WEBVTT - How Men Think with Jerry O’Connell and Akbar Gbajabiamila 0:00:00.920 --> 0:00:03.880 We're taking you inside the mind of a man. This 0:00:04.559 --> 0:00:08.319 is How Men Thick and I heard radio podcast. All right, 0:00:08.440 --> 0:00:12.160 welcome to How Men Think. I'm here with the man 0:00:12.200 --> 0:00:15.560 of the hour, the Tower of Power. Mr Jerry O'Connell. You, 0:00:15.840 --> 0:00:19.520 I'm Akbar Baja be a millage so jerryman, it's first off, wait, 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:22.759 let me try and spell hold on Okay, good luck? 0:00:23.440 --> 0:00:28.080 G b A j A okay, am I right? So 0:00:28.240 --> 0:00:34.559 yeah b I A uh huh m I l a bro. 0:00:36.360 --> 0:00:39.720 I am going to make you an honorary Nike carea. 0:00:40.840 --> 0:00:43.040 Hey that I didn't know you knew I spell it. 0:00:43.440 --> 0:00:45.680 Most of you can say, most of you the same, 0:00:45.760 --> 0:00:47.960 but a lot of people can't spell it. It took 0:00:47.960 --> 0:00:50.080 me to the second grade to learn how to spell 0:00:50.200 --> 0:00:55.040 my last. That's a true story. That's a true story. 0:00:55.160 --> 0:00:58.040 All right, Um, we're so happy to be guest hosting 0:00:58.040 --> 0:01:00.960 How Men Think. We're gonna answer all your questions and 0:01:01.000 --> 0:01:06.000 solve the fascinating question of how man thinks. So first, 0:01:06.400 --> 0:01:09.920 this is eleven Questions with Akbar and Jerry. Let's get 0:01:10.080 --> 0:01:13.520 right into it. Jerry, you ready, let's go. You know, 0:01:13.600 --> 0:01:15.280 so you know, we've been having a lot of fun 0:01:15.400 --> 0:01:19.520 on the Talk as as hosts. UM So tell tell, 0:01:19.640 --> 0:01:22.039 tell the listeners out there. What are you known for? 0:01:22.160 --> 0:01:27.399 Tell us about yourself? UM I a strange question. I 0:01:27.400 --> 0:01:30.840 can answer it. I'm Garry O'Connell. Um I. Uh I 0:01:30.920 --> 0:01:32.760 was a young actor. I was in a movie stand 0:01:32.760 --> 0:01:36.280 by Me, UM when I was younger, and it was 0:01:36.760 --> 0:01:39.400 kind of a cult classic. You know, it did h 0:01:39.840 --> 0:01:43.520 big hit, Yeah, kind of, you know, I think it 0:01:43.640 --> 0:01:45.680 was a cult class. It is a cult classic. I 0:01:45.680 --> 0:01:47.840 mean it's not like it's not like Titanic. I don't 0:01:47.840 --> 0:01:50.880 think it like like it's not et you know, it's 0:01:50.880 --> 0:01:53.600 not like you know, Independence Day. I don't think it 0:01:53.680 --> 0:01:57.160 was like a huge financial hit, but it was like 0:01:57.440 --> 0:02:00.360 it's it was made the thirty over three, two years 0:02:00.360 --> 0:02:04.360 ago when people are still talking about it. But um, 0:02:04.400 --> 0:02:06.840 I didn't really act that much as a kid actor. 0:02:06.880 --> 0:02:09.919 I went to college and um I really got busy 0:02:09.960 --> 0:02:12.760 again as an actor. UM out of college in my 0:02:12.800 --> 0:02:15.760 twenties and uh I acted in a few TV shows, 0:02:15.760 --> 0:02:18.320 a sci fi show called Sliders, a cop show called 0:02:18.400 --> 0:02:23.840 Crossing Jordan's UM and UH did a bunch of movies 0:02:24.000 --> 0:02:28.920 kangaro Jack with UM did you know after the first movie? 0:02:29.080 --> 0:02:30.880 After your first movie you knew, like this is the 0:02:30.919 --> 0:02:34.200 path that larta for the rest of my life. You know, Um, 0:02:34.800 --> 0:02:37.760 I knew I felt most comfortable on a set like 0:02:37.800 --> 0:02:40.960 I felt. Um, when I was a kid, everyone was 0:02:41.000 --> 0:02:43.160 like at school, I was always getting in trouble for 0:02:43.600 --> 0:02:46.240 speaking out of turn or you know, just being a 0:02:46.240 --> 0:02:48.639 crazy kid. And when I was on a set on 0:02:48.760 --> 0:02:51.480 stand by Me, you know, the director was like, no, 0:02:51.680 --> 0:02:53.280 we want you to be crazy in the scene, like 0:02:53.440 --> 0:02:56.519 keep talking, do it. And I remember thinking, I mean 0:02:56.560 --> 0:02:59.080 it was like a light went off my head, like wow, 0:02:59.240 --> 0:03:02.320 I haven't been crazy. I just needed to find my crowd. 