S E27: The Sports Thing Podcast w/Holmberg, Hellestrae And Nash - Episode 27 - 03-03-26

Summary

The Sports Thing Podcast w/Holmberg, Hellestrae & Nash

Episode 27 – March 6, 2026

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Overview

In this lively episode, John Holmberg leads a spirited discussion with Dale Hellestrae (former NFL lineman and 3x Super Bowl champ) and Dave Nash (Arizona media personality) on a variety of sports topics, centering on the quirks of sports injuries, their impact, and the aftermath of the 2026 Winter Olympics. Mixing personal anecdotes, sharp humor, and sports analysis, they explore everything from eye injuries and Olympic hockey, to NFL combine oddities, the pitfalls of athlete and team evaluation, and even the ongoing challenges with Arizona sports franchises. The episode closes with a more serious touch on politics, media saturation, and societal changes.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Perils of Odd Sports Injuries

[03:42]

• John's Eye Injury:
  • Describes his recent torn retina, surgery experience, and six-day post-surgical recovery, notably lying face-down with nothing to do but ponder mortality and friendships.
  • Quote: "[Injury stories] make you think of mortality and stuff. There were times when I thought of both of you at my funeral, and it was horrifying." (04:01, John)
• Sports vs. Eye Injuries:
  • Reflects on how recoveries for limb injuries are under athlete control (“muscle and joints”), but eyes demand complete rest—no way to 'will' yourself back.
  • Classic examples: athletes lost for “sneezing” (Sammy Sosa), coughing, accidental impact injuries, and how quickly even minor eye issues can become catastrophic.
• Dale’s Mom’s Injury Story:
  • Shares his mother’s late-night ordeal: a blowout orbital fracture from a fall, leading to emergency surgery.
• Humor about bets on who will die first and funerals, woven throughout.

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2. Winter Olympics 2026 Recap & Hockey Deep Dive

[13:11]

• Miracle Games and USA Gold:
  • Nostalgia over 1980’s “Miracle on Ice” semi-final, comparing it to the latest USA-Canada men’s final.
  • Breakdown of the finals: Canada's dominance in play, but USA’s resilience, bookending the game with first and last goals.
  • Quote: “The first shot for the States went in. The last shot for the States went in and that was the game winner.” (14:01, John)
• Heroic Efforts and Injuries:
  • US goalie’s outstanding performance, Jack Hughes loses a tooth but barely misses a shift – contrasting with NBA stars sidelined for minor issues.
  • Quote: “Hughes got his teeth knocked out on the ice...I don’t think he missed a shift.” (15:35, John)
• Sibling Standouts & Family Dynamics:
  • Both Hughes brothers score the semis and finals (“as a parent, wouldn’t you just look at everyone else’s kids and go, losers?” – John, 16:22)
  • Teasing about sibling “failures” in star families (Watt brothers, NFL; third Hughes).

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3. Women’s Hockey, Olympic Inequities, & Announcer Challenges

[19:00]

• The US women’s team is overshadowed, attributed to the lack of global competition in the sport.
• Quote: “It would be like the NFL playing Olympic football.” (19:45, John)
• Discussion on the challenge for Olympic announcers in women’s hockey—minimal stats, little mainstream knowledge, and how they navigate names/pronunciations and storytelling without recognizable references.

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4. Olympic Events: Accessibility, Curling, and Amateurs’ Confidence

[25:40], [28:14]

• Bobsled, ski jumps, and “slopestyle” events marvelled for their risk and athleticism.
• Curling’s rise as the “most watchable” sport for regular people—team jokes about qualifying for the Olympics after just a couple years’ practice.
  • Quote: “Most people think you give me a few months, I'm probably internationally competitive [in curling].” (29:43, John)
• Jokes about beating “50% of China in a foot race” (31:33).

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5. The Fragility and Pressure of Olympic Pursuits

[35:34]

• Unique pressure of training four years for a single moment, with no room for an off day—different from season-based pro sports.
• Reflections on the American figure skating disappointment (the “quad god”), parallels to Simone Biles’ “mental blocks” and sports’ increased focus on athlete well-being and mental health.

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6. Meltdowns, Agony of Defeat, and Sports Schadenfreude

[43:09]

• The crew debates whether the thrill of victory or the “agony of defeat” is more memorable and entertaining.
  • Recalls historic collapses (Greg Norman at the Masters, “Boner” plays, Bartman, Neil O’Donnell’s Super Bowl disaster, etc.)
  • Quote: “I like the agony of defeat...What's more interesting, the thrill of victory, or that dude that shot off of that ski lift on his face?” (43:19, John)

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7. Tiger Woods vs. Jack Nicklaus – Greatness, Scandal, and Course Changes

[47:35]

• Tiger Woods’ dominance, competitiveness, and how his personal scandals and course modifications (“Tiger-proofing”) shaped his career and public perception.
• Mixed feelings on his “unfriendly” persona; discussion on the personality and comfort-level dynamics of generational sports icons.
  • Quote: “They never Tiger-proofed courses for anyone else in the history of sports.” (49:03, John)

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8. NFL Combine: Backroom Realities & The Myth of Measurables

[54:01]

• Dale’s detailed story about the 1985 NFL combine—how an unnoticed spinal issue knocked him from a 2nd to 4th-round pick, with no feedback or recourse. (57:00)
• Skepticism on the true value of the combine: the 40-yard dash doesn’t predict much, and medical/interview insights are the only things that really matter.
  • Quote: “I think more mistakes are made when you have your opinion swayed by a guy running in an aerodynamic suit.” (61:00, Corey)
• Modern combine’s commercialization and “quantitative data” obsession vs. real football skills seen on actual tape.

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9. Arizona Cardinals’ Woes & Facility Fails

[65:25]

• Kyler Murray’s complicated future, questions about cutting or trading him, and what the franchise could get in return.
• Local NFL teams’ new “report-card” grades: Cardinals owners and facilities rated abysmally low, Steelers knocked for facilities but lauded for results.
  • Quote: “You don’t give yourself a chance to win.” (67:41, Corey)
• Organizational culture and the consequences of front office neglect.

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10. Tanking, NBA Playoffs, and Arizona High School Sports

[69:05]

• Short chat on the Phoenix Suns’ injuries, expectations, and why this ragtag, inconsistent squad might be best off missing the playoffs and retooling; similar trends in local high school hoops.

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11. Five Minutes with a Madman: Politics, Parties & the Info Overload

[71:41]

• Dave Nash rails against the state of American politics, arguing both parties have lost sight of serving the public and are instead part of a corrupt uni-party system.
  • Quotes: “I don't think they give a crap about any of us.” (72:18, Dave)
• John and Dale discuss the dangers of media and information overload, with technology and smartphones serving as both a distraction and a source of anxiety for modern society.

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Memorable Quotes & Moments (with Timestamps)

• "If I'm the first one out, there's no God." (04:06, John)
• "The first shot for the States went in. The last shot for the States went in, and that was the game winner." (14:01, John)
• "I think I could beat 58% of China in a foot race." (31:26, John)
• "I like the agony of defeat...What's more interesting, the thrill of victory, or that dude that shot off of that ski lift on his face?" (43:19, John)
• "They never Tiger-proofed courses for anyone else in the history of sports." (49:03, John)
• "I think more mistakes are made when you have your opinion swayed by a guy running in an aerodynamic suit." (61:01, Corey)
• "You don't give yourself a chance to win." (67:41, Corey)
• "I don't think they give a crap about any of us." (72:18, Dave)

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Segment Timestamps

• 03:42–10:43: Eye injury stories, sports injuries, medical recoveries
• 13:11–17:47: Winter Olympics hockey, Miracle on Ice, Hughes brothers
• 19:00–25:04: Women’s hockey, Olympic inequalities, announcer challenges
• 25:40–33:30: Early sports, curling, amateur aspirations
• 35:34–38:59: Olympic pressure, figure skating, meltdowns (agony vs. victory)
• 47:35–53:45: Tiger Woods, athlete personalities, course changes
• 54:01–63:00: NFL combine experiences and critique
• 65:25–68:09: Kyler Murray, Arizona Cardinals facility & ownership discussion
• 69:05–71:17: Suns, NBA playoff hopes, local high school basketball
• 71:41–74:56: “Five Minutes with a Madman” – politics, media, technology’s impact

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Tone & Style

The episode is irreverent, personal, and humorous, with Holmberg’s sarcastic delivery complemented by Corey's matter-of-fact storytelling and Dave Nash’s skeptical, sometimes conspiratorial takes. The show combines credible sports analysis with relatable storytelling and a willingness to mock both themselves and the sports establishment.

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This summary provides a comprehensive map of the episode’s most important discussions, capturing the banter, the big ideas, and the authentic personality of the show’s hosts. Suitable for any sports fan who didn’t catch the broadcast!

Transcript

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[Corey Hoshi]

Grocery Outlet, bargain market. Are we going?

[John Holmberg]

Is this show on?

[Corey Hoshi]

Are we on?

[John Holmberg]

Is it happening? Yeah, we can start right here. Hey everybody. Welcome to the sports thing. My name's John Holmberg. This is the podcast I run and it's pretty awesome. I brought a couple people along with me this week. Dale Hellestray is here. He's a permanent host of something else. I don't know what it is.

[Corey Hoshi]

The main event.

[John Holmberg]

That's right. You got a job there. You come in here every once in a while and help mop up. That's nice of you to do. Dale Hellstrais, three time world champion from the Dallas Cowboys and the host of the main event. And across from him is the Flem King, we call him, and it's the Angry Patriot.

[Dave Nash]

I am a sickly person.

[John Holmberg]

This is. You are not a sickly person. Yeah. Reason I called you that, Dave Nash, because I got an email from a guy who says, will somebody please get Dave a spittoon. Yes. Or a. Or some sort of like secret something that makes it so. Don't you worry with all of your conspiracy like you talk about salt and cholesterol and all this stuff. Don't you worry a little bit about what you have, which is called gerd.

[Dave Nash]

What is it?

[John Holmberg]

You haven't looked at it. You've got gerd. I'm going to look it up. G, E R D. It's a gastro. Well, it's basically you have a reflux problem and you're constantly draining. I'm draining. And then it comes back as reflux and fights itself and it's going to cause trouble with your esophagus. Probably look into it, for God's sake.

[Dave Nash]

You're right 100%.

[John Holmberg]

All you do is tell everybody else.

[Dave Nash]

Not arguing. Not arguing.

[John Holmberg]

What do you want me to do

[Corey Hoshi]

it only you want me to leave

[Dave Nash]

right now and go check it out.

[John Holmberg]

If it means you're healthy, sure.

[Dave Nash]

I can go check it out right now.

[Corey Hoshi]

It only happens when you put one of these in front.

[John Holmberg]

Is that right?

[Corey Hoshi]

You can stand out there, talk for 20 minutes.

