Building the Beast: Austin Simmons and C.J. Carr get their turn in the QB Corner
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
1 hr 1 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Oct 7, 2026
Published
Wed, October 7, 2026
1
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Bryce Young
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Bryce Young
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Bryce Young, a Notre Dame defensive tackle and son of Hall of Famer Bryant Young, is part of a strong Irish defensive line alongside Bubakar Traore. The source notes he can play and will be tested in an upcoming matchup against Stanford's elite left tackle Nicky Prongos.
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Episode Transcript
0:00Welcome to an all new episode of Building the Beast.
0:03I am your host, Dave Helman. Really fun show for y'all.
0:07Myself and Dane Brugler touched on everything. Some quarterback talk at the top, got into the edge rusher class a little bit,
0:14previewed a loaded college football weekend, and we're introducing a really exciting new segment we're calling The Green Room Loaded Show.
0:20Let's get right to it. Well, Dane, I think this is a really fitting moment in the life cycle of the draft
0:27because I think it was right around this time last year when I said, okay, man, we gotta we gotta put our Val Rees to the side.
0:36He's amazing, but we need to talk about some other players.
0:39And he was your guy in the 2026 draft and lo and behold, as we record this, he's coming off easily his biggest moment of his life.
0:48His rookie year for the Giants a couple days ago, I believe he made your quarter way through the season all rookie team if I'm not mistaken.
0:56He did and that just went up today on The Athletic.
1:00And I was kind of threatened the linebackers because there's that's been a really stacked position for rookies.
1:06Just when you talk about Rodriguez and Hill for Tennessee, he's racked up the tackles.
1:10I mean, I and Sonny Styles what he's done for the commanders.
1:14I mean, so I think it's but what are Val Rees did on Sunday against the Cardinals is like, okay, yeah, this
1:21is he's he's the first team all rookie team.
1:24Now, I do expect that to maybe fluctuate as the year goes on just because there are so many talented linebackers in this class.
1:32And some positions are harder than others. But yeah, pretty cool look to just see quarter of the way through who's done
1:39well who hasn't who's lived up to expectations. So people can check that out on The Athletic.
1:44It is genuinely what I love the most about the draft process is if you stick with us, of course, you're going
1:51to learn about the Arvel Reeses of the world.
1:54I mean, everybody knows who Arvel Reeses by the time you get to the spring.
1:58But I just love learning about players and I love the sense of satisfaction of one year later going, oh, wait, yeah, that guy.
2:06We talked about that guy. I love that guy.
2:09And it's happening all over the league. It happens every year.
2:12It is. It's the most fun way to familiarize yourself with the NFL is to just know who these guys are when they get to the league.
2:21So no matter who drafts them, you got a reason to be excited about how they do.
2:26So it was over the weekend in London, right?
2:29With Mr. Kelly McManus. I tweeted at you. I sat up in my seat when they said who was coming in.
2:36I was like, holy shit. They told me about this guy sometime in February, I think.
2:41Like seventh round pick out of Rutgers and he had a couple of nice shots down the field.
2:47That's why he got drafted. That's why he was in there is because he is not afraid to chuck it down the field.
2:54And there was at least two completions that were two of the best deep balls you'll see over the weekend.
3:00That's what we're here to do. We're here to inform you, not just about the Arvel Reese's of the world, but the
3:07eighth and Callie and Mac Maness is as well.
3:10And we're going to keep it pushing. So I know we've been doing it a lot this year and I'm not going
3:17to apologize because there's a lot of quarterbacks worth talking about in this draft class.
3:22That was one of the selling points for 2027.
3:25But the fun thing, Dane. Is the conversation is leading us in places we maybe didn't expect.
3:30And that's why I want to do our quarterbacks corner at the top of this show with a name we've mentioned and
3:37a name I'm getting more and more excited about.
3:40Austin Simmons had another really cool week, Dane. How do we how do we feel about it?
3:45Austin Simmons of Missouri. If you're not familiar, we talked about him a few weeks ago.
3:50He had a really nice game against Kansas and we said, OK, that's cool.
3:55But that's Kansas. What are you going to do in the SEC?
3:59What are you going to do against NFL caliber opponents?
4:02And I'll preface this by saying there are stronger tests yet to come.
4:06The Florida was bottom four in the SEC and yards per game going into that game against Mizzou.
4:12I think, you know, Missouri still got to play Texas and Georgia this year.
4:16I think there are even bigger tests coming for Austin Simmons.
4:19But I wanted to check back in because we said do it against a higher caliber of opponent.
4:25Florida certainly qualifies. And Austin Simmons once again looked like a guy we should be talking about.
4:31Yeah, I mean, I think, yeah, you set it up perfectly because every week it's like, OK, that interest level, it's it's
4:38it's a stock going up, up, up. And watching that Florida tape, he had seven, eight throws that were legitimately just really impressive.
4:45Second quarter showed anticipation on a sale route, just delivers before the receivers out of his break before he's looking just perfect.
4:52And he had to do it to fit it in between the coverage.
4:56The go route touchdown that I'm sure a lot of people have seen was awesome.
5:01Later on, I tweeted this clip. He works to his left, doesn't like it, works to the middle, finds that backside dig,
5:08throws a 25 yard pinpoint strike just as he's getting walloped in the pocket.
5:12So he's doing like I think you see the arm.
5:15I guess the first thing that jumps out to you with Austin Simmons, piss missiles all over the tape, right?
5:22But the release of Tom Brady, like I'd heard that term a million times before Tom Brady, but him saying it on
5:29national TV has really launched it to another level in our lexicon.
5:32And I really appreciate him for that. He's brought it back and I love it.
5:37But that's that's the first thing you notice with Simmons, right?
5:41A former baseball player where you see the easy velocity, the RPMs when he fires the ball.
5:46But there's anticipation to to what he's doing there.
5:49There are examples of him delivering accurately on the move, especially to his left because he's a lefty.
5:54So there's still plenty of things that he's working on.
5:58He's developing his timing, his touch. Some of the mental aspects of the position are still being worked on in real time here.
6:05And to your point, there's, you know, Missouri has A&M, I think this weekend at home, I believe.
6:11But then they have Texas, they have Georgia, Oklahoma.
6:13So there are plenty of tests that will pretty much determine if he's going to be a 2027 guy or a 2028 guy.
6:21He's still just 20 years old. He's a guy that reclassified, you know, like we've talked about before.
6:26So still young. But if he continues at this pace, absolutely.
6:30We'll be talking more and more about him as a legitimate 2027 type of prospect because there's just a lot to like about him.
6:38In a weird way, I was kind of encouraged to see that it looked harder against Florida.
6:43Like, you know, he struggled with the pressure they brought a little bit.
6:47There were some errant throws. I thought he bailed out of at least a couple clean pockets over the course of the game.
6:54But like, it's a progression, right? And it was cool to see him coping with that and learning from it.
7:01Like, I guess if it just looked effortlessly easy, I guess that would be really encouraging in its own way.
