4-24-24 Hour 3

Albany Firebirds Coach Damon Ware Albany Firewolves Coach Glenn Clark Sports writer/author/podcast host Sean Martin on his new book "3 Bulls"

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
It's love acting guys. On theVoice of the Capitol Regions Sports fan Fox
Sports ninety five, nine and nine. We are alive right here on the
brand new field at m VP Arena, and I enjoyed by the head coach.
I almost want to do it likewe do a flock university a little
bit. The professor of the headcoach, the general manager, the man

(00:20):
whose wife cooks are mean male itis coach. It's a lot of titles.
I like you, Well, youlive up to all of them.
My friend, You've had to makesome tough cuts. I know we're officially
announcing the roster tonight as part ofuh, you know, our media slash
season ticket holder welcome party here,But is there anything you can tell us,

(00:42):
like one that may have been areally really tough cut, or somebody
who we already saw sign with somebodyelse or something, does anything to show
us, Uh, there was alot of really tough cuts. Uh.
You know, that's the hardest partabout bringing them a really good football team
is you know, there's some toughdecisions to be had, and you know,

(01:03):
you know, last couple of yearswe haven't had as many tough decisions,
and so this has been kind ofbrutal. I mean mostly it's it's
you know, you really like someof these kids, and you know they
can play the game, and yougot to tell them that the dream of
least here is over. And youknow, okay, if you can help
them get someplace else, that obviouslywould help them. And you know,
if they're still around and when youknow, hopefully no injuries happened, but

(01:26):
if they do happen, they stayready, they could get a call back.
So that's a tough one. Butyou know, our quarterback battle was
one of the toughest decisions I hadto make. You know, we had
three guys that all were very different, all had some special abilities. You

(01:48):
know, all good leaders did allthe things right, but ultimately, uh,
you know, the last couple ofdays of evaluation and it's kind of
a learning lesson for these guys asI tell them that, you know,
every practice matters, and if youlet a couple of practices get away from
you, it could be could becut time. And you know, so
I released, uh will aren't uhyou know today? Yeah, And it's

(02:14):
just a lesson. I mean,it doesn't matter who you are, how
many starts you've had, where you'veplayed, it matter if you played the
NFL to see if it doesn't matter. It's we have a very unique game
and it takes a very unique skillset, and uh, you're either going
to get it or you're not.And so he was definitely probably the hardest
cut I had to make and informhim. And you know, like I

(02:35):
said, just the disappointment on onyou know, somewhere else if if anything
happens, will give you call.It wouldn't if you move on to somewhere
else if if anything, Those weretwo that were extremely hard that we had
to come to. Just just tough. It's it's heart mentioned from all sides.
Coach, you mentioned the quarterback positionright there in the cut you had
to go through. We hear thisterm used all the time on social media.

(02:58):
It's the trendy term, but alot of coaches using out to decide
who is the starting quarterback. We'vegot a few hours still before game time.
Who will be quarterback number one forthe twenty twenty four Albany Fibers If
you're ready to tell us this afternoonon a Wednesday, Yeah, Jake Medlocke
will be QB one leading us outthe tunnel of this Saturday night. He's

(03:22):
done a great job of just youknow, being a great leader, getting
the ball out of his hands quickand letting our playmakers make plays. We
just have so many special receivers.We've got six receivers that are special that
can start anywhere in the country.And these guys have have sacrificed some individual
stats to win and so you know, it's a special place when you can

(03:44):
every year have guys come in andthat are willing to sacrifice some stats,
you know, to play and win. And that's uh, you know,
that's a testament of what we've builthere over the last several years. So
we're super excited about that. Butwe've just got you know, we've got
playmakers everywhere and our d's back playwith special During camp, I mean,
it was you know, like Isaid, we struggled some days us you
know, chewing up the yardage,and that's just a testament of just what

(04:08):
we've brought in as far as talentwise. So but yeah, but Jake
will lead us out in the firstgame and yeah, we'll go from there.
Like I tell them, every everygame is a you know, it
is an audition. There is justno such thing as here's the position and
it's yours, do whatever you wantwith it. It doesn't work that way.
Every game is an audition every practice, and I think now a lot

(04:31):
of kids understand that is every singlerep means something, and if you want
to play here, you have toembrace that challenge every day and rise to
the occasion. And so Jake's doinga good job of rising to the occasion
and we'll see what's to come ofthe offense come Saturday night. Coach,
heating were with us right now.We're live at the MVP Arena. Guys
back in the GT Toys Toys atDisease Studio for sports radio. Coach,

(04:58):
you have a history. You guyshave worked together before. Yeah, in
twenty eighteen in the other league,we were number one in the league in
offense by a huge margin. MARKL. Wade was on that team as well.
We did some special things and soobviously that familiarity was great. You

(05:18):
know, he's now an offensive coordinatorout of high school and runs a quarterback
school down in Orlando, So that'smatured him a lot. You know,
when when when I had him intwenty eighteen, he was young and fiery,
and you know all those things.And but but he's matured so much
just from becoming a coach, andthat's you know, it does remind me

