The Mike Keith Show (Apr. 30, 2026)

Another week, another strong show including interviews with legendary VFL Allan Houston and national sports analyst Josh Pate.

Transcript

SPEAKER_06 0:00

From the banks of the Mississippi to the peaks of the smokies, this is the whole field of champions. More than 75 years of broadcast excellence. We are the Fall Network. We're big orange fans. Get ready for game day. Your guide, The Voice of the Falls, Mike Keith. Delivered by Uber Eats.

SPEAKER_08 0:47

Welcome to the Mike Keith Show. So glad to have you with us. Big, big hour upcoming. Josh Payt of the Josh Pate College Football Show is going to be sitting right here. He'll be here. I'll move over here. And we're going to talk about what else? College football. Really excited to have that conversation with him. And then Kipp's Corner, presented by Calhoun's later in the hour. And excited to talk to him about what's coming up for baseball, as the baseball team has won six of their last nine in conference play to continue to inch up the ladder, coming into the final three weekends. This segment of the Mike Keith show is presented by UT Medical, official health care provider of the Vols and Lady Valls. Let's bring in my two guest hosts who've been with me through every week. This is show 32, I've told. Wow. How do we do that? We have one more. One more after this. Yes. Time flies. Mr. 865, Dr. Andy Brock is there. The host of the Everything Orange podcast, Sarah Detweiler, is there. Welcome to you both.

SPEAKER_17 1:53

Thank you, Mike.

SPEAKER_08 1:55

Glad to have you both uh join the program again today. As tomorrow is May. Wild. I know, right? Tomorrow is May. So we uh the school year is winding down. Aren't you guys glad you don't have to worry about that anymore?

SPEAKER_17 2:10

Well, I actually just finished grad school last week. So I am officially done with school. I have been doing school for the past two years. So I am also in line with the students here on campus that are excited for some summer break.

SPEAKER_08 2:23

So what did you get your graduate degree?

SPEAKER_17 2:25

I got my degree in higher education leadership through UT's uh satellite campus in Martin.

SPEAKER_08 2:30

No kidding. That's a they have some really good programs in Martin. They do. Uh several of my friends have gone to Martin to get a to get a graduate degree. So what what do you plan to do with this degree?

SPEAKER_17 2:43

Well, hopefully, I think one day when I am, you know, I I put up my my mic, as you could say, and want to be more invested on the higher education side and working with students. I love the mentorship part of my job right now. I'd love to be a director and assistant um in a sports media department of some kind.

SPEAKER_08 3:01

Oh wow. Okay. Well, congratulations. That's uh that's quite an accomplishment. Andy, what have you done?

SPEAKER_02 3:07

I I've done absolutely nothing. I've sat around, I've talked here and there. I have not learned, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_08 3:14

You could say the same thing to me. Yeah. Nothing. I got I got nothing. No further degrees on my not me either. I got my one. It's like I'm gone. Yep. See ya. That's uh that's the whole thing. I haven't had one yet. My wife went to grad school and she had to get her transcript. Oh, yeah. And uh they actually had to pull my transcript when I got this job.

SPEAKER_02 3:36

Really? Yep. Make sure your GPA was was high enough. I don't know what they were looking for.

SPEAKER_08 3:41

Uh it kind of scared me because I've I've always been afraid of a lengthy review. Um deep dive. Yeah, deep dive, not my not my thing. All right, let's jump right in. Let's go. Let's make it happen. Let's get that excited because it's time for the Firehouse Subs Hot. Take Firehouse, enjoy hot subs all across Big Orange Country. Try the new Chicken and Cheddar Rancher at Firehouse Subs. It's packed with grilled chicken breast, crispy bacon, melted cheese, and creamy buttermilk ranch. Mm-hmm. Order in the Firehouse Subs app or get it delivered today only at Firehouse Subs. All right. So, Andy, since you haven't done anything, dude.

SPEAKER_02 4:22

Yep, that's true.

SPEAKER_08 4:23

We're gonna give uh Sarah a break for just a moment. And you can give us your Firehouse Subs hot take leading into May.

SPEAKER_02 4:30

Okay. I'm going with baseball and hey, also Firehouse fed the baseball team the other day, so it goes hand in hand. Firehouse, big supporter of Tennessee baseball.

SPEAKER_08 4:39

Between the two wins in the doubleheader.

SPEAKER_02 4:42

That's right. Yes. They were there. They were ready. Fed the team, fueled them for a big week. Big series win against Alabama. I'm gonna say my hot take is uh Trent Grindlinger. He's one of Tennessee's best freshmen of this past ten-year stretch with Tony Vitel and Josh E. Lander. I'm gonna say best one since Christian Moore and what he did his freshman year. The way he was able to bounce back after a uh one-hit week against Ole Miss to have seven hits in three games of two days against Alabama, two of them home runs. I think that's the maturity in what makes him stand out as just a freshman.

SPEAKER_08 5:16

Grinlinger can rake. Yeah. I mean, that's all there is to it. I mean, he just he's just one of those dudes. He just walk up and hit it. And you saw that with Blake Burke as a freshman. You mentioned Christian Moore. There have been countless other ones through the years, but I think he's kind of the next one. So that's a good one. I I'm a big fan of that young man and uh looking forward to seeing what he does the rest of this year and then on forward in his career. All right, Sarah Detweiler, host of the Everything Orange podcast. Who's your guest this week, by the way?

SPEAKER_17 5:45

We are off this week.

SPEAKER_08 5:46

For exams.

SPEAKER_17 5:47

Yes, yes, and going with that. Well, we we do have a lot of student reviews that we're doing this week. So we are chatting with them all week long. But we'll be back. We'll finish out the month of May, four more episodes, and then we're done with the year.

SPEAKER_08 5:59

Student reviews?

SPEAKER_17 6:00

Yes, just kind of seeing how their experience was, down with our office. We have 23 students down there making sure that they, you know, have it's not for their grade. No.

SPEAKER_08 6:10

Okay.

SPEAKER_17 6:11

No.

SPEAKER_08 6:11

It's kind of like if it was for my grade, man, I'd be I'd be giving you firehouse subs to here. Well, before you review this, would you like a firehouse subs gift card?

SPEAKER_17 6:21

You must be hungry. Let me sage you first, please. My hot take though, looking at softball and the way that they were able to bounce back stage Marjetko was a huge reason why they were able to have so much success. So I think that she's gonna be really important if this team is going to make uh a deep run into the postseason and specifically before we wrap up in the next weekend with Missouri on the road.

SPEAKER_08 6:41

That's good. Yeah, sage one hitter. Awesome. One hitter in game two after getting blasted in the first, and just kind of like the baseball team did, although the the Thursday night loss for the baseball team was not as big a score, but it felt like it. You know, it was 12 to 8. But there were nearly 400 pitches thrown in that game. Wow. Wow. Yeah, that's right. It was a long game.

SPEAKER_07 7:09

Wow.

SPEAKER_08 7:10

Yeah, it was not great. They've asked me never to come back. No, never, never, ever to come back. The the main difference from Thursday to Friday is I was not in the ball. Mike wasn't there. I did enjoy working with John Wilkerson, and I'm very appreciative that he allowed me to. All right, so as we go to break, knowing that we have Josh Pate on the other side, want to mention it's time for the Uber Eats delivery of the game. On game day, you don't want to miss a single play. Uber Eats brings your favorite food right to your door. Wings, pizza, burgers, whatever you're craving, it's just a tap away. Download the Uber Eats app and use the code GOBIGORANGE to get $15 off all orders. Uber Eats, official on-demand delivery partner of the balls. Let's eat and let's get the delivery of the game.

SPEAKER_09 7:59

He's gonna fish in the big leagues for a long time. We won two games today because of Tegan Coon.

SPEAKER_11 8:03

Tegan Coons on the hill.

SPEAKER_12 8:57

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SPEAKER_06 11:04

Delivered by Uber Eats, Mike Keith continues the countdown to Vall's Action.

SPEAKER_08 11:11

Thanks for staying with us on the Mike Keith Show. This segment of the program is brought to you by CertiPro Painters, proud partner of University of Tennessee Athletics. If this is the Mike Keith Show hosted by Mike Keith, this is Josh Payt, host of the Josh Payt College Football Show.

SPEAKER_04 11:27

How are you? I'm good. I always I always know where I am. I always know who I'm talking to, who I'm listening to. Would you call it an authoritative voice? Like, do you think it's an authoritative voice? My children have to do that. No, no, but that's they're biased. They're biased. But let's remove children, remove family. There's no DNA tie. Um I'm happy to be here. Well, thank you. Thank you. And I think you were complimenting my voice. So I'll take it. Yes. I just have to I just have to go about it in like a roundabout way. I like how you do it. You can't just say, hey man, I like your voice. All right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 11:56

Where all have you been so far in in the springtime? Because it feels like you've been all over the place following you on social and everything.

