Ride Home Rants
Ride Home Rants
From the Gridiron to the Classroom: Bob Niziol's Journey Through Football and Education
What happens when a former college football coach transitions to a pivotal educational role? Join us on the Ride Home Rants Podcast for a heartfelt and engaging episode with our guest, Bob Niziol. Bob, who once coached at Bethany College and now serves as the Director of Pupil Services at Bentworth School District, takes us through his career evolution. From the highs and lows of collegiate coaching to the diverse challenges in education administration, Bob offers unique insights and personal anecdotes that paint a vivid picture of his dynamic journey.
Revisit the overwhelming yet rewarding world of being a student-athlete at Bethany College with Bob's personal reflections. We share stories of making the travel team, the camaraderie formed with teammates, and how coaching changes influenced the football program’s dynamics. Trips to CMU games, recruiting escapades in Florida, and unforgettable moments with mentors and teammates bring the narrative to life, highlighting the everlasting bonds and life lessons learned on and off the field.
As the episode takes a light-hearted turn, we dive into football season predictions and compare quarterback performances, including a fun "Fast Fiddy Five" segment with random questions. Wrapping up, we reflect on the enduring friendships and positive messages that have stayed with us from our Bethany days. Whether you’re a football enthusiast or someone who loves nostalgic college stories, this episode promises a delightful mix of professional insights, heartfelt memories, and entertaining discussions.
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Welcome everybody to another episode of the Ride Home Rants podcast. This is, as always, your host, mike Bono. I have a great guest for us today, but first and foremost, I have to get these new sponsors in here, and that is Buddy's Beard Care. Buddy's Beard Care provides premium men's grooming products at an affordable price. Products are made right here in Ohio, ohio, and Buddy's Beard Care supports local. The majority of their supplies are from other Ohio based companies. You can find them on social media at Buddy's Beard Care or online at buddiesbeardcarecom. Use the promo code Bono15 and you will save 15% off of your order. I've been using these products for a couple of months now. My beard has never felt healthier. It has never been softer, according to my wife, and has never grown faster Again. Buddiesbeardcarecom. Get yours today Also, as you can see by the hat I have been wearing.
Speaker 1:We also have from former guests of the show, Matt Lando Landowski and Sweet Hand Sports. Elevate your game with Sweet Hand Sports. Our sports gloves are designed for champions, providing ultimate grip and durability. Achieve greatness with every match. Choose Sweet Hand Sports for the winning edge. Grip your victory at SweetHandSportscom. Use the promo code Bono10 and you will save 10% off. They are not just batting gloves anymore. They have got into the golf game and have golf gloves.
Speaker 1:Lando was nice enough to send me a golf glove. It is phenomenal. I swear by this glove. I mean, I don't know if anything can help my golf game at this point in time, but it'll definitely make you look good while you're on the court Again. Sweethandsportscom. Promo code Bono10. That being said, my guest today is a former coach of my alma mater in the Bethany Bison. He's been coaching for a while. We're going to get into what he's got going on now, but Bob Neisel joins the show. Bob, thanks for joining man. Hey, mike, thanks for having me on. Hey, not a problem, we're always looking to have other Bethanians on here, for sure.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it seems to be, I guess, a trend.
Speaker 1:Yeah, a trend. We've had a lot of coaches with Upton and Weaver and Mr Askew, who's a regular anymore on this show. But yeah, yeah, when, when you have a podcast run by two Bethanians, I guess it's. It's kind of hard to have a few bison on the show from time to time.
Speaker 2:Nice, nice, nice. Yeah, I mean, wow, when did you graduate?
Speaker 1:Mike, I graduated in 2012.
Speaker 2:Okay, okay, that's why, all right.
Speaker 1:I think I just missed you when you came in there.
Speaker 2:I'm trying to think I went in in 2002, graduated in 2006, and I left in there. I'm trying to think I went in in 2002, graduated in 2006, and I left in 2008.
Speaker 1:I went to Bethany in 2007. I started in 2007. I did a victory lap and did five years and graduated in 2012. You were a GA there too as well. That was the I graduated in 2006.
Speaker 2:It was 2007, as well. That was the. So I graduated in oh six, it was a oh seven, oh eight. I was the GA, a GA for with weave up to in garb, yeah.
