WEBVTT - Jerome Bettis 0:00:00.360 --> 0:00:02.600 This is cut to It with Steve Smith Senior at 0:00:02.640 --> 0:00:08.879 production of The Black Effect and I Heart Radio. I'm 0:00:08.920 --> 0:00:11.680 Steve Smith Senior and I'm a little John and this 0:00:11.800 --> 0:00:15.640 is cut to it. Good do it, Good do it. 0:00:16.120 --> 0:00:19.520 Let's getting down to do it. Good do it. We 0:00:19.560 --> 0:00:22.880 asked the questions you always want to know, but no 0:00:22.920 --> 0:00:29.200 one ever asked, let's cut to it. You heard them 0:00:29.200 --> 0:00:35.080 about it, then we're about to let you know. It's all. 0:00:40.479 --> 0:00:42.680 You know what, You're acting real funny with that black 0:00:43.080 --> 0:00:48.800 T shirt. It's like your bulletproof vest. Good afternoon, Good morning, 0:00:48.840 --> 0:00:51.400 wherever you are listening to the cut to a podcast. 0:00:52.200 --> 0:00:57.080 I am Steve Smith Senior, Little John backstage, Joe say hello, 0:00:57.200 --> 0:01:00.960 hello everybody. Alright, So got a little banger going on, 0:01:01.400 --> 0:01:06.160 opening up and a couple of weeks ago last week. 0:01:06.200 --> 0:01:09.480 Whichever way you, whichever way you are listening, because you 0:01:09.520 --> 0:01:13.640 can download this podcast anytime anywhere. Uh, this may be 0:01:13.720 --> 0:01:16.600 a new episode for you, or this may be an 0:01:16.640 --> 0:01:19.839 old episode for some other folks. So had the unique 0:01:19.880 --> 0:01:25.800 opportunity um to go to Montana and did some skin 0:01:26.120 --> 0:01:32.080 and yes, uh you know black man U brother on 0:01:32.120 --> 0:01:37.039 the slopes. Oh yes I was, and I enjoy skin 0:01:37.280 --> 0:01:41.560 because it's a place where I can be myself. I 0:01:41.640 --> 0:01:44.520 am all bumbled up. Nobody knows what color I am. 0:01:44.760 --> 0:01:48.760 I had. You know nothing of my appearance other than 0:01:48.800 --> 0:01:54.240 if I wear some flamboyant pants. I'm just a scared. 0:01:58.040 --> 0:02:01.920 I saw several flamboyant people out there, which was we're 0:02:01.960 --> 0:02:06.200 on the ski slopes and you're in like a onesie 0:02:06.320 --> 0:02:10.000 that like your Olympic, Like you're in the Olympics, like 0:02:10.040 --> 0:02:12.959 you win to win the game. But I saw the 0:02:13.080 --> 0:02:15.959 dou fall. So look, your outfit didn't match a game. 0:02:15.960 --> 0:02:20.400 It wasn't good for his aero dynamics. Yeah, yeah, he 0:02:20.440 --> 0:02:24.400 looked good, but he didn't play good. So but one 0:02:24.400 --> 0:02:28.800 of the things that was really cool is I normally, 0:02:28.840 --> 0:02:32.079 because of my job with NFL Network, I normally travel 0:02:33.639 --> 0:02:38.880 round trip. I probably take about twenty to thirty flights 0:02:38.880 --> 0:02:43.480 a year. Since COVID has happened, this is my second 0:02:43.560 --> 0:02:49.960 flight in ten months, and it was really interesting because 0:02:49.960 --> 0:02:54.560 it was for the first time in ten months, I 0:02:54.680 --> 0:02:59.600 felt somewhat back to normal. I got up, I had 0:02:59.600 --> 0:03:02.440 a desk, a nation, had to go through security, I 0:03:02.520 --> 0:03:06.320 had something that was prior ten months ago. It was 0:03:06.360 --> 0:03:09.080 just everyday occurrence. I get on airplane on Wednesday, go 0:03:09.200 --> 0:03:12.600 Thursday night football. Depend on what time I'll leave. Friday, 0:03:12.680 --> 0:03:14.680 I may have another I go home back to Charlotte. 0:03:14.720 --> 0:03:18.160 I go somewhere else, uh to another game. But that 0:03:18.280 --> 0:03:23.880 was my normal routine. COVID stopped my normal routine. So 0:03:23.880 --> 0:03:27.720 I thought it was really cool that I experienced something normal. 