10/29/24 - The Mo Egger Radio Show

Talking Bengals with Paul Dehner Jr and Shawn Syed and College Hoops with Chad Brendel and Rick Broering

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:01):
You better believe this is a big game.

Speaker 2 (00:04):
Spikes the ball in the back of the aside.

Speaker 1 (00:06):
Three in five Bengals are looking to say their season
when they line up against a two and six Raider.

Speaker 3 (00:11):
Chay Breck sent comahawk chops under the grind.

Speaker 1 (00:14):
The Orange and Black, put a whoopman on a silver
and co catch the call from Dan Hoard and Dave Lepa.
Coverage starts Sunday morning at nine on ESBN fifteen thirty,
Official Home of the Bengals.

Speaker 4 (00:29):
That's us.

Speaker 2 (00:29):
What's up, Good afternoon, hobo echer.

Speaker 5 (00:31):
This is ESPN fifteen thirty. Thank you so much for listening.
We are broadcasting from its basically been to before this
year Buffalo Wild Wings and Anderson Run Beachmont.

Speaker 2 (00:41):
We are here.

Speaker 5 (00:41):
It's a short show today. We're here till five thirty
this afternoon. We have a UK exhibition game coming up
at five thirty, the Wildcats taking on Minnesota State.

Speaker 4 (00:51):
So here's what that means for you.

Speaker 5 (00:53):
It means that instead of getting here before six o'clock
to win our prizes, you gotta get here before five third.

Speaker 4 (01:00):
What are our prizes.

Speaker 5 (01:02):
Well, we've got a couple of really cool looking bud
light Bengals Nike golf hoodies.

Speaker 4 (01:08):
Those are terrific.

Speaker 5 (01:09):
We've also got, thanks to our friends at bud Light,
a pair of tickets to the game on Sunday Bengals Raiders.

Speaker 4 (01:16):
You know you want to go.

Speaker 5 (01:17):
You might be down on the Bengals and you might
be swearing them off and the season's over, but you're
gonna say no to free tickets.

Speaker 4 (01:24):
Of course you're not. You're gonna say yes to them.

Speaker 5 (01:26):
Also gonna say yes to a five dollars bud Light
talls buy one, get one half off traditional Wings and me.
So we're here at b Dubbs Anderson and we're having
a lot of fun, and so come on out and
join us. We've had some really cool crowds last few weeks.
We were Middletown last week and the crowd in Middletown
was awesome. I don't know if they were there for me.

(01:48):
There just happened to be a lot of people there
was awesome. And we're back at this location where they
have treated us very very well. Our guy, Paul Danner
Junior is here. Could not make the trek to Middletown,
but he's with me here on the east side of Cincinnati.

Speaker 2 (02:01):
What's going on? I feel better. I feel so much
better being here in person.

Speaker 4 (02:05):
Equilibrium got thrown off. You're not being here, you know it?

Speaker 2 (02:08):
Throw it throws off my whole week, mo, Like this
is just this is part of my balance. You know,
we're creatures of habits. Yeah, we got to keep doing
the same thing. So when I don't, when I don't
get this drive to wherever, we're going to kind of
compose my thoughts so I can be as good for
your show as I possibly can be. My whole week
is thrown off. My whole balance is thrown off. And

(02:29):
I and I think that's probably part of the reason
why the Bengals played bad against you. I think that's it.

Speaker 5 (02:33):
I think we've I think there's a lot of different
things that people have talked about, but I think that's it.

Speaker 2 (02:37):
It's you missed out on that way. Yea.

Speaker 5 (02:38):
So all right, take the l I'm just gonna start
with this. Is this salvageable and not salvageable in the
regard well that's the thing. Not in the well, you
know what they can make those games in December?

Speaker 2 (02:50):
Matter?

Speaker 5 (02:51):
Is this salvageable? Like we we started by talking about
the start of the season by talking about them being
in competition with the Chiefs and the Ravens, the Buffalo
Bills and the US Texans, and they couldn't.

Speaker 4 (03:03):
Seem farther away from that right now.

Speaker 5 (03:05):
So in that regard, in the context of how we
talked about them in June and July, is this salvagable?

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Yeah? I think so. Okay, I don't think it's impossible.
I mean, again, that's saying is there any real shot
of it? It doesn't look great. I mean, everybody has
eyeballs and can see what's going on out there, and
there's so many problems, and I think, weirdly, I think
it's more salvageable in the short term in the long term,

(03:32):
like it feels broken in a big picture. But I
think they could salvage this season still just because of
the makeup of things, like Joe's still playing great right
at some point theoretically t Higgins will come back and
and when you have Tea and Jamar and Joe Burrow

(03:53):
right now, like it cooks right like sweet seen the show,
the defense is not gonna be good. I think everybody
can come to terms with that. It's there's no world
that it lives up to even some of the can
they just be okay conversations that we kind of have, like,
it's probably not gonna be that. That said, I they

(04:16):
still seem like a team that could make the playoffs. Yeah,
I still think the AFC is I mean, even the
bad version of this team had Baltimore to a dropped
field goal and had Kansas City be I mean, and
that is understanding everything that we said. They're not gonna
win a playoff game scoring less than thirty points. Yeah, okay,

(04:39):
like we know how they're gonna have to win if
they do it. But is it salvageable to get in
and be the last team that some of the Yeah,
I think that's still it's still on the table. It's
just I think you come to terms with the fact
that the defense just feels like it's just not going

(05:03):
to get to any level that makes anything other than
Joe Burrow has to do some heroics he can, and
because he can do heroics, it's salvageable. The big picture
of it feels much more daunting to me than than
the short term. In what way, boy, who you're building

(05:23):
around on defense? Tell me one where do you start?
Henderson's the best player you got one year up in
his contract, which he probably won't be happy about in
this off season. They get right, Okay, are we building
around anybody else up there? Any of your young guys
you drafted, No, the older guys are moving on from him.

(05:45):
Are you building around Cam Taylor Brittin.

Speaker 6 (05:46):
No?

Speaker 2 (05:47):
Are you building around DJ Turner?

Speaker 3 (05:48):
No?

Speaker 2 (05:48):
Are you building around anybody Geno Stone, Jordan Batno? Are
you building around Jermaine Pratt and Logan Wilson. They're fine,
and they're I think they're perfectly fine. Two linebackers is
probably the best spot that you have. You have nothing
to build around. Your picks that you made to backfill

(06:11):
this defense and start the next generation of a solid
defense have all not just not been okay, not just
not become your core. They've regressed. And your older players
are looking old because you knew that was coming, and
that's why you drafted guys to try to be This
was supposed to be the two ships passing in the

(06:32):
Night's portion, Like midway through this year was when you
were gonna say, okay, the older players are starting to
look a little old, and younger players ascend, and then
their roles reversed and that was the plan. Well one
of them is happening. Yes, the older players are going
down and the younger players are going with them, and

(06:52):
so you need a lot of picks and a lot
of money to fix that. And you know what they
won't have when they pay Jamar Chase theoretically and then
have to then watch T Higgins theoretically walk is a
ton of money. Limp, Limp. Yeah, Yeah, well they hope
walk jog wherever he goes, and and and then and

(07:16):
that's not even getting into what you're gonna have to
start talking about on the offensive side of the ball,
while it's your interior offensive line, how are you gonna
find another number two receiver? Or are you gonna pay
T Higgins? Like all of the long term questions, boy,
they feel like a lot. But what they have here
right now, as bad as it's been, is you can

(07:38):
you could see a way that they could put it
together and and be a team that we're talking about
making the playoffs and then could go could go into
any any place in a six, three, seven to two
game and get a win. Would they be good enough
to do that three games in a row?

Speaker 7 (07:55):
No?

Speaker 2 (07:55):
I don't think so. I mean that the defense would
have to see dramatic change by these young players down
the stretch. Yeah.

Speaker 5 (08:02):
You you mentioned something though that I think is important
because you know, we as fans during the season tend
to take a very short term view, right the next game,
the next week, the next opponent this season. Can they
make the playoffs? Can they win when they get there.
I think that's part of what has made this little
eight game stretch so sobering is it is sort of

(08:23):
signaled what life might look like in some regards minus
t Higgins offensively and then defensively. You know, Trey Hendrickson
didn't have a good game on Sunday and that's okay,
the Fred Johnson revenge game. Yeah, I really thought game thoughts,
that's what you were going to write about.

Speaker 2 (08:41):
After the game, Fred came back and.

Speaker 5 (08:45):
All right, so Trey had a bad game, So that
means the rest of the defense has a bad game. Well,
I mean, Trey's older, so theoretically he's going to have
more bad games and then one day he's not going
to be here and oh boy, then it's his collection
of defensive linemen that are introducing. I think that's an
important part of this that not many people are talking
about that they could fix this for the time being.

Speaker 4 (09:09):
But boy, down the road, well we.

Speaker 5 (09:11):
Talk about like team needs going into the off season,
that list is going to be longer than it's been
in quite a while.

Speaker 2 (09:18):
I have said this, you know, during the preseason, during
the off season, even at the end of last year,
I wrote this, this year was going to be defined
by the growth of this of these young draft picks,
like because they had for the future of the franchise,
the near foreseeable future, had to start to offset the

(09:39):
Borrow money that's coming, the Chase money that's coming with
another collection of young players that give you that surplus
that they got before from Burrow and Higgins and Chase.
And if you don't, and that's why it's so hard
for teams to win when they get off the rookie

(10:01):
quarterback contract, because it's just the margin for air is
so thin, and you have to hit on your draft picks,
you just and you probably have to hit on them
at premium positions to get that value back. And when
you not only don't hit on them, but you miss
on everything at premium positions, even the best laid plans

(10:24):
that you thought you had don't matter, and it's just
that's what this that's so much of what this comes
back to it at all, at all of these spots,
in every conversation that we're having right now on both
sides of the ball, is about so many of these
young players not becoming the next Jesse Bates, the next

(10:45):
t Higgins, the next Sam Hubberd or Trey Hendrickson, the
next any of these draft picks go down the line.
There's so many of them that aren't giving you anything,
the next Cheeta bay Aluzia. They haven't gotten the next
any thing out of all these guys, and he just
it's just killing him at this point.

Speaker 5 (11:05):
Paul Danner juniors with us the Athletic dot Com The
Growler Podcast, where we explored some of these themes. I
know the latest episode is out. I uh, I want
to run a few things past you. My new job
that I'm volunteering for. Oh good, the new nickname for
the Bengals kicker, and we have to figure out where
Lunarumo should be shopping today. Plus we have to talk

(11:26):
about the Marvin Lewis revenge game.

Speaker 2 (11:28):
Yes, I mean, look, if Fred Johnson can get revenge,
oh yeah, yeah, it.

Speaker 4 (11:34):
Is a quarter after three.

Speaker 5 (11:35):
We're at Buffalo Wild Wings on the East Side and
Anderson on Beach Month. We're here until five thirty today.
We've got Bengals Raiders tickets to give away. We've got
buy one, get one half all Traditional Wings. We've got
button Light toalls for five bucks.

Speaker 4 (11:49):
All we need is you. On ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports.

Speaker 8 (11:52):
Station, Cincinnati's es move on and bostin Almore.

Speaker 2 (11:58):
I think you should continue.

Speaker 3 (11:59):
Let me keep going.

Speaker 8 (11:59):
Then three sixteen tomorrow which twelve News on ESPN fifteen thirty.

Speaker 5 (12:08):
Twenty one minutes after three o'clock. This is ESPN fifteen
thirty broadcasting today from Buffalo Wild Wing's on Beachmont.

Speaker 4 (12:14):
Paul Danner Junior is here.

Speaker 5 (12:16):
We're giving away tickets to Bengals v. Raiders, thanks to
our friends at Budlight.

Speaker 4 (12:20):
Got to get here before five thirty to win them.

Speaker 5 (12:23):
Our show ends early today for UK basketball, the Wildcats
taking on Minnesota State in an exhibition tilt.

Speaker 4 (12:30):
Paul is here. There's lots to get to. I feel like.

Speaker 5 (12:34):
Lu An Arumo and the defensive players should go shopping today, yeah,
and buy something nice.

Speaker 2 (12:40):
Are they gonna go to Kenwood Mall? Like Leye Collins
days could Yeah, because I feel like due to the
sequence as you put it on your podcast.

Speaker 4 (12:50):
Yeah, the sequence third and one and fourth and one.

Speaker 5 (12:52):
Yeah, because of the hyper focus on that, what we
saw from the defense is not being ignored, but it's
not the highlights what everybody is focusing on it Bengals
sort of on sundated.

Speaker 4 (13:03):
Hey don't look over here, look over here.

Speaker 5 (13:05):
And the beneficiary of that is lou Anarumo rushing three
the entire game, not putting any pressure on the quarterback,
Jordan Battle getting torch cam Taylor Brick committing penalties, Von
Bell missing tackles, and so those guys should get together
and get everybody involved with third and one and fourth
and one, from Zach to Joe to Zack Moss to
Jamar Chase, maybe throw something to Cooper to Gene. I

(13:26):
don't know, because like, we focused on that a lot,
even like Tony and I yesterday Tony and football, should
we focus on that a lot? And I'm driving home
and I'm like, I'm I'm not sure we spend as
nearly as much time on how awful that defense was and.

