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, Cut do it. Let'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 that's so western, Steve, this little little traffic jam on the way over here, apologize, it's good. It's good.
It's a black man. You could be late. So of course we're here. We're here at town, We're here at the live recording of the Cut to It podcast. We're here on site at the Steve Smith Family Foundation of Health event. Super excited. We've got backstage Joe myself, Gerard, Steve Smith Senior, and now we've got um legendary Wesley Walls,
native of Fakesville, Mississippi, attended Old Miss University. Five time Pro bowler, four time All Pro played with the San Francisco for Your Honors, the New Orleans Saints before I signed with Carolina Panthers and later played with the Green Bay Packers, and he was inducted into the Panthers Hall of Fame in tween nineteen along with Jake Delone, Jordan Gross, and Steve Smith Senior. So Wesley Walls, welcome to the Cut to a podcast. Thank you, Gerard. I appreciate that
twenty nineteen. Just hearing that that at number, it feels like it's been about three or four years ago. Time well, time stood still, I guess here for the last couple of years. But that was a great day. I've got a picture. I just want to brag on Steve here
a little bit. I got a picture on my computer screen, all four of us out there about to be recognized in front of the home team, and me reaching across Jordan and Jake to shake Steve Smiths and the to my mind, the greatest player ever to wear the Carolina Panther jersey. Uh. He was fun to watch as as an old guy, I was, I mean, this is two thousand one when drafted you, right, is that your first year? That was my first year? That was one of my
last year's. Uh. And I just remember watching Steve in practice and I'm like, man, this guy is he's mad? He is angry, and but he was such a competitor, and we go I'm I'm coming off in a c L injury. I'm just trying to get ready to play. I don't think I even practice only and because Steve was and he was, he was showing out and we go up to Minnesota and I'm sure this has been talked about it already probably, but the first time he touches the ball, we get the ball and uh we
kick off. They kick off to us and Steve takes it back for a touchdown, and uh that that was probably the only test. Now we won that game, right, that was the only game we won. And then and then they ran a Boston on y'all after that. But then also too, that was a ninny lover as well, So I was, I was. That was really weird. Um. It's funny though, because I remember they're some cool stories in that I remember in that practice that was when
coach Seyffert was there. Take us through your unique relationship with coach Seyffert, because I remember you telling me a story about coach Seyffert. Well, I I got I got drafted by the San Francisco forty Niners. Bill Walsh was just retiring, and uh, George Seyffert was a new coach and uh. And then that during that year I was a project. I was a defensive end linebacker at Old Miss. Only played tight end. One year was my senior year in college, and I did okay, I made uh, you know,
had a good year. So they told me I was gonna come in from places. You played defensive end linebacker, and then they just randomly switched you to tight end one year. One year, my my senior year, the junior year, spring practice, I'm out throwing the football with a quarterback who was my roommate, John Darnell, And that we everyone had gotten fired. We had a new offensive coordinator, a
new defensive defensive coordinator. An offensive coordinator come up to me and said, hey, hey, if you're played tight end and I said yeah, I played one time in the Mississippi High school All Star game. The tight end got hurt and they asked me to play, and I said. John was a quarterback and coach Parker red Parker's his name. He looked over to John said well, how did he do? And John said, I think he caught seven for nineties seven and a touchdown, and Red Parker said, give me
two weeks, I can put you in the NFL. So that next two weeks of spring practice, I practiced tight end. Made a first team AP All American my senior year, so he was. In other words, Red Parker is an old school name. It sounds like a man that some football absolutely your name, Red Parker, you don't get messed with. He came from Clemson. Uh and and he changed my life. I mean that guy he's passed away about five years ago,
but that just tells you. I mean just seeing something like that, just throwing the ball with your old quarterback and somebody seeing you and moving you over to tight end, and uh end up going to get to play with guys like this for fifteen years. So you get drafted by the Sam Cisco four Niners in what no, no, no, uh round oh, second round. Second. I was the last pick in the second round, and chucks such hard times.
I made a hundred fifty thousand dollars my first year, Steve, and that that was you know, that was a long time ago. But well I got drafted on my know, mine was a hundred and twenty thousand. So you were a third third, right, yeah, yeah, man, so it didn't. It didn't. I wouldn't. I wouldn't pass you that far. It started, it's picked up a lot. He but but just saying that, just kind of showing and just kind of putting it, you know, together, it's that that's crazy.
