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October 31, 2024 60 mins
On the latest episode of TFTS Storytellers, the guys talk with Hamilton Big Blue Coach Arvie Crouch.  Coach Crouch has completely tunred around the football program.  We dive into his history, his players, and his coaching philosophy

Sponsored by Rinks Department Store in Mt. Healthy


Check out Coach Crouch's story on this episode of Tales from the Script.


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Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
All right, loyal listeners. Marty Eisley here, all apologies about loyal.

Speaker 2 (00:06):
We've been catching statics.

Speaker 3 (00:08):
About not dropping a pod. Yes, for the couple of weeks.
I can't show my face.

Speaker 1 (00:14):
At crossroads without getting somebody yelling at me, well.

Speaker 2 (00:17):
That life has gotten in the way. Life has gotten
in the way.

Speaker 4 (00:20):
Fellas my brother in law Kadog, he's a loyal listener.
I mean, we got some loyal listeners out there. I
mean they tell us, they tell us when's the next pod.

Speaker 3 (00:30):
So not to get off scripts.

Speaker 1 (00:31):
But about two weeks ago I went to a h
It was a speech. Basically, it was a little breakfast
thing that the UC real Estate Center did, but it
was all about whether or not sports stadiums are a
public investment.

Speaker 3 (00:47):
What did they add to the community? Right?

Speaker 1 (00:50):
And I didn't realize it, but Riverfront Stadium was built
and open in nineteen seventy and that thing was tore
down in ninety ninety six ninety seven, so it was
basically twenty five twenty seven years old.

Speaker 3 (01:05):
Gents.

Speaker 1 (01:06):
Paul Brown pay Course Stadium was opened in the year
two thousand. That thing's twenty four years old. Are we
looking at the useful life of that stadium sort of
being on its Are we going to upgrade it?

Speaker 3 (01:19):
Are they going to put a dome on it?

Speaker 5 (01:21):
Sell the time?

Speaker 1 (01:23):
And then you look at other cities, like look at
go to Jacksonville's Jacksonville Jackquars website and they've got renderings
of what their stadium is going to look like. It
looks like it landed from outer space. Okay, uh, you
know the one that was the Sofi Stadium in La
Allegiant in Vegas, the US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. These

(01:44):
these places are just absolute taj mahals. And you look
at Paul Brown Stadium, you go down there, you don't
realize it.

Speaker 3 (01:50):
It still feels new to me. Yeah, have been a
lot of upgrades. It's twenty five years.

Speaker 4 (01:56):
If you need to watch because of River and Coliseum,
because of those room front.

Speaker 1 (02:00):
Maybe I just think like if you're a player, though,
if you're bouncing around, you're in the league, and you
go from one week you're at Sofi and the next
week you're at Paper, it's.

Speaker 3 (02:09):
Kind of feel like you're walking into a time machine.

Speaker 2 (02:13):
No, no doubt, no doubt. I mean, here's the thing,
you there's they came in waves, right, so when you
think about the waves, you go back to the late sixties,
early seventies, you had the cookie cutter stadiums, right, So
you had these cookie cutter stadiums, and Martin, I don't
know if you realize it or not, but we we

(02:33):
just now reached the end of an era and those
cookie cutter stadiums were the multi purpose stadiums. And Pat
you can jump in on this. You had riverfronts, three rivers,
the Vet in Philadelphia, Atlanta, Fulton County Stadium. Okay, and
then that's what I'm saying, the end of an.

Speaker 1 (02:52):
Era Arrowhead to a degree, and that's been just upgraded
over the years to the point.

Speaker 3 (02:58):
Yeah, but Arrowhead seventy has.

Speaker 4 (03:01):
Been around forever, has always been a football stadium because
that's that's been football only.

Speaker 2 (03:07):
I'm talking about the ones that are that are multi.

Speaker 3 (03:09):
Popost I see what you're saying.

Speaker 5 (03:11):
You see what I'm.

Speaker 2 (03:11):
Saying, Like the ones remember Shay Stadium when you had
Richard Richard Todd with the Jets. Who was they were?
What was playing on? What was the number fourteen? Yes,
come on, you think you think you're gonna get me
on this, Come on now.

Speaker 5 (03:28):
Said Joey Cleco.

Speaker 2 (03:30):
What number uh sev seventy seventy seventy seventy seventy three.
Uh Mark Caston in ninety nine, Bob Crable, you had
all those guys playing the Shay Stadium. But my point
is you had all these multi purpose stadiums, and now
with the A's leaving Oakland, Ala Mada Colisseum and heading
to Vegas or wherever they're going. So that was the

(03:52):
first wave of it. And then when you had Camden
Yards starting the the new baseball only stadiums, So you
had that wave of it, and now you're getting these
mega stadiums. All the ones you just talked about was
Sofi and Minneapolis and all that. There were the ones
that were kind of built out of necessity in the

(04:14):
late nineties early two thousands, and Paul Brown slash pay
Corps falls into that. Yeah, it's kind of like kind
of like the Lost generation, so to speak. But then
you've also got the ones that I think are the
most useful, Lucas Oil in Indianapolis, like you got in

(04:35):
what's the one in Houston, whatever the name of it is.
It's some kind of energy stadium or whatever it is.

Speaker 5 (04:40):
I don't know what it is.

Speaker 2 (04:41):
But in Houston, where it's a dome, it's a retractable dome.
Those are the ones that I think are the most
useful because think about in Indianapolis Lucas Oil. You can
have a concert in March where you have Chris Stapleton
and George Straight playing a concert there and you have

(05:03):
the roof closed, and then all of a sudden the
summer you open it up. And hell, I mean even
in Indianapolis they built the and Pat you're you're a
swimming guy, they built the Olympic Trials swimming pool in
Lucas Oil Stadium. So a multi purpose stadium. Yeah, is

(05:25):
that the wave of the future, You would think so,
you would think so. The question that I have isn't
so much Yes, without a doubt.

Speaker 4 (05:32):
I think your stadium knowledge here is just beyond reproach.

Speaker 5 (05:35):
I love this on the charts, that's off the charts.

Speaker 4 (05:39):
My question is this for us in Cincinnati, what the
fuck is the coliseum doing. It's like people for good,
it's tearing it down. It's like it's like our city
council is just sitting there, hand of the county is
just sitting there, and they're like every once in a
while you go like, oh, yeah, that's that's right.

Speaker 5 (05:56):
We do have a coliseum. No one cares.

Speaker 4 (05:58):
It's the word how old is that thing?

Speaker 5 (06:02):
And how bad? How bad is it?

Speaker 2 (06:04):
I mean in the Cincinnati Stingers pat.

Speaker 1 (06:08):
That was a major topic at this breakfast sort of
meeting I went to. I mean, there were a couple
hundred people there, but Jeff Birding was the keynote speaker,
and man, it sounded, honestly, it sounded like he was
running for office. I mean, that's a dude that's got
some political ambitions I think in the future. But the point,
they spent a lot of time talking about where the

(06:28):
new coliseum wants to be built.

Speaker 3 (06:30):
It's going to be in the West End.

Speaker 1 (06:32):
Yeah, it's going to be up It's going to be
up near where you know the Finnati Stadium is, and
it's yeah, no doubt it's it's going to be up
near between the Convention Center and the West End. I
think they've got plans already about where they want it
to The whole the whole Central Parkway corridor between the
stadium and it's all going to get redone.

Speaker 3 (06:52):
You're not going to recognize it in tenure.

Speaker 2 (06:54):
With the new parking garage that they had their building
right there right now. I think it's it's all going
to be intertwined right there. Have you guys been Have
you guys been to the Coliseum slash Heritage Bank recently? Recently?

Speaker 5 (07:07):
Have you been?

Speaker 4 (07:08):
Have you been there recently? Except except for the Wiggles
eighteen years.

Speaker 3 (07:13):
We sent our kids to the Wiggles concert.

Speaker 4 (07:16):
That was like, maybe we're not getting there the Wiggles,
right and maybe recently recently in the last three years.

Speaker 5 (07:26):
I went, I went to a I went to a
Cyclones game.

Speaker 4 (07:31):
Uh, probably four years.

Speaker 2 (07:34):
I went.

Speaker 3 (07:37):
Very affordable and very fun. I am in for going
to a second game.

