AJ Hawk

Brian’s golf buddy, former Green Bay linebacker and current co-host of The Pat McAfee Show, AJ Hawk is going off (the beat) today, talking about his career in football, becoming a fixture at the American Century Golf Championship, and what he is (and isn’t) giving up as The Pat McAfee Show moves to ESPN.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
We Yes, we took a victory shot. Now when did
the victory shot start?

Speaker 2 (00:05):
I don't even know the origin of when he started
doing it in Green Bay? Maybe I think really early
on in Green Bay. And it was always before the
game though before it always gives a little toast, and yeah,
it does his whole thing. Do you know what the
toast is? Do you know what the hot toast is?

Speaker 1 (00:20):
I mean, I think I know what the toast is,
but again, I'm now I'm nervous to mess up something
else about Keith. It's really quick, play hard, play safe,
just win the fucking game.

Speaker 2 (00:33):
There you go. And then he would slam his little
shot glass.

Speaker 1 (00:35):
He would slam. He would take a shot and then
throw it onto the ground.

Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah it Hi, I'm Ajhawk and I plan on taking
all of Brian's money in Lake Tahoe.

Speaker 1 (00:56):
Hi everybody, and welcome back to Off the Beat. I
am your host, Brian Baumgartner, and today ding the bells,
Ding dong, the witch is dead. We have an NFL
legend on the podcast. Guys, I can't tell you how
excited I am to talk to my old friend, the
one and only AJ Hawk. Now we know that the

(01:19):
best offense is a good defense. I think someone said
that once, and well AJ shows that more than anyone.
You might know him from his time on the greatest
NFL team of all time, the Green Bay Packers. No,
that's not up for debate. The all time leading tackler

(01:39):
for the Green Bay Packers. He played from two thousand
and six to twenty fourteen. I'm talking one hundred and
fifty eight consecutive regular season games. Yes, you heard that right,
and during that time he won a Super Bowl, then
went on to play for the Bengals, the Falcons, and
since retiring from the sport, well, AJ has launched quite

(02:02):
an impressive career as a sports analyst for Fox Sports
ESPN and most notably, as a co host on the
Pat McAfee Show. So if you don't know him from sports, well,
you likely know him from entertainment. Today, we're going to
dive into his career, what drew him into football, the
entertainment side of sports, and why he will always consider

(02:27):
himself a Packer. I'm excited. Are you excited? I'm excited? Yeah,
here we go a jay Hawk. Everyone. Bubble and squeak.
I love it.

Speaker 3 (02:45):
Bubble and Squeakna.

Speaker 2 (02:49):
Bubble and squeak.

Speaker 1 (02:50):
I cook it every month, left over from the ninety.

Speaker 3 (02:54):
Four what's up? Ajay?

Speaker 2 (03:06):
What's up? Brian? How you doing?

Speaker 3 (03:08):
I'm good?

Speaker 2 (03:09):
How are you great? You know, same old just I've
been listening, man, I text you like a month or
two ago. I think about I've been listening to a
lot of the stuff you do. Man.

Speaker 1 (03:18):
Well, I really appreciate that, you know before. I mean
it feels like I've been doing this now for seventeen years.
But before this, I was on your podcast, the Hawk
Cast back in the day.

Speaker 2 (03:32):
Correct. Yeah, I don't know when that. I have to
go back and look exactly the month in what year
that was. But yeah, I started doing that while I
was still playing. And I I mean, you know, bruh,
like other people don't know. But you know, like I've
seen every episode of the Office five thousand times. My
wife and I still watch it. Hey, what's going on?
What do we have to watch? Not a whole lot,
and then we always just come back to the Office,
So you know, like that's that's our thing that holds

(03:53):
our family together. My young kids love it too, so
are huge fan? Are they watching it now?

Speaker 4 (03:58):
Oh?

Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yeah? I got a twelve ten seven and six year old,
and we've we've opened it up to everybody. Everyone loves it.
Everyone dies laughing because you know, I realize your kids
like watching them when they're seeing when their parents laugh
and think something's funny. So my my six year old
sees us laughing at you know, Meredith, your boobs are
showing like that's a common thing in my in my
uh in my household. From my young kids, that's like

(04:21):
their favorite. They think that's the funniest thing ever.

Speaker 1 (04:24):
So yeah, now do they want are they are they
allowed to watch every episode?

Speaker 2 (04:29):
I mean, we've thought about that. We started to wonder like, okay,
should we like be better parents and say there's some
episodes that should I don't. Are there any episodes that
you can think of that they should not be allowed
to watch? Because it's almost beyond them. I think some
of the humor, the things that may be wrong or
bad for kids to see.

Speaker 1 (04:44):
I guess, well, I mean the one that pops to mind.
And I only bring it up because it's I mean
it it is historic, as I as I have been taught,
we were the first half hour television show, right, so
comedy half hour television show to have that really deep

(05:05):
man's voice come on at the beginning and say the
following program may be unsuitable for children under thirteen. You
were discretion advised? Yes, can you guess the episode? It
was very early on?

Speaker 2 (05:20):
I mean I think especially early on in some of
those episodes.

Speaker 1 (05:25):
I mean, let me just say this. Dwight says the
word clytoris.

Speaker 2 (05:32):
Really what is this? What?

Speaker 3 (05:35):
It's still on?

Speaker 1 (05:36):
The sexual sexual harassment episode and Michael brings in the
sex doll and at the end there's a long exchange
where Dwight is asking. He goes to Toby and asks
him a lot of questions.

Speaker 2 (05:51):
Yes, some of that stuff, I see some of it.
I think that's a bit beyond my kid's comprehension. Right now,
we'd have to have a little conversation if they really
dug deep into what was going on.

Speaker 1 (06:02):
Now we'll stop talking about the office in a second.
But I have a question, because I get this all
the time, people who say they watch it over and
over and over again, they say, except for one episode,
Scott's Todts, Oh, scott Scott's Todds people too uncomfortable for
some people. Yeah, I think it hits a little too
close to home or something.

Speaker 2 (06:22):
Yeah, that might I get it. Yeah, I mean, I
do make myself. I guess it's not the first one
I go to because it's such an unbelievable episode. But
the acting and writing is so unbel like, it's so
crazy that you do feel horrendous. You feel just it
is tough. You're right, that's probably my least watched episode honestly.

Speaker 1 (06:41):
Yeah. Uh well, look, you and Laura, your wife. I
have gotten the privilege of getting to know you through
visiting Green Bay, and of course are exploits on the
golf course, the golf course, your brother as well. I'm
going to talk about your dad. I mean, I feel
like I know oh everyone.

Speaker 2 (07:01):
I mean, it's awesome. And you do, Brian, you do?
Like do you?

Speaker 3 (07:04):
You?

