Jakeem Grant

A great line is um, because I didn't pay my bill. That's the line the devil made me do it. Let me tell you what happened to us. So the family, So the family, so, uh, you know, first of all problems. So we have a whale and we try to utilize the well too. Um one. I know this isn't surprise, but I don't like folks telling me I can't water my grass. So we have a whale and in the well that my irrigation is on the well? Now are

well does it get p s size pressure? It doesn't get enough pressure to to to be able to run the whole thing because of we're not getting as much of gallon per minute, so we only get like eight thirteen or fifteen gallons permitted the threshold is like eighteen or twenty. You're fudging it, and so it will kind of killer reserves. And so it just makes it to

where it would utilize the well. But we you know, I used it to like do other stuff around the house and stuff just I just like to have my life. Wants an off grade house. But I um real, lie quick, lie and just a lie over. I can't afford it. Um so, so that's my goal to. That's my goal to. I can't afford it. So and and plus I'm not farming that I'm not farming right so especially I don't know any vets that will help me deliver a baby for a cow or a calf, um just all of

all of that stuff. I don't want to pay for all that little house on the It weren't there any black people in the house on the plur know that that was a trick question and answers, no, there wasn't. Okay, And um so I got my landscaper too, uh, change the nozzles on my sprinklers too. For them to be smaller, so it will we can accommodate the well. So on the internet, and I'm like, dang, internet went out? Ding,

don't hey did the internet go out? Yes, your neighbor, the landscaper, he hit the line because it's buried here in North Carolina. You bury um utilities hit the line digging up the sprinkler head. So lost the internet. No big deal. Mistakes happen. I don't have a problem with it. So we call are in that provider. Now I have two lines, have a business line for NFL network and I have a personal line. My man, did it right.

If you're gonna do it, do it right. He could everything everything, I mean, alarms going all, no line left behind. He got him hall. No big deal, he's apologetic. Mistakes happen. Cool. So we get our our internet provider to come in. Bang. They they later line. So now the kids are hot because we got the PlayStation five and that was the only one I could muster up and muscle. And that one is totally downloadable. No hard copy, no no hard a hard drug. So you could play online. But we

ain't got no online. Next, you don't have internet. It doesn't work. Oh, man kids is looking doocy Damn. Didn't want to slap me, right, So we go pool. Hey, let's just go hang out. So on our way we you know, kind of going through the neighborhood. Were on a golf cart, just just getting outside, you know, doing old school stuff. Oh school with a golf cart. Damn your legs. Ain't that schooling about a golf riding around the neighbor in a golf cart. Sorry, you see you

threw me off. I was I stated story mode, like the story mode, but you was in the holding modes. It wasn't riding bikes. Were riding bikes old school. We're riding bikes right uh. And so as we're riding a bike slash riding a golf cart, landscapers go past us. They're going to motor grass. Now they read they run the line. They're gonna burry line in seven ten days. So we were hanging out and then we go to pool.

We're playing, and then we come back in the house and the internet was working and that's not working now. When they laid the lines, they also put red flags. Okay, now this may come across a certain way, but I just said they laid flags that one roh that's Spanish for red bilingual. Mm hmm. So some roles come by. Guess what I discover they in the lawnmower right anymore? Cut the new line. He drove over the line, scoundrel, and then try to jerry rig it with black electrical tape.

As we that's the that's the that's that's the thing. So then we had to call the same people we called to get the line. They have laid two lines now and he cut the other line, the business line that they laid. Mm hmmm. So now this week I do not want them to motograph because it has not been buried. We don't need oceananigans anymore. Bro do you talking about you? Are you? You're talking about? I wasn't

the first time, actually happen the second time. If I was doing this podcast at the time that I discovered that they cut this line, you know how many associations would disassociate me from what I was saying. I was so mad. Mh I was. It's a low down, dirty shame bro Keen and Ivory Wins. Let me tell you something. It was b s dog. I had two days of

no WiFi. It ain't even the WiFi. It's the fact that if you drove over this black line with red and red even in Europe, means stop, m hm, educate red flags on top of a black line that's going through out it goes from my front yard to my backyard. He he caught with this sharp blade underneath that driving over it. He would be okay, tow it up. Yes, you are so mad at your anger. You are the first guy, he was straight. The second guy. Let them be more on my grass this week, and I'm at

the house. It's gonna show down. Really, he don't do it. As I am progressing and I'm growing up, but every so often I ain't. I'm this woman in my elbow. I ain't molly watched somebody this year yet I can't believe like me and Andrew looking at it. She goes, Babe, big man, I'll tell you, you man, because you know

