NC State-UNC

This is The Drive with Josh Graham Podcast. Tune into The Drive weekday afternoons 3-7 on Sports Hub Triad. Imagine being an NC State fan today. If you're a Wolfpack fan I want to hear from you right now. Just tell me how your day is going.

3-3-6-7-7-7-1-600 is the phone number. Is it a situation where you're just immune to it now? Hey, NC State, you might be a top 5 team in the ACC this year. North Carolina isn't any good.

Cole Anthony isn't playing. The Pack is at home where they haven't beaten NC State in a half dozen years. Surely they're not going to mess it up, are they? And of course they do. There isn't a fan base that is more tortured than NC State fans are.

There just isn't. So last night, I'm sitting there with Sawyer and Robert and B. Dot, our friend from Wild N' Out, and all we're thinking is, all I'm thinking is, oh boy, I wonder how NC State fans are going to feel today. Just imagine what Pack fans are going to feel if they lose to North Carolina again.

In heartbreaking fashion. Even when the Tar Heels aren't playing that well. Like they shot 50% in the first half, but they're missing free throws left and right.

They're shorthanded. They're getting nothing from their bench. They still lose that game. NC State does. On the flip side of it, before we get reaction from NC State fans, North Carolina, I need to stop Tar Heel fans right now. Stop it. If you're thinking that this team's going to be an at-large bid team in the NCAA tournament, when they get Cole back, stop it. It's too late for that. I don't care what kind of run they're about to go on. They're not going to fix a lot of the problems they have offensively. Cole isn't going to fix all of that.

But I will say this. We're excited for the ACC tournament when it returns to Greensboro for the first time in five years in March. We're excited for that.

We already know what the big story is going to be. North Carolina is going to have to win the ACC tournament in order to get into the NCAA. If they don't win the ACC tournament, it will be the second time Roy Williams has ever missed the NCAA's since returning to Chapel Hill. That needs to be spoken right now. That needs to be acknowledged. Tar Heel fans, let that get into your brains.

Do not talk yourself into anything differently. Brian Ives, who works at ESPN. Big stats and info guy. Used to travel with college game day and football and with basketball as well. I went to him trying to figure out the last time the ACC stole a bid with its conference champion. And he said that hasn't happened in the modern era of the NCAA tournament. It expanded the 64 teams in 1985 of course.

So you might have to go all the way back to 1972. That's the last time North Carolina won an ACC tournament and back then you had to win in order to make the NCAA's. The ACC first got multiple bids in 75 and North Carolina would have gotten in anyway each year after that when they won the ACC tournament. So other teams that maybe would have been left out that won the tournament. Maybe NC State in 87, Georgia Tech in 93, Maryland in 2004. They all were 6 seeds in the tournament and 6 teams made the ACC tournament or excuse me the NCAA's from the ACC in those years. So those are the only times it was close where you had teams potentially stealing bids to get into the tournament. So it would be historic if North Carolina went on a run and won the NCAA's or won the ACC tournament.

I do think they have a good shot of it though. When Cole returns, North Carolina, they're going to be strong defensively. I like the 5 they'll put out on the floor from a defensive standpoint. Leaky Black, he was good last night. Armarkel Johnson and CJ Bryce, Garrison Brooks very good. Cole, an excellent rebounder for a point guard. So rebounding not going to be an issue, defense not going to be an issue and you got a lottery pick at point guard.

That's a really good recipe for North Carolina. Let's go to Denzel in Ridgeway who wants in on the pack. Denzel, how are you doing today? Not good, we suck. The coaching staff sucks, they got a change up. They played the same way for the last 4 games. All they do is shoot the ball, they don't take it inside, they don't play good defense and stay with the man. Roy Williams out coached him last night with nothing. He had nothing and he out coached him. They backdoored us to death. I don't know how many layups were uncontested, no defense whatsoever.

Roy's a freaking genius. Denzel, what did you have for breakfast today? I have enough because I'm telling you right now, we haven't had a good coach at stake since we had Sintek and they let him go for no reason at all. Can I give you some advice Denzel? How long have you been a NNC State fan? Say what? How long have you been a NNC State fan?

Ever since they won it, in 82. Alright, tonight, after that loss last night, get yourself a big ol' steak. That'll make you feel better, how's that sound? Okay, that's good advice, we'll see you later guys. Alright, see you Denzel. So yeah, NNC State fans are having a rough one today, wouldn't you say Robert? Yeah, I'm gonna use that, we suck for forever.

I appreciate that Denzel. North Carolina, they're going to have a shot when March comes around and that's why I have no issue with Roy not rushing Cole back. Cole Anthony probably could have played last night, he spoke to the media, he said that he is somewhere in the 90s if he had to put the percentage on it. But he had it in practice, if Roy has a policy, you have to practice at least once in order for him to put you in a game. With the quick turnaround from Saturday to Monday, he did not do that, but North Carolina has a few days before they play it against Boston College in the Smith Center, Saturday. So I think there's a strong chance he's going to play, considering Cole is speaking to the media, something that generally doesn't happen if you're injured. But I would understand it if Roy wants to be playing on the safe side. Yesterday marked the six week anniversary from when he had surgery on his knee. It was speculated to be a four to six week injury. So if he just wanted to exhaust a full six weeks before implementing them in practice, I have no problem with that considering how things have gone for the Tar Heels. Since they're not going to make the NCAA tournament as an at-large, you might as well try your best to be healthy by the time you get to that tournament. Make sure B-Rob is healthy considering all the injuries he's had so you can give it your best shot in front of what's practically going to be a home crowd at the Greensboro Coliseum. That is going to be the story.

North Carolina, they need to win this tournament in order to get to the NCAA. Something we've only seen in our lifetimes, I think twice? Like 2002? 2003? So I guess three other times.

2010? Those are the only times North Carolina has been bad enough that they have to win the ACC tournament to get through. Garrison Brooks, Brandon Robinson, it's been blessings in disguise all these injuries that have required them to take steps offensively. These were not guys you would rely on on the offensive end by any means as primary scorers, but through all these trials and the errors and the losses, these guys have taken steps. B-Rob earned his stripes with a big performance against Miami in order to snap the losing streak. He was great again last night and Garrison Brooks, he's been awesome a handful of times in the last few weeks.