Speaker 1:Okay, cause I cause it was, it would have had have been 2009 and 10. I think I was the sports director for the radio station Okay and I and I broadcast every director for the radio station Okay and I and I broadcast every home Bethany football game. So I'm sure our paths crossed at some point, bethany for sure, with Rosie a lot, then with Rosie a little bit. Yeah, the my, my cohost was Jared Martin, the juice man, as everybody knows him. I don't know if he was still there when you were there. I think he was a year behind me.
Speaker 2:That seems about right.
Speaker 1:Yeah, he was the play-by-play guy. I was the color commentator when we announced the game. It was a lot of fun. I had a lot of fun announcing the games. Getting to see every home Bethany game doesn't hurt at all. No, we announced the game, so it was a lot of fun. I had a lot of fun announcing the games and, you know, getting to see every home Bethany game doesn't hurt at all. No.
Speaker 2:Well, most of the time it doesn't yeah.
Speaker 1:A lot of tough losses For sure.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for sure. I mean, I feel like it was a lot leaner whenever I went in and was playing than you know, when I was coaching it was better and went in, was playing, then, you know, when I was coaching, it was better and I felt like it took turns. You know, the more positive I think probably wouldn't.
Speaker 1:You know you were there and doing announcing and everything. But yeah, for sure. Yeah, I mean I would say. But you know you've worked in education for a long time, you know, after bethany. You know, can you tell the listeners what you do now exactly for education and how you ended up in that role?
Speaker 2:Right now I'm in my third year as the Director of Pupil Services for a Bentworth School District. It's out in Washington County, pennsylvania, about 20 minutes east of Washington. I've been in the district for going on six, starting my 17th year. So in that time I started out all in special education. Uh, started with elementary learning support, went to high school life skills, back to elementary for emotional support, went to the middle school for some uh learning support and then kind of migrated into administration. And I've been there for the last three years going on, starting the fourth year and, um, it's just kind of been a natural progression. I guess I don't know if the coaching aspect led to moving into administration from teaching, but uh, it just has been a natural, you know move to make. Keep going that route, I mean. But all that started going back to bethany.
Speaker 2:Uh, I think of Dr Robin Kuhl. I don't know if you ever crossed paths with her. She was an English professor. She was my freshman seminar teacher. She got me hooked into the education department with Keely Camden at the time and then took a bunch of classes with Keely. She was like, oh, yeah, you're going to be all right, try special ed. I was like don't know that much about it, I mean. And then from there I was hooked.
Speaker 2:And then, you know, keeley even kind of guided me towards my master's at WVU, you know, as a graduate assistant at Bethany At that time. We got our master's at WVU and then after that, you know, finally went into you know, a real job, growing up, becoming a teacher, that sort of thing but even just being in contact with her as a Bethanian now she's at Carlo. Now I ended up getting my principal papers at Carlo, I don't know, just keeping in touch with, I guess everybody from Fiddy to Coach Upton is at W&J now. And yeah, it's just Bethany has been a great place for me. You know. It's obviously set me on a path, you know, professionally. But you know you've met a lot of great people that you've been in contact with and stayed close with and it just it's different than everywhere else it.
Speaker 1:Just it's different than everywhere else. But yeah, I, I think the smaller size of bethany being such a close-knit people, like you know you see everybody on campus, you know whether you you know them personally or you know it's just a passing you get to know everybody on a different level than you are. Like, I mean, you went to wvu. I mean most people, there are just a number. You know what I mean. Like, um, I would that. That was the dream school for me was wvu. I've always been a mountaineer fan growing up in west virginia, um, and oddly enough, I'm like the only person in my family not to go to wvu. Uh, so I mean my dad graduated from there, or no, my dad went there, my sister graduated from there and I was on the path to, to, to be a Mountaineer and ended up earning a, a scholarship to swim at Bethany. So made the choice a little easier take a little bit of money off the tuition.
Speaker 2:So coach McGowan your coach, or was he?
Speaker 1:Yeah, Coach McGowan was your coach or was he Coach McGowan? Was the coach there Loved Coach McGowan to death. He was a great coach. I've had a lot of swim coaches in my time, but no one that actually worked individually with each swimmer like McGowan did. We butted heads a lot, like most players and coaches do, especially when he wanted to try to make me a breaststroker.
