Latest / The Auburn Undercover Podcast / Auburn TE Coach Larry Scott - Post-Transfer Portal

Transcript

Auburn TE Coach Larry Scott - Post-Transfer Portal · The Auburn Undercover Podcast

• 0:00
  I'm happy with that.
• 0:01
  >> All right.
• 0:01
  >> Talk about your relationship with coach
• 0:02
  Gooish. Kind of how you got to know him
• 0:04
  and how long you've been.
• 0:05
  >> Uh, you know what? That's a that's a
• 0:06
  really good question. I think um
• 0:09
  >> obviously as soon as you think the
• 0:10
  college football world is really big,
• 0:11
  it's actually really small. And um we
• 0:14
  kind of have followed each other a
• 0:16
  little bit in some steps along the
• 0:17
  process. Um I was the tight end coach
• 0:20
  offensive coordinator at Tennessee. Uh a
• 0:22
  year later he was the tight end coach
• 0:24
  offensive coordinator at Tennessee. Um,
• 0:27
  so you know, the the secretary who sat
• 0:29
  out in front of the office when I was
• 0:30
  there was the same one who sat out in
• 0:31
  front of the office when he was there.
• 0:33
  So when I was hired here, you know, she
• 0:35
  kind of helped connect the dots like,
• 0:36
  you know, two good people, you know,
• 0:38
  coming together.
• 0:38
  >> What's your name?
• 0:40
  >> Um, if I can remember the tip of my
• 0:42
  tongue, but yeah, figured out she's
• 0:44
  still there. I believe it's Kendall.
• 0:46
  >> I don't want to mess it up. Don't
• 0:47
  [laughter]
• 0:48
  say that and then she's like, "Oh man,
• 0:50
  Larry, how can you forget me?"
• 0:52
  [laughter] And I'll be like, "You know
• 0:53
  what? Shame on me. Shame on me." Um, and
• 0:56
  so just kind of that that world of, you
• 0:59
  know, the tight end, offensive world,
• 1:01
  being coordinators. And then when I left
• 1:03
  Florida and had an opportunity to to go
• 1:05
  to Howard, be the head football coach.
• 1:06
  He took over at South Florida. So, you
• 1:08
  know, the MO obviously the following and
• 1:10
  doing all those things. And um, and my
• 1:13
  son had an opportunity to go on staff
• 1:14
  down there full-time. I was kind of the,
• 1:17
  you know, connection point. Obviously,
• 1:18
  my son coaching at mom and coach go
• 1:22
  being there. And then when the
• 1:22
  opportunity came forward, when coach
• 1:24
  took his job, uh he brought my son along
• 1:26
  with him and therefore the connection
• 1:29
  point was kind of made when the tight
• 1:31
  end spot was open here and he was trying
• 1:32
  to get in the field. Um we had a
• 1:34
  conversation which led to another
• 1:36
  conversation which led to me packing up
• 1:38
  my things with BC and coming down to
• 1:39
  Almond, Alabama. So that's how it kind
• 1:41
  of connected and the big world we know
• 1:43
  is college football became real small.
• 1:45
  >> You touched on a little bit there, but I
• 1:47
  guess what made you, you know, you had
• 1:48
  it, like you mentioned, you had a head
• 1:49
  coaching job. what made you want to, you
• 1:50
  know, come here, be on the steps?
