This is cut to It with Steve Smith Senior at production of The Black Effect and I Heart Radio. I'm Steve Smith Senior and I'm a little John and this is cut to It. Good do it, Good do it. That's getting down to do it, Good do it. We asked the questions you always want to know, but no one ever asked, let's cut to it. You ain't heard them about it, then we're about to let you know. It's all say what a grit? It doesn't come singular? A grid? Another episode of cut to It. Steve, what's up, bro? Hey?
How are you doing? Brother man? I'm doing good. I'm doing good backstage? What's up man, man, I'm hanging in there. How about y'all? Not too bad? Always a pleasure to have you here here every week, though, it's always a pleasure making sure. I'm glad. I want to say it was one of week it is like then you suck. You always got to add value. So if I'm adding value, I'm good. There you go, there you go. But we were having a conversation the other day around uh, what
was it stadiums. Yeah, so just the other day Steve and I are riding around going to get something to eat, and um, something was on ESPN and they were talking about spate stadiums and uh might have been about the Eagles the old vet where they had you know, the jail undernet, and it got me thinking. I looked over at my guy said, hey, uh, you know I was here about these things. I said, Um, what do you
think about it? When you were there? Did you know when everybody got to the stadium or or the field, did you go look at it? And you know, your response was like super interesting to me. So that's kind of why I was talking with the g We just you know, just you know, like how different it is at a stadium or a dome or arena as a player versus as a media personnel. As a player, I did not get to see as much of the inside of the stadium because you went in as an opponent.
You went to your locker, You went into your locker a vision of locker room, you got dressed, you did whatever in training room, blah blah blah. You come out, you go to the field, So you're not really experiencing what everyone else talks about. When you think about Limbo or Soldier Field or um School candlestick, you know all those kind of stadiums. So I've been at Lambeau a number of times as a player, but I've only been
at Lambo one time as analysts. Really cool. As a player, You're fly into Appleton where Appleton Apple t o n Appleton, Wisconsin. Back in the two thousand and eight, two thousand seven what every year they used to piggy Wiggly. You stayed at the same hotel. It was very much not very big. Now they got a dang top golf next to the stadium. Really cool. However, also too, when you go into the stadium,
it used to just being like this neighborhood. As a player, Lambeau has always been Lambeau where it's in this neighborhood. It's big old stadium, and right across street from the big old stadium you can see a family who literally are You can park on their line for right and it's just so iconic. It's just awesome. But as an analyst it's remarkable. Lambo still has the original foundation, the brick I believe that was like seven that's still in there. They just have a strip, but it's only on the
side of the of the packers. You don't see it as a visitor, so I've seen certain parts to have sweets. Now they just they've added more and more to it. But it's just remarkable. Lambo feel is Lambeau is iconic, is super special. It's a it's just a place where if you're a fan and you day day dream dream that night about playing the NFL and Lambo, it will be more than what you could have ever dreamed about. Minnesota Vikings It's newer stadium was just being able to
just just unbelievable, unbelievable. Dallas is the same way. You know, um, you know a T n T stadium, it's you know, it is a great stadium on steroids, right. I actually did a commercial in Allas Stadium before it was actually opened up, when they were still kind of doing it, and I got to see how large the vision locker rooms are. One stadium that was just trash. Yeah. Um quote uh San Diego chargers there when they were the chargers, quote calm dump. Why what made it a dump? Uh?
They didn't take care of it and you know, for whatever reason. And we played down there and my wife told me they were in a suite and they had a clogged toilet and one of the sweets. Yellow water was running down the windows of the sweets like stuff like that. Man, Yeah, you know that's a that's that's interesting is the world. I'll go with, Yes, me too.
But you know, as you sit back as a fan or on the outside looking in, and I know you're when you're playing, you're always you know, getting ready for the game and getting hype. You don't get to see those things. Were there other stadiums? Could you like? And I go back to Lamb, but just because I think everyone who do you know when you're there? And why I say that is when you walk in and you're like, ah, this this is it and you said, like you said,
it's unbelievable. It's more than you can imagine. But is there a presence? There is there that vibe of old school you know, running football and just you know Lombardi. All that I think depends on the team. You know, how good the team is doing, depends on the time of year. I mean you if you're there playing in September, it doesn't feel the same the way it's gonna look, uh in November December when its cold, it's just it
isn't the same. Um. I remember playing when I was with the Baltimore Raiders, we were playing, uh thinking the division around, We're playing New England patre Rish and they want to want to win a super Bowl in that playoff game. Nope, none of the fans sat down and it was like fifteen degrees at night. They stood the
whole time. My wife goes, I wish we could have just sat down a little bit, but she couldn't because you wouldn't be he wouldn't have been able to say so like stuff like that, Pittsburgh playing that night in Pittsburgh Banana, especially if for Baltimore Raven the discuss and the hate professional hate unbelievable. There's just some places that when you go h Philly old just current Philly, Old Philly, their fans just make it make the game what it is.
What would be bucket list that you have yet to expect any sport. I was supposed to go and then I broke my arm um and then good friend I was supposed to go see play tennis. You know, I broke my arm and he ended up having that world record fifteen hour match that that John isner Um. So I didn't get a chance to go see him play out there. Out in London. I can't which one was that. Uh he had that fifteen hour match in tennis, I can't. I can't spend anything about tennis. Brothers. I've been, um,
I've been Australian Open. So I enjoyed that. That was pretty cool. I saw some saw some players playing on center court. Saw Serena went out there. Um, that's got a rank up there. That's got a rank up there. Or or tennis um down in New York, been there, men Peyton, saw John down there. So I was pretty good. Any anybody list for you, Joe, Um, I mean for me, just going from a golf perspective, you know, I kind
of think of the same thing. Just going to the Masters would be yeah cool just to walk those hold grounds and and go and see that and another one was pretty cool and and and it's might lean more towards the event than the venue, but uh like going to when o U Texas college football game, just to how they crowd after it down there were just to sit back and watch and that would be a great experience. And that's my to college. Being local. Got in North Carolina.
