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 Now, get ready to roll, Shoals, Decatur, Athens and all of Northwest Alabama and Southern Tennessee.

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 It's time for the Valley's exclusive FM Sports Voice.

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 The Boomo Bugg Show.

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 Your exclusive inside track to the Tigers, Tennessee and the rest of the SEC.

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 Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9, The Score.

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 Good afternoon and welcome in to the Boomo Bugg Show.

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 I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird.

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 Thank you so much for giving us a free ride around the Tennessee Valley.

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 Brett Beaird, welcome in where the Auburn Tigers continue to be on fire at the SEC baseball tournament

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 and Braves fans are mourning the loss of a legend.

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 Good afternoon, welcome in and how are you?

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 Happy Wednesday to you and the listeners.

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 Boy, you're right.

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 He was a maverick 30 years ahead of his time.

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 Ted Turner, founder of CNN and TBS broadcasting and the former owner of the Atlanta Braves died today at 87 years old.

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 Harold, just a quick weather note.

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 Lauderdale County Schools, as well as Mars Hill Bible, will dismiss early today at 1230, in fact,

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 because of the potential weather concerns we've got this afternoon.

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 But we are absolutely delighted to have bringing in Stuart Sink, who won the Regents Tradition last week and many more this season at Greystone Golf and Country Club joining us right now.

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 You know what's amazing about it, that we do not, this is just the way it works sometimes.

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 Nobody knows, mentioned Ted Turner, no one knows the Atlanta area better than Stuart Sink, and no one knows Lauderdale County better than Stuart Sink.

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 I'm going to go on record right now and say, I'm just going to go out and say it.

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 He's the best golfer to ever come out of Bradshaw High School.

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 Stuart Sink, he's got a place down at Home Depot adding yet more space to his trophy case.

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 Stuart, welcome in.

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 Stuart, it is an absolute pleasure.

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 How are you?

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 I'm doing great, fellas.

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 It's so good to be on with you.

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 And you know I love checking in with my homies up in North Alabama from time to time.

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 I tell you what, Stuart, I don't even know where to begin with this.

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 My goodness gracious, you are a living testament.

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 Stay in shape.

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 Always keep the gas tank loaded.

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 You are on the PGA Champions Tour, you're racking it up right and left.

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 Most recently, as Brent mentioned, down at the Regents.

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 Where do you start in breaking down this year and the secret to the sauce, Stuart?

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 Well, to be honest, yeah, I've had a productive six months or so here with wins, and it's been awesome.

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 But really, the turning point probably came about two years ago at a tournament in Tucson, Arizona, where I had the lead.

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 And it would have been my first win on the Champions Tour early on in my career out here after turning 50.

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 And I lost.

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 I played really bad on the back nine.

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 The pressure got to me a little bit.

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 The expectations certainly did.

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 I hit the ball out of play several times.

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 And it was a real wake-up call.

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 So it was a great time for that to happen.

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 It aligned my expectations a little bit more properly and gave me a real good roadmap for what I need to do to get things a little more on the rails, so to speak.

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 And so now I feel like I'm actually being able to implement a lot of the changes I was able to make.

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 And, you know, it's been night and day from that back nine in Tucson, which felt so terrible, to, you know, like last Sunday at Greystone, where, you know, my driver really has been the most important weapon for me in winning tournaments.

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 Keeping the ball in play and with power and making the golf courses play easier.

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 You know, simple as that.

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 Let me just throw it down and put it in perspective, Stuart.

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 You were the PGA Tour Rookie of the Year in 1997.

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 People are saying, I can, that's been a while ago.

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 And here we are still ranking it up.

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 Let me just, this is a modest list.

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 The PGA Tour Champions at the Charles Schwab Cup winner this year.

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 PGA Tour Champions, oh, by the way, money list winner, 2025.

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 PGA Tour Champions Player of the Year 2025.

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 Consistency.

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 Folks, in any job, I don't care, you play golf.

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 We've got people working in a factory, people right now that's in the plumbing business.

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 How do you stay so consistent, Stuart?

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 Well, I think the key has been, and it's not just this last half a year or so where I've been having some success, but overall in my career, I learned, especially towards the latter half of my career, that you cannot depend on the results in golf.

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 It's like a lot of things we do, you know, you can't depend on the results.

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 You guys, you can't, you got, I just heard the announcement before I came on.

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 You got schools letting out in Lauderdale County early.

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 You're going to miss a lot of your afternoon audience at the radio show, so you can't depend on that kind of stuff.

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 All you can do is prepare the best show you can every day, get the best content, and make it run the smoothest possible on the back end.

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 And that's what I do in golf, you know.

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 I take care of the little stuff, I work hard, I dial things in, and I go out there and I try to get out of my own way.

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 And let the results happen, and therefore, the results and the wins kind of sneak up on you.

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 And I just learned that trying to go out there and wrestle that fair to the ground just didn't work as well.

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 Stewart, putting, you mentioned that you were tremendous off the tee at Greystone.

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 What's the most improved part of your game this year?

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 It's that part.

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 Without question, it's the driver.

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 And I keep up with my stats, not on my own, but I have a, there's like a little stat service, an app that anybody can use.

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 And I use it just to kind of like measure my overall shot quality and the importance of each category in golf to my scoring.

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 You know, because a lot of people think if you shoot low round, like let's say you go out there and shoot 65, well, you must have putted great.

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 It's not always true.

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 And that's what this statistical deep dive has kind of helped me figure out is that like my driving has been as important or more important than any other part of my game.

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 When I drive it well, I shoot low.

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 I don't have to putt great.

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 And so it tells me that it's not just a weapon, but it's a weapon being used effectively and at the right times and on the right courses.

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 And I'm, I've always been pretty good at setting up the game plan on the courses, you know, uh, basically what it boils down to is my caddy, Chris Jones and I, we try to take, we try to select the easy shot and make golf as easy as it can be.

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 Cause it's hard.

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 We all know it's hard.

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 And so we try to select the easiest shot.

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 And, um, if I can hit a good drive, then that there's a lot of more attractive, easy shots after that than there are.

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 If I hit poor drive.

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 I was saying Occam's razor.

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 I think it is always start with a simplicity of it and figuring out any problem.

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 And usually it's, that's where it starts, but here's one thing I really admire about you, Stuart.

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 It's like Casey Casey and the former great DJ said, keep your feet on the ground, keep reaching for the stars.

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 And no one, I think lives with that mantra better than you.

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 You've reached the stars, but you've always managed to keep your feet on the ground for all of us hackers.

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 I've asked you this before, but we've got a new audience.

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 What advice people think, well, if I go and I buy this set of clubs and I go do this, this, and this, I can be good at golf just for the average golfer.

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 You've got a God talent.

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 So it may be a hard question for you to answer, but for us mortals, what advice would you give who love golf, but we're just not that good at it?

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 Well, the business and the sponsorship side of me wants to say, go buy a new club because that's why I have a job.

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 But I can't honestly say that's the only thing, of course.

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 I mean, yeah, it's nice to have the clubs.

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 It's nice to be fit.

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 That's a good starting point.

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 Right.

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 And what I mean is to be fit for the clubs, you know, to have the clubs fit to you.

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 But really, the game of golf, it depends what you want out of it.

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 Do you want to just have fun whacking the, you know what, out of the ball, off the tee?

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 Okay.

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 Then your score probably isn't really that important to you.

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 Then go get a new driver and have fun whacking it.

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 But if you really want to get better at golf, then it's going to come down to the scoring and learning to get that handicap down.

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 And the way you do that is from the closer you are to the hole, the more important the shots are.

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 So you need to learn how to hole out from five feet regularly.

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 You need to know how to not three-putt as often.

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 You need to know how to only chip once at any time you miss the green.

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 We don't want to be missing the green with our chips.

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 So the closer you are to the hole, the most important those shots are to your score.

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 Unfortunately for most golfers, it's also the most mundane part of practice is to go out there

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 and just over and over and over routinely roll in those five-footers.

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 No, we're doing that.

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 We're doing that, the ones out here that are playing for our life.

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 We're doing that because we know it's important.

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 But if you want to get better at golf or if you want to have more fun,

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 those approaches are a little bit different.

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 If you want to get better, you need to practice your putting around the green.

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 If you want to just have fun, then there's a lot of different ways to have fun.

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 I mean, it's fun to whack the driver.

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 It's fun to hit it close with an iron shot.

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 But it's also fun to beat your friends with a 76 when they shoot 82.

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 Let me ask you this, Stuart.

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 You obviously, you've got a lot of God-given talent, but I'm going to throw three names at you.

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 You tell us how important this has been to your success.

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 Lisa, Connor, and Reagan.

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 All three of them have been very, very important.

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 And Lisa, she's my wife.

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 She's a North Alabama native and went to the same high school, Bradshaw.

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 Go Bradshaw Bruins with me.

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 And she's like a de facto sports psychologist in a way.

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 I mean, she's been around this golf thing for so long.

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 And she's seen me.

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 She's seen where I struggle.

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 She has a perspective I don't have.

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 She understands how the personality and the emotion kind of tie into performance.

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 And, you know, get yourself locked up out there on the golf course.

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 And she's just so helpful and amazing.

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 Reagan, my younger son, is like a chip off of my DNA.

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 I mean, we're like the same person.

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 We like the same things.

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 We laugh at the same jokes.

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 We play golf all the time.

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 You know, he's a serious golfer.

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 And he caddied for me for two years.

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 We got two PGA Tour wins when I was in my late 40s.

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 And then Connor, my younger son, was born when I was in college.

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 And just him being born helped me learn how to focus at a time when all my friends were, like, watching movies and throwing the football.

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 And I was like, I got 40 minutes to get my entire practice done today before I have to go to daycare.

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 That was, like, huge, teaching me how to turn my schedule into a quality over quantity and get a lot out of my practice without having much time.

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 And my game just improved so much with him being born when most of my world was saying, hey, you know, you're going to have a kid in college.

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 You can pretty much forget about golf.

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 It just didn't turn out that way.

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 So all of them had a unique, heavy input into my career.

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 Stuart, we know you've got to run.

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 You've got a busy schedule.

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 We're just flattered that you could carve time out of that busy schedule and join us today.

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 Life is good.

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 Man, continued success, too.

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 And I know I echo the sentiments of a lot of folks right here at Florence Country Club, Turtle Point, every course in North Alabama.

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 They're your biggest fans.

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 And I know that they mean a lot to you.

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 And thank you so much.

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 And, listen, continued success out there, my friend.

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 All right.

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 Well, I appreciate that very much.

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 It's good to talk to you all.

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 And hello to everybody out there in North Alabama.

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 Love you.

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 And I was so proud to get a win last week in my home state.

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 It meant so much.

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 Graystone, one of the prettiest courses around.

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 By the way, the residence, the fellow by the name of Michael Jordan, back in the day, Stuart Sink, PGA Tour champions.

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 He is number one, by the way, on the Champions Tour.

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 And he calls North Alabama home.

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 Coming up, speaking of the state of Georgia, Mr. College Football himself, he knows TDs, he's TBs.

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 Tony Barnhart on deck.

189
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 Stay with us.

190
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 Spring is in the air, and a leaf's long-lasting pain relief is here to keep you moving.

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222
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223
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225
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226
00:14:34,980 --> 00:14:38,740
 Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.

227
00:14:39,080 --> 00:14:42,620
 Time to take a little road trip to the Peachtree State, and that is Georgia.

228
00:14:42,820 --> 00:14:45,480
 The king of it is Bill Shanks, host for The Bill Shanks Show.

229
00:14:45,680 --> 00:14:46,540
 Bill, welcome in.

230
00:14:46,600 --> 00:14:47,120
 How are you?

231
00:14:47,420 --> 00:14:48,340
 I am doing great.

232
00:14:48,420 --> 00:14:52,980
 I'm headed to the best college town in America, Athens, Georgia, right now.

233
00:14:52,980 --> 00:14:54,820
 You said best college town in the country?

234
00:14:54,900 --> 00:14:56,320
 You're not going to Tuscaloosa, Bill?

235
00:14:56,500 --> 00:14:57,840
 No, I'm going to Athens.

236
00:14:57,960 --> 00:14:59,060
 I ain't never been to Tuscaloosa.

237
00:14:59,300 --> 00:15:01,120
 Somebody in Boston can come there.

238
00:15:02,720 --> 00:15:08,000
 Bill, you know, after our last conversation, Brett and I, we have been on a guilt trip,

239
00:15:08,060 --> 00:15:11,160
 and we agree that we do not talk enough about the Atlanta Hawks, Bill.

240
00:15:11,180 --> 00:15:11,720
 We don't.

241
00:15:12,080 --> 00:15:13,060
 Bill, here's your chance.

242
00:15:13,060 --> 00:15:14,440
 Oh, now you're going to talk about it.

243
00:15:14,440 --> 00:15:19,240
 Well, what I'm just saying, you told us to talk about the Hawks, so the platform is yours.

244
00:15:20,380 --> 00:15:22,360
 Yeah, thanks a lot.

245
00:15:22,520 --> 00:15:24,300
 Now, now you're going to talk about them, yeah.

246
00:15:24,300 --> 00:15:26,180
 Okay, you're humiliated.

247
00:15:26,600 --> 00:15:28,540
 Now you want a whole segment on the Hawks.

248
00:15:29,360 --> 00:15:30,500
 It's never too late.

249
00:15:30,540 --> 00:15:31,220
 What do you mean?

250
00:15:31,480 --> 00:15:35,460
 The Boomo Bugg Show, weekdays, noon to two, on 93.9 The Score.

251
00:15:38,160 --> 00:15:43,040
 This is Braves Country, where history lives and legends rise.

252
00:15:43,040 --> 00:15:49,060
 And now, the next chapter begins, because the Atlanta Braves are back.

253
00:15:49,180 --> 00:15:50,480
 Swung on and felt it.

254
00:15:50,820 --> 00:15:51,780
 Deep right field.

255
00:15:52,200 --> 00:15:52,680
 Gone.

256
00:15:53,400 --> 00:15:58,700
 Today, don't miss Ronald Acuna Jr. and your Atlanta Braves taking on Cal Raleigh and the

257
00:15:58,700 --> 00:16:01,620
 Seattle Mariners, live from T-Mobile Park in Seattle.

258
00:16:01,620 --> 00:16:07,860
 Braves Radio is on the air at 255 Eastern, 155 Central on the Braves Radio Network.

259
00:16:07,860 --> 00:16:14,720
 Brought to you locally by the law firm of Johnson Pasture, Medley and Virtual, J.C. Hammonson,

260
00:16:15,340 --> 00:16:20,220
 First Metro Bank, Nationwide Insurance Agents Michael Doe and Bill Cochran,

261
00:16:20,860 --> 00:16:29,500
 Medford Jewelers, Valley Credit Union, Certified Alarm, Lost Pizza, and Alabama Health Guidance.

262
00:16:30,200 --> 00:16:34,960
 Atlanta Braves baseball, this afternoon, versus the Seattle Mariners on 93.9 The Score.

263
00:16:36,040 --> 00:16:37,160
 The Score.

264
00:16:37,620 --> 00:16:42,400
 Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.

265
00:16:42,920 --> 00:16:44,180
 Welcome back in, BB.

266
00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:46,880
 It just seems like today it is the state of Georgia, fresh.

267
00:16:46,980 --> 00:16:50,900
 I'm talking to, I would say, probably the best golfer to ever come out of Georgia Tech,

268
00:16:50,900 --> 00:16:53,160
 certainly to be born on the neck of the woods, Stewart's sink.

269
00:16:53,840 --> 00:16:57,220
 And while we're at it, why don't we just go to a guy who's a scratch golfer himself

270
00:16:57,220 --> 00:17:03,620
 in the state of Georgia, Tony Barnhart, a.k.a. also Mr. College Football, TMG College Sports,

271
00:17:03,740 --> 00:17:05,620
 fine contributor there to 680 The Fan.

272
00:17:06,180 --> 00:17:07,680
 Where else? In Atlanta, Georgia.

273
00:17:07,820 --> 00:17:09,120
 Tony, welcome in. How are you?

274
00:17:09,720 --> 00:17:13,880
 I'm doing well, and nobody's ever called me a scratch golfer, so God bless you.

275
00:17:16,480 --> 00:17:19,280
 Tony, I'm sure over the years you had a chance to go to charity tournaments.

276
00:17:19,420 --> 00:17:20,540
 I was a scratch golfer.

277
00:17:20,640 --> 00:17:23,820
 Every time I showed up for a foursome, they would scratch me from their foursome.

278
00:17:23,820 --> 00:17:27,040
 That's right, that's right. We're scratching him from the lineup.

279
00:17:27,480 --> 00:17:28,200
 There you go.

280
00:17:29,220 --> 00:17:30,800
 Like a Kentucky Derby race.

281
00:17:30,860 --> 00:17:35,880
 Tony, we had a lot to get to, but you know this is live stuff here, and boy, I tell you what,

282
00:17:36,340 --> 00:17:41,000
 the state of Georgia, what's the reaction today to the news of the passing,

283
00:17:41,680 --> 00:17:43,900
 truly the one and the only Ted Turner?

284
00:17:45,340 --> 00:17:47,960
 You know, you talk about visionaries.

285
00:17:48,640 --> 00:17:53,120
 I had a chance to meet Mr. Turner a couple of times over the years,

286
00:17:53,240 --> 00:17:58,060
 and he would look at things and he would see potential in things that other people didn't see.

287
00:17:58,620 --> 00:18:01,780
 I mean, a 24-hour news network?

288
00:18:01,880 --> 00:18:02,640
 Are you kidding me?

289
00:18:02,700 --> 00:18:04,480
 What a stupid idea that is.

290
00:18:04,740 --> 00:18:06,000
 I mean, why would you do that?

291
00:18:06,000 --> 00:18:10,420
 And so, yeah, it was, he was, he was a great, he was a visionary,

292
00:18:10,720 --> 00:18:16,020
 and we throw that word around a whole lot, but it's true when you talk about Ted Turner.

293
00:18:16,840 --> 00:18:21,200
 Not only that, Tony, he started, he bought a, basically a money loser,

294
00:18:21,300 --> 00:18:25,820
 what was it, Channel 17 back in the day when UHF television stations were like laughable.

295
00:18:25,820 --> 00:18:28,680
 It was like FM radio back in the day when AM was king.

296
00:18:28,740 --> 00:18:33,720
 He bought it and said, let's launch a satellite here, call it the super stations, put the braids on,

297
00:18:33,780 --> 00:18:35,740
 and as they say, the rest is history.

298
00:18:36,100 --> 00:18:40,140
 Speaking of the braids, Tony, before we get to your bailiwick college football,

299
00:18:40,740 --> 00:18:43,720
 what about the foundation laid by Ted Turner?

300
00:18:44,760 --> 00:18:48,060
 How do you explain this turnaround from last season?

301
00:18:49,120 --> 00:18:49,680
 Well, you don't.

302
00:18:49,840 --> 00:18:52,580
 I mean, I think injuries had a lot to do with it,

303
00:18:52,580 --> 00:18:56,060
 and this good fortune has a lot to do with it.

304
00:18:56,100 --> 00:19:00,840
 But right now, they are playing lights out, lights out baseball.

305
00:19:01,540 --> 00:19:02,240
 It's interesting.

306
00:19:02,420 --> 00:19:07,840
 I had a chance to talk to Leo Mazzoni, the old pitching coach, not too long ago,

307
00:19:08,060 --> 00:19:13,860
 and I just said, what was it like going back to doing the days in Glavin and all the,

308
00:19:13,960 --> 00:19:16,800
 you know, every day you would go to the ballpark, you expected to win

309
00:19:16,800 --> 00:19:18,780
 because you had the best pitching staff in baseball.

