Manti Te’o Sounds Off On Notre Dame’s Playoff Case, Lane Kiffin Going To LSU, and Jaxson Dart

Hey, baby, ready to flip? Leon, is that you? Where is that? Come to me and we'll stream with a chat. You can make a pie, so get your set. So my car is the inside of the bell. I reckon you'll begin to cook your life up here for days. We double car is the mystery out the moon. Oh, yeah. I'm in town. Welcome back to episode nine of Double Coverage. Today, I'm honored to be joined by former Heisman finalist, eight-year NFL pro. We want to know only Mr. Mantai Tehau. How are you doing, man? Thanks for having me, my man. Great to be here with you. But the people at home that don't know, maybe they're not tuned into morning programming. Maybe they sleep in. What have you been up to post NFL career? So I'm currently one of the hosts on Good Morning Football. It's a live show here in California from 5 AM to 7. So if you're up that early, come listen to your boy and the rest of the crew. We like to blend a little bit of football, a little bit of pop culture, keep it light, keep it relatable, and we have a fun time. So that's what I've been doing. It's been great other than that, man. I have two beautiful children. My wife is a rock star. She has her own business, own small meds boss. I'm heavy into entrepreneur work. So yeah, just a family man and try to do my best for my kids. What time do you go to bed to start to show that early? Well, usually we get up to the room about 7. I try to get our kids all bathed and in bed. And I'm usually down by 8.30. So that I could be up by 245 in the morning. We're rolling. Not for the week. Not for the week. Not for the week, for sure. But it's part of the sacrifices you need in making in order to do great things. So it's all about it. I'm all about it. So the classic transition from player to media, was that something you had in mind during your playing career? Not at all. So how this all came about was I got inducted into the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame. Now the Polynesian Football Hall of Fame has a deal with NFL network. And Steve Weiss, who was one of their head cheaper quarters, flew out to Utah where we lived at that time and did an interview with me. And after that interview, he said, hey, bro, you should really consider being on TV. And I was like, man, I never thought of being on TV in any capacity. But there was an opportunity. I wasn't doing anything other than some investor work. And so I went to the NFL has this broadcasting boot camp that they hold over there in Inglewood. I went to the one a year later. I guess I made a great impression. Last year had a part time job for a good morning football at the show among currently. And again, I guess I made another great impression and they brought me on full time. So that's how that whole thing worked. So are you looking to expand even beyond that and do maybe even not in the film media, maybe even hosting just the average shows, like a Nate Burleson or Michael Strayhand? Oh, Nate is actually a huge guy that had meant to our mind that I've bounced ideas off of. When I met Nate the morning that the day that my documentary released on Netflix, I was in New York. And I made an appearance on CBS Good Mornings, which Nate is a host on. And so I met Nate there. This is a full circle moment. So Nate is one of the original hosts on Good Morning football. So when I got this job, I reached out to Nate and asked him for some tips. And a couple of the things, simple things that he told me has really helped me to elevate my game and my craft. And as athletes, we're always looking on ways to improve. And Nate is one of those guys as a former player that you look at him and he's like the Michael Strayhand. You know, you're like, yeah, man, these are guys that have really transcended the game and have taken their careers probably further than their football careers have gone. And that's saying a lot for what they've accomplished on the football field. So that's kind of how this whole thing has come full circle for me. So funny story about Nate, he was one of the first people to support me in my journey. There you go. So I worked at FV football under, I mean, the main umbrella was head coach, Lane Kiffin, who we're going to get into. But the guy in front of me, DJ McCarthy, wide receivers coach, actually his son is our lead production guy. So I'm pointing. And so Nate showed love. Coach EJ introduced me to him and always super helpful. He's a big old school rat fan. I was going to show a Jada kiss at the time. So he was really helpful. And he's always someone that I look towards as inspiration and someone like even the little tiny thing, even when he moves his hand, he's going to broadcast. There's so many Tony Romo, I think, is the classic example of player to commentator and getting like his perspective on that transition would be really cool, right? Because he became a rock star immediately. Yeah. No warm up, nothing. Just first game. Yeah. And I think what's what's difficult, right? And somebody that like Tony Romo and you have even TJ Watt so early in his career right now as a color commentator is it's being able to take what you know and dial it down in a version that your audience can understand. You know what I mean? Because I'm sure Tony Romo can get up there and start rapping about what this coverage means and what this formation, the person at home is not going to be able to know what you even talking about, right? But the great ones are able to take what they know and deliver it in a very digestible form for their audience. And I think that's what Tony Romo does, you know, better than most. Yeah, imagine how hard it is for Tom Brady. It's an all-man act, right? Yeah, it's hard to talk. Yeah, so relate to that average person. Yeah. That's probably the hardest thing for someone like that is, okay, how do I get this out in a relatable way for the people at home? And by the way, more people than ever are watching at home. So just the Thanksgiving numbers, this came in, smashed the all-time regular season watch record twice. So first Packers Lions beats the record by 5 million viewers and then Cowboys Chiefs come along and they do 10 million more viewers. So it talks me about that and working in the ever-exploding national football league and what it means for the future in the sport. Well, number one, it just goes to show how great our sport is. All of those Thanksgiving numbers, I think it's all credit to the push to get it worldwide. Yeah, for all the booze that Roger Gidell receives, you have to get some credit, right? Yeah, yeah. How well the NFLs do it. They're killing it. No, right. All the booze, yeah, he's still up there with a smile. He understands what the