WEBVTT 1 00:00:10.160 --> 00:00:13.720 Hey, guys, welcome to the marcass read here. Well, here we 2 00:00:13.759 --> 00:00:18.960 go, here we are. It is finally time to have an expansion episode. 3 00:00:19.320 --> 00:00:23.079 Word gets thrown around a lot here in the alternative football landscape. I 4 00:00:23.120 --> 00:00:26.120 think it's almost kind of become a crutch, you know, like we need 5 00:00:26.160 --> 00:00:29.559 to write about the UFL. We need to talk about the UFL like twelve 6 00:00:29.600 --> 00:00:33.320 teams, you know, expansion coming in twenty twenty five. But I do 7 00:00:33.399 --> 00:00:37.000 think we're actually at a decent spot right now to kind of take a pause, 8 00:00:37.439 --> 00:00:39.960 take a deep dive here and to see, like what do we think 9 00:00:40.159 --> 00:00:45.159 relocation, expansion, anything else could look like in the UFL as we approach 10 00:00:45.200 --> 00:00:48.679 the presumed twenty twenty five season. We have a lot of data here in 11 00:00:48.759 --> 00:00:54.119 terms of TV ratings, attendance, we have trademark kind of updates happening the 12 00:00:54.240 --> 00:00:58.159 Dallas Stallions, anyone. But we have some stuff to actually look at today. 13 00:00:58.200 --> 00:00:59.960 So I think it's good to have a kind of a deep dive. 14 00:01:00.039 --> 00:01:03.439 I'm into all this now, a little bit of speculation today, but it 15 00:01:03.439 --> 00:01:06.519 should be fun. If you enjoy the work that we are doing, please 16 00:01:06.640 --> 00:01:10.760 liken subscribe. Remember we get up to thirty five hundred subscribers, you get 17 00:01:10.799 --> 00:01:14.840 a chance to win two free tickets through the UFL Championship game. You can 18 00:01:14.879 --> 00:01:18.359 even sit with the Professor Andrew Murray himself if you want. If you don't, 19 00:01:18.439 --> 00:01:22.319 if that's some maybe maybe that's holding people off. But like forty percent 20 00:01:22.359 --> 00:01:26.000 of the people that watch our videos aren't subscribed, which is weird to me 21 00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:30.280 because like even if five percent of the forty subscribe, then everybody would get 22 00:01:30.280 --> 00:01:33.200 a chance to win, So that would be cool. But a good episode 23 00:01:33.200 --> 00:01:37.799 today. If you want football talk, real grid, Iiron football Talk Andy 24 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:40.920 and I did that on Monday second half of the live stream. I made 25 00:01:40.920 --> 00:01:44.680 sure the kind of we did a deep preview in all the matchups this weekend, 26 00:01:44.799 --> 00:01:47.480 especially that last half because we were talking to tendance and all that. 27 00:01:47.879 --> 00:01:52.799 So if you want the real football mondays on that. We're doing speculations and 28 00:01:53.239 --> 00:01:57.680 a musings today on here. John Lewis of John Lewis Sports joining us. 29 00:01:57.760 --> 00:02:00.000 John has a great YouTube channel. I figured he be down. I think 30 00:02:00.040 --> 00:02:06.519 we spend almost an hour talking about hypothetical situations for the UFL in twenty twenty 31 00:02:06.519 --> 00:02:09.400 five, and then CFL Talk with Dan Ralph of the Canadian Press Hall of 32 00:02:09.439 --> 00:02:14.759 Fame reporter. Really appreciate Dan taking the time and John as well. With 33 00:02:14.919 --> 00:02:17.719 Dan, we talk about de shun Lemon kind of his or is he retired, 34 00:02:17.879 --> 00:02:22.080 is he suspended? What's going on with the gambling with the Alouettes and 35 00:02:22.120 --> 00:02:24.800 all that. We talked Chack Kelly and the argos, whether are they going 36 00:02:24.879 --> 00:02:29.400 to do without a quarterback moving forward? We also get Dan's thoughts on some 37 00:02:29.439 --> 00:02:31.520 of the other CFL teams in the West. I plan on doing a lot 38 00:02:31.560 --> 00:02:35.599 more kind of deep dive here is now. This has just been the last 39 00:02:35.680 --> 00:02:38.280 couple of weeks have just been crazy. So I want to get you know, 40 00:02:38.319 --> 00:02:40.360 the Dave Campbell's of the world and Tim Baines and you know, Steve 41 00:02:40.400 --> 00:02:44.800 Milton and kind of all that stuff, to do some CFL team previews or 42 00:02:45.199 --> 00:02:46.800 you know, kickoff. Here is what June sixth. It's in like four 43 00:02:46.840 --> 00:02:51.680 weeks from today, I think, so we're certainly getting there. One note, 44 00:02:51.800 --> 00:02:54.599 Chad Kelly did release his statement today after Dan and I recorded, he 45 00:02:54.759 --> 00:02:59.199 is taking time away from the team during training camp. That's kind of what 46 00:02:59.319 --> 00:03:01.840 was dictated the suspension and all of that, but Chad did put that out. 47 00:03:01.879 --> 00:03:04.639 So if you want to read that. I know it's on I think 48 00:03:04.680 --> 00:03:07.840 his Twitter and the argos and all that push that out, So please like 49 00:03:07.879 --> 00:03:12.560 and subscribe. Ho if you enjoy fun episode today, leave your comments. 50 00:03:12.560 --> 00:03:15.719 What do you think? What do you want to see with the UFL expansion 51 00:03:15.759 --> 00:03:19.479 here coming up potentially in twenty twenty five and we'll see at the end. 52 00:03:19.479 --> 00:03:28.199 Thanks. Well, here we are today, finally, this is the long 53 00:03:28.280 --> 00:03:34.319 anticipated expansion episode we've been trying to hold on. This is such the like 54 00:03:34.560 --> 00:03:37.439 sugar rush. Okay, you know what, we have nothing to talk about, 55 00:03:37.520 --> 00:03:39.599 let's talk about expansion. But I think that this is a good spot 56 00:03:39.599 --> 00:03:44.000 here. We have John Lewis here today. John Lewis sports great YouTube channel 57 00:03:44.039 --> 00:03:46.520 as well and probably one of the only people that would do this. He 58 00:03:46.680 --> 00:03:51.680 died with me. But we have the report of Friday night UFL games potentially 59 00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:55.800 next spring. There's been some recent trademark activity I related maybe to the Birmingham 60 00:03:55.840 --> 00:04:00.280 Stallions. So little things to talk about here, Andy and I kind of 61 00:04:00.280 --> 00:04:02.199 previewed the games for the weekend on the Monday recaps. If you want more 62 00:04:02.199 --> 00:04:05.919 football stuff, this is a little bit more evergreen speculation today, but talking 63 00:04:06.400 --> 00:04:10.719 you know, expansion, relocation, kind of who's on the chopping block here, 64 00:04:10.800 --> 00:04:13.560 John Lewis, How are you doing, sir? I'm doing good. 65 00:04:13.639 --> 00:04:16.040 You know, we talked before the season about like, you know, what 66 00:04:16.040 --> 00:04:19.279 what is your optimism level? And I got to be honest, like it 67 00:04:19.680 --> 00:04:24.279 it's really higher now that we're getting closer to the postseason. So I think 68 00:04:24.319 --> 00:04:28.199 all's going good. We have some problems, but but there's been a lot 69 00:04:28.240 --> 00:04:30.600 of positivity too. I know it was I don't know what the deal was 70 00:04:30.600 --> 00:04:33.680 on the Monday Show, everyone like you guys hate the Stallions. I'm like, 71 00:04:33.720 --> 00:04:38.839 we just heat praised at the Stallions for forty five minutes. But you 72 00:04:38.879 --> 00:04:42.120 know there is a question there, and that'll be one of the first cities 73 00:04:42.160 --> 00:04:44.920 we tackle here because you know, the protective stadium lease is going to be 74 00:04:45.000 --> 00:04:46.839 up. We've gone the three years there. We'll get into that first off. 75 00:04:46.920 --> 00:04:51.240 Just pour one out here, Ori ip the XFL twenty twenty Vipers. 76 00:04:51.319 --> 00:04:55.040 Sure I didn't see this because I'm like notified. If I don't know, 77 00:04:55.079 --> 00:04:58.279 I get these some time ago. I set up email notifications. So the 78 00:04:58.680 --> 00:05:02.079 original v the Tampa Bay Vipers, and the Cobra face there. I don't 79 00:05:02.079 --> 00:05:04.720 think that relates to you. With you the Vegas Vipers. They don't want 80 00:05:04.720 --> 00:05:08.319 to do anything like that because that was a different view. But John, 81 00:05:08.560 --> 00:05:13.240 are you sad to see the rip twenty twenty Tampa Bay Vipers. Yeah, 82 00:05:13.279 --> 00:05:16.720 it's such a legacy they left behind and then becoming the Las Vegas Vipers. 83 00:05:17.040 --> 00:05:20.079 I don't know that anyone is going to really miss that. Yeah, the 84 00:05:20.319 --> 00:05:26.639 twenty twenty Vipers with probably one of the worst color combinations that the XFL could 85 00:05:26.639 --> 00:05:30.480 have thought of. But yeah, but maybe maybe good riddit to that one. 86 00:05:30.040 --> 00:05:33.480 Yeah, it's interesting when you talk about like some of the attendances now 87 00:05:33.519 --> 00:05:36.040 and you know, I'll include some of the XFL franchises in there, but 88 00:05:36.079 --> 00:05:39.399 you know, you look back at like when the Guardians were drawn or what 89 00:05:39.439 --> 00:05:42.639 the Vipers were drawing, even the Wildcats. I mean we like, you 90 00:05:42.680 --> 00:05:46.079 know, it puts it all in context here kind of all that stuff. 91 00:05:46.279 --> 00:05:49.360 So we have we had the report coming out the Friday night football games and 92 00:05:49.360 --> 00:05:53.879 potentially here next year. I know Mike Mitchell's talked about, Okay, adding 93 00:05:53.920 --> 00:05:57.800 teams. I'm at the point where going into if there is a twenty twenty 94 00:05:57.879 --> 00:06:02.399 five season, you need to either one or both of moving a team or 95 00:06:02.439 --> 00:06:06.360 adding teams just to have it feel like there's some sort of excitement and growth. 96 00:06:06.519 --> 00:06:10.519 The USFL kind of tried to do that with the hub things going from 97 00:06:10.600 --> 00:06:13.360 year one to two. Are you have similar ELK, Do you think we 98 00:06:13.360 --> 00:06:15.480 can just roll eight out next year? Kind of where do you think, 99 00:06:15.560 --> 00:06:18.600 just generally about expansion and relocation. I think you could roll eight out. 100 00:06:18.759 --> 00:06:23.959 I think to your point, I think it is a better sign of success 101 00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:29.040 if you and you're fiscally responsible about it, to roll out at least two 102 00:06:29.040 --> 00:06:31.639 more teams just to show that there's some kind of growth. I mean, 103 00:06:32.040 --> 00:06:36.319 and it's it's not just that you're passing along to your fan base or even 104 00:06:36.319 --> 00:06:39.839 to the casual fans who we talk a lot about that. I think this 105 00:06:39.920 --> 00:06:45.000 league really needs to continue to bring in. But I think it is something 106 00:06:45.000 --> 00:06:47.480 that adds to the product on the field, and I don't think it waters 107 00:06:47.519 --> 00:06:53.079 down anything. You know, there was a lot of talk about how consolidating 108 00:06:53.079 --> 00:06:56.560 these two leagues together was going to make this extremely better play. I mean, 109 00:06:56.560 --> 00:06:59.759 we've got you know how many one and six teams right now, so 110 00:07:00.160 --> 00:07:01.639 it's not that that wasn't necessarily the case. So I don't think you're going 111 00:07:01.720 --> 00:07:04.959 to water anything down by adding two more teams and you know, one hundred 112 00:07:05.000 --> 00:07:09.360 more jobs out there, one hundred more players. Yeah, I mean the 113 00:07:09.439 --> 00:07:12.079 quality football is good, and I know Mike's been talking a lot about that. 114 00:07:12.120 --> 00:07:15.639 We talk in our group chat kind of over the weekends. It doesn't 115 00:07:15.639 --> 00:07:17.279 feel like super teams though, it is weird, and I do kind of 116 00:07:17.319 --> 00:07:20.000 worry about that. Like you said, you know, you could add the 117 00:07:20.040 --> 00:07:23.199 too, Like I don't know, I mean, do you have to go 118 00:07:23.279 --> 00:07:26.399 to Skip Holtz and say you gotta let go back Corral, like we gotta 119 00:07:26.439 --> 00:07:29.600 have another quarterback here because you know, but you add these I don't know. 120 00:07:29.800 --> 00:07:31.519 It doesn't feel like it's been super teams this year. I think the 121 00:07:31.600 --> 00:07:34.759 quality of play has been the best we've seen since probably twenty twenty. Where 122 00:07:34.800 --> 00:07:40.959 do you land on that? Yeah, no, I will say there with 123 00:07:40.959 --> 00:07:44.920 with the Renegades, that is a one in sixteam that doesn't feel like a 124 00:07:44.920 --> 00:07:47.399 one in sixteam if you watch them play the other you know one and six 125 00:07:47.439 --> 00:07:50.839 is unfortunately you know for Memphis, they in Houston. Those are two teams 126 00:07:50.879 --> 00:07:55.120 that just don't look good on the field. But yeah, I mean I 127 00:07:55.160 --> 00:07:58.519 thought you know there was going to be for the season, I went on 128 00:07:58.519 --> 00:08:01.920 a fool's errand and try to like to predict, you know who the final 129 00:08:01.959 --> 00:08:05.839 records of these teams. You know, I still, you know, I 130 00:08:05.839 --> 00:08:07.839 didn't think that Birmingham and Saint Louis We're going to be the two teams that 131 00:08:07.839 --> 00:08:13.079 were right up there. But it did feel like this is a little bit 132 00:08:13.120 --> 00:08:16.480 of bottom heavy league. Maybe it is, yeah, it is quite and 133 00:08:16.800 --> 00:08:18.560 now especially kind of why I do in the episode today, like some of 134 00:08:18.600 --> 00:08:22.480 this stuff is kind of locked away. We know the USFL staff. I 135 00:08:22.480 --> 00:08:24.360 think the XFL will be pretty locked up here coming up. I know you 136 00:08:24.360 --> 00:08:28.800 can still play for home field, right if Michigan wins out, and you 137 00:08:28.800 --> 00:08:30.480 can kind of do that, But for the most part, I think that 138 00:08:30.519 --> 00:08:35.639 they're going to have that all So in terms of you know, I think 139 00:08:35.759 --> 00:08:37.799 you tend to be a little bit more optimistic when it comes to the USFL 140 00:08:37.879 --> 00:08:41.840 stuff. Have you What have you made of kind of the attendance woes. 141 00:08:43.480 --> 00:08:46.639 I think Arlington has kind of been a glarian spot as well on the XFL 142 00:08:46.679 --> 00:08:48.519 side, But where do you land on that? And then we'll kind of 143 00:08:48.600 --> 00:08:50.759 roll that into what we should do with these cities. You said something before 144 00:08:50.840 --> 00:08:56.159 the Birmingham Saint Louis game that I completely agreed with. If you don't get 145 00:08:56.159 --> 00:09:01.159 sixteen thousand people in their protective stadium and AJ mcchern's coming to town with the 146 00:09:01.159 --> 00:09:05.639 Saint Louis BattleHawks, then there might be a problem. And it was only 147 00:09:05.679 --> 00:09:09.559 fourteen thousand, So I think there are a lot of people in Birmingham that 148 00:09:09.679 --> 00:09:13.399 are diehards who expected a lot more and they're kind of disappointed that the rest 149 00:09:13.399 --> 00:09:16.960 of the community hasn't, you know, caught on. And that's too bad 150 00:09:16.000 --> 00:09:20.440 because it's a very good team. They are fun to watch now. They're 151 00:09:20.440 --> 00:09:22.639 obviously fun to watch on television because when you start to look at the market 152 00:09:22.679 --> 00:09:26.000 rankings, you've got Birmingham up there, you have Saint Louis up there. 153 00:09:26.279 --> 00:09:31.519 Interesting enough, Louisville, Kentucky where I am. Maybe I'm helping the ratings 154 00:09:31.559 --> 00:09:35.279 somehow, but it's top ten. So these are all teams that are fund 155 00:09:35.519 --> 00:09:39.360 Detroit's in there too. These are teams that are fun to watch. But 156 00:09:39.399 --> 00:09:43.480 as far as attendance goes, you know, I do, I ride kind 157 00:09:43.480 --> 00:09:48.000 of the fence on this because we understand that the financials are not necessarily based 158 00:09:48.039 --> 00:09:52.200 on ticket sales, but Also, when you're putting on a TV product, 159 00:09:52.279 --> 00:09:56.080 you know you can't you wouldn't go, you wouldn't watch a concert that there 160 00:09:56.120 --> 00:09:58.440 was nobody in the stands, so you would think like, well, this 161 00:09:58.679 --> 00:10:03.240 act is no good. So I think that there is a there's a dichotomy 162 00:10:03.240 --> 00:10:05.759 there that we have to kind of come to grips with. And when I 163 00:10:05.759 --> 00:10:09.200 start to see fourteen thousand for the biggest game of the year, that make 164 00:10:09.360 --> 00:10:15.559 that take pause in that for sure. And I mean their TV radiance came 165 00:10:15.600 --> 00:10:18.039 out, it was carried the weekend. You know, it was the highest 166 00:10:18.080 --> 00:10:20.200 viewed one and it was on Fox. But you know, seven hundred and 167 00:10:20.240 --> 00:10:22.519 fifty thousand, a lot of people were saying, hey, that's going to 168 00:10:22.519 --> 00:10:24.639 be a million. You know, Saint Louis is a big market, and 169 00:10:24.679 --> 00:10:31.919 it's it's no there's there's a weird especially with Birmingham. Saint Louis is in 170 00:10:31.960 --> 00:10:35.720 that too, some of these markets, but there's this weird like the team 171 00:10:37.080 --> 00:10:39.600 like you living there, like the city is part of It's kind of like 172 00:10:39.639 --> 00:10:43.799 the CFL, right, where like the people in Canada that really take pride 173 00:10:43.840 --> 00:10:46.720 in like we are Canadian, like this, it's like the Birmingham people. 174 00:10:46.240 --> 00:10:50.200 It's no, it's no disrespect on the city of Birmingham or the team or 175 00:10:50.240 --> 00:10:54.519 how standing they're playing. It's purely you know, the number of people I 176 00:10:54.519 --> 00:10:56.519 didn't when you know, Seattle didn't show up. And I was the first 177 00:10:56.519 --> 00:11:00.759 one to admit that when Seattle didn't show up for the twenty twenty Sea It's 178 00:11:00.799 --> 00:11:05.279 like I didn't take personal injury that like, oh, they're criticizing the Seattle 179 00:11:05.320 --> 00:11:07.799 Crowley. It is what it is, right, and especially now you know 180 00:11:07.840 --> 00:11:13.039 you've been there three years. I think the Hub has warned people out there. 