0:03:28.160 --> 0:03:32.119 So my question to you, Gerard, is since COVID is hit, 0:03:32.680 --> 0:03:35.920 what have you been able to do that actually makes 0:03:35.920 --> 0:03:40.800 you feel like things are getting back to normal for you? 0:03:43.120 --> 0:03:46.480 That's I've been waiting, and Joe, think of yours to 0:03:46.640 --> 0:03:50.960 player because you up next. I mean, that question is 0:03:51.000 --> 0:03:55.720 tough because right there, there is no more normal. So 0:03:56.160 --> 0:03:59.600 I'm talking about the bare bowls normal. I had told Joe. 0:04:00.440 --> 0:04:02.440 I had said, man, it's good just to be out 0:04:02.760 --> 0:04:05.880 going through security. The only thing was normal. What's normal 0:04:05.960 --> 0:04:08.120 for you may not be normal for someone may not 0:04:08.160 --> 0:04:10.720 be someone normal for someone else. Do ask him what's 0:04:10.800 --> 0:04:15.880 normal for him. I'm just trying to, But but I'm 0:04:16.000 --> 0:04:18.040 That's what I'm saying there is that What my point 0:04:18.120 --> 0:04:20.920 is that there is no more normal right so normal 0:04:21.000 --> 0:04:23.600 for me is going home playing with my kids. But 0:04:23.640 --> 0:04:25.240 I was doing that prior to COVID. I got a 0:04:25.320 --> 0:04:27.640 chance to do that more right, so that that bring 0:04:27.800 --> 0:04:31.039 that resents me. But in terms that everything you're saying 0:04:31.120 --> 0:04:34.760 is you have not had that normal button maybe pushed 0:04:34.800 --> 0:04:38.000 for you yet. No, because there is no more normal 0:04:38.200 --> 0:04:44.440 right like this, Well that's right. I I totally disagree 0:04:44.480 --> 0:04:47.440 with that statement. Is no more normal? We can agree 0:04:47.440 --> 0:04:52.520 to disagree. Here's why this virus has altered some things, 0:04:52.640 --> 0:04:56.480 but at the same time, it has not altered who 0:04:56.520 --> 0:05:00.200 we are and and so and I'm saying normal, don't 0:05:00.240 --> 0:05:04.880 mean that it was refreshing to me to actually get 0:05:04.920 --> 0:05:09.440 to do something that was kind of back to what 0:05:09.480 --> 0:05:12.080 I was used to. And I'm not talking about the traveling. 0:05:12.240 --> 0:05:16.760 I'm just talking about just getting up finally with a 0:05:16.880 --> 0:05:24.200 destination that is not grocery store, bathroom, Uh, taking the 0:05:24.279 --> 0:05:26.440 kids school or dropping them off for you know, something 0:05:26.480 --> 0:05:29.880 like that. I'm just talking about, like, hey, the world 0:05:30.520 --> 0:05:33.680 has started to turn a little bit. And that's what 0:05:33.720 --> 0:05:36.000 I mean by normal. And so I think to some 0:05:36.160 --> 0:05:38.320 degree you haven't hit that button yet. That's what I'm 0:05:38.360 --> 0:05:42.360 just saying, Like we're we're just different opinion, right, But 0:05:42.400 --> 0:05:45.640 because I'll see that it's it's it's not really normal. 0:05:45.720 --> 0:05:50.720 Right now and it's not. But I got I gotta 0:05:50.760 --> 0:05:52.640 you gotta go, you got a chance to break. I 0:05:52.640 --> 0:05:55.880 gotta slice. I got a slice of the normal pie 0:05:56.800 --> 0:06:00.479 that I'm being honest. Ten months ago, I didn't appreciate it. Yeah, 0:06:00.640 --> 0:06:04.520 I didn't going through security tess a whatever you know, 0:06:05.360 --> 0:06:07.000 Uh well I have t s a because I don't 0:06:07.000 --> 0:06:10.400 feel like stripping down, have to halfway uh you know, 0:06:10.760 --> 0:06:14.520 down to to whatever, right and they checking your cords 0:06:14.560 --> 0:06:18.080 and all this stuff. Like I I dropped my son 0:06:18.120 --> 0:06:20.960 off at school, I ran, I drove up to the 0:06:21.000 --> 0:06:25.600 airport and I was like, huh wow. I was looking 0:06:26.520 --> 0:06:31.120 at things as if it was my first time here. 0:06:31.560 --> 0:06:38.040 It was. I was like, wow a gate. Oh, it's 0:06:38.080 --> 0:06:41.400 really the first time Steve's ever been excited going through security, 0:06:41.760 --> 0:06:43.520 like he was pumped up about He's like, I'm going 0:06:43.560 --> 0:06:46.720 through security right now. It was that maybe that'll