Top 5 FSU Offensive Newcomers & Courtroom Showdowns

Dive headfirst into the electrifying world of college sports as we unpack a treasure trove of insights, from Florida State's gridiron giants to the high-stakes drama of college hoops. In our latest episode, we throw the spotlight on the sheer dynamism of FSU's offensive newcomers, breaking down the game-changers destined to light up scoreboards in 2024. We don't stop there; join us as we dissect the seismic coaching shifts rocking the basketball world, where moves like John Calipari's jump to Arkansas send shockwaves through the scene. And if that's not enough, we pay homage to UConn's commanding back-to-back national titles, exploring just what secret sauce coach Hurley adds to the Huskies' winning recipe.

It's not all about the plays and the players—this conversation takes a sharp turn into the legal labyrinth affecting college sports, speculating on federal involvement that could redefine the game. Plus, we're already on the edge of our seats for the epic baseball showdown between Florida State and the Gators, promising a follow-up filled with our hot takes and reactions. Whether you're a die-hard fan or a casual follower of collegiate athletics, this episode is your all-access pass to the heart-pounding, game-changing, and sometimes controversial world that keeps us coming back for more. So, don your team colors and prepare for a journey into the athletic feats and legal entanglements that make college sports the ultimate spectacle.

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Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:08

Hey, welcome back. It's the North Florida Sports Network. We've got a great show coming up. We're going to have Jimmy Reno's top five offensive newcomers for the 2024 Florida State team. So you want to stick around for that? Yeah, you do. I mean, this is these are his guys that did not, that were not on the team last year Top five. There's going to be a lot of them and we'll see who he's got.

Speaker 2: 0:40

I can feel them getting excited.

Speaker 1: 0:43

The baseball team is 26-5. Florida State, that is, they're playing the Gators. I'm going to be at the game. You can check it out. Baseball, baseball. You know we'll have another time to talk about baseball. John Calipari went full to Jimbo Fisher. He left a program.

Speaker 2: 1:14

Yeah, they're comparing it. I think he was a little more close to getting fired than Jimbo was. Well, he's going to Arkansas yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:24

And UConn is your national champion. No surprise there. And then some, I would say Back-to-back, not even close. This two-year run was historic. What's crazy is you're looking at one of the most dominant team ever. I didn't even watch the game last year. In two-year span I didn't watch it. What they've done what they did like. If you go through both years, the run they went on is all time and they got a coach Hurley who's a crazy man, he's a mad man. Absolute psychopath.

Speaker 2: 2:02

Yeah, yeah, in a good way, kind of yeah yeah, I mean better than way. Kind of yeah, yeah, I mean better than he's yelling at refs, than out there punching people.

Speaker 1: 2:09

I think he takes a lot of the pressure off the kids when he's out there yelling at the refs.

Speaker 2: 2:15

Yeah, he knows what he's doing.

Speaker 1: 2:16

That team is ultra competitive and if they can take, you can get guys to want to win half as much as he wants to. Right, and you're going to be doing whatever it takes. They have the talent Number two.

Speaker 2: 2:29

Yeah, you got to get the talent, they are just ridiculously efficient at what?

Speaker 1: 2:33

they do Right and it's unselfish type basketball.

Speaker 2: 2:38

And number three he is without question the top guy at working the officials in the game.

Speaker 1: 2:49

Yeah, question the top guy at working the officials in the game. Yeah, well, that I've.

Speaker 2: 2:50

I think he watches it and right, I mean, reminds me of myself in the crowd, clear example, clear examples last night of you know calls in the first half not being made that were made in the second half. You know just touchy fouls late in the game, kind of I don't know. I was impressed. Yeah, that's one of the best basketball teams I've seen.

Speaker 1: 3:12

Yeah, it is. I mean you have to be yourself and he is a crazy person like that, but I mean he just. I mean if he sees a foul, he's going to call it out and he's going to get on the officials. I've, I've always.

Speaker 1: 3:27

You mean the best coaches do in basketball yeah I mean, the best coaches are on the officials all the time in any sport and you just do it by after the play. It's just a mental thing. Some, some people don't like to do. It's not, but you wouldn't ask someone to do it if they weren't comfortable doing it you know.

Speaker 2: 3:46

So yeah, well, I mean, you can't fake it right, he's not faking it and that's how he treats everything.

Speaker 1: 3:51

I mean he was getting into it with edie yeah, player, so I mean he's, he's, you know it's got to be hard to hear it. As a player, you know you want to be like man.

