Query & Company Full Show 12/16/25- Colts Updates and Pacers Preview

Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:04):
So I got to thinking about this on my way in,
and I know that, and I get that, and I
appreciate that, and I respect that. Sometimes we fall victim
to overthinking things. Sometimes we fall victim to making things

(00:26):
more complicated than they are. And in my case, truth
be told, sometimes I probably am even victim to And
I've tried to oscillate on this. I've tried to swing
backward in the pendulum of life.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
Right.

Speaker 3 (00:41):
You know.

Speaker 1 (00:45):
It is true. It is true that you as you
get older, you mellow mellow yellow still a beverage. Right,
Kurt Gerald's who is in for Eddie Garrison. Doctor Pepper
has its counter, which is mister pib Right, Sprite has
its counter, which is slice. Coke has its counter, which

(01:09):
is pepsi. And I guess Mountain Dew's counter would be
mellow yellow, which is the Coca Cola version, or at
one time was, and it was big in the early eighties.
Is mellow yellow still around?

Speaker 4 (01:21):
Yeah, It's better than Mountain Dew in my opinion?

Speaker 1 (01:24):
Hold on, hang on, okay, so you prefer mellow yellow
and listen. When I was a kid, mellow yellow was
a popular a popular like refreshment at the Little League
snack bar. Now, before we get into the Colts, and
before we get into the Pacers, and before we get

(01:44):
into the point I was trying to make here. I
want to tap into this a little bit because we
had at one point on sports talk radio I made
the point of little league concession stands. And I can't
remember if it was Eddie or if it was Derek
Sz or somebody I was working with that was unfamiliar
with the the bliss that is the little league concession stand.

(02:07):
So you, Kurt Geralds, grew up in the beech Grove area, correct?

Speaker 4 (02:10):
Correct?

Speaker 3 (02:10):
Did you have like beech Grove little leagueyah beach with
of little league?

Speaker 1 (02:13):
Okay, did you have the little concession stand at the
little league?

Speaker 5 (02:16):
Yeah?

Speaker 4 (02:16):
She looked forward to it after every game. You got
a little ticket?

Speaker 3 (02:18):
Yeah? Okay, thank you? Right? And now the ticket.

Speaker 1 (02:20):
When I was a kid, the ticket was the golden access.
It literally was the Chillen, the Charlie and the Chocolate
Factory Willie Walk a ticket that allowed you either and
the true like could not wait for it thing were
the snow cone, the astro pop, which I'm sure is

(02:41):
now illegal because it was basically like a literally an
astro pop in retrospect, and it's kind of one of
those if you know you know things, But the AstroPop
is one that I'm like, I cannot believe that there
was a like a lab that came up with this
sort of confectionery chemistry, but b that it was it literally.

Speaker 3 (03:02):
Was like a weapon.

Speaker 1 (03:02):
That it was allowed is mind blowing, but nonetheless I digress.
And then eventually circa nineteen eighty one or so, around
the time that everybody was trying to get a Fernando
Alenzuela rookie card in their tops pack after baseball games
or practice, the watch a McCall it bar was really
hitting the mainstream, and a watch a mc call it

(03:24):
and mellow yellow was quite the rage now when you
were in con And then the walking taco for your
age group I think is a bigger deal, but it
was not around when I was there. What was the
true delicacy for your concession stand after.

Speaker 4 (03:37):
A baseball game? Getting a cold coke and like a
little styrofoam cup yello?

Speaker 1 (03:41):
Yeah, and then just like the nerd, what about the
wax Coca Cola cup? Did they have those? The red
and white? Okay, okay, so styrofoam cup with cold coke, okay.

Speaker 4 (03:49):
And then the candy of nerds were like a popcorn.

Speaker 3 (03:51):
I don't know nerds were. Nerds were big, for sure.

Speaker 4 (03:53):
Nerds in a walking taco. You are correct, that was
the go.

Speaker 1 (03:56):
To Okay, all right, fair enough, So mellow Yellow was
when it hit the scene. I don't know what your
Mellow Yellow hit the scene, but I was a kid
when I remember Mellow Yellow, probably nineteen eighty one or
eighty two, if I had to guess. It became mainstream
around then. Maybe it's been around forever and I just
didn't know it. But it is true that as you

(04:17):
get older, you get more mellow, okay. And I have
in my younger past life I have been at times
not as mellow. I have tried to mellow out some.
And yes, you go through different things in life and

(04:37):
perspectives and things that are offered to you that lend
you to being a more mellow individual. Okay, what we
are doing here, What we are doing here, this Saint Neurosurgery, right,
I mean what we're doing here is you go down
to Franciscan Health and you see those folks working doing

(05:00):
heart surgeries and neurosurgery. Those are heroes, and those are
truly important gigs. This ain't one of those. I know that.

Speaker 3 (05:09):
But I try to be mellow.

Speaker 1 (05:10):
I try to be engaging and enjoyable and let people
know that. I'm aware of the fact that all of
us have life at the fingertips, and it's a matter
of how much you squeeze that juice out of life.

Speaker 2 (05:22):
Right.

Speaker 1 (05:24):
And I went in today thinking, you know what, here
we go. Colts are on Monday Night football. Monday Night Football,
San Francisco, forty nine ers Indianapolis Colts. Awesome. Love everything
about it. I remember, I remember all too well. That's
actually a good thing. The first ever Monday night football
game in the city of Indianapolis. I remember the Halloween masks.

(05:46):
I remember Eric Dickerson with Bob blaming four of them
tonight four.

Speaker 3 (05:50):
I remember all of it.

Speaker 1 (05:52):
Bill Brooks Juke in the Denver Secondary loved it, fifty
five twenty three, loved it. I remember the Monday Night
Miracle and Tampa and Jack Black doing the intro beforehand.

Speaker 3 (06:04):
I remember all of it.

Speaker 1 (06:05):
I remember the game against Pittsburgh here on Monday Night football,
al Michaels and this is how the undefeated Colts will
began with the big past of Marvin Harrison touchdown Colts.
I remember it, I remember some of the bad times.
I'm Monder night football, but Monday night football still carries
a cachet. We should be celebrating here. We are getting in,

(06:26):
getting set for the holiday season. Within ten days of Christmas.
We are amidst Hanikah. Happy Hanukah to those that celebrate
all of it right, and the mellow me should be saying, Jake,
take the blessing of what it is that you're able
to do every day. Come in, take a couple of
days off from Meddi Garrison. Kurt Gerald's comes in. He's

(06:48):
got on his black Hawks sweater, talking mellow yellow. Life's good.
But I couldn't help but think when I was driving
in that I needed to just let go of some steam.
I needed to get out some pent up frustration. I

(07:10):
needed to voice concern that I think is concerned that
many people in Indianapolis may have.

Speaker 3 (07:16):
And it is easy narrative, it's easy radio.

Speaker 1 (07:23):
It's almost shortcut stuff to just be a flamethrower for
the sake of being a flamethrower. It's tired, it's worn out,
the Skip Baylesses of the world, and the people that
literally every day are like I'm just going to find
the opinion that's the contrarian one, just for the sake

(07:44):
of being contrarian and try to drive up ratings.

Speaker 3 (07:48):
It wears people out.

Speaker 1 (07:49):
I get it, and I've found that in reality, I
just want us to all have fun and say, you
know what, it was sub zero over the weekend, but
it's going to be fifty degrees coming up, and it's
sunny outside right now, and let's look at the sunny
optimistic side of things. That's how I want to be.

(08:12):
But then as I was driving in, I thought, I
have a concern and I need to unload and let
it off my shoulders, and I'm going to therapeutically do
it with the city of Indianapolis and ask for people
to give me their thought on whether or not I'm
out of line, because sometimes I think to myself, Kurt,

(08:33):
maybe because one of the challenging things about my brain
is sometimes I have an inability to not understand why
everyone doesn't see things as clearly as I assume they
should see them.

Speaker 3 (08:47):
And here is my concern.

Speaker 1 (08:50):
Yesterday, towards the end of our program, and I can't
remember if it was definitively said right after we got
off the air or like in the last hour that
we were on the air, But Shane Steiken confirmed what
we assumed, and that is that Philip Rivers will start
at quarterback for the for the Colts on Monday Net
Football against San Francisco. And yes, I know that Anthony

(09:12):
Richardson is back in football cleared, and I do have
a question about this. By the way, I know it's
Anthony Richardson's senior now and that's cool, but typically doesn't
someone only start to go by senior once there is

(09:33):
the possibility they could be confused with junior. Like al
Uncer when he won the Indy five hundred and nineteen
seventy one, had a son named Allenser Junior, but he
didn't become known as Allen ser Senior until Allencer Junior
was then competing in the same Marena as Allen Sir Senior,
and thus you had to differentiate between the two.

Speaker 3 (09:55):
Like John F.

Speaker 1 (09:58):
Kennedy. I don't know this actually, but when John F. Kennedy,
John John as he was known, was John F. Kennedy,
his son known as JFK Junior when he was a
little kid and was saluting his father at the age
of three, or was it not until he became an
adult and got into the arena that then it was

(10:21):
JFK Junior. These are the kinds of things that keep
me awake at three point forty eight in the morning, right,
But nonetheless, I know that Anthony Richardson's senior because I
want to differentiate so that no one's confused that the
infant might be the one that's going out there on
the football field. We have to differentiate that it's Anthony
Richardson senior, but Anthony Richardson in terms of his clearance

(10:45):
for football activity, that does not mean that he is
ready to go out on the field and begin playing
against San Francisco. And it is a very understandable question
for people of wait a minute, how in the world
does a franchise that puts a forty four year old

(11:06):
quarterback that was teaching high school football the previous season
and has not thrown a pass in five years?

Speaker 3 (11:15):
How is that guy able to go out onto the field.

Speaker 1 (11:18):
But yet a guy that is a within that same
five year window, a first round pick of the NFL
needing more time. Well, the answer is simple. It's one
thing to be forty four years old and take on
hits or have such things that could precurse what an

(11:39):
iboprofen takes care of, and it's the other to be
coming off of an orbital bone fracture that makes me
nauseous just hearing it. So I do understand that while
his vision is such that he's able to get out
there now and go through reps and begin, I think

(11:59):
we probably forget it wasn't with Anthony Richardson, with the
injury that he had. The freak injury of the eye socket.
Bone cracking is the easiest way to say it. Okay,
that injury itself, I would assume led to an ice
swelling and such things that it was difficult just to

(12:21):
even go out and stay in shape and throw the
football and go through the thing. I mean, I would
imagine that a lot of his recovery during the time
that he was on IR was simply getting the eye
healthy enough to open it and see twenty twenty vision again,
or whatever his vision was prior to the injury. So
now you have set that back, and he probably hasn't

(12:44):
even able to work out and keep himself in shape.
So I do get that from a timing standpoint, you
need more time there. But this is my overwriting point
about where we are. Philip Rivers is going to start
against San Francis Go, And maybe I'm being other than

(13:08):
mellow yellow here. Maybe I'm being kickstart instead of mellow yellow.
And I'd like to know if people think I'm wrong
in this opinion. And I absolutely embrace and appreciate and
respect if people want to tell me that I'm being
completely wrong negative Nancy, because I don't want to be that.

(13:29):
I don't want to be pessimistic, Pete.

Speaker 2 (13:30):
I don't.

Speaker 1 (13:32):
But the Colts continuously under this administration have painted themselves
into corners by continually balancing between hanging on to small
possibilities of something and also kicking the same can down
the street. The reason that forever it took so long

(13:58):
to address the quarterback situation and then eventually select Anthony
Richardson in the draft as your quarterback is because they
got to the point where they had to select a
quarterback that year because they'd kicked the can too many times.
They kept trying to band aid it. And I know
Andrew Luck retired unexpectedly.

Speaker 3 (14:16):
I get it. I get it.

Speaker 1 (14:21):
But oftentimes the best laid plans in life are those
that were executed because you immediately had a backup plan.
If your skydiving and the parachute doesn't open, you better
have yourself the auxiliary emergency parachute. And this administration and

(14:42):
Chris Ballard's done some very good things. He has and
they have This year when they were seven and one,
we were talking about how maybe they did, in fact
have a really good roster. But the most important position
in sports is the quarterback, and the Colts kept nillly
nalying around at the quarterback position once Andrew Luck retired.
And I get that first year when you had to

(15:03):
go to Jacoby Brissett. I get it that it took
you by surprise. Fine, and they get some credit actually
for even making that trade for Brissett just before the
retirement came. But then when the rest of the world
knew they needed to address the quarterback situation, they kept
waiting until the eleventh hour of something's just gonna fall
into our lap. Philip Rivers is just going to fall

(15:26):
into our lap. Carson Wentz is available, We'll make a
trade and all fall into our lap. That didn't work out.
You know what, eleventh hour, Matt Ryan just fell into
our lap and then they found out he could not
play at all. Sam Ellinger will try that, just fall
into our lap. And then the Daniel Jones things happened,

(15:47):
and then they put themselves in a position where they
had to draft a quarterback in the year that Richardson
was available, and they didn't move up. And in hindsight,
were they going to move up for Bryce Young?

Speaker 3 (15:59):
He's okay.

Speaker 1 (16:00):
Are they gonna move up a spot or not allow
Houston to vault them? For CJ. Stroud? It's good player,
but is he a franchise QB? Probably still to be determined.
But they settle on Anthony Richardson, and then even that,
they end up with Daniel Jones, and here we are,

(16:23):
and it feels to me like, now the problem you
have and this part is not their fault. It's not
their fault that Daniel Jones got hurt.

Speaker 3 (16:29):
It's not.

Speaker 1 (16:31):
It's not part of that is just Indiana Sports of
twenty twenty five. Daniel Jones gets hurt. But the way
they're doing it now, to me feels like it's the
same kicking of the can. Because yes, I know, statistically speaking,

(16:52):
and mathematically speaking, they are still alive for the playoffs.
And I guess you owe it to the rest of
your roster, your fan base, your ownership, whatever else to
go for that fine. And I have nothing against Philip Rivers.
He seems like a super good dude. Watching him in
the intrigue of what he can do was definitely fun.

