Do The 49ers Need To Trade For Cousins? (Hour 2)

We continue this Zach Gelb show coast to coast on CBS Sports Radio. We should be joined by Jordan Travis who's having a sensational season with the Florida State Seminoles. They are undefeated coming from behind to beat Duke last week and they ended up winning the game 38-20.

The Seminoles are now ranked 4th in the country and are 7-0. But we do have some breaking news actually as we get set for this Bengals 49ers game on Sunday. Adam Schefter is reporting that Kyle Shanahan said Brock Purdy is now in concussion protocol and Adam Schefter did go on to say Brock Purdy is now unlikely to play Sunday versus the Bengals based on this trend. No NFL player placed into concussion protocol this season has played the same week.

The last player to be in concussion protocol who played the same week was last season when Kenny Pickett had a concussion in week 6 and was cleared to play in week 7. So now this is going to be I guess a Sam Darnold game for the San Francisco 49ers which that becomes a very interesting story. Because if you're someone like me who I said and this is not a knock on Brock Purdy but when you ask me is Brock Purdy more of a system quarterback right now or is he a franchise quarterback. I've said he's a system quarterback because you have that team went healthy with Trent Williams and you have Christian McCaffrey, Deebo Samuel, Brandon Iuke and the play calling of Kyle Shanahan. Kyle Shanahan has kind of made this that it's more so my system and they've rotated and done musical chairs with the quarterbacks throughout the years. Where the quarterback I don't want to say it doesn't matter but they don't place an importance on the quarterback as much as we've seen. So now Brock Purdy is most likely going to be out this game and we're going to see the storyline that does occur here with Sam Darnold.

We will circle back on that story later on in the show. But right now joining us is the quarterback of the fourth ranked Florida State Seminoles. They are 7-0 with big wins this season up against LSU to start off the year.

Clemson in this past weekend did defeat Duke by a final score of 38-20. And now joining us is a Heisman hopeful and the quarterback of the Florida State Seminoles in Jordan Travis. Jordan Zach Gelp here in our New York City studios on CBS Sports Radio. Appreciate the time. Congrats on your success so far and how you been? I'm good man.

Thank you for having me. I'm good. I just got done with a workout so there's rest of it right now. I'm chilling and ready for practice tomorrow. What's the vibe around the team right now? Because going into this season people had high expectations for your team. I thought you guys were going to win the ACC and I know it hasn't been perfect but you're winning these games and you're 7-0 and expectations are sky high right now.

Yeah. The energy is really high around the locker room. I mean I feel like when you come to Florida State the expectations are always high. We've had a couple down years and I've been a part of a couple down years at Florida State so I mean the ups and downs that we're going through now is way different than the ups and downs we used to go through when we were losing a lot. And I would take these ups and downs every single year.

So yeah man. The energy is high. We're 7-0. We're just trying to win the day every single day and take it day by day. I know that the easy answer is now you guys are winning but being in that facility and I've always been a big fan of Mike Norvell going back to his time at Memphis. What's really changed the last two years where this team has started to take this program back to where Florida State should be?

I would say the people man. The people you get to do it with every single day I would say is one of the biggest parts of football when it comes to winning. I mean when you're playing for your brothers next to you not just yourself I think that's one of the biggest parts of football. And the people that coach Norvell bring in whether it's transfers or freshmen are really special people.

It's people that I can be around every single day without any problems with a smile on my face. I mean if we have a break for three days and we come back it feels like it's been a year since I've seen my teammates and I miss them so much. So I'm just trying to cherish all these moments with these guys knowing it's my last year.

But yeah man the people around this program are really really special. I know you transferred into Florida State but you've been there now for the last few seasons. We know transferring happens all the time now with the transfer portal and like you said Mike Norvell has really hit the ground running in the transfer portal. When you bring in new teammates, you being the leader, you being really the face of this team, why is everyone just seen to transition coming into this program so seamlessly and be on the same page? Once again it's who coach Norvell recruits.

It's not selfish people, it's very selfless people that are about the team and about winning and about this culture. I mean when you come in and there's another 110 guys that are acting a certain way I feel like you kind of gel with those type of guys and start believing in those type of things that the other guys believe in. But when coach Norvell asks you to come to Florida State, he never asks for your trust. He always proves it and that he's very trustworthy. So yeah man I mean the people we have around the locker room accept these guys in and make them feel at home.