Speaker 2: 3:59

This guy won't shut up right right, oh I, I know, man, everything about playing UConn has got to just suck.

Speaker 1: 4:06

Right, but I'm telling you it's. I mean, they're out there with any, they're doing everything it takes and he's got, like you said, a good a bunch of recruits, good players committed to the game in a psychopathic kind of way.

Speaker 2: 4:22

Yeah, I mean it's definitely a tie. You know that Cam Spencer guy was a transfer Right, but you know that I mean he's the most.

Speaker 1: 4:30

They lost some guys.

Speaker 2: 4:31

Yeah, he's the most like you would not assume that he's the type of basketball player that he is just by looking at him Right, you know, I call him Todd Flanders out there and's just some of the shots he made. He took one up against Edie last night. That was just ridiculous. But guys like that and he's got them all over the court, man, that freshman. They have Castle Newton little point guard that can drift.

Speaker 1: 4:55

I mean, it was just yeah it just goes to the right, the right play. They keep making the right play.

Speaker 2: 5:00

I mean honestly, like I gotta, you also gotta tip your hat to Zach Edie, because, yeah, to have 37 points going up against that when you're getting no help from his team.

Speaker 1: 5:11

He improved every year and as improved on a player of the year, last year he got better even this year, florida State played him when he was just some scrub, and he's still dominated. Right, well, I mean, he's a yeah gigantic person, but he's gotten a lot better. And but this you can't.

Speaker 2: 5:28

But they bothered him, man clink clinging bottom, that big old cling kong guy. Yeah, and it wasn't just him, it was the entire, the entire team is.

Speaker 1: 5:37

They play together, they play psychopathic, they play winning basketball. Yeah, I mean 37 and 3 on the year first team to go back toto-back since Florida.

Speaker 2: 5:47

I think that team last night smokes either one of those Florida teams.

Speaker 1: 5:50

That was the best team I've seen, maybe since Hurley his brother at Duke, maybe those early 90s. Duke teams with Christian Laidner and Hurley.

Speaker 2: 6:02

I mean, if you look at just college basketball, I'm going to go to UNLV.

Speaker 1: 6:06

Yeah, that team was yeah around that. It's been about 40 years, the early 90s, 30 years.

Speaker 2: 6:10

Tarkanian Duke kept them from going back to back. Yeah, they were trying to do it. That team was still just insane. I mean, you think about the players they had on there man Stacey Augman, right Tarkany in there.

Speaker 1: 6:24

The Shark. But to be able to do it back-to-back is an all-time no-transcript. Yeah, right up there.

Speaker 2: 6:32

Yeah, yeah, you know, I mean in any sport, right, but in college basketball. With the turnover you can be able to do it in this day and age, though, in a tournament too, in a sport like baseball, in a one-and-done thing to be able to go back-to-back and the way they did it is one of the most impressive things you're going to see ever yeah going to see yeah, ever.

Speaker 1: 6:57

Yeah, I think that was. That was boring as it the tournament was, but it was impressed. It would. They were impressive to watch.

Speaker 2: 7:00

Yeah, just how efficient, how machine-like, and and you kind of take note of what you're watching and I, you know I do kind of chuckle at people complaining about you know, oh, the committee got it wrong by you know. You can clearly tell by the margin of victory for UConn. Well, they were supposed to be rewarded for their regular season.

Speaker 1: 7:20

In a tournament, man, like you said, you're playing six games, matchups, anybody can.

Speaker 2: 7:25

Alabama was a hell of a team. Alabama played 70% of their threes, just to keep it close this team. The big trend was you know, even if it's close at half, there's no shot. In the second half, right, there's no shot. That's what they did to every team they played right, it's impressive, man. Yeah, it's very impressive I hope he um quits yukon, comes florida state next year.

Speaker 1: 7:50

Oh yeah, right I'm sure kentucky will ask him now that john calipari is going to arkansas he's already come out and say he's not doing it um, I don't blame. Oh, no, no, dude, you don't leave anywhere up there. I mean it's great. I mean it's I don't know if I he's doing something really amazing in this day and age too. I went win back-to-back now is Well, not just that.

Speaker 2: 8:18

I mean, you're in Connecticut. You grew up in New Jersey, right? You recruit kids from the same area that you grew up playing against playing basketball. You know your whole family, right? It'd be weird to move to Kentucky. Kentucky is definitely a blue blood program, but so is UConn.

Speaker 1: 8:36

Right.

Speaker 2: 8:36

You know, and they hey, six titles, man, they keep climbing up.