(17:15):
But if you think Seattle adjusted in that second half
the way that they were lining up defensively and then
stalled the Colts offense, which they did, what do you
think San Francisco is gonna do? The definition of insanity
is trying the same thing repeatedly and thinking that you're
gonna get different results. What do you think San Francisco

(17:35):
is gonna do? Now that they have seen case positive?
Seattle had no more idea than me, Kurt Gerald's, you
JMV anybody else what Philip Rivers was going to look like.
And it took him a half to figure out exactly
who and what he was and what his limitation was.
And his limitation was, Look, this guy represents the Colts

(17:56):
throwing a hail mary on their season, and that hail
mary's actually twelve yards because that's his far. This guy
can throw, not his fault. He's forty four years old,
and he was effective, especially in the beginning when Seattle
defensively was just trying to figure out where to keep
Jonathan Taylor in balance, how to line things up, et cetera.
But now they're in a position where they're going to

(18:19):
go back out against San Francisco. Does anybody really think
this is going to end up being like they're going
to the playoffs? And if they get in the playoffs,
does anybody think they're gonna make any noise? And if
that's the case, and I know Riley Leonard has less
than zero chance of ever being a long time starting
quarterback in the National Football League, but he's on your

(18:41):
roster for a reason. And the reason he's on your
roster is because at the very least, you consider him
to be a viable at some point backup quarterback in
a doughnut tire situation of a game to two games
or a quarter here or there. And if that's the case,
then you may as well, we'll give him game experience

(19:03):
and have him go out and see what he can
do in meaningful games, because do we and I get
statistically and mathematically, they're still alive?

Speaker 2 (19:12):
But are they?

Speaker 3 (19:14):
Are they?

Speaker 1 (19:15):
And so there is part of me while I understand
and maybe I'm speaking more for if San Francisco were
to beat them, and maybe they will actually go through
with what I'm saying, but at some point do you
not look at it and say, in this season, we've
got to at least see and start to inventory now

(19:35):
what we have going into the offseason. And what better
opportunity to do it than to go in and get Riley.
And in no way, shape or form, am I sitting
here saying on Indianapolis Sports Talk radio that Riley Leonard
should be the starting quarterback of the Colts and let's
see what we have and see if we can win
with him.

Speaker 3 (19:55):
That's not at all what I'm saying. I'm saying.

Speaker 1 (20:00):
At some point, don't you say to yourself, we have
to at least see what's there to see if it's
even worth keeping on the roster for the future in
emergency situations, and we're not going to know that. I
don't know that you can assess that off of the
one game that he just played in Jacksonville. When you know,
when you have the deflation of the Jones injury and

(20:22):
so the Colts once again, it feels like they're going
to put themselves in position where they're going to just
kick this can further and go with Philip Rivers and
work and is he gonna at this point don't you
have to possibly or probably finish the year with Rivers?
Because why would you bring a guy from Alabama to

(20:43):
play for you two games and then send them on
about his way as a Kerry Collins experiment. But you're
holding yourself back then because for if they lose this game,
for example, for what you're you're you're trying to win games,
for what you're trying to see what you have aut
of Philip Rivers, for what he is not part of
your future at the very most for another six months, right,

(21:08):
So for what it feels like, you're just going through
the process at this point, and then in doing that,
you're just kicking the can by carrying it out because
you're saying, and you are implying at that point, yes,
we are going to resign Daniel Jones or tag him,

(21:28):
bring him back and hope that he's ready to go
in October or November. Because the other side of this,
the other thing that the Colts have done not this
administration per se, but historically speaking, where they have not
learned is push into early and get too aggressive before
they needed to. And I thought at the time, and

(21:49):
I still may be proven wrong in this, I thought
at the time they gave up too much for sauce Gardner.
And I thought at the time they got too aggressive
thinking that they were or a player away from truly
contending and competing for a Lombardi. And while sauce Gardner
is a phenomenal player and a promising young talent and

(22:11):
somebody you'd love to have on your roster, I didn't
think that he was those things for this team to
the necessity level of two number ones. And now you're
in position where at the quarterback position you probably have
to kick the can again because you don't have anywhere
else to turn, and you painting yourself into that corner

(22:31):
because your quarterback of the future is going to have
to be either Daniel Jones, who you still don't know
for ten more months if you bring him back what
he's going to be, or Anthony Richardson, who if you
bring him back and he plays and plays well, then
now you've got a quarterback controversy because you have to
make the decision which of those two guys is the
one that you're signing towards a long term, lucrative deal

(22:55):
because you don't have another option, which is going back
to the well of starting all over again. But but
that might be your best course of action. But you've
painted yourself again into a corner because if you look

(23:15):
at the timeline of things, what happened when Ryan Grigson
took over this franchise. Ryan Grigson took over this franchise
and knew you had a quarterback whose long term future
in this town was in question. You had a young

(23:36):
quarterback right there waiting in the wings. You had Dallas
Clark and Ryan Deam and Gary Brackett and very popular,
very likable, very admirable and very accomplished football players, all
of which were crossing over that magic line in the

(23:57):
NFL of when you start to get unsn uncertainty as
to their long term future. And Ryan Grigson and probably
more specifically Jim Mersey said, we've got to basically white
clean the etcha sketchboard. And I'm not saying that that
was the right course of action, And in hindsight, we
could maybe even go back and say it was too aggressive.

(24:19):
But you brought in Andrew Luck and you wanted to
have the timeline of pieces around him to organically grow together.
They had success early, and then again precedent, they got
too aggressive. They went out and they started putting together
and making moves akin to the sauce gardener trade. And

(24:42):
they got too aggressive and they started mortgaging long term
health for short term gain, and it blew up on
Andrew Luck. And they went out and they got aggressive
and free agency and et cetera. And this team right
now feels to me like one that is on the
precipice of history repeating it self in ugly fashion. Because

(25:03):
if you bring back Daniel Jones and you want to
sign him, then you have players that probably need You've
got to start looking at where they are. DeForest, Buckner,
Moley Cox, cam Cam Biden is only twenty seven. But
by the time Jones, if that's your guy, or Richardson

(25:26):
either one is hitting stride, you're starting to get into
that thirty area, which for a dB is a magical age.
Michael Pittman Junior, Jonathan Taylor, Quentin Nelson. Your timelines have
not aligned and added up and now, all of a sudden,
you're in a situation where you have to make the decision.

Speaker 3 (25:46):
Do you kick the can on that quarterback and.

Speaker 1 (25:51):
Just say, Okay, we're gonna give us a couple more
years here, or do you do the more aggressive thing
and perhaps the thing that needed to be done that
Gregson did, which is set and wipe the table clean
and start completely over afresh and anew. But you have
to do it across the board instead of this guy's
in his prime, this guy we're replacing with a younger one.

(26:15):
I think they painted themselves into a quarner here. Part
of that is the injury, I get it, but it
just seems to me because of that trade, and I
keep going back to not having a first round pick
for the next two years and having so much uncertainty
at the most important position in sport. What I'm getting

(26:37):
at here is I feel like we are sitting here
in this cloud of uncertainty, and we are holding and
grasping onto this thought that they're like, this is it.
The seven and one start is going to pay itself off,
and they are legitimate contenders in the AFC.

Speaker 2 (26:58):
They're not.

Speaker 3 (27:00):
Where are we?

Speaker 1 (27:01):
I don't want to be negative, Nancy. I want to
be I don't want to be pessimistic, Pete. I want
to be mellow about it. But the more I think
about it, the more it seems like and feels like
there are so many questions of uncertainty about this particular team,
this particular roster, and the timelines thereof because of a
confluence and a mixed bag of times where they went aggressive,

(27:22):
then they backed off the pedal and went conservative, and
instead of just going with one theory and one philosophy
with it, you have this intermix and this inconsistency of
approach that has put us in this position of wondering
where in the heck it goes from here? And maybe
I'm just not smart enough to grasp at all. I

(27:43):
don't know, but I'm curious if people think I'm way
off base. Now, Kurt, having said that, you tell me,
am I spilling too much doom and gloom here on
a bright sunny day where the temperature is starting to
tick up a little bit, Or is there's some reality
to the reality check of I have no idea what
sort of flashlight I'm going to use in this hallway
that seems to be dimming.

Speaker 4 (28:04):
I think you're being a realist and there's nothing wrong
with that.

Speaker 1 (28:08):
That's the hard part is the reality of it, all right,
That is the hard part.

Speaker 3 (28:15):
I hope I'm wrong. I hope I'm wrong. Steven.

Speaker 1 (28:20):
Holder're going to join us one o'clock today, Big show
line up, Scott Agnes at two o'clock. I think Kyle
Nettrip might join us as well at one thirty because
a sad but important note in high school athletics that
took place. And it is that time of year where
some holiday tournaments are going on as well. But when
we come back, the one thing yesterday that was brought

(28:42):
up that I thought to myself another interesting point that
I want to get further into, and it relates to
the colts, and I'll get to it next.

Speaker 3 (28:50):
The studio is pretty nice, is it not, Kurt?

Speaker 1 (28:54):
Each day in this new studio, the Hubler Automotive Group
Drive Hubler dot Com Studios, we've got a little bit
more decor, if you will.

Speaker 3 (29:03):
Now we've got the screen behind meet.

Speaker 1 (29:08):
Java House signage because of the Java House guest line
in which our guests appear. Stephen Holder will be on
that coming up one o'clock today. We now have across
the way here. You've got a screen that is that
allows me to see what you've got going on. But
it is so finite to be honest with you that

(29:28):
I know that I'm older now, but I need binoculars
to see how the stuff.

Speaker 3 (29:33):
You got going on.

Speaker 1 (29:34):
You've got a lot going on there on the screen.
It looks like you're conducting surgery over there.

Speaker 3 (29:37):
Yeah.

Speaker 4 (29:38):
Yeah, we're learning, and now you're learning what we've been
learning in here.

Speaker 1 (29:40):
I can see the clock in there though, which is nice. Right, Yes,
I didn't see a clock before.

Speaker 4 (29:45):
Which I can make things bigger and no that's fine.

Speaker 3 (29:47):
Oh well trust me. Now we're getting uncomfortable.

Speaker 1 (29:52):
One other note before we get back into the colts
coming up, and I'm excited about this night Owls on
South Emerson. Are you familiar with not Al's Kurt. I
believe that's a Beech Groves toablish it. Yeah, like two
minutes down the road for me, seven thirty until nine thirty.
Coming up this Thursday, Pacers and NIXT will be watching it.
But we will have our Mick Ultra event, which is
your chance to come out, get yourself a Mick Ultra,

(30:13):
do a Papa shot, enter into the competition, try to
win the high score. February sixth It is Miles Turner's
old team, in fact, the one you root for heading
up to Milwaukee to take on the Bucks, and we
are going to send the winner overall the grand prize
winner of our multi stop Papa Shot Tournament. All you do,

(30:34):
come out, do a Papa Shot, enjoy Micultra. You don't
have to do the shot if you don't want, but
come out to Night Owl's courtesy of Mickultra from seven
thirty until nine thirty this Thursday. If you indeed get
the high score in the Papa Shot, you can get
a Mick Ultra basketball jersey and get entered for the
grand Pi Prize February sixth So look forward to seeing
everybody this Thursday night Night Owls at thirty five thirty

(30:58):
five South Emerson going to be the right kirt.

Speaker 4 (31:01):
I would love to be, but I have to do Jamv's.

Speaker 1 (31:03):
Show seven thirty to nine thirty. Brother he's off air
at six.

Speaker 4 (31:07):
Then I'll be there when I get off.

Speaker 1 (31:08):
See there you go right, easy enough for the Colts
with Philip Rivers and no surprise, there I get it
with Rivers getting back in but the big question that
people had is that of Anthony Richardson, and is Anthony
Richardson going to play?

Speaker 3 (31:24):
Is Anthony Richardson going to be on the.

Speaker 1 (31:27):
Field and for the rest of the year. I think
the answer to that is probably going to be no.
But if there's chance to get him out, and in particular,
if the Colts have already been eliminated from playoff possibility,

(31:49):
which I would have to look at it, because right
now they are a game behind Houston. Now Houston's remaining schedule.
Obviously they close at with you know, at Houston with
the Colts. But if there's the chance going into it,

(32:10):
there is still statistically or mathematically the chance to get
into a playoff, which do the Colts do. Let's say
Richardson is available. I'm not saying he would be, and
I think it would be at this point a very
far cry to think that that's a possibility. But the Texans,

(32:34):
they got the Raiders coming up this weekend. They're gonna
obviously Houston wins that game, one would assume. So there's
still a game up on Indianapolis, with the first highbreaker
being that they had beaten the Colts. Then they've got
the Chargers in LA, say they dropped that game. Now

(32:59):
the Colts are in position. Let's say the Colts find
themselves a way to win. And let's say that the
Colts find themselves in position where going into Houston and
we're going to for this scenario, say that the Jaguars
are going to win the South. So now you're talking
wild card contention, and if it's between Indianapolis and Houston,

(33:21):
but then Baltimore gets up there to decide to play
with things. And because the rules change in terms of
tiebreaker once you start getting in to more than two teams,
if it's a three team tiebreaker, the type breakers change
versus just like divisional record, conference record, etc. There's a
whole laundry list of things there, right, But if you

(33:45):
look at the scenario where the Colts and Texans go in,
let's just say for the sake of argument, that that's
the possibility and the playoffs are still in play and
Anthony Richardson is available to play. I don't know that
that's going to be the case, but if it is,
do you go with Philip Rivers because you feel that

(34:06):
Philip Rivers gives you the best chance to win, or
do you go with Anthony Richardson. And what does it
say if Anthony Richardson is healthy and ready to go.

Speaker 3 (34:18):
Again. We're speaking hypothetically here.

Speaker 1 (34:21):
If going into the final game of the season, Anthony
Richardson is available to play and you need a win
to get into the postseason, and you start forty four
year old Philip Rivers, who has no long term future
with the team, and you elect to do that over

(34:41):
Anthony Richardson.

Speaker 3 (34:42):
What does that say to Anthony Richardson?

