Tell us about the Pop-Tarts Bowl. It does. I mean, you think about it. When you can get fan engagement, when you can get fans excited about a bowl game, that's not a playoff game.

You know what I mean? And you're talking about – I mean, for the most part, Pop-Tarts has just made – it's been a huge deal for them. I mean, they've just taken advantage of – I think they get millions and millions of online traffic, and everyone's talking about the product, and you can't get any better. I mean, Duke's Mail had it for a while there, and then all of a sudden, I think they've been eclipsed by this. And now it's every – you know, they've got Pop-Tart mascots running around.

They've got a big giant – you know, what is it, a big giant toaster where the mascots – Yeah, sucking your leg, falling off of it. Yeah, exactly. You've got coaches who are just – you know, I mean, Satake was talking the other day. He was just shoveling Pop-Tarts in there, you know what I mean? And, I mean, you know, it's hilarious. And so I think the players love it. The coaches love it. You know, the fans obviously love it. I think if Pop-Tarts are smart, they stick with them for a while.

I think it's something that's going to last them a long time. I was saying this the other day. I've been in Atlanta for a long time. The Citrus Bowl used to always be the premier game in the state. And I think Pop-Tarts has now surpassed it. And I think Citrus now is trying to find a way to catch up. They've got the Cheez-It Bowl tomorrow. So we'll see how many Cheez-Its get thrown around on that field when it's all said and done. But I'm going to tell you guys this.

I've had enough Pop-Tarts for a while. I've eaten enough Pop-Tarts. I think we can move on from that. They are marketing geniuses. You're exactly right. That post-game trophy celebration was one for the ages. Listen, we have certainly enjoyed 2025 with Matt Merchelle. Appreciate tremendously the keen insight. Have fun tomorrow with the Cheez-It Bowl, which is, by the way, my favorite snack. Matt, tell us, where can we get online and get all your good stuff? Yeah, you can go to OrlandoSettle.com or check out the latest. You can follow me on social media.

Oh, that's Matt Merchelle. I'm sure I'll have plenty of Cheez-It coverage tomorrow, and I'm sure there'll be all sorts of flavors to talk about, and also we've got football to worry about, see if Texas can pull out a big win, even though they thought they should be in the playoff, and whether Michigan maybe can put all this behind them and get a win as well. Pop-Tarts and Cheez-It, part of a balanced meal. Listen, I echo the sentiments. Happy New Year to you, and thanks so much for your time, Matt.

All right. Thanks a lot. Take care. Thank you, bud. Matt Merchelle, the Orlando Sentinel. 2025 coming to a close. BB, your thoughts on the year and what's going to happen Thursday in Pasadena. Yeah, we've talked about it a lot, Harold. I think if Alabama can stomp the run, again, just play your game. Don't worry about the weather. We've talked a lot about every week as far as running the ball, stomping the run, productive first down, et cetera. I do think because their battle test in Alabama is going to beat the number one Indiana Hoosers 28-24, we'll be off tomorrow and Thursday, return on Friday.

Tomorrow, in fact, three bowl games on 9-39, the score. Iowa at Vandy at 10-30, Michigan at Texas, the Citrus Bowl at 2, and then Miami and Ohio State, the quarterfinal tomorrow night at 6-30, all 93-9, the score. Well, everybody has a fun and safe Happy New Year and certainly look forward to, again, 20-26. If they play a clean game, apples to apples, 25-22, Alabama gets the roses Thursday here on 93-9, the score. And a big shout out to each and every one of you for being a part of our family on a regular basis, thank you so much for sharing part of your day with us.

[1:51:15] Also, to Greg and James and Blair, the entire crew here, couldn't do it without you. Thanks so much. It's been a good year and hope next year is even better. It's going to take care of business for now. On behalf of BB, Greg, James, Blair, the entire crew here. Harold Buck, thank you so much for your time today. Let's do it again next year. Noon to two for the BIMO Buck Show right here on Sports Radio 93-9, the score. The BIMO Buck Show.