• 1:52
  >> I mean, a lot of things, right, to make
• 1:54
  a decision to leave, you know, being a
• 1:56
  head coach, a division one head coach of
• 1:58
  FCS, but, uh, it was a place where a lot
• 2:00
  of hard work had been put into, um, and
• 2:02
  was a place that hadn't had a lot of
• 2:04
  success. We come in there and have some
• 2:07
  immediate success right away there,
• 2:09
  winning backtoback conference
• 2:10
  championships and doing those things in
• 2:12
  a place that hadn't won, you know, had
• 2:13
  that level in over 30 years. Um, and so
• 2:16
  we're excited about what we're building
• 2:17
  and doing there. We're having a lot of
• 2:19
  good players decide to come and play for
• 2:21
  us there that are now with the transport
• 2:23
  portal with places like Arkansas and
• 2:24
  Arizona and here and and other places
• 2:27
  like that. We had a lot of good players
• 2:28
  in our roster um that maybe probably
• 2:30
  shouldn't have been there but you know
• 2:32
  relationships and the way that we attack
• 2:33
  things and recruited there um because I
• 2:35
  only knew one level of doing it, you
• 2:36
  know, being in the the SEC and spending
• 2:39
  [clears throat] time in the ACC or just
• 2:40
  knew the aggressive way of of getting
• 2:42
  out on the road and acquiring talent and
• 2:44
  that's where we did it there. And so,
• 2:46
  um, it was a tough decision. It was a
• 2:49
  real tough decision because it not only
• 2:50
  impacted me and all the young men that
• 2:53
  we've had a chance to bring in there and
• 2:54
  recruit there, but you know, other
• 2:56
  coaches and other support staff and
• 2:57
  people in their lives. The impact that
• 2:59
  one person's decision has on a lot of
• 3:02
  different people um obviously was comes
• 3:04
  with a heavy burden and it was very
• 3:06
  cumbersome for me. But, you know, to be
• 3:08
  at the level I am in my career and been
• 3:10
  at the places and done the things I have
• 3:11
  done, um you get to a place where you
• 3:13
  start making some different decisions
• 3:14
  for yourself as to what you know what it
• 3:16
  means to be doing what you do. I love
• 3:18
  coaching. I love the game of football,
• 3:19
  whether you're the head coach,
• 3:20
  coordinator, position coach, all the
• 3:22
  assumed roles, roles that help people
• 3:24
  have a lot of success. Uh, and it's
• 3:26
  still about the players. It's still
• 3:27
  about them and being in them, you know,
• 3:29
  helping them be, um, as successful as
• 3:31
  they want to be, uh, both on the field
• 3:33
  and in life. So, um, it was time to, you
• 3:36
  know, make some different decisions for
• 3:37
  where I was. you know, we've won
• 3:38
  conference titles, we've won
• 3:39
  championships there and you get to a
• 3:41
  point where maybe you have just kind of
• 3:43
  taken something and then took it as far,
• 3:45
  you know, as basically as you could, you
• 3:47
  know, kind of hitting the center and we
• 3:48
  didn't finish it and win the
• 3:49
  championship, but we're in the
• 3:50
  championship game. Um,
• 3:53
  about family, getting a little bit
• 3:55
  closer to Florida where I'm from. Um, an
• 3:57
  opportunity to coach at Auburn
• 3:58
  University, a place that is capable of
• 4:01
  playing for national titles year in and
• 4:03
  year out, the brand that is Auburn. Uh,
• 4:06
  and then the people I think coach goish
• 4:08
  and who he is and how he operates, the
• 4:11
  pro that he is and the way that he
• 4:13
  approaches divisions,
• 4:15
  the people that he had put around him to
• 4:17
  to when he made this jump here was what
• 4:21
  made it crystal clear to me. It was
• 4:22
  about the people and opportunity to work
• 4:24
  with him and the success that he's had,
• 4:26
  you know, on the field and and in the
• 4:28
  world of recruiters, acquired talent. my
• 4:30
  son being here. I mean, the the brand
• 4:33
  that involvement, the chance to play
• 4:35
  year in and year out and compete for
• 4:36
  national championships and to do it with
• 4:38
  really good people, right? When you're
• 4:39
  the head coach and you're setting a
• 4:41
  culture of what that looks like day in
• 4:42
  and day out for people to come and enjoy
• 4:45
  the, you know, the environment they work
• 4:46
  in and work really hard and be pros at
• 4:48
  it. Um, you want to make sure that
• 4:50
  you're making a decision like that. you
• 4:51
  want to make sure it's with good people
• 4:53
  that are going to do it the right way,
• 4:54
  that are going to work hard and have a
• 4:55
  fierce appetite for them to win and be
• 4:57
  competitive uh in all areas of what it
• 4:59
  takes to win at this level of college
• 5:01
  football. Um, and he's done that. He's
• 5:03
  presented that and he's done it with a
• 5:05
  bunch of good coaches and a bunch of
• 5:06
  good people. So, ultimately it came down
• 5:08
  to [clears throat] that was the decision
• 5:09
  that needed to be made an opportunity.
