* Jay Greene, Michigan State Football alum

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Jack keambling here with my good friend Matt Sloan a
graph of okeymists.

Speaker 2 (00:03):
Big summer here, Matt.

Speaker 3 (00:05):
That's right, Jack.

Speaker 4 (00:05):
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Speaker 1 (00:24):
Zero percent. Can't get much lower than that. That's exactly right,
Papacy mat in the gang here on West Grand River, Omiz.

Speaker 2 (00:30):
They're making friends.

Speaker 3 (00:46):
Welcome back.

Speaker 1 (00:47):
It is a drive with Jack, Spotlight Radio Network and Green.
Green's Green we say, and he is with us to
say a lot about Michigan State football, the University of Michigan.
Jay Green, Proud Flintstone, Spartan dog for life.

Speaker 3 (01:03):
Jay.

Speaker 1 (01:04):
I had a chance to sit down with Jonathan Smith today,
not to be part of a press conference setting where
you get a question and then ten minutes later, maybe
you get another one. We talked for twenty minutes about
a lot of things, and I saw a different side
of him. You were what the original Jonathan Smith boosters

(01:29):
proponents advocates. You called me watching Oregon State play and say,
this is a guy I really could do a job
at Michigan State. How confident are you that things are
going to be different for him in year two?

Speaker 3 (01:45):
I'm very confident. I think it's interesting that you had
the interaction last week. When I went out to practice,
I had a chance to actually fit i mean, talk
to him for about five minutes before practice, and it
was you know, he approached me and just kind of
you know, stopped and talked and we had a great,
what I feel like is a great conversation. I even

(02:06):
told them the story about what you just said about
me seeing his team and wanting him as a coach.
So it was a very nice interaction. My expectations, like
you like, you've known that been high. I just felt
like and I even again something. I told him that
he needed to get his feet under the ground and understand,
you know, what he's dealing with. And I feel like

(02:27):
now that he's been able to do that, now he
can focus on coaching. You know a lot of times
when you when you get places and you're trying to
figure it out, you have so many outside distractions that
once you have done it, you know for a little
bit and you get used to it, they are distractions anymore.
And I feel like that's kind of the situation that
he's in.

Speaker 1 (02:47):
He admitted Jay that he didn't understand the rivalry fully
last year. He said he has learned a lot a
painful experience and a crash course and now the way
he is handling that rivalry within the program. And I
guess you can't expect someone in twenty months to know
what we know over decades. But do you think that

(03:11):
will affect the way the Michigan Michigan State game is played?
And do you think that some of the things that
have come out of ann Arbor, including the belt the
as routine will have a difference? Would it on you
as a player?

Speaker 3 (03:26):
Oh? Definitely. You know, that's kind of what those things
that have happened are kind of like a quote unquote no, no,
but you know it happens. Is it's kind of like
when somebody is guaranteeing the victory, you know, so it's
the same thing, and it's kind of take it as disrespect.
But I think that again, him being here for as

(03:46):
long as he's been here. He's not only seen it
through the eyes of football, but he's seen it through
the eyes of other sports, and you know the competitiveness
and that the library brings out for I think that
he fully understands what it is. I think his a
post tour will be different, and I think that that
means good things for us, is what I believe.

Speaker 1 (04:09):
There are a lot of things that Jonathan Smith is,
and some of our listeners haven't seen him yet. You
might not get that just from Saturdays. He's a little detached.
He's not in your face guy. Sometimes it looks like
he's almost aloof or removed on the sideline. But he's

(04:30):
taken a lot of stuff in not being a gifted
public speaker or someone who goes in front of a
crowd and can fire people up. And they've had coaches
at Michigan State who could do that. They just couldn't
coach football. But if you can't do that, how much
more difficult does it make for you to bond with

(04:54):
the fan base and for them to say that's my guy.

Speaker 3 (04:58):
I think it's difficult for you to bond with the
fan base. But I think also feel like that it's
something that you have to learn, you know. I feel
like when coach D'Antonio first got here, he wasn't the
you know, the most outgoing person and he didn't say
a whole lot, and that's just something that he had
to learn to do. So I think that with time,

(05:19):
I feel like this coach can make adjustments and he
can improve every year to get to where he needs
to be as far as you know, his relationship with fans.
And I think again, when you look at the fact
that they are bringing the meet the Spartans back, yeah,
I think it's a step in the right step in
the right direction.

Speaker 1 (05:38):
What do you expect from that. It's two weeks from
yes or a week from yesterday, right, it's a week
from yesterday, so a lot of people will be over
at Spartan Stadium. The chance will be over there too.
But in terms of autograph opportunities with all the players,

(05:59):
chance to talk with fans, maybe it's a pre tailgate
tailgate to get a little emotion going for the season,
because frankly, Jay, there's less excitement for this year than
most of it I can remember.

Speaker 3 (06:16):
No, I agree it is, but I think a lot
of that has to do with kind of like the uncertainty.
It's a lot of I feel like uncertainty going on.
You know, people after last year don't know what they
expect from this year. You know, even though we had
at least two games, I feel like that we also
could have won the add to the you know, the
five wins. People really don't know what they expect. And

(06:38):
I think that that's kind of the same feeling that
we had going into twenty one when we went eleving
and two. From what I remember, you know, a lot
of people didn't we'd know who the running back was
going to be running short, we had a new quarterback.
So I feel like this is kind of the same
thing that we dealt with the and I kind of
expect kind of the same result. I think the team

(06:59):
will cause a lot of people what they do or
really do.

Speaker 1 (07:05):
They certainly look more like a Big ten team now
physically in terms of the numbers, that depth, the experience factor,
lots of things would indicate that they should be significantly better.
I still have questions about the place kicking, and I
couldn't tell you who's going to be the leading rusher.
But as you say, I couldn't have bet on Kenneth

(07:25):
Walker to be what he was. Either, who do you
think is going to be the leading rusher for this team?
You have Elijah taut Tolliver coming in from Sacramento State
where he was the feature back, and you have two
guys in Mackay Frasier and Brendon Tullis and they played
very little last year, but at least they were here

(07:45):
on campus. And then you have a heralded freshman supremely
confident in Jace Clarizio, and he sees himself as a
game breaker, plans to get the ball in the opener.
How do you see that position shaken out?

Speaker 3 (08:01):
I think it's going to be a thing of running
back by committee until somebody establishes theirself as their guy.
I think that's, you know, the right way of going
about doing it, and really the only way when you
have guys who really aren't proven. You know, you got
the guy, like you said, from Sacramento State who had
a good year, but that's, you know, a lot different

(08:24):
than being here and doing that. So I think that's
something that he'll have to prove, and I'm confident that
he'll be able to do that. But I think it'll
be running back by committee until they actually, you know,
are able to have someone establish themselves.

Speaker 1 (08:39):
All right, Jay, I want to turn our attention sixty
three miles to the southeast and the NCAA Committee on
Infractions report released today some damning findings of guilt against
the University of Michigan.

Speaker 3 (08:56):
And if you just.

Speaker 1 (08:57):
Read that part of the report, you go wow. And
then if you go back and you read the penalties
associated with it, then for a lot of fans, especially
fans of other school schools, there is some dismay. They
don't seem like they add up. Michigan fans are more

(09:18):
upset with the first part of the report. Everyone else
is upset with the lack of punishment as they see it.
Are you surprised by any of this?

Speaker 3 (09:28):
No, not at all. I think we've talked about it before,
in me saying that I really didn't respect any I'm
surprised that this happened. Yeah, it's a thing where if
this was any other school, the punishment would have been
much more severe. And again, I don't know who Michigan
has in a corner, but they have somebody very powerful

(09:50):
in the corner that allows them to keep operating how
they operate with little punishment. So no, I'm not surprised
at all.

Speaker 1 (10:00):
Well, they are a repeat offender within the decade. But
if you go back through and you know there was
a hockey problem, it was a baseball problem, believe it
or not. Basketball. We know that that was the largest
cash payment case in NCAA history, the six hundred and

(10:24):
sixteen thousand dollars that led to the banners coming down
and then multiple football situations here. But I think a
lot of people nationally don't associate that with Michigan. They
still see the block M and the brand, and that
reigns supreme. You can't drive through Lansing, you know where

(10:44):
you live, You can't drive down Michigan Avenue without seeing
those big block ms. So the brand stands for something,
whether it's the hospital or all the great researches has
done by the university, the elite academic programs. But for
some people, all that matters is did you win and

(11:05):
doesn't matter how they did it, just the fact that
they've got that twenty twenty three national championship and that's
going to justify everything.

Speaker 3 (11:14):
No, I agree, and I think that it's crazy that
you know, when again, when you look at what happened.
They had an elaborate scheme to cheat the game, And
when you think about it, it's much bigger than the
game because you know, like I don't know, over the
last few years, one of the biggest things in college

(11:34):
especially college sports, is betten. So you defrauded a lot
of people out of a lot of money, and it's
a huger scale I feel like being what's being presented.
But again, you have this school who's operating it feels
like with immunity because if this was any other school
that had done that, the penalty would have been much

(11:56):
more severe. And the fact that they were even debating
and going back I can for whether they should do
certain things I thinks speaks to you know what it
really is, Jay.

Speaker 1 (12:08):
I often refer to it as the injustice system, and
I see corruption and inconsistency throughout law enforcement and the
judicial ranks. But I am wondering. You just said something
that really piqued my curiosity. I'm wondering if there could
be a class action suit from people who bet legally

(12:35):
against a school that basically was involved in defrauding them.
If you believe what the NCAA says and costing them
an awful lot of money. I suppose there have been
more frivolous cases brought, but I wonder if some attorney
would want to take that initiative and to see what
he could get.

Speaker 3 (12:55):
I just think that that's a real thing. You know, again,
that you you, their rate of winning against the spread
from what I remember, was like any other. And the
fact that you defrauded people out of a lot of money,
and you know, like I know how some people, you
know how they go hard on the bedding and we

(13:17):
don't know somebody might have lost their hout. Why you
don't know what might have happened due to this happening.
And to find them twenty million dollars when they probably
make that in a couple of months. Again, it's crazy.
It's all crazy. But I think it's one of those
things whereas like one of very blatant to where they
don't even try to hide it anymore. They try to

(13:38):
show everybody that this is what it is and nobody
can do anything about it because that's exactly what it is.

Speaker 1 (13:45):
So Jay, someone suggested today that what this NCAA ruling
does is saying, if you can pay and effect a
speeding ticket, that's what this was. Okay, you can go
in court and you can be found guilty of lots
of things, But if the only punishment is a speeding ticket,

(14:07):
maybe a couple of points on your record, and you
got plenty of money to pay a speeding ticket, it's
not much of a punishment. So I'm wondering if other schools,
and again not everyone, but those who can play at
the stratosphere, we'll just say rules, what rules, We're going
to win at all costs. We're going to burn the

(14:29):
rule book and come get us.

Speaker 3 (14:32):
I could see that happening. But the thing is is
they not them. I think that's what That's what the
problem is that it's going to make a lot of
people think that they can do things that they actually
can't do because they are not them. Again, there is
something that's unknown that separate them from everybody else. And
you know you have stuff to go on at all

(14:55):
different places, and you know that you know when especially
when programs are win, I mean, they seem untouchable. But
this is like a different level of that is My
thing is that again, if you have presented this, if
you have one of those things where it was where
you didn't you couldn't see what the school was, and
you solicit the infractions, you would think that the infraction

(15:18):
would be much worse. I'm sorry that the penalty would
be much worse than what it was because of what they.

Speaker 1 (15:25):
Did based on the findings. You would think that that
was more egregious to competition, fair competition than what SMU
did when it got the death penalty. So I bought
some guys from cars and some coats, So you know,
I think that you're probably onto something there, but it

(15:46):
is what it is. No one ever said life was fair.
And if you have the power, if you have the money,
it's amazing how you can buy justice. Jay, thanks so
much for joining us. Really a preciate it. As always,
I hope that I run into you this weekend or
early next week. And two weeks from tonight, will be

(16:08):
over at Spartan Stadium.

Speaker 3 (16:10):
Oh, we'll be on a trip on Wednesday, so you
would definitely see me. I forgot I'm looking forward with you.

Speaker 1 (16:19):
Don't forget now. I was just checking out the Keaton
mobile and Tom Crawford will be with us and.

Speaker 3 (16:27):
We do a group.

Speaker 1 (16:28):
We can't wait.

Speaker 3 (16:30):
Uh.

Speaker 1 (16:31):
Bred Thompson will be there and uh you know you're
gonna You're gonna be a regular here now down in
Comerica Park.

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Speaker 2 (17:26):
Jack kebling here with my good friend Matt Sloan. A
graph of Okeemists. Big summer here, Matt.

Speaker 3 (17:30):
That's right, Jack.

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We got great deals for.

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