So Brooks and B-Rob, they're on point. That's a guy in the post. That's a guy on the perimeter. Cole Anthony is a lottery pick.

He could be the best player in the ACC. If you push back on that, I ask you a simple question. Who do you know for certainty is better than Cole? You just wanted to play the cut. That is correct. You have not said his name this whole segment.

I've been waiting on it. Cole is in an ACC season where there hasn't been one or two players stepping up and taking the reins saying, I am the dominant player. Jordan Wara and his Louisville Cardinals beat Duke and Cameron. I was their court side, but even in that game, Wara struggled.

He wasn't great by any means. I still think he's the ACC's best player, but if Cole is healthy, he very well might be. Let's go back to the phones. I want to talk to another NC State fan. Is he as mad as Denzel was? We'll find out. Let's go to Danny in Winston-Salem.

Danny, how's your day been? That ball wasn't very fun. I'll give him a couple more years. I'll have all the players in there next year.

Josh, I've got a question for you. How many games have you got to get in to make the NCAA tournament this year? NC State, good question, Danny, and I'm glad you asked it. NC State, they need to be concerned about their resume at the moment. They've only played one team that right now is ranked in the top 25. That's Auburn. And they're ranked 16th or 17th. Memphis was in the top 25, but they lost both those games. When you look at quad one wins, it's Wisconsin, it's Virginia, and I'm forgetting one. It's Wisconsin, it's Virginia, and UNC Greensboro. UNCG might be the best win for NC State this year.

I don't even think that's crazy to say. That team's damn good this year. But none of those teams are ranked in the top 25.

So they're going to have opportunity, but they're going to be defined by what happens in the month of February. What are you going to do when you play Phase 4 to State? What are you going to do when you play Louisville? Fortunately, you only have to play both those teams one time, and both those games are going to be played inside PNC Arena. NC State's next game this Saturday against the Louisville Cardinals. Gotta play Duke twice. So you gotta find a way to win one or two of those games.

Or at least win one of them and take care of business against the opponents you should beat. Don't get beaten in the first game you play in the ACC tournament. So things are still in NC State's favor, but after what we saw last year, PAC fans should not feel comfortable by any means. Let's go to one more NC State fan before we get to the Bachelor Minute. Kevin and Graham, you're on Sports Hub Triad. Kevin, how's your day been? It's a pretty good day.

Let me just correct you. I'm a Tar Heel fan, but I'm fixing to make State fans feel a little better today. How are you going to make State fans feel better? A little nostalgia.

So I want to disagree with you. If you go back to the 83 Wolfpack team, they entered the ACC tournament with 10 losses that year. Now at that time, it had just went up from 48 to 52 teams. They had no room for error in that ACC tournament. Now the likelihood when they got to the championship game, that probably secured them getting in there, but that was a close call for them. Had they not won that ACC championship, there's a good chance that we ain't even talking about that 83. So 87 NC State, Georgia Tech in 93, that's one I brought up, but I was trying to think of ones in the modern era, 85 and beyond with the 64 team field, but that is a great example you bring up. So how are you going to make State fans feel better today?

Well, just reminding them that they did win a championship back in 83. Enjoy the day that you're having. I appreciate the phone call. There you go. He got past Robert. Robert, how'd you let that happen? I don't know. He said he wanted to talk about the PAC. These guys are bamboozling me. Also, you're not the greatest interrogator either.

What am I supposed to say? Oh, do you really want to talk about the PAC? Or are you trying to sabotage this program?

Or maybe you could just ask the simple question, are you an NC State fan? No. I'm not an inquisitor.

If you want to get in here, just don't cuss. A what? An inquisitor. An inquisitor? Someone who would ask someone questions. An inquisitor.

Hmm. That's very noble of you, Juan, but also very proper. So last night's Bachelor included an air quote Brown's legend and drama with a former North Carolina football player. I'm not kidding. We'll dive into both those and plenty more in the Bachelor Minute next. You could try getting your sports news and talk somewhere else.

My life sucks quite enough already, thank you. Best to leave it right here on The Drive with Josh Graham. This is going to be a jam packed bachelor minute. Last night, I was watching NC State, North Carolina, then caught some of Kobe's final game.

They rebroadcast that on ESPN. It got me pretty emotional. So I was in the perfect mental space to begin watching what was a fascinating Bachelor episode. This is becoming one of the more popular segments that we do.

Certainly the most polarizing. So I'm looking forward to all the tweets and emails and text I get as a result. Let's dive right in though. It's time for the bachelor minute. So it's another ongoing never ending series of The Bachelor. Will Pete push the limits of what's acceptable on national TV? Is Pete here with the intentions of hooking up with as many of the contestants as possible?

Or is it simply the free booze? Pete is on the clock. Welcome to the bachelor minute.

The three points I need to cover today. They went to bleep in Cleveland. Victoria's plural are the worst. And Aaliyah is back.

Let's start with the Cleveland front. Chris Harrison, I'm not sure if he counts as a game show host. Because we usually think about Bob Barker, we think about Drew Carey, we think about Alex Trebek. Never really the reality TV stars get thrown into that bunch when it comes to great game show hosts. But that's what Chris Harrison is.

He's awesome at what he does. He walks into a room and he sets it up. Hey, we're about to go on the road to all these exotic locations. We're going to travel across the world and the first stop on our trip as women are sitting on a couch saying, Oh my God, where are we going? Where are we going? Is Cleveland, Ohio. What was great is half the women didn't get the joke. They were like, yeah, I've never been to Cleveland.

Let's go there. Kelly, who's an attorney who met Peter in a hotel lobby before the bachelor episode started. Air quotes, if you know what I mean, wink, wink. She had the best face of Cleveland. Then when they got there, it's a shot of Peter and he's doing like a Superman pantomime. Hey, Superman's from Cleveland. He just did like a simple Google search of Cleveland, Ohio.

