HR2: Tate Frazier previews March Madness upsets & winners | Did the Commanders do enough in free agency to make the playoffs?

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All right, we are 24 hours, 25 hours exactly.

Away, 25 hours, 15 minutes, I think 12-15s first tip on Thursday.

These first four games, two good games last night.

I mean, they're exciting games.

And we do get Miami of Ohio tonight in a first four game.

But the tournament, as we know it, starts on Thursday afternoon.

And runs really through one of the best weekends on the sports calendar

this first weekend of the NCAA tournament.

Joining me right now is Tate Frazier.

Tate covers the sport for the Ringer at Tate Frazier on X on Twitter.

And all of our conversation about the college basketball tournament

is presented by Bud Light here on the team 980.

Easy to drink and easy to enjoy.

So Tate, we were just talking about this.

Max and I were, how many teams do you think legitimately can win the tournament?

And is it fewer than typical for this particular tournament?

Yeah, I mean, first and great to be here.

Great to talk about the madness.

I'm ready for it.

Like you said, 25 hours, 15 minutes.

We're counting down the clock right now in real time.

Yeah, I do think that this year it's obviously a top heavy.

As it always is, right, it's going to be a little bit chalky.

I think there have been some years with the Yukon team in 2024.

I think there probably was one, maybe two teams that kind of wanted in 2024.

When you just kind of see like maybe Purdue of Zach Edie has an incredible game.

And he did play well in the championship game.

But I thought it was a pretty much one team that was going to win it.

We saw it throughout the entire year.

I think we're around probably seven teams that you could talk yourself into this year.

That could win a national championship just based on the bracket now and how they've broken.

And we obviously have some injuries to Duke team.

We have some question marks there that could come into play.

Arizona in the sweet 16 has a tough setup.

Florida haven't Houston in Houston, potentially in the elite eight.

So I think we have about seven teams that could actually win the whole thing.

So give me the seven.

Okay, let's run through them.

I mean, I think Duke airs all the all the one seed that think are obvious.

I think Houston would throw into that mix as well.

I think Gonzaga I was throwing to that mix.

And then I would throw Iowa State into that mix.

Man, you're the second person in the last 12 hours that has told me Iowa State is going to make a deep run.

Why not Purdue is part of that mixed with what we have come to believe about this tournament

that it's guard play and experienced guard play with lawyer and Smith. Why not Purdue?

I, you know, look, Purdue is definitely right there.

I think, you know, you could extend it out to eight or nine, depending on, you know,

if you con or Purdue or two teams that you buy into, my issue with Purdue is that, you know,

Oscar club has been playing better.

Trick off and run obviously in the front court.

I mean, you saw what they did against Michigan.

Yep.

They were able to make some tough twos and just a dynamic game plan by Matt Painter.

But I do feel like this Purdue team kind of swings with Fletcher lawyer.

I think in times Fletcher lawyer can be a defensive liability for them.

I do like the back court with Brandon Smith and lawyer.

I have always said with those two guys that once they got to their junior senior years,

watch out for Purdue.

I just personally, I like Grand EK.

Like if they get to a situation in the sweet 16 against Gonzaga,

I actually like Gonzaga in that game.

That's the reason why I kind of lean the other way.

But I think, you know, there are plenty of people set up Purdue fans that would probably lean

the other way and say, you know, Gonzaga's never been Purdue and all that sort of stuff.

But to me, I just worry about, you know, lawyer and having an off night.

And I feel like sometimes they're kind of treading water a little bit.

And cloth, like I said, has been good.

But I don't know if the front court is good enough to go in the national championship.

Especially when you look at the front lines of the best teams in the country,

whether it's Duke, Arizona, Florida, Michigan, of course.

So I just think they have a little bit of a handicap that keeps me from getting all the way there.

What about, you know, this potential matchup in the sweet 16 between Hurley and Izzo?

You didn't list either one of those two teams.

Tell me why you don't see either Michigan State or Yukon as a national champion.

Well, Yukon, to me, you know, I think they have, they're sort of right there on the cusp.

I've just seen kind of the bad Yukon.

And I do feel like they have a little bit of an identity issue.

I mean, Tarris Rie has been playing some good basketball for them.

But again, you know, I never know, dimmery ball.

What version are you going to give to those two guys?

I know Braylon Mullins has been a nice spark plug for them at times.

But I still feel like he's trying to figure out what his role is on this team.

And Dan Hurley in the tournament of me last year, they took Florida as a brink.

We know how good they are in these neutral side games.

They're going to be in Philadelphia, which is a great spot for them to be in.

They're going to have a lot of fans there.

I just think, you know, I think they will get past Michigan State.

And if they do get past Michigan State against the Duke team,

I just think Duke is more formidable across the front line.

And I think that Duke will be fully healthy at that point.

I assume Gangba will be back.

I know Caleb Foster, they talked about a lead-8,

potentially final four to get him back.

But Kate and Boosers really stepped up.

So I just look at the matchup of Duke in their region.

It's really the reason why I have them sort of on the back burner.

And we've seen Michigan State play against his Duke team.

And Domesar, point of attack, ball pressure.

I mean, Jeremy Fears is the orchestrator.

He is the maestro of everything Michigan State does.

