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2024 Sun Belt Football: Championship Recap & Coaching Changes
62 Plays4 months ago
Brian and Zeke are joined by Appalachian State superfan and former Underdog Dynasty contributor Aikman Chambers to talk over the Conference Championship Game and Dowell Loggains being hired as the next Mountaineers head coach!
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Transcript
Introduction to 'Warm Weather Fans' Podcast
00:00:15
Speaker
Welcome everybody into another edition of Warm Weather Fans the Sunbelt Podcast. My name is Brian Stone joined as always by Zeke Palermo and glad to have you Aitman Chambers here to talk about everything going on with Appalachian State. ah We got a lot to get to from that side of things, a lot of coaching news, a lot of musical coaching chairs. And I think we should talk about a lot of what went into the decision making, both from the coaches that pursued the individual positions and where the schools kind of stood with everything.
College Football Playoff Decision: Alabama vs SMU
00:00:50
Speaker
But before we get into all that, Zeke, how's it going? And then we'll go to Ekman. How's it going? And then we'll go ahead and get into everything. I'm doing well. It was a really exciting weekend of college football.
00:01:02
Speaker
um The committee finally got at least something right. The playoff committee did by keeping ah Alabama out in favor of of SMU. There's still a long way to go. um and you know you can't expect ah This is unsunbuilt related, but you can't expect ah you know the first iteration to be the right one of this playoff model. ah But it feels like we're still in a very lose-lose situation where no one is happy ever with it.
00:01:32
Speaker
ah And it it predated me a little bit, but I that was not my understanding of like the BCS or you know You were either in or you were out and if you were out it kind of should have should have played better um Overall, I'm good though. Hey come in. Thanks for being here. How are you? yeah Guys, thanks for having me once again. I really do appreciate it. And I'm going to piggyback off what Zeke said with the college football playoff real quick. I'm glad SMU got in. That was a great game last night against Clemson in the ACC championship game. um
00:02:05
Speaker
I know people obviously going to be upset about Alabama being out your SEC hardcore people, but I think the committee got it right again. There's no perfect way to do this. You're not going to make everybody happy. We know that. But all in all, congrats to them. But thanks again to you guys for having
Appalachian State's News: Coaching Change and More
00:02:22
Speaker
me on. It's been a busy week ah in and around Boone with the news coming for Appalachian State. I want to tip my hat to Marshall, say congratulations to the Thundering Heard on a ah well done season.
00:02:35
Speaker
um getting your coach out in the process of winning a conference championship is pretty impressive. So when it's not a move up the ladder, you know, where it's not like a move up to a bigger school where you're going, staying and just going from East Division to West Division, I never thought I'd see anything like it, but here we are.
00:02:57
Speaker
Zeke, going kind of piggybacking off of what you said about Aikman, and I don't know if you could speak to this too, but I am old enough to remember a lot of the BCS stuff. And the number one thing that always comes to my mind, kind of what you were talking about with that was 2004, the year that Auburn, I believe went undefeated and got left out.
00:03:17
Speaker
because it was a two, you know, it was basically we named the championship game and there was no playoff. So that that always stuck with me that like the Jason Campbell Cadillac Williams Ronnie Brown team got, ah you know, they they unfairly got left out, but it was a two team.
00:03:34
Speaker
you know, playoff basically by that point. So it was unfair. I was just glad that the committee kept SMU and Indiana in because those were the two teams where I was afraid that they were going to pull some shenanigans and try to sneak, you know, an Alabama ah you know I grew up my dad as a South Carolina alum. I didn't even really think South Carolina belonged in that mix, even though like I knew they came on strong at the end of the season. But they were just, frankly, you can't lose the LSU game, things like that. So I was just glad that I felt like we got the 12 most deserving, most qualified teams in the playoffs. So that was that was obviously huge. but
00:04:14
Speaker
let's Let's start talking about the the Sunbelt Championship game um from last night before we get into the coaching musical
Sunbelt Championship Game: Marshall vs Louisiana
00:04:21
Speaker
chairs. um So I looked it up. We have not had a competitive Sunbelt championship game technically since 2021. It's been basically three straight blowouts with ah you know Louisiana,
00:04:38
Speaker
Troy, and and now we have Marshall ah just kind of owning you know everything at this point. um you know Obviously Chandler Fields gets hurt, and that kind of did Louisiana Inn because you know Daniel Beale is a freshman and what didn't quite seem ready for the spotlight, to be quite honest. And and you know there's a lot that goes into that. But it reminded me a lot of the quote from the first Fast and Furious movie where Paul Walker goes, I almost had you. And Vin Diesel goes, you never had your car.
00:05:09
Speaker
That's kind of how I felt about Louisiana. They they even if you had a prime Levi Lewis walk through the door and start for the Cajuns, it didn't feel like they were going to win this game to me. I don't know how you guys felt about it. But um Zeke, if you want to give kind of your initial thoughts and then we'll we'll go to Ekman and see what he kind of thought about it.
00:05:29
Speaker
Yeah, ah the quarterback situation was obviously ah put Louisiana in a situation where no matter how good they could have played, it ultimately wasn't going to matter. um Obviously Beals first college snaps, so I don't expect him to go out there and play like offensive player of the year, Ben Woldridge.
00:05:51
Speaker
ah But I was very discouraged by what I did see out of him. It was very panicky and when he not once did I see him step up in a pocket and anytime he had the opportunity to throw, ah it was well off target. um So with that said, you know Louisiana was in a position where like an unwinnable position to start with.
00:06:15
Speaker
um However, it didn't get the support it needed it allowed 31 points. ah Far too many to allow Marshall to score ah and they let Braylon Braxton play really out of his mind. ah This guy has over the past several weeks really since he got the starting job proved that he is.
00:06:37
Speaker
probably the second best quarterback in the conference at least this season. ah Possibly behind Waldridge and you could even argue that he might have surpassed him in the offensive player of the year award just kind of went based on games played.
00:06:51
Speaker
um it It was a tough situation for Louisiana. um I was very adamant that Marshall was going to win this game. I was ah i was very very certain of it. um and I'm willing to give myself a mulligan because of the quarterback situation.
00:07:07
Speaker
But that's not to dismiss what Marshall did. They they played very well. ah We saw Mike Green really disrupt the game ah even without. like I don't think he recorded many tackles or sacks, but you could see and they pointed out on the broadcast several times that he was drawing so much attention from the offensive line that it opened up the run game for.
