1
00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:47,640
Speaker 1: Mh. This is this is the Miller Light Cowboys Hour,

2
00:00:47,880 --> 00:00:51,240
Speaker 1: supported by Albertsons and brought to you by Miller Light,

3
00:00:51,520 --> 00:00:55,920
Speaker 1: the only beer the Cowboys. It's Miller Times, Albertson's and

4
00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:59,920
Speaker 1: Tom Thumb, the official supermarket and pharmacy of the Dallas Cowboy.

5
00:01:00,520 --> 00:01:04,880
Speaker 1: Luke Casey the official bootmaker of the Dallas Cowboys. Blockchain

6
00:01:05,000 --> 00:01:09,600
Speaker 1: dot Com trusted by millions, trusted by America's Team, and

7
00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:13,920
Speaker 1: by Omni Omni Hotels and Resorts, the official hotel of

8
00:01:14,000 --> 00:01:18,920
Speaker 1: the Dallas Cowboys. Now, your hosts, Hailey Sutton and Brad

9
00:01:19,080 --> 00:01:22,240
Speaker 1: Shan welcome everybody. Thanks for joining us tonight on the

10
00:01:22,280 --> 00:01:25,120
Speaker 1: Cowboys Hour. Thank you very much for those of you

11
00:01:25,160 --> 00:01:28,600
Speaker 1: who come out to join us at Kame Rosso in

12
00:01:28,680 --> 00:01:32,800
Speaker 1: the Star District in Frisco. Give yourselves another big round

13
00:01:32,800 --> 00:01:37,120
Speaker 1: of applause, will you. It's cold outside. Everybody's all bummed out.

14
00:01:38,280 --> 00:01:41,800
Speaker 1: You know, maybe the midterms didn't go your way. Who knows,

15
00:01:41,840 --> 00:01:45,280
Speaker 1: I don't know, but we're we are very happy that

16
00:01:45,560 --> 00:01:50,200
Speaker 1: the Victory Monday Fan Club is so adaptable because we

17
00:01:50,880 --> 00:01:55,760
Speaker 1: now have the look ahead to Victory Monday, so which

18
00:01:55,760 --> 00:01:57,960
Speaker 1: could very well be next week. Thank you for coming.

19
00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:01,040
Speaker 1: Thank you wherever you're listening around the Allas Cowboys Radio

20
00:02:01,080 --> 00:02:07,440
Speaker 1: network and wherever you are streaming on Dallas Cowboys dot com.

21
00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:09,880
Speaker 1: And so if you are doing that, you will see

22
00:02:09,919 --> 00:02:13,320
Speaker 1: that Haley and I are delighted to be joined at

23
00:02:13,320 --> 00:02:17,040
Speaker 1: the table by Cowboys quarterback Cooper Rush. Thank you for coming.

24
00:02:17,320 --> 00:02:21,680
Speaker 1: Thanks appreciate it always fun. You don't really mean that

25
00:02:21,680 --> 00:02:24,760
Speaker 1: though they are always fun. You're just not Cooper. You're

26
00:02:24,800 --> 00:02:26,680
Speaker 1: just being nice, Harntie. You don't really want to do

27
00:02:26,720 --> 00:02:29,519
Speaker 1: this anything for you? Yeah, yeah, yeah, you know. Um,

28
00:02:30,320 --> 00:02:32,240
Speaker 1: the I want to I do want to start with

29
00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:37,840
Speaker 1: this because, uh, Cooper and I were talking a little

30
00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:41,560
Speaker 1: bit about this several weeks ago before Dak came back.

31
00:02:41,600 --> 00:02:47,959
Speaker 1: And um, and your your personality, which is somewhat reserved,

32
00:02:49,480 --> 00:02:53,400
Speaker 1: I'm okay on that ground, I might not good does

33
00:02:53,520 --> 00:03:00,680
Speaker 1: not seem to be the quintessential, uh barking out leadership

34
00:03:00,720 --> 00:03:09,400
Speaker 1: instructions quarterback personality. And I was really appreciative of your

35
00:03:10,120 --> 00:03:14,799
Speaker 1: willingness to be introspective and your observations about how, as um,

36
00:03:15,880 --> 00:03:18,200
Speaker 1: maybe a high school player. I think you told me

37
00:03:18,480 --> 00:03:21,079
Speaker 1: if certainly on into Central Michigan, you had to kind

38
00:03:21,080 --> 00:03:24,560
Speaker 1: of you had to kind of force yourself to be

39
00:03:24,680 --> 00:03:28,920
Speaker 1: a little more a little more evocative with your personality.

40
00:03:29,000 --> 00:03:31,040
Speaker 1: Would you talk about that for a minute. Yeah, you

41
00:03:31,080 --> 00:03:33,240
Speaker 1: obviously you grow as a person and you grow you

42
00:03:33,360 --> 00:03:35,880
Speaker 1: kind of you know, find your group, find yourself what works.

43
00:03:37,440 --> 00:03:40,080
Speaker 1: But playing the position, yeah, you you always taut a

44
00:03:40,120 --> 00:03:43,760
Speaker 1: young age leadership verbal blah blah blah blah blah. Right,

45
00:03:43,760 --> 00:03:46,200
Speaker 1: and then uh, you know you get into it. It's

46
00:03:46,200 --> 00:03:48,800
Speaker 1: really what you know, how you prepare and do you

47
00:03:48,840 --> 00:03:52,840
Speaker 1: perform and those three things you know relate to teammates well,

48
00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:56,480
Speaker 1: and so you kind of just over the years got

49
00:03:56,480 --> 00:04:00,840
Speaker 1: better at it. Um. It's funny, Yeah, definitely quiet, shy,

50
00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:02,400
Speaker 1: all that stuff. But you know, when I'm in the

51
00:04:02,480 --> 00:04:05,400
Speaker 1: huddle and with those with those guys in offense, I

52
00:04:05,440 --> 00:04:09,520
Speaker 1: don't I don't feel um reserved, acquire shy. I think

53
00:04:09,520 --> 00:04:11,400
Speaker 1: it's just part of the position. Growing up, you learn it.

54
00:04:11,880 --> 00:04:15,960
Speaker 1: You're in command, they're all looking at you, um forever reason. Um,

55
00:04:16,000 --> 00:04:19,520
Speaker 1: I'm comfortable in that spot. When when did you The

56
00:04:19,560 --> 00:04:22,159
Speaker 1: one thing that you didn't say in there is the

57
00:04:22,200 --> 00:04:26,799
Speaker 1: necessity to communicate and sometimes to just take charge sometimes

58
00:04:27,040 --> 00:04:30,599
Speaker 1: say in in essence you be quiet now, I need

59
00:04:30,640 --> 00:04:34,279
Speaker 1: to talk now, And maybe sometimes in those words. When

60
00:04:34,320 --> 00:04:36,120
Speaker 1: did you realize that that was part of the job.

61
00:04:37,200 --> 00:04:39,000
Speaker 1: Uh yeah, just in college. You know, you're a young

62
00:04:39,080 --> 00:04:42,000
Speaker 1: freshman coming in and there's seniors that play a lot

63
00:04:42,000 --> 00:04:45,320
Speaker 1: of ballum, older guys that you know been around for

64
00:04:45,400 --> 00:04:47,400
Speaker 1: a while, and I mean walk in the huddle, they

65
00:04:47,440 --> 00:04:49,440
Speaker 1: all they all shut up because that's the quarterback. You know.

66
00:04:49,640 --> 00:04:51,760
Speaker 1: It's kind of just the way it football has been forever.

67
00:04:52,360 --> 00:04:54,200
Speaker 1: So it sets it up for you nicely, and then uh,

68
00:04:54,480 --> 00:04:57,360
Speaker 1: you just take charge. That's all those guys want to see. Um.

69
00:04:57,400 --> 00:05:01,039
Speaker 1: So I remember, specifically in college kind of we would

70
00:05:01,080 --> 00:05:03,039
Speaker 1: do the walkthrough. I was red shirt, and we do

71
00:05:03,040 --> 00:05:04,360
Speaker 1: the walk through with the old line. The other guys

72
00:05:04,400 --> 00:05:06,280
Speaker 1: would do the seven on seven walk through the older

73
00:05:06,279 --> 00:05:08,960
Speaker 1: guys and I go down and you got Eric Fisher's

74
00:05:08,960 --> 00:05:10,440
Speaker 1: on that team. I mean, you get some dudes. I

75
00:05:10,520 --> 00:05:13,560
Speaker 1: played a lot of ballum and I'm in there calling

76
00:05:13,560 --> 00:05:15,720
Speaker 1: the plays, barely know what's going on, and old line

77
00:05:15,720 --> 00:05:18,920
Speaker 1: coaches yelling, and uh, you just kind of had to

78
00:05:19,200 --> 00:05:21,320
Speaker 1: learn to take charge. And if you just command it,

79
00:05:21,320 --> 00:05:24,920
Speaker 1: they respect it. Um. We'll talk more about that later.

80
00:05:24,960 --> 00:05:26,760
Speaker 1: I just think it's fascinating. I think it's a really

81
00:05:26,839 --> 00:05:31,640
Speaker 1: interesting character study. But we're we're uh m embarking on

82
00:05:31,720 --> 00:05:36,800
Speaker 1: the return to Minnesota, your your first great triumph relive

83
00:05:36,920 --> 00:05:40,320
Speaker 1: last Halloween for us a little bit may. Yeah, it's uh,

84
00:05:40,320 --> 00:05:43,760
Speaker 1: it's obviously awesome night. Um went up there, got the win,

85
00:05:43,880 --> 00:05:49,160
Speaker 1: first start, Uh in crazy environment. Um, fun game, came

86
00:05:49,200 --> 00:05:51,880
Speaker 1: down to the end. So it'll be fun going back

87
00:05:51,920 --> 00:05:54,200
Speaker 1: for sure. Excited for that big week for us as

88
00:05:54,240 --> 00:05:58,119
Speaker 1: a team. Um, they're just looking back. I mean it's funny.

89
00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:00,400
Speaker 1: I remember almost every play from everything. Have you ever

90
00:06:00,480 --> 00:06:02,400
Speaker 1: play in a game? And forever reason, A lot of

91
00:06:02,440 --> 00:06:05,200
Speaker 1: times I just feel like I blacked out. I can't remember.

92
00:06:05,600 --> 00:06:08,279
Speaker 1: It's like, oh, yeah, that happened, that sequence happened. Uh,

93
00:06:08,320 --> 00:06:10,280
Speaker 1: you're just kind of so hyper focused in the moment.

94
00:06:10,320 --> 00:06:12,560
Speaker 1: As my first time out there, kind of like in

95
00:06:12,600 --> 00:06:14,320
Speaker 1: the NFL things like that. So I think I was

96
00:06:14,360 --> 00:06:17,799
Speaker 1: super just not think about anything else and can remember

97
00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:21,039
Speaker 1: somehself looking back. But it'll be fun to watch the

98
00:06:21,040 --> 00:06:23,560
Speaker 1: game again and then um, you know, kind of get

99
00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:25,640
Speaker 1: onto them this year and see what they're doing now.

100
00:06:25,720 --> 00:06:30,000
Speaker 1: Did whatever your recollection is of what you were experiencing

101
00:06:30,000 --> 00:06:35,120
Speaker 1: in the moment emotionally and putting the emotions aside because

102
00:06:35,160 --> 00:06:37,600
Speaker 1: it was a close game and you had to make plays.

103
00:06:37,960 --> 00:06:43,200
Speaker 1: Do you remember being surprised at how you were feeling

104
00:06:43,240 --> 00:06:46,599
Speaker 1: about being there in the moment, I'll surprise how fast

105
00:06:46,640 --> 00:06:49,560
Speaker 1: it went, Like, holy cow, it's the fourth quarter. Like

106
00:06:49,600 --> 00:06:52,280
Speaker 1: I was like, this is already over. It's like you're

107
00:06:52,320 --> 00:06:54,880
Speaker 1: one game you get to start and it's already almost over.