Speaker 1:But I was not a breaststroker, I could not get. I could not get the kick down, so he made me hang in the deep end, deep end, into a hundred breaststroke kicks. That was it. That was my practice for the day. Still didn't help, I hate to say it, coach forgot. I still didn't help. I hate to say it, coach, but God, I still can't do it. But yeah, it was. It was a lot of a lot of great people. You meet, you know and you know still connect with the state Mr Askew, fetty, weaver, upton still in contact with all of them to this day and it's been great, I mean. And you were a former player at Bethany, so what was it like playing and then coaching for your alma mater?
Speaker 2:So when I went in, was it Chris? Chris Snyder was the head coach and I went in going from, I guess, a small Whitfield school to then going to college. It was just an eye-opening experience in terms of everything you know college, not it was?
Speaker 2:it was just an eyeopening experience, you know, in terms of like everything playbook players, you know. You know being a single way school and then you know, all of a sudden, you know every classification and three different States and even more, you know Florida, everywhere else, all you know kind of coming together and it, you know, just, it was a little awkward at times. I mean my, my first experience. I remember walking into the weight room it was the first day I think there were 60 freshmen on the football team and I. There were kids that we walked in we're getting ready to do different tests and a couple of kids looks, you know one kid, looks another and goes, yeah, I'm not doing this. Turns around and just like quit, before anything started I was like whoa, like you. You came, you you unpacked, your parents, dropped you off, you went through everything and you walked in, looked around, went yeah, I'm not doing this, and just walked out. That's insane to me, oh yeah. And then you know we go in for the lifting test and a man who was actually a freshman in in my class I didn't know that at the time he gets down on the bench. 225 rep test was what they did at that point. He gets down and reps it out like 30 times Two and I'm just like, oh man, what did I get myself into? Like that's a grown man, this or that.
Speaker 2:Well then, later we go to positional meetings and we're, you know, introducing, getting to know people and I'm like that is a freshman, I was like what, and you know, as camp progressed, there were, you know upperclassmen. You, I mean, you know how it is, you, you got to know every one upperclassman you bonded with, I mean, and you know, the one upperclassman was like man, like if that person is that big, that strong and they were fast, something's up. If you came to bethany, like it was all division one, everything, but you know, and it, you know it didn't pan out for that guy, you know he, you know, didn't make it, yeah, all four years on a football team or anything, I don't. I don't remember how many years he made it, but it just that was, you know, my opening experience whenever we went in my, my class, not just football, but bethany had dropped tuition and cut it back and might drop to like 20, 000 or something. So there was like 300 something freshmen that came in that year, which was, you know, unheard of for them. Yeah, I mean, I think all told, when we graduated it was about 200, a little over, maybe like 208 or something. It was smaller but it was noticeable that, you know, they in aging college people don't always make it through. They leave, they transfer, they do other stuff.
Speaker 2:But that was, you know, kind of the Bethany experience at first and I was there with Snides for two years. I remember thinking, well, what we won? Like three games. My freshman year I got in two games, uh, which was, you know, pretty exciting, making the travel team, like just coming in from a small school, having the little you know. All right, these are my goals internally. You know, I want to make the travel squad. I want to, you know, play in some games. You know great experience, uh.
Speaker 2:Then then, you know, jump to my sophomore year. Snides is still there as the head coach. We, uh, I end up starting as a sophomore. You know great experience, fine, um, one of my good buddies now started as a freshman, uh, and then he were the same class. He's, you know, started as a sophomore as well as junior senior. As you know, I, we both went on. He was a four-year starter, I was three-year starter on the offensive line. But uh, that's was. Uh, you know he's a blast to, you know be around with and you know we're still close. Today we actually work at bentworth together. Um, in an odd twist of I guess I don't know, but we talked about, the thing is staying close and yeah if you look out for your friends and everything to keep them.
Speaker 2:I don't know abreast or just involved in looking out for them, but after that sophomore year we had a coach. A coach came in and met with us. It was early, I feel like it was like November maybe right before J-term, Christmas break, whatever and he came in and said hey, I'm going to be resigning, I'm going to go to be the head coach at Seton Hill.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Whoa. So he did that and then it seemed like it took a while I don't recall. I remember I think they might have hired the coach later in the spring. And then it was kind of like over the summer things kind of developed more and we showed up, you know, the first day in fall with steve lee as the head coach. Uh, steve was, you know, a great guy, good human being. Um, I guess in the two years that he was there it didn't, it didn't go well. It almost kind of felt like it went backwards. We were one and nine.