00:07:27
Speaker
the non AJ Turner running backs Brian I know you said that that was going to be a big factor in this game whether or not AJ Turner played it didn't end up mattering because Ethan Payne and the bevy of running backs they have there and it also just allowed ah other guys in um did you know other guys to feast on that defensive line
00:07:51
Speaker
Takeman. Honestly, I'm like Zeke said, I thought Marshall was going to
Marshall's Season Overview and Key Players
00:07:56
Speaker
win the whole way. ah I've been a fan of Braylon Braxton since earlier in the year when App went to Huntington and Braylon Braxton combined for 200.
00:08:07
Speaker
70 yards of ah offense against us. I mean, he threw for like 129 130 ran for a buck 40 and a couple of scores through three touchdowns and that 52 37 win against us. And i I said, then this kid is going to be really good. I was like, it's the all the attributes are there for him to be a really good quarterback.
00:08:30
Speaker
And, you know, that I just thought going into yesterday's game with the quarterback situation at Louisiana, with the way that that was, but that was especially as we saw it play out last night in the game. and To me, Marshall has been the team all year. I know Louisiana is the one everybody's looked at, but I thought, honestly, when the cards were down and the chips were on the table, Marshall was a team I did not want to play. If I was anybody in the Western Division, Marshall was the team out of the East I did not want to play.
00:09:00
Speaker
Yeah, we were we were really pounding the drum early for Braylon Braxton to come in and play because, frankly, we we saw what they had or I guess what they didn't have in Cole Pennington last season and it was ugly. And when when they started off this season with Stone Earl.
00:09:18
Speaker
I think we all just kind of got together. Zeke, Matt and I got together collectively and was just like, this guy just doesn't have it. Like he he's not going to bring the the added dimension that this team needs. I said all year that I thought Marshall was the second best team in the conference. And frankly, from what I saw on Saturday, I was wrong. Like they were the best. They are the best team in the conference. Like they're even better than Louisiana. I don't know. I don't know. Again, if you threw Woolridge out there,
00:09:47
Speaker
i don't know that it changes the ultimate result like i think it's a lot closer i think it's probably in the 24 21 ish range but i still like marshall brxton was just throwing dimes i mean that that touchdown he hit uh I can't remember who who the receiver was. It wasn't the Braylon Brown score, or no, no, it was the Braylon Brown score. the The one he hit in the corner of the end zone when he just, I mean, it was like a back shoulder type throw and and the corner just absolutely had no shot to get to it. I was just like, this is this is what it takes to win a conference title is like throw big time throws like that.
00:10:26
Speaker
They were running the ball at will. They ran the ball for 222 yards as a team, including 117 from ah Jordan Houston, which was huge. um Yeah, it it just felt like they got control of this game. You had fields go out and then they just never really relinquished control of it. And so what you end up with is is basically a route. And again, I think with Woldridge Louisiana plays obviously a lot better and plays a lot closer of a game but I just with some of the th throws that Braxton was making like I don't know I don't know what in what world those corners could make plays on some of those balls like the first one he threw the 37 yard touchdown to get it started there wasn't anybody within
00:11:09
Speaker
five, 10 yards of the receiver that caught it. So like how how much is Waldridge ultimately changing the outcome of that one? And I know that Matt was ah you know calling out on the Braylon Brown touchdown that there was a push off, but I'm like, I don't know, man. like it it It probably was, but ultimately, OK, you could lose 24 to 3 instead of 31 to 3 at that point. like don I don't um't really understand how much that changes things. So again,
00:11:38
Speaker
I think we need to, I'm personally going to give the ultimate credit here to Charles Huff because it is very easy when you're in this situation to have your, let your team get distracted and say, Hey, we don't know where coach is going to be like on Sunday. We don't know where any of us are going to end up. You know, we, like, like Zeke said, Braylon Braxton could be in the transfer portal. So I just think to keep them laser focused and locked in on this game,
00:12:07
Speaker
I obviously think it was a great job by him, but it was obviously a great job, too, by the players because they could have easily looked around and and said, ah you know, we don't we don't know what the motivation or whatever is. They played for themselves at that point as well as Huff. So I give them ultimate credit for that because they were absolutely locked in from the jump. And Zeke, like you said, Mike Green was the um Sunbelt Player of the Year, he only finished with five tackles, three solo tackles, one sack, and one and a half tackles for a loss. Now, obviously, they were really focused in on him, but to to nullify a guy of that level and still not even come close to kind of cracking the code is, I mean, what what else can you say really about Marshall's defense at this point?
00:12:51
Speaker
yeah I agree that this was ultimately – don't tell Russell Westbrook I'm saying this, but this was Marshall's win more so than it was Louisiana's loss. Braxton is in the portal. ah He announced today or told ESPN today. So ah as I'm sure a Bevy – I already used the word Bevy – a multitude, let's say, of Marshall guys are going to do over the next couple days.
00:13:20
Speaker
um It's difficult because I don't know a time that we've seen a team win the conference and then look at them with such So many questions looking into the next year. They're gonna have a new head coach They're gonna lose probably again at at the very least the most exciting quarterback most well-rounded quarterback in the conference um You know so
00:13:46
Speaker
I can't remember a time and again you guys have been around this conference longer than I so I'll ask you it has there been a time where after the conference championship even the day after you look and you say. I don't know what this Marshall teams going to be next year.
00:14:03
Speaker
um That's tough, honestly. yeah and we We haven't seen kind of a mass exodus like this, where you know it's one thing when it's, um what was it, 2021 Louisiana, and you knew you were who you were losing and who wasn't coming back and you knew Billy Napier was out the door and all those sorts of things. But it's another thing when it's like, a lot of these guys still have eligibility and they're just all like,
00:14:30
Speaker
you know, Huff's our coach, they could end up in Hattiesburg or they could end up, you know, with a P4 school elsewhere. I think it's just a different, a different situation all around because I obviously can't think of a time where a team won their conference championship and then let their coach go you know, and whether you whether you think it's Huff didn't want the extension or whether the school didn't want to give it to him, you know, that that's all like, you know, up to interpretation. And really, only a couple people know that at this point. But I've just never heard of a coach winning the conference and then just kind of sidestepping to another school in the same conference. Like, that's just that's hard to fathom for me.
00:15:11
Speaker
That's the biggest thing for me too, is like the whole situation is just, it feels so awkward because again, you normally when we've seen things like this happen before, it was Napier was gone to Florida, Drankowitz was gone to Missouri. I mean, it's been that that step up into the power five venture. When this is the opposite of that, this is you're staying in the conference, you're going to a school that's in an opposite division,
00:15:40
Speaker
there's There's just so many things about this that I think just feels very odd. It's the other thing that's going to be really interesting to see. And, you know, we know that ah Braxton's in the portal, but we brought this up last week. akman It's going to be really interesting to see how many players follow Huff or if they do at all. Like we we we truly don't know at this point. Like I'm sure the players love him. Obviously, they got up for this game, played for him.
