The "Sunshine Scooter" Edition

ESPN announces that Week 1 of the 2025 season will be Lee Corso's last episode of College GameDay. 

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
Each time or Clipson Sports Talk with Lawton swanany.

Speaker 2 (00:42):
Finally, Clemson Sports Talk has come back two drive time.
Hell everybody, Lawton Swan back in the saddle once again.
It is the show that shakes the south Land. Clemson
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(01:25):
line in the phone line. And again, as always, to
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A lot to get to today. On the Thursday, Tim
Beray set to join the program at hour number two,

(01:47):
But we have to begin with the biggest news in
the world of college football, and ironically it was kind
of something I touched on yesterday here on the program,
not in the sense of oh, Lee Corso is gonna retire,
but just talking about Corso and his impact on the game. Well,
the news broke today ten Am. Lee Corso will be

(02:07):
retiring after thirty eight seasons on ESPN's College Game Day.
He'll be on Week one this season. It will certainly
be a tribute to coach Corso in his time there
at ESPN and the job that he did with that program,
truly being a catalyst to creating a phenomenon in the

(02:31):
world of college football. And I think it's something that
all of us. You know, I'm forty eight, but I
think all of us kind of gravitate towards our televisions
on Saturday mornings, regardless of theme song, regardless of host.
We were talking about this yesterday because of Rhyes Davis,
the flirtations with Fox in the Big noon Kickoff, but

(02:55):
all of this, these programs and the way we appreciate
and enjoy college football on Saturdays in a large part
because of coach Lee Corso. So kudos to coach for
a job well done. I think we'd all be fortunate
to have thirty eight years doing a job that we loved.

(03:17):
He is a treasure. You knew that he was being
protected for so many years after his stroke by Kirk Herbstreet.
I read Herbstreet's book several years ago. He talked about
that first moment alongside Coach Corso when Herbstreet was trying
out for the show, and you know, Herbstreet wasn't sure
if he was good enough to make it happen, but

(03:39):
Corso made things work. Then Corso helped nurture Herbstreet's career,
and then like the father to the son and the
son taking care of the father, Herbstreet would then protect
Corso over the final few years, and he missed some episodes. Obviously.
Part of the reason Pat McAfee was brought on board

(04:00):
I think was in part because Coach Corso's inconsistency and
being there because of his age. I think also, obviously
you go back to the COVID nineteen season. How that
took Corso off of our television sets. But hey, a
salute to Lee Corso for a job well done, an
incredible run. If you're watching the We're on TikTok, we'd

(04:20):
love to hear from you. What's your favorite moment from
coach Corso's career on ESPN's Game Day. I'd love to
hear from you there. What isn't intriguing about it or
interesting about it to me is that I don't recall
the show blowing up, do you know what I mean?

Speaker 3 (04:43):
It just.

Speaker 2 (04:45):
Kind of happened. And I think that's the thing that
I take away because remember when college Game Day got going,
they were in studio. They didn't go on the road

(05:06):
until that incredible matchup in nineteen ninety three between number
one Florida State and number two Notre Dame in South Bend.
The show got started in nineteen eighty seven. Now ninety three,
I'm still in high school going to college in a
couple of years at Clemson. I think it really became

(05:29):
kind of a phenomenon during my time at Clemson. I
can remember kids turning it on Saturday morning and watching
before leaving Johnstone to walk down to Death Valley. The

(05:50):
other thing too, Back in the day, remember television, especially
cable television at a tailgate was simply not a thing.
It was no direct TV satellite viewing going on at tailgates.

(06:10):
As a matter of fact, I don't really recall that
happening until maybe two thousand and six. I mean, prior
to that, the only way that you could really watch
anything at your tailgate was if you had rabbit ears
on an old school television. And back then, old school
TVs were big and lumbering and heavy. They weren't these

(06:33):
flat screen models you could just throw in the vehicle
and bring two or three to a tailgate. You couldn't
stream on your phone. So what was big back then
were things like the Tiger Tailgate Show, and everybody would
have their radios on and throughout the entire vicinity of
Death Valley fans would be listening to Tiger tals too.

(06:59):
I can't remember the names of the guys that were
on the Tiger Tailgate Show back then, but that's what
it was about. And they were talking about Clemson and
Wake Forest or Clemson and Duke. They were giving you
updates from around the country depending on what time your
game was. It was Leonard's post toasties, you know, things

(07:19):
like that before the game, not during the Tiger Tailgate Show.
But your coverage of national college football was minimal. It
was minimal. It was much more regionalized up in Charlottesvield.
Today it's going to be a big game between the
Virginia Cavaliers and they're hosting the North Carolina tar Heels.

(07:44):
Like that's how many of you remember life at the
tailgate before two thousand and six. And once satellite dishes
and whether you're running it off of a generator or
a battery became a little more commonplace, then you started

(08:10):
to get people watching game day at the tailgate. But
because you couldn't, we stayed in our dorms. And if
you wanted to see that helmet pick once that became
a thing for college game day, you had to wait
around till noon. And if the kickoff in Death Valley
was at noon, where you were gonna miss the kick

(08:32):
So you might leave a little early on days like that.
But Corso's thirty eight year career will conclude this season,
as the news came out earlier today. And what a tenure,
what a legacy, a four decade run on college game

(08:55):
day as an analyst. According to the release from ESPN,
things began for game day, or excuse me for cod
for Courso on game day back in nineteen eighty seven.
Corso said, in a statement released by the Four Letter Network,
my family and I will forever be indebted for the
opportunity to be a part of ESPN and College game

(09:17):
Day for nearly forty years. I have a treasure of
many friends, fond memories, and some unusual experiences to take
with me into retirement. Lee Corso will turn ninety on
August the seventh and is widely known for his headgear
picks and his comment with someone right before him picks
opposite of what he says, not so fast, my friend.

(09:42):
He's also famous for his Taekwonderoga pencils double eraser edged.
If I recall correctly, the headgear segment started in October
of nineteen ninety five in a game of Ohio State.
Courso during his four hundred and thirty headgear selections as

(10:04):
a career mark of two eighty six and one forty four.
It's a little bit disappointing that he can't pick two more,
because he could finish two eighty eight and one forty four,
doubling his correct picks to his incorrect picks. If he's
correct in his final selection game day or Corso will

(10:28):
end his game day career just shy of that mark.
In addition to wearing helmets, of course, Corso's dressed up
like the Leprechaun from Notre Dame, the Stanford Tree, James Madison,
Ben Franklin, he once let a live alligator, or held
a live alligator in his hands while picking Florida to win,

(10:51):
And I mentioned those Taekwonderoga pencils. Little did I know
until today the Corso was the director of business development
for taekwonder Roga. ESPN chairman Jimmy Potero saying, quote, Lee
Corso has developed a special connection to generations of fans

(11:12):
who his entertaining style and iconic headgear picks. Lee is
one of the most influential and beloved figures in the
history of college football, and our ESPN team will celebrate
his legendary career during his final college game day appearance
this August. Corso's final broadcast will be August thirtieth, ESPN

(11:33):
announcing additional programming to celebrate Corso's planned in the days
leading up to that weekend. So that's a positive in
that that day can be about coach, but not solely
about coach. That there will be plenty of build up
to that day on ESPN. I think that's great to
not steal from the opening day of college football. And

(11:54):
it's unfortunate that I have to put that word steal
in there with Coach Corso in college football, because I
know that's all he wants to do is give back
to the sport. The beautiful pregame segments that are put
out on social media by Kirk Herbstreet of Coach Corso
like warming up his throat for the broadcast. He's also
fond of taking some of the premier snacks that ESPN

(12:17):
will have out for their celebrities or what do you
call their talent, I guess you'd say now. Coach Corso's
career took a start turn about sixteen years ago, back
in two thousand and nine, when he suffered a stroke
which left him unable to speak for a time. He

(12:39):
returned to the show later that year. Since that point,
he's often fumbled and stumbled over its words, But in
true fashion, the majority of people have taken that as
a real glimpse of life and the hardships that some
of us certainly face, or all of us face at

(13:02):
some point in our lives. But to be behind a
camera having dealt with a stroke and yet to continue
to battle and get there every day through your eighties
as much as possible, and now as he heads towards
ninety years old, he will be ninety when he retires.

