The Heisman Hopefuls Podcast
The Heisman Hopefuls Podcast, hosted by Heisman historian Chris Huston, features year round interviews with top Heisman contenders, insider stories from Heisman history, hard-hitting discussion of the latest college football news plus updates on the Heisman Trophy Trust’s charitable work. New episodes every Thursday. Follow @HeismanTrophy on all platforms and watch clips on YouTube and TikTok. Contact: pod@heisman.com
The Heisman Hopefuls Podcast
Houston OG Shadre Hurst, Virginia QB Beau Pribula and Minnesota DE Anthony Smith
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It's big man versus big man on the latest Heisman Hopefuls Podcast, as Houston Cougars preseason All-American guard Shadre Hurst and Minnesota preseason All-American defensive end Anthony Smith discuss the ins and outs and the ups and downs of the battle to win the line of scrimmage. As good as these guys are on the field, they are even more interesting off of it! We also check in with the offensive star of Week 0, Virginia quarterback Beau Pribula, whose sparkling Cavalier debut conjured up shades of Tim Tebow. The senior completed 9 of 11 for 155 yards and 2 TDs, and churned out 110 yards rushing in a 34-8 victory over NC State.
The Heisman Hopefules Podcast streams every Thursday during the college football season and is hosted by Chris Huston. The pod is available on all streaming networks, including Spotify and Apple Music, and full videos of the show are available on YouTube, with clips on TikTok and Instagram.
Email us at pod@heisman.com for feedback and inquiries.
Welcome back to the Heisman Hopefuls Podcast. I'm your host, Chris Houston. Well, we just finished up week zero and it was a pretty cool week. Eight games, some great performances, some that already might be figuring in the Heisman Trophy conversation. We're getting ready to tee up week one. So in preparation for that, we've got two great players on both sides of the line of scrimmage. Anthony Smith, defensive end from Minnesota, preseason Big Ten, defensive player of the year. We've also got Shadre Hurst, offensive guard, Houston Cougars, preseason All-American. And to top it off, we're going to have probably the best performance by a quarterback in week one, Virginia's Bo Prabula, who was uh just outstanding in their win over North Carolina State, 34 to 8 win uh last Saturday. And I just want to remind everyone if you've never watched the show, never listened to it, first time here, first time visiting one, go subscribe, go like, give us a review, tell your friends about the show. I I think that one of the things that really makes the show stick out is that we are talking to the best players in the country, week in and week out, regardless of position, regardless of program, go look at our guest list in the past. It's uh pretty remarkable. We're talking to the best of the best. Uh this week is no exception. And some players you may not know right away, but I we like to sort of like find the guys that are gonna be emerging later on. So I think if you watch them now, maybe later in the season, you'll say, I remember those guys from the the Heisman Hopefuls podcast. So we're gonna get on with the show here in a second. And uh yeah, thanks for watching. Go vote in the Heisman Hopefuls fan vote at Heisman.com/slash hopefuls. You can vote once a day, and the waiting scales up as the season goes. And here's why that matters this year. On conference championship weekend, Heisman's unveiling the season-long fan vote results live on ESPN, and the top three finishers become the official fan vote ballot in the Heisman Trophy tabulation. For the first time ever, these results are announced before the Heisman electors even begin voting. So the fan voice is part of it as ballots are cast. So vote daily all season at Heisman.com slash hopeful. Every position, every player. They are all Heisman Hopefuls. 16 quarterbacks played last weekend in week zero, and perhaps none of them played as well as Virginia's Bo Prabula did in the Cavaliers 34-8 victory over NC State. The fifth-year senior completed nine of 11 passes for 155 yards, two touchdowns, also added 110 rushing yards on 15 carries. His rushing output was the highest by UVA quarterback since 2022, and he became the first Cavalier quarterback to complete at least 81.8% of his passes uh against an ACC opponent since 2004. That is a long time, folks. All in all, a highly efficient and effective performance against an ACC foe to lead the Cavaliers. Bo, congrats on that win and welcome to the Heisman Hopefuls podcast.
SPEAKER_01Thank you so much. Thanks for having me.
SPEAKER_05So, right from the start of the game last Saturday, it looked like the Cavs offense wanted to set a certain tone. That first uh run that you guys did was a uh designed run for you, a quarterback draw, went for 11 yards. You don't often see a quarterback draw on the first play of a game. Uh how many times did you guys run that play in camp because it was just really executed so perfectly, I thought.
SPEAKER_01I I think in the beginning of camp we we ran it a good bit, but after a while we kind of knew we were gonna be good at it. So we we focused on other areas to focus on, but but that's you know, quarterback draw, it's pretty bread and butter for us.
SPEAKER_05Sure. Was that always gonna be the first play of the game going in? Did you know that?
SPEAKER_01I think on Thursday I knew it was gonna be the first play, and I was ready for it. That's I was ready.
SPEAKER_05Awesome. Hey, you know, on that play, uh it was pretty interesting. You know, you you kind of sucked the D lineman into the left a little bit, you kind of kind of fainted one way, and then you stuck your foot in the ground, and then you cut hard, you go to the right, you go up the A gap, and uh it was just really impressive. And later in the game, a bunch of great cuts in the open field, 15 rushes and all. Uh is it fair to say that this offense is perfectly suited to your skill set because you look super comfortable out there.
SPEAKER_01I think um when I was in the transfer portal and kind of deciding on on schools, you know, one of the main things I wanted to do is is sit down with the offensive coordinator and the quarterback coach and obviously the head coach, but really just kind of watch offense together and kind of chop it up and get on the board and draw different things and and see what you know kind of the personality of the offensive coordinator is. And when I came here to Virginia, uh one thing that struck me is just the way that that Dez Kitchens, Coach Kitch here, the way that he works with the quarterback and and the way that he kind of involves different concepts from, you know, maybe things I've ran before at different schools with different offensive coordinators and things that I was really comfortable with. Um and kind of using that, you know, to my advantage and and to make me more comfortable because you know I had a lot of banked reps at different things, um, and just the compatibility and the way that he works with the quarterback is something that I thought he did really well, and I really like that.
SPEAKER_05You mentioned that draw play being a bread and butter play. What are some of your other bread and butter plays? Like what are the things that you have down that you feel the most comfortable with?
SPEAKER_01Um, you know, I think we ran a good about good amount of QB uh counter in that game uh against NC State. And then, you know, we can just do a bunch of different things. I think when you run the ball so well, uh especially like we did in the NC State game, um, you can set up, you know, three-level replay action passes. Um, we hit one uh for a touchdown, and then, you know, doing different things with with jet motions. We didn't run run any power read um in the first game, but kind of setting that that pass up to the tailback down the seam for one one pass. And um I think just doing it a bunch of different things because when you can run the ball really well, it just opens up everything.
SPEAKER_02Mm-hmm.
SPEAKER_05Uh Coach Kitch, you said that he we sat you down and talked with you about the offense. What were some of the things he envisioned uh you doing in the offense and the way the offense was gonna look? And and is it looking how he first talked about it?
SPEAKER_01I think so. Yeah, I think um with with my skill set, um, I have a lot of experience running the football from my time at Penn State. Uh from my time there, I was asked to do a lot of running and did a lot of different things. So I was super comfortable running the football. Um and kind of mixing that with the pass as well um to to kind of be a double threat. I think um with the experience of our offensive line up front, those guys can handle anything. So uh just being able to do a bunch of different things just poses a lot of different, you know, threats to the defense.
SPEAKER_05Mm-hmm. We talked about your running a bit. Let's talk about your passing nine of eleven, 155 yards, a 260 passer rating, amazing two touchdowns. Do you prefer a game where you've thrown the ball 30 times, or do you like to have a nice balance between run and pass?
