This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera and Jake.
And Zalaz Sound Fox Sports fourteen fifty powered by Nova Insurance Services and Sure Your most Prized Possessions, katz R two, SAG and iHeartRadio Station.
Good, good afternoon, everybody.
Welcome to Eye on the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. In today with me is George Modes of the showtime cards and taking control of the board is Ryan. So we're good to go. We're a live right. Hey, I want to ask you, George. I know you have four point five million dollars in the bank somewhere. Can you be a partner in my show?
Hey? I like the new studio. I mean this is probably over my budget. This stuff looks great, sounds great as well.
Well.
It's taken about a week or so to get used to the stuff. I think the.
Guys know what they're doing now and they are very comfortable, thankfully, because I have no idea what those buttons.
Oh this is awesome. I'll put some picks.
Okay, cool, So you don't have four point five to go after the show, hey, car Bble the Ball the Ball Golden Auctions so tell me, So tell me are they going about it the right way or how If you got that ball, what.
Are you doing with You're gonna sell it? They didn't want to give it back, so you have to. I mean that's that's it's a lottery ticket exactly. What's happening?
Sure, So what's start with the with the beginning price and then say X amount for write out purchase?
Yeah? Yeah, I mean you follow with it.
I think there is a reserve, so it's got to meet They're going to start it and it's got to meet the reserve.
What does that mean? So if it.
Doesn't sell for this price, they don't have to sell it. Oh and then he just keeps it. Yeah, what's he gonna do with the ball? That means nothing to him exactly, But it's worth a lot of money.
Yep.
Todd McFarlane bought the ball that was the Mark McGuire. Three million dollars he spent on that and then now it's probably worth.
Tell me.
Three thousand, really, I mean it's probably it's I don't know how, don't even think someone would give them thirty thousand?
Really give me the give me the reasons why? Because I can assume the reasons why, but because it's been broken, it went legitimately, or the main.
Reason is the steroids. Yeah yeah, okay, the steroids was broken. There was Sosa, there was Barry bonds. He had to buy them all.
He spent. He's probably five million into it.
And I've talked to him, I know him personally, Todd McFarlane, and you can see it kind of hurts him, but he says it's fine.
Oh sure, I'm just going to keep him.
He's got to keep him because he can't sell them.
Sure, not even to the guys that want that they have the record or their record.
No, no, they would. I guess they'd pay a thousand yeah, exactly ten thousand dollars right times three?
Right, Wow, that's the Well there you go with your investment, you guys.
Are However, he's approaching sixty sixty. Oh this well, I mean what if what if he hits the sixty sixty? Now this one's kind of worthless as well.
Okay, so yeah, just to screw this dude, I hope he gets the sixty.
I mean too because to me, he wanted it, Oh Toney wanted it, asked for it.
Yeah, what what would you have taken for it, Okay, you grab it. You know, he wants it, you know, the organization wants it. And Jay and I were sitting here when I was going to happen. I'm thinking, don't be greedy about it, you know. Okay, five hundred thousand, that's that's fine. That's a lot of money. Four point five that's just kind of too. That's just a lot, right, Yeah, So what would you take for it?
Well, and they were even offering other like season tickets. Yeah, yeah, I signed Jersey and you know, he was being pretty generous.
He wanted it.
Rights. It's hard to say, you know, because you know it's millions. Oh oh sure, even if it's not four point five million, you know, it's a couple of millions.
Sure, it's millions, but it could not be millions, like the farming situation. Right, Well, what if he gets to the sixties ye yeah, yeah, yeah, it's.
I mean, what what is it? He's at fifty seven? I think fifty seven and fifty three? Yeah, oh yeah, good luck you games?
Yeah, the home runs my not happen.
Yeah, so we'll see what happens. Yeah, but you know, you're in that business. It's that's how crazy it is.
It is it is.
I mean, they just had a they had a collective southe the Bees with fanatics, and they did high end sports cards. Some of these cards that I used to own were selling for sixty thousand dollars and you know, and I was like, I had that card, you know, and they were they did this high end auction and millions, millions across the table.
Yeah, just like the stock market. Yeah, hell yeah.
They had their bitter paddles and they're you know, flipping up in insane numbers. Well, we lived for cards that that I possessed, you know, And I was like, oh, then you got rid of them?
Say yeah, I sold them for opinions on the dollar.
I mean, there was one that I regret. It was a Lebron James Uh. It was the ultimate collection autograph Rookie. There was twenty five of them, but mine was a pristine ten. I sold it for sixty five hundred. A few years later it flipped on eBay for eighty three thousand. Now that card's probably three hundred k, quarter million easy, and I sold it for sixty five hundred.
That one hurts.
You geeks know how to live, Yeah, his car card collecting geeks, it's.
