Dreamy Live, I mean my heart Radio. This is High on the Ball
with Steve Rivera and Jay Gonzalez on Fox Sportsport Team Fitts. Hey, welcome
back to On the Ball here Fox Sports Spurt Team Shifty. I'm Steve,
he and Jane. Now we have Britkey News is High on the Ball breaking
news. All right, So a lot of stuff going on as always,
Uh, digging, digging for diamonds in the rough and news and all kinds
of stuff. Okay, let's start with some news out of out of Phoenix.
DeAndre Hopkins, the all everything receiver from the Cardinals, has been released.
Right, that's some more of the money's right, the eight million dollars
cap space whatever all that stuff means. But but DeAndre Hopkins is gone.
Uh who picks him up? We'll see. He threw out on he's got
a podcast, and he threw out five quarterbacks that he would like to play
for, and none of them was Kyler Murray. You know, you know
Lamar Jackson and you know all these ships. So we'll see, we'll see
if anybody wants to de hoop. But he's not. He's not with the
Cardinals anymore. And you know what he stopped wanting to be with the Cardinals
a while back. And you know, again, as I've always said,
if you don't want to be here, then get the hell out. So
so DeAndre Hopkins gone, and I don't know if I want to be in
Phoenix either. That's it's the last It's probably the worst team in the league
right now, maybe the safe safe for Texas. Yeah, all right.
So, um, after after the Lakers were eliminated the other the other night,
Lebron James and his postgame press conference said some words that people started losing
their minds thinking he's gonna retire all this stuff. Um uh. Dave mcmaniman
from ESPN has said he's got a source close to Lebron James. It said
he believes he'll fulfill his contract and he'll be back next year. Henna be
silly if he wouldn't get that. And you know, McManaman kind of said,
look, he was saying some stuff after the game. I don't feel
like he was lying or anything like that. That that's how he was feeling.
It that true, true right after the game. I mean to ten
minutes after the game and you're saying some stuff from the heart. Probably right,
we talked about that. How I'll try contry he was He just said
he had a lot to think about. According to according to mcmanamana, but
to keep some people close to Lebron say he ain't going anywhere. Yeah,
he's all right. Um So. Earlier this week also Barry Trammell of the
Oklahoma did a story say Colorado is getting ready to jump, They're going to
You're going to the Big twelve soon. Is sourced with somebody within the Big
twelve, which, of course they're gonna say that today um our buddy,
uh um um. Brian how from from the Boulder Daily Camera did a long
interview with with Rick George. Among the things that George said was, quote,
you've got to believe about a third of what you see out there.
We're members of the PAC twelve. We're proud members of the PAC twelve,
and we've got to see where a media rights to the land and where our
conference goes. In a perfect world, would love to be in the PAC
twelve. Well, we also have to do what's right for Colorado. At
the end of the day, we'll evaluate things as we move forward. You
know the funny thing about it, No, you're right, what do you
sound like what you can say? Let me go there, because we had
Jim, we had Dave Ky, same thing. And what's he been accused
of being a politician, right, that's what politicians and a corporate line guy,
that's and that's what it was. What it can you? What can
you say? Right? And Jay, are you a good guy? I
thought it was breaking news? Uh a day line two sons. Jay thought
he was a good guy. Of course, they're gonna say what they need
to say and without giving you information exactly exactly, and look, he did
exactly what Dave Vicky did exactly. He left either door open, said we
got to do what's best for us. Yeah, we want to, but
we want to be in there. In fact, they're probably tired of talking
about it because they're gonna say the same thing. And if the PAC twelve
doesn't pull a deal together, then they say we want on it. They
didn't get it together, we gotta go over here because it's in our best
instrums. Nothing wrong with you and you know and again when we talked about
it last time, I said, if the worst case scenario is the Arizona
winds up in the Big twelve, I could think of worse things. Sure,
right, Well you're winding up in the Mountain West or the whack.
You don't have very many options left, right. I don't even know what
the ACC is doing anymore, because you know, that's a that's a been.
Arizona is not Washington State. Washington State is struggling Washington State. I
think if the PAC twelve breaks up, Washington State's gonna wind up in the
Mountain West yea, yeah, right, and the West and probably dominate that
believe of course, of course for a while, until until they start catching
up with them. So anyway, So so Rick George, the ethic arctor
at Colorado basically saying the same thing gave you. I don't know. I
know this is part of our gig here, telling people what they're keeping people
up to, up the snuff of what's going on. But I don't see
how anybody can can worry about the next news because you don't know. We
talk about this, you'll know when you know, because it's no point in
getting concerned over it. Yeah, no headlights with one of our buddies over
the this week, and I'm thinking, what's to be concerning? I mean,
you'll go to sleep tonight not knowing, and you'll wake up tomorrow not
knowing until you know, and then you know when you say, okay,
what's next? Still one? And I don't know where road trips are gonna
go to. I don't think you're not going on the road trip. Well
we're gonna go to us this year, so you're gonna go Yeah, okay,
that's a that's a sparewell tour. Well yeah, but those are always
a fun trip, all right. Um, one, two, three,
four or five, six, seventy eight Arizona guys are on the Athlons the
preseason. I'll pack twelve team Jacob Colleen, Jordan, Morgan, Tait,
Roa McMillan, Jonas, Savina, Tyler, Loop, Michael Wiley, Kyle
Austin's both kickers and Justin Flow who hasn't you've played it down for well,
that's a good sign. That's a good sign. I hope they stayed all
healthy. Yeah, and it's a sign that judge judge moving the team talent
wise. And but the thing about it too is in our legacy talk,
they were they were it's zero is the bottom? They were point zero five?
