Waldorf Gridiron Club Podcast
Waldorf Gridiron Club Podcast
Stormin'
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We're back for the 2026 WUBALL Season! Andy and Troy are joined by Head Coach, David Calloway for the first week of 2026 Waldorf University Football discussing camp, the golf tournament, the new turf and logo, the leaders on the team (and how they are being made), the work ahead and a whole lot more - welcome back to WUBALL!
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Hey there, Gridiron fans, Troy Thompson here with all the details on how to register for this season's Cash Prize where the ball lies contest. Now, last year, the Gridiron Club awarded a thousand bucks in cash prizes to our fans who registered for the Cash Prize Where the Ball Lies contest. This season we're doing it again, and it's even easier to register than ever. All you have to do is click on the link in the show notes and register for one or more random yard line assignments. Now there are five home games this season at Bullstore Field, and at the end of every quarter, wherever the ball is placed when the whistle blows, that will indicate who is the winner of $50 from the Gridiron Club. Winners will be announced at the end of each quarter, and if you're present at the game, you can come to the press box to collect your prize. If you're not at the game, no worries, we'll send your prize to you. There are 20 chances to win this season, and registration is just $25 per yard line. Now there are only 100 spots available, and you can buy as many yard lines as you want, but you have to act now because those yard lines get snapped up fast. Yard line assignments are on sale right now, so go to the link in the show notes and register, pay, and get ready to win with the Warriors. Once you complete your registration online, you'll receive a receipt in your inbox. If you are buying yard lines for more people than yourself, say family members, friends, whatever, well, if you're doing that in one order, you want to be sure to include each person's first and last name in the additional registrant box and how many yard lines each person is to get. Register now in the show notes by clicking on the link. All proceeds do go to support the Waldorf University Football Program, folks. It's never been easier to register, so do it today. All transaction fees associated with the registration are included in the price. The Waldorf Gridiron Club is a 501c3 nonprofit organization dedicated to the Waldorf University Football Program, the best small college football experience in America.
SPEAKER_04Welcome to this episode of the Waldorf Gridiron Club podcast. Uh little hot mic there, Troy. Yeah, it's a little hot. Good. Hopefully I didn't blow you guys out of the water. Um, folks, it's been uh three months. Uh it's been a summer, and uh there's been things in all our lives just that uh kept us too busy for the podcast, which there's no excuse for it. There's just no excuse, Troy. I mean it was we looked it up, didn't we? Uh just May something when we talked about killing cats.
SPEAKER_05May 15th, 2026, Money, Bunnies, and Cats with Adam Helm. Oh gosh, that's right. Yeah, old Helmer was here. And uh and I was also telling you, might as well get this out of the way right away because he's gonna be super excited that we're back on. Um August 14th. So last week when I sent out the fan Friday uh mailing, letting everybody know that was a long that was I I don't write usually that long. That was a longer fan Friday. Well written. Oh, thank you. Yeah, didn't even use AI. And the messages came in. Uh I'll read just this one for fan. Well, we only got this one. So it's a fan mail, and it comes from I don't know, uh per we know who this is. He knows who he is. Some dude. And it says, In the heat of camp and we have no podcast, let me know if you need guest hosts. Maybe Helm and I could drop a gem. We would just need to borrow the bunker and a bottle of bourbon. A lot of bees. I like the alliteration. Yeah. The bunker and the borrowing is no problem. I don't have a bottle of bourbon. Well, you know, there's stores in town. Yeah, I guess we'd have to. Maybe they'd have to bring their own bourbon. I'm not a bourbon drink. I haven't had it on myself yet. Thank you. Haven't had it on myself. Hello, everybody. It's good to see you again. Welcome back to the Waldorf Gridiron Club podcast. Yeah, so we've just been talking about how long it's been. And and that, by the way, was Coach Lindsay that was letting us know. Oh yeah. He did drop the name. He does, and you can too, folks. You can just write in.
SPEAKER_04You can you can when it says that's why we haven't done a podcast all summer because nobody was letting us know that we hadn't done one. Yeah. How are we supposed to do that? It's your fault, not mine. Yeah. That's right. You know, I blame you guys. Yeah, I looked Andy and I were talking, we're like, nobody cares.
SPEAKER_05Fairness, we've talked about it for about six or eight weeks. We should really do a podcast. We should really do a podcast. Yeah. Yeah. And so we should do lots of things. And we should, because uh here we are. We're um we're beyond camp. Waldorf has started court classes. They started last Wednesday, I believe. And uh the kids have been on campus uh since the very beginning of August, end of July, actually. And so it's been it's been quite a deal. And there who who better to talk to about what's been going on and what we have looking ahead, and boy, just another week, and we are heading over to Nebraska. So we we have none other than Coach Callaway himself. Hey Coach, how are we doing today?
SPEAKER_00Doing awesome, man. Always great to be with you guys.
SPEAKER_05I'll tell you what, Coach, you gotta love that mic a little bit more because I'm listening to it. I'm gonna take the headphones off. You can pull it here if you can get comfortable. You don't have to. You know the deal. Yeah, yeah. You can lean back. There you go. All right, perfect. Now, now I can hear you. I'm I'm taking these headphones off. That's good. All right. Boy, that sounds wildly different. I might keep them on. Uh anyway, so coach, what's been happening?
SPEAKER_00I just, like you said, got guys here at the end of July uh for preseason camp. Just trying to get them going through the four stages of team building, you know, uh putting the team together, getting guys to understand how to structure how we're gonna go about our business. Uh was the first stage is putting us together. And then we started with norming, where we uh getting on a schedule, you know, understanding how we go. And the third phase that we're in right now is called storming. You know, and places that we've been to majority of the time, teams that get through the storming phase usually go on and have solid seasons. Teams that stay in there, they stay in that situation because you have guys that kind of get complacent, want to talk back, uh, get a little edgy because you've been around guys doing camp, around the same guys, and you know, just not paying attention to detail, you know, not having the right shorts on, not being at the right spot. So getting through the storm is where we are right now is critical. And then once we get into next week, hopefully we can start the performing phase.
SPEAKER_05Perfect. All right. So you got the uh four stages, you're getting through stage two, and then on to the next couple, and then we're ready to roll. Uh, and we're ready to roll next uh next Saturday. Yes, I got that right, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Next Saturday, Concordia down in Nebraska. Yeah, and I will say, you know, I again um coach had them practicing in the mornings. I got that job that's in the way. Um but it's fun to get to practices when you can because to watch what you just gave them practice, yeah, and to watch what Coach Callaway talks about and see it put into motion because coach, there's not a whole lot of room for people to act foolish or not do what's expected of them. Is that correct?
SPEAKER_00That's correct. You know, we we have a number of guys, it's like a lot of programs that's uh NEIA, but you know, you you gotta have guys that want to understand the importance of buy-in and uh and doing what they're supposed to do, when they're supposed to do it, when it's supposed to be done, how it's supposed to be done, and we try to make sure, like I was telling the day, like the football guys have a way of letting us know as coaches when you're not in alignment with the program. If it's in the dorms, if it's in the cafeteria, if it's in the crossing area, somehow, some way somebody's gonna see that you're not doing what you're supposed to do. And it's gonna get back to us. Either us as a coach or somebody on campus is gonna give us a message, and it it just works itself out, you know. So that's important to us is to get guys to understand the importance of being successful. And that's what we talked about today is uh a lot of people scared of success. Because with success come expectations, it comes accountability, and a lot of people don't want to have that. And with success, that's important. So just getting our guys to understand it's okay to be successful, don't run from it. Uh, because we're gonna work all the time to get this program to be successful on a consistent basis.