It's fine art for the sports enthusiast. Uh, billionaires and millionaires, it's yeah.
So so uh And do they collect We've got through a lot of this stuff before.
But do they.
Collect for that purpose of trying to hit the gold mine? Or they collect because they're they're just dudes. They like to do it, hope like to do it, but you know, accidentally fall into something that's pretty good.
They on those type of cards. They do collect for the investment. You may think that, oh, they're super geeks and they're you know, they're they're uber fans. Yeah, and they know what they're doing, of course, you know what they're investment.
Well, they have money.
Then Hendricks the owner of the Diamondbacks. He has probably the best baseball card collection in the world. And he also has a team. He has a team, and he's worth four billion dollars.
Yeah.
So yeah, but that's a different level because you have the money and you can kind of afford the hit exactly.
That's true. Why do they do it? Because because they don't need the money. Why they do it?
They I mean, they have a packy It's like I said, it's like fine art. You know what, Sometimes you look at those pieces you don't pick out like God is.
But it's not that cool.
It's not a million dollars cool, you know, so it's kind of extra. They just really enjoyed and they already have the cars and everything else, so why not.
It's funny because this reminds me.
I was in Santa Fe for the summer and I went through it just a shop, you know, downtown, and it was a nice, big piece, and I'm thinking that would go, that would go perfect in my living room, right, a big, big wall. And I'm thinking, Okay, that's about twenty four hundred. Blah blah blah, went and said that's fifty two thousand. I think, okay, good crab. Never mind, never mind.
Yeah, they have some beautiful pieces, you know, and a lot of artists live there and and reside there.
Sure, and you wouldn't know that they're an artist because they're just dudes on you know, on the.
Sidewalk who looked like you needed buck. You're John Martin's from Santa Fe. Yeah, the writer of Game of Thrones. Yeah, same thing. You would have known he's, you know, and all of a sudden he creates this yeah, this saga and it's on HBO and.
So, so we live in a world, and I'm sure we have always lived in this world where money talks and all that crap, because you.
Know you're doing it in your world. Now we're doing it.
Nil. Do you see what happened with the Vegas guy, the quarterback who you look like your surprise, where have you been in the last twenty four.
Hours you've been You've been sleeping working. No, I'm trying to set up this house.
Okay, So okay, So I just wanted to get your impression, so I'll explain the story. So Vegas, UNILV guy quarterback, he moved in from We're transferred from Holy Cross.
Uh you know, I guess.
He says he was promised one hundred thousand dollars to go and play there. The coaches are denying it. So there're three and O. He's the starting quarterback. I guess they're okay, they're better than they've ever been. Actually, and he says, I didn't get paid.
I'm out. Wow. So he's quit the team.
He's gonna red shirt now, he's gonna try to go somewhere else. So that's where it's a he said. She said, we were promised. No, you weren't. You know here we are. It's going to continue. They don't want to pay him under case sounds like a lot, but it's but it's it's not that much.
And you probably heard about it. Yeah with kind of money.
Yeah, well it was a million, that's what I yet one point two million one point The thing is with that, and you may know this better because you know them. They're international players. It was my impression that they were not allowed to get money like this.
They're not until they declare or something city in the bank's or as girl or a promise.
See the problem with this guy in Vegas. Nothing was written, nothing was written. They were George coming, came, come play for me. I'll get you one hundred thousand, I promise, and then you and then you're doing really well. There's also some thought that the kid went through and O and says I want some more money. You know, I want it. I want I want because you promised me this. But now I'm doing really well. Give me a bump. I didn't want to bump.
I've said I know some of these players, and I've I've worked with them prior years with some of the early years of an IL and some of the layer years. And I have seen attitudes change, and I love no questions. Yeah, I see attitudes change.
How about this because I brought this up after Arizona's a poor loss to Kansas State, and I don't know if it's true. I don't know. I'm not gonna I'm not gonna apply it to this, just me thinking. Okay, so your ex player two or two or three, and you're getting an IL money.
Let's say, when do they get paid?
Okay, so let's just super second, they get paid upfront, and then you see this, what's the incentive incentive to play? Well, if you're already getting paid, that's true, do you get paid for doing work before work? Even for contractors who work at the house.
Exactly once you get the money, or even the lawyer, you know, they change their attitude. You know, don't worry, I'll get you out of this blah blah blah, and then you pay him and nah, you better take the bleak or the contract I mean.
And then it happens with the pros.
You know, they hold out, they hold out, they finally get paid and they don't run as well. You know, so yeah, it's happening at this level and it definitely is changing.
By the way, I know you're close to some of the guys who were here and have gone.
Have you talked to Curly? No? No, no, not since he declared for Kentucky.
