Monday Night Football's Joe Tessitore

Episode 196 of the Sports Illustrated Media Podcast features an interview with ESPN's Joe Tessitore. The “Monday Night Football” play-by-play man talks about his new job, developing a relationship with his partners, Jason Witten and Booger McFarland, the mistake he most hates making, why the NFL is easier to call than college football, the sport he never wants to call, the sport he wishes he could call but isn’t good enough to do so and his dream event to cover (hint: WWE), why Brent Musburger is his favorite announcer, what it’s like watching his son kick for Boston College and much more.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:05):
Welcome everyone to the SI Media Podcast. I am your host,
Jimmy Traina. Thank you for joining me. Big show this
week in studio, the voice of Monday Night Football, Joe
test It Tour. Before we get to that, a couple
of things last week got great feedback on the podcast
with Alan stepond Wall, the chief TV critic at Rolling Stone.

(00:26):
A lot of sopranos talk, So if you have not
listened to that, if you're a fan of TV, and
if you're listening to this, I'm sure you're a fan
of TV, check that out in the archives. One programming note,
the podcast is moving now to Wednesday's. We've been coming
out on Thursdays forever since at least I took this
over from Mr Richard Ditch, but we will be coming
out on Wednesday's going forward, So keep your eyes, ears,

(00:48):
and nose open for that. I don't know why I
have to keep your nose open for a podcast, but
Wednesday is going forward for the SI Media Podcast, and
now we get into it, and I'm so happy to
have them in studio. Always makes for a better show.
Thank you for dealing with the rain and flying in
from Tampa. Joe, thank you for having me but now
I'm curious about the Sopranos talk from last week. What

(01:08):
was the big hook there? You have to listen. I
can't give it all. But has a book coming out
in January about this, all about the Sopranos interviews with
David Chase and I, you know, I didn't want to
have him on in January when he does five thousand
book interview, so he was nice enough to come on
last week. We got into the we got into the show. Uh.
He revealed a couple of things I didn't know, and

(01:30):
I thought, you know, you give me one, Just give
me one right now. Um. The actress who played Livia
and Nancy Marshaw. He explained how her passing away affected
some of the storylines because that following season, Uh, there's
a season that ends with uh, she gets arrested because
Tony gives bad bus tickets. He got him hit it

(01:50):
in the car. So the next season was him having
to keep his mother happy so she doesn't testify against him.
They him do that storyline because the actress in real
life passed away, but that was supposed to be the
focus of that next season was him dealing with his
mother and trying to have her keep him out of
jail and all that stuff. Who would have been interested?
She she portrayed that character with a certain strain of

(02:11):
nastiness that came right through the screen. Yes, yes, and
it was. Um. You don't usually see mother's portrayed on
TV as not being nice. And I thought it was
brilliant the way they did it, because mothers like that
do exist. I'm not saying anything, but people like that.
But it was, but it was, it was. It was

(02:35):
You're sitting in a room with three Italian men and
you don't think that mothers like that to that extreme.
My mother beat me up the stairs. Oh man, she
was loving and wonderful. God forbid you took a misstep,
said the wrong one as I was just going to say,
you know, we don't want to get into this. I
remember seeing my cousins do this. He would he would

(02:56):
run to the phone and say, I'm going to call
child Service. I'm gonna I'm gonna call it DIP for whatever.
So I so I did that once and my mother
looked at me and she says, go ahead, call them.
By the time they get here, I'll have you tied
up with the phone wire and I'll beat you with
the receiver, and I was like, that's it. I'm never
doing that again. But Olivia was worse than a wooden spoon.
Let's just Olivia was way worse than there were psychological warfare.

(03:20):
I will tell you this though, that character, to me,
of all the characters and the sopranos, strayed the furthest
from what would be the typical Italian American family member
of that generation, of that era and demographic and locale.
I see, I disagree, Yeah, I've I've I've seen some

(03:40):
Olivia in my time from some family. In terms of
the personality, well, she didn't have that Italian personality. I
thought the writing, the thing she said, um, the general
miserableness that was there. Yeah, um, you know the writing
on that show was so good that I feel superb.

(04:02):
But yeah, she wasn't that Italian. You know, Junior and
Carmela and Tony think had more the language and verbal
sort of things. You know that the Sunday family dinner
is a big you know, Carmela would get mad if
Tony got up from the table. Yeah want. Yeah, to
this day, I fight with my parents and try to
explain to them that I don't want to eat dinner

(04:23):
at two o'clock on Sundays. But they don't know. We
were worse. We were one o'clock. If you weren't seated
with the forty one cousins, forget about it, right, Yeah,
this is not dinner, This is not literally literally, my
grandpa Miranda would be twelve fifty nine. You are seated,
he is ready, and that's being served at twelve zero
zero o one. Yeah. Um yeah, So that's a little

(04:44):
a little insight into life of Italian crazy Italian people. Um.
So you just you literally just flew in, just got
here from Tampa. You so let's start with this. How
are you liking the new gigs? Oh it's wonderful. It's
extremely challenging. Yeah, um, And but the resources are incredible.
I mean the crew is obviously at the ESPN, we

(05:05):
have so many good broadcast crews. And I was on
you one that if I spent the rest of my
career on I'd be happy with Todd Blackwodge and Holly
row and uh the director who was superb, and Scottie Johnson,
Phil Dean the producer and the best camera people and everything.
But you know, you sit there on Monday night football,
and the amount of support staff and researchers and the

(05:27):
best camera people and the best technical people and audio people.
The audio has been unbelievable. That is the one thing.
I don't know why that's that's hit me in the head.
But a few weeks in and I don't know if
you guys have noticed it, maybe you watch bunder and football,
but actually they amped up the audio even more this
year because now they're they're wiring an individual player of
that week, which is incredible. So you're getting that and
every player should be wired in every sport for every game.

(05:49):
It's incredible. I mean, you're you're getting the reason you'd
watch inside the NFL four days where you're now getting
that live. And actually, I mean last night McCoy was amazing.
How much runway it get today if Chris Connie was
wired last night? Oh but you know it was Actually
I thought there was a moment of gold last night
that you never hear. McCoy comes in and he gets

(06:12):
the roughing right right and Ben and then we replayed
a full audio because he's got he's wearing our mic
as he's going, as he's tackling him, he's apologizing my fault.
Then as they're going down he saying it, then says
it again. That's good stuff. That's good stuff. Now. So
the is I've been blown away by just who I'm
surrounded by. Yeah, it's been fun. That's been a lot

(06:34):
of work though, because obviously, you know, it was starting
from tresh new crew, and not only a new crew,
but a guy who just got off the field, and
another guy who's four games into his career. You know,
a versatil guys to do it, but not booth like
I was with Todd black Linch and Matt Millan. And
I always ask all of play by play people this question.
And I don't know. I don't know if ESPN technically

(06:54):
says it's a three man booth, but it is. Do
you as a prefer two or three people for a booth? Oh,
I've done it all. You know what's funny. I've done
two man booths that have smothered the broadcast more than
what this three man crew does. This three man crew,
one of the things I marvel at is for it
being a three man crew, we are getting the natural