(13:22):
It's phenomenal. It's a phenomenal story. Corso said, ESPN has
been exceptionally generous to me, especially these past few years.
They accommodated me and supported me, as did my colleagues
in the early days of College Game Day Special. Thanks
to Kirk kurb Street for his friendship and encouragement. Unless

(13:43):
I forget the fans, truly a blessing to share with them.
ESPN gave me this wonderful opportunity and provided me the
support to ensure success. I am genuinely grateful. The thing
that I think about with those pregame segments with her
heurb Street and Corso that are not on air is

(14:03):
where Corso will take helmets of each team and hold
them up to the crowd, you know, and the one
team boos and he just they'll they'll boo the opponent
that they don't like, and he'll just throw that other
helmet to the ground or chunk it. Herb Street said
in a statement, Coach Corso has had an iconic run
in broadcasting, and we're all lucky to have been around

(14:26):
to witness it. He's taught me so much throughout our
time together. He has been like a second father to me.
It has been my absolute honor to have the best
seat in the house to watch coach put on that
mascotthead each week college game. They won nine Emmys during
Corso's tenure with the program. It was nominated this year
for Most Outstanding Studio Show Weekly. Rhys Davis saying, quote,

(14:52):
Lee is the quintessential entertainer, but he was also a
remarkable coach who established lifelong connections with his players. When
Game Day went to Indiana last season, the love and
emotion that poured out from his players was truly moving.
It was also unsurprising. Every week Lee ask about our families.
He asked for specifics. He celebrates success in moments big

(15:16):
and small with all of us on the set. He's
relentless in his encouragement. That's what a great coach and
friend does. Lee's made it his life's work to bring
joy to others on the field and on television. He
succeeded Chris Fowler, who hosted Game Day for twenty five
years before Rhyes Davis took it over in twenty fifteen,

(15:38):
said Lee has been an indelible force in the growth
of college football's popularity. He's a born entertainer and singularly
television talent, but at his heart he'll always be a
coach with an abiding love and respect for the game
and the people who play it. So Sunshine Scooter, of course,

(16:03):
hanging it up, hanging up the microphone, the headset, the
head gear, if you will. After an incredible thirty eight
year career. Now, I guess the question becomes, where is
college game Day gonna be? Because there's a legitimate chance

(16:31):
that Clemson hosting LSU, I would assume could very well
be in the mix. I mean, let's look around the country.
Here at other scheduled games for August the thirtieth. All right,

(16:52):
here we go. You've got Clemson an LSU at Memorial Stadium.
You've got Alabama at Florida State. That's intriguing because of
coach Corso's ties to Florida State. But I would not

(17:13):
expect that game to be a good game. Alabama's an
early eleven and a half point favorite, Clemson's in early
two and a half point favorite over LSU. If you're
keeping score at home. I mean, at this point, just
kind of eyeballing it. Texas is at Ohio State. That
might be the game Ohio State minus three. The first

(17:37):
head gear he ever wore was at Ohio State. Come
full circle with that. Looking into the rest of the
games that day, those are the only games I see
that would be reasonable. And given the profiles of Ohio
State coming off of a national championship in Texas, I
think that's gonna be the one. I mean, I just

(17:58):
can't imagine that as good as the Battle for Death Valley,
if you will, between Clemson and LSU would be It's
hard not to think that Texas and Ohio State get
the booking on the Corso. After he announced his retirement

(18:20):
in a statement through ESPN, Courso will be there week one,
just days after his ninetieth birthday, at an undisclosed locale.
At this point, but based off of my sleuthing, I
think we have a good idea where he's gonna be.
And it's also pretty fitting a course, with with Kirk

(18:44):
kurb Street being an Ohio State guy. I mean, that's
that's just what it is. Clemson tweeting out you're welcome
back to Tigertown any time. Coach would be something though,
if they did pick Clemson over that that other venue.
What's that spread? Let me check the spread I gave

(19:04):
you Ohio State minus three. Yeah, that's gotta be. The
game has to be Clemson hosting LSU, Ohio State hosting Texas,
or Florida State hosting Alabama. Not much elt, not much
else in the old golfers. On August the thirtieth, South

(19:29):
Carolina and not even playing that day. They're playing on
Sunday this season over in Atlanta to open the year
against Virginia Tech at Mercedes Benz Stadium. Also that Sunday,
August thirty first, Miami will host Notre Dame in Miami Gardens.
Then on Labor Day, North Carolina hosts TCU in Chapel Hill.

(19:51):
Real quick look at the first week of the season.
When we get back. I'll let you hear what Kirk
krb Street had to say about Leak Courso retiring right
after this along the show, the shakespare south Land Clemson
sports talk again talking about coach Lee Corso and the
announced retirement from ESPN's Game Day. Of course, maybe maybe

(20:12):
gamedal will be at Clemson and LSU. And of course
if you are at Clemson and LSU and if they
have the tailgate set up there or the game day
set up on Bowmanfield, Hey, you're right around the corner
from my good friends over at Alumni Hall on the
corner campus on College Avenue in downtown Clemson Alumni Hall.

(20:33):
Get all your Clemson officially licensed Clemson apparel, hats, t shirts,
tailgate gear and more. Don't forget Clemson students faculty in
all military received ten percent off of shopping in store
at Alumni Hall. Check them out online at Alumni Hall
dot com or get to their website through our website,

(20:53):
and then when you make your purchases online that will
benefit us. It's Alumni Hall where Tiger fans shop. So
we were talking about coach Corso before the break and
his impending retirement, and I'm so grateful that this is
out there.

Speaker 3 (21:12):
And again.

Speaker 2 (21:14):
I'm thankful that we're not talking about, you know, the
passing of coach Lee Corso and not having an opportunity
to showcase his legacy for him or have tributes pour
in about him. That will certainly continue over the next
few months as we lead you up to the first
week of the college football campaign, and you know, guys

(21:40):
like Kirk Herb Street, etc. Will be making the rounds
on ESPN. I mean, this is a huge story because
of Lee Corso's nearly forty year impact on college football,
and I might argue that while his profile certainly diminished

(22:00):
in the sense of on air opportunities after his stroke
sixteen years ago in two thousand and nine, Corso's impact
is still immense. And I would say maybe maybe outside

(22:21):
of if we're looking at Dick Vital, I think his
impact is on that same level, maybe greater. The sport
is bigger, we know that. But with that being said,
while the tributes will pour in, I do have a
couple of them that have already been posted on social media,

(22:47):
including Chris Fowler, who was the long time twenty five
years the host of College Game Day, now the play
by play man alongside Kirk Kirk Street for most of
Game Day's venues, Fowler taking a little bit of a
back seat and certainly being able to concentrate more on

(23:08):
his play by play work. Here's Chris Fowler's response to
the news of Lee Corso's retirement.

