Thursday, July 31, Hour 2

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is I on the Ball with Steve Ravera on
Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Subscribe now to the podcast on
the iHeartRadio just search Eye on the Ball.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Hey, welcome back to one of them ball. Here on
Fox Sports fourteen fifty Brunch Steve Baba and today with
me is Michael ev from The Daily Star. Now we
have ready with breaking news.

Speaker 1 (00:22):
This is I on the Ball Breaking News on Fox
Sports fourteen fifty.

Speaker 3 (00:29):
Before I start real quick, I just have a question
for you, Michael.

Speaker 4 (00:31):
Yeah.

Speaker 3 (00:32):
So you know, we know Steve doesn't like snoring dogs.

Speaker 5 (00:36):
But that's not my question to you. You like Chicago
dogs or snoring dogs more?

Speaker 6 (00:41):
Oh?

Speaker 7 (00:41):
Man, that is a that is a really really tough call.
I mean, even though both are hot dogs, they're very different.
I mean, man, I grew up in Chicago. I kind
of have to say that I give the slight edge. Look,
go to Chicago dogs, but snoring dogs are their delight.
We were talking earlier about Mexican restaurants that we like

(01:02):
Elguero Canelo. This is a classic place to get a
delicious Sonoran dog. People like BKS two up on First Street.

Speaker 2 (01:11):
Which is preferable. The the pokem Moms were the dog.

Speaker 4 (01:17):
Oh man, this is so hard.

Speaker 7 (01:19):
Are not necessarily the same break news, dude? I mean,
I prefer if if I'm going to go to a
Mexican restaurant, sit down for a meal. But there's certain
times when you're just in the mood for a Sonoran
dog and those are delicious as well.

Speaker 3 (01:37):
Okay, all right, onto actual breaking news now.

Speaker 5 (01:39):
Uh. Former Arizona guard Caleb Love is set to join
the men's basketball Ring of Honor.

Speaker 2 (01:47):
Yeah, yeah, I will. My guy here was just told
me about it and I didn't know this happened yesterday.
I tell you where I've been. I'm indifferent to it
now because Michael, you'll be on the Hall of Fame
of the Arizona Daily Start at some point on the
Mount Rushmore. You know. You know what I'm saying. Everybody
seems to get a prize for doing something.

Speaker 4 (02:07):
You could make that case. I mean, there's only thirty five.

Speaker 7 (02:09):
He's number thirty five all the Arizona basketball players that
there have ever been who are going into the Ring
of Honor. And they have set criteria sure right, that
sure enables you to join this prestigious club. And he
happened to hit one of those benchmarks by being a
Packed twelve Player of the Year. So it's automatic, and
you know, you could have waited a few years, I guess,

(02:31):
but doesn't really. I mean, everyone knows as soon as
you do that, but.

Speaker 2 (02:34):
You're in so Johnson, it's like the study it says,
really he didn't have that great a meal. He's was
the freshman of the.

Speaker 7 (02:40):
Year the year I feel like with kalb and this
is what I wrote and my story about it was
like the last few months here, he like cemented his
legacy that shot against Iowa State, which you were there, right,
and You've been to a lot of Arizona basketball games.
I haven't been to nearly as many as you. That
was like the best Calls basketball game I think I've

(03:01):
ever been to as a fan at or as a
reporter that that moment was absolutely incredible. And then in
the NCAA tournament, like he was awesome, and he was
great against Oregon, he was even better arguably against Duke.
And to me, it's like, yeah, I know he had
a lot of ups and downs throughout his career and
he often drew the ire of the fans, but to me,

(03:23):
that sinched it.

Speaker 4 (03:24):
Like this guy's a dude.

Speaker 2 (03:25):
He's an all timer, no question, because we've talked about
that a number of times. Then he was kind of
like in the doghouse, not in the doghouse, and a
doghouse is just the word I'm using or phrase I'm using.
But the last month, to your point, and definitely the
last two or three weeks of the tournament, he found
his redemption and the people will remember him for that reason.
But to your point, yes, and he's good. I mean

(03:48):
how good you have to be to play in the
NBA knowing that you've seen this guy play and saw
what he could do, right.

Speaker 7 (03:55):
Yeah, I would say, I mean, look, the biggest knock
against him is that he's a volume shoot and he
just doesn't shoot a really high percentage. Right, He's been
around about forty percent from the field.

Speaker 4 (04:07):
You'd like that to be more like forty five forty
six percent.

Speaker 7 (04:10):
Sure, you like that three point percentage to be in
the upper thirties, not the lower thirties. But I mean,
good athlete, really good kid too, Like he's really well liked.
It was really well liked in the locker room, which
I mean when you're when you're sort of when there's
this huge pool of players, athletes who have NBA talent.

(04:33):
Sometimes that's the distinguishing characteristic that leads an organization to
give you that two way contract over somebody.

Speaker 8 (04:39):
Else keeping it going.

Speaker 5 (04:42):
But moving over to the w Ari McDonald, I'm sorry,
had a w NBA career high for her twenty seven
points last.

Speaker 2 (04:50):
Yeah, she was fantastic in the first half, at least
the highlights. I saw ghetting shuts from the three point
line and and they won, right, they won the game.
I think they did it. Yeah, I'm pretty sure shades
of shades of somebody.

Speaker 4 (05:02):
Yeah, I'm glad this is a topic.

Speaker 7 (05:04):
Because this this I'm gonna go in a little rant
here against the w n b A. Their finances are
messed up. Okay, I know the players. There's a big
theme at the All Star Game, like pay us what
we deserve. They definitely probably did. They deserve more money
because the league is becoming more popular and they're drawing
bigger TV numbers than they ever had before, and they

(05:26):
have this new contract kicking in. But the messed up
part is that somehow, some way, at the start of
this season, Arry McDonald.

