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Cowboys.
This is Mick Shots streaming live on Dallascowboys dot Com and the official Dallas Cowboys at and now your hosts Mickey Spagnola, Everson Wolves, Nate Newton, and Bill Jones.
And here it is another beautiful morning in Oxnard, California. We're at the corner of Ventura and Vineyard, Bill Jones and Mickey Spagnola, and this is Mick Shots. As we look over our left shoulder, my left shoulder, maybe you're right shoulder.
That is a blazing.
Sun in the western sky. It's in the eastern sky, but on the west coast. That's right there.
You go. We would have a real scoop if it was coming up.
With the worst like every day.
Here is a chamber of commerce day. Really Where to God, I walked out yesterday. They was in a cloud in the sky.
It was blue.
It was nice and windy, nice and I should say not windy, and I just went, Son of a God. These people live like this, you know what.
My sister and her husband lived in La Jolla for several years and now and for the last twenty five years they've lived in Austin. The reason they left La Jolla is he got boring. They wanted to change the seasons, and so they moved to Austin. Like Austin has.
La Joia is like one of my favorite cities in the United States.
Oh my lord.
But she said, after a while, you know, when you grow up in Texas and her husband in Oklahoma, you know, after a while you.
Want to change a season, so it gets boring. I'll tell you what that One year the Cowboys practiced for three or four.
Days against San Diego. We stayed in La Joya.
Yeah, oh my. The Chargers used to train in La Joya.
Yeah.
All right, So here we are, and it is it's day number five for us here. If we're going to we're gonna count the travel day. On Monday. We had practice number two yesterday. We'll have a walk.
Through number three today in practice number three tomorrow, and then a day off on Friday because we all need rest on Sunday.
On Sunday because we all need rest. Absolutely, So yeah, geez, just what two more? Well, kind of one and a half more days of these mini camp practices. Today's kind of a walk through type deal. They'll get the usually try to get the big guys off their feet after a two day grueling practices out here. By the way, if.
You are in the area, there is there are no fans here. Today, Tomorrow's the big day, the opening ceremony.
Opening ceremony, and then a day off and then put the pads on on Monday. So so far, so good, although, as Brad Sham says, we come to training camp to find out who gets hurt, and the Cowboys have already suffered at least one serious injury with Donovan Wilson.
It's a.
It was explained to me that your calf has two muscles and he sprained one of them up high where it connects behind your knee and sounds like multiple weeks. I've been told two to four probably for sure. So it's a serious sprain or strain, however you want to
call it. Kind of similar to what happened to Joe Burrow yesterday, who's angling for a new contract and he suffers a calf'sper boy, When I saw a video of that, I was like, oh, that's his achilles, just because it was a non contact and he grabbed the back of his leg, but I think they've it could have been worse for Joe Burrow, yes, said it's a calf straight. So Donovan Wilson out Israel and Mkwamu has a hamstring so he's going to be out a couple more days.
So Yeah.
Unfortunately, Matt Willsco has an illness and he's missed the first two days of practice. So from an injury standpoint, yeah, the Cowboys, I mean, I.
Know you.
Know I'm gonna suffer injuries, but you hate to suffer them when it's non context. And then Trayvon Diggs was on the side yesterday, so he must be doing his own personal ramp up.
They must not.
Have liked whatever shape he showed up in and make sure that he's ready to go. So he didn't do much the first day after he signed his contract and did rehab type stuff yesterday, So we'll see where that goes. But again with those guys, that give us some young guys.
An opportunity to get out there and get more snaps.
Yeah, and even with all the injuries, no matter the severity of it, at this point, when you're so early in training camp, you're going to and especially for players that have been on the roster before, You're going to take the time to make sure that it's right before they go back out there.
Now, for guys on the bottom of the roster, they got to play through.
You got to power through it, right.
Yeahs, As I've always been told, especially by the trainers, you're not winning the Super Bowl on July twenty eighth, right, so make sure you don't extend the injuries anymore by rushing them back. But yeah, you're exactly right. Young guys need to power through. And then the only two other guys not practicing second round draft choice Luke scoon Maker still dealing with his foot injury and Jordan Lewis is on Pop trying to recover from his foot surgery.
