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Speaker 1: Hi, John Michael.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, nice, the last for you. Yeah yeah, kind of

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Speaker 2: just taking it all in. Everyone's been telling me you

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Speaker 2: only get drafted once. So just celebrating with my family

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Speaker 2: and with the friends and the people they got me

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Speaker 2: there and I got got a great support system and

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Speaker 2: very blessed and honored to be a part of this organization.

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Speaker 1: And uh yeah, Okay, back a year ago, like I

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Speaker 1: think you were projected as like a top hundred prospect.

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Speaker 1: Why you went back for the sixth year and do

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Speaker 1: you think that benefits you at all?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean the main reason I went back was

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Speaker 2: for my team. Came in with a lot of those

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Speaker 2: guys that, uh, we're staying that extra year, and I

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Speaker 2: mean just wanted to go back to give it one

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Speaker 2: last shot of winning a Big Ten championship and leaving

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Speaker 2: it all on the table.

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Speaker 3: So yeah, could you describe your relationship with PJ just

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Speaker 3: what that was like and what he's like And.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I mean from the start, I would

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Speaker 2: just say committed to coach Flak at Western Michigan, and uh,

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Speaker 2: two weeks before National Signing Day, I got a call

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Speaker 2: that he was coming to the University of Minnesota. So

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Speaker 2: without even stepping a foot on campus and uh, stepping

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Speaker 2: on a foot in the state of Minnesota. I committed

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Speaker 2: right on spot, just because I believed in him and

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Speaker 2: I was all in and bought into this culture, and uh,

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Speaker 2: I was ready to go to battle for him.

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Speaker 3: How much is this?

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Speaker 4: How much is this always been your dream to be

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Speaker 4: an NFL player or like when did you like think

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Speaker 4: that this was you know, realistic or you know would

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Speaker 4: be sitting here right now?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean I played. I've been playing football since

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Speaker 2: I was five years old. And just remember this, Uh,

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Speaker 2: this memory, I have me and my brother playing next

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Speaker 2: to each other on the offensive line and my dad,

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Speaker 2: uh coaching us up and we have a great pitcher

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Speaker 2: and uh, I mean just from that start, I mean

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Speaker 2: there was always a dream, uh to be in my

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Speaker 2: position and just very honored and blessed be a part

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Speaker 2: of this organization. So, yeah, you were a wrestler, right, Yes,

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Speaker 2: I did wrestle when I was little and wrestled for

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Speaker 2: in high school as well.

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Speaker 4: Does does that help you on the football field or

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Speaker 4: did it help you?

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Speaker 5: Yeah?

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Speaker 2: I mean understanding as an offensive lineman. I understanding your weight, positioning,

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Speaker 2: your body movement, your force, where you need to be

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Speaker 2: your hand placement, the grappling technique. I mean, that's that's

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Speaker 2: all important stuff to have. Uh, and it definitely benefited me.

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Speaker 2: I mean I've I still talked to my wrestling coach

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Speaker 2: today and he's, uh, yeah, he's a great guy. So

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Speaker 2: feels like a strange person.

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Speaker 1: Ask him when you just met. But how much do

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Speaker 1: you weigh? How much do you want to play?

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Speaker 2: Yeah? So right now I'm around I stayed between three

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Speaker 2: h seven and three ten and that's what I've been

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Speaker 2: playing at that way since by the last four years.

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Speaker 2: So whatever the team needs me to play, I'll be at.

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Speaker 4: So what is it about center?

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Speaker 6: You know there's five positions on the offensive line.

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Speaker 3: What is it about center that you think you're good

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Speaker 3: at that appeals to you? I mean, obviously nothing happens

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Speaker 3: until you know you're the first one that touches the

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Speaker 3: ball every play.

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Speaker 7: So what is it about that specific position?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, I'll just say you're the first one

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Speaker 2: that gets to the ball. It's got to be your

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Speaker 2: mindset that you got to set the tone. Uh, it's

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Speaker 2: with your leadership. It's how you communicate down the line,

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Speaker 2: making sure everyone's on the same page. I mean, you

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Speaker 2: got to be controlled, especially in a crazy atmosphere, if

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Speaker 2: around a road game, So just making sure everyone gets

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Speaker 2: the calls. You're working with the quarterback, you're working with

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Speaker 2: the right and left side, and so, yeah, Michael.

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Speaker 6: What's it like to come to a team that has

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Speaker 6: a need at your position where you conceivably could step

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Speaker 6: right in and maybe man that position for a long time.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, right now, I'm really just focused on

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Speaker 2: getting in the building and being around this team and

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Speaker 2: getting ready to go to work.

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Speaker 6: If you're wrestling, just for a second with you, because

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Speaker 6: so many players that I've talked to over the years

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Speaker 6: have that kind of a background and they're so grateful

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Speaker 6: to have it. And how much do you like the

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Speaker 6: idea that one on one is how wrestling is and

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Speaker 6: there is, at least to me, it seems some translation

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Speaker 6: to the football field there.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, you definitely have that one on one battle,

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Speaker 2: especially as an offensive line perspective. It's a at the

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Speaker 2: end of the day, you got to win your battle,

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Speaker 2: and that goes across the board offense defense, no matter

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Speaker 2: what position you are. And so that's how I would say.

