Latest / Books4Guys / David Pollack | Faith, Leadership, Adversity & Why Every Day Counts

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David Pollack | Faith, Leadership, Adversity & Why Every Day Counts · Books4Guys

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: Before we jump into today's episode, I want to thank our executive development partner, Standard Pursuit.
• 0:05
  SPEAKER_01: Founded by Hunter Didrickson, Standard Pursuit is a coaching community built for founders, entrepreneurs, and high performers who are ready to step into the next version of themselves.
• 0:16
  SPEAKER_01: Through one-on-one coaching and the Standard Training Club, Hunter helps people strengthen both their physical and mental operating systems so they can think more clearly, lead more effectively, and perform at a higher level.
• 0:27
  SPEAKER_01: One of the things I appreciate most about what Hunter is building is that he understands success isn't just about business.
• 0:34
  SPEAKER_01: It's about health, mindset, discipline, leadership, and becoming the type of person capable of achieving the goals you set for yourself.
• 0:43
  SPEAKER_01: If you're looking to sharpen your performance, improve your habits, and operate at a higher level, both personally and professionally, I encourage you to check out standardpursuit at standardpursuit.com.
• 0:55
  SPEAKER_01: Now let's get to today's episode.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_01: I kind of forgot about this, man, but I I actually got to see you play at Georgia in 2004 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_01: So I uh I was in seventh grade at the time, and I want to make you feel old, bro.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 1:26
  SPEAKER_01: Appreciate that.
• 1:27
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I I just had my first knee surgery from football.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_01: And uh my grandparents, so at the time, you you probably worked with Chris Mortensen quite a bit of ESPN.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_00: Oh, this is awesome.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 1:39
  SPEAKER_01: So his son, Alex, was playing at Arkansas at the time, and he actually lived with my grandparents, and he heard about my knee surgery, so he gave us his player tickets, so I didn't have to go up and down many stairs.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_01: So we were on the second row, yeah, we were on the second row for the Georgia game, and I was like, I remember that.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_01: I got to see I got to see Pollock play while he was at Georgia when I was a young kid.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_01: So that was pretty cool.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_01: I was thinking about that as I was uh don't bring up the SEC championship the year before that.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_01: It was a bloodbath.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, I remember that, man.
• 2:11
  SPEAKER_01: You know, you didn't have to bring that up.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, we did.
• 2:15
  SPEAKER_01: But no, dude, man, thank you so much for coming on here.
• 2:18
  SPEAKER_01: And uh man, I actually a friend of mine, he actually texted me and he was like, dude, uh David Pog just put a book out.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_01: You got to try and get him on your on your podcast.
• 2:27
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, Well, I think I had an old teammate of his, Rennie, who uh who I can try to get us to connect.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_01: And Rennie was like, Yeah, man, I got you.
• 2:34
  SPEAKER_01: And so I really appreciate uh you taking the time to do this again, David.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: But man, would love to to dive in on your book.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_01: And uh you just you just had it published, I think it was in April of this year.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, dude, what was the motivation behind behind sitting down and putting your story on paper and and publishing a book?
• 2:54
  SPEAKER_01: Well, it was hard, first of all.
• 2:55
  SPEAKER_00: Um, it definitely was not easy.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but but I tell people all the time if a defensive lineman can write it, you can read it.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: I promise you that.
• 3:02
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but no, I I think it was just watching God work, you know, through us in our story.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: And um, you know, just how how um how hard times aren't really meant.
• 3:12
  SPEAKER_00: They are they aren't meant to break you, they're they're meant to refine you.
• 3:15
  SPEAKER_00: And so using the adversities and the the the strategy, you don't know what you do when you're younger.
• 3:21
  SPEAKER_00: You just kind of you kind of l live to survive, but then you look back a lot of times, you're like, heck, I I didn't I didn't realize this is how I did it, or this is what was important.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: So just some ways to think about like hard times and some ways to develop some rhythms and some patterns in your life, man.
• 3:35
  SPEAKER_00: Dude, alignment affects assignment.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_00: And if you can get your butt going in the right direction every single day, you'll make every day count.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: And that's kind of the the genesis of the book.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 3:45
  SPEAKER_01: No, I love that.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_01: I love that.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_01: And man, you you went through some rough times.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_01: And as the as a casual fan who just knows who you are and has followed your career, obviously, all American at Georgia, first round draft pick.