Yeah, it was, it was, it was low. It was
low. Jordan Morgan is still you know, they're all the you know,
the the mock drafts for next year already coming out, and he's still listened
to the first round pick even though he's coming off this this knee injury.
So um interesting years out of New Orleans. The Saints have brought brought in
John Gruden to work with David Carr. Was aw went from the Raiders to
the Saints. He was John Gruden's quarterback at the Raiders. He kind of
work with him. He's not he's not officially a coach or anything like that.
He's just been working with him during the offseason to kind of get him
ready for the next season. But uh, you know, remember Gruden had
he got he had to resign when all these emails came out, you know,
you know, racist and sexist and homophobic stuff. So he's, uh,
who know, it's twinning. He'll ever coach again, but he's probably
making a little bit of change over there to help out with with David Carr
over there with the Saints. Um So, Michael Block, we talked about
him yesterday. He had a tough go tarted eleven over par uh uh eighty
one at the uh at the Colonial uh golf course in the tournament that's went
on right now. He shot another four over part a day, so he
finished fifteen over, so he missed the cut. She was what's seventy what's
seventy six, seventy five, it would have been seventy four, So he
shot but he was fifteen over part. It's a part seventy course. And
so who said golf was easy? Nough? You know, Michael Block making
the cut was the most bet prop at least on Draft King pointing to the
tournament, I'm saying that he would that he wouldn't make They lost a lot
of money. Close Well, Draft Kings made a lot of money, so
maybe we have him back. The LSU women's basketball team was at the Pie
House today and there was a little drama, uh during the visit um.
One of the players during the during Biden a President Biden's talk, passed out,
fainted right there on the stage behind him. He kind of he kind
of, you know, she was okay. He kind of equipped that she's
not the first one to pass out when he's talking and stuff. But it
was pretty funny. But you know, the team went. Remember there was
a angel Reese who said, I, you know, I don't want to
go there. I'd rather go to the Obama. But he went there.
He actually talked to her and uh, you know kind of you know,
singled her out and talked to her a little bit. But uh, it
was a little bit of an incident of six or seven minute delay. Well
they got the player, her name is Semia Smith off the stage and then
she was fine. So but again, always drama, always drama when people
go to the White House. Um, I don't I remember, I didn't
remember seeing this. But the Colorado Rocky's a right hander Ryan Feltoner got beamed
with a line drive about two weeks ago. He's out of the hospital.
He had some public comments, doesn't know if he'll be he'll be pitching today,
I mean pitching this year. But he was asked about, you know,
how he's doing. He still got lingering concussion symptoms as well as some
right ear pain. He said, a lot of fractured symptoms, just a
headache from the concussion, dizziness. But today there's no pain. I'm sleeping
well and day to day stuff has become a lot easier. So the feel
is that I'm in really good spot compared to where it could be like dead.
I didn't see that. I saw a lot of birds dying from players.
Yeah, exactly. Um, what's wrong with Scottie Pippin? Did you
see his domment? His comments? I don't know if he feels like he
got slighted because you know that he thinks he was, you know, better
than Michael Jordan or should have been gotten as much of attention as Michael.
But on a on Somebody's podcast, he says, I've seen Michael Jordan play
before I came to play with the Bulls. You guys seen him play.
He was a horrible player. He was horror able to play with. He
was all one on one, he was shooting bad shots, and all of
a sudden we became a team and we start winning, and everybody forgot who
he was. Who did he talk to? That's strange. Let's see who
was Uh, that's strange. He was on Stacy King's podcast that was That's
maybe the context is different, but uh, he they both needed each other.
I mean, honestly, Scottie Pippen would be just another dude. Has
Michael Jordan never called Scottie Pippen a terrible player? Maybe maybe not publicly.
Okay, maybe he had did to his face, but for him to come
out of publicly say Michael Jordan, the greatest player in NBA history, was
horrible. Yeah. I say you look stupid. When you say, did
you look stupid and better? Yeah? No, I get it, I
get it. I agree with you. Did your kids? Uh well,
Adam Or did he watch the Jordan's Tummy, The Last the Fund, Last
Dance, Last Dance? Yeah? I think he did, because it's not
now. Yeah, you can watch it again now. I think he did.
There a lot of people at that age didn't know who he was.
And yeah, Jason, and get to see part of his part of his
Jordan's charm. If you won't call it charm, it's not charm that he
wanted to beat the crap body of you and and and tell you he's been
in the crap body. Larry Bird was the same guy, same guy,
because they got thrilled, and of course I've been motivated. Yeah. Yeah,
Um, I don't know if Lebron does that. He probably does it.
