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O-Zone Podcast: Keenan McCardell · The Jacksonville Jaguars Official Podcast Network

• 0:08
  Speaker 1: Welcome to the Ozone Podcast featuring Jaguars dot Com Senior
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: writer John Oser and Jaguars executive producer Dave Dikendis. We're
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: gonna do something a little different this week. We talked
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: to former Jaguars wide receiver and Jaguars Wide Receiver coach
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: and I believe future Pride of the Jaguars member Keeno McCardell.
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: This week we went really long. We talked to him
• 0:31
  Speaker 1: for quite a while about a lot of different topics.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: So we're not going to talk very much between me
• 0:34
  Speaker 1: and Dave. You get things started. Instead, we're gonna go
• 0:37
  Speaker 1: right into the interview. We're both gonna laugh and gonna
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: say this somebody I've known for almost twenty five years,
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: which I know both of us will be a shock
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: and incredible because we have a lot of memories from
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: way back when I it's a player and a coach
• 0:53
  Speaker 1: and a person to Jaguars fans have loved and enjoyed
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: for a long time. It's Jaguars wide receiver, long time
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: wide receiver, now wide Receivers coach Keenan McCardell, Kenyan, I
• 1:04
  Speaker 1: appreciate you joining it, joining us, and boy, it is
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: hard to believe that I first started talking to you
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: twenty five years ago, isn't it? Yes? It is, thank
• 1:13
  Speaker 1: your first job for having me on the podcast. Uh,
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: just thinking about that, it's it doesn't seem like it's
• 1:20
  Speaker 1: been twenty five years. Seemed like it was just yesterday. Incredible.
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: I mean, it's a and for fans who maybe don't
• 1:26
  Speaker 1: know covering you back in the day, I always enjoyed
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: that talking to you by your locker when we were
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: sitting down doing one on ones because you had such
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: a great insight into the game and the thing that
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: I always tell people when I'm talking about you, even
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: beyond the end, it was the passion that you felt
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: for the sport, the game. I've covered a lot of athletes, uh,
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: you know, and maybe up there with a guy like
• 1:52
  Speaker 1: Peyton Manning Baselly, some of the greats that I've been
• 1:55
  Speaker 1: able to cover. Reggie, Wayne, You're up there in terms
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: of amount that you care about this game and the
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: sports and it's in you. Has that always been that
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: way since you can remember. I know you're a fan
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: growing up, but this thing means a lot to you
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: that it does. I mean, it's part of who you
• 2:14
  Speaker 1: are as a player. I mean, people always say, you know,
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: I played the game. You know too, you know, I
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: played the game. I love to play the game. But
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: you know, sometimes things distract you from loving to play
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: the game. But if you're really truly passionate about it,
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: those things won't distract you. Those are just obstacles to
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: keep you see, if you want to stay focused in
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: the game. You know, and I think, uh, the great
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: ones that that have that passion for the game find
• 2:47
  Speaker 1: find ways to get over those obstacles and continue to
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: love the game. You know, I was, I was listening
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: to UM. I think it was Troy Agman or I
• 2:57
  Speaker 1: think it was Troman Um and he said, you had
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: to read invent yourself as you got older in the
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: in the game. You know, you have to to make
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: yourself stayed buying, tune to the details. Uh. The waking
• 3:13
  Speaker 1: up every day, getting up great uh, meal, great meals,
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: getting up, going to work out when you don't have to.
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: You know, when you're probably one of the best best
• 3:25
  Speaker 1: at your position, you can skip a day. But the
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: ones that are passionate and truly love the game, they
• 3:31
  Speaker 1: do it because it's a part of them. They want
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: to make sure the game continues to to grow and
• 3:38
  Speaker 1: continue and you continue to to give back to the
• 3:42
  Speaker 1: game what what the game gave to you. I mean,
• 3:44
  Speaker 1: I think the game has given a lot of guys
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: some great things. Uh, you know, people have the guys
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: have seen things that they would have never seen playing football.
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: And and you gotta give it back. You can't just
• 4:01
  Speaker 1: take take take. You gotta sometimes you gotta be the
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: ones to give back and and believe that you're giving
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: back to make the game better. Yeah, and speaking to
• 4:13
  Speaker 1: the passion that you played with. I think we've talked
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: about this before. I can remember covering the game we
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: were both gone from Jacksonville. I was I was covering
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: the Colts. You were playing for San Diego Charges at
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: the time. I know you remember the game. It was
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: when you guys went to the Colts upset them when
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: they were I think thirteen or fourteen. And oh, I
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: recall you catching a touchdown passed early in that game,
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: I think, and you slammed the ball against the the
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: back of the end zone. But I remember sitting in
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: the press box that day thinking, you know, I first
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: started covering this guy ten years ago. At that point,
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: you're in the league for fifteen years. But you're still
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: playing like a kid. It's still there was still a
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: joy watching you play. I remember thinking of myself, I said,
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: you know at that point I probably talked to in
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: five or six years. That's still the same King, that's
• 5:03
  Speaker 1: the same is even fifteen years in, you're still the best.
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: I mean not just I receiver one, that's one in
• 5:15
  Speaker 1: the league. I mean I think that you always gotta
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: think and I always gotta know you gotta feel that
• 5:20
  Speaker 1: if you if you don't feel that, you won't play
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: that way. I mean, if you won't if you don't
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: bring that type of mentality to the game, you won't play.
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: You won't be that be, that dude that you that
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: every like I always tell my guys, don't talk about it,
• 5:36
  Speaker 1: feel about it, don't tell me, don't give me lip service.
• 5:40
  Speaker 1: When you say you're gonna do something, I expect you
• 5:43
  Speaker 1: to go out there and do it, and do it
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: like you said, You're gonna do it as passionate as
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: you said, especially as you said it in the room.
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: I want you to be just as passionate and I
• 5:53
  Speaker 1: don't feel doing it. And even when you get hit
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: upside the head or get hit in the mouth, one time.
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: I want you to get up and still do it
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: just as passionate as you would do if you would
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: dominate that guy at the beginning of the game. But
• 6:07
  Speaker 1: then he gets you in your mouth and then it
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: changes your your thought process. No, it's what you love
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: to do. If you're passionate about it, like it's an obstacle.
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: You gotta find a way to work through that obstacle
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: and be passionate about this game. I tell those guys
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: that all the time, and that's how I played. I mean,
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: there's no way he's gonna cover me Like you and Prisco.
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: You always said you're always open, right, And I was like, yeah,
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: I'm always I mean, and I was, I mean in
• 6:37
  Speaker 1: my mind, I'm always open until I sit on film
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: that I wasn't. And I used to tell them this,
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: I don't have to be super wide open to make
• 6:46
  Speaker 1: a play and catch the ball because I know I'm
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: gonna catch the ball if it's anywhere close to me.
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: Something you just said, I want to ask you about
• 6:53
  Speaker 1: your guys your group here in a second. Something you
• 6:55
  Speaker 1: just said, I don't forget to ask this about getting hit,
• 7:00
  Speaker 1: you know, and of all the guys have ever covered
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: I don't know if you didn't mind it. I don't
• 7:04
  Speaker 1: know if you enjoyed it, but you didn't mind the middle,
• 7:08
  Speaker 1: and you got up for more stuff that I thought
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: was gonna lay you out. Did you like it or
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: did it just not bother you? Or is that part
• 7:15
  Speaker 1: of it? How did you approach that? You know what?