Speaker 1 (34:44):
And while you may be improving your chance in your
mind at continuing on the trajectory of which got you
there and getting into the postseason, or holding onto that
or whatever it may be, what does it say to
the rest of the league that piece that theoretically you
could contemplate using as a trade piece to get yourself

(35:06):
some sort of draft capital back, not a first round
or but some sort of a pick. What does it
say when you're like, hey, would you like the quarterback
that we elected to go with a forty four year
old high school coach over? These are all the things
that I know it sounds absurd, but there are I
don't envy Chris Ballard. I don't envy Chris Ballard, but

(35:28):
more often than not, Chris Ballard seemingly in the last
couple of months, when it comes to tactically figuring things out,
has gone with a decision or elected to go in
a position that is further complicating where they go from
here in a number of different areas.

Speaker 3 (35:46):
It just is.

Speaker 1 (35:50):
Right now in the wild card standings, you know, the
Colts find themselves by record tied with Pittsburgh. Again the
tiebreaker there advantage Pittsburgh, but Baltimore's right there behind a
game behind him. Things get complicated there and Baltimore finds

(36:11):
themselves up there and they now pull alongside. Then you
get a multi team tiebreaker situation, and that's where it
gets really murky.

Speaker 3 (36:21):
It just does. Now.

Speaker 1 (36:25):
Rick Carlile was on the morning show this morning with
the Fan Morning Show, along with of course Kevin Bowen,
James Boyd. Jeff not there this morning, but Mark Dyton
was as well. He had something interesting to say in
regards to what happened against Washington and now where the Pacers,
who again, oddly enough, for as bad as they've been,

(36:49):
they have still been interesting. But did that change a
little bit? And what did Rick Carlyle say that raised
an eyebrow a little bit about what happened last time out.
We will get back into that discussion about the pacers next,
and Stephen Holder joins us one o'clock on a Tuesday,
and a good looking Tuesday for that matter. You know,

(37:09):
that's the beauty of Now I've got the window I
could look out because I was always terrified when I
would drive into work, because you know how Indianapolis is,
especially like in the springtime. I think there were times
I would drive in it was this gorgeous day and
then I'd get in down the Monument Circle and park
in our building and go up and it was, you know,

(37:30):
great building, great location, all of that, but our studio
was landlocked. It was in the interior of the building.
I look back on high school and I think about
my time in high school, and I don't know how
if most high schools are this way, but at North
Central High School, there were a number of hallways that

(37:51):
were north the high school itself. If you were looked
down on it like aerially without without a roof on it,
you know, there were a lot of interior hallways.

Speaker 3 (37:59):
It was like a grid.

Speaker 1 (38:01):
And so I think about the poor teachers that got
into school and from seven thirty in the morning until
three in the afternoon were just landlocked in a room
and saw no windows, no outside world. Like, after a while,
don't you want to see a little bit of what's
going on. So we would go on for three hours
and I loved it.

Speaker 3 (38:17):
It was great.

Speaker 1 (38:19):
But I would drive into work and it kind of
reminded me of high school once I get into the studio,
because you didn't know really what it was like outside.
So I would say at times, I think Kurt like
just out of habit because it'd be fifty five and
gorgeous and sunny outside. I'd get in and I'd say,
good looking Wednesday outside. Little did I know that a
monsoon had arrived, like an hour earlier, like one of
those pop up storms, and people are driving in their car,

(38:42):
pulling over because of non visibility, and you got this
guy on the radio saying, it's like a gorgeous day outside.

Speaker 3 (38:47):
So I love the fact we got a window.

Speaker 2 (38:49):
Now.

Speaker 4 (38:49):
Yeah, it's the old studio. It was a bit depressing sometimes, yeah,
in it.

Speaker 3 (38:53):
Was notably because of the company you kept right when
you were in there.

Speaker 4 (38:56):
You had to look at Eddie every morning.

Speaker 1 (38:57):
That's right, Okay, Pacers an action Obviously right now the
NBA schedule is lowell, especially for today, but back in
action taking on the New York Knicks.

Speaker 3 (39:07):
What a difference that a couple of months makes.

Speaker 1 (39:10):
That game, of course coming up Thursday night at the
field House, and they need You heard James Boyd there
say during the break that the Colts are on a
little rest and relaxation and it's probably good for forty
four year old Philip Rivers. The rest and relaxation time
is also critical right now for the Pacers because of

(39:31):
the fact that the reality the low point so far
this season and what has been there have been a
lot of low points, and again not entirely their fault,
the injuries have and some of the injuries admittedly, I
do wonder if if Tyrese Halliburton had not suffered that injury.

(40:04):
And first off, I will forever be convinced they were
going to win that game. I think people in Oklahoma
City know they were going to win that game. And
I've talked to people that were there.

Speaker 2 (40:24):
I was not.

Speaker 1 (40:25):
Shannon was there, and she will tell you they were
in a suite and there were Oklahoma City fans. You know,
the suite, an open air suite, obviously right with the
seats in front of it, and she tells me, you know,
and I mean five fans. I don't mean the entire

(40:46):
temper of the place, but that they on a couple
of occasions. The people in front of her turned around
and said, yeah, I almost feel bad celebrating the fact that, like,
we're about to win this game, because I don't know
that we win if he does not get hurt.

Speaker 3 (41:02):
I mean, like I think everyone knew.

Speaker 1 (41:03):
But either way, the point I'm trying to make is
this some of the injuries they have waded through at
this point, not I mean aside from Halliburton Obi topping.
I mean topping, it's a fracture, I get it. Aaron
Nee Smith, the McConnell injury at the beginning of the year,
Furfey's injury. I don't know the severity of them, and

(41:26):
certainly it is not my place in any way, shape
or form, nor my intention to question the validity of
the diagnosis of set injuries. But you do wonder if
they are giving themselves and affording themselves even more caution
and waiting time of getting guys back this year just

(41:46):
knowing the realities of where they are. But the roster itself,
you owe it to the guys that are playing to
do you know, Pascal Siakam, McConnell now obviously playing, Ben Shephard,
Jaris Walker, Ben Mathern. You owe it to those guys
to do what you can to put yourself in position
to win games schematically and everything else. But you also
want effort. And the reality is the Pacers are coming

(42:09):
off of what was probably their worst effort of the year,
certainly their most lackluster performance, and losing at home by
nineteen to the lowly Washington Wizards, And it seemed like
from the very tip that game just they were chasing
the eight ball and you could feel this lack of

(42:30):
energy from the beginning of the game. Rick Carlisle from
the Morning Show, do you agree at.

Speaker 6 (42:35):
The beginning of the game are our level of everything
has got to be better? We somehow came to the
first quarter with a one point lead. We had we
had a couple of threes that banked in, and we
just had some some hot things happened that positioned us
to be ahead in that game. Was it was fool's

(42:58):
gold obviously, because uh, you know, Washington was just playing
with more or presence or force, you know, all those
all those words you hear me frequently talking about. And yeah,
second and third quarters were very poor and and we
got behind the eight ball, and uh it was it

(43:19):
was too much to come back from. So plenty to work.

Speaker 1 (43:23):
On, Plenty to work on, indeed, and that includes just
the extended energy and focus, I think, and you know,
for a lot of folks, I think the NBA in general,
fans don't start thinking about the NBA until this time
of year. Christmas to a lot Christmas Day, and I

(43:46):
know for a lot of people, when the Pacers were
making their run, the thought was, or the question was,
like does that mean that the Pacers are going to
end up on Christmas Day games? Because that's you know,
kind of a tip of the cap from the NBA
of like you are relevant now. And you know, there
was disappointment when they did not. We now see kind
of why because with the Haliburton injury, it has changed

(44:06):
them so much. But I think that, you know, the
end season tournament was put in place by the NBA
to create some sort of reason to watch or discussion
or follow along of stuff happening prior to Christmas, and
for fans and for the media, and for season ticket
holders and sponsors for so long around Christmas is when

(44:27):
you start focusing. To Hey, the NBA's here as well,
even though it's been playing for a month. But you
want your team to be playing at a high level
from the beginning. To me, and that's the thing I
think that Carlisle is preaching there is like, look, we
got to have this more consistently, night in and night out.
Those that have played, more often than not, I think,
have played pretty hard for Indiana. They just have not

(44:49):
had their attrition has led them to a point that
it's going to be an uphill battle for them because
of just sheer numbers and the mileage put on those
numbers that are healthy. It is something that comes into
play that I want to get to coming up in
about probably twenty five minutes after Steven Holder in relation

(45:12):
to Indiana football, and I'll explain what I mean by that.
But Stephenholder at ESPN dot com, Colts Monday Night Football,
San Francisco, Anthony richardson the question mark here in terms
of availability. We'll get into it with Stephen.

Speaker 2 (45:25):
Next.

Speaker 1 (45:28):
You're listening to query and company on ninety three five
and one oh seven five.

Speaker 2 (45:32):
The fan.

Speaker 1 (45:39):
Stephenholder is with ESPN dot com. I was enjoying a
fabulous pre holiday in the form of my buddy Jeff
Hester pre Honika. Uh drink together that Jeff and I
who grew up together do we try to get together
once at the very at least every two weeks, maybe

(46:01):
once a week, and just find a cozy spot to
catch up, solve the world's problems, keep tabs on one another,
enjoy a drink. And I'm sitting there and everything's going fabulous,
and it's just this great environment, great bar, and I
look up and boom, right there on the television screen
is no other than Steven Holder. And I thought to myself, well,
you know what, like two out of three on ambience bad.

(46:22):
But Steven, I gotta admit, man, you look very dapper
when you're on television. And the Colts are always topical,
so they're using you a plenty.

Speaker 3 (46:30):
Correct.

Speaker 5 (46:32):
Well, so you know the Colts, they tend to make
news in the most unexpected ways. So you gotta be
ready for anything around here.

Speaker 2 (46:40):
Now.

Speaker 1 (46:41):
With that, in terms of the gotta be ready, Philip
Rivers was ready in Seattle to an extent. I thought,
actually Steven, I thought schematically they called a pretty good
game for him, and I thought that they kind of
did a nice job of playing within themselves. But as
the game went on, I think Seattle just kind of

(47:02):
figured out that it was not a Rubik's cube and
it wasn't hard to figure out what you needed to
do against that offense with its limitations. So can they
realistically come up with new wrinkles with another week getting
ready for San Francisco or did we see what we're
going to see?

Speaker 5 (47:20):
So I think that is a great question, and it's
it's more difficult to answer. But here's what I can say.

Speaker 2 (47:28):
They did. I agree with you.

Speaker 5 (47:29):
They did have I think the perfect game plan. I
know it wasn't sexy, and I know it's ridiculous to
think that that was modern football. It wasn't right, but
that's not the point. The point is to win, right,
and they put themselves in position to win. Here is
where I think the complication comes in.

Speaker 2 (47:49):
They got it.

Speaker 5 (47:50):
Take Phil the Rivers out of it to a degree.
For that style of play to work, you have to
get perfect performance on defense, special teams has to come through,
and all those things actually happened and they still lost.
So my concern would be that is a very difficult
thing to duplicate and it ultimately didn't work. Right, It

(48:13):
was a great effort and they did as best as
could be expected, but it ultimately didn't work.

Speaker 4 (48:19):
So is it.

Speaker 5 (48:21):
Now sustainable to think that they can do it again?
Is their defense going to play a flawless at that
level and not give up a touchdown against one of
the best offenses in football? I mean, I don't know
if you can expect them to duplicate that. I thought
that's the best that defense has played in weeks, So
that was their apex, especially given the health of that

(48:42):
defense right now. Right so you're missing your three best players.
So I think you're asking the right question. I don't
know if they can duplicate it, and and if you can't,
then it goes to what you're saying, which is to
do more.

Speaker 1 (48:58):
Steven Holder, my guests Java House, Peel and poor guest Line,
by the way, is where we find Stephenholder. Java house
dot com is the website used to coach Jake twenty
five for twenty five percent off or use my code
for the bundle that is Colombian Coffee Wrangler, Energy and
the Liquid Science Hydration Beverage Steven If with Anthony Richardson,
and I know that you probably are like at this

(49:20):
point blue in the face of talking about Anthony Richardson,
But I want to make this clear for people. Anthony
Richardson now, with three games remaining for the Colts, realistically speaking,
Anthony Richardson would be how many games away or weeks
away from being football ready to return to a game situation.

Speaker 5 (49:43):
I don't think we know. I think you need to
see him, That's the thing. It's an impossible question without
seeing him perform because what he went through is so
unique and so unprecedented.

Speaker 2 (49:56):
We just don't know.

Speaker 5 (49:57):
I think he's cleared from the perspective of, you know,
he can't re injure.

Speaker 2 (50:03):
Himself with that orbital fracture. I guess it's healed, is
what I'd say.

Speaker 5 (50:07):
But you also have to remember he's been out for
two months. He had he had some vision issues in
that right eye as a result of this injury. You know,
is that cleared up? We haven't gotten a lot of
straight answers as a problem, and so what we need,
if they're willing, we need Shane Steiken to give. You know,

(50:28):
I think some straighter answers on where he's at, and
we just don't know that, and without knowing that, it's
hard to say. But what I what I will say
in conclusion is that one thing that will help us
arrive at an answer is put him out there and
let him practice and let's see what we're working with.
And I think there's a good chance. I think that

(50:48):
happens this week. I'm looking forward to that. I mean,
I think there's there's a case there where, or a
situation there where everybody could win if he gets back
to practice, even if he doesn't play this year. And
what I mean is the Colts can evaluate him at
least they barely saw him this year because he got
hurt and then then then play and.

Speaker 2 (51:09):
Then got hurt right and then he also Anthony can
get some confidence going and get back in the groove
of things before he goes into an offseason and who
knows what happens to him then. So I think it
would be.

Speaker 1 (51:20):
Great for everybody, Stephen of these quarterbacks, Anthony Richardson in
current state, I'll use it that way. Riley Leonard and
Philip Rivers, which do you truly believe gives them the
best chance to win games or move the football.

Speaker 5 (51:39):
Oh, if he's one hundred percent Anthony Richardson. And it's
not even a conversation for me, Like it's it's.

Speaker 3 (51:45):
Not easy in it.

Speaker 1 (51:46):
I'm saying in his current state though, where he is
right now, like this in sixteenth of December, fair.

