Name, Image & MicNess
Name, Image & MicNess dives into the dynamic world of college athletics, exploring the evolving landscape of Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL). Presented by Krewe Allons, this podcast ensures that Louisiana Athletics remains at the forefront of competitiveness while offering fans exclusive access to players, coaches, and staff. It's also a unique platform for Acadiana businesses to connect directly with student athletes, fostering stronger community ties.
Name, Image & MicNess
Closing the Gap with Louisiana Head Football Coach Michael Desormeaux
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Curious about how a former record-breaking quarterback can tackles a football program? Join us as we chat with Coach Michael Desermeaux, head football coach of the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns. He shares his journey from the gridiron to the sidelines, offering unique insights into the ever-evolving offensive strategies and the significant impact of the NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) landscape on modern college sports. Get an insider's look at how his playing days have influenced his coaching techniques and how he tailors strategies to fit the distinct talents of his players.
Ever wondered how individualized player development translates to team success? This episode sheds light on the balance between personal growth and collective victory. We discuss the importance of meaningful drills, the role of veteran players, and how constant feedback aligns individual goals with team objectives. We underscore the necessity of well-structured drills and the power of veteran leadership in guiding younger players toward achieving their full potential. Listen in as we explore how each player's dedication contributes to a stronger, unified team.
What does it take to prepare student-athletes for life beyond the field? Our final segment covers the holistic support programs at the University of Louisiana, from top-tier nutritional and housing facilities to impactful personal and professional development programs like the "Art of Business". Discover how athletes are being groomed for future success by connecting with business leaders and embracing community values. We also touch on the excitement of the Cajun Field rebuild and the irreplaceable impact of inspiring coaches like David Comeaux and Coach's own father. Don't miss this compelling conversation filled with passion, strategy, and a strong sense of community—plus, some fun anecdotes about local dining and food traditions. After all, we are in Lafayette, La.
To support the collective and join the Krewe, visit Krewe Allons' website today!
To learn more about ULEDF and the Art of Business, visit Upper Lafayette's website.
This podcast is part of the AcadianaCasts Network. Send an email to info@acadianacasts.com to start or enhance your podcast journey!
Welcome to another episode of Name, image and Mikeness. I'm your host, carter Semino, founder of the Acadiana Casts Network. Now, if this is your first episode that you're tuning into, make sure you go check out those first two. We had some great conversations, first with Dr Brian Maggard, who learned us up on the current state of college athletics and also how any fan can support the Kuralong Collective. We'll have more information on that in a little bit later on in the show. But we also chatted with Todd Citrin and John Williams about Upper Lafayette and the Art of Business program, which I've seen work firsthand for creatives, musicians, artists around Acadiana and I'm seeing it firsthand on the ground level with these student-athletes. I think it's a complete game-changer for NIL and I'm excited to explore that through the coming episodes, including this one which features a staple of the Louisiana Raging Cajun program, the pride of New Iberia, head football coach Michael Desermo. Now, in developing the art of business on the student-athlete side of things, coach Des has been just a great source of information for us. But also the man knows how to motivate and inspire a room or a crowd. In our conversation with Coach you'll hear some of that motivating passion, but you'll also get to hear how his football program approaches this crazy world of NIL Name image and likeness folks. It was great sitting down with Coach and picking his brain and I hope you really enjoy that conversation.
Speaker 1:But before we get to it, I need to talk to you first about our title sponsor of today's episode. It is Upper Lafayette and the Art of Business program. Now, are you a local business looking to make a meaningful, are you a local business looking to make a meaningful impact in your community? Well, welcome to the Art of Business, a personal and professional development program brought to you by Upper Lafayette Economic Development Foundation, where creativity meets commerce and where your business can be more than just a name. It's a cornerstone of community and economic growth.
Speaker 1:Upper Lafayette isn't just about networking. It's about building a stronger, more vibrant community where businesses like yours thrive. By joining us, you're not just getting a seat at the table. You're becoming a vital part of the movement that supports local art, culture and economic growth of our area. Now, what's in it for you, you might ask? Imagine your business gaining visibility, all while contributing to the cultural fabric of Lafayette. Plus, with our strong network of like-minded businesses and community leaders, you'll have endless opportunities to connect, collaborate and grow alongside creatives, student-athletes and vetted members from our community, ready to take your business to the next level. Join Upper Lafayette Economic Development Foundation today and be a part of the Art of Business program. Visit our website at upperlafayettecom or follow us on social media to learn more. Together, let's create a community where business is an art. Now, with all that being said, here's head football coach of the Raging Cajuns, michael Desermo.
Speaker 2:All right, coach, you became a fan favorite when you played qb here for the rage occasions. You know breaking records with your feet, but people forget that you also played a bit of defensive back. In fact I got to teach hayley that she didn't know that. But what was the reason? You ran the ball so much? Because you still had the brain of a defensive back and were ready to throw an interception.