Oh yeah, I'm not since Kurt, Yeah, I have not talked to him, and follow I did. I talked to him. He didn't say anything. He just gave me his reasons, but never was the money the reason why he was.
He just needed to start new fresh and told what he said, he said, you need to start wipe the slight clean.
He has one more season to really showcase and his body's maen surreed and he was ready to do something else. Sure, sure, and then you see the other side of it one point two mill and well that's our help, you know, by the way, or you get to do a supermodel Okay, I'm gone for sure, I'll be right there. What about Propella, I have not talked to them or a key shot since they went to Miami, So I'm sure because they signed stuff for you, right, did that go out?
Did they go did that price right away? We sold?
We sold a lot of the left the pictures, the pictures because you had a lot of that stuff.
Hey, they got drafted a junior. Can you mark that price up? Yeah? And it was nice.
They both went to the heat So oh yeah, yeah, right right right, So you might be going to Miami. You go to Miami, let me know for sure. Yeah, let's go see. Yes, I go to the usually go every year to the Pretty People Conventioned you believe that? Okay, So we have brad Alice here in about seven minutes. Bradley is a former sports journalist. He said, I think you're working for the county or the city or something, but we don't get into that. He's coaching his kids.
I think he's running into the same problems coach runs into when you're coaching kids in schools. And we'll get playing time and time and guess who causes the fuss? Mom, I don't even have to tell you.
Oh yeah, I work with a lot of coaches, and I talked to him, and it's the issue all over you know, yes, you know, even even the sell point you know, ex coaches.
That's probably the number one reason though misery it is it is, you know, and that and that's not universal to the stell Point or anybody.
It's universal, absolutely because the country.
Little junior gotta play and the more money you make, uh hey, can you get him in?
But there's three other players that are better at that musition, you know, And how about and five coaches agreed that they're either better, just me saying.
That, sure, And what about the kid who and he kind of mentions the kid who's a slacker, doesn't work hard in practice, just there because it doesn't show up all the time, and they still want to play.
What do you do?
Yeah, yeah, exactly, you know, yep, the mommy and daddy, what's the problem? Well, this, this and this, oh that doesn't matter.
Play No.
Even when I coached, I I would always even above talent, is the kid that tried the hard.
Sure?
Sure, well, I like twelve year old.
Yeah see, and that's and that's there's still a level of wanting to win and be all that. But when you're younger, but yeah, you you kind of just go with exactly what you say. Everyone plays everyone. It's not a big deal. You're not on ESPN, right, you know you're not going to be in the paper. Right, Just enjoy your life because it turns quickly it does.
This adulthood that everybody wants to wants to get to sucks.
Yeah, but sometimes you know, mommy is like, he's going.
To be a pro.
Yeah, he's gonna get us out of the hood. Yeah, yeah, I'm sure my parents. Come on, my dad. My dad was not like that. That's that's a good thing. And either was I. You know, they're as good as they're going to be. The coaches handle them and then no, no, hey, that's their job, their life.
Absolutely. Ye.
Yeah, and at three seventeen or four seventeen, I'm sorry. Bruce Pasco from the Daily Star, one of my former colleagues. I saw him yesterday at the press conference. We're going to talk about the new schedule. Uh, and he's just his thoughts on Tommy Lloyd yesterday and uh next week, So red and Blue? Are you going to be part of that Red Blue? No, I'm not. No, look at you, you're little step away. But that's the game and Glen here a week later it's in Glendale. Okay, so that's
the one I was thinking about. Yeah, to go up to it should be well, Bruce's will let us know what the tickets are like up there, because I guess there they were struggling.
I guess I had to put the ticket price down.
So we'll see what they're doing and then get a taste of the roster because he has an entourage, nonmourage, you know, all his assistants. And then he has nine walk ons. Wow, it's like having employees for you that don't get paid. You have a bunch of them.
But they you know, they practice hard, you know it, so they kind of we need them for the team.
Yeah, they do make the team better. The green team is that's what they're calling.
So let's go. Is it fifteen after? Okay? Thank you Ryan.
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Hey, welcome back to I'm the Ball here on Fox Sports fourteen fifteen. I'm Steve Rivera, your George Matis and now on the phone, we have Brad Alice reporter, sports reporter, among other things.
Who are you working for, Brad now?
Sports wise, I'm just doing the podcast myself, the Wildcat Sportsport Podcast. But other otherwise, I'm working in local government.
Okay, local government. You're You're the one I cursed that night. Okay, I get it. Hey, We're gonna we're gonna go a few different ways here with you, because I thought, let's go, let's go sports first, and then we'll talk about personal stuff because you're going through what millions of other coaches are going through in the world of sports. So what do you think about this football team? Your biggest concerns and maybe you're not concerned, but you're okay with you know, I.
Think by two biggest concerns.
