December 18, 2025 • 10 mins
Rick Neuheisel from CBS Sports joins the show to preview the CFP.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:05):
Your home for college football Saturdays is live with CBS
Sports analyst Rick Neuheisel, powered by Taco Time. Hungry at
Taco Time, It's easy to create exactly what you're craving,
and we wouldn't have it any other way. How do
you Taco Time customize your meal and order ahead on
the Taco Time Northwest Taco Time Time for something different?
(00:25):
Now with Rick Neuheisel, here's SOFTI and Dick, Dick, you know.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
What I'm wondering right now before this big ram Seahawk
game tonight, where's the Taco Time that? And I'm also
wondering if our next guests recruited either one of the
starting quarterbacks when they were in high school and Matt
Stafford All or Sam Darneld. I mean that that is
how long Gress new Heisl has been around for and
he remembers both these guys when they were in high school?
(00:49):
Did you recruit Do you remember recruiting either Stafford or
Donald when they were in high school?
Speaker 3 (00:54):
Wreck?
Speaker 4 (00:56):
So Stafford is from Highland Park in Dallas, and do
you know who his center was? Tell me the center
on his football team? Tell me Clayton Kershaw.
Speaker 3 (01:08):
What I know that he played. I know that Kershaw
was at his.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
Was the center for Matthew Stafford.
Speaker 3 (01:15):
Wow, Wow about that.
Speaker 4 (01:18):
Incredible Gez and Donald Sam Darnold I think was an
Orange Lutheran kid and now he was an SC commit
from the get go.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Yeah, No, I got you well listen and a little.
Speaker 4 (01:30):
After me, a little after I was done at UCLA.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
I get it well, Rick, we got a big one tonight,
but we got a big one starting tomorrow in the playoff.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
It's incredible.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
The College Football Playoff is twenty four hours and thirty
minutes away with Oklahoma and Alabama. And before we talk
about the games themselves, there still are some people that
believe that Calein de bor is going to be the
next coach at Michigan and he's just waiting until Alabama's
season comes to an end. What are you hearing on
anything involving Michigan and Klen de Borman.
Speaker 4 (02:02):
The guys that I know at Presno State that are
close to Kaitlin, that were part of his crew that
were there, have heard Kaylan is happy in Alabama and
is not leaving, so you can take him at his word.
That's that's from the guys at Presno. Obviously, Caylin has
told us that he's going to stay right where he is,
but the Michigan job is a special one. No one
(02:24):
can deny that. So and we'll see what sort of
acrimony is stirred up if Oklahoma has their way against
Alabama and they look Anemak offensively again.
Speaker 5 (02:35):
Should Jed come out and do what Caylan did and
just say I'm staying here and regardless of whether he
stays here or not, he can still come out and
reassure the fan base. Or should he just play it
like he's playing it right now?
Speaker 4 (02:48):
You know, I think Jed's just trying to be as
honest as he can be. Obviously he would be infatuated
with I say infatuated because I don't know that it's
a love, but you know, I still want if there's
still a little bit of a stain just because he
was part of Harbaugh's crew. I mean, they are going
through with white white gloves now, going through that program
(03:09):
looking for everything that was wrong, and so I don't
know that anybody gets out of it on tarnished sat.
My guest is Jed's going to be the Washington coach
next year, and I hope Washington fans are excited about that.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Yeah, Rick, I don't know if you and Dick have
heard this, but I was told by somebody that apparently
Jedfish played a role in bringing Connor Stallions to ann Arbor.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
Did you know that?
Speaker 2 (03:33):
And if that's the case, do you think that was
maybe the red flag that Josh Pate was talking about
the other day that might preclude him from getting that job.
Speaker 4 (03:45):
Yeah, that could be. I mean, I know that Connor
had been around Jed when he was at Arizona a
little bit, and I don't know at what extent. You know,
Connor was one of those zelot young wanna be coaches
that was trying to do anything to to get the
favor from the guy who's going to be hiring. So
it's all understandable. But yeah, I just know that right
(04:08):
now there's a absolute investigation going on at Michigan because
they can't take any more slings and arrows about who
did what when I think they got to go back
to being squeaky clean.