So how much of a setback do you think it is for Luke's Schoonmaker being a rookie here. You know, I'm watching him yesterday and as they were basically going through walk through type drills at the end of practice yesterday. But he you know, you can see him back behind the offense and he is mimicking everything that the tight end does on a certain play, right, So he's getting those you can see how he is in tune.
He's focused, he is.
Engaged in every drill mentally, and to the point that he's actually sort of slow motion mimicking exactly what the tight end is doing on the play.
But how far does it setting back that he's not here? I think anytime young guys like that aren't out there, I mean, he needs to get out there. I don't know if it's a type of thing where he can kind of because it's plant our fasci itis, power through it or what. But you know, when I'm watching practice, Sean McEwan, who had been thought to be.
The the uh.
What the fourth fourth right with third ride receiver, fourth wide receiver, is soon screw tight end.
Sorry.
Uh, you know he's starting to step up, and they got another guy that's got his hand up in the air. And I know it's only two days, but John Stevens from Louisiana Lafayette made a nice catch in team drill for a touchdown, and I've heard that he's caught their attention. So if nothing else, you know, you don't know if he makes the team. Obviously he can only keep so
many tight ends. Uh, but at least the practice squad, So uh, that was a good sign when you, like you said, other guys get an opportunity.
Uh and he's taken advantage of his.
And uh So when you look at that depth chart, Peyton enders shots the other guy that's in there on that depth chart at tie end. But I would think with a guy like Schoonmaker, him being a second round draft pick, in contrast to what we just said about young players got to power through, Right, that's different when you're a draft pick, especially second round draft pick, they're gonna they're gonna take their time make sure he's right, because he is a valuable asset.
Yeah, no, no doubt.
But you know, that was a position I think people were worried about because they didn't or I should say, Dalton Schultz didn't want to re sign with the Cowboys. As Stephen Jones pointed out in the opening press conference, they offered him a long term deal, but he was still butt hurt that he had to play on the franchise tag the previous season. Butt hurt he he made like ten million dollars, right, goodness, gracious.
And well, speaking of injuries, you look elsewhere around the league, and not only did the Joe Burrow injury, but then Jalen Ramsey goes down right in the Dolphins camp. You know, the Dolphins, they're kind of the hot pick around the NFL world this year that you know, they make that acquisition of Jalen Ramsey and here it is the first week of camp and Ramsey's lost until December.
It looks like, yeah, boy, that's that's tough, especially when you're in these non contact drills. But again, I still I mean, I understand why they do it, do it, but I don't get it. You do all that work in the off season, then you give guys five weeks off and then you come to camp and expect them to just pick up where they left off. Well, if guys aren't diligent and get back on their own a week early and start working out again. That's what happens
with these soft tissue injuries. Anything catch your eye the first couple of yeah, let me look here on my little notepad from practice yesterday. You know, in the press conference, Mike McCarthy talked about not using Tony Pollard and Terrence Steele when they went eleven on eleven. Well, early in practice they were out there eleven on eleven and so that's another good sign that they can kind of push those guys a little bit.
Talking to Terren Steele, I was asking him.
I said, so, when you think you're kind of ready to get out there full time play some football when the pads come on, and he said, well, it's probably a couple of weeks, maybe you know, a month. So but he felt really good of about where he's at. He talked about how he changed his diet and and it's not that he's lost weight, he said, he's read distributed his weight. And somebody asked him, so, what did you do? He goes, well, I kind of like sweet, so I decided can't eat that.
And the guy said what else?
He goes pizza? I just can't stop eating pizza. He goes, but I've decided that those things aren't good for me, especially when I was rehabbing the ACL injury.
So he looks good, he's moving good.
And without Zach Martin here, So when they get the first team offensive line out there, it's Tyron Smith, Tyler Smith be oddish, Josh Ball has taking Zach Martin's spot, and then Terren Steele is out at right tackle.
You know what strikes me about these offensive linemen, They are some big guys. I mean, you can see the draft profile that the scouting department has on these offensive linemen.
I'm tall, not just big, but tall, rangy, big.
Guys you know, with size as well, which reminds me when Jerry Jones bought the team in nineteen eighty nine, I think he said there were four play offensive linemen in the league that weighed over three hundred pounds thirty four years ago.