108
00:06:55,760 --> 00:07:00,520
Speaker 1: I remember that that stood out, but that it was

109
00:07:00,760 --> 00:07:03,360
Speaker 1: just like you're playing ball again. I mean, obviously it's

110
00:07:03,360 --> 00:07:05,719
Speaker 1: a bigger stage, better players, you're playing against better players,

111
00:07:05,720 --> 00:07:07,560
Speaker 1: but I always say, you're playing with the best players

112
00:07:07,560 --> 00:07:08,960
Speaker 1: you ever played with in your life. And that was

113
00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:12,520
Speaker 1: something to kind of, you know, fall back on, you know,

114
00:07:12,600 --> 00:07:15,160
Speaker 1: ease the nerves and just go execute and play ball

115
00:07:15,160 --> 00:07:18,080
Speaker 1: with those guys who make it easy for you. Knowing

116
00:07:18,120 --> 00:07:20,840
Speaker 1: that you had that game in your back pocket. Whenever

117
00:07:20,920 --> 00:07:23,320
Speaker 1: this year happened and you had to step up for Dak,

118
00:07:24,000 --> 00:07:27,400
Speaker 1: how much more prepared were you to get that start

119
00:07:27,400 --> 00:07:31,160
Speaker 1: against Cincinnati. Yeah, that was huge. I mean, let's get

120
00:07:31,160 --> 00:07:33,240
Speaker 1: the first one all the way, just get get your feeway,

121
00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:36,520
Speaker 1: get experience. I mean every rep you're gained some some

122
00:07:36,600 --> 00:07:40,400
Speaker 1: type of experience, and so to do that, you know,

123
00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:42,800
Speaker 1: use it as confidence kind of you know, valid it

124
00:07:42,880 --> 00:07:44,240
Speaker 1: yourself that you can go do this, you can go

125
00:07:44,320 --> 00:07:48,000
Speaker 1: play and try to take that confidence into Cincy and

126
00:07:48,200 --> 00:07:50,800
Speaker 1: after that Sency game, because you just mentioned how fast

127
00:07:50,840 --> 00:07:53,240
Speaker 1: the Vikings game went, did it feel the same when

128
00:07:53,280 --> 00:07:56,560
Speaker 1: Cincinnati was all set and down or did you feel different?

129
00:07:57,560 --> 00:07:59,720
Speaker 1: It felt more normal, like I kind of remember like

130
00:08:00,920 --> 00:08:02,720
Speaker 1: playing in college in high school. So I didn't feel like,

131
00:08:02,720 --> 00:08:04,520
Speaker 1: oh my gosh, it's over already. It was more of

132
00:08:04,520 --> 00:08:08,400
Speaker 1: a normal game nor flow in terms of um, you know,

133
00:08:08,480 --> 00:08:12,160
Speaker 1: playing um. But that was a fun game. We got

134
00:08:12,200 --> 00:08:14,000
Speaker 1: the win, and I was exciting at the end again.

135
00:08:14,520 --> 00:08:17,720
Speaker 1: So I was on our flagship station this morning. I'm

136
00:08:17,760 --> 00:08:22,280
Speaker 1: on the Cowboys Radio Network. I'll give a plug sorry

137
00:08:22,320 --> 00:08:24,480
Speaker 1: to the rest of you around the state in the

138
00:08:24,520 --> 00:08:27,640
Speaker 1: region one oh five three the fan one oh five

139
00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:30,080
Speaker 1: point three the fan in Dallas Fort Worth. And they

140
00:08:30,080 --> 00:08:32,800
Speaker 1: always ask me at the end, do you have a

141
00:08:32,800 --> 00:08:36,760
Speaker 1: players show tonight? They know we do, and I said, yes, Uh,

142
00:08:37,000 --> 00:08:40,719
Speaker 1: we're delighted to have Cooper Russia on tonight. And they said, well,

143
00:08:40,720 --> 00:08:43,680
Speaker 1: you're trying to start a controversy again. Now you're gonna

144
00:08:43,840 --> 00:08:45,839
Speaker 1: now that they lost a game, and now you're gonna

145
00:08:45,840 --> 00:08:48,559
Speaker 1: have I said, what do you do you think that?

146
00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:52,040
Speaker 1: On the plane ride home, I said, here's a good idea.

147
00:08:52,440 --> 00:08:55,160
Speaker 1: They've lost, so let's get Cooper back on right now.

148
00:08:55,440 --> 00:09:02,360
Speaker 1: Are you amused, um, irritated? Wherever it would be along

149
00:09:02,440 --> 00:09:07,200
Speaker 1: the scale of the reaction as you were going through

150
00:09:07,240 --> 00:09:10,360
Speaker 1: those four games of people who said, well, this is

151
00:09:10,400 --> 00:09:11,800
Speaker 1: the guy who needs to be playing all the time.

152
00:09:11,880 --> 00:09:14,560
Speaker 1: Forget about Dak because your relationship with DA's pretty good,

153
00:09:15,640 --> 00:09:17,760
Speaker 1: how did you How did you feel about all of

154
00:09:17,760 --> 00:09:20,400
Speaker 1: that as you heard it? And regga, you can't ignore it. Well,

155
00:09:20,400 --> 00:09:22,320
Speaker 1: we have to. First of all, we have to stop schedule.

156
00:09:22,440 --> 00:09:24,280
Speaker 1: I think I came on after we got shut out

157
00:09:24,360 --> 00:09:27,520
Speaker 1: last year versus denverse, so I think I got a

158
00:09:27,520 --> 00:09:32,280
Speaker 1: little curse going of the show. But Duly noted, Um, no,

159
00:09:32,400 --> 00:09:34,120
Speaker 1: it was funny. I mean you just you don't listen

160
00:09:34,160 --> 00:09:36,320
Speaker 1: to all it, but you see it around and but

161
00:09:36,360 --> 00:09:39,079
Speaker 1: you don't think much of it. Obviously, that's the outside

162
00:09:39,120 --> 00:09:42,320
Speaker 1: world and things. People have fun within, you know, whatever

163
00:09:42,320 --> 00:09:45,240
Speaker 1: they want to do. But when you're in the moment,

164
00:09:45,280 --> 00:09:48,320
Speaker 1: it's week to week, practice by practice rep by literally

165
00:09:48,400 --> 00:09:51,000
Speaker 1: rep by rep of just kind of trying to figure

166
00:09:51,000 --> 00:09:55,000
Speaker 1: it out and get better. How do you disassociate yourself

167
00:09:55,000 --> 00:09:57,040
Speaker 1: from the outside noise, because you know, I feel like

168
00:09:57,080 --> 00:09:58,920
Speaker 1: that's one of those things where it's easier said than done.

169
00:09:58,960 --> 00:10:01,880
Speaker 1: So how do you keep those narratives out of your head,

170
00:10:01,920 --> 00:10:05,360
Speaker 1: out of that locker room? Um? I think what people

171
00:10:05,400 --> 00:10:08,640
Speaker 1: don't realize how easy for professional athletes I think to

172
00:10:08,760 --> 00:10:12,960
Speaker 1: do that. I think they can not to offend people.

173
00:10:13,000 --> 00:10:14,600
Speaker 1: They just don't take a lot of weight with the whole.

174
00:10:15,080 --> 00:10:16,400
Speaker 1: A lot of those words don't mean a lot of

175
00:10:16,400 --> 00:10:19,280
Speaker 1: things to people. But uh, you know, so you're able

176
00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:22,080
Speaker 1: just to focus on what you can do in the

177
00:10:22,080 --> 00:10:24,880
Speaker 1: building with your teammates most of all. That's that's whose

178
00:10:24,920 --> 00:10:28,160
Speaker 1: voices you're listening to. And that's really in my position specifically,

179
00:10:28,200 --> 00:10:30,600
Speaker 1: it was like, are you coming for a few games?

180
00:10:31,200 --> 00:10:34,199
Speaker 1: Number one job was to have respect to those guys

181
00:10:34,200 --> 00:10:36,680
Speaker 1: and do your job, and um, that was the most

182
00:10:36,720 --> 00:10:39,600
Speaker 1: rewarding part. But when it comes from your general manager,

183
00:10:39,679 --> 00:10:42,000
Speaker 1: does it hit different? Do you take it a little

184
00:10:42,000 --> 00:10:45,440
Speaker 1: bit more up to snuff in that degree? I think

185
00:10:45,440 --> 00:10:50,040
Speaker 1: he just enjoyed getting you guys, It's fair. He did. Yes,

186
00:10:50,160 --> 00:10:52,480
Speaker 1: it's one of his one of his very favorite realities,

187
00:10:52,600 --> 00:10:54,560
Speaker 1: one of his very favorite things on the menu as

188
00:10:54,600 --> 00:10:57,720
Speaker 1: a matter of fact. But you guys know that about him, right,

189
00:10:58,040 --> 00:11:00,920
Speaker 1: you know, and you you know that he he wants

190
00:11:00,960 --> 00:11:03,240
Speaker 1: to be friends with every one of you, and he

191
00:11:03,320 --> 00:11:07,679
Speaker 1: wants to stir the pot. How do you adjust to that?

192
00:11:07,800 --> 00:11:10,000
Speaker 1: Or do does someone just give you a little manual

193
00:11:10,080 --> 00:11:12,520
Speaker 1: when you when you make a team, say, by the way,

194
00:11:12,559 --> 00:11:15,320
Speaker 1: it don't worry about anything Jerry says, unless he looks

195
00:11:15,360 --> 00:11:17,680
Speaker 1: you in the eye and says it to you. Yeah, right, exactly.

196
00:11:18,800 --> 00:11:20,720
Speaker 1: For me, I've been here my whole career, so it's

197
00:11:20,760 --> 00:11:22,760
Speaker 1: kind of all I know in terms of you know,

198
00:11:23,880 --> 00:11:26,559
Speaker 1: Jerry's world and Dallas Cowboys and how it works and operates.

199
00:11:26,840 --> 00:11:29,880
Speaker 1: But guys do come in and they notice it's different. Um,

200
00:11:30,400 --> 00:11:32,880
Speaker 1: you know, they adjustin But it's fine. There's no better

201
00:11:32,880 --> 00:11:36,040
Speaker 1: place to play in the town that it matters. An

202
00:11:36,040 --> 00:11:38,960
Speaker 1: owner who loves it, loves football, so it's great. All right,

203
00:11:39,200 --> 00:11:41,040
Speaker 1: one more thing before we take our first break, and

204
00:11:41,080 --> 00:11:44,080
Speaker 1: then I really do want to go back and get

205
00:11:44,120 --> 00:11:46,760
Speaker 1: into the mind of young Cooper Rush who came here

206
00:11:46,800 --> 00:11:49,760
Speaker 1: from Central Michigan, because it's been nice. It's been a

207
00:11:49,840 --> 00:11:52,640
Speaker 1: very interesting evolution for you from that point to this.

208
00:11:52,760 --> 00:11:55,200
Speaker 1: But I was in the locker room after the game

209
00:11:55,520 --> 00:12:01,160
Speaker 1: last night, very quiet, as one would imagine, nobody was

210
00:12:01,720 --> 00:12:06,560
Speaker 1: very pleased about the result. This is a team that

211
00:12:06,920 --> 00:12:09,800
Speaker 1: fortunately has not had to taste a lot of that

212
00:12:09,880 --> 00:12:13,680
Speaker 1: in this first half season. What's your observation about the

213
00:12:13,720 --> 00:12:20,640
Speaker 1: way your team experiences and processes that kind of disappointment. Yeah,

214
00:12:20,720 --> 00:12:24,360
Speaker 1: definitely stung. Yeah, but we talked about in the locker room.

215
00:12:24,520 --> 00:12:27,400
Speaker 1: Coach set it too in there. Uh, you know you

216
00:12:27,440 --> 00:12:30,320
Speaker 1: need those type of games, close games, back and forth,

217
00:12:31,440 --> 00:12:33,679
Speaker 1: abbs and flows. We're down, we're up, we're down, we're up.

218
00:12:33,720 --> 00:12:36,160
Speaker 1: You know, going over time, you need those games because

219
00:12:36,200 --> 00:12:39,240
Speaker 1: in January February, those those games happen to matter. So

220
00:12:39,360 --> 00:12:41,640
Speaker 1: something we can really grow from. I think as a team,

221
00:12:41,640 --> 00:12:44,000
Speaker 1: I think the locker room full of veterans, full of leaders.

222
00:12:44,600 --> 00:12:45,920
Speaker 1: At the end of the day, it counts as one.