Speaker 4 (05:33):
Was not on a roster.

Speaker 7 (05:35):
She was cut by Los Angeles, Like, what what is
wrong with the structure of this league? And someone who's
that good, who just scored twenty seven points for the
Indiana Fever, it's clearly is like clearly good enough to
play in this league, somehow was not.

Speaker 2 (05:53):
Well, roster isn't the roster size like ten? I think
there's it's really all And even the rookies who get
drafted don't get.

Speaker 7 (06:00):
Yeah, happens all the time, and they are expanding, which
is probably a good thing because that'll create a bigger
player pool. But it just seems absurd to me that somehow,
at the at the beginning of this campaign, as someone
who is as good as Ari McDonald is, who's still
in her prime, was not on a roster and now

(06:24):
she has found kind of a new home. Indiana gave her,
you know, a contract for the whole season, and even
when Caitlin Clark is is full go again, she's gonna
have a role on a team that's gonna be on
TV a lot and sure so that you know, the
rest of the nation will get reintroduced.

Speaker 9 (06:39):
Right.

Speaker 3 (06:40):
Yeah, it's really interesting they bring that up.

Speaker 5 (06:42):
I wouldn't say I watched a ton of games, but
I try to follow keep up with the league and
stuff like that. And yeah, you always see like like
teams just putting out like the announcement like hey this
person got cut, and then you'll see him again like
maybe like a couple of weeks later. So it kind
of it's a bit odd, but how it goes over
there and that keeping a go though. Genesis Smith was

(07:03):
named to the Warful Trophy Watch List, obviously one of
the more anticipated defensive backs coming into the season.

Speaker 3 (07:13):
Man Diamondbacks fire sale.

Speaker 2 (07:16):
Dude, Well let's go to the to the Genesis Smith
real quickly. Coach Gonzalo talked about he's gonna be a
household name here this year all over college football.

Speaker 7 (07:26):
So the Worful Trophy is it's one that's largely about
community service, and it's gonna know with Genesis, like started
his own charity as a college student, right, so he
is very proactive in terms of you know, being out
there and helping people. I've heard nothing but glowing things

(07:50):
about his character ever since he got here.

Speaker 4 (07:54):
And then I will add too, he is a really
good football player.

Speaker 7 (07:58):
Like it was a joke when the ratings came out
for college football twenty six and he was a seventy eight.
Those who aren't familiar, it's like ninety nine is the best, right,
A good starter is probably at least in the mid eighties.
This is the best defensive player on the team. Yeah, okay,
he should have. It wasn't even the top ten of
the rankings.

Speaker 4 (08:18):
And who determines that they have a whole crew they
have a whole people? Yeah? Who do that?

Speaker 7 (08:24):
But I'm like, look, you can look at his basic stats,
you could look at his his Pro Football Focus grade
from last year. You could read any number of things
that we've written about him, like this is the dude
on that defense, and Danny Gonzalez thinks he's going to
have a breakout year and I think he might do.

Speaker 5 (08:39):
Okay, yeah, I mean yeah, interesting stuff when it comes
to that, the whole overall thing. Madden had some stuff too,
but we I won't get it all the way into that.
But yeah, Diamondbacks had a fire. So if you're a
Diamondbacks fan, yeah, the whole team's gone. Well, they were
gone pretty much off season.

Speaker 3 (08:57):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (08:58):
Yeah, we went to the Murners.

Speaker 5 (09:00):
Uh yeah, as Asnarez went over there to the Mariners.
But they also they had a couple of pictures go.
Jordan Montgomery was one of them. Mary Kelly Merril Kelly
was the other. Oh yeah, I had but yeah, they
had another guy too. But yeah, man, they've just been
probably like six or seven in the last three days.

Speaker 2 (09:22):
Yeah, I'm not I'm not a Back guy. I don't
follow that.

Speaker 7 (09:26):
I have some call. We have some colleagues who are
very big. Yes, Diamondbacks fans live and die by them,
and I think not I haven't stick through. I haven't
talked to those guys about this specifically yet, but I
think they would probably be in favor of the Diamondbacks
being sellers as opposed to buyers, right, I.

Speaker 4 (09:44):
Mean, do you think was there any chance this team
was gonna win the World Series?

Speaker 7 (09:47):
And if that's not the case, you're better off selling
guys who are going to be free agents or maybe
in their third you know, mid to upper thirties at
this point in their careers, getting prospects, getting controllable assets,
and just trying to sort of reboot.

Speaker 2 (10:02):
So so you've been here ten years, like I said,
outside of the colleagues that we know, how many Diamondback
fans do you know?

Speaker 4 (10:12):
Maybe two? Listen, I don't know that I don't know
that many people.

Speaker 8 (10:17):
Though you don't.

Speaker 2 (10:19):
They're not worrying stuff down here or maybe a crumpled
hat that was a giveaway somewhere. But you know what
I'm saying, there's not a whole lot.

Speaker 7 (10:25):
I actually end up watching them a lot because I
have access to them through direct TV, and I just
kind of put it on, you know, in the background.

Speaker 2 (10:33):
And I d channel and datelines not on at the time.

Speaker 4 (10:36):
I never I don't put that stuff on.

Speaker 8 (10:38):
No.

Speaker 7 (10:38):
I often will have the Diamondbacks of the Padres on
in the background because somehow we are a secondary market
for the Padres. So I end up seeing a lot
of their games. And I mean, I enjoy going up there.
It's it's a it's actually even though it's a dome
and I you know, I grew up going to Wrigley Field,
it's still fun time see the Diamondbacks. And I really

(11:01):
like they're also really like their too. You're sure, sure,
but like I said, if you're not in position to
where you really think you can contend for a championship, yeah,
it makes sense to do what they've done.

Speaker 9 (11:12):
Right.

