College athletics is right around the corner!

College football. Again, all these things, the calendar is set up weird, I'm telling y'all. I believe Dennis Cox and I calculated one time it was 2025, maybe the perfect year, where like 4th of July falls either on a Friday or a Monday, Halloween falls on a Friday, just everything sets up right. Christmas is on a good day, New Year's on a good day, all those things. 4th of July on a Tuesday ends up really wonky because we're still in June and like tomorrow, people will start selling really 4th of July.

Like fireworks will start tomorrow night and they'll call it 4th of July fireworks because you got to get them in sometime between the weekend of 4th of July and 4th of July. The other thing is, right now it seems ridiculous to talk about college football. But like 3 days from now when it's July 1st, it's like whoa, whoa, whoa, college football. We're putting on pads this month. So to warm us up and to remind us of how close to college football we already are, we have over, under, win totals for teams already out there.

So you don't even have to worry about how team you're good is. Vegas already knows and nobody knows Vegas better than Josh Goodson. Josh, what's going on, man?

Not a whole lot. When I think of 4th of July, it usually starts with the Tour de France gets started. So I thought I was coming on to talk about cycling getting kicked off on Saturday, but I guess not. You are not here for a Tour de France preview, although if you really, really, really want to give me a favorite, I will take one. I'll take a Tour de France pick from you. You got to look at the climbers. You always have to start with the climbers when it comes to the Tour de France. I'd either go with a Pocacar or a Yoda Vingegar who won it last year. One of those two guys is probably going to win it. There's like four people listening who are like, yes, yes, yes.

Finally, Tour de France talk. We get it. All right, did you come fully prepared? Do you have all the FBS teams in the state? And I'm including Charlotte in that as well.

You got them all the over, under, win totals for them? I do have everybody, including, can we start here? Can we start with the best program in the state of North Carolina? He must be going up to Boone, North Carolina for the Appalachian State Mountaineers. Andrew Carter coming on the show later today. We'll ask him about it. Well, we won't get too much into their schedule, but I'm worried if the state of North, if the best program in the state of North Carolina, something must be going up, going up there on the mountain because their win total is only six and a half. Whoa.

Yeah. Now I am looking at their schedule. UNC, ECU coming off a good season. Coastal Carolina has been good recently.

Southern Miss, James Madison. Something's going on if the best program in the state of North Carolina's win total is only six and a half. All jokes aside, like when I saw that as an Appalachian State win total over, I'm like, are they supposed to be bad? Like, are they starting all freshmen?

I don't really get it because usually App State is a very good program. And I feel like they win nine games every year, but like before the season even starts, they're going to be nine and something. And maybe they'll win another game or two after that. Yeah. It feels like without even looking at the schedule or their roster or any preview of them, you'd look at six and a half and be like, I'll take my chances with that over on App State. 100%. Right. In fact, I'll go ahead and do that. And I'll go ahead and lay this prediction down because that'll be part of it.

They will beat either UNC or ECU. How about that? Oh yeah. Yeah. That's the, I don't think you're going out on a crazy limb with saying that personally. All right.

Where do you want to go next? These are win totals in Vegas for the North Carolina College football programs. As an NC State fan, what has been the biggest thing at State fans, I guess. I mean, I know we can have a whole show of what is the biggest thing is NC State fans that's complained about over the last forever. I guess.

I wouldn't even know where to start guessing. I know. I know.

I get it. If I ask, just in general, college football landscape over the last decade or so, especially pertaining to the ACC, what has kind of been one thing that NC State fans have not been happy with for the most part? Divisions, having to play Clemson and Florida State every year and Louisville and whatnot. So I want to start with Duke's over-under win total because baby, they got all the Atlantic team without getting to play the easy Atlantic team.

So we'll start off with Duke's. They're over-under number six and a half and Vegas is good about giving you a little bit of a sign sometimes on which way you should lean. Vegas is implying that if you go over, you're actually going to win plus money, meaning them winning seven games or more is not the quote unquote likely outcome compared to winning six games or less.