So you get drafted. The second round, they happened to half this other tight end named Brett Jones. Jones, he's pretty darn good. He was good, he could catch, and I was having a little trouble, uh jumping outside doing all the rookie stuff. So excited, I just never couldn't slow the game down to about my third or fourth year. It was just too fast for me. But one comparison, George Seaford, we had. I don't know if you guys remember the earthquake out in San Francisco. It was it
was a horrible earthquake eight point two. A lot of people died, that's what they The freeway that split from Stay Bridge that actually they did. It fell on top of each other or something over there, the Bay Bridge or whatever bridge, but the lower and the upper level. My mom we were going. I was going to McKinley Avenue School on Semi ninth in Avalon and we were in the brown oldsmobile. I remember it shook and after a shoot, I'm on, say take your ass back in
the house where well I tell how country I am. Uh. My roommate was from Tennessee. And the first thing we thought someone had crashed into the apartment complex and then realized this earthquake. And we were right for the TV and the speakers. We held onto those things the whole time. He's this guy him here. But but George Seaford, I mean,
this is like on a Monday. This happened and the Tuesday was an off day anyway, and that's something I'm gonna brought us in man on Wednesday and we practiced and uh, you know when he said we're gonna play the NFL is gonna gonna play this game. And we had a home game and they moved the game over to Stanford and we played in Stanford and that was in fact, that was the only touchdown I ever caught my Forday night of career at that in Stanford State.
I've never caught one in Candlestick unless I was playing against him, which is a lot better over the years. So so you get drafted in eighty nine, you played three or four years, six ninety five or ninety four, expansion draft goes, and what happens, Well, I'll play five. We won the super Bowl my rookie year. That's pretty cool. Joe Montana and those guys Jay Riis, Charles Haley, John Taylor,
you know what kind of team they had. I just couldn't break in and and and in ninety four, I became a free agent and they didn't want to sign me back. And the only team looking for a long snapper was the New Orleans Saints. And I had learned how to long snap when I was in San France. Never snapped a game in college, but I learned how to do it in San France. So the Saints they gave me a two year contract loaded with a bunch of incentives. I called it snapper as a snapper, hold on,
hold on. So we're a linebacker and we're a defensive end, and now we're a long snapper. I'm just clearing, Hey, look, I was an opportunity, right, Uh yeah, I'm I don't know, I'm a grinder, I guess, you know. But anyway, I a long snapping. I go to the first minicamp. Jim Moore was a coach, and he says, what happened in San Franci, senor, senor, and and I just said, hey, I couldn't. I didn't stay very healthy. And when I
did play, I didn't play very well. And he says, well, you you practice, and he keep practicing like this and playing and we'll give you a chance. So eleven passes in five seasons, and uh in San fran I caught like ninety eight the next two years with the Saints. And that's that's when the Panthers called. And who is the head coach at that time? Dom Capers? Don Capers is the coach your own or you know, they bring you out here. You signed feeling good about yourself. You
signed for more than a hundred and fifty. It was a lot better. Uh. And then Don Capers gets he gets fired, He gets fired. Yeah. That that that we went on the nineties six and and these are the years. Um, I was in higher in high school and a lot of you guys, I can see ladies are at we're in high school also. But we went to the NFCY Championship game and got beat by Green Bay up there had a great year. The carry Collins is a quarterback for a couple of years. That's when you were doing
the guitar whenever, whenever you score. It was it was more like these spike and it started as a I was playing the falcons and I would pretend to like the ball was a bird right now. I just got down on my knee and I pumped shotgun the thing. The media took it as a hey, this first time anybody put me on TV. Anyways, look at that Walls guy. He's playing a guitar whatever you want to call it. That's what they said. That's what they did. Said because
I'm from Tupelo, Mississippi. I grew up next to Tupelo, where Elvis Presley's from. They said, look, he's been going back to his roots playing the Elvis guy. That just unless you know half these announcements, don't know nothing more wrong, especially once for like preseason a couple of right, but now that that uh, that was a great day and in the great season and then carry Carry left. Steve Burlin stepped in. I think one of the things that got coach Kapers fired. What we couldn't win was he
made a trade for Shawn Gilbert. Now he Sean May be here and I love the guy to help, but he, I mean, he gave up the farm for Shawn Gilbert, and Shawn has set out a year before that. He traded like two first round picks some guys on the team, and uh, we just we never could catch up after that. And now that's when they fired him and hired coach Seyfer.
