This is The Drive with Josh Graham Podcast. We are killing it online. Tune into The Drive weekday afternoons, 3-7 on Wash J Yachts.
So glad to have you. On a Tuesday drive, It is WSJS. News Talk Sports for the Triad. And while our show was off in the afternoon on Labor Day, The show was still laboring at Keenan Stadium last night, and it turns out so were the Tsar Heels. By the way, find our Instagram reaction from the Field.
Well past midnight. On our YouTube channel, search the drive with Josh Graham. Please consider subscribing. Getting to what transpired though? There are two big storylines coming out of North Carolina's 48-14 loss to TCU, Bill Belichick's collegiate debut, of course.
Yeah. Actual Football piece about whether Bill is Got out for college, whether the experiment can work on the field. And then there's the visceral reaction we've seen to the game itself. And that might be the more interesting piece, the reaction, because it seems the entire football world, both college and pro. Absolutely delighted.
Today. to see Bill lose. that way. The college football lifers They are certainly rooting for Bill to lose. Heard from a handful of them last night.
Sitting at the Press Box at Keenan Stadium. College sports life are saying, ha ha ha, this guy thought it was going to be easy. Oh, the hubris. Coming in. thinking that college football was all that similar to the NFL.
Different sports. Imagine the hubris it takes. The arrogance. To be Taking your first college football job at 73 years old with no college experience, and then, according to the reporting by ESPN's Andrea Adelson and David Hale yesterday, telling high school recruits. We're going to win national championships here.
How about start with winning an ACC title, which North Carolina hasn't done since 1980? North Carolina had the messaging along with Mike Lombardi in the spring, Bill Belichick, saying, This is. an NFL operation we got here. We're going to be the 33rd NFL team. Imagine being in Ohio State and hearing that.
Wait, we're the ones that just won the title. Huh? Imagine being in Georgia. 33rd NFL team. Did you see the Eagles' defense and how many of those guys went to school in Athens?
All of college football is laughing today. Look at what the big 12 put on its social media. Do you see this, Will? The Big 12 conference on its social media. completely mocking North Carolina saying A 34-point win.
against the thirty-third team. Wow. That's from the conferences.
Social media page. A lot of people happy. Does he TCU win? Yeah. Look who TCU is.
That's a nine-win football team from last year that nobody was talking about.
Sonny Dykes. College football life or not an NFL guy.
Some viewed last night and views North Carolina season as An assault. An attack on the way things have been done in college football. Oh, you think you could just come in here and run shop?
Well, we have a way that we've done things for such a long time. And they're going to be the college football lifers. Happy to see Bill. fail. And then From a fan perspective, Bill and Coach K.
The two most reviled coaches in American culture this century. Polarizing coaches. And maybe it's because we hadn't seen Bill Coach. Since It ended in New England in 2023. We were reminded Hal reviled Bill Belichick.
Is in NFL circles. Twenty-five years of smug press conferences will do that. The cheating scandals as well. But Even Beyond fans. NFL folks were looking at this saying, yeah.
This is why you're not in the NFL. This is why no one interviewed you. This is why you weren't hired. You weren't blackballed. Nobody thinks that you can get the job done anymore.
Look at your drafts as the GM of the Patriots. Look at those seasons towards the end as well. This is why you had NFL Media jumping in on the fun. Adam Schefter reposting. The Carolina flip card that I put out on my social media.
That was completely blank. Oh yeah, that's how you know Bill's at North Carolina. Adam Schefter reposting. Something that we put out there. Then locally, The ABC crowd had a good time.
The Anybody But Carolina crowd. Look at you, state fans, wake fans. Looking at you, Duke fans. Stay and wait, they had to feel pretty good, hey. We didn't love Our season opening wins against ECU and Kennesaw State, respectively, but it could be a lot worse.
It could be what we just saw in Chapel Hill. To give Bill a little bit of credit though. He did wear the loss the way that you're supposed to. Here he was. after the game saying what you're supposed to say after you get beat 48 to 14.
Yeah, look, they just outplayed us. They outcoached us. I mean, they were just better than we were tonight. That's all there was to it. They controlled both sides of the line of scrimmage.
Um, their skill players played well and, you know, they And they just they did a lot more things right than we did, so You know, give them credit for being the better team. They certainly deserve it. The football piece is going to sort itself out. We're going to learn a lot. About the football piece.
About what? Bill's going to be able to do. Don't write them off completely after just week one. But the reaction piece, that's a story in its own right too. And it doesn't seem there are many people.
All that bummed. Other than those wearing Carolina blue, and even some wearing Carolina blue. All that. beat up by the fact that Bill Belichick lost in that way. We're streaming video on YouTube and Twitch in addition to at Josh Graham Show and at WSGS Radio and X, Will Dalton.
He's the executive producer of today's show. You're a Tar Hill fan? You were with me last night at Fenan Stadium. How are you holding up? Um it's uh It's nothing I can defend.
And putting my Carolina Fan had on. I can't defend it. I mean, it was bad. And what stings even worse is the fact that. You had College Game Day, you had Nick Sabin and Randy Moss all there.
MJ ESPN college football countdown is the show. And just the bill. Because you got to get. Teddy Bridgewater and Randy. Teddy Bridgewater, Teddy Bruschi and Randy Moss involved.
And just the build up to it and then You had the first offensive and defensive drive that was like, whoa. And the response to it in Keenan. It's like, oh, this is actually going to actually live up to the hype. And then it went the complete. Opposite way.
