Steve Rivera and Jay Gonzalez. They have their eye on the ball on Tucson
Sports Stage Jack Fox Sports fourteen fifty, streaming live on the iHeart Radio.
Wapp Hey, welcome back to Jining the Ball here Fox Sports fourteen fifty.
I'm Steve Hej. Now we have Ryan with breaking news. This is I
on the Ball, Breaking news on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Start with University
of Arizona MLB draft has concluded. It's three days and today was rounds eleven
through twenty kind another University of Arizona pitcher selected today. Right hander Cam Walty
was drafted by the Cleveland Guardians in the twentieth round, the number five hundred
and ninety fifth pick, and he joins Jackson Kent, who was drafted in
the fourth round by the Nationals, and Clark Candiatti, also in the fourth
round by the San Diego Padres. So I think there's a good and stuff.
He'll probably come to school, given that he's so late into the rounds,
So you think, yeah, I mean, you know, the lad
they get it. It just depends on how bad they you know, they
want to go. But the two recruits got two recruits got picked uh,
and both pitchers. So everybody that got drafted that had a connection to Arizona
was a pitcher, which that can't be good. Uh. I think they
knew they were gonna lose the you know, three of the current staff,
but you know, they were hoping to hang on to their their their pitching
recruits. So we'll see if they in fact do that. Yeah, Lefty
Mason Russell was one of the signs. So and then and I can't remember
who the other one was. No, that's not it, that's somebody else.
But anyway, that's you know, yeah, so they you know,
they guy, they're gonna have to deal with that. But we'll see.
Uh. You know, look, I'm sure they've got plans, you know,
they've got they've got to figure out. So let's see what happens.
Right. A little bit of news from South Point to bea Henderson has committed
to Yukon. Committed or did she commit? Her she got offered. I
think she committed. I guess if may I guess if Yukon is gonna offer,
you're gonna probably commit to that, make sure, right? Yeah,
but uh no, you know, we we had her on the shows.
She sounded like very together person and probably pretty you know, when you can
when Yukon comes calling. Yukon comes calling, you know, and there's not
a whole lot that idea is going to be able to do about that when
when Yukon calls, it's like, Okay, do you want to go play
for the Chiefs or do you want to go play for the Crappy Raiders or
somebody like that. Oh, Antonio, this is Antonio Pierce. Great to
have you on the show. What happened today? Is you so you never
know what you're gonna call it? Just a correction on my end. This
was from Twitter that she was offered a scholarship. That's totally different. Yeah,
yeah, all right, Switch number two MLB. Some news from the
commissioner the possibility the upcoming spring training in twenty twenty five that they might be
testing the robot umpires. Really wow with the possibility of it being yeah in
twenty six Okay, what do you think, Dave you ready for that?
Yeah? I don't know. We talked about this, I don't know where,
maybe somewhere out somewhere where I was. So they have the box,
right, the box and you take it and the box we don't know how
far if you're standing if you're standing here and the box is over here,
yeah, there's still ball movement from here. You need yeah, you need
to. I mean it's gonna, you know, all of a sudden.
This is in the hands of a technician somewhere right right at the box in
the right spot, right the box in the right spot, and there's some
depth between the and you. So so the ball can move after the box,
right, if that makes any sense. But if the curve drops after
the box, you know, yeah, no, I hear so. I
don't know how this all works, but this is that wasn't a striker of
the guys? Good luck with that. The game has changed so much since
you were a kid, since I was a kid ten years ago. Speed
is all this, all these things, and I don't know if it's better.
I don't know if it's better. I don't know. In some respects
it is and it is. I'm look, I want strikes to be called
as strikes. Sure, and I'm I'll yell at like anybody else when I
see a ball that you know, misses the box by you know, four
inches, and they call her a strike, and I'm like pissed. But
you know, I also accept that that's a part of the game. And
so this idea that we have to call every every pitch has got to be
called perfectly. Now, there are some umpires who just have a really bad
day. You know, they'll miss you know, ten percent of the pitches.
That's too many. But you know, again, in the end,
it's it's part of the game to mate that going on. It's a human
element, and of course they're trying to be as perfect as it can be.
Imagine all the games that we watched throughout the years and said, if
we went back and had a right replay right, how many games would be
changed exactly? So, you know, I don't know. I'm I'm not
sure. I like the I like that idea, I'm really not I that
they've been they've been doing it. I think this season, I think last
year might have been the first year as well. But a challenge system,
I think that might be a little bit better for balls and strikes. Yeahh
that would be too much. I've seen a couple of videos where you know,
the better we'll just like give a signal to the umpire and the empire
will like look back to somebody like, hey, we want to challenge,
Well, if it could be that fast, I guess it's okay, but
I don't know. Again, I'm not that fond of it that at all.
