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Now, on with the show. This is the Rich Eisen Show. Definitely, now's not the time. Touchdown Bears! They've taken the lead of the Packers!
Live from the Rich Eisen Show studio in Los Angeles. Knocked away by Eric Kedrick! And Alan's got it. Not to be denied. He's still going.
On today's show, Complete Wild Card Weekend Recap. Latest head coaching news, your phone calls, and more. And now, it's Rich Eisen. Hour number two, the Rich Eisen Show is on the air. 844-204 Rich is the number to dial right here on Disney Plus ESPN, the app, ESPN Radio.
We say hello to our podcast listeners, all three hours available every single day, 12 to 3 Eastern Time. Um and then you know I do my NFL network duties. I've got Uh non-stop um Um television and radio time. In which to have takes. Not all of them are great.
How could they all be?
Well, again, I would be batting a thousand. No, we'd. I mean, Well, there there's batting a thousand and then there's just, you know, swinging and and missing by several feet. And, you know, I always do my best to take account of myself. And So I just ended hour one.
On the TV side of things, the radio audience may not have heard, so I'll just repeat it. about how remarkable A weekend. We just saw for Wildcard Weekend. Just Unbelievable. End-to-end action where anything can happen.
with anybody Doing Remarkable, crazy. Things.
Okay. Where you didn't see it coming, you didn't expect it. And It happened. And it's compelling. It's not like boring football either, right?
It's, it's, it's. Crazy bounces. We didn't even discuss at one point during the Bears Packers game in the middle of. First hour. Where Matt LaFleur called a screen pass for an eligible tackle.
Yeah. And he's running down the field, trucking people, and then the ball is loose and it gets kicked 10 yards in front, and it's like a Benny Hill open music, like Yakety Sack should have been played, right? Yep. And That's just uh a a for instance uh there, obviously, just one play. But again, the four games decided by fewer than five points over the weekend is the most games decided by fewer than five points in a single playoff round in NFL history, decided by an average of 5.4 points per game.
That's the fourth lowest average point differential in any playoff round in NFL history, lowest in wildcard. history. Four of the five wild card games so far this weekend have featured a team Who with a one Despite trailing with less than three minutes to go in the fourth quarter, that's already set a record for most such games in a single postseason all time. And there have been going into Monday Night Football. Twelve fourth quarter lead changes this weekend.
That's already the most fourth-quarter lead changes in a single postseason all time. The previous record was 10. For an entire playoffs. And we've already seen more of that in five games or four because Sunday Night Football didn't even include all of that.
So When I said Back in the middle of December, that we would miss the Kansas City Chiefs being in the playoffs. Did you notice I had my finger on that chest piece this entire time for a month? No, 'cause I didn't. Um I'm off on that one. Man, I was hoping you weren't going to say anything because I was going to do this on Overreaction Monday on a Tuesday.
Which is what? We don't miss them at all. Yeah. You're right. You're right.
Because I was looking at the Chiefs as one of those, like you, you, they, they. Play high-level playoff football. They play Games that go down to the wire. They have stars all over the map. And then Caleb Williams throws one that Mahomes was like probably sitting wherever he was on that fourth and eight, watching that throw, going.
Okay. Young Buck, if I see you, I think it was Rick Dalton. Hey, right there, point right at it. That's what Bears fans were saying. That's why we wanted him.
That play right there. We saw him do that at USC, waiting for him to do it like that for us against the Packers in a playoff game. Rick Dalton Jiff. There is Fresh from the Golden Globes. Absolutely.
So um Yeah. Wrong about that one. And the fact that Mahomes is not in the playoffs. is part and parcel. Folks think This has to be the time for Josh Allen.
This has got to be it. And first up for Josh Allen. On the playoff road in the wild card round because he didn't win the division. For the first time this decade. Last time he was on the wild card round.
Rode was his first crack at it when he went into Houston and damn near shocked Deshaun Watson and the Texans taking him the overtime. A game that looked like they had won until some crazy ass holding penalty got called on him. And He's taking on a Jacksonville Jaguar team. that had won eight in a row. And in that streak, In that streak.