• 5:13
  This is Auburn, right? You can win here.
• 5:14
  You can win a national title. It's a
• 5:16
  great place.
• 5:17
  It soon became just like, you know, this
• 5:19
  was an opportunity that couldn't pass.
• 5:21
  >> How do you feel like you've gotten
• 5:22
  better as a coach after having been the
• 5:24
  head coach of the Howard Bison?
• 5:25
  >> Yeah, man. I think when you have to sit
• 5:27
  in a chair where you're managing day in
• 5:29
  and day out operation, where you're
• 5:31
  setting the vision and your energy has
• 5:33
  to be right, your mindset, mentality,
• 5:34
  and approach has to be right because it
• 5:36
  set the tone for every everybody else in
• 5:38
  the program. And that's from ages, you
• 5:40
  know, 18 to 63. So, um, you got to bring
• 5:43
  it. You got to bring it every day. You
• 5:44
  have to be organized, super detailed uh
• 5:46
  in your approach. You have to work
• 5:48
  really hard at it. But more importantly
• 5:50
  than working hard, you have to work
• 5:51
  really smart um and think out of the
• 5:53
  box. You have to surround yourself with
• 5:54
  really smart people, hardworking people
• 5:56
  that, you know, see things the way that
• 5:58
  you do and and have the same appetite
• 6:00
  for winning that you do, are visionaries
• 6:03
  themselves. Allow yourself to surround
• 6:05
  yourself with really good people and
• 6:06
  listen to those really good people. Uh
• 6:08
  take input, take advice, build things
• 6:10
  from the bottom up. You see things all
• 6:12
  the time. Uh there's always a way to
• 6:14
  make things better. Uh it's never good
• 6:16
  enough, so to speak. Uh it might have
• 6:18
  been successful this week, it may not be
• 6:19
  successful next week, it might have been
• 6:21
  successful this year, may not be
• 6:22
  successful, you know, next year. Uh so
• 6:24
  the all-encompassing world of change but
• 6:27
  being a part of the the vision that is
• 6:29
  change and being accepting of it uh in
• 6:31
  every aspect of the program you know
• 6:33
  from recruiting uh you know players
• 6:36
  welfare to coaches welfare and being in
• 6:39
  charge of that on a daily basis comes
• 6:42
  with comes with a lot. So learning how
• 6:43
  to to use the resources and people
• 6:45
  around you as a part of that not being
• 6:48
  afraid to be the tone setter and the
• 6:50
  visionary for it. sharing that vision,
• 6:51
  be able to articulate what that vision
• 6:53
  is and looks like on a daily basis uh is
• 6:55
  a big deal. And so when you take the
• 6:57
  whole piece whole approach uh to that
• 6:59
  when you're sitting in that chair, it
• 7:00
  it's kind of easy to boil it back down
• 7:02
  to how important my job is in a daily
• 7:04
  basis to to make sure I'm doing my part.