Well, you won't find four offensive linemen under three hundred pounds in any camp now. If you think back to the mid eighties, Tom Landry didn't want his offensive lineman much heavier than like two seventy right, two sixty. And that's why when Nate Newton showed up the kitchen, who, by the way, is supposed to show up and be with us next week on mix shots, he shows up at about three forty and it was like, oh my gosh, wew big this guy is. And that was a change
for Tom to have an offensive lineman that big. So the other thing with when Steel wasn't out there full time at right tackle, uh, Chuma Adgo was out there, uh And I was watching U the second team offensive line, and they had a Doga at left tackle. They had Matt Farniac at left guard, and then the center was brock Hoffman. T J. Bass, who they really like, was at right guard, and Alex Taylor Preolu pre preol Prelo was at right tackle. So, uh, that's kind of how
they were lining up the backup. And you know what, somebody to say, well, why is that important? Well, they get they're gonna need some backups, right, and they're gonna need some backup interior guys. So it bodes well to kind of keep an eye on some of those guys.
You know, you mentioned John Stevens Junior earlier. One thing about out him. You know, he is the son of a former NFL running back, the late John Stevens, who played with the New England Patriots. Did not know that he also is the brother of Sloan Stevens. The yes, really and he went to TCU, but he wound up at Louisiana Lafayette. But he first was recruited to TCU as a wide receiver, a big wide receiver, two hundred and thirty pounds out of high school in Louisiana.
What is he now?
He's whether they listen you okay, yeah, six six. Yeah. He's a big, rangy guy.
I mean, and you can tell that the coaches really like him just the way that they're using. It's kind of one of those things if the coach is talking to you, right, they feel like they got a.
Use for you, at least they know you come off.
If you get your one rep and you come off the field and they kind of ignore you, that's not so good. Well with him, they're talking to him, and so I think they like what they see out of him. He's going to be a fun guy to watch during preseason game.
Well, I'll tell you what he move well and when he runs that kind of pattern down the slot, that's a big man moving down the slot against little guys trying to cover, which is what you're looking for in this league. Absolutely matches.
All right, we're just getting started on this edition of Mixed Shots. We got much more to cover. Well, we've noticed down here on the field the first couple of days and what we can look forward to and they put on the pads on Monday when Mix Shots returns.
In just a moment.
I'm Dak Prescott, quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys. Blockchain dot Com is one of the most trusted ways to buy, sell, and trade crypto. Whether you're always on the go or stay closer to home, blockchain dot Com is just a few taps away put the power of crypto in your pocket, so no matter where you are, you can trade on your terms and build a crypto portfolio to fit your life.
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And this is mixed shots it's brought to you by Miller Lite and more most appropriately, Mickey Spagnola has donned his Miller like shirt.
Today. We have a few of those that are sponsored the TV show that we do, Cowboys Daily, by the way, and it shows every evening on the Blue Star Television network.
Do you realize we started doing.
These they're a little short kind of fifty second updates in nineteen ninety eight when we were in Wichita Fall Oh wow, and we had a twenty five years ago. We had a closet next to the cafeteria and that's where we started doing the show, myself and Scott Purcell, the head of the TV department, And we're still doing them, by the way, Wow sponsored sponsored by Miller Lite the whole time.
Yeah wow, No, not the whole time.
We started off with some trucking company and they wanted me to wear one of those those mesh trucking hats, and I said, no, we're drawing the line right, you know how they stand up real high on your head.
That was twenty five years ago. If that trucking company wanted to sponsor Mickey Spignol.
Of the day, he would wear whatever. Well, probably so right, But then I think it was a company that made barbecue sauce. And then I think Miller Lite got in the picture. All right.
Dak Prescott met with the media yesterday. He did what did you take from what Dak had to say?
You know, the one thing I guess he kind of poked fun at himself when he said he was in the meeting room. I guess I don't know if it was the offense or just the wide receivers running back, but they were talking and someone was someone brought up who was the oldest guy in the room, and Dak said, his head down, you know it was it was? He said it was when they were on their retreat.
On the treat took the seventeen teammates receivers, tight ends and running backs outside Atlanta for a little their getaway and they're bonding their.
Right football fishing, little fellowship. Yeah, there you go. It was. I wish I would have thought of this when I wrote the story last night on the air. I needed another f in there. It was football fishing and fellows there what it was?
And uh and so he was he was sitting there and someone, uh, you mentioned that thirty year old or who's the oldest guy in the right in the room and he had his head down taking notes. I guess he brought in speakers and stuff they did.