0:03:03.200 --> 0:03:09.160 And uh, I um, I've been acting for years and 0:03:09.360 --> 0:03:13.240 uh about ten years ago, right first, when I met you, 0:03:13.520 --> 0:03:15.400 I started to get a little more into the talk 0:03:15.440 --> 0:03:19.680 show stuff. Um, with Kelly Rippa, I co hosted with 0:03:19.680 --> 0:03:23.519 with her a lot, and then with Wendy Williams. I 0:03:23.880 --> 0:03:26.920 co hosted with Wendy Williams a lot, and then um, 0:03:26.919 --> 0:03:30.000 this opportunity came up on the talk earlier this year. 0:03:30.080 --> 0:03:33.320 I mean, I've only you know, it's it's funny. I 0:03:33.320 --> 0:03:37.800 I came on and March. I mean bar was here 0:03:37.800 --> 0:03:40.360 in August, you know, I mean like it's just you 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:42.560 know and this is it's a great thing because as 0:03:42.640 --> 0:03:46.200 we were guest co hosting, it was so comforting to 0:03:46.320 --> 0:03:48.440 know that, oh, they bring I was like somebody that 0:03:48.560 --> 0:03:51.240 I know, you know, and I thought, you know, I 0:03:51.240 --> 0:03:54.520 should be paying you ten percent. No, but I thought 0:03:54.520 --> 0:03:56.760 it was very helpful to have somebody that you know, 0:03:56.800 --> 0:03:58.760 that you're familiar with, you know. I mean, especially when 0:03:58.760 --> 0:04:01.440 you're in a new format. It's different from doing you know, 0:04:01.560 --> 0:04:03.720 the other shows that I've done before, So it was 0:04:03.800 --> 0:04:05.960 very helpful to kind of like, oh, yeah, I know jury, 0:04:06.120 --> 0:04:08.960 Oh this is great. So yeah, I mean it is 0:04:09.080 --> 0:04:11.960 and it is funny doing a talk show. It's totally different. 0:04:12.000 --> 0:04:14.680 It's and and it's so funny too, because I've done 0:04:14.720 --> 0:04:20.840 a couple of talk shows. Now, um, this uh, this 0:04:20.880 --> 0:04:23.839 talk show is completely different because there's like five voices, 0:04:23.960 --> 0:04:27.479 so you it's not so much even when you're saying something, 0:04:27.560 --> 0:04:30.960 it's knowing when to not say something. You know. It's um, 0:04:31.000 --> 0:04:33.880 it's really interesting. It's um. It's been a fun run. 0:04:34.040 --> 0:04:36.200 And I gotta tell you, I love I love being 0:04:36.279 --> 0:04:40.760 up there with you. You're you're so um your background, 0:04:40.920 --> 0:04:43.120 your story, I mean, I'm I'm a I'm a fan 0:04:43.160 --> 0:04:46.479 of sports. So I'm so happy to have a former 0:04:46.560 --> 0:04:49.040 NFL player up there. I mean, it's just that's mine 0:04:49.200 --> 0:04:52.000 played before. I played one in a movie. I certainly 0:04:52.000 --> 0:04:54.000 didn't come close to playing one in real life. I 0:04:54.120 --> 0:04:57.400 just played one on TV. But it's so fun. And 0:04:57.440 --> 0:05:01.800 your stories, um, you know, the your history that you 0:05:01.880 --> 0:05:05.440 pull from. Um. You know obviously when you talk about 0:05:05.680 --> 0:05:07.599 you know, your time in the NFL and getting to 0:05:07.640 --> 0:05:09.760 the NFL and playing in a deep one school and 0:05:09.800 --> 0:05:13.680 all that stuff is um is very exciting for me. 0:05:14.200 --> 0:05:18.160 But um, really, what I find maybe the most interesting 0:05:18.400 --> 0:05:21.280 is your childhood and where you're from and your family 0:05:21.360 --> 0:05:24.359 and um, where you're from, tell us about that. You know, 0:05:24.520 --> 0:05:27.080 so many people, you know, they hear the last name, 0:05:27.279 --> 0:05:29.680 and they hear the first name, they go, well, where 0:05:29.760 --> 0:05:32.520 are you from? And it's a it's a really rich 0:05:32.600 --> 0:05:37.279 story because my parents came to America from Nigeria. My 0:05:37.360 --> 0:05:39.960 father came in seventy four, my mom came in like 0:05:40.040 --> 0:05:44.120 sixty nine, and they came like the movie Coming to America. 