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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Steven Godfrey joins Richard and Alex to talk about some stories we’d already planned to mark the halfway point of the season. But first, we’ve got a REALIGNMENT INTERRUPTION, brought to us by James Madison leaving the Sun Belt for the American Conference in 2028. In this episode: 0:26: JMU’s move to the American 9:44: Roster management people and coaches seem to think it’s impossible to find good backup QBs now. Do we agree? And is there a statistical way to see if anything has really changed? (It’s hard because defining a “backup” in a robust statistical way is impossible in modern college football.) 29:09: A change to punt formation rules was supposed to chaos special teams chaos this season. What actually happened? 39:48: Alex expands on FOOTSHOT, his blunt-object stat that elaborates on how often teams shoot themselves in the foot. Hello, Buffs! Producer: Anthony Vito.

Richard Johnson and Alex Kirshner guide you through the best college football week yet this year, led by Georgia’s big win in Tuscaloosa and a Red River upset and then bouncing through dozens more games. Including: * 1:33: SEC, led by Georgia 20, Alabama 17 and Oklahoma 27, Texas 24 * 14:40: Pac-12, led by Boise State 38, Fresno State 31 * 16:23: Big Ten, led by Indiana 20, Nebraska 17 * 25:59: Big 12, led by BYU 24, Iowa State 10 * 29:14: ACC and Notre Dame, led by North Carolina 21, Pitt 17 * 33:43: American, led by Army 20, Tulane 17 * 35:48: Mountain West, led by UNLV 13, North Dakota State 7 * 36:58: MAC, led by Eastern Michigan 25, Akron 23 * 38:49: Sun Belt, led by James Madison 27, Georgia Southern 24 * 43:01: Conference USA, led by FIU 22, New Mexico State 3 Producer: Anthony Vito. THANKS TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS AND PARTNERS * Quo, a business phone service! 20% off your first six months using this link * 10% off a set of Nokian Tyres with code SPLITZONEDUO at: https://www.tires-easy.com/brands/nokian-tires * Shop for college sports apparel at Homefield This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Subscriber mailbag, with questions brought to you by the listeners at www.splitzoneduo.com. Alex Kirshner answers subscriber questions ahead of Week 6! Why does Lincoln Riley always put mediocre defenses on the field? There are three pretty good theories from people who know him well. Is there a surprising reason to think Texas’ offense will turn things around? Does Michigan have a “culture” problem or something more simple? Can Kane Wommack tell us anything much about how the coaching carousel works today? Would the Protect College Sports Act be a bad thing for portal-heavy head coaches? Are stadium renovations over? And plenty more in this mailbag, which is edited by Anthony Vito. CATCH UP ON THIS WEEK AT SPLIT ZONE DUO * Listen to the Week 6 Tasting Menu, our preview of the weekend. Alex and Richard Johnson cover all of the week’s most interesting games and stop along the way to talk about a few big stories and ask some questions. Such as this one: Is South Carolina actually too broke to fire Shane Beamer? * The Charlotte 49ers are the worst team in the country. They are also Split Zone Duo’s TEAM OF THE WEEK. Rodger Sherman talks with Richard about a program whose potential remains completely theoretical, and about how an ambitious move into FBS football can go horribly awry. * We’ll see you Sunday for the Hurry-Up, landing by early afternoon.

