Episode 490: Ernesto Lacayo (Gladiators)

Back from a vacation (and C0VID) Richard and Malcolm play catch up! Richard recaps his week at Full Sail Universities Hall of Fame week, Malcolm celebrates Duke City's first win of the season, and they break down the final stretch of the season for 3 teams "on the bubble" from each conference. Plus the return of Ernesto Lacayo!

Episode Transcript

(00:05):
Shut up shine, Hello everyone,and welcome to the one, the only

(00:39):
the fans show. I'm your hostis always the tea man, Richard Timon
and the man in the other box, Well, he still rides around on
his razor scooter. It is fatherMalk Malcolm McCoy. How you doing,
man, I'm knowing great man.Glad to be back. And uh shoe,
I mean I wish I still haven'traised the scooter. I mean,
I'll settle for my Haylees. I'llset it for my Haley's for now.

(01:00):
But those things were clutched back inthe day. Man, I remember,
like they were in the hot thingfor a minute and everybody had one.
But skateboards have stood the test oftime somehow, some way. I was
convinced that any zuomies still standing afterthe pandemic had to be a drug front,
because it's like people still skateboard,like there's no way. Oh wait,

(01:23):
I can't. I definite don't seehim around myself. So it's something
going on. Well, this isepisode four hundred and ninety, and yes
it did take us a minute toget here. What was supposed to be
a quick little week off. Well, I went to Florida, turned into
two weeks off because I came backand got COVID like four years later and

(01:46):
across three states and finally got COVID. I still feel like I could get
the T shirt that says never gotCOVID, because I think like there's a
window where when stuff is at likeits peak, like if you don't get
in that first year or two,then you could say you didn't get it,
and they just randomly get it.Now it's just like so weird.
So I'm back and yeah, man, what what a week Florida was?

(02:14):
Man? That was fun. Soit was like in the high eighties and
nineties the whole week, which wasfantastic. But I wear suits, right,
so I was. But the foodwas great. I was on three
panels and I had one presentation.The three panels were great. I shared
the panel with some current Hall offamers and then some alumni that just have

(02:38):
fantastic resumes, and so did mypresentation. And man it was I think
there were like three open seats likeit was at capacity, like just about
and that was crazy because when wegot in there. I got in there
like half hour early to set upand test the audio and make sure everything
was working right, and Dan,She's just like, how many do you

(03:00):
think? And I'm like, II honestly don't know. Like I'm a
twenty twenty grad. I've worked ina small market. I worked with the
Omaha Beef, which people still don'tbelieve is like a real football team,
and uh, you know, Ijust I don't know. I said,
if there's a dozen in here,I'll be happy. And then all of

(03:20):
a sudden, like fifteen minutes beforewe were supposed to start, they come
in and ask if they can startletting kids in because they're lined up,
and I'm like what, So I'mlike yeah, So they start piling in
there, and I saw photos fromwell. I attended one other sports panel
a buddy of mine who works withthe Kraken over in Seattle. He's an
alumni. He did a presentation andI sat in on that one because I

(03:44):
had the time too. And thenanother buddy of mine did a presentation and
I saw a few photos from that, and theirs were not as full as
mine. So I'm not trying torub it in, but it was just
like for my first presentation, Ithink that was pretty good. Song man,
I mean it was crazy. Andthen thankfully because it was the panels
and presentations started at ten and theyend at four, and so thankfully because

(04:10):
mine was the last one of theday, they didn't have to kick us
out and we could answer like allthe questions, so we went about fifteen
over so that was crazy too.But yeah, just what a week.
Amazing food, the Hall of Fameceremony. It's just such a well put
together production that they do down thereevery year, so that was great.
And then just being around everybody andall those different walks alive because you have

(04:33):
you know, I was having abeer with the guy who does who works
with Lady Gaga on her tour andhas produced musicians like that, and another
guy who was, you know onthe newest Spider Man video game for PlayStation,
you know, Spider Man two,Like he did work on that,
and it's just like god, Like, I feel like at my high school

(04:58):
reunions, I'd be like top three, right, But when it comes to
like if these things had reunions,man, and not Hall of Fames,
I'd be like, Okay, I'mgonna just check myself over in the bottom
twenty. So it was really agreat time. We met a lot of
great people, and so it waswell worth the time off. I don't

(05:19):
know if it's very fair to comeback and get hit with COVID after that.
It seems a little unnecessary. Butwe are recovering, we are here,
We've got a lot to catch upon. So we're gonna skip the
good, bad and funny for theweek and we'll just kind of go over
our some of our favorite moments fromthe last two weeks. I gotta say,

(05:40):
first one that comes up for meis Caplin's walk off for Quad City
that game that Friday night. Itwas the only game that happened, and
just for him to nail that thinglike that was crazy. In the world
of indoor football, for those thataren't familiar, you do not see that
many walk off field goals. Infact, I think the last one that

(06:00):
we saw was what week two,Vegas and Arizona for that upset, So
you just don't see it a lot. Like in the NFL, you see
it probably every like at least onceor twice a month, but in indoor
you just don't see walk off fieldgoals like that, So props to him.
That was cool to see. Andthen let's see Green Bay keeps winning

(06:23):
I love to see it. Idon't think a lot of people have them
pegg to be a top four team, and I have them as of today
number two in my power rankings becausetheir wins have not just been wins,
but they've been convincing wins like they'redoing it in all aspects of the game.
So good for Roberson and his crew. Max Miler still I believe an
MVP candidate for this season. Andthen Edwards was back for Frisco, so

(06:48):
that's good for them. Kyle Kingis hurt, but I have it on
good authority that he will be backsoon. But Iowa still got the win
without him last week. So acouple of notes games notable performances from this
last week. So Week number twelvewas Iowa over Zioux Falls forty seven forty
five, so they get their thirdwin of the season, so they could

(07:11):
be a team to watch. Asfar as spoiling postseason hopes for others,
I don't think they'll get in themselves, but you never know. There's still
a whole, like almost half ofa season left, which is ridiculous to
say Frisco over Mass fifty two toforty eight that one. Those are the
kind of matchups now that you watch, they're just like, this is going
to be the difference between one ofthese teams getting in and one of these

(07:33):
teams not getting in for the postseason. Max Miler seventeen and twenty four to
two thirty six, three touchdowns throughthe air, one I in t and
two touchdowns on the ground. Andthen Dalton Sneid fourteen and twenty two thirty
eight, seven touchdowns through the air, one interception and none on the grounds.

