Wes & Walker Hour 3: Update on Local CBB and Pro Bowl Representatives Officially Announced

In the final hour of the show, Wes and Flounder give you an update on where the local college basketball teams sit with non-conference games coming to an end, discuss Jaycee Horn being the only Panther Pro Bowler and walk it off with 'What's on Tap' presented by Twin Peaks.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
This is the West and Walker Show.

Speaker 2 (00:02):
Yeah, the Rick Flair documentary was fire. It's West just
came out. It's on Peacock. It's called Wood. Yeah, this
man said real quick and Walker it is called It's
not the most glowy view of the title only.

Speaker 1 (00:17):
On Sports Radio ninety two point seven FM w f
n Z.

Speaker 3 (00:21):
Like I thought there were to be like a lot
of emphasis on the oh wow, and he was just like,
it's called wu.

Speaker 2 (00:38):
Yeah, baby, yeah, yeah, Yeah, we're back. This is the
West and Walker Show. Just West and Flounder for today,
Johnna beer Man, we got your baby. We're about to
talk to some college basketball, so we're gonna give you
your fix. So get ready, all right, listen Weddington Matt
Wes hated conn as a prospect around draft time. Yes,
all right, man, you got that listened to the show

(01:01):
or didn't. I always get this when we talked Conkin nipple.
I've admitted several times I was very, very very wrong
about conk nipple. I'm a man that can admit when
I'm wrong, and I definitely was about Conkin nipple. So
I'm not afraid to admit that whatsoever. All right, So man,
let's get into it. North Carolina they get it in.

(01:22):
Last night they played. They beat East Carolina ninety nine
to fifty one. They shoot fifty four percent from the field,
forty eight percent from three ay plus six East Carolina
on the boards, and Carolina had twenty assists to twelve turnovers.
And this one, you know, I did not know Carolina
was even playing last night. I was like, oh snap,

(01:43):
because when I saw it on the barn and I
see you, I was like, oh snap. I was like
Carolina was playing to night. So I turned over and
watched a little bit of that as well. Caleb Wilson
does what he does, another double double, twenty one points
with twelve boards, four blocks, three steals all around for him.

Speaker 1 (01:58):
Henry Vay saw another one.

Speaker 2 (02:00):
I mean, this is the twin towers you got going
on here in Carolina. This is a classic Carolina team
because Carolina has always valued the bigs. They're one of
the programs that just have always found that to be
a staple as front court play, and they love having
size there. So THEASA goes for sixteen and ten. You
get fifteen from Luca Bogovak, get twelve from Seth Tremble.
So I thought about you though, because they're also coming

(02:21):
off of victory of Ohio State. Did they escape the
jaws of death this past weekend? You know, yours truly
was a little disappointed at the way State did not
finish that game. When they hit the four point play,
I said, okay, I was like, the Buckeye is going
to get this thing. I said, it's gonna be a
tough loss for Carolina. And then you know, they just

(02:42):
make mistakes. They can't get the ball and they look
like my son's middle school team trying to be the press.

Speaker 4 (02:47):
Turn it over in the middle of the floor.

Speaker 1 (02:49):
Of the floor.

Speaker 2 (02:50):
Then Vasa gets the donk off the stumbled desist from
Seth Tremble. But we did talk about we did not
know if Seth Tremble was going to play in this game,
even though he had been clear to practice.

Speaker 1 (03:02):
But he is now back.

Speaker 2 (03:03):
So how formidable do you see your tar Hills being
with Seth Tremble back in the lineup.

Speaker 3 (03:08):
I think they're definitely formidable. I mean you're talking about
now having three guys that are scoring fifteen or more points.
I mean that is tough to defend again. So I mean, yeah,
we'll see if Seth stays there. I think, you know,
one of the things that we're gonna have to see
is he's gonna have to show the improvement from three
that he showed in that game against Ohio State. He
had some big threes in that one. We're hoping that's

(03:29):
something that's going to remain consistent for him. But yeah,
I mean this is with that front court, it is
hard to imagine that there are gonna be a lot
of teams in the ACC that are gonna be able
to match up against that size and that level of
talent at that size. So I think that's something that
you're hoping Carolina is gonna be able to take advantage of.
If you're Atario fan, you're gonna be able to put

(03:50):
a little more pressure on the rim.

Speaker 4 (03:51):
With set Tremble back in there. We saw last night.

Speaker 3 (03:54):
One of the things that I really liked that we
didn't see in other games was the tempo really picked up.
They had seven team fast breakpoints. With set Tremble out
of the lineup, that element of the game wasn't necessarily there.
So I think he speeds things up just a little
bit for Carolina. Like I said on the podcast when
we were talking earlier. I think this is a dude

(04:14):
that is or this is a team that because of
that dude, has a chance to be a Final four
team at the end of the season. Do I think
that they're national championship good? I just don't know, because
I still question the outside shooting a little bit. I
still question the free throw shooting. And they're letting up
a decent amount of offensive rebounds, so they got some

(04:34):
areas to clean up. But man, you can't be that
disappointed with what we saw from Carolina in the non
conference season, that's for sure.

Speaker 1 (04:41):
Yeah, I think so too.

Speaker 2 (04:42):
I think Carolina is coming into just looking like a
strong contender to be the team to be or to
also be a top tier team in the ACC and
in the country. I think that, like I said, the
shooting is still something that we need to see remedied
from them. But I feel like every team is going
to have their flaws. Now, last night, they shoot the
cover off the ball at forty eight percent, taking twenty

(05:05):
five attempts. So I think if you're Carolina fan, man,
you got to be excited about that. Also, you're capable
of having a five out offense with no problem even
with your bigs on the floor. Henry Vasar goes four
for five from three. Right now, he's looking like a
first team All acc caliber player. He'll probably be no
less than a second team guy. The Carolina's front court

(05:26):
is definitely going to be a problem for everybody, and
they do nothing but help those guards out.

Speaker 1 (05:31):
But they had a lot of guys knocking out threes.

