Split Zone Duo: College Football Podcast

Latest Episodes:

Belichick to Carolina, Explained by UNC Football Alum Michael Felder Dec 12, 2024

Show notes

Michael Felder, college football media wizard and a former cornerback at North Carolina, joins Richard to expand on Bill Belichick’s hiring:

* The hiring as a marker of UNC’s football legitimacy

* The difference between coaching pros and college players, and the challenges of “do your job” culture at this level

* The gap in perception between media and UNC fans

Producer: Anthony Vito

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

Emergency Episode: Belichick to UNC Dec 12, 2024

Show notes

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com

Richard Johnson and Alex Kirshner discuss Bill Belichick’s hiring at North Carolina:

* How the search evolved over a week and a half

* A messy, messy process leads to an incredible risk … and incredible result

* The case for success (including different ways of measuring it): Could Belichick change football in Chapel Hill forever even if he doesn’t win?

* The case for failure: Yeah, there are tons of ways this could go badly

Stay tuned for much more from SZD on this hire in the next few days.

Producer: Anthony Vito

Observations on 6 CFB Hires: Stay Frosty Dec 11, 2024

Show notes

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com

In this subscriber episode, Richard and Alex trade observations about a handful of recent hires in the college football coach carousel, including:

* Scott Frost to UCF, where prior success doesn’t tell us a lot about how the Knights will operate going forward

* Matt Entz to Fresno State, Bronco Mendenhall to Utah State, and what their contracts tell us about Pac-12 realignment

* Barry Odom to Purdue, where he might be fighting gravity

* Matt Drinkall to Central Michigan, which follows the rule: “You’re a MAC school. Be different.”

* Bryan Harsin to Cal, a funny culture fit with good football rationale behind it but a big transfer portal problem already

* Two new coordinators to Nebraska, which needs to get things together on offense without letting the strength of the team fall apart

More Split Zone Duo

Free for all: We interviewed Nick Carparelli, the executive director of Bowl Season, the umbrella group that advocates for bowl game operators. We wanted to get his thoughts on the state of the bowl system, how the bowls interact with the playoff, and where he thinks bowl games are going. We hope you find this one to be an informative back-and-forth on the CFB postseason.

Also, for subscribers, Richard and Steven Godfrey shared their reporting and analysis on a handful of hirings and coach searches.

Thanks for listening! If you aren’t yet a paid subscriber, you can hear a free preview of this episode, but now is a great time to join us.

Producer: Anthony Vito

The State of the Bowls, Feat. Bowl Season's Nick Carparelli Dec 10, 2024

Show notes

Nick Carparelli is the executive director of Bowl Season, the group that represents the interests of CFB’s many bowl games. Alex and Richard interview him about:

* What if anything worries him right now about the state of bowls

* Bowls’ efforts to thrive in a world of opt outs, and how bowls might fit into the next economic iteration of the sport

* The payout landscape for different kinds of bowl games

* Bowls in baseball stadiums. Bowls in the Bahamas. What’s next?

* The differences between representing big bowls and small

* What Nick is thinking about the first-round playoff games that will exist outside the bowls

* How to make more bowl games matter to casual fans

* Also: Bill Belichick as a prospective college coach

Hosts: Alex Kirshner, Richard Johnson

Producer: Anthony Vito.

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

The Eyes List: Resolution Sunday Dec 09, 2024

Show notes

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com

Richard and Godfrey update you on the state of the coach carousel with reporting and analysis on a bunch of movements, including:

* Purdue gets Barry Odom to replace Ryan Walters

* Jon Sumrall’s good situation at Tulane and association with North Carolina

* How Bill Belichick factors into that story

* Charlotte hires Tim Albin, the MAC champion coach

* The end of the Charles Huff-Marshall marriage

* Neal Brown and some G5 jobs

* Scott Frost in 2024 is not Scott Frost in 2017

* A clarifying timeline for Utah and Kyle Whittingham

* The UNC thing really is messy

* West Virginia’s still on the board

Producer: Anthony Vito.