I'm mad laziness dog. So I guess the safe to say that we ain't gonna be or we're not going to be endorsing this because I had to read for this landscape, because let me tell you, tell me, I shouldn't read it right now. If you don't think I'm looking for a new landscaper because these dudes and my landscape is great. But this, come on, dog, this is the topic. This is just lack of because why I look at that? Why why it gets me so charged up? It's if you're lazy to do that? What other areas

are you skimping on? And so now I'm in every before they get there, and before they and after they leave, I am checking to make sure did you get my flower beds? Did you get this? Did you get that? Because if you don't, I'm done with them. Stand your ground, brother, stand your ground. You know what. I hope your wife I get cut? Oh we got alright. Coming up on the cut to a podcast, we've got Jachem Grant, a

while receiver for the Miami Dolphins. He's a native of Dallas, Texas, and was just named second team All Pro and as a punt returner. Jachem Grant on the Cut to a Podcast, we will announce right now your nickname, which I would not call you by, which is black but black? How did you get home? How did you get the nickname black? I'm dark as hell man, right, That's that's what people don't understand. I'm okay with being dark. Man, look, dark man. Listen,

that's what they called me. I'm talking about from high school to college, everything from pee wee. I'm talking about. The coaches called me black. Everybody called me black. Even even white coaches call you black. Yeah, even white coaches call me black still to this day. Real he is dark, as I'm telling if he closed his eyes and but hey, that brother got a clean set of anneers though brussus teeth and floss. I see, that's a fact. You got to when you're that dark and ugly, you gotta have

other attributes. Take the dark window, the window as a as a leader of the under short people. Man, it's a pleasure to welcome you into the group of playmakers six feet in below right, welcome to Welcome to the squad. I appreciate it. I appreciate it. Well, he like five way. I'll tell you don't know you said welcome to the squad as if you in the squad we all on the six feet right. Yeah, but you gotta actually had did something. Oh okay, I'll leave my bad. I didn't

know I didn't do anything. I thought we were just talking about hype requirements. That ain't no, no, no, I forgot the corner. He was a corner. I forgot you was an elitist. I'm showing that you just were. He was a corner we wanted. We got let corners. Now I see what you I see. I see myself outter. You wonder if he was trying he told yeah, where's that? He was all I got you look look, yeah he got quiet. Yeah, alright, let's go. Okay, here we go.

So what's your favorite lazy activity? Netflix? Sitting there and watching TV's. So are you a Netflix being join movies or shows? Shows? Most definitely shows. I gotta have a sit which one you're on right now? Um look at boy timing the time of that way that I gotta get some Look at floppers, wife and kids back home in Texas. Yeah, so I have nothing to do. Man, I'm talking about when you when you say my wife and kids, I just sent them back to Texas. Um

My want to move back to be around family and stuff. So, um you know how the NFL go. You don't want team to be on the next team, So what you're thinking about that? So that's home base? And so um man, when I tell you loneliness, the strikes when you ain't got your kids and your wife there, Yeah, tell you that. That's why I'm all in the Netflix Netflix hardcore all day cool, All right, what's um? I know I'm gonna

get you on this one. Definitely favorite Christmas song or Carol man I if you have one that's fun, Rudolf, I guess I mean go with rut Off. The red nose rein Deer had a very sign you know if you ever saw him. M yeah, yeah, appreciate No, I got it. Yeah. See, that's what happens when you just you just throw something out there and then they call you on you're trying to wing it. I had it, I had I had the first couple of Yeah, there's Temptations, huh.

The Temptations Solid Night count that's my favorite. Like that's when you know it's Christmas time. When that Temptations slid Night comes on, it's Christmas time. So I grew up that's we didn't coordinate this. Yeah. When I was a kindygarten, our Christmas are Christmas. H was that Christmas progrogram? We have to sing Silent Night so big, So I like Solid Night. I just like the Temptations first, and that's that's that that's that legit one. That baritone voice. Yeah,

that's that's that's the one of money right there. Huh cool. How do you display love to friends and family? Time? Man, spending time with them and uh the showing them that you know, I'm I'm here for you and sign a vice versa. I think time is the biggest thing, especially being an athlete. They're just showing you that, like I still care about you, I'm still here for you, like without happening, you know, as you know, Steve buying somebody something.

Now I'm here. Just let's spend time. Let's do this, let's do that. I like that. All right, last one? You ready, I'm ready. I know you're a returner, but you also are excellent receiver. What is your favorite route to run? And a go route is not a route? Choice route, choice route over the ball? Sit right there? We Uh you can break in out sometimes you get you get messed up on you saw you the Nickel Star.

Easy easy, easy words. Especially I love you when man coverage because yeah, I got three way, I got I got two way go. I can beat you with speed, run across the run across, or I can hit you and make you feel like I'm going all the way cross and returned back out. All right. So where are you from in the place you call your hometown, Ballace, Texas? M hmm, okay, it was tough. It was rough, single payer at home mom working two jobs, trying to uh provide for me and my my two brothers and men

that left us up to doing everything. Um mom was never home, she had to work and to make ends meet, and me and my brothers was running wild. And we didn't make it. We didn't make it easy on them because I mean, I say, with you know, gang activity, I mean from everything, time on your hands, a lot of time on your hands. And it was just like you know, oldest brother started off with it and and my brother. My mom always told us you your brother's keeper. So it was like, hey, you and it we in it.