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Speaker 7: How challenging is it if you're a younger center playing

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Speaker 7: with more veteran linemen across the line. How challenging is

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Speaker 7: it to be the leader of that group and earn

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Speaker 7: the respect, you know, when you have less experience.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean what I would say is, I would

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Speaker 2: just say it comes with, yeah, earn their trust, and

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Speaker 2: it's by by uh, it's by how hard you work

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Speaker 2: when you come in every day with the mindset that

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Speaker 2: you're gonna get better and at the end of the day,

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Speaker 2: you gotta trust is earned. Trust is earned over time

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Speaker 2: with time, consistent, consistency, improof, and I mean those three

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Speaker 2: things don't happen overnight. So it's gonna obviously you're hard

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Speaker 2: working on the field, in your playbook with your body,

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Speaker 2: taking care of yourself and uh, just honestly just being

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Speaker 2: a part of that team and getting close with one another.

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Speaker 5: So different offenses demand different things from the center, right,

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Speaker 5: what's your interpretation of what they're looking for you, you know,

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Speaker 5: from the center position.

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Speaker 2: Yeah. Yeah, I'll just say this, to be that voice

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Speaker 2: to connect that group.

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Speaker 6: And.

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Speaker 2: I'll just say to uh to set the tone, like

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Speaker 2: I said before, set the tone from the start and

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Speaker 2: be that uh, be that uh that that tough offensive

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Speaker 2: line that we want to be.

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Speaker 3: So were you able to find your voice early in

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Speaker 3: your career or was it a process to be able

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Speaker 3: to get to that position to take command.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I definitely over time developed. I feel like I

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Speaker 2: had a voice early on. But you always you always

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Speaker 2: keep changing, You always keep getting better, you always keep

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Speaker 2: growing each and every day. Uh, and yeah, most of

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Speaker 2: the time the centers make the line calls.

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Speaker 7: How much film work is involved in that and getting

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Speaker 7: ready for each game?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean it's a lot of it's a lot

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Speaker 2: of a lot of work that goes into through the

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Speaker 2: process leading up the game day. I mean, you're working

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Speaker 2: with coming in with the whole offensive line extra, You're

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Speaker 2: you're working with my offensive line coach at the time,

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Speaker 2: coach Callahan, coming in extra, seeing what needs to be

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Speaker 2: done to get everyone on the same page.

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Speaker 7: Here.

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Speaker 2: I'm I'm watching film with quarterbacks, are running backs and

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Speaker 2: just different position groups, making sure that we're on the

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Speaker 2: same page as when we go out and play, that

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Speaker 2: we're ready to go.

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Speaker 1: So did you talk to quarter Coffin at all since you.

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Speaker 2: Mean, yeah, Oh, I mean he's very excited to have

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Speaker 2: me here. He was very uh, just very excited, and uh,

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Speaker 2: just kind of just welcome me in uh to his

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Speaker 2: family and offered me a lot of whatever I need.

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Speaker 2: I mean, he said he was gonna be there for me,

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Speaker 2: and that's that's just amazing. So yeah, how did.

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Speaker 1: You adopt that thinks of the dead ball snap technique

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Speaker 1: and doesn't that change anything for the quarterback in your experience?

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Speaker 2: But that's just something kind of Yeah, it didn't really

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Speaker 2: change anything. Uh, just something that coach Callahan uh talked

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Speaker 2: about that we were going to do in experiment and

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Speaker 2: then ended up just being what we were going to do.

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Speaker 2: Had a lot more control of the ball and more accuracy.

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Speaker 4: So yeah, very closely with Daniel Jones, I'm curious what

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Speaker 4: do you what do you know about him?

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Speaker 5: If anything?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean definitely he had a hell of a

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Speaker 2: season last year. I mean he led that group. I

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Speaker 2: mean he's grown a lot and at his quarterback position.

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Speaker 2: He reached out last night, Uh sent me a text

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Speaker 2: and very excited to work with him and uh, very

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Speaker 2: excited to work with this offense and get this get

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Speaker 2: things rolling.

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Speaker 4: So what do you know about.

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Speaker 2: I Mean, honestly, I think he's one of the best.

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Speaker 2: He's one of the best backs in the National Football League.

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Speaker 2: He's he's a great player. I mean he's explosive and

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Speaker 2: I mean he's tough. He's a he runs the ball tough.

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Speaker 2: So yeah, highlights of.

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Speaker 3: Guys, and it's always fun to see the highlights of

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Speaker 3: the offensive lineman. Which ones they choose for you to

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Speaker 3: do you have a favorite highlight of yours that if

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Speaker 3: you walked into a meeting and someone said, show us

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Speaker 3: your favorite highlight of you blocking someone, is there something

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Speaker 3: that jumps to the front.

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Speaker 2: Uh, I wouldn't.

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Speaker 1: No, I wouldn't.

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Speaker 2: I wouldn't say there's nothing in particular that I would

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Speaker 2: say that's a big highlight. So yeah, look like earlier shotgun,

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Speaker 2: Did you guys do any under center?

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Speaker 7: Yeah?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean definitely. This last season we did a

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Speaker 2: lot of under center to change it up for defenses.

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Speaker 2: So yeah, I'm comfortable going under center or in the shotgun.

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Speaker 6: Johnson likes to give his lineman colorful nicknames.

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Speaker 3: Have you gotten yours hip?

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Speaker 2: I have not. No, I have not.

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Speaker 6: What's your interaction with him been? Like?

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Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean it's been a great He's a tremendous

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Speaker 2: coach and I met him at right before Pro Day.

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Speaker 2: He came out and worked me out and we had dinner,

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Speaker 2: and just a tremendous guy and very excited to work

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Speaker 2: with him and develop a bond and get things.

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Speaker 7: Yeah.

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Speaker 2: Oh, he's amazing, so