The CFB Playoff Bracket Reaction Show Dec 09, 2024

Show notes

The College Football Playoff bracket is set. Richard, Alex, and Godfrey discuss:

* The committee getting it right this time

* First-round matchups and who got a favorable draw

* Any quibbles with the seedings

* The weakened state of championship games

* The Richard Johnson Transfer Portal Minute

SUPPORT OUR PARTNERS AND GET COOL STUFF

* Enter your pick for the Nokian Tyres Road Trip of the Week and be automatically entered in a monthly drawing to win tires at www.nokiantyres.com/szd

* Use code SZD20 for 20% off your first order from Homefield, at www.homefieldapparel.com

Hosts: Richard Johnson, Steven Godfrey, Alex Kirshner

Producer: Anthony Vito

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

The Ryan Day Decision Point Dec 05, 2024

Show notes

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com

Thanks to the 12-team playoff, Ryan Day’s current situation at Ohio State is unlike any hot-seat drama in college football history. Godfrey, Richard, and Alex talk about the weird dynamics facing the Buckeyes right now, like:

* How many playoff games does Day have to win? Is it one? Two? Four?

* Does the $30 million-plus buyout matter to Ohio State?

* If Day has lost the fanbase—and it sure looks like he has, for now—how much does that bind the OSU brass to get rid of him? And how does the coming revenue-sharing/collective era influence that calculus, if it all?

* Who makes the call? Remember that Ohio State has had quite a bit of backroom turmoil over the past few years, and powerful athletic director Gene Smith is no longer in his job.

* If you’re extremely online (like Alex), you have one impression of the fanbase’s temperature on Day. Is that representative?

* Should Day get any grace given Ohio State’s line injuries?

Hosts: Alex Kirshner, Richard Johnson, Steven Godfrey

Producer: Anthony Vito

Week 15 Tasting Menu: Champs Are Here Dec 04, 2024

Show notes

Alex, Richard, and Steven preview Championship Weekend, in order:

* WKU at Jacksonville State

* Tulane at Army

* UNLV at Boise for a playoff spot

* Miami vs. Ohio

* Iowa State vs. Arizona State

* Georgia vs. Texas

* Marshall at Louisiana

* Penn State vs. Oregon

* Clemson vs. SMU

Plus, updates on the lower-level postseasons and the debut of THE RICHARD JOHNSON PORTAL MINUTE, a one-minute (or so) update on interesting names going into the transfer portal.

SUPPORT OUR PARTNERS AND GET COOL STUFF:

* Enter your pick for the Nokian Tyres Road Trip of the Week and be automatically entered in a monthly drawing to win tires at www.nokiantyres.com/szd

* Use code SZD20 for 20% off your first order from Homefield, at www.homefieldapparel.com

Hosts: Richard Johnson, Steven Godfrey, Alex Kirshner

Producer: Anthony Vito

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

The Eyes List: Black Sunday SitRep Dec 01, 2024

Show notes

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com

Black Sunday arrived. Steven Godfrey goes through his reporting notebook on the coach movements at the end of the regular season, including:

* Why North Carolina is “messy, messy, messy”

* What was behind the Arthur Smith/UNC thing

* Jon Sumrall in control of a limited board

* Uncertainty around Virginia Tech

* KC Keeler to Temple (recorded shortly before that was announced, as you’ll understand as you listen)

* Purdue’s firing of Ryan Walters

* Tulsa undoing the Kevin Wilson mistake

* The late stage of Neal Brown before WVU fired him

* Louisiana Tech not firing Sonny Cumbie

And more!

This episode was recorded Sunday afternoon. One note: West Virginia did indeed fire Neal Brown in the time between recording and publication, which was just about two hours. You’ll hear brief discussion of that possibility on this show.

Stay tuned for more this week from SZD on the state of the carousel.

Week 14 Hurry-Up: You Had A Bad Day Dec 01, 2024

Show notes

A detailed but brisk recap of Week 14 in college football, including:

* Ohio State’s inexplicable collapse

* Texas’ dominant return to College Station

* A Palmetto Bowl that meant everything and nothing

* UGA’s survival in a classic

* Mario Cristobal’s latest epic blunder

* Two Indiana schools punch their tickets

* What to make of Playoff-bound Tennessee

* The Mountain West reserves its spot

* Postgame beefing all over the Big Ten

* Lots of bowls clinched and missed

* One of the worst FBS teams ever

And more.

Hosts: Alex Kirshner, Richard Johnson

Producer: Anthony Vito

SUPPORT OUR PARTNERS AND GET COOL STUFF:

* Enter your pick for the Nokian Tyres Road Trip of the Week and be automatically entered in a monthly drawing to win tires at www.nokiantyres.com/szd

* Use code SZD20 for 20% off your first order from Homefield, at www.homefieldapparel.com

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

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