Speaker 2 (07:04):
Pretty much? Have You've done like pregame victory shots with
my family. You've done. You've been involved in every kind
of tradition that I think my family has.

Speaker 1 (07:14):
All Right, well, let's go back early for you growing
up in Cattering, Ohio. Attended Centerville High School. Now, how
close to Columbus is that.

Speaker 2 (07:26):
It's about hour and fifteen minute drive.

Speaker 1 (07:29):
Not too bad, right, And your dad, I know played
college football.

Speaker 2 (07:34):
No, No, he's gonna. Oh, I'm so pumped you said that.
Please keep it in. He did not play college He
didn't play any college sports. We joke about his athletic
ability a lot. So really, I'm so happy you said that.
So he's gonna he's gonna claim that. He's gonna say
he did now because he heard you try to say
he played college football. He played baseball in high school
and football, but didn't play in college.

Speaker 3 (07:52):
I so the oh did he go to Ohio University?

Speaker 2 (07:56):
Yes, went to Ohio University and was like a radio
TV major and had like you know, was had a
fake name, J. T. Hawkins and it was a radio DJ.

Speaker 3 (08:07):
Well, here's the thing. He must be.

Speaker 1 (08:09):
You know, you always say everything you hear, you read
on the internet is not true. He must be trying
to get it out there that he played linebacker at
Ohio University, because how would I have known that he
went to Ohio University. I don't remember that conversation, but
that's what it. That's what it says. Very interesting.

Speaker 2 (08:29):
We never know, you know, with everything going on right
like the deep fakes, I mean the Tom Cruise deep
fake videos, I don't know which one's Tom and which
one's whoever this other guy or whatever it's computer animated.

Speaker 1 (08:40):
Well, I know you guys spend a lot of time
analyzing those videos in your current employment. We'll talk about
that later. So your dad was was not an athlete,
so that was so how did you get into sports?

Speaker 3 (08:52):
Was it important to your dad? Was this something that
was important to your family?

Speaker 2 (08:56):
Yeah, well, so I'm the youngest. You Actually, I don't
know if you've met my oldest brother, youngest of three
and so.

Speaker 3 (09:02):
I know Ryan.

Speaker 2 (09:02):
Well, yeah, my oldest brother, Matt cohen Burke, he played
high school and not in college. But my middle brother, Ryan,
he played quarterback at Ohio. You so that might be
sticking in your head. That may be why you have
a little bit of the football on your brain with
my family.

Speaker 3 (09:14):
No, I have that here.

Speaker 1 (09:16):
Keith Hawk played linebacker at Ohio University, you know what,
Let's go with it.

Speaker 2 (09:20):
And he did. It was too far back to check
the records, anyway, You're right, I think he did. Think
he I think he had a couple of huge games
that he must have blown his knee out early, you
know the end of his career.

Speaker 1 (09:30):
Did So, why why was sports so important to you?

Speaker 2 (09:34):
Growing? It's really all we did or all we knew.
I just I knew what my two older brothers were doing.
And my middle brother Ryan, he's two years older than me.
We just grew up playing football, baseball, and basketball. That's
just what we did and I never really thought of
anything else. We just did it because it was fun
and our free time, that's what our free time. We're
playing roller played hockey in the park and stuff like that.

(09:55):
So it was a good era, a good time to
grow up. I'm I was born nineteen. I'm thirty nine
years old right now, and that time growing up was awesome.
Like that's all we did was go outside and play
different sports. But I just wanted to be like my brothers.
You know, both of them played and they were good,
and so I was always constantly just chasing them and
wanted to kind of have what they had.

Speaker 1 (10:14):
Pretty much the moment where it becomes well, it's a
hobby or it's an activity. It's something that you do,
and then there's a choice that you want to pursue
it more for a career or beyond that sort of
activity phase. When did that come for you? When did
you realize this was something that you could do in college?

(10:35):
End or beyond man.

Speaker 2 (10:37):
I never really thought of playing in college, like, Okay,
So when I was young, the goal, the dream was
to play for my high school team. Go you know,
Friday night Ohio high school football. It was a big deal, right,
I say it all the time. I remember watching the
varsity team when I was fourth fifth grade, going to
games and hearing them walk into the stadium from the
locker room because they're wearing metal tip spikes. I wasn't

(10:57):
allowed to wear metal tip until you get in high school.
So it's a big deal. That was always my dream,
my goal and everything. And I was lucky that my
older two brothers played there. I got to play two
years with my middle brother Ryan, so my freshman year
he was a junior. My sophomore he's a senior, and
he was the starting quarterback for four straight years there,
and so I got to play running back with him too,
both of us on the offensive side of the ball

(11:18):
for a little bit. It was It was awesome. But
I didn't really think about college until late in my
high school career. Probably my brother had been he's was
getting recruited to play quarterback. He went to Miami of
Ohio first and went there as a quarterback in the
same class as Ben Roethlisberger, and he ended up transferring
to OHIOU and started for a couple of years there.

(11:39):
But he actually, yeah, he came into OU, and Ben
actually red shirted, and my brother came and started playing
right away and was like doing a little slot receiver
trick plays all this stuff, and then Ben came in
and Ben became Ben and so it all worked out,
and he's friends with him and everything, and we love him.
But I was watching him getting recruited. I was going
on some of those recruiting trips with him around on

(12:00):
the MAC and schools like Northwestern Indiana, places like that.
And then going into my senior year in high school,
I went to Ohio State's camp and they hadn't offered
me a scholarship yet, and a lot of guys had
been offered. I guess that we're going to be coming
in and I did what I guess. I did enough
at that camp to get a scholarship ball for from
Jim Tressel, and I committed right away and it was

(12:20):
never a question of me going anywhere else. And yeah,
then I was very lucky to go to o Higo
State at a great time as well.

Speaker 1 (12:27):
You were a big Ohio State fan as a kid
growing up, right, Yeah, I.

Speaker 2 (12:31):
Was, but compared to like the rest of not the rest,
but of a lot of people in Ohio, they probably
technically couldn't say I was like a die hard fan,
like I'd loved Ohio State. I looked at it like
it was a fantasy world. It was never real to me,
like you could go there and play there. I didn't.
I didn't go to a game until I was like
a sophomore in high school being recruited. That's the first

(12:52):
time I went to a high of state game, just
because I feel like on weekends we had our own games,
our own stuff happening. But yeah, I knew if I
wanted to play in college and I had a chance
there was even a sliver of hope to play at
Ohio State, I was gonna do whatever it took to
get there. So yeah, I knew I wasn't gonna go
anywhere else.

Speaker 1 (13:09):
When you signed to go to Ohio State, was it
as a linebacker?

