Tuesday, December 17, Hour 2

Streamy live on the Ihearts Radio, while this is I on the Ball with Steve Rivera on Fox sportsporteen fifty.

Hey, welcome back, Joining the ball hero on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera, and today with me is d from the past. Welcome back, d Hell and now one with breaking news.

This is I on the.

Ball, Breaking News on Fox Sports fourteen fifty.

Happy to Tuesday to everyone out there listening. You're guy, mister giddy two. She's on a Tuesday. I don't know how it came about, but you know, it stuck with me.

I don't know if that's uh, how can I say this? You took that as a like a derogatory term. You're just a good kid. I'm just a good kid.

You were the ditty t Shoes. I was known as the Saint.

Yeah right, all these good kids. I'd rather have good kids and pay the next That's very true.

Starting off breaking news with something that just came across my screen. The Cubs have traded Cody Bellingery and some cash to the Yankees.

Oh wow, wow how much cash? Uh? I didn't say it right here? Wow? So they replaced it. We play soda with Bellinger yep, wow.

And another team to pay his salary.

They're staying busy, Yeah, trying to get back to the World Series. See what happens to some Arizona athletics. Of course everyone knows the hopefully everyone knows. Arizona Volleyball playing in the n i VC Championship against Bowling Green six o'clock right after the show.

Were you with with us? I think Jay was around when we did the interview with her the first time. Were you the guy? Probably not. I don't believe she was very you know, you were here before when she first took the job, very stoic and very kind of like, you know, business like yesterday. She was not that. She was very outgoing and very tripping.

I think that comes with the job. She's gotten comfortable. She understand stands her role now, not just as a coach, but with the media and at this level and where what everything she has to do, So that doesn't necessarily surprise me that maybe she's loosened up a little bit. She's more comfortable to talk to people because pressure is off, like she's she's getting in these championship tournaments.

Yeah, and she's doing well. Yeah, that's it. You know how old are you? You kind of get a little wisdom.

Do you really want to know my age?

No?

I do. I have teachers Wales than you.

Probably.

Yeah, I mean when we called in the summeries, it was before the season, she was she sounded focused and clearly it's showing that it's paying off right now.

Sure. Sure to women's basketball, they had a.

Game last night against we were State eighty seven to sixty six win for idea in the Cats.

Yeah, let's see what happens how that translates into the Big twelve. Got their debut Saturday at BYU. Yeah, there's one thing not hopeful for that. I know, I know, there's just too many.

She's another one that's had a pattern of players that she recruits and then how the season goes. I think I've seen that over the last couple of years. So I think the basketball teams could mirror each other, just like they're trying to mirror the football team.

So it's going to be interesting.

This is going to be a very wild ride of a year for athletics.

Yes, already has been.

Yeah, Uncle Epsteve, with the years not over.

As an alum, are they calling you already stitch. Ever, can you give us some money for nil? I haven't gotten they haven't found you yet.

We need to keep it that way. I have no money to give. California's making me go broke.

Yes, I've heard about that.

How at the some of these graduations right now, the last thing they say and remember you are alumni.

Now we could use your help.

Oh, it doesn't even surprise me.

Can't be now more so than ever.

Yeah, Tomorrow night men's basketball takes on Samford seven o'clock.

We'll see if they can. It's a true get get right game. Yeah, tomorrow. I think the biggest news for funnest news will be the TJ. McConnell honored return ten years. Who would have thought this, But he's doing it, and he's doing it really well. Yeah. I mean the Pacers are contenders.

You know.

I made it to I think the Eastern Conference finals last year, so I think he was he was a key these games. I think the time we said that Tom Mathern is gonna come to so.

I wouldn't be surprised. Just two Arizona guys heading back home. You want to call it home right now?

Yeah?

Uh.

Connor McGregor is delaying his MMA day return to fight Logan Paul in a boxing match.

That would be fun. That'ld be fun because that might be a legit fight where Gregor won't not back down.

I feel like it might be a very animated fight. Yeah, like the bulls of them are just they're very animated people normally, So I feel like you multiply that by ten and it's gonna be I.

Hope there's a fight, like a fight fight, not just like a pretenidon.

I think it's going to be a circus, is what I think.

It's. Well, yeah, there's that, there's that. That's that's what it is. But maybe a circus where there's actually a fight.

Somebody actually punch.

Yes, yes, I mean I mean his brother Jake Paul is already saying, and Connors washed, Jake's gonna beat him.

Soundby When is this proposed or might gonna be around in twenty thirty When.

It doesn't, This doesn't give me a date here, but it is going to be a boxing exhibition in India.

In India, not like the Thriller in Manila in Dyeah.

Okay, So Denver Denver Group is in exclusive talks for the next NW sl franchise expansion, so Women's Sucker.

Yeah, yeah, nothing has been finalized yet.