Speaker 5 (04:21):
So are they putting the breaks on a coaching search
or are perspective coaches putting a breaks the breaks on
a perspective coaching search because of what's going on at Michigan.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Yeah, I think a little of both. I think the
Michigan thing's going to spin the wheel again, no question
about it, because there'll be a lot of movement and
a lot of coaches, including my son, are waiting for
the movement to happen right wow, to see exactly where
opportunities are. So yeah, there's no question that. And obviously
(04:53):
with the first weekend of the college football playoff, no
one wants to throw any wrinkles in that prior to
game time.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
We got a game tomorrow Alabama Oklahoma.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Oklahoma I saw will be asked to do something that
nobody's done to Alabama in one hundred and thirty years,
and that speed him twice in the same season.
Speaker 3 (05:11):
What's your gut on tomorrow?
Speaker 4 (05:14):
I think it's going to be a hell of a game,
and it's who got their offense right during the break right,
because neither offense was worth a lick down the stretch,
whether it was mateir because of their surgery to his hand,
whether it was Simpson not having enough protection time, neither
one of those teams is playing at where that you'd expected,
you know, a national championship program to be playing the
(05:37):
first game was neither team had one hundred yards rushing,
So I would say, you know, you know, Ty Simpson
is not going to run for yards. If John Mattier
can become a weapon offensively with his legs tomorrow and
Oklahoma gets over one hundred and thirty yards rushing, I'm
leaning Oklahoma got it.
Speaker 5 (05:56):
Texas Tech kind of a similar team to Oklahoma, and
they can get it done on one the ball. The
question is can they get it done on the offensive
side of the ball. What do you think about that
Tech Miami game?
Speaker 4 (06:06):
Well, it's not Tech Miami, it's Texas A and M.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Sorry, I'm sorry, you're.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
Right, yeah, yeah, A and M. It's to me. Everything
about A and M is that pass rush. You know,
they went a stretch during the season with a W
I think they two allowed two conversions and thirty three
attempts on third down over a three game deal. And
if you look at Carson Beck and when Miami's vulnerables
when he throws the ball away to the other team,
(06:31):
which was the case in both the Louisville and the
SMU games, and it was because there was a pass rush.
So if Cassius Howell and company can get after Carson
Beck and remember it's in front of the A and
M Faithful, which are the twelfth Man, as Seattle understands
the twelfth Man. And you get and you make it
difficult for that quarterback to set his feet, and you
(06:54):
make it difficult for those tackles to get off the snapcount.
Then it becomes a kind of a one sided thing.
So I'm gonna lean Aggie's in that game.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Got you well, Rick, James Madison going to Eugene on Saturday.
I'm telling you, if James Madison can win this game,
I will be professional on social media. I will not
rub it in whatsoever. And also I'm lying one hundred percent.
I will laugh my balls off James Madison to go
to Oregon and win this. Can you see any can
(07:24):
you paint any picture for me at all where James
Madison wins this game.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
Well, listen, they got a dual threat quarterback. This Alonza
Barnett is a you know, rush for close to six
hundred yards, so they got that going for him. But
to me, both these games that are featuring group of
five opponents you know, trying to you know, be the
Cinderella have to have great performances from their dual threat quarterback,
whether it's Barnett or Jake Bretzloff. In the Tulane Ole
(07:52):
Miss game, they're gonna have to be, you know, one
hundred yard rushers and they're gonna have to go for
it on four down a few times and steal possessions.
I think if you've got to look for somebody to
get somewhere thirty eight forty minutes of possession time and
just play keep away and get the home team really
impatient and then get a couple turnovers, that's the way
this is going to happen. I think it's more likely
(08:14):
in the Tulane game than the James Madison game. But
if it comes to pass, I will think of you, Softy.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
I love it, Thank you, Thank you. Rick.
Speaker 5 (08:23):
How many teams do you think legitimately can win the
National Championship without crazy things happening.
