This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Welcome to The Single Wing, where Steven Godfrey takes subscriber questions on a wide range of college football topics. This week, Godfrey's officially issuing a Gangster AD badge (Go Vawls), and we're also discussing the come-up at Virginia Tech, the veteran plains-…

Richard has a conversation with Eric Galko, the director of football operations and player personnel for the East-West Shrine Bowl. It’s wide-ranging: Eric shares his 2024 NFL Draft hot takes and QB rankings, then talks about how the NFL views college players—and how well their programs are developing them. Eric tells us whether NIL actually ruined…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com In 2023, Neal Brown was the industry's most fireable head coach. Then he had a good enough year to get a small contract extension. Who is 2024’s most fireable coach? Well, there are a few contenders. Godfrey, Richard, and Alex take the temperature on a handful of coa…

Week 1 has always had tons of warmup games, but the schedule usually has a big handful of bangers. In 2024, that’s not the case. There are barely any games pitting Power 4 teams against each other and as a trickle-down, not many all-Group of 5 matchups of note either. Yes, there are a few blockbusters (LSU-USC, Georgia-Clemson), but look beyond tha…

Richard has ideas for how to make college football’s on-field rules a little bit better. Alex and Godfrey like some of them and don’t like others. Let’s discuss the optimal width for the hashmarks, whether it’s time to shift the rules around RPOs and linemen downfield, the NFL’s new take on the kickoff, and then some more chaotic ideas that we’ve b…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey's answering your questions about Lane Kiffin's short- and long-term plans now that Bama has hired a Nick Saban replacement who isn't him. Let's also discuss the vital signs of Year Zero as a concept, plus Florida's DEI mess and any effect recruiting, Mel Tuck…

Spring practice is a lot of hype and not a lot of substance, but sometimes we can learn a lot. Alex, Richard, and Godfrey talk about what to pay serious attention to right now and the five most interesting teams of spring 2024: Alabama, Michigan, Army, Ohio State, and Texas A&M. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other sub…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey's answering your questions about SEC Network bias (lol), the Big 12's inadvertent but noticeable "be good at basketball" strategy, how effective Ohio State's new AD will be, Colorado rumors (no), CFB programs hiring media (also no), and Nick Saban eating his …

Godfrey looked a bit deeper into how a 12-team playoff system will work in practice, and he ended up feeling ... surprisingly optimistic about the future of the sport? We're just as surprised as you are. He, Alex, and Richard talk through the types of teams this new system will benefit, the tradeoffs that Cinderellas will make, and why all in all, …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Clemson filed a lawsuit against the Atlantic Coast Conference on Tuesday in South Carolina, seeking to free itself from the conference’s grant of rights and set up an exit from the league. Alex and Steven react to that complaint, which comes off as an absurd attempt …

College football teams now have "general managers." How did the sport get here? How are they similar to GMs for pro teams, and how are they different? And will a college GM ever be able to fire a coach? Production: Anthony Vito. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey, Richard, and Alex talk out three big news developments over the past week. The Big Ten and SEC continue (3:01) to fight for extra spots and extra money in a new College Football Playoff system, so let’s address why the arguments in their favor are so hollow.…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com The first installment of the Split Zone Duo Book Club: What's it like to write a book-length jeremiad aimed directly at the ruling class of an entire sport? Author and reporter Dan Wetzel joins Godfrey in Michigan to talk about Death to the BCS, a seminal work examin…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Richard and Alex take your questions on a long list of topics, in order: Neal Brown’s extension at West Virginia, the literal risks of private equity coming to college football, if Arizona messed up by hiring a coach before replacing the AD, if Emmitt Smith’s comment…

Michigan’s quarterback is the latest national championship winner and draft prospect to kick off a very specific kind of national debate about QB play. Alex and Richard interrogate why players like JJ McCarthy become debate catnip (and then personally make JJ McCarthy into debate catnip, because Alex cannot resist). Production: Anthony Vito. Subscr…

After 2023, Nick Saban and Jim Harbaugh left, and Alabama and Michigan fans worried a lot about assistant coach hires made by their successors. It got Alex thinking: Do national championship head coaches ace their assistant hires out of the gate? What happens when they mess up the important work of filling out a coaching staff? SZD goes through 25 …

In a roundup of college football news, Godfrey, Richard, and Alex talk about Georgia State’s interesting new head coach hire (1:30), Paul Johnson excoriating Geoff Collins (10:35), the upcoming EA Sports College Football game and the payment to players for appearing (25:45), and the reunion of the Mid-American Conference and UMass (30:44). Producti…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey's trying to keep the Beavers relevant nationally as the P12-to-P2 era "dawns." We also got questions galore about G5 playoff chances, post-playoff bracket bowls, Mark Stoops' mentality after the A&M mess, why Godfrey was Big Wrong about UCF and Gus Malzhan, a…