• 3:58
  SPEAKER_01: Obviously, you know everyone knows about the neck injury that cut the NFL uh career short.
• 4:03
  SPEAKER_01: But then you get to go on and do some really cool things with ESPN and College Game Day.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_01: Then you transition out of there and you're and you're starting some new phases with podcast.
• 4:12
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, I know you've got a nutrition brand out now as well.
• 4:15
  SPEAKER_01: But man, from the book, what are some things that you really wanted to share with people that maybe they didn't know about you?
• 4:23
  SPEAKER_01: They know, they know those high-level things about you, but what were some of the struggles that you experienced that a lot of people just don't know about?
• 4:29
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I think that, you know, I, you know, in high school, I I I think everybody assumes you're a great player all the time.
• 4:34
  SPEAKER_00: And like I didn't play as a I didn't play varsity as a sophomore in high school and I didn't play JV.
• 4:39
  SPEAKER_00: So I was kind of stuck between two worlds and just, you know, understanding like that stunk and that was hard.
• 4:45
  SPEAKER_00: It wasn't, it wasn't really just easy path to to being a superstar or being really good at a high level.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: And um, you know, the people that kind of loved me through that and got me to where I was at.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: And um, you know, I I think the a lot of this story is is how do you handle hard?
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_00: I'm I'm way less, you know, concerned about how you uh about I'm I'm way less concerned what happens to you.
• 5:06
  SPEAKER_00: I'm way more concerned about how you respond to it.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: And so, you know, how you respond to that stuff is you know, is everything.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_00: You know, going to Georgia and switching, I switched three, I played three positions in less than a year at Georgia.
• 5:16
  SPEAKER_00: Like a lot of people don't understand that either.
• 5:18
  SPEAKER_00: Like you think you just kind of come in and you oh, you tear it up.
• 5:21
  SPEAKER_00: No, I come in as a fullback, everybody gets hurt.
• 5:23
  SPEAKER_00: I go to defensive tackle.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: Uh, we had four guys go to the NFL after my uh freshman year.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: So they needed the the qualifications for playing defensive end for spring football was breathing.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: Like they just needed somebody.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_00: And so they moved me there and I got to play there.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: And, you know, I didn't, I didn't pout, I didn't hang my head.
• 5:40
  SPEAKER_00: Like, you know, I I'm gonna be great where I'm at.
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: And that that's a good thing to have in life.
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: I know we all want to go chase these goals and dreams, but we can't live in the present, and we dang sure can't live in the past.
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_00: And so teaching yourself to live in the in the moment and how to be great every day and make things count every day, I think is important.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_01: What were some of the things that kind of went through your mind as obviously, you know, you you're going into the NFL and you think you know, you know, you're probably dreaming, hey, I'm gonna be here 10, 15 years, I'm gonna be an all pro.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: Like that's that's what you got your mind set on.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: When you got the injury, and obviously you're told, hey, you're done.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_01: What what did that feel like personally for you?
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I think you you first think, oh, okay, this isn't I had the good thing is I had a lot of time to process.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: I mean, you break your neck, you get in a halo, you get in a neck brace, you have surgery, get back in a neck brace.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_00: So like I had a two-year recovery stint that was um, you go from wanting to be like super jacked and like lift all the weights you can lift to, hey, I'd love to be able to walk and and do normal things.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: So your mindset starts to shift.
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_00: And then when I heard football was gone, it was like I remember telling my baby doll, I was like, man, I can't imagine what's next.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_00: Like football was so awesome and so great.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like I can't imagine what God's gonna bring in our life.
• 6:55
  SPEAKER_00: And never thought it would be television.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: I ne I hate I hated television.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_00: I I did not, I was not a fan of uh all the guys on the airs and what they said and how they how they treated people necessarily.
• 7:06
  SPEAKER_00: Um so it's never something I thought I would do.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: But um, that's what's cool about God watching him work.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_00: He opens doors, he closes doors, and you know, some things that some things you never thought you would do.
• 7:16
  SPEAKER_00: You thought you were built and made for something, and then all of a sudden, oh wait, this ain't that bad.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_00: And that's where like how we handle those moments of adversity, and we go, okay, like this this is something that's worth trying.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: This is something that's worth doing.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I think a lot of times too, we we want things to be a certain way before we go do them.
