The College Football Survivor Show: Recent Episodes
Shehan Jeyarajah and Bobak Ha'Eri/Advance Local
Shehan Jeyarajah and Bobak Ha'Eri go deep analyzing teams that are worthy of College Football Playoff consideration -- and ignore the ones that aren't. Will your team make the cut this week? Brought to you by GulfLive.com and LoneStarLive.com.
What's ahead for college football with the arrival of the 12-team playoff, and with the possibilities around moves in realignment and more conference changes down the road? On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah look into the future -- and that includes making playoff and national title picks for this season. Why such a focus on the future right now? Because this is the last episode of The College Football Survivor Show in this form. Doug is leaving for a new opportunity, and you'll find him around the college football world in another form. So this show will take a break, but don't unsubscribe because plans are underway for it to continue with Shehan (the guy you are here for anyway) and a different co-host. Stick around for a future update on that. But for now, Doug couldn't be more grateful for your time and attention, and for being part of this show for the last two years. It wouldn't be here without you. So goodbye to Doug and this version of The College Football Survivor Show. Now ... into the future. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
USC, Oregon, Washington, Utah and Oregon State -- yes, five real playoff contenders in the Pac-12 this season as Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dive into their preseason Pac-12 playoff preview. All five of those teams have veteran QBs, and the best teams in the league didn't lose a lot after last season. That means the last half of the season will be wild as these teams will be providing a top-level matchup each weekend in the second half. But will one make the playoff? What about the futures of programs like Cal, Colorado and Arizona State? How will the Pac-12 look when USC and UCLA are gone after next season? Lots of football talk about a deep conference, and thanks as always for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Big Ten saw two teams make the playoff a year ago with Michigan and Ohio State. What are the chances the league gets two teams in again this season? On this Big Ten playoff preview on The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah discuss the real contenders (Michigan, Ohio State, Penn State) and whether an actual spoiler exists in the Big Ten. Is Wisconsin the Big Ten West favorite? Is Nebraska a playoff contender in the future? Is Northwestern vs. Iowa at Wrigley Field in November going to be a mess? It's playoff talk from every Big Ten angle. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The ACC has been left out of the last two College Football Playoffs, which opened the door for some other conferences. Will the ACC make it back this season? That should come down to Florida State and Clemson. On this College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dive into their ACC playoff preview by focusing on the Seminoles and the Tigers. They also project the potential first-round QB battle between North Carolina and Duke, and peer into the future and wonder what happens to Miami. This is the third offseason conference playoff preview, after the Big 12 and SEC, and thanks as always for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
How many SEC teams are true playoff contenders? Who are the teams best prepared to spoil playoff chance? Where are the most experienced quarterbacks in the league and how dangerous are they? And how vulnerable might Georgia and Alabama be with new quarterbacks? On this College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah look at the 14-team SEC in their next conference preview and decide how many playoff spots the conference is likely to seize in 2023. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
How many teams in the 14-team Big 12 should be actual playoff contenders this season? Which team could play spoiler? Just how deep is the quarterback experience and talent in this conference? What coach, if any, is on the hot seat? What team could be a playoff contender five years from now? Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah ask and answer all those questions and more on their first of five playoff conference previews this summer, as they start with Texas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, four new teams and a deep Big 12. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah each pick three dark horses in the college football playoff race. What does that mean? In the nine-year history of the playoff, 61 percent of playoff teams were ranked in the top five of the preseason AP poll. Expand it to the top 10, and you pull in 81 percent of playoff teams, and with the top 15, you get to 92 percent of teams. So which teams not expected to be in the preseason top 10 could make the playoff in 2023? Doug and Shehan find teams from the Pac-12, Big Ten, SEC and ACC and make the case. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
What will the next decade of college football look like, and will it belong more to defensive head coaches like Georgia's Kirby Smart or offensive head coaches like USC's Lincoln Riley? Last week on The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah looked into the past and a 2017 playoff semifinal to examine Smart and Riley. Now, on this episode, they look to the future. That includes analyzing whether Smart or Riley has the edge when it comes to geography, conference and resume. And that extends to a look at how many college head coaches come from the offensive side, how many come from the defensive side, and which one produces better bosses. To figure that out, Shehan drafts seven defensive head coaches for Team Kirby, and Doug drafts seven offensive head coaches for Team Lincoln. Which team do you like more? Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The Rose Bowl between No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 3 Georgia at the end of the 2017 season was maybe the best playoff game so far of this nine-year playoff era, as the Bulldogs rallied for a 54-48 win in double overtime. But Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah didn't rewatch and relive this classic just for fun. This game featured Georgia's Kirby Smart in his second year as a head coach and Oklahoma's Lincoln Riley in his first year. Now six years later, Smart has two national titles at Georgia, Riley is entering his second year of his new job at USC, and this semifinal clearly showed us the future of the sport. It also featured a boatload of talent, from Baker Mayfield to Roquan Smith, from Nick Chubb to CeeDee Lamb, from Sony Michel to Mark Andrews. But most importantly, it featured two young head coaches on the rise. How have they evolved since then? What did they learn? What would have changed -- potentially in a major way -- if Oklahoma had won instead? This game matters so much for now, and thanks for reliving it on The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
From Auburn to Kansas State, from Ohio State to Oklahoma State, from UCLA to Missouri, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are putting more teams into a 12-team playoff context on this episode of The College Football Survivor Show. The BCS existed from 1998 to 2013, as polls and computers determined the top two teams that would meet for the national title, and Doug and Shehan are looking at which teams, coaches and conferences would have been aided by a structure that put 12 teams in the playoff. There's a lot of Big 12 here, plus a discussion of the shift in the SEC, the underdogs who moved up, and the conferences that may have been affected. Doug and Shehan previously did this on another episode with the teams of the four-team playoff era, and now they've going back a little more into history. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Which players and coaches will determine the four playoff teams and the national champion in the 2023 college football season? On this episode of The College Football Survivor, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah list the people they think will matter most to the College Football Playoff race. Coaches and players from teams like Georgia, Michigan, Alabama, Penn State, Ohio State, USC, Clemson, Texas, Florida State and Notre Dame fill the list. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this edition of the College Football Survivor Show, Shehan Jeyarajah is having flashbacks to 2014 when his soul was sucked from his body by the College Football Playoff Selection Committe, and Doug Lesmerises is having so much trouble with committee thinking, he's talking like British royalty. It's not great. But Shehan and Doug are diving in on the playoff stakes for No. 3 TCU, No. 4 USC and No. 5 Ohio State this weekend. Then they talk about conference title games and what purpose they serve now and in the 12-team playoff world. Thanks for listening to the College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this edition of The College Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are looking at the two most important games in the College Football Playoff race: Ohio State-Michigan and Notre-Dame USC. First, they whittle down the field of playoff contenders to seven, and discuss which team at No. 5 is most ready to walk through the door if one of the four most likely playoff teams stumbles. Then it's on to Ohio State-Michigan and the 2 vs. 3 matchup in Columbus. Are the teams more likely to win with what they do best -- the Buckeyes throwing the ball and the Wolverines running it? Or will they have to win with their other versions of offense? Is C.J. Stroud ready for a big game? Will Blake Corum be healthy? And how much better is the Ohio State defense compared to a year ago? Then it's Notre Dame-USC, where Caleb Williams will look to continue his surge in the Heisman race. Can Notre Dame slow down the game like it did against Ohio State? Or is this a bad matchup for the Fighting Irish, as the Trojans are rolling and putting up big points? Doug and Shehan make their picks in each game. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dive into the two playoff contenders that are most in the mix and that we maybe have thought the least about -- Michigan and USC. Both teams know exactly who they are in very different ways, but will their schemes work at the highest level? To start the pod, though, Doug and Shehan need to narrow the field to the nine teams with remaining playoff chances. That means adding one team to the mix and kicking out three. Normally, only one team is booted each week, but this week required an exception. Doug and Shehan then rank those nine contenders before diving into the Wolverines and Trojans. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are looking at destiny after the release of the second playoff rankings on Tuesday night. Which teams truly are in a situation of making the playoff if they win out, and why are there so many of them? Doug and Shehan rank those contenders and discuss the chances of it happening, from the SEC to the Big Ten to the Pac-12. Plus, one team is kicked out of the playoff mix -- will it be Alabama or Illinois? And will one new team be added to the mix? Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. DisclaImer: If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, crisis counseling and referral services can be accessed by calling 1-800-GAMBLER (1-800-426-2537) (IL/IN/LA/MI/NJ/PA/TN/WV/WY), 1-800-NEXT STEP (AZ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO/KS/NH), 888-789-7777/visit http://ccpg.org (CT), 1-800-BETS OFF (IA), 877-8-HOPENY/text HOPENY (467369) (NY), visit OPGR.org (OR), or 1-888-532-3500 (VA). 21+ (18+ NH/WY). Physically present in AZ/CO/CT/IL/IN/IA/KS/LA(select parishes)/MI/NH/NJ/ NY/OR/PA/TN/VA/WV/WY only. $200 in Free bets: New customers only. Min. $5 deposit. Min $5 bet. $200 issued as eight (8) $25 free bets. Bet must win. Ends 11/20/23 @ 11:59pm ET. Stepped Up SGP: 1 Token issued per eligible game. Opt in req. Min $1 bet. Max bet limits apply. Min. 3-leg. Each leg min. -300 odds, total bet +100 odds or longer. 10+ leg req. for 100% boost. Ends 1/8/23 @ 8pm ET. See eligibility & terms at sportsbook.draftkings.com/footballterms. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dive right into a discussion of the first College Football Playoff rankings released Tuesday night.