(05:40):
of my first year as a coach, and it does teach you so much
about the game of you know,why certain things happen or why things didn't
happen when you become a coach andhave to make all those decisions and and
and build the culture and aspects ofthe playbook and all those things, and
you could see, you know,again why things happen on the field.
And so he's matured great. He'sdone a great job of building you know,

(06:01):
continuity with all of our receivers andgetting with them and hanging out with
them. And so we know againthis group has come together real quickly,
probably a little quicker than than someteams in the past. But we've got
great camaraderie. Uh. These guyslike each other, respect each others.
A lot of guys hang out togetherand going places and eating dinner and laughing
and joking. We've just got areal good group of guys. And so

(06:24):
I'm just super excited to you know, instead of the laughing and joking,
let's go out and be tough andphysical this weekend and finally get to see
some action. So I'm super excited, and I hope our talent super excited.
We've got a great group of kids, and ultimately again we want to
pack the house, pack the nest. Let's get our flock out to the
nest, and let's that's again let'sshow the world that this is the mecca
of arena football. I want togo back to what you mentioned about the

(06:46):
wide receiving core that I think forCampbell to reasion sports fans who have been
following franchise and following arena football atindoor football, this is the best group
we've ever seen from top to bottom. The playmakers that are on this Firebird
roster are incredible. I bring thisup just because people who know you and
know your career, it almost startlesthe opposing team of how good the running

(07:06):
attack can be and the guys upfront and the playmakers in the backfield.
I promise I will block Orlando fromhearing the podcast version of your next answer
for the game plan. But let'stalk about the run attack a little bit.
What do you see up front withthe big guys and are we still
going to see the run as afocus of this team. Again. I
said said that to Jeff the firsttime I spoke to him when I got

(07:28):
here in the Calfo region. Isaid, we will run the football.
And we've laughed about it several timessince then. And he was kind of
like, I'm sure that was justa you know, lip service, and
we were gonna go out with TommyGrady and slang the ball all over the
yard and that was going to bethat and again, and that's what Tommy
Grady wanted. But I told him, Hey, you just gotta trust me.
Trust me that I build the absolutebest and most efficient running games in

(07:53):
the country. I don't think anybody'sclose, and so, you know,
not to be cocky. I justI have a way of doing the run
game that is very unique. It'svery innovative. We use a lot of
angles. I was told that,hey, in Arena football, you got
five guys in the box, firstfour, you can't run the ball.
I have been told that so manytimes over the years, and I think
it's a taguash And so I definitelycontinue to show that. You know,

(08:16):
no matter who I have, Idon't care who I have upfront, who
I have running back, who Ihave a quarterback that we'll be able to
run the football, will be numberone in the league in rushing. And
it's really my favorite stat. Everysingle year we worked hard on the run
game. It keeps people honest.I just showed the team the twenty two

(08:37):
game against Orlando Predators down in Orlandoand showed them the whole game, and
I showed them, you know,we made a ton of mistakes in the
passing game, but we were veryefficient on the run game, and by
the fourth quarter you could see thedifference in their defense and we were just
taking over the game on the ground. And so we still ended up putting

(08:58):
up seventy points. Think we putup seventy six points or something like that.
But again I was I was ableto teach our team that, you
know, when I talk about therunning game at our philosophy and I say
that we'll be a downhill running teamand we'll run the ball or we'll leave
the league in rushing, I meanit. And so I showed it.
It was just funny that that filmwas the epitome of why we do the

(09:20):
run game the way we do it. And by the fourth quarter, Orlando's
defensive ends, and they had somevery they had shocky hole lines who's been
one of the top sack leaders.They got Freddy Boot, one of the
sack leaders, you know, tooutstanding linemen, and I showed them with
the running game, how we canmake those guys look silly. And so
it was a great, great exampleof why we run the ball the way
we do. We'll definitely run theball again this year. Trayvon Schwartz,

(09:45):
since he bugged me to death intwenty twenty two to be a running back,
since we have made that transition,it is just phenomenal. He is
He is by far going to bethe best running back in this football.
He can do it all. Andthe ceiling is is so much higher.
He's just getting started understanding the runningback position, understanding angles, understanding how

(10:07):
to run the ball. Uh,you know, just all these little aspects
of the game. So as phenomenalas he's running the ball, he's still
got the room to grow. Andso this league better take heed. You
know, we've got a great runningattack again this year. But but you
know, and that's what makes ithard to defend us. And that's that's
what I love, is I tellevery defensive coordinator that faces us is you
better have a full game plan becauselook at how well we run the ball.

(10:30):
But now look at you know,look at our receiving cop You know
we've got you know right, We'vegot Darius Prince, markl Wade, Darien
Townsend, Phil Barnett, Ferry andTony and and de Kwon Patten. Pick
your poison. You want to stopthe run and load up everybody and play
your dv's close to a lot ofscrimmage. Hey, we can get into
that battle. And if you wantto sit back and play deep and try

(10:52):
to stop you know, our ouroffense from scoring quickly, then we've got
ways to handle that as well.So, uh, it's going to be
exciting. Uh. I just wantto get you know, like I said,
getting started is always the tough part. First games are are just tough
because you know, you know you'regonna make mistakes, you know you're gonna
go through some adversity, and sojust getting through that first game is just
it's always the hardest part from thecoaching aspect. But I'm super excited.

(11:16):
I'm so glad we're home, andI'm so glad with Facebook, You've got
so many good players. We've gotso many veterans, guys who've carved out
their own careers excitement for Saturday witheverything happened on the field, I'm gonna
stick by this take ahead a fewmonths ago, Leavac. You know I've
heard this, I've said this takeand you've heard it a few times now
that the only thing Coach where isgonna have to really be worried about is
controlling the emotions of Coach Hollis andCoach Cesa, the former players who are

(11:41):
gonna hear all the pomp and circumstanceand the crowd and the excitement and the
energy and the adrenaline, and he'sgonna have to calm them down. So,
Coach, I think that's your onlyconcern. And you can say,
like, hey, guys warned meabout you two. You guys aren't playing.
Do you have to tell them again? Like, guys, you're the
coach now. I feel like they'regonna be more nervous than anybody you Rock
and Firebirg gear this Saturday. They'regonna be super excited. And I've said

(12:05):
it over and over again. Youknow these guys were destined to be in
this position. I'm just happy tobe, you know, the one in
the driver's seat driving these guys intotheir career. They love the game,
They're passionate about the game. They'reworking hard as ever, and we recruited
some great players and so I'm youknow, I can't wait to see what
our defense looks like. I've seta time and time again that was our

(12:26):
folks going into the offseason. Wedidn't want to just be known for for
our offensive you know outputs. Wewant to be known for, you know,
stopping other offenses as well. Andso we've struggled a little bit of
that over the last couple of years. We signed some incredible defensive players.
Super excited to get them on thefield and see what coach Hollas can do.
I mean, Coach Hollins is justa again, He's gonna be great.

(12:50):
I'm you know, I'm just likeI said, I'm glad to help
get his career started. I'm I'mglad. We took the time and thought
it out and discussed it all offseason, whether or not he was to
come back and play or whether hewas going to coach. And when he
called me and said, you know, when I made my decision, and
I kind of you know, Ididn't care anyway. If he came back
as a player, I was goingto be super excited, And if he

(13:11):
wanted to start his coaching career,I knew he was the right guy for
the job. I just know howmuch he loves the game, how much
he studies the game, and andagain he's played at such a high level,
and it's played with such good players, you know, because he just
has a wealth of knowledge that youknow, again that that he can give,
especially our back end, that thatI'm super excited about. He's coached

(13:31):
these kids up wonderfully. Like Isaid, we've we've you know, had
to battle our butt off to tomove the ball in practice, and and
that's that's what we want. Wewant our best competition to be at practice.
And like I said, we justcan't wait. Not take anything away
from Orlando. They they really havesigned some really good players. I'm very
impressed with what they've done, MissureAnd like I said, given no E.
J. Bird their head coach.He's a great guy. You know,

(13:54):
he's a phenomenal player. You know, has the single season sack record
in the AFL. So again he'she's a great guy. Uh, some
of those coaches I had a greattime with last year. But it's but
it's down and I just don't wantto lose to them, and I don't
want to lose in front of ourhome crowd. So we're gonna get after
them, you know, and makesome things happen with with you in charge

(14:18):
of the offense and the team.We've never already hasn't lost, Like there's
other things that have happened. There'sother there pieces whatever. As a matter
of fact, when you were onthe other side, that was the only
time any lost. So so itis definitely, you know something. They
want to beat us so bad.We don't want to let them up.
It's it's gonna be. It's gonnabe magic. Man. I I for

(14:41):
one can't wait for it. Iwould you know, Coach can tell you
guys like I I'm on that stresslevel where I don't know how he keeps
his cool and he'll like laugh atme. And now I'm at that level
of like, Okay, I justwant to see our guys out here,
like I'm ready. I'm ready towatch. Like it feels like we have
a forty two man roster. Weall the time, doesn't it doesn't make
sense you could fit twenty four minute. I'd say it's it was. It

(15:03):
was tough. Like I said,this has been the toughest that it's been
to get to our twenty four It'sit's it's been hard and looking at some
of these guys in their eyes andcutting them it's just so I said.
I I've never you know, Ican get through cuts without any problem.
I've done it long enough where youknow it's just part of the business.

(15:24):
But I'll tell you this year hasbeen gut wrenching to look some of these
kids and eye and tell them they'reno longer going to be here. It's
they are some good players, andyou know, I wish all them the
best. If they end up onanother team, may after the game be
happy to you know, give thema handshake at all those things. But
you know, this has been atough year. Like I said, We've

(15:45):
really recruited some really, really darnedgood players and I'm just super excited where
we're at now and finally get toget on the field. It seems so
long away when we first announced thefirst prest conference and now we're here,
and uh, just super excited.There you go, coach damn Ware getting
ready. It's there's a buzz here, there's a there's a vibration of energy.