SPEAKER_05Now, and you you you you uh had the um you had the whole team with you on on well, you have the whole team with you every day, but on Sunday, uh we had our third annual hot dog eating contest. That was the first time for you.
SPEAKER_00First time. It was awesome, I would like to say.
SPEAKER_05I mean, uh and and and and and you, you jumped you you dressed up as the hot dog man.
SPEAKER_00Yes, I did. So coaching football, I've always been taught you don't have an assistant coach do something that you haven't done or not willing to do. So the last time we talked at the meeting, and you guys said, well, Coach So-and-so was didn't want to get it and do it, and didn't want to be involved as much as the assistant coach, and I said to myself, I say, Well, we in camp, I'm thinking going to my Rolodex, coaches, well, who can I get to do it? Who can I get to do it? And I said, you know what? I'm just gonna do it, won't tell nobody. And then next time it comes around, nobody can say, Well, I won't do it because no, I've already done it as the head coach. Like, I've done laundry as the head coach, I've checked curfew as the head coach, I've waited for guys after games as the head coach that got injured. So nobody can say in the program that anything's above them because I'm not gonna ask you to do something that I hadn't already done. So that's why it was important for me to get in the costume and let the guys know that hey, get out yourself sometime. And it really wasn't that serious. Like just get out there, yeah. It wasn't the kids like, Coach, you was in the weenie costume. I was like, and like I say, I said I was the coolest weenie you ever seen. Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_05Well, that's that's what I'm getting at, is like you you did that. You you came out, they loved it. And uh we're by the way, on that video, it's uh it's only 20, 25 minutes. It was a very quick program, it's very quick. Uh, we just have a so that'll actually the the link will be in the show notes for that as well. Um, and so you'll have the ability to to watch that. It'll be in the Fan Friday, which comes out today as well, uh, with this podcast. Uh so we're just starting all those things up again as the season is now upon us. But you show up, you you get in the hot dog costume, and then uh we have the hot dog eating contest, which was a lot of fun, and then uh then you had some things to say. You you still had a quick team meeting, and the first question was, who's got a 7:30 class?
SPEAKER_00Correct. Because that's important, because we practice in the morning, you know. We want to make sure we felt at other programs that we've been at, exercise obviously is good for you the first thing in the morning. You know, um it helps our guys get up, get some exercise in, and it relieves that pressure to try to get yourself mentally geared back up to practice after going through a day of classes, going through a day of study hall. So that was important for us to know the schedule to see where we were. Uh, we get up on Tuesday and Wednesday morning. Uh our coaches, it helps them because now it makes our positioning meetings a little bit more intimate. You know, and you guys have kids and kids won't ask questions. If you say, hey coach, they say you got any questions, oh I got it, coach. But if you're in there one-on-one, they say, Coach, I really don't understand this, I really don't understand that. So it gives us opportunities to meet with those kids one-on-one throughout the day, and it gives us opportunities to build relationships with them outside of football. So that's why we do the morning practice, but we want to have an idea of who had morning classes in case we had to move some things to the earlier part of practice, so forth and so on. So um, it's a little grind the first couple of weeks. We had a lot of guys doing E's and T's, uh, elbows and toes, buffering that today. Yeah. But it's a little punchment, a little reminder deal. Um, because just not used to getting up in the morning. Yeah. But once they get on the schedule, they figure it out, they like, it's pretty good because now they can get the rest of their day. And you guys know that a small college, a lot of guys are working jobs. So it frees up the evening to have balance. Because I tell, I tell our guys all the time, you can play good football, you can have good grades, you can have a social life. It's about balance. But you got to provide balance in the schedule for them to do that. You know, it's one thing to say, oh, you can do these things, and then you got them tied up all day with football stuff. So uh that was an important part to get us started off on the right note.
SPEAKER_05So you demand accountability. I mean, you said that from the very get-go. I mean, that was when we talked way back in uh January and and uh and and you know what you were coming in with and meeting the team and getting to know everybody. And then uh now we're seeing it uh even more so in action. Now it's the you know first day of camp, your first season really. It started obviously for you when you when you came on board, but now this is like you own it, and uh I think you took ownership pretty much when you when you when you when you came on board. Now that uh one of the things that you said is like I'm gonna be well you have a little you have a dress code, and we talked that on our our previous episodes with you. Uh but uh you also you know I'm gonna see you in the I'm gonna see you in the cafeteria. And I think that uh yeah, let's see, classes started on Wednesday last week, so uh pretty sure that man, I can't remember why, but I was over near the Bowman for something on say maybe Thursday or Friday in that in that I think it might have been Thursday, it doesn't matter. But anyway, um I stopped by and I happened to see you uh walking and I and it was right around lunchtime, and I assume you were heading to the cafeteria. Is that what is that what you're doing?
SPEAKER_00Yes, I was so I try to walk around during the times that I know that they're gonna be transitioning around campus, uh either uh in the Warrior Crossing or the CIC, um, and just let them know we're gonna be present because that you we're gonna check your accountability every opportunity and just get to understand like, hey, you need to be trying to get reps at accountability because you're not gonna get enough in a football setting.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00You know, so that's why I want to walk around and be present on campus and uh be available, not just to our guys, but just student body in general, you know. Um, because you know we have little things come up with the dorms. College students are gonna be college students. So I want to make sure I see Mr. Raymaker, uh the people that's over student housing, and just you know, if there's anything I can help with to make sure guys are conducting themselves accordingly. I like to walk um because when I first got here I couldn't walk because it was snowing all the time. I like to get out and walk when I can.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, yeah. Right. And one of the things our our first meeting coach, and it stuck with me, is that evaluation that they're not just being evaluated when when they're out on that field, they're being evaluated in absolutely every little aspect to make sure that they're buying in to what you expect of them. And it it's I think it's paying dividends. I mean, that's what I'm seeing as somebody that's been around this team for seven seasons, and obviously we got some new dudes, and but there's that everything that they do, they're not being judged, but they're being evaluated on are they doing what you expect of them?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, and that's important, uh, you know, because I mean that's how life works. You're gonna get evaluated in everything you do, you know, it don't matter. On the job, you're gonna get evaluated. Your relationship, you're gonna be evaluated, you know. So you have to prepare for that, you know. And I had one kid that played for me for a while back. He had uh went to Ohio State and uh out of high school as a real phenomenal player. Yeah, and he transferred to us in Hasty, and he's like, Well, I'm tired of proving myself. I said, homeboy, you got to you have to prove yourself here too. You gotta you gotta continue to prove yourself. That's life. Yeah, you know what I'm saying? So you gonna constantly be evaluated whether you like it or not. You know what I'm saying? So just getting them to understand that that's part of the game of life. Yeah, you know, and football, as you guys know, and in most sports, is life lessons in the sport. And understand that you're gonna be evaluated whether you like it or not. And just understand that's how it's gonna be.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, that's the way it and who cares if it's fair. I mean, my when my kids were little and they'd say that isn't that fair, I'd say, you know what fair is? Fair is in August in Des Moines. If you want fair, that's where you go. Because nothing else are you guaranteed fair. It's not in the Bible, nowhere else. Exactly. I mean, so you gotta, yeah. So again, it's this is one of those times where you can kind of see the cream rising to the top, but there's not a whole lot of shenanigans going on during practice, it's all business. Um, yeah, you had mentioned that you had me doing uh elbows and toes today. That was and I I wanted to go off script, coach. I one of my favorite, I don't want to say punishment, lesson exercises is where you have to have your hands over your head, you roll three times, you do a push-up. You roll three times, you do a push-up. So maybe next time if I'm out there, I may get you on that.