310
00:19:19,000 --> 00:19:19,800
 It wasn't even great.

311
00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:26,100
 He said it was great because you expected to win every time you went out

312
00:19:26,100 --> 00:19:28,080
 because you didn't expect those guys would ever lose.

313
00:19:30,240 --> 00:19:30,720
 Absolutely.

314
00:19:30,720 --> 00:19:36,840
 Tony, I've had several people suggest to me that Tony Barnhart should be the commissioner of football.

315
00:19:37,200 --> 00:19:37,700
 There you go.

316
00:19:38,060 --> 00:19:40,560
 And particularly for the last two or three years.

317
00:19:40,780 --> 00:19:42,800
 And, Harry, you've got Harold and I vote,

318
00:19:43,020 --> 00:19:48,140
 but the American Football Coaches Association came out yesterday

319
00:19:48,140 --> 00:19:53,120
 with some criteria or suggestions to move forward.

320
00:19:53,280 --> 00:19:55,400
 And I'm glad someone is doing something.

321
00:19:55,520 --> 00:19:57,260
 I don't know how much pull they've got.

322
00:19:57,980 --> 00:20:03,080
 But, Tony, they want max participants in the college football playoff.

323
00:20:03,160 --> 00:20:06,220
 What that means in English is they want to go to 24.

324
00:20:07,060 --> 00:20:12,480
 They want to end the conference championship games, which have been very lucrative,

325
00:20:13,060 --> 00:20:14,340
 or the conferences.

326
00:20:14,720 --> 00:20:18,680
 They want to end the season by the second week of January.

327
00:20:18,840 --> 00:20:22,000
 Now, I know a lot of our listeners would agree with a lot of that.

328
00:20:22,540 --> 00:20:25,060
 Tony, are they at least going in the right direction?

329
00:20:26,100 --> 00:20:28,100
 Well, they're going in the right direction.

330
00:20:28,200 --> 00:20:30,880
 And the coaches are always going to say, we want more access.

331
00:20:31,140 --> 00:20:32,260
 Well, of course you want more access.

332
00:20:32,800 --> 00:20:34,020
 It's called job security.

333
00:20:34,320 --> 00:20:39,280
 And then the more access you have, the more playoff spots there are.

334
00:20:39,620 --> 00:20:41,100
 And you can say, well, you can't fire me.

335
00:20:41,140 --> 00:20:42,540
 I went to the playoffs last year.

336
00:20:42,540 --> 00:20:43,900
 I was one of 24.

337
00:20:44,620 --> 00:20:51,320
 So, I am not at all in any way supportive of the 24-game playoff.

338
00:20:51,960 --> 00:20:56,840
 I don't want to do six, but I understand the math, how it works.

339
00:20:57,480 --> 00:21:00,740
 I don't want to do 16, but I think that's probably going to happen.

340
00:21:00,860 --> 00:21:01,920
 That's going to be the compromise.

341
00:21:01,920 --> 00:21:06,780
 But what I found interesting is that the coaches just right out flat out there

342
00:21:06,780 --> 00:21:08,160
 and set it for everybody to hear.

343
00:21:08,620 --> 00:21:10,780
 The conference championship games have got to go.

344
00:21:12,260 --> 00:21:14,560
 And they could stay at 16.

345
00:21:14,660 --> 00:21:16,720
 They certainly couldn't stay at 24.

346
00:21:18,080 --> 00:21:21,480
 And so, I'm anxious to see kind of where it plays out from here.

347
00:21:21,620 --> 00:21:25,740
 But 24 just, you know, it just hits me the wrong way.

348
00:21:26,320 --> 00:21:27,380
 I agree with you, Tony.

349
00:21:27,400 --> 00:21:28,040
 That's a resume.

350
00:21:28,320 --> 00:21:29,360
 All that is is a resume.

351
00:21:29,500 --> 00:21:30,300
 I went to the playoffs.

352
00:21:30,300 --> 00:21:31,880
 Like you said, you can't get rid of me.

353
00:21:32,360 --> 00:21:33,780
 Tony Barnhart and Huddle with us.

354
00:21:34,120 --> 00:21:37,000
 Your moniker is Mr. College Football across the country.

355
00:21:37,640 --> 00:21:39,900
 Your thoughts about what's going on across the country

356
00:21:39,900 --> 00:21:41,800
 relative to the Big Ten, the SEC.

357
00:21:42,220 --> 00:21:44,020
 You've got this great debate going on.

358
00:21:44,360 --> 00:21:45,500
 The Big Ten owns the world.

359
00:21:45,680 --> 00:21:47,420
 The SEC said, no, it's an outlier.

360
00:21:47,520 --> 00:21:48,060
 We owned it.

361
00:21:48,140 --> 00:21:49,860
 Yeah, over the last couple of years, they got it.

362
00:21:50,360 --> 00:21:53,800
 But going forward, Tony, where are you with a great argument,

363
00:21:53,980 --> 00:21:55,480
 the Big Ten with all that money?

364
00:21:55,640 --> 00:21:57,420
 The SEC's got money, too.

365
00:21:58,180 --> 00:22:00,740
 But where are you as far as the great debate between the two?

366
00:22:00,820 --> 00:22:03,800
 Let's face it, only two conferences right now that really matter

367
00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:05,680
 when it comes to big money and championships.

368
00:22:06,540 --> 00:22:08,380
 And things are cyclical.

369
00:22:08,560 --> 00:22:09,440
 We know that, guys.

370
00:22:10,720 --> 00:22:14,060
 And for the SEC had their incredible run, you know,

371
00:22:14,100 --> 00:22:16,380
 seven straight national championships.

372
00:22:16,980 --> 00:22:20,540
 The numbers in the draft, once again, were in favor of the SEC.

373
00:22:20,980 --> 00:22:23,200
 It was funny, after the first round of the draft,

374
00:22:23,660 --> 00:22:27,040
 when the Big Ten got ten and the SEC took seven,

375
00:22:27,320 --> 00:22:30,180
 I thought they just wanted the SEC to give up football.

376
00:22:30,380 --> 00:22:31,780
 They didn't need to play football anymore.

377
00:22:32,220 --> 00:22:32,740
 That's right.

378
00:22:32,740 --> 00:22:34,380
 No point in doing it.

379
00:22:34,680 --> 00:22:38,560
 And then the SEC comes back, and for the, I think,

380
00:22:38,620 --> 00:22:42,980
 20th consecutive year, had more total players drafted

381
00:22:42,980 --> 00:22:44,440
 than any other conference.

382
00:22:44,720 --> 00:22:48,240
 So, listen, the Big Ten deserves all the credit

383
00:22:48,240 --> 00:22:50,040
 that they're getting right now.

384
00:22:50,440 --> 00:22:52,160
 They've earned those national championships,

385
00:22:52,760 --> 00:22:55,040
 and they've got the money to spend, boys and girls.

386
00:22:55,480 --> 00:22:59,360
 So, good for them, but it's not going to last forever.

387
00:22:59,660 --> 00:23:00,000
 We'll see.

388
00:23:00,660 --> 00:23:01,400
 Tony, you know.

389
00:23:01,600 --> 00:23:05,600
 I predict the SEC will have football that is worth watching this year.

390
00:23:05,700 --> 00:23:06,240
 I predict that.

391
00:23:07,760 --> 00:23:09,160
 And the ESPN guarantees.

392
00:23:09,340 --> 00:23:10,680
 That's where the big chance coming in.

393
00:23:10,900 --> 00:23:12,160
 They don't sign off on losers.

394
00:23:12,300 --> 00:23:13,260
 I guarantee you.

395
00:23:13,340 --> 00:23:17,280
 But, Tony, let's start with the team that's in your neck of the woods,

396
00:23:17,400 --> 00:23:18,480
 the Georgia Bulldogs.

397
00:23:18,980 --> 00:23:22,880
 Your thoughts about how Kirby is navigating these modern waters.

398
00:23:22,880 --> 00:23:25,900
 I see a lot of Nick in him, obviously,

399
00:23:26,120 --> 00:23:28,620
 but I think at the same time, he's not going to take Dabo's grip

400
00:23:28,620 --> 00:23:29,460
 and not shop.

401
00:23:29,560 --> 00:23:33,020
 But your thoughts about Georgia and how Kirby is handling the climate now.

402
00:23:33,400 --> 00:23:35,500
 He knows exactly what he wants to do.

403
00:23:36,160 --> 00:23:40,920
 He's not going to be bringing in 25 or 30 portal guys.

404
00:23:41,160 --> 00:23:41,960
 He's not going to do it.

405
00:23:42,220 --> 00:23:44,800
 His view of the portal, which makes sense,

406
00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:46,740
 is you use it to spot recruit.

407
00:23:47,100 --> 00:23:50,060
 Within this position, we're going to go out

408
00:23:50,060 --> 00:23:52,580
 and shore up through the use of the portal.

409
00:23:53,280 --> 00:23:54,140
 And that's what he does.

410
00:23:54,280 --> 00:23:56,960
 And, you know, his recruiting will always be based

411
00:23:56,960 --> 00:24:01,160
 on gathering really, really good high school players.

412
00:24:01,500 --> 00:24:03,380
 But you've got to be smart about it, too.

413
00:24:03,620 --> 00:24:08,360
 He will spot recruit using the portal, and he's very good at it.

414
00:24:09,860 --> 00:24:13,580
 Tony, your thoughts on Cal and DeBoer going into year three.

415
00:24:13,580 --> 00:24:16,280
 You know what the standards at Alabama are.

416
00:24:16,580 --> 00:24:18,060
 Believe me, Harold and I hear about it.

417
00:24:19,340 --> 00:24:21,940
 It's a national championship or bust.

418
00:24:22,060 --> 00:24:25,700
 They did improve last year, won a playoff game.

419
00:24:25,860 --> 00:24:29,720
 I know a lot of fans get disgusted with some of these losing

420
00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:35,060
 by double-digit favorite to a non-ranked opponent.

421
00:24:35,420 --> 00:24:38,160
 But I thought he did well in the transfer portal.

422
00:24:38,340 --> 00:24:41,180
 I think he's got a better coaching staff now.

423
00:24:41,700 --> 00:24:43,620
 But, again, he's got a brutal schedule.

424
00:24:44,000 --> 00:24:47,260
 One more conference game this year with only one bye.

425
00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:51,100
 Tony, your thoughts on Cal and DeBoer going into year three.

426
00:24:52,000 --> 00:24:54,020
 I think Alabama's going to be fine.

427
00:24:54,340 --> 00:24:57,480
 You know, they had some issues last year, but they did make the playoffs.

428
00:24:58,780 --> 00:25:00,680
 They have recruited well.

429
00:25:00,980 --> 00:25:06,340
 I don't know much about the recruiting rankings, but based on that, they've done well.

430
00:25:06,400 --> 00:25:08,620
 So, I think Alabama's going to be fine.

431
00:25:08,760 --> 00:25:10,860
 Now, tell me where they're going to be.

432
00:25:10,960 --> 00:25:12,500
 It's Elon Russell, the guy quarterback.

433
00:25:13,000 --> 00:25:13,460
 He is.

434
00:25:13,920 --> 00:25:14,660
 Great athlete.

435
00:25:14,780 --> 00:25:15,900
 Anxious to see him play.

436
00:25:16,400 --> 00:25:18,220
 And so, we'll see how it goes.

437
00:25:18,340 --> 00:25:20,900
 But I think it's Alabama, guys.

438
00:25:21,640 --> 00:25:21,860
 Okay?

439
00:25:22,380 --> 00:25:23,060
 It's Alabama.

440
00:25:23,800 --> 00:25:24,880
 Alabama's going to be fine.

441
00:25:26,940 --> 00:25:31,740
 Tony, your thoughts about, I think it used to be called the University of South Florida,

442
00:25:31,960 --> 00:25:34,280
 the University of North Florida, a.k.a.

443
00:25:34,420 --> 00:25:36,240
 Auburn, coming up this season.

444
00:25:38,620 --> 00:25:41,940
 Oh, well, I think there's a lot of excitement over there.

445
00:25:42,040 --> 00:25:45,100
 They're bringing in their quarterback, obviously.

446
00:25:45,640 --> 00:25:50,760
 They are upbeat and go at a great, great pace.

447
00:25:51,400 --> 00:25:58,440
 And, again, they've got their quarterbacks.

448
00:25:59,180 --> 00:26:01,340
 And so, I'm anxious to see how that turns out.

449
00:26:01,900 --> 00:26:03,820
 You know, Auburn's got some work to do.

450
00:26:04,400 --> 00:26:08,540
 But I think at the end of the day, they're looking at a good season, not a great season.

451
00:26:09,580 --> 00:26:13,940
 Let me ask you about the last year.

452
00:26:14,060 --> 00:26:21,000
 Most people know 50 years of covering college football, and certainly memories in the SEC.

453
00:26:21,380 --> 00:26:24,300
 I know one of your goals was to write another book.

454
00:26:24,480 --> 00:26:27,340
 We'll talk about the 19th grade in a minute.

455
00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:32,220
 But Mr. College Football, 50 years of SEC memories.

456
00:26:33,260 --> 00:26:39,960
 Under plans, will that be coming out late this year, early next year, Tony?

457
00:26:40,240 --> 00:26:44,800
 And, secondly, you've got your golf tournament, ironically, next week.

458
00:26:45,320 --> 00:26:45,520
 Yeah.

459
00:26:45,640 --> 00:26:48,080
 Something that near and dear to your heart.

460
00:26:48,160 --> 00:26:51,640
 I was looking at some of the former Georgia players coming.

461
00:26:52,320 --> 00:26:59,400
 Tell us about plans for your next book, 50 years of SEC memories, and the upcoming golf tournament.

462
00:26:59,800 --> 00:27:01,820
 Well, thanks for asking about both.

463
00:27:02,400 --> 00:27:08,780
 As far as the memory book goes, 50 years of SEC football, I turned the manuscript in two weeks ago.

464
00:27:09,680 --> 00:27:12,820
 And you talk about Miss Scarlett.

465
00:27:13,000 --> 00:27:14,840
 It was wonderful to birth that baby.

466
00:27:15,460 --> 00:27:17,820
 It was incredible.

467
00:27:18,460 --> 00:27:21,720
 But I'm very happy with the way the book turned out, and we'll see.

468
00:27:22,360 --> 00:27:23,420
 We'll go through the process.

469
00:27:23,820 --> 00:27:29,160
 And I think early next year is when it sort of worked out that way in the schedule.

470
00:27:29,340 --> 00:27:29,920
 So it's fine.

471
00:27:30,560 --> 00:27:34,220
 As far as the golf tournament is concerned, it's the 10th annual HOI.

472
00:27:34,700 --> 00:27:41,800
 HOI stands for Honduras Outreach International Golf Tournament to benefit the folks from Honduras.

473
00:27:41,920 --> 00:27:45,680
 Maria and I went there about 10 years ago, and it changed our lives forever.

474
00:27:46,320 --> 00:27:51,940
 And so we have a good tournament every year.

475
00:27:53,080 --> 00:27:58,120
 A lot of great Georgia Bulldogs stepped up, some Georgia Tech guys stepped up.

476
00:27:58,740 --> 00:28:04,020
 And it is a good, good mix of football players and personalities.

477
00:28:04,160 --> 00:28:04,700
 And we're excited.

478
00:28:04,820 --> 00:28:09,740
 And that's Monday at the Atlanta National Golf Club.

479
00:28:09,940 --> 00:28:11,560
 We've got a good turnout.

480
00:28:12,460 --> 00:28:13,060
 Good turnout.

481
00:28:14,940 --> 00:28:18,680
 Tony, for the folks who want to get your book, go ahead and give it up.

482
00:28:18,980 --> 00:28:20,360
 Tell us where we can find it.

483
00:28:26,620 --> 00:28:28,880
 We had a little bit of a hiccup there with Tony.

484
00:28:28,960 --> 00:28:32,800
 We'll talk a little bit more about that as we get to the end of the show here.

485
00:28:32,880 --> 00:28:38,700
 But Tony Barnhart, Mr. College Football, hooking up from the great city of Atlanta, Georgia.

486
00:28:38,700 --> 00:28:39,800
 Again, check him out.

487
00:28:40,240 --> 00:28:44,460
 TMG College Sports on 6A to the fan, also in Hotlanta.

488
00:28:44,640 --> 00:28:48,380
 Coming up, let's go down to Tuscaloosa and check in with Rodney Orr on deck.

489
00:28:48,480 --> 00:28:48,940
 Stay with us.

490
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492
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522
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523
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524
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 Progressive Insurance presents the Sports Flash on 93-9 The Score.

525
00:30:32,640 --> 00:30:37,840
 The Atlanta Braves defeated the Seattle Mariners 3-2 on Tuesday night, holding Seattle to three hits.

526
00:30:38,160 --> 00:30:41,020
 Mauricio Duvon with a two-run double in the fourth inning.

527
00:30:41,320 --> 00:30:44,520
 Matt Olsen broke a two-all tie with a solo home run in the ninth.

528
00:30:44,800 --> 00:30:46,600
 Bryce Elder on the bump went six innings.

529
00:30:46,680 --> 00:30:47,920
 He had nine strikeouts.

530
00:30:48,220 --> 00:30:50,040
 Braves will wrap up that series today.

531
00:30:50,340 --> 00:30:52,820
 Grant Holmes gets the start against Brian Wu.

532
00:30:53,080 --> 00:30:56,120
 Coverage right here on The Score starts at 155.

533
00:30:56,200 --> 00:30:57,620
 First pitch at 310.

534
00:30:58,240 --> 00:31:03,840
 College baseball, North Alabama fell to the Sanford Bulldogs on Tuesday in Florence by a score of 8-2.

535
00:31:03,940 --> 00:31:05,360
 They dropped their third in a row.

536
00:31:05,700 --> 00:31:07,980
 Friday, they're on the road to face Central Arkansas.

537
00:31:07,980 --> 00:31:10,220
 The Lions now 24-23.

538
00:31:10,660 --> 00:31:13,900
 Back to Atlantic Sunplay where they are 15-9.

539
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564
00:32:29,120 --> 00:32:30,320
 The score.

565
00:32:30,840 --> 00:32:35,560
 Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.

566
00:32:36,140 --> 00:32:36,420
 The score.

567
00:32:36,420 --> 00:32:37,360
 Welcome back to the end time.

568
00:32:37,440 --> 00:32:40,060
 Head on down to T-Town and say hello to Rodney Orr.

569
00:32:40,140 --> 00:32:42,660
 He's a founder and editor of TiterInsider.com.

570
00:32:42,740 --> 00:32:44,080
 His boat's called Bigger Than Bama.

571
00:32:44,660 --> 00:32:45,780
 Rodney, welcome in.

572
00:32:45,880 --> 00:32:46,680
 Rodney, how are you?

573
00:32:47,640 --> 00:32:49,020
 I am doing well, Harold.

574
00:32:49,140 --> 00:32:50,480
 Brett, how about you guys today?

575
00:32:51,200 --> 00:32:53,180
 Man, we got some concerned eyes on you.

576
00:32:53,260 --> 00:32:56,620
 I don't know what these folks in the weather department know that we don't.

577
00:32:56,720 --> 00:33:00,320
 But I tell you what, it doesn't look good as far as the forecast down there.

578
00:33:00,400 --> 00:33:01,780
 Hopefully, you guys are ready.

579
00:33:01,860 --> 00:33:06,720
 And I know it hasn't been that too far removed as far as a date from a few years ago.

