Just kind of explain to the Florida State fan and to the sports fan out there from a debt standpoint that this really isn't as bad as what they're making it out to be.

Well, you know, they have revenue bonds.

And we've talked about this before.

Anybody that takes on capital projects the size of the ones that Florida State did, you're going to take on debt.

And on the surface, if you don't understand how that works, and I'm not saying you specifically, just people on the outside, you think, oh, my goodness, this costs $200 million.

This costs another $100 million.

And this all adds up to $450 million.

Does the debt have anything to do with that? I mean, they're missing big in the portal.

It's time for the Jeff Cameron Show in 5, 4, 3, 2, 1.

Final hour bonus hour on a libations Friday here on the Jeff Cameron Show.

I'm driving right now.

We had to pre-record the show today.

If you haven't noticed by now, well, you're not very observant.

But it is, in the interest of transparency, a recorded show today because I'm making my way to Tuscaloosa to watch the shock...

In awe of a Florida State upset over Alabama.

It's not like a major league in that way.

Why in September?

I think there was growing distrust that he was in front of, uh, where college football was headed and had a good grasp on how to compete in the modern game.

There, there was frustration for a lot of reasons, Mark.

We could get into the weeds.

Some of it has to do, obviously, with finances.

A lot of people understood that Doak Campbell needed to be renovated, and nobody had a problem with that.

But they've spent over $400 million on facilities, the other 200-plus on the football-only facility, and while it's great and it's second to none these days, and it'll be lovely for the next head coach, it didn't do him any good in roster-building.

We just wanna take up as much time as possible so we can get that buyout down.

Right

RightOther schools began to realize the portal was something they too could utilize, and they got involved.

And so the advantage that a school like Florida State had, and Mike Norvell had, was taken away.

Ev- all the big boys got involved and realized that it wasn't a blight on the program to go outside of your recruiting class and bring in players from other programs.

So then that turned things.

The, the, the extension came right after the 13 and 0 season, the thought being that if you lose your coach to Alabama, who Florida State was snubbed for in favor of, that that would be an embarrassment above and beyond, uh, anything that happened with the, with the committee.

And so they did give that extension.

... and what's that interview look like [laughs] in terms of what I'm willing to do to get, uh, Florida State football back, uh, in, in good graces?

Were you expecting it to be kind of a slow bleed, or were you maybe expecting it to be a little more stretched out? Tell me the good and maybe the questions you have after Saturday.

Well, the most obvious question, Chuck, is that offensive line, which is what I question going into the season, because I think their offensive backfield, in particular at running back, is pretty good.

You know, I think Cromwell can play, Singleton can play, Wisner can play.

I don't know how much they're going to be able to accomplish this year behind that group if this is indicative of what's going to happen moving forward.

So that is the grave concern.

I think most Florida State fans went into that game understanding their quarterback at best would be average.

I think that's what he looked to be pretty average.

Tell me about defense and what you think you saw in year two of this incarnation here.

So what was that first half like in the press box?

People looking at each other.

I mean, you know, kind of just that side-eyed sort of, well.

You know, part of it, Mark, since they started losing, which you go back to after the 13-0 season and the snub and all that, they've gone 2-10, 5-7.

And more and more they've restricted and restricted and restricted access.

We used to have unfettered access, Mark, to these practices, to the scrimmages.

But they've shut that down by and large.

Defensively, what's going on?

Does he understand that? how important football is because you can say what you want about the AD but it's kind of like in the NFL you need an owner a GM and a coach that are all on the same page and it's nice to have a quarterback in college football we now need to have the university president understanding the importance of the football team is that the case at Florida State

If it is, they're not aligned properly.

I would say this.

The current president has done a great job of lifting Florida State to academic heights that they've never seen.

Florida State as a university has grown immensely, but they've done that on the heels of football.

They've done that on the back of football.

And if he doesn't understand, I'm sure by now he's hearing from many dissatisfied alumni boosters and supporters in the community.

Is there somebody for the money people to get behind?

What is the feeling in Tallahassee surrounding Norvell where you could argue outside of the undefeated season and getting left out of the college football playoff that they have also had perhaps the talent to win but have underperformed?

Yeah, I think.

