90 Minutes with the King

0:43 Welcome back to the boundary Corner podcast with my partner. Brian siglo, I am Curtis Wilson. And tonight, folks, we have a very special guest joining up to talk some hokey football and other things in between. We were looking a few weeks ago and we're like we need somebody who's a Virginia Tech football fan. We need somebody who's an alumni of the school. We need somebody who donates his hard-earned money. We need somebody who sponsors Athletics and we need somebody who lives and works in Blacksburg. And there's only one in Bryan.

1:29 I'll let you introduce him King. Jeremy counts of Blacksburg ladies and gentlemen. Jeremy how the hell are you man? Hey, hey, The conference, we had the signing day press conference, and now we're sitting here, we're officially fully into transfer portal season, so we've kind of lived an entire like offseason in about 3 days here.

2:15 So I think everybody's stress levels a little high right now. Oh yeah about that and buying a house this week. So that's fucking great. We've got all of this bullshit going down and it's a roller coaster. It is a shit roller coaster and it has went off the fucking rails. It is like whenever that person got launched from a fucking slingshot, in Pigeon Forge onto the highway, that's what I feel like right now because it is all over the goddamn Place. Lazy Hillman Hokie nation is now the person they got launched in The Pigeon Forge Highway, we are scattered on the concrete. We are getting run over by rednecks. Coming from everywhere to have a great time. In Pigeon.

3:02 Forge, I love you. Billy Mecca. It's my me to known coasters are the best. Yeah, dude, I'm going to Gatlinburg fucking hillbilly. Nigga, like me and Emily. I'm are there. Oh, yes. Yeah. Technically Marnie, who is my best friend. Always, Said he could marry me. He wasn't able to marry us because of Virginia walls are weird because he lived in Kentucky right now. Like that's where he lives. So he couldn't technically Marius in Virginia because our laws are dumb. And so me and Emily went, we got we got redneck hitch in Gatlinburg, a Tobar Gatlinburg and went down in the moonshot afterwards. So, yeah, that was great. So, we were married for like a week before. We were like and the ceremony and stuff. Okay.

3:47 Okay. It's hilarious though that Jeremy talks about his wife because, you know, we started this podcast and not long back after, you know, Jeremy would sons of Saturday and some other guys, you start listening up and you slide into our DM's with some shit in there. You did wider out in. It was very nice, but then, all of a sudden, you know, things here and there and won't Sunday morning. He pops us a picture of something he's doing with his wife. And I sit there and I'm like holy shit this girl looks so fucking familiar talk to Jeremy but hey Jeremy is your girlfriend Virginia he's like yeah listen man I know this is really random. She might change from Halifax County and Jeremy. She is can confirm, he was born and raised in Halifax County and I'm sitting here.

4:41 I'm like Jeremy that's where me and Brian grew up. How, you know, how old is your wife? He tells how she is, we're not going to mention that because she's not going to kick me whenever she sees me in the near future in Blacksburg 33, you said it. Not a throw off the hook. So where is she? But she was in high school. And everybody listening. Stop pause go.

5:33 Follow him when In Blacksburg go by the Main Street Pharmacy. Give him a visit during game days. I'm sure he's got a bunch of stuff in there. You need for after the game. Oh yeah. I probably won't be there on game day, someone will be the cold Jeremy, the extreme rational fan like you're rational when you're come to your takes, but you're very extreme with how you put those takes out there. I'm very logical but I'm also really passionate in my lat if that makes sense. He's absolutely - lately.

6:37 Wake Forest off. We usually have a loss like that every year. I was just it up to hey it's us. It fucking happens. Whatever we're moving on and that was how I felt and then goddamn Liberty happened, fucking Liberty happened and that. Oh my God, that was a shit show, like even getting into patient and been in the game with us even getting to the stupid timeout. And the stupid defensiveness up at the end of the day game even without that, it should not have been that close. And I know I Super Bowl. They were coming out and they were ready for it.

7:17 You have to win those games. These are games, you have to get, and I was around for, you know, the JMU lost back in the day. I was around for all that bullshit. We cannot afford to have losses like that, right now. We're trying to reprogram. Yep. Yep. If Was, you know, you know, talking about JMU at the time, we could recover from a loss like that both on the recruiting front, you know, rallying the next reference here. Yeah. Yeah. You can recover from that. It's very hard to recover from that when you're already, treading water in the ACC. And that's, that's where the Hokies are right now. They're treading water in the ACC treading water, will we see?

7:58 And then the next week, they play their nuts off against Miami and then everybody forgets how to play in the fourth quarter. God, I was at that game. I'm in felt the entire game. Felt like we were going to win that game and I was like, you know what, you know, fuck the Livery. At least we're going to be Miami and we're going to go on we're gonna fucking beat UVA and I was like it's gonna be all right? And then it just stops. It's like anytime it comes down to us having to score some points at the end. We just can't seem to fucking do it. No attention. I was full force that day. I brought out the crown and the Myrtle and everything. The turn is the turnover expert.

8:39 Alleged promise, I'll never break out again, because they game because it the entire time, it felt like we were winning. Yeah, I felt like we were going to win. We're going to right the wrong, but the fourth quarter happened and we well, we suck the fat one. I'm going to just add that the next week hit and that was I was on here. Liberty was the end for me for Coach? Like, I'm over you like you? When people are telling me who went to that game like they couldn't get the guys up. Yeah. No, you can't get the guys up to a team, you should smash. Yeah, you and that is on your entire coaching staff. So yeah. Well with Liberty, the pit game.

9:23 That's what happened. Really really. That was my Rubicon. I was blacked out. Tina's house. And we're sitting there, and I'm downstairs, I'm with a bunch of college students, down there and Reggie and frankenteen and where I'll watch a ballgame and by the second half when they start pulling away, I just, I'm just going at it. I finish a fifth of jmo and then I seen Richie and he brings me a bottle Buffalo Trace. So I'm just taking pulls on Buffalo Trace. I've got these poor kids in there and I'm just like yelling this is why y'all gotta donate to the Hokey Club.

10:35 Here. Because that night, that was bronze Rubicon. So that it 11:00, I put the kids to bed, he puts the kids to bed, we put two wives to bed, and I'm sitting here, he's pounding on Pam's, and I'm sitting here and I'm pouring shots and he looked. And he's like, what the fuck you doing. I'm like, I don't know what else to do and I know you're supposed to, I don't drink, like, I used to About two to three shots and bring about eight beers. Yeah. Whoo. Let's just say when my four-year-old three-year-old woke up at 6:30, the next morning, my wife is pregnant.