The source that ESPN went to is unanimous right now because they did nothing's finalized, but they are looking into expanding into Denver and some more women's sports news w NBA MVP.

Jay, I think I'm saying that right, Jay Wilson and Nike.

He reached a six year extension, one of the largest deals between a women's professional player and shoe company.

Yeah.

I saw that today. A lot of money for that. That's great.

Well, she probably not getting paid very much otherwise, so she's got to go sign a deal with Nike.

I think it's good. I think it's one of those things that can move the sport forward.

Call it good representation, good business.

Good business to the NBA.

The NBA Cup Finale, six thirty ABC, the Milwaukee Bucks taking on the Oklahoma City Thunder.

I think it would be a good game. Yeah, it should be twenty and five or the Thunder of fourteen and eleven. The Bucks. Who's the oldest team in the league, you know, the oldest team. Yeah, it would seem like the LA Lakers, right, you would say Bucks. It's the Bucks? Really, I saw a preview over this game today. The Bucks are the oldest team against the youngest.

Yeah, it was the Spurs and then they went and got Chris Paul. I mean, but the Bucks started off horribly. They're back to over five hundred, right, so I think they'll be playing with some a lot of motivation tonight.

We'll see what happens.

What I got next, Okay, NBA announces the revamped All Star Tournament for San Francisco this year. So what you're gonna get is three teams of eight All Stars and then the Rising Star Championship team will play the other will be the fourth team. They'll play each other and winners play winners.

I think. I'm not sure if the losers play loser. So the Rising Stars will play two games. Yes, no load management in that. We'll see. We'll see, but I think it will be I think it's good. It's a.

Different look to the All Star Game, All Star Weekend. Well, there's no defense, there's no nothing in those games. So we'll see what happens.

But in situations like that, you have.

To revamp them to get the fan reinfod to want to watch.

Well, they said, I don't know if this is true because I don't watch it anyway that half the audience has gone for the NBA games. I don't watch it till I watch a little of it, but not a lot until the playoffs. I mean most of the people I know do the same thing.

I'm not.

I'm not entirely sure how many people view I watched it for fun? I watched my Spurs. How often any any game's like National.

Not on like the NBA TV. And so far you've watched how many? I want to say around eight?

Oh?

Okay, yeah, I'd say it more than I and plus the one in person up in Phoenix. You don't watch it. I know you don't.

I have no NBT NBA team to watch. My Seattle SuperSonics are no longer hopefully soon. Hope they're in talks, hopefully soon, I hope.

So they're in Vegas.

Yeah, okay. So to the NFL, some movement coming around with the quarterbacks. Titans quarterback Will Levis will be benched more likely, more than likely going to start Mason Rudolph for Week sixteen.

I think Kena trying to save the health of their quarterback. Start a quarterback, yeah, we'll see, save.

His health or save his education.

Maybe both the Browns are going to start Dorian Thompson Robinson over Jameis Winston. James Winston has kept them in games to a certain extent, but throwing the ball away, throwing it to the other, throwing touchdowns to.

The other team.

He pulled it. Geno Smith Smith the special special.

And the other kid's the UCLA quarterback former played here a couple of times. Yeah, uh, he's got something in him. I think I think he was doing well for them. He was like Daniels before Daniels.

Yeah, he was.

He was doing well a couple of years ago, and I think he got injured and never saw the field until this upcoming week. Week sixteens Falcons versus Commander's game has been flexed to Sunday night Football. I'm not sure.

Okay, the Dolphins and the Browns were supposed to be that Sunday night game. I think the Falcons and Commanders is a good choice to go with.

Lions.

Aden Hutchinson says he's on track for a goal.

If the Lions make the Super Bowl, that would be his return or looking towards the super Bowl as a return.

That's tight. That's a tight time frame.

Yeah, I mean that was the was an ugly injury too. And Mahomes. You have Mahomes here.

Uh.

Jeeves said that they're confident in Carson Wentz. If he has to go in, it's a it's a high ankle sprain from Mahomes.

So we'll see, he'll be in a boot all week and they'll tape it up. Bro good, he'll be fine. It's Mahomes. They're gonna they're gonna send him doctor.

D How you doing.

You seem to forget that I worked at Athletic Training and Sportsman for like three years.

Well, we'll see. They're they're somewhat comfortable right now. They obviously have the division in the a f C West. I'm sure they want to keep their one game up on Buffalo. They want to keep the one seed this week. I don't know, but they looked good last week. Sure did Tigers. They played They played the Patriots next week. Oh yeah, that's an easy way. Uh So Monday Night football last night, a couple of games. We had the

They haven't won since like September. September.

I saw something on on X Today that there was there was two guys going at it in fantasy, and that interception was the difference. It was like a point zero difference, the fact that that last second he Maryhill Mary was intercepted. Colorado State and Utah State are going to be suing the Mountain West over exit penalties.

Along with the.