SPEAKER_00I never heard of that one. Yeah, that's a good one.
SPEAKER_04And the thing is, everybody thinks it's easy, even like you know, elbows and toes, those guys are like, oh come on, let's go, and they were just trucking while they get to the first hash and all military crawl.
SPEAKER_05That's right. Uh you ain't dying. Uh it sounds dumb, and I wouldn't I don't I'm not saying that you need to do this because it seems so easy, but one of the things that they torture you with in basic training is called the cherry pickers or the doorknobs. Right. And and cherry picker e in either case, your arms are spread out. My camera's not wide enough. Your arms are spread out as wide as you can go, and then cherry pickers are all you're doing is this at the end at at the end of your arms. So you just have your arms way out there, and you just go one, two, three, one, two, three, and it's like, and you're like, This is the this is the army. How hard can this be? If you do that for about five minutes, it's like the most painful thing you've ever done in your life. You can't and then doorknobs are the same thing, it's just that now they're doing this, you know, whatever. You know, so so and and you'd be like, Well, this is this is not tough. Maybe I should have joined the Marine Corps, and then like, you know, three, four, five minutes later, you're like, I can't, I can't breathe. It's just a it's just a meant it's a mentality thing to see is like how long can you hold up your own arms? You know, so anyway, but that that's what that sounds like to me. Yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_00It's different ways of torturing to act right. Yeah. And what I found out, like lately in coaching, the most thing that you never guess the most difficult punishment for these guys are is reading. So I'll make a reader chapter on leadership, write a handwrite of paper in front of me. Coach, I'll go outside and run. I'll do whatever. No. Sit and read, sit down, read this on teamwork. Yeah. And they just, they just they just can't sit still.
SPEAKER_05Now, coach, I gotta, I gotta jump in here as uh as an alum of Waldorf College. I know you have to get uh ACT scores and you gotta get in. So I know these guys are academically eligible. So when you say they hate reading, they hate reading. It's not that they don't know, it's not that they don't like, it's that they don't, they don't necessarily like to read because it's not doesn't have a reel on it or a little video. Right. They don't they yeah, yeah. Because for a moment I thought we were last chance you thing.
SPEAKER_00No, no, no, no. This is every school I've been to. It's not just Waldorf. It's like so you get some guys that's like this, okay. I can they'll do something because they know they can get through the punishment. And you most of them are in shape to the point where you can't do enough punishment to them.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00So you have to find some other way to get your message across. And sometimes, I had a kid that played for me in in 2006, really good safety, end up signing with the 49ers, but he was just not coming to practice. I mean, he just phenomenal athlete, but you punish him, he does all the punishment, whatever. I made him read this book on leadership in my office, and he still hits me too. I still got the paper frame because he's like, this is the best thing ever happened to me. Because I never had to sit down and just put my thoughts on paper. Because he was a student athlete. He was a good football player, had people, you know, cover for him and stuff. And it just it's amazing that when you make them do things that they don't really want to do, how it impacts them. You know, so sometimes I get guys on that and I don't punish them all the time on a physical standpoint, just just other ways to get the point across, you know.
SPEAKER_05Right. Yeah, I love it. It's it's I love it.
SPEAKER_04It's kind of it's that is my favorite thing, yeah. It's kind of back to the it's kind of back to that, you know, play stupid games, win stupid prices.
SPEAKER_05You know, but it's old school too. I mean, you're talking, yeah. I mean there's a um I mean we've talked about this in the last time that you were on, and I realize again, fans, we've been away for a while, but we've established the fact that uh Coach Callaway, um Coach Gales, Coach uh Rumba, I mean, these are all older dudes and they've been around. They've seen the you know um you know what's going on and you coach that way and your expectations are that way. And you know, you're the age where uh we're well the same age as I am. I think we graduated the same year in high school, and and uh that means that yeah, I mean you're a father figure, coaches are anyway, but that makes an impact. Your expectations, so yeah, you could punish them uh and you do punish them in in in a proactive manner to make that remind themselves of who they can be. Um but at the same time, um you know, I remember we had Ben Fossey on the show uh last year, yeah. Um former Waldorf player, uh inventor of a couple different things like that, went on to play at East Carolina and Waldorf was a two-year back then, he was an all-star in different capacities. Uh, but uh Bullstorf had him, you know, he was one of those kids that was frequently physically, you know, you're running laps, you show up late, you're running laps early in the morning, five o'clock, you know, and coach would be out there, and so in in additional. But one of the things that he said was like, Well, I mean, that was fine with me. Like, I could run, you know. But when he said he was disappointed in me, that's why he didn't break his heart, you know. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04I'm not mad, I'm disappointed. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, exactly. Yeah, because I think that you know, you know that as being around for 27 plus years, is that you know, they want you to believe in them. They they they want somebody, you know, in their life, but like right now, what's most important to them besides being a student is being an athlete, and if if they don't have a favorable impression in their coach's eyes, that's that's tough for any kid to take. Absolutely.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Well, let's let's talk about the kids that you've got. We have not, um, of course, we've met and talked to uh over the last several years, many of the players, um, and certainly our leaders, but let's talk about some of the changes in uh personnel and and leadership, uh the positions, who you've got in place, and and the things that um uh maybe maybe some of the folks that you're looking forward to. You've got some recruits that have come in. We've met and talked to, I think, uh I don't know if we ever did get a chance to. Man, we had such a short season. Uh yeah, because we quit in April. Uh but uh yeah, let's talk about some of the players you got, some of your hopefuls things that you're looking forward to, uh, and some of those leadership guys.
SPEAKER_00Well, uh, first we'll start with the quarterback position, uh, Chris Walters. Uh he's been doing a good job commanding what we're doing from a um new offense. I think it was something uh he's familiar with at other previous stops he's been at. Um, you know, I think with him being a grad student, it's helped him tremendously.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_00He's in the office uh like he's a coach.
SPEAKER_05Yeah.