So this is how it was gonna go. How the gang activity got into it. And then everybody was just like, hey, hey, black, you're the only one that you're the only one that can make it out of us. So that kind of just turned me on a different path. And then also with my oldest brother getting side in the next so that was just that was a rout for me. Your older brother got shot in the neck. Yep, we're still here to this day, not paralyzed, Thank God for that.

And that was it. That was a rat for me. Mhm. What did what did football represent to you in your mind? Football was with everything going on in my life, mom doing paying two jobs and stuff like that, doing this and that, it was my getaway. It's my safe hayting. I don't think I've ever asked anyone this, and it when I was doing this rundown and made me think of that because I was thinking about myself. I don't know, I think as a as as a I only know

the African community. Um yeah, why I think I'll ask you. I don't even know to answer myself. Why do we think sports is the only way we can get out of out of poverty? Because because to be honest, I want you to be honest, don't lie. Yeah yeah, I'm saying. It was just it takes it takes away that time, what time and what the time that you have to

to get into anything. And so as you know, as an athlete, when you when you have you've got time this but whenever you're an athlete, everything you have is boom. You have this this one time you got this is everything destructured. So it was just basically like, and ain't no way I can go and do this when I got when I gotta do, I gotta work out, I gotta stay ahead in the game. I gotta I gotta I gotta eat right, I gotta do this, I gotta

study on. I got school and stuff. I gotta do all this, so there's no time for me to get in trouble. We have to take a break and the morning thing, we gotta pay some bills. You got checks. I love cut to It, and I love it even more when you download us and subscribe, and you can follow us on social media too, Smithie, where where at? That's at? Cut to It on Instagram? What about Twitter? At? Cut to It Facebook? Cut to It featuring Steve Smith singr?

What about online? And you can follow us at cut to It podcast dot com where you can buy merch and you can subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcasts. I got all my answers questions. Um, yeah, I got all my questions answered. That's what I'm here for, a brother, cut to a Podcast dot Com. I didn't want to play football, Momma put me in football. I I was,

I was. I was skater, like skater, like not the ramps and doing all that like inline speed skates, you know, for the for the Olympics where they it was basically like, oh, ice skate, mom was It wasn't ice skate, but the blades. Yeah, they had nipads and elbow pads. Now they had the elbow pads and just ahead just the helm helmet. Yeah. And and I'm talking short yeah yeah, yeah, I'm talking Yeah. It was just it was strictly off. It was just

strictly speed. Was there like an inline league or something like that. Yeah, I used to skate for the Texas Squires. See I'm guessing, wasn't y'all didn't have inline rollerblading in the hood. No, we didn't. We went to this skating ring called called Broadway Skating Ring where my mom used to drop us off. This is when we're young. Now wait, this is way before gang activity and all that extra stuff. This is Mom used to hey, y'all, yeah, y'all go up to the y'all go up to the skating ring.

We used to go up there all the time. They start letting us in for free and we'll be up there from literally from two to eleven PM and me to h, I do it all. I still skate, but and I'm talking about skating like NonStop. My brothers and them, they take a break, I'm still skating because I want to be the fastest on skating is doing everything. And so Dad, the one that used to work that, his name was Dad. He worked behind the skate counter and and he was just like, how would you like to

be on the Texas Flyers? And I was just like, and I love it, like he was. I was like, I just told him, like I don't think I can afford the inline skates. I don't I can't afford it. And yeah, and he said, don't worry about it. And I signed up right then and there, and the next thing, you know, killing them And then we used to then and now this is how I got introduced the football. I was if we played this. We played this game

called Sharks in the Meadows. It's for four guys, four guys on skates and a whole bunch of kids in the middle to skating ring, and everybody got tagged out. I'm the last person me versus four four guys on skates and little dodo. I know my mom walked in and she and she watching it and I made all four of them fall and they just they called the game. And then next thing, you know, that next day, my mom signed me up for football and I'm like, what

we're doing. I'm trying to I want to those skate and she was like, just just trust me, You'll think me like m and the wrest was itty cool. Actually, I what's funny is um my mom when she was trying to get her degree and we were in I think I was in middle school. My mom used to drop me off on Saturdays at the ice skating ring and Culver City. She's get me back then that was a lot of much. She give me ten bucks and drop me off on our ice skate all day and

that's what we did. And then when I it's actually when I go back home now, especially working for the NFL Network, which is right there on Culver City, I drive past the ice skating right every time. I just look at it. So yeah, I mean that's why I asked not to make funs. But just especially with having kids now, and you know, everything is so one sports centric. Everything is about one sport, one sport, but realizing you

can see the athleticism in people in other sports. And so you know, you being able to skate as funny as you know, even when I go to events or do something with my kids, somebody birthday party, and the kids are always amazed, like I get on a skates, rollerblade and you know, roller skates, skiing, play tennis, golf, like all those different sports that I'm not great at them, but I can hold a conversation or I can eat, you know, we can have a little bit of fun.