responsibility that he has and the title that he has and what that comes with good and bad. And I think he handles it really well. We spoke about kind of the transition from playing to commentating. Talk to me about the transition for you going from a Heisman finalist, a college superstar to the NFL when you're drafted by the Chargers. Wow, that's a great question. I think everything is case by case. And what I mean by that is there are some schemes that are easier to transition to the professional game than others. My college game was very, very simple, which allowed me to play fast, allowed me to do what I needed to do while I was in college. It wasn't as complex as what I had to do when I got to the league. Now the system I came in to in San Diego was one of a lot of blitzing, a lot of pressure. And whenever you're part of a scheme that does that, there's so many moving parts. If one guy motions this way, this guy who's supposed to blitz can't blitz anymore. Now it's my job to communicate that to the guy who now has to blitz what his job is. Right, so from a college program where I could just line up, look at the offense and ball to rookie year, I'm now on a defense where I have to adjust. And I tell kids all the time the difference between the NFL game, the pro game, and every level below it is the levels below it, you can play the game post-nut. Yeah. And the NFL, everything is the impression. If you don't know, if you're not 99% confident of what is going to happen before the ball snaps, you're done. You had kind of a rough no style, almost a throwback, right? Do you think you would have benefited more by playing in a different era where the rules weren't so tense for the defense? I think I was in this trend to your point. I was in this transition phase, right? There was this phase and transition of going from a full back, I formation lead, yeah, to spread them out, space game, try to get screens, RPOs, like the college game started to leak over to the pro game. I think I was somebody that fit better with a certain scheme. Man coverage, that ain't my thing. Yeah, I don't got the speed for that. I don't have the agility for that. But to be able to drop back in coverage, use my instincts and play ball, I think that was something that I really thrived in. And there were opportunities where I had that. And there were also opportunities where I didn't. Yeah, your play recognition ability, ability to make plays, fill gaps, things like that. Yep, definitely. That was easy, bro. Seaball get ball is always my thing. You were proud, Notre Dame fighting Irish alumni. You guys have been in the news for a multitude of topics. I mean, we got a lot of ways we can go. I want to start with maybe a slight curveball here, but the high-smotrophy race, you were embroiled in a tight kind of high-smotrophy conversation. And so is a current Notre Dame running back. Jeremiah Love is an absolute stud. I mean, one of the best players in the country. We got some quarterbacks in the list. We got your Fernando Mendoza, Dante Moore. Jeremiah Love getting excluded from the love. Who would be your high-smotrophy winner? Jeremiah Love, come on, no. I mean, I think quarterbacks get this nod. It's like the MVP of the NFL. It's the most valuable player. It's always going to, there's a little bit more grace when it comes to the quarterback position. And I get it. Without a quarterback, there's no way you can win. However, I think what Jeremiah Love has been able to do this year alone. This is excluding the past two years, where he was also incredible. But this year alone, the amount of yards that he's averaging per carry, what he means to one of the best teams in college football and just how dynamic he's been. And this is a guy that doesn't get all the carries. This is a guy that splits his back field. Yeah, he continues to produce at a very, very high level. For me, it's going to be Jeremiah Love. No, his stat lines are funny. I'd be like, eight carries, 130 yards from my socks. Three takes one? Is it eight, 18? Like what? That's something he's explosive. Yeah, what are some standout characteristics? Something that I see that makes him really different and a cowboy style, former cowboy scout likened it to Zika Elliott is his vision. Yes, he's very, very patient. But when he sees something, he goes. Right? And so he got that little levy on bail to him too, where he's patient beyond a line of scourge. But when he sees it, he has the ability to really run through a whole. But his vision is second to none. And I do see that comparison to Zika Elliott where he can see, it takes a special running back to see certain colors. For him, he knows that my teammates are blue in the home game and away game is a white jersey. Some running backs just see color. Yeah. But he can see where his line in our position on defenders and be able to really ride that wave that way. And I think the special running backs have that on Jeremiah definitely does. Jeremiah Love, that one cut, once you get to second level, you're not catching him. You ain't catching him. And even if you try to, he's going to jump over you or he's going to juke you out. He has all the intangibles and he has every skill set to be one of the best running backs in the league. Yeah, what are your thoughts on a lot of people who, you know, players might categorize as nerds, analytic type guys who say running backs don't matter. No matter what, don't draft them the first round, don't value them. You can find a guy of similar value in the later rounds. You can rotate them, you know, just avoid them. Why I think it all depends on who you are and what your team does, right? So like, can you say that to the Detroit Lions? No, you can't, right? Like without Jamir Gibbs, like they're, they receive the whole lot of hate. They used to receive a whole lot of hate for drafting Jamir Gibbs, but Jamir Gibbs is now one of the best running backs in the league. Why? Because he's in a system that utilizes Jamir Gibbs the way that he's supposed to, right? Christian McAfry, Christian McAfry is a guy that year and a year old, I know he was hurt last year, but the year before that he's breaking records and this year he's been probably the, their main constant that's helped him to get to this point in the season. So when you're looking at a running back, if you're a team that utilizes running backs in a traditional fashion, go get them. Yeah, and I mean, because you also can make the argument that somebody like Quinch on Judkins, who is a phenomenal rookie running back, who was picked in, not in the first round, is having a great season as well. So I think it's a case by case basis, what you're trying to do as a team, as a franchise in the NFL, I think if you're one who