• 7:19
  Speaker 1: I never had a fear factor because that was just
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: part of the game. I mean. And I was taught
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: a long time ago in my neighborhood by some some
• 7:29
  Speaker 1: of my older friends, you know, and they were like,
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: you can't come out here and be afraid to play
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: and compete and get hit. It's part of what you do.
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: It's part of what It's part of this game. And
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: ever since then I realized it's part of what I
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: have to do. And and what I did as a
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: player was to figure out where where the soft part
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: of the zones were when I was gonna get hit
• 7:56
  Speaker 1: and when I wasn't gonna get hit, you know. And
• 7:58
  Speaker 1: like I look at some guys as back when I played,
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: and they played with reckless abandoned, I'm playing with reckless
• 8:04
  Speaker 1: abandoned also, but but smart reckless abandoned understanding where I
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: need to be when I when I when I need
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: to slow down, when I need to keep running, and
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: stuff like that. I mean, it just happened when I
• 8:18
  Speaker 1: was young. I mean in the neighborhood. Guys, my older
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: friends would just tell me, hey man, this is part
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: of what what this game is about. And if you
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: don't if you don't like to get hit, you shouldn't
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: play this game. It's basketball is baseball, and it was
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: always a part of me. I mean it was my one.
• 8:34
  Speaker 1: It was my first love, so it was I was
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: gonna figure out how to play this game. Tell me
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: back to your guys, I know you've talked about him
• 8:42
  Speaker 1: after the draft, and in terms of detail, what do
• 8:46
  Speaker 1: you like about this group of players? Uh, it seems
• 8:50
  Speaker 1: to be coming together as one of maybe the better
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: groups you've had here. It's it's a really good group. Um.
• 8:58
  Speaker 1: First off, we have of we care about each other
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: in that room. I make sure that everybody cares about
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: one another. Um. You know when I say that, I
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: mean I literally care about them, but literally cares about
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: what they're doing for the other person. Out on the field.
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: You gotta understand the game to to help your partner,
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: because sooner or later, your partner's gonna have to help you,
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: So we kind of have a mutual Uh. They see
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: it that way, and UM, you know, I gotta run
• 9:27
  Speaker 1: this post for this guy, and then I come back.
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: I'm gonna run the over route and this guy's gonna
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: run the post for me. So they start, they start
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: to like each other. They enjoy being around each other. UM,
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: I mean, I think these guys, they really like to
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: play football. I mean I mean, and I kind of
• 9:50
  Speaker 1: press them to not just like to play football, but
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: to start to love to play football. And you know,
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: and you know, I talk about life issues, UM, talk
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: about economic issues. Um, where would you be if he
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: wasn't here? You know, I just kind of keep it
• 10:07
  Speaker 1: straightforward with him and uh and speak the truth to
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: him because I've played there. I've played in their shoes.
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: I've been in everybody's shoes in that room, from the
• 10:18
  Speaker 1: from the practice cord guy to the guy that's like
• 10:21
  Speaker 1: trying to make the team, uh, being the fifth guy,
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: the fourth guy, the third guy, the second guy, the
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: guy in the room that's gotta be the the guy
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: that that stirs the coffee, that that that number one guy.
• 10:34
  Speaker 1: I've been those guys. I've been in every one of
• 10:36
  Speaker 1: those seats, and I try to help him get through
• 10:39
  Speaker 1: some of their their their their thoughts of doubt or
• 10:45
  Speaker 1: what you should do. I said, this is what's gonna happen.
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: You gotta think like this, and probably about at the
• 10:52
  Speaker 1: time it happens the way I said. And they've come
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: back and look at me and say thanks coach, and
• 10:58
  Speaker 1: you know, and it's like I said, that's what I'm
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: here for. Man, I'm I'm here to help you through this.
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: It's part of me giving them what somebody gave me
• 11:07
  Speaker 1: when I played, you know, the Ricky Sanders, the Art Monks,
• 11:11
  Speaker 1: to Gary Clarks. You know, even though Andre Risings people
• 11:14
  Speaker 1: don't realize, I mean, he's he was a caring person
• 11:18
  Speaker 1: like you. If you if you, if you be around guys,
• 11:22
  Speaker 1: you tend to find things that you are attracted to
• 11:26
  Speaker 1: from each player and you know, and I try to
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: give them those type of experiences that I've been around,
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: like great guys and how they helped me get through this,
• 11:36
  Speaker 1: and me as a coach, I'm you know, I have
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: to I have to not be there. I'm not their friend.
• 11:42
  Speaker 1: I am their friend, but I'm not their friend. They
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: understand that they know how how that relationship goes. But
• 11:48
  Speaker 1: they know I care about them and I coach every
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: one of them the same exact way. I coach them hard.
• 11:55
  Speaker 1: And yeah, I don't care if you the the free
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: agent receiver that's just made the team. Not to man,
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: when you step in our room, our goals are so
• 12:06
  Speaker 1: high and if you don't have them type of goals,
• 12:10
  Speaker 1: you're gonna get coached out of the room, or you're
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: gonna get coached to catch up with our goals, you know.
• 12:16
  Speaker 1: And and that's how I coach the man. I mean,
• 12:18
  Speaker 1: I'm passionate about about the game, as you like, as
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: we said earlier, and I want everybody that's in my
• 12:24
  Speaker 1: room to be passionate about that, about the about the football,
• 12:27
  Speaker 1: about about football. And you played or didn't play, but
• 12:31
  Speaker 1: you were around that Redskins group, which I don't know
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: if thirty years later people remember it. It maybe one
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: of the best wide receiver rooms of all time. Yeah,
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: mon Parton Sanders. They were putting up thousand yards seasons.
• 12:43
  Speaker 1: There's a group before anybody did that. What what that
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: year shaped you? What? How did that year help you
• 12:51
  Speaker 1: help shape you? Even though you weren't on the field. Um.
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: For one, I took a little a bit from all
• 13:02
  Speaker 1: three of those guys of how to shape my game
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: because I got in and I felt like, first I
• 13:09
  Speaker 1: was mad because I got drafted in the twelfth round,
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: so I can't to camp with a with a freaking
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: chip on my shoulder like no other UM. And I
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: was You couldn't tell me I wasn't as good as
• 13:21
  Speaker 1: those guys when I walked into the building. I mean,
• 13:25
  Speaker 1: it wasn't that I showed it like being arrogant, but
• 13:29
  Speaker 1: my confidence within me when I when it was time
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: to step up for one on ones, seven on sevens team,
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: I I can do what they do. I see it,
• 13:40
  Speaker 1: I see it. I mean, and I just picked up
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: things of how to be super competitive from like Gary Clark,
• 13:48
  Speaker 1: being a true playmaker like like Ricky Sanders, and being
• 13:51
  Speaker 1: the consummate pro like Art Month, just just being on time,
• 13:56
  Speaker 1: being a leader, the quiet one that that just showed
• 14:00
  Speaker 1: up every day and and next thing you know, you
• 14:02
  Speaker 1: look up thing he got he got seven hund the
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: catches real quick, or he got he got he got
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: eighty catches in the year where you think that he
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: had a down year, you know, and back then you know.
