Streaming live on the Ihearts Radio. While this is Eye on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Fox Sports fourteen fifty.
Two.
Iron the Ball Hero on Fox Sports fourteen fifty Young Steve Riverta and with me today is a former head football coach at Michael Mountain. Pat Nugent now on the phone. We have you defensive line coach, Joe Salava and you of a coach.
How you doing, man, bless blessed, Thanks for having me on.
Yes, good. I don't know what you run the forty e now, but you came and hit the ground running. You've been fantastic. How has it been right away doing what you do?
It's, you know, just really an honor for me. It's you know, it's a little bit more surreal because of what this place means and the people that were here when I was here in my time here. But to actually come full circle now and get a chance to contribute to Kuz Brandan and the staff ass tremendous.
I'm wondering this might be a personal question, but you've always had a fascination with two sort of stuff. When you got the call to possibly come, or maybe when you landed here, did you shed a tear.
You know, I had a pause. There was a moment there kind of it hit me. Uh and obviously Coach told you had a big part of that, and so there was there was that moment there, and so it's just just so honored and and and grateful to Brennan and obviously unser Raide for just the uh, the opportunity for me and my family to be back in the fold.
Coach, how you doing this, Pat Neugeen, I was the head coach of Micah Mountain High School. We just wanted to stay titled, but I'm an old manager for coach Tomy in the eighties and obviously, uh, you know, I worked with Brandon Sanders a long time. But obviously we're we're really excited to have you back in Tucson. And uh, you know, obviously culture change a little bit coming from Miami and the Seattle area, I mean the Oregon area.
But uh, have you seen Coach Brennan. Have you seen a lot of things going differently since you've gotten here, and the excitement that he's bringing.
Man, just you know, just on our side of the ball staffs Coach a Keina obviously h a walking human encyclopedia and the teaching and the mentoring uh Daddy and his own writer as well former head coach d c uh and his body of work, you know, just starting there, and then having coach RC and Chip, you know Chip coming from Oklahoma background and r C being an s C and Uh, so you're talking about a a well qualified staff, but man extra special because of the human
beings they are. And then obviously with the offense to the day and and having him here, and we were talking just earlier today about Bike Leech uh and what he's in to me and my family, but also for him as a mentor and as a former coach. Uh, I'm so fired up, so fared up, just knowing where we're at now and and moving forward the direction and seeing our guys attacked this off season training in the early stage. Truly looking forward to getting on the grass with him.
So coach, I've been here since eighty seven, Covered told me from eighty eight to eighty nine before I went to cover to Loot and I have a coach with Joe, with Pat here in front of me and you. And one of the things I realized these years that coaching matters. Coaching matters, and I think a lot of people are
excited to have you here because you bring something. You bring something like a personality, a love for the game, and it's very apparent what's your secret sauce because people do gravitate or players do gravitate to you.
You know what.
And that was one of the things I picked up on Coach told me, just being being ourselves and then having the joy and the passion for what you do. I think that that starts there. It is one thing to work and train, but if you do it with a with that kind of perspective and outlook, then it doesn't become of work. It becomes your your vocation. And
that's what's been for me. It's been about loyalty, uh to the people that I work with alongside with, and in our our commitment to our student athletes because uh we were once in those seats and to have that opera, that perspective. I've just been just been really fortunate and blessed to be a part of a lot of these families, lives and whatnot, and to see them not just graduate, but to prove, uh proceed onto the National Football League stage and doing well.
Uh.
Those are the things. I'm excited for our guys because we have you know, coaching Tina has put up many gym sources of work. If I'm a dB in this country and I'm looking to be developed so that i can have a shot of staying in the league, not to get to the league, I would put there ain't no doubt I'm coming to do so. On a visit coach Dwayne and Keith. That is just outrageous that some
of these families. But again, we're not going to stay in between families and there and their decisions and finances. But if they're truly about development mentorship, well you can't look any further than our staff the A because Sale is the best as they come in that regard to And so I'm just really honored and humbled to be among these guys here and our staff here and what coach Brannan is is working to change.
It's funny you talk about all that we talk about how the game has changed, nil transfer portal, But at the end of the day, and I talked about this with that, because he's had a lot of success at the high school level, I just want to stay titled. The game of football hasn't you know, you got to have some passion, you got to have the will wherewithal, you got to love to play for your coach, things like that, And.