And if Jeremy Fears is not playing at a high cliff,

they are basically non-existent on the offensive end.

And Duke has some of the best, you know,

own pressure defenders, you can see.

And Domesar has done it before against Jeremy Fears.

Fears probably played his worst game of the year against Duke.

And I think that's the reason why I just kind of,

I feel like it was a bad draw for them to have Duke in their region.

You know, I said something earlier

when we were doing our brackets last hour

that I think Shire might be a better defensive coach

than Shosheski.

Even though Shosheski's Duke's teams were, you know, at times,

especially early on, I mean, if you go back to the 80s and 90s,

they were always very good man-to-man teams.

But I think Shire might be a better defensive coach.

What do you think?

Yeah, I think that because of the talent level,

I think Shire knows that if you get buying on the offensive end,

like the offensive will work itself out.

And I think obviously Coach K in his time,

I mean, it was all about, you know,

trying to, you know, prove the proof is in the voting

with his motion offense, the sort of his calling card

and the defense was energy and effort.

And I think it's kind of a little bit more, you know,

it's kind of to a point now where with matchups

and, you know, deciding to switch, you know,

Shire does a really good job of like,

hey, this game based on this matchup,

we're going to switch one through three.

Or if it's this matchup, we're going to switch one through five.

Or if it's this matchup, we're not going to switch it all.

We're going to make sure we fight over ball screens.

And, you know, I just think technically,

they are more sound on that end.

I think he focuses more on that end,

because he understands that looked the talent

that they have is going to work itself out offensively.

And as long as they defend at a high level

and they're able to get, you know,

defensive rebound, clean up the glass

and make sure they don't give the other team extra possessions.

They have the size and the lead

to create extra possessions for themselves

on the offensive end.

I mean, their offensive rebounding is electric.

And obviously Houston, that's sort of their calling card as well.

And Duke is doing it better than Houston this season.

So I think he just sort of knows the focal point

with the talent that they have if they defended a high level,

they're a really hard team to beat.

And they have it, you know, it's three layers of their defense,

right, saw the point of attack, ball pressure.

You get by saw, you have Malik Brown

who deflects everything, you get by Malik Brown,

you have Gong Bo on the back in protecting the rim.

That's really tough to deal with.

Does anybody protect the rim like Virginia does?

Well, man.

I mean, are they a potential deep tournament, you know, team,

you obviously don't have among a national championship list

nobody would.

What's the, what's the best case for UVA?

Yeah, Virginia, actually, if you look at that region

in the Midwest, I mean, as far as front courts and front lines

to match up with Michigan, I think Virginia has the best one

with Grunlo and Uninzo.

And Uninzo is incredible.

And the ACC tournament, I mean, you got to give shy

or a lot of credit, you know, Uninzo is disrupting

everything around the rim.

He decided to pivot late in that game, you know,

calls the timeout, basically decides to get canned

booze or to bring the ball up the court,

brings Uninzo out to the perimeter.

And then I, that opens things up on the back end

and I was a really, you know, savvy play there.

I think this Virginia team has a real shot.

I worry about they're running into an Iowa state team

that maybe just has more firepower offensively

with mom Chilovich.

I think team in Lypsy is a guard that's going to be a tough

match up for them.

But I do like the depth of this Virginia team.

I just think, you know, it does feel like when they've got

going up against kind of the cream of the crop,

they've struggled to find a way to win.

It doesn't mean that they're not there.

It doesn't mean that they don't have ways

that they could have won the game.

But just for whatever reason, they haven't been able

to get over the hump.

And I think second round potentially against a Tennessee team

that's a very physical team.

We'll see how they respond to that.

And if they're able to survive against Rick Barnes,

they're going to have a really tough match

over the Iowa state.

Virginia's seven foot Nigerian center

and Uninzo number 33 blocked.

Listen to this people.

If you didn't watch the ACC tournament,

21 shots in three games, including nine

in the ACC final against Duke.

We are talking to Tate Frazier from the ringer.

Real quickly, just because around here,

there's no Maryland and no Georgetown in the tournament,

which is unusual.

Howard won last night, which is great.

But the DMV has one team in the tournament,

which is highly unusual.

And the focus now a little bit for,

I think a lot of DC basketball fans is to watch

to see who the Wizards may have an opportunity to pick

in the June draft.

You've mentioned Campbell's are a couple of times.

I'm wondering, well, let me, I'll just ask you.

Right now, give me your top four players

in the draft in order.

Yeah, I mean, I think it's a pretty locked in order.

At this point, I've been a Darren Peterson defender.

I think Darren Peterson is an elite talent,

but I do think that the health concerns

and we've gotten more clarity on that,

talking about the body cramps and things like that.

That's a little bit of something that I could see,

there's a red flag from plenty of NBA teams,

so I'm fine to knock him down one peg there.

So I think AJ DeMonta would be the number one pick,

I think from there, it's either Peterson or Booser.

I mean, there's gonna be teams that talk themselves

in the camera Booser there at number two,

just because of the assurance, right?

I mean, Cam Booser, there is no road in which

he's not a positive plus impact player

at the next level, just because of who he is as a person,

who he is as a player.

He finds ways to just impact the bottom line.