• 7:06
  Uh it was great operation that we have
• 7:08
  here. Uh and doing it at an elite level
• 7:11
  uh day in and day out and supporting the
• 7:12
  vision of what the head coach has for
• 7:14
  the program is is truly important. and
• 7:17
  being there where you've sat in a role
• 7:18
  where you kind of orchestrated that
• 7:21
  >> and now to come back you understand the
• 7:23
  importance of how important that is on a
• 7:25
  daily basis to take care of what it is
• 7:26
  that you you know you own uh in this
• 7:28
  operation. So I think that's the value
• 7:30
  that you know coming back from being a
• 7:32
  having a chance to be a head coach and
• 7:34
  interim head coach first at the
• 7:35
  University of Miami to being a
• 7:37
  coordinator special teams and offense
• 7:39
  and then come back from being a head
• 7:41
  coach for six years back to you know an
• 7:43
  assistant or position coach. value what
• 7:45
  that means more now on a larger scale
• 7:48
  and can see you know what your little
• 7:50
  corner of it is to how important it is
• 7:52
  to the huge piece of
• 7:53
  >> you know what it means to be a good
• 7:55
  assistant coach
• 7:55
  >> absolutely absolutely sitting on the
• 7:57
  other side
• 7:58
  >> absolutely
• 7:59
  >> obviously you got signed a lot of you
• 8:01
  know transfers at tight end I guess what
• 8:02
  was your y'all's vision and the portal
• 8:04
  at that position and what you see out of
• 8:05
  the group that you brought in
• 8:06
  >> well it was we wanted a kind of a
• 8:09
  balance a mix because you don't just
• 8:10
  want to you know upper level highend you
• 8:13
  know back in Philly. You want to make
• 8:15
  sure you got enough pieces where you're
• 8:17
  building a machine, right? You're
• 8:18
  building a group of guys that are going
• 8:20
  to cook and develop, that are really
• 8:21
  talented, um that are going to learn and
• 8:23
  grow in in an environment where that's
• 8:26
  almost taboo now to say you're going to
• 8:28
  develop young players, young talented
• 8:31
  players, but the tight end position is
• 8:32
  one you cannot get away without
• 8:33
  developing. They have to develop just
• 8:36
  like a left tackle, just like offensive
• 8:37
  line, just like truly in essence a
• 8:39
  quarterback. um because there's so much
• 8:40
  on their plate both mentally and
• 8:42
  physically that they have to be able to
• 8:43
  operate in and do. That takes
• 8:45
  development, that takes time. Uh so we
• 8:47
  wanted to make sure we have we still
• 8:48
  created enough balance within the room
• 8:50
  uh with young guys, guys kind of in that
• 8:53
  middle two to three year experience and
• 8:54
  then some guys that have some really top
• 8:55
  end experience uh so that we can let
• 8:57
  some of the young talent coaching grow
• 8:59
  and develop physically and mentally uh
• 9:01
  and rely and be able to rely on some
• 9:03
  guys, you know, within this culture um
• 9:06
  to that have played a lot of college
• 9:08
  football, whether it's been in this
• 9:09
  conference, the ACC or SEC or anywhere
• 9:11
  that have developed, you know, just from
• 9:13
  having more maniculation of snaps and
• 9:16
  reps.
• 9:16
  you catch the one thing you can't miss
• 9:18
  in development and have they played and
• 9:20
  how much football have they played and
• 9:22
  so it was important for us to make sure
• 9:23
  we kind of filter that throughout the
• 9:25
  process and how we build the special so
• 9:27
  it allow us to not only just have
• 9:29
  success in one year success but to have
• 9:31
  and build a level of sustained success
• 9:33
  within that within that group and it's
• 9:34
  important to me and one of the other
• 9:36
  reasons why I chose to come here it's
• 9:38
  important to our head coach he's been a
• 9:39
  tight end guy and developer of the tight
• 9:41
  end position himself where he's
• 9:43
  coordinated from and the position that
• 9:44
  he's worked with you for us to all fall
• 9:46
  in alignment because we all know how
• 9:48
  critical if that tight end at that
• 9:49
  position is is playing and playing at an
• 9:51
  elite high level. It it makes your
• 9:53
  offense pretty dangerous.
• 9:55
  >> You talked earlier about guys, you know,
• 9:56
  that you would coach at Howard, David
• 9:58
  Newman. What do you see in him? I guess
• 10:00
  a younger guy. What do you think he can
• 10:02
  do?
• 10:02
  >> Man, you talk about a guy that has no
• 10:04
  ceiling. We were just funny. We were
• 10:06
  just in the room talking about some of
• 10:07
  the things we did today. Coach Gordon,
• 10:10
  Coach Gordon, our offensive coordinator
• 10:12
  was, "Man, I you just don't know, you
• 10:14
  know, this guy here. He is he's, you
• 10:16
  know, 66 66 and a half. He's 260 lbs and
• 10:19
  he's running 19.67 on the GPS. You're
• 10:22
  like, what is this guy going to be with?