11:16 I had to go. I was just glad she didn't know. Hope she doesn't listen. So tomorrow's. Don't okay, so that game happens. You get blackout. We get hammered late-night recording podcasts in the Clemson game. When we have a week off, then Clemson happens. And for three quarters of Clemson. It was like, okay. Absolutely, we need to get to the point where we're putting the same team on the field every week. Yes.

12:22 Because right now I have no idea what team is going to come out week to week. And generally what I expect is we're going to play exactly to whatever our damn competition is now. And you all know me. I actually love food. Like I thought food was a great hire. I was all for the extension through are too rough or Seasons. It was like okay we pretty much got a delayed rebuild, we do. This is going to happen through this. Whenever we had some struggles, I was like, you know, it's covid. It's whatever. It's, you know, we're going to get through this, but it is just it's too much. This is too much. This season was too much and to make those calls and This and I hate the people that are just like, oh well, it's just a football game. It's just what they don't fucking have a goddamn clue. This isn't just a football game.

13:16 This program is so huge to the economy here in Blacksburg and I represent these businesses. I do, I go, I volunteer my time on boards for these businesses, I do everything I can for this community and I whenever I feel like like, we're not being heard, or we're not like people are not Hearing about it, it upsets me because the better this team does, the better it is for the economy better, it is for the school, better is for our culture. And I think we're losing sight of our culture and I think our cultural decline started in 2007. Whenever Jim Weaver made the huge fuck up of getting rid of stick it in, that was just a huge fuck you, too. Virginia Tech game, day, culture, and downhill, and they've been cracking down on it forever, because art everyone goes on About SEC tailgates.

14:06 This is that give me a fucking game day in Blacksburg any fucking day. And back in the day it was my goddamn wild. That's what people fucking understand and people are losing side of that. They're losing sight of what made us special. And it's heartbreaking for me to see because they don't just they don't get it. And it's sad and I'm fucking done with it. Yeah, those are. Haven't lived in those who didn't go through that. Read and see what what it was about. Those teams were about and what tailgating there was about and what the just the whole game day atmosphere that you're talking about like electric if it's fun when you're in the stadium.

14:51 Like it's not just about running out and jump into salmon. It was not looking quarters of that shit. Yeah, I don't I feel like we've lost some of that to it. Yeah, it used to be for fucking quarters of it used to be My first game was 03. My first game was 03 UCF Labor Day weekend, 330 kit. That's got like it's still ingrained in my mind. Big man's over here. Was 2002 Rutgers, right? Yes sir, we remember that 17 and 18 years gone by, and when you walked into we were, we were on prices for because that's where I guys tailgated, that's where our buddies. Who went to Tech tailgate, that's where we were before, we could go downtown.

15:34 No, I never had a fake ID, I just dealt with what I dealt with sitting there in your parting, you're having fun, you're meeting people left and right, and you feel the energy, and then all of a sudden, whatever time kickoff was me and Brandon go there, but whoever did they were like time to go, gotta walk. Gotta walk to get to the stadium to get him. Yep. And as you started going, it was like this flood. It was the for cause you saw the peel. The first time I went, it was just like, like, I kind of get this feeling like, okay, every like everybody knows we're going to the stadium, you get in, you jump for the first time.

16:15 You feel it that game, though, going into the third and fourth quarters tackles easily, win the game. Pit Mill was electric. It still was this hostility like we want to beat your fucking brains in. Yes, you by 50 and as You stated the Germany as we got into the ACC as 2007. They take stick it in a way. It's like we got less and less nasty. Yes we did. Unfortunately what happened was 2007 was Russ for us, we came out and we had the shooting that happened and then that happened and that was used against us - Only four years in recruiting and everything else that happened and then we go along and you know, they're taking away, stick it in because their words are huge.

17:17 There was just this huge microscope on Blacksburg at the top on and they took away, stick it in because of that that was their call. You know, they didn't want to have us you know out there having fun on camera. God fucking forbid that and they take that away and then of course in 2007, all the Michael Vick stuff happened. Yeah. So we had Michael Vick was you know the the player from Virginia Tech in a lot of ways that of course we had like Bruce Smith and everyone from before. For bit, Michael Vick was like this next level Superstar. He was a world Superstar. Yep, you fucking dick. And he represented Us in. Then he went down. So we had all these cultural hits.

17:58 And Jim Weaver has taken away, goddamn, stick it in right in the middle of all this turmoil and it was one of the worst decisions anyone could have ever made and it was a huge blow to our culture. So, we just took a lot of blows that year and it was, it was rough. it was it was hard to watch but that's 13 years ago this year and still you still think over the last 13 years, though, some ACC titles were won bowl games, were made, you know, 10-win Seasons happened and what probably irritates Probably you more than us is when you hear the freaking thing of Virginia Tech, has what third most living don't alumni right now. And then, someone such as yourself who is really looking into it like seeing the amount of donors in a. What you did with that Buffalo Trace, I hope it's stuck to some of those 18 night 21, 22 year-old kids. Make it 25 two times a year.

19:23 Four times a year, eight times a year, 12 times a year. If that's all you have great. But what where do you think that fucked up? Do you think that was Weaver's fucking Jim Weaver? That's full-on again, Weaver Jim, Weaver only cared about big donors. And That's where a good chunk of our change come from, but Jim Weaver left us in quite a bit of a hole because Jim Weaver to his credit, did give a fuck about football. That's all he cared about. And that's kind of why we were in a hole, but he also only cared about me donors. So he didn't have this entire, he didn't realize that there's an entire base that you can tap in donating and he didn't capitalize on the years that we were great to get us a donor base, to keep us there. And we were So behind we relied Forever on just our name to bring recruits to bring everyone else here and Frank's been gone for a while now.

20:21 Yep. Yep. We aren't you know a perennial like ACC title container. We're not anymore. Well my day 10-win seasons were expected. Yep. That was that was expected. Like we were always in the National conversation. That's what we were used to. And now it's just like we don't care and I don't mind, I absolutely love our non-revenue Sports. I love all that we should be spending for that and what I don't like is the fact that the university is choosing not to fund our football program the right way. And I know that that's changing and may whole said it's changing. Everyone else has said is changing and we are getting more money.