So that's pretty cool, man. I love that. But let's get back to that conversation on I want the football. Now. Your mom takes you, she takes you off the flyers because she sees some things. And your mom is a scout. Shout out to mom, dude, you know she she already Yeah she saw with some of these bums didn't see, uh right. And you know the reason I asked I asked that is, you know, what does football representing your mind growing up? Because I know, as I go back,

football represented everything for me. Football represented how I got out of the hood, Football represented how I would be able to go to college. It just represented football was everything my folks couldn't do for me. That's what football was for me. So if I you know it, football

cleaks were baseball cleaks. And then I actually had to practice like three or four games, three or four practices in my baseball slash football cleeks in the gym because mom didn't have no money until you know, two weeks later, and so they had to let me practice playing basketball in in the rubber cleeks. And I was from up that gym. People are pissed at me, but that's all we can afford, you know, we we we had to

do it. So you know, that's why I was asking what it means to you and why you know and and and it sounds like you know, I mean I think you're young, you're you're probably the answer will change. Football is like means everything to me because not only just like you helped me make it out of the hood, also it created this this thing where it is where as a team it's it's not all about you, and so the thing was for me you lost me. Now I'm n when it's when it's not all about you.

It's just like I took that mindset of like, hey you king, I have your Basically they looked at me as the children one. So I was like, I gotta give my mouth hood, I gotta, I gotta, I gotta help. I gotta help my Mama's like with my brothers, I gotta, I gotta do this. I have to do that, like I have to take care of my family. So it was more of like putting everything on my shoulders. And I was just like, I'm I see I watched my mom go and work two jobs. You think you do?

I rather do that or why? I'd rather just go out here for the these couple of hours and busts and bust my ass on my loan, on my own, and you know, get to where I need to get to so I can make sure mom is straight. My brothers, my brothers are good. That did that pressure applying on yourself? I had that pressure? How did you deal with that?

It was I'm not gonna lie. Sometimes it was overwhelming because it was times where like my brother comes to you, come to me and be like it's you or or we are we are we screwed, And it was just like I can't feel you know what I mean? It's like I can't feel and when what? At what time? What age what what what? What? What time frame is this when they're talking to you. You know, it's your

it's you make it or we don't. Basically sophomore high school. Yeah, because that's where it really started getting getting real, where it's like, came, you got scouts looking at you. Now you got this that I watched how you carry your stuff? You have to do this And I'm like and I'm like, man, I'm I'm still a kid. I want to have fun too,

just like everybody else. But it forced me to grow up early and I had to be able to, you know, go out here and carry myself a certain way and show and show them that like I got you don't

don't worry about nothing. Then like I'm I'm gonna put all these chips into you know, Plan eight, because there's no Plan B. I'm gonna put all these chips in the Plan eight to make this to see was that the my brother's keeping mentality that was that was already instilled in you that you carried I mean, your it is not your brother, but it wasn't that mentality that was able to keep you, uh in that mindset. It

was my brother's keeper. And also watching watching my watching my my mom go to go to work and not get off until like midnight, and I can hear her coming in. I can hear her coming in the door and and things like that, and I can hear her sometimes crying because she's like I don't have enough to make ends meet this month, like all these things that she doesn't know that I know. And and and one thing that you got to Mama, I've never asked for nothing,

because I knew that she was. She was struggling to, you know, to make ends meet and also give us everything. And so when I when I see her, you know, must and are asked trying to provide for me and my brothers and you know, and also that that brothers keep her mentality like I'm like, man, I can I can do this? Like she has still that at me. I see her do it, Like I watched her go

in and work two jobs to make ends meet. This going out here for a couple of hours, putting my body through everything that's nothing like it's it's gonna pay off. It's gonna pay off. And it's been times where you know, I just just even sit at the fifty yard line and just think like like I can't I can't fail. I can't sit here. I can't fail. I can't do this, Like my mom needs my brother needs me, like every every my whole my family needs me. So I gotta

go out here and I gotta get it now. On the on the flip side, does that pressure ever get to you? Like? Does that? Is there ever like an overwhelming feeling? How do you deal with that? That's that's the tough one because it's it's like who do I run and talk to? Who do I tell? And it's it's an overwhelming It's overwhelming because you you have like when you started creeping up and you know, being recruited, you still I'm getting that on my top of my soul.

It's like you know, coaches telling me, hey, became, you're too small, you can't do this, like like we could take Texas for an example, like, um, I went to one of the Texas camps and they told me, hey, he's too small to play for us and all of that things. So like I'm thinking in my head like, man, am I even going to be able to make it? Like I like, am I gonna let my family down?