[John Holmberg]

That's not true. Because in my office at the other building, when we were there, and I would know Dave was there because. Down the hall.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah, that's because he's fixing to go on when he's done.

[John Holmberg]

No, this is in my office. There's after. Well, like, there's no microphones.

[Corey Hoshi]

He's just sitting in a. No, but he's getting nervous.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, is that.

[Dave Nash]

He gets wound up nervous.

[John Holmberg]

It's wound up stomach acid, man.

[Corey Hoshi]

That's why I never made for the major.

[Dave Nash]

It's. It's. Listen, if you made.

[John Holmberg]

You didn't have the fortitude to lock it down.

[Corey Hoshi]

You got nervous.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah, lock that down, bro. If I can just, you know, do a big. And get it out.

[John Holmberg]

You can't, though.

[Dave Nash]

But I can't, so. So that makes me want to do

[John Holmberg]

it more because it's gerd. It's swollen esophagus. It makes you feel like you got something in your throat you don't actually have. So you clear your throat all the time. So there's a thing called silent reflux, and it's really bad because it's all of acid reflux without any of the symptoms. It's a major cause of esophageal cancer. Dale. Can't wait to.

[Dave Nash]

Dale's got the bet that we got the bet. Who's going to die for a season?

[John Holmberg]

And I just went through my whole thing and laid face down. I had a torn retina in my eye. Had to get surgery on it.

[Corey Hoshi]

Are you going to come play how you tore your retina?

[John Holmberg]

I'll tell you exactly how it happened. And it's weird. And I want to get into it with you, especially both of you, because you both played sports of how weird like injuries can be in recovery. So I had to lay face down for six days and multiple times. When you're stuck in your own thoughts, you think of mortality and stuff. There were times when I thought of both of you at my funeral, and it was horrifying. If I don't outlive both you, you can have your bet. But if I'm the first one Out. There's no God.

[Dave Nash]

I will tap dance at yours, I'm telling you right now.

[John Holmberg]

Well, finally you'll get some, some exercise, maybe clear that thing out.

[Corey Hoshi]

Dave and I will two step around. That's right around your box.

[John Holmberg]

I have, I have like this torn retina thing. I didn't take it seriously at all. I've been training for this boxing sparring thing this guy wanted to do with me. And it was supposed to happen last Friday. And so I've been in like training hard and doing great. So I got into the last week of hard training next. The week after was supposed to just be kind of a cardio stuff, light work, no major light sparring, nothing that was going to do that. So I was coming up to the last two days of hard training and the Sunday I'm running these shuttle drills with these lights and I'm bending down and I'm hitting them around at 30 yards, hitting the next light. Cause it's lighting up. So you have to find the one that lights, run to it, drop, hit the light, go back to your home base, hit that light and wait for the next thing to light up. I bent down, I stood up and my eye was like a lava lamp. All I saw was just a lava lamp stuff.

[Dave Nash]

You did it when you just bent down.

[John Holmberg]

Because eye pressure changes extremely hard when you've got a slight tear. It doesn't take much to. So I tore it in two places and it was so close to being detached, it didn't hurt. So I ignored it. And blood pooled in my eye, like to be like almost an eclipse of your sight. And so I'm like, ah. I went to dinner with some friends, had a couple drinks, mess around. I got in the car at 10 o' clock and I shut my left eye and I was 100% blind. What dark in this eye. And I'm like, this is no good.

[Corey Hoshi]

Oh boy.

[John Holmberg]

So I drove to the. You know, that's what you do when you have one good eye. You drive yourself to the hospital.

[Corey Hoshi]

You don't have to arrive. No, no, no.

[John Holmberg]

I drove to the hospital and sat there, had a Kit Kat because I was waiting for a couple hours, went in there, they did a little look at my eye with this machine and they're like, gave it to an optometrist like two in the morning. Now I'm like, I don't know, give me some drops, they'll fix this doctor came back and he said, you need surgery right now. Like it's gonna. If your retina detaches there's a chance you won't see ever again. Or properly. You won't see right ever again. If we even recover your sight. And I'm like, what's going on? Like, you have two tears in your retina. In your retina.

[Corey Hoshi]

So you had something already there. And this just exactly.

[Dave Nash]

You're not supposed to spar with someone when they have sandpaper on their gloves. That's not the way to go.

[John Holmberg]

You know what's crazy? Every optometrist, every doctor I spoke to in that time frame, I'm like, what did I do? And they're like, who knows? When you're fourth grade, you might have gotten hit by a baseball. Just whatever. It just happened. Or just luck of the draw that you hit it right. Just perfect bent down and your eyes sit up. That was a bad one. And it's so fragile. So then I'm hearing from people who've had it actually happen, like, yeah, I'm like 80% blind in my right eye. It's. It's that. And it's so common. So I'm on this crusade now to tell people if you see floaters in your eye. Yeah, a lot of them. I do get checked.

[Dave Nash]

Just really.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, it's huge.

[Corey Hoshi]

Or just more.

[Dave Nash]

How do you get checked?

[John Holmberg]

They have so much technology. Everything.

[Dave Nash]

I'm going to an eye appointment tomorrow.

[John Holmberg]

I go to Dr. Jay Schwartz. He's got a complimentary consultation. I do endorsements for him on the radio show. It's amazing. It's. I am. I'm a weirdo. And I'm like a born again eye guy.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Like, I got my sight back. And I'm like, I'm not messing with.

[Dave Nash]

What do I need? What kind of test do I need to get?

[John Holmberg]

Just. Just go in and tell them to say I want to get full eye exam and make sure my retina. I'm seeing a lot of floaters. And those part. Yeah, I'll do the whole deal because. And if you ever see Strands man, it is. That's a warning sign. Your eyes don't warn you. Like, if you scratch the outside of it, it hurts.

[Dave Nash]

I can't even see you clearly. There's so many things floating around here.

[John Holmberg]

So they put a gas bubble inside your eyeball and it has to rest against your retina for six days face down. Six days, 24 hours a day.

[Corey Hoshi]

It was the.

[John Holmberg]

It was horrific. And yes, I thought of you two morons every once in a while. Like, are those idiots going to outlive me? Dale's at a Brain scan. And it's not to monitor his brain, it's to look for the damn brain. And I'm sitting on a couch going, really? But the crazy part for me was, and you guys have both been through sports injuries, and I've been through surgeries and stuff. The fun thing of a surgery, if there is such a thing, the silver lining is you get a knee, you get an elbow, I get shoulders. And the doctor tells you you got 10 months and you're back in six.

[Corey Hoshi]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

You can force your muscles and your joints, your eyes, nothing. It's the exact opposite. There's nothing you can do to go, hey, I. I'll prove you wrong. You can't do it. Like the Aaron Rodgers torn Achilles in New York, he's like, you got a year and a half. He was back in nine months and almost played that same season. Like, if the jets were any good, he'd have played in the playoffs. But he's a Jet. You didn't have to worry about that.

[Dave Nash]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

But, yeah, you get into that. So if you've ever had an injury, like, you remember Sammy Sosa sneezed that time and was out for like a two weeks. Everybody just. I think I do remember dudes who coughed and, like, blew their eye up coughing. You never had anything like that? No, it's. It's the weirdest thing.

[Dave Nash]

He was pretty fragile when he played.

[John Holmberg]

Is that true?

[Dave Nash]

Yes.

[Corey Hoshi]

I've ever had have happen to my eye was I was doing incline, bench press.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And then back then, we had the iron weights. Yeah. And I clicked them, brought them back, clicked them, brought them back. And then I'm like, put it down. I'm like, there's something.

[John Holmberg]

Ah, you rubbed it.

[Corey Hoshi]

I'm rubbing. I'm like, oh, this ain't going away.

[John Holmberg]

No.

[Corey Hoshi]

So I go see the trainer, and he flushes it out, flush it out. He goes, oh, we got to get you to the optometrist. Immediately, I'm like, what? A sliver of the metal had gone into the middle of my eye and said, if that's in there for more than two hours, you're out. Go blind.

[John Holmberg]

It's so quick. They scare the hell out of you. Yeah. No, it's horrifying. I had. I was pouring concrete to put a basketball lights in on my court and took my glasses off for a second and did this and dropped my glasses, went to catch them and knocked one of the trowels into the wet cement, and it splashed in my face. Some got my eye, and I'm like, that's probably not good. So I went online, and it said, it's a medical emergency. Concrete in your eyes. You will lose your sight immediately. And I'm like, ah, come on.

[Corey Hoshi]

Wow.

[John Holmberg]

So I don't mess with eyes.

[Dave Nash]

How does. How does anyone see anymore? Everybody should be blind.

[John Holmberg]

It's magic what goes on in these things. But, yeah, I thought of all those injuries you just can't believe. And I really. Amari Stoudemire had his retina detached and used. I. Trust me, I had a lot of time. So I was on that. I still have this ball floating around in my eyeball. It's insane, and it won't go away for another few days.

[Corey Hoshi]

And then.

[John Holmberg]

So I started to kind of respect those. Those weird injuries that people get. Like, he's been out for a year because he's got, like, you always say stingers are just kind of a throwaway to fans, but it is, like, an astronomical amount of pain that's hard to get past. And they don't go away, right? You get guy who had. Oh, I got poked in the eye. It's like, he'll be back next week. Who hasn't been poked in the eye? But when you get poked in the eye to where your eyes are right way. Right or wrong way, dudes miss years.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, you know, it's interesting. The only person I know now that's tougher than you was my mom. And she called me up Sunday night. This is two, three years ago Sunday night, about 10:30. She didn't call 10:30. She said, hey, Dale, if I make an eye appointment this week, can you take me to it? And I said, well, yes, but why you call me at 10:30? I said, I'm gonna come over and take a look at you. No, no, no, no, no, no. I am. So I go over there. I walk in, it looked like Mike Tyson hit her three times here.

[Dave Nash]

Wow.

[Corey Hoshi]

Big, black, swollen eye. And I said, eye appointment. I'm taking you to the hospital right now. Within two hours. She's an emergency surgery. She had a blowout. Orbital fracture.

[John Holmberg]

Doing what?

[Corey Hoshi]

Falling. Oh. Hit her head. Falling. Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

So, yeah, she's low blood pressure. We just talked about that.

[John Holmberg]

You start dropping out with the blood pressure, you got to keep it up, right?

[Corey Hoshi]

Hey, that's the last five minutes.

[John Holmberg]

Like what? Like what? Dave says you keep your blood pressure on 230 over 188. You should be great. You should be good.

[Dave Nash]

Strong, like bull.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, he's strong. You're not gonna last long, but you're gonna be running Fast redline this thing.

[Dave Nash]

Better to burn out than fade away.

