Stories Inside the Man Cave
Stories Inside the Man Cave
The Pass Rush with Stevie Lee & Clynch: Rebuilding the Rice Owls baseball program with David Pierce
We sit down with Coach David Pierce to map Rice Baseball’s return to form, from NIL and portal strategy to a back-to-basics culture that puts development first. Along the way, we trade wild super regional stories, spotlight the American’s growth, and rally Houston around Reckling Park.
• NIL and portal as tools, not identity
• scholarship stacking and need-based aid clarity
• keeping a young core and raising standards
• facility pride at Reckling Park and small fixes that matter
• Gateway Project linking Rice Village to game day
• the American’s talent depth and Omaha hopes
• East Carolina’s Jungle and handling hostile crowds
• Wayne Graham legacy and private-school baseball model
• Houston community nights vs family weekends attendance plan
• parity lessons from Indiana football applied to roster building
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Stevie, look at that. I don't want to go ahead and say that's how every college football season should end. Back and forth, Miami, Indiana. Steve Sarkeesian said in this modern era, a team probably would never go undefeated, but Indiana did it. 16-0. Phenomenal program, great ratings. And I think everyone's a Hoosier fan now, all of a sudden, because there's, I mean, there's too much not to like about that program and that team.
SPEAKER_05:Everybody's a Hoosier fan right now. Saying that that was awesome. That was cool what they did this season. Then we'll go back to our respective teams.
SPEAKER_01:That's right. We'll talk more about the Hoosiers, but one of my arguably the best season, in my opinion, college baseball will start very soon. The road to Omaha. And we've got a special guest coming up. We're gonna talk to him. You know him. I guarantee you know him. Good friend, great friend of the Austin community, and Houston is well known in the Houston area. But before we get to that and get this uh this episode 508 going, if you're ever in need of a spirit, wine, or beer, or just good conversation, you know what? I've got the solution. Dave Ramirez, you know he's big time when you got your own cartoon, caricature, whatnot. The forehead exaggeration is on point. Dave Ramirez and Northwest Hills Licker. They're a smaller store, unlike the big boys, but he will bring the party to you. Let me give you a few seconds to scan that QR code, and they will deliver your choice of beverages. But just remember, you gotta be 21 years old. Stevie, you just barely made the cut.
SPEAKER_05:Barely.
SPEAKER_01:Barely. Hit that. Be sure to like, follow each of our social media platforms, subscribe to our YouTube page for free. We've got a big show, man. It's gonna be fun. A little college baseball. Let's ride. Let's ride, baby. If this is your first time viewing, I'm Sean Clinch, the uh host of Stories Inside the Man Cave, co-host of the pass rusher, Stevie Lee. And there's the big guy himself. And Stevie, uh, you are the unofficial face and voice of Hardgrove Roofing, our big town sponsor. They're from your hometown, Shreeport, Louisiana, but they have grown and had a have a significant presence in the great state of Texas, and here in Austin. Take it away.
SPEAKER_05:Hardgrove Roofing knows on your roof.
SPEAKER_01:You do, and I have. I've seen them on my roof. They've done a fabulous job. They're very reliable and they're like family. Stevie, you know, one thing I love about this this is that transition time of year, and between college football season's done, college basketball's underway, about to enter the second half of the season. But man, the road to Omaha begins very quickly. We got a special guest. Let's bring him in. Coach David Pierce, he's been around the block, but his age, he just doesn't show it. Uh head coach at Rice University. Uh, I know you were on here briefly before, um but now you get the full experience. I and I I don't want to be cliche, but this has got to be where exactly you wanted to be after a rice out baseball practice.
SPEAKER_00:Hey, Sean, Stevie, thanks, thanks for having me, man. Uh no, it's it's always good to hang out with friends and talk some baseball, talk a little college football and get to know Stevie. I've known Sean for a long time. So thanks for having me.
SPEAKER_01:Absolutely. Stevie, you know, you know, he he loves college, he loves all college sports. Uh David Pierce played college ball with some of the great coaches and former greats in the college baseball landscape and has coached with some of the greats, and he's creating his own legacy now and has at several programs like Tulane, Sam Houston, Texas, and now at Rice, where he was part of a national championship season and multiple trips to Omaha. Stevie, go ahead and knock out the college football question if you got something for him, because DP is well educated on the college football world.