Like, it just. Embarrassing. It's also NFL Game Week. Brooke Pryor of ESPN, NFL reporter, is going to join us. She just wants to come on.
She wants a platform to vent about her tar heels.
So we're giving her that platform. She's a triad native as well. Joins us at around 5:30. We are well into game week in the NFL. In fact, Cowboys Eagles just a couple days away, but...
When it comes to the Carolina Panthers, there is a faction of the fan base. That feels The Panthers are being disrespected by odds makers. When Jacksonville opens as a three-point favorite on Sunday. You should not take this as disrespect. Carolina is a rightful underdog.
in this opener. It doesn't mean Carolina is going to lose, for sure. That's not what we're saying here. But Vegas is right to project. The game that way.
Carolina's two supposed strengths. Or what? They're wide receivers and offensive line. The great wall of line up and... You draft two.
Two first-round guys the last couple of years. You feel so good at that position, you don't mind trading your leading receiver. from a year ago, last week. But then what have we seen? Both those areas impacted by injuries.
Ikio Kwanu could be out in week one. Had an appendectomy last week. If he's out at left tackle, Yash Nyman going to be at left tackle lining up against former number one overall pick, Trayvon Walker, who had 10.5 sacks last year. After you trade Adam Thielen on Wednesday of last week. Jalen Coker goes down with a significant quad injury on Thursday.
Panthers announced this over the weekend. He's going to be on IR, he is on IR, gonna be out four to six weeks. At least the first four weeks of the season. You bring Hunter Rimfro back. It was announced today he's going to be starting in the slot for Caroline.
But You don't feel as good about that position as you did a week ago when Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker were on your team and healthy. This is also a road game for the Panthers. Even though Carolina won in the finale in Atlanta and you feel pretty good, oh, it's an overtime and they were great. It is important to remember That Carolina has won just two road games combined the last two years. Two road games in the last two years combined.
And now you think the Panthers. have proven enough to be favored on the road right out of the gate? Come on. The Jaguars could be a tricky scout. We don't know what it's going to look like.
Do the Liam Cohen? Took over? As Tampa's OC, when Dave Kanowis vacated that job a year and a half ago, now he's a head coach. For Jacksonville, he has two new coordinators. The Travis Hunter experience, how much offense is he going to play versus defense?
Trevor Lawrence? Just as important of a season, maybe more important for him than Bryce Young's season. The Panthers, they are rightful underdogs. At three points. This isn't a slight.
It isn't really all that disrespectful. This is it. Is it ready? All right, hold on. All right, do it, do it.
All right, listen up. It's the drive with Josh Graham. Let's recap week one of the college football season. The best way we know how to do it is by attaching letter grades. to what we saw.
It is time. for Graham's grades. Every week is a test for your favorite sports teams. Is this a test? Who passed the test?
I don't know. Who dropped a ball? I don't know. Josh Graham has the answers. What?
Time for Graham Scray. The good, the bad, the map from what we Took in. Let's start. With the easiest A We've ever had to hand out the easiest. A out there the biggest winner.
of the weekend. Hey. Lee Corcell. The man Did not miss. Six picks.
Six and oh. And you might think, well, Josh, he's not picking against the spread. Five of the picks he made We're the lower ranked team. Team winning. including His alma mater Lord Estate.
And to go a step further. Than that. All of the teams that Lee Corso ever played for? or coached. One.
on Saturday. Indiana Louisville. Maryland. Navy. Florida State, of course.
And there's one we're forgetting. Northern Illinois. All Winners. on Saturday. and the way that College Game Day sent him off.
I'm not gonna lie, I got emotional. I didn't think I would, I did. Hot. Rinaldi on Fox. Yeah.
Pinning a Tribute. Fox carrying the pick. Him being at the 50 yard line, I was sitting there with my son. And when I started to well up, it was. Out of Wow.
They really let Lee Corso go out. on his own terms. They really Let. An old man. Go out gracefully and the way he should, the way he deserved.
And it's because of his allies, it's because of his guys. But it's because Kirk Herb Street, Reese Davis, Desmond Howard wouldn't have it. wouldn't let it happen any other way. than how it did and That's just, it was a beautiful thing. And for him to be at the 50-yard line and to pick Ohio State, which was the first headgear he ever put on.
A really cool deal. And then we got the ratings, and it was the highest-rated college game day ever. 3.5. rating To put that in perspective. That's Twice some Duke Carolina basketball regular season games.
It peaked at 5.1 million people watching the last 15 minutes. of the show. It'll be interesting to see what college game day becomes beyond Lee Corso. But what a beautiful tribute. I was sitting there explaining to my son why Lee Corso has made his dad so happy or made your dad so happy.
for all these years and Yeah. Getting to share that was Pretty cool. Lee Corso, your easy A winner in week one. B. Florida State Drubbing Alabama.
Now Florida State. wasn't perfect in this game. Alabama, a 16-play drive to score a touchdown to open things up. There was a muffed punt that nearly gave them a chance to get right back in it. Florida State invited Alabama.
to get back into that game. Alabama just said, no, thanks. It's fine. You could just win it by Two touchdowns. It's a B.
But you want to know it by the way Florida State reacted. See what happens when you don't sue your own conference from a car market? It's like football nightmare, brother. Oh, yeah. The fine bomb calls Or Certainly.
Happen PAAAAAAAAAA as well as a result of that loss. But hey When you sue the ACC, you go 2 in 10. When you settle the lawsuit and become part of the league again. Good things happen to you. C.