SPEAKER_04 12:05

Yeah, that's spring for me. Uh let's see. I think I can rattle it off. So we went Georgia Tech, Auburn, Florida, Miami, Texas AM, Alabama, Virginia Tech, Tennessee. That's the so far. And then we'll knock the rest of the country out at some point and try and mix a little storm chasing in there. And maybe. Whoa, whoa, whoa. I know. I know you can book it. You can book, you can bookmark it. And then maybe a vacation. All right. So let's remove the bookmark. Yeah, that's spring for me. Spring is let's go see as many head coaches as I can. Uh let's go, let's go check on Bill Martin, which we all try and do every spring. Yes. And then after we've knocked those two pillars down, then yeah, I love storm chasing. Like Jim Cantori storm chasing. Yeah, except probably not so much in front of a green screen, and instead out in the middle of the field in Oklahoma. Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 12:52

So you get in the car and you drive around to all these different places. You have a weather radio you're listening to. How do how does one do that?

SPEAKER_04 13:00

Yeah, what you're really asking me is the stuff we see in Twister, is that how you do it? Yes. Yeah, that's basically it. Also the inspiration when I was a child watching that movie. The biggest blessing of the show that we've built is I get to cover college football for a living. All right. Period. The second biggest blessing is we've got a big enough audience where at any given time people from all walks of life are watching or listening. So I've talked about storm chasing on the show back when we first started out. And I would get storm chasing teams reach out to me. And they first off thought I was joking, so they had to make sure, are you serious? Do you really like that? Do you really want to do it? And I was like, yeah, I absolutely do. So then they invite you to come with them. So how did you get into that other than the movie? Well, that was it. For for me as a child, I watched Sports Center and the Weather Channel. Like those were really the two constants on my TV. And you know, maybe mix in Nickelodeon here and there. But it was really Weather Channel and SportsCenter. And so through the Weather Channel, and keep in mind this would be like mid-90s if I was a kid, I was loosely introduced to the idea that storm chasing existed, uh, but also just extreme weather always fascinated me. Hurricanes, winter storms, tornadoes, and tornadoes probably being number one on the power ratings list there. And then Twister comes out, and then you're introduced to the original Bill Paxton, Helen Hunt, Philip Seymour Hoffman for how to rate a performance. Yeah. And then that it was game on. So then your dream is I love college football and I love weather, so I want to grow up and somehow do both of them. So now we've worked it to where you can kind of do both, especially in the spring. Did you consider becoming a meteorologist? Yeah, I did. The only thing that pushed me away from that is the eight years school. Right. And then secondly, I always thought in the summertime it gets a little mundane, it gets a little monotonous in the summertime. Now, the high impact moments, the high impact events, uh, there's that's a rush that's every bit as big for me as three, two, one kickoff in Neeland Stadium, George is in town for Tennessee. Like those things compare for me. I know that may sound weird to other folks, but that compares for me.

SPEAKER_08 15:06

No, it's always interesting to me what other interests people have that they're passionate about because I think that tells you a lot about the person and the fact that you're willing to go do that and to do it in such a way that you're detailed and that you're really doing it talks a lot about your overall passion for life.

SPEAKER_04 15:26

Yeah, I love it. I also think there's a lot of overlap in understanding culture in college football. We know what makes a Tennessee Saturday great, and it extends well beyond just what's happening on the field. You can copy and paste that in Columbus, Ohio, State College, Eugene. And maybe outsiders who just watch the college football games, they know wow, big stadiums, uh shiny helmets, cool looking colors, but they really don't get the culture because you have to be in it to really understand the culture. Storm chasing is the same way. Storm chasing, you can either view from a distance, and if you're a sane person, you say, I don't, I don't want anything to do with that. Maybe that's fascinating to me from a distance, but I don't want to get involved with that. But if you're actually in it, uh you realize, well, there's like a whole culture about this sort of thing. I would imagine that's how it is if you're a card collector. I know nothing about card collecting, but I see those folks from a distance, and look at how passionate they are. And I I like Taylor Lewan does it a lot. I know him pretty well. And I say, How in the world are you that jacked up about opening a pack of Pokemon cards? And he kind of explains it to me the way I explain college football, the way I explain storm chasing, and it's basically, well, you kind of got to be in it to understand it.

SPEAKER_08 16:38

Let me go back to Georgia Tech for a second, because Tennessee plays at Bobby Dodd Stadium on September 12th. Brink Key's got a great program going, he's done a really nice job. But now there's a change. Haynes King, who was sort of the uh universal player who could do everything, is gone on. George Gotsy's now the offensive coordinator. How different potentially can Georgia Tech's offense be this fall when Tennessee gets a look at him after they open the season with a pretty tough game on September 3rd as well?

SPEAKER_04 17:11

Yeah, so when I'm there, you don't have an announced quarterback. I think most people assume Alberto Mendoza will be the starter there, who's Fernando's brother. Fernando had just been there like the day before I was there. He is the kind of guy where when you watch him practice, there are moments that make you go, wow. There are moments that make you go, uh, and that's spring practice, basically, for any kind of first-time starter. We're experiencing that around here, by the way. There are probably a lot of those kind of reactions in practice around here. But I think the biggest thing that stood out to me about them was not so much offensive, it's they overhauled defensive line totally. And he's been, Brent's been very, very upfront about that. About being in matchups last year, really the last couple of years where maybe they felt from a game planning perspective, we didn't get bested here. Um, you know, maybe from a strategic perspective, we didn't get bested here. It just came down to them having bigger, better players than us. And, you know, so you try and address that as much as you can. The portal affords you the ability to try and do that. But with that, and then you mentioned with the churn at the coaching positions, it's it's a construction zone. It's the way that a lot of spring practices are all across the country, and that is you're you're watching Jello that just got put in the fridge and it's still liquid, hasn't really had time to congeal or whatever the word is. And so you're trying to say, all right, uh, I'm picking out things that I think could be. So like quarterback, uh running back, Justice Haynes is there now, which I don't think a lot of the country has picked up on yet. He was at Bama, Michigan, and now Georgia Tech. And not really a trouble kid per se. A lot of those guys who bounce around, it's caused the big character issues. Uh, he's not so much that, but he's a guy they're gonna have to ride a lot. And I would especially assume, because of when Tennessee plays him early on, that yeah, that's a guy that they've seen him before. Uh, they're gonna see a lot of him that Saturday afternoon.

SPEAKER_08 19:00

They open on a Thursday with Colorado, which is a really interesting matchup to open the season with. And you would think that would be a bit of an advantage that you get to see them against what what could be a very solid opponent. They're certainly gonna have to do everything they can to win.

SPEAKER_04 19:15

I think so. I remember that game last year pretty vividly because Georgia Tech did everything they possibly could to lose that game early, and then they're still in it, and then I think they ended up winning that game. But yeah, I would I would expect with them and with many teams out there, a lot of really, really green check marks and a lot of really, really red X's that first time out of the gate. And you throw as much against the wall as you can. Uh, I I like the dynamic of that scheduling, by the way. Texas, Ohio State's the same way. Yeah, it's great when you got a big one in week one, but from a quality of game perspective and from a comfort of mind perspective, if you're if you're a fan base or if you're a coaching staff, I like having the big one in week two. That's how I like to approach the lead into a season.

SPEAKER_08 19:58

Tennessee had to take the Georgia Tech series when Nebraska uh jumped out of the series. So, I mean, Georgia Tech has a has a nice thing going on, and they have been successful by just playing really good, solid football. When you watch them play, you think that's good football. Yeah, that's a well-coached team. Speaking of coaching, football churns at every level. And it churns in the NFL, it church in college football. It's been around for nearly 160 years. Has it churned back to being physicality and defense more so than let's say when Joe Burrow won the national championship at LSU and had a record-setting quarterback year, and it seemed like offenses were very much the thing.

SPEAKER_04 20:43

Yeah, I think there are two things in play there. The first one is it was always going to be a little cyclical. If we think back 12, 13 years ago, uh Malzon's coming into the league at that point, and they're doing something pretty radically different offensively at Auburn than the rest of the league is. So the Georgias and Alabamas and LSUs of the world, they built defensively to beat each other. And you got a bunch of 6'3, 245-pound linebackers in the league who cannot run 53 and a third each way. And so for a period of time, you you think, wow, things have changed forever here. Okay, well, then linebackers are 6'2, 215, and 220 all of a sudden, and they can move. And so there's just a natural ping-pong effect of personnel. It's really just the way you want to build your sides of the ball from a physical standpoint. But then the other part is I think guys look at it and say, if we're gonna have so much roster churn year in and year out, there are some fundamental things that we know can be our identity. We can bake in and just run in the ball. The most basic things we've been taught since we were kids, um, those sorts of things I think can more readily withstand the test of churn than trying to be so fine-tuned on a high powered, high octane passing game. Now, that's very rudimentary. Like if we walked Josh in here today. Day. He'd talk circles around that and he could win on a debate stage taking either side of the issue. So I'm looking at it from a very elementary perspective, but I've always thought that. I've thought, hey, if I know that we're going old school scholarship era vibe of I'm pretty sure the 25 I sign now are still going to be here in 2028. I can do a lot more things and be comfortable than knowing that I've got 50% of my roster that's new every spring.

SPEAKER_08 22:25

So you're saying you believe fundamentals are even more important in today's game than they were maybe a few years ago. Yeah, and that's not to say they never get it, but you're saying that's the one thing you can always fall back on.

