Reed Blankenship

welcome to exciting mics our new show where we will be giving you guys insight and access to anything and everything this is reed blankenship i'm cooper dejean and we're talking philly sports eagles football golf music fashion cars nba wnba pretty much anything going on in the sports world or just in the world in general

anything's possible if you put your mind to it work hard so we're going to give you guys a little insight to how we got here you know in our our stories and along with some of our guest stories watch like comment share and subscribe on youtube and whatever you listen to on your podcast at exciting mics exciting mics m-i-c-s

You're the oldest, youngest? Yeah, so I'm in the middle. So I got one older brother, you know, and then I got four sisters, three younger than me and then one older than me.

Yeah, so, like, you know, when my dad was home, like, he kind of made it easier for my mom. But, you know, when he was away, it was times where, like, you know, I wouldn't even see her sometimes. You know, I'd come home from school and she'd get laid off from work. But, you know, she's a grinder, you know. She's where I get my work ethic from, you know.

So, you know, I really appreciate her, you know, for all she's, you know, sacrificed, you know, the time and the effort she's put in, you know, for me and my family.

No, no, she's not working no more.

Yeah, she ain't working no more. She retired, man.

That's big time, bro.

I would say the end of my junior year. I got my first offer from like FAMU and then I just kind of just kept going up from there. How many offers did you have? Do you remember them all? Yeah, so I think I had like 12. You know, I got my first offer because like I used to go on Twitter and I used to just like follow coaches and then just like comment.

I just like all their posts so, you know, I can get recognized and stuff like that. And then after that, it just kind of, like, blew up for real.

I took my first visit to Illinois. Then I went to Toledo. Did you say Illinois? Yeah, Illinois. Then I went to Toledo. I went to Arizona State. Then I went to Rutgers.

Yeah, you know, they was always there. And then, you know, Coach Kendall and the whole coaching staff, you know, they're my guys. So it's kind of just like just gravitate them to and fro. Are they still there? Yeah, Coach Kendall's still there. I got a different DB coach, but Coach Kendall and the strength coach, Coach B, they're still there.

Five?

Did you start every single year or no? No, the first year was COVID, so we didn't have like no fall camp or nothing like that. How many games did y'all play that year? I think we played like six. It started like in November. So I got my feet wet that year and the next year I started and after that it just kind of like took off for real.

Yeah, final three.

Yeah, it's just that mindset. You know, when I first got on campus, you know, I felt like, you know, I was the best DB there. You know, also, we had, like, older guys there who, you know, who was playing and stuff like that. But, you know, once I got on campus, you know, I knew, you know, this was a real thing for real.

Nah, nah. It only happened my last year where, like, we was really, like, getting, like, paid and stuff like that. But other than that, I don't know.

college we said like glass like we know like the glass city the glass city yeah a glass city glass and stuff like that it's always snowing up there yeah yeah it'd be real cold were there were there other like colleges like bigger colleges trying to pull you away from toledo yeah my last year they hit me in the twitter dms and stuff like that but i ain't really like paying stay loyal stay loyal yeah oh my god i like that man it's hard to find that now

Yeah. I feel like it's two sides to it, though. Like, you know, some people got to transfer, you know, because that's just what they got to do. Yeah, right. You know, on the other hand, it's just like chasing a bag and stuff like that.

Yeah, dude, it's crazy to even talk about chasing a bag in college.

Yeah, I was with my mom, you know, my three little sisters, my grandma, and then my head coach, my strength coach, and then my DB coach and the grandma. And they stayed with you the whole day? Yeah, yeah. At the beginning, like, we had to go and, like, take pictures and stuff like that. What time did it start?

Yeah, man. It was a chill day. I had to go there. I got ready at like 5. Then I had to be there like 5 to red carpet and interviews and stuff like that. Then we got to the green room like, I think like 7.30. And then the thing rang at like 8. And then that's when it kind of started and everything like that.

Nah.

I like that. What was your fit? I forgot your fit. I think I had on like all black.

I'm all black kind of guy. I don't like all black or not. Did you get a chain made for the draft? Nah, nah. You didn't? Nah, I had on some jewelry. Okay. Or whatever. I gave it back. Yeah. You gave it back? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I gave it back.

I was calm, bro. Like, I didn't even cry. You know, I didn't tear up. I was really just, like, mad. Like, you know, I was ready to be off the board for real. Felt like I was sitting there forever. But, you know, I was calm. You know, my people, they cry and stuff like that. But I was cool for real.

Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. I don't know why he kept throwing the ball, but. Who was it?

I forgot the quarterback name, but. Who was the team at least?

Yeah, NIU. Yeah, NIU. NIU. Yeah, and that's the game where I kind of like, you know, took off. You know, my confidence got way higher. I can only imagine. What year was that? I think that was 2022. Your junior year?

Yeah, it was my breakout year. And then my last year was kind of like just my, like, double down year.

Just, like, locking in for real.

I thought Coop was quiet.

But no, y'all are, y'all are both quiet, but y'all have.

No, it was probably last year when we was doing, like, box drill. Honestly, bro. Like, box drill. I feel like box drill is crazy, bro. Man, we need to get a video of box drill, bro.

That one cool all around the world.

Yeah.