Speaker 2:Both of those years, I know, senior year, they kind of went out like, I guess, on the juco route and tried to pull kids from all different places that, um, kind of fit in, kind of didn't. Maybe, maybe some of them didn't quite measure up to, I guess, college, uh, you know. So we tried it, but you know, and then I feel like it was black monday whatever they joke in the NFL like the day after our season ended, senior year, he gets fired, the staff gets fired. The GAs obviously stayed around. They're a little different. They let them, I guess, continue with their coursework and earn their master's degree that they were going for.
Speaker 2:But when coach lee came in, he took andrew rossi. Everyone called bunk. So I played two years with bunk and then he gravitated into a graduate assistant position. Prior to that, gino ochap was a graduate assistant. He I missed him whenever I came in. He was, you know, starting coaching, but there always seemed to be people that but you know, matriculated through the team and then got to the point where, all right, they're going to be a graduate assistant, go for a you know an advanced degree and it just I was fortunate enough that that's kind of how it took for me.
Speaker 2:So I was all set. I graduated, I started interviewing for teaching positions, um, and then I got a call from bunk, who was still graduate assistant, said, hey, you know, you want to be a ga. And I was like I mean, kind of it seems so cool. Uh, you get to stay back where you want to. You know, you stay bethany, everyone yeah, I don't know too many people that didn't have a good bethany experience. So I mean, obviously, for me I had a great one and it was all right.
Speaker 2:This is an opportunity to go back and you know, do that get a degree? You know that was one of the few times for me. Football, you know, I got a free degree out of it. You know I wasn't getting a degree to do, um, you know, football is playing it as an undergrad. But so I met with, uh, coach weaver was new at that time and we kind of, you know, just talked. I remember we met at the pier in wellsburg oh yeah, pier 12, yeah. So we went in there or we actually ate outside and we're talking and bunk was there and he was like, hey, you know, if coaching's, you know, if you do this and coaching's your thing, in a couple years, years he's like, well, look, I'll try to get you somewhere else. We'll try to have contacts in lots of places, we can go that route. Or he goes. If you just want to come get your degree and then be done, we can do that too. So that's where I then moved into coaching there and then there with weave and with garb. Those are guys that had been a few places in ivy league places that knew a lot of football, had experienced a lot of football, coached a lot of players that you know in the nfl at right, you know different levels and you know so they. That was just a wealth of experience and knowledge that I was able to pull from that, which was, you know, phenomenal. Uh, I mean I remember after the first year our defensive coordinator, bethany Kevin Loney. He ended up um going to work for Notre Dame. Yeah, so you know we was able to help, you know facilitate that because he knew um I guess. I guess it was kind of like the football operations guy pretty well and they had an opening and it, you know, worked out for Loney that he went and, you know, got that. I know Leib, brian Leib was a intern graduate assistant. He also played at Bethany. He ended up leaving after my first year of coaching and went to, I want to say, bridgewater, virginia. So I mean again, just like going out those different directions For me.
Speaker 2:It me was I finished that that degree, um, at that point it was a. I had my undergrad was elementary ed, special ed from bethany. Then I did reading specialist from wvu, just all staying in education field. And then, you know, we were looking and I guess at that time it was my girlfriend who is now my wife. We were just talking and you know she was a nurse, is a nurse. She was like what do you want to do? I can get a job anywhere. Do you want to go chase this coaching thing or do you want to be a teacher? I just felt more tied to, I guess, my family and everything you know near Pittsburgh and, all right, that's what I'm going to do. So we, you know, ended up living outside of pittsburgh in the south hills and I, you know, commute down to washington county for work and I've just continued to do that because I like there I mean it has some ethnic qualities, being a small, single-weight district. You know that you can build relationships. That it's just. I don't know, it's something.
Speaker 2:When was in high school it was my high school swim coach. I know it's funny. I swam one year in my senior year. He looked at me and he said you know, in life it's more important who you know than what you know 100%. I mean, that's how a lot of things came to be Like that's how I ended up. You know, being a GA, a lot of things came to be like that's how I ended up. You know, being a GA, that's how I ended up getting a job at Benworth. Knowing someone that I graduated with at Bethany, that was like hey, put in for a job here, I did I just how it all kind of worked out, yeah, yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I've always said that. You know I it's not what you know, it's it's who you know, especially in life later on, and you know it's it. It brings truths and so many different things. You know being, you know, I guess, still right now a part-time stand-up comedian. You know it, I'm getting shows, you know. I know somebody who's producing that show. I know somebody who's booking a room for this club, but you know I'm getting shows that way and you know it's not what I know about the, the business of comedy. It's who I know to get me booked onto these shows and you know it, it even to this day. I mean going back to Bethany Ties Fitty, you know, coming on board and helping out with the, this show here. You know it's taking it up to a new level, that you know we're now having guests and everything like that.
