It's been a long time, but we're back on the air waves. I've been looking for a way to continue to bring the podcast while handling the duties at the mothership and finally arrived at this solution: short daily takes for the people. I'm still going to pick up the guests going forward but right now I've had a need to podcast and this is a way to take a lot of what I've been writing about and spin it into something you all can consume on the reg.

First up, we've got the new rule at Miami. Here's the take from Your Best 11 and on the show I get into why I don't like the rule or the rule's provisions to thwart talking to agents. I also give some quick thoughts about the "Should We Ban College Football" debate that took place last night. If you have not watched the debate, you can find that two hour video here. It is an, um, interesting watch and one that I hope my readers and listeners are better prepared for than the average Joe; a lot of it is stuff we've already covered here at ITB.

Oh, and we're on Stitcher Radio now people!


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Things are still rocking and rolling at the mothership but we've got a Tuesday treat for you all via the radio waves and the miracles of podcasting. I joined The Insiders, Mark Thomas and Mike Maniscalco, to talk about the ACC, the SEC and the NFL draft. The ACC is not devoid of all talent but even as the league's NFL draft pick numbers remain among the nation's best, the teams cannot get wins on the field. Obviously I have a brilliant plan on how to fix this, it involves a time machine and will never happen.

Then, of course, we talk about the most recent development on the college football landscape. A PLAYOFF IS COMING AND OMG IT IS GOING TO BE SO FREAKING TOTALLY AWESOME AND BETTER THAN EVERYTHING EVER!! Have a listen as I thrust and parry my way to not embracing this change for anything but more ways to complain about college football for everyone. Mark my words people, you will not be happy!

But in all seriousness, there are some issues that still exist and playoff or not they need to be addressed before we can call this next step a solution. As always, a great time on ESPN Triangle with the guys from 620 The Buzz.

Thanks to my man Josh Goodson for getting me the audio so quickly.

To listen to the show click here or subscribe to one of the methods listed below.

If you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedburner , but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS Feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for "In The Bleachers"on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Blackberry users like your fearless leader can paste this link into the "Add Podcast Channel" option when you download the Blackberry Podcast App.

Got a question? Email it in to InTheBleachers @ GMAIL (dot) COM

Yes, we're on the Google+ so find "+Michael Felder" on there and we'll get you in the ITB Circle!

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I know it's been quite some time since we've ran a podcast up the flagpole for you fine folks but with good reason; been getting my bidness handled behind the scenes and as you all noticed last week I've got a new job. Well with that new job comes a few more radio spots and with a few more radio spots comes a few more ITB Podcasts in addition to the shows we're knocking out in the near future.

This is a spot from Fayetteville. Nope, not my homeland in NC, the other Fayetteville in Arkansas, home of the Hogs, Woo Pig Sooie and all that jazz. Great chance to hop on with the guys from ESPN radio down there and talk a little national college football, SEC and of course Hogs. We knock out the LSU vs Alabama debate plus discuss how legit the SEC East's chance of winning a conference title is and then settle in on the Hogs and what we expect of the Razorbacks in 2012.


To listen to the show click here or subscribe to one of the methods listed below.

If you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedburner , but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS Feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for "In The Bleachers"on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Blackberry users like your fearless leader can paste this link into the "Add Podcast Channel" option when you download the Blackberry Podcast App.

Got a question? Email it in to InTheBleachers @ GMAIL (dot) COM

Yes, we're on the Google+ so find "+Michael Felder" on there and we'll get you in the ITB Circle!

Hit us up on Twitter @InTheBleachers!

As you all should well know I took Tuesday to write a quick spot on Gunner Kiel and the way fans are reacting to a kid they don't know and his decision not to go to LSU. Ultimately it is something that has become a pet cause and rightfully so, adults being nasty to and about kids for a decision that they have no bearing on is getting out of hand. It is the ugliest part of the sport and "just ignore it" has absolutely not done anything positive. Time to try something new folks.

Thanks to Mike Maniscalco and Mark Thomas over at ESPN620 and ESPN Triangle I get the chance to talk a bit more about discouraging this type of behavior. Ultimately it has to be a peer focused effort because Joe Fan in Random State, USA likely won't change his tune because Michael Felder says it is unacceptable. It takes a cultural effort from individual communities; physical, fan and online communities, to stem the tied and change what they will and will not "be ok with" out of their populations. Thanks to Shannon Penn for the audio.


To listen to the show click here or subscribe to one of the methods listed below.

If you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedburner, but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS Feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for "In The Bleachers"on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Blackberry users like your fearless leader can paste this link into the "Add Podcast Channel" option when you download the Blackberry Podcast App.

Got a question? Email it in to InTheBleachers @ GMAIL (dot) COM

Yes, we're on the Google+ so find "+Michael Felder" on there and we'll get you in the ITB Circle!

Hit us up on Twitter @InTheBleachers!

Big, big show today as we get long time friend of the program Bomani Jones on to talk about his most recent article over at his new spot, SBNation. You may also know Bomani Jones from his stops on Around the Horn, which he does again this Friday. Bomani wrote a nice piece explaining why, with so much going wrong in the world of college football, a playoff to sate the fans is far from the first thing that should be on folks' agenda. The premise of this is fantastic as college football pundits and fans alike devote such a major portion of their energy and passion to complaining about the BCS and advocating for a playoff on a damn near daily basis.

Jones and I don't waste much time early as we get right to the heart of the matter; the NCAA can't even get universities to cover the full cost of scholarships for the athletes involved or insure the players future at a university but folks are worried about how many more games they can squeeze out of these guys for their own entertainment? The rhetoric has long been about the selfishness of the BCS, of school presidents, of the conferences and how they don't care about fans who "deserve" or "really want" a playoff. Simply put, what about the players?

Novel concept really, being concerned with the actual human beings doing all the work in this process. Bomani and I discuss why the players do seem to be lost in the shuffle, the utter hypocrisy of the schools involved, the disconnect between fans and the reality of college athletics and what can be done to close this gap. To go along with Jones' article I highly recommend the following; Tyler Branch in The Atlantic and all the Joe Nocera info you need from his stop on the podcast.

The second half of the podcast is one of the more chill yet informative and opinionated half hours on college football you'll get. Bomani and I meander through the college football world hitting a myriad of topics that all come up organically in a stroll through the landscape. Everything from Dana Holgorsen's bro-ness plus Jim Mora Jr. and Paul Chryst having new jobs longer than Kevin Sumlin and Larry Fedora to the unique awesomeness that is an Oregon official visit, Texas' high ceiling going forward and Texas A&M making Alabama an even better recruiting school.

Get this podcast in your earholes folks, it'll do you good. Oh and if you're going to be in the New York City area on February 8th, Bomani will be speaking at NYU.


To listen to the show click here or subscribe to one of the methods listed below.

If you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedburner, but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS Feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for "In The Bleachers"on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Blackberry users like your fearless leader can paste this link into the "Add Podcast Channel" option when you download the Blackberry Podcast App.

Got a question? Email it in to InTheBleachers @ GMAIL (dot) COM

Yes, we're on the Google+ so find "+Michael Felder" on there and we'll get you in the ITB Circle!

Hit us up on Twitter @InTheBleachers!

Today we've got the BCS Championship Game as the capper to our season and it is shaping up to be an absolute slugfest. We've got Bama and LSU. The Tide and the Tigers. Alabama and the Bayou Bengals. I broke the game down on Fetch Friday with Russ Mitchell and highly recommend that show as you get ready for the game. Today we've got another BCS Breakdown with ESPN's Charles Arbuckle. Arbuckle is an analyst for the WWL so we get a chance to talk the game from a number of angles. 

Charles and I get into the rematch idea one last time before we kickoff a little discussion on what each team can do to win this ball game. Saban vs Miles. Bama's defense vs the option and a quarterback run threat will be the biggest keys to the game and that should tell your story. For Bama to win they need to get good effort from their punters, some tremendous play from not just Trent Richardson but Marquis Maze and Eddie Lacy as well. On the LSU side expect their defense to play strong and dare the Tide to throw the ball. All in all we're looking at a game that should be another classic as the nation's two best teams take the field.

Oh and if you all didn't know Charles Arbuckle is a former UCLA tight end so I take the time to wrap up the podcast by talking about his thoughts on the new hire for the Bruins. We talk Jim Mora and what the new coach can do to help bring some success back to the school. He offers some great insight as someone close to the program that ultimately wants UCLA to get back to winning ball games and competing in the Pac-12.


To listen to the show click here or subscribe to one of the methods listed below.

If you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedburner, but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS Feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for "In The Bleachers"on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Blackberry users like your fearless leader can paste this link into the "Add Podcast Channel" option when you download the Blackberry Podcast App.

Got a question? Email it in to InTheBleachers @ GMAIL (dot) COM

Yes, we're on the Google+ so find "+Michael Felder" on there and we'll get you in the ITB Circle!

Hit us up on Twitter @InTheBleachers!

We've got a great guest on the show this evening to talk about Saturday's BBVA Compass Bowl down in Birmingham, Alabama, someone who will be there talking about all the action, ESPN's own Charles Arbuckle. The analyst joins us to discuss a game that is quite interesting given the circumstances in which both teams enter the game. For SMU we have a team entering who thought they were about to lose their head coach to Arizona State. In Pitt we have the team that ultimately did lose their coach to the Sun Devils.