Speaker 4 (23:15):
It's a bittersweet day, but I can't stop smiling. I'm
thinking about Lee Corso and all the great memories shared
with him on the set of College Game Day, the Meetings,
the Meals, The Hangs announced today after a long process
that Lee Corso is stepping away from Game Day after
one big finale at the start of the coming season.

(23:38):
I think Lee knows its time. It's going to be
ninety in August. It's been an incredible, unprecedented run what
Lee has done for the sport of college football, grown
its popularity just by his unique personality and his work
on game Day since eighty seven, and just sharing this
set with him for a quarter century. It's been a privilege,

(23:59):
has been a joy. There'll be time for more stories
and more appropriate format than right now. But you know,
trust me, what you saw on TV was a tip
of the iceberg with this guy was like off of
the set. At his heart though, he was a coach,
and he had deep passion and love for the sport,
for the men who played it, those who coached it.

(24:21):
And he coached me up when I was a true
freshman emergency filand on College Game Being eighty nine, and
he just made me feel relaxed and confident, and you
got a glimpse of what he was able to give
to his players, and that's why they speak of him
with such reverence over the years, you know, watching Lee
courageously fight back after a stroke, had to relearn how

(24:41):
to communicate, which had always been his gift. He had
to relearn how to do the show, totally changed his
methods and just always kept battling. And I think part
of his legacy he inspired stroke victims and they told
him that about what's possible. But mostly you'll think of
the the headgear picks on Saturday and just the way

(25:03):
that he brought passion and joy and fun to the
sport for so many years. And I learned so much
from him and continue to and I think they'll never
be anyone else like him. He is a singular, unique
TV sports talent, born entertainer and he'll be missed, But

(25:25):
man does he leave behind a lot of great stories
and I look forward to hanging out with him in
the next chapter of his life. But yeah, much more
to come on this. Why an't you just add some
quick thoughts as the announcement day is here? Love you ly,
love you man.

Speaker 2 (25:42):
That's Chris Fowler. Here's Kirk Herbstreet and his response, and
both of these guys were like in the woods or
on a walk. I don't even though they might be together.
But here's what Herbstreet had to say.

Speaker 5 (25:54):
Coach, this is Kirk. Just wanted to say I love you.
I thank you for so many lessons you taught me
almost thirty years together. I've enjoyed sitting next to you,
watching you do your thing, so much fun. We've had
so many great moments on the show, off the show.

Speaker 6 (26:17):
This is a.

Speaker 5 (26:17):
Celebration for everything that you did for the sport, for
college game Day. You're an icon, You're a once in
a lifetime person, once in a lifetime broadcaster. It's been
a special, special time for all of us as college
football fans to watch you do your thing and celebrate
the sport every Saturday in the fall and have a

(26:40):
chance to be sitting where I sat since nineteen ninety
six and to look over and watch you, whether it
was the head gear or saying something that nobody else
would say. You're brilliant, and you and I have a
special bond and always will. And I just really wanted
to say how much I appreciate you. I love you,

(27:01):
and enjoyed being your teammate throughout all these years, and
you've earned this retirement man. Congratulations. Hope you'll still be
with us and come around in the fall on Saturdays
and take care of yourself. Look forward to seeing you
soon and I love you, buddy.

Speaker 2 (27:19):
So that's herb Street's response over on social media. Quick Bray,
we'll come back. We'll shift gears away from Lee Corso
hopefully in our number two when Tim Urray joins us.
We'll get some insight into Corso from Tim as well.
Right here on the show that Shakes the south Land
Clemson Sports song on a Wednesday, Lawton Swan hanging out
with you. Speaking of retirements, Larry Williams of Tiger Illustrated

(27:44):
reported today that longtime Clemson strength and conditioning coach Joey
Batson will hang it up after the twenty twenty five
football season. According to his bio on Clemson Tigers dot Com.
Bats in his inner his fortieth year as a strength
and conditioning coach at the collegiate level and his twenty
ninth year as the director of strength training at Clemson University.

(28:09):
This season, Batson served as a graduate assistant in the
Strength and conditioning department at Clemson from nineteen eighty five
to nineteen eighty eight, Batson did I guess some Olympic
lifting speed and agility competed in He plays fourth in
competitive weight training back in nineteen eighty seven. Batson's a

(28:30):
native of Travelers Rest and was a tight end at
the Citadel in nineteen seventy nine before transferring to Newberry,
where he was a two year letterman and a co captain.
During his tenure at Clemson, Batson up to this point
his coach seventy six All Americans, two hundred and forty
seven All ACC selections, twenty five National Award winners, fifty

(28:53):
eight Strength and Conditioning All Americans, twenty three NFL first
round picks, one hundred and fourteen NFL draft pick, and
has helped Clemson the twenty six bowl games, nineteen top
twenty five finishes, eight top ten finishes, nine ACC championships,
seven College Football Playoff appearances, four National Championship Game appears

(29:14):
as a two national titles. Of course, Batson's un ben
is on the strength of conditioning staff at Clemson currently,
according to Larry Williams, the news was confirmed by Ross
Taylor that the twenty ninth season would be ben bats
excuse me, would be Joey Batson's final one in Clemson.

(29:37):
According to sources, Dabosweeney approached Batson with the idea to
retire after the coming season. Batson has battled several health issues,
specifically hard issues, in recent years, most notably back in
twenty twenty one, when Batson had open heart surgery at

(29:57):
the age of sixty to Williams. Batson also had a
had to quote receive medical attention last December after Clemson's
dramatic win over SMU in the ACC Championship Game. Batson's
father passed away in the nineteen seventies at I believe,

(30:19):
just thirty nine years old from a heart attack, so
batsn't going to be stepping away at the end of
the season. Of course, most people know Batson from the
Squat Tober social media video that Clemson put out and
also the fourth Quarter video that came out in twenty

(30:44):
eighteen where Patson, during a motivational video from offseason workouts, yelled, quote,
they don't put championship rings on smooth hands. You gotta
go earn it. Here's the clip from that twenty eighteen
Why we work fourth quarter video, which in my opinion

(31:06):
is easily still the best one.

Speaker 3 (31:26):
Oh just that fourth quarter video. Excuddy, hell, let.

Speaker 7 (31:58):
Me tell you something right now, they don't put championship
rings on smooth hands.

Speaker 3 (32:03):
You gotta go on it.

Speaker 2 (32:05):
You gotta go on it.

Speaker 6 (32:06):
Six tuggers at a time. You win champions ships when
the stadium is what the man ain't playing, where.

Speaker 2 (32:14):
The cheer leaders ain't cheering, what is this show?

Speaker 3 (32:17):
And your brother, Travisager, that's.

Speaker 6 (32:20):
When you win championship hit the fourth.

