Stories Inside the Man Cave
Stories Inside the Man Cave
Ep 297: Inside the Fieldhouse with Todd Dodge
Ever felt the intoxicating aroma of shrimp gumbo wafting from the kitchen of Shoal Creek Saloon on a regular Texas afternoon? Or imagined the trials and tribulations of the 1985 season opener of Texas football? Buckle up, as we take you through the heart of Texas, reminiscing about the resilience of this iconic establishment, our adventures in North Carolina, and a rendezvous with former Longhorn coach Mac Brown over a round of golf at Pinehurst. We also touch base with our retirement journey accompanied by mouth-watering burgers and football updates.
Football is more than a game; it's a journey woven with stories of grit, resilience, and deep connections. As we share our special bond with Sandra and Larry Alphawight, whose family boasts of former Texas quarterbacks, and our prodigy, Cade Club taking center stage at Clemson as QB1, you'll get a glimpse into the real world behind the glam of football. A world characterized by standing your ground as we did during the challenging 1985 season opener against Missouri. It’s a peek into the camaraderie shared on the sands of Crystal Beach during the annual Texas OU Weekend, and the thrill of backing the Horns in burnt orange attire on our upcoming fall vacation to Clemson, South Carolina.
As the winds of change sweep through the college football landscape, we shed light on the impact of the transfer portal on the recruitment process. Imagine high school football players weighing their options, coaches switching their game plan for this new normal and college football rosters undergoing a metamorphosis. We share tales of our proudest moments as coaches and the life lessons learned on the field. In the end, we conclude with a message of hope and resilience, a reminder that no one is alone in their struggle and the importance of having someone who can relate to your situation. So tune in, for an episode filled with inspiration, resilience, and football!
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I, who Do not Know Sexy code, he's had a few moments here, family friends. Pretty sure you've been here when you were a Texas Longhorn quarterback as well.
Speaker 2:I was. I'm sure they're still having it on Fridays, but I used to come over here and get the pitch till you win catfish and hush puppies and french fries. My late father-in-law, ebi Neptune, when I was playing at the University of Texas and I was dating and then later married to his daughter, brought me over here. He's the one who introduced me to this great, fine Texas establishment of Shoal Creek Saloon. So you know we were talking about earlier. I always think about Shoal Creek Saloon as being that little offensive guard, that little undersized, you know, right guard that I've had on many state championship teams, that we've coached a kid that really wasn't any good but you couldn't get him out of the lineup because he was so gritty and so tough. That's what Shoal Creek Saloon reminds me of, because this place has been under flood waters Survival, I mean, while I've been in the Austin area probably four different times, you know. I mean this place has been left for dead a bunch and it keeps rising from the ashes.
Speaker 1:So rising from the floods, but no love this place, but what he's talking about, if you have not been here Shoal Creek Saloon, it's on Lamar, headed toward downtown Austin, about six blocks from downtown Austin. Shoal Creek, dating back to Memorial Day 81 and several years before that, this place floods a lot and even with flood control in place, when there's significant rainfall, where we're sitting has been known to be underwater swift currents. But they rebuild all these guys here. They have done, they do a fantastic. I mean they're open like two days later after a flood and that's why he calls them that old offensive guard. That-.
Speaker 2:Just resilient, just resilient, just won't give up, won't quit.
Speaker 1:I love it. I love it. I definitely want to give a shout out as we are celebrating and reuniting, since it's been a while. You've had a lot of travels this past summer and football will forever be a part of your life, but the burger of the month, here it is. How can I say this? It is a fried mac and cheese patty with tots. It is the picture. If you go to their website, you'll see this sort of Facebook page. It's not healthy, but it's not meant to be, and everything that's not healthy is delicious. Oh absolutely.
Speaker 2:That sounds really good, fried mac and cheese patty. It's literally mac and cheese on it. I haven't had that, but it sounds really good. I had the shrimp gumbo today. That's a you can't go wrong with it, and then highly recommend the jambalaya. Jambalaya Y'all all need to come out here come springtime because they're boiling crawfish every day. The mud bugs are oh, they do a great job. Cold beer, mud bugs they're every day during the springtime.
Speaker 1:You know you did some traveling, you and Elizabeth is your lovely wife, the daughter of the late Abby Neptune. You did some, had some preseason what I mean by preseason prior to the football season, and you know you guys are not afraid to go far distances around this great country and network with familiar faces. You stopped by Chapel Hill, north Carolina, where former Texas longhorn football coach Mac Brown has returned for his second stint as the Tar Heels head coach. I mean you guys maintain a relationship, but tell us a little bit about this at Kenick Stadium. I'm not Kenick Stadium. What's the name of the stadium at Chapel Hill?
Speaker 2:North Carolina Stadium.
Speaker 1:It's beautiful, by the way.
