Bama and Georgia Could Miss College Football Playoffs (Hour 1)

That's right, I'm here. Did you not think I was gonna show up?

Did you think I was gonna stay home? Call out sick, live from the palatial yet not overly ostentatious studios of the Zach Gelb show on the Infinity Sports Network. We come to you live on this wonderful Friday across all the great local Infinity Sports Network affiliates, Sirius XM, Channel 158, the free Odyssey app, but of course streaming live on YouTube.

I'm in a great mood today. Let me tell you, I am so excited to be here to talk with all of you all the way up until 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific time. Roman Harper is gonna join us hopefully in an hour from now. We'll talk a little college football.

Paul Pasp will join us at 5 20 p.m. Eastern, 2 20 p.m. Pacific as we'll do some NFL picks with him. But Stu, what a wonderful night. Feliz Navidad, right to you. Big Christmas ties up the game after I thought that was over between the Yankees and the Guardians when you had a little back to back belly to belly with Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

Giancarlo, nosy, poisto, parlo. I thought the Yankees had it in the bag and then Big Christmas, which is a great nickname, hit the two run blast and then you ended up getting the walk off with Mr. Fry. And now it's 2-1 in favor of the New York Yankees. Now, we'll get to my baseball team in just a second, but usually when I'm down and almost out, I'm not like someone that goes, hey, everyone else, get off the Titanic. Go jump on the life raft. I'll just sit here and have the ship go down. No, I want to bring it down with me. So even though I understand, Stu, that you may be down in the dumps today, I do think your baseball team is still going to the World Series.

I get that. You're still going to the World Series. I would still be surprised if we're sitting here next week previewing the Guardians going up against the L.A. Dodgers or maybe the Mets if they could come on back. But last night, I need you to just tell me a little bit about how you are feeling, because this was the first time this postseason you probably have had to actually be upset with the performance by the Bronx bombers, because when you lost the one game to the Royals, you knew that the Royals were like the little engine that could this year, choo choo. They weren't going to be able to find a way to advance to the ALCS. So on one breath, you could be upset with what happened. But then in the next breath, it's like, OK, do you actually believe the Guardians are winning this series?

Probably not. So give me your thoughts here. Let me hear your misery before we get to my misery.

I want to feast off your pain first. So the fact that the Yankees actually got into that bullpen, you know, the whole game, it kind of felt like this is the game they're going to lose. They're not going to hit. The Guardians get into their bullpen, their vaunted bullpen. And then the Yankees get to Klassé, who is the best closer baseball Mariano Rivera. Right.

Apparently so, at least in regular season, they actually get to him as often and get the lead. And at that point, you just can't lose that game. You just can't give up that lead in the ninth. And then at that point, once they blew that lead and it went to extras, I'm like, I don't know. I did not feel good about it once they went into extra. And I'm not saying it would make it easier, but if it was like, I don't know, Rizzo and Volpe who hit the home runs.

Right. It's a little bit different than Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, who's on fire this postseason. When you get your MVP, the MVP of the American League going deep and then following it up with Giancarlo Stanton, I beat at the Met game and I wasn't able to watch the Yankees, Guardians live. I was watching the Mets. Unfortunately, when I saw that you had the back to back home runs belly to belly, I'm like, okay, that's that game is over. And then I'm caught up in my baseball game. And then I checked my phone because I heard I had the worst section last night. Let me tell you at the stadium. Oh, no, I'll get to that in a second. The people I went to the game with were awesome, but the people around me, it was like, they haven't watched the Mets at all this year, or you have watched every game of the Mets, but you are stuck in some acid trip in the 1970s.

Now I'll get to that in just a second. But when I looked at my phone and I saw that the Yankees lost the game, I was like, what? This is going to be one messed up night of baseball.

So still, I need to just ease my pain a little bit today, because it's not only bad that I feel miserable about my baseball team. I went to go get a coffee at work today because they had those ice coffees that they brought in yesterday. But once the ice coffees are put in the fridge, they go in a second. So I did not get the ice coffee. So I was like, okay, I saw a ginger ale in the vending machine. I was like, oh, let me get a little pick me up.