It truly starts there. What's happening now, Uh, there's so many other components and so many people, uh that are infiltrating the families and there and their decision that has nothing to do with a young man, but uh, the posture that they have the best interest of the young kid and that's why they're having there's more than over six thousand student nastic football players in the portal because of being ill advised or we're going to a program
for all the wrong reasons. And so you know, you'll continue to have those those type of situation you're in, you're out. But you know again, you know, we we we we play to the tune of our of our university and what we're we're good at and what we're great at. And we can only speak on what the University Arizona can provide and which is a lot, a lot.
It's a city, it's a truly a college town that has grown but still have that uh warm uh uh slow pace uh ways, and I think those are the things that I'm excited.
Man.
We got a good engineering program, we got medical, we got law, law school, I mean all those things, and we highlight those things with the families, with with with with integrity and respect because you know, at the end of the day, they can lead Tucson Arizona knowing that, uh, we've been transparent, we've been upfront, and uh we don't hide nothing of why Arizona is a great fit for the further your further sons.
You know, Coach I obviously learned a lot from coach Tony and really got into the profession. But I was telling Steve a little earlier one of the highlights of my career what I learned from coach Tomy was relationships. But I think one of the things I see and asking you is with the transfers and things, do you feel like you're lacking those those relationships with the kids and they move on so fast that you know, we back in the good old days with desert's warm you
got to build such a culture there. That culture has kind of changed a little bit. In football.
I think every every every college, every university, every institution is just is dealing with that right now, you know, And that's why it's important from the outset in the recruiting process of taking the deep dive into the things that are meaningful to the families of what matters most. And so if it comes down to where it's us or them, if they go the other way, well that
things because of the portal. Seven months later, those families, those very families are calling back because they realize that okay, through the relationship, through the integrity of it all, these are the family, these are this is the university that their staff has been upfront and so it's happened before now where those those relationships came back around and and and and so for us, we're not going to harp on on spilt milk and we're not We're going to
get the players that are meant to be here, uh for the University of Arizona. But we also uh pride ourselves uh in being upfront, being transparent, but also being realistic, uh with with the families because I think those are the things have a funny way of circling back. But it is relationship.
You know.
Now, are we going to be out bit by others? Yes, yes we are. It's just the way of the fact. That's the fact of life. But at the end of the day, still there's a lot more that the University Arizona in here in Tucsa that we offer for for for the majority of these families.
I know, Coach Tomy always used to say, and go pick up rocks. You gotta go find look for rocks and look for guys that can play and have that desire to play and any back in the days he found those guys that you know, like yourself and Teddy Bruski that that played a lot better than they were recorded.
The wall drops and those guys.
Yeah, yeah, because I think at the end of the day, you got to develop, You got to develop, and it's easy to develop a further along uh athlete. Uh that you know, not every every institution have the same uh setting or the same makeup, and so for us, uh it circles back to how can we uh develop and teach and having that plan laid out from day one to year one to year two, and those things, Uh, sometimes they get distorted with all the other components that
have nothing to do with the young men's development. But people will try to distract them. But you know by drawing those those those other uh, those those things that that that takes the family attention away from. But those things exactly what you guys are alluding to are are still uh vidently important. And you know, I've been fortunate again to develop some of the guys I call it
my no star guys uh from the Islands. Uh and uh they got to graduate and they got to play in the NFL, you know, And I think those are the things If the kids young man is not looking to go play uh for the National Football League, they're not They're not supposed to be here at the University Arizona.
You know, you need guys that are truly excited and looking forward to be mentored and coached and developed for that opportunity uh to graduate and uh and and and play in the National Football Because we always tell the young man it is not about getting to the league, it's staying in the league. Teddy bruce Ki didn't just get to the league. He played and stayed in the league because of his development. While Waldrop all these guys, uh, Brent Boyer, I mean, the list goes on a lot
of handful of afordable work winners. Catalyst Christ mccallis, The list goes on and on, but I think, yeh, your relationship is even more so important because of the development plan and everybody's plan is different. And I'm excited just to be here in the building a short time just to listen and sitting in on some of the coaches planned for development at their positions.
It is.
It is awesome, and uh, I'm just honored to have the opportunity to be on the staff and then for Coach Brandan for allowing me that opportunity.
Yeah, there's so many connections. So I would be remiss by didn't ask both you guys quick quick stories on Tony because you you were in a capacity different than than than coach Joe, right, Pat, So maybe you give me a quick quick story about maybe how we influenced you or maybe a moment that you said, hey, what's this guy saying? It's good? And maybe Joe right after.