(07:17):
sound of the game, The game breathes, we are not
bleeding all over the game and wall to wall talk.
That has surprised me. Now it's interesting because some people
interpret that as Witten being a little slow to get
in there and jump in with analysis that you don't
feel that, Oh no, you have to understand something every
crew that I'm on. If I'm on a two man

(07:37):
crew and you're working with me for the first time,
I will turn to you. I don't care if we're
doing college basketball, boxing, NFL college football, and I would say, hey, Jimmy,
so it's the two of us broadcasting. You understand what
we're on. We do a three man booth here because
the third broadcaster is always the natural sound of the event.
If you don't allow for the natural sound of the
event to be the last broadcaster and have that equal

(07:59):
space east, then you can't work with me. I lived
by that, lived by that. Some of the best calls
of all time, and when the announcers quiet football's anticipation
sport right, the best third downs, the best fourth downs,
if you actually listen to the way I broadcast. A
lot of times, there's times where I won't say anything
for four seconds four a snap and through the dropback

(08:20):
of the pastor and then just present it. Give you
that moment of its third nine, or they need this
or something, you know, Um, so the natural sound of
the game has to be the other broadcaster. Do you
have you paid attention to any of the feedback from viewers?
Do you care about feedback the way everybody else does?

(08:41):
Some I was most I was shocked at how people
were diving right in on Witten right from the first
preseason game. Oh from the and that I heard about,
which I thought I heard. I mean, I had people
because I write about media a lot. Obviously this is
a media podcast. His first preseason game. I was getting
tweets from people asked me where I think of Witten,
and I'm like, I can't judge him on And by

(09:01):
the way, preseason football football is not meant to be
exhibition at all. It is full grown man war, right,
you can't do so then to broadcast it like that
where it just becomes sort of you know, conversational, and
you you know, and you've got ninety guys on our roster,
and like you said, it's out of your mind. So yeah,
the only thing I can tell you is listen, We're
well aware that we were probably better last night than

(09:23):
we were the week before. We're probably twice as good
as we were. A week one will probably be five
times as good. You know, a week from that. You know,
it's just we're gonna grow. It's it's about chemistry. We're
this is gonna be a long term thing, and we're
gonna we're gonna be gonna be good. I've said this
many times before. A Tony Romo did a lot of
damage being that good from second one of his first game.

(09:44):
Because for some reason now fans think every broadcaster is
going to be that way. Um, and it's just not
the case. I mean, most people have to grow into it. Um.
It depends on what your style is, too. I think
Romo style is very nonconformed. Yeah, he's gotta like a yes.
But so he's not out there pitching a perfect game
and a no hitter. He's out there being so authentic

(10:07):
and so passionate, enthusiastic and likable and you can't help
but turn him on and like him. But I Tony
would probably the first to admit to you and you know, say,
hey man, I need to get better with this. I
need to be more refined here and even more polished
here of it. But he's so like the first half
of the season last year, Romo was doing color in
a way we had not heard before, and then mentically

(10:28):
passionately just being so much comfortably being himself. And then
and this is speculation with sort of a little bit
of confirmation off the record, but the suits got to
him and told him to stop predicting the plays. And
I think for me, I know, I like the broadcast
a little less now that he stopped doing that. But

(10:48):
I guess there was a lot of blowback on him
predicting the plays in every game, so they you know, dude,
it is It is very hard to try to do
the correct, perfect, proper broadcast. It's much easier to do
the broad It's much easier to broadcast like David poblock broadcast.
But he just doesn't even care, just irreverently, just out

(11:08):
there or whatever. I'm breaking all the rules. I'm talking
When I and David, David and I are good friends,
we'll talk about this is like whatever, you know, and
that's what makes him the way he is as a broadcaster.
It's much harder to try to do a broadcast the
way a Todd Blacklich does a broadcast right by the
both perfect and precise and the perfect measurement, and every
statement you know, you know you can be held accountable for,

(11:30):
and you can you can slam duncan and you feel
good about what you said, and in the natural sound
of the game, and you're gonna come close to throwing
a no hit or every game when you have the
perfect broadcast, you should retire because it's never gonna happen.
And last night I had one of my worst moments.
Why do you say that moment? Okay, so I I
last like, I almost didn't sleep last night because I
did something last night I don't I haven't done in

(11:53):
twenty years broadcasting. I misidentified a player and I know
the roster's cold when I go into a broad sound
like tell you the whole everybody right, And I miss
IDEA player and went through the whole play not even
realizing a MISSIDEAA player. By the way, it's the punter
in the first quarter of the game. But to me
come back, you gotta show the punch. I gotta apologize,
I gotta you know, it drives me crazy crazy, See,

(12:14):
I think it's funny because I'm trying to think who
this happened with recently. I can't remember I'll praise again.
Maybe I don't remember who was, but I will often
get people on Twitter and again, you know we're using
people on Twitter. But I'm surprised how that how many
people on Twitter critique a play by play person for
either misidentifying a player or saying, you know, it's second down.

(12:35):
One say to me, those are mistakes that are going
to happen, Like, that's just yeah, But I see, I
find at my level of the business, Jimmy and doing
Monday night football, if you took if you took Buck
and Aikman, you know, they've all I know, but we
would all, we would all tell you you can't. You
just can't do it. You can't. I know where that's
going to happen. You can't and you don't want And

(12:58):
we work all week, you know how much film I
watch every game that a team is played to that
point in the season. I've got the roster memorized. My
spotter comes to me on Monday midday, boom boom, boom
number number number boom, firing off. Just it's just a
class example of sh it happens like and by the way,
everybody told me that last night, and I'm like, I
still I cancel it. And your defense. The Bucks have

(13:18):
weird numbers too. I can see how you can make it.
Take it. Yeah, but it was even that. It was
literally I said to punch around the other team. I
just had time in conversation. Example happens, it happens to me.
I'm more annoyed if a guy is. But it's disgusting
is my son is actually a college puncher in college kicker.
So it's like my special teams in my love that
I missed. And I have to admit after Joe's blunder

(13:40):
less night, I turned the game off. By the way,
it ended up being a great game. So I get
the first quarter misidentifying a puncher. How how into analyzing
looking at breaking down the Monday night schedule. I mean, listen,
no matter who plays, you have to do game. So
it doesn't matter if it's the best team's worst teams.
But do you know know four weeks from now, oh,

(14:01):
I have this great game coming up. Trust me. When
Tampa Bay and when Fits started doing what they did
week one, I turned to j roethmar Press, I go, wow,
this changes week three. Then when they did what they did,
I go, holy cow, what a game. We I mean
that that was a scene last night. That was an event.
Pittsburgh desperate for the win, all the turmoil with Antonio Brown,
Leleyan Bell, Ben Roethlisberger, all the stuff, desperate and then