From the first day they never feel like they're at the right spot. So yeah as kudos to coach Norvell and the coaching staff and this team man. Talking to Jordan Travis right now, the quarterback of the Florida State Seminoles. They are 7-0 and ranked 4th in the country. You guys got off to a slow start up against Duke. You end up beating them by 18 points. We know that's a very talented Duke team.

What happened early on and how did you guys not panic and be able to turn it around as the game got going? I feel like everyone kind of sneaks down on Duke a lot. At the end of the day that's a really good Duke football team. That's probably the most talented defense we've played all year.

They play very sound. There's not a lot of mistakes in that defense. There's a bunch of older guys that just play really hard every single play. So their coach is doing a really great job with that.

We know who we have on our side of the ball though week in and week out. It's just a matter of time in a game when it's going to click. We need to work on clicking on all cylinders from start to finish. Our goal at the end of the day is to win a football game.

We're grateful for that. It starts with the offensive line. We have a great offensive line that fights really hard. They fight to adversity. There's a bunch of older guys in our offensive line that have been here with me through a lot of ups and downs. I'm so proud of them because they used to get a lot of hate two or three years ago. There's nothing but negative vibes around them. They just keep working with smiles on their faces.

I'm so grateful for them. Does that kind of drive you a little bit? Because you guys had to build this thing from all the way down and now you guys are getting to a pretty high level. Do you remember some of the negative things that were said about your program a few years ago? That's the one thing with me. I don't forget anything at all. I remember hearing that I can only play running back.

I can only play receiver. I remember hearing that the offensive line, when they get a whole new offensive line and wipe all the guys out. I remember everything. It just kind of gives you that drive and that push every single day when you're not feeling great. At the end of the day, I always say, we're people, man. We always don't feel great. We feel sick some days. We had to go out there and still perform no matter what. It's kind of like that chip on our shoulder that you need.

I absolutely love it. I'm not really worried about proving other people wrong. I'm always worried about proving myself right. That's something that I've always believed in.

My brother taught me that from a young age. Just proving yourself right every single day is the main thing. I know the job isn't done yet. You guys still have a long way to go, but it's been a heck of a start to this season. What has Jordan Travis and this Florida State program proved so far to everyone? We proved that we're a well-disciplined team. We do have the right guys in this program. A lot of people don't believe we have the right guys. We just have a bunch of athletes across the field that just kind of do whatever.

That is not true at all about this program. We have a bunch of guys that do our job, do your 111th every single game, every single play. Just a hard-fought team. This is a family that we love one another with a great, great coaching staff that I wouldn't trade for anything in the world. Coach Norvell loves his football team and loves the people on his team just as much as his family. We're so grateful for our coaching staff. Jordan Travis here with us from Florida State for a few more moments.

It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. Jordan having a sensational season as the quarterback for the Florida State Seminoles. So we talked about the Duke game a little bit and the slow start. Same thing happened in Clemson too. But when you guys face some adversity, and I know you don't want to dig yourself in a deep hole and you want to dominate all throughout, but that's just not what happens each and every game. It seems like you guys don't panic and there's a sense of calm with this team. I know that's a credit to the coaching staff, but it's also a credit to the players. Why does the moment never get too big for you guys, even if you're working from behind in a game? Oh, I think it's just the experience we have. I mean, we have a lot of guys that have been here for a while. But yeah, man, we've been to a lot of ups and downs throughout our careers. And whether it's Jaheim at South Carolina or Keyon at Michigan State, there's been so many ups and downs that it kind of makes it during a game. It kind of makes it relaxed. I mean, we know no matter what that we have a great offensive line, great running backs, great receivers, great tight ends.

All that type of stuff, man. So we just got to trust our coach, Coach Norvell and Coach Atkins to put us in the right position every single time. I mean, we always talk about how we want practice to be harder than games. So Coach Norvell pushes us really hard in practice where when you get to a game, man, we're so used to it. We work so hard in the offseason with Coach Storms. He pushes us so hard, man, that we know we're just as strong as anybody in the country in the fourth and third quarter. So, I mean, we just trust, go back to our fundamentals and trust that, man, God has a plan for us each and every day.