21:03 We've got more donors on board for football Improvement program and we did needed to need to update a lot of the facilities. So I understand a lot of that. But we let our fucking cash bail. Starve. In the meantime, we did not take care of our fucking cash cow or what are in our culture is about. Yep. They're all converging Tech is the football team that he draw. If you're not eating that, then you're letting other things slowly die. They might look like they're doing, okay? But they are slowly dying. Like, I love her basketball team. That has been absolutely wonderful to see Buzz. I got real mad when Buzz left, but I understand why Buzz laughs.

21:52 I understand. You know, he wasn't gonna be here for long but I appreciate everything, but a stiff for The end when we found you, everybody knew we're signing an assassin to get our program. No, no one ever had the expectation. He's gonna be myself that he was, you know, that's come down in the last, I mean, really starting like late, We're just like one thing after another. After another, just the hits keep coming. It's been fucking - even the most optimistic person is like this ain't it the same it. Well, hold on.

22:40 The majority of people that probably we just talked with and in us three talking amongst ourselves. Another people fans were about to win today. This year was going into after last year, after the end of the seasons, like it's going to be okay, he looks like he's stabilized. All season henin's. Coming back as quarterback. Look like the offensive lines. Don't look good. Didn't covid happen. But everybody had coded, everybody. This wasn't just like well state of Virginia can't do jack shit. No one could do jack shit, no more. And so we get into the season, we open up with NC State and it's like, okay, yeah, this is what I'm talking about.

23:22 Braxton's gonna fucking crush them. It felt so good. And then like the first six games happened and where we're going to revert in. But like it's okay. This is what we expect. We're only going to win four of the last, you know, four of the last five, we're going to finish the shading three. We're on a good track, but then when all the other stuff start have, all of us, I'm not going to say we're positive or wins because we're not certain people who this is. Okay, we're doing this. No no man no dog. Huh. Huh?

24:26 Famous. If the as bad as the offseason is, we're going to hit the portal on a few minutes. Here is bad as the offseason spin. Tennis last year's 58,000 down obviously from The Glory Days. When all three of us were you were going to school there. Me and Brian had our buddies are. We could get tickets to go up watching games, stay all weekend party. Drink we know what came down. It came down from 62,000 and 2017, when we were nine and four competing for the ACC, One games competed with Clemson that night, I know we lost by 14 but that game was still a hard-fought game 58,000 there are people within this fan base that they everybody's just going to come back next year.

25:18 No they are not going to just come back. This one. I take care of this community. These other like the restaurant to the bars downtown? Yeah. They're not going to be able to fucking afford rent, like they're struggling right now because the covid coming to you. Give us a mediocre a season. Try to come back and we've lost half our fucking office to the goddamn transfer. You think we're going to bring in fans? You think we're going to get out of ticket packages sales that? Well we're not.

26:04 Nope and I mean that's the big thing. So Let's let's look at it from just you know we're talking about game day, we're talking about promotional materials at the teens putting out, you've lost like three guys that you were featuring prominently on your 2020 promotion material to the transfer portal. Yeah that can't happen. No we've never had someone just start for two years straight at quarterback. What? That tell you this hour. The same starting quarterback, who knows? I'm not known for a while since Michael Brewer. Fucking no us is what we were.

27:12 We've all those years were poverty but we're still going out. And I'm sitting, like number one, Ohio State, we were still feel the good deed. We thought that was fucking poverty. Look at this. Now, goddamn. Hey, we beating UVA though. Would be maybe. Yeah. Hey, what about?

27:54 I don't think he's Cutthroat enough. I think, I think he's a guy that just likes to coach football. You got to be able to, you know, cut it up with the donors. You got to be able to cut a guy limits of. He's not cutting the mustard. You got to be able to engage the fans like this shit. You're painting is for Pierre P5. I feel like we're at a point now where you know food goes out and has a decent press conference and takes responsibility for what happened on the field and we're say, are we cleared that fucking bar? That's a low ass bar to clear. I like this press conference, it made me feel better, but But also I know that this is just making me feel better. That's the thing is, I was a fool. I think he's great and I think he's a hell of a coach. I think he's excellent.

28:48 I think he's got a great offense of mine. I think that he is good at what he wants to do. Problem is, is he isn't that CEO top coach? It takes to run a P5 program and that is the issue. And whenever you got people that are underperforming, I mean you got to start cut. Yeah. Like that's that's the thing and whenever you have multiple reports of certain people certain coaches phoning it in and saying the season doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. Fuck him. Exact time for a corn. Cob of the flicker is that I'm not saying any names, and I'm not doing that, because who knows, if it is, you know, troops true.

29:36 It's true. My thing is is whenever you have that happening that is a issue that is you cannot get your kids prepared whenever you're saying this season doesn't matter if fucking matter to me it fucking matters to all the fans. It matters to Blacksburg and baddest our economy even though people can't come. It's still good for our image. It's good for our culture, it matters. So when I hear those things, it makes me Furious and then I hear all this and then we go. To the roller coaster that has been happening the last few days, and it has been a shitstorm and I'm getting everything.

30:17 I hear, especially leading up to it. It was, I mean, it was dead-on and you all, you all know my people as much as I do, and it was the same around town. It was just like coaching change, it's coming. This is what we're doing. I was like, all right, can I ask you a question Jeremy because for me, And Brian you know we're up here in Richmond. We went to a game last year, we went downtown with a sharpie and went to tots. We parked and media went up to lot one. Tailgaters from guys from back home. So now the first time we went in a couple years but let me ask this since 2018, because 20, 1927, 2017, and 2016 were sunshine, and Roses, we were 19 and eight and two seasons.

31:03 You like, you're really into them. Like thank you. We got him for a day. Okay, we're going to be competing every year. 2018 happens. What has been the mood in the town itself with? I'm sure, you know, alumni. And, you know, business owners, since that bad season, the shit that happened last year going up to you. What's been the feel inside of the Town itself. Bad season was written off. 2018, was written off completely. I mean, people are you like okay, this sucks but, you know, we just, we lost a lot and We did. I mean through both 2016, 2017 it was we lost a lot of our tailing them and we have it replaced them. We had to redo a lot of things Jerrod going early was not great.