Speaker 2 (07:40):
I agree, I agree, But why can't they play in
a nice arena like that? That's my question. I went
to the Blake Shelton concert there probably a year and
a half ago. Great show, great show, But when I
got home I had to pressure wash my gym shoes
because the amount of ship that was stuck to the
bottom of them. Like I think I missed half of

(08:03):
the show. I missed Gwen Stefani coming out and performing
with him because I was waiting either in line to
get to the bathroom or to get to the concession stand,
which I think all just kind of intertwined into one
line because the concourses there are like seven and a.

Speaker 5 (08:18):
Half feet wide.

Speaker 2 (08:20):
If they just dropped a wrecking ball in that place tomorrow,
I would not be disappointed. I would probably get under
a tailgate to watch it.

Speaker 5 (08:28):
Would be disappointed. Nobody been.

Speaker 4 (08:30):
It should have been knocked over thirty years ago, and
it's just like, oh yeah, we still have it.

Speaker 5 (08:34):
It's like I don't know, I don't even know. It's
like a skin tab, like just hanging on, like what
are we doing here?

Speaker 2 (08:41):
Name a great hey, name a great event that you
have seen in that place?

Speaker 5 (08:46):
Oh? You know what's funny.

Speaker 4 (08:47):
I was just talking to my buddy Molkie D name
drop Mike Weber.

Speaker 5 (08:53):
We did a rap con. We did a rap concert there,
Heavy D and the Boys.

Speaker 2 (09:00):
I was there.

Speaker 5 (09:01):
Were you there eighteen ninety? Maybe maybe.

Speaker 3 (09:06):
It was ninety.

Speaker 2 (09:07):
It was a summer nineteen ninety, Heavy D, Digital Underground,
Humpty Dance.

Speaker 6 (09:12):
They were there.

Speaker 5 (09:14):
Yeah, it was really really good. It was a good show. Good.

Speaker 2 (09:16):
But was that the last event? Main event you saw there?
Major event?

Speaker 5 (09:21):
I tell you what.

Speaker 4 (09:22):
In the eighties, you know what, I went to watch
college basketball there was. I think it was around sixteen Indiana,
Ohio State.

Speaker 5 (09:32):
I think it was Ohio State with Chris Jent.

Speaker 4 (09:33):
What year was that, Oh, I think that might have
been ninety set.

Speaker 5 (09:37):
Yeah, I can't really that might have been.

Speaker 1 (09:40):
I'm almost certain I saw ac DC there the Money
Talks Tour. I'm almost positive it was either there or
Era Arena. I've got the visual from inside the show.

Speaker 3 (09:49):
In my head. I just can't remember which which avenue was.
But the Wiggles come on. Captain Feathers Sports.

Speaker 7 (09:59):
Well, come to Tales from the Script, a bad app
Cincinnati high school sports podcast that features local coaches and athletes.
Here are your hosts, Brett Schneeber, Pat O'Connor, and Martin Eisley.

Speaker 3 (10:28):
All Right, Fellas, Marty here, our next guest.

Speaker 1 (10:33):
He coached Hamilton Big Blue from ninety three to two
thousand and eight. All Right, he was a teacher there
for nine years before getting the big whistle for nine years.

Speaker 3 (10:45):
We're getting the bit. Well, I'll start over. I screwed
that up. Yeah you did, Fellas Fellas our next guest.

Speaker 1 (10:53):
Next guest coached in Hamilton at the Big Blue from ninety.

Speaker 3 (10:57):
Three to two thousand and eight.

Speaker 1 (10:59):
He was a teacher there for nine years before getting
the big Whistle in my neighborhood, Mount healthy Oul's Baby,
where he won a shit ton of games.

Speaker 3 (11:08):
It was there for twelve seasons.

Speaker 1 (11:11):
A couple of years ago twenty twenty two, Boomerang employee
came back to Hamilton and has the Big Blue locked in.

Speaker 3 (11:19):
They are rolling.

Speaker 1 (11:20):
They went seven and three last year, eight and two
this year. Allow me to introduce head coach RV.

Speaker 2 (11:26):
Crouch.

Speaker 3 (11:26):
Thanks for joining us, coach, Hey.

Speaker 6 (11:29):
Man, I appreciate you guys having me.

Speaker 1 (11:32):
Well, then anything, we wanted to invite you to the
pod to highlight you, highlight the program, talk about the
Big Blue, talk about the kids, and to try to
get our listeners a little bit of perspective about the
magic that you've brought back to that community.

Speaker 8 (11:46):
Well, I tell you, you know, it's been a lot
of work, but we're having a good time right now
and we've got guys bite buying in and you know,
the people Hamilton are loving it.

Speaker 6 (11:56):
You know.

Speaker 8 (11:56):
I've always said that Hamilton's a winners town, you know,
and it doesn't matter if his baseball, basketball, football, whatever,
they'll they'll jump right behind it. If you're taking care
of business and they should are.

Speaker 1 (12:09):
Go ahead, Mortin No, I was gonna say the city
of Hamilton has gone through a renaissance lately.

Speaker 3 (12:15):
I mean there's a lot of cool stuff going on
up there.

Speaker 6 (12:18):
Man.

Speaker 8 (12:18):
It's I mean, our leaders of our city has just
been an outstanding did an outstanding job of just revitalizing
downtown and and you know we've got the Spooky Nook
here now and uh, you know, it's just it's just
really turned the city around, and you know, it's it's
really helped the image and people are starting to realize
that Hamilton is a good place, a good place to live,

(12:40):
good place to send your kids.

Speaker 6 (12:42):
I mean our grades are as.

Speaker 8 (12:44):
Good as the Lakota schools, you know, so you know
we're doing we're doing really good things.

Speaker 6 (12:48):
You know.

Speaker 8 (12:48):
Mister Hopbrook is our our superintendent. He's been a superintendent
for the last I think five six years, seven years,
and he's just did a hell of a job of
turning us around. And the board members of all worked
together and it made this place a desirable place again.

Speaker 4 (13:06):
Coach, I was gonna look, have you talk about your
season real quick and kind of looking back on it,
and when we look at the way you started started
with Baiting and then a couple of tough Lakota opponents,
a nice gritty win a Mason. But then when you
look at things, you've kind of ripped off six in
a row here, and it started with who you face

(13:27):
in the opening round of the playoffs, Oak Kills with
a nice thirty forty seven one.

Speaker 5 (13:31):
That's kind of looks to me if.

Speaker 4 (13:32):
You look at it on paper, kind of when you
got things rolling, talk a little bit about the beginning
of the season and kind of the maturation, and it
looks like I kind of found yourself against o Kills.

Speaker 6 (13:39):
Well, I mean we knew going in and this was
our year.

Speaker 5 (13:42):
You know.

Speaker 6 (13:42):
We got you know, our jvs. Nine and one.

Speaker 8 (13:45):
You know, so they lost one game by one point,
you know, and and we got a program man, and
and you know, these dudes that are seniors this year
was a sophomores when I came in and really bought
into what I was doing. I'm connected to a lot
of them through their the league guys, and I coached
their coaches and and they got a lot of respect
for me when I was assistant here at Hamilton.

Speaker 6 (14:06):
So it was actually perfect timing. You know, and you
know it's it's been a it's been a blast. You know.

Speaker 8 (14:12):
At the beginning of the year would be bade and
win the Super Bowl, come out lay and a against
Lakota West, we played horrible.

Speaker 6 (14:19):
There's one of them deals.

Speaker 8 (14:20):
You know, my old coach, high school coach McCoy, you know,
he's that old guys coach. You play that the Super
Bowl game and you're gonna have a dollar. So, you know,
I thought our program was a little better than that,
but it wasn't, you know, and we had to you know,
re gear and get back at it. We got robbed
at at Lakota East. We won that game, you know,

(14:41):
and I'm not scared to say that we got a
We had a horrible call at fourteen seconds left.

Speaker 6 (14:46):
In the game and uh uh and and I.

Speaker 8 (14:49):
Don't care if anybody here's that, you know, I don't
have anything personally.

Speaker 6 (14:52):
I'll let it go.

Speaker 8 (14:53):
But we won that game in the fourth quarter with
with fourteen seconds left.

Speaker 6 (14:57):
My offense did what they needed to do.

Speaker 8 (15:00):
And you know that bad call, man, you know, And
I understand where the guy's coming. He thought he saw
what he saw, but he didn't see what he thought
he saw. And you know, when you break down film,
it's a lot easier for me to sit here and say,
you know, it was an awful call.