I'm sure Joe knows one of the things we do, we call them reminders at our place. But Coach told me it was infamous for doing roles and that's when you lay on your side and you roll.
And I always remember back in the days when we were.
You know, staying in the camp and the kids were staying at the hotel and a bunch of guys were late, so Coach told me brought the entire team out to the U of A mall and rolled them at about one o'clock in the morning.
So you guys tooken that night. But that was a typical U A story.
And you know, and I remember we got the message, got the message. I remember losing a Washington state back in eighty nine, I think it was. I remember that we got off the plane about three am and Dixter wanted to run practice at six am that morning, you know, and those are the things.
And it was at that moment we went to the morning regiment. And it is funny now that everybody knows everybody in America are going early morning sessions, he said, the afternoon and uh, and that is that's a fact. I tell that story. I was like, yep, get off to play about two to three and be right back
in mckill center because we're freaking practicing and run. But so this morning, you know, just finally got a chance to trying to trying to walk and get it in at five thirty before we get going with the guys and their conditioning. You know, it didn't dawn on me in that outdoor portion of the indoor facility. I was walking and I looked over to the to my right. There's a big Bureau of Coach on there. And I didn't,
you know, I didn't it didn't. I didn't see it until this morning, and I paused, and there was a It was one of those moments you know, got really you know, brought brought a little bit of tears in mind just because of who that man was, uh and uh, you know, really really grateful for what he means to many of us, that we're fortunate to be uh players for him, not just here at Arizona, but at the
University of Hawaii and and so forth. And so you know, I was got me so far out up this morning, I couldn't you know, I couldn't tell you just how blessed, oh blessed it is to have this opportunity to be here, and I know he's here in spirit, and we're just looking to make sure that we put our best foot forward now and excited looking ahead for a springball to take off.
Well, coach, I appreciate your time. Good luck, I We'll see you soon in springball.
Good luck, coach.
Thank you so much for having us guys.
Yeah, appreciate your time. Appreciate it a lot.
You got a better job.
Sal obviously dependsive line coach at yoube well, take a break here have another guest with Harvey Mason on the other side.
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Breaking down all the ipsys and ohs. This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Box Sports fourteen fifty.
Hey, welcome back to my in the ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. In with me today is Pat Lucien from Micro Mountain. Now on the phone, we have Harvey Mason from so many things. The Grammys. Ve Harvey, how are you?
It's been good? Well, how are you all?
We're doing fine. Thank you. You're a busy, busy man. What's up.
Yeah, I'm a little crazy, but I'm doing well. I'm happy. I'm having a good time. Missed two song. I wish I was out there with y'all.
Well, the weather's perfect for you, that's next seventy eight degrees here in mid February.
But nice. Well it's not bad in La.
Oh, of course, not just the traffic. I can't do with the traffic. Other than that, LA is cool.
Yeah, that's right.
How tell me before we get into basketball, tell me how how were the Grammys? What's your title now? Because you get better and better titles all the time.
My title has been CEO of the Recording Academy.
And the Grammys and Music Cares. And it's been five years now, if you can believe that.
I was the chair of the board for one year. Nice about five years ago.
So nice, yeah, fantastic. I mean you've been very you know, I said, I told Pat. I told Pat Harvey's going to be on the show. He said, oh great, they had the song. But you know, well about the Cats way back in the day. Of course, everyone still plays that Everyone still plays that song.
That's right.
We got to ask you that, Harvey, when you when you were part of that song, did you ever know that would lead to the.
Career that you're in right now and being a legend that you are. Well, thank you for the legend status.
But I did know that I was going to be involved in music before I came to the U of A. I was writing songs and producing music and come from a musical family, so it was always in my blood and part of what I thought my life would include. But I did want to play basketball, so I came to U of A with big dreams of playing the NBA and didn't work out in that way. But I always knew that music would be a part of what I did for sure.
Yeah, no question, And you're doing it very well. When I also got you and you said yes to come on those those teammates of yours back in the day. Look, Steve is, Steve is, of course Steve with the Golden State Warriors, Olympic Guys champions, Sean doing what he does Tobert Matt Meilboch an attorney, Tobert doing his stuff in Northern California. Pretty overachieving dudes, not just on court but on life.
Yeah, we had a really group of people and you probably could have gone on five or six eight more guys that just went on to do really cool things and be good, good members of society and good teammates, good friends.
Good husbands.