• 10:24
  He's not going. He's still 19 years old.
• 10:27
  He's still figuring it all out. But when
• 10:29
  he does, you know, we believe you want
• 10:31
  to have something truly truly special
• 10:32
  cuz he can keep moving the way that he
• 10:34
  is and growing and developing the way
• 10:36
  that he is. When we got him at ours, we
• 10:37
  thought kind of the same thing. But he
• 10:39
  was a guy that was really top, heavily
• 10:41
  recruited, highly recruited, you know,
• 10:43
  as fast as he could go. And then that
• 10:46
  first two or three years of the
• 10:47
  invention of the transfer proportion
• 10:51
  guys that weren't willing to, you know,
• 10:52
  basically commit and do all those type
• 10:54
  of things early on in the process that a
• 10:56
  guy like that falls into your lap at,
• 10:58
  you know, a division one FCS program.
• 11:00
  Uh, and a brand like Howard that always
• 11:02
  helps because of the brand, the academic
• 11:03
  academic brand carries those things, you
• 11:05
  know, countrywide. Um, but he falls in
• 11:07
  your lap and we go, man, we got an
• 11:09
  extremely talented one here. And same
• 11:11
  thing, everybody's trying to see it
• 11:12
  around the building here. the glimpses
• 11:14
  of him just moving around, you know, the
• 11:16
  way that he catches the ball effortless,
• 11:17
  you know, without a lot of effort,
• 11:19
  really soft hands, and just got to learn
• 11:21
  and grow and develop physically and
• 11:22
  mentally. But I I don't he don't have a
• 11:24
  he don't have a ceiling. This this guy
• 11:26
  could be either really, you know,
• 11:28
  [clears throat] a really solid player
• 11:30
  for, you know, a lot of years here or he
• 11:32
  could be freaky special and be, you
• 11:35
  know, having have a ESPN story of a
• 11:37
  lifetime.
• 11:38
  >> Is that tree?
• 11:41
  >> What do you think you got in Harles? uh
• 11:43
  experience, a lot of experience that
• 11:46
  that has a story. You know, I tell these
• 11:48
  guys all the time, you got to be able to
• 11:49
  articulate what that is, especially
• 11:50
  older guys that have kind of been
• 11:52
  through the rigors of what college
• 11:53
  football can serve up to you. Uh whether
• 11:55
  that's through injury or whether that's
• 11:57
  through coaching changes or whether
• 11:58
  that's through system changes or co
• 12:00
  coordinators and coaches, you know, all
• 12:02
  these guys have stories. Obviously, he
• 12:04
  was one of the most talented, you know,
• 12:06
  freshman players in college football a
• 12:08
  few years ago down there in Florida and
• 12:10
  his red shirt freshman year came out and
• 12:11
  really got hot again and had off to a
• 12:13
  really good start again and then had
• 12:15
  some injuries and setbacks and coaching
• 12:17
  changes and transfers and all those type
• 12:19
  of things. So, uh I think for him it's a
• 12:21
  fresh start. is a really talented guy
• 12:24
  that sees the game, cares about the
• 12:27
  game, cares about the opportunity he now
• 12:29
  has again to play and you know compete
• 12:31
  at the level in which he came into it
• 12:33
  at. Uh what a fresh start with a new
• 12:35
  staff, new beginning, new operation, new
• 12:38
  way of learning things. Uh and truly
• 12:40
  wants to be developing coach. So I I
• 12:42
  love his energy right now. I love where
• 12:43
  he is. I love that he sees the
• 12:45
  opportunity and sees the blessing being
• 12:47
  in the opportunity. We're going to leave
• 12:48
  the past in the past and and all that
• 12:51
  transpires here is what he does here and
• 12:53
  the effort and time and attention that
• 12:54
  he puts into being the best version of
• 12:56
  himself that he can here. And I think if
• 12:58
  we get him back to what that looks like
• 13:00
  and what that is and he gets back to
• 13:01
  enjoying the game and trusting himself
• 13:03
  and trusting the people around him, I
• 13:06
  think we'll have a chance to to get a
• 13:07
  really fun and really special player
• 13:09
  that could make a difference here in
• 13:10
  this in this league and for us in this
• 13:12
  game.