223
00:12:46,040 --> 00:12:48,400
Speaker 1: You can't let it carry over and then you look

224
00:12:48,400 --> 00:12:50,079
Speaker 1: ahead and you got a really good Minnesota team, So

225
00:12:50,120 --> 00:12:53,040
Speaker 1: there's really no time you dwell on it, and you

226
00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:55,040
Speaker 1: know we're already on the Minnesota All right, thank you,

227
00:12:55,080 --> 00:12:58,439
Speaker 1: mister Belichick. We'll be right back with our special guest,

228
00:12:58,440 --> 00:13:01,360
Speaker 1: Cooper rush On. The Cowboy is our from Kanne Russo

229
00:13:01,760 --> 00:13:06,240
Speaker 1: in the Star District in Frisco. Coming right back, ok Boys.

230
00:16:12,000 --> 00:16:15,200
Speaker 1: The Cowboys Hour presented by Albertson's and Tom Thumb. Get

231
00:16:15,240 --> 00:16:18,320
Speaker 1: ten percent off your groceries every Dallas Cowboys game day

232
00:16:18,320 --> 00:16:22,000
Speaker 1: when you wear your favorite Cowboys jersey. Albertson's and Tom Thumb,

233
00:16:22,320 --> 00:16:26,520
Speaker 1: the official supermarket and pharmacy of the Dallas Cowboys. We

234
00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:31,080
Speaker 1: are back here at Kane Rosso, joined by Cooper Rush,

235
00:16:31,200 --> 00:16:35,120
Speaker 1: quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. Yeah, some claps, we can do.

236
00:16:35,200 --> 00:16:40,880
Speaker 1: Some claps, Thank you, Cooper. Brad T's to it earlier.

237
00:16:41,560 --> 00:16:44,840
Speaker 1: Taking you back to your college days playing at Central Michigan.

238
00:16:45,240 --> 00:16:47,440
Speaker 1: Right off the top, I want to ask you what

239
00:16:47,640 --> 00:16:54,120
Speaker 1: is a Chippewa name? American? Okay, pleasant on a reservation? Yeah, gotcha.

240
00:16:54,560 --> 00:16:57,840
Speaker 1: Just your experience playing in Central Michigan. You talked about

241
00:16:57,840 --> 00:17:00,360
Speaker 1: coming in as a freshman and that to be elopment

242
00:17:00,440 --> 00:17:03,760
Speaker 1: that it takes to you know, step up, lead big plays.

243
00:17:04,440 --> 00:17:05,720
Speaker 1: What was that like? And I guess how did it

244
00:17:05,760 --> 00:17:07,520
Speaker 1: prepare you for kind of what she did here with

245
00:17:07,520 --> 00:17:11,080
Speaker 1: the Cowboys. Yeah? I was very fortunate to uh play

246
00:17:11,119 --> 00:17:13,359
Speaker 1: a lot of games. It will start for four years, um,

247
00:17:13,920 --> 00:17:18,000
Speaker 1: and that experience has carried over in the NFL with

248
00:17:18,080 --> 00:17:19,639
Speaker 1: not getting a lot of reps, not a lot of

249
00:17:19,680 --> 00:17:22,440
Speaker 1: game reps for sure, Um of just having that into

250
00:17:22,440 --> 00:17:24,719
Speaker 1: your bank. You've been in third and long, you've been

251
00:17:24,760 --> 00:17:26,800
Speaker 1: in two indrols, you've been you know, in college. But

252
00:17:26,840 --> 00:17:29,680
Speaker 1: it's the same type of situations and how to handle those.

253
00:17:30,080 --> 00:17:33,160
Speaker 1: Um see, I was fortunate to get a chance early

254
00:17:33,240 --> 00:17:36,439
Speaker 1: on as a retro freshman and then, um, you know,

255
00:17:36,520 --> 00:17:38,679
Speaker 1: I give Krads a coachinos who was there then my

256
00:17:38,680 --> 00:17:40,840
Speaker 1: head coach. He kind of stuck with me through the

257
00:17:40,960 --> 00:17:42,760
Speaker 1: ups and downs of a growing young player, and he

258
00:17:42,880 --> 00:17:45,959
Speaker 1: let me continue to start continue to grow, And um,

259
00:17:47,000 --> 00:17:48,680
Speaker 1: I really look back at that experience, it was huge.

260
00:17:50,359 --> 00:17:53,239
Speaker 1: I'm sorry, I just I bet we talked about this

261
00:17:53,320 --> 00:17:56,880
Speaker 1: during your rookie year. Gary Hoga Boom went to Central Michigan,

262
00:17:56,880 --> 00:18:00,280
Speaker 1: didn't he? Ye? Did you ever meet him? Never? Sorry? No,

263
00:18:00,480 --> 00:18:04,320
Speaker 1: you're good. Um was there a moment in that freshman

264
00:18:04,359 --> 00:18:06,439
Speaker 1: campaign or even going into your sophomore campaign when you

265
00:18:06,520 --> 00:18:09,280
Speaker 1: kind of recognize, I'm pretty good at this. My next

266
00:18:09,280 --> 00:18:11,280
Speaker 1: step would be the NFL. Was there a moment that

267
00:18:11,320 --> 00:18:13,440
Speaker 1: you can remember where you kind of started to shift

268
00:18:13,480 --> 00:18:16,320
Speaker 1: your college career towards that. Uh yeah, I would say

269
00:18:16,320 --> 00:18:19,639
Speaker 1: it was my junior year. Um, we had a we

270
00:18:19,680 --> 00:18:21,320
Speaker 1: had a good year that year, a good team and

271
00:18:21,480 --> 00:18:25,040
Speaker 1: on offense were we were kind of pretty really productive.

272
00:18:25,119 --> 00:18:27,480
Speaker 1: We played our out of conference schedule really well. We

273
00:18:27,520 --> 00:18:30,400
Speaker 1: played Michigan State tough, played Oklahoma State tough, and that's

274
00:18:30,440 --> 00:18:32,639
Speaker 1: some big time games. There's a big time competition. We

275
00:18:32,640 --> 00:18:35,480
Speaker 1: were throwing it. Well. That's kind of where I started realizing,

276
00:18:35,520 --> 00:18:38,560
Speaker 1: you know, I think I can do this. Um, and uh,

277
00:18:38,680 --> 00:18:41,440
Speaker 1: get looked at good opportunity. You got a lot of starts. Um,

278
00:18:41,960 --> 00:18:45,240
Speaker 1: you know, played well vers big teams. So that was

279
00:18:45,280 --> 00:18:46,639
Speaker 1: when it first hit me that you know, you might

280
00:18:46,680 --> 00:18:48,840
Speaker 1: have a chance. How special was it to play I

281
00:18:48,840 --> 00:18:51,120
Speaker 1: guess kind of for the hometown school, for you being

282
00:18:51,119 --> 00:18:53,720
Speaker 1: a Michigan guy. Yeah, I was awesome. I was only

283
00:18:53,720 --> 00:18:56,040
Speaker 1: an hour away from home, made life easy for my

284
00:18:56,119 --> 00:19:00,000
Speaker 1: parents myself. It was my only offer, my only change.

285
00:19:00,040 --> 00:19:01,800
Speaker 1: It's a chance to go play D one. Um, So

286
00:19:01,840 --> 00:19:04,399
Speaker 1: I away was thankful for that. At a program that

287
00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:06,600
Speaker 1: you know, it's a smaller program, but at a lot

288
00:19:06,640 --> 00:19:08,360
Speaker 1: of tradition. There a lot of good players came out

289
00:19:08,359 --> 00:19:10,960
Speaker 1: of there. Um, it's all about football. So it was

290
00:19:11,800 --> 00:19:14,120
Speaker 1: it was awesome. It could be happier with it. Did

291
00:19:14,200 --> 00:19:20,440
Speaker 1: Michigan or Michigan State have any quarterbacks in your years

292
00:19:20,480 --> 00:19:23,560
Speaker 1: at Central that made you look and say, and you

293
00:19:23,600 --> 00:19:26,879
Speaker 1: don't have to name him and just say to yourself, yeah,

294
00:19:26,920 --> 00:19:28,919
Speaker 1: I'm better than that guy. They should have heard me.

295
00:19:30,240 --> 00:19:32,240
Speaker 1: I don't remember who the Michigan guy I was doing

296
00:19:32,280 --> 00:19:35,320
Speaker 1: that time. Michigan States Kyra Cook was very good. You

297
00:19:35,359 --> 00:19:37,879
Speaker 1: had a hell of a career. But that was the

298
00:19:37,960 --> 00:19:40,520
Speaker 1: guy that was at Michigan State when I was playing good.

299
00:19:41,119 --> 00:19:46,760
Speaker 1: All right? So um, other sports. First, you strike me

300
00:19:46,800 --> 00:19:50,240
Speaker 1: as a guy who probably was pretty good at three

301
00:19:50,320 --> 00:19:56,000
Speaker 1: or four. Yeah, played basketball all through high school and

302
00:19:56,160 --> 00:20:00,200
Speaker 1: played baseball going I stopped playing baseball through ninth grade. Why.

303
00:20:00,200 --> 00:20:02,520
Speaker 1: I just got burned out with that and just got

304
00:20:02,560 --> 00:20:05,440
Speaker 1: to high school, get burned out of baseball, got moved

305
00:20:05,440 --> 00:20:07,920
Speaker 1: to third base, got moved to third base, and from

306
00:20:08,000 --> 00:20:10,760
Speaker 1: what shortstop? And it was not nearly his phone and

307
00:20:10,920 --> 00:20:14,280
Speaker 1: the hot corner was different? Oh interesting, okay? And could

308
00:20:14,400 --> 00:20:17,320
Speaker 1: could you hit? Yeah? Then I was doing well and

309
00:20:18,040 --> 00:20:21,440
Speaker 1: I moved out to varsity and then started seeing curves curveballs, yes, sir,

310
00:20:21,560 --> 00:20:25,639
Speaker 1: it was over and uh, point guard in basketball? No,

311
00:20:26,119 --> 00:20:28,840
Speaker 1: power forward center. Small high school, I played the center

312
00:20:28,840 --> 00:20:31,439
Speaker 1: and um, the middle of a two three zone. We're

313
00:20:31,440 --> 00:20:34,520
Speaker 1: a pretty good basketball team, good program, but uh, I

314
00:20:34,560 --> 00:20:38,760
Speaker 1: liked playing down there in the post a lot. All right. So, um,

315
00:20:39,760 --> 00:20:45,520
Speaker 1: at Central, you're you're working in a pretty good offense,

316
00:20:45,520 --> 00:20:48,320
Speaker 1: You're getting to throw the ball around a lot, and uh,

317
00:20:48,560 --> 00:20:52,360
Speaker 1: and then you don't get drafted despite having a really

318
00:20:52,359 --> 00:20:54,480
Speaker 1: good career set all the records, didn't you? Did? You

319
00:20:54,520 --> 00:20:57,400
Speaker 1: still hold the Central records a couple of them. But yeah,

320
00:20:57,440 --> 00:21:00,280
Speaker 1: I mean Dan la Fiev the Yeah, he's are to

321
00:21:00,280 --> 00:21:02,880
Speaker 1: catching a lot of categories. Yeah, we're up there. Yeah,

322
00:21:02,880 --> 00:21:07,840
Speaker 1: but so you're right up there. Um, were you surprised

323
00:21:08,200 --> 00:21:11,560
Speaker 1: or were your feelings hurt and not being drafted? I

324
00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:15,320
Speaker 1: wasn't surprised. We knew going in six seventh round or undrafted.

325
00:21:15,320 --> 00:21:17,760
Speaker 1: If we were to get drafted, we knew would be late. Um,

326
00:21:19,040 --> 00:21:21,119
Speaker 1: you know a lot of the physical traits takes you

327
00:21:21,160 --> 00:21:23,440
Speaker 1: get drafted. You know, I didn't have, you know, nothing

328
00:21:23,560 --> 00:21:26,399
Speaker 1: jumped out. Um and I knew that we knew was

329
00:21:26,520 --> 00:21:29,359
Speaker 1: what was going to happen. And uh, you know, got

330
00:21:29,400 --> 00:21:32,520
Speaker 1: a call from here in Tampa and um my agent said,

331
00:21:32,520 --> 00:21:35,760
Speaker 1: we're going to Dallas. That's he just knew the situation.

332
00:21:35,800 --> 00:21:37,280
Speaker 1: He's that was a good deal, and so we went

333
00:21:37,320 --> 00:21:41,240
Speaker 1: to Dallas and worked out. But no, no, no hard feelings.