Like what do I do? Who do? Like I don't know who to even go talk to, you know, so, and I looked for that and um, and I got real close to one of my high school coaches, which his name is Larry Sherman. And like I said, my white high school coach called black. Still to this day, he still caught me black Tuesday and I looked at him like a father figure because he was there for me like throughout like everything, and it was somebody that

I can go and talk to. And I'm like, hey, coach, I don't I don't know if I can carry this load anymore like you got you got coaches d One College is telling me I'm too short to play for them, even though they loved me, but I'm just too short to play for them. And and I have to help. I have to get my mom and my brother's out of the hood. Like I don't. I don't know if I can can. I don't know if I can keep this up, Like maybe what have I hit my peek

like things like that. And he just told me, you know, don't worry about what they say, keep your head down and continue to grind. It's got you this far and it will continue to take you as far as you wanted to go. Now, you you hit on your recruiting journey, and I wanted to touch on that a little bit. So you went to was it John Horn High School? Yes, sir, So you went to John Horn High School? And what

was what was your recruiting journey? Like, you've hit on some of the people who were looking at you that you were kind of teeter tottering amongst you know, D one and some other schools. But um, what was that recruiting journey like for you? And when did you realize that you wanted to eventually attend Texas Tech. Um, what the funny part is is, I was I didn't like I heard that Texas Tech was, um, they had already had a guy like my my size, and I was

already you know, looking to go to Tusa, Oklahoma. And I was like, you know, um, they don't have a slot receiver. I'm gonna be that slot receiver. And Texas Tech was just like, oh, we we got a slide, but we also wanted to keep as well. And like I was just like, man, I'm good like and and things like that, and and this is this is after Like I'm just giving you a rundown. After like all the recruiting stuff. I'm I'm a flashback, but it's it's crazy. It's a crazy story. I ended up at Texas Tech

and so I'm I'm telling I told him. I was like, no, I don't want to come there. You already have a receiver, you have a slot receiver, you'll have this and that. And he's just like me, and so I'm I'm go by I'm telling. I'm still telling to know my coaches like Teste's offer still on the board, they want you. I was like, no, no. I think I told him

know like eight times. I was like no, no. And then one morning I'm going I'm getting ready for my my basketball tournament and we're loading the bus at six o'clock in the morning. I kid you not, I could you not. Coach Maynard was standing right there with the Texas Tech stuff on, and he was like, you can't just take a visit and after that, if you still don't want to come, then we won't bother you no more. And I was like, all right, coach, I take a visit,

took a visit. I was in and I committed, but um far on Like before before then, it was a lot of a lot of um small offers like, you know, not not big like Texas Tech and and like that. It was more like Wyoming toss a lot of tech um like little schools like that, like and and I was, I mean to me, I was even know nothing about it. So I was like, man, that was the offers. I'm like, like somebody my size has always looked over like I'm getting. I'm like, I had a bunch of those small school

offers and I'm like, to me, that was big. I was. I was just like, man, hey. And then and then Vanderbilt offered me late late in the because they had a coach changed from Tulsa, Oklahoma, and they went over to Venderbilt and they wanted me to come there. And I was just like, hey, man, look like like all these small schools these are big offers. Me, I don't, I don't care. I go, I go any I go anywhere that that I feel like that I love. And so me, my mom, all them went up to UH

to the visit and they loved it. Small town couldn't get it, couldn't get in trouble out there. So I was just like, I'm all in so committed to Texas Tech. And then you get on campus and you read shorty, yes, sir, is there a reason why? Um? Honestly, I just felt like I wasn't. I wasn't prepared enough, like mentally and I would say physically, like routes were trash. Um. I just needed to I needed to grow more, as you know, a student and an athlete like I needed to be

able to you know. I got there and I'm I'm doing I'm doing speed outs and I'm following on speed outs, I'm following on ends. And I wouldn't able. I wouldn't. I wasn't able to control my speed. I wouldn't. I was just running and you know exactly it was run a hundreds an trying to creak and I'm just I'm and my legs sliding from onto me and I couldn't. And I was just like like, no matter what, like I want, I won't be a good asset to y'all at like like right now, I need to I need

to grow, I need to build. I need to you know, I need to be able. That's that's that's not you don't generally see, you know, a young kid understand that self awareness, that self awareness, because that's the first impact I got like for you to that was a that was a decision you made on your own, because I never really heard of that. I just did a camp over the weekend. Um. A buddy of mine was doing the camp. But I just observed and I came to the camp and man, I was, actually, I'm gonna ask

you this question so it will run. We're getting off the arm ramp, merging in the traffic. Yeah. And I was at this camp and I said, I ain't seen so many navels displayed from the wide receiver. They all had. I liked, I'm just calling what they are cropped. They had a whole bunch of crop tops on like like you know, you know what I'm trying to say. The young kids, Man, it's just all about the look now, you know you don't see and what else like the