What made Shehan and Doug the most angry?
Where was the committee right?
What mattered the most for the long-term playoff picture?
Then Doug and Shehan discuss the Tennessee-Georgia matchup on Saturday and make their picks for the game. And at the end, they kick a team out of the playoff discussion and debate whether to let any other teams in. Finally, they provide their own latest rankings. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah look at what a 12-team playoff would look like this season. What would be the best first-round matchups? Alabama would have a chance to host a great game. Which teams could spring a playoff upset? Wake Forest might have a shot. And how have conferences seemingly grown into the idea of 12 teams getting in the playoff? The Pac-12 and Big 12 seem ready for this. The playoff won't really expand to 12 until 2024, 2025 or 2026, but the sport is prepared now. First, Doug, Shehan and their Twitter followers kick either UCLA, USC or Oklahoma State out of the playoff mix. And they consider welcoming Oregon to the mix after the Ducks took care of business against UCLA. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show there's a lot of action after a wild college football weekend:
One team from the Saturday losers of Oklahoma State, Alabama, Penn State and USC is booted from the playoff discussion.
Undefeated teams TCU, Ole Miss and Syracuse are all considered as additions to the playoff mix.
Tennessee gets a deep dive after its win over Alabama. Is the Vols' pass defense that much of a problem? How deep is their wide receiver group? Who is playing better than Tennessee QB Hendon Hooker? And how fun would an Ohio State-Tennessee matchup in the playoff be?
Then Doug and Shehan each rank their 10 playoff contenders as always.
Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are breaking down four major games Saturday that will affect the college football playoff race. It's Alabama-Tennessee, Penn State-Michigan, Oklahoma State-TCU and USC-Utah that will have ramifications on the playoff mix. Seven of those eight teams were among Doug and Shehan's playoff contenders entering this pod. They break down each game and make their picks, differing on several of them. At the start of the pod, one team is kicked out of the mix. And one from the group of UCLA, TCU and Ole Miss are added to the playoff contenders. Then Doug and Shehan offer their contender rankings at the end. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are giving a little love to the fringe playoff contenders with paths that aren't quite as clear as the primary teams. They define seven teams as primary contenders, with obvious talent and opportunity, and everyone else is eligible to be viewed as the fringe teams with the best chances. But first, a playoff contender must be booted -- is it Baylor or Utah? Then five teams are discussed as potential additions to the playoff discussion -- Oklahoma State, Kansas, UCLA, Oregon and Ole Miss. Doug and Shehan rank their playoff contenders as usual, and ten discuss six games that matter this weekend, from Alabama-Texas A&M to USC-Washington State to, yes, Texas-Oklahoma. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The college football playoff discussion rolls on with every team in the country looking vulnerable to varying degrees. That leads Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah into a deep discussion of their 10 playoff contenders, including Clemson and USC, which both escaped last week. There is a clear top two teams, and Doug and Shehan agree Ohio State belongs in that mix. One team was kicked out of the playoff discussion, either Baylor or Oklahoma. And Washington and Tennessee were debated as they were considered to be added to the playoff picture after getting through September undefeated. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are ready to show some respect to the best team in the country, with a deep discussion about the Georgia Bulldogs. But first, they have to kick a team out of their group of playoff contenders. Will it be BYU or Baylor? Then then discuss three teams that could be added to the playoff mix: Washington, Oregon and Penn State. Will one get in, two get in, or none of them get in? Then it's onto the Bulldogs, and how quarterback Stetson Bennett is playing at a higher level than last year, tight end Brock Bowers is one of the most dangerous offensive players in the country, and offensive coordinator Todd Monken was a key guy to retain to make it all go. Defensively, the Dawgs are playing three impactful true freshmen among their top 15 defensive players, and balancing great recruiting talent with real development. The result -- is Georgia the new standard in college football? Finally, Shehan and Doug reveal their rankings of playoff contenders to end the pod, then have a quick conversation about dentists. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarjah are going to kick a team out of their college football playoff discussion, and they're going to consider adding one of three team as new entrants to the discussion. So who will go -- Texas A&M or Baylor? Will Kentucky, Michigan State or Oklahoma State be added? But first, there's a big question that encapsulates the college football season so far -- Could BYU beat Alabama? Doug and Shehan dig into that based on Week 2, and then they put both the Crimson Tide and Cougars in context for what's ahead, including BYU's trip to Oregon this week. Then to finish the pod, they rank all their playoff contenders and talk about what teams like Ohio State, Michigan, Georgia, Clemson and USC have done so far this season. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are back to doing what they do in-season:
Voting a team into their mix of playoff contenders
Kicking a team out of their mix of playoff contenders
Ranking all the remaining contenders
This week, one of two teams is booted -- either Utah or North Carolina State will be out. Then one team will be added -- it's Oklahoma, Florida or Oklahoma State. There are disagreements on several teams in the rankings, including Clemson and Michigan. And there's one injury that could determine what happens in the BYU-Baylor showdown on Saturday, and the guys dig into that. Finally, who's No. 1 -- Alabama or Georgia? There's another disagreement. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shenan Jeyarajah pick their four teams that will make the College Football Playoff and predict their national champions. Last season, both of them got just one playoff team right, and they review their failures on this episode. Will they do better this year? And with a lot of people picking Ohio State and Alabama to make the national title game, Doug and Shehan break down and debate the talent comparison between the two teams. Which team will start more top-100 recruits and more 5-stars? How big is the talent gap on both sides of the ball? Thanks for being part of the second season of the College Football Survivor Show. Catch you next week to talk about the first full week of games. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are offering their final position rankings of the preseason. This time it's quarterbacks, as Doug and Shehan rank the quarterbacks on the 11 teams in the playoff mix. There's a tier of quarterbacks that can cause a team to win a national title, and there are five or six of those. There are a few that you can win a national title with. And then there are some real question marks and some playoff-level teams that could be held back by quarterback play. Also, there are two more teams to consider adding to the playoff mix, one suggested by Shehan and one by Doug. Shehan picked Houston, and Doug picked Wisconsin. Did either of them make it? Next week, Doug and Shehan will make their playoff picks. This is one last week to compare the contenders to each other before the season starts. Thanks for listening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah discuss two more playoff contenders, both of them independents (for now): Notre Dame and BYU. The teams play each other in Las Vegas on Oct. 8 in Week 6, and they both play multiple games against other major contenders. Notre Dame opens with Ohio State, finishes with USC and also plays Clemson. BYU gets Baylor in Week 2, Oregon in Week 3 and also plays Arkansas. Do both belong in the playoff mix? Just one? Neither? Doug, Shehan and the Twitter followers vote. And then it's ranking the best head coaches for all the playoff contenders, which for now are Alabama, Ohio State, Georgia, Clemson, Baylor, Michigan, North Carolina State, Texas A&M, USC and Utah. Where does Kirby Smart belong after a national title? How about Dabo Swinney after a down year for Clemson? And as always, there's a Ryan Day-Lincoln Riley debate. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this week's College Football Survivor Show, the focus shifts to the Pac-12 as Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah continue to debate adding teams to their preseason mix of playoff contenders. Should USC and Utah join the current group of Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State, Clemson, Michigan, North Carolina State, Baylor and Texas A&M? That's the start of the show, and then it's on to ranking all the contenders by how good their pass catchers are, both receivers and tight ends. Pretty easily, some tiers take shape. There are about three contenders with real questions; two that are solid with upside; two that will be good and maybe better than that; and then three teams at the top. Doug and Shehan each offer their rankings while continuing to break down the best teams in the country each week. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are discussing two more teams and whether they belong in the mix of college football playoff contenders. And then they're ranking all the playoff contenders by who has the best running backs. First, do Michigan and North Carolina State belong among the contenders? The Wolverines were a playoff team last year, but lost several defensive stars and their offensive and defensive coordinators. The Wolfpack is in the midst of one of the most successful runs in program history, and with quarterback Devin Leary and a strong, veteran defense, could a peak mean the playoff? Then it's ranking running backs, from Alabama's Jahmyr Gibbs to Ohio State's TreVeyon Henderson to Texas A&M's Devon Achane to Clemson's Will Shipley. Which contenders have the most talented top backs and deepest rooms? Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are ranking college football contenders by who has the best defense. That discussion comes down to Alabama, Georgia and Clemson, just like it did last year. There is a disagreement -- Doug and Shehan have different defenses at No. 1. But first on the pod, Doug and Shehan discuss which SEC team is third-best in the conference, and the next playoff contender behind Alabama and Georgia? Also, how does the third-best team in the SEC compare to the third-best teams in other conferences? Texas A&M and Arkansas are debated here as the other SEC teams that maybe deserve to be viewed as playoff contenders ... maybe. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's back to the roots on The College Football Survivor Show, as Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah return to the formula they started this show with one year ago: Ranking playoff contenders in various categories, and then voting on whether teams deserve to be discussed as contenders. Last week, it was determined that Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State and Clemson were sure-thing contenders this season, so they are in the playoff mix. At the start of this show, Doug and Shehan debate whether Baylor and Oklahoma should join that group. Twitter followers get a vote in that as well. Then, they rank all the contenders in who has the easiest path to the playoff? It's a discussion of whether the schedules for teams like Georgia, Alabama and Ohio State could really trip them up. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's nearly time to really dig into the preseason on-field news of college football, with media days for some conferences taking place this week. So Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are taking this week's episode to take one last look off the field, and do something that this show about the college football playoff has wanted to do since it started a year ago: Pick the perfect College Football Playoff Selection Committee. On this episode, Doug and Shehan take turns making nominations to the 13-person committee, choosing specific people and groups of people. For instance, Doug wants to hold a contest to get a fan on the committee. Does Shehan agree? This is a discussion about the people who matter most in college football, and about the way playoff teams are determined. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are placing bets on the season. From national title odds to Heisman Trophy odds, from over-unders on win totals to odds on teams winning at least 10 regular-season games, Doug and Shehan find their favorite bets from around the country and spread around $1000 each of fake money to stake their claims. Most of them have to do with teams that could be in the playoff race, but not all of them. Someone is especially fired up about Coastal Carolina. And there's a direct disagreement on the over-under of one major team. Thanks as always for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah thought they were taking this week off, but the Big Ten, USC and UCLA had other ideas. So the latest episode of The College Football Survivor Show is here to discuss the move of USC and UCLA from the Pac-12 to the Big Ten and what that portends for the future of college football and the playoff. Doug thinks this means two super leagues -- the SEC and Big Ten -- that will determine their champions how they see fit and then match them for the national title. Shehan is interested in leaving room for other conferences in that mix. But what will happen with Notre Dame, Clemson, Miami, Florida State, Oregon, Washington, Baylor and any major football program not currently in the SEC or Big Ten? Doug and Shehan have ideas. Thanks for listening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The College Football Survivor Show has reached its final Power 5 conference playoff preview of the offseason, and it's time to dig into the Pac-12. On this episode, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are joined by Josh Newman of the Salk Lake Tribune to talk about Utah, USC, Oregon and any other teams that might make a playoff dent. What happens if Utah and USC split two matchups this year? Does Oregon have any chance at upsetting Georgia to open the year? Is USC QB Caleb Williams a real Heisman possibility? Are there Heisman dark horses in the conference among some QBs who could put up big stats? Could Oregon State, Washington or UCLA be a spoiler? Is any Pac-12 team really on the rise? In the end, Doug, Shehan and Josh each make their predictions about whether a Pac-12 team makes the playoff. And, to start, they play a fun game (going through every Pac-12 team) called "Is this team supposed to be good at football?" There aren't a lot of Pac-12 teams that say yes. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this latest conference preview on The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are joined by guest Mike Rodak of AL.com, who covers Alabama. He joins the pod to help break down the SEC and the playoff contenders in college football's best conference.
Is Alabama a lock for The College Football Playoff yet again?
Can anyone on Georgia's schedule actually stop the Dawgs?
Could Ole Miss be a dark horse in the SEC?
Is Kentucky or maybe LSU in Year 1 of Brian Kelly ready to ruin another top team's season?
Which team is on the rise?
And who is Alabama's best Heisman Trophy contender -- Bryce Young or Will Anderson?
Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show and the fourth conference preview following the ACC, Big Ten and Big 12. Next week will be the Pac-12. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Sam Khan Jr., a senior college football writer for The Athletic, joins Shehan Jeyarajah and Doug Lesmerises to dive into a summer playoff preview for the Big 12.
Who is the playoff favorite in the conference -- Oklahoma, Baylor or Oklahoma State? Which team is the best dark horse -- Kansas State? Or can Texas be a dark horse if it's the betting favorite? Are Bijan Robinson or Quinn Ewers of Texas, Dillon Gabriel of Oklahoma or Deuce Vaughn of Kansas State real Heisman Trophy contenders? And which Big 12 team could ruin another team's playoff chances -- how about West Virginia or Texas Tech? This is a deep league with some interesting quarterbacks, including several transfers. But will it produce a playoff team in 2022?