utilizes running backs at a high volume, go get them. Yeah, look at Kyle Manungai for the barriers, going insane for Ben Johnson. Obviously they have a great run blocking system, but he's running so hard, it's hard to imagine why that guy fell to the seventh round. Yeah, him, but I also think that he benefits from somebody like Deandra Swift, you know what I mean? Where it's a change of pace. And for defense, when you have a running back, where you have to look in the back, it'd be like, okay, now it's Kyle Manungai, it's a different approach. Okay, now it's Deandra Swift. Okay, it's a different approach. That creates another hurdle as a defense that you have to be aware of that, man, when you have one running back right there, it's just like, okay, say, Juan, I know what he's going to do, you know what I mean? So I think Kyle Manungai, he is a great talent, but with that scheme, with Deandra Swift, I think they do do a good job in utilizing him. And obviously Ben Johnson gets that, he's recreated it twice. I mean, what a phenomenal job to build what he did in Detroit. A lot of people may be questioning his ability to move teams, new system, become the head coach, recreates the same thing. Yeah. I mean, gets a one-two punch, grabs a guy in the seventh round, he's got the Chicago Bears atop the NFC, not just NFC North, atop the NFC. This is a team that struggled for a lot of years, and now things are looking more positively than, since May 1985. Yeah, and so, talks to you about Ben Johnson's Chicago Bears. I think Ben Johnson brings a stoic approach to him, you know, and I think, oh, it's the biggest impact that Ben Johnson has had, it has been on Caleb Williams and his demeanor. I think when you watch Caleb Williams this year, it's a, it's a more mature Caleb, you know what I mean? I'd see a Caleb Williams that isn't real flashy anymore. It's like, hey man, I'm all business now. And Kyle Brant got the opportunity to sit down with him yesterday to have a conversation with him and Kyle relates to us on our show, and good morning football, that he's just locked in, you know? And that's such a dangerous thing when you have somebody like Caleb who has all the skill sets that you could want in a quarterback locked in mentally that way. And you have now that run game that they have, that you could really rely on. Yeah, I mean, the X's knows and also his approach to the draft. He kept adding weapons. He goes and gets Colson Levelin. He goes and gets Luther Burden. He understands that you can never have enough weapons to surround your young quarterback, your number one pick. He trades for Joe Thuney from the Kansas City Chiefs. That's under the radar move. A lot of people don't talk about. I mean, he really transformed this team, built it his way in his, are seeing instant success. Yeah, well it's funny because I think you look at last year, Caleb Williams was the most sack quarterback at NFL. So you brought up Joe Thuney from the Chiefs, like shore up your offensive line. And I think when it comes to Ben Johnson, everybody gets caught up in the trick place, right? This fancy formations and all the things that he didn't Detroit. But if you understand Ben Johnson is at his core, he's a runner. Yeah. He wants to run the football. And that is what I think has been impressive is for him to establish a rushing attack that now you have a quarterback, like Caleb Williams, who has all the abilities in the world. But you don't have to use that just yet, right? You can keep that kind of stash and continue to cultivate that with him. And I thought, he's been, he's done a phenomenal job alongside Ryan Poes. Prior to the season, receives a lot of flat from the fan base. Yeah, right? I mean, that's the nature of the business. Yeah. And that's not everybody's going to like, like, who you draft, what you draft, you're going to have some of your own fans' questions. There's never like no one can ever follow five-year plan. No one sees the vision right away. So it's a tough business. You got to believe in your vision. That's the number one thing. Yeah, when I'm evaluating Ben Johnson, I think the trick plays are about 3% of it, right? And it's all set up and predicated off the fact that they can run play action so effectively that linebackers like you have to crash because the run game's so effective, then you can set up the soft, deep down field. Yeah, you have to establish something for the counter, right? There are teams in the NFL right now that haven't established anything that are throwing counter punches and it's not surprising anybody, right? Yeah. When you establish something, now those trick plays come into play. It's like trying to run a screen when you haven't even thrown a pass yet. Yeah. That's not tricking anybody. Like we're not even surprised you ran that. You have to establish something in order for those trick plays to work. So I think that Ben Johnson is one of those guys. That's really good at it. I had a lot of pockets like trying to throw a big right hand but you haven't set it up up the jack. Yeah, yeah. You better not throw that hook before anything, but because they can see it coming. Yeah, exactly. So yeah, Ben Johnson done a phenomenal job, turned the franchise around. I want to pivot back to Notre Dame. They're just in a lot of news right now. There's a lot going on. College football playoff race. This is the big story right now. This is the one that a lot of people are up in arms. I have a feeling we're gonna land on this but I'm still gonna lay it out for you. The main debate here is who deserves that 10th spot. There's a tight race. The main two teams that are coming up often are the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, the Miami Hurricanes. They played head to head earlier this season. The Hurricanes won. But after that game, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish, go on a 10 game winning streak, right? The Hurricanes have some setbacks. So on one side of the argument, you have people saying, hey, Notre Dame showed remarkable consistency to win those 10 straight games. There are two losses where the two top programs and Miami didn't show as much consistency. Isn't on that type of a win streak. There are two losses where to inferior teams and then you have people on the hurricane side saying, hey, this team beat that team head to head. They've got to be in over them. What are your thoughts in this situation? Trying to not be biased, obviously it's hard. I'll leave it with what Marcus Freeman said. He's like, this is the playoffs is based on how you're playing now, not how you play the week one. Can I tell you the real shame in it all? There's multiple teams. You ask me Oklahoma, Miami, I'd rather play Oklahoma, Ole Miss or