Latest / Johnny's World / Josh Hubbard

Transcript

Josh Hubbard · Johnny's World

• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: Welcome back to Brand Johnny Four Podcast.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's Johnny here today doing it doing an interview solo.
• 0:26
  SPEAKER_00: My co-host uh BW is checking the eyeballs at his uh practice up in Collardville.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm doing this one solo.
• 0:32
  SPEAKER_00: But before uh we get to the interview, I want to remind everyone to check out johnnypacker.net.
• 0:37
  SPEAKER_00: Uh there are all the coffee products are on there and you can choose from.
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: And like I said, the best part of all, it goes to um Funts goes to uh research for cystic fibrosis.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: People like myself who suffer from CF, they're still, uh, even though I have the miracle drug and I'm doing great right now, there's still 10% that we fight for every day that do not have uh drug out there.
• 0:58
  SPEAKER_00: And this uh by simply going on johnnypacker.net, buying a bag of coffee, uh, you're playing a small part that will help uh dollars go towards research to come up with new life-saving drugs that hopefully that these uh these 10% of CF patients can get one day.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: So we really appreciate it.
• 1:15
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, like I said, it's easy if you want to set up a subscription, it ships right to your house.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_00: You don't have to renew it every time we do that, or you can just buy one.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_00: It's very affordable and uh it's roasted in Mississippi.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_00: We're we're a Mississippi-based company uh out of New Albany.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_00: So it's raised, it's it's shipped, it's brewed right here in the state of Mississippi, it ships right to your door.
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, easy as anything.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: And and like I said, it's going towards a good cause.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Johnnypacker.net is the website.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: So uh so with that being said, I want to bring in our guest today.
• 1:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh y'all who listen to this podcast know we're we're uh missing me and BW are both Mississippi State graduates and big Mississippi State fans.
• 1:52
  SPEAKER_00: We we talked about football during football season, but now we're about to transition to to Border Basketball.
• 1:57
  SPEAKER_00: Uh the Mississippi State men's basketball team tips off Monday night at the hoop at the hump.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_00: Uh hump for hoops is back.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: So really excited about that.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: So um hope everyone can uh make it up to the hump for that.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: And we've got a great season uh uh to look forward to.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_00: So that being said, I want to bring on uh a good friend of mine, Border basketball player Josh Hubbard.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_00: Josh, welcome back to Johnny's World, man.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, sir, yes, sir.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for having me.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, man.
• 2:21
  SPEAKER_00: I I'm I'm so so thankful you're able to get back on.
• 2:24
  SPEAKER_00: And uh, you know, last year we had you on, we talked a bit about our connection, about about playing at MRA and coming to Mississippi State.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: Well, you you've had year one in the books, and man, what a year it was.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_00: Just uh unbelievable.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: Uh racking up all these accolades and leading the Bulldogs back to the NCA tournament, winning the Bailey Howell Award, just an awesome year.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: Just talk back about that before we jump into year two, just some memories or just what you want to talk about about year one, what it was like in Marine and White.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, year one, you know, it was fun.
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um shout out to my teammates.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I would have never had the year that I had without them.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, of course, you know, the coaching staff and uh just everybody, you know, the staff and teammates putting their trust uh in my abilities and me doing the same to them.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_01: Um expectations were high for sure.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I'm glad we made it to March Madness and uh got that feel.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_01: I feel like that experience has helped um the returners that are returning this year and the the expectations to um to go into year two.
• 3:24
  SPEAKER_01: And so um I feel like uh um Jans has done a very good job of uh last year's team.
• 3:32
  SPEAKER_01: And um I feel like we we're headed in the right direction for sure.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, last year's team, it was just something special.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, I'm just looking at your your stats, man.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: You you got uh SEC Freshman with a week honor five times, like I said, winning the Bailey Howell trophy.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: Uh you hit 108 three-pointers, which are overall, and freshman single records for Mississippi State, and uh racked up over 17 points a game, um 1.7 assists per game, two point rebounds a game, uh 17.1 points were the fourth uh among SEC returning players for this year.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_00: So just an unbelievable standout season.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: Josh, did you know going into the season uh that y'all would have such a great season like you did last year?
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_01: Um you're talking about this season?
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_00: Or this last year?
• 4:22
  SPEAKER_00: Did y'all know going into last year's season that y'all make it back to the tournament and and what it was like?
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, they they made it to the tournament their first year, and um, I feel like that was pretty much the base of, you know, just making March Madness.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_01: And then um, you know, we just took advantage of you know good opportunities of playing some ranked teams last year, of course, in our conference.
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_01: And um, those wins uh helped us tremendously uh get to where we wanted to be.