Hired coach Seyffer And what goes to your mind? I put it for sales side in my front yard down and it's like this guy hates me, right and uh and so we he kind of came over and try to not make up, just say, I can't believe the crew you've been haven't you looking forward to this season? All that and whatever? Uh, you know, you know the coaches. But when this one nine eleven hit, Um, I knew that song I'm gonna was gonna make us practice. Uh, and he thought we were gonna play. He didn't care.
He did not care. Shouldn't tell you about his coach c for what coach Suffer did to me my rookie year. All right, story tale. So I'm in I'm in my locker, you know, and not you weren't here talking about the whole Jersey number things. So I'm in my locker and George Siffort taps me on the shoulder, tested me on the should I turned around. He says he I drafted to I went out on lamb, don't funk this up and walks off just like him. Damn no pressure. Yeah right,
what was the word? They always try to describe him as aloof? I just called him an asshole. There's a lot of easier to roll off my tongue. So he so he brings you in and and tells you that, and you pretty much played the rest of that year thinking that you where one play away from being removed. And and actually I was, I mean the year before, um two thousand's and when I tore my knee, and I'm pretty sure if I mean uh, that was Seafer's first year ninety nine and two thousand. So ninety nine
we rocked and rolled man, but Burlin was hot. I caught twelve touchdowns. Pat Jeffers caught twelve, and we missed the playoffs. The last game of the season, we had to outscore the Saints by more than Arizona or the Green Bay outscored Arizona, and we barely missed. We didn't hunt.
It was a fun game. Uh. But the next year, I tear my knee against Atlanta, UM blow out my a c L M c L and on the plane ride back to to Charlotte, short plane run, he caught somebody came back to Coach Seafer wants to talk to you. So he pulls him up in the front of the plane and he says, man, I'm sorry about this. You were a hell of a football player. I enjoyed coaching it like it was over right. I said, what are you talking about? And if even if it is an
A C L, I'm not done. And so came back, came back to two thousand one year, Steve was here, does that in Minnesota? Who won that? Win that one game? Uh? And then we just started finding ways to lose games the rest of the season. And this this man was playing his beer and off getting better every game. Everybody on the team respected him. Uh. And I blew my knee out like the fourteenth game that season, and I
knew that was probably it for me. Uh. And they but they fired Seaford and coach Fox gave me one year before he said, Wesley, it's time for you to retire and I love John Fox because when I told him I still wanted to play, he said, go home and think about it for twenty four hours and come back. And I came back and he says, what's the answer. I said, I guess you're gonna have to cut me coach,
and uh he did, and he rightfully so. And then I became a big Steve Smith and Carolina Panther fan because the next year, I will I go up to Green Bay and they song going to go to the Super Bowl. 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. One of the cool things about Wesley so man, we we had this play uh y sale right you know, and I'm
fresh off. You know, I played the youth tall, so when I see it tight end out of color I'm not thinking he's very fast, right, And I'm just being honest. We played Colorado, Stay air Force. It wasn't built like Wesley. And so Moosey's telling me most say, lest when Charlie Walls get out there, you better get out of his way because uh, he's expecting that past man. I'm like, on, what y'all talking about? This dude? Man we call him practice y Sel. So I'm kind of running. I'm just
it's supposed to watch. I'm clearing out for him to hit through it about a seventeen yard deep corner. So I go jogging off and I hear, but get your ass all the way Steve Wesley Walls. And after that I was like, all right, when I hear why Sel, I need to get out of the way. The reason I bring that up, as you know, in the locker room,
it's the only place where you can see someone. You can see their stature, you can see their color, their skin, you can see where they are geographically, and that means nothing, nothing at all. So it's pretty cool to see old man still having and and Wesley I remember Westley's the practice in O T A s be like a weight, vest On getting sap and just just seeing that and just seeing the old school players and how they did
things right. And I remember when I was when I was a young kid, my grandfather Shud always tell me, if you want to play, you want to make it in football. You know, Jack tad On, Ronnie Lott, Brent Jones, all these players, Jerry Rice, John Taylor, Carl Pickings, Herman Moore. If you want to play this game the right way,
watch those players. And Wesley Walls one of those players obviously when I got there, just seeing those guys and so for me playing that game and playing it that way, I played it the way the game was played like they played it. And you give me a chill boss out there, Steve, I promise you, man, I miss those days. You know you're talking about the locker room and watching watching you become a great player with the passion you
had on the field. That's that kind of motivates I'm not just saying this because you're so nice to me, but kind of motivates an old guy to silver and see, man, look at that song. I was pissed off. He's fired up, he's ready to play. He's gonna kick somebody's ass today. It's it's still as still a brutal game out there. You're in a fight, and Steve fault sixty minutes every game you played I ever watched, man, and I had a lot of respect for you, a lot of respect.