Speaker 3:I don't know. Some people might argue I didn't have much of a brain at all. No, I mean, growing up, I mean I always played defense, I played offense. You know, I kind of truthfully never wanted to play quarterback. You know, whenever I was growing up and so whenever I was a freshman, sophomore in high school, we ran the wing tee and so a lot of my production was, you know, on waggles, running the ball and things like that. So it's just kind of always been part of my game a little bit. And when I got here we had a great running back right. Everybody knows Tyrell Fenroy, our offensive line. It kind of fit us really good and we fell into this kind of zone read offense. That really just kind of took off for us a little bit. So you know we had a really good scheme and it was just kind of a good fit for us and who we were and I probably ran it a little bit better than I threw it. So you know that ended up being kind of our bread and butter.
Speaker 2:That scheme that you ran in college. Has that helped inform you as a coach and you know kind of the scheme that you run today?
Speaker 3:Yeah, very much. So you know it's changed a little bit, I think, based on who you have at quarterback. If you have a guy that's really a threat as a runner to really do some damage, you kind of make him the primary runner. But it's not new anymore. But from whenever I played the advent of RPOs in that time frame, from whenever I played to now, there's so many different ways that you can still read people but get it to a different playmaker that can kind of hurt you with the ball in their hands a little bit more.
Speaker 3:And that's kind of where we are now, like with our quarterbacks. They're good athletes, they're really smart, they make good decisions, but they're not guys that maybe are more dynamic with the ball in their hands than you know a tight end that we have. You know with Terrence Corder or one of our receivers that we can get out on the screen or certainly our running back. So for us it's like you know, you let them make that good decision and then you try to get them to distribute the ball where it goes. So yeah, there's a lot of principles in it. Just kind of find a different way to make it fit your personnel a little bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for sure. Well, first, I appreciate you joining us for this and talking with us, sitting down with us busy time in fall camp. I got to say, man, it is hot in here. I can't imagine what it's like out there outside of the indoor practice facility. How do you guys balance that here in South Louisiana, man?
Speaker 3:Well, you know, I think the heat's our advantage and to me, you know you have to embrace it, you know, and that's an advantage for us. So we do practice outside, we're smart about it. You know we practice mostly in the evenings. You know we'll get out on the field around 6 and kind of get started there. So we'll go later, you know into the evening, or we'll practice early in the morning, start at 8, where we're out of there by 10.30, something like that, before it gets really hot. But no, I do believe you have to embrace the advantages that you have. And for us, you know, when we play in the heat, you know in September you play, you know somewhere, you know we say up north. You know North Carolina to us is up north.
Speaker 2:Yeah, for sure, north Louisiana is north.
Speaker 3:Pretty much right past Alexandria. So no, but I mean seriously, you know you play somewhere. You know, like last year we played at Minnesota and they were talking about how unseasonably hot it was and our kids were just, you know, it was 84 degrees and they were fired up because it had been about 98 degrees down here. So you have to get out there and you have to do it. You know we give them plenty of water breaks, we do hydration tests, we do a lot of things to make sure that they're ready to go and ready to perform, and certainly our athletic training staff does a phenomenal job. But you know, I think you have to get out in it and you have to embrace it, otherwise, you know, you kind of lose the advantage that you have a little bit.
Speaker 2:Yeah Well, we're going to get into the real reason why you're here talking about this whole NIL landscape and the crew along and what we're kind of building over here. But before that you've seen every level of this game, coached and played in high school and college. A little bit of pro, some Canadian ball you had a contract with the Calgary Stampeders but, point being, you've coached and played several positions. What's your all-time favorite drill?
Speaker 3:All-time favorite drill. My favorite drill are the drills that are meaningful. All right, so you got all these people that have all these crazy drills out there. I think what a good coach does is they find meaningful ways to work the things that their players are struggling with or need to improve in. And you know, that's kind of what we talk about. You know people have their everyday drills and things like that, and that's varies by position.
Speaker 3:But I think drill work should be meaningful, it should show up on the tape and if it doesn't, then you're not drilling it properly or you're wasting your time with that drill. So I know that's kind of a vague answer for you, but I like drills that work. I like drills that are meaningful and that carry over. And, uh, you know, for us and our staff, that's kind of what we do is you sit down and you say, all right, you know, have an improvement plan for each player and for a unit, and you know the things that are continuing to show up, that have to be tweaked and have to continue to be worked. You've got to find ways to do that in a small group setting to where it can carry over to the 11-on-11 periods.
Speaker 2:No, I like your answer because you know, as a player, I had one illustrious career in my eighth grade year at St Paul's and then ended during an Oklahoma drill where I'm going against guys who played like Pee Wee football for years junior high football and then I wanted to look at it. I love football so much so I switched with a quarterback a third-string quarterback, and I'm playing DN drills with quarterback pads and then broke my humerus in two spots, separated my shoulder, broke my clavicle. I walked to the car like this. My mom's like there's something wrong with you. I was like no mom, it's just football pain. She's like no, buddy, I think you're done. That's a bad day.
Speaker 3:Yeah, that's.
Speaker 2:That's a tough start to it but the the building drills around, something that's actually going to have an effect on the field in the game, I think is a great, great philosophy.
Speaker 3:Well, I mean, it's meaning.
Speaker 2:It's not just doing a drill just to do a drill.
Speaker 3:It's like anything, you know you itch where it scratches and so you know. Those are things that you know, the fundamentals that show up over and over, and obviously that's most of your every days. But you know there are a lot of different fundamentals and techniques at every position that you've got to master to be able to effectively play that position. And you know, I think you know, yeah, I mean, there's a part in the game where you got to go do you know Oklahoma's? And you got to do those things. But certainly there's a lot more to it than just you know running up in there and hitting the first thing. That shows.