0:05:44.160 --> 0:05:47.320 They came to America to have a better life, better dream. Well, actually, 0:05:47.320 --> 0:05:50.520 in comeing to America, they were rich, so it wasn't 0:05:50.839 --> 0:05:53.280 Maybe that's not a good comparison, but they came over 0:05:53.279 --> 0:05:56.359 here for a better life. And I grew up in 0:05:56.360 --> 0:06:00.640 a household that was rich with Nigerian culture. But I 0:06:00.720 --> 0:06:04.200 also had like essentially like a split personality, not the 0:06:04.240 --> 0:06:08.080 medical term split personality, and that when I went to school, 0:06:08.680 --> 0:06:11.719 I had to be the American kid because back then, 0:06:11.760 --> 0:06:14.000 you know you're being made fun of. You know, you 0:06:14.040 --> 0:06:17.520 know you're different, right, And so I lived and balance 0:06:17.560 --> 0:06:19.720 in that world. But it gave me so much perspective, 0:06:19.760 --> 0:06:22.719 Like that duality, not only the duality of you know, 0:06:22.760 --> 0:06:25.039 growing up in an African American neighborhood, of growing up 0:06:25.080 --> 0:06:29.839 in a Nigerian household. My parents had a different religion. 0:06:29.920 --> 0:06:33.200 My father was Muslim, my mom Christian. So I grew 0:06:33.279 --> 0:06:36.120 up going to the mosque saying a lawak bar and 0:06:36.160 --> 0:06:39.280 then saying praise God and Jesus, you know what I mean. 0:06:39.320 --> 0:06:42.000 So that having that type of perspective, I think it's 0:06:42.040 --> 0:06:45.160 made me. It's such a well rounded person, uh, an 0:06:45.200 --> 0:06:48.960 empathic person. You know, you know I do send maybe 0:06:49.000 --> 0:06:52.320 more than um other people, but I tend to be 0:06:52.480 --> 0:06:57.440 very empathetic towards people. UM. And it's just really because 0:06:57.440 --> 0:07:00.279 of that that duality and growing up grow been a 0:07:00.279 --> 0:07:04.200 mixed family, although we were never able to say, you know, 0:07:04.360 --> 0:07:06.760 step brothers or anything like that like that was that 0:07:06.760 --> 0:07:10.440 that term still sounds unfamiliar to me, but that's um. 0:07:10.480 --> 0:07:12.960 So it's given me a different perspective in life. And 0:07:13.520 --> 0:07:16.240 you know, then sports and being in a big community 0:07:16.320 --> 0:07:21.640 so big family seven uh seven uh um six sevengs 0:07:21.680 --> 0:07:24.800 seven of us total, and then being in a big 0:07:24.800 --> 0:07:29.480 spot like basketball and then football. Um, the team perspective 0:07:29.480 --> 0:07:32.400 has always been. I've always been about you know that 0:07:32.400 --> 0:07:34.880 that team environment. I love a team like. That's why 0:07:34.920 --> 0:07:37.320 the talk environment works for me because it's not a 0:07:37.360 --> 0:07:39.560 one man show, two men. I mean, it's a it's 0:07:39.560 --> 0:07:41.880 a team. It's legit what I call it our starting five. 0:07:41.920 --> 0:07:45.040 I was referred to as their starting five. But it's 0:07:45.080 --> 0:07:49.160 impacted me now as as a father and and just 0:07:49.240 --> 0:07:51.880 making sure that you know, my kids are well rounded. 0:07:52.400 --> 0:07:54.520 Um it's you know a lot of people don't know 0:07:54.560 --> 0:07:57.400 this about me, but you know that well roundedness carried 0:07:57.400 --> 0:08:00.320 on into my you know, my love or Try album. 