Speaker 2 (13:12):
Yes, it was as a linebacker, But then there's four
linebackers come in just in my class alone, and one
of them was the USA Toda player of the Year,
like I was kind of an afterthought kind of, I think,
And they said linebacker, and then people claim there's a
couple of coaches that thought it meant when it put
me at fullback too.

Speaker 1 (13:28):
So were you a late bloomer? And I'm not even
saying that as a joke, Like.

Speaker 2 (13:33):
N No, I wasn't. I don't think I was. No,
I wasn't a late bloomer. I actually so. I committed
to Ohio State going into my senior year of high
school football. My first game my senior year, I was
the punter. Ran was running a fake punt, playing in
my foot in the ground, and a dude just took
his helmet and ran it right through my knee and
popped my knee straight back, and I tore my PCL
and then a bunch of cartilage. So I got it

(13:54):
scoped and just cleaned the cartridge out, rehab my PCL
and came back and played the last like three or
four games my high school my senior year. Lucky, I
was already committed and they didn't pull my scholarship, so
that was a big I thought for sure I was done.
I was like, Oh, there's no way they're gonna they're
gonna give my scholarship to someone else. But luckily they
never even waiver.

Speaker 1 (14:10):
So even though you go to Ohio State, you end up,
by the way, winning a national championship with Ohio State.
Did you at that time think this that you were
gonna pursue it beyond college or was it just a
step for you?

Speaker 2 (14:29):
It was definitely a dream, Yeah, that'd be cool to
play in the NFL someday. It didn't really become a
reality until later way down the road. I think in
college though.

Speaker 1 (14:40):
Well, guys, he ends up winning the Lombardi Award. You're
an All American twice. I mean, I don't know if
you're being modest right now or if if this is
really where your mindset was. I'm trying to find that
moment for you, where for you it clicked or was

(15:00):
it just gradual. Was it just one play at a time,
one year at a time.

Speaker 2 (15:05):
Yeah, I think it was gradual. I think you just
how I've always tried to just be I'm pretty consistent,
which is boring. Like I have no problem eating the
very similar foods day after day, the same thing. I
don't need a bunch of variety. I do I'm kind
of a creature of habit I think, and you know,
I'm not definitely not the biggest guy or the fastest dude,
but I know like I'm not gonna quit and I'll

(15:25):
be there. And luckily too. When I was young, especially
in college, I didn't think about anything. Now that I'm older,
I think back on different things, I was like, Wow,
I was truly in the moment. I didn't I legit
was not really thinking very far ahead at all, like
just hey, what do we gotta do today? And then
let's just keep it moving. And I had a great
time too. I loved it. Made so many great friends

(15:46):
in college that still live around me now and now
our kids play together.

Speaker 1 (15:51):
What a great lesson that is, though. I mean that
because that's it's very surprising with all of the people
that I talk to. For most people, they begin to
look ahead, and it sounds to me like for you,
you were, Yeah, you were just truly.

Speaker 2 (16:10):
Naive, very naive. I think I didn't think of it.
I mean in a good way, though. I'm very glad
I was, because I didn't realize that until I came
back to a game when I was three or four
years into the league. I came back during a bye
week and I was watching it. It was a night
game in Ohio State, and I remember tapping my wife
and I was like, is this what it looks like? Like?
What I was like, is this what it looks like?
She's like, yeah, this is football. These are games. And

(16:31):
I was so scared for these dudes, Like I was
so nervous for him. I was like, in my head,
I'm thinking, do these guys know like every single play,
the whole game can hinge on what mistake you make
or a great play you make, Like there's so much
on the line here. I felt like watching from the stands.
I never really thought about that before until I was
there in that moment, and then it made me realize, geez,

(16:52):
I'm glad that I never thought about any of that
when I was playing. We were honestly just just goofballs,
having fun and join ourselves.

Speaker 1 (17:00):
That's so interesting. I mean, what, there's one hundred thousand
people there, and clearly, when you're at home, you you
must feel, like feel the sound that that many people creates.
But it's so interesting for you that different perspective because
you're in the moment, you're down there and you may
hear or acknowledge that there are people that are watching.

(17:23):
But like you said, not being a fixture at Ohio
State games before you went right, like, not really being
there on that other side probably takes some pressure off
now that I'm paid about it.

Speaker 2 (17:36):
I think in the moment, don't you think some of
the best golfers are dumb as a rock because they
don't ever think about their bad shot. They don't They're
not walking up to their ball on the eighteenth fairway knowing, hey,
if I get up and down from here, I'm gonna
win whatever, whatever gigantic tournament, a major. They're legit. Just
they're walking, well, look at that tree, Oh, look at
that that's cool. And then they both knock it to

(17:57):
two feet and tap it in and call it a day. Like,
if you could have that brain in golf especially, you
can win a lot of tournaments.

Speaker 1 (18:04):
Yeah, you and I know for sure there are great
golfers who are not very smart.

Speaker 2 (18:08):
Yes, that is lots of Yeah, it pays. It pays
to not be very smart out there. In certain ways,
they are very maybe whatever their intelligence is, other ways
that they helped turn it on.

Speaker 1 (18:18):
When you're at Ohio State, you are focused on criminology.

Speaker 2 (18:25):
Yeah. I wanted to be a cop. You wanted to
be a cop. Yeah, that was that was the plan. Yeah,
so crime I took. I mean it's basically, yeah, criminology,
sociology major. Took a lot of sociology classes. Didn't have
a lot of math to take. That was definitely part
of it. Numbers just don't work. My brain does not
compute numbers. And I've known that for a long time. Yeah,
me too.

Speaker 1 (18:43):
Okay, so you uh so you start becoming named in
All American in the country, and you win the Lombardi Award,
and so at some point you start turning your attention
towards the draft, right and like playing football beyond right?

Speaker 2 (18:59):
Yeah, definitely, uh yeah. Going into my senior year, yeah,
I guess I didn't. I luckily didn't think about it
too much, but I knew, yeah, hopefully if I go
out here and play well, I could be a first
round pick. Hopefully that was the thought. And we won,
and we want to win a national championship. I got
there my freshman year and rode the coattails of guys
and got to start one game and play all the
special teams and everything, and play in spots and other games.

(19:22):
But we had an unbelievable group of like of older
guys that I got to learn from. But yeah, I
wanted to go do it as a senior, and we
weren't able to do that. My senior year we lost
two games and weren't able to win the national championship.
But yeah, going in, I knew, hopefully this is this
is the plan to play after this. I knew I
definitely wanted to. I had the desire. And then after
the season, I was stayed in school and worked out

(19:44):
there and then would fly out and have you go
go to the combine and then fly out and have
visits the month like leading up to the draft and
other teams and doing all I was still in school
when I was doing all of that, and then got
drafted by the Packers.

