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RUNNIN' VEGAS - The John McNamara Sports Podcast
Talking all things Las Vegas sports-from UNLV to the pros, and everything in between.
RUNNIN' VEGAS - The John McNamara Sports Podcast
🏀 UNLV Basketball Reloads & Football Camp Heats Up | John McNamara & Ryan Pulliam
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Welcome And What We Cover
SPEAKER_01Hey guys, John McIntyre, host of Running Vegas. We're talking local sports, business, real estate. If you guys see what you like, subscribe. Follow us on Running Vegas podcast on Instagram. Today, I got my co host message. Ryan Pullium in the house.
SPEAKER_00What's happening, man? He's back. He's back. What are we gonna talk about? There are only some things happening. Getting close to football season, which is awesome.
SPEAKER_01Well, I felt like last time it's like the off season. Yeah. We're like, what the heck are we gonna talk about? And we ended up talking the whole time. But now I feel like we got plenty to
AJ Storr Signs With UNLV
SPEAKER_01talk about today. We're talking Unileag basketball, football, breaking news as of two days ago. AJ Store, former four-star guard signs with running rebel basketball. Previously with St. John's, Wisconsin, Kansas, Ole Miss. He averaged 15.5 points a game at Ole Miss in the SEC and 16.8 in the sophomore year with Wisconsin. Pretty good pickup.
SPEAKER_00I think it's a great pickup. And I think a lot of folks sometimes may wince a little when they see the resume of where he's been. But I I think in the land of the NIL, we're just gonna have to probably get a little bit more used to kids taking a turn every single way they go. Um and so yeah, I'm I'm stoked about. You know, we we talked uh on a couple earlier podcasts after the the transfer portal closed and we had we actually filled out a roster. There was a couple guys that we had really hoped that they could kind of get back to a form that they had been scoring a lot, or hope that some kids were gonna be able to step up in a higher level of play um from from maybe a lower conference. This kid's been consistent wherever he's gone and scored at high level. So I think you know, with him joining the backcourt with um Sebastian Mack, I don't know if there's a better backcourt than the Mountain West Conference.
SPEAKER_01So that's interesting, right? Because I and I love the signing. I think it's upgrade. I think he's one of the one of our top three players, if not the best player. Um yeah, how do you think I thought it was interesting makeup though for the roster? And I'm very happy they signed it because I especially have last year we had so many injuries. Every year we had so many injuries. So I think it's better to have uh more players than not. But my thoughts were a little bit like Stor and Mack are kind of similar players. How is this gonna like how is this lineup gonna shake out here in the near future? Because I think Store's an upgrade. I think Sebastian Mack kind of needs the ball in his hand. He's kind of like a volume guy, but I think Storr is a on paper a better player.
SPEAKER_00I definitely think that there's gonna be a lot of competition for playing time. Kids are gonna have to get out there, grind, play defense, um, make smart plays. Because Pastor's not shy about yanking kids if they make a mistake, either if they miss an assignment on defense or they miss a play. Um, you know, he he'll yank him and yell him on the sideline for a little bit. So I like that rotation to be able to we're not gonna have to pull somebody out and then have nobody that void. Like when Gibby had been pulled out, sometimes like, where's our scoring gonna come from? So I I I like it. We're obviously gonna be playing small ball, we're guard heavy, we talked about that. Um, but at the same time, it's gonna be a fun team to watch, I think, with these guys uh that can just light it up and and score and play good defense.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, they load loaded up on the guards. So I think that transition, I think, hey, and we saw it last year with Pastner running the ball. He's gonna have the players to do it this time around. I think there's like a clear seven players on paper right now that are basically gonna get starter minutes. Um, but yeah, what what do you think the lineup looks like?
SPEAKER_00I I think he started both in the back the backcourt, and then Tyron Jones, um uh Sartan, it it it and then um oh man, I mean yeah, and Harris, and then um that that last, I mean that last wing spot, I don't know. There's a couple of kids that he'd probably throw in there, but it's it's gonna be it's gonna be fun, and like you said, they're gonna be deep, and if there is are any injuries, which last year that was all we heard, right? Like, oh, this wasn't really the team that we had because of the injuries. That can't be an excuse this year because he filled the roster with kids that can all play.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, for sure. It was a nice surprise to get it. So do you think do you think this puts us like in the first tier for Mountain West uh teams, or we're still like kind of in that second tier? What are your thoughts on that?