The Jaguars were winning their games by an average of 19 points a game. Mm-hmm. And In that Spanish. Trevor Lawrence had beaten The quarterback sitting at home on a bye week. In his house in Bonix, In that span.
He had also beaten. The Quarterback. Seventh. seated in the playoffs and Justin Herbert curb stomped them. in Jacksonville.
To the Texans going on their run. Trevor Lawrence beat CJ Stroud. Who's going into? Pittsburgh tonight with the longest win streak. Currently in the National Football League.
The Texans won nine in a row, although Davis Mills won A handful of those. But I think you're picking up what I'm putting down: the Jacksonville Jaguars were a stout opponent, certainly for a Bills team. That is kind of wild. to be on the clock for Josh Allen. In terms of his best chance to supposedly win a Super Bowl, because I think if you ask Bill's team, Bills' fans, Josh Allen's had better teams.
Mm-hmm. Then this one. that got bounced by Mahomes. That if you only had those Teams.
Now, combined with the fact that Mahomes isn't there, well, then look out. And to that, I would basically say, if that was the case. He might have been at home yesterday, not on the road. With all due respect to the 14 win Patriots.
So Put it all together. Kind of not fair to say to Josh Allen, this is it for you, pal, because there's no Lamar. Even though he's beaten Lamar. In the playoffs, in the way that Mahomes is, he stands in Lamar's way. In the playoffs.
through Lamar's career. in a similar way that Mahomes has stood in his. For Josh Allen. But they're not in Burroughs not in it. Again.
This Decade. Two guys have stood at, have prevented Josh Allen from getting in the Super Bowl. Burrow once, Mahomes four times. Four. Neither of them are in it.
So What now?
Well, I'll tell you what now.
Okay. No James Cook? Doing James Cook things. Because the Jaguars have the best run defense in football. Take him out of the equation.
What now? I don't know. There have been many, as I pointed out to start this segment, many hair on fire moments. Over wild card weekend. If you made a top five list of hair on fire moments, Where would it rank for a Bills fan to watch Josh Allen enter the blue tent?
In the first half yesterday. I was like, whoa. Yeah. Okay, so this whole thing just Uh Sort of like the Shining moment where Scatman Cruthers travels the entire country only to get spoiler, an axe in the chest.
So the Bills season, this entire thing led up to Mitchell Trubisky having to win a playoff game for us, huh? Like there was a split moment, I imagine. for Bills fans to be sitting at home watching that.
Okay. Against the Jaguars team that Again. Two months of steamrolling it.
Well then the rest of the game played out. I mean Josh freaking Allen. Is something else. He just will not give up. And yeah, with the whole business of who are his.
Who are his weapons? You take. James Cookout. of the mix, which the Jaguars did. He had just two catches for five yards, 15 carries for 46.
James Cook was a non-factor. But you know who was? Not just Josh Allen. Khalil Shakir. They targeted him 12 times.
Do you have any catches he had? Twelve. He was twelve for twelve. In terms of targets, and catches. That's a career high in receptions.
That's the most by a Buffalo wide receiver in a playoff game all time. He showed up. Most receptions with 100% catch rate in a playoff game in recorded history. We've ever seen that. Josh Allen Put it right on him.
And then Of course. He hits the end zone twice, too. Josh Allen. He scores twice. Hey, kudos to my guy, Gerald McCoy.
That's what he said. In segment two of Game Day Morning on Sunday morning. Hey, oh Can the Jaguars take the run game out because they got the best Rushing defense in the NFL. And his answer was: they could take James Cook out, but there's Superman running the ball too there. And he popped two in.
Including what appeared to be One of the greatest tush-push moments in the history of tush-pushes. In the NFL. Have we ever seen a tush push run in from about the 12-yard line? Because that's what happened until after further review they put him down at the one. And Jacksonville had no choice but to let him score.
And then the defense did the rest. Defense did the right. Trey White, what a game he had. Yep. He was remarkable too.