I got more respect for you, man. What did you see and see? It's an interesting dynamic because we just had Jonathan Stewart and Mike Tolward and they were around a veteran Steve Smith, who they talked about how Steve gave them the life, lesson the marriage, the financial six But you were with a young Steve Smith. What what did you see in them at that point? Yeah? I saw a bunch of talent. I mean everybody saw that. I saw him work hard too. I don't know if
you remember this conversation. You got me thinking now about conversation. We're walking maybe from or to the practice field, and I think you probably were upset. You were you wanted you wanted a new contract your first year. I think you remember maybe it's a second year or something, and they were when they first started with do in your contract, and I said, somebody had given me some good advice. I don't know if you remember this, and I I said, look, um,
don't worry about the money. You go out and play, be the best you can. All the money had come to you. I think I told you that. I hope I did. I remember that because I was a third round draft pick and Winky was a forefround draft pick and they got him more money than me. I like.
And then my following year I made the Pro Bowl. Yeah, that's right, and you know I was I wanted to play wide receiver and they just kind of Marty was the general manager, and at the time it was actually my first year, I didn't that's when what rookies had to come in and you didn't have to sign it. They were negotiating it, and I remember they tried to
lowball me. And every year in the contracts, when you get drafted, you basically there's a center's like five or temper cent more of the guy that was drafted in the same position of you. Last year you get maybe five to temper cent more. They offered me less than what the guy last year got. And so I remember sitting there talking to Marty and say, hey, man, I want to get this deal done. He was like, well, we don't know. You're a wide receiver, but you're primarily
a returner. And I told him at the time, and I looked at Marty, I said, well, I'm any wide receiver you have, i'ma be better there. So you might as well pay now because if now, you're gonna pay more later. And Marty looked at me and was like, whatever, kid, Well that's the kind of attitude I saw. And and as a young Steve Smith he had all this ability then and the the heart is bigger than his ability to was one seventy six when they draft. When you see a guy like that, you've seen a lot of
rookies come in. You know, you've seen a lot of good So what was it about Steve where you just said earlier, like you know this this guy might be something. What was it about him? Well, just the way he competed. I mean you can tell he loves football. I mean he wanted to be good. He wanted to be the best and then then go out and do the work. Also because it just doesn't happen overnight. But you know, I think that what I used to think about Steve. I was like, man, this I can I mean, he's
so I mean, I don't tell he's angry. He plays angry. I wish I could play angry, but it seems like I'm trying to calm myself. And because if I played fat, real fast, I could even see hardy. Sometimes. You know, you ever play so fast, you just like your eyes don't even open. He said, the balls in the area, you don't even see it. But Stevens could play that fast and then angry, and he's got all this ability and he's just bottled up and he's got the good
Richard Williamson, it's what you. Richard was hard on me, and he was hard on you too, And I know y'all probably clashing and clashed a lot, bet bet And because he was old school Alabama guy, he told me one time, he said, if you're gonna practice, you may practice the way you want to, but if you practice like that, you're gonna be back in groceries at the food line. I didn't know what the food line was, but back in groceries. I was like, you know, so
that's what he told me. And an interesting story. Quickly, I remember they had drafted. The year before that, we had Mooseine, you had Patrick Jeffrey had his neat thing, and then we had Donald Hayes. When they drafted me, they told me that I think that I was gonna be okay. And I remember they said, hey, we'll let you play wide receiver, and I remember I was not allowed to play wide receiver. They told me, I'll play wide receiver, but they wouldn't let me. All they would
do is let me go with the scout team. And I was so discouraged. Yea, And all I did was sitting meetings and be taught. They would teach around me. They would teach Donald Hayes, they would teach and teach Patrick Jeffries. Uh, they would teach all these other guys, and I never got talked, and so I literally started coming in there with serial. I don't say I'm wasting my time here. Y'all not gonna play me. And so that's how it was treated. And people say, oh, you
