Boomo Bugg Show 011926
93.9 The Score WYTK - January 19, 2026
https://www.939thescore.com/boomo-bugg-show-011926/

This transcript was generated automatically from the broadcast audio. Names and some words may be misspelt; the audio is the official record.

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Now, get ready to roll, Shoals, Decatur, Athens and all of Northwest Alabama and Southern Tennessee. It's time for the Valley's exclusive FM Sports Voice.
The Boomo Bugg Show. New exclusive inside track to the Tigers, Tennessee and the rest of the SEC. Now your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9 The Score.
Good afternoon and welcome here to the Boomo Bugg Show. I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird. Thank you so much for giving us free ride around the Tennessee Valley. Brett Beaird, welcome in where? Who says Alabama can't win a national championship in 2026 and it started in August. It comes to an end tonight. Good afternoon. Welcome in. Are you ready to party by the beach tonight in the NCAA topper? Are you ready for the ball game, BB?
Happy Monday, yes. I think a lot of people have selections. Sunday was December the 7th to announce the college football teams in the playoffs. Six weeks later, the national championship game will be played tonight. Next season, the national championship game will be played nearly a week later, January the 25th.
Still, college football needs to work on its calendar. We'll recap how Alabama-Auburn to Tennessee did in the transfer portal this weekend.
Adam is here right now to preview the game tonight, potential changes in college football, and talk some SEC basketball.
Adam Spencer with plenty to cheer about. We alluded to it. Alabama with plenty to cheer about. Sue, they've been wanting to win a national championship.
They did over the weekend, the cheerleaders. What a national championship with the Crimson Tide. Adam Spencer's always got something to cheer about as he's got it all together there at Saturday down south, Saturday tradition and sports betting time. Adam, welcome in. Are you ready for the big ball game? How are you?
I'm doing great, guys. Yeah, I'm ready. It should be a good one. So, yeah, I can't wait to dive in.
Yeah, I guess, where do we start with it, Adam? I guess, what can Miami do that Alabama, Oregon, and just about everybody on their schedule could not do this season with Cinderella from Indiana?
Well, what they can do is they can run the ball. You know, Oregon had some defensive backs that they had to convert to running back ahead of that game
because they weren't sure if one of their guys was going to play and their top guy was hurt.
So, you know, Alabama's running game was a mess all year, even when Jim Miller was playing.
So, I mean, if you want to look at what Miami can do, I mean, that's where you have to start is at the running game because not only do they have Mark Fletcher Jr. back in the mix, who's a bruiser.
But Chamar Brown, you know, don't sleep on him. They're back up, running back. He's been a force in the red zone all year, and especially in the playoff.
I mean, he's gotten nine red zone carries, scored three times compared to 12 red zone carries with three touchdowns for Fletcher.
So, those two guys are pretty interchangeable. They have a couple of draft picks along that offensive line, including a guy who's probably going to go in the top ten.
So, you look at what Miami could do to pull off what would be a massive upset, it starts with the running game.
And there's no question Miami could win this game. They ran for 191 against Ole Miss, 41-18 in time of possession, and they can do that.
Indiana, on the other hand, one fumble in the first game of the season, and another stat, to me, that's mind-boggling.
They had 13 penalties the entire season. They're so efficient.
But, yeah, James Brockermeyer leads that Miami offensive front, which is very good.
If they can run the ball short in the game, there's no question Miami's got a chance to win the game.
Yeah, I mean, it's going to come down to if they can move it like that.
And, I mean, keep in mind that Indiana is still without one of its star defensive linemen, Stephen Daly, who hurt himself in the aftermath of the Big Ten championship game.
And he was a big piece of that defensive line.
So, it hasn't really been tested so far because Alabama and Oregon were disasters in the running game.
So, we'll see if that loss has felt a little more keenly tonight.
Adam Spencer, Saturday down south.
Normally, these pressers are normally about as exciting as watching paint dry.
But, I thought it was interesting to see you agree, Carson Beck's quote, leading into the game tonight, when asked about as far as distraction with class and everything, he said,
no class, I graduated two years ago.
Adam, does that not illustrate what everybody, the worst kept secret in the world, this is no longer a student athlete.
These are basically paid athletes who are staying in college and milking as much as they can and then go to the pros and make more money.
So, in other words, can we just do away with that student-athlete thing?
Yeah, I think we should.
I mean, Beck is like 25 or something like that, too.
So, I mean, these aren't even young athletes anymore.
25 is almost the expiration date for an NFL running back these days.
So, yeah, I mean, I think that, yeah, that's, you know, we've got to call it what it is.
Like, these teams are just marketing arms for the schools now.
They're just paid employees who wear the jerseys of the school.
Your logo.
Yeah, they don't bother with class or anything like that.
But, I mean, it does help.
You know, Indiana, you know, is experiencing an uptick in applications.
You know, they weren't hurting for applications or anything, you know, with their large alumni base and all that stuff.
Miami certainly wasn't hurting for applications.
But you get more attention and you get more students who want to come in when your football team is good.
And so, I mean, that's what it is.
It's a marketing arm.
And, you know, it's still entertaining.
It's just, yeah, we just need to fix up what we call these guys because, yeah, student-athletes does not cut it anymore.
Unless we want to start calling, you know, everybody student-athletes.
You know, NFL players, are they still student-athletes?
I mean, they're going to class about as much as these college guys at this point.
That's right.
Adam, Ken, Carson Bank duplicate what he did against Omius.
11 to 15 on a third down.
Had some key runs.
Two great drives in the fourth quarter.
Both of these quarterbacks are amazing.
Mendoza was 17 out of 20 for 177.
Didn't have to do a lot against Oregon.
But Beck, who threw through for all of 133 against Texas A&M, has really improved the last couple of games.
Going to be fun to watch the quarterbacks tonight.
Yeah, I mean, I think that the battle there, I mean, especially something to watch for Mendoza is just what they do in the first half.
Because Miami's top corner, Xavier Lucas, was suspended for the first half of this game due to a targeting penalty in the second half of the last game.
So, you know, I expect Miami's secondary to be a little bit shaky in that first half there.
And that's dangerous when you're going up against a guy who's as precise as Mendoza.
And then, you know, on the other hand, yeah, Beck has been playing really, really well.
But you know in the back of your head that he's still the guy that will occasionally put the ball in danger.
And, you know, you can try to coach that out of him.
But that's part of what makes him good is that he's, you know, willing to take chances in certain situations.
You know, sometimes he gets a little reckless.
But, you know, it's like, you know, I'm not comparing him to Brett Favre.
But, like, that's, you know, the kind of gunslinger mentality that some quarterbacks have to have to be able to make plays.
Because if he's just playing it safe all the time, you're not going to beat this Indiana defense.
So, if Beck can continue to limit his interceptions, I think that that bodes really well for Miami.
But then, yeah, Mendoza, watch him in the first half.
Because I expect him to come out and attack that third cornerback that's going to be probably not very experienced tonight.
Adam Spencer hugging out with us Saturday down south.
Adam, what's the over-under in television?
They call it cutaways.
Another way of putting it is when TV shows a crowd shot or something, a cheerleader shot, that type thing.
What's the over-under on TV going to Mendoza's parents and the back story there?
What I understand is their home is like a mile away in the stadium.
Mendoza grew up a Miami fan, didn't get the offer, goes elsewhere.
Basically, he's playing on his home field.
There's a lot of backstories with Mendoza.
You know he's got an extra, as if he needed another reason to do well tonight.
Yeah, I mean, I think that's so cool.
Not only is Miami playing in the home stadium for a national title, but then you have the Mendoza story and playing in his backyard, basically.
So, that's really cool.
Yeah, I think that he's going to have a lot to play for.
His brother is the backup quarterback, which is pretty cool.
So, I mean, you know, there's going to be a lot of Miami residents down there that have a little bit of a split because Mendoza is going to be a popular hometown kid returning home.
So, yeah, there's a lot of storylines there.
I expect plenty of the Mendoza family on camera.
We'll see if, you know, hopefully it's because he's playing well and it's a good game and not like, oh, wow, this game is getting out of hand.
Adam, one of the other side stories for this weekend was the college football powers to be met yesterday, their annual meeting before the national championship game.
And the Big Ten and the SEC seem to be far away as far as deciding on is it going to be 16 or the Big Ten wants 24.
The SEC and the SEC and the other conferences seem to want to stay or move to 16.
And it's also on the calendar.
Next year, this game will be played nearly a week later.
NIL, two-year contracts, performance-based, start week zero.