Speaker 6 (15:13):
You know, he was just doing his job.

Speaker 8 (15:14):
But you know that really cost us part of the
gm C, you know, part cost us too home games,
you know, possibly if we take care of business well
Friday night. Uh So it was it was a big,
big deal at the time, you know. And it just
shows the character of my kids at the time. And
now you know, they buckled down and we won seventh Street,

(15:35):
you know.

Speaker 6 (15:35):
And and these guys.

Speaker 8 (15:37):
That did a hell of a job but just doing
what we're supposed to do. Him very intelligent team. We've
been we've been all academic Ohio two years in a row.

Speaker 6 (15:44):
Man.

Speaker 8 (15:45):
You know that that's the first time in school history
we take our academics and and it's just you know,
you and I know we're in a podcast, but our
staff at Hamilton, our teachers and our administration are just unreal, man.
And and and they work so hard for these kids.
And a lot of our kids have challenges, but nobody
uses them these excuses.

Speaker 6 (16:05):
And we challenge our kids every day and and and
these guys are showing up. Man, and it just shows,
you know.

Speaker 8 (16:11):
So we started out wanting to and kind of sucked,
and then we came back and you know, had a.

Speaker 6 (16:16):
Good had a good win.

Speaker 8 (16:17):
I don't remember who the next oponent was, but obviously
the big win was Princeton. You know, everybody, nobody counted
us in for that game. And we come out and
we decided we're going to be the real deal. And man,
it was a whole it was a whole different level
from that point home. Man, our kids have, uh understand,
you know, we're legit. And it's probably one of the
best teams I've ever coached. It's not the best, and

(16:40):
and and I've had dudes on teams, but I've had
never had this many guys on t on the on
the team and that can you know, make make plays
the way these guys are and I and I don't
like to hype them up too much because you know,
it's still kids.

Speaker 6 (16:53):
But you know, I'm proud of telling these guys.

Speaker 8 (16:55):
Man, you know, there's a lot of these guys are
struggling in life and they decided to buy in my
program and buying the character and the star, you know,
and just doing what they're supposed to be doing in
life and and understanding all the decisions they make in
their life first, first and foremost affect them and the
people to love them. So you know, they really have
bought into that and started to understand that and started

(17:17):
making better decisions and committed to something, you know, and
that and that's where we're at. You know, you know,
two years in a row, you know, last year eight
and four got knocked out in the second round, but
won our first playoff game in school history and the
current playoff system and and you know, I'm just proud
as all these guys and and we're looking to make
a run.

Speaker 2 (17:37):
Coach, you got to take a breath. I mean, you
threw so much information at us right there that I
just there's so many things I want to I want
to jump on, and I've got my notes here, and
you've hit on a bunch of them. Number one, I
find it extremely hard to believe that Hamilton had never
won a playoff game.

Speaker 3 (17:55):
That that's cold.

Speaker 2 (17:57):
Yeah, that's like you know, in the under under the yeah,
under the current system. But but there had to be
one of those years. But but you guys found a
way to get it done. You talked about you know,
you played the Super Bowl against Baden and then you
you know you you got knocked off by West and East.
But then you found you guys found a way to
get it gone. Accordating to my Indiana State University math,

(18:21):
over the last seven games of the season, you've given
up forty one points on defense. You've only given up
ninety nine points throughout the entire year. I mean that
is those are incredible numbers. And you mentioned your staff.
Talk to me real quick about your defensive coordinator because
I don't know who he is. Hey, I've just I've
heard phenomenal things about your defensive staff and what they do,

(18:43):
and they must be doing something right to only only
give up ninety nine points throughout me.

Speaker 1 (18:47):
Before before you answered, let me interject because I was
going to bring that up. Also, you've also got a
running back with like fourteen or fifteen hundred yards, right,
I mean, you get it done with a running back
like that and a defense like you have.

Speaker 3 (18:58):
That's a wicked combination.

Speaker 8 (19:00):
Well, you know, uh, my decordinators Matt Hoover, Uh, he's
an Edgewood guy. He he played under Cripe, Dave craik Man.
Dave Crept was the old whizard back in the day,
you know. So he's got some good lineage there and
he learned all some good guys and and you.

Speaker 6 (19:17):
Know, me and him is grown together, you know.

Speaker 8 (19:19):
So I got the job unt healthy, and I tried
to get him to come with me immediately. Uh, and
he didn't want to leave him with it at the time,
you know, as a young buck, and he had a
pee job, and I didn't know if I was gonna
be able to get him a pee job, and so
it didn't it.

Speaker 6 (19:33):
Didn't work out.

Speaker 8 (19:34):
And you know, eventually, you know, uh, you know, I
think it was ten years later. You know, he was
looking to get out of here and it wasn't a
good place to be at the time and for him,
and he decided to come on with me, and I
got him a job as pe teacher, and you know,
he just took off man. And and to be honest,
you know, he struggled a little bit. You know, he's

(19:55):
he was a great schemer, like he was you know,
he still is. But he would he would really scheme
to someone's strength and take it away, you know. And
but the problem was if they they was able to
counter his scheme, we really wasn't able to counter back.
And and I sit down with him at a at

(20:17):
a restaurant, you know, and we sit down and had
a few beers and talked, and I said, listen, man,
we've got to get a system together here, you know,
to where if somebody does counter what you're scheming, you're
able to counter back.

Speaker 6 (20:30):
And and that that means we've got to have a
really good system.

Speaker 8 (20:33):
And he's like he is hitting my hand and hit
the rock and said, man, you're dead on and and man,
we have a little back. Since then, he's did all
the work with what he does. You know, I couldn't
call his defense. I know it's Thursday the stack, but
you know, uh, I.

Speaker 6 (20:48):
Just let him go, man. And he's did a hell
of a job.

Speaker 8 (20:51):
Got a great staff, you know, Joe speeds heels my
strength coach. I call him this Italian stallion man from Youngstown, Ohio.

Speaker 2 (20:58):
Uh.

Speaker 6 (20:59):
He don't take no ship it. And he gets in
these kids ass.

Speaker 8 (21:02):
He eliminates a lot of problems for me in the school,
in the in the field.

Speaker 6 (21:06):
And you know how that is.

Speaker 8 (21:07):
And and because he's so he olds kids accountable and
and and on top of that, he makes a strong
as hell and uh, you know he's our D line
coach and a line batterers coach Milan the year his
son played for me at uh At he's actually the
other D line coach. He played for me at Uh.
I mean I played for me. He coached for me
at malhealthy.

Speaker 5 (21:28):
Uh.

Speaker 8 (21:28):
He's been with me every year I've been a head coach.
He came on over with us at Hamilton, so that
that's that continuity. I got Bobby bel Tranity's or DV
coach guys in a wheelchair, but you know, couldn't love
him more. And he's he's from Connecticut twenty nine years,
you know, coach, and he's had a really rough year
health wise. He's missed a lot of games and a
lot of practice. But I mean outstanding. And I hired

(21:51):
another guy here when I came in and played for
me here, Rockem Caver.

Speaker 6 (21:56):
Uh some good teams when Jim Place was here.

Speaker 8 (21:58):
So then he coach out and all them guys and eCos,
you know, we talked about it workout. But we've got
a great staff man and and may do a great
job on defense and offensively.

Speaker 6 (22:10):
You know, we we you know, we we can move
to that later if you want.

Speaker 8 (22:13):
But we got good coaches on that side too, So
it's been a I've been very blessed with the assistant
coaches that I was able to hire and got to
give credit to, you know, I got to give credit
to Mike Olbrook and John's area. I mean, they made
stuff happen in the Board of Education here, they made
stuff happen to get hire the right guys I wanted
in place, you know, and speed. You know, Joe came

(22:35):
speedier on my weightlam coach. He came without having a job.
He was coming with me. So I ended up working out,
got a job, and now it's just the rest of
this history. Man, everything's coming together that was meant to
be and and we're just lucky guys.

Speaker 3 (22:48):
Coach, talk about some of your kids on defense and offense.
I know you got some some dudes.

Speaker 1 (22:53):
Got a guy with nine sacks, another dude with almost
one hundred tackles, I mean getting getting one hundred tackles
in a ten season game.

Speaker 3 (23:00):
Come on, let me tell you.

Speaker 8 (23:02):
I'll tell you that's the best defense I've ever coached,
Black and I've coached some damn good defensive healthy. Uh,
this is the best defense uh trayvor Don is easily,
definitely as a d lineman.