31:50 Bucky orderly was not great, it's satisfactory bit. I really think that 2017 season could have been really special, I don't draw it. Especially here in more and more. I know Hendon who hit the transfer portal. I love you handy. You you go out. You be great somewhere else. I'll always root for you Gerard. He was taken such a beating in their scheme because we use our quarterbacks like fullbacks a lot. Yep. And he was taking a beating and that's that's a bit of an issue whenever you know you've got Jerrod who had a family to think of he went one year too early. He would stay one more year.

32:33 His entire life would be different. Yeah. And we had abused Him so much that he felt like he had to go even though if he stayed one more year, it would have helped us draft rating. It would have helped everything. Is it working? He could have broken his own records Jerrod with excellent. It to him. He was making the right decision because I think he got some bad advice. And I think it's because he was afraid, he was going to get injured and that's a problem. Whenever we're having our best Helen afraid that, we're misusing them, and we're losing out on them too early and they go on. And I mean, these are these are people's lives. And they're making these decisions based on the fact that we may actually get them hurt. You know, maybe not run your quarterback until he is body is destroyed.

33:20 Well it's I know we love are scrambling cubies here today but you know scramble is different than running quarterback than our own third nineteen exactly like we don't need to hook Ur, the only two quarterbacks, he was fucking behind and rushing with The two fucking option, quarterbacks at Army and Navy and it was, it wasn't a large margin. It was like ten carries and you're like the fucking and then obviously, you want to get somebody fired up. Hey, Jeremy asked, Brian about third and six quarterback Powers. Oh my fucking God. I'm with you. Brian dude.

34:07 You don't know, hey, Jeremy when they do that and then they roll out. BJ for a 53-yard field gold. My my phone is going, what the fuck? And I'm just like, big guys. Got something to say later on tonight. So, okay, let's go back to black bird. After the Duke game. 2019 was a field. Not good. Duke game was rough. It was that's the thing as we were we were honoring. God, it was that was it ninety? Nineteen ninety nineteen. Yeah, how did you know we were Not much to ask like, I do businesses.

35:06 That would sponsor that I would sponsor that I would buy all the food. I would do, whatever I had set up a desk, they could go and they can interact with the fans. They can sign some shit. It would be a boy. Last your 140, head? Out of space. Yeah, okay. And I said to Brian, like, that's the spot and you really have something cool rap along that. So we're sell tickets to fans to say, would you like to go hang out with some of the Hokey Legends hundred dollars? You can have an hour with a few? How many fans would be long ago. Exactly.

35:47 That's what you Sergio's, a Christians Bird. Come on some stuff here. It's her just chomping at the bit to try to do something. Things. These are layouts man. They are missing you too hard to do and it feels like there's a huge disconnect with with a lot of things that are going on. In these obvious things that we can do. This is not hard. These are things that are suggested and they're just like, yeah, like the king of the good news on him and Sydney has a former player tailgate every week. For those who want to attend it Hammond fucking City division, three football. And it didn't If I wanted to go there, there's free food for me every damn Saturday, man.

36:31 And you don't even have to do much every fucking Heaven, just like dishes from the dining halls and I would eat dead up, man. You don't have to do that much. Bring us some fucking fantastic Frank's London, Broil all that shit. That everyone's like, just like yes, the fucking one has one, bro. Bring that out. Do that at the tailgate have all the old hokey favors? People like me with eat that. Uh-oh, people love that shit. If any if you had guys like surge there, Dave on Morgan, you know, and to us those were big players. Hey to the entire other world.

37:12 It's well tie rod was good in the Edmonds and you know Vic and white motherfucker like guys. Like oh god. Um like Sergio, I'm trying to think freaking jail Grove life. English boy long ago, Tweety we work with Tweety's bad. Awesome. Yeah but it's like those easy things where you ask Virginia Tech Pam, I'll ask you to Jeremy, you think of Alonzo Tweety? What's the first place? You think of My, what the named Alonzo Tweety? The first place.

37:57 You think of when you think of Alonzo, Tweety, fuck, did you put me on the spot? Will take you back to 2011 against Miami. The last tackle Tweety made that tackle. Oh fuck you man. Well the only reason we do like his pops. Yeah well that piece of There Are Places their players like that. Then I can tell you right? Like I could say who's your most fan? Random poke that only be random? Yeah. Just randomly Yeah. Nikki Giovanni.

38:44 I love Nikki. That is hard. All right, I like that. He was absolutely amazing and he he just stuck with me and of course, we have our football players. I mean, Anyway. But yeah, it's hard to think of so many people in the league for my day. Yeah, yeah.

39:32 So it's that's a grand random for us. Is like, okay, well they released on a practice squad for yaxha. Yeah, exactly. But it's like, how tough is it to get these guys together? But how tough is it for the athletic department to Simply go up and say let's create a physician pay. The person 65 thousand dollars a year. This is your job, you will attempt to connect with every hokey football alumni and you will create a vents here on campus during day and then create events throughout the state. During the year to get these guys together and talk and bring unwanted You know, Hank fucking needless jobs, they have on campus.

40:29 I know exactly how many they have on campus. Don't get me wrong. I'm just saying they can afford a little extra for alumni. Outreach exactly diffic to our former players and I know Sergio would do it. He's dying to do it. Get Sergio to do it. I think Dwight would do it, but I also don't think Dwight would leave Leave the 757 right now. Yeah Dwight's not only do I don't like going on there but you know what this is not what he is because he is a. Why couldn't you just say will make serves the primary will let the white and run you said some pops. Is the widest, a 70 Nova, there's a noble, but he's got a lot of his stuff he works with his in 7576. He was still in the 757.

41:34 That's why I because he had all the he has like Victory life and everything. Yeah, I think that that's still in the Senate by someone. I think he lives in Nova. If I'm not mistaken. God you tell me. You couldn't stroke him a check for 25,000 a year to do that part. Time to go create the gym because I give a thousand a month just to do that. Shit. That's just, what are you going to do? You're going to create your own, what is it? The 501 case is that the nonprofit. Let's let's create a pledge fund and then just let no, I'm not doing that to him.

42:50 Literally, that's all and everyone was talking about. It was. Yeah, and it's not even just like, randos coming in. Talk to me. You all know like everyone in the know knew it was happening. Yeah, it was all over Twitter. It was all over message boards. It was all over Word of Mouth. Even counting all the noise out, everything else. Everyone in the know that you all know that I know. The people that aren't out there tweeting about this stuff or talking, they were saying the same thing. I was hearing the same thing from people, that's just what I thought we were going to do and don't get me wrong. I I don't want this to happen.

