Joshua Perry, Big Ten Network Analyst

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I'm listening with Billie Eilish. I feel like I spent a lot of time thinking about happiness and how it's just like it fluctuates and everyone thinks if you're one thing you're going to be that forever and you're never going to be anything else and it's really not true. Like happiness is temporary but also so is like misery and things just like morph and change. It just doesn't stay. It goes up and goes down and things change and like that's how life works.

Explore more at i'mlistening.org. Joshua, how you been? I'm doing well. It's great to connect up with you again.

Yeah, it's great to have you back on. Who's the better football team? Is it Michigan or Ohio State? I go 50-50. It depends on which way the wind blows.

Depends on what side of the bed I wake up on honestly and I mean that so truthfully. I think these are two extremely good football teams. Michigan right now I think still has another level left man on that offense. JJ McCarthy has not been fully unleashed. They've been heavily reliant on that run game which has been stellar and defensively.

You can make an argument that this defensive line and the way that they've been playing is better than what they had a year ago with a couple of first-round talents up there. But the Ohio State Buckeyes man, CJ Stroud, 24 TDs against three interceptions. You got Trevion Henderson, preseason All-American but then this Mayan Williams guy shows up. He's averaging 7.7 yards per carry. Jackson Smith and Jig was down.

That doesn't matter. You got Marvin Harrison Jr. You got Julian Fleming. You got Emeka Buka. You got Cade Stover now at tight end and this is a statistical top 10 total defense in the country. Both of these teams are phenomenal. Either one of them could win that game in Columbus at the end of the year. Either one of them is going to win the Big Ten Championship. I don't think there's another challenger out there and quite frankly I think both of them look like playoffs caliber teams right now. Do you think there's a chance for both to get into the college football playoff because I do think it's inevitable that they're both going to be undefeated when they meet up on Thanksgiving weekend. Yeah I mean I believe the same thing too about them being undefeated when they meet up and they would need some chaos to go down around college football. I know that you know folks are very high on Tennessee right now as they should be and what they did against Alabama was great.

Hendon Hooker phenomenal talent. Defensively they need to be helped along. Reminds me a lot of some of the recent Ohio State teams with the defensive challenges. Maybe some of the Oklahoma teams under Lincoln Riley with great quarterback play and not great defenses. But you got a couple teams from the SEC in Tennessee and Georgia sitting right there. Clemson it feels like if they get over this hump with Syracuse over the weekend they're going to be right in position to make it back to the playoff. Could a UCLA sneak into the conversation out west?