580
00:33:06,860 --> 00:33:09,640
 Rodney, good luck with the weather this afternoon and tonight down there.

581
00:33:10,320 --> 00:33:11,820
 Yeah, I appreciate it, Harold.

582
00:33:11,980 --> 00:33:18,860
 I mean, hopefully, you know, hopefully it's not as, well, I don't even know exactly what they're predicting right now.

583
00:33:18,940 --> 00:33:23,300
 But, you know, I did talk to someone over in Mississippi that said it's coming this way.

584
00:33:23,360 --> 00:33:26,220
 And he said it wasn't quite as bad for them as what they expected.

585
00:33:26,340 --> 00:33:29,100
 So, hopefully, it's kind of the same for us.

586
00:33:29,960 --> 00:33:30,580
 Good deal.

587
00:33:30,860 --> 00:33:31,740
 And you guys.

588
00:33:31,840 --> 00:33:34,860
 I don't know how bad it's supposed to be up there, but you guys as well.

589
00:33:35,360 --> 00:33:36,160
 Well, we appreciate it.

590
00:33:36,160 --> 00:33:40,040
 They've already been at school, so obviously, they're thinking that it could be bad.

591
00:33:40,040 --> 00:33:41,400
 So, we're not going to speculate on it.

592
00:33:41,400 --> 00:33:43,040
 Just hope, hope for the best.

593
00:33:43,120 --> 00:33:45,840
 But, Rodney, in the meantime, as they say, the show goes on.

594
00:33:45,980 --> 00:33:47,480
 Camp is now over.

595
00:33:47,820 --> 00:33:52,420
 Now that the dust has settled and you've had a little time, not only to reflect personally,

596
00:33:52,980 --> 00:33:55,540
 but listen to the Titer Insider family.

597
00:33:55,700 --> 00:33:59,900
 Rodney, what is the gut feeling about this team coming out of spring drills?

598
00:34:02,360 --> 00:34:05,300
 You know, Harold, I think that's a really good question.

599
00:34:08,760 --> 00:34:12,900
 I think that there is a degree of optimism.

600
00:34:14,000 --> 00:34:19,160
 But I also think there's a degree of this, let's wait and see how it all unfolds.

601
00:34:19,680 --> 00:34:25,360
 And part of that goes back to a year ago, you know, back in the summer when we heard so much hype.

602
00:34:25,500 --> 00:34:27,120
 A lot of stuff was coming out of the building.

603
00:34:27,320 --> 00:34:28,320
 A lot of optimism.

604
00:34:29,540 --> 00:34:39,100
 And, you know, generally when we heard that optimism under Nick Saban during his tenure, you know, it was always a little more reserved.

605
00:34:39,640 --> 00:34:41,840
 Always kind of closer to the vest.

606
00:34:41,980 --> 00:34:47,400
 But you knew if you were hearing some optimism coming out of there that something special was about to happen.

607
00:34:47,600 --> 00:34:58,800
 And then I think last year we kind of took that to mean that, hey, this group, this coaching staff is, you know, there's a difference, you know.

608
00:34:58,840 --> 00:35:01,060
 I mean, they're just really optimistic.

609
00:35:01,060 --> 00:35:04,940
 And then all of a sudden you go to that Florida State game and they flopped.

610
00:35:05,560 --> 00:35:12,500
 And I think a lot of people, listen, I know you guys probably heard the same thing, but I see it on tighter and sider.

611
00:35:12,660 --> 00:35:16,160
 Well, you know, you misled us, talking about me.

612
00:35:17,000 --> 00:35:21,700
 Well, I'm basically repeating what's being said from the building.

613
00:35:22,180 --> 00:35:23,680
 They were very optimistic.

614
00:35:24,440 --> 00:35:25,620
 Yeah, very optimistic.

615
00:35:25,920 --> 00:35:32,020
 So, I say all that because I want to be very cautious when I start to talk about this team.

616
00:35:32,120 --> 00:35:33,640
 I think they've got a lot of talent.

617
00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:34,780
 They do.

618
00:35:37,260 --> 00:35:46,160
 I think it's going to come down to how do some of these new players that they got out of the portal, how do they produce on the offensive line?

619
00:35:46,160 --> 00:35:48,300
 How do they produce on the defensive line?

620
00:35:49,080 --> 00:35:51,840
 And I think, you know, the run game obviously has to improve.

621
00:35:52,180 --> 00:35:54,420
 They have to be a lot more physical, the mentality.

622
00:35:55,180 --> 00:35:57,000
 And, you know, Harold and Brett, here's the thing.

623
00:35:57,240 --> 00:36:01,980
 I'm not saying it can't happen, but you have to kind of see it first.

624
00:36:01,980 --> 00:36:18,340
 Because I think when you look at what they did at Washington and all that, they had a fantastic offense, but they've never really been a team, when you're talking about the worst teams, I think, that really had a physical, physical mindset that it takes to be successful in the SEC.

625
00:36:19,320 --> 00:36:20,640
 So, what's the difference?

626
00:36:20,700 --> 00:36:24,060
 I saw one of the reports today, and it's modern era.

627
00:36:24,160 --> 00:36:25,860
 You take everything kind of with a grain of salt.

628
00:36:26,000 --> 00:36:30,760
 But with Clem coming in on the O-line, we don't know until time passes.

629
00:36:31,020 --> 00:36:41,820
 But as far as the gut, a lot of folks are wanting to buy into the fact that DeBoer saw the problem, smart management recognizes the problem, they've fixed the problem the best they know how.

630
00:36:42,240 --> 00:36:50,260
 Your thoughts about bringing in fresh blood there to coach that offensive line, starting with that, between the ears, before they get between the hash time marks.

631
00:36:51,140 --> 00:36:53,460
 Well, I'm going to draw you a parallel here.

632
00:36:55,120 --> 00:37:00,000
 And I'm going to go back to Gene Stallings, when he brought in Homer Smith.

633
00:37:00,620 --> 00:37:00,920
 Right.

634
00:37:01,060 --> 00:37:08,660
 There were a lot of people back then that said, you know, for Alabama to be successful, they're going to have to become more balanced offensively.

635
00:37:08,920 --> 00:37:20,820
 And he brings in Homer Smith, and you're thinking, okay, Gene Stallings' physical mindset, his physical run game mixed with the creativity and the genius of Homer Smith.

636
00:37:21,060 --> 00:37:22,380
 This could be something special.

637
00:37:23,120 --> 00:37:23,240
 Right.

638
00:37:23,280 --> 00:37:28,480
 But now, okay, he hired the right guy, but did he allow him to do it his way?

639
00:37:28,940 --> 00:37:29,520
 Thank you.

640
00:37:30,080 --> 00:37:30,460
 That's it.

641
00:37:30,860 --> 00:37:34,160
 And so, I'm going to say the same thing with Clem.

642
00:37:34,840 --> 00:37:38,620
 I think Clem wants to line up and knock people in the mouth.

643
00:37:38,620 --> 00:37:41,040
 I think he wants a physical running game.

644
00:37:42,040 --> 00:37:51,560
 Now, how that's going to really develop and how much that comes to fruition, again, I'm not predicting anything, Harold and Brett, to be clear.

645
00:37:52,120 --> 00:37:54,820
 I'm just saying that we have to see it.

646
00:37:55,220 --> 00:38:02,380
 I mean, I think you have to see it to kind of get a feel for how much Kalen DeBoer is going to kind of adjust and shift his offense.

647
00:38:03,000 --> 00:38:07,980
 Not just having an effective running game, which is what some people say, well, you just have to be effective.

648
00:38:07,980 --> 00:38:14,800
 Well, I don't know really what that means, but what I would say is they've got to be a lot more physical in the run game.

649
00:38:15,820 --> 00:38:21,660
 One thing we do believe this staff can do is recruit.

650
00:38:22,520 --> 00:38:26,080
 They certainly have shown that as far as the recruit rankings.

651
00:38:26,260 --> 00:38:33,420
 You take that with a grain of salt all you want to, but they seem to be, again, as you listed,

652
00:38:33,420 --> 00:38:38,960
 the official visitors coming in in late May, Memorial Weekend, and then in June.

653
00:38:39,560 --> 00:38:45,320
 It's an incredibly, just insanely talented guys coming in.

654
00:38:45,380 --> 00:38:51,560
 And one of the trends I've noticed with this group, Rodney, is they're doing really well in the state of Georgia.

655
00:38:52,120 --> 00:38:56,740
 Pick up Xavier Griffin, Jordan Edmonds, and Jamarian Matthews.

656
00:38:57,340 --> 00:39:00,380
 He transferred from Spartan to Gainesville.

657
00:39:01,060 --> 00:39:08,820
 And they're in on this year, number two edge K.J. Green, running back Nigel Newkirk, Darius White, another tall.

658
00:39:08,820 --> 00:39:14,800
 I tell you what, Moe Lindquist amazes me at how tall and long the secondary is.

659
00:39:14,960 --> 00:39:20,280
 Darius White from Fairburn, Georgia, and M.J. Burnett.

660
00:39:20,400 --> 00:39:24,640
 Now, they've got to get those guys, but they've all got official visits coming in.

661
00:39:24,980 --> 00:39:29,760
 They've done quite well in the state of Georgia last year and beginning to look again this year.

662
00:39:30,560 --> 00:39:31,380
 Yeah, it is.

663
00:39:31,460 --> 00:39:32,620
 They really are doing well.

664
00:39:32,680 --> 00:39:36,080
 And you mentioned Jordan Edmonds, of course, last year and all the other guys.

665
00:39:36,080 --> 00:39:39,880
 And, you know, they went in there and Edmonds is a fantastic cornerback prospect, man.

666
00:39:40,120 --> 00:39:47,020
 I had somebody over there that I really trust that, you know, he was a player at Alabama, a former player.

667
00:39:47,260 --> 00:39:50,840
 And, you know, he spends a lot of time at practices and knows what he's looking at.

668
00:39:51,000 --> 00:39:55,820
 And he told me, he said, look, I saw Patrick Sertain come through here as a true freshman.

669
00:39:56,020 --> 00:40:00,460
 And he said, I think Jordan Edmonds is cut out of the same cloth as Sertain as a true freshman.

670
00:40:00,660 --> 00:40:04,840
 Now, I'm not saying he's Sertain right now, but just his potential.

671
00:40:05,980 --> 00:40:12,240
 You know, so I like him, but, you know, you're right, they do.

672
00:40:12,340 --> 00:40:15,160
 And those guys, and I'd really watch Newkirk, the running back.

673
00:40:15,360 --> 00:40:20,160
 You know, obviously, he was teammates with Matthews and Griffin in high school.

674
00:40:20,620 --> 00:40:22,820
 So, I would really keep an eye on him.

675
00:40:22,860 --> 00:40:28,320
 And I think he's obviously one of the top targets, maybe the top running back target Alabama has right now.

676
00:40:28,540 --> 00:40:31,260
 But I will say this, you talked about the visitors list.

677
00:40:31,260 --> 00:40:38,840
 And the one thing that really stands out to me, and again, I'm just speaking from my perspective.

678
00:40:39,980 --> 00:40:48,680
 Harold and Brett, I think unless you're going to really emphasize the portal with linemen,

679
00:40:49,240 --> 00:40:56,920
 I do think that there's a – I'm a little concerned about the number right now of offensive and defensive linemen they're recruiting.

680
00:40:57,800 --> 00:41:02,600
 And listen, they may say we're loaded, and that's fine.

681
00:41:02,760 --> 00:41:06,300
 Maybe they have multi-year contracts with some of these guys or agreements.

682
00:41:07,060 --> 00:41:08,900
 I don't really know.

683
00:41:09,660 --> 00:41:19,520
 But I just think you have to be careful because the portal – what if you have of your 16 returning offensive linemen next year,

684
00:41:19,960 --> 00:41:22,080
 you know, six or seven or eight of them hit the portal.

685
00:41:22,820 --> 00:41:24,540
 So, did you sign enough?

686
00:41:24,800 --> 00:41:26,100
 Did you get the portal hard?

687
00:41:26,280 --> 00:41:27,960
 And again, I'm sure they have a great plan.

688
00:41:28,560 --> 00:41:34,220
 But it does look to me like once Coach Kapp left, the offensive line coach, and Clem came in,

689
00:41:34,220 --> 00:41:41,700
 and again, it's not Clem, but with Kapp leaving, all those guys that he had relationships with are really going to make it difficult.

690
00:41:42,220 --> 00:41:47,840
 And they only have one, Antonio Berry, from Tupelo, who now some are saying is going to emerge as a five-star.

691
00:41:48,100 --> 00:41:51,040
 Now, I'll tell you this too, fresh hot off the press.

692
00:41:51,860 --> 00:41:58,940
 I just spoke to someone in Mississippi right before you called who's extremely tied in over there, knows the state,

693
00:41:59,280 --> 00:42:06,420
 and he said, look, when it comes down to it for a guy like Antonio Berry, what's going to happen is it's Alabama and Ole Miss,

694
00:42:07,000 --> 00:42:09,440
 and it's going to come down to a money deal.

695
00:42:10,620 --> 00:42:15,020
 So, how much are – who's going to be willing to give the best offer?

696
00:42:15,960 --> 00:42:19,880
 And it's probably – if you just look at it, it probably would be Ole Miss.

697
00:42:20,940 --> 00:42:23,200
 So, you know, there's a lot of challenges.

698
00:42:24,040 --> 00:42:27,900
 So, you have to be on a lot of guys to be able to land a couple.

699
00:42:29,280 --> 00:42:34,080
 You bring up a good point, Rodney, because you can have the mention, whether it's 16, whatever it is,

700
00:42:34,180 --> 00:42:36,380
 but everybody out there – two things.

701
00:42:36,480 --> 00:42:38,080
 One, everybody wants a lineman.

702
00:42:38,140 --> 00:42:41,220
 There's not a school out there, including Ohio State, Texas, you name it.

703
00:42:41,300 --> 00:42:41,660
 Exactly.

704
00:42:41,800 --> 00:42:46,500
 And the other one is they know that if you've got Alabama on your resume, that you must be pretty doggone good.

705
00:42:46,580 --> 00:42:49,600
 So, that combination – these guys, they're not dumb.

706
00:42:50,060 --> 00:42:55,400
 They come to Alabama, sit on the bench, and their value still goes up because if I can't play here, I can cash chicks there.

707
00:42:55,460 --> 00:42:56,820
 So, that's a good point.

708
00:42:56,900 --> 00:43:02,560
 But another name that's on the list, Rodney, a kid out of – up in the Nashville area up there,

709
00:43:03,120 --> 00:43:08,520
 I think Brentwood Academy, Simon, legacy player, supposed to be making his announcement.

710
00:43:08,660 --> 00:43:09,660
 Legacy is in Tennessee.

711
00:43:09,820 --> 00:43:11,240
 His dad was deep roots there.

712
00:43:11,300 --> 00:43:12,380
 He lives in Tennessee.

713
00:43:13,140 --> 00:43:14,580
 Has anything changed there?

714
00:43:14,640 --> 00:43:19,020
 Because the last time we checked, the winds seemed to be blowing Alabama's way.

715
00:43:20,120 --> 00:43:24,520
 Yeah, I mean, it's – based on what I've heard, Harold, it's pretty much a done deal.

716
00:43:25,180 --> 00:43:29,040
 Now, again, I say done deal, you know what that means.

717
00:43:29,200 --> 00:43:30,920
 You could change it any time soon.

718
00:43:31,260 --> 00:43:38,260
 But I think Kenneth – I think Kenneth Simon is – that's almost basically a foregone conclusion that he's committing to Alabama.

719
00:43:38,400 --> 00:43:39,360
 He'll pick Alabama.

720
00:43:40,140 --> 00:43:44,640
 And, again, that's barring some kind of unforeseen change.

721
00:43:45,100 --> 00:43:46,900
 So, he's a really good linebacker prospect.

722
00:43:46,900 --> 00:43:52,900
 I talked to someone who, you know, frankly, is coached on the highest levels.

723
00:43:53,180 --> 00:43:55,900
 And they know, they're familiar with Kenneth Simon.

724
00:43:56,140 --> 00:43:58,160
 And they say, look, you know, he's a really good player.

725
00:43:58,280 --> 00:44:01,820
 But like a lot of these players, he's got a lot of development to do.

726
00:44:02,640 --> 00:44:04,280
 So, you're probably going to see a lot of hype.

727
00:44:05,280 --> 00:44:13,720
 Exactly, and you're going to see a lot of hype on a lot of these kids from recruiting networks because they're trying to sell memberships, of course.

728
00:44:13,980 --> 00:44:14,040
 Right.

729
00:44:14,200 --> 00:44:20,720
 But the fact is that a lot of these guys, it's about development, you know, once you get them out of high school.

730
00:44:21,380 --> 00:44:26,480
 So, you know, again, I think he probably falls into that category, got to get bigger, stronger, and faster.

731
00:44:26,600 --> 00:44:30,840
 But the one good thing is that he certainly has a lot of the tools.

732
00:44:32,280 --> 00:44:35,860
 Ronnie, I mentioned at least one of these guys a little bit earlier.

733
00:44:35,860 --> 00:44:44,520
 But you mentioned the state of Mississippi, Mitchell Turner, four-star defensive lineman, Alabama seems to be in on.

734
00:44:44,600 --> 00:44:48,640
 Now, he's taking visits, certainly, to other schools, as you would guess.

735
00:44:49,240 --> 00:44:55,860
 Three-star edge, Antoine Jackson out of Memphis, Tennessee, coming in for a visit, too.

736
00:44:56,160 --> 00:45:03,440
 Again, Mississippian, as you mentioned, this usually always comes down to bidding war with Ole Miss sooner or later.

737
00:45:03,940 --> 00:45:05,780
 I've heard a lot of good things about these two.

738
00:45:05,920 --> 00:45:11,560
 Your thoughts again, Ronnie, on Mitchell Turner and a Louisville, Mississippi, and Antoine Jackson out of Memphis.

739
00:45:12,700 --> 00:45:19,220
 Yeah, and again, speaking about Mississippi source today, he felt pretty good about Alabama there, you know, still.

740
00:45:19,240 --> 00:45:22,440
 I mean, I think that's everyone has felt that for a while.

741
00:45:22,880 --> 00:45:24,140
 Alabama got in on him early.

742
00:45:24,560 --> 00:45:27,840
 Now, like you said, there's some schools now that are starting to push harder and harder.

743
00:45:28,420 --> 00:45:32,920
 So, you know, maybe Alabama's early connection there is going to pay off.

744
00:45:33,080 --> 00:45:33,740
 You know, we'll see.

745
00:45:34,320 --> 00:45:38,880
 He's probably not as tall as what some people say, you know, based on what I was told.

746
00:45:38,940 --> 00:45:42,220
 He might be 6'1", 6'1 1⁄2", but he's a football player.

747
00:45:42,580 --> 00:45:44,540
 You know, he's a very productive football player.

748
00:45:44,820 --> 00:45:46,140
 You look at him, he's aggressive.

749
00:45:46,140 --> 00:45:49,860
 I mean, he's really good, great feet, all of the things, quickness.

750
00:45:50,420 --> 00:45:52,420
 You know, you can't take anything away from him.

751
00:45:53,740 --> 00:45:57,100
 But, and you also asked about Antoine Jackson out of Memphis.

752
00:45:57,920 --> 00:45:59,420
 And, yeah, big, tall kid.

753
00:45:59,580 --> 00:46:04,040
 I mean, he's, you know, what, 6'6", 230, 235, 40, something like that.

754
00:46:04,160 --> 00:46:05,640
 Got a great, great frame.

