One True Podcast: Baylor-Utah predictions, grading the new Big 12, impactful Week 2 upsets

[Music] you guys ready all right welcome back to one true podcast with me as always is my good friend Zach Smith Zach how are you doing it's a beautiful day to talk about some Baylor football okay uh it's kind of overcast and I don't live that far from you so I I'm more of the talk about the football thing I'm glad you're back NFL starting pretty soon here and college football's back we got a sneaky good slate this week so like the football weather is awesome yeah that's true it is cooler that's for sure that we like that uh and with us this week is Josh Furlong of KSL in Salt Lake uh Josh has been uh at KSL since 2010 covered the youths a long time uh here to drop some knowledge Josh thanks for hopping on man I'm happy to be here we'll see if any of my knowledge makes sense it's all good it will make as much sense as anything we have to say that's for sure none to that so guys uh both Baylor and Utah uh blasted off to hot starts in week one um obviously they were playing overmatch teams but nevertheless they took care care of business uh the 11th rank Utes beat Southern Utah 49 to nothing and then Baylor uh pretty impressive as well handled Tarlton state 45-3 so Utah of course is the Big 12 favorite coming out of the gate uh and is naturally favored in this game as you would expect uh I thought the 14-point line was a little high um we'll get y'all's thoughts on that what kind of a game are you expecting on Saturday Josh we'll start with you man yeah I think this is going to be a entertaining game um I think you know we saw last year these two teams play and I don't know if last year is really indicative of what we're going to see this year for either side uh especially on Utah given that they have their starting quarterback back they have their starting tight end back uh they've added a bunch of new pieces and so I think I think this game has uh the opportunity to be a lot of fun uh it can be very competitive uh you know one of the things that that Utah was a little bit weak on uh in their first game was a little bit of their interior runs in terms of uh the offensive line allowing pressure um and that could be a very good thing for Baylor to kind of key in on and uh it could be a really rough day for Utah if that if that continues to happen so I think for me the battle of the trenches is kind of where this game is going to be won um Utah obviously takes a lot of pride in in winning that battle and if they can do that I I think they have a good shot uh to be able to come out on top that 14 line yeah I mean I you know I know you said you get into it a little later it was a little bit shocking to me um I saw Juan as high as 17 uh I don't I just don't know that uh you're going to get a lot of that maybe it does happen but I I I I don't know that we know enough about these teams yet to really get a sense of of that so uh I'm excited for it I think it'll be a really fun match up though Zach I I I agree I mean I think that you know from what I can tell about Utah their offensive line is kind of their not Achilles heel but maybe not as experienced as they've been in the past years but I think Baylor's front seven even if it was Charlton State played pretty well and so I think if they can get pressure on cam rising and kind of get him moving out of the pocket and having to make some of those quick decisions um I think that that gives Baylor a chance you know and then on top of that I you know reading some of what Josh has been covering about Utah I think they're down a cornerback or they're secondary is is is down a little bit so I know that Baylor's new offense wants to throw it a little bit more I know they were trying to get some big deep plays and get some explosives and maybe if if the Utah secondary is uh a little bit weaker Baylor could take advantage of some of some of that but um yeah I think I think honestly I think 14 points is about right honestly I mean I wouldn't be surprised if Baylor covered that but at the same time I'm also wouldn't be surprised if Utah just kind of rolls cuz they're really good at home so you know I I think 14 is honestly about right I'm with Josh though uh like there's so much that we don't know about these two teams at this point uh I probably we feel maybe a little more confident about who the youths are I would say than who Baylor is uh a lot of mystery I would say even after you know seeing them play last week um Zach I think you're right o line looked pretty good uh there was still to me um and I don't know how much of this was o line and how much of this was just maybe Dawson Pendergrass but like uh when Pendergrass was in the game as the number two back um you know I thought there were too many like just two and three and three and a half yard runs you know I mean it was like dude get some get to the next level and get some separation you know I mean uh that's Charlton State I mean and I don't want to uh also you know diminish Charlton state they're a good FCS uh team but nevertheless I I don't know I I was looking for a little bit more there hard to you're you're picking nits when you're talking about 45 to3 but at the same time you look for things that might tell you things about who the team is and so yeah it was a close game last year and beta was terrible last year so um we'll see I I you know I think it's going to be a lot of fun um for both you guys at the game on on Saturday um so cam Rising you know Josh uh mentioned him um his return to the field went about as well as it possibly could have I would think uh Utah quarterback threw for five touchdowns in that win over Southern Utah so rising's roundabout Journey has been well documented uh zagu even wrote a story about it this summer um started way back in Austin in 2018 for the Longhorns uh didn't start but