One is just overall performance and how it relates to the transition. You know, I think we all expected, with so many players coming back, a smooth transition, but you know, we we've looked through enough of these that, you know, with the transfer portal with some key guys leaving, and it wasn't a ton of them, but there's always a transition. You guys in assuming new roles, you know, guys who haven't been coordinators in quite a while, some coordinator positions,
some key pieces missing, some key injuries. And I think the transition from the team that we saw you know, beat up Assue come from behind against Oklahoma, it's not that team yet. And I think a lot of people are already jumping ship. I think it's way too early, you know. To me, one of the biggest concerns in the offensive line, and that was the case coming in and then when you lost the kid like Toledo, it magnified.
Obviously had two or three kids who were really good. Well, you have throughout questions, and I think that has hampered the offense. You know, I don't think Dino Babers has found his rhythm yet. So those are my concerns. I think the thing that I'm not as concerned about that many people are as is the defense. Yeah, they weren't very good against New Mexico, and they clearly don't have
the personnel they want for mobile quarterbacks. But you know, they shut down and in a U team to put sixty six on and grant it was like a D two team, and really you give up twenty four points as a defense, and it could have been thirty. You know, Campa State missed the fiogal, Kansas State misplayed the clock at the end of the game. But even thirty points on the road in the Big twelve is probably enough
to put you in a position to win. You just can't score seven points and no points after the first drive.
So I think, you know, Keen is.
Catching a lot of heat. I'm not anywhere near there yet. Bavers is catching a lot of heat, and I completely understand why.
So you've been here a long time, been around a long time. I've been around a long time. Arizona fans are are what they are. You know, you know who they are because you've seen the good and the bad. Do they have the cachet or the whatever it is, whatever word you want to use to be that critical of a team when they're sometimes good fans and sometimes bad fans, you know, or you know what I'm saying, shouldn't they be more patient because they haven't really had a lot of success through the years.
I think that's why they're impatient, because they got a glimpse. And you know, for those of you our age and maybe a titch younger, you unfortunately remember those two great Tony teams that you couldn't build upon. You know, you win the you win the you have the ball, You come around and you lay an egg and you go to the Freedom Bowl and lose to a team that didn't.
Score a touchdown or got one touchdown.
You know, then a couple of years later, you know, we all remember Penn State after.
Winning the Holiday Bowl.
And I think that's the fear. I think people are in a little bit of panic mode who've lived through it. Not again. They win ten games, jet Fish leaves but to get the guys back, but you know, things aren't quite what they were last year, and now you know that was the case those two years. They got the bulk of Desert Swarm back, They got the bulk of that team back, but missed a few key components and they weren't quite the same.
And I think that's the fear.
But that being said, you know, we've long said, I think you and I have had this succession. There's really thirty to forty thousand really good Arizona football.
Fans in this town, and the rest pay attention when they're good.
So those thirty and forty thousand, I think, remember these times, and you know, maybe not remember not being able to build upon rich Rod's yes the Bowl, even though that team went to what four or five straight bowls. So yeah,
I think that's what is. I think the rest of them they just haven't lived through it, and then they expect things to turn around magically, and we all know, I think, maybe you know, half joking, half not, Arizona football always seem to have a little dark cloud, a little curse around it.
Brad, This is George So you talked about transition with the players. Do you feel the transition with a coach with Fish and Brandham, does.
That have more an impact.
I mean, we're gonna see we have a huge game this weekend and I've seen the line. I think it's worth yeah, anywhere from nine and a half to eleven and a half, and we're going to see what type of football team we really are.
Yeah, I mean, I think that's my top It is a transition of coaches have players.
It's that whole.
It's not easy to flip a program, especially it was so late in the process too or they basically lost half a recruiting class, if not more that a lot of those guys were going to play this year. They had to re recruit a bunch of their own players. You have to put in your entire you know, not even just the opfensive defensive system, but you know how our practices run, How is the weight room done, how is the training table done, How is academics covered. You
add to that a new you know, administration athletically. You know, there's a lot of things behind the scenes we don't see that all have to be adapted to and some transitions are easy some or not. And I think this one has been maybe a little tougher than than than we had previously seen. You know, Brennan's coming into a program from.
A really not only San Jose State's much closer to a.
One double A program than they are to say, San Diego State. You know, he had to actually raise funds to feed his kids.
He has players.
Santogate States, a commuter school that happens to compete in the Mountain West. But they're again, they're far more like a Portland State or a Sacramento State than they are San Diego State or a you know, Fresno State that are firmly established football programs. So I think that's been a tough transition for everybody. But if you would ask me before the season if they would be two and two after these first four games, I thought there was a good chance.
Kansas State's a tough road trip.
With a very good team.