• 7:33
  SPEAKER_00: And the I's got to be dotted and then T's got to be crossed.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: And it's like, no, no, no, no.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_00: Just go and do, man.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_00: Like just pull the trigger and and you're you'll be amazed at what God shows you and how you learn and how you get experience.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: But that doesn't come without failure.
• 7:47
  SPEAKER_00: It ha failure is a part of the journey.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_00: Adversity is a part of the journey and a part of that, it's it's that uh accompanying pain companion that you need to grow and to get where you want to get to ultimately down the road when you want to be great at something.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 8:01
  SPEAKER_01: Man, we have a lot of conversations on this podcast about discipline, but also the motion of action and doing things and not being afraid to fail.
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_01: Don't be afraid to look stupid.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_01: You know, those are the ones who talk some of the most greatest achievers, like they just don't give a crap if they look dumb or not.
• 8:17
  SPEAKER_01: And uh Well, you know what the difference is though, Chris?
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_00: The difference is like versus respected.
• 8:22
  SPEAKER_00: Versus respect.
• 8:23
  SPEAKER_00: Like that that can cure all of that.
• 8:25
  SPEAKER_00: Like whenever you're going into a field, if if you're if you're saying that I I need to be liked in this field to be successful, you're completely wrong.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_00: If I'm respected and they respect who I am, what I am, what I do, how I show up, how I treat people, that's totally different.
• 8:40
  SPEAKER_00: You can't please everybody in this world.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_00: Like you have a 0% chance of plea.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: Some people don't like happy people, some people don't like sad people, some people don't like rich people, some people don't like poor people, and then some people don't like people.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 8:51
  SPEAKER_00: Like they really don't.
• 8:52
  SPEAKER_00: Some people just don't like people regardless.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_00: So you're not gonna keep everybody happy, but if I can do my job, what I'm supposed to do, if I show up, I do it with integrity, I work really, really hard, I treat people the right way.
• 9:04
  SPEAKER_00: People will respect me and I'll get a good response, but it can't be about the likes uh uh in this world or on the fake world that is social media and the other stuff that comes with it.
• 9:14
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah.
• 9:15
  SPEAKER_01: No, and I wanna, I wanna, you kind of veered into it a little bit of of originally not liking being on TV and wanting to do that, but I do want to ask you another question first.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: You speak you speak a lot about your faith, and a lot of that is in this book.
• 9:27
  SPEAKER_01: Have you always, I mean, did you grow up in church and your family be a part?
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_01: Like, when did you really dive into your faith and really become outspoken and wanting to share more about that?
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: And what did that look like for you personally?
• 9:41
  SPEAKER_00: I knew nothing about faith.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_00: I knew nothing about Christianity, all growing up through uh high school.
• 9:47
  SPEAKER_00: And then my junior year, man, one of my neighbors across the street, he was like, Hey, we're doing a lock-in.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_00: You want to come?
• 9:52
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, Well, what's a lock-in?
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_00: He's like, Well, you come to the church, they lock you in and you spend the night.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, No, I'm out, bro.
• 9:58
  SPEAKER_00: And then he said the magic words.
• 9:59
  SPEAKER_00: He was like, You get to stay up all night, compete and play games, and they feed you.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_00: I'm like, okay, never mind.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: I'm in.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_00: I'll do that.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but that's the first time I'd ever heard about faith, first time I ever heard about Jesus.
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: And then I had a teacher named Mark Watson in my physics teacher that junior year.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: And he um, man, he lived a life that was so cool.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_00: He was so calm, level headed.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_00: You know, I have a spiritual gift of annoyance.
• 10:21
  SPEAKER_00: I'm really good at it.
• 10:22
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's it's a very, it's a big blessing.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_00: It's a big gift.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_00: And man, I he just handled me with such grace.
• 10:27
  SPEAKER_00: And then he had a he had a Jesus sticker on his or a fish sticker on his on his computer and he listened to praise and worship music in a country, in a, in a, uh, in a public school setting.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_00: And um something about him was different.
• 10:38
  SPEAKER_00: So, you know, I tell people all the time, like how you how you lead others to faith.
• 10:42
  SPEAKER_00: I think a lot of people think, oh, I gotta be able to say the right words and say this perfect.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_00: And I was like, you know, mine was an invitation, like invited.
• 10:49
  SPEAKER_00: So somebody invited me, they didn't have to do the work, but they invited me to church.