Speaker 6 (23:16):
The best I've ever coached. I mean, he is the best.
He is a.

Speaker 8 (23:20):
Dynamic player with athletic ability that is insane. Man, I
got a picture of my pone that he shows a
vertical him blocked, I mean number one. He's blocked like
nine punts since I've been here.

Speaker 6 (23:33):
Nine.

Speaker 8 (23:33):
I mean, it's just something. It's unheard of, you know.
And his verticals freakish. Man, it looked like it was unhuman.
I can't even I can't even you know, believe how
high off the ground he was and his his.

Speaker 6 (23:46):
Get off isle. Now, this is the guy that has broke.

Speaker 8 (23:49):
The single sack sack uh single season sack record for
Big Blue with all the history we have. In seven games, Okay,
he's only playing. He didn't play the first three. He
didn't play the first three. So you know he's going
to Iowa State. He couldn't be with a better guy.
And coach Campbell there, man, Coach Campbell is awesome, and
uh you know, you know I coach David Montgomery, of course,

(24:10):
and he played ment healthy and that as a Detroit Lions.
But he played for uh Matt Campbell and and I
couldn't send my kids to a better human being and
a better a more classic guy than than Matt Campbell
many you know, and and that and and go back
to trade.

Speaker 6 (24:27):
You just it just never ends.

Speaker 8 (24:28):
And he's even a better person, like the nicest young
man you ever met.

Speaker 6 (24:33):
Four point oh g p A. And his mom don't play,
you know.

Speaker 8 (24:39):
Around you know, she she's raised the boys pretty much
by herself, and and she's just an amazing woman that's
did a great job. I mean, his brothers in the
top five safeties in the country.

Speaker 6 (24:50):
I mean at Iowa stay just you know, just one.

Speaker 8 (24:53):
Of the ladies he has and and and and just
a great human being.

Speaker 6 (24:58):
You know. C. J.

Speaker 8 (24:59):
Bryant Ibacker. He's about five tot eight to be truthful,
and he won't break you in half. I mean, I
had two players at my how they call it, the
Jordans and Justin Lackey, and they were two terrors off
the edge. And he is exactly identical to them. Guys,
it's just one of them. He's all over the film.
The funny thing is I coached his dad when I

(25:20):
was here as an assistant, So you know, it's pretty
cool to see that, you know, and.

Speaker 3 (25:24):
Yeah, you've been.

Speaker 1 (25:25):
That's funny when you see kids you're like, okay, I
coach his dad.

Speaker 3 (25:27):
That puts a date stamp on you.

Speaker 8 (25:30):
Yeah, and thankfully it brings me a little crad with
these guys, you know some of it, you know, so
you know that he's just all you don't care about
his body, and you know as well as I know
if you guys coach, I know, I know, I know
Brett has and all that. But when guys are flying
around like that, you hardly ever see him hurt. You know,
they're just flying around specking people, and they're the hammer.

Speaker 1 (25:49):
There's no nail on me, right, I tell I tell
kids that all the time. It's like the reason sometimes
get dinged up is because you're taking it, not giving it.

Speaker 8 (25:59):
It's just not in one It's not in his mindset.
There's just it's just I mean, he led the GMC
at five foot eight, like one hundred and seventy five
pounds last year attackers he led the GMC. Now right
behind him last year the GMC was Grayson Goldswith Smith.

Speaker 6 (26:16):
He was he was All League linebacker.

Speaker 8 (26:18):
Last year and I made, Yeah, I made I made
the decision of switching. He really and truthfully reminds me
of David Montgomery Corps. Strength wise, He's not quite the
football he's he's coming into it a little bit, you know,
and that's why he's blown up a little bit.

Speaker 6 (26:35):
He's starting to figure stuff out.

Speaker 8 (26:37):
Uh, he started to have a better vision with you
know when he gets the ball, and and final hole
in his breakout game was president obviously.

Speaker 6 (26:44):
And now he's not with the bat. I mean he's
a stud.

Speaker 8 (26:47):
I mean absolute stud, you know, absolute uh you know,
miny me of Dave Montgomery. The core strength is insane.
He just punishes people when he runs.

Speaker 1 (26:59):
Man, you're talking about a dude that's averaging one hundred
and forty yards a game with your schedule and twenty
three touchdowns.

Speaker 3 (27:06):
That's yeah, that's the.

Speaker 8 (27:08):
Kind of light at the beginning of the year because
he was struggling a little bit with his vision and
stuff like that. But now he's got it, man, And
and if you go for the last six games, I
bet it's it's higher than that. You know, he's really
blown up and tore it up. And he's a great
kid too, you know. You know, he's had a pretty
rough life. His his uncles are our wrestling coach, and

(27:29):
he lives with his uncle, and his uncle saved his
life and uh brought into us and and uh, you
know a couple of years ago and it just it
just turned his life around.

Speaker 6 (27:40):
And he's just doing an outstanding job.

Speaker 4 (27:42):
So coach, real quick, what was that conversation like when
you told him, Hey, you know what, I know you
were a stud linebacker.

Speaker 5 (27:47):
I'm gonna move you to the other side of the ball.
How about going ship?

Speaker 2 (27:50):
He was loving?

Speaker 5 (27:51):
Okay, so he was He wasn't one of those guys
the guy who kills the rock. He wants it. Yeah, okay,
he wanted that ball.

Speaker 8 (27:58):
And you know he's a little short for a linebacker
that you know, at the level at where he's at,
you know, so I thought, hey, you know he can run.

Speaker 6 (28:06):
He's strong. You know, he ran the ball a little
bit last year. So you know, I knew what I
was doing.

Speaker 8 (28:12):
You know, I've seen what I've seen and and I
knew it was gonna take a little bit. I mean,
he hadn't been a running back since sixth grade. He
didn't play junior high. He didn't play since like seventh grade,
right two years ago. So he comes in as a
sophomore and and moves in from Troutwood area. Uh and
and it just we just take him under our wing

(28:34):
and turned out a chubby kid and he just turned
it around, man, and it got bought into the weight
room and his uncle, you know, kind of busted his
ass a little bit to listen. You know, this is
where you're gonna live. You know, you're living in my house.
Is that we're gonna roll and and straightened his ass out, man,
and he bought in. And it's just been a it's
been a it's been a blessing for us for sure,

(28:56):
you know, but it's been a blessing for him too.
You know, he's surrounded by but good people that care
about and love him and what the best for him.

Speaker 2 (29:04):
Coach, you mentioned it earlier the Princeton game, and inquiring
minds want to know because that's one of those deals.
You get back to the office after the game and
you start flipping through Twitter and you're looking at scores
and we swore and no offense to you or the
Big Blue, but we swore that was a misprint. We're
like thirty four to nothing. How in the hell does

(29:24):
Hamilton beat Princeton thirty four to nothing.

Speaker 6 (29:26):
Well, that's no offense.

Speaker 8 (29:28):
It's about one hundred and fifty time I've heard that,
and that I know after that, But what happened?

Speaker 2 (29:34):
I want to know, like, what did you guys do
that night to absolutely dominate that game?

Speaker 6 (29:40):
Yeah, well, you know, we've had some hard to hearts
that way. We had a good speaker.

Speaker 8 (29:45):
Jamie Rodgers is one of my former coaches, d Lion
defense coordinator at Mault Healthy.

Speaker 6 (29:49):
I had him come in and talk. You know.

Speaker 8 (29:51):
We won a big game against Winton Woods when they
had eight eight Division one guys when we were at
malt Heealthy and we beat them, you know, and we
had a Montgomery and Tyre Elliott and there were both stuts,
you know, and and we beat a team like that,
you know, and you know, I said, you know what,
I'm just gonna have my man come in here talk.
He's been there with me just they're doing here in
my ass, you know, so you know, I I, uh,

(30:13):
we we talked, but during the week we really helped
them accountable and you know, and and we just said, man,
it's time, I mean, it's time to wake up the
giant and uh, you know, you guys know that you
can play with these guys, and we just got to
go out and do it, you know, and and and play.

Speaker 6 (30:30):
Our best game ever in our lives. And uh, that's
exactly what they did.

Speaker 8 (30:34):
And Coach Rogers came in on Thursday, I had one
more former Lackey brothers came in and talked a little
bit and then you know, uh, Coach Rogers talked a
little bit about cheeking armor and all that stuff, you know,
and got the kids a little fired up, and we
had him fired up.