But since my brain is like operating on the slowest of speed today, because I'm upset, because I'm caught up in my feelings, I'm having a day. I forgot when you get a ginger ale out of the vending machine here and it drops out of the vending machine that when you open it, it explodes. So I may have had a little ginger ale on my sleeve about 30 minutes ago. And instead of having 130 calories of ginger ale, I had a half of that because it's on the counter.

Now, to our office manager, Matt, I did take paper towels, wetted the paper towels, and then I wiped off the counter. So, Stu, to uplift my spirits, can I hear the big Christmas home run by Tom Hamilton on the Guardians Radio Network? Swung out and hammered high, deep to left, away out of here. Midland and Cleveland. John Kenzie Noel, a tape measure job to the bleachers and left.

We are tied at five. All right, that's a pretty good call by Tom Hamilton. Now let me hear the walk-off of the David Fry game-winning home run in the 10th inning.

Swung out and hit high, hit deep to left, there she goes. How about that? A walk-off, two-run home run to the bleachers and left by David Fry.

And the magical 2024 season is not done by any means. Stu, can we agree on this, even though I don't think it makes your situation any better? Hearing Tom Hamilton have that moment does bring a little bit of a smile to your face because he's by far and away, in my opinion, the best English-speaking radio play-by-play guy. Spanish-speaking, it's our buddy Ricky Ricardo on the Spanish Yankees Radio Network.

But Tom Hamilton, to me, is the preeminent Major League Baseball play-by-play guy. So does that make you feel a little bit better? No, not really. OK, just checking. All right, let me get to my section from last night. So I didn't want to be rude, but there were three older people sitting next to me. And when Vientos hit the home run, the older guy stood up, like gave me a big high five.

I was like, OK, that's fine. But then whenever the Mets are bringing a reliever and it's guys that have been on the team, he'd be like, why is this manager bringing this guy in? And he's like, this guy hasn't been on the team. And I'm like, what are you talking about? Like, Maitan stinks. I don't like him being in that spot. But to pretend like you never heard who he was is crazy to me.

And the same for Jose Buto as well. And it was just like everything I hate when someone has commentary on every pitch of a baseball game. So that was to the left of me. And then to the right of me, there was a lady who was there solo. She must have been 70, 71, 72. She had big red hair. And it was almost like in a Mohawk, but it wasn't a Mohawk, but it was close. And she had this big furry coat on and a Matt Harvey jersey with no number, just the name Harvey.

The number was ripped off. And every song, walk up, bullpen entrance just in the stadium. She's getting up and dancing like she is on acid in the 70s. So that was to the right of me. And then the older people were to the left of me. And I'm sitting there cuz I got invited to the game. I had a ticket. But since I was a late invite to the game, the buddy and the people I went with, they were a few seats over to the right and they were fortunate enough.

I was fortunate enough I was fortunate enough that they were able to get me a ticket. But since it's a playoff game, there's no empty seats. So it's not like you could just move over. And most people don't go solos. It's not like you just swap one seat and then boom, away you go.

But that's what I had to deal with in this game. So the vibes in the stadium were good, but the vibes in my section with the person or the three people to the left and the person to the right were just no bueno. And then there were these two people in front of me that I don't know if they were paying attention to the game or not cuz they turned around after the first inning. And it was in the second they were like, when did the Mets tie the game?

I'm like, are you serious? And I was on good behavior cuz there was no benefit of me getting into it with these people. Mark Vientos hit a home run in the bottom of the first. The whole stadium got up, went berserk, screamed my God. And you didn't see or realize that Mark Vientos hit a home run. So I had crappy fans in front of me, crappy fans to my left, and crappy fans to my right. And on the baseball field, a lot of crappy baseball play by the New York Mets. So that was me last night. And you know what's just like at least in game one, they got blown out, they got dragged, and the game was over. Even though this game, the end result was a blowout, if you watched it, they had so many opportunities to get back in the game, or dare I say it, take the lead. And how many times with the Mets leave last night?