I've been, of course to Dean Smith Center. Never had a chance to go see you and ce do. So That's what I'd love to do. That's that's my bucket list. Is you'd be surprised of the Duke facility. Yeah, I've I've I've been to do once, haven't been again. I'm just saying, like the Rock Washington play, I went to it very um it's tiny, super but then they have but everything is old school, even a popcorn makers old school Agnes that's serving the popcorns she bought a hundred
years old. I've really groan and love and respect how much of the workers and how much detailed work it really takes to run a run a place on game day, hours and hours before um, sometimes fifteen sixteen hours before the game has started. People have busted their chops busted there, but just so that when those people walk through three two and a half, three hours before the game, it's been so much done for the players, but more for the fans and experience that you received that you never
know what has happened. You don't know how dirty or how clean uh, those seats were prior to you getting there, and everyone has to Someone has to clean that seat, someone has to clean that stall, someone has to clean and refill all of those napkin holders and basketball they gotta pull up the court, got got got forbid. If it's a hockey team in the same facility, I've seen where you had to go overnight. Someone a crew works all night, take up the basketball floor, bring the ice
back out. It's it's a huge operation. M I know one stadium. They should have done a better job at that squad. Comment Sandy, that's true. Man. Who we got coming up on the cut to a podcast? We've got Lorenz O'Neil, a four time pro bowler and All Pro, a member of the two thousand's NFL All Decade Team, but more importantly, just a fountain of wisdom. Lorenzo O'Neil on the Cut to a Podcast. Our first segment is called get Iced Up Smithy. Go ahead and give him
the first question. Are you ready? Okay? The strangest thing You've ever eaten? And where were you? Oh strangest thing that I've ever eaten? Man? I think it was a grasshopper. I was member Buddy Joey Jordan's. We were in Lamore. I'm a country boy, you know from l you know, from the big l town Lamore. We didn't have a stop like growing up, we didn't have a McDonald's growing up, believe it or not, only had a couple of stop
didn't have stoplights. So we're country kids. So you know, he pulled off the legs of the grasshopper, and we wanted to see if we could eat it. So at a grassofer. So it was still moving around and wiggling in your mouth. So a grasshopper. And then ah, I don't know if you guys heard of salt grass and go look up salt grass. I live out in Lamore too, and uh a lot of Native American Native American Indians and Lamore and the Indians they give salt grass and
they eat salt grass really salty. But it's like post bit a cow poop. They poop on it and makes the grass. So look up salt grass pretty interesting. So those are probably the two things that I'm eating this Probably I wouldn't probably do it again. I don't need to look it up because there's there's two infractions here. Okay, first fraction is yo as a Native American. Yeah, I'm
chalk talk. I'm chalk talk. My grandmother, my grandmother, my grandmother, her mom was full boded in the end, and she so in Oklahoma, I'm from forth Oklahoma's well, I'm not from my ancestors and stuff. And so back in the day, the Native Americans and Blacks and the slaves, they were always hooking up. So, believe it or not, um a lot of Blacks and Indians were married in together. So I got my car ex curl does not make you Native American to say that, you know, my hair is good?
And then Indian I got. I got high tea boy. I run a lot of barefoot, and I knew what he's called me running foot, but I love it. And then and then the second infraction is you said, salt grass is what calminure cal poop is on and basically when it drives up, it's salty grass that had m cal feces. I think it may have been. I don't know that. That later on mayde ben so all the next time, I'm back home and we're hanging out and you say, you know, can I have a swig? Ain't
get you say kiss? I said, if you say, hey, that salt grass, your salt grass mouth. After we didn't gonna be I'm gonna leave it alone because I ain't gonna mention what y'all boys been eating out there. I know y'all, I'm gonna leave it alone. Let's great. Lord, Hey, what what's the one thing you cannot leave home without? Oh? I cannot leave home without my wallet or my phone or a couple of bucks in my pocket. Okay, I have a couple of dollars, got don't have dollars, don't
have sinse. Hey, that's a generational thing, because you know, I'm I'm old school and I have a money clip. You gotta add right, bro, gotta have cash now. My kids and the wife whenever they need cash to Hey, dad, you you know all your money clippers right, don't don't touch that money. You can ask me, don't touch you. So, I know that's a generational thing. A lot of the young, the young pucks, the whipper snappers, they you know, they
mowe me the money. Oh boys, my son's after due already graduate engineers, still playing this fifth year senior bawling out playing pretty good. Big Feller got some feet, can dance, and he's got a chance to play on Sunday. So he got his mama's James's goods. Stop playing, boy, y'all play too much. Y'all play too much. I'm gone, I'm getting off this show. And that's called me all the time. You'll talk to this mama all the time. Oh, mama comes, stay anytime you call me. It's just for money. And
I'm like, why are you calling me? Say we'll happen. Hey dad, good morning? How are you doing? Just wanting to call check in with you. I'm gonna start talking and before we get to the end, I said, how much money you need? Uh? Yeah, yeah, exactly. Yeah, that's how I go. Y'all know how that go. If you could change your name, what would you change it? Two? I would change did I would change it to Denzel? Don't even all right? So are you many? Somehow? I think that Denzel would play him in the in the