And I think as much as we get caught up in the athletic,

impressive feats that we see on the floor,

I mean, Cam Booser is not gonna wow you in that sense,

but he's just gonna make the right play.

He plays with the high IQ,

he's kind of like a side-borg out there,

like a basketball side-borg and I think you know.

You put him on a winning team or a team

that needs like a winning mentality,

and I think he's gonna help, like I said, the bottom line.

So I think Booser Peterson,

I would take Peterson probably second and then Booser third

and then Caleb Wilson, who goes down with an injury

for North Carolina, he's just an incredible player

and I think he has a much better touch and feel

than most people that have early watched him

because an incredible highlight package of that's all you've seen.

But if you watch him in the game, his energy is motor,

it's just really elite stuff.

And I think with him and AJ, I mean,

they went head to head in an exhibition game

during the early parts of the season

and it was a 1A, 1B situation and at times,

you wouldn't figure out which one was 1A

because Caleb Wilson was that impressive.

He has big hands.

I think that's a huge thing when you get to the NBA,

being able to, you know, palm of ball with your one hand

and kind of keep defenders at bay when you get double team.

That was one of the secret tricks of Michael Jordan,

one of the secret tricks of Kauai Leonard

and Ashley Kiel Wilson has a little bit of that as well.

So I think he's a special player

and any of those four, I think you would be happy

to have on your team.

That's a really good observation, by the way.

The guys with not only big hands, but long arms,

because I'm a huge Kauai guy

and I watch it every night when he gets doubled

and he just, with those long arms and those big hands,

he's able to basically keep the double at bay

and make the right play,

rather than easily getting trapped and getting sort of encased.

It's hard to do that with a player with big hands

and long arms.

You didn't mention Darius A. Cuff Jr.

and the only reason I bring it up is because I'm wondering

if he had kind of a magical next three weeks for Arkansas.

Could you see him moving ahead of Booser?

Because I'm with you, I think Booser's got the highest floor,

but I also think of those guys,

he's got the lowest ceiling of those guys.

I don't know if that's how you would describe it,

but tell me what you think of A. Cuff?

I'm a big fan of A. Cuff.

I mean, I think everybody's trying to figure out

what a compass for A. Cuff and I think, you know,

we get kind of pigeonholed when we do that

because these guys are so unique in their own ways

and I think a lot at the time,

these guys have a little bit of a piece of a certain player

and they've blended it together in their own sort of way.

And I think A. Cuff is a perfect example of that.

I mean, the real knock on A. Cuff is defensively.

What does he look like?

But you're talking about a very special player,

a very special score and he's been able to do it

in a variety of ways and no matter what.

I mean, even when he is not having his best night,

he's still able to get his numbers and get his points,

which that is a special trait to have

just as a basketball player.

He has a nice know-how for the game.

He obviously is one of those guards

that's been around a lot of older point guards

and I think that's why, you know,

my boss, Bill Simmons, was talking about Kyrie Irving

and Kyrie Irving obviously around his dad

and around his godfather, Rod Strickland.

You know, you're just around basketball

and you're able to kind of piece the game together

and you have an IQ for what to do and when to do it

and who to get the ball and these sorts of little intricacies

in a game that matter A. Cuff has that

but then he also has this electric factor

where he can just go out and just get you 30 points

every single game like he did in the end.

49 in a double overtime game.

Right, incredible.

So I mean, he's just a very special, you know,

player and scorer to say the least.

And for John Calapari who has seen, you know,

we can go through the litany of guards

that have gone through there.

I mean, S. G. A. was now one of the best players in the world.

He had him, he had Devon Booker, I mean,

he had John Wald, Derek Rose,

I mean, the list goes on with these guys, the Aaron Fox.

And for him to put him in that sort of tier one

of guys that have played for him,

I think says a lot about A. Cuff.

And I think the size will be the question

that people go to.

But I don't think you need to, you know,

get to in the weeds with that because he's going to be,

I think he's going to end up being the fifth pick personally.

I think right now you see Kingston Fleming for Houston

sort of locked in there as the fifth pick for a lot of these boards.

But I think A. Cuff, after this, you know,

tournament run and after people put together all the tape,

they're going to end up taking him number five.

All right, back to the tournament and the draw.

Give me your favorite, you know, lower seeded over higher seeded teams.

And why don't we talk, you talk really a 10 seed or lower

in terms of first round upsets?

Yeah, I mean, you kind of go through this.

We have a huge gap from just kind of like the top tier teams

to the middle tier teams, the middle tier teams

to the bottom tier teams.

And you know, you can see that reflected in the lines.

I mean, a lot of times like the ones

these would be like an 18, 19 point favorite.

Now we're up to 24, 25, right?

It is spreading out quite a bit.

Everyone seems to be on this game,

but I still like this South Florida team a lot.

I think South Florida, over Louisville,

would be an upset that I like in the first round.

This Louisville team is, you know,

they can look amazing when they're playing a team

that's a little bit below caliber.

And they get hot from the outside

and they blow people out.

But I'm concerned about South Florida's kind of just

a nation's, you know, approach to this game

and giving them kind of ruffling feathers

with the Louisville team.

And Pat Kelsey still yet to win a tournament game.

So I'm a little bit concerned about that matchup.

I know a lot of people were talking about VCU

in the first round with North Carolina.