Speaker 2 (13:39):
Is the offense didn't punt? Yeah, you know, and we
spend all the time ripping them and now Green they
had the fourth down and they had two turnovers in
fair right, But we're spending all the time on an offense.
Didn't punt, Yeah, because that is where the defense has

(13:59):
put them. They have put them into position where and
I sort of talked about this on the walkout and
wrote about this in my postgame column, was that they
are a franchise that has put too much on their
franchise quarterback, Like this is I don't care Superman or not.

(14:20):
You can't ask him to support an absolute dog defense. Okay.
You can't ask him to support a non existent running game.
You can't ask him support a second wide receiver that
isn't t Higgins right now at this point and whenever
and whatever's going on with that, you know where they're

(14:41):
just not getting enough production out of anybody else. You
can't ask him to support a fourth down play call
that means throwing it behind the sticks. You can't ask
him to get every third and twelve third and twenty
two third and nine third and seven and he's got
to make four guys miss and and do these magical plays.

(15:01):
And he can do those, and he does them. Multiple
times a game. But it feels like he's constantly having
to loaves and fishes this thing to make it all work.
And he's and he's doing it to the highest QBR
in the league, and he's doing it at a level
that is remarkable. But there is they have just put.

(15:21):
We've found out what the breaking point of is, Like,
what's the level of support you have to give? Some yeah,
some some need some support in order because it puts.
And what stood out to me in the moment of
the sequence of the timeout, third down, fourth down, score

(15:43):
interception is the impatience of the moment, the absolute if
we don't do it now, this is we have to
be aggressive. We have to go for it. We have
to incur risk in our decision making to make up
for what's happening on defense because they are not stopping
a soul. And so that means from your own thirty

(16:06):
nine you look at the last three possessions that went
TD TDTD for the Eagles with ease important, and you
look at the state of the game and you say,
this is a shootout. Have to get touchdowns. We can't
play field position. I can't even try to play field
position here because you know what's gonna happen. If you do,

(16:28):
we have to score touchdowns. You got Joe Burrow, so
go for it. Burrow dropping back, have to go score. Now,
have to keep up to I'm gonna force one deep
to Jamar. And this is a throw he takes all
the time. Sure, it's still a force. It's still an
impatient throw because Vic Fangio is gonna dare you to
not lose your patience, and he did because what was

(16:52):
happening on defense forced him to. And so I just
all of that is connected to each other. And but
it all starts because you feel like you have to
be perfect offensively because the defense is against any team
with any kind of teeth just gets absolutely swallowed.

Speaker 4 (17:08):
Hole because I felt like torturing myself.

Speaker 5 (17:10):
Yeah, I went back and watched yesterday morning the sequence
and Iron Eagle and Charles Davis are having a discussion
about whether or not the Bengals should go.

Speaker 4 (17:18):
For it there, and to me, it was a no brainer.

Speaker 5 (17:21):
Yeah, but Charles Davis said, this is desperate, and my
counter to that is circumstances create desperation. Blame the defense
for creating the desperation. The Bengals had offensively you don't
want to be in a position where you're trailing, you're
in minus territory and you're going for it on fourth
and one.

Speaker 2 (17:39):
No, And maybe in.

Speaker 5 (17:41):
Different set of circumstances you would still say we're going
to go for it. But it was aggressive, I think,
crossing over slightly into desperation.

Speaker 2 (17:50):
But I can't blame them, no, And I just felt
like every way you look at it said go for it.
Whether we're talking about the analytics what gave which gave
it a plus five point one percent, a very strong
go rating, the eye test of what had just happened
on the previous three eagles drives, and the mantra of look,
whenever we're in a big moment, put the ball in

(18:11):
Burrow's hands right now, let him throw it beyond the sticks,
but put the ball in Burrow's hands when you feel
like a game changing moment is here. And that was it.
I mean it was you're either gonna punt it back
and you know what's probably gonna happen next, or you're
gonna go for it and try to complete that drive.
And so for me, that goes back to the philosophy
that we've talked about and criticize Zach Taylor rightly for

(18:32):
taking it out of his hands in certain moments this year,
for being conservative in certain moments this year. Be aggressive,
play aggressive, Let Burrow try to go win you a game.
And it didn't work out. But I didn't have a
problem with the decision in that regard.

Speaker 5 (18:46):
No, I've for years, going back, you know, twelve thirteen years,
I lobby to be the Bengals Director of common Sense. Yeah,
which is a job that has sort of become common
in the NFL.

Speaker 2 (18:58):
They just they call it fancy name. You don't want that, No,
you're a man, all right.

Speaker 5 (19:03):
So I'm I'm going back and forth on a couple
of different opportunities for me to work for the Bengals
on game day. One is you know, they the coach
has the headset and there's two buttons.

Speaker 2 (19:17):
Offensive button, defensive button.

Speaker 5 (19:19):
We create an apparatus where I hit a button on
any situation where there's a yard to go, and I
override everything and just go Snake, Snake. Hey, No, what
we're gonna do here, Snake. We're gonna put Matt Lee
on the field, and we've got this play for Snake.

Speaker 2 (19:38):
Right.

Speaker 4 (19:38):
I think it's a great snake, yes, and just interrupts
any and all snake.

Speaker 5 (19:46):
Or like in college football you see him hold up
those plat cards and it just you know, just make
it very up.

Speaker 2 (19:51):
I don't think why hide it, hide snake. Just the
picture of something somebody sneaking snake and.

Speaker 5 (19:56):
Just tell the other guys. It ain't hard to figure
out what the quarterback is going to snake.

Speaker 2 (20:00):
You know how they always put up like, you know,
be quiet for the offense or whatever. I think you
put it up on the video board, sneak snake.

Speaker 5 (20:07):
Just put it up on all the boards, sneak.

Speaker 2 (20:11):
Coming and just and dare them. I mean the Eagles
basically do that with the brotherly shove that I.

Speaker 5 (20:16):
Said this on your your podcast today though, would have
been nothing cooler than do the tush push and then
you kind of look over at the other sideline. They're
like wave like thanks God, you know, give the Mike
Tomlin thumbs up like last night.

Speaker 4 (20:28):
Okay.

Speaker 5 (20:29):
The other one is if you so the Bengals primary
colors are black and orange. Is somebody allowed to like
be like in like a like a lime green shirt
or something.

Speaker 2 (20:40):
Sure? Well, they you always have the TV people on
the side. They have they have the big oven Mitch,
maybe what about with would oven mits work for your situation?

Speaker 5 (20:47):
So it's fourth down, I wear some sort of color
that stands out, and I stand next.

Speaker 4 (20:53):
To where the marker is, so we're not throwing the ball.

Speaker 2 (20:57):
Has to go past me?

Speaker 5 (20:58):
Yeah see, you know, and I don't know what we
call that or just someone who you know just ensures.

Speaker 4 (21:06):
Hey, if it's fourth and two, we're gonna try to
throw the ball.

Speaker 2 (21:09):
Three yards like I've got one.

Speaker 3 (21:11):
I got as much as.

Speaker 5 (21:12):
We complicate this sport, and it could be deeply, deeply complex, right,
I feel like if I ran this past my second
grade daughter, Bengals need a yard. So I'll give you
two options, Craus. We could do this, or I could
like draw a diagram. Here's the they have to go here.
So should they throw the ball here over this line

(21:32):
or here in front of it? My seven and a
half year old is smart enough to go.

Speaker 2 (21:37):
What about past it? I think that's the right goal.

Speaker 4 (21:39):
I think we're gonna go past it.

Speaker 5 (21:40):
Dad.

Speaker 2 (21:40):
You know what, all right? I have one? What if
we have one where you have a buzzer? Okay, and
any time any receiver or running back or eligible person
goes in motion that goes back and forth. Yeah, you
can hit a buzzer and the play stops before it's out.
It's an automatic timeout that just shuts the game down

(22:03):
right then, So the play does not continue after the
stupid back and forth motion thing starts before they hike it,
because you know that play is going to fail. Fun
shoot it to the sun enough. It doesn't work.

Speaker 5 (22:15):
I don't know that. I have a bigger pet peeve.
It used to be the shovel pass. Yeah, and then
the shovel pass worked in the Bear's commander's game, and
Indiana used the shovel pass for a two point conversion,
and so all right, you got shovel whatever, it's no
longer the shovel pass.

Speaker 4 (22:31):
It's fourth, it's fourth and four.

Speaker 5 (22:33):
We throw it to the three like Andy Dalton did
that one year twenty seventeen, and like it was fourth
and seventy.

Speaker 2 (22:39):
Threw a three yard pass, and I everybody murdered him
for it.

Speaker 4 (22:44):
Joe doesn't, and we just well, you know.

Speaker 2 (22:46):
Well, you know, I don't understand, see I My opinion
is the Bengals have their version of the tush push.
You know what it is? Hey, let all let everybody
go out there and let Joe Burrow process and if
it all breaks down, find a way to fine. You
find a guy and do a thing like that is
it's one of the most unstoppable things that they have.
All you need is a yard or two. Have everybody

(23:08):
out there have it where he can just throw it
quickly to somebody that gets open, and if it all
breaks down, can go and do some magic and make
it all happen, because guess what, he does it all
the time. So why not? Why is it that these
short yarded situations are always so full of everybody's compact
And here's Matt Lee and Zach Moss is gonna go
run up the middle and they're gonna try to do

(23:29):
this like or we're gonna throw it behind the sticks
and that's it's. It's instantly out and you have no
other choice. Or you throw it behind the six or
four half time in Carolina and and wait to see
what happens. Zach mosspeiled you out there. Otherwise we'd be
talking about that the same way we're talking about this
Andre Yoshivasha and New England, like all of this stuff,
you're where it's one option Joe is so good at

(23:51):
multiple options, and then even if all that breaks down,
finding an option you didn't know exist and making that
work for you. The idea of taking that off the
time table in any kind of a short yard situation
like that, to me is like being like, we don't
really like the touch push. Yeah, I don't think we
want to do it, even though it works every single time.
I feel like they already have it and just never

(24:11):
use it.

Speaker 5 (24:11):
So you just hire me to stand there like next
to the guy holding the marker like on the on
the other side.

Speaker 4 (24:18):
And just jump up and down run to me here, yeah,
throw it here. I mean, I cannot tell you.

Speaker 5 (24:26):
I was in a crummy mood on Sunday anyway because
I slept for forty five minutes.

Speaker 2 (24:30):
Yeah. That that set me off.

Speaker 4 (24:34):
I'm not supposed to be set sent me off. I'm
still not over it.

Speaker 2 (24:36):
I understand where where'd you sleep for forty five minutes
flying back from Colorado overnight? You manage forty five minutes?

Speaker 4 (24:44):
I got forty five minutes asleep.

Speaker 2 (24:45):
Yeah? Yeah, I mean credit to you though, Power through
the show, Power through the game. Yeah, I mean I
credit you for that, and and shout out to tpe
a Tony Pike with no voice? Who is just grind?
That was grinding?

Speaker 5 (25:02):
Twenty six Away from four o'clock Rebuffalo Wild Wings in Anderson,
Paul Danner Junior on ex at Paul Danner Junior, read
his work at the Athletic dot Com, and of course,
the Growler Podcast. Latest episode Baalds Don't Lie dropped just
a short while ago. I'm Oeger here till five thirty.
Beat Ups ESPN fifteen thirty, Cincinnati Sports Station.

Speaker 1 (25:21):
You better believe this is a big game.

Speaker 2 (25:24):
Spikes the ball in the back of the.

Speaker 1 (25:26):
Upside forty infined Bengals are looking to save their season
when they line up against that two and six Raiders.

Speaker 3 (25:32):
Breck Sam Tamahawk chops under the ground.

Speaker 1 (25:35):
The Orange and Black put a whoopman on the silver
and patched the call from Dan Wood and Dave Lapper.
Coverage starts Sunday morning at nine on ESPN fifteen thirty.
Official Home of the.

Speaker 6 (25:48):
Bengals, Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty.

Speaker 8 (25:51):
Dave Lapple, and you're listening to the Home of the Bengals,
ESPN fifteen thirty.

Speaker 2 (25:56):
Thanks you.

Speaker 5 (25:56):
Away from four o'clock ESPN fifteen thirty one, casting from
Buffalo Wild Wings Anderson's Buy one one half. All the
traditional wings bud light balls are friends in mud light
them given as surprises. Some Nike Golf, Bengals, Hoodies, Bengals, Traders,
tickets and more. Get here before uh five thirty Paul Danner,
Junior's here for another few minutes. Do you know anything

(26:18):
about the world of cryptocurrency?

Speaker 2 (26:23):
I don't know, not not an I don't either. I
don't either. I don't think I do hitcoin. I mean,
I know it was It's not an area that you
want to be dabbling right now. I don't think.

Speaker 4 (26:33):
I don't I never have it.

Speaker 2 (26:35):
There's I know that there's crypto bros. Yeah, yeah, and
I don't want to be one of them.

Speaker 5 (26:40):
There was ft x is that that went away, and
then it was dog coin or something. I don't know
anything about cryptocurrency. It strikes me as volatile and unreliable. Yeah,
where we're gonna take money mac turn them into crypto mac.

Speaker 2 (26:58):
I know what I'm gonna get. Yeah, sorry, Yeah, it's fair.
It's fair.

Speaker 5 (27:04):
What makes him a weapon is his ability to make
kicks from distance.

Speaker 4 (27:08):
His first two years.