• 10:53
  SPEAKER_00: They invited me to something that they had going on.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_00: Next thing is a life worth emulating, living a life that's different with purpose.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_00: And you look at it and you go, hey man, that's different.
• 11:01
  SPEAKER_00: And and Mark Watson did that.
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_00: He lived a life that was different.
• 11:04
  SPEAKER_00: And that led me to start to going to church and attend church and reading my Bible.
• 11:08
  SPEAKER_00: And then I got to the University of Georgia with Coach Rick, and I was like, whoa, that's what a man looks like.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: Like, that's how a dude's competitive, tough, wants to win, but still understands there's a bigger picture and a bigger purpose.
• 11:19
  SPEAKER_00: And um, started to get with FCA, started to memorize scripture, and it's amazing, man.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_00: Whatever you put in here, it's amazing.
• 11:26
  SPEAKER_00: It comes right out of here.
• 11:27
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Right?
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Like, and so understanding that and starting to realize that.
• 11:31
  SPEAKER_00: And then uh obviously there was challenge that was going to come up in your life, but but watching God work in my life and watching him change me that day, the next week, the next couple weeks, the next years of walking with him was something that was uh, I mean, it was just something that I needed at the right moment.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yeah, that's cool, man.
• 11:49
  SPEAKER_01: That foundation was built and you've been able to continue building and building and building stronger and stronger over the years, and you can kind of see that come out through just the way you speak and what you write about.
• 11:59
  SPEAKER_01: And I just think that's really cool to share uh for people to hear that from you.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_01: What who I guess who and what got you to to make the jump into it being on television and getting on ESPN and game day.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_01: Like who who talked you into it and and what was the process like?
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_01: And did you was it hard at first?
• 12:20
  SPEAKER_01: Like how much practice did it take for you to be comfortable on set with millions of people watching?
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: Oh bro, it was definitely um, it was definitely difficult.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_00: You know, listen, I played defense.
• 12:30
  SPEAKER_00: There's a reason my podcast behind me is seaball, get ball.
• 12:32
  SPEAKER_00: Like that's what we do.
• 12:33
  SPEAKER_00: We see the ball, we go get it.
• 12:35
  SPEAKER_00: Um so no, it was definitely different and it took a lot of practice.
• 12:38
  SPEAKER_00: And I'll never forget, I was like, all right, dude, you're a freshman in college again.
• 12:41
  SPEAKER_00: Like you just got to grind and you gotta work.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_00: And then you how do you learn?
• 12:45
  SPEAKER_00: I remember I'll never forget watching people in the industry.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, oh, I like that.
• 12:49
  SPEAKER_00: I don't like that.
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: Um I don't make sure I don't do that.
• 12:52
  SPEAKER_00: Like, who who talks like me?
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_00: Like, what what why do I like them?
• 12:55
  SPEAKER_00: Why do I not like them?
• 12:56
  SPEAKER_00: And so I think it's it's definitely a process.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_00: But I I was doing local television on Fox, SEC, Gridiron Live.
• 13:03
  SPEAKER_00: Nobody watched.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_00: It was like 12 to 2 a.m.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_00: And uh I had been buddies with Kirk Herbstreet because I lived in Ohio and uh played for playing for the Bengals and he lived there.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_00: And um he was flipping through the channels in Ohio, and apparently this came on in Ohio, and he was like, hey man, I love your energy, the your your passion.
• 13:20
  SPEAKER_00: Like I can tell you love the sport, like you should give this a try.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, Well, of course.
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_00: Like, yeah, like I'd love to sign up.
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_00: And then so he's the one who introduced me into to ESPN, but it was Kirk, and um he said it was the passion and energy.
• 13:34
  SPEAKER_00: And I think, you know, listen, but but it's a it's a good reminder.
• 13:37
  SPEAKER_00: Like how you do one thing is how you do everything.
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: Like be great where you're at.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: Like don't complain about where you are, and you have to do a good job of where you're at if you want to get to the next step and the next step and the next step.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: And that led to ESPN U recaps from 12 to 2 a.m.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_00: Uh that nobody was watching.
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_00: If my mama wasn't watching, I promised nobody else was watching.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_00: And um, you know, honing your craft and figuring out who you are and what you are, what you're good at, what you're not good at, um, what's important to you, what stats are important to you, like all those things you start to learn with experience.
• 14:08
  SPEAKER_00: You don't just jump right into it and and know what you're doing.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 14:11
  SPEAKER_01: No, and I mean you say I didn't I didn't read the rest of the title of your book, but every day counts.