Jake Dickert's Wake Forest debut. It's a win, Will. 10 to 9 though. It's a win. But you lose 10 to 9 or you win 10 to 9.
against a team that you were favored by 17 and a half against and You lose DeMon Claiborne on the first drive and it's a rib injury. Jake Ticker calls him day to day. You can't say much beyond that. It's... As lukewarm as a win gets, but it is win number one for Jake Dickert, nonetheless.
D The Miami Hurricanes Stealing. The Carolina hurricanes. Hurricane Siren. I saw AI. Say that.
The hurricanes had done this in the past. I googled it. I looked up. I have not seen the Miami Hurricanes have a long history of doing a Hurricane Siren before games. And now the Carolina Hurricanes have made the playoffs every year, and they have had the Hurricane Siren the entire run, and it's like their thing, and it's exciting.
And now you got Jimmy Johnson revving up this thing on the side. It's weak. Sweet. And the only reason it's not an F on this list, Will? is because, well, Miami.
Still won the game, and that's good for the ACC. You know? Can't say it's all that bad when Miami is doing good things for the league, but stealing the Hurricane Siren, that's low. F Go ahead. We all know it's coming.
Chapel Bill Star Heels. Need I say more? That's been Graham's grades for today. We'll get back into the tar heels in a bit. Make sure you're subscribed to the podcast.
Do we have any five-star reviews that I need to read on the air? Let me pull that up. Because if you give us a five-star rating, On our Podcast channel, we will read it out. This is nice. I love the drive five-star rating.
That's good. See if we have anything else to update people on. No, that one. As of right now.
So go to Apple Podcast, subscribe, five-star rating, and We'll read the Five Star Reviews. out on the air. Oh, uh congratulations. To two of our show's favorite people. people on this planet.
Both our longtime production manager at WSJS, DJ Turner, who has produced this show a number of times. And former producer of this show, Robert Walsh, got engaged this weekend. Both of them. Not to each other. Yeah.
Peale, I should spell that out. But uh shout out to DJ and Erica. That was great to see that this weekend. Shout out to Robert Walsh and Cheyenne. Uh in Nashville.
Lot of people on social media saying that Robert looks like Steve Belichick. He had some time to call plays last night. Robert had a better weekend than Steve Belichick did. That's for sure. He did.
Congrats to both of them. What will a Robert wedding I don't know. I've been thinking about this. I think we've passed the statute of limitations. But I've heard so many people that do not know Robert, did not know Robert.
Tell me Robert wedding stories about yours. at my wedding. years later. Oh like, yeah, there was this um Guy with long hair? Who You know.
Went into the bushes and took a leak. What? So what happens when he's the greatest? Oh yeah, he broke into the. into the pool and then At two in the morning was playing sharks and minnows at two in the morning.
May have had some. Paraphernalia. I don't know. Just some of the things that I hear after the fact. Just people who don't know him saying, yeah, there was this guy with, he was a lot of fun.
Hope he wasn't Winnie the Pooh in it in the he might have. I don't know. Won't rule it out, but. Shout out to Robert. One of the triads finest to know.
And congrats to DJ as well. On their upcoming nuptials. the drive With Josh Grammy. W In the last hour. Hubert Davis.
Held His annual off-season check-in press conference. This was not done purposefully. We've known about this for a little while now. But given how the football game Transpired. The timing could not be any more perfect Dare I say funny Hubert Davis.
Meeting with the media. Today to talk. Basketball, 62 days away. From Start a basketball season. Don't let anybody tell you.
Bill Melich Forty eight. 8-14 debut loss with the Tar Heels. wasn't funny. Even if you're a Carolina fan. Don't let anybody Tell you.
That wasn't funny. The comedy started. the moment we walked into the press box. W D and I Where The first ones to get in there. And They have These flip cards that they hand out to all the media And Usually, you have the depth chart, offensive, defense, that makes it pretty easy to follow what's happening on the field.
Well, North Carolina had a depth chart on its flip card. Just. Nobody at any of the positions listed. completely blank, which led to Adam Schefter Picking up. That Posts that we sent out Then, when I opened up my phone, unlike Will, I don't get notifications.
I see so many messages from people that aren't normally texting me about football that I thought that somebody maybe had died in my family. Like what? Why am I getting ba oh, oh, okay. That's what's happening. Pretty funny.
Pregame warm-ups. A complete zoo. RANDY MOSS Teddy Beruski. Pat McAfee, Nick Sabin, Lawrence Taylor. Mia ham.
Michael Jordan. and the headliner Aaron Boone. In the middle of the Yankees season, Booney. Yeah. He was dead!
The Yankees are playing. The Astros in Houston. In Houston. Aaron Boone's on the sideline at the Carolina game. Turns out his son is a student manager.
So he made a detour from the Yankees. travels to Houston. Duh. See Chapel Bill and. see his son.
Which is great. The funniest part about the pregame. Should have sent you this video. was how Bill handled high school recruits. Yeah.
See if you can dig this up for those watching on YouTube, Twitch, and X. We want to encourage people. to watch us in addition to listening to us. Bill Belichick. We're watching him pregame.
He's checking in with coaches. He walked over to say hi to the folks at the ESPN set. And then he gets pulled away. to the other side of the field. This is in the corner of the end zone.
It's actually closer to the 20-yard line. Right in front. Of uh The Carolina Tunnel. And there is a line. of Carolina football recruits.
That Bill Belichick Wants to say hi to, but rather than just walking up, dapping them up, saying hi, saying, hey, we'll talk to you after the game, we got a game to prepare for. No. As if It is Christmas time at the mall. We got People lined up to see Santa. Gotta get a picture with Santa.