Utah is I think, and I don't think anyone's gonna argue. I thought they coming into the season with the best team in the Big twelve, salt like it's a tough place to play. Now, what I want to see is that wants you a measuring stick gime because they didn't look good in Manhattan camps. He did not look as good as I thought they were. I want to see them if they go. If they lose, but they're within striking distance of a win midway through the fourth quarter.
I'll be happy. I'll be fine.
I'll think this team can still do some good things in Big Twelve. If they lay an egg like they did in Manhattan, then there's some serious trouble trying to reevaluate the season. Then you're probably hoping, you know, to get to a bowl game, Whereas I think even if you lose to Utah, that's the best team.
You're going to see.
You give Utah a scare even better, let's pull off the win. But then you can say, Okay, they can finish top four or five in the Big twelve, which is still going to be a very good football team. Maybe you can finish second, ye you know, maybe you can go you know, can and two's probably asking too much of a team that's two and two, But can you go nine and three? Can you get into that Big twelve championship game?
Can you at least have.
Your name mentioned for the twelve team playoff? And I think that's what you want to see. But if you get your doors blown off, yeah, you're probably looking at a five hundred team if you're lucky.
Do we know of Cam Riss playing?
No, I don't think anyone.
I haven't heard, you know. I think it's interesting you got two very different quarterbacks. Ones basically I think with the high school with Steve and I and the other one is now nineteen years old Rising. You know, one is put together with bailing wire and duct tape and the other one is the brother of an NFL player. So I think both kids are good too. I think Wilson's, you know, pretty good, but obviously Rising's, you know, his record speaks for himself.
Right.
So last question on last question on football. So you may have been guilty of this. So back in the day, I probably was. Everybody in this community is you know? And I asked Liv this a couple of days ago. Do the locals or did the locals hype this team more than it should? We're we're in a small market. Let's let's face this fact, and we we write what
we're fan, we believe what we believe. Do you think that maybe a time or two some of US, and I'll conclude me because you know what, the hell, uh may have may have sold a bag of goods that may not have been there.
Well, I'm gonna not speak from someone I picked.
They wins.
I thought they could win ten or eleven.
But I thought again, I thought they were missing some pieces. I thought the schedule was much more difficult. They caught some breaks last year, and granted they could have won two more games.
They could have beat.
Sc they could, but they also could have lost the Stampord. They could have lost to Colorado. You know, so I thought, you know, the eight and a half number, I thought that Vegas is putting out there was probably a very good number. Yeah. I think a lot of people automatically assume when you get the two high profile guys, you know three if you want to count Sabine, you get the return of Akina. You got a guy who probably money should have been hired Originally, I think, yeah, I
think people over hype them a little bit. But if you look at the national guys, you know, they picked them forth, fifth, sixth, and the Big twelve.
They picked eight or nine games.
They had them learning right on the money.
Yeah, you know, flirting with the championship playoff, but not stamping them in. So I think, yes, locally, some people over hype them, and I get it, you have a quarterback and you have a generational receiver. But I think realistically a lot of people also had it right.
Yeah, Okay, let's switch to basketball real quick. What's going to happen? Tommy Lloyd came and did his press coverage yesterday, kind of was vague and a lot of different things. We know all the principal players. They have the nine guys, pretty good players.
So what do you see?
You know, my question is how do they mesh? How do you know who is Traight Townsend ready for twenty five games against big time competition? You know, the WAKA ready to be everything that physically he looks like he can be. The previous step up Jayden Bradley become a guy for thirty minutes a night that he was for twenty two minutes to night. You know, where's kJ Lewis,
Where's Carter Brant? How do they fit together? There's a ton of talent on this team, but they're gonna go through a meat grinder of the of the of the Big Twelve.
It's the best conference in America.
I think they're gonna have what seven or eight ranked teams in those polls. I actually think it's good for Arizona. They may lose one or two more. But you can't sleep walk, you know, you can't. First of all, you're going into great environments. Even the bad teams have very good basketball environments. You're not going to Corvallis, Oregon, where you're getting shushed by the biology.
Majors who are studying the court side.
Yeah, you're going into Ames, Iowa. You're going you know, Steeve, you and I have been there. Tell me there's a better environment in college basketball than than Lawrence, Kansas. It might be, it might be Cameron, but that's you know, that's the short list. You've got to be on your A game, and and I think Tommy's been pretty good at that.
In the regular season.
It all comes down to posts and people are waiting for the deeper run. And unfortunately, I don't know if they're good enough to get beyond the sweet sixteen.
A lot of it's going to be match up.
But unfortunately people won't fully buy in, I think until they get to the elite, until they get to a.
Final four, and you and I have.
Done this for so long, we know it's a crapshoot.