They had somebody, I don't know organization the organization that was there, which is great. Uh, And he had his head down in the room kind of got silent and there it's it's you deck.
Yeah right, but he and he turns thirty tomorrow, right, and so he's been kidded by Uh. It was funny yesterday Ceedee Lamb did his interview with all the assembled media out on the field after practice yesterday and people were asking him if if he's easing Dak about turning thirty and see he said, he got a broad smile on his face. Is that's all he's been doing, He's
been teasing about it. Then Brandon Cook said that he's got he's got Dak's back because he's about in that sad he's twenty nine and closed he's closing in on for he's a couple of months behind Dak on it. So yeah, absolutely, And may you think of Brandon Cook's as being older than that?
I thought so too. It just seems like, well he's been in the league, what is this his tenth year? Am I right?
He was first round draft pick number twenty overall in twenty fourteen?
So is it is his tenth season? Actually, this thing says it's his eleventh season. He's going into his eleven What year did you say he came out? Maybe I brought wrote it down wrong. I'm not sure.
Fourteen and New Orleans picked him twentieth overall in twenty Fourteen's.
What I've got? That should be ten r Yeah, going into tenth season? Man? Speaking of that, Wow, you think he can run good?
You know there's some players that switch teams because they are a malecontent, right, you know, and he's been on a number of teams. They don't get along with players, or maybe they don't. There's not a professionalism about him that is that is not Brandon Cooks. Brandon Cooks is exactly what you want on a football team.
Pussly, a veteran guy that's not afray. He's comfortable in his own skin, he doesn't feel threatened. He's helping the young guys out. Just go talk to any of them and how much Brandon Cooks is you know, whatever they want, ask questions and he helps him out, especially Jalen Tolbert, who I thought had another nice day catching the ball yesterday.
More on Jalen just second, Brandon. I remember when Brandon came out of Oregon State, and he's one of those guys in my Big Green Notebook where I just just watching videos of him.
I just couldn't stop watching him.
And there were some workout videos that he had that were posted showing him working out at Oregon State, which was reflected by the way at the scouting combine when he ran a four to three three forty at a thirty eight vertical and a six seventy six cone drill.
I mean, this kid, this.
Guy can really fly and now approaching his thirtieth birthday, right, he can still fly, he says, and I believe him that he hasn't lost any of his speed.
Talk to the wide receiver coaches and they'll tell you, you know, he.
Still can scoot.
And don't get a misconception that five ten he's just a slot receiver. He can play outside and that's the beauty of both he and Ceedee Lamb inside outside, And there's trying to develop Jalen Tolbert into that same type of receiver along with Michael Gallup, because the top three guys are pretty interchangeable, so teams don't know where they're gonna be and the beauty of it is and I noticed this in some of the off season drills when they got two guys to one side and one to
the other. When they're three wide, they can put either of the two guys in motion and move to the other side, and I think that's going to cause some headaches for some defenses out there.
Jalen Tolbert, what is it that you've noticed about him in the first couple of days and maybe compared to what you saw at the beginning of camp last year.
When he first well, you know, the beginning of camp, we were pretty impressed with him, and then it seemed like when the lights come on.
He got a little bit overwhelmed.
But number one, when sitting there talking to him back at at the mini camp, I was just physically, he's he's developed. You know how guys make that big jump from their first year to second year when all they have to do is work out in the offseason. I think he's stronger. The other thing, I think he's mentally tougher and he seems to be more comfortable running routes and knowing what he has to do, but most of all catching the ball, and he's made some really nice
catches along the sideline. And boy, if he can continue to develop and they have four wide receivers like that, they're going.
To be pretty potent on offense.
You know, it's interesting.
You talk about competition, and obviously the top three receivers are set with Lamb Cooks in Gallop, but the competition for the fourth and fifth receivers spots on this team is really pretty.
Open, right, so you know they're expecting Semi Fijoko to step up. Unfortunately, I think they would like to have a role for Turpin right and he's not here yet. It was back home the birth of his child. Uh, they would, yeah, absolutely, because they can talk about how they can, you know, fit him into the office more than just a gimmick. And if you remember when they signed him out of the USFL, he was the most valuable offensive player in the league last year.
And it wasn't just because of his returns.