Speaker 2 (05:33):
Jared Stevenson goes, oh, that's four for four from the
free throw line. Excuse me, but Henry Vasar, like I said,
he knocked down four, and you had several players that
put in some threes as well. Jonathan Powell knocks down
two too. So Carolina playing some really good basketball. And
the team that we talked about a lot that we
loved what they've been doing in the non conference slate,
top ten in the country and stunt the schedule. But

(05:56):
the Duke Blue Devils they go down at the hands
of Texas Tech, and this one they erased a seventeen
point second half deficit to beat them eighty two to
eighty one. Definitely a resume booster for Texas Tech. But
for the Duke Blue Devils, they got twenty three points
from Cam Boozer thirteen more from his brother Cayden, but

(06:17):
their offense scored just three points and a five minute
span down the stretch to give Texas Tech this victory.
And so with the loss, Duke fell from the ranks
of the unbeaten. You've got Michigan or Iowa State, Arizona, Vanderbilt,
Nebraska in Miami who remained unbeaten at the time that
the Blue Devils lost this game. And so Duke struggles

(06:40):
and loses to Texas Tech. So what do we make
of that? You know, I think that they met expectations
for me in the non conference slate, because I thought
that this Duke team was going to take a couple
of losses. As we've said, not the same team that
they had with Cooper flagging those guys where you felt

(07:01):
like that this team, or that the team that they
had last year really didn't have any flaws, even though
point guard was still something that they were working out,
but you didn't feel like that this was a team
that had many weaknesses. But I think that this team,
I feel like it's much more flawed. And so the loss,
I would say the team that they lost to surprised
me because when you look at their non conference Slate.

(07:23):
You know, you felt like with games against some of
the upper echelon teams that they played, you felt like
they're probably a loss would come, especially like at Michigan
State with the way that they're playing, you felt like
maybe they take a loss. Before now you didn't think
maybe Texas Tech was the team that would do that,
especially considered they played my wake Forest demon Deakins. My
team almost got an upset against Texas Tech. And I'm

(07:44):
not necessarily comment opponents guy, while I'm like, well, you
did this against this team, you should be able to
do this against that team. But for does this change
our calculus on them or do we feel like it
was just a blip on the raid off on No.

Speaker 3 (07:57):
I wouldn't say it changes the calculus. I still fact
that they are going to be the team that wins
the ACC. I still think that they're going to be
a team that is going to be, you know, looked
at as a Final four contender, one of those teams
that people feel really good about going into the tournament
and probably picked to win the national championship by a
decent amount of people out there. The one thing that's weird.

(08:18):
We talked about this this morning is they have had
these issues with blowing leads. They have done this before
where they have had just epic collapses, and it's happened
in the NCAA tournament back to back years. You're wondering
whether or not it could happen again to them when
you have a loss like this. You know, it didn't
shock me that they lost to Texas Tech. It was

(08:39):
more of the way that they lost. Texas Tech was
a desperate team because they were a team that came
in with three losses already on the season. They kind
of needed a resume win somewhere, so they end up
getting it in Madison Square. Garden thought that part was
interesting because that's, you know, one of Duke's second homes
up there in New York.

Speaker 1 (08:57):
It is.

Speaker 3 (08:58):
But the thing that really shocked me was they did this.
You know, this comeback was possible for Texas Tech without
Lawan Watts. He's one of their best players. He was
leading them and scoring in the game. He had twenty points.
He ends up fouling out of the game, and they
still find a way to come back. That's what's a
little shocking for Duke. So maybe that element scares you

(09:18):
a little bit, But other than that. I mean, you look,
you've got Cameron Boozer, who's a tremendous player, might be
the best player in the entire country. You've got some
unbelievable depth that you can use, which I think is
to their advantage this year. Biggest thing for me, and
we've talked about this a little bit on this show.
Who is that secondary score? Yes, we don't know who

(09:39):
that is right now. That might be the one thing
that scares me if I'm a Duke fan about this
team overall. And then on top of that the blowing
the leads. So yeah, maybe there's a little bit of concern,
But I do think that this is still a team
position well, I think they are still going to win
the ACC.

Speaker 2 (09:55):
Yeah, I think that it's gonna be I can't wait
for these Duke Carolina games this year.

Speaker 1 (09:59):
I They're gonna be great.

Speaker 2 (10:00):
I can't wait to see all the teams at the
top of the ACC play one another, because I think
it's got a chance to be interesting. When you look
at Dukes stats for this season right now, Cameron bows
as you mentioned, twenty three points, ten rebounds, and then
after that you go Isaiah Evans averaging twelve points per game.
But it's the way in which he's going about his business,
only shooting thirty nine percent from the field and thirty

(10:23):
three percent from three. So he is not having a
season that many, including myself, thought that he was going
to have. And then Patrick Gangla is your third leading
scorer at eleven point one points per game. All right,
so my wake Forest demon deakins. Yeah, it was rough.
They lost ninety eight sixty seven to Vanderbilt, and we
talked about coming into that game. When you looked at

(10:43):
the metrics, Vanderbilt was the SEC's highest rated team. Wait
comes out and they're never in this game. From the
outset fifty four to thirty seven, they're down at half,
second half they get outscored forty four to thirty. They
just were never up for this game. And this is
a team you talk about flaw. They are very flow.
Miles Covin is your leading scorer with twenty points. Duke

(11:04):
Harris has nineteen, but Wake right now, they don't have
a go to guy. I know it's supposed to be
Duke Harris, but he's just too inconsistent. He goes four
for fifteen in this game, two of nine from three
grabs six rebounds. Miles coven He's a good player, He's
capable of making plays. But other than that, Wake just
doesn't have a roster full of guys who can get
the job done. Especially with the lack of a true

(11:25):
go to weapon, it feels like that the program is regressing.
This was a team that's been knocking at the door
of the NCAA Tournament, and now it just feels like
this season is going to be a lost season and
they're not going to go anywhere, not even NT I
mean conference. They may be able to salvage something right now,
maybe they've got something up their sleeve that I don't
know about, or right now, Wake just does not have

(11:47):
enough scoring. They do not have enough shooting. They shoot
nineteen percent from three against Vanderbilt, thirty five percent from
the field, while they allow fifty nine percent shooting and
fifty percent from three on thirty two attempts from Vanderbilt.
And this is a program that they've been pretty good
defensively under coach Steve Forbes, but man, at this rate,

(12:09):
I love coach Forbes, man, but I just don't know,
you know, I just think it may be time, you know,
for a change. There because something's got to give, because
you felt like that this year was going to be
a make or break gift for him, and right now
it just feels like the program's going in the opposite direction.