334
00:21:41,280 --> 00:21:43,240
Speaker 1: Kind of knew knew, knew what to expect, knew what

335
00:21:43,280 --> 00:21:46,040
Speaker 1: you were doing going in. That's kind of interesting you

336
00:21:46,080 --> 00:21:48,480
Speaker 1: say that too. That's something I always wondered, drafted versus

337
00:21:48,560 --> 00:21:51,080
Speaker 1: undrafted if it affects, you know, going into the locker

338
00:21:51,160 --> 00:21:53,280
Speaker 1: room with some of the drafted guys. How do you

339
00:21:53,320 --> 00:21:56,240
Speaker 1: think that that's kind of helped shape your career going undrafted,

340
00:21:56,280 --> 00:21:58,680
Speaker 1: having to go through that sort of adversity and being

341
00:21:58,720 --> 00:22:01,600
Speaker 1: patient and waiting for your opportun munities. Yeah, you have

342
00:22:01,640 --> 00:22:03,840
Speaker 1: to battle, you know, no matter where you're drafted. Really,

343
00:22:03,840 --> 00:22:06,240
Speaker 1: you got a battle for spots, and especially when you're undrafted,

344
00:22:06,280 --> 00:22:07,879
Speaker 1: you'll have to continue to do it for years on

345
00:22:07,960 --> 00:22:10,639
Speaker 1: years on years, no matter how well you play, you

346
00:22:10,760 --> 00:22:12,600
Speaker 1: kind of got that label you're undrafted or you're a

347
00:22:12,680 --> 00:22:17,320
Speaker 1: late round guy. That's how they'll see you. So every

348
00:22:17,400 --> 00:22:19,399
Speaker 1: year you got a battle for it, and it's awesome

349
00:22:19,440 --> 00:22:22,000
Speaker 1: to see, like like this year we had think four

350
00:22:22,080 --> 00:22:24,480
Speaker 1: undrafted guys or three undrafted guys make the team. It

351
00:22:24,560 --> 00:22:29,400
Speaker 1: was awesome. So, yeah, undrafted guys kind of all stick

352
00:22:29,440 --> 00:22:34,959
Speaker 1: together a little bit. A lot of them have chips

353
00:22:35,000 --> 00:22:38,320
Speaker 1: on their shoulder about not being drafted. Some drafted guys

354
00:22:38,359 --> 00:22:42,639
Speaker 1: who didn't think they were drafted high enough are like that.

355
00:22:42,960 --> 00:22:46,719
Speaker 1: But but certainly a number of undrafted guys use that

356
00:22:46,880 --> 00:22:49,080
Speaker 1: as motivation. I don't know, have you ever had a

357
00:22:49,160 --> 00:22:53,200
Speaker 1: chip on your shoulder about anything? Yeah? I just um

358
00:22:54,560 --> 00:22:56,879
Speaker 1: a lot of guys using more than others. I mean

359
00:22:57,000 --> 00:22:59,600
Speaker 1: a little bit, you know, but you know, you believe

360
00:22:59,640 --> 00:23:01,600
Speaker 1: in yourself if I wouldn't say I needed it for

361
00:23:01,680 --> 00:23:04,960
Speaker 1: motivation or anything like that. Pretty self motivated guy, and

362
00:23:05,520 --> 00:23:07,520
Speaker 1: you know you're competing with yourself the most, and you

363
00:23:07,560 --> 00:23:10,880
Speaker 1: know that kind of drives me, not really those other

364
00:23:10,920 --> 00:23:13,760
Speaker 1: outside factors, but it's a it's nice being undrafted and

365
00:23:13,880 --> 00:23:16,439
Speaker 1: still being around. I wanted to ask you because you

366
00:23:16,520 --> 00:23:18,040
Speaker 1: kind of sparked my memory when you were talking about

367
00:23:18,040 --> 00:23:19,600
Speaker 1: some of the undrafted guys in the locker room. Payton

368
00:23:19,640 --> 00:23:21,800
Speaker 1: Hindershot is kind of the one that jumps to my mind.

369
00:23:22,760 --> 00:23:25,439
Speaker 1: With him and Jake, they are just like two peas

370
00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:27,240
Speaker 1: in a pod, you know what I mean. But I

371
00:23:27,280 --> 00:23:31,800
Speaker 1: feel like their personalities are so opposite of your personality.

372
00:23:31,920 --> 00:23:34,160
Speaker 1: So what was it like getting to, you know, work

373
00:23:34,160 --> 00:23:36,399
Speaker 1: with them and still at practice throwing to them and

374
00:23:36,520 --> 00:23:39,320
Speaker 1: kind of frickin frack I think is what Mike McCarthy

375
00:23:39,359 --> 00:23:42,960
Speaker 1: described them as. Yeah, I couldn't be farther from for

376
00:23:43,560 --> 00:23:46,960
Speaker 1: in terms of person He's awesome though, both those guys

377
00:23:47,000 --> 00:23:52,080
Speaker 1: are great from he's a little mini Travis Frederick Wisconsin guys.

378
00:23:52,080 --> 00:23:55,840
Speaker 1: But yeah, early on, like day one, OTAs he's you

379
00:23:55,920 --> 00:23:59,440
Speaker 1: saw and he could run. Payton could really run. You're like, okay,

380
00:23:59,440 --> 00:24:02,239
Speaker 1: he can he can run. He's got some juice. And

381
00:24:02,280 --> 00:24:04,480
Speaker 1: then Furk can do it all block just kind of

382
00:24:04,520 --> 00:24:08,600
Speaker 1: a polished tight end. And they've been great obviously coming

383
00:24:08,600 --> 00:24:11,840
Speaker 1: in playing a lot of balls rookies and you know,

384
00:24:11,880 --> 00:24:13,200
Speaker 1: I got the right I got to work with them

385
00:24:13,200 --> 00:24:15,960
Speaker 1: early on on that second team. UM, so I definitely

386
00:24:16,000 --> 00:24:19,040
Speaker 1: helped when they're when they're we're both starting now. So

387
00:24:19,280 --> 00:24:22,960
Speaker 1: year rookie year was twenty seventeen, right, so now Dak

388
00:24:23,080 --> 00:24:27,560
Speaker 1: is established, he's had his breakout rookie year and sixteen

389
00:24:29,440 --> 00:24:33,560
Speaker 1: did Jason Garrett see see himself in you? And I

390
00:24:33,560 --> 00:24:38,199
Speaker 1: don't mean just a redheaded undrafted quarterback. I don't know,

391
00:24:38,320 --> 00:24:41,040
Speaker 1: maybe um did you ever have that conversation. No, but

392
00:24:41,080 --> 00:24:43,840
Speaker 1: I was obviously very thankful in believing me, one of

393
00:24:43,840 --> 00:24:45,320
Speaker 1: the first guys who believe me in the league and

394
00:24:46,640 --> 00:24:51,840
Speaker 1: trusting me and give me a chance. Um. So you're

395
00:24:51,880 --> 00:24:54,400
Speaker 1: here seven time trying to do this from memory, and

396
00:24:54,800 --> 00:24:56,200
Speaker 1: this is not a good day for me to try

397
00:24:56,200 --> 00:25:00,280
Speaker 1: to do very much from memory. Seventeen eighteen when the

398
00:25:00,280 --> 00:25:03,600
Speaker 1: new staff came in in twenties that when you were

399
00:25:03,600 --> 00:25:06,880
Speaker 1: released and you wound up with the Giants after being

400
00:25:06,880 --> 00:25:09,840
Speaker 1: out of work, how long I got cut? They claimed

401
00:25:09,880 --> 00:25:12,560
Speaker 1: me within twenty four hours. I got signed by New

402
00:25:12,640 --> 00:25:16,280
Speaker 1: York and then they cut me week four of twenty twenty.

403
00:25:16,600 --> 00:25:21,960
Speaker 1: And then so that you you're cut in camp before camp? Uh? Yeah,

404
00:25:21,960 --> 00:25:23,840
Speaker 1: I got cut and signed a piece. Glad to camp

405
00:25:24,080 --> 00:25:27,040
Speaker 1: up there, right. And then the reason I'm asking is

406
00:25:27,080 --> 00:25:31,040
Speaker 1: that that that year was so bizarre. There was no

407
00:25:31,080 --> 00:25:33,600
Speaker 1: real camp. I mean there was, but it was all here.

408
00:25:33,680 --> 00:25:38,400
Speaker 1: That was the COVID year, the real, uh impactful one.

409
00:25:38,920 --> 00:25:42,320
Speaker 1: And and so I wonder what you thought your career

410
00:25:42,800 --> 00:25:45,399
Speaker 1: I'm actually going somewhere with all this. I wonder what

411
00:25:45,440 --> 00:25:51,120
Speaker 1: you thought your career was gonna look like at that point? Yeah,

412
00:25:51,119 --> 00:25:54,119
Speaker 1: that was like you said the twenty twenty no preseason games,

413
00:25:54,600 --> 00:25:57,200
Speaker 1: not much practice, We had to do a ramp up thing,

414
00:25:57,280 --> 00:26:01,639
Speaker 1: and um so it obviously king for guys on bottom

415
00:26:01,680 --> 00:26:04,119
Speaker 1: third of rosters who need those games, need that tape.

416
00:26:04,880 --> 00:26:06,840
Speaker 1: Um it really hurt a lot of guys, I think

417
00:26:07,040 --> 00:26:10,399
Speaker 1: myself included. I think we had like one scrimmage, you know,

418
00:26:10,680 --> 00:26:14,280
Speaker 1: and uh see, you know, at least was able to

419
00:26:14,320 --> 00:26:16,200
Speaker 1: be on peace squad up there. Then after week four

420
00:26:16,200 --> 00:26:18,000
Speaker 1: they cut me and then you know, sitting at home

421
00:26:18,000 --> 00:26:19,560
Speaker 1: for a few weeks that I was finally called and

422
00:26:20,080 --> 00:26:23,479
Speaker 1: we're back at it. And was that after Andy got

423
00:26:23,600 --> 00:26:26,520
Speaker 1: hurt and six so they needed somebody? Yeah, it was

424
00:26:26,520 --> 00:26:29,840
Speaker 1: after uh yeah the Washington game we got hit, right, Okay,

425
00:26:30,080 --> 00:26:33,040
Speaker 1: So now you've got to you've got to convince a

426
00:26:33,119 --> 00:26:39,800
Speaker 1: whole new except for Kellen and Nussmeier, and they're probably

427
00:26:39,840 --> 00:26:43,560
Speaker 1: the reason that you were back here, right, Yeah for sure.

428
00:26:43,720 --> 00:26:46,359
Speaker 1: So but you've got to you've got to convince the

429
00:26:46,440 --> 00:26:49,399
Speaker 1: head coach and the rest of the offensive staff. Was

430
00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:53,640
Speaker 1: that how was the pressure of that compared to making

431
00:26:53,880 --> 00:26:57,000
Speaker 1: a team undrafted for the first time? Yeah, going back,

432
00:26:57,400 --> 00:27:00,000
Speaker 1: so twenty twenty ends and we're coming to twenty twenty one.

433
00:27:00,000 --> 00:27:03,200
Speaker 1: It was kind of like reset, we've done this before.