• 14:16
  SPEAKER_01: Start where you are, use what you have, do what you can, and uh and go from there.
• 14:22
  SPEAKER_01: And uh it's just so cool.
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it was fun watching you.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_01: I I think everyone got the uh the vibe you were putting off of being passionate about college football and it fit the show well for so long.
• 14:32
  SPEAKER_01: But this leads in, and you were you were talking about Kirk, which is awesome.
• 14:35
  SPEAKER_01: I I I I'm working on trying to get him on here.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_01: He's here in Nashville, not too far away from me, and I've got his book too, which is really cool.
• 14:42
  SPEAKER_01: But um, who I'm assuming he had a big impact on you and and was a mentor and helping you transition and be smooth about the whole process.
• 14:52
  SPEAKER_01: But football-wise, ESPN-wise, personal life-wise, who has been some mentors and coaches that has meant a lot to you and has helped you personally develop over your life?
• 15:04
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I mean, the one at ESPN was Reese.
• 15:07
  SPEAKER_00: You know, Reese Davis is um, he's always he always says, I'm the I'm the little brother he never wanted.
• 15:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but but to this day, we have an unbelievable relationship.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_00: We talk a lot, and uh his faith is really, really strong.
• 15:19
  SPEAKER_00: We're accountability partners on the road where we could, you know, if something was going wrong, you know, I remember something was going wrong in the truck one show, and I remember just leaning over and be like, hey, it's cool, man.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_00: Like, just remember this this doesn't really matter, you know.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_00: And um, so he was he was that guy definitely.
• 15:34
  SPEAKER_00: But I had Jesse Palmer in the early years.
• 15:36
  SPEAKER_00: I had Samantha Ponder, who was amazing.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_00: I had Maria Taylor who was awesome, like so many guys along the way.
• 15:41
  SPEAKER_00: Kirk definitely helped me big time with on air and what to do, what not to do.
• 15:45
  SPEAKER_00: He'd always say, Hey, kid, don't wear sneakers.
• 15:47
  SPEAKER_00: And I'm like, Kirk, I'm a I'm a defensive lineman.
• 15:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not a pretty boy.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: I'm already in a suit and I'm pissed off.
• 15:53
  SPEAKER_00: So I'm not wearing, I'm not wearing dress shoes.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_00: Like I'm wearing sneakers, you know.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: So like, but Coach Corso and just, you know, him, I I'll never forget his hey, football guy, it's entertainment, sweetheart.
• 16:04
  SPEAKER_00: You know, like, but all those little nuggets from all the guys you work with along the way that you um that you take in and you try to digest and you try to, you know, where it fits, where it's where it fits to your life and who you are and what you are, you you try to use, but always not never change, you know, who you are and what you want to be.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_01: Well, I I think you had an influence on Kirk because now he wears sneakers like uh every Saturday.
• 16:26
  SPEAKER_01: Everybody wears sneakers, bro.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, no, everybody wears them anymore.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_01: But uh Man, what was some of your I don't know, I don't want to ask the generic question of like some of your moments and memories, but what were some, I guess, moments that you you learned the most from or that you're most proud of uh at your time of working with College Game Day and that crew?
• 16:46
  SPEAKER_00: I think the things, you know, I think the thing I'm most proud of is now that I do this as in my space with seaball get ball, I'm still in this space, but I can get everybody that I worked with and all the coaches that I was around and all the co all the players, like we can get to them.
• 17:01
  SPEAKER_00: And because I think I think because we did it the right way and we didn't just assassinate people just to say things, and we don't say things just to say things, and we tried to be very respectful.
• 17:11
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's really, really fun to watch now afterwards is like everybody's like, heck yeah, I'll come on.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_00: And and I think that's unique, and that's and that's cool, and you feel very privileged.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_00: But um, you know, that that's definitely something that uh I take a lot of pride in.
• 17:23
  SPEAKER_00: But those those moments and those those character-defining moments and and all the all the all the stuff you learn along the way is it's just so cool, man.
• 17:31
  SPEAKER_00: God, God uses that stuff to refine us.