Week 6 preview! Richard and Alex talk about what’s interesting to them in the big college football weekend to come, while stopping to cover a handful of big stories along the way. 32:43: Is South Carolina actually too broke to fire Shane Beamer? 47:31: Can Oklahoma score an offensive touchdown in Red River? 1:07:27: When it comes to Cal coach Tosh Lupoi, Richard is … vindicated? 1:10:35: Are Ohio State fans in the “Lunatic Fringe” right to be worried? 1:18:47: Is UNLV a genuine trouble spot for North Dakota State? 1:21:05: Are we fully aligned on Alabama being all the way back, before the Tide host Georgia in a potential hurricane game? 1:27:50: Who wins: Penn State’s stoppable force or USC’s movable object? 1:30:54: Could Fresno State spoil Boise’s run to an unbeaten Pac-12 slate? Producer: Anthony Vito THANKS TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS AND PARTNERS Quo, a business phone service! 20% off your first six months using this link 10% off a set of Nokian Tyres with code SPLITZONEDUO Shop for college sports apparel at Homefield This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Subscriber episode! Join us to hear the whole thing. The Charlotte 49ers are quite possibly the worst team in FBS in 2026, so why should you care? Rodger Sherman joins to explain. Part of Charlotte's story is the actual cautionary tale of moving up from FCS to FBS and the old thing Richard never shuts up about: Winning is not a business model. But there are nearly 1:1 examples of Charlotte-style programs that have found success. We dive into what gives in the Queen City. In this episode: 0:00: Why Charlotte gets the nod this week despite being so bad 5:15: A rapid climb from startup program to the American 16:31: “Winning is not a business model” 30:33: What UTSA got right that the 49ers very much did not Producer: Anthony Vito TEAM OF THE WEEK is a subscriber series where Rodger Sherman and SZD hosts talk about a college football team doing something no one else is doing We’ve already covered the following: Week 1: North Dakota State Week 2: UMass Week 3: Oklahoma State Week 4: Arkansas Week 5: Mississippi State This series will continue all season.

Richard and Rodger Sherman take you on a 30(ish)-minute journey through Week 4 of the college football season. We begin with Missouri beating Florida to a pulp and waltz through the rest of the CFB schedule.SEC * Missouri 45, Florida 17 * Georgia 38, Vanderbilt 14 * Alabama 56, Mississippi State 23 * Tennessee 24, Auburn 14 * Kentucky 35, South Carolina 34 BIG TEN * Ohio State 31, Iowa 14 * USC 25, Washington 21 * Purdue 24, Illinois 17 * Michigan 20, Minnesota 14 * Nebraska 48, Maryland 23 * Northwestern 34, Penn State 13 * Wisconsin 31, Michigan State 3 BIG 12 * BYU 17, TCU 10 * Texas Tech 29, Colorado 7 * Houston 27, UCF 17 * Arizona 34, Cincinnati 7 * Baylor 55, Arizona State 19 * Iowa State 45, West Virginia 42 ACC * Notre Dame 37, North Carolina 26 * Miami 41, Clemson 13 * SMU 25, Boston College 16 * Florida State 38, Virginia 7 * NC State 31, Louisville 28 * Pitt 35, Virginia Tech 33 * Wake Forest 57, Stanford 3 AMERICAN * Memphis 59, Charlotte 8 * UTSA 16, Rice 14 * Temple 17, USF 13 * North Texas 45, Tulsa 44 MOUNTAIN WEST * Air Force 14, Navy 9 * San Jose State 20, Hawaii 16 * NDSU 28, Wyoming 0 * UNLV 39, Cal 31 MAC * Toledo 39, Ball State 24 * WMU 20, Buffalo 17 * Ohio 13, Kent State 10 * Eastern Michigan 35, UMass 14 * Bowling Green 24, Miami (OH) 20 SUN BELT * James Madison 45, Marshall 17 * Louisiana 23, Arkansas State 20 * Louisiana Tech 31, Army 29 CONFERENCE USA * New Mexico State 34, Western Kentucky 13 PAC-12 * Oregon State 56, Colorado State 26 * San Diego State 31, Texas State 29 FBS INDEPENDENTS * Syracuse 42, UConn 41 FCS * Idaho 35, Montana State 34 * Harvard 20, Colgate 17 * Yale 41, Merrimack 28 Producer: Anthony VitoTHANKS TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS AND PARTNERS * Quo, a business phone service! 20% off your first six months using this link * 10% off a set of Nokian Tyres with code SPLITZONEDUO at: https://www.tires-easy.com/brands/nokian-tires * Shop for college sports apparel at Homefield This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Mailbag time! Alex and Richard answer subscriber questions on three broad topics, which sometimes meander into new areas: 0:53: Oklahoma has two losses heading into Red Vier. Who do we blame, and what would we do about it? 11:43: What keeps college football fresh for us, given that it’s now “work”? 17:19: How much has College GameDay changed? And how much of our shifting perception about the show is because we have changed? 29:54: What do we think about the current Protect College Sports Act? Producer: Anthony Vito* What do we think about the current Protect College Sports Act? Producer: Anthony Vito