Speaker 1: 8:40

Nobody's about, nobody's even close to them right now. They're in a league of their own?

Speaker 2: 8:46

No, they're not.

Speaker 1: 8:47

They're in a league of their own. They went against what, like he said, were the best two teams matched up in the championship for the last two years last night and it would be destroyed them and then, like you said, ed played 37 points and they got destroyed.

Speaker 2: 9:00

Ed did some things last night where they you know, even uconn, is like damn, we can't do anything about, they're just gonna keep coming but they did exactly it. Like I said a couple shows ago, the john morant philosophy right? They didn't double ed, right yeah?

Speaker 1: 9:13

they let. You got a whole squad like UConn Right, that's the right way to do it.

Speaker 2: 9:19

So props to Mr Hurley. Bobby, you know I always thought it was lame. They put Bobby Hurley on Indiana and blue chips.

Speaker 1: 9:27

You remember that? Yeah, there was, I do remember that. Anyway, that's a good one.

Speaker 2: 9:32

That's a good movie. It is a good movie. Anyway, that's a good one.

Speaker 1: 9:36

That's a good movie. It is a good movie. Well, let's go to this. What we've all been waiting for, you know, spring football is in the air. Oh yeah, my top five Offensive players. We're going to do that first. We're also going to do defensive players. Yeah, but for another time, but we've got a lot of time. We've got a lot of time.

Speaker 2: 9:51

We've got a lot of time Basketball is now over.

Speaker 1: 9:54

We've got baseball coming up.

Speaker 2: 9:55

And you know baseball, it moves at a snail's pace, right.

Speaker 1: 9:58

It does. It's not really good for the reactionary response. Rapid response, instant reaction.

Speaker 2: 10:07

Baseball, you've got to kind of get it right. You've got to kind of catch it at different phases of the season. Yeah.

Speaker 1: 10:10

Right, all right. So offense a lot of new faces. You're losing Jordan Travis. You're losing your top two receivers. You're losing your big play tight end guy.

Speaker 2: 10:20

Essentially everybody.

Speaker 1: 10:22

Right, your big running back. So we were like who's going to be? I just wanted to ask Jimmy, who are the top five offensive players? Are you looking forward to seeing next year?

Speaker 2: 10:35

It's a combination of looking forward to seeing as well as needing them to be legit. Number five is Malik Benson. Malik Benson Transferred from Alabama and it's because of his speed, because I still think there was a lot of hype when Alabama got this kid. They were really excited about it. Again, I'm not convinced that some of the issues weren't because of the offense, because of the struggles of the quarterback, because of Tommy Reese essentially bringing in an entirely new system, so nobody knew what the hell was going on Right and you coming into a group where there's not a bunch of that speed is legit there isn't.

Speaker 2: 11:21

It plays, it's top-end speed. It's probably I mean, we had Pokey Wilson, but I don't think we've had a combination of that since Terry in terms of size and speed. And that's a guy if we can take that top threat, because then you, you, you talk about a quarterback that can make big time throws downfield you know that that'd be huge if he could turn that position yeah, a big, big question mark going into this season because last year you had johnny wilson return, you had keon coleman, you had coming in as a transfer portal, two guys that were established already in college and made big time plays.

Speaker 2: 11:59

This year. You don't have that. No, you don't. You got potential. You have potential. You have guys like Poitier and you know Destin Hill is back, williamson is back. None of them were, you know, huge standouts last year, but they all had their moments.

Speaker 1: 12:15

So you got a guy from alabama with top end speed right, a guy that was juco he you know he was alabama figured, all right, we're just gonna slide him in here.

Speaker 2: 12:24

He's gonna be like jameson, right and you haven't really seen him in this offense?

Speaker 1: 12:29

you haven't seen anybody.

Speaker 2: 12:30

This is a whole new team almost on offense yeah so number five, malik benson and it's I, you know passing options are going to be at a premium man, we have to have that, you know. Guys step up at pretty much every spot and that leads into to number four for me is landon thomas, the freshman. Tight end, I see, yeah, uh you know old school freshman, but just athletically.

Speaker 2: 12:56

I think he brings something that the tight end room right now doesn't have, wow, or at least hasn't shown to that point. Not that there aren't anybody that can play Jackson West. We'll see if Brian Courtney can ever put it together. He's bounced back and forth linebacker tight end. But Landon Thomas, first of all, he's legit 6'5". Physically he looks more developed and further along than a true freshman. But he's also got some quick twitch traits that the other guys don't necessarily have. So I think even flexing him out as that big wide receiver at times it could be big. If he can come in and you don't want to rely on a true freshman to be a, you're going to be our top receiving threat.

