Speaker 1: All start to you to presents. Off the bench with
Jacob Hester and T Bob Abert.
Speaker 2: Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah yeah, Off the bench.
Speaker 1: With Jacob Hester and Bob Abert.
Speaker 3: To come off the bitch.
Speaker 1: Now here's Jacob Hester and T Bob Abart.
Speaker 2: It was funnier at the time. Okay, no, it was
funnier at the time.
Speaker 3: I'm telling you, dude. Welcome back to o TV.
Speaker 2: Our number three said, We've got Evic cod to ESPA
Radio coming up next. We got uh Sierra Delta come
to talk about service dogs bets. We got duced to
Calster closing out this hour, we are live at radio.
Shout out to Labar's Helltel Casino and Ben Rouge for
having us out here for a sponsored our trip out here.
It's my first time on radio Row Rivers. Also your
first time on radio Row uh, and thank you for
you know, hopping on here and yep, saving me, yep,
saving me.
Speaker 4: Uh.
Speaker 3: But what's what what's what's been your favorite?
Speaker 5: We'll see keep an all mist girl around.
Speaker 3: For exactly you know. I know, we were like, oh
my god, everybody's so nice to me.
Speaker 2: Everybody's been so sweet, so nice.
Speaker 5: I don't appreciate what he's about to the implication that
he is.
Speaker 2: I wonder, I wonder if we were to go person
by person enough, I was to interact with the exact
same people, if they would be as nice to me.
Speaker 5: It's not my fault that this is like a desert
for women. It's like when I go to March Madness
with my dad to Vegas. It's like it's like one
of me to like eight hundred mentio. We need to
get a laundry to March Madness.
Speaker 3: Yeah, yeah, get a lunder to March Madness. Indeed.
Speaker 5: Uh Well, So I learned something interesting yesterday and maybe
I've just always taken it for granted. But like I'm
not from Louisiana. So we're doing the bit where we
ask people who aren't from here to pronounce words they're
reading them to trying to pronounce them, and or with
Michael Junior, Yeah, and you know, I like ordered them.
I'm like, we're gonna go like easiest to most challenging,
and I put first and he looked at that word
like it was I mean, he was just like, this
is impossible. But like I think land Yap's like a
pretty normal word, even if you don't live in Louisiana.
I'm not from here, yeah, but.
Speaker 2: You have a little bit, but you have a little
bit of neighborly instinct. I mean, you're not from as
far away as he is. I'll say this for sure.
When I came over here after and this is somebody
with a lot of Louisiana connections growing up and and
you know, come back my entire life. But when I
came over here from Georgia, I had no idea what
land Yap was. I just how to pronounce it, the word,
what it meant. I didn't know anything.
Speaker 5: I also feel like if you have some general idea
of how letters work together, you could probably figure lan
yap out.
Speaker 3: I don't.
Speaker 2: I don't entirely disagree, but I'm a genius and I
did not. So that's kind of where my hesitance it
comes into play. Yes, exactly exactly. Well, we did end
up uncovering though you were talking with gold guess after
maybe the most damning piece of avangs because were kind
of proud of him. He nailed some of the pronunciations.
Of course, he used to play for the New Lem
Saints for a little bit. Uh, but he's dating a
girl from Lafayette, so he probably should.
Speaker 3: Have known Land.
Speaker 6: Yet.
Speaker 2: Yes, I think he probably should have known Land.
Speaker 5: He was not as impressive after we learned that, but
he did pretty good.
Speaker 4: Uh.
Speaker 5: And then we did Stug Gotts. He didn't do as well.
Speaker 2: Wait, so I haven't seen the Stu Gotts video yet,
so I've been on the lookout. Okay, okay, okay for
those that don't know Stu Gotts is I mean really
Dan and Stu uh, Dan Lebatorda Stugots. Those are like
my radio muses. I really try to fashion myself as
almost like a combination of the two. I'm terribly upset.
I think it see him, but I had to run
over to uh mostly Sports.
Speaker 3: How was house?
Speaker 5: Yeah, I'm so sad you weren't there to video us
and commentate the whole time.
Speaker 2: Hey, I thought I did good filming, Mike Coulock Junior,
what do you.
Speaker 5: Mean you did great? It's just funny. We were like
watching it back last night and yeah, Sondra and Chris
Marly were like, Bob's coming, Yeah him, you were gassing
him up. I'm trying to embarrass him, and You're like,
you're doing great, sweetie, dude.
Speaker 2: Look, hey, I'm an Look, I'm an on air personality.
You can't put me behind the camera. You can't put
Bobby in the corner. Was when he was like, oh, no,
you don't have to put the cardo. Well, but we'll
do it in post. Wait, you don't have to put
the cart up.
Speaker 5: We'll do it in post.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I know, what do you want to focus on
the freaking little note card every time? As well?
Speaker 5: Guys, what are we doing here?
Speaker 3: No?
Speaker 2: You know how long that video would take if you
sit there and held the carter.
Speaker 5: I literally turned the cart around. I was asking you
to zoom in, you to stand still.
Speaker 7: Also, the word the word that Golic Junior like absolutely butchered,
like couldn't even couldn't even remember what he said. You
hear t Bob in the bag go, oh, that's not
that bad dude. I'm like, no, it was.
Speaker 3: It's not that bad.
Speaker 2: Dude, like I told him, and I'll stand by it.
He got like fifty five to sixty percent of each
word correct. He barely hit one hundred, but but he
got he got he got most correct.
Speaker 5: Okay, So to kind of circle this all back, so
when I do with Stu Gott's I was like, he
was like, how to do this? Afterwards, I was like,
I think you did pretty well. I was like, you
might have done better than you know, Golic Junior. And
he was like. I was like, which is surprising to
me because I would have assumed Ole Junior already gotten
all these words. And Stu Gotts was like, well, you
know what. He was like, I He's like, I'm intward
Ocha whenever he was coming into media, and he was like,
I remember one of the best pieces of advice that
I gave him was wait.