SPEAKER_00I think this I think this jumps us up to maybe the third best team. I know we were kind of talking earlier, maybe about the fourth or fifth. I definitely think this cements us as the third best behind um uh New Mexico and GCU um in no particular order there. Just because we now we have a guy that can actually score the ball, and he scored at a high level before. Uh I think that helps get us at an upper echelon. I don't know if we're there being able to win the conference quite yet with this pickup, but it'll at least possibly give us a chance in March to get something going.
SPEAKER_01I think it does give us the ability to win the conference. I don't think we'll be the best team. GCU and um New Mexico, I think, are clearly one, two. Uh, but I think that puts us in the conversation for sure. Um my lineup is point guard forward, uh shooting guard store, small forward, Harris, uh power forward Jones, and then MG Thomas in the center spot. I think Mac and uh Williams will get be the first guys off the bench. And then I'll be interesting for the backup point guard spot, Hamlin, Williamson, and uh subtle, um younger guards. Hopefully, one or two of those players hit for minutes. Um, and then Kiss is a backup power forward, and then Femina is a backup center. So it's it's a pretty, pretty good roster. I'm excited about it. I was more excited than I was three days ago. So there's there's same, yeah. Same, same. We'll see if they add any more, because this is a surprise, because we are a little thin in the uh the forward, the power forward and uh traditional center spot. Right. So I'm curious if they do add more and more. Um you know what kind of went in my head too, because Pasner trying to sell the team or whatever. He's not really selling the team, but I'm like, did somebody give him a little money all of a sudden? Like, what happened now?
SPEAKER_00You never know, right? I'm just gonna with that, like I said, with that guy's resume, he's been at some places, just so you're not gonna settle for peanuts. I don't know if he was just kind of getting closer to the season. It's like a better, better pull up the trigger on some place. But you know, he played at Gorman for a season. He's familiar with Las Vegas. I think this is just a really, a really good late signing um that can kind of get some fans interested and excited to come to the Mac.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. And and you're right, I mean, Mac and store might actually end up playing in the beginning of the year because Harris, I think he tore his MCL. Um, they're saying him and Jones are ready in October, but I feel like we hear that every year. Yeah, right. They're always ready in October, but it kind of gives them flexibility where they don't necessarily need to just throw these guys in. I think that what happened to the point guard last year, right? Where they were trying to get him back and he re-injured. Right. So it might be a little bit of that too. Like, hey, you know, we don't want a chance running these guys, you know, back early just to get them to play. Uh, but I'm interested because Stor and Harris, they played well in the Big Ten and SEC. I think those are going to be our big scoring options, along with Jones. Obviously, he's already proved himself. So I think we definitely have a big three, like we've talked about, maybe maybe uh four with legit uh really good uh scorers. So I'm
A Schedule Built To Grow
SPEAKER_01excited. Uh so uh Ross or uh schedule came out.
SPEAKER_00What did you think of the uh schedule? I think that it's awesome. I mean, you know, Passenger has said it himself it's a very challenging schedule with a lot of quality teams, and uh, you know, that's that's what we wanted, especially as a fan. Um, even just the start, I mean, we're starting out with three juggernauts, they're exhibition games, but what a great opportunity to get fan buy-in early. When they can, if you can get the fans behind it, because we need the Thomason Mack to be electric, we need a home court advantage that hasn't been at the Thomas and Mack the last number of seasons. I can't really remember when it was really rocking in there. But you know, you have those to start, then um, you know, it's it's it's Stanford, then Kansas in players era, and then you either get to play West Virginia, Auburn, and then Houston, Rutgers, Florida, or Notre Dame. Rounded out down to Viejos with San Diego State, Washington State, and then SMU on a neutral court. So I don't think that's necessarily padding or trying to pat a resume. I think that's trying to build a program. Josh Passman saying, hey, we're a legit college program. We're uh we're the running rebels of UNLV, and we're back. And so I think that's what he's trying to prove with this uh with his schedule. And again, I mean, this is a good way to get butts in the seats of the Thomas and Mack Center as opposed to playing, you know, northeast Michigan State or something along those lines. That's good. Yeah, the schedule has kind of been riddled with over the past uh past few years. So I'm I'm excited to see some big names, at the very least, names on paper on the schedule.