• 14:16
  Speaker 1: So that was one of those things that I had
• 14:19
  Speaker 1: a great time learning from those guys and and they
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: took me up under under their wings and just just
• 14:27
  Speaker 1: made it just made me who I was. I mean,
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: I really think that year was a great year because
• 14:34
  Speaker 1: I mean, we won the Super Bowl. I learned so
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: much of how to be a true pro. I mean
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: I was, I had just turned twenty one going in
• 14:45
  Speaker 1: the league, and I'm around guys that were probably thirties
• 14:52
  Speaker 1: early thirties. Twenty nine. There wasn't many young players on
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: that team. It. Um, they showed me how be pros.
• 15:00
  Speaker 1: Not just the receiver room, that whole team. Coach Gibbs
• 15:03
  Speaker 1: was a great leader. I mean he showed showed us
• 15:07
  Speaker 1: how to be how to be men like and we
• 15:10
  Speaker 1: he had a lot of men on that team, but
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: he showed us how to be great men. Um. It
• 15:17
  Speaker 1: was four years with the Browns. By the time you
• 15:20
  Speaker 1: got to Jacksonville ninety six, nobody else really, I mean
• 15:24
  Speaker 1: I shouldn't say nobody. Most fans didn't know you yet,
• 15:27
  Speaker 1: but you felt like you were ready. Was the chips
• 15:30
  Speaker 1: still there? Did it always stay or what was your
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: mindset going into that? My chips stay. I mean, I
• 15:37
  Speaker 1: still want I get that. Um My biggest thing was this.
• 15:43
  Speaker 1: I just needed to be that guy for the from
• 15:47
  Speaker 1: from from game one to Game six team. And I
• 15:51
  Speaker 1: was gonna show you that I was one of the
• 15:54
  Speaker 1: better receivers in the league. Like I was gonna put
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: up those type of numbers. I was gonna help a
• 15:59
  Speaker 1: team win. I was gonna lead. I was gonna show
• 16:02
  Speaker 1: show you how are you supposed to play the game?
• 16:05
  Speaker 1: You know, and not and not be a guy that
• 16:08
  Speaker 1: that was always ra row and about it. Just let's
• 16:10
  Speaker 1: get on the field. Let's let me show you what's
• 16:12
  Speaker 1: what's gonna happen. And then when I came into Jacksonville,
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: Tom asked me to be a leader and this, that
• 16:18
  Speaker 1: and the other, and I was like, I'm fine with it,
• 16:20
  Speaker 1: but I got something to prove right now. I mean,
• 16:23
  Speaker 1: I'm I understand being a leader or I'm gonna lead
• 16:28
  Speaker 1: by example because I'm gonna go out here and I'm
• 16:31
  Speaker 1: gonna burn this thing up. It ain't gonna be It's
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: no nonsense. Uh, injury, were gonna fight through injury. I'm
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: gonna be on this field from from game one to
• 16:42
  Speaker 1: Game sixteen, and I'm gonna show this league exactly what
• 16:46
  Speaker 1: this twelfth round guy that you know should be it
• 16:49
  Speaker 1: should be be said to put his names up, you know,
• 16:53
  Speaker 1: in the up there with it with the best. I mean,
• 16:57
  Speaker 1: I think that's the type of path ship I had.
• 17:00
  Speaker 1: That's a kind of chip I had on my shoulder.
• 17:02
  Speaker 1: I mean, it just was that chip went from being
• 17:05
  Speaker 1: the twelfth round guy and then being pissed in Cleveland
• 17:10
  Speaker 1: because I felt like I was I was not being
• 17:13
  Speaker 1: played the way I wanted to be played. But you know,
• 17:16
  Speaker 1: you you have to wait your turn. And one thing
• 17:18
  Speaker 1: about coach Man and Cleveland, he told me you got
• 17:21
  Speaker 1: just wait your turn. Bro, When your turn comes, you
• 17:23
  Speaker 1: gotta you gotta show up and and and perform. And
• 17:27
  Speaker 1: when I when my time came, injuries came, people came,
• 17:31
  Speaker 1: and I got a true opportunity. I outplayed people. Uh,
• 17:35
  Speaker 1: I performed. And when I got to when I got
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: to Jacksonville, I told coach Man, I was like, I'm
• 17:42
  Speaker 1: gonna put to work what you what you taught me?
• 17:45
  Speaker 1: And and I did. I mean, there's three questions. I'm
• 17:51
  Speaker 1: just gonna say the phrase I want you to think.
• 17:54
  Speaker 1: I want say what comes to mind. This is the
• 17:56
  Speaker 1: time he ut you to do it. Jimmy Smith m
• 18:02
  Speaker 1: one of the best that ever played the game at
• 18:06
  Speaker 1: the position. What do you guys mean to each other?
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: We made a lot to each other bad I think,
• 18:15
  Speaker 1: I think people. I mean, we we understand each other.
• 18:21
  Speaker 1: We don't have we don't have to be calling it
• 18:25
  Speaker 1: every day. We call every other week or or every
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: week once a week. We still have that bond. It
• 18:34
  Speaker 1: just it's just like that, I mean, and we think
• 18:38
  Speaker 1: the same will be sitting over there thinking looking at something,
• 18:41
  Speaker 1: to be like I already know what you're thinking. Is like, yeah,
• 18:45
  Speaker 1: I'm thinking the same thing too. I mean, it's just
• 18:47
  Speaker 1: one of those things. I mean, he I mean it was.
• 18:52
  Speaker 1: It was a great tandem. We we did exactly what
• 18:57
  Speaker 1: the other one didn't do. And if it's like a
• 18:59
  Speaker 1: good marriage, you put it together and it's gonna work.
• 19:03
  Speaker 1: Did you have an appreciation? I mean, I don't think
• 19:06
  Speaker 1: I did. I covered you guys most of the time
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: you played together. I knew I was seeing really, really good.
• 19:12
  Speaker 1: Maybe I didn't appreciate what I was saying. Did you
• 19:15
  Speaker 1: know at the time that that was going to be
• 19:19
  Speaker 1: such a defining relationship greatness all of what it was.
• 19:27
  Speaker 1: Did you have an appreciation for it or is it
• 19:28
  Speaker 1: taking time to realize that. No, I didn't take time
• 19:31
  Speaker 1: because we had the same chips. We had chips on
• 19:34
  Speaker 1: our shoulder and we told each other that they tried
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: to get us out of here, um actually out of
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: the league. This sign we're gonna leave. We're gonna we're
• 19:45
  Speaker 1: gonna leave this league when we want to English league.
• 19:48
  Speaker 1: And well we said that. We knew every day we
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: went out every day in practice, if we were gonna
• 19:59
  Speaker 1: demonstrate that we were the best in the league, we're
• 20:06
  Speaker 1: gonna dominate. Like it was. It was times time you
• 20:09
  Speaker 1: should get mad at us, because he would get mad
• 20:12
  Speaker 1: at defense where you guys got to cover them. They
• 20:14
  Speaker 1: weren't gonna cover us in practice. It went it wasn't happen,
• 20:19
  Speaker 1: you know, it was. It was gonna be a flat
• 20:20
  Speaker 1: out battle every day. And I mean everybody that's that,
• 20:26
  Speaker 1: they'll tell you. And we went on ones. It was
• 20:30
  Speaker 1: our time to embarrass folks like it we I mean,
• 20:33
  Speaker 1: it was just that's the type of chip we had
• 20:36
  Speaker 1: on our shoulders. And it wasn't just just my chip,
• 20:41
  Speaker 1: it was his chip. And it was almost it was
• 20:44
  Speaker 1: a great competition because he would do something. Oh, I
• 20:48
  Speaker 1: gotta go do something, and we laugh about it. He said, boy,
• 20:52
  Speaker 1: I saw you do something over there. Now I got
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: to make sure I go do something now. You know.