Speaker 1 (19:57):
Yeah, drafted fifth by the Green Bay Packers. You had
another line of first round defensive picks by the Green.

Speaker 2 (20:07):
Bay by the Green Bay Packers, I do have Why
are you a Packers fan, Briy, I I don't know if.

Speaker 1 (20:13):
First off, let me say this, I want to say
that it was a mistake, but it wasn't. I woke
up today and I put on the University of Georgia shirt.

Speaker 2 (20:23):
I respect for that squad. They're great, Kirby Smart, They're
a great team. High of State played them tough, played
them tough in the playoffs. Georgia, Man, you guys got
a good thing going down there.

Speaker 1 (20:32):
Brian, Do you wish you had gone to Georgia instead
of Ohio State? No, because you'd be a better You'd
be a more successful person had you done that.

Speaker 2 (20:43):
You didn't even go to Georgia.

Speaker 1 (20:45):
I know, I know, but I didn't play football. Mu right, Hey,
if that's right. If I had played football, yep, I
would have gone to Georgia.

Speaker 2 (20:54):
Would you? Did you play football at all?

Speaker 3 (20:56):
Growing up?

Speaker 2 (20:57):
Just a little?

Speaker 1 (20:58):
I mean, I you know, I had my bad leg
situation pretty early before before I really had the opportunity
to get into it. But if I had, I would
have gone to Georgia. That's That's really all I have
to say about that. Oh why am I a Packer?
You know why I'm a Packers fan because of you.

Speaker 2 (21:15):
Not me. It came on for me.

Speaker 4 (21:18):
But okay.

Speaker 1 (21:36):
AJ gets drafted fifth by the Packers in two thousand
and six and in twenty ten or following the twenty
ten season, wins the Super Bowl in Dallas, Texas. I
call that the Ice Bowl because there was so much
ice out you guys didn't have to deal with. We
couldn't hardly get to the stadium, But I was there.

(21:57):
I saw you play the all time leading tackler for
the green Bay Packers nine seasons twenty six to fourteen.
If my math is right, eight years, nine seasons with
the Packers. Do you consider yourself a Packer?

Speaker 2 (22:12):
Yeah? Absolutely, I technically got played eleven years. I played
one year with Cincinnati after my nine in green Bay,
and then I got a season with Atlanta the year
they went to the Super Bowl, which had a great
experience there. By the way, I was only there a month.
Awesome experience. Loved all the coaches. Still talk to a
lot of them, but yeah, always really always a Packer.

Speaker 1 (22:28):
Yeah, that's interesting. Your experience in Atlanta was great, and
you still communicate with them.

Speaker 2 (22:34):
Dan Quinn was the head coach. I love that guy.
Jeff Olbrick is now the Jets defensive coordinator where our
buddy Aaron Rodgers is at, and Aaron loves Jeff. I
knew Olbrick would enjoy having him there. He was the
linebacker coach at the time in Atlanta, and I was
there four games and they were awesome. I learned so
much and just really maybe it was just because I

(22:54):
was old and I wasn't even playing it on playing
I was already doing working as like an analyst on
FS one, doing some games by then. But they had
a bunch of guys go down one week and tried
to bring me in there, and maybe just because I
was older and I knew, I was like, oh, this
is like a really cool experience, and so I took
a bunch of notes, tried to see how they ran things.
It was just a cool like it was almost like

(23:16):
watching like different ways, like hey, there's a lot of
different ways where you can lead and you can run
an organization or a team or how you interact, and
it was just really cool. They had a lot of
good people there. Kyle Shanahan was the offensive coordinator. I mean,
it was littered with stars everywhere.

Speaker 1 (23:30):
I want to talk about the Packers for a little bit.
Your greatest memory of being in Green Bay.

Speaker 2 (23:38):
I mean Super Bowl is tough to top that, it
really is. But if being like weirdly not, I don't know,
I'm not some I'm not into mystical crazy like getting
real deep talk or anything, but honestly, the coolest thing
about Green Bay and my wife and I this is
the thing we missa just the people, like the guys

(24:00):
and their wives and girlfriends and their kids. Like we
had a really special thing there for a long time.
We feel like we should have won more super Bowl
It's no question, but especially that Super Bowl year. Man,
our team was so close and we didn't We didn't
even know it at the time, but yeah, just looking back,
just really special people that we still communicate with. My
wife still takes trips with Green Bay girls every single

(24:22):
year and we try to meet up as much as
we can, so I think the order we get, the
more we realize how special it was and kind of
grow to appreciate that stuff.

Speaker 1 (24:29):
I've said many times, if you don't have a team,
if you don't have a reason to hate Green Bay,
if you go to Green Bay, it's hard. It's really
hard not to root for them, because the experience really
is singular in all of sports. I'm gonna tell I'm

(24:50):
gonna give one. There's many examples, but one, because I'm
talking to you. I was in Green Bay for a game,
your dad, your brother, who I knew well from our
golfing days, and your dad was there. And now I
don't want to I don't want to screw something else
up about your dad. But your dad bought a house, right,

(25:11):
Your family bought one of the houses directly adjacent to
lambeau Field, essentially to stay in because they wanted to
come out and see games.

Speaker 2 (25:22):
Right, yep. Yeah, when I got drafted, I was freshly new.
Hewed got married right before camp and I didn't even
know it, but yeah, he got the house and he said, we, well,
obviously I want to come to every game and I
want to bring friends, and I'm not going to do
that too. You're a new Hewed, Like, I'm not going
to stay with you guys. And obviously, yeah, that was like,
I guess that was very nice of him, But it

(25:42):
was like a he and my mom were in college again.
They'd have different couples come up every weekend and have party,
like they had the greatest weekends for home games. It was.
It was a great idea.

Speaker 1 (25:51):
So if you've never been, the houses are literally right
there next to the fairly small parking lot, and before
the game, you tailgate house to house, and really what
it is is garage to garage. There was one house
that I always go to that had literally had put
in a urinal like bathroom with a urinal in the

(26:14):
in the garage there and TVs everywhere. Your Dad's was
not as glamorous. I think when I was there, it
was minus eight degrees and we were on folding chairs
in the garage, in the garage that was not heated
in any way. But we yes, we took a victory shot. Now,

(26:35):
when did the victory shot start?

Speaker 2 (26:38):
I don't even know the origin of when he started
doing it in Green Bay? Maybe I think really early
on in Green Bay. And it was always before the
game though before it always gives a little toast and
it does his whole thing. Do you know what the
toast is? Do you know what the hot toast is?

Speaker 1 (26:53):
I mean, I think I know what the toast is,
But again I'm now I'm nervous to mess up something
else about Keith. It's really quick, play hard, play safe,
just win the fucking game.