Well, they're trying to speed up the game. That would not help
speed up the game. But there's it's always a contradiction of terms. You
know, what's gonna speed up, what's gonna slow it down. But I
think you're your an agreement. The speeding up of the game is a better
for the game. Yeah. I saw a stat today. He said,
uh, you know, before these new the new rules that they put in
place, you know, average length of the game was over three hours.
Now it's like two hours and thirty six minutes, which is like, yeah,
which is for old guys like me who need to go to the bathroom
a lot during a baseball game. That's great. But again we've had that
conversation where sometimes you go to a game, you put all this time effort
to go to a game, and the game last two hours and fifteen minutes.
You're like, I wasn't here long, and sure, sure, no,
it's not a good concert. You want to go to the country that's
quick in or do you want to go to a country that last a little
while. I don't want to go to Bruce Springsteen concert because he plays like
three and a half hours. But but you know that. But yeah,
you know that going in, You know that going in and you're saying,
okay, well and you're gonna have well, you grumpy old man. What
a gay? Switching over to the NBA some news regarding the Lakers. They
have added Lindsay Harding to JJ Reddick's staff. She's going to be the assistant
with the Lakers. Who is she? So? She's the D League coach
of the Year for the Stockton Kings. Okay. I guess her and Reddick
have a history, okay, because she was years player development coached with the
seventy six ers and an All American at Duke, So she probably was there
when he was there playing for I think he was with the seventy six ers.
We did never even talk about this one. JB was on the show
last week. I was a bit surprised that he's not coaching in the league.
Yeah, because you know, we had him on for the camps right
and he talked, you know, he was very diplomatic. You know,
whatever God has has lined up for him and he's been that guy. But
but he he was out and about doing a lot of different things, very
well spoken, and people loved him. Uh this might be just his breakaway
for a while. Yeah, maybe he did, and maybe he needs that,
you know. Although we did see Luke Walton. Uh, yeah,
we haven't talked about that. We got it, you know. Yeah,
I'm gonna try to get him on. I'm gonna try to get him on.
I spoke to him brief or communicated with him briefly when his dad passed.
With We were back and forth on this because we know, I thought
the world of his dad, right, and he was he wrote the pre
and he wrote the the forward for my book, right, and he was.
I loved Luke Walton. Yeah, so I'll try to get him on
before basketball starts. Let's do that because I'd love to talk to him.
Mind. Yeah, let me tell you something. One of the super good
guys, and I've said this before, what Bill and his his mom Susie
did with these kids. Uh, they're they're the most level headed dudes out
there. And you never think that that would be the case because of their
nast name and just just dudes, you know, and if you saw that
you saw the thirty for thirty with Bill? Right? You what, you're
the lone. You're the only dude that has that one in the monkey story?
What are you doing with your time? You can? You would love
the Bill Walton stuff. It's a fantastic three or four episode thing. It's
very very good. Okay, I got anothering. I got like eight homework
assignments from them. You do you too well in the summertime when but now
if you don't have time now, you ain't gonna have time when the guys
start coming to practice. Yeah, I know, I'm busy. S you're
busy looking at nineteen seventy three. No, I don't have to look at
that stuff. It's just all in my brain. I got there. That's
a that's scary, fell up in the brain. Please put it somewhere else.
Okay. A little bit of a little bit of sad news out of
the NBA. Former NBA player Joe Bryant, father of Kobe Bryant, he
passed away, Yeah this morning. Yeah, jelly Bean, jelly Bean,
And I guess they were strange, right, because I think they try to
He tried to sell some of his memory rebilia and they were kind of you
know, father son stuff. Ye, father son stuff, and uh,
but you know, the guy could play, and obviously he had grew grew
his son who could have played. Miss some memorabilia back in the day.
Yeah, Kobe's yeah, yeah, I think it's it's well maybe six seven,
eight years ago. We do know for for whatever reason, and that's
yeah, that's sad when they you know, when you have that dynamic situation,
right, yeah, yeah, but it's it's not my dynamic or your
dynamic. It's hard to talk about other people's dynamics. Right, Yeah,
we don't know, you're right. Last thing is just tonight is the All
Star Game. Yep, there watch it? Yep you are, I watch
it. I watch some of it. I enjoyed. I enjoyed being able
to take a little little break from the seriousness of the season. Yeah,
watch you guys. So friend I didn't, I'm not betting on it.
But a friend of mine is in Reno. He's from Santa Fan. He's
out doing some convention stuff. So if you had a two team or two
team party, what would your partly be tonight? Fortunately, two leg parlay,
two league part I'd probably pick a couple of guys. Maybe maybe one
guy to get a hit and another guy to hit a homer, but I
don't know who that would be. Oh, okay, so this is my
Maybe I just bet on Dodgers just to have fun with that, just to
do that. So I told them one thing or two things. Bet American
League minus one and a half for no other reason, but they're strong hitters,
and uh minus one and a half and then over seven and a half
runs. Oh so those two wow, Okay. I didn't do it,
but I thought that was the American League minus one and a half and a
half and over seven and a half. That's what That's what it was.