There are just so many agenda items for college football right now that are not really being worked on.
Yeah, I think that they need to sort it out.
Like, I mean, I think that there is a path towards, you know, reasonableness and stability in college football.
You know, we talked about it last week with the DeMond Williams thing.
I think that was a good start where he was like, wait, hold on, we're not just going to let you go to LSU without that.
So I think that, you know, we're starting to see the path forward towards getting this back to a product that we can be proud of.
The product on the field is still amazing.
I just think we need to work on, you know, weeding out some of these guys in their mid-20s that are on their seventh and eighth years of eligibility.
We've got to get rid of that.
We've got to stop suing everybody for, like, if you tell me I can't play, I'm going to sue you.
You know, I think that, you know, as much as I would love to see Trinidad Chambliss, Joey Aguilar, Diego Pavia, all these guys,
as much as I would love to see them back at college next year, it's like, it's time to move on, guys.
You're usually 20, so let's try your hand at pro football.
That's where the next step is, it's not suing to come back to school for yet another year.
I mean, come on.
So I think, you know, hopefully the reasonableness prevails in those lawsuits, and we can start getting the sport back to what we love,
even if the metrics are different.
Like we said, they're not student-athletes anymore.
They're just athletes who are paid to wear school colors, but that's fine.
I don't care about that.
The product on the field is great.
We just have some of the stuff around the fringes that hopefully we can work out and get the calendar in line and all that sort of stuff.
Well, the reason Pavia and some of those others don't want to go to the NFL, they don't want to take a pay cut.
That's amongst the reasons there.
But, hey, Adam, to your point, here's, I think, a good illustration of it.
What if you are Duke right now with a Darian Mensah story?
I mean, you think you've got it all lined up.
Alabama thought they had their running back situation lined up, and then a little bit of a screw up there with the paperwork.
But, apparently, Mensah already inked it, and now he says, gee whiz, guys, I love you, but the grass is greener over there.
And now, all of a sudden, Duke is left here in the 11th hour and 59th minute to go shopping for a quarterback.
Yeah, I think that's tough when, you know, especially because, you know, with the one portal opening, you know, now that there's not a spring window, too, you know, you're kind of getting locked in.
And, yeah, it's going to be tough because Miami players, Indiana players, have, like, five days after the national championship to decide.
So, I mean, we'll see how that goes.
But, yeah, that's going to be, you know, it's a step in the right direction that we can't just, we don't just have guys transferring all the time for any reason without any limits.
But, yeah, we've just got to work on this calendar.
I think that there's a way to just have the portal open, you know, for everybody, you know, tomorrow.
So, I think that that's probably the way to go forward and have it open for two weeks or whatever you want to do.
But, yeah, I think that we need to, we're getting there.
There's still some work to be done that we'll see.
Hopefully, in a couple years, the calendar situation is a little cleaner and crisper and we figure out what we're doing with some of these early round playoff games.
And, you know, hopefully we take over that Army-Navy weekend, you know, keeping a window carved out for the game to be a standalone game, but also having, you know, some playoff games going on at that time, too.
Adam, we'll get more into SEC basketball.
The Gators look really good.
Started five and four.
Now, they've won eight of their last nine.
Maybe the best in the SEC.
Van, you lost two games.
Bama won two road games.
Georgia, Texas A&M, Arkansas, Missouri Tigers beat Auburn Matin.
We'll get into that more next week.
Adam, where can we get online and get your stuff and everybody else's good stuff?
Yeah, SaturdayDownSouth.com.
We'll have you covered tonight for the game.
And then, yeah, shifting forward to some more basketball stuff.
So, yeah, things are heating up.
It's always good to kick off the week with you there.
Adam, listen, man, thanks so much and have a great and safe week, okay?
Yeah, thanks a lot, guys.
Enjoy the game.
Thank you, Boone.
You, too.
Adam Spencer, Saturday Down South.
Coming up, time to check in with the Max.
He's on deck.
Stay with us.
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The score.
Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.
Welcome back to End Championship Monday.
Of course, going to be talking about that a time between now and 2 o'clock.
I would imagine this fellow by the name of Paul Feinbaum will pick it up after that and
drive it the rest of the afternoon.
BB, in the meantime, obviously the portal closed, what, Friday night at midnight.
If you were going to be asked where as an Alabama and Auburn fan you are today compared to maybe
a week ago on this date, what would you tell them?
Well, I think they're doing much better.
We're going to have Freddie Kirby on at the bottom of the air an hour to go more into it.
Max is ready now, but I think both of these teams really improved themselves the last three
or four days.
Well, Max, I think he was contemplating into the portal, and now I think he's back with
us, former assistant coach at Ole Miss, Florida State, Troy, and behind the microphone to start
a thing called Sports Talk in the entire Southeast.
Max, welcome in.
How are you?
Doing great, guys.
I thought y'all sure b****** at LSU, though, with Lee Kiffin, since he finished, I think,
number one as far as recruiting out the portal.
The question, Max, how could he not when he's basically, they begged him to come down there
and give him a checkbook and said, right, whatever amount you want, why would he not be
number one?
Absolutely.
I agree.
And that's why he went.
He's going to go to the truth.
It's the NFL in college.
He didn't want to go to the NFL because he only gets one draft pick.
Now he can get, what, 85, you know?
That's right.
He's got the money to pay him.
And he's got the money to pay him.
Everybody was fussing at that governor down there, and is he now being regarded as a genius?
Or how are those folks out here looking at him now?
Well, you know, I think you do step back and take a look.
And, of course, the proof will be in the pudding when they kick it all off.
This is a place I don't want to be.
I don't want to be in Oxford, Mississippi, the third Saturday in September.
Ooh!
It ain't going to be nice.
They're going to call him things you can't say on Sunday morning.
I guarantee you.
Some things you can't even spell.
No!
Max, obviously, tonight is the night outside of Pinocchio, who's known for lying.
Who would have said, like we told you so 12 months ago, it's going to be Indiana and Miami
playing for all the marbles.
Yep.
Well, I mean, I think the committee got it right.
I'll be honest with you.
I think these are the teams playing.
I'm not saying they're the best team, but they're the teams playing at their best right now.
And I think that's what, you know, championship's all about.
I think a lot of people haven't really dug into the structure of what Signet has done at Indiana.
It's just amazing.
And it's some things that I don't jump at.
I didn't realize they almost double the other universities as far as contributions from the graduates and their booster club.
Wow.
850,000 active members in their booster clubs around the country.
Those numbers just surfaced this past week.
Wow.
Of course, Mark Cuban has been with him since they started.
He's already doubled his contribution somewhere up around, personal contribution up around $20 million right now.
So, you know, they've got all the parts it takes to make.
I ran across the staff the other day.
The last term they personally, the team being, turned the ball over to the opponent, they've had over 1,000 offensive plays since that happened.
Yes.
Wow.
Wow.
So, I look for a good ball game.
I don't, I'm taking Indiana.
I think it's going to be, I don't think they cover.
I think it's, what, an eight and a half right now.
But I think they'll come back and win.
They don't make mistakes like Miami did.
Miami's got talent now.
We all know that.
You don't get to where they are without that.
But I think, I think Indiana is so methodical.
They're so well coached.
And here's another number that I jumped up.
The average age of that football team, guys, they don't have high school kids.
It's like 23 years and seven books.
No, and Max, they do have high school kids, too.
The team has high school kids.
They're the parents of those high school kids.
That's about true.
That's about true.
Watch football run.
Yeah.
That's exactly right.
Well, I think it's, you know, I think it's going to be extremely entertaining.
You know, the guys that really bet big money on that, I think they're going to have a nervous night if they take money.
Yeah.
Not to say they won't win, but the fact is, I think it's going to be really, really entertaining.
I can't wait.
I'm going to turn the TV on to get ready about 6 o'clock.
Just be ready when the kickoff starts.
All right, Max.
Indiana is so efficient.
And I know we've talked about this to death the last two weeks.
They've had one fumble on the entire season.
That was in the first game.
They've had 13 penalties all year.
That's unheard of when you look at what can happen in a game.
And Miami's got the talent to stay in this game to the end.
But that's the key, Max, is they just seem to, in really big games, there is a breakdown.
There is a key turnover or there is a mental mistake.
And Indiana, so forth this year, just doesn't make mental mistakes.
I agree with you.
Now, I mean, those are the things that are so evident that most people, you know, they don't dig into that.
They'll sit down and watch.
You know, we jump to the other side of that.
The people that's going to be in attendance there, the price of the tickets are just off.
I mean, it's like going to a World Series game or, you know, an Olympic event.
