Ryan McGee, senior writer for ESPN, educates McElroy & Cubelic on rivalries & says why Oklahoma is a sleeper
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Did Bubba Wallace have legitimate beef in that cool-down lap yesterday in Chicago? I mean, he did. But the problem Bubba has right now is that... So Bubba's beef is the fact that he didn't win in a race. He doesn't want to race him forever. But Bubba struggles with the expression of his frustration. And so the question becomes, does he have a legitimate beef?

But with Bubba, first of all, it's an extra level of scrutiny because he's Bubba and he's polarizing and we're not going to get into all that. But...

But it's also, this is kind of his MO now, which is he has these really explosive expressions of anger. And so he doesn't get the benefit of the doubt anymore. And that includes people who have supported him. And so, you know, it becomes the boy that cried wolf. After a while, it's like, man, you know, people automatically now are going to go, oh, he's done it again, whether it's legitimate beef or not. And so, yeah, I mean, I get it. I just...

It just wasn't a good look, and he needs to be more conscious of that because you can't just – he's not Tony Stewart. What I go back to all the time is back in the day, Tony Stewart would completely explode over nothing.

And then he would come back to you. You know, he questioned your relationship with your mother on live television, which he did to me a couple times. And then he would five days later come to me and hug my neck and just say, we're good now, right? No, we're not good. We were fine the first couple times. But after a while, it's like, you know, dude, now we're in a cycle. And so that's where Bubba finds himself is that people aren't even – people won't give him the benefit of the doubt because he does this all the time. Or at least it feels like he's doing it all the time. So it's just not –

it's not a good way to go about your business. Definitely struggles with that. Also struggles to stay awake during radio interviews, but, uh, that's a story for another day. Um,

We wanted to talk to you about your essay that you have up about SEC rivalries and kind of where we're headed. It doesn't feel like it could be much bigger than it has been with the rivalries that we already have in this league. When you think about the Iron Bowl, you think about the Egg Bowl, you think about Georgia-Florida, and even some of the SEC-ACC rivalries that we have. But when you look ahead to Texas and Oklahoma being in this league now that they are, what part of the rivalries do you think –

can take off the most and maybe what are some that you think can take off that we're not talking enough about?

Well, I mean, I'm just excited to get to go. You know, Texas-Oklahoma is one of those games I've never been to. I've been to the fairgrounds. My dad officiated a game in the old Cotton Bowl, and I went there, and it was great, but I've never been to this game. So it's an excuse, honestly, I mean, selfishly, to get to do Marty McGee beneath Big Tex, right? I mean, that's amazing, and to get to eat fried butter or whatever they got. But...

But to me, that and Texas-Texas A&M. I mean, you know, so Texas-Texas A&M. I wrote a story a few years ago. I remember Texas A&M started the season on a Thursday night against no one. And I went to that game, and then I drove down to Austin because on Saturday, you know, Texas was kicking off this year. And I found a barbecue joint.

That is the literal geographic center, almost to the 10th of a mile between Kyle Field and Royal Stadium. And so I literally went right there and sat there all day talking to Texas A&M fans who were leaving College Station and eating lunch and talking to Texas fans who were eating lunch on their way into Austin. And this was, what, five, six years ago.

And it was sad because everybody's like, you know, all the grownups, like people my age and older were like, this sucks. We never get to play the game anymore. And the young people didn't care. They did not care because they just, they didn't grow up with the game. You know, the game had gone a decade. So Texas, Texas A&M, which was the staple college football for a century for all of our Thanksgivings, these young people had no idea. It was just something they watched on YouTube with their granddad, right? They didn't know what that was. And now thanks to Jim Schlossnagel,

cutting and running on Texas A&M in baseball and going straight to Texas. I feel like this thing has already been turned up to a 15-point

And we're not even close to the game yet. So that game returning. And honestly, I think the sleeper in this whole thing is Oklahoma. Because everybody's talking about Texas. And yes, they were just in the playoffs and Texas is Texas. But you guys know this. Going to a game at Oklahoma is amazing. Like, it's amazing. And quite frankly, Oklahoma's college football history is better than Texas'. So I think that I'm really looking forward to our –

SEC-centric-minded people who only think about SEC football, I'm excited for them to experience going to Norman and going to Austin and experiencing these things. But Texas A&M being back

And then, obviously, Oklahoma-Texas being part of the SEC schedule is just crazy. And then Arkansas, the people they left are back on their schedule now, right? And so Missouri thought they got away from these guys, and now they're back. And so Arkansas getting to play Texas and Texas A&M and Oklahoma and all these schools that we grew up watching them play when it was Arkansas versus the entire state of Texas and Oklahoma back in the day, I'm excited about that.

