00:00We'll turn our attention to the early game in Winston-Salem, SMU, fresh off their upset win on the road in Death Valley last weekend against the Clemson Tigers goes back on the road. Coach, they're opening up as only a three and a half point road favorite. We're seeing two and a halves across multiple books right now. Total sets in at 54 and a half.
00:21Wake Forest over-exceeding expectations in year number one with Dickard at the helm there, four and two overall. They've had an extra week of preparation. How do you see this game playing out?
00:33Well, I'll tell you, I think that spread being so little is because of the great job they've done at Wake Forest. They're doing a great job. They're upward trending just as is SMU.
00:46And they've become like a lot of the mid, the mid, the Midland teams, the middle of the conference teams are playing better and they're sitting out there in contention for everything.
00:56And so at home, the way they are playing, I think it's going to be a tough match for SMU. Now I do have SMU winning this game. SMU really has not lost a conference game in regular season for two years.
01:09And they are riding that quarterback. Kevin Jennings is playing very well. You know, he's kind of shifted his talents. He came in as a dual threat quarterback, but this year they're making him or getting him to perform as a pocket passer.
01:23He's only got 25 yards rushing for the year, but I want to say he's first in the conference in touchdown passes tied for a second, I believe in total yardage, but he's doing a great job.
01:33And SMU just keeps moving along. So no matter that Wake Forest, yes, is playing well, but I do believe so is SMU.
01:43It's going to be a tight ball game, but I think they are playing well enough to go out there down to Winston-Salem and beat Wake Forest.
01:51I think it's intriguing when you think about SMU, you think about the, just the coaching success of Rhett Lashley, their head coach.
01:58You think finesse, you think wide open offense, and they're averaging well over 30 points per game entering this ball game, but they have done it in back-to-back years on the defensive side of the ball.
02:09This is a front seven that enters this game with one of the best rush defenses in all of college football, holding opposing offenses to only 97 rushing yards per game, only 2.8 yards per carry.
02:21They held opponents in back-to-back weeks under 100 yards rushing, coach.
02:26Coach, they held Clemson to only 35 yards on the ground. That is a dominant defensive effort.
02:32And when we talk big picture potentially going up back into maybe a college football playoff appearance, you got to love the way this front seven is playing right now.
02:41Well, you know, Rhett Ashley is one of those offensive coordinators, and there are not many of them, that understand the importance of building a great defense.
02:49And I think that's what he has done because he has been known as an offensive head coach that's going to score points.
02:55But SMU, with the NIL and with their efforts, have put together a complete football team, both sides of the football.
03:03That's why, you know, his name doesn't come up much.
03:05But he's one of those coaches out there that is taking a team that's, I guess, considered not that primo job, that top five or ten programs in America.
03:14He's done an incredible job down there.
03:17And just like Jeff Brom at Louisville, who is the winningest coach in the ACC over the last 30 years, here's the head coach at SMU, Rhett Lashley.
03:29He has not lost a conference game in the two years they've been in the conference.
03:33So he's done it because he's playing great defense and not just going out there and playing offensive football alone.
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