And that's what he found. Cleveland facts. And you know, it's bad when you're supposed to be showing like the scenic sites of Cleveland. What they show are the women walking into their hotel rooms saying, Oh my God, the hotel is so nice. We're right on the Erie River.

How great is this? So what do they do when they're in Cleveland? They go to the Browns football stadium and you have 12 or 13 women going head to head tackle football. Hannah Ann, who's the worst, got rocked a couple of times. And the person leading drills is Browns legend Josh Cribbs.

This is an actual thing. You had Peter saying, because you have to introduce to a wide audience who these people are. Only sports fans, hardcore sports fans, know who Josh Cribbs is. You got Peter saying, girls, you're in for a treat. It's Browns legend Josh Cribbs. Which is an amazing sentence in its own right.

So they play a football game back and forth and they tie because of course they do. Secondly, the Victorias, both of them, they need to go. Victoria F, who you might remember, had the joke about her dry personality right from the jump. She was the awkward one that thought she was going to be eliminated and almost walked out because, Oh man, you have all these women competing and I feel left out. Same woman who finished second in a runway challenge because, Oh, I put myself out there and I was uncomfortable being on stage and all of this. It turns out after just a little bit of research, she's a model. She's an influencer. What do you mean you're uncomfortable modeling? That's what you do, Victoria F. More like Victoria F than liar.

That's what I'm saying here. Victoria, the reason why she exposed herself in this episode, She went on a one-on-one date with Peter. And Chase Rice started performing a private concert for Victoria.

A private concert. Chase Rice, do you know where he went to school, Robert Walsh? Kent State. North Carolina, he was a football player in the mid 2000s.

He's performing. Now, why is that awkward? Well, apparently, bachelor producers are damn good at what they do. They figured out that one of their contestants, Victoria F, At one time was quite acquainted with Chase Rice. But the way Victoria F put it, it was super awkward because they used to date. That's my ex-boyfriend, she said. And she didn't want to tell Peter about it.

But then she starts talking to Chase Rice and Chase Rice talks to Peter. Um, yeah, he didn't seem to care at all. Didn't seem to know this woman. He told People Magazine, Yeah, I didn't like the fact that the bachelor brought somebody I hooked up with to the set. I didn't want to be involved with this drama at all. I didn't know she was a contestant.

I spent one night with her. But that didn't stop Victoria P, or Victoria F, excuse me, from saying, Oh my gosh, he didn't want me to go on this show. He didn't want me to be there. He didn't give a rat's bleep that you were on this show.

He didn't want you to stay the night, lady. But she's like, Oh my gosh, this is my ex-boyfriend. Then she tells Peter and then guess what she does, like she's done the three other times. Storms off camera emotionally.

Oh my God, I knew you were going to react that way. How is he supposed to react? Do you think he cares? You spent a night with Chase Rice?

Really? You think Peter cares about that? Peter was really fanboying over that whole time.

Yeah, Peter was super happy about the entire deal. So Victoria F, she's a liar. A liar and the worst. I hope she gets kicked off because, again, perpetuating lies and creating drama, Victoria P, who you have, Sawyer, in your draft, she doesn't play in the football game because her back's hurting. She says her doctor said that she can't play football. Then later on, she didn't compete in the game. She pulls Peter first away from women that actually competed in the date and said, oh, I really wanted to play, but I was really, my back started hurting in warm-ups. Oh wait, I thought it was your doctor, Victoria P. And if you remember, Victoria P was the person that said, I knew Alaya off before the episode started. She's not here for the right reasons.

I know her. She said that she's just trying to get the publicity of it all. Well, Alaya returned to the show, and that's who Robert calls Scar, which means I think we need something every time Alaya's mentioned on this show.

Long live the king. She's back, and she walks in and says, we were friends, me and Victoria P. If she says we're not, she's a liar. And he went upstairs to Victoria P. She started crying, saying, uh, I mean, we knew each other, and we went to Vegas together, but, like, we're not friends at all.

And then Peter, very smartly, one of the few smart things he's done, takes her downstairs to Alaya, and Victoria P. completely crumbles under pressure because she's a liar. And you got Alaya back in the episode. Last week we said, if she returned, Robert, you would be back in the competition after you completely combusted picking three duds in the Bachelor draft.

So you got Alaya. She's a part of the mix now. I'm back, and I'm better than ever.

Whoo! Back in the Bachelor draft, baby! There's so much drama. Peter is ticking off all the women. You break Hannah Brown on a date, the last Bachelorette, bringing Alaya back, people were mad at Peter again. He's not very bright. He had no clue that Victoria P. hated, or Victoria F. hated the Chase Rice concert because she once hooked up with him. Like, the guy is clueless.

And now this show just got a lot more interesting. So, Sawyer, what was your general reaction? I did not like what I saw out of Victoria P. I was not, you know, it was kind of like I was more ashamed that she was my first rounder. Like, for a third rounder, I kind of would have been okay with it. You know, she was put on this whole album. Madison was your first round. Nah, Victoria. Oh, that's right. You had a snake draft.

I had a snake, so I went back to back. Man, I just love that whole Chase Rice segment. I was laughing when it would just cut to her talking about how they dated, and then it would cut to Peter saying, you know, maybe Chase Rice could play at our wedding one day, and I just could not.

The producers, top notch episodes. Clearly the producers, the producers told Peter before that scene, she loved it, loves country music. She loved that show. Oh, yeah. Continue to bring that up.

Maybe he didn't play at our wedding one day. My girlfriend's observation on watching last night's episode, she says, Victoria P. looks like a hot 40-year-old. Whoa. That was her contribution.

She's still hot. And also, she's, the devil sleeps, but Bachelor producers do not. There you go.

Yeah. They seem to know everything. I love her insight. We need to get her in here for a Bachelor Minute one day. She wants to come on the show, and I'm not going to let her off. I knew you would be so against it. 100 percent. I would love for her to come in here.