And this is the video I shot for those watching. And you have players. Clearly, the guy in the gray suit is telling Bill the name of the player that's coming up to say hi to him right now. And then they come up, they get a picture, they walk away. It's Like Disney World.
Where you're saying hi, hey, let's wait in line for Mickey Mouse. Gotta get a picture with Mickey. And this happened. For about 10 minutes, just a line of recruits walking up to say hi to Bill, get a picture. Amazing.
Then the game starts. It's not going well for Carolina. Second half. Max Johnson throws a touchdown pass to his brother. It's a nice moment.
Great return for Max Johnson. Carolina decides we're going to shoot off the saddest fireworks show ever. We're gonna fire off fireworks when we're down 41 to 14. Smoke them if you got them. These fireworks are paid for.
They paid for them and they were using them. And they did a fourth quarter light show, which was great. Yeah. And the videos on the board, no one wants to play us in the fourth quarter. It's just that the football team didn't do its job.
No, this is the part honestly where I feel bad. Because people say, well, don't who do you root for, Josh? Who do you? I like seeing our locals do well. Because we build relationships with people over there.
There are so many people who've busted their butt behind the scenes who have nothing to do with the football itself. But making that feel big at Keenan Stadium, making it look awesome, doing all they did their job. They did. And the weather did its job. It couldn't have been a better day.
Everything was set up for this to look awesome and be awesome, except for the Bill Belichick football piece. And that I genuinely feel bad for, but it's still funny when you're doing a fireworks show and a light show and you're down by 30. Oh, yeah. Don't forget about the Air Jordan, Jordan sign. Oh, there were Air Jordan signs.
Now, that's not North Carolina. It's not, but it's something else that was funny. Doing their things. There are a lot of funny things. And then.
Do we have a screenshot just of the post-game? There's the post-game press conference. Where Bill Balichak Will Dalton is to blame partly for this going viral today? It is. It is partly Will's fault.
Because if you watch SVP Sports Center or watch what WREL or local TV stations put out. You want to tighten up the shot. Make sure it's just chest up on Bill. And if you do so, you just see like their sponsors in the background. You see the Carolina logo, the Air Jordan, DirecTV in this case.
Will Dalton. Personally, I think this is a better shot. You get the podium with the Carolina logo. Diabolically, Will Dalton. Decided.
To shoot it with the backdrop. Uh-huh. And you have sour grapes Bill. You have Grumpy Bill. You've got, I don't want to talk to you right now, Bill Belichick.
Brown of Cincinnati. And in the backdrop. You have A balloon arch. Yep. A giant arch.
If you're not watching or you hadn't seen the viral post on social media now, it is. We're talking 50 or so balloons. Oh, yeah. It's a huge arch. Looks like a baby shower.
It looks like a gender reveal. It's a boy! Is Jordan on? She got some news. Uh-oh.
Hey-oh. You could have easily moved that. You could have. 10 feet to the right, just get it out of here.
Now. There are people who are espousing things, saying, This is North Carolina taking a win for granted. Oh, this is Jordan. Deciding to decorate Bill's press conference. No, it's not.
To be fair. No, it's not. Do we have a compare and contrast? Last year, WD had the same shot, and there's Mac Brown. I've been consistent here.
Remember when Mac Brown was mad, knew he was being let go, and decided I'm not going to take any questions from the media after the state game?
Well, yeah, there are balloons there too. There's some balloons.
So that's that's been an ongoing issue. With Carolina.
So, with all of those options available to you, Will Dalton, what was most funny? From last night, what made you giggle the most? It's gotta be the balloons. It's gotta be. I mean, I I didn't It's to me it's either that or the photo line.
Yeah. I didn't laugh at that as hard. Just because the guy in the gray suit having to tell Bill in front of the kids, hey. This is this guy. Hey this guy Shake a hand, get a picture.
We'll send you a long. See ya. I was laughing thinking about Peter Herb Street with the headset. Oh, my God. Goodness, and we did it in- Talk about the fact the game got so out of hand.
The A broadcast team that ESPN has, the best of the business, ran out of things to talk about and they said, get the dog in here. Yeah. We need to put the headset on Peter Herb Street and have him call the last two minutes. Given all the mispronunciations by Rhys Davis, it might not have been that much worse. Yeah, Caleb Williams wasn't out there.
Caleb Hood was. Caleb Williams. Yeah. Yeah, Peter Herbstreet. Could have used him last night.
Got that. He's got a Pat Someraw-like style, letting it breathe. a little bit. Whew. There you go.
I'm sorry, I'm a little winded. A lot of us talk! This is the drive with Josh Graham. We look forward to visiting with. Brooke Pryor of ESPN.
NFL reporter. But from the triad, And A proud Tarheel alum will do that in about. Fifteen minutes, but before we get to her The Carolina Panthers. might have been closer than you think. to landing Micah Parsons.
Last week we learned of the blockbuster trade between Dallas and Green Bay. It Could have been. A block buster trade, between Dallas and Carolina. According to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler, Fowler had this. story that he worked on with a ton of his ESBN colleagues.
That dropped today a lot of behind the scenes stuff. Then Fowler went on 1053 the fan in Dallas. And He reported That Carolina was in touch with Jerry Jones. about the Cowboys star pass rusher. Oh, which other teams did they reach out to?
Yeah, we never got the full list. I know the Carolina Panthers inquired. They did not make a formal offer, but they did inquire.