181 00:11:13.080 --> 00:11:15.240 I think that they have other stuff to do. I think you've lost 182 00:11:15.240 --> 00:11:18.559 the novelty of it, except for the diehards. I'll always be surprised how 183 00:11:18.919 --> 00:11:22.000 the damage that that Hub did the first two seasons there, for the stallits 184 00:11:22.039 --> 00:11:26.679 and just I think just saturated and just burning people out. I think anyone 185 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:28.519 that was going to go kind of went yep. I think you're right about 186 00:11:28.519 --> 00:11:31.960 that, you know, And it doesn't even have to be a good team 187 00:11:33.080 --> 00:11:35.559 or a bad team. I don't want to come. I'm very reluctant to 188 00:11:35.600 --> 00:11:39.840 compare the UFL to like minor league baseball. But when a lot of people 189 00:11:39.879 --> 00:11:43.679 go to a minor league baseball game. They don't necessarily go for the team. 190 00:11:45.159 --> 00:11:48.639 They go for the experience, They go for the other things that might 191 00:11:48.679 --> 00:11:52.320 be happening, They go for the giveaways. And I think that was what 192 00:11:52.440 --> 00:11:56.360 is really lacking when I now, I really enjoyed my time in Birmingham in 193 00:11:56.399 --> 00:11:58.519 twenty twenty two when I went down there, because it was two games a 194 00:11:58.600 --> 00:12:03.879 day and the parking situation was great and all that, and I got you 195 00:12:03.879 --> 00:12:07.000 know, you sit around and drink some cold beers or whatever and watch a 196 00:12:07.000 --> 00:12:11.279 couple of football games and it's very accessible. The only problem is there was 197 00:12:11.320 --> 00:12:16.039 almost nothing surrounding any of these games. It was kind of like that in 198 00:12:16.039 --> 00:12:20.759 Canton. There was nothing happening between you know, the Saturday game and the 199 00:12:20.759 --> 00:12:24.720 Sunday game. There was nothing really on site. So I think there's has 200 00:12:24.799 --> 00:12:28.679 to be a little bit more experience, and I do wonder if that's starting 201 00:12:28.720 --> 00:12:31.960 to hurt some of these teams. They go like, well, it doesn't 202 00:12:31.000 --> 00:12:33.559 really matter about the product on the field. If you're a casual fan, 203 00:12:33.639 --> 00:12:35.960 we're just gonna go like, hey, let's spend a few hours and watch 204 00:12:37.000 --> 00:12:39.200 some football. But if you've got kids or even you know, you're just 205 00:12:39.279 --> 00:12:43.919 there. You want something else to do before and maybe after the game. 206 00:12:43.320 --> 00:12:46.799 And I don't know that a lot of these venues are providing that, and 207 00:12:46.840 --> 00:12:50.279 they're not providing a lot of a lot of giveaways. Now they have recently 208 00:12:50.000 --> 00:12:54.720 giveaways including not just tickets, but you need to give away some merchandise and 209 00:12:54.759 --> 00:12:58.200 maybe that'll help boost it a little bit and that brings more people in and 210 00:12:58.240 --> 00:13:01.120 maybe more people watch the product on the field, and then they say, 211 00:13:01.360 --> 00:13:03.799 yeah, this is something that I want to I'm interested in and would come 212 00:13:03.840 --> 00:13:05.960 back to. It's so funny and the last thing about this and I want 213 00:13:07.039 --> 00:13:11.799 to get into Like even my wife last night we were watching the Mariner's game 214 00:13:11.799 --> 00:13:15.159 on and we had been they're on the homestand and we had went Friday and 215 00:13:15.159 --> 00:13:16.679 then Sunday from Mother's Day. We were watching the game last night and it 216 00:13:16.720 --> 00:13:22.000 was colder here Monday night, like very sparse crowd. And even Dorothy walks 217 00:13:22.000 --> 00:13:24.279 downstairs and she's like, oh wow, like there's really not a lot of 218 00:13:24.320 --> 00:13:26.159 people at the Mariner game tonight. I'm like, you know, this is 219 00:13:26.200 --> 00:13:28.360 someone that's like so it's it's these people, and you get I respect the 220 00:13:28.360 --> 00:13:31.600 Emory hunts of the world, like, well, who watches for the you 221 00:13:31.639 --> 00:13:35.879 know who looks for the stands and who watches like it's just a casual thing. 222 00:13:35.919 --> 00:13:39.000 You turn it on, like wow, people are invested in this, 223 00:13:39.080 --> 00:13:41.480 you know. You turn on the game on Sunday and we had forty two 224 00:13:41.519 --> 00:13:43.600 thousand people or whatever there you go, Wow, this is Look how beautiful 225 00:13:43.600 --> 00:13:46.200 of this? Look at this say like it just adds to the whole ambiance, 226 00:13:46.240 --> 00:13:50.679 even if you're not watching the game for that, it just adds to 227 00:13:50.720 --> 00:13:52.000 it. I just it really took me back of that even where she's like 228 00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:56.159 wow, like that's that's remarkable. There's a lot of people there. It's 229 00:13:54.960 --> 00:13:58.399 a it's a TV it's a TV program, you know with the UFL, 230 00:13:58.720 --> 00:14:01.919 and that's part of the set. The people in the background, the fans, 231 00:14:03.000 --> 00:14:05.159 and they add something to it, as you said, an ambiance. 232 00:14:05.200 --> 00:14:07.120 You hear cheering, you know, you hear booing when you don't hear that, 233 00:14:07.200 --> 00:14:09.879 and it's an empty stadium. That was always the knock on the UFL. 234 00:14:09.960 --> 00:14:13.600 On the USFL was a problem with these empty stadiums in these hubs. 235 00:14:13.600 --> 00:14:16.159 It was like it was not appealing for a lot of people to watch. 236 00:14:18.720 --> 00:14:20.200 Last thing here. I want to make sure any thoughts on this so because 237 00:14:20.480 --> 00:14:24.200 part of the we had this dense deadline Hollywood coming out talking about this, 238 00:14:24.279 --> 00:14:26.960 and I wish here I can pause that gift because that has given me a 239 00:14:28.000 --> 00:14:33.799 headache. Adding the Friday night games, I think leads credence. In our 240 00:14:33.840 --> 00:14:37.960 conversation today about you know, adding two teams, Mike Mitchell had said it 241 00:14:37.000 --> 00:14:39.639 was very much going to be the two you know two teams, and Canton 242 00:14:39.799 --> 00:14:43.720 was very much in play or Ohio, what is your thought process the same 243 00:14:43.759 --> 00:14:46.759 here that it would really be hard to move, you know too of the 244 00:14:46.759 --> 00:14:50.480 games from Saturday or a game from Saturday like this would help add add. 245 00:14:52.120 --> 00:14:56.120 I guess TV what shelf whatever for advertisers instead of add or with slots for 246 00:14:56.159 --> 00:14:58.679 them. Are you under the same feeling, Yeah, I think so, 247 00:15:00.000 --> 00:15:03.679 and that you know, Fox has really leaned into live sports programming over the 248 00:15:03.679 --> 00:15:07.279 past five plus years. You know again, you know, SmackDown was on 249 00:15:07.279 --> 00:15:13.120 on Friday nights. They go into you know, college football and college basketball 250 00:15:13.240 --> 00:15:16.799 on Saturdays and Sundays, and it seems to me like this is another opportunity 251 00:15:18.200 --> 00:15:20.519 outside of college football or basketball, where you have a time where you can 252 00:15:20.639 --> 00:15:24.720 put on the UFL. Yeah, you're right with the cadence of if you 253 00:15:24.840 --> 00:15:30.519 didn't add a team or two teams, the cadence of one game on Friday 254 00:15:30.600 --> 00:15:33.360 night, then are you're only going to have one game on Sunday and two 255 00:15:33.399 --> 00:15:35.840 games on Saturday or whatever. So to me, this feels like there is 256 00:15:35.879 --> 00:15:39.679 a lot of talk behind the scenes, which I'm sure there is, that 257 00:15:39.919 --> 00:15:41.759 we need to add at least two more teams to add that extra game, 258 00:15:41.799 --> 00:15:46.519 and that gives you know, some availability there for Fox to sell and make 259 00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:48.919 it a thing, you know, make it a Friday night thing. I 260 00:15:48.960 --> 00:15:52.879 think. You know, personally, I thought it'd be great to have either 261 00:15:52.919 --> 00:15:56.879 a Thursday night or a Monday night game, but you know, Friday night 262 00:15:56.919 --> 00:16:00.879 makes sense for a lot of reasons. You could do a Friday night game 263 00:16:00.879 --> 00:16:03.879 and then maybe do two early games Saturday or Sunday, whatever you want to 264 00:16:03.879 --> 00:16:07.200 do with that. But you have that cadence of three straight days of the 265 00:16:07.279 --> 00:16:11.120 UFL and more opportunity for people to jump in. And yes, so to 266 00:16:11.159 --> 00:16:14.519 me, when I did see when I saw this from Deadline Hollywood, it 267 00:16:14.559 --> 00:16:18.600 seemed like, okay, unless they're really going to fundamentally only put you know, 268 00:16:18.720 --> 00:16:22.120 change things and only put one game on a Saturday or Sunday. It 269 00:16:22.159 --> 00:16:25.840 feels like there have to be at least two more teams in play for twenty 270 00:16:25.879 --> 00:16:29.320 twenty five. Yeah, and you know, to me, it shows investment, 271 00:16:29.360 --> 00:16:32.080 right, it shows investment in Fox and we're giving the spot to that, 272 00:16:32.799 --> 00:16:34.759 you know, the college staff and everything they have. And I know 273 00:16:34.879 --> 00:16:37.720 we talked partly about this on the Monday, but just more more thoughts here 274 00:16:37.720 --> 00:16:41.080 as we sit later in the week. But like, you know, what 275 00:16:41.120 --> 00:16:44.360 are these networks putting on this time of year? You know, I think 276 00:16:44.360 --> 00:16:48.320 that that's a good spot for that. It it keeps the whole Like Live 277 00:16:48.360 --> 00:16:52.600 Sports w deVie has really done a remarkable job over the last decade or so 278 00:16:52.679 --> 00:16:56.399 of marketing themselves more as a sports product, even though it is scripted and 279 00:16:56.399 --> 00:16:59.320 they're able to call it in you know, more advertising dollars for that, 280 00:16:59.360 --> 00:17:02.399 and I think keep that. And hey, if you like sports on Friday, 281 00:17:02.399 --> 00:17:04.160 even if it's not wrestling, here's something else, kind of action packed 282 00:17:04.160 --> 00:17:07.440 and yeah, put some brandy behind it. CFL does a great job with 283 00:17:07.480 --> 00:17:11.519 that and a Friday night football in Canada. I know a lot of the 284 00:17:11.559 --> 00:17:14.680 CFL listeners on our show kind of wrote in about that and said, yeah, 285 00:17:14.759 --> 00:17:15.640 you know, we like that and this is kind of what we do. 286 00:17:17.160 --> 00:17:19.279 Any other thoughts on matter else, Let's get to kind of the eight. 287 00:17:19.359 --> 00:17:22.519 I think we'll go, you know, kind of rough shot through the 288 00:17:22.559 --> 00:17:23.759 eight cities we have, and then we can see if we want to do 289 00:17:23.759 --> 00:17:26.920 any expansion as well. Any other thoughts before we move on. No, 290 00:17:27.079 --> 00:17:30.319 but you know, just to just kind of summing up, you know, 291 00:17:30.359 --> 00:17:33.160 we talked about how Fox is starting to lean in on live programming. I 292 00:17:33.200 --> 00:17:37.319 think a lot of networks will too. So if CBS and NBC start to 293 00:17:37.319 --> 00:17:40.119 get involved. I mean, you look at Fox's schedule right now. I 294 00:17:40.119 --> 00:17:44.359 think on you have like it's all either reality shows or game shows, and 295 00:17:44.359 --> 00:17:48.720 that's what almost every network is doing. Very few scripted shows. And what 296 00:17:48.759 --> 00:17:52.519 are some of the things that are cheaper to produce than a scripted show. 297 00:17:52.640 --> 00:17:56.119 It's news and it's sports. And I think that's where Fox has really started 298 00:17:56.119 --> 00:17:59.440 to lean in and get away from some of the scripted shows and then move 299 00:17:59.480 --> 00:18:03.680 into this and then make that initial you know, extra investment in the UFL 300 00:18:03.720 --> 00:18:06.279 and I think that is a good sign. I think we are definitely going 301 00:18:06.319 --> 00:18:08.640 to have a twenty twenty five season, and it really feels like there's going 302 00:18:08.680 --> 00:18:12.079 to be at least ten teams in this league. Yeah, and also I 303 00:18:12.079 --> 00:18:15.119 think you know there and I know we're still kind of in the wake of 304 00:18:15.160 --> 00:18:18.680 the writers' strike, but like that was part of it, and now have 305 00:18:18.759 --> 00:18:21.400 the networks I used to, We're like, hey, let's focus more on 306 00:18:21.440 --> 00:18:23.519 like then we don't even need to worry about these you know, stupid union 307 00:18:23.559 --> 00:18:26.039 riders and all that, and not that I like, you know, but 308 00:18:26.119 --> 00:18:30.599 I think that that's what happens, right when you put yourself in a situation 309 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:33.440 of you know, we're going to go on a strike or we're going to 310 00:18:33.519 --> 00:18:36.440 do whatever. Okay, well that people find alternative sources or you know, 311 00:18:36.480 --> 00:18:38.920 ways to kind of do all that stuff. So a lot of talk and 312 00:18:40.000 --> 00:18:41.599 we I know, on the Monday as well, we had a lot of 313 00:18:41.640 --> 00:18:45.319 talk about the stallions here and everything else. The protective stadium lease has been 314 00:18:45.359 --> 00:18:48.039 good, right, successful with the hub and kind of all that stuff. 315 00:18:48.400 --> 00:18:52.920 Do you is that worth investing in continuing to invest in the Birmingham We have 316 00:18:52.119 --> 00:18:55.400 a trademark here. I wanted to get to involved in the Stallions, but 317 00:18:55.519 --> 00:19:00.160 just overall thoughts is I think it's been worthwhile for the three years. Is 318 00:19:00.160 --> 00:19:03.559 it worthwhile to double down on that movie forward in Birmingham? I think so. 319 00:19:03.640 --> 00:19:07.119 I don't think you're throwing you know, good money after bad because it's 320 00:19:07.240 --> 00:19:10.759 it has been an investment. You're still getting you know, fourteen, you 321 00:19:10.799 --> 00:19:14.279 know, to six sixteen thousand people, fourteen fifteen, sixteen thousand people, 322 00:19:15.279 --> 00:19:18.000 and I think by UFL standards, as we know, that's that's pretty good 323 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:22.720 if you continue to build. And you know, I went into this season, 324 00:19:23.319 --> 00:19:27.079 I have a little different mindset than I did before the season started because 325 00:19:27.119 --> 00:19:30.680 it was such a clunky rollout and you know, you and I have talked 326 00:19:30.680 --> 00:19:32.599 about that a lot. You've talked about that with a lot of people. 327 00:19:32.640 --> 00:19:37.000 It's a clunky rollout on a lot of different things. But the more I 328 00:19:37.039 --> 00:19:40.519 thought about it, and the more I've seen this season progress, you know, 329 00:19:40.839 --> 00:19:44.160 we know that they were trying to just get this out and trying to 330 00:19:44.200 --> 00:19:47.200 get this product on the field. It was almost like a you know, 331 00:19:47.240 --> 00:19:49.559 a proof of performance thing. Here, here's the concept here, this is 332 00:19:49.599 --> 00:19:53.400 what we're trying to do. And I think if you're getting fourteen thousand people 333 00:19:53.440 --> 00:19:57.920 on kind of a shaky roll out here in Birmingham. Yeah, I think 334 00:19:57.960 --> 00:20:00.200 it's I think it's worth it now. I know we're going to talk about 335 00:20:00.200 --> 00:20:03.359 this, but I think there are some other places where they've got some big 336 00:20:03.400 --> 00:20:07.319 decisions to make, but I think, to me, it's worth it in 337 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:11.599 Birmingham. So here, Mike Mitchell had sent this over as well, and 338 00:20:11.640 --> 00:20:14.000 he's like wow, because I was posting about the Vipers, like well, 339 00:20:14.000 --> 00:20:15.480 if you really want to make people go crazy, I'm like, well, 340 00:20:15.319 --> 00:20:19.240 well maybe we'll talk about this. Wait to go by. But Dallas Stallions, 341 00:20:19.279 --> 00:20:22.119 so this was falling back in April twenty twenty three, okay, whatever, 342 00:20:22.160 --> 00:20:26.920 but they just filed an extension year of April. So you'll a little 343 00:20:26.960 --> 00:20:30.160 less than a month ago here to extend that out. Because here's my crazy 344 00:20:30.200 --> 00:20:36.200 idea, this is my crazy read read whatever tempoile hat here we'll talk Arlington. 345 00:20:36.599 --> 00:20:41.440 Arlington's been lackluster. What if you keep if you keep an Arlington team, 346 00:20:41.920 --> 00:20:44.759 have it be the Dallas Stallions with the Stallions there and you still have 347 00:20:44.759 --> 00:20:52.440 the hub in Arlington. Oh, I hate everything about that. I hate 348 00:20:52.480 --> 00:20:56.440 everything about that. That is just I mean, that's up there with let's 349 00:20:56.480 --> 00:21:00.039 call the Houston Gamblers the Roughnecks and move them to Rice Stadium. I mean 350 00:21:00.039 --> 00:21:03.200 that's just I mean, that is just too much fumbling the wall there. 351 00:21:03.559 --> 00:21:07.000 But you're keeping You're keeping the Hut presence in Arlington. You're keep I mean, 352 00:21:07.279 --> 00:21:10.960 it's the same team. You're just really so you you wouldn't touch the 353 00:21:10.960 --> 00:21:12.599 Stallions. About what do you make of this the Dallas Sayn's trademark. I 354 00:21:14.039 --> 00:21:15.799 I don't know, honestly, I don't know what to make of this unless 355 00:21:15.839 --> 00:21:21.960 this is something this was some kind of insurance policy that if they couldn't or 356 00:21:22.000 --> 00:21:25.960 Birmingham didn't want to come through, that they well they have this. I 357 00:21:26.319 --> 00:21:30.200 don't understand that. This is well beyond my business comprehension, and this is 358 00:21:30.519 --> 00:21:34.680 very much above my sports comprehension, because I can't imagine why the USFL would 359 00:21:34.680 --> 00:21:40.240 want if you did move the Stallions, why would you would want to continue 360 00:21:40.279 --> 00:21:42.880 to call them the Stallions? It just you know, I know that I 361 00:21:42.960 --> 00:21:47.440 know that Eric Shanks in the USFL, and what they wanted to do was 362 00:21:47.480 --> 00:21:51.960 really play on this nostalgia and this has been a this was a personal project 363 00:21:51.960 --> 00:21:57.079 for Eric Shanks of Fox. But you know what, if you're this seems 364 00:21:57.079 --> 00:22:00.839 like it would be personal to try to keep the Stallion brand alive. And 365 00:22:00.880 --> 00:22:03.960 I just think there's you know, Birmingham has always been the place, the 366 00:22:04.720 --> 00:22:08.759 home city, the capital of all kinds of football, which Scott Adamson had 367 00:22:08.759 --> 00:22:11.640 does a great job of, you know, covering and he wrote a great 368 00:22:11.640 --> 00:22:15.480 book about it. Because there's been every spring football team seems to have a 369 00:22:15.839 --> 00:22:19.160 has had a team in Birmingham. But this one, it's beyond me. 370 00:22:19.240 --> 00:22:22.680 I don't This just seems like would be such a bad move on many many 371 00:22:22.799 --> 00:22:26.680 levels. So we know we have the mobile Stallion's trademark, and that was 372 00:22:26.680 --> 00:22:30.319 filed back when they were doing the Birmingham stuff, and I don't know if 373 00:22:30.319 --> 00:22:33.440 they were just worried about kind of and still could call it kind of be 374 00:22:33.480 --> 00:22:36.599 in the area or whatever, right because it's not that far right mobile to 375 00:22:36.599 --> 00:22:41.799 Birmingham now that I don't know. Oh come on, I mean I've been 376 00:22:41.839 --> 00:22:45.039 to Birmingham, but I haven't been a mobile. It looks like it said 377 00:22:45.119 --> 00:22:48.079 that three hours, so three and a half hours. So yeah, But 378 00:22:48.119 --> 00:22:49.799 I remember when I was coming out there was all of that and okay, 379 00:22:49.839 --> 00:22:52.359 this is our we're keeping all that. But I don't know, it's interesting 380 00:22:52.400 --> 00:22:56.440 to me, this Dallas Stallion's thing. Yeah, you have a little little 381 00:22:56.440 --> 00:23:00.160 placeholder there. And again it's cheap and it's easy to file trademarks and the 382 00:23:00.160 --> 00:23:03.000 trademark for the National Street Football League and all that stuff, and more expensive 383 00:23:03.000 --> 00:23:06.480 for me than it would be for you know, Fox and USFL here, 384 00:23:06.519 --> 00:23:10.480 which it is interesting that these are still under the USFL enterprises, right even 385 00:23:10.519 --> 00:23:15.079 though now it's supposedly this Fox Redbird kind of indenture endeavor there. But I 386 00:23:15.119 --> 00:23:19.200 don't know, I could just I guess. So they were reflecting on that 387 00:23:19.240 --> 00:23:22.720 they're Arlington Renegades. I know that's the home of the XFL. You wouldn't 388 00:23:22.759 --> 00:23:26.759 know that by walking around chalk Tak Stadium. You wouldn't know that by talking 389 00:23:26.759 --> 00:23:30.279 with a lot of the Arlington Renegades maybe you know audience, walking around people 390 00:23:30.319 --> 00:23:34.359 on the street. You have to keep a presence there. What do you 391 00:23:34.440 --> 00:23:37.559 do just double down and hope for more? I mean, I don't think 392 00:23:37.559 --> 00:23:41.200 you can pull the Arlington Renegades unless you have a different thought. No, 393 00:23:41.279 --> 00:23:44.359 I don't think you can. I mean, if you're going to continue to 394 00:23:44.400 --> 00:23:48.160 keep that model there, but to just change the name to the what good 395 00:23:48.160 --> 00:23:52.359 does that do? Like just to change the name of the Stallions or the 396 00:23:52.039 --> 00:23:56.559 Renegades. I mean they did go from Dallas Arlington whatever that means. But 397 00:23:56.640 --> 00:24:02.920 yeah, I don't don't get that one. Have you been surprised? I 398 00:24:03.039 --> 00:24:04.519 have been, and I know the team now is terrible. I'm going to 399 00:24:04.599 --> 00:24:07.279 be at the game here in a couple of weeks. I'm like, oh, 400 00:24:07.279 --> 00:24:08.279 this will be a fun I bought this like monthly. This would be 401 00:24:08.279 --> 00:24:11.880 a fun game to go to. You the Vallahawks and the Renegades. But 402 00:24:11.599 --> 00:24:15.440 we'll be there. Uh. I mean, the team's terrible. It's really 403 00:24:15.480 --> 00:24:18.200 hard now. It's kind of like the Edmonton Elks in the CFL, where 404 00:24:18.200 --> 00:24:22.200 it's really hard to kind of market these team. It's hard to get people 405 00:24:22.240 --> 00:24:25.440 out to the games when the team stinks. But are you surprised with kind 406 00:24:25.440 --> 00:24:27.279 of it? Just it feels like apathy for the Renegades. It just never 407 00:24:27.319 --> 00:24:30.440 feels even last year for the kickoff, it just uh, you know, 408 00:24:30.720 --> 00:24:33.039 I don't know, it just does. It doesn't feel like there's real fervor 409 00:24:33.039 --> 00:24:36.799 there. Yeah, I mean they've got you know, the Renegades have that. 410 00:24:36.880 --> 00:24:37.799 You know, they've got the die hard fans. I know how much 411 00:24:37.799 --> 00:24:41.640 you love to talk about the beer snake, but it it almost seems like 412 00:24:42.160 --> 00:24:45.759 the apathy is start. It's showing up on the field. It's just it's 413 00:24:45.960 --> 00:24:49.759 they seem checked out and it and I don't understand why. I mean that, 414 00:24:49.880 --> 00:24:52.200 you know, you you had it seemed like there was a really good 415 00:24:52.240 --> 00:24:55.519 court. Now I understand Abram Smith, you know, got hurt for the 416 00:24:55.599 --> 00:24:57.559 year and all that, but uh, that should not make the team as 417 00:24:57.599 --> 00:25:02.119 bad as it is. And I don't know whe you know what happened last 418 00:25:02.200 --> 00:25:04.119 year, if it was, you know, they just you know, they 419 00:25:04.119 --> 00:25:07.240 got hot and continued to be hot and the schedule laid out for them. 420 00:25:07.279 --> 00:25:10.920 But yeah, I mean, I you know, I've got friends around the 421 00:25:11.000 --> 00:25:14.319 DC area, and I don't think a lot of them, you know, 422 00:25:14.440 --> 00:25:17.880 even realize about you know, the defenders or what they are. I mean, 423 00:25:18.039 --> 00:25:22.680 And there are people, you know, I've run into this friends of 424 00:25:22.680 --> 00:25:25.880 mine. I worked in sports industry TV sports for thirty years. I got 425 00:25:25.920 --> 00:25:29.359 friends of mine in the sports industry who have been in it for as long 426 00:25:29.400 --> 00:25:33.799 as I was, or longer. And they still get the USFL and XFL 427 00:25:33.880 --> 00:25:37.039 and UFL confused. And these are people who follow sports every day. So 428 00:25:37.039 --> 00:25:41.240 there's got to be a better marketing effort I think overall, but certainly in 429 00:25:41.279 --> 00:25:42.559 these communities to get people out. Yeah, it just seems like, you 430 00:25:42.599 --> 00:25:45.640 know, the DC, what was it, twelve thousand people they said showed 431 00:25:45.720 --> 00:25:49.319 up for that game, and hey, I don't know. So all right, 432 00:25:49.359 --> 00:25:52.240 so going through here in Birmingham, you said, you feel like it's 433 00:25:52.359 --> 00:25:56.480 untouchable Arlington. You need to have a presence there. I don't know, 434 00:25:56.440 --> 00:25:59.559 if you get rid of Stoops here at the end of the year, can 435 00:25:59.599 --> 00:26:02.480 you kind of evamp in there is? But I'm worried. I'm worried about 436 00:26:02.480 --> 00:26:07.480 the Renegades kind of pure because yeah, if Prez ages out, just it's 437 00:26:07.519 --> 00:26:10.960 just been, like I said, I've said apathy before, but he just 438 00:26:11.000 --> 00:26:14.279 feels like that. It just feels like they can't get if there, if 439 00:26:14.279 --> 00:26:15.839 the hub wasn't there, if they didn't have the deal with talk to I 440 00:26:15.839 --> 00:26:18.440 don't know if you would, if you would keep the Renegads there moving forward. 441 00:26:18.880 --> 00:26:22.359 Yeah, I mean I think that's a good point. I don't think 442 00:26:22.559 --> 00:26:25.680 I think Stoops might just walk himself out of there. I don't. I 443 00:26:25.720 --> 00:26:29.920 don't know that how interested he is and in this whole thing, especially the 444 00:26:29.920 --> 00:26:32.359 way the pay structure is going to be for coaches next year? Is it 445 00:26:32.480 --> 00:26:34.640 going to be worth it to him? As far as Perez, you know, 446 00:26:34.680 --> 00:26:37.279 he maybe he ages out, but when you look at the stats man, 447 00:26:37.519 --> 00:26:40.920 he's you know, you can't blame any of this on Pere, on 448 00:26:41.279 --> 00:26:44.839 Louis Perez right now. So you know, I would I would hope that 449 00:26:44.839 --> 00:26:48.680 they would keep some kind of something there, especially if it's going to continue 450 00:26:48.680 --> 00:26:49.759 to be the hub, because it seems to it, it seems to make 451 00:26:49.839 --> 00:26:55.119 sense. I wouldn't say it's untouchable, though. I mean, I'm reluctant 452 00:26:55.119 --> 00:26:57.319 to say Birmingham's untouchable, but I think they are. Uh you know, 453 00:26:57.559 --> 00:27:02.440 Arlington seems like that's a place that you you've got to continue to keep this 454 00:27:02.440 --> 00:27:04.799 thing going unless they have a better business plan right now. It's like firing 455 00:27:04.839 --> 00:27:07.680 a coach. It's like, you know, when you're talking about moving a 456 00:27:07.720 --> 00:27:11.920 team or moving a hub or whatever, you better have an upgrade. And 457 00:27:11.000 --> 00:27:15.279 I just wonder if they have an upgrade in mind. I do think we're 458 00:27:15.279 --> 00:27:18.920 going to season big coaching changes here coming in going from the this season to 459 00:27:19.000 --> 00:27:23.599 next season. I think Stoops is I from from just my feeling, I 460 00:27:23.640 --> 00:27:27.240 would think Stoops is gone. I can't imagine way Phillips rides up this again 461 00:27:27.319 --> 00:27:32.119 if if the pay structure drops down. Uh back, we talked about that 462 00:27:32.200 --> 00:27:34.880 before I'm here. I mean, he's so tied into that brand and it's 463 00:27:34.920 --> 00:27:40.000 not even worth talking about, like relocating the Ballolehawks. But uh, him 464 00:27:40.079 --> 00:27:42.440 him staying involved. What is your sense of that. It feels like he's 465 00:27:42.480 --> 00:27:45.279 pretty invested long term. But yay, there's always going to be lots more 466 00:27:45.279 --> 00:27:48.480 opportunities for someone like him now going through all this, just a side note 467 00:27:48.519 --> 00:27:51.720 here to kind of veer off. No, No, I think you're I 468 00:27:51.759 --> 00:27:55.279 think you're right. He is so connected with that Saint Louis brand and what 469 00:27:55.400 --> 00:27:59.440 he has done for that community. But you do have to wonder, you 470 00:27:59.480 --> 00:28:02.160 know, when he when he has the success on the level that he has 471 00:28:02.200 --> 00:28:06.640 had, you know with Saint Louis, if an NFL team comes calling for 472 00:28:07.119 --> 00:28:08.880 you know, for not a position coach, but you know, for for 473 00:28:10.000 --> 00:28:14.440 maybe some kind of coordinator position or maybe even a front office that you would 474 00:28:14.440 --> 00:28:15.960 think that, you know, that's something that he would have to look at. 475 00:28:17.079 --> 00:28:18.319 I mean, I hope for the UFL's sake, I hope for Saint 476 00:28:18.319 --> 00:28:22.480 Louis's sake. Things don't change there very much. You know. I don't 477 00:28:22.480 --> 00:28:25.640 know if a J. Mccaerron's going to come back, that could change a 478 00:28:25.640 --> 00:28:27.759 lot of things too, So but yes, I think there's gonna be some 479 00:28:27.799 --> 00:28:32.519 coaching changes. I can't imagine that, you know, Houston, they've got 480 00:28:32.559 --> 00:28:37.160 to make a change, So they're going to be a few going from So 481 00:28:37.640 --> 00:28:44.400 I think DC. We've touched on DC less less enthusiasm right now in the 482 00:28:44.440 --> 00:28:47.279 stands or out of field. I know that Mike haven't paid attendance here for 483 00:28:47.279 --> 00:28:49.839 the weekend certainly looks less than that in the stands, but that feels like 484 00:28:49.880 --> 00:28:52.599 about as strong of a market as you can have right now, you know, 485 00:28:52.839 --> 00:28:56.599 building back all the way to twenty eighteen through twenty twenty. I know 486 00:28:56.920 --> 00:28:59.160 the play on the field hasn't been as great this year, and I think 487 00:28:59.160 --> 00:29:00.960 that's probably part of the any other thoughts on kind of DC because I want 488 00:29:02.000 --> 00:29:04.400 to get to Houston. Yeah, I think in the there is a little 489 00:29:04.720 --> 00:29:07.240 maybe a little bit of apathy, and you know, it's starting to come 490 00:29:07.279 --> 00:29:11.279 down because the play is not great and there are a lot of there are 491 00:29:11.480 --> 00:29:15.759 you know, some very knowledgeable football fans in that market. But to me, 492 00:29:15.039 --> 00:29:18.359 you know, on the when you start comparatively speaking about as far as 493 00:29:18.680 --> 00:29:22.759 you know in fan engagement and fan attendance, I mean, it's still up 494 00:29:22.839 --> 00:29:26.759 there. So it just seems to me like that's something that they can build 495 00:29:26.799 --> 00:29:29.759 on. And going back to my point, I feel like they were just 496 00:29:29.799 --> 00:29:33.160 trying to do a lot of different things and trying to get this league going. 497 00:29:33.799 --> 00:29:36.880 Maybe what they've learned in a year they can build it up and you 498 00:29:36.920 --> 00:29:44.599 know, maybe another step. I the defenders have been lucky that the Commanders, 499 00:29:45.000 --> 00:29:48.000 you know, the football team, the Redskins maybe on have not been 500 00:29:48.039 --> 00:29:49.920 great kind of through this whole because it's been a long I mean they really 501 00:29:51.000 --> 00:29:52.960 lucked out right because I think we'll talk with Michigan. I think you've seen 502 00:29:53.319 --> 00:29:56.039 you know, the Lions now and my god, we're paying Jared Goff, 503 00:29:56.240 --> 00:30:00.039 you know Kings Ranzio, Hey good, you man, get your baby. 504 00:30:00.079 --> 00:30:03.400 But like you know, you're seeing some of these markets, even you know, 505 00:30:03.519 --> 00:30:07.319 Seattle and with the XL coming in and then we had the Kraken and 506 00:30:07.400 --> 00:30:11.119 the Sounders are more popular. You know, you kind of you lose that. 507 00:30:11.200 --> 00:30:15.960 There's certain times where obviously Saint Louis hit. That situation hasn't changed, 508 00:30:15.000 --> 00:30:18.039 right, you know with the NFL. But I think DC has been really 509 00:30:18.119 --> 00:30:22.759 lucky that the commanders have not been great. Now, hey maybe Jane Daniels 510 00:30:22.799 --> 00:30:25.359 comes in and sets the world on fire and then hey, I'm going to 511 00:30:25.440 --> 00:30:29.079 watch this versus kind of the Defenders. But they've really been lucky thus far. 512 00:30:29.200 --> 00:30:30.880 That there. You know, Washington's kind of wallowed in the football market 513 00:30:30.880 --> 00:30:34.839 here the last four seasons, and you know a lot of the enthusiasm for 514 00:30:34.920 --> 00:30:38.599 the Defenders was we hate Dan Snyder and now that's all out. But I'll 515 00:30:38.640 --> 00:30:42.079 be curious if that continues, if they're continued to retain any of that, 516 00:30:42.279 --> 00:30:45.519 or now if people are willing to go back to the NFL franchise. Yeah, 517 00:30:45.559 --> 00:30:49.079 I mean that that that's the dynamic in Saint Louis by far. That 518 00:30:49.480 --> 00:30:53.400 that's the reason they have thirty THI when I was at the game earlier this 519 00:30:53.519 --> 00:30:57.279 year against Memphis, you know, there was a guy there who was dressed 520 00:30:57.400 --> 00:31:02.119 like Stan Crockey. They were there were there's still you know, people holding 521 00:31:02.160 --> 00:31:06.720 up signs about Stank Krockey who moved the Rams to LA. So there is 522 00:31:06.799 --> 00:31:11.519 that dynamic. I think You're exactly right. D C had gone down so 523 00:31:11.680 --> 00:31:15.839 far in the NFL. This team comes in and just starts setting it on 524 00:31:15.920 --> 00:31:18.839 fire in the regular season and you know, goes all the way to the 525 00:31:18.000 --> 00:31:22.200 you know, championship where they they know were they at the championship? I 526 00:31:22.240 --> 00:31:26.799 got to think DC Championship, Well, we had Arlington one d C. 527 00:31:27.039 --> 00:31:30.799 Yes against d C. Okay, yeah, when you turn fifty, these 528 00:31:30.799 --> 00:31:36.720 things happen. So yeah, I have a lot of different but but yeah, 529 00:31:36.759 --> 00:31:38.200 you know, they they made such you know, had that weird loss 530 00:31:38.200 --> 00:31:41.759 against Orlando was their only loss, and then they you know, went to 531 00:31:41.759 --> 00:31:45.960 the chap went to the championship game. So so I think you're right about 532 00:31:45.960 --> 00:31:48.599 that. That that's why I say, I know there's there are so many 533 00:31:48.799 --> 00:31:52.440 thousands of factors at work, but it just seems to me like San Diego 534 00:31:52.519 --> 00:31:56.400 would be a great place because they've been jilted, they love football there. 535 00:31:56.400 --> 00:32:00.640 Wouldn't that be a great place to put a West Coast team? Yeah, 536 00:32:00.680 --> 00:32:02.759 we'll and we'll we'll touch on it because that's Yeah, that's a deep conversation 537 00:32:02.839 --> 00:32:07.799 I want to have here with all that. Like I don't so talking Houston 538 00:32:07.799 --> 00:32:10.559 now. I'm just kind of trying to kind of roughly alphabetically through this. 539 00:32:12.000 --> 00:32:15.000 I don't know what you do with Houston now. I think Houston's been so 540 00:32:15.119 --> 00:32:17.160 mismanaged in terms of just you know, the coaching, and then that screwed 541 00:32:17.200 --> 00:32:21.279 out the Brahmas as well, and obviously they're they're better because of it, 542 00:32:21.319 --> 00:32:23.880 but like, you know, the domino effects of trying to keep and playcate 543 00:32:23.960 --> 00:32:28.720 the USFL side with the Houston you know, Roughneck gamblers, whatever situation, 544 00:32:28.920 --> 00:32:30.720 however you want to refer to it, Like, I don't know how you 545 00:32:30.759 --> 00:32:35.000 come back from that, is it. I've seen people complain about Rice Stadium 546 00:32:35.079 --> 00:32:37.200 and that's part of it too, But it's this whole mishmash. I mean, 547 00:32:37.640 --> 00:32:40.240 do you pull the plug on that? Do you they have other you 548 00:32:40.240 --> 00:32:44.400 know, they have other Texas trademarks here we'll kind of go through some of 549 00:32:44.400 --> 00:32:46.720 these, you know, the Austin Outlaws, the Austin Gamblers, the Austin 550 00:32:46.759 --> 00:32:50.400 renny. Like, I don't know what you what you do at this point 551 00:32:50.400 --> 00:32:52.559 to rectify the situation. I don't know that you can. I mean, 552 00:32:52.599 --> 00:32:57.599 I really don't. That's one of the way that's been handled. What does 553 00:32:57.640 --> 00:33:00.640 the UFL do as a league to say, Okay, you know, we 554 00:33:00.720 --> 00:33:02.799 kind of fumbled this and this was messed up and we shouldn't have done this 555 00:33:02.839 --> 00:33:06.519 and shouldn't have done that. But how do you, like you said, 556 00:33:06.519 --> 00:33:08.400 how do you come back from that? I can't think of a good plan 557 00:33:08.440 --> 00:33:14.000 where you say, okay, well where Rice Stadium didn't work, so where 558 00:33:14.000 --> 00:33:15.519 are you gonna play now? They already had so many, you know, 559 00:33:15.599 --> 00:33:19.480 problems trying to find a place to play in the first place. To me, 560 00:33:20.559 --> 00:33:23.759 I think if you pulled the plug on Houston, there would be a 561 00:33:23.839 --> 00:33:29.920 few heartbroken fans for sure, But I don't think overall that the entire league, 562 00:33:30.039 --> 00:33:31.559 or you know, the even the casual fans are going to say, 563 00:33:31.799 --> 00:33:37.240 what happened to the Houston Roughnecks slash Gambler. So I don't know that the 564 00:33:37.359 --> 00:33:42.960 value is there for this league, for this team in this league except for 565 00:33:43.319 --> 00:33:45.480 just the hub sense of it, right, And that's really the reason why 566 00:33:45.480 --> 00:33:49.319 we have the three Texas teams to begin with. Like, yeah, I 567 00:33:49.359 --> 00:33:52.759 don't, I agree, I don't. I don't know what what value. 