7:07But I like seeing him grow and see new things and learn from that and make a better throw the next time
7:14after maybe putting too much on it or throwing it too early.
7:18My favorite throw was the rail route that he threw to Caden Lee.
7:22Holy crap, dude. He was Lee motioned into the backfield and then they sent him behind the quarterback and it started out
7:29looking like a swing and he carried it up into a rail.
7:33And the nickelback followed him and did a pretty good job taking the throw away.
7:37And Austin Simmons just bent it around him like he bent it around the DB into Caden Lee's hands.
7:43It's like a 20-yard gain. Just a beautiful throw.
7:46You can go find it if you pull up the highlights on social media.
7:51His, his, I said it last time we talked about him, his audacity and his willingness to do stuff like that.
7:57It's really fun. And the arm strength, the anticipation, he's got good accuracy for the most part.
8:03Like I said, it wasn't perfect, but for the most part, really good.
8:07This was, this was just a really encouraging day.
8:10And I, I'm excited that we get to keep following this instead of maybe backing off a little bit.
8:16Yeah. I think accuracy is definitely like, it's not, I wouldn't call it like the main strength of his yet because the
8:23ball placement needs to be a little bit better, but he's putting it on his guys.
8:28You know, they might have to adjust for here and there, but I don't think accuracy is an issue by any means.
8:35I think it's more of a strength than a weakness so far.
8:39Um, and so when you can unleash it like he can and still be accurate, you, you've got my attention.
8:45I think that talking about his confidence is perfect because that's what part of what makes him so productive is now the game was at home.
8:53It wasn't in the swamp, but still for him to play like he did with that type of confidence on Sunday or
9:00on Saturday against the Gators was awesome. I cannot wait to see him all of a sudden Missouri is like, okay, this
9:07is must watch for this offense just to see how he can perform against some of the tests coming up.
9:13You said it. A&M is at home this weekend, but at Ole Miss and his old teammate, Trinidad Chambliss in, in a little while.
9:21Um, that's two weeks from now. And then Georgia is a road game as well.
9:26So we said it after the Kansas game, we're going to get plenty more opportunities to evaluate him in a lot more environments against tougher competition.
9:34But I wonder if Lane might be just, uh, Hey, maybe I should have put the full court press on more with to get, to get Austin.
9:43Uh, you had to, you had to bring that up, huh?
9:46Well, I, it's the way he's been playing. Um, cause yeah, there was, there's the, with the, with the quarterback transfer portal,
9:53it's like a, it's a game of dominoes. It's like, okay, if this quarterback goes there, then this one's going there.
10:00And like, but sometimes you can't wait. And Missouri was on it.
10:03They snatched up Austin Simmons. And by the time LSU was looking for, okay, okay.
10:08Chambliss is staying at Ole Miss. And so we have to go to this option and Hey, it's still might very well
10:15work out, uh, with Levitt, uh, for the tigers.
10:18But man, Simmons would have looked good, uh, going to LSU and not offense.
10:22That's I, I asked around about that. And what I heard back was, I mean, remember Ole Miss got to the college football semifinals last year.
10:31So they were, they were playing well into January.
10:34And I think, I think Lane Kiffin was very interested in getting Trinidad Chambliss to LSU if he could.
10:40And when that fell apart, your options are kind of limited at that point.
10:44I think Austin Simmons was already committed to Missouri by the time LSU realized that wasn't going to happen.
10:50So you wind up with Sam Levitt, which it could work, but I know right now who I enjoy watching quarterback play
10:57more to this point in the season. So it stings a little bit if I, if I'm being honest, that's fair.
11:04I want to stick it in quarterback corner. Another guy, which, okay, that's, that's two games of Austin Simmons.
11:10This guy, we mentioned before the season, but this is the first time we're really bringing him up in the flow of games.
11:17And that's CJ Carr at Notre Dame, who you wanted to talk about after their win against North Carolina.
11:23Yeah. And Notre Dame should be North Carolina, right?
11:26A clear difference in overall talent on those rosters, but it's still impressive when your young quarterback accounts for five touchdowns going
11:33up against a Bill Belichick led defense. CJ Carr was just locked in for this entire game.
11:38And it's how he's looked all season, but because this is really maybe their first real test against a real defense, it was more notable at this point.
11:47So there were back-to-back throws on his tape that were just outstanding.
11:51He had a 30-yard post where he starts to his right, which affects that middle field safety with his eyes.
11:57And then just, he works back and layers a perfect ball to Jordan Faison right before his head hits the, hits the post.
12:05I mean, it was just a perfect throw and a perfect execution.
12:08And then the, I think the Irish must've got a turnover then because Carr gets it back at a 12-yard line.
12:15First play, slot fade to Jaden Greathouse, drops it in the bucket, really nice accuracy, but not too much loft.
12:21That way, you know, before the help can get there.
12:24The receiver made a nice play on it too, but I credit to Carr because he, just the execution, the operation, it's very buttoned up.
12:32And that was a big reason why he was quarterback three for me entering the season was, okay, he does, the physical
12:39tools are good, but they're not great. But it's, it's the way he operates.
12:44It's the way he executes. That's what's going to make you an NFL quarterback.
12:48Now we can debate the ceiling and all of that because the tools aren't amazing, but they are certainly good enough.
12:55And to go up against a Belichick defense that's at least well-coached, if nothing else, and play like he did, I mean,
13:02that's exactly what you want to see. Especially for a third-year guy, second year, basically a one-and-a-half-year starter now.
13:08For him to go up against a defense like that and just have a day, and especially when the last month they
13:15haven't really played anybody as Purdue and Rice and Wisconsin.
13:18Sorry, Beller. But look, it's, this is their first real test going up against a defense, and there will be more tests coming up.
13:26You know, BYU, Miami, but to see him go out there and play like he did was certainly encouraging.
13:32I was going to say, how dare you write off Wisconsin's big win against Penn State, but then I remembered what happened
13:39to Penn State last weekend, and all of a sudden that doesn't look quite as impressive either.
13:44I couldn't get my hands on tape of this CJ Carr game, but I just went back and watched, I just re-watched
13:51the game to see what I could see. And through the first few minutes, I was like, okay, I wonder what Dane wants to talk about.
13:59I'm not really seeing anything that blows me away.
14:02And then I got to the post for the touchdown, and I was like, okay, this is a good starting point.
14:09I mean, he had two or three like really impressive throws in this game, and I came away for a young guy.
14:16He's 21 years old. Last year was his first year.
14:19I thought he had nice touch, and I thought he had a good understanding of when to throw the ball which type
14:26of way, which is not always something you can count on from a young guy.
14:31I wanted to ask you, like athletically, you just mentioned his tools.
14:34Athletically, how good of an athlete and like a mover do you think CJ Carr is?
14:39Because I couldn't help but notice, and I get it, he's a young guy.
14:44I understand that. But a lot of times I felt like I was watching a point guard play isoball where he was
14:51just standing back there and waiting to put a move on somebody to open up a throwing lane or a running lane.
14:58And I just found myself thinking, is that something that I can count on working later?
