Aaron Murray College Football Show
The Aaron Murray College Football Show: the SEC through a quarterback's eyes. Aaron Murray, SEC Network Prime Time lead analyst and the SEC's all-time leading passer, uses his experience under center and detailed film study to give you honest, fair analysis for every fanbase.
Every week: live recap and preview shows, game predictions and picks, The Film Room breakdowns of the plays that decided games, QB Report Card grades for every SEC starter, and Murray's Power 16 SEC power rankings.
From Alabama, Georgia and Texas to LSU, Tennessee and Ole Miss, this is where SEC fans come for College Football Playoff talk, quarterback play, coaching news and transfer portal updates. New videos drop year-round: spring practice, SEC Media Days, fall Saturdays and CFP season.
Subscribe and turn on notifications so you never miss a show.
Aaron Murray College Football Show
CFB Week 1 Preview
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Aaron and Eric dive into the biggest matchup in week 1 of the College Football Season!
Like and Subscribe
We are back, baby. College football is here. Week one of the college football season. And right now, here at the Mac and Murray College Football Show, we're going to break down all the top action, give you everything you need to know heading into the weekend. I'm Aaron Murray. This is Eric McLean, and this is the Mac and Murray College Football Show. We had the appetizers, E-Mac. You were actually on campus at Virginia, week zero action. We had the game in Dublin, which was eh iffy. It's just always raining. So it just was a little bit of a sloppy game. But UNC, nice win over TCU. You saw Virginia just absolutely dominate. Bo Prebula. Can we just get his name right? Prebula. Prebula, people. It's Prabula. Not Pribula. Prebula. We fixed it. Okay.
SPEAKER_01We've handled that. We got we got my boy Max right. We got him right. It just took a while.
SPEAKER_00Well, I like Max. I even watched like a cut up like the five minutes before we shot, and the person doing the breakdown said Pribula. Really? Yes. And then hey, listen, I will admit I had a Missouri game last year. It got you too. And it was the first game of the season. And yes. No, it didn't get me, but I was stressed out all week. Oh, you're thinking about it. Yeah, I was thinking about it a lot.
SPEAKER_01I get it.
SPEAKER_00Pribula.
SPEAKER_01Tribula. Pribula. He looked great. That boy was running like a madman. And it was funny. We were, you know, doing our show Friday and then the big show on Saturday. And I was just kind of thinking, like, what do I want to see from him? And I was like, I would love if he would go for a hundred plus yards just to get it going. And he did. And that was great. But I think the story of that game, really two things. One that I'm pretty sure of. I thought of it going in, kind of confirmed it. The other one, I like it, but I have some more questions. This offensive line for Virginia is so good. I mean, they are big, they're old, like they're my age, still playing. Shout out to them. Um, and they were mowing dudes down. I mean, in sync, racking it off. When you have a quarterback run too, like that just that helps everything, gets changes everything with hat placement, angles, extra blocker, all the all the things there. So they're elite, and I think that's gonna take them a long, long way. Like if they can replicate that game plan all year, which you know, you run into a big, bad defensive line, maybe you can't. We'll see. Um, but that's gonna take them as far as they want to go. The other thing, these DBs, brother, safety, nickel, corners. I mean, it was clamps. It was Seat Belt City on every single receiver for NC State. And that's why I'm putting a little asterisk here. I just need to see more. Like, is NC State in a horrible spot and their receivers are trash and can't get separation? Or was Virginia that good? Was Virginia that good? Because they've got a cap from Michigan. They've got some homegrown talent. I mean, they've got dudes and they they played. So we'll see. But very impressed. I would hope Virginia gets some love, maybe gets ranked here at the bottom of the top 25, especially just coming off 11 win season a year ago.
SPEAKER_00I mean, you go back to Bose at Missouri, I know there was some the injury that he dealt with, but when he played the majority of the time, he was pretty darn good. And we know obviously how athletic he is as a quarterback. So you have that kind of athlete with that offensive line at the quarterback spot, it just opens up everything with inside that offense. So uh they are a team to watch, no doubt, should be in the top 25 probably after this weekend, based on just that butt whooping uh that they put on NC State. Before we get into all the matchups in week one, we have a lot of games to get into. We appreciate you guys like, subscribe, all that good stuff. But UNC takes down TCU. And a lot pretty much everyone and their brother had TCU win this game, unless you're an ACC guy, a la Eric McLean on the show right here. Um, but it was a big win for Bill Belichick. They got smashed a year ago against CCU. Get some revenge, let the quarterback look good, defense looked really, really good. Very sloppy game, obviously, weather-wise there in Dublin, Ireland. But what is your big takeaway about UNC after watching them in that week one victory?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I don't think, you know, obviously the offense was was better. It didn't get reflected in necessarily the stack column or points, but I thought it looked a little bit more smooth than it was a year ago. But to me, the biggest takeaway is this defensive line for Carolina's good. Like they are big, they are physical. Uh old buddy, the three technique had four tackles for loss, just causing all kinds of anarchy and and chaos and just physically like the look of them. And Jimbo Fisher told me he he was at cam, you know, Khaki was having our son, so I didn't get a go. But he texted me and said, Hey, this D-line's big and nasty. I'm like, okay, like that sounds good. Let's let's see you know what it can do. And man, they delivered. So, you know, I'm I'm I'm kind of you know a little taken aback by what I saw from these guys because it was efficient, it was effective. Guys weren't having a lot of busts, a lot of MA's, and that's what we expected to see all year last year from a Bill Belichick defense.
SPEAKER_00It's a Bill Belichick defense.