Speaker 2 (32:22):
Quarter, that's when we shot. That is an incredible video.
And the response to what Clympson has done with that

(32:43):
fourth quarter video in Tigertown is impressive. And Joey Batson
that line, I mean, that's a quote. Hang that in
the love They don't put championship rings on smooth hands.
I mean that's so good that it's become a meme

(33:06):
in a lot of respects. I use it on social
media when, like, you know, say something, you know, pregame
Clipson versus SMU, for example at the a SEC Championship.
Every once in a while I'll tweet something out like,
oh man, just got a good look at the SMU
football players up close and personal. One thing of note

(33:30):
smooth hands, and every Tiger fans knows, every Tiger fan
knows what that means. A smooth hand reference means they're
not ready. They're not Championship game ready. So the first
couple of segments obviously of significance here all about retirement,
people hanging it up. We haven't even really been able

(33:52):
to dive into sports per se. I mean, look, the
impact of both of these guys on sports significant, no doubt.
But again, the big news today ESPN's Lee Corso gonna
hang it up at the end of the season or
excuse me, at the beginning of the season after week one,

(34:14):
and then for Clemson, according to Larry Williams Tiger Illustrated
dot Com, it sounds like Joey Batson will be hanging
it up at the end of the season. Williams did
report also that Dennis Love appears to be Dennis Love
appears to be the replacement. Loves on staff at Clemson

(34:36):
and has been on staff at Clemson for a while.
He is a Hiron native and is a Clemson graduate
as well. So we'll continue to follow that story as
we move through the fall. Age zero three four or
five zero zero eighty six text line phone line. We'll
put a bow on hour number one plus coming up
around the bend in our two long time Clemson sid

(35:01):
timber Ray joins the program see if he can give
us some insight in the league. Corso as well as
Joey Batson. After this final seven tobove number one, the
Nico iom Aliava situation has come to a conclusion. Nico
will play this coming season at UCLA. Right now, I mean, listen,

(35:25):
how much do you trust anything that these college kids
say in this day and age. As a matter of fact,
yesterday over one thousand new players entered the transfer portal.
A thousand. Now. Granted, some of those are guys who
are going to be really at the mercy of the

(35:47):
new scholarship rules and limits, etc. Which is in part
why like at Clemson, a kid like Caleb Nix walk
on defensive back, enters the portal and people say, oh, man,
I didn't even know Caleb Nicks was a part of
the program. Damosween he has talked about Caleb Nicks in
the relationship with the Knicks family. Of course, Caleb's brother,

(36:10):
Bo Nicks, his father, also played collegiately. Patrick Nicks I
believe is his dad anyway played at Auburn. But long
story short, just kind of glossing back into the Nico situation.

(36:33):
It doesn't sound like he got more going to UCLA
than he had at Tennessee, which means all in all,
this is a lose for Nico at l and his
family has tried to cover and say no, no, no, no,
no no no. It was about it was about the system,

(36:55):
it was about Tennessee's offense. Well, Cam Newton on his
podcast fourth and one it said, this is a story
of good advice, bad advice. Whoever advised this kid to
sit out and chase in hopes for more money as
a fool, because the reality is this is just to

(37:16):
make your college. The money is just to make your
college experience more comfortable. This is not forever money. You
have to understand that. Even though you're talking about millions
and millions and millions of money, this ain't it bro
you at nineteen years old. But that money ain't gonna
last past twenty four basically what Cam Newton is saying.

(37:39):
And we know the story about Cam Newton chasing a bag.
We felt like with his father, Cecil and Auburn well
before nil and it was well worth it for Auburn
to go and secure cam Newton. Whether it was legally
or illegally, or done or not done. I personally think

(38:01):
it was probably done and it was illegal, but hey,
it's been a long time. That's water under the bridge
at this point for me. All that being said, this
situation with Nico speaks volumes about the situation that players
are in and how they are now unable because of

(38:26):
Nico's situation. In my opinion, this is step one of
players losing a significant amount of leverage, because if Nico
had made more, then players might demand more. But with
Nico potentially making less to go to UCLA and be

(38:46):
a Bruin, it makes it pretty sketchy to jump into
the portal and a lot of people say, look, Nico's
a great guy. This is not about Nico. A lot
of people saying this is about Nico's family, Nico's father
more specifically, and his impact on Nico's decision making. And

(39:11):
it's really sad because as a dad, you want the
best for your kids. You want the best for your kids,
but in my estimation, the best doesn't mean the most money.
Wanting the best for your kids should be about commitment.

(39:35):
It should be about your word is your bond, that
what you say and agree to is what you will do.
For example, if my son came to me in the
middle of a sports season, or my daughter for that matter,

(39:56):
in the middle of a sports season it said, Hey,
I'm thinking about Quentin, I don't want to play for
this coach, this team, whatever, I would say, that's fine,
but you will finish the season. You will finish the season.

(40:19):
You're gonna finish your commitment. Now there is a way
you could not finish the season. Totally different, Right. You
put your grades in the toilet, and you really love
the sport and love the team and want to play,
and mom and dad can pull you out and say, hey, coach,
look his grades in the toilet. He's not playing until

(40:43):
his grades come up. Coach, he's off the team. Now
that's a little different. That's a little different method. Right.
But let it be known that I think this nico
Io Maliava situation is a cautionary tale because at one

(41:06):
point along the way, he basically had a zero market
and with thousands of people jumping into the portal, and
not all of them may be as talented as Nico,
but with thousands of people in the portal, you run
the risk of not landing anywhere, and you run the

(41:27):
risk of your value being completely diminished. And for Nico
to get less now he is closer to the home
out in UCLA, but to take less, to go to
a team that is less than that's a significant blow

(41:48):
for the world of college sports. I'll tell you about
another one in our number two, but first when we
had a break. When we come back, Timbray, longtime Clemson SID,
will join the program and we'll talk about the transfer portal,
maybe even this Nico situation. Uh and again Colin Cowherd

(42:09):
reported that I Malava was going to u C l A,
but then it was the Bruins are going to be
paying less again. Think about that less than what he
was getting at Tennessee our number two around the band.
Stay with us.

Speaker 1 (42:26):
Each time for Clipson Sports Talk with Luwton Schwan.

Speaker 2 (43:07):
It is our number two. That's drivetime right here on
the show. The shakespare south Lay and Clemson Sports talt
lod Swan. Hey know with you. On a Thursday afternoon,
legendary Clypson SID said to join the program. Tim Bray
said to join the program in just a minute, and
the show that Shakespare south Lay brought you, in part
all our good friends over at Mets Plumbing seven three

(43:29):
to drip, Drip drip. You know the jingle seven three
to two drip. That's Mets Plumbing mets Plumbing dot com.
All right, Tim Berray joins us. Tim, welcome in hope.
You're having a great Thursday.

Speaker 6 (43:43):
Doing fine, uh lot, and everything's gonna up here as
we go into Easter weekend. We've got a big baseball
series against uh Louisville. It's Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. ACC
tries not to have any athletic events on Easter Sunday,
so uh but yeah, that should be a series leading
into a big game with Georgia on Tuesdays. So we

(44:03):
got a bunch of big baseball games coming up.

Speaker 2 (44:06):
Yeah, a huge clash coming up with the Bulldogs. Depending
on what polls you look at, it's really a top
six matchup across the board with that one coming up
next week in the midwek But before we talk Clemson, Tim,
I got to ask you about Rory and the Masters
going to a playoff and his finish. I saw Mark
Packer talk about how incredible he thought the Masters tournament

(44:29):
was on Sunday. When Rory came out with a double
bogie on the first hole, I thought, Oh, is he
going to choke it down again? But good on him
becoming just a sixth player to win all four Majors.
What was your thoughts on Sunday at the Masters?