SPEAKER_00You know, he's always there. So I think he understands where Coach Gales wants to go with the football. Um Adrian Toto, he's the offensive alignment for us. Um I gotta be honest with you. If I had a, once he's done playing football and I had a coaching position, I'll hire him as a recruiting coordinator about that. I mean, he's constantly sending us kids. He's probably responsible for at least five guys we signed this semester. You know, he's constantly sending guys, he's constantly going to the airport, just a he cuts hair on the team. Uh he just, I mean, he's just a great teammate. You know, just a and he was one of the guys that was kind of resistant when we first got here, uh, when coaches kind of uh turnover kind of happened a little bit. And it was just one day I think he had an epiphany. He came in the office when Chris was in there with Coach Gales and he sat down and he said, Man, it's pretty cool. I'll come by here more. So since then, he just been, I mean, he's just been a phenomenal kid to coach, you know. Uh far as leadership guys right now, um, we don't we don't have any guys that we have identified as leaders. Our main focus was to get guys to understand the importance of self-leadership and being uh a presence first, you know, because let's be honest, this is our first season together, us and them, uh, from that standpoint. So we don't really know who we can depend on in the bunker, because we haven't been in the bunker yet from that standpoint. So our biggest deal is having self-accountability, lead yourself first, have self-accountability checks every morning, what you're gonna try to get accomplished, and then at night, see if you got that accomplished. And if you didn't, let's see what you did, why you didn't get it accomplished, let's try to get to it again. But now we've had some guys that step up, you know, as far as getting us in drills. Chris Rick Wiener, he's a uh uh transfer that came in from Florida, but went to junior college in Minnesota. Um I think he'll be a good addition in the wide receiver room, a kid that uh that's very physical when the blocking game, but can't catch the ball across the middle. Um, and so we got some guys we feel good about, but at this time, it's nobody that I can say that, hey, you know, we ready for the fire because we hadn't been in the fire. That's what we keep letting those guys know, like, hey, we're still in the performing, we're still in the storming phase of the situation, and we'll find out a lot about ourselves once we get up to Nebraska.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. In Nebraska, down there in Seward. Seward. The uh well, it used to be the biggest time capsule in in America, but they opened it up July 4th, 25. I don't know what they got going for them now. Uh Concordia is uh Concordia, Nebraska is a very nice school, uh very well funded. Uh they're uh they're a big team, they're 30 minutes away from Lincoln. Uh we saw then it's their first game, so it's their home opener. Is this a zero week game then, or is this first week?
SPEAKER_00I believe it's week one.
SPEAKER_05Okay, so I I wasn't clear on that, but I feel like we went down there and I think it was a zero-week game the first time we played him, but maybe it was just week one. Um, and man, um, you know, I think that was also their parents' weekend. Yeah. Yeah.
SPEAKER_04Well, that first year that Waldorf uh was in the G-Pack, we went down to Concordia two years ago, and they had 41 returning players. Like they had 41 dudes that had time on the field the year before. And you know, they had a lot of Nebraska bounce backs. Um, you know, I think or it was 41 seniors. 41 seniors.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, they had a they have a roster like, you know, like they have they have a roster like everybody in the G-pack in in between that one, you know, 120 to 150, depending on what you're you know, what they say you gotta have. So they they definitely are in that, you know, 150 roster size, big uh you know, of course you only play a certain number of kids, but but they uh they they yeah, they so they had 41 seniors, and then their their parents were all out there and we had one of the dads lipping off and all that stuff, which was kind of fun. This is our first experience in the G Pack, which was you know, welcome. You know, I thought it was a nice I thought it was a nice school. They definitely do not have the same tailgating atmosphere as we do at Waldorf. The little difference between the Missouri Senate and the ELCA, I guess, huh? Are they Missouri Senate School? Oh yeah, buddy there.
SPEAKER_04I don't remember that. You don't remember that? No, I again probably told you that we did a we did a welcome to the G PAC summer series a few years ago that we would go and we would talk about the community and we talk about the school and the football program and their history and stuff like that, and we weren't we weren't familiar with the G Pak and we probably were a little snarky. Yeah, you know, the some of the things you know that we could make fun of. And uh and there was we played over at Briarcliffe and we had we had experience with Briarcliff. And I was over there, I went out onto the field after the game, and the guy that's now their head coach, um, since Coach Ladegie left, he he comes around and goes, Hey, are you the guy that does the podcast? I'm like, Oh man, I'm like, Yeah, let's do this. Yeah, but no, he was just like, I love listening to you guys.
SPEAKER_05I'm like, oh thank god. Yeah, I wasn't gonna get beat up. We're still the only ones that do it, coach. So we've got that going for us. Um, yeah, we were I mean, what do you do? It's like it's kind of like you come into a from what I've heard, you go into prison and you go find the biggest guy, and we were just poking at everybody, and we hadn't even played a down, and so they let us know on the field and off the field what they thought. But they do listen, which is great. So hey everybody, good to see you. Yeah, it's good. Yeah, we don't need any locker room motivations, yeah.
SPEAKER_04We don't need bulletin board stuff, yeah, for sure.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I'm sure we right now, I'm sure we don't have to worry about that just yet.
SPEAKER_04No, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_00We gotta get out and prove some stuff to some people.
SPEAKER_04Absolutely. And and that's what I'm looking forward to. I've been I've been enjoying quite a bit watching our offense and defense and the subtle changes, you know. It's it's fun to watch. Um, yeah, it's just again, being with being around the program for so many years, I'm really, really looking forward to seeing what you're doing and how that translates to to these student athletes during game time. Yeah. Just and it's not about wins and losses, never has been, at least not for me. I mean, I've got a very specific role, but the reality is, um, I just wanna I'm interested to see how our kids react to adversity.
SPEAKER_00Correct.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. I mean, we would like some wins, but uh it's fun to uh the the offense we saw at Springball, too. I mean, like, I mean, that's one of the big changes very fast. Not joking around.
SPEAKER_00Yes, and you know, Coach Gales, he's he's been around the game, you know. Um I think what we'd like to do just as a staff is try to make sure we the kids that we have put them in the best situation to be successful, not just say we're gonna run our stuff because we've been running it for years. You know, like I said, defensively, everybody wants to be able to play zero coverage and blitz every play, you know, and and know where everybody's at. But we don't have the luxury of having those kids, so we have to put them in situations that they can be successful in and you know mix some things up. And we do the same thing offensively, you know, we're gonna try to attack you where we feel our guys can be successful, you know. Um we're looking forward to it. Like I said, it's you know, the adversity's gonna hit, we'll see who we are at that point, uh, but we're gonna show up and we're gonna scrap for 60 minutes.
SPEAKER_05One of the uh, in my opinion, uh, and I think you've seen the film, you know what you're dealing with. I think in the past, I we've had a fairly week, just our special teams have not been as trained as we needed to be. They didn't make necessarily the best decisions like a few times and it cost us. So, I mean, I know you're the defense guy and Gales is the offensive guy. What are we looking at with special teams?
SPEAKER_00Well, special teams is by committee. So uh each coach is responsible, a lead coach only unit, uh, and then other coaches help that coach out. So for instance, I'm over the uh Pride unit, which is called the punt team. Um, and just helping each other, we call that the winning edge, because like you say, those can cost you games. You know, those are single single play situations that can turn momentum either way, the for you or against you. You know, we're gonna try to attack you in special teams. You know, we're gonna try to make plays. Uh only time we're not looking to make a play on the football field is an on-side kick situation where you're trying to recover the ball and uh maintain possession.
SPEAKER_02Right.
SPEAKER_00So, you know, we're gonna do just like everybody else in the country, you know, just make sure we do a good job, scouting beach down, um, and not try to have it put us in bad situations. You know, I think we got a pretty solid kicker, Adrian Ross. Um he was on the soccer team, uh, but he's from Clear Lake, kicked for Clear Lake in three years. Uh so you know, excited about him. Uh and Adrian Soto recruited him. Is that right? He said, Coach, I found this kid walking around campus. He's a soccer kid, but he he really wants to kick. And he's he was driving up every day in the summer because you know they did the field this summer, so they took the uh the goalpost down, they just had the crossbar. He said, Coach, they don't they don't have a goalpost up. I said, Look, Adrian, the objective is to get it over the crossbar. If you get it over the crossbar, you don't have to worry about the goalposts. So he drove up every day, you know, from clear late, kick in the sun. So looking forward uh to what he can do for us.