Speaker 2 (27:06):
There you go. And then he would slam his little
shot glass.

Speaker 1 (27:08):
He would slam. He would take a shot and then
throw it onto the ground.

Speaker 2 (27:13):
Yeah, that was it. Yeah. I don't know how. I
think it started early on in Green Bay, I guess yeah.

Speaker 1 (27:18):
Yeah, what an incredible thing for you to have your
family be able to be a part of that those
nine years in Green Bay and have that experience. Clearly
they they love it. Do they still have the house?

Speaker 2 (27:35):
No, they sold it shortly after my time was up.
They didn't have any trouble selling that thing. Yeah. It
was only like two, like probably three streets over from Lambeau.
You could, I'm sure you could hit your driver and
hit Lambeau from their front yard if you could move
some trees. Yeah, no, for sure. How did you get
on the when you when you came over to the

(27:55):
house and did the pregame victory shots. Did you coordinate
that with Ryan, my brother? I think that through I
think that was through your brother. Yeah. I was gonna say,
because all of a sudden, I'm I remember I was
in the locker room, I think, and they sent me
a picture or sent me a video of you guys
doing the shot. And what's Brian doing. I didn't even
know you were going. Yeah. No, so uh.

Speaker 1 (28:15):
For those of you who don't know, AJ is a
fixture at the American Century championships, which we've talked a
lot about on this podcast. In beautiful Lake Tahoe. We're
both gonna be there here in a couple of weeks,
and so we had gotten to know each other and

(28:37):
AJ's brother Ryan is AJ's caddy. I have a regular
caddy and Aaron had the same caddy and we would
have a caddy race on the seventeenth hole there and
I watched it fairly recently. Again it is still uh,
it's still entertaining.

Speaker 2 (28:55):
There's like sixty yards of sand that they run through too.
That's the biggest thing. I think that's when their legs
start to burn trying to carry the bag and it
gets competitive, man, I know, especially year one that was
very competitive.

Speaker 1 (29:07):
Yeah, it was a lot of fun. So yeah, So
I've gotten to know AJ's family and his wife there
as well. Excited to go back.

Speaker 2 (29:15):
Oh my gosh, you're kidding me. Like it's it's amazing.
It makes me I don't play much like a whole
lot of golf, but because of Tahoe, it makes me
love go like I want I want to play, just
to get out there and try to not be horrendously
bad out there. So that's everything is geared towards Tahoe for.

Speaker 1 (29:32):
Me me too. Uh do I owe you money? I
do not believe so well, Okay, I paid you. Okay,
AJ got me last year for sure.

Speaker 2 (29:41):
I kept the ball in play more than I ever had. Man,
I don't know how I could. I'd have to punch
out like six hundred times each round this passion. I
still didn't play great, but I still I just put
the ball in play a little bit.

Speaker 1 (29:52):
I want you to tell the story to everybody about
how it started. Aj AJ became a fixed You're in
tahole because there's a there are two very populated holes
in Lake Tahoe, a whole seven and whole seventeen. And
AJ started tackling a fan from the stands. Talk about

(30:18):
how that started in the first year, because all I
remember is you thinking you were going you.

Speaker 2 (30:23):
Had killed the guy that was year two. I thought
he died. Year one was a great shot. It was
very clean shot. I could get the year too. Yeah.
So basically we're to seventh hole, like you said, we're
walking up to the tea box and my brother Ryan
is caddied for me every single year out there. And
that's how unbelievable that tournament in Lake Tahoe is that
he's like, someone's gonna have to kill me to get

(30:45):
me to not caddy for it. He just just he
didn't eve get hit any shots, but he just wants
to go. That's how cool the whole tournament is. But
we walk up to the tea box and there's a
group of guys, maybe ten dudes, bit rowdy, boozing, having
a great time, and oh, my brother, that Ryan looks
at me. He's like, hey man, this guy wants He
asked if you tackle him. And I looked at the
dude and he's a big guys like, all right, okay,

(31:07):
I guess yeah, why not? And I went, I like
put my shoulder directly into his ribs, like I hear
the breast go out. Oh like I could hear. It
was just the time. Whatever happened, it timed up where
everything just hit the right moment and it was a
good shot. It looked good. I didn't I thought I
was gonna rip my pants. I didn't rip my pants.
I didn't fall down. He went down. Then he gets

(31:27):
up and I hug him and everything's great, and then
I realized instant, I'm like, oh my god, like am
I gonna get kicked out of the tournament. I was like,
these guys, not, are they gonna let me even play
like that sucks? They might be pissed. And then the
next hole, I'm walking and I see a couple of
the you know, the big the big time people with
the NBC American Century everybody, and I was like, hey, man,
I'm sorry the guy asked me to do it. I

(31:48):
wasn't whatever, and they instantly said, no, were you kidding me?
That was great it Look we got it on video.
We're gonna run it tonight on NBC or NBC whatever.
And I'm like, oh, thank goodness. And then I tackled
him for man, four or five years in a row.
And now it's funny, we've kind of like we started
we arm wrestled one year after that, like we're all
growing up, we're all getting old, I guess because now

(32:09):
their group has grown as well, like they've all there's
more and more people every year with their group and
the company they have, and then now it's it's hilarious.

Speaker 4 (32:17):
Now.

Speaker 2 (32:17):
I just last year when I was out there, we
saw them and we just kind of we didn't do
anything it. I think it was the first year, we
didn't do anything like physical, no arm wrestling, no weird
bubble wrestling thing. We did one year. I didn't tackle him,
I didn't hit him, and we're like, oh man, how
you doing. Like he's like cots of kids, and it's like, wow,
we're really we've grown up together. Like once a year
I see these people and I started going. I was

(32:39):
probably twenty five when I first started going. I'm almost
forty now. So yeah, like we've watched each other grow
up through this whole thing, and our bond of me
getting to tackle that guy.

Speaker 1 (32:48):
Well, that's what is so special about that week, right,
I mean you and I getting to know each other.
They I mean just like odd couples. And I'm I'm
not I'm not even making a joke. You and this
guy that the relationships started by you tackling him and
almost killing him. The second year, it's so great. I
can't wait to be there.

Speaker 2 (33:09):
You've been playing a lot too. I listened to the show.
I know you've been playing a lot. Well see how
you hitting it? Hitting good?

Speaker 4 (33:15):
Right?

Speaker 2 (33:15):
You probably scratch.

Speaker 3 (33:16):
Now listen, I got here. I'll tell you this. I
got some clubs showing up today.

Speaker 1 (33:20):
Are you a guy now or what I you know
what I am of course p XG man kaboom baby, kaboom. Yeah.
If you're gonna come at me, you better you better
get the best. That's all I'm saying I got this
year is you're actually now that you have ESPN money,
Maybe we double the bet this year, maybe we make
it a little more expensive.