movie about his life. So no, I just say, think you You asked me if there was a movie about me, and that's the that's the answer that you write. Why am I gonna pick some bum? Why can I shoot for the stars? Okay? Why why do I want? Why do I want something dude for cheap? I ain't paying for it. I'm not having this ail. Why Why do I want my cousin Dion, who I love. I want that playing me. I want this ail. I'm waiting. Yeah, hey that's black on black crime. Gee, what did I
just commit? You a t or coffee person? Uh? Wow, that's a that I used to be more were with tea, But you get older. I think I switched more to coffee. But I do enjoy both of them. But to me, coffee is easier, and so I'll go with the coffee. Yeah, I like I like a little cup of tea here and there. Man, some Earl gray. Yeah. I got a lot of tea when I used to do it with
my bourbon. I don't drink anymore. I'm about five years here, but always some good tea and make a hot tidy with the little jack in it or a sottle Jim throw some. Now we're talking, man, now we're talking. I was just I just was trying to be rich. It just has some so you se you stick your pinky out too while you at it. I said, watch watch a shower, watch a show on Netflix. U just gonna Flix? Why are you talking about you? That's not something you just randomly don't let me have some tea like you
gotta be in a mood like some house slippers own rope. No, just basketball shorts. I've heard on it. I'm still hood, so I'm not white beater on even like you were at him. They can drink your tea. Wow, turtle necking drinking tea. And here's t let me pay the picture. I'll be in some basketball shorts, tank top, some house shoes on and yes, I'm in a house. What kind they like? The old dog slippers from like Menister Society or which which they say the old they the old
dog upgraded. I got the memory phone man fancy like uh like us, got the little fuzzing inside because my crystal need to stay warm. An yeah, you asked, you're trying to I like little tea sometimes. All right, let's move on, let's we have digress. But it is interesting and love having you on this. My big dog man I met. I met though so many years ago, and
we've kept this great bond, is great relationship. I've been on his radio show a number of times back in California, but I've never had to the privilege, uh to having obviously our show cut to it where we get I get to talk to and that's one of the things. I'm really enjoying getting to talk to what I call the older heads, that the men um and the women uh that have really instilled some things in me. And as we go down this trail, you'll hear some things.
And I gotta love on him that I've stolen a few things that he have said, that he said and also instilled in me, um that I'll give credit to now he's on on UM on my poodcast. Now when I'm on TV or talking to other radio I don't give him credit, and I won't because I want people to think right. So, but well we'll get into that. So, Lorenzo O'Neil, what was your favorite team growing up any sport? Yeah?
You know what's crazy, it's interesting and this is not just me chain this is really true, I believe it or not. I was a San Diego Charger fan because of Chuck Munsey, Kellen wins Oh, Charlie Joinner, loved Dan fox West, Chandler James Brooks. I love that team. Eric, you know, Don Cory always to the good coach, something about watching you know, old forty six. So Chuck Munzy take it with the one one one crossbar across the face.
Chuck Munsey was a beast um watching him playing Kellen winso what he was at the tight end position that offense and had Charlie joining West Chandler. Watching those guys play man was just like, oh my god. And uh. At a young age, I became a Charger fan. I had two guys lived down the street from us. They were like next door neighbors, not in next door neighbors. You gotta realized that's probably a country maw because you know he has to walk because it's in the country.
What we had Land and David Joey, and they were the Stellers and Dallas Cowboys, but I was always the Chargers and they weren't that good, but they would always compete. And so just it was a charge of fan growing up basketball. You know, you love the Lakers, You love what those guys were doing. You know, watching those good rivals between them and Boston. Uh, you know, boxing love. I was a boxing Connoisseward loved Ali, caught a little
bit of him. Larry Holmes was watching him, loved him, Sugar Ray, Sugar Ray, Leonard what Bernitez, All those guys in that era. Man was just those guys Herns Hagner, they got it done. But watching Sugar Raye man, he was just so sweet. So uh Ali and and Larry Holmes don't get the credit he deserves. Love to watch those guys. Uh love to watch those guys fights. So I I love sports. Just it just said something was ingreened in me. We have to take a break and
the morning anything. 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. A guy you blocked for two gave us a great story when we asked this, um is where are you from? In a place you call your hometown. The more the l the move, the big Eltown, Lamore, California, where I'm from. So if you look at California, you guys know how long it is, you know, one of the longest states to travel to California.
We're in the Central Valley, so we're dead smack in the middle. We're three hundred miles south going down to l A. We're three hundred miles north going up to the Bay San Francisco, so we're in the middle. And those so Fresno, Bakersfield, by Saia, by Saiah, bakers for all those town those little those little towns by the way, related to Tommy Smith, member the sixty four Olympics of when you know, so he's from the Moore. Steve Perry just a long there's a small town boy living in
a lonely world. He's you know, you know Jane your journey, he's more to Steve Perry. So small town, but it's just a country. A lot of egg form laying around, you know. So, but we are centrally in the Central Valley. So that's why they call it the Central Valley, where the raising capital of the world. We produce over seventy five billion dollars a year in in agg and food we feed the majority of the world. Central Valley is so rich in farm land, so that's where it's at.