755
00:46:05,980 --> 00:46:10,540
 Probably not ranked as high as he should be just if you just based it on potential.

756
00:46:11,160 --> 00:46:15,720
 But, yeah, he's a fantastic-looking prospect, and I think Alabama's in great position with him.

757
00:46:17,800 --> 00:46:19,720
 Rodney Orton, insiderinsider.com.

758
00:46:19,760 --> 00:46:22,760
 He's the, I guess you could say, the EF Hutton of Tuscaloosa.

759
00:46:22,900 --> 00:46:25,880
 When he speaks, people listen, talking about one Nick Saban.

760
00:46:26,000 --> 00:46:28,360
 His couple of things to paraphrase in quote.

761
00:46:28,440 --> 00:46:34,760
 The quote was, talking about DeBoer, he's, quote, done a pretty good job managing the program transition.

762
00:46:35,260 --> 00:46:39,140
 The other part, to paraphrase, Alabama fans, stop your griping.

763
00:46:39,320 --> 00:46:41,780
 You need to get behind this guy if you want to win a championship.

764
00:46:42,020 --> 00:46:44,820
 Your thoughts about Mr. Saban's comments of late.

765
00:46:46,500 --> 00:46:48,380
 Yeah, you know, and I think that's good.

766
00:46:48,560 --> 00:46:54,180
 I mean, I think he wants to keep a positive face, and certainly that's good because, you know,

767
00:46:54,220 --> 00:46:57,540
 you want to encourage the fans, I think, to be supportive.

768
00:46:57,980 --> 00:47:00,840
 And, you know, I think that's what he was doing.

769
00:47:00,840 --> 00:47:05,340
 But also, I think, Harold and Brett, the comments that Saban made to me, and not to me,

770
00:47:05,420 --> 00:47:10,520
 but the ones that stood out to me, and really haven't been talked about as much,

771
00:47:10,520 --> 00:47:14,400
 was when he got off on the run game, and not alluding to him.

772
00:47:21,020 --> 00:47:23,120
 A little bit of a hiccup there with Rodney.

773
00:47:23,180 --> 00:47:26,340
 We'll try to get the big iron out and get that wrinkle out of it.

774
00:47:26,440 --> 00:47:28,140
 Just commenting there about Nick Saban.

775
00:47:28,140 --> 00:47:30,600
 And while we get Rodney back, BB, your thoughts.

776
00:47:30,980 --> 00:47:34,540
 Because Nick was always an expert at cryptic messages.

777
00:47:34,720 --> 00:47:37,440
 When he says something, he would not always say it directly.

778
00:47:37,600 --> 00:47:41,660
 He'd be the implicit master of it, trying to get a message out without actually saying it.

779
00:47:41,680 --> 00:47:44,860
 Sometimes he would, but sometimes he would lead you down that road

780
00:47:44,860 --> 00:47:46,040
 and let you draw your own conclusions.

781
00:47:46,700 --> 00:47:52,380
 Well, nobody knows about the pressure of coaching in the University of Alabama than Nick Saban.

782
00:47:52,380 --> 00:47:59,280
 Now, he was able to meet those demands year after year after year with his incredible standards,

783
00:47:59,280 --> 00:48:01,600
 instead of looking at the scoreboard.

784
00:48:01,760 --> 00:48:07,720
 We've heard that 100 times, but he does understand the game has changed.

785
00:48:08,040 --> 00:48:14,640
 And I know one of the things he's been talking about in the media is leveling the playing field

786
00:48:14,640 --> 00:48:22,640
 instead of going to these $40 million rosters that we're headed in that direction if we're not already there.

787
00:48:23,080 --> 00:48:24,500
 But he knows the stress.

788
00:48:24,800 --> 00:48:27,060
 He knows what DeBoer's done.

789
00:48:27,280 --> 00:48:33,640
 And again, he's also smart enough to realize Harold Vince Lombardi could have come in after Nick Saban.

790
00:48:33,780 --> 00:48:39,640
 He would have had issues, and he certainly understands that part of it.

791
00:48:39,920 --> 00:48:41,500
 See if Rodney's back.

792
00:48:41,700 --> 00:48:45,600
 Rodney, are you back with us, or did Nick yank the phone out of your hand when we asked that question?

793
00:48:46,780 --> 00:48:54,480
 Well, he told me to talk about what I perceive to be the most enlightening comments that he made recently.

794
00:48:55,100 --> 00:49:00,100
 And I think that Harold and Brett, to me, and I don't know where you lost me,

795
00:49:00,780 --> 00:49:13,100
 but to me, the recent comments that he made that really struck the chord was when he talked about the reemergence of the run game.

796
00:49:13,780 --> 00:49:15,780
 And I'm not talking about Alabama's run game.

797
00:49:15,840 --> 00:49:22,440
 I'm talking about in the game of football and how people have gone to smaller defensive players quicker,

798
00:49:22,440 --> 00:49:27,160
 trying to be disruptive, and all of these things with these spread offenses or whatever.

799
00:49:28,120 --> 00:49:32,360
 And, you know, now people are starting to trend back to power running.

800
00:49:32,700 --> 00:49:34,160
 You saw Miami do it.

801
00:49:34,240 --> 00:49:36,680
 You saw Indiana doing it.

802
00:49:37,380 --> 00:49:40,280
 You've seen Kirby really hasn't gotten away from it.

803
00:49:40,840 --> 00:49:42,620
 And you see it in the NFL, too.

804
00:49:43,160 --> 00:49:50,600
 So, I think that the one thing that I really took from his comments was, you know what?

805
00:49:51,360 --> 00:49:52,220
 Run the football.

806
00:49:53,040 --> 00:49:53,620
 Yeah, that's it.

807
00:49:53,920 --> 00:49:54,620
 Run the football.

808
00:49:54,960 --> 00:50:00,340
 And that's something that I think is going to be interesting from this program under Kalen DeBoer.

809
00:50:00,640 --> 00:50:01,800
 Will they be able to do that?

810
00:50:02,840 --> 00:50:06,180
 I always enjoy when you go back and reminisce a little bit.

811
00:50:06,260 --> 00:50:10,560
 And you did that this week about the 1978 season.

812
00:50:10,560 --> 00:50:13,040
 And you made a great point with this.

813
00:50:13,560 --> 00:50:16,800
 That season was spurred on by the end of 77.

814
00:50:17,160 --> 00:50:19,520
 And I've said this for many, many years.

815
00:50:19,920 --> 00:50:25,100
 Alabama got screwed more in the polls in 77 than they did in 1966.

816
00:50:26,640 --> 00:50:28,260
 And you talked about the year.

817
00:50:28,380 --> 00:50:31,100
 That was the fuel that team used to go through.

818
00:50:31,260 --> 00:50:34,840
 They lost to an incredibly talented USC team.

819
00:50:35,020 --> 00:50:41,360
 But you just, a little bit off the side, mentioned the Alabama-Washington game.

820
00:50:41,880 --> 00:50:45,680
 I actually watched that game in Coleman Coliseum.

821
00:50:46,160 --> 00:50:48,160
 They put the game on the scoreboard.

822
00:50:48,300 --> 00:50:50,660
 And there were 7,000 fans there.

823
00:50:51,340 --> 00:50:53,980
 And Washington had a player by the name of Spider Gaines.

824
00:50:53,980 --> 00:50:55,220
 And you mentioned him.

825
00:50:55,380 --> 00:50:56,840
 He was an Olympic sprinter.

826
00:50:57,680 --> 00:51:00,240
 And late in the game, Alabama punted.

827
00:51:00,660 --> 00:51:02,500
 And the ball hit him in the face mask.

828
00:51:02,900 --> 00:51:07,540
 And Alabama recovered that and held on to win 20-17.

829
00:51:07,820 --> 00:51:08,940
 I'll never forget that.

830
00:51:09,000 --> 00:51:12,460
 And, of course, that led up to the Penn State, the incredible game.

831
00:51:12,500 --> 00:51:13,120
 I was there.

832
00:51:13,700 --> 00:51:15,440
 And you brought up another good point.

833
00:51:15,520 --> 00:51:18,820
 Everybody talks about the stop on fourth and one.

834
00:51:20,020 --> 00:51:31,400
 Don McNeil's play on second down, when it looked like the Penn State receiver, Fitsky, was going to walk in the end zone to knock him out of bounds at the one-yard line.

835
00:51:31,880 --> 00:51:36,480
 As you put it, it may be the most underappreciated play in the history of Alabama football.

836
00:51:38,160 --> 00:51:38,560
 Yeah.

837
00:51:38,840 --> 00:51:39,120
 Yep.

838
00:51:39,120 --> 00:51:40,880
 And Gaines dropped a touchdown pass.

839
00:51:40,980 --> 00:51:42,240
 He caught two in the game.

840
00:51:42,840 --> 00:51:45,220
 And he dropped a touchdown pass late in the game.

841
00:51:45,640 --> 00:51:47,740
 That would have been a deep ball.

842
00:51:48,300 --> 00:51:50,620
 And that probably would have won the game for Washington.

843
00:51:50,740 --> 00:51:51,960
 Fortunately, he dropped it.

844
00:51:52,760 --> 00:51:54,280
 They were a great team back then.

845
00:51:54,340 --> 00:51:55,380
 Don James, man.

846
00:51:55,740 --> 00:51:57,380
 That was Saban's mentor, right?

847
00:51:58,160 --> 00:52:01,980
 So, yeah, but that was a great game and a great win.

848
00:52:02,680 --> 00:52:10,100
 And then you talked about the goal line stand at the end of the year and the play that Don McNeil made.

849
00:52:11,180 --> 00:52:14,480
 And so, yeah, second down.

850
00:52:14,700 --> 00:52:17,620
 Penn State was inside the 10 at about the 7 or something.

851
00:52:17,620 --> 00:52:20,660
 And Fusina found him crossing.

852
00:52:21,100 --> 00:52:26,320
 He came out of the – he was kind of in an H-back position almost, you know?

853
00:52:26,540 --> 00:52:27,680
 He was off on a wing.

854
00:52:28,120 --> 00:52:29,520
 And he just kind of flared out.

855
00:52:29,620 --> 00:52:30,240
 And he was open.

856
00:52:30,680 --> 00:52:37,260
 And for some reason, Harold and Brett, thankfully, Fitsky, all he had to do was fall forward.

857
00:52:37,580 --> 00:52:38,360
 And it's a touchdown.

858
00:52:38,580 --> 00:52:40,060
 I mean, nobody's around him.

859
00:52:40,600 --> 00:52:46,640
 And he takes a step or two, a couple of steps, parallel to the goal line.

860
00:52:47,180 --> 00:52:48,240
 And Don McNeil came up.

861
00:52:48,280 --> 00:52:53,040
 They measured this seven yards deep out of the end zone from the time he caught the ball.

862
00:52:53,460 --> 00:53:03,600
 He came up seven yards deep out of the end zone off another receiver to knock Fitsky out of bounds at the goal line to set up the third and fourth.

863
00:53:03,680 --> 00:53:08,040
 Now, listen, if it's not for that play, there's no goal line stand probably, right?

864
00:53:08,280 --> 00:53:10,660
 I mean, because Fitsky should have scored.

865
00:53:10,840 --> 00:53:15,080
 I mean, I'm sure Scott Fitsky to this day is saying, why not just stick the ball over the goal line?

866
00:53:15,520 --> 00:53:18,740
 I mean, that's how free he was to score.

867
00:53:19,400 --> 00:53:20,680
 So that was huge.

868
00:53:20,840 --> 00:53:22,460
 Yeah, that was really huge.

869
00:53:23,320 --> 00:53:26,980
 I remember turning to my dad and saying, what in the world did he do?

870
00:53:27,080 --> 00:53:29,220
 He could have walked in the end zone.

871
00:53:29,600 --> 00:53:35,360
 But, yeah, that's a play that will remain in Alabama lore for years.

872
00:53:35,360 --> 00:53:39,440
 And you can read about that play in the season in Bigger Than Bama.

873
00:53:40,360 --> 00:53:49,620
 Get online and get the 24-7 message board, football, basketball, baseball, Bama going down the stretch in baseball.

874
00:53:50,320 --> 00:53:54,800
 Where can we get online for a very nominal price and get the website and buy your book?

875
00:53:56,180 --> 00:53:58,980
 All right, it's TiderInsider.com.

876
00:53:59,060 --> 00:54:00,600
 It's only $48 a year.

877
00:54:01,100 --> 00:54:03,060
 And you can get instant access with your credit card.

878
00:54:03,180 --> 00:54:05,380
 If you prefer, there is an address there to send a check.

879
00:54:05,420 --> 00:54:07,140
 And it gives you all our premium information.

880
00:54:07,600 --> 00:54:09,880
 But also our all-sports forum, again.

881
00:54:09,960 --> 00:54:11,100
 That's our community there.

882
00:54:11,140 --> 00:54:11,960
 A lot of discussion.

883
00:54:12,460 --> 00:54:14,060
 A lot of things going on right there.

884
00:54:14,240 --> 00:54:23,840
 Gary Harris, by the way, on Tide 100.9 down here, he had a fantastic interview with John Copeland, the former number one pick for the Bengals.

885
00:54:24,380 --> 00:54:27,520
 Of course, he was a key cog on Alabama's defensive line in 92.

886
00:54:28,100 --> 00:54:30,020
 It's there at the top of the all-sports forum.

887
00:54:30,260 --> 00:54:32,800
 He's going into the Alabama Sports Hall of Fame this weekend.

888
00:54:33,200 --> 00:54:36,380
 So, yeah, it's a great interview, guys.

889
00:54:36,380 --> 00:54:40,720
 And so, it's that kind of thing that we provide there on the all-sports forum.

890
00:54:41,280 --> 00:54:46,700
 And in the book, of course, Big and Bama, you can find that at Amazon.com or RodneyOr.com.

891
00:54:47,340 --> 00:54:49,100
 No off days for you, Rodney.

892
00:54:49,180 --> 00:54:52,460
 Always busy and always thankful that you can take time out and join us today.

893
00:54:52,540 --> 00:54:53,300
 Keep it up, okay?

894
00:54:54,300 --> 00:54:54,900
 Okay, guys.

895
00:54:55,000 --> 00:54:55,540
 Appreciate it.

896
00:54:55,580 --> 00:54:55,900
 Take care.

897
00:54:56,460 --> 00:54:58,320
 RodneyOr at TiderInsider.com.

898
00:54:58,380 --> 00:54:58,920
 Quick update.

899
00:54:59,060 --> 00:55:00,500
 SEC softball tournament.

900
00:55:00,840 --> 00:55:03,340
 Auburn on fire against Texas A&M.

901
00:55:03,440 --> 00:55:03,940
 Brett Beaird.

902
00:55:04,900 --> 00:55:06,180
 They're playing well, Harold.

903
00:55:06,180 --> 00:55:10,960
 They've scored more runs in the past two games than they have, I think, in the last three weeks.

904
00:55:11,600 --> 00:55:12,920
 11 to 8 winners today.

905
00:55:13,220 --> 00:55:15,800
 Five home runs for Auburn.

906
00:55:15,880 --> 00:55:17,000
 Now, now, take on the Gators.

907
00:55:17,520 --> 00:55:21,300
 Coming up, you guessed it, the Brunt Special again, 10 o'clock tomorrow morning.

908
00:55:21,660 --> 00:55:28,200
 But first, going to lead things off with the pride of Mars Hill, UNA, and Major League Baseball world.

909
00:55:28,300 --> 00:55:30,040
 Josh Willingham and more straight ahead.

910
00:55:30,120 --> 00:55:30,720
 Stay with us.

911
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912
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941
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944
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 So even after he was gone, he was still able to provide for us.

945
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961
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 That's why he counts on Granger to get everything he needs from lighting and HVAC parts to plumbing

962
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963
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964
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966
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 My name is Whitney Allen, and I'm a widow.

967
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968
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972
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975
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977
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978
00:58:35,620 --> 00:58:43,040
 One state lawmaker here in Alabama is making no bones about it when it comes to what he

979
00:58:43,040 --> 00:58:45,880
 wants for congressional districting here in Alabama.

980
00:58:46,160 --> 00:58:50,460
 State Senator Donnie Chestein spoke recently to the Houston County Republican Party and said

981
00:58:50,460 --> 00:58:55,420
 that he wants to see all seven congressional seats in the U.S. House be represented by Republicans.

982
00:58:55,800 --> 00:58:59,500
 Chestein believes that this can and should be done following the ruling from the U.S. Supreme

983
00:58:59,500 --> 00:59:04,520
 Court in a redistricting case out of Louisiana that is similar to the redistricting legal

984
00:59:04,520 --> 00:59:07,300
 challenges that have been going on here in the state of Alabama.

985
00:59:07,300 --> 00:59:11,860
 The ruling from the highest court will directly impact Alabama and its future congressional district

986
00:59:11,860 --> 00:59:11,940
 maps.

987
00:59:11,940 --> 00:59:17,440
 Chestein was speaking to the Houston County Republican Party after his second day within the special

988
00:59:17,440 --> 00:59:21,460
 legislative session that Governor Ivey called to deal with these congressional maps.

989
00:59:21,720 --> 00:59:25,580
 Chestein said that he and other state lawmakers will do everything in their power to get two more

990
00:59:25,580 --> 00:59:27,360
 congressional seats held by Republicans.

991
00:59:27,360 --> 00:59:30,060
 I'll be back with more Alabama stories after this.

992
00:59:30,060 --> 00:59:32,960
 Where I was living was not a great place to live anymore.

993
00:59:33,300 --> 00:59:37,940
 I began to pray for a place to go, praying for all of these things that a nine-year-old would want.

994
00:59:38,140 --> 00:59:41,640
 I wanted horses, big house with a bunch of people my age.

995
00:59:41,780 --> 00:59:42,560
 I wanted parents.

996
00:59:42,660 --> 00:59:43,680
 I wanted a mom and a dad.

997
00:59:44,020 --> 00:59:47,820
 Before I even prayed it, the Lord had already answered my prayer with the Big Oak Ranch.

998
00:59:48,000 --> 00:59:51,040
 Who would that nine-year-old be if she never came to the Big Oak Ranch?

999
00:59:51,220 --> 00:59:56,080
 I would be trying to fight for survival instead of fighting to break a cycle.

1000
00:59:56,080 --> 00:59:59,780
 Big Oak Ranch, a Christian home for children needing a chance.

1001
01:00:00,380 --> 01:00:05,380
 A suspect in a big drug bust in Jefferson County is now being held on a bond worth over $3 million.

1002
01:00:05,840 --> 01:00:09,840
 20-year-old Kevon Atkins was arrested this week by the Birmingham SWAT team.

1003
01:00:10,080 --> 01:00:16,780
 Authority seized 373 grams of methamphetamines, 9 grams of fentanyl, along with Xanax and ecstasy pills.

1004
01:00:17,260 --> 01:00:22,780
 A person has died in Lauderdale County after their vehicle started to hydroplane near the Shoal Creek Bridge,

1005
01:00:22,900 --> 01:00:25,200
 then went off the road and into the waters below.

1006
01:00:25,580 --> 01:00:26,340
 I'm Andrea Tice.

1007
01:00:26,780 --> 01:00:31,160
 For more news affecting Alabamians, go to 1819news.com.

1008
01:00:31,360 --> 01:00:34,240
 And while you're there, subscribe to the daily newsletter.

1009
01:00:36,900 --> 01:00:44,700
 Valley Broadcasting Corporation, WITK-FM, Rogersville, Athens, Decatur, The Shores, Sports Radio 93.9, The Score.

1010
01:00:46,200 --> 01:00:53,060
 27 tournament trips, five journeys to Omaha, 72 major leaguers.