Speaker 4 (12:24):
Yeah, I mean it's hard not to feel that way.

Speaker 2 (12:28):
Man.

Speaker 3 (12:28):
You come off that game against Vanderbilt. I was someone
that picked wake Forest to win that game. I thought
they were going to pull the upset because Vanderbilt felt like,
you know, they got through that portion of the season undefeated.
Maybe they take a loss before they go into conference play.
I thought for sure it would be a close game.
I mean that game was never close. Never, And that's
that's the thing that's just shocking, is how can you

(12:51):
look that bad? You know, the game against Oklahoma. Thought
that was going to be a game that Wake Forest
could win, especially based off of how they played a
Texas Tech, how they played a Michigan earlier in the season.
You thought, Okay, Oklahoma should be one they should be
able to get. Right they lose by eighteen. Yes, that's
the concern with them is that it just seems like

(13:12):
this year, any of the opportunities to even get back
to where they were last year. In the years before
they haven't been able to do that, So you're right, man,
it feels like it's one of those lost seasons going
into ACC play.

Speaker 1 (13:24):
Now.

Speaker 3 (13:24):
The good news is is that you can turn it
around in ACC play. You can pick up wins in
this year's ACC that can get you to the tournament.
But it feels like you got to win a pretty
good amount of those top level matchups if you're wake
forest to be able to make up for the non
conference that you had.

Speaker 2 (13:41):
All Right, when we come back, folks, we're gonna talk
about Carolina Panthers Pro Bowl selections. Only one did they
get robbed? On sports Radio ninety two seven WFNZ from
the cham To studios. This is the West and Walker

(14:03):
Show sports Radio on ninety two seven w fn Z
A couple of days before Christmas or Crimas some of
y'all might call it crimas.

Speaker 1 (14:10):
You know what I'm saying, Ok? Yeah, yeah, man.

Speaker 2 (14:12):
We got a little bit a couple of segments left
on the show before we pass it off to Kyle
Bailey and Smoke Ludwick.

Speaker 4 (14:18):
Keep every Willie will Oh, Willie P Kyle.

Speaker 3 (14:21):
He's got the fifteen hour drive that he's currently in
the mid stuff.

Speaker 2 (14:26):
With the babies in there as well, So I know
that that is an exciting and fun ride. So shout
out to my man, Kyle Bailey. Yeah, man, So keep
it coming, man. All the topics we've been talking about, Panthers,
whatever you guys, whatever direction that you want to go, well,
are you least looking forward to this holiday season?

Speaker 1 (14:44):
All of that good stuff?

Speaker 2 (14:45):
How much liquor will you drink because your in laws
or family members are getting on your last dog on nerves.
Let me know all of it. Man, talk to me.
We are here for you, flying, and I are here
for you, all right. So we talked about before the break.
Pro Bowl team has been announced, the initial Pro Bowl team,
because we know that that will be ever changing in
jac Horn is the only Panther that will be on

(15:07):
said team. He's top for second in the NFL with
five interceptions. That's a career high for him, matches his
career total from his first four.

Speaker 1 (15:16):
Seasons excuse me, four seasons alone.

Speaker 2 (15:19):
And so for the Panthers, they had several guys that
were top ten of fan voting at their respective positions.
Derek Brown, JJ Janssen, Damian Lewis, Rico, Daldo Ricky wide
receiver Tetoa McMillan. They all finished in the top ten
of fan voting at their respective positions. Fan voting, though
only accounts for one third of the voting process. The

(15:41):
rest of the voting is done by players and coaches,
and the Pro Bowl games will be played at eight
pm on February third at the Moscone Center in San Francisco.
So let's just go ahead and get this out the wall.
I know you guys have given me a tough time.
You tried to say when I meant that I was
wrong about con and I had a text to say,
well you were wrong about JC two. Well no I
was not, because yes he had some nice, flashy interceptions

(16:03):
that definitely got him kudos. But you know, when we
go analytics and we talk about it, if you subscribe
to PFF, like we always like to put the disclaimer here,
Mike Jackson's had a better year. He's rated as a
twelfth rated corner from PFF. He's got the fifth highest
coverage grade. He's had a pick six this year, He's
made several big plays.

Speaker 1 (16:22):
He's got eight pass breakups.

Speaker 2 (16:24):
So you know, I could make the argument that he
has been the better corner this year and the analytics
would back that up, but J. C. Horne nonetheless gets in.
But I do think that the Panthers were robbed only
getting one Pro bowler. I think Derek Brown was deserving,
and I think that tells you a little bit about
the process too. Now I am one of those guys
that I do bring up Pro Bowls when I talk

(16:45):
about players. I do still think that's important to be,
you know, elected among your peers as one of the
best in the game. But we also know that a
lot of times they are snubs or players that end
up making it in because of you know, you know,
for whatever reason, but not necessarily because of the play
on the field, especially if you're a guy that's made
it before. We know that that happens here, and they

(17:07):
can be players on a guy's own team at his
own position that's worthy of being in the Pro Bowl.
And so for me, I think that Damian Lewis was
a guy that you could point to that I really
feel like should have been elected to the Pro Bowl.
I think he's had a really good season this year.
I think he was snubbed. Derick Brown. You could definitely
make an argument for him as well as being a

(17:29):
guy and I had a text there say that he
felt like that if anybody should have made it, that
it should have been him. So fans, let me know
how you feel on the Fandel text line. Should JC
Juan been the only Panther that made it to the
Pro Bowl?

Speaker 1 (17:43):
Here or where?