(16:07):
Absolutely love. It can't wait foreverybody to see the team and meet
the new mascot and all those greatthings. Guys. I'm pretty fired up,
man. Yes, it's awesome.This weekend it we'll talk again Thursday.
We'll talk you in Friday about what'sreally happened, like the legacy.
Coach Clark's coming up. I wantto do some legacy questions with him too.
He's coming up in a little bitabout what this means, how the

(16:29):
Capital region has changed. I wantto get to all that. But Levec,
we got to talk about our friendsover at the Integrative Sleep Center and
bosson Spot because if there's any timeI know Kaids Tara's now getting the love
for how are you sleeping, Iknow your answer. It would be a
lot worse right now this week andmaybe coach wears in that same mixed without
the Integrative Sleep Center and Boston Spa. I gotta tell you that last night

(16:51):
I went I went down. Itwas awesome. I woke up and I
know Lorinn and Ivy over at theIntegrated Sleep Center with doctor fred Dreier.
Don't love when I make this statement, but just just drool. I woke
up after seven straight hours of sleepwith the drool. The story must have
been solidly under control because I slept. I woke up this morning. You

(17:14):
know, I'm fighting that little bitof a laryngitis thing, whatever is going
on with me, but I wokeup. I felt great. It's one
of those things where the like themouth piece just they clicked him just right,
kept the airway open just right.I was. I slept probably better
than I have, you know,the last month, just because of the
mouthpiecet. Because it was it wasone of those nights. I was tired
enough. Everything came together, boomdown for the evening. Woke up energized,

(17:38):
ready to take on the day longday Tonight've been in the office since
about seven thirty this morning, andI feel good. I'm gonna keep this
thing rolling. We'll get through thisshow with with you know, a bunch
of energy, and I'll do flockUniversity. We'll we'll meet people, we'll
we'll shake babies, we'll kiss handsor whatever. And it's all because I
got a great night's sleep, Isaid, Doctor Fred Dreer and the Integrate

(18:00):
Sleep Center and bass and spat sleepout me as a killer of my friend's
mouth piece can stop before you keepeverything under control eight eight five eight eight
five six eight five Doctor Fredrier andthe Integrated Sleep Center inbosses spa helping me
sleep better. They're gonna help yousleep better too. Coach Glen Clark of
the Albany Fireworlds joins us next righthere. I'm Fox Sports Radio ninety five

(18:21):
nine and ninety It's Levak and guyson ninety five nine Fox Sports Radio getting
ready for for a historic home playoffgame here at the MVP Arena. We
are thrilled to be joined by thecoach of the FireWolves, An Clark,
and I hope, I hope theguys told you that we busted on a
little bit over the whole you know, throwback game for the Rock. Well,

(18:42):
we were were thrilled to see howhow you were able to you know,
shake that off and get us thisbig win and get us a whole
playoff game. Very excited. I'mI. We talked about this, right
We wanted to get one more.We wanted to generate some excitement in the
in the Capitol region and get afew more eyes on it. So mission
accomplished. Now we want a fewmore people to get exposed to the game.

(19:07):
I've got an issue here that coach. You were at MVP Arena yesterday
and somehow you and Levac missed eachother as he's there today. How did
you tube al as coach? First? How did you guys miss each other?
Well, I didn't know he wasthere. I was doing a command
performance, so I was there todo a radio or a TV little spot.
And my wife does the merchandise forthe team, so I was helping

(19:30):
her carry boxes up from downstairs andI ran into the Firebirds coach and I
was in and out, but Ididn't see it. I didn't see Levet
there, those of the Grindstone.I'm actually working for a change. That's
so I know where you can findme. Yeah, yeah, that's right,
all business, but it's I'm atthe MVP arena now you're out take

(19:51):
care of everything getting ready for aSunday's game. To give us what are
we looking for in this matchup?Because again it's playoff. It's something new
for us here in the world lacrosselike because it's been it's been a minute
since you know, you were thevisitor. Now you're leading us on the
home team. Yeah, I meanthis matchup specifically with Halifax, you've got

(20:12):
a little bit of the the oldversus the new. One of the most
experienced teams in the league in Halifax, very veteran Leyden uh against us,
right, and and we're we're theyoungest team in the league by quite a
margin, and guys you know,sort of navigating the early parts of their

(20:34):
career and have had success to thispoint. So it's really uh old guard
versus versus new guards. So it'syou know, we're we're you know,
we're a faster team or a youngerteam or more athletic team, and they're
they're that veteran savvy group. Soit's it's a bit of a bit of

(20:55):
contrasting styles. And not just that, but the home field advanced home turf
fans because blackout. We're going withthe full blackout for fire Wolves fans going
out on Sunday. Coach, youwant to see that whole place packed with
black whatever it is, Jersey's hoodies, T shirts, whatever, the crowd
blackout. I hope the player isgoing to feel that intensity as well for

(21:15):
the playoffs, especially when the crowd'sdoing something like this. Yeah, and
it's it's important, right, It'simportant to the group. They you know,
they they want to We've talked about, you know, have that home
crowd advantage and build that and uhyou know that momentum in market and and
get the excitement and get the buzzs. So this is uh, yeah,

(21:36):
we we see this as a big, a big step in the you know,
the footprint of the fire Wolves inthe market. So very excited about
it. This is probably the worstquestion I could ask, but I have
to know because you are a streetshooter. What is what is the ceiling
for the FireWolves? Like, isit when you get past the team that's
his experienced as Halifax? Is thissky the limit from the Yeah, I