00:16:06
Speaker
um But it's going to be really interesting to see if any of those guys say, you know, I just love Huff so much that I'll go to this team that kind of looks like I equated it to Colorado before Dion Sanders came in, where it's like, I don't know, man, like there's not a lot over there. Like you're you're really going to have to rebuild this thing from ground zero. And so.
00:16:30
Speaker
If Braxton decides, hey, I want to be a part of that, that I'm sure Huff would love that because that's a huge starting block because, frankly, Southern Miss's offensive or a quarterback situation has been a mess for a while. So he would be a huge get. Now, i you know with NIL and everything, you don't know if, like,
00:16:49
Speaker
the Auburns or whatever of the world come calling you know those teams that always seem to need a quarterback decide hey uh you know you can make uh some pretty good money over here why don't you come why don't you come look at Arkansas or whoever so it that there there always is a lot to that remains to be seen but I just again, hats off to Huff hats off to this team, they they locked in when they absolutely needed to, you know, two weeks ago, they were down 17 to nothing at half the JMU and their their chance to make the conference title game was on the line. And from then on, they've just been kind of a well oiled machine. I mean, it's been six quarters of just like terminator level efficiency. So good job by them. Yeah.
00:17:36
Speaker
So do we want to transition off of this game?
Lack of Competitiveness in Recent Championships
00:17:41
Speaker
That's all there is to really say. It sucks to say, but again, we've had all these conference championship games in a row that are just not really all that competitive. There's not a lot to discuss. Marshall kind of was on it from the jump and Louisiana was just kind of playing catch up the whole time.
00:18:00
Speaker
So let's go ahead and we will. Zeke, do you have anything else before? me No, no, I just it's unfortunate. It's sad. Yeah. ah So I mean, I feel like we were sad, but we were lucky to get 18 minutes out of that conference championship game to talk about. Honestly, like it was I would have been shocked if we'd had got to 10. But let's start to
Appalachian State's Coaching Search: Neil Brown's Role
00:18:20
Speaker
talk about. So we talked about huff leaving. And that's something that we've discussed kind of ad nauseam here on this podcast and you know, obviously, he's a huge gift for Southern Miss considering what they were dealing with with the will haul situation. Um, ache, but do you want to dive into the the app state coaching situation? um I think one of the interesting things today was that
00:18:44
Speaker
It was revealed that um Purdue is not actually going to hire Tyson Hilton from Western Kentucky. Again, I know this is not directly Sunbelt related, but there are a lot of dominoes that kind of fell. They're not going to get Tyson Hilton from Western Kentucky. So as of today, there's no opening at Western Kentucky. So Neil Brown, who seemed like he was the shoe in to get the job in Boone,
00:19:06
Speaker
now might be left without a job for this season. So maybe he just takes the year off, goes back to the drawing board, he pulls a Cliff Kingsbury and goes to Thailand for a year or whatever. But, you know, he might have a lot of free time on his hands in 2025. So do you want to kind of take us through kind of what your experience with the coaching search stuff was?
00:19:26
Speaker
It's been a crazy week. I know that much. So many things. If you would have asked me this time last Sunday as where we were sitting, this was pre it being announced that Sean Clark was fired. I told somebody last Saturday night after the Georgia Southern game, um,
00:19:46
Speaker
They asked me they said what percentage do you give it that Sean Clark is fired to brought back and I said 6040 60 that I thought he was going to be fired 40 that I thought he would be brought back and I I bumped up.
00:20:02
Speaker
I thought bringing back because I thought Hurricane Helene did make an impact on the football program this year with what he he had to deal with with that. Plus, I mean, slus and slus of injuries that were just misfortunate and untimely injuries.
00:20:19
Speaker
I thought the move might would be if they bring him back that he's got a clean house on staff and that would mean defensive coordinator scouts flown and offensive coordinator Frank Ponce would have to go out the door and maybe they would give him one more year since he is App State through and through and bleeds black and gold. ah But that's not the decision they came to. It's the decision I thought would happen. Again, I gave it 60-40 that he would be fired and that's what happened. so By the time Tuesday evening, Wednesday morning rolled around, I really thought this was going to be where Neil Brown ended up. I thought he was going to come to Boone, North Carolina. I thought he was going to trade one Mountaineer in for another, and I ah thought he was going to be App State's head coach. Well then, bye.
00:21:08
Speaker
Thursday evening into Friday they started being rumblings that you know he he likes that western Kentucky job he's a Kentucky guy born and raised about two hours or so from where western Kentucky's at because a lot of people thought maybe Helton was the guy Purdue would be zeroed in on for their job um before Barry Odom emerged and at at UNLV today and so I think When that happened, it sent off a chain reaction where apps started lining up up these other guys they had interviewed. Logins had been interviewed even though the talks with Neil Brown were going on from what I understood. I know that Casey Woods, the offensive coordinator from SMU, was a big name they were looking at.
00:21:58
Speaker
ah Sparky Woods's son, Sparky Woods was a former head coach at App State right before Jerry Moore in the 80s. So that was that App State connection there. ah Kirby Moore was a guy that I know they apparently had a lot of interest in, the offensive coordinator at Missouri. I'm sure the Drinkwitz connection there did not hurt by any means and necessary. Because if you know how App State works,
00:22:22
Speaker
They like to stay with somebody that has some sort of connection to the football program. It's kind of the way they've done in their hiring cycles. Drankowitz was outside the box and it worked. Drankowitz worked. They ended up having to go outside the box I think because of the Neil Brown situation. It forced other dominoes to fall and thus yesterday at five o'clock when there was an emergency board of trustees meeting that was called in Boone and then it was announced that Dow Loggins would be the new head coach, the offensive coordinator from South Carolina. and It's not the guy that if yeah even even Friday going into Saturday morning that I would have bet you. my my
00:23:08
Speaker
guess would have been that it was just holding out to announce because Casey Woods has got to play the ACC championship game in Charlotte Saturday night, then he can get up and drive on over to Boone Sunday and have some kind of formal thing done tomorrow ah to get this done. So it shocked me, it shocked a lot of people.
00:23:28
Speaker
A lot of people in Boone that I've talked to were surprised that this was the move they made. But again, this is the move they've made. So now we're going to see he got a five-year deal. So it's through 2029. They're giving him time. These first few weeks with the transfer portal is going to be crucial because a lot of key contributors off of this football team has went into the transfer portal over the last two, three, four, five days since the announcement that Sean Clark would not come back.
00:23:56
Speaker
as the head coach. um So, ah i'm I'm curious to see what he does. I mean, he had a good year this year, but you also had Lenora Sellers at quarterback, so that makes a big difference. um You had a really good running back at South Carolina, too. And the thing about it is with logins, as I look through his resume, yeah, there's a lot of NFL background coaching on his resume.