• 17:33
  SPEAKER_00: He uses the the the mess ups, the the good things, the the bad things, all those things um we get to use and we get to use in a positive way.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: I know you don't get to do the things you've done without having some confidence and self-confidence in doing what you're trying to accomplish, but could you have ever imagined growing up in junior high and high school, the things that you'd be able to accomplish at Georgia, getting drafted, being on college game day, having a successful podcast, having a book out now.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_01: Like as you look back, what are some of your thoughts that you're just like, like, did you ever think you would accomplish that?
• 18:06
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, it just how does that feel?
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_00: Well, I I don't I don't think my dreams ever took me this far.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_00: Uh definitely would tell you I I wouldn't thought I wrote a book, not without like a lot of pictures, um, for sure.
• 18:16
  SPEAKER_00: But like um, you know, I it's just it's it's fun.
• 18:20
  SPEAKER_00: It's fun because I I had one goal.
• 18:22
  SPEAKER_00: Like when I was four years old, I told everybody around me I'm gonna go play in the NFL.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_00: And to go reach that goal and then it's gone in two years because of one hit when you break your neck and it's out the window.
• 18:32
  SPEAKER_00: Um, then it's like, oh crap, like let's what's next?
• 18:35
  SPEAKER_00: You know, what do I want to do?
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_00: And then building new goals and new dreams and watching God open doors and watching God close doors and like, you know, just being very present in it.
• 18:43
  SPEAKER_00: And I I think it's I I think it's fun, man, because I I think we lose the art of the possible as we get older and as we get into something, like we kind of ride the that hamster wheel and you get going and you're like, all right, this is easy.
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_00: This is comfortable.
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_00: I should stay doing this.
• 18:57
  SPEAKER_00: I'm making money.
• 18:58
  SPEAKER_00: There's nothing about this, it's hard.
• 19:00
  SPEAKER_00: So, and then all of a sudden when it's gone, it's like, okay, the the art of the possible in your brain.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_00: All right, what do I want to do, man?
• 19:06
  SPEAKER_00: Like, and I think now you get to the point, I've gotten to the point in my life, like, there's a million ways to make money.
• 19:11
  SPEAKER_00: There's a gazillion ways to make money.
• 19:13
  SPEAKER_00: What do I want to do?
• 19:15
  SPEAKER_00: What brings me joy?
• 19:16
  SPEAKER_00: Like saying no to a lot of the things that, yeah, they might make you money, but they also might make you miserable.
• 19:21
  SPEAKER_00: And I think we all have those choices of, you know, f pick something you love and then make a career out of it.
• 19:27
  SPEAKER_00: Go make some money.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: It doesn't have to be something that just because it pays the bills.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_01: I love the way you answered that question because I was, I didn't want to ask it as you've done everything that you've wanted to accomplish and there's no more.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_01: The goalpost always moves.
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_01: So you never really reach the final destination if you're striving to be your best self.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_01: And so there's so many things that you're continuing to work on and improve and to go get and and goals change.
• 19:50
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's really cool that just to kind of hear again what your thoughts were on what you've achieved and then what your vision is for your future self and what you're trying to go achieve uh and to make possible.
• 20:00
  SPEAKER_01: David, as people pick up your book and read it, if they don't take anything else away from it, what do you hope that that one nugget of information is that sits with them?
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_01: What do you hope someone takes away from reading your book?
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_00: Well, it's hard to boil it down probably to one.
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um but but I I think that like you you you can't finish something unless you started.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_00: And and you've been you've been given opportunities, you've been given gifts.
• 20:23
  SPEAKER_00: Like we've all we've all had different talents that thank God they're not all the same because this place would be terrible.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_00: Um but we've all been given different individual talents, and how do we use those?
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_00: How how do we be successful?
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_00: And and that that's why when you talked about the book, you said start where you are, use what you have, do what you can.
• 20:38
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's so important.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_00: Like I only get today, man.
• 20:41
  SPEAKER_00: And and I I use a car analogy all the time when I say this, but if I'm driving in a car and I'm always focused on the front windshield, always looking out, always looking out, always looking out, I don't enjoy it.
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_00: I don't enjoy where I'm at.
• 20:53
  SPEAKER_00: I'm always looking for the next stage of life, the next um big thing, the next my kids get to the next stage.
• 20:59
  SPEAKER_00: Well, if I'm always looking in that rear view mirror, it's always in the past with regret, with shame, things I wish I did or should have done, could have done.
• 21:07
  SPEAKER_00: Um, but man, trying to find a way to be present, right?