• 20:57
  Speaker 1: It's like and we were I mean, it was never
• 21:02
  Speaker 1: where we were mad each other or stuff like that.
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: We just wanted to to continue to show people that
• 21:10
  Speaker 1: we belong and that will go with you forever. One
• 21:16
  Speaker 1: death Dely definitely, definitely, you know, and I mean it
• 21:22
  Speaker 1: was it was just amazing. I mean, just to have
• 21:26
  Speaker 1: a person like that on your side, that you know
• 21:29
  Speaker 1: that that played the same way you played? Um, why
• 21:39
  Speaker 1: not us? Yeah? Why not us? There wasn't there was Uh,
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: it was a lot of magic. I was like, why
• 21:50
  Speaker 1: not us? Because nobody gave us a chance. But we
• 21:54
  Speaker 1: saw it was funny. We saw it in the locker room.
• 22:00
  Speaker 1: M everybody saw it, you know, and every I think
• 22:05
  Speaker 1: Clide Simmons made us understand it. You know, we saw it.
• 22:10
  Speaker 1: We knew it. You know. We have two of the
• 22:14
  Speaker 1: best tackles in the game, clean, two of the best
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: receivers in the game. Young, but everybody was young, excited. Chip,
• 22:27
  Speaker 1: we never we never wavered in the locker room and
• 22:30
  Speaker 1: Clyde helped kept us from that him and Jeff Lyman,
• 22:34
  Speaker 1: Like Jeff was like, you guys don't know, this time
• 22:39
  Speaker 1: is running short for me. And we got the talent
• 22:43
  Speaker 1: in here like it would say that and we all
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: realize that, and it just started to come together. Uh
• 22:52
  Speaker 1: you know, we brought Nate trying and they trying to
• 22:55
  Speaker 1: have been so good. I mean, it was just like
• 22:59
  Speaker 1: the um the personality is just fit. You know, you
• 23:05
  Speaker 1: go Kevin Hardy, you go to the Robert Massey's. I mean,
• 23:11
  Speaker 1: you co to Mark I mean, you just you go
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: to Smingy, you go Jerkovic. I mean, things just kind
• 23:19
  Speaker 1: of it was personalities from all over that we when
• 23:24
  Speaker 1: we got in the locker room, it was fun. I mean,
• 23:27
  Speaker 1: I hate to say it, it was a lot of fun.
• 23:30
  Speaker 1: Uh you know, we played cards, you know, we played space.
• 23:34
  Speaker 1: We we just like it was there, I mean, and
• 23:40
  Speaker 1: everybody was just Okay, what we're gonna do? You know,
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: we need to come together. And then you know, at
• 23:48
  Speaker 1: the end of the year, stuff just started clicking because
• 23:51
  Speaker 1: people just started believing and knowing that I can count
• 23:54
  Speaker 1: on that guy. He's gonna make that play, he gonna
• 23:58
  Speaker 1: make that block, he gonna make that tackle. He's gonna
• 24:00
  Speaker 1: get that sad. He's gonna make that kick. You know
• 24:03
  Speaker 1: you're gonna make that punt. I mean, I mean, it
• 24:06
  Speaker 1: just it just fit. I mean it started out everybody
• 24:10
  Speaker 1: was trying to figure it out. It just came through.
• 24:14
  Speaker 1: What I'm telling you, Jeff and Clyde was those guys
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: that kind of just was like, man, it's here, we've
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: seen it. You guys just gotta believe us, and that
• 24:24
  Speaker 1: we did. You've got a couple of rings. But it
• 24:28
  Speaker 1: sounds like that year is up there in terms of
• 24:30
  Speaker 1: your memories. It is. It's it. It was, And I think, uh,
• 24:37
  Speaker 1: because nobody believed in us. Um. I mean, it's just
• 24:44
  Speaker 1: that he believed in ourselves in that locker room. And
• 24:48
  Speaker 1: it's kind of funny, um because at the beginning of
• 24:52
  Speaker 1: the year, no Tom was Tom was was was popping
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: the wheel, he was he was driving us, and he
• 24:59
  Speaker 1: was he was getting after us, and you know, it
• 25:03
  Speaker 1: was grumbles in the locker room, just that and the
• 25:05
  Speaker 1: other and we kind of just a man, the only
• 25:10
  Speaker 1: way we can change this is by winning. We gotta
• 25:14
  Speaker 1: start winning, and this is gonna change. It didn't change
• 25:18
  Speaker 1: a lot, but it it changed just enough to make
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: us feel like we won. It was like not saying
• 25:26
  Speaker 1: that it was us against the coaching staff, but we
• 25:31
  Speaker 1: all we we had that type of mentality at first
• 25:34
  Speaker 1: because he was driving us. But after a while we realized,
• 25:40
  Speaker 1: we're practicing hard. The rewards are gonna come on Sunday,
• 25:45
  Speaker 1: and we was out there getting after it. I mean,
• 25:48
  Speaker 1: and we realized it wasn't at first it was grumbles.
• 25:52
  Speaker 1: Then off after that we realized, like, man, we're getting better.
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: We're getting better fast, and we started to to say, okay,
• 26:02
  Speaker 1: we we can make this easy. We just gotta keep winning.
• 26:05
  Speaker 1: And the more we won, the more he pushed, right,
• 26:11
  Speaker 1: and the more we we wanted to keep him from pushing,
• 26:15
  Speaker 1: and the more we focused more to win and win
• 26:19
  Speaker 1: and win, and I mean it just all came together.
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: I mean we it was just that it was just
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: the locker room was so tight. I mean it was
• 26:31
  Speaker 1: unbelievably tight. I mean we He didn't have to say much.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: I mean he very seldom came down to the locker room.
• 26:38
  Speaker 1: He would go down there. Now, well, in the old
• 26:42
  Speaker 1: locker in the old locker room, you can walk out
• 26:44
  Speaker 1: of the training room and walk right into the locker
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: room and he would just stand there and look, he
• 26:49
  Speaker 1: would he wouldn't step, he wouldn't step in a lot.
• 26:52
  Speaker 1: He he always said, well, we can come in the
• 26:54
  Speaker 1: locker room. But he would never come into the locker room.
• 26:56
  Speaker 1: He was just standing there and he said okay, and
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: then he would and he would leave and and I
• 27:03
  Speaker 1: think he realized that it was under control and that
• 27:06
  Speaker 1: we had it under control. Um, you know, he had
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: we had it where where he wanted it. I don't
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: know if you do this or not, but if if
• 27:15
  Speaker 1: you're ranking your catches all time, where does the Denver
• 27:20
  Speaker 1: catch come in? And you know the one I'm talking about, Uh,
• 27:26
  Speaker 1: it's got to be up there. It's up there. Difficulty, circumstance,
• 27:32
  Speaker 1: the whole works. Yeah, pressure the well he needed to
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: play to get back in the game. Uh. To me,
• 27:42
  Speaker 1: it was just a catch. And then the more and
• 27:44
  Speaker 1: more I look at it now and as after I
• 27:48
  Speaker 1: looked like, it was like, but that was a big catch.