Yeah, I was trying to get my feet wet. Yeah, I just wanted to compete, bro. That's some of the best of the best, though.

I just knew, like, you know, if I go out here and lock them boys down, like, you know, I'm going to be straight for real.

I don't even know how that started.

Sick, though. It was like, I think it was Quintanamo, and then I think it was like Quintanamo Bay, so it was like two of them.

Yeah, I feel like it's cool, man. Didn't somebody give you handcuffs?

Yeah, we're finna drop some this summer and before the season, so...

Yeah, I'll say. Or most challenging. AJ. AJ. Smitty. And I feel like me and Terry had some good battles, so I'll say them three for real.

That's what helped. You know, we had Jamar, CeeDee. Yeah. You know, we had some guys, bro.

We got some guys this year, too, though, for sure.

Yeah.

Man, I ain't sleep the whole night. Your phone was probably blowing up. Nah, I wasn't partying, I was at the crib. I was just up all night. I couldn't even go to sleep, I was so excited. That was Green Bay, right?

When did y'all talk about that? It had to be like Wednesday or Thursday.

Y'all didn't tell anybody. Nah, we don't be telling nobody.

Hey bro.

He jumped in the air and I was already on the ground. I was in tears when I saw that. I rewatched. I'm like, cool. What are you doing? Cause he already on the, he already on the ground.

I don't know. It's just thinking on the side.

Oh, dude.

I'd probably say just do something outside of football, honestly.

Like I said, I'd just be chilling at the crib. So, just probably just get out more and just do something fun for real.

I be on YouTube all day.

I just be listening to music. On YouTube? Yeah, telling a couple podcasts, but that's about it. Podcasts? What kind of podcasts do you listen to? You know, exciting mics.

Yeah, I just be chilling. Ain't nothing to do for real.

I had a cat in college.

Bear. What kind of cat? It was a Maxon cat, but it's kind of like my cat too.

Like an orange cat? No, it's like gray cat. It's like black. Like blackish, grayish, something like that.

No, it's like skinny.

Yeah. Agile?

Man, it's just great fans, you know. That Atlanta game, when we was running out and... That was the first time... Running out, we got announced, yeah. Running out and when CD made that hit, bro, it was just live and it was crazy. It gave me goosebumps, man. I just feel like, you know, the fans great and the city great for real, so yeah.

We played on, like, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

They all have a Mac, right? It'll be, like, low attendance. But, you know, early in the season, like, we'll probably get, like, $25,000 or something like that. Wow.

I don't really think I'm noticeable. I think you're more noticeable than me.

Yeah, I usually have my hood on if I go to Target or something like that.

I can get stuff from Target.

Oh, no, no. I eat from the facility.

Yeah.

Sometimes. It ain't really nothing in there, though.

You know, stuff that I need.

I remember, like, I woke up at like 8.30. I went to Chick-fil-A. Like, I made a little chicken biscuit. And after that, I was just drinking for the whole day. But I just remember getting on the bus and then getting off the bus. And then Avante and JB was trying to be there for me. But...

I'm glad I ain't saying nothing crazy.

Nah. I think I snuck on the mic after everybody was leaving and said a little something, but that was about it. I think I do remember that, actually. Do you remember what you said? I think I said, like, Cunhaimo Bay or something like that. Everybody was leaving. Why didn't you go up there and speak?

You were stuck. Yeah, I was stuck.

I think the biggest thing, you know, technique, but like, I think the biggest thing is just like learning defense, you know, I mean, like saying, you know, CP and then I'll read, you know, and then you like all the moving parts to us. I know where my help is at. I know where I don't get help at.

Then, too, it's like I know what you're thinking, you know what I'm thinking.

No, I don't really know. I mean, I've seen the schedule, but I ain't really like getting in the beast. You're just going to show up and play. Yeah, I'm just going to.

Just ready to put in that work for real. That's about it.

Shout-out to P. Nick, though. That's my guy.

Oh, I did forget about that.

I did forget about that.

I was jumping in the crowd. I just felt free.

I can caddy. You don't want to play golf.

Mm-hmm. Initial thought, it's really good.

I like the bread.

Let me try that chicken one.

It all matter. We're brothers. That one right there. Good gosh, dude. Good God, man. It's pretty good, ain't it?

I just remember getting on the bus and then getting off the bus and then Avante and JB was just trying to be there for me, but... Go!

Appreciate it. Appreciate it.

You know, it's just like a small town, you know, everybody know everybody, you know, playing football in the church yard and stuff like that. So maybe it was a great, you know, a great experience. I feel like I learned a lot, you know, from being from a small town. So, I mean, it was good growing up, I'll say. Did you play football your whole life?

Yeah, I started playing football when I was, like, six or seven. You know, my dad introduced me to football. I used to watch football with my mom, you know, as a kid and stuff like that. So, yeah, I started playing when I was, like, five or six.

What would you call that? Was this Pop Warner?

First it was WYA, then Pop Warner.

Yeah, so when I was younger, I used to watch, like, all the football games with my mom and stuff like that. She a big football fan, so she always watching games and stuff like that. So, yeah, she kind of, like, kind of put that in my head for me to, like, you know, want to play at this level.

Oh.