Speaker 5 (27:10):
Money seventeen of nineteen, four for four in the postseason
since the beginning of last year ten of eighteen. If
you want to take away the one where Ryan Rico
screwed up the whole fine ten of seventeen.

Speaker 4 (27:22):
It's not terrible. But he's just another kicker.

Speaker 5 (27:25):
If he can't make those kicks with more frequency, and
if the Bengals can't lean on him to do that,
it should change how they play offense.

Speaker 2 (27:34):
They had a weapon.

Speaker 4 (27:35):
He's not a weapon anymore.

Speaker 2 (27:36):
He's a kicker. Yeah, Crypto, Crypto Mac, I like your nickname.
I think that's I think that's well done. I will
say in terms of Evan McPherson, we talked to him
a little bit yesterday and to Darren Simmons, and he's
apparently having Pro Bowl warm ups.

Speaker 4 (27:52):
Awesome.

Speaker 2 (27:53):
I've been told that's meat's great. That's fine, that's great. Sure.

Speaker 5 (27:56):
I do great shows in my car by myself when
I'm driving to work.

Speaker 2 (28:00):
Boy, you should have heard.

Speaker 4 (28:01):
That take I had at one fifteen when I was
driving in.

Speaker 2 (28:05):
That's where. That's where it's at. He's frustrated by the
fact that hasn't translated to the game.

Speaker 5 (28:09):
Is that going to be a part of the Pro
Bowls selection process. Yeah, some tape of him making highlight videos.

Speaker 2 (28:17):
Of like pregame of kicking over the cheerleaders and stuff.

Speaker 4 (28:19):
Awesome. Great.

Speaker 5 (28:20):
I heard Jamer Candelario crushed it in batting practice this year.
Will Benson kept hitting moonshots in BP this season.

Speaker 2 (28:28):
Yeah, you should see them shag fly balls. Well. The
thing that I think about Evan, I am not in
I'm not hitting the old panic button. I actually have
a panic button on my desk outside. I needed to
purchase one after this year, sure to have one ready,
but I know where it's at, But I don't feel
like I need to hit it because I still think

(28:51):
he is I think A he is confident b I
do think there is an adjustment. And Darren Simmons said
this to us yesterday talking and I hadn't thought totally
about this, that just that kick and the rico, that
the snap too from cow and that that moment still
being a little bit in the back of his head

(29:12):
in terms of fully trusting the operation when he goes
to go through it, particularly from those fifty plus balls
where you're just you even even an inch of hesitation
or extra or whatever, and you get it up in
a little bit of a pull in the wind and whatever.
I so he is such a calm kid, like he's

(29:33):
he really is, Like he's a calm guy. He's pretty
good at understanding the big picture and being confident in himself.
And so I don't think he's gonna get in his
own head, Like he doesn't come across to me like
somebody who's gonna let this get into his own head.
And I do think that they're in a good place
in terms of talking through it and understanding it and

(29:54):
dealing with it pretty logically and just understanding that they
need to just keep getting reps and confidence in the opera.
And so I think he'll be fine. I think he
will eventually be fine. I don't think this is a
I mean, last year he did not miss a single
kick inside of fifty. To me, that was the more

(30:14):
telling thing. And there have been misses this year inside
of To me, that shows the fifty ones you want
him to be that and because that's separate, but that's
what makes I get it. No, I'm not. I'm saying
if if there I would more watch what's happening inside
of fifty to hit the panic button on him, because

(30:34):
I think he will. As long as he's confident hitting
the ball, striking it like he can, he'll make those fifties.
I really do think that's the case. But I think
you can know that things are wrong by when you
are having these mess ups that are having inside of
fifty two, and because when he's kind of on it,
I don't feel like you see him miss those hardly ever,
so there's a lack of confidence in the overall operation.

(30:56):
It sounded like that was, you know, he didn't want
he did. He's specific typical, no want to say that.
He specifically was like, I have no problem with it's
all on me whatever. But Darren's saying, your part of
this conversation is he's had four holders in four years.
You know, you go through something like that, it can
at least be in the back of your head a
little bit, and any hesitation can cause problems. That's just

(31:17):
part of the time on task that they're working through.
That was how that was what was said to us yesterday.
Right wrong or indifferent. I think I think that he
will probably be okay, but it's obviously very much noted
what's going on.

Speaker 5 (31:31):
Yeah, I mean, the best way that I could put
it is when he's missed some of those kicks before,
I've been surprised Sunday. I did not expect him to
make the kick, and that's maybe not fair, but when
he didn't, I was like, Yep, there he is. And
and again like when I say he's just another kicker,
that that's fine. NFL kickers are reliable from fifty and

(31:54):
inn I what I liked about f McPherson is you
can get points in the place where the Baltimore Ravens
have gotten points for years because they have a guy
who's like Justin Tucker, and the kicker we have seen
since the beginning of last year has kicked more like.

Speaker 2 (32:11):
Chris Tucker.

Speaker 4 (32:12):
I don't know Chris Tucker.

Speaker 2 (32:15):
I mean they paid him like he's just another kicker,
because they didn't pay him the top of market, no
doubt no.

Speaker 5 (32:20):
But but again, like I'm just I understand so so
so Okay, that's in his head.

Speaker 2 (32:25):
Maybe that's in his head.

Speaker 5 (32:27):
They don't think I'm very good, So there's a lot
of stuff going on in Evin.

Speaker 2 (32:31):
McPherson's head that yeah, I guess that's been put there. Uh,
I'm just that's me just talking out loud. I'm not
actually in his head, as you know, I understand.

Speaker 5 (32:45):
What uh what should the role for Jermaine Burton be?

Speaker 2 (32:50):
Just I can't there be a guy that just goes
deep every play?

Speaker 7 (32:55):
Right?

Speaker 2 (32:55):
Is that a problem? No? Make him think about it.
So like look again and it's like sneak, I say,
put it up on the board, right, put it up
on the video board. Burton going deep. Attention defense, Burton
going deep again? Right, and just keep running him down
there and say, Jermaine, we're just gonna we're just gonna
act like it doesn't matter. You just go ahead and

(33:16):
kill Guess what, you'll have to take a guy with you.
That's the thing to put a safety out of it,
over it if you want to. If he continues to
catch up me, every he's unbelievable tracking the ball clearly
has it, has a knack and a skill for it.
And just every once in a while he decides to
stop and like turn around at like fifteen yards and
joke and throw to him there just to keep flying.
Yeah whatever, why don't I mean again, I'm sure that

(33:39):
you notice. And even the plays that he's out there,
it's like he's usually someone's telling him kind of where
to go a little bit okay, and I think that's
probably gonna be part of what has to happen. But
you know, you heard Joe. You know that that was
probably what crack me up the most about the press
confers with Joe on Sunday. It was like admitting, almost like, well,

(34:00):
Germaine's really gonna be good. I'm gonna have to keep
the dialogue going. We're gonna have to keep talking to
JERMI I didn't think I get to this point where
I'm gonna have to go back in down this road,
but I clearly have to, like I've gotta get Germane
on the same page. I can. You can see it.
It's like admitting of like, we're gonna have to keep
working through his understanding of stuff and all the complications

(34:20):
of how they like to run their offense and the
way they move, and they can't play this, that and
the other.

Speaker 4 (34:26):
It's true.

Speaker 2 (34:26):
I mean, he has to get your main up to
speed as much as he possibly can, because it's clear
that as far as other weapons and option goes, he's
the best one outside of the time. That's the thing.

Speaker 4 (34:37):
It's intensified because.

Speaker 2 (34:40):
Nobody else's wee.

Speaker 4 (34:41):
Week I don't know if T.

Speaker 5 (34:42):
Higgins is gonna play, and ever since Andrea Yoshavash retired,
we're looking for somebody else to.

Speaker 2 (34:49):
What. I don't know. Ye, I think he might have
been still with the team. He's still the winner. You know,
this is kind of this is really kind of nice. Yeah,
this is really he kind of fits win the third
time now, because that's kind of it is a part
of the Moagar Award, and that's that they don't actually

(35:10):
pan out when it comes time to play. So maybe
this is kind of showing that maybe you you did,
you were right in giving it to him twice.

Speaker 5 (35:16):
Well, and I feel bad for saying this because I
think we all just naturally root for him because he's
an under but he was a six round pick from
an Ivy League school.

Speaker 2 (35:26):
Yeah, and he's and I think he and I think
he has come a long way. I think he's I
think he might he still has potential, right, But like again,
you do end up really having to say that to
yourself when really heavily relying on him to be T Higgins.
I mean, we always kind of laughed at the idea

(35:47):
of like, well, he's not going to have to be
T Higgins. But for the games of Tea's been out
this year, they've asked him to be t Higgins, right,
and because they don't really have any other option as
far as who to put in there. And it's gone,
how it's gone.

Speaker 4 (35:59):
Marvin Lewis is coming back.

Speaker 2 (36:00):
Yeah, excited. Yeah, it's cool. I I mean, I'm glad
he's still in the league. I'm you know, I mean,
like about seventy five percent of NFL markets right now
they're calling for the head coach to be fired. So
Marvin might be the head coach before who knows, Maybe
it happens after the game.

Speaker 5 (36:18):
So there was a game a couple of weeks ago
where Antonio appears late in the game, was down by
eight points.

Speaker 2 (36:23):
He chose to kick a field goal.

Speaker 5 (36:24):
To pull within a touchdown the decision, and my takeaway
was Marvin was in a saidset, yeah, kick it.

Speaker 4 (36:31):
Mar Marvin was Marvin was, hey, kick, what we.

Speaker 5 (36:35):
Want to do is kick pull within five, pull within five,
let's let's touchdown.

Speaker 2 (36:39):
Wins it. Yeah, right, it'd be cool. Yeah, I'm I'm
I hope, I hope, you know, I I hope that
people in the in the big picture appreciate Marvin Lewis
for what he did, yes, and not for you know
how things went down at the end, because he certainly
for all that he did and all the time he
put in and dealt with UH deserves deserves, you know,

(37:02):
different than any sort of a negative. Don't think there's
a negativity. No, I think people are past it. Brow
helped heal that.

Speaker 5 (37:07):
I think people acknowledge he didn't win as much as
we would like. But the good outweighs the bad, and
that's how I feel about it. But like, if the
Raiders win this game, they're gonna do a lot of
Mar's gonna get a game ball, Mar's back.

Speaker 2 (37:22):
I don't want that. Boy, you don't want that? Can
you imagine? I really like, is there anything that you
can't imagine at this point after what we've seen this year?

Speaker 5 (37:32):
Is there is there anyone that you can't imagine short
of the stick? We got a kicker who's got.

Speaker 2 (37:36):
Copy can't stop anybody. You'll think Gardner Minshew can't come
in here. And well, I want it to be des
ridden bro right, I wouldn't that be now that now
that Actually I don't know.

Speaker 5 (37:47):
That I can no, because then if I have to
watch the Bengals get trounced again. At least I'm happy
for Dez instead of Gardner Minshew, who just trying too hard.

Speaker 2 (37:55):
Right, Yeah, No, this has been productive. I feel I
want you. I didn't want it to feel this dark,
you know what I mean. It's just kind of where
we're at. I get it.

Speaker 5 (38:06):
This is I was thinking about this after I did
your podcast today. This is the saltiest I have been
since in the Zach Taylor era. It really is. This
is the saltiest. This is like the most dejected frustrated
that I have been. Yeah, And and part of it
is I think what you articulated at the top, and
I know I gotta wrap things up here, but I'm

(38:28):
I think about like what lies ahead, and I'm just
at the end of each of the last few seasons,
I thought, next year is going to.

Speaker 2 (38:36):
Be better, even at the end of the Super Bowl.

Speaker 5 (38:38):
Hey, they're they're coming back at the end of the
AFC Championship Game, all right, They're coming back at the
end of last year. You know what, they went nine
and eight in a bad year, fourth place schedule, get healthier,
They're gonna be fine.

Speaker 2 (38:50):
I don't I don't feel that way. Yeah, it's the
first time you can see them failing Burrow, yeah, and
breaking them right like where it's like but then and
then you end up up on the yes and you
go down that road right which none of us want
to do. No, nobody wants to do. But you haven't
seen Burrow fail until now you're seeing, well, we're seeing
that point of like you have to give him something,

(39:12):
and we're seeing what failing even with Burrow looks like.
And that is frightening because that just means you're just
right back to being any other peace.

Speaker 5 (39:20):
Also, I have one other thing really quick. This is
just another idea of this is about crypto bros. No,
it's not about crypto bros. Statistically, I don't think you
should get credit for a completion if it's behind the sticks.
I think you should get two incompletions charged to your
So I don't know if you're going to the owners
meetings this year or whatever, you know, kicking around new

(39:42):
ways to evaluate players and stuff. If you complete a
pass short of the stick, it's an incompletion unless it's
fourth down.

Speaker 2 (39:50):
Then you get two incompletions and.

Speaker 5 (39:51):
You get to you should get credit for a completion
if the pass doesn't do anything the objection.

Speaker 4 (39:56):
The object is to gain yardage.

Speaker 2 (39:58):
All yardage accumulated on set passes counts as negative yards
torture total. That's very, very well put.

Speaker 5 (40:04):
Read Paul Danner Junior at the Athletic dot Com and
check out his podcast. I was a guest that I
was just as sunny then as I have been in
this segment.