(22:02):
mean it's a it's a it's aleague where any given Sunday, right,
any anybody can beat anyone. We'vealready beat them. And and you know
most teams that are still in theplayoffs, we've either beat or been within
a goal or two of them.So you need some bounces, you need
some momentum during the game, Youneed some opportunistic plays like most sports,

(22:26):
but there's not a team we can'tbeat, and the margins are so close
in our league, and you geton a bit of a role and we'll
see. I mean, it's funnybecause I always say that any any win
in the NLL is an accomplishment,so you know, you never want to
get too far ahead of yourselves.But having said that, it is,

(22:49):
uh, you know anybody can beatanybody on any giving night. Well that
Stock Sports Radio ninety five, nineeighty with the head go to the playoffs,
down all the fireworks. Well,if I will tell you this,
I would whether it's the professional level, like you and your players coach,
college, high school. One ofmy favorite questions I always go back to
is when you hit the postseason,when you hit the playoffs, how if

(23:11):
it all does anything change prepping forthat game, whether it be practice,
whether it be something as simple aswalkthroughs or shoot around in other sports,
for you and your team Sunday thegame, How if it all is any
of that stuff changing from practice timeto get together with the team walk through,
What if it all is changing forthat matchup on Sunday? Really,
the Sundays start time, the Sundaygame time is the biggest change for us

(23:34):
because we haven't had one yet,so it changes it changes the mechanics of
what we do. So with thethree o'clock start, we won't have our
regular routine of shoot around in themorning, video in the morning, you
know, just because the guys can'tyou know, launch, nap and all
those mechanics to go into it.So we're going to practice midday on Saturday,

(23:56):
have a team meal, do videoin the morning on Sunday, and
then you know, get right intoright into game time. So it changes
the mechanics of what we do alittle bit. In terms of prep,
still the same. I mean,we still go through We've got some video
tonight. We you know, wego through our game plan, our video

(24:17):
stuff as coaches and those things remainthe same. But probably the biggest change
is that we've got a Sunday afternoongame, So it impacts a little bit
of our routine, but you know, the lead up is all the same.
I just I just love this.This this what you guys have already
done. But it's it's so hardnot to just kind of go, like,

(24:38):
you know, rest on that threeand fifteen a year ago, eleven
and seven right now, chance topack the MVP arena, give these people
the experience that that they they've neverseen before. Like, it's just I
think it all falls on us now, like the people of the Capitol Region.
You guys have done the work,You've got the game here. I
mean, how much will it meanto the is if we can, you

(25:00):
know, just just pass this thingaround. I mean, it's everything right,
Like it's it's what these guys areare hoping for and playing for.
And and you're right, you know, we've we've we've created a product,
we've uh, you know, we'reway way way ahead of our you know,
sort of developmental schedule in terms ofyou know, the way this thing

(25:22):
was constructed and getting so young,and you know, making the playoffs would
have been a would have been amassive accomplishment this year. And to get
third place and to get a homeplayoff date and to get another game at
the m v P IS, I'mreally proud of what they've accomplished. So
uh, it would be nice tohave that uh, that crowd, you

(25:48):
know, compliment what we've done andand be part of the excitement. So
yeah, it'd be it'd be verycool for us. It's an interesting part
of it how this has all cometogether because Levac you mentioned it earlier in
the conversation, Coach, you knowthat the tradition in the Capital Region,
the Albany Attack, the whether it'seven the college level, how important lacrosse
as a sport has become in theCapitol Region. We've seen the growth and

(26:11):
excitement and popularity build that. Idon't even know if your guys realize this
yet, and maybe you don't wantto do the legacy stuff quite yet,
but like the legacy is gonna startgetting carved out by this team this Sunday
of what it means when we talkabout impactful teams in the history of the
Capitol Region. Lacrosse is the sport. Like, do the guys feel that
already this season, Like this issomething that's so important in this area in

(26:32):
the five one eight, Yeah,no, they I mean it's you know,
it's got great embedded roots in thelacrosse community. It's getting I mean,
it's it's growing. Like I've gotmy two youngest down here playing in
school lacrosse and club lacrosse, andI see the volume of kids and people

(26:55):
that are you know, are playingthe game and the excitement when I go
to the game, when I goto the golf course, when i'm you
know, at different places, likeit's everybody's sort of understanding and you know,
knowing about the team, about thegroup, and we just got to
get those live eyeballs on it becauseit's one of those games where when you

(27:15):
experience I mean, everything's you know, it's great on TV, it translates
well on TV, but when youget to see it live and you see
the speed and the impact and thephysicality and that it was, it was
great. I was actually talking toone of the VAX players at ABC Fitness
yesterday and he's a lacrosse player fromLong Island. He loved the game,
and him and I were having along lacrosse conversation yesterday and he was all

(27:40):
jacked and said he's gonna come downSunday. So that was pretty cool.
Yeah, the guys are just pumped. I mean, ever since you know,
Darius and Dwayne Hollis never gotten totown, they've been they've been supporting
the FireWolves. They're full blown fansnow. I just I will tell you
this as a guy who's let Dariusprints use my golf clubs. Don't let
him use lacrosse stick the head ofthe farther than the ball at least twice.