1011
01:00:53,360 --> 01:00:56,280
 It's good to be a Bama baseball fanatic.

1012
01:00:56,500 --> 01:00:58,800
 Swing and a fly ball lifted high in the air.

1013
01:00:59,060 --> 01:01:04,720
 Deep left field, a go-ahead, two-run homer over the high left field wall at Auburn.

1014
01:01:04,980 --> 01:01:10,780
 Alabama's favorite pastime plays right here on your home for Alabama baseball.

1015
01:01:11,260 --> 01:01:14,200
 The Crimson Tide Sports Network from Learfield.

1016
01:01:14,560 --> 01:01:18,280
 This week, Alabama goes on the road to take on the South Carolina Gamecocks.

1017
01:01:18,420 --> 01:01:22,720
 Airtime Saturday is 1145 with the first pitch at noon here on 93.9, The Score.

1018
01:01:23,240 --> 01:01:25,060
 Everybody, Bill King, Bill King Show.

1019
01:01:25,160 --> 01:01:25,740
 Listen to me.

1020
01:01:25,860 --> 01:01:26,580
 Nine until noon.

1021
01:01:26,680 --> 01:01:28,180
 93.9, The Score.

1022
01:01:28,360 --> 01:01:33,460
 Monday through Friday as we talk college football like nobody else does.

1023
01:01:33,600 --> 01:01:34,980
 Because he listens in Florence.

1024
01:01:35,100 --> 01:01:37,100
 Our show's, Charlie, our show's on down there.

1025
01:01:37,320 --> 01:01:38,340
 Bill King Show.

1026
01:01:38,600 --> 01:01:40,860
 Monday through Friday, nine until noon.

1027
01:01:41,060 --> 01:01:43,640
 Every league, every big topic is covered.

1028
01:01:43,920 --> 01:01:44,980
 93.9, The Score.

1029
01:01:45,980 --> 01:01:47,520
 93.9, The Score of weather.

1030
01:01:47,920 --> 01:01:52,040
 For today, a 100% chance of showers and thunderstorms high around 75.

1031
01:01:52,360 --> 01:01:56,220
 Tonight, a 90% chance of showers and thunderstorms low near 55.

1032
01:01:56,760 --> 01:02:00,240
 Tomorrow, cloudy skies then becoming sunny, high around 70.

1033
01:02:00,240 --> 01:02:03,240
 Tomorrow night, partly cloudy skies low near 50.

1034
01:02:03,420 --> 01:02:06,480
 And Friday, sunny skies high around 75.

1035
01:02:07,280 --> 01:02:09,580
 Your weather from 93.9, The Score.

1036
01:02:15,580 --> 01:02:17,920
 Now, get ready to roll.

1037
01:02:18,140 --> 01:02:24,200
 Shoals, Decatur, Athens, and all of northwest Alabama and southern Tennessee.

1038
01:02:24,820 --> 01:02:28,200
 It's time for the Valley's exclusive FM sports voice.

1039
01:02:31,060 --> 01:02:33,680
 The Boomo Bugg Show.

1040
01:02:34,080 --> 01:02:36,180
 Your exclusive inside track to the Tide.

1041
01:02:36,320 --> 01:02:39,280
 Tigers, Tennessee, and the rest of the SEC.

1042
01:02:40,100 --> 01:02:45,480
 Now, your host, Harold Bugg on 93.9, The Score.

1043
01:02:46,300 --> 01:02:48,220
 Welcome back in our tour to the Boomo Bugg Show.

1044
01:02:48,300 --> 01:02:50,060
 I'm Harold Bugg alongside Brett Beaird.

1045
01:02:50,160 --> 01:02:53,000
 Thank you so much for giving us a ride around the Tennessee Valley.

1046
01:02:53,000 --> 01:02:59,540
 And, baby, do we recognize how much talent has come through our neck of the woods?

1047
01:02:59,600 --> 01:03:03,620
 We're always talking about, you know, of course, the weather family up in Loretto.

1048
01:03:04,020 --> 01:03:06,460
 We talked earlier today with Stuart Sink.

1049
01:03:06,960 --> 01:03:09,620
 And now, obviously, a British Open winner.

1050
01:03:10,080 --> 01:03:15,580
 And now we've talked to a man who can sport some World Series rings from the Major League Baseball world.

1051
01:03:15,720 --> 01:03:18,440
 And he's got other things on his mind these days.

1052
01:03:18,660 --> 01:03:21,880
 Josh Willingham, now head baseball coach at Amars Hill.

1053
01:03:21,980 --> 01:03:22,920
 Josh, welcome in.

1054
01:03:22,980 --> 01:03:23,520
 How are you?

1055
01:03:24,280 --> 01:03:25,220
 Doing good, guys.

1056
01:03:25,280 --> 01:03:25,780
 How are you?

1057
01:03:26,320 --> 01:03:27,260
 Yeah, we're doing all right.

1058
01:03:27,320 --> 01:03:28,900
 Josh, it's amazing, isn't it?

1059
01:03:28,900 --> 01:03:31,300
 Now, we had the pleasure of speaking with Stuart earlier.

1060
01:03:31,420 --> 01:03:32,880
 Do we realize how much talent?

1061
01:03:33,320 --> 01:03:37,040
 I'm talking about relative to the population centers across the country.

1062
01:03:37,140 --> 01:03:43,640
 How much quality talent at the pro level, whether it's, in your case, baseball, Stuart's case, golf, other guys,

1063
01:03:43,680 --> 01:03:47,020
 do we realize how much talent has come through our neck of the woods over the years?

1064
01:03:48,200 --> 01:03:55,180
 Yeah, I think when you start looking at it, like it really is, it's a good, good talent pool has come through here through a lot of different sports.

1065
01:03:56,280 --> 01:04:04,980
 So, yeah, when you compile all the names that have been able to go, you know, a long ways in their careers, it looks good for this area for sure.

1066
01:04:05,980 --> 01:04:10,360
 I would imagine you've got memories of your days in the Major League Baseball world.

1067
01:04:10,440 --> 01:04:14,200
 But, Josh, something tells me you've got other concerns this day and time.

1068
01:04:14,200 --> 01:04:20,120
 It's still baseball, and it's come full circle, a place you know very well as a former player at Mars Hill.

1069
01:04:20,240 --> 01:04:26,300
 Talk to us about now the coach at Mars Hill and back playing baseball in this time of the season.

1070
01:04:26,440 --> 01:04:30,120
 The county turns to May, and there's Mars Hill Bible right back in the thick of things.

1071
01:04:30,220 --> 01:04:31,440
 Josh, talk to us about it.

1072
01:04:32,860 --> 01:04:40,320
 Yeah, well, this is my fifth year to do it, and this is the most exciting time of the year, especially for our players.

1073
01:04:40,480 --> 01:04:45,540
 You know, you work hard, you know, starting in the offseason, and the goal is to be playing your best baseball

1074
01:04:45,540 --> 01:04:48,800
 when the playoff series gets here.

1075
01:04:49,060 --> 01:04:55,760
 And, you know, we're lucky to have played well the first two rounds, and, you know, we've got a big challenge this year.

1076
01:04:55,820 --> 01:04:57,880
 But this is what every player and coach looks forward to.

1077
01:04:57,880 --> 01:05:00,040
 This is the fun time of the year.

1078
01:05:00,860 --> 01:05:07,580
 We want to talk to you about Lindsey Lane, who's one of the most pleasant surprises in the state of Alabama.

1079
01:05:08,240 --> 01:05:14,260
 But talk about winning the three games you won, the rubber match against Vincent,

1080
01:05:14,620 --> 01:05:19,000
 who they were the state champions last year, and then the year before that, Mars Hill.

1081
01:05:19,480 --> 01:05:24,400
 I know you've played them the last three years, and every series is a dogfight.

1082
01:05:25,200 --> 01:05:33,180
 You won the third game, and this is also on the road, 9-1, Stamps, Filters, 1-2 with a double.

1083
01:05:33,820 --> 01:05:35,740
 The Willis boys have played really well.

1084
01:05:35,880 --> 01:05:38,780
 Bo Willis was 2 out of 5, can pitch a little bit too.

1085
01:05:38,860 --> 01:05:39,740
 Noah Handback.

1086
01:05:40,200 --> 01:05:44,820
 Talk about the series, winning a tough series on the road against Vincent.

1087
01:05:46,100 --> 01:05:49,900
 Well, that's the third year in a row that we've had to go down there, and they do a good job.

1088
01:05:49,960 --> 01:05:51,740
 It's a really good environment to play in.

1089
01:05:52,520 --> 01:05:59,140
 You know, they won a state title last year, maybe had a better team the year before when we beat them.

1090
01:05:59,460 --> 01:06:01,400
 Every series has gone three games.

1091
01:06:02,240 --> 01:06:05,100
 I feel like I don't even have to use my GPS to get there anymore.

1092
01:06:05,280 --> 01:06:06,460
 That's how many times I've been down there.

1093
01:06:07,400 --> 01:06:10,240
 But this year, you know, was another tough series.

1094
01:06:10,380 --> 01:06:11,580
 They have two really good arms.

1095
01:06:12,220 --> 01:06:17,880
 You know, one of them was up to the, you know, up to 88 against us, and we were fortunate to beat him.

1096
01:06:17,900 --> 01:06:19,840
 And the second guy just really pitched well.

1097
01:06:19,900 --> 01:06:21,140
 We couldn't do a whole lot with him.

1098
01:06:22,140 --> 01:06:30,340
 I felt like, you know, the third game, we came out and jumped on him a little bit and just was able to continue to add and continue to put pressure on him.

1099
01:06:30,540 --> 01:06:36,260
 And, you know, Carson on the mound did a really good job of pounding the zone, and we made plays behind him.

1100
01:06:36,340 --> 01:06:41,340
 But, you know, it's always a tough environment to play in, especially on the road in the playoffs.

1101
01:06:42,680 --> 01:06:45,700
 Josh, talk to us about as a coach.

1102
01:06:46,180 --> 01:06:51,540
 And I'm sure now it makes you appreciate all your coaches and managers back in the day even more than you did then.

1103
01:06:51,800 --> 01:06:58,520
 But the challenge, especially in high school, you get a good team, and sometimes we ask the coach, and they say, well, we've got 10 seniors.

1104
01:06:59,040 --> 01:07:00,000
 This is their year.

1105
01:07:00,360 --> 01:07:01,560
 But you're there every year.

1106
01:07:01,720 --> 01:07:09,420
 How do you put together at the high school level consistency when every year you're graduating X numbers and the blueprint is still the same?

1107
01:07:09,480 --> 01:07:10,460
 You've got to get good arms.

1108
01:07:10,560 --> 01:07:11,540
 You've got to play defense.

1109
01:07:11,960 --> 01:07:15,380
 What is your secret to be so consistent and Mars Hill to put together?

1110
01:07:16,280 --> 01:07:18,640
 Like Vincent, obviously, they've got a secret down there, too.

1111
01:07:18,680 --> 01:07:19,360
 You just mentioned it.

1112
01:07:19,360 --> 01:07:24,280
 But your thoughts about how you put together a roster and how you managed it with all the changes at the high school level.

1113
01:07:25,640 --> 01:07:27,720
 Well, I think it starts at the younger ages.

1114
01:07:27,860 --> 01:07:30,800
 I think you start developing the players, you know, in middle school.

1115
01:07:31,060 --> 01:07:34,340
 And, you know, that's where it starts.

1116
01:07:34,400 --> 01:07:38,700
 That's where the formula is built, I guess, and the expectations are set.

1117
01:07:38,820 --> 01:07:40,300
 You start at the middle school level.

1118
01:07:41,060 --> 01:07:47,580
 And then when they're around the program, and hopefully they're developed, and then when they get to the high school, you know, they're ready.

1119
01:07:47,680 --> 01:07:51,560
 They feel like it's their turn to step in and do the same thing.

1120
01:07:51,700 --> 01:07:53,600
 But, you know, I think that's where it starts.

1121
01:07:53,700 --> 01:07:54,980
 And then year to year, it's different.

1122
01:07:55,100 --> 01:08:04,600
 You know, when you're coaching 16- to 18-year-old kids, you know, it's about trying to, number one, get the most out of them every single day.

1123
01:08:05,280 --> 01:08:14,180
 Number two, help them develop them the very best that you can as far as their skill set and their mind when it comes to baseball.

1124
01:08:14,180 --> 01:08:19,500
 Because that's almost more important than, you know, the physical attributes that the game requires.

1125
01:08:19,660 --> 01:08:21,200
 But I think those two things.

1126
01:08:21,300 --> 01:08:28,780
 But I think, you know, one of the things when I took the job five years ago, I didn't, I mean, I felt like I know baseball, but I didn't know anything about coaching.

1127
01:08:28,920 --> 01:08:35,520
 But I just knew that at the younger age groups, the younger levels is where it, you know, needs to start.

1128
01:08:35,520 --> 01:08:37,320
 So we try to start in the middle school program.

1129
01:08:37,460 --> 01:08:43,720
 And then, you know, as competition grows, which I think is one of the most important part of the program, is to have competition.

1130
01:08:43,880 --> 01:08:51,640
 Have people behind your starters that are pushing them to where they know if they're not doing right, then there's somebody there that's ready to take their place.

1131
01:08:51,680 --> 01:08:53,240
 I think that has a lot to do with it as well.

1132
01:08:53,680 --> 01:08:57,700
 I think Guy Nick Sable would agree with you back in his day, Dan Tuscaloosa.

1133
01:08:58,180 --> 01:08:59,120
 Josh, talk to us.

1134
01:08:59,120 --> 01:09:05,820
 When we talk about names, everybody can recite players with the Braves, the Yankees, whatever your favorite team is.

1135
01:09:05,900 --> 01:09:09,020
 But high school, I've always said, Josh, and I think you would agree with this.

1136
01:09:09,060 --> 01:09:12,580
 These kids put in as much work from the heart as the Major League Baseball guys.

1137
01:09:13,020 --> 01:09:14,340
 They may not have the same talent.

1138
01:09:14,760 --> 01:09:16,640
 But one thing they don't have, and that's the recognition.

1139
01:09:16,820 --> 01:09:22,320
 Josh, we don't want to put you on the spot, but can you give us some of the highlights of this roster this year, some of the kids' names?

1140
01:09:23,680 --> 01:09:25,440
 Yeah, well, I think it starts with your seniors.

1141
01:09:25,700 --> 01:09:27,100
 You know, those are your leaders.

1142
01:09:27,580 --> 01:09:34,600
 Braden Kaffelman does not play a whole lot for us, but he is a great teammate and one of the key contributors in that way for our team.

1143
01:09:34,600 --> 01:09:41,320
 And then you've got Luke Fowler, who was the second-team All-State selection last year, who's had another good year for us.

1144
01:09:41,400 --> 01:09:46,660
 And then Bo Willis, you know, both offensively and on the mound, is a key cog for our team.

1145
01:09:46,740 --> 01:09:50,080
 But I think it always starts with your leadership, what kind of team you're going to have.

1146
01:09:50,100 --> 01:09:52,220
 And I'm not talking about from the coach's perspective.

1147
01:09:52,340 --> 01:09:55,200
 I'm talking about the players, because you have to have player leadership.

1148
01:09:55,200 --> 01:09:59,680
 You know, we've got a lot of juniors that help as well, and you named a couple of them.

1149
01:10:00,000 --> 01:10:04,200
 Brooks Campbell is another one that's had a really good year for us.

1150
01:10:04,880 --> 01:10:06,600
 Noah Hambach has had a good year.

1151
01:10:06,980 --> 01:10:14,540
 We have, you know, Cody Willis, who's a sophomore, and Malin Moore, and Cole Agee, and some of those guys have had good years for us.

1152
01:10:14,540 --> 01:10:18,080
 And then, you know, some freshmen have had good years for us as well.

1153
01:10:18,200 --> 01:10:22,940
 Carson Wynn's done a really good job of stepping up on the mound and being a real bright spot for this team.

1154
01:10:24,020 --> 01:10:25,860
 Tell us about Lindsey Lane.

1155
01:10:26,100 --> 01:10:31,220
 I knew when Robbie Parker went there, they would essentially have a good baseball team.

1156
01:10:31,400 --> 01:10:35,880
 Former head coach at Bob Jones, 32-6.

1157
01:10:36,140 --> 01:10:40,020
 They swept Cole Springs, 4-0, 13-3.

1158
01:10:40,680 --> 01:10:44,100
 When their pitchers, Wyatt Wallace, pitched a complete game.

1159
01:10:44,640 --> 01:10:45,920
 This is a good team.

1160
01:10:45,920 --> 01:10:51,080
 They haven't been playing for, they don't have a 50-year tradition, but they're very good.

1161
01:10:51,180 --> 01:10:52,040
 You know this.

1162
01:10:52,480 --> 01:10:53,920
 Tell us about Lindsey Lane.

1163
01:10:54,020 --> 01:10:56,800
 Oh, they're a very good team.

1164
01:10:57,480 --> 01:10:59,420
 They do a very good job on the mound.

1165
01:10:59,540 --> 01:11:01,020
 I think that's where it starts with them.

1166
01:11:01,120 --> 01:11:06,480
 They got guys that can, you know, they pound the zone with multiple pitches with good stuff.

1167
01:11:06,580 --> 01:11:09,140
 You know, they're low 80s, maybe even mid-80s.

1168
01:11:09,680 --> 01:11:11,880
 And they don't walk you.

1169
01:11:11,960 --> 01:11:12,860
 They don't give you anything.

1170
01:11:13,220 --> 01:11:15,860
 So I think that's kind of where it starts with them is on the mound.

1171
01:11:15,860 --> 01:11:23,080
 And then when you go back and look at some of their averages that their lineup has, you know, you've got a guy hitting 500, several in the 400s.

1172
01:11:23,580 --> 01:11:28,660
 I mean, it's going to be a very, very tough challenge for us as a team.

1173
01:11:28,800 --> 01:11:30,940
 We're going to have to go out there and pitch it very well.

1174
01:11:30,940 --> 01:11:37,700
 And then we're going to have to, you know, catch the baseball on defense, which we've done a very good job of this year up to this point.

1175
01:11:37,920 --> 01:11:40,300
 And then offensively, you know, it's not going to be easy.

1176
01:11:40,460 --> 01:11:42,700
 You know, they got good arms and play good defense.

1177
01:11:43,000 --> 01:11:50,260
 So we're going to have to execute and be able to put some things together and string at-bats together, as I like to call it, to be able to score runs.

1178
01:11:50,320 --> 01:11:52,700
 I think it should be a very competitive series.

1179
01:11:53,120 --> 01:11:55,340
 And, you know, these guys are young, too.

1180
01:11:55,420 --> 01:11:57,480
 It's not like they're graduating 10 seniors.

1181
01:11:57,660 --> 01:12:02,000
 You know, they start a freshman and a sophomore on the mound that are very good.

1182
01:12:02,320 --> 01:12:08,000
 So, you know, it's going to be a team that we'll know a lot about because they're going to be in our area the next two years.

1183
01:12:08,100 --> 01:12:10,600
 So it's a very good team, very well coached.

1184
01:12:11,060 --> 01:12:17,840
 I would imagine you probably don't have to, but it would be nice, I'm sure, as a coach to see a lot of fannies in the stands.

1185
01:12:17,940 --> 01:12:19,820
 You can't have enough fans root for Marceau.

1186
01:12:19,880 --> 01:12:23,780
 What message would you like to tell the fans of Marceau coming into this series?

1187
01:12:25,420 --> 01:12:30,800
 Well, our fans know what kind of series this is and what it means, you know,

1188
01:12:30,800 --> 01:12:32,940
 to our playoff push if we're going to go any farther.