Speaker 2:Well, I had. That picture was taken in early July this last summer and I was had been invited to speak at the North Carolina High School Coaches Association, and so did that in Greensboro. They flew us in, we drove over there, stayed the night and then Elizabeth and I just decided well, I don't have to be back for two-day football practice or anything like that because I'm retired. So we decided to stay in the state of North Carolina for about a week. About a bad decision. So we drove over to Durham and stayed on the campus of Duke University and we one of my former players, nick Morris, we took him to breakfast the next morning. Then we went over to Chapel Hill, which is seven miles away down Tobacco Road, and we went to see Coach Brown and spent. I mean, and everybody who knows Coach Brown, I wasn't coach playing my son Riley, coach for him, I've known him forever.
Speaker 2:Just, I mean, that's one fine American, that is a fine American, well, he spent a good hour and a half with Elizabeth and I and just showed us the whole everything in the North Carolina football facility, and so it was great to see Coach. And then we went to Pinehurst and played some golf.
Speaker 1:That's amazing. That's an amazing stretch of days and time and anytime you're on Pinehurst you know it's one of the PGA's, one of the historical spots, traditional spots on the PGA.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's where the for the US Open will be played in 2024. You got it. Do you have tickets already? Oh, no, I got a shirt, bought me a shirt already.
Speaker 1:At least you don't have to. You know, it's not like the Masters you have to go to Augusta to actually buy the things and then have them shipped home. You can buy them on the spot. Yeah, you can.
Speaker 2:And I did.
Speaker 1:So you guys return. You've got to go back and forth to Southlake, carol, you see Coach Salazar at Westlake. You network with the other high school football coaches in Austin area, great state of Texas. We're about five weeks in midway point of the regular season. What's your assessment? What have you noticed? What has this experience been like in your two of your retirement?
Speaker 2:Well, I have, in the five football weeks I've been to two Southlake Carol games. I saw them play against El Paso Eastwood, I saw them play against Cedar Hill, and then I've seen two Westlake games and saw them beat Judson and saw them beat Lake Travis last Friday night Both great games. So you know, and I've told you before, sean, that it's just, it's a joy to my heart to be able to, in my retirement, to be able to support my son, my namesake Coach DeCarol Draggins, a place that I have a lot of buy into. And then, on the flip side of that, I've got Tony Salazar, who is just like a son I feel like you know he'd been with me such a fabulous. So I'm so proud of both of them and I get to watch them run their program. So that's a really cool deal right now. You know, I had this summertime, I had my camps and I had some quarterback training. Right now I've got a few clients that I work with in training, in quarterback training, more so doing video work than the physical work, and so that's what we're doing.
Speaker 2:And then, as you and I were talking before, we went on, we're this Friday, we're leaving to head on our fall vacation which is gonna. We're gonna go. We're gonna start in the DFW area. We're gonna go the next day to Hot Springs, arkansas Beautiful place, brother. We've always wanted to. We're gonna try to do the Hot Springs or whatever. You know That'll make you younger Take a damn hot bath, or something like that. I don't know exactly what we're gonna do. And then we're gonna go the next day we're gonna drive all the way to Knoxville, tennessee, and that's a long ways, and Elizabeth, she doesn't know it yet, but she's gonna be driving some of that. And then the next day we're gonna drive to Charlotte, north Carolina, and then we're gonna get to Pinehurst for three days, so and then on to Clemson.
Speaker 2:That's the really reason we're going we're going to get into some CK play and then we go see CK play on October 7th and then we start working our way back and we'll go by see the Apple Whites in Alabama no, they're in Georgia, they're in Bikini Georgia. So that's kind of what we do now and then we'll get back from that and start. You know, by that time, almost in a district we'll be hopeful. Oh my God, the playoffs, the playoffs, we start. So you know, really excited for West Lake and South Lake and they're both both undefeated and doing great.
Speaker 1:That's a great start. So I didn't know. I thought Major was the OC at South Alabama.
Speaker 2:He is.
Speaker 1:And that's a, and they beat Oklahoma State.
Speaker 2:They sure did Hounded About two, three weeks ago. Yeah. So Larry and Sandra, you know I don't know if I told you this or not, but you know a lot of people think that we know Sandra and Larry because of my deal with Major, because Major and I both played for right of Texas. I didn't even know Major Alphawight before before I met his parents. We met his parents first. So when I was the head coach at South Lake I got a job in 2000.
Speaker 2:Sandra and Larry Alphawight moved from Baton Rouge, louisiana, to South Lake and, wow, lo and behold, you got Elizabeth Dodge and Sandra Alphawight become team teachers in third grade at Johnson Elementary in South Lake. Two women whose one's husband it was a former Texas quarterback, and one son it was a former Texas quarterback. And so they hit it off. So they're like best friends and Larry and I. So we got to really know Major through his parents. And that's on the small world. Yeah, and Major's doing great I mean really doing great at South Alabama. I mean Riley and Major are real close as they work together here at University of Texas.