Incredibly against that. But that's the Bachelor Minute. Just very detailed this week. Out on the Victorias. The only thing I take from that whole thing is that I'm no longer out, but I'm back. And I'm better than ever. And the reason you're back is because A'leah got back into the fold, or Scar, as we call her. Long live the king.

We gave him Hannah Brown, too, so this is actually his fifth pick in the Bachelor Drive. Wow, so I'm double. I'm back, and I'm back.

Coming up, a local Kobe tribute that was done by Example. This is a Tuesday drive. Stand by as we continue our dig for the truth and the toy at the bottom of the cereal box.

Oh, got it. You're on the drive with Josh Graham on Sports Hub Triad. If Cole Anthony is speaking to the media, he's close to returning for the Tar Heels. Last night, it was the first time we heard from Cole since he sustained the knee injury that's kept him out for six weeks as of last night, yesterday being the six-week anniversary since his knee surgery. It was initially projected to be a four- to six-week recovery time, so if it's been the full six weeks, it looks like he might be able to practice this week, and if he practices, he's likely going to play against Boston College. So let's hear from the potential lottery pick, the Tar Heel point guard. This was Cole Anthony after North Carolina's win at NC State.

I'm having a little bit of pain, but it's just making sure that I'm 110%. I can easily say I might be in my 90s, maybe even 100% right now, but at this point, while I'm out, I want to make sure everything's healthy, make sure my ankles are good, make sure both my knees are good, just make sure that when I step on that court, I'm 100% confident in myself. And at this point, what's the rush for the Tar Heels? I know North Carolina fans are pretty excited about beating the Wolf Pack. I've argued at times that NC State North Carolina is a bit more fierce of a rivalry than North Carolina Duke is.

North Carolina Duke, those are benchmark programs. The two teams measured themselves by playing each other. It's more of a national rivalry, but when NC State plays UNC, I find state fans get a lot more upset when they lose to the Tar Heels than when they lose to Duke, and I find North Carolina fans are a lot more bothered when they lose to NC State than when they lose to the Blue Devils.

A big part of their identity is in each other. The New York Yankees, they identify themselves to a degree by their rivalry with the Boston Red Sox. However, in New York City, I'm sure they know more Met fans around than they know Red Sox fans, so when the Mets play the Yankees, I'm sure there's a little bit more fodder.

There's more trash talk in the office at the water cooler because you know more Met fans, so when you play each other, it's probably a little bit more fierce. In the state of North Carolina, you probably know, as a North Carolina fan if you are one of those, you probably know more NC State grads and more NC State fans than you know people who attended Duke, so in your office, there's probably a lot more people talking about the game than when Duke plays North Carolina. Even though that's our crown gem and that's a better matchup, admittedly, because of how great both those programs have been in the national level, I think it's a little bit more fierce when North Carolina plays NC State. So it was a big win for the Tar Heels, but I say all of that. I go off on that tangent to say it's still not going to happen in the regular season, North Carolina becoming an at-large bid team for the NCAA tournament. They're going to have to win the ACC tournament in Greensboro in order to get in. So if that is the case, why rush Cole Anthony?

Why do it? Make sure he's 100%. Make sure he's ready to go.

Same thing with B-Rob. I think that's why Roy Williams sat him out last Wednesday night as he was struggling with his neck after the car wreck. He's saying, okay, if we've already lost to Georgia Tech, Clemson, and Pittsburgh at home, things aren't going to get easier. We need to make sure we're right by the time March rolls around so we can take our best swing at it. Why risk at this point bringing Cole back when he's not absolutely 100% or as he said, 110%?

We do see the people, though. Even after Cole has said publicly, he's going to return. He's going to play with the Tar Heels, suggesting that he still might forego his time in Chapel Hill and focus on the draft, the same way James Wiseman did after he was suspended by the NCAA for nine or eight games, eight or nine games.

Would have caused him to miss a month or so. Cole Anthony completely put that to bed last night. It's just that people were still trying to have a debate whether I'm coming back or not. I'm like, yo, I'm all in. I want to play with these guys again. I don't like how I left the court with these dudes. I feel like I could give them a lot more than I did. So when I get back on the court, I'm going to leave everything back.

So he's going to come back, and I think it's the right decision. There's a lot of things Cole can maximize that will help him be a better pro from a business perspective and from a basketball perspective. Point guards developing under Roy Williams, whether it be Raymond Felton, whether it be Kobe White, who wasn't a draft prospect whatsoever, but through Roy Williams' guidance, became a top-ten pick, became a lottery pick a year ago, I think there's things you can learn from a Hall of Fame basketball coach. North Carolina hasn't played Duke yet.

The first time they play the Blue Devils, it's not this Saturday, but the following one, February the 8th. The exposure that comes along with that game, like I just mentioned before, it being a national rivalry, if you do well in that game, if you put North Carolina on your shoulders and make a run in the ACC tournament, that improves your stock and also your brand. Zion Williamson, he wasn't going to get the massive shoe deal just based on his Instagram followers. He used college basketball and their deals with ESPN, the national platforms, and the national brand of Duke in order to elevate his stock and to make him a national superstar, to make him a first-name basis player.

Everybody knows what you're talking about when you say Zion. That happens because of college basketball, not because of Instagram. So Cole, I think, has a lot to do to elevate his brand, get a better shoe deal, to get a better draft pick. On top of that, what he just said in those two clips showcases his strongest trait, he's mature.

That's a big deal. It's not something you see from most lottery picks. Last year, I loved covering RJ Barrett and Zion Williamson, but RJ, he acted like a teenager, he did. He tried to give himself a nickname, oh, I'm the Maple Mamba, this is what I'm all about, and his shot selection wasn't great at all. And we're seeing how tough of a transition it's been for him, granted on a bad team like the Knicks, how hard of a transition that's been for him. Before that, Wendell Carter and some of those one-and-dones for Duke Marvin Bagley sniping at each other. That team didn't really like each other much. Oh, he's getting more time than I am, I'm going to complain to my parents that they're going to spout off in the media.

That's what Trayvon Duvall's family did. Or was it... It was a handful of guys, hard to really even pick out which one it was off that Duke team.