I think that they're going to have a tough time dealing with base

or if North Carolina can just get him the ball in the post.

I think that's going to end up nipping that in the blood.

So I feel a little bit better about North Carolina

in the first round game,

but VCU is one if you buy into that.

The other two 11 seeds are coming out of, you know,

the Dayton situation.

I think SMU with BJ, I want to see what they look like

against Miami Ohio, but that could be a team

maybe against Tennessee that can make an upset.

But my favorite one, and it's not really my favorite

because I am a Rick Patino fan.

I like Rick Patino.

I love having him back in college basketball.

But Northern Iowa is just kind of the perfect team

to upset St. John's.

I mean, they're a veteran team.

They slow the pace down.

They don't turn the ball over.

They're going to get back on defense, all five guys.

I'm not going to let St. John's get out and transition

and St. John's in a half court game.

It's not the same John's that you see when they're running

and gunning.

And I think that's a really concerning piece for them.

So like Northern Iowa would definitely be a team

that you could turn to for maybe the 12-5 upset.

Interesting.

We're talking to Tate Frazier's doing a great job

as we're looking at the tournament.

Give me the coach.

I mean, I gave my answer, but you didn't hear it.

So I want to hear your answer.

Give me the coach in the draw that every other coach

and every other person in the sport

is rooting for the most to cut down the nets.

I think that Arizona and Tommy Lloyd, everybody

has a little bit of a soft spot for.

And I think it's just because Arizona

has been so good under Tommy Lloyd,

but the tournament's success is not quite been there.

And I do think that everybody's sort of like what we have

with Jay Wright before he kind of got over the hump, right?

I mean, Mark Fu might be one of those guys as well with Gonzaga,

but I just think that because Gonzaga

it just continues to win 30 games a year

and wins the WCC and all sorts of stuff.

People don't have as much sympathy for them,

but I think Tommy Lloyd, he's a very likable guy.

He obviously did kind of the traditional path.

He was an assistant for a long time.

He took his dream job at Arizona.

A lot of people thought he would be sort of the coach

and waiting there in Gonzaga.

He goes out on a zone and has just been an incredible coach.

I mean, breaking Brad Stevens record.

He tied Bill Guffin's record with his first two years

there at Arizona.

And this is a team in Arizona.

I mean, there are two losses once and over time

against the top team in Iowa State.

One is on the road and Allen Fieldhouse,

which is one of the toughest places to play.

So those are two losses that you're overly bad and I add.

And this is a team with Burries and Bradley,

a great back or Cree Voss has been a really nice piece

for them, co-opied one of the best freshmen forwards

in the country.

I just think that everybody wants to see Arizona finally

as a program, get back to the final four

and sort of reestablish who they are as a basketball brand.

So I think if you kind of pulled a bunch of coaches

that that would be the one they lean towards.

All right, that's a different.

My answer was Calvin Samson.

Would he be close?

He's right there, too.

Yeah, I mean, I think Samson just because he got

to the title game last year.

Yeah.

You know, he's been there and he's done that.

And this Houston team is really good.

And I actually like Houston to win this out.

I mean, getting to play in a lead game

potentially in Houston against Florida

whoever ends up there on the other side.

I think that's a great draw for Houston.

I think Houston ends up back in Indy this year.

And I think Calvin Samson gets back to another final four.

But yeah, I think just because Samson's

had more tournament success, like maybe it's not

as dire of a situation, but Tommy Lloyd

after Princeton a couple of years ago.

I mean, they just had, you know,

and then you look at the history,

even with Sean Miller, where the there is on a team.

They just kept it with constant and losing in the day, you know,

yeah, so I think that's the reason why.

Yeah, I was thinking about that matchup last night.

Miller and Wade and some of the issues from, you know,

six, seven years ago and everything they were doing

is now essentially legal.

Give me the coach that kind of isn't known by the,

you know, the basketball fan that joins the sport in March

that you think the rest of the sport thinks

is really, really good.

Not enough people know about him.

Yeah, I think one I would go to is Jay Lucas at Miami.

Yeah, he's not a great job.

John Lucas's son, yeah.

John Lucas's son, right?

And comes from a basketball family.

He goes last year to lead the Duke staff

to go take this Miami job.

That was bad timing.

I think your Lucas was on that staff.

I mean, maybe things are a little bit different,

but that's a, you know, revisionist history there.

But he's done a great job putting that team together.

He's got a lot of guys who are local to Miami.

Malik Renew, that Indiana goes down there.

Trey Donaldson, who's I Michigan before,

has had a really good year for them.

They have a freshman, Sheldon Henderson,

who's a really nice piece on the wing.

So I just think Jay Lucas, if you're in the ACC,

obviously, you know about Jay Lucas,

but for the national audience,

that might be someone that kind of comes to the forefront

and people are like, oh, who's this guy?

He seems like a really good coach.

And I think that would be good.

Another coach I'll throw out there is a Phil Martelli Jr.

at VCU.

You know, if you get a big win against a blue blood

in the first round, that immediately gets you a lot of eyeballs.

And what he was able to do,

one, to get this job at VCU and two,

to put this VCU back in a position

to win the 18 tournament again,

after they lose Ryan Odom Divergent, yeah.