Speaker 6 (44:44):
Yeah, I was. I actually went to the Masters Friday,
Saturday and Sunday last weekend, and it was great theater
as you always get at the Masters that I've seen
a lot of final rounds, either on television or in person,
but this was right up there, if not. I was
fortunate to be there when Jack Nicholas won in nineteen

(45:07):
eighty six. This was a different type of a final
round and there were just the lead change to hands
with three different players having the leads. And I've never
seen a guy so many great shots and so many
bad shots on the way to victory. You know, in
the nineteen seventy early eight nineteen eighties, Maryland had a

(45:30):
basketball player named Ernest Graham, and I'll never forget that.
There was one game on television that I think Billy
Packer was doing and he said, Ernest Graham will make
great plays and then have turnovers. He's the only guy
who can keep both teams in the game at the
same time. And that's kind of what ryer Roy McElroy

(45:51):
did on Sunday. He kept everybody in the game while
making great shots at the at the same time.

Speaker 2 (45:58):
And I think his you know, one of the advantages
I really felt like he had going into that eighteenth
hole over Rose was that he had just played it
and he knew that he had pushed that ball to
the right, and on that second shot he made sure
not to do that, and boy, what a brilliant shot
onto the green there on eighteen in the playoffs.

Speaker 6 (46:21):
Yeah, I mean, well, that's that's the perfect example of
what I said, you know, as actually I was with
my wife and I were at sixteen most of the day,
and when Rory came through, we filed him up seventeen
and foiled him up eighteen. And you know when he
hit that drive on eighteen right in the middle of
the fairway and arguably the longest drive of the day

(46:43):
that ended up in the middle of the fairway, and
then he kind of hit it right into the bunker
right of the green. And I don't know how much
of a historian you are with the Masters, but Arnold
Palmer was in the same situation in nineteen sixty one.
He had a drive down in the middle of the fairway.
He had a one stroke lead playing the eighteen toll
over Gary Player, and then his second shot he hit

(47:06):
it into that same bunker, almost the same place. Unfortunately
for Palmer, he then hit his third shot over the
green on the other side, ended up making double bogie
and lost the Masters by one shot. If he just
made pr on that last hole, he would have won
three straight Masters, which would have been the only time
anybody who's ever ever done that. So I was hoping

(47:28):
Worry wasn't going to go to that extreme, and he
did end up missing a five foot but to win
the Masters. But then he showed a great ability to
just forget about mistakes that he made and come back
and make this thrilling shots.

Speaker 2 (47:42):
Tim Bray with us here on the program. You mentioned
Billy Packer a few minutes ago, Tim, and I think
I texted you a while back a picture of this
channel that's on the Roku network called Origin Sports. We
actually get it over the air in Colombia all on
ten point four, and when you brought up Billy Packer,
I couldn't help but think back to they're running old

(48:02):
Raycom Jefferson Pilot games, Duke North Carolina ninety three was
on yesterday, Wake Forest, North Carolina. When Wakes three and
North Carolina's four, I guess in like nineteen ninety five
or something is on right now. I keep this channel on.
I can't help myself. I'm a sucker for old sports.
I remember when ESPN brought back that you know, they

(48:23):
had ESPN Classic, but you know it didn't really focus
just on college basketball. I'll tell you what, this Atlantic
Coast Conference basketball, old school stuff with Billy Packer and
those guys on the call, it's outstanding.

Speaker 6 (48:35):
Oh yeah, no, absolutely yeah. When ESBN started, they had
a lot of replays of games, and it also reminded
me of the old Sports Challenge shows that dick Enberg
used to host when they had the highlights and interview
questions that went with the with the with the highlights.

(48:55):
But yeah, I love watching those old games that you know,
within the middle of mic you talking about games in
nineteen ninety four, I was fifteen years in my career
at Clemson, So yeah, they're fun to go back and
watch without a doubt.

Speaker 2 (49:13):
Well, and one of the legends of college sports announcing
today that he'll be stepping away after Week one this season,
Lee Corso with College Game Day, I was talking earlier
about this news because I think a couple of things
College Game Day coincided with. As the show grew, so

(49:34):
too did tailgates and the ability to have a satellite
at the tailgate and watch game day. But prior to that, right, Like,
if you were at Clemson, what I remember growing up
was everybody had the Tiger Tailgates show on Tiger Tals
to you and all that. As you worked in that
capacity as the sid, what do you recall about, not

(49:56):
necessarily game day just yet, but the infancy of tailgating
as it grew over the years. Because when Clemson played
Florida State, I think it was the punt Ruski game,
tim they panned the crowd at the beginning or they
panned the parking lot at the beginning of that. I
can't remember who they were talking to, Beno Cook, somebody
was there. Anyway, there was not a tailgate tent in sight.

(50:18):
Give me your thoughts on the origin of what we've
seen from tailgating and tailgate spreads with the college game
they experience over your career.

Speaker 6 (50:25):
Yeah, well, of course when I first came you talk
about the Tiger Tailgate Show. I believe the first year
of it was my first year at Clemson nineteen nineteen
seventy eight, and that was kind of a new thing.
I don't know that very many people have very many
radio networks had it. I know we had three game
shows when I was at Notre Dame in the seventies,

(50:47):
but not to the style that they had. And the
tailgate show at Clemson has certainly grown. And I remember
when Coach Barnes game is first year in nineteen nine
before he went out on the golf cart. Uh and
uh and and well yeah, you know one of the
one of the hosts of the the Tiger Tailgates Show,

(51:08):
and it was very smart on his part. It was
a great way for him to uh get to know
the Clemson fans and certainly endeared him to the Clemson
fans that they that he would he would be involved
with football to that extent. And of course that had
a great personality when it came to mingling with the
UH you know, with the fans and and so, uh,

(51:29):
it certainly has uh has grown from uh you know,
from there, and of course that the program on ESPN
has grown and grown over the years of Lee. Course,
so it was certainly going to mainstad.

Speaker 2 (51:41):
Yeah, and now with TV's out that the tailgates pretty
much everybody's got Game Day on and I think that's
only boosted that experience. When was the first time you
met Lee Corso, Tim, what was your first interaction with him?

Speaker 6 (51:52):
Well, I guess, uh, well, I would talk to him
on the phone when so, uh, you know, the ESPN
Game Day show did go back to the nineteen eighties,
I believe, but the first time they ever went out
on campus was in nineteen ninety three. He went to
Notre Dame for the Notre Dame Florida State one versus
two matchup. And of course, now Game Day didn't come

(52:16):
to Clemson until two thousand and six for the for
the Georgia Tech game. But you know, he would he
would do do his prep for the for the show,
and he he really did rely on the SIDS to
get the basic information and notes and things of that
nature on the upcoming game. But now when they started
going on the road. You know, he would he would

(52:39):
certainly call me when Clemson had a big, big game
and I will give you this insight. So the two
thousand and six Georgia Tech game was the first game
day at Clemson, and so everybody was, you know, wanting
to know about who he was going to pick gender
to win the game. And and that Monday morning before

(53:01):
the game, he actually uh called me to talk about
the game, get some notes I used to have to do,
like bullet notes and things for him, and then I
faxed them to uh to to where he was working.
But that Monday he asked me for the for the
name of the cheerleading coach. So because he knew he

(53:23):
knew on Monday he was going to pick Clemson, and
he wanted to arrange to get the tiger head and
get that that I think I put him in charge
with John Siketta. It was of course our promotions director,
and he arranged that. So he you know, he likes
to get things done ahead of time, and he'll usually
people wonder how soon before the game he would pick

(53:44):
a team, and he usually made up his mind on
Monday so he could advance arrange to get.