Speaker 1: 13:41

But I mean someone's got to do it.

Speaker 2: 13:44

I think if you can find roles for him and you know times to get him in the game and make that spot dangerous.

Speaker 1: 13:49

Newcomers that you were looking forward to seeing Right.

Speaker 2: 13:57

And that means that if you're the scene, this guy, this is big play, he's a big time recruit, right it's? You know, it's able to keep him stolen from georgia. We're able to keep kirby off of him on signing day, right.

Speaker 2: 14:06

So, and and quietly. Chris thompson has done a really good job with the tight end room, right, he's, he's just, he's really had I was hard on thompson when he got here. I was, you know, even called him useless at one point, but that was just me raging um, he's done a really nice job. Moving to number three number three. Moving to number three you. You got to replace big part of your backfield yeah, yeah, we talked about quarterback.

Speaker 1: 14:35

We lost that.

Speaker 2: 14:35

Quarterback. But you also got to replace Can I go quarterback here, Right, no, no, no. You got to replace Trey Benson.

Speaker 1: 14:40

Trey Benson yeah.

Speaker 2: 14:42

And it kind of yeah, a lot of newcomers here, right, and what you got to replace with Trey Benson is the power and the speed Right. So I'm going to use two players here that are both newcomers as kind of co-number threes.

Speaker 2: 14:57

Right, and they're both running backs, okay, and the first one is Roy Dale Williams, another Alabama transfer, alabama transfer Guy that was highly thought of by fans and coaches of Alabama. You know, just a guy that never really got his shot, loaded running back room there, yeah, and I mean he has the tools to be a really, really dynamic running back. So that's the speed that. You know, he's powerful guy, big guy, you know, but he's got a little bit more speed than my other guy, which is is cam davis, the freshman, and and I'm adding him on there because he got on campus looking like third year player right, that's a grown man and he apparently has carried himself like that through scrimmages in terms of being physical, taking up to the contact, like that.

Speaker 2: 15:40

That is a big guy yeah, you know, and you pair like those two guys coming in big running back combo.

Speaker 1: 15:45

Yeah, and you got other running backs. Man, you still have toa philly and kazaya holmes you still have those right to wonder who who's number?

Speaker 2: 15:54

two, so number two. I'm going to go with DJ DJ Uwe. Yeah, my man, now he's my man.

Speaker 1: 16:04

Big, important position quarterback. It is, it's the quarterback.

Speaker 2: 16:06

It's the important position and I honestly like I want to see it, man.

Speaker 2: 16:10

Because I remember when he was a true freshman at Clemson and they would bring him in after they were blowing people out and he would go in there and just coast and they'd move right down the field and be like, oh my God, we got to face this guy for two more years after this at least, and like I don't believe that that's gone away, I still think he has that capability. I just think being at Clemson and the expectations and it just went south somehow, right, and you know, I think it's a high bar, yeah, at the time.

Speaker 2: 16:40

But he seems like a kid that kind of puts a lot on himself and demands a lot from himself. So I really want to see if Norvell can focus and channel that, because that's kind of up Norvell's alley.

Speaker 1: 16:52

Well, this guy is number one on my list.

Speaker 2: 16:55

Yeah right.

Speaker 1: 16:56

I mean everything this season kind of hinges on it really Right, right.

Speaker 2: 17:02

It's the most important position. It would probably be everybody's obvious number one.

Speaker 1: 17:05

And his upside. But that's the exciting part, because his upside is up there.

Speaker 2: 17:09

Right and listen Jordan Travis to me. He's right up there with the title winners, the Heisman winners, the title winners and he did it, yeah, but I will say that DJ comes in with more impressive physical tools for the quarterback spot Outside of speed Outside of the speed and the scalability that was always Jordan Travis's health.

Speaker 1: 17:35

It just came in the worst time.

Speaker 2: 17:37

Some throws that he would be hesitant to make so DJ at number two, dj's number two, dj's number two. And I'm really optimistic about the downfield ability with him Wow, number five Got one spot left.

Speaker 1: 17:49

Yeah, one spot. Who are you looking forward to the most on offense this season?

Speaker 2: 17:53

man, let me tell you something You're going to have to look because you're not going to be able to see him. I know yeah.

Speaker 1: 18:03

You have to look close man.

Speaker 2: 18:04

Yeah, he's not the biggest guy and he's faster than anything you've seen in a while. It's jaylen lucas.