He just does it. He just runs you over. Yeah, but
uh, but in my mind, I don't even know where I'm calling with
this it's like Scotty enough, you know enough, you had a great legacy.
You're you're a six time champion, just like Michael Jordan. Yeah,
why do you feel you need to go out and and and well what the
one that the one that looks dumb and bad is not Michael Jordan. Correct,
you're the one. Yeah. Your legacy of being that guy is getting
worse all the time, all the time. All right, that's what I
got, man, Okay, eight point spreads rout for the first week,
for the first two weeks actually of college football. Oh who who tell me?
Well, I just I was just looking at him earlier today. But
the great the big game of the of the weekend is um LSU in a
neutral site game against Florida State on that Sunday, uh in Orlando, and
LSU is a two point favorite in that game. But uh um, let's
see, well, there another a couple of decent games. Um A Nebraska
is the seven and a half point underdog to Minnesota. UM Utah Florida is
a good game. Utah is a nine and a half point favorite, so
they're staying Florida without Anthony Richardson probably, And that game is at Utah um,
I have I have a softball quickie in Oklahoma one today. I think
they'd be Tennessee. I can't remember they'd be I see in the first round
of their playoffs, right, they won forty seven straight gets who they tied
for forty seven straight Arizona, So if they win tomorrow, they will have
broke bring Arizona's record of forty seven street Yeah, just well, Arizona had
a nice run, they did. They just gotta return. They've gotta return
to that and uh one more points spread. TCU Colorado, who do you
think that's bread? Would be? Oh? TCU twelve? Oh more eighteen,
twenty and a half? Okay, eighteen? Yeah, who knows what
Colorado is gonna do? Who knows their mystery? And this is TCU coming
off their national championship game. Yeah, but tc has also got a new
quarterback as well. Yeah, but if they're still good, they're still good?
Yeah, probably probably. All right, let's go and take our last
break. We're gonna come back. We're gonna have Jake Fisher on. We'll
just talk about whatever's on his mind. It's always something good. Jake has
always has some stuff to say, and we'll see what he's got so's We'll
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I am the book on Fox Sports fourteen Differ and welcome back to our in
the Balcano Fox Sports Fotune fifteen Hunt Steve, He's Jake. Now we have
one of our great sponsors, Jake Fisher and former ULA football player Jake.
How are you wonder those always this Friday? How are you guys going?
We're doing fun? I don't know. You've been so nice to us and
good to me. What are you doing on our competitors the radio show or
show podcast? Well, I had no idea you guys are competitors. I
thought both, To be honest with you, I did interviews and stuff with
you guys all you know, through my sophomore, junior, senior year,
and so I didn't think it hurt any. I'm giving you guys a check
every month. Not yet points, Let's go what's going on? What do
you think about jetfish now? Or what would you tell the fans that we're
freaking out two months ago? But you mean Tommy Lloyd? Yeah, I'm
gonna go ahead and let you know. Both of those guys are doing an
awesome job, especially in recruiting, you know area if somehow we're able to
land Caleb loves and we were able to obviously fill a bunch of means we
have two awesome point guards. Obviously, you know, kind of loves more
of a combo guard. He can get really hot. As long as he's
not a volume shooter. I think he's going to fit in very well.
I love the addition to the powerfulward from San Diego State, and you know,
some of these European guys are bringing in and then some of the guys
coming back from last year. The one thing it will do, you know,
we kind of already know who the starting five or the top six or
seven are going to be. But for some of these young guys coming in
that are gonna want to play, it's gonna push some of these guys that
didn't necessarily prove themselves to be contributors last year. So it's kind of a
do or die thing, and everyone's going to get better. So you know,
somebody every single year always possed their head up and they're really really good,
and you know, I'm kind of excited to see who it's going to
be this year. So again, you know, then as always there's always
comments, well, you know, the Euros aren't tough enough, They're not
this they're not that, but uh, you know, they can play.
I'm just I'm sorry they can play a Zulus to Ballast was a really damn
good player in Arizona UM and you know Laurie Marking and you know, if
you go you know, back even further. I mean, I just don't
have that beef with these players because but they may may lack in toughness,
they bring in knowledge and you know, game sav you know IQs, I
guess is what you would say. Well, from what I've heard, it's
a completely different game over there. They slow down, they get in our
sets, and you know, obviously you have a faster shot clock, but
it's more, you know, they don't have all the fast breaks and things
of that nature. It's more of a an art, you know, it's
more of a fact. They work more on fundamentals and whatnot. And ever
since time they got here, the very first European guy that he recruited,
he said, it's going to take a little bit of time, he said,
especially with the big guys. He says, European big guys are going
to take a little bit more time in general. And so, you know,
I have a feeling that some of these guys are going to pop this
year. And hey, you know, Jay, if we're able to get
a Larry market in every single year, that's awesome. But they're just not
walking around, you know, going to college anymore. You know, those
guys are you know, getting picked in the top ten to fifteen in the
NBA Draft and you know, if they still need to develop a little bit,
those guys are staying over there some of the time. So I'm just
happy we're able to get some of these really good players to come over here
that actually want to attend college and play college hoops. So let me ask
you, because I know you're you're on Twitter a lot, do you get
into back and forth with the guys that that kind of have that theory of
you know, what the hecks going on every now and then you get those
guys that you know, chicken littles of Skuys falling and stuff like that.
But I mean, at the end of the day, because of the transfer
portal and because you can actually enter your name into the draft to go and
get feedback everyone's roster if it gets complete right away, it's probably not going
to be a great roster. That's just kind of how it is. So
I like the approach waiting until some of these guys, you know, withdraw
their name from the drafts, they get the feedback that they need, and
then from there, because of the brand that we have, you can kind
of pick and choose and say, hey, listen, I need a guard.
Okay, well we have five or six cards that we really like that
I think are probably going to end up taking their name out of the portal.
And they've already said that they're going to earn out of the NBA draft
and they've already said they don't want to go back to the same school.
So we're going to go ahead and focus on these guys. And then you
know, some of these guys, they have agents or whatever the heck do
you want to call them, you know, family members that reach out and
you know, some of the spots are reserved for those guys and they can't
commit until a certain period. So I think every year it's going to be
like this. It's just it just is. And like I said, if
you're filling your roster completely before the end of the transfer portal and things of
that nature, I think you're doing your team at disservice. I really do
so we had. We had Brandon Sanders on yesterday. He was just talking
about, uh, you know, just how the program has become, you
know, so many got so many pass players have gotten involved again with the
program, and just how how great it's been to see these guys running around
and you know, coming in and talked about, you know, getting Chris
McAlister in for the for the spring game and that kind of stuff. I
mean, just you know, talking to other guys. Uh, Jake,
what's the feel like right now with with Jed Fish and what they're doing over
there. As far as that goes, well, it sounds to me like
he's running a hell of a program. I mean you can see it on
the field. The roster makeover. I mean it wasn't like Dion where he
ran everybody off, but the roster turnover was awesome. You know, he
told guys straight up, hey, listen, we're bringing in guys that are
probably going to be a little bit higher on the depth chart than you,
so do what you want. And now he is at a point in you
know, going into year three where he had a very deep receiver room even
after losing Dorian Singer and all of a sudden, I cannot pronounce the guy's
name to save my life. You know, forgive me, but this awesome
receiver from Colorado who's got tired to to the coaching stack all of a sudden.
The only time you're ever going to bring in a guy is if he
is going to play right away, right So, you know, if that
guy didn't become available, you know, you still would have had a heck
of a receiver room. But because he did, they were able to make
the receiver room better. And he's going to be a multi year guy.
So obviously Callen's leaving after this next year, but you're still gonna have a
very stacked receiver room and he's doing that with pretty much every position. You've
gone on the record to say likely or a good chance to win seven games.
I think that that's not changed in your mind. I think they're gonna
win seven games to get to a ball game and win the ball game.
So they're gonna win total vague. I guess you have changed your mind.
No, No, they're gonna win seven eight. One is going to be
six and six. No, he said seven and five and then win win
a ball game. Jake, I need to pay more intentions. What about
Colorado. They over under now on them is three? Um, are you
the OPI They're either going to play be really good or really bad and probably
nothing in between. You know. I just think with the total roster overhaul,
because they are improving the physicians, but they haven't played a snatch together
yet. They haven't played yet offense, they haven't played that defense yet.
I think that they're gonna be in some close games. I think they'll struggle
a little bit early. Um, but I think that yeah, three is
fine. You know, I'm not going to give you four or two.
I think three is fine. Um, But I will tell you because it's
a bunch of brand new people, because of the overhaul of the roster,
and because you know, to be honest with you, like beyond you know,
at his last job, he can recruit guys that should be going to
hide, you know, Division one level team, So you didn't really know
if the coaching was great. I'm just gonna throw that out there. When
you get into a Power five conference, and especially one of that's been on
the lower tier for the past few years, it's gonna take a little bit
more coaching. So we'll see if he's a good coach um. But I
mean he's gonna have to obviously both to the roster. He's doing a little
bit of it this offseason, and you know they're gonna be loud, but
I don't think they're gonna, you know, be a bull team. Yeah,
okay, Hey, we were talking real quick at the beginning of the
of the show Legacies of Coaches. Uh did you did you play for Stoops?
I can't remember? And you play for rich Rod obviously, but did
you play for Stoops? I played for Stoops. He got fired my junior
year. That was the year of the shoulder and the year of the knees.