Godfrey presents Richard and Alex with four decades' worth of MAC head coach firings and hirings to try to figure out if G5 football jobs are on the decline. The answer is messy, but one thing's for sure – coaches have been running to coordinator gigs for a long, long time. Ask Nick Saban. Production: Anthony Vito. This is a public episode. If you’…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Sometimes, the haters call Split Zone Duo “an NFL podcast.” Today we prove them right by previewing the Super Bowl in our own way. Joining Alex and Richard is special guest Arif Hasan, publisher of Wide Left, a great newsletter that covers three of the biggest beats …

Alex, Richard, and Godfrey discuss a new NLRB ruling that might (might!) result in employee status and union organizing for college athletes. Then the group talks about recent worries about college football losing coaches to the NFL. Is this new? Yes and no. Is everything good at UCLA? Production: Anthony Vito. This is a public episode. If you’d li…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com DJ Durkin continues to get SEC coordinator jobs. In the past few seasons, he’s bounced from Ole Miss to Texas A&M to Auburn as some of the most famous head coaches in college football have hired him to lead their defenses. An older stop on Durkin’s journey now tends …

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Godfrey's here to help make TCU better (Why is Kendal Briles still there?), talk about how bad D.C.’s NFL stadium is, reflect on Tennessee's lost decades, raise money for Georgia Tech, and improve Indiana's nickname game. Also there's a big examination of the chasm b…

Richard, Godfrey, and Alex start the show with a discussion of Sherrone Moore’s elevation to Michigan head coach and Iowa’s maybe-good but definitely-weird hire of Tim Lester as offensive coordinator. Then it’s time to revisit 2023 predictions, talk about what we learned, and forecast what this long offseason in CFB will be all about. Production: A…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Split Zone Duo is proud to present a long-sought-after project: The feature-length commentary track for The Blind Side (2009). This movie got a Best Picture nomination at the Oscars, and Sandra Bullock won Best Actress. Steven Godfrey, who covered Ole Miss around the…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com When Nick Saban retired, Alex wrote a column for the Ringer under the headline “Nick Saban Made Alabama Too Big to Fail.” The same day, Godfrey argued in the Washington Post that the “theory that a post-Saban Alabama is too big to fail … ultimately misunderstands the…

Former SB Nation coworker/SZD co-conspirator Rodger Sherman quit his day job before the 2023 season and drove to over 60 (!) college football games across the country. Enjoy the tale of Road Rodge, with a weird bonus moment at the end. Production: Anthony Vito. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get ac…

Alex and Richard spend a half-hour talking about the national championship, the 2023 Michigan team's place in history, Jim Harbaugh cementing his legacy, and what might be next for Washington. Production: Anthony Vito. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzone…

Please enjoy this recording of Split Zone Duo Live in Houston, taped the night of 1/6/24 and presented by our friends at Homefield Apparel. We had an amazing crowd and loved doing a show about the season that was and the national championship between Michigan and Washington. But really, what got into Godfrey at the beginning of this show? Thanks to…

Alex and Richard start the show with discussion of LSU cleaning house on the defensive coaching staff, UNC wasting Drake Maye on bad defenses and splitting with Gene Chizik, and Frank Harris’ legendary run at UTSA. Then it’s time to preview the FCS title game between Montana and South Dakota State (13:31) and the Playoff National Championship betwe…

Alex and Richard break down the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl semifinals, with brief previewing of Michigan-Washington baked in throughout. Then some reflections on a trip to Pasadena. Production: Anthony Vito. This is a public episode. If you’d like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subsc…

Richard reports on this year’s big international incident at Playoff semifinal media availabilities. (There’s always one.) Then Richard, Alex, and Godfrey share a few thoughts on bowl season to date before getting into the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl. Both semifinals get on-field previews, and Alex and Godfrey explain why they see the institution of t…

Godfrey, Richard, and Alex go through some high-level recruiting storylines on National Signing Day: Who’s in the NIL danger zone, and who is clearly splashing the cash? Is Florida OK? What is the significance of Dylan Raiola to Nebraska? What do we make of some big developments in the FCS, Division II, and Division III playoffs? Plus a tasting men…

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Richard and Godfrey spin through the highlights of a mostly wrapped-up coach hiring and firing cycle. Some highlights of the discussion: * What the Jon Sumrall hire says about how Tulane does business * Syracuse’s swing on Georgia assistant Fran Brown * Why new Houst…

The transfer portal is packed. Signing Day is approaching. Colorado might actually portal an offensive line? Nebraska might get the No. 1 QB? And college football sits in a weird in-between. Why is this all happening? A few reasons. Plus what to watch for in the Celebration Bowl, the FCS playoffs, D2 and D3, and some bowls this weekend. Production:…