Speaker 1:When before, when it just started, it was just me kind of ranting about my day, you know my day job, which is um, which was still fun. But you, you know, you know somebody, and then now we're running a podcast together. You know it's all ties together and it seems to be all coming back to Bethany for me. Unfortunately For me, you know Bethany wasn't the first choice for me. I say that to everybody. I mean I've said it on here before but glad I went there a lot of, a lot of people that are still in, in contact with, like we've been talking about with the weaver, upton bitty, mister uh, garvey and and all those, all those guys and everything like that and even, um, some you know fraternity brothers I was a part of uh, the delta fraternity. Uh, delta, delta. There know still talk to a lot of those guys today. You know it might not be every day but you know, every now and again you know you get a text from somebody. It still makes you feel good, somebody from from back in the day and you know it's.
Speaker 1:It all stems to the one place Bethany was that smaller school. I went to Brook High School, which was a bigger. At the time it was a 4A school which in West Virginia was one of the top two leagues and divisions. We had a lot of kids there and a lot of people Going to Bethany. It still felt like I was at, you know, brooke and with that bigger uh, I guess you could say conference or division that we were in, especially with uh with swimming.
Speaker 1:But you mentioned it earlier, when you, you know, walked in as a freshman into the weight room and you know you were kind of show shocked with with how it was. You know I had walked into swim practice and you know I would. I was always the the best guy on the team at Brooke and him and it's like I am dog crap compared to some some, how fast some of these guys are here, so it may bait you up your game a little bit, but it's, it's a great experience. Um, but what was it like when you got to coach with weaver upton garvey and, uh, mister, well.
Speaker 2:So the it was, so mister was there and bunk were there, both with steve lee. So, bunk, I played like he was the center, I was guard, he matriculated, you know, to GA with whenever Steve Lee was there. And then Mr Weave came in with Steve Lee and those guys hung on whenever, you know, steve Lee left, so and Upton was a full-time coach at that point with Steve Lee and he, you know, stayed on as well. So then, essentially, weave came in, garvey came in, upton stayed on staff, bunk was there, uh, mister was there. Uh, lee was there, is, uh, the other, like intern slash, ga, and then they brought in kevin looney's, the, to be the dc.
Speaker 2:So, just going in, I guess you only know the player side and you, you know, you have a pretty good idea about what that's like and interactions and you know different things. And then, moving to the coach's side, there was just, I mean everything like it, like the one thing, like I guess Garv did it at his other stops, but he was like our overnight trip coordinator, you know, along with recruiting coordinator, and just, I mean he was meticulous on details and everything like I remember we'd sit down at staff you know just football staff meetings. And he would, you know, all right, we're traveling to this game here, this is the hotel we're staying at, this is, you know, the food we're going to eat after the game, this, this, like he just had all these details, you know. And then, like the next year, we were to talk about something and I, you know, I said, hey, how do you? He's like, oh, you know, I have to do research, I look ahead at all this stuff. And I think we were going to I don't know if we were playing cmu at the time or what we were doing and I told him. I said, hey, let's get sandwiches. You should see how much sandwiches for peppies are. You know just a little sandwich shop on the north side of Pittsburgh and see, you know what they would do. So he's like all right, I'll look into it. He's like, hey, it's a pretty good deal. It's better than you know us buying. You know they used to get you like a pizza person, you know, for the bus ride, yeah. And he's like, yeah, it's a pretty good deal, you know, squared away.
Speaker 2:And I mean, I went up at this point. I guess it was probably five or six years ago. I took you know, at this point I had two kids, my wife and I. We all went up to uh cmu for the game. Bethany came up and garb, you know, was the head coach at that point, you know, and I was laughing because afterwards I'm talking with them at the buses. They're all teams, you know, showered up and they're leaving and here comes the peppies guy down. You know I said you still, he goes, he goes, I, he goes. I can't not get this sandwich if we come here. So it was funny in that regard, but I mean everything.