Mountain West is trying to penalize the five schools for leaving to the back twelve Boise State, Friends State, San Diego State.

What's the price on that? What's what are they trying to get from them? It doesn't say it doesn't say it just says they're gonna they're going to be except which.

Means it's a high enough price that they don't want to pay it, but a low enough price that they don't feel the need.

To mention it.

Yeah, something something that we've kind of touched on with the transporport on every thing. So SMU, who's in the college football playoffs gonna be playing this week. They're head coach wants the end to the December portal window says it's really hard to keep a team together when half of them are one foot out the door, half foot sure, trying to stay sure.

And now the coaches are they're not going to play the players that are on the transfer portal list. Right, Yeah, we're just gonna say sorry, you can't play here.

Actually I saw something that said uh for Ashu, Dillingham says he welcomes anyone that wants to really be part of it, even if they want to have intentions to not be on the team. Do they have a long list of I don't think so. No, I'm sure it's third stringers trying to find the first string place. Last thing I got Arizona got a commitment yesterday from three star quarterbacks Sawyer Anderson. Yeah, I saw that a former produce Igne.

Yeah, they're going to need that.

Could be could be Noah's replacement. That's what That's what he talked about. He said, have a year to learn under it's gonna be a great thing for him.

How tall is he He's got to be taller than Fafita.

I think he is.

I think he could be about six FOOTI ish six five eleven. No, you're joking.

That means he's like five to nine.

Oh no, about.

He's going to be killed out there, prob eleven six foot maybe a little height.

You better be fast.

Well, I think that's part of it. We'll see. The thing they mentioned here is his canon of an arm that's about it. Canon.

He'd like that from long How accurate is that canon?

Yeah?

Yeah, we talked about that all the time. He's got a canon. Well, what the hell is? Targets are way over or under thrown. He's got a canon to the other team. Right, we'll see, we'll see when we get there. Okay, let's take a break. We're going to come back with mister Pat Nugent from Mike Mountain.

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Breaking down all the uses and ohs, This is I on the ball with Steve Rivera on box sportsporteen fifty.

Hey, welcome next to you one on the ball here on Fox Sports fortunen fifty. I'm Si Rivera and with the to day is guest host d along with my guy Juan behind the mic on the other side. Now we have the phone. We have Pat Nugent from Mike Mountain State champions Pat.

How are you hi, Steve? Thanks thanks for calling me. I appreciate being on again. And two weeks ago we didn't think we'd win, but here we are champion, So it's great to be back on this show.

Tell me that's not true. You thought you were gonna win, but you just didn't know how.

Yeah, that's true.

We thought we knew we were paying a really tough opponent, and we played a great football game and the kids played there, you know, the best game of the year probably, and it turned out to be a championship.

We don't want to come of wax poetic, but everything you thought it would be. How was the night and did you feel comfortable at any moment or till the end?

You know, we came out really jumped on them early, but they were on the goal line beginning the fourth quarter. We were still up three scores, but you never felt great about anything there.

But we had a goal line stand.

Jimmy Loone deflected a pass on fourth down, and that was about eight minutes left in the fourth quarter, and that was about when we felt.

We were going to win this thing. So we just kind of ran the clock out and it was a heck of a celebration.

I was just going to give him any questions. No, no, no, okay, you can just think of that one open. So is this your first or second?

This is my first.

I was in the championship in two thousand and seven, but we lost on a field goal with three seconds left in the game. Lost twenty three twenty one, some heartbreaker. Seventeen years, seventeen years in the making. So we're enjoying this one.

Well, let me ask you, you win the title. You announced your retirement yesterday, so that's been like maybe ten days. Did you already know win or lose you're gonna do this?

Yeah, wall You know, I kind of had a feeling I last year. I was about ready to go.

You know, my daughter was going to be a senior volleyball player at Mike and I kind of really wanted to watch her finish her senior year off and as a coach, you missed so much of your kids' lives and your family's life, and you know, I wanted to do that, but she was a senior and really wanted me to finish out the year.

And we kind of knew the own end of this year it was going to be it.

And you know, the we had a heck of a team coming back, and the stress and high levels just kept building up all year. And you know, I don't know if there was a whole lot of fun going into the year with expectations as we had.

But when that bell rang at the end, that was the most fun we've ever had.

I'm sure your wife and your family are happy for you, but even more happy year because they get them to get you back.

Yeah.

You know, my wife's a football wife. She's she's been an amazing lady. But she's kind of disappointed. She loves the Friday night, she loves the prestige being out there, you know. So it's hard because we're gonna be empty nesters here and I don't know what the heck we're gonna be doing. So that's gonna be a different.

World for us.

That was my question. What are you gonna do with your Friday nights now that you're not under the lights?

You know, I don't know. You know, I want to take a summer vacation for a change.

I want to you know, I've always jumped to go and watch an SEC football game in the fall.

You know. So there's things that after thirty four years that you just haven't done.