One bad shooting night, one bad match up, one bad meal, and you got two kids who aren't feeling good and your season's ruined. So again, the opposite that can happen for the other team, and you get a little bit of magic and you get a guy you know, going coals in the field and suddenly you have ninety seven or or eighty eight or whatever. So I think this seems could be very very good. But they got a lot of questions to answer, but the talent's there.
It's just how do they fit together?
And when was the last time we said they were not there, weren't going to be very good? Good? Right, it's been a right, it's been a while, Okay, Just.
So yeah, I think there was one of a couple of the Shan teams that weren't.
Sure at the end, right, right, right, Georgie, you have one question about anything with the best book.
Because I wanted to go to his real life.
Oh go ahead, Okay, so your real lifestyle, you're you're dealing with with real world issues right now. You're a coach of kids and you have an issue of playing time. Well, I shocked me, I fell out field, knuck me be down with a feather.
Well, here's so so, I got a prefaces.
I don't want to get in too many details.
My son plays on two teams. He plays Little League baseball, which I am the coach. He plays middle school football, which I am just an observer. And the playing time issue was over the middle school football. Some parents complained because you know it's a mixed team, seventh and eighth graders, a lot of eighth graders. We're getting the playing time. I am. I have the benefit of a flexible job. I get to watch pick him up from his practice.
I like to watch the last half hour. I used to be high school.
Football coach, and I can see who's doing what, who's buying in. Let's just say some parents complain. Some kids played who I won't even say don't deserve to play, probably physically.
You know, you know ste if you went through soccer.
Yeah, soccer is a mentally physically demanding sport.
But you can hide a kid who.
Maybe doesn't know what he's doing or hasn't done all the conditioning, and you can go play him a you know, midfield and he's not gonna get hurt, and he's not gonna get anyone else hurt. And maybe some kids played who just should have been on the field because they haven't done the conditioning and haven't learned the plays, and it just wasn't an overall good situation. I vented on Facebook that said not to vent to the school because
it wouldn't do any good. And it seems like the situation is kind of rectified itself.
But you know, I thought I.
Deal assist in little league. I'm president of Flowing Well's Little League. I coached one of the teams, but that is reck ball. Everyone plays.
I make sure I mix my lineups. I'm not I'd much rather have kids.
Develop school Ball, to me, should be a little bit different.
You're I got roped into it.
Yeah, I supposed to be third assistant. I'm head coach of my sons.
Well, so what is the issue your kids not getting the playing time or they're complaining that.
Ironically enough, there's no issue with my kid.
My kid lost a few snaps because they let some other kids play. My bigger concern was there were some kids who did lose their snaps who were there every day running, you know, keeping their grades up doing everything they're supposed to do. And I and I again, when I coached I school football, I found ways to get some kids who weren't good but did all the work in the games.
And you know, I'm not saying the staff didn't.
I don't, I don't.
I don't want to demeanor some kids who.
Haven't done everything they're supposed to do well were mandated.
To play even though maybe they.
Don't do all the running or any running.
Who missed practice who.
So that was what kind of came out.
But yet my son was not even impacted.
I you know, my son.
Went from the snaps to eighty five percent of them. He wasn't impacted. I felt bad for other kids, and I felt that there was a safety issue.
Right, No, I get it.
I mean it's every coach's nightmare, especially when you have higher ups telling you, well, you know, I got a call from this my mom and then maybe you need to play them, and yeah, yeah, you know, come on me alone.
Well, to me, that's what Little League's for. Heck, the weird one is club because you're paying.
A kid to play, but then it's super cutthroat.
Again, if this was stated in the beginning, everyone plays I'll pay great, but they pivoted mid season and again I don't.
Again, I understand, you have to try.
You know, these administrators, it's a smaller school. They're dealing with Internet threats, they're dealing with you know, kids who can now do substances in a in a thing that looks like a jump drive that you know, guys when we were a kid had to go out to the behind the bleachers and do an elaborate rolling there about. I mean, they've got more things to worry about than a couple of kid parents complaining. Again, and at the end of the day, I was I was just kind of vented on Facebook.
But yeah, you know that was that was a long vent. We gotta go. But I read a lot of it. Are you ready?
I get it?
You could read it all long?
No, it was it was.
Yeah, it was a little much for me. Yeah, thanks, Brad, appreciate your time. Have a good all right, take it. That's funny. We got to go our way over. So let's take a break there. If you're an Arizona men's
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Dreamy Live Monny iHeartRadio app. This is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera and Jay.
Gonzalez on Fox Sports fourteenth fifteen.
Hey, welcome back, I in the Ball here on Punch Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera. He's George Montis, the new j for today, and our guy Ryan here working the board.
And so you you said you were a coacher earlier, your coach the Little league majors.
I'm sure if I asked you how many times you had to deal with a bunch of crap is more than two days, than ten than ten times?