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: Like, and I and I think to be present means to, like again, in the book, we try to help you create a scoreboard because men are naturally competitive.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: We want to win.
• 21:19
  SPEAKER_00: And and women, there's a lot of women that are competitive too.
• 21:21
  SPEAKER_00: So, how do we create scoreboards in our lives that we know whether we won today?
• 21:26
  SPEAKER_00: We know whether we lost.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: And we're like, how do you climb a mountain?
• 21:29
  SPEAKER_00: You climb a mountain one step at a time.
• 21:32
  SPEAKER_00: But let's not get to this top of this mountain and be like, man, crap.
• 21:36
  SPEAKER_00: That's the mountain I wanted to climb.
• 21:38
  SPEAKER_00: I'm on the wrong mountain, right?
• 21:40
  SPEAKER_00: So I think understanding that would be would be a great takeaway.
• 21:43
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, love that.
• 21:45
  SPEAKER_01: Man, just two two more questions for you, David.
• 21:47
  SPEAKER_01: Um, one one's kind of a fun one for you.
• 21:50
  SPEAKER_01: And uh, I was actually I was talking to a buddy.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_01: It was actually a question from my buddy as we were laughing about this.
• 21:55
  SPEAKER_01: The entire time we watched College Game Day, I don't think we ever saw you.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_01: Eat any of the food that was not set.
• 22:03
  SPEAKER_01: Did you what did you really just not eat it?
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_01: Like were you that disciplined or were you sneaking some bites when the camera's went out?
• 22:09
  SPEAKER_00: That's not first of all, I am a picky eater.
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_00: Um and I also intermittent fast.
• 22:14
  SPEAKER_00: So I don't eat till a certain time every day.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_00: So I I had no desire and I and my diet is very, very strict and very, I just I like my stuff, man.
• 22:25
  SPEAKER_00: I I like my Greek yogurt, I like my cottage cheese, I like my ground turkey, I like my fruits, my vegetables.
• 22:30
  SPEAKER_00: Like I don't need a lot of other stuff, you know, in the mix.
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_00: So I I definitely I get that comment a good bit.
• 22:36
  SPEAKER_00: It was always, you never ate the food?
• 22:38
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's some of the best food.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: They bring it up.
• 22:40
  SPEAKER_00: I was like, nah, man, that's not that's not my thing.
• 22:42
  SPEAKER_00: I'm not eating that early and I'm not eating other people's foods all the time.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:46
  SPEAKER_00: Isn't that funny what like guys notice?
• 22:48
  SPEAKER_01: I was like, dude, yes, it never touches the food.
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_01: Look at those ribs.
• 22:51
  SPEAKER_01: Like, digital.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: They look good.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: Nah, bro.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_01: No, don't even put it near me.
• 22:55
  SPEAKER_01: That was funny.
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_01: Last question for you, David.
• 22:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I ask everybody this that comes on the podcast just from uh a book standpoint.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm always curious to know, you know, what's what's a book or two that you've read that has meant a lot to you personally or professionally?
• 23:09
  SPEAKER_01: And what's a book that you love to recommend to other people if asked?
• 23:13
  SPEAKER_00: The Bible is the best book you'll ever read.
• 23:15
  SPEAKER_00: Um and and I say that with uh a hundred percent sincerity and you know, understanding what God wants for you and what takeaways and those like it is literally the playbook of life, and it's gonna give you the playbook like for football tells you in the in this situation you do this.
• 23:31
  SPEAKER_00: That's what the Bible is.
• 23:32
  SPEAKER_00: Like it's the ultimate playbook, it it has all the answers to the to the test.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Atomic Habits was really, really good.
• 23:39
  SPEAKER_00: Um uh there's god, there's a lot of them.
• 23:42
  SPEAKER_00: Like um I just read uh I just read uh Lee Stroball's uh it's like the second or third time I've read it.
• 23:51
  SPEAKER_00: Uh Case for Christ was freaking fantastic.
• 23:54
  SPEAKER_00: But I I I think I do think it's really, really important, man, to find time to read.
• 23:58
  SPEAKER_00: You know, what I what I do in in my house is I literally just try to have a book, and when it's dead time instead of trying to scroll, all right, read your book, dude.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_00: Like at night trying to get myself to read my book.
• 24:08
  SPEAKER_00: Like I think it's it's so much easier to grab your phone and scroll through things.