hit 0:06:46.760 --> 0:06:49.200 me like whenever you go back to a football game 0:06:49.279 --> 0:06:51.880 or a basketball game or something to where that's not 0:06:51.960 --> 0:06:55.000 part of normal life, right, So maybe that'll hit then, 0:06:55.080 --> 0:06:57.200 But for right now, like, no, I guess I really 0:06:57.200 --> 0:07:00.360 haven't had what you're talking about. I probably have happy 0:07:00.600 --> 0:07:04.440 slice of normal. So here's my challenge to you, friend, brother, 0:07:05.160 --> 0:07:07.080 try to find something in the next couple of weeks, 0:07:08.120 --> 0:07:11.000 you and that you and me and somebody where you 0:07:11.200 --> 0:07:15.280 just get a little slice of normal. Maybe it's, you know, 0:07:15.520 --> 0:07:21.480 with all the protocols going bowling, or just something normal, like, bro, 0:07:21.600 --> 0:07:24.520 I've gotten so much. I want to say so much, 0:07:24.840 --> 0:07:28.600 but it probably is. We've gotten so much takeout food, 0:07:29.360 --> 0:07:32.800 but just to sit in a restaurant, right, I guess 0:07:32.800 --> 0:07:36.640 like man, I forgot about that. Okay, I'll give you one. 0:07:36.680 --> 0:07:38.840 When we uh, we all three of us had a 0:07:38.880 --> 0:07:41.240 chance to kick back and watch the National Championship. Yeah, 0:07:41.280 --> 0:07:43.360 but that was probably the piece of normal because you know, 0:07:43.400 --> 0:07:47.160 you can't really gather amongst large groups, right, so for 0:07:47.240 --> 0:07:51.560 us to be able to last year, but that was 0:07:51.640 --> 0:07:54.080 what was what was last year normal, but that was 0:07:54.160 --> 0:07:59.280 normal this year we watched it in office. So going 0:07:59.320 --> 0:08:02.800 back to that question, you know, my normal right now 0:08:03.520 --> 0:08:06.440 it is this podcast because we've been doing it through COVID. 0:08:06.520 --> 0:08:09.480 So my current normal is I work on guests all 0:08:09.520 --> 0:08:11.960 week long and then you know, we formulate questions and 0:08:11.960 --> 0:08:14.560 moving forward and then we come in here on Tuesdays. 0:08:14.600 --> 0:08:18.239 But getting back to the normalcy, you know, backstage Joe's 0:08:18.320 --> 0:08:20.200 nine to five gig because you know, Steve Smith don't 0:08:20.240 --> 0:08:21.960 be paying a whole bunch of money to do this podcast, 0:08:21.960 --> 0:08:25.480 so I gotta get another gig. So just going on. 0:08:27.640 --> 0:08:32.320 I'm just saying, like minimum being raised. We got a 0:08:32.320 --> 0:08:33.880 new man in the White House and it's going up. 0:08:33.920 --> 0:08:35.600 That's all I'm saying. He's giving you a look like 0:08:35.600 --> 0:08:40.679 he wants you to move along. Okay, rewind Okay, so 0:08:40.760 --> 0:08:42.880 Steve pays well, but just in case I want to 0:08:42.880 --> 0:08:47.200 do something extra backstage, Joe's nine to five is like 0:08:47.840 --> 0:08:50.720 getting back to seeing my customers in my in my 0:08:50.840 --> 0:08:53.760 normal company. Um so, you know, talking to them and 0:08:53.800 --> 0:08:57.240 actually scheduling visits to jump on a plane to go 0:08:57.320 --> 0:09:01.800 see somebody, because that is exciting because you know, I remember, man, 0:09:01.960 --> 0:09:04.440 I don't want to go to work today. I don't 0:09:04.440 --> 0:09:06.200 want to do this. But now it's like whoa, Like 0:09:06.280 --> 0:09:08.560 I'm excited to get out there and you're gonnaly do 0:09:08.640 --> 0:09:12.400 so much on Zoom, you know, jumping on a plane 0:09:12.400 --> 0:09:14.880 and going that face to face. You know, from a 0:09:15.000 --> 0:09:19.480 sales perspective, nothing beats getting there and sitting down with 0:09:19.520 --> 0:09:22.000 your customer or your client or your friend and being 0:09:22.040 --> 0:09:26.480 able to have that conversation so well, Um, who we 0:09:26.520 --> 0:09:28.880 got coming up on the Cut to It Podcast. We've 0:09:28.920 --> 0:09:32.640 got Jerome the Bus Bettist