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Speaker 1: Jack said, is it accepted? Intercepted by high Smith and

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Speaker 1: what a monster play the Steelers fully prepared for David Johnson.

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Speaker 1: Alex Heighsmith, rookie from Charlotte, the third round pick, mixed

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Speaker 1: the play. All right, Alex, I want to start going

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Speaker 1: into the Ravens game, your first Steelers Ravens game. What

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Speaker 1: were you told about it? What did you think? And

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Speaker 1: then coming out? What did you learn about this rivalry? Um?

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Speaker 1: You know, going into you know, I definitely knew that

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Speaker 1: it was a huge game. You know, I knew a

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Speaker 1: lot about you know, the Steelers Ravens rivalry. You know,

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Speaker 1: I didn't grow up you know, Steelers are Ravens fan,

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Speaker 1: but you know I had plenty of Steers and Ravens

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Speaker 1: fan that you know told me about the game. Just

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Speaker 1: tell me how big a rival he was. So nephew,

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Speaker 1: knew about it, you know, from you know, my whole life,

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Speaker 1: you know, just going into it this week, you know

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Speaker 1: I knew that was, you know, one of the one

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Speaker 1: of those games of the year. You know, if I

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Speaker 1: start matchup is coach Tomin likes to likes to talk

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Speaker 1: about it, and so it was. It was a big

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Speaker 1: game going into and knew there's gonna be a physical game,

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Speaker 1: and I definitely found that out for sure, you know,

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Speaker 1: because my body was definitely really sore after that game.

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Speaker 1: But you know, it was awesome game and just be

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Speaker 1: able to go in there and just get the victory,

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Speaker 1: you know, uh in a MNC Bank stadium, you know,

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Speaker 1: at the Ravens, and so I definitely knew as a rival,

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Speaker 1: you know, because it's the first away game you know,

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Speaker 1: where fans were doing us. So it was it was

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Speaker 1: definitely an awesome experience. You had your first career interception,

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Speaker 1: you also had a career high end snaps. Did you

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Speaker 1: know you were going to be used that much going

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Speaker 1: in especially with that three outside linebacker package. Um, you know,

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Speaker 1: I didn't know know how much I was gonna be

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Speaker 1: us going into the game, but you know I knew I,

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Speaker 1: um was gonna get a good amount of snatch, you know,

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Speaker 1: with with the package that we had in and so

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Speaker 1: I just do whatever I can, you know, to make

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Speaker 1: sure you know, when one numbers called, you know, I

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Speaker 1: just go in and just be able to so to produce,

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Speaker 1: you know, to go in there and just make plays.

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Speaker 1: And so you know, I felt like, you know, I

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Speaker 1: just went in there and did what I could just, um,

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Speaker 1: you know, put my team in the best edition to win.

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Speaker 1: And that's what I always you know, I have in

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Speaker 1: mind whenever I go away. You know where the special

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Speaker 1: teams were defense. Just what can I do you know,

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Speaker 1: to on this play, you know, to help my team

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Speaker 1: and put my team in the best position to win.

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Speaker 1: So if it was a good, um, a good game,

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Speaker 1: you know, I'm just going in and uh, I feel

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Speaker 1: like you know that package we're good for us, and

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Speaker 1: so um, I'm glad we were able to execute it.

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Speaker 1: Play action pack. The pass intercepted at the twenty three

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Speaker 1: yard line, and that is Alex high Smith, the rookie

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Speaker 1: out of Charlotte with the second interception of the day

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Speaker 1: against Lamar Jackson. What a great job by the young man.

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Speaker 1: He gave the appearance like possibly coming at the end

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Speaker 1: of the line. Then he drops back and he gets

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Speaker 1: right in between a couple of guys that would be

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Speaker 1: Andrews and Patrick Ricardo and intercepts the ball. What a

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Speaker 1: nice job. Now with your interception. I know after the

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Speaker 1: game you said you learned from something and getting burnt

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Speaker 1: in the first half. Um, when you went back and

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Speaker 1: watched it on film and you guys got back to Pittsburgh.

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Speaker 1: Did you learn anything else about that play or about

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Speaker 1: your performance? Yeah? Um, you know, really it was just uh,

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Speaker 1: you know, learning just you know the responsibilities of my

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Speaker 1: drop on that play. You know, like I said, I

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Speaker 1: learned from in the first half where they were in

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Speaker 1: the same exact play and against our semis that defense

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Speaker 1: and instead of dropping deep way through it over my head,

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Speaker 1: I stayed stayed down the full back he was coming out,

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Speaker 1: and so we watched and watched that. I looked at

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Speaker 1: it on the sideline and I'm talking about it with

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Speaker 1: my coaches, and then you know, first half came out,

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Speaker 1: they motioned to that same formation and the pool that

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Speaker 1: kind of came up with the ball the same way.

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Speaker 1: Because he wasn't coming off aggressively, I knew it was

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Speaker 1: gonna be a path, and so I faked at him

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Speaker 1: and then drop back right in time was able to

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Speaker 1: jump up and get it. And so you know that's

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Speaker 1: what really that was kind of the just adjustment for

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Speaker 1: me that that helped me to make that interception. Just

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Speaker 1: you know, overall, just there's definitely no things I can

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Speaker 1: approve on every game, and so just watching that film.