Speaker 5 (11:12):
Okay, this was an interesting one that I saw just
because we talked about like trying to get like fans
to the stadium.

Speaker 3 (11:18):
So this came from Brett McMurphy.

Speaker 5 (11:20):
Costco is selling discount and two ticket packages for South Carolina, Purdue, Louisville, Virginia, Baylor,
Oklahoma State, Tulane, Yukon, Louisiana, et cetera.

Speaker 3 (11:31):
But if the prices vary from fifty to one hundred bucks,
and some.

Speaker 5 (11:37):
Include twenty dollars food and beverage credit or a parking pass,
you talk.

Speaker 2 (11:41):
About football, right, yeah, a mar jesiray, get hold the desiray.

Speaker 4 (11:45):
Yeah, it's a really good idea.

Speaker 2 (11:47):
Do you know do you know about the tickets? I
asked yesterday of somebody that's what the sales look like.

Speaker 4 (11:52):
I don't have that information. You know.

Speaker 7 (11:58):
That's really important, yes, her, and for the athletic department
to sell out the stadium, create a good atmosphere, all
of those things. And I think there's there's something to
be said, you know, And you know, as it pertains
to the Costco deal that you just referenced, to get
people in the building by any means necessary, maybe they'll
come back again, yes, right, or maybe you'll bring their

(12:22):
kid and their kid like oh, my god, this is
so cool, and they become a lifelong fan, sure right,
or you get them in and then they buy more
concessions or they buy a hat or a T shirt
or whatever.

Speaker 2 (12:31):
Given and we'll go back to this real quick. You
have a few more. I'm assuming we have three because
there's one that we were going to talk about in
how so unless you already talked about it. Remember at
the beginning we said we'll talk about that. One was
that it is that thing? So okay, so you come back.
You come from USC where they're not apathetic, right, they
care about your football or maybe what's the word here?
What's the word you're going to give it? Because you

(12:53):
saw it's not the SEC. I get that it's not
the big you know it's a Big twelve, but it's
pac twelve that you saw, you witness because you covered it.
What's the fan fandom here?

Speaker 7 (13:05):
I think the fans here are very passionate. I mean, look,
I covered baseball, right, and they draw extremely well for
college baseball on the West Coast.

Speaker 4 (13:16):
People show up McHale's.

Speaker 7 (13:19):
I know that a lot of old timers will say
that the atmosphere at McHale Center is not what it
used to be. I don't have a frame of reference
for that.

Speaker 4 (13:26):
But it is pretty good.

Speaker 2 (13:27):
Which it still pretty good.

Speaker 7 (13:29):
Right, Football is a tough one because the games are late,
they're long, the team hasn't been very good.

Speaker 2 (13:37):
What's give me the give me the top four if
you can the reasons why that is not good?

Speaker 4 (13:42):
It's okay?

Speaker 7 (13:44):
What would you winning? Winning is probably number one game
times cost? Okay, right, those would probably be those probably
be the biggest ones. And I've heard a lot of
complaints from people too, and Desiree and her team have
been working on this. But just the in stadium atmosphere,
no question that sound sounds so we talk about.

Speaker 2 (14:08):
We talk about that all the time. Michael. So you
have the four or five you just mentioned. Two are
controllable cost if you want to just put butts in
the seats, yea, why by a soda beer or whatever?
And then the inside.

Speaker 7 (14:21):
Yeah, the experience inside Yeah important, Yeah, I think it is.
I mean, look, one of the things that I dislike
the most about covering Arizona football is that we are
enclosed right in the press box. There are no open windows.
We can't hear what's going on outside. And I really,
I really wish they could change that, but they don't.
They don't care about it.

Speaker 2 (14:40):
Well, what you do you do? Because you've does the
Brian Jeffrey you know, he's the stet guy Spotterer. So
what do you hear?

Speaker 1 (14:49):
Not?

Speaker 4 (14:50):
Yeah, not too much.

Speaker 5 (14:51):
Like if there's like a big player, like a big
pop like, you'll hear it. I mean you'll hear like
the DJ kind of like try to like get people
like amped up in.

Speaker 2 (14:58):
But it's situational. It's all situations.

Speaker 3 (15:00):
Yeah, it's not like it's a constant thing.

Speaker 4 (15:02):
I'm also very pro banned, like let's utilize the band
more bit.

Speaker 7 (15:05):
I mean, this is college football, right, that's what that's
what people think of, what they want. I feel like
when they go to a college game more so than
the pyrotechnics, the DJ, you know, all that kind.

Speaker 2 (15:18):
Off and you can't hear it anyway. I mean, it's
not to your point. I was there a couple of
times as a fan slash fan whatever, and I said,
how came you you can't hear the guys speak. It's
just kind of strange that I said. Now, I get
it once you witness it or deal with it. Oh,
I get it now.

Speaker 7 (15:34):
Yeah, I think they are working on all of those
things like this is I know for a fact, this
is super super important for Desiree read Francois, who is
the athletic director at Arizona, Like she's very much like
we've got to get football right and that is not
just the product on the field, but the fan experience
as well.

Speaker 2 (15:53):
Well, they're doing great stuff outside the building for the
pregame stuff. Now it's inside the building, the college killing
from inside the house. Okay, what else you got? This
said it?

Speaker 3 (16:03):
Uh, well we're kind of over, but just real quick.
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Speaker 1 (20:26):
Steve Rivera He's got his eye on the ball on
Tucson sports station Fox Sports fourteen fifty.

Speaker 2 (20:35):
Hey, welcome back to I on the Ball here on
Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. In with me
today is Michael lev from The Daily Star. Now on
the phone, we have Yogi rock college football and let's
covering the Big ten Yogi.

Speaker 8 (20:47):
How you doing, I'm doing great. I get to talk
to you too, baby.

Speaker 2 (20:52):
Hey in a while.

