Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
One thing that we always talk about that going to
these conference media days is that we re establish connections
with people we've seen. We get a chance to relive
some things. It was not You'll have to trust me
on this. It was not that long ago when at
Big twelve Media Days we were visiting with one Samuel Ancho,
(00:22):
the pride of Saint Mark's and of course a lifetime
Longhorn now doing great things for the ESPN. It's great
to see.
Speaker 2 (00:28):
I'm glad of you here, Thank y'all for having me.
And I do remember those Big twelve media Days and
now we're SEC media days and a lot has changed,
but a lot has remained the same.
Speaker 1 (00:36):
Yeah. Yeah, And I would imagine also that now being
on this side of it, you get a different perspective
of it, don't you.
Speaker 2 (00:43):
Oh way different even just watching the way people didn't
see this, but the way the shot was set up,
even getting a level set up even I mean, you've
got a timer set there. I'm like this, dude's a pro.
You've got a timer set up, even the introduction. So
for me being on this side of it now, which
is so great to see, I guess to see a
world that's bigger than just myself as a player who
would go to Big twelve media Days or whatever. You know,
(01:05):
go to media days, I think it's all about me.
Then you go here you realize, oh no, there's so
much work that goes on behind the scenes and the
teams that at people like this station and all the
other media networks here. So it's exciting to see.
Speaker 3 (01:16):
Yeah, it's a unique situation because last year was the
first year of Texas being at SEC Media Days. They
did it in your hometown. We got a chance to
chop it up with you last year up at the
Omni in Dallas, and now we're at the Omni in
Atlanta and trying to do the exact same thing. But
over the course of the year, obviously you've called a
lot of ball, but over the course of the year,
(01:38):
you got to see your alma mater do some amazing things,
Texas getting back into the college football playoffs. Only team
to get back in it with even what it has
expanded format, but still come up a little bit short.
So as you watch this team and watch this program
continue to flourish, what's some of the things that stands.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Out for you?
Speaker 2 (01:56):
What stands out to me is that first piece you
said that Texas has gone to back to college football playoffs.
What also stands out is the second piece of they
haven't been able to win it. And so we have
high standard, a high standard at Texas. Everybody knows that,
but it's got to come to a point where you
don't just get there, you win it. Now you're talking
to a guy who got there and didn't win. We
went to the National Championship, we lost Alabama. Coke got hurt.
(02:17):
I still say if he's healthy, hear everybody with Alabama people,
but with the talent that Texas has, not just on
the offensive side of the ball, the defense side of
the ball, the coaching staff that Texas has, there's got
to come a point where you don't just get there,
but you win it all.
Speaker 1 (02:34):
I've been asked quite a bit about Sark and uh,
the way that he commands the program and all this
sort of thing, and and I was asked earlier, what
did I think was a quality of Sark that maybe
goes under the radar that folks don't see because they
see how he does in terms of running the team
and the program and all this sort of stuff. And
(02:55):
I said, I thought it was his relatability, the relatability
to his player, to his coaches, and also to the
business office, the athletic director and to they were like
to say, the BMD's the big money donors, you know,
all the and nobody, nobody did it better than Mac Brown.
He was the greatest ever at being able to command
(03:16):
all of that. But I see, I think, and I
see this now from Sart that he's right there in
terms of how he commands not only the program for
inside of Moncree, for his players, but outside in the
global perspective.
Speaker 2 (03:30):
Well, especially with the new age that college football has
gone to you talk. I mean, I remember, so my
first my first opportunity really in the media, at least
when I was then playing, was I say here, but
was at Texas. It was a spring game, and I
believe it was sarks first year. It was uh Quinn
you weres first year. Maybe with Sarks's second year, but
in spring game of twenty twenty one. This is before
(03:51):
the whole conversation about transfer portal and I all these things,
and we're having a conversation and you know, we were
doing an interview and then like the interview ends and
all of a sudden we start talking about, hey man,
there's gonna be some changes in the quarterback room. I'm
like changes, What do you mean? We have this guy,
we have that guy, and he's like, hey man, things
are gonna change. I e when it comes to transfers,
and I'm like, oh my goodness, this guy's thinking five, six,
(04:13):
seven steps ahead. And so Mac Brown had his way
of doing it with the bmds. You called him the
big money donors and boosters, but it seems as if
Steve starkeishian Is found a way to relate to the
bigger landscape of college football and not run from it
but embrace it.