So they were in talks. And we heard some whispers from. league circles that Micah had interest in certain teams. Green Bay was one, but like a little bit of Baltimore, a little bit of Kansas City. Philadelphia, but I we never really Some of those teams didn't look into it really.
I know Kansas City didn't. there wasn't a lot of momentum. in some of those other teams. But Carolina did look into it and Dallas would have had reason to look into that because of Derek Brown, star defensive tackle. They were looking for those type of players, those interior.
Uh D Lyman.
So that makes some sense.
So Carolina ultimately. Didn't want to move brown and didn't move on that.
So Given what the trade ended up being. Kenny Clark. Pro Bowl defensive tackle. From Green Bang. Two first round draft picks.
It might be fair, Considering the Yeah. Per Jeremy Fowler. didn't pursue it further. It would be fair to assume Jerry Jones. asked If you want to make this trade.
Derek Brown. and two number one picks and Micah Parsons is yours. Because we can agree, Will. That's a much better deal for Dallas. Derrick Brown Superior Run-stopping defensive tackle to Kenny Clark, and two years younger.
Carolina not as good as Green Bay is, so those first-round draft picks are more valuable.
So was Dan Morgan right? To decline the trade? We pose this question on our social media channels. If your Dan Morgan in Dallas asked for Derek Brown and two first-rounders for Michael Parsons, what would you do? 70% of you said they would decline the trade.
That's a little surprising. A reaction from Panther fans. But it's the right reaction. Damn Morgan, he was right not the trade for Michael Parsons if this was in fact the price. Number one.
Carolina's not as close to winning as Green Bay is. Carolina is not as close to being a contender as Green Bay is. Green Bay makes this move, Will. And even though they lose a Pro Bowl defensive tackle, the reaction's what? Green Bay's a contender.
Green Bay is a Super Bowl contender. They can get to the Super Bowl. If Carolina had made this trade, Let's just play it out hypothetically. The reaction to it. I think You'll have more people saying Carolina is a playoff team potentially.
It would make Carolina better in the near term. Micah Parsons is more of a game changer than Derrick Brown is. But Is it best for the Panthers long term? Green Bay is pushing their chips in the middle. Caroline is not ready to do that yet.
because they're not as close to being a contender. Because how the NFL works.
Okay. You gain a game changer, but by losing Derek Brown, How are you going to take those next steps? To being a Super Bowl contender. If that is in fact your goal in Charlotte. to win a Super Bowl rather than win the NFC South one year.
And then take a step back. You need those first-round draft picks. You absolutely do. Also, you can't risk. Losing those first round draft picks.
In the event that Bryce Young Is it the guy you think he is? And while the 10-game sample size is valuable this past year, we still have a larger sample size of him not being as good. through the first two years.
So Carolina's in a position they can't risk it. Carolina's in a position they cannot risk. Giving up two first-round draft picks. and Eric Brown to bring in Micah Parsons for the splash it might be. Good for Dan Morgan for making the call though.
We said this a few weeks ago, didn't we, Will? We said, hey. Make the call, yeah. Make the call. If the offer was Tetaroa Macmillan.
And two first-round picks. That's the trade we put on the table. Because then you got Derek Ren and you got Michael Parsons. That's the trade we put on the table. A few weeks ago, we said it'd be about two first-round draft picks and a player you could help you out right now.
And If it was Teteroa Macmillan. Assuming you didn't already trade Adam Thielen and Jalen Coker wasn't hurt. You probably do that trade. Or at least that's a trade that you consider. more strongly.
But Damn Morgan, he's angling for the future. We have fun. Cool slick rights. Thank God for Dan Morgan. What is this?
Fleece the Panthers season? See? Damn Oregon isn't getting fleeced. He fleeced LA. When he got that second round pick.
Back uh he I think Two years ago, well, we know. Minnesota moved off of Adam Thielen because they thought he was washed.
Now they get a fourth-round pick. For Adam Thielen going into the final year, I think Dan Morgan's a really good GM. and pressing the right buttons. And he was right not to trade. Or go any further in pursuing a trade if Derek Brown.
was on the table. W D, you want to know? The moment I knew Carolina was in trouble last night. Against TCU? And when I say in trouble, I don't mean, oh, they might lose the game, but this could be a real problem, because we picked TCU to win the game.
We just didn't think it would be 48 to 14. Was it pregame in the warm-ups? I'm sitting next to you in warm-ups. Yeah. And usually when you're watching pregame warm-ups, Will.
You don't see the ball hit the ground that often. No, it's true. You don't. It's like, all right, you catch a pass. There was a stretch, and I can't remember ever seeing this in an ACC game.
Regio Lopez and Max Johnson were throwing passes. And five straight passes ended up on the ground. Mm-hmm. Either a few were overthrown, there were some drops. And I'm thinking to myself, That Looks.
Ugly. And then what we ended up seeing was the worst case scenario for Carolina. It could not have been worse than what it was. And you might be saying, well, Josh, at least they had that first drive. We'll always have that first drive.
No, that makes it even worse. Because going into the game, we were wondering.
So B Is there reason to believe? And then after that drive, and then you get the fore and out. Defensively, you're thinking, oh, this is different. This is pill. Oh, we're stupid to doubt this.
And you feel, you're feeling it. You're allowing yourself to believe. The weather's perfect. The conditions are perfect. And then it's 48 to 14.
No, like that made it worse, the fact that they started that way. And it was comically bad. Max Johnson comes in and nearly fumbles the ball as second throw. And G.L. Lopez, last play, he's fumbling the ball, and it's a scoop-in-score touchdown.