Speaker 1:It's a small world. When you look around you see not just coaching trees but how everyone's tied together. Yep, we could probably sit here for an hour and find people we know, yeah, and somehow how those two or those people are connected. Now, you know, you mentioned and I think it's really cool that you go and see your former players. It's not something you just started, I mean even off season's in the past. But you mentioned Cade Club. He's the quarterback for Davos, swinney and Clemson. Clemson's kind of I still don't know what type of team they have, and I'm sure Cade's still learning himself. I mean, he played last year a lot. How is he right now as far as being that guy for Clemson?
Speaker 2:at QB1? Right, he's in a great state of mind. I talked to him last night. I've talked to him every week and sometimes more than once a week, going throughout the season. Of course, they had the big hiccup against Duke in week one, right after the quarter. I mean you got six trips inside the red zone and you come away with seven points and three turnovers and two missed field goes. I mean so, and Duke is pretty stinking good. They're really good and so, and then you get two teams that they handle up like they should have. And then, of course, last week against Florida State, cade played really well. I mean, his production was really good. I mean there's some mistakes down the stretch on some things, but bottom line is they're two and two and I'm just, I did it. I mean I'll be honest with you that two and two and a really matter of me a whole lot. I love the kid and I'm going to go watch your play.
Speaker 2:It can be, it can be old. No, I want, I want, I want them to win. I want them to win this week in Syracuse and went to win all the rest of them. I want them to end up going 10 and two. And because I care about him but I mean, uh, my, my love and my care for Kate Clemens is unconditional, whether they win or not. I'm sure the Clemson fans don't tell that way sometimes, but mine's unconditional.
Speaker 1:You know that's funny because, uh, the episode before this one, um as funny. You say that, uh, gary Gilbert was on an episode two ninety six. This is two ninety seven. Um, you know he had a rough go. He got it, meaning he got to experience how brutal yeah, texas fans in a high power place, you experienced the same. Oh yeah, I mean, have you had a chance to speak to any like when Sam got it? It took over and there may be some other quarterbacks that have had that conversation.
Speaker 2:Yes, well, I told all of them that if you're around long enough, you know I don't know about all fan bases, but ours will absolutely let you have it, eat you alive. Now I tell people all the time and I you know, and we opened up the um nineteen, eighty five season my last year, and we're playing Missouri and they go and quarterbacks in the long ones I mean. So that was, that was the first game of the year, so it was residual from the year before because we had the bottom pull out. And then the next week we go to Stanford and it was the same thing. The ten thousand showed up. And then the next week we play rice and it was the same. So anyway, I'll say this A lot of people you know I went into coaching. Okay, that's what I've been doing for the last thirty six to thirty eight years. I never and again I think the good lord put on my heart that I never was bitter. No, was it fun at the time getting booed, you know, was it getting that kind? Of ridicule.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, don't. I mean, we're all human. But I never was bitter about that because what that did for me is it prepared me for a coaching career and it prepared me to understand how fickle fans can be and it made me thicker skins, right, and, um, frankly I'm. It gave me a little bit of a platform to help these young quarterbacks and I can always tell them. When I tell them that story, they go God, I like this, you know, and I go. Yeah, I said I've been through about everything you could be through emotionally. So I know what Garrett went through, uh, here at UT, not fun. And uh, I don't know I mean to be honest with you, I don't know about other, uh, other fan base.
Speaker 1:I'm sure there's, there's other places that that boo their, boo their quarterback, uh, I've seen it other places, not many, I mean, I haven't been everywhere, you know, but everything worked out for you know, you know it all worked out. Well, I told him, in that episode you found where you belong.
Speaker 2:It's not good you found your home. You know what In the big picture thing, it's not good to find who yours is, a man you know. And if you know you can either crumble from it or you can. You can get a little bit more thick skin and tough about it.
Speaker 1:So stand up to it, hey, before we hit a hit the break. Uh, you always, you always have these great stories. Do you have anyone now that that would fall under that category as a man cave story?
Speaker 2:Well, you know, I'm I'm very, I'm very disappointed that I'm not going to be able to make it to my, my boys from Port Arthur. Yeah, they have been going to Texas, ou Crystal Beach weekend for like literally 20 years and they've all you know, and I think you and I've talked about this, but they always every year is kind of a joke while I've been coaching they call me up about two weeks ahead of T you coming this year. No, idiots, once again I'm working on Saturdays, like I have been for the last 30 years. Uh, they think it's fun. So last year I went, you showed up and surprised them. No, they, they knew that I mean I was retired, I was going to, I was going to make it and, and man god, did we have fun. I mean, I mean, I swear, if I, if I didn't know that it was that much fun, I may have retired five or six years earlier. My non-Winiam State Championship, wesley, god, we had a good time.
Speaker 2:I mean we were, we were chopping it up and we hours of the night and in the next morning, of course, we wake up last year and and Tex OU kicks off at eleven and the horn just beat the hell out of the 49ers, and then so I mean it's now, it's two thirty three o'clock in afternoon, day's night, and we go down the beach and start throwing horseshoes. You know where the rest of the day went, and you know, I mean, and I told P, was it? I have never, I promise you, and I I was 59 years old when I went down there last year and I can promise you, in 59 years of living, I'd never been on a beach on October, the eighth In my entire life. I haven't done it, you know, and it was so nice down there too. I mean, it's like the best time to go to the beach is in, like October, in the state, in the state of Texas.