It's absolutely, I don't want to say ridiculous practically.
And it's projected, I've read some numbers this morning, it's projected that
Indiana will control the numbers in that state.
Yeah, I think so.
There will be more Indian people there than it will be Miami people there.
Mm-hmm.
So, I mean, it's just shaping up to really make an interesting ball game first.
And second is set some records that I don't think many people are expected, have been expected all year.
So, I don't know.
I'm tickled to death to get down, to sit down.
I don't have, I'm not, I'm not going to actually pool feed the team.
I'm just going to watch the perfection.
Enjoy.
You know, and I think they've found ways to take them to isolate.
I'm pretty well known from some experience and contacts I've talked to before.
Jimmy Johnson's pretty well had been signated with his defense down there.
I mean, these e-books will see Miami do well.
And I think that, of course, they'll have, you know, Miami will have the sideline loaded
with ex-players and they'll be running down the field as well.
So, you know, it's just, I don't know that we've ever had a game like this, you know,
with the background like it is.
Right.
And I think it's extremely, I can't wait tomorrow to see the numbers, the television numbers that
come out.
I mean, how many viewers asked to watch the game tonight.
Well, I'm not going to doubt anybody from Indiana.
You know how this business works, you work with a lot of different folks over the years
and one of the smartest groups of people I ever worked with came down from Indiana.
My gosh, I thought I knew a lot about radio and TV.
I was a student, trust me.
There's some smart people up there.
Max, let me ask you this.
Obviously, Alabama and Auburn's trying to get there.
The portal season is how you go out and supposedly plug and play for your needs come next season.
Now that the portal has closed, your thoughts about Alabama and Auburn,
have they closed and, you know, remedied their problems from this past season via the portal?
I think, I think based on what they were looking for, they probably have, but I'm going to take it another step.
Harold, that's just, that's just the scratch of the surface.
What happens is, regardless of who you bring to, you got to coach them.
And I think that's where we've had some problems with both of those teams in the last year or two.
They just hadn't been coached up.
And I'm not saying, you know, deliberate.
I think they're doing probably the best they can do.
But they've left both schools.
If you watch any games whatsoever, they're not complete.
You know, they may emphasize one or two things, but, you know,
Alabama never get together with a good offensive front.
I mean, I think that's what happened to Ty Simpson this year.
He was beat up too badly.
The situation at Auburn, I don't know that they could ever settle on whether they want to be a running team or a passing team.
I mean, you can just sit back and pick apart the incomplete philosophy, I think, of putting together a good staff,
regardless of what the talent level was on the field.
Max, I sent you a copy of a 1977 August the 1st letter from Bobby Bowden to the freshman.
And my help, things changed.
And you played for him, but I've got to read excerpts of this.
Now, some of this stuff is just absolutely priceless.
Dear Seminole, report in top physical condition when you come in August the 19th.
We do not have time to wait on anyone to get in shape.
Have your hair cut before you report.
Be sure to have your head.
This is literally what he said.
Be sure to have your head screwed on right when you get here.
We will work toward one common goal when you report, and that is to get the 50 best men ready to get after Southern Miss.
Bring a coat and tie and a dress shirt with you for the trips.
We will dress like men, not children.
Leave all pants at home.
I do not want them in our housing.
See you August 19th at 11 a.m. underlined.
Signed, Bobby Bowden.
Yep.
That was him.
I mean, listen, he was as much about teaching life lessons as he was coaching football.
I think that was the biggest takeaway.
It was amazing, the transition that I'd be in.
Of course, I'd been at Troy.
We had a national championship team down there, and I had a couple of stops with Emmitt Smith and that bunch in the high school area.
And then ended up at Florida State.
And I'm telling you guys, it was like daylight dark.
People, I think, and I think the University of Florida witnessed that in the past couple of years with Napier.
I mean, he came out of a, you know, that lower division in Louisiana and had a great record and done well in there.
But I don't think people that can't be on the inside didn't realize the difference when you get to that top level.
And at the time that, of course, that was a letter that was written when Coach Bowden was just getting started.
I happened to show up on that staff, guys, the first year.
I was there the first two years that he was in the top five.
Of course, that went on 12 years after that.
But it was just the way that he presented himself.
It was a caliber of recruiting that was going on.
And a lot of people today, because of their kind of fall for grace in the last couple of three years,
didn't realize that we were playing at the level Alabama's been playing for the last three or four years.
We didn't recruit guys.
We selected.
We'd have guys.
It was all American high school players in California pay their own way to fly to the campus to talk us into recruiting them.
I mean, it was amazing how that was working at that particular time.
But, hey, he was a unique guy and a completely individual person that the public rarely ever got a chance to glimpse, I'll tell you.
Yeah.
Absolutely amazing.
Max, we cannot tell you how much we normally get to the end of the football season to give you a little bit of a break.
Hopefully, we can get back with you maybe during spring.
I know Auburn's already announced their spring game.
We'll see how many of the other teams do.
But I can't tell you how much we enjoy your insight.
Coaching about as far as what goes on in the sideline, on the field, and off the field.
We appreciate it tremendously.
Have a great winter and spring.
And, Max, we'll do this again with you just as soon as we can.
I hope so, guys.
It's always my pleasure.
And, you know, I'll certainly be available any time you want to call.
Thank you so much for the opportunity.
We're going to hold you to that, Max.
And make sure that you get up close and personal with the Lazy Boy tonight.
Okay, Max?
I'm sitting right here on it now.
Warming it up.
Max Howell, the one, the only.
Coming up, time to check in.
Is Freddie ready?
We'll see you after this.
Stay with us.
We'll see you after this.
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Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.
Welcome back in.
Quickly, latest basketball poll is out.
Alabama cashing on that win.
And Oklahoma up one this week, the 17th.
Obviously, Auburn's still outside the top 25.
We'll delve more into that in a second.
After we say hello to the Mr. Freddie Kirby Show.
He is the general manager down at Southeastern Athletics.
Freddie, welcome in.
How are you?
Doing just fine, guys.
And everything.
Doing my favorite thing I always love to do, working on taxes.
Oh, boy.
Freddie, Freddie, Freddie.
I tell you what, I'll make you happy.
You can work on mine, too.
How's that?
So I'll make you a very, very happy guy.
Let me ask you this, Freddie.
We're sitting here, obviously, to the games tonight.
Everybody's sitting here looking and trying to get fired up about it.
In our neck of the woods, I'm seeing more.
Let's talk about the portal, and we'll talk about the game.
Freddie, your thoughts, if you were going to do that,
as far as Alabama and Auburn meeting their needs via the portal,
what would you say?
Well, right now, I think the situation, especially with Alabama,
I think they have met their needs,
but I think they upgraded over the players that they lost.
Because any time I can look on here,
and I see five offense, five defensive linemen,
and to go along with five offense and five defense
in the high school recruiting society,
20 linemen in any year is a great accomplishment.
And I think the ones that they have brought in
have a higher potential and a higher production rate
than what they lost.
But it comes down to both sides of the ball.
Who's going to coach them?
Can they develop them and get the most out of them?
Yeah.
Let me ask you this, Freddie.
You look at it, and I'm looking at the stars.
That's all we've got right now.
It's on paper.
Time's going to tell whether or not they live up to the potential,
of course.
But you're seeing a lot of more and more three stars,
and a lot of these guys who left were four and five stars.
Is it safe to say that maybe these guys never lived up to their expectation?
And just because somebody is a three-star doesn't mean you can't make
a national championship game.
Just ask Indiana.
Your thoughts, are things changing with some of these stars' evaluations?
Well, most of these people that throw a star raking on them
are basing it off just a little bit of film footage,
and they've never seen the kid play in person,
and they've never seen the kid in a personal conversation with them
a lot of times.
All they do is they don't know about the kid,
so they throw a three-star on him.
Right.
And then, because, like I told people last year
for the Alabama side E-class,
if Lotseer Brooks was a three-star player,
then I'm president of the United States.
And because anybody that could watch that kid
could see that that kid was by far better than a three-star player.
Back in the day, I had Marcel Dares rated number two player in Alabama.
Everybody else had him a three-star.
And everything, I go by what I see and everything.
I don't let star rating get into my decision-making.
It's what I think.
I go by what I see in my experience over 40 years and everything.
But it all comes down to how big a heart does the kid get?
Does he want to become the best player he can be?
And is he going to get out there and fight for it?
Or is he going to lay down and just go through the motions
like some of the players do this day and time?
Pout because they don't get your check.
Freddie, let's start with the offensive line.
