The Joel Klatt Show: A College Football Podcast

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to Ohio State and Notre Dame booking their tickets to the National Championship Game following two thrilling Semifinal games. He begins by breaking down the Buckeyes’ win over Texas and examines how Ohio State was able to come up with the key plays to win the game – and why the Longhorns will regret a few decisions all offseason. He also breaks down the reasons why Notre Dame was able to beat Penn State and what has made the Irish so difficult to beat in the Playoff. He discusses Drew Allar’s late interception and why he should not be shouldering all of the blame for the loss. Klatt also evaluates Penn State’s 2024 season and explains why it’s important to make a distinction when thinking about this loss one game away from the Title game. 0:00-2:45 Intro 2:46-21:57 Ohio State beat Texas & advances to national championship 21:58-39:08 Notre Dame wins with a game-winning field goal 39:09-39:39 National championship is set 39:40-41:56 Rest in peace, Coach Mac 41:57-43:34 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt makes his picks for the College Football Playoff Semifinal matchups as Ohio State takes on Texas and Notre Dame faces Penn State. He begins by looking at the Orange Bowl matchup between the Nittany Lions and Fighting Irish and points out the blueprint for a win for each side. He also explains why this game is a tipping point game for the Penn State program in particular. He then shifts to the question of whether Texas can slow down this Ohio State team that is firing on all cylinders with players like Jeremiah Smith leading on offense and a suffocating defense. He explains what has changed for Ohio State in the CFP and what Texas has to do if they want to pull off the upset in Arlington. 0:00-3:01 Intro 3:02-15:59 Notre Dame vs. Penn State 16:00-23:08 Notre Dame and Penn State’s keys to the game 23:09-38:17 Ohio State vs. Texas 38:18-39:45 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to Notre Dame’s win over Georgia in the Sugar Bowl to book their ticket in the CFP Semifinals. He breaks down how Notre Dame was able to take down the SEC Champion Bulldogs and whether we should have been surprised by the result. Klatt congratulates Marcus Freeman on doing a great job in South Bend and bringing the Irish to the Final 4 of the sport, just 3 years after taking over for Brian Kelly. He then discusses Georgia’s up-and-down season and why the Bulldogs were not the same juggernaut that we’ve seen in recent years as the SEC continues to struggle in the College Football Playoff and Bowl Games this year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt breaks down Ohio State’s emphatic win over #1 Oregon in the Rose Bowl as the Buckeyes continue to look like the best team in the nation. He discusses what Ohio State has figured out in their last 2 games that has resulted in the back-to-back blowout wins in the CFP and whether anyone can beat them when they are at this level. He also explains why the CFP format let Oregon down before proposing a permanent site for the National Championship Game. Klatt then debates how to feel about Texas after they moved onto the Semifinal but did so by narrowly escaping an upset-minded Arizona State squad. He gives Cam Skattebo his flowers after a performance for the ages and gives his take on the controversial targeting no-call at the end of the game. Klatt also explains why Penn State’s win over Boise State was big for the program but also covered up some issues they’ll have to fix to win in the next round. Finally, he discusses Michigan’s win over Alabama and Illinois’ win over South Carolina and hopes that the narrative of the SEC clearly being the best conference this year can finally be put to bed for the good of the sport as a whole. 0:00-1:28 Intro 1:29-2:30 Sugar Bowl postponed 2:31-19:33 Ohio State blows out Oregon in Rose Bowl 19:34-25:31 Rose Bowl should be the National Championship game 25:32-39:34 Texas survives Arizona State in 39-31 win 39:35-47:57 Penn State beats Boise State 31-14 47:58-54:37 Have bowl results ended the narrative that SEC was the best conference this season? 54:38-55:22 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt discusses Cam Ward sitting out the 2nd half of Miami’s Bowl game as well as BYU’s dominant performance vs Colorado before getting to his picks for the College Football Playoff Quarterfinals. Klatt points out the keys in the matchup between Boise State and Penn State and whether Ashton Jeanty will be able to carry the Broncos to an upset. He then makes his pick for the Peach Bowl between Texas and Arizona State before breaking down the heavyweight matchup between Ohio State and Oregon in the Rose Bowl. He also considers how Georgia will cope without Carson Beck in their game vs Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl. 0:00-1:57 Intro 1:58-4:11 BYU beats Colorado 36-14 in Alamo Bowl 4:12-7:55 Cam Ward sits out second half of Miami’s bowl game loss 7:56-17:24 Fiesta Bowl: Penn State vs. Boise State 17:25-25:55 Peach Bowl: Texas vs. Arizona State 25:56-38:09 Rose Bowl: Ohio State vs. Oregon 38:10-43:33 Sugar Bowl: Notre Dame vs. Georgia 43:34-44:46 Joel’s Picks 44:47-45:51 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to the First Round of the College Football Playoff as Ohio State, Texas, Penn State and Notre Dame all advanced to the Quarterfinals. He states why this is the version of Ohio State he’s been waiting to see and why they can win the National Championship. He breaks down what made Notre Dame and Penn State’s emphatic wins so impressive while giving Texas credit for withstanding a great performance from Clemson’s Cade Klubnik. Klatt also discusses the discourse around the Playoff this weekend and why it was so negative. He explains why he was so frustrated with the conversation questioning Indiana and SMU after their losses that he ended up tweeting at Lane Kiffin. 