Brandon Cooks Became the first player in NFL history to have 50 or more scrimmage yards in a playoff game. for four different franchises. This guy's a hired gun, huh? Patriots, Rams, Cowboys, and Bills We're now 19-0. We're leading at half-time since the start of last season.
Mm-hmm. I mean So now The Bills go into Jacksonville. They take some good shots from Parker Washington, who had a really nice game. Yeah. And held Trevor Lawrence.
To 18 of 30 on the day, barely cracked 50% on this completion percentage. Picked him off twice. And you look again at the bills, it's just like the sum of the parts. And they got the greatest part in the NFL, too. Arguably.
And they did it again.
So they win their first road playoff game since the 92 AFC Championship game. It's their first win as a wildcard team since 1992. And It's the fourth time the bills Since the beginning of last season, Breakup of a team's winning streak of eight or more games. They don't care. They do not care.
And now they're coming for Denver. Yeah. Let's go.
Now they're coming for Denver. Let's go.
It's going to be great. Yeah. Bills at Broncos Coming your way. Divisional playoff roundout. I'll tell you this.
I'm sure when that finally That result finally hit. Sean Payton was sitting wherever he was, going, Okay. Maybe you text Vance Joseph. Are you ready? Yeah.
Because here comes Josh. Who had this to say? afterwards about the journey molding the team for this moment. To have the wherewithal to, again, not blink. And I think that's just the mantra that we've adopted this year.
If we've got time left, um And we got the ball, we got a shot. You know, we feel like we've been in situations like this, and now every game presents itself in a different way. But to understand the moment, to not ride the wave. And that was stuff that we've learned throughout the entire season. We were able to utilize that and use it today.
So we don't have the reigning Super Bowl champs. We don't have the reigning Super Bowl MVP still left, but we've got last year's MVP still on the mix. for the playoffs. And Since we don't know if it's Stafford or May, we know this year's MVP is still alive. And um His toughness permeates, according to the head coach.
It trickles down from him in terms of the team's toughness. I mean, he's when your quarterbacks, that type of warrior, that type of competitor. Um It just, like I said, from a leadership standpoint, it just goes through the whole team. Um We got to get them as healthy as we can though for next week, so it's not something we take lightly. I did think overall that he took some hits today, but there was also times where we protected him well.
And I think he got registered three days, had three hits and one sack.
So, credit to the O-line on that. Yeah, I mean, his beautiful wife presenting at the Golden Globe, Sinners won a Golden Globe last night. It's all good. The only thing that didn't go well last night for the Allen family, I guess. Or the Bills is the fact that the Patriots won, which means Highmark is now done.
There will not be another home game in the old Bills stadium. But they'll deal with that. Because They caught a warrior on the road now. Can he go to Denver and do it? We'll find out, but you can't sit here and say they've got no shot or they can't.
I think you'd be crazy to bet against it. Of course, I'm thinking the same thing. And I, you know, when I'm, as you know, I. I went on game day morning saying if the Jaguars are going to do it. Yeah.
I lone wolfed him. Didn't work out in the end.
So it starts with a mea culpa and ends with another one. I'm not perfect. What can I tell you? Although I'd love to be. Ha ha ha ha ha.
All right, Matt in Enon, Oklahoma. I knew I'd be hearing from you today. What's up, sir?
Okay. How are you doing, Richie? I'm good, Maddie. How are you? I'm pretty good too, but gave me a heart attack.
But I tell you what, you had my son's head to about explode yesterday morning. My eight-year-old son Luke. Yeah. You said that on Game Day Morning. And he kept saying, Call him.
Call him right now. Call him. I said, I can't call him. He's on T V. You call him all the time.
Call him. Nice. He went to bed last night still ranting about it. He was in the front hair riding his e-bike ranting about it. First thing he said to me this morning when he got up was, you better call him.
Now here we are. Come check me out of school at lunchtime. I'll call him.
So he says he knows he's going to pick the Broncos next week.
So he's already ranting about you when he went to the next stage. No, no, no, no, no, no, no.