You weren't buying points or nothing. I'm not an American League guy, that's
and that's yeah. Right, So you wouldn't do it because you take take
I take the I take the points. Yeah, yeah, I bet.
I don't. I don't know, one way or another. What think about
I think if I were to bet it, I would bet I'd take I
bet on the National League. I don't know if I take the over though.
The pitching is so so damn good. These are all the best pictures
in the leagues, both leagues, right, It's you know, I would.
I think I would take the under. I think when I said that,
I thought so too. What is the seven and a half half?
So it's it's five to four, five to three. These guys are going
to strike out all day, well or not or not, so we'll see.
I'm glad they you know, they changed it back to the way it
is now where it doesn't really have an impact on the right and it never
should have. Right. That was stupid. So out there, have fun,
just play, play and okay, and I'm gonna be get off my
lawn. Guy. I really wish they would go back to the teams wearing
their uniforms. Oh yeah, you know, wearing the universe because they come
up with uniforms and they sell them, you know, sell the jerseys and
stuff like that. They need to come back, go back to the teams
wearing the uniforms. That's my take. I agree, because that was always
fun, you know, and then you'd see you'd see that you see guys
wear team guys, Guys that didn't wear white shoes during the season did wear
white shoes, or like Cincinnati Reds players would wear red shoes, you know,
when they were when Cincinnati was very strict and conservative with their uniforms,
you know, low low stirrups, black shoes and all. And then they'd
come out of the All Star Game and they have red shoes on and the
stirrups would be pulled high and stuff like that. I thought all that stuff
was cool. So I think I think most people would agree with you that
they need to bring bring the uniforms back, right, because that was one
thing that was cool about last night is that the players in the Home Runner,
in the Home Runner, we're all wearing their uniforms. Yeah, so
it Oh, good timing, good stuff. Thanks you, yeah, thank
you very much. Let's take a break and we're going to get a hold
of Proman No Perman will call us all right and talk about soccer again.
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your free evaluation Today. Dreamy Live, I mean, iHeartRadio WAUP. This
is Eye on the Ball with Steve Rivera and Jacob Salez on Fox Sports fourteen
fifteen. Hey, welcome back to Win the Ball. You know, Sports
fourteen fifteen receiver here Jacobs aus for waiting for Pearlman to come on the show
right in a little bit any moment now. Talking about some soccer success so
far. Yeah, yeah, they had you know, I had a good
season. They finished second in their in their league, and so they're they're
in the thirty two team bracket for the playoffs. That's a big bracket for
like a soccer league, right usually or you know tournaments soccer terms are done
like a pool play and then a bracket and that kind of stuff. But
you know, they want to get this thing done. So you think you
got to win what four five games, thirty six teams, thirty eighteen,
it goes thirty two, So it goes to sixteen eight four too four.
I think you gotta win five games, five matches because you gotta win thirty
six eighteen thirty two, thirty two. So you got to win a game
to get to sixteen, a game to get to eight, a game to
get to four, a game to get to two, and then you gotta
win the championships. Got to win five. Gotta get on get on a
streak. It'll be like, you know, good, good for the games,
right, yeah, because there was only sixty four rights, yeah,
six six games six years. You got to win five. So we'll see
what happens when they you know, if they win this one, do they
host again or how that works? Right? Okay, I hope he calls.
I know he was city would earlier today. Let's see what we do
here? Uh, what's that? We're on all week? Right, we're
on all week. I'm not gonna be here next week some parts of next
week there, Jay, hit at home, you know that hit at home
for a couple of days. Okay, to to do some stuff. You'll
be fine without me, you can call it. You never fine without you.
See I need you. You make you me feel good. Total lie.
But you'll live with all without me. You you, you make you
fulfill my day if I could. I saw this show. I get here
and I'm just like, I'm so glad Steve is here today. Yeah right,
I can say he's full of it without saying he's full of it.
Yeah right, don't do it. We need you. Don't do it,
we need you. Okay, So, uh call anybody want to call.
We will have to get after Pearlman. If he does call in, I've
already texted him. So he should be calling any any any moment. Now,
what else before we get to to the socker thing? I don't know.
You know what times? Baseball games by thirty? Oh you know,
somebody called me. He might call me from the game. One of our
regular callers, Rick Rick, is at the game. He said, should
I call you guys from the shows? Yeah? Call it the four o'clock
hours. So he's he's in Texas. He's in Arlington. Nice. Yeah,
I lived there before I got here. It's it's not fun. It's
not fun, but here is Neither was Tucsons. Yeah, who is this?
Joe Jonathan? What are you slacking? You gotta run some laps for
I'm sorry somebody called in on me. It was like in the district.
I apologies, okay, let me tell you something surprising that are you sitting
down? I am just in case I don't want you to follow the floor.
You may have found a new soccer fan. He's my partner here.