Speaker 4 (20:53):
What's up?

Speaker 2 (20:53):
It has been a while. How was your one and
I'm sure you're looking forward to YouTube.

Speaker 8 (20:59):
It was really fun.

Speaker 16 (21:00):
You know, the people were amazing. I'll start with that,
Like you know, you're going to a new place, you
don't really know.

Speaker 8 (21:07):
People intimately like you did at the PAC twelve.

Speaker 16 (21:10):
You know, like I knew everybody there. I worked there
for for like twenty years, and it was it was
damn near that uh and the people from the executives
like you know, on down to you know, of course,
the crew like it was.

Speaker 8 (21:23):
It was a really cool experience. And then I think.

Speaker 16 (21:26):
Football wise, as a fan and love of the game,
like you know, heartwrecking with what happened with the PAC twelve,
But then you kind of keep it moving because you
got to move through things and to go to Nebraska
and call a game.

Speaker 8 (21:37):
I mean the last time I.

Speaker 16 (21:38):
Was there, Michael, you were probably there too, And when
we put it all over in Nebraska was Stanley heavily,
you know, seven or whatever it was.

Speaker 8 (21:45):
So that was cool.

Speaker 16 (21:45):
I got to call Indiana when they hosted Washington when
Game Day was there. I got to do sc at
Minnesota in an upset when s he was ranked eleventh. Like,
got a lot of fun football games and to get
back to the East Coast where I grew up, was
a black, got to see family here and there, and
overall it was cool.

Speaker 8 (22:02):
And now in year two, I feel like I.

Speaker 16 (22:04):
Know the league, which is really for the crap is
the thing that I think matters most.

Speaker 8 (22:08):
I feel a really good head in the year two.

Speaker 7 (22:09):
I know that there's some crossover now because several, you know,
former Pac twelve schools are now part part of the
Big Ten. But how would you compare just the sort
of the game day vibe, the tailgating scene, the in
stadium atmosphere at some of the Big ten schools that
you visited this past season too, you know what it

(22:31):
was like when you were just covering the PAC twelve.

Speaker 16 (22:35):
I could remember kind it might have been twenty eighteen,
twenty nineteen. There was like a lot of dialogue around
that subject, especially from broadcasters, you know, like this is
what other schools do, this is what other places are like,
Like you'd hear it on games and you know, they
take a shot at the crowd. And it always felt
personal back then because you know, by the end, there
was only a few of us left standing, you know,

(22:57):
doing football, and we're proud of it, you know, Ted myself, Ashley, like,
you know, the people and now seeing that league, every
campus brings it. Man, Like I called a Maryland game
against Iowa at the end of the season Thanksgiving weekend
or not the weekend before maybe, and they clearly struggled

(23:19):
last year, but it was a good crowd, you know,
like so it was it was the it was reality,
like they rocked the house.

Speaker 8 (23:26):
You know, Indiana was sold out.

Speaker 16 (23:28):
It was out of control, you know, much like it
looked like cow when Miami was there. You know, Minnesota
felt like a sold out Oregon State, right chip on
the shoulder type crowd, but probably another twenty thousand people.

Speaker 8 (23:42):
You know.

Speaker 16 (23:43):
Nebraska was unlike, really unlike anything I'd ever broadcast. I've
done Oregon, Oregon State. I've done huge games at U
dub sold out games of the colleague. Nebraska was like
a it was crazy, like it just the amount of people.
I mean, they sold out over four hundred straight games.
So it's a thing, you know, like it was.

Speaker 8 (24:03):
It was cool. It was a really unique experience.

Speaker 16 (24:05):
Even doing Ohio State spring game, you know, that was
a big deal.

Speaker 8 (24:09):
Man.

Speaker 16 (24:09):
It felt like, you know, Ohio State Oregon back to
back weekends in the spring game, like it felt really
big time.

Speaker 8 (24:14):
So it was. It was nice, it was it was
a cool experience. You know.

Speaker 16 (24:19):
I didn't pretend to know all the details of the history,
like like I'd known on schools out west and try
to really just match the craft. But you walked in
there and say you didn't have the chills every weekend
because it was sold out.

Speaker 8 (24:30):
Electric game and a new experience.

Speaker 16 (24:32):
I think that was part of it that I think
even probably Arizona fans were pleasantly surprised, like I was.
We had some new experiences, and I think amid all
the craziness in the realignment, like that's fun.

Speaker 8 (24:44):
You know, that's been something that's been exciting at least.

Speaker 4 (24:47):
For me in no doubt.

Speaker 7 (24:48):
I know you're fully immersed in all things Big ten now,
but you stay on top of things as far as
like the entirety of West Coast football goes. And we're
of course here in Tucson and all about the u
of A. Brent Brennan, whom you know very well, is
coming off Rough's first season going four and eight, the

(25:10):
team really kind of crumbled under the weight of expectations.
Do you feel like this is a make or break
year for him. And I hate to use those absolutes,
but I think that that's sort of the at least
the outside perception of where he's at with this program.

Speaker 8 (25:26):
No, you know it's interesting.

Speaker 16 (25:27):
I can remember you and I did a piece before
Jed played San Diego State and Brady Hoke, and you
asked me the same question. You're like, is this kind
of like gotta have it, must win? And it was
week two or something like that. I was like, no, man,
you just got to see consistent improvement, right, and clearly
we saw that with Jed. I think for Brent, and

(25:49):
I know you know this context and I'm sure your
listeners do, but just to share a little bit from
my lens, and you're right, I still follow it. We
published a ton of content around college football and through
the lens of the West Why Option my podcast and newsletter,
and I think taking over a successful program in the
landscape pre house settlement, pre revenue share, but post nil

(26:14):
is much harder than taking over a one and eleven team,
taken over a Kevin Sutherland team that was not impressive.
I just okay, why Number one, the first thing you
have to do is within minutes of getting the job.
You are trying to retain your roster. Retain your roster. Okay,
so what does that mean? This is my purview. I

(26:34):
think that Brent and his staff, they were probably felt
a little bit of caught in between last year of it,
got to make these guys happy.