(14:24):
the two and oh fits magic And by the way,
he did it again last night. I went for four
hundred eleven yards last night and it was a thrilling game.
So we really stepped into one last night. And now
we got next week. We got undefeated Kansas City with
Patrick Mahomes with the best start in the NFL history
of thirteen touchdown passes at mile high classic rivalry. And
now as long as Drew Brees doesn't pass for four
hundred and something yards, we're gonna have Drew Brees a

(14:44):
week from Monday, breaking the all time NFL passing record
for guardage. Next, you gotta go on next week with
the Chiefs, because the chief the two best team. So
I know everyone's going crazy about the Bucks. The two
best teams to watch are the Chiefs of Rams. Those
are the two best teams to far. Yeah, and so
the Rams you have the most balanced roster, most voted roster.
Although these corner fans of injuries now you know, and

(15:06):
then the Chiefs you have Arena football coming to the NFL.
I mean, this is this is what we have with
the greatest show on turf with St. Louis a generation ago.
They are so much fun to watching. Mahomes is outrageously talented.
So we're thrilled with this week if that, and it
looks like it's not going away. I mean they're gonna
be putting up these points ever in a week. Can
you imagine? And what you say? Do you look out

(15:27):
at the schedule, do you realize third week in November,
the Mexico City Monday night football game is Chiefs Rams.
There you go. You want to talk about? How about
a Super Bowl preview? There? Are you kidding me? Think
in Mexico City on a neutral site? I mean you
know that save your voice on that one touchdowns He'll

(15:50):
be calling touchdowns about every three minutes. That it's gonna
be unbelievable and I will have that that would be
the highest total of the year. I can't wait to
see what the overrun. Since I mentioned the tuttle, let
me put you on the spot quickly. I know CBS,
their president told me before the season that they're broadcasters
will not mention plean spreads in any way, shape or form.
And I did a bad job there because I was
curious if that decision came from McManus or from the

(16:13):
NFL passed on down to the networks. Has anyone from
ESPN and do you have any do you have any
directive on mentioning this? You know this game could go
over or we've had conversations as to what feels like
it fits in the body Like last night, the game
went over on that last touch to Okay, you gotta
I didn't realize that Pittsburgh was grabbing a point. Well, no, no,

(16:34):
the total was fifty total total, The line wasn't a total.
Well you didn't mention it last night. You just I'm
gonna mention what am I doing a show for gamblers?
It's legal now, you gotta you know what the total is?
I need to tell you what the total? You give congratulations?
Think congratulations in a in a pregame show and a
radio the week leading up to it, you talk about

(16:56):
point spreads for your preview a game. Once you get
into the body of the game, I'm documenting a football game.
You know what the total is? You bet? Yeah? Give
me the congratulation, congratulations to those who have the over,
where as Al would say that was overwhelming. Yeah, Al knew,
how to you know? Um, I mean we got I'm
pretty bad beats coming up on Sports Center with s VP. Alright,

(17:17):
he covers all that. But um so, the story it's interesting,
it's funny. It feels like every year there's a storyline
that is not within the game. Meaning the anthem was
last year, and now we've got the roughing the passer, which,

(17:40):
by the way, which we weren't supposed to have. We
were supposed to have initiating contact with the Now now
it's all about putting your weight on the quarterback and
speaking of gambling, bet all the overs because thanks that penalty,
every game is going over this year fifteen yards moving
the ball downfield. What do you as a play by
plague do you get annoyed that, like, Okay, we gotta
now harp on this and talk about this because it's

(18:00):
such a big storyline. I just want to call the game.
I want to serve the fans if that's what everybody
wants to hear. Last night, we built we basically built
in a segment in the game of having game discussion.
We'd come back on camera. We're discussing it. We showed
the Clay Matthews stuff. You know, I'm making the one
you had last night, which was was Rollinsburry got slapped
on the head that they're always gonna call. Yeah right,
you didn't have a couple of those. Had a couple

(18:23):
of had a couple of those last night. Um we
had four in fact, which tied. We had four in
the first half last night, which, um which tied the
record going back to two thousand one. For most of them,
we didn't have one to get the five. But um, yeah,
I think it's interesting, you know. I we were talking
about discussing it, you know, and we meet with coaches
and players every week. So the feedback that we get is,

(18:44):
how am I supposed to coach this? How am I
supposed to play? How am I supposed to do that?
You know, And they're dealing with it in real time.
So we described that, and it is serving the fan
because it is an issue in the league. It's something
that's a concern, something that's concerned for players and coaches,
is something at the league. Listen. I went to the
league offices a few times this summer. Uh Whitten Bug
were there with me. We sat there with Al river Ran,
the head of officials. We watched tape, We went through

(19:05):
all the different instances, what they're looking for, how it's
to be officiated, so you know, we're dialed in and
if it serves a fan, we're gonna Do you think
there's any chance they change the rule mid season? I don't. Well,
mid season is challenging, but I think the Competition Committee
raising a concern and saying, hey, are we over officiing it?
Should we be looking for this? What should how should
we be teaching our officials, what should they be looking

(19:28):
for so that it aligns with what our intention is? Right?
You know, I think that's fair, But the rule exists. Well,
but when you have quarterbacks coming out a little much
then and it's specifically the weight falling on the quarterback,
and now you have a guy William Hayes who's out
for the year because it I mean, now you have

(19:50):
when that happens, you the NFL, I I said, I've
always said they'll never change the rule during the season,
but I wonder if that maybe change just things maybe
and they and they do something a little differently now
that that injury. I think I think it will be
brought up and they'll address what appears to be a
concern that we're getting a lot of these um But

(20:11):
based on based on the video that I watched all summer,
this is not a shock to me. You know, if
you're sitting in those offices on Park Avenue and you're
going through the video, I do think you know some
of them. You look at and you say, okay, now
that that's just a football play. It's just it. But
like Cam Heyward last night, he ended up getting a
flag that roughing the passage that they picked up and

(20:31):
it was fed. Look at what lost his mind? If
they weren't. It was one of the best moments of
the night because there's this giant, hulking defensive line and
he's walking towards the referee and the ref still had
his mic on. He goes, no, no, we dropped that flag.
There's nothing picked it up. I get nervous. I get
nervous for Booker every now and then because when they
do the shot of him, the isolated shot and then

(20:51):
the traption that he's moving, he's going and he's bouncing right,
I feel like he's he's gonna fall out of them.
You have a two hund man bouncing up and down
and ten feet above the field. I was gonna try
to go through this whole podcast without bringing without bringing
up the gimmick of him in the crane, because I
didn't want to be mean. Sorry, that's what That's how
it's been. Can they just put him in the booth please,

(21:13):
and stop at the gimmick when you should see what's
happening like ten ft underneath me was you know, we're
just but you can see. Here's the here's the thing
about it. If you want to put him in the
crane or whatever it is, that's fine. But do we
have to then go to him and see him twenty
times in the crane? Can you just show the field.
It's not for you, it's for the producer. Pass along, okay,

(21:34):
I will thank you. We don't need Why don't we
get Jimmy up. We don't need to see him in
the crane twenty times during the Jimmy in the bookmobile.
You can experience it. I don't want to. I want
to show me the field. I don't need to see
Booger on the crane. Every you do see the field
though it's an isolated shot in the top of the
top third of the screen. I'm trying to be nice.
I don't want to talk about that, Okay, what's going on.