Find out on this episode of The College Football Survivor Show. Thanks for listening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are drafting again on this episode, this time picking the 10 people that will have the greatest impact on the 2022 race for the College Football Playoff. This isn't the 10 best players or coaches, but those that may provide the widest variance in their potential production, or those that could change the fate of their teams based on how they play or coach. Doug and Shehan were each limited to one head coach and one quarterback in their five picks, so this goes beyond the obvious. There's a linebacker and an offensive lineman and a cornerback and a couple coordinators among the selections. They come from teams ranging from USC to Clemson, from Alabama to Utah. Thanks for listening to another episode of The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are joined by Adam Rittenberg of ESPN.com to talk about the favorites and other contenders in the Big Ten when it comes to the playoff race and the Heisman race in 2022. What does Ohio State need to do to make a playoff run, and is C.J. Stroud or Jaxon Smith-Njigba the better Heisman candidate? Is Michigan read to stay on top, and how much more might the Wolverines get from their skill players? Is Penn State ready to jump up or are the Nittany Lions a year away? Is Mel Tucker building a long-term playoff contender at Michigan State? Could Maryland or Minnesota be set up for a move up the conference pecking order? And might Illinois ruin another team's season? Thanks for listening to another episode of The College Football Survivor Show. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The College Football Survivor Show is starting to break down the major college football conferences to find the best players and best teams with an eye toward the 2022 College Football Playoff. First up is the ACC, as Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are joined by Nate Mink of Syracuse.com to discuss everything about the conference. These questions will be answered about the ACC:
Most likely playoff team
Playoff darkhorse
Best Heisman candidate
Darkhorse Heisman candidate
Most important game for the playoff race
Team most likely to be a playoff spoiler
Team on the rise and in the playoff race 5 years from now
Predicting whether the ACC will have a playoff team or not
The ACC is deep and interesting, and Doug, Shehan and Nate cover it all from Clemson to Boston College, from Syracuse to Wake Forest, from North Carolina State to Miami. Thanks for listening. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are here to solve some problems for college football on the latest episode of The College Football Survivor Show. First, Doug and Shehan outline how the rules should work for NIL and collectives paying players. Then there's a plan for how that affects transfers. And then, a Doug theory for how to keep conferences together while creating a new tier of college football. Because the goal is creating a top tier of the sport for the programs that want to spend the most money, and allowing them to do that, while letting other teams play important college football outside that top tier, at a slightly lower price. In the end, Doug and Shehan picked 36 teams for that top tier. Listen to find out who they are and how this new plan for college football would work. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dive into another Mount Rushmore. On the weekly bonus episode on Apple Podcasts, they have so far picked the four best players in the eight-year history of The College Football Playoff at running back, linebacker, receiver and defensive back. Now, on the weekly free show, it's time for quarterbacks. Looking at on-field excellence, accumulated stats, storybook moments and more, Doug and Shehan debate the quarterbacks in playoff history, including six Heisman winners at quarterback who have taken part in the playoff. Who makes this QB playoff Mount Rushmore? Find out on The College Football Survivor Show. To get access to that bonus episode each week, subscribe on Apple Podcasts for just $2.99 per month. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's Part 2 of our final spring football wraparound, and that includes the USC Trojans, who set a spring game attendance record by drawing more than 30,000 fans to the start of the Lincoln Riley era on Saturday. Also on this episode is the team Riley left, and the Oklahoma Sooners drew 75,000 fans to their spring game Saturday. Then it's on to Penn State, Oklahoma State and Baylor as we finish up our spring football coverage with the experts. Don't forget to listen to Part 1 from this week where Notre Dame, Texas, Utah and Oregon were covered. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show.
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Four more experts join The College Football Survivor Show to discuss four of the best teams in the country and how they looked during spring football. There were so many major teams playing spring games this Saturday that this pod is broken into two parts. This is Part 1 and look for Part 2 soon after. This show starts with Notre Dame, and then gets into Texas, Utah and Oregon. The Fighting Irish, Longhorns and Ducks both worked through quarterback competitions this spring, while the Utes leaned into a veteran QB that could lead them to another Pac-12 title. Texas quarterback means talking 5-star recruit Quinn Ewers. Listen to this and then prepare for Part 2, which will feature Oklahoma, USC, Penn State, Oklahoma State and Baylor. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises goes around the country again this week to wrap up spring football for some of the most interesting playoff contenders, helped by some of the best football podcasters and reporters around. Here's the rundown this week, with loads of insight that will matter this fall.
Alabama with Mike Rodak of AL.com
Miami with Adam Lichtenstein of the Sun-Sentinel
Ohio State with Nathan Baird of cleveland.com
Michigan State with Matt Wenzel of Mlive.com
Georgia with Brandon Adams of the Dawg Nation Daily podcast
There's quarterback news, where teams look better and worse, and whether or not they seem like a playoff contender. We'll do this one more time next week for the teams that haven't yet finished spring football, but strap in now for five teams you'll want to know about. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On The College Football Survivor Show this week, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah take a spin through some of the most interesting playoff contenders in the country who are done with spring football. More teams will be discussed in the next two weeks as more spring football games are played. But this week, four teams are featured:
Texas A&M, with guest Travis Brown
Michigan, with guest Aaron McMann
Clemson, with guest Matt Connolly
Cincinnati, with guest Russ Heltman
That's two teams that made the playoff last season in Michigan and Cincinnati; a playoff regular in Clemson that was down last year; and a team in Texas A&M that just brought in the best recruiting class in the nation and may be ready for its first playoff appearance. There are also a lot of quarterback battles in this group, which is covered. Also, we examine where these teams looked improved and where there were questions this spring. Thanks as always for listening to The College Football Survivor Show See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Mike Krzyzewski has retired as the head coach of Duke basketball. His closest comparison in the world of college football is Nick Saban at Alabama -- although Saban has been much more dominant. So what will happen when Saban retires? At age 70, with a major contract extension, that doesn't seem to be happening any time soon. But the idea of Alabama football without the man who has won six titles there in his 15 seasons is something to think about. To help Shehan Jeyarajah and Doug Lesmerises do that, special guest Joe Goodman is aboard for this episode. He's the sports columnist for AL.com and the author of the book, "We Want Bama," which details Alabama's 2020 title season and how Saban led the Crimson Tide through that COVID season to a championship. Joe offers great insight into Saban's success and what comes next. And then Doug and Shehan compare this Alabama dynasty to other recent dynasties, and what's different about Saban. Thanks for listening to another episode of The College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In the 2006-07 season, Florida beat Ohio State in the national title game in both football and men's basketball. Back then, there was no doubt about which two programs had the best football and men's basketball combo in the nation. In 2022, on the edge of the Final Four, that question is a lot more difficult. On this Wednesday edition of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah draft the top 10 combo programs, and there's a lot of disagreement. In the end, the 10 picks included three schools from the SEC, two from the Big Ten, one each from the ACC, Pac-12 and Big 12, and two other schools that deserved to make the list. This was a fun exercise. Thanks for listening. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Who are Shehan Jeyarajah and Doug Lesmerises predicting as their four teams that will make the College Football Playoff in December? It's early, but this is a playoff podcast, and it's good to get a handle on how the thinking for Shehan and Doug evolves over the course of a year. So on this Wednesday episode, both guys give their four teams they're envisioning at playoff teams. There are at least two surprises here ... maybe more. Thanks for listening. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah each pick five quarterback battles to focus on this spring. Some will almost certainly influence the playoff race (Texas A&M), some will test new coaches (Oregon), some involve veteran starters (Georgia) and many feature 5-star recruits (Penn State, Texas, Clemson and more). Thanks for listening to another episode of The College Football Survivor Show. And don't miss the Tuesday show, which you can listen to by subscribing on Apple Podcasts. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah each pick three teams they are particularly curious about as spring football gets underway around the country. Can Clemson's defensive line match Georgia's from last year? What will Alabama's receiver room be like? What will the revamping of Ohio State's defense look like? How will the Dan Lanning era begin in Oregon? And more. Thanks for listening to another episode of The College Football Survivor Show.
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On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah let you know some of their favorite college players in the 2022 NFL Draft by doing a mock draft. But not a regular mock draft. Here, Doug and Shehan go back and forth drafting two 12-man teams for a passing game they'd like to play in a parking lot. It's six on six. There's a quarterback, running back, tight end and receivers on offense, and linebackers, cornerbacks and safeties on defense. Featuring players like Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton, Ohio State receiver Garrett Wilson, Georgia linebacker Nakobe Dean and Alabama receiver Jameson Williams, this draft gets to some of the best players in the 2022 draft during NFL Combine week, without worrying about offensive or defensive lines. Who drafted the best team? Who would win that parking lot game? Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah discuss why playoff expansion won't happen early, what it all means, and our place in the universe.
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On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dive into the issues currently holding up the expansion of the college football playoff. With another meeting scheduled for March, will the conference commissioners work through these areas and get expansion for the 2024 season? Among the topics:
Having networks other than ESPN televise the playoff
Health and safety issues for players based on playing more games
The awarding of automatic bids to conference champs
Do other college football issues need to be settled first before expansion happens?
There's a lot on the table, but plenty of reason to believe expansion might come sooner than later. Thanks for listening to Shehan and Doug on The College Football Survivor Show.