0:08:00.360 --> 0:08:02.560 I've done forty countries. I have a goal, by the 0:08:02.560 --> 0:08:05.480 grace of God, one day to see you know, two 0:08:05.560 --> 0:08:07.680 hundred plus countries. I want to go I've been to 0:08:07.760 --> 0:08:10.880 five continents. Um, I should have done Australia. About my 0:08:10.880 --> 0:08:13.400 wife said I can't go without her, So I haven't 0:08:13.440 --> 0:08:18.240 done that trip. But I want to go to Antarctica 0:08:18.720 --> 0:08:21.520 in Australia, so I would complete seven continents. But I 0:08:21.560 --> 0:08:25.160 still need to do the other countries as well. But crazy, Yeah, 0:08:25.840 --> 0:08:29.280 did your you you say you're one of seven and 0:08:29.400 --> 0:08:33.040 you're on the younger side. Yeah, I'm number six or seven. Um, 0:08:33.160 --> 0:08:37.760 did your older siblings did they guide? Did they help you? 0:08:37.920 --> 0:08:41.800 Did they? Yeah? My oldest brother who's always really like 0:08:42.040 --> 0:08:45.280 you know, a third parent. Um, as my parents were hustling, 0:08:45.360 --> 0:08:47.560 we didn't grow up with a lot of means, and 0:08:47.640 --> 0:08:52.040 so my oldest brother fully was always um, you know, 0:08:52.120 --> 0:08:54.640 in charge of us and helped raise us and you know, 0:08:54.720 --> 0:08:56.680 get us to where we need to get get to. 0:08:56.800 --> 0:08:59.280 And you know, when he started working, he would always 0:08:59.280 --> 0:09:01.120 hook us up with is you know, hand me down. 0:09:01.200 --> 0:09:03.160 But his hand medals were fresh because he had his 0:09:03.160 --> 0:09:05.439 own money, you know, right, so we you know, we 0:09:05.480 --> 0:09:07.959 could always resteal some of his stuff because he had 0:09:08.000 --> 0:09:10.720 the cool Raiders jacket that you know, I got Jack 0:09:10.800 --> 0:09:13.439 four one day and that was Yeah, there's a remember 0:09:13.480 --> 0:09:16.040 there was an era in a time period where if 0:09:16.040 --> 0:09:18.360 you wore a Raiders jacket, first off, you were cool, 0:09:18.720 --> 0:09:20.800 but you would also get jack fo you lose your 0:09:20.800 --> 0:09:23.040 life wearing a Raiders jacket back in the in the 0:09:23.160 --> 0:09:26.439 nineties or late eighties, early nineties. And I remember I 0:09:26.480 --> 0:09:28.719 got jacked. I was so mad. How old were you 0:09:28.760 --> 0:09:31.560 when you got jacks for your Raiders jack? Oh? Boy? 0:09:31.600 --> 0:09:33.640 It was in middle school, so it was like seventh pagers. 0:09:33.720 --> 0:09:36.120 I must have been thirteen four tix. Crazy because I 0:09:36.200 --> 0:09:40.240 know you as someone who is six six two fifty. Yeah, 0:09:40.559 --> 0:09:44.360 and you're the last person I would jack anything off. Yeah, 0:09:44.360 --> 0:09:47.960 but when you have a weapon, your size doesn't matter. 0:09:50.320 --> 0:09:55.160 Doesn't matter. Yeah, but that so, so a weapon was 0:09:55.200 --> 0:09:58.520 drawn on you for your Raider from a Raiders jacket. 0:09:58.679 --> 0:10:01.880 That's a traumatic experience. Yeah, yeah, it is. It is 0:10:01.880 --> 0:10:04.200 a traumatic experience. But you know, you do learn from 0:10:04.240 --> 0:10:07.440 those experience and makes you more vigilant, more hyper aware 0:10:07.640 --> 0:10:12.160 where you are in space. I mean, I mean, I'm 0:10:12.200 --> 0:10:16.280 not saying I'm just starting to ask what could you 0:10:16.280 --> 0:10:20.880 have done differently? And in that situation, we know where 0:10:20.880 --> 0:10:22.880 to be, you know. And it's like it's funny that 0:10:22.920 --> 0:10:25.040 you say that because my wife is always getting on 0:10:25.160 --> 0:10:27.560 me now until today, Like when we go to a restaurant, 0:10:27.640 --> 0:10:30.800 I sit with my back, um, you know, on my 0:10:30.840 --> 0:10:33.280 face facing towards the exit or the front door. I 0:10:33.320 --> 0:10:36.480 always want to see what's coming around um. And it's 0:10:36.520 --> 0:10:39.680 just really just I think until then, until it's something 0:10:39.720 --> 0:10:41.400 like that happens, you don't know that you need to 0:10:41.440 --> 0:10:44.000 be more aware, you know. So I'm always looking at people. 0:10:44.040 --> 0:10:45.800 So why do you always look at everyone's a threat? 