Building the Beast: How Chris Cole & Drew Mestemaker are reaffirming their draft stock
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Oct 14, 2026
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Wed, October 14, 2026
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Episode Transcript
0:00This episode of The Athletic Football Show is brought to you by the U.S.
0:05Bank Smartly Visa Signature Card, and welcome into an all new episode of Building the Beast.
0:10I'm Dave Helman. Fantastic episode for y'all today. Dane Brugler and myself went deep on the Georgia-Alabama thriller from over the weekend,
0:17had a lengthy quarterback conversation, including a new star emerging at QB1 early in this 2027 draft cycle.
0:23Great conversation about the signal callers as well as a look at the QB1.
0:27Look ahead to a loaded weekend coming up. Let's get right to it.
0:31Dane, I don't know man, something felt different this week when I dove into my assignments for Building the Beast.
0:38I think it's just the weather here in Chicago is getting a little bit colder.
0:43It's starting to feel more like fall. The streets are covered with leaves and I can finally let go of the pretense
0:50that it's early or we don't know anything like it's it's starting to be starting to feel real like teams are starting to play conference games.
0:58You got some real opponents under the belt for most teams in the country and I'm just I'm starting to feel a
1:05little more confident about what I'm watching and I'm I'm getting excited about it.
1:10I'm getting excited by a real body of work coming together for a lot of these prospects.
1:15For me, I know I don't touch my rankings until right about now.
1:19Let's get to midseason. And so we're you know, we're not overreacting to one game good or bad.
1:25Let's get a little body of work. We've got five six game sample size midseason.
1:30And of course things will still change, but at least now we have something to go on and it helps that we
1:37had such a good weekend of college football that kind of gave us a little more things to chew on with these with these prospects.
1:45Perfect place to start because another exciting thing. Spoiler alert, we're going to talk a good bit of Georgia football here.
1:52And it's exciting to think I was watching the Alabama game back and I was like, man, we we really haven't had
1:59a chance to talk about a team that not surprisingly has a boatload of NFL talent.
2:04And I mean, Georgia just rolled over a bunch of lesser than opposition.
2:08I mean, it counts for something that they beat the hell out of Oklahoma, especially with Oklahoma knocking off Texas this week.
2:15But Alabama was the date that you circled when you wanted to get a good idea of what this team was.
2:22So we want to start this show off by just sitting in that game for a minute because we just haven't had
2:29a lot of opportunity to talk about Georgia. And if I yeah, I mean, they're they're the new number one team in
2:36the country after their win and Texas is lost in the Red River shootout.
2:41So let's let's go there and sit in a very impressive Georgia road trip to Tuscaloosa.
2:46Alabama's given the dogs trouble over the years, like pretty much the only program in the country that could claim that about Georgia.
2:54And so to get a win in Tuscaloosa to look really impressive doing it, where do you want to start with the Bulldogs?
3:01Let's start on defense, because I think that is where.
3:04Can we? Yeah, that's where I think the best collection of talent is for this team.
3:09And and that's not uncommon for these Kirby smart teams.
3:13Yeah, and it's funny because I was thinking about like last year felt a little bit of an off year for Georgia prospects.
3:20Like they didn't have the top 10 pick. They only had the one first rounder.
3:25And I was thinking about it. I was like, yeah, it was kind of an off off year.
3:31Well, then I look it up. Oh, no, they had still had six top 100 picks like this is a program that turns these guys out.
3:39And this year it'll be more of the same.
3:42And a lot of those guys are on defense.
3:45And look, I I want to start with Chris Cole, the linebacker who I was really high on him over the summer.
3:52I was a big believer in the talent and he wasn't a starter yet.
3:56But the flashes of talent were really impressive. And I put him at linebacker, too.
4:01He was top 25 overall in my my top 50 just based on that talent betting on this would be his breakout year.
4:09Now he's a full time player. And I think I was wrong in terms of not having him high enough, because this
4:16looks like a player that wants to be a top 12 pick rare size speed athlete.
4:21He's not our Val Reese, but not quite on that level as a prospect.
4:26But for a team that's looking for this year's Reese, I think Cole, he checks a lot of those boxes.
4:32Right. He the ability to line up across the front seven.
4:36This year is Reese just in terms of like what you can do with him.
4:40Right. Hybrid linebacker. Yeah. He's not like through through half of this season.
4:45I can't say that I think he's as impressive as our Val Reese was last year.
4:50Yeah. OK. I just I just want to clarify that for sure.
4:54Yeah. I think this year's Reese, but he's not our Val Reese.
4:57Right. Like, yeah. The hybrid linebacker who can do a little bit of everything.
5:02I mean, just look at a stat line against Alabama.
5:05It was what? Eight tackles to an after loss, one sack to pass breakups like he was just everywhere in terms of the impact.
5:13That talent and the diversity of how you can use him, that's going to make him go very high in the draft.
5:20So Chris Cole, to me, is one of the top 15 players in this draft.
5:25It's just a matter of how high do you want to take him?
5:29I had a lot of fun watching him in this Alabama game.
5:33And the number one thing to me that jumps out is just the explosiveness and the speed.
5:38And it gave me an opportunity to write down one of my favorite words.
5:43He lopes like he he is just a long strider.
5:46He can cover a lot of ground without a lot of steps.
5:50And it's not surprising if you think back to that Oklahoma game when John Mateer lost his mind on the goal line and gave up the fumble six.
5:59That was Chris Cole who looked like he was shot out of a gun on the fumble return for the touchdown.
6:06Like you think if a linebacker recovers a fumble at the goal line, you're going to have a shot at catching him on the return.
6:14Absolutely the hell not like this guy is fast.
6:17He is explosive and you see it down to down like in his first step.
6:22Obviously, when they send him as a rusher, but even just covering ground, he had a tackle on Keelan Russell pretty early
6:29in this game on a third and four, which Keelan Russell picked up the first down.
6:34So the sideline. Yeah, yeah. I mean, the sideline plays insane and he didn't stop Keelan Russell from getting the first.
6:41I don't give a shit, dude. He was he was five yards behind Russell and 10 yards away when Russell started the
6:48scramble and he must have gained back the ground in two and a half steps.
6:53And step is not the right word. Like I said, we're talking about strides.
6:57He is just he is impressive to watch move in space.
7:01That is the number one thing I would say about him.
7:04And he's also he just he he's so he's listed at six, three to thirty five.
7:09I can't wait to see what his arm measurements are going to be because he's so long.
7:15And I looked it up after I had watched him for a little while at Georgia.
7:20They call him Tarantula and I'm not surprised like that nickname makes a ton of sense.
7:25He is just a long explosive dude. And it just sort of slaps you in the face when you watch him.
7:32It kind of feels like we're running out of nicknames, but credit to Georgia for that one.
7:37I like that a lot. But yeah, that play that you reference, you could tell Russell was just kind of like, oh, wait, wait, wait, wait.