1189
01:12:33,160 --> 01:12:34,700
 So I think we'll bring it.

1190
01:12:34,840 --> 01:12:37,080
 I think Lindsey Lane will bring a good crowd as well.

1191
01:12:37,160 --> 01:12:40,560
 But, yeah, I encourage our fans and our area to come out and support us.

1192
01:12:40,680 --> 01:12:47,420
 You know, we as coaches know how hard that our kids work and, you know, they really want it.

1193
01:12:47,480 --> 01:12:51,300
 And so the support would be there, what needs to be there this week.

1194
01:12:52,260 --> 01:12:59,280
 Let me ask you before we let you go, the Josh Willingham Foundation, Isaiah's call, 58.

1195
01:12:59,280 --> 01:13:02,480
 I ask you about this every time you come on.

1196
01:13:02,660 --> 01:13:05,740
 Hunger is still an issue in the world.

1197
01:13:05,920 --> 01:13:08,160
 It still amazes me with all the resources.

1198
01:13:09,160 --> 01:13:17,240
 Your group provides backpacks for children in Lauderdale, Calvert, and Franklin counties.

1199
01:13:17,420 --> 01:13:18,660
 I think this is tremendous.

1200
01:13:18,920 --> 01:13:20,680
 I know you've got a lot of volunteers.

1201
01:13:21,480 --> 01:13:24,960
 Josh, tell us what's your foundation, particularly Isaiah's call.

1202
01:13:26,240 --> 01:13:29,380
 Yeah, well, I appreciate you guys asking about that every year.

1203
01:13:29,500 --> 01:13:32,620
 This is actually, I think, our last week to do it.

1204
01:13:32,660 --> 01:13:34,540
 We start in August and we end in May.

1205
01:13:35,900 --> 01:13:40,140
 We've added another school or two since the last time that I talked to you guys.

1206
01:13:40,480 --> 01:13:48,020
 So, you know, we're up to, you know, I think it's 300 a week that we're filling for families of four.

1207
01:13:48,240 --> 01:13:52,420
 And the support that we have around this community is unbelievable.

1208
01:13:52,660 --> 01:13:59,920
 It's the reason that we can continue to do this and continue to, you know, put this mission at the forefront of our brains.

1209
01:14:00,040 --> 01:14:04,120
 And hopefully the support is the only way that we can do it.

1210
01:14:04,200 --> 01:14:08,060
 So that's from churches, from individuals, financially, from donating food.

1211
01:14:08,360 --> 01:14:15,380
 So, you know, the Lord's really blessed this foundation through a lot of different people in their hearts and willingness to help.

1212
01:14:15,460 --> 01:14:20,780
 But, yeah, our goal, guys, is just to, if there's a need out there and, you know, we're made aware of it,

1213
01:14:20,780 --> 01:14:28,500
 we want to be able to fill it and just bridge the gap for these kids and these families so that they can get through the weekend during the school year

1214
01:14:28,500 --> 01:14:34,260
 and then come back to school with, you know, a sharp mind and a full belly.

1215
01:14:35,600 --> 01:14:39,340
 When you put super talent with a super heart, the sky is the limit.

1216
01:14:39,480 --> 01:14:42,620
 Josh, listen, man, can't thank you enough for taking time to have your busy schedule.

1217
01:14:42,860 --> 01:14:46,540
 All the best on the Diamonds over the next few days.

1218
01:14:46,600 --> 01:14:48,300
 And let's do it again as soon as possible, okay?

1219
01:14:49,220 --> 01:14:50,220
 Hey, I appreciate it, guys.

1220
01:14:50,260 --> 01:14:51,280
 Always good to talk to you.

1221
01:14:51,740 --> 01:14:52,200
 Thank you, Joe.

1222
01:14:52,200 --> 01:14:52,460
 You too.

1223
01:14:52,620 --> 01:14:54,820
 The one and the only, Josh Willingham.

1224
01:14:54,820 --> 01:14:58,220
 Coming up, he knows the SEC from A to Z.

1225
01:14:58,340 --> 01:15:00,220
 Joe Cox on deck on the Boomo Bugg Show.

1226
01:15:00,560 --> 01:15:01,080
 Stay with us.

1227
01:15:07,080 --> 01:15:10,640
 Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.

1228
01:15:11,000 --> 01:15:14,540
 Time to take a little road trip to the Peachtree State, and that is Georgia.

1229
01:15:14,740 --> 01:15:17,400
 The king of it is Bill Shanks, host for the Bill Shanks Show.

1230
01:15:17,620 --> 01:15:18,480
 Bill, welcome in.

1231
01:15:18,520 --> 01:15:19,040
 How are you?

1232
01:15:19,220 --> 01:15:20,280
 I am doing great.

1233
01:15:20,360 --> 01:15:24,940
 I'm headed to the best college town in America, Athens, Georgia, right now.

1234
01:15:25,000 --> 01:15:26,760
 You said best college town in the country?

1235
01:15:26,840 --> 01:15:28,260
 You're not going to Tuscaloosa, Bill?

1236
01:15:28,440 --> 01:15:29,760
 No, I'm going to Athens.

1237
01:15:29,880 --> 01:15:31,000
 I ain't never been to Tuscaloosa.

1238
01:15:31,240 --> 01:15:33,060
 Nobody invited me to come there.

1239
01:15:34,660 --> 01:15:39,940
 Bill, you know, after our last conversation, Brett and I, we have been on a guilt trip,

1240
01:15:40,000 --> 01:15:43,080
 and we agree that we do not talk enough about the Atlanta Hawks, Bill.

1241
01:15:43,100 --> 01:15:43,660
 We don't.

1242
01:15:44,000 --> 01:15:45,000
 Bill, here's your chance.

1243
01:15:45,000 --> 01:15:46,380
 Oh, now you're going to talk about them.

1244
01:15:46,380 --> 01:15:51,180
 Well, what I'm just saying, you told us to talk about the Hawks, so the platform is yours.

1245
01:15:52,320 --> 01:15:54,280
 Yeah, yeah, thanks a lot.

1246
01:15:54,400 --> 01:15:56,000
 Now, now you're going to talk about them.

1247
01:15:56,100 --> 01:15:58,120
 Yeah, okay, I'm just humiliated.

1248
01:15:58,560 --> 01:16:00,460
 Now you want a whole segment on the Hawks.

1249
01:16:01,320 --> 01:16:02,440
 It's never too late.

1250
01:16:02,460 --> 01:16:03,140
 What do you mean?

1251
01:16:03,400 --> 01:16:07,400
 The Boomo Bugg Show, weekdays noon to 2 on 93.9 The Score.

1252
01:16:08,060 --> 01:16:11,540
 People don't realize that glaucoma is one of the leading causes of blindness.

1253
01:16:11,880 --> 01:16:16,620
 Because there are often no early symptoms, nearly half of those with glaucoma may not

1254
01:16:16,620 --> 01:16:19,320
 even know they have it until vision loss has occurred.

1255
01:16:19,720 --> 01:16:25,160
 I was diagnosed with normal tension glaucoma in July of 2020, and what we found out at that

1256
01:16:25,160 --> 01:16:27,360
 point was I had already lost 40% of my sight.

1257
01:16:27,660 --> 01:16:33,460
 You think it only affects people that are, you know, 75 or older, retired grandparents,

1258
01:16:34,100 --> 01:16:36,020
 and that's not the reality of it.

1259
01:16:36,020 --> 01:16:41,000
 I didn't think at all glaucoma was going to affect me, because I didn't know of anyone

1260
01:16:41,000 --> 01:16:42,800
 that had glaucoma, no one in my family.

1261
01:16:43,080 --> 01:16:48,860
 When you have glaucoma, you can't get back that sight that you lost, and so early detection

1262
01:16:48,860 --> 01:16:51,220
 and treatment is vitally, vitally important.

1263
01:16:51,620 --> 01:16:53,840
 Don't miss life's most beautiful moments.

1264
01:16:54,320 --> 01:16:55,500
 Schedule an eye exam today.

1265
01:16:55,760 --> 01:17:01,560
 National Glaucoma Research, a bright, focused foundation program, offers free resources and

1266
01:17:01,560 --> 01:17:02,760
 tips for healthy vision.

1267
01:17:03,160 --> 01:17:06,600
 Learn how to protect your sight at stopglaucoma.org.

1268
01:17:08,880 --> 01:17:14,040
 This is Braves Country, where history lives and legends rise.

1269
01:17:14,420 --> 01:17:20,080
 And now, the next chapter begins, because the Atlanta Braves are back.

1270
01:17:20,180 --> 01:17:21,460
 Swung on and belted.

1271
01:17:21,820 --> 01:17:22,780
 Deep right field.

1272
01:17:23,220 --> 01:17:23,700
 Gone!

1273
01:17:24,380 --> 01:17:29,700
 Today, don't miss Ronald Acuna Jr. and your Atlanta Braves taking on Cal Raleigh and the

1274
01:17:29,700 --> 01:17:30,580
 Seattle Mariners.

1275
01:17:30,700 --> 01:17:36,740
 Live from T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Braves Radio is on the air at 255 Eastern, 155 Central

1276
01:17:36,740 --> 01:17:38,780
 on the Braves Radio Network.

1277
01:17:39,160 --> 01:17:45,720
 Brought to you locally by the law firm of Johnson Pasture, Medley & Virtual, J.C. Hammonson,

1278
01:17:46,320 --> 01:17:52,960
 First Metro Bank, Nationwide Insurance Agents Michael Doe and Bill Cochran, Medford Jewelers,

1279
01:17:53,560 --> 01:18:00,500
 Valley Credit Union, Certified Alarm, Lost Pizza, and Alabama Health Guidance.

1280
01:18:01,180 --> 01:18:05,940
 Atlanta Braves baseball, this afternoon versus the Seattle Mariners on 93.9 The Score.

1281
01:18:06,500 --> 01:18:10,920
 Our critically injured veterans and first responders are left behind every day because of inadequate

1282
01:18:10,920 --> 01:18:11,580
 wheelchairs.

1283
01:18:11,900 --> 01:18:15,340
 That's why Wheelchairs for Warriors is on a mission to serve America's heroes across the

1284
01:18:15,340 --> 01:18:19,760
 nation and provide them with custom-fit wheelchairs tailored to fit their needs, to ensure they're

1285
01:18:19,760 --> 01:18:23,280
 rejoining their lives at the highest level of independent mobility and function possible.

1286
01:18:23,520 --> 01:18:27,760
 From lightweight daily-use chairs or adaptive sports chairs to all-terrain wheelchairs to

1287
01:18:27,760 --> 01:18:29,040
 get these warriors outdoors.

1288
01:18:29,340 --> 01:18:31,760
 Wheelchairs for Warriors serves those who served us.

1289
01:18:31,760 --> 01:18:35,840
 To join their mission, visit their website at wheelchairsforwarriors.org.

1290
01:18:36,400 --> 01:18:37,520
 The Score.

1291
01:18:37,980 --> 01:18:42,760
 Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.

1292
01:18:43,000 --> 01:18:43,760
 The Score.

1293
01:18:43,880 --> 01:18:48,860
 Again, what do you say we hit to the focal point of the entire Southeastern Conference world

1294
01:18:48,860 --> 01:18:50,580
 this week when it comes to softball?

1295
01:18:50,660 --> 01:18:54,580
 That is a state, the great state of Kentucky, where Joe Cox calls home.

1296
01:18:55,020 --> 01:18:59,800
 He's got the entire SEC covered there at South Saturday Down South, and his book is called

1297
01:18:59,800 --> 01:19:01,100
 The Fine Team Man.

1298
01:19:01,260 --> 01:19:02,320
 Joe Cox, welcome in.

1299
01:19:02,380 --> 01:19:03,020
 How are you?

1300
01:19:03,620 --> 01:19:04,740
 I'm doing all right.

1301
01:19:04,840 --> 01:19:06,560
 You know, you talk softball.

1302
01:19:06,560 --> 01:19:12,920
 I covered the inaugural softball team at my alma mater, Western Kentucky, just down the

1303
01:19:12,920 --> 01:19:13,380
 road here.

1304
01:19:13,520 --> 01:19:17,560
 And the one thing that I really learned about it is I could have hit those girls with a

1305
01:19:17,560 --> 01:19:18,420
 20-foot pole.

1306
01:19:18,800 --> 01:19:18,920
 No!

1307
01:19:18,920 --> 01:19:19,040
 No!

1308
01:19:20,920 --> 01:19:21,860
 I love it.

1309
01:19:21,980 --> 01:19:22,960
 I mean, and they're so loose.

1310
01:19:23,140 --> 01:19:23,760
 They're fun.

1311
01:19:23,820 --> 01:19:26,080
 It's a fun sport to watch.

1312
01:19:26,220 --> 01:19:33,840
 And, except for yesterday, Joe, all due respect to Auburn, but when I saw the kid from Kentucky

1313
01:19:33,840 --> 01:19:39,060
 and the manner in which she lost, I mean, it's refreshing in a way to see that players still

1314
01:19:39,060 --> 01:19:39,680
 have emotions.

1315
01:19:39,820 --> 01:19:41,460
 Nowadays, you see these guys, they lose.

1316
01:19:41,540 --> 01:19:42,940
 It's like they go over there and shake hands.

1317
01:19:43,040 --> 01:19:44,640
 It's like, okay, we're still going to get paid.

1318
01:19:44,980 --> 01:19:47,720
 But yesterday, the kid just cried her eyes out.

1319
01:19:48,640 --> 01:19:52,480
 This is, if you haven't watched, I would assume you would highly recommend the tournament

1320
01:19:52,480 --> 01:19:53,860
 going on in your backyard.

1321
01:19:54,740 --> 01:19:55,460
 Oh, absolutely.

1322
01:19:55,460 --> 01:19:58,460
 It's such an intense sport.

1323
01:19:59,320 --> 01:20:00,920
 And, yeah, I'm with you.

1324
01:20:01,120 --> 01:20:06,260
 You know, there's so much of the world now that everything's NIL and, you know, I went to

1325
01:20:06,260 --> 01:20:10,400
 this school next year and I'll turn around and go to their rival next year for another half

1326
01:20:10,400 --> 01:20:10,780
 a million.

1327
01:20:11,020 --> 01:20:12,820
 It's not that way there.

1328
01:20:13,420 --> 01:20:16,280
 And, yeah, I really do encourage people.

1329
01:20:16,820 --> 01:20:23,820
 You know, if the big sports get too big for you, go a little bit more off the main travel route

1330
01:20:23,820 --> 01:20:26,100
 and you're still going to see the same stuff you know and love.

1331
01:20:26,600 --> 01:20:31,900
 So, colleagues, there are 17 within two games of each other.

1332
01:20:32,660 --> 01:20:37,760
 There's a lot in the middle, 13 and 11, down to 11 and 13.

1333
01:20:37,980 --> 01:20:38,820
 There are 17.

1334
01:20:39,320 --> 01:20:41,040
 It's two weekends to go.

1335
01:20:41,700 --> 01:20:42,960
 A lot's still going on.

1336
01:20:43,040 --> 01:20:47,380
 The Georgia Bulldogs, 18 and 6, 38 and 11.

1337
01:20:48,240 --> 01:20:49,100
 They're on a heater.

1338
01:20:49,460 --> 01:20:52,180
 That six-game winning streak, they're going 8 to 10.

1339
01:20:52,400 --> 01:20:58,300
 You need to update us on the home run total if it's close to 130 by now.

1340
01:20:58,960 --> 01:21:03,040
 We'll see how it goes over and plays Georgia next weekend.

1341
01:21:03,600 --> 01:21:05,400
 It's going to be a very interesting series.

1342
01:21:06,320 --> 01:21:08,300
 Will Georgia win the regular season?

1343
01:21:10,360 --> 01:21:13,320
 Yeah, Georgia has just been amazing.

1344
01:21:14,100 --> 01:21:15,180
 131 homers.

1345
01:21:16,040 --> 01:21:20,740
 It's still kind of funny to me that Vanderbilt is the SEC team that's second in that home run

1346
01:21:20,740 --> 01:21:24,880
 race just because it's the opposite of what it's been over the years.

1347
01:21:25,060 --> 01:21:27,800
 Meanwhile, you take Auburn, and they're near the bottom in it,

1348
01:21:27,820 --> 01:21:33,260
 but they've found a way to push runs across without doing as much slugging.

1349
01:21:33,420 --> 01:21:37,160
 But, yeah, it's really looking like Georgia's world,

1350
01:21:37,380 --> 01:21:41,060
 and that's going to be important because they're serious to wrap up.

1351
01:21:41,060 --> 01:21:45,500
 You've got a couple of teams that their situations are a little more fluid,

1352
01:21:46,080 --> 01:21:50,360
 and Georgia will have a lot to say about what happens with LSU

1353
01:21:50,360 --> 01:21:51,160
 and then with Auburn.

1354
01:21:52,120 --> 01:21:53,740
 Joe Cox, Saturday down south.

1355
01:21:53,920 --> 01:21:57,140
 Joe, obviously, you know, our zip code here, if you'll indulge us.

1356
01:21:57,480 --> 01:21:58,640
 I'm looking at the standings.

1357
01:21:58,700 --> 01:22:01,620
 The last time I looked at the standings, Alabama and Auburn, in terms of NASCAR,

1358
01:22:02,100 --> 01:22:03,080
 they're swapping paint.

1359
01:22:03,360 --> 01:22:04,640
 They're pretty much in the same position.

1360
01:22:04,820 --> 01:22:07,560
 Maybe a game separates them as far as the standings.

1361
01:22:08,300 --> 01:22:10,520
 And your baseball is all about momentum.

1362
01:22:10,700 --> 01:22:12,980
 Going back to what we talked about, the softball tournament,

1363
01:22:13,060 --> 01:22:16,000
 I think Auburn lost 25-0 just a few days ago,

1364
01:22:16,040 --> 01:22:19,200
 and now they're heading to the quarterfinals after wins in the first two rounds.

1365
01:22:19,360 --> 01:22:21,160
 So that's just softball or baseball.

1366
01:22:21,300 --> 01:22:22,600
 The blueprint is the same.

1367
01:22:23,100 --> 01:22:23,960
 It's about momentum.

1368
01:22:23,960 --> 01:22:27,440
 In your opinion, right now, who's setting up better heading into the postseason?

1369
01:22:27,560 --> 01:22:29,720
 Would it be, in your opinion, Alabama, Auburn,

1370
01:22:29,840 --> 01:22:32,500
 or is it pretty much still the same, neck and neck?

1371
01:22:33,180 --> 01:22:37,980
 You know, it's going to be close just because you would think that Auburn,

1372
01:22:38,480 --> 01:22:43,280
 you know, they're the team, I think, that a lot of people expect to see in that top eight

1373
01:22:43,280 --> 01:22:45,120
 set up to host a super regional.

1374
01:22:45,280 --> 01:22:48,920
 But they really do have a brutal run to finish the regular season here.

1375
01:22:49,000 --> 01:22:52,320
 You've got to go down to Starkville, and then you host Georgia.

1376
01:22:52,800 --> 01:22:56,080
 And meanwhile, Alabama, yeah, as you know, they're one game behind them,

1377
01:22:56,080 --> 01:22:59,660
 and they get to go to South Carolina and then finish at home with Ole Miss.

1378
01:22:59,980 --> 01:23:07,000
 So, you know, it could well end up in a situation where Alabama has the better regular season record,

1379
01:23:07,440 --> 01:23:14,200
 but I think Alabama's got a tougher road to hoe just as far as trying to set up for a good postseason situation.