0:10:46.240 --> 0:10:48.320 Because potentially they could be a threat, you know, so 0:10:48.440 --> 0:10:51.280 I want to see it happening before. So I really 0:10:51.320 --> 0:10:54.680 pick up on those types of body cues. Like that's 0:10:54.679 --> 0:10:57.480 a skill. It really is a skill. And here's another 0:10:57.480 --> 0:11:00.800 thing that helps me out too, is it as a 0:11:00.840 --> 0:11:03.240 nosy kid, you know, everybody can relate to Your parents 0:11:03.240 --> 0:11:05.480 are arguing and you want to know what they're saying, 0:11:05.559 --> 0:11:08.120 right you just my parents spoke a different language at home, 0:11:08.559 --> 0:11:11.440 and I'm like, we weren't fluent in Yoduba, and so 0:11:11.480 --> 0:11:13.640 I'd be listening, I couldn't understand what they were saying, 0:11:13.960 --> 0:11:17.440 so I could only rely on body language. So I 0:11:17.480 --> 0:11:20.560 became instilled, to this day, very proficient in reading. By 0:11:20.559 --> 0:11:22.520 the look, you could be talking to me, and I 0:11:22.559 --> 0:11:24.640 hear nothing you're saying, and I'm looking at your body, 0:11:24.679 --> 0:11:27.559 and your body is telling me everything. Yeah, it's a 0:11:28.120 --> 0:11:30.160 So I look at that, and so I see somebody 0:11:30.160 --> 0:11:32.720 who's I think this person is about to jack this dude. Right, 0:11:32.880 --> 0:11:36.480 I can see things happening before when, which is crazy. 0:11:36.520 --> 0:11:39.680 When you played for the Raiders. Yeah, did you replace 0:11:39.840 --> 0:11:42.679 that jacket? You've got jack for it? Yeah, I got 0:11:42.720 --> 0:11:44.280 a lot I got, I got, I got a lot 0:11:44.320 --> 0:11:47.640 of Raiders get her, that's for sure, Raider shorts, Raiders 0:11:47.679 --> 0:11:52.120 shirts because it's still the coldest color in all of all. 0:11:53.320 --> 0:11:55.679 And I listen, I don't want to have set you 0:11:55.880 --> 0:11:58.000 but you know, I'm not even a Raider saying, but 0:11:58.040 --> 0:12:03.439 if a Raiders shirt? Guys, where how men think? My 0:12:03.440 --> 0:12:06.000 My wife is from Oakland? So I will wear Raiding 0:12:07.280 --> 0:12:11.280 born raised, her mom live in Oakland. Oh, we gotta 0:12:11.360 --> 0:12:15.320 hang out. I um, i've met yet, and you've not 0:12:15.360 --> 0:12:17.120 met my wife yet to this day. Yeah, we have 0:12:17.200 --> 0:12:19.240 to have a day. Um to this day, though, I 0:12:19.280 --> 0:12:21.880 will wear I will wear Raiders gear. I'm not sure 0:12:21.920 --> 0:12:24.079 i'll wear a Raiders jersey. That's taking it like too far. 0:12:24.160 --> 0:12:27.080 I might wear your jersey I'm gonna bring you my jersey, 0:12:27.559 --> 0:12:31.320 you know. Um, because you're an actor, I've always wondered this, 0:12:31.720 --> 0:12:34.800 do you watch and appreciate other shows? What do you 0:12:34.840 --> 0:12:36.920 binge watch? For example? I I've beene watched for that's 0:12:36.920 --> 0:12:39.800 because I'm not an actor. Do you binge watch? Yeah? 0:12:40.440 --> 0:12:43.240 Any three shows you're binge watching? And it's not shows 0:12:43.280 --> 0:12:45.840 that I'm beinge watching. I'm very particular about shows that 0:12:45.920 --> 0:12:50.320 binge watched. The best show ever made on TV, I 0:12:50.360 --> 0:12:54.560 believe was Squid Game and I watched every episode. Really yeah, man, 0:12:54.640 --> 0:12:57.000 that's squid Game is really good. And it was really 0:12:57.000 --> 0:12:59.679 good because it was completely different from anything I've ever 0:12:59.679 --> 0:13:02.000 seen TV. Okay, so tell me because I'm not My 0:13:02.080 --> 0:13:04.959 kids have been asking and I've heard all that. All 0:13:04.960 --> 0:13:07.000 its gory, it's you know, it's not for kids. So 0:13:07.120 --> 0:13:10.160 I've not seen it because my kids can't see it. Um? 0:13:10.320 --> 0:13:12.240 Is it is it that bad? Is it? I mean, 0:13:12.400 --> 0:13:14.720 it's it's about as bad as it kids. Yeah, it's 