SPEAKER_05You brought it up, might as well uh hit it again. We talked about it in last week's Fan Friday newsletter. By the way, if you're not onto that newsletter, there's gonna be a link here in the show notes that'll let you sign up. Uh, it's real easy. Just put in your name and your email, and you'll be a part of our Fan Friday newsletter. Uh, I'll make sure I get it out there and uh so now in in and then you'll have access to whatever it is that we put out previous videos and links and things like that. So uh make sure you do that. But you talked about the uh the the football field, um Bullstore field was uh had its turf replaced. Uh it's been uh uh it was definitely due. Um there's no doubt about that. The camera's not on any right now. It was definitely due. Let's talk about the condition of the field, and of course, uh we're pretty excited that that W is where it's supposed to be, right there at uh midfield, and it looks great. And also there's a new sign on the press box that doesn't look like it came from um the 1990s, which I think is where the other one came from. So let's talk about some of those improvements and and also what you think about it and what you think the uh the players think about it.
SPEAKER_00Well, I think the players love it. Obviously, just get new turf uh in the conditioning of the field. You know, uh Coach Buffy already, I caught him out there one early morning. I thought somebody was working on the field. I said, we got an issue with the field already, and I got closer, it was him getting ready to drag it on that Saturday before we got ready to scrimmage. I'm walking up like it can't be an issue already. Like, has somebody done something to the field? But he was dragging it, getting it ready. Our kids, I think they they understand it was needed, and it's very appreciative. Uh and one thing that I've tried to instill in these guys is understanding how pride works. So when we're on the field, don't step on the logo. If we're just walking across the field. Obviously, we playing and stuff, that's different. But at the end of practice, don't go on the logo. Don't step on the logo, walk around the logo. So you hear a lot of guys, hey, get off the logo. Hey, go around, hey, go around. So just giving them guys understanding the important to having pride in your home.
SPEAKER_06Yes.
SPEAKER_00You know what I'm saying? And you know, so I think that's that's the biggest thing that I've seen when you agree coach at this point.
SPEAKER_04100%, absolutely. And that's again, coming from a lot of different uh leadership roles uh at Waldorf football and seeing what you're doing, it's like it's I mean, when when at the end of practice, when coaches circle up, uh there's hard and fast rules on where they go, and it is not on a logo to the point where like I remember that first time the coaches are standing behind Coach Callaway on the logo, and Coach Callaway turns around, we don't stand on the logo. And all the coaches, and I'm just like, I'm always in the back. I'm always in the back, just like I don't want to get in trouble.
SPEAKER_05So that's I mean, so uh thanks everybody by the way, members of the Gridiron Club. Um, we paid for that logo. It was uh a big part of our fundraising, and and uh just like the trees, we we got that uh out of the way and and that bill's paid for and it looks great. I think that uh uh one of the I identify with what you're saying about the logo very much. Um one of the rules when I was first sergeant for the recruit sustainment program down in Waterloo, Iowa, was uh that's the home that's the battalion headquarters of the first and one thirty-third um infantry, and it's also you know, which is part of the 34th Infantry Division. So very storied, most days in combat, World War II, and all that stuff. And right in the middle of the drill floor is the Red Bull, you know, the patch. And um and it's painted on the floor. And the rule was you cannot step on um, you know, uh the the Red Bull. And you know, when you first get there, new kids they don't know that, you know, we try to tell them and they still forget, they just it's just a floor, they walk across it, and by golly, uh we'll we'll discipline them, you know. Well they they may have to stand guard on it, and uh you know, anybody that gets within five feet, they gotta stop, you know, you know, don't step on the Red Bull. And uh at a certain point when I got a much change of command or transfer of responsibility, my own kids were there. They walked right across the Red Bull, and I was like, come on, how does this happen? You know, and I'll the entire the entire company was like, you know, I was like, oh man. And then you see the guys that are like in the Red Bull and they're in the infantry, and then you see them on a weekend and they don't follow that same rule. So it's so it but it was just for us, for our team, for our company for for that weekend, we don't stand on the we never step on the Red Bull. And I think that's because it but you haven't earned that. Like, you know, you haven't fought those battles, you haven't been a part of uh any of those things yet. And so when you get to that point, then you know you'll understand what that means. And the W is the same thing.
SPEAKER_00Exactly, exactly.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, I think I might might just spend some time out there walking around because I love that. I've been asking for new turf for five years. Yeah, um, it's you know, we you know, coach and I and and some other folks have a meeting on Monday around lunchtime to to go over field maintenance, and it's like, dude, I have I have researched, researched. I've I've talked to Corey with Midwest Field Turf a number of times about how you're supposed to do it. You know, like you you gotta know when you're setting things that how deep you can go and everything else. And um I went out there last Saturday after practice and and aerated and and uh and brushed the field, just got after it. And it kicks all the all the infill up and spreads it out really nice, and and that's so sh you get a better playing surface. And it's just like I'm I started after the field was nine years old, you know, so and it was already tore up when I first started. So um, yeah, I will be taking care of that like it's my one of my grandchildren.
SPEAKER_05There you go. Well, then we know that it's gonna be taken well care of. Yes indeed. Coach, if we take a look at so what about I mean, um the environment. Now you've got how how many transfers do you have who haven't experienced a Waldorf game day at home?
SPEAKER_00Uh we've got to be a good one.
SPEAKER_05And what do you think they're gonna say?
SPEAKER_00We're probably looking about transfer kids. You're probably looking about 10 to 15 in the spring. Do you talk new high school and everybody talking about probably telling about 60 kids that hadn't experienced uh game day here yet? You know, so uh I think they're the unknown, you know, they know don't really know what to expect.
SPEAKER_05Because it's not high school. I mean yeah, I mean it's it's and and and Waldorf, our fans bring it. Yeah, you know, they're there.
SPEAKER_00I I haven't experienced it yet, so I'm excited.
SPEAKER_05Right, yeah, so that's right.
SPEAKER_00Uh I know talking to people, I had a chance to talk to the Rotary Club uh last week, okay, talking to different people on in the community, you know, uh it's I'm looking forward to it. There's a couple that stopped me in High V the other day. Hey, you're the coach. And I thought I had done something to them, right? She said, Yeah, we go to the games. We've been seeing, I say, make sure you come to games. We're gonna make sure you get something to cheer for. So I'm excited, you know, about the atmosphere. You know, uh, I already know just working with the Grid Eye Club up to this point. I know you guys are fully invested in uh making sure that the program has support. You know, and uh that's not just from a uh just putting a logo down or planting the trees, but just being there for these kids uh outside of just a monetary standpoint. So I think our kids understand that. That's why the cleanup was important to them. They was investing in doing those things. Uh, and we still help a couple people in the community cleanup, you know, that from that that didn't get a chance to get their stuff done that day.
SPEAKER_05Is that right?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so um, and that's why I told the Running Club. If you got something that you think we can help you with, just give us a call. Now we we can't be like the EMT, we can't just drop what we're doing to get over there, but yeah, give us a call. We got enough guys in town that's anxious to help, you know, and uh, you know, so that's important.
SPEAKER_05Well, I have a deal for you. I've got some bailing coming up pretty quick here, and I I love having the football players out because if there's anybody they can throw a bail, even if they ever have stacked it, yeah, we'll teach them how to stack.
SPEAKER_00But that's a funny story there, because see, bailing hay, that's what got me to go to college.
SPEAKER_01Oh, yeah.