Speaker 2:So we had so, but say all that, say this I'm not going this year because they changed the damn time of it and there, because a bunch of them want to actually go to the Tex OU game and so they're going to have it the next week. Well, I'm still going to be gone, you know, to my fall, my fall vacation, yeah, clemson. But I tell you this I'm, this is going to be, if Elizabeth and I are taking our, or all of our Texas gear in on Saturday morning. When, when, we're in.
Speaker 2:Clemson, south Carolina, at 11 AM. We're going to be sitting at some sports bar watching the horns in Oklahoma play, you know, and we're going to be. We're all going to be burned orange. We're going to be in that beautiful orange. Now Clemson's got orange too, but it's an OSU orange. Yeah, it's not Houston. It doesn't look quite as good as ours does, so anyway. So we're going to be wearing. I'm going to be working wearing burnt orange in the morning and Clemson orange in the in the evening.
Speaker 1:I like that plan, yeah, but but you guys, they'll circle back the tradition on the crystal beach will come back next.
Speaker 2:Oh no, no, no doubt They'll come back.
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Speaker 3:I think this, I think this is a top 25 matchup of two undefeated teams Uh, both very good. Um, and in our mind, like we posted today, this is we're playing for first place, right? And and our goal is to is to, you know, get to Arlington in December to compete for a big 12 championship game, and this game's gonna matter a lot.
Speaker 1:All right, I like Sark what he's doing. Obviously you're three developing and built the talent. But one thing I do hate and I know in the media you have to ask the question, but I cannot stand that term Trap game.
Speaker 2:Well, um, I guess it's. It's a it's kind of a fair question Surrounding Texas football for for a while now, because there have been too many times at that time. Now um, I just I've got a totally different feeling about this team. I've I've gotten a chance to to visit with some some players on the team that that I coached and so they're.
Speaker 2:You know they don't. They don't give me all their intimate secrets about the inner goins of UT football, but they do let me know how the head coach is trying to run the thing and they say gosh, coach, he's, he's so spot on. I mean I'm here, I'm talking about, you know, right after the Alabama win, you know, he gets them all in a locker room. He just says congratulations.
Speaker 2:Now let's flush that, because I'm hoping that that the entire University of Texas fan base will will treat the Wyoming game as the biggest game that's ever been at Memorial Stadium, because it is, because it's the next one, yeah, and so, and that's to me that's kind of, uh, where everything has to happen and and, um, I don't care who you are in in um, in Division one football today, in college football today, um, everybody's got players. You can't sit there and go. You can't have the mindset that we're going to beat them just because we beat them. So I mean to me, I mean he he's forgot more football than I know, steve Sarkees, yeah, but I mean they got, we got beat 50 something to 50 something two years ago by Kansas when they, when they were really a horrible team, they were not good.
Speaker 1:Not good. Not a good football, but Texas has lost to them. You look at the game that really sealed the coffin shut for Charlie. Mm, hmm. And and that's the one that got him fired. And then you turn around, uh, a few years later it wasn't a few years ago. It took Dick or the kicker. I mean, it's hard to beat KU here at home. It was back and forth. And then, two years ago, sark's first year, last life hold, yeah, I'm, I'm really liking it, by the way.
Speaker 2:So anyway, I don't you know exactly what Sark just said. I mean you gotta treat their, their fore, and I mean who are we? You know, I mean at some point you gotta get. You know we're proud of him, but who are we to to think that we're gonna, you know we're gonna be able to do it, but it doesn't happen. I mean, and the thing about and we'll probably talk about this later but the thing about college football right now, with the transfer pool, the parody that's going on, everybody's got players, that's true. I'll give you an example.
Speaker 2:When, when we played Wyoming two weeks ago I don't know if anybody remembers or not, but that was not Wyoming starting quarterback that we played against, their starting quarterback was out of that game and he had been lighten it up. He was out of Texas Tech and he didn't even play against us. But their backup quarterback and of course I'm watching on TV, so I'm hearing all the background about him he's from, you know, somewhere in Arizona, you know, phoenix area high school and he was a three star guy that I guarantee you, 10 years ago would have gone to Arizona State or USC or UCLA or something like that, because you're really talented kid. It was a great quarterback and he got a lot of money. He got a damn steal, and so my point is is that a lot of there's a lot of really good football players and you better just go play instead of trying to figure out whether or not you know someone's going to say you're going to beat the hell out of somebody. You just got to go play.
