Sark, Jimmy Sexton, and the NFL: What the Saturday Statement Actually Means

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comBrian Kelly is out at LSU after three and a half of the odder seasons in recent memory. Alex and Richard discuss his ouster and LSU’s future options:* The $54 million buyout is probably not a $54 million buyout* Kelly was an awkward cultural fit for LSU. Did that affect his ability to do his job, or did it just speed up his downfall once he was flailing?* Speaking of that: Why couldn’t the winningest coach in Notre Dame history get things revved up in a job where he thought he had more upside?* Congratulations to LSU AD Scott Woodward, whose ability to spend other people’s money on blockbuster coaching flops is without parallel* The coaching carousel, shaping up to be the wildest ever, is on its way to a major mismatch between supply and demand* Why it’s time for Woodward to eat his vegetablesProducer: Anthony Vito

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comShortly before Texas kicked off at Mississippi State, The Athletic reported that Steve Sarkisian’s reps had “let NFL decision-makers know” that Sark would be interested in NFL jobs. Sarkisian and his agents were mad enough about the report that Jimmy Sexton and Ed Marynowitz issued a denial on official letterhead. Richard wants to talk about everything that’s happening here.This is an episode of Split Zone Duo OVERTIME, an occasional add-on to our Sunday recap in which we go deeper on one weird topic from the weekend. It’s a subscriber special, and you can subscribe if you haven’t at this button: The Week 9 Hurry-Up presented by Dad Water is out now for everyone: Producer: Anthony Vito

Week 9 was light on upsets but big on close games that had a big effect on the national race. In the Sunday Hurry-Up presented by Dad Water, Richard and Alex discuss approximately 43 college football games, from Memphis' comeback over USF to Utah's destruction of Colorado. Producer: Anthony Vito Thanks to our partners and subscribers20% off Dad Water: https://drinkdadwater.com/discount/SZDVisit Homefield at https://www.homefieldapparel.com/Enter to win airfare and lodging for a trip to New York City on conference championship weekend at https://www.nokiantyres.com/SZD This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comIn the latest episode of “The Job,” our subscriber series about open FBS head coaching jobs, we head to Fort Collins, Colorado. The Rams fired Jay Norvell and are (again) looking for a head coach who can fulfill what many people in college football believe is a lot of potential. We discuss:* Why some people are enamored with this job* The Rams’ NIL situation* A (probably) helpful move to the new Pac-12* How long a program gets to be a sleeping giant before people should stop believing that better days are comingProducer: Anthony Vito

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comSUBSCRIBER SPECIAL: Godfrey stops by to talk with Richard and Alex about a big list of coaches whose uncertain futures will shape the coach carousel over the next few months. Broken down into groups, we’ve got:* The Fired Guys (James Franklin, Billy Napier, etc.)* The Out-of-Work Guys (Ed Orgeron, Jimbo Fisher, Pat Fitzgerald, etc.)* The Power Four Poach Candidates (Lane Kiffin, Matt Rhule, Eli Drinkwitz, etc.)* The Group of 5 and FCS Risers (Jon Sumrall, Ryan Silverfield, Brent Vigen, Alex Golesh, Dan Mullen?, etc.)* The Big Buyout Club (Luke Fickell, Mike Norvell, Brian Kelly, Mark Stoops)* The “Not That Hard If You Want to Fire Him” Crew (Hugh Freeze, Mike Locksley, Dave Aranda, etc.)* The Weird Circumstance Cases (Shane Beamer, Kyle Whittingham, Bobby Petrino)Producer: Anthony Vito