Speaker 3 (40:11):
It was great.

Speaker 2 (40:12):
Balds, don't lie. We went We went long today because
there was a lot, a lot to get to.

Speaker 5 (40:18):
We're at Buffalo Wild Wings the annual Chad and Rick
College Basketball Season three. The Spectacular is coming up next.
We're at b Dubs on the East Side on Beachmont.
ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station, of course.

Speaker 1 (40:31):
Has the Bengals take on the Raiders. Coverage starts Sunday
morning at nine on ESPN fifteen thirty, the official home
of the Bengals.

Speaker 4 (40:40):
Chapter four only the marriage.

Speaker 5 (40:43):
This is the SDN fifteen thirty more or broadcasting from
Buffalo Wild Wings and Anderson on Beachmond. We are here
till five thirty done early UK basketball. Wildcat's taken on
Minnesota State exhibition games. So we got to slide out
of here. About a half hour early. But you know,
if you get here between now and five thirty, you
could win tickets to the game on Sunday. Thanks to

(41:05):
our friends at bud Light, you could take advantage of
five dollars bud Light talls. We've got buy one, get
one half off Traditional Wings. It's a great place to watch.
You got Game four of the World Series tonight. I
heard about how great this World Series was gonna be
for baseball. I don't think that counts if one team
doesn't win a game, maybe one will tonight.

Speaker 4 (41:24):
And a great.

Speaker 5 (41:25):
Place to watch all the college and pro football this weekend.
A great place to watch college basketball as well, which
brings us to one of my favorite hours we do
every year, the Chad Brenda and Rick Burr in College
basketball preview spectacular.

Speaker 2 (41:38):
Gentlemen, how are we doing?

Speaker 8 (41:39):
Happy to be here?

Speaker 3 (41:40):
It's good to be here basketball. It's time. We're six days.

Speaker 4 (41:45):
Six days away? Are these for us can be?

Speaker 5 (41:48):
Chadbrendle, Bearcat Journal dot com, Rick Bororing Musketeer Report dot com,
NKU Radio, Skinny Podcast, Darren Horn TV.

Speaker 8 (41:56):
Show, Yeah thank you.

Speaker 4 (41:57):
Which got a lot of run this summer.

Speaker 2 (41:59):
Man.

Speaker 8 (41:59):
Yeah, well you we started doing it now they run
it like every day.

Speaker 5 (42:02):
A couple of times there are a lot of Reds
games where and I keep it on, and then the
postgame shows on, and.

Speaker 3 (42:07):
Then all of a sudden, Ricks on your TV.

Speaker 5 (42:09):
Suddenly there's Rick and Darren Horn and so I caught
a lot of those episodes.

Speaker 8 (42:14):
You're up to date on the Norse.

Speaker 2 (42:16):
That's good.

Speaker 4 (42:17):
Well, it's funny.

Speaker 5 (42:17):
I had Darren on at some point during the summer,
and I had just watched the show the night before.

Speaker 2 (42:23):
So it's good to go.

Speaker 8 (42:24):
A little prep work, that's all we're trying to do
for you.

Speaker 2 (42:26):
It's good to go.

Speaker 4 (42:27):
It's here College band. We were talking off air.

Speaker 5 (42:30):
As much as I love the sport and as much
as I've been waiting eagerly for the season to begin,
it still feels weird. Halloween is two days away and
then the season's going to start four days later.

Speaker 3 (42:43):
It's it's weird. It is it's it's not.

Speaker 2 (42:45):
A complaint, no, it's weird.

Speaker 6 (42:47):
I mean, remember what October fifteenth used to be, like
the day where practice started, and now two weeks later
we're playing games like in season, like legitimately playing games.
It's it takes I mean, what September twenty seventh, twenty
eighth was when practice started this year.

Speaker 8 (43:06):
Like, good Lord, the way with the way the football
weekend went though, it's time for basketball.

Speaker 2 (43:11):
So yeah, is it not right? Oh, there's no question.

Speaker 8 (43:13):
Yeah, it's time to move on ten page.

Speaker 5 (43:15):
To the page to some college troops, and specifically for
UC and Xavier. I mean, there's it's been a while
that there's been this much fervor and excitement for both
teams going into the season.

Speaker 2 (43:27):
At the same time.

Speaker 6 (43:28):
Yeah, I remember in twenty seventeen, Rick and I on
the Skinny podcast almost every week toward the end of
the season told the fan bases, enjoy this. It's not
something that like, don't take it for granted, because it's
not a given that both the one's going to be
a one seed and one's going to be a two seed,
and like both are going to have these these great teams,

(43:49):
Like it's it's not guaranteed that that's going to happen.
And now we've spent like six seasons in the wilderness. Yeah,
Xavier head one, so you know, one good qualities, we'd
sixteen run. Cincinnati hasn't really done anything, and it's it
feels good to be looking at December fourteenth and going, man,
I can't that that should be a really fun, exciting game.

Speaker 2 (44:11):
Yeah.

Speaker 8 (44:12):
I mean, within the last five years, we all agree
that this is the best UC team and the best
Xavier team coming into a season, correct. I mean, I
guess seventeen eighteen.

Speaker 6 (44:21):
Or mixed last team with Jaren and Trey and you know,
the one after Kyle and Gary and Jake and those
guys left, like the one after was still lost to
Iowa and the and the NCAA tournament.

Speaker 3 (44:33):
But yeah, it's it's been a while.

Speaker 8 (44:36):
Yeah, I mean, just just thinking about that, and then
you expanded a little bit farther. I mean, like, look
at the storylines at Kentucky and Louisville coming. I mean,
the regional basketball this year is going to be so
much fun.

Speaker 2 (44:46):
Yeah, I can't wait. I can't wait.

Speaker 5 (44:48):
Let's let's talk about the two teams you see and
Xavier specifically the exhibition games. First of all, can that
be like a staple? Can we can this be a
thing movie forward? I'd love that, right, and it might
not might not always, I guess, come against a regional
opponent or you know, in Xavier's case, a traditional rival,
but I just to be able to see them and

(45:10):
watch them play games against high major competition or at
least Division I competition, Like can this be a thing
that moving forward?

Speaker 6 (45:17):
It was supposed to be at the same place, like
the same day, right, And then the NCAA had a
proposal that was gonna just allow you to play exhibition
games against fellow D one opponents, and that got It
didn't get voted down.

Speaker 3 (45:31):
I think people think they have voted down. It got tabled.

Speaker 6 (45:33):
So that's going to be back on the in the
conversation for next year. But we're this close to those
super secret scrimmages going away and being able to do
things like that without having to be and I hope
they all are for charity, but without the guys of it,
it's a charity exhibition.

Speaker 8 (45:52):
Xavier is going to start the season by playing four
games against some of the worst teams in all of
college basketball that date and exhibition that carried the face
for a little bit.

Speaker 2 (46:00):
That's a lot.

Speaker 8 (46:01):
That was an opportunity to see them play a real
opponent before you get into this next few weeks of
just nothing now well.

Speaker 5 (46:07):
And it's interesting from their perspective because last year it
felt like they bid off way too much. Right, you're
playing Houston, You're playing Purdue, right, I mean it was
on the road, and then this year it sort of
feels like non con it's gone from my perspective at
least at least a little bit too much in the
opposite direct.

Speaker 8 (46:22):
Yeah, well, remember last year they didn't schedule those games.
It was a Gavit game in the Big Ten, and
it was the Big tenas tig He's Big Twelve rivalry games.
So they got those opponents handed to them, which was
Sean Miller's opinion, he told us many times unfair and
unreasonable by the conference. This year they got a much
more favorable draw in those types of events. And then
the non conference that they planned out, it's a lot

(46:44):
of by games.

Speaker 2 (46:45):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (46:46):
Uh so, what did we learn in the exhibition game?
Beyond they have more guys.

Speaker 2 (46:51):
Who could shoot.

Speaker 8 (46:52):
I think that's one of the biggest things, is just
the number of guys they have that can put the
ball in the basket is important. But in addition to that,
I think Ryan well you already saw right out of
the gate in that game. He didn't score a ton
of points, but he showed you in the first few
possessions why he's going to be a go to option
for them on the offensive end. I also think because
they lost their starting center, the guy they thought was

(47:12):
going to be their starting center in Lacina Triore, a
transfer from Long Beach State. Seeing them go through those rotations,
Zach Freemantle started at the center spot, but then they
brought in Jerome Hunter as one of the backup fives
in addition to John Hughgley, the transfer from Oklahoma. And
I thought seeing Jerome Hunter at the center position playing
small ball, I thought that looked pretty good for them.
So that was one of my big takeaways from the
Daton exhibitions.

Speaker 5 (47:33):
Sean Miller put out a tweet that was really unlike
any i'd I've ever seen from a coach when a
player gets hurt about Lesina, and it highlighted I think
for those of us who had had a chance to
watch them, what they were expecting from him, and you
feel bad for the kid getting hurt. And then I
had Sean on my show like two days later. It
was already previously scheduled, and before I could even ask,

(47:55):
he starts talking about the injury. And so that tells
me they were expecting.

Speaker 2 (47:59):
A lot from him this year.

Speaker 8 (48:01):
Well, I think there's a couple things going on there. One,
he was better than they even expected when they brought
him in as a transfer, and he was really producing
in the preseason, so that was exciting. But in addition
to that, the thing that he does best is he
plays really really hard every single play. And you have
two guys that throughout their careers Zach Fremantle John hughg
Lee that hasn't been their mo exactly. That's not what
they're known for. They show up on game night, they

(48:22):
have some skills on the offensive end, but they maybe
don't always have that motor that's at that peak level.
He was forcing them to practice that way or they
got exposed in practice, and so I think from Sean
Miller's perspective, it was like, Zach Fremantle, John Hughglely are
getting better and are going to continue to play well
throughout the season because they have to go against that
guy every day. Now they're not getting pushed by someone
You and.

Speaker 5 (48:42):
I talked Chad about UC's game against Ohio State, which
didn't do anything to dissuade anyone who's really optimistic for
this season. But like I know, they're potentially back when
people start obsessing over little stuff. So the secret scrimmage
against Pitt happens, which we're not supposed to know about,
and I'm told they lost. And when that came out,

(49:03):
what should I worry about this? Should I panic about this?
So I'll say, I said I'll last chance.

Speaker 6 (49:08):
So I'm asking you, so I want to make this
clear because there's Dayton fans did this and I hate this. Oh,
Xavier tried to Xavier tried to win, and Dayton didn't
try to win Pitt the way that Pitt is expected
to play this year, they are not, And this is
a duke thing and Jet like they play eight guys,

(49:29):
so they went into the scrimmage and played seven or
eight guys like that. They're getting ready for their season.
Wes is playing, planning to play ten to eleven guys
at least early in the season, planning to play a
pretty deep roster. So he's working on different things than
what Jeff Cable is working on. Does that give Pitt

(49:50):
an advantage in a super secret scrimmage? Sure, but I
hate that whole Like Cincinnati wasn't trying to win, No,
they were. Yeah, they just Pit had their best player
the floor for longer in that setting because that's who
they are.

Speaker 5 (50:04):
Like, that's Wes was trying to win the way he's
going to try to win in November.

Speaker 6 (50:08):
He's trying to get his team ready for what's you know,
a week away, and Pitt is trying to do the
same thing. When you're doing these scrimmages, quite often one
coach is looking at a different like you know, wish list,
then the other coach on what they want to get
out of the scrimmage. From what I was told, Cincinnati
didn't play anywhere near what they played like against Ohio

(50:32):
State where they came out and they're starting five just
blitzed Ohio State.

Speaker 3 (50:37):
Yeah, that didn't happen against Pitt.

Speaker 6 (50:39):
And I think some of it is if they make
ten threes a game, mo, they're going.

Speaker 3 (50:45):
To be really, really, really hard to beat.

Speaker 6 (50:48):
I wonder how many games they're going to make ten
threes in a game, because while they do have increased
shooting on this roster, if you look at the best
line up Gisel James, Dan Skillings, Simas Lucasius, Dylan Mitchell,
who's never made a three in college. He started seventy

(51:09):
two games in college, he's never made a three. There's people, well,
what if he shoots thirty four percent? What if I
grow wings like that? It's not like and then his
ease like. So there's some things that I still I
love the potential, I love the talent. I think they're
gonna be great defensively. I think they're gonna rebound. But
there's still some things I think that we need to

(51:29):
see to be real confident.

Speaker 4 (51:32):
I almost got the sense Wes was annoyed.

Speaker 3 (51:35):
Yeah, he didn't like that they played so well.

Speaker 5 (51:36):
Right, so my first takeaway was, well, he's he's probably
then at least somewhat relieved that they didn't play as
well against Pitt Against Ohio State.

Speaker 6 (51:45):
Yeah, of course, And I would rather it have happened
that way, because could you imagine the fan base of
Ohio State came out and won that game by twenty.

Speaker 4 (51:52):
Well, it's why going in I said, I don't like this.

Speaker 5 (51:55):
Yeah, right, they're gonna lose a game that doesn't count,
and we're gonna season's gonna be over before it starts.
But then they did play well, and I want to
see that sort of game every single year.

Speaker 2 (52:03):
Yeah.

Speaker 6 (52:03):
Now the expectation is they're gonna beat the brakes off
of everybody, including a big twelve that includes five top
ten teams.