So just trust in God's plan, man, and that's it. You're a leader, your energy and your attitude is really infectious. I know that you don't get complacent. Last year you had a monster season and I've talked to your coach before about the work that you put in during the offseason. What did you really work on in the offseason after a great season to make this one even better for Jordan Travis? Yeah, I worked on my fundamentals physically, but I feel like the biggest thing for me and a lot of players is the mental aspect of the game. Just watching the film a little bit more, doing things like that and, I mean, the leadership, being a leader every single day and seeing how much that matters. Because when you're a young kid and people tell you you're a quarterback, you're the leader of the football team, you don't really embrace that and take that in and use it to your advantage, man. So I've learned this year I want to do everything right, the little things right, show up ten minutes early to every single thing.

I've always done that, but just being a little bit more focused this year with that, getting treatment. Because I have younger guys that look up to me and at the end of the day it makes my job fun. It's when you have a freshman like Brock Glenn coming in and he's looking up to you. And I'm able to see myself every day and kind of show him the way of how, I mean, I've found that college is, I mean, how a college quarterback should act. I mean, I've been around for a long time and been around James Blackman, Mackenzie Milton, I mean, Kuma Path at Louisville. And just seeing how those guys work, man, and how they treat people.

So now I have the opportunity to do that for these younger guys and it really is a blessing for sure. And when I see you play, you're one tough guy. I know you dealt earlier in the season with the arm injury, are you 100% now? I know like no one's ever 100% this time in the season, but how are you feeling with the arm?

My arm feels amazing. I'm 100% for sure. Gotcha.

Alrighty. It looks that way on the field and I'm a Heisman Trophy voter, Jordan Travis. And your name has been one of the few names at the top in the Heisman Trophy race. When you hear that you're in that mix and you know that you're playing first spot in the college football playoff, trying to win an ACC championship, a national championship as well, but when you hear your name getting thrown in the Heisman Trophy conversation, just what does that mean to you? It means a lot to me, man.

It does. But at the end of the day, I mean, I've always been a person where it's, I mean, I feel like the award is so prestigious and there's a blessing from the man upstairs to even be talked about in that conversation, but at the same time, man, my goal every single day is to win the day, not just on the field, off the field, with the little kids I meet outside the stadium, with my teammates, continuing to gain their trust and being able to be, continue to be the best leader I can be, the best son I can be, the best brother I can be. That's my goal every single day, going out and just giving everything I have in my body, no matter how I'm feeling.

Just being able to bless other people. But yeah, man, I'm so blessed and honored to be a quarterback at Florida State and to be talked about like that, but I couldn't do anything without my teammates and I know where I came from and I know how hard it's been throughout my career, so I give everything to my teammates and my coaches for putting me in the right position and making plays for me. I mean, you've got Keon Coleman jumping up and Johnny making crazy plays Trey and LT making big blocks and the offensive line fighting through adversity and injuries and making big time blocks just to protect me and keep me upright. So I'm so thankful for my teammates and my coaches and we've got to keep going and keep going.

Two more and then I'll let you run. Wrapping up with Jordan Travis, it's been a sensational conversation with the Florida State quarterback. I know you're focused on the now, but people start projecting your NFL future. Let's just say I'm an NFL general manager and I come to you and say, why should I draft you coming up in April? What is Jordan Travis bring to a football team?

A winner. Something that stays out of trouble. I mean, I thought that's really big, man, and it's a leader leading men. That's why that's that's a huge part of football and playing quarterback. Learn how to lead men, lead by example. You know, it's not that outspoken guy, but guys know it's a little things. Just being on time for everything, like I said, man, just giving everything you have to the game and loving your teammates no matter what. So, yeah, man, just a winner, a leader, a hard worker.

This just caught my eye. I don't know what you actually said, and maybe I'm making a bigger deal than what it actually is. But Riley Leonard, the quarterback of Duke, got hurt in the game. It looked like you guys had a brief for maybe even a longer exchange after the game. What did you say to Riley? Just that I'm praying for him. I met him. He was my roommate at the Manning Pass Academy.