SPEAKER_01It took it a year. It took it a year to get here, but it's here. Now, how good is TCU? Again, I'm gonna put an asterisk by this game, just like I am for the Virginia secondary. Maybe TCU has some real issues. We will find out. But a great start, huge win for the ACC to be able to hang their hat on a non-con win.
SPEAKER_00Let me just ask you this real quick just before we get to the games. The game was in Dublin, Dublin. It was raining, it was messy. It feels like it's that a lot of times. Or what is your thoughts on games outside the States? I'm not a fan.
SPEAKER_01I've seen places where it rains half the year, it seems like all the time. Like get it indoors. But I know trying to grow the game and the partnership, but I'm I'm good on all that. Let's leave it here. I want to win.
SPEAKER_00I don't want to start my first game of the season in a really game.
SPEAKER_01It's just a lot. Did you ever do any international with NFL?
SPEAKER_00I did my rookie year, we played uh in England. Was that fun or was it just there in the game? It was cool. I mean, you know, you get the go. We we we only went a couple days before the game. Uh, we played Detroit, who spent the whole week there, and they had way too much fun, and we waxed them. I mean, beat the brakes off them. That's awesome. Um, but no, it's a cool trip. Like, it's an unbelievable opportunity. But difference between NFL and college, like NFL, you lose a game, it's you can lose five, six, seven games and still be in the playoffs. College, as we know, you can still lose one, two games, but like you don't want to start falling behind uh like that. And and and you're not going there necessarily for a vacation or enjoyment. You really need to hone in and try to win that game. So I think we're both most. Let's just go to a place that doesn't rain so much. Like, I don't I hate that we went over there and it just pissed the whole time. Yeah, yeah. Just sloppy, not ideal conditions for a first football game. And that's the first football game of the year. Like, that's the first time people are like tuning in to watch college football and they're watching a sloppy mess. And it just, you know, was not as as exciting as it could have been if it was in a drier location uh or a hotter location here in the States. All right, let's jump into it. We got lots of games to break down. We got Clemson LSU, we have Baylor, Auburn, and Atlanta. We got Louisville versus Ole Miss, we got SMU FSU, we got Miami Stanford, and then hopefully at the end, if we have some time, we'll touch a little bit Colorado versus Georgia Tech. A lot of big ACC T ACC games this weekend. Who said the ACC scared? Hey, I'm rubbing off on you, buddy.
SPEAKER_01You're you're all in the comments. Hey, I'm gonna peel back the curtain. You tried to put Duke on here, Duke Tulane. So I'm like, Aaron, all right, bro. We don't have to go over.
SPEAKER_00Every game on here, besides one, has an ACC team uh a part of it. So the ACC scheduling big time games in week one, and we obviously appreciate and love that because it gives us something a little bit more exciting to talk about than um big time teams playing scrubs to get the season started off with. So uh this is let's let's let's get into it. And the first one, uh, I think it was our first game a year ago we talked about, and that's Clemson versus LSU. Clemson unranked, LSU ranked pretty high. Lane Kiffin, obviously the big storyline coming over from Ole Miss, gonna make his first uh not start, but first appearance as a head coach for them Tigers in the real Death Valley. Now that they claimed that title a year ago going in and beating Clemson in their home turf. You got Lane Kiffin, you got Charlie Weiss Jr., you got an offense that's gonna have incredible playmakers and an experienced quarterback in Sam Levitt. So we'll get to LSU. I want to give you the opportunity first because it feels like everyone is saying no-brainer in Baton Rouge, LSU, LSU, LSU, Clemson is dead. Clemson ain't no more. Everyone's dogging on the Tigers. Why why is that a mistake, Ema?
SPEAKER_01Well, I think it's just at the end of the day, this team's still very talented and used to being in the spotlight like this. I mean, that this isn't a team that's like, oh my goodness, what are we gonna do? It's it's big, bad LSU. Now, listen, that place is cool and you know I'm I'm excited to see it. I'll be there Saturday night as a spectator, cannot wait. Um, but football is football at the end of the day, right? And and it you have to run the ball and you got to stop the run. And if you're able to do that, you've got a really good shot here. So to me, it's all about handling that storm. Don't get caught up in all the stuff because it is gonna be a spectacle. And again, cannot wait to see it. But how do you react? And especially if something unfortunately goes wrong early, whether it's a big touchdown by them, turnover by you, like you have got to manage that because it can get loud in an absolute hurry. So interested to see how they do that. The QB situation, I'm gonna pivot this back to you here in a second. But it scares me. I mean, it's just gonna be interesting, right? Like, what's the decision? You know, has Vasina done enough that you feel like he's fully the guy and you're giving him the keys of the car, which again, in his only start that he's had, he threw for 300 yards, three touchdowns, uh, and and no picks, which is great. Any quarterbacks, you're like, yeah, this is awesome against an ACC team. And that was at home, and they did lose, so you don't get that you know stat there, but he he has shown something. Or do you go to the talented freshman that people are very excited about that's built like a freaking tank that can run the ball and has a rocket launcher arm? So to to me, looking at it again, assuming the Vazina, I don't think I'm not assuming, we kind of know the Zina's going to start. You're the QB, Aaron. You you were younger when you did it, this guy's older, but you're the QB in your first ever road start, and it's at this place. What's the conversation with your OC? Like, how are you getting him to take care of you? What kind of throws, what kind of plays to get this guy going early to at least see that he can throw a completion?