Speaker 2:I went to the Florida trips with Garv when we were recruiting, you know, out of state kids Cause Florida at the time might still be the case has no division three. So you know, all the division three schools from you know everywhere would go down and there were like three big uh recruiting events, you know, and the high school coaches would were there and they just have video and give you information on kids. Sometimes they'd have a kid, you know, around for the different things to meet with, talk with all you know, trying to get them. You know everyone was looking for a division three football. You know, hey, look, these are opportunities we have. This is coming to school. You don't have all these opportunities down here if you're not getting division one scholarship, um.
Speaker 2:So that was again another experience that didn't even realize as a player, that matriculating to coach and, like I said before, just like all of the knowledge that those guys had, ivy league wise, and you know the other stops they had and the different people they you know had coached with and they brought those ideas. And going back to connections, I mean there was a guy that upton knew that you know, we knew from one stop, you know that was it at some other, you know state school in west virginia. You know, at that point it was just so odd how they had all these different connections. At one point, going to Florida with Garv Raheem Morris, who's the head coach, raheem went to Hofstra. We've actually recruited him to come play at Hofstra. Garv knew him because Garv was coaching at Hofstra. After that Garv and I go down. We spent the night at Raheem's house, one night that's insane.
Speaker 2:He was the DC. I think he was the DC under Gruden in Tampa.
Speaker 1:Tampa yeah.
Speaker 2:We were down there doing the recruiting thing. It might have been a month or two later, I think, gruden got canned. Like we were down there doing the recruiting thing and it might have been like a month or two later, I think Gruden got canned and then Raheem was like elevated or something happened. It was like holy cow, like what is this? An NFL head coach's house?
Speaker 1:Yeah, you're exactly right. I'm a huge Buccaneers fan, so that's exactly how that lined up. He was under Gruden. I don't know why they got rid of Gruden, but Gruden gets canned and then Morris steps in. That's just the connections you make. It all ties back to that too, as well. You played with and then coached another former guest, obviously enough, tj Parker. Oh, yeah, parker. So what was it like playing and then coaching TJ?
Speaker 2:Playing. So we were a little older than him and he came in and it was he one of the first. No, there was like Murs was before him. There always seemed like somehow there was like a I won't't say like just just a very strong receiver, like a someone who was a number one and you know, you know I, I forget what mers, maybe mers had, like the, you know, for for one point he had like the catching or receptions in a game record and it was like oh, it's pretty big deal, like oh, thanks, we said that and parker came in and he went, went um, you know he, just like he and murs were like, you know, one and two. And then I feel like Parker, you know, quickly ascended obviously to, you know, he was wide receiver one, probably while I still played. And then afterwards, while I still played, yes, and then, like I think it was, cruz came on a little bit.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Right, you know, and then after Cruz, who was the kid, I mean I was gone, the kid from, uh, I want to say Beaver Falls, it was real good, I can't remember there's Walker no, he was the running back.
Speaker 2:I would say, yeah, running back. I see, uh, that's, maybe it was. It was someone who was a receiver, I mean, he was up there with now you need up to for that, uh. But I mean parker, the 120 you know, playing with them. I mean you probably did similar things. But so parker came in.
Speaker 2:He must have been, we must have been sophomores and he came in as a freshman and snides had went to some the chris snyder was the uh head coach. He went to some barber in wellsburg and had a unique haircut where, like just, he had real high uh side heights, yeah, and they had like you know, like they were notched and stuff. It was just it was his style. Whatever he did it so it might have been bunk was like he's, you know, parker's like I need to get a haircut. He's like, hey, go into wellsburg and say, tell me what the snides he's like, all right, I will. He comes back to practice. You know that. You know, the next day he's like you guys, look what you did. Like it, I mean it just he looked exactly like coach snyder, like had to nod, the high sideburns and notches up the side of the head was just hilarious, um. But you know, like I mean like anyone you know, if you can be reflective, you can see what changes you, how you grew in your time at Bethany and then you also, you know, have the opportunity to see kids. You know, I guess others grow I shouldn't say kids, maybe it's older now, but you, so Parker, I can remember seeing him grow to the point where, like I'm coaching, and then Parker's the leader, he's looking to get all these I guess stats Not in a greedy wide receiver type of way, deal away, but more just as he's competitive he still is, he's a head coach now. He's just very competitive.