The regular season is somehow one-third finished. Host emeritus Steven Godfrey joins Richard and Alex for a discussion about nine teams that have really surprised us and, in some cases, caused a big shift in opinion: * 6:09: Michigan * 15:30: Texas * 19:41: Georgia * 23:12: Wake Forest * 26:42: Oregon State * 32:14: Cal * 35:04: UCLA * 39:28: Washington * 43:08: Oregon * 53:46: Texas A&M Producer: Anthony Vito THANKS TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS AND PARTNERS * Quo, a business phone service! 20% off your first six months using this link * 10% off a set of Nokian Tyres with code SPLITZONEDUO * Shop for college sports apparel at Homefield This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

Week 5 preview time! Richard and Alex look at dozens of games and also talk about some messes around college football: 6:28: Two good Friday night games (Pitt-Virginia Tech, Penn State-Northwestern) 14:45: Alabama at Mississippi State: We think the Tide are good, but for obvious reasons, Alex wants this to be State’s time 26:09: Houston is angry at the Big 12 over the scheduling of the Cougars’ game against UCF, which leads to a long talk about Friday night college football and how TV is causing fights like this in all kinds of leagues 32:13: Auburn vs. Tennessee: Richard does not believe in the Auburn offense 36:25: Is UMass about to win 10 games? 39:16: Florida vs. Missouri is one of the games of the week. Alex is trying to figure out the mystery of the Mizzou offensive line 48:16: Could Kirk Ferentz do “it” to Ohio State one more time? 52:39: Will NDSU, JMU, or Boise State eventually lose a shocker? 56:32: Dead cat bounce in Kentucky vs. South Carolina? 1:01:02: Oregon State has one of the most exciting players in the country 1:06:20: Deion Sanders’ Colorado program is falling apart in new ways 1:08:44: USC is poised to have a nice rebound against Washington Producer: 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/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com The Mississippi State Bulldogs have the most exciting young QB in college football and are about to play their biggest game in years. Rodger Sherman joins Alex to talk about Kamario Taylor, the stroke of luck that led a QB of this caliber to State, why it’s exhausting to talk about the transfer portal, and why a longtime SEC bottomfeeder should go ahead and make the playoff right effing now. Producer: Anthony Vito TEAM OF THE WEEK is a subscriber series where Rodger Sherman and SZD hosts talk about a college football team doing something no one else is doing We’ve already covered the following: * Week 1: North Dakota State * Week 2: UMass * Week 3: Oklahoma State * Week 4: Arkansas This series will continue all season.

Richard and Alex take you on a 30(ish)-minute journey through Week 4 of the college football season. We begin with Iowa’s stunning win at the Big House and meander through dozens of games from there, in this order: Iowa 20, Michigan 19 Oregon 41, USC 27 Wisconsin 24, Penn State 20 Notre Dame 49, Purdue 10 Indiana 29, Northwestern 23 Ohio State 42, Illinois 19 UCLA 54, Maryland 3 Nebraska 31, Michigan State 13 Minnesota 27, Washington 24 Texas 20, Tennessee 17 Georgia 41, Oklahoma 13 Florida 52, Ole Miss 28 Alabama 49, South Carolina 18 LSU 35, Texas A&M 6 Mississippi State 31, Missouri 24 Arkansas 34, Tulsa 6 Auburn 21, Vanderbilt 15 Kentucky 45, South Alabama 21 Texas Tech 49, Sam Houston 14 Utah 31, Iowa State 17 Baylor 23, Colorado 13 Cincinnati 31, Kansas State 26 UCF 21, TCU 13 Oklahoma State 41, West Virginia 24 Wake Forest 30, Louisville 27 Virginia Tech 21, Boston College 14 Clemson 24, California 10 NC State 41, App State 31 Stanford 34, Georgia Tech 27 Army 21, Temple 17 UAB 24, Navy 20 Tulane 24, Southern Miss 21 UTSA 59, Colorado State 45 Oregon State 33, UTEP 7 Wyoming 27, Hawai’i 10 USF 14, Bowling Green 6 Kent State 26, Ball State 13 Miami (OH) 24, UConn 21 UMass 35, Sacramento State 6 Toledo 41, San Diego State 16 Boise State 32, Western Michigan 7 Houston 42, Georgia Southern 28 Georgia State 35, Northern Illinois 14 James Madison 46, Old Dominion 20 FAU 45, UL Monroe 17 Liberty 34, Coastal Carolina 17 New Mexico 42, New Mexico State 18 Arizona 34, Washington State 24 Producer: Anthony Vito THANKS TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS AND PARTNERS Quo, a business phone service! 20% off your first six months using this link 10% off a set of Nokian Tyres with code SPLITZONEDUO at: https://www.tires-easy.com/brands/nokian-tires Shop for college sports apparel at Homefield Producer: 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/subscribe

