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Making Monsters: Getting to Know Bears Jordan van den Berg · 2nd City Gridiron

• 0:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: All right, welcome back to another episode of Making Monsters, I'm Taylor Dollwer, joined now by Coach Parker Conley, had football coach now at Holy Innocence Episcopal School, but you were the coach of Jordan Band in America, we want to talk about today coach.
• 0:23
  [SPEAKER_01]: So first of all, thanks for taking the time and hopping on it and chatting a little Jordan with us.
• 0:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I'm just excited to be here.
• 0:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: It was a wonderful time to be with him.
• 0:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm not currently head coach for assisting now, but it was a pleasure to be his head coach when he was coming through high school and just to watch him grow has been great.
• 0:37
  [SPEAKER_01]: which his story is super cool.
• 0:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: So Providence, Christian Academy is where you coach him at.
• 0:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: But for people that don't know, he was born in South Africa.
• 0:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: He ended up coming when he was 10 years old over to the United States.
• 0:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so it's kind of funny storyline because when you're reading about it, he played rugby and cricket as a kid when he was in South Africa came over here, friends play football.
• 0:57
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm sure that's probably some of the story of how he got into football.
• 1:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: But you started as the head coach at that school right when he was
• 1:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: getting there and when he didn't play until sophomore year so freshman year no football for him.
• 1:08
  [SPEAKER_01]: I heard his parents didn't really want him to play football initially and then sophomore year started playing.
• 1:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: So start a little bit just that conversation of seeing him first on the football field at first experience of seeing Jordan Vanderberg out there.
• 1:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, it was mostly to make sure he stayed out of trouble, when he was running on the hallways.
• 1:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: I was like, you need something to do.
• 1:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so at that time, he started to grow a little bit.
• 1:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: He still wasn't very big, but I knew all this friends played.
• 1:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so we just said, hey, come try it.
• 1:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: And he has natural athletic ability, but he was just raw, and that's kind of the way I would describe it.
• 1:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: He was just this athlete that was running around, not really knowing what to do, but he did it full speed.
• 1:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so that was something that we as a coaching staff saw very quickly.
• 1:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: That he was a guy that just wanted to learn, but he wanted to do it to the best of his ability.
• 1:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: And between his first season and moving into a second season, he was just a complete animal ran all over the field.
• 1:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: Side line to side line never came off.
• 2:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: And again, it was just his desire and his effort more than anything.
• 2:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: And then as he became a better student of the game, he just saw him turn into the caliber player that everyone now knows him as.
• 2:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, it's really, the reason we're doing the podcast on him right now is already through camp, the bear's drafted him in the sixth round, obviously.
• 2:16
  [SPEAKER_01]: And he's already getting reps with the ones at training at training camp.
• 2:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then during preseason, already an eliminated amount, I think only 15 snaps against the and the past and past rush, but had three pressures in this 15 snaps.
• 2:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: So you're already seeing that.
• 2:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: And that's why I think it's really exciting because it's something that the bears have lacked.
• 2:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: for a little bit of time, which is where to say, because the defense used to be everything, but it's been a little bit of a roll-load coaster, especially up there at defensive tackle.
• 2:41
  [SPEAKER_01]: So chat a little bit about the position, did he, because I think I read, he was on offense initially and then gained some weight and transferred over to the defensive side of the ball?
• 2:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, really, we were just such a small school that he was anywhere and everywhere.
• 2:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, there might have been,
• 2:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: Some games that he never stepped off the field, often stiff and special teams.
• 2:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so as he was entering into a senior year, we had moved him to Mike Linebacker, mainly out in necessity for a larger high school program, he probably would have played a defensive end or outside Linebacker.
• 3:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: But we needed him at Mike, just to be able to run kind of our whole defense and go downhill all across the field.
• 3:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: So, as he was getting recruited, I was saying, you know, he still has such a big frame.
• 3:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: He had really kind of grown up between the later part of his high school career.
• 3:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I was trying to help him get recruited for defensive line mainly.
• 3:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: And it was a couple of schools that had seen his tape and seen how fast he was, but they weren't necessarily willing to invest in that.
• 3:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so, I will Western took the chance on him and just knew his motor on defense, knew how much he liked contact.
• 3:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: And that was really what allowed for him to
• 3:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: become a specialist at what he did.
• 3:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: He wasn't having to be kind of all things for us.
• 3:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: He was able to go and focus on getting bigger, working in a position.
• 3:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think that was where he put on an incredible amount of weight, testament to him and his hard work, and then realized that with his speed and strength that he could take up a lot of space in the interior, and I think that was where he really found his foothold.
• 4:05
  [SPEAKER_01]: you talked a little bit about like just being raw and having some of those just natural obviously just the natural athletic ability I guess you would say but what was the hardest thing for you and someone growing up playing just completely different sports and then coming into this world and not having that until their soft horse season a lot of these guys have been playing probably around him had been playing football since they were children and so what was the hardest thing for that to kind of transfer from that rugby mindset to the football mindset.
• 4:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, I think it was good because as soon as we put it into terms of he understood, it was like a click.
• 4:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: I didn't have to say it three or four times.
• 4:38
  [SPEAKER_00]: Really what it came down to was understanding like the finer details of the game, understanding what it meant to be off sides versus, or if you're in slot receiver, or if you're the Titan attacks, things like that, understanding how we're calling the defense and the strengths and things like that.
• 4:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: But he was just a guy that was just so,
• 4:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: fast and so capable that the hardest part was some of his teammates.
• 5:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm not going to say who we're struggling to get in line with him on certain drills because they didn't want to do it.
• 5:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: And he knows one speed and that's full speed.
• 5:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think the bears have seen that at camp.
• 5:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think Georgia Tech and Coach Key really understood that because he's just he has that motor that will go full speed.
• 5:16
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so for us that was the hardest part, you know, small.
• 5:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: One private school, some of the moms were saying, hey, we go slower and he just didn't know how to do that.
• 5:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: So that was exciting again to see him be able to compete and do that and that's just the Jordan that I know.
• 5:30
  [SPEAKER_01]: One of the important things that especially this regime with the bears has been very focused on.
• 5:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: Number one, work ethic, been Johnson's very vocal about if you don't put in the work, you're not gonna see the field.
• 5:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: And we saw that even early last year with some of the younger guys that took some time for them to get in because of that.
• 5:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: But also good humans, that's very a big emphasis in this bears regime and what they focus on.
• 5:50
  [SPEAKER_01]: And so I feel like to you, is that would you connect that with them just the type of human being?
• 5:55
  [SPEAKER_01]: He is when it comes to, we're hearing the lyric, we're hearing the work ethic and so that next part is just the human.
• 6:00
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean, he's one of the most incredible people I've ever met and every time I talk to him, it still feels like it's a high school kid talking this coach.
• 6:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: Just incredibly respectful.
• 6:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: He is just such a kind, hearted individual that cares about others.
• 6:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: Loves his family, loves his friend, extremely loyal, and can turn it on.
• 6:17
  [SPEAKER_00]: And right, and I think that's a beautiful thing for a football player to be able to have that, you know, that incredible work ethic and respect of his peers, because if who is a person and then to have the same thing as a violent competitor or strong, you know, football player, all he knows is putting in work.
• 6:33
  [SPEAKER_00]: And like I said, it's 100% it doesn't matter if it's him.
• 6:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: in the weight room, or if it's him in meetings, he is putting every aspect of his being into it.
• 6:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I knew whichever school going out of high school would take him would get that type of person.
• 6:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: And now obviously getting drafted by the bears, I think that they saw and they recognize those intangibles of the type of human he is and the type of student of the game he is.
• 6:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: Was there any moments like a specific game or moment where you were watching him and you're like, okay, this guy's a little bit different?
• 7:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, you know, as a walk-on, I was able to see that talent in my face, you know, and so he kind of knew how the type of caliber player that was.
• 7:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: His going into his junior year, we knew he was something special.
• 7:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: Again, the way that he could fight on Hill, the way that he would run down on kickoffs.
• 7:17
  [SPEAKER_00]: His junior year probably our second or third game of the year.
• 7:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: He started to really click, started to really click on what he needed to do in his roles.
• 7:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so as soon as he understood what we were asking of him,
• 7:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: we would score a touchdown and then he would be the first person as our offensive tackle running down on the kickoff, taking out two or three guys and making the tackle.
• 7:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: He, in one stretch, I can't remember the exact number of games, but he broke though like single single game tackle record like three or four games in a row.
• 7:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: It was incredible and that was just breaking his own record.
• 7:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: He broke it and then the next game went and did a couple more and then kept doing it and that was
• 7:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: That was where it was like, okay, this is D1.
• 7:58
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like this is not a college football player, this is D1.
• 8:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: And that was where I knew for him.
• 8:04
  [SPEAKER_00]: If he truly stayed out of trouble and he really just dedicated himself to it, that was he was going to find success in football.
• 8:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, one of the things going back reading some of his the numbers from his high school time one I think it might have been his junior maybe was senior year, but I thought it was junior he had like a hundred he broke the record I guess for the school record of tackles, which I believe was 154, but the thing that stood out to me were those tackles for loss because I think a lot of times we see we see that tackle number and we're like, okay, where did the tackle happen and what was kind of going around if you see 14 tackles for loss.
• 8:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: you're like, oh, okay, he's in the right spot and there's a lot to that.
• 8:39
  [SPEAKER_01]: You're playing with speed, obviously some of those things, but the mental side of the game too, for someone like that to wrap up those TFLs, that's something that I like to see.
• 8:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, and he was so good at timing the snap, but doing it in a way that was explosive and not just bull rushing.
• 8:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I think where he has a lot of success in the interior of the line, it's his ability to split between blocks and you know, find those those gaps in this
• 9:02
  [SPEAKER_00]: whether for us, he was just going straight through offenses and was just going straight down hill.
• 9:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: But I think as he was playing Penn State and Georgia Tech, he was able to wreak havoc.
• 9:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I'm excited for his ability to do that.
• 9:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think it helps his teammates around him when he's taking two or three blocks, where he's the one that's disrupting the play and someone else gets that credit.
• 9:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like you said, it's the tackles for loss that he's making plays and he's contributing to his team.
• 9:26
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, and that's right.
• 9:27
  [SPEAKER_01]: I love that TFL number anytime I see those because you even saw it in a couple of moments in this first preseason game.
• 9:32
  [SPEAKER_01]: I'm kind of like shooting that gap getting between, but then it doesn't end there.
• 9:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: You would see him chase down like, you know, whether it was a run play or a past play, you're seeing him chase the ball no matter what, so that's an endless pursuit of him until this plays over and you saw that just in one preseason game.
• 9:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: So that makes it really exciting.
• 9:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: I didn't want to talk a little bit about the recruiting.
• 9:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: You mentioned a tad bit of that when it comes to him having to go to a Jukego school to start, which I think can be difficult for kids at sometimes, especially if you feel like you should have maybe been recruited a little more or that star, they throw out the star, ring the ratings all the time now.
• 10:04
  [SPEAKER_01]: But it kind of shows his personality, I think, in the sense of going there, let me play this year and then figure it out.
• 10:09
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then obviously, then transferring to Penn State and then having the career.
• 10:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: He did a Georgia Tech, too.
• 10:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: But talk about that process a little bit for him and what you guys were going
• 10:18
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, the county that we were in was just a major market in Atlanta.
• 10:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, the amount of NFL caliber players that have come out of Gwyneth County in Atlanta is just astounding.
• 10:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: And again, we were smaller schools surrounded by big schools.
• 10:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: You know, you've got Beaufort, a national powerhouse.
• 10:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: You've got a lot of schools in Gwyneth County that produce tremendous athletes.
• 10:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I think part of it, too, was the comparison trap of, you know, yes, he's a good player, but he's a good player on a small school.
• 10:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: And as he got county honors, he got region honors.
• 10:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I was just trying to tell coach is like, this kid is, is anything you want him to be, right?
• 10:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: He can play lineback or you can play edge.
• 10:53
  [SPEAKER_00]: He can get on the interior.
• 10:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's strong.
• 10:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's fasty cares.
• 10:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I think a little bit of his recruitment was lighter just because of our program being young, our program being small.
• 11:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: So we got a couple of D2D3 looks.
• 11:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: Really none of those offers that were made as splash, you know, in any of the, you know, internet or any of the school talks.
• 11:13
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so he asked me what I thought that he should do in his family and I, we talked about it, we talked about our defensive coordinator, Ken Aldridge, and we said, we believe that you're D1.
• 11:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: And if you're going to bet on yourself, then take the jukeover out.
• 11:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think I will Western saw it, they felt it.
• 11:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: They were, they were the type of school that was like truly like we see the vision.
• 11:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: Here's how we want to help you get to where you want to be.
• 11:33
  [SPEAKER_00]: And of course, scholarship financially, there's kind of the different routes that you take.
• 11:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: And he said, I want to bet on myself.
• 11:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: He said, I believe that I am what what I am.
• 11:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I believe that I can go make an impact.
• 11:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I said, OK, well, then you go up there.
• 11:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: And it's like zero mistakes.
• 11:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: And it's not from like he was making the stakes.
• 11:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: It was like you go up there where it's a business mindset.
• 11:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: the business mindset to get better.
• 11:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I heard reports and stories out of there.
• 11:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: Him in the weight room two, three times a day.
• 11:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: Him drinking gallons of milk because again, he believed that there were schools that were sleeping on him and that didn't know who he was.
• 12:03
  [SPEAKER_00]: So he's all conference up there and he does an incredible job.
• 12:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: He goes and visits, I believe, Iowa was first.
• 12:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: They saw it.
• 12:10
  [SPEAKER_00]: They felt it.
• 12:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: It goes in Nebraska.
• 12:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: It goes to Penn State, and all of a sudden the offers are just pouring in.
• 12:14
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.
• 12:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I am so proud of him because, yeah, like we helped him in high schools, amazing to get to coach him in high school, but it's the testament to him.
• 12:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: And his belief in himself, taking that chance knowing what he was capable of.
• 12:25
  [SPEAKER_00]: And again, I think that gives him that chip on his shoulder, that work ethic of people sleeping on him, people not wanting or not seeing the vision.
• 12:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: And those teams, and I'm really excited because I heard like the bears were excited to get him because they believed it too.
• 12:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: And like that to me is, is what I will Western did for him coming out of high school to seeing that belief and wanting him to be a part of the program.
• 12:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, everybody's path is a little different.
• 12:46
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I do these making monsters episodes on various players.
• 12:49
  [SPEAKER_01]: Some drafted in the first and second round, some undrafted, some in those late rounds.
• 12:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: And it's cool to just hear the different stories and for him that South Africa, the Georgia, the Iowa, the Pennsylvania, back to Georgia, now the Chicago, it's quite the path, but it is cool because it feels like he's been very just adamant of what his goals are.
• 13:06
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I did because I read in high school, he gained the 40 pounds, and that's what kind of led him to, you said, middle line, back her a lot.
• 13:12
  [SPEAKER_01]: And then I heard again another 40 pounds and that's what it led from the live-backer to defensive tackle position, so it kind of had like he has this mindset of where he wanted to be on the field too, it seems like
• 13:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: Well, and I think for him, too, he knew that he loved the physical nature of it.
• 13:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: I mean, he can squat and power clean the whole gym.
• 13:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so getting to do that in the trenches, I think really lent himself to playing in the line.
• 13:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so yeah, it was like, I think our last way and with him, he might have been 230.
• 13:38
  [SPEAKER_00]: And he came back over 300.
• 13:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: I was like, oh, goodness.
• 13:40
  [SPEAKER_00]: Like, that's a large human being.
• 13:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: But he was, you know, he was strong with us.
• 13:44
  [SPEAKER_00]: And just as he didn't need to gain more weight, like he just exploded in the way room.
• 13:48
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think for him, like you said, like he recognized what it meant to get him on the field and he wanted to do whatever it took to get there.
• 13:54
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, he did an interview over this weekend.
• 13:56
  [SPEAKER_01]: I can't, I don't know if it was before or after the game, but he used, he said his mindset or guess his mantra for himself is disruptive, fast and violent.
• 14:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: And I was like, that's the exact, like, if you talk about Chicago Bears football, those are the words that you want to have this season.
• 14:11
  [SPEAKER_01]: So it's really yeah, I love the storyline.
• 14:13
  [SPEAKER_01]: So to talk a little bit more, so we ended up going to Penn State for the few years cool for me that he got to come back to Georgia.
• 14:19
  [SPEAKER_01]: It's like you start your football career in high school at Georgia and you get to come back and play for Georgia Tech and to your point on a bright key and there's a lot of good things happening in at the school and that time and so it's kind of fun.
• 14:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: The ACC feels pretty open and recent years and so you get to kind of experience different levels of football when you go from due code of big 10.
• 14:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: to ACC, but chat a little bit about that.
• 14:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: How much did you get to talk to him when he was making that decision to go over to Georgia Tech?
• 14:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, it was, well, I was incredibly proud of him because if I remember correctly, he finished his master's at Penn State.