Speaker 8 (26:42):
You got to coach this.

Speaker 16 (26:43):
Way, got to navigate this system, got to pay these guys.

Speaker 8 (26:46):
I mean, yeah, you're nodding your head because it's true and.

Speaker 16 (26:50):
It worked because you know, we all remember halftime in
the basketball game, and we remember that juice and the
energy and the momentum and all of those things. But
I don't think that Brent would tell anybody like, yeah,
last year it was as connected of a culture as
I'm accustomed to building.

Speaker 8 (27:08):
Because it's just so hard. It's damn near as possible.

Speaker 16 (27:10):
In my opinion, That's why I think it's so much
harder to take over a successful program.

Speaker 8 (27:14):
I talked to cantlyn do Bor about that on my podcasting.
You know, I went down to Tusclus a couple months ago.
It's the same deal there, So turn the page. I
love what he has done.

Speaker 16 (27:24):
From a staffing standpoint, from they to the players, fellas,
this is how we operate. You're in or out, and
if you're out, cool, I still love you. You'll be
a wildcat like cut doors, open peace and you know
who else did that? Pet Caroll did that when he
went to the Seahawks can. I remember asking him, I said,
had you going to navigate the NFL? And he goes,

(27:46):
last time was in the NFL. I gave too much
wigger room. He goes, this time in the NFL, I
don't care who you are. You on board, You're gone.
Lendell White cut like a lot of Trojans cut. And
I remember calling him be like what and He's like, look,
you gotta be either you're out, like there is no
middle ground. And I think last year, from my purview
is that was what it felt like. And I think

(28:09):
this year, from talking to some of the guys on
the staff, you know, still being connected. As I referenced,
I see it completely different culture, handle, demeanor.

Speaker 8 (28:21):
You know what have you or other program?

Speaker 2 (28:22):
So you'll yeah, I've been around a long time, mostly
covering basketball. Lev has been here ten years now and
you've covered the West like crazy. What do you think
at the end of the day, the potential of the
program is for Arizona, whether it was the PAC twelve
now the Big Twelve, well, I.

Speaker 8 (28:38):
Think it's doing big sub titles, you know.

Speaker 16 (28:41):
I mean I still look at that league and you know,
I'll compare it a lot to the Pac twelve, because
in the Pac twelve, there was, as we all knew,
once the Pete Carroll you know, seven year top four
finished run ended, it went a version of Oregon for
a few, Stanford for a few, Washington for a few,

(29:02):
Utah for a few.

Speaker 8 (29:04):
Oregon here. Maybe, like that's what it was and what
did it do?

Speaker 16 (29:08):
And I think college football generally leans into lazy narratives,
right It's like the best conference in the world is
the Big Ten because they won the national title. Don't
if I agree with that, Like the best conferences in
the world doesn't have to necessarily mean that the conference
where the team who's standing last came from. You know,
I think that's an easy thing to say. Uh, And
I work for the Big Ten. I think it's super talented.

(29:29):
But I think you could make a case that the
Big twelve is like the PAC twelve from back in
the day of everybody could beat everybody, and that's probably
not going to garner.

Speaker 8 (29:38):
A lot of respect, you know, nationally when you.

Speaker 16 (29:41):
Have Ohio State and Alabama and Michigan and Oregon and
Georgia and the big blue bloods, like I don't think
there's as much regard for you know, Iowa State, Arizona
loser compared to Georgia Alabama loser. This isn't so I
think that your anton To answer your question, the standard

(30:02):
should be to win that league.

Speaker 8 (30:03):
They were a favorite to me going into it last year.

Speaker 16 (30:06):
To win it, just like U tell Us and in
Arizona State one like those four schools, at least three
of the four to me should be in that conversation
this season. And I think moving.

Speaker 7 (30:18):
Forward, so obviously, as you mentioned, ASU ended up winning
the league last year despite being picked last in the
preseason poll, which no longer exists, maybe because of how
things played out last season.

Speaker 4 (30:31):
But as I said in.

Speaker 7 (30:33):
Regard to Arizona, like, they really had a hard time
dealing with the burden of expectations. Now issues not sneaking
up on anybody. Like they're probably the preseason favorite in
the league. Again, they're going to be ranked in the
top fifteen when the preseason ap pole comes out. How
do you envision Kenny Dillingham handling all of that.

Speaker 8 (30:57):
I think I saw him today.

Speaker 16 (31:00):
Basically say it wasn't a good practice for a championship team.

Speaker 8 (31:04):
It was a good practice if we wanted to be
six and six. A version of that is post practice commentary.

Speaker 16 (31:10):
And I know he and marks the royal, you know
really well, yeah, I think that staff is really big
time across the board. Can they catch lightning in a bottle?
And can they capture that magic again? Advan, It's always
the challenge will they be a team that should win eight,
nine to ten games and be in the mix.

Speaker 8 (31:32):
Like here, here's an example.

Speaker 16 (31:33):
I look, and I don't know this number in the
Big twelve that you might in the Big ten. Last
year there was thirty one games decided by one score
or less.

Speaker 8 (31:41):
Thirty one games. It's a lot of games.

Speaker 16 (31:43):
And I think Illinois went five and one, and USC
went two and five or two and seven, Nebraska went
one and five. Like I just think when you get
these leagues and the Big twelve, I think is that
these tight games like they're just going to be one
in the margins. So it's gonna be Sam Levi's discernment,
or know if Ifida's discernment, a mistackle, a clean special

(32:05):
teams operation.

Speaker 8 (32:06):
Like I think things are so tight.