(28:04):
But twenty dollars can get you intothis thing. So just your weekend
is playing. You know, youcome, you cheer on the Firebirds Saturday
night and then you come right back, keep the black clothes on, support
our fire Wolves. Twenty bucks tosee what could be a championship team.
Coach, that's a that's a greatprice to get people in here and really

(28:26):
really hook them on your game.Yeah, absolutely, yeah, no,
And it's what a doubleheader weekend,right, It's it's great to be uh,
to be able to see both.So we're excited. We're excited for
the playoffs. We're excited for theplayoff atmosphere, and we're excited to you
know, to hopefully feel that andsee that in the buildings in the afternoon.

(28:48):
Coaches, there's anything that Gods myself, the Firebirds we can do to,
you know, help just kind ofsecure this this w for you guys
that you've worked so hard for andtotally deserve. You. Let us know
we are here for you while you'redoing it. Man, by having us
on and promoting the product and beingyou know, great supporters of what we
do. That's that's, that's whatwe need, and that's it's a fantastic

(29:11):
endorsement of the product and and everythingelse. So we appreciate that. All
right, worst case, I'll strapon the goalie pads one more time.
I haven't played some high school.No, don't need me. No,
no, no, one more time. No, Dougie's joining us on Friday
show. Coach, don't listen tothat nonsense. You know what, We've
kept you long enough, clearly,coach, the best of luck this weekend.

(29:33):
Good good talking to you. Thanks, thanks boys, coaches. He's
busy, he's in a playoff pushand you're volunteering your service instead of Doug
Jamison and between the pipes, listen, you know what I just I told
I told coach where earlier today?Three to five yards? I got you
once, maybe twice. That's it. What do you need? I want

(29:56):
to hit somebody and then you know, listen, I was I was a
pretty accomplished lacross outdoors. Outdoors adifferent game. It's a bigger net and
a lot of going on. Ican do this, I can help out.
I could be a part of thisteam I can help out. I
appreciate you doing everything you can forthe Albany FireWolves, for you listening right
now. I need one more job. I need one more job. Alb

(30:18):
FireWolves across social media, and don'tforget Albanyfirewolves dot com. You get tickets
starting at twenty dollars. So goout, blackout, rocket support the local
team. This Sunday, MVP Arena. All great things, Uh, Levac,
you've been packed today. I knowFlock University is coming up and again
for Fox Sports ninety five, ninenine eighty. We're gonna hear that on
Saturday. But coming up next it'sthe debut of a local sports writer here,

(30:42):
Sean Martin. You know him well, Raider fan, like you,
an author. You haven't read it. I don't think you've read a book
yet. But uh. He mentionedthat he wanted to talk to Yeah,
he mentioned he was he wanted totalk smack about the A's and Yankees.
I said, if you start talkingsmack about the Yankees, Levac will not
be in this interview. So I'lllet you decide to do. Oh okay,

(31:04):
I got something, I got it. I'll come, i'llcome Back's good
dude, I only yelled him.All right. Maybe Levac will be in
this interview, Maybe he won't.Our conversation with local sports writer Sean Martin's
on the way next. You're listeningto Fox Sports ninety five nine to ninety
Lavak and gazz. It's Lavak andGoze on ninety five to nine Fox Sports

(31:25):
Radio. Some would say they've waitedall so long for this guy's debut.
It's definitely been long overdue. Whattitle doesn't he have? Freelance sportswriter,
podcast, host of Pugsley's Pitt author, overall great guy? What else does
Sean Martin want? But he isfinally making his debut. Sean, it

(31:47):
has been long overdue. Thank youfor taking the time with us today.
You're closing out today's show strong withus. Happy to have you on,
my friend. Hey, I appreciateyou guys having me on. I'm actually
updating my resid may add that Ihave been an official guest on Guys in
the vac so or Levac and Guys. So it's a milestone for me for
sure. Put that on the bottomof the resume. Put that near like

(32:09):
college, volunteer work and everything else, and make sure future employers don't see
that very high. I'll speak aboutfuture employers. By the way, the
NFL draft less than twenty four hoursbasically away. People are getting hyped for
those who don't know who don't followyour work here locally. You are a
Raiders fan, is that the storylineyou're watching the most? Or is there
something else that intrigues you about tomorrow'sfirst round as a Raider fan, it's

(32:34):
you know, look, it's atime proven thing. You have to have
a good quarterback to compete in theNFL, and so the Raiders have an
interesting dilemma and that do you takea quarterback just to take a quarterback?
I think we'll back touched on thison your show yesterday because a lot of
people make mistakes with that, theytake them too early. But eight and
O'Connell and Gardner Minshew at best wouldhave us in the low twenties as far

(32:58):
as maybe quarterback play. So Ithink the Raiders need a quarterback. So
for me, that's it. Thedisheartening part is I don't think Washington's going
to come off. They're the numbertwo pick in the draft. That love
Jayden Daniels in Vegas, So theideal situation for a Raider fan tomorrow to
me would be to get an offensivetackle with that thirteenth pick. Squaga from

(33:19):
Oregon State's the guy I'd like,and then maybe trade back into the first
round late to get Michael Penix Junior, who was my favorite college quarterback that
didn't play in Lincoln, Nebraska lastyear. I know you're a fan of
his. Love Michael Pennix. Iwould love to see him in Vegas,
and if we can add an offensivetackle on the right side to protect his
blindside, that would make for avery good day for the Raider Nation.

