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Jan 14, 2026
Best of A Numbers Game | January 14, 2025
Best of A Numbers Game | January 14, 2025
00:00
48:03
1×
Transcript
0:00
Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more. That's Toyota affordability, and it all starts with a great deal on a truck from your local Toyota dealer.
0:08
Make a smart buy on the off-road-ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and longest-lasting trucks.
0:15
Built with the strength for the tough jobs, the tech to power your next big adventures, and the rugged style for everything in between.
0:21
Or discover Toyota's off-road lineup, including the iconic 4Runner and Land Cruiser, designed to go beyond the everyday.
0:27
And with Toyota's proven reputation for quality and reliability, plus available hybrid power on many models, you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way.
0:37
And long after you leave the lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value, so you could trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota.
0:44
From a great deal today to great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. Shop toyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota, let's go places.
0:53
[upbeat music] The numbers told the story. They always do. So one of those idiots who believe in analytics. This is a numbers game with Gil Alexander on VSiN. Good Wednesday morning to you.
1:04
This is Numbers Game at VSiN, the sports betting network, vsin.com, Game Plus, iHeartRadio, YouTube TV, and of course, SiriusXM channel 158.
1:12
It's Gil Alexander, and the man with the majestic stride, Kelly Bidlin- That's right... alongside on this Wednesday, as I mentioned. The Wednesday before the divisional round of the NFL playoffs and the Natty. Yeah.
1:25
Oh, yeah. One more great weekend. On the show today, Ward Sharple joins us to talk, uh, National Football League. Todd Wishnep, hope he remembers, be here a little later on, talk some mini-game betting with us. Mm.
1:34
Should probably- I talked to him yesterday. Oh, you did? Okay. I, I expect him to be here. He was a little, uh, caught off guard by the, uh, the mega pod today, which is later.
1:41
Probably because I didn't tell him that it was today. Oh, well. Probably on me. That would [laughs] that would, that would catch one off guard. [laughs] I'll raise my hand. It's probably on me.
1:49
Uh, Will Hill will join us here momentarily, give all his plays, uh, NFL divisional round weekend for the national championship as well, and anything else he might be betting.
1:57
I don't know what the kid's betting these days. Greg Peterson on college hoops. Oh, that was one of those games last night where it was just like, I hate myself for not playing.
2:06
'Cause I said on the show yesterday with Atenberg, I'm like, "This is just all your college basketball instincts tell you, take Kansas- Yeah... at Fog Allen as dogs against undefeated Iowa State."
2:17
And of course I didn't do it- Well-... 'cause I was handicapping tennis and I just got, didn't get around to it.
2:21
What's kind of funny is, I mean, how often do, do we ever talk about me having that, uh, something, uh- Yeah... that same kind of feeling, right? Yep.
2:28
When it comes to college basketball, I'm usually too busy with NBA, ramping up for golf season here, and that stuck with me the whole day yesterday too, where I was like, Kansas.
2:35
I'm also kind of obsessed with Darren Peterson, though, heading inh- to heading into the NBA. Are you? Are you? He's amazing, yeah. Okay.
2:39
Um, I think he's gonna be incredible in the NBA, but I had that same thought all day yesterday. I was like, I should bet Kansas, and then I sat there and watched most of it, and nope. Didn't do it.
2:48
[laughs] Didn't ever do it. For a second there at the beginning of the second half, it looked like Iowa State might make a game of it, uh, but no, not to be.
2:55
Um, and then we'll do the, uh, the whip around a little later on. Mm-hmm. Uh, we must start with, uh, everything that happened after the show yesterday in the NFL coaching.
3:03
I won't even call it a carousel yet, because we don't really have any hirings. But, uh, less notably, Greg Roman, Chargers offensive coordinator, he gone.
3:12
And then, uh, Kevin Patullo, much to the delight of Eagles fans, including that 11-year-old that we, uh, saw in that one video. Kevin Patullo relieved of his duties as offensive coordinator with the Philadelphia Eagles.
3:20
But the big headline, of course, Mike Tomlin steps down as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach after 19 seasons where he never had a losing season. I'm not sure any of you are aware of this stat.
3:35
He has never had a losing season. 19 years. The only coach, by the way, I'm, I'm joking obviously. The only coach that has done it for that long from the start of his head coaching career.
3:46
You've had a couple others that went longer with streaks. Tom Landry, notably, 21 seasons in a row with, uh, seasons without having a losing season. But Mike Tomlin, from the beginning of his career, 19 is the record.
3:57
And who knows, by the way, if that will ever be broken. Yeah. It's an incredible record. It's an incredible record. Can I, can I ask you a really basic betting question off the top when it comes to this? Surely.
4:07
We've been joking about this for years now- Yes... in the off-season, right? Yes. Like, the under, I mean, I...
4:12
To multiple years in a row, under on the win totals, and just get beat up because Tomlin and the Steelers go over every single year.
4:18
Do you think people are going to immediately separate themselves from that idea now as we get into next, this u- upcoming off-season and start talking about the Steelers going forward?
4:28
Like, we always hear the Tomlin stat. We always hear that attached to the Steelers.
4:32
Do you think people will translate and move that over to just the Steelers never having a losing season, or they will all give Tomlin the full credit? Tomlin will get the full credit. Okay.
4:41
Also, and a reason why he will get the full credit, which is not exactly correct, is that besides Washington, they have the oldest average age roster-wise in the entire NFL.
4:54
So they, I mean, they've, they're an old team- Mm-hmm... that kind of has to revamp at some point. And their old players, unlike Washington's, are, are really good players- Yeah... typically. Um- That's a great point.
5:04
Yeah. And do we... I just find it interesting, 'cause I do, I, I think you're right. I don't think we hear that brought up as much this off-season, but it's not exactly correct. Yeah.
5:11
So, so he may, m- maybe not even justifiably, but by association it will sort of- Right... happen at the same time, I think.
5:17
Um, but you know, in the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise, and by the way, of course, along part and parcel with the 19 years straight with no losing seasons,
5:25
he of course had the now seven straight playoff losses, the last five of which were by double digits, which is sort of what comes after the comma in the Mike Tomlin story. But he, he, but he steps down.
5:35
Listen, after 19, you know, seasons, who wouldn't want a team that never had a losing season? I know Pittsburgh views it differently. They've had three head coaches.
5:44
Chuck Noll for 23 years, who won four Super Bowls famously. Uh, Bill Cowher for 15 years, who won a Super Bowl. And then Tomlin for 19 seasons, who won a Super Bowl in his second season.
5:58
So that's what the Steelers are trying to now back this up with their fourth ever coach. That's it, in the history of that franchise. And so you can bet on this, Kelly Bidley. You can bet on this.
6:09
Who will be the Pittsburgh Steelers' next coach? Uh, namely at Calci. Does anybody else have it up at this point, or is it just prediction markets that have it up? Uh, just Calci that I'm aware of. Hey, way to go, Calci.
6:18
Yep. Do your thing. So- I don't understand, though. What... Did you see what I texted you yesterday? Yeah, you were- I don't really understand why it's all team by team and not, like, what's- Which-...
6:27
John Harbaugh's next team, right? What's- I see what you're saying... Mike Tomlin's next team. It's who's the Steelers' next head coach? Who's the Ravens' next head coach? I don't mind it. I don't mind it.
6:36
I, I saw what you... Yeah. I, I understand that because we're used to seeing it both ways. Yeah. But at least at Calci you can bet whatever you wanna bet on it- Mm-hmm... as opposed to being limited ridiculous on it.
6:44
So the, the short shot, and again, these numbers are based on a prediction market, at a prediction market, on actual bets, right? So bets that come in will move. This is not some odds maker shifting around.
6:58
Um, Chris Shula is your short shot. Yes on Chris Shula is plus 170.
7:04
Chris Shula, the defensive coordinator of the Los Angeles Rams, and perhaps more famously with that last name, the grandson of the great Don Shula, the winningest coach in the history of the National Football League.
7:17
Brief parenthetical aside on this, just to give you an idea about, you know, putting Don Shula in context. Don Shula won 328 regular season games. Think how long we've lived with John Harbaugh and Mike Tomlin. Mm-hmm.
7:29
Shula won 328. Tomlin won 193, and Harbaugh won 180. That is incredible. Just think about that. That, that is wild. That, that is absolutely wild. That's how legendary of a coach Don Shula was with the Dolphins.
7:42
So Chris Shula, his grandson, current Rams defensive coordinator, is the short shot at plus 170, followed by Brian Flores, who is the... The yes on Brian Flores is plus 488.
7:54
Followed by Marcus Freeman, who desperately wants you to think that his hairline is natural, at plus 614. Side note, wanna throw that in there. Kurt Signetti, please don't bet on Kurt Signetti. He's not going anywhere.
8:06
Stop that at nine to one. And then you see Saleh, the, uh, Niners defensive coordinator. Klint Kubiak, the Seahawks offensive coordinator, plus 1150.
8:15
And then, uh, former Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel at plus 1150. About Flores, by the way, 'cause I wanna say this, 'cause we bring this up all the time. Flores is the second shot behind Chris Shula.
8:24
Flores, of course, uh, after the Miami Dolphins head coaching stint and the subsequent stuff that happened after, he ended up in Pittsburgh for one year. Mm-hmm. Until then the Vikings...
8:39
Well, for one year, then the Vikings grabbed him as a defensive coordinator. He was not a coordinator in Pittsburgh. He was a linebackers coach, I believe, and what they call the defensive assistant.
8:47
So he did get the step up back to the Minnesota job. So really it was the Pittsburgh Steelers franchise that was the first to say, "Okay, despite this lawsuit- Yes, yes... we'll take you back into the fold."
8:59
So, so a couple things about it. So Chris Shula, it's not just that he's Don Shula's grandson. Chris Shula fits the mode, uh, the mold of what the Steelers...
9:08
Chuck Noll, Bill Cowher, Mike Tomlin, were all defensive guys who then lasted 15 years plus as the Pittsburgh Steelers head coach.
9:17
So Chris Shula's a defensive guy with that NFL pedigree, with that legacy anyway, so it would fit in the mold of those three previous coaches.
9:25
Brian Flores, not only was he the guy that the Steelers brought out of, but... And we should probably, 'cause we always bring up the Brian Flores lawsuit, we never really explain it. Mm.
9:32
Maybe we should be thorough about it. So the Brian Flores lawsuit, for those who forget, who forgot about this, uh, it's still ongoing. The, the lawsuit is a three-pronged one. Uh, he sued the Giants because he said...
9:46
Because remember there was those Bill Belichick texts that Flores got ahold of, from Belichick himself I guess, where even though they were interviewing Flores, they had already agreed the Giants had to hire Brian Daboll.
9:57
He texted the wrong guy. Yeah. Right? Wasn't that Belichick texted, "Congratulations, Brian." Way to go, Billy Belichick.
10:03
So the, uh, so that, so he ta- so he's suing the Giants based on that, that his interview with them was a sham, in other words, that they already had their head coach. Mm-hmm.
10:11
He is suing the Denver Broncos because he th- he said that their interview was a sham when John Elway was running things over there, where he was like, "They were drunk and late for my interview."
10:26
Whereas Elway and crew, their counter was, "Dude, we all flew in from across the country on flights, and we have all these extensive notes to tell you that it was not a sham."
10:39
So he's, so there's the Giants, the Broncos, and who was the third? Oh, the Dolphins themselves- Mm...
10:42
if you remember perhaps most famously, Stephen Ross, their owner, he's suing because he alleged, Brian Flores did, that Ross, uh, would pay him $100,000 per loss.
10:54
He was saying that, that Ross was incentivizing him to tank as the Dolphins head coach. Oh, and also he wanted, uh, Bro- he wanted Flores [laughs] he wanted him to tamper with Tom Brady in Tampa. Yes. There's a lot.
11:06
So there's, so all those things are in the lawsuit, and where the lawsuit stands is that there was a se- I'll give you the latest part of it. Just make it quick.
11:12
The second court of appeals said, because the dispute now in the lawsuit is where does this get adjudicated, in an open court or in NFL arbitration? Flores wants it in an open court.
11:22
The NFL obviously wants p- uh, Commissioner Goodell to, uh, to adjudicate this whole thing, and that's where it is now.
11:28
'Cause the court of a- the, uh, second circuit court said, "Hey, this should be in the open court," and the NFL appealed that and now it's in the Supreme Court. And you know how the Supreme Court goes.
11:39
They get around to it whenever they get around to it. There might be more important things for the Supreme Court to rule on than this. Yes, yes. Oh my God. It's my, it's m- y- you know, that's my, my biggest thing ever.
11:48
Yeah. Government should not be involved in solving sports disputes. It's incredible. It's so stupid. How about the, uh, I love the legalese.
11:54
The NFL has filed a petition for w- w- writ, or right, of certiorari with the United States Supreme Court. They should hire you to- They really should hire me... to now- They should really hire me... certiorari.
12:06
What did you say? Yeah. I have no idea what that word is. Surdiary? So anyway, do you have any, uh, Shula's the short shot, Brian Flores is the second shot, plus 170, plus 48, yes, at Cal State. I have no thoughts.
12:16
I, I think it's a great description on the Flores stuff- Yeah... though, 'cause it's something for us to keep in mind. I think he's an excellent coach.
12:20
We're gonna hear his name brought up a lot, but, like, it's understandable, but you, you made the biggest point. Steelers were the first one to get to, to go a- against everybody- Yeah...
12:29
and give him a shot, but even before the Vikings did. So he could be live there. Marcus Freeman what said yesterday, he's going back to Notre Dame. Who knows if that's true or not, but...
12:38
I thought my Marcus Freeman insight was the most in- interesting part of that whole rant right there. [laughs] Hope you didn't get lost. Coming back on A Numbers Game with Will Hill next.
12:45
You're here because you want an edge. That's what separates listeners from winners, but let's be real, mindset alone doesn't get bets home.
12:52
Pros win because they've got the tools, the data, and the discipline, and now so can you. VSiN Pro gives you access to the same real-time insights the sharps use.
13:00
No secrets, no fluff, just actionable info that moves markets. Tap the link and see why serious bettors are turning knowledge into profit with VSiN Pro. Buy smart, drive for less, and trade for more.
13:12
That's Toyota affordability, and it all starts with a great deal on a truck from your local Toyota dealer.
13:17
Make a smart buy on the off-road-ready Tacoma or half-ton Tundra, two of Toyota's most capable and longest-lasting trucks.
13:24
Built with the strength for the tough jobs, the tech to power your next big adventures, and the rugged style for everything in between.
13:30
Or discover Toyota's off-road lineup, including the iconic 4Runner and Land Cruiser, designed to go beyond the everyday.
13:36
And with Toyota's proven reputation for quality and reliability, plus available hybrid power on many models, you can get more for every mile and drive for less along the way.
13:45
And long after you leave the lot, your Toyota keeps delivering with great resale value, so you could trade in for more when you're ready for your next Toyota.
13:53
From a great deal today to great value tomorrow, a Toyota is right for you. ShopToyota.com for deals and details, or stop by your local Toyota dealer today. Toyota, let's go places.
14:02
[rock music] A Numbers Game on VSiN, the sports betting network.
14:17
Back on A Numbers Game, live from Circle Resort Casino, downtown Las Vegas. Gil Alexander, Kelly Bidlow. We get tweets, beating the book. John Balduzzi, "Let's name the title of the true crime show.
14:28
True Crime: Murder, Matzah, and Mayhem." [laughs] "The Bethesda Row Kosher Killer," he says. Ah, yes, the mean streets of Bethesda. Primetimecowboys_cubs1, "I'm sorry. I'm sorry," he says.
14:39
"Shame on Stormy and JVT for their host-on-host hate, doubting your innocence. P.S. Just admit it, killer. You did it. Do the time." 3JackH3131, "Oh, are we doing this today? Top five power ranking for dinner date?"
14:51
Uh, one, Ana de Armas, two, Ana de Armas, three, Ana de Armas, four, Ana de Armas, five, Ana de Armas. [laughs] Of course, this would take place at Gilly's Sushi Spot.
14:59
Uh, Chad Lasso, "Gil has a dream and MLK Day is this Monday. Coincidence? I think not." Gonna be a big weekend for you, my friend. Um, his dream, a little more meaningful than mine.
15:08
Jesse Welch, "Quick reminder just in case Kelly managed to get it out of his mind, Omaha Steaks."
15:12
Uh, let's bring in Nick Whalen because I got two things to talk to Nick about above all, before we get to his thoughts on, uh, divisional round week.
15:18
Nick, uh, joins us from RotoWire, where he's a senior writer over there at RotoWire. You can follow him on Twitter @whalen.
15:24
Just substitute the, uh, number one for the letter L, and you will find Nick, courtesy of Progressive Guest Line. How you doing, Nick? I'm doing all right, guys.
15:34
You know, still, still licking our wounds a little bit from, uh, Sunday afternoon.
15:38
Jacksonville, of course, had a chance to win that game at home against Buffalo, so, you know, kinda going through the process of picking myself up off the mat and, and trying to get myself fired up for a divisional round that will not include my beloved Jags.
15:52
Well, that was my... That was where I was gonna go to first. What- Yeah... I mean, it was Plinko, right? Like, they could have easily won the football game just as, uh- Yeah... just as well.
16:01
What, as you look back on it, that, what was the thing you'd like to have back in that game? You know, obviously I, I think you'd like Jacksonville to run the ball a little bit more than they did.
16:11
You know, I, I go back and forth on the Trevor Lawrence element. You know, I, I did not think he was good overall in this game.
16:16
I, I thought we saw a very shaky version of Trevor Lawrence early on, where, you know, he threw the one interception in the first half. If you watched that game, it very easily could have been two or three.
16:25
You know, it felt like the Bills were getting their hand on the ball, you know, every other pass for Trevor Lawrence.
16:28
I think they had eight or nine passes defended, uh, in the game, which is a huge number, and he was lucky to come away with only two turnovers.
16:35
But ultimately, you know, you, you had kind of the situation that you wanted, right? Over a minute left, you know, your ball.
16:40
All you really gotta do is, is get it close to midfield with Cam Little, and you feel like you have a chance to get a field goal off and, and maybe tie this game and send it to overtime. You had the situation.
16:50
And [laughs] you know, not only do, do you not pay it off, but Trevor Lawrence just immediately throws a pick on, on the, the first possession, or first play of that final possession, I should say. So it's...
17:01
A- at the same time, you know, I'm, I'm, I'm excited about the direction of this team, but we also saw, you know, some regression, I thought, in a huge spot for Trevor Lawrence. You know, he wasn't terrible.
17:09
He, he finished with 207 yards, three touchdowns. He did lead consecutive touchdown drives at the beginning of the fourth quarter. This wasn't some sort of top-down disaster.
17:17
But man, you, you just knew you, you needed him to play a clean game in order to beat Josh Allen. The way Josh Allen played, which I know the numbers were not overly flashy, he's had a lot better statistical games.
17:26
I thought he was completely dialed in. Felt like he didn't miss a throw the entire afternoon. And when you have the opposing quarterback playing at that level, you just can't afford to turn the ball over twice.
17:34
You can't afford to be making mistakes over the middle of the field. And, uh, you know, for, for this to be a winnable game, even despite that, that's what's gonna stick with Jacksonville.
17:43
And the, the fact that this AFC is so wide open, right? You know, it's easy to say, "Oh, they'll be back. They're moving in the right direction." That's probably true. We say it about teams every single year.
17:51
And when you think you have some progression going for, for a franchise, it doesn't always move that way.
17:56
So it, it's gonna take a while, I, I think, when we look back on, on how the AFC is shaping up, for me to get over, uh, this potential opportunity that I think the Jaguars missed. Yeah.
18:05
One, one moment doesn't define any NFL game, but fourth and two- Oh... at the Buffalo nine, up seven to three That was sort of the moment to me where, where- 100%... Trevor's shin was down, right?
18:19
And then you, and then we- Yeah... had to endure that ridiculous Hawkeye induced, you know, [laughs] not Hawkeye- To- Tony Romo was on it from the jump. Yeah. From the jump.
18:28
The mo- the moment that play played out- Yeah... he was, uh, assuring everybody that that shin was down, and he was ultimately- And the shin was... correct. But- Yeah... you're right. You're right, though.
18:34
I mean, and that came after the fumble on the kickoff return, right? Like, those, that's the break that you absolutely, absolutely need to capitalize on. Yes, yes. And, you know, I, I can understand why they went for it.
18:44
Liam Cohen said he would make that decision 100 out of 100 times. I, I understand it. It's easy to say now, "Oh, you should've just taken the points," but man, that would've swung things, right?
18:51
I mean, to put the Bills in a 14 to three hole, to, to press Josh Allen a little bit, um, I, I think you're right to point that out as, as kind of the turning point, and probably the biggest missed opportunity for Jacksonville.
19:01
Right. Also, and then they gave them the second at the end of the first half, so you got a Cam Little field goal try, and he missed it. Ugh. Yep. Plus the offsides at the end. Oh. It always matters.
19:09
It always, always matters, those kicks before half. Yeah, man. Um, what could've been. Well, I don't mean to torture you with it anymore. Let's go through these- All right... one by one real quick.
19:17
Buffalo, sorry to start there, at Denver. What are you doing with this? Yeah, well, it's interesting.
19:25
You know, of course Buffalo opened as a road favorite, and pretty much immediately, uh, that has flipped now to, to Denver minus one and a half. That's what I'm seeing now at the, at the DK Sportsbook.
19:35
I, you know, I expect Denver to put forth a better defensive effort certainly than we saw from Jacksonville. I, I think that was another takeaway for me.
19:41
We can talk about Lawrence all we want, but this Jaguars defense that had been so good throughout the season, it just felt like, you know, third and four, third and six, third and eight was just automatic.
19:50
You know, wide open receivers in those spots over and over. I would think Denver, you know, will put up a better fight on the defensive side.
19:56
You know, it, Sean Peyton comes into this game with, with an extra week to prepare. You know, obviously, you know, Denver even in week 18, they played some starters, but kinda had a walkover game against the Chargers.
20:05
So I, I expect them to, to, to put forth, you know, a, a, a much better all-around effort than Jacksonville did.
20:11
I do look at this as a potential under spot though, at, at 45 and a half, because how do you trust the Denver Broncos offense? You know, we, we've seen flashes every now and then.
20:20
You think about that second half against the Giants, you know, [laughs] that was probably their best offensive stretch of the entire season.
20:26
But on balance, we've seen a lot more games where Denver just can't get anything going. You know, they're trying to ride the running game. They're not ripping off explosives whatsoever.
20:33
Um, so I, I look at this as a spot where, where both defenses kinda control the game.
20:38
You know, weather shouldn't be too much of a factor, but I, I would not expect Josh Allen to be able to play at quite that same level that we saw last week against Jacksonville.
20:46
And worth noting, he was banged up multiple times in that game. Yeah. He's gonna play through it. It's Josh Allen.
20:50
Even him at 70% is still one of the best quarterbacks in the NFL, but, uh, the hits are starting to add up for Josh Allen. He's indestructible, but yes, you are correct. Yes.
20:59
Um, what is your biggest lean of the whole weekend? Let me just ask it broadly. Yeah, that's a good question. I mean, I, ugh. I, [laughs] to be honest, I, there's not one that I absolutely love right now.
21:14
You know, I'm a little wary of, of San Francisco, Seattle, just because it's the third meeting between those teams.
21:19
You know, tough number at, at seven, and we've seen Seattle mess around in the first half, especially offensively so many times. But y- you do wonder if the injuries are just at a breaking point for the 49ers right now.
21:31
You know, I, I know Fred Warner is, you know, potentially going to be activated for this game. We'll see. I, I wouldn't count on that necessarily being the case.
21:38
And it, you don't wanna, you know, extract too much from one game. But I think you look at the final score in week 18, and you think, "Oh, Seattle, you know, they didn't really play very well offensively."
21:47
I thought the Seahawks left at least 13 points, and you could argue as many as maybe 17 or 20 points on the board in that game. You know, some, some killer mistakes, some special teams mistakes.
21:56
They went out on downs after a long drive where they were moving it effortlessly in the first half.
22:01
I mean, you, you have to give credit to the 49ers and Robert Sala for the way they played defensively against Philly, but how much of that is on the Eagles for just being the Eagles, right?
22:09
They answered definitively that this offense is not back, that beating the Raiders, and beating the Commanders, and putting 13 points on the Bills down the stretch, uh, was not the turnaround that we thought it might be for this offense.
22:20
So a- as much as I would like to see San Francisco show up and compete in this game, I think there is a chance that, you know, by halftime we look back and say, "Man, they're, they're just too battered to, to go on the road and win again."
22:30
I mentioned that there were two things I wanted to talk to you about. One was the Jaguars- Yeah... of course, 'cause you're a noted Jaguars fan. The other is I know you're a Bucs guy.
22:38
Uh, last night, uh, the Bucs are- Oh... the Bucs are losing by 30 at the half last night to the, uh, to the T-Wolves, and they're booing the- Yeah... Bucs off the court.
22:48
And then, uh, the third qu- [laughs] the third quarter begins. I think Giannis has an and one, and he thumbs downs the, uh, I think that's a verb, thumbs downs the, uh, the Bucs crowd.
22:59
This after professing, Kelly was saying off-air, after professing his love for the Milwaukee crowd- Yeah, he was get-... the fans... they were getting, he was getting some boos early in the game, or the team was.
23:07
Well, what should they do with Giannis at this point? Is it over? Yeah. Well, it, it's worth mentioning, one, that the Bucs were favored- Yes... at home last night.
23:15
The Timberwolves did not have Anthony Edwards, and Rudy Gobert was suspended, and they still dominated that game from start to finish. Look, I am a Bucs fan. Obviously, Giannis means the world to this franchise.
23:25
It's been an incredible run, you know, since he became the player that he is now. I, I have long been of the belief that they should just bite the bullet and, and trade Giannis.
23:33
I think it's best for both sides at this point.
23:35
You know, it's clearly to me what Giannis wants, and he is kinda following the Kevin Garnett in Minnesota, Damian Lillard in Portland script of, you know, I'm, I'm kinda scared to be the bad guy. I clearly want out.
23:47
There are, there are reports behind the scenes, uh, indicating that that's the case. But then every time he's asked about it, he walks it back and says, "No, what, what are you talking about? Me?
23:54
No, I would never wanna leave the Milwaukee Bucks." I, the, the Bucs have done everything they possibly can over the last few years to surround Giannis with a title contender.
24:03
This is not one of those situations where if and when he does move on, you look back and say, "Man, what could've been?" Because they've tried everything. They tried everything. I love the Damian Lillard trade.
24:12
Everybody loved it at the time. It just didn't work out. Giannis got hurt, Middleton got hurt, Lillard himself, of course, got hurt, and, and you got the ring. You know, you got the ring in, in 2021.
24:22
Ultimately, that's what matters. I think that's what kind of gives him the agency to be able to move on without this being some sort of massive rift that Giannis and his camp seem to believe it will be.
24:31
So it, it, it's kind of a standoff between both sides because the Bucks clearly don't wanna lose him. Giannis clearly doesn't wanna be the bad guy.
24:38
It might ultimately have to be on the Bucks at some point to, to look themselves in the mirror and say, "Where are we going right now with this, this Giannis and nobody else around him core?"
24:46
T-Wolves win that game by 33, by the way. 139- Ugh... to 106. Yeah. It's sad. Nick, always a pleasure, man. Sorry about the Jags, but thank you for coming on. Appreciate it. [laughs] Appreciate the condolences, guys.
24:58
Thank you. Ni- Nick Wale, everybody, courtesy of Progressive Guest Line. Some Sodi Open chatter from Kelly next as the golf season begins on a Numbers Game. The numbers told the story. They always do.
25:10
It's one of those idiots who believe in analytics. This is a Numbers Game with Gil Alexander on VSIN.
25:16
Hour number three of the Numbers Game at VSIN, the sports betting network, vsin.com, Game Plus, iHeartRadio, YouTube TV, SiriusXM channel 158. Gil Alexander. Kelly Midlin alongside.
25:26
Are we gonna do more of those golf and tennis, uh- Yeah, some good ones up. Yeah And I, and I'm- Some stuff later... assuming they're gonna be pulled down pretty quickly here with golf starting tomorrow.
25:33
Oh, and I gotta sign up for the, uh, R- Rick- One and done... Run Good. Yep. Rick Run Good one and done today from, uh, Rick Gaming at, uh, where's that? Splashsports.com? Mm-hmm. Yeah. Okay. We'll do that.
25:42
Uh, and Todd Wishnev still to come, uh, this hour. We, we, uh, have Warren Sharp standing by. We got tweets beating the books. Just wanna read a couple. Mariners Geek listening on, uh, on delay.
25:51
He says, "Imagine how good you have to be at coaching when you're suing three teams and are still highly coveted." Yes. I've been talking about Brian Flores. Yes, great point.
26:00
As we were mentioning earlier, went through the whole r- uh, lawsuit. Ray Joseph, "Can you guess the last duo to win both MVP and Offensive Player of the Year while playing on the same team?" Oh, this is a good question.
26:13
Oh, man. No. Back in the day, they used to win both of them. Like, one guy would win both of them. You're right. So I think, like, Joe Theismann in '83 and, like, Joe Montana in '89. I, I mean, I s- I...
26:26
Kurt Warner and Marshall Faulk, greatest show on turf. Oh, good guess. That's a good one. Has anybody done that since then, would be my guess. I don't know. That, that's a l- that...
26:35
I definitely remember that they both won those two. I'm not gonna look. I'm gonna try to, I'm gonna try to think of some options here while you, while you're talking with Warren here.
26:41
I don't know if he's gonna tweet us back with the actual answer. And, and, and, you know- We'll have to research it ourselves... and I could be lying. Maybe I'll eventually Google it, too. Who knows?
26:47
Speaking of coaching, uh, we had a good conversation with Warren Sharp last week about, uh, coaching maneuvers and his thoughts on the... At that time, John Harbaugh had just, uh- Mm-hmm...
26:55
been removed as the head coach of the, uh, Baltimore Ravens.
26:58
Let's talk some coaching and beyond with these divisional round games with Warren Sharp, who joins us now @sharpfootball is where you can find him on Twitter, courtesy of the Progressive Guest Line once again.
27:07
Warren, somewhere in his lab, his home lab in the DMV. How you doing, Warren? I'm doing great. Uh, excited for these divisional round games. I think they're going to be a lot of fun.
27:18
I said last week, though, entering last week's game, maybe on your show, in fact, Gil, that I was looking forward to the wild card more than I ever have before- Yes...
27:25
um, because I didn't really see that, you know, top tier elite team. We don't have two teams, the best in each conference, coming back from a bye like we did in the past.
27:34
It's just one in each conference, nothing really separating those two teams night and day above the rest of these. So sure enough, last week's games were outstanding.
27:43
Hopefully we can live up to some of that here in the divisional round as well. Hopefully we can. Before we get into that, uh, we were talking coaching, you and I, last week when, uh, Steve Bisciotti fired John Harbaugh.
27:55
I am curious how you feel about a couple things. Let's start with, uh, the Eagles and no more Kevin Patula. What do you think about them? Well, that, that was inevitable to me. You have to move on from Kevin Patula.
28:06
So I saw a lot of people really on, on social yesterday getting excited about that. That, to me, was, like, the bare minimum of what was going to happen. It should've happened during the season.
28:15
It should've never happened in the first place. Um, he, he wasn't qualified to call plays, and that's the problem with some of these internal hires.
28:24
The Eagles now have to go mercenary style, just like they did when they won the Super Bowl in 2023, and... Sorry, 2024, and go outside the building and get somebody in there for a coordinator.
28:36
But more than that, I just don't see why Nick Sirianni is still there. To me, Nick Sirianni is the reason we had Kevin Patula. Nick Sirianni is the reason that the Eagles completely wasted the 2025 football season.
28:49
And I just never viewed Jeffrey Lurie as the type of owner who would stand for that type of process issue. That's a process-driven issue.
28:59
The Eagles didn't lose this game, uh, this game yesterday, or the, you know, s- failed to make it back to the Super Bowl because of injuries, be- because of anything but their own internal decision-making and strategization for games, as well as their use of their quarterback.
29:16
I mean, I can just tell you this. If Jalen Hurts refuses to run and does not want to run and wants to be a pocket passing quarterback, the Eagles are not going to win another Super Bowl. They're just not. Yeah.
29:27
He, he is not a good enough pocket passing quarterback to sit back there without the threat of a run game on almost every single drop back.
29:35
You don't have to run every single drop back, but you have to be willing to take those open run lanes.
29:39
If you're just transitioning into being a pocket passing quarterback, it's not gonna work for Jalen Hurts to command that type of salary and to get the ceiling that he's gotten in the past with the Philadelphia Eagles.
29:49
So I still have concerns about what Jalen Hurts is willing to do with his legs, and I still have concerns with what Nick Sirianni is bringing from a process perspective to the building.
29:58
So yes, I think that they need to go outside the building, get a new OC, and call some plays that are a bit more aggressive and...
30:04
B- but there are just too many drawbacks here with this team right now for me to really think that this is a, like a, a potential Super Bowl favorite in 2026, despite the fact that We see a great roster for that team.
30:17
I mean, Howie does a great job building an outstanding roster for this team. Um, but they do have limited limitations, in my opinion. Yeah.
30:25
I wonder if Jalen Hurts will defy the old, uh, numbers game thing that I said for many years, which is you can only win a Super Bowl with a quarterback over-performing on a rookie deal or a Hall of Famer.
30:35
I wonder if Jalen Hurts becomes a glaring exception, uh, to that rule.
30:39
And the o- the other thing that's interesting about Sirianni is with Harbaugh and Tomlin now no longer with the Ravens and Steelers, immediately we hear about, well, I mean, John Harbaugh, where's...
30:49
You know, he's calling his shot where he's going next. Mike Tomlin, probably a year or however many doing TV, maybe he can call his shot if he wants to come back. We don't ever hear that about Sirianni, right?
30:59
It's the opposite. It's sort of like if Nick- Right... Sirianni wasn't the Eagles coach tomorrow, would he have any suitors at all? Which is a fascinating juxtaposition.
31:09
You always have to look at it from the opposite perspective.
31:11
Like, if you're calling a play, like the Buffalo Bills down at the goal line, and, and if the Jaguars want you to score, that means you probably shouldn't be trying to score down there at the goal line.
31:21
And if nobody really wants Nick Sirianni, if nobody would be, like, lining up to call Nick Sirianni to become their head coach, should he really stay on board as your head coach? Like, should you really be- Mm...
31:30
driving to make that happen? One other coaching thing. I've, uh, we have nine openings now, so more than a quarter of the league. I'm, I'm just gonna pick the one that we've talked about the least, the Titans.
31:39
Brian Daboll interviewing there. What do you think about that? Yeah, Daboll interviews down there Friday, and there was a lot of love for, uh, Cam Ward.
31:49
Uh, the, the Giants lost their opportunity to get Cam Ward by winning another meaningless, uh, week 17 game in 2024 that screwed up their ability to get him.
31:59
They still got their guy in Jaxson Dart a little bit later on in the draft but, you know, we saw some of the pre-draft stuff with Cam Ward. We know Brian Daboll really likes working with Cam Ward, and
32:11
there were some limitations that the Tennessee Titans had last year i- in a variety of positions, but they weren't utilizing Cam Ward, I think, to the best degree possible.
32:21
And if you have a quarterback that you drafted number one overall, your next head coaching hire needs to be somebody who is going to work with that quarterback and get him to reach his ceiling.
32:32
And I've talked on VSiN before about what I saw from Brian Daboll when he was working with Jaxson Dart, and when Jaxson Dart was going up against five straight playoff caliber defenses and performing extremely well, outperforming the NFL averages from a yards per attempt.
32:46
He threw seven touchdowns to only one interception in those games. They almost went to Denver. If you guys remember this, earlier this season, Jaxson Dart and the New York Giants almost beat the Denver Broncos in Denver.
32:57
It took a comeback from the Denver Broncos late to win that game. Uh, that was the game I think Cam Skattebo injured himself in as well.
33:05
So, uh, you know, there were some upside with what Brian Daboll was doing with Jaxson Dart for periods of time.
33:10
Now, there are some drawbacks as well, and those need to be, you know, course corrected in the future, uh, but I do think he would be a fascinating prospect to work with a quarterback like Cam Dart, uh, uh, Cam Ward.
33:22
You have to get a coach, though, who's going to be willing to just raise the ceiling of Cam Ward and build everything around making Cam Ward great, and there are some parallels.
33:32
The, it's, it's not, it's not apples to apples by any means, but a bigger quarterback who is a little bit physical, who can push the ball down the field, who is also can be coached into being a little bit mobile.
33:44
I mean, Daboll's worked with Josh Allen before as well. I'm not suggesting Cam Ward is Josh Allen lite or anything like that, but there are some similarities in some degrees.
33:53
Uh, I think Daboll could be an intriguing hire down there. Uh, so I'm interested to see how, how things work with them. But like you said, there are so many great prospects from a coaching perspective.
34:04
I wouldn't call any of them surefire, like, elite coaches. Um, they're, they're historical figures.
34:10
They're going to have success with the team because they know what to do and they know the type of coordinators to sur- surround themselves with, and they know the type of process.
34:17
But it's not like we're getting some sort of up-and-comer Ben Johnson type coach.
34:21
I did think the last point on this was Bichotte's comments yesterday about what he's looking for in a coaching hire potentially for the Baltimore Ravens, and how he's sort of looking for a coach who was a upcoming coach a few years ago, who went to a bad team because there was an opening and didn't have a lot of success there.
34:40
There's a few guys that you can look ar- at around the league and say, "Hey, this sort of fits the bill for what he's talking about."
34:45
And I actually do think that that's a great, uh, especially in the 2026 cycle, that's a great way to look at things. It is. Uh, about as, as well thought out as any, I would say. Uh, okay, to the games this weekend.
34:57
I- you were telling me off air you don't have a side or a total or a prop yet. You haven't d- dived in yet to these, but what's the one that intrigues you the most of these four match-ups?
35:06
Well, if you just look on the surface, the two games on Saturday, you've got an offensive-minded head coach versus a defensive-minded head coach, and then the two games on Sunday, you've got two defensive-minded head coaches going head-to-head, uh, in the, uh, Houston-New England game, and you got two offensive-minded head coaches going head-to-head in the latter game.
35:25
And all the totals are sort of reflecting that, right? The lowest total is the defensive-minded coaches going head-to-head. Highest total is the offensive-minded coaches going head-to-head.
35:33
The other two, you got a defensive-minded versus an offensive-minded head coach. Focusing in on the deep battle of the defensive-minded head coaches, you know, what we saw from C.J. Stroud last week, Monday night,
35:46
obviously nothing to write home about. Certainly a performance where he looked a little frazzled, a little rattled.
35:51
You would think if you're now going on the road to take on Mike Vrabel's defense, you're gonna wanna be careful about how you're utilizing C.J. Stroud. Lean into the run.
35:59
Try to make it so that you don't turn the ball over and lose the game early on in that game for the Houston Texans. And then, you know, this Houston Texans defense looks like it can win games.
36:09
It's outscoring opposing- Yeah... offenses in the playoffs.