So, I mean, I was looking forward to playing him for sure. And just seeing what he's been through this year, his career, I mean, all the ups and downs he's been through. And he's just a really special person. And sitting in that room with him, we were roommates, and just talking, man, about life and football and what he's been through in his career and just telling him what I've been through. I got a new friend, man, and I'm rooting for him always, and just letting him know that, man, that I have his back. I reached out to him after the Duke game. He texted me after the Clemson game.

I don't know if that was the same week. Yeah, man, just rooting for that kid. Hope he gets healthy soon and continues the ball out. Last thing I'll ask you, in 20 years from now, when your playing days are over, how do you hope we're talking about Jordan Travis, the football player? Hard worker, just a tough player.

He goes in every single day and just gives everything he has. And a winner. Not just a winner in football, but a winner in life. How I treated everybody, how I treated my teammates, how my coaches felt about me. It's bigger than football at the end of the day.

It's more about life. You learn so many life lessons throughout football. I just want to be known as a great person and a great football player.

Well, keep kicking ass, keep winning games, good luck this weekend up against Wake Forest. Jordan Travis, we appreciate the time. Thank you, man, thank you for having me. There you go, Jordan Travis. How do you not like that kid after hearing him? That was 15, 16, 17 minutes of just radio gold right there.

That is a tremendous, and I mean a tremendous conversation. And every answer you had to love from what you heard from Jordan Travis. Like when you hear that guy, he just sounds like a quarterback. Then you see him play, he looks like a quarterback. And every time I watch him play, like his arm against Clemson looked like it was dangling. And he was just dominating.

And taking that team from behind, there are leaders, and then there's Jordan Travis, and what he's doing right now, it is impossible to not want to see Florida State continue their run of excellence this year. Zach Guilpcho, CBS Sports Radio. You know, I may have to revise that take because it's very tough to figure out who the top ten quarterbacks are in football. Because Brady's retired, right? We've seen Big Ben go away. Aaron Rodgers is now hurt.

Phillip Rivers is now out of the game. We've had a lot of big time quarterbacks. I know it's years ago now, but Peyton Manning retired.

And that was right after Super Bowl 50. But the quest to top ten quarterbacks in the NFL, it's very tough. Like I would say right now, if you go division by division, Josh Allen's a top ten quarterback.

Tuatunga-Vailoa's a top ten quarterback. We know Mahomes is. Herbert is. Lamar Jackson is. Joe Burrow is.

Trevor Lawrence is. So just in the AFC, those are seven. But then you go to the NFC, all right, Jalen Hurts, absolutely. No one I could say definitely in the NFC West. NFC North, no one definitely. And the NFC South, no one definitely.

So that's eight that I just gave you. And you've got to pick two more. Dax in the conversation. Matthew Stafford in the conversation. Jared Goff in the conversation. Kirk Cousins in the conversation.

Outside of that, that's probably it. Like I can't say Watson, he's never on the field anymore. C.J.

Stroud hasn't played enough. And if I had to pick two off that list, I'm not picking Dak. Stafford, I just don't know what the longevity of his career is going to be. Like I'd probably hold my nose and go Kirk Cousins and Goff. And you could debate those final two names. You can. You could definitely debate them.

But, man, that's very underwhelming. And all we do, right, as fans, talk show hosts, observers of football, fantasy football players, gamblers, every Monday in football season, I could guarantee you from now until the end of the season, we will either start a Monday show coming off a big football Sunday talking about one or two things. What quarterback succeeded or failed or what coach succeeded or failed. And, Sam, that's kind of surreal to me with how much we obsess about the quarterbacks with certain guys retiring, guys being hurt right now, where we asked who the top ten quarterbacks in football. Yeah, you could easily just read off seven or eight names and no one would debate those seven or eight names. But the ninth and tenth spot, that's really open for debate. And it's kind of like hummina, hummina, hummina, hummina, hummina, hummina, hummina, when we're trying to figure out who the ninth and tenth quarterback is in the NFL.

No, you're right. We were going through it before the show, just kind of going down the list. And like you said, there's that six or seven or eight guys. You're like, OK, these are the guys. And then you get to like the Tua's and the Russell Wilson's.