And football has been a part of my life forever, and it's, you know, just the ability to do something different. It's going to be really exciting. And I don't know what I'll do, and I don't know if I'll miss it or not. But to have that freedom for a change is pretty nice.

So so I asked this, of all the coaches or former players or whatever. You've been doing this, like you say, thirty four years. So what's gonna get those juices flowing to compete if you're not gonna do this?

I don't know. I like golfing, I'm good at it. But you know, maybe I'll pick up pickle ball. I got some friends that play pickle ball. But you know, Steve, I don't I don't know.

You know, it's been less than twenty four hours, basically, and you know, we're not sure, and heck, I need a job next fall. So that's the first thing I'm gonna be looking for. I'm not gonna be coaching, but I need to find a new job. I'm leaving the failed district, arming up north, back back to my house. I live up on the north side, so the forty five minute drive is going to be over. So that's that's the next thing, kind of find a job. So my wife's happy about me working again.

Oh that makes sense, because yeah, you're not too far from me, are you? And mister Peace around the corner. So let me tell you something. I need a co host, just throwing it.

There you go, there you go. You know, I'm ready, I'm ready. I'll I'll have a lot of spare time coming up.

Here Pat and Steve talking crap about sports. No, I already got the already got the slogan.

No.

So okay, So now so let me ask you, because I don't think you had you brought on Sanchez.

Right, Yes, So yeah, Richard Sanchez came on two and a half years ago. He was hanging around retired board and I asked Richard to come out and help us a little bit, and we are just kind of first year in our program, and then Richard came on.

In the last two years, he's been surre.

So so let me say so, I think I asked you this question. Maybe I didn't when Monica was on the show maybe two weeks ago and your secret sauce because he said you were you were very meticulous and how you ran your program. Uh, you know, you didn't succeed just by accident. There's something about how you coach. What do you think your secret sauce? And I want to bring in census after that.

You know, and I know you and I talk a lot about Dick Tolmy, but I think the most important thing is a relationship with kids. You know, I feel like I've been strong with both my kids and my parents and my faculty, and I've got an open relationship. And I think kids kids enjoy that we have a great program. We have a great atmosphere going on. And you know, kids are disappointing that I'm leaving as a junior class that wants me to continue to stay.

They but they understand.

So I think the plus sign is that I have great relationship and that's what I learned from Coach told me, you know, and that was always the big thing.

I'm not a displaying that much. You know, I'm hard nosed.

I get the kid after kids a little bit, but it's a work relationship with kids that makes it special.

So that kind of goes into my transition. I'm also thinking that you're crazy like a fox, and let me see why Sanchez has been around for a long time. He is a tough dude. He is a tough coach. Was that purposeful for you to bring a guy like him on?

Oh? Without questions?

You know, it's I've always said, you know, Richard was a different type of coach, and it's you know, I don't think two head and strong.

Guys would have worked well together.

But you know, I always said back in the days, what Richard did at Sunnyside I probably never would have been able to do. But what I did at CEO, Richard probably couldn't have done because of what he The way he coaches and the way I coach are kind of different. So we were able to put those two things together and create just a great atmosphere at Mike Amountain and the kids bought it and they loved coach. And he's hard he's a work ethic guy and he

So, uh, you know, the work, the love hate relationship was really where it was at.

Right.

There's a lot of ying and yang there are you know what I'm saying, good Cup is it good Cup? Do cop type of thing? Uh?

Yeah, you know, I don't want to say it's always I'm always the good guy, bad guy, you know, but it's definitely the mentality that Richard brings, that hard, no south side attitude that really pushed our kids to the limit.

And uh, you know, so that's what Richard was all about.

But what he did with our offensive line was phenomenal because we we dominated that championship game up front, and you know, it showed from the work that he puts in with those kids every day. And we were fortunate to have three kids that had been with our program from day one, and then a couple other guys that were with us and you know, five senior linemen that just played their butts off.

So obviously you got to a point in the season, or I hope, hope he got to a point in the season where you knew this was going to be a championship type of team.

What was that moment?

You know?

We we really goes back to we were playing sale Point.

We scrimmaged soud Point in the beginning of the year, and we defensively just shut them down and I kind of looked at our coaches like, wow, you know, well, we only need to probably score three points a game with this defense we had. And that's really what it was at all year because our defensive line and our just whole whole defense was phenomenal. Brett Darling, our defensive coordinator,

Right, I would assume that you probably knew that too. Last I saw you guys play in person. You played CEO up there. I can't remember if this was the playoffs. It might have been in the playoffs, uh, and you guys were really really good and gave them a great game again and they won the title too.

Yeah that I mean that that whole you know, we we were eleven and two last year went to a state seven final team with a bunch of juniors, really and you know, that was a great learning lesson for us, you know, seeing they were senior heavy as a CEO team, and we kind of took that a let's learn from them and let's keep grinding and know that we can

You've talked about having a relationship with these guys. How do you continue to stay involved in their life or do you do? Will you have a role in some kind, whether it's as a fan going to their games, or do.