Speaker 5 (51:53):
Enough, fair enough, I mean without knowing everything. And you
know it just made Claire. We don't have all the details.
If he is, if he's good enough to play, and
I think he is. If he's good enough to play,
I think it may fail, right, it may not work,
but I like my chances there. Here's why you can

(52:13):
now do things that you are prevented from doing with
Philip Rivers, Riley Leonard. While he doesn't have any physical limitations,
he does have the knee injury. I saw him throw
all morning on Sunday morning before the game. He's fine, Okay,
trust me, he's fine. If he's out there, he can

(52:34):
do more than Philip Rivers physically, There's no question about that.
But I don't think in terms of the physical abilities
that Anthony Richardson has, there's no comparison there.

Speaker 1 (52:45):
But here's why I ask, Steven, here's why I ask.
If Riley Leonard can do the equivalent of Philip Rivers, Okay,
and for that matter, Ryley Leonard is probably more mobile
than Philip Rivers. Then if that's the case, certainly, and
considering and considering that Riley Leonard is a player, I'm

(53:08):
not saying a lock, but Riley Leonard is a player
that has the chance to be part of your roster
and your depth moving forward. Philip Rivers does not. So
why then Philip Rivers over Riley Leonard.

Speaker 5 (53:23):
So I know not everyone will agree with this, That's fine,
but I'm telling you in my opinion, in my educated opinion,
I think if Riley Leonard would have gone up against
that Seattle defense, it would have been ugly right. The
reason I say that is because he would have made
mistakes that Philip Rivers didn't make. And while it was

(53:43):
certainly it was painful to watch at times, this forty
four year old middle aged man trying to do this. Okay,
I get it right. That is what it took against
that opportunistic defense. They got a lot of playmakers over there.
They would have put Riley Leonard in a freaking blender
in my opinion, I have no doubt given up a

(54:04):
touchdown in twofold games.

Speaker 3 (54:05):
Do you feel that's the same for San Francisco?

Speaker 5 (54:09):
Uh yeah, I think Robert sala would would make his
head spin.

Speaker 1 (54:12):
Yes, okay, absolutely so so with that, And look, the
Colts are still mathematically and statistically in the possibility for
the postseason, right, and I get it they owe it
to themselves to push in on that. The question is
is this in any way, shape or form. Is this

(54:34):
in any way, shape or form Chris Ballard and or
Shane Steike and wanting to make a push because they
feel that that is necessary. Like selection Sunday with the
NCAA tournament, when they say, like, okay, state your case,
what are your good wins, what's your profile? Are they
in position? Do you believe where they feel like they

(54:55):
may have to state that case and make that argument
to ownership at the.

Speaker 2 (54:59):
End of the year.

Speaker 5 (55:01):
I mean, they may have to make that argument, but
I think they're they're unrelated. And here's why, because what's
the alternative You sit on your ass and just take
the take the l right that that's not an alternative.
In fact that I would I would think much less
of them as as men. If they did that, I
would think significantly less of them. You're doing what it takes.

(55:23):
Now we can we can quibble as a fan, you
can quibble about how they are going about achieving that
goal of staying in competitive That is fine. But I
would not as a fan argue the fact that they
are trying to do something right because, as I said,
the alternative is, well, you just take the l and

(55:44):
you say we suck. Well I don't. I wouldn't respect
that right. So I think they're doing what they have
to do. This is I mean, ultimately if they would
if they pull that off on Sunday, I mean, I
still don't think they're a team that's going in where
in the long term this year. But now you're if
they win that game, they're really in it, and they

(56:05):
gave themselves every opportunity, so they have I think they're
doing the right thing in terms of the goal, the
means of getting to the goal.

Speaker 2 (56:13):
That is for the individual to decide.

Speaker 3 (56:15):
Has Tyler Warren started to hit a rookie wall, I
don't know.

Speaker 5 (56:23):
As much as I think circumstances maybe have have got
have gotten the best of him. And I mean circumstances
beyond his control, like the quarterback situation and the offense.

Speaker 2 (56:34):
Just kind of in a lull.

Speaker 5 (56:36):
I do think that if Daniel Jones is playing, you're
seeing a different version of Tyler Warren. It's just been tough.

Speaker 2 (56:46):
No.

Speaker 5 (56:46):
Now, I would say, if you get Anthony Richardson back
out there, I am not promising that's going to happen, right,
just very very hypothetically.

Speaker 2 (56:53):
I think if you get.

Speaker 5 (56:55):
If you if you get Anthony Richardson out there, now
you you're creating more matchup issues with a quarterback like that.
Now you bring the read option to the table, and
I could see bootlegs with Tyler Warren wide open, like
there's some things you can do there. It's tougher with
the limitations with Philip Rivers, even though he had a

(57:18):
lot of success with tight ends. I mean certainly we
know of one in particular back in San Diego who
did okay, right, But I just think with the way
they use Tyler Warren, I think it helps if the
quarterback can sort of move around and you can get
those matchups with with Tyler Warren that they're not getting
maybe as much right now. But I think he's been fine.

(57:40):
I think he's been fine, but he's definitely been quieter.
I don't put it on him per se though.

Speaker 1 (57:46):
Okay, Steven, I'm gonna take for your protection here. I'm
gonna take Indiana out of the equation of what I'm
about to ask. Okay, but here's how we're going to
do this. If you look at the college football playoff,
you got Indiana, We're gonna take Indiana out of the
equation as a potential answer.

Speaker 3 (58:03):
You got Ohio State, Georgia.

Speaker 1 (58:04):
Alabama, Oklahoma, Texas Tech, Miami. Obviously we know about right
ore agaon James Madison Tulane.

Speaker 3 (58:12):
I think that covers the most of them.

Speaker 1 (58:15):
Okay, I'm going to give you a situation for the Colts,
and I want you to tell me the college football
team that you feel has the same likelihood of it
happening in terms of them winning it. So example, if
I said to you, okay, the odds that Philip Rivers
throws a touchdown past the rest of the year, and
you would say those are very good odds. So you

(58:35):
would say that's in Ohio State. If I say, okay,
the odds of Tyler Warren having a one hundred and
fifty yard receiving game. You would say, that's James Madison,
et cetera. You see how we're doing this, right, So
that said, let me present to you the scenario, and
I want you to tell me the college football playoff
team of the ken likelihood. Okay, Anthony Richardson starts a

(58:58):
game the remainder of this season.

Speaker 2 (59:03):
Hmm okay, that's that is a tricky one. I would
say that is.

Speaker 1 (59:07):
A Now we we do have teams like we do
have teams like Oregon, Miami and Texas Tech that like
they may have a chance, but we don't know enough
about them per se.

Speaker 5 (59:18):
If you will well that I'm thinking exactly that. That's why,
so I said, by any and I think it's because
two things. Number one, they were we didn't even know
if they were gonna be there.

Speaker 2 (59:30):
All right, that.

Speaker 5 (59:30):
Definitely fits in this particular instance, right Okay, Okay, so
so like but but now they're in play, so anything
could happen. Okay, I just explained Anthony Richardson's entire career.

Speaker 3 (59:44):
Okay, we're done here. Okay.

Speaker 1 (59:46):
Number two, Philip Rivers starts and or plays in a
game for the Colts after they are if they are
eliminated from the playoffs.

Speaker 3 (59:57):
So if they have, and you know, it may be
that they.

Speaker 1 (59:59):
Go all the way to the But if they realistically
had a game where they have been eliminated from the playoffs,
Philip Rivers is still played as part of their team.

Speaker 5 (01:00:10):
Hmmm, that is a hell of a dilemma. I lean
towards saying they play him. I really do, okay, but
I'll I'll say I'm not convinced for sure, so I'll
say I don't know, Like so.

Speaker 3 (01:00:29):
This is so, this is okay. I was gonna say this.

Speaker 1 (01:00:31):
This feels a little like old miss and the fact
that like there's there's precedent there to think, but at
the same time there's like changes and uncertainty at the top,
and so therefore you don't know how it's going to
go right right, right, Like, I mean.

Speaker 5 (01:00:44):
I can make a hell of an argument in that
scenario to say, let's say Richardson can't play, I would
I'd say, all right, well, what the hell is Riley
Leonard here for?

Speaker 2 (01:00:53):
Right?

Speaker 3 (01:00:54):
I mean, that's been my question, right because.

Speaker 5 (01:00:56):
The reason for the reason for not playing Riley Leonard
right now is the stakes are too high.

Speaker 2 (01:01:01):
And I agree I'm fine with that.

Speaker 5 (01:01:04):
If the stakes then are are different, well, then the
argument is different.

Speaker 2 (01:01:09):
Okay, give me. I would be on the other side
of that.

Speaker 1 (01:01:12):
Give me the odds possibility in the college football playoff.
Give me the team that aligns with the odds of
this Chris Ballard or Shane steichen Our playing or excuse me,
coaching and or guiding for their cult's future in the
last three weeks.

Speaker 5 (01:01:33):
I'd say, I'm gonna say, uh, that would be two lane.
I think they're back. I'm telling you here. No one
wants to hear it, but I'm telling you I think
they're back.

Speaker 3 (01:01:51):
Okay, let me go with one more for you here,
are you ready?

Speaker 2 (01:01:57):
Yep?

Speaker 1 (01:01:58):
Daniel Jones will be signed to a multi year deal
in the off season despite his Achilles recovery by the Colts.

Speaker 2 (01:02:08):
What team, hm hm hm hmmm. Uh Okay.

Speaker 5 (01:02:16):
I lean toward most of the year because I think
I think they believe they'll get a better deal, maybe
that they can entice him with. This is this is hypothetical.
They haven't told me this. This is just me thinking
through it. Okay.

Speaker 2 (01:02:29):
Uh, if you can give him a.

Speaker 5 (01:02:30):
Multi year deal, you give him security. But you're gonna
You're gonna have to make a sacrifice Daniel on the money. Right,
That's that's what I That's how I would present this
if I were them, Uh, if they indeed believe in him.

Speaker 1 (01:02:43):
Right, So then so the odds of him getting a
contract offer you're saying is are we looking at Ohio
State here? Uh?

Speaker 5 (01:02:52):
Well, I'll go, I'll go. I'll go testas Tech. They're
they're the four seeds. So you know I'm not all
the way in or Georgia, Georgia. Yeah, George is a
good one.

Speaker 1 (01:03:04):
Okay, Because here's the thing that I talked about this
last week, and I want your thoughts on this. Steven Holder,
our guest to ESPN dot com, Java House Peel and
poor guest line is where you're hearing his voice. It
seems to me like there may be a little bit
advantage Colts in this form. The only advantage of the

(01:03:26):
Daniel Jones injury, Stephen is that you are correct. This
has now shifted the the marketing leverage of a contract
term to advantage Indianapolis as opposed to advantage Daniel Jones.
They now theoretically couldn't get him at a much lower price, Right.

Speaker 5 (01:03:47):
Yeah, I mean, I think this it's still going to
be a tricky negotiation because the injury makes it tricky. However,
it was it was going to be tricky before as well,
because it was going to be one year of highlight
level albeit really great performance, but one year and there
is still the old Daniel Jones, right, So it's again

(01:04:11):
it would have been tricky either way because at that
point you don't have the health as a variable. So
he can make the argument I made your team relevant, right.
He could make that argument, and who's going to be
able to argue against that?

Speaker 2 (01:04:25):
Well? What does that cost? Right?

Speaker 5 (01:04:27):
So here I think he still has that argument. But
your counter argument is your achilles is busted.

Speaker 2 (01:04:33):
Man.

Speaker 5 (01:04:34):
We love you, but it is what it is. So yeah,
I do think I do agree with you. It's given
them a little advantage because I think the one thing
you have to think about in the contract negotiation is
what is the worst case scenario? And the worst case
scenario is we are wrong and then two years from
now we're cutting this guy, right, and what.

Speaker 2 (01:04:53):
Does that cost us? Right?

Speaker 5 (01:04:54):
So that's how you have to approach it. And I
think this will enable them to to execute a contract
that maybe puts them at less risk.

Speaker 2 (01:05:04):
In the worst case scenario.

Speaker 1 (01:05:06):
Mooney Ward and Braden Smith one of the odds both
of them are back as Colts next year.

Speaker 5 (01:05:13):
I think Brayden Smith. Again, I'm going to be very clear,
this does not mean reporting this, projecting this, or anything.
I think the odds are decent that Braden Smith says
I've had a good run, you know. I mean he's
been through a lot, right, physically well documented, right, well documented.

Speaker 3 (01:05:35):
And the same can be said, And the same can
be said for mooney Ward.

Speaker 1 (01:05:39):
Right, and with all respect to him, if physically three
concussion protocols this year and then emotionally the loss of
his daughter, I mean he's been through a lot.

Speaker 2 (01:05:48):
As well, no question about it. Now.

Speaker 5 (01:05:52):
Now that one trickier because you know he's in the
prime of his career. Braiden Smith played fine this year,
but I think you know it's he has certainly declined somewhat, right.
I think Mooney Ward is a great player, So that's
what's trickier. But you are correct, I mean you can't
judge it just based on his play because there's too

(01:06:13):
much else going on.

Speaker 2 (01:06:14):
Now. The early word, and I mean super early.

Speaker 5 (01:06:18):
Because who knows, right, he hasn't had a chance to
get away from.

Speaker 2 (01:06:21):
It and all that.

Speaker 5 (01:06:21):
I don't know, but the early word is that he's
still engaged and still wants to keep playing. But I
am not you know, I'm not promising that. I have
no idea, but I do think as of now, with
limited information, I think he's back.

Speaker 1 (01:06:40):
Okay, lastly, Steven, I'm going to name the college football matchup,
and I want you to, Steven hold her immediate gut reaction.

Speaker 3 (01:06:47):
Who you think will win? You're ready?

Speaker 2 (01:06:50):
Okay?

Speaker 3 (01:06:51):
James Madison Oregon.

Speaker 2 (01:06:54):
Oregon by three touchdowns.

Speaker 3 (01:06:56):
Okay Oregon Texas Tech.

Speaker 2 (01:07:00):
Mm hmm uh I'll say, I'll say Oregon. Okay. But
I'm but I'm.

Speaker 5 (01:07:07):
Less sorry about that because I don't know Texas Tech
that well.

Speaker 1 (01:07:10):
No one does, and I mean not even the kid
on the landman anywhere's their hat every day?

Speaker 2 (01:07:14):
Okay?

Speaker 7 (01:07:15):
Alabama Oklahoma, ah Man, tough one Oklahoma, Okay, Oklahoma, Indiana, Indiana.