Speaker 1: 18:07

Jaylen, the transfer from indiana, yeah you like that one, you like that pickup, right when it happened yeah it's, it's speed and right and that's what the?

Speaker 2: 18:15

rumor has it that he had. You know, he set the miles per hour mark, I mean yeah, and that you know 23 miles per hour on their. I saw the clip. I mean yeah, and that you know 23 miles per hour on their GPS.

Speaker 1: 18:23

It's always good to have a really fast.

Speaker 2: 18:26

Right, and everybody you know. When they picked him up they're like dude, here's your kick returner.

Speaker 1: 18:30

But the thing is is they've been putting him at running back. I like that.

Speaker 2: 18:33

Yeah, and he's making plays every practice.

Speaker 1: 18:43

Every scrimmage he's had a touchdown, a long touchdown it's. You know that goes well with number three on your list, if you can get that right going right in there, yeah, and and I'm I'm telling you everything we've seen out of his older brother, jakai douglas.

Speaker 2: 18:51

I think he brings the exact same kind of versatility in game. He's a little bit shorter but he's a lot faster, and that's not to undersell jakai, because he's gonna be a big part of the team next year. We're going to have to rely on him heavy, it's exciting. Yeah, but this kid, he's rocking number 13. Reminds me of Dexter Carter out there. He's way, way faster than Dexter. I'm excited to see him. Wow, most excited, most excited.

Speaker 1: 19:17

Don't buckle man. It Dude's been putting it on Well we've got to get on out of here. That's it for today, but it's time to go.

Speaker 2: 19:30

We've got to maybe come back tomorrow after the baseball game yeah, you know that's tough to do. Let me ask you a question how much has Justin been gloating about calling WrestleMania down to a T Doing?

Speaker 1: 19:44

it.

Speaker 2: 19:44

He knows it I mean 40.

Speaker 1: 19:46

Doing it, he knows it.

Speaker 2: 19:48

I mean 40 years of water. He called it man, he called it.

Speaker 1: 19:51

Well, he was right on UConn too. I mean, there was a lot of people there. Yeah, to do back-to-back, though it's hard to do.

Speaker 2: 19:57

I'm not so sure now, though I had said that I thought Alabama would beat Purdue too, but I don't know.

Speaker 1: 20:03

I would beat Purdue too. But I don't know. I'm not sure Alabama could have handled pigs out. We haven't talked about the court case.

Speaker 2: 20:08

Oh yeah, what's going on right?

Speaker 1: 20:10

now. Yeah, so we'll have to react to that.

Speaker 2: 20:13

The pre-lunch part. I think the judge gave it to the ACC pretty good.

Speaker 1: 20:17

Yeah, just like. Well, what do you mean? You didn't think that you were going to involve a state-run university in a contract Right Now. What's up with this secret?

Speaker 2: 20:28

Yeah, and it's not just that. I mean we pay $140, $150 million to the ACC as an exit fee. We still don't get our media rights. They're not giving them back, they're just going to sell them to somebody else. Florida State only gets a portion of that money. And the judge just kind of laughed, you know. He just chuckled and just moving on. I mean, like what the hell is that?

Speaker 1: 20:55

there's no way that all those schools agreed to that and that's pretty much been. That's where the record seal comes. That's been.

Speaker 2: 20:58

Yeah, and you know they've tried to argue that swafford can't be deposed in florida because he lives in north carolina and the judge dude lawyers go out over the country to do depositions.

Speaker 1: 21:10

Hey, I got one right here. I live with one. Yeah, man Just went all the way across country.

Speaker 2: 21:16

Right, I have a feeling that both cases are going to be hey, go ahead. Right, there's going to be two court cases going on with this shit.

Speaker 1: 21:24

It's going to be yeah, I mean, and then that's when it's going to come down to the feds. They're going to have to get involved.

Speaker 2: 21:31

Congress is going to end up getting involved If Clemson goes ahead with their lawsuit.

Speaker 1: 21:34

You already saw Nick Saban at Congress. Clemson's going to move ahead with theirs. Yeah, that's it, man. That's what you have now.

Speaker 2: 21:43

It's pretty comical.

Speaker 1: 21:45

We got baseball tonight, though, and Florida State's got a chance to take the series against the.

Speaker 2: 21:49

Gators. They already took the series.

Speaker 1: 21:50

They got a chance to sweep. I mean sweep the series. That's what I meant to say. Yeah, that's big deal, we'll watch it, we'll react to it, all that stuff, and we'll talk to you next time right here on the North Florida.