Miami, they're not even other coach. I'd rather play Ole Miss. So the real shame in it all is Miami Notre Dame, both probably top 10 programs. Yeah. So the minutiae in it all, trying to pick one of the other, you get lost in the fact that both these teams are surging and dangerous. The UIU wins. Notre Dame's out too. Yeah. The thing I think with Notre Dame is there are benefits to being independent and there are disadvantages to be independent. When you are part of a conference, winning that conference automatically gets you in. So there are people that look at Notre Dame and are like, all your independence so you get this nod. It's hard to get into the playoffs as an independent. Why? Because we don't have this card, we can't throw up there and we're like, oh, but we're conference champs, we're big 12 champs, we're big 10 champs, we're SEC champs, we don't have that. So it's not only in who you beat, it's how you beat them. You know what I mean? So that's something that on our resume that we always have to keep in mind. Now, we did lose to Miami and Texas A&M in close games. So it wasn't like a blowout. Now I think if it wasn't blowout, that's another conversation to be had. But again, the way we've been able to play the past few weeks, I think, says a lot. Yeah, and I think also on the committee's mind has to be your previous, you guys have a real tough loss in Northern Illinois. It bounced all the way back. Go to the national championship. So I think that's replaying in the committee's mind as well was what Coach Marcus Freeman was able to bring to Notre Dame last year, Jeremiah Love, some similar guys in mind. Yeah, I think that's an excellent point that a lot of people miss when talking about Notre Dame being independent is if it was up to Coach Marcus Freeman and maybe the former alumni, maybe the players, they would probably love to have a conference championship game opportunity to kind of put a finishing stamp on the season. You have to have one loss. It's still like, man, I don't know if we're going to make it. Yeah, and there's a lot of teams in a playoff picture right now that have multiple losses, but because they want that conference, they're going to get in. You know what I mean? So that's again, there's pros and cons to being independent. I mean, what a wild playoff race. I touched on a little bit ago. We have one team that hasn't had their head coach. So I have some hands on experience. I mentioned this earlier. I worked at a football 16 years old. Link Kiffin was the head coach. He later obviously went to Ole Miss head tremendous success. I got a chance to kind of study the playbook, go over it. The most brilliant mind I've ever been around in terms of football, Link Kiffin. I mean, he's the brilliance of his playbook and play-calling ability can't go unnoticed. And that's why LSU goes out and offers him $7 years, $100 million. I thought hearing his explanation about his father's words, ringing his mind, which was really interesting, because he was also on that step. And I got to meet him as well. He was obviously the architect of the Institute of Defense so he left near a coach. Monte Kiffin, he said the kind of guys, his mentors, we look to after his father passed, Pete Carroll, Nick Sabin, told him, go ahead, take that job. Right, Nick Sabin, Coach LSU understands that job. What are your thoughts on it? And how would you feel as a player? How would I, let me ask you, let me answer it as a player first. If I was an Ole Miss player, I'd be hurt. I would, especially where they are right now, having been so successful. Obviously, a lot of those guys that bought in, right, it's not like Lane was there for one or two years, right? He's been there. And so he's brought in a whole full class. So if I'm one of those guys that where I had a coach sit in my living room with my parents and told me like, hey, I got your son. And then to believe in that and for him to leave, I would be hurt. Regardless what anybody says, right? Like, we had a special thing going on and then he left. On the flip side for LSU, I'd be excited. You know what I mean? Now I'm getting a chance, a new start with a coach that was in our conference. He had a lot of success. I would be really excited. From where I am sitting today, it is a complicated situation with the whole transfer portal. And coach has been doing this for a long time, right? Coach has been getting up and leaving. Like we had our own Brian Kelly was the coach before that. He was my coach at that time, right? So this has been happening at the coaching rank for a long time. I'm excited for Lane Kiffin for what I know the state of Louisiana can do. Me being a former New Orleans saint, I know what football means in Louisiana. I'm sure it means the same in Mississippi and at Ole Miss. But I can only speak on to what it means in Louisiana. Now, Louisiana state, they got a thing about producing some really good football players, man, especially at skilled position. And they're all instinct. Yeah. So what that possibly could look like. I'm not saying Lane Kiffin going to LSU is all of a sudden, oh, they're going to National Championship. I am saying that the talent that is in Louisiana when put together correctly and utilize the right way, look into the NFL and tell me what LSU guy you would not want to have on your team, right? It's special what they have over there in that state. And I think somebody like Lane Kiffin to your point with the offensive mind that he has has the potential to do a lot of great things for that school. I'm going to say it. I would be shocked if they're not in National Championship contention sooner rather than later. Yeah. No, it's all the only thing that's going to be his biggest challenge. Him being Lane Kiffin is how can he navigate the cultural aspect, because me, I always preach about culture and how important that is in football. Louisiana has a certain culture, right? And when the mayor and the governor of Louisiana is part of this whole scenario of replacing a coach, that's how big football is over there. If Lane Kiffin can come into this scenario, understand the culture, respect the culture, but then implement his own and find that perfect recipe for it, I think when he's able to do that, if he's able to do that that soon, for sure. If he isn't, I think it's going to take some time. But it's all about trying to find how do I establish this culture, while still respecting the culture that's already here. How do you think the off-the-field pressure for the LSU players could affect the team with all this outside drama with Lane Kiffin? You were a college player who experienced a lot of off-the-field drama, a lot of people mentioning your name. These players, all of a sudden, now, they're going