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I thought uh underrating uh underrated game too was at San Francisco. Yes, the Dons. It's uh it's away game in the Bay. Dons, I mean, they've been um they've been on say tournament team like uh every other year. They have a good program, and it's a way game. So, and then those exhibition guy games, guys. October 7th is Utah, uh October 24th, uh Thomas and Mac BYU, and October 29th, Missouri. So I thought those are very interesting. They're all in the Thomas and Mac. This has never happened before. Um, but I I like it. Let's play the toughest competition. A lot of folks are saying uh I don't know that the they thought the schedule would be harder. I thought I think it's pretty difficult. Uh yeah, I don't I don't I'm not sure because I think we're at a certain level too. We can't make it impossible. Right.
SPEAKER_02Yeah.
SPEAKER_01Try to have a winning record. Uh, but I like it. I'd rather have a tougher um uh non-con because then you go into conference play with the thought process, hey, we've had uh our non-con was harder than our conference play, so we'll be ready to play the New Mexico, the GCUs, the Renos twice a year and be competitive and tough.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I would much rather lose to Stanford early on in the season than Montana or you know North Dakota State. So I think that's um i i when we're kind of building the team. I again, those exhibition games are awesome. I know the BYU game, there are a lot of uh members of the LDS community in Las Vegas, so that that game in and of itself is gonna be packed.
SPEAKER_01That'll show out well too. And BYU has a legit program. Yeah, there's some really tough, yeah. BYU, it's exhibition, but still that's gonna be a tough game. As much as they don't count, they count. They count the public opinion, yeah. Yeah. Um, and then yeah, Kansas is gonna be incredibly tough. Um, so we'll see. We'll see how this season goes. But tough non-com uh I thought competitive, maybe not Rick Reese. That's a tough non-con, but I think it's pretty good. I think it's pretty solid. And yeah, I'm excited for UNLV basketball.
SPEAKER_00Same.
SPEAKER_01All right, super stoked.
Football Camp Hot Takes
SPEAKER_01All right, let's get to UNLV football training camp. Hot takes.
SPEAKER_00What's your hot take? Crazy that it's um it's only a little over a week away, but um, I love what Jake Pope said. Uh Jake Pope said the clear the team is closer than it was at the same point last year, and last time they last year they won 10 games. So I think they're building on a lot of that. Um, I think Mullins, he's he's really building the program. I think his his his he's kind of taking hold of what he wants UNLV football to be. And I think hot take-wise, this might be the most dangerous version of UNLV football all around that we've seen ever.
SPEAKER_01I know you predicted that undefeated season. So uh I love it though. Okay, cool. My hot take, you know, funny enough, it's Jake Pope. It's not the quote of Jake Pope, but I thought it was really interesting that they may, I think they're doing this, but they haven't like said it. Bringing back that hybrid safety linebacker position when they used to have that Mike Shear and Odom, that 3-3-5, which is really a 4-2-5, um, where they have that versatile um safety linebacker and that versatile edge linebacker. Um, so Jake Pope, I guess he's added a little weight. I think that was his strength last year, was making a lot of tackles. He was out of place a lot in coverage. So I'm excited to utilize how athletic this kid is. And I think it's gonna be a better fit for him in the system.