SPEAKER_05:Well, I actually had a question I was gonna talk about. Like, um you see how the landscape of recruiting has changed so much in this whole NIL era, and um, I haven't had a chance to talk to any bat baseball coaches about that. Um uh, do you guys what I'm seeing at the University of Texas is um we had a big push to go through the portal and we were kind of leaving some of the high school kids out of it a little bit. How how do you guys approach recruiting in this new NIL era with um at Rice?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, I mean let's just go back to college football real quick. I mean, we just before we got started, we were talking about Indiana and Signeti and what they've done there, and you know, everybody's an Indiana Hoosier fan right now. But honestly, you think about it, they're 27 and 2 in the last two seasons, and before that, they were like rock bottom terrible, right? And how do they get there? Well, it has to be a part of NIL, a great coach, a great vision, and kind of piece that all together, and and and this is this is the outcome. So this is kind of the reality. Man, when you look at college baseball, it's it's a little different scale when you look at the money, but it's it's still a reality. I mean, we're at a school that's$92,300 a year, but the the education is like the forefront of everything. So so you get that lifetime card at Rice University, and you have opportunities beyond you know your sport, if it's baseball, football. So but we still, if we want to compete with the Power Fours and be at the be in the upper echelon of college baseball, you gotta figure out different means and different levels and what you can afford and how how you can utilize the money. For so many years when I was at Rice for nine years from 03 through 11, we had a a really nice need-based financial aid, uh, 11.7 in scholarships, and you couldn't stack them. Now you can stack those two, have opportunity with NIL, you know, push competitiveness, playing for championships, the opportunity to get a rice degree, that's a lifetime card, and my favorite part, development. I love the development piece and and selling families that you know we can we can maximize who you are if you're willing to push those limits. And so we're we're really experiencing that right now with some kids that maybe some kickbacks from some SEC programs, uh some kids kids that we h held on to. Um but the freshmen it's just not as many. You know, you can't afford to bring in 15 freshmen in a recruiting class like you used to, at least not us. Um I think what's gonna happen is you could have a freshman that comes in, ends up being a freshman all-American, and now he has options. You have a freshman that gets 25 at bats, uh, you know, minimum uh number of innings pitch, and then they feel like they have options. So it it it's it's kind of finicky, but at the same time, I'll be honest with you, I don't change my approach at all. It's like you're on my team, we're gonna recruit you, we're gonna, we're gonna develop you, we're gonna work as hard as we can for you, and it's kind of up to you. And if this is not for you, uh I'm sorry, but we're not gonna give up our our our standards because there's NIL or transfer portal. We're gonna do the same thing. And if you want to be a part of it, it's gonna be awesome. If you don't, it's probably not for you, anyhow.
SPEAKER_01:Coach, you know, uh for everyone to know, uh, you experienced, I mean, you saw this in in a lot this year in college football, but this time last year, well, into the season, I think it was 21 games into the season. You were at Texas State as an assistant, and then Rice gives you a call. Uh, they had parted ways with Jose Cruz Jr., and you get the opportunity. And let's be honest with you, and I'm not just saying this to be positive, but the team started playing better, and in the league you're in, it's pretty tough. But this is your first full year for what has happened because you can't, you can't, it's really hard to implement a culture or change things in season. But what have you been able to do between then and now?
SPEAKER_00:I I'll be honest with you, I I've always kind of taken the fall for granted, and then when you didn't have a fall, and you start with the team in March, and you're the only person new in the building, you absorb the staff, the team, and I mean, I I've got a great administrator and Tommy McClellan, our athletic director, great support from uh the president, and they basically said you don't have to win a single game right now. Try to figure out what's going on. And of course, you look at the team, and I think it was so beneficial coming in in March because if I looked only at their stats, if I looked only at their uh their record, I think we've probably dumped a few more guys and you know, felt like it's probably time to move on. But to get to know the players and feel like, you know, maybe a kid's a tick away here and there, kind of gave you hope. So we kept 20 players out of the uh off the roster, added another 25, get down to our cuts, and you know, we got a pretty good nucleus, but yeah, very unprecedented that you come in in the middle of a season and really trying to create a culture when you you just didn't have any background, any foundation with them. But we ended up winning four of our last six series, and I ended up starting five five freshmen every day.
SPEAKER_06:Wow.
SPEAKER_00:And just felt like, you know what, we're gonna uh the older kids, unbelievable kids, but they weren't getting it done. So I felt like let's give the youth a chance, and they did well. So uh my point is is I was able to keep some of those kids. Um but maybe I wouldn't have because of the time spended spent with them for the last three months, you know, going into June.