434
00:27:03,200 --> 00:27:05,960
Speaker 1: It's back to twenty seventeen. You're basically fourth on the

435
00:27:06,040 --> 00:27:09,120
Speaker 1: roster and you got to find a way to get

436
00:27:09,160 --> 00:27:11,399
Speaker 1: on the roster. It was really back to square one,

437
00:27:11,440 --> 00:27:13,560
Speaker 1: I kept. I remember running a dial and telling myself,

438
00:27:14,200 --> 00:27:17,000
Speaker 1: you know, you've done this before, nothing new, So just

439
00:27:17,480 --> 00:27:20,160
Speaker 1: back to square one. Treated like your undrafted free agent

440
00:27:20,280 --> 00:27:22,560
Speaker 1: making a team going through outas in the training camp,

441
00:27:22,640 --> 00:27:26,400
Speaker 1: preseason games, kind of treated the exact same and having

442
00:27:26,400 --> 00:27:28,760
Speaker 1: that experience I think really helped. I know you mentioned

443
00:27:28,760 --> 00:27:32,320
Speaker 1: it was a pretty short time period between Dallas to

444
00:27:32,440 --> 00:27:35,199
Speaker 1: New York and how that all played out, but the

445
00:27:35,280 --> 00:27:39,280
Speaker 1: uncertainty of not knowing what's next, so to speak. Can

446
00:27:39,320 --> 00:27:41,480
Speaker 1: you speak on that a little bit and what that

447
00:27:41,600 --> 00:27:44,200
Speaker 1: kind of was like, Yeah, I mean it's middle of

448
00:27:44,240 --> 00:27:47,080
Speaker 1: October and you're sitting at home watching games on TV

449
00:27:47,200 --> 00:27:50,240
Speaker 1: on Saturday and Sundays. It's something new, and you know

450
00:27:50,280 --> 00:27:52,400
Speaker 1: you played ball on the weekends your whole life, so

451
00:27:52,600 --> 00:27:55,119
Speaker 1: that was new different. I think about four or five weeks,

452
00:27:56,600 --> 00:27:58,879
Speaker 1: I think it overall ended up helping me because it

453
00:27:58,920 --> 00:28:02,440
Speaker 1: came back you'd a whole new perspective of you know,

454
00:28:02,640 --> 00:28:04,920
Speaker 1: I think I played a lot freer. You know you've

455
00:28:04,960 --> 00:28:07,280
Speaker 1: been out. You can't go any lower than that, right,

456
00:28:07,320 --> 00:28:09,240
Speaker 1: you're out, So you're back in here. I think you

457
00:28:09,240 --> 00:28:11,280
Speaker 1: had a new I had a new fresh look on

458
00:28:11,359 --> 00:28:13,000
Speaker 1: things kind of. I think it let me play freer,

459
00:28:13,119 --> 00:28:15,880
Speaker 1: and I think I was better for it. So you're

460
00:28:16,080 --> 00:28:19,480
Speaker 1: and we got to take our next break, and I

461
00:28:19,480 --> 00:28:22,359
Speaker 1: I promise I really have a destination in mind for

462
00:28:22,480 --> 00:28:27,080
Speaker 1: this line of questioning. You're twenty six at that point, right,

463
00:28:27,640 --> 00:28:31,880
Speaker 1: twenty twenty, a couple of years ago, and now you're

464
00:28:31,920 --> 00:28:35,320
Speaker 1: saying to yourself, well, you've been in this situation before,

465
00:28:35,800 --> 00:28:38,440
Speaker 1: so it's it's no big deal. You know how to

466
00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:43,760
Speaker 1: handle it. But some people might say, I'm twenty six,

467
00:28:43,880 --> 00:28:46,360
Speaker 1: I've been in this situation before. I don't have to

468
00:28:46,440 --> 00:28:49,040
Speaker 1: Why am I going through this again? What do you

469
00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:51,920
Speaker 1: think was the deciding factor for you? And being more

470
00:28:51,960 --> 00:28:56,080
Speaker 1: positive in the way you looked at it? Um just

471
00:28:56,160 --> 00:29:00,600
Speaker 1: another chance. I think seeing what life was without without

472
00:29:00,640 --> 00:29:04,040
Speaker 1: playing ball and having having no job, you don't want

473
00:29:04,040 --> 00:29:06,040
Speaker 1: to look to that future yet you know I was

474
00:29:06,080 --> 00:29:09,320
Speaker 1: not ready for that, still not ready for it, and

475
00:29:09,440 --> 00:29:12,760
Speaker 1: uh but uh yeah, I was able to just kind

476
00:29:12,760 --> 00:29:15,640
Speaker 1: of reflect and you know, just kind of cut a

477
00:29:15,720 --> 00:29:20,239
Speaker 1: loose more, just go play a little freer, enjoy it more,

478
00:29:20,400 --> 00:29:22,120
Speaker 1: be around the teammates more. I think it just helping

479
00:29:22,160 --> 00:29:25,600
Speaker 1: grew as a person as a leader. So it was huge.

480
00:29:25,640 --> 00:29:27,480
Speaker 1: You know. That's how life works a lot for a

481
00:29:27,480 --> 00:29:30,360
Speaker 1: lot of guys all across the league, different things in

482
00:29:30,400 --> 00:29:33,120
Speaker 1: their lives that translate to helping them be better players.

483
00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:36,440
Speaker 1: All right, that having no job, That's kind of where

484
00:29:36,480 --> 00:29:39,760
Speaker 1: I'm going eventually with this. I'm gonna tie it back

485
00:29:40,000 --> 00:29:45,200
Speaker 1: to what you have done already this season, because I

486
00:29:45,240 --> 00:29:47,760
Speaker 1: don't think that's gonna be a situation You're going to

487
00:29:47,840 --> 00:29:51,000
Speaker 1: be in again for as long as you want it

488
00:29:51,040 --> 00:29:54,600
Speaker 1: to be for a while. Anyway. This is the Miller

489
00:29:54,680 --> 00:29:58,000
Speaker 1: Like Cowboys Hour where it Kanne Rosso in the Star

490
00:29:58,120 --> 00:30:01,720
Speaker 1: District in Frisco with our very special guest, Cowboys quarterback

491
00:30:01,760 --> 00:33:10,720
Speaker 1: Cooper Russian will be right back. Welcome back to the

492
00:33:10,720 --> 00:33:14,560
Speaker 1: Cowboys Hour, presented by Luke Casey, the official bootmaker of

493
00:33:14,720 --> 00:33:18,880
Speaker 1: the Dallas Cowboys, Hailey Sudden, Brad Sham alongside Cowboys quarterback

494
00:33:19,040 --> 00:33:22,680
Speaker 1: Cooper rush Back. All right, thank you very much, Thank

495
00:33:22,720 --> 00:33:29,200
Speaker 1: you everybody, and uh and a reminder that next Monday night,

496
00:33:30,320 --> 00:33:32,840
Speaker 1: we will have no show. Why will we have no show?

497
00:33:33,920 --> 00:33:37,400
Speaker 1: Why will we have no show? Hayley, It's the Monday

498
00:33:37,440 --> 00:33:42,040
Speaker 1: before Thanksgiving already? Are you kidding? No, We're not kidding.

499
00:33:42,160 --> 00:33:44,440
Speaker 1: So no show next week and we'll be back here

500
00:33:44,480 --> 00:33:47,680
Speaker 1: in uh in two weeks. And UH for those of

501
00:33:47,680 --> 00:33:49,840
Speaker 1: you who are here with us at Kane Rosso and

502
00:33:49,920 --> 00:33:52,400
Speaker 1: who would like to ask Cooper a question, get it ready.

503
00:33:52,440 --> 00:33:56,400
Speaker 1: We've got the microphone that'll move amongst you, and UH

504
00:33:56,520 --> 00:33:59,520
Speaker 1: we'll grill. Cooper rushed within an inch of his young wife,

505
00:34:00,240 --> 00:34:07,160
Speaker 1: UM commencing immediately. So we went last in our last episode. UM,

506
00:34:08,360 --> 00:34:12,719
Speaker 1: Cooper's uh out of a job cut by the Giants,

507
00:34:13,320 --> 00:34:16,239
Speaker 1: and then there are injuries to the quarterbacks here it's

508
00:34:16,280 --> 00:34:21,120
Speaker 1: twenty twenty and um, he gets a call and comes

509
00:34:21,120 --> 00:34:26,200
Speaker 1: back and gets gets a job here. And so now

510
00:34:26,239 --> 00:34:35,560
Speaker 1: in twenty twenty one, you're in a You're in a

511
00:34:35,960 --> 00:34:41,040
Speaker 1: pitted deathmatch with Garrett Gilbert for the for the backup job,

512
00:34:42,640 --> 00:34:46,520
Speaker 1: which which I think most people thought Gilbert was going

513
00:34:46,560 --> 00:34:51,120
Speaker 1: to win going in. You didn't. But how did that

514
00:34:51,440 --> 00:34:56,000
Speaker 1: situation and the fact that you wound up prevailing, differ

515
00:34:56,320 --> 00:35:02,640
Speaker 1: from the other situations that you had encountered. Um, it

516
00:35:02,680 --> 00:35:06,200
Speaker 1: wasn't that dead. I mean it's kind of coincidence. So

517
00:35:06,320 --> 00:35:09,239
Speaker 1: Dad getting hurt that camp, I think, UM allow me to

518
00:35:09,200 --> 00:35:11,440
Speaker 1: to get a lot more reps. He hurt his lat,

519
00:35:12,239 --> 00:35:14,640
Speaker 1: so Garrett's taking the ones and I'm taking all the

520
00:35:14,640 --> 00:35:19,160
Speaker 1: two so tons of more reps of practice night rookie year,

521
00:35:19,200 --> 00:35:20,640
Speaker 1: that happened too, we had a guy and there a

522
00:35:20,719 --> 00:35:23,479
Speaker 1: guy got hurt and uh so I was taking every

523
00:35:23,480 --> 00:35:26,360
Speaker 1: three rep all my whole rookie year. It was just

524
00:35:26,400 --> 00:35:30,480
Speaker 1: me kelling and Dak in camp. So similarities that way.

525
00:35:30,520 --> 00:35:33,000
Speaker 1: I guess kind of catching a break due to injury

526
00:35:33,000 --> 00:35:35,120
Speaker 1: and um getting a chance for more reps and more

527
00:35:35,120 --> 00:35:37,359
Speaker 1: time on the field, you know, show what you can do.

528
00:35:37,400 --> 00:35:40,560
Speaker 1: And then I think we got gotten some preseason games

529
00:35:40,560 --> 00:35:42,600
Speaker 1: and where you know, the lights around and you're just

530
00:35:42,680 --> 00:35:46,440
Speaker 1: running the show, your situational it's real ball. Um. I

531
00:35:46,480 --> 00:35:48,840
Speaker 1: think that's where I can be my best. You know,

532
00:35:48,840 --> 00:35:50,680
Speaker 1: I'm not gonna light it up throwing routes on air

533
00:35:50,719 --> 00:35:53,359
Speaker 1: and stuff like that and big arm all that things,

534
00:35:53,360 --> 00:35:55,080
Speaker 1: but uh, you're getting a game. I think I can

535
00:35:55,120 --> 00:35:58,320
Speaker 1: play quarterback and those preceding games was able to play well.

536
00:35:58,400 --> 00:36:02,560
Speaker 1: And would would you quibble. If someone described you as

537
00:36:02,600 --> 00:36:05,839
Speaker 1: being a better game player than a practice player, which

538
00:36:05,880 --> 00:36:09,120
Speaker 1: sometimes people think that means you don't practice well, doesn't

539
00:36:09,120 --> 00:36:11,960
Speaker 1: mean that. It might mean that your particular skill set

540
00:36:12,160 --> 00:36:14,680
Speaker 1: shows up better in a game situation. But is that

541
00:36:14,719 --> 00:36:17,759
Speaker 1: a fair assessment of Cooper Rush. Yeah, I'd say so.

542
00:36:17,880 --> 00:36:20,200
Speaker 1: You know, some of the intangibles of playing quarterbacks show up,

543
00:36:21,000 --> 00:36:23,480
Speaker 1: you know that you have to have and the experience

544
00:36:23,520 --> 00:36:26,040
Speaker 1: of planning your whole life having a feel for the

545
00:36:26,080 --> 00:36:30,839
Speaker 1: game shows up. You know, like you said, it sound

546
00:36:30,880 --> 00:36:34,240
Speaker 1: like I don't try to practice. You kind of madn't

547
00:36:34,239 --> 00:36:37,040
Speaker 1: seem like you wasn't. By the way, they said that

548
00:36:37,120 --> 00:36:39,080
Speaker 1: about Dak as a rookie, you know, he just was.

549
00:36:40,400 --> 00:36:42,840
Speaker 1: For those of you don't remember, Dak Prescott went to

550
00:36:42,880 --> 00:36:48,200
Speaker 1: training camp in twenty sixteen competing for the third job.

551
00:36:48,680 --> 00:36:53,279
Speaker 1: So that all of this happened because opportunities prevailed, much

552
00:36:53,280 --> 00:36:56,160
Speaker 1: as was the case with you. And so now now

553
00:36:56,200 --> 00:36:58,799
Speaker 1: here we come forward and you had the Minnesota game.

554
00:36:58,840 --> 00:37:01,760
Speaker 1: Now that changes a lot, right, changes things for you.