00:24:19
Speaker
But there's not a lot of stays where it goes more than two or three years. I mean, we're talking very short tenured at a lot of places. There's a few one year and done's at some of these places he's been. ah That's the thing I'm worried about a little bit is from the standpoint of.
00:24:38
Speaker
you know two or three years down the
Concerns Over Appalachian State's New Coach, Dow Loggins
00:24:40
Speaker
road are we looking for a new head coach because a he's went right back up to the power five power power four ranks or is it just because he's flamed out and we're back to the football program is on a worse downward trajectory than what some people perceive it to be already under sean clark these last few years i mean I know that the Sean Clark critics are a mass and ah all around in our Northwest, North Carolina area, especially, but I mean, again, when you look at what he done at Appalachian, I mean, 40 and 24 in his 10 years, not horrible from a winning percentage situation, but
00:25:26
Speaker
five and six this year two out of the last three years you miss a bowl game because two years ago when you went six and six two of those wins were against fcs schools and only one of those can count towards your bowl eligibility record so it's not what the program's used to it's not what the fan base is used to it's ah i understand why they did it but I'm still a little skeptical. I'm in a weight ah heavy wait and see mode. I want to see how the portal goes these next couple of weeks. I want to see, is he able to bring any of our guys back? Is he able to possibly bring you know one or two transfers from South Carolina that have went in the portal the last day or two that have connections with him on ah offense? you know what What does this start to look like and what staff does he bring with him?
00:26:16
Speaker
Because there's a guy at South Carolina that is a former Mountaineer that is the tight end's coach. It's South Carolina and Shawn Elliott, former Georgia State head coach, and I think it makes too much sense to try and bring Shawn Elliott to Boone with him on his staff. It's an App State move to make. App State loves making these kinds of moves. You could you know you can make him the ah offensive line, tight ends coach, assistant head coach, whatever you want to do since he's been a head coach at the Sunbelt level. I would like to at least see if he's able to bring Shawn Elliott with him to Boone.
00:26:52
Speaker
That was something I was going to ask about because the name I was surprised we didn't hear anything about was Sean Elliott. Now granted I have a bias here ah because I am a Georgia State guy, but that felt like at least worth an interview. um you know He was in a very limited ceiling when he was at Georgia State, but you know he was not fired. He left on his own terms there. um So i was I'm glad you brought up the Sean Elliott part because That was a name I was shocked didn't come up at all in these conversations during the search. Do I have that wrong? Was that ever brought up? you know No, i and I never talked to anybody that mentioned Sean Elliott's name outright in this process. ah Part of me believed Sean Elliott just got tired of being a head coach in this landscape.
00:27:41
Speaker
of college football, especially at the group of five level where you're you're a ever turning factory where it's a different team year in and year out. And just because you recruit at a high school doesn't necessarily mean anything as much anymore. And I think like a lot of guys, whether it be college football or college basketball, I think Sean Elliott found that life is just a positions coach and and an assistant coach, be a lot less of a headache and still make a pretty good living at at being able to do it, but I think he would be the perfect kind of guy to bring
00:28:16
Speaker
Taboon, if Loggins is able to maneuver it right, I think, you know, give him that ah associate head coach, assistant head coach title, you know, offensive line, tight ends, you know, group two or three, you know, stoppings, salary maneuvers in here together, because I think a guy like Sean Elliott is going to help with his connection and, you know, love for the university that he has from being a former Mountaineer at playing for Jerry Moore, I just think it makes too much sense not to have Shawn Elliott and Boone if they can make it happen.
00:28:50
Speaker
Well, the the one thing that I had a question about, and I guess this is this could be rhetorical because we'll never know, but Zeke, didn't you say one of the big things, and again, I know that the title would be different. He wouldn't be the head coach in this case. Didn't you say one of the things about him coaching at Georgia State was that he would he was still living in Columbia or in South Carolina and and wouldn't relocate to Atlanta? So the thing that I would be interested in is does he end up, if he gets an assistant head coach title, does he end up having to, is that on the table? Does he have to relocate to Boone full time and say, Hey, you know, I'm in this for the long haul, yeah you know, because Zeke said one of the things was his family like really loved living there and and frankly, just didn't want to move to Atlanta, which I totally get, but also
00:29:42
Speaker
there come a level of responsibility that you kind of have to assume when you're an assistant head coach or even by extension and offensive line coach or a Titans coach or whatever his title may be. So ah again, I don't know that we have an answer to that because that'll be something that remains to be seen, but that's something else that it kind of needs to be factored in as well.
00:30:01
Speaker
we We won't know that that's something that's probably going to remain in Sean Elliott's head until the end of time that, you know, but us outsiders will ever get to know. But ah as an anecdote, the first time I ever spoke with Sean Elliott, it was in a press conference and I just asked him what his offseason looked like. And, you know, he he joked that he spent the whole summer on his boat. um And if you know anything about Georgia, you know, there's not many lakes in the Atlanta area.
00:30:30
Speaker
And the ones that are there are either haunted or man. Well all man-made and all haunted ah so ah you know I but Based on my interactions with him. I it it would seem that Boone would be a better fit for him than Atlanta ah Family and lifestyle wise but again, that's something that's gonna remain internal Up in his head until someone asks him about it Yeah, the thing you know Moving to Boone, North Carolina is such a much more laid back atmosphere than you know Atlanta by I mean it's not even in comparison that you can put the two together unless you ask a you know lifelong local or semi-local somebody like me who's lived near Boone. I'm about 35-40 minutes from Boone right down the mountain and has seen it explode in my lifetime from a place where
00:31:25
Speaker
You could easily travel through to now it's like bumper to bumper traffic all the time and you're like, what has happened to this mountain town because it's just exploded over the last 10 years. But yes, it would i think I think you could get him and his family to move to Boone. I think it's a totally different animal to move to Boone than it would be to move to Atlanta.
00:31:45
Speaker
um it I think deep down, I think it's some, I guarantee you it's at least a conversation that's at least been thought about. If you're a logins, how do you not have that thought or conversation to be like, Sean, you played here, you coached here. I mean, you know, this place, they know you, they love you. I mean, it makes too much sense not to at least pick up the phone and shoot him a text and be like, would you be interested if I could make it happen?
00:32:14
Speaker
Aikman, let me ask you about this because obviously Scott Sloan was the defensive coordinator at Georgia Southern before he went to, I guess went back to Appalachian State.
Critique of Appalachian State's Defensive Strategy
00:32:25
Speaker
um Tell me if this was always my, and and again, I've watched a handful of app state out App State games this year, you're much more plugged in kind of with their program than I am.