Now, you got to check. Luke's got to slow his role there. I have no idea how I'm going to choose it. Obviously, you just heard McDermott saying we got to get Josh healthy for next week.
Well, in order to beat him, you're going to have to break him in half, so I like my chances. I don't know what it is, but. He's on the bottom. Never can win, but you know what? I got Josh Allen.
That's what I say. Josh Allen doing Josh Allen thing, so bring it.
Okay. So, what would Luke say to me right now if he was on the phone? He'd tell you to suck it, it's what he would tell you to do. Oh. That's what he would say.
That's what he said to me. He said, That's what you tell him. You ask.
Well, listen, you know, I'm a fan of you, and obviously, the Bills are a terrific team. Listen, I think. Everybody keeps on looking at where Josh Allen is going to turn when the crucible of the playoffs hit. But people get this shiny object and they're forgetting about it. It's like, oh, he's done, he's done, he's done.
everybody's moved on and I'm tired of hearing about who's not in the playoffs. You know what? Just put him in front of us. Let's go.
Line him up. Play the game and see what happens. And I don't think you don't like what happens when it's over.
So keep on doubting him and see what happens.
Well, say hi to Luke for me, Matt. Appreciate it. I will. You take it easy, by the way. Right back at you.
That's Matt in Oklahoma. The. a Bills fan from outside the building that we've heard from the most over the eleven years. About the bills. They can do it.
And the Overreaction Monday subject matter on our podcast that we recorded before the show is. Bills at Patriots is one hundred percent in the ether. For part three, yeah, I think coming into the playoffs, the big question mark was not about Josh Allen, obviously defending MVP. Could the defense do it? This defense has been kind of battered, you can run on them.
They got the turnovers when it mattered yesterday. They got a bosa. And that Trey White was everywhere. He was everywhere. Everywhere.
Yeah. And like you said, did it without James White had only fifty-one combined total yards. That was James Cook. James Cook, sorry. Yeah.
You got your Patriots on the brain. I understand.
Well, James White. Yeah, I would bet against Josh Allen at your own peril there.
Well, and I say this as someone who does love Josh Allen, but just listening to Matt, he makes it seem as though no one's ever beaten him or beaten this team. It's like. You keep saying you wouldn't bet against them, but had you been betting against them, you'd be fairly successful.
Well, based on who he was facing. Who's not in the playoffs? Yeah, but I mean, they shouldn't get it done, though. Listen. Uh and and It's not fair to say, but I will say because there are some people who think it, I am not one of them.
But, at the end of the day, if that was Arrowhead would they have won? against the Chiefs team like the last few years. But in the same way that this guy over there in Brockman has been driven insane by the who have they really played in New England. card that's been played against the Patriots Successes remarkable successes have now reached a fifteenth win on the season. You got to play who you play in front of you.
and who he played in front of him yesterday was a red hot Jacksonville Jaguars team. That was takeaway happy and points happy. With Trevor Lawrence leading the way, and Alan outplayed them all. At the end of the day. And they're the ones moving on, and the Jaguars are the ones, you know.
Um head now. Hoping that this is just the beginning. And it certainly looks that way. Because they did all this again without Travis Hunter. Think about that.
But the bills are moving on. 844-204-RICH, number to dial more of your phone calls. And hopefully, you won't be calling on to tell me I was wrong or that your child has told me to do something that children shouldn't be saying, to be very honest. Didn't know Matt's son was in DX. Ah, look at you.
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Where are we going to go on this one? Um let's take a phone call here. Let's go to Massaba in Chicago, Illinois.
Okay, bud, I see you. Going on? What's up, Rich? What's on? You you you good?
You're you're you you come down yet? What do you think? I'm fantastic. I'm just. Elated.
All right. Yes. But I want to just remind you That I didn't forget a few weeks ago when you said It's a realistic chance that the Bears missed the playoffs altogether. It was. Right.