Speaker 3 (53:49):
The head gear.

Speaker 2 (53:51):
Now, what would you say his impact has been all
on college football?

Speaker 6 (53:56):
Well, I think it's I really think it's kind of
similar to dig By Tale uh in college basketball. I
was kind of a look at them as uh, you know,
partners in in their respective uh sport. I think probably
vital and a little bit uh you know, more wide

(54:17):
reaching image than than uh coach Courso did. But they
were both you know, similar in their coaching careers, uh too,
and that then they put in many many years uh
certainly in in in broadcasting. But you know, I could
see I could see coach Corsol being and coach Vitals

(54:38):
in the basketball Hall of Fame. I could see coach
Courso being in the football Hall of Fame just as
a contributor some day. And he certainly just enhanced the
you know, the the the game day is certainly you know,
become more and more a part of the fabrica college
football and he's a big part of that.

Speaker 2 (54:58):
Tim breis on Twitter at Tim Moray again, the longtime
Clemson sid hanging out with us today. And I guess
Kirk Herbstreet, you know, when you also look at it.
I read Herbstreet's book and even in the message that
he put out the day He talked about how Lee
Corso was kind of like a father figure to him.
And you could see after Corso's stroke back in nine,

(55:20):
how much you know Herbstreet would help him and navigate
segments and maybe if he misspoke here or there, kind
of making that show even more endearing. But Herbstreet had
two kids that both went to Clemson. Did you have
a chance to interact with him outside of his capacity
at game day? And how influential do you think Kirk

(55:43):
Herbstreet is tim in the fact that Lee Corso has
been able to hang on this long on the set.

Speaker 6 (55:50):
Well, you know, I just made the comparison between Borsto
and dig Fi Tal and I see a strong comparison
between Herb Street and Jay Billis. I think both of
them are very respected in their respective sports and to
whatever they whatever their feelings are and what they say
about the state of the game. And so I could see,

(56:14):
you know, Herbstreet being the same level of respect. And
I will say this along on what you said, you
know I've.

Speaker 3 (56:22):
And you're right.

Speaker 6 (56:23):
It was the parent the degree to which Herbstreet and
Courso kind of had a father's son relationship and now
Herbstreet took care of him after he, you know, he
had the stroke, and you know, Herbstreet's kind of an
emotional guy. I remember at one of those December Awards
shows after Herbstreet had just I'm after Corso had had

(56:46):
the the trope that Herbstreet was pretty emotional at that
time because you wondered if Corso was going to be done,
if it was going to be able to come back.
And he came back for what fifteen more seasons. But
I think a lot of people respect Herb Street and
have a lot of respect for the way he treats

(57:07):
and deals with Courso.

Speaker 2 (57:09):
Tim beray with us here on Clemson's Sports talt today.
All right, let's shift gears to a retirement out of
Tiger Town. As Larry Williams broke the news that Joey
Batson would be in his final season as Clemson's director
of football Strength and Conditioning, and I pulled up his page. Now,
I think I said to you one time, Tim that

(57:29):
your photo it looked like in one of the you know,
the media guides had not been updated in a while.
I don't know what it is. Now. This is a
picture of Joey Batson. That looks like it was from
nineteen ninety five. That's on Clemson's website for his thing.
But man, many years twenty nine at Clemson. I believe
now for Batson, he's going to do one more rodeo,
one more season. According to Larry Williams Report, you know,

(57:53):
what's your relationship like with Joey? Obviously you two have
been around the program together for a long long time.

Speaker 6 (57:59):
Yeah, I know have known Joey since he was a
Brat assistant, I guess under Gary Wade, and uh, just
just a guy who's uh really knows his profession very
well respected. Uh and you know, to to do that
job that long, you have to be consistently respected from

(58:19):
class to class. Uh. You know that comes in because
discipline is a very important part of his job and
and you getting those guys to uh, you know, to
to do all the workout regiment that that he comes
up for each guy. So you know, more and more
you see coaches give credit to their strength coaches for

(58:45):
for you know, the results that you see in the field.
And obviously the results Comson has had has been terrific
during his uh his career, and you know there was
I mean, honest with I can't remember what the I
think it's still the same that far as the n
cua A off season program rules. I mean, the guy

(59:06):
who interacted with your football team the most durned summer
was your strength coaches because the assistant coaches and the
head coach couldn't couldn't be there, you observe. So he
really had a positive effect on on this, uh, this
this program. And he's he's gonna be missed. I mean,
I faith that Dad was going to get a great

(59:27):
replacement when at the end of the season, but he's
really had a positive impact on this book.

Speaker 2 (59:33):
Now I'm trying to think tim at one point did
the football team work out and fight? Were they in
the basement at fight at one point? Am I crazy?

Speaker 6 (59:42):
Well, the the original strength training facility, Yes, back before
I got it. When I got here, there was a
this strength facility was in the basement of Jersey and
that's where George Dostel worked out of and and then
Gary Wade. So but I think the weights were actually

(01:00:06):
in fight probably in the early seventies.

Speaker 2 (01:00:09):
Before I got Oh wow, so it was already over
at Jervy. Then by the time you.

Speaker 6 (01:00:13):
Arrived Star you're army in Jerviy by nineteen seventy eight.
I know that.

Speaker 2 (01:00:16):
Well, I'll tell you this, the strength and conditioning program
for sure. I'm sure you could say you've seen it
grow leaps and bounds just in terms of I guess
the space that it now occupies, the equipment. I mean,
it is legitimately, you know, I think where at some
point some people might have seen it this kind of
a offshoot of sports. I mean, it's become a real

(01:00:39):
driving factor behind success.

Speaker 6 (01:00:42):
Oh yeah, no, without a doubt, And it's gotten that
way with all sports.

Speaker 3 (01:00:48):
You know.

Speaker 6 (01:00:48):
Probably when I first came here in the seventies, you know,
baseball players would not lift weights because the feeling was
that you'd become too bald up and you couldn't swing
the bat easily. So so baseball players never worked out
with weights. And of course that's a different story now.

(01:01:11):
But but yeah, strength training really got going in football
and the probably in the early UH in the early seventies,
and it became real prominent in UH. Really to me
that I remember the National championship season of nineteen eighty one,
George Dusta was in charge of it, and before the

(01:01:31):
season he famously put up a sign Clemson versus Nebraska
in the uh in the Orange Bowl for the National Championship.
If you put that up in August, wow, as a
motivator for the team. And of course he ended up
being one hundred corrected.

Speaker 2 (01:01:48):
And yeah, get some lottery numbers from that guy. That's unbelievable.

Speaker 6 (01:01:54):
Yeah. Yeah. The Nebraska course was the pre eminent team
in a came to strength training and all that. A
number of guys that could bench press four hundred pounds
and he had got George Dowstall had come from that
program also, so that was one of the reasons why
he ended up looking clairvoyant.

Speaker 2 (01:02:14):
That's incredible. Tim Berray on Twitter at Timberray Tim. We'll
talk to you next Thursday.