Ducks on the pond, just over and over and over again. So you're there, you wanna win, but also I'm realistic, right? Like the Dodgers are a better baseball team than the Mets. The Dodgers are the best team in Major League Baseball. The Mets heading into this season, my expectations were 83-84 wins. And if everything goes right, maybe they're a third wildcard. Now they ended up being a third wildcard. But if you put a gun to my head before the season and said, Zach, did the Mets make the playoffs?

I would have said no. And they were terrible to start. They got me through the summer. They had a great game up against the Braves, a great elimination game up against the Brewers. You have the grand slam when I was in the building, for game four, up against the Phillies to win that series up against Philadelphia, Francisco, and Door with the grand salami.

And then you take care of business in LA, splitting the first two. You lose game one, and then you win game two. But in game three, they were non-competitive. And in game four, they did everything in their power to make you believe that this team had another comeback.

And then when they had the runners in scoring position, they bleeped the bed. So the Dodgers are clearly the better team. The Mets have clearly overachieved this year. Regardless of what happens today, this goes down as a top three, and this is how pathetic my team has been, a top three season in my lifetime, where I judge it by how enjoyable and fun the team is to watch, not by how many wins they've produced, because they produced more wins in 2022, but 2022 in September was not fun.

However, it's funny as a sports fan, like you would agree, Stu, there's probably not much hope I could give the Met fan to come on back and win this series, you would think, after walking out of that stadium. But I woke up today and I'm like, hey, if they win game five, which is going to be tough going up against Flaherty, but now you got Peterson on the bump to start. If you win game five, then you got Maniah in game six.

And Maniah has been incredible, just get me to a game seven and anything could happen. So I have one more ask of my New York Mets this year. And this will be the last time this year that I will ask something out of this baseball team. Because when they got into the post-season, I thought they would beat the Brewers, but I was not asking them to beat the Brewers. When they found out and you had the Peter Lanza home run and you win that game three up against the Brewers, I asked them to beat the Philadelphia Phillies. And I said, I do believe that their ceiling is the NLCS. And how many Mets fans, including yours truly, I raise my hand. We wanted the Dodgers over the Padres.

I think that was a mistake. I'd much rather be playing the Padres right now, if I'm being honest. But I will be greedy because I have a right to be greedy.

I have one more ask. I'm not even asking them to win the series, this NLCS. Just get me to a game seven on Monday evening and I will take my chances in a game seven. So the little engine that could, the New York Mets, even though they have the highest payroll in baseball, choo choo, just chug along today at Citi Field, find a way, then win game six. And all I ask is just get to game seven.

That's all I need. But that's where my mind is at today as a sport fan. Just find a way to win two games and get to a game seven. And I will gamble in a game seven on our chances to get the job done. That's the only line of thinking that you could have.

But other than that, like if I'm being honest, I don't have a lot of confidence that that's going to happen. Shoayo Tani's ridiculous. And can the Mets pitch to Shoayo? I know he left the game with a home run, but I'd rather have him hit four solo shots. Then you keep on putting him on base and then Mookie Betts finally showing up.

Hey, he's a pretty damn good player too. And we're going four for five last night, just abusing this team. And you know how the Dodgers feel like they have this series wrapped up, even going into game four? They sat down Freddie Freeman. They were like, we're up to one. Freeman could use some rest because of his injury.

So let's sit him down and we'll still find a way to win. And guess what they did. And I thought for a moment, Stu, we were finally going to see the Dave Roberts over-managing when he took out Yamamoto.

I'm like, oh, here we go. Classic Dave Roberts. And the Mets just couldn't make the Dodgers pay.

Those have been the two biggest differences to me in this series. When the Dodgers have opportunities, they pounce. And then also, how many freaking times are the New York Mets just going to walk people? Walk after walk after walk.

After walk. So we'll see what happens today in game five. Today's the toughest part though. Get off the mat, stand up, win game five, and then I'll take our chances with Benaiah on the mound in game six to be able to force a game seven. I would love on Sunday to have a game six to watch.