to be top of conversation. They like it or not. Lane Kiffin has dominated the new cycle. It's going to continue. All eyes are going to be on the LSU team. How do you think the players are going to respond to that? Do you think that could maybe make them play better? Knowing that spotlight is on them, do you think it could negatively affect them? I think it would be different if we're talking about a smaller college. But I think a university like LSU, they're used to that limelight, you know what I mean? Yeah. When you go to LSU, you're not somebody that goes there thinking that I'm the small town college program that maybe will be on TV some weeks. Yeah, LSU is going to be on TV. Everybody is going to be at that game. When you go to LSU, you see all the celebrities on the sideline. So I think that with Lane Kiffin and all of this attention and this coverage that is coming from this move, I think that it plays well with what they're trying to do over there. And it is for all the players. I mean, they dance to everything. There's a certain vibe down there in Louisiana that I think it's something that isn't going to be fought off. Like it isn't going to be something like it doesn't vibe well for them. I think the players down there in Louisiana will really, really embrace that attention that's coming their way. Why do you think things didn't work out for your former head coach, Brian Kelly? I think Brian is a really good offensive mind from a leadership standpoint. And this is the same thing that you alluded to with Ben Johnson. From a leadership standpoint, there's a question when you go from a coordinator to a head coach. A coordinator doesn't have to stand in front of a room and really command the respect of in the NFL's case men. Yeah. In college, it's young men. You don't have to do that as a coordinator. For Brian Kelly, he was always a head coach. However, he was mainly offense. Was that leadership ability a factor at all going into the national championship game against Alabama? So you're going against perhaps the greatest leader in the history of college football. Yeah. I also think that when I, and I've talked about this a few times, there was a major difference with the talent at Alabama from the top down compared to what we had another day. That's a great point. There was a huge difference. I still remember to this day, and you would appreciate this as a player. We would come out for stretchlines, right? And you know, you come out to our 40. The team comes out to their 40. And you know, like the main dogs are on the 40, right? So like I'm over there on the 40. I'm looking at Alabama. Their dudes are on the 40. And you're talking about like guys like Eddie Lacey, you got a whole bunch of first round draft picks. Sorry, Cooper. You had Howard Clinton dicks over there. Like you had like dudes. Yeah. But you know, like the guys that are on the goal line, that that's usually like the walk-ons, right? You like, so I start picking at the goal line. And I'm like, them dudes look like the dudes on the 40. And that's when I knew I was like, it wasn't any type of fear or any type of anxiety or anything like that. It was just like an acknowledgement like, okay. This is different. Yeah. They have dudes top to bottom that I'm sure that those dudes on the goal line could be starting at any other school in the country. So it wasn't our loss to Alabama was our program having a special year, a spectacular year going against a jerk or not. That's been there, done that and had the resume to back it up and had the dudes to back that up as well. So that's, yeah, that was a long night for us. Yeah, three and a half running backs and locations. Eddie Lacey and TJ Yeilden and imagine like, I had to go reran a traditional three, four defense. Traditional three, four defense is you have a zero technique, nose guard head up on the center. And then we had two fours, detacles head up on the tacos. The issue was that worked for everybody we played. Now we didn't play no slumps. We played Oklahoma. We always played LSU. We played Miami that year. We played, we played dogs. Yeah. When the guard that's uncovered is Chance Warmac and the tackle next to him is DJ Fluker. And then you had Eddie Lacey running the ball behind him. And then when Eddie Lacey got tired, TJ Yeilden went back there. And then when you finally stopped him two times in a row, they would run a play action bomb to a Mario Cooper. You're just like, it was an Oklahoma drill or they would decide when they wanted to not hand the ball off an Oklahoma drill and throw it to a guy that's open. And so that was, that's what all of us had to go through for that game. And it was definitely a humbling experience. What running back was toughest for you to tackle in the back field? Is you get different opinions from linebackers. Some guys say they struggle with the loose of guys. Some guys say, hey, I didn't mind those guys, but the March on Lynch of the World, they really gave me a hard time. Who was toughest for you to tackle? The toughest would be March on Lynch, where he would laugh at the bottom of the pile. And it was just like, okay, this guy's psychos is like me. That's gotta be a little bit debilitating. Like, you make a good tackle, you think you got a lot of it? And he's laughing at you. Man, what a legend, Beast Mode is. And he was a part of a team that helped lead the way as far as the transition with the Legion of Boom, the Seattle Seahawks. They're back. I mean, the Seahawks are back being an offensive team. It's great to see they had those Russell Wilson years where he's an MVP candidate and he was kind of leading the way. But now they found their identity. They have head coach Mike McDonald and they have studs all over this defense. It starts with the acquisition of Leonard Williams. And a lot of people talked about, they gave him too much. They got a steal and Leonard Williams. And what the identity that he's brought to that team and what he does up front against both the run and as a past rusher is similar. Also analogous to when a Williams brought to the Dallas Cowboys. That's great. That's a great analogy, bro. It was great. We're seeing this kind of transition into really valuing the interior defensive alignment. Who I know made your job easier as a linebacker. Yeah, I think it always goes back to, I mean, talking about the Seattle Seahawks, right? You got something like Quinnon. First guy that comes to mind as Aaron Donald, when you have, I mean, you got Nandamik and Sue, like Nandamik and was there my time? Other defensive Heisman candidates? Yeah, you got somebody like Vita Vea, who's over there in Tampa. So when you have somebody that's in front of you, right? That can take up multiple blockers and you can run