43:37 No. Because I want to, to be the greatest coach to ever be because I think he's great coach and I think he is a good person. Let me know what you to succeed. The problem is is I don't think he can hear. I think it's a bad fit and I think he could go somewhere else and do that. But I think he came into a bad situation. I think he came into a place where the infrastructure was not there to give him the county needed, because I don't think he is a great recruiter, but I think he is an excellent coach once he has them. So we're essentially saying he's not a guy that can go in. He needs help getting them in the building.

44:18 Once they're in the building striking, do think and do some action. We all see the video from ordered a night thing is once their players and he's coaching them, he's going to be a great coach. Ouch. Okay. That is what I'm saying. He's going to put them in situations thing is he has to know his limitations. Yeah, I think he's good. I think what he did in 2016 2017 shows that he knows what he's doing. Yep. The problem is I think he has to have people around him to do a lot of things for him. He can't be the person to go out and sell the program.

44:59 Even though I like him personally, Everyone likes him personally, I don't think he's that charismatic person to go out. He's the polar office owed a bow, but also, I think he's five billion times the coach Dabo could ever fucking dream of being caused a boatswain, he's nothing. But a fucking charlatan at channeling are funneling money through a goddamn truth. That's all he fucking is fuck. Dabo Swinney. And he used that shooting to fucking negatively recruit us and I'll take that against him too. Fucking die. So do you think that can sell the program right now that are on our staff that theft?

45:41 Yeah I'm thinking tab J, Hamm and great. Both of those guys are squares Manning. I'm counting it. Jay Happ nasty but I was a freshman when he was a senior R & J. Hamm was, I was one of those freshman. I was good enough to get in the game. Just a little bit. This man. He was good. Yeah, I know what you do anything with him. He was a running back back then. Yep. Yeah it's just one of those freak athletes and just mad you can do anything with him. My cousin Rob who was also a freak athlete but he he swatted J. Hamm in basketball and that that will always stick with me. That's right.

46:29 Was a sophomore in the time? Career highlight right there? I don't know. Rob had a lot of career highlights. That was just one of those things that it was fun. This have you met has been there and this staff honestly can't talk about that. Okay. Yeah, that makes sense. Give me a few words to what's press conference on Monday. She need a yeah, so it's like what we're trying to build a goddamn, the people who complain Shut the fuck up. Come on.

48:22 Y'all. But you know what? Pissed me off more. Well you can't just do this and just tear it down. Well, you dumb fuck. Excuse me. If you like to it I think he's good. You dumb. Fuck you saw it just tapping in the portal. You have a 3 and 9 season, it's not going to be torn down. It's going to be burnt down and there's going to be no structure. Then we're going to figure out what the fuck, dude, he actually brought it up in the press conference that, well, if we get rid of him, we're not going to have half our players. It's my first. Look what's going on right now. Just say that. Jesus, goddamn Christ. Not the players that were sitting third and fourth string on the bench.

49:03 We lost his mother. Yeah, he saw. What was happening on Twitter? He saw. What the record was this year? He saw the former players chiming in. He saw all of this stuff. This, you know, you are astray. It's just He was like, oh no.

49:57 Fantastic job with everything he has touched except football. All right? That is the thing. That is the trade-off when it is. God damn good at his job. He's just I don't know what's going on with football. I don't know why this is happening. That's the thing is we got our great athletic athletic department overall. We need more funding and we destroyed the Rector and we've got a, we've got Foo who is a great coach. But we're not getting the results we want in football.

50:39 So there are infrastructure issues, there are funding issues. There are a lot of issues. I don't give a fuck. Make it work. Jesus, fucking Christ. The thing that pisses me off the most. Yeah, I understand but I don't really fucking care. Is Big Ten school. You don't have to. You do this huge thing, we're bringing all in the suit. You're not going to have a bunch of students want to come here. If we don't have a culture who the fuck would want to come? And just like go to a college that don't have a culture, can we show Sands the enrollment figures going up and up and up relative to the football success. We can show impact That's a really long story. The 95 boom went to Sugar Bowl and then the night it were the, it went from like nice steady growth to look. And it's like, first of all, begin Make a lot of statements or

52:19 judgments on anyone when I don't know them or their thought process because I'm a fair-minded person. So it's worth the but the college football bubble is going to burst. He said that what six years ago Braun seven years ago called I want to say, I thought so 2014, he said well college football football bubble is going to burst with the revenues. What did He just not see the SEC. Get a 55 million dollar purse full contract fucking Disney. I don't think he quite understands even if there are attendance issues across the board, there's still a lot of goddamn TV money and that TV money and there's still a lot of culture that brings kids into want to come here. Yeah.

53:09 Just want to go to a boring ass school. I don't know what to tell him, but anyone can go. Get a degree fucking anywhere. Now, they consider their house to get it in degree. The reason the kids go to college is to college experience. If they're paid a premium for it and you're going, you're getting the fucking experience and you're getting a better education and you're you're getting everything that you want. But the case you were going to come down, you're expanding your horizons and meeting new people. You're doing things that actually, you can. I know you grew up out in the Far, West part of State. We grow on the south side part of the state. We grew up in a very quick sap, Deep South way.

53:53 We're middle South, we grew up in small communities that for us, going to college and getting those experiences and meeting people. You know, you know, and I know that if we'd stayed in our hometowns, we would never have the opportunity ever to get there to do. Those sort of things to meet those sort of people to go to game. Um, dates to have these experiences. That's why. And if you're taking turning a blind eye to not thinking that six seven times a year, when there's a game and when there's a big game, there's 120,000 people.

54:33 That's his View and you said, you've never personally met him. I'm like to have a conversation with him and saying, what do you think? Because education is important. Don't get me wrong. Yes, they I don't think he's quite getting it and I'm not sure he will. But we come from these small towns and I came here because I I actually came from a group of people that were UVA fans, believe it or not back in looks outfits. Virginia, my family, a bunch of UVA fans because they had quote, unquote UVA College. It was. And that's where my family went, like in undergrad.

55:15 Okay. And a girl, that's, the thing is, I came here because I came up here and he was like, dude, you got to + Michael Vick was my first First college football game and that was awesome. Fucking stomping Eva, he came out and like I also my first NFL game was Michael Vick versus Peyton Manning, who my favorite quarterback, saber, holy hell, yeah, it was awesome. Michael Vick when he can't die. If you've not seen him throw a pass in person. It's a fucking laser. Like hate it. There's no there's no air under the ball.