He had never sat through a game, and now he has. John I
which games, you said, Well, I caught the tail end of the
of the euro League champion or the euro Tournament Championship. I put it on
after the Dodger game was over, so I did watch baseball, but the
game ended and I went straight to That's archipecture. And then I sat there
and waited for the COPA game to come on, sat through the long delay
and get in it going, and then watched it. So in home,
I watched the whole thing and I didn't get up, and I sat through
it and I was it was exciting. It was a one nothing game,
and you know, I've been one of those guys when nothing ever happened.
So I don't watch the games. But it was a great game. It
was a great match, and I loved watching it. And you know,
the drama with Messi and all that stuff. It was all cool. Great
to see that. I already see him wearring to check this prick shirt.
Yeah, well I'm gonna get you guys both Jersey. I'm that for both
that kind happen. That's not a question. Super. You must be pretty
proud. Yeah, we're thrilled, I mean really excited to go to the
last games, the last eight unbeaten to clinch. Uh. We have the
toughest you know situation with only two Arizona teams and then eighteen conference with lots
of road trips to California that are difficult and nobody giving us any help,
and just it's really the achievement by the players of course most of all.
And I've previously coached Canada and the entire staff, you know, Cronolfson otherwise.
So John, when when you're you know, you're as as you know,
the owner and president of the league and so you're you know, you're
looking for you know, long term success. You know, you want this
organization to to have a lot of success, and you do a lot of
things, but when you have something like this happen, you know, how
do you build on this? Because that's you know, we're going to talk
about the match with with your coach tomorrow, but to you know today,
finding out you know your vision for for what you're doing and and and all
the things that have to come together for you have a season like this and
then how you go from here. Yeah, I think it's it's making sure
you acknowledge the people that have helped you get there, not just on the
sporting side, but on the Uh. You know, obviously the stadium district
has been tremendous with us having one of the best fields in the practice fields
in the entire league. Uh, they're support for us being flexible as you
have some challenges as you do during the season. There are business support.
I mean, you can't say enough about all of our sponsors, but when
somebody like you know, HG three, who is our usually our our game
warm up, Jersey sponsor de Times to sponsor the Western Conference playoffs for us,
and you know, Public Vieta's stepping up and Physioshop and Banner being available
to do the games with excitement. I mean, there's just so many great
partners we have that activate that are part of our team. And then obviously
you know you're going to make sure you're doing so. It gives us a
chance again to work on what we do, to work on our craft,
the game curation, the timing of things, to be the best we can
be. So we're always going to be attractive place to spend your time.
Right. So, if I want Jay to watch games, I've got to
have a great team. I've got to have a great game experience. I've
got to have, you know, some two three dollars beers. I've got
to have food that's enjoyable, and i've got to have a fan base that's
excited about the players and the players I've treated the fans wonderfully. They stay
late, they sign autographs, they take the time to speak to the media,
and we're grateful for you guys as well and all of our media partners.
So really, just a terrific year. It's funny we talk about this
all the time at the University of Arizona and other sports, and you know
this, You've been in it, Jonathan. Nothing brings the fans more excitement
and to the seats than winning. And I'm sure that helped you guys a
lot. Yeah, I mean, look, it's I would never I would
just say that you the tooth on the challenge is especially in the basketball side,
the standards are so unbelievably high that you know, it's not even enough
to win now, it's you know, are you winning the conference? Are
you winning? It's all NCAA based, So I mean again, the fans
are here, super competitive. There's a lot of people who went to school
here on the UVA side. It's the connection with that. So with us
now that we have more players that have played for US it's ten years now,
we have youth players that are now parents of little kids in the club
and they take their little kids to the games, like Gagarin. You know,
it's it's one of these things where people have to understand that it takes
a while to grow that. I had a tradition of going to the game
here and to keep those fans and by doing good things. And we've had
some challenges, you know with COVID and you know with being pro and not
being pro, So to be consistent is the hardest thing to do. So
we've agatten this from playoffs. This is our first time since twenty one,
but in the lead to era, we've been in the playoffs eight of ten
years. So I'm really proud of the team. But we're a winning tradition
and we need to keep that going. Yeah. So the support that you
guys have had this year, I mean you feel like it's been you know,
a step forward for you guys. And how's that. You know,
what's that been like for you this year? Yeah, it's been great.
I mean the fan base has been really solid. I mean even sometimes when
there was challenging situations, you know, in terms of whether as it always
is this time, you know, people have come late. Last game,
we had a really good fan presence considering the degree of the storm we had
on Sunday. But again, we're we're able to do some great things in
the stadium district. We know we're gonna get the games off. We know
people, we do a better job of communicating, and the people are patient
because again, you know, after everything, you've become a little bit later.
That temperature is perfect, you know, and uh, it's really exciting
to see our team play and compete. But uh, there's a mass.