555
00:37:01,760 --> 00:37:06,680
Speaker 1: Your perception of yourself. Yeah, like I said earlier, kind

556
00:37:06,680 --> 00:37:09,080
Speaker 1: of validates here your inner belief that you can go

557
00:37:09,120 --> 00:37:10,680
Speaker 1: do this. You know, you don't get in game for

558
00:37:10,719 --> 00:37:13,080
Speaker 1: all those years, it's like you you started talking to yourself,

559
00:37:13,800 --> 00:37:15,680
Speaker 1: can I do it? If it happens. It's been a while,

560
00:37:15,760 --> 00:37:17,680
Speaker 1: you know, all this stuff, So to just go out

561
00:37:17,680 --> 00:37:19,920
Speaker 1: there and get a chance to go play, And I

562
00:37:19,960 --> 00:37:24,400
Speaker 1: think I looked at differently, you know, not that I

563
00:37:24,440 --> 00:37:26,279
Speaker 1: wanted to wait that long. We gained to wait that long,

564
00:37:26,320 --> 00:37:27,880
Speaker 1: and being out of the league and coming back and

565
00:37:27,920 --> 00:37:30,319
Speaker 1: now get another chance. I think it kind of like,

566
00:37:30,360 --> 00:37:32,880
Speaker 1: get nothing to lose type attitude, just go play, be you,

567
00:37:33,040 --> 00:37:35,520
Speaker 1: And I think that kind of helped me, help me

568
00:37:35,520 --> 00:37:38,680
Speaker 1: in that game and moving forward. Now here would come

569
00:37:38,719 --> 00:37:41,799
Speaker 1: to camp and that Will Rear has been around since

570
00:37:41,920 --> 00:37:46,520
Speaker 1: last year, second round pick by Carolina, and so now

571
00:37:46,560 --> 00:37:49,000
Speaker 1: he's learned the system. He's been here a year now.

572
00:37:49,040 --> 00:37:50,920
Speaker 1: The perception, I don't know if it was real or not,

573
00:37:51,000 --> 00:37:53,920
Speaker 1: but the perception was that he was giving you a

574
00:37:54,040 --> 00:37:57,680
Speaker 1: run for the number two job. Did you perceive it

575
00:37:57,880 --> 00:38:01,840
Speaker 1: that way? Yeah, I mean in those competitions, you always

576
00:38:01,880 --> 00:38:05,839
Speaker 1: perceive it that way. It's always a competition. We'll had

577
00:38:05,840 --> 00:38:08,640
Speaker 1: a great camp, good player, like you said, kind knew

578
00:38:08,680 --> 00:38:11,600
Speaker 1: the system now, so it's a you know, even battleground

579
00:38:11,680 --> 00:38:14,480
Speaker 1: that way. And oh yeah, every camp it's like that.

580
00:38:14,520 --> 00:38:15,880
Speaker 1: I mean, that's just the name of the game for

581
00:38:15,960 --> 00:38:18,480
Speaker 1: not just the backup qv role, but positions all over

582
00:38:18,520 --> 00:38:21,919
Speaker 1: the field those those few weeks or you know, big

583
00:38:21,960 --> 00:38:24,400
Speaker 1: time and um, you're always competing for him. And he

584
00:38:24,440 --> 00:38:27,120
Speaker 1: got hurt and he didn't get an opportunity to play

585
00:38:27,360 --> 00:38:30,600
Speaker 1: very much in preseason, and you did, and you are

586
00:38:31,280 --> 00:38:33,240
Speaker 1: number two going in and now all of a sudden,

587
00:38:33,360 --> 00:38:37,680
Speaker 1: here you are. And we'll just fast forward a little

588
00:38:37,760 --> 00:38:42,560
Speaker 1: bit through a couple of games that you win, and

589
00:38:42,880 --> 00:38:46,680
Speaker 1: suddenly the owner is making jokes and no one knows

590
00:38:46,680 --> 00:38:49,200
Speaker 1: if he's kidding on the square about maybe we'll have

591
00:38:49,239 --> 00:38:52,640
Speaker 1: a quarterback controversy when Dak comes back. And how'd you

592
00:38:53,239 --> 00:38:55,040
Speaker 1: how'd you like all that? By the way, did that

593
00:38:55,120 --> 00:38:57,239
Speaker 1: add any pressure to you? Did you? And Dak really

594
00:38:57,320 --> 00:39:00,279
Speaker 1: lacked laugh about that? Yeah? I think everyone I just

595
00:39:00,320 --> 00:39:02,319
Speaker 1: laughed it off. I mean, I think Jerry laughed it

596
00:39:02,320 --> 00:39:04,520
Speaker 1: off to It's kind of just a you know, he

597
00:39:04,560 --> 00:39:06,920
Speaker 1: did his job of getting us in the news and

598
00:39:07,719 --> 00:39:11,040
Speaker 1: all the news. Yeah yeah, yeah, but but but yeah,

599
00:39:11,040 --> 00:39:13,280
Speaker 1: but he didn't have a chance to do that except

600
00:39:13,320 --> 00:39:16,200
Speaker 1: for how you were playing, and he'd have found something

601
00:39:16,239 --> 00:39:20,239
Speaker 1: else but the but the key was how you were playing. Yeah,

602
00:39:20,320 --> 00:39:22,520
Speaker 1: we were playing well, um, a couple of good games

603
00:39:22,800 --> 00:39:26,080
Speaker 1: as good teams. UM. I think it really showed how

604
00:39:26,080 --> 00:39:29,760
Speaker 1: strong we were as a unit. Um, as a team,

605
00:39:30,120 --> 00:39:33,320
Speaker 1: you know, defense picking us up, We're making just enough plays,

606
00:39:33,960 --> 00:39:35,960
Speaker 1: you know, kind of everyone truly rallying together. And it

607
00:39:36,040 --> 00:39:39,000
Speaker 1: showed and sometimes UM teams have to do that. We

608
00:39:39,000 --> 00:39:40,520
Speaker 1: were able to do it. Yeah, I wanted to ask

609
00:39:40,520 --> 00:39:43,879
Speaker 1: you about that. Uh. You know, you mentioned earlier going

610
00:39:43,880 --> 00:39:46,879
Speaker 1: into that second game against the Bengals you felt better

611
00:39:46,920 --> 00:39:49,560
Speaker 1: after having the Vikings game in your back pocket. But

612
00:39:49,640 --> 00:39:51,839
Speaker 1: then you started to notice when you speak to these guys,

613
00:39:51,880 --> 00:39:54,759
Speaker 1: your teammates in the locker room, how complimentary they are

614
00:39:54,800 --> 00:39:56,960
Speaker 1: of you. And not that that was a surprise, but

615
00:39:57,160 --> 00:39:59,640
Speaker 1: just how much confidence did it continue to give you

616
00:39:59,680 --> 00:40:02,560
Speaker 1: every week knowing that you stepped into this role. You

617
00:40:02,640 --> 00:40:05,200
Speaker 1: had a group of guys in the locker room who

618
00:40:05,200 --> 00:40:07,400
Speaker 1: were going to battle for you, going to war for you,

619
00:40:07,520 --> 00:40:10,440
Speaker 1: and had your back in those instances. Yeah, it's everything.

620
00:40:11,239 --> 00:40:12,879
Speaker 1: What those guys say about you and how they feel

621
00:40:12,880 --> 00:40:14,600
Speaker 1: about you is everything. It's why you work hard, it's

622
00:40:14,600 --> 00:40:16,239
Speaker 1: why you practice, that's why you do every rep. The

623
00:40:16,239 --> 00:40:18,800
Speaker 1: way you do it. Let's turn the respect to those guys,

624
00:40:18,960 --> 00:40:22,280
Speaker 1: and they did have our back. DQ dan Quin always

625
00:40:22,320 --> 00:40:24,680
Speaker 1: talks about on defense. It's one of their mottos. We

626
00:40:24,719 --> 00:40:27,000
Speaker 1: have your back, and it showed, and it was awesome

627
00:40:27,000 --> 00:40:29,759
Speaker 1: after those games, you know, after the game of locking

628
00:40:29,840 --> 00:40:31,520
Speaker 1: with him saying, you know, I said, thank you got

629
00:40:31,560 --> 00:40:33,479
Speaker 1: my back, thank you, and he's like, you know, things

630
00:40:33,480 --> 00:40:36,720
Speaker 1: like that. But I think that's huge for every player,

631
00:40:36,719 --> 00:40:38,960
Speaker 1: whether you're a starter or backup when you're in there,

632
00:40:39,800 --> 00:40:42,759
Speaker 1: to have that knowing your teammates believe in you and

633
00:40:42,880 --> 00:40:45,520
Speaker 1: have that confidence you really elevates you as a player. Now.

634
00:40:45,560 --> 00:40:47,680
Speaker 1: You have no way of knowing this, but the first

635
00:40:47,960 --> 00:40:52,160
Speaker 1: show of in this series this season, and we had

636
00:40:52,160 --> 00:40:56,160
Speaker 1: to do the first couple in the studio before Haley

637
00:40:56,239 --> 00:41:01,080
Speaker 1: was hired, DeMarcus Lawrence was on the show. We're talking

638
00:41:01,080 --> 00:41:02,880
Speaker 1: about well, Dax hurt and this Nett and he was

639
00:41:03,000 --> 00:41:07,279
Speaker 1: so he was very quiet, he was almost serene. He said, Oh,

640
00:41:07,280 --> 00:41:09,920
Speaker 1: but you don't know what we know. We've all got

641
00:41:10,000 --> 00:41:15,120
Speaker 1: confidence in Cooper Rush. Did you know that before you

642
00:41:15,719 --> 00:41:19,400
Speaker 1: took the field against Cincinnati. Yeah, I think being around

643
00:41:19,440 --> 00:41:21,680
Speaker 1: for a while, obviously having report a lot of guys

644
00:41:21,680 --> 00:41:23,759
Speaker 1: in the locker room and you know practice, they've seen

645
00:41:23,800 --> 00:41:26,719
Speaker 1: me play, and um, I think that helped a lot.

646
00:41:27,239 --> 00:41:30,239
Speaker 1: Um And then then public is saying it and and

647
00:41:30,400 --> 00:41:32,759
Speaker 1: going and showing it, having having my back and having

648
00:41:32,800 --> 00:41:35,239
Speaker 1: all all of our backs and playing well together as

649
00:41:35,239 --> 00:41:38,279
Speaker 1: a team. Um, I think it brought us closer. I

650
00:41:38,320 --> 00:41:39,880
Speaker 1: think it was a big moment for us as a group.

651
00:41:40,239 --> 00:41:42,960
Speaker 1: And then uh, yeah, you just didn't want to You

652
00:41:43,000 --> 00:41:45,080
Speaker 1: just wanted to keep capitalizing it. Yeah, they believe in you.

653
00:41:45,160 --> 00:41:47,440
Speaker 1: Now you gotta go do it, go play and uh

654
00:41:47,680 --> 00:41:49,640
Speaker 1: just keep earning that respect. All right, here's where I'm

655
00:41:49,640 --> 00:41:52,319
Speaker 1: wrapping this up that I'm trying. Here we go two

656
00:41:52,400 --> 00:41:59,680
Speaker 1: more questions. So one is every player who comes to

657
00:41:59,760 --> 00:42:04,239
Speaker 1: a camp believes in himself as a player. Maybe not

658
00:42:05,400 --> 00:42:09,319
Speaker 1: with the demonstrated confidence of having done it for a while,

659
00:42:09,320 --> 00:42:11,280
Speaker 1: but every player believes he can play in the league.

660
00:42:11,800 --> 00:42:14,759
Speaker 1: And I've never met one. I've only been doing this

661
00:42:14,840 --> 00:42:18,480
Speaker 1: forty four years, but I've never met one that said,

662
00:42:18,560 --> 00:42:21,880
Speaker 1: you know, I can be a backup tight end in

663
00:42:21,920 --> 00:42:27,040
Speaker 1: this league. Everybody wants to start. So you now have

664
00:42:27,280 --> 00:42:32,040
Speaker 1: proven that you can start at quarterback and win games

665
00:42:32,080 --> 00:42:38,960
Speaker 1: in the NFL. Where's your personal proving yourself now as

666
00:42:39,040 --> 00:42:43,680
Speaker 1: a startering in the opportunity to be a starter. Where

667
00:42:43,680 --> 00:42:47,600
Speaker 1: are you on that meter? Yeah, I mean it's going

668
00:42:47,640 --> 00:42:51,160
Speaker 1: to be you know, every year it'll always be got

669
00:42:51,160 --> 00:42:54,239
Speaker 1: to win the backup job. And then now you know,

670
00:42:54,280 --> 00:42:57,040
Speaker 1: I remember writing down win the back you know, first

671
00:42:57,040 --> 00:43:00,160
Speaker 1: it's like make the team be the three, be the two.