So three d miles south, you go to l A, three hundred miles north you go to San Francisco. So we're kind of we're dead smack in the middle growing up there. How did that shape your view in the world today? Well, I think that, you know what, you were blind a little bit, but you were also it made you see things differently because you're a young man growing up in a town like that. Lots of Portuguese, a lot of majority of Portuguese, and you know, and in white and you know, blacks were kind of not
necessarily a majority. A lot of blacks came from you know, the South and moved to Lamore, the Central Valley because you know, in the sixties and fifties, a lot of people left, you know, far as leading getting out of the the you know, Texas and stuff. So a lot of them came out to California. My dad and grandmother, my grandmother was named Viola and Oliver was my grandfather, and they came from Texas on the back of a truck. My dad and his six brothers and my aunt Bernese,
and so it was a guy Cuneyman. They called him Cunneyman, and he would drive people and families out to California, and they took him out to the Island District and now the Island District. It was quoted like a a not a plantation, but it can a community. Yes, absolutely absolutely, We're all the blacks lived on on the land and they shared and they work worked on different forms and chopped cotton, pick cotton, and everyone says, chop cotton. You
don't chop cotton. What you do is you chopped the weeds. So I grew up and we had we had fifty acres and we still have it now I'm developing that now residential. But so I had to I had to chop cotton growing up. So you chopped the weeds that are around the cotton. You gotta get a hole and you go down the roads and you just you hold the weeds from around the cotton um so for it won't won't struck before, it won't strangle the cotton for
to grow. So those are some of the things. And then my grandparents, my dad, my mom, they also we had to pick cotton. So you picked the cotton. You make sure picking your the sacks that you pick, you wait them and you got paid for that. I didn't pick cotton, but you know, my my thing was I
did chop, you know, the weeds from around it. But we had a cotton picker, so we didn't have to do that with my grandparents and my mom and dad had to do so those kind of things kind of they kind of molded me and kind of you asked, you know, what did it bring for me? It taught me how to work. You taught me about hard work. I still go out and cut grass. I you know, I have rental properties in Latmore. I got a hammer and nail like and sheet rock. I try to tell
my kids, I said, look when dad gone. With Dad's gone, that's why I try to get you guys to come out here to work, because you need to know, well, Dad, we can hire someone. I said, yeah, but if you got a room and you gotta you know, tend by ten by ten room, you know that's four how many? You know? Where's the stud you got your two before? Is every sixteen or every twelve inches? So I can tell you even though you don't have to be going
out going out and doing the work. At least I want you guys to know how many sheet, how many two before is you need to buy. So if you learn that stuff, now no one can't beat you. So those those are the certain things that really, really that I gravitated towards that kind of you know, still keep me and keeps me molded. Who I am? My grandmother, like I said, she was nineties seven when she died. And I remember my senior year. I was the League Player of the year. I was the Central Section Player
of the year. I was valley player, the athlete of the year, and I was Northern California Athlete of the Year. And I was California Athlete of the Year. And Janet Evans says, Lorenzo is the King, and Janets the Queen. Janet EVTs who won the Olympics, and I beat out Michael Kim who was a tennis player, UM for Athlete of the Year, Curtis Tonaway, all the greats. And I remember sitting with my grandmother and she said, come here. What she said, sit down, and said, oh, Grandma, she's
like she's gonna sit and talk to me. She had a old beat up station one and said don't worry. I'm not gonna give you the station like a And I said, oh thank god. And so she said, down, you know what, Siden, She goes, you can do all those things. She tells, you know what, you're all these athletes, all these you know, accolades you're getting, and people are bragging about you. She said. But let me tell you something.
She said, I came from Fort Worth, Texas. I had your I was I was picking cotton, as she said, she was a forming over twenty people that she was you know you still she was picking cotton. She was forming over twenty people, making sure they picked and did the things that they need to do. She said, I was pregnantly druncle Joe. I went into labor on winds Day. I went worked Thursday, I had your uncle. Friday, I went back to work and I said, Grandma, why don't
you just take the weekend. You're already gonna be off for the weekend, and you just could have took Friday and then been off and go back Monday. She said, son, She goes, I'll tell you this, never take a vacation when the boss is around. She I said, why not? She said, they'll realize how much they don't need you. And at that time I really know as a senior in high school, but you know, all those times and she how was she even got to see me playing
the pros. She lived a great life, But all that time I didn't know until you know, I've got in college and then the high the pros. She was telling me, Son, you could be as good, you could be the best. But if you take a vacation when the Boston around, they'll realized they don't need you. Someone else is gonna take your price. Someone else was just as long. Someone else wants to be that supervisor. Someone else wants to be that supervisor. Over twenty someone else wants to be
that starting fullback. Someone else wants your job. So never take a vacation on the Boston around, because they will realize how much they don't need you. And those are the things that I still tell my kids. Those are things that I tell people when I go and talk to them. Those are so important for not just not just not just in sports, but just in life in general.
It's funny is when hearing you say all of this with the same enthusiasm, is how you taught a lot of players while you why you were on teams with the Cincinnati Bengals with the obviously on that UM Hall of Fame career where la Damien Thomas and and and just what you did and meeting a guy named Steve Smith before he became senior at the Pro Bowl UM.
Just all of that stuff that you've taught so many players that have so many high UM admirations for you, Man, I appreciate it, my thing, Stephen, You know it, man, You're that guy that everyone in the league. They knew, whether you know, watching you play in the attitude and which you went about it, and you demanded respect and it wasn't You didn't have to talk about it. They just knew Steve was gonna be playing. I don't care. They knew that they were gonna go into the meeting.