55:58 It's just fucking laser out there. It's amazing. But more motion either. It's a flick. It just Let It Go. That was a part of the culture was Rock. Came here and Rob full-on was just like Jeremy. This is an amazing place to be in college. You need to come here and I was like, of course, I need fucking go there. Rob's Probably sounds great. It sounds amazing. Yeah. I mean do we think this sounds really understands the impact and we'll think about it. from from your perspective, like the economic impact of game day weekends, like, just the potential that's there and the fact that it's not being Let me hear you ever went out into the tailgate into the downtown area when there is a game day and literally the streets are packed, bustling people in, and out of all the shops people in and out of all of the restaurants, people Paine Park, wherever they can park. I want to say yes, but because it's hard to avoid but it's one of those things where I don't know. I mean, he has to have, but you're mad. Yeah, he's a prominent figure out, they're out and about I don't want to make a lot of

57:31 judgments on sands and his character, because I don't personally know. Okay, but it's, that's not something I will. Do you all know me? I will get fired up and I will give my opinion on literally anything, but I will reserve my opinion when it comes to quite a bit of things that I don't quite know. Well, we're with you. We with you for 20. Don't get us wrong. I think you're good coach. I think he's a good human being. I think I want to hurt person, but also you hear people, you know, up here in our VA, we have David to you, you know, great sports writer for so many years in Virginia. And he says, if you step in the office with him, he's so different.

58:12 And you feel like if, if the food that is just getting that one-on-one sitting down in a chair with you, You feel like if you got him and some of the donors like that the deal would just be like just keep stroking them checks like he's like me. It's just everybody. Every single person that I've ever heard talk about him in a smaller situation. It's just like right? Just he's great guy. Now I lost my train of thought there because I was at my beard and his partner. It's one of those things where it's a I'd like to hear from you and your coordinators every week, but I'd like to hear from you on the radio in the markets where your fan base is located. I'd like to give you a lisp in Blacksburg. I might see videos, listen to the drive every day with Paul. I absolutely love all three of

59:47 them. I also get shit-faced drunk with those people. They are people. They also have one of the best radio shows out there. Yeah. I absolutely love them, and people who don't listen to them, need to listen to drive because they are awesome. But they have had issues in the past, not so much with Foo, they had a lot of problems with Buzz. They Jeremy Why doesn't he go in there for a 15-minute hit? He could even pre-recorded with them every week. Why doesn't he do that in Richmond? Why doesn't he do that in the 75?

1:00:29 Why doesn't he do that in Nova? Why doesn't he do that up in through the out? The valley? See that thing open it, dude, you've got to get yourself out there and then the other pieces will be like during spring. Open the scrimmages for people in town and for the students you can open it for 30 minutes. At the end, people would come what the people on the field. It's the easy but it's the funniest is, people are thinking we have to do all these things. Do the easiest stuff, you do, the easiest stuff that is. I think a lot of our problems have been us thinking what we are doing is quite a good enough, kind of like the high school situation we have in 804 and 757 that we burned several bridges in some of the more prominent high schools in those areas and those kids and their trainers.

1:02:04 Fuck all of them because guess what? Dollars just to continue, talking to your five-star son. No, go to hell, go fuck yourself, I don't care. No, they're sitting around forever. Oh, you need to recruit more, you're going to send them out of state. Anyway, what the fuck do you care? You're just trying to push your third tier athletes on us. No, fuck you and fuck all them. No, I'm not hearing that. That number pretty bridges burnt, thanks. No, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. We're not Clemson. I'm sorry. We didn't get down in the mud. Add too much, you know, maybe we should maybe we fucking should have but also fuck all those coaches and fuck those trainers.

1:02:47 I will say this is a bigger problem in 757 than it is in other parts. Of course it is 75 cent dirty shit you know what I know and I definitely know it has found a way to monetize it. They have found a little industry there where they're going to make. Lunch money. Yep. And I want to see all of those fuckers wrecked because they are hurting the schools and state, they are hurting these kids in a lot of ways because they sent him off to programs that are just paying for Access. They'll do anything to these kids. How many kids are you seeing like going off and these are high ranked athletes?

1:03:34 They don't do shit better than nothing since what about Steve started with the 75771 7th 3rd, Prince, but I want you all to follow me. Me through these last three days. Just follow me. Yep. We had the build up the huge buildup. We knew it was happening. Yeah. You knew it was happening. I knew it was happening. We knew was happening. Leaked on Twitter and now what's that? Fucking guys named Brendan Murphy McMurphy the one more week. Hey, The fuck.

1:04:17 What? I know what. Sunday afternoon or Monday morning, if we were keeping him that shitty press conference, All right, so we get that that's Monday. Then we get well and we're still skeptical invited. Maybe they really fucked it up and they kept you. I was skeptical until the tech talk live. Had food coming online.

1:05:08 Oh no, he's paying. He went blocker. All right. Oh, there's no way to hide it. It was a shit show Witnesses. We don't have to sugarcoat this. It was a shit show.

1:05:58 That press conference was awful. That was eight. Shitshow train wreck that was actually a train wreck. Hauling manure. That was awful.

1:07:28 Like come on. How do you not know this is going on? But I said, wish you know that to frustrating it's frustrating and I like these people, but it's frustrating. Yeah. It's a to meet the whole whipping, it felt like he was coming out there and lecturing us on while we were wrong instead of saying here's why I think I'm right, well. For all the bad things but hey, I'm not going to speculate because I've speculated enough for the day. I think maybe. Yeah.

1:08:29 That have not been here. But one year, approximately say that, but we dehumanize we need to humanize somebody. Well, guess what? They don't let the guy talk. Let him talk to him, but yeah, I'm talking about corn. You have to talk y'all send one positional coach out and players out. Since you're you going I was apologizing for corn. I was actually very Pro corn at the beginning, the season, our offense was rolling, everything was going pretty well. I was I was fully Bob in the problem I have with corn in general is not so Much.