You know, it was always a dream, but, you know, coming from that small town, you know, like, not too many people made it for real, you know, especially not in football. You know, I think we had, like, one in baseball, one in basketball, but, like, probably in college, you know.

You know, I always knew I could do it, but, you know, when it became, like, really real, you know, my last couple years at Toledo, for real.

Yeah, you know, we had, you know, it's a small town, so it's kind of like, you know, a lot of people who should have made it, you know what I'm saying, but didn't. But, man, we had a lot go to college, but, you know, ultimately, you know, they came back and stuff like that. So it's kind of really the first one to, you know, like go out and stick with it for real.

Yeah, man. So I was getting recruited by like everybody, you know, and just growing up, like going through high school, kind of had like a great situation or whatever. And I just feel like they kind of just stuck me through the whole process. So like I had to sit out like six months after I graduated or whatever. And yeah, they just stuck with me the whole time.

So when it was time for me to go, that's why I chose Toledo.

Nah, I'd say it's just colder, but they both kind of like laid back in their own kind of way for real. Yeah.

Yeah, so, like, my first two years, I didn't go out at all. You know, I just stayed in the dorms. But, you know, when I was, like, a junior, senior, you know, we would go out to, like, bars and, you know, stuff like that. I don't know what's in Toledo, honestly.

Yeah, I think it's like 45 minutes from Detroit. But yeah, we did.

No, I know we played y'all in the Bahamas Bowl. So you were there? Yeah, I was there. Were you playing? I don't remember you, but I don't remember what you were doing.

I think that was my second year, my second year at Toledo.

Yeah, so my dad, he's always been there for me. But, you know, growing up when I was younger, you know, he was kind of in prison. But I think when I was in elementary school through middle school, he kind of got out for like four or five years and started a youth football team called the Williston Raiders and really just groomed me and my fellow, what do you call it? Friends. Yeah.

It's football players, man. And it's kind of the reason why I love the game today because of him.

He was, like, real tough on me. You know, he held me to the high standard, but, you know, I loved him, and I appreciate him for it. Yeah. I mean, you can tell now. I mean, first-round pick.

You know, I got to say Slay, you know, a guy who I've always, you know, modeled my game out there. You know, was blessed to play with him for one year. You know, with guys like, you know, Pat Sertan and Derek Stingley. You know, the list can go on and on for real.

It was good. You know, at first I was kind of mad because I was in the green room for, like, forever. What pit was it? 22. 22. Yeah, so I was there from like 8. I didn't get drafted until like, I would say like 10, 30, 11. So I was kind of there like all day. So I was pissed off. But, you know, it turned out in my favor, and I was glad I got drafted here. Loved it, bro. Great year, too, dude.

Where were you? Who's that? But no, man, it's a... I'm telling you, it's different. It's different, right? The locker room I feel like hasn't changed. And you know what?

See, I like how you think about the business side of it, man. Yeah. You're a businessman. Thank you.

You're on the sideline like... Everybody on the sideline was going crazy. I have never witnessed anything like that before. I'm a grown man. I've been playing the sport for a long time. I have never seen that in my entire life.

Yeah, if it said something in my contract, like a little extra.

It's just crazy to think about. The BG with Tom Brady play.

You know, it's going to be one of those.

I would love to represent that, yeah. Where is it going to be in 28? L.A. Oh, it is in L.A., isn't it?

It gets tough because you... You try to learn all these different schemes, and then you don't have any consistency. And it's like, oh, I've got to learn the playbook again. Like, I don't want to think.

You know what I'm saying? Right. And that's with every position. I know quarterback will probably be way more intense. Yeah. But just from kind of my experience, yeah, it's tough.

Oh, he threw the football over the thing? Yeah.

Because you want to hear, like, in your head, you're like, okay, what's the coach about to call? Right. trying to get on that same page. When you don't have any path to follow, that's how I like to do it, then I'm just lost. But if I kind of understand, okay, this is what he likes to do.

Yeah, I think my freshman year in college and then obviously my rookie year was the two like hardest times. But like my freshman year in college, I went to Walmart and got like a whiteboard, like a little whiteboard. Yeah. And I would sit there and draw plays up. Me and my roommate would sit there and draw plays up. And just route match, do, like, calls and everything.

And that kind of started, I guess, how I processed things. And you learn from that. Like, you find a way to learn things. And that's what I kind of did my rookie year. You know, me and N'Kobe Dean would sit in the hotel room, you know, sometimes and try to talk through certain things. And it's a different type. I mean, especially a rookie, it's different. Like, this is...

You know, the big dogs, and you didn't really play this in college a whole lot, so it's a whole new learning experience.

Yeah, I guess we were a little nervous. I was. I was anxious.

No, he – that's one thing about him especially. He learned it fast. He learned it fast. And he asked questions. Yeah. He asked questions in the meeting room.

Yeah. Like, we just want to see people have success. Vanda Pharmaceuticals is a global biopharmaceutical company with headquarters in Washington, D.C.

It's just two guys talking on the podcast. Two guys chopping it up. We have special guests here and there, but it's just the first episode. I think it was good, though, that we were by ourselves because we were allowed to kind of just talk about...

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They listen, they want to work. That's the crazy thing. First round, this, that, the other, man. They came ready to work.