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:18.040 it's worse thing like Freddy Krueger. It's hyper violent. You know, 0:13:18.160 --> 0:13:25.760 typically Korean cinema um uses I believe uses violence to 0:13:25.800 --> 0:13:27.800 get a reaction, you know. I mean, if you ever 0:13:27.840 --> 0:13:31.120 saw that film Parasite that when all those else and 0:13:31.200 --> 0:13:33.360 that film, it starts off as like sort of like 0:13:33.400 --> 0:13:36.520 a quiet family drama and then it turns into this 0:13:36.679 --> 0:13:39.680 you know, spoiler alert, hyper violent film, you know, And 0:13:39.720 --> 0:13:42.520 I think Squid Game does the same thing. Um, I 0:13:42.559 --> 0:13:45.559 can't do it. I'm not a hyper violent guy. And 0:13:45.920 --> 0:13:49.000 I don't know why. Um maybe as my childhood. I 0:13:49.040 --> 0:13:50.960 don't know what I mean. I mean, I can handle 0:13:51.000 --> 0:13:53.240 a certain level of violence, but when it gets like 0:13:53.240 --> 0:13:56.880 like sawt, I could do it after one, I can't 0:13:56.880 --> 0:14:01.080 do it. I don't do this saws. I I do 0:14:01.160 --> 0:14:03.679 the squad game. But I also I've beinge Um, I've 0:14:03.679 --> 0:14:08.600 benched all a Breaking Bad. Oh sorry, that's man breaking Back. 0:14:08.679 --> 0:14:11.959 I came to Breaking Bad late. Breaking Bad is one 0:14:12.000 --> 0:14:15.040 of my all time It is the best ever, like 0:14:15.160 --> 0:14:20.480 ever his character. Yeah, um and uh, but I I'm 0:14:20.600 --> 0:14:22.800 very particular about what I've benched watched. Have you watched 0:14:22.800 --> 0:14:25.480 the Morning Show? I love the Worship Morning Try. I'm binging. 0:14:25.520 --> 0:14:28.400 I gotta wait um for this next episode I come out. 0:14:28.480 --> 0:14:31.560 But I'm loving the Morning Show right now. Really yeah, 0:14:31.600 --> 0:14:34.280 I'm really loving I'm kind of like I like, you know, 0:14:34.480 --> 0:14:36.920 like that type of drama stuff. I grew up watching 0:14:36.960 --> 0:14:40.600 soap propers. So Bunny, we had a soap star on 0:14:40.640 --> 0:14:45.480 our show. Uh, and pardon my ignorance, I had no 0:14:45.560 --> 0:14:49.800 idea who it was. But you were like, oh, Dr Jones, 0:14:50.560 --> 0:14:52.560 you're on our show. And you were like that one 0:14:52.600 --> 0:14:56.360 time when your wife, that's your girlfriend, and you knew 0:14:56.400 --> 0:14:59.440 the whole storyline. Really, people don't know this is this 0:14:59.600 --> 0:15:02.640 kind of something, and I keep private, I guess until now, 0:15:03.320 --> 0:15:07.080 until now, But I grew up watching soap opera. In fact, 0:15:07.080 --> 0:15:10.320 I blame my oldest brother, my oldest brother, so I 0:15:10.360 --> 0:15:12.280 can't even tell you the whope. We were in ABC 0:15:12.360 --> 0:15:16.120 soap family. So we would watch, um, this is before 0:15:16.160 --> 0:15:19.520 your time. We would watch Loving, we would watch All 0:15:19.520 --> 0:15:22.480 My Children. We would watch One Life to Live. We 0:15:22.520 --> 0:15:25.160 would watch General Hospital, and back in the day, there 0:15:25.240 --> 0:15:26.840 used to be this older one. This is when I 0:15:26.920 --> 0:15:29.240 was a young kid. For your time. Um, there's one 0:15:29.280 --> 0:15:32.080 called Ryan's Hope. Um, we would watch Ryan's. I mean, 0:15:32.120 --> 0:15:34.360 you can google all these these are icon of Not 0:15:34.440 --> 0:15:35.920 a lot of them are off the air now, but 0:15:36.280 --> 0:15:38.040 it was. There was some good time and we take 0:15:38.120 --> 0:15:41.440 them on BCRs and so by time we got home, 0:15:41.560 --> 0:15:43.880 school got out three or five, we walked in the house. 