Speaker 2:It's who Parker was, from video games in the dorm room to anything and everything. Yeah, that was his haircut this night. So that was pretty good, almost as good as convincing. I don't remember who it was. It was a kid from Florida. We told him that snow would burn his eyeballs so he had to wear goggles around campus and he said, well, well, how come you guys don't have to? And we said, well, it's because we grew up here and we lived here. You're from florida, you know, gonna cause you damage if you don't do it. So it was like three solid days when you know you had the flurries in the air and he's wearing goggles going between classes. That's hysterical.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, that was rough, and then he finally like ferret out of the joke where I go. So I, you know, I got to ask this, cause I ask everybody who knows who knows Betty, you know, you, you, you coached him for two years when he was there and played with him yeah, yeah, and play with him for two years when he was there and played with him yeah, yeah, and played with him. What was Fiddy like as a player and then going as a teammate and then getting to coach?
Speaker 2:Fiddy as a teammate. He kind of I'm not always a big fan of Rudy now, but like Fitty had, like the the, the qualities you liked about Rudy, like I mean he'd jump in everywhere. I mean he was like you know, hey, we need a scout team, whatever he'd jump in, you know he. And he wasn't doing it to get attention or to, I guess, promote himself at all or get he get reps. I think it was all. For Fitty was always about the team and he was. He just it seemed like he loved the team, always wanted to give everything to the team and it was genuine, which is why I mean everyone likes Fitty.
Speaker 2:So that's the part that comes. His genuineness has to come through with that. Otherwise I think you just think he's annoying. You know you wouldn't care. So you know. And that's where I kind of think like Rudy is kind of annoying For a matter of, but from the movie, I guess, at times, and then coaching him, it was the same thing, like you could see. You just saw it amplified. He did care, he was genuine, he loved football, he loved Bethany, he loved the team. You always want to have him around Absolutely. He was good for morale, he was probably good for your mental health overall. No, yeah, I still wish, even to this day, that.
Speaker 1:I could bottle his energy. He's good for you know, probably good for your mental health overall. But no, yeah, he's great. I still wish, even to this day, that I could bottle his energy that he has and sell it, because I'd never have to work again. He's always 150 miles an hour from the time his eyes open until the time they close, and I love that about Fitty he doesn't have an off switch.
Speaker 2:And he always makes you comfortable. I ended up a few years ago they had what the 125th anniversary of football, so I had like dinner and there were a lot of older guys that you know were there, that you know helped organize and donate more money than you know anyone like I do, and Fitty's there. So I ended up sitting at the table. I think up and style with us at fitty's like hey, can I sit here? I was like, yeah, fitty, why wouldn't you be able to sit here? You know so he sits down. He's like you know, hey, coach is when he just starts. I was like fitty, it's like, just call me bob, like we played together.
Speaker 2:He's like you know you know, just 100 miles an hour. But he, you know you could just jump in and he, you pick up where you left off on things. But then he also, just you know, he, he cares, he's interested, he's well fit yeah, I, yeah.
Speaker 1:There's no other words that to describe it. You know I love pity to death, um, but you know I want to. I want to get your take on this because we are running down here near the end of the show. But what is your outlook? Uh, you know, being former player, former coach of the NFL season this coming up, do you think there's going to be any surprise teams this season?
Speaker 2:yeah, I really hope to be a surprise. You have to. What quarterback's going to do something? You know CJ Stroud was the surprise last year. You know he was fantastic. Does Bryce Young make that leap? I mean NFC South isn't great. I don't feel great about that, you know idea. I mean Herbert's good. Does Harbaugh make that big of a difference that maybe they take the West? I mean I don't know. Is the surprise going to be someone rising up or is it going to be the Chiefs not making it to the NFC.
Speaker 1:They're winning their third straight Super Bowl.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I guess that's. I can't even say that's an outlook.
Speaker 1:I mean they're still strong and stacked yeah, I feel like they just, they just keep reloading like there's no, like all right, they're gonna have to rebuild.
Speaker 2:They just reload every year it's andy reeds like found a secret, like, hey, I'm gonna target these players there. Other people would say they're good, but they're going to be really good for us. And he just well, even last year, with no receivers that were strong, he was like, hey, look, we can do this. You know, I don't know. For me it's going back to I hope the Steelers do something in the playoffs for the first time in a decade. Yeah, that's my big one, maybe I'm with you on that.
Speaker 1:Uh, we'll. We'll ask this what do you think about ross being named qb1?
Speaker 2:you know everyone complained about denver, but if you look back at his stats, you would have taken those in a heartbeat last year. Yeah, you know what was. What was it? 26 touchdowns last year. That's more than you know. The quarterback More than Pickett. Yeah, yeah, so no, I mean I'm all for it until we need not be for it. Okay, he's got the first eight weeks. If it's going poorly, then Justin Fields has a lot of up and down.
Speaker 1:You get a solid back, so you get a little solid backup. Fields, yes, and Tomlin has already even said that there's going to be fields packages in these games. So like I think there's going to be, for the first time in forever, a two QB system in Pittsburgh, I never thought I'd say that. You know, growing up in West Virginia about 45 minutes outside of Pittsburgh, I've seen every sealers game for the past 35 years that I've been alive and you know it's just it's. I've never I don't remember ever seeing a two QB system.
Speaker 2:No, I mean they had what Cordell Stewart, cordell, yeah, he, you know he wasn't, I don't know. There was a court to quarterback system. It was just like we got these plays, we're going to sneak them in there. Yeah, a little package for him. But I mean, yeah, fields could truly have, you know, a couple. Have packages of multiple series in a game.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, I agree, I agree on that. But, bob, we are running down near the end of the episode here. I do have to get this segment in before we end and that is the Fast Fitty Five. Five random questions from the wonderful manager of the podcast, johnny Fitty Falcone and, as you know, fitty, I'm sure he had these kinds of questions. They have nothing to do with what we've been talking about for the entirety of the show, bob. So, if you, if you're ready, we'll go ahead and get started. I'm ready, all right, who wins in a fight, five kangaroos versus Mr Askew, a golden retriever dog, and Elon Musk? Wait, who wins?
Speaker 2:in the fight.
Speaker 1:The five kangaroos and they're facing, mr Ask you, a golden retriever, and Elon Musk at the same time, mr Ask you, elon Musk in the retriever?
Speaker 2:Okay, yeah.
Speaker 1:Question number two what's more terrifying a clown or a herd of stray cats walking down the road? A herd of stray cats, A herd of stray cats? Okay, I don't like clowns, so that's an easy one for me. It's a clown, yeah. But question number three if you flip a coin, what side are you picking? Heads or tails, Tails? What is the best lunch meat? Yeah, he threw a tough one in here.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it is.
Speaker 1:Ugh, ugh.
Speaker 2:The best Not fitting Um the best not fitting um hard salami okay, solid choice, solid choice.
Speaker 1:Last question here would you rather be a transformer or a wizard?
Speaker 2:or a wizard or a wizard transformer okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I feel like he had to give you an easy one after that lunch meat question at the end of that one. But that was the Fast 35. I'm kind of glad to see he's going back to the fighting questions. He kind of has a theme and he got away from those types of fighting questions like we had in the first one there. But he doesn't send me these till the day we record.
Speaker 1:So like I don't get to see these until like the day of and like be like all right, what do we, what do I got to deal with here at the end of the show. So I think he just want I think I'd make the guy who's trying to be a comedian laugh. So I don't know, but love it it's. It's a fun way to to end the show here. But, bob, I do give every guest this opportunity at the end of every show. If there's anything you want to get out there, whether it's just a good message, promote your school, that you're working at, anything like that I'm going to give you about a minute and the floor is yours.
Speaker 2:I mean, I guess, just promote public ed. I mean everyone has the opportunity, it's free to the students. I mean, obviously the taxpayers foot the bill. But yeah, I mean, go make advantage of your education what you want it to be, Seize the day Okay. Yeah, I love it when people what you want it to be you know, seize the day, okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I love it when people would just have a good message like that at the end of the show, because we have a lot of fun talk during the show, but I love it when there's a good message to end the show. So thank you for that. Thank you for joining us here, but that is going to do it for this week's episode of the ride home rants podcast. I want to thank my guest, bob, for joining the show and getting to reminisce a little bit and talk everything you know about Bethany and everything like that. That was a lot of fun to hear and, as always, if you enjoyed the show, be a friend, tell a friend. If you didn't tell them anyways, they might like it just because you did. That's going to do it for me and I will see y'all next week.