Speaker 3 (01:02:18):
That's good.

Speaker 2 (01:02:20):
There you go, timber Ray quick break. We'll come back
with more on a Thursday afternoon. Rocket and rolling along
with you. That was longtime Clemson sid Tim Beurray joining
us from Tiger Toown. Don't forget if you're up at
Tigertown on the corner of campus on College Avenue with
downtown Clempson just a stone's throw from historic Riggs Field
is Alumni Hall. Check him out for all your Clemson Hats,

(01:02:42):
t shirt, gifts and apparel all officially licensed, not to
mention upgrading your tailgate gear, getting you ready for the
college football season, and Alumni Hall online as well at
Alumni Hall dot com. Don't forget about the Alumni Hall
Rewards Pass program. Make sure you get signed up for
that so you can save some money. And additionally, if

(01:03:02):
you are a CLUMPS to student, faculty member or a
military member, you get ten percent off of shopping in
store at Alumni Hall, Alumni Hall on the Cornerway campus
on College Avenue, or online at Alumni Hall dot com.
It's Alumni Hall where Tiger fans shop. All right, back
to the Nico Iomliava situation and the transfer stuff in

(01:03:25):
the world of college sports right now. So I kept
comparing an hour number one, thinking back on it, Nico's
current value. You know, what he was getting at Tennessee
versus maybe what he's going to get at UCLA, which
is less than what he had at Tennessee. But remember

(01:03:47):
this too. The whole reason he's in this spot is because,
according to Chris Lowe from ESPN, that his camp was
asking for four million. So you went from making around
two to asking for four to ending with one, maybe

(01:04:11):
one and a half. Who knows what that number is,
but it's, according to reports, less than what he was
getting at Tennessee. Not to mention, Joey Aguilar, who was
the quarterback at app State, who had transferred to UCLA,
I believe back in January, is now attempting to make

(01:04:31):
calls to find another school. And what this has caused,
not just at UCLA with Joey Aguilar in his situation,
but also at Tennessee is a bit of a domino effect.
Do the volunteers and Josh Hype will go into the
portal to try to bring in a quarterback, or do

(01:04:52):
they trust Jake Merklinger, a red shirt freshman out Savannah, Georgia,
or George McIntyre, the former five star prospect out of
Brentwood Academy in Franklin, Tennessee. Sixty six, one hundred and
ninety pound freshman. MacIntyre to me not as talented as

(01:05:16):
Trevor Lawrence, but profiles a lot more like Trevor Lawrence
and was considered the number one recruit in the state
of Tennessee according to ESPN, number two by all three
and number three by two four seven I mean, he

(01:05:42):
is a talented quarterback, but is he ready for the
limelight because he might have to be. And we could
have asked the same question about Nico a year ago
when he came in. But with all of that out there,
says created a bit of a you know, it's a

(01:06:04):
domino effect. Does Tennessee now have to go in the portal?
Can they find somebody to bring in what ends up
happening at UCLA with a kid like Aguilar who transferred
there from from app State. I mean, this is a

(01:06:29):
part of the issue. And I think the other thing
that these players have to consider, right, Like I mentioned,
a thousand guys got in the portal on day one,
a thousand, and I remember seeing something somewhere recently that
said there were somewhere in the neighborhood of like ten

(01:06:49):
thousand guys in the portal. And let's just say for
the ballpark numbers here that there are seventy Power four programs.
I think it's actually less than that. I guess I
could tabulate it real quick if I wanted to. But

(01:07:10):
as college football shifts to a hard count one hundred
and five man roster, right like it was at eighty five,
but you could have a bunch of non scholarship guys.
But there's gonna be one hundred and five man roster
limit in college football. You know what, let's just get
the real number. How many Power four schools are there?

(01:07:36):
Sixty eight? Does that include Notre Dame. Let's say that
does include Notre Dame? All right, I think that's probably
it sixty eight. We'll roll with that number. That makes sense.
I wish it was sixty four, but I think it's

(01:07:56):
sixty eight, kind of like the NCAA tournament. That's the
way I feel. And then you multiply one hundred and
five by sixty eight, that comes to seven one hundred
and forty available spots. Now, remember, if there's ten thousand

(01:08:16):
guys in the portal, a thousand went in today or yesterday.
However many went in today? Who knows? At the P
four level, there's only seven one hundred and forty spots,
but most of those are already taken. Like, how many

(01:08:37):
spots can there possibly be at school X, Y and
Z that are available? Not many? Now, there's more right
now than normal because you've got you know, if you
had eighty five scholarship players, that means there are twenty
spots that would be potentially film if you did not

(01:09:02):
allocate all those positions, all those spots yet, which is
why maybe guys like Caleb Nicks and stuff are going
into the portal to go find a home where at
a smaller school where they can be one of those
one oh five, but at the power four level there's
only seven and forty spots. Everybody can I go in

(01:09:22):
the portal and land in a you know, in a
safe place. It's just not it's not feasible. And I
think the sooner that we get to roster limits where
it's known and quantifiable and guys you know can't be
cut and this, that and the other, I think it
would make it. You know, if you want to curb
people getting in the portal. If if finding a destination

(01:09:46):
is difficult, maybe less guys will jump in. Speaking of
how about Fran Brown back in the news. In a
similar situation, a coach makes a stand against a player.
We'll tell you about it when we return. Clemson Sports
saw the show This Shakes the south Land eight zero
three four five zero zero zero eighty six. So Tennessee

(01:10:10):
stood up to Nico and I sit on the program
the other day, I said, in the past, look if
the coaches and the schools just finally said to the
collectives you we're done with you. You're not We're not
doing this game. We're not playing this game. And if
across the board coaches and universities stood up said we're

(01:10:32):
not We're not playing this game. We'll pay We'll pay
you this this is what it's going to be. But
all these billion dollar contracts and this, that and the other,
it's not happening. You get your education and you get
a little bit more, kind of like Cam Newton was
talking about, but nobody's nobody's getting, you know, retirement off
of college. That's not gonna be the end all. So

(01:10:57):
fran Brown was asked about the situation with wide receiver
Trevor Pania, who entered the transfer portal Paynia, much like Nico,
asked for more money and Frean Brown, head coach of
the Orange, was not going to overspend. And so here's

(01:11:23):
a conversation fran Brown had with a on a program
called Orange Nation.

Speaker 8 (01:11:29):
We paid him enough, he was gonna get paid more.
It was different things that would go there, But there
was some numbers that were asked to me. That I
didn't feel I will be able to do and move on.
And of course I treat him right. I took care
of him, done everything that was needed, and our differences were.
Trevor was not a coach. He's a player, so he

(01:11:49):
just got to He was worrying about things that players
don't worry about. Players players work. You know, Trevor was
worrying about his future. I want to make sure I
go to the league. I'll got to make sure I
have another year like that had last year. How you
know Rickie gonna be good. He's super talented, but like
would he be good next year and not this year?
But when they start trying to do your job and
think too much, and man, you gotta go.