SPEAKER_01I prefer a game where we win. And whatever the, you know, whatever I'm asked to do uh to do that, I will. Um and uh, you know, whether that's run the ball or pass the ball, um, doesn't matter to me as long as we win.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. You're in your fifth year now, you've been at now your third school. Like you said, you've logged a lot of time in different systems, played a lot of games. How much does that experience really help you uh going into this year? Like, do you really feel like you super comfortable out there? You know what you're doing, like you're ready for all kind of circumstances that might come up. Do you really feel that having that past behind you is is really helping you set the tone for this year?
SPEAKER_01I think it for sure. I think the experience that I was able to build at Penn State just in a backup role, uh, but still being able to play a lot helped me my first year as a starter. Um, but at the same time, starting for the first time, it's just different. As much as I did play at Penn State, um, you can never really get prepared to be a full-time starter. Um, but last year at Mizzou, being that full-time starter for the first time, obviously, you know, for a full season helped me. I think this year when I went out there, it's just completely comfortable being in my fifth year and um, you know, being in a lot of different environments before. Um, really just none of that really affects you anymore.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. You you have one thing that's kind of unique, I think, about your career, and it's being in three different conferences. I talked to Dylan Gabriel uh a couple years ago about that. He he went to three different conferences and he talked about all the things he picked up along the way, the differences in the style of play. I know it's still early in the ACC for you, but like what are some of the differences in style of play and even you know being in stadiums between Big Ten, SEC, ACC?
SPEAKER_01Yeah, I mean, as far as the game of football, I think there's not really much of a difference. You know, I mean, it's it's football at the end of the day. Um, and everybody at this level is really good. Um, but you know, there's definitely differences culturally between Big Ten, SEC, and ACC. Just the way the fan is and the game day experience. Um it's different. I've only had one game in the ACC so far, but all three have been super cool and super unique. Um, so I feel super blessed that I'm able to experience all three of them.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, one thing I thought was interesting is that you you left Mizoo and then Mizou played Virginia in the bowl game. Did you happen to watch that bowl game at all?
SPEAKER_01Yes, yeah, I did watch.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. What was your impression of the Cavaliers uh under uh Tony Elliott?
SPEAKER_01Um I think my first impression was was watching their defense on film um leading up to the bowl game, you know, because uh, you know, I was scouting Virginia. Um I just remember their defense being really good and and complex um and fundamentally sound. And that definitely matched up to to when I arrived here and the way that Coach Rudd, our defense coordinator, uh he presents a huge challenge every day in practice. So I think that definitely, definitely helped um, you know, during fall camp and even spring ball going up against his defense because it's not easy to go against.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Uh your chaotic journey through the transfer portals well documented, won't talk about that uh too much. Uh several schools were potential landing spots. But when you finally took your visit to Virginia, what stood out the most to you?
SPEAKER_01I think really the culture um and and what Coach E, Coach Elliott here, um, you know, kind of what he does. And, you know, obviously you want to win football games, and that's point of emphasis. But also Coach E calls it building champion men and being a good person and really valuing being a good human being in and outside of the game. Um, and I think that that really kind of stood out to me because you know it's not like that everywhere. Um and just kind of being able to to be in this culture and and be super close with everybody, it's been great.
SPEAKER_05Mm-hmm. Just based on watching you from afar, it seems like you really love to play football. Uh, how hard is it to maintain that love when there's so much business going on now? There's so much business to the game.
SPEAKER_01I mean, I think you kind of have to ignore that. Um, because for me it's it's not hard to ignore it because I've I've just had a love for the game since I was super young. Um, all I think about is football when I go home every day, and um, that's always on my mind. And for me, that's just, you know, my why. That's my passion, that's my drive. I just love the game and always have.
SPEAKER_05Were you always gonna be a quarterback growing up?
SPEAKER_01Yes. Yeah. I was always gonna be a quarterback uh since I was young. Um, just that's kind of what my my dad wanted me to be uh before I even really knew what football was. And um I ended up falling in love with it. You know, you get the ball in your hand every play, and uh it's a lot of fun.
SPEAKER_05When was that moment when you maybe threw a pass or figured out you had a great arm or that you could make something happen where you were like, this is my aha moment. This is the moment when I want to be a quarterback.
SPEAKER_01I think really just my first year playing football. I think I was in like fifth grade or something like that. And um, that's really kind of, you know, I always loved football, but when I was finally, when my mom finally allowed me to play and uh play tackle football, um, and you know, just going out there in the patch for the first time and getting behind center and and commanding an offense, even though I was however many years old. Um, I knew I, you know, I loved the position and I wanted to do this.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Uh last year the Cavs had their first 11-win season in school history. You won the first game this year so far. Uh you're off this Saturday, you got Norfolk State the week after that. What's uh the expectations like in the locker room now? What are you guys talking about? What's the mood?
SPEAKER_01I think just taking one day at a time, you know, um, we have to continue to get better each day. You know, I think the great teams, they they get better in the offseason, um, but they also get better during the season. So I think that's a huge point of emphasis for us, you know, not taking a practice for granted um because each one matters a lot. And we know that um, you know, it's it's super important to to just get better every day.
SPEAKER_05Alright, time for some rapid fire questions and we'll get you out of here, okay?
SPEAKER_01Okay.
SPEAKER_05All right, here we go. Uh play action or RPO? Play action. Third and two, uh run it or throw it?
SPEAKER_04Throw it.
SPEAKER_05Would you rather throw for 400 or run for 150?
SPEAKER_04Throw for 400.
SPEAKER_05What's one rule that you'd change in college football?
SPEAKER_01I would say the targeting rule. Um actually they might have just changed this, but I don't think it's fair to to have to be out for an entire game if you if you uh if you commit a targeting penalty.
SPEAKER_05What's your favorite thing about college football?
SPEAKER_03Fans, the culture, the game day environment.
SPEAKER_04Who's your favorite Heisman winner? Tim Tebow.
SPEAKER_05The quarterback you watched the most growing up.
SPEAKER_03Probably Trace McSorley.
SPEAKER_05Another guy you can kind of remind people of. Uh what's your favorite football memory?
SPEAKER_03I think scoring my first collegian touchdown.
SPEAKER_05Or you would play if football did not exist.
SPEAKER_04Baseball.
SPEAKER_05Okay, I'll finish this uh statement.
SPEAKER_04People would be surprised to learn that I I can juggle.
SPEAKER_05Nice. How many balls?
SPEAKER_01Only three. Only three.
SPEAKER_05Okay. Well, Bo Pravula, thanks for coming on the Heisman Hopefuls podcast. Uh good luck uh to you against Norfolk State and good luck the rest of the season.
SPEAKER_01Thank you. I appreciate you having me on.
SPEAKER_05Minnesota defensive end Anthony Smith was first team All Big Ten as a junior. As a senior, he is the Big Ten's preseason defensive player of the year. The 6'6, 280-pounder from Shippensburg, Pennsylvania, led the Big Ten with 12 and a half sacks, 17.5 tackles for loss, one of only four players across the country to reach those totals. The fifth-year senior is simply put one of the best players in the country. And that's why we're happy to have him on the Heisman Hopefuls podcast. Welcome, Anthony.
SPEAKER_00Thank you. Thank you for having me.
SPEAKER_05The Gophers host Eastern Illinois at 7 p.m. on Thursday, just right around the corner. Uh, from now uh on the Peacock Network, uh, you're one of two defensive end starters back on the Minnesota defensive line, and there are two new starters on the interior. So, how has Camp gone for that unit in particular? And what's the mood of the team like heading into the opener?
SPEAKER_00Um, for the D-line, the mood of the D-line, you know, every single day, just have keeping the standard, you know, you got a lot of transfers coming in, so you gotta build them into the culture. And then for me, just saying the standard every single day alongside Cardman's, you know, like you can't have bad days, you know. I mean, hard days, hard days happen, but you can't have bad days, and you know, just keep on rein reinforcing that with the younger guys too, because we're got some young guys on the D-line, but again, just not letting that be a not not letting the youngness be a factor in how we play our football game, you know. We still gotta be violent, we still gotta be super edgy. We uh say in the we say in the D-line room, you gotta be the bad boy pistons, you know, you know, be super edgy, you know, make everybody else get upset, you know? Make them get mad to the point where they're playing out of their body, they're out of control because they they're playing emotional and not not playing the game with emotion. So um again, just teetering the line of this teeter in the line of being edgy and not not too edgy though.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, bad boy pistons. Which one are you? Are you Rodman? Are you are you Isaiah Thomas? Are you Joe Dumars?