There's a decidedly different feel amongst Florida State fans about Mike Norvell than, say, South Carolina fans about Shane Beamer, based on what you just said.

Florida State fans are done with Mike Norvell, by and large.

I think there's probably a small contingent that still thinks back to the 10-win season, followed by the undefeated regular season and the conference championship victory.

They look at that and they say, because that happened in back-to-back years – And they say, well, you know, the snub happened and it really affected, obviously, almost the psyche of the program, if you will.

And I understand that because it was obviously, I think, a gross miscarriage of justice, if you will.

I completely glossed right over the fact that you guys actually have to play Virginia this year as well, which I don't think they'll be as tough as they once were, but I did feel bad that I sort of just looked right up the schedule and didn't even give Tony's team any credit at all.

And Jeff, how surprising to you was Spain's dominance over France?

Yeah.

For, for me, they... [sighs] You know, you think that France's attack would've broken down Spain, but they were resilient.

They were...

They kept the lines tight.

They really suffocated France.

They couldn't get any space.

Jeff?

I mean, to see Mbappé and that front five, as you were saying, just completely silenced, could you have ever envisioned that, and what was your reaction to that defensive effort from Spain?

No.

Like, like Herc said, I, I picked, I picked France to kind of win it all just because they're...

From top to bottom, they have a solid, solid team.

They're, they're deep.

I mean, there are players that are left off this squad that were, are world-class, you know? And, and for me, but it was more their tactical setup for Spain.

They controlled the tempo, but it's a rest offense.

How significant is today for him on the international stage?

How do you slow down someone like Lionel Messi?

Yeah, [scoffs] it's a great question because I think everybody's tried to do that in, uh, in Spain, you know, especially Real Madrid, when he's playing, when he was playing for Barcelona.

I mean, this guy is special.

He's one of the, the greatest players to ever play.

Uh, it's gonna be difficult, but here's the thing.

They need to limit the service.

You know, s- cut off the supply chain, because if he's getting the ball and receiving it, and he's getting in that flow, a lot of touches, uh, that's when he grows, and that's when, when he'll do his best and he really shines.

What has this tournament meant for him, and where can it go with another two big performances? [scoffs]

So they're gonna have to be smart with the ball like they have been, but France is just, they're just too powerful, I believe.

I mean, like you said, I'm more of the defensive player, you're more the attacking, and I'm going with the defensive guys, or I'm going with the attacking guys.

But, you know, like Brek said, uh, France is so dynamic and they have this lethal four up top, um, that interchange with one another.

But saying that, with, with Spain keeping possession, like Brek said, and they're high up the field, it just might make one moment, take one moment for someone to make a bad pass on Spain, and then boom, the interception and then, you know, Mbappé's gone.

We've seen it time and time again throughout this, this World Cup.

It's just one moment of brilliance.

And I, I think it's really, really important to also talk about how Spain has been on top the last three times they've played against each other.

You did

Mm-hmm.

He's full of confidence.

He's dynamic.

When things are flowing for him, he's, he's ruthless.

And I think Olise, Dembele, Barcola, those guys draw a lot of attention as well.

So the defenders on the other team, they're, they have to be honest.

That gives Mbappé more time and space to do his thing, and that's why he's scoring goals.

Like, are we potentially overlooking them as a favorite to win this whole thing? Just given some of the other teams that seem to have been dominating the conversation at the World Cup.

[laughs]

I, I don't think they have enough depth on the team.

You know, other big juggernauts like France, you could say, they have such a deep squad.

Spain you could say the same thing.

Portugal, Argentina, they have so many players that come in, and they're just, they're depth.

Saying that, they are a team that has the advantage playing at the Azteca.

We've been through that, and it's, it is so intense there when you step on the field.

The deciding factor for the US tonight will be what?

Oh, yeah

... that's the one thing that I would say was i- has been...

If the US were to lose, and I don't like talking negative, but the intensity, everybody's been bought into this World Cup, and it's just on our fingertips, whether 1994, now we're here now.

Social media, everything has blown up.

So for us, the game is growing, and it's gonna be a major boost in a sport.

Should that be possible tonight?

Yeah, I think we're in the...

We've been the dominant team, right? We've always been the underdog.

So who had the bigger upset yesterday?