Speaker 8 (52:10):
I'd also say, I think getting to see those public
exhibitions on TV for the fans, yeah, made it even
more unreasonable and how they're gonna approach the secret scrimmages,
because like, wait, this looks like a normal game to me, right,
It's like those exhibitions that we saw on TV against
high major teams. I think the coaches were playing those
a bit more like a regular game because they didn't
want to get embarrassed. But the secret scrimmages typically are
not played like that. Sometimes you'll go, hey we're gonna

(52:31):
play zone this entire quarter, or hey we're gonna work
on a press this quarter, or we're gonna put all
our young guys in this entire quarter. So it's a
totally different scenario A lot of times in secret scr I.

Speaker 3 (52:40):
Mean, Xavior and Notre Dame played what like eighty four
minutes and.

Speaker 8 (52:42):
They played four twelve minute quarters. Yeah they did that,
I mean like one quarter. It's like we're only playing
these guys one quarter, We're playing a zone or something.

Speaker 5 (52:48):
Well, it's interesting because it was John Brannan his first year,
and I asked about a secret scrimmage and he goes, it's.

Speaker 2 (52:54):
Like a joint practice. Yeah, And if you go to
an NFL at joint.

Speaker 5 (52:57):
Practice, there's a lot of Hey, here's what we want
to accomplish, here's what you want to accomplish.

Speaker 4 (53:01):
You know, this is what we want to do, SITUATIONALA.

Speaker 2 (53:03):
Make sure we both check all the boxes, you know,
so use this personnel.

Speaker 4 (53:06):
We're going to do this.

Speaker 5 (53:07):
And so I've I've never been to a secret scrimmage
because they're a secret, but I've always envisioned them looking
kind of like that.

Speaker 8 (53:13):
Yeah, like to give you an idea. After Xavier played
a secret scrimmage against Notre Dame, a box score a
final score was reported, right, So I went back to
a source who was there and I said, hey, was
is this score correct? And I so, honestly, I don't know.
We reset the score at the end of every quarter.
Like no one in the gym knows what the score.

Speaker 2 (53:27):
Was at the end.

Speaker 8 (53:28):
Someone must have headed that up.

Speaker 6 (53:29):
So, like if you go to a practice, that's exactly
what you see in a practice. They'll they'll put eight
minutes on the clock, and the two teams will scrimmage
for eight minutes and then when that's over, they reset
the score, change up the teams, and then do it
again like it's it's.

Speaker 3 (53:44):
Practice, practice, practice. Talking about practice, I'm.

Speaker 5 (53:47):
Gonna throw the two of you a question that I
have asked of Wes Miller, Sean Miller and Darren Horn
when we come back. Okay, we're at bt ubs in Anderson,
Rick Broring, Musketeer Report dot com, skinny podcast, The Darren
Horn Show.

Speaker 8 (54:03):
Just sign up for Musketeer Report dot com. I just
want to get paid. That's where I get paid.

Speaker 2 (54:06):
From the.

Speaker 5 (54:08):
Report dot com and then then buy one for Bearcat
Journal dot com as well.

Speaker 3 (54:12):
Right, that's where I get paid as well.

Speaker 2 (54:14):
Very good.

Speaker 4 (54:15):
It is nineteen minutes after four o'clock.

Speaker 5 (54:18):
We're here at b Dubs on the East Side on
ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports.

Speaker 1 (54:22):
Station, Cincinnati's ESPN Thick Illnatti brought to you in part
by Modern Opus Methods. On the official home of the Bengals,
Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty.

Speaker 5 (54:36):
Jad Brendall and Rick Boring College basketball season briefew Spectacular
where Buffalo Love Wings and Anderson on Beachmont.

Speaker 4 (54:43):
This segment is flot Paulman.

Speaker 5 (54:44):
In the NATI, so it's supposed to be a football segment,
so very quick. Uh, why can't they hit the end
of the first half right?

Speaker 6 (54:51):
It's at least when it was field goals, it was
like okay, like they're just they're doing everything right, but
making the kick right?

Speaker 3 (54:59):
What an mitigated disaster that was?

Speaker 2 (55:03):
You?

Speaker 6 (55:04):
Twelve on the other team may want to run down
the field. Somebody should guard him, like I know you
could tell the way Jordan Young reacted there was a miscommunication.

Speaker 4 (55:14):
It can't happen.

Speaker 2 (55:14):
It can't. It can't no matter what.

Speaker 6 (55:16):
Somebody needs to be cognizant enough to go, hey, there's
twelve running down the field.

Speaker 8 (55:22):
Somebody should miscommunicate on someone else. Right, forget about the
other enough.

Speaker 2 (55:28):
Did you see the play at the end.

Speaker 6 (55:30):
Yes, they closelined him, put him in a sleeper hole,
had him unconscious for four seconds, and he.

Speaker 2 (55:36):
Still caught the ball.

Speaker 6 (55:37):
Like he's hard enough to stop when there's blanket coverage
him being wide open.

Speaker 2 (55:45):
Not, it's uncanny.

Speaker 6 (55:46):
Not.

Speaker 2 (55:46):
The first half stuff is remark I mean.

Speaker 6 (55:49):
Five games, they they've five games, there's been into half stuff.

Speaker 2 (55:53):
Well.

Speaker 5 (55:55):
Royer fumble against Miami. Yeah, four games where they've missed
a kick.

Speaker 6 (55:58):
Yeah, and that's six games, yes, six s it was
only three in a row.

Speaker 3 (56:02):
That so they missed that, that's right.

Speaker 5 (56:04):
They missed housing, Yes, so I don't but they missed
a kick at the end of Pittsburgh, at the end
of the first half Texas Tech.

Speaker 4 (56:11):
They sort of screwed it up against UCF And then.

Speaker 2 (56:17):
It's just a lot.

Speaker 4 (56:18):
It's a lot, like we're losing count. That's a problem.

Speaker 3 (56:21):
That's how bad it is.

Speaker 6 (56:22):
We've forgotten exactly how many they have to because the
problem is and most of those they've been in position
to go in half with moment with significant momentum. Yes,
like Colorado is the only game that they've gone into
half trailing, and they've missed an opportunity to score points
in five other games to increase their lead going into

(56:46):
the half. And I don't think it's like I didn't
mind the fourth and one call. You know, if you
want to argue that you should put Kiner in there, sure, whatever,
I also would counter if you put back there, they
bring more guys into the box. The play itself, you

(57:07):
got to make a play. Yeah, your garden center has
to get off the ball and get pushed, and if
they did, that was an easy first down. So I
understand everybody throwing a fit about it, but like to
win high level games in a big time conference, your
guys have to stop their guys or beat their guys
at some point in time.

Speaker 4 (57:28):
All right, we did football, okay, Rick, that was great.

Speaker 3 (57:32):
Okay.

Speaker 5 (57:32):
I have asked if Sean Miller, West Miller and Darren Horne,
who have each been at this for a while, the
environment we're in in college basketball, it's no longer new, right,
It still takes them getting used to, I guess, but
I asked each like, is this way of.

Speaker 2 (57:50):
Doing things becoming normal?

Speaker 5 (57:53):
From the perspective of two guys who covered the sport,
Is this climate.

Speaker 2 (57:58):
In college basketball? Has it become normal?

Speaker 8 (58:00):
No, because it's still evolving, like we have. You said,
it's it's not new at this point, but like not
new in the as in terms of a concept, but
like we're still changing it every year and making new
rules and changing rules. The NCAA is like fighting back
against certain things one year and then the next year
it's like, well, fair game, you do whatever you want now.
So I don't think we've gotten to a point where
they're comfortable with how roster construction works. And then the

(58:24):
second part of that is, I think you are now
starting to see teams develop strategies. Like Sean Miller, for instance,
this year, said we've got to get old. We can't
have young guys anymore. Took zero freshmen in this incoming
class has the oldest team in America. I believe based
on age, right you look at it, I think Xavier
is giving them a run for their money this year.
If you're looking at like a school like Georgetown, they're like, hey,

(58:45):
we're gonna go the young route. We're gonna get guys
that are hopefully sustainable that we can pay for two
or three years and keep them around after the you know,
the first year Marquette said, we're not going to the
portal at all. We're gonna keep everyone and just hope
the continuity means something more in this day and age.
I don't know what the right answer is, but I'm
interested to see which ones start to rise to the top.

Speaker 6 (59:04):
There's also something different that you see is going to
deal with that. I mean, Xavier will deal with it,
but because they don't have football, like when you get
into revenue sharing. Football is gonna want a significant piece
of that pie.

Speaker 3 (59:19):
And what goes to basketball?

Speaker 6 (59:21):
Like, there's twenty two million dollars, seventy five percent goes
to football, right, and then what does basketball get? And
then how does that? But the problem right now is
MO they don't know the answer. So going into twenty
twenty five, when all this is supposed to start, you
don't know how much money you have even to spend,

(59:41):
Like you're okay, like, we know what we have in
our nil collective, but what do we have the extra
five million dollars four million dollars five million dollars to
go forward?

Speaker 3 (59:52):
Do we not have it?

Speaker 6 (59:53):
Like there's a lot of uncertainty that these these schools
that are also partnered with football are trying to like navigate,
and you don't know the answer.

Speaker 4 (01:00:04):
What will this look like in five years?

Speaker 5 (01:00:07):
Oh my goodness, I mean, is it possible to even
wrap your brain around what it might look like?

Speaker 8 (01:00:13):
I don't think it is, because I still think we
are going to see major major realignment or shifting within
like the conferences, And honestly, I still believe at some
point college football is just going to do a tome
thing like the top of the college football is just
going to separate. And then at that point it's like,
does everyone else just go back to how it used
to be and all the other sports are like, let's

(01:00:34):
go do what we were already doing. I don't think so.
I think the tooth bases out of the tube in
terms of nil transferport all of that stuff. But I
don't think you can predict what it's going to look
like in five years. I think we're still going to
see major, major changes.

Speaker 6 (01:00:46):
It's all window dressing leading up to collective bargaining. Up
until there's collective bargaining, there will still be lawsuits, like
the NCAA is trying to act unilaterally in the best
interest of the athletes, and the athletes aren't gonna like that.
Like there's going to be things that they're going to
look at it and say that's not right, that's not right.

(01:01:08):
I don't like this, I don't like that. So this
is all just a precursor to whatever form collective bargaining takes,
I think, And then when there's collective bargaining, I think
you'll start to see things normalize. That might be five years,
that might be ten years, Like the NCAA is not
going away easy on that topic.

Speaker 4 (01:01:29):
This might be a stupid question when a coach like Tony.

Speaker 5 (01:01:33):
Bennett says I'm done, not an old man, a guy
in his mid fifties says I'm done and cites publicly
this isn't for me. Does that move things in any
specific direction or does everybody go, yeah, it's cool, coach.

Speaker 4 (01:01:51):
You know new ways of doing things aren't going to
be for everybody, so peace out.

Speaker 8 (01:01:54):
I think more so the latter, Like I think what
Tony Bennett is is the group of coaches that said, wait,
we have all the power. I don't like all this
stuff where I don't control everything. I have all the power.
This isn't for me anymore. I'm gonna whind about it
and leave. A lot of coaches are gonna have his
back because they agree with him. Doesn't make them right.
It just means, like, yes, someone else is gonna want
to compete and do it this way. They'll take the

(01:02:14):
huge salary and the competitive nature of coaching at the
highest level of Division one basketball. They're not going to
make changes because Tony Bennett sad.

Speaker 4 (01:02:20):
So for me, like.

Speaker 5 (01:02:23):
I mostly like this, certainly believe that I'm a capitalist.
I think everybody should get what they can get. Sure,
I am on board with college kids being able to
bounce around and not have to sit out a year.

Speaker 2 (01:02:37):
It is also as.

Speaker 5 (01:02:38):
A fan nerve wracking when you watch a Gisel James
and you watch his entire freshman season play out thinking
not in the back of your mind, but like, all right, well,
where's it going to be next year?

Speaker 8 (01:02:49):
Yeah, and not back in your mind. People are openly
talking about that the half second half of the season.

Speaker 3 (01:02:53):
And it's Goose are openly recruiting them the entire second
half of the season.

Speaker 5 (01:02:57):
And he stayed, which which awesome. But I've I've done
that with football this year, and that's the part of
it I don't like.

Speaker 4 (01:03:06):
I don't like.

Speaker 5 (01:03:06):
At any program, you know, I think we've The fun
of being a college basketball fan has always been to
watch a freshman and go kay might get him for
two years, but we get a chance to watch him
develop or for three years or four years. Right, that's gone,
And I will admit to, even in this climate being
on board with it, I miss that, and I don't
enjoy watching a freshman come in and you're automatically thinking

(01:03:29):
where he's gonna go next year. We we don't do
that in professional sports. You know, people to Ellie deler
Greuz is gonna play for the Dodgers. Yeah, but first
he's gonna put his time in with the Reds and
there's nothing.

Speaker 6 (01:03:39):
He canna do the Dodgers as soon as you know.

Speaker 5 (01:03:43):
Again, Gisel, last year, I mean, I remember watching him going, boy,
this is awesome, and then instantly it's like, Okay, he's
gonna play for Houston next year.

Speaker 2 (01:03:52):
I mean, where's he gonna go? And that I don't
like that.