induct into the Hall of 0:09:32.640 --> 0:09:36.040 Fame and he won a super Bowl with the Steelers, 0:09:36.320 --> 0:09:39.440 drafted by the Rams. One of the all time best 0:09:39.520 --> 0:09:42.400 running backs in the NFL history. Jerome Bettist on the 0:09:42.440 --> 0:09:54.400 Cut to It Podcast, Thanks for having me. Appreciate it. Guys, 0:09:55.080 --> 0:09:58.960 we appreciate you even more. Our first segment, it's called 0:09:58.960 --> 0:10:01.040 get iced Up. So, just like anything else, you gotta 0:10:01.040 --> 0:10:02.959 get warmed up, you gotta get ready. But it's gott 0:10:03.040 --> 0:10:05.080 we do a play on words, and so just like 0:10:05.080 --> 0:10:08.880 Smithy's famous saying ice up, son, we gotta get your 0:10:09.000 --> 0:10:11.680 iced up. So it's a series of ice breakers. There 0:10:11.720 --> 0:10:13.400 may or may not be follow ups. You don't know 0:10:13.440 --> 0:10:15.599 what's coming, neither do I. So Smithie go ahead and 0:10:15.600 --> 0:10:18.800 give him the first one. What's your favorite comfort food? 0:10:20.240 --> 0:10:26.320 Favorite company? Potential chips? Probably okay with flavor? Um, I'm 0:10:26.360 --> 0:10:32.520 a Ruffles guy, Ruffles, sour cream barbar your favorite favor? 0:10:32.679 --> 0:10:40.280 First chat a guy, I can tell you got that 0:10:40.320 --> 0:10:44.320 you got that tower three? Actually, I'm a salt and pepper. 0:10:47.400 --> 0:10:53.800 I bet you Okay? Moving on moving on all right 0:10:53.840 --> 0:10:59.680 with I said, we're taking shots off the gate. Yeah, 0:10:59.720 --> 0:11:01.320 this this is my guy. Oh, this is my guy. 0:11:01.360 --> 0:11:04.920 So we were pretty deep. Uh the you know, obviously 0:11:04.960 --> 0:11:08.640 with everything going on, travel has not been up the 0:11:08.760 --> 0:11:12.640 standard in which people are used to. So where's the 0:11:12.760 --> 0:11:19.360 last place you traveled? Pre COVID, pre COVID our last 0:11:19.400 --> 0:11:23.480 year pre code pre covid. We went to I'm kind 0:11:23.520 --> 0:11:28.319 of think where we go. Um, yeah, you know you 0:11:28.360 --> 0:11:31.240 should open book test bro, It's it's no man, I'm 0:11:31.240 --> 0:11:38.640 trying to your's your life. But ship, you know, we 0:11:38.679 --> 0:11:47.640 went to um you I know I need I need that. Um. 0:11:47.679 --> 0:11:51.040 I mean you ain't pol like it was, you know 0:11:51.080 --> 0:11:56.880 hershey Parker's house. I mean, goodness, gracious it was damn man, 0:11:57.840 --> 0:12:01.920 I can't remember. So there's there's so he was in 0:12:01.960 --> 0:12:07.760 the Caribbean. In the Caribbean, just yea, I'm just I'm 0:12:07.800 --> 0:12:16.000 going I'm going with the Caribbean. So you got CT 0:12:16.679 --> 0:12:28.880 and then you got co F Camember terrible. This is 0:12:28.920 --> 0:12:31.360 a legend. This is it's a leger. But he still 0:12:31.400 --> 0:12:33.439 can't remember the last time. I can't remember, right, he 0:12:33.559 --> 0:12:37.640 still came. Look he got three sports illustrated magazines on 0:12:37.679 --> 0:12:40.240 the back. But he don't know. In the last place 0:12:40.559 --> 0:12:51.440 he took a vacation, he tried to get that time. Yeah, 0:12:52.280 --> 0:12:54.439 me to find out right now, I'm get to the 0:12:54.440 --> 0:13:01.560 bottom of this. Is gonna bother him until he finds it. Day. Yeah, 0:13:02.160 --> 0:13:04.480 I'm on a zoom car. But I got a question 0:13:04.520 --> 0:13:08.800 for you. We go vacation, vacation with the neighbors right 0:13:08.840 --> 0:13:15.120 before COVID. I'm talking about daughter. She's worse. You don't 0:13:15.120 --> 0:13:18.080 want to embarrass himself to his wife? This is amazing. 