Speaker 1:So that leads that that's true In Texas right now. So I made this graphic and this is really the the the line has been going on for six hours ago. Um, when you look at this game right here coming up, both are ranked Texas obviously three and number three in the country. Kansas is number 24. Okay, and 23 another poll. But here's the big fact that it's really interesting. It's the first time KU has had back to back four and oh starts. Since last week when I made this graphic, texas was 17.5 point favorites. I'm not a big guy to believe in all that, but Vegas is really wrong. What's your thoughts on this? Because it you're advised any Texas fans, I say tap the brakes. I do think history in some situation indicates the future.
Speaker 2:Well, the thing, yeah, I say everybody needs to tap the brakes, anything except next week, and it's kind of like. It's kind of like I told our seniors in in 2021 at West Lake High School Okay, do not wish any of this away. No, embrace every single second, every single game you get to, you get to play the great game of football. I'll be honest with you, I don't feel like that. I'm probably just the players, the people who count, the people who are in the arena, and I don't think it's changed much. They don't. They don't listen to that stuff. They really don't. You know, they don't. Texas, I will just say this If they come out and play like they did against Baylor last week, which I don't even think was their- first time.
Speaker 1:No, they, they didn't.
Speaker 2:No, no, they have not, and that's to me that's the comforting thing right now is is we've got a really good football team. That has not even the exciting thing about it for that football team mostly is we didn't scratch the surface it. That's how good we can be now. To me, if they just if they go out and play as well as they did and a little bit better, you know, and Kansas plays really well, we ought to win and and you can't play your B game against Kansas anymore and they're not.
Speaker 1:They're not the Kansas of old. No, I mean, texas did beat them 5514 last year in Lawrence, but now you fast forwarded this year and they are selling out that stadium in Lawrence and I think it. What is it? Third year starting quarterback Jalen Daniels Jalen Daniels, the kid, is the one that's as a super arm. He's a fabulous quarterback.
Speaker 2:He is. You know he's as good as any of the ones. There's a, there's a lot of really good quarterbacks in America right now. Pac, Pac twelve's got a ton of them. But this is one fits right in there, and he didn't play against us last year. If I, if my memory is correct, he was.
Speaker 2:He was hurt by the time we got to the stadium when they beat us at home and I don't know, I know it was. I don't know if it was overtime or the last play of the game, but uh, wow, that was uh. So to me, when, when we our stadium needs to be which I'm, I know that the players that needs to be completely packed and and very, very very loud and obnoxiously playing against us last year.
Speaker 2:It just, I mean, everybody just quit, quit, you know, disrespecting the opponents and thinking, well, we're just going to roll over somebody or that's a boring opponent or whatever. No, we, we start having that kind of uh attitude. Well, hopefully the players won't have it and we'll, we'll handle up on business. I love the game against Baylor last week because it was such a workman like. It was very blue color and I think they really, really did it.
Speaker 1:It's that day that was very physical and in the line play yes, the interiors. That's the first time I've seen Texas play like that. Uh, in a long time, very long time, but we're going to have to play better, I guess Kansas is.
Speaker 2:Kansas is considerably better than Baylor.
Speaker 1:Consider, yes, this this year More output. They have great players, a lot of transfer guys. Um, I want something. I'm just curious. I want to go ahead and I'm going to give you my opinion on the on Sanders. You know what he's thinking, what he's done, he's evaluated and he knows where the kids are. They're on social media, tick tock, instagram, I can. You know all these social media platforms are always on it. Well, you have a almost a twenty-four seven view of Colorado's football program in and out. Um, last week, you know they, they're, they're trying to find an angle with every game. They started off alone up by Oregon, which we kind of saw coming. Yeah, and they did that without Travis Hunter. What is your thoughts on that? Because there's a lot of people who are on the Colorado bandwagon getting behind Dion, but there's also a lot of the haters.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I think it's unbelievable. I mean they were so bad, horrible. One in eleven. However, he did it. I mean it's as far as I mean he's got eighty-five different football players than last year. So you know you're gonna carry, once the season starts, about a hundred and ten Eighty-five. You know a lot of people disagree on how you did it and this and other, but you know what? This is a new age and I, you know I don't have to the thing that I mean they went one eleven, they're three in one right now. They've got Stanford on their schedule. They got Arizona State on their schedule. Those are two that you know. If you can beat TCU and if you can beat Nebraska, I would think that you could probably. You know, if you play well enough and you know you get Arizona State, you get, you should be able to. There's five. And then then you got one game. You know you're gonna play against Arizona. You're gonna play against, well, utah, that's gonna be tough. Washington State, that's gonna be tough.
Speaker 2:Probably the Arizona game, maybe Oregon State, so can you imagine, though I mean, one of my point I'm getting to is Colorado, if they get to six games. They went from one and eleven to the ball eligibility, and that's unbelievable, and so, yeah, I've just, I just really been impressed how far they had to come. People, I think, forget because they've been on on here. We go prime time, prime time football channels and times A lot of eyeballs.
Speaker 2:The first three weeks, a lot of eyeballs. I mean they, you know, last week they play, they play Oregon and it's the most watched game on that time spot in the history of it's, mind blowing. And and you know, and I would tell you this, I know Dan Lanny. Dan Lanny was a GA for us at Pittsburgh when I was coaching at Pittsburgh. He was a hard defensive GA. No way.