We don't know and DCU is playing some good football right now too. So to answer your question a lot of things would have to happen but I mean if we're if we're talking about the best teams and that game Thanksgiving weekend is close and whoever wins that game goes on to win the big 10 running away I think it's going to be very hard to say that both of those teams would not be deserving to be in the playoff. Yeah what I think probably happens is Clemson's undefeated so they'll get in you'll get two SEC teams in and then it will be one big 10 school either Michigan or Ohio State and it kind of sucks that that could be the case because we're then talking about maybe no big 12 no PAC 12 in the college football playoff and if you look at the depth of those conferences this year the big 12 has been really good and the PAC 12 maybe could be even better than the big 12. Totally agree with you I mean I'm looking at big 12 football right now and it's been totally fun because you know that you're going to get competitive matchups every weekend you know TCU has been fun team to watch and Oklahoma State's been great to watch. Oh by the way you got a couple of teams in Kansas that have been extremely fun stories now and Texas with Quinn Ewers is explosive and then you go out Westman and early on this year I was down on that conference especially the way Oregon got their doors blown off by Georgia but look at that team creeping back into the top 10 of college football Utah made a statement against USC I mentioned UCLA DTR has been great for them Zach Charbonnet is running all over that conference like there there are some really good games going on in the big 12 and the PAC 12 but when you're talking about the highest end of college football it really exists in the big 10 right now the SEC's got it and then Clemson out of the ACC is always going to give you some good football. Joshua Perry we'll circle back to the big 12 and the PAC 12 in just a bit as you have some big matchups there this weekend but getting back to Michigan Ohio State. Ohio State's defense statistically like you said have been really good but when the moment gets the brightest where's the confidence level going up against that Michigan team with that defense knowing the way last year that Michigan really bullied Ohio State and I think their offense for Michigan is even better than what it was a year ago. Yeah I think Ohio State has an edge now I think they're a way tougher team that is part of the reason why they've improved so much defensively I think schematically too it's a really challenging defense to game plan for and it's something that you don't see quite often with the three safety look and this is the front that goes between a three down front and a four down front and the linebackers are extremely aggressive but they play with a lot of discipline so I think they're way better equipped than they were a year ago to handle what Michigan is bringing and I know for a fact that this team does not want to be run over again but when you look at what Michigan did a week ago to Penn State man 418 yards on the ground are you kidding like I mean whatever they wanted on the ground they were going to get and that is where this game becomes a clash of the titans to me because now you do have a tough Ohio State defense and albeit they haven't been challenged yet with the competition that's going to come and you got this Michigan team that again is edgy and they're playing old school Jim Harbaugh football and I believe that this is what people nationally recognize this rivalry to be and quite I mean a lot of us want it to be that and I think we're going to get it this year when you when you look at Ryan Day he's done a really good job obviously at Ohio State but they haven't won a national championship with them how much pressure is starting to grow inside the Ohio State community where they know they have a really damn good coach but they're wondering if that guy can be great and win it all I think this is the year that a lot of people are looking at for Ohio State to win the title just you know being around that program and knowing what the expectations are Ryan Day made it very clear too that his expectation is to win a championship and he even talked about going 11-2 last year winning a Rose Bowl and he had to clean house on half of his staff and it wasn't good enough and there were a lot of rumblings around town people that were disappointed and that's just the territory right now made national championship appearance in 2020 season I mean that that season was a crap shoot um so it's you know people put less weight on that uh this seems like a great opportunity because Ohio State is more complementary than it's been in years past again we mentioned the defense and the improvements there one of the big things offensively is the run game and how aggressive Ohio State has been on the ground but also if you look formationally uh Ohio State is getting into 12 personnel so it's one back two tight ends and at times even 13 personnel which is one back and three tight ends and they'll motion one of the tight ends into the backfield to play like a fullback so essentially two backs two tight ends this is big boy big on big football um they didn't have that in the arsenal a year ago and that becomes a difference too not only is this an explosive high flying offense best scoring offense in the country but now it's an offense that says listen if we want to slow this game down we want to punch somebody in the face we can get that done too do you think it's with 100 certainty that Harbaugh is definitely going to be back next year and maybe he uh doesn't flirt with the NFL once again this offseason I mean I thought it was a little bit curious last year that he did it and I understand why and there wasn't time to leave I believe it would have been after the successes that they had a year ago I just it was unexpected for me um in knowing what he had developed and built within that program the fact that he's kept it together this year I think is is one of the big storylines and if Brett Bilema wasn't coaching the way that he is at Illinois I think Jim Harbaugh would be the front runner for Big Ten coach of the year for for just keeping his locker room together um if the opportunity presents itself I think that's where he ultimately would like to be uh but I think he understands how good he has it right now at Michigan the way that this program is rolling the national attention they're getting it seems like every week uh you know the big noon fox crew has been with them and they're they're getting that national platform that they've had uh so much in the past it just seems like a great situation right now and it would take a really enticing NFL situation in my opinion for him to consider leaving again Joshua Perry here with us you got the whiteout of Penn State this weekend Minnesota Penn State uh it's expected that Sean Clifford is going to start do we eventually see a start for Drew Aller this year because I know you want to be loyal to a guy that's been there forever I think though it would help them for next year to start getting Dural on the field a little bit more I think for the the young player to develop his skill set especially if you feel like this year you're not going to achieve the things that you set out to which it seems like competing in the Big Ten championship would look like it's out and it's just one loss right and it seems like it's doomsday but the way that other teams are playing around them I think the writing is on the wall there uh so college football playoff would be out of question at that point too maybe you consider it but I like to frame it like this Sean Clifford is a tough gutsy quarterback I've watched him in many situations go and and do the things that he's needed to do for the team to win you look at week one against Purdue for that example late game situation marches his team down the field efficiently throws a touchdown pass under duress that was great football out of him uh what Michigan exposed is not that Sean Clifford can't play at a high level in my opinion he he struggled in that football game what did it expose to that offensive line that hasn't been doing him favors for many years did not do him any favors in that game and that is still an issue for this Penn State team so I think there's a balance between getting your young quarterback reps and preparing for the future and also you don't want to hurt that guy's confidence by putting him out there behind an offensive line that is inconsistent at best so that would be a difficult decision and this whiteout game between Penn State and Minnesota a couple of weeks ago man I would have been licking my chops to watch this one and the shine is off of it which is a shame because the expectation coming in for these two teams were sky high when you take a glance Joshua Perry at Alabama they were playing with fire and then they got burnt last week they almost still won the game if they just make a kick and then the defense crumbled in the final 15 seconds um for BAM at the end of the year like at the end of the conference championship season how do you think we're talking about Alabama I mean this is the biggest thing that I see with Alabama is it's a team that hurts itself and I'll also go out on the limb and say they should have lost to Texas when yours was healthy that whole game they'd be a two loss team right now agreed I'll tell you that Jimbo if Jimbo calls a better play in the a and m game they probably should have lost that game too I mean the conversation about Jimbo Fisher as a play caller I mean we need to talk about that because he needs to hand the sticks to somebody else neither here nor there uh totally agree with you um that was a an Alabama team that had double-digit penalties against Texas an Alabama team that had double-digit penalties against Tennessee the great ones don't do that it is so unlike a Nick Saban coach team to be that undisciplined especially in big games and so I think that's their biggest issue to me at this point is can you not do things to hurt yourself and if they can get that part figured out they're plenty enough talented and I think that they have a staff that can make enough adjustments they've got the quarterback they've got the running back and even with a wide receiver room that I think is subpar for what Alabama standards are this is a team that can go out and compete but if they continue to hurt themselves it is going to be one of those years that Nick Saban would like to forget about if you had to just give me your four teams right now who are your four teams at the end of the year man now we're getting into a tough situation um I'm rolling with and this is not in specific order I believe Ohio State wins the Big Ten um I don't I don't think that they are going to allow what happened to them in that Michigan game to happen again this year I'll take Clemson because it feels like once they get over this Syracuse hump they'll be fine the rest of the season this is where it gets tricky um I like Georgia out of the SEC um Tennessee to me is a tough one because I think that their defense is miserable in the back end you're talking about 129 in passing defense they're uh 102 or something like that and um in total defense it's it's not good uh but I feel like they could also sneak in there so give me Ohio State give me Clemson give me Georgia and I'm gonna go out on the limb and I'll say that UCLA makes a run and they get in wow UCLA over Tennessee is Chip Kelly back he's had a great year this year last year was a step in the right directions got a team undefeated going back home against uh the Ducks this weekend uh what makes you so confident about Chip and the squad that he has I think that they have an experienced quarterback who's playing extremely good football right now he's efficient he's taking care of the ball um I don't know what his high end is but whatever he's doing right now he's starting to maximize himself and I think that's important DTR is a game changer and then I mentioned Charbonnet yeah what he's been able to do in the run game so now you have a multi-faceted offense um defensively they've been solid all year long too so going to Oregon is tough though Oregon is not a team that loses at home very often I think they're in the 20s on their home win streak right now so that's going to be a challenge but UCLA I think is equipped to get it done and if they do that they can make a run the rest of the year when you get to Texas Oklahoma State this weekend how concerned do you with Oklahoma State after blowing that game last week to TCU and then give me a thought or two about Quinn Ewers