That was problematic. Kobe White, he was quiet. He was a bit immature. Played a bunch of video games, that's what he did. Excellent basketball player, deserved to be drafted as high as he did, but was it very mature? Cole is all of that. He has a father who's been there, done that, who's been preparing him for this stage for a very long time.

He's great, he's polished when he speaks, and on top of that, he's doing the right things and he's following through on his commitments. That tells me a lot. In a draft where there's so much uncertainty, I will bank on maturity as being something to grab onto. To say, okay, the basketball ability's raw, but personality-wise, I don't have to worry about Cole.

Put some money on it. Thank you, Mike Houston. He's been present while injured. There isn't one home game I haven't seen Cole Anthony in a suit, not in a suit sitting there. He's been helping the team out with warm-ups. He's been supporting his teammates.

And you heard it there, he's following through on his commitment. He was the first Tar Heel to speak publicly before the year ever. It was a policy dating back to Dean Smith that if you haven't played in a game, you don't speak to the media. He did on media day before the year started. He was the first Tar Heel to break that tradition. There's a reason why.

He's mature. And he's going to add a lot to North Carolina when he returns. As for the Super Bowl, which we're going to be carrying here, right here on Sports Hub Try. It's taken a little over a week for me to get a feel for this game, but I'm leaning 49ers over the Kansas City Chiefs. Remember, I picked both these teams to be in the Super Bowl, even though I did it in a very clumsy manner.

That's just a recipe for success in the postseason. So I like the 49ers in the NFC. And the reason I like KFC, what reasons can you not love KFC?

I'll take the better roster nine times out of 10. And San Francisco has that. Here are the areas I think San Francisco is better than Kansas City. KFC, offense, defense, speed, scheme.

They're more diverse. San Francisco, they've had a more difficult path in the playoffs than the team from the Chiefs, of course, talking about KFC. San Francisco, they've been more dominant. Kansas City has been down, or KFC, has been down by double-digit deficits at both their home games.

San Francisco, it hasn't been in question at all. I'll take the better roster. Exceptions are Tom Brady and Belichick. They've found ways multiple times to win, even though there's been a talent deficit. But when Marino had a talent deficit, despite him being the better quarterback of the field, got smoked Elway the same way, Jim Kelly multiple times. The pressure is on Kansas City to win this game, not San Francisco.

The headlines aren't going to be kicked. San Francisco blew it if they lose. You got a quarterback in his first year, full year as a starter. You got a head coach in his third year as a head coach. Young tight end, young great defense, young offensive weapons like Deebo Samuel. This is a team that is starting a run, while Kansas City, they're a little bit older, even though they have a great quarterback.

Andy Reid, he's already been known as a guy who can't win the big one. It's rare where you're going to find a team that hasn't been dominant and also is at a talent disparity that is not as talented as the team they're going up against, but is a favorite in the Super Bowl. That's what Kansas City is.

KFC. So I think San Francisco is going to win the game. I'm going to lean towards roster, talent, the better offense, the better defense, speed. I'm going to go with that over just the coach and the quarterback.

So that's why I like the 49ers to beat KFC. I think NC State should be a little worried about where it is right now. We talked about the Tar Heels side of last night's game. I want to get to NC State's side of it.

There are a lot of concerns I have in terms of their NCAA tournament chances. David Glenn, our early afternoon show, will join the discussion next on The Drive. Come here to talk sports. He is man at his most man. And do it like you mean it. What you got, biatch? This is The Drive with Josh Graham.

Music. I'm very concerned about NC State right now. Last night they lose to North Carolina.

I think this is a team I know you've probably heard about midlife crises. I think NC State is having a mid-season identity crisis as Kevin Keats said that it was a toughness issue. No Pat Andre last night and Manny Bates, he makes a return.

But Coach Keats says he was a shell of himself. He only wanted to play him 12 minutes in his return back. But with Jerricole Hellems getting in foul trouble, we didn't see as much of the NC State big man coming off the bench. We thought NC State's strengths were toughness and having an aggressive defense. But North Carolina's guards, even though they were limited on the perimeter, only turned it over four times. In the post, North Carolina had two players go for double-doubles. NC State's backcourt was supposed to be one of the two best in the league. C.J. Bryce, 27 minutes, no points. Markell Johnson, 12 points, but it took 19 shots to get there. The strength-in-numbers approach that NC State had didn't really work that well last night either. Granted, again the injury with Andres and also from Manny Bates. But eight bench points isn't going to cut it.

Then you got D.J. Funderburk who is saying to Joe Giglio with the Raleigh News & Observer it was a focus issue. That they weren't locked in, which just seems impossible when NC State's welcoming a North Carolina in to PNC Arena. Roy Williams, 36-4, career record all-time against the Wolf Pack. It just seems impossible to suggest that it is an effort issue.

I think it's an identity problem. And North Carolina State, they didn't make it last year narrowly. And this year, they only have three quad one wins. Wisconsin, UNC Greensboro, and Virginia. None of those three are looking great because none of those teams are ranked.

I watched Virginia, as did David Glenn who's now with us, our early afternoon host. Sunday barely squeaked by Wake Forest in overtime. NC State hasn't beaten a ranked team, but they're going to have opportunities. Saturday Louisville's coming in, Florida State they only play one time as well. That's going to be at PNC Arena. Duke, you got two games against the Blue Devils.

One in Durham and one in Raleigh of course. So the Wolf Pack's going to have opportunities, but I would be worried if I'm an NC State fan right now about what this team's identity is presently and what they've accomplished, what their resume currently is. DG, how concerned are you about NC State being a tournament team at this moment? A little bit, but I think it's a different conversation when you talk about a 21-game body of work versus, let's just say, the last two games where they lost at Georgia Tech and then last night at home in North Carolina. Because the glass half full, Josh, is that after the big three in the ACC of Florida State, Louisville, and Duke, in whatever order you want to put those three, do you know the only other ACC team whose entire seasoned body of work is viewed as NCAA-worthy by Joe Leonardi of ESPN and a whole bunch of other bracketologists? The answer is NC State. NC State is on the right side of the bubble as we speak. Now, they keep playing the way they did against Georgia Tech twice in losses, or last night against Tar Heels.