(33:39):
We've used that comparison of the horsethat Sarah tooga, who's closing down the
stretch in Pennix Junior, especially thelast day two days, especially his continue
to rise up. That's been therumor he's going in the first round.
The Raiders could be involved. Thatis what makes the NFL Draft so much
fun. Now we asked this questionearlier in the show. Now you get
an opportunity to he off and giveyour take on this for the New York

(34:02):
teams, the Giants, the Jets, the Bills, and take the word
important however you want. Of thosethree teams, the twenty twenty four NFL
Draft from Round one to Round seven. Which New York team is this draft
the most important for? I thinkit's Buffalo because they've been a team that

(34:22):
they've done more than knock on thedoor the last few years. They just
haven't been able to open it.And so for them to trade Stefan Diggs
and get rid of Gabe Davis,Josh Allen's in his prime, you got
to go get him some help.I think it's more important to the Bills
to keep their standing. Whether windowthe windows closing, it's not gonna They're

(34:45):
gonna have to figure out a wayto widen it. So I think this
is the This is the key thingfor the Bills. You know, it's
also big for the Jets. Theygot to try and protect Aaron Rodgers and
the Giants. I think the Giantsgot to ask themselves, we just gave
Daniel Jones all that money a yearago, as he really diminished that much.
I can't wait to find out.By the way, I still do
agree with you. It is theBills. It is the Bills for how

(35:05):
close they are and everything else that'sinvolved the expectations of that franchise going forward.
Sean Martin. You see his workat The Times Union, Pugsley's Pit
podcast, across social media and more. Continue to follow his work and we
mentioned at the top of this interviewalso an author at Sean Underscore Martin seventy
seven s a n with the SeanSean tell us a little bit about the

(35:27):
book that now you've been putting somework into and you're happy to celebrate here
with us on Yeah, we're hopingthe book. It will be coming out
in mid May through the Saratoga SpringsPublishing Company and an incredible illustrator, Anthony
rikike Well. I wrote a booka few years ago, to my Boys,
Dear Liam Mino Letters from Daddy,and I did a book signing last

(35:47):
April and I was asked by themoderator if I thought I'd write any more
books, and my answer was no, it was probably a one and done.
But leaving that book signing in Saratoga, well, what about a children's
book? And I'll tell you whatI've Intellectually, it depends who you ask.

(36:07):
I leave a lot to be desiredin that case. So children's book's
a little more up to my speed. So I decided to go that and
talk about different life lessons and howto teach them to a children's book,
and came up with a story andaway we went. You know, it
took a few months putting it alltogether, and then met with the illustrator
and then the people up at SaratogaSprings Publishing, and here we are and

(36:30):
seeing everything come together and the storycome to life and the pictures and the
colors has really really been exciting andI can't wait to get this out the
Three Bulls again. Checking out atSean Underscore Martin seventy seven for more information.
He mentioned it in mid May Rabbitsupport all the great local content,
support the sports fan here and everythinghappening going on involving that fantastic book that

(36:54):
is on the way. Now.If you do follow Sean once you find
out more about his book and youfollo him on Twitter, you will quickly
find out that he is an OaklandAthletics fan. And you were tweeting into
the show that the A's were takingdown the Yankees. I want to focus
on that closer in particular, throwingserious guests even though the A's are going
through it, and go ahead,We're gonna give you the opportunity to talk

(37:15):
about your A's as long as youkeep it clean. Are you at least
impressed by some of the players onthe roster this year? They got some
talent. Well, look, Ilove the players. Guy grew up in
the Bay Area in the seventies duringthere in the heyday of the A's.
I love the players. My animositieswith the front office destroying this franchise in
an effort to move it, youknow, devalue the franchise, turn away

(37:37):
the fan base and move and that'swhat but that's what truly bothered me.
But I love the players and MasonMiller. Mason Miller is a guy I
have to do. I will givethe A's credit. They looked at him
last year and saw this young kidthat can throw in the hundreds with regularity,
and he came up as a starter. He got hurt after just a

(37:57):
few starts, missed a few months, came back for a coffee at the
end of the year. This yearthey made him the closer and it's perfect.
And he came in Monday against bothby Juan Soto and Aaron Judge and
one, two, three, youknow, good morning, go to heat
and height and then that's it,and struck them all out and went home
with the win. So if youhaven't seen him pitch, you should because
he was dialing it up at oneoh one to one oh three and mixing

(38:21):
in eighty six mile an hour slidersthe other day and it was beautiful to
watch. It's such a weird spotto being as a fans who because the
talent's there. You mentioned it's aboutthe ownership. You're still rooting for them
to win, but it's almost likethis year, like you don't want to
give the ownership the gratification of you'vedone something good, and it's a that's
the hardest part about this team,right The root for them is like who
are you rooting for? Obviously theplayers, but you almost don't want to

(38:43):
see them succeed because it's like,well, we knew, No, you
didn't know what you were doing.You didn't, Well, you're right,
and and look, I want theplayers to do well, okay, And
I feel bad for the players becausethey worked their whole lives to make it
to the major leagues and then therereally it's not a major league caliber roster.
It's a four A roster, alittle better than triple a but not

