This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com In this episode for paid subscriber: Florida isn’t firing Billy Napier. Godfrey made several phone calls Thursday night and opens up his notebook here with notes on the Gators, Auburn, Purdue, Southern Miss, Louisiana Tech, ECU, Central Michigan, UAB, and more. Host:…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com The College Football Playoff selection committee ranked teams for the first time in the era of an expanded field. We discuss: * The possibility of a Big 12 doomsday scenario * Whether the Group of 5 might have an actual breakthrough this year * How the committee’s ph…

Our Week 11 college football preview arrives, including: * The keys to Alabama-LSU * Florida’s chances at a Texas upset * Colorado’s road to the Big 12 goes through Lubbock * Army and Boise continue marching * An injury-laden Clemson-Virginia Tech meeting * The Big 12 middle class sorting itself out * The Holy War gets a twist And a lot more! * 20%…

An information-packed rundown of Week 10 in college football, including: * Ohio State-Penn State goes how it always goes * Indiana is still Indiana (that’s a compliment now) * South Carolina shows up big against A&M * SMU has its biggest night in 40 years * Army stays on course, but Navy doesn’t * Memphis falls apart in a key spot * Virginia Tech c…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Since UAB hired Trent Dilfer before the 2023 season, a once-solid program has become one of college football’s worst teams. Rodger Sherman, who wrote an excellent feature about the flawed ideology behind the hire, joins Richard, Godfrey, and Alex to discuss how UAB s…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Listen to the Week 10 Tasting Menu and pair it with Godfrey’s Q&A for subscribers. He’s on one this week. We start our journey with a repeat format of Question Randomization, but this time around we end up smack dab in the middle of a big mess with the coming 12-team…

A preview of the Week 10 college football season, including: * Penn State’s latest chance to level up in the sport, this one against Ohio State in Happy Valley in what should be one of 2024’s best games * Marquee QB matchups have been duds. Why? * Army’s latest offensive evolution, and why this season has been such a bleak one for Air Force * What …

Richard Johnson and Alex Kirshner recap Week 9 in college football, including: * Texas A&M beats LSU, and Mike Elko makes a point * Texas survives an odd game against Vanderbilt * Miami gets a breakthrough, and FSU flirts with history * BYU, Pitt, and Indiana all remain unbeaten * Kansas still can’t beat Kansas State * A classic MSU-UM game * UNLV …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com A Week 9 subscriber Q&A with Steven Godfrey. He takes questions about James Madison, Florida State, BYU, Cincinnati, Georgia and a buncha other schools and things in the fun and never-sane world of CFB. Also, yes, the smoker is assembled. Finally. Host: Steven Godfre…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Welcome back to another year of "The Eyes List,” where Split Zone Duo discusses coaching situations that we’ve got our eyes on. Richard, Godfrey, and Alex discuss the first two in-season head coach firings of 2024: ECU’s Mike Houston and Southern Miss’ Will Hall. Plu…

Richard, Alex, and Godfrey preview Week 9 of the college football season, with looks ahead at two dozen of the weekend’s games. Including: * Notre Dame-Navy * A&M-LSU * Mizzou-Alabama * Boise State-UNLV * Tulane-North Texas * Illinois-Oregon * Washington-Indiana * Syracuse-Pitt * Oklahoma-Ole Miss * FSU-Miami * Wazzu-San Diego State And a lot more.…

A 30-ish-minute recap of Week 8 in college football, including: * Georgia asserts itself against Texas, but exactly how big is the gap between these teams if they meet again? We still don’t know * Tennessee wins a slog against a Bama offense that has one thing * NDSU finally takes back the Dakota Marker * Indiana is Good with a capital G * Mario Cr…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Cody Alexander of Match Quarters is a defensive coordinator by trade. He joins Richard and Alex for a discussion of five of the best players and offenses in college football right now. What can a defense do to stop them? Sometimes the answer is nothing, but here are …

Our Week 8 preview. CBS Sports national college football writer Shehan Jeyarajah joins Alex and Richard to break down a huge pile of games, including (but not only): * A UGA-Texas blockbuster * A Bama-Tennessee matchup that has lost some luster * The FCS Game of the Century * Duke’s chance to finally beat FSU * A Nebraska-Indiana game with playoff …

Our 30(ish)-minute recap of a wild weekend in college football, including: * Oregon beats Ohio State in a classic. Did the Ducks intentionally deploy an old Buddy Ryan trick to seal the game? * LSU keeps firing until it finally hits Ole Miss * Billy Napier almost pulls it off in Knoxville, then doesn’t * Pitt and BYU are 6-0 * Iowa State, Kansas St…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com In a Week 7 mailbag: Godfrey helps reset expectations for Lance Leipold at Kansas, talks about his first ever CFB game (hint: it's a match-up this weekend), debates himself on the state of play with Lincoln Riley and USC, and then just talks about Halloween spooky mo…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com A midseason, pre-coach carousel review of the programs in each FBS conference that are falling flat on their faces in 2024. Why have things gone so badly? What is the definition of “cooked,” and which Carolinas ACC school meets it the most? Are things as grim as they…