SPEAKER_01:Stevie, one thing that I I was well, I was talking to Stevie about, and and and he followed.
SPEAKER_00:You sound like you were saying Stevie Wonder.
SPEAKER_01:Stevie Wonder.
SPEAKER_00:Stevie one thing, yeah.
SPEAKER_01:Put your Stevie Wonder shades on, you can pull out, maybe. Uh he he and I was talking were talking about this whole situation, and then we were talking about how great because rice was uh fantastic, they were on a roll from the early 90s to I 20 2014, I think, or 20 uh 2011, somewhere around there. Um and I I what this slug right here, rebuilding rice baseball, Stevie, and it's it's hard to say rebuilding, yeah, but that's where we are. I mean, Stevie, what were your comments when you because we were talking about that can't be right, rebuilding rice.
SPEAKER_05:Yeah, I always remember Rice um in the um uh college sports series getting getting uh getting uh all the way up to Omaha or getting really close to Omaha. Um, I always thought that um you know we whenever we had a series against Texas, and Coach you probably was at Texas at the time, that that Rice always played us tough. So uh when when you think about the blue bloods of college baseball, rice is up there for me. It really is.
SPEAKER_00:Well, so I was at Rice from 2011 through excuse me, 2003 through 2011. And it's crazy because it was us, Texas, dominating the state. Literally, it was one of the two are gonna be in Omaha, if not both of us. We won three national championships between the two of us in that decade, and it was a dogfight. I was at Rice then. My first year at Rice was 03, we won the national championship, and then 04, we had three first rounders and number three and number four in the eighth pick of the 04 draft, and we didn't get out of our own regional, and then we were back in Omaha 6, 7, and 8. Uh but it was, it was it it was something that Coach Coach Graham had built. I was fortunate to hire on with him and then help sustain that, help build that, and then have opportunity to advance and go, you know, be a head coach. But you know, coach was exceptional at what he did, but literally it was just us and them, and then everybody else. Well, with when you look at realignment, you know, TCU became a champion in the Mountain West. Houston was a champion in Conference USA, Baylor was always consistent, then tech kicks in, and all these programs start winning, start building stadiums, and there's so many great teams in the state. But in that in that decade, it was Rice for Texas. I didn't lose recruits except to an occasional Texas kid and Stanford. Outside of that, we got the players we wanted. Now we're recruiting kids that honestly we're building, we're selling the vision of what rice has been in the past and what we feel like we can do again, but we're selling this vision to a group of young men that have no idea that we're ever any good. You know, they think we're a small Harvard, Yale, Ivy school in the South. Oh, and by the way, they play baseball. But back then it was we were the Harvard of the South with the best baseball in the in, you know, as one of the best ball team baseball teams in the country. So it you're you're having to create this vision with young people that just don't understand it. But you're right, Stevie. I mean, we dominated and we had some great, great dog fights with Texas, and you know, it was it was kind of like the standard. It was us in Texas all the time. And and then I look at you know how everything is segregated between Power Four and Mid-Major. Right. We never looked at ourselves as a mid-major. Of course, it wasn't labeled that away, but it was us, Stanford, and then Vanderbilt came along. Tim did a great job of building that program, but I remember probably oh four, I think, is when uh Tim Corbyn went to Vanderbilt, and he brought uh an associate A D and a donor, and I walked them throughout Rice University, throughout our facility, and Tim was telling them this is the model for private school college baseball. And yeah, and then the last six years at Rice has kind of been a nightmare. So it's kind of been my goal to come back and just let's get this thing back to where it used to be and as close to what it used to be as we can do. But we we don't consider ourselves a mid-major, we're in a mid-major conference, but we don't consider ourselves that.
SPEAKER_01:DP one thing to Stevie's point too, and what we talked about many times was there was an aura around the rice baseball program. There was, but I know we've evolved to a new era of collegiate athletics, period. But what has what have you been able to accomplish or in your because I know as a head coach you you wear many hats, you you've got to create relationships with boosters, corporate sponsorships, recruit, and try to look ahead to the sket the schedule. You you do a lot. But what has what have you noticed is a big change where you're getting more and more people on board that maybe weren't on board six to eight years ago?