have a chip on your shoulder. It's not necessarily a chip. I walked in the meeting. I was drafted to playing football, but I was told and limited on what I would do. You know how discouraging is to go to work and someone tells you you're not good enough, so we're not even gonna give you a chance. Especially But it's not
even me as the football players. Me is little Steven, Little Steve as a kid, as a twenty two year old young man, to go to work every day knowing you're not gonna get an opportunity where one in ten you will not get an opportunity, were one in eleven you will not get an opportunity, one in thirteen, one in fourteen, one in fifteen, and then one in fifteen. I get to play and they tell me, hey, you're gonna start. Steve gets to New England Patriots, but Pators
Jeffreys is gonna run off the tunnel. A man, I didn't know all this is going on. And so for me in my life dream, it's still every little chance it gets where it's a little bit of boop. So even when I was playing my dream, it was just that little small token of when am I gonna get pinched in the reality of the truth is, bro, you're not very good, You're not good enough. Yeah, and these are people who drafted me. I put my name in
a hat. You all said, hey, you're good enough or what I thought I was good enough to be here. We don't tell me it wasn't. You know. Looking back, Steve, maybe that that kickoff returned the first time you touched it may have kind of compartmentalized your ability. That's all they were thinking. Maybe they're just like, hey, we're just gonna use them to return er. I didn't know you
were going through that the year. I'm even more impressed that you're able to keep it together because nobody likes to be told they're not good enough, and nobody likes to be feeling like you work your butt off and nobody's playing attention. And uh so I give you credit for doing that. But the next year, two thousand two, I can't even remember what happened that year. I mean, uh, that was my last year as a Panther. And then the next year you do what you did and the
team did what they to the super Bowl. That that's vindication. That's uh well, now I look at it's not for me. It wasn't vindicational, just more of sometimes when people say you have that chip, it's not a chip man, it's just literally tell him with maybe oh you got that chip or some boulders. If if a guy who if a team does all the research and drafts you and brings you in and then says, hey, go sit olden
over there, that's not a chip. You're literally discouraged. You really, you literally feel that this team does not believe in you, and so you start to really ask yourself, I I don't want to be here, Yeah, because you don't know which part is true. Do they really like you or are they really just they made a mistake and they just don't want to say they made a mistake. Yeah, that's nobody wants to go through that. The point is there is so much responsibility deemed and put on the players,
but they are very little accountability on coaches. Good point, And nobody says all these coaches overwhelmed or just coaches inadequate or not very good. They just get rid of the players. First, they get rid of the player tank his career and then realized two years later, well was the coach. But there's no reparation for the player that was put in a bad situation on an awful scheme. I mean, we got Muggy bowls right there, and no
fence to Muggy. You got you can't put Muggsy at center and expect him to block everybody shot, and then all of a sudden, say, all Muggsy can't play. What about if he's put in a wrong position. But then the player gets deemed dumb, inadequate, not smart. And then then you find out a couple of years later, oh man, that coach wasn't very good and nothing nothing to can get. Nothing happens. Actually that coach becomes a coordinator for another team and then does well, and then it goes to
another team and becomes another coach eternity for sure. Those Muggsy over there, I thought, So you really were looking at Muggsy bowl like he was in this movie Space Jam and everything. It was cool if he kind of did place it in the movie. Yeah, in the movie. It was good. Good, Good to talk to you guys. Good to be here and be part of this event. To night and Stephen, you're a good man putting this
song and appreciating forward to good evening. What's the wall was? Everybody, 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, Balto 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, SINGR 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 Baltaschevitch and Meredith Carter, with production assistance by Alex Lebrek. Production coordinator Taylor Robinson. Theme music by Alex Johnson, lyrics and vocals by Anthony Hamilton. If you ain't heard about it,
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