We had a unique bond that team, and I think we all rubbed off on each other. I don't believe or have the overinflated opinion of myself to think for a minute that I arrived in Tucson the complete package as a human.
You know, I was a good basketball player.
We were all good basketball players, but we learned a lot from Coach Olsen. We learned a lot from each other. I mean, think about the environment that we were in, not even on the court, but just in a day to day life with Coach O and Steve Kerr and Kenny Lofton and all these different people that just brought out the best in each other.
And it's a weird dynamic.
We all continue to stay in touch, and for me, I can't speak for everyone else, but I try and move in a way that would make my teammates proud and make them say, Okay, Harvey's doing good stuff. So that's a different kind of nuanced type of pressure that I think we all amongst our group.
Yeah.
I didn't even mention Kenny, and I haven't mentioned Judd. I mean, come on, ye oh, you guys.
You know Harvey.
You know we're all go back to those eighty eight team, and you know, I was a student there, worked the basketball games, and you guys started this tradition at UV.
I mean, you guys were you know.
I know we won a national title in ninety seven, but I think everybody as a Tusonian will always remember that eighty eight team and how specially were when you guys when you came here and obviously Coach Olson, But did you see the program going in the direction that it is now and starting the tradition that you guys started in eighty eight.
Absolutely, and we can try and downplay it, but I.
Personally knew we were going to be a great team.
I knew the caliber of players that Coach Olson was recruiting. I was, I believe, the third recruiting class, so before me were great, great athletes, great players. And I also knew from meeting Coach Olson for ten minutes that he was a special leader of players, of athletes, of young men, and that is a combination. To me, that was a great recipe for success, and it proved to be true.
Yeah, yeah, no question. In fact, in some of my books, you've been very candid with your situation. You know, when you get here and you're not alone, Well, I kind of blew it there. But you came here, you were a little upset or disheartened, and you wanted to leave, and you said, everybody wants to leave because you know, it's a tough situation. But your guys are glad that you didn't because you got better and you became who you became.
Yeah.
I think about the environment around college basketball now, having had the rules in place, the ni all, the transfer portal, it would have been a very different situation. I can't imagine any of the players that you named on that list probably would have hung around. Maybe besides Steve, he wasn't going anywhere, But everyone else at some point or another was frustrated or angry or disappointed.
So I'm glad that all of us stuck it out.
And I'm glad that you know, we had that kind of the idea that things would continue to evolve and get better over time, and they did regardless of if it was playing time, but just as a person as a human, we all benefited from being in Tucson as a part of that program for the years that we were there.
Yeah, Harvey.
Before we get to this year's team, one question I got to ask, yet, who started the Gumbies. Who was the first guy that got that Gumby's going back in those days.
His name was Bruce Frasier.
And if you don't know who he is, he is now Steph Curry's shooting guru. And you see him warming up Steph every day. He looks a lot different now because he's got gray hair.
We all do.
He was, He was the original Gumby.
I don't think he ever really started as a U of a athlete, but he was always the consummate team member, always kind of led the scout team. And I think when the Gumbies really became popular in eighty eight, he had graduated and was in a GA I could have my dates wrong, but I believe he was a grad assistant. And so it was you know, me and Sean and Judd and Muhlbach and Kevin Rooks. So it was a combination of Q starting it.
That's what we call it.
Bruce was Q, and then all of us kind of just taking the name and the identity and and running with it.
Was that the media that gave you that name? Or are you guys creating it?
No, we created and it came from Q, and Q named the the scrubs or the B team or whatever you want to call us, the gumbies because every week in practice we would be a different team, you know, when we were playing USC, we would be malleable and transform into the US team if we were playing Duke that week, and then we'd be Duke and so Q. So I feel like a gumby. I'm just getting stretched and pulled and pushed around. Yeah, and so that's how the name started.
Right, Yeah. I think one of the guys, maybe even in Q, who wore a you know, put a little gumby in his in his sneaker a time or two, you know, just to get.
In his socket fell out the line in garbage time.
Yeah, no question. There was another question told. I think Matt told me this meal Buck back in the day. There was a time maybe eighty eight, maybe eighty nine, where you did. The reserves would play the starters, and you guys wouldn't go and finish practice until the starters won, or when day won, it would be over. There was a time or two when you guys, the backups would beat the starters and Lout would get so pissed that he'd let you. He'd make you guys play until they want.
Well, I mean, truth be told, and you can maybe get some different opinions from different people, but.
The Gumbies as we were known and eighty eight.