(21:56):
I like the overall, like the overall telecast. I just
don't want to see book. You're saying, we're just trying hard.
That's why I can tell you we are treating her.
Was Monday night football at Dream Jobs for you? Yeah, well,
how quickly you want me to answer that? Well, because
you had a very good thing going. If listen, if
I stayed in my career path of doing the Saturday

(22:17):
Prime and the College Football Playoff and you know everything
that I've done with college and the National Championship will
all the shows attached to it, and and the World
Championship Boxing. Now that you know Top Rank has brought
the HBO stuff over to US, uh and everything. You know,
an sec my life would be great. This is really
great too. Yeah. Yeah, but as it I mean, when

(22:38):
you start in this business and you're just start in
this business when I was a little kid growing up
and connecting me, but when you know you're doing football
and you know you start out, it's that is it
always it's it's always Monday night football. Sunday night football
didn't exist when I was a kid. You know those
you know now generation were those two jobs or the
you know but the standalone prime time NFL jobs and

(23:00):
just but Monday night football, especially because and I've told
the story a thousand times when people ask, you know,
I grew up in Italian speaking neighborhood, Italian speaking family.
My grandfather who I was with every single day, Joe Miranda,
couldn't speak English, but I could impersonate Howard Cossell and
that would make him laugh. So that's what I had.
He watched Monday night football, he watched boxing, he watched
horse racing. I've grown up to have all three of
those jobs on ABC and ESPN. That's very special to

(23:22):
me because of my heritage and winning edge of my
ability to communicate with my grandfather by way of sports television. Right, So,
Howard Cosell was the yeah man. And biggest difference for
you calling NFL in college is it just that NFL
so much bigger or within the game thousand times easier
to prep. Okay, that's not even close, not even close.

(23:45):
You've got only a handful players that hit the field
you know all the storylines, the amount of coverage, amount
of research, the amount of of awareness nationally compared to
a hundred players on a team with a board that's
got a seven string defensive back who may go into
the game with freshmen walk ons and changing and pace
the play. And I mean, you're out of your mind

(24:06):
and trying to know every storyline of a hundred and
twenty eight teams and conferences and it's not even close.
It's funny because let me plug it. Two weeks ago,
Gus Johnson on the podcast and he said, the same
thing about college is not you know, you think you
would think NFL being NFL would be maybe more difficult
just because of maybe more nerves, or you're on a

(24:27):
bigger stage. But he said the same exact thing, more nerves,
bigger stage. There's only how many one of the games
I was doing in college, well, the playoff, I mean
most NFL games are regional games. He Gus said. I say,
if you I said to Gus, if you could change
one thing about college football, but you change and he said,
the double numbers. Oh, it's unbelievable. As a fan, you
don't think, you don't think about you know, if I

(24:49):
showed you a board for doing an Alabama game, I
was doing like six a year or those. You know,
I'm doing Alabama versus whoever. You should see what the
board looks like. How many players and how many players
you have to know and and know by the way
one quarter of them leave that year and then the
next year. You've been doing the Steelers for a decade
and a half. You know who Ben Roethlisberger is, and
you're prep Ben roethlis right right, right right? You know
Antonio Brown is you know? I mean, so yes, the

(25:10):
NFL is. But the scrutiny well, although I will say
this pound for pound, when you do major college football,
I mean those fans are now we're talking about yeah
oh yeah, yeah yeah, certain fan bases. Certain fan bases
are not you don't but the national scrutiny of the NFL.
The NFL is the only thing that this country has

(25:32):
is one clean, unifying force that everybody knows follows. You know,
people tell you that's not the case anymore, too, which is,
you know, the numbers stop, we make this. We know
why we say that's not the case because it is
the case. Because the biggest brand there is in America.
It isn't just I'm curious to see how it plays
out this year with the penalty and the points being

(25:52):
through the roof. I think that's going to help the ratings.
So yeah, there's NFL is just you spin the wheel
and pick the thing that people are gonna be annoyed
by every year because it's like, you know, well the
anthem stuff seems to have died down, which is good. Well,
you know, I don't know what more to say about that. Well,
there's nothing to say about until the president decides to

(26:13):
chime and then it becomes a thing again, and he
will do that before the midterms, that's for sure, all right.
Joe hank Tight one second, I gotta tell my beautiful
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your first three boxes of Hello Fresh, Witten and Booger.
Do you it's a new booth? I have not met
that wonderful new booth. Do you go out of your
way to spend time together away from the broadcast. Is

(29:03):
even during the week when you know where we text
some probably you know, if you open my phone, it's
probably like a truck streat that's already like mine. Is
that a conscious thing where you know, let me let
these guys, that's the only it's what during the audition process.
That's that's a big part of to why this team
was put together, because you know, we wanted to be
surrounded with people that are brothers and family and want

(29:24):
to be inseparable and want to work together three hundred
and sixt or five days a year and always grow.
I mean we've been down to I mean we're just
all over at Booker's house this week and hanging out
with his wife, beautiful wife and kids and you know,
sitting there for an endless meal and relaxing and you
know everything, work out together, hang out together, breakfast, lunch, dinner.
You're gonna get sick of each other if you do

(29:45):
it that. Yeah, but that that was part of the
process of are these my guys? Are these you know? Yeah?
So they're great, great, great people, great people. I'm always
curious because um, like I mean you can get sick
of people you work with that closer. Yeah, exactly, I
need a break every now and then the time and

(30:08):
keep to keep these I understand what you're saying, but
this was. First of all, Booger has been a friend
for many years. Um. It's funny Boogers, you know. Um,
I was involved in Booger's first audition when we brought
him on for SEC Network and ESPN, and and then
we worked together on SEC football and college football and
then UM and then the second go round with Booger now,

(30:29):
which has been wonderful. So he's been like family to me.
You know, Booger has been out, Booger has been at
my house in Connecticut a hundred times. Didn't knows the family, well,
you know, I know his family, the whole thing. And Witten.
You know, as soon as we got to know each other, um,
late winter, early spring, right away, you know, right away
I felt that connection with him. Besides Costell, who are

(30:52):
your favorite announcers? Well, I'm a Brent guy. I love Brent.
So you were there. You were there the first Monday
night game it was uh Rams Raiders and yeah, yeah,
my guy came over to say, Brent, Now, doing the
games on the rain. He came over looking like part
Johnny Cash, part Al Davis. He was in like a
black like a jacket, a black shirt, belt, blas sunglasses.