He was one of the leading wide receivers in the league even at his size.
Because what you have to look at too, is that you know, Noah Brown has been a part of this team, what for five years or so, right, and now he's a Houston, Texan, and so there's a there's an opening at that in that wide receiver depth chart, right, you know about number seventeen out there, Dennis Houston.
I was just going to bring him up.
And Dennis Houston, you know, he was the talk of camp last year. And the reason he was the talk of camp last year was because Dak Prescott was talking about Rice Houston so much.
Last and he and he was performing.
Was performing, and what Dak liked about him was his work ethic.
He'd been the right spot, you know.
And and he's out here, I'm sure doing the same stuff this year. And he having been on the practice squad throughout the year, he's been in the system. You know, he's he's been with he's been here with him for another year. And so I don't discount Dennis Houston. If he can contribute on special teams and take on that kind of a wide receiver role that Noah Brown had on special teams, that's where that's.
Going to be one of the keys in deciding who right who emerges there. And if you remember he was a starter in season opener last year because Michael GalF wasn't ready right, And if you think about how the Cowboys started this season last year, it was Ceedee Lamb, Noah Brown and Dennis Houston. You think they've improved the wide receiver room now that Michael Gallup looks like he's
back to being Michael Gallup. That's what. When we were doing your your deal yesterday, the three guys walked by, right, and I said, okay, I've named them the new Triplets.
I mean, that's that. That's some serious.
Speed out with all due respect to yeah rightlets Yeah, it's a triplet position triplet.
But but there is another guy in that wide receiver room that the scouts and coaches probably targeted back in April that this might be our Noah Brown. And that is the seventh round draft pick, Jalen Brooks, right and uh and Noah Brown was the seventh round the.
Guy I looked up and I said, oh, that guy is huge.
No, that's not him.
There was somebody else that they caught my eye. But yeah, Jalen Brooks sixty one two oh three. Uh and and he has uh at times shown up in these first two practices now again, we always have to qualify it because they're not in pads yet. You're there's no uh, no jeopardy of getting hit catching the ball over the middle.
So uh, we'll see how that works.
Well, here's the other thing on Jalen Brooks and why I bring this up as a guy who would be and maybe scouts looked at him as a guy who might be that Noah Brown type that can play special teams and also wide receiver when he went well, he was at South he was at South Carolina, but prior to that, he was at North Carolina and he was a converted linebacker, no way linebacker to wider. So he has experienced tackling football players.
Well, and that will be important and you know they'll.
Tell you even in the running back room, right, special teams is going to be very important to figure out how many of those guys, uh, they can keep, especially for the full back Luke Luke. I can't say it Lepke is hunter Lepke hunter Lepke. I mean he to make it as a fullback and create another spot in that running back room. He's got to be pretty good in specialty. Yeah, that's right.
All right, we continue with more mixed shots brought to you by Miller Lite on a beautiful Friday morning in Oxnard at a moment.
The Medal of Honor is our country's highest military award for valor in combat. More than forty million individuals have served in the armed forces since the Civil War. Fewer than four thousand have received the Medal of Honor. The National Medal of Honor Museum will be a place to preserve these legacies and inspire America. It's being built right next door to the Dallas Cowboys in Texas. Help us honor our country's greatest heroes. Learn more and get involved at mohmuseum dot.
Org Prescott Quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys. Blockchain dot com is one of the most trusted ways to buy, sell, and trade crypto. Whether you always on the go or stay closer to home, blockchain dot com is just a few taps away put the power of crypto in your pocket, so no matter where you are, you can trade on your terms and build a crypto portfolio to fit your life. For crypto pros, rookies, and anyone in between, blockchain dot com makes it easy to own a piece of the future.
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To mixed Shunts, the official twenty twenty three Dallas Cowboys Star Magazine Training Camp Preview is now available. This year's edition features scouting reports, position analysis, a pull out schedule poster, and articles from your favorite Cowboy writers. Get your Training Camp Preview today at Dallascowboys dot Com. Slash Star and Shots brought to you by Miller Lite. Continues. Now, let me clarify on Jalen Brooks because I.
Misspoke from what my notes which I couldn't read in my book here. He went to Wingate University in North.