What do you think right now about the Missouri-Oklahoma rivalry? I know that's not one that is going to jump off the page for a lot of other folks, but for those that live in the area and follow the two programs, would that be one that is obviously being revitalized, but is that one that's moving the needle for anyone beyond those two fan bases? I think it will. I think that kind of falls under the category of what I'm talking about. When I went to school at Tennessee,

I was a college football fan, right? I would watch Oregon-Oregon State just because it's on TV. I loved watching BYU-Utah, right? I loved watching Hawaii-Fresno. I watched all that stuff. And so when I went to school in Knoxville, I remember my freshman year, Tennessee's first game was against UCLA on the road.

And everybody in Knoxville was like, oh, whatever. I'm like, it's UCLA. Like, Tommy Maddox is really good. Like, why are we not more excited about this? But that's when I realized that SEC people really just pay attention to the SEC. Like, when Missouri joined the conference, they're all like, what? And then Missouri went to the SEC championship game a couple times and also got their attention. So I say all that to say,

I think these are the games that are going to catch people off guard. And it's why the regionalism is important. Because when Texas and Oklahoma joined the conference, Greg Sankey loves to remind everybody. He always says the number. It only expanded the footprint of the map like 500 square miles or something. And so that's important. The map is connected. I think the Big Ten will struggle and the ACC will struggle with trying to sell you

a Cal-Wake Forest game because there's no connection there. But Missouri and Oklahoma, there's history there, and they're in the same neighborhood. And so I think the regionalism is going to throw fuel on the fire. And I look forward, again, to the old school, hardcore, only really care about

original SEC teams, I'm excited to see them be educated on what it's like. They don't like each other. To get to watch that on the field is going to be great. What do you think about, there are some folks that are already talking about Texas trying to throw their weight around and maybe try to pull some of the same shenanigans that they did in the Big 12 back in the day. Is that at all a concern for you inside the Southeastern Conference moving forward? I think it's going to be the most fascinating part of the whole thing. I think that

Texas, because you guys know this, it is what it is. There are certain schools within certain conferences that believe they run the conference. I grew up in the Carolinas. The University of North Carolina has always believed that the ACC runs through them, and it has. Everyone in Tuscaloosa and Birmingham, they believe that the SEC runs through the University of Alabama, and in a lot of ways it has. I cannot...

And I know they've already been in the meetings as a solid. I'll have votes as of now. They have votes now. I can't, what is the Texas crowd? What were the, the, the Regents, the athletic director, whomever. Now they're sitting in these meetings and,

And they are used to kind of running the conference, whether it was the Southwest Conference back in the day or whether it was the Big 12. And now they're going to sit in this room. Do you really believe that anyone from Athens cares what they think? Do you really believe that anyone in Tuscaloosa or Knoxville or any of these places really cares what they think? And the same thing is going to happen when USC, because the Pac-12 always run through USC. Now, do you think anyone from Ohio State and Michigan are going to really care

What USC thinks. And to me, that's the most fascinating part of all this is the politics and the sociology of them all sitting in a room together. Because reality is you got one vote now and you might have thought you had eight votes where you came from. So, yeah, a lot of big people are going to be humbled when they walk into rooms that they're used to running in.

And honestly, in the ones who already established the Alabamas and the Ohio States, they're going to be – I'm curious to see how they react when they get pushback because, you know, these other ones won't be intimidated. So that part of it, I asked Greg Sankey, I saw him at the College World Series, and I asked him, just so I understand, I go –

A week from now, when both these schools are in the conference, now they're in the meetings. He said they've been in the meetings for a couple of years, ever since this kind of became official. They've had conversations, but they haven't had votes. Now they've got votes. That part of it is going to be crazy. Ryan, we always appreciate the time. It's always great catching up with you. I'm sure we'll see you in Dallas next week.

I will definitely be there. I'll see you, boys. Sounds good. Ryan McGee of ESPN joining us on the Buyer's Right Hotline talking rivalries in the Southeastern Conference moving forward now that Texas and Oklahoma are officially in. It's going to be exciting. It's going to be fun. It's going to make media days more fun next week. It's not fun when you need foundation repair, though. Ox Foundations is the most reputable foundation repair and waterproofing company in Alabama. Over 25 years of experience, an A-plus BBB rating,

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An interesting list of top quarterbacks in the Southeastern Conference we need to discuss. We'll do it right after this on Mac and Cube in the morning. Catch up with all things McElroy and Kublik in the morning by subscribing to the podcast. Mythically, he's grown. He's almost like a little bit bigger than...

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