SPEAKER_04 22:39

Yeah, and I also think that if you're playing, let's say, portal roulette, let's say you get yourself into a situation where it's you and a few others, and you got five kids that you feel good about, you strike out on three out of the five. Well, you got no other options. There is no other talent acquisition window after that. So what if your offense specifically relied on those pieces, and then those pieces are not there, and it's really tough to backfill there. I think about very, very unique, like leverage type players. Well, if I put myself in a position where those are more luxuries than necessities, then it's not a death blow when I have bad news on the last day of the portal cycle. It it's not great, but then I've got I've got something I can fall back on. I've I always think of fundamentals as safety nets, and then you can build above and beyond that, but at least have the safety net built. And I think a lot of people maybe in their subconscious got away from that as they started to think, well, maybe we can reinvent the game here a little bit. The game never gets reinvented. What are coaches telling you about no spring portal? Well, a couple of things. Uh so well, so some of them liked it, some of them didn't. I think it differs conference to conference. In the SEC, you hear more of we kind of like it that way. In the Big Ten, you hear more of we wanted the portal after spring ball. And look, I've heard both sides of that debate, probably merit on both sides of it, but it is the way it is right now. I think the other thing that guys have whispered behind the scenes, but no one really wants to talk about publicly for obvious reasons, is that gonna hold up? Because that's the question we ask about everything right now from a legal perspective. Is that gonna hold up? Or is someone gonna try and test it? And if one person tests it and they are successful, probably in a courtroom, because that's where the game plays out right now, then is everyone gonna follow suit? And this is our first time around the merry-go-round of a reworked college football calendar with the one portal, like you mentioned. So my fingers are crossed that the door is shut only for my own sanity, but I have learned to never say never when it comes to when it comes to roster decisions and portal movement and whatnot. Because we we think of it as portal. There's really nothing etched in stone that says, hey man, if you're gonna go from one place A to place B, you've got to enter yourself in the portal and then come out of the portal. You could just leave a place and show up at another place.

SPEAKER_08 24:59

Yeah. That's how it works in reality.

SPEAKER_04 25:02

Yeah, yeah, it's there's there's this world outside of this bubble we live in, and uh, more so and more so every day the bubble kind of gets popped.

SPEAKER_03 25:12

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SPEAKER_06 27:22

Mike Keith continues, delivered by Uber Eats.

SPEAKER_08 27:27

Before we continue our conversation with Josh Pate of the Josh Pate College Football Show, I need to tell you this segment of the Mike Keith Show is brought to you by KUB Fiber, the world's fastest internet and Ball Nations' favorite way to connect. As we talk about it and we hear that this is an unsustainable system right now with NIL and the portal and being able to transfer every year. What's going to change it? What's going to have to happen to make it be in a place where it can be more regulated and agreed to by both sides that this is the best way for everyone going forward?

SPEAKER_04 28:08

Well, the you know, the working theory, which I don't disagree with, has either been you're going to collectively bargain your way out of it or you're going to legislate your way out of it. I'm of the opinion more and more that there's probably a blend of the two that will happen. I know there's been a lot of talk about the Score Act and how unworkable that is, because it gives one side too many concessions and the other side really gets no representation. And then you got the Sports Broadcasting Act overhaul and that whole proposal from Cody Campbell and his group. And those seem like two separate conversations right now. They are. I actually think there's a convergence, maybe a confluence of those conversations coming in the form of merged bills in the not too distant future. And I think at that point I understand anyone who has said, boy, if you're counting on Congress, then you're barking up the wrong tree, they're not going to fix anything, you're not going to get them to agree on anything. I understand that. I do think the one thing that could change the paradigm there is if you have the governance piece and you have the revenue piece and you merge those two, and so you do have players with a voice, you do have the ability to have uh a really, really solid financial waterfall down, not just from the top dogs, but also the non-revenue generating sports, the Olympic sports and whatnot. And in the aggregate, you have your antitrust exemption and you're able to create rules and enforce them. And also, like, think about this. Think about a world where you don't have to write everything on a piece of paper and enforce it. Maybe there is an ecosystem where I, as a freshman at Tennessee, am incentivized to become a sophomore junior and senior at Tennessee because it behooves me to stay here. And I'm not just talking about development physically and mentally. I mean there is an increased financial incentive that is baked into the structure of the sport in that new world for me to stay here. I've always thought that's a much smarter way to go about it than trying to pass laws and tell people here's what you can and can't do. How about you can do whatever you want? It's gonna greatly benefit you, however, to do it this way. And that way happens to be more in line with the way that would be palatable to most fans and most people who love this sport. To wrap up, swing back to Tennessee.

SPEAKER_08 30:20

What did Josh Pate think when he heard the news that Tennessee had hired Jim Knowles as the defensive coordinator?

SPEAKER_04 30:26

I thought, boy, the thing about Jim has always been it takes a few years. That's always been the book on him. Then I started to, you know, pick up more and more of what he was bringing with him. And I thought, okay, well, let's see how that works. Let's see if that expedites the process a little bit. Because in some ways you can do that. And then you start, you know, putting your ear to the ground during spring ball. And one of the consistent themes in a in a spring session where you thought quarterback would dominate the headlines, and it did, I think the subplot for people who follow Tennessee football a little closer than the general public is a consistent message that pretty pleasantly surprised where we are defensively. And that's not necessarily an echo of the headline that you heard when he first got to Ohio State or when he first got to Penn State. So that's refreshing. But I think like we were talking about with Georgia Tech, like we were talking about with a lot of places, you get you get as much install done as you can in spring, you get as much acclamation as you can done in spring. I think it helps that he's he's not 31 years old, so he's been around the Merry-Go Round several times, and this is not this is not a new hat for him, but it is a new hat for a lot of the guys playing for him. I just think it helps so much when you bring people with you, and I don't necessarily have to look at you, Jim Knowles, to answer all my questions. I can look at this dude who played with you at Penn State, I can look at this dude who worked under you at Penn State, that helps a lot.

SPEAKER_08 31:50

Isn't that the mark of a great coach that he would see how important that was and would bring those people here with him?

SPEAKER_04 31:58

I think so. I also think from Josh's perspective and a lot of head coaches' perspectives, I don't know how you do it any other way now. Because of because of how much churn you have in the sport, uh, whether you're I mean, I'll back up. I was with James Franklin yesterday. So James Franklin goes gets fired at Penn State, he takes the Virginia Tech job. And I was talking to him, and he said, we could come in here and hire an entirely new staff. Yes, we could do that. But to win in year one, there's really no other option. I need to bring people with me who I know, who know me, and that's not even mentioning roster. When you can bring your players as well, you can do that. Well, Josh Heichel's not in his first year as a head coach, but he's bringing in a new coordinator. So you could either relatively speaking, start from scratch on that side of the ball, or you could do it the way they did it and say, as part of your vetting process, as part of your search, who can I get that basically brings benefit with us? Benefit in the form of other people. People who fit here. You're not going to bring in someone who's oil and water, but people who fit naturally at Tennessee, um, who can acclimate to our system, but in the interim, can really hit the fast forward button on getting us back to where we were just two years ago defensively.

SPEAKER_08 33:10

What did Josh Payt think when Tennessee hired Derek Owings as the director of football sport performance away from national champion Indiana?

SPEAKER_04 33:20

I wondered who was gonna do it. And it just so turns out it was Tennessee. There was a big blank. You know, I I had a question, who's gonna hire Derek? Blank. And then Tennessee puts its name in the blank. Success leaves clues all over the place, obviously. I just watched uh USC do the same thing. Like USC overhauled strength and conditioning entirely this time last year. And if you talk to those people out there, sure you can talk about a third-year quarterback and you can talk about the roster, but they're talking about the culture that is totally different permeating inside the building because of that overhaul. And it's very early on, I know, but I've heard the reviews. Like I I've gotten some of the vibe from around here. Now I'm here today, so like I'll meet Derek. I've never met Derek, I don't think, in my life in person. So I'll meet him today, but I I'm not playing here. So I don't have to know him personally as much as these guys do. But it does uh unlike some coordinator hires, it doesn't take a few years to see the impact of a shift in strength and conditioning. That that really happens over the span of a few months. Think when you were a kid, think when you were 19 or 20, and you all of a sudden, if you inserted a different workout regimen or or a different nutrition regimen into your way of life, the results are pretty immediate. Now imagine that you're a very, very high caliber, uh, one percentile athlete and you're already advanced genetically, and then all of a sudden you're introduced to that. Imagine how much sharper the hockey stick curve is on your improvement individually, and then what that ends up yielding collectively and mentally.

SPEAKER_08 34:54

Sure. How good you feel about yourself, how much more confident you feel about yourself, and especially if all of your brothers are in this with you going through the Derek Owings program, suddenly when you come through things and you see gains, you're happy for your teammates, they're happy for you, and there's a bonding in that way.

SPEAKER_04 35:13

Well, I'll tell you, you play Georgia in this league, uh, you're gonna play Alabama. There are a few programs, Ohio State. You guys played them in the playoffs a couple of years ago. Their worldview inside their building is there is no one we'll be looking up at in the fourth quarter. We will be looking at in best case scenario for them, or down in a more likely case scenario for them against everyone we play. So you just picture a world where Tennessee is able to think that way. You're going into September, October, November, you got those dates, you got circled on the calendar, and you're not having to sit there and think to yourself, well, we need some things to go right, quarters one through three, so that we can have a leg up going into the fourth quarter. You mentally become a team that knows it's okay if we trail by three with eight minutes to go. It's all right. Josh Pate, thank you so much. Good to be here.