Speaker 16 (32:09):
But do I expect them to be able to handle
last year's success. I do, because I think the CFP
is a different beast than what Arizona did win in
ten games, Like I got to track it a bunch
of last year and if you were able to go
to some of the games, but it's like a different season,
and I think you come back from it even more seasoned.

Speaker 8 (32:31):
And I expect that.

Speaker 16 (32:32):
And they've got the right leadership at the top, alignment
in the athletic department and on the field, you know.
I know, they of course lose their star back and
Cam's got to do, but they got a lot of
talent there, so I think they'll be right back in
the mix. I expect that to happen. I think Marcus
Royal is going to be one of the hottest names
in the country after the season, as it should be.
Who knows what will happen, we know how that thing goes.

(32:54):
But I expect them to be right in the mix,
and Sam Levitt to be in the mix for all
the conversations, for all the big time awards, et cetera.

Speaker 7 (33:00):
So asu as I, as I said, is definitely going
to be in the AP Top twenty five when it
comes out. I have to send in my ballot tomorrow, Yogan.
I'm trying to find a place for Utah in there
because I feel like Utah's is destined for a bounce
back season. They always have kind of the infrastructure. Now
they have an exciting new quarterback and Devin damp Here

(33:23):
whom Arizona fans saw up close and personal and the
season opener last year. Also, his offensive coordinator came over.
Am I crazy in thinking that Utah might be a
sleeper team to maybe win the Big twelve and kind
of be in that top twenty five conversation sooner than later.

Speaker 8 (33:41):
I don't think so.

Speaker 17 (33:43):
I mean, I always just have to go to our
historical bias for sure, recency bias.

Speaker 16 (33:49):
Right, what is Kyle Whittingham Morgan scally led teams and
here comes a new offense with its quarterback. Always see
this everywhere, right, whether it's with the Raiders or their colleges,
where like it's a package deal or it becomes that eventually,
And I just think it gives you such an advantage
moving forward, I said Kyle referenced that at the Big
Twelve media days of getting I think you called me even.

Speaker 8 (34:11):
In training camp.

Speaker 16 (34:13):
I don't know if you said the best, but you
referenced like one of the best leaders ever and he
said that you know almost verbatim about rising forever right
the office, autos.

Speaker 18 (34:24):
What lean on.

Speaker 8 (34:25):
So that's the truth thing. You have to be in
the mix. I always believe in it. Relief.

Speaker 17 (34:30):
I think at the UTLA game at the Rose Bowl,
I talk about after dark, it's.

Speaker 8 (34:35):
Gonna be awesome.

Speaker 17 (34:36):
You know, you know some sorry and that offense and
if I'm the new offense that you reference, and it's
an absolutely watching that one.

Speaker 8 (34:46):
If they could steal that one away they go.

Speaker 16 (34:49):
I think their schedule sets out sets up pretty good
in terms of the teams they have at home. I
think that I'd be curious your take the road games
in the Big Twelve.

Speaker 8 (34:57):
What are they like? Are they crazy and timating? Is
it just kind of weird and unknown?

Speaker 16 (35:03):
Because I felt that in the Big Ten, like USC
going to Minnesota was like never been here before?

Speaker 8 (35:10):
Whoa We'll hire? Take on Oregon? Well is louder than
I thought. I don't know if I felt teams.

Speaker 7 (35:16):
Felt out a year ago, or I think that there's
just a more consistently intense atmosphere, like you said about
the Big Ten, that like every fan base is super
serious and super into football, and you're just not going
to get a game like you know when you'd go
to Stanford or Cal early in the season and the

(35:36):
stadium would be half full. By the way, that that
Utah UCLA game, that's a non conference game, sadly enough,
weirdly enough, but yeah, that is a That game's on
Fox at the Rose Bowl, one of the late night
games on August thirtieth, really intriguing battle early in the season.

Speaker 2 (35:58):
It wouldn't quick last question you'll get just because and
you're breaking up a little. I'm not sure what's up
with the connection, But what's your take on Noah? He
had a fantastic year two years ago and then yes,
last year was not so fantastic. It's just your thoughts
on him.

Speaker 8 (36:14):
Well, I'm a believer for sure. I'm excited for him.

Speaker 16 (36:18):
I think so often at this position we don't give
players the benefit of the doubt, and we forget that they're.

Speaker 8 (36:24):
Still navigating life right.

Speaker 16 (36:26):
Last year was the first time in his career where
you know, he had a full off season of expectations.
I think about it like he's been the underdog his
whole life and then it came off that electric year
and then here it came, and I just think there's
got to be some empathy for that, you know, everything

(36:47):
for the first time, including scrutiny, because it didn't go well,
and I thought he handled it like an absolute pro.
I really do like it could have been easy for
him in ted Trow and McMillan to take a shot
at a lot of things based on frustrations and everything
I saw like that was not the case.

Speaker 8 (37:04):
It was just not the case.

Speaker 16 (37:05):
So I applaud him for that, and I can't wait
to watch him play. I think there's just a truth
at this position. It's that you need Scars. You just
need him. You need to go through pallacious moments, whether
it's Drew Aller, Kate.

Speaker 8 (37:22):
Klubnick, Noah Fafita.

Speaker 16 (37:25):
I mean, you can go around and find one or
two in every conference, like you just need them. So
when it's you know, backed up and it's a second ten,
you know, think about at the Coliseum when he came
in that game and he threw a pick.

Speaker 8 (37:37):
He doesn't throw that pick, maybe they win the game.

Speaker 16 (37:39):
Like he needed that moment because that allowed him to
ball the rest.

Speaker 8 (37:42):
Of the year, and then he needed what happened last year.
So I'm excited for him.

