Stories Inside the Man Cave
Stories Inside the Man Cave
Ep 428: Lets Talk About It, Reasons why #HookEm fans should NOT overlook Kentucky
What happens when the legendary Texas Longhorns and Texas A&M Aggies face off in a high-stakes battle for college football supremacy? We dive into the rich history and fierce rivalry between these two powerhouse teams, exploring the personal stories and family divisions this iconic matchup has sparked across the Lone Star State. Join us as we celebrate the 98th anniversary of Dirty Martin's, the beloved Austin hangout, and uncover how this local institution reflects the vibrant spirit of Texas football traditions.
With insights from seasoned coach Jay Boulware, we discuss the strategies at play as Texas looks to solidify their standing in the SEC and the College Football Playoff. We tackle the contentious debate over the strength of schedule in rankings, and the implications for teams like Texas and Oregon. As the regular season winds down, we anticipate the emotional significance of Senior Day and the potential impact of the Longhorns' performance under Steve Sarkeesian’s leadership. From passionate fan debates to the thrill of high school playoffs, this episode captures the essence of Texas football in all its glory and excitement.
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Austin, texas, is changing every day, but one constant is Dirtyin's place on guad. Dirty's recently celebrated 98 years young and the future is soft, and this space in the back is open to host any event, personal or business related hey everyone, it's daniel here at dirty martin's.
Speaker 2:We're in the burn orange room. We are currently, uh, booking a lot of parties back here. If can see, we got a capacity for about 90 people, but we are excited to host any party that you might want to bring.
Speaker 1:Give Daniel Young a call at Dirty's to reserve this space for any event that you can think of.
Speaker 2:I think our focus is single-handedly on Texas. I'm in on Auburn right now and locked in on what we got to get done.
Speaker 1:Hello Freudian slip. Mike Yoko, the first year head coach at Texas A&M, has done a great job. But I think he's along the lines of all Texas and Texas A&M fans. They cannot wait till Thanksgiving week, saturday for the big reunion, reunion, the Longhorns and Aggies. And, as Stevie Lee and I have mentioned so many times, that we thought that Texas and A&M game would determine something such as a spot in the SEC championship or possibly position themselves into the CFP or both programs. And that's where we stand right now. But one thing that is, people have got to remind themselves if A&M in Texas, one of the others, slips up this week, there's a good chance that one or both may not even end up in the CFP the week before the massive showdown in College Station.
Speaker 2:Let's talk about it. They've always played great defensive football and they're so sound, they're so disciplined, they recruit really good-looking players. You guys will see that Saturday when that defense takes the field, they're an NFL defense with first-round draft picks. And then, you know, mike and I had the opportunity to work together at Alabama. We were both analysts there and he became a great friend. He was a golfing buddy. So a ton of respect for those guys.
Speaker 1:The final home game of the regular season, barring if there's not a CFP game in Austin, texas. The final regular season game of the home schedule for the Texas Longhorns is against the Stoops Brothers and the University of Kentucky, and we'll get into that shortly. Episode 428, please like, follow each of our social media platforms and a big shout out to each of our sponsors as you see, on the left, of course, the big let's Talk About it sponsor Honest Plumbing and Air, where a handshake does still mean something and follow along on each of our Facebook and YouTube pages and every social media platform you can think of. So, yes, all eyes are on Kentucky. I know they're four and six and you're looking at them thinking, okay, they're a team with a losing record. But this team, the Kentucky Wildcats they just had some guys, some younger guys on the team, some older guys who have just not lived up to their expectations. But you got to know a team coached by the Stoops pedigree, the Stoops family, that being Bob's brothers, mike and Mark. They have deep ties to Youngstown, ohio. You know the story about the Stoops family, great story of coaching and their dad at Cardinal Mooney High School in Ohio. But you know Kentucky's done pretty well under Mark Stoops. But this year, four and six, I'm going to go ahead and say that I think the pressure there's more pressure on Texas, but you could say the pressure's on Kentucky because they need to win their last two games of the season to become bowl eligible and it means a lot more. But it also means a ton for Texas because a slip up against Kentucky there's so much pressure riding the outcome the following week and Texas a loss at home to Kentucky could very well end their CFP hopes.
Speaker 1:Potentially there's a Texas Longhorn tie to the Kentucky Wildcats Jay Boulware. He was part of that 1991 signing class that included Jason Reeves, corby Brooks, a lot of great guys, corby Brooks, a lot of great guys. Jay has been coaching all across America, including Oklahoma, and I texted him. I'm just joking, I just texted Jay, who happens to be a Stories Inside the man Cave VIP alumni. I jokingly text how many teams have you coached To face your alma mater? Jay Boulware, one of the class acts of college football, great coach. He's a special teams and running back coach for the Wildcats and he knows a lot about the SEC because he coached with Gene Chizik at Auburn as well. So he knows about winning and they have some dudes coming up the pipeline which are young. So there's a ton of ties to this game Kentucky and Texas and there's a ton of if you look at the scenarios November to remember, but we're headed to the second to the last week of the regular season then things become really fun.