That's all I ask for. Have a game six to get me to a game seven. And then after that, if they lose, I'll take it. If they get to the World Series, I want them to win, but I won't ask to win. All I ask for the rest of the way is to just get to a game seven on Monday night. All righty, it is the Zach Yelp Show on the Infinity Sports Network that will do a little baseball out of the gate. Was not expecting to do 15 minutes on baseball, but I'm a little bit emotional today.

I'm in my feelings. There was a listener, who was the guy? Oh, it was Ryan in Sacramento. We haven't heard from him for a while. Sometimes Ryan, when he calls in, he sounds like he's on some of the stuff that maybe that lady was on sitting next to me at the game last night.

But one day he sent us Van Leeuwen ice cream. So if you listen and you want to send something to the studios, 345 Hudson Street, be my guest, be my guest. I could use something to uplift the spirits of your favorite radio host that I think.

Alrighty, we'll take a time out when we come on back. All eyes on Georgia and all eyes on Alabama this weekend with Georgia going up against Texas and Alabama going up against good old rocket tab rocket up Tennessee. It is Zach Yelp Show on the Infinity Sports Network. Are we about to live in a world where Alabama and Georgia will both miss the college football playoff?

It is the Zach Yelp Show on the Infinity Sports Network. And you may be saying, Zach, what do you want today? If you're saying Alabama and Georgia are just asking if Alabama and Georgia are going to miss the college football playoff.

Now, let me be abundantly clear. I think most of us going into this season in a 12 team college football playoff format, we're saying, hey, two losses. If you are a big time program, you will still probably get in. But if you get to three losses, that's the cut line. Now with how many teams have already lost that we didn't expect to lose in some of these upsets, maybe we are infringing on a territory where a three loss team can be in the college football playoff, maybe. So I understand Georgia and Alabama, if they get to three losses, it's gonna be tricky to get in, but it's still plausible. However, once you get to two losses, that's when you start to feel an inner life support kind of situation.

Where it's like a 50-50 chance, if you suffer another loss and you already have two losses, I can't guarantee that you get in on three. So the wiggle room for Georgia and Alabama are both on the line this weekend. And for Alabama, we know what their one egregious loss was and their only loss of the season, it was Vanderbilt. Alabama plays Tennessee at good old Rocky Top this weekend. If they lose there, and let's just play into this world where Alabama loses to Tennessee, which is definitely possible, that's then two losses on the season. The remaining schedule for the Crimson Tide would then be Missouri, LSU, Mercer, Oklahoma, and Auburn. So can they lose another game in that stretch?

Yeah, they can. So this weekend, I will say, when you look at Georgia up against Texas and Alabama up against Tennessee, I think there's more pressure on Alabama. And I think there's more pressure on Georgia. And I know the Tennessee fan could say, ooh, but what about us? We only have one loss as well.

Well, the way that your offense has been functioning as of late. Do I think that it's likely, even if you win this weekend, that there won't be another loss on your schedule? Which, hey, then you only have two losses and you would have beat Alabama. I guess it's possible, but the Tennessee remaining schedule after this weekend, Kentucky is no slouch. You got Mississippi State, you still gotta play Georgia, and it's then UTEP and Vanderbilt. So I do think there's more pressure on Alabama, cuz I expect more out of Alabama this year than Tennessee. Now, how about Georgia? Right, the first half up against Alabama, they were a no-show. Then they finally showed up in the second half, but they weren't able, after taking the lead, to keep the lead.

And they allowed that 75-yard touchdown down the right sideline from Jalen Milro to Ryan Williams. So if Georgia were to lose this weekend, and then they would have two losses on the season, let me hear their remaining schedule. Florida, Ole Miss, Tennessee, UMass, and Georgia Tech. And remember, you could still get into an SEC championship game. And if you're a two-loss SEC champion, obviously you're in, cuz the highest-ranked conference champions do get a bye in this new format.