They don't care how big, how small, hall or whatever. They knew that they had the game plan for you. You can't teach that. That's something that you have inside you. That's something that's been instilled. That's just your heart. That's just your termination. No size or nothing determines who you are. That doesn't define you. Steve is a you know we're talking about me and I don't mean you. That's where we have a kinder spirit. We love each other, love
each other family. But the biggest thing, man, it's like, it doesn't matter. It can be the biggest dude in the world. Steve, you ain't backing down even if they whipped your ass. That's just not who you are. I'm being you know. You know that, bro, that's just but a lot of people we pit bulls, and a lot of people don't have that. They don't have that in factor. It's you gotta you gotta kill us. And that's what makes that's the difference between good and great. That's the
difference that separated you. And that's the difference to separate you. That you can wait, okay you no way, not on my watch, no way. You might beat me. You might win the game, but you ain't beating Steve. That that's just how you're built. You wasn't beating you. You might win the team, your team might have lost. You might your team might have struggled. But something inside of you that you're gonna say I'm whooping your ass today, You ain't.
You might you might, you guys might win, but I'm gonna tell you right now y'all don't know that I'm here. You would block, you would hit guys, you would It doesn't matter what your job was. That's what made your great, bro, That's what made you great. I don't know if the sounds how do you? How do you feel hearing that from Lorenzo? It's hard to digest, to be honest, that's
just it allows you. I believe. One of the reasons why I have such a hard time hearing compliments, especially from people I admire or respect or I really value, including you and a lot of you know people are our production team and that we work with, is because it allows me to take my guard down. And I don't like taking my guard down, because if I take my guard down, the fear of more of being emotionally hurt because of I know, you know you can physically hurt me. And okay, I you know I have a
high threshold of pain. You know I've been through some things emotionally that that's hard to get through. Right you You've seen people who have dealt with things emotionally as children and who you can you can talk to someone long enough, you realize, man, their childhood screwed them up. I don't want to be that, right. I think some of my childhood already wounded me, sure, and so that's
why I you know, it's it. It has taken a lot of years to create a smile for me a long For a long time, it was easier to frown, you know, because if you keep yourself close guarded, like if you look like you're unapproachable, people want to approach you, exactly, And if people don't approach you, you you don't have to talk.
So it just goes down the whole thing. And so you know that really that isolation, right, Um, for a long time, isolation was where I thrived, right, It's where I felt comfortable, so, you know, and steve with that.
With that, you know, even though you were loved, then you find it hard to really submit or to be just okay, I'm a bear, I'm a bear who am because you're used to being on this island and people might say they can help you, they might tell you they love you and all those different things, but it's just it's it's it's a it's a place that you just like you you want to believe it, but anytime things happen, if you don't have you yeah, it's it's like a mental prison. Almost, No, it's not, it's not.
It's not a mental prison. Was the prisoner is having a friendship with someone that it isn't really a true friendship. That's because because then what are you left with your left you're left sitting there picking up your own emotional pieces, going see and you start to digest or you start to piece together, well, they don't want to really be
my friend. That you don't say they aren't my friend, or the relationship wasn't good because they are someone who's wounded or didn't know this or that it's or was it I said this that that that made them feel this way? Did did I do this? And and some of it? So you start to figure out and then you start putting putting the piece together, so you're having a conversation with yourself. We ultimately says I did something wrong, that's why it didn't work out. So if if you
don't have that, then you're safe. So it's not it's not that prison that you know, you're feeling safe this. People who don't run would not get this. There's a place where it's called no man's land, where the slow runners are where they are then the fast runners or where they are. If you're stuck in the middle. So if you if you hang with the slow people, right, y'all,
go at the pace that's comfortable for you, guys. But if you're if you're a slow person trying to run with a fast pace and you can't keep up your body, your mind say your mind's telling you, but your legs just say no, right, your legs acid build up, you start heading a brief and so you start to back up. You in the middle. You're in between the fast people, but you're you're not fast enough to be for the for the for the six minute mile pace, but you're
faster than the fifteen minute mile pace. So you're stuck in the middle. So you have to maintain chase but keep all off the slow people. So you're you're in the middle and you're dog low, and that if you are not prepared and ready to run a marathon by yourself, come on, it's a struggle. I mean, it is a struggle. And some people and I'm not saying this and and a negative I'm just I'm just being honest. I'm throwing it out there. This is where some people commit suicide.
This is where some people, uh slip the risk. This is where some people do not know how deal with some of what's going on. And there have been times pretty much a lot of my career, I would say about seven right at first, first eight or nine years man, I was okay with being no man's land. I preferred being in no man's land because you couldn't tell me I was too slow. Hell, I knew I couldn't run fast. So I was okay with being no man's land because it gave me a place there was. I was my judge, jury,
and executioner. And I was happy with it because some nice I went to bead terrible day, I was okay with I'll just go to slate, wake up, try again. I trusted no one to really give me anything that was really beneficial. And that's why Michael Jackson said it best stuck in the middle. You can't yeah, yeah, y'all like, but it's just you know, and that's where it is.
And and I think that no Man's Land is a really good place, but it is a very dangerous place without some some good counseling, without some some good mentor ship, without some people that really can love on you and you also can love on them back, like Zow is one of those guys you know when the super Bowl happens, Um, when some big event that requires us former players are current players should get around each other. We see each other.
That's He's one of those guys where I'm okay if he's a slow runner, a fast paced running, I'm okay with sprinting with him because he just lifts you up. You see someone, it's like it's like going to an event or you're the new employee at a huge corporation and you're going to the cafeteria and you see that one person you know and you are belining to them. Yeah you I'm comfortable with them, Yes, but it's not
comfortable because I feel safe. It's comfortable because of who he is or who she is, and those one Lorenzo's wanted as those guys he texts. Um you ask and they say, well, it's for Lorenzo. I've been on the show a few times and that's some days I'm like, it's West Coast Mathematics today. You know, it's like, oh Lorenzo, Oh yeah, that big dog absolutely, and that's what that's who he is that he like he loses the confidence of true friendship. Really like me and you're bond. You
get on my nerves, I get on your nerves. But ultimately you're one of my closest friends. And I would lose if I would lose you in our friendship. It would take me a long time to get over. I could, I could buy some friends. But Bro, you ain't you. You're not one of those friends. That that's I don't have the amount of money in my bank account because of what you brain. You know, I appreciate that. I appreciate that. Well, man, that's that's a that's that's heavy.