SPEAKER_00I was out there, my uh dude I played high school ball with, his daddy was our football coach, so we did a thousand bells, uh, square bells.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, of course.
SPEAKER_00In the trailer and in the barn. And I had done a hundred, something like that, but never did a thousand. And I was that, you know, that summer, right before college, you're like, what I'm gonna do, what I'm gonna do, and it's June or whatever. And we did that thousand. Oh, yeah, I'm going to college.
SPEAKER_05Well, it's one thing we can provide here at Sunnyside Farms is an opportunity for it. Yeah. They can appreciate a little hard labor and then continue that uh good degree.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, nothing like being up in that bar with that hay for definitely.
SPEAKER_05Well, that time is coming up. You did mention it with the tailgating. There are some changes that we do want to cover with our fans. Uh this year. Um a few years ago, you so well, so what's it been now, Andy? Five, six years ago we had the electric stands put in. Four or five years, yeah. Yeah. So we uh we we were always of the opinion that like, well, the gridiron club should sell those um spaces that are right by the electric spots, and um we could not get um permission, not in a good or bad way, or just couldn't get permission. It wasn't see when we buy something for the university, it's the universities, we don't own it. So um now so then we suggested, well, you guys should collect. I mean, I mean we have a very strong uh tailgating community that comes out on Saturdays. Uh and so um they took our advice, and so this year they are uh collecting. It's not very much, it's like 50, 20 bucks. I don't I actually don't know off the top of my head what it is. I think your wife wrote the check. Yeah, so you so all of those spots in front of the electrical, um, they cost a little bit more. I think a lot of them uh have already been sold. If you're used to showing up on Saturdays and you know, just parking and getting in one of those electrical spots, uh make sure that you've coordinated. Just go to the website Waldorf uh sport and and figure that out and get your spot reserved. You can do it for one game or the entire season. If you're coming in and um and I think they're gonna charge for spots behind that too, but they're they're less. Uh and I think that's great for the for the university. Obviously, they're the ones that maintain it. They pay the electric bills and all that other stuff. And so that's something that has changed this year. Uh, I think it's a positive change. You may not like it if you have to spend some money, but the good news is that uh the gridiron club is still represented there. We still have our space. Uh obviously the Pritchards party, Porta Party, is still gonna be there, which is obviously uh uh a big part of our our Saturday afternoons on our home games, and then everything to the east is uh I don't know if it's still for sale. I know some spots have been spoken for, uh, but check that out if you haven't and get get in uh and be a part of that. Um and so that's a change. I think that the west side of the sidewalk is still open as far as as far as I I I can't I'm not 100% sure, but I I I don't think that they're charging for that. I think they want kind of like to be like the students area and things like that, so they're kind of keeping it pretty reasonable. If at all. Chain gang is never gonna change. They're always changing is gonna be where they're at no matter what, they got their tree uh and and they park in the same spot. So that's one change. The other thing is uh post-game meals have changed though for us this year. That was a decision we made at the executive committee. Uh and coach, you were a big help with that. Uh I I laid it out in our fan Friday uh last last week in the in the newsletter. But the big change is is that you know, for ye for the last couple of years, we have been feeding the team after the game for home games, and what we found is that a lot of people, a lot of the players, they want to go and they want to hang out with their friends, their family might have come in, and so we would have all this food and we would, you know, we would be spending money that the gridiron club donors have given us, and and maybe we didn't need to spend it in that way. Plus, if you have a one o'clock game, you're done at four or four thirty, by the time people get out there and it's like, well, it's not really, you know, maybe they're not quite ready to eat, although I think football players are always ready to eat. So uh we just learned that maybe that wasn't the most effective thing, and it is difficult sometimes to coordinate all those things too. So what we also so what you suggested, coach, is what we're doing now, and and and and what was that?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, just help us eat a little bit better on the road games, yeah. You know, uh get them a better pregame meal and after game meal. And uh as always, you guys step forward uh as per usual to get that done. And you know, the guys don't know it. I mean they watch the podcast, probably know it, but on our road trips, you know, we got get chance to get some buffet stuff and stuff, just subsand just the whole time, you know. So just feed them a little bit better and you know, just show them that the appreciating is being appreciative of what they're doing also, you know. So uh I think it's gonna go a long way. Uh, you know, you guys know the importance because when I got here and saw $5,000 worth of protein, I mean, I was like blown away. I called like five different coaches, like, hey, we got Booster Club that about $5,000 worth of protein.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, palette of protein, you bet.
SPEAKER_00So that's I mean, all those things, you know, is is very, very important. And a lot of times people don't understand the importance of nutrition and the expense it is. You know, and a lot of people don't have that type of access. So again, we're just grateful for the grateful and appreciative for the support we get from the Grid Eye Club.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, and so just to clarify, I mean, obviously you have a budget and uh your road budget, I mean, I mean, the our our players are always being fed, but as you mentioned, sometimes it's pizza or at subs or whatever it happens to be on the local economy. What we did is I think we I think we uh said two like 750 bucks uh per away game in addition to your budget, which will help you hit those buffets, you know, hit the hit hit the places that you get a chance to eat and and let everybody have a good time. And also, you know, part of the college experience is you get a chance to see other places, especially when you're on the road and you're an athlete, you know, you've earned that spot on the traveling team, go enjoy the spots that you get to be at, and then go back and tell the stories, and the guys that aren't quite on the bus gives them something to look forward to. That's right.
SPEAKER_00Yes, indeed, yes indeed. So I think a guy's excited about that because I told them we'll be eating a little bit different this year, and uh and who was responsible for that. So it'll be a good thing.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, so if you are a uh you're watching this and you're uh you're a Gridiron Club member, or maybe you're not, uh maybe, but you know, we're always taking the donations and and obviously this is you get an idea of what we're what we're paying for, whether it's the logo or the lunches and the dinners and after after the away games or uh whatever it happens to be. So go to the website uh Waldorf Gridiron Club dot uh org O-R-G. It's a 501c3 organization. Become a member, donate the money, and we're gonna spend it uh 100% on stuff that uh matters to the team. So uh what else we got to talk about, Andy? We've got uh we've got we've got to talk about Concordia or we oh yeah, we'll go ahead.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, one of the things and you know talk about first, you know, obviously uh on on September 12th will be coaches first experience with the the Waldorf uh game day. It'll be night at 6 p.m. But uh before the first game. So on the 26th of August, which is uh next week. Next Wednesday, yeah. Yeah, um, we we're gonna kick off our our gridiron club uh coaches show. Yeah, Warriors Live. Warriors Live, yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER_05So once again, Warriors Live is gonna be uh broadcast worldwide on uh variety of markets. We're gonna have uh first of all KOW is carrying us uh once again on that, and uh so uh you'll be able to listen to it if you're local on KOW Mix107.3 FM, um, but it's also worldwide on their web. Um we're pretty excited to be well, let me say, I'm pretty excited to be partnering with them once again because uh it's a it's a little bit of work, Coach. I I get I gave you an example of uh what the script looks like, what our format is is is like so you got an idea of what you're coming into next Wednesday after practice. Uh actually, Andy, we've got a gridiron club meeting. So, folks, we got a gridiron club meeting for August, uh, and that'll be at 6 o'clock at Shooter's Bar and Grill, which is on uh the north end of town on Highway 69. Uh shooters have been big supporters of us. I think I can't say that they're doing this this year, but last year they were given 10% discount for if you had a Waldorf ID, if you're a coach and things like that. So come on down, it's a good time. That will be broadcast again live every Wednesday, except for our bye week this year uh during the season, and we'll have the because I know on the bye week you guys are out hitting the road and talking to recruits. So uh, but every week we're gonna talk to Coach Callaway, we're gonna just like in the past, uh, we'll talk to a couple of players. Now, what's different about this first episode, of course, is that well, we don't have a game to talk about uh in the previous week. So we're gonna talk to you, we're gonna talk to a couple of the other coaches, and we're gonna look forward to talking about Concordia. Now, you are kind of uh you play it pretty close to the vest, like they're like uh you know, uh uh maybe you don't. I will I guess we'll find out on Wednesday. But what do you anticipate? Um, this will help me formulate my script too, by the way. Um what do you want to talk about on Warriors Live? That is, you know, uh in the past we've talked about who are we looking at. Uh that's pretty easy to do. You can look at the other teams roster. Um, we'll get an idea of, you know, and then just your general thoughts on on the game and how it's gonna go. But obviously, you don't want to give it uh everything away. So you've got a lot of experience. Have you had a experience like uh Warriors Live show before?