Kirk Herbstreet barely gets the words out of his mouth out of the second half. Hey, this is a big drive for Carolina. 75-yard untouched touchdown run. I It could not because you're sold the bill of goods that Bill's going to have em buttoned up and in the right places. That's what he's going to do at a bare minimum.
And he didn't And he didn't. And that happens. That and the thing that makes it worse. Again. Worst case scenario.
is that it happened. in front of The entire college football world and God. It did. There was no other game to divert your attention. Everybody was watching.
This is what I say about the Dublin game, which Carolina is going to be a part of next year against TCU. Yes. Everybody, there's no other game. And so They're the overreaction in a positive way. and in a negative way, is going to be intense.
Because that's what we do. Primetime games. This happens on Monday night football. This happens on Thursday night football. This is what molds opinion.
You're playing in this spotlight game, everybody's watching. Can't wait to see what the ratings are for this. It's probably going to be massive. And they all watched you do that. And that makes it worse as well.
Makes it compounds things.
So for all those reasons. It's the worst loss you can imagine Carolina having. The most points Bill Belichick ever allowed in a game. The most points Carolina's ever allowed in an opener. Would love to See Mac Brown on one of these shows today.
Wonder what he was doing last night. You think he was watching that? Sleep. Yeah. Past his bedtime.
You don't think he was sitting, he was in a long horns t-shirt, just laughing somewhere. Hanging out in the mountain. Oh, yeah. With him. Having a good old time.
Maybe. Possible. Can't rule it out. Board of Trustees. Hey, at least Lee Roberts was in the press conference after the game.
Brooke Pryor She's known for her NFL coverage for ESPN. But today On this show. She went on specifically to rant about her tar heels. We'll give her that platform.
Next on the drive. Triad Native American. Tarheel born, tar heel bred. ESBN NFL reporter specifically with the Steelers, Brooke Pryor, is with us.
Okay. There were certainly a lot of people at Keenan Stadium last night who had never been there before and might not come back again because of what we saw. But we were there before Bill Belichick arrived. We're going to be there after he was gone.
So, as a member of the local media, it was a bummer to see how much effort was put forth by the athletics department into this feeling big and looking big and succeeding, frankly, through one drive. And the weather couldn't have been better. Then you get that result. How much did it hurt you last night watching this? It didn't hurt me at all because I felt Personal validation.
I felt a lot of, I told you so. Um, This is I hate to say exactly how I thought it was going to go. But This man, Bill Belichick, couldn't get another job in the NFL. Point blank period full stop. UNC Made a rash decision.
They made a not smart hire. And it it was a A rushed hire, a hire, maybe rushed is the wrong word, but it was a hire that was a lot of splash. And not a lot of, I hate to say not a lot of substance because Bill Belichick comes with a lot of substance, but it was not. It wasn't good substance. Like he has this incredible resume.
It was, I feel like there were blinders on, and there was a willingness to look past. the recent body of work that he put on the field and the recent organizational failures that he had in New England because there was this bright shiny thing and there was, oh my gosh, we can have Bill Belichick. Let's get Bill Belichick. I mean, the comparison that comes to mind is it feels like you're on a used car lot and you see like a 2024 Grand Wagoneer at a bargain price and it looks like it's got like a thousand miles on it. And you're like, wow, what a great deal.
I've got to get this car. And then you find out that it's a flood car and it was like sitting on a dealership somewhere and got totally flooded out, but that's not disclosed. You know, it's. If it looks too good to be true, it probably is.
So At no point did I think this was going to go well. It didn't go, it went worse, I think, than I thought it would. But at the same time, there was so much secrecy. around this program. in a way that made me very skeptical that he was going to be able to pull the rabbit out of the hat.
The recruiting class was not impressive. Yes, he brought in 70 new players, but this is not a Deion Sanders situation. Dion was a high school coach and an FCS coach before he got to Colorado. That doesn't mean that, like, He was, you know, worthy of all the hype that he got when he got to Colorado, but it was a different situation. Like, it.
They tried to play moneyball in college football, and it doesn't work like that. They tried to outsmart what they thought college football is. There was this. arrogance. with it.
I'm not surprised that this happened. This is... I hope the Board of Trustees was watching, and I hope that they're thinking long and hard about the decision they made and the way that they made it. Lee Roberts was in the press conference after the game last night. Brooke Pryor, ESBN, with us here.
That's the North Carolina Chancellor.
So you're hitting on the football story of this. The reaction today is also a story in case you... You have forgotten. Bill Belichick, not a very beloved figure. Among fans, it's him and Coach K, most reviled coach's box.
Checked. But what has been amazing. The number of texts I received at Keenan Stadium. from college football lifers. Who were enjoying watching him fail, rooting against him?
And NFL folks, not fans, behind the scenes people. What have you found interesting about the national reaction where everybody, college, NFL, they seem to be pleased by what they saw last night? Yeah, because I think it's a reflection of Bill Belichick was acting And kind of coming into the situation, like he knew better. Like he. That his method was going to work.
And it again, I go back to the word arrogance. And I think that there is a lot of satisfaction around college football, around the NFL, that. They were right that the people that saw this experiment unfolding and said, this is not going to work. He is too stubborn. He is too stuck in his ways.
This bellet check method, it requires having Tom Brady, right? I just think that, yeah, there is not surprise. I was actually, I was talking to somebody in the Steelers and they said it reminded them of, I think it was Titans Browns was the opener the year that the Browns got OBJ and they were coming in with all this hype and the Browns came out and the stadium, I was at Cleveland, it was an incredible atmosphere. The Browns came out, they scored on the first drive. And then they took a beating by the Titans.