(31:13):
I was like, what is this? What it was like
living it up in the desert. Oh, He's like Mr
Vegas is so like if ever there's a job for
the late autumn of his career, it's this one right here.
You know. It's one of those weird things where like,
you know, you're always shocked when someone leaves ESPN, and
for Brent to leaves Pianning and you know, there's always

(31:33):
who knows if he left he was pushed out whatever,
you you always here rumbling. But what he but to
Leavia is planning out to Vegas and start and then
and then out of nowhere at you know, seventy five,
seventy six years old, he gets this play by play
gig with the Raiders. It's an absolute all time great. Um,

(31:53):
you know, it's funny. I actually obviously we do the
same job, but there were times in our career work
together which was a thrill. So when we had the
Triple Crown on ABC back in the day and I
was the host with Jerry Bailey and Randy Moss, the
current Mike Tarico or what was the Tom Hammond roll
at NBC. So I had that for six seven years.

(32:13):
So you know, the Derby study in the Belmont, the
Breeders Cup and all that, and Brent had this sort
of venerable host, bring us on the air, bring us
in and out of commercial break, which meant for like
six days I'd be at the race track with Brent
Strea this week, Belmont week, Breeders Cup week, those reading
the racing form with him, having Breg I remember the

(32:34):
Garden City Hotel, having coffee and breakfast, sitting there at
the Forum with Brent, and night before the Derby going
out with our wives. Oh man, and you want to
see him in his element now, So I keep going,
I don't want you to step fan. Yeah, I like Brent.
I like I like a lot of guys. But I
guess I like Brent because there's all there's a little

(32:54):
bit of Brent that that I can easily relate to
sort of you know. Yeah, Um, I need a Brent.
I need a Brent story from the track. Though, if
you're there for six days with him, I need something
I can't remember specific. I'm sure there was some bad
beats or some really funny moments and some laddies, but
it's just the way he carries This guy's got swaged

(33:15):
like nobody's got. So he carries himself and why he talks.
Brent had me on his uh Visten serious radio show
last night. He puts me on Monday nights to talk
about prop bets with him on the and I said,
so he has me on with two of his little
wise guy maker sharks there, you know, So, I said
to you know, so they they're asking me some question.

(33:36):
I said, I gotta ask you guys a question. I
can tell me the books did Did anybody have the
bills straight up on Sunday on that it was like
plus three thousands of plus I don't even know what
and opponent? And uh, one of the guys goes, oh, yeah,
someone had the bills straight up to and it was Brent.
Brent had the bill. Yes, what more do you need

(33:58):
to know about Brent when he d your podcast? Yeah,
but this is before he took the Raiders job. Didn't
you say he should call the Las Vegas Ball? Yeah?
I said, ESPN, the Las Vegas Ball is gonna be
big time now they're the conference variation is jumping up.
I said, will not be able to happen though now
with his well yeah, I think yeah, ESPN, I said
at the time before he had the Raiders game, ESPN

(34:20):
should have brought him out of retirement from one game
and it should be the Las Vegas Ball. Yeah. I
mean the Vegas is going to be a great bowl
in the coming years, great when the stadium gets open,
and I think it's gonna be big, twelve pack twelve right,
so it's gonna be Yeah, it's gonna be a great game. Yeah.
Everything is through the prism of over unders with you
that you gotta this is this is you know this
this this is a business. Um. So you mentioned Keith

(34:42):
Jackson as well. Yeah, who doesn't love Keith Jackson? Yeah? Absolutely,
a lot of guys. I gotta a lot of respect
for a lot of guys. I'm not you know, Um,
I like passion based broadcasters. I like, you know, big moments,
guys who get so into it that you know, there's
a lot of guys that like do you ever it's
me because I had guessing that you and I admire
guys who have talents and trades and characteristics that I

(35:04):
don't have as well. Is being too loud or too
over the top ever concerned for you? Well, I just like,
as long as I'm being authentic, I really don't give
a as I'm me, what do I give? Some people say,
I know that that's a criticism with some announcers, and
some announcers are too loud to have a time you know, me,
I don't care. I mean if if To me, it's

(35:26):
all about being authentic. Like I always explained television this
way in terms of using that, of using that as
as um you know, the threshold of you know, being
the spectrum of okay, you're you're forcing your contribute, being
crazy and you're being authentic is cooking shows for years
and years where local access TV boring, is bland, is

(35:47):
horribly produced things and why would you watch and just
go right past them? And then somewhere in the nineties,
you know, uh, Portuguese immigrant guy from New Bedford who
went down to the New Orleans was doing bam and
throwing spices. But this is how he talked, and that's
how passionate he was about throwing spice on top of shrimp.
He was authentic, And so we're watching TV shows and
all of a sudden we got celebrity chefs right because

(36:09):
Themagassi was authentic, and for me it was Justin Justin
Wilson with the red suspenders, the creole guy with the
yeah remember yeah, he were the blues suspenders, the Italian.
Though there's only one cooking show right now, I'm gonna
go totally currently. Yeah, what's currently? That Lydia? Well, she's

(36:33):
I know who he is. I know, yeah, yeah, yeah, yah.
You know where he went to college with me? Boston College.
There you go. Did did Lydia have a cook for you? No?
I didn't know, But I love I love the restaurants
and I love the braves prawns of Felidia with the
Pesto's tremendous. My grandmother used to come over to my
parents house every Sunday and we'd all watch like it was.

(36:56):
That was what my grandmother had to watch. She didn't wonderful.
She is a great I watched lady. I think of
my grandmother, Well, you got a little something in you,
you got done well the last time you went to Italy. Well,
because of my work, I don't get back the way

(37:16):
my mother. Does you know, my aunts and uncles lived there,
my cousins lived there. You know, my mother came over
in fifty four. Um. But the last time I was there,
I was six years ago. And that's just because of
my career. I traveled every single right of course, it's NonStop.
And then my kids, you know, we dedicate ourselves to
whatever is going on with our kids. So this year
for a big trip my daughter. My daughter's heavily involved

(37:39):
in sports and she she had a huge international tournament
in Asia. So we went to Asia for three weeks
this year, which was outrageous um, which strangely enough, uh,
you know, the Asian culture is they have a great
love of Italian culture, especially in Hong Kong and actually
in Calal and formal Asia. And I went into some
of the best Italian food. I had some of the
best Italian restaurants. I went into where an Asia. And

(38:00):
I would walk into these places and my wife will
tell you it was unbelievable and a maitre da host
somebody would walk up to me and speak Italian, you know,
just on site. And there are many um the many
Romans and no Boditans, you know, people from Naples over there,
who are in the food in hospitality industry and some
of the best restaurants. I had a wonderful time over

(38:22):
there experiencing my native through It was wonderful restaurant Tasca
in Hong Kong and a couple of others Alta Mezza
in Hong Kong and Marini's in Malaysia, and wonderful people,
and it was. It was tremendous. So six years ago
was your last year? Resorder was in my aunt and uncle. Yeah,
and I fel in Italy, is it? You know? Yeah?