Speaker 3:You know there's a lot of different ways that you got to get there. You got to figure out how to beat blocks, you got to figure out how to, how to block. So, yeah, I mean, to me I think it's all it's like anything you know. I mean, if you've got a business and you know there's an area in your business that's not excelling, you're going to find a way to make it better. You know otherwise you cease to exist.
Speaker 3:So, for us. That's the name of the game.
Speaker 2:I'm kind of fascinated by you know, just being here for all these interviews. We've had several coaches and players, but like individually coming one by one, and you know, I saw a punter working on something. We got a guy over there working on something. Where does the individual fit within camp and in that, in that work that you guys put in on an individual level?
Speaker 3:well, I think it's, it's individual accountability. You know that works towards team ownership. And you know what you encourage these guys to do is understand that their small part on this team is critical for our team. And individual goals are great as long as they're in line with what our team is trying to do. And you want guys that we want guys that want to play in the NFL. You know I want guys that want to have all conference seasons, that want to, you know, catch 50 balls, that want to run for 1,000 yards. You know I want guys that want to have all conference seasons, that want to, you know, catch 50 balls, that want to run for a thousand yards. You know we want quarterbacks to set goals. We want to complete 70% of our passes. Well, all of those goals are in line with us having team success. So, um, this is the ultimate team sport in my opinion.
Speaker 3:Um, but it takes every individual doing their part the best they can, and we have a lot of guys over here that you know. I mean you come in this building almost any day of the year and we've got guys in here that are working on their craft and, you know, as coaches, we try to give them some things to work on. We try to constantly give them feedback. I think feedback is critical to growth. You know, if you don't know what you need to work on, give them feedback. I think feedback is critical to growth. If you don't know what you need to work on, then you're just working without a purpose. I think the feedback is what's really good. A lot of these guys we just actually did this. We get halfway through fall camp and we do individual improvement plans for every player on the team. These are the things you need to get better at. Here are the drills. Here are the things that we're going to work to help you get better, and a lot of them come out here and they'll start working on their own.
Speaker 2:Well, while we're here, the show is named Name, image and Likeness. Tongue in cheek play on the words Name, image and Likeness, N retention Right and obviously flashy recruits and big-name transfer portal signees get some of the headlines in media. But why is it so critical to have veteran players, especially guys who have been in the program?
Speaker 3:Well, you can't replace game experience, you know. And in college these guys are still physically maturing. All right, you know, you go back and I think of my personal experience. And in college these guys are still physically maturing. You go back and I think of my personal experience as a redshirt freshman when I first got to play by the time I was a senior. Playing Physically you're a different person.
Speaker 3:So physical development is one thing. Football is a game where physical development happens all the way through the entirety of their career. You have some other sports where high school guys the physical nature of it. It's okay for them to play early Over here. It takes a different kind of cat to be able to physically be able to do that. So the physical maturity is important and they get in our strength and conditioning program for multiple years and they build themselves into that. But game experience is different and you can do it.
Speaker 3:We run through as many situations and scenarios here as you can in practice and scrimmages and we try to put them in all these different types of situations that are stressful. Yeah, and nothing emulates what a game experience is. So for us, you know, our NIL focus has been on retention because we I love the way we get to do it. We still get to recruit kids that choose to come to the University of Louisiana because they see the value in this place. Yeah, they come here because they see this as a fit, they see this as a home, and then for us, you know, the reality is that once they start to play really good, there are just a lot of options out there. Now I mean right, wrong, legal, illegal, it doesn't really matter, it's what's happening and they have those options.
Speaker 3:So we just want we want to make it easy for them to stay, and I guess that's what it is. We don't want to make them feel like they've got to go out and look for other things. We want to be able to reward them for representing our program the right way as young men, first, as players, putting out a performance that's worthy of being compensated for and then really, at the end of the day I know all of our fans we would love to see nothing more than, year after year, to continue to have guys get their names called in that NFL draft from the University of Louisiana. I don't ever want to have another one that came here that we developed, that plays here, plays really good and goes somewhere else and they're drafted from the University of whatever. That's something that you know. Yeah, I'm competitive and that's something that irks me as a competitor, so I want to continue to recruit the right types of kids, like we're doing.
Speaker 2:I just want to keep them here, and I think that's what everybody else wants too yeah, what is what is for for fans who don't understand what is the value of seeing that Louisiana brand name on the ticker on during the NFL draft?
Speaker 3:god, it's a number one. For me, it's personal, it's a point of pride. I mean I played here and you know I love seeing the University of Louisiana represent the NFL. I mean, to me it just it's it's guys that you know, it makes me feel like I was a part of it. Now, coaching them, I get to be a part of it. Um, and recruiting, though, it's like people, a lot of people don't understand.
Speaker 3:Recruiting never stops and everything matters in recruiting From the moment that families walk into our building, the way that it looks, the cleanliness of it, the things being in order, to the graphics on the walls, to the NFL names on the walls, to the guys that get drafted. We have the ability to promote. Hey, we have all of these guys who have come here and who have played in the NFL and signed these contracts and have had success at this level. That path has been defined already. That path is possible. You know it's human nature. It's easy to see a path that you know has already existed. It's really hard to envision what you have never seen before. So for us, the proof is in the pudding man. We've got guys that are out there that are playing at an extremely high level and they've done it from here. So you use that in recruiting, because every kid we recruit wants to play in the NFL and the best part about it for us is you go down the list now.