Our preview of Week 7. Ohio State-Oregon is the blockbuster in a loaded week that also features USC-Penn State, Ole Miss-LSU, Colorado-Kansas State, and a bunch of solid matchups all around the country. Let’s get into it. Production: Anthony Vito. SPLIT ZONE DUO GOES TO NASHVILLE WITH NOKIAN TYRES: On Friday, 10/25 and Saturday, 10/26, we’ll join o…

The Week 6 Hurry-Up is our recap of everything we found interesting in the college football weekend, delivered in 30(ish) minutes: * Vanderbilt flushes Alabama * The call Cal should really be mad about * Michigan does not have the pieces * Army and Navy continue to bulldoze * Iowa State continues to rise * TCU sullies itself against Houston * Tulan…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com It’s the latest Split Zone Duo audience Q&A with Steven Godfrey, who got a LOT of Phil Longo- and Sconnie-related angst in the inbox, so let's do that. Also, are we set up for more and better non-con games in this weird reality? Also, Godfrey is ON BOARD for Friday N…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey wrote for the Washington Post about the SEC and Big Ten’s effort to monopolize more of the College Football Playoff. In this episode, he and Richard discuss the Power 2’s latest leverage play, which may not even help those two leagues at all but could hurt a …

Our previews of dozens of games in Week 6. Highlights include: * Things getting bleak at several ACC schools * Navy’s chance to dunk Air Force * A sneaky great SMU-Louisville matchup * Indiana is still happening * Go get ‘em, App State * Could Auburn-UGA not be a blowout? * OKST’s impending turnaround * The G5 Hipster Game of the Week * Clemson has…

Richard and Godfrey lead a 30-minute (ish) recap of the weekend in college football. Alabama beats Georgia in an instant classic. Oklahoma comes back on Auburn. Kansas State establishes itself as the Big 12 favorite. Tulane crushes USF. Ashton Jeanty and Travis Hunter keep making Heisman arguments. And much, much more from a busy Week 5. Programmin…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Are TV timeouts really longer this year? The answer has two parts. SZD obtained years of documents outlining how media timeouts work in SEC games on ESPN. There’s been no short-term change. (That LSU-South Carolina game was just a weird one, our analysis shows.) But …

Godfrey, Richard, and Alex preview Week 5, a schedule led by Georgia-Alabama but with dozens of other interesting games beyond. Plus: What should we make of undefeated UNLV’s QB leaving the program amid a payment dispute? There hasn’t been anything quite like this in the history of the sport. Let’s also talk more about Mack Brown’s bizarre week at …

The Week 4 Sunday Hurry-Up! Tennessee handled business against an Oklahoma team with a QB problem. North Carolina’s defense did not defend. BYU put a dominant showing on Kansas State. Miami and Clemson flexed their muscles in the ACC. Colorado delivered a psychic blow to Dave Aranda. Appalachian State and the MAC are both in a world of pain, while …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey's dipping a bit into coach gossip, mainly because Florida State is winless and Florida's even worse. But let's poke around on a few other places, including Arkansas, of course, before stress-testing the narrative on bowl sites for playoff rounds and extolling…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Oregon State and Washington State lopped off the top of the Mountain West to create the beginnings of a new conference. The move has marginal benefits, but we’re skeptical it will change much about the pecking order outside the power conferences. Meanwhile, the Mount…

Godfrey, Richard, and Alex preview Week 4. Meet some freshman running backs at Baylor and South Alabama. Prepare for the return of Josh Heupel to Oklahoma. Consider USC beating Michigan by multiple scores. Marvel at how ridiculous a Friday night Stanford-Syracuse conference game is. And try to figure out a big question: What happened to Oklahoma St…

Richard and Alex give you a loaded but brief recap of everything interesting in college football’s Week 3. West Virginia blows another road Backyard Brawl, Washington State delivers some justice, FSU’s misery continues, LSU and South Carolina play a wild (and long) one, South Alabama scores 87 points, and notes from dozens more games over the weeke…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey's talking about Hugh Freeze because YOU made him, and we'll check in on messy situations at Kentucky, Cincinnati and elsewhere. Also, what's the ACC Network worth, really? And why are so many good games on weeknights this week? This episode is for paid subscr…

Week 3 is light on blockbusters but heavy on rivalry games, including the newly relocated Apple Cup, the game formerly known as the Civil War, and the Backyard Brawl. The weeknight slate has a couple of great games, starting with Arizona State’s visit to Texas State. In this show, Alex, Richard, and Steven take you through dozens of games they thin…

Alex and Richard take you through Week 2 of the college football season. NIU wrecks a promising Notre Dame season, Texas State crushes rival UTSA, Iowa State deals a major blow to Iowa, and much, much more. Production: Anthony Vito. THE NOKIAN TYRES ROAD TRIP OF THE WEEK: Every week all season, head to NokianTyres.com/SZD and enter your pick for th…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey's going rapid fire over y'all's week one reactions, most of which need to simmer and absorb some more info. We talk about Miami, Clemson, Nevada, Georgia Southern, Boise, Memphis, Virginia Tech, UNLV, A&M and a bunch more. Producer: Anthony Vito.…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com The modern Week 1 schedule means that one Sunday night game and one Monday night game get the whole sport’s attention. That also means they’re liable to produce overreactions. What did we really learn about USC, LSU, Florida State, and Boston College? What are the gr…