568 00:33:52.839 --> 00:33:54.720 I just it could have been tremendous value. I just don't know what what 569 00:33:54.799 --> 00:33:58.079 value it has. I think if any of the teams thus far. I 570 00:33:58.079 --> 00:34:01.240 think Houston at least has to be drawing sixty seven hundred people whatever there. 571 00:34:01.240 --> 00:34:06.400 It's just not going to cut it. I mean, it's like it's just 572 00:34:06.440 --> 00:34:07.920 so sad because we have a lot of people in the the Phillips of the 573 00:34:07.920 --> 00:34:10.760 world that have been fans of the show forever and they sit there and like, 574 00:34:10.960 --> 00:34:14.400 you know, we love this brand, and but I get a lot 575 00:34:14.400 --> 00:34:17.719 of people that they're still that that are upset and it's it's weird because I 576 00:34:17.760 --> 00:34:22.800 really predicted this and everyone was like no, like nobody cares like they they're 577 00:34:22.840 --> 00:34:25.000 they're fans. I'm like, no, Like you can't. You can't just 578 00:34:25.079 --> 00:34:28.719 put like you said, you can't just take the Birmingham Stallion as Hey, 579 00:34:28.760 --> 00:34:30.119 they're the Dallas Stallions. Now, aren't you going to still be a fan? 580 00:34:30.320 --> 00:34:34.599 Like it's the same, it's the same, you know, And I 581 00:34:34.639 --> 00:34:37.159 don't know, like back in the USFL in the eighties, like how how 582 00:34:37.199 --> 00:34:40.159 that worked if you were fans. If I've never lived through having my team, 583 00:34:40.239 --> 00:34:44.239 I know, well, I guess we had the Sonics leave, right 584 00:34:44.280 --> 00:34:45.599 and now it's been long enough that if we had a new team here, 585 00:34:45.719 --> 00:34:51.559 people would embrace that but like certainly Sonics fans that felt scoring by the Sonics 586 00:34:51.599 --> 00:34:54.119 leaving Seattle fans, they weren't fans of the Oklahoma City Thunder like that that 587 00:34:54.199 --> 00:34:57.679 was that was the opposite of what you wanted to be. You hated the 588 00:34:57.719 --> 00:35:00.719 Thunder because they were the ones that took your team. I don't think you 589 00:35:00.840 --> 00:35:02.920 gain, you know, the relocation of that. I don't think you gained. 590 00:35:02.920 --> 00:35:06.960 I don't think you retain the fans from your original city and then gain 591 00:35:07.000 --> 00:35:08.519 the fans that you're moving into. Yeah. I mean you'd have to go 592 00:35:08.559 --> 00:35:12.559 back and ask some of those fans who were who were Breakers fans back in 593 00:35:12.559 --> 00:35:15.880 the original USFL Well, they had like three different cities before the whole thing 594 00:35:15.920 --> 00:35:17.599 collapsed. So yeah, I don't know that that followed. You know, 595 00:35:17.960 --> 00:35:21.800 apparently they thought that brand was good enough, and but I don't know that 596 00:35:21.880 --> 00:35:23.440 they those teams would follow, you know, those other teams. So, 597 00:35:23.480 --> 00:35:27.400 yeah, you're right, I don't there weren't many. Uh. I don't 598 00:35:27.400 --> 00:35:30.519 think there were too many Cleveland Browns fans that became Baltimore Ravens fans. Yeah, 599 00:35:30.519 --> 00:35:32.599 I mean, I don't know. I think there's a there's a weird 600 00:35:34.599 --> 00:35:36.519 and we have this all the time, like, oh, do we need 601 00:35:36.559 --> 00:35:38.000 to go back to the here? Should you go back here? And part 602 00:35:38.039 --> 00:35:42.440 of all this conversation with all that, like I think Seattle's burned, Like 603 00:35:42.519 --> 00:35:45.000 I think some of these cities you do get burned. I mean, shoot, 604 00:35:45.000 --> 00:35:47.079 they're in San Antonio and we'll talk about them, but you still hear 605 00:35:47.239 --> 00:35:51.840 like San Antonio is burned in the city. The darn teams in the city 606 00:35:51.920 --> 00:35:53.000 right now, Like, well, we don't want to go because we're we're't 607 00:35:53.039 --> 00:35:55.880 too upset about stuff in the past, like they have a team, Like 608 00:35:55.920 --> 00:36:00.000 I don't think. I think you lose, you know, you I guess 609 00:36:00.079 --> 00:36:02.840 before you don't retain. It's not you're not adding through really relocation. You're 610 00:36:02.920 --> 00:36:06.880 kind of slicing off and then moving on. But yeah, I think Houston, 611 00:36:06.920 --> 00:36:08.360 for sure, I should be on the shoppeople block. Anything else on 612 00:36:08.400 --> 00:36:12.000 that we can talk through. What would it be Memphis would be next? 613 00:36:12.400 --> 00:36:15.960 Yeah, I mean, you know Fox has put Fox themselves put a lot 614 00:36:15.960 --> 00:36:19.559 of money into into Liberty Bowl, so they might want to roll the dice 615 00:36:19.719 --> 00:36:22.440 one more time with Memphis maybe. I mean, I think there's gonna have 616 00:36:22.480 --> 00:36:25.840 to be some retooling there. I was really pulling for John d. Filippo 617 00:36:25.920 --> 00:36:29.840 to do something with that team. But in case cook is, you know 618 00:36:30.079 --> 00:36:32.199 that they just seem like two of the best guys you know in the league. 619 00:36:32.239 --> 00:36:37.960 But I think with the with the monetary investment that Fox has put into 620 00:36:38.360 --> 00:36:40.840 the Liberty Bowl to do some different things there, that they did it a 621 00:36:40.840 --> 00:36:45.760 couple of years ago. Maybe they roll the dice on that, but they 622 00:36:45.800 --> 00:36:50.440 have got to they got to figure that out. Yeah. I agree on 623 00:36:50.480 --> 00:36:53.199 the surface, Yeah, you could pull the plug and because you could say, 624 00:36:53.199 --> 00:36:57.079 well, they didn't provide any value either, but I think it might 625 00:36:57.119 --> 00:37:00.360 be a little bit more value for Fox. We'll see except for that, 626 00:37:00.639 --> 00:37:05.440 except for the FedEx guy that they say wants to buy the team there, 627 00:37:05.519 --> 00:37:08.280 And I mean, yes, right, I mean what are you buying? 628 00:37:08.920 --> 00:37:13.079 Well, that's been my point along And this goes back to the attendance thing, 629 00:37:13.119 --> 00:37:15.599 and people get mad at me all the time because the gate doesn't matter, 630 00:37:15.639 --> 00:37:17.400 Like but but then, yeah, what what are you buying? Then 631 00:37:17.519 --> 00:37:22.239 you're buying partial ownership of some trademarks from back in the day, and you 632 00:37:22.280 --> 00:37:24.840 know, you get a ten percent stake emerged from you know, the UFL 633 00:37:24.960 --> 00:37:28.880 dot com. I mean, I don't know what being a franchise owner in 634 00:37:28.920 --> 00:37:30.599 this league, and maybe that's a deep dive for another day, Like I 635 00:37:30.599 --> 00:37:34.039 don't even know what being a franchise owner would look like. Here, you 636 00:37:34.079 --> 00:37:37.320 still have to I mean I would imagine that Redbird and then from what I 637 00:37:37.360 --> 00:37:40.159 hear Fox then would still kind of have to, you know, sign off 638 00:37:40.199 --> 00:37:44.519 on everything. It's not you're running your own marketing plans and everything or running 639 00:37:44.519 --> 00:37:49.920 your own deals. Well, and hopefully that's been the talk for a while 640 00:37:50.000 --> 00:37:53.480 now behind the scenes, like what what do we do to make this happen? 641 00:37:53.559 --> 00:37:58.000 That was always the USFL's plan. Well, you know that we're going 642 00:37:58.039 --> 00:38:00.800 to try to relocate those teams I think in five years or something like that. 643 00:38:00.840 --> 00:38:04.880 Well then there was the merger, so that probably reset the clock on 644 00:38:04.960 --> 00:38:07.679 that. So hopefully there's some talk and some you know, real talk behind 645 00:38:07.679 --> 00:38:12.840 the scenes of here's how we're here's how this league will improve next year, 646 00:38:13.000 --> 00:38:16.039 and here's why you should invest. So you know, maybe maybe there will 647 00:38:16.039 --> 00:38:21.199 be you know, two or three that step up. There's always been this 648 00:38:21.360 --> 00:38:23.559 and and Mike's reported this, and I don't I don't question Mike, but 649 00:38:23.599 --> 00:38:28.480 I you know, I questioned that kind of the the people saying, you 650 00:38:28.480 --> 00:38:31.840 know, providing this information like always, well, all these USFL these were 651 00:38:31.880 --> 00:38:36.239 all set up long term because you know, we had ownership. We knew 652 00:38:36.239 --> 00:38:38.280 who we wanted in each and I remember back what was it with the Generals, 653 00:38:38.320 --> 00:38:43.679 and it was was it a Rod or someone that Jeter wasn't like Jeter 654 00:38:43.800 --> 00:38:45.920 wanted to own part of the team or they wanted Jeter? Right, it 655 00:38:45.960 --> 00:38:49.000 seems like Jeter. I think it was. Yeah, I think it seems 656 00:38:49.000 --> 00:38:51.000 like it was. It was it was someone you know, it was a 657 00:38:51.039 --> 00:38:53.280 former Yankee of someone that was going to be involved to be a part owner 658 00:38:53.320 --> 00:38:58.320 of the Generals, right. But I but I just don't like this is 659 00:38:59.239 --> 00:39:00.960 you know, like we've talked about this before and here, but like the 660 00:39:01.239 --> 00:39:07.079 way we've got these cities now right now at eight is eighteen steps of telephone, 661 00:39:07.119 --> 00:39:09.599 through the through the world, right you know. It was the like 662 00:39:09.760 --> 00:39:13.239 this is why we were going to do these and this is why the XFL, 663 00:39:13.280 --> 00:39:14.760 and then we had to do this. We had to do this, 664 00:39:14.840 --> 00:39:16.239 We had to do this, We had do this. Like I don't believe 665 00:39:16.280 --> 00:39:21.559 any of these save for supposedly this legendary Memphis the fat X guy. I 666 00:39:21.599 --> 00:39:23.559 don't think any of these do. But I can't imagine at this point he's 667 00:39:23.599 --> 00:39:27.119 even he's like, shoot, man, it's been three Like, yo, 668 00:39:27.199 --> 00:39:30.239 we did the Hub, but we're doing this year. Like I think, 669 00:39:30.760 --> 00:39:34.880 especially when you're like you're looking at the standium every week and there's no surprise, 670 00:39:35.199 --> 00:39:37.360 like, oh well, actually there's all these people invest like you can 671 00:39:37.360 --> 00:39:40.599 see that. You can see the local investment on the field every week. 672 00:39:40.639 --> 00:39:44.719 I mean, it's it's not it's not high hidden, no, No, 673 00:39:44.920 --> 00:39:47.440 you're right, it's very public. You do have to wonder if this team 674 00:39:47.480 --> 00:39:52.400 had been better, if there would have been a better turnout. I think 675 00:39:52.440 --> 00:39:54.800 that that might have been a market to me that if that had been a 676 00:39:54.840 --> 00:40:00.440 good team, that maybe you would have had a better turnout and it would 677 00:40:00.440 --> 00:40:02.519 look a lot better on television, you know, I don't know, and 678 00:40:02.559 --> 00:40:09.639 maybe and maybe it draw some investors. I have to think that everybody behind 679 00:40:09.679 --> 00:40:14.639 the scenes, you know, combined as the UFL have some kind of plan 680 00:40:14.760 --> 00:40:21.599 in place, because you know, if expansion did happen. Andy brought up 681 00:40:21.599 --> 00:40:24.119 a good point. If expansion happened, this would be the first time it 682 00:40:24.159 --> 00:40:29.840 really happened in spring football for you know, in recent memory. And I 683 00:40:29.880 --> 00:40:35.440 remember I'm old enough to remember the original XFL. A month after the XFL 684 00:40:35.480 --> 00:40:38.159 started, it was like March of two thousand and one, they were visiting 685 00:40:38.199 --> 00:40:43.960 cities to talk about different they were these they were in open about it. 686 00:40:44.239 --> 00:40:46.760 They were visiting cities to talk about the expansion of the original XFL. And 687 00:40:46.800 --> 00:40:51.039 they had gone to d C And Portland and I think Pittsburgh and some other 688 00:40:51.079 --> 00:40:53.199 places. So you always have to keep that in mind because you have to 689 00:40:53.239 --> 00:40:58.000 grow the product. And back to your original question when we first started, 690 00:40:58.440 --> 00:41:00.039 you it has to show some kind of and I think you've got to have 691 00:41:00.079 --> 00:41:04.679 at least two more teams. But but then you also have a few that 692 00:41:04.719 --> 00:41:07.039 you're gonna have to say, well, we got to do something with it, 693 00:41:07.440 --> 00:41:14.039 either either either fundamentally change them or maybe move them somewhere else. But 694 00:41:14.079 --> 00:41:16.559 you're still going to have to add teams one way or another. I think 695 00:41:16.599 --> 00:41:20.039 you give too much credit like there's a plan, like, oh, they 696 00:41:20.079 --> 00:41:22.199 got they got this plan here. You might be right, you know, 697 00:41:22.320 --> 00:41:25.360 And I mean like I you know, we were used to working news and 698 00:41:25.400 --> 00:41:30.280 I remember all the time, and you know there's there's media bias one hundred 699 00:41:30.280 --> 00:41:31.840 percent, right, you watch CN now or Fox or kind of any of 700 00:41:31.840 --> 00:41:36.280 this stuff. But you know, I remember back at like the local Fox 701 00:41:36.400 --> 00:41:38.679 level of people, Oh, like you you didn't go to this, like 702 00:41:38.760 --> 00:41:42.840 cause you guys are biased. It's like, no, maybe Sherry was just 703 00:41:42.880 --> 00:41:45.199 in the bathroom and missed the phone call and then we just totally missed the 704 00:41:45.239 --> 00:41:49.920 story, and like maybe there's no like you know, or it's like you 705 00:41:49.920 --> 00:41:52.000 know, people, you know, you read into a lot of this stuff, 706 00:41:52.119 --> 00:41:54.119 or like, oh, Read's covering or Reid didn't do this or repost 707 00:41:54.159 --> 00:41:58.480 it. It's like maybe it's like I I was in the bathroom and saw 708 00:41:58.519 --> 00:42:00.079 this and thought it was funny and had to tie and deleted that. They're 709 00:42:00.119 --> 00:42:04.199 like, I don't know, Like there's not always some grand conspiracy here with 710 00:42:04.280 --> 00:42:07.480 all this stuff. You're right about that. Every time I hear about that, 711 00:42:07.519 --> 00:42:08.960 when you know, working on local TV as long as I did, 712 00:42:09.199 --> 00:42:12.519 people would say, well, you, yeah, the same thing. Well 713 00:42:12.559 --> 00:42:15.320 you guys didn't cover this because you're biased against us or whatever, And I'd 714 00:42:15.320 --> 00:42:20.800 be like, if you think that there that we're organized enough to get a 715 00:42:20.800 --> 00:42:23.920 conspiracy together, let me let you sit in on a news meeting that happens 716 00:42:23.960 --> 00:42:28.360 at nine o'clock. In the morning where everyone starts talking in circles trying to 717 00:42:28.360 --> 00:42:30.199 figure out what they're going to do that day, much less trying to plan 718 00:42:30.280 --> 00:42:35.360 out some vast conspiracy to not cover your events. So, yeah, you 719 00:42:35.400 --> 00:42:37.840 may be right, but I think that might be some cautious optimism on my 720 00:42:37.920 --> 00:42:42.320 part and maybe just wishful thinking that there is a plan behind the scenes. 721 00:42:43.440 --> 00:42:46.440 Uh, Memphis, to me, I like the brand, good, strong 722 00:42:46.480 --> 00:42:51.239 brand. I think they've done questionable stuff with some of the uniform and that 723 00:42:51.239 --> 00:42:53.760 people are kind of hired bad about that. Michigan the other one here with 724 00:42:53.840 --> 00:42:58.559 the Panthers, a lot of history there. You got the Ford Field, 725 00:42:58.760 --> 00:43:00.320 you know, the people can they play. I think there's a college they 726 00:43:00.320 --> 00:43:04.159 were training that during the Hub and kind of all that stuff. Like I 727 00:43:04.159 --> 00:43:07.039 don't know what you do. It's both of these and like literally so every 728 00:43:07.079 --> 00:43:10.599 week when I posted things on like Sports Illustrator whatever, I got to tag 729 00:43:10.639 --> 00:43:14.880 all the cities and I'm trying to go through alphabetically, and I always forget 730 00:43:14.880 --> 00:43:17.119 the ms because it's like, hey, we got Arlington and Burmihead because to 731 00:43:17.159 --> 00:43:21.360 me, they're both really forgettable. I know, Memphis is second in the 732 00:43:21.440 --> 00:43:25.000 USFL Conference right now, to me, all these really kind of boring games, 733 00:43:25.039 --> 00:43:29.679 boring teams. To me, Michigan is in the same point as Memphis. 734 00:43:29.760 --> 00:43:32.599 I doesn't feel like there's a strong outpouring of support there for Ford Field. 735 00:43:34.679 --> 00:43:37.960 No. I mean the numbers reflect that, and it's I think it 736 00:43:37.960 --> 00:43:43.000 was an average of seventy four hundred people or so when the four home games 737 00:43:43.000 --> 00:43:45.519 that they've had, and despite that, there's still three and one at home 738 00:43:45.719 --> 00:43:49.559 and not having a home field advantage, and they're a good team. And 739 00:43:49.599 --> 00:43:53.880 I kept saying, like, I've heard so many excuses about I know that 740 00:43:54.239 --> 00:44:00.360 the ticket sales came late, you know, understand that. Then people saying, 741 00:44:00.400 --> 00:44:01.760 well, there were three straight home games and we could you know, 742 00:44:02.119 --> 00:44:06.800 Well, to me, that was three straight opportunities for someone to attend one 743 00:44:06.840 --> 00:44:09.800 game. There was just so many excuses on why that is not working there. 744 00:44:10.119 --> 00:44:14.159 But I think you hit on one of the big, big reasons. 745 00:44:14.159 --> 00:44:17.159 It's not an excuse. It's because the Detroit Lions are very good and they're 746 00:44:17.400 --> 00:44:21.719 they're starting to really catch a fan base, and I don't know that the 747 00:44:21.880 --> 00:44:27.039 appetite is that big for another team in Detroit. That's why, you know, 748 00:44:27.199 --> 00:44:30.880 I did a YouTube video and caught some heat from some people and got 749 00:44:30.960 --> 00:44:35.400 some agreements from others about there is a problem in Michigan and it's with ford 750 00:44:35.440 --> 00:44:37.039 Field. And there are a lot of people that said, we can keep 751 00:44:37.079 --> 00:44:40.800 the Michigan name, but you got to move this team somewhere else because you 752 00:44:40.800 --> 00:44:45.639 know, I what again, that's to me throwing good money after bad is 753 00:44:45.800 --> 00:44:50.199 if you are trying to get this lease on ford Field and you keep seeing 754 00:44:50.239 --> 00:44:53.440 the attendance drop, you know in what was it sixty five thousand seat stadium 755 00:44:53.519 --> 00:44:57.800 or whatever it is, it's getting out yea seventy four hundred people. It's 756 00:44:57.840 --> 00:45:00.159 just that this that doesn't make sense to me. And it's a good team. 757 00:45:00.199 --> 00:45:07.239 Obviously they're going to the USFL championship game. The yeah, the conference 758 00:45:07.280 --> 00:45:12.239 whatever like to me. And and part of it too is the way that 759 00:45:14.039 --> 00:45:16.480 this all goes back to how this league handles its media relationships right, And 760 00:45:16.960 --> 00:45:20.119 we've seen that. I don't know if you've tracked all of this, like 761 00:45:20.159 --> 00:45:23.679 the Birmingham there's like this, like the controversy with the Birmingham stuff and all 762 00:45:23.760 --> 00:45:29.440 that, but like the the league, in my opinion, doesn't always do 763 00:45:29.519 --> 00:45:31.679 the best right. Okay, we don't know how to work with the non 764 00:45:31.679 --> 00:45:35.960 traditional media, right, and thank god, and I this is no no 765 00:45:36.039 --> 00:45:38.519 personal complaints, but just like this is I've seen other podcasts and read other 766 00:45:38.559 --> 00:45:43.079 things, and like so we have a question about that. But then we're 767 00:45:43.119 --> 00:45:46.599 also not sexy enough nor doing enough to attract the big name media. And 768 00:45:46.599 --> 00:45:50.159 I think you see this in Detroit, right if I if I'm a writer 769 00:45:50.239 --> 00:45:52.519 in Detroit, and I know, like the Bill Shaves of the World and 770 00:45:52.599 --> 00:45:54.280 Tony, uh, what's his face with the he's been on the show? 771 00:45:54.320 --> 00:46:01.360 Sorry this last name, Tony Tony Paul over there, like you know they 772 00:46:01.440 --> 00:46:05.320 came with the first game there, Oh, this is a novelty, let's 773 00:46:05.320 --> 00:46:07.559 go check it out. Whatever, But like that wears off right, and 774 00:46:07.679 --> 00:46:12.880 like we're we have meal vouchers in Arlington for the media there, Like that 775 00:46:12.920 --> 00:46:15.079 doesn't help. I don't know how the Detroit you know, I don't have 776 00:46:15.079 --> 00:46:16.760 someone sitting in the Detroit press box every week to ask him about that. 777 00:46:16.800 --> 00:46:22.760 But like you so you don't want to deal with the non traditional media, 778 00:46:22.800 --> 00:46:24.559 but then the traditional media think you're too small time, right, Like I'm 779 00:46:24.719 --> 00:46:29.360 I'm not coming to season two, week seven of you know, the Michigan 780 00:46:29.360 --> 00:46:31.119 Panthers. So then yeah, I don't know how you continue to grow in 781 00:46:31.199 --> 00:46:35.119 that market. Memphisis is a little bit better because it's not as big, 782 00:46:35.239 --> 00:46:37.159 right, Michigan's got a lot of other sports stuff going on, like you 783 00:46:37.159 --> 00:46:39.880 said with you with the Lions, and they've been having the draft stuff. 784 00:46:39.920 --> 00:46:43.639 I mean even though the draft was ever, I mean that was a month 785 00:46:43.679 --> 00:46:45.639 going into that was all that, hey, we're covering you know, this 786 00:46:45.719 --> 00:46:46.880 is gonna be set up for this. We're doing that. Like, I 787 00:46:46.920 --> 00:46:52.400 don't that's an issue to me some of these markets where like we don't like 788 00:46:52.480 --> 00:46:54.320 what is the game plan in Michigan, Like, I don't know how you 789 00:46:54.360 --> 00:46:59.519 do build that out because you don't have anybody there thoroughly covering the league I 790 00:46:59.519 --> 00:47:04.519 think and into indling numbers that kind of traditional media are. I just don't 791 00:47:04.559 --> 00:47:08.280 know who's covering that league there anymore. And read as you know, when 792 00:47:08.280 --> 00:47:13.440 you work in local television, which is you know, even even as local 793 00:47:13.480 --> 00:47:16.159 television is you know, it's not what it once was, but it's still 794 00:47:16.679 --> 00:47:21.800 you know, a big it's still a big avenue to get the word out 795 00:47:21.840 --> 00:47:24.840 and a lot of people still consume you know, local TV news. But 796 00:47:25.320 --> 00:47:30.440 when you start, you know, especially a market like Detroit, and especially 797 00:47:30.480 --> 00:47:34.400 in the environment that news is now, you don't have the manpower you used 798 00:47:34.440 --> 00:47:37.519 to have. So if someone's gonna decide, well, are we gonna cover 799 00:47:37.639 --> 00:47:43.760 A or we can cover B, and B ends up being the Michigan Panthers 800 00:47:43.760 --> 00:47:47.559 and A ends up being something that is of more local interest or something bigger. 801 00:47:47.559 --> 00:47:52.199 They're gonna choose. They're always gonna choose A. And you know, 802 00:47:52.320 --> 00:47:55.360 I feel for the for some of the you know, I guess you know, 803 00:47:55.599 --> 00:47:59.840 sports information directors, some of the you know, the guys who are 804 00:48:00.119 --> 00:48:02.360 you know, behind the scenes of PR guys for these teams, because what's 805 00:48:02.400 --> 00:48:06.800 the answer. It's like you're trying to appeal you know, to a to 806 00:48:06.960 --> 00:48:13.760 these you know, traditional media. But the problem is you got to wonder 807 00:48:14.119 --> 00:48:16.519 is it from on high or are these people sitting in their own fiefdoms of 808 00:48:16.559 --> 00:48:20.599 the of PR saying well, we're not going to deal with John and we're 809 00:48:20.599 --> 00:48:22.920 not going to deal with read because you know we we don't ever see their 810 00:48:22.960 --> 00:48:25.960 stuff. We're trying to, you know, get the attention of the local 811 00:48:27.000 --> 00:48:30.920 market. There's a happy medium in there somewhere. I just don't know what 812 00:48:30.000 --> 00:48:34.920 it is yeah. I mean I just searched at Michigan Panthers. Here in 813 00:48:35.000 --> 00:48:37.679 news, I mean, you have a you have a Detroit News article from 814 00:48:37.800 --> 00:48:40.599 yesterday, a Detroit Free Press article from two days ago, and then there's 815 00:48:40.639 --> 00:48:45.519 like a million sporty news, sporty news, sporty like whatever this website is, 816 00:48:45.559 --> 00:48:49.400 and then the Detroit Free Press article from a month ago. So it's 817 00:48:49.440 --> 00:48:52.800 not like, you know, and we tell you it's another conversation too about 818 00:48:52.840 --> 00:48:58.079 the offseason, like how this the UFL handle you know, during the week 819 00:48:58.159 --> 00:49:00.159 kind of stuff and getting information out there when it's not game day and how 820 00:49:00.159 --> 00:49:02.639 do we deal with off season and kind of getting the news out. But 821 00:49:04.119 --> 00:49:07.440 I certainly wouldn't say that there is a you know it overwhelming amount. I 822 00:49:07.440 --> 00:49:09.920 don't know, to me, Michigan if it wasn't such a nostalgic brand. 823 00:49:09.960 --> 00:49:13.679 But I don't think you can. You can get tied up. And I 824 00:49:13.679 --> 00:49:16.000 mean to me that that's on the chopping block as well. I think it 825 00:49:16.079 --> 00:49:19.280 is just because of Ford Field, if nothing else. I mean, I 826 00:49:19.480 --> 00:49:22.599 don't know if there's another venue in Detroit that would work, or if you 827 00:49:22.639 --> 00:49:24.440 are going to have to move that team. But you're right, it's and 828 00:49:24.519 --> 00:49:29.400 it's sad because you know they can they could pull it. But then again, 829 00:49:29.719 --> 00:49:32.840 the Pittsburgh Ballers, you know, they they they were successful team and 830 00:49:32.880 --> 00:49:36.679 then you know they got the plug pulled on them because but they weren't really 831 00:49:36.719 --> 00:49:38.960 in Pittsburgh or ever played there. But you know, there you have you 832 00:49:39.039 --> 00:49:43.800 have to weigh is it worth you know, what we're putting into it. 833 00:49:43.840 --> 00:49:45.599 And I think when you start to look at Michigan, even though they're a 834 00:49:45.599 --> 00:49:50.400 good team, UFL has to say, like this is just not working, 835 00:49:50.639 --> 00:49:53.559 you know, as a whole last one here and then we'll do a little 836 00:49:53.880 --> 00:49:59.320 expansion. Tyme Ballahawks obviously untouchable with that. I mean, there's no point 837 00:49:59.320 --> 00:50:01.440 even having to about that. Uh. The problems are a tough one because 838 00:50:01.440 --> 00:50:05.239 the prom is having. You know, we're good in the AAF with the 839 00:50:05.239 --> 00:50:08.239 commanders and everything else. Have never really hit those marks. Uh, have 840 00:50:08.360 --> 00:50:13.159 done respectable. I know the Easter weekend right the first game was like fourteen 841 00:50:13.199 --> 00:50:15.239 thousand, and they've gone down from that. But like that's about kind of 842 00:50:15.239 --> 00:50:19.280 you know what Birmingham drew. Uh, what are your thoughts because to me, 843 00:50:19.320 --> 00:50:22.119 Birmingham's kind of a kind of a bubble one. Uh, yeah, 844 00:50:22.159 --> 00:50:25.360 I think it with you San Antonio. Yeah, I think if if there's 845 00:50:25.400 --> 00:50:30.159 a I don't know what the least agreement is there for them, So I 846 00:50:30.159 --> 00:50:32.440 don't know what you know, what they're pouring into U as far as their 847 00:50:32.440 --> 00:50:35.880 stadium, but I think you know, when you start to get you know, 848 00:50:36.199 --> 00:50:39.559 the numbers that they've gotten, Yeah, you know, a bubble team. 849 00:50:39.599 --> 00:50:42.679 I think that is a good way to put it. But again, 850 00:50:42.800 --> 00:50:45.519 if you're going to move them, you know, or you're going to do 851 00:50:45.679 --> 00:50:47.719 are you going to move venues or whatever? You need an upgrade? And 852 00:50:47.800 --> 00:50:51.880 I don't know, you know what the answer really is for San Antonio there? 853 00:50:51.960 --> 00:50:54.079 Do they you know, do they especially if they want to continue to 854 00:50:54.159 --> 00:50:58.719 keep the Texas thing going? But yeah, didn't the I think the San 855 00:50:58.760 --> 00:51:02.119 Antonio Commanders average like nineteen or twenty thousand fans for the brief time that they 856 00:51:02.119 --> 00:51:06.400 were there, and I think they it feels to me like you're right, 857 00:51:06.440 --> 00:51:09.199 they were. That community was so burnt and it actually has a really good, 858 00:51:09.559 --> 00:51:13.239 you know, alt football history. But I think they were so burnt 859 00:51:13.280 --> 00:51:15.840 that you know, even Wade Phillips might not be able to win them over 860 00:51:15.880 --> 00:51:20.920 here as it goes along. Yeah, so back this was Easter weekend, 861 00:51:20.920 --> 00:51:23.039 the first week in that Sunday game, you know, thirteen thousand for the 862 00:51:23.079 --> 00:51:27.559 sent for Easter Sunday, and you know, we had all the with the 863 00:51:27.559 --> 00:51:30.039 brit And I understand the market sizes are different. I understand that San Antonio 864 00:51:30.079 --> 00:51:34.199 has more people than Birmingham, But like you know, we're just talking about 865 00:51:34.239 --> 00:51:37.519 and again it's not always apples to apples because I get all these cool how 866 00:51:37.519 --> 00:51:39.920 come we so hard on Birmingham and you're not so hard on it because Birmingham 867 00:51:39.960 --> 00:51:43.440 has been there for three years and they played like seventy games in the city 868 00:51:43.480 --> 00:51:45.079 and the people should know what that's going on there, like because even non 869 00:51:45.119 --> 00:51:47.519 Birmingham, Like if you think about that, like you know, you had 870 00:51:47.599 --> 00:51:52.159 forty UFL games season one, and then you had another quarter of the games, 871 00:51:52.400 --> 00:51:55.079 uh, you know, and then what another How are you I can't 872 00:51:55.119 --> 00:51:59.880 remember the schedule break down how many Protector but you've had probably sixty five you 873 00:52:00.239 --> 00:52:04.239 USFL UFL games played at Protective Stadium over the last three years. Like, 874 00:52:04.639 --> 00:52:07.199 visibility is not an issue there is. It's fan interest in that product. 875 00:52:07.639 --> 00:52:13.400 Yeah, and the Stallions are a known brand there with San Antonio. You 876 00:52:13.400 --> 00:52:15.800 know you sometimes in these markets too, as you know, working in you've 877 00:52:15.800 --> 00:52:19.920 worked in local television. You've got to have an advocate inside some of these 878 00:52:19.960 --> 00:52:23.480 stations. If it's if you unless you're Saint Louis, because you know that 879 00:52:24.000 --> 00:52:28.159 they've got really good relationship with the media there in Saint Louis, because Saint 880 00:52:28.159 --> 00:52:31.440 Louis television and you know, newspaper, radio, whatever. Understand that people 881 00:52:31.519 --> 00:52:35.920 are interested in the Battle Hawks. That's not you know, there's there are 882 00:52:35.960 --> 00:52:39.400 small groups that are interested in all these all these cities, but not maybe 883 00:52:39.440 --> 00:52:43.280 overall. And I think that's what you really got to work on, is 884 00:52:43.320 --> 00:52:46.360 the marketing and some of the media relationships. But yeah, I mean yeah, 885 00:52:46.400 --> 00:52:50.239 I mean it's you know, you could look at the attendance, you 886 00:52:50.280 --> 00:52:52.440 know, with these New York Guardians and it didn't you know, you're in 887 00:52:52.440 --> 00:52:55.840 the biggest city, but it didn't really work out. So they're yeah, 888 00:52:55.960 --> 00:53:00.920 you still you're looking at numbers of people who are coming to these games. 889 00:53:00.920 --> 00:53:05.400 It doesn't matter how big the community is, uh, just to you know, 890 00:53:05.519 --> 00:53:07.679 to make sure that I'm fair on all this, I I'll put I'll 891 00:53:07.719 --> 00:53:10.800 cut San Antonio. I say they're on the chopping block. You've had two 892 00:53:10.840 --> 00:53:15.119 seasons there to figure it out. You're not up to the standards anymore. 893 00:53:15.639 --> 00:53:17.599 W Scott Bailey's of the world trying to advocate for you, but it's not 894 00:53:17.639 --> 00:53:21.880 working out. I put them on that. So what I got, I 895 00:53:21.920 --> 00:53:24.199 got. I'm cutting Houston, I'm cutting I'm cutting the whole. Yes, 896 00:53:24.639 --> 00:53:28.679 I think. I don't know. I think everything except Birmingham, I mean 897 00:53:29.280 --> 00:53:32.639 Birmingham Saint Louis Is. I really would. I I appreciated Todd Murco's interview 898 00:53:32.719 --> 00:53:37.280 last week on here. Yeah, it was good. There really can't be 899 00:53:37.599 --> 00:53:42.840 To me, there can't be that many untouchables besides what's to call it Birmingham, 900 00:53:43.440 --> 00:53:46.360 Saint Louis and d C at the end of the day, I would 901 00:53:46.679 --> 00:53:51.039 absolutely, I'll totally agree with that. I think if you've got some bubble 902 00:53:51.079 --> 00:53:55.119 teams like San Antonio, I think you give them another year. Houston pulled 903 00:53:55.159 --> 00:53:59.840 the plug. You're not You're not losing anything there. There's there's sadly, 904 00:54:00.000 --> 00:54:02.920 there's just no value there. And you know, to me, with the 905 00:54:02.960 --> 00:54:07.559 Panthers, that's got to be relocated or something. I don't think you can 906 00:54:07.719 --> 00:54:12.440 continue to trend the way they're trending and be and stay in there all right, 907 00:54:12.480 --> 00:54:14.679 So now let's talk real location here a little bit. We'll try to 908 00:54:14.679 --> 00:54:16.800 get this going along. I hope John Liss is like, how long am 909 00:54:16.840 --> 00:54:22.679 I am? I this? I'm pulling up here because I want to get 910 00:54:22.559 --> 00:54:24.800 it just a map of all this to kind of show because this is where 911 00:54:25.280 --> 00:54:28.760 let's see. Okay, Reddit, Reddit made this one. Okay, this 912 00:54:28.920 --> 00:54:31.559 is good. So now what do we do with these teams? Because I 913 00:54:31.599 --> 00:54:37.039 think we need to get some West coast representation on this. It kills me 914 00:54:37.320 --> 00:54:39.719 and this I wanted to find the officual but this, this, this demonstrates 915 00:54:39.719 --> 00:54:43.760 clearly here where like when they show this map of like where are you cheering 916 00:54:43.760 --> 00:54:47.599 the UFL from? And it's you know, we're showing like the area here. 917 00:54:47.960 --> 00:54:52.840 So what what do we do here? I have some trademarks to the 918 00:54:52.920 --> 00:54:57.519 USFL has, right, We've got like the you know, like the Austin 919 00:54:57.559 --> 00:55:00.840 Gamblers. We got a lot of Austin, we got the av Thea's got 920 00:55:00.880 --> 00:55:02.519 a lot of Baltimore. Steven here where do you want to see him go 921 00:55:02.559 --> 00:55:06.800 here? I mean I think you got to take advantage of Oakland somehow. 922 00:55:06.840 --> 00:55:08.159 I don't like I don't know how you how you do that, but to 923 00:55:08.199 --> 00:55:10.360 me, that would be a no brainer. Try to hop in there. 924 00:55:10.559 --> 00:55:14.440 The San Diego of it all, you got to get somewhere in California. 925 00:55:14.519 --> 00:55:15.880 I think you have to get somewhere in California, and you've got to get 926 00:55:15.880 --> 00:55:19.519 somewhere in the northeast. I think some people have tried to push like, 927 00:55:19.960 --> 00:55:22.320 well, you've got d C. I don't really count. I mean, 928 00:55:22.440 --> 00:55:27.079 DC's not really that northeast. I think you have to get something up there, 929 00:55:28.679 --> 00:55:30.679 and and there's a and you have to have a West Coast president. 930 00:55:30.760 --> 00:55:36.400 You've got you've got the your Middle America there, you've got your all your 931 00:55:36.400 --> 00:55:39.519 Central Time people. But you've got to get somebody. I agree. Like, 932 00:55:39.760 --> 00:55:43.880 to me, San Diego is a no brainer. Now again, there's 933 00:55:43.920 --> 00:55:45.920 so many things about trying to place a team in California. I think a 934 00:55:45.920 --> 00:55:49.440 lot of owners would tell you that that there are a lot of issues. 935 00:55:49.679 --> 00:55:52.480 But Oakland, you know, let's bring back the Invaders, let's go or 936 00:55:52.960 --> 00:55:58.719 San Diego, either one that makes sense. Portland would make sense to me. 937 00:55:59.559 --> 00:56:01.719 Uh, but if you're going to add two teams, I'm with you. 938 00:56:01.760 --> 00:56:06.039 I think you have to add a team in the northeast and a team 939 00:56:06.239 --> 00:56:10.119 out west somewhere in the Pacific time zone. Yeah, so you have the 940 00:56:10.119 --> 00:56:15.679 Oakland Invaders here and not all. If you go through kind of the trademark 941 00:56:15.719 --> 00:56:17.360 listing in here, I kind of put I put a little bit more stock. 942 00:56:17.400 --> 00:56:22.320 We're the ones where they've registered multiple categories for these, right, So 943 00:56:22.400 --> 00:56:24.039 if you're looking at the Oakland and again this is easy to do, but 944 00:56:24.119 --> 00:56:27.559 just in terms of things that they've gone through the work to kind of do 945 00:56:27.599 --> 00:56:29.960 here, a lot a lot of work with Ohio, right, and Mike 946 00:56:30.000 --> 00:56:31.639 Mitchell was talking about that then that was going to be one of the teams 947 00:56:31.639 --> 00:56:35.719 O Canton. I think I would just call it Ohio. I don't think 948 00:56:35.719 --> 00:56:38.559 you need to call it Canton. Oakland Invaders here, heavy marks on that. 949 00:56:38.760 --> 00:56:42.800 I've got the Oklahoma Outlaws here, a lot of heavy marks on that. 950 00:56:43.320 --> 00:56:45.039 Uh. And then you go down through the line here obviously we've got 951 00:56:45.079 --> 00:56:50.199 the Stars and the Malllers teams that are involved in that, you know, 952 00:56:51.519 --> 00:56:53.280 because yeah, this is kind this is when I was kind of losing track 953 00:56:53.360 --> 00:56:57.360 to kind of going through time here. You're trying to get on that bucks 954 00:56:57.559 --> 00:57:00.000 like, I wonder all this is going on, But I don't know. 955 00:57:00.119 --> 00:57:07.159 To me, I go through the Tom murcos of it where and you said 956 00:57:07.199 --> 00:57:08.880 earlier with the Houston, like you know you move Houston. Yeah, are 957 00:57:08.880 --> 00:57:13.639 there going to be some upset fans. I think I think you need to 958 00:57:13.639 --> 00:57:19.840 prioritize being in in in a market. And I think if TV is important 959 00:57:19.840 --> 00:57:22.280 as it is, you know, no disrespect to Birmingham, not the biggest 960 00:57:22.320 --> 00:57:24.840 TV market in the world, no respect to Memphis. Like I would almost 961 00:57:24.840 --> 00:57:29.880 stay in Michigan just because of you're in Michigan, like if if nothing else, 962 00:57:29.920 --> 00:57:32.199 like because it's a bigger market in terms of that, Like I know 963 00:57:32.280 --> 00:57:36.199 Houston's high up there as well, but like you said, dumping money in 964 00:57:36.239 --> 00:57:38.639 there, that would be where I would prioritize it. Thoughts on that, 965 00:57:39.559 --> 00:57:44.039 Yeah, no, I agree, it's I do. I do like the 966 00:57:44.079 --> 00:57:46.360 idea of Ohio and in the whole Canton area that I mean, I went 967 00:57:46.400 --> 00:57:50.320 up there last summer. It was really fun. But yeah, I think 968 00:57:50.360 --> 00:57:54.159 there's if you if you have a team in the West and you've got a 969 00:57:54.199 --> 00:58:00.320 team in the Northeast, it just kind of feels like it balances every thing 970 00:58:00.360 --> 00:58:04.760 out and with you know, the in Ohio, I mean, it'll be 971 00:58:04.800 --> 00:58:07.000 another Midwest team. You know, I guess you know that could work. 972 00:58:08.280 --> 00:58:10.920 But yeah, you've got to color this map in some more. I mean 973 00:58:10.920 --> 00:58:15.920 this is uh, this looks like Mondale versus Reagan here back in the day. 974 00:58:16.360 --> 00:58:21.559 This is find around So Arizona Outlaws, you've got we got a lot 975 00:58:21.559 --> 00:58:22.920 of Arizona on here. You know, a couple of different marks for that. 976 00:58:23.599 --> 00:58:28.400 Uh many many Austin. I don't I think if you can't make it 977 00:58:28.480 --> 00:58:30.880 American Houston, if you're gonna make it work in Austin, I don't know 978 00:58:30.920 --> 00:58:34.559 if the population and everything's there for that. Uh, the Baltimore is of 979 00:58:34.639 --> 00:58:37.639 it? You do you like the Baltimore Stars at the Stars? No, 980 00:58:37.440 --> 00:58:39.440 I mean you've got d C there. It does that to me. It 981 00:58:39.480 --> 00:58:44.920 doesn't make sense to put to you a small two two teams that close together 982 00:58:44.960 --> 00:58:46.800 in such a small league. That does that to me, that doesn't make 983 00:58:46.840 --> 00:58:53.079 sense. Boston Breakers, there's your Northeast presence. I could see that just 984 00:58:53.119 --> 00:58:59.320 going through Canton on that here we got of Dallas Stallions. Uh, Denver 985 00:58:59.559 --> 00:59:08.079 is you bookmarkd this the Dallas Stallions the have of the UFL. Denver Gold 986 00:59:08.880 --> 00:59:12.079 always get a lot of you know, there was a camp Gold. I 987 00:59:12.079 --> 00:59:15.519 think that was rumly as well. But that would I would be that that 988 00:59:15.519 --> 00:59:17.920 would qualify for me, even though that's not quite filling out the mouth as 989 00:59:19.000 --> 00:59:22.960 much as I would like anything. And I know the sports doesn't exist for 990 00:59:23.000 --> 00:59:28.239 a large swath of this, but like, uh, I would be okay 991 00:59:28.280 --> 00:59:30.760 with Denver. What would you make of that? And you know, Denver 992 00:59:30.920 --> 00:59:34.000 was a pretty popular team back in the original USFL. Now that you know 993 00:59:34.079 --> 00:59:37.880 that was a long time ago when and lots of things have changed. I 994 00:59:37.880 --> 00:59:39.519 mean, the only concern is are you going to be playing, you know, 995 00:59:39.639 --> 00:59:43.480 in Denver in March or April? And that could you know, that 996 00:59:43.519 --> 00:59:45.360 could be a little tough. We've seen you know, you get snow outs 997 00:59:45.400 --> 00:59:50.480 out there sometimes in baseball, so you that could be that could be a 998 00:59:50.480 --> 00:59:54.119 little tough, and it'd be but you know, I think you know, 999 00:59:54.280 --> 00:59:59.039 Denver could be in on it, especially if you know, if that if 1000 00:59:59.239 --> 01:00:04.320 it could be another another city with a very bad NFL team that would maybe 1001 01:00:04.559 --> 01:00:07.599 say let's try this gold stuff for a little bit. Oh your national tutors 1002 01:00:07.599 --> 01:00:10.480 and this one had to come up here. Well, I just around out 1003 01:00:10.480 --> 01:00:14.239 the conversation and make sure we're touching all these, Like I said, you 1004 01:00:14.280 --> 01:00:15.960 gotta get you gotta get out of this portion of the map. But you 1005 01:00:16.360 --> 01:00:22.320 we gotta. It's hard, it's hard to feel like again, I've said 1006 01:00:22.320 --> 01:00:24.360 this a million times, you would never pick this at these You would never 1007 01:00:24.440 --> 01:00:28.519 settle a team on these, you know, a league in these markets under 1008 01:00:28.559 --> 01:00:30.639 any circumstances except the way that we are at right now. Well, but 1009 01:00:30.679 --> 01:00:35.400 wouldn't you feel like Nashville might be a home for relocation rather than expansion. 1010 01:00:37.519 --> 01:00:39.599 Yes, that would be fine. Yeah, but but but to me, 1011 01:00:39.639 --> 01:00:43.760 it's flip floppy one. It's that's deck chairs on the Titanic. At that 1012 01:00:43.760 --> 01:00:45.960 point you might make it might be right. I think you need to make 1013 01:00:46.000 --> 01:00:49.360 a move on that. And I think that's it. I was just trying 1014 01:00:49.400 --> 01:00:52.280 to make sure we had any other and again you can, you can get 1015 01:00:52.280 --> 01:00:54.039 a lot of these, but at least it just gives us a good jumping 1016 01:00:54.079 --> 01:00:58.920 off point for all of that. So, uh, I don't know final 1017 01:00:59.000 --> 01:01:01.719 thoughts rounding this out out here, I've been wiled me under into conversation. 1018 01:01:01.840 --> 01:01:05.599 Anything else you want to touch on. I know we came in with a 1019 01:01:05.719 --> 01:01:07.960 very structured idea of what we're going to talk about, but it tends to 1020 01:01:07.960 --> 01:01:10.159 happen. We talk about a lot of different things, which I enjoy. 1021 01:01:10.880 --> 01:01:15.960 No, I'm just I'm continuing to stay optimistic. And like I said before, 1022 01:01:16.440 --> 01:01:20.239 it was such a clunky rollout and there were so many red flags with 1023 01:01:20.280 --> 01:01:22.920 this league the way it rolled out. But then the more I continue to 1024 01:01:22.960 --> 01:01:25.440 think about it, and maybe I'm just getting soft, It's like, Okay, 1025 01:01:25.119 --> 01:01:30.599 they've got it. It's it's working TV wise. Let's hope that there 1026 01:01:30.639 --> 01:01:35.719 are. They're learning from their mistakes. They're starting to learn from what I 1027 01:01:35.760 --> 01:01:37.760 know you have heard a thousand times and I have too. You've got to 1028 01:01:37.800 --> 01:01:44.159 do better local marketing. Let people know these things are happening and start giving 1029 01:01:44.199 --> 01:01:45.679 away stuff. I mean, you know, come on, let's let's give 1030 01:01:45.719 --> 01:01:49.119 away some things and get some people in. That's what I'm hoping for. 1031 01:01:49.760 --> 01:01:52.760 Yeah, I've always said that they need to view I was like, oh, 1032 01:01:52.800 --> 01:01:54.039 my dog said, I thought, there's another creature on my deck. 1033 01:01:55.239 --> 01:02:01.000 You know they there needs to be I would say if I was involved in 1034 01:02:01.000 --> 01:02:04.559 the UFL, I would do a deep dive in the off season. How 1035 01:02:04.599 --> 01:02:07.599 does the CFL conduct it's marketing a in the off season? Because they the 1036 01:02:07.679 --> 01:02:12.239 CFL has an extended off season as well. I mean they really go dormant 1037 01:02:12.280 --> 01:02:14.719 for a lot of it, and then how do they ramp up and how 1038 01:02:14.719 --> 01:02:16.440 do they work with the communities. That's why I thought Todd was great last 1039 01:02:16.480 --> 01:02:21.400 week because you're any you're selling, you're selling tickets for to me, and 1040 01:02:21.440 --> 01:02:23.800 I know there's vast differences and like I had Sam Schwartzeen texting me like that 1041 01:02:24.079 --> 01:02:28.679 in a football is nothing like that. I'm like, it's it's worth selling 1042 01:02:28.719 --> 01:02:30.519 football content here, like it's you know, you're trying to get butts in 1043 01:02:30.559 --> 01:02:34.000 seed to the end of the day, you're trying to market a niche product. 1044 01:02:34.079 --> 01:02:36.000 Like I think there's a lot but but yeah, if I was with 1045 01:02:36.039 --> 01:02:38.159 the UFL, I would do a deep dive into some of these CFL franchises 1046 01:02:38.199 --> 01:02:40.679 figure out how do you stay relevant in the off season, how do you 1047 01:02:40.719 --> 01:02:44.559 market, how do you bring players? And I know the teams are doing 1048 01:02:44.559 --> 01:02:46.199 more. I get the pressure releases they're trying. It seems like they're not 1049 01:02:46.239 --> 01:02:50.000 coming in just an hour before the game. They're trying to come in the 1050 01:02:50.079 --> 01:02:52.519 day before the morning off and try to do some more stuff. But my 1051 01:02:52.679 --> 01:02:57.320 fear is, you know, June seventeenth, or whatever. This shuts off 1052 01:02:57.519 --> 01:03:00.000 and then we come back in December again, And that's kind of the big 1053 01:03:00.159 --> 01:03:02.679 spirit because then I think you're rolling the same same plan out next year and 1054 01:03:02.719 --> 01:03:06.599 it doesn't seem Mike it's gonna change. No, and that that that that's 1055 01:03:06.639 --> 01:03:08.159 not gonna work, that's not sustainable. Yeah, you've got to you gotta 1056 01:03:08.199 --> 01:03:12.960 sell an experience too. I just I remember listening to a podcast of a 1057 01:03:13.320 --> 01:03:16.840 guy who was the general manager of UH at the time of WUSA, which 1058 01:03:16.920 --> 01:03:22.239 later became the NWSL roundabout. But he said, you know, you can 1059 01:03:22.280 --> 01:03:24.199 say, yeah, these are the greatest. You know, this is the 1060 01:03:24.320 --> 01:03:29.239 highest level of soccer, of women's soccer, and you know, no, 1061 01:03:29.280 --> 01:03:31.920 but people don't care you can say it. You've got to sell an experience. 1062 01:03:31.960 --> 01:03:36.079 You have to give people an opportunity to come to the game, a 1063 01:03:36.119 --> 01:03:38.320 reason to come to the game. Uh you know, whether it's you know, 1064 01:03:38.360 --> 01:03:43.079 some pregame stuff, halftime stuff, postgame stuff, and then when they 1065 01:03:43.119 --> 01:03:45.880 take in the product on the field, they say, oh, that's interesting 1066 01:03:45.920 --> 01:03:49.199 too, that was fun. This was a whole fun experience. So I'm 1067 01:03:49.199 --> 01:03:52.079 gonna come back and I hope that we see a little bit more of that. 1068 01:03:52.519 --> 01:03:54.280 UH as we go along. I you know, in Saint Louis, 1069 01:03:54.320 --> 01:03:58.679 I was there. There was a little bit of pregame stuff. It wasn't 1070 01:03:58.719 --> 01:04:01.360 as big as it was the year before were and there was really nothing happening 1071 01:04:01.400 --> 01:04:04.360 after the game, but they're the games the thing. There was a lot 1072 01:04:04.360 --> 01:04:08.760 of tailgating going on that was a lot of fun, and I'm gonna be 1073 01:04:08.760 --> 01:04:11.920 interested. I'm I'm planning to hit down to Birmingham for the season finale, 1074 01:04:12.320 --> 01:04:14.880 so I kind of want to see, like what, you know, is 1075 01:04:14.920 --> 01:04:18.400 there a better experience than what I had before as far as outside the arena. 1076 01:04:18.440 --> 01:04:21.280 So it's gonna it'll be fun. Yeah, I've always said, and 1077 01:04:21.280 --> 01:04:25.440 I got a lot of flak even going into the XFL last season from people 1078 01:04:25.480 --> 01:04:28.920 with the league, and like I it's never been a question of like the 1079 01:04:28.920 --> 01:04:31.840 football on the field and the and the minds behind the football product of it 1080 01:04:31.920 --> 01:04:34.760 at all. And I mean even we want to pooh poo on Curtis Johnson 1081 01:04:34.800 --> 01:04:39.519 and Bob Stoops and stuff like overall, and the quality football is I believe 1082 01:04:39.519 --> 01:04:42.760 the highest quality of spring that we've had since you know, the USFL back 1083 01:04:42.800 --> 01:04:45.840 in the eighties, and like that that's not that's not the issue. It's 1084 01:04:45.880 --> 01:04:47.159 never been the issue. It's kind of all of this other stuff. And 1085 01:04:48.199 --> 01:04:53.639 I use my own as as a videographer like I am not at all like 1086 01:04:53.960 --> 01:04:56.960 the best videographer in the world, right, like in terms of you know, 1087 01:04:57.360 --> 01:05:00.000 vision or talent or whatever. But like I I do a really good 1088 01:05:00.079 --> 01:05:03.519 job like wrapping what I do into a tangible thing that I think are pretty 1089 01:05:03.519 --> 01:05:06.119 good at marketing it. I think are pretty visible about it. I think 1090 01:05:06.199 --> 01:05:10.480 the customer service aspect of it is pretty good. I mean, we we 1091 01:05:10.599 --> 01:05:15.000 just got back from Vegas this huge conference that it wasn't even my client, 1092 01:05:15.000 --> 01:05:18.639 it was what my you know whatever colleagues clients, and I'm like, there's 1093 01:05:18.679 --> 01:05:23.519 nothing that we do. It's like a thousand other people could come do this, 1094 01:05:23.679 --> 01:05:27.000 right, the quality of what like, But it's everything else that's involved 1095 01:05:27.000 --> 01:05:29.679 in that. And it's you know, you're responsive and we show up and 1096 01:05:29.679 --> 01:05:33.920 you look professional and you you market and you're in these places like the quality 1097 01:05:33.920 --> 01:05:36.440 of the football isn't the issue here, but that's also yeah, not people 1098 01:05:36.480 --> 01:05:41.119 are not. That doesn't when you're flipping through your guide on the you know, 1099 01:05:41.159 --> 01:05:44.960 Saturday morning, it doesn't say ufl like the best spring football that's ever 1100 01:05:45.000 --> 01:05:46.920 existed, Like you need to know everything else about it. It doesn't matter 1101 01:05:47.000 --> 01:05:50.039 what's on the field that people aren't turning on the TV, which I wish 1102 01:05:50.079 --> 01:05:54.159 they would bring back the United by Football or some kind of pregame show for 1103 01:05:54.199 --> 01:05:57.199 these things to tell those stories. Because there's a thousand great stories in this 1104 01:05:57.320 --> 01:06:00.880 league. Well I think yeah, I mean you can even do that through 1105 01:06:00.920 --> 01:06:05.639 podcasting right now for free. But they what an idea? Read what a 1106 01:06:05.679 --> 01:06:09.559 great idea. Just make some guys available and we'll talk to them about their 1107 01:06:09.559 --> 01:06:12.559 story. I've given them up. It's been so busy, but I've really 1108 01:06:12.599 --> 01:06:15.239 just kind of give him up sending my money emails. So, John Lewis, 1109 01:06:15.719 --> 01:06:21.159 if you want shorter, little more detail, shorter conversation, John Lewis's 1110 01:06:21.280 --> 01:06:24.719 channel is probably the way to go. If you want long me entering, 1111 01:06:24.840 --> 01:06:27.639 rambling thoughts, this is probably the place to go, John. Anything else 1112 01:06:27.639 --> 01:06:30.559 you're working on, no, just you know, I try to do that 1113 01:06:30.599 --> 01:06:33.079 about it about a video a week or so, just try to talk about 1114 01:06:33.119 --> 01:06:36.119 the league and some stories and things like that. So, but I appreciate 1115 01:06:36.119 --> 01:06:39.880 you having me on. It's it's always fun to be on here. And 1116 01:06:40.079 --> 01:06:43.199 yes, a lot of My videos are usually less than twenty minutes. Sometimes 1117 01:06:43.239 --> 01:06:45.320 they're about five to ten, So it's fun to talk over an hour about 1118 01:06:45.320 --> 01:06:48.559 some UFL. I appreciate it. Yeah, I'm about out the game. 1119 01:06:48.639 --> 01:06:53.360 I'm just gonna start uploading the games to YouTube and just call it a day. 1120 01:06:53.360 --> 01:06:56.280 I think I'm getting out of this, but I appreciate you guys comment, 1121 01:06:56.360 --> 01:06:58.519 you know, anything you have any thoughts on this, anythink we've talked 1122 01:06:58.519 --> 01:07:00.760 about. Like I said, you know, a little more vulation today, 1123 01:07:00.800 --> 01:07:02.760 but always find wanted to touch on that. So I'll appreciate it. And 1124 01:07:03.199 --> 01:07:06.199 thy we got some CFL content, hopefully finger scratched. You are coming up 1125 01:07:06.239 --> 01:07:15.440 after the break. Well, I haven't seen this great face since I think 1126 01:07:15.480 --> 01:07:19.239 our CFL Great Cup show in where the heck were we hammeled him back inhaml 1127 01:07:20.400 --> 01:07:24.079 Dan Ralph Canadian Press here, Dan, how are you doing? It's almost 1128 01:07:24.159 --> 01:07:28.320 June, It's can't and it can't come too soon? Thank you? Always 1129 01:07:28.320 --> 01:07:31.440 great to catch up. Do you mean in terms of excitement for football or 1130 01:07:31.519 --> 01:07:36.000 in terms of weather? In terms of both both, you know, I 1131 01:07:36.000 --> 01:07:40.960 mean we can't complain about the winter we had. We had very little snow 1132 01:07:41.039 --> 01:07:47.280 by southern Ontario. Proportions. But yeah, I can't want Summer's always summer 1133 01:07:47.280 --> 01:07:50.320 and full or my two favorite times a year. So bring it on. 1134 01:07:50.480 --> 01:07:54.559 Let's go. Well, we're getting in and we'll talk, you know, 1135 01:07:54.599 --> 01:07:57.400 the chat colls of it all here and everything else, Argos and I want 1136 01:07:57.440 --> 01:08:00.800 to talk maybe a little Edmonton, but this Sean Lemon thing. And then 1137 01:08:00.840 --> 01:08:02.320 we were tracking that, you know, last week coming out and then the 1138 01:08:02.360 --> 01:08:06.239 news that you know, he's a training camp and the cflp CA all that 1139 01:08:06.519 --> 01:08:10.480 walk us through that because this took a lot of us here in the States 1140 01:08:10.480 --> 01:08:14.880 side kind of by surprise, well us too, excuse me, only because 1141 01:08:15.519 --> 01:08:20.439 he retired. Then came the league you know, discipline, and then they 1142 01:08:20.479 --> 01:08:24.920 made it sound like it was pretty it was pretty emphatic, you know. 1143 01:08:26.760 --> 01:08:30.600 But then, as is the case with any suspension, the player can appeal 1144 01:08:30.720 --> 01:08:36.000 and the the cflp A can can launch an appeal or a grievance on the 1145 01:08:36.000 --> 01:08:42.800 player's behalf, and while that process is is going through to fruition, the 1146 01:08:42.880 --> 01:08:47.239 player is allowed to resume practicing and ultimately playing with the team until an arbitrator 1147 01:08:47.279 --> 01:08:55.159 renders his decisions. So I thought when they the whole thing was kind of 1148 01:08:55.159 --> 01:08:59.159 bizarre. I mean, you re signed with the Yellows after the Great Cup, 1149 01:08:59.479 --> 01:09:04.399 then he hired, and then came the discipline, and then Tuesday, 1150 01:09:05.560 --> 01:09:11.920 Tuesday morning, he was a practice. And so I think, like I 1151 01:09:11.960 --> 01:09:15.640 said, where the PA is going to come from on this is he was 1152 01:09:15.880 --> 01:09:21.239 suspended for allegedly betting on CFL games in twenty twenty one when he was with 1153 01:09:21.399 --> 01:09:29.800 Calgary and on one occasion he also is allegedly to have wagered on games that 1154 01:09:29.840 --> 01:09:34.199 he was involved in. Sports bending didn't become legal in Ontario, and Ontario 1155 01:09:34.239 --> 01:09:41.319 is the only province in Canada until twenty twenty two, and so I think 1156 01:09:41.319 --> 01:09:44.960 where the PA is going to come from on this is, how can you 1157 01:09:45.199 --> 01:09:48.920 have a policy in place in twenty twenty one when it wasn't legal to bet 1158 01:09:49.000 --> 01:09:55.760 in Ontario, for example. So I don't know, we'll see where it 1159 01:09:55.800 --> 01:10:01.359 goes. I guess I shouldn't be so prized that he came back because it 1160 01:10:01.439 --> 01:10:05.000 was on again, off again. Now it's on again. But we'll see. 1161 01:10:05.039 --> 01:10:09.680 I mean, there doesn't seem to be any idea how long this could 1162 01:10:09.760 --> 01:10:14.039 take. And so you know, he'll get into maybe an exhibition game or 1163 01:10:14.039 --> 01:10:16.119 two, or maybe he'll start the season, We don't know. It just 1164 01:10:16.399 --> 01:10:19.000 surprises me because, like you said, I would just you thought he was 1165 01:10:19.039 --> 01:10:23.560 walking away, he was retiring here and you go out and with great coup 1166 01:10:23.640 --> 01:10:26.000 kind of all that stuff. I just don't understand here. And now to 1167 01:10:26.119 --> 01:10:29.600 be embroiled in all of this. I know he's a player that's been in 1168 01:10:29.640 --> 01:10:30.680 the league a long time, you know, because various players, you know, 1169 01:10:30.720 --> 01:10:33.520 you might go to the CFL and then whatever, I'm walking away, 1170 01:10:33.560 --> 01:10:36.279 But to someone to be in it so long and then, I mean, 1171 01:10:36.319 --> 01:10:40.079 does this mar his legacy? Now? We had Darryl Davis on a couple 1172 01:10:40.079 --> 01:10:42.640 of weeks ago when it kind of first came out, and you know, 1173 01:10:42.720 --> 01:10:45.239 he looked at it way less severe than maybe an Andrew Harris issue where you 1174 01:10:45.279 --> 01:10:47.600 know, you're you're cheating on the game, you know, and all that. 1175 01:10:47.640 --> 01:10:50.720 But just what does this do to kind of his legacy here? Because 1176 01:10:50.720 --> 01:10:54.720 it just seems kind of messy right now. Yeah, it seems messy. 1177 01:10:54.720 --> 01:10:58.159 I mean, I guess it all depends what the arbitrator decides, excuse me, 1178 01:10:58.199 --> 01:11:01.840 and what the arbitrator finds. If the arbitrator finds evidence that he did 1179 01:11:01.840 --> 01:11:09.239 do this and adheres to the suspension, or gives it let's say nine games 1180 01:11:09.239 --> 01:11:13.079 for arguments sake, then I think we can sort of say that it's a 1181 01:11:13.159 --> 01:11:17.319 Turners to bit. But right now, I don't think it has done anything, 1182 01:11:17.399 --> 01:11:21.680 only because we don't really know exactly. I mean, there's allegations of 1183 01:11:21.720 --> 01:11:26.439 what he did, but until the arbitrator does a deep dive and takes a 1184 01:11:26.479 --> 01:11:31.319 look and we find out exactly what he did, you know, what's it's 1185 01:11:31.600 --> 01:11:38.199 very very bizarre because sports betting and betting on your own game, I mean, 1186 01:11:38.239 --> 01:11:41.439 there's a whole integrity issue. I mean, we went through this years 1187 01:11:41.479 --> 01:11:45.479 and years and years ago with Pete Rose, right and and you know, 1188 01:11:45.680 --> 01:11:48.840 decades later, Pete Rose is still not in the Baseball Hall of Fame because 1189 01:11:48.880 --> 01:11:53.680 of it. So, I mean, it's a serious matter. I get 1190 01:11:53.720 --> 01:11:58.439 it, But it happened, you know, I don't know, Maybe we're 1191 01:11:58.560 --> 01:12:03.560 naive here because it's it's not like there's allegations that he threw a game, 1192 01:12:03.680 --> 01:12:09.960 or that he he he bet on his bet on himself, or or he 1193 01:12:10.680 --> 01:12:15.560 somehow intentionally marred the integrity of the game. We don't know that. And 1194 01:12:15.319 --> 01:12:19.960 and if the arbitrator comes through and says that the policy is not very strong 1195 01:12:20.039 --> 01:12:25.319 and that mister Lemon did not do anything unto work, then I think he 1196 01:12:25.680 --> 01:12:29.720 should be allowed to play based on that. Now, depending on what the 1197 01:12:29.800 --> 01:12:32.800 arbitrator finds. If the arbitrator finds something else more gammoning, then I guess 1198 01:12:32.800 --> 01:12:38.039 we have to revisit the subject at that time, because yeah, it's less 1199 01:12:38.039 --> 01:12:40.800 and there's a fire ambulance or something going by here. It's less. It's 1200 01:12:40.800 --> 01:12:44.079 severe than the trying the raptors right where the guy was betting on games and 1201 01:12:44.119 --> 01:12:46.720 the parlias and all that kind of stuff. And we'll get to the argos 1202 01:12:46.760 --> 01:12:50.479 here. I mean, this is this a Sean Lemon issue? Is this 1203 01:12:50.520 --> 01:12:54.199 an Alouette's thing at all? Because I know the argos a got their own 1204 01:12:54.199 --> 01:12:56.760 pr and kind of everything. But because obviously the Aulettes and they want to 1205 01:12:56.800 --> 01:12:59.479 focus of this the off season now to be hey, we're running the back 1206 01:12:59.520 --> 01:13:02.000 and kind of all all that stuff, Like is this affecting them kind of 1207 01:13:02.039 --> 01:13:04.680 what's the media landscape of that? Or it is just just a Sean Lemon 1208 01:13:04.720 --> 01:13:09.560 issue, you know what I'd be. I know yesterday it caused a bit 1209 01:13:09.600 --> 01:13:13.479 of a start training camp just because of the obvious. Right, you come 1210 01:13:13.520 --> 01:13:15.600 there and you see number zero on the field and you go, wait another 1211 01:13:15.680 --> 01:13:21.479 I thought it was suspended. Like I said, I can only speak for 1212 01:13:21.520 --> 01:13:26.720 me. I would look at let's wait and see what the arbitraritor finds out 1213 01:13:26.880 --> 01:13:30.560 and go from there. I like I said, I don't I don't partake 1214 01:13:30.640 --> 01:13:36.279 in sports betting, so I'm probably very naive. And in terms of asking 1215 01:13:36.920 --> 01:13:40.840 whether this is bigger or not, I mean I think it's a big deal. 1216 01:13:40.960 --> 01:13:44.520 I mean the integrity the game comes into play, definitely. But you 1217 01:13:44.520 --> 01:13:47.239 know, like I said, someone much more succinct than I is going to 1218 01:13:47.279 --> 01:13:51.920 take a deep dive into this and then hopefully those those findings come public and 1219 01:13:53.520 --> 01:13:56.399 you know, the d when the arbitraitor renders his decision one way or the 1220 01:13:56.439 --> 01:14:00.920 other, well we'll have a much clearer picture. Yeah. I I am 1221 01:14:00.920 --> 01:14:04.720 emotionally invested in that and all the sports stuff. I couldn't imagine that any 1222 01:14:04.760 --> 01:14:10.359 of this stuff that may be more upset. We were gonna do this last 1223 01:14:10.359 --> 01:14:13.319 week and then my work schedule and stuff, but now we got more with 1224 01:14:13.359 --> 01:14:16.479 this Chad Kelly issue and everything, like catch us up to speed here, 1225 01:14:16.520 --> 01:14:19.800 because it really sounds like a mass and just a lot of pr kind of 1226 01:14:19.880 --> 01:14:23.920 nightmare for the Argos and Chad and everything else. Yeah, it is. 1227 01:14:24.479 --> 01:14:29.600 There was a lot of fallout Thursday when you know, we showed up at 1228 01:14:30.319 --> 01:14:33.680 rookie camp. You were told that Mike Clemens was going to speak on the 1229 01:14:33.720 --> 01:14:40.319 suspension two days prior of Chad, and you know for the tender based violence 1230 01:14:40.399 --> 01:14:45.560 policy of violations, and so there there was I mean, by ourgo standard 1231 01:14:45.640 --> 01:14:49.600 are very good contingent of media there. And I got there a couple hours 1232 01:14:49.600 --> 01:14:56.840 early and during the workout and I wasn't even at the stadium ten seconds when 1233 01:14:56.840 --> 01:15:00.720 another reporter said, can you believe it? Leave what? And I took 1234 01:15:00.760 --> 01:15:05.319 a look on the field and It's like, holy smokes. Really Now, 1235 01:15:05.359 --> 01:15:11.279 I know, technically he was allowed to be on the field, and I 1236 01:15:11.399 --> 01:15:15.960 know he wasn't participating in practice, he wasn't practicing, he was he was 1237 01:15:16.039 --> 01:15:25.359 just on the field, But the pr ramifications of that just, I mean, 1238 01:15:25.399 --> 01:15:28.960 it just it was mind boggling. I just I don't know who thought 1239 01:15:29.039 --> 01:15:34.039 that that would be a good idea for the Argos, for Chad Kelly and 1240 01:15:34.119 --> 01:15:40.600 for the CFL in general, because I mean, we'll get into the reasons 1241 01:15:40.600 --> 01:15:44.520 why, but the reasons why are very very serious and very very significant. 1242 01:15:45.119 --> 01:15:48.119 And to have him on the field as if well, I don't want to 1243 01:15:48.159 --> 01:15:53.199 see nothing happen, but have him on the field, to me was was 1244 01:15:53.439 --> 01:15:57.439 very very It was a peer nightmare, and it created the follow up that 1245 01:15:57.479 --> 01:16:00.640 you would expect it to create, to the point where on Sunday when the 1246 01:16:00.720 --> 01:16:03.359 open camp, they had said they made it clear that Chad Kelly was not 1247 01:16:03.479 --> 01:16:10.159 going to be involved in team related activities and and to the best of my 1248 01:16:10.319 --> 01:16:15.880 knowledge, that remains the case moving forward. I've seen now like he's going 1249 01:16:15.920 --> 01:16:19.600 to be transferred to the suspended list or there's kind of stuff. He was 1250 01:16:19.640 --> 01:16:25.520 transferred this morning. But that's procedural too. I mean, anytime a player 1251 01:16:25.600 --> 01:16:30.279 is not with the team for team activities, a matter of procedure is to 1252 01:16:30.319 --> 01:16:33.520 put him on the suspended list. It's not I mean, if you look 1253 01:16:33.560 --> 01:16:35.880 at it the first time, you might look and go, oh my gosh, 1254 01:16:35.960 --> 01:16:42.039 the Argos have suspended Chad Kelly. Well not not really, They've They've 1255 01:16:42.079 --> 01:16:46.359 done a procedural moved to put him on the suspended list. I wanted to 1256 01:16:46.359 --> 01:16:49.920 talk about this twofold from the football side as well, but just from kind 1257 01:16:49.920 --> 01:16:55.239 of you know, the argos and we we've you know, chronicled this for 1258 01:16:55.279 --> 01:16:57.159 a long time on the show, and I mean, you know, even 1259 01:16:57.159 --> 01:16:59.560 longer than that, but you know, with the media there, with you 1260 01:16:59.600 --> 01:17:01.479 know, getting foothold on all of this, and here we're finally we do 1261 01:17:01.600 --> 01:17:04.119 the Great Cup two years ago and then we make it again and all this 1262 01:17:04.159 --> 01:17:08.079 stuff and like what is this? I mean, is this Do you think 1263 01:17:08.119 --> 01:17:10.880 this will blow over? A season rolls on? Because obviously Child's going to 1264 01:17:10.920 --> 01:17:13.600 be out for a while penning all of this stuff. But what does it 1265 01:17:13.640 --> 01:17:18.239 do just kind of for them in the in the landscape there. It's a 1266 01:17:18.279 --> 01:17:26.640 really good question. I part of me wants to think that if he complies 1267 01:17:26.680 --> 01:17:31.760 with conditions of the suspension and goes through all of this rehab or all of 1268 01:17:31.800 --> 01:17:36.800 this education process that the league has put forth to him, and comes back 1269 01:17:36.840 --> 01:17:44.039 and there and they feel that he's completed terms of the suspension, then I 1270 01:17:44.079 --> 01:17:49.279 think the CFL will welcome him back and sorry, reinstate him. I think 1271 01:17:49.279 --> 01:17:54.720 that's the better word. And then and then Toronto's got a decision to make 1272 01:17:54.840 --> 01:18:00.279 right and and that's the whole thing through this process. And that's what GM 1273 01:18:00.319 --> 01:18:05.000 Mike Clements said last week. Even if if Chad is in his camp appeal 1274 01:18:05.079 --> 01:18:11.199 the suspension and theoretically is able to come back to resume practicing and play, 1275 01:18:11.800 --> 01:18:16.000 the Argos will reserve the right to decide at that time whether to bring him 1276 01:18:16.039 --> 01:18:24.359 back or whether to you know, give their own secondary punishment or on this 1277 01:18:24.520 --> 01:18:28.159 matter. So they've taken the attitude they're going to take a wait and see 1278 01:18:28.199 --> 01:18:30.800 and they're going to see how this plays out. And I think that's probably 1279 01:18:31.279 --> 01:18:36.079 the way they're going to do it. And I'm, like I said, 1280 01:18:36.119 --> 01:18:41.279 I'm with two minds. I you know, this is a very serious, 1281 01:18:41.800 --> 01:18:50.640 serious situation for him, and can he come back? I guess kind of 1282 01:18:50.800 --> 01:18:58.880 maybe, but I wouldn't be surprised if he finds it difficult to come back, 1283 01:18:59.399 --> 01:19:03.119 just because the severity of the situation. But then the other part of 1284 01:19:03.159 --> 01:19:08.119 me saying, if he comes back and they're two and seven, one and 1285 01:19:08.239 --> 01:19:11.800 eight, and he comes back and all of a sudden they win two three 1286 01:19:11.920 --> 01:19:16.159 games, then I you know, maybe to some that they'll they'll put that 1287 01:19:16.279 --> 01:19:19.560 in the back of their mind and think, Okay, you know, he's 1288 01:19:19.600 --> 01:19:24.920 back playing good football, the team's winning, everything's all good. I'm not 1289 01:19:25.000 --> 01:19:30.359 so sure. I just think the severity of why we are where we are 1290 01:19:30.279 --> 01:19:36.000 is pretty damning, and you know, the argos are really walking a pr 1291 01:19:36.199 --> 01:19:43.720 tightrope here regarding how they handle this and what happens moving forward, and you 1292 01:19:43.760 --> 01:19:47.399 know, I guess we'll have to see. I I'm just like I said, 1293 01:19:47.439 --> 01:19:50.680 I would have kind of liked to go to the rookie camp last week 1294 01:19:51.079 --> 01:19:56.800 and just concentrate on my Clemmens and then understand, I just took it for 1295 01:19:56.880 --> 01:19:59.600 granted that he was not going to be at rookie camp, and he was 1296 01:19:59.640 --> 01:20:03.640 not going to be at a training camp until you know, and was not 1297 01:20:03.680 --> 01:20:10.000 going to be with the team until he complied with conditions of the suspension bringing 1298 01:20:10.079 --> 01:20:13.119 him back and telling us that, oh yeah, it doesn't violate conditions of 1299 01:20:13.199 --> 01:20:16.479 his discipline. I thought, WHOA, I'm not sure I would have done 1300 01:20:16.479 --> 01:20:19.920 that. One last question about Chad, and I wanted to talk to the 1301 01:20:19.960 --> 01:20:25.960 football side of it, because it's hard where someone's had kind of things in 1302 01:20:26.000 --> 01:20:30.880 the past right where I don't know, if if you know, Jeremiah Mozzoli 1303 01:20:30.920 --> 01:20:33.039 for example, gets accused. I just think where there was, you know, 1304 01:20:33.239 --> 01:20:36.479 history of kind of other behavior in the past where it's just more of 1305 01:20:36.520 --> 01:20:40.680 a spotlight here on that where maybe you would like, I don't know if 1306 01:20:40.720 --> 01:20:43.520 Chad's not getting the betefit of the doubt, and I don't really have a 1307 01:20:43.680 --> 01:20:45.640 you know, side one way or another rise stand but in this hard where 1308 01:20:45.680 --> 01:20:48.680 like you're someone that's had things in the past and now you have this and 1309 01:20:48.720 --> 01:20:50.319 now it's like, oh, we'll see, there you go. We were 1310 01:20:50.319 --> 01:20:53.600 just waiting for him to screw up, and now we finally screwed up. 1311 01:20:53.600 --> 01:20:56.399 It's kind of what it seems like, you know, and not that people 1312 01:20:56.399 --> 01:20:58.920 were like wanting to see Chad fail, but it feels like, oh see, 1313 01:20:58.960 --> 01:21:00.000 there you go. We knew all all that was going to happen. 