[John Holmberg]

That's exactly right. That's how I see it. Well, what we missed while I was down and out was a lot of Olympic talk. This show missed the Olympics in a weird way. So let's just lie to people and say we were on location in Italy and we put our. We compiled all of our notes from the Olympics. I watched the Olympics through a mirror backwards while I was face down. And I got to see, like, I'm guessing, like no one else, the gold medal game of hockey and a couple of the other games in hockey through a platter mirror while I stared down at the ground and bounced it back on the tv. First off, you learn how to read backwards really fast because I already know what's going on with sports. But as far as. And the fun part, Dale, was ASU and usa. USA looked the same to me. So it was kind of like ASU was about to win a gold medal. There is maybe nothing better than. And we talked about it before international hockey. And now for the second time in my life and one stands out. And I was 7 in the Miracle on Ice game. I still remember that. I remember watching that. Likewise losing my mind as a kid.

[Corey Hoshi]

The one thing that's weird because nobody ever talks about this. The Miracle on Ice wasn't a gold medal semi final.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. They had to win an export.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yes.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

And.

[Corey Hoshi]

And that's what's crazy about that.

[John Holmberg]

But. Yeah. Then that's why that movie's so great is because it makes the point of going, this was all for nothing. If you don't make the next thing happen. And those guys did. This one was just an unbelievable hockey game that in the Miracle on Ice you kept waiting for the Russians to just turn it on. The difference in this to me was Canada won that game.

[Corey Hoshi]

Should have.

[John Holmberg]

I mean, the entire time the ice was tilted there.

[Dave Nash]

Oh, yeah.

[John Holmberg]

And the crazy part was. And I haven't looked this up. This is a stat that I don't know has ever existed in hockey. The first shot for the States went in. The last shot for the States went in and that was the game winner.

[Corey Hoshi]

I did not realize their very first

[John Holmberg]

shot on goal went in. Then of course, obviously the last shot ends the game. I don't know that that's ever been a thing before. Oh, it's had to happen that the first. And it was a game ender. Well, that you're very less in overtime. Like it's the golden goal. I mean, that is an unbelievable storybook thing. For a team that I'm watching the entire time going, canada's better. Canada's better. That goalie not only stopped everything, but one 42 shots, I think.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

It was murderers row. Conor McDavid on three breakaways.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah, but, I mean, you know, McKinnon had a wide open net. Missed it on the doorstep.

[John Holmberg]

Well, that was the one where he got the fin on the.

[Dave Nash]

No, no, that was the other one down low. That was Taos, the defense. Defenseman for the Colorado.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, yeah.

[Dave Nash]

McKinnon had one right on the doorstep and just threw it off the side. Outside side of the net. That should have been good. There should have been. Canada had their opportunities, but. And they. And they were just. Did you murdering.

[John Holmberg]

You know, demean the effort of the goaltender for the US by saying, no, no, no, no.

[Dave Nash]

Adam, it was incredible.

[John Holmberg]

Amazing. The.

[Dave Nash]

The save he made with the paddle with the open net.

[John Holmberg]

And the better part to me is Jack Hughes getting his tooth knocked out. We're talking about injuries that knock people out. We'll go straight to Anthony Davis based on that, who has a fingernail issue. And he's going to be out. Hughes got his teeth knocked out on the ice.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

I don't think he missed a shift.

[John Holmberg]

I know he went off for a little bit to just look at it like, am I bleeding to death or are we all right? No, you're good. And he's like, all right, I'll be right back. And he puts the. If he doesn't get a gold tooth. Where. Why in the world has no one pushed for this?

[Corey Hoshi]

Get a gold. Yeah, just the.

[John Holmberg]

The Olympic rings in it. The gold tooth. Why has. And I would be like him, too. It doesn't hurt. So leave that there as a reminder for a while. Then when you get it fixed, it better be gold.

[Corey Hoshi]

It was everything about it. Like, if you sat down and did a Hollywood script, couldn't. You would say, no, no, people aren't going to believe. Yes, people aren't going to believe that. And the two Hughes brothers, the other brothers. Quinn won the semifinals to win it.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And Jack for the gold medal.

[John Holmberg]

I mean, you're a parent. I mean, wouldn't you just look at everyone else's kids and go, losers. Like you would walk around for at least a year, just, oh, those are your kids.

[Corey Hoshi]

What do they do?

[John Holmberg]

Oh, he's a banker. My guys both have gold medals and statistics. It's such a great thing.

[Dave Nash]

There are three of them in the NHL. Does the third.

[John Holmberg]

The third Hughes. Yes. There's another one.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah. Does he feel bad. Like, look at my brothers.

[John Holmberg]

He should. He's the worst one.

[Dave Nash]

Should you? On your show. You should be. You should call them and say the third.

[John Holmberg]

The ones that didn't make it. Yeah, you should call him, say, Cooper Mannings of hockey. I like that.

[Dave Nash]

Maybe that should be his new nickname.

[John Holmberg]

Or there's T.J. watt, J.J. watt, and then their other brothers. Yeah, he played for the Steelers for a little bit, too, but he was just a fullback.

[Corey Hoshi]

Oh, the fullback.

[John Holmberg]

Nobody cared. That's enough. We get too many watts, and one of you is not very good.

[Corey Hoshi]

You'd hate to be the other.

[John Holmberg]

The worst part is you made it to the NFL and no one's impressed

[Corey Hoshi]

if you're the one in your family. Everybody's like, oh, my gosh, can't believe you made it.

[John Holmberg]

You can wander into any Hell Astray family reunion. Like, he played for the Cowboys. He was a cowboy. But if your brother was Troy Aikman, Hell Astray, you'd be the one who's like, yeah, he made it, but he wasn't. It would suck to be the third Watt, the third Hughes right now. And he's still got hope.

[Dave Nash]

He's young, but, yes, he is the youngest.

[John Holmberg]

I mean, it's amazing.

[Corey Hoshi]

Little cloud, Little cloud over you.

[John Holmberg]

I was sitting, watching the Olympics too,

[Corey Hoshi]

wondering were you sitting or laying?

[John Holmberg]

Oh, I was laying straight down. I'd sit up on my knees every once. It's impossible to sit up on your knees.

[Corey Hoshi]

Do I even want to know what I'll tell you?

[John Holmberg]

Face down, ass up. That's all that was for. Because no human being after the age of five is designed to lay flat on their stomach. It hurts. Everything hurts. I had my head on the armchair of the couch and my forehead just to keep my head so I could see and breathe. And I was a mess. Your back hurts, your hips hurt. Everything's bad. So I would get in these weird positions every once. Oh, God forbid, Dave, you ever have anything go wrong with it because Dale starts being nice to you and then offers to come over and talk, which my doctor said it's the last thing you need. Exactly. But, yeah, it was very kind. Dale's like, if you need company or anything, I'm like, yeah, no, like, I'd rather lay face down for six months.

[Dave Nash]

He was thinking about your rear. Envying up. I know what his alternative motive is.

[Corey Hoshi]

I asked you. He said, hey, if his wife needs some company.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, that's true. He offered that up. The crazy part is I'll jump in on that. My neighbors are gay. I have a couple of friends who are gay. And when they were like, what are you doing? I'm like, well, I'll be honest with you. I have to lay face down for six days. All three of them.

[Dave Nash]

Can we come over?

[John Holmberg]

Reacted with the same two words, power, bottom. And I had to look that up. And it's not what I was, but it was what they saw. I was vulnerable is what I. But talking about the Olympics and stuff and watching, there's a lot of great things and a lot of. A lot of moments. And the female hockey team, I think, got, you know, a little bit overshadowed, but nobody wants to talk realistically about why, because it's more. It's not as interesting, although it's fun and they're. They're. It's slower. It's not the same game. They get mad that, you know, when. When the two girls were on Saturday Night Live over the weekend and the crowd popped huge. It's like it almost is pandering in a weird way or. I don't know, it's not as good a game, but it was still entertaining. Nobody remembers the girls winning gold because they do it a lot, because not a lot of the world has girls hockey. It would be like the NFL playing Olympic football.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, Brooke actually asked that. We were watching the hockey game. She goes, why don't they have football? I said, brooke, imagine who plays football.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, you'd play Germany and Canada, and it would just be a bloodbath of God knows what. And I talked to somebody about it, and they're like, well, injuries. And I'm like, the NBA, hockey, baseball, even has Olympic stuff coming out. Nobody is ever worried in the NBA or in hockey that their guys are going to go out for. I mean, it's a worry, but it's more prideful. I don't know that there's any pride in the United States playing hockey or NFL football.

[Corey Hoshi]

No.

[John Holmberg]

Against the world, because it would be so unbelievably lopsided.

[Dave Nash]

I felt the same way about the hockey. I mean, you thought.

[John Holmberg]

You.

[Dave Nash]

Listen, I thought the whole Olympic hockey experience of this year was not interesting. In the latest to me, until the final game, I just thought it was inevitable and everything else was not really close. And although, you know, America did go to overtime against Sweden, but Sweden was

[John Holmberg]

the third best team, and it wasn't. I mean, going into it, that was it. That was a tough time.

[Dave Nash]

They wanted. Or they, you know, they have world champs every year. It's always there.

[John Holmberg]

Sweden's a. I mean, that's there's, there's the, the Tier 1 U.S. canada and Tier 2 is not that far behind, but it is behind. And that's like Finland and, and Sweden and you got some teams in there. Then you really drop off and I'm with you on that. You start watching teams, you're like, all right, they're not going to make this, but I am.

[Dave Nash]

But if, if Canada hadn't met America in the final game, it would have been a major letdown. That's what everyone was waiting for. And so to me, everything before it was like going to a dinner party and you're having all these hors d' oeuvres that sucked, you know, and you're like, God, can we, can we get to the.

[John Holmberg]

But you've also kind of read the last page of the book and you're like, all right, I'm just sitting here waiting for Canada in the U.S. so this is all filler and hopefully nobody drunk uncles this thing. And no one did. No, it was, it was unreal. It was such a great event. And it makes you, it makes you really kind of wonder. You know, I, again, I go back and watch some of that stuff when, when basketball was in the Olympics for years and it was our college guys and everything else because we were so far ahead and you couldn't come close. Russia would roll up there in that thing in this late 60s, 68 when they. Or 72. It was Munich, I don't remember which one. They stole the basketball thing with the last second goof. So that. And then the US Realized, oh, the world caught us, so let's. Okay, we'll throw our pros out there too. And then it's been sort of a bloodbath since. But the good thing for the sport is it would catch it. I wonder if the NFL did this, if it would cause. Because that's what Goodell wants is international interest in the game.

[Corey Hoshi]

Look at all the international games.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. Let college kids play.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Let college kids play Olympic football.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah. But again, money has gotten in the way a lot of things.

[Dave Nash]

You know, how about we do high school Americans against the rest of the world?

[John Holmberg]

Put a team together. I think fine with that.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah. I still think they would win.