Speaker 2: So Stucott said, the best piece of advice. That's that's
funny to highlight because normally it's like the best piece
of rice that I received.
Speaker 5: You said the best he's of advice I ever gave
him was give them what they need. So he was like,
do you think Golic Junior really didn't know how to
say those words? Are giving you what you needed? And
I was like, I was like, that's true. I was like,
all right, were you just giving me what I needed?
Then he's like no, no, no, I'm stupid. He was like,
I'm done.
Speaker 3: See that's classics. Dude.
Speaker 2: Dude plays the fool, but he always.
Speaker 3: Has a little he's written.
Speaker 5: That's what he was saying. What he was like, I
hate these words, but I have written a book. I
do know about the word. He wrote a book, he said,
he did, I mean, didty? I don't know. I have
not didn't do any fact checking.
Speaker 2: Diddy, I know he's I don't want to talk about
this hour.
Speaker 6: All right.
Speaker 2: That's a bad joke, My bad guys. You know, you
take a lot of shots. I went to stand up
last night, which is pretty interesting.
Speaker 3: Rivers.
Speaker 2: You strike me as someone who would be deeply uncomfortable
in an intimate stand up environment. I just see a
lot of nose scratching going on if a joke doesn't land, which.
Speaker 5: To be fair tough, I would be sitting front row
smiling at them but giving them the thumbs up, like
you're you're doing great.
Speaker 2: I mean, you think I was gassing up Joey this thing.
This room's probably, like you know, I don't know, fifty
square feet. There's like twenty people in there, randomly, a
lot like Steve mary Ucci's in there, Rachel Bannetta, others.
Speaker 5: I would have loved him seeing her. She's so funny.
Speaker 3: She's very, very funny.
Speaker 2: But but yes, I was sitting there, I mean guffine
the entire time, and it was very funny.
Speaker 5: Anyone that just heard that is surprised, but but I was,
you know, you got to give them what they need,
what they need.
Speaker 3: Shout out to Steve Gotts, the.
Speaker 5: The test advice I ever gave someone.
Speaker 2: That's the funniest thing I've ever heard. I have never
heard anyone say the best advice I ever gave someone, really.
Speaker 3: Gat and stuff.
Speaker 5: Well he was funny too, because like I went over
there and I was like, hey, you know, I'm supposed
to be here to interview you right now, and he
was like, can I have some time? I was like,
oh yeah, for sure. I was like, I'm not in
a hurry. Like, I'll just be right over there. He's
You're just gonna stand there by yourself, and I was
like I am just gonna wait here for you. And
he was like all right, all right. He was like
but like and I thought he said, don't nudge me.
I thought he was being like, don't hurry me. And
I was like, oh no, no, whoa. I was like, I'm
not in a hurry. He's like no, no, no, no, do nudge me.
Speaker 3: Okay. Yeah, Like I love a nudge.
Speaker 5: I need a nudge. And I was like, oh okay, yeah,
well then I can nudge a Landra text.
Speaker 3: Everyone's been super cool. Lol. Oh they've been cool to
you too. Huh interesting, Well that's.
Speaker 2: What I was gonna say.
Speaker 8: So, Like I went up to Stu Gott's dress.
Speaker 2: I saw a girl very interesting.
Speaker 3: Was looking great, very interesting.
Speaker 5: We're trying to get Pat McAfee to notice her.
Speaker 3: What if I wear a leather dress? I would get?
Speaker 5: What am I supposed to wear? It's like, am I
supposed to wear jeans and a T shirt?
Speaker 3: Like? What do you want from me?
Speaker 2: I'm just saying you're killing it?
Speaker 3: Keep killing it.
Speaker 5: I've been sitting up here since five am, looking like
someone had run me over. And Landra walks up. Her
hair looks beautiful, she has a leather dress on. I'm like,
way younger than you stand over there. Oh man, sorry,
she did great and she's doing such a good job. Elondra.
Speaker 2: You are like you're killing it, Taylor, You suck you
do You're doing nothing?
Speaker 3: Taylor. No, I don't think it's that.
Speaker 7: It's just that like I'm I'm so great all the
time that like you don't really notice anymore.
Speaker 3: Like it's just one of those things, you know.
Speaker 2: Okay, now we that that's some best advice I've ever
given someone, is be careful. If you go all effort
all the time, people are gonna start to expect that. Better,
establish a baseline of mediocrity, and then turn it up
when you have to.
Speaker 5: But I just caught a stray there, and I don't
I didn't say anything.
Speaker 3: To No, you're not You're not as stray.
Speaker 7: It's just look, we like to have friendly banter back
and forth, guys, we're having fun.
Speaker 2: Lookye, he's just to be fair. You know, he's trying
to he's kind of to fly. You know, he's being
attacked to him, he's just dodging townter, butets trying to
fight his way out the phone booth.
Speaker 3: Okay, I thought you were talking hard.
Speaker 2: It's kind of hard to hear to be fair to hardy.
It's a little hard to interact from a thousand miles
away or sixty whatever it is. I'm not a geography guys.
Speaker 3: You know this.
Speaker 5: We have a we have a really big hour this
hour starting at.
Speaker 3: Starting right now, really No.
Speaker 2: Nine fifteen, Yevin Cohen's here, Delta jus chowser so rivs uh,
thank you so much. Keep up the great work, keep
killing it. When we get back, we'll talk to ESPA
Radios Evan Cohen, hosts of the Morning Show on ESPN.
Speaker 3: Keep it locked, you're on OTV. Off the bench.
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five two nine two five eighty five fifty two. Central
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Speaker 3: Uh, dang, boss, say here we go, bang out post
as post off.
Speaker 1: The Bench with Hester and T Bob live from Super
Bowl fifty nine Radio Row in New Orleans, presented by
Low Bears Casino, Hotel, Baton Rouge.
Speaker 2: What's going on, y'all? Welcome back to O TV. So
I thought we're catching a movie cod and we'll see.
Speaker 3: I don't know what we know what he's saying.
Speaker 2: Okay, huh uh, we'll see if you end up coming
on or out. I know, I know, guys, I mean
here it is. Uh, I'm watching you know, players interview
all around me. You know, Moscona gets guys the afternoon,
and uh.
Speaker 6: Well.
Speaker 2: There's Greg GOLs, you know, and here I am talking
about Chad Johnson kicking women.
Speaker 3: Out of his bed at one forty two in the morning.
What are you gonna do?
Speaker 6: Now?
Speaker 3: I see him?
Speaker 2: So why isn't here?
Speaker 3: Yeah, exactly, He's going somewhere.
Speaker 2: Okay, great, great, mm hmm, all right, you know what,
then let's just let's just uh, I mean, come on, dude,
like what like Vasconia has, like Brockers on all these
other guys.
Speaker 3: Uh, let's do this.
Speaker 2: Let's just go ahead, did and do some big deal
are No big deal, big deal, no.
Speaker 3: Big deal, big deal, no big deal, big deal, no
big deal, no big deal.
Speaker 5: I don't think.
Speaker 8: A big deal.
Speaker 2: What's going on, y'all?
Speaker 3: A big deal? No big deal deal.
Speaker 5: Do you see who's just walking back?
Speaker 3: Greg Olsen?
Speaker 2: Greg ben was uh you know what they call him?
Greg the leg.
Speaker 5: Why nor Sorry, I don't I wasn't even listening to
what you said, have you? He is much better looking
in person.
Speaker 3: He's like giant.
Speaker 5: He's a giant.
Speaker 2: First off, really, Greg's god that interesting thing where he's
got like a beautiful face he does his hair is great.
Speaker 3: So I was gonna say, he's.
Speaker 2: Like, seems like he's kind of balding, but somehow it
looks really good. I can't fully explain the shout out
Greg Olson one of the best in the game. He uh, Greg, Uh,
I mean, look, we gotta have it. What's up man?
Come on, come, come, come sit down? Uh yeah, come, come,
come take a seat.
Speaker 3: Man.
Speaker 2: Evan Cohen, host of a sportsmanlike conduct every single day
on ESPA, Get Your Day Started.
Speaker 9: Uh.
Speaker 2: He's been the host of the Mad Dog Sports morning show
in the past, What's Up Man, taba Baby.
Speaker 3: And nice Man. Hey.
Speaker 2: So, uh, I want to pick your brain a little
bit here because as I said, that's.
Speaker 3: A mistake right off the bat.
Speaker 9: I have no brain, I don't think, but anyway, go ahead, Okay,
So that's that's.
Speaker 2: How you made it in the radio game, because it
really okay. So look, so I've been doing this now.
I'm about to be thirty six on Sunday, happy, thank
you very much.
Speaker 3: Not to brag.
Speaker 2: I've been doing uh daily radio since I was twenty three,
since like twenty thirteen. And here you sin at the
pinnacle of the profession, the great set and everything back there.
What was the beginning of your journey? I mean it
was what do you love? Madison? Yes, I mean from Madison.
Then you're like in South Beach all over the place.
What's this journey been like? It's been awesome.
Speaker 9: So I start, I'm from New York originally, okay, and
I went to University Wisconsin, Madison, And oddly enough, this.
Speaker 3: Is all I ever wanted to do my entire life.
Speaker 9: Really, at nine years old, I listened to the radio
in New York and I heard Mike and the mad
Dog and Christopher mad Dog was so I ended up
working for and with for twelve years, and I work with.
Speaker 3: Again now at ESPN. Yeah, I'm like, that's what I
want to do.
Speaker 9: But you know, because you're in it that how many
people in and around Louisiana come up to me and
be like, oh, I love sports.
Speaker 3: I would love to do what you do, right, Yeah,
all the time. And then my follow up is always cool,
do you love radio? Like what? Like, do you love radio?
Because that's actually what I do. Further, that's what you
do for you say.
Speaker 2: Very good point, very sillyent point there.
Speaker 9: Everyone loves sports, yep, not everyone loves the medium in
which you and I are in to deliver the sports
conversation that we delivered well.
Speaker 2: And it's funny because, like I mean, I remember growing
up in Atlanta and there were the two live stews
in the AFF.
Speaker 3: They were great. Yep.
Speaker 2: I remember touching Jimmy and Leslie, which is kind of
a ryebald shock jock kind of mourning each other. I know,
Steaks and bro Steaks that those are my guys. Yeah,
seven ninety the Zone, back of the day, six't eighty
the Fan. But yeah, to your point, like how I
used to think about morning shows like those were those
are my guys that can be company. I loved it,
looking forward to it and I've never really been cognitizve
of that. You're right, Like, I loved the actual radio
itself as an entertainment media.
Speaker 9: Well, think about all the people that are listening to
you right now. Okay, they all obviously loved sports or
else they wouldn't be tuning in. But there's some part
of what you're doing every single day that they love you.
Speaker 3: Hey, Kevin, Kevin and Gandhi.
Speaker 9: Look good, that guy, he's just so cool.
Speaker 2: He always times you have Stanley Tucci in the Hunger Games.
Speaker 6: He's just got a compliments.
Speaker 2: I think he's got this dazzling white teeth when he smiles,
just like ah, just bursts onto this.
Speaker 3: He's so good at what he does. Oh my god,
is he good? Away, I'll tell you all. End it
up there, dude. Yeah, Well, I'm.
Speaker 2: Sorry, go out to you say people.