Speaker 2 (01:07:28):
I like them over anybody right now.

Speaker 3 (01:07:30):
Okay, tou laane old Miss.

Speaker 2 (01:07:34):
Uh old Miss better athletes.

Speaker 3 (01:07:36):
I guess Old Miss Georgia, good game.

Speaker 2 (01:07:45):
Georgia out coaches them.

Speaker 3 (01:07:47):
Okay, you're Alma Matern Miami and.

Speaker 1 (01:07:52):
Uh, hang on, Who's Who's Miami god te Texas A
and m Texas saying that yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:07:58):
Sorry, yeah, tough one. Miami buy a field goal.

Speaker 1 (01:08:07):
Okay, Miami Ohio State, but I don't really believe it.
Miami Ohio State, Ohio State, but it's close. Okay, Ohio State, Georgia.

Speaker 2 (01:08:24):
Ohio State by a smidge.

Speaker 1 (01:08:27):
Okay, Indiana, Oregon, Indiana for the second time. Indiana, Ohio State.

Speaker 2 (01:08:38):
Again for the second time.

Speaker 1 (01:08:39):
Indiana, Kurt, if you could please play the breaking news sounder.
This just an ESPN dot com Stephen Holder projecting the
Indiana Hoosiers will be the two thousand and twenty five
college football season unblemished and undefeated national champion. Uh, Steven,

(01:09:00):
We're not holding you to that, but it's fun nonetheless, right, Yeah.

Speaker 5 (01:09:05):
I mean, I listen, I I'm not going out. I'm
not going out on a limb here.

Speaker 2 (01:09:10):
But I think.

Speaker 5 (01:09:11):
That that's that's probably the most complete team. That's That's
what I like is, you know, it's not like, oh,
their offense is just really good or or this aspect
of their team. I think they're a complete team, and
so rarely do you get that, you know, in college football,
where what's the weakness. I don't know that there is one,
so I don't know.

Speaker 2 (01:09:30):
I love them.

Speaker 5 (01:09:30):
They've been great. It's been great fun just watching them
this year, and I hope the rio continues.

Speaker 3 (01:09:35):
Have you watched Landman? By the way, I have not
one of the one of the one of the dudes
on Landman.

Speaker 1 (01:09:42):
It takes place in West Texas, who wears a Texas
Tech hat all the time.

Speaker 2 (01:09:45):
It is.

Speaker 1 (01:09:45):
I'm like, that is the perfectly cast outfit. That'd be
the easiest casting director job or excuse me, wardrobing job
of all time. Like, hey, we just need you to,
uh you know a guy that works on an oil
patch in West Texas.

Speaker 3 (01:09:57):
I don't know.

Speaker 1 (01:09:58):
Wrangler jeans, cowboy boots, a fla fannel shirt and flannel
short sleeve shirt and a Texas Tech hat.

Speaker 3 (01:10:02):
Done right?

Speaker 2 (01:10:05):
Right? I mean right, that's not believable at all?

Speaker 1 (01:10:08):
Right, Yeah, easiest thing ever. All right, Steven, appreciate it.
We will be looking for the coverage Monday night now
Colts and Nighters coming up this week for Indianapolis.

Speaker 3 (01:10:19):
Appreciate it, Steven, all right, you got it?

Speaker 2 (01:10:22):
All right?

Speaker 1 (01:10:22):
Stephen Holder joining me from ESPN, Dot Comic and Java
House peel and poor guest line. I mentioned Indiana and
the college football playoff and attrition one of the things,
and I'm going to get more into this as we
get closer to it, but one of the things, if
there is something I had to pick that is of
concern to me in regards to Indiana, would simply be

(01:10:45):
if you look at the course of their season, and
I know that India and it is Look, I'm the
first to admit they continue to prove this wrong. And
I give Kurt Signetti all the credit in the world.
The guy is a maestro, and they continue to prove
what I'm about to say wrong, But their roster itself,

(01:11:10):
there is a lack of depth in comparison to not
not a lack of depth, but you know, we talk
all the time about and it's to their credit the
fact that they don't have the four stars and the
five stars and Mendoza talking about the it's not where
you start out, it's not about your hype, it's not

(01:11:32):
about those things. It's about the work you put in
and where you are. And he is the perfect ambassador
and representative of that program to win the Heisman Trophy.
Because Fernando Mendoza as a player, as a prospect, as
a belief, as a testament, represents everything about Kurt Signety
and the Indiana football program. Everything about it in every way,

(01:11:53):
shape or form in a positive. But the one thing
that I would say is if you look at the
way that team is constructed, and they have done a
remarkable job of next man up when players have been hurt,
and we talked about it yesterday with Don Fisher, but

(01:12:14):
when you are now even as good as their schedule
was in the Big Ten, the Big Ten's no joke.

Speaker 3 (01:12:20):
I get it.

Speaker 1 (01:12:21):
They had a great game against Illinois, they had a
big win against Oregon, and then they come back and
they had to snatch one against Iowa. They had to
snatch one against Penn State, and that was a remarkable
performance against Ohio State. But the challenge now becomes Ohio
State in Georgia and for that matter.

Speaker 3 (01:12:43):
Oh Miss.

Speaker 1 (01:12:47):
I'm going to assume a Texas A and M in
this category. I think they have the depth to be
able to rotate guys in to keep people fresh when
you're now having to play football for three consecutive games.
Indiana's about I mean, Indiana's biggest wins of the year
and they have two of the they have the two

(01:13:08):
best wins in college football, don't get me wrong, Oregon
in Ohio State. What they have to do now that
is going to be the challenge is put together three
of those games and back to back to back weeks.
And that's what's going to be a challenge. You've got
to go out and you've got to beat the winner
of Oklahoma Alabama, and then you've got to beat the

(01:13:30):
winner of presumably Oregon Texas Tech. And then you've got
to beat Ohio State or Georgia, and you've got to
do it one after another after another. And the I'm
not saying they don't have depth, but it's going to
be tested now more than for all of these teams,
for all of these teams. But it seemingly feels like, say,

(01:13:52):
Ohio State can rotate subtly guys through and set themselves
up for that over three games, or Georgia or Texas
Tech or or excuse me, Texas A and m advantage
to those schools. But you would be a fool to
continue to rule out Indiana and their ability to dig deep.

(01:14:16):
But they're gonna have to do it now more so
than they have at any point under the.

Speaker 3 (01:14:20):
Era of Kurt Signetty.

Speaker 1 (01:14:21):
Obviously, something happened over the course of the week in
high school football that was both I guess you'd say,
or excuse me, high school basketball that was both tragic
but at the same time can be celebrated. Kyle Nettrip,
our friend from the Indianapolis Star, to explain that Butler
I believe tonight taking on Yukon Brayla Mullins, the reigning
Mister Basketball in that game, guy that covered him and

(01:14:44):
now has covered a new recipient of the coveted Mister
Football Award, And there is news to talk about in
both sports from a high school standpoint, with our friend
from the Indianapolis Star, Kyle Neddenripp joining the program now
on the Joba House ap Peel and poor guest line.
You got spared, Kyle, because since we've moved to the

(01:15:06):
new location, we're still unpacking boxes, notably the one where
you call yourself both lost and clueless.

Speaker 8 (01:15:13):
Right, yeah, yeah, that's that's okay.

Speaker 2 (01:15:17):
I can It's a holiday.

Speaker 8 (01:15:18):
Season, so you're you're being kind today.

Speaker 3 (01:15:20):
That's right.

Speaker 1 (01:15:21):
Let's begin with football from a football standpoint. Saw it
just within the last day or so congratulations and well deserved.
But the Indianapolis Star there is a new Indiana mister
football to congratulate.

Speaker 8 (01:15:35):
Yeah, we awarded that Miles mclafflin. Yesterday, the Indian Football
Coach Association voted Miles and it was pretty you know,
the voting was was pretty much in his favor. I
mean sixty four percent I think sixty four point five
percent of the votes and Heritagegill's Jeded Goldsberry had about

(01:15:56):
sixteen sixteen or eighteen percent. You have to I have
to read the story again that I wrote, but somewhere
in that range. So it was pretty lopsided and kind
of thought that might be how it went down. You know,
Miles had such a great run, especially the second half
of the season, you know, started to really get some
national recognition and you know, people like Derek Henry even

(01:16:18):
talking about him on various platforms and you know, and
to get you know, he ended up the all time
single season national record holder for rushing. So you know,
when you get those type of you know that that
type of accolades and accomplishments, uh puts you on another stratosphere.
And definitely getting his team they were they were you know,

(01:16:38):
one step away from making the state finals. But you know,
to get that team as far as he did, uh
certainly helped him as well. So yeah, very you know,
and he said, you know, you know, talking to him yesterday,
you know, he did say it was a lot of
pressure and you know, it felt like the way the
world was on him at times, and you know, but
then he said it was in it. It was in
a good way. It was fun, you know, and he
obviously carried that team along way. So I think, uh,

(01:17:01):
you know, he's going to Murray State to play next
year and be a running back. So you know, we'll
see how he does in college. But uh, but yeah,
I'm a pretty pretty cool story from a little town
that had never had a mister football before.

Speaker 1 (01:17:14):
Yeah, and that's you know, it's funny because Knox is
the town, right or not in the school and I
I always assumed, you know, like north Knox and Knox
County is down south of Vincennes. This is the opposite end,
right we're talking about uh, northeastern Indiana up near Fort Wayne.

Speaker 8 (01:17:32):
Correct, it's north you know, northwest actually you know you're
going towards uh, you know, winn.

Speaker 3 (01:17:38):
Am back up in that okay, yeah, okay.

Speaker 2 (01:17:40):
That part of the state.

Speaker 8 (01:17:41):
So yeah, it's it's kind of a it's start County,
which you know, they've never actually the county has never
had a mister football. It's you know, I've been up
there probably what three times now.

Speaker 2 (01:17:52):
Uh.

Speaker 8 (01:17:52):
It's it's a quite a quite a hall to get
up that way, but it's it's kind of just you know,
if you're thinking about the you know, the the time zones,
they are in the Central time zone just barely, so
you know, they're they're up there pretty far up in
the northwest part of the state. But yeah, they you know,
it's it's h We were in the school yesterday and
obviously a lot of excitement for him about this award,

(01:18:14):
and you know, he'll he'll uh, you know, that's something
you know, he's got two younger brothers and they're you know,
they're gonna you know, it's something that they can their
family can really you know appreciate, I think, and enjoy
and really that whole community.

Speaker 2 (01:18:26):
Rush Radke he's the coach there and.

Speaker 8 (01:18:27):
He's been you know, he's a fifty year high school
football coach and you know, talking to him yesterday too,
obviously very appreciative of having a mister Football, you know,
having coached one.

Speaker 2 (01:18:37):
So uh but yeah, pretty cool.

Speaker 8 (01:18:39):
I mean he kind of came from I would they
came from the outside.

Speaker 3 (01:18:42):
You know.

Speaker 8 (01:18:42):
When I was doing this last year looking at the
candidates for this year, you know, he wasn't among the
top you know, top five or anything like that, so
you know, kind of uh, you know, was able to
get his way in there and then win pretty handily,
which is which is quite an accomplishment, Kyle.

Speaker 1 (01:18:57):
Sometimes, you know, things like that, a guy winning a
Mister Football, doing it from a smaller school like that,
a smaller community. You know, that stuff brings people together
and they talk about it for a long time and
you know it's cool.

Speaker 3 (01:19:10):
Right.

Speaker 1 (01:19:11):
Sometimes communities also are kind of forced to come together
in circling around or gathering around or holding together tight
after something that is not always you know, as celebratory.
It goes without saying, but sometimes the worst situations can
bring out the best in the community and for a

(01:19:32):
family as well. Tell me about the tragically sad story,
but at the same time, maybe with a community feel
to it of Jeff.

Speaker 8 (01:19:40):
The ref Yeah, Jeff, you know, Jeff Tomari passed away
Friday night, was refereeing a game at Monrovia Girls game
against speed Away, and in the second quarter of that game,
you know, collapsed and you know passed away, and you know,
I talked to several referees that night, you know, ended

(01:20:02):
up talking to his family, his daughter, one of his daughters,
his ex wife, his sister.

Speaker 3 (01:20:09):
He was in his early sixties, correct, Yeah.

Speaker 8 (01:20:12):
Sixty three would have been sixty four next month actually,
so yeah, he was sixty three. You know, had a
you know, he was a you know, an athletic guy.
He was a Perry Murdy and graduate. I was a
swimmer there actually, and you know went on in he refereed,
He did all these you know, not only high school basketball,
but he was if he you know, talked to some

(01:20:33):
of the refs and umpires he worked with. Was a
really good baseball umpire. I talked to Kevin Brown, who
umpired with him, and he said he was just a
fantastic baseball umpire. Should have been in the state finals,
you know, that type of umpire. I did a lot
of high school football and basketball as well, and then

(01:20:53):
started doing a lot of youth games, you know, and
that was sort of where you know, the Jeff the
ref moniker came from and you know, he got to
know these kids up in Zionsville Youth League and you
know other leagues that he did at Greenwood. He lived
in Greenwood, you know, and had you know, I talked
to his you know a lot of his closer friends
in the umpiring and refereeing world as well. But uh,

(01:21:15):
but yeah, I just had a way about him that
I think, uh, you know.

Speaker 2 (01:21:18):
Kids were just kind of drawn to him.

Speaker 8 (01:21:20):
He was always, you know, very positive guy, positive as
far as you know, teaching kids, you know, not being
you know, just someone who's there just to be there,
you know. And we've all seen that at times, whether
it's you know, umpiring or reffing or whatever, just you're
just kind of there, you know, you know, just to
be there, you know. But he sort of went out

(01:21:40):
of his way to you know, correct the shot or
correct tele a kid. Hey you travel on that watch,
you know, don't do that again, stuff like that. And
you know, so I think that was just kind.

Speaker 2 (01:21:51):
Of the way he was.

Speaker 8 (01:21:52):
Kids kids really were were sort.

Speaker 2 (01:21:54):
Of drawn to him that way.

Speaker 8 (01:21:55):
And and you know, I've heard from so many people,
you know, either social media or you know who have
had a good.