Speaker 16 (37:48):
I would imagine what he led this offseason is pretty
noteworthy in terms of making sure this team is connected.
Everything I've heard from you know, the coaching staff is
that set day system has been embraced beautifully by this offense.

Speaker 8 (38:02):
So I expect him to spin it.

Speaker 16 (38:03):
I expect him to put up yards and numbers and
you almost feel like a Pac twelve, a Lah Big
twelve Texas Tech team like that. I think this offense
should should roll this year, and he's obviously a huge
reason why.

Speaker 2 (38:14):
Well, the fans are loving you for that information because
they want to see it too. Yogi Roth, thanks a bunch.
I may have Dave Dave Hershaw tomorrow say hello for you.

Speaker 8 (38:25):
Ooh nice, I just saw him in Vegas. That's a
great one.

Speaker 2 (38:28):
Yeah, So enjoy yours your season. Will probably talk to
you again.

Speaker 8 (38:32):
Okay, thank you, Yogi.

Speaker 2 (38:34):
You're the best man, right Yo, get Roth, youth yoge
Roth from the Big ten, Big ten. We've got to go.
We're really late. If you're an Arizona Man's basketball fan,
you know it's been successful for newly forty years. Now.
Take a look back at the Ludolsen era in my
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(38:55):
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Twenty five chapters for his twenty five years as Arizona's
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email media Steve dot RIVERA ninety five at gmail dot com.
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Speaker 1 (42:35):
Dot com streaming live on the iHeartRadio app. This is
I on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Fox Sports
fourteen fifty.

Speaker 2 (42:48):
Hey, welcome back to the ball here on Fox Sports
fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. You Michael liv Good to
have yogi on kind of preview a lot of different things.
Let me ask you a quick thing. You've been around
around a lot locally and otherwise. Have you ever covered
a player? Let me prevas I don't know if I've
been around too many players, if any, but I know

(43:09):
that the Steve Kerr story. I was here for all that,
and I know him as a person now and some
other maybe, and I'd have to go back in my
row decks, But for Noah, I can't remember a coach
or coaches who just thinks so highly of that guy
as a person, as a leader, and not not so
much as a player. And they love him as a player,

(43:31):
but just as an individual. Last March or whenever they
did the Spring and these guys waxed poetic, and I'm thinking, God,
I know he's not a saint, but it's close in
listening to how they speak of him.

Speaker 4 (43:45):
Yeah.

Speaker 7 (43:45):
The only one I can think of who's kind of
thought of in a similar way was Matt Barkley with USC.

Speaker 2 (43:54):
And what were the conditions and what were the qualities?

Speaker 4 (43:57):
I mean, just very selfless, mature.

Speaker 7 (44:03):
I wrote this big profile on him heading into I'm
not sure if he's heading into his junior year or
his senior year. And like one of the something somebody
said about him was like, whenever he makes money or
whatever money he's gonna make in the NFL, he's just
gonna give it away. Oh really, you know, because he's
just that kind of guy. Yeah, and he's you know,

(44:24):
he's got a family now and he's made a good
chunk of money being a backup in the NFL for
a long time. Noah is rare, like he is extremely mature.
Like he and Brandon Locke, the backup quarterback. We're sitting
up there side by side on Wednesday, and just like, man,

(44:44):
these guys seem like they're like thirty when they're actually
like probably twenty two. Yea, you know, like I wasn't
like that when I was twenty two, that's for sure.

Speaker 8 (44:52):
Sure.

Speaker 7 (44:53):
And he's you know, he's kind of relentlessly positive. He's
very conscientious. Yeah, seeing said day he talk about like
his meticulous note taking and just like the attention to
detail and all of those things. So when you add
all of that up, it's someone you can root for, right,
Like we're not really supposed to root in our jobs

(45:16):
that we have, but I would really like to see
no Fafita bounce back because I feel like he deserves it.

Speaker 2 (45:21):
And no story, I mean, he's a good story. I
don't know how many times you can write that story
because it's all the same. We got to call real quick, hello,
you're on the air, and line the ball, No missed him. Okay,
so call back.

Speaker 4 (45:31):
So what you.

Speaker 2 (45:31):
Understand that the bibe that I got is no different.
Let me ask you, and I don't know if you
know the answer to this and whether you want to
see or why was it? Why did it take so
long for Fish to pull a trigger on that?

Speaker 4 (45:42):
Oh that's a really good question.

Speaker 7 (45:44):
Well, I mean I think a lot of it was that,
Like Jaden de Laura was this guy, right, and he
was a little stubborn about it, you know.

Speaker 2 (45:54):
But if you have that guy that we're just talking about, I.

Speaker 7 (45:57):
Know, Well, I mean Jaden had a resume, right, he
had experiencing he did he did extremely well in twenty
twenty three, earned twenty twenty two or whatever. Yeah, obvious,
Yeah it was twenty twenty two.

Speaker 4 (46:11):
Yeah, he did great. So like, why wouldn't you ride
that out as long as you could?

Speaker 8 (46:16):
Okay?

Speaker 2 (46:17):
Yeah, okay, you're on the airin on the ball? Who's
this is?

Speaker 6 (46:20):
Vic?

Speaker 2 (46:20):
Steve Vic? What's the word? Are you gonna go? Where
I think you're gonna go?

Speaker 6 (46:24):
I just wanted to call and tell you that I'm
going tonight. Heck yeah, but I just want to contact you.
Is the last show I'm listening to and I deleted
left from all my social media for the blasphemous, blasphemous
act of putting down Tucson Mexican food. Really, you guys
are both you guys are both done.

Speaker 2 (46:44):
That's what he got from this whole show.

Speaker 4 (46:46):
Yeah, I know that was probably my right.

Speaker 6 (46:48):
I've been waiting. I've been waiting the whole show to
call and tell you guys that that's uh, that was
blasphemy at at Beth.

Speaker 4 (46:53):
Right, Like, look at it this way, Vick.