Speaker 1:Then you add the fact that it is senior day at DKR and this is the class of longhorns, which were either inherited by Steve Sarkeesian, a class that signed in December but Sark arrived in January, and a bunch of guys who could have left in the age of the portal could have left, could have given up and gone to another program, but they didn't. Most of them did not. The core group who are seniors today, barron, you just name so many of them and we don't know if Quinn Ewers is going to walk with the seniors or not. He could enter the NFL draft because he's eligible this year. But all these guys, the fans, owe this group a huge debt of gratitude because they went from an average to losing 5-7 that first year of SARC to 8-5, then big 12 champions, cfp, and now number three in the country and nine and one, and have everything in front of them. All their goals are still in front of them. This group has done a lot and it's all senior days Get me. They have gotten me since I was a senior in high school, to friends of mine wherever at Stephen F Austin, to even Longhorns that I've got to cover and OU Sooners and Oklahoma State Cowboys. It's a big deal and that being potentially the last game at DKR this season, well, it just adds to it and how significant this senior day really is. And the one thing that everybody has to remember you can't look ahead to the reunion, and what I mean by that is the reunion looming on November 30th. November 30th in College Station, the first time that Texas and A&M will meet since 2011. And it could be a reunion of epic proportions, especially if Texas and A&M both win.
Speaker 1:This week you heard Mike Yelko opening the show. We got all our focus on Texas I mean Auburn. That could easily be an upset. Auburn's slowly but surely improving. They're struggling, but A&M beating Auburn and Texas taking care of business against Kentucky, which has a defense full of dudes, if you will, guys that are being groomed to play in the NFL. That kind of talent is on Kentucky's defense. So press pause on thinking about this game at Kyle Field Thanksgiving week Saturday night. We're all anxious for it. We're all thinking about it, of what could be.
Speaker 1:There's been so much made, especially on the CFP reveal show this week, so much made of UT's strength of schedule. Why is no one talking about UT's strength of schedule being so low? Why are they getting a pass? Well, my problem with that is I've made this graphic right here. If you look at, ut's strength of schedule is 38. They're number three in the CF people. They're being projected to represent the SEC as the champion. But let's take a look at this. Let's remove this banner.
Speaker 1:If you were to tell me before the season that a schedule that included Michigan, georgia, ou, florida, arkansas and A&M and people are criticizing Texas, I would have thought you were crazy and got something wrong with you. Because most years, a schedule including those five programs, those sexy names, most seasons it's one of the toughest schedules, if not the toughest in the country. But it just so happened that Michigan, the defending national champions they're a shell of what they were last year. They lost a lot of great players. Ou is just struggling, trying to find out who they are, especially on offense. Their defense is one of the best in the country and Georgia's Georgia. But now they have two losses. After beating Texas by 15 here in Austin, florida marginal getting better, with Lagway back at quarterbacking and some of the injured guys on defense back. Arkansas has had a pretty good year but they still are trying to become bowl eligible. They've had some injuries In Texas.
Speaker 1:A&m the verdict's out. A lot of Aggie fans are just cautiously optimistic because they're so used to late season slides, but I guarantee you A&M They'll bring it, regardless of what happens at Auburn. But go look at the right. Oregon has a worse strength of schedule rating than Texas, at 43. Ohio State hey, 28 for a reason. Look at Penn State. But if you go down to Indiana, undefeated at 10-0, their strength of schedule is 106. But they play Ohio State this week. What will happen? Notre Dame awful 82, but they're playing really good tackle football. Alabama strength of schedule 16. And, of course, georgia, the top rated strength of schedule in the country.
Speaker 1:Where's the debate? I, I mean, you play the schedule which is in front of you and I know there's style points that people want to see. How badly do you beat these teams? I, I, I will. I will say this that I think the 10 point win at fave and faveville against arkansas, 10-point win at Fayetteville and Fayetteville against Arkansas should weigh heavier than people are giving it credit for A rivalry game, renewal of a rivalry. First time they've been conference members together since the Southwest Conference days in 1991. So I don't understand the debate. I get it, it creates, it generates clicks, debate on social media. But that's why you play out the schedule you have, because if Texas runs the table all this won't matter. But if they slip up in one game, then we've got a debate to think that Texas, do they belong in the CFP or not?