00:32:37
Speaker
Tell me if this sounds familiar because this was always the issue that we had with Sloan at Southern, especially toward the end of the Lunsford era was defensively his entire scheme and I know that you could say this about a lot of defensive coordinators is solely predicated on getting pressure with like four guys because defensively it all works in kind of levels when you are getting consistent pressure and you have a pass rusher that you feel like hey you know maybe not on a mike green level but hey that guy is gonna go get after the quarterback
00:33:09
Speaker
And when it doesn't happen that way, the secondary has a lot of communication issues was something that I saw a lot at at Southern, like specifically in the safety spots, we had a lot of safeties getting lost, ah especially when, you know, if you're playing too high and a guy runs a post between the two safeties, I mean, we had a bunch of times where there would just be nobody near the receiver and both the safeties are pointing at each other. Like it's the Spiderman meme being like, no, that was, that was yours. Not not me. No, no.
00:33:38
Speaker
So tell me if that sounds familiar from a defensive experience, because that was kind of what got slow. I think Sloan might have been retained if if defensively they didn't look so bad in Lunsford's final season.
00:33:51
Speaker
The defense has been a ah spot all year that has just underperformed and underwhelmed. I mean, ah I can't count to you the times where, you know, it was missed tackles. Just tackling was an issue I felt like this year. Guys were not tackling well. ah community The secondary, the miscommunication in the secondary was horrendous. Many, many games.
00:34:20
Speaker
this year, whether it was safeties getting lost, whether it was corners taking bad angles, uh, on receivers running routes. I mean, and then no, the pass rush situation, you know, three or four guys rushing toward the quarterback, it felt like 80 or 90% of the time.
00:34:41
Speaker
Our linebackers were not good enough to get home when you called blitzes, especially in the middle, I felt like. And quite frankly, I mean, we've got some of these defensive linemen that don't crack the 300-pound mark. I mean, you know, you're at like 275, 280, and you're going up against an offensive guard or an offensive tackle that's, you know, 6'4", 315, 6'3", 310.
00:35:10
Speaker
Eventually, as they wear on you throughout the process of a game, when they're running the football and leaning on you, you're going to wear down because you're just not big enough. I mean, speed, athleticism, Santana Hopper is a freak when you look at what he's able to do at his size, the way he runs, the way he can jump. like the The dude is a freak. If I'm not mistaken, in the preseason, he made the athletics like top 150 freaks list in college football. I think it's part of the reason he's in the transfer portal, but you know he had other issues of he's been kicked out of two or three games over the last two or three years. He was you know that preseason video that made the rounds of the app player taking the helmet, hitting the guy in the head. Well, I can tell you who that was.
00:36:01
Speaker
ah so You see what I'm saying, like, there's just so many things, this defense that frustrated me. I mean, I was frustrated with the ah offense too, like a lot of us were this year, because this felt like another quarterback that has gotten worse, the second go round in Ponce's system, as we have progressed, you whether it was Joey, whether it was Bryce, whether it was Zach, it just felt like there was a drop off, the second go round in Ponce's system. and so
00:36:33
Speaker
At least with bringing in a new head coach, this means a new offensive coordinator. um This means a new defensive coordinator. i Most of the people that I talked to, and I talked to some people that are pretty plugged in well with the program, there was a lot of people ready for Sloan to be gone by week seven or eight. like Let's cut the guy loose early. Let's figure it out. Let somebody else coach the defense the rest of the way. I think the defensive letdown was one of the biggest issues of the year and one of the most disappointing things that AP went through this year was the defensive issues with Sloane.
00:37:12
Speaker
Yeah. Um, so I, I have a question for you. So with all of the names that we heard in this coaching search, we heard, you know, woods, we heard Neil Brown, we heard, ah you know, it eventually ended up being logins. Like of all the guys we heard about, who did you personally want for app states next head coach when this was all kind of unfolding? Like you, again, we heard a lot of different names.
00:37:36
Speaker
We did and there was there was quite a few guys interviewed from what I understand um that that took place. They were interested in this job, honestly and truly. I was going to be happy with Neil Brown because I felt like it was a spot where Neil could land and reassess because regardless of how things went at West Virginia.
00:37:57
Speaker
Neil Brown's a good football coach. look what I think he was, what, 32 and eight his last three years at Troy, something like that, 30 something and eight. yeah And we know how good Troy was those last couple of years ah when he was there. I thought the fact that he had been a proven successful coach in the Sunbelt at the Group of Five level, I think it was the perfect place for him to land, you know, take three to five years and take Appalachian right back to where many expect him to be. And that's near competing for a spot in the Sunbelt Championship game ah in the East of Division before another power for school came calling for him again, which if he's successful, that's that's what happens. It's just the nature of college football that we're in now. And that was that was the guy that I was going to be the happiest with. Like, number one on my list would have been Neil Brown.
00:38:53
Speaker
And number two. that's where it gets choppy for me because the names I heard, nobody just stood out as a proven commodity at number two. Number two was going to be, so I guess in a way you could say Loggins Falls at number two because I would group him in with the Casey Woods and the Kirby Moores or whatever else just because they're unproven commodities. yeah if you Now from a name perspective, you could rank one, two, three, but as far as grouping them together,
00:39:25
Speaker
You know, they're all all there together. I felt like Casey Woods would have made a lot of sense just because that app state connection with his dad and the way that, again, that like I've already said, the way that app likes to keep those connections, you know, to the football program, to the university when it comes to making their football hires, but
00:39:47
Speaker
Again, it's not Neil Brown. So um he's he's not a proven head coach. you know He's had one good offensive season in South Carolina with Lenora Sellers. Again, I will state with Lenora Sellers, when you have a kid like him at quarterback, it makes life as an offensive coordinator a lot easier when you have a quarterback that is a dual threat guy that can do the things that Sellers does.
00:40:12
Speaker
ah because you look at the other years, the ah offense and the SEC hasn't really ranked that well. It's been more toward the bottom end of the conference. um But again, you know, in this day and age, you pull a bigger, you know, a couple of big transfers, you get a difference making wide receiver on the outside. and You get, you know, a couple of guys, the defense has got to address many spots on defense. You know, God bless whoever takes this defensive coordinator position because There's going to be a lot of retooling coming out of the toolbox with this. and And I'll be honest, I don't think the quarterback that starts for Appalachian in that Charlotte game, first game of the season in 25 is on the roster currently. I don't think Billy Wiles, even though he's got the eligibility to come back, I don't believe Billy Wiles is the starter. We saw enough of that at Southern Miss before coming back in the transfer portal.
00:41:06
Speaker
um ah so ah I think they go to the portal for a quarterback, you know, whether who that could be. I don't know. I've been keeping a close eye to see if any of the backup quarterbacks that we don't really know about from South Carolina that have familiarity in ah logins offense.