They have a way to reach out to you.

I know, I've got coaches that I definitely still keep in touch with that make sure I'm doing okay in life.

Yeah, you know, and it's a great group of kids I came might come out because of me usually and you know, I'll follow them and I you know, we love them to death and we're going to be on.

Them and watch their growth, and you know, I'm going to be there for the next four months kind of work and making sure they're saying after with the coach compost. But you know, it's kind of you know, you have that relationship and you know, I get emotional thinking about it because this last week has been amazing. These people that have reached out to me, kids I haven't heard from for fifteen years back in the CEO days that have all reached out and tell me how important I

Yeah, no question. And then if you're a good coach, that's what happens, right the kids and then do you kind of see, you know what, at the end of the day, that's what it's all about, you know, making and being an influence to the kids you coach let me ask you, you probably decided to retire. You saw mister peace Dusty fishing and join his kids and wanted to do that too.

You know. Yeah, you know what I was actually with Dusty and Jorgey.

We had a retirement forty party for Hora Mendeville, you know, and both those guys are were happy, you know, and it's talking to them just shows you that there's more to life. And as much as football have been a huge part in everything in my life, it's there's another aspect.

And I got five grandkids.

Now, and I'm like spending time with them and five grandkids, so you know, there's a lot of things in my family that haven't and you know, my daughter's looking to maybe go play college volleyball and I can go watch her play somewhere.

So you know, those are all things that you haven't done.

And I've dedicated every part of my life, and you know, going back to the Dick Tomy days, I was here working the U of a football stuff.

Every day in my life, I played.

My dad was a coach, so it's been a lifetime of fifty nine years being around football. So maybe I can learn something different and figure out something that I can do better someday.

This is the dumb question is do you still have your dad around?

No, my dad passed about eight years ago.

Okay, et.

Ah, he'd be you know, I super proud of me, know that, you know. And he was a football guy.

He was a guy that watched me at CEO and he used to tell me just give that ball to that Dame kiddeen.

Carrie kid, you know, and he'd get after me.

And he was with me in the PEMA years and that was a hard run, being at PEMA for five years. And he used to give me hell about what the heck I left for and why didn't I stay? Because CDIO won the state title and you know, but my mom and dad were watching from above, and you know, I'm sure they're proud of me, and it was a great experience.

Right.

Oh.

I was just gonna say, I think he's going to be a fantastic volleyball dad.

Like, I feel like he's going to be the guy in the stands with a sign that says that's my daughter, and just like, because that's the competitive edge, he's going to be the competitive fan.

Yeah, well that's I put a lot of time. We're club parents. So we're traveling all the way around and my daughter got to the state championship game and that was a pretty cool experience for our family. Watch her play in the state title game and then turn around and got a win for myself. And you know, we got the trophy coming home and we're going to enjoy that.

So you said, you have five grandkids. Where is the time gone? I remember coming into town at eighty seven. You were you were with? Told me teams back then when I covered the team, and holy crap, how did time fly?

Yeah?

Holy crap. You know, I was very fortunate. My son, Rody, he was on our staff this year, so he was part of the celebration. And he's got three little kids. He's got to give up coaching a little big he's got to raise some kids for a little while. He's been helping me in four years build this program, but it's time for him to be a dad a little bit. And you know, my daughter's got two young kids, just had a baby on the Halloween, and you know, we're fortunate.

You know, they're all young, very all four years and under. So it's going to be a crazy life for a little bit. And my wife does a great job of them and it's great to be a part of it.

And you know that we'll miss the Friday nights, you know, coming on the field, and you know we were fortunate winning a lot this year, but it was always special when they get the run on the field and Friday nights to come see there that death they call me.

And it's awesome experience.

Because yesterday before, before we heard that you would announce your retirement, we were talking about I can't remember who, oh well, Belichick and some of the old guys who don't know when to say or to call their endgame right, you know, could just stay too long or whatever, and then they get pushed out because it didn't do well. You were able to call your shot, unless unless in a year or two or whatever, you get the itch again.

I don't know if I'll get the itch again right now. There's not a chance in heck. I'd say, you know what it looks like in a year or two from now, I can't say that, but I'll tell you what with the ability to go out and you know, when you're you know, there's a lot of times you know you're not going to win a stay tiy your tough kids, let's go after a stay title. But we had a few years in my twelve twenty seven years as the head coach that we had a chance to win it.

He never won a title. Charles Barker, he never won a title.

And even though I've got a lot of wins in southern Arizona, it was always going to be Yeah, but he never won a title, you know, so, uh to have that taken off, but you know, it's about the kids, and it's about my coaching staff. We we got to share this together. And uh, you know, if I go out with that, at least one I know. Richards on me about coming back for two and three, and I said, Richard, I'm good, buddy.