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I mean, listen, I always love getting hit early to me, like for me personally. Like I love some sort of zone read, opportunity maybe to pull it or get on the edge, bootleigh, I can run it if nothing's open. Just an easy completion. A lot of these guys nowadays run that RPO stuff. So if you got numbers, you can get a nice easy completion to a bubble. And you just see it's all like, you know, it's seeing a completion, it's seeing positive yards, it's getting a first down. Sometimes I always say this in broadcasts, sometimes the hardest thing to do is just getting that first first down. Then after that first first down, you're like, okay, now we're changes everything. Statistically, it changes everything. Well, it it changes everything and also it quiets the crowd down. Like getting that first down all of a sudden feels like the c the crowd quiets down. And then you get to the 50-yard line, and it almost feels like it's not dead silent, but it's significantly lower than it was, you know, when you first got the football. And then it ramps back up when you get into the red zone. So there's kind of like that between the 35 and say the 25 of the red area, you know, you're creeping to the red area, it's more manageable, it's calmer, it's easier for a quarterback to communicate, it's easier to make checks. You don't feel like everything's happening so fast. So, you know, when you're going into an environment like like Banner Rouge, when you're going into that stadium, into that atmosphere, which is going to be absolutely crazy. First game of the season, Lane Kiffin, fans are gonna be going absolutely nuts. And can you just get them the quiet a few decibels and a few more? I think that's that's obviously a lot easier said than done. Yeah, but just getting easy completions early on, and obviously at the end of the day to be able to run the football. And and that's something that's gonna be a challenge. I mean, Blake Baker, who is has done tremendous jobs his first two years at LSU. You're talking about a defense that struggled. This is LSU. There's talent everywhere, there's DBU, whatever you want to call it. And he got there two years ago, one of the best DCs, young DCs in college football from Missouri, and really got them going in the right direction. Really good season. Two years ago, even better season. A year ago, hell, held Clemson in that offense at 10 points last season in the opener. So I think this defense is gonna be really good once again. So you got to take some pressure off the quarterback, easy completions, run the football, and then hell, man, like if I get a first, yeah, get a first down or two, take a shot. Just do it. Man, just get me wing that thing and just open that up a little bit and just let the, you gotta let the defense know that, hey, yeah, maybe we protected the quarterback a little bit early, you know, the first like you know, first uh four or five plays, but we ain't gonna play like that. Like y'all gotta worry about us taking some shots down the field.
SPEAKER_01I know you were changes everything, Mr. Clemson. Yeah, it's a big uh it's a big indicator of the aggressiveness that you want to be. And that's why Chad Morris was brought in to do exactly that. That's what we did, you know, when when he was my offensive coordinator there. And I and then I also think it's important everything you said, but also getting TJ Moore and Bryant Wesco involved early. Like I imagine that was priority one with AJ Green, right? Like get him the rock a couple of times at minimum on this first drive is is that overrounds, is that slant, whatever it is, bubble screen, just he needs to touch it. Those guys need to touch it uh and just see and what can really happen there. So those are kind of offensively the the real things that I'm staring down just to see like this first scripted drive, whenever they get the ball, what is it gonna look like? How clean is it gonna be? What are the shots that are built in, things of that nature?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, flipping over to the other side for for LSU in that offense. I mean, I love the quarterback. I really do. I think Sam Levitt from all accounts has had a you know, everything you're hearing from Baton Rouge, and obviously that's from Baton Rouge is he had a really good camp. We know the athletes they have on the outside. They did a good job bringing in transfer guys, and they have maybe you know one of the best athletes, chess pieces, tight ends, whatever, hybrid players, former basketball for whatever every name under the book you can call um Tradez Green. The dude is an absolute nightmare. And he came full steam last year in this game and really showed about what a 6'7, you know, frame body can do, especially in the red area. So I'm interested to see now all of a sudden you got Lane Kiffin, who's one of the best offensive minds in college football. You have Charlie Weiss Jr. also together, like those two guys can create matchups to really stress a defense. So, how much has he, you know, when I talk about he green been able to learn in this offense? And and I always go back to my time in Kansas City because you know, I really got to see the evolution of the tight end position with Andy Reid and Travis Kelsey. And it was just so shocking to me because I've never done before. I was so used to tight ends just being inline guys. You're at the you're on either the right side of the right tackle or the left side of the left tackle. And that was really it. All of a sudden we got tight ends splitting out wide as a single receiver. We got him moving in the slot, you got him you know move into the backfield, like all this crazy stuff. But Trey Des Green is that type of athlete where what Lane Kiffin, the master of offense, the master of getting guys wide open to where he's throwing a cliffboard in the air, where can you get him matched up against the weakness of this Clemson defense? And not even like wide open, but him against a linebacker, him against a safety, because you had six, seven going against maybe six foot, and that just makes a quarterback's job so much easier. So I I I cannot wait to see him trade as green, get some opportunities with inside this offense. I think it's gonna be one of the more fascinating and fun things to watch this entire college football season, and we get it in a big time game in week one. He he's Waldo, right?
