It's time for The Mailbag, presented by Whitney McNutt of Tommy Morgan Inc. Realtors, Edition 199.
I asked for your questions. You delivered. So here we go...
From DBROTC: The season is still young with each week having a fair amount of over reactions for teams and players both positively and negatively. Does Chase wish he could take back his Twitter apology to AR-15? I think he fooled most everyone week 1 with his performance against Utah. Since then, Kentucky players called him “straight hot dog water” after they dominated him and Florida almost lost to South Florida this past weekend. That case comes to mind just because of Chase’s doubts on the pod leading up to the season. His intuition was right in the end I believe. Any over reactions on your part of the young season that comes to mind?
I can't speak for Chase. The season is, as you said, still very young.
As for overreactions, yeah, it's part of the gig. I do like 14 podcasts per week, most about football this time of year. If you're going to be any good (it's debatable as to whether I am or not), you have to have opinions. Some of those opinions are going to be wrong.
And opinions change over time. One week, I might think Mississippi State looks good. One week later, or, in Saturday's case, one half later, I might change my mind. That's just the nature of the beast, I suppose.
There are people in this field who avoid opinions. They simply don't express them. They are so careful to be politically correct and go to great pains to make sure they never offend. Those people might be wonderful humans, but they're not typically very good at broadcasting or podcasting.
From chattreb: Is it too early to tell, but have you talked with any coaches or sources yet who have confirmed the inevitable creation of prima Donnas due to NIL?
Not really. The smart coaches I know just know NIL is here to stay and they're dealing with it. College football has always had prima donnas (and pre-Madonnas).
From cctrey5: If you’re the AD at Arizona State, how high would Bryan Harsin be on your list?
He'd make some sense, as he's familiar with the region, is known as a straight-shooter, clean, etc., and I think he's a good coach. But I don't know enough about the culture there in Tempe to really answer that. But look, if the NCAA deal there is bad, people are going to be leery of that job and Harsin is going to be available and motivated.
From LM12: Is there a way that the CFP can be only on-campus games until the championship? The top-4 teams are bound to complain that they aren't getting that experience.
I don't think so. I think college football loves the idea of incorporating the big bowls into the playoff system. I'd love on-campus games, but I think the concept of four quarterfinals in -- for example -- the Orange, Cotton, Fiesta and Rose Bowls -- is awfully compelling television. In that scenario, you'd have the semis in the Peach and Sugar Bowls and then the national title someplace like Indianapolis or Las Vegas. It really works.
From DeuceMccluster22: Im John Cohen, you are an influential Mississippi State booster w/ the influence to persuade me to hire a new football coach if the Leach experiment goes a stray. Give me three reasons why I should hire Hugh Freeze.
This is easy.
1. He's a damn good football coach.
2. He's won in Mississippi before and knows a lot of people in this part of the country and can assemble a solid recruiting staff.
3. He would make Mississippi State a national story, and assuming he wins some, he'd make MSU somewhat relevant again.
I could go on and on. Frankly, I think the positives far outweigh the negatives for Mississippi State, and I think he makes a ton of sense.
From Lanekiffinsvisor: Do you think Lane ever just says hey Darts the guy and if not at what point does Luke say "Hey coach, I appreciate everything, and I'll be a good soldier, but unless it's a chance at regaining the job or winning a championship, I really don't wanna use a year of eligibility playing in garbage time"
That's certainly conceivable, but I don't know. At this moment, there's really no reason to make some big public announcement. As for Altmyer, I don't know what his wishes are or what he believes the situation is. I've heard all he wants/wanted is a fair shot, so if he believes he has gotten that, maybe he's going to put team first and evaluate his situation at the end of the season. But again, that's speculative. I don't know.
From Lanekiffinsvisor: Have you ever thought of doing a history show? Maybe conspiracy or "dark history" those things make bank and seem to be right up your alley.
No, I really haven't. I love history, listen to some history podcasts, have a degree (with no real value) in history, but no. First, my plate is really full right now. Second, I'm not good enough to pull that off. That would require a level of research I simply don't have time for.
From capitolcityreb: how much control do ADs have on game times?
Very, very little.
I must admit: I'm kind of stunned at the degree of angst this 11 a.m. kickoff time has created. I mean this sincerely. I didn't anticipate it. I knew people loved the Grove, but I guess I haven't been out there in so long (it's been at least 12 years) that I just failed to realize how big a part of game-day it is for so many.
Look, ESPN looked at next weekend as a puzzle and they clearly believed Kentucky-Ole Miss was going to be a great game coming out of their pregame show. They clearly believe it will be a great game that bleeds into the 2:30 window perfectly. CBS clearly believes Arkansas has a real shot to beat Texas A&M Saturday and set up a top-10 unbeaten showdown with Alabama as the road team. And ESPN, I believe, knows LSU and Auburn are bigger brands than Ole Miss and Kentucky nationally and think that game would do better at night than UK-Ole Miss.