Godfrey, Richard, and Alex preview Week 2 of the 2024 college football season (14:10) after discussing one of Week 1’s hot topics: the state of College GameDay and Kirk Herbstreit’s dog in the broadcast booth. In Week 2: Texas and Michigan play a blockbuster that may not live up to it on the field, K-State and Tulane might have the game of the day,…

The Split Zone Duo Sunday Hurry-Up returns! Alex and Richard take you on a 30-ish-minute jaunt through everything that was interesting in the first week of the 2024 college football season. Miami demoralized Florida, Notre Dame’s offensive line came through when Texas A&M’s QB did not, Georgia reiterated that it’s in a different class than Clemson,…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com In this show, Godfrey answers questions from SplitZoneDuo.com subscribers. Godfrey is neither 1) good at predicting things nor 2) claiming to be, but the results are decent-ish, at least when it comes to K-State. Maybe Florida? Let's talk about how to better hate you…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Auburn lists 37 defensive starters. Georgia won’t release a depth chart, so Clemson won’t. Several teams with obvious starting quarterbacks will not acknowledge reality. CFB lineup secrecy has gotten ridiculous, but there’s a more troubling piece of it in 2024: the l…

Alex, Richard, and Godfrey take a long, detailed trip through the Week 1 schedule, from NDSU-Colorado to Clemson-UGA to JMU-Charlotte to USC-LSU and beyond. Congrats on making it through the offseason. Let’s talk ball. Producer: Anthony Vito THE NOKIAN TYRES ROAD TRIP OF THE WEEK: Every week all season, head to NokianTyres.com/SZD and enter your pi…

Richard links up with the godfather of CFB podcasters, Ty Hildenbrandt of The Solid Verbal. Ty has just about seen it all in CFB podcasting, so let’s ask him: How has the game changed behind the mic? After that, considering the interesting nexus of Ty’s fandoms, we talk Notre Dame/Penn State, and considering where we both live, we have RUTGERS TAKE…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com After previewing all 134 FBS teams for the 2024 season, it’s predictions time. Split Zone Duo picks Heisman Trophy finalists, players and games of the year, coaches to be fired and hired, conference champions, and the 12 teams in the expanded College Football Playoff…

Oregon State and Washington State face unprecedented situations, but not exactly the same one on the field in 2024. Richard, Godfrey, and Alex break down the Pac-12 that’s now a Pac-2. Oregon State is rebuilding almost from scratch, while Washington State has a little bit more left in the tank from the old world. In a brutal moment for both of them…

The ranks of the FBS independent schools are down to three (and still getting smaller). Richard, Godfrey, and Alex talk about UConn and UMass to start, and then Jessica Smetana (18:44) joins for a state of the union talk about Notre Dame: What’s the belief level right now in Marcus Freeman? Has Notre Dame secured its independence forever? How is th…

Join our FCS Upset Draft at www.splitzoneduo.com, and try to pick the correct FCS wins over FBS teams. Craig Haley is the FCS senior editor for Stats Perform. He’s one of the longest tenured and most respected reporters covering FCS football, and he joins Alex to provide an overview of the 2024 season. Who’s a serious national title contender? Wher…

The return of the MAC on Split Zone Duo! We preview the 2024 season, as Miami tries to defend its title and establish itself as something like what Toledo has been. Bowling Green tries to remain solid, NIU aims to run over you while playing good defense, Ohio wants to at least tote the rock well, and EMU becomes one of Godfrey’s favorite teams. You…

SZD previews the Sun Belt: Appalachian State is the favorite in the East, but Coastal Carolina had a more promising first year under Tim Beck than you realized. James Madison resets, Georgia Southern really needs to start winning, Marshall is in the danger zone, ODU is the site of a scandal, and Georgia State is worth checking back in on in a few m…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey sits down with longtime Big Ten and Ohio State writer Doug Lesmerises of "Kings of the North" in a traditional north/south idealogical spar that's anything but. We talk about the origins of Doug trying to redefine the northern and midwestern identities of col…

Liberty is a heavy favorite after dominating Conference USA in its first season in the league. So let’s start at the bottom of CUSA and work our way up. Will Kennesaw State (4:06) be glad it moved to FBS? Sam Houston (9:56) had a miserable first year and looks to build something in its sophomore FBS season. UTEP and New Mexico State (13:18) have ra…

Richard, Alex, and Godfrey break down the American Athletic Conference ahead of the 2024 season. Memphis (3:00) looks like it’s primed for a run, but UTSA and Tulane (10:12) are strong in their own ways. USF (19:21) was a minor breakout team in 2023. Is another step forward in store? Which bad to mediocre team from the ECU, Rice, UAB, and North Tex…