End, North Carolina, not UNC got to tar Heels, which is a Division two school, or he was converted linebacker, and then he transferred to Tarleton State. After that, he spent a year at Tarleton State on Stephenville, which is near the Dallas Fort Worth area, before transferring to South Carolina for his senior and Super Senior seasons. So there's there.
You go on Jalen Brooks, All right, opening ceremonies tomorrow here right, Well, you don't have to get here early because you're already living on the premises here. But I remember last year and in previous years opening ceremonies because I'm in a hotel off campus, and.
Typically Mosey over here.
You know, if McCarthy's having his press conference at ten forty five, I like to get here by about nine or so nine thirty, you know, an hour or so ahead of time.
Not like when you show up at the Star and show up for like two minutes eleven o'clock show.
He shows up at ten fifty eight.
He ever, I know, I could be pretty confident that I can get in the building, get everything fine there. I'm telling you, the line of cars on Saturday opening ceremonies morning is unbelievable out here on what would be Ventura Right Boulevard out here. I mean, they don't open the gate, the parking lot gate probably until you know, ten o'clock in the morning. And I'm told that they start lining up before the sun comes up in the morning. But and actually I did a little Twitter video of
it as I was driving. I just pulled my iPhone out and as I was driving, I fortunately the media we get to go around that we don't have to stand in right the line that the line had to stretch at least a mile down the road. I mean, it was unbelievable how many people are.
Just when they put the pads on Bill and I take my morning bike ride and if I go that way, and when i'm coming back and it's like seven thirty eight, the gates don't open till like ten thirty. I count the cars that I passed because they're pulled over on the side of the road waiting to get in. And even when I go out, and when I go out it's like six thirty, there's five or six cars there
and they're tailgating breakfast out there. I went by one morning and it was at least two or three out, probably three hours before the gates opened, and I counted like twenty five cars already lined up, and they're all out there talking to each other because it's like they're like tailgating before we get yeah, and they want to be the first ones in so when they get the prime position.
Yeah, well, and you do that for you can get in prime position, whether it be in the grand stand.
Or along the fence right where you can be in position to get your autographs or.
Or parking up clothes.
Yeah.
Yeah, it is amazing, and uh, you know, and they've made it now here where it's it's very fan friendly as.
Far as you know.
They've got a stage set up back there, and when Nate gets here, he'll hold court back by the stage or on the other side of the grand stand over there, and uh, you know, they've got concession stands, souvenir stands set up and there's uh so it becomes a pretty good little place to bring the kids and a social setting as well. So you know, I get people back home they say, you know, oh, you're going out to training camp.
I need to bring the family out there. Whatever.
And I would highly recommend it because because I think there's something for everyone to enjoy coming out here, and it's a laid back and it's not just football.
Yeah, and it's free yeah right, unless you're coming over here, unless you want to get in the big platform they set up against the wall there. One year and I'd been coming out here for all those years.
I believe it was summer of twenty sixteen.
Came out here for a week vacation before training camp, just because I wanted to do all the stuff you can do that we can't get a way to do during during training camp. It's a great area. And by the way, I need two shoutouts. One my sunglasses fell off the door knob on the tile floor and cracked one of the arms right, and I tried balancing it right and it just wouldn't work.
So I ended up at Sam's.
It went to their opticle and said, is there any chance you've got frames that will fit my prescription lenses because I've got a doctor's appoint when I get back, and I didn't want to get new lenses.
And then they say, oh, we're changing the prescription.
So the lady pulled a couple of them off the wall and tried fitting them in there. They didn't work.
She goes, just give me a second.
She made one phone call, She made another phone call and found a store that had the same brand as sunglasses.
And I was like, well, how nice is that?
Right? And I just told her you just went beyond and then I went and got them and now.
I'm back in business.
The other thing is my first day here, took my first back ride, had a flat tire, flat tire, and we had the show right, I had to walk back and I got back about twenty minutes before we started the show. Craig Miller at the ticket. Here's a big cyclist, a huge cyclist. He goes, oh, go get a go get a tube and I'll change it in five minutes.
And I said, what do you mean?
I said, it takes longer, and he goes, I'll change it in five minutes. So yesterday I brought it over and uh, in their break at the crosstalk, he started changing my tire. Wow, and he about finished before they got off the air. So he was on the air doing an in service on changing a flat tire.
So Craig is one of those types. I mean he he, I mean he's rode in events right.