Speaker 4 (08:30):
I think seven. I think seven teams can win it. Yeah,
I think the four teams that are we're talking about,
you know, power versus power in this first deal, and
then I like at least three, and you know what
I like at least three of the four teams. You know,
(08:52):
I'm going to go as high as eight. I think
eight can do it, yeah, because especially the one that
I would have out was Oklahoma. But the more I
think about it, if Makier all of a sudden gets
back to form like he played in the early portion,
then there could be dangerous as well, because that defense
is national championship caliber.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
Well, let's do this, all right. I'm gonna make you
a deal.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
You're seven and nine on the air so far, because
you lost the Army game last week.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
I'm gonna make you a go ahead. Now, how did
I lose that?
Speaker 4 (09:22):
I took Army and they got six and a half.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
Uh, you know what, Actually, you're right. My fault. I'm sorry.
I got almighty.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
Let's black Knights, baby.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
I thought Army was giving six and a half. My fault.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
I apologize. So you are your eight and eight on
the air to five. You're eight and eight on the air.
There you go, Okay, I'm gonna give you a shot. Yes,
I agree with you that that's my fault. I apologize profusely.
I feel terrible. I want you to give us a
prediction for the weekend, and I want you to give
me a prediction on who wins the entire thing. We're
not gonna talk here for a few weeks because we're
(09:55):
giving you some time off here for the holidays, obviously,
but if you can get both of them right, then
we will wipe.
Speaker 3 (10:02):
Away every loss off your schedule. Okay, Well tell.
Speaker 4 (10:06):
You right now that the best, the best pick for
tomorrow night, as much as you're gonna hate it, is Oregon.
Oregon's gonna cover the twenty one and a half, right,
and then and the UH and the other national champion pick.
I'm gonna take Ohio State beating Texas Tech for the
national title.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Ohio State over Texas Tech for the whole thing. All right, man,
great stuff. Listen, dude, have a happy holiday. I can't
tell you how much we appreciate you coming on with
us every single week. Uh, thanks so much for everything
you do for the radio station, not just for us,
but for Chuck and Buck as well.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
My friends.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
It is a treat, is a treat, and the happy
holidays to everybody in Seattle and go a Hawks tonight.
Enjoy it.
Your home for college football Saturdays is live with CBS
Sports analyst Rick Neuheisel, powered by Taco Time. Hungry at
Taco Time, It's easy to create exactly what you're craving,
and we wouldn't have it any other way. How do
you Taco Time customize your meal and order ahead on
the Taco Time Northwest Taco Time Time for something different?
(00:25):
Now with Rick Neuheisel, here's SOFTI and Dick, Dick, you know.
Speaker 2 (00:29):
What I'm wondering right now before this big ram Seahawk
game tonight, where's the Taco Time that? And I'm also
wondering if our next guests recruited either one of the
starting quarterbacks when they were in high school and Matt
Stafford All or Sam Darneld. I mean that that is
how long Gress new Heisl has been around for and
he remembers both these guys when they were in high school?
(00:49):
Did you recruit Do you remember recruiting either Stafford or
Donald when they were in high school?
Speaker 3 (00:54):
Wreck?
Speaker 4 (00:56):
So Stafford is from Highland Park in Dallas, and do
you know who his center was? Tell me the center
on his football team? Tell me Clayton Kershaw.
Speaker 3 (01:08):
What I know that he played. I know that Kershaw
was at his.
Speaker 4 (01:13):
Was the center for Matthew Stafford.
Speaker 3 (01:15):
Wow, Wow about that.
Speaker 4 (01:18):
Incredible Gez and Donald Sam Darnold I think was an
Orange Lutheran kid and now he was an SC commit
from the get go.
Speaker 3 (01:27):
Yeah, No, I got you well listen and a little.
Speaker 4 (01:30):
After me, a little after I was done at UCLA.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
I get it well, Rick, we got a big one tonight,
but we got a big one starting tomorrow in the playoff.
Speaker 3 (01:39):
It's incredible.
Speaker 2 (01:39):
The College Football Playoff is twenty four hours and thirty
minutes away with Oklahoma and Alabama. And before we talk
about the games themselves, there still are some people that
believe that Calein de bor is going to be the
next coach at Michigan and he's just waiting until Alabama's
season comes to an end. What are you hearing on
anything involving Michigan and Klen de Borman.
Speaker 4 (02:02):
The guys that I know at Presno State that are
close to Kaitlin, that were part of his crew that
were there, have heard Kaylan is happy in Alabama and
is not leaving, so you can take him at his word.