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: And then now that I looked at it, I was like,
• 27:56
  Speaker 1: that wasn't pretty damn a good catch? Right? There was
• 27:59
  Speaker 1: a big catch, you know, And uh, you know I
• 28:02
  Speaker 1: could call some other catches that were that that was big,
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: But going back at ranks. It has the rank in
• 28:08
  Speaker 1: the in the top three because because the lead, you
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: guys are taking control of the game. You had the lead,
• 28:14
  Speaker 1: but it still didn't feel as if you were controlling
• 28:16
  Speaker 1: it yet you still needed a big play. You you
• 28:20
  Speaker 1: go down the left side, Mark rolls out to that side,
• 28:24
  Speaker 1: throws it out. Mccartlent motion. Brunell with time now he's
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: gonna come on the run, turns washed it downfield looking
• 28:30
  Speaker 1: for Keenan in the n Joe Keenan Lakes. And I
• 28:33
  Speaker 1: know he was going left and I was on the left.
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: He rolled up and he threw it and I kind
• 28:41
  Speaker 1: of I saw it, and I tried to play, you know,
• 28:45
  Speaker 1: play like I he didn't throw it, and I really
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: and I'm running out of space, and I and huh,
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: and I was running out of space, and I saw it,
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: and I just kind of kind of froze. I just
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: kind of slowed down to slow the slow the fender
• 29:03
  Speaker 1: down so I could just kind of post him up
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: a little bit and catch it over my outside shoulder.
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: So if I turned this way, he would have turned
• 29:12
  Speaker 1: and saw it, and and I just kinda let the
• 29:15
  Speaker 1: ball go over. He saw it late and he went
• 29:19
  Speaker 1: up late and it went over his hand and I
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: was like, I got this is a touch stuff And
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: the only thing I was worried about was getting my
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: feet down. Was he in Oh, how do you not
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: call that a touchdown? He made the catch in the
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: INChO goutch down check Bards touchdown, Jacksonville touchdown, Jacksonville, thirty
• 29:39
  Speaker 1: one yards from Park Purnell to Keenom cardinal touchdown, Jacksonville.
• 29:44
  Speaker 1: When I went up and I and I posted him
• 29:47
  Speaker 1: up and caught it over my shoulder and I said,
• 29:51
  Speaker 1: get the knee down and then I can I'll just
• 29:53
  Speaker 1: kick kick. I'll just kind of drag the next one
• 29:56
  Speaker 1: to get it in. And when I popped up, I
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: was like, let's a touchdown, regardless of what you say.
• 30:04
  Speaker 1: And I just looked at him and they were over
• 30:06
  Speaker 1: there talking about no and the rest of like, yes,
• 30:08
  Speaker 1: it was a touchdown. And it was forty eight. It
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: was Washington and she dialogue with him a little bit right.
• 30:16
  Speaker 1: I was just kind of turned like, oh, that's a touchdown.
• 30:18
  Speaker 1: Like it was like no. I was like no, no, no,
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: And and and Steve came over the at war they
• 30:24
  Speaker 1: were like no, no. I was like yes, it is.
• 30:29
  Speaker 1: It is a touchdown, and I I just just like,
• 30:35
  Speaker 1: I mean, when I did it, I was like, Okay,
• 30:39
  Speaker 1: that's a play. We need another play. We're like. It
• 30:43
  Speaker 1: was just I was like, let's go, let's let's finish.
• 30:46
  Speaker 1: That was the mode that the team was in at
• 30:48
  Speaker 1: that point. It's good. Yeah. Five minutes later, March running
• 30:53
  Speaker 1: for twenty seven yards and then Jimmy's catching the I
• 30:57
  Speaker 1: mean touch down. That that that sealed it. I mean
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: it was I mean, we were just saying we needed
• 31:03
  Speaker 1: to make a play. Somebody needs to And a lot
• 31:05
  Speaker 1: of times have been the huddle, Tony the old lies
• 31:09
  Speaker 1: Lion being able to say, hey, y'all gotta go make
• 31:12
  Speaker 1: a play. We're gonna block these dudes. Now, one of
• 31:16
  Speaker 1: y'all gotta make a play. That's that's Bowl's big thing. Hey,
• 31:19
  Speaker 1: you guys gotta make a play. We feel battanced. Don't
• 31:23
  Speaker 1: make a play. And you know, I was like, got you.
• 31:26
  Speaker 1: I mean that's just kind of the the confidence that
• 31:30
  Speaker 1: they had in us and the confidence that we had
• 31:32
  Speaker 1: and them and and market me like I got y'all,
• 31:36
  Speaker 1: let's go, you know, And you know he was cool
• 31:39
  Speaker 1: hand Luke all the time. You mentioned to you told
• 31:43
  Speaker 1: me a great story. I think it was last year
• 31:45
  Speaker 1: that there was a time, maybe later on, when you
• 31:48
  Speaker 1: guys are playing together, you and the Sally where you're
• 31:51
  Speaker 1: walking through I think the rubber hallway and you're both hurt.
• 31:55
  Speaker 1: You're both beat up and saying why are we doing this?
• 31:58
  Speaker 1: They're making us go out and what ever? And then
• 32:00
  Speaker 1: you both looked to each other and said, no, we
• 32:02
  Speaker 1: love it, and and that sort of struck me as
• 32:07
  Speaker 1: it defines a lot about both of you guys, the
• 32:08
  Speaker 1: love with the game. You guys kind of share that,
• 32:11
  Speaker 1: didn't you. Yes, we did. Um, that's funny. We were
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: in the locker room one day too and he's like, boy,
• 32:19
  Speaker 1: I'll beat up. I said I am too, um, and
• 32:24
  Speaker 1: we were looking at each other's like, well it was
• 32:27
  Speaker 1: I think it was at the end of the season.
• 32:29
  Speaker 1: It might have been after the might have been after
• 32:32
  Speaker 1: the second championship game in ninety nine, and we were
• 32:36
  Speaker 1: we were beat up playing, you know, and you had
• 32:40
  Speaker 1: to have solo surgery. I had to have knee surgery,
• 32:42
  Speaker 1: and it's like, I can't see myself doing this again.
• 32:47
  Speaker 1: He was like I was like yeah, right, Tony, And
• 32:49
  Speaker 1: I was like I'm hurting. He's like, yeah, you're right,
• 32:53
  Speaker 1: We're gonna get it done. Let's go. We gotta go
• 32:56
  Speaker 1: come back. Who I mean after the like after the
• 32:58
  Speaker 1: nine and nine season, we were we were so pissed
• 33:01
  Speaker 1: that we we wanted it didn't matter. We were gonna
• 33:03
  Speaker 1: get well, we get back to where we want, we
• 33:05
  Speaker 1: wanted to be, And it was just something that that
• 33:08
  Speaker 1: me and him had a bun and like toughness, like
• 33:12
  Speaker 1: we were gonna be out there regardless, it didn't matter,
• 33:17
  Speaker 1: Um what was going if if we could play, we
• 33:21
  Speaker 1: knew we could help the team. When I say nine,
• 33:25
  Speaker 1: what do you think of what we're saying? Come to
• 33:26
  Speaker 1: your mind? Um, disappointment because um, probably the best team
• 33:36
  Speaker 1: I have I played on, and I've played I've been
• 33:40
  Speaker 1: on two Super Bowl teams. I've been on a fourteen
• 33:45
  Speaker 1: and two team in San Diego with the m v
• 33:47
  Speaker 1: p UH with Ladani and uh Phillip um good team,
• 33:53
  Speaker 1: and a Super Bowl team in Tampa, which was really good.