Speaker 9: Yeah, I'm saying people love you, but it has to
be you, right, it has to be the like the
meant so. I see all the LSU gear, right, So
people are getting all kinds of LSU information everywhere, but
the way in which you're conveying it is different than others, right, Yeah,
And I think that's the whole point.
Speaker 2: Well, That's what I tell people all the time, because
you're like, oh, Steve Naggs was wrong about this. The
guys that might be wrong, right, I'd be entertaining. It's
like they want to listen to you or not some
of it being right. I mean, yeah, if you're like
a gambling professional, sure maybe in that sense you need
to be right or wrong. But outside of that, dude, no,
can you can you make people laugh? Can you make
people have a good time or enrage them, whatever the
case may be? Right, do people want to listen to you?
It's obviously people do with you. And you've been doing
this for so long. When did you feel like or
how the kind of your first big break come about?
Like what was that moment like when you're like, oh
my god, I think like like I think I'm actually
going to be able to do this.
Speaker 9: Yeah, so I think it was getting a phone call
December of two thousand and two. Okay, so I was
at the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Speaker 3: No I lied it. Oh yeah, December two thousand and two.
Speaker 9: So I was at UW Madison and had graduated and
started working at ESPN Radio at the time in Madison, Wisconsin,
and these two guys who I saw all around campus
all the time and all around the Badger events, who
owned and ran radio stations, called me out of nowhere. Hey,
we'd love to have dinner with you tonight. And I
was already in radio. And you said, when things change,
because this is like when did the breakdown? So I
was already in radio, and these guys called me and
they said, we're starting a radio station in West Palm Beach, Florida.
It was the largest market in the country without an
all sports radios.
Speaker 2: This took place in you at beaver.
Speaker 3: Dam, Wisconsin.
Speaker 9: When you want to talk about the middle of nowhere,
that is the middle of nowhere out there find you.
So I was on a competing radio station. I was
doing sports and traffic Hell yeah, like actually calling traffic
reports teeth.
Speaker 3: Hell yeah. So I was doing I was the traffic reporter.
Speaker 9: And interestingly enough, Madison, Wisconsin does not feel like a
place where there's a lot of traffic.
Speaker 3: There's not. So when you're a traffic reporter.
Speaker 9: And you're driving around in a traffic mobile and it's like,
what miss Johnson made a left out of.
Speaker 3: Her driveway back to you, Bob.
Speaker 9: So they they had me come to this dinner, like
the whining and dining was like a dirty, dirty restaurant
with like, you know, five people in the restaurant. And
they said, we're starting a radio station in West pom Beach, Florida.
It was the largest market in the country without an
all sports radio station dedicated to the market, and we'd
like you to be a part of it, damn. And
so it's it's like you and I have both worked
in radio. You're turning thirty six on Sunday for a
long time, but have you ever started a station from scratch?
Speaker 3: It didn't exist. Uh No. So that's the opportunity that
I got.
Speaker 9: And that's what I'm like, Okay, I'm either gonna like
we're either all in or all out on this because
we were doing sales, marketing everything. Ironically, enough back to
you for a second. The model for that station was
seven ninety in Atlanta, no Way, which is one of
the stations you grew up on.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean I grew I was already I feel
like it was already big when I kind of came online.
I guess I've never thought about the origins of seven
ninety was but it's not.
Speaker 3: One of these historical stations that was around for one hundred.
Speaker 2: Years, true, like like a eight to seventy here in
New Orleans. That's where I got my start. And that's
like you know historic three years, yes, exactly. So that's
how it all started.
Speaker 9: And then everything kind of led to the next thing
was in West Palm Forever. Got to call out of
nowhere from Serious XM to work there with mad Dog,
who I grew up like wanting to be like it
was amazing. And then down down the hall from Howard
Stern it was the greatest radio host of all time.
Speaker 3: Wow.
Speaker 9: And then you know, I'm still doing the West Palm
stuff as I'm doing that, and then all of a
sudden a year and a half ago, I get a
phone call from ESPN Radio that we're starting a show
with Chris Kanty, Michelle's Mollman and myself with unsportsmanlike as
you mentioned, and now here here at the super.
Speaker 2: Bowl and here at the super Bowl. Okay, real quick
on the super Bowl. Then I want to give back
to maybe nerding out about radio. I think the storylines
are obviously many, and the narratives I think are going
to make any game very interesting. I mean, of course
you have the Chiefs trying to be unparalleled, Brady Cherry,
Mahomes chasing the ghost of Brady and whatnot. I find
Jalen Hurts to be fascinating. Here two years ago, out
plays Mahomes. It has the one moment, the fumble, the
one moment that he has to now live with for
the subsequent two years. It ends up costing him the title.
Here he since though, finally with another opportunity. What bone
are you chewing on this week? What most interests you
in Sunday's game.
Speaker 9: I love dominance in sports. I'm odd like that. I
mean a lot of people hate it. I love following
the dynastic teams and so the Mahomes part of it
is what is most exciting to me. And I will
say something about the Eagles, okay, because I think a
lot of people have gotten to the place of just
dismissing Jalen Hurts.
Speaker 3: Yeah right, and like they found him.
Speaker 9: And I'm working with ZIP recruiter today obviously, and they're
recruiting different people and talented obviously, if you're looking to
hire there the place, and if you're looking to apply
there the place.
Speaker 3: Jalen Hurts was this guy that was like, you.
Speaker 9: Know, I had to almost send in the resume, like
the ZipRecruiter, like, hey, I'm a third round pick or
whatever it did, second round pick.
Speaker 3: Yeah, Like and we all knew about him in college.
You know about him.
Speaker 2: I mean you're saying his So his senior year, if
it wasn't for Joe Burrow, would be one of the
greatest years of all time. I think you do it
for like thirty six hundred yards over thirty touchdowns, less
than ten pigs, seven years of completion. He rushed for
thirteen hundred he rushed for twenty two touchdowns.
Speaker 3: Unbelievable. But Joe Burrows there, and think about hurts for
a second.
Speaker 9: I am amazed that he got benched in the National
Championship game and came back the next year.
Speaker 2: And then and it just again.
Speaker 9: If people forget about that, you don't people forget about
there was an Alabama year after the benching before Oklahoma.
Speaker 2: Well, it's pre portal, so he had to graduate to
be able to transfer be eligible immediately. So he stuck around.
And then in a wonderful, just high character kind of
narrative that played out in the SEC Championship two, it
goes down and he has.
Speaker 3: To come in.
Speaker 9: Wait, you just head on time. That's that's brilliant. Let's
talk about this for a second. Hypothetically, Jalen Hurts his
career in college started today?
Speaker 3: Okay? Yeah?
Speaker 2: Would he have ever made it to Oklahoma? I think
it would have been a year earlier. I don't know
if he ends up Oklahoma. Sorry, yeah, I don't think
he sticks around for that. And then I don't think
they have him in that SEC championship the next year
when they would have needed him.
Speaker 9: Right, so he would have been benched, would have left
after the bench? Yeah, although maybe he wouldn't have been
Maybe he's such a high character guy.
Speaker 3: But everyone else, can we just almost hold hands? Is
that what just happened here?
Speaker 2: But I don't think it's really a character slight if
he would have left.
Speaker 6: No, I agree with you.
Speaker 9: But you brought up a great point because there was
no option. And by the way, back to ZipRecruiter, that's
that's the whole point. If you're looking to apply for
different jobs, ZipRecruiter is the powerful matching technology that helps
you do that.
Speaker 3: And that's both for the employer and the employee. ZipRecruiter
and the other thing.
Speaker 2: About it is though it's like okay. Well, also, though
to say that he had to stay doesn't take away
from why it's impressive, because it's about how you conduct
yourself in the situation that you're in, right, right, and
he conducted himself by staying locked in, not complaining, staying ready,
and when his team needed him, he was still there.
And football is the ultimate team sport. And that's why
I just I know, like you said, you love the dynasty,
you love the dynastic moments here, but I find Jalen
Hurts to be the most sympathetic character in this entire time.
Speaker 9: I agree with you, I would love and then I
am ready for him took.
Speaker 2: It's a little bit of Siriani not getting any respect
despite the incredible record forty twenty four playoff appearances too,
super Bowls ridiculous.
Speaker 3: Can I ask you one thing on the way out here, Yeah,
let's go. Is Brian Kelly on the hot seat?
Speaker 9: Uh?
Speaker 3: So I said this this morning.
Speaker 2: Financially, elis shoe's a bit strapped where a hot seat
is still tough because the buyout's so big.
Speaker 3: Uh.
Speaker 2: And it's still you know, it started one hundred million.
It's going down like ten Mili, he gets the remainder
of the conject whenever if that was come beast. But
if they cannot contend for a championship this year with
the pieces they haven't played, Number one portal class three,
top ten high score recruiting class row, a returning quarterback
that's on the top of all the hides lists. If
you can't compete for a championship this year, then I
refuse to believe that you ever will. So like so,
I don't know about firing, but those are the parameters.
He's kind of backed into his last He's back into
the corner of do we still believe that he's a
top five, top ten coach in the entire country?
Speaker 3: Excellent point. Love it.
Speaker 2: Evan Cohen ut Sports would like eats it every morning
on ESPN Nationals Team right behind it.
Speaker 3: Evan, thank you so much to me. I appreciate it.
Speaker 2: And congrats all it says, shout out to ZIP recruiter,
thank you, and we'll be back with more.
Speaker 3: Off the bench.
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Speaker 8: We're the club is full of ballas and bucks and
no you thought was radio good? Later things because is
chump chunk pink at home?
Speaker 6: And to.
Speaker 5: Thomas do you off.
Speaker 1: The bench with Hester and T Bob Live from Super
Bowl fifty nine Radio Row in New Orleans, presented by
Low Bearish Casino Hotel, Baton Rouge.
Speaker 3: To O TB.
Speaker 2: We are live here on radio Road. Shout at the
Lay's Keto Hotel and beat Rouge uh for having us
out here, and shout out to our next guest man.
We got Mike and beg with me from Sierra Delta.
Sierra Delta, we're gonna talk about it, tell you exactly
what it's about. But it's an organization that seeks to
help veterans, provide them with service dogs and multiple other resources.
Speaker 3: If you want to get involved, which by the intervator,
I'm sure.
Speaker 2: You will, you go to Sierra Delta dot com. Mike Bjay,
what's going on?
Speaker 11: Man?
Speaker 3: How are we doing today? Doing great? Doing great?
Speaker 2: Exciting man, Radio Row. This is my first radio row
ever been out here.
Speaker 3: Yes, super hyped it like that bro me.
Speaker 2: You know, I get up early, I drink a two,
I drink a ton of coffee and I yelled that's basically.
Speaker 3: Look at my wife? Is it twelve?
Speaker 6: He got that espress?
Speaker 3: Oh?
Speaker 10: Man?
Speaker 2: Okay, So let's talk about Sierra Delta.
Speaker 3: Uh.
Speaker 2: Give me the basic rundown of how the organization came
about and what your goals are.
Speaker 10: So I served the United States Marine Corps from nineteen
ninety six to I was injured in Iraq in two
thousand and four, retired out of two thousand and five.
Did all the the stereotypical veteran things, got in trouble
to law, drinking too much thought I should should have
died that night when I was rationalizing out and that
that moment of desperation, it was my dog. It was
an old English bulldog, the one that I knew that
he wouldn't be better off if I wasn't here anymore.
He ended up in the shelter and be killed like
the other eight hundred thousand healthy training will adoctable dogs
in this country. And so that was enough purpose, enough
reason for me to see through that depression and start
putting one foot in front of the other, whether it
was the flesh and blood foot giving by God or
the carbon, fiber and steel foot given by science.
Speaker 6: But we end up starting in twenty seventeen.
Speaker 10: We focused on service dogs at first, but then I
looked around at how this was being done, and it
was so much waste. There was so much overregulation when
ninety nine percent of the veterans out here.
Speaker 6: We don't need an eighty eight.
Speaker 10: Medical assistance service dogs, right, But dogs and humans have
been working together for thirty five thousand years.
Speaker 3: True.
Speaker 10: There's tons of dog trainers out there, there's tons of
dogs out there, and there's tons of ways you can
work with your dog to enhance or improve your life.
And what we miss from the military is being a
part of a team.
Speaker 6: Now.
Speaker 10: People are complicated, but dogs, man, they love you unconditionally.
Speaker 6: They're always ready.
Speaker 10: So if we can train the veterans and the dogs
to shed hunt, mushroom hunt, you know, agility courses, doc diving,
whatever they want to do service dog work, Yeah, Sierra
Delta will provide not only the education and the community
around that, but up to thirty five hundred dollars in
training grants.
Speaker 3: It's incredible. Man.
Speaker 10: We take no government money, so we need everybody out
there that wants to donate help businesses like one of
our best partnerships is with Blue Buffalo and Walmart. They
run an annual campaign that generates six hundred thousand dollars
for us every year and they tell us every time
they do a campaign with Share of Delta, and we
feature vets like Michael Smith and everybody else and their dogs.
We exceed their best sales expectations by double digits.
Speaker 2: Damn dude, Wait so so then, what what's your story man?
How did you get involved in Shara Delta?
Speaker 3: Yeah?
Speaker 12: So so, first, I did twenty four years in the army.
Speaker 3: Damn guys, he's.
Speaker 10: Always got to one up somebody because he did eleven without.
Speaker 12: His arm So yeah, I did, the last half of
my career was without my arm. So and then I
do some professional triathlone. I'm professional cyclist so Olympics. Yeah, yeah,
the status. But yeah, I uh Matt bj we was
doing a Wonder Warrior MPT football team, and you know,
he kept telling me I needed a dog, and I
was like, yeah, bro, cool.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 12: I didn't grow with pets, so I was like, nah,
I'm cool. And it wasn't till he pretty much forced
him in my life. That's when I realized, like, oh dang,
I didn't even know I needed it until I got it.
Speaker 2: It's like you get a little you get a dog,
You're like, oh my god, how long you fish?
Speaker 3: Yeah. It's funny because I used to make fun of
the people. You know, you see the people getting licked
in the face and yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I
used to make fun of those people and here I
am now one of them.
Speaker 6: Yeah, behind closed doors. So it's cool.
Speaker 10: Us is his dog, and like, so he does triathl
Like right now he's just focusing on Olympic biking, but
Zeus is trained to run next to him when he's biking,
run next to him and he's running, and when he's
in the pool, Jus just hangs out on the deck
and Zeus.
Speaker 12: Is we've done over three marathons together.
Speaker 2: Wait, so okay, so Mike so so, so he's telling
you all, but he's like, hey, man, you need to
get involved. You need to get involved. And then so
all of a sudden, the dog inners. You're like like,
oh my god, this is incredible. And then were you
just inspired to to to kind of get the word
out there to other veterans?
Speaker 12: I was, man, because it changed my life in such
an impactful way, you know what I'm saying, Like, who.
Speaker 3: Am I not to pay that for it? You know
what I mean?
Speaker 12: And so me and BJ were friends long before that,
and you know we talk a lot, and you know
I just told him, man, like bro, whatever, whatever you
need for me whatever we can do together, and he
always reminds me, like, bro, this is not my thing,
this is this is our thing.
Speaker 10: So all the veterans, yeah, you know our core value
spelled epic. It's empowerment, purpose, innovation, and community. Community is
the most important. Right, people might not be able to
understand what we did in the military, even though I'll
tell people all the time. Joining the military is like
painting by numbers. Anybody can do it. Yeah, right, you
just have to have the commitment. But you know you
can understand that relationship with a dog, right. Sixty eight
percent of American households have a dog in it. Sure, right,
So let's build a community around that. Let's not talk
about disabilities. Like, we're having these struggles in the veteran community,
and I've been an advocate.
Speaker 6: Now I get injured to No. Four retired like sixteen.
Speaker 10: Eighteen years, and I promise you the number one reason
why we're struggling so hard in the veteran community is
how we deliver services to them.
Speaker 2: So okay, So I expound, okay, expounded that because I
was actually gonna be my next west V days, Like
what what do y'all think is the.
Speaker 3: Number one issue.
Speaker 2: So what what do you mean by in how we're
delivering services?
Speaker 6: Just so the VAH Yeah.
Speaker 10: All right, So the VA they get a half a
trillion dollars annually in budget.
Speaker 6: There's eighteen million veterans.
Speaker 10: Can you tell me the percentage of how many veterans
they take care of annually?
Speaker 2: But yeah, that doesn't make any I mean that they
would feel like there's more than another right.
Speaker 10: They only service thirty percent of the veterans. What, we're
not guaranteed health care everbody thinks we're guaranteed health care.
Speaker 2: You're guaranteed care.
Speaker 10: You only get it for one year unless you file
for a disability right, and then your family's not entitled
to health care unless you retire or you get to
one hundred percent.
Speaker 3: Oh my god, So if.
Speaker 6: You're not missed.
Speaker 10: And even like when I left Walter Reed, I was
blown up, lost five friends, had retained shraped, and I
lost a leg. I left there at fifty percent. It
took me eight years to get to one hundred percent.
Took me to get a master's degree from USC and
an emphasis on military life and social work. It took
me becoming an accredited Veteran Benefit officer to understand this system. Right, So,
losing your leg below the knee is a is a
forty percent max rating, Losing it above the knee is
a sixty percent max rating.
Speaker 6: Contracting genital herpes.
Speaker 10: Is a sixty percent rating.
Speaker 6: Is a fifty percent rating? No way it is. It is.
Speaker 10: But then you look at the nonprofits too, right, and
I love them. There's a lot of goods, Like seventy
thousand veteran centric nonprofits. There's only eighteen million veterans, twelve
million of which are fifty five and older. Four million
of that twelve men. It's seventy five and older. We're shrinking.
But yet all these nonprofits, the majority of them, are like,
you have to be post nine to eleven. You have
to have a rating, you have to have been I'm bad.
You have to be this, you have to be that.
And yet everybody keeps saying veterans, you deserve everything. But
when we come, we finally get to that point to
ask for help.
Speaker 6: There's conditions today.
Speaker 12: Yeah, but you wonder why you see, like the whole dogs, Yeah,
you like, I used to be one of those ones.
Be like, man, how did you serve so much time?
And you're homeless or you ended up in a shelter
for these very reasons. R Yes, for these very JA
is talking about I did over twenty and you would
think like going over twenty with one arm and I
also have one kidney?
Speaker 3: What you know what I mean? And you should be made.
Speaker 2: You should be taking you with what you what you
sacrificed for the richest country on planet Earth, you should
be taking care of now.
Speaker 6: No, listen to this.
Speaker 10: Now, we did this will only I joined the Marine Corps, right,
that's the United States Marine Corps USMC. USMC also stands
for you signed the mother fing contract.
Speaker 6: Right.
Speaker 10: So I'm not saying we're entitled. And I don't want
people to feel forced. So why I don't say, if
you're not patriotic, that's not my problem, right. It's like
if you don't believe in God, that's not my problem.
Speaker 6: Right.
Speaker 10: But I want to inspire people to want to invest
in this community. And I want these veterans to understand,
quit being the victim, Quit asking for.
Speaker 6: A handout, show the strength that you have.
Speaker 10: You have all the agency you need to overcome these disabilities.
Speaker 6: Damn the VA.
Speaker 10: Most of these guys won't get better because they're afraid
they'll lose their benefits. If some VA raiders says that
they're better, they'll lose their money, they'll lose their medical
care for their families. So we have purposely incentivized these
men and women not to get better. It's like their
phone at ten crack commitments.
Speaker 6: It's so crazy.
Speaker 12: So like I served after I lost my arm, everybody
was like, man, why'd you stay in so long? And
you could have just got out then, you know, and
got medical retirement. I was scared shitless to get out.
I was scared because I didn't know what was going
to happen to my life. I was like, you know what,
I woult have collect this active duty paycheck for as
long as I can, because once I'm out, you're kind
of like on your own. If you are not a
fan for yourself, or if you don't know somebody, it's
that old saying is not what you know is who
you know?
Speaker 2: I mean, think about your whole life in this one environment, right,
you grow up in this environment. All of a sudden
it's a very controlled, very teamwart like you said.
Speaker 10: And then what you're just like cast out, Like well,
that's my problem is like why do we have the
Department of Defense that when we come in we raise
our right hand, you know, we go to them, but
when we get hurt or we're done, they just ship
us off to the VAH. Like why doesn't the d
d own us from the moment we pledge our allegiance
until we die?
Speaker 3: Yeah?
Speaker 10: Man, they get almost how many trillions of dollars that
are unaccountable?
Speaker 6: Right?
Speaker 3: Complex help Right?
Speaker 10: So it's you know, that's why we don't take any
government money. We never will. I don't believe. I think
the government is the problem. And and I believe in
the American people. And that's why we're calling to them
and like we're not begging. I don't want to pull
your heart strings. I think everybody else has pulled the
heart strings out of this country. Like we're not here
saying that we're we're needy. The only people I say
I'm disabled to us to the VA and I r
s yep. Rather than that, there ain't nothing I can't
do on this foot.
Speaker 2: Well, And and that's what's incredible VJ and Mike is
like you talk about taking initiative, you talk about saying
you know, no, I'm going to kind of U claim.
Speaker 3: My life back. You ain't got a master's right.
Speaker 2: You're in the Olympics like you guys are shining examples
of this and that's very cool what you're doing with
Sierra Delta.
Speaker 3: Man.
Speaker 2: I can't can't thank you'all enough for your service, and
I can't thank you all enough for coming by today.
Speaker 10: Man, Thanks for giving us the platform. This is how
we're going to get the word out absolutely man.
Speaker 2: Guys, go to Sierra Delta dot com if you want
to get involved again. We can't thank you no, thank you, guys.
We'll be back with more Off the bench coming up.
Speaker 3: Next Off the Bench to day.
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Star Batteries dot Com Today.
Speaker 11: Three Man, because you love me so bad, anyone can
see me bound.
Speaker 1: Off the Bench with Hester and T Bob live from
Super Bowl fifty nine Radio Row in New Orleans, presented
by Low Bears Casino Hotel, Baton Rouge.
Speaker 2: I'm a radio professional, guys, I promise, okay, I know
exactly what I'm doing, and what I'm doing right now
is talking to one of my favorite people ever. Uh
used to be a weekly guest of Off the Bench
back in the day. Used to be a guy that
really helped me out, brought me up in this business.
Who worked at WWL together. Uh Saints Legend or Miss Legend,
the man and you know, looking very skinny nowadays, guys,
juice for callous or do whats up?
Speaker 3: Brother T Bob.
Speaker 4: I don't know if this was a good decision what
for them to allow us to be able to get
together in New Orleans Super Bowl. We You know the
best part about it, though, I will say, is we're
not amongst the street. If we were on the street
right now, I don't know how much work we would
be getting done, and so I don't know how much
work we're gonna get done now in this segment, U.