7:46How is he doing this? Like he still got the first down credits to him.
7:51But I don't think he ever went up against a linebacker like that that could close space quite at that level.
7:57And again, like you like you said, the size.
8:00It's not like this is an undersized linebacker or a tweener or anything like that.
8:05But he is 6'3", 235, looks every bit of it.
8:08But still, the read-react, the change of direction, and the pure pursuit speed is really rare stuff.
8:14And so he's going to go, assuming he's in this draft, he's going to go pretty high.
8:19I will say all of that good stuff said, like, I feel like he needs to learn how to rein it in on occasion.
8:27Like, I just there's a good amount of, like, overrunning and just being, like, too explosive for his own good.
8:34Like, missed tackles because he just got there with so much speed and effort.
8:38And then this is understandable to a degree. He's 6'3", 230.
8:42He looks fantastic against backs and tight ends. And, like, he pantsed a Bama tight end on a sack in this game.
8:49And you could see the Bama tight end, like, screaming at himself for how badly he got beat.
8:55But it does, I mean, not surprisingly, it doesn't look as good against offensive linemen.
8:59Like, you know, he got pretty soundly blocked a few times.
9:03And definitely when he tries to, like, bang inside with guards and centers, I think he's got some bulking up to do, some strengthening up to do.
9:12So when I was watching it, I was like, ooh, okay, what am I looking at here?
9:17You already said it, but this is his first year as a full-time starter.
9:22And so if this is what he looks like six games into being a full-time starter, that doesn't concern me one bit.
9:29I mean, he's a true junior who is still growing into this thing.
9:33And I think he looks really good all of that considered.
9:36That's the one main difference between him and Arvell Reese is Reese is so good using his hands and plays with violence
9:44against offensive linemen where he can stack, shed, go make a play.
9:47Where with Chris Cole, he's not quite on that level in terms of the efficiency.
9:52And then just, I mean, he has it in him in terms of power.
9:57He just doesn't know how to use it yet.
10:00And so I think he'll get there. But, yeah, I think that's a big difference between those two players.
10:06Keeping on the defense, on the back end, speaking of a guy that's just flying all over the place, KJ Bolden, the safety.
10:13Now, I think it's... He was very literally in the middle of this game.
10:18I mean, he was involved in the game-deciding plays.
10:21It's very appropriate that he has the word bold in his last name because that's just exactly how he plays.
10:27And honestly, I think this tape especially was a really suitable encapsulation of him as a prospect.
10:33Really aggressive player. He can blitz from depth. He can come down and smack running backs in the hole.
10:39He's a little bit undersized. He's listed at 190 around there.
10:42But he plays a lot tougher than that. He'll make plays at the sideline.
10:47Now, I do think there are several times where he can be overaggressive.
10:51And that leads to hits instead of rap tackles.
10:54That happened twice in this game. It can also lead to getting there a little too early in coverage.
11:00I know I don't have to tell Alabama fans about that.
11:04He was involved in one of those plays in the fourth quarter that wasn't called a PI.
11:09That probably should have been. So, I think the size, the overaggressive tendencies, they work against him.
11:15But this is a guy I want on my team.
11:18The speed, the boldness in your secondary. I can definitely use that.
11:22Georgia schemed up a wide open look for him on the sack that backed Alabama out of field goal position.
11:28So, I mean, a lot of that is scheme.
11:31But the speed with which he got there was striking.
11:34I mean, he's like a blur coming down from the top.
11:38And he's done that many times this season already.
11:41Yeah. I think he even admitted this week that, you know, he would want that to be called DPI if somebody did it to Georgia.
11:49But, you know, oh, no, a break win against Alabama.
11:52Whatever will we do? I feel correct me if I'm wrong.
11:56I feel like Ellis Robinson just didn't get targeted a lot in this game or.
12:00Yeah. I mean, which, I mean, it makes sense if this is one of the top three corners in the class.
12:07Yeah. I think he was officially three targets. Gave up one catch for six yards.
12:12Now, he did have a couple missed tackles, especially that one in the backfield where they brought him on a corner blitz.
12:19And he couldn't get the quarterback down. And that led to a big play.
12:24And so that, I mean, there are things that he needed, you know, shore up and get better at.
12:30But overall, I don't think it's a game that you're going to point to and say this is why or why not.
12:37This guy's a first round pick. But, yeah, he's played at a first round level this year.
12:42Raylan Wilson is Chris Cole's running mate at linebacker at Georgia.
12:46I think he finished this game. He was Georgia's leading.
12:49Or, yeah, Georgia's leading tackler with nine. Very solid Georgia linebacker.
12:53But I will say when you're playing next to Chris Cole, it's not a fair place to be.
12:58Because, like, it's just one of those situations where you can see the talent that might make one guy a top 20 pick.
13:06And the other guy just doesn't quite have that.
13:09Georgia always seems to have a linebacker who not quite good enough to be a first rounder.
13:14But, you know, you think probably day two, maybe third round.
13:18Like, and that's him. I mean, he's a good player.
13:21Just obviously, yeah, when you're playing next to Chris Cole, it's tough for you to stand out as an athlete, which is no knock to him.
13:29That's the team leader in tackles. He makes plays.
13:32He's a solid player. I'm glad you're giving me this context.
13:36So, like, he has a shot to be a top 100 draft pick, would you say?
13:41Yes. Yes, I think that's fair. And Chris Cole is just that athletic that he does not look very impressive athletically playing next to him.
13:49That's certainly more about Chris Cole than about Raylan Wilson.
13:52No doubt about it. And I think there was a one, Alabama had that one run where the center was able to climb, pick off Wilson.
14:01That led to the big run. So, like, there were several plays where Wilson, I think, needed to play better.
14:07But he was still a guy that was making several of those key tackles in the hole, on the edge.
14:14Yeah, he's a good player. So, that defense is quite loaded at every level.
14:18The front is, you know, I think it's a younger group.
14:22Same thing with the offensive line. Like, the trenches this year feel very young for that team.
14:27But they held more than held their own. I mean, going over to the offensive side now, the offensive line really impressed me.
14:35I mean, they have Ernest Green at left tackle, who is, I think, probably more of a guard at the next level.
14:42But he looked really good at left tackle. You know, I think he's somebody that can, you know, carve out an NFL future.
14:49And credit to Georgia, because they were down Nate Frazier at running back, who is a top 100 pick.
14:55I think it's really their third string runner. And as a team, they rushed for over 200 yards.
15:01They averaged five yards of carry. And a lot of that was the offensive line doing the dirty work.
15:07I mean, Kirby Smart talked about that in the wake of the game, where he, you know, he said several times, like,
15:14I didn't even care about the scoreboard. I wanted to show up and show our physicality and show, you know, that we
15:21can, like, you know, bang with these guys all, like, for three hours, play after play after play and out physical them.
15:28And I would say, I mean, I'm sure he does actually care what the scoreboard says, especially now that Georgia got a resume win.