That's that's from the guys at Presno. Obviously, Caylin has
told us that he's going to stay right where he is,
but the Michigan job is a special one. No one
(02:24):
can deny that. So and we'll see what sort of
acrimony is stirred up if Oklahoma has their way against
Alabama and they look Anemak offensively again.
Speaker 5 (02:35):
Should Jed come out and do what Caylan did and
just say I'm staying here and regardless of whether he
stays here or not, he can still come out and
reassure the fan base. Or should he just play it
like he's playing it right now?
Speaker 4 (02:48):
You know, I think Jed's just trying to be as
honest as he can be. Obviously he would be infatuated
with I say infatuated because I don't know that it's
a love, but you know, I still want if there's
still a little bit of a stain just because he
was part of Harbaugh's crew. I mean, they are going
through with white white gloves now, going through that program
(03:09):
looking for everything that was wrong, and so I don't
know that anybody gets out of it on tarnished sat.
My guest is Jed's going to be the Washington coach
next year, and I hope Washington fans are excited about that.
Speaker 2 (03:22):
Yeah, Rick, I don't know if you and Dick have
heard this, but I was told by somebody that apparently
Jedfish played a role in bringing Connor Stallions to ann Arbor.
Speaker 3 (03:32):
Did you know that?
Speaker 2 (03:33):
And if that's the case, do you think that was
maybe the red flag that Josh Pate was talking about
the other day that might preclude him from getting that job.
Speaker 4 (03:45):
Yeah, that could be. I mean, I know that Connor
had been around Jed when he was at Arizona a
little bit, and I don't know at what extent. You know,
Connor was one of those zelot young wanna be coaches
that was trying to do anything to to get the
favor from the guy who's going to be hiring. So
it's all understandable. But yeah, I just know that right
(04:08):
now there's a absolute investigation going on at Michigan because
they can't take any more slings and arrows about who
did what when I think they got to go back
to being squeaky clean.
Speaker 5 (04:21):
So are they putting the breaks on a coaching search
or are perspective coaches putting a breaks the breaks on
a perspective coaching search because of what's going on at Michigan.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Yeah, I think a little of both. I think the
Michigan thing's going to spin the wheel again, no question
about it, because there'll be a lot of movement and
a lot of coaches, including my son, are waiting for
the movement to happen right wow, to see exactly where
opportunities are. So yeah, there's no question that. And obviously
(04:53):
with the first weekend of the college football playoff, no
one wants to throw any wrinkles in that prior to
game time.
Speaker 3 (05:00):
We got a game tomorrow Alabama Oklahoma.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Oklahoma I saw will be asked to do something that
nobody's done to Alabama in one hundred and thirty years,
and that speed him twice in the same season.
Speaker 3 (05:11):
What's your gut on tomorrow?
Speaker 4 (05:14):
I think it's going to be a hell of a game,
and it's who got their offense right during the break right,
because neither offense was worth a lick down the stretch,
whether it was mateir because of their surgery to his hand,
whether it was Simpson not having enough protection time, neither
one of those teams is playing at where that you'd expected,
you know, a national championship program to be playing the
(05:37):
first game was neither team had one hundred yards rushing,
So I would say, you know, you know, Ty Simpson
is not going to run for yards. If John Mattier
can become a weapon offensively with his legs tomorrow and
Oklahoma gets over one hundred and thirty yards rushing, I'm
leaning Oklahoma got it.
Speaker 5 (05:56):
Texas Tech kind of a similar team to Oklahoma, and
they can get it done on one the ball. The
question is can they get it done on the offensive
side of the ball. What do you think about that
Tech Miami game?
Speaker 4 (06:06):
Well, it's not Tech Miami, it's Texas A and M.
Speaker 3 (06:09):
Sorry, I'm sorry, you're.
Speaker 4 (06:10):
Right, yeah, yeah, A and M. It's to me. Everything
about A and M is that pass rush. You know,
they went a stretch during the season with a W
I think they two allowed two conversions and thirty three
attempts on third down over a three game deal. And
if you look at Carson Beck and when Miami's vulnerables
when he throws the ball away to the other team,
(06:31):
which was the case in both the Louisville and the
SMU games, and it was because there was a pass rush.
So if Cassius Howell and company can get after Carson
Beck and remember it's in front of the A and
M Faithful, which are the twelfth Man, as Seattle understands
the twelfth Man. And you get and you make it
difficult for that quarterback to set his feet, and you
(06:54):
make it difficult for those tackles to get off the snapcount.
Then it becomes a kind of a one sided thing.
So I'm gonna lean Aggie's in that game.
Speaker 2 (07:01):
Got you well, Rick, James Madison going to Eugene on Saturday.
I'm telling you, if James Madison can win this game,
I will be professional on social media. I will not
rub it in whatsoever. And also I'm lying one hundred percent.
I will laugh my balls off James Madison to go
to Oregon and win this. Can you see any can
(07:24):
you paint any picture for me at all where James
Madison wins this game.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
Well, listen, they got a dual threat quarterback. This Alonza
Barnett is a you know, rush for close to six
hundred yards, so they got that going for him. But
to me, both these games that are featuring group of
five opponents you know, trying to you know, be the
Cinderella have to have great performances from their dual threat quarterback,
whether it's Barnett or Jake Bretzloff. In the Tulane Ole
(07:52):
Miss game, they're gonna have to be, you know, one
hundred yard rushers and they're gonna have to go for
it on four down a few times and steal possessions.
I think if you've got to look for somebody to
get somewhere thirty eight forty minutes of possession time and
just play keep away and get the home team really
impatient and then get a couple turnovers, that's the way
this is going to happen. I think it's more likely
(08:14):
in the Tulane game than the James Madison game. But
if it comes to pass, I will think of you, Softy.
Speaker 3 (08:21):
I love it, Thank you, Thank you. Rick.
Speaker 5 (08:23):
How many teams do you think legitimately can win the
National Championship without crazy things happening.
Speaker 4 (08:30):
I think seven. I think seven teams can win it. Yeah,
I think the four teams that are we're talking about,
you know, power versus power in this first deal, and
then I like at least three, and you know what
I like at least three of the four teams. You know,
(08:52):
I'm going to go as high as eight. I think
eight can do it, yeah, because especially the one that
I would have out was Oklahoma. But the more I
think about it, if Makier all of a sudden gets
back to form like he played in the early portion,
then there could be dangerous as well, because that defense
is national championship caliber.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
Well, let's do this, all right. I'm gonna make you
a deal.
Speaker 2 (09:14):
You're seven and nine on the air so far, because
you lost the Army game last week.
Speaker 3 (09:18):
I'm gonna make you a go ahead. Now, how did
I lose that?
Speaker 4 (09:22):
I took Army and they got six and a half.
Speaker 3 (09:25):
Uh, you know what, Actually, you're right. My fault. I'm sorry.
I got almighty.
Speaker 4 (09:29):
Let's black Knights, baby.
Speaker 3 (09:31):
I thought Army was giving six and a half. My fault.
Speaker 2 (09:34):
I apologize. So you are your eight and eight on
the air to five. You're eight and eight on the air.
There you go, Okay, I'm gonna give you a shot. Yes,
I agree with you that that's my fault. I apologize profusely.
I feel terrible. I want you to give us a
prediction for the weekend, and I want you to give
me a prediction on who wins the entire thing. We're
not gonna talk here for a few weeks because we're
(09:55):
giving you some time off here for the holidays, obviously,
but if you can get both of them right, then
we will wipe.
Speaker 3 (10:02):
Away every loss off your schedule. Okay, Well tell.
Speaker 4 (10:06):
You right now that the best, the best pick for
tomorrow night, as much as you're gonna hate it, is Oregon.
Oregon's gonna cover the twenty one and a half, right,
and then and the UH and the other national champion pick.
I'm gonna take Ohio State beating Texas Tech for the
national title.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
Ohio State over Texas Tech for the whole thing. All right, man,
great stuff. Listen, dude, have a happy holiday. I can't
tell you how much we appreciate you coming on with
us every single week. Uh, thanks so much for everything
you do for the radio station, not just for us,
but for Chuck and Buck as well.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
My friends.
Speaker 4 (10:41):
It is a treat, is a treat, and the happy
holidays to everybody in Seattle and go a Hawks tonight.
Enjoy it.
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