0:15:44.040 --> 0:15:47.720 Oprah was just starting at three o'clock. Watched every day. 0:15:47.840 --> 0:15:50.000 I watched Oprah every day, and then we would go 0:15:50.080 --> 0:15:52.720 back and then start the BCR and we would go 0:15:52.760 --> 0:15:54.640 through and watch our soap prop and why our parents 0:15:54.640 --> 0:15:57.200 were like, why don't you watch? Why don't you starting 0:15:57.360 --> 0:16:00.400 your homework? Oh, we want to see Erica came. Something's 0:16:00.440 --> 0:16:03.080 about to happen to a Errica cage. That's Susan Lucci, 0:16:03.120 --> 0:16:05.920 she played Erica. Of course. Of course, Actually I didn't 0:16:05.960 --> 0:16:11.920 know that. Oh it's been so blown away when Susan. 0:16:11.920 --> 0:16:13.680 Oh no, Susan Luchi didn't come to her. No, no, 0:16:13.760 --> 0:16:16.320 if I ever met Susan Lucci. I remember when she 0:16:16.600 --> 0:16:20.240 finally got her award shot and it would just took forever. 0:16:20.320 --> 0:16:22.400 I'm like, this is I mean, even when she had 0:16:22.440 --> 0:16:25.640 to split personality like she had two different um, it 0:16:25.800 --> 0:16:28.520 was like the good Susan or good Erica came, Bad 0:16:28.640 --> 0:16:31.800 Erica came and I stopped, Man, what else does she 0:16:31.920 --> 0:16:34.680 need to do to be able to get that Awarden? 0:16:34.800 --> 0:16:38.640 So when she finally won, it was if I remember correct, 0:16:38.640 --> 0:16:40.440 and then maybe I'm wrong, I could be remembering this wrong. 0:16:40.520 --> 0:16:42.280 We have to look it up, but I can still 0:16:42.280 --> 0:16:45.280 see her wearing like a red dress and she was 0:16:45.320 --> 0:16:48.080 just so emotional and just like I just remember being 0:16:48.200 --> 0:16:49.760 so happy for her as if I knew her. I 0:16:49.800 --> 0:16:52.240 don't know her. I've never met her before. If I did, 0:16:52.280 --> 0:16:54.720 I would, I would I probably cry how far I 0:16:54.720 --> 0:16:57.880 think I think that's about to change her on the talk. Look, 0:16:58.080 --> 0:17:02.960 let me ask you, um, American Ninja Warrior. Everybody knows 0:17:02.960 --> 0:17:06.200 what it is. Everybody loves it. Um. It's a life 0:17:06.240 --> 0:17:10.840 changing project that you're a part of. Um. That's not 0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:13.560 an exaggeration, No, it's not. It changed my life, um 0:17:13.960 --> 0:17:16.639 like seriously changed the trajectory of my career. You know. 0:17:16.680 --> 0:17:19.680 One of the hardest things to do is transition from football. 0:17:20.080 --> 0:17:22.359 You're at the highest level. There is no other level 0:17:22.840 --> 0:17:26.199 after the NFL, and once you reach that peak and 0:17:26.240 --> 0:17:28.920 then you're done, it's like what do you do next? Right? 0:17:29.240 --> 0:17:32.960 So there is this what feels like this precipitous fall, 0:17:33.560 --> 0:17:36.919 right like some call it humility, some called it the 0:17:36.960 --> 0:17:40.000 real world, real life. UM. I tend to think that 0:17:40.040 --> 0:17:42.320 the NFL is real life. Right. You just worked so 0:17:42.359 --> 0:17:45.000 hard towards something and then you make that transition and 0:17:45.000 --> 0:17:46.600 it was so hard trying to think what was I 0:17:46.640 --> 0:17:49.240 going to do next? And in a million years, I 0:17:49.320 --> 0:17:52.399 never thought, because I didn't have this illustrious Hall of Fame, 0:17:52.760 --> 0:17:56.239 super Bowl playoff winning type career, that I would ever 0:17:56.280 --> 0:17:57.960 be able to get into this And so being able 0:17:58.000 --> 0:18:01.480 to give that audition for American in Ge Warrior take 0:18:01.560 --> 0:18:04.919 us to the audition process. Well, so prior to I 0:18:04.960 --> 0:18:07.000 was trying to get my feet in the game, right, 0:18:07.119 --> 0:18:11.760 you know, I was doing college football like no Indivision two, um, 0:18:11.800 --> 0:18:16.159 you know, Conference USA type of type of games. I 0:18:16.200 --> 0:18:20.160 have a friend who with smyeah I did, I did, 0:18:20.200 --> 0:18:22.639 I did SMU, I did all of them two lade, 0:18:23.160 --> 0:18:26.320 the whole nine