1:09:18 The design of the offense were the plays. Its the situational play calling. Yes but it's hard for me. It's hard for me to actually because if it happened to work, yeah, great. He's a genius which know what's I think ever called him. But I have a hard time criticizing play calling because I think that is like the lowest hanging fruit whenever you get when it is over. Production that I care about and I was very pleased at the beginning of the season, but it became so apparent that we were having issues that it's thing about corn is, it's not even so much the question play calling or anything else. I'm sure he's a great person.

1:10:08 I'm sure he is a little more cerebral and likes to think his offenses and people who criticized him for running a simple off. Fence. That's how most offenses are like. Granted you tend to run six to seven plays, you just do them out of different formations. I mean, corn decided to cut the middleman, just do a matter of one formation, but that's not my Peak. Its criticism of him was. I'm just not seeming that fuckin care. Yeah. That that got me this year.

1:10:49 Can I say this? I think us three any part of hokey notion hopes, which right in anymore definitely help with right, I hope that one year from now. I could to say, well fuck what was right? We're going to play off or we're going on the Rose Bowl. We're going. We crushed it, he nailed it. And I think there are too many people out there that don't want him to be, right? And that is the issue. If you don't want the guy to be right, then you need to leave. You can criticize, you can give your logical explanation. Why? You don't think it'll work, that's that's acceptable, but if you're sitting here saying, I don't want him to be right. Well if you don't want them to rewrite your not a hokey and you need to leave the fan base and don't come back ever because you've you're actually not a real fan. You care more about being right than your team being good if you do that shit, then fuck you.

1:11:47 You don't care about your team. And that's that's my biggest thing. With some people I want to be right, I want food to be the best so I can go to ever exist and I think he is a great coach. I really, really do. I think he came to us who was in a bad situation just to actually give a coach like through the infrastructure that he needed. It was a bad fit, that's what I think. Yeah. And now we have to build the fit. The problem is, is we've lost a lot of our momentum and credibility in the along, the way. And so as Foo, and so has our program. So now we are building from the ground up for build from the ground up.

1:12:33 And I do see this, because if you actually look at it with a reinvestment in, Into football and how we're trying to do it. It is a rebuild from your one. I get that messaging agree with that messaging. Yeah, I mean I think the big thing is like the thing that this program hasn't done historically is striking on infrastructure fronts while you have the capital to do so whether it's yeah literal capital or whether it's brand Capital, Virginia cat can Afford whatever Virginia Tech wants to afford.

1:13:14 Anyone talking about anything? No, they have, they have more money than most like, small cities. It's they can do whatever they want if they really want to. He's got to move the money where it needs to be. You're going to throw some that make us and we'll talk Corporate America because that's what I work in in Prime, working me for a while, occasionally in Corporate America, the people who are making the money, who are crushing it, they see the benefits. They see the updates and Technology. They see the biggest pay raises, where the other sectors. Don't football, is the biggest sector. Of the Virginia Tech athletic department. And what's happened is, we haven't dumped the money into it because if you dump the money into it's going to produce. Now, what really the problem is, we got fold with, we've got spoiled with Beamer, you got to understand. Yeah, be no good and everyone else, we got spoiled one fucking behind.

1:14:17 We not way behind. We were used to our name, our goddamn fucking assistant, payroll used to be fourth in the fucking country when you started school. And we're working Juniors and sophomores challenge. Came to us. Came to us and said, I want to play for you. What do you mean? 11 came, the best player in the country came, and he, if he lived up to the billing Tyrod, Taylor was the top dual threat quarterback, in 2007 Tyree. One Billing is the best hokey to ever put on a uniform. Oh God, here we go. I love tie rod to the person.

1:15:12 He is the embodiment of poop. Rossum. He is, you know why? Because he could on the San Diego Chargers right now and he decided not to That won't hold a half billion are without even a blank. He didn't because he knew it was an accident. I'll get into this. And I got called out for it. On Twitter about people that don't quite understand that I know what I'm talking about, but they were talking about, oh, his collective. Bargaining agreement says that he Can't do this or that. That doesn't matter when it comes down to negligence. Yes, no.

1:15:59 Yeah, he could have, but it's also a steep slope to try to prove Reckless, negligence on a doctor on Game Day, who's trying to take here? It's a steep slope. That would have been very hard to prove. They would have had to be in. Like, all right, we we tested this doctor and he was positive for meth. And yes they would have had to happen so that's it Tyro. So I'm going to take that, hit challenging that but no not-not-not. It wasn't worth a damn move on move. All this wouldn't be a problem with the bills when I fucked him, the the Bills fan base.

1:16:42 I'll say right now, I hate you. Vince, for Nathan, peeterman beer, Nathan Peterman - I'll never forget that game. Then you're like, hey, tie rod. Do you want to come in and save us? Yeah, sure why not? He took the bills to the playoffs. It was like the first time in fucking statue on that goddamn down. I'm so mad at them. All right, we're gonna move. I will ask you some we what we we've got a couple questions and then you get to pick games with us in a little while here. Alright, so we've all for you.

1:17:24 What are your three top games you've ever been to? Oh, that's bleep. All games, I'm going to say, One of my favorites. It's it's a weird random. One was West Virginia. My freshman year, I was shirtless, I got an ESPN because it was freezing cold, and I was just drunk as shit. And I was up there in the North End Zone and I was going. Wow, and they got me, I was actually doing my little alcohol.

1:18:04 All the I'm doing that and doing that. But it looks like my hands are really cold. A older older brother, was my aura at him and Sydney he played basketball hand in Sydney. Does that make sense?

1:19:08 It was on multiple levels and it doesn't matter. As far as overall wins or anything else. It felt like I was back in Old Lane again. Okay, okay, I can feel that like everyone. It was fucking wild. Everyone was just tuned in.

1:19:51 Everyone was going crazy over everything. And then, what do I hear in the distance? He get in mother fucker. Do you know what that did to us? People do not understand. Especially Weaver did not understand. That music hits us in a certain way coming through in that moment. Oh my God. What a way to reintroduce? It thing is there were a lot of kids to have. That didn't quite know what take it in.

1:21:27 These people are losing their minds. Besides the first one, I gave two of those were in years that we didn't have to be all that great. It's true, very true. I'll we want we want our culture. We want our environment. We Want It Rock and we want it crushing and but you also. You're number one, you're number one was when the culture was when the environment motherfuckers were scared to drive down 81 and you got into the mountains and the smokes rolling off and control and you go in there.

