Split Zone Duo: College Football Podcast

Quick Emergency Show: Michigan Hires Kyle Whittingham

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comAlex and Richard spend 23 minutes talking about Michigan’s holiday hiring of former Utah coach Kyle Whittingham:* In a time of intense national focus on the age of people in leadership positions (hmm, wonder where that came from), the 66-year-old Whittingham is unusually old to be taking this job. We wouldn’t worry.* Whittingham’s recruiting at Utah became a pressure point that may have contributed to him leaving. How much does that matter as he moves to a job with a built-in financial advantage?* Whittingham has been coaching Big Ten teams in the Pac-12 and Big 12 for years. What does he need to do differently in the ACTUAL Big Ten?

The 2025 College Football Holiday Mega-Mailbag

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.splitzoneduo.comFor your holiday listening, Alex and Richard take on dozens of questions from SplitZoneDuo.com’s paid subscribers. Let’s start with the juicy but sad breakup of Notre Dame and USC, move to the coaching carousel, and then have some fun. A rough listing of the questions featured in this episode, in order:* What’s actually going on with Notre Dame and USC breaking up their football rivalry, and whose fault is it?* What is Michigan’s realistic play in the coaching carousel, and who could they actually hire?* Is Michigan likely to have a coach in place by the bowl game, or is that assumption wrong?* Is a bridge coach (specifically Biff Poggi) a viable or sensible option for Michigan?* Kyle Whittingham vs. Brian Kelly: Who is the better “CEO” head coach?* With so many Power 4 openings, is the best path to a top job now being a successful P4 coordinator?* What happened at Ohio, how should they move forward, and why did they handle it better than Michigan?* Why does Warde Manuel still have a job (pending investigation)?* Is Pat Fitzgerald possibly a worse pure football coach than Jonathan Smith but better positioned because of NIL and donor buy-in? Is “coach who can unlock donor money” now a core hiring archetype?* Will Michigan State’s new $400 million donation allow them to immediately spend big on the roster?* What are agency “speed-dating” events for coaches and athletic directors?* Does the modern college football calendar make it harder for FCS programs to reset or fire coaches?* Will the calendar lead to more long-tenured FCS coaches staying put at big programs?* What are the chances Ed Orgeron resurfaces on LSU’s staff?* Why didn’t Dan Mullen come up for any of the open head coaching jobs?* What’s really wrong at Florida State beyond portal hits and misses?* If an AD tried to reverse-engineer Curt Cignetti, what traits would they be looking for?* What goes on your CFB trip bucket list?* New York or LA: The better CFB city?* Why do national college football narratives so often default to NY/LA logic when the sport itself doesn’t?* What are our goals for this podcast in 2026?Thank you so much for being part of what we do. We’ll see you around New Year’s Eve to get you set for the CFP quarterfinals and FCS title game.Producer: Anthony Vito

Are CFB's Bowls Screwed, or Are We Just Old?

These are difficult times for the college football bowl games that aren’t part of the Playoff system. Player opt-outs were already a thing, and now entire teams don’t want to take part. At best, the games are internet memes featuring some enjoyable football on the side. At worst, nobody cares. How many of these problems are truly new, and how many of them feel worse than they are because we have a distorted picture of being young in the 1990s and 2000s? Alex and Rodger challenge their priors on how much bowl season has changed and how much of bowls’ decline comes down to nostalgia. Want much more? Become a paid subscriberSubscribers get weekly bonus episodes, usually more than one during the season and postseason, as well as the chance to ask questions and engage more deeply with the hosts. We’d love to have you.Thanks to our partners and subscribers* 20% off Dad Water: https://drinkdadwater.com/discount/SZD* Nokian Tyres: https://www.nokiantyres.com/szd* Shop Homefield at https://www.homefieldapparel.com/* Modelo: Drink responsibly. Beer imported by Crown Imports, Chicago, IL 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

CFB Playoff Round 1 Hurry-Up: Miami Ice

Richard and Alex dive into the results from first round of the College Football Playoff, in the following order: Miami over Texas A&M, Alabama over Oklahoma, Ole Miss over Tulane, and James Madison vs. the idea that Group of 5 teams should have less access to the tournament. Then, a tour through FCS, Division II, Division III, and the NAIA national championship. Producer: Anthony Vito. Want much more? Become a paid subscriberSubscribers get weekly bonus episodes, usually more than one during the season and postseason, as well as the chance to ask questions and engage more deeply with the hosts. We’d love to have you. Thanks to our partners and subscribers* 20% off Dad Water: https://drinkdadwater.com/discount/SZD* https://www.nokiantyres.com/szd* Shop Homefield at https://www.homefieldapparel.com/* Modelo: Drink responsibly. Beer imported by Crown Imports, Chicago, IL 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

We Figured Out the Perfect Analogy for Curt Cignetti at Indiana

In 2024, Indiana got good at football. In 2025, it got serious as a national championship contender. The Hoosiers enter the Playoff as the best team in the country, and it all comes back to a coach who can best be described as a more modern version of what Dabo Swinney used to be at Clemson. This wraps up our 2025 College Football Playoff Preview presented by Modelo. Thanks to Modelo, the Official Beer Sponsor of the College Football Playoff. Modelo: Drink responsibly. Beer imported by Crown Imports, Chicago, IL 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