Alabama, as you noted, they brought in five.
They're looking at a few other guys.
Caden Strawhorn, Ty Hayward.
Earlier in the season, Hayward, of course, was the commitment to Alabama
a couple of years ago and then went to Michigan and followed the money.
Kel Pauley, offensive lineman, Rayson Del Gaudi.
I know you love him, and I'll let you talk about him at length, 6'4", 3'10".
Nick Brooks from Loganville, Georgia, initially, I believe,
recruited as an offensive lineman, switched in, I mean, tackle, switch inside.
Ethan Fields, redshirt junior, played at Ole Miss.
Freddie, talk a little bit more about the offensive line class.
Well, what you got there, Brad, like you said, Ty Hayward was committed to Alabama,
and that's where the young man wanted to be all along.
The Michigan throwed a ton of money at his family and everything,
and they seen that chance to get glory dollar-wise and get out of debt, probably,
and everything, and jumped on it.
But that don't make the kid happy.
If you're not happy, you're not going to perform.
And the opportunity presented itself for him to go into the portal
and come back to Alabama, and the door was still open for him.
They did not close it, and he's a young man that's got position flexibility.
I think he could be a big guard, but I think he's a tackle all the way.
And everything, he can go left or right tackle, in my opinion.
Everything, he's got feet, and he's got the length on his arms
to where he can keep the rushers at bay.
Rayson Delgatti, as you said, is a player I love.
His fundamentals, his techniques, his punch on the snap of the ball,
and everything is extraordinary.
No, he was not playing as he seemed to be a talent.
But, as I told people, fundamentals travel.
Technique travels.
And a mean streak he's got inside him travels.
And everything, I think he starts from the first day he's here.
And I think he's going to really pick up right where Brailsford left off.
And Alabama really met their major need there.
And Caden Strayhorn is another center possibility that can also play guard.
Alabama recruited him out of high school.
Same situation, very physical at the point of attack and everything.
I think he's got a chance to play right away as well.
Ethan Fields is a young man that I think can play in the guard position
and everything.
And he comes from a place in Louisiana called Dutchtown.
And Geismer High School.
Can you tell me the last player I ever got out of that school, Brett?
Eddie Lacey.
Exactly.
And if this kid turns out to be half as good as him, I'll be tickled.
But, like I said, they lost a few players.
Like with Wilson Foreman going to Texas A&M for a big payday and everything.
I think Haywood's going to fill that void there and never miss a leak.
And that may be probably exceeding.
And everything with Michael Carroll already still there.
I think they're there.
Plus, you've got your five high school kids that you signed on top of.
You've got people like Bryson Cooley who's got a chance to play early.
Chris Booker's got a chance to play early.
And I've not seen very many offensive linemen in my time, guys.
Like Barrett Fretwell.
He's 327 pounds running a 4-7-7.
That's pretty good.
That's pretty good.
But I think all five of the players that they signed, Nick Brooks, is one that's a huge guy.
340-something pounds.
I hear he's had a little run-in out of Texas and everything.
But he comes out of Loganville, Grayson High School in Georgia.
And I've seen that team play my own two eyes.
I know what kind of talent that's over there.
If they get his full potential out of him, I think he'll be in very good shape.
But as far as the offensive line, Fred, to answer your question, I think there will be a lot more holes to feel for running backs to go through this year than it was this past year.
Freddie Kirby in the huddle with us.
Freddie, you hit on a good point.
As good as Nick Saban was, he showed you better have a pretty good list of assistants under you.
We saw that tail end of his tenure there at Alabama.
Your thoughts back to the point that you alluded to, the players now look like they're in the corral.
What kind of tweaking would you do on the coaching staff to get the most out of that talent?
Well, the first thing I'm going to do is the positions we're talking about.
I'm going to change both coaches on the line of scrimmage and everything.
Because I'm going to break some fierce mentality.
Because what made Alabama and Nick Saban so great on the line of scrimmage
was when you had Jeff Stoutman going against Bo Davis every day in practice.
That's it.
And both coaches pushed each one of them to whoop the other guy.
And that brought about the fierce competition.
And on Saturday, it kind of felt like it was a step down from what they're facing in practice.
But that's definitely where I would start.
And Alabama is what I hear brought in reinforcements for the special teams as well.
Getting a very strong kicker from the country of Ireland by way of Marshall University.
Great punter from UNA that I know they hated to lose and everything.
And they've got two long snappers coming in.
One is a preferred walk-on.
And the other one is a young man that I think they brought in through the portal.
So they brought in reinforcements there because you've got to improve these special teams and everything.
Blake Dowd is not okay at times and everything, but there were several times he got off 30-something yard punts,
which is not going to hit you.
And Caleb Woodson is a linebacker that they've got that's going to start from day one.
He's a very good replacement for, well, the double zero for Alabama.
I lost his name.
I was fixing to say it.
Lawson?
Lawson, yeah.
I started to say D because I didn't get him to come out.
But Lawson is going to be a big loss because he's been there.
He's been a bell cow in that defense for years.
And everything is probably some injury.
But Caleb Woodson is going to fill his void very quickly.
And everything, he's actually quicker to the ball than Lawson was.
And then, but he's got the same kind of force on the tackle.
The most time when he hits you, you don't go forward.
He stops your momentum very quickly.
And he'll play very, very quickly.
Then you've got Xavier Griffin from the high school ranks.
He's going to flank you outside and everything.
Once he gets strong enough physically to match ACC quality,
you're going to see him as a freshman.
But that's the players right there that are going to be reinforcers.
And special teams in both lines of scrimmage are different places
that I would start as far as looking to upgrade Harold.
But I would also take a strong look at running back.
Yeah.
For the defensive line, you love Terrence Green from Oregon.
Desmond Yu from South Carolina has impressed you.
Devin Tompkins from USC, Kendrick Billing, Bingley Jones from Mississippi State,
Caleb Smith.
Talk about Desmond Yu from South Carolina and Terrence Green.
Well, Terrence Green is that big body that you've got to have in the direct center
of the defensive line.
He's going to take up two tack blockers, I should say.
He's going to fill that void in the middle and make running backs take a different slot.
He's a bigger body than Keenan was as far as height.
But Tim Keenan, I'll give him his deserved honor.
I think the young man stood for what Alabama stands for.
He played his heart out.
He's the only guy on the defensive line, I should say,
that I think gave me that on every play.
And Terrence Green has got a chance to fulfill his void
and pick up right where Keenan left off.
Having Desmond Yuma Zulu on the outside rushing the passer,
I think is a major upgrade.
Keenan Keenan has come on this past year and everything.
So is Obertin, Obertin had the situation with the illness and everything.
Zulu is going to give you an opportunity to play him in green side to side,
both of them in a very high, tall range, 6'6", and everything.
And you're going to get more push in the middle than you had this past two years.
And then because, plus you've got ACC experience,
and Terrence played at Oregon, you know he didn't start right away.
He was in the rotation.
And that's what it's going to be in the ACC, too.
You're not going to play every play.
And Devin Thompson gives you another physical presence that you can put on the opposite side.
Guys can't just focus on one person and everything.
You've got a chance to get a real big push out of three guys in the middle there,
which is going to free up your Yonsei Piers.
People like that to rush the passer.
When they get a little experience on them and everything, people like Caleb Smith out of Parker.
He played at Washington and everything.
He's got a chance to come in and play and everything because he does have a motor.
He's got quickness off the edge and everything.
But if people are going to be focused on Pierre, which is going to free him up to where he's one-on-one,
all he's got to do is beat his man.
And a guy like Bingley Jones from Mississippi State and everything, he is another middle guy that's going to be in that rotation,
that's going to be physical at the point of attack.
And guys, we haven't had that in a while.
But like I said, it's going to come down to can whoever's coaching them get it out of them because the material is there and everything.
Can you sew that material together and get a force?
Freddie, let me close with you in about two minutes.
Nico Brown, the Yale All-American, good numbers.
Yeah, snicker, snicker.
I know he's from the Ivy League, but the kid can play.
I was impressed with that.
Ha-ha, Clinton Dix has a younger brother, Jacoby Clinton, from West Florida.
78 tackles, 19 tackles for a loss, and seven sacks.
And while they were at it, they picked up a receiver for the 2026 class, Maurice Mathis from Georgia.
62 receptions for 1,200 yards.
My Walker County math tells me that's 20 yards a catch.
Freddie, those dudes real quick.
Well, let's start with Mathis and everything.
The young man they picked up for the 26 class.
Watching his film and everything, I see a little bit of Jeremy Bernard in him and everything.