We all know that's going to change. But they're 2-2 in what they call Quad 1 games. They do have a couple of really quality wins. They just have to get C.J. Bryce back to what he was earlier this season, which was an all-ACC caliber guard in his senior year after transferring from UNC Wilmington a couple years ago, and Markel Johnson to rediscover his game as a senior guard. Theoretically, having two seniors who've been through the ropes and know the way of the world in ACC hoops, theoretically, that's your bedrock.

That's your foundation. And those two guys, Johnson can't find his shot, and C.J. Bryce put up zero points against Georgia Tech on the weekend and zero last night against the Tar Heels.

I mean, no coach in America is going to win when his two best guards lay eggs the way C.J. Bryce did the last two games, and the good news is they have time to correct it. They have those home games against Louisville and Duke and Florida State, but like everybody else, they're running out of time to get this stuff done. You mention 2-2 in Quad 1 games. Wisconsin was a Quad 1 win until they lost by 21 points to Purdue over the weekend. It was a surprising weekend in some of the results that we saw.

The two Quad 1 losses, Memphis, who was in the top 25 when they faced off in Brooklyn, no longer in the top 25, but still a Quad 1 loss, and Auburn is the only team NC State's played this year that is currently ranked in the AP top 25. David Glenn with us. He's on Twitter, at DavidGlennShow. Make sure you go back and listen to the show he had earlier today on Sports Hub Triad. He caught up with Roy Williams. He had Jay Billis on. Kevin Harlan, who's going to be calling the Super Bowl right here on Sports Hub Triad, and Dan Patrick before that was live on Radio Row or at the Super Bowl. I don't think you could even call it Radio Row.

He has his own setup with the DP show. So we talked about NC State. On the other side of this, North Carolina I don't think is going to be... If Cole Anthony returns, and this team's a lot better, I don't think the Tar Heels have enough games left, or they're going to be even talented enough, Cole Anthony fixing all the problems, to make this an at-large bid team. But do you believe at this point it's ACC tournament in Greensboro or bust for this Tar Heel team?

Most likely, yes. And the good news for the Tar Heels is they already have three quad one wins. They are back to.500. Cole Anthony is coming back soon, although Roy Williams on our show today would not put too much of a timetable on it, other than saying he's got to practice before he plays in the game for me. So that hasn't happened yet. The Tar Heels schedule is rough.

Now that also means you get some opportunities at some resume builders. But yeah, you know as well as I, the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee is allowed to put weight on how a team plays after a key player comes back or before he left. And remember, two of UNC's best wins, Oregon and Alabama, happened with Cole Anthony in the lineup. The reality is they very rarely take someone without an NCAA Tournament resume, and then they factor in, in this case NBA Lottery pick Cole Anthony, even if the Tar Heels play great down the stretch here, there are not a lot of examples where the committee puts so much weight on with him versus without him, and he missed a lot of games. If there were more examples of that, I'd say the Tar Heels should view this next stretch with Cole Anthony whenever he returns as their audition for the NCAA Tournament Selection Committee. Will they bend because UNC is a big brand name as a lot of conspiracy theorists think?

Who knows? But it's all irrelevant unless the Tar Heels get more good guard play from guys not named Cole Anthony down the stretch because even the Wolfpack tried to exploit that last night, and Brandon Robinson, an ailing version of him, is not going to be enough to put the Tar Heels over the top in support of Cole Anthony whenever he returns. Find our ACC rankings. David Glenn, myself, Ryan Geisingers, 1-15 ACC rankings at accsports.com. You mentioned that many people could have different orders for 1-3 at the top of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

You and I are in agreement. Florida State 1, Louisville 2, Duke No. 3, the Blue Devils in action tonight against Jeff Caple in Pittsburgh.

I'll be at that game as soon as we get done with this show at 9 o'clock tip later on tonight. I want to transition things to the Super Bowl coming up this weekend, though. I'm leaning 49ers because 9 times out of 10, the team with the better roster is going to win the Super Bowl, even if they're going up against a team that, we can agree, has the better quarterback. First of all, John Elway, get blown out in Super Bowls by the likes of Phil Simms and Doug Williams. We've seen Dan Marino get rolled in a Super Bowl, Jim Kelly a couple of times. Just because you're the better quarterback doesn't mean that you're going to win the football game.

In fact, you could get blown out in some instances. Statistically, the 49ers have a better offense. Nobody would dispute the 49ers have a better defense than Kansas City. Since I have both those advantages and I also think the pressure's on Kansas City to win, I'm leaning 49ers right now. What do you think?

I don't blame you. Kevin Harlan on our show, one of the great voices of the Super Bowl for Westwood won today, brought out an interesting number. You mentioned 9 out of 10. He said in the 20 games that are somewhat like this, the 20 Super Bowls, where you'd prefer one depth chart, the 49ers in the way you just described overall, versus the quarterback you'd prefer, Patrick Mahones of the Chiefs.

His numbers were 15 wins for the team with the better roster, and only five wins for that team with the clearly better quarterback. So that's another layer of history for those considering things. I haven't announced my pick yet. I will leave that as bait for the next few editions. Yeah, that's a good tease.

That's a good tease. But I do think it's a close call because there's no doubt the Niners have the better team. No doubt. Bosa and that line, Richard Sherman and that secondary, the numbers back it up, the offensive running game. I mean, holy cow, Raheem Mostert goes from nothing to superstar because they can run the ball so well with that blocking up front. The Chiefs have Patrick Mahomes. The Chiefs have other skill players.

I think they're just dangerous enough to make it interesting. But I'm certainly not blaming anybody who's pointing to the 49ers right now because I think history does back them up. I'm interested in how many of those examples, the 20 that Harlem was talking about, are the New England Patriots. Because last year they didn't have the better roster, but they had the quarterback. And the same deal probably with the Atlanta and Seattle Super Bowls in the last decade. So really, if you take away the Brady, Belichick examples, it probably just doesn't happen.