But even with that, Lorenzo, how how do you? How did you landed that place that Steve is describing as being, for lack of a better words, being an o G. Being the person that looks out for other people? You know what? A lot of it Like Steve, We've we've been hurt, we've been but you still love people. And for me, my dad he was just my dad, you know, as a pastor and you know you'd be passed like five years ago, and uh he was a good man.
Was he perfect? No? And I think that you know, growing up sometimes you know, being a you know, some of a preacher, you stray and I'm a lie, I'm a cheat, I'm you name it, I'm not I'm that person. And and then something I thought, like like Steve talked about we you know, have I'm not saying to speaking for Steve, but I'll speak for me. Have we have I thought about that? I get a gun and put it, pull it out and say I'm gonna commit suicide? No? Have we all thought of Have we thought about it?
Have we thought about relationships? All those different things? Yes? I think that if you people that say that they haven't, I think they're not. They're lying to themselves. As we we we are. We are humans, we are human beings and in those nature and those things that we're talking about, love and respect and knowing who one another is. My dad told me a couple of things, and one of them that just sticked out with me, and he said, he said, son, you know, I got out of college
running while gotten pros doing my thing. And he said, son, he goes he got to slow down, and he just but he knew. But he talked me in a way, he says, son, He said, look, if you hang out with four people that make a dollar, he says son. Pretty soon they'll be five and wow, and you just I mean, and it's and it's your timing, so when you're asking. Was always good to people, Yeah, all the time. I wasn't crazier and assis when I was drunk. But far as just being a good person, I was always
a good person. I've done some bad things, and we all have. And that's why for me, I had to learn how to forgive, forgive forgetting that, you know, because we can do other people, you know, low money and do things and be there. But then sometimes we do all these things because we're not willing to forgive forgive ourselves. And that's what I had recently. And that's why, you know, you know, I depend more on a higher power, and you know, I get up and try to pray more.
I get up and try to do things for not that I'm some Bible thumper, you know, I still understand it, because what happens is we have been taught a lot of black churches and a lot of black that hey, you gotta do this, you gotta get more money, you gotta tie it, you gotta you gotta go you know what, you gotta go do this, you gotta do this. No, and Exodus, Jesus said, he said, you know God, he said, I'm the guy who brought the children of Israel for forty I brought you out of Egypt. He says, So
serve me. See so many people in churches, and I think that's what we that's why people turn from God. Act like he's a genie in a bottle, and they rubbed the bloom. All need a new car. Oh got to need a new house, or I needed this, I need that. And it's but they're not, they're not. That's not what he that's not what he came for. Kim and Shure. It's just how to live, how to treat people, how to be good to people. That's what and and and that's what. We don't want to do that because
that's not our nature. Our nature is the lie to chief, to steal, to do those things, because that's what he said, don't give any man no praise. So until you asked me, so, until recently learning just to forgive and learning that, hey, look,
I'm okay, you know what godtor gave me. Because because we go through we might sin, we might do those things, and we feel so we feel so disconnected because of things that we've done in our past or you know, we did something or we felt a certain way, we said some things, we did something we hated, we talked about someone, we did things that we didn't speak life, and it's like you feel so guilty, but you know what, it's okay. That's why it's only one good and that's God.
We gotta stop, you know, we gotta stop always holding ourselves and looking at ourselves and judging ourselves. And because when you get to that point sometimes you're just like man, you'll go down this endless path and the spiral because of the fact you're continuing to hold yourself and it's never gonna be good enough. We'll always search for perfection.