He's a guy that's going to run your slants.
He's going to run your crossing patterns.
He's going to do your, what I call, 845 pattern to the post and everything.
He's very good at getting in the gaps.
He's very good at catching the ball with his hands, which Alabama needs.
And everything, he's not necessarily a burner burner, but he is one that's going to make it feasible for your light seer, Bruce Ryan Williams, to not be double-teamed.
And the safeties are going to have to account for him in the middle, or he's just going to wear him out like Bernard is.
And so then, but he's the one that, yeah, he was committed to Sanford.
Last time I checked, Sanford threw that ball around quite a bit.
Yeah, they did.
Under Chris Hatcher before he got let go.
Yeah.
And then, Clint Dixon's brother, West Florida, I can tell you up front, it's not your everyday Division II football program.
Right.
I expect him actually to move up into the Division I ranks for too many more years.
And then, he had quite a few tackles.
He's a lot bigger than Ha-Ha was.
And he will, for what a little bit of film I've seen on him, he's another one that's very physical on the tackle and everything.
He's a form tackler, and he can pursue sideline to sideline.
And they need quite a few of those guys too, because we've lacked in that area.
But Luke Mets is one I expect to really come on this year and start making a pretty big name for himself after he redshirted last year.
And you mentioned one other bread that's slipping my mind.
That's Nico Brown.
The Yale wide receiver and everything.
Like I said, the numbers and stats that he put up, I don't care what league you play in, the kid's a football player.
And he's another one.
But he's got the opportunity.
He can get deep on you and everything.
And he's one that people use to say, like Slade Bolden, people like he used to question, why was he at Alabama?
Slade Bolden made a lot of plays for Alabama.
And those kind of receivers have their place and everything.
But this kid is actually a potential game-breaker that knows how to get open and knows how to win.
And, yeah, he's visiting Stanford.
He left Alabama going out there.
His brother's at Stanford.
But I don't think he's going to make a decision based off of his brother being there.
He's from a very smart situation.
He goes to Yale.
It tells you he's got a pretty good head on his shoulders.
And being looked at by Stanford is another situation.
In my business, guys, I've had one girl, one person, recruited by Stanford University in my career.
And get this, eighth grader, 31 ACT.
Wow.
That's up there.
That's up with the beard boys.
Together.
No question.
We put our three ACTs together.
We might equal that.
Yeah, you're right.
And there's also a young man, wide receiver, out at Utah State.
Brady, you can keep your eye on it.
His last name is Duarte.
And I think he's a slasher also.
He's in the 5'8", 5'9", range.
But he had a lot of yardage this year as well.
And he can slash a defense open, kind of like Waddell used to on those crossing routes.
Get two steps on you out of the break and go the distance on you.
And I don't think Alabama's done in the portal.
I think you can look for them to go one or two more wide receivers.
And I think if somebody is good enough that they can't afford to turn it down, I think they'll do it.
But I want to give you a position that this staff loves to recruit, and apparently they know how to do it, and that's tied in.
And they love these 6'6", 6'5", 225 to 265 pounders.
And they do a very good job there.
Yeah, the forward kid.
Listen, we've got to run to the break, buddy.
Great, great stuff.
Southeastern Athletics is a great organization, too.
We will have you on again soon, bud, and look at the 2026 upcoming season.
Have a good look with those taxes, Freddie.
If I don't, if I owe anything, I'll call Harold.
There you go.
As long as I take rubber checks, we should be in good shape.
Freddie Kirby, GM of Southeastern Athletics.
Coming up the next hour, we're going to be checking in with Redfish Barger, Vince Rohr, and Ben Thomas.
All straight ahead, stay with us.
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Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall says he's not going anywhere
regarding the Republican Senate primary race.
Marshall's statements come after President Trump gave a long-awaited endorsement
of U.S. Congressman Barry Moore in this primary race.
Marshall is also in this race, along with former U.S. Navy SEAL Jared Hudson,
Tuberville aide Morgan Murphy, and businessman Rodney Walker.
Despite President Trump singling out his preferred candidate in this race,
Marshall maintains that he has never played it safe and will not be backing down.
Marshall also pointed out that as the state attorney general,
he supported President Trump in his agenda, as well as putting the people of Alabama first.
Marshall also agrees with the president that the 2020 election was stolen on behalf of Joe Biden
and that Marshall opposed the Biden administration every chance he got and, in many cases,
was victorious in that legal fight.
I'll be back with more Alabama stories after this.
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A shooting occurred on Sunday night at the Amazon Fulfillment Center in Bessemer.
One man has died as a result of that shooting.
The victim is identified as 19-year-old Tyler Alexander of Birmingham.
The shooting occurred along the facility's road at around 11 p.m.
This is an active investigation.
A teenager was killed in Adamsville after a multi-vehicle crash occurred.
The victim is identified as 19-year-old Brianna Hawkins.
She was a passenger in one of the vehicles that wrecked on Highway 78.
I'm Andrea Tice.
For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com.
And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter.
Tide fans.
Here comes the Tide.
Let's move.
At one.
For the win.
Ball game.
Ball game.
Ball game.
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 welcomes the Tennessee Volunteers to Coleman Coliseum.
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93.9 The Score weather.
Today for your Martin Luther King Day, cloudy with a high around 40 and wind chill values between 20 and 30.
Tonight, partly cloudy with a low near 15.
Tomorrow, sunny with a high around 40.
Tomorrow night, mostly clear with a low near 25.
And for your Wednesday, mostly cloudy with a 30% chance of afternoon showers and a high around 50.
Your weather from 93.9 The Score.
Now, get ready to roll, Scholes, Decatur, Athens, and all of Northwest Alabama and Southern Tennessee.
It's time for the Valley's exclusive FM Sports Voice.
The Boomo Bugg Show.
Your exclusive inside track to the Tigers, Tennessee, and the rest of the SEC.
Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9 The Score.
Welcome back in.
I was 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.
With that, we head on down to the south end of the state and say hello to Ben Thomas.
He's got it all covered there at AL.com.
It used to be called the beach.
Now, it's called the snow belt of the state of Alabama on the beach.
Ben, welcome in.
Did you survive the blizzard of 26?
I just put my sled back up.
No, we didn't get it.
I think we got something like in the 4 a.m. hour the other night, but I didn't see it.
Look, we're never going to – I can't imagine we're ever going to beat what we had last year
when we got nine inches about this time.
I mean, I think my son now thinks it's going to snow every year in Daphne, Alabama.
That's probably not going to happen.
But, no, we didn't have much.
We had a little bit, but nothing to speak of.
It's all that global warming that's going on.
I would imagine the reason we're getting so much snow down where the palm trees grow.
Ben, obviously, the big news tonight with the national championship game,
but the bigger news tomorrow, Mr. Football is going to be announced in the state of Alabama.
Ben, unless you have to shoot us any hints on who it might be.
Yeah, that's the bigger news.
Mr. Football is the bigger news for me than –
There you go.
Anyway, in my line of work.
But, although we do have some local – some Alabama players playing tonight,
so I'll be interested in following them.
But, yeah, you know, I think we've talked about it before.
I mean, I think we got – I was just looking at all the candidates.
We got some guys who had tremendous years.
I mean, you got to start with Trent Seaborn, who we've been talking to since you and I were in college.
It just seems like he's the junior quarterback from Thompson that led the Warriors to the state championship.
You got, obviously, E.J. Crowell, the Jackson running back who's already enrolled at Alabama.
I think most people think those two guys would probably be the primary contenders.
But, also, you know, you got some other good players.
Aaron Fry had an unbelievable year for Clay Chalkwell.
He was the MVP of the 6-8 state title game.
And of the north-south game, Gunnar Rivers, another big year.
I think he threw for over 3,000 yards and 46 touchdowns.
Of course, he's the son of our buddy, NFL star, Phillip Rivers.
Jamison Roberts.
I mean, the list could go on and on.
But, really, if you look at the invitees for tomorrow's event,
there are some guys that we're going to see on Saturday, not just in the future,
but some on Saturday, I think, next year.
Yeah.
No question about that.
D.T., Mr. Football Banquet tomorrow, Friday, reclassification.
I know you've been asked about this.
We've talked about it at length.
The last two or three weeks, executive director of the Alabama High School Athletic Association,
Heath Harmon, did confirm that it's, according to your report,
that it will indeed take place on January the 23rd.
We've got a lot of teams going up and down based on student enrollment.
Also, the public-private issue is still out there.
B.T., in your gut, what do you feel about the upcoming week?
Well, I would tell you what I would know, but I have to kill you.