Speaker 3:Tracy Walker, robert Hunt, kevin Dotson, you know all these guys. None of these guys were overly recruited. I mean none of these guys were overly recruited. I mean none of them. Elijah Mitchell I mean they didn't have all these you know offers from all over the place. They were guys that we saw the value in. We brought them here. They worked really hard, they developed and we had a good plan for them and they made it to the NFL. So for us it's like, hey, you didn't have, you know, you didn't have 100 offers. Well, it don't matter, you got the right one and we got the right formula. You just got to do the work and we use that. And I can tell you right now the guys we recruit, they know who played from this school in the NFL. They absolutely know and it helps. You know you go on a streak where you know you go three, four, five years where no one gets drafted. That's not going to hurt you.
Speaker 2:Yeah, now you've been kind of touching on it, but you know that kind of mantra recruit, retain, develop. It gets lost in a lot of this NIL talk. But let me play the role of a recruit You're in their living room right now Like what is your philosophy when it comes to player development?
Speaker 3:Well, our philosophy is simple. You know we're going to come in, we're going to treat you as a person first and we're going to take care of you on the human level first, before anything else. We have a plan. It is proven. We have guys that have played in the NFL at every different position all over our building right, they're all over the walls. The plan works, but it doesn't work if you don't work. So we have a blueprint. We know it works. We can put you in position to do that, but nobody can make you do the work, and for us, this whole program has always been built around work and doing the work, and there is no way around it. There's no shortcuts in it.
Speaker 3:So our pitch to them is you need to come to a school where you feel like you're at home. Choose a place because of the people and because they can give you everything that you need to be successful and our athletic department and our university. Our guys have everything that they need from a nutritional level from. You know we have a great housing situation on campus. You know we offer a ton of different majors on our university. Anything that you have an interest in, we can find something where, once football is over, you can go, have a career in something that you're passionate about and you're going to be surrounded by good people that really care about you and people that are going to help you grow. You know, you fast forward into the academic part of it. I mean we have a staff of five academic people that are just for football, that we've allocated just for football. I mean there is no excuse here to not be able to achieve your goals. So that's what we do. We turn it back around to them. We have what you need, all right, and we're going to continue to push to help you grow to be a better person when you leave here than when you come in.
Speaker 3:But no one can make you. I mean, look, I make a joke all the time. Hey, it's america, you can do whatever you want. There's consequences for not doing what you're supposed to do, but you know what you're supposed to do and if you don't do it, then you won't make it here. And um, that's what I appreciate the most about our staff is it's it's black and white. This is what you need to do. It's what you don't need to do. If you don't do, do it. You'll be corrected every single time and for our players, the older guys uphold that standard and you know, to us it's. There is no magic pill, there is no easy way, but there is a way here and we have a blueprint for it. And you know, like I said, we have really really good players and really really good families that choose to come here because they see the value in Acadiana, in Louisiana and in the things that our university can offer for them.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and I'm not going to get into the weeds of it because we do an entire episode about this whole Art of Business program that we're implementing with Kerouan. But you've gotten to kind of see behind the scenes of some of it and how it operates, and you mentioned the element of preparing these guys for life after sports From a recruitment standpoint. A program like the Art of Business that puts these players in direct contact with some of the biggest business owners around Acadiana what is that value?
Speaker 3:You can't put a price on those types of things. That's invaluable. The reality, right, is most guys that when you go to college, you either end up living where you grew up or where you went to college. That's that's most of them and most guys over here. They meet a girl from, from you know, the katie ann area and they don't get to move out of here, so a lot of them end up staying here. Uh, we want to set our guys up for success after this. If it's's the NFL man, that's awesome, right, like that's what they know, but that's going to end at some point.
Speaker 3:The reality is that all of us are going to be working some other type of profession at some point in our lives and I think for our guys, the value is that they start getting connected with people who are successful in this community. They meet really good people that they can see. Man like this is good. People make it. Like you know, values matter and they get to be around people that have had a lot of success.
Speaker 3:I don't think there's a better pairing that we could find if you could just draw it up, than the art of business and crew along and our players. I mean the whole goal of this thing is to set people up for success right and to pair people that are like-minded, that see the value in hard work, they see the value in Christian values, they see the value in treating people the right way, and you get to do that For us. I tell people this all the time the more you get to spend time with our players, with our kids, I promise you, the more you'll want to help them, the more you want to be involved. Because I told the business owners when I met with them, I said we go through a vetting process. Yeah, for years we were recruiting these kids and their families and we're trying to find all these traits right Toughness, grit, you know work, ethic, you ethic all these different traits that you look for as an employee.
Speaker 2:You're hiring somebody.