Oh yeah, Well when he comes out here. There's a road that goes up off the one oh one to o Hi. It's kind of up elevation. He rides up it. When I did it, I went up and I rode down.
He went one year he went to France, Yeah, and just wrote a bike around France like he was in the French Open.
He takes it to Europe a couple of nothing, yeah, the French French and then he played tennis. He went to Rolling Garls to front the French Open. Friend. Yeah, so he probably went to Rolling Garrols and went on the clay court as well. He's such an avid biker that he's got all the tools changing tire too.
So shout out to Craig.
All right, all right, shout out in our final five minutes here to what's gonna happen. Uh, come Monday when they put the pads on. You're gonna have your eye on when they put the pads on on Monday.
The kicking competition.
That's not what I was expecting. Sure they could do a kicking competition without pads on. No, because they're going to be behind the line. They're gonna use the deep snapper, the whole that that's new, by the way, the holder and then the two kickers, and uh, it's a very
interesting story. Having signed on, I believe it was July tenth, Brandon Aubrey, a soccer player, played professional soccer, kind of burned out on soccer, told me he went kind of went home and decided he need to get a normal job. He had just gotten married. He said, I needed make some money to support my wife. And he said, within two months he got bored with this office job. Right. He was a software expert or whatever for a financial firm.
And so he said he was sitting there watching football one day and his wife said, you know what you should try that you kick the ball, so well, you should try it. So he goes out and kind of messes around and he goes, you know what, maybe we get this. An opportunity calls around and he ends up going to the John Carne kicking camp. Right, so Carney ends up being his kicking coach. Well, here's how things work out. John Carney went to Notre Dame. That's where
Aubrey went and played soccer. John Carney was there when Lou Holtz became the head coach at Notre Dame, and for one year his son, Skip Holtz, walked on to the football team. Wow, okay, now let's go forward. And when Aubrey couldn't find he tried out for a couple NFL teams on that kicking caravan. He ends up with a job in the USFL, the Birmingham Stallions. The head coach is Skip Holtz. Where's the walk on from Notre Dame? Right,
So the connection between John Carney and Skip Holtz. When they overlapped one year at Notre Dame, Skip says, Okay, I need a kicker. Let's bring this guy in. So he gets his start in Birmingham. First year makes fourteen of fifteen, No the second year fourteen of fifteen.
Uh and Chris Bonio.
The Cowboys former kicking coach and kicker, was the coach, the kicking special teams coach.
So all these connections.
And then Darryl Johnston is the head of the league basically league right, and John Fossil said that, you know, I mean bone old Tommy Fossil came and scouted the game, and the Cowboys kept saying, We're gonna look everywhere, right, even other leagues. Well, in the back of their mind they knew they were going to sign this guy. And then when the US said.
Way for a season, and of course they win the championship, they went away until July first.
And so they got him signed and now here he is and it's for now. We should have been able to figure this out, Brandon, Yeah, right, you know when we go through Ota in the mini camp and they still haven't brought in a second kicker. And I've got these veteran guys out there, especially Sint's still out there, Bill.
Right, especially since they did the same thing with Camante Turpin last year exactly who played in the USFL and was the MVP. And okay, so, and we even sat there, and I watched for a little bit the USF and it crossed my mind, I need to watch the kickers here.
And I didn't even bother to do it right well, And I watched that championship game that he was kicking, and it didn't cross my mind, right, and John Fossil told me, he goes. We already had that. By the time that game was played. It was a done deal. It was just a matter of waiting and doing all the paperwork you have to do to sign guys out of the USFL.
He likes them.
He thinks, Number one, he's talented. Number two, he has the right demeanor to be a profes football kicker.
Right.
So now it's a matter of just going out and competing and being able to deal with the pressure. And not only that, but the wind that blows at on this field. And they've created even a bigger wind tuttal with the.
Construction next height two no no.
I was watching it and somebody was pointing to me, you can see what it was doing to the trees way up high because you can't feel it on the field.
That stuff you don't get just that's right. But on mix shot it's brought to you by a Miller Lite and Nate's going.
To join us next week.
Next week, you'll be here right Nate Newton.
On his way here to Oxnard because he doesn't care about any of this stuff until they put.
The pads on.
All he worries about.
We'll put the pads on next week on mix shots. Have a great weekend in the meantime, and the break is coming up in just a bit.
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