Would often beat the starters like a drum and a lot of it was because we were really good, but some of it was. I'm sure they were fatigued. They
were playing a lot of heavy minutes. They weren't concentrating sometimes because we were I think twenty three and two that year, something like that, and I'm sure they dismissed us a little bit, but we were going like our live dependent on it, because that's how we contributed to the success of the team was prepare our starters the best we could, say, Matt Mulbach and I would take on the identity of the oppost in backcourt and we would try and beat Steve and Craig mcviillain to a
pulp every single practice, and we took it personally.
No, you're right, that's why that I heard. As always, I always refer to the eightya team, and I'll move this back to today, that the eighty eight team, especially firstborn type of you know, the first team for Arizona and Tucson. To love you guys and the thing that you guys had, at least in my mind, you guys had that killer instinct and enjoyed beating the crap out of teams. Not too many teams, not too many teams
since have done that. Look this this year of a good talented team, but they don't have that to get it done and beat the crap out of teams.
There's a different kind of loyalty then than there is now. We played for each other, we played for the school, we played for the block a were we were proud to beat in Tucson. We were representing our fan base, our families. And now these young athletes are so talented and probably so much better in vidual athletes than we ever were, and they're so cool, and they're so well
taken care of and they're so conditioned. But we were really really playing for the pride of our team and for the pride of each other, and it drove us to be I guess, probably a little crazy sometimes and beat people worse and then we probably needed to.
But it was also the underdog scenario.
You know.
We were just starting as a program to become nationally recognized and we wanted to prove a point. My freshman year, we went to Georgetown and we played them, I think it was in Philadelphia in a tournament game, and Georgetown were grown men. They came out with beards and after the game they were kissing their kids and hugging their wives and they beat us so badly. And I'll never forget that feeling as a freshman saying, we got to get a lot better if we're going to compete with
this team. And coach Olsen told us in the locker room, he said, that's the team that you have to measure yourself against. So a lot of that hunger, a lot of that feeling of being not good enough and being of a program that wasn't respected. It drove us to try and step on the next of everyone we played.
Yeah, no, it takes a special group to do that, and I still believe that. Obviously a special group that team, the two thousand and one team got to the championship game. Obviously ninety seven Kinna went on that run, and in a couple of teams since then. What do you see in this team?
I see incredible athleticism, incredible talent. I've gotten to see one game in person, which was such a thrill, and it really made me like, try and imagine what in the world I was doing on the court playing with players like that, because they seem so much faster and more athletic than I remember. But it seems like they have a good camaraderie. I really am enjoying the way they're playing together. And I gotta say I love coach
Lloyd's style of interacting with the players. He has the trust of the players, and he feels like he trusts them. There's a real interaction between the two that sometimes you don't see between a college coach DGE players, and I think he's done a great job of figuring out how to work with young adult athletes.
Was Coach Lloyd open the door for you guys, I mean, you're part of the program.
Is he let you guys in and out? Once in a while, it's just tradition that you guys have bringing to the current team.
Now, well, even beyond that, he's actually actively reached out to us and invited us to be involved in things and invited us to events and to games, and so it's not like, hey, if you want to come back, you're welcome, it's please come back, Please be a part of the program. And I think he sees the value in some of the you know, ex athletes that came through the program, and hopefully we can bring something to the table that's helpful to him, because we all have a lot of pride in that program.
As I said, yeah, there's still too a little Loot in Tommy in a sense that the same kind of style up and down and let you guys play. But there's also the leeway I mean with you guys. You guys weren't friends with Loot until you got out of the program, right, you guys, You guys kind of listened.
To I don't Yeah, I don't think you can even compare not to be disagreeable, Steve. But Lout and Tommy are so far from the other ends of each other. The one thing they have in common is they're incredibly smart basketball minds and they are building winning programs. But the way lut did it, and if you remember when I was there, Steve, it was not getting up and down and running and having to creative freedom to do.
It was very restrictive. We had plays on every set and if you did too much penetrating, you get yelled at.
If you jump to too many times, yell that.
And it was hard to be a young player coming out of high school eighteen nineteen years old who was an All American or All cif for whatever you were, and then come into this robotic system. But it worked, and if you could buy into that system, you would
win and you would succeed as a player. Whereas Tommy, I think, is really trying to utilize the athletes that he has and build his team and his system around them and really let them have the freedom to create and explore and develop how the game goes.
And he's not going to ride them the entire game.