Speaker 2 (17:44):
There are some other guys that could have made it.
You could make a case for Rico Dowdo, but he
slowed down a lot. I think Rico Daldo could have
been on the rocket ship to making the Pro Bowl,
but he hasn't been able to capitalize really since the
Green Bay game and have a couple of monster games
that could have gotten him over the hump. But other
than that, you know, Tetoro also too could have been

(18:05):
a guy that you could have looked at us potentially
being a Pro Bowl rookie. And we're just talking about
on the initial roster because we know that, as I said,
it's going to be ever changing. Guys are going to
drop out, Guys are you know, not gonna participate in
this game. So the roster's gonna look a lot different
than how it looks today. But final, what do you
think about that? Was jac Horn deserving? Should there have

(18:26):
been more Panthers on here than just one.

Speaker 3 (18:29):
Yes, there definitely should have been more Panthers. I think
that Derek Brown should have definitely been on here. I
think he's had a tremendous season one that, especially coming
back from the injury.

Speaker 4 (18:40):
I think some.

Speaker 3 (18:41):
People it might have been some people that expected it,
but I think he's been tremendous. And you look at
the other guys in the NFC. I mean, my guy,
Dexter Lawrence not having a great year. So I mean
the guys that made it over him, I'd have to
look up their stats and really dive into that, but
I think he certainly is someone that at least deserve
to be a part of the conversation of making the

(19:02):
Pro Bowl. And then yeah, I mean Damian Lewis. I
think that's a that's a good conversation as well. He's
had a really strong year on the interior of that
offensive line. Again, when it comes to interior offensive line play, basically,
you're just voting for your guys.

Speaker 4 (19:18):
It doesn't really matter.

Speaker 3 (19:19):
It's however many votes these guys end up getting that
get them in. And so these bigger fan bases are
going to be able to get some of their guys
in a little bit easier to me. That's part of
the reason why with the Pro Bowl stuff. I mean,
I get it, there are still people that really value it.
I value all Pro a little bit more. So let's
circle around for all the Pro and if they do

(19:40):
end up putting some of these guys on there, well,
then we can have that conversation about which one ultimately
matters more. But JC, I mean it's it's hit or miss.
I mean, you look at the numbers that he's had
this season. Really, I mean, it's been one terrible game
for him for the entire season. There have been some
other games where he's been alright, not great, But I

(20:01):
would say, I mean, if you are comparing him to
Mike Jackson, Mike Jackson has allowed more yards.

Speaker 4 (20:06):
He's also allowed the same amount of touchdowns.

Speaker 2 (20:09):
I believe he's got a good yeah, and he's got
a bit more you know, past coverage reps than j C.
He's got five hundred and twenty seven pass covered snaps
and Jace Horn has four hundred and eighty four. So
we know Jace Horn missed the last game that they
not the last game, but the game before that with
the concussion, right and so that part. So he's got

(20:32):
more coverage snaps than jac Horn as well.

Speaker 3 (20:35):
So yeah, I mean, I look, I think, do I
think jac Horn is having an elite season, like one
of the ones that you know, we thought he was
gonna have early in his career.

Speaker 4 (20:46):
I don't think so.

Speaker 3 (20:47):
I think he's allowed, you know, a decent amount of yards,
that's for sure. But there is something to be said
about a guy that can just take away the football,
and that has been what he has been able to
do this year. So I definitely give him a lot
of credit. I think he should be a guy that
was at least in Pro Bowl consideration. It makes sense that,
you know, he is a guy that ends up getting
voted into Panthers. You know, we need one representative in

(21:08):
there from the Panthers, you would think, so I definitely
can see.

Speaker 4 (21:13):
The reason why he ends up making it.

Speaker 3 (21:14):
But me personally, I think the best player on the
Panthers the guy that should have gone. If you told
me you only get one guy, I would have put
Derek Brown in.

Speaker 2 (21:23):
So the interesting part is, you know, according to the
analytical grades from PFF, Derreck Brown once he peaked at
number two as far as interior defenders went now he
is down to twenty one, and I've said that I
think that his play has taken a little bit of
a dip because of I think the knee injury has
affected him. There's no hate here, there's no bias. I

(21:45):
just think that the knee injury has affected his play
because when you look since the Buffalo game, the highest
that he has graded out has been a sixty five,
and other than that we're talking in the fifties. This
past Sunday he had a fifty seven point nine grade
and so he's dropped to two twenty one. So the
NFC defensive interior defenders that are in front of him
right now, Puna Ford from the Rams is now in

(22:07):
that second spot. There, you got Quinn Williams. Both of
those guys are over eighty five's than Kobe Turner, my
guy from Wake Forest, he's at six. Then you also
got Desha Lawrence who's at ten. But in Jaseas Crain,
but his grade is only a seventy five. So this
is a guy that routinely grades into the nineties high eighties,

(22:28):
but he's only at a seventy five. So not a
crazy year for interior defenders overall, Jordan Davis from the
Philadelphia Eagles is number eleven. Then you got Moro a.
Jomo from Philadelphia. Videveya and David on your Mada are
all NFC defenders, and Jalen Redman are all NFC interior
defenders who right now analytically are over one Derek Brown.

(22:52):
And so I think that, as I've said, when I
point to the data and I see that New York
Jets game where he was absolutely electric and to that
point he is playing all pro caliber football. Then in
the Buffalo game, because I think it was the Buffalo
game that they said that he tweaked that knee and
that we started to hear about that stuff, and then
after that the play just kind of takes a dipth
So that's kind of what I think happened with him.

(23:13):
But let me know, uh, seven oh four numbers said
JC got in because of brog Pardy. I guess you
could say that Matt from Oakboro. I used to drop
tires over there in my little truck. He says, Derek
Brown deserved to be a lock in this joint. And
who's your Bobby? Says total bs that dB did not
get into the Pro Bowl. All right, man, So we

(23:35):
got about ten minutes left in this segment. We got
some good sound, big flizzle we do, all right man,
Let's hear a little bit of it. Let's get us
a condensed version of the live wire or sound with flound.

Speaker 1 (23:49):
The West sound down live wire connect.

Speaker 3 (23:54):
As soundboard doesn't want to work for me, right, It
just it doesn't play the first couple of seconds of.

Speaker 4 (24:00):
But it was a bit of a it's okay, it's
all right, let's go.