SPEAKER_00Uh Dumas, I I I would like to think I'm a little bit of Dumas, you know, we're the Fedora, we're the black Fedora, you know. You know, I'll make I'll you know, I'll talk a little, but you know, I'll make people get a little upset, you know. But again, just again, just teetering that line every single day, just setting the standard for my teammates and setting the standard for the D-line every single day.
SPEAKER_05Now I hear the Viking row, which so many people saw from the root Norwegian fans in the World Cup is coming to Huntington Bank Stadium. Is that true?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, that's definitely happened. Yeah, we uh we me and John Nesser did a little did the little thing to the boom boom rope thing, and ever everybody doesn't understand. Minnesota has like the most like Norwegian like population like in the United States. I'm pretty yeah, it's like it's like top three in like the nation. So like everybody was like confused, but like we got a lot of Norwegians in the state of Minnesota.
SPEAKER_05Well, that's why they're the Vikings, right? Exactly. Yeah, you know, it seems like the perfect sack celebration, the row, to be honest. Last year it looked to me like your go-to move was like you were just kind of blowing kisses to the crowd. I think I saw that a lot. Uh any of you thought of incorporating the row into your post-sack repertoire?
SPEAKER_00I definitely, I'll definitely include it in there this year for sure.
SPEAKER_05Awesome. Uh now tell me about your pre-sack repertoire. Uh as an N, you line up about 80% of the time on the strong side. As you get set, how do you prepare yourself for a play? What are you assessing as you wait for the snap?
SPEAKER_00You know, my mindset you know, every single time that I play a play, you know, first what's the situation? You know, is it first, second, or third down? What's the yardage? You know, if it's third, third and long, you know, there might be a screen, you might look for more screen action. Um, but again, if it's first and second down, if it's second and long, second and long, those are where screens happen too. But then if it's if it's a waist down on second and second and one, second and two, you know, they might go for shots if they're in an alumni zone. If they're in backed up coming out, you know, what passes are you gonna get? Or you can you get your hands up on your pass rush if you can't get to the quarterback? But um, if it's third down and third down and like I'm ready to rush, I'm looking at the tackles' knees, I'm looking at anything that really I watched that week that week in film, you know, the tackles get the lop and film, you know, whether that's their hands on their knees, hands on their thigh boards, or their hands bowed out, you know, any any like minute detail in their game that I've seen during the week, I'm watching for that. Because you know that you know you want to win your rep before you even take your rep. So again, just keying on the on the details that I've seen on film and then taking it to the field and knowing the situation of the game.
SPEAKER_05And on the other hand, the the offensive lineman is studying you, looking for your tells, looking for your little uh uh things that you do. Uh are there a counter moves going on? Is it a uh kind of a chess game where it's like maybe you're gonna show something that he's seen, but you're actually not gonna do it?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I mean, I mean that's all deal on it. That's what football is. It's all a bunch of chess moves. But yeah, you know, we we all got we gotta tell the same story on every single pass rush, you know. Every single pass rush that we take, I gotta make sure it looks the same, whether I'm taking the inside, I'm taking the outside, whether it's a game, whether it's a stunt. So again, whenever I'm pass rushing, I gotta make it all look the same. And then at one point I'm gonna do the little switch up and they're gonna be confused about it, and then that's that's where you get home, you know?
SPEAKER_05So yeah. You know, uh, I think when I look at D lineman and I try to like assess what their football intelligence is like, I always look for, like you mentioned earlier, sniffing out the screen, right? Uh because there's I feel like if you're a D lineman and you get caught at a screen, that's like when you look at work.
SPEAKER_00You hit that, you hit the inside move, and you know the whole lineman is gets out on you. Yeah, like he's just right there. He's just right there. It's like, and then you realize, you know, it was a little too easy. If it's too easy, it's not real. It's not real, it's just too easy.
SPEAKER_05So what do you how do you sniff out a screen? Like, what do you what are the things you're looking for?
SPEAKER_00Again, if I I I always key in if it's it's it's too good to be true. You know, you did that pass first move, and it it's a little too clean, it's too good to be true, and you gotta smell the red. And then again, it comes down to the situation. You know, every single play, every single play is zone situation. So whether that's again, like I said, third and long, second and long, if they're in backed up coming out, if they're in the alumni zone, if they're on their side of the field, if they're on our side of the football field. So you gotta look at the situations at all times. And also, you it goes in the film style. You don't mean you'll mean like during the week, the coaches do an amazing job with us game planning, and they do an amazing job with us showing us film to the point where we can sniff out the screen pretty well. So again, just knowing the situation, know we're at on the field, and then watching film.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Uh to what do you compare the feeling of sacking the quarterback? Help someone like me understand just how good it feels.
SPEAKER_00Sacking the QB, I mean I think what it's one of the best feelings. It feels like a dunk, you know, I'm feeling like a dunk. That's definitely one of them. I I or just like I say when you wake up, wake up when you're a little in elementary or middle school, and you know, you got that, you got that schools, school's off for the day. School's off for the day. Yeah, that's I think that's what I could compare a sack to feeling like, you know, because it's all that preparation during the week, all that preparation during the week, and then you put it to the game, you put it to the field, and you know it's a it's a collective group thing, you know, the back ends covering, covering for longer, and the D lines. Playing the D-line, you know, because I'm not getting a sack. I'm not getting a sack by myself. This isn't a by myself thing. This is me rushing with Carter Men's. This is me rushing with the interior D-line and caging the QB in. And I get to hit my move and Carter Men's flushes the QB out to my side. And then that means that means Carrie Brown's covering or locking down the backhand. That means Maver Brunowski's locking down the middle. So it's it's not just a me thing, it's a collective group of all of us during the week preparing and then taking it to the field. And I just happen to get home that time. So again, I I think it's it it probably yeah, it really feels like having a day off during like when you were a little having a snow day.
SPEAKER_05That's a great feeling for sure. Uh what's the hardest part about playing defensive ends? Something that most people just don't get about the position and about all the little things.
SPEAKER_00Uh you you move everywhere, you know. I mean, like DBs, they move backwards a lot. I think for D-line, you know, we we move side to side, we move up the field, we gotta use our hands. We gotta be we gotta be violent. We gotta be violent at DN. I think that goes for all D-linemen. That goes for anywhere on the field at. Um, but again, everything happens so fast. You know, you gotta keep your eyes in the right spot. You know, during the week, we you prepare so well, the coaches prepare so well, you know, everything happens so fast. You have some fast motion coming back, you know, you could have you could take the running back, but you could also have it, you could also have an A up A up and out. So again, an A up and out means I don't have the running back. So just keying on every single thing that goes on in the backfield, but then you also gotta worry about the tackle. You know, is it is his hands on his knees that means that he's gonna go on a down block, or is he gonna pull if he pulls? Do I have to do something different when from when he down blocks? So, you know, just it all everything the it's all in the details, you know. This the having knowing the little minute details in the game plan is I would say that's probably the more harder thing. But again, I think I mean we have a hard position, everybody has a hard position on the field, you know, it's just how you execute. And again, our coaches prepare us so well during the week to be prepared for the game. So again, when it comes to the game time, that we're we're ready and we're we're just going, we're going.
SPEAKER_05For sure. I guess it helps. You're a fifth-year guy, you're a rare thing in college football these days. Uh, five seasons with the same school, the school you started out at. Uh why was it better for you to stay at Minnesota this year rather than do what so many others have done and hit the portal?