Yeah, you may be right. And you named a few examples, you know, with Hostetler and Sims, et cetera. So, yeah, it would be interesting to get, you know, how did he hone in on those 20? But I do think, you know, anybody who's played football at any level, and I didn't get to a very high level, but if you're better at running the ball than your opponent and you're better at stopping the run than your opponent, I know it gets different at the NFL level because of the incredible high skill level of the quarterbacks in some cases. Like Mahomes. But there is nothing more disheartening in the sport of football, as I remember from childhood, than your opponent can run on you and you can't run on them. I mean, that is the essence of football.

As much as it has changed, that part has not changed, I don't think, in my lifetime. And the 49ers have both of those advantages. Is the combination of Tyreke Hill, fastest man in the NFL, or one of them, and Sammy Watkins, who's got a redemption story of his own, and, you know, a good dual-threat kind of CMC-style running back, is that combination with Mahomes enough to overcome all those disadvantages? Who knows? And I do wonder, Josh, about something else you brought up. I've been following the Andy Reid story for 21 years now. And those players know how hard it is to get to a Super Bowl. And those players know that Andy Reid's never won one, and he's in his 60s now, and no matter how good a coach he is, you can't be sure you're going to get back.

You just can't know you'll be back. And I wonder if them feeling that pressure can hurt the Chiefs in any way. DG, look forward to seeing you sometime soon. Best of luck with the rest of Super Bowl week. We look forward to seeing what you have in store on the David Glenn Show. Again, we're going to read your stuff at hccsports.com as well, your weekly rankings.

We'll talk next week. Thanks for doing this. Thanks, buddy. Always fun, Josh. Take care. You got it. That is DavidGlenn on Twitter, at DavidGlennJoe.

Robert has presented me some very disturbing news, and Sawyer kind of helped pass it along as well. Is this right? Is this accurate? We're talking about Fast 9? This is a thing? Oh my God.

There is a Fast and Furious 9 being made? You let those kids out, but they're right. I know. It was a rough week. It's been a rough week for me to do that. I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry. I was like, what did I pass along?

I was a little worried there for a second. Robert had a hot take on it. He can go into it if he wants to.

Nah, I'm not going to go into a hot take. Let's give Robert a pep talk, Sawyer. Come on, Robert. We set it up this way. We're already here.

Both our feet are in. Come on, it's happy hour. The good thing about Paul Walker dying was that I thought that it shortened this movie's career, but it didn't.

I didn't want you to use that take. There's no good thing. Get those kids out of here. I thought that it would be less movies, but no. It's more movies, and now we get Fast and Furious 9 with spaceships, and Yoda's going to be in it. Yay, baby Yoda in Fast and Furious.

It's so stupid. Are there going to be spaceships in Fast 9? I don't know. I'm not going to watch it. I haven't watched any of them since Tokyo Drift.

Oh yeah, that's good. The first two. That's all you need to see. You don't need to see any more of them, and I haven't. And I won't.

I shan't. You've been very proper today. I'm an intellectual. As much as my rube accent, another SAT word for you guys, would make y'all think that I'm not intelligent.

Not you, Josh. I know that you think I'm moderately smart. Marty Smith comes on this show, and he says that it's a very staggering thing. How many people think he's dumb because he has a southern accent? I'm serious. He's one of the smartest, most eloquent people I know, and he just has a thick southern accent. It's a real thing, and I learned it at a very young age playing video games. That everyone will assume that if you're talking this sort of way, that you like to kiss someone you're related to.

I don't get what that is. I've always found that whenever foreign people, people from outside the United States, makes fun of American accents, or is mimicking an American accent, it's always the southern dialect they pick. It's easy. It's never making fun of New Yorkers, or Boston, or wherever. It's always the south that they pinpoint. That's what they make fun of. And I've always found it interesting. What makes something sound smart? What makes something sound stupid?

Or, like you said, like you might be more apt to make out with your sister. Yeah, I don't get that either, and I think pop culture plays a large part in that. Where an English accent automatically sounds prim and proper. And a lot of those people aren't prim and proper. Have you seen their teeth?

Whoa! There's nothing prim or proper, or trim or proper, about any of that. It's not nice what you're doing. Well, they can't hear it, and I've been made fun of plenty of times for sounding like this.

Like, I want to go on a date with my sister, and I don't mind if anybody watches. This is a second layer. It is a thick southern accent doing a southern accent.

Which is something I didn't expect. And this is about to go over just about as well as a fart in a fan factory. It's like people just think that you're going to come off the cuff with all of that stuff. What do you got and take it to the house? And give me your thickest southern accent you can give me. Some superheroes are here to do good, and others are here to do drugs. You are getting better at these teases.

That's next. He may not be beautiful, and we do sit around all day and talk sports. And yes, Britt McHenry, we feel great about it.

Do you feel good about your job? This is The Drive with Josh Graham. We will always remember where we were when Kobe Bryant shockingly died a few days ago in a helicopter accident. I was at the Joel. Wake Forest was facing Virginia. I was sitting in a press conference.

Danny Manning was conducting. Sawyer, where were you when Kobe passed? I was actually asleep, and I got woken up by just 20, 30 text messages about what is happening, what is happening.

So I checked Twitter. Why were you asleep at three in the afternoon? It was like, was it three?

I thought it was like, yeah, two to three. Well, I was at the Carolina game Saturday, and I was up at seven o'clock on Sunday. And so when I got home, I was like, you know what? It's time for me to take a nap. He's in college. Like, college kids can just nap at any point.

Like, they just have that right. It's a good point. In 30 minutes, Kobe Bryant, biographer and author of the book Showboat.

Roland Lazenby will be a guest on today's show. Robert was in a drive-through to get change? Yeah, I had two 20s, and I needed 30 bucks, so I had to get change.

Okay. So the way you decided to do so was to go to a Taco Bell drive-through. Not get a lot, not get any tacos, but to get a Baja Blast. So the way that Robert has been coping with Kobe's passing has been through the straw and drinking, not alcohol, which is a common coping mechanism, it's the Baja Blast. And Robert continues to drink the Baja Blast into the microphone in a way nobody can hear on the radio, thinking that's an effective way to communicate.