It's six and a half leaning towards six. Correct. Exactly. Based on what Vegas is telling you. Their non-conference is kind of, you know, it's the usual Duke non-conference, like not great, like Northwestern, whatever. And then like some other bad teams, unless I guess technically Notre Dame as a non-conference game. So they get Notre Dame as a non-conference game.

That's going to be tough. And when I, when we get back to the, they're playing the Atlantic schedule and not the easy team, they miss out on BC and Syracuse. They get Clemson, they get Florida State, they get Louisville, who's supposed to be pretty good. They get NC State, they get Wake Forest and then their usual UNC game at the end, like that schedule is pretty brutal. Yeah, especially if, what Connecticut randomly good last year? It's funny, NC State plays Connecticut and then obviously Duke plays them later in the year. Connecticut, I think started out really bad, but I think they've won enough games to maybe even make a bowl.

So I would imagine they'll be a little bit more feisty this year, you know, than just, you know, counting that as a win. Is Connecticut just trying to schedule a bunch of ACC teams and then just like claim squatters rights? Be like, hey, hey, we're in here like Notre Dame too, y'all. We're just, can we play all in that?

Yeah, we're in here. You might be, or I'm pretty sure has to do with like states going up there this year. And I'm pretty sure Utah will be back here at some point, probably like a two for one type special where, you know, state goes on their wants. But no, it's funny when you look at Connecticut schedule because it's essentially, I think they actually technically play as an independent, so they have to go find teams to play.

That's what I mean. They're just going to try and just shoehorn their way into the ACC by playing all of our teams. But Duke, Duke's number, I just, I am going to be fascinated and I need Duke to just have the pain that NC State has had over the last decade. Like I need them. I need them to have the, maybe you play good against Florida state, but it's not good enough.

And you, and you lose by like a touchdown and then you have to go play Clemson the next week and lose by 50 or something like that. I need to see it. I need to feel it. I need to feel validated.

I think I'm going to be validated. Um, but Duke Duke's was interesting at six and a half. NC State, they're at six and a half.

On the flip side, they are heavily juiced to the over. So, uh, Vegas is thinking, yeah, they set the number at six and a half, but if you bet them to take the over, you're not going to get, you know, the full money back, um, type scenarios minus one 45, which is a pretty, pretty healthy juice to the over when it comes to like a wind total. Um, if you say schedule kind of weird, um, they go to Connecticut, we don't, everyone knows they open with Connecticut on a Thursday night. I actually booked flights to that game today. Dave, I know, but hear me out.

I'm never going to probably want to go to a Connecticut game again. Fair. Um, that's one thing they moved it up from Saturday Labor Day to Thursday Labor Day. So I can get, I'm taking a flight back at 6am the Friday after to still make the beach by noon. Okay.

All right. Respect. That's a pro football fan move right there on Labor Day weekend. Labor Day weekend. But, um, what's interesting about going to the Connecticut game after that game, NC State does not go further than three hours away from Raleigh for any other game.

Wow. That's a great observation. They've got their seven home games, uh, one of them in their home slate is actually great. Like this is the year if you have tickets, even if like the team's not that grading or maybe they're just like, you know, average team, you're going to see Notre Dame come into Raleigh. You're going to see Clemson come into Raleigh, Miami, uh, Louisville supposed to be pretty good. And, uh, UNC is coming. They're all coming to Raleigh, uh, their road games after the Connecticut game at Duke at Wake and then the two Virginia schools. So I'm kind of looking at it doing the, I'm going to go to UConn because I could potentially go to all the games, but you can't go to all the game pays if you don't go to the first game. That's right.

You got to start, kick it off there. Um, and it's amazing how many of the same opponents Duke and NC State have, cause they both have Notre Dame and Connecticut. That's two non-conference. They both have UNC, Wake, um, Louisville and Clemson.

That's one to do that. They have like more than half their schedule of the exact same. It's kind of interesting. I'm sure Duke plays one of the Virginia schools as well. Like a state, NC State draws both of them this year, but there's a, there's a pretty interesting, the six and a half number is kind of like a, I have a group, Texas buddies and we're talking about, you know, where are we going to be at? And I'm like, well, like, they're probably going to go eight and four.