that's where his college career started uh has had three different seasons where he has not played at all one of those was that year when he red shirted but uh yeah just crazy including last year so uh Josh I wanted to get your take on this as a guy who covered the youths um how beloved is rising there in Salt Lake and um and could he rise to the ranks of a Heisman Contender maybe Heisman finalist Heisman winner what do y'all think yeah that's a that's an interesting question um first off I'll start with kind of what he's he's like here in Utah uh he's he's absolutely beloved by the fans uh I think uh he he took Utah to a level obviously that they've never been to before in terms of you know getting to the Rose bow uh Utah had been to New Year's six games before but getting to the rosebowl where they had opportunities you know win the Pack 12 uh and so there there's always going to be that love but there's something about cam where he has this sort of swagger where he is your best friend while also being the ultra competitor at the same time and and I think that exudes kind of Beyond just the the field right I think the fans understand it I think they understand who he is he comes out with a lot of confidence and um just he he is kind of your best friend right like I think he's one of those guys that early on when we talked about him as being the new starter you know we would talk to the the players and they just say he's he honestly is your best friend even if you don't know him because like you'll walk past him in the hallways and he'll always just want to you know ask how you're doing and doing different things like that that gets a lot of people to buy in on defense as well right like you've got a lot of people that want to fight for cam rising and so there's a lot of stuff that that goes on Beyond just what happens on the field now cam as a quarterback you know in that Heisman talk there there is potential right I don't want to I don't want to undercut a guy before it even happens but there there's Utah was never really designed up until maybe this year to be a pass heavy team and obviously those Heisman quarterbacks have to have a lot of passing yards they have to show a lot maybe with how Utah's designed this year where they want to work more on the outside where they want to utilize you know one of their six tight ends that they've got in the past game uh this is this is an area where yes there there absolutely could be a situation where he could rise to the occasion um but I I I just don't know if he is that type of quarterback or if that's what Utah's looking for right I think you know he's never going to be the guy that's out there like a Jackson Dart who's throwing six touchdowns in halftime yeah he got five but that's just not their game plan and if it happens so be it um I I think honestly a good Benchmark for for cam is if he could throw over 3500 yards that would be a great system for for Utah they don't have a lot I did the math and I think there's only two two quarterbacks in Utah's history that they've ever thrown for over 3500 yards which sounds crazy but that's just how they've been right they've always been a run first established the run first and then you know develop whatever passing game you have this year they are trying to get more of that passing game so if there is ever a year that that could be the case yes Cam could be in that conversation he's got the skill set to do it he's not the flashiest he's probably not going to be a top NFL quarterback in terms of projections but uh you know I think you know they love what they've got with him and I think it's all the intangibles on and off the field that make him a competitor that that that fans love you know and when I think of Utah I think of kind of a a program that's obviously been so consistent for so many years but I think that kind of the whole is greater than the sum of its parts is that the right phrase you know it's it's you know it's such a such a culture such a you know you Utah is Utah they're going to go and they're going to play good football and they're going to be a team and they're going to you know it's everything do everything kind of the right way to get the end result there's not one player where the they're putting the team on his back you know it might be cam rising and throwing five touchdowns it might be Bert keithy getting you know how many ever touchdown catches it might be even Caleb loner catching a cut touchdown pass you know so I don't think that well cam Rising has probably the best odds on Utah to win the Heisman I don't think Utah is you know if he gets hurt you know Utah is still probably a favorite you know to to to challenge in the Big 12 and I think that says more about Utah as a program than than cam Rising as a Heisman Contender as someone add something go ahead go ahead I I think that I I agree with all that you said I think the one little thing though is that you saw how Utah was last year without Cam rising and I think maybe that gives him a little bit more of a nod to to be in that right I agree that Utah is that that culture they are the family they work together everybody is is in unison I would say that cam maybe elevates beyond what Utah has traditionally been just because of that and I think you got that example last year they still went eight and four so I mean it wasn't a bad system um but I think if if Utah wants to be at that upper echelon team cam is that guy right and so I think you know as much as I kind of you know pulled him down a little bit and kind of said where he's at I think there there is still kind of that next level guy that that he does transcend it maybe more than many have over the years yeah good points all around um so as someone who has covered uh Texas high school football for like 30 years now holy crap uh I would say Kyle Whittingham like just