Friday is massive seven thirty. We've got to be on the ball. We've
got to be sharp. If I can use the on the ball logo there,
and then uh, we just really need to understand that this is a
really critical opportunity for us to be successful and be the team playing on Sunday
and be the team that's uh, you know, advancing to the conference final
four, to the National Final four in the conference final on the uh on
the following weekend. I'm sure and you when you started the season decided to
do what you do with the team. UH, you had some plans,
right, you had to see you probably had a vision outside of not winning
it a right way, but I'm sure this is probably pretty good in terms
of what you had hoped. Yeah. Absolutely. I mean, obviously,
winning winning the conference reguacy is always a goal because it gives you the best
seating and so it's the privilege to be a conference champion. We've been a
conference champion before. But again, when you look at it that we went
on the road to Ventshura, re tied them and we've dealt them their only
lost. So our record is undefeated against the team that won the conference who
you are looking to see again. And you know, we really have really
wanted to tell me that we took we had five or six games away to
start the season and to hang through that and then to end up on the
where we did in the conference. I mean it's really a tribute to the
guys in the In our plan, the plan was to end at home,
to be come, start, start, stay, stay within it, and
then have the last eight games go un beaten. I mean, it's really
a tribute to the plan and Sebah and the team is the ones who do
deserve credit for executing it on the field. Do you do you think are
you going to continue with this with this way you're doing it with with the
league and all that. Are you going to change it up next year?
Are you just going to kind of continue it? I think the plan for
us is to stay in league too, but really announce our future, you
know, moving into December or at least our near future, where we're going
what we plan on doing. And that's really that starts in August with a
really strong, you know, five months plan of analyzing what we're doing,
talking to the partners where they'd like to see us go, talking some of
the investors into some of the real estate, you know, interests from the
league, and see where the league sees us as well. So it's a
bunch of meetings with a bunch of people that are really critical for us to
decide on the overall, But again, the future is very bright. We'll
be playing soccer next summer, there's no question about that at the league level
we're at. But really twenty twenty six, when the World Compas year is
really going to be where we're where we're deciding where we're going, you know,
in terms of the pro the pro route, and that will be clear
by then. If not having us playing pro at that point, well,
with all this that called the mosaic that's coming up, you know, in
the next few years. Over on the on the other side of the other
side of the freeway, are you guys going to be a part of that
at all or is there something going in there for you or are you going
to still be at the stadium where you're at. So obviously in the Zack
in their base planning, their plan is in the third phase. There is
a Docker stadium in that plan. But again we're waiting, obviously, like
all of us, to see how the other phases go. I mean,
I think certainly everyone's filled with optimism, and if that's the case, certainly
that would be a very good option for us. But when when you're talking
about that, you're talking about if everything is perfectly on time. That would
be a stadium in twenty eight so we would want to answer pro the right
right year of the World Cup. Could we play where we're currently at?
Yes, but we would only do that if we had a long term plan
with a stadium location that would serve the overall business interest to the next decade.
So okay, let me ask you, because I know you coach,
and you probably I think you did say this last time you're on You're doing
some work with some clubs in town, so you have more than just this
on your plate, right, Yeah. I mean what I do is obviously
we you know, we're partnered with FT two so on Youth, So I
sit on the board and I work with Dave Cosgrove and Mike Corbis and Wolfgang
Weber and the wonderful people that work there in the borough. Garcia coaches our
women's team to really try to make an integrated plan for any three year old
starring soccer to come all the way through FC two, song USL and WPSL
SO and then because I have the time to do that as an empty nest
or, I coached the thirteen and fourteen year old boys teams which play in
the ECNL, and our fourteen year old boys, you know, went too
and one in the national tournament, losing to Seattle United, who's probably the
favorite to win the national championship in that platform. So yeah, but I'm
still coaching, I'm still working. We just started a brand new futsal league
at the event center across from where we play our games called Tucson Footsall League,
And you know, we're again I'm always trying to add to what we're
doing by having complimentary properties that really just grow the game. Cool. Okay,
well we appreciate your time. So what do we need to do?
Uh, game is win and tickets and all that stuff. Friday night doubleheader,
we're the seven thirty game. Tickets on sale at fcson dot com.
You can buy tickets for the whole weekend because you know we're going to be
there on Sunday. That's the best bet. Tickets are on sale right now.
Uh they'll go quickly because obviously the good seats go quickly on playoffs.
So I would get on there, get that done, and uh, you
can't wait to see everybody on Friday night where we're in take on Flat Irons,
rush and get the win. For Tucson cool. I wear extra large.
I got to Jay, what about you? I can't believe that.
I mean, you guys just seem like medium guys. Nook, I haven't
junior high. Let me tell you, don't worry. You got the coach
on tomorrow. But yeah, yeah, actually I probably were a medium maybe
through about the tenth phrase. Then that was that coch Yeah did you take
your beds today? He's always fun. I love it. Hey, let's
take let's take a break down. We would get a call from Texas Stadium.
All right, all right, we'll be right back, give us a
call five to zero, four one, six, seventy four, forty.