Speaker 2 (33:42):
Okay, all right? Oh was that an Okay, Yeah, I'm
in I'll do it all right the time. You're way
more consistent than.

Speaker 1 (33:50):
You beat me last year. You beat me last year,
but you I remember paying you.

Speaker 2 (33:54):
It was horrible. It was horrible. It was a great,
great night, it really knows it was. It was my
first time were finishing in the positive numbers. Ever, there
you go. So I need some strokes then, is what
I'm trying to say.

Speaker 1 (34:06):
You won last All right, I'll say this is actually
it works exactly the opposite.

Speaker 3 (34:12):
You won last year.

Speaker 2 (34:14):
I'm sure you hadn't off. I'm sure you got a
bunch of bad breaks and the ball bounced out of
bounds and things like that.

Speaker 1 (34:20):
No, by the way, I do have to tell everyone this.
I'm sure they're bored of hearing of our golf but
let me tell you this, aj almost killed me once.
This is not this is not a joe.

Speaker 4 (34:31):
Uh.

Speaker 1 (34:31):
They've redone the course, the old number eight. I am
legitimately mid green, chipping out of the rough. I had
was not in the bunker there on the left, but
I was just on top of it, and I am chipping,
and suddenly I hear and I was like, what the

(34:56):
what was that? And you were on the tee and
had driven So this is where you have the advance
that is not this is not a driveable par four,
by the way, but it was a par four that
you just got a hold of and it went in
the right direction, which sometimes for you it doesn't.

Speaker 2 (35:12):
And you almost killed me sometimes. I mean, if I
would have known that, I'm sure we would have yelled for.
Did anyone yell for? Maybe they gave me the go ahead,
they said, hey, we're good to go. That's Unfortunately we've
hit over the head of people in our group before.
Can you know if you can't see him, if they're
running over the little swell yet i'd something. I guess, patience,
you gotta just quit an extra beat.

Speaker 1 (35:32):
You're reckless, You're reckless.

Speaker 2 (35:35):
I disagree. I disagree you and Pa both.

Speaker 3 (35:56):
Do you love what you're doing now?

Speaker 4 (36:00):
I do.

Speaker 2 (36:00):
I absolutely love what I'm doing now with Pat mcafeel
on the Pat on his show, The Pat McAfee Show,
five days a week. And I never really thought I
was going to commit to anything five days a week
like that consistent. Honestly, when I first got into like
media stuff, I was doing a lot of serious XM
radio and yeah, doing like analysts work on games, traveling
to college games a lot.

Speaker 1 (36:21):
So you were traveling with that, you were traveling to
games cover of years Fox Sports, Yeah.

Speaker 2 (36:26):
Yeah, and I did some a bunch of stuff from
the Conference USA games that I was doing for a
couple of years after that, different online stuff. And then
when I started getting doing work with Pat, and then
when I started going basically five days a week, probably
three years ago, I stopped going to games on weekends.
And my kids have gotten order and I'm already like

(36:46):
assistant coach on a lot of their teams and stuff,
so I can't weekends would be tough. I think if
I was gone for fourteen straight weekends.

Speaker 1 (36:53):
Well, you're a smart guy, you're an engaging guy, but
you know, this is a this is a hard business.
I know, oh to break into talk to me about
meeting Pat and how this came about to join as
a co host on the Pat McAfee show.

Speaker 2 (37:09):
I mean, it was super organic. I don't even know
the first time he started his show. He had his
podcast first, when he was still playing for the Colts. Yeah,
and he asked me to come on. Now, were you friends? No? No,
I didn't even know each other. The first time we
really met in person actually when I was I was
on the Bengals for my one season with the Bengals,
he was on the Colts. We played a preseason game.

(37:30):
We were both captains that game, and that's like when
we officially, Oh hey, what's up?

Speaker 4 (37:34):
Man?

Speaker 2 (37:34):
Like I knew of him and what he was doing,
and then somehow we started. I came on a show
and it was awesome, you know he was. He's very
unique and super talented and smart and funny in different
way than anybody. So we kind of had a It
was always fun. I would keep I would come on
there every once in a while and ask me to
come on and be on for twenty thirty minutes and
enjoy it. Never thought anything of it. And then he
was with Barstool and they asked me to join he

(37:57):
and guy named Jerry Thornton for a podcast. We'd record
it every Sunday night after the Sunday night football game
and we would just recap and talk about all the
games that happened that day. Honestly, we really enjoyed it.
I loved it. It was really fun. And then after
that I would go on a show a little bit.
I mean, I don't know, once every couple of weeks maybe,
and then right before, right as COVID hit, I was like, man,

(38:17):
we should do something, like everything's shutting down, there's no sports,
there's nothing. We should do something more consistently. And then
after that he would go live on YouTube and I
would join him. It's called McAfee and Hawk Sports Talk,
and that's how it all started. I did it like
three days a week, and that eventually became five days
a week. And now yeah, and it's awesome, h Paton.

(38:39):
You got to know the boys, and it's just how
it's where it is now is ridiculous, Like it's bizarre,
and it's the most fun I've ever had by far
doing anything. When it comes to I guess you could
call it in the media job it's not for me.
It's yeah, it's fun, it's really fun.

Speaker 1 (38:56):
Well, it is entertainment. It's groundbreaking in a lot of ways,
and not surprising. The number of viewers and subscribers five
days a week on YouTube is over two million people.
The latest reports I heard is that you personally have
a one hundred million dollar contract a year at ESPN

(39:18):
the next twenty years. You got some good sources, Brian,
which is really impressive. That you have managed to take
this little, this little side job and turn it into
an empire is incredible. I was going down the rabbit
hole about all of the information about the contract and oh,

(39:40):
there's all kind of I know, it very entertaining. Are
you excited? Just announced in May you guys are going
to be moving to the original mothership ESPN, same show,
but no bad words. That's that's no eff company, just words,

(40:02):
just no F word.

Speaker 2 (40:02):
And then Pat offered that up to them as like
a negotiation, not a negotiation, as like goodwill, like hey,
won't say the F word, try not to say it
as much, but everything else is out there, and they, yeah,
they want the show, they want us to do the
real show. And he Pat was talking to a bunch
of different people on where to take it or where
you could go with it, And that was always his
first thing from the jump, like you don't have any

(40:24):
you have no creative control over this. He's always had
complete ownership of it. And that's how it is going there.
And it's gonna be on from noon to two on
ESPN like the big ESPN, the main main deal, and
it'll be yeah, and then we'll keep going on YouTube
after that twelve to two times.