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Speaker 1: You know, I was I'm very highly critical with myself.

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Speaker 1: So I feel like I have you know, enough defense.

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Speaker 1: You know, we definitely have, uh, you know, a lot

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Speaker 1: to improve on and so um, we're excited to show

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Speaker 1: it this week. Rest of Dallas, coach Heelman always talks

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Speaker 1: about t J. Watt and Bud dupri and how they

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Speaker 1: are fine tuning and talking about pass rushing and just

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Speaker 1: technique when they're on the field, when they're off the field,

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Speaker 1: in the locker room, everywhere. I know, you were excited

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Speaker 1: to get to learn from those. What have you learned

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Speaker 1: from them that you've been able to implement into your

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Speaker 1: game this season? Yeah, just I've just been taking you know,

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Speaker 1: just looking at their moves and stuff that they that

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Speaker 1: they do, you know, from that aspect, you know, Buddon,

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Speaker 1: you know, they should both use different moves. I just

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Speaker 1: kind of picking their brain, you know, and when to

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Speaker 1: use them and you know kind of like you know,

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Speaker 1: what are they're pre snap keys and stuff like that.

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Speaker 1: You know, when do they start to use each move

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Speaker 1: and like against what tackles you know, whether you tackle um,

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Speaker 1: you know as a shoot their hands fast where they

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Speaker 1: hold them back, you know what what type of moves

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Speaker 1: do they do, they use and they just kind of

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Speaker 1: one thing I wanted from is just you know, react

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Speaker 1: to what you see. You know, you know it is important,

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Speaker 1: you know to have a move, um, you know, a

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Speaker 1: pre snap move going into your rush, but you know

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Speaker 1: you always gotta react to what you see. Just so

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Speaker 1: let's say that's the mathing, just really reacting to what

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Speaker 1: you see and having a move. Plann for it. Now.

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Speaker 1: Coming into this season, I think everybody across the board

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Speaker 1: set rookies, we're going to be out of disadvantage with

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Speaker 1: not a normal off season program, training camp, just everything

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Speaker 1: is different, but you guys don't know any different. It's

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Speaker 1: like you were here last year to experience what a

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Speaker 1: normal NFL season is. Like. How proud are you of

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Speaker 1: your rookie class and what you guys have been able

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Speaker 1: to do to contribute to this team that is currently undefeated. Um,

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Speaker 1: you know, I think you know we've come in. You know,

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Speaker 1: we we've done we can do. You know, whatever our

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Speaker 1: number has been called. You know, guys like me, Chase, Kevin,

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Speaker 1: uh and Mac you know, I think you know when

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Speaker 1: all of our our numbers have been called so far,

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Speaker 1: you know we've come in and we've shown that, you know,

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Speaker 1: you know that that we can play with that we

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Speaker 1: can play with soon. Not only that we can play

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Speaker 1: with it, we can make it. We can make an

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Speaker 1: impact you know, you know from Chase with this forced

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Speaker 1: touchdowns and can be in one of the best past

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Speaker 1: block and guards in the league on PFF and stuff

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Speaker 1: like that. Just we've you know, we've come in and

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Speaker 1: show them that, you know, we can make an impact

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Speaker 1: on this team and help this team win a super Bowl.

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Speaker 1: And so but we we've definitely got a lot of

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Speaker 1: rooms to improve. And so just like I said earlier,

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Speaker 1: you know, critical myself, you know, I know that, um

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Speaker 1: just to go out there, just be the best second,

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Speaker 1: be be every game. You know, I never thought that, um,

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Speaker 1: I would get my first intersection before my first set,

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Speaker 1: and so I'm still, um critical myself, you know that

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Speaker 1: I need that, I need to get that. So I'm

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Speaker 1: just gonna do whatever I can, you know, to continue

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Speaker 1: to go out there and what my numbers called, just

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Speaker 1: uh make plays and put my team the best edition

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Speaker 1: to win. Lastly, I know coming into the Steelers in

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Speaker 1: this off season, you were doing some UFC training and

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Speaker 1: that is something that you and coach Tomlin shared. Is

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Speaker 1: that still something that you guys talk about or something

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Speaker 1: that you are seeing helping your game? Uh? You know,

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Speaker 1: so when it comes like the hand combat and stuff,

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Speaker 1: I feel like that definitely helped me. You know, if

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Speaker 1: I uh, training with David Brunson back and women to

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Speaker 1: North Carolina, I feel like that definitely helped me with

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Speaker 1: my hand combat and some pass rushing me. Me and

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Speaker 1: coach to you know, we've we've talked about it Derek.

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Speaker 1: Derek falled on August first, and so we were talking

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Speaker 1: about it um a lot around them, but I really

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Speaker 1: talked about it recently. But hopefully Derek has another fight

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Speaker 1: here soon, so we'll definitely be chopping it up all right.

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Speaker 1: Thanks Alex, I really appreciate it. Thank you, MISSI