Speaker 8 (01:03:54):
I mean the fact that there's no guardrails, no regulations
in place of anything like salary cap, how much guys
get paid, any of those things that we're talking about
here makes it a complete disaster. At the same time,
everyone who tells me like, oh, I don't like this,
I miss this is what I loved about college athletics.
It's no longer here. Are they still watching college football Saturdays?
Cause'm prettyure it's been a damn fun season.

Speaker 5 (01:04:16):
And that's numbers are the highest ever and I've come
back to that as well. We're number one. More teams
have access to the title because there's more playoff teams.
Player movement has taken schools like BYU and Indiana. I
guess maybe Navy even though they got throttle, and it
gives them a chance because maybe a dude who's going
to be a backup elsewhere it comes and gets paid

(01:04:37):
and now starts at that program and we're getting great games.
Like I hate conference realignment, but whole boy, I watched
Oregon Ohio State.

Speaker 4 (01:04:43):
Man, you know, like I I, I think it's cool
to turn on the TV and there's USC versus Michigan.

Speaker 8 (01:04:48):
Or what about Fans are like, I hate all this
player movement. You only have a guy for one year,
and then the second someone plays bad for two games,
they're like, who can we get in the transfer portal
at that spot?

Speaker 5 (01:04:59):
And I'll admit I did this with Ryan Conwell because
I watched Indiana State a lot last year. I did
it with Dylan Mitchell where you start to think, like,
all right, well, how's this guy gonna fit?

Speaker 4 (01:05:07):
How much does he get?

Speaker 8 (01:05:08):
That's fun exactly love the portal. I loved the four
weeks in the spring where they get to like speed
run the entire recruiting right, like it's not you don't
have to wait two years to find out if this
kid gonna commit. You get two weeks and you're gonna know.

Speaker 6 (01:05:21):
The interesting thing too, is it puts a lot more
emphasis on if you are going to recruit freshman, if
you are gonna try to have a portion of your
program that's gonna develop younger guys, you better be honest
because if you're full of crap, they're out like instantly.

Speaker 3 (01:05:37):
Like that's the thing.

Speaker 6 (01:05:38):
Now, Rick and I have both dealt with a lot
of this, like over the years, Like you hear, oh, well,
this guy's telling this guy this and this guy that.

Speaker 3 (01:05:47):
And I think we had a dinner somewhere with.

Speaker 8 (01:05:51):
I wouldn't say anyone's names, but yes, where.

Speaker 6 (01:05:55):
Like like all of it was was bs. And if
you are doing that, they're gonna come in. They're gonna
spend two weeks around your program and the first thing
in their mind is I'm out of here that you know,
the next opportunity I can get. I think that's good
for the sport is coaches are being forced to stop,
you know, feeding the line of crap.

Speaker 2 (01:06:16):
Right shout out to Will Barton Shelby.

Speaker 4 (01:06:19):
You've got to be open and honest.

Speaker 5 (01:06:21):
One more on this and then I want to get
back to actually talking about basketball. UCF this year plays
four games, five guys leave. You see last year two
games ago, Shama Mattereor leaves, And I feel like in football,
we've seen enough of that to make me believe it's coming.
In college basketball, that's a part of it that I

(01:06:42):
don't like, where you know, it's hey, it's February, We're
not going anywhere. I'm bouncing early. Then the entire structure
of the sport falls apart. And again I am I
am on board with ninety nine percent of how this
is playing out.

Speaker 2 (01:06:56):
I am the new school guy in that.

Speaker 5 (01:06:58):
Regard, But I there's also the part of me that
believes you're on a team.

Speaker 2 (01:07:02):
You see the season out too, it's completion.

Speaker 8 (01:07:04):
Well what about the kids who are testing their team
for the first four weeks of football season? Then yeah,
if it's not going as well as they want or
they're getting paid enough, it's like, well, actually, I'm gonna
red shirt the rest of the year.

Speaker 2 (01:07:13):
And that's yeah. Yeah. You see, if had six.

Speaker 3 (01:07:17):
Guys that were all like, uh, we're gonna hit the
pause button.

Speaker 6 (01:07:20):
We're gonna red shirt this year and we'll we'll enjoy
our college career somewhere else like that part of it
is coming. It has been proposed that red shirt rule
where you get I think it's thirty percent of which
basketball would be like nine games. You can play nine
games and still red shirt. They're working through like the

(01:07:42):
proposal on that, but I have a feeling it's coming
basketball though basketball coaches have fought back against that. Basketball
coaches don't want it wear football coaches because there's so
few freshmen that actually get to play. That was a
a carrot you could dangle, like we'll play you. Yeah,
you'll get a chance and you can maintain your red shirt.

(01:08:03):
And basketball that's not I mean, if you're a freshman,
you're either generally you're either good enough or you're not
that year one where I mean it's it's a different
animal in basketball. But there is talk of that coming
in basketball. But basketball coaches have fought against it far
more than football coaches, who like fought for it.

Speaker 5 (01:08:24):
Right, All right, step aside, and we'll actually start talking
about basketball again. Chad Bendel, Bearcat Journal dot com, Rick
Brown Musketeer Report dot com.

Speaker 4 (01:08:32):
We're here at b Dubs in Anderson untill five thirty.
These guys with me No. Five on ESPN fifteen thirty,
Cincinnati Sports Station.

Speaker 1 (01:08:40):
You've been listening to football in thenetti on the official
home of the Bengals, Cincinnatis, ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnatis ESPs
take on the Raiders coverage start Sunday morning at nine
on ESPN fifteen thirty, the official home of the Bengals.

Speaker 5 (01:08:58):
Seventeen away from five, ESPN fifteen thirty. Chad Frengles here,
Bearcat Journal dot com, Rick Borns.

Speaker 2 (01:09:04):
Here, Musket Team Report dot com.

Speaker 4 (01:09:06):
We're a Buffalo Wild Wings and Anderson where.

Speaker 5 (01:09:09):
In just about forty five minutes, we're gonna draw for
tickets to Sunday's Bengals Raiders game. We've got some bud Light,
Nike Golf, Bengals hooties. We've got buy one, get one
half of Traditional Wings. We've got bud Light talls for
just five bucks. You cannot beat it. We're here on Beachmont,
Chad and Rick here for another few minutes.

Speaker 3 (01:09:28):
I think you introduced me to that song, didn't you.

Speaker 8 (01:09:30):
Probably?

Speaker 2 (01:09:31):
Yeah, now and now when I hear it, you think
of Chad, and I think.

Speaker 5 (01:09:34):
Of your very good Xavier was picked to finish third
in the preseason poll the Big East.

Speaker 2 (01:09:41):
Is that about right?

Speaker 8 (01:09:42):
I think that's about right. In my poll, I'll have
them fourth. I'll have Saint John's as the team that
I would get ahead of them, but Creighton and obviously
Yukon you still have to put it at the top.
I think there's a little bit of like just the
last two years in what Yukon done and what Dan
Hurley she as a coach, that's giving them a little
bit more benefit of the doubt than they probably you deserve.
I think they're probably if it were me, i'd probably

(01:10:02):
have more like ten to fifteen range instead of I
know some people have like top five. I don't know
that they're quite that good this year in terms of nationally,
but in the Big East. I still think they're the
team to beat, and I think Creyton's gonna be really
good too.

Speaker 5 (01:10:14):
Is there a drop off from one to two to three,
whether it's St.

Speaker 8 (01:10:17):
John's, I think it's slight.

Speaker 2 (01:10:18):
Yeah.

Speaker 8 (01:10:19):
I think Saint John's and Xavier both have more questions
than those other two teams. Those other two teams, I'd
be shocked if they're not really good Saint John's Xavier,
it wouldn't be a complete surprise if they're not top
twenty five teams, but I think both of them have
the chance to be pretty darn good. What's the biggest
concern for Xavier. I think it's post play again now
losing Lsina Trire their starting center. I think it gives
you a major hit in terms of post defense and rebounding,

(01:10:41):
and those were two things that they were looking to
really improve upon from last year. Having Zach Fremantle back
will help on the offensive end a lot in terms
of getting some production down low, but defensively in rebounding,
I think it's a major concern.

Speaker 2 (01:10:52):
They're a far better shooting team this year.

Speaker 8 (01:10:54):
Without question. I mean, Quincy Olaveri was fantastic, But I
think part of shooting is not just having a guy
you can make the shots, but having multiple threats to
space the floor so everything else works better. I mean,
how many times do we watch Desmond Claude drive into
a wall of three or four defenders last year and
try to force something up or draw foul to get
absolutely nothing. If you have two or three shooters on

(01:11:15):
the floor with him, they can't do that like they
did last season. So I think that's going to really
help this team offensive.

Speaker 5 (01:11:20):
A skeptic looked at last year's team had said Conference
USA All Star Team, Dante Maddox is a terrific player,
Ryan Conwell, we talked about before, very good players, but.

Speaker 4 (01:11:30):
Coming from mid major programs.

Speaker 5 (01:11:32):
I hate to say that about Indiana State based on
the team they had last year. What would you say
to someone who says, well, yeah, those are good players,
but it's sort of running it back what they tried
last season.

Speaker 8 (01:11:42):
Yes, I would also ask you to look at the
rosters of all the other high major teams. You know,
you know who Dante Madox is going to be trying
to beat this year. A bunch of dudes from the
MAC that transferred into the Big East. Right, Everyone is
loaded with mid major players that are three or four
years into this now. It's really becoming an experienced thing
in college basketball. The coaches, the systems, they value experience
in the game more so than they do how many

(01:12:02):
stars you had as a process.

Speaker 5 (01:12:03):
So it's interesting because watching the Ohio State scrimmage, Chad,
what my first thought was, it's nice to watch.

Speaker 2 (01:12:10):
An old UC team.

Speaker 5 (01:12:12):
You know, we say it all the time, get old
and stay old. They finally have achieved that.

Speaker 6 (01:12:15):
I mean four years in a row. It might have
been five years in a row. They turned over over
half the roster every off season, Like there was a
minimum of seven new guys every off season. This year
there's essentially there's five, right, Tyler McKinley's hurt, but you
know four of them that are expected to play. It
is nice to you know, I think there is a

(01:12:37):
world where, and Danny has talked about this early, there
is a world where these things are like two year
windows now, Like you have your two year window and
then you might have to like hit the reset button
and build for that year and the next year. And
you know, it's a little different than like the three
and four year windows that were used to But I
think the teams that are having success are doing so

(01:12:59):
with a mix of you know, like the point guard
situation at Xavier, he's gonna he's gonna lead your team
in year two, and you know, I think that is
a strategy, a way of looking at this that is
gonna become more and more prevalent of let's start thinking
of it in two year boxes.

Speaker 5 (01:13:21):
We I asked Rick about the Xavier non conference schedule.
You see, is gonna go on the road and play
three true non conference games Georgia Tech, NKU, and Villanova,
and then they have the shootout. Uh, that's a good schedule.

Speaker 6 (01:13:36):
It's side and then you have Dayton and in neutral. Yeah,
that's that's fine. I mean you have the Big twelve
is you know? They they I think they got a
pretty quality Big Twelve schedule where I didn't look at
it and think, oh god, yeah, you know, I thought
it was was pretty fair. You look at the teams
you're playing on at home, once the teams are playing
on the road, once the teams are getting twice, I
think it it broke down pretty favorably.

Speaker 3 (01:13:58):
But it is going to be an absolute grind.

Speaker 6 (01:14:01):
And I don't think you need any more than five
four or five like legitimate tests in the non conference
and then six games to kind of feel it out
and make sure that your rotations are right and make
sure you've got you know, guys in the right places
and spaces. If you feel like you're gonna be good,
I feel like that's a good mix, you know, because

(01:14:22):
then you when they do the metrics, it'll say they
tested themselves. They you know, they they didn't just turtle
up and play you know, eleven games in the city
of Cincinnati, and you know the only tough one was
to shootout or whatever.

Speaker 4 (01:14:36):
Yeah, what's the biggest concern.

Speaker 6 (01:14:39):
I still think it's shooting with that front group, like
we talked about. I think the other thing that's going
to be really interesting, mo is if you look, like
the consensus is Cincinnati does not have a top one
hundred player. I haven't seen any of these top one
hundred lists. Now they've got I've seen like Jizzle and
Dan and Dylan, like right outside a bunch of top

(01:15:01):
one hundred lists. But there's a pretty good chance in
a lot of these games, Like if you go through
that list, there's a lot of big twelve guys in there,
which means you're gonna be playing a lot of games
where the other team has the best the best player.
Now maybe you've got the second, third, and fourth, but
but they've got the best, dude. I think one of
that group has to show that they can be on

(01:15:23):
a more consistent basis. Maybe it's Jigsel, maybe it's Staying,
and probably Gigsel. I think Gisel is the most like
naturally gifted, like guy ready to take a significant jump.
So I think that's who I would go with, but
I think it could be any of them on a
given night. But but it's tough in any league if

(01:15:44):
you're going into every game and not in their most
every game and the other team has the best player
on the floor, that's my biggest concern.

Speaker 5 (01:15:52):
In the Horizon League, n KU has had that guy.

Speaker 2 (01:15:56):
Do they have him now?