[John Holmberg]

I think it would be, I think it would be competitive, like especially because when you start getting into team like Europe has leagues I think with adult men and I think it would be unfair to think that adult, fully functional grown men. Yeah. 17, 8 year olds.

[Dave Nash]

Athletes.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

I mean, because if NFL players, what would be the score against Australia. Oh, my God, like, 215, nothing.

[John Holmberg]

But again, it would be the same as the World Cup. United States is years behind in the World cup, and, you know, they get beat up all the time by the

[Dave Nash]

team, as they should be, and nobody cares.

[John Holmberg]

Nobody cared about soccer in the United States until it was forced down our throat in the 80s. That's exactly once I. When I was a kid, they tried so hard to get every. Like, I'm not interested in this. This is Euro nonsense.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, the whole thing is about the. Soccer is like, if you're a really, really good athlete, you're gonna play football. Yep. Or basketball and then baseball.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

Soccer is like, okay, well, yeah, it's coming up now. Yeah. It is different now, still, but it's still.

[John Holmberg]

It will always be behind Europe.

[Corey Hoshi]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

And it's always going to have that head start on everybody. And the way they do things there is a little different with the game. I look at that as the same as women's sports was. Like, it doesn't impress me that women's hockey wins a gold. They should. We're the only ones with money and time spent developing a female hockey. And then you go over and play North Korea, and they've got a team for, like, 11 days. Come on. You know who I felt the most impressed with throughout the Olympics? The dudes and the girl who announces female hockey. Where do they get to know any of these people? Seriously? How do you. There's no stats. There's no, like, history. There's no team they play for that anyone's familiar with.

[Corey Hoshi]

Pronunciations are unreal. John. When I. When I do college games, if I see a Samoan. Samoan, I'm like, please don't be good. Please don't be. Don't have the dad. Do I have to say his name?

[John Holmberg]

But when you watch girls hockey, there's no reference point to know who any of them are or who's good and who's not. There's no tape to study. There's really nothing there's.

[Dave Nash]

For women's professional hockey leagues.

[John Holmberg]

I know, but, like, nobody. You can't. As an announcer and you know, you can't reference it. Nobody knows about it. Like, you're talking to no one. When you're like, well, in the Tampa Bay Girl Lightning, nobody knows what you're talking about. Those people did an amazing job.

[Corey Hoshi]

You're just talking about what you see out there.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. And. But they're like, oh, that's Vanessa Hughes. She does them. Like, who knows who. How did you know anything about they

[Dave Nash]

all get together in a big lesbian group.

[Corey Hoshi]

Is that it?

[Dave Nash]

And then they talk about it and

[John Holmberg]

then, then they go, see, now you got me. Now I'm more interested. That's, that's what's missing from the game, I think, right there.

[Corey Hoshi]

To me, there's so many crazy things in the Winter Olympics. Whether it's that, whether it's the bobsleds that go down there seemingly out of control, whether it's some of those ski things that they do.

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[John Holmberg]

that beautiful Eileen Gu that does those. She was skiing for China, but she did a couple of like, there's a thing called slopestyle where you just hit ramps at 900 miles an hour and start flying all over and then land backwards. Like right. It's so. They're so good at it. It's not interesting.

[Corey Hoshi]

I always say. How did she do the first one? I'm going to do a flip. Oh. Oh. That was kind of easy.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. Now do a 720 squirrely with two backflips and land backwards.

[Corey Hoshi]

Oh my God.

[John Holmberg]

I can't ski forwards on the bunny hill, let alone land and just go backwards. Like that's no winner.

[Dave Nash]

I'll ask you, if you had to rate the sports in the Olympics, Winter Olympics, this one, what was the most interesting or the one that you look forward most to?

[John Holmberg]

Well, hockey was the one I wanted to watch.

[Dave Nash]

It was mine too. And that was way down the list after I went through and I really.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, curling is a weird one that people really gravitate to and then it just immediately goes away. This year was fun because Canada was cheating with that little.

[Dave Nash]

Do you realize there were more curling events, I mean, than anything. The curling was on all the time

[John Holmberg]

on all four of the networks. And peacock you could find.

[Corey Hoshi]

And let me tell you why. Because like you said, downhill skiing.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

Flip. Do, do, do. Yeah. You know you can't do that. Yeah. Johnny, you and I are sitting there going, we could do curly.

[John Holmberg]

No, there's that. We could use curling. You think you can do curling? It looks possible.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yes.

[John Holmberg]

I agree with that. It's not.

[Dave Nash]

When they push off, I can do it drunk. And they look like a pretzel that they're sliding on the ice.

[John Holmberg]

Well, that's how Dale walks. He looks like a pretzel movie.

[Dave Nash]

Now, listen, if when they push the rock, they look like a walrus, like

[Corey Hoshi]

in shape, with a soft touch, soft

[Dave Nash]

hands, you might be able to do it that way. I could see him just slide on his stomach pushing the rock.

[John Holmberg]

I think the thing. I've said this before, and I've been challenged by a guy who runs a curling center in town that I said I'm pretty sure if you give me and couple people I choose two years, I qualify for the Olympics in curling.

[Corey Hoshi]

No chance.

[John Holmberg]

I'm putting it out there.

[Dave Nash]

Oh, I want to see this. Can. Can I get money on this?

[John Holmberg]

Here's the problem, Dave.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

I don't know that I have the time to commit.

[Dave Nash]

No, of course not.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, wait a minute.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, that's fine. All you do is sit around at

[Dave Nash]

home looking downward mirror as you're watching.

[John Holmberg]

Face down, ass up. That's what I focus on. But I think if I put my mind to it, and I think most people. And this is why curling's popular. Most people think you give me a few months, I'm probably internationally competitive.

[Dave Nash]

You know what?

[Corey Hoshi]

Have you ever curled? No.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, me neither, but I'm pretty sure.

[Dave Nash]

Nope. It's not easy.

[John Holmberg]

We can put a team together.

[Corey Hoshi]

They put you on the. On the boom part.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

You know, with your 290 pounds.

[Dave Nash]

You know, I just watched them and I'm thinking I'd be kicking all the rocks that I'm going buying.

[John Holmberg]

I'd take you in a heartbeat. I'd be the other guy. I go over the Best Western and grab a couple maids. They're the sweepers.

[Corey Hoshi]

You got your feet.

[John Holmberg]

I got the shoulder strength already.

[Corey Hoshi]

Did the mix force them.

[John Holmberg]

Maybe a janitor from a high school does a lot of puke cleanup or something like that. Or a guy and yeah, I got my group. I internationally competitive in. I won't go crazy. 18 months. I'm not a wife.

[Dave Nash]

Sure you can do the, the bar shuffleboard.

[John Holmberg]

I'm pretty sure. Dave. Dave. There's no way that there's a kids league. People pick this up and they're like 19 and most everybody doing. It's 25.

[Dave Nash]

It should be the same for golf. They all just push like golf the, you know, first tee.

[John Holmberg]

Youth.

[Dave Nash]

Kids want to go run around. They want to golf. And if, you know, I was a kid, I love to golf. So if, if I'm like one of the weird ones, they'll find it. You don't need to push it. People will find golf when they get older, later. That, that is the biggest waste of, of, of a, of a.

[John Holmberg]

It can be because kids are definitely not going to focus. But you'll get one that might. But I'm with you. But you get to high school, if

[Dave Nash]

they, if they're interested, they'll find it. You don't need to push this on every.

[John Holmberg]

Nobody curls as a kid. Nobody curls in high school. You're 20, you're goofing.

[Corey Hoshi]

But that's what I'm saying. I could see star in a curling league. You have a tap on each end and drink a few beers and whatever.

[John Holmberg]

18 months we'd beat.

[Corey Hoshi]

No cheating.

[John Holmberg]

That's what I always say about China. I could beat 58% of China in a foot race.

[Dave Nash]

Get out of here.

[John Holmberg]

Think about it. There's 2 billion people.

[Dave Nash]

Okay, well, you might be able to beat 50% of the people here in America because everyone is. That's not a shape.

[John Holmberg]

But I'm not going to say that because 50% of this one's a lot tougher to achieve. 50% of China is old or kids. You know, you got a whole lot of that. I can Cherry pick the 50% and then, you know, you got your cripples and all sorts of other stuff. I could beat 50% of China in a foot range.

[Corey Hoshi]

Johnny, you tore a retina. Bending.

[John Holmberg]

Working too hard, Dale. Working too hard.

[Dave Nash]

And you know what?

[John Holmberg]

Look at me here. I'm standing, ready to go again. Ready to bend again, Dale? Yeah. 18 months. I'd be a competitive.

[Corey Hoshi]

I'll tell you, the Winter Olympics overall was very entertaining. Amazing for some reason to me.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, it was great. This, this year was really good.

[Dave Nash]

So I brought up the point for me, the skiing and the, and the, you know, the, the guys that do the moguls that go down here.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, yeah, the bumpy one.

[Dave Nash]

And then they, then they do like a, like a eight spin and jump. They flip land, and then they're back on moguls.

[Corey Hoshi]

It's.

[Dave Nash]

I'm telling you what. Very impressive.

[John Holmberg]

I think it's a. I think it's AI. I don't think any of it's real. I don't know how human body can do that. And what kind of troubles do they have later in life? No one's ever followed their knees and their backs have to just be mushed by the time they're 30. It's horrible to watch. Yeah. I think it's all a.

[Dave Nash]

So they should. They should at least get their day in the sun. Here's another one that we should. We should show more of that instead of just showing the three that medal.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

Because it's basically what it came down to.

[John Holmberg]

Finance me for a year. And I could also be one of those ski and shoot guys. You know, the ones that start walking around on skis and then you shoot. I can do that. Probably give me about six months. Six to 10 months. I'd be internationally competitive.

[Dave Nash]

But you're kind of a Satanist at heart, so I think you'd start shooting your competition.

[John Holmberg]

That's what I'm saying.

[Dave Nash]

And then I'm.

[John Holmberg]

If there's only one guy finishing, if

[Dave Nash]

you're the only guy ski, everyone else is dead.

[John Holmberg]

Gold medal.

[Dave Nash]

There you go.

[Corey Hoshi]

That's.

[Dave Nash]

That's the only thing you can give me a weapon? Yes.

[John Holmberg]

I'm not gonna lose, but, yeah, I can do that. You know what I watched in the beginning of that thing at the. They start them all at the same spot, right? In, like, three different heats, you know, and not necessarily. Well, not all of them, but the last one they did, and I saw that they all ran out to the start. And then one dude was like, already out of the race. And I'm like, man, he's been training his whole, like. And he is, like, in. I don't know where he's from, like, Bulgaria or something. He's like, he's done. Wouldn't you just, like, fake a seizure or something at that point? Like, why.

[Dave Nash]

Maybe he's just a slow starter and he's.