00:41:26
Speaker
goes into the portal because I think that would make sense from that kind of standpoint if it's a kid who knows now for sure like as long as Lenora Sellers is around and he does if he doesn't get hurt then I'm never going to see the field it would only make sense for you to follow your offensive coordinator I feel like but you know so I'm I'm Curious to see because there's a lot of retooling that has to be done and because there's there's talent that went out off this team. Into the portal Kanye Roberts is going into the portal doesn't mean he can't come back there's a chance that you know logins picks up the phone so look Kanye we need you back because.
00:42:05
Speaker
we've seen That's been one of the more frustrating parts with this offense the last couple of years with Ponce and with Clark is running backs find their way into the doghouse very easily at Appalachian, whether it was Cameron Peeples, whether it was Kanye Roberts, like they found they found their way into the doghouse, whether it was a fumble here or a fumble there, you still don't take one of your best weapons off the field.
00:42:28
Speaker
and and put him in timeout for multiple games and for multiple series because Kanye Roberts and Cameron Peoples are difference makers when they're on the field. So maybe Kanye comes back. I would like to see Kanye come back because I think he can be a really good running back, especially getting him healthy. That's that's a main thing too, where he got hurt this year, but there was issues that but before that, before he ever got hurt with him,
00:42:57
Speaker
getting on the wrong side of the coaching staff. And so, I don't know. there're There's just so many guys, I mean, that have went out on this ah offense and on this defense over the last few days. It just felt feels like my Twitter feed is never ending of, oh, well, this app state player's in the portal. This app state player's in the portal. Loggins has got his work cut out for him because there's a lot of reshuffling and retooling that's got to be done.
00:43:22
Speaker
And I mean, on top of that, you just have all of this kind of unknown, especially even with Loggins, and you don't even really know kind of what you're getting from him. You know, like, I i tweeted this, frankly, like my personal reaction, you know, putting the fandom stuff aside was,
00:43:45
Speaker
yeah like there he basically like what you said, you know, he had sellers and sellers has shown to be Incredibly dynamic and and again my dad It went to South Carolina is a Gamecock fan like has been his entire life and he texted me when app hired Loggins and was just kind of like He was like, good luck to him. I guess like that's kind of been the, the overall sentiment from South Carolina fans that I've seen has not been, Oh no, we lost this great offensive mind that we don't, in fact, they've been like, great. Let's get Shula, the quarterbacks coach promoted. And so we don't lose him has been made the main thing or, you know, sayonara, you know, best of luck with your future endeavors, not like
00:44:34
Speaker
Oh man, like this could be a huge blow to us. We don't know how to replace this this production logins to me. What I remember him from was being Mike Vrabel's offensive coordinator with the Titans and and I know the quarterback situation there toward the end of the Vrabel tenure was not good. Like i I totally get that. You know the the wash Tannehill into rookie Will Levis slash you know whoever else years. Those were some rough.
00:45:02
Speaker
rough patches, and it's not really gotten better since. But I just, I i don't know, man, like this higher to me, if I'm judging it as a totally like unbiased person, I'm like, this is going to be a big wait and see with me. So, you know, good luck. Good luck with with that for app state, I guess.
00:45:20
Speaker
Yeah, I think that's a lot of people because I mean, I seen somebody they had post on Twitter. I think it was yesterday where who lives in South Carolina works in South Carolina. And, you know, they said, you know, we've never seen a fan base be so happy to see their offensive coordinator be sent off to be a head coach at this level. Like, it doesn't happen often. And there there's where my red flags go up is like,
00:45:48
Speaker
Why are they so okay with losing a guy who gave them their best offensive season in half a decade or more? like there's just ah Again, I'm a heavy weight and C mode. I want it to work. I want it to be three, four years from now. We've won one or two Sunbelt championships. We're competing you know to be ranked in the top 25 to end the year.
00:46:19
Speaker
ah with a group of five bid, you know, to the college football playoffs, blah, blah, blah. That's how we want it to end. That's how I want it to end. But I'm in wait and see mode. I don't expect it by no means. You know, this is is one of those deals where it's like, we've got to see how it goes. And I'll be honest, I don't know that we can react to whatever 2025. If he comes out and goes six and six in 2025, and you barely get bowl eligible,
00:46:48
Speaker
or you go five and seven and miss a bowl game in his first year. I don't know that I'm going to tell you I'm going to be shocked that that is the case. ah It's not what I want to happen because it's not what App State's football tradition is built on or what its history is. But I would not be surprised if we're sitting here 365 days from now and App either squeaked in a late season win to be bowl eligible or they just missed the cut again just because I think
00:47:19
Speaker
I could see a scenario where it takes him a year to really get his feet under him and readdress the transfer portal and everything else. I want to pivot the conversation to another what I felt was fairly underwhelming hire and that would be at Marshall Tony Gibson.
Tony Gibson as Marshall's New Head Coach: Fans' Skepticism
00:47:38
Speaker
ah Previously the defensive coordinator at NC State where he was hot and cold at times. ah there were There were several years where his defenses were Among the better in the country, but you know you look at this year. They've got two games where they allowed 50 My interpretation of Marshall fans stance on this is that it is incredibly underwhelming um I'm very unwowed by it ah this seems like a higher similar to ah To logins where the NC State folks are saying don't let the door hit you on your way out
00:48:18
Speaker
ah and And I just personally don't love the higher. I'd love to hear what you guys have to say about it.
00:48:28
Speaker
in I'm not I'm not really a fan, to be quite honest with you. ah Sorry, I pulled this tweet up just because I thought it was interesting. So Marshall's football to ah chief of staff, I just wanted to throw this in because we were already on Marshall.
00:48:44
Speaker
tweeted this out at 2 17 a.m this morning which is you know a hell of a time to tweet something out he says no don't y'all pretenders this is charade ever it uh don't y'all pretenders try to jump on the bandwagon now remember when you gave up on our players and staff remember when you gave up on our head coach charles huff oh y'all quiet now so i just thought that was that was an interesting tweet obviously he was uh aggrieved by the the uh reaction that the fans gave, I think last year with Fancher and that whole situation and how that played out and how I think didn't huff come out and kind of blame the fans for him transferring out and things like that. So yeah, there was a lot of like interesting things that all came into play there. As far as Tony, Tony Gibson goes, I think it's, I think it's kind of underwhelming, you know, it's not, you know, if I'm, a if I'm a fan of a team that's coming off of a conference championship,
00:49:42
Speaker
You know, it's one thing when you have to replace your coach if they leave for an SEC school. It's another when you're replacing a coach that's moving within the conference and replacing them with someone like Tony Gibson. And I would just say, you know, and I know there's a lot of apparently bad blood between Huff and the athletic department or vice versa. I don't really know how all of that worked out.