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Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are new athletic directors for Good College Football Program X on this episode of The College Football Survivor Show. The goal? Hire a head coach to lead this team to the College Football Playoff in the next five years. Nick Saban is the obvious top pick here, so he's off the board. Other than that, anyone is available -- not only current college football head coaches. So Doug and Shehan each make 10 picks, with some very familiar big-time names, and some names you might not expect. Thanks for listening to this episode of The College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah wrap up Wednesday's late national signing day for college football by naming their top three programs both overachieving and underachieving in recruiting. The path to the College Football Playoff starts with recruiting, and there are programs putting themselves in and out of future playoff races right now. There's also a lively conversation about programs using NIL in recruiting based on some sharp comments from Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher on Wednesday. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show.
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On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah look at the three regular playoff participants that missed the playoff this season: Ohio State, Clemson and Oklahoma. What will it take for the Buckeyes, Tigers and Sooners to get back in the thick of the playoff mix next season? All three schools underwent major changes this offseason. Ohio State hired four new assistants, including new defensive coordinator Jim Knowles. Clemson lost both coordinators -- Tony Elliott and Brent Venables -- and promoted Brandon Streeter and Wes Goodwin from within. Oklahoma hired Venables as its head coach after Lincoln Riley left for USC. That's a lot of new faces for three big-time programs. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this special free Tuesday edition of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah break down Georgia's win over Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship. How Kirby Smart stuck with Stetson Bennett, how Georgia showed it was the best team from Week 1, how the Bulldogs defense may fill up the NFL over the next few seasons, how close Nick Saban came to winning without one of his better teams and will Georgia now ascend? How bad is a very good Georgia for the best of college football? Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show all season. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah break down the national title game between Alabama and Georgia with the strengths, worries and most important players for each team. Will Alabama be affected by injuries at corner, receiver and on the offensive line? Does Georgia have any hope of overcoming the psychological and coaching edge of Nick Saban? Will Alabama's run defense rule the day? Can Georgia quarterback Stetson Bennett save the day? Thanks for listening to the College Football Survivor Show all year, and stick around for more episodes in the offseason. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah have been talking about the College Football Playoff since July, and now it's time for them to make their picks for the semifinals in the Orange Bowl and Cotton Bowl. They are joined by Tyler Shoemaker at the start of the show to talk about the betting lines, with Alabama favored by 13.5 over Cincinnati and Georgia favored by 7.5 over Michigan. And then it's on to their picks and their reasoning, and some attempted explanation of why Doug is the way he is. Thanks for listening to The College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah look at questions that will help decide the two College Football Playoff semifinals on Friday: Georgia-Michigan in the Orange Bowl and Alabama-Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl. Among the questions discussed:
Which of the four starting quarterbacks will play the best?
Which running back will have the biggest impact?
What's the over-under for receiving yards for Alabama star Jameson Williams?
Which edge rusher -- Michigan's Aidan Hutchinson or Alabama's Will Anderson -- will have the bigger game?
What's the over-under on total offensive yards for Cincinnati QB Desmond Ridder?
What's the over-under for receiving yards for Georgia tight end Brock Bowers?
Who are the most important assistant coaches in each semifinal?
Who is an under-the-radar player who could change a game?
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On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarjah dive into the playoff semifinal between the Georgia Bulldogs and Michigan Wolverines. Michigan has an edge with its edge rushers, starting with Aidan Hutchinson, but Georgia has an edge at linebacker starting with Nakobe Dean. The two offensive play callers -- Michigan's Josh Gattis and Georgia's Todd Monken -- will matter a lot, as will the two expected starting quarterbacks -- Michigan's Cade McNamara and Georgia's Stetson Bennett. Will Georgia receiver George Pickens, still working back from injury, make a big splash? Will Michigan safety Dax Hill make a big play? In the end, these teams both lean on running the ball and defense and will look very familiar to each other. Doug and Shehan break down all parts of this No. 2 vs. No. 3 matchup. Catch last week's episode for the breakdown of No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Cincinnati. Thanks for listening.
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On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dig deep into the College Football Playoff semifinal in the Cotton Bowl between No. 1 Alabama and No. 4 Cincinnati.
Where does each team have a clear edge, with the Bearcats owning at least two obvious advantages?
What's a major worry for each team, including a huge injury loss for Alabama?
What are the chances that Alabama All-American edge rusher Will Anderson just takes over the game?
Can Cincinnati QB Desmond Ridder raise his play-making level to match Alabama QB Bryce Young?
What will Alabama be like without the underdog edge it had against Georgia?
Cincinnati is the worst team in major college football at something. Could that cost the Bearcats?
Thanks for listening to another episode. Try the Tuesday episode for Apple Podcast subscribers where Doug and Shehan broke down the borderline playoff contenders who could get over the top in the future thanks to their 2022 recruiting classes.
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Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah point out their playoff prediction mistakes and then look at the best and worst of the college football teams that jockeyed at the top of the sport this season on the latest College Football Survivor Show. Where do the misses of Oklahoma and Clemson rank in disappointments? How about the teams that had a shot at Alabama and couldn't vanquish the Tide? How do the seasons of Wake Forest and Pitt match the playoff successes of Cincinnati and Michigan among the surprises? And why did both Doug and Shehan only get one of their four playoff predictions from August correct? Thanks for listening to another episode of the College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this special Sunday version of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah break down the four playoff survivors in the moments after the final four were announced. It's No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Cincinnati in the Cotton Bowl and No. 2 Michigan vs. No. 3 Georgia in the Orange Bowl. Every team earned its spot, and there wasn't much controversy to the final four. But there's one big thing that must change in the next month. Doug and Shehan dug in on:
The need for Georgia to change quarterbacks
If Oklahoma State would have made the playoff if it won
Why Ohio State ranked higher than Baylor shows some flawed committee thinking
Whether Kirby Smart can get the Georgia defense back on track
The Bryce Young-Desmond Ridder QB matchup in the Alabama-Cincinnati game
Why Michigan's well-coached rushing attack makes the Wolverines a real title contender
Thanks for listening to this bonus edition of The College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday version of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah look to conference championship weekend and the games that will determine the final college football playoff participants. The topics covered include:
Can Michigan win a national title playing the way it knocked off Ohio State?
Does Ohio State need to make changes after that loss?
What are Alabama's chances of beating Georgia in the SEC title game?
Which team in playoff contention is most likely to lose this weekend -- Oklahoma State, Georgia, Michigan or Cincinnati?
What teams could jump into the playoff if the results this weekend create chaos, including the idea of more than 10 two-loss teams to consider?
Thanks for listening The College Football Survivor Show, and catch the Tuesday show each week by subscribing to the show on Apple Podcasts for $2.99 a month. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On the latest College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah take the eight college football playoff contenders remaining and rank them by their quarterbacks. Three of the teams have quarterbacks that can win games for their teams. The other five have quarterbacks they can win with, but not because of. But which QBs have been playing better, which ones can't be trusted and which playoff contenders should still be considering a QB switch? From Georgia, Ohio State and Alabama to Cincinnati, Oklahoma State and Michigan, Doug and Shehan discuss all the QBs that matter, and put them in a historical context. Because most of the previous 28 playoff teams had real difference makers at quarterback. Also, to start the show, Doug and Shehan address the latest playoff rankings and with the help of their texters, kick two more teams out of the playoff discussion. Thanks for listening to another episode of the College Football Survivor Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On the Wednesday episode of The College Football Survivor Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dissect the answers they got from playoff selection committee chairman Gary Barta on Tuesday night and analyze what those words mean for how the committee is viewing the playoff race. Question 1: Has there been any discussion about ranking Notre Dame ahead of Cincinnati despite the Bearcats' win over the Irish? Question 2: How strong is Alabama's hold on the No. 2 spot? Sometimes it's hard to decipher what the committee is thinking, but Doug and Shehan think they learned something here, and it matters for what's ahead. Other topics discussed on this show:
Kicking out either Oklahoma or Ole Miss from the playoff discussion
How close our shadow committee rankings match the real committee
Which contenders are most likely to lose in the last three weeks?
Is Oregon better than we think, or is Utah about to beat the Ducks?
Who will win the Ohio State-Michigan State matchup?
Does Arkansas have any shot against Alabama?