[John Holmberg]

No, he got killed. I checked later. He was like an hour behind everyone else. I think he missed, like, every shot.

[Dave Nash]

Maybe he's like the Jamaican bod sled team, you know, just. Hey, I've never done this before, but no one else in the country does this.

[John Holmberg]

That's what I think could happen. I'm not saying I'd win a goal.

[Dave Nash]

What's your master or your Swedish? Right?

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, I could probably do it. Probably get on the Swedish. Well, maybe not. Curling. They love that ice.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah. I mean, your best chance is to get into a Winter Olympics because summer is. Well, I mean, what. Name a summer sport where you. You don't like.

[John Holmberg]

Norway and Sweden are like kings of the Olympics in the winter.

[Progressive Insurance Announcer]

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[John Holmberg]

So that's going to be a tough get. I can get on the summer Swedish team doing something. Darts.

[Dave Nash]

Are you a hundred percent or you got like some little in you? Like, like a tweet now? You might have. Are you an Indian from India? No, your mom didn't. Didn't someone along the ways.

[Corey Hoshi]

Hey, German.

[John Holmberg]

Like a little German. Wait a minute, you got no Jewish. No, no. Yeah, the nose is Germany.

[Corey Hoshi]

No, no, you.

[Dave Nash]

You got. You gotta just tell someone you got some Indian in you.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, I could do that.

[Dave Nash]

And then.

[John Holmberg]

Then you'll be fight for India.

[Dave Nash]

Cross country Indian.

[John Holmberg]

Indian boxing.

[Corey Hoshi]

They're gonna go running.

[Dave Nash]

Not native American. I'm talking about India.

[John Holmberg]

India. Yeah, the real India.

[Dave Nash]

Hey, you would. Winter Olympian. You could curl on and from there.

[John Holmberg]

And I could take you guys with me. We'd start a team.

[Dave Nash]

I'm not in.

[John Holmberg]

Come on.

[Dave Nash]

I'm not going.

[John Holmberg]

You're not even. You're not even willing to lie.

[Corey Hoshi]

No. To get serious real quick, the one thing that I've always thought about, whether it's summer or winter Olympics. We're talking Winter Olympics. The fact that you train for four years. Yeah. You train four years. Speed skating or ice dancing or. And that morning you get up and you don't feel.

[Dave Nash]

Oh, I had too much Mexican food last night.

[Corey Hoshi]

You trade for four. It's not like a sport where you got 16 opportunities to try or you

[John Holmberg]

can have an off day.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah. No, you can't.

[John Holmberg]

This is it.

[Corey Hoshi]

And it's. You can lose by a hundredths of a second and you go home. Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Nothing.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah. I got fourth place. Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

It's crazy. I love the Olympics. I thought it was a blast and I really, I. It'll be great to watch it. Come back here in 2028.

[Dave Nash]

Speaking of that, how about the American figure skater quad God. Ilya.

[John Holmberg]

The quad God.

[Dave Nash]

The quad. Quad God. He's won like the last.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

How many? 10, 15 events.

[John Holmberg]

He was drunk. He shows up drunk. I'm convinced he fell down. He fell down like crazy. Dale could have.

[Dave Nash]

That's a meltdown.

[John Holmberg]

That was a meltdown.

[Corey Hoshi]

But.

[Dave Nash]

But we had the same thing with the gymnast in the Summer Olympics, Dawes

[John Holmberg]

or Simone Biles, when she had the spinnies spinning and Quit.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

Come on.

[John Holmberg]

People yelled at me when I'm like, you just get a little bit. She has a mental thing and she gets the spinnies. And I'm like, that's not a thing. When you get to the Olympics, you put that aside. You have to be stronger than that if that's a possibility. And I know if you've got them, go out there and flop around, but don't let the team down. You took a. You took a spot.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah. I'm not going to cut through. I don't want to throw my family under the bus. So I. It. We're together, you know, we had a family function and we're playing cards.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

Just like stupid card game. And one of the. One of the kids is playing, you know, a college kid girl, and she's like. At the end of the game, she's like, I'm getting so nervous. And I'm like, it's a card game.

[John Holmberg]

Which anxiety rose up, had to walk away.

[Dave Nash]

Card game.

[Corey Hoshi]

Blood pressure go up, David.

[Dave Nash]

But not mine.

[John Holmberg]

You can't. Yours can't go up any higher. Yeah, you're red line. You're on 8,000.

[Dave Nash]

No, but I mean, what is becoming of our youth?

[John Holmberg]

Well, it's interesting.

[Dave Nash]

It's a card game. Can we get a little tougher? Is everyone a snowflake?

[John Holmberg]

It's going to be that way for a while until. Well, the future belongs to bullies in sports because they're the ones looking around going, these kids are all soft, and they're just going to run over them and not care. And if you have a kid right now, you're like, just start knocking those soft ones all over the place. We'll deal with it later. As your dad, I'm say, don't. But then we're going to wink and we're going to have a blast with this.

[Dave Nash]

This guy is not a fatherly advice.

[John Holmberg]

This is fantastic idea. Dale was the future belong to a bully in football when you were there, the guy that bullied you the most, you had to step up.

[Corey Hoshi]

Or. Or.

[John Holmberg]

Or you got pushed down.

[Corey Hoshi]

I was always taught when you show up to a team or a college or whatever, the first day or two. Yeah. You find out who the badass is. Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Knock them down.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Do what you can.

[Corey Hoshi]

See what happens.

[John Holmberg]

Yep. And everybody has to have that mentality. Too much soft going on. And you'd think that it would only be in physical sports, but it's not. Because golf, which is like the Phoenix Open, a few weeks ago, we had a meltdown on 18 the, the. The. The. The mental shrinking of the athlete is. Is seemingly happening in front of. Happened again over.

[Corey Hoshi]

It was.

[John Holmberg]

It was a Doral.

[Corey Hoshi]

No, it was a Cognizant.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, okay.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah. For first event Florida. But the Phoenix Open thing, I, I have. I. I have mixed emotions. Why? Because. Why are you yelling at one guy

[Dave Nash]

who was yelling at him?

[Corey Hoshi]

There was a heckler right behind Matsuyama on 18

[John Holmberg]

in Phoenix.

[Corey Hoshi]

He didn't say his name.

[John Holmberg]

You can't complain about the crowd.

[Corey Hoshi]

No, no, no, no. I'm talking about yelling directly yelling at him. Yeah, it was literally. But that's.

[Dave Nash]

I'm sorry, Dale, go. No, one of. One of the. One of the things I want to point out is with gambling now.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

I thought immediate, like, you can bet on a golf event. You can go out there.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

You bet against the guy, your guy and someone else, and you can get under this other guy, you know, Noonan and his backswing and everything. And I, I don't know how that. That's not. I don't know how you.

[John Holmberg]

I think.

[Dave Nash]

Stop that.

[John Holmberg]

That's a good point. With gambling and stuff being in it.

[Corey Hoshi]

And they're talking about that for a different day. But college individual.

[John Holmberg]

Yes.

[Corey Hoshi]

You know, the, the side bets and whatever to where, hey, I'm going to get 50 yards rushing and all that

[John Holmberg]

in college, that used to be called point shaving. You know, that used to be a thing. Still is. I know it is. But now it's like in my hand and I'd be like, hey, I bet you to get nine assists the under.

[Corey Hoshi]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

The guy's got seven. I'm like, got 100 grand on that if you want some. And you know, well, the thing these

[Dave Nash]

kids need to realize is the government is watching everything that's going on in our phones. And if they, if they try to place a bet on themselves or someone, they know that they're. They're not going to get away.

[John Holmberg]

If they can't find Nancy Guthrie, what are you going to do?

[Corey Hoshi]

Right. All right, so moving on from that comment, but what you're gonna bring up with Shane Lowry. Shane Lowry, season pro.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. I saw the clips. You watched the whole thing.

[Corey Hoshi]

I watched the whole stretch run.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

Three, three shot lead with. I think it was four holes to play.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

Correct.

[Corey Hoshi]

And. And good golfer. John, did this not apply to you and I. Well, every. Every other hole, like Dave. Yeah, whatever. If you take an iron out as a professional, that's a location club. I'm not.

[John Holmberg]

I want. I want.

[Dave Nash]

I want to. I want to Clarify. He had a three shot lead with three holes left, three with three.

[Corey Hoshi]

And so par four.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

You know, usually it's a driver hole. I got a three shot lead I could probably bogey in.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And still win. You'll be all right. You hit a three iron and then whatever you do from there, he hits it that straight in the water.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And now you talk about metal.

[John Holmberg]

Yep. Now we can't make a mistake.

[Corey Hoshi]

No.

[John Holmberg]

And that's all that's living in his mind.

[Corey Hoshi]

Two double bogeys in a row.

[John Holmberg]

Was he up to that point playing well because the guy in Phoenix was not having a good day.

[Corey Hoshi]

No.

[John Holmberg]

It made sense that he started to meltdown.

[Dave Nash]

I'd watch it on tape and I had to see how this happened. So I watched the whole back nine or even front nine into the back nine, and the announcers were crawling right up his rear end. They thought it was the greatest, greatest spectacle they've ever seen on a golf course. And I couldn't wait for them to, to go, oh, what happened to this guy?

[Corey Hoshi]

Not think that was gonna happen.

[Dave Nash]

No, I, I, no, I knew the results and I went back to watch it.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah, but, so I knew, but knowing

[John Holmberg]

the results, you now look at the announcers being a little more flowery because you know, oh, you guys are gonna have to eat.

[Dave Nash]

They kept talking about, I'm going, oh my. Exactly.

[John Holmberg]

That's exactly gonna have to eat.

[Dave Nash]

How many times have you heard announcer just talk about how this. What a great. Know anything?

[John Holmberg]

That's all Chris Collinsworth does. I watched the Steelers game against the Raiders and Chris Collinsworth. I tell you what, man, if this, if this was any other game and you just showed me that and it was a Chiefs uniform, I wouldn't know the difference between Kenny Pig and Patrick Mahomes. Like, are you kidding me? Somebody play that for him again.

[Corey Hoshi]

No, to talk about the golfing through the first 15 holes.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

He had to make a couple five foot par puts to keep going. Little knee knock, but otherwise smooth, comfortable, great day, affable, no stress.

[John Holmberg]

And then none till there was bam. Is there? I'm an agony of defeat guy. You, I like the agony of defeat. See, well, I was raised by ABC's Wide World of Sports. And what's more interesting, the thrill of victory. Nice job. Or that dude that shot off of that ski lift on his face.

[Dave Nash]

All right, well, all right.

[John Holmberg]

Now, I think everyone remembers that.

[Dave Nash]

I think you're lying.

[John Holmberg]

What are you talking about?

[Dave Nash]

I'm going to, I'm going to, I'm going To ask you the question. Okay, we, we were talking about the Olympics.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

What was more interesting, America beating Canada or Canada losing to America and hockey,

[John Holmberg]

I will say, because it was competitive,

[Dave Nash]

that was an agony of defeat for a whole country.

[John Holmberg]

The reason why that is, is because that became patriotic over performance. Had the Canadians scored a goal in their own end and the game's over. Now we're talking agony defeat. And I can't get enough of that. But when I watch a dude.

[Dave Nash]

So you know what? You're not. You don't care if someone just loses.

[John Holmberg]

Well, if you lose in your competitive, that's just the sport. Okay. But if you go out and, you

[Dave Nash]

know, I just mentioned it, the quad, God loved it.

[John Holmberg]

Loved every fall. And when he fell the third time, I'm like, we got two more in us. And he only fell one more time. I'm like, oh, I wanted five. I had no issue.

[Corey Hoshi]

Neil O' Donnell in Super Bowl 30.

[John Holmberg]

Tough to watch. I'm a fan now. See, now I'm a fan of the Steelers, but if I wasn't, that would have been. It's memorable. Everybody loves that stuff. Everybody loves, you know, you know the name Boner, like, oh, that guy did a boner is from a dude named Merkel.

[Dave Nash]

Fred Merkel.

[John Holmberg]

Fred Merkel. Merkel's boner was a baseball lore. It created a word everyone remembers. The thing you have, the Mendoza line is named after a guy who couldn't hit over 200. Like, you just know these moments, the Bartman. I say these, these meltdown moments. These. Greg Norman first thought. Oh, first thought, he blows the Masters. Right.

[Dave Nash]

You know, I wasn't a fan of that because I wasn't a fan of Nick Faldo.

[John Holmberg]

Okay.

[Dave Nash]

But I didn't care who won, gave him the tournament.

[John Holmberg]

Nick Faldo had to do is show up to work that day and not crap the bed. And Norman's out there playing left handed for. No, really just kicking it all over. Loved it. Loved every second. It's more interesting when you have the Tin Cup.

[Dave Nash]

The reason you don't have a. If you don't have a stake in the game. No, well, no, no. Like you said, you're a Pittsburgh fan. You have a stake in the game.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, I see what you're saying. Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

You know, I. The meltdown. What about Jordan Spieth when he hit a couple balls in the water on 11 or in the short part? No, on whatever the short par three is there before the par five. And I was watching.

[John Holmberg]

I.

[Dave Nash]

That's a meltdown. I, I'm a fan of his. I, like, I just couldn't get over

[John Holmberg]

it when they, like you guys said that they were showing that guy's family prepping for a victory. Oh, the kids had to like, oh, you know what?

[Dave Nash]

There was no more camera following them.

[John Holmberg]

Nothing better when they're prepping the fam. I remember Phil Mickelson used to dress his family up like Quakers or whatever. And they'd run out there like they're the most wholesome thing in the world. And they'd show him before. And a couple times he didn't win the tournament, they'd show those. And then finally he won it. And they ran the Quakers out onto the. And I'm like, I don't need to see this success. This is no good. I liked it better when he would. He'd muck up the 18th and walk away a loser. Again, everybody. And look, I grew up a Cubs fan. There might be some correlation here to the lovable loser being something I relate to, but man, there's not much better than the milk.

[Corey Hoshi]

Now, the thing about Lowry is he still walked away with $800,000.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. But he still walks away with the memory. And that's what a loser says. Hey, I still, I still got. You didn't win anything. It's like the WNBA argues with you about, well, you couldn't beat us. And I'm like 53 years old. I hope I can't beat you. You call yourself a professional? I got one good item. Four replaced joints. What are you talking about? I can't. Of course I can't beat you. And the NBA never says that. When I say, well, that team sucks.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, you can't beat us.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, we all know that. That's not what I said. Oh, I love the meltdown. Golf is home of great meltdown.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yes, it is. Oh, it's such a mess.

[John Holmberg]

And it's why we watch Tiger. Tiger got boring. As great as he. I like. I like three things in sports. I like youth domination. I like meltdowns. And I like full on singular performances that cannot be stopped. I like dominant performance. Tiger woods was fun. To me, he's boring. No, it's not.

[Dave Nash]

No.

[John Holmberg]

If this dude can win by 20, I want to see 22.

[Corey Hoshi]

And to me, the things that made Tiger Woods Tiger was obviously take away the talent. His talent was top notch, but what I loved about him was his competitiveness. The fact that I saw him grinding over making the cut.

[John Holmberg]

Yes.

[Corey Hoshi]

Whereas 95% of top notch golfers, if they're on the Cut line. I said I'm. Get the hell out.

[John Holmberg]

I'm going home.

[Corey Hoshi]

Start to play. Start the plane and get ready to go. And he's grinding. Two more games. Tiger days.

[John Holmberg]

I don't know why there's still a debate about Jack Nicklaus and Tiger being who's best. And you might have an argument with that. But I would say it's Tiger because when he came on the scene, he dominated and would have continued. He would have broken Jack's record had the golf courses not gone. Put a tree where he hits it.

[Dave Nash]

No, he would. He would have. He would have broke the record if he wasn't banging every waitress.

[John Holmberg]

That's when he was great. It was his secret sauce.

[Corey Hoshi]

But when he got caught.

[Dave Nash]

Okay. Right.

[John Holmberg]

When you take away the banging. He got terrible at golf. But you look at what they did to Augusta when Tiger.

[Dave Nash]

They're doing it for everyone.

[John Holmberg]

They Tiger proofed courses. They didn't do that for anyone else in the history of sports. And any. They never tied.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well.

[Dave Nash]

They did it with like, listen, Jack was so much longer when he came out.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. But they didn't put trees where he hit it. I mean, they went out of their way to go. This is where Tiger's beating everybody. Make it so he has no angle in anymore.

[Dave Nash]

I will.

[John Holmberg]

They tried to take his.

[Dave Nash]

I mean, this whole podcast is doing.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, that's great.

[Dave Nash]

Is it?

[John Holmberg]

Okay.

[Dave Nash]

I'll just say I think Tiger at his best.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

Was the best ever.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

But Jack came in either first, second, or did that third in the majors like 37 times.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah. But does that make him a good loser?

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

He has the most runner ups in major history. Is that good or is that almost

[John Holmberg]

like when people are like, oh, The Celtics won 11 of 13 champions were three teams in the league. You know, But.

[Dave Nash]

But nobody else came close to that. And I'll just say this. His strategy was, I'm going to play my. I'm going to do my thing and wait for someone else to make a mistake.

[John Holmberg]

Weather the storm.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Which is brilliant.

[Dave Nash]

Well, probably about what. What would it be 20 sometimes. That they didn't make a mistake.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

And they beat him. If he could, he could have put his foot on the gas even more. And then one way more tournaments than anyone could ever fathom.

[John Holmberg]

I just don't think that you can argue with the idea that when they change the entire makeup of the game, they have a name for it. And you still. Then you go back out and they go, okay, watch this. And you win again. Anyway, Tiger had what he loved the most taken away from him, which is Perkins waitresses and painkillers. And once they discovered that and took it from him, he was terrible. It was like steroids.

[Corey Hoshi]

And he became a nicer, kinder dude didn't need that. No, but that's the thing.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

You talked to me about a dominant athlete. Oh, it's incredible. Are not friendly.

[Dave Nash]

You guys are missing when you know. Now he's getting divorced, he's losing his kids. That hey there was a stretch. It wasn't just, hey, I'm not banging the waitresses.

[John Holmberg]

It was somebody.

[Dave Nash]

His life was turned upside down. And I'll tell you this. That guy, he got into a comfort level with courses he wanted to play, courses that he felt good at.

[Corey Hoshi]

He.

[Dave Nash]

He stopped coming to Phoenix. He didn't want any of this nonsense going on.

[John Holmberg]

Crazy talk. He didn't need to. You get to a level where you do pick and choose.

[Dave Nash]

He pick and choose. And. And when he got thrown out of his routine, major problem was stolen from

[John Holmberg]

his marriage was happier when he had the Perkins waitresses. It was thriving.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah, I'm not sure.

[John Holmberg]

Probably she didn't know. He got caught. Biggest mistake he ever made.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah, I can't.

[John Holmberg]

Can't disagree with that. He got all drugged up on his painkillers and like his. All his gall. Yeah. That was the end of him. And you know who's to blame for this? His wife. Yeah, she screwed it all up.

[Dave Nash]

Could have been cooler.

[John Holmberg]

She could have been cooler. You know, if I'm living with Tiger and I find out he's banging other guys, you know, if we're gay, it'd be like, that's fine. He's keep the checks rolling in, doll face.

[Dave Nash]

I think she got a good payoff. Just saying now you didn't care about the fact that he was a legitimately really gross person.

[John Holmberg]

What do you mean?

[Dave Nash]

Wouldn't talk to kids. He wouldn't sign autographs. He'd just ignore everyone. So that's not a big deal. I think it was a big deal for me.

[John Holmberg]

He wasn't outwardly bad. He just ignored everybody. He was a little bit stone faced.

[Dave Nash]

It'd be like kids dying on the side of the hole.

[John Holmberg]

I had ignore them. Nobody's gonna do that. Dave Kingman flipped me off when I was 8 years old and he was my idol.

[Corey Hoshi]

That's pretty cool. Well, what did you say to him?

[John Holmberg]

Nothing. I was in Pittsburgh Three River Stadium, and the Cubs were playing the Pirates. And there's Dave Kingman. From me to Dave. And I'm screaming, kingman, Kingman, Kingman. I'm 8, 7, 8 years old. I'm screaming, Kingman. Kingman wouldn't shut up. And somebody in the crowd's like, hey, Kingman, will you come sign this kid's pennant? So he shuts up. Dave Kingman, Kingman. Tears in my eyes. Kingman looks over and just gives the finger to me and boom, immediately sobbing, you know, And I was upset that I didn't get Dave Kingman's autograph. So a man comes over and he goes, I'll sign your pennant. Kid signs it. And I'm like, thanks. It was Bruce Souter. I got a 10 times better autograph out of the deal, and I was still upset. But you know what? I was bothering a man at work.

[Corey Hoshi]

No. Baseball.

[Dave Nash]

No, there's not a lot of work going on there. As an ex baseball player, there's not a lot of work going on out there.

[John Holmberg]

Bothering him at work is all that happened there. My dad said, never yell at a man while he's doing his job.

[Corey Hoshi]

He's not doing his job. He's walking.

[John Holmberg]

So, no, he was throwing. They were doing a warm up. Telling you what, Learn your lesson.

[Dave Nash]

Well, see, that's bad karma for him. Never made it to hall of Fame, although he didn't do it anywhere.

[John Holmberg]

His King Kong was just. He was a.