Alex and Richard preview Week 9 of the college football season. Among the many games previewed on this episode are: * Not one but TWO major FCS games: No. 1 NDSU at No. 2 SDSU, plus Montana at Sacramento State in a game that’s become narratively dramatic * Kansas State at Kansas: Is this finally the Jayhawks’ time? * Ole Miss at Oklahoma: Why are we so worried for Ole Miss? * USF at Memphis: Someone from this game will probably play for the American conference championship. Who? * Auburn at Arkansas: You can sort of feel how this is going to go, right? * BYU at Iowa State: A good chance for another unbeaten to fall * Minnesota at Iowa: Somehow, this has playoff stakes on both sides* Illinois at Washington: Uh, same * Texas at Mississippi State: An appealing Dad Water Home Dog of the Week spot for the Bulldogs against a decaying Longhorn team * Wisconsin at Oregon: A look at the three different genres of “votes of confidence” that embattled head coaches got this week * THE MAIN COURSE, presented by Modelo: Host emeritus Steven Godfrey joins us to talk about Vanderbilt’s rise to GameDay-hosting prominence ahead of a major home game against Missouri That is but a sampling of what is on this Tasting Menu. Producer: Anthony Vito.Thank you to our subscribers and partnersThanks to Nokian Tyres: https://www.nokiantyres.com/szd Thanks to Homefield Apparel: https://www.homefieldapparel.com Thanks Dad Water. Code SZD for 20% off, or just click https://drinkdadwater.com/discount/SZD This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comSUBSCRIBER SPECIAL: More than a year after he first looked doomed to be fired, Billy Napier finally got the axe in Gainesville. After a day of making phone calls on this, Richard talks with Alex about the Gators’ big move:* Napier had a solid plan for this job. Why didn’t it work?* DJ Lagway’s 2025 season is a tale of how a head coach can get himself into REAL trouble with this one simple trick* Florida AD Scott Stricklin has now missed on two head coach hires. Most SEC athletic directors don’t get a third attempt and would now be marginalized. But that might not happen here, for reasons Richard explains* The Gators have had four disappointing (or just bad) head coaches in a row. Is this job still as good as it used to be? Yes, actually* Jimmy Sexton’s manipulation of the national spotlight this weekend was a sight to behold. Sometimes you have to tip your caps to the greats* An early trip through some names that you’ll see connected to the GatorsThis is a subscriber episode. You can join for $10 a month at www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe, or get a month free by signing up for the full year. If you subscribe, you’ll get lots more episodes from us (in season, subscribers often get four podcasts per week, rather than two) as well as Q&A opportunities and all of our coaching carousel shows.Producer: Anthony Vito

Welcome to the Week 8 Sunday Hurry-Up, presented by Dad Water! Rodger Sherman joins Richard to share notes and observations on all the games that caught our eye this weekend, from Louisville’s upset of Miami on Friday (which Richard covered live) through the end of Saturday’s action. Producer: Anthony Vito. Thanks to our partners and subscribers20% off Dad Water: https://drinkdadwater.com/discount/SZDVisit Homefield at https://www.homefieldapparel.com/Enter to win airfare and lodging for a trip to New York City on conference championship weekend at https://www.nokiantyres.com/SZD This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comThe latest episode of THE JOB, our subscriber series about the ins and outs of open college football coaching jobs, features four schools. * Stanford: A once-great Pac-12 program has fallen like a rock as it’s transitioned to the ACC. But the Cardinal are amid a serious fundraising push, and this bad job could become a good job once again. * Oregon State: No program in college football has had a harder past two years than the Beavers. What will be left for a new coach to take over, and is the athletic department’s financial house in order? * UAB: This program had some good years after coming back from the dead, but the Blazers’ problems go a lot deeper than Trent Dilfer being a bad hire. What kind of coach makes sense? We have an idea. * Kent State: Arguably the hardest job in FBS, full stop.More podcasts for subscribers * Why Kent State Is Always Bad, featuring guest Rodger Sherman * All of our previous episodes of The Job, right here. With this episode, we’ve covered all nine current FBS openings. There are more to come. * As mentioned in the show, here’s that Sportico report on Oregon State’s NIL setup. Get all of this by becoming a paid subscriber today for $10 a month or $110 a year. Producer: Anthony Vito

The Week 8 college football schedule features tests for a handful of coaches who sure look like they need a win to keep their jobs for the long term. In addition to those angsty situations, we’ve got a few big helmet games and potential conference race deciders in the Sun Belt and Mountain West. A few of the games covered in this episode include: * Louisville at Miami: A possible trap for the Canes, but if they’re what we think they are, they’ll be fine * Washington at Michigan: Can the Huskies keep scoring with an overmatched offensive line? Maybe! * LSU at Vanderbilt: No reason Vandy can’t do this at home * Georgia Tech at Duke: Major ACC championship race implications * Baylor at TCU: Better figure this out, Frogs * UNLV at Boise State: Winner is the best team in the MWC, for now * Ole Miss at Georgia: How worried should you be about Trinidad Chambliss? * Ohio State at Wisconsin: It’s getting late for Luke Fickell* Mississippi State at Florida: Ditto for Billy Napier * Missouri at Auburn: Same for Hugh Freeze * Texas Tech at Arizona State: Can anyone in the Big 12 hang with the Red Raiders physically? * USC at Notre Dame: No, you can’t just put this game on Netflix* Utah at BYU: If Kyle Whittingham really still has it, the Utes are going to crunch BYU’s freshman QB in this game * Old Dominion at James Madison: THE MAIN COURSE, presented by Modelo, featuring Bennett Conlin of JMU Sports NewsAnd many more games discussed within! Producer: Anthony VitoThank you to our subscribers and partnersBecome a paid subscriber today to get a lot more SZD, and check out www.nokiantyres.com/szd and www.homefieldapparel.comAlso, welcome our new partner, Dad Water. Code SZD for 20% off, or just click https://drinkdadwater.com/discount/SZD This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe