In this solo show, Steven Godfrey’s got two hours’ worth of football and life to keep you occupied as you sojourn in this hot valley of news for college football. Let’s talk about Lane Kiffin’s altar-dodging with Auburn, Marshall’s ceiling in the Sun Belt, Jimbo Fisher’s failings, Michigan’s scheduling, and the death of regional identities (for now). Production: Anthony Vito.

Alex and Richard take subscriber questions heading into a holiday week. Which Florida school does Billy Napier least want to let beat him? Did UCLA set up DeShaun Foster to fail? Who can be 2024’s quiet “hang in the Playoff race right to the end” decent team? Is the Big 12 really due for an era of parity, or are media making that up? Who will suffer most in the Big Ten and SEC from the current realignment wave? What do we make of Curt Cignetti and Indiana? Who drives CFB TV ratings? And let’s compare and contrast Nick Saban and his most obvious current contemporary in the other football.

Bonus episodes and Q&A: www.splitzoneduo.com

Production: Anthony Vito.

Weeks before the Big 12 expands to 16 teams, Godfrey and Alex dive into the unique place the conference currently occupies. It’s not rich like the Big Ten and SEC, but it’s not teetering like the ACC or dead like the old Pac-12. Things are more precarious than they were four years ago but way better than they were three years ago. Commissioner Brett Yormark is trying ideas that seem at turns silly, destructive, innovative, and extremely smart. So, what do we make of the Big 12’s present and future? Let’s talk about it.

Production: Anthony Vito.

Bonus episodes: www.splitzoneduo.com

A college football playoff with more than four teams? What will they think of next? Alex, Richard, and Steven talk through what we can learn about the upcoming Playoff expansion by looking back at decades of the FCS (and Division II and III) postseason. What really drives expansion? Will the selection committee draw even more ire with a bigger field, or less? How much of a holy grail will first-round home games be? And what about finally getting a chance to see strange bedfellows in frigid weather in December? Production: Anthony Vito.

The rumor mill demands that several coaches be on the hot seat at all times. But what about when the seat gets so hot that a new description—”pre-fired”—becomes appropriate? With Billy Napier and Sam Pittman headlining the 2024 class of pre-firing candidates, Richard, Steven, and Alex go down memory lane. Sometimes a pre-fired coach goes the way of Bryan Harsin or Ed Orgeron, but sometimes he goes the way of Tommy Tuberville or even Jim Harbaugh. And when the seat gets hottest, what percentage of coaches actually stick around for a while? Does anyone beat the pre-fired rap forever? Production: Anthony Vito.

Shehan Jeyarajah is national reporter for CBS Sports, host of the College Football Survivor Show, and knower of the Texas college football scene. He chats with Alex about every FBS program in the state and a big handful of FCS teams, too. The conversation covers everything from, yes, how many games Arch Manning might start this year to how a newly esteablished program at UTRGV might do once it starts playing competitive games. Plus: How will Mike Elko be different from Jimbo Fisher? What should we make of Texas Tech’s five-star freshman receiver? How has SMU’s move to the AAC changed the DFW recruiting scene? Can UTSA remain a big deal in the AAC without Frank Harris at QB? Is Prairie View A&M in line for a run in the SWAC? If it’s a Texas college football topic, there’s a good chance we get into it here. Production: Anthony Vito.

Richard Johnson, Alex Kirshner, and Steven Godfrey start to look ahead to the 2024 college football season. The episode opens with some consideration of New York Knicks fans (it just happened) and then moves (15:45) into a discussion of nine players we’re paying close attention to for 2024. Some are just really good, and some are pivotal to programs on the ropes. This episodes takes a trip through Arkansas, Arkansas State, Kentucky, Tennessee, Minnesota, Colorado, Clemson, Kansas State, and Boston College.

Production: Anthony Vito.

Bonus episodes: www.splitzoneduo.com

Welcome to a new episode of Scheme School. Yahoo Sports’ Nate Tice returns to the show to have a completely on-field-focused (we promise) conversation about Colorado's already-polarizing QB1. What does he struggle with? And what does he excel at? What was the Buffs’ offense last year, what will it be this year, and what should it be to maximize Sanders as a player? Read Nate's in depth breakdown of Sanders here. (Now Richard can just point at this episode as Shedeur’s draft stock goes up and down.) Production: Anthony Vito.

Like this show? Here’s more Scheme School

* The evolution of Chip Kelly, schemer

* How defense evolved in CFB in 2023

* All these different safety positions: What happened?

This episode is for paying subscribers of Split Zone Duo, but everyone can hear a free preview.

Not a subscriber yet? Now’s a great time to become one, as we begin our ramp-up into the college football season, which quickly gives way to the coach carousel and then back to the big postseason games. By subscribing, you get frequent bonus episodes, the ability to ask questions that might appear on the show, and a place in a growing college football community. We’d love to have you. The cost is $10 a month, and you can get a month free with an annual subscription.

You can listen to bonus episodes in the same feed where you listen to free episodes, whether that’s on the Substack app, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, YouTube Music, or any other platform. It’s easy!

College football is about to get a lot different. Alex and Richard talk through how changes to player compensation come 2025 will reshape the sport. We think it’s ultimately a winner for both players and fans, but there are big questions left to answer: What will become of collectives? Which type of program will get the most benefit from the House v. NCAA settlement? Which type will be hurt? Will this settlement be the line of demarcation between an eventual superleague and everyone else? And is this an ideal economic system? Production: Anthony Vito.

Godfrey's insisting that everyone pick a Sun Belt team to ride and/or die with in '24. Plus, did the NFL kill USC's L.A. vibes? And let's set an expectation for every single FBS team changing conferences this season. The Big 12 is a Las Vegas buffet, and it's 3 a.m., baby. Production by Anthony Vito.

Throughout May, The Single Wing is free for everyone thanks to Magic Mind. If you’d like to hear The Single Wing all year and ask the questions that help Godfrey build the show, become a paying subscriber to SZD today.