hoopie rings. Yeah, they'd hoopie rings with the hoopie rings with the crosses on them. Yeah. And they got the shirt cropped and you see their navel and and then they're getting bridge pressure at the line. I think. So, I think a lot of these guys took um you know, prom time um quote to a different level, not to where how prom time did it where it looked good, feel good playing where most of these people just out

there just to look good and trash, yeah, trash. And so it's not about that, you know nowadays, what it's about it's about this, I G this and that. Oh I look good on that? How many lights can I get? How can I do this? I'm old school dude, right, and so the old school you know, Yeah, you want to feel like you showing out, like for me, showing out. Man. You got your gloves, you got your tag, you got the DN face. Man, that was a big deal. Yeah,

you gotta have a D face. Man, you're the most you're the most slagged out person on the team if you got that face with a visor, right or you know, we I didn't have gloves for a long time, so I used to take my fingers like Tim Brown. Yeah, or back when when you got the river protector like that was unfortunately I had to wear the river protect your few times. But it was like everybody got my rip crack um, you know, spat. But man, what I

look at him. I can't even imagine. I'm gonna actually go to a high school football game this year, and I just want to see how the game has changed. It's not changing, and I'm not talking about you know, it's getting soft, and I just it's so much about appearance that is starting to like warp the opinion. It's starting. I think sometimes ball is getting a little soft. What what what you're playing right now? So I'm not anymore, don't play, But what is your opinion? Since you are

you know you're drafting two thousand. Uh, I can't really relate to some of the young guys. I can't relate more to the young guys, and they're they are far and few like old school. Yeah. No, I can definitely understand what you're saying, especially like you said, they more off, looked, more off their appearance and play, and some of them are just like playing cropbabies like it's hot. It's this man,

this this is too long. Man. Like I like back in the day where it's like coaches was damn, they're military coaches. Hey yeah, dogcause I'm talking about cut you if you can't, if you can't take it, get off my field. That's exactly how they was. It wasn't though, Oh you you're a five star pig, You're a five star you know recruit. Oh we're gonna We're gonna show you the world, give you this, give you that. Now you come in, you're gonna be just like a guy

that was like me, I'm a three star. You're gonna come in and have to work for everything, just like that. And I think a lot of that is people going in there and thinking that I was a five star recruit I got and now everything's gonna be handed to me. I think that's where people again, I lost that. I think it's about that time. Just take a little breather, good, good, let's getting down to dood. Hey Gerard, why did you

get that T shirt? You mean this thing? Oh? Yes, I got it from cut to a podcast dot com where we have exclusive merchandise. Shout out to our guys at seven or four shot. But yeah, you can go on, buy you a T shirt, subscribe to us wherever you listen to podcasts. Your rookie year, yeah, your rookie ears my last it was second till last year. I had to be last. Six You got draft, I got drifting a six dayeah, ok yeah, second to the last. Was it? It was down there? Yeah? Okay, all right? Tail oh

I was basically basically I'm rookie. You've never done part return the day in my life and got tot in the NFL. Foot in the NFL. Like I'll tell you. We had a preseason game versus the Giants and Coach rez threw he threw me back there and I was just like and the ball punished straight to me. We vice to vice. The gunner gave me space, so wiggle room gave me space. Yeah, we're a room. Man. I let the ball bounce, I said, I I got it. I let the ball bounce. I pick it up, and

you know, I get you know, get a little decent yards. Uh. I run back to the run back to the sideline, and I see Coach Rezzy. His face is red. I'm talking about red. And he's like, why didn't you kiss the ball? This and that. I was like, I don't know, coach like that, like I don't know deep down, and I want to tell like, man was scared. I'm saying it ain't so, bro man, I'm wrong. I'm hey, they just make them different than Dallas. They don't you never

got you never was scared at all. Absolutely to him, that is a scary back there, but mine is not. I'm not as scared because I'm comfortable. I was. I was always comfortable because I knew I was in control. So that's why I wasn't. I didn't have about the first time. No, No, I wasn't. It was I was always I was comfortable. Now nervous, Yes, you're not scared. Nervous, absolutely, because if you know you got that return, you got

that vice guy. First of all, if you're playing vice on pump return, your ass can't cover generally, so you ain't got really a good feet at the line. Right, So if you got four corners and one that started the rest of my backups as a pot attorney, you find out pretty quickly why they are backups. Yep, So you know, so you have control of all, right, so to you, So you you get scared, then you go out and play. You played the Giants, Yeah, we was playing the Giant and I called the second one, took

it forty, and so that started that. That was like, all right, I ain't gonna drop this, I ain't gonna take I'm gonna catch this. So he ain't he ain't gotta he ain't gotta hear, but I ain't gotta hear his smout when I get to sil So I was like, all right, man, I take it. Forty team team going crazy and I'm like all right. And so I had like I had the slope like I'm now like next game musket ball doing this, and I'm like, man, right now, I'm gonna get I ain't never did this before. So like, yeah,