They came ready to work.

Undrafted, what?

I love them. That's what I'm saying. Like the big thing for me is just listening because I was an undrafted guy and I had Slay, you know, James Bradbury, Marcus Epps, like all these – Anthony Harris. Right. All these old guys. guys and they took me under their wing and they knew I listened and I was going to follow in their footsteps and that's why I try to do now and that's what they're doing.

They just want to learn. They want to ask questions and they're not scared to ask questions and that's the biggest thing. Go find that one, two, however many people that has been in a league for a few years and just understands the system and just follow them.

We got that. We can do that.

Now, the other stuff, that's what we're trying to learn.

That other stuff is like.

But, I mean, you got to think, though, we travel well with fans. So, I feel like every game is going to be a home game regardless.

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It was crazy, though. Never hit me. Didn't hit me. Walked in our field house and saw some of my old teammates and my old coaches. I'm like, oh my gosh. It's starting to feel real.

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So like what's your like all-time favorite Eagles players?

Then I get out. And I hate when stuff is about me. I hate being just the center of attention. Yeah. Um, and I started, I had a speech on my phone, you know, I had bullet points anyway. And my fiance. Did you read it straight off your phone? Dude, no. Well, it was crazy. So you know how sometimes they don't recognize your face, your phone. Yeah. And it went straight to the password. It did that.

And then, like, what? Was it the next drive or the next?

No, well, I'm talking about another pick.

I'm glad we got him back.

He's such a great player.

Great dude.

That was a rough game for me. You remember you texted me after the game? Yeah. I'm like, very good.

Because now we Super Bowl champions. It doesn't even matter. He was frustrated. He was like. How'd it look? Because I had a concussion, and I had to watch it from home. He's like, how'd it look, man? I know. He's routing me up. He was working my ass off. Working. Yeah. Dude, don't worry about it, man. You're fine. If that's the only thing.

What was your welcome to the NFL moment? Man, like the 23 kind of season is how it went. You know, you got your – It was like 10-2, man. It was 10-2, and then you have that fall off, and you're like, oh, my gosh. Like, and then the fans, you know, start getting into it, and you're like, well – You either grow from this or you just walk away from it, you know.

I mean, you know what? Screw it. I'm fixing to just do this from the heart. And I was already tearing up. Fixing. Yeah, it was from the heart, but it was great. It's always better that way. It's always better, man.

But that whole, I guess that whole season in general, just learn a lot from it.

Just chopping it up, man. It's cool to get to know really in-depth who you are as a person, as a fan. Like we say, we see you all the time now. Thank you, man.

We listened to our fans and someone suggested Exciting Bites.

Yes. I like that.

It is very well put together.

They started flowing. I say flowing. I was teary-eyed, voice was cracking a little bit when I was looking at my family, my family fiancee in the front row. And I'm like, golly. You know, like, they have supported me this whole time. And, yeah, man, it hit home. And then I flew through the rest. I didn't want to take anybody else's time, you know.

What?

Eight is very... Look, when's a perfect, like... You know what? You have your own rating scale. Exactly. I have mine. And I will.

Oh, Reading. Oh. She's from Philly? Like the Reading Terminal?

That's my why. Came from a small town, too. I don't even know when the last person to go to college or to the league in my high school. So, you know, you go back home to that small town, you're like this superstar, this superhero to all these little kids. And you're like, man, I went to the same high school or school y'all are going to.

You know, it feels cool because, like you said, it doesn't matter where you are. You can just live out your dream regardless. So, yeah, definitely, like, my family, they push me. They drive me to be the best version of myself as possible. And then you meet some more people on the way, like my fiancee. She's my rock, and she puts up with me during the season.

I'm a stress ball, so she puts up with me. Well, thank you. That was a great question. That was a great question. Thank you for that. I love that. You're going to get us emotional over here.

Any other job other than football? Well, what I want to do after I'm done is be a farmer. Would you have guessed that?

Okay. I'm just making sure there ain't nothing going on. But, yeah, definitely a farmer. Yeah, that's about it, man. That's really exciting. Farmer Brown over here.

That's so freaking generic.

So is your jersey, like, up in the school or in the gym or where? So my jersey is in the front office, but I have a banner. above there's only two jerseys retired mine and a girl's basketball jersey and um yeah we're the only two we're up there together in the gym in the gym nice that's pretty cool

I don't think it's as exciting as – No, you – yeah, I respect you for that. Yeah. For sure. That's huge. Keep doing that, man. Yeah. Yeah. We appreciate you. Thanks for joining us. Thank you.

Our next guest is Miss Sasha. What do you got for us today?

I was trying to fish that personality out of him a little bit. And, you know, once I finally got it out of him, I'm like, okay, I know who he is now. So I can roll with this guy.

That's huge. I'm glad he's kind of getting the respect that he deserves. He comes to work every day for us. It's a different atmosphere. And we talked about it in our last episode, but it's like he wants that college-type locker room. That's what I love about it, yeah. And it's always that open-door policy, too. I mean, it just goes far beyond him as a coach. Like, it's like X's and O's, man.

You're trying to teach these young – they're still young guys. You know, they're 21, 22-year-olds. I mean, you're 22. Yeah. And I still have a lot to learn, too, on the business side and just being a family man and a husband someday.