Speaker 3:Correct. We're vetting that and then they come through here. For some of them that come in as transfer two, three, four, five right now some of them six years they don't make it through this program if they don't embody those traits and by the time they come out you have someone that's really been vetted very thoroughly. That you know, I'm going to tell you. I mean, they're very hireable, desirable people that you would want to work for you. So you know my goal man I would love for all of our players to stay in this area, because I love when they come back. I love when they come back by, I love when they show up, when I get a text from them, when they're like Coach, I'm coming to the game, I want to come watch practice, whatever it is, I love that the guys stay here. So to me it's a win-win situation for everybody and it's something that you know. Whenever this opportunity came about, I mean I couldn't have been more excited to get on board and to get this thing off the ground.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:We'll be right back to our conversation with Coach Dez in just a bit, but first you want to know how you can make a direct impact on the lives of UL student-athletes. Well, no further than Crew Along. You can support Crew Along, the NIL collective for Louisiana athletics. They provide raging Cajun student-athletes opportunities to build their personal brands while engaging with our community. For as little as $10 a month more if you want, but $10 a month, it's easy, easy. You can help Louisiana athletics separate itself from the competition. Invite your friends, invite your family to join the crew and support Raging Cajuns student athletes. Visit crewalongcom today to get started. It's super easy to do. Right, when you get to the website, you can click join the crew and it'll walk you right through it exactly how to support. Remember, go to crewalongcom that's K-R-E-W-E-A-L-L-O-N-S dot com to get started. Together we will make a difference. All right, let's get back to it.
Speaker 2:An interesting stat that was pointed out to me is that we had the second lowest amount of scholarship players to enter the portal in FBS football this past year. Can you elaborate on what that means and why that stat is so important to you and your program?
Speaker 3:You know it means everything to me. I read a book last summer and it said people don't leave positions, they leave leaders. And so you know, I kind of felt that a little bit. And you know, I want our guys to know that every decision we make is for them. It's not easy, it's hard, we're on them really hard, we're on their tails all the time, but it's for them and everything that we do is in their best interest, whether they know it or not at the time.
Speaker 3:And I think the amount of guys that have chosen to stay here and decide that they want to be a part of it says that they believe in what we're doing. They believe in us as coaches, they believe in each other as teammates and I mean the reality is they love the culture and they love everything about this area. This is a great place to live. You know I'm proud of that. I mean I am extremely proud of that, and that's something that you know I, when I got this job, it was a time where you know this was new for everybody. So for as much as NCAA has changed in the last couple years, I mean for the 40 years before that, when they went to 85 scholarships and 25 initials and all these things. The recruiting and roster management model has not changed. It was unchanged for decades. Well, all of a sudden, you know you're in unprecedented times, right, and you have to make a decision on how you're going to go about doing it.
Speaker 3:And I wanted to still do it in a more traditional way.
Speaker 3:I wanted to recruit the majority of high school players and I knew what we lost off of, you know, the 21 team between the seniors and guys that transferred. But I felt like we could still recruit, retain and develop really good players and no one really knew what the right answer was. But I'm really proud of what we've been able to do and I know it's going to pay off for us this year because I've seen it, you know. I mean we're well underway right here to getting ready to go, and we've been able to develop a veteran team which is the hardest thing to do in Group of Five football right now an experienced veteran team and you can see it, you know, when you're out here at practice, and you can see it in the way that they act and the way that they're working. So that means everything to me and it's something I'm extremely proud of and you know we're going to work our tails off to where we're number one and we don't lose anybody that we don't want to lose.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean you've always been a heck of a recruiter, from whenever you were co-offensive coordinator to shoot 2023 at the number one Sunbelt recruiting class, and so that's very much, I can tell, ingrained in you and that's not going to change. But it's just trying to see where you fit in this new landscape and try to adapt and adjust. And I think a lot of the stuff that we're building with our business and crew along can help facilitate what you're already doing and building. But taking a look at the season ahead, how's camp going?
Speaker 3:Camp's been great. We're nine practices in. It's been really competitive. You know, day in and day out, these guys show up and they work. You know and that's what you ask for.
Speaker 3:You know You're fighting human nature. You know when you do something like when you play football and you're in fall camp, you know what I mean. Everything about us tells us, you know, to just survive, right, to take the easy way, and football is the opposite. You know the hard way is the way and that's what you're trying to get them to do. You know it's human nature when you don't feel great, to not work very hard, right, it's human nature whenever you're tired, to take a day off, right, and kind of coast through it. And we're trying to get the opposite out of them, right. Whenever you don't feel great, it can't affect you know the way you feel can't affect the end goals that you have.
Speaker 3:And so for us I mean with this team, we've talked, we constantly are trying to train, train the mindset, because I think that's something that you can't ever stop doing. You know say it all the time in staff I feel sorry for for young people today, because they are surrounded by the wrong stuff. I mean everywhere you turn every social media outlet you open, it's negative, it's all this. None of it is true, none of it is good. So if that's all they see and they're not hearing the truth from us, they're not hearing the good, what they should be doing, the things that we have to do to get better, well then all they're going to to get to negative.
Speaker 3:So you know we work really hard on the mindset. You know our coaching staff does a phenomenal job of mentoring and obviously coaching X's and O's. But man, there's way more to it than that and it's fun when you see a team start to embrace that, and that's what we have right now. Certainly, there's a long way to go, to August 31st even. You know we have a lot of improvement to make there. But we're on our way and it's been a lot of fun this camp. It's a whole lot better to go to work when you're around good people and you're around people that work really hard and that's what we have Absolutely, and this will come out the week of the Grambling Game.