(07:54):
So I mean, you know,Dalton Steed clearly a difference maker.
And we're actually going to talk alittle bit about Arizona because we're gonna take
a look at the remaining schedule forI picked three from each conference as far
as who's kind of on the bubbleand what the rest of their schedule looks
like. And me and Milk aregonna kind of try to cipher through this

(08:15):
and see if we can crack thecode to who's going to get in and
who's going to be left out.But malk what what are your big moments
from the last couple of weeks sincewe last spoke. Well, man,
it's a lot to talk about,obviously, but I think we both know
I don't think I have to.I don't think I have to speak too

(08:35):
much on it, but I meanno, I mean, Duke said he
finally getting there. They're much neededwhen uh kind of like you said earlier,
I don't see them really making anynoise in the postseason, but they
are kind of shaping up to bea team that can potentially spoil some some
guys postseason hopes and uh, youknow, just be that that uh,
that that team that that team tobeat when it comes to that, when

(08:56):
it comes to that area for sure, the Mass versus Frisco. I mean,
we've been talking some time about Massactually having a opponent that can test
their metal really and it's interesting tosee that, you know, once they
come up into a real contender.I wouldn't say they folded, but I
mean it just kind of goes toshow you where they actually where they stand

(09:20):
as far as the upper echelon teams. You know, it's easy to kind
of get caught like caught up inthe rankings and you know, the records
and whatnot, but realistically, wouldtest you better than anything else is when
you're playing a team that is equalcaliber or better than you. I mean,
I love watching that game. Thatwas a great one. Also,

(09:43):
you know, my boy Cash andNova over there in San Antonio continuing to
make noise. I mean, Ican't I can't even say I'm surprised at
this point, you know, man, I mean it's just great. Great
players are gonna do great things.I want to say, was it a
week eleven? I think he wonOffensive Player of the the Week for a
gain. May it was either elevenor twelve, I forget, but yeah,

(10:05):
man, great game. Just justcontinuing to do what he does,
leading his teams of victory. Andyou know, I'm definitely just hoping to
see better things from San Antonio.Man. I think they finally got it
going and they're really ready ready to, you know, make some noise in
the postseason. Yeah, they areone of the teams that we will talk
about as far as looking at theremainder of their schedule, because I took

(10:28):
the two conferences and I said,okay, what are we looking at here?
The West is stacked, so realisticallyI wrote down three teams for each
conference. But for the West,I think it's only going to be one
spot up for grabs. And thenfor the East though it's probably going to
be two spots that are up forgrabs for at least three teams, because

(10:50):
if you just look at it's weirdbecause both conferences they go and then they
have teams with like really good winningrecords, and then all of a sudden
it just stops and then it's likeusing records, right. I think for
the West, it's Arizona and thenSan Diego are the closest to five hundred
of any other team in the entireleague, where the East it has like

(11:11):
you know, Green Bay and Friscoand then it there's Quad City at four
and six or four and five,and then the rest are like three and
seven. So it's that's why Isay the East is probably going to have
a mad dash for the last twospots from there, and then the West
is probably only going to have oneup for grabs. But it could be

(11:31):
interesting how they get to that onespot if I recall correctly how the playoffs
are done, and I think it'sthe top four from both conferences, so
may double check that. But yeah, so we'll talk a little bit about
that. I thought about if wewere going to do a put it to
bed because it's a new month,but I was like, was there anything
that we really like got into lastmonth that we needed to put to bed?

(11:54):
So for comedic reasons, I figured, Harrison, Butker, I'd just
like that to be put to bed. The guy doesn't know how to read
a room. We've established that hischoice of words given his audience were not
great. That was poor choice thereas well. But I mean, it's

(12:18):
not like the dude said, yeah, you guys all just spent the last
four years and will be up toyour eyeballs in debt to go on and
hopefully pursue careers. But in theend of the day, it's like,
get back to the kitchen. Like, it's not he didn't say that right,
Like it was a lot more delicate. But I could understand that.
Man, if you can't read aroom like I don't, I don't know
what to tell you because that wasthat was bad. So yeah, I

(12:43):
think it's there's a lot of pokingfun, which is fair, it's fair
game. But the overreaction, Ithink it was a bit much, you
know, it just but that's justme. You know, I've I'm not
a woman. I'm not going toclaim to be in that world. I
know that there's a lot of hotbutton topics and trigger words that they go
through. So that's just me.I just think, like, okay,

(13:05):
but like, let's move on.He made a speech we made fun of
him for it's that would be theone thing that I would want to put
to bed. We didn't even talkabout it, but I feel like somewhere
over the last two weeks we probablywould have talked. It would have been
like a batter funny for I canimagine. I can imagine, I could
definitely imagine. I mean, Ithink we found the one guy who's actually

(13:26):
hated more than you Rich Oh jeez, man, Like you said, especially
like a when you have a largeplatform and you're a pretty constant public speaker,
and you would think that you havethe uh I guess, the foresight

(13:46):
and the training to not ruffle toomany feathers, you know. But like
you said, Bucker, he's justone of those guys who doesn't see.
I'm not gonna say he doesn't care, but I think it just kind of
comes down to, like you said, he just he needs his his social
skills could use it. Tune upreading a room is a is a pivotal
skill, you know. So Imean, if you can't do it,

(14:07):
you're gonna you're gonna find ther saleson it. You find yourself on the
tail end of a lot of alot of a lot of negativity, you
know well, and obviously like Ididn't have a whole lot of time in
Florida to do anything to catch upon anything, just like I figured,
like my itinerary was so stacked.I was like, God, I'm glad
I told Malcolm we take the weekoff because there's just no way. But

(14:28):
then you know, the COVID week, Uh, people were sending me links
to stuff like did you see this? Did you hear about this? Or
blah blah blah, and it's justlike no, Like when it comes to
like the other outlets, like Idon't watch their stuff because there's I don't
feel like I'm gonna learn anything fromthem. And when when you are in
an industry like media, you onlywatch the competition for one of two reasons.

(14:52):
Either you feel like you could learnsomething from them or they actually do
something that entertains you, or youfeel that they have a informative outlook on
something. But when it comes tothe world of indoor football, like there's
very few that do it well,and you know we're one of them.
Obviously, we've had players and coachestell us that this is the only place
that they'll come and talk on thiskind of platform. But it's like,

(15:15):
I look around and you know,there's what the Shady Sports, and it's
like, okay, so there's likea bunch of people that work for that
network, I guess, but it'sa bunch of talking heads in a box.
There's no production value, like,there's no anything. It's just like
a really poorly done product. Andthen inside the walls they do stuff for

(15:37):
the NAL well, I guess technicallythe Sharks and Gunslingers, but that's like
your grandfather plan, you know,so and their whole thing is like brand
above all, but it's like thena L is not a brand to be
above all. So if that's notread and butter, okay, that's a
little rough. And then you've gotthe guy that things he knows everything about

(16:02):
my personal life and how I spendmy free time, and who can compete
with him? I mean really,I mean he's just like shitty graphics and
no content whatsoever. I mean,that's the pinnacle right there. But I
just look around and there's just nota lot that I can be like,
okay, yeah, I see whatthey're doing over there and be like,
oh, that's something new. It'sjust not people that think that you need

(16:22):
to be first when you just needto be right. And I remember back
in twenty twenty, actually, youknow, there was all the stuff once
COVID canceled the season officially. Hehad all these moving parts and inside the
arena reported that the IFL was goingaround to NAL teams telling them that the
NAL was going to fold and tojoin them. And so I'm just like,

(16:47):
okay, who's their source on this, And of course they didn't name
one. So at that time,I was actually on decent terms with the
Commissioner, Todd Tryon. So Itexted him and I said, hey,
did you see this? Yeah,I saw it. Well, no,
it's completely false, Okay, careto comment, And he gave me a
comment. Took me fifteen minutes toget a statement from the IFL commissioner saying

(17:07):
that report is not true at all. And so I called them out and
they had to issue a retraction.And I'm laughing so hard because I was
just like, you cannot do thisjob and not double triple quadruple check things
you just can't and if you're nottalking to people like the commissioners, I
don't know what you're doing in thisgame because it's just poor journalism at that

(17:30):
point. So yeah, when peoplesend me links to stuff or they asked
if I saw this, chances areI didn't because there's just nothing of value
in it for me. So that'syou know, I relaxed. That's how
I spent the COVID week. Westarted binge watching CSI. So that's our
little recap and catch up, broughtto you by F three Energy. Yeah,

(17:52):
Malcolm Wall, you were not makingcontent and videos. I was trying
to get sponsorships. So we're gonnasee, Okay, that's actually pretty good.
Yeah that's one of three flavors.They sent me two cases, so
yeah, F three Energy. Idon't know what their little catchphrase or anything

(18:14):
is, so we'll just be likeF three energy. Fuck. Yeah,
make sure you edit the fire aroundthe can and everything too. This same
like it just fits, you know, all right. So since normally this
is the point of the episode thatwe recap the last week, we've got
two weeks to catch up on.But we're gonna do things a little differently.

(18:37):
So we're actually gonna break down thestandings and teams that are on the
bubble and the rest of their scheduleand see who is going to get in
and who might be left on theoutside looking in. So let's go ahead
and take a look at that.Right now, here are your teams.
So let's go ahead and look atthe West. So the three teams,

(18:59):
because let's be real, it's probablygonna be one spot up for grabs really
with just how stacked the West is. So I put down San Diego six
and four, Arizona six and four, and then San Antonio four and five,
and then the East, there's probablygonna be two spots up for grabs,
but it's gonna be a mad dash. We've got Massachusetts at six and
four, Quad City four and five, and Tulsa three and seven. Now

(19:22):
Iowa was three and seven as well, but I just I can't, you
know, like, I just can'tgive them the voted confidence to be like,
you know, hey, you guyscould be in the postseason picture.
And I'm not saying that Tulsa ishead and shoulders better. But I think
once we go over the remaining schedules, you'll kind of see why they're in
the mix. So with San Diego, their last games of the remaining season

(19:49):
are home against Arizona, then threeroad games and they are bay Area,
Tucson, Northern Arizona. Then theycome home to take on Vegas, they
have a bye, and then theyclose it out at home against bay Area.
The combined record for those opponents thirtyand seventeen, and they only play

(20:11):
one team twice once, so allof them are conference, so these are
all the games that mean something,So thirty and seventeen, that's a pretty
rough uphill battle as far as ateam that's sitting at six and four looking
for one of the last possible playoffspots. Arizona their last stretch here,

(20:34):
they are on the road against SanDiego, then they're at home against NAS,
on the road against Vegas, andthen they're home twice for Iowa and
Tucson. They have a bye,and then they close out their season on
the road against San Antonio. Combinedrecord for their opponents twenty nine and twenty
eight. They do not play anyonetwice and they are all but one are

(20:56):
in conference. So again it's apretty good stretch for another team that's right
in the mix. San Antonio DCat home and then at Mass and at
Northern Arizona. Then they host Frisco, they host Mass, then they're at
Tucson, and then they close outtheir season at home against Arizona. Thirty

(21:18):
and twenty eight combined record for thoseteams. They play one team twice,
that's Mass, and all but twoof their games are in conference, So
the West, Malcolm, if yougo by the strength of opponent, obviously
Arizona has a bit of an edgethere. But fun fact about Tucson and
fun fact about Arizona is with Tucson, this is the worst record Billy Back

(21:44):
has ever had as a head coach, and all but one of their games
have been decided by one score.And for Arizona, they're terrible in the
fourth quarter. They have had oftheir whole season so far, five of
their ten games have been decided byone score. And if you look at
it, the last few games thatthey've had have been their best in the

(22:08):
fourth quarter. But they've only outscoredtheir opponent once and they lost that game.
So I they've got the easiest stretchby strength of opponent, sure,
and that's to be interpreted, we'llactually think, well for the West,
for the East, there's one that'sgot them beat as far as the easiest
strength of opponent. But you're lookingat one spot. Maybe for the West,

(22:30):
Arizona could do it, but willthey? So I got to say
San Antonio and San Diego, there'sa couple of games. If San Antonio
can beat mass twice, then allthey've got to worry about is Tucson Frisco
and Arizona because they they're up againstDC coming up, which may not be
as easy of a win as weonce thought previously. And then San Diego.

(22:55):
Dude, that's a gauntlet. Okay, when you've got Arizona, Bay
Area, nas Vegas bay Area youagain, so your initial thoughts need jerk
reaction when you see these three remainingschedules. See, I mean obviously,
like you said the most recently,it's a gauntlet, man. I mean,
anytime you're playing Bay Area twice,I mean you just got to cross

(23:15):
your fingers with that. I've saidbefore. You know, it's hard to
beat any team twice, especially onethat's a reigning league defender. You know,
all the time they get over there, it's gonna be a tough one
for those guys. I mean,it's on the three schedules you named are
very, very, very challenging.But I mean for myself, I hate

(23:41):
to give such around the world answer, but I mean I can't even say,
honestly, it's too much the oneperson to make a call on in
this case. I want to hearyour thoughts on it well, like I
said, and I need to correctsomething that I said. So, Arizona
has outscored their opponents in the fourthquarter three but twice was Jacks, and

(24:02):
they seem to just beat the snotout of Jacksonville in the second half,
Like it's not even funny. Butlike I said, the opponent that was
not Jacks that they outscored in thesecond half, they still lost that game.
So it's like I'm looking at thisteam, even with Snead back,
It's like, how do you letyourself keep the opponent in it and get
beat in the fourth quarter and leaveit at such a close game. It's

(24:25):
just like these you can't have thatkind of behavior at this point in the
season. You just can't. SoI'm looking at them San Diego, if
they're gonna be the ones to getthat fourth spot. And granted NAS could
completely crumble and fall apart because they'retechnically third in that, but they play
all three of these teams, sothey could have just a horrible stretch,
not taking anything away, but forargument's sake, we went with the three

(24:48):
that are kind of on the bubblelooking for that last spot. So San
Diego, if they get it,they're gonna have earned the shit out of
it, right, Like that isa remaining schedule where it's like you don't
want to play that team if theymanaged to get in the postseason. But
looking at Arizona and I just seeSD and NAS, I think for all

(25:08):
three of them, it comes downto the next three games. So San
Diego, Arizona, bay Area,Tucson there will probably win at least one
or two of those games, youknow, Tucson and maybe Arizona, I
don't know about bay Area, Arizona, Arizona. On the flip side,
then SD NAS in Vegas. Ifthey don't win any of those, or

(25:33):
if they only win one, theystill have like such a tough rest of
the Like the rest of the scheduleis easier, but it's like these are
wins that you're gonna need because theseare teams that you're probably gonna play in
the postseason. So San Antonio,DC MASS and NAS Home Road Road.
I think if they can get thosethree wins, then they've got it.
Like I just, I really thinkthat San Antonio is of the three the

(25:57):
most dangerous team right now now,and they've got the scheduled. It's not
the easiest, but I just thinkthat their opponents these are teams that they
can beat. Yeah, yeah,for sure, for sure, And I
don't disagree with that entirely. Iwould say as far as the most dangerous
team, I would have to gowith San Diego though, because I mean,
we've seen what they can do withtheir full ross, we've seen what

(26:19):
they can do with bits and pieces, you know, because of that incident
a few weeks back, they wereforced to have to play with you know,
some some secondary guys and still stilla pretty formidable team. So I
think they San Diego, out ofthe three teams, name certainly have the

(26:40):
weapons and veteran leadership to you know, come out on top. So of
the four big games, San Diegohas Bay Area twice, NAZ and Vegas.
I think they got to get atleast half of those they got to
get two of them in order tobe in the picture. They've got a
winning record now I think two more. I think eight wins puts you in

(27:02):
a comfortable spot. So for thesethree, it's the first to eight or
nine wins I think. However thatcomes in, I think San Antonio's got
the edge, so that'll be funto watch. Malcolms leaning SD, I'm
leaning San Antonio. So for theEast, this one's gonna be a lot
more fun. We got Mass atsix and four, Quad City four and

(27:22):
five, Tulsa three and seven.So for Mass they are at home against
Green Bay and San Antonio. Thenthey are on the road against Jacks.
They're back home against Quad City,who has beat them. Then they're at
San Antonio a bye, and thenthey close it out at Tulsa. The
combined record of their opponents nineteen andtwenty seven. I told you somebody had

(27:44):
Arizona beat like that's they play oneteam twice and all but two were conference
So that's that's the easiest schedule ofany team looking for a playoff spot.
Is you're gonna get Quad City.They're at home against Frisco, They're at
Iowa home against Green Bay, They'reat Mass home against Sioux Falls, and
then they finish out with back toback road games against Tulsa and Jacks,

(28:10):
and then Tulsa is at Jacksonville homeagainst Sue Falls at Iowa home against Green
Bay. Then they have a bye, and then their last two games are
at home against QC and Mass.For Quad City it's thirty one and thirty
seven combined record for opponents and forTulsa twenty four and thirty three. So
the whole Eastern Conference technically has anice easy strength to schedule for the remaining

(28:36):
opponents as far as more losses thanwins. QC and Tulsa do not play
any teams twice and they are allin conference, so they've got technically the
toughest road just based on that informationalone. But Mass, Man, we've
talked about it, like you gottago and play Green Bay, who the
last time you played was Week oneand they are much differ diferent team now,

(29:00):
and then you're gonna have to playthe gun Slingers h Jack's God,
I wish we had more faith inthem at this point in the season.
I really do. But then QCSan Antonio again, and then you close
it out against Tulsa, so it'sthe easiest one, but like I see
three wins in there for them andQuad City. Dude, Like, I

(29:22):
don't even know how to predict whatthe outcomes are going to be for this,
just like for Tulsa. So probablyone spot up for grabs right now.
Mass has it, but Quad City, Frisco and Iowa Green Bay.
I think they've got probably way tootough of a schedule. They need to
have some of these last games firstup, like Soup Falls, Tulsa and

(29:42):
Jacks. They need to have thoseinstead of Frisco, Iowa, and Green
Bay because I don't think Iowa isgoing to be an easy win for them
at all because that's a rivalry game. And then Tulsa, Man, they
lost to Jacks. That's Jack's onewin of the season. And so you
look at the rest and it's justlike wow. So I like the mask

(30:07):
gets it by default. I guessit just feels like it're right. It
does. It really does, man, I guess it's just one of those
situations, like you said, theydon't have any control over it necessarily,
but the teams line up in frontof them are they just have the odds
are in their favor. In thiscase, it's hard to see either of
the three teams well, either QuadCity or to also coming out with their

(30:33):
strength of schedule versus Mass. Likeyou said, I mean, they can
certainly pull out three wins from theselast games. Green Bay is going to
be a great one. That's theone to watch in my opinion. Jack's
kind of a no brainer. Inmy opinions, Quad City that may be,
that may be pretty pretty entersane watch. I mean, because Quad City

(30:56):
definitely has a lot on the lineat the moment. But Tulsa, I'm
not sure if they get stand upwith Mass at this point. So I
mean, we'll see, We'll definitelysee. But I mean it's it's I
think for as far as it's goingto take that spot in the East,
I mean, it's pretty clear.Well, so the thing about the East
is that it's Green Bay and Friscoright now the one and two, and

(31:18):
then Mass is technically three quad Citiestechnically the fourth spot, and then Tulsa,
Iowa and the rest of them fallinto place. So Mass I think
by default gets the third because they'vejust got too good of a schedule and
they're two games ahead. And Idon't see them losing a two game lead
to any of the other teams ForQuad City, though, it will come

(31:42):
down to how Jack or how Tulsadoes on the road two of their next
three games. Jackson Iowa because Soupefalls. That's a wild card, but
Iowa and Jacks are both going tobe tough road environments for Tulsa. And
there's games that we thought for surethey should have won and they've lost.

(32:04):
So I think Quad City is ina good spot. But man, if
they get a playoff spot, it'slike every team that's in the playoffs for
that side is gonna want to playthem because it's like it had to be
somebody, right, And I feelbad for QC, but I really hope
that they crank it up and turnit on this home stretch. So Mass
and QC probably, but Tulsa doeshave a shot. So that's our fun

(32:29):
little way of kind of recapping andgetting us ready for the rest of the
season. Two weeks is just toomany games to try to get around as
far as recapping it in a timelymanner. But I think this was something
different that Malcolm and I liked.I did all the math here broke this
thing down, and then we tooka close look at Arizona because I really
think that that is the one teamthat you just don't know it's gonna be

(32:53):
in every single game, and itmight come down to that last week against
San Antonio as far as who gets, you know, that fourth spot if
San Diego hasn't locked it up already. So all right, folks, it's
the portion of our program now wherewe welcome a special guest. But this
one's not just special. He's likethe most interesting man in indoor football.

(33:14):
He is the kicker for the DukeCity Gladiators. Winless, no more.
Ernesto Lecio. Welcome, my man. How you doing good? Good?
Thanks for having me on. Guys, Hey, any chance we get to
chock it up with the kicker?We love to because you guys are seriously
like everyone's favorite and most hated personall in the same moment. I know

(33:37):
you feel that every day. Soyou guys, now took a while,
took a bit, you know,twelve weeks into the season, but now
you guys are in the wind column. You guys have your man at quarterback,
who Malcolm has been gushing about eversince he got his first start.
Malcolm is even in his Duke CityGladiators swag and apparel. He is super

(34:00):
excited about this. So I'll askthe first question, then we'll hand it
off to to Malcolm. So Ithink the obvious one is how's it feel
now? It feels good to getthat that first way in the call.
I think we've been in really reallyclose games all throughout the season with the
exception of one, and so youknow, we're not necessarily what you considered
a bad team. I've been onpretty bad teams throughout my career. This

(34:23):
one to be the one. It'sjust one of those ways where the football
guys don't don't want it to goyour way in the moment, so,
you know, just being able toput it in together in the second half
because it was literally a tell oftwo halves. Uh, we scored one
the second. There you go,we win the game. Wow, all
right, Malco yours. That's cool, man, the most interesting man in

(34:47):
the world. What's going on?Man, that's good man, that's good.
Just you're thirteen, yes, sir, yes, sir, yes sir.
And I gotta say, man,I've played against you and I I've
watched you some time. Man,You're You're great. You're great at what
you do. Man. So Imean congratulations on you know, the longevity
of career and just doing it atsuch a high level for sure. Yeah,

(35:08):
I appreciate that. I mean it'salways one of those things where,
even when I was younger watching someof the greats before me, you know,
it's like you admire the what theydo and what makes the ticket work,
and then you try to implement thatto your craft and your dream and
you make it work. Man.Well, it's definitely working for you,
man, So keep doing what you'redoing. Definitely. Oh yeah, man.

(35:30):
So, I mean one thing yousaid before, and this was a
question that I had immediately when Isaw that, you know, you're our
guests, it was it was atailor two halves for sure, man.
I mean like it's it's I've beenon both ends of the spectrum. What
exactly goes to your mind coming out, uh, the following half when you

(35:51):
guys are scoreless. I mean,I know the goal is always the win.
But without saying too much, Iknow you can't speak on what we're
saying in the locker room, butwhat exactly, what exactly was the motive
I mean, I would say mainlybecause you know, me as a kicker,
I'm in there, are about goodtwo minutes and I get right back
out there just to get Yeah,but I get I'm there. I'm in
there enough to hear what's going on. But you know, when you are

(36:15):
down and scoreless on the first half, you know your mindset has to be.
You know, you got to finish. It's not how you start,
it's how you finish. And yougot to make sure that whatever you're doing,
if it's not working, you goto the you know, your Plan
B and stuff like that, andif you see things and every you know
in the coverages and the defenses andand what's working and what's not working,

(36:36):
you got to make sure you gotto dig deep into yourself and make those
adjustments and just just really just tellyourself zero zero and just finish the game.
Because whether you're playing quarterback to kickerto you know, offensive line,
the defensive line, it's not howyou starts, how you finish. And
you want to lay everything out thereand things got to go away, and
you've got to capitalize the momentums andthose moments in football where you're like,

(37:00):
you know what we got really keepthings going in this moment. You gotta
take advantage of that. I hearthat, man, I hear that.
That's cool that you say that too, because I mean, you never as
a as a football team altogether,you always need to have that never say
dam mentality. But uh, youknow, I mean, coming from a
former team I played on, I'mglad to hear that. You know that's

(37:20):
the that's the case over there.I also wanted to ask you, man
so, and I've been saying thatsince college. Outside of the quarterback on
the team, I want to say, the place kickers are definitely the most
cocky motherfuckers on the team man.So mean because you guys, you guys
are great. I mean, youdo what you do great. And then

(37:42):
on top of that, a lotof kickers are are multi dimensional. You
know, you can you can playother positions of me be it just so
happens that you're the best kicker onthe team. So you know, I
noticed that you are one of afew place kickers that actually do the dropkick.
Man, So, like, whatexactly what exactly goes into it?
Do you do you feel like?Is that like a coach's call or is

(38:05):
that something that you kind of useyour own discretion, like, you know,
you feel like I can do this, so I'm gonna go for it.
Well, I'll be quiet on it. So when I had we played
against Frisco about a month or twoback. You know, we had never
practiced the drap kick. I hadbeen doing it in the off season and
for warm ups, you know,just messing around. I know how to
drop kick because my uncle was agoalie back in the seventies and they used

(38:28):
to draw kick the soccer ball forgoal kicks would right, And so before
the game, I was just messingaround and our coaches like, hey,
can you do that often? I'mlike, I mean yeah, but we
never practiced her going to that game. We go to that game, we
scored the first touchdown. I'm goingin there mentally as an extra point.
Coach is like, we're gonna gofor two. So I started walking back.

(38:50):
He's like, no, I wantto draw kick for too. So
I'm like, well, we needan extra guy. What do you mean.
It's like a mini pun if yougot to take away the holders.
So you know, I'm directing alot in this situation. And to be
honest, it's one of those thingswhere like, yeah, you know you're
confident what you can do, butthat ball bounce is funny the moment it
hits the ground, to hit theground, and an oblong shaped ball wants

(39:12):
to go somewhere else. It's supposedto straight up and down. Exactly.
You just want to make sure youmake good contact and you know you come
through when you can. But Ithink after that game when I went five
for five and kept us in thegame against Frisco, you know, you
give a kid candidate, you wantto see more of it, and it's
not it's not a very sustainable Ionly got three more draw kicks to do

(39:32):
successfully in order to break the leaguerecord like that, you know, league
record, but again not as easy. I've been paying attention to the transaction
records there in du City, AndI mean, you're one of the few
veterans you know, who's been therefrom the start, and you know,
I've seen a lot of talent comeand go. How exactly does as a

(39:57):
veteran yourself, and you know youhave that veteran leadership, how do you
how do you attempt to keep theteam together? You know what I mean?
Because it's like I said, I'veseen. I've seen players come and
go on teams I've been on,and it's it's kind of hard to uphold
that chemistry when you got a newgay every week or every other week.
So I mean, what exactly doyou do to kind of keep it together,

(40:20):
especially for the younger guys. Ifanything, I've learned throughout my career
and even when I was in theXFL, and the XFL in twenty twenty
was his most brutal because I sawguys get cut daily. So I stopped
having guys because you know, Iwas like, go talk to this guy
and he's not there anymore. Yeah, being with Arena and it happens probably
at a less frequency. But forthe younger guys not understanding, you know,

(40:45):
the business and I and I emphasizedbusiness. It's nothing personal, it's
business, and yeah, all theyounger it's production. It's consistent and sustainability.
So as long as you're doing whatyou need to do on and off
the field, you know, youdon't need to worry about it. And
if you are like traded and thingslike that, it's just a buzz at
the end of the day. SoI'm sometimes a freshening start and You just

(41:05):
got to look at it that waybecause when I was younger, you know,
like, oh, that was agood friend of mine. On how
he's gone, and it changed yourdemeanor and you got to remember the reason
why you're there is to perform andwin and to put on fans. Oh
that was that was good stuff,malk Mine was going to be my first
question for Ernesta. One of thethings that I admire the most about you

(41:25):
is that, you know, whenwhen I look at you and your career
and your craft, I'm reminded alot of how I kind of go through
my my industry, my career,and my craft, which is our attention
to the detail of the craft.Within the craft, you know, it's
not just about making field goals.For you, it's about the technique.
It's about always, you know,having your best swing when it comes to

(41:45):
your foot. For me, it'snot about just making deadline it's putting together
the best cuts, the best youknow, shots, and everything like that.
So when you you know, thisis your thirteenth season, and obviously
we're guys, we're competitive. You'reon a football team. It's going to
be competitive all week, every game. But you know, Malcolm and I
we talked about that kick that wasn'tto win, it was just to tie,

(42:08):
and you missed, and it's suchan uncharacteristic miss for you, right,
and so we're like, he's gotto be devastated. And then of
course you come back and you dothe same thing next week, and you
just keep going about it, youknow, a week after week. How
do you maintain a certain mental toughness, especially knowing that there's younger guys on

(42:29):
the team. They may not bekickers, they may not be your backup,
but you're just trying to show themthat even when times are tough,
like you've got to keep your headup because there's still another game next week.
I mean, the best way Igo about it is simply, you're
only as good as your next kick, or you're only as good as your
next play. And so once theplay is over, whether it was a

(42:52):
successful kick or not, you know, you gotta be like a mindset of
a goldfish. Ten seconds and it'sgone, you know, and you've got
to make sure that if it's theend of the game, you got twenty
four hours to look about your technique, which you could have done better.
They just know the ball and youmove on to the next one. And
I think when younger guys are watchingolder guys work, that's the most important

(43:14):
thing. It doesn't phase them.It doesn't mean it's not important to them,
because if it's not important to you, then you don't really care and
you don't respect the craft itself.That being said, you know, you
look at a guy and you're like, wow, he just keeps going back
to work. You got to clockback in. It's a new week,
new adjustments, new way to approachthe game. Because in the kicking world,
I think what younger guys, especiallyin an arena, what they need

(43:36):
to learn is that every week,not only are you getting ready for your
opponent, but you're helping your returnteams and your field goal blocks, and
the tendencies that the opposite kicker does, whether he makes or misses, in
his demeanor and how he steps,you show them. So when they're getting
to that game, they're like,oh, I see what he just did
and things like that. So Iapproach it that way, whereas like,

(43:58):
you know what, that was lastweek's game. Let's move on to the
next one. Here's what I've seenon this guy, and let's get ready
for this Well, and you're notonly a spot on a roster, but
you're a veteran spot on a roster, which a lot of people may not
know that's like its own allotted youknow, members of the roster. And
so I have seen teams I've seenentire seasons of indoor football basically treat their

(44:22):
roster like it's a fantasy draft,where you get through the whole thing and
you're just like, wait, didwe get a kicker? Do we need
one right now? Like we canstream a kicker right like we can do
a different guy every week, andit's just like Wow. So for you
being not only a spot on theroster, but a veteran spot going into
your tenth, eleventh, twelfth,now thirteenth season, are you having extensive

(44:45):
conversations with these coaches before you signon? Because I have to. I
mean, you've got to be onetop three kicker in the league and probably
have been for a while. Butalso like, you're not going to be
a guy that's just going to bea spot filler or a placehold. You've
got to, like, I assumethat you're at the point where you want
to go somewhere and be there forthe long haul. Pending an injury.

(45:06):
This might be the most amount ofrookie kickers I've seen in a season in
the league since about close to myrookie year in twenty eleven. And with
that being said, you know,it's it sucks to see, but the
average lifetime span for a kicker itwent up from three games to four games.
So there's been so much like changeinternal. But there's only I believe

(45:30):
four of us left in the seasonon the league right now that are with
our respective teams. Everyone else hasgone four plus kickers already and changing around
as far as veteran kickers. Withthe side of TC Stevens and San Antonio
who's also a year thirteen, eventhough he's older than me, we're the
only old cats still around thirty thirtyplus year old kickers, and you know

(45:53):
where we're having to, you know, battle it out with these young legs
and great talents. Don't get mewrong, but like a lot of these
teams are definitely looking at us asfar as our age, because not only
is are you considered a veteran forcertain amount of years now, if you're
twenty eight years old after January first, you're considered a veteran, so like

(46:15):
you have never played one game andyou're still considered a veteran. So it's
hurting a lot of guys who Iknow who are free agents, who are
in those twenty eight years old oror older trying to make their way in
there, and teams are just notI'm not going to really waste a spot
for an unproven kicker. So you'vegot to really make sure that you're proving
yourself year by year and extending thatleach a little bit so you can be

(46:37):
considered for a team. Because,as we know, in this league,
when it comes down to points,whether it's that extra point, field goal,
dues, drop kicks, multiple waysof scoring, you know, it
comes down to a lot of thesekickers. You know which just happened this
last game. Rookie kicker miss anextra point. I made mine win the
game. I gotta ask, youknow, because it doesn't happen very often

(46:58):
in the world of indoor football.What did you think of Kaplan's walk off
a couple of weeks ago in QuadCity. You know, I me and
Kaplan trained together for many years whenI was living in a van down by
the river. You know, reusedto training with John Carneing and stuff,
and you know, he learned alot from me as well. And he
was also my backup kicker for theRattlers in twenty two when I had a

(47:20):
great yeltair and you know, justseeing guys like him because it's an unconventional
way of you he kicks. Hekicks the ball like a punch, you
know, it's very softy, andhe's got a lot of power. He's
got a great four strength and I'mlike, when I saw him had that
game, actually called him and Iwas like, you had a legendary game,
remember that, And all of ushave those kind of games, you
know, but it's one of thosenights where you get hot and everything,

(47:43):
you get lucky and it happens.But it was really good to see him
because you know, he's been tryingto establish himself in this league and I'm
glad he was able to find ahome in Quad City. That's awesome,
man. Yeah, kickers need lovetoo. It's a hashtag I started several
years ago. Or Neesto's part ofthe movie Mint, And not only is
he one of the most interesting menin the world, he's also one of

(48:04):
the most generous. That Seattle Dragonsball by the man himself. That's like
a collector's item now, not justbecause of the logo change, but they're
not even in the league anymore.So hey, if you ever find any
more Dragon stuff you don't want,you can send him my way. I'm
collected all the time, but thatball to be signed by you and have
that connection because that was my hometeam, right Seattle Washington. That was

(48:28):
too cool. Man. So youare you are truly one of the greats,
not only as an athlete, asa kicker, but also as a
person. So we thank you somuch for your time. Man. Always
fun time with you guys, indoorfootball and everything else. Guys, I
appreciate you, guys. All right, one more time for the most interesting
man and indoor football kicker for theno longer winless Duke City Gladiators could spell

(48:50):
trouble for some teams down the stretch. He is Ernesto Lecio. Thanks again,
man, We'll talk to you soon, all right, And one more
big thank you to or Nesto Leciofor us some of his time here,
and that brings us to our Pickhamsegments. It's been a while and now
we get into another big week fora lot of teams. As we just
discussed, some more important than others. But Malcolm and I are going to

(49:15):
make our pick them now, startingwith a Saturday, no Friday games this
time. And if you're wondering,yes, I did win the last pick.
Your punishment came down to the lastgame and Malcolm I had to pivot
because he still hasn't given me mygym hype video yet. So we decided
to do something quick and easy,not necessarily painless, a pie to the

(49:38):
face. It was Malcolm's turn,So we'll put that up on the social
and you guys can enjoy some ofthat humiliation to start your summer off with
in the right way. So greenBay at Mass so already we've got a
game that Mass needs this way morethan green Bay. But green Bay,
dude, I think that they're footis fully on the gas right now.

(50:01):
So I'm gonna go with green Bayon the road and what could be an
epic revenge game if you want tocall it that from that Week one loss,
because it seems like ever since thatWeek one lost two Mass, green
Bay has just been a different beast. Max Miler Yea in the MVP conversation,
or at least should be. Theirwhole defense is just man, that

(50:22):
is a nasty defense, both frontthree and the secondary. So they're doing
it. Green Bay twenty twenty four. Man, they are doing it.
This is a team to watch.So I like Green Bay on the road
against the mass Pirates looking for youknow, that third hopefully one of two

(50:42):
playoff spots for the Eastern Conference.Malk what about you? I like green
Bay too, Rich, I mean, and this is exactly where you want
to be at this point in theseason, you know, Like you said,
they lost to mass earlier in theseason, had some hiccups, had
a little trouble, but you alwayswant to catch fire and be playing your
best football towards the tail end ofthe season. So I think they're in

(51:06):
the perfect spot they I mean,it just doesn't get any better for him
at this point, you know.So I'm taking Green Bay as well.
I think they'll take it home.The next Saturday games the Tulsa Oilers,
who are in the discussion crazy asit is at three and seven as far
as what could be the last playoffspot in the Eastern Conference, and they'll
take on the Jacksonville Sharks, whoman, we thought they had it after

(51:29):
that first win. We really did, and it just didn't work out for
them. But they're gonna probably bein spoiler mode. I don't know if
that starts this week. I thinkTulsa clearly needs to win more than they
do so road hostile environment. Imean, we've talked up Jones and just
his teams before, but you know, it's just been a different year for

(51:52):
them. But I'm still gonna gowith Tulsa. I think they need to
win. They get the win,and that's just how I see it.
Yeah, yeah, So I'm I'mgonna go out on the limb here and
go with jackson you know, No, I mean I think Tulsa. Tulsa
certainly does need to win here tostay stay at least in the playoff talk.

(52:14):
But Jacksonville knows that and they theymay not be in contention anymore,
I don't think, I mean,according to the math and what not,
but they still have some competitors overthere who are willing to, like you
said, be that spoiler for someguys, and I know that they're more
than capable of doing so I'm takingJackson on this. Okay, So we

(52:37):
got one difference of opinion there firstof who knows, probably many. So
that brings us to the next one, which is Duke City. We just
talked to her. Next still theKyo and then the San Antonio gun Slingers,
and I feel like Malcolm and Iare going to be differenceive opinion on
this one. But I went firstthe last two didn't even realize it.

(53:00):
So Malc, you're up. Whodo you like in this one? In
this case, man, as muchas I would love to say my Duke
City glady, it is and Igotta go with uh, I gotta go
with my good For san Antonio,I think they it's gonna be a pretty
pretty one sided game for them.You know. I like san Antonio as

(53:21):
well. I'm gonna go ahead andput this on this game, and that
is that, you know. Isaid, san Antonio needs to win their
first three as far as these nextthree games in order to probably have momentum
on their side to get that lastplayoff spot for the West. But this
game, like, if they losethis game, I don't think they'll get
it because this is one of thosegames where one it's a game that you

(53:44):
should win, but you know,Duke City is clearly in the position to
start playing spoiler just like Jackson probablySue Falls. You know, san Antonio
doesn't get this one. I don't. I don't have confidence, but they'll
get that last playoff spot, sowe both like san Antonio. That brings
us to another very important matchup,the Frisco Fighters on the road against the

(54:06):
Quad City steam Wheelers. This one, yeah, Quad City needs real bad
Frisco they don't. But it's notthe point in the season where you can
just kind of hit cruise control andkind of take a back seat to your
games. But t J. Edwardsis back, So malk, I feel
like this one's pretty obvious. Butyou first, oh, for sure,

(54:29):
definitely obvious. I'm not gonna actlike it's that I'm taking Frisco and I'm
gonna take Frisco as well, notbecause I you know, I don't believe
in Quad City, but again,you know, apparently we've been called out
for not picking Frisco enough, andthe last few times I've picked Frisco,
they lost, So I might aswell just that trend going see if they

(54:53):
enjoyed the break from us doing pickthem the last couple of weeks. All
right, so we both like Frisco. The next game Vegas in sue Falls.
This is an intriguing matchup. Sowell, I think Sue Falls really
should have won that game against Iowa. But man, they're just a team

(55:15):
that will play you all four quarters. They will go sixty years with you.
And Vegas I think has lost whattwo of their last four now ever
since they were the last undefeated teamand that ended. Yeah, it's either
two of the last three or four, I think, so they really need
this one. And what is aVegas team like when they're on their heels

(55:36):
more or less, especially on theroad. So I'm still gonna go with
Vegas. I think they're an opponentthat probably learns pretty quick from their mistakes,
and they know how heated that raceis in the West. If they
want to be one of the toptwo seeds, they got to keep pace
with bay Area. Unfortunately, atthis point in the season, they have
to hope bay Area loses again inorder to to do the tiebreaker with their

(56:01):
win over them. But man,it just takes one game, right,
you slip up, and now allof a sudden you're hoping another team screws
up. It's like taking care ofyour business. So I think they will
take care of their business against duefalls, Vegas gets the win. I
like it. I like it forsure, and I'm taking Vegas as well
simply because, like you said,they're they're in a point now where not

(56:25):
they're not the only ones who controltheir faith. I mean, that's not
a good that's not a good placeto be as a team, especially when
you're trying to you know, havethe home till advantage come playoff time.
Yeah. That's probably one of mybiggest pet peeves in sports, and I'm
very open about this, is whenpeople become fans of teams playing other teams,

(56:46):
right, Like, Okay, soI'm a forty nine Ers fan.
If a team is playing Dallas,sure i'll be I'll be a fan of
the team playing I'm just because likethat's that's the rivalry, right. But
when it comes to you know,well, as this team beat Dallas,
then San Francisco gets the number twoseed instead of the five, then it's
like, okay, like I canhope that they lose, but I'm not

(57:07):
gonna all of a sudden, youknow, become an Eagles fan. It
just like I'm just not because likewe should have handled our business and not
left it to the fate of anotherteam to lose. Like it just it
drives me nuts, Like I can'tstand it, you know. See you
see the Facebook posts? Oh oh, man, I guess, I guess

(57:29):
I'm a RAMS fan this weekend.It's like hell out of here, Like
nobody likes you seriously. So yeah, we we agree not only on who's
gonna win, but also on thataspect of things. So the next game,
this one is the tone setter forthis week and for this remaining stretch,
especially for the Western Conference, theArizona Rattlers in San Diego to take

(57:51):
on the Strike Force. I it'syour turn to pick. But Malcolm,
you already know who I'm gonna pickon this one. So how much do
you believe in either one of thethese teams right now? Man? I
would definitely be lying if I didn'tsay I know exactly gonna fix. I
think I'm gonna agree with you honestlyand take San Diego for sure. But
San Diego just has it all together, man. Like I said, we've

(58:14):
seen them play with with almost halftheir starters, and we've seen them play
with the full team. It's almostno drop off from their their first team
to their second teams even their three. So I mean that's what you want
to that's what you want from ateam, to have that quality of play,
not drop as you go deeper intothe depth chart. I mean,

(58:37):
they got the recipe over there,man, San Diego, and uh,
of course, led by Nate Davis. This guy habitually throws seven eight touchdowns
a game. Man, Like,what can you ask for from a quarterback?
So I mean, yeah, Ithink I think they're gonna take it
home. Sure, So I'm gonnacircle that one too. I definitely have
to be front and center watching thatone. Yeah. I like San Diego

(58:59):
too, So, like I said, Arizona, man, that is just
such an enigma of a team atthis point in the season. To have
five of your ten games be decidedby one score, to get out scored
in the fourth quarter by all butthree games, and then to lose one
of those games as well is justsuch a crazy stat to me. So

(59:22):
they don't have a gauntlet like SanDiego does. But I think that this,
like I said, is the tonesetter, and I think San Diego
gets it that they're lucky to beat home that's for sure. San Diego
is, but it's going to beprobably the game of the week and what
sets up the rest of the seasonin that Western Conference. So our Week

(59:44):
thirteen finale is the Tucson Sugar Skullsand the bay Area Panthers, and it
looks like Malcolm and I might beback to our old ways of just differing
on one game. I can't affordto have any more punishments. God for
bid, there's a three pet orsomething, so I'm gonna go bay Area.

(01:00:05):
I mean, yeah, Tuson couldwin. I do feel for the
Sugar Skulls, obviously, we bothknow people on that team, both the
players and in some of the frontoffice. I feel for them. This
is so uncharacteristic of a Billy backedteam, and to hear that it's not
just one thing, but it's severalthings. I hope it it's better for
them, I really do. Butbay Area, I mean, they'd have

(01:00:27):
to really just like Coast at thispoint in order to get knocked out of
their number one seed or their numberone spot, and I just don't see
that from a team that is thereigning champ with Rob Keef and Dixie Wooten,
at the Helm. This is ateam that really all gas, no
breaks. So I'm going Bay Areafor sure, for sure. You know

(01:00:50):
what, Rich how much take itup a little bit? Man? I
bet I think I'm gonna go withTucson on this. You know, it's
it's no sort of legendary coaching overthere either with Billy back. Man,
It's it's hard to kind of it'shard to pick against them in a situation
that they're in right now. Theyknow where they staying. I think the

(01:01:14):
at the beginning of the game thispast week against Duke City, he was
interviewed and he said himself that heknows that the last half or this portion
of the season is critical. Youknow, they want to pull out,
they want to try and win eightof their last on eight of their last
game. But in the case thatthey can't, you know, they can't

(01:01:37):
afford to be on the losing end. So I think they're going to put
on a show and you know,surprised a lot of people. So I
would, I would, I would. I would definitely love to see that
go down this week. All right, Malcolm is back to living dangerously and
only to you know, coming backon the show to be like, oh,
this is what's gonna happen. So, since we're different on an even

(01:02:00):
number of games, tiebreaker has gotto be points. So if we're both
right one and one, then it'swhoever team that they picked right beat the
other team by, Like if youknow if it's a if it's a whoopin',
then you know that point spread.So if I if the one game
I get right is by twenty andthe one game you get right is by

(01:02:21):
fourteen, then the tie would goto me. Well, we'll get it
figured out. But that is ourpick them for week number thirteen. We
still got a good chunk of seasonleft, but it's starting to take shape.
You can check out my power rankingson Instagram X and of course Facebook,
and then you can see us onYouTube see We're back, We're here,

(01:02:43):
And of course if that's not yourthing, then you can listen to
us on Spotify, iHeartRadio, Spreakerand then Apple Podcasts and every Wednesday at
seven pm Eastern Time on Express Radioat Live three sixty five dot com.
So don't forget to check out Malcolm'spile of the face on social We're gonna

(01:03:05):
have that on a repeat for awhile. It's gonna be a good and
I can't wait to see this thing. And then we're back to picking new
punishments next week because after a twoweek break because of vacation in COVID,
we are back doing what we enjoy. I don't care how many clicks or
likes we get on each episode oron social me and Malcolm, we just
have way too much of a goodtime on here to care about any of

(01:03:27):
that, So we're having fun doingit. We hope you guys enjoyed as
well. This has been episode fourhundred and ninety, so for Father Malc,
I'm the team man, Richard Deemon. This has been the fan show
and we will see you next time.