It was a realistic chance, but if you believed in us and you thought we were a little bit more. But it's not my job to believe in you. You know what I mean? It's not my job. As a fan, it's your fandom to believe in your team, and I understand that, but I have a set of eyes and decades of experience.
to basically sit here and say It's a tough way to keep winning football games. And there are some times when I saw a team that struggles quite a bit. And could be beaten that kept on, you know, coming back and showing a true grit. and they're now three wins away from giving you the parade of your life.
So I think I had every right to question them. At the time. But, you know, and the main thing, though. Yeah. The main thing I want to talk about is that.
Ben Johnson saying F the Packers and F dummy and stuff like that. I love that. I feel like everyone is overreacting. Because if he came out and he showed respect and everything like that, As a Bears fan, I don't want that. I want you to hate the Packers just as much as me.
I want to feel it from you that you have a hate and a disdain for this team. Just as much as I do, just as much as your fans do. And for him to be saying that, posting on social media and stuff like that from the Bears account. It I feel like it just jolted up the fan base even more than we are. You know, and people are just looking at this In a way where if he had said F.
Met LaFleur or something like that, put a name to it. then it would be okay, you're doing too much. But The organization, the Packers as a as a base, you know. Yeah, uh the Bears should feel like yeah, ask the Packers every time we see 'em. And Masab, I totally hear you, and I appreciate your fandom and callback.
Go for it. Uh certainly uh after next week when you could be potentially hosting an NFC championship game or or heading off to Seattle. for a uh a big-time contest, either one. But taking on a Rams team that is pretty terrific in its own right, with Matthew Stafford having experience in that building, it's kind of crazy. Let's hit this subject matter here.
since Massam just brought it up. The Conversation about the rivalry And the Packers and the Paris. And he did say, like, if he said F Matt LaFleur, then he'd have a problem. He said he's F the Packers, is what he said in his. Post-game um Um Locker room that the Bears posted where he says F the Packers or whatever.
Listen. He did use Matt LaFleur's name. the first time he took the podium. And the first time he took the podium, he said it was great to beat Matt LaFleur twice a year. And again, when you get the job in Chicago, Lovey Smith did it as well.
You throw out the red meat to the fans to basically say, I know Tharv and Rogers have kicked your ass for a very long time, okay? And I'm coming here to reverse that course. I'm coming here. to say what you want to hear. And I'm coming here to affect what you want to have happen, which is.
To beat the Packers.
Now, you could say, why are you obsessed with the Packers? Because you could. At the time, for sure, you weren't going through the lines of the Vikings. Until Favre went there. To get To the NFC North Championship.
And to get to the NFC championship and get to the Super Bowl, you pretty much had to go through the Packers, made total and complete sense in that regard. And so Ben Johnson wanted to come into Chicago and start laying down the markers about the way he's going to go about his business and sent that out there. And then The go 0 and 2 to start. And then 0 and 2 to finish. The good news there is that they want 11 and 2 in between.
All of that. And Did beat the Packers in that 11-2 stretch to the point. where you had an opportunity to win the division. And you did. And that felt great for Bears fans, and I totally understand him doing all of that.
I don't know what his personal animus is towards Matt LaFleur, unless LaFleur is the avatar for him to. Have You know, he's the avatar for the Packers, so therefore, he just doesn't like him to begin with. Be that as it may, whatever you got to do to get that parade. You do it. Just know that this stuff is like a boomerang sometimes and it can come back on you.
It's just not going to come back on them this year. And it's going to set things up. For the future of a rivalry that I think he kind of digs, that he's personally stoking. He talked today about what he said F the Packers to the team. After Figuratively doing that.
Like I said before, there's a rivalry that exists between these two teams.
Something that That I fully recognize and I'm a part of. And yeah, I mean, there's, I just, I don't like that team.
So George and I have talked, and we're on the same page.
So, you know, he's George, I believe that's McCasky he's referring to. The owner of the Bears, or the principal owner of the Chicago Bears, who's a delightful human. Um and listen, um Yeah. This is exactly what Barris fans want to hear. Is an audience of one.
And it's the fans of the Chicago Bears. No doubt. And he's doing it. They're sick and tired of having their heads beaten in. And, you know, they don't.