free. It makes my job as a linebacker a million times easier. And I think it just creates a mentality, right? That for our defense, like it's set by the interior guys, by the interior deliming, by the linebacker, by the safety. At least that's how it was when we grew up. You know what I mean? Like the Ray Lewis, the Ed Reid and the Haloti Nata, like those guys who's in the middle, right? Now the outside guys are going to get paid. They get the D&S, the rushers, the corners, they get most of the money, but you're only as strong as the guys in the middle. And I think that's, I love the defenses that have that. What a poll that is, hello, Dnotto, Ray Lewis. You're not as unsung hero. No, no, no. I mean, this Samoan mammoth of a man is eating up these double teams and fricking up gaps for the most feared, you know, tackler in history of the league, obviously, Ray Lewis. And for a guy that didn't need him to take a bluff. No, I Ray Lewis, you know, one on 11 would be a pretty good match for Ray Lewis. Yeah, that would be a good game that I would watch. It might be 50-50. You know, they say like, you know, if you see me in the jungle with the bear, I'll be there. I thought I'd feel about Ray Lewis. Yes, yes. And I'm assuming, I'm assuming, when you're watching film and you're looking up to guys, Ray Lewis is jumping off the page. Oh, Ray Lewis was probably one of the main guys that I watched growing up. Another guy is polypathric wooless that I watched his... I loved not only guys who could play this game at a high level, but I loved the generals. I loved the leaders, like the guy that he was the top dog, right? Ray was that way. I liked Brian Urlacker, his athleticism, his ability to run sidelined to sideline. I love Novara Bowman. Even though he was a weak side linebacker, his patience, and how he played the game of football, you remind me a lot of one of my best friends, I call him my little brother, Denzel Paramann. He's out to Denzel Paramann. Yeah, his ability to just be patient, but when he saw something, he would just go. And when he would go, he would hit some booze. So when they had Patrick Willis and Novara Bowman in there for the San Francisco 49ers, that was unfair. Yeah, absolutely. And then Alden Smith, Justin Smith, all those guys. Oh, man. Dogs. I'm not a brutal. You had, you had what's his name in ssafety. Dante Whitner. Dante Whitner. I was thinking of his nickname when he turned it to a hitner. Hitner. Yeah, yeah. Dante was that dude. They were definitely putting fear. Yeah, besides March on lunch. Yeah, he did okay, but everyone else was getting clattered for sure. I love that point. What about Troy Palamolo? So Troy, I mentioned Alden Lienbuckers, right? And when it comes to the singular person that has had the most impact on my career and me as a human being would have to be Troy Palamolo. So Troy, I trained with for the last year of my career. He's become like a big brother of mine. I'm huge mentor. He and I have become so close that I named my son after him. Wow. Yeah. So he's somebody who's very special. He's a special individual. And when you get to know him on a personal level, he's funny, man. He's hilarious. But he has so much wisdom not only in the game of football, but in the game of life. He's so humble. And so if there's somebody who I would love to mimic my life, like both on and off the football field, it would have to be true. I've said this before, but the only guy I think that could stop the Philly special. Yeah. Troy Palamolo. Yeah. His instincts, bro. It was just. I can teach that. And you know, I'll tell you something about Troy that he shared with me. Remember when Troy would just jump over the line, you're just time up snaps and you'd blitz be in the A gaps and you'd get there right when you're on the ball. Yeah. So I asked him, I was like, Hey, big bro, how did you manage to do all of that? And he told me he was like, I would not only take the snaps when the one defense went out there. He was like, but I also took the show team snaps, the sculpting. He was like, and the reason why I did that was two part one for him. He wanted to have that confidence to know that he had double the work that anybody in the entire league had. And because he did double the work, he was more prepared than anybody. Number two, instinctually hearing the cadence all the time helped him to know when they were actually snapping the ball, when they were going on sound by the little nuances of the online, how they would rush to the line and scream, okay, they're going on first sound, how they're going on one when they're going on to him. Because he saw so many reps of that, that gave him that sixth sense of when he knew the ball was going to be snapped. And just so just those little things that I've learned from Troy just helped me to just appreciate his greatness and what he was able to do. It's great to hear. Obviously, I was born 02. But when I'm getting in your ball, bro, I'm young. The Troy Palomolo was that guy. He's on the mat and cover. I mean, he's, you know, he's in the Super Bowl and the commercials, I mean, the whole nine yards. Troy Palomolo, Ed Reid are the two guys. I mean, two of the greatest safes ever played the game, obviously, and the rivals. So they always went hand in hand for me. So when you mention Ed Reid, I'm like, I got to bring him Troy because I know you're going to have some thoughts on that. The Pittsburgh Steelers, their fans are growing tired. And they have, it sounds like a good problem. You know, they got a lot of Super Bowls. They've had more success than, you know, maybe any other franchise, I mean, New England page number one, but they're right under there. Have had three had coaches in their history, but the fans are growing tired because even though Mike Tomman consistently outperforms expectations, it seems like they have a limited ceiling. Yeah. Nobody's really giving them a shot to maybe go deep into the playoffs, right? We understand offensively. They're limited. I mean, they have DK McCaffes, the number one, but they don't really have a number two. They're not as explosive as these other AFC teams. Talk to me about Mike Tomman, the Pittsburgh Steelers, and are the fans overreacting by trying to get him out of town? Is it justified? It's, I see where the frustrations come from the fans, right? It's, I think one thing about Mike Tomman that I think we all know for sure, or we got in custom too, is that Mike Tomman is going to get them to the playoffs. And I think when you're dealing with a franchise and a fan base like the Steelers who've traditionally been, they've won so many times, there's this expectation, right? Like, man, this is what we're going to, like we need to do more than that. Like there are some