Yeah. No, I mean, he preaches what he coaches. I mean, even at home.

You know, so he's doing everything right. And obviously it shows. And, you know, we're glad to have him still.

And I'm Reed Blankenship. We're excited to have you back for a special guest episode featuring true Philly royalty.

So what was it like growing up in Philly?

Never, never in my entire life.

I've always wanted to play for a passionate fan base. Now that wasn't, I just want people to come to the games, like, be excited. Hey, these people.

Remember to follow Exciting Mics on all platforms. Like, comment, share, and subscribe on YouTube and wherever you listen to your podcasts. Let's get started.

John.

Yeah, so we just saw the NFL is now starting to allow football players to join the Olympics in 2028.

Like, the climb to get to that point. Yeah. But when we were 2-2. Yeah. It was, you know, it was like, what, this is 23? Well, you know what I'm saying? Go to bye week, and it's just game after game. Just practice, meetings. We just put that in our mind. Yeah. And we faced so much adversity, even though we were winning. We were on the stretch. that was still challenging. You know what I'm saying?

When we get to the Super Bowl, we do it, we win it, and we're like, I like the climb to get here. Let's do it again. Yeah, absolutely. So I think we're handling the success part. Because it's easy to handle losing and adversity and all that. That's what we are prepared to do. You have a lot of success in your life. You got to flip the script.

Yeah.

You can't pull a man.

It's crazy.

I love it. Yeah. First thing I hear, first thing I hear if I'm going to range. So you go 56, you got a 60, 56. I just go, I got 56, 52.

Got a little basil leaf on there, too. I threw up.

But usually they don't matter, though.

But you're not that, like...

26.

I had Met Gala.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Yeah. Like it made it better.

Could the Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl winning team from 2024 versus one gorilla win?

First segment of Exciting Eats. We're going to have to come check it out again. Absolutely. Let's chat a little bit about the Super Bowl this past season before we get too far ahead and we're starting the next season. What are some of your favorite memories from this past season? The whole run.

Dude. Not just the Super Bowl, but the whole run.

M-I-C-S. We're going to do a little segment each and every week talking about what is exciting that we did or that we saw

Oh, yeah. 2,000 yards in the season. Crazy. Jumping over people backwards.

It's probably only with him though. It's gotta be only with him.

I think I was, yeah.

I just remember seeing the video of everybody on the sideline reacting and going crazy.

I think Smitty's catch in the back of the end zone was that same game, too.

That's kind of a crazy game, actually, now that I think about it.

We were up, and then we came back, and we were up again. N'Kobi's interception to seal the game.

I think, and then, I mean, after the bye week, just the way everybody came together and our defense started working together. Then that run we went on. And then having a little hiccup in the road at Washington. Yeah. Things like that, I hate to lose. There's no way we're going to win however many games in a row.

It was almost like a fresh start.

It was kind of like kicking the tail, I would say. Then everybody coming back, and we got it rolling, and then into the playoffs. Who did we play first round? Green Bay Packers rematch.

That felt like three years ago. Yeah. Felt like a long time ago. Long time ago. You weren't. Then we got the snow game. Snow game.

Have you ever played? You played in the snow. Never played in the snow. Wow. From Iowa, but never played in the snow. It was probably the most fun I've ever had on the football field.

Yeah, they had to change their cleats. They were blowed, what do you call that thing? Leaf blow in the snow. Leaf blow in the snow. Off the field in between, like during the timeouts. Yeah. That's how much snow there was on it. And it, like, start off the game, there was no snow either.

13?

Went off. I think, and then Saquon's run in the end zone. The long run he had where he was banging.

Crashed, yeah. That was sick. That was sick. And then, obviously, coming away with a win. Yeah. That was one of our tougher games of the season. Rams. And then, who did we play? Oh. Dude.

I know. I literally dropped one against Washington. I dropped one against the Rams. Hey, you came through, man. I guess it may not have been the Super Bowl.

first time it's pretty exciting what about you my exciting moment i got to go to the kentucky derby this past weekend probably to meet any of the horses i didn't meet any of the horses no like shake their hand or anything no no no but i i got to see him up close like who gets the credit on that you know like deep thought like who gets the credit like like is it the horse or is it the rider

Was it back-to-back? It was pretty close.

It was pretty close, but the Super Bowl was just crazy in general.

It's a very exciting event. Being able to go in there and win it the way we did after what happened two years ago.

When we went on the sideline and tearing up a little bit. Wait, during the Super Bowl? You were crying in the NFC Championship game. That's what I'm saying. Like, when we won. Yeah, dude, you don't have...

and i i didn't i mean i didn't know what how to celebrate i mean it was my obviously it's a you watch football you watch football your whole life and you dream of getting to the getting to the top and then getting there and i mean at the end of the day it's just another game with a lot that's how you go into it but then once you're holding the lombardi trophy oh my gosh this is like what i've been dreaming of since i was a kid watching i didn't even know i was gonna go to college you know

And now you're playing in the Super Bowl.

I was messing around on the field. I don't even know what I was doing. I was. I was trying to get it. They gave me a birthday cake after the game, though.