and uh. And I'm going on other 0:18:26.400 --> 0:18:29.359 auditions and I was doing commercials that you know at 0:18:29.400 --> 0:18:31.400 SAG grade or whenever it get a couple hundred bucks 0:18:31.480 --> 0:18:33.360 or whatever, just trying to make it in and trying 0:18:33.400 --> 0:18:36.960 to find find my in. No. No, no, no, no no. 0:18:37.440 --> 0:18:40.399 After a while, you just like get numb to it. 0:18:41.359 --> 0:18:44.679 I get the call for American and Warrior, and to 0:18:44.720 --> 0:18:47.400 be honest, I lied, And sometimes you have to do. 0:18:47.600 --> 0:18:49.640 I'm like, oh, you've you ever heard of it? Oh? Yeah, yeah, 0:18:50.200 --> 0:18:51.720 I heard it. Oh yeah, I love it, love it, 0:18:51.760 --> 0:18:53.639 love it. Never watched the day in my life, so 0:18:53.760 --> 0:18:55.800 before my audition, I'm just kind of looking at it 0:18:55.960 --> 0:18:59.159 just didn't sound or feel like anything I was I 0:18:59.200 --> 0:19:02.840 would even listen to. And I didn't even know American 0:19:02.880 --> 0:19:05.440 Engine Warrior was on before you were on it. Yeah. Yeah, 0:19:05.720 --> 0:19:08.040 I came in season five and they didn't have announcers 0:19:08.040 --> 0:19:10.120 and they did Matt Eisbell was still there. But then 0:19:10.280 --> 0:19:13.320 the position that I was auditioning for someone else, yeah 0:19:13.359 --> 0:19:16.240 it was someone else, and um so I just you know, 0:19:16.480 --> 0:19:19.680 they're probably not gonna hire me, right because I every God, 0:19:19.800 --> 0:19:22.720 this shot going to I don't get it. But there 0:19:22.800 --> 0:19:25.160 was a key that opened up for me because I relaxed. 0:19:25.400 --> 0:19:27.120 But I just went there because I was a w 0:19:27.119 --> 0:19:29.399 w E fan, right, I grew up and I just 0:19:29.440 --> 0:19:33.000 brought my my my version of a w w E 0:19:33.080 --> 0:19:36.960 annalyncer over the top. You know, I love muscle parts 0:19:36.960 --> 0:19:39.200 like I can name all the different muscles in the body, 0:19:39.359 --> 0:19:42.879 and um so I just started being very descriptive using 0:19:42.880 --> 0:19:46.360 my football analysis background but with a w w E flavor, 0:19:47.000 --> 0:19:50.040 and I walked out lets shook everybody's hand, didn't think 0:19:50.040 --> 0:19:52.480 twice about it. Two weeks later, I get a phone call. 0:19:52.520 --> 0:19:54.919 Here know, I said, hold on what I got it, 0:19:55.359 --> 0:19:57.360 And that's how it started. And then since then, I mean, 0:19:57.400 --> 0:19:59.280 my first year was rough, but after that I just 0:19:59.320 --> 0:20:01.280 kind of grew with a show. And it's been it's 0:20:01.280 --> 0:20:04.320 been amazing ten years now. It's so funny. The biggest 0:20:04.440 --> 0:20:08.679 job of your life happened because you had prepared up 0:20:08.760 --> 0:20:12.200 until that moment. But when you got there, you use 0:20:12.280 --> 0:20:15.080 the key analogy the other day, tell us about the 0:20:15.160 --> 0:20:16.919 key and now, I mean, this is this is exactly 0:20:17.000 --> 0:20:19.280 what happened with you in American You know what the 0:20:19.359 --> 0:20:21.600 key analogy is? Like, you know how when you're trying 0:20:21.760 --> 0:20:24.040 so hard to find your chees and like, I gotta 0:20:24.080 --> 0:20:25.480 find my keys. I gotta find my keys, and you 0:20:25.480 --> 0:20:28.159 can't look in your tearing up the whole place. But 0:20:28.280 --> 0:20:30.800 the minute you relax and you just like, forget it. 0:20:30.840 --> 0:20:33.720 I'm just gonna let it come to me. Um, and 0:20:33.760 --> 0:20:36.520 then it comes it just it comes right to you, 0:20:36.520 --> 0:20:38.280 you know what I mean. And that's what happened when 0:20:38.280 --> 0:20:42.720 in the word man, incredible, incredible story. Yeah. Thanks, um, okay, 0:20:42.720 --> 0:20:45.800 So I'm gonna ask you what's your favorite food? My 0:20:45.880 --> 0:20:49.320