Speaker 3: He wants to get a little freaky guy.
Speaker 2: You you see what I'm saying, and so we I'm
in this is then I'm gonna ask you this.
Speaker 3: We're gonna keep it PG. No, we're not. I'm gonna
ask me well, as much as possible.
Speaker 2: I'm gonna ask you this. Duce Chad Johnson. This morning
one tweeted, I've ended up with a young lady in
my bed and I don't want to be rude.
Speaker 3: How to I asked her to leave? But how do
you ask her to leave? You can't without her get
up to like what you play? There?
Speaker 4: Security, there's an issue on this floor, and you know
we have to basically leave the premises.
Speaker 2: Uh.
Speaker 4: I don't know how we ended up in this situation,
but you know, I don't want that to escalate any better.
So I guess we gotta we gotta listen to.
Speaker 2: A security here go with the fake fire drill. You
gotta pull you got you got you gotta pull it.
I mean, I mean you have more experience than I do.
Speaker 4: Hey, that seems a little bold and and and and
situations like that at what time.
Speaker 6: So it's it's it's not getting any.
Speaker 2: Earlier that you fire drill actually does play in the
middle of the night potentially because like it's one of
the only things they could act happened that that could
cause everybody to have to hey, dude, oh missus predamn good.
Speaker 3: This year both not not good enough to beat LSU.
Speaker 4: Probably the most frustrating, one of the most frustrating games
because you had bet, you had opportunities, but you kind
of got greedy, particularly in the first half. Yeah, and
you knew and I do as well, playing in that
stadium at night, and the Tigers just that confidence is
gonna calm and if you don't kind of put that
game at least somewhat out of reach early on, or
at least put.
Speaker 3: Them up fourteen points.
Speaker 4: Yeah, the closer it gets to the third and fourth quarter,
and if that game is close, yeah, let the stadium
come up.
Speaker 6: Look, it's it's it's good good, good night. This same Susie, and.
Speaker 2: And the same thing is gonna be the case when
LSU goes to Oxford next year.
Speaker 4: Uh, you have a you have a quarterback that's coming
back that has a ton of experience and that should
be good. No that, but that's what I'm saying. And
in the sec when you have that, and then you
look at the weapons on the outside. You know l
s U didn't run the ball as well as they
should have this year. Particularly we'll just call it two
tackles that will be uh one should be a top
ten and one will be probably still first round.
Speaker 2: Yeah, when you have that type of talent dominated crazy.
I mean, so you got you got running behind that.
If you were on this LSU team, they probably wouldn't
won a champion. It doesn't have to It could be
you running back there. I mean, it's just like t bop.
The holes are there. You have too much experience outside
in the tight end position. And so that was probably
the biggest first surprise because your defense played well enough
even with the injuries, even with the injuries that you had.
And so it's always intriguing and I had the opportunity
to talk to some of the guys. Look how much
college football has changed. I mean it's always been semi
pro NFL, but it is like it's Triple A. It's
and so triple A but with actual money players they're
all they're all first rounders, you know, the first round. Yes,
they're all first rounders. I mean, and so they are all.
You know, the parking lot is a lot different, I'll
put it that way. The parking lot is a lot
different it used to be. You know, you got the
hills and the comas. No no, no more of that, baby,
No more of that.
Speaker 3: Uh dude.
Speaker 2: So uh you're you're, you're, you are promoting a healthy
lifestyle right in general for everybody. And if guys everything
you look great, man, you look really good, like you've
been dropping the Melb's.
Speaker 4: Man, you look fantastic. So Rivers has has done a
great job. So it's really that's what it's about. I mean,
it's just like you know, not only from football players,
but you know Americans in general. You talk about when
when you look at the numbers and the stats, it's
it's it's like, whoa we gotta we got especially we're
pretty fast. Yeah, So from an obesity standpoint, just making
sure that we can from from a water. I saw
you have some water over there. I'm proud of you.
Now you just gotta drink it, you gotta use it.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm a water electrolytes, guy, yes or anything.
Speaker 4: I like that, and so just making sure from an
American standpoint, we do a little bit better job at it.
And for me, it's just really encouragement. It doesn't have
to be perfect. So if you miss one of your
workout days, yes it's okay. Yeah, you just got to
make sure that you go the next day.
Speaker 3: You can't let I mean that is so true.
Speaker 2: It's like you can't let the guilt compound and then
make the situation. Just do it, just do just don't
don't you about the big picture? Folks are what you
to phrase? Just get it done that day. Well, and
another part of it, t Bob, is you know start
with ten minutes? Yeah, yeah, hey, don't worry about the
hour workout. Just start with ten minutes. Start with a
ten minute work dude. I love you man, but so
you're kicking me off.
Speaker 3: Yeah, we gotta go. I love you here, so you
gotta you got nothing.
Speaker 2: Shout out to Maine Event in Baton Rouge my guys
at made event. It took a at Main Event Batteries
your headquarters from We love our educators and nobody deserves
more fun than our educators. Why Main Event is throwing
a complimentary appreciation party. We're calling all school teachers, administrators
and coaches to attend this free event in honor of
your hard work and dedication to year students. The celebration
is our way of saying thank you for all that
you do and the positive impact you have on the community.
It's going down Thursday, February thirteen, twenty twenty four, four
to six pm. So unlimited activities, sixty minutes of pre gameplay,
the game change your banquet, learned about play Academy, the
credit STEM curriculum program with lesson planned I'm secluded, plus
reward based trips to bring the best of learning and playing.
Speaker 3: Two kids.
Speaker 2: Shout out to main event, Shout out to your educator,
Shout out to you, dude.
Speaker 4: That's a that's a pre Valentine deal that they can
go and do that.
Speaker 3: And there you go. Bro right for Valentine's Day. Get
it right. February thirty ten. More to me tomorrow, Off
the bench,