Is 8-2 SMU a real threat to Cincinnati this week?
Thanks for listening to our show, which has a slightly new name, but is still the same show with the same hosts. Subscribe to Apple Podcasts to listen to the Tuesday show each week for just $2.99 a month for four shows. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On the Wednesday version of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah had a plan to compare and contrast Oklahoma and Ohio State heading into a big month for both. Then the playoff committee on Tuesday night ranked Michigan ahead of Michigan State despite the Spartans beating the Wolverines two weeks ago. That fired them up. They discussed when and why the committee overrides head-to-head matchups and when it adheres to them; how metrics are influencing the voting; and what might happen during cookie breaks. There's still a lot of Ohio State-Oklahoma talk, plus either Ole Miss or Wake Forest is kicked out of the rankings. Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show, and try the Tuesday available only to Apple Podcast subscribers.
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On this episode of The College Football Playoff Show, the first rankings are out, and the committee putting Alabama at No. 2 and Cincinnati at No. 6 has Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah fired up. First, the guys think about adding Wake Forest and Notre Dame to the playoff discussion, and at the end, they kick out either Iowa or Ole Miss. In between, with the help of the text subscribers, they dive into whether the committee is setting up Alabama to make the playoff as a two-loss team if the Tide loses to Georgia in the SEC title game. And what does Cincinnati have to do if the committee thinks only its win over Notre Dame matters so far? Among the other discussions:
Which teams control their own destiny?
Did the committee get the Oregon-Ohio State order right?
What do they think of Michigan State at No. 3?
Why are three-loss Mississippi State and Wisconsin ranked so high?
Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show. Apple Podcast listeners can hear the Tuesday show by subscribing at Apple Podcasts for $2.99 a month. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dig into the Big Ten with two matchups that matter for the playoff race looming for the conference this weekend. Plus, is Oregon an anchor for Ohio State or is Ohio State a balloon for Oregon when it comes to playoff rankings? And how often will we start seeing the Good Ducks compared to the Bad Ducks? But the focus is on Ohio State-Penn State and Michigan-Michigan State this weekend. The Nittany Lions are coming off an awful loss to Illinois -- can they rally to give the Buckeyes a game, or is their offense just too wounded? In the undefeated showdown in East Lansing, both teams are undefeated and Michigan is ranked higher and favored. But Doug argues for why the Spartans are actually the better team -- unless Michigan goes to freshman JJ McCarthy at quarterback. Could Jim Harbaugh make that genius move in this huge game? Doug and Shehan talk about welcoming either Pitt, Wake Forest or Michigan State to the playoff discussion, and they kick one team out of the mix. In between, they release their first shadow committee rankings, which will become a regular part of the show when the real playoff committee rankings debut next week. Thanks for joining us on this Wednesday edition of The College Football Playoff Show. And try the bonus Tuesday show, which focused on the best Heisman candidates from playoff teams, available only to subscribers on Apple Podcasts. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dig in on No. 1 Georgia and the defense that makes the Bulldogs the national title favorite. Is Georgia alone on the top tier of college football, or should a couple other teams join the Bulldogs? And what more did the Georgia defense show last week against Kentucky? Before that, Doug and Shehan talked about Ed Orgeron leaving LSU after the season. Should the Tigers go for a big name, a Big Ten coach or a winner who is right in their homestate? Then came a discussion about whether Michigan State, Wake Forest, Oklahoma State and/or Pitt should be welcomed to the group of playoff contenders on the show. Should one team be added? Two? Or none? A few text subscribers asked questions, which led to other discussions about Cincinnati, Ohio State, Oregon and other teams. And at the end, as always, a team was kicked out of the discussion. Was it Kentucky, Iowa, Oregon or Ole Miss? Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show. For a bonus episode each week, subscribe to The College Football Playoff Show on Apple Podcasts for $2.99 a month to get four extra shows. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah continue to analyze the playoff contenders following another wild weekend that included Texas A&M's upset of Alabama that Doug maybe kind of sort of thought could happen. But could it happen again? Is there any other real threat on the Tide's regular-season schedule? The guys also welcome one new team to the playoff discussion -- either Wake Forest, Kentucky, Notre Dame, Michigan State or Oklahoma State. There's a debate over what Iowa's win over Penn State really told us. Questions about Cincinnati as a legit contender are answered by asking if Cincinnati might not be the team with the best chance to beat Georgia. Doug insists on including talk about Ole Miss and the Rebels' path to true playoff contention again. And is Oregon truly on trouble, or are the Ducks about to get it together again? Try the Tuesday episode available exclusively on Apple Podcasts for a deep dive into what's happening with Oklahoma. And join the text subscription at 817-442-6789 to engage with the pod further, including voting on which team should be kicked out of the discussion each week. This week, the choices are Oregon, Alabama, Arkansas and Penn State. Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah take a break from examining the best current teams in college football and instead project which current contenders have the best chance to actually make The College Football Playoff at the end of the season. But first, a team needs to be added to the list of contenders, and a team needs to be kicked out. Does Michigan, Wake Forest or BYU most deserve a spot in the discussion, with all of them still undefeated? BYU is in a similar boat as Cincinnati, Wake Forest is the only undefeated team in the ACC, and Michigan would make the fourth Big Ten team in the discussion if the Wolverines are added in. And then it's time to remove a contender. Four teams in the discussion lost last week -- Ole Miss, Arkansas, Texas A&M and Oregon. So who's out? In ranking the contenders by their playoff chances, Doug and Shehan disagreed about the Big Ten teams, especially with the Penn State-Iowa game on the horizon Saturday. Who will win that game? How does Iowa's better defense match up with Penn State's more dynamic offense? Is Ohio State actually still the best team in the conference despite its loss.? How will the round-robin between Ohio State, Michigan and Penn State shake out? And in the Big 12, Oklahoma has looked ready to lose almost every week. Could Bijan Robinson and Texas deliver that loss on Saturday? Thanks for listening to another edition of The College Football Playoff Show. Text 817-442-6789 to join the text subscriptions for $1, and listen to the Tuesday shows by signing up for $2.99 for a month of Tuesday episodes at Apple Podcasts. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this big Wednesday edition of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are joined by Ben Garrett of The Talk of Champions podcast about Ole Miss football to discuss what the Rebels will have to do to knock off defending national champion Alabama this week. Quarterback Matt Corral and head coach Lake Kiffin might be the right combination to upset the Crimson Tide and add to what has been a wild first month of the season. Before Ben jumped on, Doug and Shehan opened with their usual Wednesday plan: Are there any new teams worthy of joining the playoff discussion this week? The nominees were Florida, Arkansas, Notre Dame and Baylor. Then after Ben's appearance, Doug and Shehan ranked their contenders. There were pretty big disagreements about Iowa, with varying views on Ole Miss, Penn State and Cincinnati, Georgia and Alabama as well. But the continued struggles of Oklahoma? Doug and Shehan agreed on that. The episode concluded, as usual, with kicking a team out of the playoff discussion. The choices this week were two teams coming off losses: Clemson and Texas A&M. This Wednesday podcast is free and available on all podcast platforms. Thanks for listening to it. The Tuesday episode of The College Football Playoff Show is now available only on Apple Podcasts, at the cost of $2.99 per month. That's four Tuesday episodes per month for less than $1 per episode. Subscribe on Apple Podcasts and then find the button there to pay for the month at $2.99. Then there's the text subscription service that gives you the power to help add teams and kick out teams of the discussion. That's $1 a month and available by texting 817-442-6789. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Wednesday episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are back to welcome teams to the discussion, kick teams out of the discussion, and rank all the contenders. First up this week -- should Florida, Michigan or Ole Miss join the group of playoff contenders? The Gators pushed Alabama to the brink, the Wolverines have been steamrolling everyone and Ole Miss might feature the quarterback playing better than anyone right now -- Matt Corral. Then Doug and Shehan rank the contenders, with some disagreement over Georgia, Alabama, Penn State, Iowa and Texas A&M, among others. Do the Nittany Lions look like a top-four team after a home win over Auburn? Shouldn't Georgia be the sure No. 1 with the way the Bulldogs' offense is starting to click? How much worry should there be about the Aggies now that backup QB Zach Calzada has shown improvement. Then, the episode finishes with a promise to boot one team from the ranks of contenders -- is it Clemson, Notre Dame or Ohio State? Thanks for listening to the College Football Playoff Show. This is the primary Wednesday pod. There's also a bonus Tuesday podcast that you can access by signing up at Apple Podcasts for just $2.99 per month. Again, the Wednesday pod will remain available to everyone, while the bonus Tuesday pods will be available on Apple for less than $1 per episode. Link to sign up for bonus pods: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-college-football-playoff-show/id1570898032 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's a Wednesday version of The College Football Playoff Show, which means time to add some teams to the pool of playoff contenders and time to kick one out. Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah take on that task, with Oregon, Penn State, Ole Miss and Florida the candidates to be welcomed to the list of contenders this week. On the other end, either Ohio State, Notre Dame, Texas A&M or Iowa State is getting booted, so be ready. Also on this show:
A very interesting stretch for Alabama over the next month with games against Florida, Ole Miss and Texas A&M. Should the Tide be on upset alert?