SPEAKER_00Uh well at Hastings when I was coaching there, we used to have a uh coaching show. Okay. It was our defensive coordinator that kind of spearheaded it, Bill O'Boy. Uh he's the one that actually got me in the coaching. So he was pretty intense about it. We it was a pretty good production. They did it on campus uh in the TV. Hastings college was pretty much set up like Wardorf, just a little bit bigger population. It was TV station on camera, I mean, on campus, radio station, that type of stuff. So uh familiar with it. So I'm looking forward to it, you know, looking forward to it for sure.
SPEAKER_05Well, we are a little bit different uh because regardless of our population size, uh it'll be at the bar.
SPEAKER_03Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
SPEAKER_05Well, they got food there too.
SPEAKER_04It's not just a bar. Yeah, they've got great food. Come in, grab a sandwich, and that's always, you know, I usually try to get there an hour early with um, I'll have to find the stuff and coach you and I will talk about it, like what you want. Like we'd always put like a couple helmets on the table and a waldor football, and we had the Waldorf football purple table cover, okay, stuff like that. And so it's like if we can locate that stuff, yeah. That's kind of what been one of the things that I've always done just because I live a block away. Yeah. And so walk down, have a meal. Um, it's always a good time. Shooters is great.
SPEAKER_05Yep.
SPEAKER_04Um, yeah, there's just uh shooters is my spot now.
SPEAKER_05Simulcast live on uh our Facebook, uh the uh gridiron club uh Facebook page, so it'll be uh on Facebook Live, and then also we have uh uh on our Twitter for the Gridiron Club as well. So there's a couple of through two, three ways that you can that you can watch it. You can only watch it on our Facebook Live and on Twitter feed. Uh you can uh I think the best uh format is from Facebook Live, just because we use uh the cameras, the the the uh the X is uh off of a phone, which is still good, but so if you're an X user that that's fine as well. Um and then radio is just you know audio, but it's on the website forever. So if you want to go back and listen to it in any of those categories, you certainly can. It's a great way to find out what coach has to say about the game uh that's coming up uh in this first episode next Wednesday, and it's a great way to find out what we have uh what we saw that we liked and we didn't like, need to improve on from the game prior uh as we go through the season. So uh we're looking forward to that and always look forward to going out to shooters and having a good time. And it's always fun to have the Warrior fans come out uh and and uh cheer and be a part of it, have some food, good food, have some drinks and and uh enjoy a night. It starts at seven o'clock on Wednesday nights, and uh and it's and we're out at eight. Some of us stick around a little longer after that, though.
SPEAKER_04I generally don't. I'm too old. It's eight eight o'clock's bedtime. I don't know where you're at, coach, but man, I tell you what, eight o'clock, my dogs are starting to bark.
SPEAKER_05You're the one guy that literally could stay longer. It would, uh because you could just trundle on home. Trundling, yeah.
SPEAKER_04Trundling. Yeah, love that. So, coach, what do you I mean, what are you looking forward to in this upcoming season? You know, some of the things we've talked about a little bit, but you know, you've you've starting to get to know your kids, you're starting to get to know the program, the university. What are you looking forward to over the next and two and a half months, really, until you know, just until we get this wrapped up.
SPEAKER_00I'm just looking forward to these guys just having fun, first thing. You know, show up and show out as we talk about a lot and just enjoy playing. At the end of the day, yes, you want to have success on the field, but it's still a game. And if it's a game, it's meant to have fun. So we got to get our guys to understand the importance of having fun. And a part and a big part of having fun is winning games.
SPEAKER_06Yes, yeah.
SPEAKER_00You know what I'm saying? So that's the biggest thing, and then how we handle adversely when it hits, yeah, and how often it hits and how we respond, you know. And that's the biggest thing that I've been talking to our guys right now, because you know, everybody's in the honeymoon phase. Everybody feels we have a chance this season, we have a chance, everybody's on over. And everybody's pointing to week one. Well, at the end of the day, every week, half the country gonna win, half the country's gonna lose. It's a 50-50 split. Like, you know, so uh we just gotta understand, and I told those guys, like, we hadn't played anybody. You know, we need to understand, and we and I tell them we're gonna own it at this point. We have the longest loser streak in the nation. And you know, we gotta go do something about it. You know, it's not gonna be easy, you know. Uh and people are gonna show up to play us every week. Nobody wants to be the team on TV on Sunday that said they lost to Waldorf.
SPEAKER_01Yeah.
SPEAKER_00The end of the streak. So, you know, it's not gonna be, oh, the team's gonna overlook us because we hadn't won games in the past. You know, nobody wants to have that conversation or be having that conversation as an opponent of ours come Sunday. So we gotta work cut out for us. Uh we're looking forward to it again. Just understanding when adversity hit, it's gonna be okay. Just move on to the next play. Don't get too high, don't get too low, just stay the course, you know, and and seeing our guys deal with their situations when they hit. That's gonna, that's gonna define kind of what type of program we'll have moving forward and yeah, what type of guys we recruiting. And uh that's what I'm looking forward to.
SPEAKER_04And is it exciting for you as a coach, you know, having uh this isn't your first gig. So is it like is it fun for you as a coach? I know it's probably unnerving as well, to like, okay, this is what we started with, this is what we're working toward, and see everything kind of come to fruition on Saturdays.
SPEAKER_00Oh, yeah, it's always fun, I guess. So just going into my 26-year coach of college football, and people just can't believe when I say this, I never felt like I worked a day in my life.
unknownRight.
SPEAKER_00So when it gets to the point it feels like work, then I know it's something else.
SPEAKER_04Yeah.
SPEAKER_00So it's it's fun, absolutely fun to see, to see guys just grow. To see guys, we had just one kid from Detroit, his name's Shay Queen Blow, he's a freshman. He wouldn't say two words for the first two weeks. Now, we had I had one kid that came up on a situation that was kind of like a anniversary, he had lost somebody. And he's like, Coach, I need a minute or whatever. I said, Okay, no, do no hell any business. After practice, I'm talking to the defensive line, because Shay Quan played defensive line, and the kid comes up to Shayquan. Hey man, thanks for talking to me. What's going on here? And I said, Shayquan, because he wouldn't say anything.
SPEAKER_04Right.