Speaker 7 (46:56):
I didn't necessarily say that Tucson Mexican food was bad.
It's just not as good as the Mexican fall.

Speaker 2 (47:04):
You're really send letters to him, to.

Speaker 6 (47:08):
Me if you can, if you're near that guy stocking.

Speaker 8 (47:12):
He's across the table.

Speaker 4 (47:13):
But you can follow me.

Speaker 6 (47:13):
On toll my god, I will never buy a star
as long as I never.

Speaker 8 (47:23):
That's probably a good thing.

Speaker 4 (47:23):
I'm not the food critic at the Star Hunt.

Speaker 6 (47:27):
That's it. I'm gonna let you guys go.

Speaker 2 (47:30):
No, but I'm gonna don't go. Don't go unless you
have something clever to say. But I don't have the
question for you. Oh ahead, So you you know the family,
you know the family of Flafida. You're not wrong in
our evaluation of him. How did this happen? Is the
dad the mom family?

Speaker 6 (47:49):
Just actually both and just all the the whole family. Uh,
just so level headed, all those guys so humble. I
can't believe. I mean, I remember meeting Noah at survey,
asking him where his dad was, and he walked me
to him right before game time, walk me to the
end zone where his dad was sitting, right before game time.

(48:11):
I mean, who does that as a high school kid?

Speaker 16 (48:15):
Uh?

Speaker 6 (48:15):
He never fails to say thir I mean, and I'll
tell you, I'm predicting bounce back like you wouldn't believe.
And I'm gonna call it here, Steve, and this is
for real steak dinner. You and Lev and Ray they're
gonna beat Kansas State. Okay, okay, they're gonna beat Kansas

(48:36):
State here in Tucson.

Speaker 2 (48:37):
Can will you switch that to a Pokemon momster? A?

Speaker 6 (48:41):
Heck no, I'll take you to gas, Allen, now better?

Speaker 2 (48:45):
Thanks? I know you, I know you all right.

Speaker 7 (48:52):
Vic just hasn't been the Pokemons, and if he went,
he might think differently, be.

Speaker 2 (48:58):
A regular regular. Yeah. So, so to you to your
points with the Barkley thing. And I can't remember Steve
Kerr was held with that high esteem as well, because
you know he was that guy. He was that guy.
I'm so good good for him.

Speaker 4 (49:12):
Yeah, so now no one needs to play better another great.

Speaker 2 (49:16):
Yeah, yes, yeah to that point, yes he does.

Speaker 7 (49:20):
That's still a big that's still a big part of
this whole story.

Speaker 2 (49:23):
We've got one more call coming in. Hello, you're on
the air. One the ball got to make it quick,
my stated Jim. Jim got about a minute.

Speaker 18 (49:32):
Okay, I was going to address Michael's reasons for the
uh enthusiasm or enjoyment of the games not being what
they might otherwise be. The sound system, Yeah, the band
tell us it's inexcusable that those things aren't a spectacular

(49:52):
part of the experience. Inexcusable.

Speaker 7 (49:56):
I don't disagree with you, And I think being part
is that Desiree knows this. She's very she's very much aware.
She's put out surveys to the fans. I've heard her
talk about the sound system, maybe even getting a new
video board with improved sound.

Speaker 4 (50:14):
She wants to improve the game day atmosphere.

Speaker 7 (50:16):
She's only been here for a little over a year,
so so give her a chance.

Speaker 4 (50:21):
I think to.

Speaker 18 (50:22):
Make this I'm not addressing her, I'm addressing the u.

Speaker 2 (50:26):
Of A in general. The u of A has been
there for ninety years. You know.

Speaker 18 (50:31):
Yeah, I don't know those two things. It's just inexcusable
that they're not exceptional, let alone.

Speaker 2 (50:40):
Miserable, right, Jim, I totally agree. Going to two of
her games last year that was that was the issue
for me, and I can understand the complaint. I can
understand it completely.

Speaker 18 (50:51):
And the cost falls into the same category. But yeah,
we're missing one hundred and seventy five million dollars, so
who knows.

Speaker 2 (50:57):
Yeah, well, they're getting better at that. I think they're
doing okay with it. Jim, thanks so much for the call.
I appreciate it even the less less. Okay, thank you well,
Senor Michael, thanks for coming in. You gotta let me
know when you're available to come in. You say, Hay, Steve,
I can come in today.

Speaker 4 (51:10):
This was fun. I would love to do it again,
so let's try to figure it out.

Speaker 2 (51:14):
It's just to be a session. I mean, talk to
some people and throw some ideas back and forth.

Speaker 5 (51:19):
I will always be here to annoy you.

Speaker 7 (51:22):
One will will We should Uh, we should do a
remote poke on moms. Yeah, I keep talking about it.
We should talk to them. Yeah, that'd be great.

Speaker 2 (51:32):
I kind of just want to, you know, back in
the day from your Chicago days with Telander and those guys.

Speaker 9 (51:36):
Are those guys, Yeah, smoking the cigar under the lights, yeah,
Michael sports writer. I grew up on that.

Speaker 2 (51:42):
That's how I wanted it to be.

Speaker 9 (51:43):
Kind of you know what.

Speaker 7 (51:47):
I'm not one of those people unfortunately now like drinker smoker.

Speaker 9 (51:52):
Beer some stories. Yeah, you remember begging the day Rich
rod Rich. That's not back in the day.

Speaker 2 (51:58):
Okay, Well, thank you Michael.

Speaker 4 (51:59):
Maybe I'll wear like an old timey hat next ye little.

Speaker 2 (52:02):
Pressed, a little pressed together, Okay, cool, Thanks guys for
thanks for everybody who called, Thank you Michael for coming in.
Yogi and Avery right Avery and uh, we'll talk to
you guys tomorrow.