And that's why we always posed a chase after Christ to be more like what he was on this service, not like because because man, we get we get mixed up. We mess up because we're human and that's what we got. So I've just tried to learn to let God day. Look, you're in control, whether I lie, whether I still, whether I do I'm still gonna you know, I still I don't do it, don't do it intentionally. The least to know man, that God knows and he's forgiven. He knows
our hard. So that's what's been the biggest thing for me when you asked what how how do I get to that place? Is I can't do it. Man's trying to trying to hold it up and trying to do all the things for you. You'll go crazy trying to take care of everyone, trying to be everything to everybody. You'll go crazy. We're not We're not capable. How do you deal with self care? Then? You know? For me? You know? For me, I have a a guy named
Ron passed Ron who I talked to you. But it's not about it's not about judgment and Steve, I have lied. I lived a lie. I lived a lie for a lot part of my life. That you say, you get to a certain you supposed to be married, get to a certain age, post have kids. You posed, Hey, this is what you supposed to do. You want that trophy wife, You want to do those things, and nothing that they have done. Nothing. That's not that they're not a great person, it's not that they treat you us, not that they're
all those things. But if you're a pepsi and all of a sudden you you try to be a coming orange soda. It doesn't work. You'll never become an orang soda because you're a pepsi. Yeah, so sometimes we force we do things out of this is oh chief fine, or this is that oran and and and that person is nothing. They did nothing wrong, but because you went into it, because it was something that you've felt that you need to do. It's something you felt. Feeling is
the emotion. It's not that necessary to the truth. And sometimes you hurt kids, You hurt generations because you hurt you write, you hurt whether you hurt because you won't tell them the truth. You won't let them know who you really are. And you did something you know, maybe you want to go camping, but you know what, they wouldn't know. It's all about Louis and it's never it's never been about that. And that's but that's who they've been. They you got married to him, Hey, I don't want
to one camp. They would never do those some of the things that you or go fish or do the things that you want to do. And you did it because you felt that I needed to feel a void. And we then when you have the things that we have to disposal income we can fix the problem despite throwing money at it, and you throw it's it's a temporary solution and it's not necessarily the truth. I think it's about that time. Just take a little breathing. Good do,
good do. Let's getting down to do it good Hey Gerard, why did you get that T shirt? 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? How did you balance football life, business life, husband? Father? And I think this is a pretty heavy one too, son and grandson because your mom, dad and grandma Viola,
they they didn't let you. You said you straight, but they stayed on you. It sounds like, man, But I grown, man, grow man. I would go back home and go to church and my mom and still hit me in the head. I'm and they slapped me in the back of the head in the back of the church. People. Who so, man, I shoot my dad And you know, high school I was still getting whippies. So you don't. But at the same center, how well, first of all, how how how was it? How bad were you or the fact that
you know, Bro, I didn't drink. I didn't. I didn't obviously did because you got your I didn't smoke. I didn't. No no if like my dad said, gonna pick up the yard and I didn't do it. Man, he would get on it. I mean so big Glenn, you gotta they was South big Glinn. He had big hands. He was my brother. Put it this way, is this we just happened this this? I mean this turning I was, I'm parking at the store upos that goal be be rolling. But you know what, this thing got so good to me.
I can't I can't shut up. Y'all, y'all, y'all bringing it out of me today. I mean, this is what we do. What we do. I love hearing your story because a lot of times people see the player and they go, oh, you know, I'll get to it right here. I heard you say this a long time ago, man, grown man playing the kids game getting the Kings ran. Yes. Man, People see that and they go, whoa what, there's no
big deal. You get paid all this money. But they're still whether you got a hundred million dollar contract or
you got a two dollar contract. That individual still has a heartbeat, he or she bleeds, he or she breathes, and he or she's crossed something led up to that moment, and there's still someone and all that stuff that you see on on on Sunday afternoons, right, and it's to balance it all they'll see to be honest, man, to be honest, And I won't because because because my thing is I got to a point and that's why earlier I told you guys that I had to that I
had to forgive myself. Now I didn't. I didn't have to necessarily forgive, but knowing that God knows that he forgives. So until you can accept that, you'll still lie. You'll still live behind. You'll still live behind not the truth. You'll do it because you don't want people to look at you and view a certain way, and we we we hide behind it. I failed. I felt at it miserably, whether Dad beyond me, whether counseling, all those things. I
felt it a lot of it. I felt that the husband part of it, thought the father part of it, felt it that you know, sometimes the finance part. It throught it a lot of different things because I became selfish now that I still love. Obviously, if you love me, you'll keep my commandments. So we say we love our parents, we love and think about it. Have people say, oh, I'm a good person. Have you ever lied? Have you ever looked at a girl and some yoga pants and said man? And if you have to look to do
a second get look or third look? Don't you know you look too long? We can say all those things. So it's in a hard So I had to. You asked me, Steve the truth because of where I'm at, and I can't. I don't. I'm not gonna sit there and say I don't still at love times, but even an uncomfortable moment like this, when you ask me, I
can tell you I failed. I can tell you I balanced it sometimes at at an A. I balanced from an A all the way to an F plus m hm so I and at times I go, I'm I'm more of A. I'm more of an A now, But at sometimes I still so. So I get it. But it's it's a it's a day to day you play golf. You never go out and play. You can't just go shoot Bertie all day long. You all you never mastered you play football? How many how many catches have you dropped? But how many have you called? You? Still you can't
master it? So but but you still but you still played at such high level and you wanted to be perfect. You kept searching for it, but you still failed. That's not that, that's just like life, man, Steph. Courage is one of the best three point game shooted wed game ever seen. But how many times have you missed the three? But yeah, and still That's why I'm doing a show that I'm trying to do, a show that that I'm trying to get away from the secular radio. And it's
called God. You know, it's God, family and faith, God, family and sports because I want to talk about Tom Brady Orgaby, one of the greatest quarterbacks. But how many interceptions have you thrown? But I'm the last night, how many game wanting good drives that he had, but he still feels But look, look what family does. Family still lifts him up. Fans still lift him up. Fans still, man, you're the groat, still lift you up. But you know what, but why can't we do that for our church brothers?
Why can't we do for our brothers that just stru our sisters or kids that are struggling and maybe something going on in their life and they fail, astray or do so the not that you condone it, not that you, oh you know, but you Why why? Why? Why not still show love? I'm at a point in time where now I'm trying to give. I even give more because
I want people to know that they're still hope. We can get up, we can shake ourself, we can continue, we can continue to try to strive for perfection, just like in football, if you kept striving for perfection no matter what. Why can't we do that in life? Why can't we do the relationship? Why why don't we quit? Why don't say okay, I are you talking to that? Okay, I ain't doing that. Oh no, I'm done. You never did that. We never did that in sports. Again, still
we think we can do that for individuals. People we love, people we care about. So, man, that's why I'm at Steve. I failed, brother, I failed during that time. Yeah, I had a great career, but I felt at so many other things. Well, friends are our Our last segment that we're having this podcast is called the Deep Three, and it's just three questions that we asked that take us behind you as a football player who goes beyond your jersey.