Speaker 3 (24:04):
With Dave Canal as the head coach of the Carolina Panthers,
he was speaking yesterday and he was asked if he
thinks the late bye week ended up being a positive
thing for his team.

Speaker 1 (24:14):
Yeah, I got.

Speaker 5 (24:15):
I try to look at opportunities and we don't get
to choose when that happens. And the opportunity it presented
us is a chance to finish strong at the end
and to get something back into the tank for the finish,
and you know that's that's happening for us, you know
right now. And also knowing that it was a long season,
going week in and week out and make and making

(24:36):
modifications to our plan. Understanding we're playing every Sunday one
after the other, you know, with the Monday night there
as well. But you know, there were certainly challenges that
came with that, But then there was also just if
we can play good enough football to where we're playing
these types of meaningful games, this thing will help us.

Speaker 1 (24:54):
And it has.

Speaker 5 (24:55):
It's it's given us time for guys to get back
out there, and it's given guys a little bit more
in the tank for the finish. So we're really fortunate
at this point, you know, to be able to be
filling you know, the effects of that in a positive way.

Speaker 3 (25:09):
So you know, early in the season, clearly you weren't
thinking that this was advantageous. But as they come down
the stretch here a little bit healthier than some of
the other teams that they're facing, do you think that
the late bye week actually was an advantage for the
Panthers when it's all said and done.

Speaker 1 (25:24):
Yeah, I think so.

Speaker 2 (25:24):
You heard coach Canal, let's say it right there, that
he thinks that it was advantageous because late in the
year injuries start to pile up. So yeah, you would
rather if you get it early and you start getting
guys hurt and you've got to keep playing to where
it is, you get that extra week, you're able to
get guys back late in the year, and then some

(25:45):
of the guys that have been playing for you that
are banged up, they get a week of treatment, They
get a week to heal their bodies up as well.
So yeah, man, we know when it comes down to
playoff pushes, playoff runs, it comes down to who is
the healthier team, And so for the Carolina Panthers, it's
certainly helps that they are getting guys back, getting guys healthier,

(26:07):
because they've got some important games to play and they
will have to have all hands on deck.

Speaker 4 (26:13):
Yeah, there's no doubt about it.

Speaker 3 (26:14):
I think the late bye week is certainly something that
early in the season you're gonna look and say to yourself, man,
this really sucks. You know, we need to get a break,
especially you know when you got off to the start
that you got off to, you're one and three, you
were probably thinking, man, we could really take a bye
week early in the season here to help us get
back on track. But you saw it sort of allowed
Carolina to work through some things. They got some of

(26:36):
the injuries that they needed to out of the way,
and now we sit here with a group that is
relatively healthy is going into you know, a game against Seattle,
a game against Tampa where they should be the healthier group.
And I think the other thing is is that it
sort of allowed you to have that reset moment. Now, Unfortunately,
you know, you came out the next game and you

(26:56):
lost to New Orleans. But I told you that week,
you know, there were a lot of teams that had
that laid byway. There were four teams, only one of
them actually pulled out a victory. So it seemed like
everybody sort of had that bye week hangover. But now
you're seeing it pay dividends. They were the healthier team
against Tampa. That certainly was part of the reason why
Carolina comes out victorious. And if they're healthier against Seattle

(27:19):
and Tampa once again, then I think that could be
the difference in victories ultimately.

Speaker 1 (27:24):
All right, what else we got?

Speaker 3 (27:25):
All Right, we move on to Dave Canalis, still in
the pressure. Yesterday, he was asked if xavierly get is
that risk of losing snaps after another IFY game.

Speaker 1 (27:35):
No, he's not.

Speaker 5 (27:36):
You know, x is a guy that I love. He
works his tailoff. He would love to have those plays back.
I'm sure he'd be up here telling you that for sure,
he's a guy we're going to continue to trust that
he's going to work through this. You know, in this
one game, you know, he didn't come up with the
opportunities that he had. But I trust he'll get right
back to work. He'll be a part of our game
plan this week as well.

Speaker 3 (27:55):
All right, So do you believe that Excel should be
losing opportunity because of the way that he played yet
another game where he can't figure out where he's at
on the sideline and then unfortunately drops a ball as well.

Speaker 4 (28:08):
So what do you think about that?

Speaker 2 (28:12):
I think that he should, obviously, but the Panthers don't
have the depth to be able to make that happen. Frankly,
I mean, who's he going to put in to play
over him at.

Speaker 4 (28:23):
May Maybe David Moore when he comes back.

Speaker 2 (28:25):
Maybe David Moore could take some of those reps. And
we know that he's a canalist guy. So that's a
stute that's in astute observation by you, So it could
be him, because I do think that when David Moore
comes back, the way that he knows that system, I
think that he really could give this core boosts because
this is going to be another guy that knows where
to go, knows what to be, knows what to do.
He's a veteran receiver, and so I think that this

(28:47):
could help this receiving cor And I think even with
Canalis saying what he's saying right now, when David Moore returns,
those reps could be starting to diminish. For Excel, it
just feels like, man, he could get it that Tom.

Speaker 1 (29:00):
Is not lost.

Speaker 2 (29:00):
He's made some place to give you a little bit
of hope this season. But all in all, I mean,
when you talk about the sideline deal, that's one of
those things that is the most perplexing because you see
so many receivers that are not necessarily the top one
or two guys on that team, but they got toe
drag swag, you know what I'm saying. Like that feels

(29:22):
like part of the DNA of your basic NFL receiver
and for him not to really have that concept.

Speaker 1 (29:28):
He's just a big.

Speaker 2 (29:29):
Receiver and he feels very stiff when he's out there
playing the game. He just doesn't seem like this amazing
athlete that can just do all types of things with
his body man, and so I think for Canalist, I
know he believes in EXL, but I would feel like
that probably once they get a better option, those reps
will start to diminish.