The moms and a lot of times it was the moms, not the dads. No, the moms. There was one mom that got arrested during the game. It was really crad during an All Star game. Yeah, and it was what was sad. It was one of our moms and she went over and kind of I think she smacked the other moms and they called the police and they did.
They coughed her up and threw her in the car in front of all the kids.
It was holy. I mean, and this is fifteen years ago. It was getting that bad. I can only imagine now.
Right, No, no, but that's kind of when it started, you know, the TV and the TV with the phones and the social media and let me too, it happened well before that too.
But so they were fighting with each other.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, they're you know, they would let him hit and you know, and the kids not letting him hit.
It just but now it's stems, you know, I hear it. I talked to a lot of coaches.
We know a lot of coaches, a lot of you know, like some of the major programs here, football programs here in town, and I've talked to them and they're like, you know, the parents are giving us pressure. And he's like, it's not just me as a head coach or an assistant coach.
We have nineteen coaches and.
We all agree that this player is better, so he's going to get the playtime instead of your son.
I'm sorry, you know, right, you know, and that's part of the job. I get it.
And what do you tell the parent Either he needs to get better or he's just not capable of playing.
We're trying to win state championship here at these levels, you know, right?
Right?
So what else? What else did you kind of run into? I'm sure you know that was the you can't coach? What the hell you doing here?
Yeah? I'm sure you heard that?
Oh yeah, yeah, no, you know it's I was a good coach. I took pride and I.
Don't know, but I'm from the from the people telling you, because whether you felt that or not, be I'm sure they're saying you don't know talent, you know?
Oh yes, John, I hear you absolutely every everything they can think of, you know, you have something against them or no, you know, I want to win at that level. Though it was more just I think what Brad was saying is we're going to play the kids that are trying hard, that show up, stay after their working, not the guys that come in late, miss half the practices and still want equal play time. Now, if you're missing the practice, you're gonna sit out a little.
Sure, yeah, no matter how good you are to the good people. Absolutely yeah, because you know, and nothing in this world is fair. But that's as fair as you can get. Yeah, exactly know what I'm saying. So we'll see. I think it's everyone's the way to heaven having to coach kids. Really, everyone should, you know, even volunteer to do.
Just packing my back. You think you can do better, Let's do it, Steve, you and I and we'll talk about it.
I do, I do need to get to heaven, so maybe we do it right. Okay, anybody want to call please do five two oh four one, six, seventy four forty. I'm sure there are some coaches out there listening and say, oh god, come on, that's every day and we'd hear it. We're dealing with it every day. You guys are not talking about. But Brad wrote like a monster story. I'm
thinking this is the playtac with Brad. And I'll say this because he did like a huge Facebook poach, I mean a lot of words and then he said, wow, do you want to send it to the to the school. You put it in public view.
What's the point. I'm sure they saw it.
Yeah, you know, yeah, so we'll see.
He was an Arizona star guy.
Okay, again, if you want to call five two oh four one, six, seventy four forty, were you ready for your call? If you want to call in a big game? You talked about a big game, so Brad said, and Alwa's.
Talked about this. They have to.
I think they have to in order not to lose a lot of fans and and everybody you know, bitching, and they have to play close at least they within the within a touchdown, just because you know, even the spread is ten or whatever, rest than I even forget that. But if they can stay within seven, maybe have a chance. You're gonna say, Okay, I get it. Maybe it was just a bad game against Kansas State. Like you said, they could be the best in the division. They were
playing there. That's a tough place to play.
Yeah.
Yeah, my whole thing with that, And I've said this the number of times and the listeners will probably say enough, Steve, they just didn't play with any kind of conviction after that first drive. And you know you have employees, right, you tell me how many eight eight okay, And you know, you go to work and you see them and sometimes they're enthusiastic and they're happy to be there, but there are times when you know they don't want to be there, and you can, you know, I.
Literally like smile at them, like just try this for once, just smile, you know, and then they kind of.
You send them home if they know. But but you know, with.
Today's you can get a negative review for an employee being rude or because they do because it didn't greet them properly.
Oh oh yeah, yeah, yeah, no, no, I did that today. In fact, I was at a fast food price and I went in and they asked you for the order. They're not very happy to see you or whatever. And they're younger, you're younger, and then you get in line and you pay, and then they give you this no thank you, no appreciation, and I'm saying thank you. Wait a second, why did I say thank you? I paid them for the food?
Yep.
And it's uh, I mean, it's it's changed. It definitely has changed. But you know, we have a great staff, great team. I think we got a call. You're on the air, eye on the ball.
Hey, Hey, what's up?
This is it?
I thought you lost our number, man, Jay Leaves, and you start to come no, man.
Don't cry.