Speaker 6 (30:49):
So the level went up really high. And you know,
that's that's why people love football.

Speaker 8 (30:53):
You know that you never know, you know, as we've
been talking about that this week, listen, you know people
love football. If you guys try to overlook go kills,
you're asking to get shocked. Because this ain't a bad
football team, you know. And so we're ready to go.
We're ready to uh to play. Our kids are locked
in right now. I'm really impressed with our practice today
after the first two so I'm pretty excited to see

(31:14):
how we play Friday night. But that's what happened, man,
and we just upped our level. I think we did
some things a little different through DJ in the in
the in the in the pregame a little bit. I
have these guys hip in the locker room.

Speaker 6 (31:26):
It was a party.

Speaker 3 (31:28):
That's awesome, That is so cool.

Speaker 1 (31:30):
I'm picturing just like two heavyweights coming out in the
first round, you know, out of the corner, and you
just came out throwing haymakers, right, I mean, that's where
I'm picturing in my head.

Speaker 8 (31:40):
Yeah, man, I mean, I was just you know, honestly,
you know, I was. I thought I was shocked we
beat them as bad as we did. I mean, and
you guys just like you said, but but you know.

Speaker 6 (31:50):
It was one of them days.

Speaker 8 (31:51):
You know, we're gonna overlook them and if we get
a chance to play them again, obviously they're they're they're
a great team. They haven't lost their games since lost
to us, you know, and you know, so you know
they're they're looking to get revenge and we're looking to prove,
you know, hopefully if we get there through low kills.

Speaker 6 (32:07):
You know, So we got our you know, we're all
focused on O kills right now.

Speaker 8 (32:11):
Ready to go, and you gotta be practice. We got
our morning practice in the morning. We're gonna go put
the hay in the barn and try to go sell
the Friday night man.

Speaker 3 (32:21):
Yeah, you got to be It's it's everybody zero and
zero right now. Right it's the second season.

Speaker 1 (32:25):
It sounds like you guys are playing you know, your
every team's goal is to play your best ball at
the end of the year, right so you can go
to the playoffs, not you know, hitting on all eight
cylinders and hopefully you can get through a schedule like
yours healthy. Quite frankly, you know, sometimes it's like, you know,
you could be dinged up. My kids might not know
if they're playing or not at this time of the year,
so it makes practice a little bit more difficult. You know,

(32:49):
talk to us about your philosophy on how you know
the season progresses. Are you thinking about, you know, playoffs
because right now the top sixteen teams make it right,
So are you putting stuff on film or are you
saying what's up with that?

Speaker 5 (33:01):
On film?

Speaker 6 (33:02):
Yet?

Speaker 3 (33:03):
You know, what's your philosophy with with that?

Speaker 6 (33:06):
Well, you know, I don't do that. I probably should.
I'm not that smart to move across, you know, and goes.

Speaker 5 (33:12):
To the next guy.

Speaker 8 (33:12):
You know, I'm a student of the game. I'm student
of being a head coach. I've coached with some great guys,
you know, Ed McCoy, Doug Krause, Ed Minnery, you know,
some guys that I learned and I didn't want to
be like you know too. And and then Jim plays
coach with him, and you know, I became a student.
Like when I was an assistant, I would go watch

(33:34):
you know, we went in the playoffs here. I would
go watch Troy Aberhart's practice of what it was. You know,
that's the kind of shit I did, you know, to
grow up as a as a as a coach, you know.
And and when I was there three times that I
didn't go to the playoffs at Mounthealthy one one off season,
I went over and spent the whole time with you know,
Tom Bolden and Nicole Ring and went to every practice

(33:56):
in the morning, in the afternoon, went to the games,
watched how they did thing, you know, and and just
learn soaked it in, you know, went over to Saint
X and watch coach over there, just you know, and
just listen.

Speaker 6 (34:08):
To him talk, you know.

Speaker 8 (34:09):
And and the biggest thing we talk about right now,
and this is something I got from coach over there,
as Zada is just uh, Saint x is uh.

Speaker 6 (34:18):
You know, just attrition is the name of the game
right now. Man, You know, are you are you willing.

Speaker 3 (34:25):
To do.

Speaker 8 (34:27):
The best the longest you know, and keep working hard,
keep your mindset right.

Speaker 6 (34:33):
Are you willing to do that or are you not?
That's up to you and how you how you want
to do it.

Speaker 8 (34:37):
If you want to win the state championship, we got
to have, you know, we got to be locked in
and willing to do that, you know, and willing to
do the things right.

Speaker 6 (34:44):
You know. There's gonna be bumps and roads. Everybody knows that,
you know. But you know, Coach Beck over there, he
knows that.

Speaker 4 (34:50):
You know.

Speaker 6 (34:50):
He's been around obviously.

Speaker 8 (34:51):
And and I'm not shy, you know, I don't think
you know, because I'm public and they're pride.

Speaker 6 (34:56):
Don't give a crap about that stuff. You know.

Speaker 8 (34:58):
I'm gonna I'm gonna learn everything I learn from everybody
I can learn from them. At the time, when I
was younger, and I was very fortunate to have good
lineage as a coach, and I was smart enough to
go and learn some more things all some guys that
really made me a better coach. I mean, you know,
I used to work Ohio State camp in the summer.
They paid me to come up there and work the campus.

(35:18):
And then Penn State. I'd go them, you know, so
I had my wife, didn't see me for two weeks,
you know, in the summer. For years and years, you know,
I would go up there, and I'd worked with you know,
Jim Haycock, defensive coordinator and the D line coach Ohio State.
And then which is you know, now, I go over
to Penn State and Larry Johnson was the the court
of the D line coach. Now he's over at Ohio State,

(35:41):
but I worked with him for six years, and you know,
and I worked with a couple of other coaches over
there that were phenomenal on their coach Paterno, and and I.

Speaker 6 (35:50):
Just been the luckiest guy in the world. I wish
the NCAA would let that happen.

Speaker 8 (35:53):
I feel bad for the young guys because I learned
so much, and I've made so many relationships from doing
that and summer that are my friends.

Speaker 5 (36:01):
To this day.

Speaker 8 (36:02):
And you know, you know, so I'm just trying to
pass all that stuff down to my guys as I
get old here and and try to win me a
state championship just like everybody else.

Speaker 5 (36:11):
Jach love it.

Speaker 4 (36:11):
You sound you sound like you've said this a couple
of different times. Which is the call of the junior
high role. And you've got JV that's lost every lost
only one game obviously, Varsi is.

Speaker 5 (36:22):
Just killing it.

Speaker 4 (36:22):
Tell me what are the pillars of your program? I
kind of want to know about the culture outside of
looking in what what do you?

Speaker 5 (36:30):
What are you known for?

Speaker 6 (36:32):
Well, we talk.

Speaker 8 (36:33):
About character a lot. You know, I'm not a big
believer of harping something every day. You know, there's guys
I coached for It's like every day, every day you
know this, and that I don't harp on it. Every
day we talk about character. I got the character star
hanging up everywhere in our locker room, and and you know,
on the top of it it says, you know, personal family, Uh,
you know, and you can see the star behind us

(36:55):
right now, but it don't have what you know, it
looks like in the in the weight room.

Speaker 6 (36:59):
But you know, we talk about character.

Speaker 8 (37:01):
Doing things right when nobody's looking at you, you know,
are you are you making good decisions and doing things right?

Speaker 5 (37:07):
You know?

Speaker 8 (37:07):
And and understanding that the decisions you make in life
affect you and the people love you first, That's what
I said. I touched on them that earlier.

Speaker 6 (37:15):
But then it goes down over here.

Speaker 8 (37:17):
It goes down to academics on the other part of
the star. Are you making good choices to affect your
academics in the right way? And then if you're not
doing good things there, or if you are doing good
things there, you're affecting the team, the team family. So
that's the other side of the star, you know. And
then we got the strict conditioning and responsibility, you know,
and we just talk about that all the time, and

(37:39):
we got to hang it up all over and you know,
and and I put gmc champs everywhere that we could
put it, because you know, you know, you got to
believe in that, and people are starting to believe that,
you know, and uh, you know, that's what we that's
what we hang our hat on. If you're making good
decisions and and and affecting the people around you and
depend on you, you're going to be all right in life.

Speaker 3 (38:00):
Change gears a little bit.

Speaker 1 (38:01):
Coach Marty Isley, here real quickt hang on, I gotta
ask a really important.