Speaker 2 (01:22:03):
Experience with them.

Speaker 8 (01:22:04):
And you know, obviously, like you said, it's a you know,
the whole situation no matter you know who it happened
to on Friday night, was you know that you feel
for those people who were there and the kids who
are watching that happen. Uh, you know, it's something they'll
never forget, you know, anyone who was there that night.
So you know, regardless of Jeff, you know, the person,

(01:22:26):
you know, just being in that moment is something they're
going to carry with him as well. But but yeah,
I also wanted to tell the story about who he
was and and you know, tried to do that from
you know, talking to his family and his you know,
people who knew him from the refereeing world. But yeah,
just to you know, like I said, it's just a
sad situation. But I think some people definitely feel better

(01:22:50):
having you know, read more about him or heard more
about him, or talk more about him, you know, including
his family. I think it was you know, from talking
to his family Sunday and Saturday and Sunday, you know,
just to you know kind of talk about them, I
think is helpful sometimes, you know.

Speaker 3 (01:23:05):
So yeah, Kyle, the you know, for it itself.

Speaker 1 (01:23:08):
I guess two things here on this real quick to
kind of put a tie on all of it. The
first is we still don't know because I and I
understand that it's probably.

Speaker 3 (01:23:20):
Almost bordering on invasive to ask. But for you know, if.

Speaker 1 (01:23:24):
Someone is refereeing games, they obviously have an interest in
young people and helping young people progress and learning, you know,
and learning the game, teaching the game.

Speaker 3 (01:23:33):
Things like that.

Speaker 1 (01:23:33):
And one thing I've learned about high school officials of note,
you know, I've been around and had the pleasure to
meet some of them. Many of them do it because
they love being around high school kids and athletics and
teaching the game and watching the game and being a
fan of the game and of young people's appreciation of
the game, and so they lend their time for that.
They ain't doing it to be rich, right, I mean,

(01:23:54):
they're doing it for a love of the growth of
the game. So in that spirit there, possibly from a
health standpoint, could be something that people could learn from
this tragedy of Jeff, But we don't know yet what
it was that was the cause of this.

Speaker 8 (01:24:10):
Correct, Yeah, yeah, so yeah, I mean that's for pretty
much words, you know, I can't you know because I
don't know.

Speaker 3 (01:24:18):
For sure, correct, I understand.

Speaker 8 (01:24:20):
Yeah, there's some you know, the way it happened would
lead you to think it was it was a heart situation,
but yeah, we don't know for sure exactly, so you know,
And I don't want to speak out a turn to
the family or whatever.

Speaker 1 (01:24:32):
Yeah, Nor was I asking My point simply being there
is not because the natural thing people hearing it would think,
especially with my initiatives towards heart health and things like that,
is hey, was there something with which we can learn
or be aware? And this short answer of that is,
at this point there is not a definitive known cause
as to what could have caused this and possibly other

(01:24:54):
health complications.

Speaker 3 (01:24:55):
That were unaware.

Speaker 1 (01:24:57):
But there is no definitive answer, is what I wanted
to get at. The other is, you know, how was
it handled in the moment by Monrovia or buy just
administrators there to kind of help kids through this?

Speaker 2 (01:25:10):
Yeah? I mean, I I you know, I did.

Speaker 8 (01:25:12):
I talked to John Gregacious, the Monrovi a D that night,
and you know, and everyone I talked to, you know,
including him, said, you know, they did everything possible.

Speaker 2 (01:25:20):
The emergency EMT.

Speaker 8 (01:25:22):
The emergency personnel were there quickly, and you know, people
came out of the you know, out of the bleachers
to help, you know, who were who were qualified, and
they got the kids out, you know, they got the
kids to the locker room, you know, and they you know,
they had everything there on site to do the best
they could in that situation. And and you know, so

(01:25:42):
I don't and the family told me that too, and
they you know, they felt like, uh, you know, everything
possible was done to try to make you know, to
to try to help Jeff out, and it just didn't happen. So,
you know, so I think I think they were ready.
I think there's been things happened in the past, you know,

(01:26:03):
just just generally around the country to make high schools
more ready for situations like this. You know, so I
think that helped, you know, But but honestly, you know,
it's just it's so sad because it just, you know,
you didn't get a positive outcome out of it. And
you know, I know them and Rovia team got together
on set. They were supposed to play actually on Saturday

(01:26:23):
morning against Try West. They obviously canceled that game because
of the situation, but they did get together, they had
breakfast together. They wanted to make sure the girls weren't
just at home, you know, by themselves, so they did
get together at least, and I know they were, you know,
planning to get back to school today. I think they
had yesterday off because of the weather. But bah, I'm

(01:26:45):
sure you know, for those girls too, it's just it's
something you'll never forget, obviously, But you know, I think
the fact that they were able to be together as
much as they could, and you know, they're gonna get
a chance to continue their season and you know the
girls from Speedway too, and you know, hopefully there's you know,
something positive. They're going to finish this game at some point.

(01:27:05):
I can't remember when the you know, when they'll play again,
but I'm sure that'll be something. With the teams back
together again, that can be some sort of a healing too.
But but yeah, from a standpoint of you know, doing
everything they could in the moment, everything I've heard it
was real, you know, even like I said, from the
family too, was real positive on that front.

Speaker 1 (01:27:26):
Kyle appreciate the time today and also you know, letting
everybody know about that story. But more about Jeff, you
know what I mean to let people know via The
Indianapolis Star, what kind of guy he was, the dedication
he had towards sports, in multi sports and helping out
with his expertise and officiating.

Speaker 3 (01:27:42):
Appreciate the time today.

Speaker 2 (01:27:43):
Man for sure.

Speaker 1 (01:27:44):
Thanks Jay, Kyle Edrip joining me on the job house
peelmpor gaest line speaking of high schoolasketball and football. By
the way, double header coming up at the Coliseum. Holiday
tournament's galore, right and we always love them. There's a
new one coming up to the Coliseum. I'll tell you
about that on the other side, Scott Act top of
the hour, Thank.

Speaker 3 (01:28:01):
You to this information.

Speaker 1 (01:28:02):
I was just passed along, by the way, the game
that Kyle was talking about between Minrovi and Speedway will
be played January twenty fourth with no admission, but people
will be able to make a contribution to Jeff's family
after the tragedy that took place there with him passing
during that game and they did not complete the game.

(01:28:22):
So thank you for that information. Did want to mention,
by the way, you know holiday tournaments. I know people
love like the holiday tournaments. One of the fun things
about this time of year, especially from a high school
basketball standpoint. Those that take place new one now at
the coliseum, talking about the Fairgrounds Coliseum got to be
taking place this Saturday. This Saturday, it is the Breakaway

(01:28:46):
Classic Girls and Boys doubleheader. The girls it is Bloomington, South, Schatard,
Floyd Central and McCutcheon. The boys then getting underway at
six o'clock. So this is all day basketball girls starting
at noon, then the boys at six o'clock. It is
Bbuff and Fort Wayne, Lewis and Avon and Harrison those

(01:29:07):
games all taking place. So that is very cool getting
underway at the coliseum. Coliseum b I love, I mean,
I like all the venues. It goes without saying, you know,
Newcastle is obviously fabulous, Hinkle is fantastic, but the Coliseum
is cool just for the historic aspect of it from
both the ABA standpoint, And then it goes without saying,
you know, you get the Beatles that I totally understand

(01:29:32):
and get and appreciate and have been to several times.
The Fishers Event Center, and I have thoroughly enjoyed every
time I've been up there. I think everybody knows I
really enjoy the volleyball and watching the Indian Night, the
Indie Fuel It is a beautiful venue. There's not a
bad seat in the house. I went to the Fuel
season opener. I always have a good time when I
go there, but I do miss hockey in the coliseum because,

(01:29:55):
as my buddy Don Smith says, it's just a good
old hockey ball and there is some truth to that.

Speaker 3 (01:30:03):
And it's right next to the Swinebarn too for the
State Fair if you you want to be honest, all.

Speaker 1 (01:30:07):
Right, Scott Agne is going to join his field House
Files Pacers back in action Thursday night, taking on the Knicks.
They are coming off of what is probably their most
disappointing outing of the season against Washington. But are they
starting to round into seeing some get back in the mix.
We'll ask and explain next two o'clock hour underway in Indianapolis,

(01:30:28):
for that matter, of the two o'clock hours underway everywhere
in the Eastern time zone. My name is Jake Querry
Eddie Garrison. By the way, Uh, have you been out yet,
Kurt to the State fair Grounds?

Speaker 4 (01:30:39):
Not yet?

Speaker 3 (01:30:39):
Okay, my understanding, my understanding.

Speaker 6 (01:30:44):
Uh.

Speaker 3 (01:30:44):
The and this is kind of fun.

Speaker 1 (01:30:47):
So if you're wondering, and a lot of people have
asked where Eddie has been and Scott Agne is going
to join his field House files just a second, but
I mentioned this the other day. Eddie took time off
about two weeks ago and he is in This is Fun.
As we know from listening to this show, Eddie has

(01:31:07):
an eight and five eighth hat size and that puts
him in like the upper like two percentile or something
like that. So he is a member of what's known
as the United States And I kept saying association, and
I apologize, I completely apologize. It's the United States Big
Head Federation. I said association. It's federation. It's an organization.

(01:31:29):
I don't know who put this together, but a bunch
of people with big craniums.

Speaker 3 (01:31:33):
So they.

Speaker 1 (01:31:36):
One of the hat companies, I don't know which one
decided because there was an kind of an untapped market
with the Apparently the Big Head Federation membership continues to grow,
not unlike their heads, and so as a result of that,
they there was an increased conversation of you know, inclusiveness

(01:31:58):
for the hat industry, and they wanted to make sure
because a couple of years ago it became the rage
those big hats.

Speaker 3 (01:32:05):
That was like the big thing was the big hats.

Speaker 1 (01:32:08):
And there was some thought with the BHF that that
was actually in mockery and that kind of a thing,
And so that began conversation and dialogue with the hat manufacturers,
and they were naive to the fact that the Big
Head Federation felt there were a lot of people that
felt like they couldn't buy hats of their favorite team
and their hat size. So they wanted to go ahead

(01:32:30):
and start making those hats, and they wanted models, cranium
models to come and do photo shoots. So Eddie took
a couple of weeks off I don't know, or a
day off a couple of weeks ago, I should say,
to go up to Crown Point, Crown the keyword here
and as part of the BHF photo shoot, and he

(01:32:50):
was not selected. However, when they were doing the photo shoot,
one of the things they had challenged with was the lighting.
And Eddie, because of working in studios and in particular
this one and helping out with the he lended him
some of the lended them some of his expertise in

(01:33:13):
lighting that he learned at the University of Indianapolis and
radio and television work, and there happened to be a
guy also fellow BHF member that is one of those
that helps out with the winter lights at the fairgrounds.

Speaker 3 (01:33:26):
And so they.

Speaker 1 (01:33:28):
Ran up short on time this year because of the
unexpected cold weather and et cetera, and they needed someone
with lighting expertise to come and help with the elves
lights that they have. If you go there, they ask
for you to count the elves as you drive through
the winter lights. Eddie is the designated elf lighter and
so they have hired him. He took a couple of

(01:33:49):
days off making big money and so not just the
head big here paycheck as well. So he is doing that.
So when you drive through the winter lights for the
fair grounds when you see and it's a fun thing
for the kids to do to count the elves as
you drive through. When you're driving through to count the elves,
keep in mind those were developed, built and everything else.

(01:34:11):
And then can buy Eddie. He's out there doing that
right now. So that's and and there are several of them.
That's why it's taking them a couple of days. So
therefore you get some pinch hit bullpen hours.

Speaker 4 (01:34:21):
Yeah, I mean, hey, he's a jack of all trades.

Speaker 3 (01:34:23):
He is that jack.

Speaker 1 (01:34:25):
The key word joining us now in the Java House
Peel and poor guest line. He is, of course with
Fieldhouse files covering the Pacers Fever as well.

Speaker 3 (01:34:32):
Scott Agnes Joints. Just Scott, Happy holidays to you.

Speaker 2 (01:34:35):
Happy holidays to you as well. Enjoyed that story. That
was great.

Speaker 3 (01:34:39):
Did you know that about Eddie?

Speaker 2 (01:34:40):
No, that's why I was so enlightened. Yeah, I appreciate it.

Speaker 1 (01:34:43):
Enlightened the key word speaking of enlightened. He can do
that as well, because and again if you go through
look for the lighted elves, that's all that is entirely
Eddie's work. Just so you know, entirely Eddie's work. Scott,
let's get to this, I thought, and I get it.
I mean, this is a team with the that there
are two ways to look at down years. One is

(01:35:07):
you just lose it. And maybe I'm biased because you know,
I have a lot of love for the Pacers and
I've been open about that, and it was such you know,
it was so invigorating what happened last year during the
finals run and now they are so down. But yet
because there's plausible explanation for it, they've been able to

(01:35:28):
get away with that because you're like, you know, what.
It's the injuries, it's the attrition, it's the new Faces,
I get it. But that game against Washington, that to
me was the first time this year where they laid
a complete goose egg that seemingly was inexplicable.

Speaker 3 (01:35:43):
Your thoughts, Yeah, I would agree with you there, Jake,
for sure.

Speaker 9 (01:35:47):
And you could even go back how it started perhaps
two nights earlier in Philadelphia, where Faces were on track,
they were leading, and they scored five points over the
final like eight twenty four outscored twenty to five. I
thought that would leave a bad taste in their mouths.
This is a team that is playing better. In Philadelphia,
they saw Joelle Embiid have his best performance in two seasons.

(01:36:10):
We no surprise, he always plays well against the Pacers.
But then, yeah, everything that could go wrong against the Wizards,
who were the only team worse than the Pacers right
now record wise in the East did And the challenging part,
as I thought you alluded to well, is before it
was all understandable. This performance, know nothing about that was understandable.

Speaker 4 (01:36:30):
Rick Carlisle even say.

Speaker 9 (01:36:31):
Post game it was unacceptable.

Speaker 4 (01:36:34):
We can't do this.

Speaker 9 (01:36:35):
Ever, and to the point we saw him use a
timeout one minute into the game, and so you wonder, like,
you know, Siakam's been their most consistent guy since he
has got here.