• 4:49
  SPEAKER_01: And um the SEC tournament helped us tremendously as well.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we uh we played LSU in the first round, and then we played Tennessee in the second round.
• 4:57
  SPEAKER_01: That uh those two games, those two big wins helped us, you know, kind of uh solidify, you know, that spot in March Madness.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_01: And so um uh if you I feel like uh we we had higher expectations going into the season.
• 5:14
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, there's some games we shouldn't have lost.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_01: Uh we all feel like that we could have won easily, and that uh, you know, I mean, you know, of course, you know, every team is biased and that they think they should win every game.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_01: But um, yeah, I mean, that I mean we're gonna run into that this season again.
• 5:31
  SPEAKER_01: And so um I feel like uh I feel like uh when everything was said and done that that we had a successful season for sure.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I agree too.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: And you know, when me and my co-host BW were in college, uh Mississippi State basketball was really, really good.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_00: This was the early 2000s, and and we had a stretch for about 10 years when Mississippi State men's basketball was down.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: And you always hear people talk about you've probably heard it, Josh, pack the hump, pack the when when the hump's rocking.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I'll tell you what, last year, even though it was a loss, that Kentucky game, when y'all played Kentucky at the hump, that was just like those days back when we were in college when Mississippi State basketball was rolling and and the hump was rocking.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_00: And um, I'm hoping the crowds will come back uh this year because it's electric.
• 6:11
  SPEAKER_00: And and talk about that, Josh.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_00: Y'all feed off the energy of the crowd and the crowds like that.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_00: It's just amazing.
• 6:16
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, for sure.
• 6:17
  SPEAKER_01: They uh they definitely motivate us, you know, when it's when it's going.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: And um, we feed off their energy and uh the energy that they create.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_01: And so um I know we have a great fan base, they were tremendous last year, um, helped us win some big games at home.
• 6:32
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, I yeah, like you said, I hope they return as well.
• 6:36
  SPEAKER_01: Uh from what I've heard, you know, people are excited uh to come out and see and see what we have.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, yeah.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: Well, well, Josh, let's transition to year two now.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_00: All right, so year two in the program, we just talked about uh year one.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: So the expectations I'm sure are are even better this year for the team as far as goals, breach, and about making March Madness in advance.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: And uh just what are your thoughts on the upcoming year, the new guys coming in, talk about them, uh what all that's like.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we have uh when everybody asks me this question, I always tell them, you know, we have the one of the best potential teams in in the country, and um, and so uh we have so much depth on our team, it's it's it's unbelievable.
• 7:18
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, we also can have a lot of lineups.
• 7:21
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, Kojans has done a tremendous job, you know, um doing those lineups and uh picking uh these players just to come here in general.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: And so I'm excited to see what we have in store.
• 7:31
  SPEAKER_01: And um, like you said, going into year two uh for this team specifically, you know, we're we're still somewhat overlooked after all the success that we had, you know, previous to this year and the new transfers.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, so we we do have a chip on our shoulder.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we weren't ranked top 25, and uh we're not even top 10 in the SEC.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so uh, you know, we we still have something to prove, and uh that's not a bad thing, you know, it's still preseason, and so um, you know, we we have the opportunity to change all that, you know, when it's all said and done.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_01: And so I'm excited.
• 8:04
  SPEAKER_01: And um, yeah, we we have a lot of great players.
• 8:06
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, you know, just Kanye Claire, uh, he's he's like my the the left-handed version of me.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_01: And so uh it's it's it's a fun time always sharing the court with him.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_01: And then you got you know Riley Kugel from uh Florida, uh he's everything like an NBA player, you know.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_01: He's he's just a flat out flat out pro.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_01: Uh Claudio Harris, one of the best shooters on our team.
• 8:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um RJ Melendez from Georgia.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_01: He you can put him anywhere, he can shoot the lights out as well.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_01: And then, you know, with Tolu Gone um from this previous year, you know, it was it was a big key, you know, to get some big men out of the portal.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: And um, so you know, we got Mike Newwalko from Miami, you know, he's athletic.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_01: Um man, he's he can jump out the gym.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_01: And so uh he he won the dunk hunters actually in the junction gym.
• 8:55
  SPEAKER_01: There's no surprise there.
• 8:56
  SPEAKER_01: And then you got Jeremy Fumina from um Rhode Island, you know, that that'll help us as well, you know, big guy.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_01: And then you add all the returnees that that that were here, like you know, Cam Matthews, myself, and Keyshawn Murphy, man.
• 9:11
  SPEAKER_01: It's it can get scary.
• 9:13
  SPEAKER_01: And so I'm just excited to see what we can do.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, talk about that, man.
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: Uh about Cam Matthews.