SPEAKER_00I 100% agree because he was the guy, one of the guys we kind of said, thought we were gonna get a little bit more of him. And so maybe it was him just playing out of position a little bit. And if he can, you know, right play or wrong place, um, if he can get uh get around the ball a little bit more and stay in coverage and make because obviously, like you said, he can make the tackle. So it'll be fun to see him um in that little position of the of the hybrid. Like, where's he gonna be on this play?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, it's worked well for uh players in the past that kind of tackling machines, but their strength isn't necessarily coverage, but if they have to cover the tight end or something, they can get a better fit. So uh I'm excited about that. We got, you know, we've talked about this multiple times now. Is you know, I was a little concerned about the defense being younger. We have a lot of, and I like the way Mullen is building. He's been inside out, he's building from younger talent. He is going get high school players, right? So I'm excited about these players are coming in, but when they haven't had a lot of playing time, sometimes that takes a little time. Good news though is we have some veterans returning to defense that are really death pieces, but I think it really helps the two deep. Um, so veterans returning defense, uh, Cohen Fuller, defensive tackle, Welch, the defensive back that played pretty well last year. By the team of the interceptions? Yep. Um, so he'll be there. And then uh uh linebacker Flo. He was a good special teamer, uh hype man, good energy. Um, spellman was uh solid edge linebacker, defender for us. And then uh the linebacker from Arizona, uh I can never pronounce his name, Caillou. I might be pronouncing it right or wrong, but he looks like he's gonna be a backup, two-deep linebacker. But they said he's been balling out as well. Um in camp. So what are your what are your thoughts whether they're turning uh these uh uh veteran defensive players?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, you know, like Jake Pope we talked about, Mumu Bid Wahib, uh Trey Fulton. The secondary, I think, is is really coming back. They're they they've they've had a full year underneath their belt with some experience, and I think they're coming back with something to prove, too. I mean, one of the biggest knocks on Gunter's offense last year was just getting torched on the long ball. So I think, you know, they want to come back and know that we've stepped up, we've learned, and they know the scheme a little bit better now. Last year, Gunter didn't even get really the play calling in the on the defensive side till midway through spring ball. So now every everybody, like you said, the the veterans coming back, they understand the schemes, they understand what they're supposed to do. And I think the the the expectations and the performance gap is gonna close extremely fast, and I think we're gonna see we won't see as many big burn plays as we did to start the season last year.
SPEAKER_01I agree with you. They they had an overall haul in the transfer portal. I think it was like five or six defensive backs, and then we have younger players that were on the team last year stepping in. So um I think that's definitely gonna be approved. Again, the D line is a little young, but um got some defensive players, um, veterans coming back. So also I thought it was interesting, it looks like Santee is gonna be starting over uh Cree. So that was uh Cree. It looks like he's gonna be the backup linebacker, but it was a little, are they both gonna start or is one gonna start? So again, this is on paper. We all know on paper in the beginning of the year, and then we start the year, there's always that one kid that balls out on the second team, and he's starter week two.
SPEAKER_00Exactly.
SPEAKER_01So uh it's early, but uh yeah, I'm excited uh that they created some depth to this defense.
Who Wins The QB Job
SPEAKER_01And number next, who is gonna be the starting QP?
SPEAKER_00Well, I love how Verionaver. I love how Mullen always keeps it very close to his vest. And and I and I did hear by all accounts that it is a it's a competition out there for the starting quarterback job. We he did this last year too, though. He didn't name Calandry or Orgy until very close to the first the first game. I think he's probably gonna do the exact same thing. I think the nod goes to Jackson. I think he's gonna be the starting quarterback just because of what he's done and the style of offense. But I mean, Orgy coming back from a three, you see L UCL spraying and a hamstring pretty much torn off the bone. The the dude is a beast. And so you're not gonna keep that that athlete on the sideline. So I know they're gonna run some schemes and some plays for both of them. And I mean, heck, if you think about goal-to-go situations uh within the you know, within five within the five-yard line, uh if you have Jet Thomas and Alex Orgy in the backfield, where where do you who do you go? Who do you follow, and who's gonna get the ball? So I think you know, with if those situations come up, Orgy's gonna get definitely some time, but I do think uh I think Jackson's gonna be the guy who who starts and plays the majority of the season.