The wild Texas A&M 10-7 win over Colorado last week. Can the Aggies hang around while playing their backup QB with starter Haynes King out?
A special visit from Iowa podcaster Tyler Kluver, a former long snapper for the Hawkeyes who's now a co-host of the Washed Up Walkons podcast. How close are the Hawkeyes to hanging with the best in the country after their win over Iowa State?
Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show. Become a text subscriber at 817-442-6789 to participate in surveys, ask questions and get college football tidbits in your phone. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this press conference episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah address the breaking news on the firing of USC coach Clay Helton. What led to his dismissal, and who's the right coach to replace him and return the Trojans to regular contender status? Then, Doug and Shehan get to questions from text subscribers. Among them:
If Clemson and Ohio State both finish with one loss, which has the better chance to make the playoff? The year-long contest to better impress the selection committee is on.
What actually happened to the Buckeyes in their loss at Oregon?
Could we be headed toward massive playoff chaos at the end of the year, as we saw in 2007?
Could UCLA-Oregon turn into a vital playoff matchup?
With so much going on for supposed contenders, it is possible that Alabama and Georgia are the only actually good teams?
Does Penn State deserve a longer look as a playoff possibility?
Thanks for listening to the Tuesday Q&A pod of The College Football Playoff Show. Make sure to catch the Wednesday pod where new contenders will be welcomed, tired old contenders kicked out, and every real contender will be ranked against each other. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this big Wednesday episode, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah think about welcoming some new teams to the discussion, think about kicking some teams out of the discussion, and in between rank all of the real national title contenders in college football. With the help of their text subscribers (you can join the texts for a 14-day free trial at 817-442-6789), Doug and Shehan start by adding a team to the current 10 contenders. Penn State, Iowa, UCLA and Texas are discussed, and one of them is voted in. Then Doug and Shehan rank all their contenders, where the biggest disagreement is over Clemson and Oklahoma. Then finally, they kick out a contender, with Oregon, Iowa State, Notre Dame and Clemson all considered. One of them gets the boot. Thanks for listening to another College Football Playoff Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are back to answer questions from text subscribers (join the texts for a free trial at 817-442-6789) from Week 1 of the college football season. Several teams offered looks at who they really are (Georgia), while some raised some unexpected questions (Oklahoma). Among the topics broached by the subscribers and answered by the guys:
Which teams did they regret putting in the playoff conversation before the season?
Should we just give Alabama the national title now?
Could UCLA really win the Pac-12?
Was the Georgia-Clemson game two great defenses or two bad offenses?
is Ohio State or Oklahoma looking more vulnerable after Week 1?
What's the deal with Oklahoma defensive coordinator Alex Grinch?
Which contender gets the biggest test in Week 2?
Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show. Get ready for Doug and Shehan to rank the contenders on the Wednesday pod. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah have been talking about the College Football Playoff since the middle of July. Now they'll tell you which four teams they think are going to make it. On this final preseason episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug and Shehan each explain why they chose their four playoff teams, why they left certain teams out, and which team they think is going to win the national title. That's in the second half of the show. In the first half, Doug and Shehan analyze the Cincinnati Bearcats and whether they should become the 10th team to officially join the group of contenders before the start of the regular season. North Carolina was rejected last week. Will this week be kinder to Cincinnati? Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show, and don't miss the shows next week, when the analysis will be based on what happens on the field this weekend with the best teams in the country. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this Tuesday press conference episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah take questions from text subscribers as the college football season kicks off. Among them:
Which national contender has the greatest chance to fall short of expectations?
Which contender might be hurt most by a COVID-related absence by players?
How would a COVID forfeit affect a contender's playoff chances?
Should a loser of a conference title game ever make the playoff?
And then there's a discussion about the best next move for the Big 12.
Don't miss the main ep this week on Wednesday, when Doug and Shehan will make their playoff picks. And thanks for listening to this press conference episode of The College Football Playoff Show. To join the texts for a free trial, text 817-442-6789. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On the big ep this week, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah debate whether North Carolina deserves to join the list of College Football Playoff contenders discussed on this podcast. And then they dive into ranking the quarterbacks for all those playoff contenders, from D.J. Uiagalelei at Clemson, to Alabama's Bryce Young, to Oklahoma's Spencer Rattler, to the new young QBs just named starters -- Haynes King at Texas A&M and C.J. Stroud at Ohio State. The contenders discussed every week so far are Oklahoma, Clemson, Ohio State, Alabama, Georgia, Iowa State, Texas A&M, Notre Dame and Oregon. Will North Carolina join that group? And if the Tar Heels do, where does UNC QB Sam Howell rank compared to other QBs on contenders? To join the pod family and get to contribute to the show, join our text group on a free trial at 817-442-6789. Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this press conference episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah dig in on a big topic for a few questions before working their way through other listener questions. The main idea: Is this podcast ruining college football by focusing on the playoff too much? There's a debate about nationalism vs. regionalism in the sport, and the best way to talk about the game to keep it interesting for every FBS team. Then it's on to a big recruiting win for North Carolina and what it means for Clemson; whether NIL will keep more stars in college longer; and more of what we make of the Alliance of the Big Ten, Pac-12 and ACC. Thanks for listening. To sign up for a free trial of our text subscriptions, text 817-442-6789. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah once again dissect a team on the edge of the playoff conversation and disagree on whether that team deserves to join the show's playoff conversation. This week, the fight is over Oregon. Do the Ducks belong in the same group with Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Georgia, Texas A&M, Iowa State and Notre Dame? James Crepea, the Ducks beat writer for OregonLive.com, joins the discussion on that. Then it's on to ranking the best individual defensive player for each playoff contender, from Notre Dame safety Kyle Hamilton to Oklahoma pass rusher Nik Bonitto to Alabama linebacker Will Anderson. Thanks for joining The College Football Playoff Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this press conference episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are once again taking questions from text subscribers. If you'd like to subscribe, get several texts a week about college football in your phone, participate in surveys and get to ask questions on the pod, sign up now for a free trial by texting 817-442-6789. It's only $1 a month after the trial. On this pod, the questions are about:
The potential alliance between the ACC, Big Ten and Pac-12 to combat the expanding SEC
The best Cinderella candidate to make the playoff
The effect the AP poll has on the playoff committee
Whether Cincinnati is the best G5 candidate of the playoff era
Is Georgia showing signs this won't be its year?
Does the committee favor Notre Dame?
Is Alabama, the overwhelming preseason No. 1, overrated?
