Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:12):
Welcome to the OTP. I'm Amy Wells.
Speaker 2 (00:15):
I am so excited you guys, we get to introduce
to you for the very first time, the voice that
you are going to be hearing on Sundays on Titans Radio.
Speaker 1 (00:28):
This is Taylor Zarzer. Welcome to the.
Speaker 2 (00:32):
Tennessee Titans and Ascension Saint Thomas Sports Park.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
We are so happy you're here.
Speaker 3 (00:37):
It is the thrill of a lifetime.
Speaker 4 (00:38):
Honestly, Amy, it is the best thing that's ever happened
to my career. I had no idea going into twenty
twenty five that this would be where I'm sitting right now,
But I'm just so blessed.
Speaker 3 (00:51):
To be here.
Speaker 2 (00:52):
So what was it about this role, this opportunity that
was so appealing to you because.
Speaker 1 (00:58):
You have a very established broadcast career.
Speaker 3 (01:01):
Well, I started my career in Nashville.
Speaker 4 (01:03):
I did sports radio here many years ago, and one
of my assignments was to go to every single Titans
home game preseason and home game during the regular season.
I still have all ten of my press passes from
that two thousand and one season just a few years ago.
But Nashville became a place that really felt like it
(01:27):
fit for me and My wife went to school at
the University of the South at Swanee, and her best friend,
our maid of honor and our wedding still lives here.
Some of my very best friends have lived here for
a long time.
Speaker 3 (01:40):
This town.
Speaker 4 (01:42):
My wife and I have always talked about coming back here,
and I never thought that this opportunity would be presented
in twenty twenty five. But that was a huge part
of it. But also, there's nothing more I love than
doing play by play and to get to there's only
thirty two of these jobs, and to get to do
NFL play by play in the NFL town I love
(02:04):
the most.
Speaker 3 (02:05):
I couldn't pass it up.
Speaker 2 (02:07):
Now, if you're listening and that name sounds familiar, the
voice really sounds familiar. You call a lot of SEC
football games, so you spend.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
A lot of time in this region.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
You're able to interact with football a lot in this region.
Speaker 1 (02:20):
What makes it special football in the South?
Speaker 3 (02:23):
Wow?
Speaker 4 (02:24):
I think it is just the ultimate connector. I think
that we have so many things in the world that
divide us or give us stress, and now certainly football
can divide us.
Speaker 3 (02:35):
But it's an escape from reality.
Speaker 4 (02:37):
You forget about all the things that are going on
in your life and you come together. It's just it's
the ultimate way to have fellowship. I would say the
other thing that this town is known for is music,
and that certainly does that too. But I think that's
what's most special about football is there is nothing like
the team sport that is football, and I think everybody
(02:59):
else kind of created. It's their own team watching their
favorite team.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
And in the South, there's a lot of camaraderie around
SEC football. People love to cheer for their team, whether
it be the Balls or Alabama or Kentucky or Missouri.
Everybody likes to cheer for their squad, but everybody comes
together to do it, and there's something really community building
about all of that.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
Yeah, there is.
Speaker 4 (03:22):
And I think that you've seen that with the Titans
through the years too, is that there's an SEC type
vibe to the Titans because a lot of the Titans
fans are SEC fans, and so they treat the Titans
almost like they're a college program. That it's very festive
and there's this great connection that the fans have with
(03:44):
each other but also with the team. They take it personally,
which I think is a wonderful thing. And so It's
something that's been in my blood my entire life. I'm
from one state down originally in Alabama, so since birth
I have been required to love.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Football, and I do. It is a very big part
of who I am.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Tell me about that season that you were required to
come to Titans games. What do you remember about those
moments in some of the games that you were able
to be a part of.
Speaker 4 (04:11):
I just remember Steve McNair and Eddie George and just
how on fire this town was, especially for them. Obviously
Frank Whitecheck was still here at late, Great Frank Whitechack,
who used to be such a huge part of this team,
not only on the field, but then in the broadcast
booth as well. And just to cover those guys, I mean,
those are larger than life players at least in my mind,
(04:34):
and just about everybody that loved the Titans as well,
so to be around them all the time is what
sticks out first and foremost. I remember Jeff Fisher and
obviously the former head coach of the Titans, who was
so good at giving the attention to detail and trying
to explain not only to the media but to the
(04:56):
fans how football worked. And he took a lot of
time with me to help me understand why the Titans
were operating the way that they were and why their
strategy was what it was. Those are just some of
the memories that I have, but I did it. It
was one of the greatest things I've ever been part
of in professional sports, and certainly my professional career was
(05:18):
to cover Steve McNair and Eddie George.