I think that's a very commendable thing

and they have a really good team.

And I just think, you know, the name recognition

of Lucas and Martelli, you know,

that helps with the kind of the general consciousness

of understanding who these guys are.

And I think they're two really good coaches.

It's his dad, he was helping Juan Howard there

for a few years at Michigan.

Where is he now?

I think he's like a consultant now, you know,

I don't know where exactly he is,

but you know, he's kind of gotten into that basketball.

Yeah, he was, you know, basically the coach behind the coach

there at Michigan went to Juan Howard

or was doing the other thing for a little while, yeah.

No doubt.

All right.

By the way, I, another ACC coach,

and I looked it up the last hour.

I can't believe how long Brad Brownel's Bennett Clemson,

but he's won everywhere he's gone.

And in the first seven years, Tate,

he didn't make the tournament,

which tells you, you know, where basketball sort of is

on the important scale at Clemson.

It's obviously in the ACC and was for many years,

the football school where, you know,

so many of the others were basketball first schools,

but he's done a phenomenal job at Clemson, phenomenal job.

Yeah, he was on the hot seat for like,

I don't even know, five straight years or something like that.

And then all of a sudden it just, you know,

went the other way.

They had then a lead eight run a few years back.

And, you know, that was a kind of a proof

in the putting chase hunter and nice piece

for that team P.J. Hall was down in the NBA as well.

Ian Sheplin, who was a nice piece for them in the post.

And, you know, Brad Brownel has just been able to just have

a team that just placed connected.

They don't really have a superstar in this group.

And I think Iowa is an interesting matchup

because they kind of play a similar style.

I think Iowa maybe just has a little bit more talent there.

It's been it starts.

But again, Clemson is one of those teams

where they kind of allow you to sleep.

You don't really know who's going to be the guy

to get a whole new team from last year.

Right.

They just kind of find a way.

RJ Gottfried, he's left for a year with the Georgia.

He transfers back to Clemson.

That's the college basketball world that we live in now.

But he's a really good player in the post.

It's sort of like a four or five hybrid.

And he's just been able to, you know,

like get, get buckets in the post,

like keep the, you know, possessions, you know, kind of going.

And that's a team that you don't really know

who's going to be the one that's going to give you.

You know, it could be Bud of Johnson.

You know, it could be Bunkner.

It could be Hunter.

They just kind of, they kill you by committee.

And it's a strength in numbers model.

And defensively, they just, they really

make sure things up and don't make mistakes.

And I think that all goes back to Brown now.

So he's done a really good job at Clemson.

All right.

Last one.

Appreciate the time.

And it has nothing to do with any team in the tournament.

It's two teams that are not in the tournament this year

that the coaches will probably be feeling the pressure next year.

What do you make of the Maryland situation

with Buzz Williams going into year two next year

after the worst season they've had basically

in 30 something years and Ed Cooley's situation

at Georgetown.

Yeah, I mean, for Buzz, I, you know, I think the roster

that I won the forl paying going down was a really big deal.

And obviously you can't point to one player

and say that's the reason why they had such a tough season.

But I do think it does play a factor.

And I think same thing for Georgetown

with it with Chuku going down to them.

I think those are two bigs that actually help shore up

those teams.

But it's understandable and the expectation

is a lot higher both those programs.

Do you think about the history of those programs

and to see them where they are.

I'm an old ACC guy.

So I obviously have a soft spot for the Terrapins.

I, you know, love Laundix and C Blake like that era of teams

was kind of just, you know, the North Carolina basketball

is really bad back then.

So like I sort of adopted Maryland

because they also hated Duke as I did.

So yeah, right.

A great time for me.

So I, I really want to see Buzz figure it out.

I think they'll be better in the portal this year.

I know there's some rumblings, maybe like a Rodney rice

who went up to USC and got hurt this year.

Maybe they can pull him back to Maryland.

But I do think there's a lot of pressure on Buzz

to next year deliver a totally wanted,

a total 180 all of the season look like

because when you got guys like Scott Van Pell

and some of the larger voices,

sort of in the Maryland conversation that are national,

you know, voicing and venting how they feel.

I think that's a really rough spot to be in.

And that turns up the heat on the seat really quickly.

And then on Georgetown side,

I mean, coolie just not only did you have

like the bat basketball this year.

I mean, he had the bottle incident

where he threw a bottle and hit a kid.

I mean, there was just like so many things

where it's like this is turning into a sideshow

and the whole point was coolie to come down there

and you know, end up taking this program back to where

we all think it should be.

So I think his seat is obviously hot.

It looks better in the Big E's tournament.

The Big E's is there for the taking, you know what I mean?

Like there's only three teams in the tournament.

I think, you know, Georgetown,

the Paul, these programs that are sort of there

that can really turn the programs around.

You can get back in the mix pretty quickly

as we saw Willard with Villanova get there

and make things happen.

And I know that's a sort of subject as well with Willard,

but I think both those coaches are definitely,

I would say coolie's is a little bit hotter,

but Buzz is gonna have a lot of expectations in year two.

And it's really about the portal

and finding guys you can really turn your program around.

And it's not just the talent itself,

but the guys who can change the culture

and they both need some culture shifters.

Yeah, I mean, I guess the only thought I have

is you laid it out perfectly and I'm a Maryland guy,

but do you think Buzz will do it?