So okay, a lot of stars were out, Okay, perfect,
So at the end of the day, just as an overall look at what
do you think stoops legacy is was? And then rich Rods is was or
is? Well? Yeah, like I love them both, you know,
completely different guys, both obviously football geniuses, one on the defensive side,
one on the offensive side. With Stoops. When we were there, we
kind of, you know, we ascended pretty quickly. We got our butts
kicked by a Nebraska team who quite frankly shouldn't have been in the Holiday Bowl
if they would have won a couple of close games. That was a much
better team than anyone anticipated. And they ran the triple option against us,
which we had no idea they were going to do, so we never practiced
for it. They went old school a little bit with Tween, but then
we started hot again. My sophomore year, we got you know, we
were in the top ten, I'm pretty sure, and then we lose to
Oregon statehen had a Rogers Brothers, and then from there, you know,
we stayed in the top fifteen. And then that one one night when we
went and played Andrew Luck at Stanford, we got our butt beat. I
believe it was on CBS. And from there we just we kind of crumbled
and we didn't do very well. So that next year we had a very
tough, tough schedule, did not win a lot of games, and then
you know, we had to switch. And then, yeah, I just
think he's always going to be the one that got it back off the floor
and we got back into Bowl contention pretty much on you know, every year.
And then with Rich, you know, he kind of took over a
broken team as well. He told guys, hey, this is what we're
gonna be running. They ran our tails off. Whoever quit or whoever wanted
to transfer, you know, go ahead, we'll rebuild it in our image.
And once again, like i'd tell everybody, thankfully, we had a
mascot who I don't think it's enough credit. He is the perfect quarterback in
that system, and he was the one, along with our offense, just
because we didn't have a good defense that first year that kept us a float.
And then you know that next year, obviously I think we should have
won nine or ten games we didn't. And then after that Festa Bowl,
so obviously he had good players on the roster still you know that they can
coach, and then they kind of went through a little bit of a lull
where they had a bunch of injuries and he started to build it up again
and then unfortunately, because of some circumstances, he left. So they're both
awesome coaches. But what they didn't do, in my opinion, for the
most part, that these guys that are at the University of Arson right now
did is they weren't out there with their hair on fire recruiting every single second
of every day. The first year, you know, you lose two of
your top recruiters, and they were both top twenty five national recruiters. From
there, you know, the recruiting kind of went down a little bit.
But jet fishing, these guys, they just keep rolling. Interesting. I
like the way you said you got him off the floor, because it's pretty
much right after after the Mac victim one of the things that's been said about
Mike Stups. I like Mike Stups. I thought, as he said he
got Arizona off the floor. Uh, you know, we went. I
went to that that Las Vegas Bowl and it was one of the funnest you
know, football road trips. All deserved it, They all deserved the accolades
that they got out and had a great time, and they all deserved it.
But from where you sat as a player, did you feel like Mike
was in a little over his head as a as a head football coach?
And by that I mean not from an X as an O standpoint, because
that you said, the guy was a good, you know, field coach,
but all the other stuff that comes with being a head coach at a
major college program that maybe he didn't like that all that much and that kind
of affected overall how he ran his program well. To be honest with you,
I don't know a lot of coaches that really like that stuff all that
much. They know it comes with the territory. But you know, with
Mike, like I said, you know, with the recruiting aspect, as
long as he was able to coach, he was Okay, Um, you
know, he'll go and he'll do everything else. But you know, where
his love of the game is obviously is coaching. He had some other personal
stuff going on in his life, and I think that weighed on him more
than just the general things that come along with being a head coach. And
I'll just leave it at that. Yeah, Okay, no, makes sense,
It makes sense. Uh, anything else has got your eye? You're
watching the NBA. Are you're paying attention to baseball Arizona Baseball? I have.
I'm glad that we molly wapped to ask you again, and I'm glad
that we were able to get Oregon State, and I'm hoping that we continue
turning up it. Right. It just means that we beat the brakes off
of them. Okay, Okay, Jake is always I was. Business is
going to tell us what's going on. Business is going awesome, guy,
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Yeah, okay, great man, Well, thank you, Jake.
We're not going to be with you next week. We're taking a week off
and then coming back two weeks. We must be nice. Guys. Well,
if you could do it, we could do it too. Man.
We should say how old Steve is looking right now? I understand ste Next
week even though we're not gonna on the show. Thank you, Jake.
We need the we we both look bad. I look in the mirror and
I go, man, I you have saved. It's been a while too,
man, Look at that it is. I shaved. Uh, I
shaved Saturday, shave Saturday before the Sugar Skulls game. And I'm gonna say
shave tomorrow before the Sugar Sculls. Oh what can I tell you? This
is all I get. It's all I got that. That's a whole week
right there. It's terrible. It's you know, um my two of my
brothers have been able to, you know, easily grow beard and and and
then my brother Rick, and I really can't. But Rick has a mustache
right now and he looks a little like Colonel Sanders and it's all silver.
It's it's it's okay, but it's it's taken a while to take. I
mean I'm talking like a year and a half to kind of be to kind
of be full. But uh, you know, my dad, my dad
ever had facial hair. I remember one year. I mean, there's a
kid one time I said he hadn't shaved in several days. I'm like,
what the hell? Is going on, and when he had had some like
a rash, he gotten on his face and he couldn't he know, he
just couldn't shave because he was gonna he would have cut his face. All
But facial hair was not a big deal in my family. And my wife
hates it. She doesn't want. She doesn't want, I'm gonna have facial
hair. So okay, if she, if she that's what she says,
then that's what she gets. Happy wife, happy exactly, all right,
like she would take our break, ye, all right, last break.
We're gonna come back. We will have plenty of time to take your calls.
Five to zero, four one, six, seventy four forty. We're
gonna finish this conversation about the legacy stuff. We were talking about Loot's legacy
and then we got a couple of calls. We always appreciate the calls,
but we're gonna get back to that as soon as we get come back from
the break. I'll stick around. If you're an Arizona men's basketball fan,
you know it's been successful for newly forty years. Now. Take a look
back at the Ludolson era. In my new book, Lessons from Loot,
it was a labor of love to 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 a national powerhouse. What one email me at
Steve dot riveray five at gmail dot com. Hey, Walcat Nation, Jake
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The A Team apply online today at a team security dot Net. Streaming live
on the iHeart Radio Whap. This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera
and Jay Gonzalez on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Hey, welcome back to Y
in the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty on Steve Rivera, he's Jakenzos.
We have sixteen minutes you guys, give you as quick call, let
us know your thoughts. Five to four one six seventy four forty. We're
gone for a while, so does will be your last chance for a while.
This is it. We're gonna be out until June the seventh. We'll
be back on Wednesday, June seven. Steve and I are both gonna take
again take our time off, so we take it off at the same time,
so that the rest of the summer you've got both of us for every
show, so we don't have to split things up. So we both need
it again, you know, we're both look a little scruffy today, look
like we need the time off and gonna get used to the heat, gonna
get back. Yeah, so we'll uh, well, you can always go
to our podcast page. So you go go to the on the iHeart app
search I on the ball, and you come up with our with our faces
and shows and you can pick you They're all all the way back, so
you can pick any show that maybe you missed so or you want to hear
a guest that we had. So we talked about this yesterday and one of
our listeners, loyal listeners, said, do you know what's gonna happen?
Now, you know what's gonna happen. What's happened the Pac twelve would be
decided. Something will happen with the football program, Tommy Lloyd, something happen
with the basic basketball program. We'll softball. Well, you know what,
if this this lodges the whole Pac twelve thing, then I'll be happy with
that. Okay. If if if we leave and it makes it happen,
then mission accomplished and we'll come back and we'll talk all about it. But
it's like going to the shower and you get winning for that phone call every
time man or the bathroom, you know, every time, you know you're
sitting there, you're you know, you're on You've been on hold for an
hour and a half of somebody. You go to use the bathroom and they
kick out and there you are. So but yeah, hey, look,
if it shakes all that stuff loose, then then you know what, you
can thank us when we get that. June, like you said June seven
seven, and we said the Wilner said, Late June said, Late June
said. He's been saying this for a year now, right. You know,
he took a chance. He went to Spain. He took his family
to Spain. He gives a spring break for his kids. And you know,
and when what I saw on Facebook that he was in Spain, I
said, it's gonna happen. No, no, he's already back. He
came. Remember we had him on the show he had just gotten back.
Thought he was on the way to go. No, no, we had
him on the show when he had when um, yeah, when he had
had come back. Soa but uh, you know, I think it was
an educational trip for his kids. His kids are really smart. Oh yeah,
of course, Pengrad, I'm sure his wife is smart. Yeah,
yeah, I'm not sure smart. She found him and I said, up
for that he did, but I really did. Okay, let's have the
let's finish this conversation. We're tech. Okay. So we've moved from a
loot, the legacy from loot and putting a lot of well a lot of
people in the NBA, establishing Ariazon a basketball school. Uh. In some
people's minds that the blue blood here, here's the thing, and and say
what you wanted about whether we are the whether Arizona is the actual definition of
a blue blood. What it is, though, is one of the top
programs in the country. You're in Europe, right, It's it's one of
those program programs. It's a program that that is not the only other program
that even approaches that in the in the PAC twelve is it has it has
cache right, it's a name program there there. I think we put it
in the you know, twelve to twelve, thirteen or fourteen programs. Okay,
no other program at a SU was like that. Um, no other
program you know, you know, you USC has that in football, Oregon
kind of has that in football, Washington has that in football, but not
even to the degree of Arizona School. Right, You're right, you're not
gonna bake well, you're not gonna say Washingtons one of the top fifteen programs
in the country in football. So what it's done is it's put Arizona at
a level that you're very fortunate to be at if you get to that level.
And there you know, there aren't a lot of them, right,
and it's and it's still the same program. I mean, Tommy Sean did
what he could to do it, and Tommy's now continuing that. Okay,
so it's a winner. I mean, people see these people see the and
they know what it is. The kid from San Diego State plays in the
National Championship game and where does he wind up? He winked up at Arizona.
Yeah, right, and then had a chance that some other programs would
have gone to a bunch of different places and he came to Arizona, you
know. And so Arizona is still getting those guys. You know, Colin
Boswell was a five star guy, you know, and here he or is
the fourth star. He was a five star, wasn't he? You know,
he declared early, so you know, but you know what I'm saying,
these guys are still coming here, right, and and and Arizona is
a program that gets talked about every year every year. It's it's it has
the identity. Yeah, okay, So let's move from Loot too to the
guys who took over for a year. Uh, the Russ Pennell and and
mug Dunup. You know, I think those guys, uh you know,
were good soldiers, were great great soldiers. Held it together. It could
have gone way worse, right, right. The funny thing about it jase
um and it had teetered there, right. But but so the circumstances under
Luke situation at the end um there was there was a fantastic band aid,
right because it could have gone either way, and they got him to the
Sweet sixteen. Got hammered by Louisville. But on any other program would have
loved that, right, right, you know what I'm saying. It was
down, it was a down year, but they still got to the Sweet
sixteen, right. And you know, and what I really appreciate what those
guys did because they didn't let it go, as I say, as the
phrases into the ditch. You know, they held it together well enough that
you could go get a guy like Sean Miller and that there's a go between
him there too, right, But in the end you end up with a
guy like Sean Miller, who then you know, got the program headed back
to where you hope it would be. Okay, So before we go to
Sean, let's go to Kevin. I love Kevin O'Neill. Okay, who
does I love that guy who doesn't? Go ahead? And I love that
guy go ahead? I love him dot dot dot dot. He wasn't the
right guy. No, of course, he wasn't the right guy, not
only for the job itself but for the fan base. He as you said,
he was the anti Loot. While he was a lovable guy. He
was would you come him rough around the edges, just at the very least,
Yeah, just a guy that uh you know um, But he too,
he too in his own crazy way. Crazy is not the right word,
but it's similar a different way. He kept it going together. Yeah,
he got him to the tournament because I think he I think he really
loved Loot and I think he loved the program. The circumstances didn't The circumstances
were not good. It was just a bad time. He didn't fit,
and so um, we kind of applaud him, applaud him for for the
Yoman's effort, but even it wasn't it wasn't going right, It wasn't gonna
work. No, no, but you know, his year and it was
just a difficult, weird time. Yeah, okay, So then we moved
to Sean after that. At the end of the day one his this was
my cal hun when he departed one a lot, yeah to me, to
me was Sean Miller. It was you felt like he didn't get to where
he needed to get to or you wanted him to get to, because I
don't feel like he was as well rounded as he needed to be. Well
right, he was. He was little narrow basketball things down the middle,
and I think he lost sight of some of the other stuff that need to
be a part of that to get to a couple of final fours and stuff
like that. You know, he just well, he got so caught up
in in the five star recruits and bringing in the one and done guys,
thinking that I get three or four of those, I'm gonna win a national
championship. I'm gonna get to the national championship. And he never got it.
That in addition to what you said about Mike Stoops, he wasn't the
the public guy, didn't want to deal with all the other stuff. Right,
we already saw him. You never saw his wife in public dealing with
and you saw him very rarely shaking hands, kissing babies. Yeah, you
know he you know, he did a he was an ad guy for a
couple of companies, like a huge federal credit. Yeah, and they and
they dropped him right into a bunch of stuff. You know, Louke,
remember lou with the air conditioning Perry. He didn't cool, Yes, all
that stuff, you know, just Sean wasn't. I just felt like Sean
had been a more more rounded guy as a person, not you know,
to accept all the things again that come with being a college Sure, he
wouldn't have put so much pressure on himself to say I've got to get five
star guys or people gonna think I'm doing a crappy job. And this may
be this is a dude sitting in the studio in Tuscon, Arizona, which
take for whatever it's worth, but the best thing to happened to Sean in
a weird way from Steve Ver saying this which is totally wrong. Maybe is
that he was let go and he found he found Sean again, we saw
that story. He said it publicly. He did things differently, right,
he even changed his offense from guns. Yeah, and he turned into this
guy again right in his in his you know, the the particle suddenly return
home and maybe the guy that he was a Xavier when he then he got
here and felt he had to be something different, right right right? And
no, no, that was the problem. Yeah, and and uh again,
you know he came so close and I was rooting for him. I
was rooting for him, and and you know, I don't know. We
talked about this. Uh, Ryan Reynolds had he one shot one shot that
shot that Johnson took against Wisconsin the first time, ye had that gone in
the whole legacy changed? Or the shot that Jamal Horn missed, or the
shot against one shot Connecticut. Yeah, he changed the whole place. If
he gets to one final four, it's it's all different. Yeah, right,
And I mean you know that duke, that duke came in the sweet
sixteen that year twenty eleven. Oh, I watched that game over and over
and over. Yeah, and now I don't watch the whole game. I
watched the point where Arizona goes on that on that run, that's just unbelievable
run that just teams don't do the Duke, right, I mean that team
had Kyrie Irving on it, right then Williams just and then and Derrick Williams
and I kind of watched and I think it started like five minutes into the
second half or something like that. It's this massive run and you just go,
that may be the best stretch of basketball ever played in Arizona, right,
I mean it could be. I mean, you know when you think