and what he needs to do in these final five games to kind of distance himself in the competition in the summer with Arch Manning coming in yeah so for Oklahoma State their defense to me is taking a step back and that's going to be the biggest key in this game because of the guy that you mentioned Quinn Ewers and I'll get to him and Sart in just a sec um very nervous for them and I think that Texas is honestly the better team in this game that Quinn Ewers is now fully healthy and ready to go and the the combination of Steve Sartesian who in my mind is is in the running him Ryan Day a couple other guys uh as play calling head coaches he the his play calling is ridiculous and and I I did a breakdown just because I wanted to see what was wrong with Oklahoma of the Texas Oklahoma game and any play that Steve Sartesian drew up he had guys running wide open every single play he knows exactly where to tie coverages he has a great feel for what's coming from the defense and now he's got a quarterback in Quinn Ewers who can go out there and execute it at a high level and I believe this becomes a very sticky situation because Arch Manning um is highly touted and he's got great pedigree obviously we know about his family members um but it's gonna be hard for for Quinn Ewers not to be the guy for the job next year if he just continues to go out there and execute what Steve Sartesian draws up to me it's a pretty simple equation is don't make the game too confident for your young quarterback and keep finding ways to get your talent open downfield and they've done that so far Kansas State TCU I can't wait for this one coming up 8 p.m eastern on Saturday night what's the difference in that game yeah so I I love Adrian Martinez it was a pleasure to cover him when he was playing in the Big Ten and I like the story arc for him right now being able to go back and have some redemption uh Kansas State not like a high-end team um they do some things really well I don't think they play football to hurt themselves but at the same time when you're talking about TCU and the way that they've been playing right now uh it just feels like TCU's got an edge in this one I I've got a uh a close friend who's on the inside of the TCU program and I texted him a week and a half ago and I just I asked so what's the difference for you guys right now and basically what he said is they've always had good talent in that program they are maximizing that talent with their strength coach right now um who he believes to be one of the best in America but also said the change in leadership and it wasn't a knock on what what Gary Patterson was doing because obviously that guy's legendary around there but it was just time for a new voice in the front of the room and that's worked wonders with their players so I think that this is a team now that also has a purpose and a different motivation and that is a really hard edge to beat. Before we let you run Joshua Perry we talk about jobs uh Wisconsin I expect Jim Leonard to get the job I would I think you would assume so as well how about Nebraska you have a few names that you like for the Nebraska job. Nope I have no idea what they're they're gonna do um you know do you go with a Leipold and see if if you can get a guy who's had experience winning on different levels and has brought a Kansas team and what a shame that Daniels is hurt right now because that was a really fun story but you know brought them back to life um do you maybe end up trying to go for a hot shot coordinator a guy with less experience but somebody who you feel like can reinvigorate things with more creativity a little bit younger more energy into that program it's not to say that Scott Frost was an old guy but it felt like the energy was certainly deflated out of that program so I don't know how they attack it and what about Bill O'Brien? Well so this becomes an interesting one because Bill O'Brien to me I think is just a little bit old school and I know guys who played for him at Penn State that absolutely love him and he's a guy who knows how to build programs so from that regard I think it's spot on but at a place like Nebraska I think you gotta you gotta be extremely creative to maximize recruiting is he a guy who's going to do that at an extremely high level I'll end you with this on Nebraska is um I talk to guys who are currently in coaching and guys who have coached before um and I ask them what they think about the Nebraska job and I literally get a 50-50 mixed bag from them some guys think that it is still the job that it was back in the 90s other guys think that Nebraska is just a tough place to be able to have success against the expectations of that program so whoever takes that job has to understand eyes wide open what they're walking into Joshua Perry you always kill when you join us appreciate the time we'll be having you on once again soon I'm sure just let me know appreciate you hey I'm Thamy Redwood host of the podcast Beyond Black History Month here's reason number 568 million of why you should be listening from in-depth reporting on the shortage of black sperm to how one house of the dragon star is dealing with online trolls who don't love seeing black dragon riders I can't lose sleep over that over worrying about things that are beyond my control listen and subscribe to Beyond Black History Month on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts fantasy football leagues are one on the waiver wire and with trades and with savvy starter sit decisions the fantasy football today podcast will help you along the way with the best advice on how to manage your team and dominate your league with eight episodes per week fantasy football today is the only resource you'll need start sit grade the trade fantasy cops to settle your league disputes and so much more check out fantasy football today anywhere podcasts are found how's your mental health I'm listening with Luke Combs I am somebody who has struggled with anxiety a lot a couple ways or tools I guess you would say to maintain my mental health is making myself aware to the things that I know I'm prone to information is key for things like that and knowing what you're dealing with and how they operate being aware of the way your mind works in certain situations has been the most important thing for me more at i'm listening.org talk saves lives