SPEAKER_00Um, when I came to my decision, I mean, I I tell everybody, I mean, before even before the bowl, even before he went to the bowl game, I knew my decision was going to be super easy to stay in Minnesota. Uh Coach CJ got pulled up as the D-line coach, and me and CJ kind of have a lot of history together. And when I came here in 22, when I came actually on my official visit in 21, he was the G he was an analyst for the Rush Room. You know, he coached that rush room a boy, Mafia, Thomas Russ, Danny Stragout, you know, some some great D-line legends for Minnesota. And um, I got to talk with him during recruiting, then he went on to do his journey, and then he came back last year. And um, we just us, me and him talking, you know, we really connected, we really connected really well. And I know for this Minnesota football team, he left me on the bone last year, and we all know that. You know, that's why you guys guys got coming back, like John Nestor, Greg Johnson, Darius Taylor, Drake Lindsay, and it's a family here. Every single day that I walk into this building, I have a smile on my face, whether that's from the support staff in the training room, the coaches, the players, I mean, it's a family. It's so easy to talk to anybody in this facility. I mean, I mean, I really like to say, like, really anybody in the state. I mean, I have friends outside of football, inside of football, and there's so many people. If I have a problem, I can call them and they can help me figure out my problems together. So again, this that family aspect of Minnesota altogether just is super attractive to me, and that's always why I felt like this was my home. And that's why I felt like this place was my home literally since my OV. My mom wouldn't let me commit here on my OV. It took me a week later to commit. But again, this was my first OV when I took it, and I never looked back.
SPEAKER_05That's very refreshing to hear. What where did mom want you to go?
SPEAKER_00She just wanted me to take more, take more visits. She just wanted me to see more schools. But um, I think we got we got on a Zoom with my whole entire family. I think there was probably like 30 people on the Zoom to tell them why I wanted to go to Minnesota. And um, and after that, she really she realized like this was the place, this was the place for me. And Coach Fleck does an amazing job with putting people around us now, not create just players, but to create also amazing men that will go on in the world and be great people in society and contribute so well. I mean, whether that's being a doctor, whether that's being owning a business, whether that's owning a restaurant, whether that's doing anything, working in teaching, I mean, he he creates great people throughout the whole the whole program. So again, that's that's what's so attractive to me about this program and to a lot of my teammates is Coach Fleck and who he hires and the family aspect of the team.
SPEAKER_05Uh you talked about Coach Robbins. What did he emphasize to you the most over the offseason? What did he want to have you focus on? What areas of playing defensive band that did he think that, you know, if you can fix this thing or get better at this thing, this is going to be the thing that takes you to the next level?
SPEAKER_00You know, just being a smarter player, you know, a sparring player is a better player at the end of the day. And that again, why I talked about, you know, wing the wing the rep before you even take the rep. You know, if I can see, if I can see a formation and that gives me a tip off that the run's going to go my way, or if I can see see a tip in the tight end, if the tight end formation, if he's yo or if he's hanging, or if he's wide, you know, that means yo's wide, that means he's gonna go out, and I can pass rush freely instead of him being tight and me getting chipped. And so that changed my pass rush. So any detail that can just change my game just a little, because you know, I when you're getting a sack, I mean, it literally mean a millisecond can literally mean a difference from a from a pressure or a sack fumble. So again, just being a smarter player and then uh being a being an everyden single down rusher, you know, not being just a power rusher, but being a speed rusher off the edge. I mean, he always emphasizes that. I mean, he tells me that I'm more than just a power rusher. I can I can win on the edge because some of most of my sacks last year came from power moves. So again, just being every down rusher, being a smarter player, and being more than just a power rusher.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. You know, you've always been a versatile athlete, right? In addition to D-line in high school, you played tight end, you did you were short yardage running back, played basketball, you averaged 17 and 8, I believe, in high school. To me, you were like Carl Malone out there. Uh, I saw the video of you playing. It didn't look really fair. You threw the shot, you did the discus and track and field, you played tennis, you snowboard. I saw a video on Instagram of you wakeboarding. Uh apparently you're also fond of soccer and ping pong. Uh, what sport can't you do? What sport uh do you not uh have interest in?
SPEAKER_00Well, I haven't found the sport that I really haven't found interest in. You know, I'm still looking for the day. You know, I mean it's just really fun. I enjoy, I mean, this this camaraderie of sports all together, you know. You can go outside with your friends, go kick a soccer ball around, or you know, you can go hit a lake during the summer weekends and you know, get hit a lake day and you know, wake surfing with all the guys, you know, listening to music, just having a good time, soaking up the sun. Again, or um last year, I mean, it would be during technique after technique Thursdays. Um, me, Logan Loya, and uh Jacob Simpson, we would all just kick the soccer ball around. And you know, those are two offensive guys that I'm connecting with. So again, this is the camaraderie of how the sports in general are. I that really is what attracts me too, is this again what the camaraderie is. Yeah, snowboarding is a little different. Snowboarding gets my mind away from everything. I like to put my earbuds in, you know, this go down a hill. You know, there's there's not a lot of feelings like that. You know, you can be by yourself and you can go down the hill and just like you can just you can just float down a hill. There's not a lot of feelings like that.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Snowboarding, I know people who've hurt their shoulders and torn their knees. Is that something where you like you go out, you're like, uh maybe your coaches are holding their breath if you're going out and doing that thing? Is that but you just kind of a daredevil approach to it?
SPEAKER_00Uh well, I've been doing it probably since I I want to say I was around like 10 years old. So I've been doing it for a while. Uh it's not like I haven't like just gotten the sport. But when I go out there, I mean I go out there and just like I go out there and just go down the hill. I don't go too fast. I just I don't do no tricks. You know, I don't go out there and impress anybody. I go out there for myself this to get my mind away, you know. If it's during the winter workouts, that's one thing on the weekends that I can just go out there, put some ear pods in, and just go go cruise. I'm not doing anything excessive. I don't want to, I'm not there to impress anybody. I'm just I'm there for myself, just to go have a good time. Not doing any tricks, not doing no rails, just some me time.
SPEAKER_05It's already impressive for a 280 pounder to be on a snowboard. Uh so that there is impressive. Uh so you don't have to impress anybody uh further. Um, you know, which of these sports do you think transferred over to playing DM? Which one kind of helped you with maybe lateral movement or leverage or hand quickness? What do you think?
SPEAKER_00Um, I think, well, basketball definitely attributes to that for sure. I mean, moving laterally, moving vertically, I mean being a defender, that that plays a big part in it. You know, uh, my coach always always had me guarding the one or the two or the three, you know, the guarding the best player. So, I mean, that that's a challenge in itself, and the competitiveness transfers over to the football. But then again, the lateral and vertical quickness that you have to move within football, and within basketball, it transfers. And then the hand a hand-to-eye coordination, that that means that's one of the best. I mean, football's a hand-to-hand combat sport. So, again, with my hand-eye coordination, seeing where the hand's getting punched for me, and being able to swipe or being a club arm over with violence in football, that played a big part. And uh, I I would say track attest a lot to uh me just getting in the weight room. My uh mean my freshman through senior year, um, I had my coaches, Coach Senior and Coach Fowles. I mean, they pushed me every single day to be in the weight room. In my first two years, I didn't want to be in the weight room in high school. I mean, I wanted to be a basketball player. I was like, I don't, I don't need weights. I want to go play basketball. And they got me into the weight room, and that that elevated me so much to gain gain muscle and gain weight in the weight room and be a stronger person when it came to the football season. Actually, me just liking to be in the weight room. So I would say track would attest to me just enjoying working out so much and getting better in the weight room and getting better just running wise and all that.
SPEAKER_05Well, you certainly passed the eyeball test uh coming off the bus, that's for sure. I meant to I wanted to ask you one more question about playing defensive end. In this day and age, uh the quarterbacks are getting the ball out so fast, right? So I I I was thinking that you know the 12 and a half sacks uh is impressive considering that. And I think overall, like the the number of sacks in the country are kind of coming down because of the fewer plays, uh, right, and uh the balls are coming out quicker. As a defensive end where it's a quick passing game and maybe there's not much for you to do in that play, how do you just keep your head in the game when maybe you're not much of a factor in some of those situations?