I don't have their analytics, so I'm not in a position to disagree. Auburn is playing at 11 a.m. Saturday. Maybe there is an agreement to try not to do it twice in a row to a team playing at home. I don't know. But I'm really surprised at the angst the kickoff announcement has created. I suppose I shouldn't be, but it's likely revelatory of how out of touch I am with fans.
From larryjoe1979: on a scale of 1 to Batman, how excited are you for the Hugh Freeze era in Starkville. I mean the Rosebowl backpedalling will glorious in it's own right. Hypothetically of course
Please put this straight into my veins. There's so much about it that I'd love. The thought makes me so excited.
From BigDogSaint23: Do you know anything on the extent of Chance Campbell’s knee injury? Was really hoping to see him succeed in his rookie year and the Titans are down bad at LB.
I really don't. Everything I've seen is they expect him back after he sits out the required four games.
From SaladThunder: of Tom Herman, Dan Mullen, and Urban Meyer, who would you hire as your HC at Nebraska.
Of those three, I think I'd hire Mullen, but honestly, none make a ton of sense. I'd look to Kansas and look at what Lance Leipold has done there and make him say no. I'd throw a wad of cash at Matt Campbell and Luke Fickell. I'd have to have someone who knew how to build culture as well as work the transfer portal.
From Jackie Fargo: How do you anticipate expanded playoff changing coaching moves with increased opportunities? Opinion on Ole Miss impact?
I think a lot of coaches will now be judged on how often they do or don't make the playoff. I think it's really that simple.
As for Ole Miss, look, the Rebels play in a league that will likely get four or five bids per year to a 12-team playoff. Take care of business in the league and you've got a hell of a shot. If this were a 12-team playoff year, imagine how big next week's game would be.
From Lanekiffinsvisor: Where the heck is your's and Chance's concert to support NIL funds?
It's at Chase's house this Saturday. It starts around 10 a.m. and goes until midnight. He'll do his postgame show on the stage he's having built. Bring some pizzas and your own cooler and have a day at the Parhams' house.
In all seriousness, I know people are doing stuff like that in our field (many more than just Robertson at MSU), but I just think it's inappropriate for media to get involved to that degree. I've had this conversation with a lot of media types and I've been surprised at the number who disagree with me. They tell me I'm leaving money on the table. Maybe they're right.
Maybe I'm old-school. Maybe I've just become so much of a hermit that I know I'd be very uncomfortable in those settings. Maybe I simply know that being labeled a fan eliminates any future opportunities. I don't know. I just wouldn't be remotely comfortable hosting an event of any sort with the proceeds going to an NIL program to help the program I cover. That would make me a fan/booster/homer/pick your word.
From mbeaudre: Do you think the current transfer portal/rules have caused more “second tier” (non-Bama, Georgia, etc.) parity amongst Power 5 teams? Perhaps once its clear to a player that he won’t start, he transfers to become 1st String somewhere else, thereby spreading more talent around. Buy or Sell?
Yes, I think that's readily apparent at this point. That's another reason Ole Miss should pay Kiffin whatever it takes to keep him as long as possible. His mastery of the portal has turned what could've been a rebuilding year into a potentially special season.
From Levi275: Is Urban Meyer still viewed as an extremely appealing candidate for programs like Nebraska or Auburn? I may be in the minority, but his time in Jacksonville was embarrassingly bad and I don’t believe he’s the same coach he was in 2005-2015. On the field, it looks like he’s lost his fastball. Off the field, he lost the respect of nearly everyone in the Jags organization in 6 months.
I don't think so. I think he wants his name out there and he has media friends who will do that for him, but if you're Auburn, why are you hiring Urban Meyer? Nick Saban already forced him into one retirement. And you're right; the stuff that came out of Jacksonville about his time there looks awful. Players hated him. Further, Ohio State has been just fine without him. I don't get the allure.
From jmchand2: Love the Pods! Do you think CLK has kept it vanilla so far on offense? Even most our runs are pretty straight forward. I think when we play UK that we will see Trig be schemed for, rbs catch passes, jet sweeps, lots of pa passes etc.. Just curious of your thoughts.
Thank you. Yes, I think it's been kind of vanilla, but some of that could be just breaking in so many new players, including using young quarterbacks. Obviously, they'll get more complex as the season wears on, likely out of necessity. As I've said for a bit now, the part of the season we'll all be discussing months after it's over hasn't been played yet.
From Cobbrebel: I hear you and Chase allude to SEC teams in respect to their NIL monies. Do you have any way of guessing the ranking of the NIL money per team in the SEC?
I think there are some clear tiers, but I don't know how I'd rank programs inside those tiers.
Texas A&M and Tennessee appear to be ahead of the pack with programs like Georgia, Florida and Alabama not all that far behind.
I suspect LSU is pretty close to that group, and then programs like Ole Miss and Kentucky and probably South Carolina are right after that.
Arkansas is likely pretty close to that group and gaining some steam.
I've heard conflicting things about Auburn, but let's get real; AU could get going very quickly. There are tons of resources there.
I think Missouri is likely 12th here, followed by Mississippi State and Vanderbilt. When Texas and Oklahoma join the league, both programs are going to be very close to the top in this category.