15:36But I think they passed that test. And then we talked about it heading into the show.
15:42We don't need to try to peg him as a first round candidate.
15:46But Gunnar Stockton, man, to go into Tuscaloosa as a guy that I think people have either been down on or just
15:53not talking about, to go into that environment. And, I mean, the one iffy decision on the interception, but other than that,
16:00play a really sound game and had some really, really impressive throws to move the ball for Georgia.
16:06Credit to Stockton because coming into the year, most of the feedback from scouts was this is a free agent type of prospect.
16:13But I think he's really forcing scouts to take a longer look at him as a prospect.
16:19And that was one thing when, you know, you look at the first month of the season and the teams they played.
16:26But to do this against Alabama, just a really impressive performance.
16:29Doesn't have ideal height. He's right at six foot, but he's stocky just with the way he's built.
16:35And you see that toughness, that athleticism when he, you know, talks and runs and he had a touchdown run in this game.
16:43As a passer, he's gotten a lot better. You see anticipation on those eight yard outs.
16:48You see accuracy over the middle of the field.
16:51I think I was most impressed by just his pulse rate, especially on those money downs against Alabama.
16:57I think he was eight of 11 on third downs.
17:00And he's been doing that all season. So far this year, 60% of his third down passes have resulted in a first down or touchdown.
17:08So not 60% of his completions, 60% of his pass attempts have resulted in a positive play.
17:13And that's top five in college football. So you factor in the athleticism, the toughness.
17:18There's something here. And kind of reminds me of like a Sam Ellinger who, you know, coming out of Texas was a
17:25six round pick, still collecting an NFL paycheck. You know, he might not check every box for what you're looking for at the next level.
17:33But man, just watch the tape. He goes out and plays.
17:37He executes. And when you factor in the physical toughness and the competitive toughness, that clears the line for what you want at the next level.
17:45I say it all the time, but that's why we call it building the beast.
17:50Of course, we're going to spend a lot of time on the major quarterback prospects and we'll do that in the next segment.
17:57But Sam Ellinger is in year six in the NFL.
18:01After being a sixth round draft pick in 2021, he's he's with the Denver Broncos.
18:06He's still there. He's still serving a purpose for an NFL team.
18:09And Gunnar Stockton absolutely looked like a guy who could do that in this game.
18:14I thought his most impressive throw to me, like you said, third down, third and six.
18:19He had he just he fit a corner route where he layered it perfectly over the linebacker, beat the guy coming down
18:27on it, ripped it right into the to the receiver at the sideline, right at the sticks.
18:32Not a like not not a huge chunk gain, but just like a wow throw to keep keep Georgia on schedule.
18:39And then I think the highlight throws the two the back to back balls down the seam to on one of those
18:46touchdown drives where he did it two plays in a row of lot of obviously decisiveness.
18:51But I use this word a lot to audacity where he was just like, yeah, I got that.
18:57And again, in Tuscaloosa at night, it's one of the biggest games of the season to this point.
19:03I thought he really rose to the moment. I agree.
19:06I did want to shout out a couple of players on Alabama's defense because I thought Alabama's defense play.
19:12I mean, this was a this is not a joy.
19:15I know we talked mostly about Georgia, but this wasn't a Georgia dominating win.
19:20It was a close game all the way to the end for for Alabama.
19:24Devin Tompkins on the defensive line baller, dude. He continued a strong season like he's he's a guy that just the more
19:31you watch him, you're like, OK, yeah, I want him on my team.
19:36He's a little bit of a late bloomer basketball focused most of his life, went to USC, got better each year, then
19:43transferred Alabama this past year for his final season.
19:46He's turning himself in a top 100 pick with the way that he's played.
19:50They play him more on the edge. You know, he's literally 300 pounds, but somebody that you see can maybe have that
19:57inside outside versatility, maybe a four eye five technique.
20:00There's just there's a lot there that I think is going to interest NFL teams and then Bray Hubbard at safety.
20:07He keys really well against the run. He has the athleticism to play sticky coverage.
20:12He had that interception, which was just a really heady play.
20:15So the interception was such a cool play. Like he got Stockton all on his own.
20:20It was like an RPO. And he he came up on it to stop the run.
20:26And as soon as he realized that he got back in time to and like Stockton, obviously, just he thought that he
20:33had got him and he was dead wrong. The way Hubbard just fell right back into the throwing lane, tipped it to himself and picked it off.
20:41That was it was a really fun play by Bray Hubbard in coverage late in the game.
20:47The third down, which made Georgia have to kick the field goal.
20:51It was a really good coverage play as well.
20:54Now, it wasn't all I mean, I think Zabian Brown had a rough game.
20:58The corner who's talented, but this was a tape that was not good for him.
21:03Keyon Sab, the other safety for Alabama did not have a good game.
21:07But Bray Hubbard, I thought, stood out in a in a positive way.
21:11This is a a safety class that I really like.
21:15And Hubbard is a part of that. Really fun game.
21:18And the schedule does not let up from here.
21:21Georgia's got Auburn after this. And of course, Alabama road trip to Tennessee.
21:25We'll see how they rebound. Really fun game that definitely lived up to the billing.
21:30We gave it. Glad we were giving Georgia some shine.
21:33But on the other side of this break, fear not.
21:36We have we have a lot to say about some big time quarterback prospects and the weekends that they had.
21:43We're going to do it right after this. Dane, let's not waste any time.
21:47Let's talk about the tall athletic quarterback who wears orange and plays for a former Big 12 team.
21:53That's light in the world on fire. No, I'm not talking about the other one.
21:58We'll get to him. Let's start QB corner this week with Drew Mestemaker, who you texted me about at, I don't know,
22:051145 on Saturday morning and basically said, get get to a TV.
22:09Turn on Drew Mestemaker against UCF. I don't care what else you're watching.
22:13I think I was I had three other games on.
22:16I was watching Austin Simmons play Texas A&M and you were like, no, no, no.
22:21Mestemaker time. Let's talk about it. I mean, let's just let's make it official.
22:26I mean, this is this is QB one. And like I said earlier, I, I do.
22:31I think it's it's really sick that on the day Arch Manning played OU and we said this was a weekend that
22:38Arch really needed to make a statement. It's Drew Mestemaker who made yet another one and is the most impressive quarterback in
22:45the country at the halfway mark of the season.
22:48And it's not just beating up on UCF. It's what he did against Oregon and then what he did against West Virginia
22:55and then what really how he's played the last four weeks.
22:58Like I said, I don't evaluate or I don't readjust the rankings based off of one or two games.
23:05It's like, all right, let's get to the middle of the season.
23:08Look at what we have and then we can adjust.
23:12Drew Mestemaker through six weeks of the college football season has been the best quarterback prospect.
23:17And I think that's something that we saw again this past Saturday.
23:21He continued to produce at a high level. The physical skill set is there.