0:13:18.400 --> 0:13:21.319 I can't. I can't call my wife. I don't want 0:13:21.320 --> 0:13:27.440 to lose that. I want to preach she she can't 0:13:27.440 --> 0:13:30.960 even remember. That's how bad it was. He alright, you 0:13:31.000 --> 0:13:33.960 need another lifeline. I know, right, I need to call 0:13:34.040 --> 0:13:39.760 somebody else. I'm believing. There we go Turks and cakes. Okay, 0:13:39.880 --> 0:13:45.040 I was gonna pull the audiero Turks and cake coast Man, 0:13:45.080 --> 0:13:46.760 it was all right. I mean, you don't remember that one. 0:13:47.040 --> 0:13:50.160 I didn't even remember that. That just helps my narrative 0:13:50.200 --> 0:13:55.720 of why I don't like the cribbian. Why oh yeah, yeah, 0:13:56.000 --> 0:13:58.640 you call the dinner's five hours. Don't we have a 0:13:58.640 --> 0:14:04.520 group beyond tim no worried? Everything is a little slower everything. 0:14:05.120 --> 0:14:07.439 When I'm on vacation. For dinner, I got a lot 0:14:07.440 --> 0:14:13.440 of worries my stomach. So, Jerome, what's your most important meal? Breakfast, 0:14:13.640 --> 0:14:18.559 lunch or dinner? Well, you know what, it's to two 0:14:18.640 --> 0:14:23.280 different deals here. My my favorite meal is breakfast. My 0:14:23.360 --> 0:14:30.400 most important meal. Uh, it's probably lunch. Why lunch, because 0:14:30.840 --> 0:14:33.000 sometimes I don't get I don't get I don't eat 0:14:33.040 --> 0:14:37.360 breakfast because I'm moving. And then sometimes dinner is you know, 0:14:38.240 --> 0:14:41.360 you can have a big dinner sometimes, like when it's lunch, 0:14:41.440 --> 0:14:44.360 is really that one that that's a staple for Me's 0:14:44.400 --> 0:14:47.200 like if I don't have a good lunch, then I'm 0:14:47.360 --> 0:14:50.040 having a bad day. It's it's kind of one of 0:14:50.040 --> 0:14:52.320 those things. So I think lunch is the most important, 0:14:52.520 --> 0:14:55.320 but it's not the favorite. Give me a Hall of fame, 0:14:55.440 --> 0:15:02.720 Jerome bettest breakfast probably pancakes, scrambled eggs with cheese, a 0:15:02.760 --> 0:15:06.320 little uh crispy bacon, uh and some hash brown That 0:15:06.320 --> 0:15:09.200 would be it. I'm winning. That's all you need, man. 0:15:09.240 --> 0:15:14.680 Sometimes pancakes like flapjacks or no, y'all, just yeah, just 0:15:14.680 --> 0:15:19.680 just the you know, the buttermilk pancakes. That's all I need. 0:15:20.080 --> 0:15:23.360 Silver dollars. Boom, We're good, regular dago. That's all you need. 0:15:23.440 --> 0:15:28.200 That's it. Keep itself stupid. You gonna kiss kiss breakfast, alright, 0:15:28.440 --> 0:15:30.640 And I don't know how you gonna take this, but 0:15:30.680 --> 0:15:33.080 we're gonna ahead and do it. Uh, bust your greyhound 0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:40.840 bus tripping? Man, Come on, man, you know that. Come on, man, 0:15:41.160 --> 0:15:46.560 But you know you're old enough. So what was your 0:15:46.560 --> 0:15:51.920 first greyhound trip though? Because because you from you from 0:15:51.960 --> 0:15:56.120 Detroit and from and I know y'all wouldn't hop on 0:15:56.200 --> 0:15:59.760 the airplane, not in the de no plane. I don't 0:15:59.800 --> 0:16:04.080 know what airplane was. Man. Um my first, my first 0:16:04.120 --> 0:16:10.200 grandhound trip. We went to Toronto. Um, and that was 0:16:10.280 --> 0:16:14.360 in in middle school. I was in middle school, so 0:16:14.440 --> 0:16:17.360 I was that was the first time, uh, jumping on, 0:16:17.640 --> 0:16:19.840 jumping on the greyhound going up there. And it was 0:16:19.880 --> 0:16:23.200 actually for school. It was a school school trip that 0:16:23.320 --> 0:16:26.880 they took us all up there, uh in middle school 0:16:27.240 --> 0:16:30.560 and it was it was yeah, I'll never forget it 0:16:30.600 --> 0:16:36.040 because I saw the the spaghetti factory for the first time. 0:16:36.080 --> 0:16:39.040 I was like, man, I so we ate at the 0:16:39.040 --> 0:16:42.640 spaghetti factory and so I always remember that trip because 0:16:43.400 --> 0:16:45.960 I ate at the spaghetti factory and I was like, man, 0:16:46.040 --> 0:16:49.840 this is good. I remember that. It might have actually 0:16:49.840 --> 0:16:52.680 it might have been