Speaker 8 (01:15:58):
I think they still will in a lot of games
because Sam Vincent is back, and Sam Vincent there are
a lot of people thought he might be the player
of the year in the Horizon League last year, even
while markus Work was on that team. Obviously, he ended
up blow out its knee against Sint Mary's and missed
most of the season. But if he's back to full
strength and playing a near one hundred percent, which today
at nku's media day, he said, I might not be

(01:16:18):
all the way there, but I'm feeling pretty good. I
think that's a really good signed for KU fans. And
they pair him with a guy who won defensive Player
of the Year in the conference last year in Trey
Robinson and some young guys. You know, Randal Pettis played
really well last year. L J Wells took a major
step forward that I think could be All League type players.

Speaker 5 (01:16:35):
So I said that to Darren Horne that I thought
that there was a guy who can make the leap
as LJ.

Speaker 2 (01:16:39):
And he actually agreed with me.

Speaker 8 (01:16:41):
That's I'll take that. Yeah, if you can get coach
to agree with you, you gotta be happy.

Speaker 4 (01:16:44):
It doesn't really happen often.

Speaker 2 (01:16:45):
LJ.

Speaker 8 (01:16:45):
Wells is a guy that I mean his freshman year
during the exempt event when they were down at Florida
or not Florida Atlantic, but they were down in Florida
for their exempt event. He had a twenty point game
and it was like five games into his college career.
So he's always had the potential. It's just a matter
of getting him constant.

Speaker 2 (01:17:00):
Yeah. Will they be good?

Speaker 8 (01:17:02):
I think they're going to have to be really good.
I think they're a little bit of a sleeper in
the Rising League because of the loss of Marquez war
When you look at the rest of the league, most
teams lost just about everything. NK, you bring back eight
guys that contributed.

Speaker 3 (01:17:13):
Well, they be better than Right State. I know that's
important to you.

Speaker 8 (01:17:16):
I would have them ahead of Right State my ranking.

Speaker 4 (01:17:18):
Will they be better than Cincinnati? On November nineteenth.

Speaker 8 (01:17:20):
That's what we're all hoping for.

Speaker 3 (01:17:21):
I went I went out in Highland.

Speaker 8 (01:17:24):
The people Highland Heights. I just said we and Highland Heights.

Speaker 5 (01:17:27):
I went out and tried to get you to drink
beer with me after the game two years ago.

Speaker 2 (01:17:31):
And I will do the same.

Speaker 8 (01:17:33):
Uh old, uh huh. You said you tried to get
me to go out. You texted me after I was
already at a bar where all the establishments were already.

Speaker 5 (01:17:40):
Leaving the arena, and I'm like, you know what, I'll
shut my face out here, and I.

Speaker 8 (01:17:44):
Did, and I appreciate it. I offered for you to
come where I was, which you declined, which I'll be
there this year, okay, And there was don't act like
I turned you down. After ENKH, You're.

Speaker 5 (01:17:53):
Having so much fun with all these NK you people,
and nobody wants to hang out with your sad face.

Speaker 4 (01:17:58):
It was basically it.

Speaker 8 (01:17:59):
Actually it was, we would love for you to show
up right now because we got a few things to say.

Speaker 2 (01:18:05):
I was there, so I look forward to that game.

Speaker 3 (01:18:07):
I do too.

Speaker 8 (01:18:08):
It's gonna be fun.

Speaker 5 (01:18:08):
November the nineteenth. I can't thank you guys enough. You
guys joined me once a week during the season, and uh,
I can't wait.

Speaker 8 (01:18:16):
I'm looking forward to it. Thanks Mom, can't wait.

Speaker 5 (01:18:19):
Bart Scott Chad, Brenda, Bearcat Journal dot com, Rick Brooring,
Musketeer Report dot com.

Speaker 2 (01:18:24):
Subscribe, subscribe right now?

Speaker 8 (01:18:26):
Yes, please?

Speaker 5 (01:18:27):
Any sort of discount, specials, promo codes, coupons.

Speaker 8 (01:18:30):
No, I just have a kid, though, Why do you
need to keep it just paying for the price? I
got a kid, I need to feed them.

Speaker 4 (01:18:33):
Come on, man, I got a teenager on the same page.

Speaker 8 (01:18:37):
So he's already figured it out.

Speaker 3 (01:18:39):
So expensive.

Speaker 5 (01:18:41):
I can't wait. Subscribe to their respective websites. It's seven
away from five o'clock. We're a Buffalo Wild Wings and
Anderson for another thirty seven minutes on ESPN fifteen thirty
Cincinnati Sports Station.

Speaker 1 (01:18:55):
Let's take on the Raiders. Coverage starts Sunday morning at
nine on ESPN Fife thirty, the official home of the Bengals.

Speaker 4 (01:19:05):
What's up, Good afternoon, TIBO five, ESPN fifteen thirty on
moo Eggar. We're at Bufflo Wild Wings, Ian Anderson. We
are here for the next twenty five minutes. Show ins.
Early today we have k basketball come about at.

Speaker 5 (01:19:17):
Five thirty, so we're gonna draw our winner right at
five thirty year.

Speaker 2 (01:19:23):
Not at six o'clock because our show ends early.

Speaker 5 (01:19:26):
Regardless of whether or not you get here before five
thirty or not. We still have buy one, get one
half of Traditional Wings. We've got five dollars bud Light talls.
We've got a lot of fun at Buffalo Wild Wings.
We're here at one of these locations every single Tuesday.
It has been awesome this year. And again, if you're
in the area, we're on Beachmont. Get here before five thirty,

(01:19:48):
and our friends at bud Light have given us a
pair take to the game on Sunday to give away.

Speaker 4 (01:19:53):
You could win if you get here. Come on out
and join us.

Speaker 5 (01:19:58):
Our buddy Sean Si is gonna be with us coming
up in just a few He Stats and Schemes podcast
is what he works on, also the Monday morning mashup
column for Suomer Sports.

Speaker 4 (01:20:14):
He is terrific.

Speaker 5 (01:20:15):
He has been a great add to our show and
is going to join us coming up at five twenty.
Anything you might have missed go find on the iHeartRadio
app or on the podcast page of ESPN fifteen thirty
dot com, including yesterday's Tony and Mo Football Show. When
we discuss the Bengals loss from every conceivable angle, and
let's face it, there were a bunch the third and one,

(01:20:38):
fourth and one sequence, the complete ineffectiveness of the defense,
Evan McPherson's kicking issues. I think Paul Danner Junior touched
on something that's important when he was with us in
the first hour. We could talk about the season being salvageable,
and I believe it is. I believe the Bengals can
get to the postseason. In fact, I'm not sure i'd

(01:20:59):
necessarily bet it that. I know that's weird to hear
in the aftermath of how they played on Sunday. I think, though,
we have to start talking about what are the Cincinnati
Bengals going to look like moving into the second half
of the decade, because Paul asked a very fair question. Defensively,
who are you building around? We know who they're building
around offensively, But even there, T Higgins won't be a

(01:21:20):
Bengal next season. T Higgins the dynamic is fascinating because
he's a player who is of utmost importance. He's just
not on the field enough. A lot of those dudes
on the offensive line are getting long in the tooth,
the interior of the offensive line hasn't been very good.
Like I think if regardless of how the next nine
games play out from a personnel perspective, from a roster perspective,

(01:21:43):
we're going to go into this offseason with more questions
at more positions than we have I think since since
before Joe Burrow was drafted by the Bengals in twenty twenty.
And I think that's something we've got to start talking
about more and more as the next few weeks unfold,
even if they do turn this thing around, and you

(01:22:05):
are being fair if you don't believe that they will.
As listening to Austin Elmore today on my way in
since he three to sixty and he was talking about
Jermaine Burton, and you know, Joe after the game talked
about like I've I've got to continue to bring him
along and be that voice and all that stuff. And
we've talked a lot about Jermaine, and we've talked less

(01:22:27):
about what he could do physically and athletically because of
some of the stories that came out during training camp,
some of the things that his teammates have had to
say about him and the role that we saw him.

Speaker 4 (01:22:38):
Use or be used in during the preseason.

Speaker 5 (01:22:41):
Right, they know what he can do athletically, they know
what he can do from a speed perspective, but maturity issues,
not knowing the offense, all that stuff. Jermaine got a
chance to get out there and he made a play,
and so it's triggered a conversation about like, well, why
is he not playing more? And I think the obvious
answer is Joe isn't totally comfortable. I would imagine that

(01:23:05):
if Joe Burrow wanted and demanded Jermaine Burton to play
forty snaps a game, the Bengals coaches would say, Okay, cool,
Jermaine's gonna play forty snaps a game. But you know,
there are times when you have to do things that
you're not necessarily comfortable with because the circumstances dictate. As much,
we're not talking about Jermaine Burton if t Higgins health

(01:23:28):
wasn't a thing, but unfortunately it is, we wouldn't be
talking about Jermaine Burton. If the Bengals were getting the
consistent production they were looking for from the tight end spot,
we wouldn't be talking about Jermaine Burton. If Andrea Yoshavas
was a productive player, but those things aren't the case.
You can't really count on Tea. You have to prepare

(01:23:50):
for his not necessarily life without him next year. You
have to be ready to function when he's not available
to you.

Speaker 4 (01:23:57):
You have to build in his lack of reliability.

Speaker 5 (01:24:01):
I joked about this on Paul's podcast today, Like my
wife does this. There are certain times she knows I'm
gonna be wholly unreliable, right first week end of the
NCAA tournament. Mose useless, Uh, that sort of thing. I'm
joking there, But still you have to you have to
build in this guy's not reliable. Is our offense totally
gonna fall apart when we don't have him? You gotta
figure out ways to still be productive, still be efficient,

(01:24:24):
still score of points. I mean, you gotta use guys
who are addressing They've tried andre Yoshamas, it's not working.
You gotta try Jermaine Burton. And if Joe Burrow isn't
comfortable with that, guess what. Man too bad In every realm,
sometimes you gotta you gotta work with people that you're
maybe not on the same page with. Like every time

(01:24:44):
my guy Tarren Bland takes time off. I work with
somebody who is usually really good at their job, but
then I don't know all that well, it doesn't know
me all that well.

Speaker 4 (01:24:53):
Guess what. I can't put the show on pause.

Speaker 5 (01:24:56):
I can't say, well, we're not gonna do a show
because Terren's not here and I don't know all that
much about the other person in the other room.

Speaker 4 (01:25:01):
Like, I gotta adjust, I gotta figure it out. I
gotta make do.

Speaker 5 (01:25:06):
It's maybe not the best apples to apples comparison by
any stretch. This season is hanging by a thread. Hanging
by a thread, but it is salvageable. Joe, we're paying
you the kind of coin we're paying you. Go out
there and make it work with whoever we tell you
to make it work with. Figure it out. Go on
the field for extra throwing. Force yourself into Jermaine Burton's life.

(01:25:30):
Big boy, We have no alternative. Our number two wide
receivers always hurt. Our number three wide receiver has been
on the side of a milk cart. My guy, you
gotta get out there. I know you're not completely where
you need to be, but you know what, not every
situation in life is gonna be perfect. You can't just well,
he's not gonna be on the field until Joe is

(01:25:50):
one thousand percent comfortable with.

Speaker 4 (01:25:52):
Him, because that's probably not gonna happen this year.

Speaker 2 (01:25:54):
So what are you gonna do?

Speaker 5 (01:25:55):
Just let the season come and go and go all right, Well,
we're not gonna use them all that much because Joe's
not coming. Sorry, man, Like, the team still has to
work and if Joe and I don't think he would
do this, is gonna throw a temper tantrum. I don't
want to play with Jermaine Burton because I'm not comfortable. Okay,
well then you better figure it out with these other guys.
And guess what he's not doing. He's not figuring it
out with these other guys. Statistically, he's having a fine season.

(01:26:19):
And I love Joe Burrow, but the team is three
and five, they have a losing record. Offensively, they've hit
some massive lulls. They haven't been that productive over the
last couple of weeks. So if I present to you
here is a possible solution to our offensive issues and
you don't like it, you better have something better. What's better?
Especially when you don't have t Higgins at and Andrea Yoshavas.

(01:26:41):
So let's give Jermaine Burton a go. Thirteen minutes after
five o'clock. Our buddy Sean Saya's gonna join us when
we come back. We're at Buffalo wild Wings in Anderson.
You still have time to get here, and the ladies
from bud Lighter here. We've got bud Light specials. We've
got the tickets of the game to give away. We're
having a blast on.

Speaker 4 (01:27:01):
ESPN fifteen thirty, Cincinnati Sports.

Speaker 8 (01:27:03):
Station, Cincinnatis es No.

Speaker 1 (01:27:07):
This is football Inninnetti, run to you in parte by
blood Light and by Skyline Shilly on the official home
of the Bengals, Cincinnatis, ESPN fifteen thirty.

Speaker 5 (01:27:19):
All right, seventeen and a half from five o'clock. We
are done early to make way for UK basketball, the
Wildcats taking on Minnesota State tonight. Pre game coverage at
five thirty, tip off at seven pm. We still have
time for our guy, Sean Sayad, the Stats and Steam podcast,
also the author of the Monday Morning Mashup column at
suomer sports dot com. Sean like covers he crunches the tape,

(01:27:44):
which better him than me? With that game on Sunday,
what's going on man.

Speaker 9 (01:27:49):
Oh, you know, even.

Speaker 7 (01:27:50):
When it's a tough loss like that, it's it's still
fun to go through. I know, it's it may be
a little bit more fun for me than some some
Bengals fans. Some good, a lot of bad, but hopefully
some stuff will work with for the rest of the season.