15:03Because I'm not 100% sure. What do you think?
15:06No, and I think that's fair. I think with Simmons too, because Simmons, he's a good athlete but not a great athlete
15:13where that's going to be maybe necessarily something he relies on.
15:16But same thing with Carr, who can move around a little bit, but it's more of the quarterback operation that I think
15:23really impresses you more so than just the quick decision making, the understanding, okay, the safety's here.
15:29So, okay, I've got man-to-man here and I know I can do that.
15:33Just the way his mind works, the way he can break it down in real time, pre and post-snap, and just he doesn't look overwhelmed out there.
15:41I think that's what draws you to CJ Carr more so than, oh, he's just a big, strong athlete who's going to run a fourth four.
15:49And, you know, it's less of the physical tools.
15:52It's just does he hit a certain bar? Does he reach a certain bar in those areas where, okay, he's good enough
15:59and I'll bet on the guy that has good enough traits physically but mentally and the way he can execute.
16:06That's what is really going to sell me on this guy.
16:09And so, and that was kind of the question mark coming in.
16:13And I still think that's part of his evaluation.
16:16It's still something that you want to see as we go through this year.
16:20It's also why he might be a 2028 guy and not a 2027 guy is as he continues to develop and get better in some of those areas.
16:29So, yeah, I think Carr is, he entered the year as QB3 for me.
16:33I mean, he's still kind of in that mix where I don't, there's no reason to drop him by any means.
16:40So it's just this quarterback fluctuation in the rankings.
16:43It's interesting as we get into October now how it's going to continue to move around as we see these quarterbacks go up against some tougher opponents.
16:52The interesting thing for Carr is at the risk of sounding like an SEC apologist, I mean, I don't think it's breaking
16:58news to say Notre Dame's schedule is not a gauntlet.
17:02And so, I mean, you got at BYU in a couple of weeks.
17:06That's definitely interesting, but for NFL evaluation purposes, we're circling the Miami game in bright red ink because that's the, I mean,
17:13that's the best test that he's going to get to give us a great idea of what he looks like against that caliber of opponent.
17:21No doubt. No doubt. And it's, you know, we've talked about it with Darian Mensah, you know, just Miami not playing murderer's
17:28row schedule, especially in terms of the defense. That's actually, that's fair for both of them.
17:33Darian Mensah and CJ Carr, who wants to look like an NFL quarterback in your best game on the schedule?
17:39Go. Yeah. I mean, what, November 7th? I think that's what the Miami, Notre Dame.
17:44Yeah. So it's, that's circled in red ink on the calendar.
17:47Hopefully both teams are relatively healthy by the time we get there.
17:51But, you know, Notre Dame still has, they have to get past BYU before we get to that point as well.
17:58And BYU is a good team, arguably the best team in the Big 12.
18:02So, yeah, definitely some bigger tests coming. What he did against North Carolina isn't a, oh yeah, this is a top 10 pick.
18:09You know, CJ Carr type of performance. It was, okay, you're doing good things.
18:14You are doing what you need to do to stay on the radar of a potential first-round quarterback.
18:20One last thing we wanted to mention. We did not have a show last week.
18:24I had a family emergency. Everything is fine, but we just didn't have a chance to talk about it.
18:30And so I wanted to bring this up. Oregon had a bye week after their big win at USC a couple weeks ago.
18:38Obviously, Dante Moore was knocked out of that game by a really brutal hit.
18:42He had a, he suffered a concussion. He was in the protocol.
18:46Well, Dan Lanning said this week that he was back at practice.
18:50We're recording this on Tuesday. I have no idea what that means for his availability.
18:54It's at least encouraging to hear that he's practicing though, because that was a really nasty situation for Dante Moore in that game.
19:02Yeah. I mean, it's good that, yeah, he's in pads.
19:05He's in a helmet. He's throwing the football. My guess would be they're going to be pretty conservative about, you know, just bringing him back onto the field.
19:14So I won't be surprised if he sits another week, but it's just good to hear that he's progressing.
19:20And hopefully it's not too long before we see him back out there.
19:24Oregon's in good shape, you know, in terms of their backup situation with, with Raiola.
19:29And, you know, it not, I mean, UCLA is going to be, that's going to be a tough game for them.
19:35Not saying it won't be, but at least they're, they're better suited than other programs in terms of their, their backup ready to go.
19:43UCLA is a tough looking opponent, but my goodness, Dylan Raiola looked like the guy that we heard about coming out of
19:50high school, you know, pre Nebraska, just a phenomenal performance for him stepping in when, when more went down.
19:56Um, no, no question. And I think we've, he was coming out of high school.
20:01He was a five-star, right? And he comes on to Nebraska and he's doing some fun things as a freshman.
20:07And it's like, I mean, I was, I was guilty of it, you know, saying, look, this guy's going to be a future top pick, but then, okay.
20:16He regressed a little as a sophomore, didn't really live up to what many expected, um, made the surprising decision to go
20:23to Oregon, knowing that Dante Moore, if he returned to school was going to be the starter.
20:28Um, but you know, he's getting his chance and credit to him.
20:32He played well when he was pushing action against USC.
20:35Um, and if he gets to start this weekend against UCLA, Oregon, I don't, there's not a gigantic drop-off.
20:41And I think that's something that a lot of college teams struggle with, because if you have a good backup, Chieftes are,
20:48he's getting paid to go somewhere else to be a starter.
20:52So a lot of programs just don't have that backup ready to go.
20:56Oregon's one of the few exceptions and Raiola, um, I don't, I don't think that this is necessarily going to push him to the 2027 draft.
21:04I think he still plans on being in Eugene next year.
21:07Um, you know, barring something else happening with Dante Moore this year that keeps him off the field, but I think it's
21:14just, it's good for him to go out there and say, Hey, don't forget about me.
21:20You know, like that I can do some good things too.
21:23There's no right way to do this. I'm not casting aspersions or being critical, but Oregon is a, a bright example of
21:30how it can be a good thing to sit in a stable environment.
21:34I mean, we saw it with Dante Moore last year, Dylan Raiola early, very early, but like a good first impression in that situation.
21:42We'll see what it looks like. But I'm, I'm impressed by that.
21:46The way that like Oregon a not only is able to convince guys to come and take a back seat for a
21:52minute, but it can really work in your favor.
21:55If that's the way you decide to do it, at least, you know, with, with that infrastructure that they have in Eugene.
22:02Okay. That is all of our quarterback talk. We're going to talk some edge rushers right after a quick break.
22:09All right, Dan, let's get into another topic. We wanted to hit last week, still very pertinent right now.
22:15And that's some of the big names in this edge rusher class.
22:18Wanted to talk about a few under the radar guys, check in on a few guys who are excelling and starring at their position.
22:26But I do think this conversation needs to start with the Dylan Stewart situation, which like I said, it's, it happened a
22:33couple of weeks ago and we didn't have a show, but it is still very topical.
22:38We just heard on social media, Pete Thamel said Dylan Stewart at South Carolina is back at practice.