(39:05):
quite a MLB level. But whatbothers me in a global view is I
think this is the A's are atest case for Major League Baseball that they
can tell any community, now,you pay us X number of dollars to
give us a new stadium, refurbishwhat we have, or somebody else will,
and they're going to leave. Andthat's why I think the MLB and

(39:25):
the owners unanimously approved this, movedwhile this moved to Vegas, which I
don't think is ever gonna happen whilewaiving the hundreds of million of dollars in
relocation fees. Would the White Soxever moved, I don't know what Jerry
Reinstorf see the riches of Nashville,for example, and the Diamondbacks have said
it. And the MLB told Milwaukeelast year the four hundred million dollars of

(39:49):
renos to their stadium, they're goingto give it to them. So I
think the A's of the warning shotto other cities that pay up and give
these billionaires their free stadium, sothey're going to leave. The time has
already come for the A's to besold. They should have been done five
years ago, ten years ago.Fifteen years ago. The time lane of
what this could have been different forOakland has sadly passed. I was gonna
ask the question of what would makeyou happier if Oakland sold the franchise or

(40:13):
we saw a deep Boston Bruin run. I feel like that answer is too
obvious now because of everything that happenedlast year involving your Bruins and where the
team sits for this season, areyou confident? I'm nervous. I'm nervous
about Bruin fans. I'm nervous aboutit, John, because like the negativity
has soaked into you guys about theheartbreak recently. Yeah, I'll tell you

(40:34):
I really wanted that game to win. You know, this regular season was
almost anacclimatic because just make the playoffs. We learned last year. You know,
those records don't mean anything and thePresident Trophy congratulation, Ranger fans,
maybe hang a banner for that thisyear because it means nothing. And then
playoffs are the one sport more thanany other that the seedings don't mean a

(40:55):
thing in hockey. And yeah,we got Game three to with Toronto.
It's gonna be a tough night inmy house. You get the Bruins Game
three, the A's and the Yankees, and also recording a podcast tonight.
So there's gonna be a lot goingon there and we'll see how it goes.
And by the way, for youknow, Yankee fans, it's a
good thing the Yankees won last nightbecause I was rooting home in the A's

(41:17):
like it was Game seven of theWorld Series, because my obnoxious meter would
have been tripled if the A's hadwon the first two games of that series.
Could that be the reason why Levakhasn't joined us for this interview.
He's gonna claim he's out an MVParena and get ready for Flock Universe.
No, no, no, Ithink he was ready for that part,
so we will chalk it up tothat he didn't want to deal with trash
talk and anything else. He isour friend. Sean Martin has been too

(41:40):
long. This won't be the lasttime he's on the show again. One
more follow on social media on Twitterat Sean Sea and Underscore Martin seventy seven.
Don't forget his new book coming outnext month of Three Bulls. His
book already out now. Dear Liamand Noah, Letters from Deddy. We
appreciate you, Sean Man, thankyou. Enjoyed the NFL Draft and I

(42:01):
will talk again soon. My friend, Hey, have an awesome day.
There he goes our guys Sean Martinclosing out a big show today. We
were absolutely packed, so happy wewent three hours. These are the days
we love the three hour show becausewe close out strong. There with Sean
Martin earlier in the show if youmissed it earlier this hour, if you
missed the coach Klayton Clark from theOlmity fire Wolves joined to talk about the

(42:22):
Playoff Push, the big playoff gamecoming up Sunday at MVP Arena. Our
guy Lovak coach Damon Ware live fromMVP Arena. Getting ready for kickoff with
the fire Bird season this Saturday FlockUniversity and have a replay audio only version
coming up this Saturday on Fox Sportstwenty five, nine to nine eighty,
So get ready for that. Tomorrow'sthe NFL Draft Tomorrow, the Nixon Sixers

(42:44):
are back in action. So manygreat things going on. We will talk
tomorrow. Cauve you know and Richare up next. But before we do
all that, let's talk about ourfriends over at Lily and David Fine Jeweler's
the Shops at Wilton. Guys,Mother's Days just around the corner. What
do you do for mom? Somethingspecial, a great gift. Maybe you're
maybe your wife is looking forward toMother's Days and celebrate with the kids and
more. Make sure you take careof her, or maybe you're celebrating then

(43:06):
an anniversary of that wedding. Maybeyou're gonna pop the question. So many
different things you can do. Butthe staff there, the family owns and
operated business that is Lily and DavidFine Jeweler's, can help stop in today
and find that piece of Julia that'sgonna fit her. Fashion guy, as
you might be confused by exactly whatthat means, trust me, I know
for experience, the whole shopping forjewelry and trying to understand what she's gonna

(43:27):
get confidence on is not easy.But you have Alyssa, and you have
David and Tammy and gee, thewhole staff there will help you get those
compliments, make her happy, makesure life is good, celebrate those big
moments and more. Against Lillian DavidFine Jewelers the Shops at Wilton. When
you stop it, tell me aboutmy story Gaza's story engagement during wedding,
band anniversary gifts and more from FoxSports ninety five, nine and nine eighty.

(43:49):
Wash your hands, don't touch yourface. I'm gonna hit the button.
Caveno one Riches Next