Speaker 3 (01:36:44):
I can't say enough good things about him.

Speaker 9 (01:36:46):
But you know, Nimhart didn't look completely healthy, still dealing
with an injury.

Speaker 3 (01:36:51):
Though he was out there.

Speaker 9 (01:36:52):
He was questionable entering the game, missed his first eleven shots,
very unlike him. Matherin.

Speaker 3 (01:36:58):
There's been ups and downs.

Speaker 9 (01:36:59):
And really the only player that's jumped out to me
was centered Jay Huff inside.

Speaker 3 (01:37:04):
Yeah, Jay Huff. To me, Scott looks like a guy.

Speaker 1 (01:37:09):
I've always said that in sport sometime sometimes how or
where you were acquired factors into how you are evaluated.
And in the case of Jay Huff, I think the
timing of when he was acquired because of the Miles
Turner departure, and so people thought, Okay, this is the
Miles Turner replacement. I think we can now safely say

(01:37:31):
he is not that. However, whoever Miles Turner's long term
replacement is going to be once they have everybody back
in the stable, and I think that player is not
currently on the roster. I think Jay Huff has now
shown himself to be a situational, really nice eighteen to
twenty one minute off the bench piece once they get

(01:37:51):
that starting five in there.

Speaker 3 (01:37:53):
Would you agree with that assessment? I would.

Speaker 2 (01:37:56):
Yeah.

Speaker 9 (01:37:56):
I didn't expect him at all to be come in
and be the savior a starter, but I know it
was kind of one of the first transactions after Miles
Turner moved on, and it was at the center spot.
But this is a guy, I think if you understand
the circumstances here, this is a guy that got limited
action with Memphis, but was very productive, and so the
Pacers liked that. They liked his characteristics, they liked what

(01:38:19):
the analytics told him, and that has proven to be true.
He leads the league in total blocks, he leads the
league in blocks per forty eight minutes, all those attributes.
He's a good rebounder, can play the inside out game
similar to Miles Turner, whereas Isaiah Jackson's a very different player,
more of a rim runner, more of a guy that's
around the basket and operatings.

Speaker 4 (01:38:40):
So yeah, I.

Speaker 9 (01:38:41):
Think moving forward, I would not be surprised for j
Huff to be your backup center. But still there's that
big missing piece there at the starting role and for now,
they're just kind of coppling it together and in d
Carlisle's words, doing it by committee.

Speaker 1 (01:38:56):
By the way, Scott, this happened to us yesterday and
I'm just simply gonna point it out because it's the
elephant the room and have fun with it.

Speaker 3 (01:39:03):
I don't know what this is.

Speaker 1 (01:39:04):
It is strictly a beyond the control of anybody here,
like weird software bug. I don't know if Eddie like
tickred with something before it maybe when doing the light stuff.
Your voice sounds like you're on helium in the way
that like like you sound like accommodation here of Kermit
the Frog and Patrick Mahomes.

Speaker 3 (01:39:24):
It's kind of fun.

Speaker 1 (01:39:25):
Have you ever done the helium through a balloon and
then talking type deal?

Speaker 9 (01:39:29):
No, I haven't, and I can promise you there's no
Joey molnaro I precious and right now that's I know
we missed by hotline Bud.

Speaker 3 (01:39:35):
This is a little bit different you are.

Speaker 1 (01:39:38):
You sound like you're on helium. So I'm gonna do
the helium voice, Scott Agnes for one more question here,
you're ready, h in terms of the health standpoint, and
you know, obviously Pacers Nixt coming up Thursday at the
field House Health standpoint and the return of those that
we have not seen in some time, not named Tyrese Haliburton.

Speaker 3 (01:39:58):
Where do we stand.

Speaker 9 (01:39:59):
Yeah, we got a little bit clarity on it today
because the Pacers got the ten day hardshape exception. Therefore
we know. I appreciate you getting through this. Ben Shepherd
and aaron Ne Smith will be at least out the
next two weeks, so we did get clarity on that front. Otherwise,
Obi top and don't expect any update from him until February.

Speaker 3 (01:40:20):
By the way, can you just say for me, please
follow the yellow bick road. Can you just say that, Jake,
follow the yellow brick road?

Speaker 2 (01:40:32):
Scott.

Speaker 3 (01:40:33):
I appreciate it. It doesn't make any sense to you now.

Speaker 1 (01:40:36):
But if you go back and listen to the program later, Scott,
you'll understand totally why I asked you to do that.

Speaker 9 (01:40:43):
You got it, man. Why not Indiana?

Speaker 3 (01:40:45):
I love it.

Speaker 1 (01:40:46):
That's trademark. By the way, why not Indiana? I got
all kinds of legal stuff going on with that. Just
so you know, I've got now and I'm not saying
the names of any businesses that is not my because
it's gone beyond just in. It's outside Indiana, so it's
not Indiana business. But the white not Indiana trademark. This
trademark thing, man, it's legit. I got a guy, I
got an attorney. This' chasing stuff down all over the place.

Speaker 9 (01:41:08):
Your timing was impeccable. When you go from the Pacers
to the Fever and now certainly number one Indiana football.

Speaker 3 (01:41:14):
It doesn't get much better than that. That is indeed correct.

Speaker 1 (01:41:17):
Scott Agnes joining his field House Fouse appreciated Scott. He's
on the Java House Peel and poor guest line. It
is not Java House, by the way, that is speeding
things up, although it does. The Java House Columbia Coffee
give you a little pep in your steps, so to
the Wrangler energy. And then if you are with that
energy working out, you want to get yourself a refreshment.
Nothing better than the liquid science liquid hydration, both in

(01:41:42):
the aqua flavoring Aqua blue and then the orange flavoring.
All of that available Java House dot com and the
Java House Peel and poor gas line. In talking about
the NBA, I want to get back into something that
I brought up the other day and see if anybody
with me on this. I didn't go a lot of

(01:42:04):
in depth on this, but I'm curious. I know a
lot of times on this show I spend time pontificating
and then asking if anyone agrees with me or has
noticed something. But sometimes I see things coming down the
yellow brick road, and later it comes to fruition and

(01:42:30):
I'm like, yeah, you just if you've been around it
long enough, you can kind of see where things are headed.
Sports are cyclical, Teams are cyclical. Styles are cyclical. The
NFL is a copycat league. In the NFL, you have

(01:42:52):
the greatest show on turf, the Rams, then all of
a sudden, everybody's going after trying to get like you know,
in Space players and the copycat league of you know,
one team does something and breaks through and breaks the mold,
and now everybody's doing it. In the NBA with the Pacers,

(01:43:12):
there is there have been repeated articles written about teams
trying to play that fast pace that the Pacers played
a year ago that literally set the league on its ear.
And at no point did you feel like the Pacers
were out of any game because they could catch lightning
in a bottle and they're down seven with the minutes ago,
and then here they come roaring back and they finish

(01:43:34):
on a nine to nothing run, whatever it might be.
And you see other teams now that are trying to
play in that pace, and that cycle of the way
that teams do things in a copycat driven league is apparent. Additionally,

(01:43:56):
teams and leagues can be in vogue for a while
and then they fall off. We saw it with, for example,
cyclical right, Alabama had their cycle of dominance in college
football where seemingly no one else was going to win
a title ever again, and then it was Clemson's turn,
and Clemson had their era there and I loved it.

(01:44:18):
I'm a Clemson fan, so I loved it. It was
fabulous and Clemson had their era, and then now it's
probably right now we're living in the dynasty of probably
Ohio State, and I know that Indiana is the number
one seed, and maybe Indiana, maybe it's Indiana's turn. Maybe
Ohio State's was short lived. In it's Indiana's turn. In

(01:44:40):
college basketball. An interesting thing happened this weekend, and I
hinted at this a couple of times, but I'm now
fully on board with presenting my hypothesis as part of
now my dissertation, my senior paper, I'll go back to

(01:45:04):
the old era of Street and Smith's. If you know,
you know Street and Smith's basketball magazine. You'd flip to
the back and there would be the round oval headshot
black and white of the twenty five Street and Smith's
all Americans. I could still tell you from yesteryear some

(01:45:29):
of those players, especially during my high school years, and
it would always list at the bottom of it, like
the three or four schools they were contemplating and considering
and visiting. This was Rivals before Rivals, twenty four to seven,
before twenty four to seven Sports, two four to seven sports,
whatever you want.

Speaker 3 (01:45:48):
To call it, all those things.

Speaker 1 (01:45:50):
Gerard Mustaf, power forward, East Coast, considering Maryland, which is
where he ended up. Matt steninga power forward, big guy,
athletic dunk champion, considering Michigan State, which is where he
ended up. Back in those days, the Street and Smiths,

(01:46:12):
you would get it. It was that was the biblical
guide of college basketball. It was the Gary Donalds Who's
Your Basketball magazine of the collegiate game, And what a
thrill to see your favorite team on the cover before
they even did regional covers, Steve Alfriend, David Robinson on
the cover together, Glenn Robinson on the cover, all of

(01:46:33):
those things right, and college basketball back then, different era,
I know, but college basketball was as probably more so
relevant than the NBA. You had great personalities coaching college basketball.
Al McGuire a little before my time, Ray Meyer little

(01:46:58):
before my time, Bob Knight, Gene Katie, fun names like
Digger Phelps, Guys like John Cheney that kind of looked
like the owl that was the mascot, just like Gen
Katie looked like Purdue Pete, just like Mike Skozhsky oddly
looks kind of like the Blue Devil. Great personalities that

(01:47:19):
became as Jim Beheim, Curmudgeony, great defense, always knew his teams.
Every four or five years, we're gonna put together a
run where nobody could discover and figure out that matchup zone.

Speaker 3 (01:47:31):
And college basketball had this long era that was.

Speaker 1 (01:47:36):
Truly the primary choice for basketball fans in the United States,
and they had the blue bloods. UCLA was considered a
blue blood because John Wooden had won ten national championships,
even in a thirty year low. When Jim Herrick finally

(01:47:56):
broke through and won another one for them with Ed
Obannon and Charles Oba, foreshadowing those names become important here
in a second with this story. And UCLA when they
won that eleventh, it's like they're right back.

Speaker 3 (01:48:10):
Is a blue blood? Well, they had been kind of
irrelevant for like.

Speaker 1 (01:48:12):
Fifteen or twenty years, but they weren't because John Wooden
and UCLA and or you know, lou Al Sender and
Bill Walton and all of them to coach with it.
But your blue bloods Kansas, Danny Manning, Danning and the Miracles,
Larry Brown the ultimate vagabond journeyman. But before that, fog
Allen and Dean Smith had played there, and Jojo White

(01:48:33):
and Alan Fieldhouse which looked kind of like Hinkle and
Michigan State, and Tom Izzo was this great, fiery competitor,
and before him, jud Heathcote, fun personable names like jud Heathcote,
and they had Magic Johnson, and you had your blue
bloods of Louisville, Danny Crumb and Kentucky and North Carolina

(01:48:58):
and Indiana goes without saying, and Purdue for that matter,
and college basketball was this big thing. And Saturday night,
I'm watching that game. En Rup, and I know that
Indiana basketball collegiately speaking is probably it's been chasing it
for a while here, And the nineteen eighty seven banner

(01:49:22):
feels now like it should be in the Smithsonian, not
an assembly hall. And as I'm watching that Indiana Kentucky
game in RUP, and I'm envisioning and I'm getting dancing
in my head the sugar plum fairies of the ghost
of Christmas Past, of seeing Brian Evans shot in Sports

(01:49:45):
Illustrated in one of the great photos of all time,
when you open up the middle of the magazine and
they're like in the covering both sides of it the
RCA Dome and Brian Evan's taking a jump shot from
the baseline, and literally one side of the photo, the
entire crowd, every single person's wearing a red sweater, and
the other side of the crowd, the right side of

(01:50:07):
the photo, every single person's wearing blue because Kentucky and
Indiana are playing in the dome. And I'm watching Rupp
Arena with Mark Pope coaching and.

Speaker 3 (01:50:17):
It just seems flat.

Speaker 1 (01:50:21):
And I'm watching Indiana play with and I think Darren
Dereese is a good coach, and I think they're going
to be I think he's going to build a good
program there. But I'm watching it and I'm thinking, this
just feels different. And yes, Father Time's undefeated, I get that,
but I'm not even talking about the draw away from

(01:50:41):
the passion of the Indiana Kentucky rivalry, but rather the
fact that I'm like, something feels missing at RUP. And
so I asked people. I wasn't there. I was watching
it on television, but I asked people, Hey, did you go.
To the people that went, they said, yeah, it was weird.
It just had more of a flat environment than it

(01:51:02):
used to. And part of that is probably because you
have a generation of young people and students that didn't
grow up with the Indiana Kentucky basketball rivalry, and you
have especially on you know, in terms of home arena stuff.
I mean, the watch shot was the last time they
played in the regular season. And in addition to that,
you have Kentucky struggling and wondering if and this is

(01:51:26):
one of the dangers and hiring one of your own
as a head coach, because then it becomes a difficult
get out of it. Ask North Carolina right now. Ask
North Carolina when they had Matt Doherty. Why did Kansas
go and get Bill Self, who'd been an Oklahoma State guy?
Easier get out, I mean, and Bill Self's case, it's

(01:51:47):
obviously worked. But college basketball now today, in twenty twenty five,
if Kansas or if if Kentucky feels a little flat
and Kansas has Bill Self that's in the twilight of
his career, and they have a guy that's going to

(01:52:07):
be a lottery pick that now there's discussion. He's done
for the year, and North Carolina is kind of chasing
it a little bit and figuring out what they have
in Hubert Davis and Shozshowski's no longer at Duke, and
who now are the breakthrough personalities in college basketball. Danny
Hurley because he's a psycho, Bill Self because he's the

(01:52:33):
elder statesman, Mick Cronin at UCLA because he's angry all
the time and kind of looks like mister Magoo and
wears a suit, the Pat Kelsey at Louisville because he's
like a little bit off. But college basketball, to me,

(01:52:54):
it feels like the fanaticism for it, the culture of
it is dwindling before our very eyes. March madness will
always be March Madness always. But back in the days
of the Old Street and Smiths, in reading about high
school all Americans and reading about college basketball all Americans.