23:25Obviously, we've talked about it right. The size, the athleticism, the way the ball comes off his hand.
23:31There are definitely areas of his game that are still rough around the edges.
23:36We've talked about his background and how just inexperienced he is.
23:39But it's about the bigger picture with him. There are times where, yeah, maybe he runs a little bit hot.
23:46The ball placement's a little bit off. But then I'll watch him throw it through a keyhole with accuracy.
23:52That's what's going to stick with me. He can be stubborn at times and fit the ball in tight spots.
23:58But it's the fact that those quick expiring windows, they don't intimidate him.
24:02And that has me optimistic about him. So I think what really put me over the top was just the last few
24:09weeks watching how confident this guy plays. I think that's the clincher.
24:13It doesn't matter the score, the situation. He plays with a slow heartbeat.
24:18And talking to NFL scouts, they say that that self-assured mindset, that competitiveness, it's just how he's wired.
24:23On the field, off the field. And I sent you a clip of, so it was the final play of the tape from Oklahoma State, UCL.
24:32And usually, as soon as the play is over, they cut it.
24:36On to the next play. They let this linger for a little bit.
24:40And you see, after this play, because it was like Oklahoma State was winning.
24:44They were going to win the game. They still were throwing it to the very end.
24:49A UCF player knocked down the receiver. Messenmaker comes up, gets into the face of two UCF defenders, and the ref literally had to pull him away.
24:58And it's like, all right, yeah, that's what I want to see from my quarterback.
25:03Again, I'm not saying there aren't question marks with this player.
25:07There's no substitute for experience. That confidence that I'm talking about, sometimes that can backfire.
25:11And there's also just the idea of Oklahoma State's playbook compared to what it'll be asked to do in the NFL.
25:18Obviously, those two things are very different. But you have a player with his talent, physical talent, the mental talent, the mindset, all the positive moments on tape.
25:27But that's somebody that I want to bet on.
25:30And in this class, he's the best quarterback prospect that I've seen.
25:34And so, like I said, I don't know. Because whenever we talk about Messenmaker, we kind of have the asterisk.
25:40Like, I don't know if he's a 2028 guy, 2027 guy.
25:44I'll say this. If he continues to play at this level, I think it'll be very, very hard for him to turn down the NFL this year.
25:53But that's something that we'll find out here in the second half of the year.
25:58I'm curious about that just because of the conversation we had about Dante Moore last year.
26:03Where, I mean, in this era, you just can't.
26:06The riches and opportunity of the NFL don't mean the same thing they used to, given what you can do for yourself in college football.
26:14But, I don't know, maybe at this point, Dante Moore is a cautionary tale about why you should strike while the iron's hot.
26:21I mean, he's still got time to course correct over the course of this season.
26:26But coming back to school has not worked out anywhere near what we were hoping for from Dante Moore.
26:32And so, if you're playing well enough that people even have you in the conversation to be QB1, even if you can
26:39make a shitload of money in college football these days, I mean, maybe, like I said, maybe you strike while the iron's hot.
26:47It's something to think about, at least. It's such an individual decision.
26:50You know, like, if you don't feel ready, then go back and be a millionaire in college, right?
26:56But if you feel like you've done everything you can at the college level, and I don't know, Drew Messemaker doesn't know yet, right?
27:04What he's going to do. By the time we get to December, if he feels like, I kind of feel like I've
27:11done everything I can, like going back to school isn't going to help me all that much, then go.
27:17You know? And that's perfectly fine. Now, will he be an outlier in terms of the amount of experience that he has?
27:24There's no question about it. From being a backup quarterback in high school and then a walk-on and then one year at
27:31North Texas, one year starting in the Big 12.
27:34Like, yeah, that would make you an outlier. And there's something to be said about, you know, going back, getting better, and,
27:41you know, maybe even raising your profile as well.
27:44So I think, yeah, each quarterback, each prospect deserves their own kind of way to frame it and the thing that mattered
27:51to them, their situation, how they feel. But with Messemaker, like I said, I think that at this pace, at this trajectory,
27:59he is, I would not be surprised at all if he's in this draft class.
28:03Let me ask you this. I have a couple questions.
28:07And, I mean, for the record, just go watch Drew Messemaker.
28:10And on the surface, I think it'll make perfect sense.
28:13Shouldn't have too many questions about this. I mean, like the arm talent is insane.
28:18The, I mean, Dane brought up the makeup. He has that dog in him.
28:23He is an athletic guy as well. He had a rushing touchdown against UCF.
28:27Like, he can do all the stuff that you want a modern franchise quarterback to do.
28:32My questions for you. One, if this is the case, what the hell happened against Tulsa?
28:38That's, that's number one for me. And that is, that looks weirder and weirder with each passing week that he looks like the best quarterback in college football.
28:47And two, how exactly do you weigh the Big 12 versus other places he can be playing?
28:52And I do want to say, it's not as if the Big 12 is NAIA.
28:57Like, they had 38 players drafted last year. I think they had six first-round picks.
29:02Like, David Bailey was the second pick in the draft this year.
29:06It's not as if you're not going against good players in the Big 12.
29:10I do still think there is a difference in week out, weekend, week out tests in the Big 12 versus if you
29:17were playing in the Big 10 or the SEC.
29:20And so, just how do you suss that out?
29:23I mean, clearly what Messamaker's put on tape to this point is enough to convince you.
29:28But, even with the Oregon game, you would like to see more consistent tests against higher caliber players.
29:34I mean, I feel like we have this issue with a lot of players, right?
29:39Like, going back to, like, a left tackle who, okay, well, what pass rushers did he face this year?
29:45Yeah, I mean, we did this whole thing with the Utah guys this past year.
29:50Lomo and Fano. Yes, that's what I was thinking of.
29:53Like, yeah, outside of Texas Tech, who did they face that was really going to test them?
29:59Or, I mean, I remember Travis Hunter. You know, like, who did he face in the Big 12 that was really close
30:06to his level on both offense or defense? You know, someone that could guard him.
30:10And then somebody that could maybe, you know, make plays as a receiver against him as a corner.
30:16So, it's something that we will always be talking about with these players.
30:20You know, we talked about what Julian's saying. How do you possibly evaluate him when he has the best player in the sport to throw to?
30:29And that's just the ultimate cheat code for a quarterback.
30:32So, there's always going to be these circumstances that you kind of have to...
30:37And you don't always get a firm answer that you're going to love.
30:41Sometimes it's just a matter of, this is the situation.
30:44We have to take a little bit of leap of faith.
30:48And that doesn't always work out, obviously. I mean, Zach Wilson, that was a big question with him coming out of BYU.
30:55There's the COVID stuff. And then, you know, BYU didn't face, you know, necessarily the toughest schedule.
31:00And one of the toughest opponents they faced was Coastal Carolina.
31:04And they got after him. And obviously, you know, we saw how Zach Wilson played out.
31:09But I think you have to take each case individually.