It's probably the best birthday I've ever had.

It's got to be. I mean, are you kidding me? Scoring a touchdown in the Super Bowl on your birthday and winning the Super Bowl, most importantly, on your birthday. It's pretty insane. Crazy. Did you get in the locker room pretty early? I don't know.

I think it's a team, just like football. I think you've got a trainer, you've got an owner. Kind of a lot of moving parts, right? You've got the horse, and you've got the jockey. Would you go again? I can go back again, yeah.

I didn't even get to pop any champagne that night, I don't think.

I got in. Someone took my goggles from the locker. Yeah, but I got them back, but. I walked in and I immediately walked to the back room and I found some... The equipment guys?

Found some beverages where the equipment guys were hanging out at. And got a cigar.

Lit it up.

I don't know. I think it did kind of hit me then a little bit at the parade, just seeing the amount of people that were there. I've never seen that many people. Because it was what, five and a half miles long? I have no idea, but I've never seen that many people in the streets of one city and just celebrating a football team like that.

Yeah, it was packed. Packed? Right when we left at Citizens Bank. Oh, yeah, it was. It was packed already. And that's when I got called Coop.

It's probably one of the best sporting events I've been to.

you got hit in the face right by your own self yes i was wearing a a big chain huge on my around my neck and i was running what kind of chain was it it was a chain with a beer can on it i like it is bud light a sponsor or no I was wearing a chain with a beer can on it. Did you like throw something or try to catch something? I had a beer can in my hand and I was throwing beer on everybody.

Yeah. Wow. We're going to have to get you there next year. Yeah, I'm going to have to. Bring my horse in there. Now we're going to get into some quick hitters. First question, could the Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl winning team from 2024 versus one gorilla win?

The fact that you were just going at it and it just hit me right in the eye. You probably still got a scar. I probably do.

I know it felt good.

I got to walk around with the trophy, celebrate with the fans. I got a sick ass. I got a sick WWE belt. Is it like, wait, did I say that? Yeah, it's the heavyweight champion of the world. I don't remember. You watched WWE? Yeah. Yeah, I was rocking the world heavyweight champion. What was your...

Dude, 619? Yeah. Rey Mysterio.

I just got some merch in my locker from someone sent me Rey Mysterio merch. Dude.

You still watch it? No. Wait, did you go to WrestleMania when it was here? No. Forgot about it. You're not a real fan, though. I know.

Well, I forget sometimes, man. Anyways, back to the parade. Sorry, my fault. Let's talk about our little speech that we tried to debacle. Oh, my gosh. Yeah. Do you want to go first on this?

So we got introduced as the exciting whites. Whites. At the ceremony at the statue, the Rocky statue, the steps.

I don't want to do this by myself. Get Cooper. So me and Reed go up there to this podium and we tell them to turn the music on and they turn it on and it's at like the wrong... It's the wrong... They started like halfway through the... It's the wrong thing.

It was just butchered. And we messed it up. And it was just... And then we went acapella there for a second.

It was just... Yeah, I don't know. It's just... But then we gave a little speech. A little nice speech.

Undrafted from Middle Tennessee.

that like just shows how much philly just loves the support of the parade insane yeah it was insane dude there were people on top of garbage trucks oh yeah on top of buildings garbage trucks just didn't care i remember the first our first home game against atlanta monday night i drove into the this is a monday i drove into i was driving into the facility

No, it's like 8.30 Eastern time.

And they're out there at 9 a.m. already partying, tailgating, getting ready for the game. There's no way they made it in the game. They're diehards, man. That's okay. They're diehards. I love it. I've always wanted to play for a city like this.

always you'd rather have you rather play for a city like this than for a city that like the fans don't yeah care true you got a point yeah you'd rather have you know they we hear it when we're struggling a little bit yeah they keep us they keep us honest man yeah early in the season and this is the realest fan base realist i'm not just saying that this is definitely the realest fan base like 100 let's talk about

rings the fat ass rings dude oh my gosh i cannot wait i can't wait either well you got you got one already but yeah it's like second place yeah it's cool you can't it's not like big it's like this one's gonna be like this one's gonna be like right double the size which finger did you get on uh ring finger right ring finger right ring finger same i think actually

really i think i got all my rings i'll say all these rings i don't have a lot but uh yeah i got bro when is it it's coming up in like a month june 6th ring ceremony june 6th ring ceremony gonna be dressed to the nine let me dress yeah i wonder what they're gonna look like i haven't had like somebody i hope i don't even want to see i kind of wanted well i've talked to a couple of people

No, I'm joking.

No, I can't. I guess. All right. But I'm excited for the ring ceremony, though. It's going to be a blast. Should be.

You don't really do a ring ceremony in college. True. So it's going to be fun, though.

Shout out Middle Tennessee. Shout out Middle Tennessee. Fun fact, when Reed was at Middle Tennessee State, they played the University of Iowa and did not win.

Leading from our nation's capital, Vanda was founded 22 years ago to develop innovative therapies to improve the lives of many, utilizing technology including genetics and genomics to inform drug discovery and development.

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Vanda Pharmaceuticals, innovate in the service of people's pursuit of happiness. Speaking of the ring ceremony, our boy Reed is about to have his own personal... Two rings, one year. Personal ring ceremony, yeah. Yeah.