And you would be one of the four highest-ranked conference champions, so you're gonna have a spot in the college football playoff, we know that. But if you lose this weekend and you suffer your second loss, and you already lost to Alabama, you can't lose another game for the rest of the season. So Georgia and Alabama, I'm gonna be fascinated to see if either go down this weekend.

Because if they do go down, then they have two losses on the season, and then their next loss, they are now in the conversation of teams. When you have a college football playoff bubble of 12, even though a three-loss team could get in this year potentially, you would be on the outside looking in with one more loss. Now, when we get to Georgia and Texas, this is a game that I really struggle in picking. For most of the week, I felt Georgia.

Today, I did wake up and I felt that Texas was going to win. And I could argue that there's more on the line this weekend and tomorrow evening at 730 p.m. Eastern Time for Georgia than Texas. Cuz from a simple math perspective, Texas is undefeated, Georgia has one loss. So if Texas loses this one, they're still alive. They could still win the SEC. And quite frankly, they play Vanderbilt, Florida, Arkansas, Kentucky and A&M. Maybe you could have a little bit of a close game against Kentucky and you could sweat a little bit against A&M. But you should be able to then go run the table from there and only have one loss on the season.

And for Texas, they're still alive. But you should be able to then go run the table from there and only have one loss on the season. And for Texas, you could make a big statement in the SEC, hey, this is now our conference in your first year in the SEC. But I think from a motivation standpoint, there's more on the line from Georgia. Cuz this is the first time in a while where now there is reason to actually doubt Georgia. Cuz when you look at Georgia this year, don't feel great about it. It's like Georgia lost that first big test to Bama. They were lucky to survive up against Kentucky only beating them by one. I gotta see the hype around Georgia, right? And what people thought Georgia was heading into the year. And then what they displayed when they didn't even play their best game up against Clemson and they still beat them 34 to 3. I gotta see Georgia start to emulate the team that they have been.

The team that way that we have talked about them for the last three seasons coming up tomorrow. So that's my kind of look at Texas and Georgia. And then for Alabama, Tennessee, I think this is a close game. But the reason why I lean towards Alabama is I have a trust issue right now with the Tennessee offense. The Tennessee offense was humming out of the gate with Nico Yamaleava. But since he has looked like a young quarterback, and the way that a young quarterback is supposed to look, and I get it, the Alabama defense has struggled.

But I just simply and going, even though this is a team sport, I'm going with an individual in this one. Last week, the Crimson Tide for whatever reason, and I don't know why, they did not target Ryan Williams enough. If we're being honest, pound for pound on both of these teams, the best player on both of these teams pound for pound is Ryan Williams, the freshman sensation wide receiver out of Alabama. I think this is a sloppy, close game.

But Ryan Williams is the different in this one and he will lead the Tide to victory. But man, this should be a really fun 330 then 730 kind of situation with these heavyweights inside the SEC with maybe the game of the year in the regular season. Georgia going up against Texas, and then a moment for Alabama and Tennessee to prove themselves that they belong this year in the 12 team race in the college football playoff. Because Tennessee, for a while was the story, then their offense has struggled.

We know they have dropped one. And for Alabama, it's almost like they haven't been the Alabama that we thought they were going to be since that first half Smackdown up against Georgia. It's like they let all the energy and the excitement and the build up just out in that first half. And ever since, lackluster second half, fortunately, they were able to win the game, got smacked around by Vanderbilt of all teams. And then even when they defeated, you know, last week, South Carolina, it was, oof, got to wipe some sweat off the cabeza. Got to wipe some sweat off the dome, because that was an ugly, ugly performance where it would have been what the bleep just happened to Alabama. And it felt like a what the bleep just happened to Alabama, but they were able to still secure a victory by two points in that one. All right, Zach Galb here with you on the Infinity Sports Network.

Let me check in. You know, I just got to be a loving, caring colleague. I just got to see how Marco Belletti is doing. You yanks last night. You're still going to the World Series. Don't worry.