SPEAKER_01Like you got to know where he is, and it won't be hard, right? No, not hard to find him. Uh, but like last year a couple of times, especially in the red area, uh, I mean, he has a six-foot corner matched up. I mean, that's that's game over. Just box him out and throw me the ball. I mean, it's it's very simple at that point. Size beats not size. And so, you know, what is Clemson's plan? They they have a bigger safety in Ronan uh Hannafin. Is he gonna be just locked up on him? Is he gonna follow him around? Do you feel good enough about Sammy Brown being taken out of something because he's following that guy around? I don't know. I'm very interested just to see the the chess piece or the chess match that will occur uh b between those guys and and what Tom Allen is gonna do on the defensive side of the ball. And also just excited to see the the improvement of this secondary. Like Clemson went out and got guys, something they have never ever done, ever, in the history of this portal, and which has been around five or so years here, and they did. And it was all on defense. It was mostly in the secondary, some really good pieces, some very uh long guys, some some speedy guys. So just seeing how that fits, what that looks like here is gonna be fascinating to see to me. And then just this defensive front uh for for Clemson. Like we know the ends, okay? You know, I think Will Held's gonna be a top two draft pick, maybe a first-round draft pick. He just was mocked by Jordan Reed, ESPN, uh, at the back of the first round here. Jaheem Lawson is a big guy now, has gained great weight, has been around in this program. He's gonna be a guy that eventually gets drafted pretty high. It's the interior that it's just young and inexperienced or unknown guys. And at the end of the day, Aaron, Clemson has D-tackles, right? Like that's just what we do. We build them, we breed them, we create them. And that's what we're gonna find out.
SPEAKER_00I just want to see them give a damn. You know what I mean? 100%. 100%. They had three guys drafted inside the top 50. They had so much top that D-line, it just they felt like there was never that want to, that drive, that passion that you're so used to seeing from Clement and it feels like these guys have to have that because they are nobodies, right?
SPEAKER_01Like you've got uh Andy, I'm not gonna try to pronounce his ver last name yet, but Andy B, he's a JUCO guy. Like no one knows who you are, bro. You you have to go hard, and he's big, strong cat. And then Amir Adams, young sophomore that we heard so much about a year ago, that just you know was hurt, banged up, wasn't on the field. It's it's go time for for him to get going. Got to hit Sam Levitt. Gotta hit Sam Levitt at the end of the day. And you have to contain him. Like you can't just let him create. He he's he and Kate Klubnick are a little similar where they will run around, move around, and something either really good or really bad will happen. So it's fascinating. Oh no. He's a playmaker, no doubt.
SPEAKER_00All right, let's get to picks here. I'll go first and let you kind of mold over a little bit more and see if you're gonna go against your climps and tag us here. I got LSU. I'm gonna go.
SPEAKER_01It's a cover straight up.
SPEAKER_00Number's ten and a half. Ten and a half. Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Come on to the come on to the orange.
SPEAKER_00I'll take that too. I think I do. I think that defense, you're talking about a quarterback, regardless of who they go with, very little playing experience early in the first game of the season in that stadium, which is going to be electric. It's gonna be nuts. Blake Baker is tremendous defensive coordinator. There's talent on that side of the football at all three levels for LSU. Love their linebackers. Um, and I think this is Lane Kiffin. I think I think Lane Kiffin always has a lot of stuff up his sleeve. I think he especially has something up his sleeve for this game. First game, make a statement, let the country know that, hey, I made the right decision by coming to LSU and that that we're here to uh to be contenders in year one, which I do believe LSU is a contender in year one to do a lot of really good stuff inside the SEC and obviously as a playoff team as well. So I think they dominate. I really do. I it would make I would feel better if Clemson had a little bit more of a veteran quarterback on the other side. They just don't have that, and that just really worries me in an environment like Baton Rouge.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I I'm I'm fascinated to see what this team for LSU is going to look like, man, because I'm looking at the depth chart right now, and on offense, there's four guys that have worn this jersey before. It's all new guys, it's all guys we have no clue.
SPEAKER_00But Lane's done that for the past two, three years at all miss.
SPEAKER_01And he's he's you know, and he's never, you know, what's he done? He hasn't won a championship, you know, loses to Georgia. What does he do? Loses in them? He left, he never coached the playoffs. He's he's a bum. Let him coach him, coach him, let him. Uh so yeah, we'll we'll see. But I think it's I think we need to take that into account. There's a lot of guys that have never played a game together. And you know, what does that look like? You know, with Sam Levitt, we haven't touched on this. I think there was an injury thing that happened at some point. Now, he might have been good all fall camp. I don't think he had any spring. I don't think he had barely any summer. How are those reps going to be? How's that timing going to be with the receivers? I'm very interested to see. I'm I'm 100% taking Clemson. 10 and a half is crazy to me, especially with a brand new team. So give me my tigers. You can have your tigers and your Lane Kiffin guy.
SPEAKER_00I like how you you change it from like win losses to points. We always give it away. That's what the people want.
SPEAKER_01That's what the people want.