And that's why I really preciated about him, and and and Sean Miller was not like that. Sean Miller was yelling from the beginning of the game to the end of the game, and I kind of imagine playing for a coach that was that controlling and that restrictive. So I think it's a great mix that Tommy is deployed with these young athletes.
Yeah, it's funny you say that because you you're not that You're right, You're very right. I think that Luke kind of changed when he went with the Towers, the big men to the small with Kalid and Damon and Reggie and said, Okay, we're going to change it up, give you more freedom with the style of play.
Yes, well, that's how smart coach Olsoen was right. The guy figured it out and he said, I'm going to build a program around the talent that I have. And that's really the beginning of point guard. You if you think about it, because when I was there and with stevea there was it was definitely not point guard. You as a big man, you dribble to the wing, throw a bounce past to the post.
In this watch.
Yeah, you know, Harvey, we asked Matt the same question earlier, But how do you think Luke would have done with this?
With this world we live in with nil and for a portal right now?
I think he would thrive.
I think it's really credible, and I'll bet, I'll bet if you ask Matt, he would probably say he would have hated it, and he would have done well.
I believe. I know he said that, I know why he said that.
But coach also was such a smart, intelligent coach, and he was such a winner, and he cared so much about building the program in winning and succeeding, he would have adapted. He would have figured it out just the way he adapted when all of a sudden we recruited great point guards and he changed the style of play. He would have adapted to the way he needed to act and behave to win in this environment. I'm positive
he would have been a winner. I don't know if he would have liked it, because, as Matt would have said, he's a traditionalist. He likes the loyalty, he likes to preach the things that are beyond basketball.
But given the culture that.
Is happening today, if he needed to adapt to it, I truly believe he could have and would have.
How do you feel about the culture right now, mate?
I can't. That's tough, That's it. I mean nothing beyond that. I don't like leaving a program when you just aren't happy.
About it one day.
I don't like the way that the financial component has been worked out. I absolutely believe in players having more freedom and rights and the ability to earn money because for far too long, institutions were making a lot of money, coaches were making a lot of money, and athletes were being overworked and underappreciated. So I'm in favor of college athletes having the ability to transfer and make a living.
But I think it's gone too far and depends on the swung in the direction that I don't think is healthy for college basketball, and more importantly, I'm not sure it's healthy for the athletes that are playing college basketball.
Yeah, and we won't know until we would find out. Whenever we find out, you know, Harvey, as always, thanks for talking. I love hearing from you.
My pleasure. Good to talk to you, and I miss everyone in Tucson. I hope you all are well. Hope to come back and see great great thanks man, appreciate you.
Take care.
Har Mason, Harvey Mason from the good old days and now with the Grammy, I mean he's got a big, big title. Yeah, he's a big timer now. Did you know he's been that way for a long time. You know, he's five years with them, and he was doing a lot of things before that. Okay, let's take a break and come back and talk more about sports. If you're an Arizona men's basketball fan, you know it's been successful
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This is I on the Ball on Fox Sports fourteen, fidding I want to take part in the show. Call up Steve now went five to two oh four, one six seventy.
Four for night.
Hey, welcome back to why on the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifteen. I'm Steve Rivera, your mister Pat Ducents formerly Mike does not.
Sound formerly sounds a little weird right now you know, I'm still on campus, a little different being around the boys a little bit, but uh, you know, we'll we'll start enjoying it sooner or later.
Niemer will do great. Yeah, who's coming out.
With J J. Boss?
Right? Nimer's the present principal and he's.
Done really well. He's a new football Yeah. Yeah, you guys, come on, I feel sorry for you guys. Guys gonna keep winning. Yeah, if you guys want to call, please do five to two oh four one, six, seventy four forty. We can take some calls. Uh, let us know how we did today. Good interviews, I thought.
Oh, great legends right now? Yes, and you know I mean good questions to the nation.
As big as can be right there. You know, you get a guy and then coach Salavea. You know, but you'm trying.
You have some good questions too. The media has done well for you, did you when you when you have to deal with the people like us, did you?
God?
No, you always wanted to promote your program, and I always thought it was great for the kids. You know, things have changed so much in high school back in your days, back in the Tucson Citizen when we recovered high school sports a little bit.
It was neat, but you.
Know, you don't get as much, you know, the right You know, the Morales brothers do such a great job and pretty much the only job out there for kids, and that was great.
You know, you didn't restrict them, did you, did you say?
Okay, well, we restricted some kids that we didn't allow to talk, you know, but just they weren't going to do well.