a bowling trip too, because as 0:16:52.720 --> 0:16:54.960 a kid I was I was a big bowler, and 0:16:55.040 --> 0:16:58.600 so we went all over the country bowling at that age. 0:16:58.920 --> 0:17:01.680 I know, I went to can the City, I went 0:17:01.760 --> 0:17:06.040 to all over the state of Michigan. I went to 0:17:06.400 --> 0:17:12.639 um outside of Chicago, all those places bowling. At twelve 0:17:12.720 --> 0:17:14.800 years old, I was one of the top twelve year 0:17:14.840 --> 0:17:17.080 old kids in the country. So we were going all 0:17:17.119 --> 0:17:20.320 over the place bowling and everybody so did it, like 0:17:20.359 --> 0:17:25.520 a parent have to Yeah, yeah, parents, the parents, our parents, 0:17:25.840 --> 0:17:29.679 one of my parents would come usually on on every trip, 0:17:30.000 --> 0:17:32.600 and it was usually on the weekend, so we would leave, 0:17:33.200 --> 0:17:35.720 we would leave Friday after school and we would get 0:17:35.760 --> 0:17:39.280 back Sunday night. So it was never really that long. 0:17:39.400 --> 0:17:42.600 So it was always you know, and and it was 0:17:42.680 --> 0:17:44.760 kind of like a tournament season at a certain time 0:17:44.800 --> 0:17:46.359 of the year that we would all we would do 0:17:46.440 --> 0:17:48.880 this after we would go through our leagues and all 0:17:48.880 --> 0:17:51.560 that kind of stuff, and then you do the state 0:17:51.680 --> 0:17:54.320 the state tournaments, and then you do all go all 0:17:54.359 --> 0:17:57.480 over the country for the for the big ones. All right, 0:17:57.520 --> 0:18:00.200 let's get let's get right into it. Man, that's that's 0:18:00.000 --> 0:18:03.840 it's cool. You know your favorite sports team growing up 0:18:05.040 --> 0:18:13.960 that is Cowboys. Right. Well, well here's why though, I'm 0:18:14.040 --> 0:18:16.119 explain you right because it kind of leads back to 0:18:16.200 --> 0:18:20.160 my my last story. I bowled, right, so we bowed 0:18:20.200 --> 0:18:23.680 on the weekend. So I've never watched um college football 0:18:23.880 --> 0:18:26.720 and I didn't watch pro football. The only times I 0:18:26.760 --> 0:18:29.200 watched football was on Thanksgiving and the only two games 0:18:29.200 --> 0:18:31.840 to the teams that played with Dallas in the line 0:18:32.080 --> 0:18:36.359 right from Detroit. But we lost every every day Thanksgiving. 0:18:36.600 --> 0:18:39.000 So I was always wonder why I was born with 0:18:39.000 --> 0:18:41.440 the team that was because I'm like, man, I'm not 0:18:41.520 --> 0:18:44.920 gonna cheer for this loser every everything given. So I 0:18:45.040 --> 0:18:48.080 was cheer for the Cowboys. And so my brother, who 0:18:48.119 --> 0:18:50.840 was the order mean he started he became a die 0:18:50.880 --> 0:18:54.159 hard Stealer fan, and I hated the Stealers. So in 0:18:54.200 --> 0:18:58.159 a bit of irony, I get to the to the 0:18:58.200 --> 0:19:00.560 Steelers and it was the team that I it the most, 0:19:00.800 --> 0:19:03.560 and the one player I hated the most of all 0:19:04.240 --> 0:19:07.560 was Franco Harris, and he became one of my closest friends. 0:19:07.560 --> 0:19:09.520 And it was just kind of like when I when 0:19:09.520 --> 0:19:11.120 I got a chance and said I don't have dinner 0:19:11.119 --> 0:19:13.160 with him the first time. I said, Franco on one 0:19:13.200 --> 0:19:16.760 to truth, Man, I hated you when the Hittri come 0:19:16.840 --> 0:19:19.960 from because they used to beat the Cowboys and he 0:19:20.040 --> 0:19:24.000 was always the guy. He was the man. He would 0:19:24.080 --> 0:19:27.119 he I mean, it never failed. He would, you know, 0:19:27.440 --> 0:19:32.000 break our hearts. Man. And so I hated Franco um 0:19:32.040 --> 0:19:34.400 and so I told him, I said, Man, I never 0:19:34.480 --> 0:19:37.440 liked you when I was a kid. Man And I said, 0:19:37.440 --> 0:19:39.800 I love you now, man, but I just couldn't stand you. 0:19:40.040 --> 0:19:41.960 