If you're an Arizona man's basketball fan, you know it's been successful for nearly
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It's Steve Rivera and Jagen Salaz. This is I on the Ball on Fox
Sports fourteenth. Hey, welcome back to Wining the Ball hero Fox Sports fourteen
fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. He's Jiginsaucey got our guy Ryan in with us
for the last sixteen minutes today on Tuesday. A good show so far.
We have sixteen minutes to screw it up. We do and we can.
We are capable of that for sure, for sure. So if you want
to CALLFY two for one six seventy four forty uh, it's true that you
wouldn't be okay, he's not gonna call in. It's too loud of to
stay. We wouldn't hear, okay. I I think I am going to
go home and watch that. You know. Yeah, well, there's nothing
really else going on. Yeah, what's a little more of the g leagues
getting kind of boring? Yeah for me at least. Uh, did the
Miami do? How did Miami do yesterday? They won by a lot?
They one by like thirty and uh and Keishan continues to impress defensively, specifically,
you can do so much. We'll see what happens with him. Good
luck, Tom. He's a good guy too. You know, he speaks
well, he's Yeah, he's a thoughtful guy. Yeah. You hope,
you hope for the best for guys, especially when they're good guys, because
you know, yeah, so many guys aren't and you know what they get
into the shore. Sure that realm, So you know it's good. It's
good to see, right, all right? Uh did you see you saw?
We've talked about this sort of loves new hairdoo. Yeah, short,
short and proper. Yeah. I'm not sure. We got a few months
before he comes on the court. I'm not sure if he's an NBA guy.
I still say that had he had a chance, they would have give
him a chance. Right Well yeah, yeah, well but he's still he's
still got a time and he's in a position where he can still prove himself
to be excuse me an NBA. Yeah, I think his game will have
to change how so exactly? I mean, you know, what are they
looking for? You and I we're not scouts. I don't know, Okay,
So I just I don't know why I thought that. I just thoughtout
that, you know too, I think he's going to be undersold. And
I party asked this of coach what's his name, Coach Tommy about the Martinis
the Martinis kid. Because Martinez is playing for the Spain you you twenty,
I think it is, and he's doing fairly well playing. I think he's
going to be underserved or he's undervalued because he can handle the ball. He's
a smart dude, doesn't turn it over. He's not Kerr. He's he's
a guy who just runs the offense right. And and because there was on
his party lacking in the backcourt depth wise that he might see sometime if Bradley
doesn't do you know whatever, and Love isn't still not a ball handler.
Yeah, he's a two more, he's a two. I mean, he's
definitely a two. I mean, could I Yeah, that's one thing.
I don't see him being able to, you know, run the point right
in the NBA unless that's asked of him. And then I don't know if
Tommy's Tommy's not obligated to the NBA, but he's yeah, yeah, exactly.
And plus, you know, if you're in, if you're in the
NBA, you're gonna get a guy who's a natural point point right, right.
You know you don't need you don't need to pick Caleb Love to be
your point guard. You can go get a point right. Uh. So
we'll see what happens with that. I'm looking forward to the basketball season.
Obviously. Somebody somebody already asked me, can you give me two tickets to
the Duke game? And I said, who do you think I am asking?
Christy Brinkley? Will you marry me? It's probably an easier time doing
that. Somebody's already asking to don't you have any more pool? I said
that law that ship said, go god. We never had pull for things
like tickets though sports writers and stuff. I don't even have pull now,
and I do work over there for well those are you that's your pay?
Yeah, ticket two tickets? Leaders, Well, that's why they'll be in
the billiding for Duke. Yeah, yeah, yeah, no, oh my
wife fired up for that game, those tickets, and we talked about this
a while back when the game was gonna happen. Uh, there have been
fewer bigger games than Duke coming in now North Carolina, if you remember looks
last finishing year, Michigan, Michigan came here. But the North Carolina game,
it was like people are sellers their tickets that crazy and that it turned
out to be a dud of a game because that was a bad day.
That was a Marcus Williams game because you know, you you get it,
you get through the arena and you can feel feel it. That was one
of the games where you could feel it. You could feel it, and
then it went. That game went the hell by the way fast down.
But you're the Michigan game, even the Connecticut game, the Kansas came here,
right, the Kansas game was a festival classic game when it when there
was no longer a tournament, just a single game that was you know,
dorew sponsors and stuff, and that was a fun game. Yeah. I
think the Michigan State game was maybe after the nineteen eighty nineteen nineteen ninety nine
championship year that they had. In two thousand you know, so there's been
a lot of great games that one will have it for sure. Yeah.
Yeah. And then of course the Big Twelve minus the Kansas game. Yeah,
I still I can't believe they did that. Yeah. So in fact,
Troy, because I usually go to those games, Troy said, are
you going to go to Ken's game? Now, I've already been there there
in Manhattan, Kansas. Yeah, so that let if I hadn't been there
before, I wouldn't And then then tournament, we've gotta get ready for the
back of the mark what yes you did? Yes, you did that counts.
I was going to see the pack the Big Twelve tournament. Stop it,
stop it, stop it. That's a buck. That's a buck.
It's going to be a packed. Brian, Brian, I called you,
Brian, Ryan, come on, you're the ref on this. He was
starting to it's a bus. That's a buck. No, it's a buck.
It's a buck. Shoot, it's a buck. The Big Twelve Tournament
in Kansas City, because they didn't have to say them Nicholas for that one.
Yeah, because that's then when the last time you're in Kansas City.
Oh, I don't remember, honestly, Uh, I don't I've only been
once and that was that eighty eight. Fi, it's been a while.
I can't tell you what I remember, having some great barbecue there in one
of them, of course, of course. Uh maybe I flew in there
to get to Lawrence. Probably there to get to Lawrence to drive too,
you know, that was a kend to get year. Yeah, but I
didn't stay. Yeah. No, you know, because people to ask,
are you gonna go to Kansas City for the And I'm like, I probably
not unless, you know, unless we're making a fortune on this show and
we have the mind to do that, maybe even get a sponsor to the
take us there. But but I think, I I think as of now,
I don't know. You know this, As of now, the PAC
twelve is supposed to host the West Region I think basketball, and as of
now, I'm working it. If they do them fact, continue to host
it. Okay, the Western Regional where it's in San Francisco, in San
Francisco that the Warrior Place Warriors Arena. Okay, like before, Okay,
that'd be cool in San Francisco, you know, because the last time it
was in San Francisco, the PAC twelve was the host. Yeah. Now,
last year in Vegas, u n LV was the host. But you
know we were told that after last year that as of now and if the
if the PAC twelve continues to be and they host the thing, well I'll
go work. That will have an impact on whether or not, you know,
go to Western Regional Sweet sixteen or they. Oh yeah, so that's
well, that's two weeks before the Sweet sixteen and the Big twelve would be
the two weeks before. Yeah, I mean, I mean if the PAC
twelve was having its tournament next year, I definitely go do that. But
yeah, I don't think they're having a tournament that's a one game between right,
automatic bid to the n C Double A. In fact, we should
try to get the yogi yeah, because Justin actually mentioned them earlier, right
right, they will do like a best of seven Yeah maybe yeah, maybe
the best two out of three or something like that, but you know,
you get the automatic bit. I don't think the pact gets Let me let
me ask you the question. We have nine minutes and maybe we get a
call here from somebody who's older and listened to us. So you're older now,
and you you talk very fondly and very h giddy being a kid in
the seventies because you remember all that stuff. I don't know if you remember
you because you do you follow remember do you appreciate appreciate? Do you do
you remember that time more enthusiastically as a kid or now you know what I'm
saying, because when you're kidding, you know every player right right the game?
Yeah, you know that it was so simple back then because you know,
you hop on the bus or when we started driving, you know,
we'd go to the games, would have a great time and you know,
go home from the games. You know, when I was in college,
i'd go to the games that you would go out and do something you know
afterwards. Uh, and on too until I started covering the team, right,
and then sort of when I came out of covering the team, it
all became about tailgating, right, and some now other games the games were
you know, were you know, your tailgate, and so it was kind
of like you did the tailgate and then because there was a game, you
went to the game. And that's kind of where we've been since then.
So it's become more of a you know, an event as opposed to just
going to the game and I went. I mean, you know, I
know all these games that you were talking about in the seventies and stuff like
that, because I was a kid and that was the coolest thing, right.
I remember the first game I can remember ever going to. The first
u of a football game I can remember going to would have been in the
late sixties. My brothers were both in high school at Sunnyside and they were
in the band, and there was a band Day. Used to be a
thing where all the bands from the entire city would come to the game and
they would all be on the field and play at halftime. So you'd have,
you know, twenty bands out there. However many high schools there were
because some bands would come from out it, you know, you get Benson
and Douglas and you know, so the field would fill up with you know,
the bands. And my brothers were in the Sunnyside band, so we'd
go to that game. That's the first game I can remember going to.
I think they played Iowa State is the first game I can never remember going
to. Going into the stadium. It didn't have the upper deck on the
on the east side, and that's the first game I can remember going to
until I started going to games on my own the first year of Jim Young
and so, and that was you know, I'd go with my friends and
we went to those games and it was just a blast for us. It
was the coolest thing. We were like, there's some level of freedom that
we had to be on our own. Would go sit in the not hoole
section, then would escape from the not whole section because they had monitors there,
so you weren't supposed to leave the not whole area, and we would
and would go sit, you know, in the high seat. So was
that that game here? Yes? Yeah, so you were born in fifty
nine. Yes, Oh, so you're seven Is that when that game was
sixty six? Yeah, that would have been it. Yeah, they were
in the band at the end of sixty six. Yeah, that was so
I would have been seven years old. That was the first game I can
remember. First uf A football game I can remember going to. And then
it was funny because when we moved out to the East Side when Bob Weber
was the coach, their kids lived in our neighborhood and so there were some
kids that we knew and we played football together. And then Bob Webber got
fired and it was like bummer dude, your dad just lost his job,
you know. And that was and that's when they brought in and that's when
they brought in Jim Young. Jim Weber was seventy ye Young was in seventy
two. Young was seventy three seventy three, right, Yeah, Bob Weber
was after the seventy two seas. So this is foreign to me, but
I know the name. Moudro So Mujo had an eight three season sixty eight
did he go? Where do you go? He left? Yeah? He
left for god, where did he go? So let me say this.