He has won everywhere he's been

and he is slow-started in every situation he's been in.

And of course, we're in a completely different environment

in the sport now, being able to turn it around

in just a few weeks with the portal,

but do you think he will get it done next year

because to your point, I don't think a backdoor bubble 910 seed

is gonna be good enough.

They've gotta be a top four top five team

in the big 10 next year and be a solid five seed

or better by the time we're here next year.

I agree.

I mean, and there were some guys that they brought in

that I thought would actually end up being better for them.

And I think that's the other part

where it's like a mis-evaluation

and that's how to get like, I really like Isaiah Wazoo

and then Isaiah Wazoo gets there

and he can't throw it in the ocean, you know what I mean.

So there's a little bit of level of like

we need better evaluations in the portal

and maybe they have obviously more time to do that this time

and from what I've seen from Buzz,

it does seem like he's kind of taking the accountability

of that, but I'm right there with you.

I think if you're Maryland and you're looking at him,

you're saying, hey, we expect to finish

in the top six of the big 10 and we expect to be,

you know, a top six, seven seed

in the NCAA tournament and that's the low end of the bar.

You know what I mean?

Yeah.

And that's obviously it's all to ask,

but I think pain coming back will be a really nice piece

for them because he's a really good player

and I think if you have a front court player like that,

that can help change your fortunes

immensely if he's healthy next year.

You know, with him early in the year,

they literally, you know, got beat by 60 in games against

Aga in Alabama and back-to-back Knights Vegas.

But anyway, this was great.

Really appreciate it.

Great insight.

Thanks, Tate.

Of course, anytime and enjoy the bat,

that's appreciate you.

Yep, Tate Frazier, everybody from the ringer.

He really, he's got seven teams

that could potentially win it.

That, I thought that was a short list,

but I guess, you know, that those Yukon years,

they were so dominant when they went back-to-back.

All right, Kevin Schien show the team 980,

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All right, let's switch the subject on the show

back to football.

This from Pat C.

Pat C. writes,

she and if Adam Peters was an A minus B plus

and free agency,

I guess you're expecting playoffs next year.

Come on, man.

They missed out on their top three picks.

Pierce, the center from the Ravens and Hendrix.

It's actually Hendrixson.

All comes down to the health of JD

for a winning season versus another losing season.

So I thought we could now

that we are clear of free agency wave number one

and Washington added more new players

than any team in the league

and spent the third most amount of money

of anybody in the league.

We could give our first of many

2026 guesses.

So first of all,

Pat C, when you say A minus B plus,

I don't think I gave it a grade.

I didn't really want to give it a grade.

It's just, it's kind of hard.

Unless I said that on,

I think I may have said it with Zabe on Sunday.

Zabe hosted on 1067, the fan over the weekend

and I was on with him on Saturday or Sunday.

I'm forgetting which day now.

I think he asked me for a grade

and I said, well, if I had to grade it,

I'd say, you know, it was an A minus B plus

free agency, it feels like that.

I don't even know if I said A minus.

I think I said B B plus,

but whatever, whatever you heard me say, Pat C,

I'll, you know, I'll cop to it.

That's fine.

I don't really care if I'm held to it or not.

It's just very hard to grade, you know,

drafts and free agency until you've seen games

because especially in Washington's case

where they have two new coordinators,

but you can do it better in free agency

because there are prices out there.

There are rankings.

There's a feel that you have for the fit, et cetera.

I like what Adam Peters did in week one.

Defense, defense, defense for starters.

They had all of those holes on defense.

They realized, you know, it's good that they knew

that they were terrible on defense.

I mean, I kind of felt early in the season

or even midway through the season

that Quinn was a little bit delusional at times,

publicly anyway, about how bad the defense was.

Like the defense was bad against the Raiders in week three,

even though they won that game by a lot.

I think Geno Smith may have had the best game of the year

against our team or at least one of them.

The defense was so bad against Michael Penix and Atlanta.

And, you know, when they beat the chargers,

it was probably the best defensive day,

but that offensive line was in tatters as was,

by the way, the Giants offensive line

and the Raiders offensive line.

So there, look, there's no doubt that the reality

that they had a terrible defensive football team.

And at the end of the season,

maybe only Cincinnati's was worse,

but Washington in terms of expected points added

had the worst defense in the final.

I think it was 10 games of the season after they lost

Dorns Armstrong.

And yes, again, like with the offense,

the defense, special teams, the entire team,

injuries were a factor,

but they weren't a good defensive team at any point

in the season, healthy or unhealthy.

And they addressed it.

The Daffy Owe, Leo Chanel, Tim Settle,

Amique Robertson, Nick Cross,

Caleb Van Cason, Charles Omeniou,

and then, yeah, all those defensive players.

I mean, they added four starters minimum

and probably six major contributors.

They had to do that.

They're not done defensively.

I still think they need a number one corner.

I still think they need a true communication

with the Rante Jones middle linebacker.

That's why I kind of think there's still a chance

on Bobby Wagner coming back.

But they went out and they, at least on paper,

improved themselves defensively and by a lot.

Not only younger and faster, but just better.

You know, Chanel and Owe and Cross and Chase Honor

just better players than the players

that were playing some of the positions last year.