SPEAKER_00Ten and a half. That's too big of a number. There you go. It is a big number. All right, let's move on to our next game. It is going to be in Atlanta, Georgia. The Baylor Bears retooled uh in a lot of spots and going against Auburn Tigers, who then themselves are retooled in a lot of spots. Uh, I I'm excited to see Auburn this year. I really am. Um, I think Alex Goolish is a terrific coach. I remember the first time I got to sit down with him. This was years ago when he was at Tennessee as offensive coordinator. I was like, man, this guy is just, well, he's just a good dude. You know, there's there's people in our industry that you sit down with and you're less like, you don't enjoy kind of doing that pregame talk with him on Friday during the week. And there's others that you're like, man, I cannot wait to get there and sit down and just talk ball with them. And Alex Golish is one of those guys that for me, you know, you're excited to get to talk with him. I actually have Auburn in week two, so excited to kind of see what he feels and looks like after this game and kind of where he wants to get better after having that that first game under the belt. So you got the you got the head coach, who I think is gonna do a tremendous job at Auburn. You got the quarterback who was incredible last year, Byron Brown. You got a lot of playmakers around him that have been together. So we just talked about LSU in our previous matchup, about all these new pieces coming together there. Well, there's a lot of new pieces there at Auburn, but the good thing is they've all come kind of together from USF. And it's kind of that Kirk Sidnetti kind of feel of let's just bring everyone with me because we were pretty successful at the previous spot. But the difference is you have the quarterback coming with you from USF a little bit. Different from JMU to Indiana. So uh I said I I think this offense is going to be really good this year. And they're going against a Baylor team that really struggled defensively a year ago. And I think that's kind of the big matchup of can you slow down this high-powered offense, this high-powered quarterback, this up-tempo offense, and that's going to be a little bit of a challenge for the Bears.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and I'm just fascinated to see them run the ball. I mean, I think Auburn's gonna be really good at that, just A, because of the sheer size of Byron and the things that he brings at the quarterback position, but then he's paired up with a couple of good running backs as well that will help alleviate that. So if you have this three-headed rushing monster attack, again, I'm I'm gonna reference Virginia a handful of times when we're talking of these teams. Can they have that going along with some playmakers on the outside? I think there certainly have been some question mark with, you know, kind of Brown's throwing style and everybody at like Elite 11 or camp, whatever it was that they saw, they're like, whoa, what is this? Uh and maybe some people are just making fun of, but the guy's a baller and he's been super effective with what he brings. Um what what are you probably most excited? Is Alex calling the plays? And then what are you most excited about, like him taking this next step at a big program?
SPEAKER_00Well, I'm with you on the run game because we all think, you know, Tennessee, we think of this offense as kind of this high powered, throw the ball down the field, and obviously shots will come. There's no doubt about it. But I think at the end of the day, just like any offense, you still have to run the ball first. If a defense knows all you're gonna do is throw the football, what are they gonna do? They're gonna play two high safeties, they're gonna support those corners over top so those corners could then play aggressive and really put the quarterback in a bind. How do you get a team out of two high safeties? You run the quarterback. It's funny. I went, you know, went back and watched some highlights from last year's game. Baylor never got out of two high safeties at all, like the entire game. And you're just sitting back, like, what are you doing? Like Jackson Arnold ran for 137 yards, two touchdowns. They ran for over 300 yards total, and Baylor refused, refused to get out of two high safety. It's like, wait, you Auburn's got numbers in the box, and they just continue to run it. They've got even more numbers because they're using the quarterback to run it. Well, guess what? You have an even better runner, a bigger runner at quarterback at Byron Brown. You got Bryson Washington, who you know because he was at Baylor, led the team with 1,800 yards rushing the past couple seasons. Jeremiah Cobb led the team last year for Auburn and rushing, a little quick back. So you got the big bruiser, you got two other quick backs. You know, what does Baylor do defensively? They got to be more aggressive. They went to Kansas State, got their former defensive coordinator, Joe Danderman, or think of something like that. And and and you know, he's had obviously a lot of success at Kansas State. They got to be better up front. They have to be more willing to stop the run up front, and you got to force Byron Brown to throw the football straight up. Like to me, like that's the key. Got to be in single high safety, and you got to take your chances on the edge. So can these transfer receivers from USF, who obviously had a really good year a year ago in this offense, Singleton, Coger, those guys, can they win some one-on-ones? But until they prove they can do that, if I'm Baylor, like I said, man, I'm loading that box up with seven guys inside there and just making Brown beat me with his arm.
SPEAKER_01Exactly. That's exactly where I was going to go. You you have to show that to me. Like I'm I'm not losing how we lost a year ago, giving up 300 rushing yards. Like I will quit right here on this field, right, before I let something like that happen again. So I'm with you. Show me that you can throw it. Show me that you can beat our guys on the perimeter, but that ain't happening. And again, I agree with you. It's an upgrade at the quarterback position from a running standpoint. So you need to be aware of what's going to happen here. Looking on the other side for Baylor, uh, they've got DJ, really good player that we think, you know, when he's going, he he's one of the best. Didn't quite show that, you know, in Florida, at Florida, excuse me, and now he's somewhere else. What are your expectations there? Kind of a new fresh start for him and to get going with this Baylor team.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I still think just raw talent. DJ Lagway is really good. Like, I mean, tremendous. Like it can make all the throws you want. Obviously, he was just not in a very advantageous situation a year ago with that coaching staff and some of the mistakes made. And obviously, he made a lot of mistakes himself with the turnover. So, yeah, fresh start. Hopefully he takes advantage of it. But this isn't the same offense that they were a year ago when it comes to skill guys. Like they lost. And I had opportunity to cover Baylor twice last year. There was a lot of talent on that offense. I'm talking about Josh Cameron, Michael Trig, one of the best tight ends in America. Hawkins, Cole Wilson, Kobe Prentice. Like they had speed. They had some obviously size and skill with Michael Trigg when it comes to matchups. And all those guys are gone now. And they've gone in and tried to replace it with some guys as well. But that's a lot of production that's no longer on this offense. So if this was DJ with those guys, I'd say, oh my God, like let's go. Like this offense is going to be one of the best in the country. Can he find that chemistry with brand new receivers with inside this offense right at the beginning of the season against a really good defense in Auburn? Um, that's gonna be the thing that that's gonna be my biggest question mark. So I think for Baylor, it's you got to keep this thing close. As our offense tries to find their identity, as DJ gets his feet wet in a new uniform and tries to become one of the best quarterbacks or the quarterback that I think he still can become, we got to at least hold Auburn when we're on defense. Um so I I don't know. I really, like I said, this is first game. I I just don't know what the playmakers are gonna look like around DJ. And that that that does scare me a little bit.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, and it's gonna be interesting too with Auburn. Obviously, the the offense is like, I think, I mean, they might it might be everybody new except for Cobb. Like, I don't know if there's a guy on the roster that, you know, played for this team a year ago, some freshmen sprinkled in there as well, see if they get some burn. But the defense, the defense does have you know quite a few guys back that have at least been here and played, not like they're all starters, but guys that are at least familiar with you know what they want to do, what they want to accomplish from a you know culture standpoint of Auburn. I know it's a new culture uh excuse me, coaching staff here, but how much you know from a year ago do you expect this Auburn defense to be the same level? Because they were really good a year ago.