SPEAKER_01Okay. Yeah, they have different skill sets, right? I mean, uh Jackson Arnold on paper looks like the better passer. Uh Orgy looks like the better athlete, bigger arm. I mean, just he's he's and he's just a big, he's a big guy. And he's fast. So it's very interesting. There is reports that Orgy has been playing very well in training camp and has really stepped up as a leader and is playing to win versus you know, not losing the job, so to speak. And there's been some rumblings that Jackson Arnold, you know, again, this he just entered this uh into the system. Right, exactly. I think AC kind of struggled in the beginning, too. I believe I think there was like one day he threw like three interceptions or something like that. So I don't think it's like a shoe in who's the starter. Um, and I love like why name it? Like so Memphis has to prepare for both, they have different skill sets, and ultimately I think it's gonna kind of come down. Orgy ended up just getting injured, so it didn't really matter. And AC took over, and AC played well, obviously. But um, yeah, it's it's interesting who's gonna be the starting quarter.
SPEAKER_00Well, and you gotta think that if Orgy stayed, obviously he transferred from Michigan to come to UNLV last year, didn't turn out the way that any of us really wanted to for him because of the because of the injury. He has to feel that he has a shot to to make an impact on the team in order to stay around. I mean, even in just in the NIL world, go and get some coins someplace else. But I think with him sticking around uh at UNLV, he does have a lot to offer, and I think he's gonna contribute meaningful, meaningful minutes and meaningful plays um this season for the Rebels.
SPEAKER_01Yeah. I'm not sure if this is fourth or fifth year, but um he's probably feeling it a little bit too, right? Like this is his time. And I love it, I love competition. So we'll see who ends up being the starting quarterback.
Offensive Line Size And Run Game
SPEAKER_01UNLV offensive line.
unknownEverybody talked about.
SPEAKER_01All right. So the offensive line coach came out and says, hey, we got seven, eight guys that are looking good right now. I'm excited. They're saying the run game is gonna be better this year. What are your thoughts on the offensive line?
SPEAKER_00I I think that you're absolutely right. They they got bigger at every single position, and even the the backups, you know, it's one thing, and that's I think what happens when you build a program is you have a couple guys that are studs, but the second and third people on the depth chart just you know, you you you drop uh a good level when those guys come in. I don't think we're gonna really see that this year. And um, you know, last year uh Jet Thomas got seven yards per average seven yards per carry with the line we had. If we got bigger more size-wise, I think that's only gonna either the very least stay, but also increase. So I'm gonna concede to you for all the specifics of the line because I know you love it. This is my expertise. I do, but I I I do I do think with the line. So I'm an expert at that.
SPEAKER_01Off the line. I think the I think I think the line getting bigger is gonna be gonna be great for our running game. I think so too. And it was funny because we both went to game zero last year and we're texting each other, and we're was it Idaho State? Yeah, I think it's hell, yeah. And they were move, Idaho State was moving UV, and I'm like, oh my god, this year's gonna be terrible. And the first couple games were a little rough, and then they figured it out. But I agree with you. I don't think it's gonna be that this way. They brought on some uh veterans and also they're bringing back players that have been in the system. Um, so I think running game is gonna look good. I think we're gonna uh again, soon as we go to that Memphis game, I'm watching the lines. Do they move them or they don't? And Memphis is a great um it's a great opponent to test because American, I guess Americans above Melton West now, right? Because of the split and the conferences. But if if they if that line can move that Memphis defensive line, it's gonna probably be a very good year. And if Thomas is, I love how you mentioned how how at what seven yards of carry, a lot of times he was getting stuck at the line, doing some craziness, and then he breaks off. Right. So if he has two to three yards and he's already in space and he can do that one cut, it's gonna be really interesting in the run game. Real fun to watch. So I'm excited. Uh the Brown, the tackle. Uh, I believe he got injured. They're moving the Holy Cross guard around. I think it's Metzenberger. I apologize if I'm getting that name wrong. He's a versatile lineman. They're they're kind of moving him around. Uh, Will Thomas, they've been moving around. So we'll see how this line shakes out. Because Will Thomas has been the offensive uh left tackle. They're China Mountain right tackle. So they're they got seven, eight guys are gonna play. I think the only thing that's kind of set in stone is Austin Boyd, center. Center, right? He's clearly our best. He's he's first team, uh, Mountain West, uh, you know, potentially an all American center. So um I'm excited. Yeah. I think we're gonna see a big jump in the offensive line play this year. So uh number next, uh tell us about some bright spots we've been hearing in training
Camp Standouts At Skill Positions
SPEAKER_01camp. What are your bright spots?