00:50:04
Speaker
I would just feel short changed personally. And I know that they, they, as, as Marshall fans, they want a coach that wants to be there. And I think that they, a lot of fans got the vibe that Huff simply just didn't want to be there toward the, especially the last couple of years. And they just both kind of felt it was almost like a marriage that was ending, you know, and they they both feel trapped, but they're, they're hiring, you know, divorce attorneys and they're trying to figure it all out. I just am like, Tony Gibson for me,
00:50:34
Speaker
I remember when Georgia Southern was hiring a new head coach in 2016 coming off of the Willie Fritz era, and Tony Gibson's name was actually one of those that was in contention. Was he the one that I wanted? Absolutely not, because I personally wanted a Brent Pry or a ah a Chadwell was in play at that point. He hadn't moved over from Charleston Southern. Tony Gibson just, you look at his resume and you're like,
00:51:03
Speaker
Yeah, but I'm pretty sure David do da Doran at NC State's a defensive guy at heart, right? So it's like, is it his defense? is it yeah you know And Gibson was also the DC, I think at West Virginia at the time when Georgia Southern eventually hired the dud that was Tyson Summers. But I was just like, even when I was looking at him at West Virginia, I'm like,
00:51:26
Speaker
I don't know man this 335 front they run it's kind of gimmicky like it works sometimes and then other times if you find a a team that you can play against that can run the ball consistently like that can break that front so this is another wait and see especially with the number of players that are leaving it's kind of the same thing as app a little bit where it's like you look at the number of guys in the portal new coach New scheme, who knows where any of those guys, especially on the defensive side of the ball, which is his forte kind of stand within that scheme. Does he want any of these guys back? Do they want to be there? So there's just a lot that's up in the air. And I, I'm just kind of.
00:52:05
Speaker
man I think I think is kind of I. I think Southern Miss is ultimately the winner when it comes down to this musical chairs that we've had in the Sunbelt because you get a proven coach who just won a Sunbelt championship with a team that could have easily been distracted and not played up to their full potential. And if anything, they did the opposite of that and actually I think played as good as they were above their heads. So I think that says a lot about Huff as a coach.
00:52:33
Speaker
So well we'll see how it all pans out. But I'm just pretty, I'm whelmed. Let's say that. I'm whelmed with the Tony Gibson hire. And ah Tony Gibson was a name that was in the running for the Am State job at one point ah this week, too. I know he had turned Charlotte down first, as many guys did this week. And then he yeah he he took his name out of the hat at App, too. And I got to believe, with the way the situation unfolded with Huff, you got to believe he kind of had the idea that Marshall was going to be the place he ended up. I would love to know if Marshall
00:53:12
Speaker
ever reached out to Neil Brown at any point during all this to at least say, you know, you want to stay in the state and just come ah come leave Morgantown and come to Huntington, you know,
00:53:24
Speaker
What would it hurt to call? um I mean, to check and see. But I mean, yeah, ah Southern Miss definitely won the the cycle in the Sunbelt. They're number one. and You really don't know who to rank two. I mean, I guess you could say give the edge to Marshall since they just won the conference championship. go Give them the edge at two and then put app at three. ah But they're both unknown commodities at this point. And, you know, NC State's been a team that it's felt like The last three years or so, three or four years, how many times have we heard preseason like NC State's going to be one of those teams that can crash the college football playoff, NC State's whether I got a really good friend of mine who is a diehard plugged in NC State Wolfpack guy.
00:54:12
Speaker
And, you know, he he's been a little skeptical. he did He even told me earlier in the week, he's like, you know, I don't mind if App hires Gibson. Like, I'm not going to be upset if he goes necessarily. But ah when you had guys too the last couple of years, like Peyton Wilson, and you had just game changers and difference makers, it makes you look a lot better.
00:54:37
Speaker
as a coach when you have guys like that on the field, kind of that same equation of, you know, sellers and logins, you know. Well, Gibson had, he had Peyton Wilson for, you know, two out of the last three years or whatever before this year. But NC State has constantly underperformed its felt like the past, you know, three years. So, I don't know. I'll be curious to see, I mean, again,
00:55:03
Speaker
Who's to say at some point his relationship with the athletic department at Marshall doesn't get strained either? I mean, we're gonna, we'll reach a point with this thing at Marshall where it's like, okay, when do we start to see that it's not necessarily who the coach is, but where the athletic department and AD and things are where it falls more that they're more of the issue than the coach they bring in?
00:55:29
Speaker
Aikman, the funny thing is, and I said this, we had ah Noah Frary from the Frary and Smith podcast that that recently ended on last week to kind of talk about all of these storylines. And one of the things I asked him, and I asked ah Zeke and Matt when we were doing the preview of Coastal Carolina,
00:55:48
Speaker
I kind of feel the same way about Tim Beck coming over on the offensive side of the ball. I was like, when was the last time NC State was appointment television that you felt like, Oh man, they're offense. I really need to see it. Like it's just kind of been like, it doesn't really, it seems like it doesn't really matter what quarterback they plug in it. And it kind of the same thing on the defensive side of the ball. Like no matter who you have, it's just kind of.
00:56:13
Speaker
It's all right. It's middle of the pack, you know no pun intended. And you know it is what it is. like they they They're a perennial 8-4 team. And if they get to 9-10 wins, that that's one of the best seasons kind of in their program's history. And they're never really in contention for the ACC, no matter what kind of hype they get in the preseason.
00:56:36
Speaker
So it's going to be interesting to see if either of these Sunbelt teams get the better of the NC State higher because right now it looks like Coastal's ready to get rid of Tim Beck or the fans are at least because they're they're already fed up. They were fed up with the Ethan Vasco situation. um Both he and Noah Kim are transferring out. So I guess what was it? Tad Hudson?
00:57:01
Speaker
I think is the guy that they but all the fans think is going to be the guy there in Conway. We'll see how that all pans out, but it's been a rocky two years for, you know, Tim Beckett at a Coastal, so it it might kind of be a little bit of the same with a with Gibson at Marshall, especially with the amount of players that are leaving.
00:57:23
Speaker
Yeah, I agree. Do we have anything else to hit on before we kind of get out of here? I feel like we've we've pretty well covered everything. Initial bowl thoughts, any bowl games that I really like the idea if Braxton plays, I like the idea of the ah the Marshall Army bowl game. um I think that one could be fun.