Speaker 2:That's how quickly Dan has been a great, great young man. Where did he play? He played some division three school in right around something in Brown or something, and I don't know. It's division three. He actually he was a teammate of one of the kids that I coached at South Lake Carroll. He and Riley are the same age. Dan and Riley are the same age, that's how you know, and Dan.
Speaker 2:But I promise you this Dan Lanny knows that there weren't 9.3 million people watching just to watch his Oregon football game. It was because of you know. I would say this that you know I'm doing my drive time today. You think about what's so crazy about the Pac-12 right now. You got the Deon factor. Well, they, they just let that team get away. Then you've got arguably the greatest set of teams collectively in the history of Pac-12 football. You've got eight dynamite quarterbacks and it seems like they're getting another one every week.
Speaker 2:Somebody's showing me just I mean you go, you know you go. Cam, washington state. You got Bo Nick's you got, you know you got the guy at USC, you got, I mean you got. Uh Shadoor Sanders. I mean I mean you know, on and on and on. Uh guy that pennies the left hander at Washington. I think Washington may be a national title for today. I do too but how in the hell did they screw that thing up and not get a TV deal? I bet, I bet some people would love to have that TV deal, that that well, that prime's bringing those viewers. It's just organic viewers, I mean it's. I don't know nothing about nothing, but you know that, just it, just to me. They're being spread out and pimped all over the United States of America and it could stay right there, and you know, and poor Washington state and Oregon state which we're going to go. That's another trip we're going to be taking here. On November 4th, elizabeth and I are going to go see Nikia Watson and the Washington state.
Speaker 2:He went from Wisconsin to Washington state and he now his team owns two wins over the place he left.
Speaker 1:That's hilarious.
Speaker 2:I did not realize that he gets fired up about that. Tell Nikias. We said oh yeah, he's, so we're going to go see him play here in a few weeks. That's a good get.
Speaker 1:So we talk about prime. All he utilized the transfer portal he did. That's the rules, that's was leaked, that's college football now. Now you look at the transfer portal and that's something that I wanted to ask you about, that you and I were talking about. That I think a lot of people overlook is the fact that how the transfer portal can help. Now lower levels of division one, like the former 1AA FCS, like Stephen F Austin, now Sam Houston, has moved up to lower FBS. I see what you were saying now, because that allows kid, that affords opportunities for a lot of those three stars, those perceived three, maybe four star, maybe to end up on campuses like Stephen F Austin, yeah Well, and incarnate word.
Speaker 2:Well, just take the high school football player, how the transfer portal affects them. Yeah, well and I know this to be true because I've just recently retired as a high school football coach on, kind of on top of how people were recruiting our kids, that our kids that were one double a division to caliber kids, division three. But so let's just take, you know, I'll just I think I used SMU as an example. Let's say, smu, you know, eight years ago SMU is, you know, they're really feigning for some good three star guys. Okay, and they're, and they're recruiting three star guys. Well, that's good.
Speaker 2:You know, they're probably not going to get eight years ago, out of four or five star guys, we're going to get a bunch of three star guys and develop them. Well, now those three star guys are not going to SMU because SMU is going to the transfer portal, you know, to get them. And so, right out of high school, a lot of those those high school kids are are now dropping down to the Wyoming, to the world in the San Diego States of the world. And you know, I don't see that. I don't know if that's a drop down, but you know what I'm saying oh yeah, I know where you're going with this.
Speaker 2:And so there are, there are. There are people in our country from a high school level. They're getting a lot better caliber player than they once did. The Alabama's of the world, the Georgia's of the world they're still getting theirs. They're getting their four stars and our five stars and all that and then so then you take another angle at it and you go okay, you got the transfer portal. Well, right now, everybody, the people that are that we hear in the talking heads on TV the transfer portal, florida State's done a great job of the transfer portal. Tcu did a great job in the transfer portal last year. Colorado done a great job. Texas has been helped out of the transfer portal a little bit, but those are the only ones you're hearing about. Is the? Is the? Is the Power Five teams that are, you know, power Five to Power Five are, in some cases, like Florida State. Florida State got a kid that was a Division two player and he's fixing to be a first round draft for us.
Speaker 1:So the buyers kid who played at Anderson here in Austin old line.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but you're not. But the thing that people aren't talking about is is the guys that went to Oklahoma, that went to Texas, that went to Alabama, that went to LSU on the front end and was a four or five star guy and it didn't pan out for them. And sometimes those guys they end up at Wyoming, they end up at Incarnate World, they end up at Texas State. I've got one of my former players and my my very best friend's son is a deep snapper at Texas State right now and he told me Texas States on the hoof, their top 22, they look as good as anybody in the country.