feels like an old school Texas high school football coach to me in terms of run the ball play good defense you know that's like every old school and that's not just Texas but uh but yeah I know a million coaches like that and so I get it in terms of like the scheme maybe that doesn't necessarily play well into into Cam's hopes for a Heisman here's what does if Utah is sitting there at you know 12 you know 12- one after the big 12 championship game 13-0 maybe I mean uh within the realm of possibility I would say um he is absolutely going to get some consideration I think just because quarterback for you know a team like that an undefeated or you know conference Champion team I mean two years ago uh my vote went to Max Dugen as a Heisman voter so you know I think winning does matter I mean stats matter but winning matters too so that will play well for cam so we'll see we'll see how it all plays out um yeah so around the Big 12 uh last week uh the conference turned in a pretty solid debut um 14-2 overall the only two losses were rebuilding Houston they lost to UNLV uh was sad to see that I'm a fan of Willie Fritz I think he's goingon to do a good job at Houston um and then you had West Virginia losing to uh nationally ranked Penn State so um who for you guys who in the conf kind of impressed you the most in week one uh that's a good question I mean I think for me first off it's it's been weird kind of transitioning to having to care about Big 12 teams as a reporter right not because it's not been good football I mean I'm an AP voter so I have to care um but at the same time it's been different trying to like hone in on Pack 12 teams because you're looking how does this relate to Utah now I'm having to do that with the big 12 so it's it's taking me a second to kind of train my brain but sure um I think you know I I went into that Penn State West Virginia game really hoping that West Virginia could be the team that many were projecting there was a you know they weren't getting uh a ton of nods in terms of you know being a favorite but they were kind of that sneaky Underdog that a lot of people were talking about and and so on the opposite side of that I didn't I was kind of a little underwhelmed with what they put out there so putting that aside I was kind of expecting that um for me one of the teams that that that maybe showed out more than I was expecting was maybe Arizona and I know they're new to the Big 12 to so maybe that's my Pack 12 uh reporting uh ties but um I I honestly didn't know what to expect with them right I think you you lose your head coach yes you had Noah ffid and McMillan you know two of incredible athletes but that's a lot to undertake in in a first year head coach's job right and I think you know it it started out slow and so I don't want to say that anything was like super special but I think once they developed that Rhythm there was a ton of a ton of love for for them outside of that Kansas I'm really impressed when if jayen Jaylen Daniels can stay healthy I think this is a team that can absolutely do a lot in in the Big 12 so um I think those two were kind of the ones that stick out to me right now uh you know there's a lot of consistency right I mean it's hard to look at a lot of these games when it's FCS teams right and so it's hard to kind of get a good picture of that um but at the same time those are the two teams that probably uh stick out to me the most in terms of just kind of what they could be this year especially in contending for the Big 12 uh title dude how how crazy were Tillman's numbers uh like just video game stuff I mean even hard to do on a video game honestly uh I saw where he had number like more yards than I don't know at least half a dozen pretty good college football teams you know including A&M and some others I mean just ridiculous yeah as a receiver I mean just bananas so maybe he's the guy we should be talking about as the Heisman man this this will come as no surprise to you Bryce uh Arizona state was my my top team I've been on the Kenny hat I couldn't I'm on the Kenny Dillingham train I've been on this train since they since he got hired really uh but 48 to7 over I mean what I think is a pretty good Wyoming team um Sam levit former Michigan State quarterback uh through for almost uh 250 yards so I like I like I've said this before and I'll keep saying it I really think that Arizona state is kind of a a sleeping giant in the Big 12 I think I really like Kenny Dillingham I think they're going to have a lot of success you know they've got Mississippi State this week and then they're playing a really good Texas State team down here in in in Texas and you know I I I really like what Kenny Dillingham is going I don't think they're going to be good the rest of the year you know I think this game might be maybe it's just a one-off thing but you know you never know I'm really impressed with what Arizona state did in week one so Josh uh took probably a team that I would I would mention would be Kansas uh I the the trajectory that Lance lipold has had that program on the last few years um I think a lot of people thought you know last going into last year ah we'll see if the Jayhawks if that was a fluke you know if that was a oneoff and and then they turned out to be you know just really better and they didn't have Daniels at quarterback so uh you know the fact that he is back and uh as Josh said that's the couch that you always have to say with Kansas if Jaylen Daniels can stay healthy uh that's a big one uh the other thing I would throw into there uh this is probably a nod to our Baylor listeners out there Zach is if Jeff Grimes could not screw up that offense right oh my gosh uh he's GNA do better with better players uh that's for sure so I was watching that Penn State and uh West Virginia game and they were just going through some of the awesome