SPEAKER_00Well, I mean, I think obviously Jets he gets a lot of Bus any any any shit. I mean, rightly so. Um, but then I we talked about Tayshawn Lyons, not necessarily we're kind of questioning his first uh first team All Mountain West. Yeah. Um, but he's looking looking good. And then um, you know, Caden McGee, who was uh a stud on special teams last year, is getting good. But uh, you know, I'm really looking forward to seeing uh Jalen Glover, who Jet gets a lot of the the pub, but I think you know our deep uh backfield um with him running back and then um uh Kyan um Burnett, the tight end, the big tight end uh from Arizona. Um I'm excited to see him and what that big target can mean coming across the middle on a couple of these uh on a couple of these formations.
SPEAKER_01Oh, he was thanks. You took two of mine. Um I agree. Yeah, what I've been hearing is Lions is uh he's showing out. He looks like he's the potential one receiver for this offense. Uh McGee has been getting a lot of uh so it was funny because you and I were talking about them bringing these receivers. I'm like, I I kind of like our young guys. They're they're fast, they're they looked a little bit, they looked good last year, right? So, and then the interesting surprise is Zachary. He's I believe 5'7, 170, 180 pounds. He's a slot receiver. Guess that guy's been balling out, true freshman. Looks like he's been playing college football forever. So I think the receivers, which it kind of looks like that might be a weakness of this offense, these younger players in training camp so far have been looking really good. So I'm excited about that. Um yeah, and Glover's a good good take too, because yeah, you don't want to be playing jet all the time. Right. I think we're gonna run up some of these teams, so let's keep them healthy.
Strengths Weaknesses And Bold Calls
SPEAKER_01All right. So, what do you think uh Unlov football strengths and weaknesses are gonna be?
SPEAKER_00So the strength I think um is experience and belief. And it's one of those things where we haven't had a ton of that because of the roster turnover over the last few years. But you in year one, you're kind of learning some words, and year two, you're running full on senses. Um, but we we talk about the culture of winning and how contagious that is. UNLV has been a habitual loser for overwhelming majority of its um its entire football program. So now that we kind of got some guys that have been in the program and have experienced winning, that culture really does something to a team. So I think experience and beliefs are our biggest strength. Our potential weakness, um, you know, I don't want to harp on the defense. I wanted to make sure that we we do that enough, we did that enough. So I was actually gonna say um the the wide receivers are the biggest question mark and a potential weakness. I mean, we lost Troy O'Meary, Dade Reynolds, uh Jaden Bradley, lost all those guys last year. These guys are a little bit more unproven, like he said. Um, a lot of uh lot of pressure on Tayshawn after he's been named um first team out in West. And I I believe even Mullen even said himself he still wants to kind of get a little bit more uh uh chemistry between some the quarterbacks and the wideout. So I I hope that I'm wrong, and I hope, yeah, like the camp, everybody's balling out. But that's a potential weakness I see that if we don't have strong wide receivers, that running game is not going to be as dominant as we wanted it to be because now we're gonna be one-dimensional. And so that's that's my only potential weakness that I could see without having to harp on the defense again.
SPEAKER_01I like the strength. I always like it too, because for the most part, I feel like 95%, our takes are always different. You and I don't talk before. No, because I like it always to be organic. Yeah. You know, we don't set this up to like, let's have different takes. Uh, but yeah, I do like what you said about culture. I've heard that that the culture has gone to another level this year. Um, so I agree with that. Uh weakness. I'm just gonna say run defense. I know we talk about all the time. I don't think we can change that. So we'll see how that goes. We'll see though. Uh another year, we got um uh the defensive corner coming back. So I think we're gonna see improvements. So I don't want to harp on that too much because I know we've talked about that plenty, plenty. But uh, okay, so you get one bull take for Unileve football. Make it good though. It's gotta be bold, it's gonna be scary.
SPEAKER_00Let me know. What is it? So, my my bull take. I know we've talked about conference records and who's gonna win the championship, but so my my new my new bull take is that Jet Thomas wins Mountain West Player of the Year.