• 13:13
  >> Larry, when you're recruiting, what do
• 13:14
  you look for in a tight end?
• 13:15
  >> Man, that's a lot. That's a really
• 13:16
  that's a load of questions. First of
• 13:18
  all, um first we start with just with
• 13:20
  with character, you know, what type of
• 13:22
  guy is this? Because it's a lot to learn
• 13:24
  in this room. And if you don't have a
• 13:25
  pretty, you know, cerebral approach
• 13:27
  about you, uh as far as the game and
• 13:29
  loving the game and it being important
• 13:31
  to you, um you're probably not going to
• 13:33
  have it's going to take you a little
• 13:33
  longer to become a really good player.
• 13:35
  Um there's a certain level of, you know,
• 13:37
  athleticism and skill that you want and
• 13:39
  bigger, longer bodies. Um so you know
• 13:41
  tend to you know like two sport athletes
• 13:43
  when it comes to actually guys that
• 13:44
  maybe played a little basketball uh that
• 13:46
  can speak to their athletic ability at
• 13:48
  6'4 63 and a half plus uh with their
• 13:51
  wings and long arms but have really
• 13:53
  great agility and change of direction
• 13:54
  and be able to you know do some things
• 13:56
  in the athletic match up type of world.
• 13:58
  Uh but that has some tenacity and some
• 13:59
  grit about them too that aren't afraid
• 14:01
  to play behind their pads and and will
• 14:03
  make the game physical and a lot of
• 14:05
  making the game physical and you know
• 14:06
  they have to understand it's about
• 14:08
  fundamentals. A lot of times it's not if
• 14:10
  a guy is willing or is he tough enough
• 14:11
  but is he fundamental enough? Does he
• 14:14
  not understand how to apply technique in
• 14:16
  certain ways you know in certain contact
• 14:18
  points and those type of things. So just
• 14:20
  you know guys that you know have a love
• 14:22
  burning desire for the game that can
• 14:24
  transition their their natural skill set
• 14:26
  to play in that position since a lot is
• 14:28
  asked of them. Um so a lot of people
• 14:31
  always say hey what's your prototype?
• 14:33
  It's probably Cal Pitts right but
• 14:35
  there's not a lot of Cal Pitts running
• 14:36
  around the world right so you know guys
• 14:38
  that have that come with a natural skill
• 14:39
  set where a little bit of that can be
• 14:41
  developed. Um, but they have to have a
• 14:43
  burning desire and love for the game and
• 14:45
  and really not afraid of the physicality
• 14:48
  that that comes with that position too
• 14:50
  as well. Um, but you have skill that can
• 14:52
  cause matchup nightmares where, you
• 14:54
  know, if you're not, you know, sound
• 14:56
  enough and all those types of things and
• 14:58
  we find a matchup and this guy has skill
• 14:59
  that he can use his size and athletic
• 15:01
  ability and size matchup uh deals in the
• 15:04
  passing game and sometimes even in the
• 15:05
  run game. Um, that that can cause
• 15:07
  defenses a lot of problems when they're
• 15:09
  having to defend a guy
• 15:10
  >> or two. A lot of times I feel like tight
• 15:12
  ends get overlooked, you know, tailbacks
• 15:14
  or quarterbacks, all that kind of stuff.
• 15:16
  You're working for a head coach that
• 15:17
  really gives a about tight ends.
• 15:19
  You came up that way. Oh yeah.
• 15:20
  >> How does it change for you a little bit
• 15:22
  just knowing he he knows?