36:13
Uh, so if you're the Drake Mayled New England Patriots, you also have to be a little bit careful with how you're executing things here because the game could flip on a dime with that defense.
36:22
Sure can, and I, I agree with you. That Houston Texans defense capable of winning games, as long as they get average performance from C.J. Stroud, right? Just has to be baseline. Right. You know?
36:31
Can't be what it was the other night, though. Good God. Uh, Warren, always a pleasure. Enjoy the week. Appreciate it, man. All right. Thanks, guys Warren Sharp, everybody.
36:40
@sharpfootball is where you can find all his stuff. Sharp.football, sharpanalysis.com. He's got all of that from Warren. Coming back, Todd Wishnev. Oh, boy. College basketball and more.
36:52
It's a numbers game at VSiN, the sports betting network.
36:54
[upbeat rock music] A numbers game on VSiN, the sports betting network.
37:14
Numbers game, live from Circa. Gil Alexander, Clay Betalard in the hizzy.
37:19
Uh, ladies and gentlemen, you may know lots about this next guest, including that he is the star of Showtime's docuseries Action, from a, uh, from which he was plucked out of a crowd to star in. Mm-hmm. It's true.
37:30
That's right. He was at a South Point, producers are like, "Who's that guy?" He's loud. He's something. He's loud and funny.
37:36
What you may not know about him is that he's one of the top 10 ATP-ranked players in the world in tennis 300 pound or over division.
37:44
Todd Wishnev, star of Wishnev Wednesdays, and later today, much to his surprise, the Megapod. [laughs] It's Todd from, uh, Pittsburgh, PA. How you doing, man? Courtesy of the Progressive Guest Line. What's happening?
37:54
You just love changing the date on the Megapod every single week. It's like, "Oh, Wednesday. Wait, no, Tuesday. Wait, let's throw it in the grab bag. Friday. Thursday. Tuesday." Yeah. Well- Moving target...
38:05
that wind studio's tough to get into, Toddy. Studio- It's tough... studio dependents, not me. Um, let me just ask you about this, uh, real quick here before we get into anything else. You have the rare NFL pre-flop bet.
38:18
Is that correct? No, no, no. I said, uh, college basketball. Oh, college basketball, the rare pre-flop. I'm sorry. You went out, uh, of our ear right as we got on air. Yeah. Rare pre-flop.
38:27
We knew, normally it's live betting. What's the pre-flop today? Um, I played first half under, I'm actually gonna put it on my thing right now before everyone screams at me because I didn't put it up in time.
38:40
Um- [laughs] Got it... I played Cincinnati, I played Cincinnati under first half. Um, Cincinnati is a classic under team this year.
38:50
You've got a terrible offense and a good defense, like, kinda like they were last year as well. But, um, those are, you know, classic, classic under teams.
38:59
Th- they're eighth on defense, so they're elite defensively in the country, okay? Number eight, that's pretty damn good, right? But they're only 205th on offense. That's pretty damn bad.
39:11
So tonight they're playing Colorado, not exactly a defensive juggernaut, and the number's a little bit, you know, up there because Colorado likes to run and everything.
39:20
But, um, you know, if they can put the clamps on Colorado's offense, first half under to me, uh, smells pretty good. So I took it under 71 first half- Ah... minus 110.
39:29
Do you regret, so you're not a pre-flop guy typically. Do you regret, like I do, not taking Kansas yesterday plus the points? 'Cause that seemed like the perfect situation, and I hate myself for not playing it.
39:42
Yeah, that, that definitely was a perfect situation. I, I, I kinda still like to, to play in-game. I mean, a perfect example of why I like playing in-game yesterday was Providence against Villanova.
39:52
Uh, you know, Willie was talking about on the thread how he liked Providence at home, and I kind of agreed with him, uh, pre-game getting two points. But I figured, "You know, let me watch the game.
40:02
Maybe they'll get behind and, and I can get a juicier number," and that's almost exactly what happened. They got down six in the first half, and I, I could get plus six and a half minus 120, and I took it.
40:11
Of course, they ended up going down 12, but they ended up only losing by six, so I ended up winning because of, you know, waiting for the in-game scenario.
40:19
Um, so you know, I, I just feel like in these college games, you know, what you really gain by betting pre-game, it's al- the only time you really lose in that scenario is, like, what happened with Kansas last night where they just ran out to a huge lead and there was no opportunity.
40:33
But I feel there's way more opportunities when you wait, you know, to get e- even to get a better number on something you like pre-game. Let's talk about the in-game for a second.
40:41
So famously, you were just scorching on fire, whatever expression you wanna use, uh, in-game college hoops. 130 units to the positive, and again, these are not, these are not multi- Well, I, I was.
40:53
I w- I was- I was up a hun- I was up 120... uh, let me finish, let me finish the thought, Todd. We're getting there. Sorry. Sorry. We have m- not multi-unit bets. These are all flat one unit bets.
41:00
He's up 130, and it has cooled off now, right? As your, as you, uh- Yeah... were quick to say there. Uh, any explanation? Was this inevitable? Is this the time of year that it is most likely to happen?
41:12
What's your whole take on that? I really don't think so. I just think that y- you know, when you run that hot for that long, I mean, for 800 bets I was, like, 62%. It was ridiculous.
41:23
It was almost like, it was, like, 500 and 300 and, and 800 bets. You're ultimately, you're gonna have to slow down sooner. And I kept telling people, I would say, "You guys, this is not sustainable.
41:33
Winning 62% is just ridiculous," you know? So you know, I'm not surprised. I mean, I was as high as 129 units, and now I'm, and then I was as low as 110. Now I'm right around 117.
41:44
So you know, it, it was inevitable it was gonna be a slowdown, but I don't really think it's... I know we're in conference play, but y- look, the numbers are still the numbers.
41:52
They're slowing the game down a little bit, but that's gonna be reflected in the numbers as well, you know? So- But there's no- You know, I, I, I don't really think that-...
41:59
there's no behavioral things at the ends of games where coaches have shifted the way they like, there's no foul fests all of a sudden. They're still playing it the same way.
42:07
Um, I mean, you see crazy stuff even before that.
42:11
[laughs] I mean, there was a game, a team was down 13, I think Illinois was down 13 in November, and they were fouling in the last 30 seconds 'cause they couldn't believe they lost the game.
42:19
So I just think it, it just depends on the team. It depends on the situation. You know, uh, I, I don't really think it has anything to do with that.
42:27
But you know, uh, there are some really nice scenarios now, especially for once you really understand who the teams are, 'cause at this point we know who teams are.
42:36
You know, Michigan State is a defensive juggernaut, okay? So you watch the first half of the game yesterday, they're playing Indiana Uh, I think it was 39-32 at the break or something like that.