We circle the gorilla and come at it at once. So we'll have a circle of guys. And then another circle.

Do you think she knew? Did she know it was coming?

I'm not going to be the first one, but I'm not going to sit in the back and watch. I don't know, man. It's going to take a whole squad. It can't just be one-on-one.

That's awesome. Now we're going to go have a good time at your wedding? Yeah, yeah. It's going to be great. Another exciting event that just happened. Another exciting event. The NFL draft. Yeah. What do you think? I mean, what were you doing during the draft in your year?

Yeah. I say we mix it in. We go some of the big guys up first. Or we just circle a gorilla and come at it at once. Okay.

100%.

Yeah, that's how – I mean, like when I got drafted, I had like a big party in my hometown and everything. But – which was pretty cool. But like the first –

first night of the draft when i was i was kind of expecting to get drafted the first night and it didn't happen i mean it was it was a little disappointing but i mean it's all about how you look at it i mean i feel like i woke up the next day and was just excited obviously a little disappointed the first night but i just then i realized like someone's gonna pick me up and i'm gonna have an opportunity to to go play football somewhere which is

which is awesome, and I was able to celebrate with my family and a lot of close friends who were from my hometown and from other places as well who came to my draft party, which was awesome. That's the fun part about living in a small town. You make a lot of good relationships.

Everybody knows everybody. You make good relationships. A lot of people who have impact on your life, and a lot of those people were there.

Hold on. So we'll have a circle of guys and then another circle.

Were you mad? I was a little disappointed. I got like, swear to God, I got like 30 different prank calls from all over the place. They were from most of them. A lot of them were from the East Coast, like Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Florida. They're from all over the place. But I was the first one I got.

i was so they had like nfl had like cameras set up in my at this uh little barn dominium type thing i was i was at the camera set up i get a phone call and these people were good they they say they sounded just like them the green bay packers are on the clock and oh my god they say this is so-and-so from the green bay packers And I start walking over to sit in my seat in front of the camera.

Yeah, they flip the lights on. Is it your local news channel? No, this is like the NFL. Oh, wow. See, I don't know anything about this. They flip the lights on. I'm sitting down. And then I figure out it's a prank call. Oh, man.

turn and look i was like never mind it's a prank oh man and then sitting there through the rest of the first round getting all the prank calls was really upsetting right and then uh come the second day i was still getting prank calls so i ended up not even answering the eagle's call when i uh crazy

i got drafted they had to call my agent and luckily my my agent was there like how did you feel like when your name or when they called you they wanted you i didn't even know what to what to think i didn't even know what to say yeah i was saying thank you thank you thank you thank you yeah dang it was uh it was a pretty cool moment though being able to talk on the phone and uh you know watch watch your name get called on

That's sick. And BG getting to call my name, which is pretty sick.

I forgot about that. That's a little cool detail. Eagles legend. Yeah. Calling my name was awesome. Damn, that's so cool. Speaking of prank calls, I feel like there was a lot of guys who got prank called this year. I've heard of a lot of guys who got prank called.

I think we got him. If the gorilla runs away, then obviously we win.

like that's your moment i know you know that's your moment i don't understand why people do it would do it they just uh like how do they even get it well shooters i mean there was some yeah like behind the right yeah that's that's a different story but like yeah i don't know i don't know how the people who called me got my number but it was uh i don't know it's it's tough though because especially me going through it and then

We're going to get him.

Especially him. He was supposed to be a top five pick. Yeah. And then he goes to the fifth round. But, you know, you kind of feel bad for him that that happened.

Tom Brady? Yeah, I did see that. That's sick.

We got some good rookies in our draft class.

Yeah, we got him. You're still sticking with your decision of staying in the back?

Let's talk about our GM. Mm-hmm. Mr Howie Roseman hmm

yeah absolutely no he's uh hey buddy hey buddy hey buddy every time every time every time he's uh he's awesome though great at his job great at his job gotta be he might be best in the league yeah I would think so. He's got to be up there if he's not. I mean, I don't know who's better. I don't know either, but he's pretty good. Yeah. He's pretty good at his job.

Me? Yes. I would not. I'd be right up there with my dogs.

Our next segment on the show is a rapid-fire Q&A. Today is the first episode, so we don't have – We don't have questions from you guys out there watching, but we'll be picking questions and people out of the comments to come join us on our beautiful show and be able to ask us some questions.

Put a timer on you. Yeah. Rapid fire. Better have your questions ready when you come join us. But we got some questions now that we came up with to ask each other. So... We're going to get that rolling right now. We've got two minutes. First question. What's your go-to song before a game? Listen to My House and My Moment. Are we going back and forth here? Yeah, yeah, yeah. All right, Piano Man.

Q will be up there. I think Q will be up there. The most important position group in this fight, I think it's got to be the linemen. Got to. I mean, I've seen Jalen Carter move past.

Piano Man's mine. Really? How many points could I drop in an NBA playoff game? I think I'm getting at least six points, and I'm definitely getting some assists in there. So, yeah. What's the weirdest DM you've ever gotten? I don't know. I don't know.

some girl some girl made a whole presentation and sent it to my marketing team via dm they made a whole presentation on why why i should go on a date with them so wow okay if you could swap swap lives whoa if you could swap if you could swap lives with any other athlete who could it be For a day, who would it be? LeBron James. No way. Swear. LeBron James? Are you kidding me?