Speaker 2:I know a lot of head coaches, in every single program you included each season kind of go into like with its own mantra, its own kind of slogan for the season. Uh, what's your slogan for this season? Let's close the gap, you know what I mean the a gap, the B gap, it means the gap between where we've been finishing and where we want to be.
Speaker 3:And, uh, you know, by definition, a gap is is the distance between where you are and where you want to go. And for us, the good thing is, the gap is really small. You know, one possession games have been the difference for us in the last two years and it's time for us to go win them. And that's all we've talked about. And you know where does that come from? Right, that comes from the details and doing the little things better. That comes from the discipline to show up every day and do it the way it's supposed to be done. That comes from knowing, owning and mastering the different situations and the techniques that you have to do to go do your job. So that's been our theme since we got back to camp.
Speaker 3:Well, since we started, this year was it's time to close the gap? And we have the team to do that. Um, you know we've had some different things we've had to address over the last two years, as far as you know, getting the roster where we want it, but this year it's time to go close the gap and the difference in this league and the two best years we've had in the history of this school. We went 13-1 in one possession games. In the last two years we go 2-8. That's the difference in the two best years you ever had and and you know, and being very average and, um, not one person in this building wants to be average and I could promise you. You know we're, we're, we're working to do something to make this a little bit different I love that well with such a veteran team.
Speaker 2:Uh, I think that's going to give you a leg up and closing that gap this season. Our coach you played here, coached here for several years Is it going to be weird with the stadium rebuild this season?
Speaker 3:Yeah, I'm kind of you know I pass by it every day and you know, kind of sitting on the outside looking in and I'm excited. You know, this weekend we're going to actually get to go in the stadium and do our scrimmage in the stadium this weekend and I'm excited to see it. You know it'll be a little bit different but you know, I think one thing that we've learned over the course of the last few years you've got to embrace change and it's something we're excited about because long term, you know you talk about recruiting and you talk about everything plays into it. I mean I can't even tell you how excited the kids and the families of the people that we're recruiting right now are about the stadium that's coming and our players are excited about it. You know, I mean for 52 years that stadium went relatively unchanged and you know I mean that's a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get to be a part of something like this.
Speaker 3:Our players, you know the people, our recruits, their families, they understand the investment that our community has made to make this happen and certainly I mean it's a point of pride. You know, whenever everybody says, hey, this is important, we're going to raise the money, we're going to go do this and it's for you. I think that's something that's a pretty cool thing. So for us, yeah, it'll be a little bit different, but everything that makes Cajun Field Cajun Field is not going to change that tunnel. Walking down there two feet below sea level, you know that whole deal, you know locked in, you know down there in the swamp I mean that part of it will never change and that's what I love about it's getting an upgrade. But we're not changing all the qualities that make it Cajun Field and that, to me, is the coolest part about it.
Speaker 2:The real swamp Coach. It's been kind of cool seeing in the new video game the final stadium build. But I've got to ask you as a coach, were you worried when the video game came out that you were going to have some?
Speaker 3:sleepy players coming into practice? Yeah, a little bit. You know that's kind of one of those things that you you're always kind of like hey, you know we got a part of being in college is, you know, there's a college experience that goes with it. But uh, you know, we tell them all there's a time and a place for everything, you know. So manage your time. And today they're probably playing the game a little bit. You know, on an off day they got a little bit more time. So, uh, but we're gonna get their butts up early in the morning and we'll get back at it tomorrow. So we'll find out who was up too late last night whenever we get here tomorrow.
Speaker 2:It's probably a better problem to have worry about players sitting in their dorm room playing a video game rather than going out to the club or whatever.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I would take that problem, yeah.
Speaker 2:You know, kind of wrapping up here, a couple more little questions for you. You're from the Berry, right, Right. When you go back home is there a certain restaurant you got to hit Cool.
Speaker 3:It's hard not to go to Bon Creole. So shout out Bon Creole. Yeah, bon Creole is kind of our place. So whenever coach Nate was here um, you know, we signed a few guys out of new Iberia and I would take them down there recruiting with me. He would literally not eat the entire day to go to Bon Creole and every time we'd go he'd he'd he didn't. He didn't eat like this normally, but he'd eat a whole shrimp po' boy and a bowl of gumbo every time we'd go. And I mean, he was stuff himself whenever we'd go down there. So bonk creole was a staple, um, you know. And then uh, and then duffy's right there. You know, that's, that's. That's the two places that I usually go to whenever I go to new iberia. So yeah, very nice.
Speaker 2:I'm a big fan of Jane's. I love like it's quasi-Asian, quasi-Cajun, and you get low main or you get bull crawfish.
Speaker 3:There's not a whole lot of bad spots now, all right. So you made me pick one, I got two all right, so you know I can't narrow it down to that, but yeah, there's a bunch of good spots and great people.
Speaker 2:Absolutely.
Speaker 3:Yeah, my parents and my in-laws, and all of them still live in New Iberia, you know. So we go. You know as much as we can, usually not during football season, but you know as much as we can.
Speaker 2:What's your least favorite street to drive on in Lafayette?