SPEAKER_00:But it's kind of a a a long answer to this question because when I left Rice, went to Samuelson State. Mark Johnson was in his last year at Sam Houston, who was the great um, you know, head coach at Texas AM. I absorbed a team that was not winning. And we were able to flip that. Go to Tulane. Rick Jones built the Tulane program 21 years. I came in, they were struggling at the time. So, you know, I was fortunate to have people's attention in the building because of you know the last four or five years. And it wasn't any different when I went to Austin. When I went to Austin, I absorbed a team that was 24 and 31 in 2016. The fan base was struggling. We didn't have the indoor facility. So we built a lot of that and re you know, restored it and got it back to what everybody expected those programs to be. I was proud of that. Um when I came back to Rice, it's very similar. Uh I was hired, they checked off a lot of boxes to give us opportunity to get the right players in. Um but they've been struggling. So Reckling Park is an icon in college baseball, but it's 25 years old now. So we started going to work on it. Just really looking at all the detail that kind of matters if you're a donor. You know, if if you're a member of a country club, you're used to the grass, you're used to the grass being cut. There's a certain look about it that you're proud of, and you like going to play golf or tennis or fitness center, taking your family to dinner. Well, when you come to a ballpark, I think there's there's there's an approach there, and you know, you you want it to look like a place that you're proud of. And I got with the Reckling family, and we went to work on that, our cages, um, and we've really kind of restored the facility, and we've got a lot of new ideas that we're still working on. But I mean, we've spent$250,000 just on our facility upgrades since March. And so it needs that. And so you you you take pride in that, and now people understand that like you don't have to be rich to have a really good setup. If you can mow edge blow and keep fresh paint on the building, that's how you do it, right? You don't have to have you know a deep pocketbook to do those things. We we're in pretty good shape uh financially, but just the pride of the program and selling that to our players and kind of creating the vision for now of kind of the history that I was accustomed to of being at Rice. So it's been a lot of fun because more than anything, there's been a ton of support, and the players are so excited, just feel like they're just being pushed and being coached.
SPEAKER_01:Stevie, these are there's three views, and I and I'm not exaggerating. I've I've seen quite a few ballparks, not enough. But this is wreckling park in Houston. My opinion, top five view. I mean, that's part of downtown. I mean, and the part I've never I've never thought anything negative about wrecking, seriously. I mean, it honestly was built early on, and that's part of what elevated that program. I mean, Stevie, you you have some baseball history in your family, but this is you you've seen the dish, you you you see reckling here, and I'm sure you've seen other ballparks. But your thoughts on this, Stevie, because this is uh I I don't know how to get fan bases or rejuvenate fan bases to go to baseball's jewels like this. I mean, this is even a midday, that's a great place to be. It looks like midweek, that's what I meant to say.
SPEAKER_05:Yeah, it looks like a great fantastic uh view going, you know, behind home plate looking out. Um, what do you do you guys have plans to what what are the plans to uh renovate the stadium, or uh have y'all put pencil to paper on that yet, or is it kind of in concept right now?
SPEAKER_00:Well, it's it's not really a renovation, it's just kind of just cleaning, cleaning up the place. Uh we've we've we've patted the both uh foul pole dugout lines, we've you know redid redid the entire cages, um new lighting in the building on the inside where all the offices, um, the clubhouse, the the halls, the pitching lab, the umpires room, all those things, just the little detail of making it feel like there's a lot of pride in the building. Uh it's a beautiful place. It always has been, but when I was there before, it was you know, it was new. So, I mean, it was no big deal. Now you get there 2025, it's like, man, there's some mildew on the pillars, and you know, we we gotta clean all that up, and we have, and um it's beautiful right now, yeah. But I mean, you so you look at that piece, and you know, there's different we we have what's called the roost, and there's the ability to create some revenue with some donors in those areas, but you know, we've never been a even though we have a student body that has interest in our program, I mean, we're more about the community. And so uh we got to sell our community that we're putting a great product on the on the field, and then when it comes to ball games, and a lot like Texas on Friday and Tuesday night games was kind of about the inner city, the the people that live downtown, because you're not gonna fight the traffic because you live there. Uh and then Saturday, Sunday is much more about you know the families, the people living in the suburbs. So it's kind of similar there how we're approaching it.
SPEAKER_01:You know, one thing also I think you have in your favor now. You you've you've played in many leagues or played in coach, but uh is it now? Are you are we changing it now? Is this strictly known as the American, or are we still calling it the AAC? American, American, yeah. It's good baseball, too. It's great baseball, yeah. And yeah, and UTSA almost just almost, I mean, they had a great year, but that's just one of many programs who have invested in baseball, including Rice. What has what do you think UTSA's run last year and the elevation of college baseball in the American? What is it, what how has it helped you in this offseason in recruiting?