SPEAKER_01I like that. I like that.
SPEAKER_00Okay, it's not super bold, but it's I like it.
SPEAKER_01Bold heavy. I like it. That's bold heavy. I like it. I I think that is uh a good bull take. I believe in that bold take. Mine's a little bit spicier, though. Oh, that's what that's what we want to hear. I'm a little bit more reserved. You know, the buttons. I gotta keep it spicy. So there's one individual that I've been watching interviews with. He seems like a leader, seems like he has turned it to another level. It's Mr. Orgy. I think he just is going to be the starting quarterback at the end of the uh sometime during this season. Um, it kind of reminds me of the Brunfield situation when he was not going to be the starter. He came into the camp, crushed it. You're watching these training camp throws, and he is just slinging it. I think that if he can just get his passing game, because I know accuracy has been an issue from the past, if that has improved, the the sky is just-I mean, there's a lot of potential with him, and I just I really like his leadership, the way he speaks. It seems like it reminds me a lot of the Brunfield situation. I like it, and I wanted something a little spicy for this. Let's see if it happens or not. But that's Starbucks dark roast, bro. You know what I mean?
SPEAKER_00That dark road. And you know, speaking of his accuracy, there was, I don't know if you saw the video, there was one dime he just dropped, I mean, just chucked it, and it was just per landed perfectly. Uh the receiver's able to make the catch. So I love that. I love I like the boldness of that of that pick.
SPEAKER_01It's not an arm strength issue, it's an accuracy thing. But yeah, he's been balling out. So we'll see. He's big, he's fast, you know, it would be a different offense. Um, but and uh Mullen has the capability to build the offense around his best players. Right. You've seen it in the past with his Dak Prescott, his Tim Tebows. Those are very different players. He has that ability. So we'll see. We'll see how this plays out. Oh, okay. That's what we'll say. Okay.
Nonconference Picks And Goodbye
SPEAKER_01Okay, we got Unil V Nodcon. Let's do some predictions. All right, game one, game zero. Memphis. Apple!
SPEAKER_00Allegiance Stadium. Who you got? So I like you said again, before I thought we were gonna go undefeated. I I I don't this game, I think if we're gonna lose a game, it's gonna be Memphis. So I'm I'm gonna say that we we lose Memphis. What? Yeah. Just I had to pick one. I don't want to be just a total homer. And I thought that it was either this one or Cal. And I think Cal's later, at least it later on in the season, where we'll have ironed out all our issues. But if anything's gonna happen, we're gonna stumble out of the gate. It's gonna be Memphis.
SPEAKER_01I love it. Okay, all right. I got Memphis to win. Oh, you did? Homer, yeah. We get we get Memphis. I have a lot of overhaul. Um, we got North to Texas. Kind of same thing with North Texas too, a lot of overhaul in that program. They both played very well last year, but I say we get both those games. What do you got in the North Texas game? Yeah, North Texas take care of business. I don't think we'll have an issue there. Okay. I believe it's at North Texas, though. So you never know. You never know. Um, next one is Cal. I do I have this as a loss. I actually think Cal is pretty good. Um I I think I don't I I think we have a very good chance to win this game, though. It's at home, but they have a very talented quarterback. Um, so this is the non-con game, just like you said. Um, this is a non-con game where I would be probably the most concerned about. Um, but I'm gonna pick Cal because it's a pretty, pretty good program, and they have a good quarterback. Yeah, those are my thoughts.
SPEAKER_00I yeah, I think it was kind of a coin flip for me with Memphis and Cal. And again, if it was reverse, if we were playing Cal first, I would I would have I would have that big as well. Yeah, okay.
SPEAKER_01No, yeah, I haven't switched in that game. I'm just good, you go. Okay, Akron. I think that's a winner. I think we got that. Okay, absolutely. So I think I have Unilev going 10 and 2. You got Unilev going 11 and 1. I hope you're right. I hope I am two. And we got we got no time. All right. We're out. All right, brother. Thanks for being on, Ryan. Appreciate you guys. We'll see you at the games. We see him in Allegiance standby, my bear. Oh my god, we're in Vegas, take care of ourselves today.