SPEAKER_00You know, just understand that uh the game's not about me and me and it's about the football team. You know, when I take my rep, I gotta take pride in stepping on the field and wearing the block M on my chest and stepping on the field with my brothers and taking my rep the best that I can, you know, whether that's me affecting the ball game, my hand up on a play action pass, or me just simply saying the edge and then converting the pass. And not, and again, again, it's not it's not about me, it's about the team and how can I help my team be successful and the most successful when it comes to that play in particular. So again, not getting frustrated that, well yeah, they're getting the ball out too quick, or the ball's not coming to my side. But when I get the opportunity and that opportunity arises for me to go sack the quarterback, I take the most of my opportunity and I make that play when it comes to me. So again, just not letting the play be me being selfish and saying that it's gonna, no, I gotta get mines, I gotta get mines now, but I gotta be patient in knowing that you know I'm taking my job to help the team, and then when my play comes, I gotta make that play.
SPEAKER_05Thanks for that insight. Uh well let's wrap things up and get you out of here with some rapid fire questions. You ready?
SPEAKER_00Hit me with it.
SPEAKER_05Alright. Speed rush or bull rush?
SPEAKER_04Bull rush.
SPEAKER_05What's a better feeling? A strip sack or a third down stop? Weak side or strong side?
SPEAKER_04Strong side. The best O lineman you've ever played against. What do you love the most about college football?
SPEAKER_00The family the family aspect of football.
SPEAKER_05What's one rule you change in college football?
SPEAKER_00I want to change any rule. Probably the celebration. Probably to celebrate more. Choreographic choreograph dances together with me and my teammates. Get a sack, and then we all start start dancing together.
SPEAKER_05As far as like the celebrations, who's do you have like a role model or somebody that that you that you is particularly innovative in this area that you uh uh enjoy watching?
SPEAKER_00Um I mean, I love watching everybody get to all do all their celebrations, but I think like when it comes to like all of us celebrating, I think Jackson Howard on the on our football team, you know, we always talk about this celebrating together. You know, he always has some goofy dance or he has some goofy saying that like what is it's always in the back of my mind, you know. If I if I end up getting this sack, you know, what did Jackson talk about in the hot what do we talk about in the hotel? So again, just you know, just talking with Jackson, talking with my teammates in that week, you know. So I would say my teammates, my teammates inspire me.
SPEAKER_05What's a sport you play if football didn't exist?
SPEAKER_00Uh sport that uh I would throw discus.
SPEAKER_05What's your favorite part of that?
SPEAKER_00I think it's so rewarding, like I think it's really rewarding, all those practices, and then when you get the competition, you know, you're with your coach, you talked about it all week, and and you finally put it on the field, and there's there's a feeling when that discus comes off your hand the right way and you know it's you know it's the throw, and then like and then you get the confirmation that you know you hit that number, there's there's a lot, there's not a lot of it. I would say it feels like a sack. It feels like a sack. That's what it feels like.
SPEAKER_05Uh I've always thought the discus was a great way to assess a big athlete, right, to see what their feet were like. Did it take you a long time to do that spin and get everything uh exact?
SPEAKER_00Yes, it did. It took me, I mean, it it took me it took me two years, and then my senior year I started putting it together. Uh shout out to my coach, my coaches, Coach Faust and Coach Senior. I mean, they they they stuck with me and got my feet right.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. That wasn't a rapper power question. I was just curious. Uh what would you do for a living if sports didn't exist?
SPEAKER_00I would sell boats.
SPEAKER_05Sell boats.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, I would sell boats.
SPEAKER_05You thought about this, I guess.
SPEAKER_00Oh yeah. Since I was little, I thought I always thought I wanted to sell boats. My grandfather had boats, I was like, boats are so sick. Or I would be a principal. I would be a principal or I would sell boats. One of the two. Divergent. I got two different paths. I got two different paths.
SPEAKER_05All right, cool. Uh okay, finish this sentence. People would be surprised to learn that I that I can really cook. What's your favorite dish? Like, what do you what's your best dish to cook?
SPEAKER_00Uh my favorite dish to cook is chicken marsala with mashed potatoes and like roasted Brussels sprouts or grilled Brussels sprouts.
SPEAKER_05How often do you do you eat that?
SPEAKER_00Um how often? You know, it gotta be gotta be for like Mo and my friends, or it gotta be for a special person. So I'd probably say like three times out of the year, I'll probably make that a little more, maybe, if I'm feeling at it.
SPEAKER_05So if we smell the Marsala c coming from your place, we know that you know you know who it is.
SPEAKER_00You know it's number zero.
SPEAKER_05Nice. Well, Anthony Smith, uh, thanks for coming on the Heisman Hopefuls podcast. Great talking with you. Really enjoyed uh everything you had to say. It was uh uh really fun. Uh good luck on Thursday night and good luck the rest of the year.
SPEAKER_00Thank you so much. Thank you for having me. Thank you guys.
SPEAKER_05Our next guest is a 6'2, 304-pound offensive guard from Cartersfield, Georgia. He is a fifth-year senior for the Houston Cougars. He spent the first part of his career at Tulane. You might remember those great Tulane teams from a couple of years back, the one that beat uh USC in the Sugar Bowl, for example. He is currently uh preseason All-American. He's already been a two-time AAC uh all-conference player, uh, just an outstanding athlete overall, a jumbo athlete, great wrestler. Uh, we're gonna talk to him, find out as much as we can about his move to the Big 12 and what it's like to be an elite offensive lineman at the collegiate level. Well, Shadray Hurst, welcome to the Heisman Hopeless Podcast.
SPEAKER_06Yes, sir. Thank you all for having me.
SPEAKER_05Okay, so you are now uh getting close to the first game of the season, Oregon State in uh in Houston uh at 11 a.m. on ESPN. Uh what's the mood of the team like? And are you really excited for this game?
SPEAKER_06Uh-huh. Yes, I say we're all pretty pretty excited, you know, just going through, you know, the off-season and everything. It's all the grind and everything. So just really getting to the season, like where it where it really pays off. It's been it's exciting to exciting, exciting to be here.
SPEAKER_05Sure. Uh, how do you like living in Houston so far?
SPEAKER_06Yeah, it's it's it's been nice in Houston. I'm not gonna lie. It's a little hot, but I kind of kind of used to it because I was in New Orleans prior to it. So used to used to the humidity and how hot it is, but it's been it's been a little heated. Um, it's been nice, good people out here. Um, I've been eating a lot of food. I've been I've been putting some weight on since I've been out here. Like a little bit, bit too many pounds.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, I was gonna ask you, how's the how's the Houston food scene out here?
SPEAKER_06It's pretty good. Uh yeah, I got there's a few spots out here that I just I enjoyed it. But um, yeah, I pretty much put on like I was 316 the other day and I came here at like two high 280s, like 289.
SPEAKER_05Wow, so during the season, do you tend to lose weight or do you gain weight during the season? Some people do but one or the other.
SPEAKER_06Uh-huh. Usually, so usually I'm like a um a weight gain guy. So like usually I'm like always trying to maintain, make sure my weight's up during the season. Because like, you know, usually being like, you know, underside and stuff like that. But I mean, I don't think I'll have a problem this year here in Houston.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, for sure. You were from Cartersville, Georgia, also not an exactly cool place, pretty hot place there as well. Uh when you were in high school, you were 6'260. Uh, I saw the tape of you in high school. Man, you're bouncing around like you're on springs, uh, second level change of direction, all that stuff. Uh, I could see why uh uh college recruiters liked you, uh, but it seemed like maybe uh you didn't get a lot of the respect you deserved uh as a lineman. Uh at some point, uh they were thinking maybe that you might be a tight end, you might be uh short yardage back. There was all kinds of talk about what you would be able to do with your athleticism. Uh at what point for you uh did you were you able to kind of buy into being a lineman and specifically realize like how much weight you needed to gain so you can compete at the highest level?