But Russ isn't anymore. No, but like you get to the Dak's, you get to these names, the Kirk Cousins's. And like, could you have Kirk 12? Sure. Could you have him eight? Sure.

You can make that argument either way. And the Jared Goffs, right? Like the Geno Smiths. It's really interesting to see how you have like, you know, five, six, seven guys that are really the guys and everybody else.

There's kind of like a logjam from like eight to 15 of a bunch of guys that are fairly interchangeable. You bring up the name Geno Smith. Now, he's got to prove it again this year. But if he takes that team to the playoffs again and I know he has a bunch of weapons, you know, I guess Brock Purdie is now also in the conversation, too, even though I think he's more product of the system. But if Geno Smith replicates what he did last year, it's not crazy to say that maybe Geno Smith could be a top 10 quarterback entering the NFL next season. That's wild. He's on pace for 4000 yards and over 20 touchdowns.

So like, what's your fight? What's your fine numbers in 2023 of football? Sure.

And it doesn't. But but like Kirk Cousins every year has the numbers and oftentimes doesn't have the win loss success to go along with those like statistics. Where's Geno? He's winning and putting up respectable numbers at this stage of his career.

Yeah. And he just has to do it for a longer period of time, maybe like a three, four year window that he has left in the NFL after being irrelevant for 10 years and now being right back into the conversation. Here is Troy Aikman and Joe Buck saying that Kirk Cousins is a top 10 quarterback with some ESPN Monday Night Football broadcast. Here is Troy Aikman and Joe Buck.

Two touchdowns on throws, 10 or more yards downfield. He's been really good here tonight. He sure has. You know, everybody has an opinion on Kirk Cousins. Top 10 quarterback in my book. So here's how I'll react to that.

We've talked about it. You could easily make a case that Kirk Cousins is like the ninth or 10th best quarterback in football. But I don't think Kirk Cousins is definitely going to be back with the Minnesota Vikings next year.

Like, no crap. His contract expires. But I'm starting to look around the league and we know there's one coach that has a good relationship with Kirk Cousins and has been trying to get Kirk Cousins to that team for a long time. And that's Kyle Shanahan. And even though Brock Purdy was rocking out with this Brock out earlier in the season and he was looking pretty awesome and everyone was bowing down to Brock Purdy and saying he's the next franchise quarterback. The last two weeks have kind of shown he's more of a system quarterback than a franchise quarterback.

Now we have this report that Brock Purdy, according to Adam Schefter, is in concussion protocol and he's not expected to play this weekend. If Sam Darnold plays well, that's going to be more of a system quarterback kind of take centering and surrounding the the narrative about Brock Purdy. So what about this offseason with Kirk Cousins as a free agent? Kirk Cousins is a good quarterback, has never really played on a great team. Imagine Kirk Cousins in the Bay Area with Kyle Shanahan, with Christian McCaffrey. If Trent Williams could still play another year and he's a dominant left tackle, we all know that. He's going to the Hall of Fame.

You got Debo, you got Brandon Aiyuk. It's not crazy to say that Kirk Cousins could be the missing piece for the San Francisco 49ers to win a Super Bowl. Like we got to see how the rest of the season plays out and how we're talking about Brock Purdy at the end of the year. But there's no really long term commitment to Brock Purdy.

He's making under a million dollars next year and then a little over a million dollars in 2025. And if Brock Purdy isn't that dude at the end of the year and we know how quickly Kyle Shanahan runs through quarterbacks, you know Kyle Shanahan has been trying to get Kirk Cousins for years out in the Bay Area will be making that phone call when Kirk Cousins enter free agency after this season. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. We will take a break when we come on back. We have to react to the baseball from last night. We already knew that the Texas Rangers punched their ticket to the Fall Classic. The Astros were up 3-2 after the heroic Jose Altuve performance in Game 5. Then Atalies Garcia was basically poked and in Game 6 he was dominant.

In Game 7 he was dominant. And the Rangers went to the Astros house and they won Game 6 and 7 to advance to the World Series. On the other side in the NL, the Philadelphia Phillies dominated at home. Phillies fans dancing on their own at Citizens Bank Ballpark.