After Roger's beating their heads in over and over and over again, he actually screams at them, I own you. It's going to leave a vicious nastiness within you. that you want to have somebody come in and bring out of you. in the form of winds. And Ben Johnson's done that.
He was asked.
Now, it's just again, the quick handshakes and stuff like that. I look at that and I'm like, can we just at least make an example of? Because there are people watching. There are children watching. Like, are we going to like.
Are we really just going to touch hands and just walk away? I mean, although we could go on and on and on about this. Handshake business and how the NFL does it. Do they have to do it at all? What?
No, it's just been. Because I kind of dig it. I like it. I like it. In the same way.
In the same way that I love it in hockey after there's a seven-game series and all the blood and the guts have been spilled and it's nasty and it was nasty and people are losing teeth literally, that they go through a handshake line. And how many people are like tweeting that stuff out saying this is what makes hockey great. There's a handshake line. And that's why I kind of dig it in college basketball. Also in the NBA, they're just like sometimes they'll just wave.
Phil Jackson would just be halfway up the tunnel. Yeah, you scott. Back in the day when the bull when the Chicago team was kicking everybody's ass there too.
So he was asked if there's something personal with him and LaFleur. This is a rivalry, and city of Chicago, Green Bay, it needs to be a rivalry. Yeah. I don't know what the answer is there. Just put this away, file it away for the two times, maybe three times they play next year, you know?
And this is just the way he's wired, man. He's just wired this way. And after a game, when you're locked in and he's, you know. He just stands there. He doesn't make it for a guy as soon as it's over.
He he's nuts. But during the game, Nothing. Yeah. Nothing. And you know what?
Bears fans are thinking, we don't care. Yeah. Good, better, best. We're getting free wiener circle dogs over and over again. We're hosting a divisional playoff game.
We can go to the NFC Championship game. We could win the whole damn thing. And we were wondering if he was the right guy and if he's going to bring anything out of Caleb and what's happening. That. And Packers fans probably don't like it.
At all. I just I look at it and I'm just like wondering sometimes like with the handshake, like what's his malfunction? Like what's your deal, bro? Right? Isn't that what Pig once said to Jim?
Big, what's your deal, bro? Right, you know what I mean? Like there's a lot of what's your deal, bro, vibes. But guess who won a lot was Jim. And guess who's winning right now?
Ben. Yep. 844-204-Rich, number Dal Terzo in Iowa. What's up, Terzo? How are you doing, brother?
I'm talking smack, Terzo. I'm having a problem with the phone system. Uh-oh, Mike. Are we having a problem with the phone system? There we go.
Number three. There we go. Yo, what's up? What's up, Terzo? Hey, Biden.
Hey, what up, guys? Hey, man. Before I get to the rubber match with the Sea Chickens, we got to talk about that game.
Now, that was an impressive win by this Niner team. I knew the longer that they stuck around and the Eagles just kept leaving us be, that we were going to be able to pull that out. My heart goes out to George Kittle, man. That was brutal to see. I will chip in and throw in on a bottle of tequila with you, Rich, to send to him because that one broke my heart as well.
It just seems like we can't get past it. But this team they're resilient and they come together and they played as if he was still in the game. Hey, dude, your team just keeps on ticking, and I know you keep calling them the sea chickens. You're having a lot of fun with that, but they are stout, they're rested. They're coached well.
They are deep at many positions. I cannot wait to watch this game. The one thing I would be upset about if I'm a Niner fan is for some reason the NFL is popping you on a Saturday against them. Yeah. And, you know.
I don't have the answer for you other than the fact and you know I And then you say you're going to have a short week. You're going to have a short week in Seattle. How's it just had a long week? And that's happened, and that's happened to us for the past four weeks, it feels like, because we went from the Monday night. do a Sunday and then back to a Saturday.
You know, and then they're doing it to us again, this. And I saw that, and I was just like, come on, man, like, give us the extra day. especially when we're going against the team that had that week off.
So, you know, I'm a little upset about that. But, like I always say in these rubber matches for in-division teams, man, anything can happen. And the reason we call them sea chickens is because they lay eggs, my dude. Thank you, sir. That's Churzo and Iowa, everybody.