SPEAKER_06Uh uh at the like at the college, like during high school time or just like door to college?
SPEAKER_05Yeah, like you know, you were 260 to come out of high school. When did you finally reach that point where you could like get big and strong, bigger and strong enough to, you know, to to survive at the college level? Because you obviously you can't really do that at 260, I would think.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, um, I say um really my freshman year, just getting like getting in tune with everything, just finding my way around, learning like, you know, learning new technique, learning, you know, um ways I can actually put on weight, you know, just taking advantage of like the resources that were around me. That's when I actually realized I was like, okay, I can actually do this. Um so pretty much like when I got to college, um, like prior to getting to college, actually. So I was trying to put on weight, you know, before I got there and stuff like that, just so I can, you know, be ready. So um I pretty much got there, got got to college about yeah, 260, 265. And then and then from there, um my freshman year, I jumped up about 285. Freshman year. So during that time, I got to about 285. So it was just learning, learning what to eat and learning like how to eat, just put the right things into my body to really just help me get where I want to be.
SPEAKER_05Now, were you always gonna be a left guard or did they look at you at center as well?
SPEAKER_06Yes. Um so I actually came to college to play center, and um, that was my original position. But um, just coming, coming from uh high school, playing right tackle, that was it was a completely different world playing center, like at the college level. So just making all the calls, just knowing everything. It was a lot for my freshman year. So then they bought me the guard, and then that's when I just really like started taking off a guard, just learning, and then from there, like just venture, just very like still, I still practice center and still snap every day, just things like that. So just really trying to stay keen on it so I can, you know, whenever the opportunity comes, I'll be ready.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, you're like the emergency third string center possible or fourth string center if something bad happens, right?
SPEAKER_06Yes, sir, definitely.
SPEAKER_05So you're legendary at this point uh for your feats of strength. Um uh famously made the freaks list, uh, number 61 on the freaks list for all your uh weight lifting. Attributes 475 bench press, uh, 415 hang clean. Now, a little bit of dispute about your squat. It's some I've seen somebody say 700, but I've also seen 655. What's can you clear the air on the squat? Like, what's your squat number?
SPEAKER_06Yeah, my squat was 655, 655. I wish, I wish it was 700, but you know, we'll go, we'll we'll go get there.
SPEAKER_05Is that that's one of your goals? You have like these weightlifting goals you're trying to reach?
SPEAKER_06Yeah, so always each each year I have a goal. So like just you know, trying to just keep progress of, you know, uh what I what I've achieved. So just something to keep me going.
SPEAKER_05For sure. Now what's what's your favorite lift? Like what's uh what really you know what one do you look forward to the most when you tie time for that day?
SPEAKER_06Uh definitely clean. I love I love power cleaning, hang clean, all the variations of cleaning I love it. Just this this really like it uh really emphasizes like the explosiveness. So like that's one of my favorites, just being able to like um just clean, clean a lot of weight because it's like a direct translation to on the field, just popping at your stats. So that's that's what I would definitely say that's my favorite.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, uh Connor Wagman says the whole team gathers around you uh to watch you at the rack. Uh do you like the audience or does that get in the way of your work?
SPEAKER_06Oh no, I love the audience. I I think like I love a little adrenaline, you know, with the little stuff, you know, that there's always a little boost, you know, to help me help me, you know, just achieve, you know, really like do the weight. So like I enjoyed it.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Well, I mean, there's so much to talk about uh with you about. Uh you're kind of a renaissance man. Uh uh, you know, you've uh obviously a great football player, you're uh tremendous uh uh athlete, you're a tremendous uh power lifter, you're a state champion level uh wrestler in high school. Uh uh at uh you were 24-0, your senior year, state champion. Do you do you miss wrestling at all?
SPEAKER_06Uh definitely miss wrestling. So uh I can't lie, wrestling was like my that was my favorite sport. Or kind of still is. I I really enjoy football. I love football, but wrestling, that's what I say, wrestling was really what got me here, actually.
SPEAKER_05Mm-hmm. Keeps helps you stay low, good leverage, bend your knees, all that kind of thing.
SPEAKER_06Yeah, yeah, definitely. Just um just being wrestling room is really like just it's a it's a ground in there, definitely. Like the uh coaches, you get in there, coaches they pump up the heat. Um, so it really like, really like works on your mindset, just like just having that dominant mindset to like, you know, really just go out there and compete, you know, at the highest level. Um so also just technique-wise, because wrestling is so like technique driven, so it allows you to just like you know pick up kick like pick up small details that somebody else may not see, and then also just like learning how to move like big people because I wrestled heavyweight pretty much uh for my sophomore year up, I work I wrestled heavyweight 285. And my sophomore year, I was only 215 wrestling heavyweight. So wow, it really, it really like teaches you, teaches you, you know, leverage and how to move big people, how to, you know, work word to attack and things like that.
SPEAKER_05So and I also gotta imagine like you know, there's these plays in football where there's piles and you're down at the bottom of a pile and and there's lots of scratching and climbing down there. And I imagine there's all kinds of uh nasty things happening. Uh heard all kinds of stories. Uh having that that kind of wrestling nastiness has got to serve you well in those situations, I would imagine.
SPEAKER_06Yes, sir. It definitely does. Definitely does. Just all those, all those high school, all high school wrestling matches, they definitely, definitely like have uh contributed to you know where I am now.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. To what do you credit your your development as an offensive lineman? You know, you went from relatively unheralded, uh, undersized linemen uh coming out of high school. Now you uh have gone from Tulane, where you've been incredibly successful there. Now you're in the Big 12. You talked about as a top prospect coming out next year. Uh to what do you credit this transformation that you underwent? Which is you see a lot of these kinds of transformations in college sport football. And but it's always great to see, right? To see someone develop over time. And and and what was like the biggest factors that really governed your ability to get to this level?
SPEAKER_06Uh-huh. Um, really, um just say I think um number one was taking the weight room seriously. That wasn't that was that was a big thing for me because uh you get in the weight room and you see, you look around and you're like, everybody don't take it really, everybody don't take the weight room that serious like it should be. But um I just really took that serious. Um running there, and you know, every time I go in the weight room, I'm trying to, you know, I'm just doing everything I can. You know, I don't miss a rep. I don't like missing reps. You know, I try to get the full workout done. Just um it's just, you know, I don't I don't really play around in um weight room. That's that was my number one thing. And then also um I had great coaches. Um one coach, um, I I give him I give him a lot of credit. Uh Coach Roshar, Dan Roshar up at uh he's the old runner coach at the bears now, but I was with him at Tulane for two years and he's an amazing, amazing coach. Like he's like tech technique, really technique driven, old school coach. So he's go he's gonna get on you, you know, just real, real, real, real good coach.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. I want to ask you about that, you know, talking about position coaches and something like the old line, right? The the techniques aren't a secret, right? Everyone the the techniques are what the techniques are, and different coaches have different ways of teaching these techniques, right? So so how does one coach is it just that they're have it have a different approach of communicating uh to getting through to you uh to get you to do the technique uh in a good in a you know a proper way? Or is it uh the the motivation factor? Is it the explanation uh or the emphasis? What is the difference between a position coach uh from one school, a position coach from another now that you've been to a couple schools?