So Smithy give him the first deep three question. I really want to know from you how has planned in the NFL improved your life, but also have has screwed up your perspective of life. I think the biggest thing the how it helped my life. I think just the people and the opportunity that I received um this conversation with you guys. Being able to travel and do things
that otherwise wouldn't have been able to do. Having the opportunity to play in so many different cities, to travel and do things that people dream about so far from you know, apart from the money, I just think the
experience itself was just unbelievable. The people that you got to meet and from dignitaries from your name is, people that are you know, and other other specially other professions, meeting the Denzel Washington meeting Denzel come into a game, you know, meeting you know, presidents and president's wives and doing those things because of what you've done. So the
opportunity that it gave me, it is unreal. I think that you know, the negative would be some of the things that's going on with our bodies now, the ct E and you know, and you know and fingers and joints and you know getting up in the morning and how the body feels for all the hits and things that you've taken. UM also a false and security because it sees so many different things and sometimes you don't trust people and you see what people are about and
and uh it makes you you're guarded. So sometimes get it tainted me in some some ways to UM in that process. Lorenzo, you're a four time Pro bowler, you're an All Pro, you were a member of the two thousand's All Decade Team at fullback. But what's the greatest
gift that you got from the game of football? I think I think the greatest gift that that I got from the game of football, I think it's I think it's war I'm at now to be able to have respect, to be able to be in a position now to tell people your story and help more individuals because of you have, because of you have, because of your position. It's given me the ability and also the gravitas to be able to tell tell people my story but also
introduce more people to a better life. Introduce more people to Christ. I think that's that's what one of the things that we have a platform and we're able to do things that people wish that they can do. How are we losing it? I can give life or I can give death. And I've given plenty of death, guys, I've given plenty of death. I've wronged a lot of people, show people the long way they've took it from people, and you know, you know, two rooms will make it right.
But because of the position, and I'm when in for as women and different things that you are allowed and afforded to. So just like a given, we've given death. I think we have a huge opportunity to give life. So that's what it's given me, the opportunity to be able to speak life and help people in a place that they feel that they have no hope. What's one of the pieces of advice you give your children that you hope stays with them. Yeah, um, advice that I try to talk to my kids about it. I talked
about c DC choices, decisions and consequences. You're gonna have a choice. Then you're gonna say you have a choice, canna go to school? Then you have a decision, did or did I not go to school? You have a choice, then you decide did you go to school? The consequence I went to school, graduated, did all those things. Consequence, I got a great job because I got it, went to god a degree. And that's my consequence. If I don't, where's my life? Where am I going to be? How
am I gonna get by? C D C choices, discursions and consequences. You're eight years older than me, but man, I feel like I'm talking to a sixty year old old g and and you basically saying, look look at your knuckle head. I've lived this life. I bumped my head. I've written on that skateboard board. There's a rock right there on eighth when you hit the left over Pooky House, there's a rock. Come on, and you're you're telling us where your mouthpiece or where your helmet because when you
hit that rock, you're gonna fall off. Don't do what I did. And and just I really appreciate your vulnerability and just your transparentship. Man, it's been awesome. We've we've done quite a few of these podcasts. This is what I can honestly say, I got more out of what I want you know what I'm saying, like the unedited version of my phone, I don't because because there's so much.
Oh yeah, I get what you're saying. But but for sure, man, even and from from Smithy's comments to to you, LaRenzo, Man like you, you gave us a lot, brothers, so definitely appreciate that, Steve. Man. We gotta do a better job, man, just connecting being being being presidents each other's lives. Man, because man, we look about think about it another eight
you say, eight years old? Eight years old at eight eight, you know, at another forty forty two the year at you know, add another forty three or forty two years, how old are you gonna be? Brother? Think about where life is at. Bro. We you know, all of us got to do a better job just the people that we really want in our life. And you know that we want to grow with and help men and do those things. Man, I'm down for brother, talking about change
and over this country. Man. You know the spirit of influence we can have how many multimillionaires we know and brothers or but we got to help our own communities to man, we gotta we all need to do something. Man, And you know so many people respect you me man, I just I want to do something. I tell my son Larenzos and he's all, dadd you know what the police was meant for? I know it was. It was for the for segregation. Oh it's for black I know all those things. And but what are we doing? And
that's the thing, Steve, Man. We we if you got you know, we get brothers together. Man, we can change communities. Man, But it's gonna it's gonna take us brothers to do some of this stuff too. How would you use a failure like dropping a pass to motivate you to succeed in the next game or even the next play, rather than beating yourself up? Mm hmm. I would beat myself up a lot. I wouldn't necessarily use this motivation, you know. I I would look at the data and look at
my film, see why, how, what, when? Where? Also go back you know, psychologically mentally and see where I was, look at the the sequence of the game, why it happened, what had transpired before that, and then also go back
and look at practice. So it will be a lot of build up to it to be able to look at it completely as data and not um as emotional and saying all that, professionally, I would still just analyze myself and just be piste off and and and really just not liking um the outcome of dropping a pass. You are a unique person, You are well worth it, you are competent, and most of all, your lovable. I'm Steve Smith Singior, I'm Gerard 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, BAAL Tool 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 Singor, co host Gerard Little John, talent and booking manager Joe fe She, Social media team Wesley Robinson and John Show from Balto Creative Media, Cut Too It is produced by Brian Baltaschevic and Meredith Carter, with production assistance by Alex Lebrek, Production manager Sarah Pollock, Theme music by Alex Johnson, lyrics and vocals by Anthony Hamilton. You ain't heard about it, then We're about to let you know. It's all