00:57:45
Speaker
Other than that, like um ah again, i'm I'm pretty whelmed with a lot of the bowl game matchups. We didn't get a lot of great ones, I felt like. ah you know it will case the it so sorry go ahead No, I mean, just with the ah with the extra, the playoff spots, it really is watering down the quality of the bowl games as a whole, um because now the premier bowl games are not going to feature five and six. They're going to feature like 1415.
Sunbelt Bowl Game Matchups: Georgia Southern and More
00:58:15
Speaker
um Yeah, ah only three Sunbelt games ah have been announced at this point. ah One of them, Coastal Carolina is staying.
00:58:26
Speaker
in ah Conway, which is awful. I feel so bad for them. They're playing in the Myrtle Beach Bowl. ah South Alabama is taking on Western min Michigan in the salute to service or salute to Veterans Bowl ah in Alabama. So South Al doesn't have to travel too far. And then JMU ah goes down to ah Boca Raton to play Western Kentucky, which could be interesting, I suppose, especially if Helton is staying yeah if feltton staying that that Western Kentucky team ah would be a fun matchup. And then ah we also have Georgia Southern playing Sam Houston in the RL Carriers Bowl, which I know, Brian, you're over the moon about.
00:59:12
Speaker
I was just glad we didn't have to play another Mac school to be quite honest with you. like The Buffaloes and the Ohio's of the world, it's hard to get even excited to watch those games. like I know we personally didn't play well against either of those teams.
00:59:28
Speaker
But even when we lost, I just kind of cut the TV off and was like, well, that's over. And I just kind of went about my day because it was, you know, they play really close to to Christmas. It seems like every year. And, you know, when you get five days away from Christmas, the last thing I'm thinking about on Christmas Day is, dang, I really wish we made that goal line stand against Buffalo. but Sorry. So I just I was just glad to get a little variety because it God, I was I was afraid we were going to have to play Miami of Ohio or somebody like that in the bowl game. And I was like,
00:59:58
Speaker
I just can't I can't get my juices up for this game. and And again, if Casey Keeler was still at Sam Houston, I think that would be a lot more of an interesting matchup. But who knows who knows what that team looks like by the time they kick off? Like, you know, I know Ohio beat us last year, but half that team transferred out ah after last year. And we I had to write her that was still when I was writing for underdog.
01:00:22
Speaker
I had to write a preview and I was like, I don't know who the hell is starting at quarterback. I have no idea who any of these people are. None of them have taken snaps this entire season. So I was like, uh, I'm not going back and grinding high school tape. I'm sorry, guys. I'm just not, um I'm not getting on max preps. Sorry. Yeah. So. ah Other bowl games we have Texas State versus North Texas, which may be a rivalry possibly. ah We've got Louisiana TCU. um Doesn't really move the needle for me and then Arkansas State Bowling Green. We did hear.
01:00:59
Speaker
We did hear rumblings that Ben Woldridge could potentially be back for that TCU bowl game. i I tweeted out earlier from our account, I was just like, I'm not gonna watch, ah I'm sorry, I'm not gonna watch a third string quarterback take on TCU. I'm just so i'm sorry, like i that one's a skip for me. So if Woldridge is back, I will cut the TV on, but if it's Beal running for his life again, bailing out of clean pockets,
01:01:28
Speaker
I'm gonna stuff some stockings or do something else with my time around it. All right, well, do we wanna wrap it up? Zeke, you wanna let everybody know where they can find you on socials and then ah you could throw it to Aikman, he could do the same and then ah we can get out of here.
01:01:44
Speaker
Yeah, I'm on Twitter at Zeke Palermo. Z-E-K-E-P-A-L-E-R-M-O. You can see it on the screen. Post about the pod there. ah Tomorrow, we we're going to have a really exciting episode. ah We're going to have, for the first time ever, a Sunbelt player on the show, Bryce and Broadway, who, first of all, might I add, like, that is one of the most Quarterback II names I've ever seen does not play quarterback. He's in all conference offensive lineman for Georgia Southern He's gonna spare spend some time with us tomorrow at 8 p.m. Again Aikman, thank you so much for joining us. Tell the folks where they can find you and plug whatever you want, man
01:02:24
Speaker
I appreciate you guys having me on, always good to come on and talk App State football and Sunbelt football as a whole. You can find me as it shows on the screen there, radio guy AC on on Twitter. And I'll say this, Marshall and Army, I wish Braylon Braxton, I mean, I know he's in the portal now, i would To me, that's the best Sunbelt affiliated game is Marshall Army because Todd Monkin has done a wonderful job with Army. This year, I love seeing a military school up high in the college football rankings. I can't wait for the Army Navy game this upcoming weekend because I think it's going to be a great game um this year.
Anticipation for Army-Navy Game
01:03:11
Speaker
That's always one of the fun games to watch every year just because it's like,
01:03:16
Speaker
It's almost like a piece of fourth of July in the winter because it like it brings your American out and you just see Army versus Navy and it's like the 125th meeting ah between the two of them. So I mean like it's it's go time when it's Army Navy week. There's a reason they put a a game like that on CBS is because everybody watches no matter what kind of level of fan you are. So I'm excited that Marshall gets that matchup against Army in their bowl game this year. but
01:03:47
Speaker
Hopefully it'll be a little bit better in Boone next year. I know between now and then I'm sure as we gear up next season, we can come back together and talk. I'm curious to see what moves get made with that and the portal with Loggins coming aboard.
Appalachian State's Future with New Coaching
01:04:03
Speaker
and So we'll see if, I guess, basically some way to put this up if he takes us to the danger zone or if we're cutting footloose by the end of 2025.
01:04:14
Speaker
No, we would certainly love to have you on the ah the, when we start to get into conference previews, you know, we we do the two teams at a time. we would We would be glad to have you on for the the Appalachian State when just to kind of, when when the dust settles, what the roster looks like, what kind of expectations are, you know, once you kind of get the feel and he gets, you know, roots down and we can kind of see how all of that goes.
01:04:37
Speaker
As Zeke said, you can follow us on Twitter X, whatever you want to call it, at warm weather fans. Again, we will be back tomorrow night to talk with Bryce and Broadway. Matt Migas will join us. We'll get his thoughts, ah you know, on the conference championship game. I'm sure he's personally disappointed, but, you know, it kind of is what it is. ah You could follow me on X at Watch the Stone, as you can see on the screen. As always, we host these live streams over on our YouTube page. I will say this.
01:05:08
Speaker
The Bryson Broadway conversation will be YouTube exclusive tomorrow. So be sure to ah subscribe to our page, youtube dot.com slash at warm weather fans all one word, subscribe there. You can also turn on notifications for when we go live. It should be eight o'clock Eastern time tomorrow. So be on the lookout for that. This has been another edition of warm weather fans. Thank you everybody for joining us and hope you join us again tomorrow night.