Speaker 3 (29:48):
Yeah, I think it certainly is something that could happen.
There are people pounding the table right now on the
text line for Jimmy Horn. The problem is you cannot
play Jimmy Horn on the outside. He is not an
outside receiver. So then you have to ask yourself, are
you comfortable playing Jalen Koker on the outside or do
you like him better in the slot. I think ultimately

(30:09):
they like him better in the slot. And so what
that means is that you got to wait for David
Moore to ultimately come back. I think that's the route
that they're gonna go. When David Moore comes back. I
really do think he's gonna be active because he brings
you a little bit more than Bryce and Tremaine brings you.
And he's gonna be a guy that will be pushing
xavierly get for some reps where it's like, hey man,

(30:29):
you got to start stepping up, you gotta start making
some plays here. So I think that's certainly something to
watch over the next couple of weeks. I'm not quite
where Fitty is at, Fitty said earlier this morning. Cut
him after the season is outright, it's you can't you
can't get to that point yet. He's not a guy
that's a menace in the locker room or anything like that.

(30:51):
But he's certainly someone that you're hoping you can see more.
And I got to tell you, when it comes to
free agency, if there's someone that you love in the draft,
not going to let Excel stand in the way of
you that this offseason from you potentially adding a piece
that could help you there. So I think that's ultimately
how you have to look at it. All right, let's
move on to Cam Newton, because he was on First

(31:13):
Take All. He said, the bank is officially back, guys.

Speaker 6 (31:18):
Well, you think about how I look at Carolina Panthers games.

Speaker 1 (31:22):
The bank is back.

Speaker 6 (31:24):
Bank of America Stadium and Charlotte North Carolina has been
some of my fondest memories as a human being. When
I was watching that game and you start to hear
the crowd respond and you start to see, oh my goodness,
the excitement is back, and knowing that this is the
same team this time.

Speaker 4 (31:41):
Last year had a very viral photo of.

Speaker 1 (31:44):
The stands being empty. So to see Bank of.

Speaker 6 (31:48):
America Stadium back to where they are, oh my god,
it does my heart good.

Speaker 3 (31:53):
All right, So do you think that the Bank is
back to being one of the tougher places to play
in the NFL with what we've seen so far this year?

Speaker 1 (32:01):
I think they're getting there for sure.

Speaker 2 (32:03):
I think that that was a good sign for how
they performed for the Panthers because the yes, the fans
do perform for the players. The players feed off of
this stuff. They love it. It helps them play better.
It helps them, you know, with these big plays that
juices the team up.

Speaker 1 (32:16):
We already know that.

Speaker 2 (32:18):
I just want to see it when it's against a
team that has a great fan base, Can you maintain
control of that stadium like a lot of you guys
are giving me a tough time online about forty nine
ers Panthers potentially in a playoffs if they play, if
the forty nine ers had to come here, will Panther
fans stand up and hold out a lot of those
forty nine.

Speaker 1 (32:36):
Er fans that will want to come to this game.

Speaker 2 (32:37):
To me, that's the key to really let you know,
is this fan base back. I think they've been doing
a great job in some of their big games this year.
But the test is gonna be when you get one
of the flagship franchises that travels very well, that wants
to gobble up all of the tickets that they can,
will Panther fans say hell, no, you're not gonna go Okay,

(32:58):
Well they say that, are they gonna say you're not
gonna go to the game? To me, that's gonna be
the real ticket there. But yes, the crowd was lit Sunday.
It's a great sign going forward. But the key is
can you stay consistent?

Speaker 7 (33:10):
Yeah?

Speaker 3 (33:11):
I think they can stay consistent at least for the
foreseeable future, as long as this team is even mediocre.
That was what we were talking about with, you know,
with Dave Tepper saying that he wanted to make this
team more than just mediocre when he took over. Well,
I mean the last few years you were looking can
you get back to being a mediocre franchise? And early

(33:33):
in the season, I mean you go back to that
Atlanta game.

Speaker 4 (33:36):
Yeah, I mean we were there in the stands for
that game.

Speaker 3 (33:38):
That team was zero to two, and that was a
pretty loud, stadium, pretty packed. So for the most part,
Panther fans have been doing their part this year, and
it's only gotten better as the season has gone along.
I think it's been a part of the reason why
they have been so successful in some of these home games.
I really do think that it's had an effect. I
think it had an effect the other day. You can't

(33:59):
tell me that Luke Gotticky wasn't thrown off a little
bit by the environment in there and that led to
some of the issues that he had on the offensive
line for Tampa Bay. But I think you have to
give these fans a lot of credit. And yeah, I
think depending on who comes here, San Francisco would be
interesting because we know there are a lot of San
Francisco fans around here. I think the Panthers fans would

(34:22):
show up in Unison to support their team, especially if
they make the playoffs. So I'm thinking it's it's gonna
be a pretty raucous environment. I think, you know, Sunday
is gonna be really exciting for a lot of fans
as well. I think there's gonna be a lot of
Panther fans there instead of Seahawks fans. It's just yeah,
can you prevent a takeover when you get to the playoffs.

(34:42):
I think that's gonna be the real telling sign. If
they do it, then man, that's gonna be awesome to see.

Speaker 4 (34:47):
And I agree.

Speaker 2 (34:48):
I think that's gonna be a good test for on
Sunday is against the Seahawks, because the Seahawks traveled pretty
good too.

Speaker 1 (34:53):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (34:53):
Those people are those people are crazy.

Speaker 1 (34:55):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (34:55):
I think it'll be a fair share them with their
coffee and the doughnuts and aud stuff for Starbucks.

Speaker 1 (35:01):
Oh yeah, they'll be ready to go. Man.

Speaker 2 (35:02):
All right, when we come back, folks, we're gonna talk
about what's on tap for the weekend.

Speaker 1 (35:06):
Sport's ready on ninety two seven w FNZ.

Speaker 7 (35:20):
Are you challenge for to walk off? Oh yeah, that's
a walk off challenge, my friend.

Speaker 1 (35:30):
It's a walk off walk off. All right.