But that's a game when you don't think you're on the World Series. I didn't realize that the tickets were printed. Go ahead. No, I'm just checking. I don't think they print tickets anymore. I think they send them digitally. Oh, OK. So that was it? They were e-mailed?

I dropped my phone? I'm sure they are. I'm sure they are out there and you already have tickets on the phone and all that. If you have Yankees World Series tickets, I'm sure they're already in the account. But last night, when you have Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Nossi-Poista-Parlow hit the back-to-back belly-to-belly home runs, everyone thought that game was over.

And then big Christmas and then Fry, they get the two home runs as well. Where are you at with your yanks after the first time this postseason the Yankee fan feels down in the dumps? OK, as long as there's a bounce back tonight, because that game could be two things.

One, it's a blip. No big deal. Move on. Yankees still go up 3-1. You're OK. Like a good joke.

It's fine. And you can't win them all, all that kind of stuff. Remember that time we were worrying after we blew a game? That type of game, that type of win for Cleveland could propel them.

Those are the things that when you start writing stories, that's part of the chapters that you have when you go on to something special. So the Yankees have to make sure that it doesn't snowball, which is why tonight becomes oh so important. Now, let me ask you this. From my perspective, being a Mets fan, they're down 3-1 right now. I know in 2004 you had to deal with the Yankees being up 3-0 against the Red Sox.

So when did you get nervous in terms of actually thinking, hey, we're going to blow this? Because when it got to 3-1 and you had the Poppy, the first of many walk offs, he had that walk off home run. I don't think you're thinking you're going to lose the series at 3-1. But when did you start to think to yourself, oh, the Yankees are in danger of being the first team ever to blow a 3-0 lead? When they lost the second game in Boston, so they were 3-2. And the way that game went, because they had plenty of chances and if memory serves, it was extra innings and another walk off.

That one, when game six started and they couldn't attack Curt Schilling, I was already nervous, but when they couldn't attack Curt Schilling on the one foot and the sock and all that other nonsense. You think the sock was actually bloody? I do, but some people don't.

I don't know. I don't really care to be totally honest with you. But during that game when they showed no pulse, then it was over. Game seven was, unfortunately, you knew you were going to a funeral. You knew it. You knew it. There wasn't a question in your mind. There wasn't a question in your mind, whether it was Kevin Brown, Javier Vasquez or anybody else that it didn't matter. It didn't matter that it was over. It was over. You can't again, if you allow a good team a little bit, they take more and they start to believe and believe and believe. And you start to look around and go, what the hell just happened? That's why last night for the Yankees, not that big a deal, grand scheme.

As long as you bounce back quickly, you don't. However way they lose, 7-1, 3-2 and a nail bite, whatever it is, you wind up 2-2, all of a sudden you start doubting. And Cleveland is all kinds of believers. So as a Mets fan down 3-1, and I've seen some 3-1 comebacks before for teams that I root for, it's the team that plays on the ice, the Rangers, they've had a bunch of 3-1 comebacks. I just, all I ask for is the Mets just to get to a game seven.

That's all I ask for. I think tonight, today's the toughest one, win this one, you got Maniah in game six, just get me to a game seven, I'll take the chances. When should I let myself, if this does start to happen, have hope build up as a Met fan down 3-1?

Get the one game. LA doesn't want to go home with the Mets. They want to win today. Don't let them fool you, any dodge, you feel, oh we're going home.

No. You want to go home to get prepared for the World Series. You don't want the Mets coming with you. So the idea that they can't close them out at Citi Field today would automatically give you hope, plus you got your best pitcher going up in a bullpen game in game six. Now you can't start going down the line, it's about today. If the Mets get a win today, the fact that they've been behind the eight ball so many times they had their back up against the wall, they respond again.

Yeah. That's going to put a little doubt in the Dodgers mind and it's going to annoy the hell out of them that they got to go home and play the Mets again in game six. If the Mets win today, I would get sunshine on a cloudy day. That's the way I would start to feel. Again, you can't get too far ahead, but the way the Mets season has gone and with everything that they've done this year, this game today could be enough to propel them to actually still come back in the series, which they look dead in.