Offensively, we're still missing a true number two wide receiver.

But they did something they had to do,

which is extend tonsil.

Not that that makes the team any better next year.

He was going to play next year.

And they obviously did something very important

and bringing back a backup quarterback,

critical in the NFL to have a backup quarterback that can play.

And they added a couple of backs.

But they also added a tight end that has a chance

to take a big leap personally,

which would benefit our team immeasurably.

Chica Conquo is a legit talent that's been underutilized,

under-targeted in a bad offensive system

with bad quarterbacking for the most part

during his time in Tennessee.

He could be a true breakout kind of offensive tight end star

in the league next year with Jaden Daniels,

this is quarterback with a good offensive line,

with an offensive coordinator,

knock on wood that, you know, utilizes him in a big way.

So in kind of looking at this Pat C,

yeah, I'm expecting the playoffs next year.

It all comes down to two things, overall health,

but most importantly, the quarterback's health,

they were decimated last year,

worse than any team in the league

when it came to their best players.

No team suffered what they suffered

with their front line players in terms of number of games missed.

Several teams had more man games lost due to injury,

but not with front long one starters like Washington had.

They had one of those years that you hope

you only have one out of every 10 years

because it's impossible to overcome.

We've talked about this ad nauseam for some of you.

It's just a fact when your quarterback only plays

in four complete games at a 17

and he is a high level borderline elite level quarterback,

you're doomed nine times at a 10 or 99 times out of 100.

You're doomed and then they had everything else

that was lost to them.

So assuming they don't go through that next year

and I'll just assume that I'm expecting the playoffs next year,

I'm expecting 10 wins and playoff contention

and a playoff birth.

Sure, you can look at the NFC and say,

well, I mean, the giants look so much better.

Philly stole the class of the division.

Dallas is capable, especially now that they've kept,

and they've got the two best wide receivers in the division

in terms of starting number one and number two.

Yeah, Chicago and Green Bay and Detroit will bounce back.

They had injuries.

Yes, the Seattle Seahawks are the reigning world champions

and the Rams were better maybe this past year

and are better even next year.

But they let seven teams in and I see Washington as a,

to comfortably be in that mix, you got to be a 10 win team.

Nine's not going to do it.

Green Bay was 97 and one and snagged the seven seed.

But the five in six seeds, the non division winners

were both 12 and five, the Rams and the 49ers.

So first chance to look ahead to 2026,

Pat C wants me to say playoffs, I just said it.

I think that that's my first blush on next year.

I feel good about what they've done in free agency.

I feel good about what they can perhaps add at number seven,

although that's a bigger coin flip than what they've added

in free agency.

I can't see any way that they could be worse defensively

and I think there's a chance they could be much better.

And then just having Jaden Daniels healthy

and playing 17 games means that your team's going to be much better

than it was last year.

This is the first of many that will take place between now

and probably the Friday before opening day

before they're opening Sunday night Sunday game.

I didn't say Sunday night on purpose or you try to slip that in.

I don't see them being in that same eight stand alone game situation

next year off of five and 12, but they'll get enough.

They'll be in the stand alone spot when the schedule comes out

much more than they used to, but yeah,

that's my, that's my wave post wave one free agency first guess.

So playoff team next year at 10 wins 301230980 301230980.

Your first guess it comes post free agency wave number one.

What do you have them doing next year?

Max will give you his answer when we come back as well.

Phone lines are open 301230980 Kevin G and show the team 980 the team 980.com.

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So now that we're through sort of free agency wave number one,

and Washington's added the most new players,

12 out of the 16 that they've signed since a week ago Monday,

and spent the third most amount of money in the league per spot track.

The question is, are you looking at a playoff team,

yes or no, in 2026, why or why not?

I say yes, I mean, it's the NFL.

Things change, they change quickly.

And it's so easy to identify the number one runaway reason

why Washington cratered in 2025.

They didn't have their best players playing for them

for enough of the time.

And now they've added better players, certainly,

on the side of the ball that played the worst.

And you've got two new coordinators, which are unknowns.

That's the question mark area.

I feel good about David Blow, I do,

but it's based on what everybody else has told me about David Blow.

We haven't seen it.

He's never been in that spotlight of calling plays

and having to do it on a Sunday at one o'clock against the Cowboys or the Eagles.

We'll see what he is as a play collar.

We'll see what he is as an in-game adjuster, et cetera.

But they're better player-wise on defense,

no matter what they add in the draft.

And all you got to say about offensively is, if they're healthy,

you know that they will be a much better team offensively.

I mean, hell, they were middle of the pack offensively last year

in most key metrics.

And they're starting quarterback only played four games,

start to finish out of the 17.

So I say early first blush post wave one of free agency.

I say it's a playoff team.

I think they can win 10 games next year and be in the mix.

I don't see this because of the roster overall

as a Super Bowl contender necessarily.

But the quarterback can change that, obviously.

That quarterback elevated this team to within 60 minutes of the Super Bowl in 2024.

But I definitely see, you know, assuming health

and be hard, be hard pressed to repeat what they had last year.

Unless there's something systemically wrong

with their setup, with their training, whatever it is.