0:00-1:56 Intro 1:57-4:50 Joel’s Big Takeaways 4:51-15:50 Ohio State’s impressive game plan 15:51-23:34 Texas advances to quarterfinals after beating Clemson 23:35-30:42 Penn State blows out SMU 30:43-34:24 Notre Dame beats Indiana 34:25-47:05 Joel’s frustrations with the CFP discourse 47:06-48:19 Outro Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt makes his picks for the First Round Games of the College Football Playoff before making his full CFP bracket picks - including who he thinks will win the National Championship. He begins with the game between Indiana and Notre Dame and considers whether Curt Cignetti’s Cinderella squad can pull off the upset in South Bend. He then looks at SMU’s chances to knock off Penn State in State College and whether James Franklin will get a signature win of his tenure. Klatt breaks down the matchup between Clemson and Texas and discusses whether there should be concerns about Quinn Ewers in this matchup. He then analyzes the Tennessee-Ohio State game as the Buckeyes look to bounce back from their loss to Michigan. He discusses whether Ohio State will be able to correct their mistakes from that game against a team that is built similarly to the Wolverines with a strong Defensive Line and Run Game. Following his picks, he fills out his full bracket for the College Football Playoff and announces who he is picking to win the National Championship. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to Colorado’s Travis Hunter winning the 2024 Heisman Trophy. Klatt reveals who he voted for on his Heisman ballot and what made Hunter’s season unprecedented. He also discusses why he believes the vote was so close with Boise State RB Ashton Jeanty and why Shedeur Sanders deserved more recognition from voters. Klatt also considers the role Deion Sanders had in Hunter’s Heisman season and why it was a uniquely perfect match between player and coach. He also discusses which players could be in New York next year for the Heisman ceremony. He reacts to the recent coaching moves in the sport and explains why coaches like Rich Rodriguez and Scott Frost are returning to their former schools in this new era of CFB and why it was smart for Marcus Freeman and Notre Dame to extend the Irish coach’s contract. He then reacts to the news that Penn State QB Beau Pribula is entering the Transfer Portal less than one week before the Nittany Lions’ Playoff game and blames the system for putting the player in a no-win situation. Klatt then offers solutions to the calendar which includes moving the Army-Navy game to a new date. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt weighs in on North Carolina hiring Bill Belichick to be their new Head Coach and whether the 6x Super Bowl winning-coach would be successful as a college coach. He then discusses the announced Heisman Finalists for this season and why Colorado’s Shedeur Sanders deserved to be invited to New York. Klatt breaks down the impact of Carson Beck’s elbow injury on the College Football Playoff and whether Georgia can win a National Championship if Beck is forced to miss the CFP. He wraps up the show by discussing Michigan’s new Offensive Coordinator hire before giving his biggest takeaways from the Big Ten Schedule release including listing his most interesting Big Ten Games next season. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to the final College Football Playoff Rankings. He discusses why the Committee chose SMU over Alabama for the final at-large spot and whether it was the right decision. He breaks down why the Committee placed so much value on the Conference Championship Games and discusses whether that makes sense in this era of super conferences with imbalanced scheduling. He also explains why teams like Ohio State and Tennessee have legitimate complaints about their seeding and why the team that did everything right to receive the #1 seed, Oregon, was “rewarded” with a very difficult path thanks to some unintended consequences. Klatt also lays out how the CFP format could look different very soon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt makes his picks for Conference Championship Game Weekend before predicting how the final CFP Bracket will look on Sunday. Will Penn State finally get the big win they’ve been searching for when they face Oregon? Will Texas avenge their earlier loss to Georgia? Klatt then makes his picks in the Big 12, ACC and Mountain West Championship Games as those 3 Title Games are essentially play-in games to get into the Playoff. Among those 3 picks is an upset that will shake up the Bracket. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to the latest College Football Playoff Rankings as Alabama currently holds the last at-large spot in the field. Did the Committee get it right? Klatt compares the case for the Crimson Tide against teams like Miami, Ole Miss and South Carolina. He also breaks down who would win a potential argument for the last spot between SMU and Alabama on Selection Sunday if the Mustangs were upset by Clemson in the ACC Championship Game. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt breaks down the huge upset in Columbus as Michigan beat Ohio State for the 4th-straight year. He gives his reasons why the Wolverines continue to have the Buckeyes’ number and why Ohio State’s Offense was so conservative, resulting in just 10 points. Klatt discusses the lasting impact that this game will have on the programs going forward. He also gives his thoughts on the postgame fight on the field and how the emotions of college football rivalries are one of the best parts of the sport but can also, at times, go over the line. Klatt hits on the results around the country like Texas going to Kyle Field and winning at A&M before listing which teams are already in the College Football Playoff and who is on the bubble trying to sneak into the field. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt previews The Game as Michigan heads to Columbus to take on #2 Ohio State on Big Noon Saturday on FOX. He discusses the keys to the game he will be calling and where each team has advantages in the matchup. He then makes his pick in the game that has been building for 13 years as #3 Texas travels to Kyle Field to take on #20 Texas A&M. Klatt makes his pick in the rivalry game between #15 South Carolina and #12 Clemson as both teams look to find a way to build their case to sneak into the Playoff. #5 Notre Dame has been red hot since their early season loss but will USC pull off the upset in the Coliseum? Klatt also makes picks in two potential upsets of Top-10 teams as #8 Tennessee heads to Vanderbilt and #6 Miami faces a tricky road test at Syracuse. He wraps the show up by providing some clarity for the crazy race for the Big 12 Championship Game, laying out what the top teams need to have happen to book their trip to Arlington next week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to the latest College Football Rankings as the Committee drops Indiana down to 10th following their loss to Ohio State. He discusses whether Hoosier fans should feel like they are safely inside the Playoff or in danger of being jumped by a team behind them. He breaks down whether the 3-loss SEC teams such as Alabama, Ole Miss or even South Carolina have a pathway to sneaking through the backdoor into the Field. Klatt breaks down if the Big 12 Champ could be vulnerable to missing out on the Playoff altogether and whether the CFP would actually leave a potential Big 12 Champion Colorado team out. He wraps up the episode by discussing whether the 12-team field is actually the best format for the Playoff and points out why the current system has some flaws that could very well show themselves this year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to a crazy Saturday in College Football which saw 7 Top 20 teams lose. He breaks down what makes Ohio State so dangerous after their win over #5 Indiana before discussing the Hoosiers’ Playoff hopes after the loss. Klatt then considers the Playoff ramifications for Alabama, Ole Miss and Texas A&M after all 3 were beaten on Saturday. He also looks at the wild Big 12 race as Kansas pulled off another upset, this time against Colorado, and Arizona State survived a wild finish to keep their Cinderella run going. Finally, Klatt recaps the impact of the big news on the recruiting trail as Michigan picked up a huge commitment from #1 overall player, QB Bryce Underwood, Colorado got their 5-star successor to Shedeur Sanders and USC also got their future QB. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt breaks down the biggest games of the weekend including his game on Big Noon Saturday as #5 Indiana faces their biggest test of the year against #2 Ohio State. He points out where each team has advantages and how the big injury news out of Columbus will affect the game. Klatt makes his picks in the Big 12 as Coach Prime and Colorado take on a resurgent Kansas team and Arizona State looks to keep rolling by taking down BYU. Army puts their unbeaten record on the line against a Notre Dame team that needs to win out to guarantee themselves a spot in the College Football Playoff. In the SEC, will Ole Miss avoid a letdown following their win over Georgia when they take on Florida in the Swamp? Will A&M be caught looking ahead to next week’s Texas game when they take on Auburn? Klatt also explains why Penn State is facing a dangerous road test at Minnesota in a must-win game for James Franklin and the Nittany Lions. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt discusses the latest set of College Football Rankings and gives his biggest takeaways. He wonders if Kirby Smart and Georgia are being trolled by the Committee after landing in the 10th spot despite their win over Tennessee on Saturday. Klatt breaks down why the Dawgs are being set up for a very tough path in the Playoff and why a 10-2 SEC team is going to be left out this year. He considers what Indiana needs to do vs Ohio State to prove they belong in the Playoff field and also points out there are several other programs in the Top 10 with questionable resumes. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt reacts to Colorado’s emphatic win over Utah and breaks down why Coach Prime’s team is for real in the surprising Big 12 and why Travis Hunter deserves to be the frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy. He then discusses Georgia’s big win over Tennessee and how it affected his ranking of the top teams in the SEC. Klatt considers whether Oregon’s comeback win vs Wisconsin is cause for concern for the Ducks. He answers mailbag questions about what changes he’d most like to see in the sport and whether teams are better off in the eyes of the Committee not making Conference Championship Games altogether rather than making it and adding a loss to their CFP resume. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

FOX Sports’ lead College Football analyst Joel Klatt makes his picks for the biggest games of the weekend. He begins by previewing his game on Big Noon Saturday on FOX as Utah faces Deion Sanders’ 17th ranked Colorado team. He then makes his pick for the huge SEC matchup as #7 Tennessee heads to Athens to take on a Georgia team with their backs against the wall. He also discusses how #1 Oregon will look to keep things rolling in a road game at Wisconsin. Klatt breaks down why #6 BYU’s unbeaten record will be in serious jeopardy when a sneaky-good Kansas team comes to Provo. He wraps up with the game in LA between two historic programs trying to get things back on track as Nebraska visits USC. He discusses the importance of this one for Lincoln Riley and Matt Rhule as they look to re-gain positive momentum in their tenures. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices