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Perspectives - Mark Brunell · The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network

• 0:03
  Speaker 1: The following presentation of the Jaguars Podcast Network is presented
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: by by Start Credit. Mark Brunel is still in many
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: ways the face of the franchise in Jacksonville, though it's
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: been nearly two decades since he last pulled on the
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: teal eight. More than any other player, the quarterback, who
• 0:32
  Speaker 1: is hand selected by Tom Coughlin to lead his first team,
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: represents the golden era of Jaguars football. Or thirty eight
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: or thirty seven four thirty six? Can the Jaguars make
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: something happen? Cornell under center and sends Keen an emotion
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: from the near to the far side. He'll take the
• 0:48
  Speaker 1: snap and drop back to throw pressure coming. He's dumping
• 0:50
  Speaker 1: out to the near side, pump back. It cuts across
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: the fifty franks and tackle of the forty five. He's
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: at the forty Mark Burnell running to the far side, left,
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: turn the corner thirty five thirty down to the inside,
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: both leaping for the twenty one. Mark Burnell with a
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: masterful run of twenty nine yards, and the clock continues
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: to run. This is perspectives the story of the Jaguars
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: first twenty five years as told by the people who
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: built the franchise. This is Mark Brunell, the scrambling style,
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: the guns lingers bravado, the big winds and crushing losses.
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: Mark Brunell lived the early years of the Jaguars and
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: years later. In some respects, it seems as if he
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: simply survived them. His name hangs high above the field
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: in the stadium he once lorded over as the quarterback,
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: as the gladiator whose name was praised every Sunday. But
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: it wasn't as easy as the warm, charming man who
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: isn't afraid of his legacy might lead you to believe
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: I was never a great quarterback. You won't look back
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: and say, you know, Mark Burnell was a great quarterback,
• 2:00
  Speaker 1: but I had some great moments. Brunelle and his teammates
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: didn't have many of those through the first twenty seven
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: games the Jaguars played in ninety six, sure, the win
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: in Houston to secure victory for the first time, and
• 2:11
  Speaker 1: the inaugural win over the Steelers in the inaugural season
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: gave everyone a taste of the glory that lay ahead.
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: In November, when a club fractured by mounting losses, a
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: difficult and demanding coach plus a polarizing player began a
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: run that would lead them to the brink of something special.
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: Pat is on their feet. The holder is Dan Strazinski.
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: The Jaguars playoffs hopes may indeed rest on display. It
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: is from thirty one yards. There's the snap the place,
• 2:40
  Speaker 1: but the kick is up. It's on the way, and
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: it's no good. It's no god, it's so good best
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: and the Jaguars are going to the class. Oh my goodness.
• 2:54
  Speaker 1: Nobody was more relieved that Morton had missed that kick
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: than I. We had the game won before that drive,
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: before the Falcons took that down and got got Morton
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: in field goal range with a third down, third and eight,
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: six thirty. I don't remember what it was, but I
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: remember thinking in the huddle, all right, we got this
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: play if we just you know, we're kind of in
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: four minute drill. We get a completion, we get a
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: first down. This is ours. So it's a big third down.
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: Because we don't remember the time, the specifics, I just
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: remember how important this third down was. So the play,
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: whatever the call was to, I go through my reads
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: while I decided to throw out to the comeback comebacks
• 3:40
  Speaker 1: wide open um. He catches the comeback. I don't even
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: remember the receiver, Brian. He catches the comeback, it's the
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: first down. We got another set of downs chances though,
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: We're going to ride this out in four minute offense
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: and win the game. I bounced it to him, bounce
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: it to him, wide open, and I just remember, now,
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: you didn't know you did? You? Just you know, comebacks
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: aren't the easiest to throw. But listen, UM, at least
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: get it in the general vicinity of the receiver. Um incomplete,
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: we gotta punt. They get it back. And so I'm thinking,
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: you know, if you complete one pass, this team's going
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: to playoffs. And I was just overwhelmed by it. I'm
• 4:22
  Speaker 1: on the sideline and I'm I'm sick to my stomach.
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: I just I can't stand myself. I'm thinking, oh no,
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: And you know you always say, you know, it's never
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: one player, it's never one play. You know that causes you.
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: But yeah, sometimes it is. Sometimes it's one player. Sometimes
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: it's one play. And that would have been on me.
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: And um, he misses that field goal. I thought I couldn't.
• 4:48
  Speaker 1: I couldn't. I couldn't believe it. Morton doesn't miss from
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: that distance. Just doesn't miss so anyway, Uh Buffalo, no
• 4:55
  Speaker 1: chance gonna be called Jim Kelly, k gun. They never
• 4:59
  Speaker 1: lose up there. All right, let's give a shot, Brian.
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: That was it. Let us go up there and compete
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: and see what happens. No one gives us a chance.
• 5:08
  Speaker 1: Most of the guys in the locker room probably, you know,
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: if they were being truthful, didn't give us a chance.
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: Let's go play football. We've got a little role here. Obviously,
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: we've we've we're getting a couple breaks. We're here. Let's
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: go compete and see what happens. That was it there?
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: What's it anything like? Hey, I know it's Jim Kelly.
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: We're gonna go up there. Some guys might have been
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: spouting off all the confidence they had, and you know,
• 5:31
  Speaker 1: we've got some momentum and all this stuff bull crap.
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: Nobody thought we could win that game. Um, and I
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: know you're not supposed to say that, but you know,
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: it's just the odds are stacked against you. We were
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: just happy to be there. And some guys might give
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: you a different perspective and see say different things and
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: and and for me, I just thought, well, I get
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: to go against Jim Kelly in his place in a
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: playoff game day. It's pretty cool. Um, we just went
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: up there and played Get off the bus, it's cold, snow,
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: gotta walk through some hotel. It wasn't overly impressive, stayed
• 6:10
  Speaker 1: in the walk in there is just miserable, but it
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: was where Jim Kelly made his career. Get some great players,
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: and uh see what happens? Was it all I can
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: give you? I think I threw a couple of picks.
• 6:25
  Speaker 1: Clyd Simmons had a couple of big plays. Defense came
• 6:28
  Speaker 1: up when we needed them to. Uh, Natron ran well.
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: Um receivers, Kenyan, Jimmy did well. I think I had
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: to pick six. That didn't help things. So but I'll
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: tell you what. It was a team that, regardless of
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: how they thought this game would go, we still went
• 6:49
  Speaker 1: up there and we thought, you know what, we're going
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: to compete and no matter how ugly it gets early on,
• 6:56
  Speaker 1: no matter how bad it might seem for four quarters,
• 7:01
  Speaker 1: this group is going to fight. This group is gonna
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: try to make a play. This this team has some grit,
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: there's some there's some resolve about them. We're gonna go
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: out there and compete. We got no business being on
• 7:13
  Speaker 1: this field. We had no business being in the playoffs.
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: But here we're here, we are We're gonna go and
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: together we're gonna go compete and see how this turns out.
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: That was it. That was it, That was it, and
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: we won. Made some plays at the end. You gotta
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: make some place. What I loved about that was that
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: we are able to We were able to overcome some
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: really really bad place plays that lose games for you. Um,
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: we also were able to come up with that big
• 7:41
  Speaker 1: play that wins games for you. So you got both
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: in one game, you know, And and that's why it
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: was a close game. I think it was thirty seven.
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: It went down to the end, and we had guys
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: step up and we had guys go out there that
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: just did their job. It was Tony signature game as
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: a pro. It was Natron's his his runs. I had
• 8:07
  Speaker 1: a couple of throws in there, Clyde Simmons. Within that game,
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: there were a career identifying moments and we all kind
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: of got to be a part of them, which was
• 8:19
  Speaker 1: kind of cool. The thing about the Buffalo game is
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: that we go to Denver. All that Denver kind of
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: overshadowed how great Buffalo was. Would have talked a lot
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: about it. It's amazing. It was as big, if not bigger,
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: than Denver. The only difference is one got you to
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: the a f C Championship game. One got you into
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: the next round. So um, just a great moment. Love
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: that game. The euphoria of that when alone could have
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: carried them back to Jacksonville, but the fans who lined
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: the road from the airport to that night to welcome
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: them home built their belief into something that would lift
• 8:57
  Speaker 1: them a mile high that day. Uh. Personally, I got
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: to play against John Elway. I went to the Stanford
• 9:07
  Speaker 1: football camp when I was a sophomore in high school
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: and guess who was there? John Elway. His dad was,
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: His dad was, Jack was the head coach of Stanford
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: at the time. I'm remembering my years correctly. I just
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: know I was on Stanford's campus and John Elway he
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: was there. He's one of my favorites. Um how, he
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: is my favorite growing up. Um California kid. Anyway, just
• 9:30
  Speaker 1: a chance to compete against him, I thought was pretty cool. Now,
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: we stepped into Denver a little with a little different
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: mindset that we stepped into buffalo. Um, more confidence, momentum,
• 9:45
  Speaker 1: little swag about us. We didn't use that word back then, swag,
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: but we thought, you know, going in again, what were
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: they thirteen and three or something again and all the
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: stuff on the outside. You haven chance, John elwill you
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: can't do it two weeks in a row. All right,
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: same approach, but just a little bit more confident. We
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: just did it. Maybe we could pull it off again.
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: We get that first quarter and I think it's twelve
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: to nothing. No chance, right, no chance. But again, you know,
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: let's just keep competing, let's just keep fighting. Let's make
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: some plays. I'll see what happens. Maybe I get it
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: down to the end, we pull it off. That's what happened.
• 10:27
  Speaker 1: Made some plays offensively, defensively. Um, it was cool. I
• 10:33
  Speaker 1: never looked at the papers. I don't remember jaguards until afterwards.
• 10:38
  Speaker 1: I don't. It was just it was a great moment.
• 10:43
  Speaker 1: It was really really cool. The fly over. I wasn't
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: a fan of the flyover. I didn't like it. I
• 10:52
  Speaker 1: didn't like anything about it. It was too soon to me,
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: it was it was it was rushed. Don't we have
• 11:01
  Speaker 1: more work to do? Why? Why are we doing this
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: big celebration coming home with forty thousand or whatever it
• 11:09
  Speaker 1: was in the stadium. We've got another, We've got the
• 11:13
  Speaker 1: a f C Championship game. I never liked it. Then
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: looking back, I didn't. I didn't like it didn't feel right.
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: It was I get it. The fans loved it, and
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: it still talked about. I didn't want to get on
• 11:29
  Speaker 1: a microphone in front of all those people. Love them.
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: I thought it was great that they were out the
• 11:36
  Speaker 1: support and it was an awesome moment, but even at gosh,
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: what was I twenty five at the time. I hadn't
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: been around a long time, but I thought this, this
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: is not right. I didn't like it. It just was.
• 11:53
  Speaker 1: It was just too soon. And yeah, great moment, but
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: for me, person link, I thought it was the wrong
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: thing to do. More perspectives following this from Vistar Credit
• 12:07
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  Speaker 1: to approval, insured by n c u A. Surely this
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: team was just entering its window of opportunity. These Jaguars
• 12:45
  Speaker 1: would be a force, or at the very least a
• 12:47
  Speaker 1: factor in the a f C for as long as
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: Brunel was in the huddle. The windows slam shut on
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: a human night in New York when Giants linebacker Jesse
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: Armstead's helmet and the quarterbacks need collided and set the
• 12:58
  Speaker 1: Jaguars future to this side line, or so it seemed.
• 13:03
  Speaker 1: I hope you can appreciate that through the sound of
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: your car radio, your scary oh at home, wherever you
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: may be. The shame thing along our network. Mark Brunel,
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: number eight is on the field. The track wards are
• 13:14
  Speaker 1: on Monday Night football and the energy is unbelievable here
• 13:19
  Speaker 1: at all Tells Stadium. I knew it was a big deal,
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: but to me, it wasn't that big a deal. I
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: had done this in college. I had hurt my knee
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: in college m c O A c L major reconstruction. UM,
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: so I'd hurt my knee before and um and I
• 13:40
  Speaker 1: had come back from that. So when I hurt. When
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: I hurt my knee again, like I'm coming back. I've
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: done it before. I don't know how long it's gonna take,
• 13:48
  Speaker 1: don't know how bad it is. Um, But I I never,
• 13:54
  Speaker 1: I never thought I was in jeopardy of losing my team, um,
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: whether it was Rob or Steve. In my mind, it
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: was all right, hold down the fort. I'm gonna get
• 14:06
  Speaker 1: back as fast as I can. In college now, granted
• 14:10
  Speaker 1: I was eight nineteen years old. I came back from
• 14:13
  Speaker 1: an A c L and M c L in five months.
• 14:16
  Speaker 1: It was fast. It's fast, and I thought, all right,
• 14:21
  Speaker 1: I guess if there's a moment on this whole thing
• 14:24
  Speaker 1: to brag on myself, it would be this. I worked.
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: I worked, I worked hard and uh in the weight room,
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: whether it was rehab, treatment, treatment, it was something. There
• 14:35
  Speaker 1: was something about being the strongest I could be, being
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: the fastest I could be, getting back as fast as
• 14:40
  Speaker 1: I can, UM. And I knew I would work, and
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: I woul knew they'd do the right things. And I
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: knew if they said it was gonna be four weeks,
• 14:47
  Speaker 1: I was gonna make it too. Never never doubt that.
• 14:51
  Speaker 1: Um so um, we get into the opening, not being
• 14:57
  Speaker 1: there for opening day. It was excruciating. It was hard.
• 15:01
  Speaker 1: I wanted Rob to do well for Rob because he
• 15:06
  Speaker 1: was really Rob was was my favorite backup. Whole another story,
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: whole other story. But Rob, Rob had my back. Wasn't
• 15:16
  Speaker 1: trying to get my job. It wasn't competitive. We were
• 15:20
  Speaker 1: friends two ends the spectrum as far as personalities. But
• 15:24
  Speaker 1: I loved him, um protecting me, help me for a
• 15:28
  Speaker 1: young guy, knew the right things that anyway, I wanted
• 15:31
  Speaker 1: Rob to do well. I wanted us to win. And
• 15:34
  Speaker 1: but I would be lying to you if I told
• 15:36
  Speaker 1: you I'm looking at him, I'm thinking when he's playing
• 15:39
  Speaker 1: real well in Baltimo, I'm thinking Rob's pretty good. I'd
• 15:42
  Speaker 1: better get back real quick. I better hurry, I'd better
• 15:47
  Speaker 1: hurry my ass up. And uh, I wanted to be
• 15:51
  Speaker 1: out there so bad. And then and then Steve Matthews
• 15:55
  Speaker 1: the Giants game Week two, I thought, we don't have
• 15:57
  Speaker 1: a chance. That Joker goes out there and he had
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: five run plays and maybe ten passes in the in
• 16:05
  Speaker 1: the game plan that and it goes out there and
• 16:07
  Speaker 1: franchise record for to two points. I'm thinking, gosh, anybody
• 16:11
  Speaker 1: can do this. If Matthews can't. No, I'm just I'm
• 16:13
  Speaker 1: just kidding. I was happy for him, but then I
• 16:15
  Speaker 1: got back, Um, I shouldn't have played that game. Wasn't ready,
• 16:21
  Speaker 1: couldn't move, hurt like a mother. Um, but I faked it.
• 16:26
  Speaker 1: I convinced the who I needed to convince. I get
• 16:29
  Speaker 1: just enough on the on the testing, whatever it was
• 16:33
  Speaker 1: I think it was. I forget the name of the
• 16:35
  Speaker 1: machine and stuff. Yes it was the Cibex. I hated
• 16:38
  Speaker 1: that Sibex was horrible. Convinced Mike Uh said the right
• 16:43
  Speaker 1: things to Tom, said the right things to Dr Lucy
• 16:46
  Speaker 1: and Dr Tangerin. They just, I mean, just barely, you know.
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: It was enough to clear me. I just wanted to
• 16:54
  Speaker 1: get out there and compete. I wasn't gonna miss Monday Night.
• 16:57
  Speaker 1: I just wasn't. I can't. It's my team, I miss it. Um.
• 17:02
  Speaker 1: I was the best chance to win. I was their
• 17:03
  Speaker 1: best chance to win, and so I had to be
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: out there. That was it. Brunelle and the wonderfully talented
• 17:09
  Speaker 1: Jaguars would win three out of every four games they
• 17:11
  Speaker 1: played to the next three seasons, making the playoffs every
• 17:14
  Speaker 1: year and making their fans giddy as they climbed higher
• 17:17
  Speaker 1: and higher into that stratosphere reserved for those teams with
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: Super Bowl credentials. Smith and McCardell, Hardy and Brackens, Tony
• 17:26
  Speaker 1: and Taylor thrilled fans and built the demand for the
• 17:29
  Speaker 1: NFL and Jacksonville. No victory in franchise history inflamed expectations
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: like the sixty seven title way that wiped out Miami
• 17:39
  Speaker 1: a week later, though the losses were nearly as devastating
• 17:43
  Speaker 1: in the home team's locker room. By far the most
• 17:46
  Speaker 1: painful moment Um as a Jaguar. I'm still not over it.
• 17:53
  Speaker 1: I never will be UM. And it was not career defining,
• 18:05
  Speaker 1: but a moment that could have been Um very career defining,
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: if that makes any sense. Quarterbacks responsibilities, You've got one job.
• 18:18
  Speaker 1: One job is a starting quarterback, is to win a
• 18:21
  Speaker 1: Super Bowl for your team. Anything short of that you've failed. Obviously,
• 18:28
  Speaker 1: there are situations and circumstances, and but that's the ultimate goal.
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: We got. We got really close that year to achieving
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: that goal. And why I'll never get over it. It'll
• 18:43
  Speaker 1: never I'll never stop feeling the pain when that game
• 18:45
  Speaker 1: comes to mind, or when it's when we talk about it,
• 18:48
  Speaker 1: when I re about it. When I hear about it,
• 18:51
  Speaker 1: it'll never stop hurting because in my mind, if I
• 18:55
  Speaker 1: play better, we win. If I play better, we win,
• 18:59
  Speaker 1: um marked And you know that, no, no, no, no no.
• 19:02
  Speaker 1: If I play better, we win. That's the job of
• 19:06
  Speaker 1: the quarterback. Um if and interception here, interception there, misread.
• 19:14
  Speaker 1: There's only a few plays that I remember from that game,
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: none of which are are very good. If I played better,
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: we win. And that's that's tough. That's hard to swallow,
• 19:25
  Speaker 1: but it is what it is. Winning, especially the kind
• 19:29
  Speaker 1: of winning the Jaguars were accustomed to, can stand down
• 19:32
  Speaker 1: rough edges and at least create the illusion of smoothness.
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: That wasn't always the case when it came to the
• 19:37
  Speaker 1: relationship between Brunelle and Conflin. Not unlike Lombardi and Star
• 19:41
  Speaker 1: or Nolan Bradshaw, the demands of a coach who never
• 19:44
  Speaker 1: seemed to look back after winning and never look forward
• 19:47
  Speaker 1: after losing, took its toll, as losing took over in Jacksonville.
• 19:51
  Speaker 1: That's who Tom was. There's nothing bad about that, but
• 19:55
  Speaker 1: at times it was hard. It was hard for all
• 19:57
  Speaker 1: of us. But he here's what, here's here's Tom. What
• 20:03
  Speaker 1: I what I appreciate more what I appreciate now, more
• 20:06
  Speaker 1: than I ever did. I mentioned that his expectations were high.
• 20:13
  Speaker 1: They were they have to be, but you always knew
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: where you stood. It's not the case with a lot
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: of head coaches. I had other head coaches, and you
• 20:22
  Speaker 1: didn't know where you stood. I had coaches say, hey,
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: you're doing great, Love how you're competing. The next week,
• 20:28
  Speaker 1: I'm benched. Wait, wait, wait a minute, what about you?
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: Love how I'm competing. You knew where you stood. He
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: demanded a lot out of you, and if you didn't
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: meet those demands, you were going to have conversations with him.
• 20:40
  Speaker 1: Nothing wrong with that too. Um. He was probably more
• 20:46
  Speaker 1: firm with me because I was the quarterback, and I
• 20:52
  Speaker 1: don't know if he would say this, maybe more than
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: he needed to be at times, um understanding that I
• 21:02
  Speaker 1: wouldn't handle his critique or his coaching the way I
• 21:08
  Speaker 1: should have. I didn't always handle it real well. I
• 21:14
  Speaker 1: walked out of his office more times than not, really
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: piste off. A lot of that had to do. And
• 21:20
  Speaker 1: I can only speak for myself, my maturity level, and
• 21:24
  Speaker 1: really my perspective because I needed to understand at that
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: time more that he's trying to make me better. He's
• 21:32
  Speaker 1: trying to communicate to me where I stand. He's trying
• 21:36
  Speaker 1: to communicate expectations that he had of me. Um, it
• 21:40
  Speaker 1: doesn't mean I'm not his quarterback. It doesn't mean he
• 21:43
  Speaker 1: thinks he made the wrong decision. It doesn't mean that
• 21:46
  Speaker 1: he doesn't like me as the guy. Tom's perspective was
• 21:50
  Speaker 1: all right, I've got to get this kid better. I
• 21:53
  Speaker 1: gotta get him performing at a higher level. And how
• 21:57
  Speaker 1: he and that's how Tom did it. That's who Tom was.
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: I didn't understand that as much at the time. Um,
• 22:08
  Speaker 1: I would get upset. I would get you know, mad,
• 22:11
  Speaker 1: I would stomp off, Gosh, I'm down here too much?
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: And man, I got we we won the game, Like, yeah,
• 22:17
  Speaker 1: I threw an interception, but we won the game. Why
• 22:19
  Speaker 1: do I have to come down here? Um? So, But
• 22:25
  Speaker 1: I looked back now, and I and and I think,
• 22:29
  Speaker 1: you know what, one guy that gave me a shot.
• 22:33
  Speaker 1: There's one guy that brought me to Jacksonville. There's one
• 22:36
  Speaker 1: guy that said, Mark Bronell, you're my guy, and we
• 22:40
  Speaker 1: you are our franchise cary at one guy that's Tom Coughlin.
• 22:44
  Speaker 1: So I maybe not have liked how he coached. And
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: I may have been I might have been upset at times.
• 22:49
  Speaker 1: I may have might have been disappointed or or you know,
• 22:53
  Speaker 1: stopped off and pouted or it was mad or all
• 22:56
  Speaker 1: of this stuff. Okay, but guess what, that guy gave
• 23:00
  Speaker 1: me my shot. And if he doesn't, you know, I
• 23:04
  Speaker 1: don't know if I ever get a team. Who knows?
• 23:07
  Speaker 1: Who knows? But Tom Tom Coffin gave me my shot.
• 23:10
  Speaker 1: And I am forever grateful and I am for ever
• 23:14
  Speaker 1: indebted to him, for him believing in me. Um. And
• 23:18
  Speaker 1: you know what, the way he coached me, it worked,
• 23:22
  Speaker 1: It got me better, It lit a fire. Um and uh,
• 23:27
  Speaker 1: I've always respected him, I've um and I've always been
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: grateful for him giving me my chance. More perspectives following
• 23:38
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• 24:06
  Speaker 1: that it's your money, all loan subject to approval, insured
• 24:09
  Speaker 1: by n c u A. When Margat arrived in Jacksonville
• 24:13
  Speaker 1: in the spring of ninety five, he knew of plenty
• 24:16
  Speaker 1: of people in the organization, but he didn't know many
• 24:19
  Speaker 1: of them personally. By the end of the ninety season,
• 24:22
  Speaker 1: one man would have a dramatic impact on his life
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: with the Jaguars and to this day. You know, when
• 24:28
  Speaker 1: I think about Tony, I we were we were introduced,
• 24:32
  Speaker 1: we were brought together because of Tom coffin, the Jacksonville Jaguars,
• 24:39
  Speaker 1: the city of Jacksonville. I get that, but we've been
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: we've been really good friends now best friends for over
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: two decades, and most of our relationship, you know, go
• 24:58
  Speaker 1: so far beyond football. M h. We don't even we
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: don't even talk about football. We don't relive those moments.
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: Hey remember that game a Buffalo. Hey you remember that
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: one summer up in Stevens Point. Gosh, you remember that one.
• 25:13
  Speaker 1: It just doesn't come up, Brian, it just doesn't. That's
• 25:16
  Speaker 1: not that's not how we are connected. That's how we
• 25:19
  Speaker 1: initially got connected. But now going forward, Hey, he's my
• 25:23
  Speaker 1: best friend, he's like your brother. Um, things go something
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: really cool happens, we have a baby, he's there. Um,
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: we have to go through a tough time, house catches
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: on fire, he's there. Um. I could give you countless
• 25:44
  Speaker 1: examples of the good and the bad in our lives,
• 25:46
  Speaker 1: both sides. We just make sure we're there. That's what
• 25:50
  Speaker 1: best friends do. UM, recently had breakfast doesn't happen often,
• 25:58
  Speaker 1: but I need I need it. I need to be
• 26:04
  Speaker 1: able to connect and catch up. And sometimes it it's
• 26:09
  Speaker 1: it's three weeks, sometimes it's a month. We talked to
• 26:13
  Speaker 1: each other at least once a week. Letten, he's my
• 26:15
  Speaker 1: best friend, just like everyone listening here probably has a
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: best friend, and you can identify I don't I uh,
• 26:22
  Speaker 1: best way to put this. I wouldn't want to do
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: life without him. Um. I've got some very valuable, valuable relationships,
• 26:30
  Speaker 1: and I have some really close friends. Um, but uh,
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: none more closer than my friend Tony. It's um, yeah,
• 26:40
  Speaker 1: he's my guy. Tony's running Jacksonville ended after two thousand one.
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: Tom's last days were in two thousand two. Mark followed
• 26:50
  Speaker 1: in two thousand three. I understood when Tom was fired.
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: When you get a new head coach, they typically bring
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: in a quarterback. I understand. I understood that, but we
• 27:00
  Speaker 1: hired Jack del Rio. He was a former player, so
• 27:03
  Speaker 1: he didn't really fit into the This is what head
• 27:06
  Speaker 1: coaches do, mold Um. I had played against him. We're
• 27:12
  Speaker 1: both packed ten guys. We weren't friends, but I you know,
• 27:14
  Speaker 1: I played against him when he was in Minnesota. I
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: was with Green Bay, and Um, in my mind, I thought,
• 27:22
  Speaker 1: all right, this is a new start. I'm the guy here.
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: I've got plenty of football left. I feel good about this.
• 27:29
  Speaker 1: We're getting up to the draft and I'm hearing rumblings
• 27:31
  Speaker 1: about they might take a quarterback in the first round.
• 27:34
  Speaker 1: I had a position coach come up to me and said, listen,
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: listen all that crap. We're not taking a quarterback in
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: the first round. Fair enough. I think I'm out of
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: the quarterback challenge or some event down and out in
• 27:45
  Speaker 1: l A or something on the West Coast. Drafts going on,
• 27:49
  Speaker 1: Drafts going on. They've got like Quarterback Club or something
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: like that. I'm throwing a football around in the sand
• 27:54
  Speaker 1: and I'm not really paying attention to the draft, but
• 27:58
  Speaker 1: I am because I've heard some things about about possibly
• 28:02
  Speaker 1: taking a quarterback and it wasn't just Jack and Shack
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: was here, and so I thought there was a possibility that,
• 28:08
  Speaker 1: you know, maybe they take somebody some kind of looking.
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: Sure enough, uh, Jaguars picked Byron left, which I knew
• 28:15
  Speaker 1: I was gone. That was it. I knew my days
• 28:18
  Speaker 1: were numbered. Now I knew I would, in all likelihoods
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: start the next season. I knew that if depending on
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: how things go, determine how much playing time I would get.
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: I knew two things if I wanted to keep my job,
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: I had to win early and stay healthy. Neither one
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: of those happened. I cut open my elbow, ended up
• 28:40
  Speaker 1: you know where, oh and three cut up my elbow.
• 28:43
  Speaker 1: That was it for me. And I knew that golden
• 28:47
  Speaker 1: era shined to the Jaguars fans, but it wasn't as
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: glamorous to be Mark Brunell. An entire city rolled out
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: the red carpet, but oftentimes Brunell found himself wanting to
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: step off it and out of the limelight. He enjoyed
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: the city so much he returned years later and now
• 29:03
  Speaker 1: it's home. But those days back in the nineties weren't easy,
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: and clearly they wore on it so much so that
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: he needed to talk about one moment it wasn't so good,
• 29:12
  Speaker 1: as if clearing the air would lift some of the
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: burden of having been less than perfect on and off
• 29:18
  Speaker 1: the field. I remember going to doing a radio show
• 29:23
  Speaker 1: and I was going to be there for I think
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: I was gonna talk on the radio for an hour
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: and I was gonna sign for an hour. Maybe this
• 29:29
  Speaker 1: was just a signing thing. Maybe I was just signing
• 29:31
  Speaker 1: somewhere where I was at Sears for a period of
• 29:34
  Speaker 1: time and I was gonna sign for this time. That
• 29:36
  Speaker 1: was the agreed time. Well it was supposed to sign
• 29:39
  Speaker 1: for an hour, but it was a two hour line.
• 29:42
  Speaker 1: Nobody knew back then. All right, well, you know, we
• 29:44
  Speaker 1: gotta cut this line off. And this just stands out
• 29:47
  Speaker 1: to me, and I feel terrible about it. At one hour,
• 29:50
  Speaker 1: Mark Burnell gets up and walks out, leaving an hour
• 29:53
  Speaker 1: of people right there. I got cursed at I got this,
• 29:57
  Speaker 1: you know, just yelling at me as I'm walking out
• 29:59
  Speaker 1: of the serious and I thought, man, I wish I
• 30:04
  Speaker 1: was I wish I handled that better, you know what
• 30:06
  Speaker 1: I mean. Life is different from Brunel these days. The
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: guy who arrived at quarterback is now a coach, and
• 30:13
  Speaker 1: no matter how that road twisted and turned over the
• 30:15
  Speaker 1: last fifteen years. He's grateful to be right here right now.
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: Things are really really good and it has everything to
• 30:26
  Speaker 1: do with that trade and late April and nineteen that
• 30:34
  Speaker 1: was the beginning of something really special. There are moments
• 30:40
  Speaker 1: in your life that launch you into your destiny. There
• 30:43
  Speaker 1: are moments in your life that just take you wherever
• 30:46
  Speaker 1: you're you, take you out of where you are, throw
• 30:48
  Speaker 1: you into a new environment, situation. You don't even know
• 30:51
  Speaker 1: what it means, but you look back you think wow.
• 30:54
  Speaker 1: Jackson