22:44That presents a bit of an interesting situation. So to catch you up, Dylan Stewart had a tough, tough day against Alabama
22:51two weeks ago, threw some punches at opposing players, very frustrating lopsided loss for South Carolina, talked back to some coaches, generally looked very uncoachable in the moment.
23:00And SEC suspended him for a game. So unavailable for last week's loss to Kentucky.
23:04But on top of that, Shane Beamer suspended him indefinitely.
23:08So the SEC suspension for Dylan Stewart for throwing punches and disorderly conduct that's over with.
23:13Now we wait to see if Dylan Stewart, who is arguably the best edge rushing prospect in this class, is going to
23:20be invited back to the South Carolina program. I'm guessing the fact that he's practicing this week means he will eventually come back.
23:27But what's the timeline look like? I guess is the question.
23:30Yeah, it's a good first step, I guess, for him to get back on the field and repair his draft stock.
23:37Now, obviously, whenever you talk about a player with quote unquote character questions, I think it's important not to paint with a broad brush, right?
23:45Everyone's got their own things going on. And there's different motivations behind each.
23:49There's different things going on in each individual life that will affect things on the football field.
23:54And with Dylan Stewart, you know, he had the back injury last year, was sidelined for much of the offseason.
24:01He didn't play in the first few games and then came back two weeks ago on a pitch count.
24:07I think he had 14 snaps. Looked good. Played well against Mississippi State on those 14 snaps.
24:12Um, and then so it felt like he was progressing and that's exactly what you wanted to see from him.
24:19And then last week against Alabama, uh, was when everything fell apart and, you know, he was not with the team last week.
24:26And so you didn't know what was going on with Stewart and his future.
24:30Would he just leave the program altogether? Would he look to transfer somewhere?
24:34Would he just start preparing for the NFL draft?
24:37Uh, but the fact that he's back at practice now, we don't know what this means for this weekend's game against Florida
24:44or the weeks after that, but at least it's a good step that he's back on the field.
24:50Um, I think that talent wise, you know, cause I say this a lot with prospects, but if the tape was all
24:57that mattered, NFL scouts, they'd have a much easier job because the tape, the traits, okay.
25:02Dylan Stewart's a top 10 pick. Uh, but when you focus on what happened against Alabama and how that all transpired, um,
25:09the medicals as well, factor all of that in.
25:12And it becomes a much more complicated conversation that we, we don't have all the information right now to really say, oh,
25:19well, he's definitely this, or he's going to fall or it won't matter, whatever.
25:23Um, but you know, like I said, every prospect's different, every character situation's different.
25:28So we'll have to see how this plays out here, uh, the next few weeks and months as hopefully he can get
25:35back in the good graces of that coaching staff and that team.
25:38Um, and I mean, I don't, South Carolina has got a tough situation where who knows that that coaching staff is even
25:45going to last the next few weeks. Um, so there's just a lot going on with that program and their star pass rusher.
25:53It's an interesting place to be because as far as I'm aware, and if, if you know more than me, please correct me.
26:00Like the, this Dylan Stewart conversation, there's, there's nothing like criminal at the very least off field that contributes to this.
26:07Am I, am I off base with that? Right.
26:09And I think it's cause yeah, every character situation is different.
26:13Like I said, so like with Jalen Carter, when he was coming out of Georgia, like there were things that happened with
26:20not criminally, but with yeah, criminal, I guess he was charged or he was arrested, but based off of, uh, what happened, uh, off the field.
26:28So like that, there was that going on. And then you have, um, other prospects like, um, what's another good situation trying to think?
26:36Um, Oh, uh, James Pierce, you know, coming out a couple of years ago where it wasn't necessarily, uh, things that were
26:43in black and white, like, okay, this is what he did off the field.
26:47It was more like, okay, questions about makeup, questions about reliability.
26:51And then once he did get to the NFL, that's where, okay, now we have some, you know, got more serious with
26:58what happened, but the Falcon still took them in the first round.
27:01Jalen Carter was still a top 10 pick. So each one's a little bit different.
27:06And obviously the more talent you have, the more leeway there will be in terms of how many chances you're going to
27:13get and how early teams will be willing to draft you.
27:17Um, and so again, with Dylan Stewart, we just don't have enough information yet about, uh, everything to say for sure that,
27:24oh yeah, he'll still be a top 10 pick or yeah, he's going to definitely fall a little bit.
27:30I just imagine it's a situation where the truth can be in the eye of the beholder.
27:35Cause I know like people are in such a rush to blame NIL and like the, the, the money that these guys make now creates entitlement.
27:43And that's why you don't listen to your coaches.
27:46Like, first of all, if no idea how accurate that is.
27:49Second of all, to your point, if this is one of the best players in college football, and this is a South
27:56Carolina team that has had way more than its share of heartbreak to this point in the season.
28:02And the coaching staff looks like it might be on its last legs.
28:06Considering the talent at hand, I can easily imagine a lot of conflicting opinions about what this looks like.
28:12And yeah, the truth of the matter is I think it's, it's going to take work on the part of NFL teams
28:19to drill down and say, is this a passionate, talented guy stuck in a bad situation?
28:24Or is there more here that we need to be concerned about?
28:28I guess for our part, I, I am encouraged that this isn't the end of the story.
28:34I wouldn't, I actually, I was texting somebody the other day and I was like, what do you do if Dylan Stewart
28:40has 14 snaps to go on heading into this draft cycle and he decides to come out and I essentially got back a shrug.
28:48And so, yeah, I think NFL teams are probably just hoping this can play out a little bit longer.
28:54A, so you have more tape of him playing football and B, to get a better handle on what this situation really is.
29:01Yeah. And after this all went down, I reached out to a handful of scouts and I, you know, they kind of
29:08said a lot of the same things where it's like one said that they, he didn't think it was the first strike.
29:15Like usually this is something that is brewing, right?
29:18Where it's not like everything was perfect. And then one day this happens.
29:22So what, what does that look like? How, how far do we need to dig to get to the bottom of it?
29:29Um, is this a, was it a situation where the coaching staff was just kind of tired of, uh, of, of him
29:36and whatever, and it just all exploded. Um, is it something deeper?
29:40I, again, yeah, there's a lot we have to figure out, but hopefully he can just get back on the field, play
29:47football, and hopefully he's getting the right advice behind the scenes.
29:51Um, just his advisors, his family, they're, you know, helping him go in the right direction to get things back on track.
29:57Because again, really good player that you want to see it work out for him.
30:02Something to keep an eye on heading into this weekend, whether he gets back in time for this game against Florida, or
30:09even if he doesn't at least have an opportunity.
30:12I mean, we're only just now reaching the halfway point, plenty of opportunity for him to play.
30:17Hopefully that works out for him. Um, we did want to hit on a couple other edge rushers that are catching our
30:24eye over the course of the season. We got three or four names, Dane.
30:29I'm just, it's, I'm going to give you the choice.
30:32Where do you want to start? Um, what name's the hardest to say?
30:36Start with that one. I, uh, okay. Well, if you're asking me that, then I think we got to start with our
30:43Florida guy, which is one of the coolest stories I've heard in a long time.