Speaker 2 (01:28:02):
Well, I don't know.

Speaker 5 (01:28:03):
Maybe let's talk about defensively, So Trey Hendrickson didn't have
a productive game, which fine happens, but his disappearing act
can't lead to an overall disappearing act by the Bengals defense,
specifically the pass rush. And yet that's exactly what happened.
Break it down for me what happened on Sunday.

Speaker 2 (01:28:23):
You know, when we.

Speaker 7 (01:28:24):
Talked about this game last week, we looked at it
and saw Fred Johnson starting at left tackle for the Eagles,
a backup left tackle that you just have to be.

Speaker 2 (01:28:32):
Able to beat.

Speaker 7 (01:28:32):
And they were certainly times where the Eagles made sure
you get one tight end, you get two tight ends
over there, just to mess with Hendrickson's alignment a little
bit and make his life harder.

Speaker 9 (01:28:42):
But there were times where one on one, I.

Speaker 7 (01:28:44):
Mean, Fred Johnson was just beating him and unfortunately at
the end of the day. It's such a week to
week league where if you're not winning that matchup at
the end of the day, it is such a problem
for a defense that is is really reliant on that
big play from Hendrickson from time to time.

Speaker 9 (01:28:58):
So just a tough game.

Speaker 7 (01:29:00):
In a one on one way where you do a
little bit to make it harder, but you also just
have a player winning in that situation defensively.

Speaker 5 (01:29:08):
I mean, you watch them critically, do they have anybody
worth building around?

Speaker 9 (01:29:14):
You know?

Speaker 7 (01:29:14):
Mo, That's that's a it's a tough one. You hope
that obviously Henderson is one right when we talked about
the trade deadline kind of coming up, It's not a
situation where like, I don't think you should trade him
off like that.

Speaker 9 (01:29:25):
That doesn't really make a lot of sense.

Speaker 7 (01:29:26):
You you look at some you know, positive play from
Hill inside, you hope that you can kind of move
around that. But it certainly feels like the unit that
is going to have to rebuild itself and over the
years where Leu and Remo's scheme is what Leu and
Remo's scheme is, when you bring new pieces in it,
it just has the kind of smallest bits and pieces
falling apart, where you have a miscommunication here, a player

(01:29:47):
slipping there, you know, a player carrying a route just
a little bit too far, and then that leads to
Jalen Hurts being able to throw the ball behind the guy.
So it's gonna be you know, a tough test, I
think for the unit for the rest of the season,
but also for front office in Cincinnati to figure out
how do we turn around the defense where the offense,
you know, just is not really the issue at this point.

Speaker 5 (01:30:07):
Yeah, you know, and offensively they did, especially early in
the game, a lot of really good things, and it
was so deflating for the score to be ten to
ten at halftime because they had, you know, in essence,
kind of dominated much of the first half. And I
had a really, I don't know if this is the
right word, crummy feeling at halftime that things were gonna
unfold the way they did, and then things came to

(01:30:29):
a head late in the third quarter. So kind of
walk me through when you watched it on tape, the
third and one and fourth and one, what were they doing,
what do they try to do, and what should they
have done?

Speaker 7 (01:30:43):
I mean, those are really real tough situations where if
you can't get a yard in the league, you're not
gonna go far. A lot of the times, of course,
you know they try a run onto the left side,
if I'm remembering correctly, where Brandon Graham is able to
just win that sort of one on one situation, So.

Speaker 9 (01:30:56):
You know you can't win at the point of attack
that's gonna happen.

Speaker 7 (01:30:59):
Sometimes, do you hope that you're able to get into
a situation where you can get the ball into the
hands of your playmakers. They use Jamar Chase on that
kind of Hey, we're gonna trick you going one way,
we're gonna go the other way against a rookie nickel
in Cooper de Gene, and Degene makes a really nice play.
Now you're you're really basing the entire fourth and one
situation on that throw to Chase and having space. But

(01:31:20):
you can watch it. It's catch and tackles so so quick.
So you hope that maybe there's another outlet there, or
you you get to a situation where the Bengals had
different chances through the game, where you get Chase on
Degene and de Gene. I think we'll be fine in
this league. For years to come. But you can't cover
Jamar Chase. He did sometimes at points in this game,
but I would have loved to see them, you know,

(01:31:40):
maybe get an inbreaking ro out with Chase where you're
able to have options elsewhere. Of course, then a game
where Joe Burrow was able to create so much positivity
scrambling and extending that play for it to be that
kind of design er.

Speaker 9 (01:31:51):
Hey, if this.

Speaker 7 (01:31:52):
Part of this play doesn't work, you know, that's a
tough situation. It's a little bit tough where you were.
You would take Jamar Chase in space one on one
with a rookie ten times out of ten, I suppose,
But unfortunately this one didn't work.

Speaker 5 (01:32:03):
When when they've had T Higgins, you know, they've they've
been better as you would expect them to be.

Speaker 4 (01:32:08):
But it's it's.

Speaker 5 (01:32:09):
Remarkable how how how they play when they have them
versus when they don't, and unfortunately they don't have them
all that often relatively speaking, How easy are they.

Speaker 4 (01:32:21):
To defend when when T. Higgins is not on the field.

Speaker 9 (01:32:24):
Yo, there, it's it's up and down.

Speaker 7 (01:32:27):
Because they had an incredible third downs performance in this game.
I think they ended up nine to thirteen if I
remember correctly, But they were really rough on those early
downs where the Eagles were able to just challenge them
in the run game, they were able to get a
little funky in the back end where you can send
two players to chase. Because if an offense just had
one real threat that they're going to keep relying on it,
it just lowers your ceiling and it relies on those

(01:32:49):
superhero poys from Joe Burrow where eventually, you know, it's
not that the Borough magic runs out, it's just those
early downs catch up to you over time. So you know,
I'm trying to think of it a situation where this
is even a louder, Hey we need to sign to Higgins,
is it? Hey, Higgins is not going to be in
the lineup enough that you really need to maybe go
out and get another guy. It's just is tough when

(01:33:10):
the margin for error is it's just so thin, particularly
when Higgins is out.

Speaker 5 (01:33:15):
Well, I mean it's such an interesting dynamic, right, I mean,
he's he's obviously talented, he's obviously productive when he plays,
and the Bengals obviously benefit from him being on the field.
He's just not on enough, and so it's it's you know,
it's really interesting. You have a player everybody acknowledges his importance,
but you can't acknowledge his importance without acknowledging how how

(01:33:37):
often he's hurt and how often he's not available.

Speaker 7 (01:33:40):
Yeah, you know, it's so tough because availability is really
a skill in the league, and it's tough, but it's
something that happens in the middle of the week kind
of of all times.

Speaker 9 (01:33:49):
That's it's just tough for you to.

Speaker 7 (01:33:51):
Kind of game plan around that, for you to figure out,
all right, well, are we gonna have to change things
up in different ways. I think it's almost speaks more
to the overall infrastructure where you can't vibe is a
team if like all your banking on is, hey, we're
gonna have these two all stars healthy. And it's funny
when I think about the Eagles now, where the Eagles
are really trying to a run first team, where of
course they have two star receivers that they want to

(01:34:13):
build things around, and you look at Cincinnati's run game,
it's like, oh, well, they don't have enough answers to
kind of deal with the when they're missing Higgins.

Speaker 5 (01:34:21):
Sean Sayatt is with us Suomer Sports host one of
the hosts of the Stats and Scheme podcast. His Monday
morning mashup column is outstanding. Go get it at sumer
sports dot com. You mentioned the running game. So they
had Joe Mixon for seven years, they move on from
him this offseason. He's gone to Houston and when he's
been available, he has played great. Zach Moss was capable

(01:34:44):
in Indianapolis last year, not so much this season. The
running game has ground to a halt. Is is the
issue maybe not so much the players, but the scheme itself?

Speaker 4 (01:34:55):
Or am I overly simplifying that.

Speaker 9 (01:34:58):
You know their they're run, They try different things.

Speaker 7 (01:35:02):
It's not the most inspired team in the league, certainly
from a run game perspective. When you think about the
Eagles that had a lot of trouble in the run
game from a defensive perspective, but they were able to
really deal with.

Speaker 9 (01:35:13):
Cincinnati pretty easily.

Speaker 7 (01:35:14):
And you think about Mixing where he is an under
center outside zone runner.

Speaker 9 (01:35:18):
I mean, I know the everyone listening is memories of mixing.

Speaker 7 (01:35:21):
You know you're going right and then you cut up
the field and you go ahead and get down.

Speaker 9 (01:35:24):
He'll make one guy miss.

Speaker 7 (01:35:25):
So I would maybe like to see them get into
a little under center. Obviously, you lose a little bit
of Joe Burrow's just his all the good things he
does from shotgun when you have that.

Speaker 9 (01:35:35):
But for me, it feels like at this point you're
gonna have to kind of.

Speaker 7 (01:35:38):
Find a little bit of a balance just in some
sort of way to get a little bit more position
on those early downs where you're gonna have the laid
down kind of shotgun fun.

Speaker 9 (01:35:46):
Anyway, So I just going.

Speaker 7 (01:35:48):
Forward, it's certainly a little bit of you can't lose
those one on ones and those double teams up front
where the Eagles were able to kind of push the
Bengals offensive line around a little bit. But when I
watched all the tape, dude league, and I watched the
Bengals run, and you know, it doesn't inspire the most
confidence just from this camatics level.

Speaker 5 (01:36:03):
When when you watch all the tape around the league,
is there anything about the Las Vegas Raiders that should
make me feel like they can make the Bengals start
zero to five at home this year?

Speaker 7 (01:36:13):
You know, mo I they can't lose to the Raiders,
right that, they seriously can't.

Speaker 9 (01:36:17):
I mean, I keep I scally keep saying this every week.

Speaker 7 (01:36:21):
You know, I'm not giving up from the Bengals, but
they still have something. The Steelers are going to fall
apart eventually. When I look at the Raiders, it's just
not a unit overall on offense or really on defense.
Of course they have Crosby over there, who is a stud,
but it's just not a situation where I feel like
you go into that game with a ton of worry.
At the same time, I mean, the Bengals just keep

(01:36:41):
keep making us sweat.

Speaker 2 (01:36:42):
So it is.

Speaker 9 (01:36:43):
Of course the NFL is going to be a week
sweek league.

Speaker 2 (01:36:45):
But I.

Speaker 7 (01:36:47):
Don't foresee us coming back here talking next week about
a lot that I'm hoping that it starts.

Speaker 9 (01:36:51):
To trend and that are they're four and five. You
know they're gonna have a bunch of these games coming up.
The Steelers schedule is getting.

Speaker 7 (01:36:57):
A lot tougher and maybe maybe maybe maybe one day
this season talking about some playoff chances.

Speaker 5 (01:37:03):
Oh, you know, you said they can't lose to the Raiders.
You know, I'm older than you. I have experience with
this team's by entire live Sean. They most definitely can't.
I don't think they will, but they most definitely can
good stuff as always, We'll do it next week. Thank
you so much, Sean, Thank you much.

Speaker 9 (01:37:22):
I appreciate it.

Speaker 5 (01:37:22):
That's our guy, Sean Sayed. Follow him on x at
Sayed Schemes, the Stats and Scheme podcast If you love
really sort of granular wonky football stuff is terrific, and
his Monday morning mashup column for summer sports.

Speaker 4 (01:37:38):
You owe it to yourself. Go read it.

Speaker 2 (01:37:40):
You'll enjoy it. Trust me on that one.

Speaker 4 (01:37:43):
We are Terren's playing music. We are done.

Speaker 5 (01:37:46):
Want to thank the staff here at Buffalo Wild Wings
for hosting us. I want to thank my guy Mike
Mills for producing our show on site, Tarren Bland for
producing back in Kenwood next week. We're going to be
at the good home game beat ups in Kenwood right
by the radio station.

Speaker 2 (01:38:04):
On election Day.

Speaker 5 (01:38:05):
So go vote, get your sticker, take your picture with
the sticker, then come on out to Buffalo Wild Wings,
hang out with us, and we'll have more stuff to
give away.

Speaker 4 (01:38:16):
We're back on the air tomorrow. We're back in studio.

Speaker 5 (01:38:19):
We have not even really had a chance to talk
about FC Cincinnati's win last night. We'll spend some time
on that as they.

Speaker 2 (01:38:27):
Take game one. Weird game.

Speaker 5 (01:38:29):
I'm not sure that was the best officiated soccer game
I've ever seen, but they do win. We'll spend some
time on that. We'll hear Joe Burrow. We'll get you said,
four Bengals Raiders and so much more.

Speaker 2 (01:38:39):
We're done.

Speaker 4 (01:38:40):
Anything you might have missed go find on the iHeartRadio app.

Speaker 5 (01:38:43):
Also on the podcast page of ESPN fifteen thirty dot com.
It's been the butt Light five o'clock Happy Hour. I
guess it's still continuing because it goes till six.

Speaker 4 (01:38:55):
We're just not going to be on the air.

Speaker 2 (01:38:56):
We have to go.

Speaker 4 (01:38:57):
UK basketball is coming up next. Great night. This is
ESPN fifteen thirty, Cincinnati Sports Station.

Speaker 1 (01:39:05):
You've been listening to football in Theinetti on the official
home of the Bengals, Cincinnatis, ESPN fifteen thirty