• 9:19
  SPEAKER_00: I I last year uh I sat a few games I sat behind his mom, and man, she just gets into it in the games and just just lets them have it.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_00: I just love it.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_00: That enthusiasm, how awesome, and what a great addition to get Cam back for one more year.
• 9:33
  SPEAKER_01: Oh man, it's it's it's it's a blessing for sure.
• 9:37
  SPEAKER_01: Um, not just on the court, but he helps us off the court as well.
• 9:40
  SPEAKER_01: Just his leadership and his voice uh and practice.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_01: Um, it makes us all better, you know, each and every day.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_01: And um his experience, you know, in college, um and uh little things, you know, that we can tweak just to become a better team can go a long way.
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, you know, he helps us each and every day.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_01: Um being on his team is very important.
• 10:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, he's one of one of our glue guys, you know, Swiss Army Knife, that's what we like to call him.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_01: So um I'm I'm very glad he he come he came back for sure.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, indeed.
• 10:12
  SPEAKER_00: I I know all Border Nation so happy to see him back and his mom back at the home.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: Well, uh, I want to talk about some of my family.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_00: Man, I just gotta give a shout out to your dad, Jason.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: Man, I I I love him and and his enthusiasm he has, the way he he he uh gives uh uh I see videos of him pumping up the players and I'll come through.
• 10:31
  SPEAKER_00: Just talk about the family support that you have, Josh, because I know I know your family is just a special people and they and they and they're they're behind you 100%.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: What's it like having that?
• 10:40
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's it's it's amazing.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_01: Uh it's it's surreal, you know, just just their support um at home and away games, you know.
• 10:48
  SPEAKER_01: I don't think my parents missed a uh a single game last year.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_01: And so just for that to happen, it's it's special.
• 10:54
  SPEAKER_01: Um you know, there's there's no words I can say to to say how special it is.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's just a just a special feeling uh for them to have my back, and I you know I have theirs.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, yeah, with without them, you know, there would be no Josh over.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_01: And so I can't I can't take all the credit, you know, all the credit goes to them.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_00: So absolutely.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: Well that well, they've raised a great young man, and we're so proud of you, Josh.
• 11:17
  SPEAKER_00: Every everyone is, and and I know uh this year is gonna be a uh a great year, and and y'all can set some more records and get back to the tournament and and make some noise.
• 11:25
  SPEAKER_00: Matter of fact, I uh I saw Coach Jans at the quarterback club meeting uh a couple weeks ago, and uh I'd met him before, but I introduced myself again.
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_00: I told him about my connection with you, about how uh Kaylee's mom and me were friends growing up and and he just had so many good things to say about you and your family.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_00: Just just uh talk about Coach Jans, what it's like being having him as a coach and and uh and and playing up under him.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you know, uh, you know, when people think of Coach Jans, you know, they just think of you know someone just yelling at you and getting the best out of you.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: But uh, you know, I mean, yeah, that some of that's true.
• 11:58
  SPEAKER_01: And um, but he he just wants the best out of you, you know, and each and every day, you know, he's gonna push you to your limit.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, as a player, you know, you should want that in a coach.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: And so, you know, for you to be the best version of you.
• 12:10
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, you know, uh me and me and Coach Jans, you know, we have a special bond.
• 12:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um, he has a special bond, you know, with all his players.
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_01: And so um I'm super excited, you know, just to play for him and for him to give me an opportunity each and every day, you know, to go out and compete, you know, and for him to trust me, you know, and and others as well.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, you know, he can be tough at times, you know, but that's every coach, you know, especially in college.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, you know, he he's his his record speaks for itself, you know.
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_01: He's one of the most winning coaches.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_01: And so um his his words have high volume.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_01: And so um it's hard to, yeah, I mean, you can't really argue with him, you know.
• 12:48
  SPEAKER_01: He knows what he's talking about.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: So yeah, that's awesome.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: It's just a blessing that he's here at Mississippi State and just a great, great coach and great guy.
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: And and the team that he's built is just uh something to look forward to.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_00: We're really, really excited about uh about the coming year.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: And and I I just know uh I know you know when you're we're talking about Mississippi State sports, and this goes back forever, they always the media, man, they always knock us down, and they don't ever rank us.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: And and that's the thing about Mississippi State, man, we play with a chip on our shoulder.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's that's a good thing because when you're ranked high, it seems like in the past, when when in in all sports, Mississippi State, when we get ranked high, uh we go into the season and and the expectations are already so high, and then you drop down.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_00: But when you got when you're not ranked and people are counting you out, and you know you've got a good team and you got that chip on your shoulder, that's what that's what that's when the bulldogs are made right there.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: That's what you play for.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: So what's that like, man?