SPEAKER_00No, I I I think that that's to me, DJ Durkin is, I mean, good for Auburn for keeping him because he did such a tremendous job kind of, you know, obviously what he did on defense and holding that team together towards the end of the season and how competitive they were. So you have a a very good defensive coordinator. I think you have an even better coordinator, and and we know this game is so much, so much complimentary. And I think the the energy that an offense brings and the ability to score points only energizes that side of the football. It's frustrating. I haven't played defense, but I know it could be frustrating because I've been a part of teams that the defense wasn't very good, and it just felt like you know, all the pressure was on us offensively to produce, and it got exhausting. Like I said, it was frustrating, and I'm sure that was Auburn defensively last year. Like, guys, just like we're doing everything we can. Can you just put just a few points on the board? So I think if Auburn can get going offensively, that that it will only ignite that defense under DJ Durkin to perform at an even better and even better heights. So um, will they be as good as a year or a year ago with some of the pieces they lost? You know, maybe not, but I think at the end of the day, as long as the offense is improved and balances out what this football team is, I think that's all that matters.
SPEAKER_01So it uh the the Tigers are favored by seven here. I think we're both kind of leaning Auburn. Is that what I'm getting at?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I mean, I'll lean Auburn. Um I'll lean Auburn, but I'll give I'll give I'll give Baylor the points here. Oh no, no, no, no. No, no, no. I think there's even more unknowns about Baylor than Auburn, even with all the new guys. So like I will because at least all these guys on offense have been together. I think that is so critical. Yeah. So I I'll give I'll give Auburn the win. You know, until I like I said, until I see what these these these skill guys look like on a Baylor, you just can't feel good about how bad they were on defense a year ago.
SPEAKER_01Right. And that that's why I'm I'm a little more confident than you are. I think Auburn wins by double digits. I mean, I think they're going to run the ball all over these cats. And uh, of course, that'll open stuff up in the second half. We see adjustments really made. I I think I like what Auburn's brought with him. I think they win this game by 10 plus.
SPEAKER_00All right. All right, let's move on to our next game, Louisville versus Ole Miss. And Pete Golding, first full season as the head coach of the Rebels. Obviously, tremendous job taking over during their playoff run a year ago when Lane Kiffin left. Uh, and they probably have the best quarterback, running back tandem in the backfield, Trinidad Chambliss back there with uh Keywan Lacey. I mean, Trinidad's an absolute beast. My only hesitation is will he have the same amount of guys wide open as he did a year ago? Because people always ask me, like, will he be as good without Lane or without Charlie Weiss Jr.? I'm like, when you watch the tape, and I broke it down from the very first time he played, he can make every throw you want. He can play with inside any offense you want. He can do the RPOs, he can do the getting in outside the pocket, he can layer the football, he can push down the field, he can get the ball out quickly. Like he there, there's nothing that I don't think he can do. It's just a matter of can the offensive coordinator, the play caller, put him in a situation to create explosive plays? And obviously, Lane and Charlie together are the masters at creating explosive plays, getting guys wide open, creating matchup nightmares for a defense. So, you know, that that that may be the drawback. He's still the same quarterback, he's still the same skill skets, which are very skill sets which are very, very high. It's just can the play caller put him up in a position to have the type of the type of success that he did a year ago? But he's a beast, offensive line's really good, Lacey's really good. It's the guy, the receivers for Ole Miss that have had production at other places, but can that chemistry come together in a short amount of time and be as good as they were a year ago? Is the things I'll be watching for for this old miss Ole Miss offense.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I I'm fascinated to see what Jonte Cook's gonna do. I mean, that that guy is so special and so talented, and yet just like can't stick, right? Like he bounces around all over the country, and and now this is probably his last stop, I imagine. I think he's out of years. Maybe he has a maybe he can just sue for more. I don't know, you know, and keep playing. But he's talented. Like he's really, really good. What watch out for him to have kind of a breakout year, especially in this offense, especially with a quarterback that can, if he needs to, dance around, extend the play, and then here comes zero over the top for a big time play. And I like Gill as well from Syracuse, big dude, like very comfortable, you know, being the second or third option, really good target there. Uh and then Deuce, you know, had you know, six, seven hundred yards a year ago. So you are correct. I think just kind of similar to you know what I was saying with LSU, how quickly have those guys gotten together. I have to imagine Trinidad's taking those dudes out to the field every day, making sure that they're ready to go because he wants to be the best. And I think you're right, too, with with Kewan Lacey in the backfield, like that, that one-two punch is great. And it's going to be really fun to watch. Louisville on the other side, you look at this defense, they like what they see there from camp. And listen, if you guys know anything about Jeff Brahm, he is an offensive throwing the ball all over the yard type of guy. That's all he cares about. So when I spoke to him in Media Day and they've gone back and forth with him a little bit, he hates where he is because he has a really good running attack and he has a really good defense. He's like, this sucks. I don't want to do this. I want to throw the ball. So he's excited about what he has on the defensive side of the ball. I think when you look at Clev Lubin, a guy who's electric at the defensive end position, he th them, but he in particular, you cannot overpursue. You cannot just run out of your rushing lanes. You have got to contain. You have to get to a certain point and stop and start collapsing the pocket. You cannot try to just run by this guy to sack him because he'll kill you. He'll absolutely, you know, kind of take advantage of you there. So I'm excited what I'm going to see from this Louisville uh defense here. And I think they're going to make this really challenging, which I'm excited to see. I think this will be a really good last type of possession kind of game. It's on the offense that I have question marks, which is weird because I trust Brahm and I think he's as good as a play caller as anybody, but it's going to be different for him this year because his quarterback, this is the first time since he's been at Louisville, Aaron, that he hasn't gone out and got a fourth, fifth-year guy that's polished, ready. He's just going to find, tweak it, fit it to this offense. He gets a younger guy who is probably the worst pocket passer he's brought in, but he's the best athlete. He's the best runner that he's brought in by far. So how do we see this offense shift? You talk about running back rooms. I think Isaac Brown and Keijan Brown are as good as it gets in the country. How can that three-headed attack, quarterback two running backs, slow this game down, make it awkward, play keep away, frustrate those guys to where you make this a really uncomfortable game?
SPEAKER_00Yeah. Yeah, but we flip that to the side though. Ole Miss defense. I mean, really legit a year ago, Pete Golding, you know, obviously you think defense, what he did, you know, or we it's you know, we think Lane Kiffin and we think Ole Miss, we think all the offense, all the offense, Trinidad, Trinidad, but then you go back and look at all the stats, what they did defensively, pretty darn good. Like, really, really good on that side of the football. Like, this is you know, when you look at Ole Miss as a whole, yeah, like there's questions about the chemistry of the receivers, but as you alluded to, like, there's some really talented guys out there on the outside. Like, there's not a lot of holes for this Ole Miss team, which is what got a lot of people excited about Ole Miss being a contender once again this year. You have elite quarterback, elite running back, you have balance on both sides of the football. You know, where is that that one thing that's going to hold them back? So I I like Ole Miss in this game. I really do. You know, I like a lot of stuff that you brought up with the Cardinals, but you know, the the inexperience there at the quarterback spot, there's just such a big gap between that and the other side when you have Trinidad Chanlist, one of the best, if not the best, quarterbacks in the country heading to the season. I think that will be on full display in that first game of the season.
SPEAKER_01And I think I'm with you there. As much as my uh ACC homerness wants to pick the Cardinals here, I think Ole Miss is really, really good. And, you know, Louisville would have to play perfect for them to win this game. I don't think Ole Miss has to play perfect, but I think they could, and they could look really, really good. So it's a seven spread. I I think you know, Old Ole Miss is just because of the experience, what they have, what they know, and the chip on their shoulder of wanting to keep proven that they're something without that guy. Uh I think they get this done. But I do think it's a great game. It'll be a really fun game Sunday night.
SPEAKER_00No, it'll be a lot of fun to watch there as well. All right, next game up SMU versus FSU. FSU got a little uh got some of the the jiggers out and their week zero matchup. I actually went back and watched that game today. I did not unfortunately get to catch it live, but um you know obviously you're seeing all the negative things about FSU and that this thing goes well and they didn't dominate, and it's like, okay, it's week zero, it's not like a big time opponent. So like how juiced, how excited are you? Uh there's there's I can make every excuse. I did not think it was as bad as everyone was making it out to be when I went back and watched the football game. A little less explosive plays that maybe I was hoping for from the receivers. Obviously, we talked about in our preview how explosive the receivers are on the outside, the speed that Forestate has from the receiving position. And you know, my guy did he had a nice deep ball down the middle of the field versus cover two, and it was a nice throw up and down. But I guess I need to see some more explosive plays with these receivers. And I think part of that is just Ashton getting a little bit comfortable with them as well. So don't forget, we were talking about year one to year two, game one to game two, a lot of progress is gonna happen. And then FSU is awarded with the ability to go back and watch tape and make those corrections before that next game against SMU, which they're gonna need to make corrections because SMU doesn't have a lot of holes in that football team at all either.
SPEAKER_01Right. And the fascinating thing to remember too is that was Mike Norvell's first game back calling plays. Like that dude hadn't done it for a handful of years. Now he is the head coach there for Florida State. Two two of the big three, I'll say three. I'll give the whole team involved here. Three of the biggest issues in order uh that I had. The offensive line was bad. They were really bad. And I saw some people trying to, you know, say, uh, when this it was. It was not good. Like guys look soft, guys look out of position, guys were having a lot of MA's in pass pro and in the run game. Not a good combination, especially against New Mexico State. That's not a good start. Uh the second thing, the third down defense was atrocious. Like dudes running wide open, guys not making tackles, guys out of position. Again, you you threw out the potential excuse of how excited, how juiced up, and DBs fall into that trap. SMU will score 100 points if that's the way that you play on Monday night. The third and final point, just kind of being critical here. I'm sorry, uh FSU fans, we've got to get zero of the ball more. Deuce has got to get targeted, get involved in this offense way more than he was. I think he had three catches. That's crazy. That is not good. Not good. You you've got to get that guy involved. He's too good of a player. Um, it's just a must. It shouldn't even be in a question going into this game. Now, were you trying to be vanilla? Were you just trying to get by? Whatever it is, maybe. You and you did that and you got it done. You've got a monster walking into your facility on Monday night. We'll be there, the huddle will be there. Check us out on ESPN. Cannot wait to bring you guys coverage leading into that. But I I think SMU's licking their chops, Aaron, and saying, hold on, boys, we'll score as many points as we want to. I love Kevin Jennings. Rhett Lashley has been very confident about this team and thinks this is the best backfield he has had since he's been there. And I'll sprinkle this into this is the best offensive line they've had since they've been in the ACC. They got some good receivers though, too.