So he laughed, He laughed about it. We had a 0:19:41.960 --> 0:19:43.560 great talk about it, but it was it was one 0:19:43.560 --> 0:19:47.000 of those I was a Dallas Cowboys fan. New House 0:19:47.359 --> 0:19:55.480 man Man. Man. Well, so obviously based off our conversation, Um, 0:19:55.640 --> 0:19:58.679 your other sports and I'm not really sure if I 0:19:58.720 --> 0:20:02.679 can really call him the sport? What is bowling? So 0:20:02.760 --> 0:20:04.440 you have you don't know if you can call it 0:20:04.480 --> 0:20:09.440 a sport? Stop that, man, that's wrong. Man. They bowl 0:20:09.560 --> 0:20:13.600 all over the world. Man, that's terrible, terrible. You don't 0:20:13.600 --> 0:20:15.879 know if it's a sport. No, I got you. I 0:20:15.960 --> 0:20:18.800 just don't that nicking the sport. Yeah, they call it 0:20:18.840 --> 0:20:20.960 that a sport. So you're gonna just you're gonna you 0:20:21.000 --> 0:20:24.320 just count bowling. That's you really think I played back Manton, 0:20:25.080 --> 0:20:30.879 of course not. That's the banging on bowling. I wasn't 0:20:30.920 --> 0:20:35.080 banging on bullet I just don't know. Okay, Well, we 0:20:35.200 --> 0:20:39.240 have the you know what, man almost because drink beer 0:20:39.680 --> 0:20:42.439 and you can have a pop belly. You don't have 0:20:42.480 --> 0:20:48.920 to look like an We have to take a break 0:20:49.400 --> 0:20:52.600 and the morning thing. We gotta pay some bills. You 0:20:52.720 --> 0:21:00.160 got checks. I love cut to It, and I love 0:21:00.160 --> 0:21:04.280 it even more when you download us and subscribe, and 0:21:04.760 --> 0:21:06.960 you can follow us on social media too, Smithie, where 0:21:07.000 --> 0:21:09.919 where at? That's at? Cut to It on Instagram? What 0:21:10.040 --> 0:21:15.159 about Twitter? At? Cut to It Facebook? Cut to It 0:21:15.240 --> 0:21:19.080 featuring Steve Smith singr? What about online? And you can 0:21:19.119 --> 0:21:21.800 follow us at cut to It podcast dot com where 0:21:22.000 --> 0:21:24.919 you can buy merch and you can subscribe to us 0:21:24.920 --> 0:21:30.120 wherever you listen to podcasts. I got all my answers questions. Um, yeah, 0:21:30.320 --> 0:21:33.639 I got all my questions answered. That's what I'm here for, 0:21:33.680 --> 0:21:37.440 a brother, cut to a Podcast dot com. I think 0:21:37.440 --> 0:21:39.280 we know where you're from, but we like to ask 0:21:39.440 --> 0:21:43.280 where are you from in the place you call your hometown. 0:21:44.320 --> 0:21:49.240 I am from Detroit, Michigan. The d that's that's home, 0:21:49.960 --> 0:21:52.680 always has been, always will be. That's home for me. 0:21:53.440 --> 0:21:56.920 And how had it growing up in Detroit, Michigan. Um, 0:21:57.119 --> 0:21:59.840 I mean it was challenging. What are you challenging? That's 0:21:59.840 --> 0:22:02.680 what I would say. What do you mean? How is 0:22:02.720 --> 0:22:06.600 the challenging? Particularly for you? It was challenging for me 0:22:06.680 --> 0:22:09.560 because of the environment that we were in. I mean 0:22:09.640 --> 0:22:13.520 we were you know, it was there was the late eighties, um, 0:22:13.640 --> 0:22:18.359 and so drugs was rampant. Crime was was rampant still is. 0:22:18.440 --> 0:22:20.240 I mean if you go back in the inner city 0:22:20.359 --> 0:22:24.760 trade right now is still uh a difficult place to 0:22:24.880 --> 0:22:27.919 grow up. But but I will say that that, you know, 0:22:28.240 --> 0:22:33.320 it really helped me develop as a person. Uh. I 0:22:33.359 --> 0:22:37.800 grew thick skin really quick. I found out that, you know, 0:22:38.760 --> 0:22:41.560 we didn't have a lot of money. We had a 0:22:41.600 --> 0:22:44.640 lot of love in the house. But I realized that, 0:22:44.680 --> 0:22:47.280 you know, once I left, I realized as we were poor. 0:22:47.840 --> 0:22:50.080 When I was there, I thought we were we were 0:22:50.240 --> 0:22:53.800 we were all right because you know, the