• 15:23
  >> Yeah. I think I think for me that's
• 15:25
  that's always important, especially when
• 15:26
  you talk about,
• 15:27
  >> you know, offense and you talk about
• 15:29
  alignment and people understanding the
• 15:30
  impact that that position can have. Uh I
• 15:33
  think people don't value it until they
• 15:34
  have one. And that's always kind of the
• 15:36
  issue, right? very far few and in
• 15:38
  between that people have a really
• 15:39
  skilled really talented tight end and
• 15:41
  when somebody does they usually go in
• 15:43
  early rounds they're usually done you
• 15:46
  know Cal Pitt David you know had him had
• 15:49
  Kai Walford had Chris Hearn
• 15:51
  >> you know had Eli Ethan Wolf both at
• 15:53
  Tennessee you know so when you have guys
• 15:55
  like that they can impact and change the
• 15:57
  game that's when they become important
• 15:59
  um you know until you have those guys
• 16:01
  they're kind of just like role guys they
• 16:03
  can fill roles they're solid players
• 16:05
  good players and show goals that help
• 16:07
  you win because I I I haven't seen a
• 16:09
  team win a national championship that
• 16:11
  doesn't play with the tight end.
• 16:13
  >> You say all you want to. You can play
• 16:14
  without them. Yeah, sure. Intend, but I
• 16:15
  ain't seen one win championships. Uh so
• 16:18
  when you have, you know, one, two, or
• 16:19
  three of those on your roster and they
• 16:21
  can cause matchup issues and present
• 16:23
  problems and expand gaps and have
• 16:26
  defenses, you know, you know, have to
• 16:28
  check for them and know what they're
• 16:29
  doing and what we're doing in the run
• 16:30
  game with them and then how, you know,
• 16:32
  important and valuable they can be in
• 16:33
  the pass game. It brings another
• 16:35
  dimension So to have a head coach who
• 16:38
  believes in that and understands that
• 16:40
  and the style of offense that we play,
• 16:42
  it can really cause some issues when you
• 16:43
  got that kind of guy with the tempo in
• 16:45
  the way that we do it. You better match
• 16:46
  up and if you miss a match up, it's
• 16:48
  going to be a problem. So we're looking
• 16:49
  forward to being able to create that and
• 16:51
  build that around here where that
• 16:53
  position becomes
• 16:55
  becomes pretty important and becomes one
• 16:57
  that can also leave impact here. I can't
• 16:59
  remember the last time Arman had a tight
• 17:00
  end taken in the first round. I can't
• 17:02
  remember the last time Arman had a tight
• 17:03
  end draft. and do work some research
• 17:05
  with media and people like that to do
• 17:06
  because it's something that you know
• 17:08
  kind of threw me for a loop a little bit
• 17:09
  too and I had this in I had to think
• 17:11
  about it when you coach that perennial
• 17:13
  programs that have like Miami like the
• 17:16
  University of Florida like University of
• 17:17
  Tennessee places like that you go okay
• 17:20
  wait a minute Auburn hasn't and you go
• 17:22
  back and look at it like
• 17:23
  >> trying to think it's been a while
• 17:24
  >> right it's been a while so you know you
• 17:26
  you have an opportunity if you're a
• 17:28
  recruit listening to this you have an
• 17:29
  opportunity to not only come out and be
• 17:31
  a part of something special where you
• 17:32
  can be hella productive in an offense,
• 17:34
  but you have a chance to leave a legacy
• 17:36
  and a and a true deep impact that one of
• 17:37
  the group was in college football. And
• 17:39
  not many guys and not many places offer
• 17:41
  you that that opportunity right now. So,
• 17:42
  it's a special time and opportunity for
• 17:44
  a young, talented, skilled tight end in
• 17:46
  an offense that can showcase his skill
• 17:48
  set to be here.
• 17:50
  >> Larry, on that, how would you describe
• 17:52
  yourself as a recruiter?
• 17:53
  >> Oh man, I love people. So, I love
• 17:55
  getting into interacting and getting
• 17:57
  into, you know, what's the best fit for
• 17:59
  us and who we are and our brand and our
• 18:01
  style of play and what we want to
• 18:03
  present and do. So, to have an
• 18:05
  opportunity to get out and go get to
• 18:07
  know these young people and get in their
• 18:08
  homes and get to know them and their
• 18:10
  parents and families and see what
• 18:12
  they're made of and if it's the right
• 18:13
  fit and a good fit, um, you know, that's
• 18:16
  the part of it that you love because at
• 18:17
  the end of the day, if you don't have
• 18:18
  good players, you can be as good a coach
• 18:20
  as you want to. I mean, if coaching, you
• 18:23
  know, a guy that can't play versus
• 18:25
  coaching a guy that's a first round pick
• 18:27
  is a very different thing, right?