But, unfortunately, I don't know very much.
I mean, I've talked to a lot of people, including Heath Harmon, who didn't tell me much of anything other than the fact that,
as you said, Brent, they do plan to go ahead with reclassification on Friday.
I think, like has been reported, I think there's multiple plans on the table.
Mr. Harmon will recommend whatever plan he feels like is the right way to go,
and then the central board will try to come to a conclusion on it.
I think the meeting's at 9 a.m. on Friday, and so we ought to have that news, you know,
depending on how long it goes, late morning or early afternoon for sure.
And I've gone back and forth on it.
We talked about it last week.
I mean, for a while I was kind of thinking that, you know, maybe the best plan is just to kick it down the road
and if they want to do it, you know, form some committees to make sure they do it the right way in two years.
But it just seems like from the people I'm talking to that everybody kind of gets the feeling
that they might try and separate the private schools into championship play this year.
But they could go either way.
I'm interested to see where they go.
And, you know, I think, you know, if it stays pat, you have fewer questions.
If they do decide to separate them, well, that brings a whole other bunch of questions in.
Oh, boy.
You know, how does that happen?
Is there one or two different divisions for private schools?
Do they even stay in the AHSAA?
Where do they play their championship game?
I mean, there's just, you know, a thousand questions if that comes up.
So I think a lot to be decided.
It'll be, I'm sure, some anxious moments.
I'll see, obviously, see Mr. Harmon tomorrow at the Mr. Football Bank.
I suspect he won't have very much to say about it other than they're looking at the data
and they'll do what they feel is best.
But I don't think anybody really knows for sure what's going to happen.
Politics at its best, Ben Thomas.
Ben, I appreciate what you guys do at AL.com.
You can sit here and make decisions or you can make it interactive.
And a good job of you guys letting folks get involved.
We mentioned Mr. Football.
The other award is the People's Choice Award, and it just shows you how popular this kid is.
The aforementioned Trent Seaborn winning that.
He's the People's Choice.
People don't realize this kid, he plays in the state of Alabama, but he's got strong roots to Hawaii of all places.
He does, yeah.
He's, you know, like I said, I joked before, we've known him for so long.
I mean, he was the MVP of the 7A state title game as an eighth grader when he was still at the middle school, you know.
And they had the banner, welcome, welcome back state championship MVP, Trent Seaborn to Alabaster Middle School or whatever it is.
But he is, you know, he just, he's going to set, I can't imagine any 7A quarterback ever playing as many games as he's going to play.
I mean, I think he's in the 50s now, 7A games started with another year left now.
Yeah.
Obviously, he's already committed to Alabama.
Great player, very smart player.
He threw for about 3,700 yards and 35 touchdowns this year.
And, of course, Thompson won another state title.
And he, you know, our People's Choice Award was interesting this year because the seeds kind of held.
I mean, we see 16 players going into it, kind of like the NCAA, and then the fans vote on it round by round.
And it came down to number one versus number two, which was Crowell versus Seaborn.
And many people think that'll be the Mr. Football debate as well.
And Seaborn won that award.
Very close.
It was very close to the rallies.
You had seven days to vote, and a couple of days it was within a few votes.
Trent ended up pulling away there at the end.
So he's the People's Choice Player of the Year.
And last year, you know, it was the 16th seed, the Tuscaloosa Academy quarterback that won.
So it was interesting to see the top two seeds hold this year.
But we do that, you know, we've started to do that in basketball, girls and boys basketball as well.
People seem to like it.
And it's just, you know, any way we can continue to give these high school athletes deserved attention is what we're trying to do.
Yeah, in fact, you had the Power 10 for girls basketball out earlier this afternoon.
If not already, I know you're going to have the Power 10 boys.
You will have the latest as far as coaching changes, too.
Destin Goodwin ended up at Demopolis.
I think that's going home for him.
Josh Niblett, who was in Georgia, former Hoover coach, is going to be the tight end coach for Coach Prime at Colorado.
Boy, that was quite a step up.
We'll be talking about these.
Good luck with the conference tomorrow.
Safe travels.
And this time next Monday, we're going to have a lot to talk about, I'm sure.
What else is on the agenda this week and where can we get online to get it?
You might have to extend my segment next week.
Yeah.
Yeah, I'm excited about tomorrow.
I don't know if worry is the right word, but I'm anxious about Friday.
But tomorrow we're going to try not to worry about that.
We're going to celebrate these 48 young men and what they accomplished.
Bill Clark is our guest speaker, our keynote speaker, so I think that's going to be fun.
And then, you know, we're going to see what happens in reclassification.
But we'll have it all covered on AL.com.
And like you said, Brett, we have the high school power rankings today and tomorrow
and the basketball rankings on Thursday.
So a lot of good stuff coming your way.
And whatever the decision is made on Friday, I think there will be a lot more stories to come out of that.
And plus, you know, we didn't even talk about the government situation
and what they're trying to do.
So that's a whole other alley to go down.
Yeah.
Whatever it is, you know it's going to rattle the cage no matter the answer.
Ben, listen, enjoy.
Safe travels soon.
Promise.
Do it again soon, okay?
All right.
Thanks, guys.
Y'all have a good week.
Thank you, bud.
BT Express, Ben Thomas, AL.com.
Coming up, what's going on in Big Orange Country, the V-Man,
Ben Ferraro on deck.
Stay with us.
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Hey, fans.
Welcome back to Fansville's Cheers and Tears.
Okay, so like everybody deals with losing, right?
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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.
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.
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The Score.
Now, back with Boomo Bugg.
On 93.9, The Score.
Welcome back in.
It is always a pleasure for us to say hello to the V-Man.
Vince Sorora, 99.1.
The Sports Animal in Knoxville and on the Balls Radio Network.
V-Man, welcome in.
Are you ready to pull a curtain on the 2025-26 football season?
How are you?
I'm good.
Yeah, because this is kind of drug out, I think, in my opinion.
Yeah, I'm ready to see tonight's game, obviously.
But, I mean, there's been so many other things going on.
It's kind of, especially with the portal when you have to track that, it kind of takes your attention away from the national championship game.
And it's unfortunate when that happens.
So, yeah, let's put a closure on this because so much work's already being put in the next year.
Yeah, and next year they're going to be even a week later.
I think it's like taking a gallon of paint and you keep on adding water to it.
You just dilute it when you do what you do.
But let me ask you this, V-Man.
For a long-time baseball fans, remember, this goes back to the Houston Colt 45s before they were the Astros.
They had a guy named Rusty Stobb.
V-Man, does Tennessee finally have their quarterback solution in Ryan Stobb coming over from Colorado?
Yeah, I don't think that would be the common description for him.
He is a QB, so that checks one box.
A QB, not the QB, right?
Right, AQB, not the desired QBs because of his rating, one.
And two, he's not experienced.
And part of the whole pursuit, the profile that they were looking for is an experienced guy,
maybe with one year of eligibility left that could bridge the gap to get you to your really talented young players,
second-year guy to come in George McIntyre, and first-year five-star phase on Brandon,
and to give you time to make sure they're ready to go.
Ryan Stobb from Colorado, who they got a commitment to from the portal over the weekend, does not do that.
He hadn't played enough.
He started one game this past year, and so he's got a little bit of on-the-field
time in a powerful conference, but not a whole lot.
And so, you know, the numbers don't overwhelm you.
There are some, you know, decent throws and plays on tape, but there's not a whole lot of it.
He's just not overwhelming in any way.
So does that mean he won't be, you know, a good quarterback?
We don't know.
I mean, nobody thought that Trinidad Chambliss was going to be.
But Trinidad Chambliss also, you know, won championships and played a ton on his level before he moved up.
Stobb doesn't have that experience, so he is a third quarterback, a scholarship quarterback that they needed in the room to compete.
But I don't think it changes, you know, the likelihood of George McIntyre, if he's ready, probably being Tennessee's starting quarterback next year.
And at least you have, you know, a fallback with someone with some experience before you get to phase on Brandon.
The court date for Joey Aguilar's case to be heard by Chief District Judge William Campbell is February the 10th.
And Campbell ruled on another case last week for eligibility and did not rule, I believe, in favor of the player.
Has Tennessee informally moved on?
Are they still waiting?
I know they would certainly accept him if it's a favorable ruling.
But your thoughts on the court date and what that may entail for Tennessee?
Yeah, I don't think Ryan Stobb changes them accepting Joey Aguilar back.
So had they been able to land one of the top quarterbacks, that's a different story.
Then you're paying, you're investing so much money in the NIL that that is now your guy for this year.
And then Joey Aguilar would likely have to find somewhere else to play and he would get that opportunity.
There's no doubt out of what's left that hasn't already filled it.
So, but no, he would immediately come back, I think, and be the front runner for Tennessee's starting quarterback.
Now, I think they would approach it as, hey, we're going to let everyone come in and compete rather than giving it to Aguilar.
But he would be the, you know, the front runner by a landslide to get that gig.
So, no, that could be another addition, there's no doubt.
But I think it's highly unlikely, you know, based on the court case last week, based on the NCAA.
Ross Dellinger has mentioned this, the NCAA is having success in these cases being declined.
And either them declining eligibility in cases they're ruling on or them winning some of these court cases in their favor of not granting eligibility.
I think it's tough sledding in this situation.
So, yeah, it's tough.
And then the timing of it, also not ideal for anyone.
But I guess it would, you know, it would be before spring practice.
But then, you know, is Joey Aguilar still enrolled in school?
Probably should be in order so he doesn't miss spring practice if he does get that ruling.
I would guess, but I'm not certain on that.
Hey, man, talk to us before we jump off here.
The grade, obviously, the portal window has closed.
We know there's still going to be some action out there.
But to date, what kind of grade would you put on this class for the Big Orange?
Well, I would say somewhere in the B range.
You know, they, you know, quarterback and running back were their two biggest needs.
And they filled them at the very end.
And the quarterback, like we talked about, didn't get, you know, one of the top-level guys.
And that running back ended up getting Javin Gordon from Tulane.
And, you know, that was late in the process after having a number of other guys you brought in before that
commit to other schools or sign with other schools.
So, you know, they addressed a lot on defense.
I think it's seven defensive backs.
It was a safety-driven defense by Jim Knowles.
They added, I think, three more on the D-line.
They could, honestly, could have done more on the D-line.
In terms of experience, they have a lot of numbers.
But they're a freshman in the class.
You know, so it's a very young group still, even with the portal auditions they did.
It does include Chaz Coleman.
And it depends on whether you include Arian Carter in that grade.
Right?
He's a starter, productive, all-ACC-level linebacker that declared for the NFL draft.
And Friday was reported he was pulling out of the NFL draft and was entering the transfer portal.
Then, after discussions with Tennessee, reverse course.
And he's coming back to Tennessee, announced on social media yesterday or over the weekend.
So, now that linebacker room looks pretty strong for Tennessee because they added Penn State's Mike linebacker,
who's familiar with Knowles and Amari Coleman, or Amari Campbell, excuse me.
So, they have good pieces that they've added on this defense through the portal.
I still think they could use an experienced wide receiver.
They had one, and he flipped and went to Baylor.
So, incomplete, I think, still on offense.
But good things on defense that fits Knowles and being able to communicate the, you know, air-quote complicated defense.
So, I think they helped themselves a lot in that area.
Not enough on offense.
So, it evens out to about a B, I think.
Tennessee with a last second.
Kentucky comes back to stun Tennessee 80-78.
The second two-point win by Kentucky on the week after a Hail Mary pays off against LSU.
Vols have a week off before they do what?
They travel to Tuscaloosa, Alabama, Saturday night, 7.30, I believe, Central Time is the tip-off.
Great stuff, Bud, as usual.
Where can we get online to get these great stuff?
Yeah, I appreciate it.
A lot of work to do for that basketball team.
Fans are quite frustrated.
And, you know, the way they turn the ball over and not being able to execute.
And having players talk about lack of effort, that is not the norm with Rick Barnes.
They got a lot of looking in the mirror and soul-searching to do this week before they head to Tuscaloosa, which will be a tough game for them.
You can follow me on all the socials.
It's Vince Sports, V-I-N-C-E Sports.
Retweeted an interview we did with the great Tom Luganbill from front of your show as well.
And I'm about to put on my YouTube channel that video version of that interview with a preview of the national championship game
and talking about the transfer portal, including the ball.
So really, really good stuff from that.
So check that out on YouTube.
And then SportsSource Digital Network on YouTube as well.
Tom, Clark Kent Luganbill, I guarantee you check it out if you don't know what to check out that photo.
Listen, B-Man, good to hook you up with you.
Stay safe and warm up there, okay?
All right, you do the same.
Thank you, buddy.
Appreciate you.
B-Man hooking up with us.
Vince Ferrara.
It's going to be interesting to see the crowd Saturday night for that Tennessee game, BB.
If these weather guys and girls have a forecast, it could be iffy at best.
In the meantime, speaking of Alabama, the Redfish on deck.
Stay with us.
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Well, here we are again, and I got to tell you, Jim, this match has me really concerned.
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The score.
Now, back with B-A-B-O-B-U-B-U-G on 93.9, the score.
The score.
Welcome back in.
Glenn Campbell had the Wichita lineman.
Alabama had the offensive lineman.
William Redfish-Barcher now also busy as Cole Sabam's radio.
William, welcome in.
How are you?
Doing good, guys.
Hope y'all are having a good month as well.
Hey, we're doing all right, William.
Obviously, as a former lineman, who's got a better eye to evaluate where Alabama is now?
It's one of those deals where if you lose some, you better gain some, and they better be as good or better.
William, with the lineman coming in, we know only time is going to tell, but what does your gut tell you about where Alabama is now with the respective lines as opposed to where they were before the portal?
Well, I mean, I think so far of the ones, you know, that they've kind of brought in as new guys, I think that Delgatti, the center, and Brooks, the transfer from Texas, are probably the two that stand out the most to me for a couple of reasons.
You know, Delgatti, for what he's asked to do at his position, is absolutely dominating, you know, at the level of football that he was playing at Cal Poly.
And, you know, he's got a spring practice to, you know, get adjusted and, you know, get used to life in the SEC, and I think he's going to be a plug-and-play guy right off the bat.
You know, Brooks is a guy that, you know, really kind of shocked the Texas coaches, and, you know, I don't think they were, you know, real happy about losing him.
You know, they brought him in as an offensive tackle, he was a true freshman, and they just got decimated early in the season at offensive guards, so they were forced to play him.
And he actually got three starts in SEC games versus Oklahoma, Mississippi State, and Kentucky, and really kind of surprised the coaches with how well he performed, you know.
And so, you know, I think those are two guys that will, you know, if not start, push for starting jobs and certainly amp up the competition.
And, you know, I can probably put a, you know, a 1B besides Ty Haywood's name.
You know, I think he's a guy that I know Alabama's probably going to evaluate, you know, at one of the guard spots.
He's got more of a tackle body, as does Brooks, but he's got more of a left tackle body frame, but he's put on some weight.
Now he's, you know, right around 320.
So, you know, does he push for a starting guard spot, or is he a really, really good backup?
Or, you know, can he push Jackson Lloyd at left tackle in the spring?
We'll have to wait and see.
But I think those three guys are, you know, kind of guys that they really, really kind of hit it out of the park with.
Rampish, talk to us about the intangible.
Obviously, these kids in high school, they're gifted physically, and who knows, in all kinds of ways, so they stand out.
Talk to us about the learning curve, and you go back to your day, a high school standout,
and just talk to us about the speed, the mental part of the game, because you can bring in a class on paper that looks great,
but sometimes they lack experience, and the only way you get it is like going to a cave and sitting in the select tight and select might.
It's a drip at a time.
It's a slow process.
But talk to us, as the guy who you've been there and done that, trying to get up to speed at this level as a lineman.
Well, you know, it was more of a physical curve for me because I actually played tight end in high school.
And there was a little bit of a difference for me, you know, stop blocking 150-pound safety
or being asked to block a 200-pound defensive end, you know, versus what I was asked to do.
And so, but I think in today's game, when you see that, you know, the majority of these high school offensive linemen
are already around 300 pounds or close to it when they come out,
really the mental aspect of it is where the adjustment is.
Yeah.
It's because of, you know, the blocking schemes and, you know, if you're going up against, you know,
a front seven that does a lot of slanting, stunning, blitzing of the linebackers, you know, i.e. Oklahoma,
you know, the things happen in such a quick amount of time, you know, when the quarterback gives you that,
you know, red call and, you know, your antenna goes up to see what the play is and then the ball is snapped.
All that happens in the course of about two and a half or three seconds.
So, you know, you can't really have a lot of potato farmers up there.
No offense to potato farmers, but you can't really have a lot of potato farmers up there.
I mean, really and truthfully, you know, outside of the quarterback position, you know,
that that's really probably the second most cerebral position on a football field at the SEC level.
William, your thoughts on the defensive line.
Devin Tompkins, the redshirt senior from USC.
I've already heard some good things about him.
Kendrick Bingley-Jones, a redshirt senior from Mississippi State.
The one I've really heard a lot about is Terrence Green, the junior from Oregon,
Caleb Smith from Washington, and then Desmond Yu,
Yumi Ozula from South Carolina.
I've heard a lot, he played behind some very good players on the D-line against South Carolina.
William, your thoughts on the defensive line transfer guys they brought in?
Well, I mean, the two easy ones right out of the gate that you can talk about, you know,
are Stingley and Green.
You know, think Tim Keenan there.
You know, those are two, you know, heavy-bodied run stuffers.
You know, they're not guys that you're really going to expect to put a lot of pressure on the quarterback.
But more run situation guys, and I think they made a, you know,
a concerted effort to get a little heavier body guys there.
You know, Tompkins, you know, I think what you might end up seeing with Tompkins,
and I really hope they leave him, you know, maybe at the bandit position,
because when USC tried to move him inside, his productivity went down in a hurry.
So I think he's more comfortable.
He's a former basketball player.
You know, I think he enjoys playing in space more than in that home booth on the inside.
So you may end up seeing a kind of a two-for-one deal there.
You know, maybe going back to the Denzel Duvall, you know, Tim Williams combo,
where, you know, in run situations you see Tompkins, and, you know,
in obvious passing situations, which they really needed another piece to this.
You know, he might be the guy on the opposite side of the line of scrimmage
from Yonzi Pierre on the outside in obvious passing situations.
William, Redfish Barge in the huddle with us.
Obviously, the portal has officially closed,
but there's still going to be some shopping going back and forth.
William, in your opinion, as far as positions,
we won't necessarily talk about people unless you want to,
but as far as the position, what would you like to see,
and where would you like to see Alabama maybe shore things up
heading into the offseason or heading into next season?
Well, you know, I think we've still got a month.
You know, where they can continue, you know, working around and looking.
I mean, I think mid-February is when, is the last day that you can kind of enroll in school.
So, you know, you might see them continue to look for a proven commodity at running back.
I would like to see them maybe add one more experienced inside linebacker.
You'll probably see them do some shopping for a proven,
another proven wide receiver.
But really, you know, if they can grab onto a, you know,
a guy that they like at O-line or D-line, you know, you might see them.
They've still got, you know, a lot of spots they can add if they want to, numbers-wise.
But, you know, I think for sure they would probably like to have a proven commodity at running back,
another one at wide receiver and linebacker,
and, you know, maybe, you know, a couple more D-line.
And I think they've probably gotten pretty close at the offensive line.
And, you know, that's what I think, you know,
one thing that you don't hear a lot of people talking about
that it's going to be interesting to see with all these people that have gone into the portal
is whenever a particular school spring practice is over,
you know, some of these kids that hit the portal and left multiple schools,
I'm not just talking about Alabama, but, you know, they're at their new destination,
and all of a sudden, you know, most people know where they kind of stand with things
and the pecking order and the 2-D depth chart.
And, you know, I really do.
I think if a lot of these kids in their new homes,
if they go through spring practice and they don't like the circumstances that they've done,
you're going to see them load up the U-Haul again
and maybe try and go somewhere else and come in as a walk-on.
Yeah.
I don't think we're, you know, in a safe place yet
when it comes to departures and entries.
Well, the thing is, too, William,
I think a lot of folks are still in a cultural shift here
because with Nick, you were guaranteed to have been heavy with 4 and 5 stars,
but that was an 85 limit.
Now it's 105.
You're also, you've got a budget to work with, so it's a brand new era.
And I think a case in point to illustrate that was over the weekend
to add depth to the wide receiver room.
They got a high school kid with zero stars out of Georgia.
Who knows what the kid can do,
but I don't think Nick Saban ever recruited a zero star at any position,
but it's just where we are in the modern world.
Yeah, we are, and, you know, I think that, you know,
the people lose track of this,
and you've got a really good, you know, way to look at this
coming up here in a couple of weeks, always.
The only NFL game that I ever watch every year from, you know,
the coin toss to the final whistle is the Super Bowl.
And I'm always amazed, especially at the offensive line position,
and how many guys that are offensive linemen, you know,
end up making it to the Super Bowl, and, you know,
they've come from places that you've never heard of before.
And, you know, I think last year, I think the average starter in the Super Bowl
was, you know, a three to a three-and-a-half star recruit.
But you'll see these offensive line rosters for, you know,
North Dakota State and Weber State.
It's kind of like me when I printed out a copy of the 2025 Alabama football team
schedule this past summer.
I look down through there, and I'm like,
I didn't even know that Eastern Illinois had a football program.
I didn't see any NFL Super Bowl starters on that team when we played them.
That's right.
You never know.
Yeah.
William, you mentioned receiver as far as bringing in another experienced one.
Nico Brown from Yale, and I know there's some people who snicker about the Ivy League,
but this kid's a proven production.
71 catches, over 1,000 yards, 108 yards per game,
which was one of the top two or three in the nation.
And then West Florida with Jacoby Clinton.
Who's Jacoby Clinton?
He's Ha-Ha Clinton Dix's younger brother.
78 tackles, 19 tackles for a loss, seven sacks.
And I know they're looking at other kids, but that's another good example.
William, do you think Alabama will end up with one or possibly even both of those guys?
I mean, I think they possibly could.
Now, you know, the fact that Brown left Tuscaloosa without signing a contract and he's fixing to spend time with his brother who's on the current Stanford football team on a visit.
That doesn't give me warm and fuzzies about him.
But, you know, stranger things have happened.
But, yeah, like I said, I certainly think that they're not done and, you know, they've got scholarships to give out and available scholarships.
And, you know, I don't think they're just going to take, you know, people just to fill, you know, scout team roles.
But, you know, yeah, I still think they're looking.
And if they can find the right people available, they'll make more additions.
So, in the meantime, who wins the ball game tonight, William?
God almighty.
You know, I got a pull for Mario Cristobal, one of my favorite former Alabama, probably my favorite former Alabama assistant.
You know, but it's hard to see.
You know, I think they can more than compete with them on both sides of the line of scrimmage.
I think this is, you know, an old school Miami team when it comes to the line of scrimmage.
But, you know, Miami's defense kind of reminds me a little bit of Brent Venerables.
If you can survive those two defensive ends rushing the passer, I think there's a lot of plays to be made, you know, on their secondary.
And, you know, Indiana is so efficient.
But I would be surprised if Indiana does win.
I don't think it's going to be the Alabama or Oregon type of cakewalk that they had.
I think this is going to be a much more contested contest.
And, you know, I want to see Mario, you know, get a national championship.
He's had a, you know, tough little road to overcome, you know, kind of choking away some games that he should have won that he ended up losing.
And so I'd like to see him kind of totally get over that hurdle.
And, you know, get a natty as a head coach.
But, you know, I don't know if they're talented enough at the skill positions to slay the dragon that's become Indiana.
William, you mentioned efficiency with Indiana.
I'm still amazed.
With the one fumble in the first game the entire year, but Alabama had 17 penalties in one game in Knoxville two games ago.
Indiana's had 13 the entire season.
That's nearly unheard of to tell you.
William, that is incredible when you look at the efficiency of those two stands.
Well, you know, if this was 1992, you could win a lot of football games by having a defense if you didn't give up a lot of points.
If you didn't create a lot of, you know, give up, you know, a lot of turnovers, if you didn't commit a lot of penalties.
You know, that was efficiency, you know, 35 years ago.
But, you know, in today's game, you know, obviously Indiana has all those components, but plus they've got a pretty explosive high-scoring offense as well.
So, it's just a tough algorithm to overcome.
Better or not, here at Kimes, William, kick back, enjoy the game.
And, listen, man, thank you so much for your time today, and let's do it again real soon, okay?
All right, guys.
Hope you all have a good rest of the week.
Thank you, buddy.
Thank you so much.
William, Redfish, Barger, BB, is it the case that Indiana is not going to win, but by how much?
Or are you taking the upset tonight?
I'm kind of going back and forth at this game, but Indiana is so efficient.
I just think Miami makes a mistake, be it a penalty or a minimal mistake in the fourth quarter.
I think Indiana wins 28-24.
I got about at least a couple of touchdowns, right?
Whatever score you want, but kick back and enjoy the game.
Hard to believe the last game of the 2025-26 college football season.
That's going to take care of me guys 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 tomorrow on noon to two for the Boomer Buck Show, back here on Sports Radio, 93.9th Score.