30:48Emmanuel Oye Badejo, I think is how you say it.
30:51That's pretty good. Yeah. I think, I think you nailed it.
30:55It's, uh, and you nailed it in terms of this is one of the cooler stories just in college football and the draft process.
31:02And honestly, this is my favorite part of, of doing this is just learning about these guys and all these different paths.
31:09He's from Manchester. Uh, he's from England. Uh, he's from England.
31:13He's from England, grew up playing soccer, basketball, never touched a football until he was 19 years old.
31:18He was going to school for pre-med. Uh, a coach found him and kind of introduced him to football.
31:24They put a highlight package together, makes it all the way to Alabama where Jacksonville state, Richard Rodriguez gives them a chance in 2024.
31:32and then this past season goes into the portal, and I think every SEC team wanted him.
31:37He goes to Florida, mostly due to the coaching staff, and Gerald Chapman's a really good defensive tackle coach, defensive line coach,
31:44and he's just so unique because his build, his God-given athleticism.
31:48Is he unique because he's 6'6", 300, and moves much faster than that suggests?
31:52Is that what you're getting at? And it's not an exaggeration because the verifies on him from the spring from a scout.
31:596'6", and an eighth, 298 pounds, 35 3-eighths inch arms, and he's going to test really, really well.
32:05I bet at least a 4'7", in the 40 at 300 pounds.
32:09It's just a really freaky guy, and on tape, or on paper, he's a defensive tackle, right?
32:14Just when you look at the measurements, but then you watch him on tape, and he's mostly an edge rusher, and he
32:21doesn't look out of place because of just his natural gifts.
32:24It's really interesting to watch him work. I think that he has the athleticism to eventually become a two-way rusher, but you
32:31see the inexperience in terms of setting up his moves and working in different ways to beat the blocker, but it just
32:38feels like—I probably regret saying this, but it feels like there's almost too much talent here for him to fail, and I'm
32:45just assuming he continues to work, which all the feedback I've gotten, he's a go-getter.
32:50It's assuming that he will continue to put his best foot forward.
32:54As long as he continues to work and learn, he's going to get more explosive in terms of shedding blocks.
33:00He's going to be more efficient unleashing a rip move or a club move.
33:05So I think there's enough splashes on tape where you see the development and you feel like, okay, this guy is going to stick.
33:12I'm not sure about what the ceiling looks like, but there's too much talent for him not to make it at the next level.
33:20I mean, it's for somebody else to figure out where he gets drafted, but yeah, like, I'm comfortable taking a chance on this caliber of talent.
33:28I mean, you talk about— The question's where, right?
33:31Yeah, sure. How early do you have to do it?
33:34I don't know, but after a certain point, I get exceedingly comfortable.
33:38And like I said, I'm not trying to project a round in October, but just go watch him against Missouri.
33:44Yeah, like he bends that corner pretty good for a guy listed at 6'6", 300.
33:49And I mentioned Austin Simmons was dealing with pressure a little bit and you could tell that he felt it.
33:55Well, that's probably why. He hit the shit out of Austin Simmons and almost forced an interception.
34:01He's been very fun to watch. And like, you know, Florida opened the year with a couple games against, you know, directional universities.
34:08So I didn't know what to make of it, but he produced against Auburn.
34:12He produced against Missouri. So similar to Austin Simmons, like we're just checking boxes here of like, all right, are you going
34:19to keep producing against not like decent to good football teams?
34:23Because I'm pretty interested in that. The NFL drafts traits, plain and simple.
34:27If the draft was tomorrow, I feel comfortable saying he'd be a day two pick.
34:32And it just, because again, there's just things that he can do that you can't coach.
34:37And as long as he is coachable, which again, all signs point to him being more towards that.
34:43Like you just never know with a guy that's been playing the sport for only a couple of years and he didn't
34:50grow up dreaming in the NFL and sleeping with a pillow under or a ball under his pillow.
34:55Like, you know, like he's very new to the sport.
34:58And so you have to make sure that he loves it and he's going to do everything he can to get there.
35:05But as long as he checks those boxes, yeah, he's going to be a day two pick.
35:11I'm glad you said day two. Cause yeah, like based on what I, what we've talked about, maybe round one right now,
35:18not to say he couldn't get there, but right now that feels scary.
35:22But like eight months from now, top one, but even like a top 100 pick on a guy who looks and moves like that.
35:29Okay. That's not that hard to talk me into at all.
35:33Florida between him and Caleb Banks, Florida's the runaway leader for where do you find these guys?
35:38Which in this case, I guess the answer is England.
35:42All right. Let's move on to a guy that I wanted to talk to you about a guy that he was firmly
35:48on the radar heading into the season, but he's playing up to that Billings.
35:53Bubakar Traore, another Notre Dame guy. Fantastic start to the season.
35:56I was able to watch him against Michigan State, but he made at least a couple big splash plays against North Carolina as well.
36:04Right? Yeah, he did. And Purdue was really good.
36:07I don't, he doesn't have like that overwhelming size.
36:10I don't have the verifieds, but he's listed at six, five to 50, which feels a little generous.
36:15But he's just, he's so active. He's a gnat at a barbecue.
36:19Just the way he can win with speed. He can convert speed to power.
36:24He's a really good space athlete. And so you get him out in space and he will more than hold his own.
36:31He was already in my preseason top 50 and he's only helped himself.
36:35And then you have Bryce Young on the other side.
36:38The NFL is about to have two Bryce Youngs.
36:41This one from the Irish is the son of Hall of Famer Bryant Young, the big defensive tackle.
36:46He can play. And so I think on paper, this weekend's game, Notre Dame, Stanford, it's probably going to be an Irish win.
36:54It's not something that you're going to really make a point to watch.
36:58But Stanford has one of the best left tackles in college football and Nicky Prongos.
37:03So I'm eager to check this one out. Prongos is another fascinating story.
37:07He only played a few games of high school football, walked on at UCLA, really developed his game, developed his body.
37:13Now he's, like I said, one of the best offensive tackles in college football.
37:18Came back from an injury last week and was playing at a high level.
37:22So definitely eager to see that matchup when these two teams meet on Saturday.
37:27The thing that stood out to me about Traore is he just, he seems like a really strong, powerful guy.
37:33And he also seems to have a plan. Like I know he had a nasty spin move against Michigan State that it caught a lot of people's attention.
37:42But he also, you know, swim moves. He's good at getting guys' hands off of them.
37:47So hearing that he'll have like an NFL caliber test against Stanford, or at least we hope, depending on how Notre Dame
37:54wants to play it, that gets me intrigued. One more guy I wanted to hit, Kenyatta Jackson.
37:59You know, a guy that's near and dear to your heart over at Ohio State.
38:04Yeah, I think he's a guy, almost like Arville Reese last year, where he's not, I don't think he's necessarily going to blow up the box score.
38:13But in different positions, obviously, than Arville Reese. But you watch the tape and the way Matt Patricia uses him.