they don't. They don't say that on your they don't put that on the stats. They don't tell it. You know, they don't put that in the program for the fans that's booing you, that's cussing you out, talking about you ain't doing nothing for their fantasy team. They don't say, hey, first time driver, the first time catchers and so and so I'm just like, you know what, I stayed after

practice and stayed doing this. Yeah, before practice, I'm going after that before practice, Like why people are just gonna walk in and go get you know, go to the stretch lines, and before walk through, I'm already in a fullball on swag getting back there and going just you know, wasn't I we get around to the game when we play, y'all, you know, and and you're back there stretching. I ain't a lie. I was started on my favorite players growing up. So I was like, god, I know that man. I

kept my cue though. I was like he was just like he was like, relax, kissed the ball as eat two words he said to me. I was like, all right, Vet. And so that game I had like, you know, decent returns. I'm talking about I'm running up, not calling for kids doing like catching the ball like in between traffic. And I'm like and Coach looked at me. It was like he was just like amazing. He was like, okay, okay, I'll see you. Like, I'm like, well, well here's here's something.

Here's something, here's Something's funny. Though, So in that game, I dropped a touchdown pass back in the end zone. I ain't even I don't even remember that I dropped a touchdown pass a easy catch. Uh. R J Stanford was on the team right m dB. He played the University of you taught. That's my guy. He's actually he graduated from the police department up in Washington, d C. And so he he was. R J was in Carolina with me. You talk guy man, really good guy. Corner

struggle bus a little bit. That's my guy. Thought, But he's on the struggle bus and I just remember that game that was you know, near the end. It was hot, it was muggy, and I just I remember in as funny as as you are struggling and thinking about how do I you know, catching the ball, traffic, getting get getting to your routine. Man, that just shows you right there, all the even the old heads, we all have our days where you have to focus. I remember, I dropped

the pass. It's a touchdown, and we end up running the motion. I end up catching a touchdown, um, but coming back. But I missed some passes in that game. And so as funny as you got, you know, under the six ft crew, you got one guy that's rising up to the top and then one guy who's eventually checking out. And so that just kind of shows you you never know what's going on. And so just that

nervousness or that indecisiveness that you have upon yourself. But you didn't catch and improve that day because you met me. You did that because of all the work you put in before that. You got to remember this right, and we go back biblically, go back biblically. You are soil. But however, in that soil, you have to have the right instruments, and the right instruments is you allow God to put the right people in in your life. And by putting those right people in your life, you know

what they're gonna do. They're gonna tell that's all. They're gonna turn it up, get all the nutrients, get all the stuff that's supposed to be out of it. And then God will put and direct some people like Coach on Jefferies where they can drop those seas in there. And then, whether you believe or not, Adam Gaates he has that line. And then Coach Floors and all other people come back and they water and eventually as it's tilt seed, it turned over and dealt with it now

starts to bear not fruits, but fruit. And the only way it's gonna bear good fruit is if it's got to have deep routes. And that deep route was established not because you met me or you watch some video or somebody else. It was because of the hard work you put in. You just didn't realize it because your version of hard work growing up in Dallas was okay. But your hard work now is a professional requires every day maintenance, not maintence of stretching, but maintenance of the mental,

the physical, and the most important in your heart. If you have those things that keep doing it, man, you you will be that wide receiver you want to be. But you gotta have a goal. And I would tell you this in changing up and want to be that impactful wide receiver that you can be. Start setting some goals and every goal you have, put three people name to those goals, three people, three people to that name, and you'll start to see how it changes and how

you look at those goals. Then they just don't become abstract ideas. You start to establish those can be accomplished because who you're doing it for. All right, let's go to let's let's finish out so last two questions. So, uh, Jackim, what are you most grateful to football? For being able to get the opportunity to move Moss and brothers out of the hood into a better situation and so that they don't have to You know, I'm able to help Mama she you know she needed. You know, I'm able

to help my brothers that they needed. You know, That's what I'm most grateful for. I was able, I've I'm somewhat accomplished what I what I what I needed to do is get my mama and my brothers out of the hood. And so that is what I'm most grateful for.

And not not only for you know, my brothers and my mom, but as for my own family, being able to take care of my own family and being able to, you know, put put money aside for my kids, you know, trust and being able to do that, you know, because then in black community, we you know, there's no there's no trust, there's no trust for us, there's no we have to we gotta go get it financial, yeah, exactly.