Speaker 1:That. That blows my mind because I did not think about that, that angle of it, and I guess by the same token let's say a kid signs with Incarnate World A&M Commerce. Now who's FCS? Ut, permian Basin, stephen F, austin, evelyn, christian go down the list. So they're going to get a higher profile type of star power out of high school, but they can go up in the portal.
Speaker 2:Right, anybody can go anywhere in the portal. It used to be that you couldn't go down. Yeah, yeah, you could go up but you couldn't go down. Well, right now you got people that I mean, obviously the big boys are going in in, in like Western Kentucky. I just noticed the other day that I think Texas Tech's one of their starting offensive linemen is from Western Kentucky. He's just a great player. All you got to do is put in an IELTS to deal together. But and you just stole someone's best player. Well, utsa, okay, Jeff Trailer.
Speaker 2:Utsa, their best wide receiver is playing Alabama from last year. He went to Alabama. How did I miss that? Yeah, and, and you just go. I mean, it goes on and on, you know, in Mississippi State. So, whether you're a fan of the transfer portal or not, it's the Wild, wild West and everybody's getting getting better players. So to me, you're going to have. You're going to have the. You're going to have more of the Appalachian State beating Michigan's More. I'm so much parroted. Yeah, because you're going to have in the reason, like, appalachian State is playing North Carolina like tooth and nail every year, because they're not that different, to be honest with you.
Speaker 2:No, everybody, and unfortunately for high school kids sometimes coming out of high school, what the college guys are doing now is they're going. Okay, do I take this two-star, three-star guide to Westlake High School or do I take this kid out of of taking him out of the University of Indiana? And he's been in college for two years, been on training table, he's he's 21 years old next to an 18 year old. Well, that's, that's what it's getting to. You Take that, you take that transfer portal kid. And now I'll say another phenomenon behind that I found out in the recruiting of our kids at Westlake.
Speaker 2:Some of our kids that were like division two, one double A caliber kids. I would have division two coaches, one double A coaches, come in to recruit my kids at Westlake with the pitch of hey, we understand that you have aspirations to play division one football, come play for us for two years and then we'll help you get in the transfer portal. Oh, my God, I will develop you to go to the division one, to the higher level. I mean they're they're recruiting them with that pitch of going hey, just spend two years with us and we'll send you on your way. I mean, it's almost like. It's almost like the way I mean you go play at a lower level for two years and it's like junior college and then you go. You know, if you get good enough, we'll help you bounce out of here.
Speaker 1:You know that's how we are now. I mean, I don't have a problem with it, but I think it is. I hate using the term because we said it so much during the COVID. It is the new norm. It's where we are now.
Speaker 2:I mean it's unfortunate. I say unfortunate it doesn't matter. I mean the only people that opinions that matter on a deal is the guys that are in the arena. You know, the only ones that count are the, are the, the head football coaches and his staff, and those people because they really don't, they're the ones that are getting hired and fired and making money and not making money and over the deal. All the rest of us, you know, go kick rocks before, before they're concerned. You know we have our opinions on it, but I it's really interesting to see how it strengthens someone but, man, you kind of, I mean you kind of go, go get into it. You know, you kind of got, because if you're losing, if you're losing players from you know, I just say, if you, if you're losing, you know eight guys that are that are two or three year college football players and and you're replacing those guys with high school guys only then you probably just set yourself back a little bit, yeah, against some of these other people.
Speaker 1:Because they're, you know you're, you're running on two year windows. That's what it says Two and three year windows.
Speaker 2:Well, you know, someone made the point the other day. I thought it was a great point and I know it's really. It's more like a high school football roster than it is a college football roster, because you think of it like this In high, in college football, when they get to you, you you're on the varsity roster. There's only, there's only a varsity. There's not a JV, there's not a freshman team. You know what I'm saying. So when they get to you, you're on the roster. You got 85 scholarships and you got 100.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's about it.
Speaker 2:Yeah, so now and and you got them for four years, that's where it used to be. You got them for four years because they couldn't go anywhere, you know, not easily. Well, now you basically you're working in two year increments. Well, that's kind of the way you work. A high school football program You're working in, you're working in two year increments because not not that you don't your program is got freshman, jv and your varsity.
Speaker 2:But let's break it down there your freshman on the freshman team, your sophomores play on the JV team and your juniors and your seniors play on the varsity team For the most part, at most six A football teams in state Texas, that's what it is. Very few sophomores play on the varsity, you know, maybe five, six, max. Then the next year, guess what it just you lose tenure cycle, yeah, I mean you lose. You lose 50, I mean every, every year you lose 52. I think for us we average every year we lose 52 players. And then we would guess what? Then it would just bump everybody up. Well, I wasn't going on the transfer portal, but I was going into my own, you know, portal, which was my sub varsity teams. Well, but you're really for a varsity Friday night football game. You're working with two, two years of different.
Speaker 2:I mean you're working with juniors and seniors, you know for the most part. So really a, a, a college roster right now in the in the transfer portal era is a little bit more like a high school roster, you know, than it is the old college roster.