I I just had a call and chime in on the thing. And and I'll be honest, I mean you kind of know a little bit about me. I've coached in California for years and been with some of the best baseball and basketball players that you know that from
high school, college and pro. But this this all started, and I don't know if George you can agree, is with the advent of travel ball and you got to pay big money and you're paying big money and you want to see your kid play no matter what, and uh yes, And I'll tell.
You you know.
We we were in East LA and we had to go to either Orange County or the Implant Empire to get the base best softball competition there was. And we had to work. I mean we had to travel two hours ago to our hitting coach. And then like Brad and I think you just kind of said a little bit about George. You you got kids that don't work, The parents don't work, they bring them late, they don't show up to practice, and then your kid is just hit for two hours on his own and then they want playing.
Time, absolutely, And do they not see what's what's happening?
They do? They know?
Right, Well, if they're sensible, they know what's going on. And they too, Well, it doesn't matter. I mean, it doesn't matter because the rules don't apply.
And that's dedication.
And I'm going to give you a couple of names. I was real close with South Hill's foughtball program. We had a kid named Natalie Lugo that was pitching and she went on to be a high school All American, pitched at Florida for four years. And there was a girl behind her. And don't get me wrong, this girl behind her was good, but she wasn't on Natalie Lugo's level. And her parents theoriously went to the to the district, to the principal, every which way you could go to.
And even my daughter went to a few games, said does she know? Do they know who's in front of her? Like she wasn't going to beat her out, like go to another school or go somewhere out because but that's that's how bad it gets.
Yeah, don't you think that, Well, don't you think that's one of the reasons why they people transfer? Well, money now and transfer because they have no spot fit to fit in.
Well, it used to be like that, see, but now it's kind of like uh, and you said, I think yesterday the Ruben Douglastan where okay, he left and he did great, but he wasn't gonna beat out Gilbert.
No, no, he saw.
The writing on the wall. Sure, and but you've got to be either kind of wait your turn a Jason Terry where he waited his turn and look at things turned out great for him. Well, and you gotta work harder? Or when when does it come to a parent that says, hey, you know what, you better go condition more, you better go hit more, you better go uh hitch more, or whatever that that that those words don't come out of.
And I'm still involved even that I moved to Tucson in the softball world, and I've seen it still where people are not gonna They're not gonna say work harder, They're gonna move on or complain or do what they
they do. Well, you have that an article and I read that thing and it took me two days that but that, seriously, that article hit it on the head where he said, hey, these are kids that don't go to practice and don't run sprints after and parents still want them to get that playing time over kids that are out there working their tail off in class and on the field.
Let me tell you, you said a phrase here, wait their turn. Nobody waits their turn anymore.
They don't. They don't see that.
That's the honest God's true that they all are gonna transfer, move on or whatever. And that's in college, high school, and now even at the youth level.
Well, here's here's the thing.
And I said this because you know you listen to me regularly or us regularly. Back in the day for Luke, when the guys would come here, like the Shawn Ellens and the Eddrick Bohannan's, and they said, the one mistake I made was I didn't have enough patience.
And they left.
And guess what, had they stayed like JT, like Jason Terry, they eventually would have become that guy. They instead they went somewhere else to be the guy. But they didn't learn the same things. So it's easy to be the guy, But what are you learning? What are you learning if you're playing under a coach that really doesn't really can't coach you so it makes sense.
Yeah, I agree one hundred percent. And I'm going to tell you one real little quick story. I know, you guys got to go. My daughter broke her finger and sixteen year old and we were on a nationally rankedinging and they brought in this girl, and man, this girls could just hit bombs. So we stood on the practice field when she was getting better and I said, hey, when you get better, you better go to first or
the outfield, because you ain't going to third. And she goes, no, crap, man, I ain't gonna beat her out.
You know you can see what's in front of you right well, you know what, that's reality.
I mean you saw it.
Either your daughter would have to get better right tomorrow, in a day or whatever.
But you but you that's realistic. That's realistic. Yeah, no one's realistic.
But Brad's article hit home. I even called a couple of coaches here and we all read it. And then it just kind of makes you mad nowadays, and I hate to use this term or whatever, but is it it's that woke mentality that everybody gets everything on a silver platter.
Nowadays, right right? And see the last thing.
Is it's worse now, and it's because you pay now.
Yeah, I hear you. Yeah, But even then, you have to be realistic. And if your little Johnny isn't good enough, guess what he has to be.
He has to get better. He just do yes, right, that's right. Okay, thank you guys.
I appreciate it.
Hey you guys falls down great today.
Great, thank you, Thank you for I have my boy Georgia. Are you ready to go?
Are you ready to go? We've got time. Okay, you're the boss. Yeah, let's go.
We're going. We'll come back with breaking news on the other side.