And so being able to being able to do that and you know, make sure that my kids don't have to wants or what not, not want but need anything that you know, And so that's that's what I'm most m hm. That's what does it mean to you right now to be a father? If you know what it's like not to have a daddy, So you know what

it means to be a daddy. And before you answer, bro, there were times I would get upset and be angry putting my kids down because I know what it's like as a father to kiss my boys good night and know that Daddy will be up when you get up and I would go to I would actually go downstairs upset because I know what I missed with my dad, and I know I didn't what I did not get

to me. Um basically what I'm what iut my what my father not being there and my mom happened to play two roles talk built up so much anger, but also showed me all the right things not to do as a father, which is the most thing, is the absolutely And so kids don't want anything but Tom And that's all I do is give my baby's time, my son time, my twins, my twin girls time. And knowing

that it's growing up. Man, I'm I used to be piste off when I see my boys and they and they and they and they popped coming to pick him up from practice. And I know that you know any type of you know, sports that you know my son has that he that he loves to play even with him, you know, being you know, our autistic. You know, I'm there. I'm showing him that Dad is here for you no matter what, that's never gonna never leave you, that daddy will do anything for you, that they're gonna be here

no matter what. I'm not gonna I'm not gonna tell you, I'm gonna be here and not be here. So what I try to do is give my kids the absolute world and and and teach them everything that my father didn't get a chance to teach. You just just absolutely just be there for them. Yes, now I couldn't. It's just hard to put a lot of things, that's a word, and just to like shows like because it's times where

you know, I forget, I forgave my dad. Man, my dad has you know, okay relationships right now, and and sometimes bringing my pops around, you know, my kids and watch him playing with my kids pisses me off to the max because I'm like, dog, you got this in you, Like you have this in you. Why didn't you do it, you know, twenty years back then? Like and I tell him, man, I sit there and I'm wrong, like, yo, Pops, Like like it hurts to see you do this with my kids and this is all I ask for you as

a kid Like that hurts to the court. Like, don't get me wrong, I love you playing with you know, my kids and being there for them. And it took time for me to even allow him to be around with my kids because what happens when they get attested to him and he tells them the same thing he told me. Hey, I'm gonna come by and I'm gonna see y'all and never show so all of those things that he did when I was a little kid, that's one thing I took. I was like, I was one word.

That was one rule, don't be like my dad. And and that's been absent. So making broken, given broken promises, the whole none, and just not teaching me how to be a man. So I have to go out there and find another father figure in the coach that I was, you know, in high school. And I told myself I wouldn't I wouldn't do my kids like that, or I would not allow them to, you know, to feel like that it is absent from their life. Yeah, it's it

is a tough. It is a tough thing. But I think one of the things that I can help you with or or tell you is the unfortunate part. Grandpa now gets a hall pass because Daddy's here, So Grandpa isn't required to show up every day. That is, Grandpa has other things going on, but that doesn't so whatever areas that he falls short, one you already know he's gonna fall short. So you're already prepared, Bro, You're already stepping in. You're already changing that culture, You're changing that lineage.

Just keep changing. Don't focus, don't focus on concern yourself on what Grandpa maybe isn't doing, because here's the here's the advantage you have Grandpa, Oh Grandpapa, get your grandpa. Grace, man, give make the excuse for Grandpa because just like, just like you know that dB, just like you know that secondary, just like you know um where your pp is gonna be, or you know where you're you're right guard, don't kickoff

return is gonna be. But you also know you have to account for the unfre seen things and I'm foreseen things are sometimes just like Grandpa, some guys gonna miss a block. But as long as you do your job and you do it well, you can make the wrong job for someone else, make them look right. Like get that, you know, getting the a D A yard touchdown at forty seven yard returned even though because the lesser man would have got tackled, wouldn't have been able to recognize

and see. So give him some grace. You've used to, you are used to carrying the burden. Continue to keep carrying the burden, except the differences. Your kids aren't gonna be heart broken. Yep, Man, we appreciate your time. Brother, It's been awesome. Again. I appreciate your patience. I appreciate also, um the way you play man, You play it the right way, but one way. Well, we would not h invite you back over. We will wipe clean our Instagram and all of our social media with you on there.

If we catch you on Sunday with that navel out, we're gonna have okay, all right, just making sure ain't gotta worried about it, all right. Well, appreciate your brother. Hey, we appreciate you, man, Thank you. I appreciate you all. Man. You are a unique person. You are well worth it. You are competent and most of all, your lovable. I'm Steve Smith Senior. I'm jer Little John and this is cut to It. Cut to It with Steve Smith Senior.

That Is Me is a production of Cut to It LLC, Baltol Creative Media, The Black Effect, and I Heart Radio. For more podcast from I Heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple podcast, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows from Cut to It Executive producer Steve Smith, singer co host Gerard little John, talent and booking manager Joe Fusci. Social media team Wesley Robinson and John Show

from Balto Creative Media. Cut to It is produced by Brian Baltaschevic and Meredith Carter, with production assistance by Alex Lebrek, Production coordinator Taylor Robinson. Theme music by Alex Johnson, lyrics and vocals by Anthony Hamilton. You ain't heard about it, then We're about to let you. Now It's all