SPEAKER_00:Well, I think the beauty of UTSA's run, Coastal Carolina, these types of teams kind of give everybody hope that they have a shot to play against the Power Fours. And you know, if you get down to it, the the Power Fours have more depth, and they got stuff on the mound, and they got you know big-time hitters that they're gonna be potential high draft choices. Well, we have a lot of those guys in our league as well. Um I think I I think more than anything, it's keeping those kids in our league and understanding that you can make it to the big leagues from the American just like you can from the SEC. Uh day in and day out, you're gonna face tougher competition in the SEC, but you know, you still have to have a level of talent to compete. And maybe we don't have the same depth, but I think we got some frontline players that year in and year out, a UTSA, uh an East Carolina, Tulane, us, that you know, we can compete with anybody.
SPEAKER_01:And you you know firsthand about uh East Carolina. That's a that's a great baseball atmosphere.
SPEAKER_00:Well, you remember the last time I was there.
SPEAKER_01:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:That was a wild one. Stevie, it was 2022. They boat race us in Friday night game in a super regional. I mean, it's ugly. We're down seven to two in the seventh in game two to go to Omaha. It's hit here, hit there, backside homer. We tie it up. We win it, we tie it up, we go to the tenth, and uh we're up by one. We're like, okay, we got three outs. They hit a solo. So now we're tied. We end up winning the game by one, game two. So now we're tied one game to one. We go to Sunday, I get off the bus, and the NCAA rep says, Coach, you know, we're right on schedule. I'm like, there's weather everywhere. Yeah, like I don't see how we're gonna play this thing. He's like, no, everything looks good. So okay, so I'm just concerned about our starting pitching. So we're the home team in that game. Uh we score. Let's see. No, we're the visitors, because they were the home team. We were the visitors, and we put up a four-spot in the first, and the bottom fell up. And we had a six and a half hour rain delay. But we got a four-run lead in the rain delay, and we're feeling pretty good, right? And we got some guys playing wiffle ball in the cages, and like, hey, catch your breath, we're gonna start anytime. Well, six and a half hours later, guys like Trey Faltini, just full of piss and vinegar, just like ready to roll. So he's we ended up just blowing them out, it wasn't even close, and we advanced on them all, but that's a good program, and they they've got another good team this coming year.
SPEAKER_01:Stevie, they got fans. Just think about in a wooded area, tall pines or whatever, yeah. They got fans against the outfield wall. And I'm not talking about Green Monster, the the fit fence is right here, yeah. And the fans, if you're you're playing outfield, they are on your ass.
SPEAKER_00:Well, I I have I have an interesting story there because I've been I've been to Greenville a lot when I was at Houston, when I was at Rice, and so we were getting off the plane, and our SID says, Hey, one of the reporters wants to talk to you. Um, so I literally got off the plane, walked in the airport, and they got the lights going, everything's ready to go. And it's like, hey, what do you think about coming to Greenville? I'm like, hey, I've been here a lot of times. I said, so that group that that Sean's talking about is a whole group that hangs out in left field, and they call call themselves the jungle. And and I'm like, yeah, the jungle, I mean, they're hard to deal with, and I'm be honest with you. It's like, I've been in the bullpen before, pitching coach, and I mean, those guys just throw beer on you and you know, talk crap to you. They don't care. They have no respect for you. Zero well, so the next morning, it's in bold print, Pierce bashes the jungle. I'm like, that is wonderful, right? I was actually complimenting them because of their passion and the love for their team and all this. So literally, if my toes came out of the dugout, I got booed. And at the time I was coaching third base, and so every time I go from the first base dugout to the third base dugout, literally just got booed, trashed, every name you could, yeah. I'm like, okay, cool. They're on me, not on my team, so I'll take it for the team. The team's like, we're just out there playing. Uh so it's kind of cool. Well, we go in that uh that game three, and no, no, it wasn't game three, it was our practice. After practice, like the day before the tournament started or the series started. I signed a baseball and said, hook him, David Pierce, and I threw it in the jungle. And so I was hoping I would get some kind of response from it, and uh man, they responded, they were on my ass for like three days, but it was cool, and our kids responded.
SPEAKER_01:It's good. TV, I swear on the broadcast, I saw 12-year-olds drinking beer.