• 33:57
  Speaker 1: Really we were really good in Tampa. Um, but I
• 34:04
  Speaker 1: really think the world didn't see one of the best
• 34:09
  Speaker 1: teams at ninety nine. I mean Tennessee. I I gotta
• 34:12
  Speaker 1: give them credit. They came in and did what they
• 34:15
  Speaker 1: had to do. Came in and did what they had
• 34:17
  Speaker 1: to do. They were a good team, not taking anything
• 34:20
  Speaker 1: away from but I think we were probably the better team,
• 34:25
  Speaker 1: and it would have been a pretty exciting SUPERO. I'm
• 34:28
  Speaker 1: gonna be honest with you. I was looking forward to
• 34:31
  Speaker 1: and some people say you probably was looking past and
• 34:34
  Speaker 1: never looked past and and see. You can't look past
• 34:35
  Speaker 1: in the see because the visional foe and right, you know,
• 34:41
  Speaker 1: you can't look past them. But it would have been
• 34:44
  Speaker 1: interesting to see the greatest show on turf mm hmm
• 34:50
  Speaker 1: play us WET. It would have been fun. I mean
• 34:54
  Speaker 1: what it could have should have We didn't do it.
• 34:56
  Speaker 1: Tennessee did, and I just think nine was. It was
• 35:01
  Speaker 1: probably one of the better teams, probably the best team
• 35:04
  Speaker 1: I've played on. You played a lot of years, but
• 35:08
  Speaker 1: it still feels and maybe it's because I covered you there,
• 35:11
  Speaker 1: but it still feels like those Jaguars years for you
• 35:15
  Speaker 1: through two thousand two. It still sort of feels like
• 35:19
  Speaker 1: home to you that it's nothing about that. It does.
• 35:24
  Speaker 1: I mean, probably because I spent the six years, the
• 35:29
  Speaker 1: longest tenure of my career in Jacksonville. But it was
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: it was home. It was because it was from the start.
• 35:36
  Speaker 1: I mean I was one year from the start, but
• 35:38
  Speaker 1: it was just like it was from the start of
• 35:40
  Speaker 1: the franchise's history starting to to change, not just being
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: an expansion team, being a team that people respected, Um
• 35:52
  Speaker 1: I wanted to see. You know, we went from a
• 35:54
  Speaker 1: team that nobody really wanted to see on prime time
• 35:58
  Speaker 1: to a team that people wanted to see. And then
• 36:01
  Speaker 1: I mean, you know, and a couple of wins here,
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: and we've had some big wins on Monday Night football.
• 36:09
  Speaker 1: We've we've played some of the best teams on Monday
• 36:12
  Speaker 1: Night and we've we've won. And I tell my guys
• 36:16
  Speaker 1: that now, I say, the city it's fun man, winning
• 36:21
  Speaker 1: you just gotta go play. I mean, see city brightens
• 36:25
  Speaker 1: up and it livens up. The lights come on for
• 36:29
  Speaker 1: everybody in this city when you're winning, and it embraces you,
• 36:34
  Speaker 1: embraces it embraces you so much. And I always tell them,
• 36:39
  Speaker 1: I said, any time I get any time I get
• 36:43
  Speaker 1: a player that's from Florida or Georgia, right, and they
• 36:48
  Speaker 1: played in the Florida Georgia game, I just tell them
• 36:51
  Speaker 1: to tell the tell some of the players in the room,
• 36:54
  Speaker 1: the experience of what that game is about and what
• 36:59
  Speaker 1: the fan ends of Jacksonville embraces. They embraces good football,
• 37:07
  Speaker 1: good competition, people that love to play the game, the
• 37:10
  Speaker 1: passion for the game. Because you know, it's just not Duvall.
• 37:15
  Speaker 1: You're gonna get Brounswick. You don't get, don't get the
• 37:19
  Speaker 1: little part of jaws to coming to see the Jacks.
• 37:22
  Speaker 1: We used to get those people, you know, and and Daytona.
• 37:27
  Speaker 1: We like, we get people from from all over and
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: I mean, I just tell them, you get back to that.
• 37:34
  Speaker 1: We get back to that. We need to get back
• 37:36
  Speaker 1: to that. I mean I think, uh, you know, it's
• 37:39
  Speaker 1: one step at a time. Um, and we gotta we gotta,
• 37:43
  Speaker 1: we gotta just buy in and believe that we're going
• 37:46
  Speaker 1: to get back there. A couple final questions. I know
• 37:49
  Speaker 1: you are are passionate about coaching receivers, but I've always
• 37:54
  Speaker 1: seen you as a guy who can pretty much coach
• 37:57
  Speaker 1: whatever offensive coordinator in your future. I mean, or some
• 38:03
  Speaker 1: receivers coaches just like coaching the position. I didn't know
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: what your thoughts were, where your aspirations were on that front.
• 38:12
  Speaker 1: Uh Man, I got aspirations big, big time. I mean
• 38:15
  Speaker 1: they I love my receivers. I love coaching receivers, you know,
• 38:19
  Speaker 1: but you can't say short self short of being a
• 38:23
  Speaker 1: coordinator or even a head coach. I mean, that's one
• 38:26
  Speaker 1: That's one thing I would love to be because you know,
• 38:30
  Speaker 1: you feel like you're a leader of men. You know,
• 38:34
  Speaker 1: you know, just men. A leader of men makes you
• 38:39
  Speaker 1: a qualifiable person would be a head coach. It's not
• 38:43
  Speaker 1: just you can call play used to be a head coach.
• 38:45
  Speaker 1: It's not that you don't know anything about football. To
• 38:47
  Speaker 1: be a head coach. It's leading people and wanting and
• 38:52
  Speaker 1: and people responding to your leadership and the way and
• 38:57
  Speaker 1: to go out and play for you. I mean, I
• 38:59
  Speaker 1: think that's what I mean my head coaches. I mean
• 39:04
  Speaker 1: it's not just I mean you you can walk in
• 39:07
  Speaker 1: inny room and coach. You can walk in inn room
• 39:09
  Speaker 1: and they respect you and they'll run through the wall
• 39:12
  Speaker 1: for you. It's not that just you went out then
• 39:14
  Speaker 1: call the best player in the world. Okay, after a while,
• 39:19
  Speaker 1: when the defense decides that they can they know what's coming,
• 39:24
  Speaker 1: they can stop it. Is that? Is that a leader? Man?
• 39:31
  Speaker 1: I mean he has to make changes, yeah, but he
• 39:34
  Speaker 1: has to make an adjustment. As a head coach, you
• 39:37
  Speaker 1: gotta make sure your players know that, hey, you're better
• 39:42
  Speaker 1: than them. And there may not be there may not
• 39:47
  Speaker 1: be a guy who's played for as many great ones
• 39:49
  Speaker 1: as you have. Right her kids party Grood. I mean
• 39:56
  Speaker 1: this is a in your background, so yes, And you know,
• 40:03
  Speaker 1: I I take this from from Marty. Marty I always said,
• 40:07
  Speaker 1: if I got good people, I don't have a good team.