You know, I'd, for, for me, I'd have to say Netherlands.

They, they were- They're just below their, their, their normal.

They, they weren't attacking.

They didn't keep possession.

Morocco had 70% possession in the match, which is rarely unlikely th- um, for their character.

I don't think they attacked enough.

[laughs]

France is the team to beat in the World Cup.

Play on.

I mean, they, they've shown it from...

Uh, they had one poor 45 minutes in the opening World Cup.

Other than that, they've been in cruise control, and they have so much, so many players that are world-class players.

I mean, you can see it.

They're, they're really dominating the World Cup.

Fireworks in Costa Rica right outside the building

Feel the same way?

Yeah.

I mean, if you look back to the Germany-Paraguay game, Paraguay was playing for that.

Th- they weren't gonna go toe-to-toe with Germany, and that was really their only chance.

So there is a way that, you know, teams, that's their, their advantage, where H- Netherlands, they, they dominated the game, they controlled it.

But at the end of the day, you gotta put the ball in the back of the net.

I think there was 10 missed penalties o- over the last couple days.

What should the game plan be for the US in this match-up?

Obviously, the USA went to a match last night with a different lineup, but is there any cause for concern in what you saw in that loss?

I, I'm not concerned whatsoever.

I mean, it's...

We, we expected four to six changes, not nine.

There was only Weston McKennie and Pepe that were starting from the, the last previous match.

For me, it was an opportunity to get these guys some experience, to get their feet wet a little bit.

Stepping on the pitch at a World Cup, it's, it's intense.

What lessons can the USA now take from last night's match as they head into the round of 32 and they prepare for Wednesday's match against Bosnia?

You feeling like this is gonna have any sort of negative effect headed into that round of 32?

Yeah, I'm not overly concerned whatsoever.

I mean, when you, you make that many changes in a match, you're gonna lose momentum, you're gonna lose the tempo.

These guys have been training for, uh, probably almost two months now, working every single day.

But you could see the drop-off between the starting 11 and this group.

At the same time, this is really key for us to stay resilient, stay positive.

We can't go, you know, "Oh my days, we lost this match." We've already advanced to the next round, and that's an, that's the biggest game for us next.

What are you looking at there?

Okay

...

I know Roger Bennett came out and said that, you know, he should be, for, for Portugal to win the World Cup, he needs to be sitting on the bench.

I think that's completely wrong.

Roberto Martinez came out and said, "Hey, listen.

Our goal scorer, our, the best goal scorer in the world, right, needs to be on the pitch.

There's service, he'll score a goal.

Jeff, go ahead.

What did you make of his performance yesterday?

It was incredible.

Uh, Brek and I were fortunate enough to attend the game yesterday in, in Houston.

The fans, the crowd, it, it was phenomenal.

And you could feel, there w- there was ...

There's been so much pressure on Ronaldo.

I don't think there's a player in this tournament that has more pressure than him.

Jeff, what do you think?

That's gonna be a big miss for the US today.

Yeah, it's gonna be a s- It's not surprising.

You know, obviously he's picked up a, that calf injur- injury, and they don't wanna, they don't wanna risk anything, you know? It's, he's more important going into the later stage of the tournament.

So hopefully he'll be good for the next game, and it gives someone else an opportunity to show their stuff.

Where do you expect that other attacking threat to come from when we look at the 11 now?

Y- you're seeing Pepi come in.

I don't know if it's more of to stretch the defense, because Australia's so compact, their lines are really tight.

So maybe it's just to get in behind them a little bit more and be a little bit more direct.

Where do you expect that other attacking threat to come from when we look at the XI now?

You're seeing Pepe come in.

I don't know if it's more to stretch the defense because Australia is so compact.

Their lines are really tight.

So maybe it's just to get in behind them a little bit more and be a little bit more direct.

With Balogun's movement from last match was fantastic.

So hopefully them two will combine one another and they can really explode this Australian defense.

Jeff, what about you?

What impressed you the most about this win?

I think we were resilient.

From the first moment on, we stayed compact.

We had our composure.

You know, it was just about time.

We created an own goal the first match.

We've created another own goal here today.

They must be filled with confidence then, and what we can probably expect from how they may line up against Turkey in the final one.