Speaker 2 (05:20):
Now, we can't talk about coaches who like to inform
the fans without talking about your future broadcast partner, Dave McGinnis.
Speaker 3 (05:30):
Coach Mac.
Speaker 1 (05:31):
He is a unique fella, to put.
Speaker 2 (05:34):
It mildly, and I know you've had the opportunity to
meet him and talk with him. How much are you
looking forward to sharing the booth with coach Mack?
Speaker 4 (05:41):
My goodness, I mean that, man, if you took football
away from him, you might as well take the oxygen too.
Coach Mac lives and breathes football and never misses a practice,
never misses anything going on with the Titans. He is
so passionate about everything that's going on, and I think
everybody else on our broad podcast team, but also that's
(06:02):
in the organization benefits from that. From just the thirty
five plus years that he's had in the NFL and
the experience that he has with the NFL and certainly
with the Titans in the last few years. Everybody benefits
just from his passion and his knowledge. He loves sharing
that knowledge with all of us, so immediately you can
(06:25):
sense that with him, and I can't wait to work
with him, to get to sit next to someone that
is a legend in these parts and that Titan fans
all love. We'll all be leaning on Coach Mac. I
certainly will in year one.
Speaker 1 (06:38):
This summer.
Speaker 2 (06:38):
Seat Geek has your ticket to the best live concerts
in Nashville at Nissan Stadium.
Speaker 1 (06:44):
Seek Geek has the best.
Speaker 2 (06:45):
Seat your seat for an unforgettable summer. From Rock Royalty
to Rap superstars R and B to country find it
all on Sea Geek the official ticketing partner of Nissan Stadium.
Little Caesars is the official peace It's a partner of
your Tennessee Titans. Download the Little Caesars app and get
your favorites delivered today.
Speaker 1 (07:06):
Delivery fees apply. Now back to the OTP. Who are
you influenced by?
Speaker 4 (07:12):
Yeah, that's a great question. I think that Vin Scully
is my biggest influence in broadcasting, he did. I think
the best job of painting a picture on the radio
being all of the senses which you have to be
on the radio. You know, if you're driving your car
throughout our footprint and you're listening to this broadcast and
you're trying to make a left turn out of your
neighborhood to get onto a busy street. Coach Mack and
(07:36):
the rest of RHTT and the rest.
Speaker 3 (07:37):
Of our team, we are.
Speaker 4 (07:41):
Privileged to try to paint that picture for the audience,
and I certainly will do all that I can to
describe what is happening in front of us. And when
Calvin Ridley makes an incredible catch across the middle and
gives the Titans a first down, you're going to hear
a lot of enthusiasm come out of me because I do.
I get it excited, and I want all of the
(08:01):
listeners to feel like they are there in the booth
with us. So I think that that is the biggest
charge that we have, is to really pay attention to
the details on the air.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
And I can't wait to get started.
Speaker 2 (08:14):
Now for fans who want to hear you call a
game right now while football is not in season, I know,
everybody knows that there are other sports that are going
on right now though, And again for people who recognize
this voice and say I know that from somewhere it
could be PGA, that's right. If you're a golf fan,
you've probably heard this man's voice. Tell me about getting
(08:37):
involved in calling golf.
Speaker 1 (08:39):
It's a very different sport than in football.
Speaker 2 (08:42):
How did that start and why do you enjoy.
Speaker 1 (08:45):
That so much?
Speaker 3 (08:45):
Yeah?
Speaker 4 (08:46):
I was involved in local sports talk for a long
time here in Nashville and then in North Carolina and
had a chance to go to SiriusXM over ten years ago.
And when I originally took an opportunity there, they asked
me what I was most passionate about. I said football
and golf, and they said, great, we have a job
for you to do a college football show for us
and also anchor our coverage of the major championships in golf.
Speaker 3 (09:09):
And I thought, pinch me.
Speaker 4 (09:11):
You know, those are the two biggest passions that I
have professionally and for over a decade.
Speaker 3 (09:16):
Those are the two sports.