They were like, it reminds me of that. Like OBJ came in with this $200,000 watch and all this hype and everything. But the Titans kind of knew, okay, if they can just withstand this first gut punch, this first wave of excitement, then it's going to regress to the mean. Then the tried and true method of. Doing things is going to come through.
And that's kind of what it felt like: was like, yeah, for a drive each way, wow, this flashy thing can work. And then it. it became obvious that the work and the talent wasn't there. I think that's, that's the most disappointing part is the brand that Bill Belichick built of do your job, nobody cares, work harder, like the shirt that you're wearing. All of those things, exactly.
That would that didn't show up. Like, it's one thing to have a lack of talent. It's another thing to preach fundamentals and preach, like, okay, we're not going to be the most talented, but we're going to be the most hardworking. Where was that? That was gone before half time.
That team looked defeated. It looked I I don't want to say that they weren't trying hard because I'm sure that they were. But it just, it was deflating and I just didn't see the fight and the fundamentals and the execution that you expect to see out of a Bill Belichick coach team, out of a Bill Belichick coach team. of its heyday, not of what we've seen the last five years or so. Also, I got the uh Final four hat from when Duke and Carolina met in the Final Four.
The season 62 days away, and the funniest thing unintentionally. See, this is a good segue because there's a lot of funny here to talk about. Even if you're a Carolina fan, it's okay to admit there are funny elements to this, including the fact that Hubert Davis had his summer check-in press conference earlier today.
So there's that as well in terms of timing. That's amazing. The Blake Nep chart, the shooting off fireworks down 4114, the balloon arch behind Bill Belichick at the press conference. What did you find most funny? Even as a Tar Heel fan, what did you find most funny about all this?
It was the balloon arch at the press conference. For sure, which I talked to, I... When I was covering UNC, there was no balloon arch. I talked with others who regularly are now in those pressers, and they said that the balloon arch has been around since the Mac Brown. I posted a picture from the Mac Brown era that the balloons were there.
They've been there. Yes. Even so.
Someone has got to move the balloon arch. That's embarrassing. That's what I was most embarrassed by because, again, I thought it was going to go poorly, but like, I kept telling my friends, like, hey, at least campus looked great. Carolina Blue is everywhere. They want they want it coming off the bus.
They want the offseason, all this hype. Like, you know what? I'm. I had a lot of FOMO when my friends were at He's Not yesterday. I'm getting videos from the old well walk, and I'm like, gosh.
Part of me really wishes I was there. The weather is perfect. And Then the on-field product happened, and I was like, you know what? No, I'm good not being there. And then, but, but I still felt like, okay, at least I can be valid in saying, like, I never thought this was going to work.
But then the post-game press conference was just like, come on, guys.
Now, this feels a little Mickey Mouse. Like, UNC knows better than to have the balloon arch. This feels bush leak. Please, please pop the balloons or scoot them out of frame. I blame Will Dalton because all the TV stations had the tight shot and the SBN had the tight shot as well.
And he's the one that decided to shoot the press conference in a far-out. I thought it was a good angle. It's his video that went viral, and it's your fault. Like, you decided to shoot it that way. And I don't know.
I didn't move the balloons, though. I posted it, but he shot it. If they don't want to run the risk of balloons being in the shot, then I just don't have them there. It's an arch, too. You can move it.
Yeah, there's a simple solution for that one. Brooke Breyers with us from ESBN. You covered college. Um plenty uh prior to your time covering the uh NFL. I take it you've covered plenty of bill in New England as well, just because of the AFC and the Steelers.
Um One thing that stood out to me watching yesterday Bill, no interaction with the players on the sideline, none of that. And you were talking about, oh, his system works because he had Tom Brady.
Well, his system worked because he had people built in who know his system that can do a lot of the pick-me-up of players behind the scenes.
Okay, I'll break them down, you pick them back up, type of a thing. And I I just wonder on a short week as they get set for Charlotte this week, or just in general. Like Is is Bill able to adjust The way that he does his thing. In order to keep college players engaged, is he interacting in a way that is encouraging guys even today? Would be shocked if he was.
He is not, he's not Mike Tomlin. Um say that. I mean, I think that you're right, it works. If you're going to be a gruff, not a people person coach, if you are an X's and O's guy, then you have to have Coaches and staff around you that fill that void, that are people, people. And I don't know that they have that on staff.
I don't know that, you know, how much is Freddie Kitchens a player's coach? How much is, you know, Bob Diaco lifting up his defensive line? How much are Steve and Brian Belichick those guys? Like, I. I think that What is missing.
I I think about this a lot. And it sounds trivial, but vibes are so important in the intangibles in sports. And I think especially in college football. Like You have to love up these players. You have to encourage them.
You have to build them up. These are young kids. You know, it's. A lot of times they are still playing for the love of the game. You know, they know they might not make it to the NFL, things like that.
Like, you. You have to help build and shape and mold them. It's not as transactional as the NFL. It's not a job the way that the NFL is a job. And I know that there's NIL money and things like that.
So, yes, it's more of a job and there's more money on the line than there used to be. But I think that you have to be. More of a people person. You have to be more of a vocal leader, and that's not Bill Belichick's style. I don't know if he's capable of that.