1:22:12 I'm getting chills thinking about it because we did it at Pitt and me and Brian are driving. You can see it rolling and you know, they're coming from Roanoke. And they start weaving and they start weaving. And then it's always the wall, always considered the wall to Virginia, Tech as you take the exit to 460. Yep, and wall. And you start going back there in the road gets a little smaller and then there's just getting a little better. Get a little smaller. Those years that Stadium. I had a girl that went to wife that went to college me and my wife. Huge Penn State fan parents went to Penn State always went up there. She went to Lane one time and when she came back, she said as fucking louder and beat her, I'm like yeah, hit it a lot louder, that's what we want Tennessee. Thing you could ever actually do like the the only way they can make it worse, was if Jerry Sandusky were eating. He was eating children after the fact. That's the only way.

1:23:22 It could be worse and they still have a football program money speaks. Yep. Well fuck em. Fuck them. They should not have a program. Jesus Christ, Cincinnati through them underneath to laws teams. In Ohio, State play four games this year, the third best team in the country. How do you know? They played four games when we do start, when you start them, number two, and to start the year, regardless of, when they start playing, yelling sighs is real. What record should save when loss managers who were winning and losing to, to be honest.

1:24:44 That's a good answer that's actually similar to what I would say if I had to give an answer on that because to me if we can put out a competitive team that doesn't lose games that we shouldn't and can still be in the coastal conversation at the embassy. but, They've got a defensive Foundation that they're building upon and they've got an offense that is competent when they're not giving the ball away. I mean, look up our schedule.

1:26:01 Probably the team up the road from us is the team. You don't want us to lose to diversity Richmond, U of R will be rich. This could be a downward spiral that is going to be hard to recover from.

1:26:58 If we lose black diamond in the cup, in the same year, especially if you couple that with another loss or two that's bad. So they don't tend to see them West Virginia and then Richmond. okay, so we might want to Then we go into Notre Dame. Holy shit. And then Virginia, why are we play Virginia?

1:28:20 That's the only way. Yeah, that's kind of where we are to. We looked at the schedule, we looked at the pieces that we're losing.

1:29:04 I mean, we can't lean on our running game with our first round left. Tackle headed to the NFL and two guys. There were supposed to be Either starters or serious rotation players next year. Hitting the portal like you can't lean on your running game anymore. I mean, I feel like if we had some consistency with the offensive line, I'd feel good with Holston Blackshear, doing some other things, and some of the other guys we've got coming in but we've been assured.

1:29:47 Look at the schedule. I mean, we said, do we get to invite you back a year from now? And you get to talk about a new head coach. No, I got, you know, even if we shit the bed and go 4 and 8. They won't do it. So you think we're at the point now where if it were, if it wasn't this year we're riding it out. We're running out for a couple of years. We had so many people transfer We had. Everything else happen. The excuse next year, will be We had a bunch of people transfer and covid happen and we're in a down here, it'll be fine next year.

1:30:36 Well, hold on, all the people will transfer in. This is where I will stick up and I'll go right after somebody. You need your job to keep these players in the program. Coaches. It is your job. It is your job to figure out what motivates them to keep them in the program, not to put their name in the portal. We are the second most portal University. In the last three years. The second most. Yes, and we have been on the good side. I have a feeling we're about to be on the bad side. So, you think there's I mean, I mean, depression-era poverty. In 2022.

1:31:47 We had our window or window is burned out with fucked up. So we have gotten to a point now where it's going to have to, as we alluded to, we're going to have to burn it down to build it back up. Congratulations, guys. We're the little brother. We're poverty. Welcome. It's not fun here, guys. This is not fun. No, it's not. It's not. This is not where we want to be and that was when you're someone like, I'm not a negative person. No, you know, especially when it comes to our Sports.

1:32:29 I don't know how we rebound from this. I don't. I guess the only thing you can say is pray to God miracles happen and we win games now fuck. That will win games without with miracles. It sucks.

1:33:35 He got hired here before should have got hired in the position, a lot of shit. And we mentioned it here numerous times a year. Five years, Bobby it, now don't get me wrong, he's good at that he can sell recruits and everything else. But he's five yourself. You think you would have been better like putting the position as like. Recruiting coordinator. In terms of like coaching staff, recruiting coordinator a guy from the the coaching staff level working with those pieces.

1:34:19 And then also that way he's more of a front-facing guy but not necessarily X's and O's on the field as much outside of his position. Now I think J Hamm knows everything. Technically all to shit. Okay, very good. The thing about a coordinator is they actually know have to know how to manage everything down through. There J Hamm will run a good God damn defense. He's good at what he does. He has a good mind for what he does. He just needs time to actually know how to adjust his people to get it too. And the way he envisions that is the difference. Okay, got it.

1:35:04 Got it makes sense. He's going to be great one day, he's going to be a superstar. Guarantee that? Is he gonna be our superstar in like three years? Because you're scared. See Jeremy because you live in there. You're putting this reality on me, that essentially. Almost until the contracts are out. This is what we're stuck with and it could be really bad bursted, where if you were to tell me know if we start next year bov is just going to kick with to the side. They're going to get food decide. They're going to get a new 80 and higher holding you program. Be a period piece, and a lot of people aren't happening. Aren't happy with that bov.

1:36:00 No, because that's the piece that essentially say what you want to say that in the president's, to do control the athletic department of time, and if they're sitting there and especially this year again, you mentioned it already. We've talked about it there, the winds work, the change was coming. Somebody was going to get hired when I was going to get hired and it was gonna be one of those boot. I don't think may help would lie to us. So you think that you think the bov was completely on board? Not counting, the additional revenue is in town. You have to see that, right?

1:36:47 Oh, you were smarter than me? I'm a simple. Yes. And a revenue is not a big deal to me. Yes, it's not a big deal, but it's a big deal to all of the people are represented Resent. Yeah, what you got Curtis. It's just one of those things where you again, you feel like it's the truth that the fans, the $25, or the people driving from Richmond, a couple times a year down on the program. The kids, who are going there going on in the program anymore. Well, as recalibrate and a fun night here with dr. Jeremy counts.

1:37:28 That's going to wrap up this episode of The Boundary Corner podcast. We thank you, Jerry for joining us. No, my name is Curtis Wilson, Twitter, Facebook, Amazon, music and podcasts. We always let our buddy. Jason Long play us out. Catch him on Spotify and apple music. We thank you for listening in Germany. We want you to finish this off. Let's go. Oh cute.