(38:45):
I mean they get I usually when I would go
over more consistently, would be there in March and we'll
be watching March Madness and national We don't get into
the sports, you know. I'm in Sicily. Oh really, Yeah,
they have a nast They were here a couple of
they were here about a year ago. They did not
ask any I should have asked them what how American
sports are there? If they pay attention to the only

(39:06):
thing they wanted to talk about when they were here
was was Trump. But I'm open to that. Yeah, they're
fascinated by politics over there. I'm not. I loath politics.
When you have a deranged president. It causes havoc all
over the country. Um, the I'm curious what sport have
you not called that you would like to call? Although, well,
what's what I'm not called is a long list? What's

(39:27):
what sport that I had you would most want to call? Um?
I mean, my greatest passion is football, and boxing and
horse racing, and I've been blessed enough to uh to
do all three of those at the highest level. U
m B A MLB? Do you have any any desire MLB?
When I tell you, not one specker ounce of desire ever.

(39:50):
I grew up a baseball fan, going to the Yankee
Stadium and then Shay in the eighties, and you know
all that and zero interest. What's you're boring? There is
not a major sport in America that aligns less with
me than Major League Baseball. Too much downtime, too slow, Bro,
you've I mean, if you know me for it is
not me at all at all? Right? Would you will

(40:15):
you watch? I wish I had the skill to call hockey.
I wish I I don't I love when it's too fast.
First of all, I grew up going to RPI hockey games.
Mikedessa and Darren Poopa and then when they won the
national championship maybe five absolutely lifelong Boston College hockey fan.

(40:37):
Go to BC games my whole time I was there
and still dabbling and going back to games. You know
Jerry Yorke what, he's the nick saving of college hockey,
Yale season ticket holder. I love hockey, and then my
daughter is a diehard Rangers fan, and I find as
the in arena experience hockey blows me away. I love it.
I'm not I'm not woven into the fabric of the sport.
I'm a fan. I appreciate it, not the way. Ball

(41:00):
and boxing and horse racing. To me, those are three
sports I've like, I've embedded in. You know, football is
my whole life since I was a little kid of
football family. I had a horrible football injury. You know,
my son's a college football player boxing. You know, I
used to train in a gym and I'm die heart
lifelong fan of called. Probably you know as many fights

(41:20):
as anybody you know who I should. Who knows how
many Jim Lampley is called, But I'm sure Jim Lampier
and I are over ten thousand fights called in our careers.
UM and horse racing. You know, I grew up at
the Saratoga Race Track and going O T B with
all my inveterate dance and uncles every day in my life.
So those are my throwing you again on me about
being focused on over on there's and you send your
life at the t bag. Yeah, what was the double today?

(41:43):
How to try pay? So NHL? You would love to
be able to. You feel like you don't have the
skill set. M the bean pot? The bean pot, Yeah,
that would be what you'd want to call. Yeah, I'd
want to call it if you give me a B
C BU Bean Pop Finals if I yeah, that would
be what I've gone called ESPN. I'm not good enough
to I'm own you for a fact, I could not
call hockey ESPN. Has the NBA no interest in dabbling

(42:04):
in that every now and then. I mean that the
NBA seems that you know, see, I think the NBA
becomes a long form soap opera storyline sports. So I
wouldn't just like drop into it like I think you
have to know it from start to finish. The whole
season and all the storyline is a lot of story
a lot of storylines, very content I'm very contented with
what I'm doing. Well, it does seem maybe I'm it

(42:27):
does seem most play by play man, especially the lead ones.
You know. Buck Nancy said, I mean, no one calls
one sport. Everyone seems to call multiple sports. I mean,
I don't know if that's an economic but I don't
want to. I don't want to stretch myself to like,
I have never called a sport that I don't feel
comfortable in saying that. I know it. What was you
said you had I've said no to. I've said no

(42:49):
to calling certain things such as years and years ago,
there was an opportunity to not do the play by play,
to be involved. I think it was some you know,
sideline reporting when we had the NHL, and I said no.
I said, you know, I'm not dropping in on that.
I've been with you. I mean, listen, I respect that
from the standpoint of you know, if you don't know,
that drives me crazy. By the way, when somebody doesn't

(43:09):
have the vernacular and lexicon and understand the storylines from
start to finish, this this is totally off the beaten path.
But you know you're gonna this one's really well. But
when you say that it's I can't wait to see
how Fox handles getting the w W E and w
W SmackDown because supposedly hit something Fox is gonna head on.
Are you considering that a sport? I do, because that

(43:30):
would be on top of my list I do. I
love pro wrestling. But hold on a second, let me
hold on if you if if that's qualifying, it's qualified. Yes, Wresmania.
If I could ever call WrestleMania, all right, who would be?
Who would you want? Is your broadcast on fartum the
college basketball broadcast? I'm in the rest, like, would you
want to call it Jerry Lawler? Would you want to

(43:50):
call it with? Well? I mean, you know, God rest
his soul, but rowdy Roddy Piper. Okay, that's the you
know I would go for? I could I could pull
something out? Hey, listen, if we're gonna put this thing
on premium cable, then give me the iron cheek. But yeah,
that would be interesting. You know what I love. I
think Vince McMahon and I think their operation um pound

(44:12):
for pound does as great a job, from production to
marketing to understanding what the fan and the viewer wants
of delivering to the fan, by the way, and that's
one of the things our new leadership at our place,
I think it's very good with that too. I think
Jimmy Petaro is excellent at understanding what the fan wants.

(44:33):
He has calmed He has calmed the ship down a
lot over there. And I won't speak to that, but
I'll just tell you I think that whenever as a
leader of an organization that's delivering a creative product occur,
whether you're running a restaurant, which my wife did, my
wife's family still does to this day. You know, whatever
you do, you have to understand what the consumer really
wants and desires, and they're telling you I deliver them

(44:56):
every day that I say, think of who's reading this,
Thank you, the readers. Think of the readers, who's reading this.
The McMahon family, Stephanie and Triple H and oh man,
I believe it was Stephanie's birthday last week. That's what
I want, but they have When I do that, can
you make that happen? Call in the wrestling, the London
Knight football crew goes and gets to call one match.