• 24:12
  SPEAKER_00: Man, reading activates such a big part of your brain, and then it's putting so much good stuff in your head if you're reading the right stuff, and uh it keeps you off some of that other stuff, I think, that would help us to stay off of.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, man.
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_01: I'm I'm so glad you said that.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_01: And it's really cool.
• 24:25
  SPEAKER_01: Actually, I finished the Bible for the first time last year.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_01: So read for the first time.
• 24:30
  SPEAKER_01: It is the amazing experience.
• 24:31
  SPEAKER_01: What's your favorite book?
• 24:32
  SPEAKER_01: Uh probably Proverbs, just because I love the like little daily doses of like motivational things you can take away.
• 24:39
  SPEAKER_01: So, I mean, there were so many.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, my dad's a former pastor, so I it created a lot of questions for me to be able to ask him and discuss.
• 24:46
  SPEAKER_01: So that was really cool.
• 24:47
  SPEAKER_01: That's outstanding.
• 24:48
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think that's a great resource to use.
• 24:50
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think he really enjoyed me coming to him, talking, you know, asking those in-depth questions that he I could just tell he enjoyed, you know, diving in that.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um, but I read The Case for Christ too, and I saw the movie several years ago.
• 25:02
  SPEAKER_01: That's a great book and a great movie too.
• 25:05
  SPEAKER_01: So, but I I'm glad you talked about the the social media thing.
• 25:08
  SPEAKER_01: And I know I kind of mentioned to you briefly, you know, we're working with some high schools on trying to, you know, player of the week awards, give them a book of their choice to kind of get that curiosity journey, critical thinking going on.
• 25:19
  SPEAKER_01: And it's been really cool to see what some of these players pick.
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, a lot of times it is an athlete book, and I'm sure this fall they'll they'll probably pick your book after having you on this podcast.
• 25:28
  SPEAKER_01: But some of them last fall were picking like books about crypto or books about like building businesses.
• 25:34
  SPEAKER_01: You know, someone picked a fiction book, but it was like when you give them the option, and then some of their coaches would say, like, hey man, the kid actually read the book.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_01: He was talking about it, you know.
• 25:43
  SPEAKER_00: And I was like, man, I'm here's the here's the bottom line.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_00: You can be an expert on anything you want to be.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_00: Anything.
• 25:49
  SPEAKER_00: Like, think about that.
• 25:50
  SPEAKER_00: You literally can listen to podcasts, listen to books, read books.
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_00: Like, there is so much information at our fingertips, especially with uh, you know, with the with the AIs nowadays, too.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_00: Like you can you can literally be an expert in whatever you want to be.
• 26:04
  SPEAKER_00: So um don't be afraid to learn, man.
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_00: Learning's fun.
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_00: And I know it has a negative stigma sometimes, but I can tell you one thing if you're not always learning, you're gonna be left behind because the world is always changing.
• 26:15
  SPEAKER_00: You're always changing.
• 26:16
  SPEAKER_00: And the more you can learn, the more you can read and learn and be able to handle some of the the stuff.
• 26:21
  SPEAKER_00: And by the way, also slow this down because we love busyness and we love noise.
• 26:26
  SPEAKER_00: And sometimes we need to just get quiet and get still and slow this down.
• 26:31
  SPEAKER_00: Um, and it's so good for us just mentally and physically than we ever imagined.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, absolutely.
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_01: Well, brother, thank you so much for doing this.
• 26:39
  SPEAKER_01: This means a lot.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_01: Love your message, love your story.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_01: We're proud and honored to have your book spotlighted on the Books for Guys website and to share it.
• 26:46
  SPEAKER_01: I can't wait to give it away to some players this fall, and I can't wait to hear their feedback from it.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_01: But dude, keep doing what you're doing, man.
• 26:53
  SPEAKER_01: Can't wait to see all the stuff you continue to accomplish because you're by no means done yet.
• 26:58
  SPEAKER_01: Your podcast is amazing.
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_01: Uh, who knows?
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, you wrote a book, man.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_01: Who knows what you can do?
• 27:04
  SPEAKER_01: So the possibility anybody can, baby.
• 27:06
  SPEAKER_00: If I can, anybody can.
• 27:08
  SPEAKER_01: No, but it'll be cool to keep following your career, David.
• 27:10
  SPEAKER_01: And again, man, thanks for coming on the pod today.
• 27:12
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 27:13
  SPEAKER_01: Appreciate you, my man.