College Football Enquirer

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Coaching hot seats, Reggie Bush to sue NCAA & Race for the Case: Week 0 Aug 23, 2023

Show notes

Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI’s Pat Forde determine which coaches are on the hot seat heading into the upcoming football season. With Week 0 upon us, the podcast kicks off discussing which coaches could be on their way out if this season doesn’t meet expectations at their respective programs.

Additionally, the show explores who the most interesting figures are within the sport in 2023. Selections range from Deion Sanders to Caleb Williams and many disingenuous play-callers in between.

Former USC Trojan star running back Reggie Bush is planning on filing a defamation lawsuit against the NCAA in hopes to regain his Heisman trophy status. After deliberation with the Heisman trust, Bush is taking a new angle to try and retrieve the coveted award that was stripped from him after receiving compensation to play at USC. The guys work through the issue and try to find out whether or not Reggie Bush could get the trophy back after this effort.

Freshman quarterback Jaden Rashada has won the starting job at Arizona State. After a tumultuous offseason filled with commitments and faulty collectives at Florida, the young signal-caller has proven his skills at camp and will be leading the Sun Devils offense.

The podcast decides to break-in a new band today after the collapse of the Pac-12. A new song details the love of the remaining conference-less teams in the soon to be former Pac-12.

Lastly, we have college football games this weekend so the Race for the Case starts anew. The guys pick against the spread for the Navy Midshipmen @ the #13 ranked Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the UMass Minutemen @ the New Mexico State Aggies, the Ohio University Bobcats @ the San Diego State Aztecs & the San Jose State Spartans @ the #6 ranked USC Trojans.

1:00 Who has the hottest seat in college football?

14:37 Who is the single most intriguing person in college football this year?

23:56 Reggie Bush is suing the NCAA for defamation

36:00 Jaden Rashada lands the Arizona State starting job

44:41 The Big 4 song

51:30 Iowa has betrayed the trust of the nation

55:41 Race for the case: Week 0

56:00 Navy @ #13 Notre Dame

53:03 UMass @ New Mexico State

1:00:28 Ohio @ San Diego State

1:02:00 San Jose State @ #6 USC

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Jim Harbaugh suspended by Michigan, expectations for Notre Dame & Missouri’s big swing on high school NIL money Aug 22, 2023

Show notes

Dan Wetzel & SI’s Pat Forde make sense of the University of Michigan’s decision to levy a 3-game suspension on head coach Jim Harbaugh after the NCAA abstained from doing so just last week.

The self-imposed suspension on Jim Harbaugh will only limit him to the first three games of the 2023 season. Jim Harbaugh will be back on field for Rutgers in Week 4 as Michigan decided to handle the allegations against their head coach in-house. The guys discuss how relevant recruiting violations will be in the future as they don’t seem to impact key programs and coaches that immensely.

Notre Dame has the most exciting matchup for Week 0 in college football, so Dan & Pat discuss the state of the Fighting Irish program and how Marcus Freeman will do in year two. The coach is winning his players over but Notre Dame fans are hoping he can win more games on the field than in 2022, and the guys suggest that Brian Kelly was taken for granted at Notre Dame because of his prickly attitude.

Big schools are starting to name their starters at quarterback this week. Georgia has stated that Carson Beck will be leading the team in Week 1, while Ohio State and Alabama both have battles that have yet to be decided. Pat & Dan explain how Ryan Day and Nick Saban are taking very different approaches to the college football preseason.

Missouri has made waves this past week with recruiting, both on the field and in the living room of every high school athlete. The University of Missouri was able to land 5-star Williams Nwaneri to play defensive end, wile the state of Missouri enacted a new law where high school athletes who commit to play at an in-state college will be eligible to receive NIL money before going to college.

Lastly, in news of the weird, raccoons and otters are running amok, monster hunters are headed to Loch Ness & the top 15 schools for agriculture were released.

1:00 Jim Harbaugh will be suspended for 3 games by Michigan

16:10 Expectations for Notre Dame this season

30:46 Georgia has named Carson Beck the game 1 starter

32:12 Ohio State’s QB battle could carry into the season

33:26 Alabama’s uncertain QB room

37:12 Iowa’s Van Halen coverband, Van Hayden

42:22 The state of Missouri is making big recruiting moves

53:00 Raccoons are causing big problems in Germany

55:24 Otters have struck again after biting an actress

57:00 The hunt for the Loch Ness Monster

1:00:45 The top 15 agricultural schools in the US

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Why Florida State could leave ACC in 2025, Johnny Manziel doc & not another CFP format change Aug 16, 2023

Show notes

Florida State has been noticeably outspoken this college football offseason about their happiness (or lack thereof) with the state of the ACC, the conference in which they play. After a summer of seismic shifts to the college football landscape, most notably with the Pac-12 seemingly disintegrating before our eyes, attention has shifted to FSU to see if they'd be the next major university to seek greener pastures, presumably in the Big Ten or SEC.

Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI's Pat Forde kick off today's podcast on this very subject. With the August 15th deadline to announce an intention to leave for the 2024 season now in the rear view mirror, will FSU make an announcement before next August with their hearts set on a 2025 exit? Is the Big Ten or SEC the most logical suitor, or would FSU go independent for a few years to see how the dust settles before making a new commitment.

In more conference realignment news, Ross provides an update on where the College Football Playoff might take their format now that the Pac-12 will likely no longer be considered a Power Five conference. Could the upcoming format shift to six conference winners plus 6 at-large bids be scrapped in favor of a 'five plus seven' arrangement, or will the CFP opt to just take the 12 highest ranked teams? Ross explains the internal politics of where both options stand right now.

In the world of entertainment, the guys react to the latest Netflix documentary, Untold: Johnny Football, about former Texas A&M QB Johnny Manziel & chat about the new drama regarding former Ole Miss tackle Michael Oher, whose story was famously adapted into the Sandra Bullock film, The Blindside.

Closing out the podcast, the crew chats about Peyton Manning's latest gig, school-branded alcohol, Eggo-flavored liqueur & an update from the Goodyear Blimp.

0:30 - FSU looking to leave ACC in 2025?

14:55 - Another CFP format change?

30:35 - Johnny Manziel documentary

44:50 - Michael Oher "Blindside" drama

53:15 - Professor Peyton Manning

55:30 - Alcohol & blimp news

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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Lies, acronyms & cheeseburgers: why Jim Harbaugh will likely coach for all of 2023 Aug 14, 2023

Show notes

Over the weekend, news broke that Michigan head coach Jim Harbaugh would likely not be suspended for the first four games of the 2023 college football season, after initially agreeing to the punishment a few weeks prior. Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI's Pat Forde dive into the NCAA's internal politics that resulted in this news and the organization's stunning "not a cheeseburger" comments that sent this story from semi-reasonable to absurd.

What's clear in all of this is that it will take so long to adjudicate, that Harbaugh may once again return to the NFL in early 2024, right when a full penalty would be issued, letting him coach this season in its entirety and get away scot-free.

In other news, the ACC's attempt to acquire Stanford, Cal-Berkley & SMU has reportedly hit a major snag. ACC stalwarts Florida State, Clemson, NC State & North Carolina are allegedly not in favor of the three new entrants and any deal seems unlikely. The guys talk about what it means for the ACC, the four dissenting schools & the suddenly very lonely Stanford.

In less than two weeks, we have actual college football action. The crew conducts a draft to pick their favorite six games in the opening week of the season.

Closing out the show, a brief entry into the People's Court where the important question is asked: is the Goodyear Blimp spying on SEC schools on behalf of Ohio State?

0:00 - Jim Harbaugh's 4-game suspension likely on hold

33:05 - ACC's attempt to bring in SMU, Cal, Stanford likely DOA

47:25 - Week 0/Week 1 Games draft

57:45 - People's Court: Spy Blimps

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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ACC targeting SMU, Stanford & Cal, first coaches poll & the Montgomery riverfront brawl Aug 09, 2023

Show notes

Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI's Pat Forde return with more fallout from the apparent collapse of the Pac-12. The ACC is smelling blood in the water and is reportedly targeting Pac-12 leftovers Cal & Stanford to join their conference, along with SMU of the American Athletic Conference. The guys discuss whether or not it makes sense for any party, especially the west-coast Cal & Stanford students who would suddenly find themselves consistently playing in four time-zones east of their home campuses.

Meanwhile, SEC commissioner Greg Sankey recently made an appearance on the Paul Finebaum show to gloat that his conference "[doesn't] need to be in 4 time zones to generate interest." The podcast crew low-key loves the snark and doesn't blame the SEC for scooping up Texas and Oklahoma.

Later in the show, the guys chat about the Montgomery riverfront brawl, react to Georgia, Alabama & Ohio State leading the first coaches poll of the offseason, the Johnny Manziel documentary on Netflix, an Italian man meeting a cheesy demise & emotional support emus.