We're going to have a tough time with the media. But mostly our top kids were okay.
Not because they you were afraid of what they're going to say.
No because they probably weren't going to be real good in front of people and talking.
So well, we appreciate that.
Yeah, so they were going to have a hard time, but you know it's different.
You know, obviously we laugh a little bit when we won the state title.
Wow, and the media was there and you know, there was fifteen cameras around me and we kind of laughed a little bit, and you know, that was a different experience.
Yeah, yeah, no question, no question. That's good for you. Uh and now you're going to be just pat Yeah, that's it. Although I'm sure everyone's gonna call you coach, coach.
I'm gonna be called out that.
You know, I got five grand kids now, so I gotta do some George a little bit around there and watch the kids.
Yeah. No, no, good, Welcome to the real world. It's fun out here.
Yeah.
I'll let you know another year or two, we'll see how that goes.
You'll go to the mall now and you know you remember read No, I don't know you.
Love buddy.
I'm nobody on campus anymore, walk around. Nobody knows who I am anymore.
Yeah, sure, sure, No, that's good for you guys. Again, if you like to call, we got about ten minutes five to four, one six seventy four forty uh talk about the basketball team and talk about football team whatever you guys want to talk about. The women won last night, right, that was part of your breaking news. Probably would you have anything with that? No, I was just going to say just that they want. Yeah, you didn't cover anything, did you You didn't.
Yeah.
We're gonna get home for the big hockey game tonight. Yeah, Big US Canadian hockey. Yeah you you follow that? Yeah, okay, tell me Big four, Big two?
What is it? Canada?
Uh us firsus Cannabis tonight in the finals.
How many how many fights? What's the over under in the fights today?
I don't think they're gonna fight. I think they got in the other night and I think they got it in. It's gonna be like a game seven.
You know.
They don't want to get thrown out if they want to be a part of it, and it's gonna be intense.
I think it's gonna be.
They've really promoted this and I think it's taken off for them, and I don't think they expected such a big thing.
It's gone. It's going big.
I think we've got a call. Hello, you're on the air and nine on the ball. Who's this? Who's this?
Hell?
You on the air?
This is done?
Done? How are you done?
I'm good?
How are you doing?
Coach?
Good?
Thanks? How you doing?
Hey?
I'm all right.
Hey, I missed this last dollar.
We're doing some.
Work stuff, so I'm gonna have to go back and listen back. But that that interview with Matt Austik was pretty good. One thing I wanted to cover with you, Steve, was you know, for years we always wanted to in fact twelve to be to level up to Arizona, Yeah, and be better because we were seventeen and one, sixteen and.
Two, and now we're in that.
And it's hard getting used to it.
Right, Well, okay, perfect, you perfectly said. Let me ask you this though, but don't you or I don't want to influence your your How do you feel now going into the tournament? Don't you feel a little bit better?
I think we're going to be better suited for the tournament, and then I think that might and in the long run, when maybe we're not as good of a team as we think we are, maybe we'll be that little bit better, a little bit tougher that we're able to get through, you know, to get through a round or two, and maybe we don't, you know, we don't get too because before you know, when we were you know you're a top one or two seed, you know you're expected to
get to the to the regional final at least. And I think that now we may we may be better suited to win some games that maybe we didn't think we could.
Right. So, so I'm gonna ask this a question because I know my answer will maybe lost. Pat. So, So, to this point, twenty some games into it, what's been the most impressive thing to you or most eye opening with basketball.
I think the resilience and and the ability that they've been able to stick together and win some games that maybe, you know, because there's always that little lull and then they lose the lead or or or they either lose the lead or they fall behind. But they don't panic. They're just they just stay in it, and they stay together and and and they just you know, they've they've been able to win more often than not. You know, after those first nine games or so.
I think everybody in Tucson has to, you know, appreciate the effort these kids have shown. You know, they're they're shootings off. They're not you know, shooting every ball right. They go out and play hard. You know, they go play hard. They play defense, which is a great thing to watch. And you know, they've been in every game. I mean, I think we go to but two months ago when they were four and five, I think too Sonians were ready to bail on them. But I think
everybody's back on board and excited about them. And you know, love catches on fire. We're gonna win any game.
Well, that's the whole thing. That'll be My quick thing is the toughness, the physicalness, that they've been able to show because don you followed a long time, you Pat, and me too. They haven't been tough like this, they haven't been physically enough like this, and this is something that is new and it's kind of fun to watch.