SPEAKER_08 36:05

Host of the Josh Pate College Football Show. Josh Pate with us here on the Mike Keith show, hosted by Mike Keith. You have more coming up right after this.

SPEAKER_16 36:13

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SPEAKER_03 37:14

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SPEAKER_18 37:44

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SPEAKER_06 38:37

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SPEAKER_08 38:39

So it's the show within a show that everyone loves, presented by our great friends at Calhoods. This is Kibb's Corner. Ross Gibbett, Tennessee assistant baseball coach and recruiting coordinator. This is his program. He brings the guest, he sets the topics, he asks the questions. He is in charge. I'm merely here to make sure that he gets to break on time. Six of nine. We keep rolling, moving up the standings.

SPEAKER_23 39:10

It's getting better every weekend. You want to play your best baseball in May. That's you've heard that for the last, I don't know, two decades since Coach Rod Hall of Famer. Shout out, Rod. Rod Del Monaco. You're really just kind of tempering a small wave until you can ride the big one. So I'm hoping that the big one is on the horizon here with Kentucky coming up this weekend, and then not to get too far ahead, but then a big home series versus Texas. Someone that will be definitely impactful on the weekends is a freshman phenom. Two chains is a rapper, two tattoos is a left-handed pitcher from Chad from Chatham, Illinois. Cameron Appenzeller. Oh backwards crew. Nice.

SPEAKER_22 39:52

He did it, so I did it. I didn't know I did it because you did it.

SPEAKER_23 39:54

I just copy him. I want to be Cam Appenzeller when I grow up.

SPEAKER_08 39:58

There's a rule about the backwards hat thing, though. Now, because you're involved in baseball, you can do a backwards hat. Sure. But you see people in public wearing backwards hats. Oh, this is gonna be good. And it's like you don't have a right. You know, only certain people have a right to go with the back. If you win a championship, you can't. If you win a championship, you can certainly do that. But if you played catcher at any point in your life, you have the right to right to wear your hat backward for the rest of your life. You can be 89 years old. I agree. And you can have your hat on backwards. Okay.

SPEAKER_23 40:33

All right. But some dudes don't do that. Well, yeah. Hey guys, listen, if I see you and your hat's backwards, I'm gonna ask you if you can't.

SPEAKER_08 40:39

I still say if you served in the military, you should wear your hat backward for the rest of your life. I have rules. I'm not gonna get into it because we got Cam here. So like, am I allowed to wear my hat backwards?

SPEAKER_22 40:49

You play baseball. Well, you're left-handed, too.

SPEAKER_08 40:51

When your baseball career's over, it's forwards. We'll have to talk about it. Call me.

SPEAKER_22 40:55

Okay.

SPEAKER_23 40:56

I had a college coach that told me the direction of your hat is the direction of your life. So currently, after my 2 a.m. or on on Tuesday morning, I'm going backwards. But he is not. He is on the way to going forward. Cam App and Zeller, here's the here's the I gotta go. He's like, okay, now I'm nervous about it. Because we got Kentucky tomorrow. He's got Kentucky tomorrow. Let's start with something really, really light because Kib's Corner is a fun family show. Why did you turn down the draft to come to Tennessee? Oh, that's really light. Uh was it not light? It was not light. It was down to the wire. How much did it go on?

SPEAKER_22 41:35

Long process.

SPEAKER_23 41:36

But that first day of the draft.

SPEAKER_22 41:37

Yeah, second day of the draft. That's when I knew I was coming. But the first day was a it was long. I mean, it was a lot of stuff going on.

SPEAKER_23 41:44

You were drafted in the 19th round by the Seattle Mariners, but don't let that kid.

SPEAKER_22 41:49

It was like after I already decided.

SPEAKER_23 41:51

It's one of those picks when you get drafted there, it's in case someone doesn't pass a physical, and then they have the money that Cameron and his village was asking for, which could possibly take him away. So we're popping bottles, having some beverages on day two of the draft. He gets popped by Seattle in the 19th round. We're going, man, it's still not technically out the woods till August 1. No harm, no foul. He came back to school for summer school, and now you're starting to see what he can really do on the mound, and that's get people out in this league. What's the biggest adjustment between the fall, your first, let's call it three or four weeks of out of conference, and then the early success to now riding the roller coaster a little bit, getting ready to get back on that high horse?

SPEAKER_22 42:36

Yeah, I feel like it's just focusing on like little things, like throwing more strikes, like being just that much more accurate with all your pitches.

SPEAKER_23 42:44

Do you feel like accuracy is something that you're kind of born with? Because you can throw it to both sides of the plate, which is why you see success. We always talk about command in the fastball, and this guy's been doing it his whole life, since he was an area code guy or an East Coast pro, and then coming into his high school season, where we'll talk about your basketball career a little bit later. But and then obviously as a freshman here, he's he's starting to throw strikes. But when did that start to become an emphasis in your work?

SPEAKER_22 43:11

Once I kind of started taking baseball more seriously, like sophomore and junior year, that's kind of when I just kind of realized that throwing strikes is like how you get guys out. It's not just like blowing guys out.

SPEAKER_23 43:21

You've shagged enough BP or taken enough BP to know if you throw it over the middle, you even get out and bat it.

SPEAKER_22 43:26

Yeah, yeah. So I'm I was a hitter in in high school, and whenever guys just throw it over the plate, I mean you would ground out the second. No, no, I've usually hit it over the fence.

SPEAKER_08 43:34

Should they let you hit right now?

SPEAKER_23 43:36

He's gonna say yes, and that's not I mean, yes, I want to hit, but I like our hitters. I think they're better than me. What a team guy. Team guy. Hey, coach, I don't know if you knew this, but this guy, ridiculous athlete in high school, scratch golfer all conference. Yeah, I don't know what the second team all state is. Yeah, and he went to state as a basketball player. Outside of not really having a jumper, he can he can 360 windmill. Dunk and all sorts of things. How's that athleticism play in pitching?

SPEAKER_22 44:03

I feel like it's just kind of being a natural athlete moving down the mound. I mean, it's just kind of a feel thing. I feel like pitching is. It's like a you gotta do what feels right to you.

SPEAKER_23 44:13

Moving down the mound for the people at home that doesn't know what that means. What is something that you would do drill-wise to make sure you're moving down the mound?

SPEAKER_22 44:21

Anything with like a like a water bag on your back, just like staying stacked, something like that. You say moving down the mound, what are you what are you talking about specifically? I'm not great at explaining or like teaching, I guess, but just like he's good at doing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_23 44:37

Moving down the mound is basically like your delivery. So how he comes set and you know, when he lifts his leg, how far he can get down. They call it the slope because it it is. Where his foot lands, what position he's in there, and then how athletic and springy it can be from behind that. Is Tegan Koons the best at that? He's our best mover. Yeah, he is very close to being Tegan Koons being you know two years younger. Tegan explodes.

SPEAKER_08 45:03

It's it's electric. The the leg action, yeah, they used to talk last century about Nolan. Shout out to the nomads. They used to talk a lot about Nolan Ryan with just the leg action and Roger Clemens and guys like that with the incredible leg action that they had that generated the power more so than even the arm. When you see Tegan, you're like, man, he is getting some torque going from the lower body.

SPEAKER_23 45:28

When we're taking notes recruiting, we would label Tegan a clean mover. Clean mover. Because it is so explosive once he gets his foot down, and what's coming from you know, coming behind it is electricity. He's also got we had Zach Stovall on. Shut up still, shut up still. And analytics-wise, his his reach or his extension is off the charts. The way that he can spin the ball is crazy too, and a lot of it is because he moves, which is something that you've been worried about in crazy. I learned a lot from him. Yeah, I mean you talk to Tegan a lot. Yeah, even though we we joke around with him a lot, yeah. There's a lot to learn from him. He he is pretty impressive, and and then I think something that's been impressive with with Cameron is getting thrown into the fire, okay, so early. You start off as the midweek guy getting two or three innings, and now it's like, okay, here's the weekend, Arizona State, and then it's been the weekend since then. Did you always feel the confidence that you you had going into that, or was that just a slow burn with Ren?

SPEAKER_22 46:26

I mean, I kind of always had the confidence. I mean, I had a good fall, so just kind of having that good fall leading into the season helped me.

SPEAKER_23 46:32

How impactful for is the fall? I don't think people really realize that playing those fall games is so important, and we didn't have the opportunity to do that this year, but scrimmaging against your own guys that are going to go high in the draft, Henry Ford, you learned some some things. But what's one thing that you took outside of the fall can that does have the possibility of having some chaos? Yeah. What's something you learned from that?

SPEAKER_22 46:56

I mean, I just learned it's a whole different level. Just from getting here in July to the whole the end of the fall. I mean, it was just a whole different animal. Like, like, I mean, I know it's a different different people here now, but that first month with Q, it was just made me realize I wasn't really ready for college. And then after that, what wasn't ready? The body? Yeah, no, my body was not ready. What's something you focused on?

SPEAKER_23 47:18

Put on weight and get proud of himself.

SPEAKER_08 47:21

Put on put on a little weight in the fall. So you're very sure at this point after your experience over the last eight, nine months, that college was the right decision for you. Obviously, Tennessee was the right decision for you.