31:12And so, very eager to see Oklahoma State the rest of this year.
31:16They got Houston this weekend. Houston's a good Big 12 team.
31:20I was going to say, do you think it's more important for somebody like Mestemaker to be excellent every week?
31:26As opposed to like, well, you know, Georgia got after him.
31:30But of course they did. It's Georgia. Like, when this is your slate.
31:34And yeah, so it's at Houston this week. And they do have Texas Tech on the schedule in a little while.
31:41Not to say there's nobody left on the schedule.
31:44But compare that with some of the slates that the Big Ten and the SEC are going against.
31:49Is it more important that you don't have any head scratchers?
31:53I mean, we've already got one head scratcher in the season opener.
31:57I would start to get nervous if there's too many more, you know?
32:01No, I think that's fair. I mean, you know, if he struggles against Houston and throws three picks, I'm not going to
32:08necessarily walk back anything I've said today. But now if that becomes more of a problem over the second half of the
32:15year, then yeah, that's something that I think you have to take and include as part of the evaluation.
32:21You know, like when you do this stuff in season, you can only go based off of what has been on the tape so far, right?
32:30We have six weeks of the college football season.
32:33And I think everything that he has done up to this point makes him the top quarterback.
32:38Now, that could change based off of how the next six weeks go and how he performs.
32:44If he has a couple, you know, times where he stubs his toe, is it okay?
32:49Is that overconfidence catching up with him and teams are finding a way to play, you know, a better way to suffocate
32:56him in terms of the coverage and really forcing him to make some bad decisions?
33:01Possibly. You know, we'll have to see how that plays out.
33:04But yeah, it's something that's part of the evaluation.
33:07The projection of that Oklahoma State offense to what he'll be asked to do in the NFL is something that we'll be talking.
33:15If he enters this draft, we'll be talking about that a lot more.
33:19There's more college all 22 available on the Internet than there ever has been in my career.
33:24And so I'm not saying you have to agree with the evaluation of Drew Mestemaker's QB1, but just go really find any
33:31of his games after Tulsa and you'll get it.
33:34Because on every Drew Mestemaker tape, there's at least three, if not five or six throws that make you sit up in your seat.
33:42Like the talent's undeniable. I can't wait to see how consistent it looks over the back half of the year.
33:49Speaking of consistent, Dane, I feel like we've brought him up every show of the season and that doesn't even include last year.
33:56We've just been waiting for Lenora Sellers to have a game like he had against Florida on Saturday.
34:02So now that he did it, it at least deserves a mention.
34:06279 passing yards, four touchdowns, several silly throws. The deep corner to the back pylon to Nick Harbor was a fantastic touchdown pass by Lenora Sellers.
34:14And then showed off his athleticism as well. I know he didn't score on that crazy scramble, but to shrug off a
34:21safety blitz and then outrun half of the Florida defense to the pylon, even if he didn't get in, was an incredible display of athleticism.
34:29So it's one week, but we got a glimpse of what Lenora Sellers is capable of looking like, and it was very exciting.
34:37Hopefully it happens more often. I mean, he put the Superman cape back on.
34:41It felt like he lost it. He couldn't find it.
34:44And then before this game, found it and put it on.
34:48And like, okay, this is the player we wanted to see last year.
34:52You know, he showed flashes of this more consistently as a sophomore.
34:56So going into last year, it was like, okay, this guy is, you know, if he continues to do this at this
35:03level, he's going to be a top pick. And then, of course, that didn't happen this year.
35:09Got off to a tough start in September. But, okay, he really was able to right the ship.
35:14And, you know, with a new offensive coordinator, some new talent around you, there has to be some type of grace period
35:21where, you know, you expect it to look better.
35:24And there's been so much animosity over that program.
35:27But Dylan Stewart was back for South Carolina. This is one of the better Nick Harbor games, even though Harbor did have two just frustrating drops.
35:36He's such a frustrating player to watch because the talent is otherworldly.
35:40But the lack of consistency with him is tough.
35:42But, I mean, you mentioned the two plays that I was going to bring up.
35:47I mean, the one, the first touchdown in the Harbor, it was like basically a deep out from the slot.
35:54And watch where Harbor is when Sellers loads up the fire.
35:57I mean, Harbor is covered. He's not even out of the break yet.
36:01But Sellers is able to put it right in the corner, a perfect spot where Harbor can use that big body, catch it, get his feet down.
36:10So I love the anticipation, the placement. Yes, he is a physical freak.
36:14But he was doing things as a passer against Florida that made you, like, really appreciate some of the passing things.
36:21It's not just, hey, I'm bigger, faster, stronger arm.
36:24And, you know, you just bet on those, the raw physical talent.
36:28It's, he does quarterback things as well. And then, of course, yeah, you mentioned that, that run that he had that was almost a touchdown.
36:36The amount of Florida defenders around him, for him to turn that into a big play like that was awesome.
36:42So, yeah, I think that the slot, he had a slot post-touchdown in the third quarter, tacked on another rushing touchdown, five touchdowns altogether.
36:50Only did that one other time in his career at South Carolina.
36:54So it was a good tape as a reminder that, hey, this guy has this high-level talent.
37:00This is why we've been talking about him as a potential first-rounder for a couple years now.
37:05Can he do this more consistently? That'll be the question the rest of the year.
37:10It's the literal million-dollar question. Many-million-dollar question. I thought, he just, he had a lot of clubs in his bag in this game.
37:17Like, there were a lot of different types of throws.
37:20I thought he showed good touch, like, not just arm strength, but knowing when to put the right amount of velocity or
37:28the right amount of arc on the ball. Just all around, like you said, like, not just an impressive display of athleticism,
37:35but just a good day of quarterbacking for Lenora Sellers, which was, it was really nice to see that he can put it all together.
37:43In the pocket, outside the pocket, yeah, I mean, it was really a, and that's what you want, right?
37:49When you evaluate a quarterback, you want the full inventory of, you want to see the full inventory of routes and throws,
37:56types of throws, out of structure, in structure, different platforms.
37:59And I thought this game really gave us a little bit of everything and by far his best game of the year.
38:06Now, maybe Florida's defense is just that bad? With all of the nice stuff said, I'm developing a theory that the Florida
38:13secondary might just be a get-right game because Austin Simmons went off against these guys.
38:18Sellers did it as well. And do you know who the Florida secondary plays next, Dane?
38:23I love the transition here. It's beautiful. It's pertinent to our next conversation because Arch Manning could use a get-right game.
38:30Maybe Florida will provide that for him. Obviously, Texas loses to OU in the Red River game.
38:36And let me put it this way. I mean, this was Arch Manning's season encapsulated.
38:40And let's try to remove the toxicity and the polarization from the conversation here.
38:45Where you saw all of the same traits and tools that make him an intriguing prospect.
38:50And several of the A, boneheaded mistakes. B, lack of processing, lack of vision, whatever you want to call it.