Speaker 2 (38:05):
Question that's Okay, struck struck, wile cut it out. That's fine.

Speaker 3 (38:10):
Wait, where where's the best wings in Hamilton? If we're
going out to Hamilton to get wings and a beer,
where am I going on.

Speaker 5 (38:19):
Deep culture questions?

Speaker 4 (38:20):
Brett was gonna come up with a banger that was
gonna like sorow this all together, and we're gonna hold.

Speaker 5 (38:25):
Where's where's the where's the best fucking wings? That's the
greatest fucking segue. I'm curious.

Speaker 6 (38:34):
A beer and.

Speaker 8 (38:35):
Down, hands down wings on Brookwood, hands down.

Speaker 5 (38:42):
They hear this, Uh you know I did, so don't
give you discount.

Speaker 6 (38:46):
You know, Kim the owner, she's outstanding. And I'm not
saying that because they donated to us.

Speaker 5 (38:52):
We're piped in live, dude, We're piping it is real.

Speaker 6 (38:56):
It is real deal.

Speaker 5 (38:57):
You know.

Speaker 8 (38:57):
They are great wings and uh, you know she donated.
We did something we have never done here. We had
a family coaches coaches family tailgate before the game and
all our families come down down to the end of
the end zone behind the scored ward and they just
kind of hung out. We had about all the nests
at up porthole, you know, and food and all that stuff.

(39:17):
But Kim Winslow brook Wood took care of us man
and we were stilling down. I mean, she did over
almost four hundred wings.

Speaker 6 (39:25):
And so you know, you know how much money.

Speaker 2 (39:26):
That's awesome, So you know, believable coach. She might have
gone broke that night because I've seen pictures of your staff.
You have a large, large staff in more ways than one.
You have a lot of people and you've got some
large men on your staff. So those families must have
been killing the wings that night.

Speaker 8 (39:44):
Oh they love it, they love They really did have
a blast. And we're just so thankful like people coming
out of the woodworking. You know, I'm you know, BW
threes above blah wild wings.

Speaker 6 (39:56):
They don't win. They wings last week for our players,
you know, so everybody's buying in man and helping us out,
and where just we could be more thankful for all
of it.

Speaker 2 (40:06):
I love it now. Earlier, you know, we were talking
about your defense. As a as a guy who spent
six years coaching in the GMC, myself coaching offense in
the GMC, there's one name that always stands out, and
I just have a question. Could Denicos Allen start on
this year's defense.

Speaker 6 (40:27):
Without a question.

Speaker 8 (40:33):
Oh, I mean, I mean, honestly, Trey berdonnds right there,
man with him, and uh, you know they're they're they're
both phenomenal players. I mean I was fortunate enough to
coach both of them obviously, and uh, you know, Denikos
was a he was a wrecking mall.

Speaker 5 (40:51):
Yes he was.

Speaker 2 (40:51):
So So here's the story with Denikos. So we're we're
playing Hamilton. I'm an okills. We're playing Hamilton at o'kills
two thousand and eight. And they got this linebacker number
twenty seven. He's got he's got this bubble of an ass.
It was just explosive.

Speaker 5 (41:06):
Dude.

Speaker 2 (41:06):
It looks like he shoved shoved two pillows inside of
his football pants. And we had the bright idea, we're
gonna set the tone.

Speaker 5 (41:13):
We're gonna run.

Speaker 6 (41:14):
We're gonna run.

Speaker 2 (41:14):
Iso right adding first play, so.

Speaker 5 (41:17):
We got we got a little bit of an I
think that we had. We had a full back.

Speaker 2 (41:24):
He was a tough kid. He was a little bit undersized,
but he's a tough kid. And so first play of
the game, I mean it's it's old twenty three ISO.

Speaker 5 (41:31):
We're running.

Speaker 2 (41:32):
We're running up the a gap off the left side,
and our full back goes in there and he gets
ejected back through the line of scrimmage. He comes so
that the next the next play is a different personnel
group and he comes off the side and the old,
the old saying of looking out your ear hole. He
comes back in his helmets like sideways on his face
and he's like, coach, I can get him, just give

(41:55):
me one more chance. And Kenyan come and says, sit
your ass down.

Speaker 5 (42:00):
Not play the rest of the night. Oh, that's a
great point. Abuse.

Speaker 8 (42:13):
There was a lot of child abuse that went on
with him during play playing football.

Speaker 6 (42:16):
Buddy, I'll tell you that was one bad dude.

Speaker 2 (42:18):
Yeah, and if I remember right, I think he might
have returned kickoffs too.

Speaker 5 (42:22):
He was.

Speaker 2 (42:22):
He was an absolute I remember.

Speaker 8 (42:24):
Chroy Eberhart walking up to me and well, no, he
called me and he says, uh, He goes, what do
you think about this?

Speaker 6 (42:31):
The element what it was? And I said, well, you
know this guy is and goes all right to stop.
Do they have any denicos Allen's He said, nobody.

Speaker 2 (42:40):
Has, nobody.

Speaker 6 (42:43):
He's a real goal dude.

Speaker 2 (42:44):
So oh, he was phenomenal.

Speaker 5 (42:47):
He was so good.

Speaker 2 (42:48):
He was He was a one man wrecking crew, and
I think somehow we found a way to win that night.

Speaker 6 (42:53):
I don't know what it was, but we remember that
game very very very well. You know, I mentioned Rocky
and Cave.

Speaker 8 (42:59):
I shouldn't say this, but Rocking games on my staff now,
so I use him an example. Every year, you guys
did that spread, that new spread punt I was, I
was the special teams coordinator. I think Place wanted to
fire me at halftime, but he didn't. So and then
at the end, you got we forced you guys to part.

(43:21):
We would have won the GMC that year, right. I
don't know if you know that. We would have won
the GMC because Miltown was good. We beat them the
next week. But so you I had two guys coming
from outside, one guy coming up the middle, big long guy.
We blocked the punt all right once. But I told
Caber all week, I said, keep your ass outside, do

(43:43):
not go inside. What do you do?

Speaker 6 (43:47):
Fourth down? At about six he goes inside. That punter
was smart seeing it took off. I don't think it's played.

Speaker 5 (43:54):
I really don't know.

Speaker 6 (43:59):
It cost us the game.

Speaker 5 (44:00):
Yep.

Speaker 2 (44:00):
So so Cincinnati football fans will recognize the name of
Mike Elston, who coached at at UC for a long time.
He had come there with coach Kelly and they they
had brought that spread punt with him. Well, we were
working and you mentioned about working camps and everything. So
Mike Elston's wife actually worked out o'kills with me. She
was a school psych for us, And so I got
to know Mike pretty well. And he was running special

(44:21):
teams that you see, and I was running special teams
at Oak Kills, and I said, teach me this punt
that you guys are doing, this, this spread rugby punt,
and he taught it to me, and it was just
a read and and so Kyle Rally was our punter,
and he started rolling around the edge and I said,
if it's if, I said, if it ever looks like
a golf course, man, just take off, just take off, run.
And sure enough there was nobody keeping katain and and

(44:44):
he just.

Speaker 8 (44:45):
If he stops there, we get the offense and run
it out. And then we just kept playing zero and
you guys score with us.

Speaker 5 (44:52):
Yeah, so.

Speaker 6 (44:56):
Any control, you know, places fire my ass at halftime.

Speaker 8 (44:59):
And then we came back and scored immediately on the
kickoff from the half and Gerald Davis picked it up
and took it to the house. So we even thinks
up you know, special teams wives.

Speaker 2 (45:10):
So yeah, I'm sure I will sleep over that that
week too, having a block, having a block putt and
giving up a kick return.

Speaker 5 (45:18):
So that's not good, not good at all.

Speaker 4 (45:21):
So since we're talking about oak Kills, what are the
keys of the wind to the game this week?

Speaker 2 (45:25):
Coach?

Speaker 6 (45:26):
Well, I mean our keys to us this this this
year has been us.

Speaker 8 (45:31):
You know, Uh, coaches will have the play and they're
gonna we're gonna be ready to play.

Speaker 6 (45:36):
But you've got to do your damn job.

Speaker 5 (45:39):
You know.

Speaker 6 (45:40):
We got the dudes, you know, and you know that's
no no secret. We got the dudes.

Speaker 8 (45:45):
And if we're doing what we're supposed to be doing,
you know, we're going to be in good shape.

Speaker 6 (45:49):
You know.

Speaker 8 (45:50):
It might be in a battle, but we're going to
be in good shape, you know, at the end of
the night and see what happens. But we're focusing on us,
and you know, you know, Coach Rod's out standing, coach
worse and you know, uh, you know his defense coordinators
unbelievable too, and young guy and uh, you know, we
we're just l Rod and uh, you know, he's an
outstanding coach, and uh, you know, they they they played

(46:12):
pretty good ball. You know, they've got a new quarterback
and and they've been scoring some points and have some
yardage here and there. So we're just gonna you know,
play good defense and hopefully we can keep rolling on
the offense like we have been. I don't think we're
the same team and when we played in the first game,
and I don't think they're the same either, But I
definitely know we're not the same team. We're playing with

(46:33):
a lot more confidence and and hopefully still have that
chip on our shoulder of Friday night.

Speaker 6 (46:38):
So h we're home and we're feeling good and and you.

Speaker 8 (46:42):
Know, we talked about, you know, the responsibility part of
the Star and I you know, you know, at the bottom,
they're like, this is where the responsibility comes in that
we talked about with the Star all the time. The
character Star is, you know, hey, you are you have
a responsibility to do your damn job right. You got
a street, a body, you got people that are rooting

(47:02):
for you, people donating stuff left and right to make
this program and elite. You've got a responsibility to do
your best and play your best you've ever played.

Speaker 6 (47:11):
I don't care who we're playing. So that's that's the
way we think about it.

Speaker 8 (47:15):
You know, we're going to go out and try our
damn just playing the best game we played all year
or Friday night, and that's going to be the case
every every Friday night here on out, hopefully six more weeks.

Speaker 5 (47:25):
So, coach, you said, keep a chip on your shoulder.
Put a chip on the shoulder.

Speaker 4 (47:29):
Is there anything that you could do as a coach
to sit there and say, hey, we're going to make
sure that you're accountable, to make sure that you're getting
after it. Is there anything that you can do to
challenge them more this week? Well, because you are feeling good,
you are feeling good, you're feeling amazing, You're you're playing
with you won seven in a row. Well, what are
some of those things that you can do?

Speaker 6 (47:45):
You know, I'll give you some.

Speaker 8 (47:47):
We have some guys screwed around at cafeteria today, you know,
and I have my principal say something over to waukee
Tov and I'm like, okay, So we took care of
that real quick, and they did.

Speaker 6 (47:57):
They were in the whole entire practice. Well, you know,
they bear crawled and they did all the good stuff
and go haying around. You know, it's not a joke.
And you know, and one of them were starting, was
a starter. You know, it plays a lot. So uh,
that's just the way it is.

Speaker 8 (48:13):
You know, the rules of the rules. He was upset
like he's big time or something. I'm like, n you know,
that ain't the way it works, bro. You're gonna follow
the rules like everybody else. If you can't be mad
at me and be mad yourself, you know, you know
the rules, you know the expectations of this program. And
that's how we keep everybody in lying. We're not going
to change ship, okay, And we're gonna keep working hard
and and and hopefully we can win games, you know,

(48:34):
And and that's our focus. I got super intelligent coaches,
super intense coaches that I've been working their ass off
for for the whole year. And and and it's showing
right now with our kids buying and having that confidence
they need. You know, Uh, you know, it is what
it is, man. Our kids know the rules expectations. If
you're not willing to follow them, there's gonna be consequences.

(48:56):
Of you know, it might be playing time, who knows.
You know, we're not gonna We're not gonna play.

Speaker 5 (49:01):
Around with that.

Speaker 8 (49:02):
You know, I've been down that road. I've made some
bad decisions as a head coach. It really cost me
down the road. And I've had some a couple of
bad seasons, which not many and my head coaching career,
but I've made some bad decisions.

Speaker 6 (49:13):
It really cost me, and I learned a lesson. So
I'm not gonna do that anymore. All right, So, well,
you know we'll win no matter what.

Speaker 8 (49:20):
You know, you better, you better make sure you understand
what the expectations are of our school district they are
and our our football program because our football program is
probably higher and expectations anybody else.

Speaker 6 (49:31):
So that's that's how we keep it straight. That's how
we keep were keeping fired up.

Speaker 2 (49:35):
Honestly, what's the old What's what's the old famous Bobby
Knight quote? The biggest motivator is playing time? You know,
he says, when you asses on the bench, ass tells
the brain, the brain tells tells the body.

Speaker 5 (49:49):
Yeah, it's a it's a.

Speaker 6 (49:50):
Great funny story about my principal today.

Speaker 8 (49:53):
It's funny. I was pissed, you know, And and I'm like,
I'm suspending somebody, you know.

Speaker 6 (49:58):
He's like no, he's wait, wait, wait, wait, come down.
He's a great guy.

Speaker 8 (50:08):
John Jerry does a great job, and he's very supportive
of us. And and I'm lucky to have overall our.

Speaker 6 (50:17):
Kids know what to do.

Speaker 4 (50:19):
Yeah, and that's such a valuable lesson as far as leadership,
because because concerned and you have said multiple times just
in this interview, how how much you study leadership and
what you walk by, you accept and just you talking
about like that, and that has been such a powerful lesson,
especially for all the young coaches.

Speaker 5 (50:37):
That doesn't seem that big of a deal'll let that slide.
And this week's perfect.

Speaker 4 (50:40):
Example, like nope, this is you know, week one of
the whole new season, and I'm gonna hold you accountable
just like the rest of the week.

Speaker 5 (50:45):
And I thought that was awesome. So that's a really
good lesson. Yeah.

Speaker 4 (50:50):
Uh so, coach, now comes the most difficult part of
our podcast, when one of our selected board members here
gets to ask you some tough, banging questions. So, and
I think we've dialed up mister Steeber. He won the
lottery tonight, and so mister Brett Steber is gonna ask
you probably the nine toughest questions you ever asked in

(51:10):
your life.

Speaker 5 (51:10):
So Brett, off you go. Bro Okay, here we go.

Speaker 2 (51:14):
Coach, dead or alive. You can spend one day as
someone else. You can walk in their shoes.

Speaker 5 (51:20):
Who's it going to be?

Speaker 6 (51:24):
Some be worrying like this answer. But I'm not a
wild guy, all right, I'm not a wild guy.

Speaker 8 (51:29):
I don't care if I meet the president or something
like that. I'm not like kind of like, oh my gosh.
But I met Joe Paturner one time, and I believe
I was probably watering at the mouth. You know, I
don't understand what happened. The nicest guy in the world me.
It made me feel like I was his long lost brother.
And I remember walking out of his office and I look,

(51:52):
I'm kind of I guess I'm in the days or whatever,
and the secretary looks at me and she just starts
laughing at me.

Speaker 6 (52:01):
I'm so embarrassed. Oh my god, I just walked out
Joe paternal you know, it was.

Speaker 8 (52:06):
It was one of the things, you know, So, yeah,
walk in somebody's shoes, not in the latter days.

Speaker 6 (52:11):
You know, obviously that was that was in the hey day.

Speaker 8 (52:15):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, it was a tremendous human being at
the time that when you know, in his prime, I
love to walk in his shoes one day.

Speaker 2 (52:23):
Nice, nice, Okay, in your younger days or maybe now,
have you had a celebrity crush besides Joe Paturno a
celebrity crush?

Speaker 6 (52:34):
Well, that's that's easy, Linda Carter, I've seen some things.
You know, she knows this. Hers is Donnie Wild.

Speaker 5 (52:46):
Donnie Wahlberg Mark.

Speaker 6 (52:48):
Yeah, she's a little younger than me.

Speaker 4 (52:50):
So Donnie, did you know that Donnie Wahlberg was in
sixth sense? Really, that's just subjuice, Like Donnie Wahlberg was
the when he comes up come on. You know you
went up to Bruce Willis at the beginning.

Speaker 2 (53:05):
That was Donne of Donnie Wahlberg of Blue Blood's fame.
Huh yeah, okay, okay, uh after practice, Okay, you need
to grab something to eat to spend a long day
coaching the Hamilton Big Blue. You pull up to a
four way intersection and you got McDonald's on one corner,
Wendy's Burger King and Steak and Shake, which one. You

(53:28):
pulling into.

Speaker 6 (53:30):
Sam again one more time? I'm sorry.

Speaker 2 (53:32):
McDonald's, Wendy's Burger King and Steak and Shake.

Speaker 6 (53:38):
Uh, no doubt, Wendy's. Wendy's.

Speaker 5 (53:41):
I like that's a great call.

Speaker 2 (53:43):
The chili, the chili, Yeah, chili, Okay, I like it.

Speaker 3 (53:48):
I like it.

Speaker 2 (53:51):
Best Halloween costume you've ever had as a kid or
an adult? What's your best week?

Speaker 6 (53:57):
It's easy, that's if.

Speaker 5 (54:00):
You were elf? Okay, what were you saying all night?
I'm sure you had a cocktail in your hand? Like,
what were you saying all night?

Speaker 3 (54:06):
Like the Will Ferrell version?

Speaker 6 (54:08):
You hear that?

Speaker 3 (54:09):
You know?

Speaker 6 (54:09):
Or something like that?

Speaker 5 (54:11):
Did you hear that? Yes?

Speaker 4 (54:12):
I love that?

Speaker 6 (54:13):
Yeah, because I probably had a couple of live issues.

Speaker 5 (54:15):
So yeah, favorite, Yes, good stuff.

Speaker 2 (54:19):
Okay, okay, uh, what's your favorite football movie?

Speaker 6 (54:25):
Rudy, Rudy?

Speaker 2 (54:27):
Okay, coach? What's the off sides? That's the question.

Speaker 6 (54:32):
Yes, I don't care. I love the story.

Speaker 3 (54:35):
They didn't call it. He wasn't he wasn't offsides.

Speaker 5 (54:38):
Here's a little do you know Vince Vaughan was in
that movie?

Speaker 6 (54:42):
Yeah?

Speaker 4 (54:42):
He was?

Speaker 5 (54:43):
Yeah, you got you got? I am DV pulled up
in front of I'm just pulling great pools. By me,
great pools.

Speaker 2 (54:52):
You could tell us that Elvis was in that movie
and people would believe us. I mean, you're just throwing
stuff out there.

Speaker 3 (54:56):
Now.

Speaker 5 (54:57):
Okay, coach, what is.

Speaker 2 (54:59):
The first me major sporting event that you can remember
that you attended live, major sporting event?

Speaker 5 (55:06):
So professional, Mark Brad, is that what you're talking about?

Speaker 2 (55:09):
A major event?

Speaker 5 (55:10):
Like it could be college, it could be pro, could
be WWE.

Speaker 8 (55:16):
South And then I'm sorry, nineteen ninety four and that
was a major event. So we had ten thousand people here. Man,
it was crazy. But I was coaching that, but attending probably, Uh,
I don't know. I went to the Big House one time.
I took my son in the Big House. That was
huge from I don't know if I have one. I

(55:40):
love the shoe, I love Ohio Stadium?

Speaker 5 (55:43):
Got it? Okay, here we go.

Speaker 2 (55:46):
I'm just going to say four names. You tell me
which one strikes accord. Which one you prefer? Vernon Quist,
Keith Jackson, Brent Musburger or Pat Summer.

Speaker 5 (55:56):
All that's a tough one.

Speaker 6 (56:00):
Brett Mustard, Yeah, you're looking live.

Speaker 2 (56:04):
You're looking live.

Speaker 6 (56:08):
Like I liked when he was calling something.

Speaker 2 (56:10):
Yeah, he was good a lot of big time Ohio
State Michigan games like yeah, yeah, good ones, good ones.
Best high school player you've ever coached against.

Speaker 6 (56:25):
Against dude, you guys gonna take him crazy here, but
that's that's recent. The best quarterback I've ever seen in
high school is uh kidnaped.

Speaker 5 (56:39):
He is.

Speaker 8 (56:40):
He is so hard to get down. I mean I
haven't travored on in a game, not in a game
this year really hurt us and we still want it.
I should have won it, but uh, he is, I
mean he is. Wow, you've got that attitude. He's got
that attitude he's got you know, I mean he is

(57:01):
really legit, man, He's really legit. There's there's no secret
why they they went from the hole they were in
last year to I mean they got a dude.

Speaker 6 (57:11):
They gotta dude run run things and yeah yeah, and
uh he is hard to get down, man, he is
hard to get down.

Speaker 8 (57:20):
You know, he extends plays. He's gonna be dangerous in college.
He's gonna be dangerous because he's gonna have a lot
of dudes around him, so you know it's gonna be
interested in watching.

Speaker 6 (57:32):
With no doubt about it.

Speaker 3 (57:33):
Though they got they had wes Claremont in the first round.

Speaker 8 (57:36):
Uh yeah, and then and that's that's a good recipee
right there for West Claremont.

Speaker 6 (57:41):
They run the triple, keep the ball, That's what I'll do.
But uh, uh, you know we did. We held him
to one hundred and one yards in our game that
we played this year, and that that was our goal.
I mean, and they ran the ball and we knew
that it was gonna happen. You know, that was what
we were giving up.

Speaker 4 (58:00):
You know.

Speaker 6 (58:00):
So they heard us there and they out schemed us
a little bit.

Speaker 8 (58:04):
We're doing we're a different team than we were then,
but uh you know they're you know, different defense and
and you know, so yeah, without a doubt kidding it.

Speaker 5 (58:14):
Okay, here we go.

Speaker 2 (58:15):
Question Yeah, so okay, question number nine, last question will
get you off the hot seat. Your trick or treating.
You can only get the same treat at every house
all night long.

Speaker 5 (58:29):
What do you hope?

Speaker 2 (58:29):
What are you hoping to get?

Speaker 6 (58:31):
I'm a joy.

Speaker 5 (58:35):
Got one thousand dollars on all the joy. I would
lost that dollars.

Speaker 6 (58:40):
Joy. Yeah, I love it.

Speaker 2 (58:43):
Oh my goodness, coconut, I'm going.

Speaker 3 (58:48):
I'm going to take five.

Speaker 5 (58:50):
Yeah, those are what the kids are eating at the balls.
That's what. Yeah, that's Pat, Pat, What are you going with?
I do like could take five. I think I'm just
a straight recent guy. I think I got chocolate in
my peanut butter. I'm that guy.

Speaker 2 (59:05):
Yeah, I'm I'm going twix. Twis just just all of
us are all of the.

Speaker 5 (59:13):
Yeah it is.

Speaker 2 (59:14):
But it's it's got.

Speaker 5 (59:15):
No, it's got.

Speaker 2 (59:16):
It's got the crackers, it's got the carmel, it's got the.

Speaker 6 (59:22):
Payday. Man, paydays are good.

Speaker 3 (59:23):
Tuesday pay Day's with a bomb. I do like pay Day's.
They would be in my top three or four for sure.

Speaker 5 (59:29):
All of us chocolate, no candies in our ass.

Speaker 3 (59:31):
I like that.

Speaker 2 (59:31):
I like it.

Speaker 5 (59:32):
I like it.

Speaker 2 (59:33):
Okay, coach, Well, thank you for being in the hot
seat for uh for participating the night. You get a
twenty five dollars gift card to rinks and not Healthy.

Speaker 8 (59:41):
Absolutely, I love it.

Speaker 6 (59:45):
I live in Mount Healthy.

Speaker 3 (59:46):
I've been a fan of yours for forever. I can't
thank you enough for coming on the pod and spending
your time with us.

Speaker 6 (59:52):
Good Glass, I appreciate you having me man, You're awesome.

Speaker 5 (59:55):
Best the luck coach, go get them this weekend.

Speaker 6 (59:57):
Thank you, sir, I appreciate it.

Speaker 9 (59:59):
We are on Twitter, TikTok, Insta, and YouTube. Find us
on Twitter at tf TS Underscore podcast that stands for
Tails from the Script Underscore Podcast. Same with TikTok TFTs
Underscore Podcast, same with Insta TFTs Underscore Podcast, and on
YouTube Tales from the Script seven at gmail dot com.

Speaker 2 (01:00:24):
While we're at it, we want to take this opportunity
to thank our executive producer, Joe Strecker and Joe Strecker
Productions for pushing buttons, recording, editing, and making us three
idiots sound like we know what we are doing. No doubt,
he's the best in the business.

Speaker 4 (01:00:39):
Also want to thank our awesome marketing department, heeded up
by Vice.

Speaker 2 (01:00:44):
President of Marketing Liz McMahon.

Speaker 5 (01:00:48):
She does a great job of making sure that everything
looks great for us.
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