Speaker 3 (04:30):
Yeah, And that's the beautiful thing about him is he
always talks about you got to be able to adjust
because dinosaurs become extinct. Right, So you start making these moves,
but you also look at the dynamics of college football.
You got a general manager, now you have director of operations.
You've got other people that can take some of that
off of you where you do have to go glad
(04:50):
hand and shake all the hands and kiss the babies.
But you also have people in place to where it's like,
all right, I need you to go to that meeting
let me know the summary of it all. Now I
can get back to where I need to be in
that's coaching.
Speaker 2 (05:03):
Ball, and you can think about it. It's not just that.
It's not just the director operations or the GMS. It's
also the other coaches he has on staff. So of
these coaches who I remember it, was it a Gary
Patterson a couple of years ago. Was was not an
official coach on the staff? Was it a special assistant
or an analyst? But and I have a huge affinity
for Gary Patterson. He recruited me out a TCU. I
(05:25):
love the way his defense is played, like I love
him as a coach. But I went into his office
one time and I saw him like he was the
last guy in the building, right like just in the
watching film taking os. I don't know how much he
could do as far as coaching on the field, but man,
this guy treated it like a GA position. How many
coaches who are probably gonna be in the Hall of
Fame as far as coaching goes or well respected come
(05:46):
to a place like Texas and say, you know what,
I'm gonna sit back and I'm gonna do what I
can and help the program. I think that's another area
that Sark has really taken the program to you.
Speaker 1 (05:55):
And Sark went down that road himself at Alabama, So
it's the same type of thing visiting with sam Achi here.
All right, let's get into some nuts and bolt stains.
Do you see the playoff being expanded to sixteen? Is
it a good thing? And is this apparently tension building
relationship between the SEC and the Big ten going to
(06:16):
get in the way of that.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Well, I think there's vigtention between the SEC the Big ten,
at least when it comes to the networks, the TV
right ones that pretty much Fox One's pretty much ESPN.
But to answer the first question, do I think it'll
go to sixteen? Yes, I do because I think it's
just more more revenue, right, It's more, more games, more inventory, yep,
(06:40):
And so I think the powers that be want more inventory.
Do I think it needs to go to sixteen? No,
I don't think. I think that the model at twelve
was a win. You saw the best teams got in there,
and the teams the best teams even advanced, So I
don't think it needs to go to sixteen. But I
think based off of inventory and and the powers that
(07:01):
be I think it will eventually go to six times.
Speaker 1 (07:03):
By the way, did this this tension and rivalry thing
with with ESPN and Foxy, does that extend to the
AAO fan? Does that extend now to brother v Brother?
Speaker 2 (07:15):
It doesn't. Well, funny enough, My first one of my
first real interviews was at Fox, and I think a
lot of it had to do with Emmanuel I got
a chance to interview with ESPN, you know, LongRun network,
et cetera. But I've had such an admiration for him
and the work that he's done. When he finished playing
in college, you went to the NFL, had a couple
of injuries, played a four year career there, but immediately
jumped in the media, was doing stuff with the Cowboys,
doing stuff with the Longhorns. And then fast forward he
(07:37):
started at ESPN, then went to Fox, and so there's
so many changes that are happening in that space. But
for me, it's been great to watch and learn from
him as he navigates this new arena of life.
Speaker 3 (07:49):
Well, there's always a new arena of life, and there's
also a lot of opportunities, and you found a new
arena in life, and that's kind of why you're here.
Talk about tell the people why you're in town talking
to all these people.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Yeah, so I'm actually in town today not to do
anything with ESPN or even really do anything with the
SEC per se. I'm here because of the All State
AFCA Good Works Team. So back in twenty ten at Texas,
I got a chance to be on the All State
AFCA Good Works Team, a team of players who are
known for their work in the community. I also got
a chance to win an award called the Warfel Trophy,
(08:21):
which is a trophy is known that is meant to
highlight players who are not just great on the field,
not just great academically, but great in the community. We'll
fast forward and now these organizations have joined to combine
to shine a bigger light on the work the players
are doing. And so there's one hundred ninety seven players nominated.