SPEAKER_23 47:32

Yeah. I I think I think the gaining weight thing is what you've seen the velocity start to tick up. We want to play our best ball in May. That's what we said at the beginning of the show. And in order to do that, you have to be able to have the stamina to embrace it's about to be 90 degrees in Hoover, Coach. You've been down there for the SG tournament. It's gonna be warm in Oklahoma, et cetera, throughout Knoxville as well. So being able to handle that and and avoid some of the soft tissue stuff, what's some of the routine-based things that you do after you throw?

SPEAKER_22 48:02

Yeah. I mean, next day I do a lot of like Mark Pro, heat, hot tub, cold tub, just like recovery stuff. I don't really throw much after, but just like a bunch of recovery.

SPEAKER_23 48:12

Do you have the ability to kind of create your own schedule, or is is Coach Reynolds and and Keegan, shout out Keegan, getting that body right? Is that kind of what you're going off of?

SPEAKER_22 48:23

Um, it's kind of a mixture of both. Like we work together to figure out a schedule for me that works good and for both of us.

SPEAKER_23 48:29

So is it a requirement when you're SEC freshman pitcher of the week to get tattoos?

SPEAKER_22 48:36

No, definitely not a requirement. I don't think Trent uh Greenwinger has any tattoos. Shout out Trent. Um Trent had a good week last week. Trent did have a good week.

SPEAKER_23 48:44

Seven hits. That's a lot of hits. That's a lot of hits. That's a lot of hits. What about Kentucky? What's something that is an emphasis for this weekend that will have success if you do this or if your teammates do this?

SPEAKER_22 48:56

Yeah, I think just the big emphasis is if people get on base, then just to keep them where they're at, like not let any free 90s. I mean, you know, Kentucky's gonna try to steal, try to bunt, try to play their game. You just gotta play your game.

SPEAKER_23 49:08

This is way off topic, Coach. I'm sorry, I'm I'm on a tangent with him. He's he's one of my favorite recruits that I've had. When you're going through the process, what is something you're looking for? And what did Tennessee do so well at checking those boxes?

SPEAKER_22 49:22

It's just uh like the what they have to get you to the next level after that, what they have to um like get you better. I mean, you guys here they have the best um facilities, coaches, like everything to get you better.

SPEAKER_08 49:37

You come in and college baseball at this level is like a job. And yet you still have to go to school. Yeah. How long did it take you to learn the ballots to figure that out?

SPEAKER_22 49:48

Probably about like halfway into the fall. I mean, I had a my fall schedule, school schedule compared to my schedule now was pretty like light. Like I have more in-person now than I did in the fall. So it was kind of slowly got me into like the college life, but it honestly wasn't too bad. What was your fall GPA? 4.0.

SPEAKER_23 50:07

Shout out Megan Anderson Megan and Thornton Center. What a resource. What are we up against in the Wildcats? Kentucky is a multiple offense, so not to use, not to be coach hiking. Kind of like Alabama was similar, but they'll bunt way more. I mean, I'm talking a hundred more bunts. Sacks in situations where you can't um really expect to sack uh one or two out sometimes, safeties. We're gonna have to shift a little bit less, is the initial just because of how they run and where they place the ball. True aluminum bat team. They'll they'll run uh consistently, and sometimes in spots where you you're it's not really by the book. They have to create chaos on the defense and put pressure on the defense that way because they don't have the sit and slug guy on the mound. It's it's strikes. Um, it's it's all premium stuff in this league. So we're gonna have to be able to move runners and drive them in with less than two outs. You gotta win the middle innings against Kentucky. I think that's what South Carolina did a really good job of. You can get them if if you play your best ball. And it's time to play our best ball because it's May. Go get the Wildcats. It's time to own the Wildcats. Thanks, Cam.

SPEAKER_08 51:13

All right, that is Kib's Corner, Ross Kibbett, Cam Appenzeller. Backward Hack Gang. Calhoun. Calhoun's just presenting spots, and we've got more right after this.

SPEAKER_06 51:22

Catch up on today's show, Anytime.

SPEAKER_12 51:25

Presented by Uber East.

SPEAKER_06 51:29

Mike Keith. We are the Fall Network. The weekend's coming. Time to get ready for Big Art Action, the voice of the Fall. Mike Keith is here with your weekend scouting report, delivered by Uber Eats.

SPEAKER_08 51:47

This segment of the Mike Keith Show brought to you by Clayton Holmes, Oakwood Homes and Love Homes of Tennessee, helping families across the state find their dream homes. This hour, a very special guest. Sometimes you say, legend, great player, the GOAT, and it's overused. Not in this case, Alan Houston. Well, sit down and talk with us coming up in this hour. Javen Gordon, new University of Tennessee running back who burst onto the scene in the orange and white game with a 61-yard touchdown run. Gonna have a chance to visit with the second-year college player out of Tacoa, Georgia. Played last year at Tulane, second year of college, Tennessee. Uh, interesting story, and I'm interested to get into that with him. Sarah Detweiler and Andy Brock with me. Got a big hour. We got a big segment here. Yeah. We got a big, big segment. Are you guys ready to go? Lots going on. All right. So I want to start with Quinn for the win.

unknown 52:49

Okay.

SPEAKER_08 52:49

Highlighting a great moment of performance in Tennessee Athletics brought to you by Quinn Appliance Company, your home for the best selection of GE appliances. Visit their showroom in Alcoa or at Quintappliance.com. GE Appliances built for America. All right, Sarah Detweiler, you go first on the Quinn for the win.

SPEAKER_17 53:09

I'm going to take it over to football because we just came off the NFL draft and we had five guys get picked in this year's draft, which was tied for the most in this type of era. So congratulations to all of them and having their dreams come true. We also had seven guys that were signed as um undrafted free agents as well. So really excited to see um all of their dreams starting to come true.

SPEAKER_08 53:32

It's good stuff. Uh Tennessee actually the only SEC school to have two corners drafted, which shows uh what Tennessee's been able to do at the corner position, which is a very good thing. Andy Brock, your quinn for the win placer.

SPEAKER_02 53:45

Yeah, Sarah took mine. That was also mine. But like to go a step further, I think it's just the the reactions of the guys getting the calls. I think it was so fun to see that from our social media outlets. And then just also, you know, how well not just Tennessee has done in terms of getting guys to the league, but also, you know, guys who are maybe not first rounders. Tennessee's been very successful at having late-round guys be very successful at the next level. So for a lot of these guys that got picked on on day three, like Jramont and Tyree and Joshua Josephs, like Tennessee has a great history. Dylan Sampson did great as a fourth rounder last year. Byron Young has been one of the best defensive players in the in the leagues once he was drafted in the third round a couple of years ago. So Tennessee does a good job with with these late-round picks.

SPEAKER_08 54:26

Bottom line with all of it, too, is the first round thing is a big deal. I mean, there's absolutely no question it is a huge deal to be a first-round pick. And it's a big deal in the NFL because the teams get a fifth-year option in the contract on the players. So you've got a right to them longer, potentially. Starting in the second round, four-year contracts are all that can be done. So in some ways, it's advantageous to the club to draft a player in the first round. In some ways, it's advantageous to the player to be able to last until the second round and beyond because they can get to free agency more quickly. Like Colton Hood, for example. If he just goes off and becomes one of the best corners in football, he's going to get paid and paid sooner than what a first round pick will. So that's a that's a good thing talking about the draft. Looking for a place to get away when you visit Pigeon Forge, the whole family can play. With hundreds of attractions set in the great Smoky Mountains, your crowd will go wild too. Join the fun and plan your trip at mypigeonforge.com. By the way, here's an interesting note. I don't know if you saw this. Of the 257 players who were drafted, 237. All but 20 were from P4 schools.

SPEAKER_02 55:51

I did see that. It's growing less and less, correct? From non-P4 to the Transfer Port.

SPEAKER_08 55:56

It's a transport. Guys start off somewhere and they sort of move up. It's kind of like um and and college football has always been the feeder system for pro football. It's no secret. But you know, P4 is very much triple A. If you're using the baseball analogy, I mean it's the highest of the high. And everything else, you're starting at a different level. And these players who are going to end up being drafted keep moving up because they see the opportunity being better to get to the NFL from a P4 school.

SPEAKER_02 56:32

Yeah. Non-power force schools, those players are drafted by the transfer portal, and that's kind of their draft, and they move on, and then it really is like a minor league system almost. It is. Yeah.

SPEAKER_08 56:42

It's become time for the weekly feature, the heavy lift presented by Planet Fitness. The Planet Fitness Black Card, only $24.99 a month. Bring a friend anytime and recover in the black card spa. Join today. See Home Club for details. The heavy lift, Andy Brock.

SPEAKER_02 57:01

Heavy lift. I am going to go with uh Josh Elander and what he has done as head coach. I think it's very uh understated by the job he has done in terms of kind of maneuvering the uh pitching rotation on the weekend. Tegan Koons has been fantastic since he moved that and moved him into the Saturday spot. Question is, does he change things up now? Heavy lift will be where does Tennessee go lineup wise, rotation wise, as they go through the final month?

SPEAKER_08 57:26

All right, heavy lift.

SPEAKER_17 57:28

I'm gonna do a past tense heavy lift because it was a heavy lift that the women's golf team were able to make it all the way to the championship round and bring home their first SEC uh golf championship. Super exciting for them. We all had it on our TVs downstairs in the office, and for them to go from the sixth spot and make it all the way to bring home a trophy is incredible. And I'm really happy for those girls.