about the runs like that, you know there were some runs like that that
Arizona had it with other two with the eighty eight team in the two thousand
and one team and stuff. But in terms of a it was about a
ten minute run circumstances. It was about a ten minute run against Duke,
you know, a number one seed in the in the in the sweet six
team, and they just went off and did that to those guys. It
was like, you don't do that to those guys. And that's the kind
you felt like when that happened, you thought, this program you can get
back to you. This is made it This is another stupid statement by me,
but it's just an observation. Um, And I'm asking you, a
guy who gets advice from people on the other radios, just do you think
do you think that people are destined for their destiny if that makes any sense,
that he's he was destined not to get to a final four here that
uh, that you're destined to to do what you do. I'm destined to
not ever go to a damn Rose. Well, yes, stuff like that,
stuff like that I believe in some Yes, in some cases yes,
I thought. You know, no, I don't feel like that about about
Sean Miller because I felt like all the pieces were there but but but he
didn't. But you know, as you said, a couple of shots and
he's there. That's my point, though, something that something, something got
in the way, something got in exactly. Yeah, you're gonna make me
believe that, And I don't want to believe well because you don't, Because
you don't, I do, And I'm sure people do that you're and I'm
not just saying specifically. It could be with me for things and for you
for things. I guess because I'm ay, what goes around comes around kind
of guy. Okay, I feel like okay, And that's I guess in
a sense, right, because I do feel said, if you're if you're
a butthead, you're gonna pay for being a butthead from time down the road
somehow, some you know, somehow down the road. If you're a jerk
and you're jerk to people, it comes back to get you. And I
do believe I've always believed that, and so yeah, maybe I guess I
do believe that in in a different contentference kind of context exactly, but uh,
you know, I you know, to me, the legacy he left
was that the Arizona is still a program that can be can be a blue
blood right, can be at the top of the at the top of the
food chain. It's it's very it's right there. He kept it there.
He left it that way, even with all the FBI stuff. Yeah,
because because of what Tommy Lloyd has been able to do so quickly. He
didn't leave it a mess. It was not a mess. It was just
true, not quite good enough for him to keep his job, but it
wasn't a mess. A lot of coaches would not have gotten fired when Sean
Miller got fired. You know, if the FBI thing doesn't happen. I
think Sean Miller is still comes I really do. I don't disagree with you,
but that's a big that's a big if this doesn't happen. I know,
I know, I know that. But but the point being that he
didn't leave the program in the shamble, in the shambles when you think of
the John mcavix shambles, the the Kevin Sumlin shambles, and the shambles that
have been left in other places. I get that. And then we point
this out because everyone talks a lot of people, we talked about this all
the time, that that that Tommy took Sean's players and right well and still
coach them right. It could have been the comes in and screws it up
well Ben Lindsay, right, Ben Lindsay did. But the thing with the
thing with Tommy Lloyd was was that pieces were still there for the program to
still be really good. Now, nobody expected him to win thirty thirty four
games whatever they want that first season, but the fact that that was possible
all right, tells you that Sean Miller did not leave it a mess.
No, no, no, It was just a different style and I'll go
to my graves saying this, Uh, Sean had his style, tough,
gray, just in your blue collar, just beyond blue collar. And then
he's gone with the same players. Then Tommy comes in and says, okay,
guys, take you know, you make mistakes, don't worry about it.
I'm not gonna yank. You're gonna make mistakes. Things like that happen.
It's like the step dad and comes in, Come on, you want
ice cream cone at eleven pm, Go ahead and have one. Just don't
tell your mom. You know what I'm saying. That's the cool dad cools
some cake for breakfast. Yeah, yeah, because that's all that's in the
kitchen. But you know, and and they and they took it. They
took to that right right. But but again, you know, if for
if tomm lloyder would have come in and gone, you know, twelve and
eighteen, right, then you go, damn, Sean, what the hell
did you do to the program? Correct? But that didn't happen. Correct.
No, So I think he left it in a pretty good shape.
He left it with players. Yeah, there's no question any anyone still and
still a winning field to it. Sure, right, sure you was still
a good field. You just didn't know how good of the winning was,
right, right, So I know I feel that. So at the end
of the day, how would you grade it? Hold I great him,
Yeah, I think we've took a B minus. Yeah, yeah, your
mind. Yeah, the Russian judge all of a sudden, Yeah, he
won a lot and and and some of those. He won some big games,
and he won some important games, got to the lead eight three times.
You know, he was that close. He was close close. Okay.
I thought that was just a good topic, good, good fun topic
for last day before we get out of here. Okay, so we're out
until June the seventh, Wednesday, June the seventh, we'll be back.
There'll be some uh uh national feed will run each day, but hey,
listen to the podcast, follow it, follow us up on the iHeart app.
You can also find us on the on the Apple Podcasts search I on
the Ball. You'll see our great our great mugs when we were clean shaven
and stuff. Well are you no, no, no, you're shavin I
am you aren't, um, but uh, you know, listen to some
of those, go back to some of the great shows that we've had.
Yeah, we will be back we'll try to get some great gifts for the
summer because they'll be off for a while, right well, we'll try to
be back some good stuff for the summer. So everybody, have a great
Memorial Day weekend, be safe, and we'll see you or talk to you
on June the seventh. Have a great weekend.