SPEAKER_06Uh-huh. Um I say uh definitely just you know the approach to the approach to coaching, like some coaches are more so like hands-on, some coaches, you know, uh feel them, they go show you, you know, clips, this and that, like I want it like this, I want it like that. But um, I really say the approach, being able to like, you know, see, see um just being able to see it on video and then going out to really like, you know, practice it. Like I'm I'm a really like a hands-on type learner. So like I I want to, you know, get down and do it myself, you know, really just get a feel for it, see how it feels. So I say that's that's where it is, that um, and then just uh come some coaches are like more more technique driven, some some are not, some are you know, more get it done. If it does the job, you know, we can we can if there's something that does the job, we can we can use that. But um just really like the technique-driven coaches, that's where like you know, I really like it so that you know, just being able to take in, taking all the information, just taking all the small details, like every every little detail, like if my knee is supposed to be inside my ankle, just all every little detail.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, you know, uh there are all these details are things that not a lot of people who watch football really know about. What's one thing that you wish people understood about offensive linemen and the things they have to do? Because people always see when things go wrong right away. They're like, oh, that guy, you know, you didn't make the block and so on and so forth. Uh what do you wish was better communicated about your role in football?
SPEAKER_06Um, I would say more so just the importance, the importance because we're you know, we're kind of overlooked and stuff like that. So just um how important we are. I would say we're like, you know, the offensive line is like the foundation of the team. So like uh you don't have a good offensive line, then it's it's likely you don't have a good team at all. So like just um just having that good, you know, good offensive line to fall back on, you know, whether that's the passing game, run game, I say that's definitely, you know, definitely something that can be you know more emphasized.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, you know, I'm also curious. Uh coaches grade you, right? You have uh every maybe Sunday or Monday you get your grades. And are there plays where you you make the play, but you didn't do the assignment and and you still get dinged for it?
SPEAKER_06Oh yeah, definitely, definitely. If like the uh technique's not right, then you know it's still it still counts as um counts as a negative, technically. But um like some, yeah, some some some people, you know, it's some people are okay with you know if it gets the job done, but some, you know, you got some hardcore coaches that like, you know, that's that's not how we do it. So it's it's still not right. You got to correct it.
SPEAKER_05You know, there've been uh nine offensive linemen who finished in the top ten of the Heisman boat since college football went to two platoon, right? They used to play both ways. So some of those guys in the old days finished in the top 10. Seven tackles and two centers. Um there was a guy for Ohio State in 1973 finished second. John Hick, he was an offensive tackle. No guards. Um but uh which is a great motivation for you. You could uh you could be a guard in the top 10 of the Heisman vote. Uh what's the difference between uh what a guard's responsibilities are and let's say the guy on your left, a left tackle for you get for your system?
SPEAKER_06Uh-huh. Um I've I've I always felt like the guards help like knit things together. That's what I would I would say, just like um just really just keeping everything, you know, keep the flow, keeping keeping the flow. Like, because you have the center making all the calls, this and that. Like, you know, guard don't make too many calls, but like just knowing the assignment, just knowing where to be, uh knowing if the tackle needs uh help and protection, like that's that's really like you know, the guard keeps keeps everything in flow. That's what I always felt like.
unknownYeah.
SPEAKER_05Now if you now if there's a situation where it's like really loud stadium, you might be involved more in the in the calls, right?
SPEAKER_06Yes, uh, like um, like um our our right guard would be like if we had a loud stadium, right guard would be like, you know, helping with the cadence and stuff like that. But I played lump guard, so it's uh you know, if if the right guard can't do it, I'd definitely be able to be able to do it. Yeah.
SPEAKER_05So going back to those guys who finished in the Heisman vote, you know, we're we on this show, we interview players, the best players in the country. I don't care what your position is, punter, uh, offensive guard, linebacker, running back, quarterback. How can Heisman voters uh look at uh an offensive lineman and really assess or really quantify their impact on a game? Is there I I you know the the the gradings, the grades aren't released, the grades are for you guys, right? But I feel like there could be some uh metric, some public uh record so that people can say, oh, I know exactly what uh Shadre Hurst contributed to this game. Uh what do you think? Is there is there any way to get around that? Is there any way to shed more light to give you guys more credit?
SPEAKER_06Uh-huh. Um I say um really, really just like just the in the run game, in the run game, just really just seeing like how effective, how effective the person is in the run game, just seeing like, you know, if they're always, you know, um, always, you know, gaining ground, putting putting the fingers in, putting the fenders in um their in their backfield, and just really just getting getting getting getting moving off the line, really like, you know, um understanding and like playing with the flow, playing with the flow of Ryan. Um that's that's what I really say. Like second level, being able to get to the second level, you know, just having that type of control in the game, in the in the in the box. That's what I would really say.
SPEAKER_05Okay. Um, let's go to some personal stuff. You are the you have seven siblings. Are you the oldest? I was uh middle child, really middle child, you're saying. Oh the middle child. So you're fighting the you're fighting the people above you, fighting people below you. Oh yeah.
SPEAKER_06Oh yeah. It was it was um so um two two of my I have two younger siblings that are uh my step step brothers. So I still love them like my brother, blood brothers, and then I have also uh older sibling, he's 26 and he's a ham brother, and then um, and then I grew up with five like immediate like in the house with me. Well, it was five of us in in total, and it was uh four boys, one girl. I was the like dead middle in of those five. So just it was always, you know, five kids, it's always chaos in the house.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, that kind of maybe helps you learn to like work with like your O line now, right? You had to work with all these siblings. So the O linemen are like your brothers, right?
SPEAKER_06Yes, sir. Definitely, definitely. And it's it's actually kind of like perfect because I had five, well, four siblings, and then you know, you played with four of the offensive linemen. So yeah, it was perfect in that situation.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, for sure. Uh speaking of I called you a Renaissance man earlier. For one reason, look, you're you love to paint. Uh I saw your uh fantastic painting uh you you did uh online. What um got you into painting? Uh we were you always good at it? Did you take classes and how often do you do it?
SPEAKER_06Um I say uh really just from elementary. I had a really great like um art teacher and just she really got us getting creative in there, just all types of just doing all types of art projects from it uh canvases, all types of stuff like that. So that really stuck with me from like the elementary, elementary, um, elementary phase. So like um I just I I like to I like to paint uh every it's not an all-the-time thing, but like whenever I find some free time, you know, things are more slow, like offseason, stuff like that, then I can you know really like you know get into that. And it's just a way, you know, just a way to you know express yourself, just really just like let let go.
SPEAKER_05Mm-hmm. I heard uh you and your girlfriend recently cooked the whole Houston team a meal. How did that go?
SPEAKER_06That was that was great, actually. Uh cooking is that's one of my that's one of my things, right? I love to cook. Um so um I cook cook just about everything, but um, we pretty much we invited um we invited the running backs, um, offensive line, and uh really just D-line, whoever else wanted to come. So we just pretty much the entire team was invited. But it was we showed, I say about 25, 30 people made the show. And um we cooked. Um, so we did we got on the grill, we did chicken, we had hot dogs, burgers. Um, we had uh the size where mac and cheese. I made some like really, really good baked mac and cheese. Um baked mac and cheese, we had sweet potatoes, um, sweet potatoes, and uh what else? Oh yeah, oh yeah, we had we had the full, it was a it was a full plate. Like we could have we we did it.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Uh you're also uh thinking about being a pediatrician. Is that is that still the case?
SPEAKER_06Um that uh that was originally when I got to college. I was pre-med and everything. I wanted to be a pediatrician, but as things went on, I had to take more focus on football. I found I I ended up being you know better than I thought I was at football, actually. So I had to take it more seriously. And uh those chemistry and all those classes like that, it it takes a lot. So I had to had to have to dial back on that, but it could definitely be something in the near future, well, not near future, but out of the football on the road.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, yes, sir. You can't blame me, man. It's like uh doing great in football, might as well uh ride that for all it's worth, right?
SPEAKER_06Yes, sir. Get the most trying to get the most out of it as I can.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, going back to your transfer over, you're reunited with your coach Willie Fritz. Uh he's the guy that recruited you originally, right? Yes, certainly. What's it like being back with your original coach? Uh is it just feel like a great way to cap off your your career?