SPEAKER_08 57:54

Well, to win the championship for the first time ever, had a program since 1992 and have had some really good teams and some really good moments, but to never do it, and especially to do it in the time of the 16 team SEC. 1992 was actually the year the SEC expanded to 12 teams. So before that, there was no women's golf program, and there were only 10 teams. Now we're up to 16, and to win it over the caliber that was in that tournament is just so special. Diana Cantu and the team just doing a remarkable job and very special. Congratulations to the SEC champions. And um, we've got a lot more to do. Okay, so Alan Houston is coming up next. So much more coming up on the Mike Keith show. As we go to break, it's time for the Sonic Smash of the Week brought to you by new Sonic Refreshers. A hydrating blend of green tea and real fruit, tried sparkling, or still in three delicious flavors berry, citrus, mango peach, and strawberry passion fruit live free. Eat Sonic. Here's your smash.

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We need players with confidence and extending these not quite spiritual stuff. We're gonna need more of that.

SPEAKER_12 59:36

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SPEAKER_06 1:02:27

With Mike Keith.

SPEAKER_08 1:02:29

This tech with Mike Keith Joe is brought to you by First Horizon Bank, official bank of the balls. They say, I don't know who they are, but someone says, that certain guests need no introduction. This guest needs a big introduction. He is Tennessee's all-time leading scorer in basketball. Four times all conference. Twice all America. Second leading scorer in Southeastern conference history behind Pete Meravich. Number 20 is retired. First round pick in the NBA draft, 12 NBA seasons, two-time NBA All-Star. Averaged 17 points a game. Won the gold medal in 2000 with the USA Olympic team. Unbelievable career overall. What am I leaving out here? Okay, more. Since formal retirement, I got more. I got more since formal retirement. He has worked in the Knicks front office in multiple roles and is currently the New York Knicks vice president, player development and leadership. That's what they have on the website. Isn't that right? Yes, sir. Okay, I'll just check it. He is also considered, I left this out. I'm sorry. He is also considered one of the great shooters of his era. This is Alan Houston, a University of Tennessee legend. It's so great to see you. By the way, so we saw each other. Maybe you saw the picture on social media. I got a picture with Alan Houston and Chris Lofton in Chicago after Tennessee beat Iowa State. It's my favorite picture from the whole run. I'm going to have that blown up and put in my office. That was legendary.

SPEAKER_07 1:04:13

And I'm like, I gotta go get that pick.

SPEAKER_08 1:04:16

That was so fantastic. Here's where I want to start. Not basketball. I want to start with the fact that you've been married nearly 30 years. You have seven children. Yeah. And the difference in the oldest and the youngest looks like it's almost 13 years.

SPEAKER_07 1:04:32

My oldest will be 27 in um June. So the youngest just turned 14. So they're the bookends. My oldest is a daughter, then I have a son, then four daughters, and then the last one is my youngest son. How many basketball players among the seven? Well, they all played at some point. My oldest played in in high school. He had a really good career. He played football at Brown, played wide receiver at Brown.

SPEAKER_08 1:05:01

Great school.

SPEAKER_07 1:05:03

Yeah. And then I have my the next one, is my daughter is a high jumper in Vanderbilt. So, you know, she's okay. She's having a good time in Nashville. And then I have the next one is gonna be a vol next next fall. Well, great. Tell us about her. So Jade is uh she she's uh the right in the middle. So she's four. She's a fourth, right? Um she's been playing golf since in eighth grade, and then she's gonna finish her senior year. She has you know goals of finish strong, and she's gonna go do a study abroad in the first semester. Wow. Yep, and then uh come back on the second semester and be on campus in December. So she was so happy. You know, she would come uh with me when she was over the years, she would come here and participate in my dad's golf outing, and I think she just she fell in love with that orange, and um by far the biggest ball fan in our family, and when we found out that she was gonna be Of all. It was uh she's ecstatic to me. She's a big fan. So um really excited for her. She she definitely is ready to get out, get out of the house.

SPEAKER_08 1:06:08

Well, they all are, yeah. You know, in their own way. Yeah. So having had the full dad experience, which you have with seven kids, yeah. Do you ever think back to playing for your dad at Tennessee and what that must have been like for your father? Can you appreciate it more based on where you are in life now?

SPEAKER_07 1:06:27

For my father and my mother. I mean, my mother, when I see all the things that my wife stabilizes, right, and allows me to do post-career. You know, because you know, things they make so many sacrifices. My mother made so many sacrifices, my wife makes so many sacrifices uh for us to grow and thrive and kind of almost giving up their own life. Um, and that's what I see. So you see our seven children going in there, just living in their calling and doing what God has called them to do, and they all do different things. And I look back at that, and now I see my son, my youngest, who's a last, who loves basketball. And now I see from my father's view how one thing that he did that I um I'm sure he did it intentionally because he had to, but I think it worked great is he wasn't the one that actually was in the gym with me, like pushing me and coaching me because he had his players, he had other coaches, he had I was in camps all summer. So what he did which was brilliant was he ushered me into a love for the game, and I fell in love with the game so early. But the one the other thing that I found was very valuable to me was the players that I looked up to, the players that I admired, well, they looked up to him. And so there was kind of an established um kind of reverence for his role in my life, even though, like, look, as a young man, you're still trying to carve out your own territory and do you, you know, you're gonna do do lopsided things and be knuckle-headed, but I just appreciate now how he how he strategically structured kind of some of those things around me where you know I would be around other people and coaches that he trusted. And I think that allowed our relationship to to take its its its course, you know. Um and I I kind of struggle with that a little bit now, to be honest. Like, how much do I trust someone else to train, to coach, to be in my son's life, my kids' life? Um, where do I insert myself? Where do I say, you know what? You know, sometimes he'll be in the gym and I know he doesn't want me in the gym. I'm like, okay, because as long as you're having fun and loving, being in this gym and having your own love relationship with the game, that's really what matters the most. Right? Now, there will there'll be times though when I say, look, these people don't know what I know. So I have to have a space to give you some instruction. And I think that's really where my father and I uh found here. Right? It was such a blessing that okay, I gotten what I gotten, and now we're at a different level. It's not youth anymore. This is this is you know, you're 18, but you're this is grown man life. And I'm going to, you know, coach you. I'm gonna, you know, challenge you. And but but what Tennessee uh allowed us to do together is have the space to actually really grow and and believe in each other. Um I knew he believed in me and and I and I believed in him. And uh so I think that part was really really kept us, kept us going. Like we were, I feel like I don't know if I don't want to speak for him, but I was driven a lot by his success. And um, and because I knew what it took to build a pro I knew what I saw him do to build relationships, to build other other people, um, to build a staff. I saw my mother what she had to endure to pour into other young men and and be mom for them. And um I got I saw behind the scenes a lot of things that a lot of people didn't get to see. So here I am not only playing, but I'm I'm kind of feel like I'm part of this building process too. All right, so I want you to clarify a story for me.

SPEAKER_08 1:10:43

Your dad works for Denny Crumm at Louisville, the legendary Denny Crumm. You're signed with Louisville out of Louisville Ballard. You're a McDonald's All-American, which was the biggest thing you could be then. Your dad gets the Tennessee job. Louisville had to release you to come to Tennessee. Yeah. There was always some speculation that Denny Crumb was not just automatic in wanting to release Alan Houston. Yeah. Did he have to be convinced? And how was that convincing done?

SPEAKER_07 1:11:15

If so. Well, my mother had some say. Really? Yeah, she she she she talked to him. And you know, initially, uh, I I don't remember, to be honest, all the intricate details, but I do remember it wasn't smooth. It wasn't a smooth, like, hey, you know what, Houston family, we know what you've meant to this program. We've won two national championships and been the four final fours, you know, with with Wade being one of the top talent evaluators in this era and building uh a strong roster, but not only building a roster, but being a a real strong source and foundation. That's that's the uniqueness. I don't want to skip, I don't want to skip ahead of this because it's important, right? A lot of times you recruit a young person, you s you you you build trust with that young person's family, and then they get there and things change, right? And I think one of the things that you can ask any of my uh my dad's players is that he never changed when he was at Louisville or here. All the players that play for him, they're gonna say the same thing. That's that I think that's really unique and rare. So back to Louisville, it wasn't as easy as okay, you signed your letter of intent, we'll release you, you can go ahead and have your way. And uh wasn't that easy. And as a matter of fact, I think that was one of the things that really grew our faith as a family, because we went through uh some uncertain times because we just didn't know how this was gonna play out. It wasn't as simple as, hey, you're in the portal and you know, uh, here you you just do what you need to do. But uh but another story that I'm I've told several times is that I'm I'll make it quicker this time. Is my dad sat he he sat us all down as a family. And there were three options, right? One option was uh if you don't get released and you get penalized and you have to stay, uh then you might you if if you do that, then if you want to go to Tennessee, you're gonna lose a year. So that means you're only gonna have three years of college basketball. That was one option. One option was you can come, but you might have to sit out a year. And the last option was the obvious come play four years right away. And so he looked at us as a family and he said, Listen, education is what we've always stood on. I've seen this story before, you're gonna play four years because I've seen what happens once you leave college, it's nothing guaranteed. He said, So if you're gonna come to play for me at the University of Tennessee, you're gonna play four years. If you have to lose a year of college basketball, then you're gonna stay at the University of Louisville. And when when he said that, I I don't think I appreciated at the time how impactful and and and powerful that was now as a father and and as a coach, obviously, right? You're you're willing to say I I'm standing on what we've always stood on. Um it's about the education, it's about being where you know you need to be, and this is this is what we feel is important, your development as a person. And and so he was willing to say, like, I don't care if the top five player in the country and my son is playing coming with me or not, he's gonna play four years of college basketball, even if it's at the University of Louisville. I think that's one of the things that stuck out to me as a life lesson as a as a father, as a leader, that um really impacted me.