(45:17):
If you worked at Fox Tell you have a better
chance because they're getting smacked down now, And my point was,
I would dude, let me tell you that's what's funny.
You want to talk about something out aligns with my
style of broadcasting. Oh, I would love doing that all right.
But here's the thing about it. This is why I
brought it up. So Supposedly, when SmackDown goes to Fox,
Fox is gonna make this big thing and have like
a pregame show postgame show. Now, are we gonna see

(45:38):
Joe Buck doing a SmackDown pregame show? Because you know
that's what Fox probably wants to do. Now for the
viewers and the wrestling fans are gonna say this is ridiculous.
But you're saying you could handle it a SmackDown pregame show,
no problem. I'd love it. There you go, Oh I
love it? Well, YESPN has some sort of business arrangement.
W W. I'm sure you can get in there and
call a match somewhere. Yeah, I mean, listen, I'm not

(45:59):
telling I'm tell your boss. But if you're saying this
is a dream scenario, what's the one sporting event that
you haven't covered that wrestleman slim? Alright, tell the ESPN.
I know ESPNPR listens to this. Let someone in charge know,
because I know you have some sort of deal with
w W, even though you deny it. You do that.
Oh yeah, you guys get all the scoops and the

(46:21):
great covers everything, and w W gives you guys all
the all the news before break. He knows so much
more about where I worked. I do. Yeah, that's you know, um,
let Joe call it w W match. The gotta set
that up. That would be fun. That would be fun.
But yeah, he didn't just go in. It's like guests
ring announcer. I'm surely you think they would absolutely set

(46:42):
this up. And see I want to put this on
on on Stephanie's you know horizon here if she's listening.
If Booger Wittn and I went in as the guest
ring announcers, because then you got wit who's six six
to sixty ripped out of his mind. You got Booger
you know who's human, you know big? I mean, this

(47:02):
guy is like they probably to the rest of where
the thickest. Oh, I think that they let someone yea
let booker, military press, somebody went and throw somebody off
to the top ropes, you know, and I'd still have
the mic in and I'd be calling it as a
ring announcing or what if what if they surprised the
crowd and came out as like, you know, the new
Legion of Doom. He comes out as Paul. Now, I

(47:24):
could do myself a Hayman now, you know you can
you give me a Jimmy Mouth to the South or
classy Freddy Blast. There's no reason why the w W
wouldn't be down for this. I think it could happen.
You got me stoked. There's not the crossovers before lt
karmelone on Monday Night Football. I want Monday Night Football
as guests ring announcers. That's the only problem is you've

(47:46):
got your in competing time slots. They do it on
the off season. No, not, everything's going to be over
it the other guy, right, No, just to smack down
Thursday the other guy. You're good coming to man, the
other guy. You got Sunday night pay per views on.
The two best apps in the world are the ESPN
app and w W e app um pound for pound

(48:09):
w W four hours of nine nine cents and nine
dollars nine cents for all that contented. The w W. Well,
here's well this is good. This gets back per views.
This gets back to get pay per viewner since McMahon
the genius of Vince McMahon to create the w w
E network. When he first did it, he was destroyed
by p They were given up fifty dollars person for

(48:31):
each pay per view and now you get it for
free for the ten dollars a month. And it turned
out he was so ahead of he You know, ESPN
has ESPN Plus now as I has an a who
cares and w w E was so ahead of the
time with that ap um. I like how you got
in the plug for the ESPN app. That was good though,
that'll keep the bus. You want to talk about a

(48:51):
value for hold on a second. You know how much
money I've spent on boxing pay per views in the
last thirty years of my life. I would hope you
the ESPN covers that for you. You gotta talk to
my wife with the cable bit. But um, four hours
and nine cents and you're getting basically what was on
HBO for the last thirty five years, either on E
one now free on Saturday nights. Are you're getting for
four hours and night nine cents a month with everything

(49:13):
not just for the boxing with everything else, college football, tennis, everything.
You're pushing it a little bit. It's not. It's some
college football. That's not like must watch college football. It's not.
But Alabama georgey five dollars on Sturday night to watch
pay per view boxing four hours and yeah, well they
would have a ton of UFC. UFC is gonna be
big on their app. Crawford just fought Vasili Bomachenko is

(49:36):
fighting on the ESPN Plus coming up and the pound
for pound best players in the world that would be
fighting on HBO pay per view just a year ago,
two years ago. Alright, I love that. All right, we
got the plug in for ESPN Plus. Um, that wasn't.
I'm being honest and I believe you. I believe you.
I'm a consumer the best after that's a little that's
a little bit. It's a little bit much. But in bed,

(49:58):
I'm watching Mike Tyson fights from ninet eight six, not Netflix.
Netflix is good. What are you spending eight from? Mike
frances has happened? I'm not doing that. But I like him.
I ran into him at our agents office over here.
I like him. You're a CIA got Mike Okay, yeah,
c A got ahold of mic and then he started
tweeting and what happens? Yeah, yeah, what's your Netflix show? Uh? Well,

(50:24):
I mean I just you know, it's funny you say that.
Coming in this morning on the train, I saw that
the coming out with Making a Murderer Too, which I
don't know into the first one, but I'm like obsessed
with please and I don't know him Homeland the Crown.
I'm like, I don't know if Sneaking the Murder Too
is a continuation of the first one or if it's
a different case. I hope it's a continue a Billions guy, No,

(50:46):
you're out of your mind. I know. I get this
all the time about this show. That show now, you're
out of your minds. It's not even worth Please, you
can't make a coach Billions. We did not. Can we go?
We'll go back to the Sopranos if you want. If
I put on with the sur if the Sopranos, I
think it's been about Tan eleven. Yeah. If I put

(51:07):
on Netflix, I end up watching The Office. No matter
what's on there, I end up in the Office. All
these new shows. I go, all right, hold up, Joe
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to r xbar dot com slash si Media. Your promo
code is SI Media at checkout r xbo. Um. Is
there any sort of um? Let's see, I don't want
to question, yes, you confend me. Do you do you

(54:18):
get input to producers on the telecast like you say
maybe we should? Do you do I get input on
this up? Well, I'm the most outspoken, like okay, because
some people think, okay, my jobs played by players. Probably
I've already texted our producer a hundred times already on
but don't show bogger anymore on the stop with it. No, Yes,
we're NonStop every day. Are the producer of Monday Night Football,

(54:39):
Jay Rothman, who has produced more football than I could
ever dream of, you know, working in my lifetime. It
gets up at like five thirty in the morning. We're
already texting, we call all day, we're up late at night.
We're together on the road, a NonStop conversation about what
we're doing this that. Do you like this? Do you
not like this? Do you you know? Yes? We we
all share our opinions, and we're all not bashful about
doing so. Alright, No Booger on the crane opinion. I

(55:03):
love Booger on the don't show it, that's all. Let
me get Let's have to give people the visual context
so they understand his point of view. Okay, let me
give you a couple of football questions to wrap up.
Is this the end for the pay Riots? It feels different,
it does. It does not feel like what we've seen
in the past when they've had um some of the
speed bumps. There is a lack of talent in certain

(55:25):
pockets on the team that you can't ignore. Um. They
are long in the tooth enough where it's fair to
question um and what I saw the other night with
what coach Pascual Looney, who I don't think got enough
credit for what happened the other night in the defensive
game plan did um was alarming. Yeah, but I do

(55:47):
think the a f C overall comes into the season
as a weaker conference. That you can be middle upper
pack and still get things accomplished. And the Josh Gordon,
the best team in the a f C has a
huge fall and that's Kansas City defensively, right, the Josh
the offensive scenario will be fascinating that if he plays
in every game, that's what Brady needs more than anything.