One's enough for me. I don't need to do I don't need to work as hard as I do every day.

So what are you leaving, compos.

Oh that loaded. Our entire program was undefeated this year.

You know, our freshman team nine and oer our JV team seven to oh and then obviously the varsity fourteen. Oh, so you know everything gone well with Nimarassei is our principal over there. It's uh, it's Roland coach compost, an unbelievable coach. He's gonna probably have to place a lot of coaches, and a lot of my guys knew it

Well, Pat, congratulations, thanks for coming back on short notice. You know, the last couple of weeks, I want you to come in. Maybe I spent some time with me in the studio. We can talk in sports.

Love to you, Steve. I finally know when I'm not coaching football.

I was listening to a show on the radio driving home, and I love listening to it and I'll get to listen to it a little bit more because I leave work about three o'clock and I get to hear that show, so I don't hear it at all in the fall, so I don't know what's been going on. But you know, look forward to hearing from you and anything I can do would be great. So thanks for having me on today and appreciate it. And it's been ahead of a run, that's for sure.

Great. Pat, Thanks, congrats again, Appreciate it, Appreciate it.

You take care.

Pat Nugent from Mike Mountain Cool cool, Long time for chasing that first title. Everyone thinks it's easy. It ain't easy. Never is. Let's go to this break. I hope it's easy. If you're at Arizona Man's best, you know it's been successful for nearly forty years.

Now.

Take a look back at the Ludelsen era in my new book, Lessons from Loot. It was a labor of love through the eyes of twenty five former players, coaches and friends to give insight to the coach and the man who led them, competed against them, and inspired them. Twenty five chapters for his twenty five years as Arizona's beloved coach. Lessons from lut is an insight to how he built the program into a national powerhouse. What one email me at Steve dot RIVERA ninety five at gmail dot com.

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This is I on the Ball with Steve Ravera on Fox Sports fourteen fifty. Subscribe now to the podcast on the iHeartRadio WIP just search I.

On the Ball.

Hey, welcome back to I'm the Abaut Hero Fox Sports fourteen fifty. I'm Steve Rivera.

You're D.

Welcome in D and you're one. We got about fifteen minutes if you'd like to give us a quick call. We had a few calls earlier A five to two zero four one six seventy four to forty Let us know what we should talk about? Yeah, football, basketball, whatever.

Or maybe you think we're wrong about something.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, we're always wrong usually are. Jay's not here, so we're fine. We've been a little bit more right since he left.

But yeah, that's still on the right.

Well, so for context, when I was an intern and I would pose questions to him, he would make this space and he would contort his space of just like no, you're wrong, and I'm like, is that your personal opinion or your professional opinion?

And so him and I would get into it. Steve and I would agree on a lot of things.

They did not like that I challenged him, but him, you and who's the other guy who's al a two Huntley?

No?

No?

Uh Mike, Oh well, same thing, same thing? Yeah, Jay, you crossed Jay and you know he starts giving the look. I love the look because back and forth. But you guys don't get into it because you think the same. I think we're very much fans, yeah, very very fan oriented. But I feel like I'm losing it a little bit as of recently. Yeah, eventually it's going to wear off. The business is getting to me. I don't like what what part of it?

Like?

Why?

Like for example, this week in the Denver game, there was many players where I would have lost it over over some small detail and I'm just yeah, okay, sure, well that's a nice play, good job.

Well that's that's how I game. Very And I talked to d because I don't think you maybe you did every now and again, the we thing we got you off the we thing. I'm very bad at that. You know, we Arizona we we Yes, maybe we let you do it a couple of times because you're still a student, but you know what I'm saying.

Well, I was also working with the team, so I was a wee I was a little little different scenario.

But no, like it's definitely church and state.

Yeah, I'm very bad at it. Yeah, well eventually we're off. I mean, it just does because you have to. But you notice, do you notice even in the rooms when you go to the press conference, the the wiz and the non weeze, because yeah, yeah.

I do, those that are able to separate themselves out from the fan and the sport, being the professional.

M And you're thoughts on that on the wei's who are still wheeze and they shouldn't be wheeze because they're not weeze. They're covering the team. I'm indifferent about it.

Yeah, but you can probably just because I'm I'm I'm still in that week category because you're a student. But I've gotten a lot better about noticing it. Every every time it happens, I'm like, well, there we go again. I put a nickel in the jar. It's a big jar right now, right, and you can't cheer, I mean you can't. You might cheer down. That was the hardest part to just too. Especially in that opening game that

It was a right. It was supposed to be.

It's supposed to be the outlook on the season, you know, for at the t MAC and I had to sit there like.

I got.

I got really good at that.

Being on the sidelines with the team during games, you just kind of go you just nod your head and go all right, you think you can think it in your head, but you cannot say it out loud.