Oh yeah. One game can change all that. It's funny how baseball playoffs work like that. It's baseball, it's a long season. Not in the playoff series. It's not.

One little thing can move along and all of a sudden snowballs and there's nothing you can do about it. It is the Zach Gelb Show on the Infinity Sports Network. Roman Harper will join us. 22 minutes from now.

Paul pass for NFL picks at 5 20 PM Eastern Time, 2 20 PM Pacific today. We will take time out. We'll come on back. We'll update you. Some of the biggest stories in the world of sports with some audio. We'll get to a news brief, but update time first.

Here he is, El Capitan, Marco Belletti. Time for your daily news brief. We get you caught up on the rumors, reports and reconnaissance from the day in sports. It's time to ask the pros where you the listener gets asked us a question. It's brought to you by O'Reilly Auto Parts. Simply tweet your question at INF Sports that are at Zach Gelb using the hashtag, ask the pros and be listening later in the program. And we might answer your question. Think O'Reilly Auto Parts right car care needs get guaranteed low prices and excellent customer service from the professional parts, people at O'Reilly Auto Parts.

O O O O'Reilly Auto Parts. Let's start out with Aaron Judge on the heart breaking game 3 loss to the Cleveland Guardians. Now losses are lost. We would have got blown out here. That's the same as- same as that.

Same results. You know, it's 2-1 now. I can't dwell on it.

Can't vote. Can't hang our head. I would just say that's a baseball game right there.

You know, like I said, I wish we were on You know, like I said, I wish we were on the other end of it, but, you know, just back and forth. Guys have been great at bats when they needed to. Pitchers coming up in some big spots. Like I said, now we focus on game four.

And we go to David Fry on the Guardians underdog story. I think it's just who we are as a team. Like, everybody genuinely loves each other, and we come to the field excited to play. And it's like, yeah, we got punched in the mouth with the best pitcher in baseball, Manuel Clase. And it's like, you know what, boys, like, he picked us up all year. It's time we pick him up. And they did pick him up indeed, as you did see the Guardians have the big Christmas home run. Then David Fry with the walk-off. And they are now on the board in this series, down two games to one.

We'll see what happens today, Yankees and Guardians. Let's go to Mad Max, Max Crosby. So I think this is fascinating, right, because there have been all this talk, Stu, about the Raiders potentially trading him, but people don't think the Raiders will actually do it. Then Tomas Dimitrov comes on this show, and he says, hey, two first-round picks, and then some, that's what it would take. And the Lions should do that and bring Max Crosby back to Detroit and have him go play some football there. So this is Max Crosby, who has been, right, the perfect Raider, has been the guy who's like, I'm here, I'm here, I'm a Raider, I'm a Raider, I'm a Raider.

Just listen to what he had to say about some of these trade rumors. I'm not here to rebuild. I'm here to win. So, you know, I don't know whatever that means. But, yeah, I'm here to win now. And wherever I'm going to be, you know, I'm going to be here to win.

So that's all that matters to me. Stu, you have said that it's very unlikely that the Raiders trade Max Crosby. And part of it is, okay, it takes so much to get the deal done from now until the deadline, but also Max Crosby prefers to stay here. When you hear him say that, I'm not here to rebuild, and we know the Raiders are in rebuilding mode, and whatever that means and wherever that is, is that the first time the antenna is up where it's like, uh-oh, Max Crosby may be out the door sooner rather than later? I don't think so.

I've heard, like, 20, 30 minutes of quotes from in the past two weeks. I think that's just one wherever. I don't think he meant it as if he wants out or is leaving. But he has said countless times, even in the past week, in different sittings that he wants to be here.

So I don't know. Maybe that changes, but I don't see this. I do think this is a little bit different than Devante Adams.