teams in the NFL, and I won't mention them, but we all know that just getting to the playoffs is like, oh, we're good. We're good. Like we're going to be fine, right? So I think when it comes to the Pittsburgh, people want to see more. And you mentioned it has a ceiling. I think when you watch the offense, that offense has a ceiling, right? Arthur Smith's offense doesn't have the firepower that other offense has had. And I did this, I did this research on his offense for our show. Arthur Smith's offense has not come back from more than eight point deficit with less than five minutes in the game. How many games have we seen lead changes within the last three minutes of the game? Yeah, absolutely. So in a space and in a game now where there's, there's offenses that can put so many points on on the board in such a short amount of time, when you have an offensive system that is unable to do that, I think it puts you behind the eight ball already. And not to mention DK Metcalf being possibly their only wide receiver that they utilize their other three pass catchers are tight ends. Yeah. You know what I mean? And so he's just like, this is the biggest thing and this is the, the, the, the ultimate pitfall is the guy they got, got it a town. Yeah. I mean, the, the Steelers fans are seeing George pick and Salman saying, what did we do? You know, he reminds me of, remember Anquan Bowden? Absolutely. It's my guy. Anquan Bowden with the ball in his hand was a monster, bro. You know, Anquan Bowden, he was so ridiculously strong. He's a hard, he's a hard one. He's reminds me of those guys that, okay, it's one thing to guard him and then it's another thing to tackle him when they get the ball. Yeah. So when I, when you reference all of his strengths, Brandon, oh yeah, shout out to Brandon Marshall. He will be on, he and I will be working the studio for the Christmas game for Netflix. I'm excited to work with him. So shout out to Brandon Marshall. Got to be, Marshall. Guys a dog, bro. Yeah. You know, I feel all those guys, they wear defenses down. Obviously he's in the contract here. A lot of people are bringing that up as well. Do you think that he could maybe regress once he gets paid maybe, but, or is that really not a thing for an NFL player? No, that's a thing. That's definitely a thing for some guys. I don't know George Pickens enough personally been around him enough to say that he's one of those guys. I hope that he's not because the game of football in general is better when players like him are really humming. That he's been doing. Number one, I hope he does get paid because this has been a dream of his since he was a little boy I assume. I'm sure there's a lot of people that depend on him. He's in the at-page. But in the event that something happens, I just, I just, again, I hope that he just keeps a level ahead and he's able to be able, he's able to provide for his family and be a productive football player. That's a very mature, reasonable take. Something we don't see a lot in the NFL meet. That's good. Usually we can always try to bring to the table. Usually, you get a lot of the opposite. You check your TikTok, you're Instagram. There's that one guy that's going off right now, but no, that's a very mature level head to take. That's one that you can only acquire from years of experience, being an eight year NFL vet, right? Going through all things you did off the field to give you that ability to evaluate. Perspective. Yeah, perspective. Can you talk about your passions kind of off the field and what you're trying to do to impact the world? Yeah, so I come, I was born and raised in Hawaii, right? And being born and raised in Hawaii comes with a lot of perks. It's a beautiful place to live, a beautiful life. However, there is a lack of resources there, at least exposure to, right? We live in California. I can drive down the street, be at UCLA. I can go to USC. I can even go down to Irvine and visit down there. There's so many different places that I can get different experiences. And whereas in a place like Hawaii, that is in the case. However, I got the great experience of going to a private school. My parents sent me there. And that private school took me to different colleges while I was in high school. And for me to be able to have those experiences and actually see and and grab and smell of college campus, I said, my dreams became a goal at that point. And so I know the power of being able to see and experience something throughout my life. I also know the power of surrounding yourself with people that are trying to achieve the same goal. Also to have education. Now the education that I'm referring to isn't necessarily restricted to that in a classroom. I think being able to talk to the CEO of a financial firm in some cases is better education. And you'll get in a finance class. And so being able to have the network that I have, I want to be able to give back to the youth by providing them with those type of opportunities to learn in a traditional way. But then being able to bring in people that I know from different professional landscapes to be able to help these kids, but then to have the best training, learning what I know about nutrition now. You know what I mean? Like sourcing all of that stuff. I want to be able to bring to the forefront for these kids. And fortunately for me, there are a few individuals that have done it before and are currently doing it that I can just I plan on meeting with them and say, okay, how did you do this? And how can I implement that on my own? You mentioned nutrition. Is that how you're saying in such a good shape? I was in better shape. I think with our job being up at 245 in the morning and going, it's almost impossible for me to be able to add here to a certain strict regimen. But when it comes to nutrition, I'm a big advocate for proper sourcing of food. I'm very, very aware of where I buy my stuff at. I try to buy my farms. I don't I don't I rarely rarely buy things at the grocery store. Just because I think how these animals are treated, what they're fed has a direct impact on me and my children and how our bodies receive it. And so that is what I want to be able to give to the youth because growing up, it was just like, here's some ramen. You know, it's pop. You're good. You know, I did some podcasts with Lamar Odom and his love of candy and Roscoe's chicken. The things he eats was so funny to me. Like, and he told me like he was even worse during his plank or like, how is that possible to be that gifted to be able to eat like that and treat your body like that and soak out them from that level. And then you hear DK Metcalf. It's like, I have a Starbucks coffee, a lot of nerds and then I have a dinner and then I'm good