No, well, we've you know, for years, we've gone into tournaments against mid majors and you look at these guys and you're going, that team looks like grown men.
Yeah, Princeton and our team and our team looks like a bunch of college kids.
And now we're getting into that. You know, I think now with the tougher leagues we're getting into, we're gonna be better prepared to play those tough games.
Yeah.
Yeah, I'm just concerned if I am concerned, if I can be concerned because i'm you know, a journalist, whatever, that they won't get fatigued by that time it comes because they're only playing with seven eight guys.
Yeah.
Yeah, well we'll see how.
It turns out. Yeah, okay, thanks Don, Yes, sir, a good one. Yeah, thanks. We got about three more minutes, maybe a time for one quick question or a quick call. But see how fast it goes.
It goes fast. In two hours, I was excited to get here and it's already over. I don't know what to do with myself.
This is like a ride on Disney. That's not why I shaved my legs for that. What's not for that? But it was good. It was good because we have good guests. Tomorrow, we're gonna have Jay will be in studio with us, so maybe we'll get into an argument or two. Get ready for the game on Saturday. B YU, so maybe we'll have a writer from b YU. B YU did pretty well against Kansas.
They did, you know, they shoot, they shoot the rock real well, and you got to defend those guys and they're gonna you know, we played well that night and b YU and you know, obviously we always got an advantage at McHale. And yeah, it'll be exciting to see our kids come out and play.
And can you can you being the coach and you're seeing the other team, can you tell from another team or a fund of language whatever, that they're just not into it?
Oh?
Without question, I think you see that early in the game. You know, you try to get advantage of them early and knock them in the.
Mouth a little bit.
You tell that to the kids.
Oh yeah, I think every every coach is trying to get on right away and try to take the soul out of that other team and go out and play and knock them out early.
You know, that was always our goal as a high.
School coach, was you know, let's go and knock them in the mouth and try to get this game over early.
Right, set the tone, set the tone. They're not here to play, let's take advantage and.
Yeah, and that's you know, it's great when the v A. You know, the crowd gets into it. McHale's rocking and it's hard to come into McHale. We all know that over the years. But you know they've got to do that and and just stay on top of them. I do not too often.
Okay, So one or two a year, granted Water the Texas Tech game. That was a great eight game, one of the great games.
I think that was the game. And I misspoke yesterday about about Henry because that game he looked gast. He looked ghast, and he played an unbelievable and I'll never forget that because he was about to fall apart and he didn't. Yeah, to your point of the crowd, Uh, there are times when they're criticized because they're not crazy. You know, everyone's old. They don't care. There are times when it's very, very good.
I was an eight o'clock game that night, you know, eight thirty.
I think, you know, it's great, great crowd, and then the place was loud and loust and excited.
Houston game was like that, Iowa State game was like that. Of course, it takes I think every place in the country. If you've got a good game and good opponent, they're going to be there. Some games not so much. We'll see what happened Saturday, because it's another league game.
We do, you know, and it's us. You have a fans.
We live and die by the Caps, and hopefully they keep winning and keep us involved and tournaments right around the corner and be a little different. We're going to miss the Vegas and anybody's into Vegas for that was a creak up a time, been there a couple of times.
And we're going to miss that. No one's going to Kansas City.
I don't think they might have a little small kind of contingent. Have you been going to the games?
Entry, Yeah, I've gone to basically every home game.
I was gonna say, you got the kids under control. They haven't used the F word very much this year. I was actually gonna say I thought the Houston crowd maybe because of the start time was earlier. I didn't think it was as it was it was. There was some empty sea. Yeah, it was a great game. It was a great game. I think the Houston crowd eventually left disappointed because they had everyone. Oh we had the game. Well,
Houston does what they do to you. They they it's the drip, drip, drip until you kind of can't take it anymore.
Yeah, tough physical team.
Yeah, you know, two o'clock and you know at twelve o'clock team. You know, it was early and beautiful Tucson. Nobody wanted to leave.
The outdoors sold out. But to your point, there was a lot of empty spots. Yeah, strangely, it was so a good crowd, but I think there were some other games so the crowd was better. Okay, you need to go. We're good to go. Yep, Thanks Henry, Thanks Pat Steve Greig for having you going to be Maybe you come back now that no, you're not.
Plenty of times in my hands, so twenty afternoon may affect my afternoon nap a little bit.
Don't hope your wife doesn't affect, you know, our friendship or whatever. Steve again, Yeah yeah, okay, thanks again