What an electric atmosphere. The last two post seasons they have not lost to an NL team in the postseason. They were a crazy 12-2 and the only two losses were up against the Houston Astros last year in the World Series. Well the Philadelphia Phillies who were up 2-0 lost Game 3, choked away Game 4, then won Game 5.

Oh it's 3-2, it's a lock. They're going to win one of these two games in Game 6 or 7. Lost Game 6 and last night they lost Game 7 and the big bats were silenced in Philadelphia. So now, against all odds, our World Series matchup is the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Texas Rangers. And let me just say this, if you are a baseball fan that's like, Oh, no one's going to watch this World Series. Oh, this World Series sucks. Oh, this is terrible for baseball.

I don't want to hear that today. Because what makes baseball so fun for me is how unpredictable it is. No one could have guessed Diamondbacks Rangers Fall Classic before the start of this postseason.

But that's where we are right now. And with how unpredictable this road is and how we got here, I'm not going to rain on the parade of Rangers fans and Diamondbacks fans and say, Man, this World Series is going to suck. This World Series is going to blow.

No, I'm not doing that. I'm pumped up for this World Series. And we can get behind Samter here because he lived in Arizona for how many years, Moist Mike? Seven.

Seven years? So are you a Dbacks fan? Have you adopted the Arizona Diamondbacks since the Yankees have tortured you recently? No. Oh, so you're still upset with what happened in the early 2000s. Absolutely.

Gotcha. Well, maybe we'll get you some Arizona gear and you could kind of be a snake and sliver your way to the Diamondbacks, just like how you got off the Jets bandwagon and are now rooting for the Kansas City. How about those Chiefs? Yeah, let's go Chiefs Kingdom, baby. So Chiefs and Diamondbacks fan. No, the Dbacks are fine.

Dbacks are fine. I don't hold the grudge specifically that I root against them, but I certainly can't root for them against the teams that I like. You know, this World Series is going to be interesting.

Yeah. I don't hate the Dbacks. You want to know what I'm rooting for?

Tell me. Assuming Max Scherzer gets a start in this World Series, I want to see him get lit up like a Christmas tree. I can't stand Max Scherzer the last two years. It's kind of what Brad Lidge implied, that we're not going to see vintage Max Scherzer. He's saying if he gets through three innings, that's actually like a win for the Rangers.

How the mighty have fallen for Mad Max. So we'll take a break. We'll come on back. We'll talk to former Big League slugger, Mo Vaughn, when the Zach Gelb show returns after these short messages. First up, though, with the latest CBS Sports Radio update, here he is, the Ackman, Rich Ackerman. Alrighty, we'll talk some postseason baseball right now with former Big League slugger in Mo Vaughn and former MLB All-Star Mo Vaughn as an ambassador for a perfect game and also runs the Vaughn Sports Academy in Boyden Beach, Florida. Perfect Game is the world's largest youth baseball and softball platform and scouting service.

For more information on their 2024 events, you could visit perfectgame.org. Mo Vaughn, appreciate the time. Thanks so much. It's a thrill for me. How you been? Zach, how you doing, brother?

Doing alright. I'm down here in Boca Raton, just working away, coaching, doing a bunch of stuff, watching these playoffs. Very surprised about Arizona. I just knew coming into Philly in that last game was just going to be like a grindhouse.

But you got to give it to Arizona, man. They stayed strong. They got that young lefty, lefty that's a really good dynamic player with a big heart.

Colin, I think his name is Colin. Corbin Cowell, yeah. Corbin Cowell, this guy is a catalyst and he swung the bat really well, made the plays. They came in with the bullpen.

So AZ looks very tough. So something I've always admired about you and your family is you always try to help people out. I was a kid and I had my Mo Vaughn jersey. I was a Mets fan and I was in a luxury box and your family was the luxury box over and they saw me with the Mo Vaughn jersey. And your family, I guess they had a luxury box all the time when you played for the Mets.

They were just absolutely awesome. Why was it always so important even during your playing days and now after to continue to give back for not only you, but also for your family? I just think it's very, very important. I was always taught if you have capacity, you have strength, a little bit of knowledge and a little bit of influence. Try to use that in the right way to help others.