[Dave Nash]

He had a ton of 30 hitter

[John Holmberg]

who just mashed home runs.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah, well, there's a skill there.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, well, he was good enough at that. Let's get into some sports. For God's sakes, guys, what's wrong with you? The combine happened this weekend. I watch it. I watch it every year. And I don't know why I sit and I will go, oh, watch out for that guy. Or keep an eye. And then last year I'm like, who was I looking at? I don't remember any this year. I tried to take notes. That became a mess. I was writing names down. I looked later, I'm like, who the hell was that? I noticed that when they showed the tight ends running 40s, they put a list up of like the fastest 40s in combine history. I'd heard of two guys. The 40 is not impressive. Other than.

[Dave Nash]

Who's the running back? Johnson.

[Corey Hoshi]

Who?

[John Holmberg]

Huh?

[Dave Nash]

The running back for the Tennessee Titans. Something.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, Chris Johnson, way back.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah, he was like a four two.

[John Holmberg]

Well, there's dudes who have done it and actually had careers.

[Corey Hoshi]

Right. But for the most part, you look

[John Holmberg]

at that, you look at that list and it's never. And the 40 is so important. And I think it's more just. And they're like, ooh, Mendoza's not running the 40. It's like, so what now?

[Corey Hoshi]

You two separately have heard my story of the combine?

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And I'm gonna tell it to our audience because it's a new audience, but I was part of the second combine ever. 1985 combine. I get this nice embroidered or embossed invite. You're Corey, divided to the 1985 NFL combine in Tempe, Arizona. Yeah. I'm like, great. Get to go home for a weekend, hang out with my buddies, whatever. None of us had any clue what the combine was. We all get there, we're down in the bar, we're all having beers with guys we played in all star games with, against, or with or whatever. And you're visiting. Also, some guy walks in and starts handing out these pieces of paper. Like, what's it? Five o' clock drug test, six o', clock Wonderlic, eight o', clock, fiscals. We're like, what? What is this? And then noon on field work, and it's. None of us have trained for anything, you know, nowadays.

[John Holmberg]

How did you do?

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, see, I begged out of the.

[Dave Nash]

You went from a second rounder to a fourth round.

[John Holmberg]

What's your wonderland?

[Corey Hoshi]

Can tell you this. And it's a great story. It's a funny story. It's a sad story. So the biggest thing about the combine for. Just everybody knows is not the running. It's not the lifting. It's not. It's the medicals.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And so back then, there were 28 teams. You started one end, and you walked all the way down. Four dog team doctors in every room. You walk in with your. With your pack of. Everyone looks, you got four team doctors in the first room. Thumb, hand, knee, ankle. They push, pull, prod. Okay. And you're walking around low grade shorts. Go to the second room, third room. I get to the last room. I know I had this. This lower back issue called spondylolisthesis, which is a small curvature. Hadn't ever bothered me.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

Last room. Get off the table. The Chicago Bear team talked to this big, bulbous drinking nose. He goes, hey, Hoshi, bend over and touch your toes. I go, you.

[John Holmberg]

Because that's the one thing that.

[Corey Hoshi]

And I bent over, touched my toes, and ran his hand over my lower back.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

So we need to get a picture of that. I didn't really think much of.

[John Holmberg]

It was back. Like a tail.

[Corey Hoshi]

No, it was just a small curvature of my spine.

[John Holmberg]

Okay.

[Corey Hoshi]

But it puts pressure on your Back as an offensive line. That's not.

[John Holmberg]

No.

[Corey Hoshi]

Not conducive.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

They never gave you the results of your physicals.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, really?

[Corey Hoshi]

And so, boom. A mid second round draft pick. That's where I'm projected at.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

I go, late fourth round. I don't know why. Nobody knows why. Nobody understands. I didn't know till five years later. I'm sitting in the Cowboys trading room, we're having beers after practice, and our trainer goes, hey, you want to see your combine thing? And I'm like, yeah, I'd love to. He goes, finds it in the back, opens it up and there's a big red X through it. He goes, oh, we red flagged you. Yeah, back. Lower back. Kidding. He said, I bet you half the teams in the NFL red flagged you. Which means we wouldn't draft you in any of the 12 rounds.

[John Holmberg]

Really?

[Corey Hoshi]

Because of that Bear team doctor. Are you kidding me?

[John Holmberg]

And you put the hex on them after that.

[Corey Hoshi]

But then they went ahead and won the super bowl by rookie year.

[John Holmberg]

But that's all right. They got theirs later. That was the last of it.

[Corey Hoshi]

At the end of the. At the end of the day, what I always get a kick out of is this offseason. It's the way the NFL's got things going.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

People are rising and people are falling. People are staying the same. You haven't played a football game.

[John Holmberg]

You haven't done anything.

[Corey Hoshi]

You're in your underwear, you're watching, you're watching film. I see what you can do. Not a narrow dynamic suit.

[John Holmberg]

Isn't it more just to find out if the dude can be coached or like. No, I.

[Dave Nash]

Everyone want you, like, control. They want to control the process and they want to take as much information as possible so that they feel like they make the right decision. I don't think that can. But they want to measure your hand.

[John Holmberg]

They want. And like that's an actual. Thing is you have a quarterback with small hands. Not bad thing.

[Dave Nash]

Yeah, but if he can make the throw.

[John Holmberg]

But the problem isn't about making the throw. It's about getting hit and holding the ball.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah. Well, again, if you're drafting a quarterback, okay, if he gets hit, is he going to drop the ball? No. Protect the son of a.

[John Holmberg]

Well, that's the thing too. But I mean, you get guys like, you know, the smaller handed quarterbacks that, you know, the, the dudes like Troy Aikman. I always say this. When I met him with you, the only thing that stood out was that dude's hand wrapped around mine four times.

[Corey Hoshi]

It was like.

[John Holmberg]

It was incredible. So you can imagine him holding a football and getting hit, and this is no jeopardy at all. A pop and loose, like that thing is in a grip. A dude with a smaller hand is going to have a hard time gripping that.

[Dave Nash]

So I'm not going to argue.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, bigger hand.

[Dave Nash]

Quarterback, very good. But they. They want to try to make so. So it's. It's quantitative. It's not just in the past. As a scout, you say you see it, you feel it, whatever. Now in baseball, there's Moneyball. It's you, you. They're trying to quantitate the data to say, all right, this is the way we're going to go. So they make less mistakes. I don't know if that's working in football or at least working as much as they would like to, but they're going to keep trying to quantitate and gather data and information so that they don't make mistakes.

[John Holmberg]

Because I like the combine for the entertainment value. It looks fun. But I also think that if you've got scouts in a scouting department in the NFL, shouldn't they get more out of watching that guy play a game than they should watching him?

[Dave Nash]

I. Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

So it almost seems like, again, I

[Corey Hoshi]

think more mistakes are made.

[John Holmberg]

I do, too.

[Corey Hoshi]

When you have your opinion swayed by a guy running in an aerodynamic suit.

[John Holmberg]

Well, what was it? Sonny Stokes of Ohio State ran a 42840 and everybody shot him away. His brother is thousands times better than him on Ohio State, and he ran a great 40 also. But all of a sudden he's like, oh, this other stove. I'm like, no. Like, he's not anything better than what he was coming out of this thing.

[Corey Hoshi]

Styles. Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Or styles. I'm sorry I said styles. You're right. He's not anything better than what you had him graded at before. But suddenly, like you said, you got. Oh, you got all lit up on the. On the. On the track and field events.

[Corey Hoshi]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

And it doesn't seem to apply as much. And I agree completely. Well, that's why you should know more about.

[Dave Nash]

I love when Mendoza said, I'm not running.

[John Holmberg]

I'm not.

[Dave Nash]

When you are, I think a high enough pick. I love when they say, listen, if you haven't seen me for four years, do what I do, and you need more F you.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

And I would gladly take less money and go somewhere else. Say, f you. I'm doing my. If you need more time to figure out if I'm your right guy, I Don't want to be in this organization.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. I don't understand at all. Like, Deion Sanders ran that 40 and just left the building. He's like, that's all anybody needs. I have made my mark, and they already know I'm good at football.

[Corey Hoshi]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

Like, I've proven myself in Florida State. I'm going to run your 40. I'm going to break the record. I'm going to leave. And he. Then he did, and then the swagger came with it. And you're like, that's really kind of what it is. I kind of had to wonder, but I don't think it's a big money maker if it's more for just, like, entertainment value to sell some commercials because it's sponsored. I noticed that the stadium in Indianapolis is loaded with Under Armour. And then another thing would scroll them like they are. They're selling some stuff here. And I don't know how much you actually get out of that thing.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, there you see some coaching staffs are not going now.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And again, two things in my mind you get out of that. The medicals.

[John Holmberg]

Sure.

[Corey Hoshi]

Obviously negative for me, positive for some people. And then interviews, you get. Sit down, talk to the kid.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

I think that's the most.

[John Holmberg]

I think that's the part, too. And that's just not good tv.

[Corey Hoshi]

I don't.

[John Holmberg]

I think there's just a whole bunch of, like, let's run them through the paces and see how they are, and then we'll. We'll talk to them after we've worked them out and see if they're, you know, they feel good about themselves, they had a good day. If they had a bad 40, we'll find out if they're. If they're mentally strong because they had a rough day on tv. I think that's more of it. It's almost like to put a. Put them in a pressure cooker and then talk to them after.

[Corey Hoshi]

Or you, you know, just with friends, you meet a guy. Yeah. And you sit down, talk to him for 10 minutes.

[John Holmberg]

You're kind of like, yeah, yeah, this guy. Or doesn't take me 10 minutes.

[Corey Hoshi]

Or, hey, I really like that guy.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

You know, and the guys from Appalachian State, you haven't sat there and talked to.

[John Holmberg]

But I like the idea of a guy who was supposed to be known for his speed, running a 4, 6. And you're like, all right. And then just have him come over and he's like, if he's still resilient, going, you know what? I got a toe Thing I should have been better. And you can see the strength in somebody against their adversity. And the alternate is true as well is if a guy overperforms, does he become a jackass right away? So I think it's less about just the medium guys. They already know most of the performance. But when a guy has like, oh man, he's really rising. Let's go talk to him after he's got a little of the ego sauce poured on him and see how he responds.

[Corey Hoshi]

Another thing is if I'm Fernando.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

I'm not throwing the eight receivers I've never thought about. All I can do is look bad.

[John Holmberg]

And it's also with no pressure. It's a three step drop on a soft toss from the. It's like this isn't simulating.

[Corey Hoshi]

But I want to throw to my guys. I want to feel comfortable.