offense that the new offensive coordinator at Penn State was going through and he used to be at Kansas and they were just doing all this really fun trick plays going everywhere and then I'm thinking now Kansas has got Jeff Grimes where it's like gonna have three tight ends on the field it's going to be three yards it's going to be fourth and five and he's going to run for three yards you know so we saw that movie a few times last year uh yeah all right we won't spit our whole podcast bagging on Jeff Grimes um totally good dude so guys uh Zach kind of alluded to it but week two gives us a bunch of Big 12 matchups that are you know power four uh clashes um we have Arizona State Mississippi State you mentioned that one uh Houston Oklahoma probably not going to go well for the Cougars Colorado Nebraska Kansas Illinois Iowa Iowa State Cincinnati Pittsburgh Arkansas Oklahoma State and SMU and BYU uh SMU now a power for team weird to think uh so from a conference perspective um you know which of these if the Big 12 were to win would be like the biggest feather in the cap for the Big 12 I feel like the obvious answer has to be Colorado and not because it's necessarily um even going to have a lot to do with maybe the shakeup at the the top with the big 12 title game or anything that way I just think with so much attention on Colorado there no matter what happens if they beat Nebraska you know an old rivalry back in the Big 12 and the two were there originally I I think they're just says a lot there right the Dylan Rola he's he's getting a lot of Praise right now at Nebraska there's a lot of people that want to see him succeed obviously a billion people want to see Prime succeed ORF I'm sure there's you know many of that as well but I think you know the the only other one that I was looking at is maybe Iowa State upsetting Iowa that's obviously a rivalry game that would do well but I just don't know that that moves the needle beating Iowa right and so I think I think when you're looking at the whole perspective of it yes Arizona State beating Mississippi state would be great it's another notch in the cap against the F but I just don't know that there's anything this week that notches that above a Colorado beating Nebraska just simply because of the fan favorite uh the the impact of that game in terms of what people are projecting with Nebraska what people are projecting with Colorado so I you know it it has its impact but I don't think it's an impact in terms of what many would expect in terms of saying like oh this is a great opportunity for the Big 12 to beat an SEC team you know yes if you could have one of those games I think that's always going to do well but there's always this nice massaging that the the SEC can do last year the SEC was terrible in non-conference play and that they still found a way at the end of the season to kind of massage that conversation and say you know we have this tough conference play and they do that it doesn't really matter so I think to me you negate a lot of that conversation right now uh yes if Arizona State wins then I think or even you know let's say Houston wins then I think we can have maybe some of that conversation but yeah I think at the end of the day it has to be Colorado just simply be because of the the metrics and the numbers and everything else that relate to that I kind of disagree I think you know Iowa does I think move move the needle a little bit right maybe it's just because I'm a big 10 guy and punting is you know I'm flying the flag for punting here but um shirt huh only punts um but uh you know Iowa is like Iowa is really good this year like like they they had some big offense I know that's kind of you know that hasn't been Iowa's Mo for the last decade but they had some big offense in that first game and they looked like like they maybe had kind of changed some things up with a new offensive coordinator and on the other side of that Iowa state was kind of underwhelming I think they only scored 21 points against North Dakota and they're supposed to be pretty good as well so I think a that's going to be a really good game that we need to see some questions can Iowa State continue to elevate itself to the next tier of the Big 12 and B I think Iowa the the hawkey are are just really good and that's always a rivalry game and it's always just passionate and everything and uh yeah so I think if Iowa State beats Iowa that is a huge deal for the Big 12 and I think tells us really how good Iowa State can be this year yeah so I you know I I hear the arguments for for both what y'all are saying and I I kind of agree with both of you at the same time I'm going to mention a completely different game so there you go uh so I'll just throw this one out there and it speaks to what Josh was saying anytime you can beat the SEC it's a good thing and so uh I realize Arkansas is an Old Miss it's not Missouri it's not obviously Georgia or Alabama but I feel like Oklahoma State needs to take care of business and beat Arkansas and Oklahoma State's right there I think with Utah and Arizona and K State maybe at the top of the league as one of you know the contenders this year uh so that's a game I've just feel like they need to win it's important for the Big 12 and it is one of those you know Big 12 versus SEC you know talking points uh I I completely agree Josh that the SEC has a way of saying oh it doesn't matter you know we're still the SEC and start thumping its chest but um now to both of y'all's points uh Colorado is the buzziest team in the Big 12 maybe the country if they beat Nebraska The Buzz is just going to you're not going to be able to like you know uh stop hearing it uh yeah because Prime will be everywhere uh will be living in Prime Time land um so that you know that that'd be great for the Big 12 and then Zach I mean I agree that uh Beating A ranked Iowa