Yeah, the only. The only reason why I could think of that the um that the uh NFL did this is because Chicago is market three and Los Angeles is market two. And I mean, that's going to be a Fox game. Fox had the late window on Sunday. Usually they reverse it.
So that would mean CBS needs a late window game. Um, would would Texans Patriots be that late window game, leading to the Sunday nighter? I guess. Um. You know?
Unless Because I don't know if they're going to put the Patriots on NBC again. And I don't know, again, ESPN's got a game. I don't know how they're going to split this thing up. But if I'm the Niners, it's just like, come on. But it's just part and parcel of everything.
It's been one big. One big, to use a Jeff Garland phrase, one big bowl have come on, and they're now a final four team. In the NFC, in the arguably toughest conference in in football. 844-204-Rich, number to Donald right here. We've hardly even spoken about the Patriots and the Chargers or the Rams.
And the Panthers, that will change over the final hour and 20 minutes of this Monday edition of the Rich His Show. We'll also hit Indiana football. In the same way that Indiana football keeps hitting people. The Rich Eisen Show, the podcast. As you know, managing maintenance, repair, and operations is never easy.
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To learn more. 844204 Rich, number to dial. We'll get your call in a second. I said on the listen, I keep on talking about all the stuff that I didn't get right. Let me just get something kind of that I got right.
Although I think I whiffed on the. What's more likely, you said the larger margin of difference, any of the wildcard games this weekend or the Indiana, Oregon final, right? And I chose the wildcard, a wildcard game to be a blowout. That didn't happen. No.
Just turned out to be the closest weekend in the history of Wildcourt weekend.
So maybe I manifested that. I think Indiana just scored again. Yeah. Well. Oof.
I should have just relied on my Opinion of Indiana for the last few weeks, which is they are a wagon and they are the bullies of college football. They are just...
Now, I understand that bullies are weak at its center, so I guess I need to come up with a different phrase. They are um they are the best. in college football, and they have a head coach and a quarterback. And a team. That is uh um I guess you could say as close to a professional football team as you can see, certainly because they're the similar age of a football team.
Right, they got a bunch of O G's there. Um This kid, Fernando Mendoza, um His accuracy is something else. Like, he puts the ball where only his guy can get it, whether it's to high point or a back shoulder or something to lead him to the sideline to make sure that the defender that is draped all over him can't get him. He's. Locked in.
And he's just such a Guy to root for, too. Every time he speaks, it's like a throwback to the 50s, right? Where he's just like, gosh, G. Willikers. That's why it's hard to, when you use the bully phrase, you think about him, and he's as far from a bully as it is.
So I think we do have to come back.
Well, he's just the best. He's the Heisman Trophy winner, and he's terrific. And it looks like he's going to be the first overall pick. I love watching his parents celebrate him. Do you notice his dad never stands to celebrate?
Do you notice that? Yeah. You know why? Yeah. 'Cause his mom's in a wheelchair.
Yeah, she is in a wheelchair. Oh. Yeah. Wow. And so he sits and celebrates with her.
With her, yeah. I I I this f I'm falling in love with the family. Falling in love with the kid, with the family? Um Okay. Whoever gets him is going to be lucky.
Well, I think it's going to be the Raiders. Yeah, it's probably going to. Not exactly the Vegas personality type.
Well, but excuse me, if you are somebody who runs the Las Vegas Raiders and you operate in a city like Las Vegas, I want somebody who I know is going home. Yeah, you're not going to get a phone call at guess who's raving. I'd rather rave about him than go into raids. You know what I mean? You call him at four in the morning.
It's going right to Volkswagen. It's going right in the morning. Yeah. Because he's sleeping. Or he might be up watching or getting ready to come to work.
Yeah, true that. Yes. To be the first in the building. But he ain't going to be at the slot mission. I mean, in all honesty, honestly, where's the one city?
A game took place this year where two star athletes Didn't participate in the first series for their team, and we were wondering why. I mean, I don't know why you got to bring old stuff up. The city of Las Vegas. CeeDee Lamb and George Pickens were standing there watching. We're wondering what's up with that.
Oh, they got in the game. For sure. They played. And they won. You know?
and one of em wound up on the old pro list. Two. But at any rate, yeah, man, I mean, he'd be perfect for Vegas. That's exactly who I want. If I'm in charge there.
But at any rate, Indiana taking on Miami, it's just going to be a total blast. I mean, Miami is a stout team in its own right, okay? with a head coach that is barking out. orders also And and is a tough team in the trenches. And you could make the case, this kid Tony is the most electric player in the national championship game by far.
And it's going to be what, a 17-year-old against the. People who are like in their mid-20s, some of them. Yeah. It seems like. You know what I mean?
23, I have average average age. Right. So it's, and it's a home game for Miami, and Indiana has all of these. Uh alums. To the point you see, Cuban is posting, like, hey, can somebody tell me about these secondary tickets?
Why they're through the roof? Then I saw Connor Stallions respond, and I'm like, come on, man. Just I know about tickets. It's just like, get out of here. All right.
He's got a guy. Yeah, he's technically. Oh, you'd think Cuban would have enough? But at any rate, I mean the that they are It's going to be a fun matchup. And all Miami is going to hear between now and next Monday is they're going to get steamrolled.
And I'm sure that I'm sure the coach is going to talk it up. It's their home stadium. Yeah. It's their home stadium. Can't wait for it.
But Indiana is a wagon. They just, they just.
So they took the lead on a pick six to start. And then Oregon ties the game. And honestly, nobody, in case you're wondering how that suddenly happened for Oregon. Nobody. Can affect a change of momentum, quite like Chris Brockman prematurely texting the group when the game's over.
Do you really need to do that? It practically. Was I wrong this weekend about any of those? At the end of the day, the game wasn't close. Thank you.
Happy games. You know, the game wasn't close. You declared the Rams game over after Carolina, you know, said that was done. Turned it over on Down to their own end. You were wrong about that.
No, no, no, no. You said the game was over. The Rams wound up winning the game. But no, in case, if you're sitting at home wondering, how did that just happen in a game when momentum just switched? Just know that Brockman has texted saying the game's over.
Just know that. Come on.
Somewhere. I also had Panthers plus 10 and a half. That's odd that it would be gambling related. Also, the get-in price for this national championship game, have you seen this? It's through the roof, huh?
$3,400 is the cheapest ticket. That's like Super Bowl, like getting into a Super Bowl, $3,500, $5,000. Jeez. Third 3005. Yeah.
Anyway. You sure you cut this number? No, he does not. 3,000. I said 335.
35, 3, and 5, 5. He's just starting with. It's almost like a numerical eye chart. I was going to say 25, 6 to 4, but I didn't know. It's a numerical eye chart.
He's just throwing out numbers. You guys knew what I meant. 5, 6, 9, 9, 3. He really didn't. He almost gave out Jenny's number, yeah.
You know how much it is to get in the game? 8, 6, 7, 5, 3, 0, 9. Boom.
Okay. You guys, idiots. You're you're the idiot. I am. What are we doing?
It's the truth. I am. I accept it. At any rate, it's expensive to be. It's expensive.
That's all I'm saying. It's expensive. You've heard fighting it, Mikey. I know, right? I can't.
Oh, I'm just turning my mic off, Pie. Don't do that. It's all good. I'm here for comic amusement. It's all good.
But it's a fun college football matchup between the one seed and the 10 seed. A lot of people thought they shouldn't have gotten in at all. And they made it. Irv will be there with his belt. Oh, God, Irv.
Irv will be there with his belt. Wockety Cap. And Edrin will be there, and Andre Johnson will be there, and Ray will be there, and Cuban will be there. I wonder if Joe Buck's going to be there. He should.
He'll be done. Come on, Joe. You got to go to this one. National championship game Indiana Hoosiers, and their alumni got to step up because they're best in the sport right now. They are the Rich Eisen Show Podcast.
Mm-hmm.