SPEAKER_00:Well, you know, you know, everybody has a problem with the horns down in Austin, and to me, I always looked at it as uh the ultimate compliment. Yeah. So we get off the bus game three, and I'll never forget like if you could remember those days in the summer when you had sawed off, uh cut-off blue jeans shorts, no shoes, no shirt, little beads around your neck because you're sweating so bad, maybe some some snow cone face. And I get off the bus, and it's like six and seven-year-olds giving us the horns down.
SPEAKER_05:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:I'm like, that's that's brainwashed right there. That was great. Oh, we just fed off of it.
SPEAKER_01:DP, is there any way you could follow up? You've you're a you're a great storyteller. That's that's been established years ago. You've got a lot of them. But is there one that maybe is as comical today as it was when it happened? Because what the one you just told about East Carolina was was solid. That was awesome. Like at Texas, at Rice, anytime in your career, maybe your family or anywhere you've been.
unknown:Oh man.
SPEAKER_01:I just opened the Pandora's box, didn't I?
SPEAKER_00:I mean, my all-time favorite, to be honest with you, is a Wayne Graham story. Love him. Because because there was I worked for coach for nine years, and then when I left Rice, I went on the head coaching tour, went to Sam Houston, Tulane, and when I was at Texas, and uh he was still at at Rice in 17. I think his last year was I think it was 18. And my first year at Texas was 17, and they came to the dish. We ended up splitting two games to two, and I got a really cool picture of he and I shaking hands at home plate at the umpires meeting. But I mean one of my all-time favorite stories, we were it's kind of long, but that's good. I'll I'll do you the condensed version. But we kind of limped out of the out of the uh the start of the season, we're like two and five, and we go down to Corpus Waterburger Field and play in that tournament. It's always a good tournament. And we we're playing Texas Tech, and we're literally we're getting after it. I mean Ryan Berry's pitching, and I don't know if you remember that name, but he was like the ultimate nerd pitcher at Rice. I mean, he had the the the big wireframe glasses, wore his pants half and half. I mean he looked apart like the scient the scientist up there pitching. Um but Barry, Barry was a tough kid, and he was just mowing down Texas Tech and we're up like I said, like eight to eight to two, eight to three. We come in the dugout, and coach says Barry and Ryan's, you know, he's tired, he's in between uh innings, he's kind of catching his breath, and just coach is lighting him up. And I'm standing right next to coach, and the last thing coach said to Ryan, he goes, uh, I bet you still listen to your high school coach. And Barry goes, Yeah, coach, I do, because he was pissed. And he goes, David, because I was the pitching coach at the time, and I'm standing right next to him, he goes, David, Ryan is still listening to his high school coach. I said, Nah coach, he's just ticked off right now. I mean, you're kind of in his, you know, in his grill right now, and he's just pissed at you. He goes, Well, why isn't he pissed off at you? I'm like, I don't know, but I mean, I didn't tell and see him you did. So anyway, we had a situation where we were trying to intentionally walk a guy back when you had to intentionally actually throw four pitches. We had our middle infielders backwards, and he said the entire dugout. All the players, trainers, staff, except me, Pat Hallmart, UT UTS coach, Mike Taylor, assistant coach at UTA. The three of us, and he goes, Let me tell you, boys, something. None of you boys have job security. You know, like we knew that a long time ago. But it kind of goes on and on, but it that's how it was, and we always played at the highest level, competed hard, but it was never a dull moment with Coach Graham, and then there's so many incredible stories. And it's one of the reasons why I went back to Rice, is all the former players, and uh yeah, if you run into a former player, you're gonna end up having a Wayne Graham story. And we all have them, and uh it just is pretty exciting. We have our first pitch dinner next Friday on the 30th, and Danny Lehman was our catcher in 05, 6, and 7. Well, he just won back to back World Series champions with the Los Angeles, Los Angeles Dodgers. I mean, he's the bench coach right next to Dave Roberts. And he's unbelievable. So he's gonna come speak at it.
SPEAKER_01:That's awesome.
SPEAKER_00:I'm gonna get him to do a Wayne Graham. Impersonation because he's incredible, but all good stuff, man.
SPEAKER_01:It is good stuff. Well, coach man, I appreciate this. We we always have good conversations, and uh, I I don't think I gotta twist Stevie's arm, but we do need to come to reckling because I got a feeling that uh it's gonna be a step up year. Um, and and I know I just get the feeling because there's that big project that I don't think a lot of people are aware of that's taking place on that campus. I mean, it affects you and the rest of athletics as well, right?
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, it's called the Gateway Project, and uh between our administration, our uh our president, and our donors. So you think about so many places that try to build this environment for game day. You know, I remember when CDC came in and he started Vivo Boulevard.