[John Holmberg]

And the only thing that you remember from the combine is and they run it every year is Josh Allen's 70 yard throw on a rope. And it's what we used to do when we'd go to parks and go who can throw it the farthest? And it was always ooh at the end. It doesn't mean you were the best quarterback or accurate or whatever. I don't know. The combine seemed silly this year and I think it's the first time I watched it and I said, I'm taking notes. Yeah, what am I doing? And there are guys who splash. There are guys you look at and go, okay, like he's special.

[Corey Hoshi]

Like you're looking at Steelers.

[John Holmberg]

I'm looking for Steelers. You're 100, right?

[Corey Hoshi]

You have a special sickness.

[John Holmberg]

Yes, I have a very sad thing. And speaking of Steelers and we'll get to this real quick. Kyler Murray is probably out as a Cardinal. Most likely he leaves somewhere else.

[Dave Nash]

I wouldn't let him go.

[John Holmberg]

I, I've said that about him for years. I, I, I just for the fact

[Dave Nash]

that they paid him.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[Dave Nash]

Well, there's, now they're going to get nothing for him.

[John Holmberg]

What's the plan going forward? Jacoby Brissette.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, that's the thing. Do you do that, you try and bring in the guy from San Francisco. Johnny Mac Jones. No, Garoppolo.

[John Holmberg]

He's been in the Rams.

[Dave Nash]

I mean, I mean you're already, you're already, you're, you're, it's dead money against camp. You're not going to get a benefit from this.

[John Holmberg]

I would, I would just eat it.

[Dave Nash]

Well, I would just say play it, play. And I would bring someone in to start. Start working my way in.

[John Holmberg]

That's logical and smart. But we're talking about the Cardinals. So what they'll do is pay the dead money and send him off and give him a second chance. And I look at the Cardinals and the jets as the same. I don't. Kyler Murray was a rookie year. They won, what, 11 games? 10 games. He did terrible in that playoff game, but C.J. stroud did, too. And nobody's quitting on him.

[Corey Hoshi]

But remember that, that particular year, they start off 7.02-and then the DeAndre Hopkins goes down. They start losing some guys.

[John Holmberg]

So Kyler can play.

[Dave Nash]

There's no Tommy DeVito, but.

[John Holmberg]

Well, there's nobody's Tommy DeVito, that's for sure. So if you're. If you're a GM and Kyler gets cut, you're the Steelers or. Well, the thing is Dolphins.

[Corey Hoshi]

I mean, what do you do as a car. If I'm a Cardinal fan, the thing that would scare me is that all of a sudden Minnesota.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

Picks him up. Good coaching staff, good stable organization. And we saw what they did with Darnold to get him 100%. That would be probably shocking to Cardinal. Seth, I do want to say this real quick. I think there's two topics we need to talk about before we get out of here. Number one, the grades came out again.

[John Holmberg]

You're coming at me. You're coming at me.

[Corey Hoshi]

And I thought. I thought there's a lawsuit that said you can't come up with these. These results and make them public. But they did again. And you just look at the local squad.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And again, it's like ownership.

[John Holmberg]

F. Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

The way you treat families. This. The building, that.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

You don't give yourself a chance to win.

[John Holmberg]

Interestingly enough, though, the Steelers were rated lowest for facilities.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yes.

[John Holmberg]

And that's a winning place.

[Corey Hoshi]

Right.

[John Holmberg]

But the Cardinal.

[Corey Hoshi]

A lot of B's and C's.

[John Holmberg]

The ownership. Yeah. There's a few other B's and C's. The ownership group is. Is the problem.

[Corey Hoshi]

And let me tell you one other thing. That is a big alarm sign to me when you win three games.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And you're going to tell me your head coach is a B plus.

[John Holmberg]

It's not a thing.

[Corey Hoshi]

Something's wrong.

[John Holmberg]

It's not a thing.

[Corey Hoshi]

That means you're super comfortable.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah. It's not a thing at all. Yeah. The last thing I want to talk about is. Is visiting the White House real quick because they made the big stink about the Olympic boys doing it. You went.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yes.

[John Holmberg]

Is it Good.

[Corey Hoshi]

It's to me. I didn't care who was in there.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

It's the matter that it was.

[John Holmberg]

But do you get anything out of it? Do you get to. You get the tour everybody else gets. You get anything special?

[Corey Hoshi]

Oh, no, you get. Yeah, you're in there with the president. You're in a. You get to see all the rooms. It's a nice little tour.

[Dave Nash]

I think it was in there with Clinton. Clinton was passing around Monica.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, that's true. Well, used cigars.

[Corey Hoshi]

Hey, Hill. Hillary wasn't bad looking back then.

[John Holmberg]

All right. Well, yeah, you do have cte, and evidently it wasn't football related. All right, that should do it. Unless you guys got something else you want to try last second. Oh, boy. Don't do it. Yeah, don't. The sun's. Yeah. Well, you got your bet. You won your bet.

[Corey Hoshi]

I won my bet. And I think. Don't you think that they might have righted the ship a little bit? Devin's coming back tonight.

[John Holmberg]

They're all right. I'm not.

[Corey Hoshi]

You're not as excited as you were.

[John Holmberg]

Dylan Brooks is broken. Everybody gets a game or two in and then they're out. I don't know. The second Booker steps on the court, Jalen Green gets hurt and vice versa. So it's just. It's so hard to get excited knowing that their fragility has been their problem. They're a fun team. They would have won 47, 48 games had they kept this thing healthy. They just can't. And, yeah, they're good enough, but this is a team that I think will go into the playoffs, get bounced and be happy. The last thing I think they needed was to be a team that goes 47 wins with a four seed and then gets trounced. And the next thing you know, you're like, we gotta start making moves. We were close. We were close. I think what they are is a

[Corey Hoshi]

year ahead of schedule, and I think being the sixth seed is a definite possibility.

[John Holmberg]

Well, it's now the height that's the ceiling.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah. Yeah. But I think a six seed not get out of the play in. Yeah. It'll be interesting to see how. How Devin and Jalen work out. Probably the most disappointing player for me, Jaylen Green.

[John Holmberg]

When he's. When he's great, he's great. And when he's not, he's just.

[Corey Hoshi]

And he's been great in various spurts. Yes. And now he's talking about heavy legs.

[John Holmberg]

I wouldn't mind. This is bad. Missing the playoffs. What?

[Corey Hoshi]

No, barely. You mean, do the play in or the playing game. Yeah. And then I don't think they can

[John Holmberg]

get into the draft and, like, make this.

[Dave Nash]

Oh, you want to tank? Like, I don't want to tank.

[John Holmberg]

I'm just saying let's not. Let's as fans, not think this is a thing. I mean, let's be honest as to what they are.

[Dave Nash]

We will have, imagine plenty of time to talk about the NBA tanking and that.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, that's going to come up soon enough. By the way, I got solutions.

[Corey Hoshi]

It has come down to Arizona high school basketball, too.

[John Holmberg]

Oh, that's true. Because you've got the. Well, there's a lot going on with that Arizona.

[Corey Hoshi]

Well, you got teams saying, I don't want to play in the open. I play in the. In my own division. And it's like, yeah, you're in high school.

[John Holmberg]

It's true. All right, that's enough of this nonsense. My name is John Holmberg from 98 KUPD, wildly successful show. You can get it online 98kupd.com Dale is on the main event, wherever you get. Podcasting, Internet. That's easy. Dave does the Angry Patriot each and every week, teaches you how to stay healthy and then clears his throat and drops the mic.

[Dave Nash]

I've got nothing going on.

[John Holmberg]

I won't let him go. Right now, it's five minutes with a madman to end the show. Go.

[Dave Nash]

Well, Dale mentioned you asked him about going to the White House. Remember when we were growing up in the 80s 90s early, that you thought that everyone was for America and it was just, well, this party had this thoughts and this other party, Republican, Democrats, they might have a different way of going bad about it, but they have this, the best interest of America at heart. I don't think that's no longer the case. As a matter of fact, I don't think that's no longer the case for either party. I don't think they give a crap about any of us. And that's, you know, I've shown it again and again and again on the Real Matrix, the show they don't care about. That's a uni party that is just trying to do everything they can to ruin this country.

[John Holmberg]

And what do you think turns that tide?

[Dave Nash]

Well, everyone has to wake up and realize that everyone is so. Everyone's so like my party, you know, they think that's all smoke and mirrors, that nobody in government cares about us. When I say nobody, I mean very few.

[John Holmberg]

But the chemtrails, it's dumbing us down. I know what it is.

[Dave Nash]

It is the world elite that run the central banks that control all the money. They're the ones that run everything. Or the CIA or these NGOs that they don't change every four years or in Congress every two years, every six years, four years, whatever it may be. People in and out, in and out. And the people that don't leave, they go. We don't care what they do, because we're not going anywhere. We're going to keep doing our thing.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, it's this. It's the oxytocin machine. It makes everybody feel great about their opinion. It makes everybody right all the time. And then they walk into a world where they get disagreed with and they don't know what to do. It was built and we hold it every day. We pay for it every month. I think that that's. That's a contributor to what you're saying is, like, my world's more important than the overall view.

[Dave Nash]

Well, and not only that, but we are inundated with so much information that. And. And. And you don't know what to.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah, we don't.

[Corey Hoshi]

You don't know what.

[Dave Nash]

What's right and what's wrong.

[John Holmberg]

We're overheating. Too much info.

[Corey Hoshi]

When you say about these.

[John Holmberg]

Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

Is. You'll see homeless people.

[John Holmberg]

I know.

[Corey Hoshi]

They have fun.

[John Holmberg]

I know that's.

[Corey Hoshi]

That's a lot.

[John Holmberg]

People who are broke are texting about how they're broke. Well, you did, but that's.

[Corey Hoshi]

That's the last thing.

[John Holmberg]

That's 100, correct. Yeah.

[Corey Hoshi]

And.

[John Holmberg]

And we all look at, like, what the COVID vaccine did to our bodies and everything else. Nobody's looking into this. Nobody's saying, wow, this Instagram and all this other stuff.

[Corey Hoshi]

You're looking at the kids a little bit.

[John Holmberg]

They're trying.

[Corey Hoshi]

Yeah.

[John Holmberg]

Because they know deep down this is poison. Yes, it's bad, but it's convenient.

[Corey Hoshi]

When we were 12 years old, with this at our hand, the porn.

[John Holmberg]

I wish you would know me, I'd be a pasty, white, dehydration, dehydrated sponge in some basements doing a radio show.

[Corey Hoshi]

I wouldn't.

[John Holmberg]

I wouldn't. I would have. I'd have just. Just.

[Corey Hoshi]

I'd have.

[John Holmberg]

I'd have dehydrated to death. Gary.

[Dave Nash]

What do you mean you would have?

[John Holmberg]

I'm doing it now, and I still managed. Look, that's just because I started strong and I've got a couple years before I can actually pull it all out, if you know what I mean. That's it. This show's over. The sports thing's done. Hopefully, barring injury, will be back next week. See everybody.