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: Just be just just being the underdog, but then then coming up knowing, you know, we're a good team.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, I've always been a uh an underdog, you know, uh from the start of my career, you know, when I first started playing basketball.
• 13:55
  SPEAKER_01: So I was kind of used to it.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: But when I first got to college, you know, it's a whole different world.
• 13:59
  SPEAKER_01: And so um last year, you know, we we had something to prove.
• 14:03
  SPEAKER_01: And um at one point we were ranked top 25, and then you we knew we got off of it, you know, but that didn't that didn't change our mindset of, you know, making March Madness and you know, proving some people wrong.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_01: And like I said earlier, you know, just having those opportunities to play some of those ranked teams and um showing what we could do, you know, helped us tremendously.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, you know, playing with that chip on our shoulder, um, definitely uh it humbles you, you know.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_01: Uh even when we were top 25 and then we weren't, you know, humble to us as well to you know kind of you know bring us down and stay level headed.
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, that's always good.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_01: That's always a a great lesson.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_01: And so um uh I just hope that if we do get ranked uh sometime this year, that we just you know keep pushing forward and you know don't don't get you know kind of cocky about it.
• 14:53
  SPEAKER_01: And so um, yeah, yeah, I agree with you 100%.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_00: And the leadership you'll have on that team, I don't see that happening at all.
• 15:00
  SPEAKER_00: I'm being cocky about it because y'all y'all stay focused and just uh just great leadership around.
• 15:05
  SPEAKER_00: And man, I can't wait to see you hitting those threes, man.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_00: I was at Junction Jam when you won that three-point contest, man.
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: Y'all got that got that shoot back, shooting back.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's be a great season, man.
• 15:15
  SPEAKER_00: I I can't wait.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_00: What was Junction Jam like?
• 15:17
  SPEAKER_00: Was that cool to get the guys back together out in front of front of fans?
• 15:21
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, man, that was that was uh that was a great experience for sure as a player.
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I'm sure it was cool for the fans as well.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_01: Um, just to bring a court out, you know, in front of front of Davis Wade, man.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_01: That that that was that was unbelievable.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_01: Uh shout out to the people that that that just came up with the idea and made it happen.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_01: And um, yeah, that was a super cool, fun experience, uh especially for the players.
• 15:44
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we've been practicing, you know, ever since the summer.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_01: And so just to do something a little like that, um, you know, it goes a long way and just gave us kind of a a break, you know, to do something in front of the fans for for the first time.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I I think so too.
• 15:59
  SPEAKER_00: It was it was really cool.
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_00: Shout out to whoever put it on.
• 16:01
  SPEAKER_00: It was a success.
• 16:02
  SPEAKER_00: And hopefully they'll do things like that in the future.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_00: Well, uh Josh, I don't really have anything else.
• 16:07
  SPEAKER_00: I just wanted to get you on and and uh just uh I guess tell the tell the guys ever whoever's listening, come support y'all at the hump.
• 16:13
  SPEAKER_00: When it's Monday night, that's the big big night.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: Who do y'all tell them who y'all playing?
• 16:17
  SPEAKER_01: Uh West Georgia.
• 16:18
  SPEAKER_00: West Georgia, okay.
• 16:20
  SPEAKER_00: So pack the hump, man.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_00: Come on, guys, come on and support these guys, and uh I know they'll they'll they'll be happy that you're there.
• 16:27
  SPEAKER_00: Like you said, yeah, the players feed off the energy of the fans, and I know uh I know everyone's so excited to get back in the hump and and uh and watch the Bulldogs play basketball again because it it's coming and it'll be here.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I haven't been in the hump uh since last year.
• 16:42
  SPEAKER_00: Isn't is it any new additions?
• 16:44
  SPEAKER_00: Uh it's just uh last year was so awesome seeing that what it's uh how it's come.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there's some new uh locker room and training room additions um for the women and men's and um besides like the hump in general, like um like we're like on the court, um, but there's some glass around the um some of the um seats.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_01: And so besides that, that's that's pretty much it.
• 17:06
  SPEAKER_01: But uh yeah, yeah, the the renovation from last year were even even those were amazing.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_01: So I'm sure they'll they'll kick something up.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_00: Oh yeah, absolutely.
• 17:16
  SPEAKER_00: Well, Josh, I'll let you go, man.
• 17:18
  SPEAKER_00: I can't thank you enough for coming on.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: I love you and your family, and y'all just y'all represent Mississippi State so great, and uh, we're all so proud of you, and and just good luck on the upcoming season.
• 17:27
  SPEAKER_00: I know it's gonna be a great one, and and um keep fighting, man.
• 17:30
  SPEAKER_00: You're awesome.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yes, sir.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: Appreciate you.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: Hell state.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_00: Hell state.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_00: Yes, sir.