and he's like 230 fiber's body fat. So it's also good to hear that you look like that and you actually really try. Yeah. It's just about the effort. It's also about the decision. I would have been a little disheartened if you were like, I just wake up and eat whatever. Oh, no, I ain't no way, bro. I don't have the genetic code for that. Okay, good. I've got to work. I think you feel a little bit better. I can work up. I can get big. There you go. I like that. One last thing. It's a very current thing. We briefed on it, but not on camera. Jackson Dart gets hit on the sideline, New England Patriots. There was a big time fight that broke out thoughts on that hit. Number one, I am, I love the hit number two. I am so glad the refs didn't throw flag. I don't think people understand how big that was. The message that sent when the refs didn't throw penalty flag. Number three, I have a newfound respect for Jackson Dart because he didn't complain about it. He didn't flop. He just said, hey, man, this is what I do. You know what I mean? I know that I'm going to get hit now, Jackson Dart. Let's slide a little bit. Why? Because I want you to have a long career. The Giants want you to have a long career. He's been phenomenal. He's a rookie here, especially when Camp Scataboo is in there. But unless you're out on the field, you can't impact your team in a positive way. I was so happy that that happened as I would say a traditionalist in this game of seeing it actually a big hit that isn't flagged. I hope that guys continue to play this game at a very fast level, at a very violent level that is within the rules of the game that isn't dirty. I think the dirty stuff, I think there's a clear difference between a clean, violent play and a dirty one. I think the refs in that instant demonstrated like, oh, we know that was a clean play. We're not going to throw it. I was really happy about it. I love that you touched on the point of Jackson Dart not complaining, getting back up. If I'm a prospective head coach and I'm looking at the tandem of Jackson Dart and Camp Scataboo, I'm thinking, I'm in. These two are dogs. They're rookies. They have the right mentality. They are lovers of the pigskin. They're not going to complain. They're going to show up. They're going to get to work. I want to lead these young men. And you haven't even mentioned your boy's favorite guy, Malik neighbors. You know what I mean? Shout to a Veef. Yeah, yeah, with Malik coming back, he is also an exceptional talent from Louisiana State. And I think to be able to have that with those two young quarterback in their running back, good things could happen. Maybe like Kiffin will do a lot. Odell Beckham, Malik neighbors, Justin Jeffress, Ginger March. You got some dogs, man. Pretty lengthy list. Yeah, it's a bit of, I mean, Thomas, Joanie. Oh, it's kind of surreal. And you say all the name. Wow. Watch out. I want to thank you for coming on. Appreciate it, my man. It's deeply appreciated. It was amazing to speak with you, man. Yes, sir. Likewise. What's up, guys? Missed exact here to give you a stone cold lock of the week. Me and Manta, I got to break down the ins and outs, the exes and oes, the off the field drama for both college football and the NFL. And now it's time to do my job. Give you one stone cold lock of the week. One thing you can place your hard earned money on. I'm going to go with the six point teaser. The game that I'm going to start with is the Seahawks going into Atlanta Falcons. The Seahawks are minus seven in this game. So we're going to get them down to minus one. And the reason why I love this is all the reasons that I've illustrated on this show in the past weeks. The Seattle Seahawks are dangerous. They're for real. They're for real contenders and they can be an absolute danger to anyone, especially an age in Kirk Cousins. He's a statue in the pocket, Drake London banged up. I don't see a way that Kirk Cousins can stop the Seattle Seahawks defense from absolutely motor racing this offensive line. They've got Leonard Williams. They've got the Marcus Laurence. They've got a backend that you cannot get separation on. I think the Seattle Seahawks are going to make Kirk Cousins life a living hell this Sunday. I like them minus one. And my second pick of the week comes in an NFC North Showdown between the Chicago Bears and the Green Bay Packers. The Green Bay Packers are minus six and a half. This is a six point teaser. So we're going to get them to minus 0.5. I love this pick because the Green Bay Packers are at home at Lambo Field and we're in December. This is where the going gets tough. This is the toughest environment to play in when it hits winter. And every single year we see a hot start NFL team. We see a hot shot. Maybe second or third year quarterback. Walt's in the Lambo Field expecting to have that continued success they had in the previous weeks and it never quite works out that way. There's something about that field that's sobering, humbling. And I think that's going to happen to Caleb Williams and the Chicago Bears offense this coming Sunday. Micah Parsons, the Green Bay Packers, have been putting a lot of pressure on opposing quarterbacks where Sean Gary as well. And I think they're going to have that welcome to the NFL moment for head coach Ben Johnson and second or quarterback Caleb Williams. Chicago Bears obviously coming off a great one over the Philadelphia Eagles but the Green Bay Packers at home at Lambo Field were Jordan Love playing the way that he's been playing. Last week against the Detroit Lions one of the best Jordan Love performances I've seen across the NFL. He's always been one of the league's most talented guys. He has the arm strength. He has the ability to make any throw on the field but the way that he saw the field against the Detroit Lions and was able to pick apart both zone and man coverage was something special to see. They obviously have Josh Jacobs in the run game to also help expand upon the Packers continued offensive success. Christian Wonson comes back from a 20 ACL. He's been a massive help to this offense as well as Don Tavian Wicks. I mean how about Don Tavian Wicks coming down with those two impressive catches against the Detroit Lions. Green Bay Packers are hot. They're rolling. We're in December at Lambo Field. I think this is the exact time you take them in a six point teaser with the Seattle Seahawks. That's my stone cold lock of the week on the double coverage podcast. Appreciate you for watching. It was an honor to have Manta Eitayou on former Highsment trophy finalists and it was great to speak with someone who could kind of wrap with me about every single topic. Hope you enjoyed it. Please come back for episode 10. We got a big one coming.