So and they ran him out of town. He got run out of town
because he wanted more money and they just said no, we're not gonna give
it to you until he left. So three seasons okay, yeah, really,
yeah, there's your there's your there's your. Well that was that was
the ultimatum Bowl year that I talked to you about. That's that was it.
They lost to Auburn in the Sumbol Yeah, they lost. They lost.
You got be thirty one to nothing, I think thirty seven, thirty
seven, thirty to seven, okay, and then they the it was Auburn
beat him like thirty one to okay, and so they lost to Auburn that
year and then uh, then they hired Bob Weber, who I think was
the Darren Muja assistant. Okay, uh and uh he was here for a
few years and then they fired Hyeah. Yeah, that's when. That's when
Jim Young came. Really, when you think about it, everything changed when
Jim Young got here, because they got good really fast. I remember the
there's a there's an Air Force game at the end of the seventy three season
where Arizona was losing badly, came back and got within a point or two
maybe went for two and didn't get it and lost or something like that,
and then they were like, oh they were they were eight and two,
and we're like, well heck. Then they went and played AC and a
US to beat the crap out of them, like fifty five to something fifty
five nineteen Yeah, yeah, you're right, twenty six to twenty seven.
Got you can't. You can't get out of your house calling down you can
remember this stuff. It's a dazy what are you? You're not with us
tomorrow? No? Oh? That was the Air Force game? Is twenty
seven to twenty six? Okay, what the Arizona did was they went for
two to try and win the game, and they didn't get it and lost
twenty seven to twenty six. But people were excited, you know, they
were right in nineteenth Yeah, at that time. I remember at the end
of that game, even though they lost, the crowd was still there and
you heard the u of a chant They were chanting for you. Oh no,
they were chanting beat ten p because that's what they would call it.
They're chanting beat ten. And then of course he went and got the living
hell beat out of the next year. Danny White I think was the quarterback
at ACU that year, Bruce Hill, but Bruceill was the quarterback here and
they got the hell beat out of him in that season. Yeah, so
Jim Young kind of did said that's what we're talking about. Yeah, And
none of those none of those games ended in a bowl game because we were
in the whack. And as you you know, won the league all three
of those years, I think maybe one, Yeah, I think all three
of those seasons they you won the No, maybe seventy four they didn't,
uh seventy four, they did not win the league. Arizona beat him that
year. Tend to nothing. Willie Hamilton with a touchdown in that game,
I remember that too. Cant name his kids, but Tommy, Joey,
you know what, there's people out there right now going remember that. I
remember. I remember Willy Hamilton's going the touchdown. Yeah, and you know,
and and that and that, and then, like I said, you
know, we our tickets. Back then, the student section was in the
corner where the band is now. Okay, then he used to call that
coffin corner. And because there were bad things happening there all the time.
So the seats at the fifty yard line were general public seats, so we
had some for that for that ASU game. We we sat, we sat
like on the forty yard line, and we were pretty down low and we
you know, my friend and I rushed the field. I grabbed it.
I grabbed a couple of gin straps off of some guys helmets, and and
what'd you do with I don't remember, I have no idea what I ever.
Do you remember you covered the team in eighty nine, right? Yes?
So did I? Uh so did I? We covered it against each
other. I don't remember. I couldn't remember anything right now of the comparable
against North Carolina. Yeah, I don't remember. Scott Guy with interception in
turn for a touchdown, remember, remember I remember? And that was the
sort of at the end of the game. We were on the field,
right it was. It was it was seventeen to ten. North Carolina State
was driving for a score and he picked off a pad ran it back like
eighty yards for a touchdown. And that's what that was. We finished seventeen
is that what? Well? Okay, the seven well then it was the
winning touch here the name the name from that year. Do you remember a
lot to day? Yeah? Yeah, he was a receiver on and he
scored a touchdown in that game. Probably he was the only one. Then.
My final year ninety was the old elbow. But they hadn't they scored
points whatever whatever for it had a long, long scoring st got shut out.
That's that was. That was the year the Melbourne Smith didn't good Hawaii
right, okay, good good show today, good stuff man way down memory
length like way back, right way back. Okay, some more soccer tomorrow,
some other things going on. So we'll try to do that and uh
finish out midweek. Alright, watch the All Star Game tonight. Go put
some money on it right. Okay there, that's all you need to do.
Just get some juice. Get get some juice, all right, Thanks
for being here. We'll see you tomorrow.