Should be an interesting contest as both teams are down their best player; Pitt's Ray Graham and SMU's Zach Line, and are fighting to finish off the season on a positive note. For SMU they're looking to get their second bowl win since 1984 and continue to build on the success that June Jones has brought them. Meanwhile Pitt, with new coach Paul Chryst set to take over after the game, is in a familiar space and the guys on the field know they have to fight for one another to be successful after the adversity this program has faced in the last 13 months.


To listen to the show click here or subscribe to one of the methods listed below.

If you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedburner, but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS Feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for "In The Bleachers"on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Blackberry users like your fearless leader can paste this link into the "Add Podcast Channel" option when you download the Blackberry Podcast App.

Got a question? Email it in to InTheBleachers @ GMAIL (dot) COM

Yes, we're on the Google+ so find "+Michael Felder" on there and we'll get you in the ITB Circle!

Hit us up on Twitter @InTheBleachers!

Fetch Friday is running a little late today but for a good reason, we've got a podcast for you folks. With the BCS Championship Game coming on Monday we decided to get one of our favorite guests on the show, Russ Mitchell again folks! Russ is from the fine folks over at the College Football News and if you don't know he is a big time SEC guy. Perfect to talk over the SEC heavyweight match up between the Bayou Bengals and the Crimson Tide.

Russ and I get into the game from a couple angles, starting with the fact that this BCS game is sitting smack dab in middle of the NFL's build up to wild card weekend. College is fighting with the league for the build up to the culmination of their season and that's a tough row to hoe. Then Mitchell and I get into why LSU is the prohibitive favorite in this rematch of the two juggernauts. We also get into what Alabama must do to win this game and that includes a little Eddie Lacy. Some key players who could have huge games to wrap up and you're all set for Monday.


If the widget doesn't work then be sure to download the podcast here. See as the game is in NOLA here's a little tune for you. I was going to go with some Weezy F. Baby or maybe some Master P but you know, kids are listening and all.


Now we can get to something that has been talked around plenty but might as well be discussed here as it is near and dear to my heart. The lost art of tackling and how the disease that is bad tackling has grossly become and epidemic in the college football world.

Today on the show we've got a real special guest as Joe Nocera lends us a little of his time to talk about the two big college athletics articles he's recently penned. Nocera is a well known columnist from the New York Times who most recently wrote both The College Sports Cartel and Let's Start Paying College Athletes. Both pieces dealt with pressing issues in our sport and coming from his background it is an interesting opinion to get.

The "cartel" article is the first topic we tackle as we look at the NCAA and the override petition signed to hault the $2,000 stipend that was a step towards full cost scholarships. Nocera offers some interesting points and makes it clear that for all the blustering about student athletes and looking out for them schools were quick to revoke the four year scholarship movement and the added money to bridge the gap.

The latter part of the show Nocera and I get into his plan as it pertains to paying college athletes. We outline the plan, hit the Mark Emmert, "subcontractors" argument and discuss how the landscape would change were a plan of this ilk implemented. There is a lot of good info here as Joe Nocera expands upon his plan and wraps up by discussing the possibilities tied to the ruling in the O'Bannon case with regards to athletes.

To listen to the show click here or subscribe to one of the methods listed below.

If you want the podcast you must subscribe to the Feedburner , but if you want to subscribe to the blog please use the RSS Feed. This is for iTunes to be able to archive the shows. You can also search for "In The Bleachers"on iTunes and subscribe to the podcast that way.

Blackberry users like your fearless leader can paste this link into the "Add Podcast Channel" option when you download the Blackberry Podcast App.

Got a question? Email it in to InTheBleachers @ GMAIL (dot) COM

Yes, we're on the Google+ so find "+Michael Felder" on there and we'll get you in the ITB Circle!

Hit us up on Twitter @InTheBleachers!

The last Friday of the year folks and that makes it extra fetch! New Years Eve is just a day away and that means champagne, party hats confetti, make out sessions and all that jazz. Before we get into the score-gy from last night that was Baylor defeating the Washington Huskies we've got a podcast and a rather interesting engagement to discuss.

Yesterday we had Russ Mitchell on the podcast talking all bowls SEC and one of our favorite guest was up to his usual ways as he discussed Taylor Martinez. Not only was he unimpressed with the Nebraska sophomore but Mitchell went so far as to say the quarterback throws "worse than a girl." If you love "The Sandlot" like I do then you know that them's fighting words and we have Erin Sorensen on the show to talk women's throwing abilities as well as T-Magic. Erin writes for Husker Locker as well as contributes to the Unsportsmanlike Conduct show on 1620 The Zone in Omaha, also she is a girl so Russ did his best to offend on all levels.



If you can't grab the show through the widget be sure to click here to get the download. Now, on to the fetch as we close out the year with one of my personal favorite diddies.



Yes we'll discuss Baylor and Washington because that game was absolutely insane to watch but first we've got one of my sports favorites in the news, I guess he loved it so he put a ring on it.