38:19It's like, okay, one snap he's at the four-eye, he's stuffing the run.
38:23The next, he's rushing from outside alignment as a six or a seven, and, you know, he's able to work the edge.
38:30The next, throwing the Iowa tape, he's dropping into space, and he looks clean in that pedal and drive and doing stuff in the flat.
38:38So I just think there's a lot. When you have a guy that has that type of body, you know, 6'5", 265,
38:4534-inch arms, like looks like an NFL player, and you can line him up and down the line of scrimmage, that's just somebody that's going to make it.
38:54But he's another guy that I don't know how high he's going to go.
38:58He won't go top 10 like Arville Reese, but he's at least knocking on the door of being a first-round pick because
39:05every team is looking for defensive linemen that look like him, play like him, and give you that position flex.
39:12Set the tone right off the bat in that win against Iowa with the strip sack.
39:17And I know he tossed aside a tight end on the play.
39:20It wasn't any spectacular win, but, I mean, just got after Iowa from the word go.
39:25Yeah, and I think if his arms are 32 inches, not 34, maybe he doesn't get the strip sack.
39:32You're right. And, you know, length matters. And when you're that big and the motor that he showed on that play, because he never gave up.
39:40Yeah, he worked off the tight end and then had to go all the way to his right, close to the numbers
39:47where that's where he got the strip sack. Like, that is how you start a football game.
39:52And that's why he came back. You don't see a lot of fifth-year seniors, at least guys that, fifth-year seniors that have
39:59a chance to be first-round picks, you know, in college football.
40:03Usually those guys are three and out, four and out.
40:06But he came back to be a captain and to really take his game to the next level.
40:11And I think he's done a nice job of achieving what he came back to do so far.
40:17A couple edge rushers worth knowing. There's a bit I want y'all to know about when we come back from this break.
40:24We're going to introduce y'all to a new segment we're trotting out.
40:28We're going to let y'all know about our green room right after a quick commercial break.
40:33Dane, I really love this concept we came up with.
40:36Because a tricky thing about doing this show is knowing when to shut the hell up about a guy.
40:42And I joked about it with Arvel Reese at the top of this show, where we could have talked about what Arvel
40:49Reese did every week for the entire season. But after a certain point, you're just like, what do you want me to say?
40:56The guy is good. The guy is going to get drafted highly.
41:00Do we need to relive every play that he makes?
41:03And if you didn't pay attention to college football last weekend or really this entire year, that's absolutely where we are with Jeremiah Smith.
41:11And it, I mean, it has been forever, but we are officially coming up with a concept to help us deal with these sorts of players.
41:19We're calling it the green room. The NFL invites a couple dozen players to the green room at the NFL draft every year.
41:27The guys that they feel good enough about to say, hey, come hang out behind the stage and wait for Roger Goodell to call your name.
41:35So we get the cool moment. And that's how confident we are.
41:39You're going to be a first round pick. Well, that's what we're doing here at Building the Beast.
41:44We are introducing a green room where once you're in, we don't have a whole lot else to say.
41:50And in light of that, I think Jeremiah Smith obviously is the name we need to start with, because after an 11
41:57catch 200 yard two touchdown day against Iowa, I mean, we could have given him the invite in August if we wanted
42:04to, but we are officially freshman year of his freshman year.
42:08Seriously. We are officially two years is a long time to sit in the green room though.
42:13Like, I don't know, but here, here in early October, Jeremiah Smith, we are inviting you to the Building the Beast green room.
42:20We don't have any more questions, man. Yeah. And I love this concept.
42:24This is going to be a lot of fun.
42:27Um, you know, it's, uh, we're paying homage to, um, what you guys do on the athletic football show with, uh, you
42:34know, bringing, uh, inviting teams to the table, uh, in terms of playoff teams.
42:39And like, it just, this is going to be, this is our first round pick table, right?
42:44Yeah. This is going to be, it should be exclusive, right?
42:48It shouldn't, we're not just going to invite 10 guys right off the bat.
42:52This is someone that I want to, we want to make sure we're a hundred percent confident.
42:57Absolutely. First round pick. So there's no better place to start than Jeremiah Smith, where I'm to the point with him where
43:04I, he might be hyperbole proof where you want to say he's the best college player you've ever seen.
43:10All right. Like I, I, there's at least a case for that that, you know, I'm not going to argue with you.
43:17Um, you want to say he's the best Ohio state prospect you've ever seen.
43:22Okay. I have no problem with that. There's at least a case, you know, I had a big grade on Nick Bosa,
43:29uh, go back to Orlando pace, but there's at least a case that Jeremiah Smith, uh, could be that.
43:35So it's, uh, you run out of things to talk about with him, but he makes sense to be that, that inaugural invite to the green room.
43:43Um, you know what Jeremiah Smith stat line is today on the season.
43:47Yeah. Uh, I mean, he, I know he leads the country in every category.
43:52So it's like what? 44 for eight, 50 and nine, something like that.
43:56You're off by 25 yards, but yeah, 44 for eight, 23 and nine.
44:00Yeah. Not bad. He could, he could theoretically, uh, five.
44:03Yeah. We're not even at the midpoint of the season.
44:06He could theoretically, if he goes off against Maryland, which feels entirely possible, he could be sitting on a thousand yards at the midpoint of the season.
44:15Um, okay. I whiffed on this because before the season, I really thought he had no shot at the Heisman or maybe
44:22even the bulletin cough because certainly teams were not going to be dumb enough to single cover him.
44:28Like you, you triple cover them. If, if that's what it takes, whatever you have to do, they're doing that.
44:34It just doesn't matter. Yeah. Sometimes they are. Um, but it also Illinois defensive coordinator, uh, two weeks ago said, all right, I quit.
44:42I'm done. Like this is, I want no part of this.
44:45Uh, but like, yes, there are examples of where they, there is double coverage, even triple coverage, but, um, I, it is
44:52really bizarre to see when he is single covered.
44:55And if you're Julian saying like, that's the read, if you see that it's single coverage out there, okay, snap the ball
45:02and you're going to go make a play. And that that's pretty much the read, which makes it easy on the quarterback.
45:09He had a bunch of, yeah. And he gets single covered.
45:12He had a bunch of huge plays against Iowa.
45:15The one that really stood out to me, he had an 18 yard gain at the sideline on a little corner route.
45:22And like Iowa's safety was on top of the play.
45:25Like he was bracketed to hell and back. And I mean, credit to Julian saying it was a really nice throw, but
45:32Jeremiah Smith just took it from two players. What would you say were his stats right now?
45:3844 for eight, 23 and nine. Okay. Okay. Cardinal Tate all of last year, 51, eight 75, nine.
45:43Like he's almost passing what Cardinal Tate did all of last year, which is crazy.
45:48I know like stats are not an indicator of NFL success, but these, I mean, these are just goofy numbers.
45:55I can't do that in my dynasty on NCAA football.
45:58Yeah. Yeah. That's crazy. From here on out, if, if you don't think we're talking about Jeremiah Smith enough, it's because he's already in the green room.
46:06He's just chilling. He's got his agent on the phone.
46:09He's just waiting to hear who's calling him. All right.
46:13You did say you wanted it to be exclusive, but we did settle.
46:17We settled on one more name to add right now and we can add to it as we go.
46:23So, but as of right now, the other name that we are comfortable putting here, one more Notre Dame guy.
46:29It's a theme for the show. Leonard Moore, the cornerback.
46:32I don't think anybody's surprised to hear this either.
46:35Yeah, I don't think so. I mean, I think he just, he combines so much of what you want at the position.
46:42Length. He's, I won't say size because he is a little bit leaner than ideal, but he has length.
46:48He's tall. He has speed. He has the mental component of what you want at the position.
46:53Um, he has production too. His first two years at Notre Dame, he combined for 25 passes defended, uh, and seven interceptions.
47:00So he's, you know, checking those boxes as well.
47:03There's just, there's so much to like about him, um, that it's not going to be a hard sell to, uh, give
47:10him an invite to the, to the green room.
47:13Ironically, UNC was his worst game of the year, but it's the first time in five weeks he's given up more than 16 receiving yards.
47:21And he also suffered a concussion, which, so we'll, we'll see what his availability is.
47:26He's in protocol right now. I don't know if he's going to play against Stanford, but if your worst day of the
47:33year is given up 50 yards in a rainstorm at UNC.
47:36And by the way, he still had two or three really sick plays in that game.
47:41Like he had a play where he got, yeah.
47:44Yeah. He had a PBU on a slant where he just like, he gained ground back on the guy.
47:50The way he closed. Yeah. Over the middle of the field.
47:54Yeah. Well, and the first play of the game, he gave up a catch.
47:58I don't, there's not a corner in America that was going to, it was just a perfect throw where the receiver had to dive for it.
48:06Like there's just no defending that. So yeah, it was for that to be his worst game of the season says a lot about how well he plays.
48:15I should say, yeah. Worst game of the season is firmly in air quotes.
48:20Like Leonard Morris. Yes. You're in the green room.
48:22Okay. So I'll, I'll be very, I'll be very self-aware here because we pitched this last week before we knew we weren't
48:29going to have a show and I was ready.
48:32Like I had, I had Jaden ball written down on the ticket.
48:36I was like, Jaden ball, here's your ticket to the green room.
48:40I'm ready. And now that we didn't have a show and I saw him run the ball 12 times for 13 yards
48:47against Mizzou, I still feel good about Jaden ball, but I'm, I'm going to hold on to that invite for at least one more week.
48:55Like, I don't think we need to put them in the green room just yet after that game in Columbia.
49:01I'm fine with that. I mean, I think ball is a first round player, but I, I support your decision to, there's no, no need to rush it.
49:10Um, I Jaden ball. See, that's plenty more good games.
49:13I'm fighting against my instincts. Cause you know, you know, I love to just fall in love with a guy in the span of about 10 days.
49:22And so I'm fighting my instincts here. Although Jaden ball texted John summer all this week to apologize for not being better.
49:29And that, that got me really excited too, where I was like, okay, we might get pissed off.
49:34Jaden ball here over the next couple of weeks.
49:37So poor South Carolina, they can't catch a break.
49:40He might, he might get invited next week, but we'll see.
49:44So he's, he's next on my radar for this honor.
49:47Is there, is there anybody else for you? I mean, there's, there's plenty of guys that we're confident are going to be
49:54first round picks, but like, if we're trying to set it in stone, who's on, who's on your radar?
50:00I think two guys at Texas that maybe could solidify it this weekend, uh, in the red river shootout against Oklahoma, uh,
50:07Colin Simmons, pass rusher, who two weeks ago had a ridiculous day against Tennessee with five sacks.
50:12Now, some of those sacks were very generous when you're playing a freshman quarterback.
50:16Uh, some of it was a little fake. Some of it was 18 year old quarterback running into his arms, but he, I mean, still a phenomenal day.
50:25Right. And, uh, so we, but I, I think that Simmons and then Cam Coleman at receiver would be the two guys,
50:32uh, maybe next up for potential invites that we could be talking about the next few weeks.
50:38I guess it's worth saying too, when we talked about Dylan Stewart, I mean, Colin Simmons obviously had the gaffe where he
50:45peed on the quarterback in the middle of the Tennessee game, obviously an incredibly stupid thing to do.
50:50I'm, I, I don't know even, well, I was going to say, I trust Texas to rectify it, but Texas keeps having these gaffes.
50:58Hopefully, hopefully the week off helped them out in that regard, but I'm not down on Colin Simmons abilities at all, as
51:05long as he reigns in the celebrations a little bit.
51:08Yeah. I mean, it'll be a talking point, uh, for a little bit with Simmons, but not something that's going to be
51:15an anchor for as long as he, you know, learns from it and doesn't do stupid things again.
51:21So that's, that's it for the green room. I'm excited to see where this goes.
51:26I, I can't wait for the day where Dane logs on and says, we're putting somebody in the green room.
51:32Cause like I said, I'm, I'm the one that's prone to get carried away.
51:36So I'm, I'm ready for the day where Dana is like, nah, we're doing this, but in the spirit of the, okay.
51:43So you mentioned Texas having a big game before we get out of here.
51:48Let's, let's quickly go over what looks like a much better weekend in college football.
51:52I mentioned Texas, but we, we, we can't start there as much as we might like to, because the red river is a lot of fun.
52:01You got to start with Georgia, Alabama. Once again, five and oh, five and oh, number two versus number six, easily the headliner of a big weekend.
52:09Yeah. And there's so many places where you could start in terms of like what the matchup you want to see within
52:16this matchup, whether it's, uh, you know, I think, well, for me, I think it's the Alabama receivers against that Georgia secondary.
52:23Like I want to see Ryan Coleman Williams go up against Ellis Robinson at corner.
52:28Who's one of the top corners in the nation.
52:31Um, KJ Bolden at safety. What can he do working downhill, um, against receivers and against in the run game, um, to stop.
52:38Cause when that Texas run game or excuse me, when that Alabama run game is not going and you forced and you
52:45put pressure on the quarterback, that's what I want to see to, can Alabama overcome that?
52:50Um, and right. Russell's been awesome. There 20, 28.
52:53I do want to say, so we gushed about Camario Taylor enough that we should say officially Keelan Russell.
52:59We see you. We appreciate you. We are very excited.
53:02He's not draft eligible, but what a performance against Mississippi state.
53:06I can't wait to see how he follows it up against Georgia.
53:09Uh, incredibly fun player. I mean, he's has him and Jeremiah Smith have to be the Heisman favorites.
53:15I would think at this point, um, now that could change in a week, you know, Georgia shuts him down.
53:22He's still, like you said, he's a young player.
53:24Um, but he was five star, all everything coming out of Texas.
53:28And he it's coming together for him both with his arm, with his legs.
53:33And so I just eager to see what it looks like against Georgia.
53:37Um, but I also want to give credit to Gunnar Stockton on the other side for Georgia.