But I do appreciate Robert getting Baja Blasts for everybody. Sawyer's enjoying one, and you brought one here into the studio. Yes. Even though you know that in 2020, I've committed to not drinking soda this entire calendar year. Yeah, but it doesn't count, right? Are we not going to count this?

Since it's on the air, I can write it off like a work expense. Yeah, sure. Why not? You haven't tried it yet. Okay. I'm going to take a sip from that.

It is bright green, it looks like poison. I have some ambient music, so right before you take your sip, I'm just going to start playing some songs. Alright, so should I start drinking it now? Baja Blast. Baja Blast. How is it? What do you think?

A big smile on his face. Baja Blast. Baja Blast. Okay, so what do you think? It's awful. It's awful.

It is dreadful. You know what's worse than that? It tastes like Mountain Dew if Mountain Dew had a drug problem. I could get by that.

See, I kind of dig it. If Mountain Dew had a heroin addiction, that's what this would taste like. I would be getting all the Mountain Dew's hooked if that was the case.

But I think something's worse than that. I think you giving up your New Year's resolution to try soda not even a month in, I mean seriously, you've already abandoned it. Hold up. It's been written off. Who wrote it off?

We just did before I started drinking the soda. I don't make the rules. You just said okay, Sawyer.

He's a biased person in this. Sawyer, did he just break his New Year's resolution? I think it's broke a month in. Wow! Oh my god, let the kids in again. Let him have it, kids. I can't believe it either. There was no alcohol mixed in that?

That was a rule, right Sawyer? Yeah, sure. You don't know that. I do know that.

I ordered them. Mix a little Bailey's in it. That would be the worst. Put some tequila in there. Have yourself a redneck margarita. Is that what that is?

Yes. I'm just kind of disappointed in you for giving up your soda thing that quickly. And that you fell for this. I'm not going to count it. You don't have to count it, but I'm counting it. I refuse to count it.

That this Baja Blast that you brought in for show purposes is going to count as me losing. He's still sipping it. He's still drinking it. He said it was terrible.

Yeah. Did you miss soda? Soda missed you, baby. This is awful.

You're still drinking it, though. For the show. For the show, that's what I'm doing here. Okay, I hear you.

It's good. I don't care what anybody says. The most jarring thing to happen at PNC Arena last night was not anything NC State or North Carolina did. It wasn't B-Rob's injury. It wasn't the way NC State performed and how they got bullied in the paint time and time again. No, it was Roy Williams in the middle of his press conference, mid-answer, deciding to pull out a piece of hard candy from his pocket, put it into his mouth, and he is not phased whatsoever in doing so. It was the most incredible athletic feat I saw at PNC last night. You can hear it.

You can hear Roy pulling out the hard candy, putting it into his mouth. This is how that sounded. Last year, if you think about it, we had Luke May and Kobe and Cam, those guys that could jump up and make a three. Even the shot clock's winding down. We haven't made many threes since the shot clock's winding down this year.

So I do think that we have to work and do a better job of our execution on both ends of the court. He just keeps talking. He puts it in. Oh yeah, I opened up this piece of candy while I'm answering your question.

Is there a trash can I can dispose of this wrapper? I love that you can hear him popping in his mouth, too. You can hear it jostle around in his teeth and his mouth. It almost sounds like, what is the podcast theme that we've seen, or the internet fad ASMR? See, radio is an audio format, so we're always looking for the newest innovations to make sure we're not being caught behind. So I remember seeing ASMR, and if people don't know what that is, how would you best explain it? I don't know what the acronym is, but it's basically when your brain hears certain noises, it triggers the nerves on your body to set your goosebumps up, give you some tingles. And people are whispering as random sounds are occurring. So it might be like somebody rubbing a comb against a wall to make a certain sound. Even though that doesn't sound pleasant whatsoever, you get kind of what I'm saying.

What's a better example than that? People will take post-it notes and put them up against the mic and slowly peel them apart so you can hear the sticky or anything like that. That's kind of what it sounded like with Roy. Can I hear him opening up some of that again, just hear some of the rapper being opened during the press conference? Kobe and Cam, those guys that could jump up and make a three. Even the shot clock's winding down. We haven't made many threes since the shot clock's winding down this year.

So I do think that we have to work and do a better job of, is there a trash can? I think Roy might have also had a couple of things he was doing in the microphone while he was talking about Brandon Robinson's performance. Of course, B-Rob, he was banged up at a couple of points. Let's see if you can pick out some of the things that might be happening as Roy is talking about B-Rob. I don't know, he got hit in the ribs. I thought it was his ankle again, but he got hit in the ribs.

Doug says he's got a rib problem and he says he's ready to go. I said, can you play or not? He says, yeah.

I said, well then play. They fouled him and made the free throw. He takes coaching really well.

No, I think the toughness. Here's a senior who missed the first four games. He's missed another game. He felt like he was beaten up tonight. When I went over, I was told right at the same time that I was going for a tirade. It looked to me like both of them were going for the ball is all it was. Yeah, that's all it was. They were just both going for the ball. But B-Rob's okay. Apparently he had x-rays and he looks just fine. I don't know about that dog though. Should we do more North Carolina basketball analysis with ASMR? I've always heard whispering in the radio microphone.

That's always a successful play. Yeah, go ahead. Give it a shot. What do I have around me? See, I don't have as much. You have a lot more in your cup than I do for the Baja Blast, so if you were going to slurp it a little bit while I talk, maybe we can go that route. The Tar Heels still have a shot at going to the NCAA tournament. Talk out the value. The Tar Heels can still make it just as long as Cole Anthony returns.

He might be back against Boston College. Should I do the tease this way too? If you want to give it a shot. That probably has been the strangest radio segment we've ever done. Top five. We started with Baja Blast and Homegirl serenading us in a special way. And we ended up with some ASMR action in here. Maybe some actual North Carolina basketball analysis. So Robert, give me the best slurp you have again and let's move on with the show.