Speaker 1:That makes sense. I've never, I've never had it you anyone paint the picture that way, but that makes too too much sense, because that's what it is, and you just, hopefully that you're running your program well enough, that you're replacing those guys and developing them.
Speaker 2:You're not able to go well. I mean some people accuse of you going.
Speaker 2:You know, some player comes here move in yeah, whatever, but you don't have the transfer portal. You know, in high school athletes, but it really is. And, as I've been thinking about this year because people keep talking about two year guys and I was I was listening to someone the other day and they were talking about how this particular team they've talked about this doing a really good job in the transfer portal, was really doing a good job of going out and when they were getting those transfer guys, they were projecting them to be two year guys, not a one year guy. You know what I'm saying. So it's kind of like. It's kind of like they played their freshman year. They played their freshman year at Wyoming. They played their sophomore year at Wyoming. You know I'm talking about high school and now we're going to go.
Speaker 2:It's like Wyoming was our development development team, now we're going to bring them into your varsity yeah we're going to bring them into Alabama For their junior and senior year, but we got it for two years. Well, in my world, in my world of coach and high school football, that's only. It usually have to someone on varsity. 85% of the time you're playing your, your, your people playing two years of varsity football, not three.
Speaker 1:Yeah, that's very rare for a sophomore.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean we had some, but I mean it's not like it's Now at the look. Some of the lower levels it is, you know.
Speaker 1:But it's the soft, it's softball, softball. I can do better than this, but it's obvious. Winning state championships and you're proudest, probably your proudest moments. But as a coach or player, what is your next best, proudest moment? So speak.
Speaker 2:Well, one a and one b, to be honest with you, and is becoming the head football coach at Southlake, carroll, when I was 35 years old and Hadn't done shit for shine over about anything you know saying and had really, I mean, I had grinded, yeah, but I had someone took, you know, took a, took a pass on me. I've been a head coach for six years and had not made the playoffs yet and I had someone jump out and take a chance. So I Vowed that I was gonna do something with that chance.
Speaker 2:Second one was becoming the head football coach at Westlake high school, because Westlake had a lot more history to me than than Southlake, because of my father-in-law, my wife on that, and just because it was such a like a bucket list type thing. So those two, just those two occurrences right on the start of those things were two of my absolute Favorite memories, you know. And then the biggest was Bar none was winning the state championship in 2006 with my son. I mean, to be able to, to be able to win a state championship in your son and you be on the same team together, was, was that's, that's everything and he puked in that field.
Speaker 1:Yes, he did it, and he kept playing, kept playing and he puked on the same play and that was against Westlake. Yeah, yeah, that was. That was what was bizarre about that. All right, we do this. I don't know if you have a tick tock or not. It can be the biggest waste of time and known to mankind, but you can learn things or you can laugh For several minutes. So there's his family and I'm assuming they're in the foothills of the Smoky Mountains. There's some black bears that are hovering hanging out near their cabin. Well, they thought it was cute To talk to this bear, but it got real, real fast. Okay, what's up, man? Oh, I.
Speaker 1:Would you have responded? Black bear crawling over your gate to go on to your?
Speaker 2:deck. They'd have found out this dodge boy can run they golden triangle speed. Oh yeah, hey, I'm gonna be going through the little Smoky Mountains. Maybe I'll see me a black bear. I won't be getting that close to him. Don't invite him on your porch. No, no, no, out in, out in big canoe, georgia, we're, we're gonna see the Applewights they got we've seen a lot of black bear out there. Natural habitat.
Speaker 2:But a long way from nothing like binocular. Oh yeah, yeah, I, I like seeing them, but I don't like being close to them at all. I don't want anything to do with them. Beautiful animals yes, they are amazing.
Speaker 1:Hey, let's end this with some positivity.
Speaker 2:Let's do it, hey man.
Speaker 1:Tell me something good. Hmm, hey, we're no negativity here. We're at, we're at show Creek Saloon. There's no negativity allowed when you walk Yep store, but what's going? What have you noticed? What have you seen, if what, anything inspiring that you want to pass along to those who you may be feeling something a little negative in their life, to uplift?
Speaker 2:Well, you know, I'll just say this you know, and this is kind of what we did with all of our players there and at Westlake High School the last eight years is that you know what, if you feel like you're going into a business meeting and you're going into a competition, that go into a game A lot of times you know people get real nervous, get butterflies. I think sometimes people think in life that they're the only ones that are nervous. They're the only ones that are fretting over something and and I use we have tell our players all time if you think you're the only one that's nervous, you're crazy. Everybody else is too. So I guess my if you got, if you're facing something that's really stressful in your life and you're nervous about it, hey, you're not alone. You know you find someone. Someone else is going through the same thing, that's.
Speaker 1:That's sage advice, because I think a lot of people need to hear that You're not alone. Not alone, there's other people's already. It's all about how we respond to it. That's right, you know I learned from. That's right, that's it. You know what's great? So Creek Saloon with TD cheers, buddy Cheers.