1:00 The ACC is considering adding Stanford, Cal & SMU

17:30 SEC commissioner Greg Sankey spoke on Paul Finebaum’s show

23:38 The NCAA is back in the eligibility denial business

36:42 The Montgomery riverfront brawl

42:24 Reacting to the first college football coaches poll

55:08 The new Johnny Manziel documentary is released

56:43 West Virginia has joined the beer NIL derby

60:17 An Italian man fell victim to falling cheese

1:01:54 A Virginia Beach man went to court to see if he can keep his emotional support emu

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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Next steps for the Pac-4 & what happens to the Rose Bowl? Aug 07, 2023

Show notes

Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI’s Pat Forde try to pick up the pieces from last week’s realignment fallout after news that Washington, Oregon would be heading to the Big Ten, while Arizona, Arizona State & Utah would take their athletic programs to the Big 12.

The 500th episode of the podcast opens with a discussion on the unserious nature of these Pac-12 realignment meetings, as a chairperson from Oregon joined a call on Zoom during his golf match. This leads the hosts to believe that the meetings were all planned on very short notice & that the conference members were all flying by the seat of their pants during these major decisions.

The guys then dive into what happens next for the remaining four teams left in the Pac-12: Oregon State, Washington State, Cal & Stanford. Many Pac-12 fans can’t believe the other members left Stanford and Cal out to dry, while some believe that more schools should adopt playing in different conferences for different sports to make the transition easier. Dan pours water on the idea that the conference a team plays in impacts their academic standing, while Ross notes Mizzou head football coach Eli Drinkwitz’s comments about the well-being of student athletes being overlooked during the realignment process.

Pac-12 softball players have been voicing their opinions and concerns on social media surrounding the realignment. The players state that they didn’t sign up to play games at Rutgers away from their families. The podcast crew notes that Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff may not be able to attend conference championships this year for the Pac-12 due to being so disliked at this moment.

Rounding out the show, in recruiting news, Florida State lands a big time safety & Boise State is able to keep a wideout in Idaho over Michigan. In news of the weird, an ice cream shop in Santa Cruz is celebrating Otter 841 & fall funerals may be on the hot seat.

0:00 Introduction

5:00 A University of Oregon trustee chair joined their realignment meeting from the golf course

18:37 The latest on the Pac-4

34:05 Pac-12 softball players voiced their displeasure with their conference changing

41:22 What happens with the CFP?

46:06 The sun sets on the Pac-12 in the Rose Bowl

53:00 Florida State lands the #1 safety in the country

59:00 Gatlin Bair commits to Boise State over Michigan

1:00:45 Are fall funerals just as bad as fall weddings?

1:04:18 The otter uprising of 2023

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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The Pac-12 has crumbled Aug 05, 2023

Show notes

Dan Wetzel & SI’s Pat Forde react to the news that the Big Ten will be adding the University of Oregon and University of Washington.

The hammer finally dropped on the Pac-12 as their two remaining headliners, Oregon and Washington have been approved to join the Big Ten. The guys break down the timeline that led to the formal realignment decision. After a rollercoaster of options and ideas, the final push to keep the Pac-12 together ultimately failed, and Dan & Pat are bewildered by how quickly the decision to add Oregon and Washington actually came to fruition.

Later, the guys share their winners and losers following the big decision. Oregon is the first school under the magnifying glass, as they have a harder route to the playoff now, but their strong brand could keep them relevant in the new 18-team conference. Not much changes for the Big Ten operationally, but the newcomers are hoping to avoid being the next Nebraska.

The Big 12 looks to be a big winner during this summer’s realignment. The conference, that was written off 2 years ago, now has a pending addition in the University of Arizona and is expected to make an attempt to acquire Arizona State and Utah as well.

The show also analyzes where Oregon State, Washington State, Cal, & Stanford go from here. These odd schools out have a few options, such as joining the Mountain West Conference, going independent, or even moving down to Division 1-AA.

Lastly, the guys remark that the SEC has seemed very quiet during this week’s monumental shakeup and the conference is perhaps aiming to keep it that way until other big schools are ready to join.

1:00 Oregon and Washington are headed to the Big Ten

20:33 Realignment winners and losers

29:16 Will the Big 12 end up getting Arizona, Arizona State & Utah?

35:45 What do Washington State and Oregon State do from here?

41:00 What does Stanford do?

45:10 Cal may be in a worse position than Stanford

48:00 The SEC seems very content

50:45 A river otter attacked tubers in Montana

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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The Pac-12 is crumbling, part 2: Big Ten is in expansion meetings & Florida State is unhinged Aug 03, 2023

Show notes

Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI’s Pat Forde regather to react to the news that the Big Ten is meeting to discuss a plan for realignment with their eyes on Pac-12 teams.

The podcast opens up by discussing which teams in the Pac-12 are in the forefront of the Big Ten’s eyes ahead of their latest pitch to expand. Four presidents have met today and the guys expect the top two targets to be the University of Oregon and the University of Washington, that is if the Big Ten only wants to add two teams in this volley. If the conference wishes to expand to 20 teams Stanford and California-Berkley are expected to be the next two schools to be rounded up.