Speaker 3 (01:53:14):
You knew where every one of them was.

Speaker 1 (01:53:16):
You knew because guys stayed places for multiple years. But
more so you knew because you knew where they went
to high school, you knew where they grew up. You
knew and you feared. Oh man, I've been hearing about
this Rex Chapman in Kentucky and wait till he gets
to UK. He's only a junior, He's got two years
of high school left. I can't wait to watch him

(01:53:37):
in the Indiana Kentucky All Star Series. And now players
that I mentioned this before, they're going to La Loumier
and I amg Academy in Bradenton Academy, and all of
a sudden, people that are like, man, we've got this guy,
Corlis Williamson, the big nasty from right here in the
state of Arkansas. Wait till he's a razorback o pig
Suey And instead now it's like, well, he's actually going

(01:53:58):
to some academy over in Maine. And then after that,
I'm not sure where he's going to go probably whatever
school offers him the most in NIL money for his
freshman year and then going onward. And yes, you have
that in football as well, but in basketball, smaller roster,
no uniform, more intimate feeling of getting to know players

(01:54:19):
back in yesteryear. But it all changed when the video
games came out and a player from UCLA said, wait
a minute, a guy my dorm floor was playing an
EA Sports game with my name, image and likeness on
it and I didn't get anything. So I'm going to
file a lawsuit and my name is Ed O'Bannon. And

(01:54:46):
it took forever for that lawsuit to get settled, but
once it did, the higher courts of this country said,
you as they should have deserved to get paid for
your name, image and likeness. You are your own trademark,
You are your own Why not Indiana? And I understand,
But it is more lucrative for basketball players and an

(01:55:08):
NIL standpoint across the board for the reasons I'm talking about.
Because their likeness you see all the time, and you
would think that the name, image, likeness, payment and elevation
would create bigger stars within college basketball, but in reality,
what it's done is kind of diluted now to the
point where, yes, it is easier to see the likeness

(01:55:30):
of a player, associate with it, and then have a
company want to brand itself with it, except for that
it has now caused them to become mercenaries at even
a younger age, with the vagabond nature of it.

Speaker 3 (01:55:42):
I don't have a problem with it at all.

Speaker 1 (01:55:44):
I'm not sitting here screaming from the mountaintops like an
old guy yelling at clouds saying.

Speaker 3 (01:55:49):
Oh, shouldn't do these kids spoiled brats. That's not it
at all.

Speaker 1 (01:55:53):
I totally get I champion, I applaud and I have
one hundred percent there for them to go get as
much more as they can in as short a time
as possible. But I think the brand of college basketball,
the excitement of college basketball, and the connection of college basketball,
has dwindled from a year ago, two years ago, three

(01:56:16):
years ago. And I don't we have We right here
are amidst within our market, probably the number one program
in America in terms of doing it morally, doing it ethically,
doing it with teamwork and things you can be proud
of in the form of Purdue. But I don't know

(01:56:37):
how sexy Purdue basketball is in Las Vegas or Los Angeles,
or Pine Bluff, Arkansas, or Wheeling, West Virginia, because it
gets away from the glitz and glamour of name, image likeness,
and that's what the game has become. And it feels
like in doing so, it has deluded the popularity and
the overall buzz about it, because at one time, I'm

(01:57:00):
you could have turned on a game at any point
on Big Monday.

Speaker 3 (01:57:03):
You knew Big Monday, Tuesday.

Speaker 1 (01:57:06):
Night game, Big ten on ESPN, whatever it might be,
And now it just feels like people are like man,
between the fifteen networks they're on and the transfer portal
and everything else, I just can't keep track of it.
And it's a tiger by the tail that wake me
up when Selection Sunday comes around. And feel free to
tell me I'm wrong, Folks, feel free to tell me

(01:57:26):
I'm wrong. It could text me at three one seven
five two three ninety two eighty eight. You can text
me at three one seven two three nine ten seventy
either way, because I might be wrong, but it certainly
feels that way. And seeing that in up on Saturday
night only reinforced to me something that I worry about that.
In a couple of years, we're gonna look back and go, yeah,

(01:57:48):
that is in the way it used to be. Category
back to the Colts and a bit of a crossroads
for them is they get set for a Monday Night
showdown next Colts Niner.

Speaker 3 (01:58:01):
Lucas Oil Stadium Monday Night or yeah Niners. That's right.

Speaker 1 (01:58:06):
We'll get more into that in just second. Let me
ask you this, Kurt Gerald's when you were a kid
growing up, or for that matter, right now, we'll begin
with the twenty twenty five There's a reason I ask
it as it relates to the Colts. But right now,
in twenty twenty five, the item that you most want
Santa to bring to you is what.

Speaker 4 (01:58:30):
Stuff for my PC at home? Like a good processor
in RAM which don't look up the price on those,
but that's what I would love Santa to bring me.

Speaker 1 (01:58:38):
Okay, So when you were the second part of it
would be this, when you look at Christmas past in
your childhood, what is the one thing that you can
most remember and what year would it have been being
the thing that you were the most adamant that you

(01:58:59):
wanted for career that you were just like, oh my gosh,
you just wanted more than life itself.

Speaker 4 (01:59:03):
It was always video game related. It was either a
new game or like new console. I thought you were
going a different way with that because every year for
Christmas I always get until I turned twenty one was
a six pack of root beer, and then when I
turned twenty one it was I think we talked about
this was the what is that root beer? Alcoholic drink?

Speaker 1 (01:59:21):
Not your father was Yeah, not your father's root beer,
not your grandfather's whatever.

Speaker 2 (01:59:24):
It's called that.

Speaker 4 (01:59:25):
So I've been getting that now ever since I turned
it out.

Speaker 1 (01:59:27):
Now, the only problem with that is this is we've
talked about and that that stuff is good, don't get
me wrong, but.

Speaker 3 (01:59:35):
Like it doesn't take law. It's like eggnog.

Speaker 1 (01:59:39):
Like I love eggnog every year this time of year,
I'm like, you know what, I could go for a
glass of eggnog and then literally halfway through the glass,
You're just like, ugh, it's like you know what I mean, Like,
did I just drink a carton of eggs? And the
not your father's root beer is similar. It is fabulous
stuff and it tastes great, but the sugar content and

(02:00:01):
the thickness of it piles up quickly, right.

Speaker 4 (02:00:03):
Yeah, you only get through like two and you're like, okay,
I think I'm done.

Speaker 3 (02:00:06):
Yeah, totally.

Speaker 1 (02:00:07):
Now, So you when you were a kid, when did
the root beer tradition begin? When I was like eight
and it was your who began the tradition, my stepmother, okay,
and it was what an W barks every year?

Speaker 4 (02:00:22):
Barks is the best? We stuck with barks? Or the
IBC glass ones?

Speaker 3 (02:00:27):
How about is it? Is it called sprecker? Is that
what it's called?

Speaker 4 (02:00:31):
Oh, that's the one with like the bird on it. Yeah, yeah,
I've gotten that one before two.

Speaker 3 (02:00:35):
Yes, that's supposed to be like high grade root beer stuff.

Speaker 2 (02:00:37):
That's very good.

Speaker 4 (02:00:38):
The best root beer is a triple X root beer, though,
I just want to put that out there.

Speaker 3 (02:00:41):
Is it really?

Speaker 4 (02:00:41):
In my opinion?

Speaker 3 (02:00:42):
So you're a root beer ficionado, I think, so, okay,
A and W. You don't like.

Speaker 4 (02:00:47):
It's like lower tier, it's like a ce tier root beer.

Speaker 3 (02:00:53):
I didn't know there's root beer snobs.

Speaker 4 (02:00:54):
Hey, you got me.

Speaker 1 (02:00:56):
So you are root beer snob root beer ficionado. I
am self proclaimed, and you're going that you said ib
C the best one.

Speaker 4 (02:01:04):
Triple X up.

Speaker 3 (02:01:06):
So triple X is the upper tier.

Speaker 1 (02:01:07):
And then and then you said right below that is
you said barks you like, I put bars e tier okay,
and then ib.

Speaker 4 (02:01:14):
C the one with the crow I forget what you
call it, breaprecker that would be above ib C okay,
then ib C, then mug okay, and then a A yeah,
the other one, that one we don't care about.

Speaker 1 (02:01:29):
Okay, fair enough now, and and then now it's the
not your father's root beer.

Speaker 4 (02:01:33):
Uh after two? Yes, okay, I'm done.

Speaker 1 (02:01:36):
So I mentioned this once before, and I don't know
if this is just a query family thing or a
lot of people do this. When I was a kid,
we would go on Christmas Eve to my grandparents house,
and then when we would come back from my grandparents house,

(02:01:56):
we would there we would open one gift and it
was always pajamas.

Speaker 3 (02:02:03):
That's now. Is that a common family tradition for people?

Speaker 9 (02:02:07):
Uh?

Speaker 2 (02:02:08):
Huh?

Speaker 1 (02:02:08):
And as you get older, obviously, then it becomes like
basketball shorts and a T shirt or whatever, but like
sleeping gear of some sort.

Speaker 2 (02:02:14):
Nope.

Speaker 4 (02:02:14):
On my mom's side of the family, Christmas Eve still pajamas.
She begs me to come over and pajamas.

Speaker 1 (02:02:21):
Okay, here's another query family tradition. And I don't know
if this is just something my mom created or if
a lot of families do this. Okay, in my childhood
and it still extends into today, But in my childhood,
you got gifts from the family pet. Now, my mom
told me when I was really little that there was

(02:02:43):
a store where dogs and cats could shop, and that
at night, I mean, this is when I was really little,
and then at night our family dog and catul would
go they snuck out, and they would go and shop.

Speaker 3 (02:02:57):
And I truly believe, I still believe it actually a
small part of me.

Speaker 1 (02:03:01):
But but to this day, and I want people to
tell me if this is a tradition or a custom
that they do to this day. If you get under
the tree a Christmas gift that is from the family pet,
then it socks or underwear always that's all they buy.

Speaker 4 (02:03:21):
I've never heard of that, okay, but I love it.

Speaker 3 (02:03:23):
That might be a question. You can use it when
you you know, so.

Speaker 1 (02:03:27):
In other words, you get and when we do the
gifts you know to Jake from Tom, and Tom is
the cat, right, and so they throw it over and
then you open it and everybody goes oh that Tom
got the unmentionables, but it usually is socks or underwear,
one of the two.

Speaker 2 (02:03:42):
I okay.

Speaker 1 (02:03:43):
So for me in my childhood, the two things that
I remember wanting more than any Oddly enough, when I
was really little, and this is very strange, probably, but
there was I wanted so badly. I was probably like
five or six. I wanted to literally a wooden nutcracker,

(02:04:03):
like a Christmas nutcracker. I don't know why I thought
those were so cool, but I wanted one. I remember
one year wanting the two other items that I remember
wanting sports related. I so badly wanted the Super Bowl
Shuffle on vinyl because that came out like two weeks
before Christmas and it was all the rage and I

(02:04:23):
ended up getting that. I also wanted when I was
in the eighth grade a copy of A Season on
the Brink which had come out. Actually that yeah, that
came out when I was in the eighth grade. It
was written about the year that I was in the
seventh grade, and it came out when I was in
the eighth grade. And I got that as well, and
Feinstein signed it, which was super cool. But for the
Colts right now, the Christmas wish lifts the Christmas wish list.

(02:04:48):
The thing that they would want more than anything else,
one would assume.

Speaker 3 (02:04:53):
Is good quarterback play.

Speaker 1 (02:04:58):
And I go back to what I asked at the
beginning of the show, and that is, if good quarterback
play is what is going to carry you into the offseason,
there is a part of me that's like, but for what. However,
I also look at you might as well try to
salvage something out of this season that has gotten away

(02:05:20):
from you somewhat at no fault of their own because
of injury, but the recovery from it is somewhat fault
of their own, because you might as well go for
it this year, because if you weren't going to get
in the postseason, you would say, hey, you know what,
you may as well if you're not going to get
in the postseason, see what you can get in terms

(02:05:41):
of a draft pick.

Speaker 3 (02:05:43):
And then you just consistently.

Speaker 1 (02:05:45):
Remember that lump in the coal of the fact that
their draft pick this year and next their two first
rounders are both on their way to New York, and
so you're just kind of stuck. It is hard to
grasp and swallow and accept the reality of the situation,

(02:06:07):
which is that the Indianapolis Colts in twenty twenty five
started seven to one and now all of a sudden,
losers of five and of five of six games, and
one of those wins they had in there, by the way,
and that keep in mind they were kind of gifted
to win in Denver, and the Atlanta game really easily

(02:06:30):
could have gone the other way. But either way, you
get optimistic over the fact that they started out seven
to one, But then you look at it and you go, Okay,
now you've got serious question at quarterback because of the
injury to Daniel Jones. And even if he comes back
and that's your guy, how long does it take to

(02:06:50):
get that in the mix? And if you get him
back in the mix, how long does it take for
him to get back to the seven and one version
of Daniel Jones? And then at that point you got
DeForest Buckner, older, Jonathan Taylor, older, Quentin Nelson, older, Shavarius
Ward for that matter, older, cam bind them older, and
you're getting into the placement of okay, they got to

(02:07:12):
go now or never, but they don't necessarily have the
ability to accentuate those pieces in their twilight and they
are headed with a lot of these guys towards the twilight,
and you forget that. So it almost feels like the
Christmas wish list for the Colts should not only be

(02:07:32):
an answer of what it's going to be at quarterback,
but also some sort of a fountain of youth for
their key players, because it is starting to add up
to us much faster than we anticipated.

Speaker 3 (02:07:48):
Bark's the best one. You said, triple X, triple X.

Speaker 1 (02:07:54):
Of those you can just go. Can you buy triple
X at a grocery store? No, So you got to
go to Lafayette get the true yo's.

Speaker 4 (02:08:00):
Gas stations have them.

Speaker 1 (02:08:03):
You have scouted this out on top of it. Man,
that's a root beer ficionado right there.

Speaker 9 (02:08:08):
Uh.

Speaker 1 (02:08:08):
JMV is on remote. He's on the road. We'll find
out where he is and what he's got lined up.
Will do it next as part of the Crossover brought
to you by the good guys at Love Ending and
Air lovedsh HVAC dot com.

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