SPEAKER_06Uh-huh. Definitely. Uh definitely kind of full circle. Because like Coach Fritz, he we we he recruited me out of high school. We did home visits. Actually, um, the offensive line coach, he actually he he did home visits uh with me as well. And uh he's the offensive line coach here, too. So like with Fritz. So it's really like a full circle moment. It's a it's great, it's great to be back, you know, back with Coach Fritz. I love the way he runs the program. Um coach Fritz he's always got a plan. He's always got a plan, and he uh knows how to win. So that's what that's what was really it was really important to me. And I knew Coach Fritz for that, so that's what it just felt like home.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Well, what's your favorite part about playing college football?
SPEAKER_06My favorite part, um I really I really enjoy the games. Uh really enjoy the games, playing in the game, just getting a thrill and everything. But I think the best part is the best part is after the game, um, just going back, you know, Sundays, being able to just go back and watch the game over, watch the little things, you know. If you made a made a good block, then you can go go watch it over and this and then I I I really enjoy that.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. I'm kind of wondering, like let's say you have an 11 a.m. game on Saturday, you'll be the game will be over by whatever three. Getting showered, you're heading, heading home. Uh are you like watching a replay at night? Are you just kind of waiting a few hours? Are you just tired? You want to relax, watch other games. What are you doing on uh especially with a game out early? Like, what do you do on the rest of your Saturday?
SPEAKER_06Yeah, I'm definitely running the game back. I like to watch the TV copy just to see like, you know, to get see the comments, hear the commentation, just stuff like that. Uh just see like see get the uh audience perspective on you know how I did and just seeing what seeing seeing what they highlighted on there. That was really that's really the main thing. Uh, but I'm like, as soon as as soon as I can watch that TV copy or that run the film back, I'm definitely doing that. So right after the game, if it's in there, I'm going to watch it.
SPEAKER_05Do you get to watch like the all 24 on your own, or do you have to wait till like everyone's watching together together?
SPEAKER_06Um, nah, typically I can I I can watch it at home. Uh, but like we we um usually run it back as an online. Like we'll go back and watch, you know, do corrections and watch the film on Mondays. So like we'll watch it all together. Then and but uh other than that, like I like to go ahead and get get ahead, you know, watch it and just see see what was going on out there.
SPEAKER_05Yeah. Do you ever like um watch the the tape or the replay and something happened that like would when it happened in the moment, like from your perspective, you thought it it was one way, and then when you watched it on film or on the the TV replay, it was completely different?
SPEAKER_06Yeah, that's definitely. There's been times of like, okay, I don't know if I had a good game. Like this, this game, I'm not sure about this game. I don't think I did as good, but like sometimes when I go back and watch it and it's just like, okay, yeah, I was I was up there moving them. Like it was that was that was a pretty good game there. It was way better than what I thought. Yeah, because I I can be I can be a little hard on myself at times. So just going back to watch it, it was kind of this reaffirms it.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, that's probably why you're so good because you are hard on yourself. Um, I've always wondered, like, so you're a player, you're playing, you're on the field. Everything that happens to that game is from your perspective. You're on the field, like some some plays you probably don't even see, right? Like there's some play, maybe you're on your back and you and you hear the the the crowd, and then you have to wait till you till you see the game, you know, see the game on replay to see what actually happened. And everybody who watches football has like this bird's eye view of like, and when they remember the game with this bird's eye view, and you're you remember the game from this field view. And I remember when I played like Little League football and I would dream about the game or things that happened in the game. There was always this weird, distorted field view. Do you get the same thing where like you you like you just have or it's kind of like I I kind of compare it to like when you go see a movie and the only place you can sit is in the front row, and so you got a really bad angle on on the movie, so you don't quite see the movie the way everybody else did. Uh, do you get that same experience?
SPEAKER_06Uh yeah, yeah, I'm definitely gonna say that in a way, yeah, because uh just you know, being out there, you already occupied blocking and this and that. So like you don't see, you don't see too, you know, you don't really get this like experience the game in the way that you know somebody in the stands will see it. So like just really pick up on like, you know, these key passes, this and that, because like some most of the time I'm you know, I'm blocking, and you know, they make a they make a chunk chunk play or something like that, then I'm I'm I'm just getting to the next play. Like I'm rushing down the field to get to the next play. I'm not really, you know, I don't really know what's going. Well, I know what's going on, but I I can't really like you know view it like that.
SPEAKER_05Yeah, yeah, for sure. Hey, what's the who's the toughest defensive lineman you ever lined up against?
SPEAKER_06Uh toughest ever. Um I had a chance to go against um what was his name? Uh Florida. Um it was a Florida defensive lineman. He was like 400 460 pounds or Desmond Watson. Yeah, I had a chance to go against him, and that was that was I had to I had the acre down that game. I say that definitely. I had the acre down. He was a pretty, pretty big dude. Um he was he was he he could move well to be 460 pounds too. So he was uh he was he was a challenge. Because he had no he was a nose, right? Uh yes, sir. Uh-huh. He actually he ran he actually ran the ball that game too.
SPEAKER_05Oh that's right. I remember that play. That was that was insane. So you're were you like uh on that kind of situation where you got this four 460 pounder, are you mostly like double teaming with the center? Are you just uh for most of the time?
SPEAKER_06I love I love the thrill for like the ring game. I love the ring game. Like um like I get a lot of um I get a lot of uh credit for my transportation, but uh I feel like my run game, that's running the ball, that's that's my thing right there. Like I love I love that a little bit. Just getting the thrill, you know, going out there blocking, moving people, being able to just move people against their will. And that's that's just that's that's a different feeling right there. Um uh like we do during the season, definitely. Uh last year, like on average, I was about about at least about six six pancakes in a game on average.
SPEAKER_05Nice. Uh okay, so who else on the Houston roster do you think would last longest against you in a wrestling match?
SPEAKER_06Um that's that's a good question. Uh uh, I really honestly we don't I don't think we have too many wrestlers that was, you know, that's been you know out there actually wrestle, you know, at a competitive, like really at a good at a high level. So like I'm not sure, you know, if anybody can, you know, stand stand that like you know, it it might be you know uh just a one-round type match. Who's the best cook on the offensive line? Best cook? I think I'll take that, but um I heard that it was a turn in um turtle. I think uh yeah, Travis, I think he can cook turtle. What's the last thing you cooked? The last thing I cooked. Um, so I actually uh I actually cook breakfast every day. So um I do like uh breakfast potatoes and I throw eggs in there, usually two eggs, and then I have like a uh like a cabani uh little protein shape go down with it. So um uh breakfast, uh some breakfast potatoes and eggs, that's the last thing. Yeah, sir.
SPEAKER_05That's your kind of standard go-to breakfast, huh?
SPEAKER_06Yes, sir, it is. It's that that one that one's really it's really helped me a lot. Just keeping weight on, just just being able to, you know, put on muscle and stuff like that. That's really that's really I give a lot of credit to breakfast. Like breakfast is a big thing if you want to put on weight, put on muscle or anything.
SPEAKER_05Most important meal of the day, they say. Uh okay, I have a last question. It's kind of kind of wacky. Uh, you're a Houston cougar, you can squat 655 pounds. An adult male cougar they weighs about 115 to 220 pounds. Would you ever consider squatting three adult male cougars?
SPEAKER_06I mean, if we can we can set it up, I'll do it. Yeah, we can uh we can find a way to set that up, I'll definitely do it.
SPEAKER_05Well, Shadre Hurst, thanks for taking the time to come on the Heisman Hopefuls podcast. Had a lot of fun with you. Appreciate you being a good sport. Uh, good luck against Oregon State on Saturday. Good luck to the rest of the season, and uh, hopefully we'll see you down the road. Oh, yeah, thank you. It was nice, nice uh nice to meet y'all. I appreciate y'all having me. Well, that will do it for this week's episode of the Heisman Hopefuls podcast. Special thanks to Bo Pribula, Anthony Smith, and Shadray Hurst for joining us. Thanks to those schools for setting up those interviews as well. Be sure to follow the podcast on Spotify, Apple, or wherever you get your podcast, and we'll see you next week.