Speaker 1 (40:41):
Now will you will you be on from twelve to two?
Are you still going to come in an hour late?
I know that's a good question. That's what's cool funny
about the show. We don't it's pretty uh spontaneous. We
don't sit there and draw out a box and B
block and C block and do all this stuff. It's
very organic and it's very like instan off our instincts.
So yeah, there's still a bunch we haven't even really
thought about that. We'll figure out here in the next

(41:03):
month or two. I mean, I was thinking about this
knowing I was going to talk to you today. You're
like smart, like a fox. Everybody else is in studio
looking at Pat with his cut off. What do you
call them tank top shirts on roaming around, pacing back

(41:25):
and forth and guess where AJ is AJ is in Columbus, Ohio.
How in the world is that?

Speaker 3 (41:32):
Just?

Speaker 1 (41:33):
So here's what I thought. What I thought was, tell
me if I'm right that it was the start of
COVID and that's just that became what you did and
then you just stuck with it or did you just
say I'm not leaving Yo?

Speaker 2 (41:47):
It was it was COVID. I'm here like I knew, Like,
there's no way I was. I have four kids, we
built a house in Columbus well a while ago, and yeah,
there's no I mean, it would be if I could
be in studio every day with everybody. It's awesome and
it's very fun in studio, it's just not possible for
me and I drive there during the season. Since Pat's
on game day as well, he leaves Friday mornings, I'll

(42:10):
drive in every Friday during the season. I'll drive to
Indianapolis and go host a show from studio while Pat
comes onto the show from the game day set. So
I'll do that every Friday, and then unfortunately, the only
time I'm really even at when I go to India
I'm at the studio is when Pat's out of town basically,
so it's fun when I can actually get there and
we're in studio and we do stuff together, that's when
we obviously we love that, right, you know? It was funny.

Speaker 1 (42:34):
I was doing some research here and I went on
the YouTube for the Pat McAfee show, and I saw,
like two days ago, there was a screenshot. It was
the same, the same exact picture, and I thought, oh,
did they upload the wrong video on both No, you guys,
you were just wearing the same thing. You guys, don't

(42:55):
You don't think about wardrobe there at the Pat McAfee show.

Speaker 2 (42:59):
No, it's very I guess you could say I'm simple
like that. And I used to try. I used to
wear different different shirts or whatever, and then Pat would
always wear his black tank top. And so for the
last year or two, I don't know, I have like
four or five shirts that I wear on the show.
They're all either a black long sleeve or a hoodie.

Speaker 1 (43:16):
Yeah, he goes that's true. He goes color. Sometimes he's
got a purple one that really pops everyone's.

Speaker 2 (43:22):
While he does have a colorful one, but yeah, no,
his go to is a black tank top everyone he
wore T shirts for I don't know, a couple of
weeks stretch there. He thought he was gonna wear T
shirts and he couldn't do it. He didn't like it.

Speaker 1 (43:32):
I guess interesting. I got to ask you, I'm curious
about this with the change over to ESPN. You know
we're not You're not going to change anything except except
the use of the F word. Has anyone talked to
you about your signature prop?

Speaker 3 (43:48):
I guess what do you mean?

Speaker 2 (43:50):
The cigar?

Speaker 4 (43:51):
Oh?

Speaker 2 (43:51):
No issues? That's another good question, Brian, that's another great question. No,
no one said anything to me, bully me. I enjoy it. Well,
keep me focused, keep me focused? Is that right? Well?
I'm a naturally like I can get, you know, off
track if it gives me something to do. I'm not
fidgeting like I'm a fidgitor kind of always doing something

(44:13):
look around, And that definitely keeps me locked in. And
I enjoy it. And it's really the only time I
smoke cigars is on the show. Really, it feels right
to when I'm doing the show to have a cigar
and I'm like, yeah, I don't. It's definitely not a prop.
It's not a gimmick. I should say it's yeah, I
know it just turned into it.

Speaker 1 (44:30):
I didn't mean a gimmick. I really literally meant a prop.
And what you just said to me is actually that
is a huge actor trick. Really, Yeah, that you if
you have a prop, you have something to focus some
of your energy on. I'll tell you James Spader. I mean,
I don't know if he would like me saying this

(44:51):
or if he even agrees, but I used to watch
James Spader, and I mean he he knew how to
work a spiral notebook. No, I mean he yeah, I
mean when he's going to open it or close it
or write something, or how he holds it, you know,
how he would hold it in his hand, and he
would think about all of these. I mean he worked

(45:12):
props better than any actor I've ever seen. I will
say that. So it actually makes a lot of sense
what you're saying, that you have this cigar you can
go to if you need a moment to think or
process or yeah, makes a lot of sense.

Speaker 2 (45:25):
And it's always it's like anything like smoking's like it's
about like it's a whole process. I gotta you know,
I cut it. I got it sometimes everyone's very particular.
I stab it a bunch if you feel like the
poll is not enough and all that. So I enjoy it.
I definitely enjoy it. And it keeps me. It does
kind of keep me on track, I really think. So.

Speaker 1 (45:42):
It's interesting, though. I wonder if the Mothership is going
to say anything about that.

Speaker 2 (45:47):
Man, I don't know.

Speaker 1 (45:49):
I'm just bringing these things up. I don't know, it'll
be interesting. I can't really thought about that. I can't
wait to see the transition. I can't wait. And I hope, God,
you've been so successful. I hope you just stick with it.
I hope it is the same. I really do. We will. Yeah,
I think padd will make it the same. Yeah, I
agree with you.

Speaker 2 (46:08):
It's gonna have to be What do you mean it's
gonna I don't think we know any anything else.

Speaker 1 (46:12):
Well, well, that's a great point. You're a smart guy.
You're not fooling me. You're a smart guy. But yeah,
I get it. There's well, there's a reason it works.

Speaker 2 (46:23):
Yeah, it's authentic. It's real. No one's there's no plan.
We're just there. We're just doing it, having fun.

Speaker 1 (46:30):
You're just doing it just like you're playing football. Take
it a play at a time, take it a month
at a time. That's the game at a time, a
year at a time.

Speaker 4 (46:38):
Man.

Speaker 1 (46:38):
Yeah, so smart. Helpful for golf too.

Speaker 2 (46:41):
By the way, be dumber. We've got to be dumber
on the golf course. Yeah, be dumber. I'm not mentioning
any names.

Speaker 1 (46:50):
Playing football or what you're doing. Now, what do you
get more joy from?

Speaker 2 (46:55):
That's a good question. That's a very good question. I
mean football, anyone I'd played. I'd played football until I
was dead, if you could, I mean, I but I
understand the game my body do. I understand you can't physically.
But yeah, football is awesome, man. But now, I mean
what I'm doing now, like I would my technically my job.

(47:15):
With what I do with Pat, I hope to do
it for the next one hundred years. Honestly, I love it,
I really do.