SPEAKER_00They got some good receivers, top group of receivers on the outside as well. I mean, this is this is the Kevin Jennings show. This is it. I mean, this guy has played a lot of football. He's a senior. Obviously, he's played a lot of high-level football, throwing the football, running the football. They've had some bet some big-time wins. You know, I think obviously a big sour taste in their mouths after the way the season ended. And I got to see that up close and personal when they went out to Cal. And just an embarrassing game from Kevin and that football team to lose an opportunity to be a playoff team, to go to the ACC championship. And I know that had to fuel them for this offseason, especially a guy like that. Like I said, a guy that's been the leader of this locker room, that's been one of the premier quarterbacks in that league, one of the premier quarterbacks in college football. He wants to end the season in a big way. So you know he's done every little thing right uh to get ready for this season. So I expect the best Kevin Jennings, healthy, throwing the football, running the football. You alluded to the talent around him. At FSU on the road, like do you think the crowd can make a big enough difference? Or do you think SMU is just a better football team that it doesn't really matter? This is a mature team, a mature quarterback that's played on the road that should be able to handle it even week one of the season.
SPEAKER_01I hope that they can. I hope they're still interested. I know a lot of people are pissed off and and not happy and you know want to change, which it is what it is. You run the program when you are paying for all the things. So I I I hope it matters. I hope it's packed again. We will be there, and I can't wait to see the the spectacle that is Doe Campbell. But with a three-point line here in favor of the Mustangs, give me that all day. I mean, I I think SMU is going to come out of this thing running, fueling on all cylinders, and and I think they get it done. So they're they're gonna get the big dub by man, they might win by 10 or more. I I feel really good about SMU. Maybe more than that.
SPEAKER_00Maybe more than that. I'll take I'll ride it with you too. I like SME. I love Kevin Jennings. So SMU gets a big road victory. All right, two more games. We're gonna breeze through uh quickly Miami versus Stanford. I think to me, Emac, this is Miami's opportunity to to make a magnificent statement to college football. That that not that they use back, because I'm not gonna say that. I've learned that that you can't say that, but that we are a consistent brand that is here to stay every single year. And that Mario Cristobal has found the right recipe in order to build rosters in this new era. Because he's done a really good job between the way that they've recruited in the high school ranks, which is which is tremendous, to the way they've evaluated and brought in top-tier quarterbacks year in and year out through the transfer portal. And they've done it once again this year. I mean, you have I think right now, one of the best quarterbacks, my Heisman favorite heading into the season. I think you have the best set of skill players of anyone in the country with Fletcher and Malachi Tony and Barcade. I mean, they just got so much talent around an already very, very talented quarterback back there as well. Uh, to me, there's, there's, there's, that this offense is going to be top-notch. And yeah, there's gonna be some question marks about how good this offense line is gonna be compared to they were a year ago. I think they're better everywhere else, which should kind of change this offense up a little bit from where they were and really, you know, emphasize the ability to throw the football and get the playmakers or space, playmakers the ball in space throughout the season. And then this defense, man, they said they've recruited a high level. There's elite players on that side. Who's gonna be that guy that gets to have the quarterback with Ruben Bain and Mezzorgan? Obviously, you think about Damon Wilson and what he did at Missouri. He should be that guy on the outside. I just love this football team. I really do. We said in our previous show, this is my favorite team heading into the season. This is my favorite to win the national championship. I just want them to go out there in week one and make that statement. And I think if they go out there with a dollar performance, I think everyone's like, okay, Miami's legit. Miami's back once again this season.
SPEAKER_01They need to do that for sure. And I certainly think they will. Going back in time, we're gonna go back to Thursday as we wrap up here. Colorado coming all the way across the country to play Georgia Tech. I think Georgia Tech is gonna run straight through these guys. I think they're gonna run it 50 plus times. I think that Malachi Hosley is very excited about getting his new running mate here in Justice Haynes, who's one of the best running backs in college football, I think, before his injury. We all were very easily saying that. Uh the the biggest question is just gonna be what's Mendoza bringing there? You know, what is he gonna do? Is he gonna be more of a runner? Is he gonna be able to operate this offense at a high standard? But in this game in particular, I know that Coach Key is gonna run a run that football. And I think they do that. And that it's, you know, it is what it is. I said some outlandish things about Colorado and their size, but it is what it is. Any video I've seen, I'm not sitting here saying, Dagum, that looks like an SEC team. It doesn't. It looks far from it. They are going to be physically tested in this game, and I know they've heard that a bunch, and we'll see. New offensive coordinator coming in. I think that certainly you see some fun things from uh what they're gonna be able to provide in the passing game, but I think that physicality is gonna play too big of a part. I think Georgia Tech makes a huge statement Thursday night, and we're all gonna be watching.
SPEAKER_00Let's go. All right. Well, that is our week one preview here at the Mac and Murray College football show. Don't forget to go follow us on all social medias at the Mac and Murray College Football Show, Aaron Murray, Eric McLean. Go like, subscribe here on YouTube as well. And also uh go follow us and listen to us on Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts, Apple Music, all that good stuff. So we will be back again this week. We're gonna do a deeper dive into the LSU versus Clemson game with our boy Jacob Hester, and then we will have in our rewind game as soon as all the action is over this weekend. So we hope you enjoy week one of the college football season, and we will see you here shortly at the Mac and Murray College Football Show.