Speaker 3:Least favorite street to drive in Lafayette Pinhook's a little rough, you know it's tight, pinhook's tight. I remember so when I was at Ascension Episcopal, you know I had a CDL. I drove the bus too and I took it down Pinhook one time and I was two-laning it all the way I was right down the middle and so I was like I'm certainly you know, we're going to drive right down the middle of this thing. Yeah, pinhook's a little bit rough, gets a little tight right there.
Speaker 2:I imagine, as a bus driver drive the bus, you gotta, you know, serve the chicken. The whole deal. I love that. Uh in your, uh in your gumbo, does I'm drawing a blank on the potato salad, thank you. Does potato salad belong in gumbo?
Speaker 3:absolutely okay. Yeah, it's not without question. All right. Uh, boiled eggs too, boiled eggs, that's. That throws people off a little bit boiled eggs? Yeah, absolutely. Potato salad boiled eggs, without a doubt, yes, you dusting your crawfish?
Speaker 2:um, yeah, a little bit, a little bit yeah, a little bit.
Speaker 3:Boiled eggs? Yeah, absolutely Potato salad boiled eggs, without a doubt. Yes, you dusting your crawfish? Yeah, a little bit, A little bit, yeah, a little bit. But I put it in the ice chest and you mix it up and you can't tell. So everyone that says you can't dust it, I mean you do whatever you want to crawfish and they pretty much come out good, so, yeah, how's your cooking?
Speaker 3:Well, it depends on what you consider cooking. I boil and I grill. That's about what I do. Lindsey takes care of everything else. So, yeah, if it's outside, that's mine. Fry all that stuff. I do all that outside. Everything inside I'll just do as I'm told in there.
Speaker 2:Well, real quick, as we're wrapping up, you mentioned in your family. Can you talk about just the sacrifice they make on behalf of you, pouring yourself into this every single season, especially crunch time, this type of this time of year?
Speaker 3:Yeah, you know, that's the part I think that you struggle with the most. You know, with the young family is is, you know, is being away and the things that I'm doing and and you know is being away and the things that I'm doing and you know the things I get to do and provide for my family is that worth the time away from them? And you know that's something that I do. You know, struggle with my family is amazing. Lindsey, absolutely. I think it runs better, probably when I'm not there.
Speaker 3:I think I kind of throw a wrench in plans, but her and the kids, I mean it's really all they know. But I'm very appreciative, I mean because you know this is coaching. Football is all I've ever really wanted to do and you know, without their support, I mean I wouldn't do it, wouldn't be able to do it. So I'm incredibly grateful, you know, and I hope one day that they can see that. You know, being able to do this is a pretty unique experience for our whole family and I hope one day they'll. You know, I think they do and I hope one day they'll appreciate it and hopefully, if nothing else, kids will maybe learn a little work ethic from seeing that.
Speaker 2:Well, you're a motivator, not just for your family but for your players. You said you always wanted to be a coach. Was there one person in particular who was instrumental in kind of you making that decision to get into coaching?
Speaker 3:Oh yeah, my high school head football coach, without a doubt. I was in high school. I didn't know what I wanted to do. I was going to play in the NFL and be rich and make all kind of money, and I was going to be that. My high school head football coach, though, david Como he actually still coaches high school football. He's at Como High School now.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean, he's the one that I saw. He got the head job when I was a freshman in high school and I saw the impact he had on the school, and it wasn't just the football team and just the football players. He taught us too. He saw the impact he had on the school, and it wasn't just a football team and just the football players he taught us to. He taught us civics in the ninth grade. Um, he made our entire school a better place. Um, everyone wanted to have a relationship with him. I mean, he was just one of those people that you were just drawn to. He worked really hard at it. Um, he was hard on our team, but he was always fair. He treated, he wanted what was best for us. Uh, and you know, and truthfully, he turned around the entire program at Catholic High. I mean we were a doormat for a long time and you know we won three district championships in a row and from there it took off and coach Como is the reason for it.
Speaker 3:You know my dad was my first coach I've ever had, from the time I was. He coached a team when I was six so I could play in the eight nine-year-old league because I wanted to play football. So you know I was surrounded by those two. I remember being a kid, my dad, I'd come home, he'd draw up fronts and you know what's this front, you know and ask me that stuff. And we always watched football together and I guess it was just always something that was just kind of in my blood a little bit. But those two, without a doubt, I mean I saw the impact that they had. My dad I say this all the time, my dad is the best youth football coach I've ever been around in my life. There's never been anyone like him. I mean he motivates them. I mean he knows how to get those kids fired up to go play. I mean he gets them out there. We played peewee football, football and we'd sit in the stadium.
Speaker 3:After we play in new iberia we play at new iberia senior high and they had two fields. We'd sit in the stadium and we would. We would scout the other teams. He would draw scout cards while we're like this is 10 year old football, he would draw scout cards and the whole week we'd practice. I mean we had a scout team and we did it. So I mean from the time I was, you know, six, seven, eight years old, I mean that was what we did on Saturdays after we play.
Speaker 2:So you've been evaluating players since you were a kid pretty much.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean you know I was mostly eating hamburgers at that point but I was watching him do it. So you know, I mean it was uh. Yeah, I mean it was always. It was just kind of, you know, my whole life been around it. But those two, without a doubt, or I mean they're, they're the ones who kind of who really kind of shaped, I, my career path and kind of pushed me that direction.
Speaker 2:Well, that's awesome, coach, and it's been awesome. Talking to you Covered a lot today. Is there any kind of final message you want to give out to fans in regards to this whole, you know, nil space, or what you're building this season, looking forward to? Is there any kind of message that we didn't talk on that you kind of want to reiterate or give to the fans?
Speaker 3:I think the message that I want people to know and I think what I want people to understand about us is and I'll say it again we are recruiting kids to come here for the right reasons. They are coming here because they want to be a part of the University of Louisiana. They want to be Raging Cajuns, and our players embody that. We are using our nil in a retention space and I think everyone who owns a business, works in a business, understands that. You have high performers in every profession. Well, not everybody. I mean high performers. To keep them, you have to do a little bit more and for us I want our fans to know and understand this it takes everybody to make this thing work and I think there was like a stigma with NIL from the beginning and look, I mean it is what it is, but it's here to stay. And for us to remain competitive and to bring back our conference championships and bring back all those things that we all want to see. It's part of it and we're going to be responsible. With our NIL, we are going to give it to our players, who not only perform at a high level and have earned it, but guys that represent our university the right way. You know, those are the guys that we are really pushing to keep over here, because they're the best of what. We are right, and this is a great place. Our university, our town, the Acadiana region this is a great place. And these kids our town, the Acadiana region, this is a great place, and these kids are some of the best of what we have.
Speaker 3:When you have that, you do what you have to do to keep it. So for me, yeah, I'll do anything I can to sell people on why our kids deserve this. I'll do anything I can to help our kids to stay here and to achieve their goals from our university. But I can promise you and everyone else who will listen to this that it's going to people for the right reasons and it's not a pay for play thing. It's merit based and that's the most fair way you can do it. You know that's what. That's what this country is supposed to be about. Right, you perform and you're rewarded for it. Why is it not the same way here for these guys? And you know that's what I just want to get across to everybody and I want people to understand that when you've got a really good one that works for you. You do what you can to keep them there.
Speaker 2:And for us.
Speaker 3:That's all we want to do. We want to take care of the guys that deserve to be taken care of, and it takes everybody to do it and there's a bunch of different ways. Right, you know our win with 10 through crew along. You know, joining the order of business, all these different things that we have. Every little bit counts, you know, I'd love to see every cajun fan in some capacity get involved, whether it's ten dollars a month. You know that's your tv subscription to netflix or something like that. You know, I mean, I just think there's a lot of ways to do it. Um, it takes all of us doing our little part to make a big difference. And I know our community, our university and this area. I know we're going to get it done.
Speaker 2:Well, thank you, coach, go close that gap.
Speaker 3:Let's do it.
Speaker 1:Well, that will mostly do it for this episode of Name Image and Mikeness, but we've got some housekeeping real quick to tell you about. Our next episode features one of my favorite humans, senior linebacker for the Raging Cajuns, casey Osai. Now Casey has been instrumental in getting this Art of Business program off the ground in relation to student-athletes and I can't wait to wrap his number this upcoming season. He's an awesome young man who is so easy to root for. You'll definitely want to hear more about his story on that episode. We want to once again thank our sponsor of today's episode, upper Lafayette Economic Development Foundation and their Art of Business program. If you're a business owner in Acadiana, please don't wait for it. Just head to upperlafayettecom to learn more about how to get involved. We also want to remind fans to support Crew Along and their Win With 10 campaign. As Dr Maggard put it, if we don't, we won't Visit crewalongcom to get started.
Speaker 1:We got so much great content for you guys coming up in the next weeks and months, but we need your support. Easiest way to do that is by subscribing wherever you take in this podcast, whether it's on the Upper Lafayette YouTube page or on Spotify Apple podcast. While you're there, give us a review, put five stars. You know we're trying our best. We're doing, I think, a great job of bringing you guys some unique content and in order for us to get better and better at doing that, we need your support. We need you guys following along. We need your support. We need you guys following along. And we also want to remind folks that you can follow the clips that we'll be posting from these episodes. I know it's hard to dedicate however long these episodes are, although I would argue it's quite easy. Just listen in your car on your way to work while you're cutting the grass Hopefully you're avoiding the heat out there here in Acadiana but you can follow along on our social media through Acadiana Casts also Cruel Law and Upper Lafayette social channels. They'll be posting content from this and we'll have more than just the conversations from the podcast.
Speaker 1:We have some more content that's in development. We'll be out there at tailgates talking to folks. We've got some really exciting stuff coming down the pipe. You can also find the show on the Upper Lafayette and Cruelant websites respectively. We'll be taking a bit of a hiatus from the show, like we've mentioned before, to kind of get some more ducks in a row promote this first run of the first four episodes, but very shortly you'll be able to catch a new episode of Name, image and Mightiness every single Wednesday, so stay tuned for that. Like I said, some exciting stuff that we're doing. Also, most of these apps, especially like YouTube, and in the comments section on these clips and reels, ask us questions what do you want to hear about? Who do you want to hear from? That's what we're here to do is to educate, inform and entertain you guys, cajun Nation, and I'm excited to play my small role in helping to do that. That's a wrap for this episode, though. Enjoy the ride and go, cajuns, thank you.