• 40:12
  Speaker 1: If I got good men, respectable men, I have a
• 40:16
  Speaker 1: good team because I'm gonna put the coaches around myself
• 40:20
  Speaker 1: and and me and coach them the way we wanted
• 40:23
  Speaker 1: to be coached, you know. And and they gotta have
• 40:26
  Speaker 1: some talent, he says, But if they're good people and
• 40:29
  Speaker 1: and and he always say enjoyed playing the game. It
• 40:32
  Speaker 1: was like, coach, you gotta love to play this game,
• 40:34
  Speaker 1: he said, yeah, yeah, yeah. But sometimes you know, you
• 40:38
  Speaker 1: got you're gonna have something that you that that's gonna
• 40:40
  Speaker 1: do their things. I'm fine, you like, I'm fine with that.
• 40:43
  Speaker 1: But that's why I gotta have a couple that can
• 40:45
  Speaker 1: pull some guys back in and and make them, you know,
• 40:49
  Speaker 1: enjoy the game. You know, and you know, and I
• 40:54
  Speaker 1: mean just the hard work of Tom the hard work
• 40:57
  Speaker 1: of coach Belichick. I mean he keeps so he's so
• 41:02
  Speaker 1: to the to the vest. He's keeps everything to the vest.
• 41:07
  Speaker 1: You won't know anything about him, you know, or what
• 41:10
  Speaker 1: what he's thinking. Uh poker face. You know you learned.
• 41:14
  Speaker 1: I mean I've been been there with a whole bunch
• 41:17
  Speaker 1: of them, and uh like John, I mean passionate for
• 41:21
  Speaker 1: the game. Uh, He's so freaking passionate for the game. Uh,
• 41:27
  Speaker 1: to the point that if you're not a passionate player,
• 41:31
  Speaker 1: it makes sound phony to you, you know, but if
• 41:35
  Speaker 1: you're a passionate player, you know how passionate he is
• 41:39
  Speaker 1: about the game. And you know, I tell people this
• 41:43
  Speaker 1: all the time. He's probably one of the best, uh
• 41:47
  Speaker 1: office and mind the guys that I've been around in
• 41:51
  Speaker 1: this game. Um far as matching up people and and
• 41:58
  Speaker 1: getting matchups, it's as my next person. I mean, and
• 42:02
  Speaker 1: I played with Kevin and Keil. I felt like Kevin
• 42:05
  Speaker 1: was a was a really good, offensive minded person to
• 42:07
  Speaker 1: gilbrad Um. But I mean, like, but what I was
• 42:10
  Speaker 1: saying is like being around John, uh, Tom, you know,
• 42:15
  Speaker 1: Coach Gibbs. You know, it was just I've been around
• 42:19
  Speaker 1: some good people and and and saw how they taught players,
• 42:23
  Speaker 1: how they how they have treated players, how they taught
• 42:27
  Speaker 1: them to play the game, how they taught them to
• 42:28
  Speaker 1: be men, and just you know, even though you know,
• 42:33
  Speaker 1: Coach Gibbs probably one of the best minds I've ever
• 42:35
  Speaker 1: been around too. Offensively and my my rookie year, I
• 42:39
  Speaker 1: was I was in awe because I've talked so well.
• 42:43
  Speaker 1: I mean so, I mean, just just being around those
• 42:46
  Speaker 1: guys help you understand how to, as they say, push
• 42:49
  Speaker 1: a button or two from players and get them to
• 42:52
  Speaker 1: get them to play. I mean, so, I don't know.
• 42:54
  Speaker 1: I don't know if just being an offensive coordinator or
• 42:57
  Speaker 1: is that is that the route? Is that the is
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: the way to be a head coach? Or is it
• 43:03
  Speaker 1: just being a a leader a minute? Is that the
• 43:07
  Speaker 1: way to be a head coach? You know the thing
• 43:09
  Speaker 1: about being a head coach, people, I don't realize that
• 43:12
  Speaker 1: you gotta want to play for your guy. You gotta
• 43:14
  Speaker 1: want to go out and leat it on the line
• 43:16
  Speaker 1: for him, you know, and and and be accountable to him.
• 43:24
  Speaker 1: It's like I always tell us to tell Johnists all
• 43:27
  Speaker 1: the time. I said, um, anyone when we held out.
• 43:30
  Speaker 1: When I held out, I just was one of the
• 43:32
  Speaker 1: things I told him, I said, John, I heard all
• 43:37
  Speaker 1: this all that I was accountable to you for every Sunday.
• 43:40
  Speaker 1: I was gonna be there if I the only reason
• 43:44
  Speaker 1: I wasn't gonna be on the field for you, it
• 43:46
  Speaker 1: was because I couldn't. I couldn't raise my arm to
• 43:49
  Speaker 1: catch the ball. I couldn't couldn't run catch the ball.
• 43:53
  Speaker 1: But I was gonna be accountable for you. And that's you.
• 43:57
  Speaker 1: You just forgot about that. Like I'm there every every Sunday,
• 44:04
  Speaker 1: you know, And and and that's the thing. You want
• 44:06
  Speaker 1: guys to be a that that that want to be
• 44:09
  Speaker 1: on the field for you on Sunday. I just want
• 44:12
  Speaker 1: to be on the field for the money. You want
• 44:15
  Speaker 1: to be on the field for you and the guys
• 44:17
  Speaker 1: next to you. You gotta get guys that that that.
• 44:21
  Speaker 1: You've got to get a first you guy to get
• 44:23
  Speaker 1: a coach that wants that that gets that out of players,
• 44:26
  Speaker 1: and you gotta you gotta have players that want to
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: be that way. So, I mean, I don't know which
• 44:31
  Speaker 1: way it is too, which route is gonna be for
• 44:34
  Speaker 1: me to be a head coach or office coordinator, But
• 44:37
  Speaker 1: you know what, I take it. One day at a time.
• 44:40
  Speaker 1: I mean, as my dad always used to tell me.
• 44:45
  Speaker 1: He used to tell me that all the time. If
• 44:48
  Speaker 1: it's for you, it's for you, all right. This is
• 44:56
  Speaker 1: the ozone five with Keenan McCardell Keena last Binge watching
• 45:03
  Speaker 1: Peaky Blinders. Was he good? Oh? It was good? It
• 45:07
  Speaker 1: was great? Right, it was a great It was a
• 45:09
  Speaker 1: great five Series five. Yes, how wife loved that shot?
• 45:15
  Speaker 1: Lebron or Michael Michael if the last dance and tell
• 45:20
  Speaker 1: everybody how good this guy is is It's scary, not
• 45:26
  Speaker 1: not taking something away from Lebron, but it's Michael. Your
• 45:30
  Speaker 1: last shore you did around the house. I cleaned the
• 45:34
  Speaker 1: stove off because I messed it up. I had to
• 45:38
  Speaker 1: clean the sting that's still stove. I had to get
• 45:41
  Speaker 1: all the burnt stuff off the stove. Last song or
• 45:46
  Speaker 1: station listened to in your car Pandora and I was
• 45:52
  Speaker 1: listening to what was listening to? Oh? I was listening
• 45:56
  Speaker 1: to um um warranty regulating okay, And finally, your go
• 46:05
  Speaker 1: to take out Let's say, when you're in Jacksonville, what's
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: your go to take out? Your pies? Our blaze, It's
• 46:16
  Speaker 1: one of any other I'm it depends on if I
• 46:20
  Speaker 1: want to drive the blaze, and if not, I'm right
• 46:22
  Speaker 1: around the point of the yr pie. So it's a pizza.