Cause that's literally what they've done like five out of the last six years. So if you feel like that, then, you know, taking you over might not be a bad play. Um, where do you want to go next? You kind of, you, you steer the ship.

Um, let's, uh, let's complete the triangle since we did state and Duke, where you got UNC. Yeah. Their, their number's eight and a half, which I, I know Drake May, what, probably the best quarterback returning in college football, right? Yeah. Either him or the USC guy.

What is it? Caleb Williams. Yeah.

One of them, too. I mean, he's going to be good. I mean, he's, he's losing his, his offensive coordinator, uh, long goes gone at UNC, but you would think that he's a talent and you're still playing in the ACC for the most part.

So he's probably going to be, you know, the best player on the field and 75% of the games that they play, um, eight and a half is their number. But, but I look at that and this isn't like trying to say like, Oh, like there's no way they win nine games, but you, you kind of talked about one of the games they have at Clemson at NC state, they got South Carolina neutral on a neutral site. And then they got Appalachian state coming to Chapel Hill. I'm not going to sit here and imply saying they are going to go, Oh, and four in those games. But if they went, Oh, and four of those games, would that really surprise you? And the reality is, is like, they're probably not going to go, Oh, and four in those, but they'll probably lose another game that me and you are talking about right now. I mean, I'm looking at their first four games, South Carolina app state, Minnesota pit. And like, you'd love to go three and one in those and feel good, but I, it ain't going to be easy to go three and one in that first four. I mean, it's most likely going to be two and two in that first four. Right.

But it's more easy. It's like easier to see one in three than three and one almost, you know, um, no, no powerhouses in there, but definitely four teams that could beat you. And you'd be like, Oh yeah, they, they looked pretty good. Like you don't know what Minnesota could be, uh, an eight or nine win bowl team or a three or four win team. Same with, same with South Carolina, but let's assume they're going to be SCC worthy. And then pits probably a six, seven or eight win team that I don't know if you've heard this, but pit use is a pretty good defense. Um, so, um, so yeah, now eight and a half does seem like a lot. If you're going to tell me I'm going to give the heels Campbell as a win.

Um, and maybe I don't even know. I think Virginia is going to stink this year. They're going to beat Virginia. Um, they should beat Syracuse at home that you can.

And it's, again, this is not the state fan lens coming out. I look at their schedule and I'm like, God, can I get the nine and three? And it's like, it's tough. Like, but if not, that's not a certainty, like I would, I would feel way more certain about 84 or seven and five or, you know, so on and so on.

But you know, if you're asking me today, take the under. Right. But I mean, their schedule is just hard enough and they play teams. Um, they play enough good teams as you're, as you're talking about that they could, they don't have really any, you know, cupcakes anywhere on the schedule minus maybe two weeks this year.

What's wait for us that please tell me it's like four and a half, like totally disrespecting wait for us to six, um, right in the middle wakes a pretty interesting schedule. Um, they've got state, let me guess, they play Vanderbilt. They're also one of the, they're also one of the few schools in the ACC that drew Clemson and Florida state. Um, which, you know, if you buy into the Florida state hype this year that, you know, they're, they're going to be formidable. And then they also have to play Notre Dame.

Um, let me, let me, let me ask you a question. Hey, do you, do you think, or two things when it comes to like picking games or if you're looking at schedules, do you care? Um, would you rather if you're a team like NC state or wake forest or UNC, I think it's safe to say that those things are all kind of for the most part been the same team for the last decade, as far as like results and such. Uh, would you rather have your harder game at home or your harder game, the ones that are probably going to lose anyways on the road and vice versa?

Good question. Um, I see, I see what you're posing of. Like if might as well get the 50 50, NC state, NC state, uh, NC state schedule this year is probably the, the example that I'm like all of their hard games as we sit here today on June the 29th are at home. Clemson, Notre Dame, Miami, North Carolina, Louisville, all of their, you know, and that is not to say that they're easy games are on the road because no one's going to say going to Duke as an easy game or going to wake as an easy game, but they are like the perfect example of all their hardest concepts as we sit here right now on paper are going to be at home. And I just, I don't know, I kind of lean of the, you'd rather maybe play your hardest ones at home because you got the crowd effect and such or better. Yeah, definitely.