In true NCAA administrative fashion, the Big Ten doesn’t want to be seen as the conference that killed the Pac-12. Only in this line of work could you find such irony after adding USC and UCLA, which ended up tanking the Pac-12’s media rights deal this offseason. The guys speculate as to what will happen with the rest of the Pac-12 if Oregon and Washington leave, and the other options appear to be the Big 12 and Mountain West.

The ACC couldn’t let the Big Ten have all the shine today, as member school Florida State expressed their displeasure that they will be receiving the same amount of money as other ACC schools this year. The guys aren’t impressed by Florida State’s antics and peacocking. Pat believes that ACC commissioner Jim Phillips should feel very disrespected by a program that has reached only tepid levels of relevancy over the last five seasons.

Lastly, former Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel is opening his own bar in College Station, Texas, so the show determines whether or not it’s worth checking out.

1:00 The Big Ten is meeting to discuss further expansion after the Pac-12 fallout

19:23 If you’re the Big Ten would you go to 18 teams or 20?

27:33 How should Oregon State and Washington State fans feel now?

35:27 Florida State is very unhappy with the ACC

44:03 Johnny Manziel is opening a bar

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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The Pac-12 is crumbling, part 1: The Apple TV+ media deal & which teams are bound to leave? Aug 02, 2023

Show notes

In part 1 of a two-part episode, Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI’s Pat Forde examine the Pac-12 landscape after more information about their media rights deal was released.

The Pac-12 is expected to sign their upcoming TV deal with Apple TV+. After the Pac-12 network debacle, many see this deal as inferior to the deal that the Big 12 recently worked out. This news, coupled with Colorado’s departure from the Pac-12 has the guys seriously debating the likelihood of more Pac-12 teams leaving.

Dan starts a new game called ‘Would You Go?’ where the hosts have to put themselves in the shoes of Pac-12 schools and reveal if they would leave the conference. The most obvious first choice would be the two Arizona schools, although separating the two could be an issue. The guys think that it would be beneficial for Pac-12 members to stay, so that the path to the playoff is easier.

Moving away from the west coast, more betting scandals have come out as student athletes from Iowa and Iowa State have been reported as gambling on college sports as well as their own schools. The guys despair in realizing that the state of Iowa may not be as simple and quiet as they claim to be.

Lastly, in animal news, there haven’t been any sightings of Otter 841 & visitors at a Chinese zoo believe the bears may not be real.

1:00 The Pac-12 is falling apart after new media deal information

47:32 Iowa is the new Las Vegas

56:41 Otter 841 update

57:31 A Chinese Zoo denies that their sun bears are humans wearing costumes

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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Next moves for Pac-12, does Minnesota have a toxic culture & Hugh Freeze’s big week in golf and recruiting Jul 31, 2023

Show notes

Dan Wetzel, Ross Dellenger & SI’s Pat Forde break down the fallout from last week’s news of Colorado leaving the Pac-12 for the Big 12.

Now that the dust has settled on Colorado’s exodus to the Big 12, the guys discuss which team could leave the Pac-12 next. The University of Arizona seems to be the most logical program to join a new conference, but the Pac-12 may not be willing to let another member go. Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark has shown his savvy this offseason by keeping his foot on the pedal to acquire talented programs so it doesn’t look like he will stop until the Big 12 has 14 teams.

A new article came out from University of Minnesota players critiquing PJ Fleck and the culture of the football program. The show dissects the article and determines how much weight it does and should carry. PJ Fleck is an interesting character for sure, but there doesn’t seem to be much evidence of a toxic environment for student athletes.

New Ohio State commit Aaron Scott, Jr. took a moment to troll Michigan fans during his recruitment video. Scott revealed an Ohio State jersey that was pulled out of a University of Michigan backpack, giving the Michigan faithful a quick glimmer of hope before taking it away.

Hugh Freeze had a big week on the recruiting trail with a couple highly touted prospects committing to Auburn, including flipping a 5-star wideout from Alabama. Aside from football, Freeze won the first golf flight at the Auburn University Club. After some extensive investigative journalism, the podcast deduces that Hugh Freeze may in fact be a very good golfer.

Lastly, an Ohio State player isn’t as focused on NIL money, but rather farming supplies.

1:00 - What is the Pac-12's next move?

23:56 Do the Minnesota Golden Gophers have a toxic program?

45:00 Aaron Scott Jr commits to Ohio State over Michigan

48:40 Auburn is recruiting exceptionally well in Alabama right now

57:39 Ohio State’s Cade Stover has a unique NIL request

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Check out all the episodes of the College Football Enquirer and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at Yahoo Sports Podcasts

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