• 14:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think he's got two masters now and I think he recognized to football will end.
• 14:54
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so setting himself up was really good and so I was happy that even though he may not have played as much as he wanted to at Penn State or there might have been Coach Franklin and Coach Roverra, maybe.
• 15:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: But, you know, it was from the idea he wanted to find a place that he could just continue to thrive and grow.
• 15:11
  [SPEAKER_00]: And he told me all the time, like how much he loved being at Penn State and at the same time he wanted to find a way home and find an opportunity to really sink his teeth into a program.
• 15:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so we talked about a handful of opportunities that he had.
• 15:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: A lot different than when we started off, because then I helped him a big thing and so the potential offers for him.
• 15:31
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think just.
• 15:32
  [SPEAKER_00]: His community at home, we care so deeply for him and his families here and I think that was a really big thing to be able to come home and play in a program with the coach like Coach Key that is true to Georgia Tech, loves Georgia Tech, loves developing players and men that want to play for each other and so is the best of all the worlds and I think that that was really impressive for him to make that decision, turning down what I believe were some other nicer in IL offers or maybe
• 15:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: some higher perks or maybe even a higher, a different program.
• 16:01
  [SPEAKER_00]: I'm not saying higher calories, it's a different program, but he knew what he wanted and again Coach Key saw it and so for him just take off be all ACC was incredible.
• 16:10
  [SPEAKER_01]: That was it's really fun to see that and it's it's kind of sometimes the development seems like maybe it took a little longer whether that be through high school kind of having to learn things from what other kids have been learning for 10 plus years probably at that point and then college maybe it takes a little bit longer but then just think about that it seems like he's picking up the NFL level now you got to go play a real game and and you know real speed and all of that stuff we talk about that all the time but it's really cool to kind of see him already making these flashes did you watch him at all on Saturday were you able to.
• 16:38
  [SPEAKER_00]: I did, and I'm not going to say about a couple tiers of the eyes, but a lot of tiers get on.
• 16:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: You know, that's the type of engine he has.
• 16:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: And yeah, and anything he's going to do, he's going to be in those meetings, a hundred percent.
• 16:49
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's going to be in the treatment room, a hundred percent.
• 16:51
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I know that that's who he is and what he's doing.
• 16:55
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I think again, it's to me, I'm not shocked because that's who he is.
• 16:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: And that's how he operates.
• 17:00
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, a couple more just before I let you go.
• 17:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: So when you talk about that defensive tackle level at the NFL level, that's something like I mentioned that the bears recently have been trying to figure out they've taken, you know, they drafted a guy drive on Dexter out of Florida, not too long ago.
• 17:15
  [SPEAKER_01]: And you kind of saw this fast burst of okay, this guy could be really good and it's leveled out a little bit.
• 17:20
  [SPEAKER_01]: They go and sign grated Jared last year.
• 17:22
  [SPEAKER_01]: He's been only obviously for a really long time.
• 17:24
  [SPEAKER_01]: probably tail end of his career, but they're definitely looking for that guy that can be that replacement.
• 17:28
  [SPEAKER_01]: Do you have that faith in Jordan that he can be that guy to come and kind of take over that spot in the middle?
• 17:34
  [SPEAKER_01]: And where do you like him the best on the line by the way?
• 17:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, I mean, I think it's a great fit for him.
• 17:38
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think because he's so fast, it's going to require the interior of the line to really communicate and work effectively.
• 17:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think it all, you know, it always starts with a snap.
• 17:47
  [SPEAKER_00]: So again, if the center is having to think about this really fast and powerful nose, or tackle, you know, then that's causing the offense to not run as fast as he would want.
• 17:56
  [SPEAKER_00]: When I saw all kind of the room that he was going into, and of course, the draft projections and everything else, I was like, what a great opportunity for him to learn and grow from some really seasoned veterans.
• 18:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: And of course, like guys that have been around the league for a while.
• 18:08
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I just know, for him, he's not going in with any sort of ego or agenda.
• 18:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's going to go in and do the best that he can.
• 18:14
  [SPEAKER_00]: And when I hear the reports coming out, you know, it was at the body slam a couple weeks ago, you know, going against the ones, I didn't see it as like, oh, I'm taking somebody's spot.
• 18:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: I just saw that and read that as, oh, he's just going and doing what he does, doesn't matter who it's against.
• 18:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: And again, like, he's not going to come in as an ego and say, I deserve this.
• 18:33
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's going to come in hungry.
• 18:34
  [SPEAKER_00]: And that's just how he's been.
• 18:35
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah.
• 18:36
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I think,
• 18:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: with the wisdom that's around him in that room.
• 18:39
  [SPEAKER_00]: And of course, the coaching staff really putting the right people in place.
• 18:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's just going to be a sponge.
• 18:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's not going to come in and think he knows it.
• 18:45
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's going to come in and want to do his part for the people around him.
• 18:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: Have you talked to him since he's gotten drafted and been around Ben Johnson and Dennis Allen.
• 18:52
  [SPEAKER_00]: Um, I, he's, he's telling me how crazy it is, just how fast everything is, you know, you get one install period and then it's life, right?
• 18:59
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so, um, I think he's he is tactfully being, um, he's very humble, right?
• 19:05
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's preseason game number one.
• 19:06
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's just excited about how it's going.
• 19:07
  [SPEAKER_00]: He's been telling me about.
• 19:09
  [SPEAKER_00]: uh, the couple of times we connected right after, um, OTAs and just being able just to get around the program, just how fast everything is, but at the same time how much he's enjoying learning it.
• 19:19
  [SPEAKER_00]: And so I'm trying to plan the game to get up to Chicago.
• 19:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: I know they're in Atlanta.
• 19:23
  [SPEAKER_00]: I think everyone in their mother is going to try to get to the game in Atlanta.
• 19:26
  [SPEAKER_00]: I want the real deal with both your field.
• 19:28
  [SPEAKER_00]: I want to make sure I get up there.
• 19:29
  [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I want it I'm definitely going to try and get up for a game because I love in Florida.
• 19:33
  [SPEAKER_01]: So it was December game I like.
• 19:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: I feel like you want to be in the elements to just add something extra, but they do.
• 19:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: They play in Atlanta and they play in Charlotte.
• 19:40
  [SPEAKER_01]: So there's a couple of close to you that you could maybe go see him on the top of there.
• 19:43
  [SPEAKER_00]: But yeah, I don't know.
• 19:44
  [SPEAKER_00]: I want it all want to get up there and experience it.
• 19:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: I love that.
• 19:48
  [SPEAKER_01]: All right, Coach, well, I appreciate it so much, like so much for you taking the time chatting with us.
• 19:52
  [SPEAKER_01]: We're super excited.
• 19:53
  [SPEAKER_01]: I mean, there's times where you go through camp and pre-season and you're like, okay, you know, that guy's nice and that was fun and usually it's receivers because I feel like it's easier to kind of see those receivers make flashy plays.
• 20:03
  [SPEAKER_01]: So to be talking about the defensive tackle this early and the pre-season, I think is really cool, but we're excited about Jordan, so I really appreciate you help it on and kind of share in a story a little bit.
• 20:12
  [SPEAKER_00]: Yeah, it's a blessing to watch him just so proud of his journey.
• 20:15
  [SPEAKER_00]: And if you really want another type of player, he is just watch him when the ball's not around him.
• 20:20
  [SPEAKER_00]: It's a full speed effort.
• 20:21
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're seeing a guy chasing people down.
• 20:22
  [SPEAKER_00]: You're seeing a guy who never quits.
• 20:24
  [SPEAKER_00]: And that's the incredible part of it.
• 20:27
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I'm glad that the bears see that and have seen that.
• 20:29
  [SPEAKER_00]: And I hope you stay healthy.
• 20:30
  [SPEAKER_00]: I hope he continues to climb and figure things out.
• 20:33
  [SPEAKER_00]: And now I'm a big bears fan.
• 20:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: I love it.
• 20:35
  [SPEAKER_01]: Are you guys the bears like your school year?
• 20:37
  [SPEAKER_00]: For the board of bears.
• 20:38
  [SPEAKER_01]: So it's all fair as we can say.
• 20:41
  [SPEAKER_00]: Easy for me to say that.
• 20:42
  [SPEAKER_00]: It comes off the Congress.
• 20:44
  [SPEAKER_01]: All right.
• 20:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Thanks so much.
• 20:45
  [SPEAKER_01]: Have a good one.
• 20:46
  [SPEAKER_00]: Good bye.
• 20:47
  [SPEAKER_01]: Bye.