All right. And then finally, uh, ECU, what's, uh, what are they? I have no idea what ECU football is going to like this year.

I know that, uh, hope nailers is not the quarterback for the first time in a decade. Uh, ECU is that, uh, five and a half for their over under, uh, over under Vegas, Mrs. Holton. They miss Holton.

They do miss the Holton. Um, the over is actually a little juice so that this is Vegas Vegas basically saying it would be, um, a little bit of a surprise if you were to make a bowl. Um, which I guess I don't disagree. I mean, if you, if you, ECU is obviously in that weird camp of you kind of have to schedule aggressive from a non-conference standpoint, you know, for, for home game purposes, right. To have good teams come to come to Greenville and such for the fan base. But this year they, they open up at Michigan.

I mean, what, we don't have a history of North Carolina teams at Michigan. Yeah. Okay.

Sure. They're going to be like, they're like 35 point underdogs in that game. Michigan should be underdogs.

Well, they should be. East Carolina's got them. They got Appalachian state.

Uh, they got Marshall. I mean, I would say that as a, you know, if you're looking at just strictly a non-conference, that's not a, that's not an easy stretch just from a non-conference. And then I guess they play their normal, um, American athletic, uh, schedule, which would be a little interesting this year because there's no, no longer, no Cincinnati, no longer, uh, UCF because those things are now in the big 12. So it'll be interesting to see what the Pirates do. All right.

Final question for you. That is how Vegas feels about your college football team this fall. A lot of five, six and sevens in there, five, six, and then, and then UNC, uh, at eight, seems a little high. That just, that alone is like on an average year, if you said, give me the team that Vegas has the highest win total for in North Carolina, I'll take the under on them and the over on, uh, you know, the three middle teams that you'd probably work out, uh, pretty decently.

Let me ask you this. Last night, there was a so-called perfect game in baseball. Uh, he threw 90, shoot, I had it in front of me earlier. I think it was 97 pitches and 72 of them were strikes. Is that a perfect game? Um, I'm usually a naysayer on anything that's like cool in sports.

Um, or I try to find that, find ways to say they're not cool. I didn't realize that this was only like the 20, what the 24th in the history of baseball. Yeah.

I feel like for whatever reason, I felt like perfect games were like national IPA days. Like they happen like six days a year. You thought they were like hat tricks? Yeah. Like, Oh, I know they're cool, but like, I feel like that happens like three times a year, at least. And why are we making a big deal out of it?

But I actually do a little research. I went and looked at it and, um, no, it's a perfect game. I would actually think the most perfect game would be just a game with 27 pitches. No, see, it can't be 27 pitches because then you're, you're, you're, you're being efficient.

No, no, no, no, no, no, absolutely not. If a batter doesn't swing and you throw a perfect pitch, like a strike, then that's not your fault. It can not be 27, uh, pitches. I'm making the rules.

Hey, we're, we're, we're doing the thing where we're making what we did. No, it just has to be, it just has to be no balls. It's not perfect. If you throw a ball, you have to throw all strikes.

That's my, that's what I'm claiming. You have to throw all strike. Okay. 27 strike. That's fine.

Like that's cool. Like 27 strike, they get hit and they're 27 out. No, they're not all going to get hit. If the batter doesn't swing, that's not your fault.

No, absolutely not. Uh, you guys, you're shaboomy warmed up or are you grilling for 4th of July? Will you be on the beach or at home?

Uh, I'll be in Windell. All right. Are you grilling for everyone else? No, I'm not. I've not touched the grill in like eight months.

God, what, what are you? What are you doing? I'm going through a really bad phase.

I'm going through a really bad phase of just eating out all the time. It's really bad. Um, all right.

Well, we'll fix that. 4th of July week. It's a great time. Fire up that grill, buddy. For sure. Well, I'll do that while I'm watching the Peloton go through, uh, the Pyrenees next week. So I'm, I'm looking forward to that. Stop. Enjoy the Tour de France.