38:57All of the inconsistencies that have kept him from having a true breakout game.
39:01They were all on display here. And a lot of times it felt like they were coming in sequential order.
39:08I texted you on Saturday and I was like, oh God, Arch, what was that pick?
39:13Six, Jesus. And then the very next drive, he leads him downfield for a touchdown with a couple of really sick throws.
39:20And you're like, ah, there it is. That's the guy.
39:23And of course, he throws an interception that leads to a walk-off field goal.
39:28And just a frustrating day for what is bound to be a really frustrating prospect to talk about.
39:33I mean, he already is, but it's only going to get worse as we go unless something changes.
39:39Well, I mean, those two touchdowns that he had in the first half were just outstanding throws.
39:45And I thought, for the most part, Manning played a good game.
39:49Especially through the first three quarters. Now, the two fourth quarter interceptions specifically can't happen.
39:53Especially the second one. I know he was getting hit as he was throwing the football.
39:59And you expect Cam Coleman to give you better fight in terms of working back to the ball, not letting the corner win that.
40:06But if you're Manning, you just can't turn it over when you're already near field goal range.
40:12There's 20 seconds left on the clock. So not only do you lose the chance to go for the field goal, but
40:19you give OU a chance to score. And look, we do need to give credit to John Mateer, Isaiah Satania, because it
40:26wasn't just, okay, Arch throws the interception and then they kick the field goal to win it in Oklahoma.
40:32Mateer had to hit Satania on a 13-yard pass and then a 20-yard pass.
40:37It's both along the sideline because I think they only had one timeout.
40:41But both along the sideline to stop the clock, they did that in like 10 seconds to get them in range.
40:48So it wasn't just an Arch meltdown. It was a combination of, I mean, the Texas special teams did not play well.
40:55The defense let them down in key moments. But yeah, this is, Arch is obviously going to be what, you know, the
41:02guy that takes on most of the blame and deserves a lot of it because of the way those two fourth quarter interceptions happened.
41:10And so the discourse rages on. I think some of the indecision, that's something, and that might be my biggest issue with Arch.
41:17That is a great word for it. Right. And I mean, Tony Soprano said her best.
41:22I mean, sometimes indecision's worse than the wrong decision, you know, like, and I think it applies to quarterbacks.
41:28It's my biggest issue with Arch is the fact that he tends to be conservative when he needs to be aggressive.
41:35Like sometimes he'll turn down those windows where he needs to attack.
41:39Other times he goes into aggressive mode when he needs the plays.
41:43It's not there. And so he needs to be a little more conservative in that moment.
41:48And so I think the play calling and the offense don't do him any favors.
41:53I mean, Sark's stubbornness is it's going to hold Texas back, I think.
41:57But so will Arch's decision making if he doesn't show better development in that area.
42:02I can't get there with good game for the most part.
42:05Like watching this back frustrated the hell out of me.
42:09And like, I mean, the interceptions are egregious. You don't even really have to say much else about it.
42:15It just can't happen, like you said. But even more so, there were two plays that really pissed me off in this game.
42:22One, he just had an egregious turndown of Cam Coleman on a wide-ass open dig.
42:27I know you know the one I'm talking about because it was striking.
42:31Like, Sooners are in zone, corners peeling off to deal with the flat.
42:35Safety's flipping his hips to worry about the post.
42:38And Cam Coleman's just sitting there waiting for a throw that would have been an explosive gain.
42:44And Arch looked to the flat for the tight end on like a six-yard just dump off.
42:49Like it was Bo Nixian not to throw shade at Bo Nix on building the beast.
42:54Oh, well, I guess I just did. But an egregious turndown for a guy who's supposed to be in the conversation for number one pick in the draft.
43:03And then earlier in the game, they ran a max protect play action shot where like they had everybody in.
43:10It's a two-man concept, both of the receivers to the right with the back leaking out late as like an emergency dump off.
43:17And Arch just danced around back there for like five seconds, was like looking to the left for some reason.
43:24Maybe he was looking to see if he had a running lane.
43:28I don't know. But he tap danced back there for like five seconds and of course got bear hugged by the end
43:35at the end of the play with like no awareness whatsoever that that might happen to him.
43:40And I was like, brother, there's only two guys running routes here.
43:44There's not a lot to look at. You either got to throw it or get rid of the freaking ball.
43:51And so those two plays really aggravated me considering what we want to see from Arch.
43:56It's not not to like bury him. And I will say, like I said, all the all the traits, all the high
44:03level throws, the athleticism, like it's all still there if you look for it.
44:07Like, you know, that I don't want to hear any of the bullshit about like he's not a he wouldn't even be
44:14in the conversation for the first round if his name name wasn't Manning.
44:19That's stupid. Like, go go watch him play football.
44:21Actually watch what happens. And there's no way you could come to that conclusion.
44:26But we've been saying all year, like, OK, it's time to step it up and show me more and show it to me on a more consistent basis.
44:35And halfway through the year, it's just it's the same stuff every week.
44:39And at a certain point, that starts to get really frustrating.
44:43It's not it's not to bury the guy or say that he can't come back from it.
44:48But that's how I feel. I don't think you're wrong at all.
44:52I think that, like I said, I think the offense there, there's parts to his off this arc offense that I think hold them back.
45:00And there's just there's only so many answers to some of these play calls.
45:05And if those two answers are taken away, there are times where, yeah, Manning just is like short circuits.
45:11And it's like, OK, well, that's covered. That's covered.
45:14And, you know, he's not sure what to do.
45:17And sometimes he takes off and runs. Sometimes he takes the sack.
45:21But overall, that's that's my biggest issue is the indecision that he tends to play with being conservative when he needs to
45:28be aggressive and then being aggressive when he needs to be conservative.
45:31It's he just hasn't found that fine line yet, which there's no guarantee he ever will.
45:37Maybe with another half season, he'll make a big jump in that in that in that area.
45:42You know, there's no way to know. But, you know, I don't think it's as simple as, well, if he hasn't shown it yet, he won't get there.
45:51It's not that simple. I'm very eager to see how this team performs over the second half of the year and quarterback especially.
45:59Because if I've learned anything about evaluating quarterbacks, it's to remain open minded when there's still games left to be played.
46:05And last year, after the Red River, Manning was outstanding the second half of the year.
46:1119 touchdowns, two interceptions. He faced that early season adversity, fought back and played at a high level.
46:16So I'm just eager to see if he can do that again this year.
46:21And it starts with Florida. Like we said, it's a very gettable defense.
46:25And so I know he has the talent to do it.
46:29It's just can he play with more conviction in what he's seeing and just restraint when he needs to have restraint.
46:35So it's easier said than done. But I'm not ready to bury Arch by any means.
46:41But I'm also, you know, not going to make excuses for the way he's played.
46:45This is it's just a classic case of beauty in being in the eye of the beholder.