Our big preview of Week 4, with little notes and things to watch in dozens of games that we find interesting. Included but not limited to: Clemson faces a pivotal moment in … Berkeley? Texas visits a different kind of Tennessee team Boise State visits Western Michigan with major playoff implications (plus Boise’s coach stirs the pot over the Michigan Hail Mary) Iowa and Michigan prepare to play an ugly one Why is Florida favored to beat Ole Miss? A huge list of coaches face their old teams USC’s latest chance to change its trajectory under Lincoln Riley Texas A&M and LSU: Someone’s going to be miserable 4-0 UMass? Producer: Anthony Vito THANKS TO OUR SUBSCRIBERS AND PARTNERS Quo, a business phone service! 20% off your first six months using this link 10% off a set of Nokian Tyres with code SPLITZONEDUO Shop for college sports apparel at Homefield This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Three games into Ryan Silverfield’s coaching tenure, Arkansas fans are in open revolt against their athletic director. The team is bad, and the university overlords are already running a “review” of the athletic program. How did the vibes get this bad this quickly? It’s a long story, and it’s only somewhat about the coach who was under pressure from the second he took the job. Rodger Sherman joins Alex for our latest TEAM OF THE WEEK episode, where we finally focus on a program where things are not going well. * 1:05: Ryan Silverfield’s honeymoon never started * 7:22: The coaching hire, and the cost of waiting another year on Sam Pittman * 15:25: What Arkansas gained and lost by joining the SEC * 18:59: The Waltons, the chicken money, and Arkansas’ billionaire relationships * 28:59: Hunter Yurachek’s mounting problems * 39:52: What would success even look like for Arkansas now? TEAM OF THE WEEK is a subscriber series where Rodger Sherman and SZD hosts talk about a college football team doing something no one else is doing. Scroll for episodes on NDSU, UMass, and Oklahoma State.

Richard and Alex recap a busy Week 3 in college football, starting with Ole Miss’ cathartic win over Lane Kiffin’s LSU and continuing through 48 more games. Kentucky exposes Texas A&M, South Carolina’s slide accelerates, Clemson finds a flash of urgency, North Dakota State enters the Playoff conversation, and Grand Valley State scores 96 points. We sort by conference home stadium, in this order: SEC, led by the showdown in Oxford Big Ten, featuring a sad affair in College Park Big 12, where BYU might just be the best team ACC, where Miami definitely is the best team Group of 6, where the stage is now set for Broncos vs. Broncos THANKS TO OUR PARTNERS Quo, a business phone service! 20% off your first six months using this link 10% off a set of Nokian Tyres with code SPLITZONEDUO at: https://www.tires-easy.com/brands/nokian-tires Shop for college sports apparel at Homefield This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.splitzoneduo.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.com Rodger Sherman guides Alex through our latest “Team of the Week” episode, featuring the Oklahoma State Cowboys. This subscriber special is our weekly look at one team in college football that is truly trying to do something different from every other program in the sport. In this episode, we talk about Oklahoma State from the following angles: * 0:26: Going from losing to Tulsa to beating Oregon * 3:40: Importing the North Texas offense behind Eric Morris * 8:25: Morris’s absurd QB development history, from Baker Mayfield to Drew Mestemaker with a whole lot in between * 21:59: A program of unusual highs and lows * 26:53: What T. Boone Pickens built, and why he was a different kind of megabooster than we typically see * 33:40: Can the Morris model last in the Big 12? What does OKST need to do to give it a long-term chance? Producer: Anthony Vito