I was very, very fortunate. I, you know, two parents growing up, school teachers. You know, we had a very good, young, structured life that gave me the ability to be successful on many, many fronts. You know, as an athlete, after life, communicating, doing certain things. So just whatever you see, you know, an ability to help somebody, you do that in whatever capacity it is. And just, you know, being in youth sports, working with PG, I get to do that a lot.

Even against, you know, kids I'm playing against that are beating my tail, that are, you know, that are dismantling my team. I'm always trying to offer the right mindset and coaching and tips and things. Because I just like seeing people that go out and be successful. So I'm in a very good space right now in my life.

Mo Vaughn here with us. You were talking about the youngster, Corbin Carroll, and what he's done for the Arizona Diamondbacks. You know what it's like early on in a career to try to make a name for yourself and really captivate the sport. Just how do you kind of reflect on your first few years of the career and how you were able to handle not only making a name for yourself, but just the mental part of it and the grind day to day when you're trying to become a star? I'm always very, very in awe, especially these young guys that come up and really destroy the playoffs. Like they come up and they raise their game to the other level like Corbin or even the guys like Bryce Harper that just get to the playoffs.

It's really what you want to be and what you are. I wasn't that fortunate. You know, when I played, I, you know, I went over for 15 my first, you know, year, you know, 95 against Indians. And it was a tremendous learning experience. But I always in awe of some of these young guys, these guys come up to the plate, you know, stepping up on the mound just in that moment.

I just think it's great. I think there's a lot of great players out there in our game today and that's what you want to be in those big moments. And that's what you try to teach and what you try to coach. Move on here with us on the flip side for Philadelphia when you're winning and you know what it's like in a big city, passionate city like Boston and New York, the two that you played in your revered and everyone's loving you and it's great. Then you lose game six, you lose game seven and everyone turns against you. What do you think the Phillies players are going through today? Coming off a World Series appearance last year, trying to get back there this year, looking like they were a lock to do so.

And then bam, it hits you right in the face. And now you're going home and getting ready to schedule your tee times for the offseason. One thing I like about the Phillies, though, is that they have the type of temperament. Their manager has the type of temperament. These guys are going to come back. Bryce Harper at the lead, Caslanos, you know, all these guys, Trey Turner. You know, you know, these guys will be a little too. These guys will be back.

And that's just the way Philly is there. They're going to drive you even when you don't want to be driven. They're going to drive. So they're going to, you know, they've been, you know, they got there last year, a step away this year. They're going to be a team to be.

I don't see them them folding for a long time. They got that, you know, inner Philadelphia Fury. It will come out and they'll get their shot. When you look at this World Series matchup, everyone's stunned, like going into the postseason. No one could have looked at the bracket and said, it's going to be the Rangers and it's going to be the Arizona Diamondbacks. Some people today, just because they don't like the matchup, go, oh, this is boring.

Oh, this sucks. And I think that's lame because the postseason played out how it is and it's been remarkable so far. What's your first thought on this World Series matchup between the Rangers and the Diamondbacks? I never went to a World Series, so to me, anybody that gets there has done great things.

And who cares if it's not the Yankees or East Coast bias? These dudes, these 24 guys have come together and stepped up. And I'm going to tell you, you know, you know, the Texas has got a got a heartbeat.

You saw that against, you know, my buddy Dana Brown was a GM of, you know, all the Astros coming out of Seton Hall. You know, they got them there. They they're not flinching. And you look at what Arizona did.

They're not flinching. So this is going to be a heavyweight fight. You know, it's kind of funny you think about Texas, though, what happens if the Grom and, you know, Max Scherzer on top of the game?

You know, where would that be? But right now, it's seven games. I think these guys are going to battle.

I think nobody's going to going to give an inch. It's going to be a tough series. I think, you know, of all the is has stepped up and is nasty. And, you know, you know, Scherzer gets another chance to be himself. I think the guys over there in in Arizona have come from the wild card, you know, continuously playing tough series of sharpener.

There are tools and already. So I look forward to a great series. You know what it's like to be in the zone, right? You've won an MVP there.

Sometimes you get up to the plate and the ball just looks like a beach ball for you. At least Garcia. That was it for him in the ALCS. And he's had an incredible season. But to see what he did. And now he was just a machine up against a team that was right on the cuffs of becoming a dynasty of the Houston Astros.