Speaker 1:And this is the reason why I say allow things to play out. I know we get excited for all the polls, in particular the CFP reveal every week, but there's so many games that are weighing heavy which will dictate what happens. Every week becomes more and more important. So here are the Week 13 games that I think have upset potential. We'll start in the bottom SMU's on the cusp of the top 12 and could leapfrog, potentially, boise State into the top five highest rated conference champions. Virginia out of the ACC. You don't know what you're going to get out of them, but they're playing in Dallas. That could potentially be an upset and ruin SMU's chances of going to the CFP. But a great season nonetheless. And we talked about it. A&m on the plains in Alabama, at Auburn. I think that has upset potential all over it because there's so much pressure on A&M to win, to set up that showdown against Texas and Auburn's just trying to earn bowl eligibility and have a respectable season. Colorado you would think that they would steamroll Kansas. Well, kansas has ruined BYU's chances. Kansas is trying to become bowl eligible with wins here in the final two weeks of the season. That has upset potential. And look, byu trying to stay in the mix. A huge Big 12 showdown. Two ranked teams, byu trying to stay in the mix. A huge Big 12 showdown. Two ranked teams BYU in Tempe, arizona, and all eyes on Columbus, ohio. Number two versus number five Is Indiana, for real. If Indiana drops this game, how far would they fall? I guess it's determined by the margin of defeat or victory by Ohio State. And what happens to Ohio State if the Hoosiers remain undefeated and upset Ohio State, that's a big one. There's so many what ifs and that's what makes this so great. College football Every week, every week, is amazing.
Speaker 1:All right, let's take a quick break and honor the people who support this podcast, our sponsors and our partners. We'll talk a little bit about local high school football. I'll see you on the other side of this break. Honest is a strong word and we all need honesty when it comes to plumbing and HVAC needs, somebody who will take care of the repairs efficiently and with quality. Honest Plumbing and Air is who I trust, and they take pride in that word. Honest Plumbing and Air. Where a handshake still means something, the name Qamon means a small, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful, powerful. I'm your hero.
Speaker 1:My favorite thing has always been the Texas high school football playoff. We started out in round one with 32 ATX area high school football programs and I believe we're down to 23. And it looks like Lake Travis, vandegrift and Westlake are on a crash course in both the 6A, division I and Division II brackets. It's going to be a lot of fun. I mean, this is always so much fun. Then you've got upstart Bastrop making waves and doing a great job. Bastrop, I remember last God. I remember my senior year or my junior year in high school. They were 10-0, had extreme talent. That was 1989, 1990. And of course, pflugerville, charlie Taylor, pflugerville, panthers and his son. It's a great story there. There's so many great stories, and so we're looking forward to that. So best of luck to all of the ATX area high school football program still playing and still driving down that road to Jerry World.
Speaker 1:Hey, a quick note for our longtime OG sponsor, jim Saxton Longhorn legacy. There's a good news for him. And then he we were talking the other day and he said the PNC rates are dropping. That stands for property and casualty, which means auto and home insurance. State farm rates are going down slightly this month, which is bucking the trend Because if you haven't looked at all of your insurance premiums which you pay monthly skyrocketing. So give Jim Saxton and that team a call to not only get quotes but to switch your insurance, because we're at a stage right now of we need to figure out ways to save some cash, save those ducats especially.
Speaker 1:It's the holiday season. Give yourself a gift and call Jim Saxton State Farm. Hey, ben, tell me something good. Oh, state farm. Jim Saxon, state farm. Hey, man, tell me something good. All right, I'll tell you something good. A lot of great things going on right now, the holiday season. I'm starting to see a lot of people switch that mindset to where people are happier. But I love this and I'll stay sports-related on this Instead of going deep as I do with Stevie and being poetic or philosophical. What we have ahead of us on November 30th the Texas and A&M game. I see a lot of nontraditional football fans and people who may not be that big a fan for a sports period are getting excited about the Saturday of Thanksgiving week. Texas A&M playing tackle football should be a given. It should have never ended, but it did. But it's back and they're back as conference rivals and take full advantage of this, enjoy it, embrace it. Homes divided rivals and take full advantage of this. Enjoy it, embrace it. Uh, homes divided, families divided.
Speaker 1:Um someone who's very special to me her sister is an aggie and she is a longhorn, so uh, we get that those families divided stories back and it's a beautiful thing because there's good tension, good tension and, uh, I, I I'm so grateful because now people are getting excited. I can't wait to see the numbers, uh, people watching that game not only nationally but in the great state of texas. So texas and a&m the big rivalry, I call it the reunion. It's back. So whenever you have an opportunity to talk about the month of November SEC football, longhorns and Aggies, you know what, and even Texas high school football playoffs, it's always good to talk about. Thanks for watching, guys.