1380
01:23:14,360 --> 01:23:19,360
 I think Alabama's still probably in pretty good shape in terms of getting a hosting bid,

1381
01:23:19,360 --> 01:23:25,380
 but they've got a long way to go toward that top eight that Auburn's pretty well entrenched in.

1382
01:23:25,700 --> 01:23:28,940
 So, you know, Alabama may end up on top on the standings,

1383
01:23:29,020 --> 01:23:31,380
 but Auburn may set up better for the NCAA tournament.

1384
01:23:32,000 --> 01:23:35,280
 Joe, one thing about it, I always call it the Red Cross special.

1385
01:23:35,540 --> 01:23:38,120
 If you're full of charity, you're not going to win a lot of ballgames,

1386
01:23:38,320 --> 01:23:41,580
 a.k.a. if your defense keeps giving them four and five outs in the inning,

1387
01:23:41,720 --> 01:23:45,740
 I don't care who it is, South Carolina or Zip City, you're going to lose.

1388
01:23:45,740 --> 01:23:49,160
 Your thoughts, how do you explain Alabama's leaky defense?

1389
01:23:49,520 --> 01:23:52,100
 In one minute, they look like the New York Yankees,

1390
01:23:52,160 --> 01:23:55,760
 and the next minute, they look like the Washington Generals in basketball.

1391
01:23:56,920 --> 01:24:02,340
 You know, it's funny just because it's not been a rough season for the Tide.

1392
01:24:02,460 --> 01:24:06,280
 I mean, I think they're happy, not thrilled, but happy with where they are.

1393
01:24:06,500 --> 01:24:10,100
 But you start to look at numbers, and, you know, you get the most errors in the SEC.

1394
01:24:10,760 --> 01:24:13,800
 The batting average is next to worst in the SEC.

1395
01:24:14,580 --> 01:24:19,680
 So it's kind of mysterious, like, how are we having a decent season here?

1396
01:24:20,120 --> 01:24:25,060
 And I think the thing is, you know, defense is such a focused thing.

1397
01:24:25,180 --> 01:24:29,140
 It's going to be key for Alabama to tighten up in all phases.

1398
01:24:29,580 --> 01:24:32,760
 And, you know, they've got the talent, they've got the players,

1399
01:24:32,880 --> 01:24:34,600
 and they'll produce when the chips are down.

1400
01:24:34,700 --> 01:24:37,720
 But you've got to eliminate the little mistakes,

1401
01:24:37,720 --> 01:24:41,120
 and you've got to do that on the defensive side of things.

1402
01:24:41,260 --> 01:24:45,440
 And certainly then, you know, at the plate, you've got to be dialed in.

1403
01:24:45,760 --> 01:24:48,420
 And it's even in college, it's a long season.

1404
01:24:48,580 --> 01:24:50,120
 It's obviously longer in MLB.

1405
01:24:50,320 --> 01:24:56,260
 But, you know, it's time to just get everybody on the same page and moving ahead.

1406
01:24:57,000 --> 01:24:58,480
 It's not crazy, though, Joe.

1407
01:24:58,580 --> 01:25:00,860
 I mean, one of the things that you want to do is win a championship.

1408
01:25:01,380 --> 01:25:05,980
 But you go back, Ole Miss, Tennessee, a host of other schools, Mississippi State.

1409
01:25:06,600 --> 01:25:09,260
 And then the next year, it's almost like they go from first to worst.

1410
01:25:09,540 --> 01:25:13,140
 Your thoughts about some of the name, premier names in baseball,

1411
01:25:13,340 --> 01:25:18,600
 what's going on at LSU, Florida, by their standards, not where they want to be.

1412
01:25:19,040 --> 01:25:23,640
 Your thoughts, Vanderbilt, this is a perennial powerhouse, Alabama freshmen, sweeping them.

1413
01:25:23,700 --> 01:25:27,340
 Your thoughts just how crazy the SEC is, year in and year out.

1414
01:25:28,180 --> 01:25:31,160
 Well, it is crazy, and it's because it's so good.

1415
01:25:31,160 --> 01:25:37,020
 But it's also because we are starting to really see the transfer portal have an impact.

1416
01:25:37,160 --> 01:25:41,560
 It wasn't as clear that the portal would be a big deal in baseball.

1417
01:25:41,900 --> 01:25:47,480
 Obviously, in basketball and in football, just with the numbers of players coming and going,

1418
01:25:47,700 --> 01:25:51,360
 it was pretty evident right away that you could see some wild swings from a team

1419
01:25:51,360 --> 01:25:53,720
 because it's not really the same team.

1420
01:25:54,080 --> 01:25:56,580
 It's really getting close to that in baseball.

1421
01:25:57,120 --> 01:26:00,280
 And, you know, that's obviously going to be a thing moving forward.

1422
01:26:00,640 --> 01:26:03,680
 The good news is if you're bad, you can get good in a hurry.

1423
01:26:03,680 --> 01:26:06,300
 You don't have to be in the basement forever.

1424
01:26:07,060 --> 01:26:11,360
 But the bad news, yeah, if you're LSU, you know, you came into this year riding high.

1425
01:26:11,620 --> 01:26:15,680
 And unless they really pull a rabbit out of their head in this series at Georgia this weekend,

1426
01:26:16,220 --> 01:26:19,700
 I really don't see a way that they're going to make the NCAA tournament.

1427
01:26:19,980 --> 01:26:24,640
 So, you know, I guess don't get too high, don't get too low, and recruit, recruit, recruit.

1428
01:26:25,960 --> 01:26:30,000
 What we can do is get online and check out your work and your book.

1429
01:26:30,100 --> 01:26:31,260
 Joe, where can we find them?

1430
01:26:32,340 --> 01:26:37,880
 We have Saturday down south all the way through baseball and into that, you know,

1431
01:26:38,000 --> 01:26:42,940
 oblong, uneven-shaped ball that's going to come our way after baseball and softball are done.

1432
01:26:43,520 --> 01:26:46,820
 And as far as my books, I always appreciate the support.

1433
01:26:47,240 --> 01:26:50,840
 Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Books A Million, any of those type places.

1434
01:26:51,700 --> 01:26:53,420
 Joe, as always, good to hook up with you.

1435
01:26:53,620 --> 01:26:56,720
 Enjoy SEC tourney time there in your backyard this week.

1436
01:26:57,020 --> 01:26:59,780
 By the way, it's coming to our neck of the woods in the near future over to Madison.

1437
01:26:59,960 --> 01:27:00,660
 It's a great event.

1438
01:27:01,120 --> 01:27:01,780
 Enjoy it, Joe.

1439
01:27:01,820 --> 01:27:03,460
 And thank you so much for your time today.

1440
01:27:04,260 --> 01:27:04,620
 Absolutely.

1441
01:27:04,760 --> 01:27:05,460
 You guys take care.

1442
01:27:06,340 --> 01:27:08,400
 Joe Cox is going to win us Saturday down south.

1443
01:27:08,500 --> 01:27:10,680
 His book, again, is called A Fine Team Man.

1444
01:27:11,180 --> 01:27:13,580
 We're heading into Bray's free game.

1445
01:27:13,700 --> 01:27:14,920
 You're on 93.9 to score.

1446
01:27:15,000 --> 01:27:17,500
 But first, a dose of Double D.

1447
01:27:17,680 --> 01:27:18,700
 Drew DeArmond on deck.

1448
01:27:18,780 --> 01:27:19,280
 Stay with us.

1449
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1450
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1451
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1454
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1456
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1457
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1458
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1459
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1460
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1461
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1462
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1463
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1464
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1465
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1466
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1467
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1468
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1469
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1470
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1472
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1475
01:29:00,300 --> 01:29:04,320
 Progressive Insurance presents the Sports Flash on 93-9, the score.

1476
01:29:04,880 --> 01:29:09,080
 On the college baseball diamond Tuesday night, Alabama fell to Troy 6-1.

1477
01:29:09,440 --> 01:29:11,400
 Trojans held the Crimson Tide to four hits.

1478
01:29:11,660 --> 01:29:16,440
 Jason Torres homered for Alabama, while Stephen Meyer had three hits and an RBI for Troy.

1479
01:29:16,820 --> 01:29:20,680
 Alabama will face South Carolina Friday, while the Trojans will host South Alabama.

1480
01:29:21,120 --> 01:29:23,420
 Auburn defeated UAB in Birmingham 10-2.

1481
01:29:23,680 --> 01:29:24,960
 Tigers had 13 hits.

1482
01:29:25,180 --> 01:29:26,780
 Eric Guevara, three RBIs.

1483
01:29:26,960 --> 01:29:28,800
 Bub Terrell also drove in three.

1484
01:29:29,080 --> 01:29:32,140
 Auburn is currently ranked sixth in the latest D1 baseball poll.

1485
01:29:32,480 --> 01:29:37,140
 North Alabama, they fell to Samford 8-2 on Tuesday, dropping their third straight.

1486
01:29:37,460 --> 01:29:41,020
 They'll be on the road Friday to begin a three-game series against Central Arkansas.

1487
01:29:41,500 --> 01:29:44,440
 And in Major League Baseball, the Atlanta Braves beat Seattle 3-2.

1488
01:29:44,560 --> 01:29:46,320
 They'll wrap up the series this afternoon.

1489
01:29:46,680 --> 01:29:49,120
 Coverage on the score starts at 155.

1490
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1517
01:31:02,160 --> 01:31:08,160
 Now, back with Boomo Bugg on 93.9 The Score.

1518
01:31:08,980 --> 01:31:11,960
 Welcome back in moments away from hooking up with the Braves.

1519
01:31:12,060 --> 01:31:14,580
 Pre-game, bat on the left coast, taking on set.

1520
01:31:14,660 --> 01:31:16,840
 We're trying to make it back-to-backs out on the west coast.

1521
01:31:16,940 --> 01:31:21,000
 In the meantime, Drew DeArmond, host, Talking Ball on Huntsville's 97.7 FM The Zone.

1522
01:31:21,080 --> 01:31:21,800
 Drew, welcome in.

1523
01:31:21,860 --> 01:31:22,560
 How are you?

1524
01:31:23,940 --> 01:31:25,180
 Hey, how are you guys doing?

1525
01:31:25,800 --> 01:31:27,100
 Man, we're doing all right, Drew.

1526
01:31:27,120 --> 01:31:32,480
 We just got done talking about the craziness of baseball and softball.

1527
01:31:32,580 --> 01:31:36,820
 You can get blown out and just look like a nut one day and come back and look like a king the next.

1528
01:31:36,940 --> 01:31:38,540
 Auburn is the case of that with softball.

1529
01:31:38,960 --> 01:31:40,940
 And bear with me for a moment to get to the point.

1530
01:31:41,480 --> 01:31:45,780
 They're now heading into the quarterfinals after a terrible finish to the regular season.

1531
01:31:45,780 --> 01:31:48,980
 And for that matter, overall, if you're playing the first round of the season, not good.

1532
01:31:49,200 --> 01:31:50,880
 They beat Texas A&M today.

1533
01:31:51,020 --> 01:31:52,780
 I think it was 8-5, something like that.

1534
01:31:52,860 --> 01:31:53,780
 Five home runs.

1535
01:31:53,940 --> 01:31:59,100
 The reason we bring it up, Drew, is this tournament is in Kentucky, Lexington.

1536
01:31:59,400 --> 01:32:01,000
 They want to move it campus to campus.

1537
01:32:01,220 --> 01:32:05,900
 But then starting down the stretch, we won't have to go that far to see this tournament.

1538
01:32:06,080 --> 01:32:12,700
 The job that they do in a greater Madison-Huntsville area to bring a tournament of this stature to this neck of the woods,

1539
01:32:12,760 --> 01:32:15,440
 it has to be a tremendous pat on the back, Drew.

1540
01:32:16,620 --> 01:32:17,620
 Well, it has.

1541
01:32:17,780 --> 01:32:18,760
 No doubt about it.

1542
01:32:18,780 --> 01:32:20,380
 It's the best softball in the world.

1543
01:32:20,740 --> 01:32:25,820
 You know, we had Caleb Jones on talking to Auburn softball this morning.

1544
01:32:26,020 --> 01:32:28,620
 And that's just a huge win for Auburn.

1545
01:32:29,080 --> 01:32:35,380
 I mean, I don't think it's – it's not too much to say it's their biggest win of the year.

1546
01:32:35,920 --> 01:32:49,860
 You know, to get to the quarterfinals now and take on Florida tomorrow morning, basically, in my opinion, if they upset Florida and get to the semifinals of the tournament in Lexington, they're going to go to the NCAA tournament.

1547
01:32:49,860 --> 01:32:54,060
 I mean, they're – they're at 500 now.

1548
01:32:54,460 --> 01:32:58,740
 I believe it's – and on the season, they're 27 and 27.

1549
01:32:59,120 --> 01:33:09,820
 And if they get above 500 with a win tomorrow and get to the semifinals, you know, they're going to finish with no worse than a 500 record after the tournament.

1550
01:33:10,200 --> 01:33:16,780
 I think they're very likely in because they're from the SEC, so – and because they'll be hot as well.

1551
01:33:16,900 --> 01:33:23,020
 I mean, and this is remarkable because, honestly, they've spent the regular season playing very poorly.

1552
01:33:23,800 --> 01:33:30,880
 I thought it was a mistake when I saw it that they lost 25 to nothing in five innings in LSU.

1553
01:33:30,880 --> 01:33:32,880
 I mean, I could not believe that.

1554
01:33:32,920 --> 01:33:34,600
 I'd never seen anything like it.

1555
01:33:35,080 --> 01:33:45,580
 So, it's a credit to these young ladies and how they're fighting and they're fighting for their – for their coaches in the Malvos because that's just a great, great run.

1556
01:33:45,740 --> 01:33:52,820
 I would have – I would have bet anything that they probably weren't going to be able to, you know, even beat Missouri yesterday.

1557
01:33:52,820 --> 01:33:59,480
 But they came back late, you know, scored six runs to, you know, win the game after they were down 2-0.

1558
01:33:59,660 --> 01:34:07,940
 And then to do that today, to show that power, you know, and go on that power surge and beat a really good Texas A&M team.

1559
01:34:08,020 --> 01:34:08,200
 Yeah.

1560
01:34:08,480 --> 01:34:09,320
 That's remarkable.

1561
01:34:09,720 --> 01:34:19,880
 And so, now, to be honest with you, if they can beat Florida tomorrow, I really, really like their chances of getting into the NCAA tournament.

1562
01:34:19,880 --> 01:34:23,540
 And that would be tremendous because they've made it 13 years in a row.

1563
01:34:24,080 --> 01:34:34,720
 And, you know, there would be a chance they could play somebody named Alabama in the semifinals of that tournament if the Tide could win on Thursday as well.

1564
01:34:34,920 --> 01:34:40,880
 So, how remarkable and unlikely would that have been just a few days ago?

1565
01:34:42,060 --> 01:34:43,840
 Quickly, a shout-out to Alabama.

1566
01:34:44,440 --> 01:34:49,220
 Conversely, the shoes on the other foot, they've had a great season, ranked amongst the best in the country.

1567
01:34:49,220 --> 01:34:52,180
 Your thoughts about the job Pat Murphy and these girls are doing.

1568
01:34:53,100 --> 01:34:54,840
 Well, I think he's the coach of the year.

1569
01:34:54,960 --> 01:34:57,000
 He won it, and I think rightfully so.

1570
01:34:57,380 --> 01:34:58,520
 He's a Hall of Famer.

1571
01:34:58,600 --> 01:35:00,120
 He's one of the best to ever do it.

1572
01:35:00,200 --> 01:35:03,040
 I mean, they're 47-6 right now.

1573
01:35:03,120 --> 01:35:04,220
 They've got the double bye.

1574
01:35:04,340 --> 01:35:09,000
 They've only lost one series all year, and that was on the road at Tennessee.

1575
01:35:09,280 --> 01:35:11,340
 And they won the first game.

1576
01:35:11,520 --> 01:35:14,480
 The Lady Vols came back and won the last two.

1577
01:35:14,640 --> 01:35:17,000
 But they've just done remarkable things.

1578
01:35:17,900 --> 01:35:29,580
 I had a chance to interview him a couple weeks ago, right after Madison was announced at the site for the SEC softball tournament, which is the best softball in the world.

1579
01:35:29,580 --> 01:35:31,800
 And, you know, I told him about the coach.

1580
01:35:31,800 --> 01:35:33,160
 He's done this a long time.

1581
01:35:33,280 --> 01:35:42,440
 But this may be the best group of freshmen and newcomers because Brooke Wells, of course, came from Houston and was in the transfer pool that he's ever had.

1582
01:35:42,880 --> 01:35:45,060
 I mean, and they have a deep pitching staff.

1583
01:35:45,480 --> 01:35:53,060
 Vic Moten has done really well from Daphne as a freshman, you know, and a young lady from Michigan as well.

1584
01:35:53,500 --> 01:35:55,380
 She's done a nice job.

1585
01:35:55,500 --> 01:35:57,020
 They have some depth in the circle.

1586
01:35:57,560 --> 01:35:59,780
 But their lineup's been really, really good.

1587
01:36:00,360 --> 01:36:03,680
 And, you know, he likes to tinker with it.

1588
01:36:04,200 --> 01:36:06,140
 But he's got good depth in his lineup.

1589
01:36:06,920 --> 01:36:20,100
 And, you know, I know she's kind of cooled off a little bit, but he figured out that Pafillo, who, of course, is in her second year from Northern Iowa, she's kind of been an unconventional leadoff in her, but she's done the job.

1590
01:36:20,100 --> 01:36:22,560
 And so he's just done remarkable things.

1591
01:36:22,720 --> 01:36:26,440
 And they've got a really good shot to get back to Oklahoma City.

1592
01:36:26,660 --> 01:36:33,500
 And they're definitely going to be a host in the regional and supers if they are fortunate enough to get to the super regional.

1593
01:36:33,800 --> 01:36:37,720
 And if they can get back to the college world series, I think it would be the 16th time.

1594
01:36:38,160 --> 01:36:39,160
 It's just remarkable.

1595
01:36:39,580 --> 01:36:41,720
 And he's just done amazing things.

1596
01:36:41,980 --> 01:36:45,660
 And to be 47-6 right now is tremendous.

1597
01:36:46,020 --> 01:36:51,420
 And it certainly would be, you know, amazing stuff if they can get a win tomorrow.

1598
01:36:51,580 --> 01:36:57,700
 But I know they're waiting on the winner of Mississippi State and Arkansas.

1599
01:36:58,180 --> 01:37:02,860
 And I know that game was going to be right after the Auburn game.

1600
01:37:02,860 --> 01:37:11,360
 And Mississippi State and Arkansas, I know that the Hogs did beat Alabama one game in that series earlier in the regular season in Tuscaloosa.

1601
01:37:11,500 --> 01:37:13,520
 But they had them play in Mississippi State.

1602
01:37:13,960 --> 01:37:17,700
 And State, of course, you know, has a really good pitching staff.

1603
01:37:20,300 --> 01:37:21,640
 Drew, Drew, I'm going to hook up with us.

1604
01:37:21,700 --> 01:37:24,400
 97.7 FM is on a switch gears through.

1605
01:37:24,520 --> 01:37:34,120
 Now that the dust has settled across the spring camps, where do you start and what your gut tells you about Alabama and Auburn?

1606
01:37:35,580 --> 01:37:42,160
 Well, I think that Alabama's got a chance to have a really good, you know, football team.

1607
01:37:42,520 --> 01:37:49,920
 I think, you know, they, you know, Noah Rodgers getting injured certainly didn't, that didn't help things.

1608
01:37:50,140 --> 01:37:52,880
 But he won't be back probably for the start of the season.

1609
01:37:53,080 --> 01:37:55,500
 It was a teller tendon issue in his knee.

1610
01:37:55,700 --> 01:37:59,360
 But certainly, I think Ryan Coleman-Williams had a good spring.

1611
01:37:59,480 --> 01:38:02,500
 He's going to have to keep that, you know, going.

1612
01:38:02,960 --> 01:38:05,480
 Lodger Brooks is going to be a big part of what they're doing.

1613
01:38:06,080 --> 01:38:14,060
 You know, they, I do think that they've still got a chance if Rico Scott can be more consistent to have a good wide receiver room.

1614
01:38:14,160 --> 01:38:15,560
 I love Keelan Russell.

1615
01:38:15,880 --> 01:38:18,040
 I think Austin Mack's really solid as well.

1616
01:38:18,140 --> 01:38:23,980
 I think the quarterback room is really good, despite what Joel Platt thinks, you know.

1617
01:38:24,040 --> 01:38:28,100
 And I think, and certainly I think the offensive line is going to be the key.

1618
01:38:28,280 --> 01:38:32,500
 They've got to continue to make progress there with the guys up front.

1619
01:38:32,500 --> 01:38:38,400
 And certainly, you know, I think they're off to a good start there, you know, in the spring.

1620
01:38:38,540 --> 01:38:40,920
 And I think Adrian Clems has done a nice job.

1621
01:38:41,040 --> 01:38:45,520
 But they've still got to keep working and increase their consistency.

1622
01:38:45,980 --> 01:38:59,320
 And I think defensively, you know, if they can continue to grow up front, I think they have some, you know, quality, you know, transfer portal, you know, additions along the defensive line.

1623
01:38:59,320 --> 01:39:08,860
 And I think they need to, you know, get some of their guys that were out hurt and, you know, like a Jeremiah Beeman who did not play last year.

1624
01:39:08,920 --> 01:39:10,740
 He needs to be back and be consistent.

1625
01:39:11,280 --> 01:39:16,440
 I think it was good that Steve Bolo had a good spring and started making some progress.

1626
01:39:16,920 --> 01:39:20,480
 Because when he came in from junior college, he certainly looked the part last year.

1627
01:39:20,880 --> 01:39:22,160
 He's going to have to be good.

1628
01:39:22,260 --> 01:39:24,100
 But I think they have the tools there.

1629
01:39:24,240 --> 01:39:28,320
 And I think they're going to be better in the kicking game because of the 14th win.

1630
01:39:28,440 --> 01:39:33,120
 I think he's going to give them one of the better kickers in the SEC, if not the country.

1631
01:39:33,300 --> 01:39:37,800
 We'll see, you know, how they can improve in that area because it wasn't consistent a year ago.

1632
01:39:38,260 --> 01:39:47,640
 And then with Auburn, I think it's just a matter of, you know, I think we didn't see nearly what they're going to be because it couldn't show a lot in the spring.

1633
01:39:47,780 --> 01:39:54,360
 They're going to run the football, I think, much better than they've run it, even though I think they ran it better than people think a year ago.

1634
01:39:54,460 --> 01:39:57,860
 But I think the QB run game is going to be the key.

1635
01:39:58,140 --> 01:40:03,540
 And, you know, I think Byron Brown is going to be a guy that is going to be very effective.

1636
01:40:03,960 --> 01:40:05,880
 He was very effective in South Florida.

1637
01:40:06,620 --> 01:40:08,580
 You didn't get to see his total package.

1638
01:40:08,700 --> 01:40:13,080
 I know he struggled throwing the ball a little bit in the spring, but his game is running the ball.

1639
01:40:13,080 --> 01:40:15,120
 And I think they're going to run it from the QB spot.

1640
01:40:15,580 --> 01:40:21,540
 And I think they have a lot of continuity back defensively with C.J. Durkin and his staff back there.

1641
01:40:22,120 --> 01:40:25,460
 Certainly, I think they felt like they had a really strong spring.

1642
01:40:25,740 --> 01:40:30,240
 And they've got some key holes to build with Keldrick Falk moving on to the NFL.

1643
01:40:30,940 --> 01:40:34,320
 But I think they're going to be, you know, pretty good up front still.

1644
01:40:34,400 --> 01:40:37,780
 And I think the key is going to be their offensive line, just like Alabama.

1645
01:40:37,980 --> 01:40:43,040
 They've got to continue to get better in that regard, more consistent heading into fall camp.

1646
01:40:44,000 --> 01:40:46,400
 Drew, Jerry, I'm at 97.7 FM Zone.

1647
01:40:46,500 --> 01:40:48,200
 Back to Bama for a moment, Drew.

1648
01:40:49,300 --> 01:40:51,660
 Do you get the same feedback that we get?

1649
01:40:51,740 --> 01:40:56,420
 Most Bama fans believe Austin Mack may get the starting nine, but he's going to have a short leash.

1650
01:40:57,080 --> 01:40:59,960
 Keelan Russell's in the bullpen warming up at any moment.

1651
01:41:00,580 --> 01:41:01,520
 We don't know that.

1652
01:41:01,640 --> 01:41:06,060
 I'm just saying that's basically the consensus of what we're hearing across the nation, the feedback we get.

1653
01:41:06,100 --> 01:41:07,660
 But here's an interesting comment.

1654
01:41:07,740 --> 01:41:08,900
 This is from Bray Hubbard.

1655
01:41:09,100 --> 01:41:10,980
 You are no better than any of us here.

1656
01:41:10,980 --> 01:41:13,020
 This is kind of a quote here, the best I can tell.

1657
01:41:13,080 --> 01:41:17,460
 He, that is Keelan Russell, gets us all the time with some of his balls.

1658
01:41:17,660 --> 01:41:21,020
 I'm like, wow, that takes a really impressive arm to throw.

1659
01:41:21,220 --> 01:41:24,400
 You can hear the ball sizzle when he throws it.

1660
01:41:24,700 --> 01:41:29,700
 Rarely do you hear somebody when the competition is as tight as it seems to be in Tuscaloosa

1661
01:41:29,700 --> 01:41:34,440
 so that a fellow teammate will come out and basically say, this guy is special?

1662
01:41:35,840 --> 01:41:37,540
 No, Keelan Russell is special.

1663
01:41:37,860 --> 01:41:39,800
 I think he's going to win the starting job.

1664
01:41:40,260 --> 01:41:41,700
 Nothing against Austin Mack.

1665
01:41:41,780 --> 01:41:43,720
 I think Mack has tools, no question.

1666
01:41:43,980 --> 01:41:46,820
 But Keelan, I wouldn't trade him for Arch Manning.

1667
01:41:46,960 --> 01:41:53,040
 If I were Alabama, and Arch certainly has as much potential as anyone in the country and finished strong last year.

1668
01:41:53,100 --> 01:41:56,500
 But I think Keelan Russell has too, a Tunga-Vailoa type talent.

1669
01:41:57,080 --> 01:41:58,680
 I think he can throw the football.

1670
01:41:58,920 --> 01:42:00,760
 I think he's got outstanding mobility.

1671
01:42:01,240 --> 01:42:03,240
 I think he's as good a young prospect as anybody.

1672
01:42:03,960 --> 01:42:09,280
 I know there's been some criticism of Alabama's quarterback spots, saying they don't have any starts.

1673
01:42:09,960 --> 01:42:11,740
 Well, neither did Ty Simpson.

1674
01:42:11,880 --> 01:42:12,800
 He did pretty well.

1675
01:42:12,800 --> 01:42:15,260
 He was drafted 13th overall.

1676
01:42:15,880 --> 01:42:20,580
 And, you know, before he started getting banged up, was probably the frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy.

1677
01:42:20,740 --> 01:42:25,940
 And certainly I think that Los Angeles Rams have a pretty good organization and can judge quarterbacks.

1678
01:42:26,080 --> 01:42:34,100
 So I think Keelan Russell, with his mobility, his ability to play off script and to extend plays is going to be key.

1679
01:42:34,320 --> 01:42:36,760
 Because this offensive line is going to be a work in progress.

1680
01:42:37,000 --> 01:42:38,980
 But I think he's also accurate.

1681
01:42:39,680 --> 01:42:41,240
 I agree with Bray Hubbard.

1682
01:42:41,240 --> 01:42:50,560
 I think he has outstanding arm strength, has a very quick release, and can get the ball out and be very, very, you know, I think can stretch the field, too.

1683
01:42:50,660 --> 01:42:54,900
 I think one thing, Ty, is Ty's struggling with the deep ball.

1684
01:42:55,340 --> 01:42:59,560
 I think Keelan Russell or Austin Mack, whoever wins the starting job.

1685
01:42:59,620 --> 01:43:02,000
 But I think, again, my opinion is Keelan Russell.

1686
01:43:02,440 --> 01:43:07,840
 I think they'll be able to stretch defenses with that deep ball and make a lot of plays.

1687
01:43:08,460 --> 01:43:15,660
 You know, it doesn't take a rocket scientist to say this, but one thing that would help, obviously, the offensive line improving drastically from last year.

1688
01:43:15,720 --> 01:43:17,780
 But the other thing is to have E.J.

1689
01:43:17,880 --> 01:43:19,400
 Crowell live up to his potential.

1690
01:43:19,560 --> 01:43:21,360
 What are you hearing as far as the timetable?

1691
01:43:21,460 --> 01:43:27,600
 The last time I saw it, Drew, it looked like he was on pace to get back without any major problems or time lost.

1692
01:43:27,740 --> 01:43:32,720
 What are you hearing about Crowell, which would add, obviously, a huge element to that offense?

1693
01:43:33,380 --> 01:43:35,060
 I would expect Crowell.

1694
01:43:35,280 --> 01:43:38,780
 I mean, the injury wasn't nearly as serious as Noah Rodgers.

1695
01:43:38,860 --> 01:43:40,540
 I think he'll be ready by June.

1696
01:43:40,760 --> 01:43:47,480
 So, without any setbacks, I think he's going to be ready to go and continue to get better and ramp it up this summer.

1697
01:43:48,040 --> 01:43:50,900
 He'd be good to go for their opener against East Carolina.

1698
01:43:51,160 --> 01:43:52,620
 I'd expect him to be on the field.

1699
01:43:53,180 --> 01:43:55,200
 I think he's a special talent as well.

1700
01:43:55,700 --> 01:43:58,420
 He's another one that they didn't see a lot of.

1701
01:43:58,760 --> 01:44:09,340
 That's why it kind of humors me when I see people like Joel Klatt already saying they, first of all, correct me if I'm wrong, you know, I'm not very good at math.

1702
01:44:09,400 --> 01:44:17,260
 But when you win nine one year and 11 to next and you win one playoff game in that second year when you didn't win any to next, I call that improvement.

1703
01:44:17,400 --> 01:44:17,880
 Wouldn't you?

1704
01:44:18,140 --> 01:44:19,500
 Is that called improvement?

1705
01:44:19,860 --> 01:44:21,200
 I mean, I think so.

1706
01:44:21,620 --> 01:44:32,900
 I mean, even for someone as elementary as me with math, I mean, I think, I think Alabama, you know, with B.J. Crowell, they haven't seen a lot of him.

1707
01:44:32,980 --> 01:44:35,780
 We only saw a very brief highlight of him in the spring.

1708
01:44:36,260 --> 01:44:41,940
 His reps were kept under wraps and he was a little banged up with the lower leg issue.

1709
01:44:42,100 --> 01:44:43,420
 It's kind of a groin or so.

1710
01:44:43,780 --> 01:44:48,900
 But I think, you know, I think he's going to be healthy and bargaining setbacks.

1711
01:44:48,900 --> 01:44:54,420
 And I think he has a very special talent winning Mr. Football as a reclassified senior.

1712
01:44:55,040 --> 01:44:56,920
 I think he's going to bring some explosiveness.

1713
01:44:57,220 --> 01:44:59,160
 And it goes back to what Kaelin DeBoer said.

1714
01:44:59,220 --> 01:45:01,660
 They didn't make a lot of explosive runs last year.

1715
01:45:02,100 --> 01:45:11,220
 I think he and the other three freshmen, Brown, out of Huntsville, Texas, I think that both those guys are going to bring that kind of element to the running game.

1716
01:45:11,220 --> 01:45:20,020
 And I also think, you know, no question that, you know, the returnees, you know, in the backfield can help as well.

1717
01:45:20,320 --> 01:45:22,060
 They both seem to be in better shape.

1718
01:45:22,400 --> 01:45:26,560
 And I think overall, when you look at it, I think the running game will be improved.

1719
01:45:26,820 --> 01:45:27,840
 It can get worse.

1720
01:45:27,940 --> 01:45:29,660
 Let's be honest there.

1721
01:45:29,780 --> 01:45:42,600
 But if it is better and more explosive, you know, with a guy like E.J. Crowell, I think it can go a long way to make an Alabama that much more effective, you know, as an offensive football team, Harold.

1722
01:45:43,320 --> 01:45:49,560
 Well, you want to believe that this coach is how smart to take the lessons learned last year and say, what did we do wrong and correct him?

1723
01:45:49,600 --> 01:45:50,960
 We've had a lot of time to do it.

1724
01:45:51,220 --> 01:45:53,120
 We'll see just how smart and talented they are.

1725
01:45:53,220 --> 01:45:55,400
 But let's go to the other side of the coin, Drew, if you will.

1726
01:45:55,480 --> 01:46:00,440
 Drew DeArmond, 97.7 FM, Lazon, and talk a little bit more about Auburn while we have the time here.

1727
01:46:00,620 --> 01:46:03,940
 The knock on Alex Gullis right now, he's saying all the right things.

1728
01:46:04,040 --> 01:46:05,160
 Auburn fans are on fire.

1729
01:46:05,680 --> 01:46:08,300
 They can't wait for the season, a brand new start.

1730
01:46:08,740 --> 01:46:11,220
 The critics say, yeah, that's good.

1731
01:46:11,220 --> 01:46:13,540
 But he has success at South Florida.

1732
01:46:13,800 --> 01:46:15,360
 He knocked off Florida.

1733
01:46:15,540 --> 01:46:23,600
 But now he's about to gravitate to week in and week out taking on an SEC coaching staff, an SEC roster.

1734
01:46:24,480 --> 01:46:25,920
 I think both things are true.

1735
01:46:26,020 --> 01:46:27,520
 A lot of success at South Florida.

1736
01:46:27,660 --> 01:46:30,140
 He did knock off Florida last year.

1737
01:46:30,400 --> 01:46:35,480
 But what is your objective critique and realistic expectations under Gullis?

1738
01:46:36,420 --> 01:46:41,120
 I think to have a winning season, get to a bowl game, potentially win said bowl game.

1739
01:46:41,220 --> 01:46:45,180
 They haven't won a bowl game since, I think, 2018.

1740
01:46:46,580 --> 01:46:49,440
 And you've had five straight losing seasons.

1741
01:46:49,800 --> 01:46:52,740
 So you need to learn to walk before you run.

1742
01:46:53,100 --> 01:46:58,220
 And I think they've got to just be more consistent, more physical along the line, both lines of scrimmage.

1743
01:46:58,920 --> 01:47:03,060
 They've struggled in developing offensive lines since the end of the Malzahn era.

1744
01:47:03,460 --> 01:47:05,460
 They need to develop some consistency there.

1745
01:47:05,600 --> 01:47:10,960
 And then, again, they need to run the football, stop the run a little bit more consistently.

1746
01:47:11,560 --> 01:47:16,240
 I thought Durkin's group was solid at times, but then at times wasn't consistent.

1747
01:47:16,800 --> 01:47:19,340
 But I think you've got to get back to the little things.

1748
01:47:19,400 --> 01:47:21,200
 You've got to be able to run the football, Harold.

1749
01:47:21,720 --> 01:47:24,060
 You've got to do a better job of protecting it.

1750
01:47:24,440 --> 01:47:26,440
 They did do a better job last year.

1751
01:47:26,840 --> 01:47:30,340
 You know, in year two under Hugh Freeze, they turned over way too much.

1752
01:47:30,680 --> 01:47:33,580
 But they've just got to be more consistent, you know, running football.

1753
01:47:33,760 --> 01:47:35,380
 And they've got to be better in the red zone.

1754
01:47:35,500 --> 01:47:40,480
 When they get down there, they've got to score touchdowns, not kick as many field goals.

1755
01:47:40,920 --> 01:47:43,080
 And then you've just got to learn to win close games.

1756
01:47:43,240 --> 01:47:47,240
 I mean, Auburn put themselves in position to win a lot of games last year.

1757
01:47:47,280 --> 01:47:48,520
 They've just got to learn to finish.

1758
01:47:49,680 --> 01:47:54,500
 Quickly, before we jump off, Talks, looks like we're getting closer to a 2014 field in football,

1759
01:47:54,640 --> 01:47:55,960
 basketball going to 76.

1760
01:47:56,260 --> 01:47:59,640
 Your thoughts, to me, this has got one thing written on it, money.

1761
01:47:59,820 --> 01:48:03,460
 Television wants more inventory, even if it dilutes the product.

1762
01:48:03,640 --> 01:48:04,500
 Your thoughts overall?

1763
01:48:04,780 --> 01:48:07,980
 And if you're a coach, you've got to love it because, hey, I made the playoffs.

1764
01:48:09,000 --> 01:48:15,380
 Well, I'd be more in favor of keeping the conference championship games as kind of the opening round

1765
01:48:15,380 --> 01:48:20,440
 and going to 16, but it looks like some of these coaches want to go to 24, a lot of them,

1766
01:48:20,800 --> 01:48:25,900
 and eliminate the conference championship games, and just put an emphasis on the regular season champion.

1767
01:48:26,360 --> 01:48:32,260
 I think 24 is watering it down a little bit, so we already saw blowouts last year in football.

1768
01:48:32,680 --> 01:48:35,880
 And in basketball, I love the 64, honestly.

1769
01:48:36,520 --> 01:48:37,800
 68 was working.

1770
01:48:38,400 --> 01:48:40,700
 76 seems to kind of water it down, too.

1771
01:48:40,800 --> 01:48:42,880
 But like you said, Harold, it's all about the money.

1772
01:48:43,880 --> 01:48:48,300
 Quickly, before we jump off, Drew, where can we get the very latest with you anytime online?

1773
01:48:49,520 --> 01:48:59,200
 They can connect with me at 9770STN in our station account, or, of course, they can connect with us at 9770STN.com.

1774
01:48:59,260 --> 01:49:05,360
 And if you want to get any of our content, if you've been talking ball, you can certainly go to our SoundCloud page, 97.7 The Zone.

1775
01:49:05,480 --> 01:49:07,980
 And we always enjoy being on the Boomo Bugg Show.

1776
01:49:08,140 --> 01:49:10,400
 We hope all your listeners stay safe out there in the weather.

1777
01:49:10,680 --> 01:49:14,420
 And enjoy your weekend, and we appreciate you having us all once again on this Wednesday.

1778
01:49:15,220 --> 01:49:16,340
 Sam, right back at you.

1779
01:49:16,400 --> 01:49:21,300
 Stay safe and enjoy the Braves taking on Seattle.

1780
01:49:21,460 --> 01:49:25,460
 Free games straight ahead on behalf of BB, Greg, James Blair, and the entire crew here.

1781
01:49:25,840 --> 01:49:27,660
 Harold Buck, thank you so much for your time today.

1782
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 Let's do it again tomorrow.

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 Starting to get new for the Boomo Bugg Show.

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 Back here on Sports Radio 93.9 The Score.