Speaker 1 (47:23):
Yeah, that's so great. I'm so happy for you. I
mean again, where we started, AJ Like Pat had had
the podcast before you even retired, so you were thinking ahead,
my friend.

Speaker 2 (47:37):
Yeah, I was just I was a fan of other
podcasts too, and I didn't I did know that I
wanted to do something in the media where whatever that
might be. But I honestly from being a fan of
listening to podcasts, that's what made me start my own,
and I knew, yeah, this is also it's a way
you can reach out and speak to cool people like
it's hey, come on, brob, you want to come on
my podcast? Like that's it, and always like wow, they're

(47:59):
actually the actually here, like this is cool. I'm actually
doing this so early on especially, and that's yeah, I'm
glad I did it. I'm not like a super I'm
not naturally an outgoing dude that just talks all the time.
That's not who I am. But I definitely talk way
more now than I did when I was in high
school or college, that's for sure.

Speaker 1 (48:18):
Well, you're on one of the largest sports entertainment shows
in the world right now, or at least in the
United States. That alone makes you an expert. There are
four teams in the AFC East. List them in the
order that they're going to finish the season this year.

Speaker 2 (48:35):
Come on, now, I'm not doing predictions. I can't prea
to predictions yet. It's early.

Speaker 1 (48:39):
That's why I said, But I'm talking to you now,
how are the Jets going to be?

Speaker 2 (48:44):
How about that? I mean, the Jets should be awesome,
don't you think they? Before Aaron got there, they had
a really really good team. And now Aaron's there, So
let's see how far I can go, man, I mean
that's what I think. It's gonna be very interesting. Does
it worry you that everything seems to be so awesome
and so positive now and everyone everyone's so happy? Does

(49:06):
that scare you?

Speaker 3 (49:10):
No?

Speaker 1 (49:10):
I'm just interested to see how it plays out.

Speaker 2 (49:13):
You know, Okay? If I did? Yeah, I mean, of
course I would pick the Jets to win the ANFC East,
wouldn't you. I mean, there's a lot of good teams
over there. There's a lot of good teams over there.
Who would you pick? Okay? Are the Dolphins? No, you're
gonna say that. I think everyone's saying the Patriots are
gonna come in last, aren't they? Yeah?

Speaker 1 (49:28):
East, that would be that would be general consensus.

Speaker 2 (49:31):
Yeah, then probably you'd probably I mean, yeah, Jets, Bill's Dolphins,
Patriots or I would imagine a lot of people would
do or they go Bill's Jets? Maybe? Yeah? Are you
gonna go to some games?

Speaker 1 (49:41):
New York Dolphins are are unknown? Look, I hope to
go back to Green Bay and maybe check out New York.
And you know, I'm gonna go everywhere this year. Yeah,
I'm gonna go everywhere. You said, you're a packer. You
still root for Green Bay?

Speaker 2 (49:56):
Yeah, I'll never not root for him. But it does
feel different without Aaron there. It will feel different, no question.
But yeah, all my all the people that keep be
connected to the Packers are still there. And they're the
equipment staff, the training staff, doctors, all those people that
don't turn over, like coaches and everyone else.

Speaker 1 (50:15):
Yeah, it's a special place, man, it's a it's a
special place, you know. I have, over the last couple
of years, done some hosting on Good Morning Football, and
I am jealous of what you get to do now.
The time that I spend over there, I love it.
I love hanging out and talking about sports.

Speaker 2 (50:37):
It's fun, right.

Speaker 1 (50:38):
Yeah, But they're not gonna let they They won't let
me sit in my what does Pat always say, in
your library above your garage or your loft or whatever
he says. Yeah, yeah, they're not gonna let They're not
gonna let me do that.

Speaker 2 (50:51):
I don't know though they might you could, especially now
that now it's normal to have remote stuff on big
time Network TV, Like there's people that are doing full
shows from addicts like this. So that's luckily the timing
worked out for me too to be able to stay.

Speaker 1 (51:04):
Here, right, That's what I figured, dude. I'm so happy
for you and your success. Just one of the great guys,
and I feel so lucky to call you and consider
you a friend. And I'm just so happy for you
and the success that you have had with Pat on

(51:27):
that show. And I know you guys are just gonna
kill it on ESPN. So congratulations, it's awesome.

Speaker 2 (51:32):
Thank you, man, I do I really really appreciate that.
It's the connections you make from playing in the deal
in Tahoe, playing in the golf in anyone. I'm sure
people break get annoyed listening to people talk about Tahoe,
but it's like, yeah, it's sorry, Bud, like it's it's awesome,
but just it's the people. It's everybody. All the guys
and girls that play in the event are cool because

(51:54):
if you're a douche, they don't invite you back, Like
if you're a turd and they don't, you don't come back.
And that's the thing. So everybody's like, man, this is
really cool. I want to come back next year and
that's what I've been doing for like twelve years.

Speaker 1 (52:07):
Yeah, it's really fun. I can't wait. July fourteenth through
the sixteenth on various NBC, my Mothership networks and sports
stations and on the mother Ship I know on Saturday
and Sunday. Check it out AJ Hawk, myself and many
many more.

Speaker 2 (52:27):
AJ.

Speaker 1 (52:28):
I can't wait to see you and give you a
hug and maybe have a beverage and tons of laughs
and the normal bet, the normal bet. I'm making the
normal bet right now. I'll see you. I'll see you
really soon. AJ, thanks for coming on.

Speaker 2 (52:42):
Great seeing you brides appreciate it. I'm a fan of
the show obviously. Thank you for having me on. Man
appreciate it. Kim not wait to see you in Tahoe.

Speaker 1 (53:01):
AJ, You're the best, and more importantly, you always make
me laugh, so thank you for that.

Speaker 3 (53:07):
Thanks for the packer love.

Speaker 2 (53:09):
That's what she said.

Speaker 1 (53:11):
I don't know if that even works, but AJ, thank
you for coming on today. Listeners, you can find AJ
on Yeah, the Pat McAfee show. He and Pat are incredible.
Be sure to check them out. And as always, you
know where I'll be this time next week.

Speaker 3 (53:29):
That's right sitting right.

Speaker 1 (53:31):
Here in your drums lobes.

Speaker 3 (53:35):
I'm in your ears.

Speaker 2 (53:36):
I'll see you next week.

Speaker 1 (53:48):
Off the Beat is hosted and executive produced by me
Brian Baumgartner, alongside our executive producer Ling Lee. Our senior
producer is Diego Tapia. Our producers are Liz Hayes, Hannah Harris,
and Emily Carr. Our talent producer is Ryan Papa Zachary,
and our intern is Thomas Olsen. Our theme song Bubble

(54:09):
and Squeak, performed by the one and only Creed Bratt,