That's a record in the thirty plus year history of
the All State AFCA Good Works Team and the history
(08:41):
of there's one hundred ninety seven total, one hundred and
twelve for specifically for the All State Warfel Trophy piece
of it. And it's just amazing. Right, Guys like Michael
Taff who started a deal called taft tackles, donating money
for every every tackle that he makes to go to
FENTNOL awareness. You guys like DJ Lagway at Florida who's
starting nonprofits in order to help give back his community,
and he's actually from Texas as well. Yeah, so the
(09:03):
reason I'm here is really just to shine a bigger
light on the work that players are doing. We get
so there's such this big conversation about ANIL and transfer
portal and the money and the players, and we've rarely
peel back the layers and say, Okay, what's the heart
behind this guy and why he's doing what he's doing. Yep,
we think, Oh, they just want as much money as
they can. Know, a lot of these players are giving
away their NIL money a lot of these ways in
(09:23):
order to help their communities. They're starting nonprofits, starting foundations,
And so that's why I'm here today.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
Yeah, it has a personal touch with you since you
have been involved in and been part of that, and
it so it means an awful lot to you personally
because of your involvement.
Speaker 2 (09:37):
It does. Yeah, being involved. The last is my third
year being pretty much an ambassador Tim Tebow and I've
been Tim Tebow has been doing it for much longer
than as far as this program, but me coming alongside
them and saying, Okay, I want to be an ambassador
for the work that the players are doing. I've been
going back to the Warfow Trophy reunions for the last
decade plus and seeing the work that guys are doing,
and so it's been great. And also it's not just
that players when they retire, they still go and do work.
(09:59):
Even my family and not just got back from Nigeria
doing medical mission.
Speaker 1 (10:02):
I was gonna ask you if you're still doing that,
because you did it, you've goten doing it for a year.
Speaker 2 (10:05):
Yeah, we were doing it, but my parents were doing
that for thirty six years and I joined them about
twenty years ago when I was fifteen. I first started
going on that trip. And we just got back two
weeks ago, and we're going with doctors, nurses, surgeons, Dennis
off to Loge as farmists doing We built a hospital
out there, and so we're shining a light now on eighteen,
nineteen and twenty year olds, but when they're thirty, forty
and fifty, imagine how much bigger that light will be,
(10:26):
especially because they're now paving away right. Young players are
looking at Michael Taffan saying, oh, not only can I
be a walk on do an All American, but man
I could be known for the work I do in
the community. Those That's what's that's why I get excited
about this work.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
You're you're your practice of paying it forward helps other
guys paying forward, coming after your correct.
Speaker 2 (10:47):
It's leaving a legacy. We think about legacy on the field,
a legacy in the broadcast booth through on the radio,
and that's great and that's nice, but there's such a
a a there. We can go so far beyond that.
We could be the best radio, best TV, best broadcaster,
and that's amazing, but I believe we can go beyond that.
Michael taff is a Burlsworth Trophy, all these things, but
I think he can go beyond that, and he's doing it.
(11:08):
DJ Lackway Mike go in a Heisman Trophy, but he's
trying to go beyond that. So what I get excited
about is we're being experts and masters in our craft.
But we're not just a radio personality or TV personality.
We're a full humans who want to don't want to
be like a former I'm not a former player, and
I'm trying to leave a legacy. And I think that's
that's why I get excited, because guys like Tim Tebow
who did it before me, and now I'm trying to
(11:30):
do it, and then all of a sudden, Michael taff
And and Kurt because all these guys are doing great work.
You want to be known for the same things.
Speaker 1 (11:36):
You know what, You're the same guy you were in
two thousand and nine, a great guy, and that's why
we like vissiting with him. I appreciate that so much.
I appreciate you Sam Mancho visiting with us here. We'll
continue from SEC media days. I'm thirteen under the Zone.