672
00:43:00,760 --> 00:43:02,880
Speaker 1: And now you know, playing a little big in confidence.

673
00:43:02,960 --> 00:43:05,240
Speaker 1: Now you can go go start and uh you always

674
00:43:05,239 --> 00:43:07,719
Speaker 1: had that confidence in yourself and getting to go do

675
00:43:07,760 --> 00:43:10,080
Speaker 1: it and seeing an action and learning you know, it

676
00:43:10,120 --> 00:43:13,359
Speaker 1: wasn't perfect. You know, a lot of plays you want

677
00:43:13,360 --> 00:43:16,200
Speaker 1: back and you learn from and just constantly growing. That's

678
00:43:16,280 --> 00:43:17,799
Speaker 1: kind of the real thing is, you know, whether you're

679
00:43:17,840 --> 00:43:20,440
Speaker 1: backup or starting. I just want constantly growing as a quarterback,

680
00:43:21,880 --> 00:43:23,520
Speaker 1: you know, on and off the field, in the locker room.

681
00:43:23,520 --> 00:43:25,880
Speaker 1: And that's kind of goal right now. So here's the

682
00:43:25,920 --> 00:43:31,680
Speaker 1: final question. We give you a drum roll if you like. So,

683
00:43:33,239 --> 00:43:35,759
Speaker 1: who know, there are so many things that especially at

684
00:43:35,760 --> 00:43:39,360
Speaker 1: the quarterback position, that go into deciding who gets a

685
00:43:39,480 --> 00:43:42,120
Speaker 1: chance to be a starting quarterback, let alone who becomes

686
00:43:42,120 --> 00:43:46,640
Speaker 1: a starting quarterback. Sometimes it's politics, Sometimes it's salary kid

687
00:43:46,680 --> 00:43:51,400
Speaker 1: who it's all kinds of stuff. My assertion is that

688
00:43:51,520 --> 00:43:56,200
Speaker 1: what you have done, I know you're you're noticeably reluctant

689
00:43:56,239 --> 00:44:02,560
Speaker 1: to use the pronoun iye, But what you have demonstrated

690
00:44:02,680 --> 00:44:06,399
Speaker 1: proved by being given a chance and making the most

691
00:44:06,440 --> 00:44:09,200
Speaker 1: of it is I think you set your family up

692
00:44:09,320 --> 00:44:12,160
Speaker 1: for the rest of your life. I think that you're

693
00:44:12,160 --> 00:44:15,080
Speaker 1: going to have an opportunity to be, at the least,

694
00:44:15,200 --> 00:44:18,960
Speaker 1: at the very worst, you can be Colt McCoy or

695
00:44:19,040 --> 00:44:22,040
Speaker 1: Chase Daniel or one of those guys who plays twelve

696
00:44:22,120 --> 00:44:25,680
Speaker 1: or fifteen years as a backup quarterback and makes a

697
00:44:25,719 --> 00:44:27,879
Speaker 1: lot of money what some people would consider a lot

698
00:44:27,920 --> 00:44:30,839
Speaker 1: of money. How do you react when I say that, Yeah,

699
00:44:30,840 --> 00:44:32,520
Speaker 1: it's the goal is to play as long as I can.

700
00:44:33,560 --> 00:44:36,080
Speaker 1: You know, it's awesome seeing Clouds with Colt in New York.

701
00:44:36,880 --> 00:44:39,400
Speaker 1: He's awesome, see him play yesterday, play really well as sweet.

702
00:44:40,160 --> 00:44:42,880
Speaker 1: But yeah, I just want to play as long as

703
00:44:42,920 --> 00:44:44,880
Speaker 1: I can. With its starting in a backup and just

704
00:44:45,080 --> 00:44:46,960
Speaker 1: getting a chance to get on the field. You want

705
00:44:46,960 --> 00:44:48,239
Speaker 1: to be in it. You want to be in it.

706
00:44:48,239 --> 00:44:51,120
Speaker 1: You want to be in it, whether that's practice squad role.

707
00:44:51,160 --> 00:44:52,839
Speaker 1: I'll tell guys that are on piece squad now, young

708
00:44:52,880 --> 00:44:55,160
Speaker 1: guys like you're in it. A lot of stuff can happen.

709
00:44:56,000 --> 00:44:57,440
Speaker 1: You don't want to be at home right now, so

710
00:44:57,760 --> 00:45:00,399
Speaker 1: you know things like that is be involved, whether you're playing,

711
00:45:00,680 --> 00:45:03,479
Speaker 1: where you're helping out, whether you're backing up. That's the goal.

712
00:45:03,719 --> 00:45:06,000
Speaker 1: Play as long as I can. The humblest quarterback in

713
00:45:06,000 --> 00:45:08,960
Speaker 1: the league might be Cooper Rush. Ladies and gentlemen, we'll

714
00:45:09,000 --> 00:45:11,680
Speaker 1: be back with Cooper when we continue with your questions

715
00:45:12,000 --> 00:48:17,359
Speaker 1: and the Cowboys uh to the miller like Cowboys Hour

716
00:48:17,680 --> 00:48:22,080
Speaker 1: supported by Albert Sytems. Welcome back to conne Rosso, home

717
00:48:22,200 --> 00:48:24,440
Speaker 1: of the Cowboys Hour, which by the way, is presented

718
00:48:24,440 --> 00:48:28,719
Speaker 1: by Papa John's Better Ingredients, Better Pizza. Papa John. We

719
00:48:28,760 --> 00:48:34,360
Speaker 1: are wrapping things up here with quarterback Cooper Rush. I

720
00:48:34,400 --> 00:48:37,080
Speaker 1: always like seeing how it builds every now and then,

721
00:48:37,080 --> 00:48:39,720
Speaker 1: and I think, Brad, we're gonna take some questions from college.

722
00:48:39,760 --> 00:48:45,680
Speaker 1: I'm ready. Look, Cooper, my name's Rambo. So I know

723
00:48:45,760 --> 00:48:50,600
Speaker 1: your teammates are a great support system as far as

724
00:48:50,640 --> 00:48:55,840
Speaker 1: motivation goes, has Tony Romo ever giving you any advice

725
00:48:57,239 --> 00:49:00,680
Speaker 1: having to do as far as being thrown the spotlight

726
00:49:01,560 --> 00:49:04,880
Speaker 1: like you have the past year or so. Yeah, the

727
00:49:04,920 --> 00:49:07,399
Speaker 1: first time I met Tony was actually before the since

728
00:49:07,440 --> 00:49:09,440
Speaker 1: the game. You know, he's doing the game for CBS.

729
00:49:09,520 --> 00:49:12,640
Speaker 1: We had the production meeting, and uh, it was awesome

730
00:49:12,640 --> 00:49:14,279
Speaker 1: talking to him. He right away, first thing he said,

731
00:49:14,280 --> 00:49:15,880
Speaker 1: you watched practice, and first thing to say, oh, you

732
00:49:16,200 --> 00:49:18,720
Speaker 1: know how to play, he'll be fine. I know quarterback

733
00:49:18,760 --> 00:49:21,120
Speaker 1: traits and you got him and that's you know, that

734
00:49:21,160 --> 00:49:22,640
Speaker 1: was that was pretty cool to hear him say that.

735
00:49:22,880 --> 00:49:26,080
Speaker 1: He was super relaxed about just saying you can play

736
00:49:26,120 --> 00:49:29,000
Speaker 1: co trusting it and uh, that was my first experience

737
00:49:29,000 --> 00:49:31,880
Speaker 1: with him, and um, it was very helpful. He just

738
00:49:31,960 --> 00:49:34,319
Speaker 1: haided an eighteen million dollars contract. He can be very

739
00:49:34,560 --> 00:49:38,479
Speaker 1: he can be loose with the comblms. Yeah, um so

740
00:49:38,920 --> 00:49:44,600
Speaker 1: um when you were sitting around contemplating looking for the

741
00:49:44,640 --> 00:49:48,360
Speaker 1: next job, waiting for them for the next phone call, Um,

742
00:49:48,680 --> 00:49:51,879
Speaker 1: what what you your thoughts have to go to? Well,

743
00:49:52,000 --> 00:49:57,719
Speaker 1: if nobody calls, then I will. Yeah it was I

744
00:49:57,760 --> 00:49:59,640
Speaker 1: still don't have answer. Didn't have an answer then and

745
00:50:00,200 --> 00:50:03,640
Speaker 1: don't now. And I love your wife's reaction too. Yeah right,

746
00:50:05,080 --> 00:50:09,359
Speaker 1: we didn't know what was going on, but uh yeah,

747
00:50:09,440 --> 00:50:12,880
Speaker 1: not the not the best time and h but like

748
00:50:12,960 --> 00:50:15,680
Speaker 1: I said, I think it offered some perspective for me

749
00:50:15,760 --> 00:50:18,719
Speaker 1: and really help me grow as a person player. Well,

750
00:50:18,719 --> 00:50:21,120
Speaker 1: maybe maybe the better way to ask the question is

751
00:50:21,120 --> 00:50:22,440
Speaker 1: what do you want to be when you grow up?

752
00:50:23,120 --> 00:50:25,120
Speaker 1: I'm doing it, that's the thing. Yeah, but you can't

753
00:50:25,160 --> 00:50:29,359
Speaker 1: do this forever. Someday you and me both pal they're

754
00:50:29,360 --> 00:50:32,960
Speaker 1: going to invite us to not do this anymore. Right, Um,

755
00:50:33,040 --> 00:50:35,759
Speaker 1: I really don't know. So, um, what would you want

756
00:50:35,760 --> 00:50:37,719
Speaker 1: to be when you were a kid besides an athlete?

757
00:50:40,480 --> 00:50:42,880
Speaker 1: I wish I had better answered. I mean, I have

758
00:50:42,920 --> 00:50:45,120
Speaker 1: a hard time answering that question too though, because I'm like,

759
00:50:45,120 --> 00:50:47,840
Speaker 1: I don't remember remember, I barely want to knew what

760
00:50:47,880 --> 00:50:50,000
Speaker 1: I wanted to do in college. I have a good degree,

761
00:50:50,000 --> 00:50:53,280
Speaker 1: I got actual science degree. You can go make money

762
00:50:53,280 --> 00:50:55,359
Speaker 1: doing that and the insurance industry and stuff like that,

763
00:50:55,400 --> 00:51:02,160
Speaker 1: but not not the plan coaching. Uh, I'm gonna want

764
00:51:02,160 --> 00:51:06,520
Speaker 1: to stay away from it if possible, because it's uh,

765
00:51:06,680 --> 00:51:08,719
Speaker 1: it's brutal life on you know, the family, a lot

766
00:51:08,719 --> 00:51:11,719
Speaker 1: of hours and um it's something you know though, it's

767
00:51:11,800 --> 00:51:13,520
Speaker 1: football and you know it and you're good at it,

768
00:51:13,600 --> 00:51:17,680
Speaker 1: but man, it's you think we work hardly. No, I know,

769
00:51:18,000 --> 00:51:19,839
Speaker 1: I know, but I'm not trying to take it. I'm

770
00:51:19,880 --> 00:51:22,200
Speaker 1: not trying to take him away from the family, trust me,

771
00:51:22,600 --> 00:51:27,120
Speaker 1: but the time might come, and someday probably will when

772
00:51:27,160 --> 00:51:29,399
Speaker 1: you'll say, and what is it that you have lined

773
00:51:29,480 --> 00:51:32,879
Speaker 1: up to do? Because you know we the house isn't

774
00:51:32,920 --> 00:51:38,080
Speaker 1: big enough. Okay, Um, how about high school coaching? You

775
00:51:38,120 --> 00:51:41,680
Speaker 1: strike me as someone who would really be good at

776
00:51:41,680 --> 00:51:46,040
Speaker 1: transmitting fundamentals and character building and that kind of thing.