53:42I was not, I'm not a big Gunnar Stockton fan in terms of him as a prospect.
53:47Um, and now Georgia has not played the hardest schedule up to this point, but 76% completions, 13 to one touchdown or reception ratio.
53:55He is looking a lot more like a real quarterback back there.
53:59And so if he can keep that going against Alabama, then all of a sudden we need to have more of a conversation about what Stockton can be.
54:08Alabama's edge rushers. Yonsei Pierre is a guy we didn't mention him earlier in the show, but an edge you absolutely shouldn't be familiar with.
54:16He'll be going against Georgia. And then Devin Tompkins.
54:19I've been really impressed with what I've seen from him with Bama.
54:22He, he was phenomenal against Kentucky a few weeks ago.
54:25So big matchup there. We mentioned UCLA at Oregon already from the Dante Moore side of things, but you mentioned to me,
54:32UCLA has got at least a couple of guys that we should be aware of.
54:37Obviously, if you don't remember Nico Iamaleava is the quarterback there and he's off to a pretty nice start.
54:43Anybody else on UCLA? We need to be familiar with.
54:46Uh, quite a few guys actually, which is it's fun to watch UCLA again, uh, which is really cool.
54:52Um, but I'll, I'll, I'll stick it with, uh, two transfers for the Bruins this year, uh, that have really boosted their draft stock.
55:00Uh, Wayne Knight, the running back who followed Bob Chesney from James Madison, 9.1 yards per carry that second best in college
55:07football, nine rushing touchdowns, also second in college football.
55:10He's kind of like another former UCLA running back, uh, MJD.
55:13Cause he's short. He's like, he'll literally be about five, seven probably under, uh, at the combine, but he's not small.
55:20He's got some thickness to him and he's patient.
55:23He's got shifty feet. He just, he's a hard guy to tackle and get on the ground.
55:28Um, then on defense, Sammy, uh, Omi Sogo, I think that's how you say it.
55:33Um, linebacker transfer from Oklahoma. He's really blossoming as a senior.
55:36He, he was a rotational player with the Sooners.
55:39Now with the Bruins, he is, is really coming into his own.
55:43He leads the team with 40 tackles, seven and a half tackles for loss, four forced fumbles all in the first four games.
55:50So he's blossoming at the right time for, uh, NFL scouts.
55:54We mentioned Texas. So you plenty of got plenty of other guys to watch in this game.
55:59I don't think we brought up, we, we've brought up the tackles before Gooseby and Siani for Texas.
56:05This is not an ultimatum, but I'm ready to see Arch do something really kick-ass.
56:10I'm, I'm ready for like an arch game that makes me point at the screen.
56:14We made it an hour into the show without mentioning arch.
56:18That's, that's a good stuff, right? That's growth. It's appropriate.
56:21Uh, but I think to your point, yeah, this is where, okay, arch has to turn it on.
56:27He has to be more than, um, a caretaker has to be more than, uh, someone that turns it on late, like
56:34he did against Ohio state and he's going up against Oklahoma has not been a good team this year, but they have a good defense.
56:42They rank fifth in all of college football in total defense this year.
56:46So if arch is able to have success and be productive against the Sooners and Brent Venables crew, that will say something.
56:53So this is, this will be a big game for him.
56:56Indiana's at Nebraska this weekend, easily the, the biggest test of Indiana's season on the road against an undefeated Nebraska team, Charlie
57:03Becker, Nick Marsh, interested to see how they deal with that.
57:07And then the other one I wanted to bring up and I'm not doing this for me because I'm terrified, Dane LSU is on the road at Kentucky.
57:16Kentucky we've talked plenty about LSU's guys, but this is a better Kentucky team than I think the average person would think.
57:23And like they have, I mean, they have at least a couple of real deal guys to, to be on the watch for.
57:30Yeah. I mean, you ask an average college football fan to name as many Kentucky players as they can.
57:36I don't, maybe they get to one or two, but they've got legit talent on this team.
57:41And, um, Lance Hurd at left tackle is a lot of fun.
57:45He's a former Louisiana or he's a former LSU, uh, uh, five-star.
57:49He was the top recruit in Brian Kelly's, um, either first class or second class.
57:54Um, correct. Yeah. And he lasted one year. And I think a big part of it was NIL related and he was
58:01blocked by Will Campbell, who was his high school teammate, by the way, can you imagine?
58:06Uh, and I went back and I watched some of the high school highlights of Will Campbell, left tackle, Hurd at right tackle.
58:13I mean, good luck. Some of the, uh, some of the opponents they had, they had no chance, but he was blocked
58:20by Campbell, left tackle, Emory Jones at right tackle.
58:23So he goes to the portal, goes to Tennessee the last two years, starts at left tackle both years, uh, and did a fine job.
58:31I think coming into this year, like I had a third round grade on him.
58:35Um, there's a lot of sloppiness to his game, but you could see the talent.
58:40You could see why he was a five-star guy for Kentucky this year.
58:44He's playing much better. He is, he is taking his game and playing with more consistency, which is great to see.
58:51He's the meanest, uh, run blocker in college football.
58:54I feel confident saying that. Um, but he also has tools where he's got size, he's got length.
59:00Oh, and I need to, I mean, he's a big guy, but take a guess what his arm length is.
59:06Jesus. I don't know. 30, 34 and seven eighths.
59:09Yeah. Um, you're close. It's 36 and a quarter.
59:12That's, and that's verified. Uh, this guy is wonderful.
59:14He, he, he, he will probably have the longest arms in this draft.
59:19Um, and when you combine that with the anti-Will Campbell, if you will, pretty much.
59:23Yeah. Uh, in terms of the length, at least.
59:26Yeah. Uh, but the way he moves, the way that, um, the, the mentality that he plays with, um, yeah, he is
59:33somebody that I, and I can't wait to see him in this matchup go up against a undersized, quicker pass rusher, like
59:40Princewell, um, um, and me Ellen, uh, who I think is eight sacks, which leads the, leads all of college football right now.
59:47So that, that'll be a fun matchup to watch in LSU, Kentucky.
59:51The other guys, no slouch. Jordan Ross is, is playing pretty well for LSU too.
59:56But if, if you need a left tackle, watch this game, Lance Hurd and Jordan Seton.
60:01I have a feeling our, our names will be talking about in the spring.
60:05One more player to watch in this game for Kentucky is, uh, Rodriguez, the tight end.
60:10He is a lot of fun. He's, he's a really good tight end in a class that depending on which underclassmen come
60:17out could be a pretty good tight end group.
60:20And he's one of the guys near the top of the list.
60:24I embraced for the possibility that LSU loses to a basketball school on Saturday night.
60:29I'm, I'm really impressed by the job. Will Stein has done there at Kentucky so far this year, but win or lose, we will address that next week.
60:38Really fun being back with you, Dane. Really great show.
60:41Appreciate you. Appreciate y'all for listening. Enjoy the college football.
60:44We will chat with y'all next time. Thanks for tuning in.
60:48Make sure to hit that subscribe or follow button.
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