team would be huge for the Cyclones a lot of times even in Matt Campbell's uh good years there at Iowa State Iowa was just Happ the Cyclones number uh they call that the S Hawk trophy is what they you know give out for that it's a big deal in Iowa they don't have Pro Sports in Iowa uh they have about um eight different major league baseball teams they can they can't watch because they're in the land of um what am I yes blackout thank you that was the word I was looking for yeah poor Iowa so this is this is their Super Bowl um and yeah I mean if if Iowa State can win man that that would be huge for Matt Campbell for the Big 12 um it looks like Iowa has like a little more offense this year last year I mean they were the team that you just knew was going to go out and score like seven to 13 points and win you know it's just they were so ugly so but the punter was really good really good those punters man uh all right so we usually so uh Josh you probably know this already but Zach's coming uh this weekend to Salt Lake uh I am not uh gonna go to the Colorado game but um I'm not making the trip for this one but uh I have been to Salt Lake beautiful place um and I've had some good food there but I am we kind of always close with this we call it culinary Corner um because we're Sports Riders and we want to eat you know I mean ouro yeah where is like the place Zach needs to check out like or two or three I don't know yeah I'll give you a couple and the first one it's it's a fan favorite here I personally don't think it's the best Mexican food um but everybody wants to say go to Red Iguana it's right off the airport um it it's good food it's it's good it's not great it's good I'll say that they everybody likes to point out their mle um and it's it's good stuff but there's better Mexican food so I'm going to leave that one to the the side uh some of the other places that I think would be interesting uh for me Lucky 13 uh is one of my favorites it's a it's a bar so you do have to have your your driver's license in Utah uh to get in um but it it's it has probably I believe if not the best one of the best hamburgers in in the state they they do a nice variety of different things um and so I think you can't go wrong there uh I'm not alone in this a lot of people say that uh outside of that if you want something that's not uton um probably pretty bird it's a Nashville Hot Chicken they they do a good job there but there's there's a there's a handful of stuff I mean if if you want to go to a bar the green pig I'm not a personally I'm not a drinker so I don't I don't get into these but I know a lot of people go to the green pig it's it's close to Rice Echo stadium and so a lot of people will uh will kind of congregate there I know last year when Florida came to town they took over that bar and absolutely probably drank it dry I I don't know um but yeah there's there's a few of those I mean Utah love their chains and so there's it's getting better um but those are probably some of my favorites that uh that I've been to and and I think you know if there's any more that you want I'm happy to oblige but uh you can't go wrong with a good burger uh probably one of the best in the state so you speaking my language canot wait just had this Vibe you know he needs a burger so go to Lucky yeah yeah sounds delicious making me hungry uh uh I ironically even though uh so there's this band called Bowling For Soup that uh once did a song where they talked about the Mexican food sucks north of here anyway talking about Texas uh I have had good Mexican food in Salt Lake City and uh actually I don't think it was a Red Iguana I think it was a chain um but it was like um was kind of like a Taco Cabana but it was I can't remember what the name of that place was but it was good it was like a it was a chain and you got good Mexican food there um I did while we still had a couple minutes Josh uh you mentioned R's echles and and that the bar was close to that uh that just Place seems to have like a obviously a very good vibe I mean the stadium u in terms of a home field environment what makes it so tough yeah I think you know it's it's one of those places where you know you fans are a little slow to show up uh it frustrates a lot of people and so the beginning of the game isn't always the toughest because uh fans are still coming over from the tailgating lot and different things that way but it's a fan base that absolutely cares um you know there's there's complaints about what what could be done and to improve it and yada yada yada but I I think this is a place that they really take on the the Persona of the team uh they really want to do well and be impactful in the game they have been impactful in the game many years uh um and so I think it's it's just a fan base that takes pride in that now you're not going to experience Utah at a night game Utah at night for some reason is completely different it's like talking to people when they go to LSU at night it's not that level right like LSU is still the top but I think there's something different in the dark in Utah that that just they love that atmosphere um it plays out so much better but this this day game it's going to be on Fox people are going to be amped up for it people are excited uh I think you're going to get a good experience for it and um there's there's been some good iconic moments there and and that place will rock and the the cameras will shake and uh it's just a lot of fans that that that love their team and want to support them and we'll do whatever they can to kind of make that that a rockus environment and kind of keep that that uh that reputation that they've they've developed nice well should be fun I'm sure uh Zach will get a little exercise in maybe hike some Mountains go eat a burger at Lucky 13 and then go listen to that place rock man can't wait yeah should be fun