1314 01:21:00.399 --> 01:21:05.439 Yeah, it's funny though. I mean, I up until everything that happened 1315 01:21:05.439 --> 01:21:09.760 in November and in the off season, I'll be honest with you, he 1316 01:21:10.720 --> 01:21:15.119 was. He really made me personally believe that he had turned a corner and 1317 01:21:15.159 --> 01:21:20.319 that he had matured and that he had grasped the understanding that this was a 1318 01:21:20.359 --> 01:21:25.720 new opportunity for him and it was an opportunity for him to continue playing football 1319 01:21:25.760 --> 01:21:29.359 with a new team in a new city, in a new league, and 1320 01:21:29.439 --> 01:21:33.600 to start fresh. And I mean in training camp when he was going through 1321 01:21:33.680 --> 01:21:40.279 the process of being the starter. I remember asking him about his past and 1322 01:21:40.319 --> 01:21:44.600 what have you, and he's always owned up to it. And when we 1323 01:21:44.680 --> 01:21:47.720 talked about, you know, whether there was vindication on his part because of 1324 01:21:47.760 --> 01:21:51.079 his past, I mean, he was very adamant. He said, what, 1325 01:21:51.399 --> 01:21:55.640 you didn't think I could do it? And I full in point blank, 1326 01:21:55.720 --> 01:22:00.439 I said, you know what, I was willing to give you the 1327 01:22:00.479 --> 01:22:03.640 benefit of the doubt, but I told him I didn't. You know, 1328 01:22:03.800 --> 01:22:09.399 there was some trepidation there and he accepted that. He you know, he 1329 01:22:10.359 --> 01:22:15.039 embraced it, and everything he did during this course of the season, he 1330 01:22:15.359 --> 01:22:21.359 looked like he had embraced being the face of a franchise. Then this came 1331 01:22:21.479 --> 01:22:29.199 right and and it's it's it's unfortunate because like I said, I mean, 1332 01:22:29.600 --> 01:22:33.199 we're all very well aware of his past. It's he has he has made 1333 01:22:33.880 --> 01:22:38.319 questionable decisions in the past. But I just I mean, the guy is 1334 01:22:38.359 --> 01:22:42.479 twenty nine, he was approaching thirty, and I just thought he embraced the 1335 01:22:42.479 --> 01:22:45.399 fact that this was one last opportunity I played football that was close to home 1336 01:22:46.199 --> 01:22:50.520 and all those things, and then he had embraced it. And unfortunately, 1337 01:22:50.720 --> 01:22:56.560 you know, we are where we are and making pretty good money, you 1338 01:22:56.600 --> 01:23:00.479 know. I mean that doesn't hurt either, But I mean now all of 1339 01:23:00.560 --> 01:23:06.279 a sudden that that opportunity is hanging in the balance too. So so football 1340 01:23:06.600 --> 01:23:10.840 here. I mean the argu is right. They got Cameron Dukes up there, 1341 01:23:11.239 --> 01:23:14.840 Ryan Scott, friend of the show, and you know he has kind 1342 01:23:14.840 --> 01:23:17.399 of been you know, the way down the depth right there. But kind 1343 01:23:17.399 --> 01:23:19.640 of what do they do? I mean, it's this season gone? Is 1344 01:23:19.640 --> 01:23:23.239 that you know, nine game I mean half the season? I mean, 1345 01:23:23.279 --> 01:23:26.239 what do you think from a football standpoint? Well, I mean if you 1346 01:23:26.319 --> 01:23:30.119 bring in right now, nobody's cut any veteran quarterbacks or they have you know, 1347 01:23:30.159 --> 01:23:35.279 all the guys who have to see if a pedigree are still in camp 1348 01:23:35.399 --> 01:23:42.000 or have retired. So I think you're you're almost obligated to go with what 1349 01:23:42.039 --> 01:23:45.920 you got because at least Dukes and and I'm having a brain cramp, right, 1350 01:23:46.760 --> 01:23:51.239 thank you, at least they know the system, they know the coaches, 1351 01:23:51.279 --> 01:23:57.880 they know you know, when when when Ryan Dinwiddie makes a call, 1352 01:23:58.239 --> 01:24:01.079 these two guys at least can comprehend it immediately and know what to do. 1353 01:24:02.000 --> 01:24:04.840 You bring in a new guy now and he's got to if there's a crash 1354 01:24:04.880 --> 01:24:12.560 course involved. CFL training camps are are are are very very short, a 1355 01:24:12.680 --> 01:24:15.760 couple of weeks, and you don't give you a whole lot of time to 1356 01:24:15.800 --> 01:24:18.720 cram. So I think they're going to stick with what they have and we'll 1357 01:24:18.720 --> 01:24:25.680 see both those guys play in the exhibition season. And I mean Dukes made 1358 01:24:25.680 --> 01:24:29.560 two starts last year and was the short yardage quarterback and and you know, 1359 01:24:29.640 --> 01:24:31.920 and showed showed glimpses. Now we'll see, you know, can he be 1360 01:24:32.000 --> 01:24:35.680 the bona fide starter. You know, the jury's out, but I mean, 1361 01:24:36.199 --> 01:24:40.640 and that's not a slight against him. That's just Chad started sixteen and 1362 01:24:40.720 --> 01:24:45.520 eighteen games last year and and was you know, the outstanding player for a 1363 01:24:45.600 --> 01:24:48.399 reason. So I mean, there's just a lot of talent there. You 1364 01:24:48.439 --> 01:24:51.520 know, you would just like not like to waste kind of this opportunity right 1365 01:24:51.520 --> 01:24:55.840 now. It just feels you know, I mean, Chad's playing right this 1366 01:24:56.000 --> 01:25:00.399 is their windows still and you know, and now you think you flip it 1367 01:25:00.520 --> 01:25:01.920 like that, you would never think that we're not going to have our starting 1368 01:25:02.000 --> 01:25:04.960 quarterback like that, you know, non injury related for half the season. 1369 01:25:05.000 --> 01:25:08.560 I mean it's it's a pretty big blow there. How do you think, 1370 01:25:09.600 --> 01:25:13.039 like, have you got a sense of how coach Dimwitti and everybody's handling it. 1371 01:25:13.119 --> 01:25:15.279 I know Pinball did his media. I mean, have you guys gotten 1372 01:25:15.279 --> 01:25:17.119 into that sense yet? I have not had a chance to talk to Ryan, 1373 01:25:17.239 --> 01:25:23.119 As I said to you, I'm going to go off tomorrow and we'll 1374 01:25:23.159 --> 01:25:27.479 have my first opportunity to speak with Ryan on and off the record, just 1375 01:25:27.520 --> 01:25:30.399 to see how he's doing and you know, what they're doing and how he's 1376 01:25:30.399 --> 01:25:34.680 grasping it. But I mean, the guys had a pretty good run up 1377 01:25:34.720 --> 01:25:39.640 to now. I mean three years at the on the on the job and 1378 01:25:39.680 --> 01:25:44.279 they've finished first all three years and won a Great Cup in twenty twenty two, 1379 01:25:44.439 --> 01:25:47.520 So you know, he's obviously a very good coach. And I look 1380 01:25:47.560 --> 01:25:53.039 at that offense. The offensive line is coming back intact. The receiving corps 1381 01:25:53.520 --> 01:25:59.239 is maybe minus Curly Gittons junior who was traded to Edmonton, but Curly was 1382 01:25:59.319 --> 01:26:02.279 hurt much atlast year too, so a lot of those guys are coming back. 1383 01:26:02.399 --> 01:26:08.199 There's a lot of familiarity on offense. You know aj Will that's gone, 1384 01:26:08.199 --> 01:26:11.800 but you know Kadeem carry is shown when healthy he can be a pretty 1385 01:26:11.800 --> 01:26:15.479 good running back. And Daniel adib a boy boy. I'm proud of myself 1386 01:26:15.479 --> 01:26:19.560 for even pronouncing it. Has shown that he can he can step up and 1387 01:26:19.680 --> 01:26:25.479 he probably may get a more increased role in twenty twenty four as well. 1388 01:26:25.520 --> 01:26:29.239 So offensively, I think they're in decent shape. You just want your quarterback, 1389 01:26:29.640 --> 01:26:31.680 you know, don't shoot us in the foot. Just basically what they 1390 01:26:31.720 --> 01:26:36.520 had told Chad. You know, we take whatever's there and live to play 1391 01:26:36.680 --> 01:26:45.159 the next down. And I think Cameron Duke's and Brian's got thank you and 1392 01:26:45.239 --> 01:26:51.159 Brian will have that analogy because they're young quarterbacks right and they probably don't have 1393 01:26:51.239 --> 01:26:56.119 that same mentality that Chad does that I can. I can make this happen, 1394 01:26:56.479 --> 01:26:58.880 whereas these guys are going to look and go, okay, it's there. 1395 01:26:58.960 --> 01:27:02.920 I can do it that way. Yeah, I'll just because aside note, 1396 01:27:03.239 --> 01:27:08.640 I'll never forget Brian and winning the Spring League we had been the twenty 1397 01:27:08.720 --> 01:27:12.800 twenty one championship during COVID they flew him into I think they had to do 1398 01:27:12.840 --> 01:27:15.560 it in Orlando because everything got shut down, and having him call in from 1399 01:27:15.600 --> 01:27:19.319 the hotel room the next day it was very exciting stuff back in early marcast 1400 01:27:19.960 --> 01:27:24.760 War last things here like so, you know, the East, we got 1401 01:27:24.760 --> 01:27:28.800 the Alweds here running back and everything and Toronto. Uh. In the West? 1402 01:27:28.960 --> 01:27:30.840 Am I wrong in thinking that Edmonton is the most interesting kind of the 1403 01:27:30.880 --> 01:27:34.680 watch here? I don't understand the trade Ford not Okay, we're bringing him 1404 01:27:34.680 --> 01:27:36.920 a cloud hand in a bucket of money. Do you agree with that or 1405 01:27:36.920 --> 01:27:41.079 what do you think? In the West? Well, to me, the 1406 01:27:41.079 --> 01:27:45.479 West is intrigue top to bottom. I mean, you've got you've got the 1407 01:27:45.520 --> 01:27:51.479 Elks making the big pitch for McLoud. But it is only for this year, 1408 01:27:51.520 --> 01:27:55.640 so let's keep that in mind. But also you mentioned tray Ford. 1409 01:27:55.680 --> 01:28:00.880 I kind of thought last year he earned the right to at least start the 1410 01:28:00.960 --> 01:28:03.920 year as the starter. And he's in the last year of his rookie deals, 1411 01:28:04.000 --> 01:28:10.000 so you know, the timing is interesting. But I mean, to 1412 01:28:10.039 --> 01:28:14.920 me, there's no doubt that mccleoud's how do I say this nicely because I 1413 01:28:15.520 --> 01:28:19.399 love Trey for it, but I think McLeod brings more experience, more veterans 1414 01:28:19.399 --> 01:28:26.520 savvy, and a championship pedigree having won two of these and and and he's 1415 01:28:26.720 --> 01:28:31.439 he's played a ton of football throughout his pro career. So I get it, 1416 01:28:31.520 --> 01:28:36.199 I understand it. I just my concern is is that you know, 1417 01:28:36.279 --> 01:28:41.800 you've got what what sort of impact do you you make on Trey and his 1418 01:28:41.880 --> 01:28:45.520 development by telling him this year that you know what, yeah, you're gonna 1419 01:28:45.560 --> 01:28:49.600 watch. And I mean in talking to Trey this offseason, he says all 1420 01:28:49.640 --> 01:28:54.800 the right things, but you know you can tell, just as the competitor 1421 01:28:54.800 --> 01:28:58.319 in him that he's disappointed. But the other, the other intriguing thing to 1422 01:28:58.359 --> 01:29:01.720 me is you got bcing the Gray Cup this year. There's a big push 1423 01:29:01.880 --> 01:29:08.880 for them to get to the game. You've got you know, the Calgary 1424 01:29:08.920 --> 01:29:13.319 Stampeders, they had their first losing season in a while last year. They're 1425 01:29:13.319 --> 01:29:16.159 in the playoffs last year for the eighteenth straight year. Can they keep it 1426 01:29:16.239 --> 01:29:20.319 going? And there's a lot of questions about Jake Meyer and in his time 1427 01:29:20.359 --> 01:29:27.000 there, And Matt Schultz is the backup in Calgary, and you know he 1428 01:29:27.159 --> 01:29:31.159 played well when given the opportunity in Hamilton last year too. And Saskatchewan has 1429 01:29:31.199 --> 01:29:36.039 Trevor Harris back, healthy, new head coach's and a bunch of new faces 1430 01:29:36.279 --> 01:29:42.680 in free agency. And then you've got Winnipeg being Winnipeg going after a fifth 1431 01:29:42.680 --> 01:29:45.239 straight Gray Cup. So to me, there's a lot of intrigue in the 1432 01:29:45.239 --> 01:29:50.039 West. And but yeah, I my interest is in Edmonton to see what 1433 01:29:50.119 --> 01:29:55.279 happens because they haven't made the playoffs since two nineteen and they've only won something 1434 01:29:55.319 --> 01:29:59.479 like eleven games since then. So and Chris Jones, I got to believe 1435 01:29:59.520 --> 01:30:01.640 as the coach, GM is under the microscope this year. This is year 1436 01:30:01.720 --> 01:30:05.000 three and they've been four and fourteen in each of the last two. So 1437 01:30:05.079 --> 01:30:10.880 it's time to fish a cup bait. Yeah, there's got to be some 1438 01:30:10.960 --> 01:30:15.000 sort of just you know, saw or was it oil and vinegar or oil 1439 01:30:15.000 --> 01:30:17.920 and water between Trey Ford and Chris Jones. There's just got to be because 1440 01:30:17.960 --> 01:30:23.000 when he plays and you see it on the field, and I don't understand 1441 01:30:23.039 --> 01:30:25.600 why you don't, do you know what the trade Ford thing, like BC 1442 01:30:25.800 --> 01:30:28.840 did with the Nathan Rourke when they had him for cheap and let's bring in 1443 01:30:28.920 --> 01:30:30.359 It's like, well, no, now we're gonna pay McCloud about a lot 1444 01:30:30.399 --> 01:30:33.199 of money and then we got to like, you know, take advantage while 1445 01:30:33.239 --> 01:30:36.600 you can. I mean BC was incredible that year. I mean a work 1446 01:30:36.720 --> 01:30:40.680 was awesome. But we could, you know, sign every single person we 1447 01:30:40.720 --> 01:30:43.439 wanted around him because we were paying them, you know, a nickel on 1448 01:30:43.479 --> 01:30:48.000 the half, right, Yeah, exactly to me. I think Trey showed 1449 01:30:48.079 --> 01:30:51.600 last year he can be a good, very good quarterback. Maybe you could 1450 01:30:51.600 --> 01:30:56.199 have made some investments on the defensive side to give him some support, or 1451 01:30:56.239 --> 01:30:59.520 maybe brought in another receiver. I mean, they do have you know, 1452 01:31:01.319 --> 01:31:05.920 Eugene Lewis as a as the top receiver, so I mean there's no there's 1453 01:31:05.960 --> 01:31:10.399 no doubt there. And they have you know Brown as the as the running 1454 01:31:10.399 --> 01:31:15.079 backs. So yeah, it's interesting. I guess you know, the CFL 1455 01:31:15.159 --> 01:31:17.960 is a quarterback driven league. However, so you know, if if basically 1456 01:31:18.000 --> 01:31:23.560 you're telling McLeod, you know, we're expecting you to stay on the field 1457 01:31:23.560 --> 01:31:27.680 and put points on the board and and keep our defense fresh and keep them 1458 01:31:28.039 --> 01:31:30.159 keep them off the field. So maybe it's you know, And but I 1459 01:31:30.199 --> 01:31:33.800 will say this to read that Chris Jones has won a lot more Gray Cups 1460 01:31:33.800 --> 01:31:38.520 than I ever have, so I'm I'll defer to him, but if it 1461 01:31:38.520 --> 01:31:41.920 doesn't work, I'll be the first to tell them. Well, you know, 1462 01:31:42.119 --> 01:31:44.199 but yeah, I mean, but you get that with like the Bill 1463 01:31:44.239 --> 01:31:45.680 Belichick's here where you know, I mean, you can have success for a 1464 01:31:45.680 --> 01:31:48.399 long time. I just if I'm trade four and I demand, you know, 1465 01:31:48.399 --> 01:31:51.319 a trade of the Argonauts or something. I mean, you know what 1466 01:31:51.560 --> 01:31:55.960 I tell you. I think he would look really he would have looked good 1467 01:31:56.000 --> 01:32:00.359 in my mind in Hamilton, because he's from nearby Niagara Falls. You know, 1468 01:32:00.399 --> 01:32:03.119 they've they've got their quarterback of the future in Taylor Powell, who showed 1469 01:32:03.119 --> 01:32:06.479 a lot to me last year as a rookie starting nine games. So I 1470 01:32:06.560 --> 01:32:10.439 get that. But you know what, he would look good from anywhere in 1471 01:32:10.479 --> 01:32:14.640 southern Ontario. That's for darn sure. You're right. Last question then, 1472 01:32:14.720 --> 01:32:17.399 so because I bow right showing up in the boot, they say, it's 1473 01:32:17.439 --> 01:32:19.640 fine. You really are high on Taylor Powell there. I mean, what 1474 01:32:19.640 --> 01:32:23.920 do you make of that? Well, I was there on Monday when bow 1475 01:32:24.079 --> 01:32:28.479 took to the field. He participated, he was in pads. He participated 1476 01:32:28.520 --> 01:32:31.199 in thirty or forty plays. Granted they were you know, Skelly, you 1477 01:32:31.239 --> 01:32:36.239 know, six receivers against seven defensive players. And he didn't run, but 1478 01:32:36.319 --> 01:32:42.279 he threw the ball well. He made some very nice passes and afterwards declared 1479 01:32:42.359 --> 01:32:45.720 himself fit and ready and that he's no doubt in his mind that he's going 1480 01:32:45.760 --> 01:32:49.640 to play in the season opener in Calgary, which is a homecoming for him, 1481 01:32:49.760 --> 01:32:54.000 you know, given that he started his career with the Stamps. So 1482 01:32:55.279 --> 01:32:58.800 but I don't think it was in It was a coincidence that on Sunday they 1483 01:32:58.880 --> 01:33:02.079 signed Powell to an extension, keeping him under contract till twenty twenty five. 1484 01:33:02.239 --> 01:33:05.680 So you know what you can't have I mean this, they'll tell you anything 1485 01:33:05.680 --> 01:33:10.000 in the CFL that can't have more. You got to have more than one 1486 01:33:10.039 --> 01:33:13.840 quarterback to make a run of it. And but yeah, those those they're 1487 01:33:13.840 --> 01:33:16.920 pretty solid there with those two in my mind. But as far as Bo, 1488 01:33:18.560 --> 01:33:21.199 we'll see, right, We've got two weeks to see how much he 1489 01:33:21.239 --> 01:33:25.439 plays in the exhibition games and see how he feels. There were a couple 1490 01:33:25.479 --> 01:33:29.119 of times he walked to the line, or he walked to the take take 1491 01:33:29.119 --> 01:33:30.840 the snap. He looked like he was a little ginger with his right leg. 1492 01:33:31.479 --> 01:33:35.880 But we'll see. Well, Dan, I really appreciate making the time 1493 01:33:35.920 --> 01:33:40.359 today, taking time good luck tomorrow at training camp and all that stuff, 1494 01:33:40.399 --> 01:33:43.760 and hopefully we'll get you back on here and we're I'm getting my my rolodex 1495 01:33:43.800 --> 01:33:46.079 here working there trying to remember what you who's on what team and everything. 1496 01:33:46.079 --> 01:33:48.640 We're getting back into it. It's been ufl here and now we're getting back 1497 01:33:48.640 --> 01:33:58.119 in so I appreciate it my pleasure. Thank you so much, huge spreccer. 1498 01:33:58.159 --> 01:34:01.119 Thanks to Dan and John I'm Lewis for coming on today. Really appreciate 1499 01:34:01.159 --> 01:34:04.079 that. Like I said, Dan working with my crazy work schedule in him 1500 01:34:04.119 --> 01:34:08.840 and covering the Argos training and the Tiger Cats and kind of all that stuff. 1501 01:34:09.000 --> 01:34:12.800 Dan's incredibly busy. You always just a huge wealth of knowledge, a 1502 01:34:12.840 --> 01:34:15.560 Hall of Fame reporter like he is coming on the show. And then John 1503 01:34:15.640 --> 01:34:17.960 Lewis is always go check out John's channel, you know, like I said 1504 01:34:18.279 --> 01:34:23.000 during the interview, not why it is you know, this extensive hour line 1505 01:34:23.000 --> 01:34:25.920 discussion. John does a little bit more bite size, and so I think 1506 01:34:25.960 --> 01:34:28.079 that it's, you know, both sides of the coin. I think it's 1507 01:34:28.119 --> 01:34:30.720 all good like it. Subscribe if you enjoy all this and give us to 1508 01:34:30.800 --> 01:34:35.159 thirty five hundred subscribers. I hope this wasn't to not footballing today, but 1509 01:34:35.199 --> 01:34:38.479 I thought it was fun. We'll see you next time. Next