SPEAKER_08 1:15:08

That is so not surprising about your dad. Less than 10 years ago, you're inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame in Nashville. Yours that night was the most anticipated speech. And you had obviously put a lot of time and crafted what you want to say. One of the things you did, and I'm sure he was not excited about it, is you recognized your dad and asked him to stand. When he stood, he got the biggest ovation of anybody the entire night. Why did you put so much into that speech and make sure that he was very much included in your moment?

SPEAKER_07 1:15:50

That's probably the reason where why we're here. Um I don't know. I you know, we talk, we've told our story so many times, and every time we tell it, it's just as impactful. Um But now being inducted into not only not not just the Kentucky Hall of Fame, not whatever Hall of Fame, the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame, where he grew up. Right? He, my grandfather, my mother's father, and I are all in the Kentucky High School Hall of Fame. This was different because he grew up in Alcola, Tennessee. And he wasn't always afforded the opportunity to come on this campus. And so I felt like this is this this isn't even an award if if it's not his as well. Um and so yeah, I mean, uh I don't I don't know. I just I just felt like you know it it was nothing without him being honored.

SPEAKER_08 1:17:03

It was fantastic. It was the chill bump, goosebump, whatever you want to call it, moment of the night. So special. More with Alec Houston coming up on the Mike Keats Show. Stay tuned.

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SPEAKER_06 1:19:21

Across big art country, all weekend begins here. Mike Keith, delivered by Uber Eats.

SPEAKER_08 1:19:29

Mike Keith Jove continues this course of the program brought to you by Food City, the official supermarket and tailgate headquarters of Tennessee Volunteers. Our guest is all-time great Alan Houston, who played in one of the greatest games in the history of Food City Center, February 10, 1990, against LSU. Tennessee did not win that game. Tennessee lost to LSU 119 to 113. Chris Jackson, better known as Mahmoud Abdul Raouf, scored 49 points in the game. A young man named Shaquille O'Neal managed 17. He was a pretty good player, turned out okay. This gentleman had 43, and one of the most underrated shooters, I think with Michael Brooks. Greg Bell was one of the most underrated shooters, especially streak shooters that Tennessee had. Greg Bell had 31. That night, it was just it was electric. It was just fantastic basketball that no one had ever had a chance to see. Any direct memories of that night?

SPEAKER_07 1:21:16

For me, like as a scorer, having 43 and 11 assists in the same game was uh was pretty rewarding. I I think when I look back at the talent that the conference had, you know, you think you had Chris Jackson, now Mahmoud Abdul Raul, Shaquille O'Neal, and then you had a guy named Stanley Roberts. Stanley Roberts from South Carolina. Who was 7'2, skilled as they come. I mean, they had so much talent. They didn't really, it was really hard to manage because it was so it was such a talented roster. Chris Jackson, I mean, one of the greatest scores, not just in our in the history of our league, but in this in college basketball. I mean, people talk about Steph Curry. I always tell people that was pre. That was who that was. And I was a freshman. And I just look back and like there are games where you look back and like, I don't know where it came from. You just you're just out there. You're just out there, and that's what makes sports so beautiful. That's what makes being a parent so beautiful. That's what makes being a fan so beautiful, is because you don't know when those moments are gonna happen. You know, that's what makes the playoffs so fun, right? Is there's a there's always a level that a person and an athlete can get to that makes the gift just shine. It makes you think, wow, God, like, wow, thanks for allowing me to experience this, thanks for allowing me to see this. And that's just one, it was one of those nights, man. And and um it was it was really fun. You know, we lost, but I was like, wow, that was so much fun, you know, being able to enjoy uh it was like a it felt like an NCA tournament, it felt like a March Madness game. Yeah, it just was a lot of fun, it was fantastic.

SPEAKER_08 1:23:10

You had a few like that. I don't know any to that level. I do want to take a chance to ask you about being a New York Knicks, though. I mean, you you're the 11th pick of the Detroit Pistons, you play three years in Detroit, then you go to the Knicks. In that era, with where the Knicks were and what they still are. I mean, they're one of those franchises, Alan, that I mean you're a Laker, you're a Celtic, you're a Knicks. I mean, there are very few places like that. What was that whole experience like to be in New York on that stage with those teammates at that point?

SPEAKER_07 1:23:45

Well, the way you set up the question really kind of was was was an answer in itself because it was that time, that stage, those teammates, that era, that building in itself, right? They had just lost to the Rockets in, I think it was '94 in '95. That's when uh you know Michael came back and Magic, you know, did what they did. And now I come in '96 on the heels of this big rivalry between the Knicks and kind of the Pacers, like the Bulls was, but there was a Pacers. So I think for me, uh one thing I remember to begin is that summer as a free agent, the Knicks had three shooting guards that they were looking at. And one was Reggie Miller, one was Steve Smith, um, and I was the third. And my strategy was thinking, okay, well, they're probably gonna go for like, you know, a more seasoned veteran still kind of in their prime. And maybe I can kind of use that as leverage to to stay in Detroit. Um, and and maybe if Reggie goes to New York and now Indiana has that spot, then oh, maybe. So I'm thinking this whole time until until two weeks before I signed, then New York comes and and they were like, they threw everything. And it made me really the the way they saw me, it wasn't really it obviously the money makes a difference, but it's really the vision that they presented for me with them. Who presented the vision? Well, it was Dave Checkis and Ernie Grunfeld. Shout out to Ernie Grunfeld and Ed Tapscott, who was assistant general manager, who my dad uh was very close with, who was the assistant general manager because he he was an assistant coach during the recruiting ranks, and he he said something that later on that I that I thought was pretty smart. He said, Alan, I realized that you had never been really recruited because you never really had to go through the recruiting process. So I didn't really need all that, but it certainly made me feel like, you know what? They believe in me as much as I believe in me. And this is New York. And a lot of people thought, man, he's kind of laid back, he's had this demeanor. I mean, he has this quiet competitive spirit, but like I don't I don't know if his way fits. If he can take John Stark's place, or just take the city. Yeah. You know, the the the stage. And and and and my thing was, what are we doing this for? Like you work all this, and now you're gonna like not be on the biggest stage? Like, what what what all the stuff that you put in, all the stuff, that game we talked about, like that, what's it all for? And I really thought about like, nah, this is and ultimately I'm like, God, this is the stage that you've been preparing me for. And uh it was um it was incredible. But the thing that helped me the most was that I had been able to walk in into a an established home, an established culture, a strong leadership. And I just had to go in and kind of like sharpen my toolbox, strengthen my armor so that I could be effective and productive. And I was already a hard worker, you know, I was already a person who kind of had a pretty, you know, level demeanor. So I felt like just go do the work. Just do the work. And there's gonna be ups and downs. My first year was very choppy, but the one thing I just had a chance, I spoke to the ball leaders, and one thing that I I remember doing, my first playoff series in New York, is okay, I had not a really the best regular season, so I'm like, okay. I made up my mind that I was gonna be a better postseason player. I was like, this is this is what I'm gonna do. Like, we didn't have a chance to do a lot of this, and you know, prior to this and pistons, and and I said, Look, I'm I This is my chance to like in a way like make up for all that time that I haven't had a chance to really be in this moment, right? So playoffs became something that I just really wanted to and determined to uh excel in, you know, and uh and and in New York, there's just no better place. So it was a lot of fun, but I'll have I'll have to say that I walked into an established culture. Um you know, Jeff Van Gundy and Patrick and John Starks and Oak and uh you name it, they they had set the tone. And so for me, it was uh how how am I going to you know live in that and and just build? And and that's what I did. Like every summer I just want to just keep building.

SPEAKER_08 1:28:49

When you made your first all-star team, I'd never forget thinking to myself, because I read it in the paper back when we still had the paper, yeah. I read Alan Houston is an all-star. And I said, Alan Houston has become a star in New York. And so I've waited 25 years to ask you this question. What is it like, especially in the era of Jeter and the Giants and everything that was going on? What's it like to be a star in New York City?