Right, Well, you're kind of you're on the sideline, you're with the team. You can do that.

There was a certain level that we were allowed, quote unquote like allowed to do typically if you were in eyeshot. There were definitely times teams celebrated my feet were no longer on the ground. They would pick me up and move me, and all of a sudden I would be set back down and they go, oh.

You're not supposed to be movable. I went yeah. Yeah, my feet are supposed to remain on the ground.

So eventually we're off. You may not even be part of this world of journalism. We'll see what happens. See if I can find a window to go through. Yeah, hopefully tough, good luck, thank you, Yeah, as D would know. Yeah again, if any wants to call, anybody wants to call, please do five two zero, four, one, six, seventy four forty. And then you have all the internet sports writers. Yeah if you notice that too. And I have noticed that they don't have degrees. They don't have degrees, but they

There's some one with an opinion and a place to put it.

Yes, yes, yeah, Like I said, we're part of the Fraser Crane. You don't even know who Fraser Crane is, probably, but I feel like I've heard Fraser Crane. He's a radio guy who is a fictitious TV show, Fraser Crane, and he was a radio shoot show a lot of problems, a lot of issues, psychological and otherwise. But he could solve everybody else's problems, but not his own. And that's what this is all about. Yeah, yeah, we could solve tell me Lloyd's problems.

I actually put something out there on X right after the UCLA game. I didn't get a lot of opinions on it. Yeah, I said, does Arizona make the term of the question you've been asking? Yeah, it was I think seventy nine percent. No, absolutely, really, absolutely, and these are I even put one that said too early to tell nothing for that. I think I got two votes for yes, absolutely and absolutely not with seventy one percent.

Yeah, well, that's too timing of it, because they're pretty upset that they're seeing what we're seeing.

But it's it's it wasn't just the one game.

It's it's not happening right through the season, and even in the games that they're winning, it's happening, and they just happen to be outscoring those other teams that they're beating.

Yeah, and there's a lot of those and they're not that good. I'll just put this in perspective with what you do for a living. Now, it's one hundred thousand dollars horse against the twenty five dollars dollars claimer in the wins that they're playing, and they're getting the canecious is the old dominion blah, blah blah. But now when you put a one hundred thousand dollars horse against another

They are trying to step up in class and they cannot do it.

And they can't do it. I mean, that's the issue. I mean, at the end of the day, Okay, you're going to have the Iowa States in the Houston on the road. On the road shot, You're you have a jockey who's overweight, you have a lot of handicaps pounds, and how are they going to manage it if they can't manage it even at the house?

Well, I mean, I go back to whether you're talking horses or other sports, it's it starts at home, It starts at practice. It starts with mentality, with physicalness it.

You know, you got to have the yang to the yang.

You got to have someone to play good cop and someone to balance you out and have that little bit more aggressive feel to it to want you to be better, to want to inspire you, because if you don't have that voice in your head, you're not going to be there on game day.

You're not going to be present, you're not going to want to perform.

Yeah, well tell me. In the press conference that we listen to originally when we want to break he talked more about owning it. He's up for the challenge. He likes the challenge. Now he has to get to the challenge, right, and we'll see if that happens this weekend. It's another twenty five thousand dollars a couple of horses. They should win it.

They've stepped down in class.

They're now running in an optional fifty thousand dollars claimer.

Yeah.

Yeah, for people who don't understand, they get it. It's like Cell Point facing green Fields. Yeah, and they should be able to do so. With Tommy Lloyd facing this challenge, what happens if he fails that? That's a good question.

Yeah, that was my question. Is what is he doing to own the outcome? What is owning the outcome?

Well, that's the whole problem. I mean, he's this is not just this season. This is the rest of his career in the Big twelve, right, Because Okay, he fails this one, well, next year it's not going to get any easier with people that may or may not. Well, then you'll lose Love. You lose people, and you'll have to do better at recruiting.

But if Love's not doing anything for you this year, is he really that harmful for you to lose next year?

No?

No, but you know you have to find replacements for the people that come and go. But if he don't do it this year, next year is not going to be any easier, if not harder.

Well, then he's back in the same spot that Brennan's in right now with playing the game and the transfer portal even more so, and trying to keep the team home because he's trying to write, essentially say we're gonna win, but doesn't have the doesn't have the players to show it.

So it's just the world today, right If that's a good question one, because if he doesn't get it fixed now, I'm not sure he's gonna be able to get it fixed down the road. Uh, just style and things like that, and and where else do you have to be tough for the thing that we talked about at the beginning. But in the big twelve Honestly, fir'st supposed to be the best conference in n C A A. And what do you what's a requirement in that conference? Toughness? Toughness?

Maybe, but it can't be one person.

Can not have one person just willing to go like fling a body around and be able to like hold their own.

Everybody's got to hold their own.