Alex, Richard, and Godfrey submit awards picks for a very SZD-specific set of honors: Power 5/Group of 5 Team of the Year, Game of the Year, Play of the Year, Coach Proof of Concept of the Year, Best Take/Worst Take, and the Ndamukong Suh Award (Best Player Ineligible To Win The Heisman). Alex also shares his process and conclusion in voting on the…

In a special edition of the SZD Hurry-Up, Alex and Richard discuss the Playoff committee's spurning of unbeaten Florida State and then break down the matchups for the New Year's Six. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. This is a public episode. If you’d like…

Alex, Richard, and Godfrey go game-by-game on the most interesting angles surrounding conference championship weekend. Is this the best slate of power conference title games ever? It might be. SMU-Tulane is a stylistic clash. Miami (Ohio) had the best Miami season in the country. Liberty goes for 13-0. The computers pit UNLV against Boise. And Appa…

Rivalry Weekend! Standings implications! Hot seats and poachings! There’s a lot going on. Alex and Richard recap the final week of the regular season with an eye toward big games and bizarre coaching decisions. Stay tuned at splitzoneduo.com for bonus episodes on the state of the coaching carousel. Production: Anthony Vito. See Privacy Policy at ht…

Alex, Richard, and Godfrey break down Ohio State-Michigan and then get into a long list of other juicy games on Rivalry Weekend. It’s that time of year. Production: Anthony Vito. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info. This is a public episode. If you’d like to …

Richard and Alex recap the 12th week of the college football season. Washington and Texas win in businesslike fashion, Georgia looks primed for a threepeat, Michigan gets away with one, Ohio State revs it up, James Madison’s dream season has a hiccup, and UNLV continues to astonish. Production: Anthony Vito. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/…

Alex, Richard, and Godfrey talk through the high-stakes, bizarre legal fight unfolding between Oregon State, Washington State, and the rest of the Pac-12. And then we’ve got a Week 12 preview with a different flavor: College football is the rare sport that intentionally waters down the penultimate week of the season. The reason might seem obvious, …

Richard and Alex take you on a quick but detailed voyage through Week 11 in college football. Michigan clarifies what it is and what Penn State is. Oklahoma State continues to shock the world. Georgia treats Ole Miss badly. And the race for the Group of 5's New Year's bowl slot has never looked this wide open. Production: Anthony Vito. See Privacy …

Richard, who broke the news about other Big Ten schools passing around Michigan’s signs, talks with Alex and Godfrey about how the university and fanbase have reacted to his reporting. Plus some college football news from on the ground at the White House, deeper discussion of Michigan vs. the Big Ten, and a detailed preview of the best games of Wee…

Alex and Richard had a great weekend on the ground at college football stadiums, and they’re back after reviewing the rest of Week 10. Alabama-LSU, Bedlam, UGA-Mizzou, Ole Miss-A&M, Troy-South Alabama, and USC-Washington headline a really fun week. Production: Anthony Vito. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Noti…

Richard, Godfrey, and Alex start this week’s show by discussing the savvy maneuvering of Iowa’s new athletic director, Beth Goetz, in announcing the end of Brian Ferentz’s tenure as offensive coordinator. Then let’s group the remaining Playoff possibilities by how their work is cut out for them, and let’s preview a Week 10 slate led by Alabama and …

Richard and Alex lead you on a detailed sprint through the ninth week of the 2023 college football season, headlined by Kansas’ upset of unbeaten Oklahoma. Plus notes on dozens of other games: USC’s defense remains unserious, UGA remains Florida’s boss, and Oregon makes it clear case as a national title contender. Production: Anthony Vito. See Priv…

Richard breaks news in Sports Illustrated about the staffer at the center of the Michigan sign-stealing saga, and he talks about the story with Alex and Steven. The group assesses what we know about Michigan’s operation and what might come next. Production: Anthony Vito. Story link: https://www.si.com/college/2023/10/25/michigan-connor-stalions-tex…

Richard, Alex, and Godfrey take stock of nine teams whose seasons could still go all kinds of different ways, from pretty well (or even very well) to very, very badly: USC, Utah, South Carolina, App State, Mizzou, Tennessee, Memphis, Georgia State, and Air Force. Plus a detailed preview of Week 9 in the form of the SZD Tasting Menu. Production: Ant…

A fast, detailed sprint through all of the interesting things in college football’s Week 8, with Alex Kirshner and Richard Johnson. Penn State and USC weren’t ready for primetime. Marvin Harrison Jr. certainly was. Let’s dissect the ending of that Minnesota-Iowa game. And much more. Production: Anthony Vito. See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/…