• 46:25
  Speaker 1: I mean, it's for my heart. The Jaguars are a
• 46:27
  Speaker 1: better place when you're around it. The NFL is a
• 46:30
  Speaker 1: better place because you're around it. I can't thank you
• 46:32
  Speaker 1: enough for giving us the time today. And you know,
• 46:34
  Speaker 1: it's been a fantastic twenty four years now and you're
• 46:38
  Speaker 1: talking to you, and I think it's I think that
• 46:41
  Speaker 1: came across today in this stuff. I can't thank you enough.
• 46:44
  Speaker 1: And uh, hopefully we do this again. So I appreciate
• 46:47
  Speaker 1: you very much. I thank you, John, thank you for
• 46:49
  Speaker 1: having me. Man all right, I'd like to thank Keenan
• 46:53
  Speaker 1: for giving us some time this week. And Dave, I
• 46:56
  Speaker 1: think it came across in the interview when I was
• 46:58
  Speaker 1: talking to him. One of my favorite players to cover
• 47:02
  Speaker 1: in years doing this. I'm proud to consider him a friend.
• 47:07
  Speaker 1: We went from me covering him to run into him
• 47:11
  Speaker 1: the Senior Bowl. I always followed his career, love watching
• 47:14
  Speaker 1: him play. Uh, one of my favorites. I think that
• 47:17
  Speaker 1: came across. But you were a fan of this team
• 47:20
  Speaker 1: when Keenan played. Tell me about what he meant to
• 47:24
  Speaker 1: you as a fan and fans of his team in
• 47:25
  Speaker 1: that in that era, he was thunder. That's all you
• 47:28
  Speaker 1: gotta say. I mean, he was thunder. He uh you know, Keenan.
• 47:33
  Speaker 1: The one thing about him was that as a fan,
• 47:35
  Speaker 1: he just remember his toughness, right. He was Jimmy was
• 47:39
  Speaker 1: kind of the flash and and and Keenan was the
• 47:43
  Speaker 1: tough guy that getting yards and and he'd get you know,
• 47:47
  Speaker 1: smacked or pounded, big hit and get back up and
• 47:51
  Speaker 1: the first downside. That's kind of what I remember about him.
• 47:53
  Speaker 1: And that catching Denver, that really difficult catch. They man
• 47:56
  Speaker 1: in the in the back of the end zone. Um,
• 47:59
  Speaker 1: you know, and like like I can't tell this story
• 48:02
  Speaker 1: about Keenan so um. I grew up a fan. Um
• 48:07
  Speaker 1: you know. I went and work some other places after
• 48:09
  Speaker 1: I graduate college. I came back here and worked for
• 48:11
  Speaker 1: a TV station in town. I was as a sports photographer.
• 48:15
  Speaker 1: I was at the Senior Bowl. It was actually me
• 48:17
  Speaker 1: and Patrick Kavanaugh or other producer with the Jaguars. He
• 48:21
  Speaker 1: was working at the TV station as well. And we're
• 48:23
  Speaker 1: at the Senior Bowl and we're like lowing the car up,
• 48:25
  Speaker 1: putting cameras and tripods and in our car and we
• 48:29
  Speaker 1: look over like it's thunder. It's Ken McCardell's when he
• 48:32
  Speaker 1: was right when he this was probably ten years ago,
• 48:36
  Speaker 1: when he was an assistant coach for the Washington Redskins. Yeah,
• 48:40
  Speaker 1: and uh, we're like, it's thunder. We gotta go. And
• 48:43
  Speaker 1: we're not like I'm personally not like I go up
• 48:45
  Speaker 1: to a guy and get a picture, but we were
• 48:47
  Speaker 1: both like looking to them, fired up, and we went
• 48:49
  Speaker 1: over and grabbed a picture with him back you know,
• 48:52
  Speaker 1: back then, fast forward ten years later, it's like I
• 48:56
  Speaker 1: see him at the hall in the hallway, and you
• 48:58
  Speaker 1: know he's now he's you know, he's came in and
• 49:01
  Speaker 1: you see him around and it's awesome for him to
• 49:03
  Speaker 1: be back with the Jaguars. It seems like his right place.
• 49:07
  Speaker 1: It seems like where he should be, you know. So
• 49:10
  Speaker 1: it's also cool to now now work with him. We
• 49:13
  Speaker 1: don't work together and that you know, he's a coach
• 49:15
  Speaker 1: and I do what I do. But it's cool that
• 49:18
  Speaker 1: our past a cross across pretty often. And and I
• 49:23
  Speaker 1: was super excited when we got him on the podcast,
• 49:25
  Speaker 1: and I'm and I'm fired up that everybody got to
• 49:28
  Speaker 1: listen to this and I think I'll close with this.
• 49:30
  Speaker 1: They seems about Keenan in all my years of doing
• 49:33
  Speaker 1: is covering college football, high school football, pro um. I
• 49:38
  Speaker 1: don't want to say that the game meant more to
• 49:41
  Speaker 1: him than it did anybody else I ever cover, because
• 49:43
  Speaker 1: I've covered guys that it mattered too. But he's up
• 49:46
  Speaker 1: there in terms of this mattered to him. He loves it.
• 49:52
  Speaker 1: He loves what he's doing now. He's one of those guys.
• 49:55
  Speaker 1: If he put on the path one more time, I'll
• 49:58
  Speaker 1: bet he would trade years to go do it. You know,
• 50:01
  Speaker 1: he loved it that much. It mattered to him. And
• 50:03
  Speaker 1: my sense, Dave, is that that's why fans connected to
• 50:07
  Speaker 1: him so much. You could see it in the way
• 50:10
  Speaker 1: you could see it in the interviews. Uh. And I
• 50:13
  Speaker 1: was glad to hear him say during the podcast being
• 50:17
  Speaker 1: a Jaguar specifically mattered to him. He cherishes those times
• 50:22
  Speaker 1: he was there when it was new. He understood the importance.
• 50:26
  Speaker 1: He had studied the history of the game, so he
• 50:27
  Speaker 1: knew what ninety six was. All those things it killed
• 50:32
  Speaker 1: him like it did the fans to lose in ninety nine.
• 50:35
  Speaker 1: All those things six with him. I don't know if
• 50:38
  Speaker 1: he's the Mr Jaguar, but he would be a candidate
• 50:42
  Speaker 1: in that sense. He's a guy who really defines a
• 50:44
  Speaker 1: lot of his organizations and has been about NII. You know,
• 50:47
  Speaker 1: it was great to have him on and I think
• 50:50
  Speaker 1: the the material is fertile enough, but I think we'll
• 50:53
  Speaker 1: probably do it again at the point. He has a
• 50:54
  Speaker 1: lot to say about a lot of that, and uh,
• 50:57
  Speaker 1: with that, we'll close this up. I want to thank
• 50:59
  Speaker 1: Joe for Shnado and David Dandas and uh once again,
• 51:02
  Speaker 1: I hope we didn't stuck and I don't think this
• 51:03
  Speaker 1: one did. Yeah,