Here's another thing we talked about, tough minded. D Uh, I'll give you the the thing now. Is Love tough minded? No, you don't even have to think about it. No, No, he wouldn't be going through the stuff if you were.

My opinion on Caleb, Love is very similar to you.

You're going to go there, go there because you were you were pretty critical and you were spot on sput on with kurb because everybody loved them, but they were frustrated and eventually said, okay.

I think Love is another kind of polarizing player. When he's on, he's on, and when he's off, he gets in his own head and he's just then useless on the court. He's just another body out there, and that doesn't do you any good, especially when you have two guards that are constantly trying to drive the hoop. There you have your ball hogs, and occasionally you need a

Yeah, like I said, he's out there doing cardio, just running and it's not even fast cardio. No, it's like a jog cardio. Yeah. Yeah, it's no wonder. It's no wonder that the NBA people don't like his game.

And I think it's the thing of his's why in his fifth, sixth tier of college basketball.

He should know by now, he should sure.

Especially especially if they've already told you.

You need to do this, this, and that, which tells me if if he's not doing it, he's not coachable. He is stuck in his own ways and he's doing his own thing. And if they've told him and he's changed schools because they've told him he needs to change, he is uncoachable. And my dad would say that is not someone he'd ever want on his team. He that person on the bench, because he'd rather put someone in that is going to listen and.

Want to adapt and want to change.

And I think that's all part of the problem with the transfer portal is you get these kids in and they've been told six different things by twelve different people.

How much are they going to be willing to change.

They have their game, they have what they're good at, and now you're going to ask them to try and do something.

Now, Well, that's part of the problem because Temmy had asked him to change, right, he saw the player from last year. He wanted to temper them, kind of be more efficient, do other things. Does he ask him to go back to being.

What he was?

No, this isn't working.

No, But if Tommy Lloyd wants to keep him, I think they're going to be at a crossroads.

I don't know.

There are yeah, there you are well and then you talk about the one ball and I talked to Tommy Well. I asked the question of Tommy on Saturday. If Caleb's not doing the job, do you turn to the guy next to him? It was Jayden who had a pretty good game and took control and was very aggressive. But that's who he is, right, That's who he is. He's a ball guy, gets down, puts his head down and goes to the basket. Is that type of player going to save you when you have other players waiting.

For the ball to not if they're Hugh can have that person, but they have to be willing to pick their head up and pass the ball. You have to I'm not saying everybody needs to touch the ball, but you have to be able to have good ball movement to create and that's.

The problem because it doesn't create good ball movement because you have one guy with the ball.

And then you're back to selfish player because they're trying to get all the points. They're trying to get all the statistics instead of moving the ball allowing something to set up. And then you're stuck with poor time management because you can't get the ball where it needs to go.

So to both of you, do you think this will be fixed this year? Yeah?

Unlikely.

I think there's a chance very who says that the then and you're saying that no, just.

Because I think at some point they're going to find their rhythm and it's and I say rhythm as in their shooting rhythm. Right now, it seems like every player, almost every player is just chucking it up hoping it goes in.

Okay, So whose fault is that?

Is that the players for not being competent to do the ball or the shooting coach, or is that Tommy not wanting to give them more structure.

On the court.

No, that's the player. I think it's the player.

But Tommy said in his press conference that we were listening to in between breaks, he allows them to go out and make a lot of.

Their own choice.

Sure, sure, do they need more structure from Tommy on the court to be able to make that improv Well what did he say?

It was funny because he said, not necessarily, because sometimes as it looks to your eyes, it's it's maybe look a little chaos chaotic, but it's not because that's what they practice and that's how they practice. They practice fast. They got to go go to go fast, and no team except for that that ten minute spot is Saturday where they looked, holy crap, this is the team that you guess what they're doing, moving the ball, running up

And even even if they were to have gotten into a situation where they said, okay, let's just go down, get some fouls, fall down, and that's what he said.

We're not a great free throw shooting team.

And I've said this for even Miller's teams were not great at the freedom line.

Yet that's our goal.

You should be shooting eighty percent of the line minimum.

So that's what happened last year when they could hit shots against thumpson right. Yep, they went two for three. For whatever it was.

Bala was the biggest was the biggest person involved in that. Like he'd go down, he'd get fouled, and you'd be lucky if he made.

One rush and then you're just hoping that and then you're just helping.

It was an ugly looking shot, Like as someone who's worked with shooting coaches before, like it's like I can look at a shot and go like, Okay, that's a good shot or it doesn't work or whatever, and it's just he had an ugly looking shot.

Right, and I'm sure that hasn't changed. He's shooting with his left hand now, free throws that hurd. Are we ready to go? Is it fifty five? Hey? Good good job, Thanks guys, d thanks for coming in. I think we might see you later this week.

I would be happy to be back possibly.

Thank you one.

Is this for you.

I'm a numb for the week till next Monday. Okay, great, great, Thanks everybody for calling in and listening. Need more.