But assuming that last year was an aberration injury-wise,

yeah, I'm expecting a good football team in 2026

and one that wins enough games to qualify for the NFC playoffs.

Max?

You know, I do think that they've done enough so far.

I think Adam Peters has done a really, really good job

at raising the floor and building out that depth now.

I don't think you're going to be able to overhaul it as much as I would like

or any of us would like in one off season.

But you can do a lot in order to supplement that.

And I think wave one of free agency has shown us that.

I mean, signing this many guys, it's a lot.

And they've added a lot in the debt in a lot of depth

in that edge room, which they really, really needed.

Because we found out pretty quickly into the season

how down bad we were in that spot.

So yeah, I am expecting them to be a lot better

than a 4-5 win team this year.

So yeah, I am expecting them to at least be competitive

and in the hunt for it down the stretch.

Playoff, yes or no?

Yes.

OK.

At least a while.

Yes, for both of us.

3-0-1-2-3-0-0-9-8-3-0-1-2-3-0-0-0-9-8.

And Andy, no, I'm not wearing commander's gear.

I'm wearing, it's only, there's a command.

I don't own one thing with commanders on it.

And I never will.

Never will.

But I do have a few things with the W on it.

That indicates Washington to me.

Let's go Bobby in North Carolina.

Bobby, go ahead.

Hey, Kevin, good morning.

Playoff is a definite yes.

This is going to be the best roster.

I think in the three years, this new regime has been together.

Would you agree on that going into the season?

Yeah, for sure.

Right now, 100%.

But it makes sense, right?

Because they inherited such a bad one.

And they had a lot of other big fish to fry

in the first year, year and a half.

By year three, you would certainly

hope that they would have the best roster they've

had in three years.

And right now, it certainly looks

like they're on their way to that.

Doesn't guarantee anything as we both know.

Yeah.

You're right.

But typically, though, Kevin, when a new regime

comes in this year or three, we're

to usually make your mark, OK?

So I'm looking, if we can keep funding up

right for 17 weeks, Kevin, he plays

with a chip in our shoulder.

Kevin, he's going to have a big chip in his shoulder.

Because he's been here in all this noise out there.

People are talking about his injury prone.

And maybe he's not as good as he's supposed, you know,

should be and all this stuff.

So I mean, Adam's not done yet.

You know, we're going to get a couple of numbers.

Yeah.

We're going to get that room out.

If we still got the draft, you know,

if love is gone, they're going to probably

get another infinite player on defense.

But he's improved all three levels

of the defense, Kevin, last week.

I mean, what he did, and he didn't overspend.

And I'm very, I mean, he did a hell of a job last week.

We've got younger players, faster players, better players

than we had in his first three years.

So yeah, I'm very optimistic.

And it goes back to five, you know, keeping him healthy.

And you don't have a chance every week, Kevin.

You and I both know that.

But I'm very excited about this.

I still want to know who the Mike linebacker is.

And I'd still love another corner defensively.

And I would never shy away from, you know,

any of the past rushers that are there at seven

just because you added a way in chase on and many hue and,

you know, et cetera.

I don't think David Bailey, my guy,

will make it to seven at this point.

It certainly doesn't appear that that's the case.

But I would definitely consider Bane.

I don't care about the short arms.

I know what kind of motor he has.

And he might be there at seven.

So to your point, of course, he's not done

because we still have the draft,

but he's not done because the brand and I,

you question still hangs out there.

There's the Trayvon digs and Stefan digs, you know,

wondering whether or not there could be some interest there.

But they still have a number two wide receiver

to try to add to this team.

And probably, you know, your Mike linebacker and a corner.

I would say that those three, oh, and a center, of course.

So they're not solid across the board,

but they're certainly better than they've been.

Thanks, Bobby.

As always, it's good to mitch in Manassas.

Mitch, we are through Wave 1 of Free Agency.

What's your first blush expectation

next year, playoffs or not?

All right, so my expectation is not playoffs, Kevin.

But I do think the team will be vastly improved.

But unfortunately, the other teams in the division

are going to be improved, too, I think.

And I also am excited about the David Blau era of offense,

just because of where he came from when he was a quarterback

at Purdue, and for Jeff Brom, who had exciting offenses

all the time and still does at Louisville.

And Louisville still does, yeah.

And Brom was always a really smart quarterback.

I don't think he was physically gifted.

And that's why I don't think he really

lasted in the NFL, other than being a practice squad player.

You're saying Blau, not Brom.

Blau, yeah, Blau.

Blau was the first player.

I think you said Brom, Brom, I'm sorry, yes.

Yeah, I messed up there.

But he learned a lot under Brom.

No doubt.

And I'm so quarterback guru.

Yeah, Brom, I mean, Brom with the Patrino tree,

that whole thing, they have done a phenomenal job

with quarterbacks.

And Blau mentioned Brom, obviously,

during his introductory presser.

All right, thank you, Mitch.

Appreciate that.

Everybody on hold, stay there.

The question following now, wave one of free agency essentially

ended is, did they do enough for you

to expect playoffs next year?

They're not done yet to Bobby's point.

They're not done yet.

But based on what they've done, your first chance,

certainly subject to change between now and the opener.

But your first chance to weigh in,

post-free agency wave number one playoffs,

yes or no, why or why not, 301230, 0980.

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