SPEAKER_00I said, Shay Quan, you the voice of reasoning? He said, Coach, I'm always the voice of reasoning. My bad, you know, but seeing those kids get out their shell, you know what I'm saying? That's that's that's what I think coaching, as I've been around it longer, that's what you're looking for to gain out of it. And obviously, guys that stay in communication with you from previous situations say, hey coach, I remember what you told me here, tough times don't last, tough people do. I was dealing with this, so forth and so on. So long as we can keep doing that, men and guys, but at the end of the day, you still gotta have success on the scoreboard.
SPEAKER_05Right. Yeah, absolutely. Well, you said it was uh, you know, you gotta have fun. It is a game, and we and uh one of the ways to have fun if you're not a player, but you're just out there and you're watching this and you're you know listening or whatever it happens to be is of course every year, every season, we sell our um uh cash prize where the ball lies uh contest uh tickets. You buy a yard line is how that works. It's $25 for one yard line. Um there's lots of chances to win every home game. Obviously, there's four quarters at the end of each quarter wherever the ball lies. Whoever's got that yard line wins 50 bucks. And we've had several people in in the last several years who have won more than once per season. We have lots of people that haven't won at all. Uh it's a little that's why we have to have a gambling license, you know, as uh but it's a good fundraiser for the boosters, uh for the for the uh for the gridiron club, and uh we are the boosters. And then it's also uh a great way to support uh the Waldorf football team, and it is fun. And to have your name uh announced over the uh the loudspeakers that you won, uh that's a good feeling, but you don't have to be present to win at every game. Um all you have to do is there'll be a link. We'll get you a link to the easiest way to pay for it, honestly, is just through the Venmo for Waldorf uh uh gridiron club, and so I'll have a link in there in the show notes for that. Um we do now this year have about half of them sold because we sold uh at the golf tournament, which was fun. We can come back to that in a second. We did uh we also sold some at the hot dog eating contest, and we've been selling them in between. So we uh obviously we have it have to have them all sold uh before the first home game. So uh if you've been uh wondering how to do it, this is how you do it. They're randomly assigned. The only people that got to pick their own grid lines were the people that paid way early, and they were the ones that went to uh the Waldorf uh gridiron club golf tournament. So, coach, uh what are your memories of your first uh your first golf tournament? But it was our third annual.
SPEAKER_00I think the first of all, it was an awesome tournament in the location. It was nice. Uh obviously I hadn't been to Iowa for before, but that golf club where we was at, I think it was a great place to have the event. I think the biggest thing that was that I think I don't know if you guys did it like this last year or not, but just being able to sit while people came through and listened to the music on your on your golf on your uh golf cart.
SPEAKER_06Yeah.
SPEAKER_00And just sit there and just you know, just shoot the stuff.
SPEAKER_06Yeah.
SPEAKER_00You know, and then take pictures of the teams as they came through. And I think that was a good icebreaker for us as a coaching staff to get to know some people, you know, from that standpoint. And I ain't gonna lie, I was surprised at how many good women golfers were out there, because it was a lot of good women golfers out there getting it in. So uh it was it was a good time. It was a good time. I wish I could have stayed a little longer, uh, but had some other things I had to get to, but uh looking forward to it to next year, that's for sure. So I was I was and again, since I've been here, I've been thoroughly impressed with everything you guys done from a booster club standpoint. I mean, it's not just sitting there, because we're sitting here, because I've been in some, when I was in Texas, I had a pretty good support system. You know, you guys are right up there with them. When I was in Nebraska and Hastings, you know, so you guys are, I mean, you guys do a lot. You guys do a lot. So it's not, it's not, it's genuine. And you can tell it's genuine if anybody that's been around here can understand it's genuine. And it's, you know, it's a lot of fun. I feel it's a lot of fun when I come around. You know, I know I'll be having a good time. I don't know about nobody else, but yeah, I know I'll be having a good time.
SPEAKER_05Well, I do happen to know that you enjoyed, and so did I, maybe uh the the the the the beer that came out of the Titanka brewery. Yes, I I don't remember what the one that we were drinking, but it was they were we we enjoyed them, you know. I know that. So yeah.
SPEAKER_00Maybe you and Coach Gales.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, yeah. Coach Gales, he enjoyed, yeah. We seemed to enjoy that.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, it was a good time. I really enjoyed it. Like I said, we sit there and listen to some good tunes, took some good pictures, yeah. You know, it was like I said it was a good icebreaker for us.
SPEAKER_05Well, I did send you, I mean, I sent you the link to Choctaw Bingo.
SPEAKER_00Okay.
SPEAKER_05Remember that? I mean that that one song I was like, I was like, North Texas, southern Oklahoma. And you're like, well, this is exactly what I'm talking about. Exactly where I'm from. Yeah. Small world.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, that's right. All right. Well, uh, yeah, and yeah, coach, we're uh, you know, we are proud of what we do um with the Gridiron Club. And I think everybody that that gives, everybody that's part of the organization, it has nothing to do with us, it has nothing to do um with anything other than those those young men and our coaches to try to give them the best experience while they're here at Waldorf. You know, Troy said it a million times that you know you give your kids and they're ours for four years, you know, and that's really what we want to do. We want to take care of them as much as we possibly can because it that's important, you know. Um there's not a lot to do in Four City, and I think that's kind of a good thing, maybe, for uh student athletes where you know, less things to do, let's focus on football and and our education. But um, but yeah, while you're here, we want to make it where on Saturdays when you're walking through the the tailgate during the warrior walk that it feels like something different, it feels a little more big time. Yeah.
SPEAKER_00So I'm looking forward to it, that's for sure.
SPEAKER_04Yeah, for sure. Well, I think that's about it. I think we did it. I mean it's good to be back.
SPEAKER_05It's nice to have uh our listeners that have been patiently waiting for us to uh share our thoughts and converse with coach and talk about what's happening in Warrior or Wooball.
SPEAKER_04Woo-ball, yeah, yeah, the plate. Absolutely. Well, yeah, I think that's gonna do it. Uh, I want to thank Coach Callaway for taking time, and I know the man is busy. Yeah. I mean, I've seen that schedule, that's crazy busy. And so I appreciate you taking time, Coach, out of your schedule. Come say hi.
SPEAKER_00Enjoy it all the time, anytime, anytime.
SPEAKER_04All right. Well, that's gonna do it for this episode of the Waldorf Gridiron Club Podcast. Thank you so much, folks, for taking time. Uh coming back and listening to us since we've taken a three-month hiatus. And uh uh, I don't know, maybe sometime in December we'll have our next. That's right. So remember, uh, Wednesday nights, get out to shooters. Uh when our our first home game is uh is September 12th. It's community night, 6 p.m. kickoff. That's always a great time. But take the trip down to Concordia, down to Seward. And then after Seward, we go to Midland. I believe that's in Fremont, Nebraska. Yep. Um come see the Warriors play. They they need your support and uh looking forward to what Coach Callaway and his staff have uh put together and see how that translates onto the football field. So thanks so much again for listening to this episode of the Waldorf Gridiron Club Podcast. Always a pleasure. We'll be back really, really soon. So for Troy Thompson, this is Andy Buffington and forever and always go Warriors.
SPEAKER_05You can join the Waldorf Gridiron Club and be part of the best small college football experience teams on the network. Just visit our website and get your membership level at Waldorf Gridiron Club.org. You can also click on the support the show link in the show notes to donate.