SPEAKER_06:Yeah.
SPEAKER_00:Well, we have the rice village literally tapped into us right next door, but it hasn't really been kind of a part of a rice game day, whether it's football, basketball, baseball, or uh women's sports, which are awesome. Women's basketball is killing it, soccer was top 25. But so there's always been this huge amount of concrete from the rice village up to the stadium into campus. And so they're really creating this this marriage between the rice village, which has restaurants, uh, retail, uh great bars. I mean, it's all right here. So we just need to kind of tie it in. And it's a unique project. They're gonna renovate Rice Stadium, uh, upgrade, renovate. It's gonna be awesome.
SPEAKER_01:Well, coach, you tell your wife Susan we said hello, and uh hope to see you soon. And it hey, if you ever need real estate, uh have a real estate need, uh Stevie's your guy, uh, he'll take care of you on that on that front.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, absolutely. I probably got way too much invested in real estate right now. Kind of my go-to.
SPEAKER_05:Yeah, that's well thanks, folks. Thanks for uh hanging out with us. Uh, love the stories, and I do want to get to an owls baseball game now.
SPEAKER_01:Let's do it.
SPEAKER_00:Yeah, hey, guaranteed, I'll take care of you guys. Come see me.
SPEAKER_01:Hey, good luck to you guys and the owls, and man, it's hey, college baseball, best time of year. It's gonna be fun to see how it develops in your first full season.
SPEAKER_00:Okay, appreciate you guys. See you, buddy.
SPEAKER_05:All right, good luck.
SPEAKER_08:Uh it's gonna be slow to me for everybody for the loop and let's go. Let's close it.
SPEAKER_01:Um I can't words can't describe it. Are you still in shock? I mean, Indiana, who didn't go to their first they didn't go to their first bowl game until 1979, won their first one in '81. They had only won three bowl games. This year alone, they won three.
SPEAKER_05:Yeah. It's uh it's it's pretty special for them, man. I'm happy for them. Um I had a bet going on with my wife who was gonna win the game, and I that team took on uh their head coach's personality, and they were not gonna lose that game. He said, uh, all I do is win, Google me. So that's what they did.
SPEAKER_01:Steve, I gotta ask you. I know you played in the non-NIL era, but unfortunately, yes, Indiana winning it. Now they they beat Ohio State, they beat Michigan, they beat all the greats, beat Alabama these last two years, phenomenal. In your opinion, what does this do? I think it's great for college football, in my opinion. What does this do for the sport, the health of the sport?
SPEAKER_05:Well, you know, um, it's a copycat league, right? And so when you look at the players on his roster, most of them were transfers and most of them are very old. So you got kids coming out of high school at 1920, playing against kids in college that are uh 22 to 25, those two years that's a that's that's a big difference in your strength, your your um your mental and your football IQ. So we may start seeing some copycat um rosters getting built the way they built that roster over Indiana, because that's the only thing. I mean, that's really one of the only things that um that got them there is their players and their heart and then their coaching. So it it could be done, and I think the people are gonna try to uh copycat that.
SPEAKER_01:That's a good take, man. That's a really good take. I think it's it's gonna show that there is parody with CFP and the NIL. I think there is. Um, hey, shout out to we got we had one Austin area representative, uh, signed out of Westlake. He was 12-0 in the playoffs. And look at this guy, Bray Lynch, third year guy at Indiana, starting on the offensive line last year and this year.
SPEAKER_05:He's not a national champion, national champion out of Austin, out of Austin.
SPEAKER_01:And all all Bray knows is to win. Two or three state championships at Westlake, won a national title now. Now there is rumors. There are rumors, not is. There are rumors. I uh we're gonna try to get Bray on the man case soon. Um, as you can tell, there his family here is very excited, as they should be. There is a rumor that he may enter the portal to come finish his career home in Texas. Okay. Remember what I said. There are people who enter the portal on one side because they know or have been told there are some others coming in. Yeah, that could be the bet the last significant piece that Texas may be may be bringing in on the old line. Yep, that'll be fun. That would be that if that if that pans out, man, that everything just makes sense. Hey, we're gonna take a quick break. Um, we gotta give a shout out to Hargrove Roofing and uh a wild guy in an MMA match, wanting a certain wrestler or fighter, a certain move below the belt. We'll see another side of this break.
SPEAKER_02:Here at Hardgrove Roofing, uh, we try to think outside the box to kind of get the creative juices flowing. So I brought in my friend Stevie Lee, former defensive tackle for the Texas Longhorns. Um, he's gonna help the team strategize, really motivate them, light of fire.