I mean, we've seen some of the media stuff in the last year when he was not coaching that he was doing, and it seemed like. He is capable of bringing out a little bit more of a personality, but I don't know how much of that he's showing behind the scenes, how much of that he can turn around in a week. But I don't know. It's a lot harder, I think, to. manage and deal with that type of personality when you're losing.
When you're winning, it's one thing. It's like, well, that's just coach. He's just like a the lovable old grump. And like, no, now that's Coach that's just kind of looks checked out. Like, it can, is he really bought into you the way that he should be for you to buy into him and what he's telling you?
And when it's a standalone primetime game, Bill can say it's just noise, but for those players dealing with what With what today's been is probably even more difficult to ignore. Brooke Pryor from ESBN is with us here. One more on Bill.
So, How much leash do you think Belichick has? Because as much as we speculated in the offseason, Um, about that $1 million buyout to fuel fodder that he might leave Chapel Hill. That $1 million buyout works both ways, doesn't it? I don't I can't remember all of the specifics of the financials. Post-July 1, it's a $1 million buyout.
For b for both sides. Yeah, I mean... I don't know. I really believe in, you know, not. Compounding mistakes and get out of it as, I hate to say as quick as you can.
I mean, I I d Yeah. I mean, I don't I don't think he gets Fired middle. Season by any means. I think it's on his terms if he wants to walk away. I don't know how much egg on their faces the Board of Trustees and the Athletic Department wants to have.
It's going to be tough. I think that if he leaves, it's of his volition. What does the crowd look like, Keenan Stadium, for UNC Richmond on September 13th? I don't know, probably what it looked like at the end of the Fedora era and the Everett Withers era. Um, I've I've lived through a lot of eras of empty stadiums.
Like it's I was I was laughing last night at watching the droves leave Keenan Stadium and seeing just the shots of the empty blue seats. Like, oh, that's that's the stadium. I know and love and recognize. I need to throw an NFL thing your way before we let you go. It's Brooke Pryor that's with us.
Your colleague Jeremy Fowler and many of your colleagues were working on this. Did a great behind-the-scenes story about how the Micah Parsons trade came to be, and part of Jeremy Fowler's report. I don't know if it was in the report specifically, but he was on radio in Dallas saying that. The Cowboys had an inquiry from the Panthers. But the Panthers were asked for Derrick Brown.
So if the framework of the trade is similar, given what Dallas received and. I'm from Green Bay. Uh if you were asked Derek Brown and two first-rounders for Micah Parsons. What might you say if you were Dan Morgan? I would I would do that.
Uh. Yeah, I would I would probably do that. I mean, Micah Parsons is a Is a organizational changing player. It's, I firmly believe that quarterbacks and edge rushers make a football team. Like that position is as important as the quarterback, is as difficult to.
draft and develop As a quarterback, it can change the trajectory of your team. And if I'm the Cowboys, I would probably prefer to do that deal with the Panthers than the Packers. I mean, those first-round picks would be higher. Derrick Brown is tough because he's younger than Kenny Clark, but I think that Micah Parsons still has a lot of years left. And I think that.
The Panthers are a team that can be on the rise. Micah Parsons certainly elevates them a lot faster.
So I would have done that deal from both sides. Yeah. Jeremy Fowler said that Dan Morgan did not want to part ways with Derek Brown. That's his words from that interview in Dallas. Do you view Micah Parsons and Green Bay the biggest story of week one?
If not, what is as the week gets set to start on Thursday? Yeah, I think I think that is The biggest story of week one, I think it's a 1A, 1B situation. That, and then also Aaron Rodgers going back to New York, playing against the Jets week one. Obviously, I'm siloed. I'm in Pittsburgh right now, so there's a little bit of a, I'm in, I have my blinders on in some ways, but I do think that.
That is a huge week one storyline because We haven't seen the Steelers offense on the field in game action all preseason. They did not take a single snap. Aaron Rodgers has not played in the preseason. I saw him in joint practices against the Bucs. It was pretty at the beginning and then it went off a cliff a little bit.
They didn't complete a pass in their two-minute drill at the end of practice.
So I. to me That's the mystery of NFL week one similar to the Arch Manning mystery, the Bill Belichick mystery. Like, is are is this, you know, things come in threes? Is this the third thing that, you know, there's all this hype around and then it just falls flat on its face? I don't know.
For my sake, I hope that it's interesting. I mean, it's interesting for me either way, if there's a big win or a big loss. I mean, I guess all I can hope is that Aaron Rodgers survives the run out of the MetLife tunnel and longer than three, four snaps on the turf. Yeah. Let's hope that's the case.
Brooke Pryor, are we going to see you in Keenan Stadium at any point this year? Are you planning a return trip? You certainly will not. And I have to tell you, so the Steelers play the Vikings in Ireland week four. Their bye is week five.
I had to book my flights over the summer and I was debating, do I I was always gonna stay in Ireland for a second week and I was debating do I fly back a day early? and go to UNC Clemson at Keenan Seedam. That's the only game that I could possibly make with the schedule. And I told, I asked my friends and they were like, you're insane if you come back early. And I said, you know what?
You're right. I'm going to prioritize getting to be in Europe in the fall.
So, thank God I did not book my flight to lose a day in Ireland. Although after the first drive, I was like, ah, maybe I should see if I could change that. And then I was like, nope, you know what? I'm good. I'm glad I made the right decision there.
So, no, you will not see me in Kenyan Stadium this season. Good for you. Brooke Breyer, thank you for doing this. Good luck week one. And thanks for always making the time for your old stomping grounds.
Always, thanks for giving me a platform to get that off my chest about the Bill Belichick era.