houses next 0:22:53.800 --> 0:22:55.960 to us, everybody kind of had the same things. And 0:22:56.320 --> 0:22:58.959 you didn't realize that the house that we grew up 0:22:58.960 --> 0:23:01.840 to grew up at my either had a mortgage on it, 0:23:02.040 --> 0:23:06.320 and and when I signed, I bought the house and 0:23:06.320 --> 0:23:09.720 and realized that the house costs six dollars and my 0:23:09.840 --> 0:23:13.879 dad at thirty year mortgage, and it's like what, Um, 0:23:13.920 --> 0:23:16.320 But then you realized that we didn't we didn't have 0:23:16.359 --> 0:23:19.359 a whole lot, and so it was it was tough, 0:23:19.440 --> 0:23:22.320 but it was I wouldn't have have wanted it any 0:23:22.320 --> 0:23:25.440 other way. We had a very close fan family. UM. 0:23:25.480 --> 0:23:27.560 And that's how we grew up and and that kind 0:23:27.560 --> 0:23:30.200 of made me the person I was that I became 0:23:30.720 --> 0:23:34.480 in terms of physical, tough uh, tough minded it came 0:23:34.560 --> 0:23:39.840 from growing up in Detroit. What everything you experienced, how 0:23:39.840 --> 0:23:42.960 did it shape your view on how you see the 0:23:43.000 --> 0:23:47.280 world today? And before you answer, I want to kind 0:23:47.280 --> 0:23:51.040 of not necessarily talk about the accolades, but you know, 0:23:51.160 --> 0:23:54.399 you go back and think about Detroit. How has it 0:23:54.600 --> 0:23:59.080 shaped your life? How you see it today? Going through everything? 0:23:59.119 --> 0:24:02.919 Because going through what you've been through, there were times 0:24:02.960 --> 0:24:08.359 where you either responded, you withdrew or you rose up 0:24:09.280 --> 0:24:16.879 based on your Detroit DNA. What has shaped your molded you, 0:24:17.000 --> 0:24:19.879 that's carved you into the which I believe is a 0:24:19.920 --> 0:24:24.199 strong man. A prominent example someone that I've looked up to, 0:24:25.600 --> 0:24:28.399 and I really want to know, Like, I'm honored that 0:24:28.480 --> 0:24:31.920 you came on our podcast, but I can I care 0:24:31.960 --> 0:24:37.000 about your NFL career. But I'm really intrigued and almost 0:24:37.040 --> 0:24:40.879 like this is a this is storybook time of the drone. 0:24:40.880 --> 0:24:43.560 Better is the man. So that's what I want to 0:24:43.600 --> 0:24:46.560 know about you? Is Detroit shaped you? And how you 0:24:46.600 --> 0:24:51.960 see today? After a long, well traveled, decorated NFL and 0:24:52.040 --> 0:24:56.119 also decorated black Man, I'm gonna go back to my 0:24:56.320 --> 0:24:59.439 football beginning because not a lot of people, you know, 0:24:59.480 --> 0:25:02.159 some people know I didn't play football until high school 0:25:02.760 --> 0:25:04.840 because I was bold, and so I made a decision 0:25:04.920 --> 0:25:09.400 in eighth grade that I was going to pursue uh 0:25:09.560 --> 0:25:12.680 football because I wanted to get a scholarship. The only 0:25:12.680 --> 0:25:15.240 reason I played football was to get myself a chance 0:25:15.280 --> 0:25:19.119 to get a scholarship. So, um, I was a pretty 0:25:19.160 --> 0:25:21.720 smart kid brought out. I was National Honor Society all that. 0:25:22.240 --> 0:25:25.239 But I had an older brother, older sister, and I 0:25:25.320 --> 0:25:30.119 knew if it if school was anything like me getting 0:25:30.359 --> 0:25:33.480 my school closed, I was gonna be last and I 0:25:33.520 --> 0:25:36.399 was gonna get left out right because I didn't get 0:25:36.440 --> 0:25:39.240 a lot of school closed because my older brother the sister, 0:25:39.320 --> 0:25:42.960 they got the first DIBs. So I said to myself, 0:25:43.119 --> 0:25:45.120 I need to give myself the best chance to get 0:25:45.160 --> 0:25:48.359 to college. So I said, well, you know, maybe you 0:25:48.359 --> 0:25:50.760 know my my uncle who was a high school football coach, 0:25:50.880 --> 0:25:52.679 I thought I could play football. He said, man, you 0:25:53.000 --> 0:25:54.840