But there is a similar principle. Both have put on the presentation that they've wanted to stay and they want to win. With Devante Adams, you always knew he was leaving. For Max Crosby, I'm unsure, but if Brad Holmes picks up that phone and Brad Holmes learned from Les Snead, they were together with the Rams, and if he channels his inner Les Snead and says, F those picks, here's two first round picks and then some, the Raiders, A, got to do the deal because they're nowhere close to winning, and you're getting two first round picks and then some for Max Crosby. And also, if I'm Max Crosby, guess what? I would much rather want to play on a Super Bowl contender with the Detroit Lions than the stinky, lousy, nowhere close to contending Las Vegas Raiders. And imagine him on the Lions for the next two, three, four years, whatever, competing for a Super Bowl, and the Lions should leave no stone unturned here.

They should be on the phone every day with Tom Telesco saying, let's get a deal done. Let's get a deal done, and continuing to move the football down the field and matriculate it down the field until you get the deal done for Max Crosby. Now, there could be other options for the Lions. Maybe it's a son Redick, but Max Crosby would be the preeminent realistic option available, and if it takes two first round picks, don't be a loser Detroit Lion fan and be like, oh, I don't want to give away the draft capital. You've never won a Super Bowl, all right? You're going to be really damn good for the next few years.

So who cares if you lose the 32nd or the 31st or the 29th pick in the back end of the first round? This is your opportunity. This is go time. This is the chance to go actually bring that Lombardi trophy to Detroit. Brad Holmes, Tom Telesco, talk, talk, talk, talk, talk, get a deal done. And Max Crosby, you shouldn't try to prevent that trade from happening because life in Detroit in the year of 2024, I'm not talking about living, but I'm talking about winning, is better than life in Viva Las Vegas.

All right, had to get that in my system. Let's go to Terry Bradshaw. Should Justin Fields stay as the starter, TMZ Sports?

Yes, absolutely. He's played well enough to keep the job, in my opinion. I'm going to hang my hat with the young guy. I'm going to stay with Fields. I think he's played really good.

You know, he's such a great athlete and throw, and I think he fits the team they have right now. Stu, isn't it weird where Terry Bradshaw and not Mike Tomlin is actually being the voice of reason here? Like, if I were to say to you before the week, who would be the voice of reason? Mike Tomlin or Terry Bradshaw, you would say? It would be Mike Tomlin every time. Well, Mike Tomlin's playing all these games, but it's already got leaked out to the media that Russell Wilson's going to start. He won't announce who the starting quarterback is, but George Pickens was like, you know what?

Not even him intentionally doing it, he got asked the question, but he basically gave you the answer that everybody has to the test already. Listen to what George Pickens had to say. Have you noticed him putting in extra time this week, maybe working with you one-on-one just to try to get on the same page? Yeah, getting on the same page after practice throwing. More than, more than usual because you know, this is first start.

It's his first start. This is why NFL coaches could be so stupid. And I like Mike Tomlin. Let me be abundantly clear.

But the act is getting a little bit old, where everything's a secret. Just tell everyone you're starting Russell Wilson. We all know you're starting Russell Wilson.

George Pickens just told us you were starting Russell Wilson. You told us that the team knows who's starting, but you don't want to give the answers out. So just stop, all right? This is not college. This is not high school.

This is not JV. This is the NFL. Just tell us who your starting quarterback is.

And I heard Anthony Beck, he was actually on with our friend, Andrew Filippone. Anthony Beck is the Jets color analyst, and he was like, I'm sure the Jets defensive staff would much rather see Russell Wilson this weekend than Justin Fields. So there's a lot of times Tomlin has been criticized, and then Tomlin ends up looking right here. But a lot of people are against this decision to go to Russell Wilson instead of playing Justin Fields, who has not been great, but he is 4-2. I think the only one that has commended Mike Tomlin for this was Joe Banner, who was responding to one of our tweets the other day when Thomas Dimitrov wasn't too happy with what Mike Tomlin was doing. And Joe Banner's like, no, I actually give credit to Mike Tomlin.

So that's that. Alright, Zach Yelbschow, Infinity Sports Network. We will take a break. When we come on back, Roman Harper will join us. We got a big weekend of SEC football. The SEC Network analyst will join us on the other side.