Speaker 2 (35:34):
First of all, you know, for you guys out there
celebrating the season, how thrilled are you that it's gonna
be seventy one degrees on Thursday for Christmas Day? Okay
you guys? So yeah, man, it's gonna be a warm one.
This is gonna be I'm not sure if it's a record,
but this is gonna be one of the warmest in
quite sometimes. So I know we don't get very many

(35:56):
white Christmases around here, but you're definite gonna have a Warman,
it's gonna feel like we're down in Miami. Are you disappointed?
I fellow New Yorker here, I know you used to cold, snowy.

Speaker 1 (36:06):
Maybe that's right. I know the Christmas up there, but nah, man,
not to be no.

Speaker 3 (36:12):
And the thing is is that I wish we could
get not even a white Christmas, just a cold Christmas.
That's what I like, being able to have the pajama
pants on gather around the tree. This year, I'm gonna
be in a pair of gym shorts gathering around the tree,
so I don't sweat my rear end off while I
open my packages.

Speaker 4 (36:30):
I mean, come on now, all.

Speaker 1 (36:31):
Right, let me know on offend of text line you
can get in a couple of.

Speaker 2 (36:35):
Texting at the finish line, Sean pe word up to
a helter skelter. He said that record temperature is seventy
seven on Christmas Day, according to Brad Panovitch, and Baron says,
what's better than Christmas Week golf?

Speaker 1 (36:51):
So I guess for some of you golfers.

Speaker 2 (36:52):
If you get some clubs, you'll be able to take
them out and test them out immediately. But now let's
talk about what's on tap. Present about Twin Peaks. Twin
Peaks has locations in Concord and Fort Mio.

Speaker 1 (37:04):
Twin Peaks is your local sports lodge.

Speaker 2 (37:05):
Come in for May from scratch food and signature twenty
nine degree draft beers.

Speaker 1 (37:11):
Today, we've got.

Speaker 2 (37:12):
The Washington Wizards taking on the Charlotte Hornets. That'll be
tonight over at the Spectrum Center. I'll go with the
Hornets tonight. I mean, what do you say this.

Speaker 4 (37:24):
Is one that you better man?

Speaker 3 (37:25):
You lose this game that It's just it brings you
right back to the misery of being a Charlotte Hornets fan.

Speaker 4 (37:32):
I think they get it done though.

Speaker 3 (37:34):
I think con you know, LaMelo should be active for
this game.

Speaker 4 (37:38):
I would hope.

Speaker 3 (37:39):
I think he's gonna be active in a back to back.
I think those guys will be able to drag this
team to a victory against the Wizards. It's not gonna
be easy because it's the damn Hornets, but I think
they'll find a.

Speaker 1 (37:50):
Way all right.

Speaker 2 (37:50):
Also, and the Bushes Boca Raton Bowl of Beans. What
about how they were that like you would think it
would be the Bushes Baked Beans Boca Raton Bowl, but
that you would think Bush's Boca Raton Bowl of Beans.
All right, I can't wait to see maybe what's going
on at the end of that one where they jump
into a big vat of baked beans.

Speaker 1 (38:09):
But I do love Bush's Bake Beans.

Speaker 4 (38:11):
Currently, I think, well, who is it?

Speaker 2 (38:13):
Louisville and it is going on right now seven and three.

Speaker 1 (38:18):
Toledo is up.

Speaker 2 (38:20):
My boy Chris Barclay wakes all time leading Russia running
backs coach for the Louisville Cardinals. He's been taking some
pictures with his beautiful family out there.

Speaker 1 (38:29):
So we'll see how that one goes.

Speaker 3 (38:30):
And if you catch the broadcast, friend of the station,
Ashley Stroline is on the sidelines for that one today.

Speaker 1 (38:36):
There as well on the sidelines.

Speaker 2 (38:38):
And then on Friday, we've got Clemson taking on Penn
State in the Pinstripe Bowl.

Speaker 4 (38:43):
Interesting. Interesting.

Speaker 2 (38:45):
Then you've got Georgia Tech and BYU and the Pop
Tarts Bowl on Friday, and then you've got Virginia and
the fighting Willie Pas. The Missouri Tigers will be in
the tax Slayer Bowl. So I guess if I were
to pick these three games, I'm gonna go with Clemson
because we know Dabbo. He is certainly going to have

(39:05):
his guys playing that good, high character football. Nobody's quitting
in this bowl game. I think they beat Penn State.
Jordia Tech BYU is an interesting one. I'll go with
BYU though I think Georgia Tech is uh, you know,
kind of slumping right now, so I'm not gonna take
them over a BYU team that I expect to probably
play the majority of the guys, if not everybody, And

(39:26):
this is a team that's going to be looking to
prove a point that they should have been in the CFP.
And in Virginia and Missouri, this is a tough one,
but both purbut Bo Prabula is in the transfer portal
if I'm not mistaken. Yes, I know he announced that, yes,
so he would not be playing in this game. So
I will go with the Virginia Cavaliers as well, coming

(39:46):
off of that ACC Championship game loss.

Speaker 1 (39:49):
Who do you like in those three games?

Speaker 3 (39:50):
So yeah, Virginia definitely, I like for sure. I think
that's the one I like the most out of that group,
I think going up against a team that's gonna be.

Speaker 4 (39:59):
Quarterback by Salar's look.

Speaker 3 (40:01):
Salars could be a guy that down the line ends
up being a good quarterback for Mazoo. But we saw
him earlier this year. He wasn't great. I think he's
gonna struggle a little bit in this game. So I'll
take Virginia Clemson. I'll take the Tigers in that one
over Penn State. You know, Penn State in a weird spot.
You know they just hired Matt Campbell. I think this
is still gonna be Terry Smith that's gonna be on

(40:22):
the sidelines for them coaching in this game.

Speaker 4 (40:24):
But there's really not much to prove here.

Speaker 3 (40:27):
Some guys trying to prove that they should stay on
the roster, maybe to Matt Campbell, but other than that,
I think Clemson will certainly be more motivated for this game.

Speaker 7 (40:36):
And then.

Speaker 1 (40:39):
What was it? Now?

Speaker 4 (40:40):
Now I'm blanking on.

Speaker 1 (40:41):
You got Georgia take Byu've Aten State?

Speaker 4 (40:46):
I will go man.

Speaker 3 (40:48):
Georgia Tech gonna be without their offensive coordinator and Buster Falkner,
I'm pretty sure.