Speaker 4 (09:17):
That I've concentrated on amy and the two sports I
want to concentrate on for the rest of my career.
Speaker 3 (09:22):
So I was honored.
Speaker 4 (09:24):
I never thought that I would have a chance to
do that, but sort of like a proud Nashvillian jim
Nantz who calls football and golf, I get to do
that too. And next week we'll be calling the Masters
on Sirius XM at Augusta National Golf Club, which I
know is a place that a lot of Titans fans love,
and they'll be tuned in, whether it's on television to
(09:47):
gym or on the radio.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
With us to the broadcast.
Speaker 4 (09:50):
And yeah, I will be as excited as you can
ever hear me next week.
Speaker 3 (09:56):
But it's great to get to do that. It's great
to get to call golf and go to the major
championships and some of the biggest events.
Speaker 4 (10:02):
Of the year and then put on a new hat
and get ready for football season.
Speaker 3 (10:07):
I get very excited about that.
Speaker 4 (10:09):
I think that if I only did golf, maybe I
wouldn't appreciate it as much, or if I only did football,
I wouldn't appreciate it as much. But the fact that
I get to do golf and that gets me really
excited when football season comes back around. I love the
balance of that.
Speaker 1 (10:23):
Are you a good golfer?
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Well? I don't know.
Speaker 1 (10:26):
Good as relative?
Speaker 3 (10:27):
Man good as relative? Yeah, how about this?
Speaker 4 (10:30):
I look like somebody that used to know how to
play competitive golf. It's a little rusty, but I show
some signs at times when I get around the greens.
Speaker 3 (10:39):
It's a little bit of a problem.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
Do you Is that something that you find time to do?
Speaker 1 (10:43):
Do you get to?
Speaker 3 (10:44):
I try to when I'm home. Yeah.
Speaker 4 (10:46):
I try to play once or twice a week. It's
a great place for me to have fellowship with my
friends and sort of get away from all of my
other responsibilities.
Speaker 3 (10:55):
So I try to. But then I travel a lot,
so I don't. I'm on the road. It's time to work.
Speaker 2 (11:01):
Hey Titans fans, With a Kroger Boost membership, you'll score
big with double fuel points, free delivery, and lots more.
Go to Kroger dot com slash boost for details. Kroger,
the official grocer of the Tennessee Titans. Tighten up Home
is the forefront of all we do. It's why we're
so committed to caring for the places and spaces in
(11:23):
which we work and live. Ashley, the official furniture provider
of the Tennessee Titans. Now back to the OTP Now Taylor.
You're moving to Nashville, You're making this place your home.
But there's a lot of work to do here at
the Tennessee Titans. The draft is coming up, OTAs are starting,
the Titans are getting back to football sooner rather than later.
(11:44):
What are you most looking forward to about the start
of the football offseason.
Speaker 4 (11:49):
I'm excited about this new era of the Titans. Really
that we have a second year head coach, we have
a first year general manager. We're going to have the
first pick in the draft who is going to have
a significant role and could make a major impact, could
be the face of the team immediately. We have a
new stadium in the next couple of years that we're
(12:10):
going into and you hear me saying we quite a
bit because that is the way I feel about this.
This is my team, the Tennessee Titans. So that obviously,
with Mike also going to Knoxville, we have a new
person that's going to be calling the games. There's just
a lot of new things happening with the Titans, and
I find that to be very exciting the fact that
(12:31):
this organization can sort of build the entire foundation for
what they want the Titans to be and we've seen
across the National Football League, Gamy, that that can happen
very quickly, that you can go from a team that
has the first pick in the draft to a team
that's competing for a Super Bowl.
Speaker 3 (12:48):
In a year or two.
Speaker 4 (12:50):
Now, I'm not saying that's exactly what will happen, but
I am saying, don't be surprised if it does. And
to get to go on that ride and describe that
ride to Titans fans, I think it's obvious. I'm very
excited for it.
Speaker 2 (13:02):
Well, you're excited and we are so excited to have
you here, taylor'sarser.
Speaker 1 (13:05):
Thank you for hanging out with.
Speaker 2 (13:07):
Us, and you did great on your very first appearance
on the OTP.
Speaker 3 (13:10):
Thank you for having me, Amy, I appreciate.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
It for Taylor's ars er. I'm Amy Wells and this
has been the OTP