46:51I mean, I can pull up Arch's 10 best plays and you'll have you'll have a hell of a highlight reel that
46:58people that evaluate NFL prospects are going to love.
47:01And if you also say if he's so damn good, why isn't he elevating the preseason number one team in the country
47:08a little bit more than he is? And I don't have a good answer for you.
47:13And I will say this. I try to avoid takes.
47:16I just mentioned it, Dane. I mean, everybody is torching this Florida defense.
47:21I mean, obviously, Austin Simmons and Lenora Sellers got them.
47:24But even even in a loss, Trinidad Chambliss played just fine in that, you know, they lost big.
47:30But that was way more about the Ole Miss defense.
47:33Byron Brown had a big day against Florida. I need Arch to do something here.
47:38I don't want to be doing this shit next week.
47:41I don't want to be like, well, you know, if you look here, it actually it's it's fine.
47:47Or whatever. No, I don't. What's the excuse if he can't play a unanimously good game in this situation?
47:53It's at home. It's not in the swamp. It's in Austin.
47:56This isn't this isn't going to atone. This is this isn't going to like make up for everything.
48:02But yeah, it starts here where it's like, OK, I don't want to have to squint to see why this was good.
48:09Go play a good game against Florida. And then you'll have the cool thing about playing in the SEC.
48:15You'll have plenty of other opportunities to prove yourself against loaded defenses after this.
48:20But it should start here. It should. And remember, last year against Florida is one of his worst games on last year's tape.
48:27He had a couple of interceptions. They lose that game.
48:31So, you know, there's also that element of a little bit of revenge.
48:35Get back on track. So, yeah, there's plenty on the line here that says Arch should have a good game.
48:41So let's let's see it happen. I think we said in the production meeting we were going to keep it short on Arch.
48:49But I just I don't think that's possible. I think the discourse must continue until morale improves.
48:54But that does it for quarterbacks corner. We're going to spend a little bit of time previewing the upcoming weekend right after this break.
49:02Like I said, Dane, conference play is in full swing and no better example than the headliner of our upcoming weekend of college football.
49:10Number four, Ohio State. Number five, Indiana headlining the weekend for me anyway.
49:14I mean, there are some good games here, but that's obviously the big one.
49:18Big 10 title game rematch. Here's my here's my question for you.
49:22Is this the matchup of the best two receivers in the country?
49:26Because I know I mean, Texas has Cam Coleman, but I don't know, man.
49:31Every week. Obviously, we know Jeremiah Smith, but I just I start to think more and more of Charlie Becker every single week.
49:38Well, and after what Nick Marsh did last this past week, we got we got to mention him in the conversation of it.
49:45It's funny. I took some heat from Indiana fans because I tweeted during the game how the Nebraska Indiana game this past
49:52weekend, which, by the way, Indiana was losing for most of that game.
49:57And it was I thought it was over, man.
50:00Like with six minutes left, they look dead in the water.
50:03When Indiana like turned to their receivers, it was like, oh, yeah, we have two best receivers in college football.
50:10Let's lean on those guys. And but I tweeted how I felt like the Hoosiers weren't as good as last year at
50:17several positions, but they're actually better at receiver. And look, me saying they're not as good at several positions is not the
50:24same thing as me saying they're bad. Like Josh Hoover is not a bad quarterback.
50:29He's 17 to 0 touchdown interception ratio right now, but he's not Fernando Mendoza.
50:33You know, the Indiana is not as good at tight end.
50:37They're not as good at corner as they were last year.
50:40That doesn't mean that they're necessarily bad at those spots either.
50:44So but they are better at receiver. And I know Charlie Becker was on that team last year, obviously, in the best part of that receiver depth chart.
50:53And they probably they might not win the national title.
50:56They might not win the Big Ten without Charlie Becker last year.
51:00But in terms of one two on the depth chart, their one two this year is better than the one two last year.
51:07And the one two last year were both top 100 picks.
51:11So with Jeremiah Smith in this game, you have three receivers who are legit top 25 picks in this draft.
51:17I mean, how many games have you watched in college where there were three players that were going to be top with
51:2425 picks at receiver in the upcoming draft? You could probably count on one hand.
51:29Oh, I don't know. That happened. 2019 LSU Alabama had a few good receivers on the field.
51:35They did. No, no doubt. But I don't think six.
51:38Well, I think the last time it happened. Your point is actually it was Ohio State, Penn State with Olave, Garrett Wilson.
51:45I think John Dotson was part of. Yeah, I think he was part of that game, too.
51:51But but it's it's it's probably only happened a handful of times.
51:54So, you know, it is a pretty rare thing.
51:57And I think, you know, when these two teams met last year in the Big Ten title game, it was defensive slugfest.
52:04Right. It was 13 to 10. This year feels like it's gonna be a little more fireworks.
52:10I think Indiana is all about establishing the run and they want balance.
52:14But again, you got to rely on Charlie Becker, Nick Marsh.
52:18Marsh had three catches at 35 plus yards last last week.
52:21You know, Becker, we've we've talked that ad nauseum about just how talented he is.
52:26Could if he's a top five pick in next year's draft, I don't think anybody would bat an eye.
52:32At least I wouldn't. So Indiana has the home field advantage in this one.
52:37But Ohio State, you figure they played in Austin.
52:40They played in Iowa City this year. So they have played in some tough environments.
52:44Plus, they had the revenge factor of, you know, losing last year's Big Ten title game.
52:50So I think this should be a fun one.
52:52I'm hopeful Austin Cereveld, the Ohio State glue guy on that offensive line, played right guard, played right tackle.
52:59He missed this past week against Maryland. Sounds like he might miss this game as well, which would be a big loss for that Ohio State offensive line.
53:08Hopefully he's healthy just so we can see good versus good in the trenches.
53:12But regardless, this should be a fun one. Nick Marsh has had 60% of his season-long yardage in the last two weeks.
53:19Like, I will not like not hating on the guy, but through the first month, I was like, man, we talked a good bit about Nick Marsh.
53:28And I just I'm not I haven't seen a whole lot from him.
53:32And then the last two weeks. I get it.
53:35I'm on board. I see the vision really looking forward to that.
53:39I'm also really looking forward to the former Lane Kiffin quarterback bowl that's going to be happening in the SEC, Missouri going
53:46down to Ole Miss, Austin Simmons, Trinidad Chambliss. I'm going to I'll just say it.
53:51I'm going to be pissed off if this isn't like a 45-42 type of game.
53:56I'm not I'm not here for like 24 to 13.
53:59I want to see fireworks. I want to see dots all over the field.
54:03I'm optimistic that that this can deliver. I think so, too.
54:07Yeah, this will be a fun one. Yeah, obviously, I don't I don't think there's animosity between these two quarterbacks.
54:13You know, obviously, Trinidad took Austin Simmons job. I don't think it's quite like that.
54:18But, you know, Austin Simmons wants to be win this one in a big way.
54:23So there might be a little bit extra motivation there.
