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Sportscaster Herb Winches opened his speech at the Selma Quarterback Club with the opening line, “Hello again, everybody.”

Winches was the guest speaker on Tuesday night at the George P. Evans Building.

As the audience ate grilled chicken breasts with cheddar cheese and bacon, baked potato casserole, lima beans, turnip greens provided by the Golden Ranch Restaurant,Winches spoke on a variety of subjects.

Winches, best-known across the state as the sports anchor at WBRC-TV/Channel 6 (now Fox 6), assured Alabama fans that the Crimson Tide is still alive in the national championship race.

“Don’t panic, Nick Saban will be fine,” Winches said. “He’s won national championships with one loss.”

The former Jacksonville State running back also addressed the status of Auburn head football coach Bryan Harsin.

“Bryan Harsin’s a good, solid guy, but he’s a fish out of water,” Winches said. “He’s from the West Coast, but I don’t blame him for taking the job. Harsin was never given a fair chance. I blame the powers that be. They tried to walk back the investigation, but it was too late. It’s not a matter of if they will fire Bryan Harsin, it’s when.”

Winches, a Louisville, Kentucky native, also discussed the Naming, Image and Likeness, where college athletes receive compensation. Winches said that the compensation in college football should go beyond the quarterbacks and wide receivers.

“The NIL is not fair to everybody,” Winches said. “What about an offensive lineman or defensive lineman?”

Winches said the transfer portal has forever changed the NCAA.

“The NCAA fell asleep at the switch, they are powerless,” Winches said. “Cheating has become legalized. There is no loyalty anymore.”

Winches named his top four Heisman Trophy candidates, all quarterbacks: Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Bryce Young of Alabama, Hendon Hooker of Tennessee and Bo Nix of Oregon. Nix played three years at Auburn.

The 73-year-old Winches said what Nix has done at Oregon is impressive.

Winches currently owns The Landing at Parker Creek, a waterfront, open-air restaurant and bar in Coosa County on the northwest shore of Lake Martin.

Winches also spoke highly of the basketball programs at Auburn and Alabama, because of coaches Bruce Pearl down on the Plains and Nate Oats at the Capstone.