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On this week's main episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah rank the best head coaches among playoff contenders. There isn't much debate about the top two, but how do Ohio State's Ryan Day, Oklahoma's Lincoln Riley, Iowa State's Matt Campbell, Georgia's Kirby Smart and Texas A&M's Jimbo Fisher stack up to each other? That's the second half of the pod. The first half of the pod is determining whether Notre Dame should be included in the group as a legit contender and part of the weekly discussion. Shehan and Doug split their vote on this, which means the final decision on whether to make the Irish a regular part of the playoff discussion came down to the text subscribers. And that vote was 52 percent to 48 percent. Join the texts on a free trial at 817-442-6789. And get ready for an episode of the playoff show with plenty of disagreements. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
It's another press conference episode of The College Football Playoff Show, where Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah take questions and give answers to the most pressing ... come on, pressing is a mumbo-jumbo word. They just talk about interesting college football stuff. For instance, this week ...
Which current college coach has the best chance to come close to legendary coach Bobby Bowden, who died recently at age 91, when it comes to both winning and being beloved in college football?
What's their greatest memory of Bowden
Who would they vote No. 1 in a preseason poll?
How do you determine if a team has a championship-worthy defense?
What's the second-best Week 1 game after Georgia-Clemson?
Who will be in his job longer? Nick Saban, who is approaching 70 and just signed a contract extension, or new Texas coach Steve Sarkisian?
Thanks for listening to the Q&A episode of The College Football Playoff Show. Don't miss the main episode each week where a new team is considered as a playoff contender, and where all the best teams are compared and ranked against each other every week. To become a text subscriber and get more involved in the show, try it for free by texting 817-442-6789. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this episode of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah debate whether Georgia deserves to join a playoff conversation that currently includes Clemson, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Alabama, Texas A&M and Iowa State. The Dawgs have made the playoff once in the 7 years of the playoff, but might this be their year. Georgia expect Brandon Adams of Dawg Nation Daily kindly joined the pod to lend his knowledge on the Bulldogs. Then Doug and Shehan rank the playoff contenders by who has the best defense. One team is clearly at the bottom, but there's a fight at the top, as several contenders will be leaning on their defenses to make a run at a title this season. Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show. Subscribe at Spotify, Apple Pods, Google Pods or wherever you listen to podcasts so you don't miss an episode. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
On this press conference edition of The College Football Playoff Show, Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah once again take questions from subscribers about the playoff and college football. If you'd like to ask questions for this podcast, send a text to 817-442-6789 to sign up for a free trial of texts. It's just $1 a month to keep receiving texts and to be able to send questions to Doug and Shehan. The topics covered this week include:
How does 5-star QB Quinn Ewers enrolling early at Ohio State affect the playoff race?
When the playoff goes to 12 teams, how many SEC teams will make it each year?
Why should conferences other than the SEC want to slow playoff expansion right now?
Which national teams do Doug and Shehan have a great feel for, and a terrible feel for?
Would it be better for college football to have only four power conferences instead of five?
Is the gap between Alabama and Clemson and the rest of college football closing this season?
Is Kirby Smart on the hot seat if Georgia doesn't have a big year?
Thanks for listening to the College Football Playoff Show and don't miss the Wednesday episode on Georgia and the best defenses among contenders. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Welcome back to another episode of The College Football Playoff Show, featuring co-hosts Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah. As always, the main episode each week includes two parts. First is a debate about adding another team to the playoff discussion mix. Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State, Oklahoma and Texas A&M are in. Now Doug and Shehan debate whether the Iowa State Cyclones deserve to join that group. Iowa State is filled with veterans, and features a few dynamic skill players and a head coach in Matt Campbell that everyone seems to respect. So are the Cyclones on a playoff level? Then comes a ranking of all of the playoff contenders in a certain category. This week, that's running backs. How does an Oklahoma backfield led by Kennedy Brooks stack up to Alabama, with veteran Brian Robinson and a group of first- and second-year talents? What about Clemson's Lynn-J Dixon, who has waited his turn behind Travis Etienne, leading a backfield for the Tigers that has younger players like Kobe Pace, Will Shipley and Phil Mafah? Is Texas A&M's Isaiah Spiller the best back in the playoff mix? Is Ohio State five-star freshman TreVeyon Henderson a future star? Join the discussion on The College Football Playoff Show by becoming a text subscriber. Try us for 14 days for free, and $1 a month after, by sending a text to 817-442-6789. Thanks for listening. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Texas and Oklahoma blew up the college football world in recent days, and Shehan Jeyerajah was right in the middle of it. On this press conference episode of The College Football Playoff Show, text subscribers ask questions, but instead of Doug Lesmerises and Shehan taking turns answering, the pod leaned into Shehan's expertise while situated in Texas. Doug still had a few things to say, but it was Shenan who dropped knowledge on subjects like:
Which playoff contenders are hurt most and helped most by this move?
Does this guarantee extra playoff spots for the SEC?
Will Oklahoma still be a regular playoff team in this new setup?
Will Texas finally make a playoff dent as an SEC member?
Are we headed toward a completely new alignment of college football that goes beyond conferences?
Is this all going to be better for college football, or will it tear it apart?
Thanks for joining this episode of The College Football Playoff Show. To subscribe and get to ask questions and vote in polls for $1 a month, send a text to 817-442-6789. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah are back for another press conference on The College Football Playoff Show, taking questions from subscribers. If you'd like to be a subscriber to our texts to get the chance to ask questions on the show for just $1 a month, send a text to 817-442-6789 to sign up for a free trial. On this week's Q&A episode the topics include:
Clemson's defense
The next non-champ to make the playoff
The Pac-12's path to a playoff bid this season
Whether an undefeated Ohio State would be the No. 1 seed
The top five teams helped by NIL
A Heisman choice between Ohio State and Clemson QBs
And more
Thanks for trying out the The College Football Playoff Show. Don't miss the two episodes each week -- this Q&A and the main pod discussing whether a new team should join the playoff discussion.
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The College Football Playoff Show, your new national college football podcast, is back for a second week with hosts Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah. Each week, they discuss a potential playoff contender and whether that team should be added to the mix. Alabama, Oklahoma, Ohio State, Clemson and Texas A&M are the teams currently in the discussion and the pod leads off with Doug and Shehan debating where the USC Trojans, led by quarterback Kedon Slovis, deserve to enter that club. They talk it out and then Doug, Shehan and the pod text subscribers vote USC in or out. Then it's time (40:30) to rank those five contenders in terms of who has the best pass catchers. Is there a clear team that is at the bottom? Is there a clear team that is No. 1? Finally, (58:50), Doug and Shehan want you to get to know them, so there's a little time for them to discuss their first favorite athlete. Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff show. Join us on a free trial as a text subscriber by texting 817-442-6789. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Thanks for joining Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah on The College Football Playoff Show press conference, where they'll take questions from subscribers each week. Want to be a subscriber to ask questions, participate in surveys and get national football tidbits straight to your phone? Join for $1 per month, after a 14-day free trail, by sending a text to 817-442-6789. In this press conference, Doug and Shehan answer questions about:
Whether Clemson can recover if the Tigers open with a loss to Georgia
Is this the year that Alabama is a bit vulnerable?
Can Oklahoma defensive coordinator Alex Grinch build a title-worthy defense for the Sooners?
Which Big Ten team is the greatest threat to Ohio State's dominance?
Is LSU on a slide?
Does Texas A&M have staying power?
Which team that has never made the playoff is the most likely to make it this year?
And more.
Thanks for listening to The College Football Playoff Show with Doug and Shehan. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Welcome to the debut of The College Football Playoff Show. Doug Lesmerises and Shehan Jeyarajah appreciate you trying out this new national podcast all about the playoff. Each week until the start of the season, Doug and Shehan will discuss a team that deserves to be added to the playoff discussion that includes Alabama, Clemson, Ohio State and Oklahoma -- the teams that have taken 20 of the 28 playoff spots in the seven years of the playoff. And then they'll compare all the teams in the mix in a different category. First up, Doug and Shehan debate the merits of Texas A&M and whether the Aggies deserve to enter the playoff mix. Then they introduce themselves and explain their experience covering college football. Then they ranking the playoff contenders in a particular category -- this week it's which team has the easiest path to the playoff. Finally, they wrap up with brief tales about the best college football games they've ever watched in person. Thanks again for giving The College Football Playoff Show a shot, and look for the next episode taking questions from fans later this week. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Welcome to The College Football Playoff Show. See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices