Steve Rivera and Jacon Salads. They have their eye on the ball on Tucson
Sports Stage yet Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Hey, welcome back to on the
Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. M Steve, He's Jay. Now
we have Sid with breaking news. Eye on the ball, breaking news,
all right, starting off our breaking news with some recy's Senior Bowl news.
Jacob Cowing was helped off the field at Senior the Senior Bowl. He was
limping. We know that he was dealing with something towards the end of the
year, so I'm assuming it has to do with that. It was a
lower leg injury. It has to be. Hopefully he's all right. Yeah,
he had a couple of nice highlights before. Yeah, you know that
were we posted on social media. But yeah, no, it's yeah,
it looked like he you know, he went out, he got carted off
the field. Hopefully it's nothing serious. Yep. And then Jordan Morgan seemed
to have some good highlights as well as watching some of his but and Michael
Wiley's in that gap as well. Yep. Do you see Jed Do you
see Jid there with n X Panics and then the Jed was there and with
and with the with the in the background. Oh yeah, I did,
all right. Some women's basketball here. Aria McDonald is headed to the LA
Sparks former Arizona women's Wildcat that was a trade right trade trade traded to the
Sparks. Uh so she's going home, right, she's from that area.
Mm hmm. Moving into other Arizona women's basketball news. We mentioned it earlier,
but they are having walk on tryouts. I know they're down to about
seven players right now. So students out there, who this is your chance,
if if you wanted to partake and have a chance, this is right
here, this is tryout. They just need bodies, right, Yeah.
It's like practice has got to be hard. And you know uh yeah,
I mean didn't they take what in from the track team? Yeah? Then
she got hurt. Oh then she got hurt. Yeah. It's just it's
it's just a stream of bad stuff. But you know, I think she
explained that today too. She had people who didn't get hurt in the practice
and yeah, you know whatever. Yeah, well again, you know all
you know, these players go through, you know, a pre season of
conditioning and you know all these things, and you know, you get in
there and start playing hard, playing every day, you know you the likelihood
that you didn't get hurt can be pretty high. Moving into the men's side,
Keisha Johnson was named to the Karl Malone Award nominie list. Yeah,
i'd one a ten finalists rightists, yea. And that goes along with Caleb
Love being one ten finalists for Jerry West. I want to He was one
of twenty for the Wooden Award. Right, all right, big stuff.
Hopefully those those guys can keep them on the right right see if going tonight,
I want to I want to scream outside. Okay. Talking about a
s U there and talks with the NCAA for a negotiated resolution on their two
and a half year old recruiting violation. Dennistot from CBS said to expect show
cause penalties for some of the former staff, including including the head coaching the
Raiders. Probably he was the one who did it, but it just means
he won't come back to college. Yeah, he's gonna be a he'll be
Okay, they'll be making one. That's the issue with the whole thing.
Get out of it. Go to run for the hill. It's the same
thing with Jim Harbau. Right, they got a bunch of stuff that's going
on over at Michigan. And you know, now what, he doesn't even
have to talk to him anymore if they want to come and talk to him
about that. How do you feel if you're esp a the TV shows when
Hurt is talking and I guess he kind of made himself look a little fluffy
with the with the rock purty. Yeah, yeah, yeah, because you
were you were in school when he was in school. I'm sure. Yeah.
I had had a few class with Brock and played baseball at his brother.
I mean, it's the amount of the lack of recruitment from schools here
before him was Yeah, what Herb said was that was just right that he
recruited, but he really didn't and blah blah blah. Yeah, oh you
know her her doesn't need to. He's just gonna do what he does.
I know, you guys had a tennis on was it yesterday day before one
of those you're asking us to remember, Yeah, yeah, sorry, yeah,
what's your name exactly? Arizona Tennis. They advanced to I don't know
if you guys covered this, but they advanced to the i T a National
indoor championships for the first time in school history. I think he mentioned then
that, yeah, so big time. Their ranks number ten right now in
the country. So for anybody out there that doesn't know where the tickets for
them are, free, go go go watch them there. You got a
good team, got got a lot of players coming back from last year.
So it sounds like the matches are fun too. They are yet the very
spirited energy. They have double these you go doubles first and then certain as
will play singles. But yeah, exciting that. I think they have the
number six recruiting class as well for twenty twenty four. So yeah, a
lot of energy for them, good energy, okay. And then moving into
NFL, Ryan Grubb is in talks with Seattle for the offensive coordinator spot.
As we just mentioned, a lot of guys are going to be looking at
the NFL when they get the chance, and this is could be another.
And the deal with Grub is that he was the he was the offensive coordinator
under Killendbor at Washington went with debor Well like two weeks ago, yeah,
three weeks, two weeks ago to be the offensive coordinator at Alabama. And
now there's already worded that he may leave Alabama and go back to Seattle and
coach in the NFL. Did you are you going to have Bonix on your
thing? No? No, no, So just real quick, and this
is what I talk about with basketball, But Bonnicks, I thought the back
of a quarterback. College quarterback did well, had his team doing very well.
I think he's a very good one. So he goes up to college,
the troyouts this weekend on whatever the senior at so, I guess he
had a bad day yesterday, yesterday. Yeah. So so just you could
have a great four years or two years or whatever and people think, oh,
he's gonna make a lot of money, and he probably still will.
But then you have a bad day there you kind of get shown who you
are. It's like here, or it's like when you go to the combine
and all of a sudden you're Chris Henry exactly and you're off. You're off
the charts physically to my point. To my point is you see kids and
kids at the podium reading their stat lines. Oh, I scored twenty nine,
I scored thirty, blah blah blah against whomever. It means nothing,
Like we were saying, if you can play you can play. It doesn't
matter how many points you score, Right, it's if you can, if
you're good enough. If Nixon is good enough, kiss what he'll play.
I mean, how many how many guys have get gotten picked in various drafts
over just what they look like when they walk in the door. Right,
We're talking yesterday lunch my buddies, we were talking about Elijah rushing and and
and one of the guys said, look, I saw him play at some
point. He didn't look like all that to me. And I said,
well, all he has to look like is that he can play that.
He's got the physical characteristics of an edge rusher, long arms, big feet,
big tall guy, can get his hands up. You can throw people
around. When you're playing in high school, there isn't anybody who can challenge
you. Right, you're gonna throw guys around. You can look great,
but then you get to play with guys who are just like you, and
how good are you? So coaches tend to look at the guy and say,
Okay, he's got all the physical attributes that I want, Like a
quarterback who's six foot three and might not be any good versus the quarterback like
no Fafit who's five nine, five ten and might be really good. They
look at your physical attributes, and if you've got the physical attributes, they're
going to give you a try party. He's not average. Even today,
they're still criticizing him, criticizing me. All you want, I got my
team into the super Bowl in this and I got a lot of money in
my pocket. Yeah, and he may win a super Bowl, you know,
against arguably one of the top quarterbacks ever, you know, in the
NFL, and people are gonna say, we he's still not that good.
Well, yes, he is there there for a reason. He's there for
no people just like DeAndre, including your Russian example, he's a guy who
really kind of just moved lollygagged because he could. Yeah, and he continues
to law the gag because that's who he is. Right when you have the
guys, the opposite guys that who were at the TJ. McConnell, they
have no choice, right t J. McConnell, who goes in there,
he doesn't have the physical attributes, but works his ass off and get and
stays in the NBA for ten years. Hi, you're on the air and
I on the ball. Ah, Right, this is Brian Gettle calling in
for Oh hey Brian, Hey Brian, Hey, you're about seven eight minutes
too early, is it? Okay? I wasn't sure how early you want
to be a dial in? Okay? No, dial in at eighteen after
the hour eighteen, yes, right at eighteen, and we'll get you after
the break, okay, thanks Brian. Yeah, but we need to be
door, Brian. We need to be able to screen our calls. We
know that doesn't get on there. It's alcoholic. But those are examples that
happened all the time, right, even Brock, his younger brother, who
was a year younger than me. A lot of people thought he was gonna
be better than Brock just because you know, he's bigger, mare athetic,
he's but he's now he was. He committed to San Jose State. Actually
now with Brendan leaving, he's going to Nevada now. Yeah, so yeah,
I mean a lot of people looked at his physical attribute arm and yeah,
I don't get it because you want a quarterback, quarterback specifically to do
the job. Well. Again, it's that whole conversation about game managers,
right, people say, well, he's a game manager if not right,
as if it's a cutdown, right, it's a criticism. Well, he's
a game manager. Well, if he's managing the game and they're winning the
games he's managing, then why wouldn't you want a game manager? No,
exactly want to win, you know, is Lamar Jackson's not game manager.
And look where he's been nowhere, nowhere. But he can't you know,
he can't get to a super Bowl. Well, it was like to I
joke with you all the time with Richron when you have the quarterbacks, I
like to store quarterbacks and the kid familiash. You could throw it a mile,
yeah, but there's no receivers on then a mile there's there's the receiver
fifteen miles of fifteen yards and he can't hit it. Yeah, yeah he
could. He could throw a toll Maine, but that's not where your receiver
is standing. Right. And then and then he takes bj Danker and goes
goes to a bowl game with him. Just give me a winner, Just
give me a win, winners win, right exactly exactly what else you go?
This was interesting. Mark Andrews actually help help the lady with the medical
emergency on a fight from Baltimore to Phoenix, he's a Ravens player, right,
yep, the tight end yet but what what did what was the situation
to say what her medical emergency was. I don't remember what the emergency was,
but he suggested that they check her her uh sugar levels because I believe
that he actually has experienced with diabeta. Yeah, okay, so he uh
he gave a hand there, and I thought it was interesting. The fight
was to Phoenix, so yeah, okay, sorry, well that was that
was that one? Okay, okay, you saw that Quinn the Quinn got
the job at the Commanders. Dan Quinn. Oh yeah, Dan Quinn,
the Cowboys defensive coordinator. I was mentioning that next okay, sorry, moving
moving in the division. So that's interesting. Yeah, but that also means
that Bill Belichick will not be coaching in the NFL this year for the first
time in like one hundred and twenty years. Or yeah, what do you
guys, what do you guys think? I haven't heard any There is very
If you're an organization that wants to do things your way, right, and
you're the owner or the GM and you say we do the things this way,
I don't know that you'd want to bring in a guy who says,
well, we're going to do them my way. Yeah, why would you
do that unless you agree with the way he does that? Yeah, But
you know it's like, you know, I mean, we were having fun
with the conversation about what do you you ask Bill belichicking a job interview?
Right? You know, So, I guess I'm not surprised. Yeah,
I guess most franchises now kind of when it comes to the front office,
they let the front office. It's very rare now that that the head coaches
kind of in there. Yeah. So yeah, I don't know. Shot.
So I got a text us now from a friend and the listener party
does not have a lot of money in his pocket. Refresh. He's the
lowest starting quarterback salary rookie contract. Still he's got a lot of money.
He will though. He's got a lot of money more than me. Well
he just got you see, he just got an endorsement deal with Toyota to
Yoda. Yeah, Toyota, Yeah, Toyota deal. So give me that.
That's that's a lot of money. Yeah. And I mean whenever this
is up, I mean he's gonna get it. I have to get some
money. Yeah, they're gonna have to now we're gonna have to go.
So how old are we? How old old? Old? And how much
is money? Yeah? How much is a lot of money? Yeah,
exactly speaking of a lot of money. Don't know if you saw, but
the Baltimore Orioles got sold, got got valued at one point seventy five billion
dollars and the buyer group that is about to buy them includes cal Ripke.
Okay, yeah, and that's that's doesn't seem like a whole lot of money
because there don't the Dodgers like five billions or denvers five billion. The Orioles
aren't even in the ballpark. Yeah, no, coun intended, I get
it, I get them. That doesn't seem like that's not even half that's
a lot of money, which was the one. But what if the Orioles,
I mean, the Orioles are kind of I'm surprised they're worth a billion
seven and that that's probably just that's probably because the playoff last year. Yeah.
Yeah, so speaking from a Dodger, just just the fact that the
you know, I mean, any any you know, major league franchise like
that is going to be in the billions. I mean, maybe not the
Oakland a's but you know most of them. Denver went for five I think
last yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, that's a that's it's a lot
of well I have I have a point zero zero zero zero percent. All
right, Okay, we're out of time. As you heard Brian Gettle from
Exact Sciences, we would put through their their product, Colal Guard is the
sponsor of the Cold Guard Classic coming up in March. We're going to talk
to him just about the tournament, their sponsorship and the types of things that
that they're doing with the tournament. So stick around for Brian Gettle and we'll
talk some golf. We'll be right back. Last, don't just last.
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evaluation today. Steve Rivera and Jaken Salez they have their eye on the Ball
on Tucson's Sports Stage Jet Fox Sports fourteen fifty streaming live IM the iHeartRadio.
Wapp Hey, welcome back to Eye on the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen
fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. He's Jakinsos. Now on the phone, we
have Brian Gettle from the COOLO Guard Classic Exact Sciences. Exact Sciences. You're
with the Exact Sciences, right, Brian, that's correct, with the title
sponsor, and it's been here since the very beginning of the tournament, so
it's been very exciting to see the growth over seven years. So I think
you're based in Wisconsin, but are you in town now? Because they had
a press conference exactly. He Actually, I had just finished playing the course
literally fifteen minutes ago, so it was fun to get a sneak peak of
a turn routing here at La Polova. How did it feel, Oh,
it's beautiful. It's just absolutely stunning. The courses in fantastic shape and it's
going to be really exciting to see the champions Tour here at our new home.
And we could not be more appreciative of our hosts here at the Western
Lapolo and Resort and Spot they've just been amazing and getting ready and it feels
it feels very real. Now we're just a little over a month away.
So for those of us who are here and play golf and we've been playing
this course for years, which which two nines are going to be part of
the tournament. So that's what's really exciting about it. Yeah, and for
the listeners who may not be familiar, there are three to nine here at
La Paloma, and for the tournament, they're actually going to pull from all
three. Oh, you'll get a little bit of a flavor of each one.
It finishes up with so Hill nine, which just has a stunning view
that comes right up by the clubhouse. That'll be eighteenth Pole, which is
just going to be a really majestic finishing hole. But it's really creative how
they did it. It's going to be I think, really an impressive It's
just such an impressive layout and I think the pros will really like it a
good Well. I know he's from Wisconsin, so I'm sure you already bought
a house given the weather. Yeah, this is what it's like. You
know, you say that, but I remember last year the pro am day
on Wednesday, we had about four inches of snow and I was thinking to
myself, this is what I tried to get away from. Well you should
have seen it. I went back when we had the match play and it
snowed on the day of a match playing. You know, Ricky Fowler and
all those guys out there in the parking lot and having a snowball fight.
So it's happened before the snowman by the driving range. Yeah. So so
just tell us a little bit about you know, what does colon guard and
exact sciences? You know, what's the benefit of being a sponsor of an
event like this? Why do you do it? Well, I mean really,
it began a few reasons. Number one, Jerry Kelly, our ambassador,
joined the Champions Tour in twenty seventeen when he turned fifty. He has
a very close personal relationship with our CEO, Kevin Conroy, and Jerry also
had a very dear friend, Raba and Rna who was an NCAA Hockey Championship
champion at the University of Wisconsin who was diagnosed with corrective cancer and died.
But actually before he was fifty, played in the pro am in this event
just four years ago, and so Jerry is very passionate, so he started
wearing the colguard hat that first year, and then as we were looking to
really grow that relationship with the tour, there was an opportunity here where this
event was looking for a title sponsor. There is, as you both know,
amazing tradition of professional golf here in Tucson, and the Conquistadors are an
absolutely incredible partner and it's just been a fantastic fit to be able to spread
awareness of color equal cancer and the importance of getting screen. So you how
do you how do you use that? In what way does does a colon
guard slash you know, exact sciences you know, you thro you know,
aside from obviously you know, the week of the you know, the tournament
and all that comes with it, but throughout the year, but what do
you do with that? So it's a great question, and we're really trying
to get more involved in the community. And one example is something that we
announced today here at media day is we want to address, uh, you
know, as much as we can to help this community in Tucson, and
we are partnering with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona this year and anybody
who donates a canned good or five dollars can get in on Saturday, the
second round on March ninth, at no charge. We'll be announcing drop off
sites around the community here in the coming days, but if you go to
could guard classic dot com those will all be listed. Otherwise, you can
show up on that Saturday, bring you a can of suit but can you
know any kind of non perishable food item or five dollars and you can get
in for free. So let me ask you. You've been around for a
long time now, I think five years the number you said, Brian,
do you know how much of an impact you've had? And let me give
you an example, maybe a bad example, but you have a number of
people our age kind of going through the gates. Probably you are encouraging us
to take the tests. Maybe letters or messages to you guys said hey,
I'm glad you let me know this, or I did it at the event
and this is what came of it. Yeah. Well, I mean I'll
give you a great example. Scott Cardwell, a gentleman who lives here in
Tucson, who was out here today for media Day, had just turned fifty
a few years ago, had come out to Colguard Classic the year prior and
it was the first time he had heard about col of Guard And then,
you know, he turned fifty a few months later and his doctor asked him
about getting screened and he didn't want to do a colonoscopy, so instead he
did a coal of Guard and it helped detect in early stage cancer. And
we've built a great relationship with Scott and his story is so important. He
had no symptoms and that's why it is so important for people to know.
And the screening age now is forty five, So if you're forty five years
or older, and you should talk to your healthcare provider and make sure you
get screened because there are options that you can do that can fit within your
lifestyle and after a talk with your doctor, figure out what's appropriate for you.
Hey, have you seen sort of an impact, you know with it
among the golfers? You know? Are you finding out that golfers who have
become aware of this are are doing this as well, So something that's evolved.
This will be the fourth year we've done this and it's really unique on
the Champions Tour and it's amazing how much the pros have embraced. It is
every pro in the field and for the fans to come out, we'll see
it plays in honor of a different Polling cancer patient survivor or in memory of
somebody who has passed, and they've really embraced it, and in many cases
now they get to meet the honoree that they play for. We have more
than two hundred and thirty patient survivors and loved ones planning to come out this
year from more than twenty eight states. It's really created a movement among the
correct with cancer community as a place for people to be together to celebrate survivorship
and an extraordinary how much this community and the PGA tour have embraced it.
Well. The funny thing about it, and it's funny for us because we're
of that age. We are of that age where the old men's radio show
and we have a lot of no I'm usually not serious serious the old that
radio show, and we have a lot of old men listening to us.
I mean, this is this hits a wheelhouse man. Yeah. And what
I would just say is, you know, a lot of this is something
There's no doubt this is a topic. A lot of people don't want to
talk about, right, and it's it's something that a lot of people,
if you know, if they don't have symptoms, they don't see the need
to do it. But you know, this has become deeply personal for me.
I've gotten to know many patients and survivors through this work now the last
seven years and have sadly had to say goodbye to some of them. And
you know, if it's something that whether it's your pride or you're fearful,
think about somebody else in your life and don't do it for you. Think
about your your spouse, your son, your daughter, your mom, your
dad, and get screened for them. And the peace of mind that provides
if it comes out all clear, is worth it for sure in the long
run. Okay, So well, let's talk a little bit about the golf
itself. You may you know the venue has changed. You're you're at La
Paloma, which you know has been around for a while, and you know,
like Tucson, Nashville just one of those courses that kind of everybody around
here or if you've golfed at all, is familiar with. You know,
what can we expect to see out there? Is there any changes to the
golf course that we need to know about. And I guess my question is
going to be, how are fans going to walk this golf course expect I
mean it is. It could not be more different than you know, our
old home at Omni Tusun National. But it's it's exciting. I mean,
this is true desert golf. But to your point, no doubt about it.
It does present some challenges from a fan perspective in terms of walking the
course, but we really have and this is a testament to the Tucson Conquistadors
and the team here at La Paloma, we have great plans to really concentrate
the majority of the fans between old fifteen through eighteen. On number fifteen,
for example, we'll have an area known as Survivor Central where all coloroctal cancer
patient survivors and loved ones will have an area where they can all watch together.
And then there's going to be big buildouts on sixteen, seventeen eighteen.
So for the fans that you know, recognize that it's going to be maybe
intimidating to walk the full course. Uh, there's going to be some great
viewing areas on the on the signature holds here as on the finishing moles here,
you know, and we're better to be than on the golf course there,
right, absolutely right, And okay, this is me. The snakes
aren't out yet, are they. I didn't see any today, and if
I had, I might have I might have stepped away from working on the
tournament. It's just you know, local knowledge, that's all. That's all
I know. So so you know, you're a little over a month away
from the from the tournament. Uh, you know events that are coming up
that people should pay attention to that they can participate in. What kinds of
things are we going to be seeing, you know, headed into the tournament.
Well, tonight, fans who are going to be at the University of
Arizona basketball game, be on the lookout. During one of the timeouts,
there will be a putting competition where you can put across the floor into what
looks kind of like a cool guard box with a little hole at the bottom.
So we'll be there to help promote the tournament, which we're really excited
about. And it's great to see the university here really got on board with
what we're doing. And then, you know what I would really say,
in the next few weeks you know, whether you're a golf fan or not,
it's really exciting that we've partnered with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona
here and would love to see the community rally around and really address you know,
food insecurity for those who who struggle to put food on the table every
night. And it would be awesome to see this community really rally around this
cause over the next four or five weeks. Yeah, no, and you'll
see the crowds have always been good, Yeah, very consistent and it's a
great time, a great time to walk the course or see golf. Well,
that's great, and yeah, we're really excited to be able to do
more in the community and we really want to, you know, now that
we've been here six seven years, you know, find ways to to what
you had talked you know, asked me about earlier, to be more embedded
in the community year round and really have our presence felt here because this city
has really embraced us and we we want to return the favor. And that
Saturday is going to be nice to bring food to the thing. But you
know, talk about the band too, because that's not going to be on
site. That's going to be a releet a park. Yeah, the concert,
correct, and that'll be on Friday night this year he has the Midland
is the headliner for the concert on that Friday night. So you know,
that's also just a great opportunity to attract you know, whether you're a golf
fan or not. The concert's become a big part of what turn the weekend
is all about and just kind of adds to the celebratory atmosphere. So that's
just another way for this community to get connected to the couldgard classic awesome?
Awesome? Well, before we let you go, Steve and I just have
one request for next year if you can, if you can make the media
Day golf event a little earlier in the day so we can go play before
the show. That's it, all right, all right, I'll talk to
my people. I'll see what I can do. Well, and well,
maybe a second request, even though we like to see it, could you
not bring the snow this time? Exactly? I don't see how that was
our fault. I've been promised that now that we're going to be in the
March, that it's going to be seventy five and sunny all three days this
year. Well, when the weather goes bad here, we always find somebody
to blame it on, and it's usually somebody from outside of fair enough people,
you know, Wisconsin people in this town. They're not very you know,
well, they're not fan favorites giving the basketball situation exactly. Thank you,
Brian, Brian, thanks a whole bunch, man, appreciate it.
Oh, it was a pleasure. Great to talk to youle. Thank you
so much for having me on. Thank you, bru Brian from Color Guard,
Classic exec Sense. Hey, you know it's fun. Okay. The
tip we we failed to mention. The tournament is March eighth, eight to
ten, uh, Friday, Saturday Sunday, a little later because it's been
in February, right, right, so it's a little later in the year.
So two point two million dollar per three hundred and thirty thousand dollars to
the winner. Seven eight players and it's no cut. So all seven gay
players play all three. Yeah, and they usually have some you know guys
that we we recognize, oh yeah, guys from from our day. Right.
But uh, you know, I was always a good field for the
tournament. I think probably would be even better now in March, where you
know, further into the season. So all right, let's take our break.
We're gonna come back. Take your calls five two zero, four one,
six seventy four forty heading into the cow game tonight at six thirty,
got a head right out of right out of the out of the studio.
So come on back. If you're an Arizona men's basketball fan, you know
it's been successful for nearly forty years. Now take a look back at the
little In my new book, Lessons from Loot, it was a labor of
love through the eyes of twenty five former players, coaches and friends to give
insight to the coach and the man who led them, competed against them,
and inspired them. Twenty five chapters for his twenty five years as Arizona's beloved
coach. Lessons from Loot is an insight to how he built the program into
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teamsecurity dot net. Strea Live on the iHeartRadio. Wow. This is High
on the Ball with Steve Rivera and Jacob Salez Flox Sports fourteen fifteen. Hey,
welcome back to the ball. Hero Fuck Sports fourteen fifteen. I'm Steve.
He's Jay said with us, we have fifteen minutes. We'll keep an
eye on the phones. We promised so we won't quote unquote forget to look
at the phone, to look at the phones. So it was a good
conversation with Brian. Yeah, I thought that was good. Look, I'm
you know, growing up here. You know, I remember the first time
I ever went to a went back when with the Tucson Open. You know,
I went with my dad. I was a kid. Dean Martin was
the celebrity host of that sixties sixties probably late sixties. You know. One
time I went with guy to two old guys who were on my paper route
and they took me to the tournament with them. It was here Johnny Miller
wanted, so you know, if you're from here, you've been paying attention
or seeing you know, the professional golf here, uh, you know,
forever, and it's just it's just been a great part of what, you
know, what we do. So okay, so let me ask you,
just because it popped in my head. Uh, what is Tucson known for?
What are you a native from? Sports? An? Okay, Weather
number one, We number one. We'll got a call. Okay, let's
take this call. Hi, you're on the air and I on the ball.
Hey, guys, what's up is this? Hey Vick, what's going
on? Vig? Hey? I just wanted to kind of change courses and
talk about the DA thing with with Maya. Okay, Okay, obviously we
you know, we don't know the insights or whatever, and we don't know
Maya. But you know what, guys, I know my kids played for
good coaches and bad coaches. They once played for a guy, coach Price
is His son was Dennis Price out of Crenshaw and this guy was an f
bombing Randy's death, and and at the time my kids were like, I
don't want to come back to this guy. But fast forward, they're thirty
years old now and that coach is one of the most important people in their
lives and how toxic could have d have been. I mean, did Steve
beat him? Did the f mom? Did she run him to dead?
What? What is toxic? J Steve? You know, and that and
that that's in the eye of the beholder, right because when you talk like
you know, I interviewed Steve Alford a long time ago when he when he
had just finished in Indiana, because when Bobby Knight was coming to play here,
and you know, he talked about how hard it was to play for
Bobby Knight, but yet how much he loved Bobby Knight, you know.
And when you think of toxic guys, you know, you think of a
guy like Bobby Knight, who is just god, you know. But still
you talk to a lot of his players, maybe not all of them,
but a lot of them, and they, as you say, you know
your experience, you know, they love the guy because they feel like,
Okay, I know it was hard, but I learned a lot and everything
that happened to me there was meaningful to me. Well, I think it's
like being a parent, like you said, Victim, when when I'm not
this guy, but when you have a tough dad, he's tough on you.
He's on top of you and you say, God, I hate this
man. I hate this man. But as you get older, you respect
you and you appreciate what he did for you. So it's hard to go
and you've got He came back started the year knowing the team was shorthanded.
So she not only met I mean, did she not have someone in her
life to say, hey, tough this out this year. Yeah, whether
it's tough or not, tough en out and then do what you're gonna do
after the field, Because I know that was what if my kids had come
from when they were in Texas and said, hey, Ad I'm quitting.
I'm like, all, hell no, No, You're going to tough this
out. At the end of the year. You make a decision, you're
making a distance on your Yeah, let me change the gears on you.
So Friday, Friday, mister VIC, mister happy, unhappy, happy big.
He was on the LEDs Thursday, you know how to get him off
that Friday Friday comes, Oh, I'm gonna be new guy. Friday's you
know here, please God. And then Saturday, I don't hear from him.
Oh, all of a sudden, mister happy guy, Arizona's playing well.
He disappears. Is that true, Vic? Yeah, but it was
just because I was so happy. I was running around the house whooping and
hollering. I think my away was going to kick out. I was yelling
loud. How are you? How are you as a fan as far as
that goes? And by that, I mean, you know, how hard
do you take the losses? And how high do you get with the wins?
And do you ever try and kind of level out? I do.
I'm pretty level headed. I do love, like I tell you, this
football season, I got super close to this team. It was almost I
think I told you almost like that you know, the Alliott Courtiers when you
kind of felt you knew the guys, got close to them. And this
football team, I'm man. I went to every game and and bought a
bunch of T shirts and the whole bit. And uh so I when they
lost that one game, das see, I was ready to meet Harry care
But now you're back, now you're back. Yeah, I love so.
But but uh I'll tell you if you know, as an older age or
whatever, and my kids have hung up the cleats and stuff, I enjoy
it. I enjoyed going to the games. I enjoy rooting and and hollering
stuff. And it's a big part of my life. And and I love
them. But by the way, I never forget what you uh, what
you look like? You know what you post selfies with players every other day.
Well see that's that's it is a big part of my life. Those
Stanford girls. I'll play with my cousin that I'll be got to know him
and got to be friends with him actually, and and like brook to meet
she uh, he came out and she came running dick and hugged me and
it was cool. It was a big part of the part of my life.
Alyssa the girl that's a un l V. After my girl hung up
to Cleet, that's who I kind of latched onto. And now I have
some cousins that play ball here in Arizona, and I have latched on for
them and put all their games and I love it. It is a big
part of my life. Okay, Okay, well we'll see I think you'll
be okay tonight and Sunday. No guarantees, no guarantees, wait till the
found trip and then I got a I'll pray for you too. Okay,
thanks, thank you is good He's like John, John to John, just
enough, John, why don't you want to watch the game, because I
mean, everything's gonna be fine, everything relaxed, I know, you know,
And I tell you, I said, I I'm pretty level headed on
basketball, but not so much of football. But I mean, I know
i'm but I'm I know, I'm more level headed than most of the people
around me. They lose their mind football, Yeah, they lose their mind.
How because how could you not be because of all the torture you guys
have been through. We've been through a lot of torch, so you would
expect it to be torturous. It is torturous, and you still I've told
you. I mean, I feel like the sun shines a little better on
the day after a win, and it's a little gloomier on the day after
loss. But not you know, I'm not getting ready to jump off a
cliff or anything like that, like I know some other people are. We're
lucky that there's one story houses in Tucson, a lot of them, you
know. But and and in fact, I tend to find myself talking to
a lot of people off the ledge, you know, and just think,
relax, it'll be fine. Next week. And this last season was easy
because they were They just kept winning, you know, and even even the
game that they lost, now, you know, even the Mississippi State game,
right, I come out of that game thinking five turnovers and you look
and you and you got it overtime. That was actually pretty good. Just
don't do those don't just don't do that again. The USC game, you
thought, yes, they went up seventeen, nothing, you were like,
dang, you know, they should have won the game. And then they
did. We still thought they took you USC to the mat. And then
you know, the Washington game. You know, again, they were in
it till the very end. So there wasn't a game that you thought,
this is awful. Not one game last year did you go to the end
of the game and go, man, that really sucked. So very true,
very true, And so it was it was easy to be an Arizona
football fane. This may be a dumb question. Okay, so you did
well this year. You have a lot of the guys back, a lot
of them are left, obviously, But does the taste that you guys have
give you a little a sense of of not entitlement, but but now say,
hey, we're we're pretty good. We shouldn't lose more next year.
Yeah, I know exactly what you're saying. And this is this is a
more nerve racking season coming up because you're good last season, because because you've
got some expectations and you think Arizona never meets expectations in a situation like this.
So I mean, you know, will I as a fan be nervous
for the New Mexico and any of you games? No, But then you
got to go to Kansas State, right, and it's like, God,
if they lose to Kansas State now, which they probably should because Tannas State
is really good, and you're on the road, you go, God,
you know if they if they lose to Kansas State and then they got Utah,
you know at Utah after that, you go, God, they could
be two and two and zero and one in the league when you thought,
you know, this is a ten win season getting ready to happen, and
so you're nervous about that as a fan. You know that, God,
you really hope they beat Kansas State so that they feel good about themselves going
to Utah, which is gonna be very hard game to win. Cam Rising
is going to be back and Utah is probably gonna be favored to win the
league now because you know, whereas Arizona might have been favored had Jed Fish
not left and some other players. Now you're thinking Utah is going to be
the favorite and you're gonna go you don't even get a chance to break into
the Big twelve. All of a sudden, you're playing likely, you know,
possibly the conference champion in the first game at their place, and you're
going where Arizona. Arizona never wins that game. Yeah, well, you'll
be fine. I'd say optimism is probably the biggest part of it. You
have to be optimistic, right. Optimism is really hard for an Arizona football
fan. It's very hard. It's it's nerve racking for an Arizona football fan
because when you're used to losing and you lose, it's like, okay,
we were supposed to lose. But when you start winning and then you lose,
you go, what the hell? Yeah, I'd say Arizona fans,
be optimistic, but be realistic, realistic the wisdom on this kids. For
me, I'm putting, if it sleeking out, if Arizona comes out gets
eight wins, okay, that's a good that's you can build off that.
Bran Brennan can build off that. But see, yeah, Arizona fan wants
yeah exactly because they had ten wins this last season. They want ten exactly.
They have to realize that this this conference. In fact, I think
they expect yeah wins. They don't expect you to that's there. And that's
the scary part about being an Arizona fan is that anytime this has come up,
it's gone. It's headed in the wrong direction. The very next season,
well that's what we're used to. How much grief would Brennan receive if
it doesn't go well early in this town and it's not even a football town,
right, It's going to depend It's going to depend on how his guys
play. If a Feita and and and and McMillan aren't very good next year
for whatever reason, which I don't know why, they wouldn't be right,
But if all of a sudden, you feel like like we felt when Kevin
Sumlan and and and no no Mazzoni, you know, put the brakes on
on clout tape. Okay, you're gonna think, okay, wait a minute,
what's Brent Brandan doing that? Forfeita and Team AC aren't as good as
they were last year. That's what people are gonna be looking for. But
yet, if those guys go off and continue to do, you know,
take a next step of what they did this year, people will be fine
with it. And if they lose some games but look good doing it,
it's gonna be like, Okay, you know, they lost some other guys
and it's hard, it's a different league. YadA, yeada, YadA.
If they go six and six, fans, we're not gonna be have to
Well that would be kind of difficult. Yeah, that would be kind of
difficult because you know, the schedule came out on Tuesday Wednesday and everybody's talking,
oh, this is not that tough of a schedule. Well you just
wait, you just exactly what do you know about those schools right outside of
the rip of who they are? This isn't like going to cal or going
to Stanford. When you go on the road in the Big Twelve. They
they love their football and basketball. So for both foot both of those sports,
going on the road is not going to be easy. Sure, sure,
I think I'm on the surface. You think, okay, they can
win that one and win that one. But you don't know and the right
weather too, going to say you go and just state or something and it's
a little snowy. We haven't, I mean, Arizona hasn't dealt with that
before, like realistic, it's not up yet. But what do you think
the over under number will be for air Zona? Seven seven seven and a
half seven seven, seven and seven and a half. I would go over.
I would go over. I would go over on seven, you go
over seven and a half. Yeah, if it's over eight and a half,
yeah, yeah, I wouldn't do that. Yeah, I was likeaing.
They've got odds to win the national championship? What is it? Totally
five thousand two and for the first time, right Aero Wilson's guilty. But
the on the Heisman, yeah, Hesan, it has Heisman odds, but
they're twenty which Washington twenty first? Which Washington seven thousand, two thousand and
seven thousand. Yeah wow, that's close. Yeah yeah. Out the Utah
is at six thousand. Utah is the highest rated, uh it has the
best odds of in the in the big twelve. Utah and then Kansas State
at seven thousand, Arizona at eight thousand and then you get to Oklahoma State
at fifteen thousand. Yeah, should be a competitive conference. We'll see.
It's gonna be fun. It's gonna be fun. I think it's gonna be
fun for us. Yeah, as journalists or whatever we are, just because
it's different. Even home games I believe will feel better. So yeah,
good for fans, Yeah, it should be cool. Well, they're they're,
they're, they're fans are coming. We need to know because they because
they do. All Right, we're out of here, man, We're headed
over to McHale for the uh CAL game. So we'll be back tomorrow to
talk about all of that. So be sure to come back with us tomorrow
and follow follow the podcast, give it a listen tonight if you don't,
if you missed the beginning part of this show, so see you tomorrow