42:49
I'm like, "This is a classic Michigan State. Gonna strangle them on defense in the second half."
42:54
That's exactly what hap- for, um, actually, Indiana scored a ton of points early in the f- in the first half up till about the 11-minute mark. They had 21 points already, so w- I thought I was in trouble.
43:03
Then, of course, Indiana goes six minutes with no points. So when you, you can find these scenarios. Another one, a good one at halftime last night was Clemson, another really good defensive team.
43:14
If you can figure out teams, this is for like halftime, really good defensive teams who are winning, like, at home, and you, you...
43:23
it looks like it's forecast for a double-digit win, they're gonna strangle the hell out of the def- out of the, uh, of the other team.
43:30
Uh, another example, like I said, was Clemson-BC last night, especially in games that were played slow in the first half. There's no reason for them to speed up in the second half.
43:40
I mean, unless the game gets way out of control, becomes open gym. But I'm saying, you know, you're up six, seven points. Uh, you know, Boston College, I believe they were losing 39-27, something like that.
43:52
Clemson's just gonna strangle the hell out of them. They're not gonna score, you know? So, and e- even last night on one I lost, um, St.
43:59
Mary's was on the road at San Francisco, up 42-28 at the half, and I played San Francisco under 65 and a half, not that they wouldn't get another 37 and a half point. Typically, that's a game St.
44:09
Mary's just strangles the life out of you. What happened? San Francisco scored every possession, and I still had a chance at the end because they went cold from, like, the f- five-minute mark to the one-minute mark.
44:20
A guy hit a three with 45 seconds to beat me.
44:22
But the point that I'm trying to make is if you can find good defensive teams that are winning at halftime, they're, and they're playing slow, th- they're unlikely to allow that other team back into the game with a high-scoring second half.
44:35
What is...
44:35
I've never asked it, uh, of you this way, but a- as you, because you have f- over a thousand people who are following your picks, what is the, the thing that you have noticed the most as the, I, I don't wanna use the word complaint, 'cause that overstates it, but what's the thing that they sort of miss out on those?
44:51
Is the fact that they don't have enough outs to play some of these- Yeah, I mean, a lot of people-... that they complain about not getting the number that you're giving out 'cause it's an in-game?
44:58
What, what is the answer to that? Yeah, I would say that that's the, that's the biggest thing.
45:03
You know, you have to have at least three or four outs to check at these commercials to see, you know, to get your best in-game number, and then a lot of people don't have the late games 'cause a lot of the books will shut down the, the late game- Yeah...
45:14
close game under at the, like, five- or six-minute mark, and you can't get those four-minute ones.
45:19
So you gotta find books that have that, you know, who are l- who are laying them, like Fanduel's laying them all the way down, um, you know, like two and a half minutes sometimes. That's amazing.
45:27
You know, of course it's, it's hard, it's hard to get a bet off at Fanduel. But the, uh, you know, for any decent amount of size. But the, uh, the, um, you gotta just find more books that, that have stuff, you know?
45:39
And, and they're out there, but they're, they're r- they're not as, you know, widely available.
45:44
Some people, like, they're in Florida, "Oh, all we have is Hard Rock and Bl-" I'm like, "Okay, well, there's nothing I can do. I'm, I'm doing this for all, everyone, not just for you," [laughs] you know? Yeah.
45:51
But that is, I was, I was saying, I was, 'cause I was talking about your stuff a couple weeks ago, and I was saying that's the thing you learn about, having, you have to have the multiple outs, and then you will learn as you do this which outs offer which kinds of bets and which at certain- Right...
46:07
limits. And so you, you start to figure out where the go-tos are on, on all these different kinds of bets. Some people won't o- offer team totals at halftime, right? Uh, you know, some people don't offer- Right...
46:16
the late bets and things like that. And that's, that's a great example. Team, the team totals is a great example 'cause, uh, not everybody has the team totals. Yeah.
46:23
Uh, okay, and then, uh, just to, talking about Kansas yesterday crushing Iowa State, uh, I asked this of Greg Peterson earlier in the same way that I asked, uh, Matt Cox about Michigan l- having lost to Wisconsin.
46:35
Are you worried at all about Michigan and Iow- and Iowa State now being knocked out from the ranks of the unbeaten, or do you still think they are top of the heap, both of those, both of those squads? Yeah.
46:45
Um, or is, or, and, and what about Vandy and, and Nebraska, who are undefeated? Do you treat them seriously as title contenders? I really like Vanderbilt a lot.
46:55
Um, as far as the other teams go, I mean, remember, UConn the first year, they lost, like, four out of six in the middle of January and February. These teams are gonna lose games on the road in good conferences.
47:04
It happens, you know? [laughs] These are good teams on the road. Uh, so that doesn't surprise me at all.
47:10
Um, you know, if it, this goes on for, you know, six weeks, then I'll, I'll be concerned, you know, but I still think those, those teams are still really, really good.
47:17
And, uh, you know, Vanderbilt, I love Vanderbilt as a... Although they, [laughs] they beat me on Saturday. I had over 88 and a half on a pregame team total, and they had 53 at the half. Somehow couldn't get home.
47:27
But, uh- Who's the, who's the team-... you know, in general, Vanderbilt's been very strong... who's the team that n- conventional wisdom that most people aren't thinking of that you think could win a title realistically?
47:36
What's, like, the lowest team on the totem pole- Mm-hmm... that you think has a shot legitimately if they get on a run? I don't know, may- maybe Florida. Oh, okay. Florida nobody really seems to be talking about. Okay.
47:48
You know? Um- All right... I mean, I wouldn't put them in my, as my tops, but, you know. A low-energy Todd Wishnev, everybody, who's still fighting off a cold. I'm, dude, I'm still fighting this, uh- Okay...
47:58
this sickness. I mean, I'm trying my best out here. [laughs] Coming back on a numbers game at VSiN.
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Recent episodes
A Numbers Game | September 17, 2026 | Hour 1
Sep 17, 2026
Best of A Numbers Game | September 16, 2026
Sep 16, 2026
A Numbers Game | September 16, 2026 | Hour 3
Sep 16, 2026
A Numbers Game | September 16, 2026 | Hour 2
Sep 16, 2026
A Numbers Game | September 16, 2026 | Hour 1
Sep 16, 2026
Best of A Numbers Game | September 15, 2026
Sep 15, 2026
A Numbers Game | September 15, 2026 | Hour 3
Sep 15, 2026
A Numbers Game | September 15, 2026 | Hour 2
Sep 15, 2026
A Numbers Game | September 15, 2026 | Hour 1
Sep 15, 2026
Best of A Numbers Game | September 11, 2026
Sep 11, 2026