Speaker 4 (40:54):
But BYU.

Speaker 3 (40:55):
The thing about BYU, how much are they going to
be feeling the hangover from missing out on the college
football playoff. Georgia Tech, Man, you know why, I think
Cain's King lays it on the line one more time.
I think he's a baller. I'll take Georgia Tech to
get the victory.

Speaker 2 (41:10):
All right, all right, So going over to the fandom
Tech sign before we close out. We got a few
minutes before we pass it off to Willie p and Smoke.
Ludwig Delvis the Rock says, I love this spring weather Christmas.

Speaker 1 (41:22):
I wish it was like this all year long.

Speaker 2 (41:24):
Damn the cod Well, my man, sounds like you might
want to move to South Florida or maybe southern California,
even though they've got some bad weather on the way
in California. So I thoughts go out to them because
they're talking about potential high level flooding out there coming
up with rain. And then Brian and Mississippi says, one
of my favorite parts about living in South Mississippi is

(41:45):
a it's usually warm enough on Christmas to be in
shorts and enjoying the gifts outside with the kids. And
bicycle Herd says, hey, but all the kids who get
new basketball goes and new bikes are going to be
hella thrill. Yeah, that's a fact that is worry about
this for a lot of people who you know, are
bummed because it's going to be so warm. I think

(42:07):
that for the kids who get gifts that you're supposed
to play with outside, and even the adults who get
gifts that you're supposed to play with outside, you will
be able to do that. Man. So that's going to
be a good part of this thing as well. So
hell man, we wish you guys happy holidays as well.
I will not be back until after the New Year,

(42:28):
so I wish you guys a happy New Year as well.
I'll be heading down to Arizona on Friday, so you
know the story will be lit.

Speaker 1 (42:35):
We'll be on the ig.

Speaker 2 (42:36):
Showing you everything going on out there at the Snoop
Dog Bowl.

Speaker 4 (42:40):
Well, who's playing us a little bit about it?

Speaker 1 (42:42):
Yeah, sponsored by Jen and Juice.

Speaker 2 (42:45):
It is Fresno State and Miami of Ohio that will
be playing in this one. And also as well, there
could no telling who could be showing upb out that
we know Snoops Homie is Martha Stewart. She could be
potentially showing about that, So who knows who you might see.
Also heard that there will be a lowrider that will
be jumping up and down for touchdowns as well. But

(43:08):
everything you hear about it Miami of Ohio. They're excited.
This is their second straight year in this game as well,
so they're excited about going back to this game, and
that coach is hilarious.

Speaker 1 (43:22):
Chuck Martin.

Speaker 2 (43:22):
He said that he was not that familiar with Snoop
Dogg when he first met him, but he talked about
what a great, you know, celebrity he was with his time.
You've been hearing that from everybody. They say how much
he goes around. He's really hands on with this game.
He's going to go up in the broadcast booth. He's
gonna be doing that. He also talked about how he
said that Snoop asked him questions or made observations to him.

(43:45):
Because we know Snoop coaches youth football. He's put a
lot of guys in the pros. He's big in the football.
He said Snoop was asking him questions and making observations
that the regular reporter would not ask. That's how astute
he was. He said, Snoop was like, hey, man, I
saw your quarterback we got to get him settled down.
He had a couple of guys open on a couple
of those red zone jis. Man, we got to be

(44:06):
able to fix that. And he was like, dang, where's
Holly row Wing?

Speaker 1 (44:10):
You need it? He said, cause Snoop was dead on with.

Speaker 2 (44:13):
His observations that he didn't really have answers for when
he said, or he didn't want to throw his quarterback
under the bus with what he was saying.

Speaker 1 (44:21):
But yeah, so I'm looking forward to that.

Speaker 7 (44:22):
Man.

Speaker 2 (44:22):
Snoop is one of my all time favorite rappers. He's
if I had five rappers that I could listen to
for the rest of my life, Snoop Dogg would certainly
be one of them.

Speaker 4 (44:30):
And so he's going to be in the Prey. He's
going to be up with Tom and he's.

Speaker 2 (44:34):
With them, but he's also on the sidelines of time
many completely hands on. They say that he shows up
hours before the game, signing every autograph, taking mad pictures
and stuff like that. Man, so I know when he
and I have a discussion and he sees how well
versed I am in his music, I'm pretty sure we
will be hitting it all pretty well. Because, like I said,
I have a personally curated Snoop Dogg playlist in Spotify.

(44:58):
That's one hundred and eighty songs. So Snoop is one
of my all time favorites. As I said, yeah, man,
big cat Dan says, sipping on genning juic, laid back,
and last thing I leave you, guys with the players,
it's hilarious. My son will win the car. A lot
of Snoop Dogg saw Snoop dog songs that I play.
He says they're trash and a lot of these kids
are there in tune with him. And I asked a

(45:18):
couple of the players about it as well. They do
not listen to Snoop Dogg like that.

Speaker 1 (45:22):
Either.

Speaker 2 (45:22):
One of them shared my son's thoughts about it. He
didn't say it in a disparaging way, but he was like, yeah, man,
he's like I just you know, I don't listen to
Snoop Dogg like that. And then the other player that
I spoke to, Cam Perry, they're a great wide receiver.
He said that the only song he liked by him
was with NBA Young Boy, so go figure the young
guy likes him with the artists of the right now,

(45:43):
So all right, guys, so stay tuned to the story
West bron Underscore seventy two at wessel Walker page all
that good.

Speaker 1 (45:49):
Stuff finding You've been excellent today.

Speaker 2 (45:51):
We will be seeing you guys, at least I will
be seeing you guys in the new year.

Speaker 1 (45:55):
Appreciate you listening now.

Speaker 2 (45:57):
It is time for the Kyo Bailey Show, but with
and smoke Ludwig will holler.

Speaker 7 (46:07):
Listen to the.

Speaker 2 (46:07):
Wes and Walker Show Week is from noon to three
only on Sports Radio ninety two point seven FM WFNZ

Speaker 3 (46:15):
The official home of the Charlotte sports fan