Come on. We got 40 seconds.

You can pick anybody. You pick me if you want. No.

um oh my gosh slay slay slay big play slay um would you trust me to babysit no future child i would trust you to babysit my child that's different i would trust your fiance to yeah she's my child yeah she's golden with the locker room had a talent show what would your act be i would probably just do some dunks i can juggle can you juggle i'm not i'm starting to realize i'm not really cool bro

I have a pretty good singing golly I'm not cool that was our rapid fire rapid fire Q&A oh my god you got two minutes when you come on the show so yeah obviously better have your questions ready and my co-hosts will be better at answering them next time yup god that's awful

Remember to like, comment, and subscribe on YouTube and wherever you get your podcasts. Drop your questions in the comment section below and you could be joining us on the show next week to ask us live in the episode. We appreciate your love and support and we will see you next week.

I got us.

I got us over anybody, especially a gorilla.

You know what.

No, what did you say?

The only cheesesteak I've had was from Angelo's. And you know what's a really good cheesesteak? What? Barclay Prime. Really? You ever been there? No. Ain't that like a fancy restaurant or am I just tripping? I don't know. It's kind of.

If the gorilla runs away, then obviously we win.

I like whatever they give me. Okay. I like the seeded. Yeah, the seeded's fine.

Shout out to Cooper Cheese. You gotta try it. You gotta give me some.

We're going to get him. Welcome to Exciting Mics, our new show presented by Vanda Pharmaceuticals, where we will be giving you guys insight and access to anything and everything.

They're on most of the cheesesteaks.

No, I get mine plain.

And I said, I got to keep my weight down. We can talk about your problems later.

I think some people, when they come up to me, they'll be like, they'll say, go birds, dickhead. uh yeah yeah a lot of people yeah a lot of people i don't know if we can put that in there it's like a lot of people so that's like i like john john's probably one of my favorite because john john is that how you say it john did you say john or john john is john john

And I'm not... Philly, South Jersey. It's water. Water to them.

I fucking heard this story 10 times.

Every time I watch the show, I'm like, dang, that's like my ancestors.

Fun fact about Reed Blankenship, he claims to be 85% Viking. You never know.

That's why I got a social security number. All right. Martin. Make this your best season yet with nutritious two-minute meals from Factor. Eating well has never been this easy. Just heat up and enjoy, giving you more time to do what you want.

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Order for flash delivery or pickup and get your order in as soon as 30 minutes. Shop now at AcmeMarkets.com or in the Acme app. Our next segment is called Exciting Eats. Philly is a huge food city, a lot of great food. So we're going to be checking out some local spots, rating the food. We're going to have a scorecard. We're going to sign it. Hopefully, we'll get it up at the restaurant.

But today, we got Skinny Joey's, a new Philly cheesesteak spot. We're going to try it out and rate it. And rate it. Yo, Skinny Joey's. Yeah. I'm here, brother. Yeah. Let's go. Enjoy, man. Thank you. So many things. Can't wait.

Open her up. It's like I'm opening something from Christmas. They got stickers on it, too? Skinny Joey's cheesesteaks.

Oh, I like the bread already.

I like the bread. Looks crispy.

I love it.

I mean, the presentation's good. I like it. I like the bread. The bread...

It smells good. Is this just like a plain cheesesteak? What do we got on here? Just cheese and... So you ready? Cooper Sharp!

We got the Cooper Sharp in here.

Skinny jellies.

Skinny jellies. Shout out, jelly. You can carry away. All right, here we go. All right. You're going to cheers it? Yeah, this is your first time having Cooper Sharp, too. I think so, yeah. Skinny jellies. Here we go. Here we go. Taste test. There we go. Cheers, my brother. Mm-hmm.

Mm.

I like this bread, too.

That's a good cheesesteak. The bread is really good. I like the bread.

Anything's possible if you put your mind to it. Work hard. So we're going to give you guys a little insight to how we got here, you know, in our our stories and along with some of our guest stories.

You got too much in your mouth.

What's your rating here? What are you rating Skinny Joey's? Dude, I might have to give it like a... Hmm.

like a 8.2 8.2 dude it's freaking good i'm not like i'm telling you right now the bread you're setting the standard i'm setting the standard high or the for the bar of yeah of all the foods that were like i feel like that's pretty critical score i don't know i feel like it's better than an 8.2 but you feel like it's better 8.2 i think I think the bread's the key because the bread is really good.

But I think they could pack more steak in here.

I think you get a little more steak in here and a little more cheese on it.

I would love a little more cheese and a little more steak, I think. I'm good with the steak. All right. But you said 8.2. I said 8.2. I mean, I'd probably go... You're saying 8.2, I mean... Dude, it's good. All right.

8.2?

man dude it's it's honestly really good no i can't go any point i feel like it's 8.6 really 8.6 on my scale i like it it's really good yeah keep eating it i know i'm freaking good 8.6 on my scale 8.2 on reed scale reed claims it's really good but he gave it an 8.2 so dude