SPEAKER_04:This guy's gonna block down, this guy's gonna block down. You put your butt into that guard, and that way my mic linebacker gets free to do what?
SPEAKER_02:Not only are they gonna learn a thing or two, but they're gonna also leave with a great attitude and a bunch of smiles on their faces.
SPEAKER_04:I'm sorry, what does this have to do with roofing? Exactly. Get out right now. I said get out.
SPEAKER_02:For me, that's what it's all about. It's just having fun, making our employees have a great time. Hard growth roofing.
SPEAKER_03:Know who's on your roof, just do it.
SPEAKER_01:Authentic, or rehearsed?
SPEAKER_05:I don't know, man, but it's hilarious.
SPEAKER_01:The girl laughing. The girl laughing was the best part.
SPEAKER_05:Yeah.
SPEAKER_01:TikToking in the man cave. There you go. Brought to you by Jim Saxton State Farm. He'll take credit. I'm just playing.
SPEAKER_04:Hey Vin, tell me something good.
SPEAKER_01:All right, my brother, college football season's over with. Great story with the Hoosers and with the Heisman Trophy winner, Fernando, in that Vince Young-like moment, fourth and five, just like Vince had against USC. It ended up pretty much winning the game. And it was a storybook, just pure cinema. And shout out to Miami. But man, we're done with college football. We're gonna see who's picks up who and the remain the remaining thousands of pieces in the portal. We're in basketball, and then we thanks for a great interview with the David Pierce. Wish the Rice Owls and nothing but the best. They should elevate in year his first full year in year two. But brother, I know it's uh hard to say goodbye, just like uh boys to men to college football. Tell me something good, my brother.
SPEAKER_05:Uh, something good for me. I'm gonna I'm gonna keep it with the uh Texas Longhorns. Um, I feel like that we did really, really well in the last little push of the portal. Yep. Um, and we can still make some moves because uh some people can enter the portal because they're playing their last game. But um I'm really happy with the roster that we've we built with uh Cam uh with uh Hollywood as running back, um with uh offensive line from Wake Forest, the kid from Wake Forest. Uh and then I think the defense is just gonna do well. Coach uh Boom is gonna put them in the right place. I'm really excited about this offseason. These kids got to get to work um right now, and I feel like Texas pushed all their chips to the table and uh wanted to win this championship this year, and and likely see Arch go on to the NFL and um but leave Texas with a legacy and a Heisman and a national championship. That's what I feel like, and I'm really excited about that. So that's my something good, y'all. Be optimistic about this offseason, brother.
SPEAKER_01:That's well stated, and to play off that, we're going to have next episode, we're gonna have one of those transfer linebackers. He's coming home, a homecoming. Um, it's a great story. Great story. Played for um a non-power four program for one year, coming back home. Uh, he was a star linebacker for Lake Travis High School, and then he gets to come home. There you go. Finish his career, Marcus Boswell. And that's gonna be that's gonna be awesome. I can't wait to hear his story. And you know he's hungry. He's hungry, brother. I'll keep it very short. Um, I think I'm a big quote guy, uh mantra. I get motivated to keep me. We a lot of us do. We always need to see something to visualize it, see the words, see something to lift us up and redirect us. I've got a sing here, and it was uh I inherited it from or received it from someone special in my life. Slow burn, be cool, deliver the calm. Because we're we're in this race always to get somewhere, but you can't get there unless you're here in the moment. 508 is in the books. Big shout out to David Pierce, head baseball coach at the Rice House. There, he's gonna bring them back, he's gonna bring them about life is good on the Rice University campus, beautiful campus, by the way, very rustic and ivy leaguish, beautiful part of the great city of Houston, and thank you to the all the viewers and followers from the great city of the greater Houston area and to the city of Shreeport, Louisiana. Man, I've lost a lot of money there, but I know some good people there too, like the hargroves, the hardgrove family. Thank you for your support, and it's the home of the great Stevie Lee. And shout out to your beautiful family and to my town where my college alma mater is, the great city of Nacadotas, Texas, and in my hometown, Austin, Texas. Thank you all following, loving all of us, whatever part of Texas in the country you are, man, you're appreciated. And you know what else, man? To the OG Man Cake boys, that being Harbaugh Hart, Big Mike, and Knee Coach Mo. What do we tell them, Stevie Lee?
SPEAKER_05:We out.