How did you kind of process that one move on? That guy's awesome. His spray chart is unbelievable. The last game, he took a ball to right field. Looked like a left handed batter hitter. He pulled the ball, hit the ball. He got base hits, you know, you know, I don't really know what's, you know, I don't know if there's been some past bad blood between the guys in terms of him getting hit. But he ain't getting hit.

Sometimes, you know, you let sleeping dogs lie and he woke up and he's he's been on the money. So I look for that dude to really make an impact, you know, in the next seven games before we let you run. Shoei Ohtani, I know he's dealing with the injury, so he's not going to pitch next year, but he's expected to still be able to hit. When you look at Shoei Ohtani, where do you think he'll land?

That's the multimillion dollar question as we get on this quest to free agency when the off season gets underway. First of all, before we get to that, I had a great experience. I was able to take my son to two WBC games. At first, to see the United States talent was just unbelievable. Just all the guys, you know, that walked out there. You know, I got to see, you know, some of these guys that I never saw before up live. I was with my son.

That was awesome. And then to see Shoei, I mean, this dude is every bit as advertised. His match up, you know, in my trial was was unbelievable. But just the way he plays in the end, he goes about his business. I think, you know, he really was just willing Japan to win this thing.

But just this guy's overall presence is just awesome on the field in the batter's box. He's so dynamic now in terms of where I think he will go. I think that it will so it will stay somewhere on the West Coast. And I know it's a big giant West Coast, but I'm thinking either back with the Angels or possibly the Dodgers. I think, you know, Japan is close to that west side. We could get that direct flight. I think that's important to him.

So I'm thinking either it's going to be back where he is or or possibly L.A. Before we let move on run. Tell me a little bit more about the work you're doing with perfect game and also the Vaughn Sports Academy. Listen, Vaughn Sports Academy, we're down in a service with over 300 people and, you know, kids in the Boca Raton area.

We are a one stop shop. You know, with you athletes, you can come here and get every part of your game worked on in terms of pitching, outfield, infield, defense, catching all these things. And also we have a great workout facility on the other side where you're going to get some of the best training with recovery. And in terms of perfect game, I just love being a part of that, mentoring people, mentoring youth. You know, I'm back in the game.

I never thought I was going to be. My son started playing ball. You know, he's 11 years old, you know, started playing ball about six years ago. Got me back on the field being a ball of a perfect game, working, you know, in the Palm Beach County area area, trying to run turns. But being, you know, just just a member of the team of the team is great.

You know, in 2020 for a perfect game is going to throw over 5000 tournaments across across the country. So that's always a great thing. And, you know, there's, you know, it's always growing.

You know, there's, you know, on the business side, you know, you have PGTV, all the different social media media avenues and channels are involved with. So for me, it's able to be out there, be around young people, mentor them, give them all the mental and physical things that you can possibly do to make them better. And I'm right where where I back where I started as a kid, you know, at eight years old, playing cap league on the field, coaching, coaching young people and trying to give them out. So I'm I'm very, very happy at this point.

Well, I only got 30 seconds left. Last thing last because you said you're in Boca right now. I was just there last week visiting some family. You're looking slim.

You're looking good. Give me a new food spot, though, in Boca. Where's your favorite food spot to grub out in Boca? Man, they got it.

You know what else? It's I like this sandwich sandwich shop. It's called it's V, VNS, VNS, you know, down there on on on what is it? On US one VSA sale in Boca sandwich. They got the best sales, Norman.

You know, Northeast, the Northeast guy like those those thick sales is what I'm not eating well. But, uh, yeah, it's a book has been great. It's been great to me. The people here have been great to me. I love it here.

My family's here. It's just been a good journey for me this so far off to try it out. Move on. Appreciate the time.

Thanks so much for doing this. Be well. All right, Zach. Good luck. See you later. There you go.

Move on. Joining us right here on the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio will take a break. When we come on back, we'll circle into the Michigan Wolverine story. What's the latest going on with Jim Harbaugh? What should Harbaugh do? Should Michigan be punished right now? We still got take five Wednesday. My top five teams in the college football and NFL coming up later on final hours. That killed show CBS Sports Radio.