(56:10):
Right now he's got there's no but who knows it?
You know? Um, I was gonna ask did the Chiefs
have enough defense to get them to a Super Bowl? Well,
they have enough offense, and sometimes having enough offense is
your best defense. They appear to be a team that

(56:33):
um is so good in one facet of the game
that it may not matter. Right, that's yeah, which would
be interesting to say, that's for sure. Who will have
I can't wait for that game Monday night for him
to have that big national stage. Right, and now we
get the full examination of what they are on week
fours in a place that's I don't care what it
really hard to play and against von Miller. I mean,

(56:54):
that's that's the first good real It's a good test
who when all is said and done, who will have
the better pro career? Rosen Alan Donald Mayfield, So the rookies, Yeah, okay,
when all is Sadden done, who will have the better
pro career? I think Mayfield is a sensational force of energy,

(57:16):
and I think that's what you saw in the second
half the other day. Um. I think that it's gonna
depend on what they're surrounded by and what the franchise
end up looking like. Because right now, those franchises that
they're on are not going to look the way they're
going to look for the meat of those careers. So
I think which general manager makes some really good sound

(57:40):
decisions to support those guys, because right now Cleveland looks
to have a defense that can support winning and enough
pieces where they can really turn things around here, maybe
a little faster than we've all assumed. Um. I was
very impressed by Josh Allen the other day, and he
has he has the best physical tools. Yeah, he throws

(58:02):
a ball right there, But what he did in terms
of just showing you guts and desire running and hurdling
the area. That was really impressive. You know, they're probably
a little further away. Arizona appears to be in trouble
right now, and then you're gonna have the end of
the fits his career, and you know, you have this
transition there and then the Jets are seemingly headed in

(58:24):
the right direction, knowing that they're gonna have upwards of
eighty something million dollars in cap room in the off
season and draft picks. So I think the Jets roster
will look very different next year in the year after,
which should really help Donald a lot. So I would
put Mayfield and Donald towards the top of that list. Yeah,
I think everyone would agree with that. Um. I love Mayfield.

(58:50):
I did that Red River game last year Texas, so
you he just exudes juice. He's the juice factory. There's
just juice coming out of every poor man and he
you know, I've been impressed with the way he's handled
everything too. And you know, there was a lot of this,
you know, stuff about his personality, but he's been he's
been phenomenal. Yeah, I like the guy. Every time I've

(59:10):
been with him in personal I dinner with him up
in New Haven. Um, we're at the Walter camp down.
I just liked the guy. Yeah, uh, let's trap with
this since uh we went back to college. What tell
me what it's like on a Saturday when you're watching
your son play? Can you keep? Can you keep your horrific? Horrific?
You're sick for four hours? For four hours. It was horrible.
I had to do coaches meetings. I was sitting with

(59:33):
Ryan Fitzpatrick the other day, UM doing you know, player
meetings and Dirk Cutter and all those guys and and
um Gerald McCoy. You know, while my son was playing
on ESPN to the other day and they had a
horrible they played. They just they were playing great. Well wait, Forest,
I was at the game was a Thursday night game,
So I was at the well they just lost to

(59:53):
produce like and they were and listen, they got a
lot of town that BC teams got a lot of talent.
They were twenty three in the country five interceptions and
just of those games where from the moment it starts,
you know, and so they come down the field, they
score and John runs out and he's out there and
like right as right as I see number nine run
out to kick, it's you know, I think it's Patrick
walks in the room. Somehow I got it. I got
over here in the apside, you know, and I just

(01:00:15):
give a little glance like that. But Anna, it's it's
very difficult. It's very difficult stuff that. And you know
what it's done for me though, Jimmy is watching my
son become, you know, a sought after recruit as a
punter and kicker, and then watching him now play as
an eighteen year old in his first weeks of college.
How the heck he's a starter or it's just he's

(01:00:39):
still your little guy, right, So it makes me appreciate
that everybody I go out there and broadcast, they've got
a family, they've got parents, and they've got family or
watching them, and they get you know, and then somebody
really really cares about them. Somebody's watching every player where
they're only watching that person and they just hoping he
doesn't get injured. Nothing that happens. So it's it's given
me that perspective, which is are unique. And that's why

(01:01:00):
I'm so upset that I misidentified somebody last night, because
somebody just wants to hear their son's name said properly
on national TV and acknowledge. Some high school coaches wants
to hear, you know, they mentored that kid and to
hear their name that that's why it really Hunters and
kickers get the chaft. That's just the way. That's okay. Yeah, yeah,
what who do they play this week? BC? They played
Temple at home this week. Yeah, and then next week

(01:01:22):
they're at NC State and then they got they have Miami.
The red bandana game, the Wells crowd. Their game is
the ESPN home game on a Friday this year against Miami.
That that's one of them. But that has turned in
recent years in college football being one of the most
special new traditions when they honor the nine eleven here
a Wells crowd with the red bandannas. Have you ever
read Tom or all these books? Well, I don't know
that the book. Yeah, So you know, the BC team

(01:01:43):
changes their uniform every year to red bandana fringe, you know.
And so John is very excited to play in that
red bandana game. But I just want him to be
a good teammate and and a good kid and get
a great education, but the fact that he has to
do it every week on national TV sort of does
turn my stomach. And you know, Twitter loves the we
We love to tweet college kickers every time there's a miss,
and I feel I feel bad when I do it

(01:02:04):
because they're like eighteen, but you know they miss a
twenty years field. Go'll let you have money on the game.
And you know what, what's your what's your relationship with Twitter?
Do you I never did it for nine years. I
tweeted a period and sent that out just a DoPT
sent that out nine years ago when it first started.
And then I got a pressure from a lot of
folks because of the current job that I have that

(01:02:26):
you should be active. Do you check your mentions? No?
I don't don't know play by play person should ever
check their man? Yeah, well of course you know what
you're yeah, and um so I just try to be
joyful and fun and promote the brand and and have
fun and yeah, but you know there's times I won't
do it for a bit and then yeah, whatever, not
a good thing for play by play people. You know,
come on, I know what my business is and what

(01:02:48):
my job isn't people The hate that's coming and all that. Yeah,
but I'm the rookie to it, although at this level,
you know, you guys have been the only you're a rookie,
but you're not a rookie. No, I've been doing it
forth and like you said, I mean you you you
had got a bunch of Alabama and all you know.
I mean, but here's the thing that that's the thing
about Twitter. I think everyone experiences this with Twitter. There's
so much bad and then there's so much good. Because

(01:03:10):
the test effect was a big, big Yeah. That was fun. Yeah,
so good and bad. So all right, Well, I appreciate
you coming in and I had a lot of fun.
I mean, when you've got a podcast where you can
cover w W E Lydia, Bastianic sopranos and go into
Asia for good Italian food, really good. You have Tasco Marinis,

(01:03:32):
Marina's fifty seven and Qualum Poorer Killer. We covered it all.
You let me say the Crane. We covered everything. We
covered everything. I appreciate it. I appreciate you. Have a
great rest of the season. And uh chiefs Rams on
a Monday night, I'm looking forward. Yeah, that's gonna be
a good one for sure alright, my thanks to Joe

(01:03:53):
test It Tour, appreciated the time and um remember Wednesdays
now for the simet A podcast. We'll see you next
week to take care. Do you know about the Locked
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