Speaker 2 (01:12:16):
Fran Brown also saying you're gonna make two million at
wide receiver. That's the homie at Ohio State. I'm not
giving no wide receiver two million dollars in college. The
market is beginning to level I mean, we hear about it,

(01:12:36):
right course corrections. We hope for it when things get
out of hand. But it appears these two stories are
proving that indeed the portal and the nil aspect of
it all is leveling out and Because of that, players

(01:13:03):
are going to have to exercise more caution, and in
exercising more caution, perhaps there will be less players who
jump into the portal. And if that is the case,
then maybe we are on the brink of a new

(01:13:26):
era in college football where the coaches in the universities
are finally fed up with what they've dealt with. And
if this is what you agree to, this is what
you're gonna get, and if not, you can leave. And
I love it, but it is a strange. It is

(01:13:47):
a strange time, don't get me wrong. And I don't
think the strangeness of it all is going away just
because of these two situations. But I do think it's better.
I do believe that now. One of the guys we
had a chance to talk with last year at the
ACC kickoff was Jay Not running back at Cal. He

(01:14:12):
was really good, really good, not just in the interview
but as a player. But I saw this. Cal has
lost five running backs to the transfer portal in forty
eight hours. I mean, the only running back left in

(01:14:34):
Berkeley was true freshman Anthony League. The fact that that's
a thing, right for these coaches and for college sports,
is beyond bizarre. Five players, or excuse me, I have

(01:15:00):
running backs in the portal in forty eight hours. I
don't know what to say. I mean that, that's that.
That's a prime example of why it cannot be the norm,
why it cannot be the norm. Final a couple of
things here from the portal Christian Reeves. Clem's a big

(01:15:23):
man that transferred from Duke. He's found a home. He'll
finish or at least he'll go to Charleston play for
the Cougars. I can't say he'll I can't say he'll
finish his career there. That's not that's not something you
can assume anymore. But that's where we are Clemson Basketball.

(01:15:50):
By the way, we've talked about the job that they've
done trying to replace, replenish, and replace the portal. Well,
a byproduct of that is that Clemson was able to
sign the younger brother of one of their portal entries

(01:16:16):
as Nick Davidson's younger brother, not smaller brother. Younger brother
Blake has committed to Clemson. Blake plays at Modern Day
High School in Mission Diejo, California, and he is he's

(01:16:37):
to me, at least in the photo they put out
looks like he's bigger than his brother. Blake Davidson checks
in according to Modern Day's website, at six foot seven,
but looking at him standing beside his brother, who is

(01:17:00):
listed at six foot ten, it appears Blake Davidson's gotta
be seven feet gotta be anyway. That's some portal recruiting news, etc.
All wrapped up in a nice little bow here as
we get ready to get you out of here on
a Thursday afternoon. All right, quick break, we'll come back.

(01:17:20):
We'll put a bow on the show. Almost getting you
set for the weekend here on Clemson Sports Talk, Keep
it locked on Fox Sports Radio fourteen hundred and of
course around the world on the iHeart radio application.

Speaker 7 (01:17:36):
What have you done for me lately? It's a fair question.
Just don't lose sight of the bigger picture. Don't forget history.
Lucky for us at Clemson, the answer to the questions
what have you done for me lately? And what have
you done? Always are the same.

Speaker 6 (01:18:02):
We win.

Speaker 2 (01:18:49):
Final segment on a Thursday, thinking to Tim Berat for
hanging out with us earlier today. Eight oh three, four
five oh zero zero eighty six text line and phone line.
Don't forget to show the shakesa suthline and brought you,
in part by our good friends over at Mets plumb
in seven three to drip, drip drip, you know the jingle,

(01:19:10):
seventh three to two drip All right, final thing, Lee
Corso again hanging it up. An incredible, incredible run. He'll
do one more game day, one more game day selection
two eighty six and one forty four all time. Out
of the four hundred and thirty headgear picks, he went
eleven to zero. In nineteen ninety nine. He picked Ohio

(01:19:34):
State forty five times, and will likely get a chance
to pick Ohio State again, as I projected that they
will be at Ohio State. In Texas, He's picked Alabama
thirty eight times, LSU twenty five, Florida twenty two, in
Oregon twenty one. I think what's most incredible to me

(01:19:59):
is remember clips is first first appearance at home on
game day happened not all that long ago, but the
Tigers have now been on it thirty times and hosted eight.
The last time Clemson hosted October first, twenty twenty two.

(01:20:22):
When you think about how quickly Clemson's rise in college
football kind of correlates with that success of being on
College Game Day man. Tip of cap to Dabbo Swiney
for a job well done. Now, I said yesterday that
I would like to see Steve Spurrier pulling a you know,

(01:20:45):
Advisor doing Advisor deal and joining the show. But you know,
with Nick Saban there. Sabin was often known for wearing
that kind of straw coaches hat, you know what I mean,
sort of like what Bobby Ballen would wear, not during games,
but at practice. I would be okay if you had
a couple of those hats and and you'll let Nick

(01:21:07):
Saban just pop one of those on. I'd be okay
with that. Anyway. Here's some iconic headgear moments. And again
I know these are visually better than audio, but here's
some of those moments from Corso over the years.

Speaker 1 (01:21:23):
Everybody says to me, of course, you're stupid, you always
picked the wrong team.

Speaker 3 (01:21:38):
I found a way to muscle.

Speaker 6 (01:21:40):
Ah are you out there?

Speaker 3 (01:21:51):
Off comes the headset.

Speaker 1 (01:21:53):
Wow, forget about it.

Speaker 4 (01:21:57):
And as of this moment, Bison mascot has been renamed
Corso Horso.

Speaker 2 (01:22:05):
Guess what's the live one here?

Speaker 1 (01:22:15):
That dog is beautiful, that dog is ugly.

Speaker 4 (01:22:19):
The devour of Kurt, he's lost his poice and he's
lost his mind.

Speaker 3 (01:22:23):
I'm like, you got it, prop He. That's here we
gonna going over Red's mad.

Speaker 2 (01:22:35):
Come back, duging.

Speaker 4 (01:22:42):
Get they bless the Dukes and God bless the un States.

Speaker 6 (01:22:50):
Ov Yeah, here we.

Speaker 1 (01:22:53):
Go to cover her head?

Speaker 2 (01:22:55):
How that I found in ten this is my school,
I mean, dressed up as a statue of liberty, all
those moments, man Courso, I'm glad we get one more
rodeo with him, one more episode with Corso. Just a legend.

(01:23:15):
That video we did, retweet it, reposted it however you
want to say it, so you could check that out.
And again we'll talk more about corso favorite moments, et
cetera tomorrow. That's certainly gonna be a big topic moving
towards the college football season. And again, I just I

(01:23:38):
can't imagine it's not going to be Ohio State and Texas.
I mean, that's that's gotta be the one, right If
it's Clemson n LSU, that would be a shocker at
this point. Although the Death Valley thing, the Death Valley

(01:23:59):
deal add some intrigue to it. Davy D chimes in
and says, hoping we don't get a noon kickoff that day. R. W.
Smith says, yep, the announcement of Courso's retirement, all but
the sures it's gonna be in Columbus. I mean, those
are the only real games. I mean, Alabama at Florida State,

(01:24:20):
LSU at Clemson, Texas at Ohio State. Maybe maybe it'll
be Tennessee and Syracuse in Atlanta. That's the Neo Io
Maliava Fran Brown saying no to Peigna or whatever, and hey,
we've reset the market. The reset the market game, those
two teams facing off in the Mercedes Benz Statement in Atlanta.

(01:24:40):
All Right, we got to get out of here. We'll
be back tomorrow on Friday. Until then, as always, y'all
take care now and go Tigers