SPEAKER_07 1:29:19

My immediate thought right now is how focused I I had to be. When I look back, like the late 90s was an incredible time for New York. Culture, I mean, hip-hop, I mean the Yankees, even the the the Rangers. I think at that time I was so kind of locked in uh to just trying to be the best I could be, not only on the court but off the court, because I knew that if I dibbled too much, it could have been bad. You know, I didn't I I just knew that I had to stay in this lane. Um, and there were times where I enjoyed it, you know. I went out restaurants and went out, you know, club from time to time, but I I just remember, you know, I had my wife and I just was so young in our marriage. My oldest daughter was born in '99, the the the day after we clinched the Eastern Conference Championship. So I was still growing as a young man and trying to find my guardrails, trying to find my my boundaries and trying to find my lane. So I kind of had these blinders on. And I probably didn't allow myself to take a deep breath and take a step back and really just enjoy the moments where, man, like this is a lot of love you're getting. But there was also the other side of it, too, right? I mean, there were times when, you know, you had that game and you might have missed that shot, and uh and the reason people don't think you can play in New York, you know, those those things emerge. Um, but I I'm I'm so grateful for the foundation that I had with my family. I'm grateful for the my the foundation that that my faith provided for me because it gave me strength and perspective. It didn't do it for me, you had to invest in it, right? But it it was definitely something that was available to me, and I had great mentors like Charlie Ward, uh guy named Ronnie Grandison. Um, and I had I had people that really kind of like uh just kept me, kept my eyes open, you know, to what could be. But I tell you, man, it was when I look back at it, it was an incredible time. It really was. If you can make it there, you can make it into it, right? Like the song says. I think it's true, though.

SPEAKER_08 1:31:53

Some guys can't play in New York, they just can't.

SPEAKER_07 1:31:56

Well, I I've seen it happen. Um, I've seen where you also have to have a good culture. If you don't have a good culture in New York, it's gonna be really hard. I give a lot of credit to guys like you know, Rod Strickland's Mark Jackson's of the world, um, you know, even when Amari Stardemeyer came, and he really kind of really tried to stabilize things, and then Mello really came. And and I got a lot of respect for, you know, the people who just come and say, I know this is gonna be a challenge, but I have to empty myself to to make it the best I can be. So you're nearly 20 years in the front office with the Knicks.

SPEAKER_08 1:32:40

Are you surprised that your run and what you have chosen to do in the basketball business, especially at the highest level, has continued to this point, and what do you enjoy about it most, Alan?

SPEAKER_07 1:32:54

Basketball is now. I mean, I think about where the game even started. The Dr. Naismith, and how it was just I see so many parallels to life with basketball. Um, how it's just the competitiveness, the the synergy, the um, the connectedness, you know, um just the gift to play it. Um there's so many. So I think about the game itself and how it has been such a big part of my life, my parents' life, my father's life, even John McClendon, who was mentioned by Dr. May Smith, um, my dad got a chance to know. You know, so like even the history of the game, and so when I think about that, I'm appreciative because my role has been different throughout these years, but um I think it's really because I've always been like, what do you where are you where do you all need me? You know, I think when you're on this side of business and sports, you you're trying to figure out where do you want to go. And I've been fortunate to not have to say, This is what I want to do. Where where do you all think you I fit best? And then we've come together and said, here's where we can meet those desires. And so now my role really is it's funny, I was on uh the the roommates podcast with Jalen Jalen and um and Josh, and and they started off, they started off, they were like, Hey, here we're with legend Alan Houston, and he's now with the team, and it was like, what do you even do right now? So, so uh it was funny, but yeah, I do I do serve as our team chaplain. Um I do just I'm just available for for the players uh wherever they're wherever they're needed. We the reason I I wanted to have the term leadership in the role is because the best teams have the best leaders and the best players. If you're the best leader, then you your your culture is gonna be strong. And I just I just like to watch that process. You know, these guys can do they have access to so many things and they have such an impact now that uh I just I just try to provide some perspective. It's great. Get to be around the game you like. Get to run be around the game.

SPEAKER_08 1:35:21

Thank you for taking this time. Thank you. So great. Alan Houston, among other things, Tennessee's all-time leading scorer. And with how the game is set up now, he probably will be for the foreseeable future. 2,801 points playing for Tennessee. More of the show right after this.

SPEAKER_06 1:35:40

Your weekend scouting report with Mike Keith.

SPEAKER_12 1:35:44

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SPEAKER_06 1:38:21

Before the game, the final scouting report with Mike Keith, delivered by Uber Eats.

SPEAKER_08 1:38:28

Welcome back to the Mike Keith Show, this segment of the program, and this gentleman's appearance, sponsored by Pilot, the official travel partner of the ball. This is Javen Gordon. He's a running back. He is a newcomer to the ball program. Welcome. Baby baby. Man, you running backs. Between you and Deshaun, and you guys have been getting in this weight program big time, haven't you?

SPEAKER_20 1:38:57

Yes, sir. Dio has been doing his thing in the weight room, uh, helping us guys lean out, create more muscle mass on our body, and just get into our um true body physique. Yeah, so you come in and Derek Owings comes at the same time you do. Yes, sir.

SPEAKER_08 1:39:13

So when he walks through the door and you you meet him, what's your first response to how he's going about the business of getting Tennessee football players bigger, stronger, healthier, and faster?

SPEAKER_20 1:39:25

Um, I loved it. Uh I think it's a great addition to the Tennessee volunteer family. Um, I feel like all the players love it. Um, it's definitely some work. Um, and as an athlete, that's definitely what you want. So you're from Tocoa, Georgia. Yes, sir.

SPEAKER_08 1:39:41

Beautiful town. The falls, Tacoa Falls and the lake and everything. By the way, if you don't know it, it's in that northeast corner of Georgia. You're almost in South Carolina.

SPEAKER_20 1:39:52

Almost, yes, sir.

SPEAKER_08 1:39:53

And you're not far from North Carolina. Correct. Not terribly far from Tennessee. All right. All right. So how long does it take your family to get up here now to see you? It's like three hours and like 15 minutes. Okay, that's not bad. Right, right. So you're you're coming out of Tacoa. Yes, sir.

SPEAKER_20 1:40:09

And you end up at Tulane first. Yes, sir. How did that happen? It really went off me. Like coming out of high school, I had uh big time offers, like power for offers, all that type of stuff. But I want to, me specifically, I wanted to go down like to like the G5 level to get a better understanding of college football. So I feel like with me going under or going down to the G5 level and then recognizing like the game or filling it out, getting a sense of feel of it, and then going up would better me and put me in a better position for myself in the long run. So you did that strategically. Yes, sir. All right.

SPEAKER_08 1:40:49

So Tulane has a great year.

SPEAKER_20 1:40:51

All right.

SPEAKER_08 1:40:52

You play in the playoffs, so you have some important experience. You rush for over 500 yards, you caught the ball well, you played very well during the course of the year. What do you feel like you took from that freshman year that you're ready to apply in the Southeastern conference?

SPEAKER_20 1:41:10

I'll say just the confidence. Uh, the confidence, being able to play all different types of competition, like you said, played in the playoffs, played Owens twice last season. Um, so I kind of got a sense of feel what the SEC is like. Not of course the 12-game, 12-week uh seasons or whatever, but I got a sense of feel of kind of how SEC ball is played, needs to be played.

SPEAKER_08 1:41:33

So you get a lot more offers once you get in the transfer report. When you you come out after your first year of college, after your freshman year, so you theoretically have three years left. Listen, talking to a lot of big names, you pick Tennessee, even though Deshaun Bishop is coming back. So put me in your place in making the decision. Why did Tennessee have such a fit, even knowing that they have an impressive back and a good stable of young backs returning?

SPEAKER_20 1:42:05

What stood out to me the most about Tennessee was the fact that Coach Sims came here. Out of high school, Coach Sims offered me when he was at Cincinnati. So that relationship was kind of already there and built. And then when I got in the portal, seeing I was in the portal, contacted me or whatever, told me about the room. So it's like nothing like I didn't know what I was getting myself into. I knew I was gonna have to compete day in, day out. And that's something that I want to do. Like I want to go to a place where the best are at. I want to go to a place where I got to compete every day. I don't want nothing, I don't want nothing given to me. I want to earn it. So also I wanted to come somewhere closer to home. And I feel like on my visit up here, Tennessee was just a place to be, and then also the amazing fan base. What is your relationship with Deshaun Bishop like? Deshaun, he's he's a mentor. Like when I got here, he took me under his wing. Any questions I have, he answers. Um, just being able to show me, show me the ins and outs of like the offense, like being able to follow his footsteps, being in a training room every day, making that a muscle memory for something in the long run. Just being a mentor in my life right now up at Tennessee is just a great thing to have.

SPEAKER_08 1:43:15

Let's talk about the run in the orange way. So you pop the run at the end. Let's say 61 yards, and everybody's looking at their program going, now who is that? Who is that? Because they don't know the numbers yet, because they're new, right? And they're probably gonna change again. And so everybody's looking at that, trying to figure out who you are. Was that your statement to let the ball fans know what they're gonna see in JB Gordon?

SPEAKER_20 1:43:43

I feel like I feel like that was a good little uh little wake-up call. Uh let fans and people outside of the volunteer family kind of like get a little sense of like who I am. Uh I feel like on that run I showed speed, physicality, and the ability to like explode trying other players.

SPEAKER_08 1:44:06

That was great. I mean, it was a highlight of the day, and it got everybody excited about you and what you're doing. I was excited when you came because I'd had a chance to watch you at Tulane. I knew what you were all about, and I kept thinking during the whole time that's the guy we need. That's the guy who fits us, and uh, you certainly do. I'm excited that you're here. Thanks for taking time with us. Yes, sir. Thank you. Javin Gordon's appearance on the Mike Keith show, courtesy of our friends at Pilot, the official travel partner of the University of Tennessee.

SPEAKER_06 1:44:36

Mike Keith talks big orange sports right here every week.

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