54:26But Chambliss, I think, is still belongs in, you know, the conversation about the top quarterbacks this year.
54:32He's still up there as part of it. And this is another chance to prove why.
54:37Well, that's I mean, that's the fun thing is Trinidad big win against LSU.
54:42He was incredible. You lose to Florida immediately after and Ole Miss has just kind of been off the radar ever since.
54:49And now we're back. This is a fun Missouri team.
54:52Austin Simmons has been getting a lot of attention over the last few weeks and great opportunity to read.
54:58I don't even want to say reestablish yourself because it's not like Trinidad win anywhere, but just a great opportunity to say, hey, here I am still here.
55:07Still really fun. At night, we've got Notre to Notre Dame going to number eight BYU.
55:12It's easily Notre Dame's biggest test of the season so far.
55:16I feel like we've talked a lot about the Notre Dame guys in recent weeks.
55:21CJ Carr, Leonard Moore, Rubikar Traore, Bryce Young, DJ McKinney.
55:24So I mean, I'm curious to see how they do in a rowdy road environment.
55:29I do wish BYU running back LJ Martin was going to be available.
55:33Is there something to have an eye on in the BYU side of this from an NFL perspective other than just hoping for a fun game?
55:42Yeah, no doubt. I mean, I think I just agree with what you said about LJ Martin.
55:47He's a potential top 100 pick in this draft.
55:50It's just it's such a bummer he'll miss this one.
55:53But I am excited about the linebacker play in this game with BYU.
55:57You have Cade Ulaave. He's one of the top senior linebackers this year.
56:02Cal transfer who sees the field really well. And then Isaiah Glasker, who is banged up, but he might play in this one.
56:09Both those guys are NFL picks. And then for Notre Dame, you've got Kingston Vialamalu Assa, who is off the injury report.
56:16And he has a bright NFL future ahead of him.
56:19You talk about size, speed. He can really run.
56:22I like him. Like some of his best plays are when he's in that A-gap blitzer because he is physical enough where
56:29he can win versus going up against offensive linemen.
56:32But the speed element is what that closing burst is what helps him get to the backfield and really just wreck shop.
56:39So I think the linebacker play is something that I'm definitely looking forward to on both sides.
56:45I'm hopeful Leonard Moore is going to play. He missed last week.
56:49He had the concussion against North Carolina. He had a concussion, yeah.
56:52He's questionable for this game. So hopefully he's back out there.
56:56But obviously they're not going to risk it. He's got a lot of bright football coming up in his future.
57:02So if he's not ready, he's not ready. And then one more to watch for BYU left tackle Pocky Finno, Washington transfer,
57:10who has been really good this year. But he hasn't seen a pass rusher like Bubikar Traore.
57:15So I think that'll be a really good matchup to watch in the trenches.
57:20My contribution to this is he's an ineligible player.
57:22He's a true sophomore. But if you're a draft Nick who's going to turn this on and want to watch some just
57:30see what Notre Dame's got going on, just keep an eye on the BYU quarterback.
57:34Bear Bachmeier, which A is just an awesome name.
57:37B. That number, man. I can't do it. He wears number 47, which is going to just jar you when you see him for the first time.
57:46And then, Dane, this is perfect for a future edition of Building the Beast and your insanely in-depth bios.
57:52Bear Bachmeier's brother plays wide receiver for BYU. His name is Tiger Bachmeier.
57:56So that very much feels like something I would read in one of your bios like a year from now.
58:03So I'm just I'm highlighting that ahead of time.
58:06Yeah, it's a very interesting family. I don't know.
58:09Read more about the family, some of the stuff that's been out there, some of the interviews.
58:14It's a very interesting group. But all I know is they can play football.
58:19And so BYU, even without L.J. Martin, they'll have a shot in this one.
58:23We already mentioned it, so we don't have to spend a lot of time on it.
58:28I'm really excited, though. Oklahoma State at Houston is a night game.
58:32And as far as big-time games go, like Notre Dame-BYU is the only competition.
58:37But it's not like it's this loaded night schedule where you can't watch this game.
58:42Like, pull up. Get the side-by-side. Do the dual box on YouTube TV.
58:46Get yourself some Drew Mestemaker while you're watching the Notre Dame-BYU game.
58:50And a road night game to Houston. Connor Wegman for Houston having a really nice season as well.
58:55I don't know where he slots into the quarterback conversation.
58:59But playing really well for Houston. I'm looking forward to this one.
59:03I mean, I gave Mestemaker the kiss of death by putting my QB1.
59:07So, I mean. Oh, no. I don't want to be texting you on Saturday night like, oh, shit.
59:13Don't worry. The tweets will find me. I know they will.
59:16But, yeah, this will be a good matchup because Houston's a good team.
59:20I mean, their defense is, I think, top 50 in college football.
59:24Like, they've got some guys. You know, the corner's a good player.
59:28You know, they've got a really good receiver. So, yeah, the guards draftable to lane transfer.
59:33So, Houston's got some guys as well. You mentioned the Houston receiver.
59:37What's the Houston receiver's name? Amari Thomas. Okay. He's not, like, he's 5'10 1⁄2", but he's got some thickness to him and he's explosive.
59:45So, he will go up and make plays. He's a UAB transfer.
59:49I just, like, the Big 12 spiritually is, like, the old Pac-12 now to me.
59:53Like, a Big 12 night game between ranked teams, I just, I think the probability for lunacy is high.
60:00I'm pretty excited about this. When I realized, because, I don't know, maybe this sounds like a shot at the Big 12,
60:07but I just assumed this was going to be, like, an 11 a.m.
60:11kick, honestly. And when I looked at the schedule and saw it was a 630 kick, I got pretty excited.
60:17Well, I mean, for people that are checking it out, Mess to Maker's obviously the main draw.
60:23But Wyatt Young, his receiver who transferred with him from North Texas, you know, if Mess to Maker goes pro after this
60:30year, maybe Wyatt Young says, well, shoot, I'm going too.
60:33Without my quarterback, he is absolutely a draftable player.
60:36He has an NFL future. Him and Justin Bowick, the other receiver who's really good.
60:41So it's not Mess to Maker playing with just a bunch of, you know, ragtag, try-hard guys.
60:46They've got NFL talent on that Oklahoma State offense.
60:49And when Arch Manning drops 500 yards on Florida and Drew Mess to Maker throws two picks against Houston, we'll be here to sort through all the wreckage.
60:58This episode will be deleted. No, never. We're here.
61:01We'll continue to investigate and educate, to quote our old friend.
61:05But until then, man, fun episode. Looking forward to another weekend of college football.
61:09We're really, we're in the flow of things now.
61:12Appreciate y'all listening. We'll chat with you next time.
61:15Thanks a lot. Thanks for tuning in. Make sure to hit that subscribe or follow button so you never miss an episode.
61:22If you enjoyed what you heard, please like, comment, and leave a rating.
61:26We'll see you next time.
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