777
00:51:46,680 --> 00:51:49,520
Speaker 1: And there's a lot less travel. Yeah, it's a lot

778
00:51:49,560 --> 00:51:52,640
Speaker 1: of a lot more relaxed, uh, unless it's down here,

779
00:51:52,680 --> 00:51:56,239
Speaker 1: but uh, where I'm from, it's a lot more relaxed

780
00:51:56,280 --> 00:51:59,600
Speaker 1: and a lot more fun. Uh, it's funny. Actually, my

781
00:51:59,640 --> 00:52:01,360
Speaker 1: buddy I still talked from my high school. He's a

782
00:52:01,400 --> 00:52:04,160
Speaker 1: high school coach at UM where I went to high school,

783
00:52:04,160 --> 00:52:06,480
Speaker 1: where we went to high school, and he sent me

784
00:52:06,520 --> 00:52:08,680
Speaker 1: over the huddle of their last playoff game. He goes,

785
00:52:08,680 --> 00:52:10,200
Speaker 1: it needs you to look at this. We lost and

786
00:52:10,480 --> 00:52:12,000
Speaker 1: I haven't looked at you yet, but I'm playing on

787
00:52:12,080 --> 00:52:15,640
Speaker 1: it and who knows. Okay, Yeah, like you gotta talk

788
00:52:15,680 --> 00:52:18,759
Speaker 1: to Witten. Yeah, he's doing great this year, big year

789
00:52:18,760 --> 00:52:23,160
Speaker 1: for him. Yeah, Cooper Rush. Oh, my name is Kayden,

790
00:52:23,480 --> 00:52:25,600
Speaker 1: And um, I wanted to ask, I know you played

791
00:52:25,600 --> 00:52:28,719
Speaker 1: for the Giants for a while, and um, I wanted

792
00:52:28,719 --> 00:52:32,319
Speaker 1: to ask, what's your thoughts about leading the Cowboys. It

793
00:52:32,400 --> 00:52:36,239
Speaker 1: was awesome. I mean to get not just a one

794
00:52:36,280 --> 00:52:38,439
Speaker 1: game stant but like a four or five game thing

795
00:52:38,440 --> 00:52:41,400
Speaker 1: of like, hey you're the guy. Uh, it was awesome.

796
00:52:41,440 --> 00:52:43,040
Speaker 1: You had to remind yourself. You know, you've been a

797
00:52:43,080 --> 00:52:46,520
Speaker 1: starting quarterback your whole life. Um, go act like it

798
00:52:46,560 --> 00:52:49,759
Speaker 1: and kind of found a rhythm, and um, you know

799
00:52:49,760 --> 00:52:51,960
Speaker 1: it was pretty cool. Looking back and Damian during it's like,

800
00:52:52,040 --> 00:52:56,000
Speaker 1: this is pretty sweet. You're starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. Um,

801
00:52:56,160 --> 00:52:58,280
Speaker 1: you always thought you'd be there, but also you thought

802
00:52:58,480 --> 00:53:00,520
Speaker 1: I probably shouldn't be here. But it was, Uh, it's

803
00:53:00,560 --> 00:53:03,239
Speaker 1: pretty cool. Wait, say more about that. I mean, here's

804
00:53:03,239 --> 00:53:06,000
Speaker 1: a kid growing up you want to beat that. I

805
00:53:06,080 --> 00:53:09,400
Speaker 1: mean the chances, the numbers. I'll say no kind of

806
00:53:09,440 --> 00:53:12,120
Speaker 1: my upbringing. I was in some five star recruit that

807
00:53:12,320 --> 00:53:16,439
Speaker 1: you know, got recruited everywhere and high draft pick things

808
00:53:16,440 --> 00:53:18,920
Speaker 1: like that's why I mean by that, And at the

809
00:53:18,960 --> 00:53:20,880
Speaker 1: same time, you had that interbelief with this is at

810
00:53:20,920 --> 00:53:24,680
Speaker 1: the same time, this is where you belong. Okay, So

811
00:53:25,120 --> 00:53:28,520
Speaker 1: the experience in New York gave you a frame of

812
00:53:28,560 --> 00:53:33,960
Speaker 1: reference people. I've talked to players who you know, spend

813
00:53:33,960 --> 00:53:36,799
Speaker 1: a little time with different teams, and they're surprised at

814
00:53:36,800 --> 00:53:42,479
Speaker 1: everything about how things work differently in other organizations, from

815
00:53:43,239 --> 00:53:45,680
Speaker 1: you know, where you have lunch to the structure of

816
00:53:45,760 --> 00:53:52,080
Speaker 1: meetings and everything. What was the biggest contrast, you know,

817
00:53:52,120 --> 00:53:54,359
Speaker 1: I wish I got a you know, obviously it wasn't

818
00:53:54,360 --> 00:53:56,040
Speaker 1: there long, but it was the COVID year, so it

819
00:53:56,120 --> 00:53:59,160
Speaker 1: was a little yeah, not viviously, not fair. But I

820
00:53:59,160 --> 00:54:03,920
Speaker 1: would say that's an organization that you know, fans care

821
00:54:03,920 --> 00:54:06,320
Speaker 1: of the city, cares, it's all, you know. So I

822
00:54:06,360 --> 00:54:08,120
Speaker 1: didn't get a taste of, you know, of a place

823
00:54:08,120 --> 00:54:10,880
Speaker 1: where you know, maybe football is that number one um,

824
00:54:10,960 --> 00:54:14,720
Speaker 1: because obviously that's a story, story, franchise and all that. UM.

825
00:54:16,000 --> 00:54:18,279
Speaker 1: But uh yeah, guy, like you said, guys come here

826
00:54:18,280 --> 00:54:20,399
Speaker 1: and it's a little different. Um. But like I said,

827
00:54:20,400 --> 00:54:22,400
Speaker 1: it's fun and there's no better place. I want to

828
00:54:22,440 --> 00:54:26,200
Speaker 1: ask you about your wife because I keep catching eyes

829
00:54:26,320 --> 00:54:31,279
Speaker 1: with her. But you talked earlier about I'm sorry, I'm

830
00:54:32,080 --> 00:54:37,800
Speaker 1: okaybody regardless. You talked about how specially it was to

831
00:54:37,840 --> 00:54:39,719
Speaker 1: have the support of your teammates, but to have the

832
00:54:39,760 --> 00:54:44,080
Speaker 1: support of that teammate. How special has that been? Uh? Yeah,

833
00:54:44,080 --> 00:54:46,080
Speaker 1: it's huge. I mean taking care of the little one

834
00:54:46,160 --> 00:54:49,400
Speaker 1: right now. Uh, you know that that role that she

835
00:54:49,480 --> 00:54:53,520
Speaker 1: plays is huge. Um, you know, having that support there

836
00:54:53,560 --> 00:54:56,000
Speaker 1: and then my family at home and um, all of

837
00:54:56,040 --> 00:54:59,120
Speaker 1: them working together getting along, and you know it's uh,

838
00:54:59,200 --> 00:55:01,960
Speaker 1: it's huge. It's why here. Everyone needs it and uh

839
00:55:02,120 --> 00:55:04,120
Speaker 1: you know, definitely thankful for it. What do you do

840
00:55:04,200 --> 00:55:07,200
Speaker 1: to chip in with a little guy? We know, we

841
00:55:07,560 --> 00:55:09,840
Speaker 1: go on walks and I change a lot of diapers.

842
00:55:09,840 --> 00:55:12,719
Speaker 1: I change your diapers a lot. Are they watching film

843
00:55:12,800 --> 00:55:18,680
Speaker 1: right now? Ye? Yes, yes, touchdown because she's big into

844
00:55:18,719 --> 00:55:20,960
Speaker 1: cars right now, to move the movie cars, So that's

845
00:55:21,000 --> 00:55:23,279
Speaker 1: probably what's on it. And she has no idea what

846
00:55:23,360 --> 00:55:25,959
Speaker 1: you do, does she or cares or care? But that's

847
00:55:26,000 --> 00:55:28,760
Speaker 1: the good that, by the way, that'll be the good news.

848
00:55:29,200 --> 00:55:31,879
Speaker 1: You know, as you go along tough game, you walk

849
00:55:31,920 --> 00:55:36,319
Speaker 1: in the door. Even your loving wife doesn't know quite

850
00:55:36,360 --> 00:55:38,560
Speaker 1: how to approach you, what kind of mood you'll be in.

851
00:55:39,480 --> 00:55:42,719
Speaker 1: They don't care. Daddy's home. That's all they need to know, right.

852
00:55:42,719 --> 00:55:45,200
Speaker 1: I know it's all good in their world, so makes

853
00:55:45,200 --> 00:55:47,160
Speaker 1: it good in yours. How's it been being a father

854
00:55:47,280 --> 00:55:50,520
Speaker 1: and just balancing this game and being at home and

855
00:55:50,600 --> 00:55:53,520
Speaker 1: taking care of her. How how has that kind of

856
00:55:53,560 --> 00:55:56,799
Speaker 1: shifted your focus? I guess yeah, it's been awesome. Like

857
00:55:56,840 --> 00:56:00,279
Speaker 1: you said, it offers us another thing, another perspective of life,

858
00:56:00,280 --> 00:56:03,120
Speaker 1: and um, just another aspect of it. And you know

859
00:56:03,239 --> 00:56:06,680
Speaker 1: she's great, she's pretty easy baby. Um, so knock on

860
00:56:06,920 --> 00:56:10,200
Speaker 1: d right then. But it's been good. Yeah, I know,

861
00:56:10,239 --> 00:56:12,960
Speaker 1: it's been good. It's been fun. Um, you know, and

862
00:56:13,040 --> 00:56:16,040
Speaker 1: you're learning in that environment too, and you're enjoying every day.

863
00:56:16,120 --> 00:56:19,120
Speaker 1: What's harder being the starting quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys

864
00:56:19,200 --> 00:56:22,160
Speaker 1: or being a dad ahead? For sure? Yeah, for sure,

865
00:56:22,239 --> 00:56:26,839
Speaker 1: no question. You'll get blitzed every play. So uh, one

866
00:56:26,880 --> 00:56:29,600
Speaker 1: of the great reasons too. In the in the minute

867
00:56:29,640 --> 00:56:31,920
Speaker 1: or so we have left to come out to Kanye

868
00:56:32,040 --> 00:56:34,520
Speaker 1: Rosso on a Monday night. A lot of great screens

869
00:56:34,600 --> 00:56:39,280
Speaker 1: up Philadelphia Washington tonight. Um. What are your thoughts about

870
00:56:39,280 --> 00:56:42,680
Speaker 1: the division race? Uh? Yeah, I mean there's some good

871
00:56:42,680 --> 00:56:47,080
Speaker 1: football being played obviously, Philly undefeated. Um, really good football

872
00:56:47,120 --> 00:56:49,399
Speaker 1: team top to bottom on both sides of the ball.

873
00:56:49,440 --> 00:56:52,080
Speaker 1: And then New York's playing really well. Uh. And then

874
00:56:52,120 --> 00:56:55,960
Speaker 1: Washington's no joke, especially on defense. They got dudes everywhere.

875
00:56:56,280 --> 00:57:00,200
Speaker 1: Um so the FCS is uh showing out this and

876
00:57:00,239 --> 00:57:02,440
Speaker 1: it's it's gonna be fun all the way to being okay.

877
00:57:02,600 --> 00:57:05,359
Speaker 1: The music means we got thirty seconds to say, thank

878
00:57:05,400 --> 00:57:09,280
Speaker 1: you very much for your time, thank you for bringing

879
00:57:09,280 --> 00:57:12,720
Speaker 1: your family, thank you for letting him come out tonight.

880
00:57:13,239 --> 00:57:17,840
Speaker 1: Happy Thanksgiving and Haley to you, Happy Thanksgiving and all

881
00:57:17,880 --> 00:57:21,240
Speaker 1: of you Happy Thanksgiving. And we will see you right

882
00:57:21,240 --> 00:57:25,080
Speaker 1: back here in two weeks on the Cowboys Hour at

883
00:57:25,160 --> 00:57:30,520
Speaker 1: Kane Rosso in the Star District in Frisco. This has

884
00:57:30,520 --> 00:57:33,360
Speaker 1: been a production of Dallas Cowboys dot Com and the

885
00:57:33,520 --> 00:57:35,120
Speaker 1: Dallas Cowboys Football Club.