• 18:28
  Because at the end of the day, it still
• 18:29
  comes down to the old school saying,
• 18:30
  right? Jimmies and Joe's. And if if my
• 18:33
  Jimmies are better than your Joe's, we
• 18:34
  going to have a better chance to win
• 18:35
  that day. So, um it's about going out
• 18:37
  and getting the very best people, very
• 18:38
  best players that you can acquire that
• 18:40
  fit who you are and your brand and style
• 18:42
  of play.
• 18:43
  >> And so, you got to love that part of it
• 18:44
  because the thrill in that is is kind of
• 18:45
  the the, you know, the chasing of the
• 18:47
  top talented players that are out there
• 18:49
  and being able to sell who we are, what
• 18:51
  we're all about. um and being able to,
• 18:53
  you know, convince him and that family
• 18:54
  and that young man, uh that that's this
• 18:57
  is the place to be for him. Uh and and
• 18:59
  the opportunities lie right here. And I
• 19:00
  think we have a hell of a chance to do
• 19:02
  that, uh here in Auburn, and make this
• 19:04
  position pretty special.
• 19:05
  >> Has Ryan G been able to kind of be that
• 19:08
  he's the guy coming back, the returner,
• 19:10
  but is he old enough to be able to kind
• 19:11
  of shepherd these guys? These guys are
• 19:13
  older than you.
• 19:13
  >> Yeah, but I think Ryan G is still really
• 19:15
  young and and I think that's the part
• 19:17
  that we can't get let get away from it.
• 19:19
  uh is that really in an ideal world um
• 19:22
  Ryan's truly just a freshman. He's
• 19:24
  really just a freshman
• 19:26
  >> that has been through a few a few months
• 19:28
  where he's probably had to play a little
• 19:29
  bit prematurely and get out there and do
• 19:31
  some things. There's a plus there
• 19:33
  there's pluses and minuses to that.
• 19:34
  Correct.
• 19:35
  >> Anytime you can get a guy's feet hot
• 19:38
  with the fire feels like that kind of
• 19:40
  can help his development a little bit
• 19:42
  and also it can stunt his development if
• 19:43
  that wasn't very you know if that wasn't
• 19:45
  very success very successful for him you
• 19:47
  know. Um, so we're kind of just kind of
• 19:49
  undoing a little bit of what he's kind
• 19:51
  of picked up a little bit and changing
• 19:53
  some of the training habits and things
• 19:54
  that he's doing. But man, he's eager,
• 19:56
  he's hungry, he has a great attitude and
• 19:58
  approach towards the game. He's kind of
• 20:00
  understanding what it is that we're
• 20:02
  trying to do here. You know, he's
• 20:03
  smiling. He's enjoying playing football.
• 20:05
  And that's one of the biggest things,
• 20:06
  too. And these guys have to enjoy
• 20:08
  playing football. So to get Ryan, you
• 20:10
  know, who I mean, I guess the last few
• 20:11
  months of last year were a little tough
• 20:13
  for him and those things. So he came in
• 20:15
  with a little bit of a disdain a little
• 20:16
  bit, I guess, to to build that, you
• 20:18
  know, break down those barriers and
• 20:20
  rebuild that trust and re getting
• 20:21
  recommitted to his process uh of getting
• 20:24
  really, you know, to development and
• 20:26
  buying back into, hey, this is where I'm
• 20:28
  truly at and for me to start to build
• 20:31
  myself back up. I have to truly know
• 20:32
  where that is and he needs honesty and
• 20:34
  he needs radical transparency when it
• 20:35
  comes to that. Uh so that we can go
• 20:37
  attack that. But I think Ryan's
• 20:38
  enjoying, you know, what that looks like
• 20:40
  for him now and the process of what
• 20:42
  that's become.
• 20:43
  excited to see what that looks like as
• 20:45
  we continue to build for him.
• 20:48
  >> Anything else for coach?